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{{Short description|3rd century BC Greek epic poet}}
{{Infobox person
| name          = Apollonius Rhodius
| image_size     =
| image_caption  =
| birth_date     = Early 3rd century BC
| birth_place    = [[Alexandria]] or [[Naucratis]]
| death_date     = Late 3rd century BC
| death_place    = [[Rhodes]] (or [[Alexandria]])
| occupation     = Epic poet, librarian, scholar
| spouse         =
}}

'''Apollonius of Rhodes''' ({{langx|grc|Ἀπολλώνιος Ῥόδιος}} ''Apollṓnios Rhódios''; {{langx|la|Apollonius Rhodius}}; fl. first half of 3rd century BC) was an [[ancient Greek literature|ancient Greek author]], best known for the ''[[Argonautica]]'', an epic poem about [[Jason]] and the [[Argonauts]] and their quest for the [[Golden Fleece]]. The [[poem]] is one of the few extant examples of the epic genre and it was both  innovative and influential, providing [[Ptolemaic Egypt]] with a "cultural mnemonic" or national "archive of images",<ref>S. Stephens, ''Ptolemaic Epic'', 96-8.</ref> and offering the Latin poets [[Virgil]] and [[Gaius Valerius Flaccus]] a model for their own epics. His other poems, which survive only in small fragments, concerned the beginnings or foundations of cities, such as [[Alexandria]] and [[Cnidus]] places of interest to the Ptolemies, whom he served as a scholar and librarian at the [[Library of Alexandria]]. A literary dispute with [[Callimachus]], another Alexandrian librarian/poet, is a topic much discussed by modern scholars since it is thought to give some insight into their poetry, although there is very little evidence that there ever was such a dispute between the two men. In fact, almost nothing at all is known about Apollonius and even his connection with Rhodes is a matter for speculation.<ref>W. Race, ''Apollonius Rhodius: Argonautica'', ix-x</ref> Once considered a mere imitator of [[Homer]], and therefore a failure as a poet, his reputation has been enhanced by recent studies, with an emphasis on the special characteristics of Hellenistic poets as scholarly heirs of a long literary tradition writing at a unique time in history.<ref>T. Papanghelis and A. Rengakos, ''Editors' Introduction'', xi-xii.</ref>

==Life==
===Sources===
The most reliable information we have about ancient poets is largely drawn from their own works. Unfortunately, Apollonius of Rhodes reveals nothing about himself.<ref>M. Lefkowitz, ''Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius'', 52</ref> Most of the biographical material comes from four sources: two are texts entitled ''Life of Apollonius'' found in the [[scholia]] on his work (''Vitae'' A and B); a third is an entry in the 10th-century encyclopaedia the ''[[Suda]]''; and fourthly a 2nd-century BCE papyrus, [[Oxyrhynchus|P.Oxy.]] 1241, which provides names of several heads of the [[Library of Alexandria]]. Other scraps can be gleaned from miscellaneous texts. The reports from all the above sources however are scanty and often self-contradictory.

