OBSERVATIONS OF THE MARVELLOUS IN STRABO’S GEOGRAPHIKA – THE USE OF THE UNREAL FOR THE STUDY OF THE WORLD IN ANTIQUITY

Abstract

In his cultural geography, Strabo gathered important, useful and amusing information concerning the structure of earth's nature, its regions and the different peoples who inhabit the world. The author was therefore also interested in myths, paradoxographical facts and ethnographic characterisations of strange and extraordinary peoples, so that by analysing the wondrous accounts of his works in this overview, the reader gets a deeper understanding of the formation and handling of antique discourses of knowledge regarding the understanding of the world's composition.

By examining Strabo's use of myth, three points have to be considered: (1) Strabo tried to establish a connection between Homer’s epics and his own writings by explaining the poet's stories in an allegorical way. Thus he gathered geographical knowledge from epic writings and joined the ranks of important writers of the Ecumene. (2) Pure mythical stories of literary antecessors – except Homer – were critically reviewed and mostly rejected. (3) Mythic accounts of the cities of the Ecumene were not as much criticized, as seen as a part of their historical identity of the Ecumene.

During his studies concerning nature, Strabo encountered also paradoxographical records, which apparently expanded his knowledge of the world and remained wondrous, as long as he was not able to explain them according to the scientific theories of the time. Thus, one can investigate how antique patterns of explanation worked and came into use.

Finally, Strabo divided different peoples in three contrasting groups: (1) The inhabitants of the Ecumene appear as civilizing precursors (2) especially against partially hostile high cultures for example the Egyptians, the Indians and the Parthians. (3)They are also bound to conquer barbaric and mythical groups, like the Scythii or Amazones, whose customs seem amazing but also partly repellent.