MAR
31
Konstantinos Simonides
By a strange coincidence I started looking for the life
and work of Constantinos Simonides (1820-?), "the
greatest forger in the history of literature"
I am not used to such posts but I think it is worth
reading the following two articles from the newspaper
"I RODIAKI".
Konstantinos Simonides, the leading Symian thinker
who captivated the intellectual world
It is written by
Hlias K. Kypreos
statesman of Dodecanese
Konstantinos Simonidis (1820-1867) belongs to the
category of those people whom nature has rarely
endowed with such a brilliant mind of universal
radiation, who conquered and charmed the entire
intellectual world of his time, but at the same time
attracted the envy and slander of the world
intelligence, who conquered and charmed the whole
intellectual world of his time, but at the same time
attracted the jealousy and gossip of the world
Intelligentsia, with the result that he was slandered by
them as a "forger" and "adventurer", while 150 years
after his death, careful examination, with the method
and means of modern technology, has ruled in favor of
the authenticity of his famous ancient papyri and
documents.
Konstantinos Simonidis was born in Symi in 1820 and
the registry act of his birth should logically be
registered in the archives of the Demogerontia of the
Municipality of Symi.
From the first years of his student life, he showed a
strong interest and adoration for ancient texts, to later
develop into a demigod collector of them. He spent his
entire father's fortune traveling incessantly plowing the
world in order to locate and purchase papyri,
parchments, palimpsests and ancient manuscripts from
monasteries, private individuals, antique dealers, etc
page 2
Without being surrounded by the monastic form, he
stayed for several years in the Athenian State to study
and immerse himself in the early Christian
manuscripts and effectively contribute to their
preservation and rescue, which had been worn out by
the use made by the monks in their daily prayers.
Simonides initially causes excitement and is praised
by the world intelligentsia as the savior of ancient
writing.
As is known, the Intelligentsia has always been and is
constituted by academics, artists, teachers, writers,
self-proclaimed "wise men" and in general the entire
system and establishment of the society of letters. The
biggest newspapers in the world dedicated to
Constantinos Simonides eulogies, praises and praises.
He associates, corresponds and meets with the leading
intellectuals of his time, who wish to meet him and
study the ancient precious documents he possessed.
The authentic texts of Constantine Simonides attracted
the intense interest of Kings and wealthy collectors,
who offered him huge sums of money.
The letters of John and Judas, of which he was
unjustly accused of forgery, were finally proved to be
genuine, as was also that of Androsthenes, Admiral of
Alexander the Great, as well as the valuable
manuscripts of Archimedes, Cicero, Pliny, etc. using
X-rays and wavelengths of light.
However, as soon as the Intelligence spread its
marginalization and began to sense that its primacy
and cerebral scientism were threatened by the genius
of Constantinos Simonides, it changed its behavior
drastically.
Excitement and praise turned into baseless
accusations, and they began - knowingly untruthfully
Page 3
- to claim that they were all misled and deceived by
the gifted and eminent archeologist Symia, that they
allegedly did not perceive the forgery of his ancient
papyri and documents and that they could not establish
their true chronology, despite their supposed authority
and expertise for which they themselves contended,
and did not hesitate to question even the authenticity
and genuineness of his degrees, precisely because their
"highest" interests were at stake.
This anonymous behavior of the Intelligence did not
surprise or surprise Konstantinos Simonides.
However, it caused him deep sadness, because the
systematic defamation and the organized slander and
plagiarism against him also marked the end of his
brilliant reputation and his career. In order to earn a
living, he is forced to offer his services as an
interpreter and eventually goes to the patriarchate of
Alexandria from which he is assigned the duties of
bishop of Ethiopia. His death occurred in Alexandria
in 1867. Ancient parchments and other precious
ancient documents of his collection are in the
museums and great libraries of the world and a great
many have ended up in the Monastery of Sinai.
The house of Constantinos Simonides in Symi was
opposite the municipal pharmacy.
Today, alongside the foreign writers who dedicate
articles and publish books to the ignored and blatantly
wronged Konstantinos Simonides, we Dodecanese
must highlight the personality of this genius Symian
with global reach, influence and impact, who literally
shook the intellectual world of his time.
A serious effort was made during the Mayorship of
Kostas Kypraios by the late Symia journalist and
writer Michael Skeofylakas, through the newspapers
"Dodekanisos", "Simaika Nea" and "Symi", which
unfortunately did not continue after their death.
The vindication of Constantinos Simonides, which
comes 150 years after his death, should be expressed
in practice with similar events throughout the
Dodecanese, in order to maintain an imposed and
well-intentioned balance
