The Catasterism of Diogenes the Cynic in an Epigram by Ausonius

Abstract

In the collection of Ausonius’ Epigrams by Green (1999), three are dedicated to Diogenes the Cynic. One of them (ep. 54) constitutes an epitaph for the philosopher’s tomb, and is composed as a paraphrase of an epigram from the Anthologia Palatina (7, 64). Moreover, a rare tradition on Diogenes’ catasterism appears in this text: here, in fact, we read that the philosopher is placed in heaven by the star of Leo as the guard dog of the heroine Erigone. Therefore, this research starts with an analysis of the transition from the Greek to Ausonius’ Latin version, and then the investigation of the issue of Diogenes’ catasterism is developed, by examining the broader context of Graeco-Roman sources on related topics.