CHRŎNOLŎGĬA

( χρονολογία ), chronology. The Greeks reckoned their years generally according to their magistrates, in the early times according to the years of the reign of their kings, and afterwards according to their annual magistrates. At Athens the year was called by the name of one of the nine archons, who from this circumstance was called ἄρχων ἐπώνυμος , or the archon par excellence; and at Sparta the years were called after one of the five ephors, who for this reason was likewise termed ἐπώνυμος . In Argos time was counted according to the years of the high prieste of Hera, who held her office for life ( ἡρεσίς ); and the inhabitants of Elis probably reckoned according to the Olympic games, which were celebrated every fifth year during the first full moon which followed after the summer solstice. Thus there was no era which was used by all the Greeks in common for the ordinary purposes of life.—Timaeus, who flourished about B.C. 260, was the first historian who counted the years by Olympiads, each of which contained four years. The beginning of the Olympiads is commonly fixed in the year 3938 of the Julian period, or in B.C. 776. If we want to reduce any given Olympiad to years before Christ, e.g. Ol. 87, we take the number of the Olympiads actually elapsed, that is, 86, multiply it by 4, and deduct the number obtained from 776, so that the first year of the 87th Ol. will be the same as the year 432 B.C. If the number of Olympiads amounts to more than 776 years, that is, if the Olympiad falls after the birth of Christ, the proce is the same as before, but from the sum obtained by multiplying the Olympiads by 4, we must deduct the number 776, and what remains is the number of the years after Christ. As the Olympic games were celebrated 293 times, we have 293 Olympic cycles, that is, 1172 years, 776 of which fall before, and 396 after Christ.—Some writers also adopted the Trojan era, the fall of Troy being placed by Eratosthenes and those who adopted this era, in the year B.C. 1184. After the time of Alexander the Great, several other eras were introduced in the kingdoms that arose out of his empire. The first was the Philippic era, sometimes also called the era of Alexander or the era of Ede a; it began on the 12th of November B.C. 324, the date of the acce ion of Philip Arrhidaeus. The second was the era of the Seleucidae, beginning on the 1st of October B.C. 312, the date of the victory of Seleucus Nicator at Gaza, and of his re-conquest of Babylonia. This era was used very extensively in the East. The Chaldaean era differed from it only by six months, beginning in the spring of B.C. 311. Lastly, the eras of Antioch, of which there were three, but the one most commonly used began in November B.C. 49.—The Romans during the time of the republic reckoned their years by the names of the consuls, which were registered in the Fasti. Along with this era there existed another, used only by the historians. It reckoned the years from the foundation of the city ( ab urbe condita ); but the year of the foundation of the city was a question of uncertainty among the Romans themselves. M. Terentius Varro placed it on the 21st of April in the third year of the 6th Olympiad, that is, B.C. 753; and this is the era most commonly used. To find out the year B.C. corresponding to the year A.U.C. , subtract the year A.U.C. from 754; thus 605 A.U.C. = 149 B.C. To find out the year A.D. corresponding to the year A.U.C. , subtract 753 from the year A.U.C. ; thus 767 A.U.C. = 14 A.D. CHRȲSENDĔTA, costly dishes used by the Romans at their entertainments, apparently made of silver, with golden ornaments.