Stesichorus

Stesichorus (Ancient Greek: Στησίχορος, circa 640 – 555 BCE) was the first great poet of the Greek West. He is best known for telling epic stories in lyric metresCharles Segal, "Archaic Choral Lyric" in The Cambridge History of Classical Literature: Greek Literature, P.Easterling and B.Knox (eds.), Cambridge University Press (1985), page 186 but he is also famous for some ancient traditions about his life, such as his opposition to the tyrant Phalaris, and the blindness he is said to have incurred and cured by composing verses first insulting and then flattering to Helen of Troy. He was ranked among the nine lyric poets esteemed by the scholars of Hellenistic Alexandria and yet his work attracted relatively little interest among ancient commentators,D.A. Campbell (ed.),Greek Lyric Vol 3, Loeb Classical Library (1991) page 5 so that remarkably few fragments of his poetry now survive. As one scholar observed in 1967: "Time has dealt more harshly with Stesichorus than with any other major lyric poet."David Campbell, Greek Lyric Poetry, Bristol Classical Press (1982), page 253, reprinted from 1967 Macmillan edition Recent discoveries, recorded on Egyptian papyrus (notably and controversially, the Lille Stesichorus),P.J. Parsons, "The Lille Stesichorus", Zeitschreift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik Vol. 26 (1977), pages 7–36 have led to some improvements in our understanding of his work, confirming his role as a link between Homer's epic narrative and the lyric narrative of poets like Pindar.Charles Segal, "Archaic Choral Lyric" in The Cambridge History of Classical Literature: Greek Literature, P.Easterling and B.Knox (eds.), Cambridge University Press (1985), page 187
The following description of the birthplace of the monster Geryon, preserved as a quote by the geographer Strabo,Strabo 3.2.11 = Stesichorus S7 = PMG 184. is characteristic of the "descriptive fulness" of his style:Charles Segal, "Archaic Choral Lyric" in The Cambridge History of Classical Literature: Greek Literature, P.Easterling and B.Knox (eds.), Cambridge University Press (1985), page 188
:::::σχεδὸν ἀντιπέρας κλεινᾶς Ἐρυθείας
:::::Ταρτησ-
:::::σοῦ ποταμοῦ παρὰ παγὰσ ἀπείρονας ἀρ-
:::::γυρορίζους
:::::ἐν κευθμῶνι πέτρας.Stesichorus (S7 Loeb): D.A. Campbell (ed.),Greek Lyric Vol 3, Loeb Classical Library (1991) page 64
A nineteenth century translation imaginatively fills in the gaps while communicating something of the richness of the language:
:::::Where monster Geryon first beheld the light,
:::::Famed Erytheia rises to the sight;
:::::Born near th' unfathomed silver springs that gleam
:::::'Mid caverned rocks, and feed Tartessus' stream.Sir Edward Bromhead, The Remains of Stesichorus in an English Version, (1849), page 11 Google digitalized version
Stesichorus exercised an important influence on the representation of myth in 6th century artC.M. Bowra, Greek Lyric Poetry, Oxford University Press (1961), pages 119–26 and on the development of Athenian dramatic poetry.Richard Jebb, Bacchylides: The poems and fragments
Cambridge University Press (1905), page 32 Google digitalized version
==Biography==
Details of Stesichorus's life are as fragmentary as his verse and the historical sources are often contradictory. A useful example is provided by the Suda, a 10th-century Byzantine encyclopaedia, here reproduced in an English translation from a Loeb edition.David A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 29
The main points addressed by the Suda are expanded and analysed under the following headings:
===Chronology===
The specific dates given by the Suda for Stesichorus have been dismissed by one modern scholar as "specious precision"M.L.West, 'Stesichorus', The Classical Quarterly, New Series Vol.21, No.2 (Nov. 1971) page 302 - its dates for the floruit of Alcman (the 27th Olympiad), the life of Stesichorus (37th–56th Olympiads) and the birth of Simonides (the 56th Olympiad) virtually lay these three poets end-to-end, a coincidence that seems to underscore a convenient division between old and new styles of poetry.Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 186-7 Nevertheless, the Suda's dates "fit reasonably well" with other indications of Stesichorus's life-span - for example, they are consistent with a claim elsewhere in Suda that the poetess Sappho was his contemporary, along with Alcaeus and Pittacus, and also with the claim, attested by other sources, that Phalaris was his contemporary., Campbell in Loeb page 3 Aristotle quoted a speech the poet is supposed to have made to the people of Himera warning them against the tyrannical ambitions of Phalaris.Aristotle Rhet." 2.20.1393b, cited by David A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 39 The Byzantine grammarian Tzetzes also listed him as a contemporary of the tyrant and yet made him a contemporary of the philosopher Pythagoras as well.Tzetzes Vit.Hes. 18, cited by David A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 33 According to Lucian, the poet lived to 85 years of age.Lucian Macr., cited by David A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 33 Hieronymus declared that his poems became sweeter and more swan-like as he approached death,Hieronymus Epistles 52.3, David A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 33 and Cicero knew of a bronzed statue representing him as a bent old man holding a book.Cicero Verr. 2.2.86, cited by David A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 45 Eusebius dated his floruit in Olympiad 42.2 (611/10 BCE) and his death in Olympiad 55.1 (560/59 BCE).Eusebius Chron., cited by David A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 31
===Family===
The Suda's claim that Hesiod was the father of Stesichorus can be dismissed as "fantasy"Cambell, Loeb page 35 yet it is also mentioned by TzetzesTzetzes Vit.Hes. 18, cited by Campbell, Loeb page 35 and the Hesiodic scholiast ProclusProclus Hes. Op. 271a, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 35 (one of them however named the mother of Stesichorus via Hesiod as Ctimene and the other as Clymene). According to another tradition known to Cicero, Stesichorus was the grandson of HesiodCicero De Rep. 2.20, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 37 yet even this verges on anachronism since Hesiod was composing verses around 700 BC.Jasper Griffin, "Greek Myth and Hesiod", J. Boardman, J. Griffin and O. Murray (eds), The Oxford History of the Classical World, Oxford University Press (1986), page 88 Stesichorus might be regarded as Hesiod's literary "heir" (his treatment of Helen in the Palinode, for example, may have owed much to Hesiod's Catalogue of Women)Charles Segal, "Archaic Choral Lyric" in The Cambridge History of Classical Literature: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 191 and maybe this was the source of confusion about a family relationship.Richard Lattimore translation, "Hesiod" Intro. pp. 5, The University of Michigan Press, 1959 According to Stephanus of ByzantiumStephanus of Byzantium s.v. Μάταυρος, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 35 and the philosopher PlatoPlato Phaedrus 244a, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 37 the poet's father was named Euphemus, but an inscription on a herm from Tivoli listed him as Euclides.Inscriptiones Graecae xiv 1213, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 37 The poet's mathematically inclined brother was named Mamertinus by the Suda but a scholiast in a commentary on Euclid named him Mamercus.Proclus in Euclid Prolog. 2, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 37
===Background===
Stesichorus's lyrical treatment of epic themes was well-suited to a western Greek audience, owing to the popularity of hero-cults in southern Italy and Magna Graeca, as for example the cult of Philoctetes at Sybaris, Diomedes at Thurii and the Atreidae at Tarentum.Richard Jebb, Bacchylides: The poems and fragments Cambridge Uni Press (1905), page 32 It was also a sympathetic environment for his most famous poem, The Palinode, composed in praise of Helen, an important cult figure in the Doric diaspora.Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 191 On the other hand, the western Greeks were not very different to their eastern counterparts and his poetry cannot be regarded exclusively as a product of the Greek West .G.O.Hutchinson, Greek Lyric Poetry: a commentary on selected larger pieces, Oxford University Press (2001), page 113 His poetry reveals both Doric and Ionian influences and this is consistent with the Suda'a claim that his birthplace was either Metauria or Himera, both of which were founded by colonists of mixed Ionian/Doric descent.Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 186 On the other hand, a Doric/Ionian flavour was fashionable among later poets - it is found in the 'choral' lyrics of the Ionian poets Simonides and Bacchylides - and it might have been fashionable even in Stesichorus's own day.G.O.Hutchinson, Greek Lyric Poetry: a commentary on selected larger pieces, Oxford University press (2001), page 115 His poetry included a description of the river HimeraVibius Sequester, de fluminibus fontibus etc, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 181 as well as praise for the town named after it,Himerius Orationes 27.27, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 181 and his poem Geryoneis included a description of Pallantium in Arcadia.Pausanias 8.3.2, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 89 His possible exile from Arcadia is attributed by one modern scholar to rivalry between Tegea and Sparta.W.G.Forrest, A History of Sparta 950–192 BC, page 76, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 28, note 4 Traditional accounts indicate that he was politically active in Magna Graeca. Aristotle mentions two public speeches by Stesichorus: one to the people of Himera, warning them against Phalaris, and another to the people of Locri, warning them against presumption (possibly referring to their war against Rhegium).Aristotle Rhet. 2.21. 1394b-95a, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 39 Philodemus believed that the poet once stood between two armies (which two, he doesn't say) and reconciled them with a song - but there is a similar story about Terpander.Phildemus Mus. 1.30.31ss, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 41 According to the 9th century scholar Photius, the term eight all (used by gamblers at dice) derives from an expensive burial the poet received outside Catana, including a monument with eight pillars, eight steps and eight corners,Photius Lexicon, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 45 but the 3rd century grammarian Julius Pollux attributed the same term to an 'eight all ways' tomb given to the poet outside Himera.Pollux 9.100, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 43
===Career===
Many modern scholars don't accept the Suda's claim that Stesichorus was named for his innovations in choral poetry - there are good reasons to believe that his lyrical narratives were composed for solo performance (see Works below). Moreover the name wasn't unique - there seems to have been more than one poet of this nameCharles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 187 (see Spurious works below). The Suda in yet another entry refers to the fact, now verified by Papyrus fragments, that Stesichorus composed verses in units of three stanzas (strophe, antistrophe and epode), a format later followed by poets such as Bacchylides and Pindar. Suda claims this three-stanza format was popularly referred to as the three of Stesichorus in a proverbial saying rebuking cultural buffoons ("You don't even know the three of Stesichorus!"). According to one modern scholar, however, this saying could instead refer to the following three lines of his poem The Palinode, addressed to Helen of Troy:note 2 to Suda T 943, Campbell in Loeb page 49
::::There is no truth in that story,
::::You didn't ride in the well-rowed galleys,
::::You didn't reach the walls of Troy.Plato Phaedr. 243a, cited by Campbell in Loeb page 93
Helen of Troy's bad character was a common theme among poets such as Sappho and AlcaeusSappho 16.6–10 and Alcaeus B 10 PLF, cited by Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 191 and, according to various ancient accounts, Stesichorus viewed her in the same light until she magically punished him with blindness for blaspheming her in one of his poems.Isocrates Hel. 64, cited by Campbell in Loeb, page 93 According to a colourful account recorded by Pausanias, she later sent an explanation to Stesichorus via a man from Croton, who was on a pilgrimage to White Island in the Black Sea (near the mouth of the Blue Danube), and it was in response to this that Stesichorus composed the Palinode,Pausanias 3.19.11–13, cited by Campbell in Loeb, page 41 (Campbell's translation: "In the Black Sea off the mouths of the Danube there is an island called White Island...note: Actually off the estuary of the Dnieper.") absolving her of all blame for the Trojan War and thus restoring himself to full sight.
