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46-660: The Ptolemies reputedly established their Mouseion and Library with the intention of bringing together some of the best scholars of the Hellenistic world and collect all the books known at the time. Although it did not imply a collection of works of art, the word mouseion is the root for the modern usage of the word museum . According to Johannes Tzetzes , the Mouseion was an institution founded by Ptolemy I Soter (c. 367 BC – c. 283 BC) in Alexandria , Egypt , though it

92-681: A canonical status amongst Jews by the beginning of the second century A.D., they retained that status for much of the Christian Church. They were and are accepted as part of the Old Testament canon by the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox churches . Protestant Christians, however, follow the example of the Jews and do not accept these writings as part of the Old Testament canon. The Oxyrhynchus Papyri have provided

138-621: A Collection of Rarities. Preserved at South- Lambeth near London by John Tradescant (1656). Ptolemaic dynasty The Ptolemaic dynasty ( / ˌ t ɒ l ɪ ˈ m eɪ . ɪ k / ; Ancient Greek : Πτολεμαῖοι , Ptolemaioi ), also known as the Lagid dynasty ( Λαγίδαι , Lagidai ; after Ptolemy I 's father, Lagus ), was a Macedonian Greek royal house which ruled the Ptolemaic Kingdom in Ancient Egypt during

184-466: A century into the dynasty's history. All the male rulers of the dynasty took the name Ptolemy , while queens regnant were all called Cleopatra , Arsinoe , or Berenice . The most famous member of the line was the last queen, Cleopatra VII , known for her role in the Roman political battles between Julius Caesar and Pompey , and later between Octavian and Mark Antony . Her apparent suicide after

230-728: A collection of sculpture and painting presented as works of art, as was assembled by the Ptolemies' rival Attalus at the Library of Pergamum . Instead, it was an institution of learning that attracted some of the best scholars of the Hellenistic world , as Germain Bazin puts it, "analogous to the modern Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton or to the Collège de France in Paris." It

276-654: A community of scholars brought together under one roof as it did the collections themselves. French and English writers often referred to these collections originally as a " cabinet of curiosities ." A catalogue of the 17th century collection of John Tradescant the Elder and his son John Tradescant the Younger was the founding core of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford . It was published as Musaeum Tradescantianum : or,

322-579: A group of manuscripts discovered during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries by papyrologists Bernard Pyne Grenfell and Arthur Surridge Hunt at an ancient rubbish dump near Oxyrhynchus in Egypt ( 28°32′N 30°40′E  /  28.533°N 30.667°E  / 28.533; 30.667 , modern el-Bahnasa ). The manuscripts date from the time of the Ptolemaic (3rd century BC) and Roman periods of Egyptian history (from 32 BC to

368-564: A later date another smaller library was housed in the nearby Serapeum (Temple of Serapis ), which may have been open to people other than Mouseion scholars. During the reign of Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II , at a time of territorial losses and political turmoil in Egypt, most intellectuals were either killed or expelled from the city, including the last recorded head librarian of the Library of Alexandria, Aristarchus of Samothrace , who supposedly

414-471: A number of the Ptolemaic dynasty members as extremely obese , while sculptures and coins reveal prominent eyes and swollen necks. Familial Graves' disease could explain the swollen necks and eye prominence ( exophthalmos ), although this is unlikely to occur in the presence of morbid obesity. This is all likely due to inbreeding depression . In view of the familial nature of these findings, members of

460-689: Is an online table of contents briefly listing the type of contents of each papyrus or fragment. Administrative documents assembled and transcribed from the Oxyrhynchus excavation encompass a wide variety of legal matters, such as marriages, employment contracts, and censuses. Some of the more notable papyri transcribed so far include: In addition to detailing the cases themselves, these legal documents provide interesting insight into everyday life under Graeco-Roman occupied Egypt, and are often overlooked beside its pharaonic predecessor. For example, Saraeus' hearing with strategus Paison reveal that courts used

