142 The Imperial Government
early historyof the bishop Callistus (Haer. 9, 11–12). As the slave of a pri-
vateperson,hewasconvictedofviolencebytheprefectofRomeinthe180s,
andsentencedtobefloggedandsenttothemetallaofSardinia;whenaletter
givinginstructionstotheprocuratorofSardiniatoreleaseChristiansinthe
minesarrived(in189–92),Callistusmanagedtogethimself included.This
story,however,revealsnothingaboutthelocaladministration,policing,or
exploitationofthemines.Rathermorecanbediscerned,fromthefirstde-
cadeofthefourthcentury,aboutthecopperminesatPhaenoinPalestine.
WhenDiocletianandMaximianrepliedtoaletterfromIulianus,proconsul
of Africa, reporting in 302 on the spread of Manicheeism, they laid down
thatinthisinstancetherulesofstatusweretobedisregarded:evenpersons
whowerehonorati(holdersofimperialoffice)orpossessedofdignitasshould
havetheirpropertyconfiscatedandbesenttothemetallaofPhaenoorPro-
connesus.^33 ThemetallaoftheislandofProconnesus(Marmara)weremarble
quarries,whilethoseatPhaenowerecoppermines,orrathercopperwork-
ings or sites in a mining area lying east of theWadi Arabah, between the
southendoftheDeadSeaandPetra.^34 ThePhaenominesplayaconsider-
ablepartinEusebius’accountofthenextdecadeinPalestine.Itwastothere
thatonegroupofconfessorswassentin307,afterhavingtheirlegsdisabled
withbrandingirons,andanotherafterbeingemasculated(MP7,3–4).Then
agroupofninety-sevensentfromEgyptsufferedtheseveringoftheleftten-
donandthegougingoutoftherighteyebeforebeingsenttothesemines
(8, 1); the same occurred with a further group in Egypt, laterdispersed to
minesinPalestineandCilicia(8,13).Nonetheless,by309/10theconvicts
wereenjoyingadegreeofliberty,tothepointwheretheywereabletocon-
struct buildings to serve as churches; and somewhowere unable towork
because of mutilation or old age had been released from labour and were
living separately but in the same area (13, 1–4).The conditions were thus
markedbyaconsiderabledegreeoffreedomontheoneside,sothatEpipha-
niuscouldlaterrecordthatthefollowersof Meletiusandthoseof Peterof
Alexandriahadkeptthemselvesseparateinthemines(Panar.68,2,8);and
ontheotherbysystematicmutilationwhichmustlargelyhavenegatedany
economicfunctionwhichtheconvictscouldperform.Eusebiuselsewhere
(HE8,12,10)describestheseChristiansasbeing‘‘afterthis[thetwoforms
33.Coll.15,3,7.Forthedate,seeT.D.Barnes,TheNewEmpireofDiocletianandConstantine
(1982),55.
- ForthecopperworkingsatFeinan,seeF.M.Abel,Géographie de la PalestineII(1983),
41–42;H.D.Kind,‘‘AntikeKupfergewinnungzwischenRotemundTotemMeer,’’ZDPV
81(1965):56,esp.57–64.