Ancient History: How Hypotheses about the evidence lead to Theoretical Conclusions and vice verse

Section 1: How Hypotheses about the evidence lead to Theoretical Conclusions.
      1.1: Evidence
      1.2  Hypotheses about evidence by an investigator may be made in response to questions.
           Typical questions include WHAT? WHO? WHEN? WHERE? HOW? WHY?

Section 2: How Hypotheses about the evidence lead to Theoretical Conclusions and vice verse.

Section 1: How Hypotheses about the evidence lead to Theoretical Conclusions.

1.0 The evidence

Evidence is diverse but its diversity may be broadly categorized into a general range of classifications as follows. .

Categories of Ancient Historical Evidence

It should be kept in mind that the parts (1,2,3) below are not necessarily to be delineated, but it is often helpful (and often traditional) to examine the literature traditions and the field traditions as separate and independent sources of evidence. With the emergence of new scientific technologies, new Analytical Support tools are becoming abundant. This schema should therefore not be treated as necessarily complete, but as a DRAFT.
Part (1): The "Literature Traditions"
1.1 the speakers - authors (people, particularly "historians") and their estimable historicity.
1.2 the manuscripts - physical written source - original documents (codices, scrolls, papyri fragments)
1.3 the words - ancient texts: their literature, its philology, and its translations.

Part (2): The "Field Traditions"
2.1 architecture, buildings, monuments
2.2 inscriptions in stone and metal and mosaic - the epigraphic habit
2.3 sarcophagi, burial relics, funerary ornaments
2.4 coins (gold, silver and others)
2.5 art, paintings and graffitti
2.6 sculpture, reliefs, frescoes, ornamental works
2.7 archeological relics and other citations
2.8 cadavers
2.9 geographical, climatic and ecological data (on a regional basis)

Part (3): The "Analysis Support Traditions & newer technologies"
3.1 paleographic assessment and dating of original texts, papyrii and papyrii fragments
3.2 radio carbon dating and other scientific dating citations
3.3 multi-spectral imaging and other scientific "reading" technologies
3.4 collective and collaborative databases: epigraphic, numismatic, geographic, climatic, etc.
3.9 the historians - comments and analyses of the above by past and present ancient historians.

The "Literature Traditions"

1.1 People: the writer-speakers - authors (people, particularly "historians") and their estimable historicity.
History remembers very very few people compared to those who have lived. Most histories are unwritten, unremembered and unknown. Nevertheless, the evidence is such that some people did preserve the written word, The further we go back towards antiquity the more fragmentary the evidence becomes. From the mention of people and events of the past in manuscripts (and from other sources) historians attempt to reconstruct the past. Its like a vast four dimensional jigsaw puzzle of evidence, in which historical people represent pieces.

From the perspective of an investigator, the authors are people. The subject of these authors' writings, or various mentions within their writings, may be about historical people, the name and identity of whom are of interest to the historian and are the subject of the investigator's "Who questions".

1.2 Manuscripts (mss) - physical hand written source - original documents (codices, scrolls, papyri fragments)
The following schematic shows that physical manuscripts may be presumed to have at least one author, as well as logical other relationships to other people. The manuscript may have had at least one separate publisher, at least one separate sponsor, at least one separate scribe, if the author (himself or herself) did not also perform theses functions. Behind the attribution of authorship (and other) names there is the presumed possibility of an historical identity.



Various sub-categories of manuscript evidence may be elucidated by their physical characteristics. Evidence consistent of writing on stone, clay, metal and other materials is generally treated under the heading of epigraphy or inscriptions (below).

Material: From before 2000 BCE Papyrus is a thick paper-like material produced from the pith of the papyrus plant, Cyperus papyrus, a wetland sedge that was once abundant in the Nile Delta of Egypt. Papyrus scrolls are attested in ancient Egypt. From the 1st century BCE the use of parchment, as a rival writing surface, and prepared from animal skins, is attested. This material was more durable, especially in moister climates, but more expensive to prepare. From c.105 CE in Chine, the invention of paper gradually replaced the Chineses us of bamboo. Paper not used in a widespread sense in Europe until the 8th century when it started to be used in the Islamic empire.

Technology: Scrolls made from papyrus or vellum gradually gave way to the invention of the codex, or bound book, the earliest mention by Martial in the fiest century CE. However it was not until the 4th century that the codex (using papyrus, or vellum) became very popular. The printing revolution of the 15th century, using paper, automated the hand manufacture of books, and this process continues today. With the use of electonic media, some books are now manufactured literally from electons and electromagnetic storage.

