Marcus Aurelius' rain miracle and the Marcomannic wars / by Péter Kovács.

• Superior document: Mnemosyne. Supplements, v. 308. History and archaeology of classical antiquity
• Author: Kovács, Péter, 1969-
• Year of Publication: 2009
• Edition: 1st ed.
• Language: English
• Series: Mnemosyne, bibliotheca classica Batava. Supplementum ; 308.; Mnemosyne, bibliotheca classica Batava. Supplementum. History and archaeology of classical antiquity.
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (320 p.)
• Notes: Description based upon print version of record.

The longest war of the Roman imperial period is the war Marcus Aurelius waged with the northern German and Sarmatian tribes. The best-known events of these wars were the lightning and rain miracles. Divine intervention saved the Roman troops who were surrounded by the Germans and suffering from a water shortage, by means of a lightning and rain miracle. Thunderbolts struck the enemy while the rain soothed the Romans’ suffering. Several pagan and Christian versions of the miracle existed already in Antiquity. Péter Kovács examines these events and their sources in detail. The most important source is the Column of Marcus Aurelius in Rome. The scenes of the column depict the miracles as well and therefore it was studied separately. The author also sketches the history of the Marcomannic wars. He publishes all the sources of the miracles and examines the development of the legend from Antiquity to the 14th century.

Table of Contents

Preliminary Materials / Péter Kovács -- Chapter One. The Rain Miracle / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Two. Research History Of The Rain Miracle / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Three. Sources For The Rain Miracle / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Four. The Rain Miracle In Medieval Latin And Byzantine Sources / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Five. Coins And The Rain Miracle / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Six. The Forged Letter Attributed To Marcus Aurelius / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Seven. Julian Theurgistes And The Rain Miracle / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Eight. The Lightning And Rain Miracles / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Nine. The Column Of Marcus Aurelius / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Ten. The Scenes On The Column Of Marcus Aurelius / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Eleven. Marcomannic-Quadian Assault On Italy / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Twelve. Pannonia And The Marcomannic Wars / Péter Kovács -- Chapter Thirteen. The Dating Of The Scenes On The Column Of Marcus Aurelius / Péter Kovács -- Bibliography / Péter Kovács -- Index Of Names / Péter Kovács -- Index Of Sources / Péter Kovács.