Demetrius of Phalerum

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Roman bust of Demetrius, c. 1st century BC, after a Greek original

Demetrius of Phalerum (also Demetrius of Phaleron or Demetrius Phalereus;

legal system, while also maintaining pro-Cassander oligarchic
rule.

Demetrius was exiled by his enemies in 307 BC. He first went to

Life

Demetrius was born in

statues were erected to him.[6] However, Demetrius was unpopular with the lower classes of Athenians and with pro-democratic political factions, who resented the limitations he placed on the democratic franchise and viewed him as little more than a pro-Macedonian puppet ruler.[7]

According to Stephen V. Tracy, the story about the statues was not historical; also he argues that Demetrius later played a big role in the foundation of the Library of Alexandria.[8]

He remained in power until 307 BC when Cassander's enemy,

death sentence
upon him, in consequence of which his friend Menander nearly fell victim. All his statues, with the exception of one, were demolished.

Demetrius first went to Thebes,[12] and then (after Cassander's death in 297 BC) to the court of Ptolemy I Soter at Alexandria, with whom he lived for many years on the best terms, and who is even said to have entrusted to him the revision of the laws of his kingdom.[13] During his stay at Alexandria, he devoted himself mainly to literary pursuits, ever cherishing the recollection of his own country.[14]

On the accession of

Ptolemy Keraunos),[15] and was sent into exile to Upper Egypt. According to one account a statue at Memphis Saqqara was attributed to him.[16] He is said to have died from the bite of a venomous snake.[17]
His death appears to have taken place soon after the year 283 BC.

Works and legacy

Statue of Demetrius at the entrance of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina

Literary works

Demetrius was the last among the Attic

Diogenes Laërtius[21] shows that he was a man of the most extensive acquirements. These works, which were partly historical, partly political, partly philosophical (e.g. Aisopeia, a collection of Aesopic Fables
), and partly poetical, have all perished. The work On Style (Περὶ ἑρμηνείας) which has come down under his name, is the work of a later writer, c. 2nd century AD.

Education and arts

The performance of tragedy had fallen into disuse in Athens, on account of the great expense involved.[22] In order to afford the people less costly and yet intellectual amusement, he caused the Homeric and other poems to be recited on the stage by rhapsodists.[23]

According to

Mouseion, the location of the Library of Alexandria
, which was modelled after the arrangement of Aristotle's school. The Mouseion contained a peripatos (covered walkway), a syssition (room for communal dining) and a categorized organization of scrolls.

According to the earliest source of information, the pseudepigraphic Letter of Aristeas composed between c. 180 – c. 145 BC,[25] the library was initially organized by Demetrius of Phaleron,[26] under the reign of Ptolemy I Soter (c. 367 – c. 283 BC). Other sources claim it was instead created under the reign of his son Ptolemy II (283–246 BC).[27]

Cultural references

Diogenes Laërtius

The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers to Demetrius Phalereus.[28]

Hegel

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, in the Lectures on the History of Philosophy, says of Demetrius Phalereus that "Demetrius Phalereus and others were thus soon after [Alexander] honoured and worshipped in Athens as God."[29] What the exact source was for Hegel's claim is unclear. Diogenes Laërtius does not mention this.[28]

Apparently, Hegel's error comes from a misreading of

Demetrius Poliorcetes and not Demetrius Phalereus.[citation needed][30] But Plutarch describes in the work how Demetrius Poliorcetes conquered Demetrius Phalereus at Athens. Then, in chapter 12 of the work, Plutarch describes how Demetrius Poliorcetes was given honours due to the god Dionysus. Somehow this account by Plutarch was confusing not only for Hegel but for others as well.[31]

Notes

  1. ^ Dorandi 1999, pp. 49–50.
  2. ^ C. Habicht, Athens from Alexander to Anthony (London, 1997), 151-154.
  3. ^ Laërtius 1925b, § 75; Aelian, Varia Historia, xii. 43
  4. ^ Strabo, 9.1.20; Diog.Laert.5.36
  5. ^ Laërtius 1925, § 14.
  6. ^ Laërtius 1925b, § 75; Diodorus Siculus, xix. 78; Cornelius Nepos, Miltiades, 6.
  7. ^ Green, Peter (1990). Alexander to Actium. University of California Press. pp. 44–48.
  8. ^ Tracy, Stephen V. (2000). "Demetrius of Phalerum: Who was He and Who was He Not?". Demetrius of Phalerum. Rutgers University Studies in Classical Humanities. Vol. IX Zlocation=New Brunswick, NJ. pp. 331-345..
  9. ^ Plutarch, Demetrius 8; Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Dinarchus 3.
  10. ^ Athenaeus, vi.272, xii.542; Aelian, Varia Historia, ix. 9; Polybius, xii.13.
  11. ^ Athenaeus, xii.542.f
  12. ^ Plutarch, Demetrius 9; Diodorus Siculus, xx. 45
  13. ^ Aelian, Varia Historia, iii. 17.
  14. ^ Plutarch, De Exilio
  15. ^ Bagnall 2002, p. 348.
  16. JSTOR 500375
    .
  17. ^ Laërtius 1925b, § 78; Cicero, Pro Rabirio Postumo 9.
  18. Quintillian, x. 1. § 80
  19. ^ Cicero, Brutus 38, 285, De Oratore ii. 23, Orator 27; Quintillian, x. 1. § 33
  20. ^ Cicero, de Finibus, v. 19 (54)
  21. ^ Laërtius 1925b, § 80, etc.
  22. ^ See Liturgy for background information.
  23. ^ Athenaeus, xiv.620; Eustathius of Thessalonica, Ad Hom., p.1473
  24. ^ Strabo, 13.608, 17.793-4
  25. . Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  26. ^ Letter of Aristeas, 9–12.
  27. ^ Phillips, Heather (2010). "The Great Library of Alexandria?". Library Philosophy and Practice. University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
  28. ^ a b Laërtius 1925b, § 75–85.
  29. ^ Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich (1995). "Plato and the Platonists". Lectures on the History of Philosophy. Vol. 2. Translated by Haldane, E. S.; Simson, Frances H. Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press. p. 125..
  30. ^ .
  31. ^ Scott 1928, p. 148.

References

Attribution:

Further reading

External links