Commentarii (Ptolemaeus I)

Commentarii"Commentariorum fragmenta":  p. 5: "Ptolemaei vita et commentarii":  p. 3. Cf. "Les Hypomnemata perdus de Ptolémée Lagou" apud Paul Goukowsky, "Clitarque seul? Remarques sur les sources du livre XVII de Diodore de Sicile" in Revue des études anciennes vol. 71 (1969) pp. 320-337: Hypomnemata quo fonte? Opus hoc titulo scripserit Ptolemaeus VIII. sive De rebus Alexandri"De rebus Alexandri":  p. 87 fuit opus a rege Ptolemaeo scriptum in tres vel plures libros divisum, hodie deperditum, de rebus a se et ab Alexandro Macedoni gestis. Neque ratio neque tempus operis conscribendi cognoscuntur.

Multa ex hoc opere sumpsit Arrianus ad Anabasin Alexandri contextandam. Alii perpauci opus Ptolemaei aut legerunt aut citaverunt.

 De natura operis 
Sunt qui magnam partem narrationis Arriani in Anabase scriptae e Commentariis Ptolemaei demptam esse censentur; etiamsi haec res dubia sit, haud incertum est plurimas proeliorum descriptiones a Ptolemaeo scriptas, ab Arriano recitatas esse. Inter has enumerari debent pugna contra Triballos (cf. F 1 infra); proelium ad Granicum;Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 1.13-14.  p. 205 n. 69 proelium Issicum (cf. F 6), ad Gaugamelam (cf. F 10), ad Hydaspen contra Porum gestum (cf. F 20); proelium ad Acesinem factum (cf. F 22). Proeliorum autem priora, Ptolemaeo non iam dux exercituum fungente, curis minoribus describuntur; obsidio urbis Mallorum (cf. F 25-26) et proelium ad Polytimetum flumen,Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 4.6.1-2 Ptolemaeo alibi militante, sine peritia narrantur; sed Ptolemaeo adeunte res minores, lectoribus gratas, Arrianus (Ptolemaeo certe utens) saepe inserere potuit. pp. 195-205 passim

De indole Alexandri, de Cleito, Philota, Parmenione, Callisthene occisis, de convivio novissimo et regis ipsius morte, Ptolemaeum pauca dixisse constat et nihil quod non iam aliter publici iuris esset; pp. 208-211 de talibus rebus "retentionem strictam praeceptive selectimque exercuit" (practis[ed] a highly selective and purposeful reserve). p. 258

De conspiratione (si talis sit) Philotae, quam Ptolemaeus et Leonnatus Alexandro revelaverint,Curtius, Historiae Alexandri Magni 8.6.22 Ptolemaeus de actis suis sed non Leonnati scripsisse videtur (F 13). p. 234 Hoc casu sicut aliis, in narrationibus de coaevis aemulisque suis recognoscitur mixtura suppressionis veri suggestionisque rerum falsarum ("the mixture of suppressio ueri and suggestio falsi"). p. 666, reimpr. p. 258 Praesertim Perdiccam aut in historiam ratione mala et contra alium fontem introduxit, e.g. de Thebarum obsidione (F 3), aut ex historia ratione mala et contra alium fontem exclusit: sed haec res e textu Anabasis Arriani derivantur, Ptolemaeo certe fonte usuali sed non nominatim citato. pp. 236-238; de incertitudinibus  pp. 374-378

Eo tempore quo Alexander per "" a Media in Persidem per  intrabat, Ptolemaeum virtutes suas praeter aliorum in Commentariis iactavisse constat: Arrianus enim, qui opus Ptolemaei in rebus militaribus sequi solebat, incursionem a Ptolemaeo adiutam narrat (Anabasis Alexandri 3.18.9, sine citatione fontis), Curtio in Historiis (5.4.30) res aliter describente.C. Bradford Welles in Miscellanea di studi alessandrini in memoria di Augusto Rostagni (Taurinis, 1963) pp. 101-116 ad p. 107;  vol. 1 pp. 328-329; Tim Howe, "Introducing Ptolemy: Alexander and the Persian Gates" in Waldemar Heckel et al., edd., The Many Faces of War in the Ancient World (Novi Castelli: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2015) pp. 166-195

