who wrote the gospel of mark

The Gospel of Mark is traditionally attributed to John Mark, an early Christian closely associated with the Apostle Peter. According to early Christian tradition, John Mark wrote the Gospel based on Peter's eyewitness testimony and sermons. Although the Gospel itself is anonymous, early church figures such as Papias, Eusebius, Irenaeus, and Clement of Alexandria support this view, stating that Mark composed the Gospel in Rome after Peter's death for a non-Jewish audience. John Mark is also mentioned in the New Testament as a companion of Paul and Barnabas and as someone who played a significant role in the early church. Modern scholarship, however, often regards the Gospel as written by an anonymous author, though the traditional attribution remains influential.