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{{Short description|4th-century BC Greek hetaera}}
{{Other uses|Neaera (disambiguation){{!}}Neaera}}
⚫
'''Neaira''' ({{IPAc-en|n|i|ˈ|aɪ|r|ə}}; {{langx|grc|Νέαιρα}}), also '''Neaera''' ({{IPAc-en|n|i|ˈ|ɪər|ə}}), was a [[hetaera]] who lived in the 4th century BC in [[ancient Greece]]. She was brought to trial between 343 and 340&nbsp;BC,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> accused of marrying an Athenian citizen illegally and misrepresenting her daughter as an Athenian citizen.
[[File:Griechen31.png|thumb|A man and a hetaera (shown by the [[coin purse|purse]] hanging on the wall) engaging in sexual intercourse. Interior painting of a [[Red-figure pottery|red-figure]] ''[[Kylix (drinking cup)|kylix]]'', ''ca.'' 480-470&nbsp;BC attributed to the [[Wedding Painter]]. [[Munich]], [[Staatliche Antikensammlungen]].]]
⚫
'''Neaira''' ({{IPAc-en|n|ɪ|ˈ|aɪ|r|ə}}; {{lang-grc-gre|Νέαιρα}}), also '''Neaera''' ({{IPAc-en|n|ɪ|ˈ|ɪər|ə}}), was a [[hetaera]] who lived in the 4th century BC in [[ancient Greece]]. She was brought to trial between 343 and 340&nbsp;BC,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> accused of marrying an Athenian citizen illegally and misrepresenting her daughter as an Athenian citizen.


The speech made against Neaira in this trial by [[Apollodorus of Acharnae|Apollodorus]] is preserved as [[Demosthenes]]' fifty-ninth speech, though the speech is often attributed to [[Pseudo-Demosthenes]], who seems to have worked on many of the speeches given by Apollodorus.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Trevett|first1=Jeremy|title=History in [Demosthenes] 59|journal=The Classical Quarterly|date=1990|volume=40|issue=2|pages=407–420|doi=10.1017/s0009838800042981}}</ref> The speech provides more details than any other about [[prostitute]]s of [[Classical antiquity|antiquity]], and consequently a great deal of information about [[sex trade]] in the ancient Greek [[city-state]]s ([[polis|poleis]]).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Hamel|first1=Debra|title=Trying Neaira: The True Story of a Courtesan's Scandalous Life in Ancient Greece|date=2003|publisher=Yale University Press|location=New Haven|isbn=0-300-10763-3}}</ref>
The speech made against Neaira in this trial by [[Apollodorus of Acharnae|Apollodorus]] is preserved as [[Demosthenes]]' fifty-ninth speech, though the speech is often attributed to [[Pseudo-Demosthenes]], who seems to have worked on many of the speeches given by Apollodorus.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Trevett|first1=Jeremy|title=History in [Demosthenes] 59|journal=The Classical Quarterly|date=1990|volume=40|issue=2|pages=407–420|doi=10.1017/s0009838800042981|s2cid=170903514 }}</ref> The speech provides more details than any other about [[Prostitution in ancient Greece|prostitutes of antiquity]], and consequently a great deal of information about the [[sex trade]] in ancient Greek [[city-state]]s ([[polis]]).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Hamel|first1=Debra|title=Trying Neaira: The True Story of a Courtesan's Scandalous Life in Ancient Greece|date=2003|publisher=Yale University Press|location=New Haven|isbn=0-300-10763-3}}</ref>


==Speech ''Against Neaira''==
==Speech ''Against Neaira''==
⚫
''[[Against Neaira]]'' is the source of most of the details of Neaira's biography. It concerns a case brought against Neaira when she was about fifty<ref name="Carey 1992 3">{{cite book|last=Carey|first=Christopher|title=Greek Orators VI: Apollodorus against Neaira [Demosthenes] 59|location=Warminster|publisher=Aris and Phillips|year=1992|page=3}}</ref> by [[Apollodorus of Acharnae|Apollodorus]]' son-in-law Theomnestus, though apart from a brief introduction of the case given by Theomnestus, Apollodorus delivered the entirety of the speech.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite journal|last1=Macurdy|first1=Grace|title=Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=1942|volume=63|issue=3|page=258|doi=10.2307/290699 |jstor=290699}}</ref>
⚫
The case revolves around the accusation that Neaira, a foreigner, married an Athenian citizen,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> and that she was attempting to pass off her own children as Athenian citizens.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{cite journal|last1=Johnstone|first1=Steven|title=Apology for the Manuscript of Demosthenes 59.67|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=2002|volume=123|issue=2|pages=229–256|doi=10.1353/ajp.2002.0024|jstor=1561742|s2cid=161461068 }}</ref>


