The Alexandrian Tradition

This book explores the interrelationship between Science, Religion and Literature in the Graeco-Roman world during the Imperial Period, and especially in Alexandria, situating it within the context of the long tradition of knowledge that had been consolidating itself in this city, above all during the Hellenistic era.

Luis Arturo Guichard, Juan Luis García Alonso and María Paz de Hoz are Associate Professors of Greek Language and Literature at the University of Salamanca. They all three collaborate in the research Project FFI2011-29180 – «Interactions between science, religion and literature in the Graeco-Roman Mediterranean», which is financed by Spain’s Ministry of Science and Innovation (MICINN).

Contents: John Lennart Berggren: Mathematics & Religion in Ancient Greece and Medieval Islam – James Evans: Mechanics and Imagination in Ancient Greek Astronomy: Sphairopoiïa as Image and Tool – Anne Tihon: Alexandrian Astronomy in the 2nd Century AD: Ptolemy and his Times – Sébastien Moureau: Note on a passage of the Arabic translation of Ptolemy’s Planetary Hypotheses – Laurent Bricault: Isis, Sarapis, Cyrus and John: Between Healing Gods and Thaumaturgical Saints – Marco Antonio Santamaría: The Song of Orpheus in the Argonautica and the Theogonic Library of Apollonius – Luis Arturo Guichard: Paradox and the Marvellous in Greek Poetry of the Imperial Period – Jane Lucy Lightfoot: Between literature and science, poetry and prose, Alexandria and Rome: the case of Dionysius’ – María Paz De Hoz: Lucian’s , Asclepius and Galen. The popularisation of medicine in the second century AD – Clelia Martínez Maza: Christian Paideia in Early Imperial Alexandria – Juan Luis García Alonso: «When I scan the circling spirals of the stars, no longer do I touch earth with my feet» – Laura Miguélez-Cavero: Nonnus’ natural histories: anything to do with Dionysus? – Gianfranco Agosti: Greek Poetry in Late Antique Alexandria: between Culture and Religion.