Encomium of Ptolemy Philadelphus

Current interest in interdisciplinary approaches to the Alexandrian culture is making it possible to understand Hellenistic texts in exciting new ways. Richard Hunter here brings to bear his superb skills as a commentator on one of the most neglected but culturally significant Hellenistic poems. He masterfully demonstrates how in composing his Encomium of Ptolemy Philadelphus Theocritus not only drew on the rich tradition of Greek encomiastic verse but also insinuated a double meaning for those knowledgeable in Egyptian culture. The result is a carefully nuanced study that will stand as a model for how to read texts from an intercultural perspective.-Kathryn J. Gutzwiller, author of Poetic Garlands: Hellenistic Epigrams in Context Richard Hunter demonstrates again his deftness as editor and commentator with this edition of Theocritus's Encomium of Ptolemy. He provides this text, usually overlooked in the Theocritean corpus, with thoughtful historicizing and sophisticated literary contextualizations. For scholars and students alike the style is accessible and informative, and as a result the poem has become much more valuable for understanding the poetic dynamics of the early Ptolemaic period.-Susan Stephens, author of Seeing Double: Intercultural Poetics in Ptolemaic Alexandria The text of the Encomium is a nodal area for this truly interdisciplinary series, and Hunter has a special ability to connect with all the various issues and approaches: royal ideology and patronage, diction and tradition, material culture and ethnic identity. The result is both a lasting work of reference and an illuminating discussion of Alexandrian poetry in its evolving social context.-Alessandro Barchiesi, author of The Poet and the Prince