Machon of Sinope (Μάχων ὁ Σινωπεύς) was a Hellenistic comic poet of the 3rd century BCE. Born in Sinope on the Black Sea, he relocated to Alexandria, where he was associated with the courts of Ptolemy II Philadelphus and Ptolemy III Euergetes [1][2]. The Suda identifies him as a contemporary of Apollonius of Rhodes and the teacher of the grammarian Aristophanes of Byzantium [1][2].

While the Suda credits him with twelve comedies, his principal surviving work is the Chreiai (Χρεῖαι), a collection of verse anecdotes preserved by Athenaeus in the Deipnosophistae [1][2]. These poems humorously recount the witty sayings and scandalous deeds of famous Athenian courtesans and other figures, set within symposia.

Machon represents a bridge between Attic comedy and Alexandrian scholarly culture. His Chreiai catered to Hellenistic antiquarian interest in classical Athenian society, providing valuable, if anecdotal, social history. His tutelage of Aristophanes of Byzantium further links him to the philological traditions of the Library of Alexandria [1][2].

Sources 1. Suda On Line (The Stoa Consortium): https://www.cs.uky.edu/~raphael/sol/sol-entries/mu/59 2. Perseus Digital Library (Tufts University): https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A2008.01.0620%3Asection%3Dmachon 3. ToposText: https://topostext.org/author/356