SOURCE: "Kallimachos," in Hellenistic Poetry and Art, Barnes & Noble, Inc., 1964, pp. 98-121.

In the following excerpt from his Hellenistic Poetry and Art, Webster considers Callimachus's reputation during his career and his aesthetic criteria, simultaneously providing an extensive examination of the poet's works, including the hymns, the iambi, Hecale, and the epigrams. Webster's discussion entails a summary of the "hostilities" concerning aesthetics that Callimachus found himself engaged in with other poets. In his final assessment, Webster attributes Callimachus with "elegance, humour, learning, and variety."

Kallimachos certainly lived through the reign of Ptolemy Philadelphos and died in the reign of Ptolemy Euergetes. He came from Cyrene to Alexandria; he was first a schoolmaster in the suburb of Eleusis, then was in charge of the catalogue at the Library. The fixed points for his production are given by Pfeiffer [Callimachus]: Epigram 20 is very early, about 300, and was written at Cyrene; it...