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{{Short description|1st-century BC historian and philosopher}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Nicolaus of Damascus <br /> {{lang|grc|Νικόλαος Δαμασκηνός}}
| birth_name = {{lang|grc|Νικόλαος Δαμασκηνός}}
| birth_date = c. 64 BC
| birth_place = [[Damascus]]
| death_date = after 4 AD
| death_place = [[Rome]]
| nationality =
| years_active =
}}
'''Nicolaus of Damascus''' ([[Greek language|Greek]]: {{lang|grc|Νικόλαος Δαμασκηνός}}, ''Nikolāos Damaskēnos''; [[Latin]]: ''Nicolaus Damascenus'') was a Greek [[historian]] and [[philosopher]] who lived during the [[Augustus|Augustan]] age of the [[Roman Empire]]. His name is derived from that of his birthplace, [[Damascus]]. He was born around 64 BC.<ref>Nicolaus, ''Autobiography'', [http://www.attalus.org/translate/nicolaus2.html#F136 Fr.136.8]</ref> Nicolaus is known to have had a brother named Ptolemy, who served in the court of Herod as a type of book-keeper or accountant.

He was an intimate friend of [[Herod the Great]], whom he survived by a number of years. He was also the tutor of the children of [[Mark Antony]] and [[Cleopatra]] (born in c.68 BC), according to [[Sophronius of Jerusalem|Sophronius]].<ref>''Patrologia Graeca'', Vol. 87, 3. col. 3622D; F.Jacoby, [http://www.attalus.org/translate/nicolaus2.html#NicAug FGrH.90.T2].</ref> He went to Rome with [[Herod Archelaus]], to defend the young man's claim to the throne upon the death of his father [[Herod the Great]].<ref>Nicolaus, ''Autobiography'', [http://www.attalus.org/translate/nicolaus2.html#F136 Fr.136.8-11]</ref>

Given that Book 4 of his ''History'' was on Abraham, Nicolaus was most likely a Jew, though one who had been thoroughly [[Hellenised]]. As such, he may well have known his contemporary [[Philo|Philo of Alexandria]]. Since Nicolaus wrote a work ''On the Psyche'', he may well have been, like Philo, in the school of the Pythagoreans or Platonists and been part of the syncretisation of Judaic monotheism with the monotheism (the Monad/The Good) of those two schools.

His output was vast, but is nearly all lost. His chief work was a [[Universal history (genre)|universal history]] in 144 books. He also wrote an [[autobiography]], a life of Augustus, a life of Herod, some philosophical works, and some tragedies and comedies.

There is an article on him in the [[Suda]].<ref>Suda ν 393, [http://www.stoa.org/sol-bin/search.pl?db=REAL&search_method=QUERY&login=guest&enlogin=guest&user_list=LIST&page_num=1&field=adlerhw_gr&searchstr=nu%2C393].</ref>

==''Universal History''==

Towards the end of his life he composed a ''[[Universal history (genre)|Universal History]]'' in 144 books,<ref>[[Athenaeus]], [http://www.attalus.org/old/athenaeus6c.html#249 vi. 249].</ref> although the Suda mentions only 80 books. But references to books 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, (8), 96, 103, 104, 107, 108, 110, 114, 123 and 124 are known.<ref>[[Karl Wilhelm Ludwig Müller]], ''et al.'', [https://books.google.com/books?id=oqcKAAAAYAAJ Fragmenta Historicorum Graecorum, Vol. 3], p. 345.</ref>

Extensive fragments of the first seven books are preserved in quotation in the ''[[Constantinian Excerpts]],'' compiled at the order of Byzantine Emperor [[Constantine VII|Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus]].<ref name="books.google.co.uk">Lulofs, H. J. Drossart. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=NTghO7ruVVkC On the Philosophy of Aristotle, by Nicolaus Damascenus]''. Brill, 1969, p. 1f.</ref> These cover the history of the Assyrians, Medes, Greeks, Lydians, and Persians, and are important also for Biblical history.