==Works==
The ancients associated the lyrical qualities of Stesichorus with the voice of the nightingale, as in this quote from the Palatine Anthology: "...at his birth, when he had just reached the light of day, a nightingale, travelling through the air from somewhere or other, perched unnoticed on his lips and struck up her clear song."Anth.Pal. 2.125ss, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, pages 59 The account is repeated by Pliny the ElderPlin.N.H.10.82, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 55 but it was the epic qualities of his work that most impressed ancient commentators, though with some reservations on the part of Quintillian: 
 
In a similar vein, Dionysius of Halicarnassus commends Stesichorus for "...the magnificence of the settings of his subject matter; in them he has preserved the traits and reputations of his characters",Dion.Hal.Imit.2.421, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, pages 55 and Longinus puts him in select company with Herodotus, Archilochus and Plato as the 'most Homeric' of authors.Longinus de subl.13.3, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, pages 55
Modern scholars tend to accept the general thrust of the ancient comments – even the 'fault' noted by Quintillian gets endorsement: 'longwindedness', as one modern scholar calls it, citing, as proof of it, the interval of 400 lines separating Geryon's death from his eloquent anticipation of it.David A. Campbell, Greek Lyric III, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 4 Similarly, "the repetitiveness and slackness of the style" of the recently discovered Lille papyrus has even been interpreted by one modern scholar as proof of Stesichorean authorshipCharles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 186, note 2 – though others originally used it as an argument against. Possibly Stesichorus was even more Homeric than ancient commentators realized – they had assumed that he composed verses for performance by choirs (the triadic structure of the stanzas, comprising strophe, antistrophe and epode, is consistent with choreographed movement) but a poem such as the Geryoneis included some 1500 lines and it probably required about four hours to perform – longer than a chorus might reasonably be expected to dance.C.O.Pavese, Tradizione e generi poetici della Graecia arcaica, Rome (1972), cited by C.Segal, The Cambridge History of Greek Literature, page 187 Moreover, the versatility of lyric meter is suited to solo performance with self-accompaniment on the lyreM.L.West, 'Stesichorus', Classical Quarterly 21 (1971) pages 302–14, cited by D.Campbell in Greek Lyric III, page 5 – which is how Homer himself delivered poetry. Whether or not it was a choral technique, the triadic structure of Stesichorean lyrics allowed for novel arrangements of dactylic meter – the dominant meter in his poems and also the defining meter of Homeric epic – thus allowing for Homeric phrasing to be adapted to new settings. However, Stesichorus did more than recast the form of epic poetry – works such as the Palinode were also a recasting of epic material: in that version of the Trojan War, the combatants fought over a phantom Helen while the real Helen either stayed home or went to Egypt (see a summarybelow). The 'Lyric Age' of Greece was in part self-discovery and self-expression – as in the works of Alcaeus and Sappho – but a concern for heroic values and epic themes still endured:
===An 'Homeric' simile===
The Homeric qualities of Stesichorus' poetry are demonstrated in a fragment of his poem Geryoneis describing the death of the monster Geryon. A scholiast writing in a margin on Hesiod's Theogony noted that Stesichorus gave the monster wings, six hands and six feet, whereas Hesiod himself had only described it as 'three-headed'.Schol.Hes.Theog.287, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 89 yet Stesichorus adapted Homeric motifs to create a humanized portrait of the monster,Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 190, 194–5 whose death in battle mirrors the death of Gorgythion in Homer's Iliad, translated here by Richard Lattimore:
:::He bent drooping his head to one side, as a garden poppy
:::bends beneath the weight of its yield and the rains of springtime;" (Iliad8.306-8)Iliad 8.306-8, translated by Richard Lattimore, The Iliad of Homer, University of Chicago Press (1951)
Homer here transforms Gorgythion's death in battle into a thing of beauty - the poppy has not wilted or died.Susanne Lindgren Wofford, The Choice of Achilles: The Ideology of Figure in the Epic. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1992. Stesichorus adapted the simile to restore Death's ugliness while still retaining the poignancy of the moment:Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 190
:::Then Geryon rested his neck to one side
::::As might a poppy when it mars
:::The tenderness of its body shedding
::::Suddenly all of its petals... (Geryoneis)Geryoneis, P.Oxy.2617 fr.5, cited by D.Campbell, Greek Lyric III page 76
The mutual self-reflection of the two passages is part of the novel aesthetic experience that Stesichorus here puts into play.Richard Garner, From Homer to Tragedy: the art of allusion in Greek poetry, Routledge (1990), page 17 The enduring freshness of his art, in spite of its epic traditions, is borne out by Ammianus Marcellinus in an anecdote about Socrates: happening to overhear, on the eve of his own excution, the rendition of a song of Stesichorus, the old philosopher asked to be taught it: "So that I may know something more when I depart from life." Amm.Marc.28.4.15, cited by D.Campbell, Greek Lyric III page 56
===The 26 books===
His works, according to the Suda, were collected in 26 books but each of these was probably a long, narrative poem. The titles of more than half of them are recorded by ancient sources:David A. Campbell, Greek Lyric Poetry, Bristol Classical Press (1982), page 254
*Helen: This might have been the poem in which he portrayed Helen of Troy according to convention as a bad character. His interest in the Trojan epic cycle is evinced in a number of works.
