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ABSTRACT Polyvalence of laughter: Homeric cases of ἄσβεστος γέλως The present article intends to analyze the three different Homeric cases of ἄσβεστος γέλως (Il. I 599; Od. VIII 326; XX 346). By considering both linguistic elements which are referred to the noun γέλως and some narratological aspects in relation to which the lines being discussed could be considered, the purpose of this article is to give a specific interpretation of the different scenes. More specifically: in the first part, I will discuss the possibility that the Homeric laughter is related, from a semantic and linguistic point of view, to the idea of a physical movement; in the second part, I intend to show that the massive use of γέλως displayed by the gods who make fun of Hephaistos could be interpreted as a sort of psychological displacement; in the last part of the article, I show a vital trait of the Homeric unquenchable laughter, namely the fact that each and every detail referred to it leads to think that this kind of laughter is an exclusive prerogative of the Olympians: whenever it involves human beings, it brings nothing but madness and death.

ABSTRACT Translation according to Flavius Josephus As a contribution to the clarification of the identity of Flavius Josephus, the present material aims to elucidate what role Josephus played as a translator of the Holy Scriptures. For this purpose, we take as a basis the Jewish Antiquities, since it is in its first ten books that Josephus translates the contents of the Bible. In order to understand what attitude this author took to the text, it is necessary to know what he understood by ‘translation’. Such an investigation is necessary given the confusion caused, on the one hand, by Josephus’ own stance towards the sacred texts and, on the other hand, by his manipulation of these texts. The study of the Greek word μεθερμηνεύω sheds light on the matter, for although it literally means ‘to translate’, the translation to which Josephus alludes is different from the one we know today. An examination of the word shows that, in antiquity, the ἑρμηνεύς was an interpreter rather than a translator. And in accordance with this idea, Josephus seems to fit the term ἑρμηνεύς, since he interprets the Bible and makes use of various models in order to give us a work as complete as possible.

ABSTRACT A study on the debate between Tullus and Fufetius in book III of Dionysius of Halicarnassus’ Roman antiquities The panorama of rhetorical studies in historical works is strongly focused on various and canonical authors (as Thucydides, Xenophon, Polybius, Herodotus), but it lacks for what concerns Dionysius of Halicarnassus and his work Roman Antiquities. The purpose of the work here presented is to offer a perspective on Dionysius himself and on how he uses λόγοι in order to help build a cohesive narration. The importance of λόγοι is proved by the analysis of the conversation occurred between Tullus, king of Romans, and Fufetius, king of Albans. Considering the war between the Romans and the Albans as the central theme of Book III, we can identify sections that serve as introductions and conclusions to the action. The group of speeches under analysis can be seen as the beginning of the ascent towards the climax of the action, which is the war.

ABSTRACT Sophocles without his χλανίς: a note to a comic and scholarly anecdote This note examines the anecdote concerning Sophocles and the stealing of his cloak, which was told by the peripatetic Hieronymos of Rhodes. After discussing the previous studies about the anecdote, the paper turns to define the elements employed in writing this ancient scholarship piece about tragedians: many parts of the story can be traced back to ancient Greek comedy and, especially, to Aristophanes. Similarly to other anecdotes recorded by other Hellenistic scholars, this story too owes much of its material to the comic literary criticism, eminently represented by the motif of stealing a χλανίς. Through a further analysis of the epigram (fr. eleg. 4 West) it is eventually showed that the reuse of comic topoi is also extended to the fictional quarrel between Sophocles and Euripides, which is about plagiarism rather than (only) about Sophocles and Euripides’ lovers.

ABSTRACT Parthenius, Erotica Pathemata 26 and the local Milesian historiography. Considerations on the annotations to the codex Palatinus Heidelbergensis gr. 398 This paper consists of an examination of some main aspects and problems of the notes that the Codex Pal. gr. 398 preserves on Parthenius’ Erotika Pathemata. It further systematically examines some characteristic features of the annotation work with the aim of a historiographical reading of the phenomenon. This contribution mainly examines the notes of Pathema 26 (f. 186r), the features of which might allow us to shed light on the annotations in their genesis and contribute to the understanding of at least some aspects of fragments of local historiography traceable in the notes.