⚫
While the speech revolves around the life of Neaira, this is of little importance to the substance of the accusations.<ref name="ReferenceC">{{cite journal|last1=Macurdy|first1=Grace|title=Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=1942|volume=63|issue=3|page=268|doi=10.2307/290699 |jstor=290699}}</ref> The details seem to be part of the speech in the hope that the salacious accusations will hide the weakness of Apollodorus' case.<ref>{{cite book|last=Carey|first=Christopher|title=Greek Orators VI: Apollodorus against Neaira [Demosthenes] 59|location=Warminster|publisher=Aris and Phillips|year=1992|page=12}}</ref><ref name=Buckler>{{cite journal|last1=Buckler|first1=John|title=Review of "Apollodorus, the Son of Pasion" by Jeremy Trevett|journal=The Classical Journal|date=1995|volume=90|issue=3|pages=323–325|jstor=3297540}}</ref> The accuracy of the evidence given in the speech has been questioned, and is known to contain both lies and inaccuracies.<ref name="Walter de Gruyter">{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|page=2|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref> Despite this, the speech tells us much about the life of an accomplished [[hetaera]],<ref name="ReferenceC"/> and is extremely valuable to historians as a source on women's lives in classical Greece.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title=Review of "Trying Neaira" by Debra Hamel|journal=Journal of the History of Sexuality|volume=13|issue=1|year=2004|pages=104–107|doi=10.1353/sex.2004.0048|s2cid=142779951 }}</ref> Indeed, it is the most reliable extant source on prostitution in the classical world and one of the best sources on women's lives and gender relations in general for the period.<ref name="Walter de Gruyter"/>
⚫
The speech ''Against Neaira'' is the source of most of the details of Neaira's biography. It concerns a case brought against Neaira when she was about fifty<ref name="Carey 1992 3">{{cite book|last=Carey|first=Christopher|title=Greek Orators VI: Apollodorus against Neaira [Demosthenes] 59|location=Warminster|publisher=Aris and Phillips|year=1992|page=3}}</ref> by [[Apollodorus of Acharnae|Apollodorus]]' son-in-law Theomnestus, though apart from a brief introduction of the case given by Theomnestus, Apollodorus delivered the entirety of the speech.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite journal|last1=Macurdy|first1=Grace|title=Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=1942|volume=63|issue=3|page=258}}</ref>
⚫
The case revolves around the accusation that Neaira, a foreigner, married an Athenian citizen,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> and that she was attempting to pass off her own children as Athenian citizens.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{cite journal|last1=Johnstone|first1=Steven|title=Apology for the Manuscript of Demosthenes 59.67|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=2002|volume=123|issue=2|page=229}}</ref>

⚫
While the speech revolves around the life of Neaira, this is of little importance to the substance of the accusations.<ref name="ReferenceC">{{cite journal|last1=Macurdy|first1=Grace|title=Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=1942|volume=63|issue=3|page=268}}</ref> The details seem to be part of the speech in the hope that the salacious accusations will hide the weakness of Apollodorus' case.<ref>{{cite book|last=Carey|first=Christopher|title=Greek Orators VI: Apollodorus against Neaira [Demosthenes] 59|location=Warminster|publisher=Aris and Phillips|year=1992|page=12}}</ref><ref name=Buckler>{{cite journal|last1=Buckler|first1=John|title=Review of "Apollodorus, the Son of Pasion" by Jeremy Trevett|journal=The Classical Journal|date=1995|volume=90|issue=3|pages=323–325}}</ref> The accuracy of the evidence given in the speech has been questioned, and is known to contain both lies and inaccuracies.<ref name="Walter de Gruyter">{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|page=2|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref> Despite this, the speech tells us much about the life of an accomplished [[hetaera]],<ref name="ReferenceC"/> and is extremely valuable to historians as a source on women's lives in classical Greece.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title=Review of "Trying Neaira" by Debra Hamel|journal=Journal of the History of Sexuality|volume=13|issue=1|year=2004|pages=104–107}}</ref> Indeed, it is our most reliable extant source on prostitution in the classical world, and one of our best sources on women's lives and gender relations in general for the period.<ref name="Walter de Gruyter"/>


