An "Ikon of the Soul": The Byzantine Letter

Abstract

Byzantine epistolographic concepts are a natural development of the concepts of classical antiquity, and especially of the Second Sophistic, that were adapted to fit the requirements of Christian ontology. The surviving letters were intended not always to convey information, for which the courier or "living letter" was often responsible, but usually to fulfill the obligations and genuine needs of friendship and to serve as much prized pieces of literary art in their own right. In the one case the letter was deemed an "ikon of the soul," creating an illusion of the presence of the writer and thereby demanding tokens of his individual characteristics. In the other it was required to be original within the strict framework imposed by the imitation of ancient models; and by adherence to changing stylistic canons it came both to foster obscurity and to embrace subject-matter not commonly associated with the letter.