=== Main events ===
* '''Birth.''' The two ''Lives'' and the ''[[Suda]]'' name Apollonius' father as Silleus or Illeus, but both names are very rare ([[hapax legomenon]]) and may derive from {{lang|grc|σίλλος}} or "lampoon", suggesting a comic source (ancient biographers often accepted or misconstrued the testimony of comic poets).<ref>M. Lefkowitz, ''Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius'', 57</ref> The second ''Life'' names his mother as "Rhode", but this is unlikely; ''Rhodē'' means "Rhodian woman", and is almost certainly derived from an attempt to explain Apollonius' epithet "Rhodian". The ''Lives'', the ''Suda'', and the geographical writer [[Strabo]] say that he came from [[Alexandria]];<ref>Strabo [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Strab.+14.2.13 14.2.13].</ref> [[Athenaeus]] and [[Claudius Aelianus|Aelian]] say that he came from [[Naucratis]], some 70&nbsp;km south of Alexandria along the river [[Nile]].<ref>Athenaeus ''Deipnosophistae'' 7.19; Aelian ''On the nature of animals'' 15.23.</ref> No source gives the date of his birth.
* '''Association with Callimachus.''' The ''Lives'' and the ''Suda'' agree that Apollonius was a student of the poet and scholar [[Callimachus]]. ''Vita B'' states that Callimachus was his instructor in rhetoric ({{lang|grc|γραμματικός}}), but the terminology is anachronistic. Moreover, in ancient biographies "pupil" and "student" are figures of speech designating the influence one poet may have exercised over another.<ref>M. Lefkowitz, ''Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius'', 56-7.</ref> Their poetic works do in fact indicate a close relationship, if only as authors, with similarities in theme and composition, style and phrasing, but it is not easy to work out who was responding to whom, especially since 'publication' was a gradual process in those days, with shared readings of drafts and circulation of private copies: "In these circumstances interrelationships between writers who habitually cross-refer and allude to one another are likely to be complex."<ref>A.W. Bulloch, ''Hellenistic Poetry'', 587.</ref>
[[File:Ptolemaeus III coin.jpg|thumb|right|A coin showing Ptolemy III Euergetes, who may have been a pupil of Apollonius]]
*'''Head of the Library of Alexandria.''' The second ''Life'', the ''Suda'', and P.Oxy. 1241 attest that Apollonius held this post. Moreover, P.Oxy. 1241 indicates that Apollonius was succeeded in the position by [[Eratosthenes]]; this must have been after 247/246 BC, the date of the accession of [[Ptolemy III Euergetes]], who was probably tutored by Apollonius<ref>A. Bulloch, ''Hellenistic Poetry'', 586</ref> and who appointed Eratosthenes. The chronology of P.Oxy. 1241 bears some signs of confusion since it lists Apollonius under [[Ptolemy I Soter]] (died 283 BCE), or [[Ptolemy V Epiphanes]] (born 210 BCE). The ''Suda'' says that Apollonius succeeded Eratosthenes, but this does not fit the evidence either.<ref>M. Lefkowitz, ''Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius'', 57</ref> There was another Alexandrian librarian named Apollonius ("The Eidographer", succeeding [[Aristophanes of Byzantium]] as library head) and this may have caused some of the confusion.<ref>A.W. Bulloch, ''Hellenistic Poetry'', 586</ref>
*'''Association with Rhodes.''' The epithet ''Rhodios'' or ''Rhodian'' indicates that Apollonius had some kind of association with the island of that name. The ''Lives'' and the ''Suda'' attest to his move there from Alexandria. They differ about whether he died in Rhodes or came back to Alexandria to take up the position of head of the Library. According to ''Vita A'', he was a famous teacher in Rhodes, but it may have confused him with yet another Apollonius ([[Apollonius the Effeminate]]) who taught rhetoric there. In fact the epithet "of Rhodes" need not indicate any physical association with the island. It might simply reflect the fact that he once wrote a poem about Rhodes.<ref>M. Lefkowitz, ''Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius'', 58, 61</ref> According to [[Athenaeus]], he was also called the "Naucratite". Some modern scholars doubt that he was ever given that title but, if he was, it may be because he composed a poem about the foundation of [[Naucratis]].<ref>E. Sistakou, ''In Search of Apollonius' 'Ktisis' Poems'', 314.</ref>
*'''Death.''' Only the two ''Lives'' give information about Apollonius' death, and they disagree. The first reports that he died in Rhodes; the second reports that he died after returning to Alexandria and adds that "some say" he was buried with Callimachus.

=== Sensational stories ===
Ancient biographies often represent famous poets as going into exile to escape their ungrateful fellow citizens. Thus for example Homer was said to have left Cyme because the government there would not support him at public expense (''Vit. Herod.'' 13-14), [[Aeschylus]] left Athens for Sicily because Athenians valued him less than some other poets (''Vit. Aesch.''), while [[Euripides]] fled to Macedonia because of humiliation by comic poets (''Vit. Eur.''). Similarly ''Vitae'' A and B tell us that Apollonius moved to Rhodes because his work was not well received in Alexandria. According to B, he redrafted the ''Argonautica'' in such fine style at Rhodes that he was able to return to Alexandria in triumph, where he was rewarded with a post in the library and finally a place in the cemetery next to Callimachus. These stories were probably invented to account for the existence of a second edition of ''Argonautica'', indicated by variant readings in ancient manuscripts.<ref>M. Lefkowitz, ''Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius'', 59-61</ref>

