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Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: STE-SUS |
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STRABO (born c. 63 n.c.) , Greek geographer and historian, was born at Amasia in Pontus, a city which had been much Hellenized, and was the royal residence of the kings of Pontus. We know nothing of his father's family, but several of his mother's relatives held important posts under Mithradates V. and VI. Some were of Hellenic, others of Asiatic origin, but Strabo himself was by language and education thoroughly Greek. The date of his birth cannot be exactly determined, but from various indications in his work it seems to have been about 63 E.C. He studied at Nysa under the grammarian Aristodemus, under Tyrannio the grammarian at Rome, under the philosopher Xenarchus either at Rome or at Alexandria, and he had studied Aristotle along with Boethus
Augustus
Although he had seen a comparatively small portion of the regions which he describes, he had travelled much. As he states himself: " Westward I have journeyed to the parts of Etruria opposite Sardinia; towards the south from the Euxine to the borders of Ethiopia; and perhaps not one of those who have written geographies has visited more places than I have between those limits." He tells us that he had seen Egypt as far south as Syene and Philae, Comana in Cappadocia, Ephesus, Mylasa, Nysa and Hierapolis in Phrygia, Gyarus and Populonia. Of Greece proper he saw but little; it is by no means certain that he even visited Athens, and though he describes Corinth as an eye-witness, it is clear that he was never at Delphi, and was not aware that the ruins of Mycenae still existed. He had seen Cyrene from the sea, probably on his voyage from Puteoli to Alexandria, where he remained a long time, probably amassing materials, and studying astronomy and mathematics. For nowhere could he have had a better means of consulting the works of historians, geographers and astronomers, such as Eratosthenes, Posidonius, Hipparchus and Apollodorus. We cannot tell where his Geography was written, but it was at least finally revised between A.U. 17 and 23, since we have historical allusions which can be dated to that time. Probably Strabo was then in Rome; the fact that his work passed unnoticed by Roman writers such as the elder Pliny does not prove the contrary. Works.His earliest writing was an historical work now lost, which he himself describes as his Historical Memoirs: He tells us (xi. 9, 3) that the sixth
Polybius
Polybius
The Geography is the most important work on that science which antiquity has left us. It was, as far as we know, the first attempt to collect all the geographical knowledge at the time attainable, and to compose a general treatise on geography. It is not merely a new edition of Eratosthenes. In general outline it follows necessarily the work of the last-named geographer, who had first laid down a scientific basis for geography. Strabo made considerable alterations, but not always for the better. The three books of the older work formed a strictly technical geographical treatise. Its small size prevented it from containing any such general description of separate countries as Strabo rightly conceived to fall within the scope of the geographer. " Strabo indeed appears to bee the first who conceived a complete geographical treatise as comprisin the four divisions of mathematical, physical, political and historical geography, and he endeavoured, however imperfectly, to keep all these objects in view." The incidental historical notices, which are often of great value and interest
recent
drawn
Strabo chiefly employed Greek authorities (the Alexandrian geographers Polybius, Posidonius and Theophanes of Mytilene, the companion of Pompey) and made comparatively little use of Roman authorities. Although he refers to Caesar's Commentaries once by name, and evidently made use of them in other passages, he but imperfectly availed himself of that work. He designed his geography as a sequel to his historical writings, and it had as it were grown out of his historical materials, which were chiefly Greek. Moreover Strabo probably amassed his material in the library of Alexandria, so that Greek authorities would naturally furnish the great bulk of his collections. Doubtless, however, he returned to Rome after a long sojourn in Alexandria, a fact which explains the defectiveness of his information about the countries, to the east of his native land, and renders it possible for him to have made use of the " choregraphy " of Agrippa, a map of the Roman Empire and adjacent countries set up by order of Augustus
He designed the work for the statesman rather than for the student. He therefore endeavours to give a general sketch of the character, physical peculiarities and natural productions of each country, and consequently gives us much valuable information respecting ethnology, trade and metallurgy. It was almost necessary that he should select what he thought most important for description, and at times omit what we deem of more importance. With respect to physical geography; his work is a great advance on all preceding ones. Judged by modern standards, his description of the direction of rivers and mountain-chains seems defective, but allowance must be made for difficulties in procuring information, and for want of accurate instruments. In respect of mathematical geography, his lack of scientific training was no great hindrance. He had before him the results of Eratosthenes, Hipparchus and Posidonius. The chief
equator , the ecliptic and the tropicswere considered as well established. He accepted also the division into five zones; he quotes approvingly the assertion of Hipparchus that it was impossible to make real advances in geography without astronomical observations for determining latitudes and longitudes.The work consists of seventeen books, of which the seventh is imperfect. The first two are introductory, the next eight deal with Europe (two being devoted to Spain and Gaul, two to Italy and Sicily, one to the north and east of Europe, and three to Greek lands): The eleventh book treats of the main divisions of Asia and the more easterly districts, the next three of Asia Minor. Book xv. deals with India and Persia, book xv with Assyria, Babylonia, Syria and Arabia, and the closing book with Egypt and Africa. Editions.The Aldine (Venice, 1516) was unfortunately based on a very corrupt MS. The first substantial, improvements in the text were due to Casaubon (Geneva, 1587; Paris, 162o), whose text remained the basis of subsequent editions till that of Comes (Paris, 1815-1819), who removed many corruptions. The MSS. were first scientifically collated by Kramer (Berlin, 1844-1852), who demonstrated that Par. 1397 was the best authority for the first nine books (it contains no more) and Vat. 1329 for the remainder. Of later editions the most important are those of C. Muller (Paris, 1853) and Meineke ( Leipzig
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