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Theocritus · Epigrams §11.1-11.6

Epitaph for the Physiognomist Eusthenes Buried Abroad

Passage 11 of 25 · Greek

Summary

An epitaph for Eusthenes, a physiognomist, praising his companions who buried him well in a foreign land and provided him with proper carers.

§11.1Εὐσθένεος τὸ μνῆμα· φυσιγνώμων ὁ σοφιστής, §11.2δεινὸς ἀπʼ ὀφθαλμοῦ καὶ τὸ νόημα μαθεῖν.
This is the tomb of Eusthenes; the wise man was a physiognomist, skilled in learning even the thought from the eye.
§11.3εὖ μιν ἔθαψαν ἑταῖροι ἐπὶ ξείνης ξένον ὄντα· §11.4χὑμνοθέτης αὐτοῖς δαιμονίως φίλος ἦν.
His companions buried him well as a stranger in a foreign land; and the poet was wondrously dear to them.
§11.5πάντων ὧν ἐπέοικεν ἔχειν τεθνεὼς ὁ σοφιστὴς §11.6καίπερ ἄκικυς ἐὼν εἶχʼ ἄρα κηδεμόνας.
Of all things which it is fitting for the dead to have, this wise man, even though he was strengthless, did indeed have carers.

Notes

  1. §11.2μαθεῖν — An epexegetic (explanatory) infinitive modifying the adjective δεινὸς, meaning 'skilled in learning'.
  2. §11.4χὑμνοθέτης — Crasis of καὶ ὁ ὑμνοθέτης.
  3. §11.5πάντων ὧν — The relative pronoun ὧν (originally accusative ἃ) is attracted to the case of its antecedent πάντων (neuter plural genitive). The entire phrase πάντων ὧν... functions as a genitive modifying κηδεμόνας in the next line ('carers of all things which...').

Cite this passage

Theocritus, Epigrams §11.1-11.6. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0005.tlg002.humanitext-grc2:11.1-11.6

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