Eumelus of Corinth ( el, Εὔμελος ὁ Κορίνθιος ''Eumelos ho Korinthios''), of the clan of the
Bacchiadae, is a semi-legendary early
Greek poet to whom were attributed several epic poems as well as a celebrated ''
prosodion
Prosodion (Greek: ) in ancient Greece was a processional song to the altar of a deity, mainly Apollo or Artemis, sung ritually before the Paean hymn. It is one of the earliest musical types used by the Greeks. The prosodion was accompanied by the ...
'', the treasured processional anthem of
Messenian
Messenia or Messinia ( ; el, Μεσσηνία ) is a regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, in Greece. Until the implementation of the Kallikratis plan on 1 January 2011, Messenia was a ...
independence that was performed on
Delos
The island of Delos (; el, Δήλος ; Attic: , Doric: ), near Mykonos, near the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. The excavations in the island are ...
. One small fragment of it survives in a quote by
Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to:
*Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium''
*Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC
*Pausanias of Sicily, physician of th ...
. To Eumelus was also attributed authorship of several antiquarian epics composed in the Corinthian-Sicyonian cultural sphere, notably ''Corinthiaca'', an epic narrating the legends and early history of his home city
Corinth
Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part o ...
. The ''Corinthiaca'' is now lost, but a written version of it was used by Pausanias in his survey of the antiquities of Corinth.
The epics ''
Europia'', ''Bougonia'' (perhaps the same as ''Europia''), ''
Titanomachy
In Greek mythology, the Titanomachy (; grc, , , Titan battle) was a ten-year series of battles fought in Ancient Thessaly, consisting of most of the Titans (the older generation of gods, based on Mount Othrys) fighting against the Twelve Olympi ...
'', and ''Return from Troy'' (one of the ''
Nostoi
The ''Nostoi'' ( el, Νόστοι, ''Nostoi'', "Returns"), also known as ''Returns'' or ''Returns of the Greeks'', is a lost Epic poetry, epic of ancient Greek literature. It was one of the Epic Cycle, that is, the Trojan cycle, which told the ent ...
'') were also ascribed to Eumelus by various later authors. Eumelus was traditionally dated between 760 and 740 BC. According to
Martin West the epics appear to have been composed in the late seventh or sixth century BC, later than the date traditionally ascribed to Eumelus in the Greek chronographic tradition used, for instance, by
Eusebius of Caesarea
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christia ...
.
[Eusebius dates Eumelus as contemporaneous with Archias, his fellow-Bacchiad, who founded Syracuse, about 734BC (West 2002:109 and note 3).]
Notes
Sources
*
West, M. L. (2002), "'Eumelos': A Corinthian Epic Cycle?" in ''The Journal of Hellenic Studies'', vol. 122, pp. 109–133. .
*
West, M. L. (2003), ''Greek Epic Fragments: From the Seventh to the Fifth Centuries BC'', edited and translated by Martin L. West,
Loeb Classical Library
The Loeb Classical Library (LCL; named after James Loeb; , ) is a series of books originally published by Heinemann in London, but is currently published by Harvard University Press. The library contains important works of ancient Greek and L ...
No. 497, Cambridge, Massachusetts,
Harvard University Press
Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retirem ...
, 2003.
Online version at Harvard University Press
External links
Eumelus Poems & Fragmentsa
demonax.info
Early Greek epic poets
8th-century BC poets
Ancient Corinthians
Year of birth unknown
Year of death unknown
{{AncientGreece-poet-stub