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Aristophanes, Lysistrata 231

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 February 2009

W. G. Forrest
W. G. Forrest
Affiliation:
New College, Oxford
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Extract

In his admirable commentary, Jeffrey Henderson notes the significance of posture and of physical setting. He does not remark that the statue of Leaina near to which Lysistrata and Kalonike are standing on the Akropolis was intimately tied to the obscure story of the later years in the Athenian tyranny. With minor variations of detail or colour the story was that Leaina, a hetaira beloved of Harmodios or Aristogeiton, had been tortured by Hippias after the murder of Hipparchos but, brave girl, had preferred to die than say yes, or indeed say anything. She bit out her tongue. The Athenians set up a bronze lioness, the work of Amphikrates, to commemorate her martyrdom.

Information

Type
Shorter Notes
Information
The Classical Quarterly , Volume 45 , Issue 1 , May 1995, pp. 240 - 241
Copyright
Copyright © The Classical Association 1995

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References

1 It is strange that the learned Pausanias (i 23.2–3) should have to rely on Athenian gossip for the story, which was certainly ‘in print’ for Cicero (de Gloria, fr. 12) and flourished thereafter on both sides of the periegete (Pliny, , N.H. 7.87 and 34.72Google Scholar; Plut, . De Garrul. 8Google Scholar, certainly before; then, Polyainos 8.45; Athenaios 569f; Lactant, . Div. Inst. I 20Google Scholar; Euseb, . (Jerome) s.a. 512)Google Scholar. Pliny hints at the source—‘lyrae cantu’.

2 Amphikrates is, to me, otherwise unknown. For cheese-graters (and lionesses) see Jacobsthal, P., Ath. Mitt. 37 (1932), 1–7Google Scholar.

3 Sad that it is still necessary to repeat that through the son of Melesias and Kimon and Kimon's wife, Thucydides belonged to the Athenian right; that his infatuation with Perikles did not lead him to appreciate the implications of Periklean policies. Was Thuc. old enough to understand [….] κλες' affirmation of rights for the tyrannicides in IG I3 131?

4 Hdt. 5.71. Kylon does not seem to have figured in all the brouhaha of 414–11.

5 F. Gr. Hist. 323a, Introd to Komm. pp. 19–21. Critics would call our arguments circular. I prefer to ask ‘If not Hellanikos, who?’