Euphorion of Chalcis

Euphorion of Chalcis (Greek: Εὐφορίων ὁ Χαλκιδεύς) was a Greek poet and grammarian, born at Chalcis in Euboea in the 126th olympiad (276–272 BC).^[1]

Euphorion spent much of his life in Athens, where he amassed great wealth. After studying philosophy with Lacydes and Prytanis, he became the student and eromenos of the poet Archeboulus.^[2] About 221 he was invited by Antiochus the Great to the court of Syria. He assisted in the formation of the royal Library of Antioch, of which he held the post of librarian till his death. He wrote mythological epics (the Thrax), amatory elegies, epigrams and a satirical poem (Arae, "curses") after the manner of the Ibis of Callimachus.^[3]

Prose works on antiquities and history are also attributed to him. Like Lycophron, he was fond of using archaic and obsolete expressions, and the erudite character of his allusions rendered his language very obscure. His elegies were highly esteemed by the Romans—they were imitated or translated by Cornelius Gallus and also by the emperor Tiberius.^[3]

Fragments published in Meineke, De Euphorionis Chalcidensis vita et scriptis, in his Analecta Alexandrina (1843) began the modern editions of the surviving fragments of Euphorion.^[4] Further lines have been recovered from papyri of Oxyrhynchus and elsewhere.^[5] Scholar A. S. Hollis argued Euphorion influenced the work of later Greek poet Nonnus through similarities in writing and style.^[6]

Works

The Thrax

This piece of writing was a curse poem, where Euphorion wishes an extremely ill fate upon his enemy due to them seemingly murdering someone close to him. This could possibly be a dog or other pet. Euphorion mentions mythological figures (i.e. some close to Heracles), which is common in curse poems to wish the recipient a fate worse than theirs.^[7]

Epigrams

Much of Euphorion's surviving works consist of epigrams. One is about a man named Exodus showing off to another named Phoebus.^[8] Another is about a man who lost a friend at sea, but still set up a grave and tomb in his honor.^[9]

Perfect Numbers

Euphorion also wrote about perfect numbers in his own way. A fragment of this has been saved and he compares varying number types to mythological creatures (i.e. Cyclopes).^[10]

Other people named Euphorion

Euphorion (mythology) was the son of Achilles and Helen.
Euphorion (playwright) was a 5th century BCE writer of tragedies.

Notes

^ Lightfoot, p. 191.
^ Suda, ε 3801.
^ ^a ^b Chisholm 1911.
^ For a list of editions of Euphorion's fragments, see Lightfoot, p. 199.
^ "On-line bibliography of papyri". Archived from the original on 2007-07-30. Retrieved 2007-01-22.
^ Hollis, A. S. (1976). "Some Allusions to Earlier Hellenistic Poetry in Nonnus". The Classical Quarterly. 26 (1): 142–150. doi:10.1017/S0009838800033929. JSTOR 638411 – via JSTOR.
^ Hollis, A. S. "The Thrax of Euphorion" (PDF). www.uni-koeln.de. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-05-29. Retrieved 2025-12-15.
^ The Greek anthology. W. Heinemann. 1916. ISBN 978-0-434-99067-2. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^ The Greek anthology. Robarts - University of Toronto. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 1916–18.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
^ Lightfoot, J. L. (1998). "An Early Reference to Perfect Numbers? Some Notes on Euphorion, SH 417". The Classical Quarterly. 48 (1): 187–194. doi:10.1093/cq/48.1.187. ISSN 0009-8388. JSTOR 639761.

References

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Euphorion". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 9 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 894.
Lightfoot, J. L., Hellenistic Collection: Philitas. Alexander of Aetolia. Hermesianax. Euphorion. Parthenius, Loeb Classical Library No. 508, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard University Press, 2010. ISBN 978-0-674-99636-6. Online version at Harvard University Press.
Smith, William, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, London (1873). "Euphorion (3)".

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