*Helen: Palinodes: An introduction to a poem of Theocritus refers to "the first book of Stesichorus's Helen",Argum.Theocr.18, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 91 indicating that there were at least two books with this title. Similarly, a commentary recorded on a papyrus, indicates there were two Palinodes, one censuring Homer, the other Hesiod for the false story that Helen went to Troy.P.Oxy.2506 fr.26col.i, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 97 Dio Chrysostom summarises two accounts of the Palinode, one in which Helen never sailed for Troy, and a second in which she ended up in EgyptDio Chrysostom Or.11.40s, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 95 – only her image arrived at Troy. It is not known if either of the two Palinodes was separate from the Helen book(s).Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 192
*Sack of Troy: Some scholars think the content of the poem can be deduced from a relief carved onto a monument near Rome, but this is contentious – see the section below Tabula Iliaca.
*Wooden Horse: The title was recorded in a fragmentary form on a roll of papyrus: Στη...Ίππ.. ~ Ste(sichorus's Wooden) Hor(se). Possibly it was just an alternative title for Sack of Troy.David Cambell, Loeb, pages 109, 119
*Nostoi (The Returned): This dealt with the return of the Greek warriors from Troy.
*Geryoneis: This relates the theft by Heracles of Geryon's cattle. Many recently discovered fragments allow us a glimpse of the poet at work over the length of the entire poem.Charles Segal, 'Archaic Choral Lyric' – P.Easterling and E.Kenney (eds), The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, Cambridge University Press (1985), page 193 It includes:
**romantic geography – descriptions of the Sun's voyage in a golden cup under Ocean, of Eurytion's homeland, the 'all-golden' Hesperides, and of Pallanteum in Arcadia, which possibly featured as the home of the Centaur, Pholus;
**poignant speeches based on Homeric models – a proud speech by Geryon to Heracles that echoes Sarpedon's speech to Glaucus,Iliad 12.310-280 and an exchange between Geryon and his mother Callirhoe that echoes exchanges between Achilles-Thetis Iliad 18 and Hector-Hecuba;Iliad 22
**heroic action, again with Homeric colouring – a description of the dying Geryon that echoes the death of Gorgythion.Iliad 8.306-8.
*Cerberus: The title is mentioned by Julius Pollux only because it included the Greek word for a purse but clearly it relates to Heracles' descent into Hades to fetch Cerberus.Pollux 10.152, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 121
*Cycnus: A scholiast commenting on a poem by Pindar summarises the story: Heracles' final triumph over Cycnus after an initial defeat.Schol.A.Pind.10.19, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 123
*Skylla: The title is mentioned by a scholiast on Apollonius of Rhodes in a passing reference to Skylla's parentageSchol.Ap.Rhod.4.825-31, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 133 and possibly it involved Heracles.
*Thebaid, Seven Against Thebes?: These two titles are conjectured by one modern scholarDavid Cambell, Loeb, page 137 as appropriate for the longest fragment attributed to Stesichorus – discovered in 1974 among the wrappings of a mummy of the 2nd century BCE stored at the university of Lille, generally known as The Lille Stesichorus. It presents a speech by a Theban queen, possibly Jocasta, and some scholars have denied attribution to Stesichorus on account of its "drab, repetitious flaccidity".Anne Burnett, 'Jocasta in the West: The Lille Stesichorus, Classical Antiquity Vol.7, No.2 (Oct 1988) page 107 But opinions are mixed and one scholar sees in it "...Stesichorus' full mastery of his technique, handling epic situations and characters with the flexibility and poignancy of lyric."
