To the Question of the Authorship of the Berat (Venetian) Acolouthia of Seven Saints

Summary: 

The article critically reevaluates two hypotheses related to the authorship of the so-called Berat Acolouthia of Seven Saints, according to which the Canon to St. Gorazd and St. Angelarius, which is included in the liturgical work, was created between 889 and 893 by the Bulgarian knyaz Boris Ι, and the entire service was composed by the Durrës Metropolitan Gregory in the fourteenth century. As a result of the analysis of the arguments presented, the two hypotheses were rejected, while a new conception of the authorship of the service was suggested. Arguments are made that the compiler and author of the original sections and revisions included in the Berat Acolouthia was the bishop of Gora and Mokra Michael Ypischiotes. An attempt was made for a partial reconstruction of his life and work based on the available evidence. The assumption that Michael Ypischiotes was a major figure in the compilation of the Berat Acolouthia leads to the conclusion that the original Canon to St. Gorazd and St. Angelarius as well as the entire liturgical work were created right before it was printed in Venice – in the late 1720s.

Eugeni Zashev (Sofia, Bulgaria)
evgoz@abv.bg

References: 

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