The Ante-Nicene Church · AD 180–313
Ammonius of Alexandria
fl. c. AD 220–245 (death unrecorded) · Christian scholar · Author of the first Gospel harmony-apparatus · Alexandria
The Ante-Nicene Church
Who Ammonius of Alexandria was
The Alexandrian scholar whose Diatessaron-Gospel set the fourfold text in parallel columns keyed to Matthew — the apparatus from which Eusebius built his canon tables, as his letter to Carpianus acknowledges — with a further work on the harmony of Moses and Jesus. Jerome catalogues him among the church's elegant and learned men; whether he is the Ammonius of the philosophers, antiquity itself confused.
Common questions
When was Ammonius active?
Ammonius of Alexandria is dated fl. c. AD 220–245 (death unrecorded) in the archive, which places Ammonius in the Ante-Nicene Church (AD 180–313). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Ammonius?
Ammonius of Alexandria is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Eusebius of Caesarea and Jerome. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Ammonius from?
The archive associates Ammonius of Alexandria with Alexandria.
Who were Ammonius’ contemporaries?
The archive links Ammonius of Alexandria to 2 other figures, including Eusebius of Caesarea and Origen of Alexandria. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (2)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Ecclesiastical History VI.19 (his fidelity defended against Porphyry; the harmony noted)
c. AD 325Ammonius held the divine philosophy unshaken and unadulterated to the end of his life.Eusebius of Caesarea · Ecclesiastical History VI.19 · source text
On Illustrious Men 55
c. AD 393Ammonius, a talented man of great philosophic learning at Alexandria… composed the Gospel canons which Eusebius of Caesarea afterwards followed, and a work on the agreement of Moses and Jesus.Jerome · 55 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 177 · Persecution at Lyon and Vienne, AD 177
- AD 180 · The Scillitan martyrs, AD 180
- AD 190 · The Quartodeciman controversy, AD 190
- AD 202 · Perpetua and Felicity martyred, AD 202
- AD 235 · Maximinus Thrax targets the clergy, AD 235
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Ammonius.