*Eriphyle: The title is mentioned by Sextus Empiricus in relation to an imaginative account of Asclepius raising the dead at Thebes.Sextus Empiricus adv.mathem. 1.261, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 97 Evidently it concerns Eriphyle's role in the Theban epic cycle but with an imaginative twist.
*Europa: The title is mentioned by a scholiast on the Phoenissae of Euripides in relation to Stesichorus's imaginative variation on the traditional tale of Cadmus, the brother of Europa, sowing dragon's teeth – Stesichorus presented Athena in that role.Schol.Eur.Phoen. 670, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 101
*Oresteia: It came in two parts. The title is mentioned by a scholiast on Peace, a play by Aristophanes, attributing some of the lyrics to a borrowing from Stesichorus's poem.Ar.Pax 797ss, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 127 The 'second' Oresteia is mentioned in a scholiast's comment on Dionysius of Thrace, according to which Stesichorus attributed the discovery of the Greek alphabet to Palamedes.Schola.Vat. in Dion.Thrac. Art. 6, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 129
*Boar-hunters: Athenaeus mentions the title when quoting a description of a boar nosing the earth and the poem evidently concerned Meleager and the Calydonian Boar.Athen. 3.95d, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 133
*Funeral Games of Pelias: The title is recorded by Zenobius,Zenobius vi 44, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 63 AthenaeusAthenaeus 4.172de, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 63 and Etymologicum Magnum,Et.Mag. 544.54, cited by David Cambell, Loeb, page 61 the last two of which also include a handful of quotes.
===Spurious works===
Some poems were wrongly attributed to Stesichorus by ancient sources, including bucolic poems and some love songs such as Calyce and Rhadine. It is possible that these are the works of another Stesichorus belonging to the fourth century, mentioned in the Marmor Parium.Marm.Par. Ep.50, cited by Charles Segal in 'Archaic Choral Lyric' page 192
==Tabula Iliaca==
Bovillae, about twelve miles outside Rome, was the original site of a monument dating from the Augustan period and now located in the Capitoline Museum. The stone monument features scenes from the fall of Troy, depicted in low relief, and an inscription: Ιλίου Πέρσις κατα Στησίχορον ('Sack of Troy according to Stesichorus').Inscriptiones Graecae 14.1284 Scholars are divided as to whether or not it accurately depicts incidents described by Stesichorus in his poem Sack of Troy. There is, for example, a scene showing Aeneas and his father Anchises departing 'for Hesperia' with 'sacred objects', which might have more to do with the poetry of Virgil than with that of Stesichorus.Zahra Newby, Art and Inscription in the Ancient World', Cambridge University Press (2006), IntroductionDavid A.Campbell, Greek Lyric III, Loeb Classical Library (1991), page 107Charles Seagal, Archaic Choral Lyric, 'The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature', Cambridge University Press (1985), page 196, note 1
==References==
==Further reading==
*Barrett, W. S., Greek Lyric, Tragedy, and Textual Criticism: Collected Papers, edited for publication by M. L. West (Oxford & New York, 2007)
*Carson, Anne, Autobiography of Red. Modern retelling of Stesichoros' fragments.
*Plato, Phaedrus.
*M. Davies, Poetarum Melicorum Graecorum Fragmenta (PMGF) vol. 1, Oxford 1991: testimonies of his life and works pp. 134–151, fragments pp. 152–234 (previously D. L. Page, Poetae Melici Graeci (PMG), Oxford 1962, and Supplementum Lyricis Graecis (SLG), Oxford 1974).
*D. A. Campbell, Greek Lyric III: Stesichorus, Ibycus, Simonides and Others (Loeb Classical Library).
*G. O. Hutchinson, Greek Lyric Poetry: A Commentary on Selected Larger Pieces (Alcman, Stesichorus, Sappho, Alcaeus, Ibycus, Anacreon, Simonides, Bacchylides, Pindar, Sophocles, Euripides), Oxford, 2001.
*J. M. Edmonds, Lyra Graeca II pp. 23 (Loeb Classical Library) Harvard University Press, 1958
Category:Ancient Greece
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