506-535: Is more likely that it took shape under Ptolemy II Philadelphus (309–246 BC). As a community gathered together under the protection of the Muses, the Mouseion remained supported over the centuries by the patronage of the royal family of the Ptolemies, and later by that of the Roman emperors . Unlike the modern museum in the sense that has developed since the Renaissance , the Mouseion of Alexandria did not have

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552-645: Is uncertain how many scholars lived in the Mouseion at any given time, as surviving reports are few and rather brief. Nonetheless, it appears that scholars and staff members were salaried by the State and paid no taxes. According to Strabo , they also received free room and board, and free servants. Based on extant works of scholars associated with the Mouseion, it seems likely that literary criticism and other similar activities took place there. In addition to Greek works, some foreign texts were translated from Egyptian, Assyrian, Persian, Jewish , and other languages. Many of

598-513: The Brucheion (palace complex), possessing a peripatos (lobby), an exedra (columned hall), and large oikos (dining hall), in which the common table of the philologoi , men who are members of the Mouseion , is located. This synodos (assembly) has property in common and a priest in charge of the Mouseion , formerly appointed by the kings, but now by Caesar. According to this description,

644-639: The First Epistle of John (4th-5th century: P402 ); the Apocalypse of Baruch (chapters 12–14; 4th or 5th century: P403 ); the Gospel of Thomas (3rd century AD: P655 ); The Shepherd of Hermas (3rd or 4th century: P404 ), and a work of Irenaeus , (3rd century: P405 ). There are many parts of other canonical books as well as many early Christian hymns, prayers, and letters also found among them. All manuscripts classified as "theological" in

690-598: The Hellenistic period . Reigning for 275 years, the Ptolemaic was the longest and last dynasty of ancient Egypt from 305 BC until its incorporation into the Roman Republic in 30 BC. Ptolemy , a general and one of the somatophylakes (bodyguard companions) of Alexander the Great , was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexander's death in 323 BC. In 305 BC he declared himself Pharaoh Ptolemy I, later known as Sōter "Saviour". The Egyptians soon accepted

736-466: The Muslim conquest of Egypt in 640 AD). Only an estimated 10% are literary in nature. Most of the papyri found seem to consist mainly of public and private documents: codes , edicts , registers , official correspondence, census -returns, tax -assessments, petitions , court-records , sales , leases , wills , bills , accounts , inventories , horoscopes , and private letters. Although most of

782-579: The Roman conquest of Egypt marked the end of Ptolemaic rule in Egypt. Dates in brackets on the Cup of the Ptolemies represent the regnal dates of the Ptolemaic pharaohs. They frequently ruled jointly with their wives, who were often also their sisters, aunts or cousins. Several queens exercised regal authority. Of these, one of the last and most famous was Cleopatra ("Cleopatra VII Philopator", 51–30 BC), with her two brothers and her son serving as successive nominal co-rulers . Several systems exist for numbering

828-494: The early Christian period that presented themselves as biblical books, but were not eventually received as such by the orthodoxy . These works found at Oxyrhynchus include the gospels of Thomas , Mary , Peter , James , The Shepherd of Hermas , and the Didache . (All of these are known from other sources as well.) Among this collection are also a few manuscripts of unknown gospels . The three manuscripts of Thomas represent

874-630: The 107 lost books of Livy was the most important literary find in Latin . Among the Christian texts found at Oxyrhynchus, were fragments of early non- canonical Gospels, Oxyrhynchus 840 (3rd century AD) and Oxyrhynchus 1224 (4th century AD). Other Oxyrhynchus texts preserve parts of Matthew 1 (3rd century: P2 and P401 ), 11–12 and 19 (3rd to 4th century: P2384, 2385 ); Mark 10–11 (5th to 6th century: P3 ); John 1 and 20 (3rd century: P208 ); Romans 1 (4th century: P209 );

920-507: The 10th century Suda as "the man from the Mouseion," but it is not clear what connection he actually had with it. Zacharias Rhetor and Aeneas of Gaza both speak of a physical space known as the "Mouseion" in the late 5th century. The Ptolemies founded the original Mouseion at a time of transition in Greek history , during the passage from a predominantly oral to a more literary culture. The scholars gathered there included: The members of

