Diodoros of Sicily: Historiographical Theory and Practice in the Bibliotheke

The Bibliotheke of Diodoros of Sicily is the most voluminous Greek

historiographical text from the pre-Christian era, and contains the only

preserved continuous account of Classical Greek history; for many

aspects of this history, such as the events in Sicily, the rise of

Macedon under Philip II or the history of the Successors, it is our main

or only source. It is thus often used as a source by ancient historians,

and a great deal of energy has been spent on identifying which sources

Diodoros himself used. Interest in Diodoros as an author in his own

right, however, is a comparatively recent phenomenon. The contributors

to this volume, junior scholars as well as leading international

experts, set out to confront the old and new approaches to Diodoros,

studying his first century BC context, questions of genre and purpose,

his relationship to his predecessors, composition and narrative

technique, the role of the gods and myth in the work, the use of

speeches, and Diodoros’ interest in themes like war, writing, language

and politics. In so doing they offer exciting new insights into the

Bibliotheke and the development of Greek historiography, which in turn

also shed important new light on the old question of Diodoros’ value as

a source.

This book is of interest to students of Greek and Roman history, myth,

and ancient historiography in general.