The Bibliotheke of Diodoros of Sicily is the most voluminous Greek
historiographical text from the pre-Christian era, and contains the only
preserved continuous account of Classical Greek history; for many
aspects of this history, such as the events in Sicily, the rise of
Macedon under Philip II or the history of the Successors, it is our main
or only source. It is thus often used as a source by ancient historians,
and a great deal of energy has been spent on identifying which sources
Diodoros himself used. Interest in Diodoros as an author in his own
right, however, is a comparatively recent phenomenon. The contributors
to this volume, junior scholars as well as leading international
experts, set out to confront the old and new approaches to Diodoros,
studying his first century BC context, questions of genre and purpose,
his relationship to his predecessors, composition and narrative
technique, the role of the gods and myth in the work, the use of
speeches, and Diodoros’ interest in themes like war, writing, language
and politics. In so doing they offer exciting new insights into the
Bibliotheke and the development of Greek historiography, which in turn
also shed important new light on the old question of Diodoros’ value as
a source.









This book is of interest to students of Greek and Roman history, myth,
and ancient historiography in general.