PHILAGATHUS OF CERAMI
(d. 1154 or later)
Greek prose in medieval Italy reaches a high point with
the sermons of the twelfth-century Siculo-Calabrian
monk Philagathus. He is conventionally called “of Ce-
rami,” although it is not clear whether the designation
Keramítes refers to Cerami in Sicily or to some other
place, or is instead a classicizing version of the demotic
surname Kerameüs (“Potter”). Until fairly recently, he
was known as Theophanes Cerameus, thanks to a misat-
tribution in one branch of a later Byzantine redaction
that converted his sermon collection into a homiliary
organized according to the liturgical calendar, and his
work was at times presented as that of a ninth- or elev-
enth-century writer into which more recent material had
been inserted. In his Italo-Greek manuscripts he is styled
“the philosopher” (and therefore is sometimes so identi-
fi ed in library catalogs) and is also often called Philippus
(perhaps his baptismal name) rather than Philagathus. Of
his approximately ninety surviving sermons, only thirty-
eight have a modern critical edition; the remainder either
must be read in texts descended from the very defective
editio princeps of Francesco Scorso (1644) or are still
unpublished. Even so, these cultured and rhetorically
accomplished productions have earned a considerable
reputation for artistic excellence.
To the extent that they can be localized with certainty,
Philagathus’s early associations are Calabrian. After
entering religion at an unidentifi ed church of Saint
Andrew, he trained at the Nea Hodegetria monastery
near Rossano, later known as the Patír or the Patirion,
for whose founder, Bartholomew of Simeri (d. 1130), he
gave a commemorative sermon. Philagathus preached
in Rossano proper; in Reggio; and in Sicily, at Messina,
Taormina, Troina, and especially Palermo, where at least
one of his sermons was delivered before King Roger
II in the predecessor of today’s cathedral. His sermon
in Roger’s Palatine Chapel (seemingly after 1140 but
sometimes assigned to the chapel’s consecration in
1140) contains the earliest extended description of this
renowned monument.
Although Philagathus has been called a court preacher,
it might be more accurate to call him a preacher whose
distinction led to appearances at court. The venues of
most of his sermons are not fully known. He was still
active during the reign of William I (1154–1166). An
allegorical commentary on the Aethiopica of Heliodorus
(an ancient Greek novel used by Philagathus in at least
one sermon), recently thought to be his, has now been
shown to be much older. The attributions to him of the
anonymous Life of Bartholomew of Simeri, of a gram-
matical textbook now lost, and of a verse introduction
to the fables of Symeon Seth (one form of the Greek
“mirror of princes” Stephanites and Ichnelates) are all
very dubious.
Further ReadingEditions
Caruso, Stefano, ed. “Le tre omilie inedite ‘Per la domenica delle
palme’ di Filagato da Cerami.” Epeterìs Hetaireías Byzantinôn
Spoudôn, 41, 1974, pp. 109–127.
Patrologia Graeca, 132, cols. 9–1078. (Scorso’s edition and Latin
translation of sixty-two sermons.)
Rossi Taibbi, Giuseppe, ed. Filagato da Cerami: Omelie per i
vangeli domenicali e le feste di tutto l’anno, Vol. 1, Omelie
per le feste fi sse, Istituto siciliano di studi bizantini e neoel-
lenici. Testi, 11. Palermo: Istituto Siciliano di Studi Bizantini
e Neoetenici, 1969.Translations
Ga ̧spar, Cristian-Nicolae. “Praising the Stylite in Southern Italy:
Philagathos of Cerami on Saint Symeon the Stylite.” Annu-
ario dell’Istituto Romeno di Cultura e Ricerca Umanistica,
4, 2002, pp. 93–108.
Lavagnini, Bruno. Profi lo di Filagato da Cerami: Con traduzione
della Omelia XXVII pronunziata dal pulpito della Cappe
Palatina in Palermo. Palermo: Accademia Nazionale di Sci-
enze, Lettere, e Arti già del Buongusto, 1992. (Reprinted in
Bollettino della Badia Greca di Grottaferrata, n.s., 44, 1990,
pp. 231–244, issued in 1993.)Manuscript
Rossi Taibbi, Giuseppe. Sulla tradizione manoscritta dell’omiliario
di Filagato da Cerami. Istituto Siciliano di Studi Bizantini e
Neoellenici, Quaderni, 1. Palermo: Istituto Siciliano di Studi
Bizantini e Neoellenici, 1965.Critical Studies
Acconcia Longo, Augusta. “Filippo il fi losofo a Costantinopoli.”
Rivista di Studi Bizantini e Neoellenici, n.s., 28, 1991, pp.
3–21.
Foti, Maria Bianca. “Culture e scrittura nelle chiese e nei mon-
asteri italo-greci.” In Civiltà del Mezzogiorno d’Italia: Libro,
scrittura, documento in età normanno-sveva—Atti del con-
vegno dell’Associazione Italiana dei Paleografi e Diplomatisti
(Napoli–Badia di Cava dei Tirreni, 14–18 ottobre 1991), ed.
Filippo D’Oria. Cultura Scritta e Memoria Storica, 1. Salerno:
Carlone, 1994, pp. 41–76. (See especially pp. 65–67.)
Garzya, Antonio. “Per la cultura politica nella Sicilia greconor-
manna.” In Percorsi e tramiti di cultura. Naples: M. D’Auria,
1997, pp. 241–247.
Houben, Hubert. “La predicazione.” In Strumenti, tempi, e luoghi
di communicazione nel Mezzogiorno normanno-svevo: Atti
delle undecime Giornate normanno-sveve, Bari, 26–29 ot-
tobre 1993, ed. Giosuè Musca and Vito Sivo. Bari: Dedalo,
1995, pp. 253–273.
Kitzinger, Ernst. “The Date of Philagathos’ Homily for the
Feast of Saints Peter and Paul.” In Byzantino-Sicula, Vol. 2,
Miscellanea di scritti in memoria di Giuseppe Rossi Taibbi.
Istituto Siciliano di Studi Bizantini e Neoellenici, Quaderni,- Palermo: Istituto Siciliano di Studi Bizantini e Neoellenici,
1975, pp. 301–306.
Lucà, Santo. “I Normanni e la ‘ritmica’ del sec. XII.” Archivio
Storico per la Calabria e la Lucania, 60, 1993, pp. 1–91. (See
especially pp. 69–79, 86–87.)
Perria, Lidia. “La clausola ritmica nella prosa di Filagato da Ce-
rami.” Jahrbuch der österreichischen Byzantinistik, 32 (Akten
des XVI. Internationalen Byzantinistenkongress, Wien, 4.–9.
Oktober 1981), part 3, 1982, pp. 365–373.
John B. Dillon
PHILAGATHUS OF CERAMI