From p.snider@sympatico.ca Mon Feb  4 08:10:10 2002
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Date: Mon, 04 Feb 2002 11:18:39 -0500
From: Phillip Snider <p.snider@sympatico.ca>
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This would be Lysander of Sparta. He commanded the Spartan fleet in the
last stage of the Second Peloponnesian War and won the crucial victory
against the Athenians at Aegospotami. His cult seems to have arisen out
of Samos, where he was worshipped as a god. This in itself is not
necessarily unusual as I suspect that what is meant here is hero honours
(I don't know this, so I'm happy to be corrected on thsi point) which
were granted often to dead leaders. Aristides of Athens is among those
who enjoyed these honours. The unusual bit is the indication that
Lysander won this status while still alive which is unheard of before
this. I've checked this up in the OCD (3) which seems to imply some
doubt about whether these honours were granted while Lysander was alive
("perhaps the first living greek ever to receive divine worship").

Greetings to all, by the way! I've been off the Classics list for close
to a year, since my first year high school teaching, planning a wedding
and newly-married life have taken up most of my time last year. I've
only now found time to spend keeping track of discussions here.

Phil S.

jgibson000@attbi.com wrote:

> In his _Background of Early Christianity_ Everet
> Fergusen notes that the first case in which a man was
> offered honours as a god was Lysandros in the fifth
> cent. BCE.
>
> Can anyone tell me something about this fellow?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Yours,
>
> Jeffrey Gibson
> ---
> Jeffrey B. Gibson
> 1500 W. Pratt Blvd. #1
> Chicago, IL 60626

.