Sappho, Ancient Greek Poet
Fresco of young woman holding a stylus and a booklet of wax tablets, Sappho, from house in Pompeii. Sappho (630 - 570 BC) was an archaic Greek poet from the island of Lesbos. Sappho is known for her lyric poetry, written to be sung while accompanied by a lyre. Most of Sappho's poetry is now lost, and what is extant has survived only in fragmentary form, except for one complete poem: Ode to Aphrodite. Little is known of Sappho's life. Sappho was a prolific poet, probably composing around 10, 000 lines. Her poetry was greatly admired through much of antiquity, and she was among the canon of nine lyric poets most highly esteemed by scholars of Hellenistic Alexandria. Sappho's poetry is still considered extraordinary and her works continue to influence other writers. Beyond her poetry, she is well known as a symbol of love and desire between women. No reliable portrait of Sappho's physical appearance has survived; all extant representations, ancient and modern, are artists conceptions. Supposedly Sappho killed herself by jumping off the Leucadian cliffs for love of Phaon, a ferryman. This is regarded as unhistorical by modern scholars. The legend may have resulted in part from a desire to assert Sappho as heterosexual
