A.B. Ranovich's legacy in the context of studying the Hasmonean state

M.N. Karanaev

Independent Researcher, Moscow, 109156 Russia

E-mail: karanaevmk@mail.ru

Received August 22, 2022

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

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DOI: 10.26907/2541-7738.2022.6.95-107

For citation: Karanaev M.N. A.B. Ranovich’s legacy in the context of studying the Hasmonean state. Uchenye Zapiski Kazanskogo Universiteta. Seriya Gumanitarnye Nauki, 2022, vol. 164, no. 6, pp. 95–107. doi: 10.26907/2541-7738.2022.6.95-107. (In Russian)

Abstract

This article examines the views of A.B. Ranovich, a prominent Soviet historian of antique civilizations, on the Hasmonean state by analyzing his works through the lens of the epoch and, simultaneously, as opposing Soviet and “bourgeois” history. This approach opens up new perspectives for the interpretation of how the scholar turned his attention from Christianity to Hellenism. A possible explanation may be that the first scholarly quest for the historical Jesus and the Christ myth theory, promoted by A.B. Ranovich in particular, led their adherents to a deadlock. They finally broke through it with the discovery of the Qumran Caves Scrolls (1948) and the development of new methods of studying the early Christian texts, i.e., after the death of A.B. Ranovich. It is of peculiar interest to get an insight into what thoughts A.B. Ranovich had about E. Bickerman and V. Cherikover’s works because they all had a similar pre-revolutionary experience (Jewish background, traditional Jewish lifestyle in families, secular education, and membership in the academic community). The analysis shows that A.B. Ranovich was critical of “bourgeois” historians and refused their approach to studying Jewish history. However, this made him focus on the socio-economic features of the Hasmonean state and thus he proved that the Hellenistic states encouraged slavery. A.B. Ranovich’s work “Hellenism and Its Historical Role” testifies to his unique concern about the history of the Jews, although it was outwardly shunned. The conclusion is made that A.B. Ranovich preferred not to publicly identify and portray himself as a Jewish historian, but his reasoning, regardless of the numerous ideological clichés and constructs, was built on the Jewish traditions that he knew.

Keywords: A.B. Ranovich, E. Bickerman, historiography, Hasmonean state, Judaic studies, Hellenism

Acknowledgements. This study was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project no. 20-09-41014).

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