Author Description

Between 1839 and 1851 Ernest Ludwig von Leutsch (1808–1887) and Friedrich Wilhelm Schneidewin (1810–1856), classics professors at the University of Göttingen, published this collection of ancient paroimia or proverbs written or collected by ancient Greek authors. Volume 1 contains writings by Zenobius, Diogenianus, Plutarchus, and Gregorius Cyprius. A critical apparatus for each text cites variant readings between manuscripts; a running Latin commentary is given below the critical apparatus; and a Latin preface, written by Schneidewin, introduces the volume and explains the editorial methods underlying the work. The Corpus has long been considered the definitive collection of Greek paroemiography and is still used as a model of textual editing by researchers today. Unsurpassed in its breath and scope, it remains an indispensable tool for students and scholars of the Greek proverbial tradition. It ranks as one of the outstanding achievements of nineteenth-century scholarship.