Table Of ContentHELLENISTICA GRONINGANA 4
APOLLONIUSR HODIUS
HELLENISTICA GRONINGANA
PROCEEDINGS OF THE GRONINGEN WORKSHOPS
ON HELLENISTIC POETRY
Editors
Edited by
M.A. Harder
R.F. Regtuit
M.A. HARDER
G.C. Wakker
R.F. REGTUIT
G.C. WAKKER
PEETERS
LEUVEN - PARIS - STERLING, VIRGINIA
2000
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
PREFACE
Apollonius Rbodius / edited by M.A. Harder, R.F. Regtuit, G.C. Wakker.
__ (Hellenistica Gronmgana; v. 4) . ,
Pa:~r~:f the Groningen Workshop on Hellenistic Poetry 4: Apollomus
Rhodius, Groningen, 2-4 Sept. 1998. . In 1992 the Department of Classics in the University of Groningen
Includesb ibliographicalr eferencesa nd mdexe~.
initiated a series of 'Workshops on Hellenistic Poetry', to be held every
ISBN 9042909277 (alk. paper) . .
1 Apollonius Rbodius--Congresses. 2. Apollonms, Rhodms .... two years. The format of these workshops is that the papers offered by
. . --C~n resses. 3. Epic poetry, Greek--Hlstory and cnt1c1sm-- speakers are circulated to the participants in the work-shop well in
ACrgonau1:14c aA /gonauts (Greek mythology) in !iterature--Congresses.
advance of the actual meeting, so that during the workshop there is
ongresses. • C 6 Medea (Greek
5 Jason (Greek mythology) in literature-- ongresses. . . R F ample opportunity for detailed and informed discussion. Some work
· . . C I Harder Annette. II. Regtmt, • ·
mythology) m hWterakkture--Go~gr;.:;se~ro~inWgeonr kshops on Hellenistic shops have been devoted to individual authors, other to wider aspects of
(Remco F.) Ill. a er, · · · .
Hellenistic poetry, such as the implications of developments in modern
Poetry (4th: 1998: Groningen, Netherlands) V. Senes.
literary criticism for research on genre or narrative technique. They are
PA3872.Z4 A66 2000 informed by a keen awareness of the contribution that linguistic studies
883'.0l--dc21 00-049126 can make to the interpretation of texts, and of the importance of relating
the social and cultural background of Hellenistic poetry to literary ques
tions of form and content. The workshops are also designed to enable
and encourage younger scholars and research students to present their
research. The proceedings of the workshops are published in the series
Hellenistica Groningana. The first such workshop, on Callimachus, was
held in 1992; the second, on Theocritus, in 1994; the third, on genre in
Hellenistic poetry, in 1996, and the fourth, on Apollonius Rhodius in
1998. The workshops are now recognized as a valuable meeting-place
for scholars working on the Hellenistic period, and a forum where infor
mation is exchanged, interpretations are tested, and ideas evolve.
The high attendance at the Apollonius-workshop in 1998 clearly
reflected the current surge of interest in Apollonius. The papers were
selected to represent a broad spectrum of the main areas of interest in
recent research on Apollonius, although of course the programme of a
two days' workshop could not cover the whole field. Some papers con
centrate on interpretations of specific passages: Karsten Thiel offers a
detailed analysis of the scene at the end of the second book of the Arg
onautica where the Argonauts, just before they reach Colchis, catch
© 2000 - Peeters - Bondgenotenlaan 153 - B-3000 Leuven - Belgium sight of the eagle which feeds on Prometheus. Nita Krevans reminds us
that Apollonius wrote other works as well as the Argonautica, and seeks
h. b k may be reproduced stored in a
All rights reserved. No pa~t o, J t. is oo orms or by any mea~s, electronic, to define the nature of his ktisis-poems by a thorough examination of the
retrieval septem, or tr~nsmitted,d~n any ~the,wise without the prior written surviving fragments. Linguistic aspects of Apollonius' poetry are dis
mechanical, photocopying, recor m~, or , '
cussed by Jordi Redondo: his paper offers a survey of how a variety of
permission of the holder of the copyright.
influences shaped Apollonius' distinctive language; not only Homer, but
ISBN 90-429-0927-7 tragedy, lyric poetry and koine Greek were important ingredients. Alex
D. 2000/0602/132
VI PREFACE
Sens examines Apollonius' use of the particle f\w1, and shows how in
many cases it is used by Apollonius to assure his readers of the credibil
ity of the narrator's story. Apollonius' narrative technique and structural
CONTENTS
aspects of the Argonautica are discussed in several papers, all with dif
ferent approaches. Adolf Kiihnken concentrates on the character of
Jason, and the light which Apo!lonius' proems and his description of
. THER ECEPTIOONF A POLLONIUINS I MPERIAGLR EEKL ITERATURE
Jason's aristeia shed on this much-disputed question. Mirjam Plantinga
E.L. BOWIE. ,
surveys and analyses the supplication scenes in the Argonautica. David 1-10
Wray discusses the poem in terms of Brooks' theory of 'narrative desire'
. COSMOWS ITHOUIMT PERIUMTH: EA RGONAUTJOICU RNETYH ROUGH
as a force which moves the reader and the narrative on until, at the end
TIME
of the work, there is no more narrative. The impact of cultural and ideo
James J. CLAUSS.
logical issues of the Hellenistic period on the Argonautica is the theme 11-32
of three papers. In James Clauss' interpretation, the poem presents the
THES CEPTICISOMF APOLLONIUASR,G ONA UTICA
Argo's voyage as marking the transition from a primitive and violent
Dee L. CLAYMAN. . . . . . .
