Apollodorus' Library
Also known as: Library of Greek Mythology, Library, Bibliotheke, Pseudo-Apollodorus: Library
A concise mythographic handbook that assembles Greek mythic genealogies and narratives from the creation of the gods through heroic cycles to the Trojan War and its aftermath. It synthesizes earlier poets and historians into a compact, systematically organized prose compendium.
Description
The Bibliotheca (Library) is the most comprehensive surviving handbook of Greek mythology. In three books and an appended epitome, it arranges divine and heroic narratives as interlocking genealogies and episodic summaries, beginning with primordial beings and the Titanomachy, then surveying pan-Hellenic hero stories and regional sagas, and concluding with the Trojan cycle and the returns (Nostoi). Its author is unknown; medieval attributions to Apollodorus of Athens are rejected on chronological grounds. The work functions as a mythographic digest rather than a literary retelling, aiming at coverage and clarity over style. Because it collates diverse earlier sources—Homer, Hesiod, tragedians, local logographers—it is indispensable for reconstructing otherwise lost variants and for following the webs of descent that structure Greek myth.
Historiography
The Bibliotheca circulated under the name of Apollodorus but internal and external evidence make authorship by the 2nd-century BCE scholar impossible; modern scholarship labels the author Pseudo-Apollodorus. The text survives in a medieval manuscript tradition with lacunae; the ending of Book 3 is lost and continued by an Epitome derived from a later summary. The work draws on epic, tragedy, and local histories, often preserving variant traditions now lost. Standard modern editions and translations include Frazer’s 1921 commentary and Robin Hard’s Oxford edition.
Date Notes
Traditionally ascribed to Apollodorus of Athens (2nd c. BCE) but now regarded as Pseudo-Apollodorus; composition likely early Imperial period. Last portion preserved via an epitome.
Archetypes
Major Characters
- Zeus
- Heracles
- Theseus
- Perseus
- Jason
- Athena
- Hera
Myths
- Creation and Genealogy of the Gods
- Labors of Heracles
- Theseus and the Minotaur
- The Argonauts and the Golden Fleece
- The Trojan Cycle
Facts
- A prose handbook summarizing Greek myths from cosmogony to the heroic age.
- Misattributed in antiquity to Apollodorus of Athens; modern scholars use the label Pseudo-Apollodorus.
- Survives in medieval manuscripts with the ending covered by an independent Epitome.
- Organized genealogically, enabling cross-linking of heroes and regional sagas.
- Preserves variants otherwise lost, often diverging from Homeric and tragic versions.
- A principal ancient source for the Heracles cycle and the Argonautica tradition.
- Provides a compact account of the Theban and Trojan cycles including the Nostoi.
- Frequently used by later mythographers and Renaissance compilers as a base text.
- Standard English translations include Frazer (1921) and Robin Hard (Oxford).
- Indispensable for tracing mythic succession narratives and house genealogies.