The Fragments on Pleasures is a collection of thirteen short iambic poems attributed to the archaic Greek poet Ananius, who lived in the sixth century BCE. Written in Ionic Greek, these verses focus on the everyday themes of food, drink, and material enjoyment, often adopting a humorous or advisory tone. The work is believed to have been composed for performance at symposia, reflecting the social culture of Ionian Greece. No complete poem by Ananius survives; the work is known only through thirteen passages quoted by later authors, primarily the anthologist Stobaeus in the fifth century CE. These fragments suggest the original was a series of pointed sayings rather than a single long narrative. The collection exemplifies the iambic tradition’s interest in daily life and physical pleasure, offering a lighter counterpart to the genre’s more famous satirical works. The extant lines celebrate simple, seasonal delights, from figs and shellfish to the meat of various animals, while also offering wry commentary on the relative value of gold compared to life’s tangible comforts.
Ἄπολλον, ὅς που Δῆλον ἢ Πυθῶνʼ ἔχεις
ἢ Νάξον ἢ Μίλητον ἢ θείην Κλάρον,
ἵκεο καθʼ ἱέρʼ ἢ Σκύθας ἀφίξεαι.
χρυσὸν λέγει Πύθερμος ὡς οὐδὲν τἆλλα.
εἴ τις καθείρξαι χρυσὸν ἐν δόμοις πολὺν
καὶ σῦκα βαιὰ καὶ δύʼ ἢ τρεῖς ἀνθρώπους,
γνοίη χʼ ὅσωι τὰ σῦκα τοῦ χρυσοῦ κρέσσω.
καὶ σὲ πολλὸν ἀνθρώπων
ἐγὼ φιλέω μάλιστα, ναὶ μὰ τὴν κράμβην.
ἔαρι μὲν χρόμιος ἄριστος, ἀνθίης δὲ χειμῶνι·
τῶν καλῶν δʼ ὄψων ἄριστον καρὶς ἐκ συκέης φύλλου.
ἡδὺ δʼ ἐσθίειν χιμαίρης φθινοπωρισμῶι κρέας·
δέλφακος δʼ ὅταν τραπέωσιν καὶ πατέωσιν ἐσθίειν,
καὶ κυνῶν αὑτὴ τόθʼ ὥρη καὶ λαγῶν κἀλωπέκων.
οἰὸς αὖθʼ, ὅταν θέρος τʼ ἦι κἠχέται βαβράζωσιν·
εἶτα δʼ ἐστὶν ἐκ θαλάσσης θύννος οὐ κακὸν βρῶμα,
ἀλλὰ πᾶσιν ἰχθύεσσιν ἐμπρεπὴς ἐν μυσσωτῶι.
βοῦς δὲ πιανθείς, δοκέω μέν, καὶ μεσέων νυκτῶν ἡδὺς
κἠμέρης.
