Phalaris of Acragas (Φάλαρις ὁ Ἀκραγαντῖνος)

Life Phalaris was the tyrant of the Greek colony of Acragas in Sicily during the 6th century BCE, seizing power around 570 BCE [1]. His reign, reportedly lasting sixteen years, was characterized by exceptional cruelty, most infamously associated with the Brazen Bull execution device [1][2]. He was eventually overthrown by a popular uprising led by Telemachus [1]. The primary historical sources are Herodotus and Polyaenus [1][2].

Works The Epistles (Epistolai), a collection of 148 letters attributed to Phalaris, are a later literary forgery likely composed in the 2nd century CE [3][4]. Richard Bentley definitively exposed them as pseudepigraphic in his 1699 dissertation, a landmark in textual criticism [3][4].

Significance Phalaris is historically significant as an archetypal brutal tyrant in Greek tradition, his name proverbial for cruelty [1][2]. The forged letters attributed to him and their exposure by Bentley represent a major case study in ancient literary forgery and the development of modern scholarly analysis [3][4].

Sources 1. Encyclopædia Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Phalaris 2. World History Encyclopedia: https://www.worldhistory.org/Brazen_Bull/ 3. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/bentley/ 4. Perseus Digital Library, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology: http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0104%3Aentry%3Dphalaris-bio-1