apostolicfathers0201clem - Carmel Apologetics

682 EPISTLE OF S. POLYCARP.
months"; after which he gives the number of days in each month
according to the Roman calendar. Then, after speaking of the lunar
calendar in Palestine and of the intercalary months, he continues ;
'
Wherefore, as I said, with these persons, since they
so reckon the
months, it is impossible to define the days on which the equinoxes
and solstices and the risings of the conspicuous stars occur ;
but in
the computation of those who observe the sun such definition is possible,
as well by the Romans and Macedonians, as by my own countrymen
the Asiatics, and by many other nations (Kara
Se tovs ^Xtov ayovras
kol MaKeSwwi/ 'Acrtavcuv re twv
6pi(Tai Swarov, wcnrep e^T/v, viro 'Pw/xatcoi'
TjfjieTepwv Kttt TToXXwv aAXojv idi'm')'.
It will be observed that Galen leaves no room for exceptions, when
he classes 'all the Asiatic cities' among those who use the solar
calendar. We have no right indeed to assume that they all called the
months by the same name, nor even that their months commenced
with the same day (unless this should appear on other grounds). But
it seems tolerably evident that they had altogether
discarded the lunar
calendar. The term 'Asiatics' however must at all events comprise
Proconsular Asia, whether we allow it a wider range or not. Ephesus
and Smyrna therefore would be included, not less than his native
Pergamon.
This interpretation agrees with the records on the monuments.
The following are the only inscriptions of Proconsular Asia and the
neighbouring provinces, so far as I have observed, which give side by
side the Roman and the native dating.
(i)
The first is at Nysa" in the valley of the Mjeander (Boeckh
C. I. G. 2943). The day of the month is
given /xr/vos Vop-niaiov kvveaKat8eKari7,
irpo ^atas [ejtSwv Av[y]ovcrTa)[v].
It will be observed that
in the Ephesian calendar, as given above (p. 679), Gorpijeus 19 would
"
xprj Of 5t]\ov6ti. tovs /Lirjvas ov irpos
ae\qvT]v dpidfieiaOai, Kaddircp ec rats TrAetarais
vvv tu)v 'EXXtj^iSwc -ithXeicv, dWa
Trpos tJXlov /cat iv dirdcrais re tQv fdpxo-i-iovf
Kttt ev TToWoLS rCov eOvwv dpL6p.€irai Kal
Trapd ''Pco/uaiiov 6 avp.ira.'s eviavros els 1(3'
oiaipovfievos ' evbs fxev avruv k.t.X. Here
for Twu apxa^'^" Ussher substitutes ruiu
'
A(TLavu)u. This emendation, which is
doubtless correct, has been very generally
adopted.
Wieseler however would supply
a word, twv dpxo-l-'^f [Ai^iiTrrttoi'],
ChristeMverfolgtuigai p. 84 ;
but elsewhere
(pp. 52, 92) he tacitly adopts 'AtriavQiv.
From Kaddirep onward there is apparently
some confusion in the sentence,
and I have been obliged to translate according
to what seems the obvious sense,
without following the precise construction
of the Greek. I shall have to return
to this subject again (p. 692).
-
This inscription certainly belongs to
Nysa, though Waddington and Parrot
have referred it to Mastaura; see Ramsay
in Bull, de Corresp. Hellht. Vii. p. 270
(1S83).