… οι Στάφυλος … τι ἀτιμᾶν … αμε … ος ᾔτει … ν και … ημα … ασθαι ω … πεπον- … ν … ντυγ- … η … εῖπε Ἱππότις … παιδὸς Σταφύλου, κολακεύσας γυναῖκα λάβῃ. τούτου δʼ ὅραμα ἰδοῦσα ἡ Ἱππότις μετενόει ἐφʼ οἷς εὔξατο· ἐφοβεῖτο γὰρ περὶ τοῦ παιδὸς μή τις κίνδυνος τὸν ἐκτεθέντα καταλάβῃ. ὅμως δʼ οὖν φέρουσα δίδωσί τε ταῖς ἀμπέλοις τὸν Στάφυλον, καὶ αὑτὴ εἰς τὰς Σάρδεις ἐπορεύθη. τὸν μὲν οὖν Στάφυλον ἀνευρὼν ὁ τῶν ἀμπέλων φύλαξ φέρων δίδωσι τῷ Δρύαντι, ὁ δὲ μέγα τι χρῆμα του … νη … ε … αὐτὸν πόθος λαμ- … εχως δὲ ἐμακάριζεν αὑτὸν καὶ εὐδαιμόνιζεν ἐπὶ τῷ παιδὶ καὶ τὴν βίαν τοῖς φιλτάτοις ἐξεῖπεν καὶ ὅτι τοῦ μὲν παιδὸς ἡττοῖτο, τὴν δὲ μητέρα αὐτοῦ οὐκ οἶδʼ ὅ τι παθὼν ἀποστρέφεται. καὶ Στάφυλος μὲν ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις τοῖς Δρύαντος τρέφεται, ὡς νεώτερος βασιλεύς. Ἱππότις δὲ ἐν ταῖς Σάρδεσιν ἀκούσασα τὴν τοῦ παιδὸς κατάστασιν ὑπερήδετο και … ἐν Σάρδεσιν … ισ …
The Staphylus is a lost ancient Greek work, the nature and authorship of which remain ambiguous due to conflicting historical records. The primary source of information is the 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia known as the Suda, which lists two distinct poetic works under this title. One is attributed to the Hellenistic poet and scholar Euphorion of Chalcis, active in the 3rd century BCE, and is described as a sympotic composition, a piece intended for recitation at drinking parties. Another entry attributes a work of the same name to the poet Alexander of Aetolia, a contemporary of Euphorion. These poetic versions were likely characterized by the learned, allusive style typical of Hellenistic verse, incorporating elements of erotic narrative and mythological reference within a convivial framework. In contrast, some modern catalogues reference an anonymous prose erotic narrative titled Staphylus, a format for which there is no corroborating evidence in ancient catalogues or surviving fragments. The work is considered entirely fragmentary, with no continuous text transmitted to the modern era. Its significance lies primarily in its association with the influential Euphorion, whose dense, scholarly poetics later exerted a notable influence on Roman poets such as Catullus and Virgil. Its inclusion in the Suda confirms its place in Hellenistic literary production, even as its precise content is irrecoverable.