CA LLI'MACHLTS, a Greek poet, was at the height of his reputation a little after the time of the first Punic war, 264 me. (Aul.
as iL 21, 41.) Wo learn from &idea the following particulars re specting him, lie was the eon of Bettus and Mosattna, was born at Cyrene, and studied under llormocrates of hum. His wife wan tho daughter of one Euphrates, a Symensan ; he had a sister called Megatima, who married one Stuenor; the offspring of this marriage was a son, who bore the same name as his uncle, and wrote an epic poem on islands. Callimachua, before he was taken into favour by Ptolemy Philadelphua, by whom he was highly honoured (Strabo, p. 838), kept a school in a quarter of Alexandria called Eleusia, and had among his pupils Eratosthenes, Aristophanes of Byzantium, the cele brated grammarian, and Apollonius of Rhodes, the author of the 'Argonautics.' He was alive when Ptolemy Euergetes ascended the throne in ac. 247.
It appears from an epigram attributed to Callimachus (Jacob's 'AnthoL Palat.,' vol. L p. 466) that his grandfather's name was also Callimachus; and the assertion of Suidas, that be was the son of Hahne, is perhaps merely an inference from his epithet Battiades, which may be explained from the fact that be believed himself descended from the founder of Cyrene (Strata), p. 837). Of his numerous writings only some hymns and epigrams remain. Of his
lost works, which are most quoted, we may mention his Hecale,' a long poem (on which we refer our readers to the learned papers by Nzike in the Rheinischea 3Iuscum; ii. 4, and iii. 4); his historical Memorials, which are also attributed to Zenodotua (' Athen.' iii. p.95); a Treatise on Birds,' also quoted by Athenmus; and a List of all kinds of Writings' (rival iraprobasaih atrrypapiarcov), which consisted of 120 books; so that he doubtless merited the epithet 'weltinformed' (roAviozrep), given him by Strabo (p. 438). He wrote an invective under the name of ' against his scholar Apollonius, who had offended him, and the title was subsequently adopted by Ovid for a satirical poem of the same kind. As we might expect from the age sal employments of CaMmaehus, his remaining poems display much more of grammatical art than of poetical imagination, although they are not without that kind of beauty which is the result of much labour and learning. The first edition of the Hymns of Callimsehus was by John Lascaris, Florence, 4to., probably printed about am. 1500 : this edition is printed in capital letters. The latest editions are that by Blorufield, Svo, Lond. 1815 ; and a small edition by Volger, Leipzig, 1817, 8vo.