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I PARCHI LETTERARIŪ IN CALABRIA “JOURNEYS TO THE FUTURE
OF MEMORY” - I PARCHI LETTERARI IN THE LOCRIDE
AREA: LOCRI
"A Locris Italiae frons incipit, Magna Graecia
appellata"
Italy’s base, called Magna Graecia, begins at Locri
(Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia III 95)
LOCRI EPIZEFIRI
The present day city of Locri is the heir to the ancient
Locri Epizefėri, the remains of which can be
found a few kilometres away, at Cape Zefirio (now known
as Cape Bruzzano), was established as a Greek Colony of
the Locride area in 673 B.C. and reached its maximum
splendour in the 5th Century B.C. In ancient times it
was famous for its highly conservative legislation and
for “sacred prostitution” recounted by ancient authors
and associated with the cult of Aphrodite, and for
luxury craftsmanship. There was considerable economic,
cultural and artistic development, with completely
unique features that made Magna Grecia a main hub. There
is little left of the life and the written works of the
authors who lived there, but in any case those fragments
or indirect references that remain indicate the fame,
and the cultural value of some of the figures who
contributed to making Magna that new land.
Among these, there was perhaps the most famous figure of
the colony: Timaeus, magistrate, astronomer,
physicist, philosopher and a teacher of Plato. Of
Timaeus, we only know that he lived in the 4th Century
B.C. and that he died as an elderly man after having
governed Locri for a long period of time.
“Our Timaeus, born in Locri, in Italy, a city
ordained with excellent laws, where he is second to none
for wealth and nobility and where he has held the
highest offices of the court and has attained, in my
opinion, the highest honour of all of philosophy”. (Plato,
Timaeus, II)
Dante Alighieri also mentions Timaeus, exactly
for his theories regarding the soul, in canto IV of
Paradise:
"What Timaeus argues of the soul
is not similar to what is seen here
but, as mentioned, is what seems to be heard".
(Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy - Paradise,
canto IV, 49-51)
Another interesting figure is Senocrito, a
musician and lyric poet from ancient Locri, who most
probably lived there during the second half of the 7th
Century B.C.; his art was appreciated by Plutarch, who (De
Musica 9, 1134) places him among the greatest
musicians of ancient Greece. He brought a school of
music and poetry to life in Locri that must have been a
great success and he made Locri Epizefiri one of the
main centres of ancient civilisation with respect to the
art of music and song.
Finally, the great feminine tradition of the city is
represented here by Nossis, a sweet and loving
poetess, born and raised in Locri Epizefiri between the
4th and 3rd Centuries B.C. She was included among the
illustrious Greek cantors by Meleagro of Gadara.
Antipater includes her among the nine poetesses
that deserve the honour of competing with the Muses.
“...and you will speak of me, guest then; of the City
of Locri from where I hail, you shall tell of Nossis,
with your own graces...”
(Nossis)
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Regione Calabria
