Ramsay, William Mitchell: The cities and bishoprics of Phrygia: being an essay of the local history of Phrygia from the earliest time to the Turkish conquest (Band 1,2): West and West-Central Phrygia (Oxford, 1897)

512 XII. CHRISTIAN INSCRIPTIONS OF S.W. PHRYGIA.

only great centre, where we might have looked for an early establish-
ment of the new religion ; but for some reason it seems to have
continued to be a great pagan centre till after the time of Con-
stant ine.

In the Lycos valley, the early history of Christianity is very
obscure. After the new religion was spread there by Timothy, Mark,
Epaphras1, and others, all record ends. The persecution of Domitian
probably to a great extent destroyed the thread of connexion between
the Church of 50-100 a. d. and that of later time. Some tradition,
perhaps continuous, was preserved, for Theodoret mentions that the
house of Philemon at Colossai was still shown in the first half of the
fifth century; and if the works of Papias of Hierapolis had been
preserved, probably some of the important facts about the Church of
the Lycos valley would have been preserved. Little more than the
names of a few bishops and martyrs are known2; and no Acta of any
value connected with the valley or with S.W. Phrygia have been
published. The account given of Philip, John, and Archippos at
Hierapolis and Colossai, is mere invention of a very late period3.
Trophimos and Thallos are said to have been crucified under Diocle-
tian at Laodiceia by a governor Asklepios on 11 March: this may
be historical, for we have seen an example of the kind of religious
names assumed by governors engaged in this persecution, § 9. The
legend of Artemon, slain at Caesareia by Patricius, Comes and Gover-
nor of Phrygia Pacatiana under Diocletian, is a very late fiction:
the title Comes at Laodiceia came into existence under Justinian
(p. 83). It is possible that some historical basis underlies the legend ;
but the circumstances would suit better an earlier period than Dio-
cletian ; and the most favourable supposition would be that the
Emperor's name is a late insertion, and that Artemon belonged to
an earlier time, when Caesareia-Cibyra4 was a city of Asia, and
when a Christian, tried first at Laodiceia, might afterwards be taken
to Caesareia in the governor's train. Perhaps, if some older form of
the Acta be discovered, it may be found that Artemon, 8 Oct., and

1 Lightfoot remarks that Epaphras 2 See the lists in Appendices and

of Colossai must be considered as the Ch. XII § 3.

Apostle of the Lycos valley. His name 3 Church in R. E. Ch. XIX.

(the diminutive of Epaphroditos) may i This seems better than the sugges-

perhaps be imitated in no. 432 bis : the tion of the Bollanclists (AA SS 8 Oct.

homely form Epaphras was not likely p. 46) that Diocaesareia should be read

to be used in an epitaph, except in for Caesareia (in Expositor 1889 IX

a humble class of society. pp. 153 ft I wrongly followed them).