On the Greatness of Homer

Anthologia Palatina 9.24 = Leonidas of Tarentum (320-260 BCE)

The fiery sun, whirling its axis,
Dulls the stars and the moon’s holy circles;
Just so Homer has plunged into night
All the songsmiths in a mass,
Holding high the Muses’ brightest light.

ἄστρα μὲν ἠμαύρωσε καὶ ἱερὰ κύκλα σελήνης
ἄξονα δινήσας ἔμπυρος ἠέλιος:
ὑμνοπόλους δ᾽ ἀγεληδὸν ἀπημάλδυνεν Ὅμηρος,
λαμπρότατον Μουσῶν φέγγος ἀνασχόμενος.

Homer, Girolamo Troppa, between 1665 and 1668