In this book the author offers us the first historical biography of Priscillian, a controversial figure of great importance for the history of the West, who until now has been considered by the different authors who have approached his figure as a heretic, reformer, apocryphal martyr or non-conformist Christian. The book also analyses the complex questions of his birthplace, the location of his burial place and the dating of the various episodes of his life, using the voices of the protagonists of the period in which Priscillian lived and making use of all the sources available to reconstruct his biography.
"L’originalité de ce petit livre, publié en castillan en 2019, tient à sa volonté de présenter l’évêque d’Avila avec le seul secours des sources antiques (peu de notes en bas de page), sans recourir aux études critiques nombreuses sur le sujet.
La formation d’archéologue de Diego Piay l’incite, pour le confort de ses lecteurs, à parsemer son texte de nombreuses illustrations (mosaïque, inscription, monuments, fouilles, cartes, sculptures, monnaies, etc.).
Ce petit livre est une bonne manière d’entrer dans l’histoire du priscillianisme. L’auteur fait des choix dans sa reconstitution de l’histoire de Priscillien quand les sources sont silencieuses – des choix pertinents liés à des hypothèses vraisemblables. Trente-six pages d’illustrations, de cartes, d’indices, de table chronologique et de bibliographie complètent le volume."
Translation
"The originality of this little book, published in Spanish in 2019, lies in its desire to present the bishop of Avila using only ancient sources (with few footnotes), without relying on the numerous critical studies on the subject.
The six chapters of the book follow a chronological path from his conversion to the history of the movement beyond his execution.
Diego Piay's training as an archaeologist leads him, for the convenience of his readers, to sprinkle his text with numerous illustrations (mosaics, inscriptions, monuments, excavations, maps, sculptures, coins, etc.).
This short book is a good entry point to the history of Priscillianism. When sources are unavailable, the author makes choices in his reconstruction of the history of Priscillien, which are relevant and linked to plausible hypotheses. Thirty-six pages of illustrations, maps, indices, chronological table and bibliography complete the volume."
-- Excerpts from Sylvain Jean Gabriel Sanchez, PLEKOS 27, 2025, pp. 39-40.