Sunt qui Ptolemaeum senem et mox moriturum opus suum composuisse suadent. p. 193 sqq. Nonnulli autem eum annis circiter 310 scribisse censent, pp. 241-242 quo tempore utile fuerit mythos de origine et virtute Ptolemaei regis futuri et de religione Aegyptia diffundere (e.g. F 8). reimpr. p. 258 Eruditi olim censebantur Ptolemaeum res plurimas e documentis regiis et praesertim ex ephemeridibus aulicis sumpsisse,Gustav Droysen, Geschichte des Hellenismus pars 1 (2a ed. Gothae, 1877-1878) fasc. 2 pp. 383-386; Ulrich Wilcken, "Ὑπομνηματισμοί" in Philologus vol. 53 (1894) pp. 80-126; N. G. L. Hammond, "The royal journal of Alexander" in Historia vol. 37 (1988) pp. 129-150 ad notam 7 JSTOR; alii multi sed haec opinio sustineri non potest.Impossible to sustain:  vol. 1 p. 23

 De fortuna operis 
An Aristobulus, qui iam senex post annum fere 295 vitam Alexandri scripserit, libros Ptolemaei cognovisset, incertum est: is Cleiti mors alio modo, quam Ptolemaeus, narraverit, Ptolemaeo heroë. Cleitarchus taliter obsidionem urbis Mallorum alio modo, quam Ptolemaeus (F 26), narravit, Ptolemaeo rursus heroë: an Ptolemaeum scienter contradixerit haud scimus. Curtius nihilominus, eandem rem describens, scripta Ptolemaei Cleitarchique comparavit; ille ergo opus Ptolemaei cognovit. Plutarchus bis et brevissime Ptolemaeum citavit (F 4, 28). Quibus exceptis geographi tantum legerunt et de rebus minimis citaverunt (Strabo [F 2], Stephanus Byzantinus [F 5]) nisi sit de urbe Alexandria Eschate ad flumen "Tanaim" (re vera ad Iaxartem) condita: de urbe et flumine idem Stephanus (F 31) et Anonymus Ravennas (F 32-33) Ptolemaeum citaverunt, Arrianusque descriptionem longam dedit sine nomine Ptolemaei (F 34-35).

Arrianus solus in Anabase Alexandri Ptolemaeum crebriter citavit (vide enumerationem) atque res alias e Ptolemaeo dempsit: confitetur enim se Ptolemaeum et Aristobulum tamquam fontes principales et continuos adhibere.Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 1.1 Libro VII Anabasis Arrianus tris tantum Ptolemaeum citavit (F 28-30), unde censetur eum ultimos menses Alexandri describentem multo rarius Ptolemaeo usum esse; p. 379; "in the account of [Alexander’s] last days [Arrian’s] principal source is Aristobulus": K. Nawotka, "Arrian on the last days and the death of Alexander" in R. Rollinger, J. Degen, edd., The world of Alexander in perspective (Wiesbaden, 2022) pp. 13–24 ad p. 18 eodem libro Aristobulum nonies citavit (videlicet FGrHist 139 F 52-56, 58, 60-62).

Eruditi olim Ptolemaeum rerum gestarum scriptorem praecellentem fuisse adseveraverunt, "Kommentar" pp. 498-500;  pp. 170, 208 sqq., 260;  pp. 1-2 qui librum suum praesertim ad honorem Alexandri destinaverit conquisitorem ducemque quem secutus erat. pp. 384-385 Recentiores nonnulli commentarios Ptolemaei ad potestatem suam corroborandam virtutesque aemulorum deminuendas divulgatos esse proposuerunt.Fritz Schachermeyr, Alexander in Babylon und die Reichsordnung nach seinem Tode (Vindobonae, 1970) p. 89 sqq. exemplar mutuabile; 