Until recently modern scholarship has made much of a feud between Callimachus and Apollonius. The evidence partly rests on an [[Elegy|elegiac]] epigram in the [[Greek Anthology|Palatine Anthology]], attributed to "Apollonius the grammarian". It blames Callimachus for some unstated offense and mocks both him and his most famous poem, the ''[[Aetia (Callimachus)|Aetia]]'' ("''Causes''"):<ref>''Pal. Anth''. 11.322.</ref>
{{Verse translation|italicsoff=y|lang=grc|
Καλλίμαχος, τὸ κάθαρμα, τὸ παίγνιον, ὁ ξυλινὸς νοῦς,
:αἴτιος, ὁ γράψας Αἴτια Καλλίμαχος.<ref>Palatine Anthology 11.275, cited by W. Race, ''Apollonius Rhodius: Argonautica'', 484</ref>
|
Callimachus, that discard, that plaything, that mahogany noggin,
:Himself a cause, who composed ''The Causes'', Callimachus.}}

Ancient sources describe Callimachus's poem ''Ibis'' &mdash; which does not survive &mdash; as a polemic and some of them identified Apollonius as the target.{{NoteTag|1 = E.g. the ''Suda'' entry on Callimachus, [http://www.stoa.org/sol-bin/search.pl?db=REAL&amp;search_method=QUERY&amp;login=guest&amp;enlogin=guest&amp;user_list=LIST&amp;page_num=1&amp;field=adlerhw_gr&amp;searchstr=kappa%2C227 Suda 227] s.v. {{lang|grc|Καλλίμαχος}}.}} These references conjure up images of a sensational [[literary feud]] between the two figures. Such a feud is consistent with what we know of Callimachus's taste for scholarly controversy and it might even explain why Apollonius departed for Rhodes. Thus there arises "a romantic vision of scholarly warfare in which Apollonius was finally driven out of Alexandria by a triumphant Callimachus".<ref>R. Hunter, ''Apollonius of Rhodes, Argonautica, Book III'', 6.</ref> However, both of the ''Lives'' of Apollonius stress the friendship between the poets, the second ''Life'' even saying they were buried together; moreover Callimachus's poem ''Ibis'' is known to have been deliberately obscure and some modern scholars believe the target was never meant to be identified.<ref>A. Cameron, ''Callimachus and his Critics'', 228.</ref> There is still not a consensus about the feud, but most scholars of Hellenistic literature now believe it has been enormously sensationalised, if it happened at all.{{NoteTag|For different views of the feud see for example M. Lefkowitz 2011 "Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius" in ''A Companion to Apollonius Rhodius'' (Brill, 51-71); P. Green, 1997, ''The Argonautika'' (Berkeley, 1-3); D.P. Nelis 1999 review of Green's book, in ''Journal of Hellenic Studies'' 119: 187. For a summary of contrasting views, see e.g. A. Cameron 1995, ''Callimachus and his Critics'' (Princeton, 214-228).}}

=== Scholar ===
Apollonius was among the foremost Homeric scholars in the Alexandrian period. He wrote the period's first scholarly monograph on Homer, critical of the editions of the ''[[Iliad]]'' and ''[[Odyssey]]'' published by [[Zenodotus]], his predecessor as head of the Library of Alexandria. ''Argonautica'' seems to have been written partly as an experimental means of communicating his own researches into Homer's poetry and to address [[Hellenistic philosophy|philosophical]] themes in poetry.<ref>Dee Clayman, ''Timon of Phlius'' 2009 {{ISBN|3110220806}} pp 187-200.</ref> It has even been called "a kind of poetic dictionary of Homer", without at all detracting from its merits as poetry.<ref>A. Rengakos, ''Apollonius Rhodius as a Homeric Scholar'', 244, 265.</ref> He has been credited with scholarly prose works on [[Archilochus]] and on problems in [[Hesiod]].<ref>W. Race, ''Apollonius Rhodius: Argonautica'', xi </ref> He is also considered to be one of the period's most important authors on geography, though approaching the subject differently from [[Eratosthenes]], his successor at the library and a radical critic of Homer's geography. It was a time when the accumulation of scientific knowledge was enabling advances in geographical studies, as represented by the activities of [[Timosthenes]], a Ptolemaic admiral and a prolific author. Apollonius set out to integrate new understandings of the physical world with the mythical geography of tradition and his ''Argonautica'' was, in that sense, a didactic epic on geography, again without detracting from its merits as poetry.<ref>D. Meyer, ''Apollonius as a Hellenistic Geographer'', 273–74, 277, 283.</ref>