[[Josephus]] probably used this work for his history of Herod in his ''[[Antiquities of the Jews]]'' (''Ant.'' 15–17) because where Nicolaus stops, in the reign of [[Herod Archelaus]], the account of Josephus suddenly becomes more cursory.<ref name="Jewish Encyclopedia article">[http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?letter=N&artid=271 Jewish Encyclopedia Article]</ref>

For portions dealing with Greek myth and oriental history he was dependent on other, now lost works, of variable quality. Where he relied on [[Ctesias]], the value of his work is slim. [[Robert Drews]] has written:

:Classical scholars are agreed that Nicolaus's history of the East, and especially his story of Cyrus, was taken from Ctesias's ''[[Persica (Ctesias)|Persica]]'', a work written early in the fourth century B.C. This work has with justification been denounced by both Assyriologists and classicists as a totally unreliable guide to Mesopotamian history.<ref>[[Robert Drews|Drews, Robert]], "Sargon, Cyrus and Mesopotamian Folk History" ''Journal of Near Eastern Studies'', Vol. 33, No. 4, (Oct., 1974), pp. 387-393.</ref>

==''Life of Augustus''==

There exist considerable remains of two works of his old age; a life of Augustus, and his own life.

He wrote a ''Life of Augustus'' (''Bios Kaisaros''), which seems to have been completed after the death of the emperor in AD 14, when Nicolaus was 78. Two long excerpts remain, the first concerning Octavius' youth, the second Caesar's assassination; both survive because they are quoted in the ''[[Constantinian Excerpts]]'', a Greek anthology of excerpts commissioned under Byzantine Emperor [[Constantine VII|Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus]].<ref name="Jewish Encyclopedia article"/>

==Autobiography==

He also wrote an autobiography, the date of which is uncertain. It mentions that he wanted to retire, in 4 BC, but was persuaded to travel with [[Herod Archelaus]] to Rome.

The fragments that remain deal mainly with Jewish history, focusing on the events at the court of Herod the Great and the succession crisis involving Herod's sons and sister.<ref name="Jewish Encyclopedia article"/>

==Compendium on Aristotle==

He composed [[commentaries on Aristotle]]. A compendium of excerpts from these is extant in a Syriac manuscript discovered in Cambridge in 1901, ([[shelfmark]] Gg. 2. 14). This dates later than 1400, was acquired by Cambridge in 1632, and is very tatty and disarranged. The majority of the manuscript is a work by [[Dionysius Bar Salibi]].<ref>Lulofs, H. J. Drossart. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=NTghO7ruVVkC On the Philosophy of Aristotle, by Nicolaus Damascenus]''. Brill, 1969, p. 46.</ref> The work was probably written in Rome ca. AD 1, when he attracted criticism for being too involved in philosophy to court the wealthy and powerful.<ref>Lulofs, H. J. Drossart. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=NTghO7ruVVkC On the Philosophy of Aristotle, by Nicolaus Damascenus]''. Brill, 1969, p. 5.</ref>

==''On the Psyche''==

Porphyrius in ''On the Faculties of the Soul'' mentions that Nicolaus of Damascus wrote a book ''On the Psyche'', which stated that the division of the psyche-soul was not founded on quantity, but on quality, like the division of an art or a science. Clearly, by ‘parts’ of the psyche-soul, Nicolaus meant its different faculties.<ref>''On the Faculties of the Soul'' by Porphyrius</ref>

==''On Plants''==
{{main article|On Plants}}

An [[Arabic]] translation of his work ''[[On Plants|De Plantis]]'', once attributed to [[Aristotle]], was discovered in Istanbul in 1923. It also exists in a [[Syriac language|Syriac]] manuscript at Cambridge.<ref>H. J. Drossaart Lulofs & E. L. J. Poortman, ''Nicolaus Damascenus: De Plantis. Five Translations,'' Amsterdam 1989.</ref>

==Other works==

He composed some tragedies and comedies, which are now lost.<ref name="books.google.co.uk"/>

==The Embassy of an Indian King to Augustus==
One of the most famous passages is his account of an [[embassy]] sent by an Indian king "named Pandion ([[Pandyan kingdom]]) or, according to others, [[King Porus|Porus]]" to [[Augustus]] around AD 13. He met with the embassy at [[Antioch]]. The embassy was bearing a diplomatic letter in Greek, and one of its members was a ''[[sramana]]'' who burnt himself alive in [[Athens]] to demonstrate his faith. The event made a sensation and was quoted by [[Strabo]]<ref>Strabo, xv, 1, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0239&layout=&loc=15.1.73 on the immolation of the Sramana in Athens (Paragraph 73)].</ref> and [[Dio Cassius]].<ref>[[Dio Cassius]], [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/54*.html#9 liv, 9].</ref> A tomb was made to the ''sramana'', still visible in the time of [[Plutarch]], which bore the mention "ΖΑΡΜΑΝΟΧΗΓΑΣ ΙΝΔΟΣ ΑΠΟ ΒΑΡΓΟΣΗΣ" (Zarmanochēgas indos apo Bargosēs – Zarmanochegas, [[India]]n from [[Bharuch|Bargosa]]):