Abstract Hostilianus ‘Augustus’: the prompt dedication of the city of Keramos in Caria An inscription from Keramos in Caria was placed in honour of Hostilianus during the archontate of the archiater Marcus Aurelius Valens Polites. The document – which has aroused a fair amount of interest among historians of ancient medicine, while in the sphere of ancient history studies it has curiously gone almost unnoticed – deserves particular attention, also considering the relative paucity of data we possess on this emperor and the uncertainty, still present today, regarding some crucial aspects of his albeit ephemeral reign. Inserted within the complex and variegated chronological framework of the events of the wars of the 3rd century A.D., the epigraph is actually located in a very important ‘interstitial’ space and allows us to formulate some reflections on the logic of succession to power and on dynastic and ‘paradynastic’ strategies, since both Herennius Etruscus as well as Gallus and Volusianus are absent from Keramos’ text, while Hostilianus is defined Augustus and ‘son’ of the not-yet divus Augustus Decius.

Abstract Neither ἰατρίνη nor μαῖα: the «special» knowledge of the iatromaea/ἰατρόμαια Especially in the last thirty years both the ἰατρίναι/medicae and the μαῖαι/obstetrices have received particular attention from scholars both for a more precise framing of these female «professions» within activities that are not exclusively manual but also intellectual, and in order to reconstruct the legal status, the possibilities of social affirmation and the opportunities of economic income of these two specific professional profiles. The subject of analysis here is a figure in its own right, that of the iatromaea/ἰατρόμαια, a term attested by very rare epigraphic mentions in Latin and Greek, absent from the databases of papyrus texts and a veritable hapax in literary testimonies. After reviewing the inscriptions that certify the existence of this word and the hypotheses formulated by moderns regarding its possible meaning, the paper attempts to trace the professional profile of this specialist, identifying, through a comparison with the sources, similarities and differences with the other types of therapists and making an interpretative proposal in conclusion regarding the specific knowledge and skills of the iatromaea/ἰατρόμαια.

Abstract Democracy, or what everyone is worth (Thuc. II 37, 1) The paper addresses two exegetical problems in a passage from the speech of Pericles (Thuc. II 37, 1). It is argued that the word μέρος probably means «rotation» rather than «class-affiliation», since in this way three successive phrases, instead of being tautological, form an elegant system of affirmations, each of which is precising the previous one. The words ἀξίωσις and ἀξίωμα are opposed as signifying the process of acknowledgment of ἀρετή and the result of it (be it gaining authority, recognition of merits, appointment to a post, or simply approval of a proposal in an assembly). If ἀξιώματος depends from κεκώλυται and not from ἀφανείᾳ, ἀφάνεια need not have the meaning «absence», which seems not characteristic of it.

Abstract Through four case studies I discuss the importance and frequency of the appearance of weapons (an important element of epic imagery) in funerary poetry, and its relation to representations of arms on gravestones and monuments in the Hellenistic period, geographically ranging from Lycia and Caria to the Black Sea, from mainland Greece to the Aegean islands. One of the most common features of poetic epitaphs for soldiers (including citizens, mercenaries, and soldiers belonging to royal armies) is the celebration of the military valor (arete) of the deceased; on the other hand, except for the spear, weapons are not mentioned often in funerary poetry. When they are not mentioned in the epitaph, or when an epitaph is not present, weapons are sometimes represented on the funerary monument itself, in the form of reliefs or paintings, either in the context of a battle scene, or carried by the standing deceased, or simply as isolated objects, as symbols of his profession or social rank in life.

Abstract Amat bonus otia Daphnis (Verg. Ecl. V 61). The ideal of concordia in Eclogue V The concept of concordia plays a key role in the political debate among Virgil’s contemporaries. Virgil himself highlights the role of discordia in Ecl. I 71 and makes concordia the tenet of Eclogue IV (Ecl. IV 46-47). Celebration of peace brought by the new god Daphnis in Eclogue V is couched in terms of concordia as well, as it is pointed out both by the Homeric source of Il. XXII 262-263 on the impossible ὁμοφροσύνη among animals and by the model of Lucretius’ apotheosis of Epicurus, which is significant in that Lucretius deems Epicurus’ doctrine as the means by which sapientes might live together according to the original sense of amicitia and concordia. Moreover, people gathering around Daphnis’ cult as if they were mystery initiates emphasizes the role of community in the eclogue – not least, mystery language is exploited also in Epicurean tradition. Analogies and differences between the iuvenis deus of Eclogue I and Daphnis sharpens the gulf between the two eclogues: in the former, the community of cives is distraught because of discordia, and Tityrus is the only one to enjoy the benefits of the iuvenis deus; by contrast, the latter celebrates a close-knit community worshipping Daphnis in concordia.

