Theocritus

Theocritus (Greek ?????????), the creator of Ancient Greek bucolic poetry, flourished in the 3rd century BC.

The Epigrams

These do not call for detailed notice. They do not possess any special merit, and their authenticity is often doubtful. It remains to notice the poems which are now generally considered to be spurious. They are as follows:

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xix. "Love stealing Honey". The poem is anonymous in the manuscripts and the conception of Love is not Theocritean.

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xx. "Herdsman", xxi. "Fishermen", xxiii. "Passionate Lover". These three poems are remarkable for the corrupt state of their text, whiqh makes it likely that they have come from the same source and possibly are by the same author. The "Fishermen" has been much admired. It is addressed to Diophantus and conveys a moral, that one should work and not dream, illustrated by the story of an old fisherman who dreams that he has caught a fish of gold and narrates his vision to his mate. As Leonidas of Tarentum wrote epigrams on fishermen, and one of them is a dedication of his tackle to Poseidon by Diophantus, the fisher, it is likely that the author of this poem was an imitator of Leonidas. It can hardly be by Leonidas himself, who was a contemporary of Theocritus, as it bears marks of lateness.

Related Topics:
Leonidas of Tarentum - Poseidon

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xxv. "Heracles the Lion-slayer"

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