world to one which is more civilized, but also less moral. Dee Clayman 33-53
attributes the 'nihilistic' atttitude of the Argonauts to the influence of
DERS TATUJSA SONSB: ESONDERKEIDTEENRD ARSTELLUNGSTECH
Pyrrhonian Scepticism, and thus proposes a solution for one of the
NIKI N DENA RGONAUT/KA DESA POLLONIORHS ODIOS -
much-debated problems of the Argonautica. Susan Stephens reads the
Adolf K6HNKEN.
poem against the background of Ptolemaic Alexandria and the need to 55-68
legitimize Greek rule in Egypt. Another group of papers deals with
ON THEM ARGINOSF EPIC:T HEF OUNDATION-POOEMF ASP OLLO
Apollonius' position within the literary tradition. David Sansone shows
NIUS
how he was indebted not only to his epic and lyric predecessors, but also
N. KREVANS
to tragedy: he sees Euripides' lphigeneia in Tauris as especially signifi 69-84
cant. Damien Nelis studies aspects of the reception of Apollonius in
_ APOLLONIURSH OD!USA ND
Latin literature, and suggests that the time is ripe for a full-scale treat THE TRADITIONOSF LATINE PIC
POETRY
ment of this topic. Ewen Bowie learnedly surveys the reception of Apol
D.P. NELIS.
lonius in imperial Greek literature. 85-103
Most of the work of making the manuscript camera-ready has again been THES_U PPLICATIMONO TIFIN A POLLONIRUHS ODIUASR' GONAUT/CA
Mrriam PLANTINGA.
done by Remco Regtuit, and both Gerry Wakker and I are deeply great 105-128
ful for the way he has always, without complaint, undertaken this labo
NON-EPICF EATUREINS THEL ANGUAGOEF A POLLONIURHS ODIUS
rious task. Fred Williams kindly corrected the English of this preface
J. REDONDO
and Mirjam Rutgers cheerfully and efficiently helped us with the index. 129-154
lPHIGENEIIAN COLCHIS
Annette HARDER Groningen, February 2000
David SANSONE.
155-172
THEP ARTICLHET OII N APOLLONIANNA RRATIVE
Alexander SENS . . . . . . . . .
173-193
WRITINGE PICF ORT HEP TOLEMACICO URT
S.A. STEPHENS . . . . . . . .
195-215
CONTENTS
vm
VOM 0AYMA ZUMT PAYMA:D ERA DLERU NDP ROMETI-!EUS
217-237
Karsten THIEL. THE RECEPTION OF APOLLONIUS IN
IMPERIAL GREEK LITERATURE
APOLLONIUSM' ASTERPLONT:A RRATIVSET RATEGIYN ARGONAU
T/CA 1 239-265 E.L. BOWIE
David WRAY
INDEXES 1. Sophistic prose
267-269
l. Index of Passages discussed
269-270
2. Index of Greek words . When around A.D.140 the Stoic Apollonius of Chalcedon 1 was setting
270-271
3. Index of Names and Subjects • off for Rome to take up the position of philosophy tutor to the future
emperor Marcus, escorted by a swarm of pupils, Demonax, the witty
scourge of ostentation, allegedly quipped: 'Here comes Apollonius and
his Argonauts' 2• Given our other evidence of Apollonius of Chalcedon's
reputation for acquiring money, the joke seems to be comparing his trip
to Rome to Jason's mission to Colchis to get the golden fleece. This
anecdote told by Lucian suggests that for Demonax and his audience
Apollonius' poem was both well-known and the obvious literary source
for knowledge of the Argonautic legend.
One or two other allusions support that impression. In On dancing, a
work of A.D. 163 or 164, Lucian lists pantomime themes drawn from
Thessaly: 'Pelias, Jason, Alcestis, the expedition of fifty young men, the
Argo, its talking keel (cf. A.R. 4.580-91), what happened in Lemnos,
Aietes, Medea's dream (cf. A.R. 3.616-82), the dismemberment of
Apsyrtus and what happened in the journey along the coast. '3 Apollonius
is presumably the source for these episodes, and Lucian again alludes to
the miracle of the Argo's talking keel in The dream or cock'. It also
seems likely that there is an allnsion to the Argonauts carrying the Argo
across the desert in the episode in True histories where the narrator and
his fellow sailors, faced with an impenetrable forest towering out of the
1. Cf. SHA Pius 10.4, and for o!her testimony PIR2 A 929. Cf. Champlin (1980: 42-
3).
2. Ilpocrtp;un:cn, S<pri,' AnoA/1.ffivio<K;a i ol 'Apy6vau-tcn aU"coU:L ucianus,
Demon. 31. ~
3. Kai 0ecrcra/l.ia0 €. Sn n/1.eicno aptpx,e1:m1, :0v' focrova,n )v "AAKricr1:1t:v0, v1 :&v
n:sv1:f\Kov1v:tac ov cr1;6/l.ov1,: l)v' Apyffi,1 :TlvA .&J.oavU 1:l71<:;p 6rnv1, :&tv J\Tjµwp1, :0v
AlTJn1v1, :0vM riOE.iwO; vetpov, 1:0v 'A'¥6pwu crrcapayµOKv ai 1:(t8 .v 1:ipn ap6:n/l.(f}
yev6µeva, Kai µe1:U1 :aiha 1:0vI lpronmi/1.aovK ai 1:'f1Av uo06:µemv: LucianusS alt.
52-3.
4. Kaitot 1:tf iv 81wiriaa<;,d croi1 :Tj'<A; pyoii<1; :p6rwE; A6.Aricr.s.v. , LucianusG all.
2, cf. A.R. 1.524, 4.580-3, though the myth could also be known from Apollodorus
1.9.16.
2 E.L. BOWlE
APOLLONIUSf N IMPERIALG REEKL ITERATURE
3
sea, hoist their boat to tree-top level and simply sail across the foliage'.
el 8' ciye vUv, 'Epu-c(l)n,6 :p0 ' tcr1:aaoK U{ µot Svlcrn:r.o..
