The World According to Cosmas Indicopleustes – Concepts and Illustrations of an Alexandrian Merchant and Monk

Authors

  • Stefan Alfred Faller
    Universität Freiburg i. Br., Seminar für Klassische Philologie
    Seminar für Klassische Philologie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg, Akademischer Oberrat
In a first step, this article examines the facts and speculations about Cosmas Indicopleustes as a person. His most striking features are the great wealth of information he gathered on his far-reaching voyages as a merchant in early Byzantine times and the strong Nestorian tendencies of his Christian faith. These two constants are the intellectual framework of his Christian Topography, whose aim, structure and manuscript tradition are explained in the second section. The third part deals with the nature and background of Cosmas’ peculiar cosmological model, which he based on theoretical and biblical considerations. The forth part concentrates on Cosmas’ description of far eastern trade connections, as well as on his interest in the flora and fauna of India and Africa. Here, Cosmas largely drew on personal experience.

The article presents both original passages from the Christian Topography and examples of the unique illustrations displayed in the old manuscripts.

Published in Vol. 2 No. 1 (2011), 193-232
Date
2011-06-29
DOI
https://doi.org/10.11588/ts.2011.1.6127
URN
License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

 

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

     
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

     
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
How to Cite
The World According to Cosmas Indicopleustes – Concepts and Illustrations of an Alexandrian Merchant and Monk. (2011). The Journal of Transcultural Studies, 2(1), 193-232. https://doi.org/10.11588/ts.2011.1.6127
More Citation Formats
Section:
Themed Section: Byzantium Beyond its Eastern Borders
Keywords:
Cosmas Indicopleustes
Language:
en
Academic discipline and sub-disciplines:
Cultural Studies, Classical Philology, Byzantine Studies
Published in Vol. 2 No. 1 (2011), 193-232
Date
2011-06-29
DOI
https://doi.org/10.11588/ts.2011.1.6127
URN
License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

 

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

     
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

     
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
How to Cite
The World According to Cosmas Indicopleustes – Concepts and Illustrations of an Alexandrian Merchant and Monk. (2011). The Journal of Transcultural Studies, 2(1), 193-232. https://doi.org/10.11588/ts.2011.1.6127
More Citation Formats