One poem traditionally attributed to him,
Alexandra or
Cassandra, has been preserved in its complete form. The first mention of
Alexandra is from the first century A.D. by The ancient scholiast, whose report is traced back to
Theon, an Alexandrian Grammarian (first century A.D.).
Alexandra runs at 1474
iambic trimeters. It consists of a prophecy uttered by
Cassandra and relates the later fortunes of
Troy and of the Greek and Trojan heroes. References to events of mythical and later times are introduced, and the poem ends with a reference to
Alexander the Great, who was to unite Asia and Europe in his world-wide empire. The poem is evidently intended to display the writer's knowledge of obscure names and uncommon myths; it is full of unusual words of doubtful meaning gathered from the older poets, and long-winded compounds coined by the author. It was probably written as a show-piece for the Alexandrian school, rather than as straight poetry. It was very popular in the
Byzantine period, and was read and commented on very frequently; the manuscripts of the
Alexandra are numerous. Two explanatory paraphrases of the poem survive, and the collection of
scholia by Isaac and
John Tzetzes is very valuablewritten in the immediate aftermath of the victory of
Flamininus at
Battle of Cynoscephalae over
Philip V of Macedon in 197/6 BC. The author, whose true name and place of origin are probably concealed beneath the impenetrably enigmatic biographical tradition concerning "Lycophron," probably used the name, and some of the literary substance, of Lycophron, not in emulation, but as an
ironic reminiscence of the earlier writer, who had combined the practice of tragedy and the elucidation of comedy. Only on this assumption of a deliberate
pseudepigraphon can the full irony of his work be appreciated. Cassandra prophesies that her
Trojan ancestors' descendants "shall with their spears win the foremost crown of glory, obtaining the sceptre and monarchy of earth and sea" and elaborates with allusions to the course of historical events. Some scholars, such as Stephanie West, regard these passages as
interpolations and defend the attribution of the bulk of the poem to Lycophron the tragic poet. Thomas Nelson and Katherine Molesworth have argued that 'Lycophron' is a pen name to signpost the poem's style, aligning it with the 'frigidity' of
Lycophron the sophist. Many scholars are certain that the Ptolemaic court would not have commissioned a piece to praise the Romans. Although the Egyptians and Romans had established a political relationship in 273 B.C., the two powers did not do much diplomacy together during the rule of
Ptolemy II. Egypt became more dependent on Rome after the second century B.C. when the nation was a shell of its former self due to a series of weak pharaohs. This is why many historians believe that
Alexandra was written after the military success of the Roman general
Titus Quinctus Flamininus over
Philip V of Macedonia at
Cynoscephalae, which, if correct, would then give 197 B.C. as a beginning date or creation. ==Editions==