966-743: The Elder Siamun Psusennes II Twenty-third Dynasty of Egypt Harsiese A Takelot II Pedubast I Shoshenq VI Osorkon III Takelot III Rudamun Menkheperre Ini Twenty-fourth Dynasty of Egypt Tefnakht Bakenranef ( Sargonid dynasty ) Tiglath-Pileser Shalmaneser Marduk-apla-iddina II Sargon Sennacherib Marduk-zakir-shumi II Marduk-apla-iddina II Bel-ibni Ashur-nadin-shumi Nergal-ushezib Mushezib-Marduk Esarhaddon Ashurbanipal Ashur-etil-ilani Sinsharishkun Sin-shumu-lishir Ashur-uballit II Oxyrhynchus Papyri The Oxyrhynchus Papyri are

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1012-455: The Mouseion ensured the preservation and production of historical, literary, and scientific works, which would remain part of the Western heritage for centuries, and thanks to their efforts today one can still read Homer and the tragedians. As an institution dedicated to the Muses, the word mouseion became the source for the modern word museum . In early modern France , it denoted as much

1058-480: The Mouseion featured a roofed walkway, an arcade of seats, and a communal dining room where scholars routinely ate and shared ideas. The building may have also hosted private study rooms, residential quarters, and lecture halls, based on similar structures that were built much later in Alexandria. However, it is unclear if the premises provided accommodations for anatomical research or astronomical observations. At

1104-563: The Old Testament text. In each volume that contains theological manuscripts, they are listed first, according to an English tradition of academic precedence (see Doctor of Divinity ). The original Hebrew Bible ( Tanakh ) was translated into Greek between the 3rd and 1st centuries BC. This translation is called the Septuagint (or LXX, both 70 in Latin), because there is a tradition that seventy Jewish scribes compiled it in Alexandria . It

1150-487: The Oxyrhynchus Papyri are listed below. A few manuscripts that belong to multiple genres, or genres that are inconsistently treated in the volumes of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri, are also included. For example, the quotation from Psalm 90 (P. Oxy. XVI 1928) associated with an amulet, is classified according to its primary genre as a magic text in the Oxyrhynchus Papyri; however, it is included here among witnesses to

1196-677: The Oxyrhynchus Papyri are listed in this section. Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School (prior to private sale ) This name designates several, unique writings (e.g., the Book of Tobit ) or different versions of pre-existing writings (e.g., the Book of Daniel ) found in the canon of the Jewish scriptures (most notably, in the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Tanakh ). Although those writings were no longer viewed as having

1242-1773: The Ptolemaic dynasty are likely to have suffered from a multi-organ fibrotic condition such as Erdheim–Chester disease , or a familial multifocal fibrosclerosis where thyroiditis, obesity and ocular proptosis may have all occurred concurrently. ( Shamshi-Adad dynasty 1808–1736 BCE) (Amorites) Shamshi-Adad I Ishme-Dagan I Mut-Ashkur Rimush Asinum Ashur-dugul Ashur-apla-idi Nasir-Sin Sin-namir Ipqi-Ishtar Adad-salulu Adasi (Non-dynastic usurpers 1735–1701 BCE) Puzur-Sin Ashur-dugul Ashur-apla-idi Nasir-Sin Sin-namir Ipqi-Ishtar Adad-salulu Adasi ( Adaside dynasty 1700–722 BCE) Bel-bani Libaya Sharma-Adad I Iptar-Sin Bazaya Lullaya Shu-Ninua Sharma-Adad II Erishum III Shamshi-Adad II Ishme-Dagan II Shamshi-Adad III Ashur-nirari I Puzur-Ashur III Enlil-nasir I Nur-ili Ashur-shaduni Ashur-rabi I Ashur-nadin-ahhe I Enlil-Nasir II Ashur-nirari II Ashur-bel-nisheshu Ashur-rim-nisheshu Ashur-nadin-ahhe II Second Intermediate Period Sixteenth Dynasty Abydos Dynasty Seventeenth Dynasty (1500–1100 BCE) Kidinuid dynasty Igehalkid dynasty Untash-Napirisha Twenty-first Dynasty of Egypt Smendes Amenemnisu Psusennes I Amenemope Osorkon

