Εἰδύλλια

Books

• Θύρσις ἢ ᾠδή

  Thyrsis sings the death of Daphnis in the foundational pastoral poem of Western literature — shepherds, goatherds, and the Sicilian landscape define a new genre.

  151 lines
• Φαρμακεύτριαι

  Two goatherds compete in an amoebaean singing contest, trading verses under the shade of elms while their flocks graze on the Sicilian hills.

  165 lines
• Κῶμος

  Simaetha, abandoned by her lover Delphis, performs a magical rite under the full moon to win him back — or destroy him.

  54 lines
• νομεῖς Βάττος καὶ Κορύδων

  A goatherd serenades the nymph Amaryllis at the mouth of her cave, cataloguing his gifts and virtues in a comic plea for love.

  63 lines
• Βουκολιασταὶ Κομάτας καὶ Λάκων

  Battus and Corydon exchange gossip about local love affairs while tending their cattle in the southern Italian countryside.

  150 lines
• Βουκολιασταὶ Δάφνις καὶ Δαμοίτας

  Comatas and Lacon wager their animals on a singing contest judged by a passing woodcutter.

  46 lines
• θαλύσια

  Simichidas and Lycidas meet on the road to a harvest festival and compete in pastoral song, blending real Coan landscapes with mythological allusion.

  157 lines
• Βουκολιασταὶ Δάφνις καὶ Μενάλκας

  Daphnis and a cowherd sing about the Cyclops Polyphemus and his hopeless love for the sea-nymph Galatea.

  93 lines
• Βουκολιασταὶ Δάφνις καὶ Μενάλκας

  A singing contest between Daphnis and Menalcas set in the green world of pastoral Sicily.

  36 lines
• ἐργατίναι ἢ Θερισταί

  Harvesters rest at noon and one tells the story of a man who died of love — a miniature tragedy set within the pastoral frame.

  59 lines
• Κύκλωψ

  The Cyclops Polyphemus sings to Galatea on the shore, offering her cheese, fawns, and his single eye — Theocritus's most famous comic lovesick monster.

  81 lines
• Ἀίτης

  A love poem to a boy, blending homoerotic desire with philosophical reflection on the brevity of youth and beauty.

  37 lines
• ὕλας

  Hylas, Heracles' beloved companion, is pulled into a spring by nymphs enchanted by his beauty — the Argonauts sail on without him.

  75 lines
• Κυνίσκας Ἔρως ἢ Θυώνιχος.

  A boy's love poem to Cynisca, discovering that jealousy and desire are the same fire.

  74 lines
• Συρακούσιαι ἢ Αδωνιάζουσαι

  Two Syracusan women visit the festival of Adonis in Alexandria, providing a vivid portrait of Hellenistic urban life and female friendship.

  162 lines
• Χάριτες ἢ Ἱέρων

  A hymn to Hiero of Syracuse, blending praise of the patron with mythological narrative in the Pindaric tradition.

  109 lines
• ἐγκώμιον εἰς Πτολεμαῖον

  An encomium of Ptolemy II Philadelphus, celebrating the Lagid dynasty's power and patronage of the arts.

  137 lines
• Ἑλένης Ἐπιθάλαμιος

  The Dioscuri — Castor and Pollux — receive a hymn that narrates their boxing match with Amycus and their role in the Argonaut expedition.

  58 lines
• Κηριοκλέπτης

  A wedding song for Helen and Menelaus, sung by Spartan maidens who recall Helen's girlhood before she became the face that launched a thousand ships.

  8 lines
• Βουκολίσκος

  A short pastoral piece continuing the themes of love and music in the Sicilian countryside.

  45 lines
• ἁλιεῖς

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  68 lines
• Διόσκουροι

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  224 lines
• ἐραστής

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  63 lines
• Ἡρακλίσκος

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  140 lines
• Ἡρακλῆς Λεοντοφόνος

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  281 lines
• Λῆναι ἢ Βάκχαι

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  38 lines
• Οαριστύς

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  44 lines
• Ἠλακάτη

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  25 lines
• Εἰδύλλιον Ἐρῶντος

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  40 lines
• Παιδικά

  A mime depicting the comic misadventures of everyday people, blending realism with poetic craft.

  32 lines