HISTORIAN APPROACH
ANTIPHANES
Antiphanes refers to peaches as golden apples.
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Today peach is called in Greece
RODAKINO.
IV. antiphanes ('Ayr^cw^s) was the most
highly-esteemed writer of the middle comedy, excepting
Alexis, who shared that honor with him. He was born about B.C. 404,
and died B.C. 330. The parentage and birthplace of Antiphanes
are doubtful. As his birth-place are mentioned Cios on the Propontis,
Smyrna, Rhodes, and Larissa; but the last statement deserves little
credit.6 The fragments which remain of his pieces prove that Atheneus
was right in praising him for the elegance of his language, though he
uses some words and phrases which are not found in older writers. He was
one of the most fertile dramatic authors that ever lived, for his plays
amounted, on the largest computation, to 365, on the least to 260. We
still possess the titles of about 130. It is probable, however, that
some of the comedies ascribed to him were by other writers, for the
grammarians frequently confound him with other comic poets. Some of his
plays were on mythological subjects, others had reference to particular
persons, others to characters, personal, professional, and national,
while others seem to have been wholly occupied with the intrigues of
private life.7 The fragments of Antiphanes are given by Meineke,
Frag. Comic, Grac., vol. i., p. 491,
seqq., ed. min.
