Seeing Alcman: the Iconographic Evidence of Alcman’s Ancient Reception

Abstract

Although the reception of archaic Greek poets in antiquity has ignited the interest of many modern scholars, very little attention has been given to the visual representation of these poets, despite the fact that many artifacts or inscriptions date back to the late archaic and classical periods and are valuable sources of information. My aim is to examine a neglected subject on the ancient reception of Alcman, more specifically his reception through iconographic material. Despite the paucity of evidence, I suggest that the existing indications point to the direction that Alcman had a Panhellenic reception, at least from a later period on, and that he was, eventually, acknowledged as one of the classics.