== Poetry ==
=== Poems ===
==== ''Argonautica'' ====
{{Main|Argonautica}}

The ''Argonautica'' differs in some respects from traditional or Homeric Greek epic, though Apollonius certainly used Homer as a model.  The ''Argonautica'' is shorter than Homer's epics, with four books totalling fewer than 6000 lines, while the ''[[Iliad]]'' runs to more than 16,000. Apollonius may have been influenced here by Callimachus's brevity, or by [[Aristotle]]’s demand for "poems on a smaller scale than the old epics, and answering in length to the group of tragedies presented at a single sitting" (the ''Poetics'').

Apollonius' epic also differs from the more traditional epic in its weaker, more human protagonist Jason and in its many digressions into local custom, [[aetiology]], and other popular subjects of Hellenistic poetry.  Apollonius also chooses the less shocking versions of some myths, having [[Medea]], for example, merely watch the murder of [[Apsyrtus]] instead of murdering him herself.  The gods are relatively distant and inactive throughout much of the epic, following the Hellenistic trend to allegorise and rationalise religion.  Heterosexual loves such as Jason's are more emphasized than homosexual loves such as that of [[Heracles]] and [[Hylas]], another trend in Hellenistic literature.  Many critics regard the love of Medea and Jason in the third book as the best written and most memorable episode.

Opinions on the poem have changed over time. Some critics in antiquity considered it mediocre.<ref>Pseudo-[[Longinus (literature)|Longinus]] ''On the sublime'' [http://attalus.org/translate/longinus2.html#33 33.4]; [[Quintilian]] ''Institutio oratoria'' [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Quintilian/Institutio_Oratoria/10A*.html#1.54 10.1.54].</ref> Recent criticism has seen a renaissance of interest in the poem and an awareness of its qualities: numerous scholarly studies are published regularly, its influence on later poets like [[Virgil]] is now well recognised, and any account of the history of epic poetry now routinely includes substantial attention to Apollonius.

