Flavius Josephus and Dionysius of Halicarnassus: Dialoguing through Proems

This article discusses the possibility that Dionysius of Halicarnassus’ Roman Antiquities were Flavius Josephus’ direct model for his Jewish Antiquities, a theory that has faced both support and criticism. Following König and Wiater’s framework of literary dialogue, this study identifies various layers of interaction, from biographical and paratextual elements to lexical and conceptual similarities. Josephus’ Jewish War is also considered: while in this case his main models were historians like Thucydides and Polybius, his use of Dionysius can also be identified through a close reading of Josephus’ proem. Both authors shared a similar stand-point towards Rome and its empire, not least because of their personal experiences. Despite their different perspectives, both used antiquarianism as a political instrument for their respective historiographical agendas. Josephus’ numerous references to Dionysius indicate him as a significant, though unacknowledged, model.