Alexander Polyhistor
Encyclopedia
Lucius Cornelius Alexander Polyhistor was a Greek
scholar who was enslaved by the Romans
during the Mithridatic War and taken to Rome
as a tutor. After his release, he continued to live in Italy
as a Roman citizen. He was so productive a writer that he earned the surname polyhistor. The majority of his writings are now lost, but the fragments that remain shed valuable light on antiquarian and eastern Mediterranean subjects.
he was a pupil of Crates
and a Milesian, whereas Stephanus of Byzantium
claims he was a native of Cotiaeum in Lesser Phrygia
and a son of Asklepiades, while the Etymologicum Magnum
agrees in calling him Kotiaeus. It is possible that two different Alexandroi have been merged or confused.
He became a Roman prisoner of war, was sold into slavery to a Cornelius Lentulus as his teacher (paedagogus
) and was later freed. As a Roman freedman his name was Cornelius Alexander. The nomen may come from the Corneli Lentuli or from Sulla Felix, as he received the citizenship from Sulla..
He died at Laurentum
in a fire which consumed his house, and his wife Helene is said by the Suda
to have responded to the news of his loss by hanging herself.
makes no attempt to list his works, asserting that he composed books "beyond number".
Alexander's most important treatise consisted of forty-two books of historical and geographical accounts of nearly all the countries of the ancient world. These included 5 books On Rome, the Aigyptiaca (at least 3 books), On Bithynia, On the Euxine Sea, On Illyria, Indica and a Chaldæan History. Another notable work is about the Jews (Müller
, Fragmenta Historicorum Graecorum, iii); this reproduces in paraphrase relevant excerpts from Jewish writers, of whom nothing otherwise would be known. As a philosopher, Alexander wrote Successions of Philosophers
, mentioned several times by Diogenes Laërtius
in his Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers
.. None of Alexander's works survive as such: only quotations and paraphrases are to be found, largely in the works of Diogenes Laertius
. Eusebius extracted a large portion in his Chaldean Chronicle at this link.
One of Alexander’s students was Gaius Julius Hyginus
, Latin author, scholar and friend of Ovid
, who was appointed by Augustus
to be superintendent of the Palatine library. From what Laërtius describes or paraphrases in his work, Alexander recorded various thoughts on contradictions, fate, life, soul and its parts, perfect figures, and different curiosities, such as advice not to eat beans.
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
scholar who was enslaved by the Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
during the Mithridatic War and taken to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
as a tutor. After his release, he continued to live in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
as a Roman citizen. He was so productive a writer that he earned the surname polyhistor. The majority of his writings are now lost, but the fragments that remain shed valuable light on antiquarian and eastern Mediterranean subjects.
Life
Alexander flourished in the first half of the 1st century B.C. According to the SudaSuda
The Suda or Souda is a massive 10th century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Suidas. It is an encyclopedic lexicon, written in Greek, with 30,000 entries, many drawing from ancient sources that have since been lost, and often...
he was a pupil of Crates
Crates
Crates can mean:* Plural of "crate", pronounced as one syllable* A Greek name , pronounced as two syllables:** Crates , the poet of Old Comedy, and actor** Crates of Thebes, the Hellenistic Cynic philosopher...
and a Milesian, whereas Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephen of Byzantium, also known as Stephanus Byzantinus , was the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled Ethnica...
claims he was a native of Cotiaeum in Lesser Phrygia
Phrygia
In antiquity, Phrygia was a kingdom in the west central part of Anatolia, in what is now modern-day Turkey. The Phrygians initially lived in the southern Balkans; according to Herodotus, under the name of Bryges , changing it to Phruges after their final migration to Anatolia, via the...
and a son of Asklepiades, while the Etymologicum Magnum
Etymologicum Magnum
Etymologicum Magnum is the traditional title of a Greek lexical encyclopedia compiled at Constantinople by an unknown lexicographer around 1150 AD. It is the largest Byzantine lexicon and draws on many earlier grammatical, lexical and rhetorical works...
agrees in calling him Kotiaeus. It is possible that two different Alexandroi have been merged or confused.