==Biography==
==Biography==
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Neaira was probably born in the first decade of the fourth century BC.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=44|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref>
Neaira was probably born in the first decade of the fourth century BC.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=44|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref>
Her place of birth is unknown,<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Macurdy|first1=Grace|title=Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=1942|volume=63|issue=3|page=267}}</ref> and the earliest event in her life that we know of is her [[slavery in ancient Greece|purchase]] when she was a young girl by [[Nikarete of Corinth|Nikarete]].<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.18</ref>
Her place of birth is unknown,<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Macurdy|first1=Grace|title=Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=1942|volume=63|issue=3|page=267|doi=10.2307/290699 |jstor=290699}}</ref> and the earliest event in her life that we know of is her [[slavery in ancient Greece|purchase]] when she was a young girl by [[Nikarete of Corinth|Nikarete]].<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.18</ref>
Nikarete trained the girls she purchased to be hetaerae,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> calling them her daughters in order to increase the price her customers would pay,<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.19</ref> and lived with them in [[Corinth]].<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.23</ref>
Nikarete trained the girls she purchased to be hetaerae,<ref name="ReferenceA"/> calling them her daughters in order to increase the price her customers would pay,<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.19</ref> and lived with them in [[Corinth]].<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.23</ref>


Neaira's work as a prostitute started before she reached puberty.<ref name="Carey 1992 3"/> She is twice described by Apollodorus as having sex for money before she came of age, though possibly due to her age he implies that she was not yet a hetaera.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Miner|first1=Jess|title=Courtesan, Concubine, Whore: Apollodorus' Deliberate Use of Terms for Prostitutes|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=2003|volume=124|issue=1|pages=21–22|accessdate=8 October 2015}}</ref><ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.24">Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.24</ref> During this time, the orator [[Lysias]] was a prominent guest in Nikarete's brothel and a regular customer of Metaneira,<ref>[[Athenaeus]], ''[[Deipnosophistae]]'' 13.65</ref> another of Nikarete's girls. In order to reward her for her services, he arranged for her to be initiated into the [[Eleusinian Mysteries]], and funded the journey.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.21</ref> Neaira was at this time about twelve or thirteen,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=215|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref> and Nikarete accompanied them.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.22</ref> Neaira visited Athens again for the [[Great Panathenaea]] of 378,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=217|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref> this time accompanying Simus of Thessaly, a young aristocrat.<ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.24"/><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=216|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref>
Neaira's work as a prostitute started before she reached puberty.<ref name="Carey 1992 3"/> She is twice described by Apollodorus as having sex for money before she came of age, though possibly due to her age he implies that she was not yet a hetaera.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Miner|first1=Jess|title=Courtesan, Concubine, Whore: Apollodorus' Deliberate Use of Terms for Prostitutes|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=2003|volume=124|issue=1|pages=21–22|jstor=1561932|doi= 10.1353/ajp.2003.0023|pmid=21966719 |url=https://repositories.lib.utexas.edu/bitstream/2152/31252/1/CourtesanConcubine.pdf|hdl=2152/31252|s2cid=28158600 |hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.24">Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.24</ref> During this time, the orator [[Lysias]] was a prominent guest in Nikarete's brothel and a regular customer of Metaneira,<ref>[[Athenaeus]], ''[[Deipnosophistae]]'' 13.65</ref> another of Nikarete's girls. In order to reward her for her services, he arranged for her to be initiated into the [[Eleusinian Mysteries]], and funded the journey.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.21</ref> Neaira was at this time about twelve or thirteen,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=215|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref> and Nikarete accompanied them.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.22</ref> Neaira visited Athens again for the [[Great Panathenaea]] of 378,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=217|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref> this time accompanying Simus of Thessaly, a young aristocrat.<ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.24"/><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|page=216|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref>


===Leaving Nikarete and Corinth===
===Leaving Nikarete and Corinth===
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===Life with Stephanus===
===Life with Stephanus===


