The New Posidippus papyrus in Pella

[akritas]

The new Posidippus papyrus of some 112 epigrams, which has evoked keen interest recently among scholars of Greek poetry. The new epigrams were first published in 2001 as Posidippo di Pella: Epigrammi (P. Mil. Vogl. VIII 309), Papiri dell' UniveristÃ* degli Studi di Milano - VIII, by LED - Edizioni Univeritarie di Lettere Economia Diritto for the University of Milan. Edited by Guido Bastianini and Claudio Gallazzi, with the collaboration of Colin Austin, this lavish edition is comprised of two volumes. The first contains diplomatic transcription, edited text and scholarly commentary. The second consists of a scanned color reproduction of the original papyrus, 16 infrared photos of the papyrus enlarged by 40%, and two CD's with images of the papyrus, one of each column in black and white and one of the entire papyrus in color. This first edition, or editio princeps, was followed in 2002 by a second edition, edited by C. Austin and G. Bastianini, Posidippi Pellaei Quae Supersunt Omnia, also published by LED, which contains all of Posidippus' extant verse, with facing Italian and English translations.

Already this poetry has been the subject of a preliminary discussion at the American Philological Association (APA) Annual Meeting in January 2002 (standing room only) and an international colloquium - seminar held at the Center for Hellenic Studies in April 2002, and international conferences held at Milan, Florence and Cincinnati. There will certainly be more such discussions, and this issue of Classics@ can help to bring an even wider group of participants to the conversation.

Some timely new questions have emerged about the papyrus. For example: what proportion of the Posidippus papyrus can be attributed to the "real" Posidippus, and what proportion needs to be relegated to the category of "pseudo-Posidippus"? Such questions are not easy to settle in an academic culture where access to the editio princeps, the first published edition of the papyrus, is difficult and where secondary literature is slow in arriving at a critical mass of reasoned opinion.

Here, then, is a striking example of the value of on-line publishing. The guest editors of the first issue of Classics@ have constructed an in-progress working document of the Posidippus text first established by Bastianini-Gallazzi in the Italian editio princeps. While based ultimately on the editio princeps and, partly, on the editio minor, this text continues to be re-thought in light of ongoing restorations proposed in publications and general communication among Classics scholars. In this case, the emerging reality proves to be different from the dichotomy of Posidippus vs. pseudo-Posidippus that suggested itself to most observers at the time of the APA meeting. From the cumulative evidence of ongoing restorations, it becomes ever more evident that the real challenge in this case is not to distinguish between better and worse poetry, corresponding to the real and the would-be Posidippus, but between better and worse restorations. The better the restorations, such as those of Gronewald, the more one can see the consistency of quality in the poetry. Without the ongoing re-examination of the text by way of electronic documentation, the scholarly verdict on the value of the Posidippus papyrus may harden too early into set views that inhibit the kind of rethinking needed as important new evidence and interpretations continue to be brought to light.

This on-line text, therefore, is an invitation to all readers to do this very kind of re-thinking. The guest editors of this issue of Classics@, Benjamin Acosta-Hughes and Elizabeth Kosmetatou, will continue to update this electronic version of the Posidippus text as new scholarship appears, but they also solicit your contributions to the project in the form of suggestions for new readings and your continued participation in returning to the site often in order to consult updates and new readings. As is already apparent in this text, contributors will be fully acknowledged.

source:
Classics Issue, Hellenic Studies, Harvard University, March 2004

[Ptolemy]

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/10/1028_021028_mummyscroll.html

Rare Greek Scroll Found With Egyptian Mummy

Lara Suziedelis Bogle for National Geographic News
October 28, 2002

More than 2,000 years ago, a roll of papyrus with extensive writings was enshrouded with a body that was mummified for preservation. The scroll is the oldest surviving example of a Greek poetry book, according to scholars who have been studying it.

They say the document's content and unusually fine condition make it the most significant discovery in Greek literature in several decades.

The papyrus bears 112 short poems called epigrams. The author is thought to be a prominent writer in the third century B.C. named Posidippus.

The ancient book came to light several years ago, but determining its origin has been difficult because little is known about the Egyptian mummy from which the scroll came.

The mummy, which dates from the second century B.C., is in a private collection. Scholars at the University of Milan acquired the scroll so it
could be examined and studied. Next month, more than 60 experts on papyrus writings, Hellenistic and Roman literature, art history, and Ptolemaic history will meet at the University of Cincinnati to present the findings of their research.


Rare Find

Why would a scroll of Greek poetry be bundled with an Egyptian mummy?

Kathryn Gutzwiller, a professor of classics at the University of Cincinnati and the conference organizer, said the practice was not unusual for that period. Greek and Egyptian cultures became intertwined after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C. Posidippus came from Pella in Macedonia and was associated with the Ptolemies, the Greek rulers who inherited Egypt after Alexander's death.

In the third century B.C., "mummies were placed in a kind of papier-mâché casing, for which old papyri were sometimes used," said Gutzwiller.

She and others say the scroll is an important find for a number of reasons.

The Posidippus papyrus is unusual for its length and the well-preserved state of the remaining text. Although papyrus scrolls from Egypt are the major source of new texts of ancient Greek literature, one of such a high quality is rare, Gutzwiller noted.

Peter Bing, an associate professor of classics at Emory University, said the scroll "provides us with the earliest detailed evidence of how an
editor—perhaps the poet himself—organized a poetry collection."

The epigrams offer new insight into daily life during the Ptolemaic era, covering events and beliefs such as official dedications, shipwrecks, omens, and the importance of sporting successes.

"In a whole raft of poems celebrating equestrian victories at the great Panhellenic Games such as the Olympics," said Bing, "the Milan papyrus makes clear that the Ptolemies pursued the international prestige of such triumphs with a determination as single-minded as that displayed in modern times by countries such as [former] East Germany."

Who Was Posidippus?

Posidippus worked in the Aegean region from about 280 to 240 B.C. He was famous even then as a writer of epigrams.

Epigram means "written upon," said Gutzwiller, who is an expert on Greek poetry. But more precisely, she explained, the word refers to a short poem, usually found as an epitaph on a tomb or featured alongside an object to indicate who dedicated it to what god and why.

Literary epigrams began to appear by the third century B.C. These poems were meant to be read or recited for literary enjoyment, rather than just to commemorate a person or event.

"This particular writing form continued into the 20th century, and some people with traditional classical training still do it for fun," said Gutzwiller. While scholars aren't certain that Posidippus is the author of the 112 epigrams, the evidence points strongly in that direction, said
Gutzwiller. Two of the poems on the papyrus were already known to scholars and had long been attributed to Posidippus.

"If the scroll had been written by multiple authors," Gutzwiller noted, "we would expect their names to appear before or beside the poems."

Bing agrees. "Two of the epigrams were previously known, and both were attributed even in ancient times to Posidippus. To my mind, nothing in the rest of the poems stands in the way of seeing Posidippus as the author throughout."

[Istor]

The epigrams are here: http://www.chs.harvard.edu/publications.sec/classics.ssp/issue_i_posidippus.pg