Besantinus


Besantinus was a Greek epigrammatist of the Roman period who flourished in Hadrian's era and was possibly from Rhodes.

Works

The Vatican MS. of the Greek Anthology wrongly attributes to an author of this name two epigrams, of which one is also ascribed to Pallas, and the other is included among the epigrams of Theognis. This latter epigram is quoted by Stobaeus as "Theognis or Besantinus".
The "Egg" of Simmias bears the following title in the Vatican MS.: Βησαντίνου Ῥόδιου ὠὸν ἢ Δωσιάδα ἢ Σιμμίου ἀμφότεροι Ῥόδιοι. Hence we may infer that Besantinus was a fellow Rhodian.
An author of this name is repeatedly quoted in the Etymologicum Magnum, whom Fabricius rightly identifies with the Helladius Besantinus of Photius.
The name is also spelt Bisantinus.

The Altar

Two manuscripts of the Bucolics of Theocritus attribute to Besantinus a βωμός, a pattern poem in the shape of an altar: 26 verses in different metres forming the eulogising acrostic Ὀλύμπιε πολλοῖς ἔτεσι θυσείας, that is certainly addressed to Hadrian.