In Megara, Neaira continued to work as a hetaera, and in 371 met Stephanus. Stephanus offered to act as her patron if she returned with him to Athens.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.37</ref> Apollodorus claims that with her she brought two sons and a daughter to Athens,<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.38</ref> but modern commentators have largely concluded that the sons in question were in fact those of Stephanus, by an Athenian woman.<ref name="Fisher">{{cite journal|last1=Fisher|first1=Nick|title=Review of "Apollodorus Against Neaira: [Demosthenes] 59" edited by Christopher Carey|journal=Greece & Rome|date=1993|volume=40|issue=2|pages=218–220}}</ref> Indeed, Christopher Carey points out that one of the sons, at least, was probably a legitimate son of Stephanus, being named after his father,<ref name="Carey 1992">{{cite book|last=Carey|first=Christopher|title=Apollodorus Against Neaira: [Demosthenes] 59|location=Warminster|publisher=Aris and Phillips|year=1992}}</ref> and John Buckler notes that Apollodorus contradicts himself on whether Neaira's alleged sons were hers by another man, or hers by Stephanus.<ref name=Buckler/>
In Megara, Neaira continued to work as a hetaera, and in 371 met Stephanus. Stephanus offered to act as her patron if she returned with him to Athens.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.37</ref> Apollodorus claims that with her she brought two sons and a daughter to Athens,<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.38</ref> but modern commentators have largely concluded that the sons in question were in fact those of Stephanus, by an Athenian woman.<ref name="Fisher">{{cite journal|last1=Fisher|first1=Nick|title=Review of "Apollodorus Against Neaira: [Demosthenes] 59" edited by Christopher Carey|journal=Greece & Rome|date=1993|volume=40|issue=2|pages=218–220|doi=10.1017/S0017383500022816|s2cid=161469754 }}</ref> Indeed, Christopher Carey points out that one of the sons, at least, was probably a legitimate son of Stephanus, being named after his father,<ref name="Carey 1992">{{cite book|last=Carey|first=Christopher|title=Apollodorus Against Neaira: [Demosthenes] 59|location=Warminster|publisher=Aris and Phillips|year=1992}}</ref> and John Buckler notes that Apollodorus contradicts himself on whether Neaira's alleged sons were hers by another man, or hers by Stephanus.<ref name=Buckler/>


Phrynion learnt that Neaira was back in Athens, and attempted to take her back from Stephanus. Stephanus resisted, claiming that as Neaira was a free woman he had no right;<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.40</ref> a claim which Phrynion proceeded to challenge in court, though he was persuaded to settle the case by arbitration instead.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.45</ref> The arbitrators decided that Neaira was indeed free, and that in addition to this she was her own ''kyria'' (mistress);<ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.46">Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.46</ref> this was an extremely unusual decision in a society where all citizen women, at least, had a ''kyrios'' (master).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Pomeroy|first1=Sarah B.|title=Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity|date=1994|publisher=Pimlico|location=London|isbn=978-0-7126-6054-9|page=62}}</ref> Despite this unusual level of freedom, however, Neaira was compelled to split her time between the two men as they agreed, without any input herself.<ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.46"/>
Phrynion learnt that Neaira was back in Athens, and attempted to take her back from Stephanus. Stephanus resisted, claiming that as Neaira was a free woman he had no right;<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.40</ref> a claim which Phrynion proceeded to challenge in court, though he was persuaded to settle the case by arbitration instead.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.45</ref> The arbitrators decided that Neaira was indeed free, and that in addition to this she was her own ''kyria'' (mistress);<ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.46">Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.46</ref> this was an extremely unusual decision in a society where all citizen women, at least, had a ''kyrios'' (master).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Pomeroy|first1=Sarah B.|author-link=Sarah B. Pomeroy |title=Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity|date=1994|publisher=Pimlico|location=London|isbn=978-0-7126-6054-9|page=62}}</ref> Despite this unusual level of freedom, however, Neaira was compelled to split her time between the two men as they agreed, without any input herself.<ref name="Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.46"/>


