Historical Epic FragmentἹστορικὸν Ἐπικὸν Ἀπόσπασμα
Epic Work Anonymous Historical Epic Fragment PDF
The Historical Epic Fragment is an anonymous work known only by its title and a notation that it consists of twenty-one passages in verse. No narrative content, historical subject, or specific lines from the fragment are preserved. The title identifies it as a portion of a larger epic poem on a historical theme, implying it narrated a specific event or series of events in the traditional hexameter form. Listed among epic remains, the fragment's manuscript tradition, physical source, and the precise extent of the surviving text beyond its descriptive title are undocumented. As a titled fragment without extant content, it serves as a placeholder indicating the broader, lost corpus of historical epic poetry in antiquity, a genre that adapted the conventions of heroic epic to the narration of historical events.
| book 1r.1 | [β]ο̣ύ[λο]μαι. [οἵ] ῥα μανέντες ὑπὸ πληγῇσιν Ἐνυο[ῦς] [ἰ]οδόκου[ς] μὲν ἅπαντες ἀν[ε]ζώσαντο |
| book 1r.2 | φα[ρ]έτ[ρ]ας, τόξα δὲ χερσὶν ἕκαστος ἐκαρτύναντο καὶ αἰχμάς πᾶσά τε [Ν]ησαίη |
| book 1r.3 | πεδιημάχος ἵππος ἀγέρθη,[ln_5][ἵ]ππος ὅσ[η]ς οὐδ’ ἴχνος ὑπὲρ πόντοιο θεούσης |
| book 1r.4 | πρόσθεν [ἐ]πὶ πλωτῶν δρ[υ]όχων ἠνέγκατο Νηρεύς. οὐ γὰρ ὅσος |
| book 1r.5 | στεινωπὸν ὑπ[ὸ π]τύχα Θερμοπυλάων Μῆδος Ἄρης ἤχησεν ὑπ[ὸ σ]τρατιῇσι Λακώνων, τόσσος ἐμοῖς βασιλεῦσ[ιν ἐ]πήιεν ἀντιβολήσων,[ln_10]ἀλλὰ πολὺ πλείων |
| book 1r.6 | τε κα[ὶ ἀ]σχ[αλό]ων ὑπ’ [ὀμ]οκλῆς. ......μ̣μεν ὑπερ.η̣σ̣[] σὺν δ...κῳ Φοίνικι[] χῶρος ἅπας Κάσιαί τε [πύλαι] Ἀραβίης ὑπὸ χέρσον [][ln_15]οὐδὲ καὶ Ἑλλὰς ἄπυστ[ος] [ἦ]εν ἀγειρομένοιο κ[] [...]νε[τ]αι, ὅν [τε] μάλιστα [] μὴ τὸν ἐν Εὐβοίῃ τ[] ναύμαχον αὐχησα[][ln_20][ἧ]ψε δίκην Πέρσῃ[σι] |
| book 2r | []ι̣α̣ς ἀντίο[ς ἦλθε]ν []π̣ος ἀνέστη []εμ αἰδέσ〈σ〉ασθαι |
| book 3r | [ο]ὐδ’ ἀρ[] ο̣σ̣τ̣ρ̣ο̣μ̣[] νειμαν[] μήποτε[][ln_5]ἀντὶ μι[] νέρθε[] κυκλο[] |
| book 4r.1 | [...]η[] [ν]αῦς |
| book 4r.2 | τε[] αἰὲν ἐρ[] τῇ καὶ ἐρ[][ln_5]ἀκρ[] |
| book 5r | τα[] η̣ψι̣[] πνε[] δελ[] |
| book 1v.1 | ......τ[η]λ̣ε̣θ̣ά̣ο̣ντα κατῃώρησε κορύμβω[ν.] [τῷ δέ κ]εν Ἰταλίηθεν ἐπερρώοντο καὶ ἄλλοι κοίρανοι, εἰ μὴ τὸν μὲν [Ἰ]βηρικὸς εἴρυεν Ἄρης, τῷ δὲ μόθος νήσοιο Β[ρ]εταννίδος ἀμφιδεδήει.[ln_5][οἷα] δ’ ὁ μὲν Κρήτηθεν, ὁ δ’ εἰναλίης ἀπὸ Δήλου εἶσι, Ζεὺς ὑπὲρ Ὄθρυν, ὁ [δ’] ἐς Πάγγαιον Ἀπόλλων, τοῖν δὲ κορυσσομένοιν ὅμαδος πέφρικε Γιγάντω[ν,] τοῖος ἄναξ |
| book 1v.2 | πρέσβιστος [ἄ]γων |
| book 1v.3 | στρατὸν Αὐσονιήων ἀντολίην ἀφίκανε σὺ[ν ὁ]πλοτέρῳ βασιλῆι. |
| book 1v.1 | [ln_10]καὶ γὰρ ἔσ[αν μακάρεσσιν ὁ]μοίιοι, ὃς μὲν ἐοικώς α̣ἰ̣θερίῳ [Διὶ κάρτος, ὁ δ’] Ἀπόλλωνι κομήτῃ. []ήρ̣ιος ἀίσσουσα []ο̣ς̣ ἀμφὶ καρήνω[ν] [Ἐ]γκελάδοιο μανέντο[ς][ln_15][] ἐπεκόσμεε |
| book 1v.2 | χαίται[ς] []ενησεν Ἀθήνη []εθεσκε |
| book 1v.3 | τοκῆ[ος] []εν Ἀτρυτών[η] []θει υἷα |
| book 1v.4 | Τυφωεύς[ln_20][]κ̣ε̣ι̣σ̣ε̣ δὲ Δηώ []δος οὕνεκα π[][ln_21](fere 30 versus desunt) |
| book 2v.1 | .... δ’ ἐν θαλ̣[] τοῦ μὲν ε[] ᾗ ποτε |
| book 2v.2 | Τυρσ[η]νο[] |
| book 3v | []κ’ Ἀθηναίη []ἐάων []ηλοις [ἄ]νακτες[ln_5][]μην []ην []ων []ω |