 Fragmenta nobis servata 
Haec enumeratio fragmentorum ex editione Felici Jacoby demitur:
  138 F 1: de numero militum a Triballis occisorum: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 1.2.1-1.3.4 pp. 205-206; "There is little doubt that the entire battle narrative is taken from Ptolemy":  vol. 1 p. 60
 2: de Celtis caelum in eos cadentem timentibus:  7.3.8
 3: de incursu a Perdicca facto contra Thebas, Alexandro nesciente: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 1.8 p. 237;  p. 374; "There is no doubt that this whole chapter is extracted from Ptolemy. It was only the opening statement about Perdiccas that struck [Arrian] as controversial ... but it is an uncomfortable fact that his narrative differs from the other extant sources in almost every way":  vol. 1 p. 80 
 4: de numero militum, expeditione Asiatica nuper incepta: Plutarchus, De Alexandri Magni fortuna aut virtute 327D
 5: Stephanus Byzantinus, Ethnica s.v. Ἀγχιάλη
 6: Macedones post proelium Issicum convallem transiisse super corpora Persarum mortuorum: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 2.11.8 pp. 196-198; "The description ... seems an embellishment upon Callisthenes ... Ptolemy has added a touch of romantic fiction":  vol. 1 p. 217 
 7: de mulieribus familiae Achaemenidarum captis et consolatis: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 2.12.3-6 vol. 1 pp. 220-221
 8: de serpentibus viam ad oraculum Ammonis monstrantibus: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 3.3.5"Ptolemy's snakes seem a deliberate variant of Callisthenes' story ... As the cult animals of Ammon ... they were more appropriate guides, and they may have been intended to recall the rumours of Olympias' impregnation ... Ptolemy has transformed an exaggeration into a deliberate falsehood":  vol. 1 pp. 272-273 
 9: de reditu ab oraculo Memphitem, non per Paraetonium: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 3.4.5 vol. 1 p. 274 
 10: de proelio ad Gaugamelam, non Arbelam, factum: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 6.11.5 
 11: de barbis militum: Synesius, Encomium calvitiei 15-16 p. 189
 12: de Uxiis: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 3.17.6"Curtius' account is plausible [Curtius 5.3.12-15] ... The error is Ptolemy's":  vol. 1 pp. 323-324 
 13: de Philota: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 3.26 p. 234; "The execution of [Alexander] the Lyncestian is omitted by Ptolemy/Arrian, but it clearly lingered in Ptolemy's mind strongly enough for him to transfer the mode of execution to Philotas and his alleged associates":  vol. 1 pp. 359-362 
 14: de Bessi supplicio: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 3.29.6-3.30.5"Ptolemy exaggerated his role in the capture of Bessus":  vol. 1 pp. 375-377
 15: de urbe quadam Sogdianae capta: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 4.3.5"If there is a bias, it is likely to be in Ptolemy, deliberately understating the resistance of the rebels":  vol. 2 pp. 21-22 
 16: de conspiratione regiorum puerorum: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 4.14.1 vol. 2 pp. 98-100 
 17: de Callisthenis morte: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 4.14.3 
 18: de pugna ab ipso Ptolemaeo directa: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 4.24.1-4.25.4"The numbers defy belief ... A gross exaggeration ... It was propaganda well suited to the contemporary world":  vol. 2 pp. 158-167 
 19: nihil a Ptolemaeo scriptum de ponte trans Indum iacto: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 5.7.1 
 20: de proelio contra Porum gesto: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 5.14.5-5.15.2 pp. 198-201;  p. 257;  vol. 2 pp. 287-291; Timothy Howe, "Plutarch, Arrian and the Hydaspes: an historiographical approach" in Cinzia Bearzot, Franca Landucci Gattinoni, edd., Alexander's legacy: Atti del Convegno, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milano 2015 (Romae: L'Erma di Bretschneider, 2015) pp. 25-39 
 21: de nomine populi Glausarum: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 5.20.2 vol. 2 p. 318 
 22: de proelio fluminis Acesinae: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 5.20.8-9 pp. 202-204;  vol. 2 p. 323 
 23: de sacrificio: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 5.28.3-5 vol. 2 pp. 355-356 
 24: de navibus Indum flumen descendentibus: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 6.2.4
 25: de vulnere Alexandri apud Mallos passo: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 6.10.1
 26: Ptolemaeum alibi militantem quo tempore Alexander apud Mallos graviter vulneratus sit: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 6.11.7-8; Curtius, Historiae Alexandri Magni 9.5.21
 27: comissationem in Carmania neque ab Aristobulo neque a Ptolemaeo narratam: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 6.28.2 
 28: Ptolemaeum Aristobulumque Alexandri cum Thalestride Amazonum regina amores fictas esse scripsisse: Plutarchus, Vita Alexandri 46; Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 7.13.2-3; Ravennatis Anonymi Cosmographia 4.4 pp. 123-127
 29: Ptolemaeum Aristobulumque nihil de legatione Romanorum dixisse: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 7.15.5-6 
 30: Ptolemaeum Aristobulumque de morte Alexandri nihil, quod in Ephemeridibus non reperiatur, dixisse: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 7.26.3

