Theophilos Erotikos (10th century)

For the 11th-century Byzantine governor of Cyprus and rebel, see Theophilos Erotikos.

Theophilos Erotikos (Greek: Θεόφιλος Ἐρωτικός, romanized: Theóphilos Erotikós, fl. 940s) was a 10th-century Byzantine jurist and official.

Life

His origin and family are unknown, except that he was a relative by marriage of a certain patrikios Nikephoros, who was appointed by Constantine VII (r. 945–959) as teacher of geometry at the University of Constantinople.^[1] He is first mentioned in 945 as the Eparch of Constantinople, having evidently occupied the office already under Romanos I Lekapenos (r. 920–944).^[1][2]

In the aftermath of an earthquake in 945/6 he was charged with caring for the citizens whose homes were destroyed, but his officials, especially a certain Zonaras, wasted the allocated funds.^[1] Nevertheless, soon after (before March 947), he was promoted successively to the senior legal office of quaestor and the rank of patrikios.^[1][2] He was generally recognized as an excellent jurist and administrator.^[2] As quaestor, he was possibly the successor of the magistros Kosmas.^[1]

The date of his death is unknown, however he is mentioned as being dead in a law of 961. He was succeeded in his office as quaestor by Theodore Dekapolites.^[1][2] He may have been a maternal ancestor of Manuel Erotikos Komnenos, founder of the Komnenian dynasty.^[1]