===Trial===
===Trial===


Sometime between 343 and 340&nbsp;BC, Neaira was brought to trial by Theomnestus on behalf of his father-in-law Apollodorus, accused of ''xenias'' (representing herself as a citizen when in fact she was not). If she was convicted, the maximum penalty Neaira faced was being sold into slavery and having her property sold.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 49.16</ref> Neaira herself would not have been permitted to speak at her trial,<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Osborne|editor-first1=Robin|editor-last2=Hornblower|editor-first2=Simon|last=Goldhill|first=Simon|title=Ritual, Finance, Politics: Athenian Democratic Accounts Presented to David Lewis|date=1994|page=357|chapter=Representing Democracy: Women at the Great Dionysia|location= Wotton-under-Edge|publisher=Clarendon Press}}</ref> though she was probably present.<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Osborne|editor-first1=Robin|editor-last2=Hornblower|editor-first2=Simon|last=Goldhill|first=Simon|title=Ritual, Finance, Politics: Athenian Democratic Accounts Presented to David Lewis|date=1994|page=359|chapter=Representing Democracy: Women at the Great Dionysia|location= Wotton-under-Edge|publisher=Clarendon Press}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Dover|first1=K.J.|title=Lysias and the Corpus Lysiacum|date=1968|location=Berkeley|publisher=University of California Press|page=35}}</ref>
Sometime between 343 and 340&nbsp;BC, Neaira was brought to trial by Theomnestus on behalf of his father-in-law Apollodorus, accused of ''xenias'' (representing herself as a citizen when in fact she was not). If she was convicted, the maximum penalty Neaira faced was being sold into slavery and having her property sold.<ref>Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.16</ref> Neaira herself would not have been permitted to speak at her trial,<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Osborne|editor-first1=Robin|editor-last2=Hornblower|editor-first2=Simon|last=Goldhill|first=Simon|title=Ritual, Finance, Politics: Athenian Democratic Accounts Presented to David Lewis|date=1994|page=357|chapter=Representing Democracy: Women at the Great Dionysia|location= Wotton-under-Edge|publisher=Clarendon Press}}</ref> though she was probably present.<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Osborne|editor-first1=Robin|editor-last2=Hornblower|editor-first2=Simon|last=Goldhill|first=Simon|title=Ritual, Finance, Politics: Athenian Democratic Accounts Presented to David Lewis|date=1994|page=359|chapter=Representing Democracy: Women at the Great Dionysia|location= Wotton-under-Edge|publisher=Clarendon Press}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Dover|first1=K.J.|title=Lysias and the Corpus Lysiacum|url=https://archive.org/details/lysiascorpuslysi0000dove|url-access=registration|date=1968|location=Berkeley|publisher=University of California Press|page=[https://archive.org/details/lysiascorpuslysi0000dove/page/35 35]}}</ref>


The only surviving record of the trial is the speech given by Theomnestus and Apollodorus against Neaira and Stephanus, and the outcome is unknown. No records of Neaira exist after the trial. Modern commentators have noted the weaknesses in Apollodorus' arguments,<ref name="Carey 1992"/> though as the outcome of an Athenian trial depended heavily on what the parties involved could persuade the jury to accept,<ref name="ReferenceB"/> and how much of their dishonesty they could get away with,<ref name="Fisher"/> we cannot say for certain that the suit failed.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|pages=42-43|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref>
The only surviving record of the trial is the speech given by Theomnestus and Apollodorus against Neaira and Stephanus, and the outcome is unknown. No records of Neaira exist after the trial. Modern commentators have noted the weaknesses in Apollodorus' arguments,<ref name="Carey 1992"/> though as the outcome of an Athenian trial depended heavily on what the parties involved could persuade the jury to accept,<ref name="ReferenceB"/> and how much of their dishonesty they could get away with,<ref name="Fisher"/> it cannot be said for certain that the suit failed.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|pages=42–43|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
⚫
* [[Women in classical Athens]]
*[[Apollodorus of Acharnae]]
*[[Hetaerae]]
*[[Phryne]]
*[[Prostitution in Ancient Greece]]
⚫
*[[Pseudo-Demosthenes]]
⚫
*[[Women in Classical Athens]]


==References==
==References==
Line 52: Line 45:


==Further reading==
==Further reading==
⚫
* {{cite book|last1=Davidson|first1=James N.|title=Courtesans and Fishcakes: The Consuming Passions of Classical Athens|location=London|publisher= HarperCollins|year=1997|isbn= 0-00-255591-3}}

* {{cite book|last=Natter|first=Tobias G.|chapter=Gustav Klimt and The Dialogues of the Heterae. Erotic Boundaries in Vienna around 1900|editor-last=Price|editor-first=Renée |title=Gustav Klimt. The Ronald S. Lauder and Serge Sabarsky Collections|location=Munich |publisher=Prestel |year=2007|isbn=978-3-7913-3834-7}}
* {{cite book|last1=Carey|first1=Christopher|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira": [Demosthenes] 59|date=1992|publisher=Aris & Phillips|location=Warminster}}

⚫
* {{cite book|last1=Davidson|first1=James N.|title=Courtesans and Fishcakes: The Consuming Passions of Classical Athens|location=London|year=1997}}

* {{cite book|last1=Kapparis|first1=Konstantinos A.|title="Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary|date=1999|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|location=Berlin|isbn=3-11-016390-X}}

* {{cite book|last1=Hamel|first1=Debra|title=Trying Neaira: the true story of a courtesan's scandalous life in ancient Greece|date=2003|publisher=Yale University Press|location=New Haven|isbn=0-300-10763-3}}

