Anonymus 31

Prosopography of the Byzantine Empire
SexE
FloruitE IX
Dates820 (taq) / 820 (tpq)
LocationsConstantinople (officeplace);
Constantinople (residence);
Constantinople
TitlesPapias, Great Palace (Constantinople) (office)
Textual SourcesGenesii, Josephi, Regum Libri Quattuor, eds. A. Lesmüller-Werner and I. Thurn, CFHB 14 (Berlin, 1978) (history);
Georgius Monachus, Chronicon, ed. C. de Boor, corr. P. Wirth (Stuttgart, 1978) (chronicle);
Leo Grammaticus, Chronographia, ed. I. Bekker (Bonn, 1842) (chronicle);
Pseudo-Symeon, Chronographia, ed. I. Bekker (Bonn, 1838), pp. 603-760 (history);
Theophanes Continuatus, ed. I. Bekker (Bonn, 1838) (history);
Zonaras = Ioannis Zonarae Epitome Historiarum, libri XIII-XVIII, ed. Th. Büttner-Wobst, (Bonn, 1897) (history)

Anonymus 31 was the papias of the emperor Leo V (Leo 15); on the arrest of Michael 10, on Christmas Eve, 820, Anonymus 31 was entrusted by Leo 15 with the task of guarding Michael 10: Theoph. Cont. I 21 (p. 35), 24 (pp. 37-38) (he gave Michael 10 his own couch and slept on the floor, greatly to the emperor's anger), II 2 (p. 41), Genesius I 18-19, Zon. XV 21. 24-27 (τῷ παπίᾳ ... τοῦ παπίου ... ὁ παπίας).

Unnamed papias of the palace (ὁ τοῦ παλατίου παπίας) in late 820; Anonymus 31 was related to Michael 10; a fellow-conspirator with Michael 10; on 25 December 820 while Michael 10 was in prison threatening to reveal their identities, Anonymus 31 admitted their other fellow-conspirators to the palace; then, when the emperor Leo V (Leo 15) entered church to celebrate the religious festival, they murdered him, released Michael 10 from prison and proclaimed him emperor: Leo Gramm. 210, Georg. Mon. Cont. 778, cf. Ps.- Symeon 619, Zon. XV 21. 31-36. The papias was normally a eunuch. Cf. also Anonymus 186 and Anonymus 228.

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