Pytheas

Geographer and historian

Born: c. 350-325 b. c.e.; Massalia, Gaul (now Marseille, France)

Died: After 300 b. c.e.; Perhaps Massalia, Gaul Also known as: Pytheas of Massalia Category: Geography; historiography

Life Pytheas (PIHTH-ee-uhs) of Massalia most likely came from the Greek colony on the site of modern Marseille. He was probably born into a merchant family and may have sailed the trading routes along the Atlantic coast. He appears to have traveled at least as far north as Britain and the Shetland Islands during a voyage lasting two or more years. In his lost work “On the Ocean,” he recorded many astronomical and geographical observations, and, therefore, he may be categorized as a physical scientist. He also dealt with food supplies, social organizations, local customs, and the location of products suitable for trade. Although there may have been an economic purpose to Pytheas’s voyage, his treatise does not seem to have been intended as a practical guide for mariners.

Influence Many later writers quoted from Pytheas’s treatise, which may have become a standard work of reference. He immortalized Thule (perhaps Iceland) as the furthermost location known to ancient geographers.

Further Reading

Cary, M., and E. Warmington. The Ancient Explorers. London: Methuen, 1929.

Casson, L. Ships and Seamanship in the Ancient World. Princeton, N. J.: Princeton University Press, 1971.

Cunliffe, Barry. The Extraordinary Voyage of Pytheas the Greek. New York: Penguin Books, 2002.

Hawkes, C. F. C. Pytheas: Europe and the Greek Explorers. Oxford, England: Blackwell, 1975.

Roseman, ChristinaH. Pytheas ofMassalia, On the Ocean. Chicago: Ares, 1994.

Thompson, J. O. History of Ancient Geography. New York: Bilbo and Tannen, 1965.

David H. J. Larmour

See also: Hellenistic Greece; Historiography; Literature; Navigation and Transportation; Science.