1288-594: The Ptolemies as the successors to the pharaohs of independent Egypt. The new dynasty adopted the Egyptian titles and iconography, showing respect to local traditions, while also preserving their own Greek language and culture. The Ptolemaic period was marked by the intense interactions and blending of the Greek and Egyptian cultures. Under the Ptolemies, Hellenistic religion was largely shaped by religious syncretism and imperial cult . Elements of Greek education became widespread in urban spaces, culminating in

1334-486: The Roman names for year, marked by the reign of the emperor, but maintained the Egyptian months, called Pharmouthi. Although most of the texts uncovered at Oxyrhynchus were non-literary in nature, the archaeologists succeeded in recovering a large corpus of literary works that had previously been thought to have been lost. Many of these texts had previously been unknown to modern scholars. Several fragments can be traced to

1380-563: The childless marriage of siblings Ptolemy II and Arsinoe II being an exception. The first child-producing incestuous marriage in the Ptolemaic dynasty was that of Ptolemy IV and Arsinoe III , who were succeeded as co-pharaohs by their son Ptolemy V , born 210 BC. The best-known Ptolemaic pharaoh, Cleopatra VII , was at different times married to and ruled with two of her brothers ( Ptolemy XIII until 47 BC and then Ptolemy XIV until 44 BC), and their parents were also likely to have been siblings or possibly cousins. Contemporaries describe

1426-465: The edited versions of the Greek canon that we know today, from Homer and Hesiod forward, exist in editions that were collated and corrected by scholars presumably affiliated with the Mouseion and the Library of Alexandria. In the first century AD, the Greek geographer Strabo described the Mouseion as part of a bigger, richly decorated campus of buildings and gardens: The Mouseion is also part of

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1472-627: The finds at Oxyrhynchus is the Athenian playwright Menander (342–291 BC), whose comedies were very popular in Hellenistic times and whose works are frequently found in papyrus fragments. Menander's plays found in fragments at Oxyrhynchus include Misoumenos , Dis Exapaton , Epitrepontes , Karchedonios , Dyskolos and Kolax . The works found at Oxyrhynchus have greatly raised Menander's status among classicists and scholars of Greek theatre . Another notable text uncovered at Oxyrhynchus

1518-409: The first century AD, and much later the emperor Caracalla temporarily suspended Mouseion membership in 216 AD. The last known references to the old Mouseion still functioning occur in the 260s AD. The Brucheion, the complex of palaces and gardens that included the Mouseion, was probably destroyed by fire on the orders of Emperor Aurelian in 272 AD, although it is not known with certainty how much of

1564-595: The foundation of the Mouseion (including the Library of Alexandria ) and the Serapeum . During the Hellenistic period, the city of Alexandria founded by Alexander the Great would gradually surpass Athens taking its place as the intellectual centre of the Mediterranean world. To emulate the previous dynasties of Egypt, the Ptolemaic dynasty eventually adopted the practice of inbreeding including sibling marriage ; this did not start in earnest until nearly

1610-403: The later rulers; the one used here is the one most widely employed by modern scholars. Continuing the tradition established by previous Egyptian dynasties , the Ptolemies engaged in inbreeding including sibling marriage , with many of the pharaohs being married to their siblings and often co-ruling with them. Ptolemy I and other early rulers of the dynasty were not married to their relatives,

1656-408: The library collection caught fire and were destroyed. Despite the fact that the Mouseion continued as an institution under Roman rule, it never regained its former glory. Membership of the Mouseion was not limited to prominent scholars under the Roman emperors but included politicians, athletes, and other people rewarded for their support to the state. Emperor Claudius added an additional building in