 Dubia
 31 (e libro tertio): De Alexandria "ad Tanaim": Stephanus Byzantinus, Ethnica s.v. Alexandreia
 32: De partibus borealibus: Ravennatis Anonymi Cosmographia 1.9
 33: De partibus borealibus: Ravennatis Anonymi Cosmographia 4.11

 Fragmentis 32-33 hi textus (sine nomine Ptolemaei servati) fortasse relevant
 34: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 4.3.6-4.6.5
 35: Arrianus, Anabasis Alexandri 5.21-24 pp. 202-204

Editores papyrorum Oxyrhynchi suggesserunt papyrum 679, parvum et lacunosum, verba e commentariis Ptolemaei servare de bello in Cilicia gesto; editor papyri Cairensis inv. 49653, de bello ab Alexandro in India gesto disserentis, talem identificationem proponit. Abnuente autem Pearson, dubitante Denuzzo, res incertae manent.

 Notae 

 Bibliographia 
 Editiones fragmentorum




  vol. 4 pp. 127-129 
 C. A. Robinson Jr, Alexander the Great (Novi Eboraci, 1947) 

 Eruditio



 A. Brian Bosworth, "Aristotle, India and the Alexander Historians" in Topoi. Orient-Occident vol. 3 no. 2 (1993) pp. 407-424
 A. B. Bosworth, E. J. Baynham, edd., Alexander the Great in fact and fiction (Oxonii: Oxford University Press, 2000) 
 Ivana Denuzzo, "Le storie di Alessandro Magno nei papiri" in Papyrologica Lupiensia no. 12 (2003)

 Robertus Geier, De Ptolemaei Lagidae vita et commentariorum fragmentis commentatio. Halae Saxonum: formis Orphanotrophei, 1838 (Ad scholae Latinae in Orphanotropheo Halensi examen sollemne ... 5 Apr. 1838)  


 Timothy Howe, "Kings Don't Lie: Truthtelling, Historiography and Ptolemy I Soter" in T. Howe, ed., Ptolemy I Soter: a self-made man (Oxoniae: Oxbow Books, 2018) pp. 155-184 


 Paul Pédech, Historiens compagnons d'Alexandre (Lutetiae: Les Belles Lettres, 1984) pp. 215-330
 Frances Pownall, "Arrian’s Propinquity to Ptolemy and Aristobulus: A Reassessment" in Robert Rollinger, Julian Degen, edd., The world of Alexander in perspective: contextualizing Arrian (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2022) 


 H. Strasburger, Ptolemaios und Alexander. Lipsiae: Teubner, 1934

 C. Bradford Welles, "The reliability of Ptolemy as an historian" in Miscellanea di studi alessandrini in memoria di A. Rostagni (Augustae Taurinorum: Chiantore, 1963) pp. 101-116


 Fontes rerum gestarum Alexandri Magni

Categoria:Aegypti scripta
Categoria:Libri autobiographici
Categoria:Libri deperditi
Categoria:Libri de Alexandro Magno
Categoria:Litterae Graecae antiquae
Categoria:Scripta saeculo 3 a.C.n.