One scene not integral to the story of the Argonauts themselves 1s also
Come now, Erato, stand beside me and relate to me ...
ingeniously alluded to, that of Eros and Ganymede playing with
knuckle-bones: in Dialogues of the gods Zeus offers Ganymede the Moving on into the first decades of the third century we find another
prospect of playing at knuckle-bones with Eros'. . . writer with a selective interest in the history of literature, Philostratus,
About the same time in the second century Pausamas twice draws on certainly showing and probably assuming knowledge of Apollonins.
Apollonius book 1. At 2.12.6 (composed around 160 A.D.) he cites A.K This is not in his Lives of the sophists or his work on Apollonius of
1.115-7 in support of his view that Dionysus, not Ke1sus son of Tyana, but in the first set of Imagines (I take the author of these three
Temenus, was father of Phlias7 Again at 8.4.3 (co1?posed between works to be the same). Painting 2.15 depicts G!aucus prophesying to the
•
A.D.175 and 180) Pausanias seems to allude to Apollonms whe? he says Argonauts, the scene described by Apollonius at l.J3i0-28. Some
that 1totri10.i KO.AoGcrtv'A cps1oav1s10v KAf\pov 1f\v Tsyeav: the details may, but need not, be drawn from elsewhere in Apollonius - the
phrase 'Acpstoav1s10v KAf\pov 1f\v Tsyfov appears at A.R. 1.162. At keel from 1.524 and 4.580-3 (cf. n.4 above), Tiphys from 1.105-14.
other places it is possible that Pausamas consulted _Apollomus.p erhaps The author of the second set of Imagines, arguably the nephew of
for the names of the daughters of Pelias, where - m the context of the the older Philostratus, makes even more use of Apollonius. Painting
story that Medea persuaded them to cut Pelias up :iud casserole hn'.1- he 8, 'A06pov1es (Players), is of Eros and Ganymede playing dice in the
notes that none of the poets he has consulted (000. ye 81t8AE~o.µs0o. palace of Zeus. The account of their game (8.1, 402 Kayser) closely
f\µsls) offers names for the daughters (contra the painter Micon)'. follows Apollonius 3.117-27, while Aphrodite's ruse of bribing Eros
Again in the early 190s the way that Apollonms 1s used by _Athenaeu9s with a ball (8.3, 403 Kayser) follows 3.131-42. Philostratus explicitly
shows that he expects familiarity in his readers. A; the ope~m~ of _boo~ links the incidents with the arrival of the Argo and its fifty heroes at
13 (555b) his speaker, about to catalogue 1\ves Aoyot 1tsp1 ~0100 100 Colchis. Apollonius is again used for Painting 11, Argo or Aeetes.
epro10s KO.i1 &v epronK&v ntxST100.v, cites without attnbutlon or The depiction of the serpent drugged and lulled to sleep (11.1, 411
even any hint at its source the opening of book 3: Kayser) draws on 4.139-66, while that of Aeetes Ao.µ1ta816v1 s 1ft
iie~tq. o.lropouvrn ('and holding a torch aloft in his righl hand', 11.4,
s. Lucianus VH 2.42 cf. A.R. 4.1370-92, compari.~ge specially 1~76 tnv?OevC lv~E 412 Kayser) may evoke 4.222-3 <YKatftµ ev {,' >lvi xeipi <JUKOs
µevoi 'tfCtµooJhntO eZoc.v;0 o10 ya{11ca;n d 1385-6,v fia:.:. ay~cr~eI dv~eµe~ouc;&, µmenw ith otvro16v dslprov, / 1ft o' s1epn 1teUKY\1Vte ptµl]Kea ('In his left hand
Lucian'sK Ui 606KStT jµivt ivaOeµtvooc';C i\V v~uv em ~11~K 0µ1w t(.OV OevO~rovI_. am he raised up his circling shield, and in the other a torch of great
gratefult o David Sansone for drawingm y attentiont o th~s1 ~ t~~ workshopd, iscussion. length').
6. exeic;K civta00a.- c◊v cruµnm~6µev6v crot -COU'COVt -cov Eprota Kat Ucrtpay&,-
/1.oucµ;C l.Ar.aco AAOl'L.icu;c,i anusD Deor. 10.3, cf_A: .R. 3:,114-27; , , , _
7. <DAfr.t.vtoat , . . Keicrou µ€v no;'i◊a etvai tou Tytµ~vo~ Kma 0~ 1:ov toJ':'
'A ydrov A6yov o00€ ctpx.ilVB yroyen pocriew:a,A tov6crou0 € oiOo:K. o:.Aouµe~oK~a t
2. Critics, scholars, philosophers and Aristides
t&~ nAeucrUvtrotvn i. tft<;' Apyollc;K ai 1:0U1:oyvs v£cr8mA ey6µevov. 6µoAoyet Oeµ oi
Kai toU 'PoOloun oiyt1:0Ut& . 81tyt
(f)/1.{o:.c;·aSt'n.iit t'o icnv 'Apm0upET\0etvK avev, My anecdote about Apollonius of Chalcedon induced me to plunge in
Bv0' ctq:iveiO8cv;m e Airov6croto3 Katt _ medias res. But if we go back to the first century A.D. we have further
nmp6c; 8.m\ nytyficrtvS qntcrtto'cA; crronoto(A .R. 1.115-7).
clear indications of the importance of Apollonius' poem, in 'Longin us'
A d that Phlias was the son of Keisus the son of Temends, as in f~ct the Argives say,
1tepi U'!fous.C ontrasting poems that display O'!fOsw ith those that are no
I do ~t even begin to accept, but I know that he is called the son of Dionysus and that he
more than technically perfect, the author asks:
too was said to have been one of those who sailed on the Argo. I am corroboratedb y the
verses of the poet of Rhodes: .
