Christos C. Tsagalis Inscribing Sorrow: Fourth-Century Attic Funerary Epigrams

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2 Christos C. Tsagalis Inscribing Sorrow: Fourth-Century Attic Funerary Epigrams

3 Trends in Classics - Supplementary Volumes Edited by Franco Montanari and Antonios Rengakos Scientific Committee Alberto Bernabé Margarethe Billerbeck Claude Calame Philip R. Hardie Stephen J. Harrison Stephen Hinds Richard Hunter Christina Kraus Giuseppe Mastromarco Gregory Nagy Theodore D. Papanghelis Giusto Picone Kurt Raaflaub Bernhard Zimmermann Volume 1 Walter de Gruyter Berlin New York

4 Inscribing Sorrow: Fourth-Century Attic Funerary Epigrams by Christos C. Tsagalis Walter de Gruyter Berlin New York

5 Printed on acid-free paper which falls within the guidelines of the ANSI to ensure permanence and durability. ISBN Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data are available in the Internet at Copyright 2008 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, D Berlin All rights reserved, including those of translation into foreign languages. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed in Germany Cover Design: Christopher Schneider, Berlin Printing and binding: Hubert & Co. GmbH & Co. KG, Göttingen

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8 Preface One of the most brilliant achievements of Hellenistic poetry is no doubt the emergence of the literary epigram. During the last years, important new discoveries (like the New Posidippus ) and several groundbreaking publications have deepened our knowledge of Hellenistic epigrammatic collections and rekindled interest in one of the most fascinating genres of Greek poetry. On the other hand, inscribed epigram of the archaic and classical periods has not yet attracted from classical scholars the attention it deserves. While epigraphists have made significant progress in collecting, publishing and epigraphically studying all the relevant material, Hellenists have been, in general, rather reluctant to undertake long-scale research on inscribed epigram. This lack of interest has been generated by the nature of the material on which epigrams are preserved (which requires a fair amount of archaeological knowledge), the view that only in the Hellenistic period epigrams acquire features pertaining to real poetry, and also that literariness and personal authorship, which are basically linked to epigrams belonging to the Hellenistic and Imperial periods, make non-inscribed epigrams much more interesting to study from a literary point of view. It is indeed a very positive sign that during the last years certain scholars have realised the need to link the history and development of inscribed epigram to that of its famous Hellenistic successor. To mention a recent example of this tendency, the editors (P. Bing and J. S. Bruss) of the Brill s Companion to Hellenistic Epigram have devoted a fair number of chapters (more than half of the Companion s first part) to inscribed epigram. Individual chapters studying the inscribed antecedents of Hellenistic epigram, the inscribed epigram in pre-hellenistic literary sources, the Sylloge Simonidea, and the mutual influence between inscribed and literary epigram testify to the growing interest for exploring the inscriptional precursors of literary epigram as models for the blooming of this genre in the Hellenistic and Imperial periods. Fourth-century inscribed Attic epitaphs are centered on the private life of Athenian men and women, the impact of whose loss we can still hear as a distinct echo of a distant past. At the same time, the

9 VIII Preface sheer size (162), geographical concentration (Attica), and chronological limitation (4 th century BCE) of this corpus of grave epigrams allows for general observations concerning the transition from archaic and fifth-century classical epigram into the literary epigram of the Hellenistic period. In the course of my research I have incurred a fair number of professional and personal debts. In fact, I was fortunate enough to have benefited from the scientific expertise, thoughtful advice and generous feedback of a number of scholars. Yannis Tzifopoulos and Joseph Day have read an early draft of chapter one and have immensely helped me with their incisive criticism. Phil Mitsis has diligently read the entire manuscript and made considerable improvements on my English. David Sider and Doris Meyer have both brought to my attention important secondary literature. Sophia Aneziri has also discussed with me in detail CEG 594. Ewen Bowie has kindly shown me his own forthcoming contribution on narrative in archaic and classical inscribed epigram. I am profoundly indebted to Marco Fantuzzi who read the entire manuscript, made acute observations and with his brilliant insights and balanced criticism saved me from some misleading comments and arguments. He also provided me with fascinating forthcoming work of his, of which the one on variation in inscriptional epigram was of special importance for my research. Angelos Matthaiou was the one who initially suggested this topic to me, arguing strongly and convincingly about the need for classical scholars to explore the area of pre-hellenistic inscribed epigrams. Moreover, he was the one who helped a classicist like me familiarize himself with Greek Epigraphy. I would also like to express my deep gratitude to Franco Montanari and Antonios Rengakos for accepting my work in their new series Trends in Classics. Last but not least, I would like to thank a number of institutions and libraries that have facilitated and stimulated my research. The American School of Classical Studies at Athens unfailingly proved a safe heaven for my research. Its fine facilities provided a stimulating atmosphere, and its congenial staff, especially Ben Mills and Maria Tourna, were always eager to help in matters bibliographical and other. This important institution with its unique collection of literary, epigraphical, and archaeological material is one of the most ideal places for the undertaking of advanced research in almost any subfield concerning Greek antiquity. I am also deeply indebted to the Center for Hellenic Studies and its Director Greg Nagy for offering me a Summer Fellowship (2002). Despite my brief stay at the Center, I was able to gather some important material for my research without un-

