Fascinating revelations of the palimpsests

It is a fact that since antiquity papyri and more often parchment documents were reused. The process was rather simple: the original writing was erased or “obscured” and the new text was written over and across the old one, i.e., horizontally over the vertical obliterated initial lines. This practice was commonly applied until the Middle-Ages.

In an earlier blog, I mentioned the 65 Basel papyri among which an original work of the Greek physician Galen was discovered (see: The Greek physician Galen is still making headlines). Another palimpsest that constitutes the most complete surviving copy of an original book by Galen was found at the St Catherine Monastery on the Sinai Peninsula. It was written in Syriac and dated from the 6^th century but was hidden underneath a text from the 11^th century (see: Hello? Dr Galen?).

Yet, the St Catherine Monastery has many more treasures, and this time we are talking about 74 palimpsests containing unknown classical Greek mythological and medical works.

It sounds almost like magic to discover ancient classical texts through a translation in Syriac, religious writings in languages that have disappeared, or even detailed illustrations of plants, monuments, and people. All in all, the Sinai palimpsests count nearly seven thousand pages, penned down in ten different languages, hidden beneath writings from the 5^th to the 12^th century! The collection reveals manuscripts in Ethiopic and Latin, which is not surprising given the central role played by St Catherine’s Monastery in the Christian world up to the Middle Ages.

Example: (Overtext) Gospels in Arabic translation, late 8th century. 

The oldest surviving copy of the Gospels in Arabic translation. 

Scanned: (Undertext revealed through spectral imaging) Hippocrates, 

De morbis popularibus (Epidemiae), 6th century. 

The oldest surviving copy of this ancient scientific text.

Among these documents, the earliest surviving copies of several Hippocratic medical treatises have been discovered, as well as a hitherto unknown poem from ancient Greece mentioning Zeus, Hades, Hera, Hermes, and Persephone.

Obviously, we need the modern technology of spectral imaging process to illuminate the manuscript with different wavelengths, ranging from ultraviolet to infrared. Under the right circumstances, a new image appears that is readable from underneath the scanned content.

It must be terribly exciting to work on such a project and discover new texts or older versions of ancient documents that have reached us. Imagine lying hands on antique illustrations of medicinal herbs, or see human faces and figures reappear through the mist of time! Nothing short of a miracle, indeed.

[Both pictures are from the UCLA Library News]

Hello? Dr. Galen?

The physician Claudius Galenus, better known as Galen of Pergamon, was the most famous doctor in the Roman world of the 2^nd century AD and probably the most famous of antiquity.

He was born in Pergamon, where he studied, and he completed his education in Smyrna (modern Izmir), Corinth, and Alexandria. He learned his skills in his natal city while serving as an apprentice at the sanctuary of Asclepius. His main clientele was the gladiators, and through this work, he gained much experience in treating wounds of all kinds. This led to an unrivaled knowledge of human anatomy, physiology, and neurology. His fame was such that it reached even the imperial court of Rome. He moved to that city in 161 AD, where he became the personal physician of the emperors Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Verus, and Commodus. By that time, he had specialized in anatomy, physiology, pathology, pharmacology, and neurology, but he was also well-versed in philosophy and logic.

The influence of Dr. Galen lasted for many centuries as his works were translated first into Arabic and later into Latin. His comprehension of the anatomy and physiology of the human body was not surpassed till the 17th century. He borrowed his philosophy from Plato, Aristotle, and Epicurus and wrote an analysis of dreams seventeen centuries before Sigmund Freud. Renowned Islamic physicians, pharmacologists, and botanists heavily leaned on Galen’s studies. Over the centuries, many scholars translated his books, reviving his vast field of knowledge that was, by the 11th-12th century, taught at the newly founded European universities like Oxford, Paris, and Bologna.

 

It is evident that after almost two thousand years, Galen’s legacy has been disseminated among monasteries, madrassas, museums, universities, and private collectors worldwide. This makes it difficult to get a complete list of his works and almost impossible to know to what extent our books are complete. Lady Fortuna plays a vital role in such matters, and from time to time, new works or hitherto unknown passages are discovered.

Papyri and parchments were expensive commodities in antiquity, and in the Middle Ages, thrifty monks searching for writing support for their prayers effectively reused old parchment. They scraped off the ancient manuscripts to overwrite them with their Christian psalms and hymns perpendicularly to the initial writing. This process is called Palimpsest.

[Picture from SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory by Farrin Abbott]

One such Palimpsest surfaced in Germany at the beginning of the 1900s. Its origin has been traced back to the Monastery of St Catherine on the Sinai Peninsula. Close examination with special X-ray imaging revealed an underlying text in Syriac from the 6th century, constituting the most complete surviving copy of an original book by Galen. This text was erased and written over in the 11th century. 