After them there came in his turn Phlias from Araethyreaw, here he dwelt m a house &p' o◊v "OµT]poi; iiv µaHov lj 'A1t01c1crovtoit;\ 0t1co,i; yevfo0m; ti et:
by the springso f the Asopus, wealthy thankst o his fatherD ionysus. 'Epcrtocr0tvt]<; t\v tfi 'Hpty6vn (ota m'tvtrov yap aµ<llµT]tov to 1t0tt]µii
98 :P aus. 8.11.2-3. ., · 283f ttov) 'ApJ::tMxou. .. ;
Athenaeusa lso cites hexametersf rom Apollonius' Fou~dationo _N~ucratis -
1 Would you rather be Homer or Apollonius? Is the Eratosthenes of that
284a = frr.7-9 Powell; refers to his prose monographO n Archilochus4 5 ld, and knows a
flawless little poem Erigone a greaterp oet than Archilochus. .. ?,
work Onf easts by an Apollonius (19 lf), probablyn ot the poet of Rhodes.
33.5 (tr. D.A.Russell)
APOLLONIUSI N IMPERIALG REEKL ITERATURE 5
E.L. BOW(E
4
such a collection may indeed have existed and may have been available
'Longinus' certainly purports to have read Apollonius and pondered the
to a chalcenteric scholar working in Alexandria.
reasons why he is inferior to Homer, and he expects his readers to have
By contrast with the authors considered above - all of whom are in
done so too. some degree professional historians or interpreters of literature - there
Another witness even less easy to date than 'Longinus' is the mythog-
are many others of this period who neither quote Apollonius by name
rapher Apollodorus, for whom I assume a date late in the. first or early in
nor show any sign of familiarity.
the second century A.D. The Library's account of the Argonauts' expe
So far as we can tell Apollonius does not attract the attention of
dition seems to use Apollonius as its chief source (l.9.16-27), but he is
philosophers. From the late first and very early second centuries Apollo
not the only source, and at one point Apollonius is specifically cited
mus seems neither to be cited by name nor alluded to by Dia of Prusa ,2
(2.284-98) for a variant concerning the pursuit of the Harpies by Zetes
by Plutarch' 3 or by their common pupil Favorinusl4. Nor at any pain;
and Calais: does the great sophist Ae!ius Aristides name Apollonius, and where he
'Anolclcrovt0sl it tv TOtS' Apyovuunns sros fapoq,6.8rovv 11crroqv, ricrlv refers to Medea or to the Argonauts he seems not to be drawing on
CtlltUS8 trox0,ivm Ketiµ rioi:v nu0etv, ooucrus 6pKOVtO V <l>tvfoµ T\KEtl Apollonius' poem. Thus at 38.15K he refers to Medea's flight through
<iotK,icrm Thessaly 38.15Kl5 and at 46.29K to the expedition of Argonauts, claim
But Apollonius in his Argonauts says that they were pursueda s far as the
mg that Argo started from Corinth: there is no ground to see this as dis
Strophadesi slands and that they were not harmed, once they _hads worn that
they would no longer persecuteP hineus. (Apollod.B 1bl10theca1 .9.21) sociating his version from that of Apollonius in particular. Accordingly
when he refers to the chmfot of Poseidon in his Isthmian oration· to
It may be that in the second half of the first century A.D. knowledge of
Poseidon he may, as suggested by Behr (1981: 424 n.60), he influe~ced
Apollonius was also shown by the voluminous Alexandrian scholar
by Apollonius, but the case for seeing influence is weak:
Pamphilus. The notes of sources that precede all but four of the tales in
a,s,,vros rocr~sp ev &.p!'atT\1'.ucrlaes,t nros ~v tosiv <iv0prorc0tso i'icr<
the Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis seem in one case (the story
q,epoµevov t0 Ilocretiirovos /ipµu ...
of Battos) to make Pamphilus refer to Apollonius, but not apparently to
exactly ~s in chariotr aces, if somehow it were possible for us mortalst o see
the Argonautica: the chartot of Poseidon being borne along... (Aelius Aristides4 6.31K)
\crtopet NiKavopos 'Etepowuµevrov u· Keti 'Hcrioiios 8V Mey&.Jcms ~los ii' "Icr0µwv dcrt Ilocre,oarov es ay&va,
'Holms KetiA t86µapxos Metetµopq,rocrerovy · KUi' Avtiyovos tv tais upµacr<ve µpepuros
'Alclc0t<llcrecKrta i 'Anonrovt0s 8V' Emyp&.µµacrtvr, os 'PTI"' Il&.µ,ptlcos And like Poseidon when he goes to his Isthmian Games
8V a'. mounted on his chariot.. . ' (A.R. 3.1240-1)
Nicandert ells the story in the first book of his Transformationsa nd Hesiod
in his Great Ehoeae and Didymarchusi n the third book of his Metamor If Aristides has no occasion or wish to mention Apollonius it is not sur
phoses and Antigonus in his Shape-changes and Apollonius in his Epi prising that his Jess erudite contemporary Maximus of Tyre also makes
grams, according to Pamphilusi n his first book. (Ant. Lib. 23.) no reference either. But that of course does not mean that he had not read
Sakolowski10 wanted to emend ev'E mypuµµucnv to evs necnv, but the Apollonius. The emperor Marcus, not surprisingly, neither cites nor
story does not, of course, appear in the Argonautica, and mere mention alludes to Apollonius in his Meditations, but in a letter written to Marcus
of characters like Argos who do can hardly have been the basis for
claiming a source for the Battos story in Apollonius' epic. The existence thr
12. For er?s.o f 66.2, spells (Sm:pOaio)f 66.16, and child-murdero f 74.8 he prob
of epigrams by Apollonius is a priori likely, and· one may survive in the ably uses the Eunp~deanM edea, not Apollonius'. Jason's physical attractionsa t 8.27, the
dragon,b ull~a n~ omtmento f 16.10 and the sowing of the dragon'st eeth at 23.4 could but
elegiac distich attacking Callimachus, a distich that its source, Anth.Pal.
need not denve from Apollonius.