:To these accounts may be added that of Nicolaus Damascenus. This writer states that at [[Antioch]], near [[Daphne, Antioch|Daphne]], he met with ambassadors from the Indians, who were sent to [[Caesar Augustus|Augustus Caesar]]. It appeared from the letter that several persons were mentioned in it, but three only survived, whom he says he saw. The rest had died chiefly in consequence of the length of the journey. The letter was written in Greek upon a skin; the import of it was, that Porus was the writer, that although he was sovereign of six hundred kings, yet that he highly esteemed the friendship of Cæsar; that he was willing to allow him a passage through his country, in whatever part he pleased, and to assist him in any undertaking that was just. Eight naked servants, with girdles round their waists, and fragrant with perfumes, presented the gifts which were brought. The presents were a Hermes (i. e. a man) born without arms, whom I have seen, large snakes, a serpent ten cubits in length, a river tortoise of three cubits in length, and a partridge larger than a vulture. They were accompanied by the person, it is said, who burnt himself to death at Athens. This is the practice with persons in distress, who seek escape from existing calamities, and with others in prosperous circumstances, as was the case with this man. For as everything hitherto had succeeded with him, he thought it necessary to depart, lest some unexpected calamity should happen to him by continuing to live; with a smile, therefore, naked, anointed, and with the girdle round his waist, he leaped upon the pyre. On his tomb was this inscription:

::[[Zarmanochegas|ZARMANOCHEGAS]], AN INDIAN, A NATIVE OF BARGOSA, HAVING IMMORTALIZED HIMSELF ACCORDING TO THE CUSTOM OF HIS COUNTRY, HERE LIES.<ref>[[Strabo]], [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Strabo/15A3*.html#ref116 xv, 1.73.]</ref>

This accounts suggests that it may not have been impossible to encounter an Indian religious man in the [[Levant]] during the time of [[Jesus]].

The Jewish historian Josephus references the fourth book of Nicolaus' history concerning Abram. Josephus also references Nicolaus’ history of the Jewish King David in book 7 of Antiquities of the Jews.<ref>[[Josephus]], ''Antiquities of the Jews'', [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=J.+AJ.+1.7 i.158 (ch.7)]</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Sources==
*''Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities'', Harper and Brothers, New York, 1898: [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0062&layout=&loc=nicolaus&.submit=Search "Nicolaus"]
*Lightfoot, J. B. 1875. ''On Some Points Connected with the Essenes'': [http://philologos.org/__eb-jbl/essenes.htm II."Origin and Affinity of the Essenes", Note]
*Wacholder, B. Z. 1962. ''Nicolaus of Damascus.'' University of California Studies in History 75.
*Yarrow, L. M. 2006. ''Historiography at the End of the Republic.'' Oxford University Press, pp. 67–77.

==External links==
*[http://www.csun.edu/~hcfll004/nicolaus.html Life of Augustus]
*[http://www.attalus.org/translate/nicolaus2.html#autobio Excerpts from the Autobiography of Nicolaus]
*[https://archive.org/details/historicigraecim01dinduoft Ludwig August Dindorf's edition of Nicolaus' fragments in his 1870 ''Historici Graeci minores'']

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicolaus of Damascus}}

[[Category:60s BC births]]

[[Category:1st-century deaths]]

[[Category:1st-century Greek philosophers]]
[[Category:1st-century historians]]
[[Category:Commentators on Aristotle]]
[[Category:People from Damascus]]
[[Category:Syrian philosophers]]
[[Category:Syrian historians]]
[[Category:Greek-language historians from the Roman Empire]]
[[Category:Ancient Roman philosophers]]
[[Category:1st-century BC Greek philosophers]]
[[Category:1st-century Jews]]

[[Category:Year of birth uncertain]]
[[Category:Year of death uncertain]]

Nicolaus of Damascus - Revision history

Ajay Kumar: Created a new article