'In requital for one man's sin, all Greece/ shall mourn the empty tombs of ten thousand of its children'. These lines from a powerful but neglected Greek poem, Lykophron's Alexandra, were admiringly imitated by Virgil. Priam's beautiful daughter, prophetic Kassandra, foresees her rape in Athena's temple by the hateful Greek Ajax at Troy's fall, and warns of disastrous returns (nostoi) for all the Greek 'heroes'. But Troy will rise again as Rome, founded by Trojan refugees. The Alexandra (also known as Kassandra) narrates Mediterranean foundation myths as failed Greek nostoi, and culminates in 'prophecies-after-the-event' of Roman rule over land and sea. This pseudonymous poem, a generic mix but closest to tragedy, is an ingeniously constructed masterpiece. It is ascribed to a third-century BCE tragedian, but was probably written c.190, when Rome had defeated Carthaginian Hannibal and was poised to humble the Seleukid king Antiochos III. The Alexandra anticipates, by over two millennia, modern Trojan War novels which adopt bitterly disillusioned female perspectives.

This monograph is a literary study of Lycophron's Alexandra, whose obscurity, a quality notorious already in antiquity, has long hampered holistic approaches. Through a series of distinct but closely integrated literary studies of major aspects of the poem, including its style, its engagement with the traditions of epic and tragedy, and it's treatment of heroism and of the gods, the book explores the way the Alexandra reconfigures Greek mythology. In particular, as it is presented in Homeric epic and Athenian tragedy, in order to cast the Romans and their restoration of Trojan glory as the ultimate telos of history. In this sense, the poem emerges as an important intermediary between Homeric epic and Latin poetry, particularly Vergil's Aeneid. By rewriting specific features of the epic and tragic traditions, the Alexandra denies to Greek heroes the glory that was the traditional compensation for their suffering, while at the same time attributing to Cassandra's Trojan family honours framed in the traditional language of Greek heroism. In this sense, the figure of Cassandra, a prophetess traditionally gifted with the power of foresight but denied credibility, self-reflexively serves as a vehicle for exploring the potentials and limitations of poetry.

A contemporary of Callimachus in Alexandria, the tragic poet Lycophron of Chalcis attained the status of supervisor of the comedies in the new library. The only extant work (contested by some) by Lycophron is ‘Alexandra’, a mini-epic poem, narrated by King Priam’s daughter Cassandra as a prophecy, relating the later fortunes of Troy and the Greek and Trojan heroes. It is a curiosity of Hellenic literature, showcasing an extraordinary knowledge of obscure stories, names and words. Delphi’s Ancient Classics series provides eReaders with the wisdom of the Classical world, with both English translations and the original Greek texts. This eBook presents Lycophron’s complete extant works, with illustrations, informative introductions and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1) * Beautifully illustrated with images relating to Lycophron's life and work * Features the complete extant works of Lycophron, in both English translation and the original Greek * Concise introduction to the text * Provides A. W. Mair’s 1921 translation, previously appearing in the Loeb Classical Library edition of Lycophron * Features Mair’s comprehensive footnotes (fully-hyperlinked) * Excellent formatting of the texts * Easily locate the sections you want to read with individual contents tables * Provides a special dual English and Greek text, allowing readers to compare the sections paragraph by paragraph — ideal for students * Features a bonus biography — discover Lycophron's ancient world Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to explore our range of Ancient Classics titles or buy the entire series as a Super Set CONTENTS: The Translation Alexandra The Greek Text Contents of the Greek Text The Dual Text Dual Greek and English Text The Biography Lycophron (1921) by A. W. Mair Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting titles

The 'Alexandra' attributed to Lykophron is a notoriously difficult poem but one that sheds crucial light on Greek religion, foundation myths, and myths of colonial identity. This book asserts its importance as a strongly political and historical document, and argues that the probable decade of its composition was a turning-point in Roman history.

What happened to Greek tragedy after the death of Euripides? This book provides some answers, and a broad historical overview.

Tracing the escapades of Achilles' erotic history - whether in same-sex or opposite-sex relationships - this book explains how these relationships were developed and revealed, or elided and concealed, in the writing and visual arts following Homer.

In May 2011, a conference on riddles and word games in Greek and Latin poetry took place at the Institute of Classical Studies of the University of Warsaw. The conference was intended as an open forum where specialists working in different fields of classical studies could meet to discuss the varied manifestations of riddles and other technopaegnia - both terms being understood broadly to encompass the full range of play with language in classical antiquity, in keeping with the use made of the two terms in ancient and early modern theoretical discussions. This volume offers revised versions of the papers presented during the conference. Contributions by scholars from Europe and the USA treat a number of interconnected topics, including: ancient and modern attempts to formulate a definition of the riddle; poetic games at Greek symposia; experimentation with language in late classical poetry; riddles in the book cultures of the Hellenistic age and late antiquity; the functions of word games carved in stone, written on papyrus, or inscribed on the wall as graffiti; authors famed for their obscurity, such as Heraclitus and Lycophron; wordplay in Neo-Latin poetry; oracles, magic squares, pattern poetry, palindromes and acrostichs.