11.275, ascribes to 'AitOAArovloo ypuµµunKoii ('By Apollonius the
13. !his contra~tsw ith 15 quotationsf rom or allusions to Aratus, 14 quotationsf rom
scholar') 11. Although the possibility of a collection of epigrams by Apol or allusions to Calhmachus,a nd 2 quotationsf rom or allusions to Theocritus see Helm-
bold and O'Neil( 1959). '
lonius is not often discussed (nothing, for example, in Cameron 1995)
. 14. At (Dio] 37.13-15 the discussion of the first Isthmiang ames and Jason's dedica
tlon of the Argo to Poseidon does not draw on Apollonius
10. Sakolowski (1893: 52). 15. Keil comparesS ch. Ar. Nu. 749. ·
11. Page ( 1981: 17) on 'Apolloniuso f Rhodes? I'.
APOLLONIUSI N IMPERIALG REEK LITERATURE 7
EL BOWIE
6
a possible relationship with v6µ10v !:~T]K06sto µs1'.o<;( 'a grazing tune
around A.D.163 Fronto had analysed the proem of book 1 in a way that could be heard') at Alciphron 2.917•
implied that his addtessee was familiar with the text (ad Marcum Anton
I know of no other echoes of Apollonius in the novelist~, although
inum de orationibus = ii 101 Haines). there are many places where the novelist plays with the same topoi as
the poet. Apollonius' description of Medea's falling in love with Jason
deploys similar. details to the novelists and both show a knowledge of
3. The novelists Sappho and Eunpides, but no.detail clinches use of Apollonius by a nov
elist. Another possible case might have been when the hero is reduced to
It is perhaps also surprising how little use of Apollonius is made by the
despair. Despair is of course a natural reaction to inability to master a
novelists. On the one hand the typical story-pattern of the novels, with
problem and afflicts heroes in traditional epic too ( e.g. Odysseus weeps
its emphasis on sudden falling in love, erotic suffering and exotic trav
at Od. 5.82). In the novels we find heroes succumbing despair and tears,
els, clearly takes a similar form to, and could be claimed to be influ
e.g._ Xenophon of Ephesus 2.1.1-6; Achilles Tatius 4.10.5 and (less
enced by, that of Apollonius 16. On the other hand specific borrowings or straightforwardly) 3.11.1; Longus 2.22, 3.27 .1 and 4.28.2 (cf. Chloe's
allusions are rare. In Chariton only 1.1.15 seems secure - toss 8s
tears at 4.27.1). But none of these treatments shows any direct influence
ano
Xmpfo<; tiiiv yu,tvucrlrov !:~6.811;,wc rtCWrov &crnsp &.crn1p ...
of Jason's <iµrixuvlri at Apollonius 1.1286-9 or 3.422-4.
(' At that point Chaereas was walking from the gymnasia shimmering
like a star') blends Apollonius 1.774-80
~T8\ ' lµcvm nposi iicnu, cpucivipu cnspt foo<; 4. Poetry
And he went on his way to the city, just like a brilliant star
The position in poetry of the first two centuries is, perhaps predictably,
with Theocritus 2.79-80:
rather different. I have not found echoes of Apollonius in literary epi
crti\0w St ati1c~ov,u no1cun :Uov t\ t6, :Es1citvu, gram, or m the quasi-Homeric epic narrative of the Hadrianic poet from
&cd; nO -yuµva.atmoK aAOvn 6vov ciptt A.tn6vtcov
Alexandria, Pancrates. But the tradition of didactic poetry represented by
And their chests were shimmering much more than you do, Moon,
seeing as they had recently left the fair toil of the gymnasium. D10nysms of Alexandria in the 130s A.D. and by the two poems
o ·
ascn ·be d to pprnn 1s, composed respectively late in the second and early
Brioso (1989: 205-8) has also argued for influence of Argonautica
m the thrrd century A.D, saw itself to some degree as the heir of hel
1.238-59 on the scene of the departure of Chaereas' expedition from
lenistic principles of tsxvri and refinement. It is therefore not surprising
Syracuse to find Callirhoe (3.5), but I doubt if the parallels are close
that they allude. re_peatedly to Apollonius. Dionysius clearly knew the
enough to support such a conclusion: rather both authors are manipulat
canomcal hellemstic poets well, as is demonstrated by his reworking of
ing some obvious features of a departure scene, some of which are
phras~s from Calhmtchus and Aratus, and his allusions begin with his
already there in Thucydides 6.32.1-2 (which may indeed have influenced own first three lmes 9. They can extend for a whole line20. But for his
Chariton). There is none of the detail which later secures Apollonius as
ITsptTJYT]crttt;i jc; otKouµsvric; (Description of the inhabited world) he
a model for the departure scene at Quintus of Smyrna 14.369-98 (see
~ay have been especially drawn to Apollonius by the latter's descrip
Vian 1954; 1959). t10ns of la~dscapes and seascapes traversed by the Argonauts. Thus of
Longus has Daphnis play a herding tune at. 4.15 - btbtvsucrs so
v6µtov ('he blew the grazing tune') - but there is only a slight chance
17. See Hunter (1983: 8-9).
that he is here influenced by Apollonius' comparison of Orpheus - at 18. The llalieutica, 'On fishing', composed by a Cilician late in the second century
1.575-8 - to a shepherd leading his flock by KUAUµ chi;6µsvoc; v6µ10v A.1?a·n:"d the Cynege'.ica,'? n_hunting'., also transmitted as by Oppian but composed by
µt1'.o<; ('playing beautifully a grazing tune') - not least because there is caa cte1dt.1 zeno f Apamea m Syna m the reign of Caracalla (A.D.212-7) to whom1 ·, 1· 3 de clt ·
19. dpx6µevo, ... µv~croµm 1-3 ~ A.R. 1.1-2.
