Bibliotheca Historica
', also known as the Historical Library or Library of History', is a work of universal history by Diodorus Siculus. It consisted of forty books, which were divided into three sections. The first six books are geographical in theme and describe the history and culture of Egypt, of Mesopotamia, India, Scythia, and Arabia, of North Africa, and of Greece and Europe. In the next ten books, he recounts human history starting with the Trojan War down to the death of Alexander the Great. The final section concerns the historical events from the successors of Alexander down to the time of the First Triumvirate of the late Roman Republic. The end of the work has been lost, and it is unclear whether Diodorus actually reached the beginning of Caesar's Gallic War in 59BC or, as evidence suggests, he stopped short at 60BC owing to old age and weariness from his labors. He selected the name "Library" as an acknowledgement that he was assembling a composite work drawing from many sources. Of the authors he used, some who have been identified include Hecataeus of Abdera, Ctesias of Cnidus, Ephorus, Theopompus, Hieronymus of Cardia, Duris of Samos, Diyllus, Philistus, Timaeus, Polybius, and Posidonius.
Diodorus's immense work has not survived intact. Only Books I–V and Books XI–XX remain in their entirety. The rest exists only in fragments preserved in Photius and in the of Constantine Porphyrogenitus.
Dating
The earliest date Diodorus mentions of his own labors is his visit to Egypt during the 180th Olympiad. This visit was marked by his witnessing an angry mob demand the death of a Roman citizen who had accidentally killed a cat, an animal sacred to the ancient Egyptians. The latest contemporary event Diodorus mentions is Octavian's vengeance on the city of Tauromenium, whose refusal to help him led to Octavian's naval defeat nearby in 36BC. Diodorus shows no knowledge that Egypt became a Roman province—which transpired in 30BC—so presumably he published his completed work before that event. Diodorus asserts that he undertook a number of dangerous journeys through Europe and Asia during his historical research and devoted thirty years to the composition of his history, suggesting his work was began around the 70s BC.One notable feature of Diodorus's writing is his tendency to provide unfulfilled cross-references, times where he includes notes similar to "we will cover this matter later in the work" or "see book X" but the topic is never addressed again in the surviving text. Catherine Rubicam suggests this is evidence of the author's change in temporal scope away from current events. In his preface, Diodorus writes that he will conclude with "the beginning of the war between the Romans and the Celts" in 58BC. However, elsewhere he mentions Caesar's 55BC invasion of Britain and subsequent 44BC deification.
Structure
In the, Diodorus sets out to write a universal history, covering the entire world and all periods of time up to his present day. Each book opens with a table of its contents and a preface discussing the relevance of history, issues in the writing of history, or the significance of the events discussed in that book. These are now generally agreed to be entirely Diodorus's own work. The degree to which the text that follows is derived from earlier historical works is debated.The first five books describe the history and culture of different regions, without attempting to determine the relative chronology of events. Diodorus expresses serious doubts that such chronology is possible for "barbarian" lands and the distant past. The resulting books have affinities with the genre of geography. Books VI to X, which covered the transition from mythical times to the archaic period, are almost entirely lost. By Book X, Diodorus had taken up an annalistic structure, narrating all the events throughout the world in each year before moving on to the next one. Books XI–XX, which are completely intact and cover events between 480 and 302BC, maintain this annalistic structure. Books XI–XL, which brought the work down to Diodorus's own lifetime and terminated around 60BC, are mostly lost.
