Solone e la guerra contro Megara: l'oracolo e i sacrifici agli eroi di Salamina (PW 326; Fo. Q69 - Plu. Sol. 9, 1)

Abstract

This essay examines the two traditions about the Athenian conquest of Salamis in archaic times, as they are referred to by Plutarch in the Life of Solon (8-10). The aim of the analysis is not to reconstruct when, how, and under whom the event happened, but to understand in which context the two traditions were shaped. It is argued that both traditions, featuring oracles and mnemotopes, might originate in the second half of the 5th century BC. At that point, on the one hand, the Athenian collective memory of the event could take stock of the historical experience of the Persian wars, especially the battle of Salamis on the other hand, the figure of Solon was revitalized within Athenian public discourse. Moreover, it is argued that the oracle mentioned at 9.1 (PW 326; Fo. Q69) might either recycle, and possibly reformulate, an authentic response given by the Delphic oracle on a previous occasion or, more probably, be shaped simultaneously with the post-Persian tradition in which it is embedded.

Keywords

• oracular recycling
• Persian wars
• homeostasis
• oral tradition
• mnemotopes