The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas in Late Antiquity - (Hardcover)

About the Book

"This volume gathers all available evidence for the martyrdoms of Perpetua and Felicitas, two Christian women who became, in the centuries after their deaths in 203 CE, revered throughout the Roman world. Whereas they are now known primarily through a popular third-century account, numerous lesser-known texts attest to the profound place they held in the lives of Christians in late antiquity. This book brings together narratives in their original languages with accompanying English translations, including many related entries from calendars, martyrologies, sacramentaries, and chronicles, as well as artistic representations and inscriptions. As a whole, the collection offers readers a robust view of the veneration of Perpetua and Felicitas over the course of six centuries, examining the diverse ways that a third-century Latin tradition was appreciated, appropriated, and transformed as it circulated throughout the late antique world"--

Book Synopsis

This volume gathers all available evidence for the martyrdoms of Perpetua and Felicitas, two Christian women who became, in the centuries after their deaths in 203 CE, revered throughout the Roman world. Whereas they are now known primarily through a popular third-century account, numerous lesser known texts attest to the profound place they held in the lives of Christians in late antiquity. This book brings together narratives in their original languages with accompanying English translations, including many related entries from calendars, martyrologies, sacramentaries, and chronicles, as well as artistic representations and inscriptions. As a whole, the collection offers readers a robust view of the veneration of Perpetua and Felicitas over the course of six centuries, examining the diverse ways that a third-century Latin tradition was appreciated, appropriated, and transformed as it circulated throughout the late antique world.

From the Back Cover

"This is one of those books of such obvious importance that it leaves you wondering why no one has ever thought to do this before. Bringing together the many texts and traditions of Perpetua and Felicitas, this volume does a great service to scholarship."--Paul Middleton, author of The Violence of the Lamb: Martyrs as Agents of Divine Judgement in the Book of Revelation

"What happened to the reputations of the martyrs Perpetua and Felicitas after their deaths? This fine book provides answers to that question, offering a compilation of sources from the familiar to the obscure, along with introductory analyses of each text that are always helpful and often extraordinarily insightful. It's a must for researchers."--Joyce E. Salisbury, author of Perpetua's Passion: Death and Memory of a Late Roman Woman

Review Quotes

"This volume is a crucial addition to any personal or institutional library for the study of Perpetua and Felicitas, early Christian martyrs and their legacies, the connection between textual evidence and material culture, Christianity in late antiquity, and more."-- "Journal of Orthodox Christian Studies"

"Cobb's book is a valuable introduction to the reception history of stories related to the martyrdom of Perpetua and her companions, especially for students and others new to the traditions surrounding their cult."-- "Reading Religion"

About the Author

L. Stephanie Cobb is George and Sallie Cutchin Camp Professor of Bible at the University of Richmond. She is the author of Dying to Be Men: Gender and Language in Early Christian Martyr Texts and Divine Deliverance: Pain and Painlessness in Early Christian Martyr Narratives.

Andrew S. Jacobs is a historian of early Christianity based outside Boston, Massachusetts. His most recent book, Epiphanius of Cyprus: A Cultural Biography of Late Antiquity, won the Philip Schaff Prize from the American Society of Church History.