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poisoned by Commodus his own son. But the senate, holding the memory 1.441 of his virtue, honored him with a golden statue after his death.

Commodus, son of Marcus, reigned 12 years and 9 months. He had blond hair, likened to gold. He was a lover of hunting and very much an adulterer, whom they say killed twelve lions in one day. He also became gouty and heavy in the shoulders. It happened that Rome suffered many evils in his days; for when a famine occurred, two thousand died in one day. And Africanus the chronographer says that under him Clement the Stromatist was becoming known in Alexandria; and Origen became a student of Clement. But also Montanus the heresiarch was then active, who said he himself was the Paraclete. This Commodus, having removed the head of the colossus in Rhodes, fixed it to his own statue. A certain Narcissus, one of his household, strangled him in a bath. Pertinax reigned 87 days, bringing neither his wife nor his children into the palace, but allowing them to live with their grandfather. Under him, as Eusebius says, was Symmachus, one of the translators of the Hebrew scripture, an Ebionite in heresy. But also Porphyry the philosopher who wrote against the Christians, and Africanus the chronographer. Under him Leonides, the father of the ill-minded Origen, was martyred. This Pertinax was slaughtered by the soldiers. 1.442 Didius Julianus reigned 60 days. He was surnamed Didius because he received the empire by means of gifts. He was most worthless in his ways, and in his deeds an unholy worker and a lover of money; who, because he lived shamefully and inhumanly, was condemned to death by the senate and was slaughtered. Severus reigned 17 years and 8 months. Severus is said to be the heretic. He, having won the war in Britain, walled the island from sea to sea for a thousand stades. He, having taken Byzantium, tore down its walls. Byzantium had seven towers, beginning from the Thracian gates and extending to the northern sea. And if someone approached one of these towers, no perception of it was made by the others; but if in the first tower someone shouted or moved a stone, it itself would echo and, having fallen silent, would transmit the echo to the second, and this one to the third and so on in like manner. He also built the bath of Zeuxippus for the Byzantines, and delivered the first structure to the hippodrome, and constructed a hunting-ground and a theater for them. Under him Paul of Samosata renewed the heresy of Artemon. This Severus, being occupied in wars, died of a disease, leaving behind three sons. Under him Origen flourished, who, being in Alexandria, devoted the greatest zeal to the divine word; for not only was he a source of great benefit to the faithful, but also to not a few of the heretics; for by him receiving the sound 1.443 doctrines of the faith, they became zealous for the truth. Among whom was preeminently Ambrose, a distinguished man and a lover of learning, who, having been zealous to come to a knowledge of the man, departed from the heresy of Valentinus and Marcion, having acquired sufficient experience of his divinely-inspired teaching. And very many of the philosophers from without, coming to him, reaped for themselves the greatest benefit also for their own studies; for indeed he was considered great among them, teaching geometry and arithmetic and the other preliminary studies. Therefore not a few of the philosophers among the Greeks bear witness to him, making mention of him in their own writings as of a teacher. For indeed from childhood he was exceedingly intelligent and overly inquisitive. whom, when in his childhood he was inquiring into the meaning of the divine scripture more deeply or pondering it, his father would rebuke, telling him to seek nothing further beyond his age; who also blessed himself for his good fortune in his child. And he practiced such purity and self-control of the body from a young age that he was content with only four obols for his nourishment each day. And indeed

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φαρμακευθεὶς ὑπὸ Κομόδου τοῦ ἰδίου υἱοῦ. τὴν δὲ μνήμην 1.441 τῆς ἀρετῆς αὐτοῦ ἡ βουλὴ ἔχουσα μετὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ τελευτὴν χρυσῷ ἀνδριάντι αὐτὸν ἐτίμησε.

Κόμοδος υἱὸς Μάρκου ἐβασίλευσε ἔτη ιβʹ μῆνας θʹ. οὗτος εἶχε τρίχας ξανθάς, εἰκασμένας χρυσῷ. ἦν δὲ φιλοκύνηγος καὶ μοιχικώτατος πάνυ, ὃν καὶ φασὶν ἐν μιᾷ ἡμέρᾳ δώδεκα λέοντας φονεῦσαι. γέγονε δὲ καὶ ποδαλγὸς καὶ κατωβαρής. συνέβη δὲ πολλὰ κακὰ παθεῖν τὴν Ῥώμην ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις αὐτοῦ· λιμοῦ γὰρ γενομένου δισχίλιοι ἐν μιᾷ ἡμέρᾳ ἐτελεύτησαν. Ἀφρικανὸς δέ φησιν ὁ χρονογράφος ὅτι ἐπὶ τούτου Κλήμης ὁ στρωματεὺς ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ ἐγνωρίζετο· Κλήμεντος δὲ φοιτητὴς Ὠριγένης ἐγένετο. ἀλλὰ καὶ Μοντανὸς αἱρεσιάρχης τότε ἦν, ὃς ἑαυτὸν παράκλητον ἔλεγεν εἶναι. οὗτος ὁ Κόμοδος τοῦ ἐν Ῥόδῳ κολοσσοῦ τὴν κεφα λὴν ἀφελὼν τῇ ἑαυτοῦ στήλῃ προσέπηξε. τοῦτον Νάρκισσός τις τῶν οἰκείων αὐτοῦ ἐν λουτρῷ ἀπέπνιξε. Περτίναξ ἐβασίλευσεν ἡμέρας πζʹ, μήτε τὴν γυναῖκα μήτε τὰ τέκνα εἰς τὸ παλάτιον εἰσαγαγών, ἀλλ' ἐάσας παρὰ τῷ πάππῳ διαιτᾶσθαι. ἐπὶ τούτου, ὡς φησὶν Εὐσέβιος, ἦν ὁ Σύμμαχος, εἷς τῶν ἑρμηνευτῶν τῆς τῶν Ἑβραίων γραφῆς, Ἐβιωναῖος τὴν αἵρεσιν. ἀλλὰ καὶ Πορφύριος ὁ φιλόσοφος ὁ κατὰ Χριστιανῶν γράψας, καὶ Ἀφρικανὸς ὁ χρονογράφος. ἐπὶ τούτου Λεωνίδης ὁ τοῦ κακόφρονος Ὠριγένους πατὴρ ἐμαρτύρησεν. οὗτος Περτίναξ ἐσφάγη ὑπὸ τῶν στρατιωτῶν. 1.442 Ἰουλιανὸς ∆ίδιος ἐβασίλευσεν ἡμέρας ξʹ. ∆ίδιος δὲ ἐπε κλήθη διὰ τὸ ὑπὸ δώρων λαβεῖν τὴν βασιλείαν. φαυλότατος δὲ ἦν τοῖς τρόποις, καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις ἀνοσιουργὸς καὶ χρημάτων ἐρα στής· ὃς διὰ τὸ αἰσχρῶς βιοῦν καὶ ἀπανθρώπως ὑπὸ τῆς βουλῆς θανάτῳ καταψηφισθεὶς ἐσφάγη. Σεβῆρος ἐβασίλευσεν ἔτη ιζʹ μῆνας ηʹ. Σεβῆρος δὲ ὁ αἱρε τικὸς λέγεται. οὗτος τὸν ἐν Βρεττανίᾳ νικήσας πόλεμον ἀπὸ θα λάσσης εἰς θάλασσαν περιετείχισε τὴν νῆσον σταδίοις χιλίοις. οὗ τος τὸ Βυζάντιον παραλαβὼν τὰ τείχη αὐτοῦ καθεῖλεν. εἶχε δὲ τὸ Βυζάντιον πύργους ἑπτά, ἐκ τῶν Θρᾳκικῶν πυλῶν ἀρχομένους καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν ἀρκτῴαν θάλασσαν καθήκοντας. καὶ τούτων εἴ τις ἐν ἑτέρῳ πύργῳ προσῆλθεν, οὐδεμία αἴσθησις τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐγίνετο· εἰ δὲ ἐν τῷ πρώτῳ πύργῳ ἀνεβόησεν ἢ λίθον ἐσάλευσεν, αὐτός τε ἤχει καὶ σιωπήσας τῷ δευτέρῳ μετεδίδου τῆς ἠχῆς, καὶ οὗτος τῷ τρίτῳ καὶ ἑξῆς ὁμοίως. οὗτος καὶ τὸ Ζεύξιππον λουτρὸν ἔκτισε Βυζαντίοις, καὶ τὸ πρῶτον κτίσμα τῷ ἱπποδρόμῳ παρέδωκε, καὶ κυνήγιον καὶ θέατρον αὐτοῖς κατεσκεύασεν. ἐπὶ τούτου Παῦλος ὁ Σαμοσατεὺς τὴν Ἀρτέμωνος αἵρεσιν ἀνενεώσατο. οὗτος ὁ Σεβῆρος ἐν πολέμοις σχολάζων νόσῳ τελευτᾷ, καταλιπὼν παῖδας τρεῖς. Ἐπὶ τούτου ἤκμαζεν Ὠριγένης, ὅστις εἰς Ἀλεξάνδρειαν ὢν μεγίστην εἰς τὸν θεῖον λόγον σπουδὴν κατεβάλλετο· οὐ μόνον γὰρ τοῖς πιστοῖς πρόξενος ὠφελείας μεγάλης ἐγένετο, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν αἱρετικῶν οὐκ ὀλίγοις· ὑπ' αὐτοῦ γὰρ τὰ ὑγιῆ τῆς πίστεως παρα 1.443 λαμβάνοντες δόγματα ζηλωταὶ τῆς ἀληθείας ἐγίνοντο. ἐξ ὧν ὑπῆρχε διαφερόντως Ἀμβρόσιος, ἀνὴρ ἐπίσημος καὶ φιλολόγος, ὃς εἰς γνῶσιν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἀφικέσθαι σπουδάσας ἀπέστη τῆς Οὐα λεντίνου καὶ Μαρκίωνος αἱρέσεως, πεῖραν τῆς ἐνθέου αὐτοῦ παι δείας ἀρκοῦσαν κτησάμενος. πλεῖστοι δὲ καὶ τῶν ἔξωθεν φιλοσό φων πρὸς αὐτὸν φοιτῶντες μεγίστην καὶ αὐτοὶ πρὸς τὰ οἰκεῖα μα θήματα τὴν ὠφέλειαν ἐκαρποῦντο· καὶ γὰρ παρ' αὐτοῖς μέγας ἐνομίζετο, παραδιδοὺς γεωμετρίαν καὶ ἀριθμητικὴν καὶ τἆλλα προπαιδεύματα. διόπερ οὐκ ὀλίγοι τῶν παρ' Ἕλλησι φιλοσόφων μαρτυροῦσιν αὐτόν, μνήμην ἐν τοῖς ἰδίοις ποιούμενοι συγγράμμα σιν ὡς διδασκάλου. καὶ γὰρ εὐφυὴς παιδόθεν ὑπῆρχε σφόδρα καὶ ζητητικὸς ἄγαν. ὃν ἐν τῇ παιδικῇ ἡλικίᾳ τὸ τῆς θείας γραφῆς βούλημα πυνθανόμενον ὡς βαθύτερον ἢ διανοούμενον ἐπέπληττεν ὁ πατήρ, μηδὲν ὑπὲρ τὴν ἡλικίαν περαιτέρω ζητεῖν· ὃς καὶ τῆς εὐ τεκνίας ἑαυτὸν ἐμακάριζεν. ἁγνείαν δὲ καὶ ἐγκράτειαν τοσαύτην ἐκ νέου τοῦ σώματος ἤσκησεν ὡς ὀβολοῖς τέσσαρσι καὶ μόνοις πρὸς διατροφὴν ἑκάστης ἡμέρας ἀρκεῖσθαι. καὶ μέντοι