Antediluvian longevity (1)

Text
Berossus, Babyloniaca F14 (Flavius Josephus, Antiquitates Judaicae 1.106-107):
Noah lived 350 years after the deluge in happiness. He died after having lived 950 years. Let no one as a result of comparing life now and the fewness of the years which we live with that of the ancients think that what is said about them is false, judging that they did not live to such an age because no one now does. For they were dear to God and his own creatures; also as their food was more favourable to longer life, it is reasonable that they lived so great a number of years. Then also God permitted them to live longer because of their excellent character and the usefulness of their discoveries, astronomy and geometry, since, unless they lived 600 years - for so long is the period of a great year - they could not have made accurate predictions. All those among the Greeks and barbarians who have written archaeologies, support my account. For Manetho, the historian of Egypt, Berossus, the compiler of Chaldaika, and the Phoenician historians, Mochus and Hestiaius together with Hieronymus the Egyptian agree with what I have said. In addition Hesiod, Hecataeus, Hellanicus, Acusilaus together with Ephorus and Nicolaus record that the ancients lived a thousand years.

Sources (list of abbreviations) (source links will open in a new browser window)
Berossus, Babyloniaca F14
Flavius Josephus, Antiquitates Judaicae 1.106-107

Bibliography

Amar Annus

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