Book I: Egypt
Book I opens with a prologue on the work as a whole, arguing for the importance of history generally and universal history in particular. The rest of the book is devoted to Egypt and is divided into two halves. In the first half he covers the origin of the world and the development of civilization in Egypt. A long discussion of the theories offered by different Greek scholars to explain the annual floods of the River Nile serves to showcase Diodorus's wide reading. In the second half of the book, he presents the history of Egypt, its customs and religion, in a highly respectful tone. His main sources are believed to have been Hecataeus of Abdera and Agatharchides of Cnidus.Book II: Asia
This book has only a short prologue outlining its contents. The majority of the book is devoted to the history of the Assyrians, focused on the mythical conquests of Ninus and Semiramis, the fall of the dynasty under the effeminate Sardanapallus, and the origins of the Medes who overthrew them. This section is explicitly derived from the account of Ctesias of Cnidus. The rest of the book is devoted to describing the various other peoples of Asia. He first describes India, drawing on Megasthenes, then the Scythians of the Eurasian steppe, including the Amazons and the Hyperboreans, and Arabia Felix. He finishes the book with Iambulus's description of the "Islands of the Sun" in the Indian Ocean, presented as a traveller's account but seeming to be a Hellenistic utopian fiction.Book III: Africa
In this book, Diodorus describes the geography of Northern Africa and Arabia including Ethiopia, Egypt's gold mines, the Persian Gulf, and Libya, where he sites mythical figures including the Gorgons, Amazons, Ammon, and Atlas. Based on the writings on Agatharchides, Diodorus describes the horrible conditions of the Egyptian mines:Book IV: Mythic Greece
In this book, Diodorus describes the mythology of Greece. He narrates the myths of Dionysus, Priapus, the Muses, Heracles, Jason and the Argonauts, Medea, the hero Theseus, and the Seven against Thebes.Book V: Europe
In this book, Diodorus describes the geography of Europe. He covers the islands of Sicily, Malta, Corsica, Sardinia, and the Balearic Islands. He then covers Britain, "Basilea", Gaul, the Iberian peninsula, and the regions of Liguria and Tyrrhenia on the Italian peninsula. Finally he describes the islands of Hiera and the utopian Panchaea in the "Southern Ocean" and the Greek islands.Books VI–X: Trojan War and Archaic Greece
Books VI–X survive only in fragments, which cover mythic and legendary events before and after the Trojan War including the stories of Bellerophon, Orpheus, Aeneas, and Romulus; some history from cities including Rome and Cyrene; tales of kings such as Croesus and Cyrus the Great; and discussion of philosophers such as Pythagoras and Zeno.Book XI: 480–451 BC
This book has no prologue, just a brief statement of its contents.The main focus of the book are events in mainland Greece, principally the Second Persian invasion of Greece under Xerxes, Themistocles's construction of the Peiraeus and Long Walls and his defection to Persia, and the Pentecontaetia. Interwoven through these accounts are descriptions of events in Sicily, focusing on Gelon of Syracuse's war with the Carthaginians, his Deinomenid successors' prosperity and fall, and the Syracusans' war with Ducetius.
Diodorus's source for his account of mainland Greece in this book is generally agreed to be Ephorus of Cyme, but some scholars further argue that Diodorus likely supplemented Ephorus with accounts from Herodotus, Thucydides, and others.
Book XII: 450–416 BC
The book's prologue muses on the mutability of fortune. Diodorus notes that bad events can have positive outcomes, like the prosperity of Greece which resulted from the Persian Wars.Diodorus's account mostly focuses on mainland Greece, covering the end of the Pentecontaetia, the first half of the Peloponnesian War, and conflicts during the Peace of Nicias. Most of the side narratives concern events in central and southern Italy, particularly the foundation of Thurii and the secession of the Plebs in Rome. An account of the war between Leontini and Syracuse, culminating in the embassy of Gorgias to Athens, sets up the account of the Sicilian Expedition in Book XIII.
Diodorus is believed to have continued to use Ephorus, perhaps supplemented with other historians, as his source for Greek events in this book, while the source for the events in western Greece is usually identified as Timaeus of Tauromenium.
Book XIII: 415–404 BC
Diodorus explains that, given the amount of material to be covered, his prologue must be brief.This book opens with the account of the Sicilian Expedition, culminating in two very long speeches at Syracuse deliberating about how to treat the Athenian prisoners. After that the two areas again diverge, with the Greek narrative covering the Decelean War down to the battles of Arginusae and Aigospotami. The Sicilian narrative recounts the beginning of the Second Carthaginian War, culminating with the rise of Dionysius the Elder to the tyranny.
Ephorus is generally agreed to have continued to be the source of the Greek narrative and Timaeus of the Sicilian narrative. The source of the Sicilian expedition is disputed: Both Ephorus and Timaeus have been put forward. Kenneth Sacks argues that the two speeches ending the account are Diodorus's own work.
Book XIV: 404–387 BC
In the prologue, Diodorus identifies reproachful criticism as the punishment for evil deeds which people most take to heart and which the powerful are especially subject to. Powerful men, therefore, should avoid evil deeds in order to avoid receiving this reproach from posterity. Diodorus claims that the central subjects of the book are negative examples, demonstrating the truth of his remarks.The book is again mostly divided into Greek and Sicilian narratives. The Greek narrative covers the Thirty Tyrants of Athens, the establishment and souring of Spartan hegemony over Greece, Cyrus the Younger's attempt to seize the Persian throne with the aid of the Ten Thousand, Agesilaus's invasion of Persian Asia Minor, and the Boeotian War. The Sicilian narrative focuses on Dionysios the Elder's establishment of his rule over eastern Sicily, his second war with the Magonid Carthaginians, and his invasion of southern Italy. Fairly brief notes cover Roman affairs year by year, including the war with Veii and the Gallic Sack.
Ephorus and Timaeus are assumed to have still been Diodorus's main sources. Some details in his account of the Ten Thousand may derive from a lost work of Sophaenetus.