Aristeas of Proconnesus (Ἀριστέας ὁ Προκοννήσιος) was a semi-legendary poet of the 7th century BCE. Herodotus provides the principal account, describing him as a miracle-worker from Proconnesus whose death was followed by a reappearance in Metapontum, where he claimed to have traveled with Apollo [1][2]. He was reputed to project his soul at will and to have journeyed to the distant north, bringing back tales of the Issedones, the one-eyed Arimaspians, gold-guarding griffins, and the Hyperboreans [1][2][3].

His only known work is the lost hexameter epic Arimaspea (or Arimaspia), which narrated these mythical northern travels [1][2][3][4].

Aristeas is a significant precursor to Greek ethnographic writing. His Arimaspea influenced later authors like Herodotus and its fantastical creatures entered the broader mythological tradition [1][2][3][4]. The legends of his ecstatic journeys and supernatural abilities made him a paradigmatic theios aner (divine man) and a figure often compared to other archaic wise men [1][2].

Sources 1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Plato.stanford.edu): https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/shamanism/#AbaAriHer 2. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Classics (Oxford University Press): https://oxfordre.com/classics/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.001.0001/acrefore-9780199381135-e-724 3. Perseus Digital Library (Tufts University): https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0064%3Aalphabetic+letter%3DA%3Aentry+group%3D1%3Aentry%3Daristeas-geo 4. Encyclopædia Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Aristeas