Lysias interrogating Eratosthenes on the murder of Polemarchus (Lys. 12.26)

Abstract

Eratosthenes arrested Polemarchus, following the orders of the Thirty to seize the money of the metics, and then he brought him to the Council, where he was condemned to death without a proper trial. Eratosthenes could not deny that he had arrested Polemarchus but he hoped to be acquitted by distorting the recent past, which the jurors ignored in all its details. An examination of the questions and answers of Lysias and Eratosthenes, and an assessment of their arguments shows that Lysias was right to regard his opponent as guilty, but the latter still had chances to be acquitted.

Keywords

• eratosthenes
• interrogation
• lysias
• metics
• polemarchus
• theramenes
• thirty
• eratostene
• interrogatorio
• lisia
• meteci
• polemarco
• teramene
• trenta