1702-476: The most numerous sub-group of the earliest copies of the New Testament . These are surviving portions of codices (books) written in Greek uncial (capital) letters on papyrus . The first of these were excavated by Bernard Pyne Grenfell and Arthur Surridge Hunt in Oxyrhynchus, at the turn of the 20th century. Of the 127 registered New Testament papyri , 52 (41%) are from Oxyrhynchus. The earliest of

1748-413: The original buildings existed at the time. Scattered references in later sources suggest that another comparable institution was established in the 4th century at a different location, but little is known about its organisation and it is unlikely to have had the resources of its predecessor. The mathematician Theon of Alexandria (ca. 335 – ca. 405), father of the philosopher Hypatia , is described in

1794-544: The papyri are dated to the middle of the 2nd century, so were copied within about a century of the writing of the original New Testament documents. Grenfell and Hunt discovered the first New Testament papyrus ( 𝔓 ), on only the second day of excavation, in the winter of 1896–7. This, together with the other early discoveries, was published in 1898, in the first volume of the now 86-volume work, The Oxyrhynchus Papyri . The Oxyrhynchus Papyri collection contains around twenty manuscripts of New Testament apocrypha , works from

1840-482: The papyri were written in Greek , some texts written in Egyptian ( Egyptian hieroglyphics , Hieratic , Demotic , mostly Coptic ), Latin and Arabic were also found. Texts in Hebrew , Aramaic , Syriac and Pahlavi have so far represented only a small percentage of the total. Since 1898, academics have collated and transcribed over 5,000 documents from what were originally hundreds of boxes of papyrus fragments

1886-523: The size of large cornflakes. This is thought to represent only 1 to 2% of what is estimated to be at least half a million papyri still remaining to be conserved, transcribed, deciphered and catalogued. The most recent published volume was Vol. LXXXVII, released on 31 August 2023 . Oxyrhynchus Papyri are currently housed in institutions all over the world. A substantial number are housed in the Bodleian Art Library at Oxford University . There

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1932-566: The work of Plato , for instance the Republic , Phaedo , or the dialogue Gorgias , dated around 200–300 CE. The discovery of a historical work known as the Hellenica Oxyrhynchia also revealed new information about classical antiquity. The identity of the author of the work is unknown; many early scholars proposed that it may have been written by Ephorus or Theopompus but many modern scholars are now convinced that it

1978-546: Was Ichneutae , a previously unknown play written by Sophocles . The discovery of Ichneutae was especially significant since Ichneutae is a satyr play , making it only one of two extant satyr plays, with the other one being Euripides's Cyclops . Extensive remains of the Hypsipyle of Euripides and a life of Euripides by Satyrus the Peripatetic were also found at Oxyrhynchus. An epitome of seven of

2024-545: Was forced to resign his position in 145 BC and died in exile a few years later. Johannes Tzetzes and other Byzantine sources do not mention any further directors after him, albeit four obscure 'caretakers' are mentioned in an Oxyrhynchus fragment , and an inscription from the 80s BC speaks of a certain Onesander of Paphos being appointed to the Library. There are reports that, during the Siege of Alexandria in 47 BC, parts of

2070-560: Was quoted in the New Testament and is found bound together with the New Testament in the 4th and 5th century Greek uncial codices Sinaiticus , Alexandrinus and Vaticanus . The Septuagint included books, called the Apocrypha or Deuterocanonical by some Christians , which were later not accepted into the Jewish canon of sacred writings (see next section ). Portions of Old Testament books of undisputed authority found among

2116-550: Was written by Cratippus . The work has won praise for its style and accuracy and has even been compared favorably with the works of Thucydides . The findings at Oxyrhynchus also turned up the oldest and most complete diagrams from Euclid 's Elements . Fragments of Euclid led to a re-evaluation of the accuracy of ancient sources for The Elements , revealing that the version of Theon of Alexandria has more authority than previously believed, according to Thomas Little Heath . The classical author who has most benefited from

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