==== Foundation-poems ====
A handful of fragments are all that survive of his other work, mostly ''ktiseis'' ({{lang|grc|κτίσεις}}) or 'foundation-poems', apparently dealing with the mythical origins of cities, a theme that Apollonius also touches on in ''Argonautica'' (as for example in the foundation of [[Cius]], 1.1321-23). The fragments have been given considerable attention recently, with speculation about their authenticity, about the subject matter and treatment of the original poems, their geo-political significance for Ptolemaic Egypt, and how they relate to ''Argonautika''.<ref>E. Sistakou, ''In Search of Apollonius' 'Ktisis' Poems'', 312-13.</ref>
* '''The Founding of Alexandria''': all that survives is the title and a scholar's marginal note, written in a manuscript of a different author ([[Nicander]]), attributing to this Apollonius poem the statement that all biting creatures originated from the blood of the [[Gorgon]].
*'''The Founding of Caunus''': two comments in [[Parthenius of Nicaea|Parthenius]]'s ''Love Stories'' are the only testament to this poem but they seem to give conflicting accounts. According to one, it deals with the story of [[Lyrcus]]; according to the other, it deals with the story of [[Byblis]]. This might indicate a loose, episodic structure, rather than a unified narrative. It might then be inferred that this kind of treatment was typical of his other foundation poems as well<ref>E. Sistakou, ''In Search of Apollonius' 'Ktisis' Poems'', 327-28.</ref> (the question of unity is one of the main issues even in ''Argonautica'', which is sometimes termed an "episodic epic").<ref>R. Glei, ''Outlines of Apollinian Scholarship 1955-1999'', 15.</ref> Five hexameter verses attributed to Apollonius may be a fragment of this poem but they seem unrelated to the stories of Lyrcus and Byblis and some scholars think they come from the next poem.
* '''The Founding of Cnidus''': [[Stephanus of Byzantium]] wrote the following entry for {{lang|grc|Ψυκτήριος}} (Cooling){{spaced ndash}}"a place in Thrace, taking its name from Heracles, who cooled off his sweat when he threw Adramyles in wrestling, as Apollonius says in his ''Founding of Cnidus''."<ref>Stephanus's entry is quoted from the translation in W. Race, ''Apollonius Rhodius: Argonautica'', 477.</ref> That's all we know of the poem, unless the five hexameter lines belong here, and those describe sea routes also dealt with in ''Argonautica''.
* '''The Founding of Naucratis''': Athenaeus quotes six and a bit hexameters and provides a commentary, concerning Apollo's abduction of [[Ocyrhoe]] and the punishment of a fisherman, Pompilus, who tried to protect her and was turned into a fish of the same name. According to the commentary, the Pompilus fish was a topic of great interest to poets and scholars, including Callimachus and [[Theocritus]]. It may be inferred that Apollonius developed a melodramatic story of passion from the etymology ("pompilus" denotes an "escort fish"). It is not known how this episode might have fitted into a poem on the origins of Naucratis. Possibly a broad-based account of its foundation owed something to [[Herodotus]].<ref>E. Sistakou, ''In Search of Apollonius' 'Ktisis' Poems'', 323.</ref>  
*'''The Founding of Rhodes''': all that we have is one and a bit hexameters, quoted by Stephanus of Byzantium to demonstrate a [[Lexicography|lexicographical]] point, and the testimony of a [[scholium]] to [[Pindar]]'s ''Victory Ode'' 7.48, citing Apollonius as the source for a [[Myth of origins|myth]] explaining the Rhodian practice of sacrificing without fire{{spaced ndash}}they hated the fire-god [[Hephaestus]] because he once tried to rape [[Athena]].<ref>W. H. Race, ''Apollonius Rhodius: Argonautica'', 480-81.</ref>
* '''The Founding of Lesbos''': twenty-one hexameters were quoted by Parthenius under the title ''Lesbou ktisis''. The author's name was not given but modern scholars attribute the verses to Apollonius since it has some clear affinities with the Jason/Medea story. It deals with the Lesbian princess, [[Pisidice of Methymna|Pisidice]], who betrayed her countrymen and her parents by opening the city gates to the man she loved, [[Achilles]]. Her reward was not the marriage she had anticipated but rather death by stoning at the hands of the [[Argives]]. It can be argued that Peisidice's viewpoint dominates the poem and that, as with ''Argonautica'', epic material has been used unconventionally as a window into the female psyche.<ref>E. Sistakou, ''In Search of Apollonius' 'Ktisis' Poems'', 336.</ref>

====Others====
*'''Canobus''': three [[choliamb]]ic verses were quoted by Stephanus Byzantius from a poem of this title, and a scholium to Nicander's ''Theriaca'' refers to it in a discussion on snake bites. It isn't known if the poem was about Canobus (sometimes called [[Canopus]]), the helmsman of [[Menelaus]], buried in Egypt, or about the foundation of the city bearing his name. The choliambic meter distinguishes it from the above foundation poems, which are all in dactylic hexameters.<ref>E. Sistakou, ''In Search of Apollonius' 'Ktisis' Poems'', 313</ref>
*'''Callimachus epigram''': The epigram, quoted in the biography section, was preserved in the [[Palatine Anthology]], where it was attributed to 'Apollonius the Grammarian'. This might not have been Apollonius of Rhodes.<ref>W. H. Race, ''Apollonius Rhodius'', 473</ref>

===Poetic style===
Apollonius's poetic skills and technique have only recently come to be appreciated, with critical recognition of his successful fusing of poetry and scholarship.<ref>A. Rengakos, ''Apollonius Rhodius as a Homeric Scholar'', 265.</ref>