,, 20. D.P. ~15 'Pmaiot<; tv Opecr<nO t&.vOtxµao pµ6poucri ~ A.R. 4.287 'Pmaiot Sv
16. For recognition of this cf. Heiserman (1977: 13-29); Reardon (1991: 129); Ruiz opecrcnv <lrconpo0tµ opµUpov:nv. c;
Montero (1996: 55-7),
8 E.L. BOWIE
APOLLONIUS IN lMPblUAL GREEK LITERATURE 9
the 37 borrowings or reworkings of Apollonius registered by Tsavare
A 72; 2.248 at P 415; 2.822 at Il 8bl; 2.956 at E 164c; 4.337 at<)) 141;
(I 990) for the first 450 lines of Dionysius only six are from the third
4.1700 at I1 Sb!). As well as these references to Apollonius in the
book, and of these six three might be questioned21• The allusions to Homeric scholia, he was drawn upon for a commentary on Aratus by a
Apollonius continue in the Oppians and are even more prominent in the
scholar called Achilles Tatius (the first three words of 1.1 at Achilles
Posthomerica of Quintus of Smyrna, written at some time in the third
Tatius p.84.5 Maass; 1.496-8 at Achilles Tatius p.31.21 Maass). This
century A.O. As Vian demonstrated, Quintus makes much use of Apol
might have a bearing upon Apollonius' use by novelists: the jury is still
lonius22. All this is rather different from allusions in prose writing. The
out, but it is a strong possibility that the commentator on Aratus
poets tum to Apollonius (as they all still turn to Homer) for a word or Achilles Tatius, is also the novelist of that name. '
phrase whose reuse in a new setting can add depth and learning to their
own poetry, and often it is important that the word reappears in the same
sedes. Here Apollonius is not in competition with poets at large, far less 6, Conclusions
prose writers, but simply with other canonical dactylic poets.
Apollonius, then, was recognised as an author of importance who
attracted the attention of scholars and writers engaged with mythogra
5. Egyptian readers; commentators
phy or literature. A further testimony to his prominence might be
argued to rest in the fact that no Greek poet tried to supersede him by a
Alongside and contrasting with this very uneven evidence of interest in
reworking of the Argonautic legend until the late antique Orphic Ar
Apollonius in literary texts we have ample testimony both to his being
gonautica. Is it surprising that he did not attract comparable attention
read in Egypt and to scholarly work on the poem. The Egyptian readers
from authors who were themselves engaged in the production of litera
are attested by the papyri. The great majority - 26 or 27 - of the 34
ture - poets or novelists - or from philosophy and sophistic rhetoric? I
papyri used by to Vian in his 1976 Bude are from the first 3 centuries
began to reflect on this issue thinking that it was surprising, but perhaps
A.O. Some have scholia, e.g. the second-century papyrus P.Oxy. 34. I was wrong.
2694 (in Pack P.Kingston: Vian's I116) with 2.917-53 and 4.317-22, First, although Apollonius was the obvious source for parts of the
416-61, 468-512 (see also Vian's I17
). Argonautic legend, he was not the only source. Elements of the story
Some such readers wanted or were at least offered commentaries. We
co~ derive from other literary texts or from local traditions, and for
know of a commentary by Theon of Alexandria in the second half of the
some Greeks (not to say non-Greeks) depictions in paintings might have
first century B.C. and a text accompanied by a commentary by Lucillius
been their only access to parts of the story. Arrian's remarks in his
of Tarrha in the second half of the first century A.O. Probably during the
Periplous Ponti Euxini illustrate the impo1tance of local traditions. At
second century more work was done by an Eirenaeus of whom criticisms
section 9 (p.110.14-22 Roos) he discusses fragments of the anchor of the
survive in the scholia (on 1.1299; 2.123-9e; 2.992; 2.1015b). These crit
Argo still displayed in the 130s A.O. at Phasis - the only material
icisms were voiced in a commentary (hypomnema) by one Sophocles,
remains, he says, of the myths concerning Jason. If he regards Apollo
who apparently based his work on the commentary of Theon23• nius' poem as the palmary rendition of the myths, he abstains from say
It is also clear that Apollonius' Argonautica were used by commenta
ing so, even in this highly literary composition addressed to an emperor
tors on other poets. It is cited six times in the Homeric scholia (1.88 at
with a taste for hellenistic poetry. Again in section 25 (128.13-5 Roos)
he identifies the Kuaneai with the rocks which o\ rronp;ui say were once
21. D.P. 4 8:cr1:eq)(1vror~n tA .R. 3.1214 Scnecp&.vro-c1o7; µecro6p10v - A.R. 3.55 'wandering, and through which they say the Argo was the first ship to
µscro6ptov; 144 elv 6.At1 tS1:pac;-A.R. 3.1294 eiv CtAi.1tel:p1B1u. t more dubious are 46
sail'. No hint that 'poets' above all signifies Apollonius. Perhaps it does,
foro ... al~<;~ A.R. 3.31 I elcrro x06vo<;; 128 /;nrnpops~~Ke ~ A:R. 3.655 /:mnpo
µolooiicr'; 141 "Hp11</;: vvecrincrw ~ A.R. 3.818 or Call. h. 3.108; <001 179,300,563, just as when his junior the lexicographer Polydeuces of Naucratis cites
635, 764, 1138 ~ A.R. 3.577 or Call. h. 1.32. . . . terms from Theocritus (5.86 citing id.6. 10; 1.229 citing id.13.41) he
22. See Vian (1954: 30~51 and 235~54; 1959: passim [the passages are hsted m h1s
ascribes the words' usage too\ rro1riwi. Polydeuces, incidentally, seems
index on p.262]).
