Database of Byzantine Book Epigrams

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Type 6991
(formerly typ/4904)

	Μῦθος παλαιὸς ὡς Ἄτλας νώτοις φέρει
	τὸν οὐρανόν, κάτωθεν ἐκ γῆς ἀνέχων,
	σὺ γοῦν ἀκούων, γνῶθι τοῦτ' ἀληγόρως.
	Ὅρος γὰρ Ἄτλας, Λιβύης ἐν ἐσχάτοις,
	οὗ τὴν κορυφὴν ἐκ νεφῶν κεκρυμμένην,
	εἶναι δοκοῦσιν οὐρανοῖς συνημμένην.
	Ἐντεῦθεν οὖν Ἕλλησιν ἡ μυθουργία,
	Ἄτλαντα νώτοις εἰσαεὶ πόλον φέρειν.

Text status	Text completely known
Editorial status	Not a critical text
Genre(s)	Text-related epigram
Person(s)	Poet John Tzetzes (12th c.) - PBW: Ioannes/459/
Metre(s)	Dodecasyllable
Subject(s)	Atlas
Comment	As mentioned by Zumbo (1996: 276), the epigram is in some manuscripts preceded by a scholion attributing the verses to John Tzetzes: 'Ἄτλας ὄνομα ὅρους ἐν τῇ Λιβύῃ. τινὲς δὲ καὶ ἕτερον Ἄτλαντα εἶναι ἐν τῇ Αἰθιοπίᾳ, ἀλλ' οὐδαμῶς· περὶ δὲ τοῦ ἑνὸς Ἄτλαντος μαρτυρεῖ καὶ ἡ τοῦ Τζέτζου στιχουργία περιέχουσα ὑπόθεσιν οὑτωσὶ ἐκφερομένην·'
Bibliography	Bibliography category to be determined U. Bussemaker 1878, Scholia et paraphrases in Nicandrum et Oppianum, in F. Dübner (ed.), Scholia in Theocritum, Paris, 173-449: 293 J. D'Anse de Villoison, 1781, Anecdota graeca e Regia Parisieni, et e Veneta S. Marci Bibliothecis deprompta (vol. 1), Venice: 16-17 K. Dindorf, 1851, Aeschyli tragoediae superstites et deperditarum fragmenta. Scholia Graeca ex codicibus aucta et emendata (vol. 3), Oxford: 222-223 A. Zumbo 1996, Una misconosciuta ΥΠΟΘΕΣΙΣ ΠΕΡΙ ΑΤΛΑΝΤΟΣ di Giovanni Tzetzes (Schol. Oppian. Hal. 1,622), Rivista di Studi Bizantini e Neoellenici (RSBN), 33, 275-278: 275-278 DBBE (last accessed: 2026-08-11).
Number of verses	8
Occurrence(s)	[26116] μῦθος παλαιὸ(ς), ὡς ἄτλ(ας) νώτοις φέρει [1375] MILAN - Biblioteca Ambrosiana I 47 sup. [1375] (f. 13v) (8 verses) [27053] (...)υθος παλαιὸς \| ὡς ἄτλας νώτοις φέρ(ει) [14th c.] PARIS - Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BNF) - gr. 2785 [14th c.] (f. 14r) (8 verses) [27054] μῦθος παλαιὸς ὡς ἄτλας νώτοις φέρει [15th c.] PARIS - Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BNF) - gr. 2787 [15th c.] (f. 18v) (8 verses)
Acknowledgements	Contributor(s) Anne-Sophie Rouckhout, Nina Sietis The credits system has been implemented in 2019. Credits from before the new system was in use might be incomplete.
Identification	Vassis ICB 2005, 475: "Ioann. Tzetzes, De Atlante (schol. in Oppiani Halieutica I 622)"
Permalink	http://dev.dbbe.ugent.be/types/6991

Last modified: 2026-01-19.

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