The five books of Papias\u2019 Exposition of the oracles of the Lord (\u39b\u3bf\u3b3\u3af\u3c9\u3bd \u3ba\u3c5\u3c1\u3b9\u3b1\u3ba\u1ff6\u3bd
\u1f10\u3be\u3ae\u3b3\u3b7\u3c3\u3b9\u3c2) are known to us only in small fragments, transmitted in quotations by later authors, such as Eusebius of Cesarea (Ecclesiastical history), Jerome, and Photius. The present study focuses on two particular fragments (nrs 10 and 17 Norelli), both dealing with the delicate problem of John\u2019s martyrdom and death. The first fragment (nr. 10) is included in a collec- tion of excerpts from Eusebius\u2019 Ecclesiastical history, assembled between the 6th and 9th century, and transmitted to us, in different forms, by three manuscripts. The second fragment (nr. 17), a quotation from Papias\u2019 work included in the oldest redaction of the Chronicle of George the Monk (9th century), will be discussed separately, in a second instalment