Thanks to modern imaging and digital processing techniques, scientists and scholars have uncovered and studied the Roman physician’s original text over the past decade. Eventually, this precious evidence will be added to the existing high-resolution images made available online by the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries. This institution is collecting leaves from the same Syriac manuscript that made their way to different locations, such as the libraries at Harvard University, Paris, and the Vatican, to name just a few. 

The intention is to digitally reconstruct Galen’s book. This is a long-term project, considering it takes about ten hours to scan one single page. Only when these complex scans are completed will the research team be able to start analyzing the words and thoughts of this great physician to fit them in the context of the pages that are kept elsewhere.

Details on this time-consuming research can be found in the article “Hidden Medical Text Read for the First Time in a Thousand Years” by Amanda Solliday."

The fame of elusive Pelusium

When in 333 BC, Alexander took possession of Pelusium, situated on a branch of the Nile that has shifted since, it was a wealthy settlement as it contributed to his treasury with 800 talents (20 tons of silver and gold). It was his first stop in Egypt, as it was for all conquering armies before and after him.

Pelusium was not only the point of entry for invaders but also the departure point for Egyptian expeditions to Asia. In short, it was a place of substantial strategic importance and the second port of Egypt after Alexandria, as it served as a transit station for the goods coming from and going to the lands around the Red Sea.

Yet, despite its fame and importance in antiquity and the many sources, among which Herodotus, Polybius, Diodorus, Curtius Rufus, Arrian, Strabo, etc., the site of Pelusium, associated with modern Tell el-Farama has never been properly excavated. Antique sources describe the city as a bustling harbor with magazines and customs offices trading in salt, textiles, pottery, and fish. On the site, which is believed to be almost six kilometers long, we find the remains of a fortress and marble columns from a possible Roman Theater that closely resembles the one in Alexandria. There are remains of several necropolises, a hippodrome, fish tanks for garum, Roman baths with mosaics from the 3^rd century AD, a stadium, many temples, and even a military installation.

However, the little we know about Pelusium is now threatened by the construction plans for a massive canal through the northern part of the Sinai Desert. This waterway is meant to bring fresh water to the city of El Arish, 60 kilometers from the border with Israel. Unfortunately, in that part of the world, nothing is simple. As early as 1991, archaeologists launched a project to survey the course of this canal to pinpoint any site that may be worth recovering before being destroyed by the dig works or, if possible, divert the route to save vast remains. It is no surprise that by 2010, both the canal and the archaeological project have been put on hold.

It seems that ancient Pelusium will not soon resuscitate from its ruins.

[Pictures from Egypt Today]

Pella and Gadara, two more settlements for Alexander’s veterans

When Alexander returned from Egypt in 331 BC, he marched along the coast of the eastern Mediterranean. How close to the coast may be subject to debate, but the fact remains that he had to send foraging parties into the hinterland. Alexander must have depleted much of the local provisions when he marched his troops through the region the year before, as did the fleet that supported him and his troops on their way to Egypt, especially when crossing the Sinai. This being said, it is very plausible that his foraging parties had to move further inland when he returned. To that purpose, they must have exploited the lands east of the Dead Sea, Jordan River, and the Sea of Galilee, and that is exactly where we find cities like Gerasa, Pella, and Gadara, which are said to be founded by Alexander.

The founding of Gerasa has been treated in an earlier blog (see:  Alexander founder of Gerasa). Some 45 kilometers north of that city lies the town of Pella (previously Pihilum) known to be named in honor of the city where Alexander was born. Pella flourished in Hellenistic times as it became a regional power in the maze of trade routes running through the city. It has been established that Pella was largely populated in Hellenistic times as it was a hub for merchants crossing the region (see: Apamea, heritage of Alexander). Under the rule of Seleucos, the city was renamed Apamea after his wife Apame.

After the death of Alexander, Gerasa and the neighboring territories were annexed by the Ptolemies in 301 BC. At some time during the third and second centuries BC, the Seleucids took hold of the area and undertook a thorough Hellenization till by 64-63 BC, it became a Roman province. The Romans, to properly govern Judea and Syria, created a Decapolis (see: Alexander, founder of Gerasa), a group of ten cities that shared the same language, commercial relations, and political status. Each city enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy with its own Semitic, Nabataean, Aramean, and Jewish culture. The members were according to Pliny:  Damascus (in Syria), Philadelphia (modern Amman in Jordan), Gerasa (now Jerash in Jordan), Scythopolis (now Beisan in the Jordan Valley, North Israel), Gadara (modern Umm Qays in Jordan) and once the capital of this Decapolis, Hippos (on the banks of Lake Tiberias in Israel), Dion (probably near Irbid in Jordan, but not yet discovered), Pella (in the Jordan Valley, northwest of Amman in Jordan), Canatha (now Qanawat in Syria) and Raphana (probably north of Umm Qays in Jordan, but not yet discovered either). As part of the Decapolis, these cities shared the common political, cultural, and commercial interests of the other members and enjoyed their Golden Age that lasted for about 150 years.

