Das Buch „Gnomica Democritea“ wirft einen Panoramablick auf das Schicksal der demokritischen Ethik, indem es Bezüge zwischen dem verlorenen ethischen Oeuvre und der „gnomologischen“ Tradition herstellt, welche den Kern der von Diels gesammelten Demokritfragmente (FVS, Kap. 68) bildet. Der Untersuchungsschwerpunkt liegt auf der für Demokrit bislang nicht ausgewerteten früh- und mittelbyzantinischen Gnomentradition und erlaubt Modifikationen des Dielsschen Textkanons. Ausgehend von einer zentralen „Universalsammlung“ („Corpus Parisinum“) werden die verschlungenen Überlieferungswege der „Democritea“ in bislang nicht gekannter Präzision ermittelt und neuartige Erkenntnisse über die byzantinischen Florilegien gewonnen.

Dr. Jens Gerlach studierte Klassische Philologie und Pädagogik an der Universität Hamburg und ist seit 2000 als Gymnasiallehrer für Griechisch und Latein in Hamburg tätig. Forschungsschwerpunkte: 1. Die gnomologische Tradition antiker griechischer Autoren in der Spätantike und im byzantinischen Mittelalter (Gnomologien, Florilegien und andere Spruchcorpora) 2. Lukian von Samosata als Satiriker, Sprachvirtuose und Kritiker des zeitgenössischen Philosophiebetriebs.

„Gerlaeh's arguments in his book Gnomica Democritea are very important not only for thc study of gnomologia, but for the whole of Byzantine culture and in particular for lexieography. Several problems concerning thc transmission of gnomological works must be reconsidered, and also the concept of dark ages must bc rethought.“ Von Renzo Tosi In: Eikasmo XXIV (2013), S.307-318. ------------------------------------------------ “Scholars of Democritus will want to discuss the plausibility of Gerlach's identification of individual sayings in more detail than I am competent to do. Whatever one's view of particular arguments, however, this work is indisputably a major addition to the study of Democritus. It is all the more admirable because, as concerned as it is with red action criticism, that is by no means all it does. It makes a significant contribution to the study of Democritus himself. It contributes to debates about the relationship between Democritus and other philosophical schools. It forms a thought-provoking case-study of the relationship between 'high' philosophy and popular ethics, arguing that (if not quite showing how) Democritean material finds its way, for instance, into Greek proverbs, gnomai of the Seven Sages and Christian doctrine. It investigates, as few other studies have done, the way the process of compiling a miscellany affects the way its components are subsequently read and understood. Wide-ranging, intellectually stimulating and technically meticulous, this book will be both a point of reference and a starting-point for new projects for the foreseeable future.” Teresa Morgan In: Journal of Hellenic Studies. 130 (2010). pp. 284-285. ------------------------------------- “Jens Gerlach (G.) has written a masterful study of teh ethical maxims attributed to Democritus in Byzantine florilegia that is sure to become an important reference for future scholars. The primary object of study is the material related to Democritus in the so-called Copus Parisinum. (...) The book will have two main audiences with some overlapping: scholars working on Democritus and scholars interested in late antique or Byzantine florilegia and gnomonologia. (...) let me conclude this review by stating my enthusiastic admiration of and gratitude for G.’s scholary resourcefulness and stamina. This is a major contribution to the study of the Greek gnomological tradition. Some scholars of Democritus may perhaps be somewhat disappointed in the results - but only if they expect substantial new fragments and not typical gnomological fare. However, the real value for Democritean studies is the reevaluation of the whole tradition of ethical sayings, based on careful source-analysis, which delineates the connections of Byzantine to ancient sources more clearly than has previously been done. (...) G. os to be especially commended for his acribeia, his array of conceptual tools, the clarity and construction of his edition and his helpful appendices. (...) At the basic level a collection of sayings like CP [Corpus Prisinum] is easy to grasp conceptually. However, any reality becomes complex when you apply a variety of perspectives to it. That is what is so fascinating about the world we live in: you can go on digging forever to reach the reality behind the evidence.” Denis M. Searby In: Gnomon. 84 (2012) heft 2. S. 100-107.