23. On all this see the first volume of Vian's Bude, p.xli. at no point to cite Apollonius.
10 E.L. BOWIE
Another text of the same period illustrates a related point. Galen'~
nBpl, Kpa, crnrov (1 ..1.1 658 _- p •9 3 •2 2-3 Helmre_ ich) makes • reference to Kadt COSMOS WITHOUT IMPERIUM:
ft~ Mrioeia~ 8t (jlcipµaKOVw wowv ftv: where did he hear ~r rea
10 1 THE ARGONAUTIC JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
about Medea's (jlcipµaKov? Does it make sense to ask to which hterary
text he refers? f 1 James J. CLAUSS
Second, any attempt to use Jason and Medea as examples o overs,
for instance or to compose a sequel to the Argonaut,ca, wo~ld hav_e
. , ' ged by the even better known disasters that befell therr
been d1Scoura . . · h' M d 'Apx6µevo~ creo <I>oWen a;\,myevsrov KABcic pro1&v/ µviJcroµm ...
relationship and these disasters' handling by Eunp1des m is e ea[
(1.1-2). With these words Apollonius announces the topic of his epic:
Hence many of the passages that are cited do not come from that part ~
the 'glorious deeds of men bom long ago.' Right from the start, the poet
3 that modems read with greatest enthusiasm. In choos
th e tex,t book , An· hdset advertises the distance between himself and the events he will describe,
ing to compose a prequel to that Euripidean tragedy po omus a
a distance that is underscored by the addition of another temporal marker
up limits to the reception of his own poem.
- the work of other poets before him who also took up the Argonautic
en
saga (vfta µtv oi\v o\ np6cr0ev KABioumv do18oi / "Apyov 'A0ri
vairi<; Kaµsetv uno0riµocr6vnm, 1.18-9)1. In fact, the presence of these
REFERENCES
and other intervening writers will surface throughout the poem in the
Behr, C.A., 1981, P. Aelius Aristides. The complete works. vol.ii. Orationsx vii- ubiquitous imitations of, and allusions to, the works of Archaic, Classi
liii. Translated into English. Leiden. ., M' 3 205-8 cal and Hellenistic writers such that the resulting intertext that stretches
. S, h M 1989 "Cariton III 5 y sus Modelos . inerva , .
Bnoso anc ez, ., , . back to Homer subtly focuses the reader's attention on the lengthy liter
A 1995 Callimachus and his Critics. Prmceton.
Ca meron, ., , R c bridge Mass ary tradition that undergirds the poem. Even the so-called 'Prehistory'
Ch mplin E 1980 Franta and Antonine ome. am . . &
He~mbold',W .C.-O'Neil, E.N., 1959, Plutarch's quotations. Balumore section of the prologue (1.5-17) introduces another stratum of time into
the brief introduction: the events that preceded the expedition. As pro
Oxford. l Ch.
H . A I 977A T he novel before the nave . icago. logues aie so often programmatic, especially in Alexandrian verse, it
e1sennRai, .1983 study ofDaphnis and Chloe. Cambridge.
Hunter, . ., , c b ·d e might not be inappropriate or overly rash to propose that for Apollonius,
Pa e, D.L., 1981, Further Greek Epigrams. am n g .
among other things, time was of the essence.
R g d B p 1991 The form of Greek romance. Pnnceton. .
ear on, .. , C 1996 "The rise of the Greek novel". In: Schmelmg (1996), Like the Iliad and Odyssey before it, the Argonautica includes within
Ruiz-Montero, ., ,
its narrative references to events that occurred before and after the action
29-85. · L · ·
Sako lo w. s k1.G, p .(, 1d8) 931 •9 D9e6 aTnhthe onloogveial iPna tlhaeti naen cqi·eu nate swtloorn leds •. Leeid1epnz· 1 g. . of the story. What distinguishes the Alexandrian epic, however, is the
intensity of references to the mythic past and to the legendary and his
ST~hmelmg(.l de) . 1990 Dionysii Periegetis orbis terrae descriptio. foannma.
s "
Vsiaavna, rFe.,, 1•9 5e4 ,· ", Les co' mparaisons de Qu.m tus de myme . Rev .P hil . 28 ' 30- torical future, and even to the author's present2• These many intrusive
s
51: 235-54. . d Q • d yrne Paris.
-, 1959,R echerches sur Les Posthomenca e umtus e m .
1. On the possible programmaticm eaning of these lines, see Clauss (1993: 20-2); cf.
Bundy (1972: 46-7). Although Apollonius focuses on the constructiono f the Argo, men
tion of these earlierp oets, including,a s Vian (1974: 51 n.2) states, Epimenides'' Apyoti<;
Naumyyia, has the effect of calling attention to pre-Apollonian versions in general,
which would have been equally well known.
2. For example, Knight (1995: 268) makes the interestingo bservationt hat, since rites
celebratedb y the Argonautsa re frequentlyl inked to those practicedd uringt he poet's life
time, the readeri s encouraged' 'to consider the divine apparatuso f the poem in the light
of the reality of Hellenistic cults." More specifically, Hunter (1995: 18~27)r elates the
devotionali nscriptiono f Artemidoruso f Perge on Theraw ith the gods worshippedi n the
Argonautica.