Abstract A little-known Athenian financial magistracy: the poristai The essay examines the role of the poristai, a financial magistracy that functioned in Athens between the 5th and 4th centuries BC, and to which scholars have devoted scarce attention. The importance that Athens ascribed to the poroi was a central factor in its politics from as early as the 5th century. Management of the Athenian economy underwent a series of substantial changes from the end of the Peloponnesian War onwards, and since the state required increasingly specialized financial management skills, these authorities seem to have played a prominent role. The difficult economic situation that ensued from the Sicilian defeat of 413 had necessitated the creation of this unusual board of magistrates known as the poristai, whose unusual task was most likely that of administering public funds and state revenues. This essay focuses on references to the board in ancient sources, and on the often ‘technical’ use of the verb porizo, in order to shed light on the functions and identity of some of these magistrates, and on the possibility that this initially anomalous office gradually gained a permanent status during the 4th century.

Abstract Tyrant Pericles. Approach to the management of the health crisis during the plague of Athens (430-426 BC) The aim of this paper is to analyse the political and religious consequences of the Athenian plague of 430 BC. Regarding the political aspects, the work is focused on the popular judgement on the epidemic’s management and the consequent Pericles’ loss of political prestige. Moreover, the paper concludes that this popular response leads to the adoption of religious measures such as the introduction in Athens of Asclepius’ cult (421 BC). The facts mentioned above provide an alternative point of view of Thucydides’ epidemic main account.

Abstract Starting from the observation that the role of former athletes as envoys has not been sufficiently analyzed yet, this article examines on what kind of diplomatic missions Hellenistic athletes were sent after their career. Of special interest are their functions as interstate arbitrators and mediators in political conflicts, roles which were often assumed in the context of political conflicts with or within federal states. It is striking that Elian victors mediated and arbitrated even in such disputes in which their hometown had been one of the conflicting parties. This is remarkable since it reveals what significant a role the prestige gained by an agonistic victory played for becoming appointed envoy. Another main reason for being nominated as ambassador consisted in the athletes’ prior life realities as cross-border commuters which allowed them to build strong social and political networks from an early age. No doubt, former athletes, often ‘heavy weights’, served in many different capacities on diplomatic missions of the highest importance.

Abstract The advances that have taken place in recent decades in the investigation of the ritual and topographical structure of the Sanctuary of Delphi have brought to light strong correspondences with the narrative structure of the Proem of Parmenides. These correspondences, of a ritual, topographical and narrative nature, could be a sign that Parmenides’ hymn was composed to be performed in a civic and religious festival of ancient Elea that followed the model of the Theophania of Delphi. In this paper I present the signs and evidence in favour of this thesis, which implies not only a revision of the traditional interpretations of the Proem, but also the possibility of using it as historical evidence to improve our knowledge of the religious festivals held at Delphi. According to this interpretation, the Proem would not describe a katabasis or an anabasis, but the epidemia or arrival of Apollo at Delphi from the land of the Hyperboreans. The narrator would be Apollo (and not Parmenides), and the itinerary of his journey, that of the places and stations of the Theophania procession. This reading also offers a consistent interpretation of the sculptures and inscriptions found in the Insula II of Velia. It is quite likely that the pholarchoi were priests of Apollo, whose ritual consecration took place at the festival for which Parmenides’ hymn was composed.

Abstract The aim of this article is to discuss two Old Latin aberrant genitive plural forms in -erum, namely bouerum «bouum» (Cato, Agr. 62) or Iouerum «Iouum» (Varro, Ling. VIII 74), on the basis of the morphological and semantic considerations. It is hard to imagine how the regular third declension forms bouum and Iouum could be changed into bouerum and Iouerum. In his commented edition of Varro’s De lingua Latina (2019) Wolfgang de Melo, following Roland Kent, explains them as «analogical formations», influenced by iu – ge˘ rum n. «an acre; jugerum (of land)» (→ bo˘ ue˘ rum) and gen. pl. Ve˘ne˘ rum «of statues of Venus» (→ Io˘ ue˘ rum). This explanation should be rejected for at least two reasons: semantic and morphological. The innovative genitive plural in -e–rum, I will argue, was based on old nominative and accusative dual forms with additional plural morphology: cf. *boue– nom.-acc. du. «two oxen», gen. pl. boue–rum «of oxen» (originally «of two oxen»), *Ioue– «two Jupiters» (here in elliptic use: «Jupiter and Juno»), gen. pl. Ioue–rum «of Jupiters» (originally «of two Jupiters; i.e., Jupiter and Juno»).

