Michael Psellos

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Michael Psellos and his pupil Michael VII. Dukas

Michael Psellos ( Middle Greek Μιχαήλ Ψελλός ; * 1017/18 in Constantinople ; † around 1078) was a Byzantine universal scholar , philosopher and historian at the imperial court. He carried the honorary title Hypatos ton philosophon (" Consul of Philosophers"). To distinguish him from the Byzantine Emperor Michael Psellos II , he is also referred to as Michael Psellos the Younger .

Life

The scholar's baptismal name was Constantine; as a monk he took the name Michael. His nickname Psellos is derived from ψελλίζειν psellizein "lispeln", but the etymological relationship is not certain.

Psellos came from a middle-class family who had a few patricians and consuls on their father's side, but were not particularly well off. His mother Theodota, on whom Psellos wrote an eulogy, was clever and virtuous and cared very much about his upbringing. At the age of nine he was already reading and interpreting Homer . Psellos is said to have looked like his father, handsome and "slim as a cypress". He was educated in Constantinople and acquired an extensive general education ( enkyklios paideia ). After money was used to provide his sisters with a dowry, the family could no longer pay for his education, and Psellos accepted a job as a clerk for a Philadelphia judge . After the sudden death of his sisters, he returned to Constantinople. His teacher was Johannes Mauropous , who later became Archbishop of Euchaita . Through the mediation of his fellow student Konstantinos Lichoudis , a minister of Emperor Michael V , he came to the imperial court as secretary, where he quickly made a career, 1041 clerk at the imperial court in Constantinople, 1043 private secretary of Emperor Constantine IX. , he later became a judge. Under Constantine IX. Monomachus he was one of the most influential figures in the empire. Among other things, he was State Secretary, Grand Chamberlain and secret councilor. He played a role as kingmaker (and annihilator) in the accession of the emperors Constantine X. Dukas, Romanos IV. Diogenes and Michael VII. Parapinakes.

Under Constantine IX. he withdrew from court with his friend Johannes Xiphilinos and entered the famous monastery on Mons Olympus in Bithynia (Chronographia CXCI – CCIII), but had no real vocation for the spiritual life. The successor of Constantine, Empress Theodora III. (1055-1056) called him back to court, where he held important state offices under her and the following emperors. He worked as an advisor to Emperor Isaac I Komnenus , whom he persuaded to resign in 1059. He stayed at court in the following years, was even active as an educator and probably played a key role in the overthrow of Emperor Romanos IV. Although he had remained loyal to the Dukas dynasty , he was sidelined by Michael VII in favor of the eunuch Nikephoritzes . After his school friend Konstantinos Lichoudis became patriarch in 1059, he had Psellos detained in the monastery of Narsou on the western edge of the city for neglecting his spiritual vows. It is even believed that Psellos wrote the Chronographia to make Lichudes inclined again. After Michael VII's abdication in January 1078, nothing more is known about his fate. Under Nikephorus III. Botaniatos he passed away alone and in disgrace, his daughter Styliane, his teacher Niketas and most of his friends, such as Konstantinos Lichudis, Konstantinos Dukas and Johannes Xiphilin, had died before him.

Spiritual life

As a private teacher, Psellos was highly valued by his students and was considered an intellectual. He was certified as having an exceptionally good knowledge of ancient authors.

He became professor of rhetoric at the University of Constantinople and professor of philosophy at the restored academy. He played an important role in the reorganization of the University of Constantinople in 1045.

Michael Psellos was highly educated and left an extensive body of works. He is still considered one of the most important Byzantine historians today.

Influences

Psellos was a great admirer of classical antiquity and a supporter of Neoplatonism . He had knowledge of poetry, rhetoric, history and geography, law, philosophy and theology, mathematics, medicine and natural history. He made a name for himself in every branch of science of his time. Among his literary models were Demosthenes , Isocrates , Aristotle , Thucydides , Plato , Plutarch , Lysias and Gregory of Nazianzen .

Works

Compendium mathematicum , 1647

The authorship of Psellos is not guaranteed in all works. Authors like Allatius assume three to four authors whose works are known by this name. Others distinguish a Psellos the elder, who was active at the beginning of the 9th century, and a Psellos the younger in the 11th century.

He wrote in the Koine , the Byzantine written language of his time. It was the language of scholars, and in many ways mimicked the grammar and vocabulary of classical Greek. His language is lively and artistic, but often unclear and sometimes difficult to interpret. It is considered difficult to translate.

Chronographia

The Chronographia , his main work, treated the Byzantine history from the accession of Basil II in 976 to that of Nicephorus III. Botaniates 1077. It thus continues the historical work of Leon Diakonos and is primarily written as an imperial story. Psello paid particular attention to the court and the intrigues there. The Chronographia is written in an extremely subjective way, yet it is written in a very lively manner. The first part, from Basil II to the reign of Isaac Komnenus, was probably written between 1059 and 1053, perhaps at the suggestion of his friend Konstantinos Lichudis. For the Byzantine Middle Ages, his historical work Chronographia was considered a prime example of living literature, which is full of cynical and humorous passages.

