Bar Salibi's Reference to the 'Diatessaron of Alexandria'

Tatian, the disciple of Justin the philosopher and martyr, selected from the Gospels and patched together and constructed a Gospel, which he called Diatessaron, that is, Miscellanies (!). On this work Mar Ephraem wrote a commentary; and its commencement was, In the beginning was the Word. Elias of Salamia, who is also called Aphthonius, constructed a Gospel on the model of the Diatessaron of Ammonius (of Alexandria), mentioned by Eusebius in his introduction to the Canons, which he made for the Gospel. Elias sought for that Diatessaron but could not find it; and so he constructed another after the likeness of it. And this Elias finds fault with several things in the Canons of Eusebius, and points out errors in them, and with good reason. But this work which Elias compiled is not often met with. (original source here)

As I am fairly well acquainted with the writings of the later Church Fathers, it is not at all necessary to take this report at face value. The accounts of the various 'gospel harmonies' are notoriously confused.

It is indeed puzzling for Elias to have looked for the Alexandrian Diatessaron and then not finding it 'constructing his own version of it' and then subsequently criticizes what Eusebius says (about the text?) in his canons. One could equally well imagine that he knew that Eusebius was not correct based on his more perfect knowledge of what was in the original. The accusation that anyone using a 'Diatessaron' necessary 'made it up for himself.'

The question for starters then is who is this 'Elias of Salamia.' As of yet I cannot find any reference at all to this figure beyond what is said here. Interestingly though 'Salamia' as best as I can discern is a region in central Syria (see map and look for modern Salamiyah) which became home of the elusive Ismali sect of Islam.

Whenever I hear Syria, you know that I think 'Marcionites' owing to the citings of this sect into the sixth century here ...

On the Alexandrian Diatessaron by Ammonius we should also mention the confused account of the Syrian writer Ebed-Jesu of the fourteenth century "a Gospel which a man of Alexandria compiled, Ammonius, who is Tatian, and he called it Diatessaron." (see above)