Abstract Since the Scythian people first encountered the Hellenic cultural environment in the Archaic period, their lifestyle, customs and characteristics had such a strong impact on the Hellenic colonies in the region that they soon formed part of the Amazonian myths. The discovery of different female burials with weapons among their grave goods pointed to the possibility that female Scythians were warriors, thus giving rise to the Amazonian myths. However, even though this status has been evidenced by the remains found in the Kurgans of the northern Pontus, the origin of those myths dates back long before the first contacts between both cultures. So, even though a knowledge of their customs favoured their association with the Amazonian myths, it could never have led to their appearance in the Greek mythical imaginary.

Abstract From Alexander to the Antigonids: the career of Medeios of Larissa The contribution reviews the career of a Thessalian, Medeios from Larisa, who, after participating in the expedition of Alexander the Great, militated in the service of the Antigonids, becoming a close associate of Antigonos and remaining loyal to the dynasty even after his death. It is precisely this militancy in the service of the Antigonids, it is argued here, that could be the basis of a tradition according to which Medeios was an associate in the alleged conspiracy of which Alexander was a victim: indeed, it is likely that this tradition arose in the context of the propaganda war that broke out between the successors after the king’s death.

Abstract The place of theatre in the Aeschines-Demosthenes dispute: the diplomatic perspective In all studies on the affinities and intersections, both thematic and performative, between oratory and theatre, the contrasting orations of Aeschines and Demosthenes concerning the embassies to Philip of 346 BC and the mutual accusations about the handling of negotiations hold an essential place. In this set of speeches, which includes – in addition to Aeschines’ Against Timarchus and the two orations On the False Embassy (343) – those of 330 Against Ctesiphon (Aeschines) and On the Crown (Demosthenes), the theatre and its performers are, however, represented ambiguously, if not negatively. This essay aims to highlight how this apparent paradox finds a possible solution by considering the concrete role that Athenian theatre and actors played in the difficult negotiations between Athens and Philip. The diplomatic perspective allows us to shed more light on the motivations that led the two rival orators to use theatre as a weapon to fight each other.

Abstract Agrippina Minor and the ager Clusinus: a new inscription A funerary inscription, mentioning a slave of Agrippina Augusta, from the north-western part of the ancient ager Clusinus, could be evidence of an imperial property in this area of ancient Roman Etruria. This paper, with an accurate review of the probable archaeological context of the find, aims to provide new perspectives for the study of imperial properties and estates in the Julio-Claudian age in this portion of the regio VII and, more generally, of the history of the territory before 714 AD, the date in which the site (loc. Romitorio - San Quirico d’Orcia) is first documented.

Abstract «For the ages and for right now»: an analysis of Antigone (2019) by Merlynn Tong, with an interview with the author The article analyzes one of the most recent adaptations of Sophocles’ Antigone, written in 2019 by the young Australian author and actress, Merlynn Tong. After providing a first synthetic evaluation of the reasons for continuity and innovation of the work (among which, the adoption of a Creon woman), the essay explores the drama, scene by scene, studying the operation carried out on the hypotext through a precise comparison with it. The conclusions are then subsequently summarized, with particular attention on the one hand to the actualizing solutions regarding the story of the external space (the city), but above all showing how – while depicting Antigone as an activist (according to a very common redefinition in the rewritings of recent years) – the focus of the drama is the picture of the human bonds between the characters and their suffering: an emotional approach to the tragedy, distant from the eminently political rewritings that the myth of Antigone has developed since the twentieth century. In the Appendix to the article, a short interview with the author is given.

Abstract Nicopolis foundation betwenn ideology and politics The paper aims at analyzing the multiple meanings that the foundation of Nicopolis by Octavianus implied. Whereas the modern scholarship commonly focuses on the ideological function of the foundation – namely the celebration of Octavianus’ victory over Antonius in the battle of Actium– it will be shown that Octavianus, by means of the foundation of the city, also aimed at conveying precise political messages both to those that supported him against Antonius and to the allies of the latter. The analysis of literary sources and epigraphic documents will also permit to explore some examples of responses among Greek communities to Octavianus’ victory at Actium and to the subsequent foundation of Nicopolis.