He became a Roman prisoner of war, was sold into slavery to a Cornelius Lentulus as his teacher (paedagogus
Paedagogus
Paedagogus , second in the great trilogy of Clement of Alexandria.Having laid a foundation in the knowledge of divine truth in the first book, he goes on in the Paedagogus to develop a Christian ethic...
) and was later freed. As a Roman freedman his name was Cornelius Alexander. The nomen may come from the Corneli Lentuli or from Sulla Felix, as he received the citizenship from Sulla..
He died at Laurentum
Laurentum
Laurentum was an ancient Roman city of Latium situated between Ostia and Lavinium, on the west coast of the Italian Peninsula southwest of Rome. Roman writers regarded it as the original capital of the Latins, before Lavinium assumed that role after the death of King Latinus...
in a fire which consumed his house, and his wife Helene is said by the Suda
Suda
The Suda or Souda is a massive 10th century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Suidas. It is an encyclopedic lexicon, written in Greek, with 30,000 entries, many drawing from ancient sources that have since been lost, and often...
to have responded to the news of his loss by hanging herself.
Works
The SudaSuda
The Suda or Souda is a massive 10th century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Suidas. It is an encyclopedic lexicon, written in Greek, with 30,000 entries, many drawing from ancient sources that have since been lost, and often...
makes no attempt to list his works, asserting that he composed books "beyond number".
Alexander's most important treatise consisted of forty-two books of historical and geographical accounts of nearly all the countries of the ancient world. These included 5 books On Rome, the Aigyptiaca (at least 3 books), On Bithynia, On the Euxine Sea, On Illyria, Indica and a Chaldæan History. Another notable work is about the Jews (Müller
Karl Wilhelm Ludwig Müller
Karl Wilhelm Ludwig Müller is best known for his still-useful Didot editions of fragmentary Greek authors, especially the monumental five-volume Fragmenta Historicorum Graecorum , which is not yet completely superseded by the series Die Fragmente der griechischen Historiker begun by Felix...
, Fragmenta Historicorum Graecorum, iii); this reproduces in paraphrase relevant excerpts from Jewish writers, of whom nothing otherwise would be known. As a philosopher, Alexander wrote Successions of Philosophers
Successions of Philosophers
Successions of Philosophers or Philosophers' Successions was the name of several lost works from the Hellenistic era. Their purpose was to depict the philosophers of different schools in terms of a line of succession of which they were a part...
, mentioned several times by Diogenes Laërtius
Diogenes Laertius
Diogenes Laertius was a biographer of the Greek philosophers. Nothing is known about his life, but his surviving Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is one of the principal surviving sources for the history of Greek philosophy.-Life:Nothing is definitively known about his life...
in his Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers
Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers
Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is a biography of the Greek philosophers by Diogenes Laërtius, written in Greek, perhaps in the first half of the third century AD.-Overview:...
.. None of Alexander's works survive as such: only quotations and paraphrases are to be found, largely in the works of Diogenes Laertius
Diogenes Laertius
Diogenes Laertius was a biographer of the Greek philosophers. Nothing is known about his life, but his surviving Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers is one of the principal surviving sources for the history of Greek philosophy.-Life:Nothing is definitively known about his life...
. Eusebius extracted a large portion in his Chaldean Chronicle at this link.
One of Alexander’s students was Gaius Julius Hyginus
Gaius Julius Hyginus
Gaius Julius Hyginus was a Latin author, a pupil of the famous Cornelius Alexander Polyhistor, and a freedman of Caesar Augustus. He was by Augustus elected superintendent of the Palatine library according to Suetonius' De Grammaticis, 20...
, Latin author, scholar and friend of Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
, who was appointed by Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
to be superintendent of the Palatine library. From what Laërtius describes or paraphrases in his work, Alexander recorded various thoughts on contradictions, fate, life, soul and its parts, perfect figures, and different curiosities, such as advice not to eat beans.
Studies
- W. Adler, "Alexander Polyhistor’s Peri Ioudaiôn and Literary Culture in Republican Rome," in Sabrina Inowlocki & Claudio Zamagni (eds), Reconsidering Eusebius: Collected papers on literary, historical, and theological issues (Leiden, Brill, 2011) (Vigiliae Christianae, Supplements, 107),