The first complete edition (with commentary) in almost sixty years eof the fragments of the Greek epic and elegiac poet Antimachus, this book examines his significant role in the history of Greek poetry and literary scholarship.

This volume is an edition of the fragments of the Greek epic and elegiac poet, Antimachus of Colophon (ca. 400 B.C.), an important figure linking the literatures of Archaic and Classical Greece with that of the Hellenistic Age. The introduction examines the poet's life and work, discussing both his poetry and his activity as a Homeric scholar. It concludes with an assessment of his reception by Hellenistic and later writers. The body of the book is a critical edition of the 200-plus fragments of Antimachus' work. Each fragment is supplied with a commentary elucidating both text and context, with particular emphasis on Antimachus' use of his predecessors, especially Homer, and on his own influence upon the Hellenistic scholar-poets.

In modern times the Theriaca of Nicander of Colophon (2nd century BCE) has not attracted many enthusiasts. Its complicated style, abstruse diction and technical subject matter – venomous bites and their remedies – have long put off classical scholars. In the wake of renewed interest in Hellenistic poetry, however, Nicander’s dark poetry deserves new appreciation. In this book Floris Overduin provides a literary commentary on the Theriaca, focusing on Nicander’s artistic merits. Viewed against the background of Alexandrian aesthetics and the didactic epic tradition, Nicander deserves pride of place among his Hellenistic peers. This book, the first full commentary in English, may thus contribute to the reappraisal of Nicander’s Theriaca as a work of literature, not science.

This book examines foundation myths told about the Ionian cities during the archaic and classical periods. It uses these myths to explore the complex and changing ways in which civic identity was constructed in Ionia, relating this to the wider discourses about ethnicity and cultural difference that were current in the Greek world at this time. The Ionian cities seem to have rejected oppositional models of cultural difference which set in contrast East and West, Europe and Asia, Greek and Barbarian, opting instead for a more fluid and nuanced perspective on ethnic and cultural distinctions. The conclusions of this book have far-reaching implications for our understanding of Ionia, but also challenge current models of Greek ethnicity and identity, suggesting that there was a more diverse conception of Greekness in antiquity than has often been assumed.