The Romans left their usual buildings, like theaters and temples, along familiar colonnaded streets in Apamea. It is hard to imagine in today’s desert-like landscape that these cities were blessed with fertile soil and plenty of water, making them favorite stops on the busy trade routes between Europe and Asia. Let us not forget that besides goods and agricultural skills, Greek culture and language widely spread.

Another 30 kilometers onward, we find the town of Gadara, today’s Umm Qays, near the northern border of Jordan with Israel and Syria in the hills above the Jordan Valley. Since Gadara emerged in the wake of Alexander the Great, as well as Pella and Gerasa, it shares most of its history. It became part of the kingdom of the Seleucids, and we know from Polybius that Antiochus III ruled here in 218 BC and that Gadara was coveted by both the Ptolemies and the Seleucids, who captured and recaptured it time and again, confirming the role it played on the trade routes with the east. The Seleucid kings renamed the city Antiochia or Antiochia Semiramis and even another Seleucia, as they turned the city into a center of Greek culture.

Gadara boomed under the Romans after Pompey conquered it in 63 BC. At that time, the reputation of the local poet Meleagros (131-61 BC) had already spread far and wide. He was a much-admired Hellenistic author who wrote an anthology of other poets – a true statement of the city’s high cultural level. Gadara certainly deserved its surname of “Athens of the East” when in the 2^nd and 3^rd centuries AD it became a center for philosophy, literature, and theater.

The ruins of Gadara are far less impressive than those of Gerasa, mainly since most of the city still lies underneath the old Ottoman village from the 18^th-19^th century that has been vacated in recent decades. The spooky streets and buildings are hiding the Roman living quarters. This settlement leans closely to the crumbling walls and has inherited its medieval name of Umm Qays. 

The very top of the hill has been carefully excavated and exposes many of the official buildings. It is always a delight to enter an ancient city over the Cardo, which here is paved with large blocks of black basalt. The Roman Theater on the right almost immediately calls for attention. It is entirely built of black basalt as well and offers seating for 3,000 people. This is generally called the West Theater, as there are remains of another theater on the north side of town, which has largely been dismantled by the locals and recycled for their own contemporary constructions, leaving an overgrown field. Unlike the usual eastern-oriented theaters, this theater is looking to the west so that the theater-goers would be sheltered from the strong eastern wind! The remains date generally from the first and second centuries AD and are overall in good condition. From the top tiers, one has a most wonderful view over this biblical land on the eastern bank of the Jordan River, where the Golan Heights and the Sea of Galilee shimmer on the horizon.

Back on the Cardo, one notices several vaulted spaces underneath the skene where once shops were set up. Even in antiquity, theater-goers could be tempted by food and drinks or other entertainment commodities!

Then the Cardo reaches the Decumanus, which has been well cleared and runs on for at least two kilometers to the west. Its black basalt pavement stands in sharp contrast with the white Corinthian limestone columns that separate the road from the sidewalk lined with shops of all kinds. The deep ruts in the pavement testify to the heavy traffic of carts with goods that were transported along the edge of this high plateau to nearby cities like Pella. In its heyday, this road ran all the way to the Mediterranean coast. Halfway there is an unknown sanctuary and a Nymphaeum next to still overgrown public baths from the 4^th century.

Turning back, one encounters another large and very impressive Nymphaeum set in the same black-and-white stone combination as found on the Decumanus. To the right is an area called the Terrace Church, dating from the 6^th century. This is a strange mixture of all kinds of Roman remains from the 2^nd century, enhanced with columns from Byzantine and early Islamic times. It is not easy to figure out the pattern and discover a central square framing an octagonal space. Each corner of this octagon is marked by a black basalt column, and it is believed to have been an unusual inner sanctum. On the west side, there is a large entrance hall, and on the north side, another open space that looks like an atrium. This may have been a pilgrimage site for some important martyr, although no hard proof has been found so far. Like so many buildings in Gadara, this church was destroyed by the severe earthquake of 747 AD, after which the city was abandoned.

The Decumanus loses itself further east past well-preserved city walls embracing the skeleton remains of the Ottoman houses and their crumbling walls. There must be a hippodrome and a stadium out there somewhere, as well as an aqueduct, but apparently, not much has been exposed.

It is nearly impossible to look at Gadara or Gerasa beyond the Roman influence, for these cities originally did not have any Greek roots. Since they were founded by Alexander, they should be seen as a pure Macedonian concept. It is here that the first seeds of later Hellenism were planted, and this makes me wonder how much of the Macedonian influence went into the Alexandrias founded later on during Alexander’s campaigns.