ΕΦΡΑΙΜ Ο ΣΥΡΟΣ:ΤΟΥ ΕΝ ΑΓΙΟΙΣ ΠΑΤΡΟΣ ΗΜΩΝ ΕΦΡΑΙΜ ΤΟΥ ΣΥΡΟΥ ΤΑ ΕΥΡΙΣΚΟΜΕΝΑ ΠΑΝΤΑ- SANCTI PATRIS NOSTRI EPHRAEM SYRI OPERA OMNIA QUE EXTANT,GRAECE, sYRIACE, lATINE IN SEX TOMOS DISTRIBUTA AD CODICES VATICANOS.ROMA EX TYPOGRAPHIA PONTIFICIA VATICANA 1732-1746 EDITIO PRINCEPS in Greek of all the surviving works of Ephraim the Syrian, a pivotal figure of early Christian world. ROYAL FOLIO complete, in six huge volumes, later vellum with few wear, text clean and bright,edges in red, ex libris of the library of Grand Seminair in Caen, richly illustrated with, overall in very good condition this massive work. Saint Ephrem the Syrian was a prolific 4th century Christian writer and hymnographer. Born in eastern Asia Minor, then a vivid Christian center of Greek and Syrian influence,he defended Greek Orthodoxy and wrote several important works, mostly (but not only) of theological nature. In his works we can easily see the social conditions of the Byzantine Anatolia of the 4th century. The publication of the works of Ephraim between 1732 and 1746 in Rome is considered one of the greatest milestones in the history of Oriental studies and Patristic printing. While few individual works of St. Ephraim had been printed before in Latin, this massive six-volume Folio set was the first time his complete works were gathered using the full scholarly resources of the Vatican. It was a project that took nearly 15 years to complete. The driving force behind this edition was Giuseppe Simone Assemani Assemani was a Lebanese Maronite who became the head of the Vatican Library. He was the only person in Rome with the linguistic genius to organize a project involving Greek, Latin, and Syriac. It has been funded by Pope Clement XII and Pope Benedict XIV. Volumes 1 to 3 contain the works attributed to Ephraim that survived in Greek. They are printed in parallel columns of Greek and Latin. Volumes 4 to 6 contain the surviving texts in Syriac. These contain his authentic rhythmic prose and hymns. They are deeply Anatolian, using metaphors of farming, medicine, and weaving. The Greek texts contain also "Pseudo-Ephraim" works, texts written by his Greek followers in his style. These tend to be much more focused on Monastic Gloom, which became very popular in the Byzantine world. His hymns became a central part of Eastern liturgy and influenced traditions as far as Ethiopia or India. Greek Orthodoxy is based in his works. Ephrem is venerated as a Saint across all traditional Christian denominations. A very influential publication