10 Preface IX due difficulty. Further thanks are due to the Head Librarian of the Classics Library of the University of Athens Mrs Argyro Frantzi, who provided assistance in various forms and saved me some time by unstintingly offering her expertise in matters pertaining to digital collections. Last but not least, I would like to acknoweldge the assistance offered to me by the staff of the National Research Foundation (E.I.E) which through its efficient interlibrary loan system gave me the opportunity to access certain articles published in journals that I could not find in Greece and that otherwise I would not have been able to consult. This Book is dedicated to my wife Anna, who has helped me in ways that can hardly be described or acknowledged. She unfailingly stood by me, patiently dealing with all my sentimental upheavals during the writing of this manuscript and the preparation of the cameraready copy. She is, therefore, true to the saying χάριν λαβὼν χάριτας ἀντιδίδωμι. Christos C. Tsagalis Athens, August 2007

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12 Contents Quotations and Transliteration... 1 Introduction... 3 Chapter 1: The Use of Gnomic Expressions The Greek Concept of γνῶμαι Modern Approaches Corpus of γνῶμαι A Gnomic Grammar Quantificatory Terminology Anaphoric Generalizing Markers (ὅστις, οὗ) and Deixis Evaluative Terminology Tenses Particles Style Contextualizing the γνώμη The Community of Death Honoring the Deceased in the Underworld Honoring the Dead Chains with Nested Maxims Orational Maxims and the Vocality of the Performance Expanded Maxims Opposition Mnemonic Devices Meter... 51

13 XII Contents Chapter 2: Poetic Imagery The Light of Life Φῶς/Φάος Individual φῶς/φάος Expressions Aὐγή/-αί (a) Λίπον ἡλίου αὐγάς (b) Ἀελίου εἴδομεν αὐγήν (CEG 520) The Chamber(s) of Persephone Chapter 3: Public Display, Private Focus: Redefining Social Virtues Towards a Τypology of ἀρετή and σωφροσύνη (a) μετέχειν or μέρος ἔχων/ἔχουσα ἀρετῆς and/or σωφροσύνης + Quantitative Terms (b) ἀσκεῖν ἀρετήν/σωφροσύνην (c) αὐξάνειν ἀρετήν/σωφροσύνην (d) μνημεῖον ἀρετῆς/σωφροσύνης (e) κλέος + σωφροσύνη Praising the Deceased Εὐλογία Ἔπαινος (a) Professional ἔπαινος (b) Family-Oriented ἔπαινος (c) Gender-Based ἔπαινος Σπάνις-epitaphs The Thick and Thin Theory: Family, Age, Profession Family Age Youth

14 Contents XIII Old Age/Longevity Profession Men Women Chapter 4: Narrative Development and Poetic Technique The Epitaph as Inscription (a) Deictic Topography (b) The Reader as Passer-By The Epitaph as Narrative (a) Extended Epigrams (a1) Parataxis + Relative Expansion (a2) Relative Pronouns + μέν-δέ Expansion (a3) Relative Pronouns + δέ Expansion (a4) Chains of Relative Expansions (a5) The ὅς... ποτε Relative Device (b) Subordinate Clauses (c) Parataxis (d) Asyndeton (e) Names (f) The Interplay between Speaker and Addressee (f1) Presentation of the Deceased or the Monument (CEG 529) (f2) Report of the Death-Situation (CEG 554) (f3) The I-Style (CEG 473) (f3.1) First-Person Mourner (f4) Address Forms (CEG 604) (f5) Dialogue (f5.1) Question-Answer Device (f5.2) Grave-Situated Conversation