The work has survived in a single manuscript (Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Grec 1712.), a beautiful copy in minuscule on parchment from the 12th century. Some words are very corrupt. The first modern edition of the work was published in 1874 by C.-N. Sathas (Bibliotheca Graeca medii aevi IV, 3–299) without any critical apparatus, a second edition by J.-B. Bury appeared in London in 1899. This work was translated into French by Émile Renauld under the title Chronographie ou Histoire d'un Siècle de Byzance (976-1077) (2 volumes, Paris 1926-28, Collection byzantine . Parallel edition in French and Greek). The English translation by ERA Sewter (London 1953) is also available online (see web links).

Other works

Michael Psellos, De omnifaria doctrina in the Florence manuscript written in 1347, Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Plut. 86.15, fol. 162r

Psellos' other works cover a wide range of topics: In addition to several hundred surviving letters, he dealt with philosophy, (primarily theoretical) medicine, theology and other areas, in works that were partly written for teaching.

  • De omnifaria doctrina
  • De operatione daemonum (published by Boissonade , Nuremberg 1838)
  • Seven eulogies , among others, to his mother Theodata, his daughter Styliane, his teacher Nicetias, his friend Johannes Xiphilinos and the metropolitan of Ephesus, Nicephoros.
  • Panegyric poems on Konstantinos Monomachos and John of Euchaita
  • Poem on grammar (Boissonade, Anecdota Graeca III, Paris 1831, 300-228).
  • Ponema iatrikon , metric paraphrase of the medical manual of Paulus of Aegina
  • approx. 500 letters

Reception and appreciation

Karl Krumbacher laments Psellos' servile character and unscrupulousness in the choice of his means. Alfred Rambaud praised his patriotism, but criticized his lack of political stability. His English editor Edgar Robert Ashton Sewter considers him vain, scheming and dishonest, but patriotic, warm-hearted, loyal, courageous and devout. John Julius Norwich calls him "unsympathetic, but still fascinating".

"" At this time a new sprout of Byzantine intellectual life fell ... Without a doubt, the metropolitan nobility who set the tone at the time were the most educated strata of the empire. Men of true and high education surrounded the throne, such as ... the famous philosopher Michael Psellos ... the most distinctive figure of that time. ... As a speaker and writer he was unequaled. In the Byzantine world, which is particularly sensitive to the art of speaking, his rhetorical gift was a weapon of irresistible power. As a politician, Psellos made extensive use of this weapon and she often misused in a way for which every judgment seems too mild. But no judgment is too high to mark the spiritual strength of this man. His knowledge extended to all areas and was an absolute miracle to his contemporaries. He was filled with an ardent love for ancient wisdom and poetry. ... The study of the Neoplatonists was enough for her m not, he found the way to the source, got to know and taught Plato. He was the greatest Byzantine philosopher and at the same time the first great humanist. "

- Georg Ostrogorsky , History of the Byzantine State

expenditure

literature

Overview representations

Investigations

  • Charles Barber, David Jenkins (eds.): Reading Michael Psellos (= The Medieval Mediterranean 61). Brill, Leiden et al. 2006, ISBN 90-04-15180-X .
  • Efthymia Pietsch: The "Chronographia" of Michael Psellos. Imperial history, autobiography and apology (= Serta Graeca 20). Reichert, Wiesbaden 2005, ISBN 3-89500-405-7 (also dissertation, University of Freiburg im Breisgau).
  • Warren Treadgold : The Middle Byzantine Historians . Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke 2013, pp. 271 ff.
  • Denis Walter: Michael Psellos - Christian Philosophy in Byzantium. Medieval philosophy in relation to antiquity and late antiquity. De Gruyter, Berlin / Boston 2017, ISBN 978-3-11-052597-7

bibliography

  • Paul Moore: Iter Psellianum. A detailed listing of Manuscript Sources for all Works attributed to Michael Psellos, including a comprehensive Bibliography (= Subsidia Mediaevalia 26). Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, Toronto 2005, ISBN 0-88844-375-7 .

Web links

Footnotes

  1. ^ Karl-Heinz Leven: Psellos, Michael. 2005, p. 1189.
  2. ^ Karl-Heinz Leven : Psellos, Michael. In: Werner E. Gerabek , Bernhard D. Haage, Gundolf Keil , Wolfgang Wegner (eds.): Enzyklopädie Medizingeschichte. De Gruyter, Berlin / New York 2005, ISBN 3-11-015714-4 , p. 1189.
  3. ↑ See the description of Ms. Grec 1712 in the Bibliothèque nationale de France .
  4. ↑ Robert Volk: The medical content of the writings of Michael Psellos. Munich 1990.
  5. ↑ Armin Hohlweg : Medical "Encyclopedia" and the Ponema iatrikon of Michael Psellos. In: Byzantine Journal. Volume 81, 1988, pp. 39-49.
  6. ↑ John Julius Norwich: Byzantium. At the height of power 800-1071. Econ, Düsseldorf and Munich 1994, ISBN 3-430-17162-8 , p. 8.
  7. ^ Third, revised edition. Munich: CH Beck 1963 (Hdb.d.Altertumswiss. XII, 1,2), p.270-271.
personal data
SURNAME Michael Psellos
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Michael Psellos the Younger (full name); Μιχαήλ Ψελλός (Middle Greek)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Byzantine polymath and historian
DATE OF BIRTH 1017 or 1018
PLACE OF BIRTH Constantinople
DATE OF DEATH around 1078