A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

PETRUS. PETRUS. 223
ment in the life prefixed to the first edition of his tongue cut out, and was banished by order of the
HIomiliae, that he lived till near the close of the Caliph Walid into Arabia Felix, where he suffered
century, must be inaccurate. Peter acquired his martyrdom. (Theophanee, Cizronograplia, ad A. M.
surname from his eloquence. His published 6234 = A. D. 743, p. 349, ed. Paris, p. 278, ed.
writings consist of, 1. Honiiliae s. Sermones in Venice, vol. i. p. 641, ed. Bonn.) Theophanes menLatin. They were first published in 12mo. tions(ibid.)another Peter, as having suffered martyrParis, 1544, with this title Divi Petri COlrysologi dom from the Saracens at Maiuma, the port of Gaza
archiepiscopi Ravennatis, viri eruditissimi atque in Palestine, about the same time, and adds that
sanctissimi, insigne et pervetustum opus Homiliaruim Joannes Damascenus had written in honour of this
nune primum in lucem editumn: and have been Peter. Le Quien, though he refers to this passage
frequently reprinted. They appear in the seventh in Theophanes, gives no intimation that he revolume of the Lyon editionof the BibliothecaPatrunm, garded the martyr of Maiuma as the author of the
fol. 1677. Among these Homiliae, which amount pieces in question: but he has observed that a
in number to a hundred and seventy-six, some are quotation from the Liturgy of St. James, or of Jeruimproperly attributed to Peter. Five of these salem, in the Epistola, shows that the writer was
Sermones were printed in the Spicilegiumr of an ecclesiastic of Palestine. There was a later
D'Achdry (vol. vii. p. 120, &c.) under the name Peter of Damascus, a Greek monk, who flourished
of Peter Damiani, an Italian ecclesiastic of much in the middle of the twelfth century, and wrote
later date, to whom in D'Achiry's MS. they were several works an the discipline of a monastic life,
ascribed; but the error was discovered, and they which are found in MS. in various libraries: but
were assigned by D'Achery in his Index Generalis, it is hardly likely that he wrote the Epistola and
to Chrysologus, their true author. 2.'EsrO'roX A the Capaut, for Michael Glycas would hardly have
rIr'Tpov ersao'rovu'Pa~4'vvis Trsypac)esoea 7rposi ascribed pieces of so recent an origin to Joannes
ElTUvXi To'rv dpXtLIaapSrr'l, Epistola Petri Raven- Damascenus, a writer of four hundred years prenatis Episcopi ad Eatyclienz Abbatenz. This letter, vious to his own time. If either of the abovewhich is a reply to one addressed by the heresiarch mentioned persons was the writer, we think the
Eutyches to Peter, complaining of the condemna- balance of probability is in favour of the martyr of
tion passed on him by Flavianus of Constantinople Maiuma. (Le Quien, Opera Damasceni, 1. c.;
[EuTYCHEss; FI,AVIANUS, Ecclesiastics, No. 3], Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. ix. p. 717, vol. xi. p. 336;
was published by Gerard Vossius in the original Cave, Hist. Litt. vol. ii. Dissert. i. p. 15.)
Greek with a Latin version, at the end of the works 14. DIACONUS. In the controversy excited
of Gregory Thaumaturgus, 4to. Mayence, 1604. near the beginning of the sixth century by the
It is reprinted in the Concilia (vol. iv. col. 36, ed. monks, whom ecclesiastical writers call "Scythae,"
Labbe; vol. ii. col. 21, ed. Hardouin.). (Tillemont, who came from the diocese of Tomi, on the south
M1lzo1lires, vol. xv. p. 184, &c.; Cave, Hist. Lilt. bank of the Danube [MAXENTIUS, JOANNES],
ad ann. 433, vol. i. p. 422; Oudin, De Scriptor. Peter, a deacon, took a prominent part. He had
et Serisptis Eccles. vol. i. col. 1250.) accompanied the delegates sent to Rome by the
11. CNAPHEUS. [No. 17.] monks, and while at Rome united with his col12. Of CON;STANTINoPLE. [No. 15.] leagues in addressing to Fulgentius, and the other
13. DAMASCENus. Among the Nvorks of Jo- African bishops who were then in exile in Sardinia,
annes Damascenus [DAMASCENUS, JOANNES] a work entitled De lnicarnatione et Gratia Domins
(vol. i. p. 652, ed. Le Quien) are an Epistola ad nostri Jesu Christi Libelr. To this Fulgentius and his
Zaclhariam, and a short piece entitled C(aput de companions replied in another treatise on the same
immaculato C6rpore, 41c. The Epistola is cited by subject. The work of Peter, which is in Latin,
Michael Glycas at the end of the twelfth century, was published in the Monumenta S8. Patrunm
in certain letters extant in MS., as having been Orlodoxographla of Grynaeus, Basel, 1569, and
written by Joannes Damascenus; and both pieces has been reprinted in various editions of the Bibwere published under the name of that author by liotheca Patrum. It is in the ninth volume of the
Petrus Pantinus, 8vo. Antwerp, 1601; and by Lyon edition, fol. A. D. 1677, and in the eleventh
Fronto Ducaeus, Paris, 1603 and 1619. These vol. of the edition of Galland, fol. Venice, 1776.
editors were supported by the authority of MSS. (Cave, I-list. Litt. ad ann. 520, vol. i. p. 505;
in ascribing them to Joannes; but internal evi- Ittigius, De Bibliothecis Patrumz, pp. 21, 40, 436,
dence showed that such ascription was erroneous; 503; Galland. Biblioth. Patrum. Proleg. ad vol.
and the authority of a more perfect MS. enabled xi. c. 4.)
Le Quien to restore them to their true author. 15. DIACONUS. In the Jus Graeco-Romanzum
As published by him (ubi supra) they bear re- of Leunclavius, lib. vi. pp. 395 —397, are given
spectively these titles, 1.'EMriLroX)'rou CyolCror)o'EpWrT7'a. r a afr'p ehAuvet O'ri uisr'a'Tos Xap-TodbAao
lIerpoV 7To Mavcrop 7rpos Zaxapnav 0eroeKoorov IKdp7os IIs rpos, Kaal daKSTovoT'rTe TrO O EOl6 CyTdA7s
aoaopwv, Eepistola sancfissini Petri Mansur ad EKKAhLoa;S, eV E'rE SX/t, Interrogationes quas solZachariamn episcopumsl Doaroruml. 2. Toi aTrov KE- vit reverendissimus Chartularius, Dominius Petrus,
paaov,reprpl T'oO dXp&asou awnSa'ros oe ses'ran\aXa- idemque Diaconus Aiajoris Ecclesiae (sc. of St. So-'voee', Ejusdemn Caput de isammaculato Corpore cujus phia at Constantinople) A. M. 6600 - A. D. 1092.
participes sumus. It is by no means clear who this We learn from this title that the author lived
Peter was. His surname Mansur makes it pro- about the close of the eleventh century in the
bable that he was of the same family as Joannes reign of Alexius I. Comnenus, and that he held the
Damascenus, by whom that surname was borne. offices described, which is all that is known of him.
Le Quien thinks that the writer of the letter was There are, or were, extant in MS. in the King's
not Peter, metropolitan of Damascus, an intimate Library at Paris, Petrus Diaconus et Philosophus
friend of Joannes Damascenus, who, for writing de Cyclo et Indictione, and Petri Diaconi et PF/iloagainst the doctrines of the Mohammedans and sophi Tractatus de Sole, Luna, et Sideribus (Codd.
the Manichaeans (i. e. the Paulicians), had his cmxxix. No. 7. and mmmlxxxv.), but whether this