Examining the Records

Abstract

A synodical trial conducted in Constantinople in AD 448 against the archimandrite Eutyches produced protocols of eight sessions. Challenged by the condemned Eutyches for their alleged manipulation, two imperial commissions investigated these records and tested their reliability and veracity. The chapter analyses the inquiries’ investigation into the different types of documents coming before them and the resultant discussions between secretaries, bishops, and officials about the crucial relationship between ‘originals’ and ‘copies’ of such records and their respective standing and proper use in a legal altercation. The technical vocabulary used in these discussions for such documents is analysed. The disputes further show by what visual features the status of documents could be identified and evaluated. They allow inferences as to the production process and the keeping and storage of records.