However, scholars believe it was most likely a man, due to the masculine tenses found in the piece, and that it was written soon after St. Athanasia's death.
St. Athanasia was the daughter of Christian nobles, Niketas and Irene, and experienced the mystical union of a star merging with her heart while weaving at the loom when she was a young girl.
She wanted a spiritual life, but an imperial edict required all single women of marriageable age to marry soldiers.
Her relics are preserved at Timia in a specially made reliquary, and they are revered for their reputed healing powers.
Contemporary scholars have suggested that one of the first written references to the Romani people, under the term "Atsinganoi" (Greek), dates from the Byzantine era during a time of famine in the 9th century.