Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Series Editor’s Preface
- List of Abbreviations
- Dedication
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Ctesias (a)
- 3 Ctesias (b)
- 4 Deinon (a)
- 5 Deinon (b)
- 6 Heracleides
- 7 Conclusions
- Appendix I Two Notes on the Cypriot War
- Appendix II Plutarch, the Persica and the Regum et Imperatorum Apophthegmata
- Bibliography
- Index
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Series Editor’s Preface
- List of Abbreviations
- Dedication
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Ctesias (a)
- 3 Ctesias (b)
- 4 Deinon (a)
- 5 Deinon (b)
- 6 Heracleides
- 7 Conclusions
- Appendix I Two Notes on the Cypriot War
- Appendix II Plutarch, the Persica and the Regum et Imperatorum Apophthegmata
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
Sadly, the text of Ctesias is lost. Given the disappearance of Ctesias’ work, this chapter proposes to check Plutarch's adaptation of the physician's work in the following three parts. The first compares Plutarch's confirmed use of Ctesias (mostly in the sections of the Artaxerxes where he is explicitly mentioned and which are given in the previous chapter) with the same stories or details as they appear in the works of other ancient readers, mainly in Photius’ epitome. The second explores Plutarch's employment of the differences between Ctesias’ work and other texts (mainly Xenophon's Anabasis) as part of his method of characterisation, building on his readers’ expectations. The third part studies Plutarch's probable use of Ctesias in cases where the physician's name is not explicitly mentioned; these passages (from Art. 1–4, 9, 12–17 of the biography) are usually included as fragments of Ctesias (e.g. by Jacoby, Lenfant, Stronk and Llewellyn-Jones/Robson). This part advances a cautious approach with regard to these sections, and suggests a way to locate them in the original work.
USE OF CTESIAS
This is what Photius relates of the corresponding sections in the Persica (FGrH 688 F 15.47, 51 = Bibl. cod. 72 p. 41 b 42–42 a 8, 42 b 3–15):
(47) … Artaxerxes had seventeen illegitimate sons, amongst them Secyndianus (= Sogdianus) by Alogyne the Babylonian, Ochus and Arsites by Cosmartidene, also a Babylonian. Ochus would afterwards become king. Besides these, the king also had children named Bagapaeus and Parysatis by Andria, also a Babylonian. This Parysatis would later be the mother of Artaxerxes and Cyrus …
(51) Ochus, also known as Dareiaeus, became the sole ruler. Three eunuchs were most influential with him, Artoxares was the greatest, Artibarzanes second and Athoos third. However, for advice he listened to his wife, by whom he had two children before his accession, a daughter called Amestris, and a son named Arsacas who would later be called Artaxerxes. As queen, she gave birth to another son named Cyrus, after the sun. Then she bore him Artostes and nine other children, to the number of thirteen. Ctesias claims to have learned this from Parysatis herself. The rest of these children died early, and the ones whose names were mentioned, as well as a fourth son named Oxendras, survived.
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- Information
- Plutarch and the Persica , pp. 73 - 133Publisher: Edinburgh University PressPrint publication year: 2018