The first section of the article introduces the Alcestis Barcinonensis, comparing it with the Alcestis of Euripides and with another Latin version of the myth, the anonymous Vergilian cento Alcesta ...preserved in the Anthologia Latina (Codex Salmasianus). In spite of numerous parallels with the last two works, theAlcestis Barcinonensis possesses exceptional value because of its unique features. Some of them are compositional (Heracles, Thanatus and the chorus do not appear at all; on the other hand, the figures of the poet himself and Clymene are introduced, etc.), whereas others are typical of late antiquity (e. g. the seismic activity of the Earth, the phoenix, the transformation of the Greek notion of σωφροσύνη intopietas). Euripides’ Alcestis is shown to be an important point of departure for the Latin author’s association of Alcestis’ death with the theme of mystery cults (Demeter-Ceres, Bacchus, Orpheus). But while the Alcestis Barcinonensis is closer to Euripides’ play than it appears at first sight, the poem strikingly diverges from the Alcesta of the Anthologia Latina. Indeed, the author of the article demonstrates that there are no obvious resemblances between the two Latin versions of the myth. The second section of the article presents the author’s pioneer translation of the Alcestis Barcinonensis into Slovenian, accompanied by a short commentary.
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