== Notes ==
{{NoteFoot}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Sources ===
{{refbegin}}
*{{Citation|last=Bulloch|first=A.W.|title=The Cambridge History of Classical Literature: Greek Literature |publisher=Cambridge University Press |editor1=P. Easterling |editor1-link=P. E. Easterling |editor2=B. Knox |editor2-link=Bernard Knox |year=1985|chapter=Hellenistic Poetry}}
*{{Citation |last=Cameron|first=A|title=Callimachus and His Critics|publisher=Princeton|year=1995}}
*{{Citation|last=Green|first=P. |title=The Argonautika |publisher=Berkeley|year=1997}}
*{{Citation|last=Hunter |first=R. L. |title = Apollonius of Rhodes, Argonautika, Book III |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1989 }}
*{{Citation |last=Lefkowitz|first=Mary R. |author-link=Mary Lefkowitz |title = Brill's Companion to Apollonius Rhodius |edition=2nd, revised |editor1 = T. Papaghelis |editor2 = A. Rengakos |publisher=Brill |year=2011 |chapter=Myth and History in the Biography of Apollonius }}
*{{Citation |last=Meyer |first=Doris |title =Brill's Companion to Apollonius Rhodius |edition= 2nd, revised |editor1 = T. Papaghelis |editor2 = A. Rengakos |publisher=Brill|year=2011|chapter=Apollonius as Hellenistic Geographer}}
*{{Citation |author1=Papanghelis T.D. |author2=Rengakos A. |title = Brill's Companion to Apollonius Rhodius |edition=2nd, revised |editor =T. Papaghelis |editor2 = A. Rengakos |publisher=Brill|year=2011|chapter=Editors' Introduction}}
*{{Citation |first=William R. |last=Race|title=Apollonius Rhodius: Argonautica|publisher=Loeb Classical Library|year=2008}}
*{{Citation|first=Antonios|last=Rengakos|title=Brill's Companion to Apollonius Rhodius |edition=second, revised |editor1=T. Papaghelis |editor2=A. Rengakos |publisher=Brill|year=2011|chapter=Apollonius Rhodius as a Homeric Scholar}}
*{{Citation|last=Sistakou|first=Evina|title=Brill's Companion to Apollonius Rhodius |edition=2nd, revised |editor1 = T. Papaghelis |editor2=A. Rengakos |publisher=Brill|year=2011|chapter= In Search of Apollonius' ''Ktisis'' Poems}}
*{{Citation|first=Susan|last=Stephens|title=Brill's Companion to Apollonius Rhodius |edition=2nd, revised |editor1=T. Papaghelis |editor2=A. Rengakos |publisher=Brill |year=2011 |chapter=Ptolemaic Epic }}
{{refend}}

