Dictys Cretensis (Δίκτυς ὁ Κρής)

Life Dictys Cretensis is the pseudonymous author of the Ephemeris belli Troiani ("Journal of the Trojan War"). No reliable biographical details exist. According to the work’s fictional preface, he was a Cretan companion of Idomeneus at Troy who recorded an eyewitness account, a claim which is a literary fabrication. The actual Latin prose work was likely composed in the 1st or 2nd century CE [1][2].

Works His sole known work is the Ephemeris belli Troiani, a prose narrative of the Trojan War. It was originally composed in Greek, but survives primarily in a 4th-century CE Latin translation, with only a fragment of the Greek original extant [1][2][3].

Significance The Ephemeris is a key text in the ancient alternative tradition of the Trojan War, offering a pro-Greek, ostensibly historical account distinct from Homeric epic. Though a pseudepigraphon, it was widely treated as genuine history in late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Its Latin version was profoundly influential on medieval European literature, shaping the Trojan narratives of authors such as Benoît de Sainte-Maure, Guido delle Colonne, and Chaucer [1][2][3].

Sources 1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Dictys Cretensis): https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/dictys-cretensis/ 2. Encyclopædia Britannica (Dictys Cretensis): https://www.britannica.com/topic/Dictys-Cretensis 3. Perseus Digital Library (Entry for Dictys): http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0062:entry=dictys-harpers