The Chronicle of John Malalas and an Obscure Palimpsest: Edition and Interpretation of the Fragmenta Tusculana (Codex Cryptoferratensis gr. 54, 62r–69v)

• Applicant: Dr. Fabian Schulz
• Subject Area: Greek and Latin Philology ; Ancient History
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 566254727

The World Chronicle of John Malalas (6th century) has a poor reputation as a source because it contains many idiosyncrasies and errors. In part, however, this does not seem to be the fault of the chronicler, but a consequence of the transmission process. The standard text of the chronicle is based on a single manuscript, which apparently offers an abridged version. The long version can be found in particular in the so-called Fragmenta Tusculana, which were discovered in a palimpsest by Angelo Mai in the mid-19th century. Scholars are divided over the exact value of the Tusculan fragments, which are spread over eight leaves (each with front and back). This is because the fragments not only contain more detailed information, but also errors. I am convinced that some of the concerns can be resolved by revisiting the palimpsest. Unfortunately, the manuscript was severely damaged by the decipherment methods of the 19th century and has been difficult to read ever since. In 2014, I took one leaf and deciphered and interpreted it anew. This showed that Angelo Mai's editio princeps (1839) had to be corrected in many respects and that the relationship to the main manuscript (and the Chronicon Paschale) had to be reassessed. In addition, I was able to reinterpret a passage that contains important information for the ecclesiastical-political positioning of the chronicle (or its sources). Building on this previous work, I plan a new DFG project with the following objectives: In collaboration with the Hamburg ‘Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures’, new multispectral (and perhaps hyperspectral) photographs of the palimpsest are to be produced and digitally processed so that the erased script becomes more legible. On this basis, a new critical edition of the Fragmenta Tusculana will be produced. The text-rich marginalia will also be deciphered for the first time and it will also be examined whether they are glosses on the Malalas text. Finally, the palimpsest will be analysed for illuminations. On the basis of the new edition, the fragments will be analysed and interpreted anew, both philologically and historically. This is necessary because there are many unanswered questions in both areas: for example, how the Fragmenta Tusculana relate to the main manuscript and the secondary tradition or what their historical and ecclesiastical tenor is. The new edition, consisting of edition, commentary and translation, is intended to become a standard work - not only for Malalas scholars, but also for research into the sources that Malalas used in the relevant sections and into the numerous authors and works that drew on the chronicle in its original version. In the long term, the edition of the fragments should lay the foundation for a potential new edition of Malalas' Chronicle.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants