Christopher of Mytilene
Encyclopedia
Christopher of Mytilene was a Greek-language poet living in the first half of the 11th century. His works include poems on various subjects and four Christian calendar
s.
, and lived in the neighbourhood Sphorakiou for most of his lifetime. He was an important official, holding high ranks such as patrician, protospatharios
, and krites (judge) of the theme
s Armeniakon and Paphlagonia
.
Events described in his poems suggest that he started writing in the reign of Romanos III
(1028–1034), but most poems can be dated to the reign of Constantine IX
(1042–1055), an emperor who favoured culture and literature.
The metre of most poems is the dodecasyllable
, but for some Christopher uses the dactylic hexameter
. Their language is an artificial Homeric Greek
. Elegiac couplet
s and anacreontics
occur as well.
The content of these poems is very heterogeneous. The most remarkable among them are satirical. In these poems Christopher makes fun of unsuccessful chariot drivers, cheated husbands, hypocritical monks, pseudo-intellectuals, etc. Other poems are directed against the mice devouring his books, and an owl that prevents him from sleeping.
Many poems are epigram
s with a religious content, touching on Biblical figures or Christian feasts. Some longer poems are funeral orations for his mother and his sister. Some describe historical events, such as the death of Romanos III and the riots of 1042. The longest poem is an encomium
on the spider.
The rest of the collection is filled with epitaph
s, riddle
s, dedicatory epigrams, and the like.
Christopher composed also four calendar
s in four different metres (hexameter, dodecasyllables, stichera
, and canones
), commemorating all the saints and feasts of the Orthodox Christian liturgical year
.
Christopher's poetry is characterized by a witty tone seldom found in Greek poetry of this period. The mix of Christian and classical elements and the self-asserting intellectual elitism are distinguishing features, which link him to other poets of the period, like John Mauropous
and Michael Psellos
, who also were responding to the cultural climate under Constantine IX
.
Calendar
A calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...
s.
Biography
Christopher was born in ConstantinopleConstantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, and lived in the neighbourhood Sphorakiou for most of his lifetime. He was an important official, holding high ranks such as patrician, protospatharios
Protospatharios
Prōtospatharios was one of the highest court dignities of the middle Byzantine period , awarded to senior generals and provincial governors, as well as to foreign princes.-History:...
, and krites (judge) of the theme
Theme (Byzantine administrative unit)
The themes or themata were the main administrative divisions of the middle Byzantine Empire. They were established in the mid-seventh century in the aftermath of the Muslim conquests of Byzantine territory and replaced the earlier provincial system established by emperors Diocletian and...
s Armeniakon and Paphlagonia
Paphlagonia
Paphlagonia was an ancient area on the Black Sea coast of north central Anatolia, situated between Bithynia to the west and Pontus to the east, and separated from Phrygia by a prolongation to the east of the Bithynian Olympus...
.
Events described in his poems suggest that he started writing in the reign of Romanos III
Romanos III
Romanos III Argyros was Byzantine emperor from 15 November 1028 until his death.-Biography:...
(1028–1034), but most poems can be dated to the reign of Constantine IX
Constantine IX Monomachos
Constantine IX Monomachos, Latinized as Constantine IX Monomachus , c. 1000 – January 11, 1055, reigned as Byzantine emperor from June 11, 1042 to January 11, 1055. He had been chosen by the Empress Zoe as a husband and co-emperor in 1042, although he had been exiled for conspiring...
(1042–1055), an emperor who favoured culture and literature.
Works
Various Verses (στίχοι διάφοροι) is the title of his collection of 145 poems, which covers a wide range of genres and topics. The collection seems to have been arranged chronologically. The text of many poems is severely damaged.The metre of most poems is the dodecasyllable
Dodecasyllable
Dodecasyllable verse is a line of verse with twelve syllables. 12 syllable lines are used in a variety of poetic traditions, including Italian and French poetry, and in poetry of the Southern Slavs...
, but for some Christopher uses the dactylic hexameter
Dactylic hexameter
Dactylic hexameter is a form of meter in poetry or a rhythmic scheme. It is traditionally associated with the quantitative meter of classical epic poetry in both Greek and Latin, and was consequently considered to be the Grand Style of classical poetry...
