medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
On Wed, 22 Oct 2003 18:43:06 -0700 Phyllis wrote:
>Today (23. October) is the feast day of:
>Boethius (d. 524)
Last year, commenting on the same datum, I wrote:
"We don't actually know the year of Boethius' death. Although one can find the traditional date of 524 given as recently as the usually reliable _Lexikon des Mittelalters_ (vol. 2 [1983], p. 307), B.'s latest scholarly biographers assume a greater length of confinement than that would imply. Luca Obertello places the execution in 525 or perhaps even 526; I'm not sure what Chadwick says."
I have since found out what Chadwick says:
"Nor is it possible to be certain in what year Boethius lost his life. The chronicler Marius bishop of Aventicum (Avenches), who died in 601, seems to have drawn on some Italian annals. He is decisive in recording under the year 524 that 'in that year Boethius the patricius was killed in Milanese territory', and likewise under the year 525 that Symmachus died at Ravenna. But other annalistic chroniclers, perhaps less reliable, assign Boethius' death to 523 or 525. 523 is certainly too early, but 525 or even early in 526 is not necessarily too late. We shall see that there is some probability favouring 525; but 524 or early in 526 remains possible." (Henry Chadwick, _Boethius: The Consolations of Music, Logic, Theology, and Philosophy_ [Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981], pp. 54-55)
Best,
John Dillon
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