Hermesianax’s Poetics of Love in Context

The article focusses on the catalogue of love-affairs from Book 3 of Hermesianax's Leontion (fr. 7 Powell = 3 Lightfoot). Contrary to two basic assumptions of previous scholarship, this article underscores that fr. 3 Lightfoot is neither representative of the Leontion as a whole nor an instance of unsophisticated poetic production. The evidence indicates that Hermesianax's catalogue might have played a crucial role in shaping the later reception of some of the figures he portrays (Mimnermus, Antimachus and perhaps even Hesiod). Finally, several points of contact with Clearchus of Soli show that Hermesianax may be engaging with relevant aspects of contemporary culture, most of all the Peripatetic investigation of biography and the phenomenology of love.