The Arion story is one of my favorite Herodotus anecdotes, but I’ve not encountered that dithyramb before. Thank you so much for sharing and for the beautiful translation! The tale of Arion’s lyre washing up on the shore after his death reminds me a bit of the story that Orpheus’ lyre continued playing as it was washed away down the river, after he was killed by the women of Thrace (I think this is in Lucian’s Ignorant Book-Collector but probably elsewhere too).
The Orpheus connection is very much intended. As Orpheus' head and lyre washing up on Lesbos made it the first great center of Greek song, so Arion's lyre washing up from Taenarus to Alexandria made it the third--at least, that's what Posidippus is implying. Thanks for reading! I will be sharing the Posidippus epigram soonish.
The Arion story is one of my favorite Herodotus anecdotes, but I’ve not encountered that dithyramb before. Thank you so much for sharing and for the beautiful translation! The tale of Arion’s lyre washing up on the shore after his death reminds me a bit of the story that Orpheus’ lyre continued playing as it was washed away down the river, after he was killed by the women of Thrace (I think this is in Lucian’s Ignorant Book-Collector but probably elsewhere too).
The Orpheus connection is very much intended. As Orpheus' head and lyre washing up on Lesbos made it the first great center of Greek song, so Arion's lyre washing up from Taenarus to Alexandria made it the third--at least, that's what Posidippus is implying. Thanks for reading! I will be sharing the Posidippus epigram soonish.