. Their language is an artificial Homeric Greek
Homeric Greek
Homeric Greek is the form of the Greek language that was used by Homer in the Iliad and Odyssey. It is an archaic version of Ionic Greek, with admixtures from certain other dialects, such as Aeolic Greek. It later served as the basis of Epic Greek, the language of epic poetry, typically in...
. Elegiac couplet
Elegiac couplet
The elegiac couplet is a poetic form used by Greek lyric poets for a variety of themes usually of smaller scale than the epic. Roman poets, particularly Ovid, adopted the same form in Latin many years later...
s and anacreontics
Anacreontics
Anacreontics are verses in a meter used by the Greek poet Anacreon in his poems dealing with love and wine. His later Greek imitators took up the same themes and used the Anacreontic meter...
occur as well.
The content of these poems is very heterogeneous. The most remarkable among them are satirical. In these poems Christopher makes fun of unsuccessful chariot drivers, cheated husbands, hypocritical monks, pseudo-intellectuals, etc. Other poems are directed against the mice devouring his books, and an owl that prevents him from sleeping.
Many poems are epigram
Epigram
An epigram is a brief, interesting, usually memorable and sometimes surprising statement. Derived from the epigramma "inscription" from ἐπιγράφειν epigraphein "to write on inscribe", this literary device has been employed for over two millennia....
s with a religious content, touching on Biblical figures or Christian feasts. Some longer poems are funeral orations for his mother and his sister. Some describe historical events, such as the death of Romanos III and the riots of 1042. The longest poem is an encomium
Encomium
Encomium is a Latin word deriving from the Classical Greek ἐγκώμιον meaning the praise of a person or thing. "Encomium" also refers to several distinct aspects of rhetoric:* A general category of oratory* A method within rhetorical pedagogy...
on the spider.
The rest of the collection is filled with epitaph
Epitaph
An epitaph is a short text honoring a deceased person, strictly speaking that is inscribed on their tombstone or plaque, but also used figuratively. Some are specified by the dead person beforehand, others chosen by those responsible for the burial...
s, riddle
Riddle
A riddle is a statement or question or phrase having a double or veiled meaning, put forth as a puzzle to be solved. Riddles are of two types: enigmas, which are problems generally expressed in metaphorical or allegorical language that require ingenuity and careful thinking for their solution, and...
s, dedicatory epigrams, and the like.
Christopher composed also four calendar
Calendar
A calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...
s in four different metres (hexameter, dodecasyllables, stichera
Sticheron
A sticheron is a particular kind of hymn used in the Divine Liturgy, acolouthia or other services of the Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite....
, and canones
Canon (hymnography)
A canon is a structured hymn used in a number of Eastern Orthodox services. It consists of nine odes, sometimes called canticles or songs depending on the translation, based on the Biblical canticles. Most of these are found in the Old Testament, but the final ode is taken from the Magnificat and...
), commemorating all the saints and feasts of the Orthodox Christian liturgical year
Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar
The Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar describes and dictates the rhythm of the life of the Eastern Orthodox Church. Associated with each date are passages of Holy Scripture, Saints and events for commemoration, and many times special rules for fasting or feasting that correspond to the day of...
.
Christopher's poetry is characterized by a witty tone seldom found in Greek poetry of this period. The mix of Christian and classical elements and the self-asserting intellectual elitism are distinguishing features, which link him to other poets of the period, like John Mauropous
John Mauropous
John Mauropous was a Byzantine Greek poet, hymnographer and author of letters and orations, living in the 11th century AD.-Life:...
and Michael Psellos
Michael Psellos
Michael Psellos or Psellus was a Byzantine monk, writer, philosopher, politician and historian...
, who also were responding to the cultural climate under Constantine IX
Constantine IX Monomachos
Constantine IX Monomachos, Latinized as Constantine IX Monomachus , c. 1000 – January 11, 1055, reigned as Byzantine emperor from June 11, 1042 to January 11, 1055. He had been chosen by the Empress Zoe as a husband and co-emperor in 1042, although he had been exiled for conspiring...
.