Probably, she was contemporary of Anytes of Tegea (end of the
IV century b.C.) and her work has to be counted amongst the
Doric-Peloponnesian school of the epigrammatical poetry.
Certainly Nossis came from a noble family and in her work
can be found affinities (probably desired) with Sappho's
work, which the poetess mentions in one of her epigrams.
That, added to the point that the Aphrodite's worship was
very widespread in Locri, led the experts to suppose the
existence in the Greek colony of a thyasus, similar to the
Sapphic one, led, that's so, by the poetess Nossis.
Moreover the Nossis' ideal of life seems to appear clearly
in her epigram "Nothing is sweeter than love..."
where the similar views with the Sapphic thought is more than
clear.
Of all her work, only twelve epigrams (with various
subjects) reached our age; and we have them thanks to their
registration in the books V (the book dedicated to the love
epigrams - one Nossis' epigram), VI (dedicated to the votive
epigrams - six Nossis' epigrams), VII (dedicated to the
funerary epigrams - two Nossis' epigrams) and IX
(descriptive epigrams - three Nossis' epigrams) of the Palatine
Anthology.
Particularly two of the twelve epigrams need to be pointed
out: the one already mentioned "Nothing is sweeter than
love..." (PALAT. ANT. V - 170) which seems to be the proem to her work, and
the one which starts with "Stranger, if
sailing..." (PALAT. ANT. VII - 718) which probably had to be the conclusive
poem of her work or, perhaps, the text, written by Nossis
herself, for her own epitaph.
Nothing
is sweeter than Love; and every other joy
is second to it: even the honey I spit
out of my mouth.
Thus Nossis says: and who didn't love
Kypris,
doesn't know what sort of roses her flowers
are.
Away
from the wretched shoulders threw these shields the Bruttium
men,
beaten in the fray by the Locrians fast in the fight,
now, laid down in the temple, devote hymns to their bravery,
neither regret the arms of the cowards left without them.
Holy
Hera you who often descend from the heavens
visit your Lacinian sanctuary sweet-scented with incense,
accept the byssus cloak which Teofilis, daughter of Kleochas,
wove for you with Nossis, her noble daughter.
Artemis,
which reign over Delos and over the lovable Ortygia,
put back in the lap of the Charites the bow and the arrows
intact,
purify your body in the waters of the Inopus and come
to the house of Alketis, to free her from the difficult
labour pains.
With
pleasure Aphrodite received the lovable offering
of the small bonnet which wound the head of Samyta:
It's really of exquisite workmanship and it gently smells
of the nectar
with which the goddess sprinkles the handsome Adonis.
There
she is, Melinna in person! Look her lovely countenance
seems to turn to us the glance gently sweet;
really for all the daughter looks like the mother.
It's wonderful that the children look like their parents.
Even
from afar appears recognizable the effigy
of Sabetides, full of style and majesty.
Give yourself up to gaze at her: you seem to see
her sweetness and her wisdom. Praise to you, wonderful
woman!
Pass
by over me with a ringing laugh, and then tell me
a friend word: I am Rinthon, the one of Syracuse.
A small nightingale
of the Muses; from the tragic phliaxes
I was able to pick an ivy different and mine.
Stranger,
if you sail to Mitylene of the beautiful
dances,
to pick there the most out of the graces of Sappho,
tell that I was loved by the Muses, and that the
Locrian
land bore me
My name remember is Nossis. Now go!
Arrived
in front of the temple we gaze at this statue
of Aphrodite
embellished by a dress embroidered with gold.
Polyarchis offered it, having made out a large fortune
from the beauty of her own body.
The
little picture shows the beautiful figure of Taumareta:
represented with skill the proud grace of the girl with the
delicate eyelash
The dog watching the house could wag her tail
seeing you, believing you her own mistress.
In
the temple of the blonde Aphrodite Kallò dedicated this
picture
painted
with a portrait exactly alike her.
What a tidy attitude! And which grace pervades her!
Hail! Of all your life nothing could be blamed.
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