This article is a short response to a recent contribution by Dietze-Mager in Erga-Logoi 10.2. There, within a larger discussion of the reliability of the Aristotelian Athenaion Politeia as a historical source, Dietze-Mager argues against our proposed identification of the Athenian nomothetai with a special session of the Assembly. In response, we start with a concise summary of our interpretation of the constitutional stages in the Athenaion Politeia in light of the socio-economic methodology of Politics IV, and clarify the role of Aristotle’s political theory in our reconstruction. We then provide a close reading of some key evidence about the identity of the Athenian nomothetai (particularly Aeschin. III 38-40). We demonstrate that Dietze-Mager’s proposed reading of the relevant passage is linguistically and syntactically problematic, arguing that the only possible interpretation of the relevant procedure as described at Aeschin. III 38-40 involves identifying the nomothetai with a special lawmaking session of the Assembly.

Polybius and the art of war: proposal for the identification of some passages from his lost Treatise on tactics – Polybius retains in his Histories traces of an expert in military historiography, a genre that he had previously cultivated, probably in early youth years. From testimonies such as Aelianus Tacticus (I 2) including Polybius among the writers of military genre, the author’s own testimony regarding a lost treatise on Commentaries on military tactics (Ὑπομνήματα περὶ τὰς τάξεις, IX 20, 4) can be agreed, even though only the title has been preserved. Nevertheless, the place in which this bibliographical citation is found and the prevailing scientific style, in addition to application of intertextuality criteria, encourages us to propose, furthermore, the chapters from 12 to 20 in book IX as indirect evidences of this lost handbook. Likewise, chapters of book X dealing with the issue of signals on fire (X 43-45), would support the hypothesis that a meaningful part of the treatise is preserved in both consecutive books.

The aim of this essay is to shed light on three related Peripatetic texts that have received little scholarly attention: a passage in Aristotle’s Historia animalium I 11, on the nose, which mentions in passing that «sneezing […] is alone of breaths (πνευμάτων) a sign prophetic and sacred»; and, two chapters in pseudo-Aristotle, Problemata physica XXXIII, which ask and attempt to answer the question: why is sneezing (thought to be) sacred? An important issue distinguishing the latter from the former is the view that the head is the seat of reason.

The aim of this work is to analyse the critical cruces about some geographical locations in reference to the western coast and the inland parts of the South Arabian and Nabataean area. In detail, the purpose of this research is to investigate the probable location of the port of Leuke Kome through a comparison between an epigraphic source written in Safaitic and some indication in Strabo’s account of the expedition of Aelius Gallus to Arabia Felix. In addition, a new reading of another Safaitic inscription mentioning a curious S1ly (Silleus?) could help to better understand some details of the Roman Arabian campaign too.

The article discusses an unusual prescription for a sitz bath (ἐγκάθισμα) derived from Galen’s treatise De compositione medicamentorum per genera. The term ἐγκάθισμα is not used in any other known fragment of the writings of the famous Pergamonian. The prescription given in discussed passage differs from most of the known prescriptions for sitz baths preserved in other medical authors of antiquity, because it consists mainly of metals and their minerals.

Jews in the Severan oecumene. Some aspects of Septimius Severus’ policy towards the Iudaei – This paper aims at exploring some aspects concerning the condition of the Jewish community during the Severan period, especially focussing on the political and administrative reorganisation carried out by Septimius Severus in the first years of his principate. Our main goal is to find out whether and to what extent a correlation can be detected between the administrative arrangement given by Septimius Severus (beginning with the defeat of Pescennius Niger in 194/195 AD) to the Egyptian, African and Syriac territories of the Empire, where many Jewish were then living, and the socio-economic conditions of these groups, dwelling particularly on a passage from Ulpian (Dig. L 2, 3, 3) concerning the municipal career of the Jews.

Notes on an ideal Hellenic coin. For a contribution to Plato, Leg. V 742a-c – The colony of Laws, described by Plato in his last dialogue, represents a concrete attempt to create a new city. In this sense, the philosopher proposes a new economic policy, at the basis of which the idea of a currency that acts as a currency for all the activities within the polis is advanced. A real currency that has similar characteristics to the one of real cities. But also for external activities: this is, perhaps, a novelty in Plato’s thinking, that we must look at in order to verify any elements of originality for a new Greek monetary policy.