15 XIV Contents The Poetic Grammar of the Epitaph (a) Diction (a1) Epic Vocabulary (a2) Tragic Vocabulary (a3) Varia (a4) Compound Epithets (a5) Influence of the Language of Decrees and Dedicatory Inscriptions (b) Style (b1) Wordplay and Soundplay (b2) Priamel (c) Meter (c1) Outer Metric (c2) Inner Metric (c3) Violations (c4) Unmetrical Verses (c4.1) Unmetrical Hexameters and Pentameters (c4.2) Combined Forms (c5) Coterminacy and Enjambment Conclusion Table Bibliography General Index Index of Principal Greek Words Index Locorum...349

16 Quotations and Transliteration To avoid repetition, I have employed a variety of synonymous terms to refer to the corpus of epigrams under discussion: inscribed grave epigrams, sepulchral epigrams, funerary epigrams. When I use the term epitaph, I am referring to a metrical inscription. Regarding the transliteration of Greek personal and place names, I have decided to follow a twofold system instead of imposing a standard form: I have employed the Anglisized form for individuals widely known from classical literature (Corinth, Empedocles, Herodotus), whereas in the case of unknown private citizens appearing in epitaphs I have opted for their transliterated Hellenicized forms (e.g. Kallimachos, not Callimachus) in order to avoid confusion. When citing a work by an orator, the number in parenthesis following the title indicates the standard numbering of the speech according to OCD practice. With respect to the abbreviations of names of ancient authors and works I have opted for their latinized form. Aiming at comprehensiveness, I have given both forms in the Index Locorum. So Soph. Trach. stands for Sophocles Women of Trachis, and Pl. Leg. for Plato s Laws. Every time an edition of inscriptions is cited, the numbering does not refer to pages but to the particular inscription quoted. E.g. Kaibel (1878) 81 refers to epigram 81 in Kaibel s 1878 edition. When reference to a particular inscribed epigram is made, the first part of the numbering designates the number of the inscription in the collection cited, whereas the second part of the number indicates a particular line, not verse (unless stated otherwise). For example, CEG refers to the third line of a two-verse epitaph preceded by an extra metrum line. References to inscribed epigrams are made according to CEG. When an epigram is quoted in full or thoroughly discussed, the equivalent IG number is also given. In the case of epigrams published after IG II 2, I have decided to follow the same practice and offer the equivalent number of ΣΕΜΑ (Συμπλήρωμα τῶν ἐπιτυμβίων μνημείων τῆς Ἀττικῆς) only when an epigram or part of it is quoted. In the Index Locorum I have grouped under the number of an inscription all references to individual lines.

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18 Introduction The epigram constitutes one of the most persistent and long lasting genres of ancient Greek literature. 1 Initially, the term ἐπίγραμμα had exactly the same meaning with the word ἐπιγραφή (inscription), which denoted writing by inscribing on material whose primary use was rather different. While parchment and papyrus were employed as writing material per se, stone, wood, pots and vases served different purposes and only secondarily were they employed for writing. Conversely, the fact that they had been used from a very early date and that they were durable resulted in their proliferation as writing material. Metrical inscriptions are attested as early as the 7 th century BCE. Archaic grave epigrams have a rather severe and terse style, often containing epic overtones. The pitch is impersonal or distant, offering mainly the name, city, and elementary data concerning the deceased s family, and sometimes his or her age. The versifier remains anonymous, the stylistic means conform to the strictest typology, and the size is as laconic as possible. In the words of Fantuzzi, the history of the archaic and early classical inscribed epigram is the history of a lesser literature, more subordinated to, than operating in parallel with, orally transmitted verse. Such poems are satisfied with anonymity. 2 In the early classical period (5 th century BCE), metrical inscriptions grow rapidly in numbers. With respect to sepulchral epigrams, there is a considerable increase of the so-called πολυάνδρια (metrical inscriptions on public monuments commemorating the war dead) that became especially prominent in the wake of the Persian Wars. In contrast to its archaic predecessor, classical epigram begins to be more elaborate: its style is not so terse, special care is given to the placement of words in the verse, and last but not least epitaphs are imbued with a didactic-idealistic tone. The highlighting of pathos, the 1 2 See Reitzenstein, RE s.v. Epigramm. Fantuzzi (2002) 394 = (2004) 288.

