eul_wid: pim-aa
DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20335421 PDFMarkdown

Commentary on the Twelfth Pythian of Pindar by Theon of Smyrna II

Theon of Smyrna’s Commentary on Pindar’s Twelfth Pythian Ode is a specialized scholarly treatise from the Roman Imperial period, composed in Greek circa 115–140 CE. Authored by Theon, a mathematician and Platonist philosopher, the work explicates a passage in Pindar’s victory ode concerning the myth of the goddess Athena inventing the aulos, a double-pipe flute. The commentary moves beyond literary analysis to interpret the poetic narrative through the principles of mathematical music theory. Theon argues that the instrument’s construction embodies the fundamental numerical ratios that define consonant musical intervals, such as the fourth, the fifth, and the octave. The work survives only in fragmentary form, preserved not independently but within two excerpts quoted by the later Neoplatonist philosopher Porphyry in his own commentary on musical theory. These fragments exemplify Theon’s Middle Platonist methodology, which sought to uncover scientific and philosophical truths beneath the surface of poetic language. The treatise exemplifies interdisciplinary learning within the Middle Platonist tradition and was likely intended for advanced students of philosophy and mathematics. It illustrates the broader ancient practice of reading classical poetry as an allegorical vehicle for advanced knowledge concerning musical harmony and, by extension, the mathematical order of the cosmos.

… Πολυδέκτηι. λυγρόν τʼ ἔρανον εὐωχουμένοις γὰρ αὐτοῖς τούτοις ἔδειξεν ὁ Περσεὺς τὴν κεφαλὴν καὶ οὕτως ἀπελιθώθησαν. … βιαζομένης γὰρ τῆς Δανάης ὑπὸ τοῦ Πολυδέκτου συνέβη αὐτὴν καταφυγεῖν πρὸς τὸν βωμὸν τοῦ τὸν δὲ Πολυδέκτην εὐλαβούμενον τὸν Περσέα πέμψαι ἐπὶ Μεδούσης καρατομίαν ὡς ἀπολούμενον καὶ … τὸν μὲν Πολυδέκτην θεωρήσαντα τὴν τῆς Γοργόνος κεφαλὴν ἀπολιθωθῆναι καὶ σωθῆναι τὴν Δανάην. ἔνιοι δὲ φασὶν οὐ ταύτην εἶναι τὴν Γοργόνα ἀλλὰ τὴν γηγενῆ ἣν ἡ γῆ ἀνέδωκεν ἐν τῶι πολέμωι τῶι τῶν γιγάντων πρὸς τοὺς θεούς. τὸν ἀπὸ χρυσοῦ φαμεν αὐτορύτου τὸν Περσέα· ὁ γὰρ Ζεὺς χρυσὸς γενόμενος συνῆλθε τῆι Δανάηι. ἀλλʼ ἐπεὶ ἐκ τούτων … ἀλλʼ ἐπεὶ ἡ Παρθένος φησὶ ἤγουν Ἀθηνᾶ ἐρρύσατο τὸν φίλον ἄνδρα τότε κατεσκεύαζε τὸ μέλος· οὕτω γὰρ φησὶ συνεργῆσαι τὴν Ἀθηνᾶν τῶι Περσεῖ … εσι … ς τῆς Γοργόνος. ὄφρα τὸν Εὐρυάλας ἐκ καρπαλιμᾶν γενύων ἕως τοῦ εὗρεν θεός εὗρεν γὰρ ἡ θεὸς ἤγουν Ἀθηνᾶ τὴν αὐλητικὴν ὅπως μιμήσαιτο σὺν ἔντεσι τῶν αὐλῶν τουτέστιν τοῖς ὀργάνοις θρῆνον τῶν καρπαλιμῶν γενύων τῆς Γοργόνος Εὐρύαλας ἱστᾶσα γόον· ἀπὸ δὲ τῆς μιᾶς καὶ τὴν ἑτέραν τὴν Σθεννώ παρίστησι. ἀλλά μιν λεπτοῦ διανισόμενον χαλκοῦ θʼ ἅμα ἔνιοι θαμὰ. καὶ δονάκων τοὶ παρὰ καλλιχόρον νάοισι ἄκυρον τὸ δονάκων· Εὐριπίδης δʼ ἐν Οἰδίποδι· τόν θʼ ὑμνοποιόν δόνακα ὃν ἐκφύει … Μέλας ποταμὸς ἀηδόνʼ εὐπνόων αὐλῶν σοφήν … ε … ο … εχου … ε … το … υον … δαι … νιανοθ … φ … παρεχεταιητοι … τον … ον … ηνημε … στα ω … ουδειπρ … υειν … ας … θουσα … ρας τοῦτο δὲ ὥσπερ ἐπισφραγίζων ποεῖ. τό γε μόρσιμον οὔ πα φυκτόν τὸ γὰρ μοιρίδιον οὐκ ἔστι παραφυγεῖν ἀλλʼ ὅσα ἡ μοῖρα βούλεται … εὐτυχῆσαι … καὶ οὐ παρφυκτόν

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