Chaeremon of Alexandria

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Chaeremon of Alexandria
Χαιρήμων ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς
Bornc. 1st century AD
Diedbefore 96 AD
NationalityAncient Egyptian
OccupationAncient Egyptian priest
EraAncient Roman philosophy
RegionRoman Alexandria
SchoolStoicism
InstitutionsMouseion
LanguageAncient Greek
Main interests
Ancient Egyptian religion

Chaeremon of Alexandria (/kəˈriːmən, -mɒn/; Greek: Χαιρήμων ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, gen.: Ancient Greek: Χαιρήμονος; fl. 1st century AD) was a Stoic philosopher and historian[1] who wrote on Egyptian mythology from a "typically Stoic" perspective.[2]

Life[edit]

According to the Suda, he was the head of the Alexandrian school of grammarians, and he may also have been head of the Museion.[2] He was probably one of the ambassadors to Claudius from Alexandria in 40 AD.[2] He also taught Nero, probably before 49 AD when Seneca the Younger became Nero's tutor.[2] He may have been the grandson of the Chaeremon who accompanied the Roman prefect Aelius Gallus on his tour of Egypt in 26 AD.[1] His father – about whom nothing is known – was called Leonidas, and he was probably born no later than 10 AD.[1]

One of the poems from Martial's eleventh book of Epigrams mocks Chaeremon; as Martial did not usually attack living figures Chaeremon presumably died before 96 AD when Epigrams XI was published.[2]

Works[edit]

All of Chaeremon's works are lost, though a number of fragments are quoted by later authors.[2] Three titles are preserved: the History of Egypt, Hieroglyphika, and On Comets, with another fragment quoted from an unknown grammatical treatise of his.[2]

Josephus quotes an extensive fragment from Chaeremon's Egyptian history, in which he scornfully recounts and ridicules, in a manner similar to that of Manetho, the departure of the Jews from Egypt. Josephus boasts of having refuted Chaeremon as well as Manetho and others.[3] Chaeremon's history is also mentioned by Porphyry.[4] Chaeremon's description of Egypt recalls the ideas which Philo, Clement, Origen, and others introduced into the Old and the New Testament.[5] The asceticism especially, which he ascribes to the ancient Egyptian priests, is analogous to the description in Philo's work, "De Vita Contemplativa"; still there is no literary connection between the two authors.[6] Fragments of the "History of Egypt" may still exist in a treatise of Psellus published in 1877.[7][5]

According to the Suda, [8] another work of Chaeremon was entitled "Hieroglyphica," and probably contained interpretations of the hieroglyphics [9] while a third work may be the book "On the Comets" mentioned by Origen.[10] Origen also made use of other writings of Chaeremon that are now lost.[11][5]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Gates 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g van der Horst 1987, pp. ix–xi.
  3. ^ ("Contra Ap." i. 32, 33)
  4. ^ (Eusebius, "Præ-paratio Evangelica," iii. 4, v. 10; Porphyry, "De Abstinentia," iv. 6-8)
  5. ^ a b c Gottheil & Krauss.
  6. ^ van der Horst 1982, p. 62-63.
  7. ^ Sathas, in "Bulletin de Correspondance Hellénique," vol. i.)
  8. ^ (s. v. Xαιρήμωυ),
  9. ^ (collected from the works of the Byzantian Tzetzes, in Müller's "Fragmenta Historicorum Grœcorum," iii. 499);
  10. ^ ("Contra Celsum," i. 59)
  11. ^ (Suidas, s.v. 'Ωριγένης).

Editions and Translations[edit]

  • P. Charvet, S. Aufrère, J-M. Kowalski, A. Zucker, Le Quartette d'Alexandrie - Hérodote, Diodore, Strabon, Chérémon, Collection Bouquins, Paris, 2021, (1563 p). Aufrère provides a translation of Chaeremon's Book of Phtomyris or Critics des Aigyptiaka
  • van der Horst, Pieter Willem (1987). Chaeremon: Egyptian Priest and Stoic Philosopher. Leiden: Brill.. Pieter van der Horst includes 14 certain and 14 doubtful fragments in his edition of Chaeramon's works.

References[edit]

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