19 4 Introduction use of dialogue, and the stylistic embellishment bear witness to the influence of tragic poetry, oratory, and sophistic ideas and diction. In the late classical period (4 th century BCE), the πολυάνδρια decrease (our statistics are representative of Athenian practice) considerably, whereas private funerary epigrams grow rapidly. This phenomenon is so profound that can only be explained by the dramatic changes caused by the Peloponnesian war and the defeat of Athens, the deep crisis of the city-state as a political entity, and the gradual transition to a world radically different from that of the fifth century, a world more interested in the private aspects of life. This shift towards the private stele was accompanied by significant changes regarding its style and content. Seven years ago, Angelos Matthaiou tried to convince a young classicist who shared with him only a tiny part of his passion for epigraphy that he should undertake a long scale research on grave epigrams of fourth-century Athens. Matthaiou made convincingly his case by arguing that the sheer number of inscribed epitaphs from Attica made this epigrammatic corpus an ideal place to further investigate the emergence of literary features which we later on encounter in much greater frequence and sophistication in the Hellenistic period. Matthaiou s persuasive arguments were soon turned into scientific advice and guidance of the sort all classicists need when trying to step on the untrodden paths of epigraphical texts. As soon as I began collecting my material, I realized that whereas Hansen s Carmina Epigraphica Graeca had practically made inscribed epigrams readily accessible to classical scholars by detaching them from the overwhelming and rather imposing presence of the diverse inscriptional material collected in IG, Hellenists were still hesitant to systematically pursue a more comprehensive analysis of inscribed epigrams. It is a great pleasure to see that during these very last years there are clear signs that scholars have started to zoom their scientific lens on inscribed epigrams by endorsing a rather holistic approach that combines epigraphical knowledge with performanceanalysis. Joseph Day has led the way by studying inscribed epigrams not as mere epigraphical texts but as rituals on stone. 3 Marco Fantuzzi has devoted a significant part of his very influential chapter regarding Hellenistic epigram in Muse e Modelli on inscribed epigram offering fascinating new insights. 4 Doris Meyer has written an entire mono- 3 4 See Day (1989), (1994), (2000), (2007). Fantuzzi (2002) = (2004)

20 Introduction 5 graph on the reception of inscribed epigram by Callimachus. Jon Steffen Bruss has studied the inheritances of Hellenistic epigram from the sepulchral sub-genre of inscribed epigram. At least the two contributions by Ewen Bowie and Marco Fantuzzi in the forthcoming volume on Archaic and Classical Greek Epigram will exercise a considerable influence regarding the ways we approach inscribed epigrams. While the former offers a pathbreaking approach to the emergence of narrative in archaic and classical epigram, the latter studies variation in inter-inscriptional epigrams, i.e. in epigrams inscribed sequentially on the same stone. 5 The realization that fourth-century Attic epitaphs are the sounding-board 6 for crucial social concerns of the city-state during a transitional period and that they constitute engines of family honor 7 led me to attempt a reconstruction of some of the original ancient contexts of inscribed epigrams. Although this method of analysis has considerable advantages, it should be followed blithely but not blindely. Inscriptions, even metrical ones, are by definition heavily historicised, the more so since they are a form of ancient documentation. The necessary, and rather significant, caveat is in this case the extent to which the dictional typology encountered in inscribed epigrams does not only represent current practice that is historically determined but also modes of communication between the anonymous versifiers and the future passers-by. Viewed from this vantage point, the public display of inscribed epitaphs becomes an important factor for the interpretation of certain formulaic characteristics of funerary epigrams. The thematical (epitaphs), chronological (4 th century) and geographical (Attic) parameters of our corpus constitute a rather significant (162 metrical inscriptions) epigrammatic landscape that allows for drawing wide range conclusions for the evolution of the genre of epigram. In this light, my research will be focused on several trends of fourth-century Attic grave epigrams that seem to symbolize their autonomy as a corpus. In chapter one, I will explore the form and function of maxims within the context of a bipolar opposition between the public display of the monument and the private commemoration of the deceased I am indebted to both authors who were kind enough to let me see their unpublished contributions to the forthcoming volume Archaic and Classical Greek Epigram, Cambridge (2008), which has not appeared in press even as I am writing these lines. See Wilson (2007) 1, who employs the same expression for Attic theater. I owe the expression engines of honor to Wilson (2007) 5. The idea belongs to Chaniotis (1997)