A01=Roger S. Bagnall
Apostolic succession
Archaism
Author_Roger S. Bagnall
Bible
Biblical canon
Bibliography
Bishop
Calculation
Category=NKD
Category=QRAX
Category=QRM
Christian
Christian literature
Christian scripture
Christianity
Christianity in Egypt
Christianization
Church History (Eusebius)
Classical education
Clergy
Codex
Codex Sinaiticus
Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria
Courtesy
Denarius
Development of the New Testament canon
Dissemination
Early Christianity
Early Period
Economics
Edict
Edition (book)
Egypt Exploration Society
eq_isMigrated=0
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
Gospel of Judas
Handbook
Income
Jews
John Chrysostom
Judaism
Late Antiquity
Lecture
Literature
Magdalen papyrus
Manichaeism
Manuscript
Mark the Evangelist
New Testament
New Testament apocrypha
Nomina sacra
Old Testament
Oxyrhynchus
Oxyrhynchus Papyri
Papyrology
Papyrus
Parchment
Pauline epistles
Percentage
Persecution
Pope
Presbyter
Psalms
Publication
Religious text
Reuse
Seminar
Skeat
Solidus (coin)
Tanakh
Technology
The Other Hand
The Shepherd of Hermas
Wealth
Writing
Year
Product details
- ISBN 9780691140261
- Weight: 255g
- Dimensions: 140 x 216mm
- Publication Date: 26 Jul 2009
- Publisher: Princeton University Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Hardback
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For the past hundred years, much has been written about the early editions of Christian texts discovered in the region that was once Roman Egypt. Scholars have cited these papyrus manuscripts--containing the Bible and other Christian works--as evidence of Christianity's presence in that historic area during the first three centuries AD. In Early Christian Books in Egypt, distinguished papyrologist Roger Bagnall shows that a great deal of this discussion and scholarship has been misdirected, biased, and at odds with the realities of the ancient world. Providing a detailed picture of the social, economic, and intellectual climate in which these manuscripts were written and circulated, he reveals that the number of Christian books from this period is likely fewer than previously believed. Bagnall explains why papyrus manuscripts have routinely been dated too early, how the role of Christians in the history of the codex has been misrepresented, and how the place of books in ancient society has been misunderstood.
The author offers a realistic reappraisal of the number of Christians in Egypt during early Christianity, and provides a thorough picture of the economics of book production during the period in order to determine the number of Christian papyri likely to have existed. Supporting a more conservative approach to dating surviving papyri, Bagnall examines the dramatic consequences of these findings for the historical understanding of the Christian church in Egypt.
Roger S. Bagnall is professor of ancient history and director of the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University. His books include "Egypt in Late Antiquity" (Princeton).