COSMOSW ITHOUTI MPERIUM 13
JJ. CLAUSS
12
were then reading this piece as a mythic version of Empedoc!ean cos
moments not only create a diachronic narrative of remarkable scope, but
mogony, which envisaged the process of creation as a movement
also prompt us to experience the Argo's celebrated journey not merely
between the forces of love (Aphrodite) and strife (Ares)8• 'Fhe allusion
as a passage from Iolcus to Colchis and back, but also as a stage m the
to the Odyssean song and contemporary interpretations of it, in addition
process of evolution from creation to the enthronement of Zeus, as
to the content. itself of Orpheus' theogony, have the effect of situating
Richard Hunter observed several years ago3; one that also moves from a
the Argonautrc expedition "in a cosmic setting... in the whole
world of primordial monsters and beefy heroes_d ressed in animal. skins
panorama of history since the creation of the world" such that "(t)he
to handsome young men attired in woven clothmg, from uncomplicated
song acts as a kind of cosmic overture to the poem ... "9 To this I would
violence to intrigue and deceit. In his magisterial commentary on Hes
add the more general comments of Philip Hardie on the matter: "The
iod 's Theogony, M.L. West defined theogonic literature as that which
essential characteristic of the cosmic setting is that it establishes a rela
treats "the origin of the world and the gods, and the events which led to
tionship between particular places, people, or events and the most gen
the establishment of the present order. "4 In this broader sense of the
eral structure or history of the universe" which "presents the general
word, Apollonius' Argonautica can surprisingly, though aptly, be
and the particular in sequence (italics his); a relationship between the
termed 'theogonic'. . . two is established when it is perceived that this sequence does form a
i'Orpheus initiates the theme of evolution in the song he s'.ngs pnor to
unity of some kind." 10 What remains is to follow the sequence of cos
the departure of the Argo from Pagasae, in which he descnbes the cre
mic events in the Argonautica that begins with creation and see where
ation of the world (1.496-511)5• Earth, sky, and sea emerge out of a they lead and what they suggest.
massive whole, prompted by strife (vetKOS); mountains, rivers and liv
Apollonius returns to Empedocles' cosmogony in his description of
ing beings appear thereafter. Ophion and Eurynome were the f1rst rulers
the creatures that follow Circe on her island (4.672-81)11:
of the universe, whose regime gave way to that of Cronus and Rhea
during the age of the Titans6• Zeus is mentioned, but at thisHme he is 0ijpe, 8', ou 0iJpecrcnvf otK6tes cbµ11cnfic:nv
ou8e µev oM' iiv8pecmtv oµov 8tµus, ano 8' a11/' iA.?,,rov
still an infant being reared on Crete and does not yet have his thunder
cruµµtyi:es µe:>ci:mvKiov a0p6ot, 1jute µ1j:>ca
bolts the handiwork of the Cyclopes. As is well known, Orpheus' ver 0
SKc rtu0µ&v liAtSe lcrtv 611118e6ovtuv oµfjt.
sion ~f creation is based on that of Empedocles 7• Damien Nelis (1992) Toious rni 11poti:pous sl; l:>c6ossp :>ci:tcrtTJcrev
argued that Orpheus' song, which forms an integral part of a series of x0rov llUtTjµ tKto\CJtVa p11peµi:vousµ e:>ceecrcrtv,
events that recall the structure of Odyssey 8, calls to mind Demodocus' oi\11roO l'!'llAS(jµli :t)c'6 11'1 ji:pt m:>c110dcra
ou8e 11ma t;aH010 po:>cuits6 CJov1 je:>cio10
song of Ares and Aphrodite on the ground that Homeric allegorists
licµi:t8usu lvuµevou· ti:L8 ' s11ic nixas ijyuyev alcov
cruy,cp(vas.T ros otye q,m\v ai8TjAOt£ 110Vt0.
3. Hunter (1991; 1993: 162-9). In what follows, I hope ~o expand and f:esh .out
The presence of these primordial creatures links Circe with the earth
Hunter'sl ist of prehistoricale vents includedi n the poem and discuss the moral unphca
tions that the course of this evolution suggests. While Hunter( 1993: 168) concludes that goddess, as the poet makes explicit in line 677, and thus with the
progressi n the Argonautica leads toward" a positi~ely evaluat~dG reek culture_,'I, 's.h all period not only of the pre-Olympian gods, but also of animals in. an
suggest that.t he evolutionaryp rogressw e observe is a~compamedb y a moral d1smtegra
early state of evolution that one might well associate with that era.
tion that undermines,o r at least complicates,t he physical and culturald evelopmentst hat
are observeda nd memorializedi n the many aetiologies.
4. West (1966: 1). . . 8. At Clallss (1993: 66~87), I arguedt hat the neikos theme of Orpheus's ong recalled
5. On Orpheus' song, see, for example, Feeney (1991: 67-9), Nehs (1992), Hunter
the first o_fD ~mod~cus' songs, the argumentb etween Achilles and Odysseus. While I
(1993: 162-3), Clauss (1993: 83-5), and Busch (1993). would mamtamt h~ ~~portance,e ven centrality,o f this song to the Argonauticc ontext, I
6. Apollonius' accounto f succession appearst o be base~ on t~ose of Pherecydesa nd
also fi?d the p_oss1b1htthy.a t the song of Ares and Aphroditei s operative as well quite
Hesiod; see Vian (1974: 253 ad 1.511) for referencesa nd d1scuss10.n. appealmg:p articularlyg iven the natureo f Orpheus's ubjectm atter.
7. See Vian (1974: 252-3 ad 502), Nelis (1992: 157-8), and Kynakou (1994\ who
9. Nehs (1992: 166); cf. Hardie (1986: 62-6) on the similar function played by the
offers an interestingd iscussion of Aristotle's influence on Apollonms' representationo f
song of Iopas in the first book of the Aeneid.
Empedocleanc osmology. Hunter (1993: 167~8) observes that t~e chaos the ~rgonauts
10. Hardie (1968: 66).
encountern ear Anaphei s to be associatedw ith the chaos of creation- ~d that, ~nt he sub
11. For details, see Frankel (1968: ad 4.673 f., 4.676-80, 4.(672-) 682), Livrea (1973:
sequente pisode, Euphemus'd reamr epr.esenttsh e ~eplacemento f philw by neikos, a nod
ad 4.672), V,an (1981: 172-3 ad 4.681), and Hunter (1993: 164-6).
to Empedocles' cosmogony, alludedt o m Orpheus song.
