Oppian. Colluthus. Tryphiodorus

by Oppian, Colluthus of Lycopolis, Tryphiodorus

Oppian of Cilicia flourished in the latter half of the 2nd century, and dedicated his "Fishing" (in five books) to Antoninus, presumably Marcus Aurelius. It deals with the habits and characteristics of fish as well as giving instructions for fishing: if not exactly poetical, it contains a great deal of curious information. "The Chase," dedicated to Caracalla, is an inferior composition and may even be the work of a Syrian imitator. The first book gives an appreciation of the huntsman's horses and hounds, the three remaining being devoted to the hunting of wild animals, from the lion to the hare. This edition is equipped with extensive zoological and ichthyological notes.

This volume also includes the extant work of two epic poets of Egypt who wrote in the second half of the 5th century under the influence of Nonnus. "The Rape of Helen" of Colluthus in 394 lines is a pleasant account of the Judgement of Paris and Helen's elopement with him; Tryphiodorus (papyri reveal the correct spelling to be Triphiodorus) deals with "The Taking of Troy" in 691 lines, beginning with the Wooden Horse and ending with the sacrifice of Polyxena.

Genres: Poetry, Classics

720 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1928

About the author

Oppian (Ancient Greek: Ὀππιανός, Oppianós; Latin: Oppianus), also known as Oppian of Anazarbus, of Corycus, or of Cilicia, was a 2nd-century Greco-Roman poet during the reign of the emperors Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. He was actually born in Caesarea (now known as Anazarbus), but was mistakenly placed in Corycus by Suidas; both cities were in the Roman province of Cilicia. He composed a series of didactic poems in Greek hexameter: one on hunting (Κυνηγετικά, Kynēgetiká), one on fishing (Ἁλιευτικά, Halieutiká), and one on bird catching (Ἰξευτικά, Ixeutiká). The surviving work on hunting is now believed to be the work of a different Oppian and the surviving prose paraphrase of the work on birding is now thought to describe a work composed by the Dionysus whom the Suda mention as the author of a treatise on rocks (Λιθιακά, Lithiaká).

According to an anonymous biographer, Oppian's father, having incurred the displeasure of a colleague of Marcus Aurelius named Lucius Verus by neglecting to pay his respects to him when he visited Rome, was banished to Malta. Oppian, who had accompanied his father into exile, returned after the death of Verus (ad 169) and presented his poems to Marcus Aurelius, who was so pleased with them that he gave the author a piece of gold for each line, took him into favor, and pardoned his father. Oppian subsequently returned to his native country but died of the plague shortly afterwards at the early age of thirty. His contemporaries erected a statue in his honor, with an inscription which is still extant, containing a lament for his premature death and a eulogy of his precocious genius.

His poem on fishing, the Halieutica, is still extant. It is about 3500 lines and bears a dedication to Marcus Aurelius and his son Commodus, placing it to the time of their joint rule.

Reviews

[Robert Reinhard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oppian's epic about fish- Part global piscatory catalogue, part taxonomy and then imaginatively conjuring mythology, analogy to human emotions and behavior seen in the habits of all the fishes and men who hunt them. In translation by the Loeb library, the language is lyrical and lovely. The final section recounting the hunting of whales is noble like Moby Dick. The killing of dolphins is immoral he says and explains why. And then finally the doleful and dangerous life of the sponge hunters ends the epic.

[Calvin Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

as when some guy does something, so does the polylemnos