Life and Martyrdom of saint Evstati of Mtskheta (Literary sources)

Abstract

The article reviews Literary works translated into Georgian in the pre-Christian period, Which have been considered by various scholars at different times as the literary source of the hagiographic work " Life and Martyrdom of saint Evstati of Mtskheta". That are works, which were probably known and relied upon by an unknown author of the sixth century. These are: Didache, Diatessaron by Tatian, Targum, Apology of Aristides, Apocrypha about generations of Heaven and Eart and Adam, Hagiographic story about 40 Martyrs of Sebaste, Areipagitica…    The present article represents summaries of the listed works and their connection with the Hagiographic text. Because the named text is original and one of the oldest, reconciling its literary sources and re-reflecting on them will be especially helpful for students to understand and evaluate the existence of rich literary traditions and translation process in Georgian literature in the 5th and 6th centuries. The overview of this text, even of probable literary sources, gives us a clear idea of this text.