The citation of ancient sources particularly must seem
somewhat arcane to those unfamiliar with the study of the ancient
world. The numbering of such references depends not on page
numbers, as is the case with modern books, but on the manner
in which ancient, medieval, or modern editors divided up the text.
Generally speaking, such references are tripartite, with the sepa-
rate elements divided by full stops. The first element alludes to
the book (in ancient and medieval terms meaning not the whole
work, but rather one of its larger constituent units); the second to
the chapter; the third to a section or (in biblical texts) verse. Thus
the reference Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 6.7.3 refers to
book 6, chapter 7, and section 3 of that work. A similar system
is used when referring to books of the Bible, except that the names
of the books are used instead of numbers. (Readers familiar with
biblical texts may notice that I also put the names of biblical texts
in italics, rather than leaving them in roman typeface, which is
the more common practice; I do so in order to indicate that I am
treating the books of the Bible as sources on an equal footing with
the writings of other ancient authors, whether Christian, pagan,
or Jewish.) Thus Acts14.8–12 refers to chapter 14, sections (or
verses) 8 to 12, of the Acts of the Apostlesin the New Testament.
While this basic principle holds for most ancient sources, some
will have an idiosyncratic system of numbering; this will usually
be described in editions and translations of the relevant work.
For ancient sources I have decided, for the most part, to
eschew abbreviations. These too can often cause confusion for
beginners. The only place where I have deviated from this is for
books of Christian scripture, the New Testament. The shortened
forms used in this book correspond to those commonly used at
the tops of pages in modern bibles. The principles I have used
can be elucidated quite briefly. Gospel accounts are referred to
by the name of the author to whom they are commonly (but, as
we will see in chapter 3, incorrectly) ascribed. Thus Markis short-
hand for The Gospel according to Mark. For the various epistles,
I have used the shorthand of simply using the name of the
addressee: thus Philippiansfor Paul’s Letter to the Philippians.
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