Adaios
Encyclopedia
Adaios, also known as Adaeus, was a Macedon
ian poet of whomh little is known, save that he made two notable contributions to literature and history. When his good friend Euripides
died in exile and was refused burial in his native Athens
, Adaios composed the epitaph that graced the playwright's grave in Macedonia. Adaios' other noted achievement was his sage advice for those men who would know the pleasures of another male:
(This is one of several modern translations.)
ADAEUS or ADDAEUS, called the Macedonian
in the title of one of his epigrams, was a contemporary of Alexander the Great. Among his epigrams are epitaphs on Alexander and on Philip
; his date is further fixed by the mention of Potidaea
in another epigram, as Cassander
, who died B.C. 296, changed the name of the city into Cassandreia
. Eleven epigrams are extant under his name, but one is headed "Adaeus of Mytilene
" and may be by a different hand, as Adaeus was a common Macedonian name. They are chiefly poems of country life, prayers to Demeter
and Artemis
, and hunting scenes, full of fresh air and simplicity out of doors, with a serious sense of religion and something of Macedonian gravity. The picture they give of the simple and refined life of the Greek country gentleman, like Xenophon
in his old age at Scillus, is one of the most charming and intimate glimpses we have of the ancient world, carried on quietly among the drums and tramplings of Alexander's conquests, of which we are faintly reminded by another epigram on an engraved Indian beryl.
ADAEUS, or ADDAEUS (Αδαίος or Αδδαίος), a Greek
epigram
matic poet, a native most probably of Macedon
ia. The epithet Μακεδόνος is appended to his name before the third epigram in the Vat. MS. (Anili. Gr. vi. 228); and the subjects of the second, eighth, ninth, and tenth epigrams agree with this account of his origin. He lived in the time of Alexander the Great, to whose death he alludes. (Anth. Gr. vii. 240.) The fifth epigram (Anth. Gr. vii. 305) is inscribed Αδδαίου Μυτιληναίου, and there was a Mytilenaean
of this name, who wrote two prose works Περί αγαλματοποιών(On statue-makers) and Περί Διαθέσεως(On disposition) (Athen. xiii. p. 606. A, xi. p. 471, F.) The time when he lived cannot be fixed with certainty. Reiske
, though on insufficient grounds, believes these two to be the same person. (Anth. Grace, vi. 228, 2589 vii. 51, 238, 240, 305, x. 20 ; Brunck, Anal. ii. p. 224 ; Jacobs, xiii. p. 831.) [C. P. M.]
Macedon
Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paeonia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south....
ian poet of whomh little is known, save that he made two notable contributions to literature and history. When his good friend Euripides
Euripides
Euripides was one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens, the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to him but according to the Suda it was ninety-two at most...
died in exile and was refused burial in his native Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Adaios composed the epitaph that graced the playwright's grave in Macedonia. Adaios' other noted achievement was his sage advice for those men who would know the pleasures of another male:
-
-
-
-
- If you see someone beautiful
- hammer it out right then.
- Say what you think;
- grab his balls: be a man.
- But if 'I admire you' is what you say
- and 'I'll be a brother to you' -
- shame will bar the only way
- to all you want to do.
-
-
-
(This is one of several modern translations.)
ADAEUS or ADDAEUS, called the Macedonian
Ancient Macedonians
The Macedonians originated from inhabitants of the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, in the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios...
in the title of one of his epigrams, was a contemporary of Alexander the Great. Among his epigrams are epitaphs on Alexander and on Philip
Philip II of Macedon
Philip II of Macedon "friend" + ἵππος "horse" — transliterated ; 382 – 336 BC), was a king of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336 BC. He was the father of Alexander the Great and Philip III.-Biography:...
; his date is further fixed by the mention of Potidaea
Potidaea
Potidaea was a colony founded by the Corinthians around 600 BC in the narrowest point of the peninsula of Pallene, the westernmost of three peninsulas at the southern end of Chalcidice in northern Greece....
in another epigram, as Cassander
Cassander
Cassander , King of Macedonia , was a son of Antipater, and founder of the Antipatrid dynasty...
, who died B.C. 296, changed the name of the city into Cassandreia
Cassandreia
Cassandrea, Cassandreia, or Cassandria was once one of the most important cities in Ancient Macedonia founded by and named after Cassander in 316 BC located on the site of the earlier Ancient Greek city of Potidaea...
. Eleven epigrams are extant under his name, but one is headed "Adaeus of Mytilene
Mytilene
Mytilene is a town and a former municipality on the island of Lesbos, North Aegean, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lesbos, of which it is a municipal unit. It is the capital of the island of Lesbos. Mytilene, whose name is pre-Greek, is built on the...
" and may be by a different hand, as Adaeus was a common Macedonian name. They are chiefly poems of country life, prayers to Demeter
Demeter
In Greek mythology, Demeter is the goddess of the harvest, who presided over grains, the fertility of the earth, and the seasons . Her common surnames are Sito as the giver of food or corn/grain and Thesmophoros as a mark of the civilized existence of agricultural society...
and Artemis
Artemis
Artemis was one of the most widely venerated of the Ancient Greek deities. Her Roman equivalent is Diana. Some scholars believe that the name and indeed the goddess herself was originally pre-Greek. Homer refers to her as Artemis Agrotera, Potnia Theron: "Artemis of the wildland, Mistress of Animals"...
, and hunting scenes, full of fresh air and simplicity out of doors, with a serious sense of religion and something of Macedonian gravity. The picture they give of the simple and refined life of the Greek country gentleman, like Xenophon
Xenophon
Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, philosopher and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates...
in his old age at Scillus, is one of the most charming and intimate glimpses we have of the ancient world, carried on quietly among the drums and tramplings of Alexander's conquests, of which we are faintly reminded by another epigram on an engraved Indian beryl.
ADAEUS, or ADDAEUS (Αδαίος or Αδδαίος), a Greek
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
epigram
Epigram
An epigram is a brief, interesting, usually memorable and sometimes surprising statement. Derived from the epigramma "inscription" from ἐπιγράφειν epigraphein "to write on inscribe", this literary device has been employed for over two millennia....
matic poet, a native most probably of Macedon
Macedon
Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paeonia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south....
ia. The epithet Μακεδόνος is appended to his name before the third epigram in the Vat. MS. (Anili. Gr. vi. 228); and the subjects of the second, eighth, ninth, and tenth epigrams agree with this account of his origin. He lived in the time of Alexander the Great, to whose death he alludes. (Anth. Gr. vii. 240.) The fifth epigram (Anth. Gr. vii. 305) is inscribed Αδδαίου Μυτιληναίου, and there was a Mytilenaean
Mytilene
Mytilene is a town and a former municipality on the island of Lesbos, North Aegean, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lesbos, of which it is a municipal unit. It is the capital of the island of Lesbos. Mytilene, whose name is pre-Greek, is built on the...
of this name, who wrote two prose works Περί αγαλματοποιών(On statue-makers) and Περί Διαθέσεως(On disposition) (Athen. xiii. p. 606. A, xi. p. 471, F.) The time when he lived cannot be fixed with certainty. Reiske
Johann Jakob Reiske
Johann Jakob Reiske was a German scholar and physician. He was a pioneer in the fields of Arabic and Byzantine philology as well as Islamic numismatics.-Biography:Reiske was born at Zörbig, in Electoral Saxony....
, though on insufficient grounds, believes these two to be the same person. (Anth. Grace, vi. 228, 2589 vii. 51, 238, 240, 305, x. 20 ; Brunck, Anal. ii. p. 224 ; Jacobs, xiii. p. 831.) [C. P. M.]