The sanction against the insolvent debtor in Etruscan law – In Etruscan society, according to a historiographical trend that begins with Aristotle, there was a law that punished the insolvent debtor with public redicule exposure. This punishment, apparently not incisive, to be understood needs to be correlated with the Etruscan legislation on perjury, preserved by Maurus Servius Honoratus, and with many other Roman, Greek and the laws of other ancient peoples. I will highlight the Dionysian aspect of the norm and the link with the poena cullei of archaic Roman law. So, the aim of this paper is to reconstruct the Etruscan legislation in debt matters, to the limited extent possible due to the gaps in the sources.

The article discusses the discrepancy between Aristotle’s representation of the Athenian politeia and the information contained in external sources. First we examine his statement that the demagogues manipulate the size and structure of the citizen body by admitting persons of doubtful background in order to broaden their power base. The external sources show no such practice in Athens in the 5th nor in the 4th century: they prove that the three mass citizenship grants in Athenian history were not due to demagogic manipulation but to situations of need, and that on top citizenship criteria became increasingly strict. Next his picture of the 4th century Areopagus as an institution stripped of political and constitutional powers is critically assessed against external sources which show that Aristotle’s description does not match the facts. The article finally tries to clarify why Aristotle chose to never mention the Athenian nomothesia in his writings. It concludes that not only the way in which he presents information about the Athenian state, but also, and more importantly, his decision to exclude information from his narrative are influenced by his conservative views and seem to be guided by his wish to paint a dark picture of the contemporary Athenian politeia.

Livy’s Periochae have always been studied to assess their dependence from Livy and their contribution to our knowledge of his lost books. This article approaches them as a self-standing text and compares them to other summaries of ancient texts which go under the same name (e.g. periochae to Terence, Homer and Lucan). It is suggested that Livy’s Periochae should be viewed not only as one of the many epitomes of Livy which spread in Late antiquity, but also as representative of a literary ‘genre’ to which other late antique summaries of major classical works belong.

In the surviving fragments of his treatise On Heraclea the historian Memnon assigns a central role to the exiles from Heraclea. As opponents of tyranny, they represented a destabilising element, a constant danger to the survival of the Clearchid regime. This article explores the events that led to the banishment of the exiles, reconstructs the politics of expulsion implemented by the tyrants, and clarifies the status of the exiles and their political orientation in the light of Memnon’s frequent juxtaposition of the exiles’ demand to return to their homeland and the restoration of democracy.

This paper questions the widespread view associating the Apollo’s epithet ἀρχηγέτης/ἀρχηγός with the Seleucid city foundations in the Greek East. Special attention is paid to the epigraphic and numismatic evidence coming from the poleis of Apameia in Syria and Hierapolis of Phrygia, where Apollo was honoured as divine ἀρχηγέτης in imperial times. A reassessment of the available sources does not substantiate the claim that the mention of Apollo Ἀρχηγέτης in the inscriptions from Apameia, Hierapolis and other cities of the Greek East automatically points to cults going back to the Seleucid period.

This article compares the Greek and the Arabic versions of Aristotle’s last will and argues that the differences between them are not to be explained as paraphrases and mistakes by the translator(s), as has recently been stated. Rather, the Greek text which constituted the basis of the translation was a manipulated version of the original last will and meant to support the view that Herpyllis was not Aristotle’s mistress and that Nikomachos was not her but Pythias’ son. Although the Greek version in Diogenes Laertios is to be regarded as the original version of this document, it lacks one authentic sentence preserved by the Arabic tradition. A reading of the Greek version of the will before the background of Athenian law makes it probable that Herpyllis was Aristotle’s legal wife and the mother of Nikomachos. In addition, it is shown that Ptolemy’s Life of Aristotle was not, as is assumed in its editio princeps, an epitome of Hermippos’ On Aristotle.

