Phainias’ Historical and Biographical Fragments on Solon and Themistokles (26–34)

More than 40 years ago F. Wehrli published the last collection of all the fragments of Phainias of Eresos’ works in his monumental study Die Schule des Aristoteles (SdA Heft IX, 1969²). In significant contrast to F. Jacoby’s decision in his Fragmente der Griechischen Historiker (FGrH) Wehrli did not differentiate clearly between a “Testimonium” and a “Fragment”. The Swiss scholar began his widely used collection with seven texts (Fr. 1–7 W = 1–7) on the Eresian Peripatetic’s life and works. ¹ Then followed all the other texts that were known to him at that date, on philosophical, biographical, historical, thaumasiographical, and biological or botanical issues. These texts testify to the astonishingly broad range of Phainias’ fields of interest.