Simonides of Ceos: the story on HearLore

Simonides of Ceos

Simonides of Ceos was born in Ioulis, the outermost island of the Cyclades. Ancient sources offer conflicting dates for his birth, ranging from 556 BC to 532 BC. He lived until at least 468 BC, surviving into his eighties or nineties. His father was named Leoprepes and he descended from Hylichus. Most scholars accept the span of 556 to 468 BC as the most plausible timeline despite some awkward consequences. This would make him about fifty years older than his nephew Bacchylides. Yet he remained active internationally even at eighty years of age. Other ancient records suggest a grandfather with the same name won a poetry competition in Athens in 489 BC. That grandfather would have been over one hundred years old if Simonides' birth date were correct. Some argue these earliest references might actually point to this grandfather rather than the poet himself.

Patrons In Thessaly And Sicily

After leaving Athens around thirty years of age, Simonides moved to Thessaly. There he found protection under the Scopadae and Aleuadae families. These were two of the most powerful clans in the Thessalian feudal aristocracy. The head of the Scopadae clan was named Scopas. He was fond of drinking and vain displays of wealth. Scopas commissioned a victory ode for a boxer but refused to pay the full fee. He told the poet to collect half the money from Castor and Pollux instead. Later that night, a banquet hall collapsed while Simonides was inside. He had left briefly to see two visitors who turned out to be the twins. They saved his life by sending him away just before the roof fell. This event inspired his system of mnemonics based on images and places. He later spent his final years in Sicily as a friend of Hieron of Syracuse. He acted as a peace-maker between Hieron and another tyrant named Theron of Acragas.

Epigrams For The Persian Wars

When was Simonides of Ceos born and when did he die?

Simonides of Ceos was born between 556 BC and 532 BC and lived until at least 468 BC. Most scholars accept the timeline from 556 to 468 BC as the most plausible despite conflicting ancient sources.

How did Simonides of Ceos develop his system of mnemonics?

Simonides of Ceos developed his mnemonic system after a banquet hall collapsed while he was inside. He identified each guest killed by correlating their identities to their positions at the table before the roof fell.

Which battles did Simonides of Ceos compose verses for during the Persian Wars?

Simonides of Ceos composed commemorative verses for battles including Artemisium, Salamis, and Plataea. He wrote epitaphs for Spartans and Corinthians alongside those for Athenians.

What is the method of loci attributed to Simonides of Ceos?

The method of loci uses images and places to aid memory based on an experience where Simonides of Ceos remembered guests by their seating positions. This technique was widely used in oral societies until the Renaissance.

Where are surviving fragments of Simonides of Ceos poetry found today?

Archaeologists unearth new fragments of Simonides of Ceos poetry at Oxyrhynchus, a city and site in Egypt. Excavations have yielded papyrus fragments from over a century of digging there.

Simonides of Ceos

Patrons In Thessaly And Sicily

Epigrams For The Persian Wars

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Common questions

When was Simonides of Ceos born and when did he die?

How did Simonides of Ceos develop his system of mnemonics?

Which battles did Simonides of Ceos compose verses for during the Persian Wars?

What is the method of loci attributed to Simonides of Ceos?

Where are surviving fragments of Simonides of Ceos poetry found today?

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