In the 4th century BC Greek historiography abandons the monographic genre to propose a general interpretation of history: a possible interpretative key is that of tryphé, excessive luxury that corrupts and leads to an unstoppable decadence cities, peoples and states. The first theoretical elaboration of the tryphé-decadence nexus occurs in the historiographical work of Ephorus of Cyme and Timaeus of Tauromenium. In later Greek historiography, however, the concept of tryphé remains in most cases connected to a moral judgment, without becoming a true criterion of historical interpretation. And if in this sense it has been too often interpreted by the moderns, this is probably due to the influence on them exerted by the Roman historiography. In it the equivalent of tryphé can be considered the luxuria, understood as corrupting luxury, which since the 2nd century BC would lead to a progressive weakening of Rome and that in the historiographic production sees an insistent connection between the social ethics, precisely corrupt, and the political decadence.

This article studies the way in which Dio deals with social issues in his Roman History. In particular, it examines the rise of the parvenus in Severan Rome, the problem of indebtedness of individual citizens and the state, the recurring phenomenon of banditry, famines and ‘hunger revolts’. The impression of the historian’s insensitivity to the needs of the most disadvantaged social classes is diminished by the analysis of his narrative concerning the struggle between patricians and plebeians in the archaic age, which Dio re-examines also in light of the problems of his time, and in which an unexpected attention to the motives of the poor emerges.

According to some sources, the friendship between the Athenians and the Phokians dates back at least to the time of the First Sacred War and proved resilient enough to withstand, and adapt to, the different balances and constellations of alliances that took shape in the classical period. The bipolar Greece of the fifth century meant the Phokians had to choose between the Athenians and the Spartans. For both the Athenians and Spartans, friendship with the Phokians was important for extending their influence in central Greece and in the Delphic Amphictyony, although the Boiotian factor should not be overlooked. The years of Spartan hegemony saw the Phokians allied with the Spartans, also in an anti-Theban key, but when Spartan hegemony was on the wane, the Phokians had no choice but to allow themselves to be drawn into the Theban orbit. This represented a significant turning point: once Spartan power had diminished, Athens no longer needed to form an alliance with the Thebans against Sparta, and the new Spartan-Athenian axis offered the Phokians a fresh range of prospects. The Athenian-Phokian axis lasted also during the delicate phase of negotiations for the conclusion of the Peace of Philokrates and influenced memories of the archaic War of Krisa.

Starting from a passage of Demosthenes’ Fourth Philippic, the essay examines the career of Hermias of Atarneus, in particular the controversial issue of his relationship with Philip II of Macedonia. In this regard, an attempt is made to reject the claim that the arrival of Aristotle at Hermias was desired by Philip to secure a bridgehead for the expedition to Asia, whereas there is no reason to believe that this expedition had already been planned in the first half of the Forties. In fact, it is reasonable to think that the relationship with Hermias, which probably began after Aristotle’s arrival at the Macedonian court in 343, was of no particular importance to Philip.

This article offers a reinterpretation of the pseudo-Demosthenic demegory On the Agreements with Alexander that reassesses the legal basis of the arguments offered by the speaker as regards the legal nature of the pacts and Alexander’s violations on this point. According to this interpretation, the Athenian speaker specifically focuses on the violations committed by Alexander as hegemon with respect to the commitments assumed by the Athenians in the symmachia as participants in the koine eirene. The most recent research acquisitions on the question of the attribution of the demegory and the context of its recitation lead to a reconsideration of the legal arguments offered by the speaker about the relationship between the koine eirene and the symmachia. In line with these acquisitions, the argument here proposed is that at the heart of the oration was the claim of the Athenians’ right not to follow unconditionally (ἀκολουθεῖν) the strategic direction taken by the hegemon, immediately after his passage through Asia, and to exit, if necessary, the koine eirene.

Philip II and Alexander the Great justified and accompanied their expedition against the Persians through the themes of revenge and freedom. These topics, because they conflict with the Realpolitik of the two kings, can be considered as propaganda.

Starting from the historical work of Memnon’s of Heracleia, which has been handed down to us by Photius’ excerpta, we can reconstruct the role of the polis of Heracleia Pontica, in the complex historical period after Alexander’s III death. With this paper, I will analyse the tyrannical period, and in particular Dionysius’ tyranny. During his tyranny, Dionysius of Heracleia Pontica was able to realize a complex network of relationships; he succeeded in making the city an undisputed protagonist of that historical period. He knew how to juggle the struggles among the Diadochoi and he was able to forge relations with some of them, and with some poleis of the Black Sea area, like Sinope, aiming to increase his power and that of his homeland.