Manuscript Names: A physical manuscript is often referred to by a name. Examples of codices in the Greek language are Codex Vaticanus Graecus 1209, Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Alexandrinus. Examples of names of papyri fragments are P.Oxy.3035 (an abbreviated name for Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 3035.

Language & Script of Composition: The manuscripts can be prepared in many languages. Examples from antiquity include Greek, Latin, Coptic, Manichaean and Syriac. Various writing styles or scripts are also able to be recognised and identified in order to be more precise about the ms. Some mss are illustrated also, for example.

Copies of Manuscripts: Since manuscripts eventually deteriorated, or there was demand for further copies, manuscripts were often copied in order to preserve the original. This introduces the various relationships between manuscripts that may exist. When a copy of an already existing manuscript is discovered, then it represents a new evidence item that enjoys a specific relationship to an older existing manuscript - "a copy of MS". The converse relationship "copied in MS" relates the new to the old.

Translations of Manuscripts: Some manuscripts have been translated into many different languages. A manuscript which is not just a copy, but a translation to another language, will have the relationship "translated from", and conversely "translated to" is this same realtionship from the perspective of the original (which may have been a copy).

Earliest Surviving Manuscripts: Most original manuscripts from antiquity do not survive for various reasons. It is often very important to be aware of the date of earliest surviving physical manuscript, is in fact a copy of the original, perhaps many times removed from it by each copy. The earliest surviving ms may not in fact be in the same source language, but a translation thereof.

1.3 Words and Statements - ancient texts: their literature, its philology, and its translations.
Within each item of evidence known as a manuscript, an entire new sub-system of potential evidence may be perceived to be contained, if we consider that the writing so bound is consistent of words and statements.

SUMMARY

Evidence of historical authors and other people, evidence of physical manuscripts and the evidende of statements bound therein constitute Part (1) - The Literature Tradition, of the sources of evidence.

Background (from WIKI): Literary theory in a strict sense is the systematic study of the nature of literature and of the methods for analyzing literature.[1] However, literary scholarship since the 19th century often includes—in addition to, or even instead of literary theory in the strict sense—considerations of intellectual history, moral philosophy, social prophecy, and other interdisciplinary themes which are of relevance to the way humans interpret meaning. Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Textual criticism (or lower criticism) is a branch of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification and removal of transcription errors in the texts of manuscripts Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics. Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin. Classical philology is historically primary, originating in European Renaissance Humanism, but was soon joined by philologies of other languages both European (Germanic, Celtic, Slavistics, etc.) and non-European (Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, Chinese, etc.). Indo-European studies involves the philology of all Indo-European languages as comparative studies.

The general form of the words or statements within any one manuscript can be conceptualised in the series of W1, W2, W3 ... Wn (words) or (S1, S2, S3 ... Sn) statements or verses. Statements found in books can be identified, treated and examined as separate items of evidence to be related to other items of evidence already registered or under examination.

Generalisation:

The entire (growing) collection of evidence can be viewed from many different perspectives. From a flat perspective, we can just see a list of Evidence items: E1, E2, E3, ... En. In some cases an evidence item will represent a person to be identified a by name (i.e. Names: N1, N2, N3, .... Nn) and which may or may not ultimately be associated with an historical identity. In other cases an evidence item will represent a Manuscript: M1, M2, M3, ... Mn. And in other cases an evidence item will be a finite and specific subset of the words and statements to be found in the ms: Words/Statements: W1, W2, W3, ... Wn.

The "Field Traditions"

Section 1.1: The Hypotheses

Introduction

ABSTRACT

A process is identified to describe the methodology of historical theorizing in which evidence items are registered, one by one. Against each item of evidence hypotheses consistent of simple statements are then registered. These hypotheses are either formulated anew and/or recalled from old hypotheses previously formulated. All investigators are entitled to address any or all items of evidence, or add items of evidence to the register to be addressed. All investigators may select existing hypotheses directly related to each item of evidence, or formulate new hypotheses. General hypotheses may also be selected and/or formulated by all investigators. All these hypotheses, consistent of simple statements representative of the evidence and the conceptual framework of the investigator are input into a "Black Box" which is designated as a "Theory Generator", and theoretical conclusions are output.

(1)Evidence Items are registered
E1, E2, E3, ..., En

(2) For each evidence item
hypotheses are formulated;
P1, P2, P3, ..., Pn

(3) General hypotheses are added
GP1, GP2, GP3, ..., GPn

(4) All hypotheses become INPUT
to the "Black Box" of the Theory Generator

(5) Theoretical Conclusions are OUTPUT
C1, C2, C3, ..., Cn