== Further reading ==
{{refbegin}}
* Albis, Robert V. 1996. ''Poet and Audience in the Argonautica of Apollonius.'' Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.
* Beye, Charles R. 2006. ''Ancient Epic Poetry: Homer, Apollonius, Virgil, With a Chapter on the Gilgamesh Poems.''   Wauconda, IL:  Bolchazy-Carducci.
* Beye, Charles R. 1982. ''Epic and Romance in the Argonautica of Apollonius: Literary Structures.'' Carbondale: Univ. of Southern Illinois Press.
* Clare, Ray J. 1996. "Catullus 64 and the Argonautica of Apollonius Rhodius: Allusion and Exemplarity." ''Proceedings of the Cambridge Philological Society'' 42:60–88.
* Clare, Ray J. 2002. ''The Path of the Argo: Language, Imagery, and Narrative in the Argonautica of Apollonius Rhodius.'' Cambridge, England: Cambridge Univ. Press.
* Clauss, James J. 1993. ''The Best of the Argonauts: The Redefinition of the Epic Hero in Book One of Apollonius’ Argonautica.'' Berkeley, CA: Univ. of California Press.
* DeForest, Mary Margolies. 1994. ''Apollonius’ Argonautica: A Callimachean Epic.'' Leiden, South Holland: Brill.
* Dräger, Paul. 2001. ''Die Argonautika des Apollonios Rhodios: Das zweite Zorn-Epos der griechischen Literatur'' [The Argonautika of Apollonios Rhodios: The second "wrath epic" in Greek literature]. Munich/Leipzig: Saur, {{ISBN|3-598-77707-8}}.
* Endso, Dag Ostein. 1997. "Placing the Unplaceable: The Making of Apollonius' Argonautic Geography." ''Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies.'' 38.4: 373-386.
* Fantuzzi, Marco. 1988. ''Ricerche su Apollonio Rodio. Diacronie della dizione epica'' [Studies on Apollonius Rhodius. Diachronies of epic diction]. Rome: Edizioni dell'Ateneo.
* Harder, M. Annette, and Martine Cuypers, eds. 2005. ''Beginning from Apollo: Studies in Apollonius Rhodius and the Argonautic Tradition.'' Louvain, Belgium: Peeters.
* Heerink, Mark A. J. 2012. "Apollonius and Callimachus on Heracles and Theiodamas: a Metapoetical Interpretation." ''Quaderni urbinati di cultura classica'' 101:43-58.
* Hunter, Richard. 1989. "Introduction." In ''Apollonius of Rhodes, Argonautica Book III.'' Edited by Richard Hunter, 1–12. Cambridge, England: Cambridge Univ. Press.
* Hunter, Richard. 1993. ''The Argonautica of Apollonius: Literary Studies.'' Cambridge, England: Cambridge Univ. Press.
* Kauffman, Nicholas. 2016. "Monstrous Beauty: The Transformation of Some Death Similes in Apollonius' Argonautica." ''Classical Philology'' 111.4: 372-390
* Knight, Virginia H. 1995. ''The Renewal of Epic: Responses to Homer in the Argonautica of Apollonius.'' Leiden, South Holland: Brill.
* Krevans, Nita. 2000. "On the Margins of Epic: The Foundation-Poems of Apollonius." In ''Apollonius Rhodius.'' Edited by M. Annette Harder, Remco F. Regtuit and Gerry C. Wakker, 69–84. Louvain, Belgium: Peeters
* Mori, Anatole. 2008. ''The Politics of Apollonius Rhodius’ Argonautica.'' Cambridge, England: Cambridge Univ. Press.
* Nelis, Damien P. 2001. ''Vergil’s Aeneid and the Argonautica of Apollonius Rhodius.'' Leeds, England: Cairns
* Noegel, Scott. 2004. "Apollonius' Argonautika and Egyptian Solar Mythology." ''Classical World'' 97.2: 123-136.
* Papanghelis, Theodore D., and Antonios Rengakos, eds. 2008. ''Brill’s Companion to Apollonius Rhodius.'' 2d rev. ed. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill.
* Pietsch, Christian. 1999. ''Die Argonautika des Apollonios von Rhodos. Untersuchungen zum Problem der einheitlichen Konzeption des Inhalts'' [The Argonautica of Apollonius of Rhodes. Studies on the problem of the unified conception of the content]. [[Hermes (classical philology journal)|Hermes]] Einzelschriften, vol. 80. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner.
* [[Bee Scherer|Scherer, Burkhard]]. 2006. ''Mythos, Katalog und Prophezeiung. Studien zu den Argonautika des Apollonios Rhodios'' [Myth, catalogue and prophecy. Studies on the Argonautica of Apollonios Rhodios]. Palingenesia, vol. 87. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner, {{ISBN|3-515-08808-3}}.
{{refend}}

== External links ==
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* {{Gutenberg author |id=433|name=Rhodius Apollonius}}
* {{Internet Archive author |name=Rhodius Apollonius}}
* {{Librivox author |id=6053 }}
*''A Hellenistic Bibliography'', with exhaustive bibliographies on Apollonius: [http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=119 1496-2005] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070828193950/http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=119 |date=2007-08-28 }}, [http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=212 1496-2005 excluding reviews] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070730190042/http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=212 |date=2007-07-30 }}, [http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=120 2001-2005] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070730185232/http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=120 |date=2007-07-30 }}, [http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=121 editions etc.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070716051631/http://www.gltc.leidenuniv.nl/index.php3?m=184&c=121 |date=2007-07-16 }}
*[http://www.attalus.org/poetry/lives.html#apollonius0 Life of Apollonius, from the scholia] at attalus.org
*[http://www.attalus.org/poetry/lives.html#apollonius3 P.Oxy. 1241] at attalus.org
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{{s-start}}
{{S-bef|before=[[Zenodotus]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=Head of the [[Library of Alexandria]]}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Eratosthenes]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{Argonautica}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Apollonius Of Rhodes}}
[[Category:Librarians of Alexandria]]
[[Category:3rd-century BC births]]
[[Category:Year of death unknown]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek epic poets]]
[[Category:3rd-century BC Greek poets]]
[[Category:Textual scholarship]]
[[Category:Ancient Alexandrians]]
[[Category:Naucratians]]