Hipparchicus
Encyclopedia
Hipparchicus is the name usually given to , hipparchikòs, one of the two treatises on horsemanship by the Athenian historian and soldier Xenophon
(c. 430 – 354 BC). Other common titles for this work include The cavalry commander and The cavalry general. The other work by Xenophon on horsemanship is , perì hippikēs, usually translated as On horsemanship, De equis alendis or The Art of Horsemanship. The title De re equestri may refer to either one of the two works.
Hipparchicus deals mainly with the duties of the cavalry
commander (hipparchus), while On horsemanship deals with the selection, care and training of horse
s in general.
in 1931 of a Hittite
text, that by Kikkuli
of the Mitanni
Kingdom, which dates from about 1360 BC. A treatise on horsemanship by Pliny the Elder
is believed lost, as was that by Simon of Athens, which is twice mentioned by Xenophon in On horsemanship. Some fragments of Simon's treatise survive, however; they were published by Ruehl in 1912.
press:
The earliest printing in Greek in England may be:
Xenophon
Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, philosopher and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates...
(c. 430 – 354 BC). Other common titles for this work include The cavalry commander and The cavalry general. The other work by Xenophon on horsemanship is , perì hippikēs, usually translated as On horsemanship, De equis alendis or The Art of Horsemanship. The title De re equestri may refer to either one of the two works.
Hipparchicus deals mainly with the duties of the cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
commander (hipparchus), while On horsemanship deals with the selection, care and training of horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s in general.
History
Written in about 350 BC, the treatises of Xenophon were considered the earliest extant works on horsemanship in any literature until the publication by Bedřich HroznýBedrich Hrozný
Bedřich Hrozný was a Czech orientalist and linguist. He deciphered the ancient Hittite language, identified it as an Indo-European language and laid the groundwork for the development of Hittitology. Though of Czech origin, he published his work in German or French.Hrozný was born in Lysá nad...
in 1931 of a Hittite
Hittites
The Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
text, that by Kikkuli
Kikkuli
Kikkuli, "master horse trainer of the land Mitanni" was the author of a chariot horse training text written in the Hittite language, dating to the Hittite New Kingdom...
of the Mitanni
Mitanni
Mitanni or Hanigalbat was a loosely organized Hurrian-speaking state in northern Syria and south-east Anatolia from ca. 1500 BC–1300 BC...
Kingdom, which dates from about 1360 BC. A treatise on horsemanship by Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
is believed lost, as was that by Simon of Athens, which is twice mentioned by Xenophon in On horsemanship. Some fragments of Simon's treatise survive, however; they were published by Ruehl in 1912.
Early editions
The first printed edition of Hipparchicus is that in the complete edition of Xenophon of 1516 from the GiuntiFilippo Giunti
The press of Filippo Giunti and Bernardo Giunti was a leading printing firm in Florence from the turn of the sixteenth century. The first of the Giunti presses was established in Venice by Luca Antonio Giunti the elder , a Florentine...
press:
- Begin. Ταδε ̓ενεστιν ̓εν τͅηδε τͅη βιβλͅω· Ξενοφωντος Κυρου Παιδειας βιβλια ηʹ ... Hæc in hoc libro continentur. X. Cyri pedias libri VIII. Anabaseos libri VII.; ... apomnemoneumaton; ... venatoria; ... de re equestri; ... de equis alendis; lacedæmonum resp.; ... atheniensium resp.; ... œconomica; ... hieron.; ... symposium; ... de græcorum gestis libri VII. [With dedication by E. Boninus] (editio princepsEditio princepsIn classical scholarship, editio princeps is a term of art. It means, roughly, the first printed edition of a work that previously had existed only in manuscripts, which could be circulated only after being copied by hand....
) Florentiæ: In ædibus P. Juntæ, 1516
The earliest printing in Greek in England may be:
- Ξ. Λογος περι Ἱππικης. Ἱππαρχικος. Κυνηγετικος. Accessere veterum testimonia de X. (Edited by H. Aldrich.)Ἐκ Θεατρου ἐν Ὀξονιᾳ, ᾳχζγ [Oxford: Clarendon Press 1693]
Translations
Translations include:- (various translators) The whole works of Xenophon London: Jones & Co. 1832 pp.717–728 Full text