* {{cite journal|last1=Macurdy|first1=Grace|title=Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)|journal=The American Journal of Philology|date=1942|volume=63|issue=3}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


{{Good article}}
{{Persondata
|NAME= Neaira
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION= Ancient Greek hetaera
|DATE OF BIRTH=4th century BC
|PLACE OF BIRTH=
|DATE OF DEATH=4th century BC
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neaira}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neaira}}
[[Category:Courtesans of antiquity]]
[[Category:Hetairai]]
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[[Category:Ancient Greek women]]
[[Category:4th-century BC Greek people]]
[[Category:4th-century BC Greek people]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:Year of death unknown]]
[[Category:Year of death unknown]]
[[Category:Metics in Classical Athens]]
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[[Category:Demosthenes]]
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[[Category:4th-century BC Greek women]]
[[Category:Ancient Greek slaves and freedmen]]

Latest revision as of 17:01, 28 November 2024

Neaira (/niˈaɪrə/; Ancient Greek: Νέαιρα), also Neaera (/niˈɪərə/), was a hetaera who lived in the 4th century BC in ancient Greece. She was brought to trial between 343 and 340 BC,[1] accused of marrying an Athenian citizen illegally and misrepresenting her daughter as an Athenian citizen.

The speech made against Neaira in this trial by Apollodorus is preserved as Demosthenes' fifty-ninth speech, though the speech is often attributed to Pseudo-Demosthenes, who seems to have worked on many of the speeches given by Apollodorus.[2] The speech provides more details than any other about prostitutes of antiquity, and consequently a great deal of information about the sex trade in ancient Greek city-states (polis).[3]

Speech Against Neaira

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Against Neaira is the source of most of the details of Neaira's biography. It concerns a case brought against Neaira when she was about fifty[4] by Apollodorus' son-in-law Theomnestus, though apart from a brief introduction of the case given by Theomnestus, Apollodorus delivered the entirety of the speech.[1] The case revolves around the accusation that Neaira, a foreigner, married an Athenian citizen,[1] and that she was attempting to pass off her own children as Athenian citizens.[5]

While the speech revolves around the life of Neaira, this is of little importance to the substance of the accusations.[6] The details seem to be part of the speech in the hope that the salacious accusations will hide the weakness of Apollodorus' case.[7][8] The accuracy of the evidence given in the speech has been questioned, and is known to contain both lies and inaccuracies.[9] Despite this, the speech tells us much about the life of an accomplished hetaera,[6] and is extremely valuable to historians as a source on women's lives in classical Greece.[10] Indeed, it is the most reliable extant source on prostitution in the classical world and one of the best sources on women's lives and gender relations in general for the period.[9]

Biography

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Life with Nikarete

[edit]

Neaira was probably born in the first decade of the fourth century BC.[11] Her place of birth is unknown,[12] and the earliest event in her life that we know of is her purchase when she was a young girl by Nikarete.[13] Nikarete trained the girls she purchased to be hetaerae,[1] calling them her daughters in order to increase the price her customers would pay,[14] and lived with them in Corinth.[15]

Neaira's work as a prostitute started before she reached puberty.[4] She is twice described by Apollodorus as having sex for money before she came of age, though possibly due to her age he implies that she was not yet a hetaera.[16][17] During this time, the orator Lysias was a prominent guest in Nikarete's brothel and a regular customer of Metaneira,[18] another of Nikarete's girls. In order to reward her for her services, he arranged for her to be initiated into the Eleusinian Mysteries, and funded the journey.[19] Neaira was at this time about twelve or thirteen,[20] and Nikarete accompanied them.[21] Neaira visited Athens again for the Great Panathenaea of 378,[22] this time accompanying Simus of Thessaly, a young aristocrat.[17][23]

Leaving Nikarete and Corinth

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Around 376 BC, Timanoridas of Corinth and Eukrates of Lefkada paid thirty minae to purchase Neaira from Nikarete, at the high end of prices for hetaerae.[24] When the men married, they agreed to let Neaira buy her freedom for twenty minae, which, with the aid of gifts and loans from her former customers, she did.[25] As part of this deal, Neaira agreed to no longer work as a prostitute in Corinth, and so left the city for Athens with Phrynion, who had helped her buy her freedom.[26]

Neaira was certainly living with Phrynion in Athens by 373 BC, when he took her to a feast given by the general Chabrias to celebrate his victory in the Pythian Games.[27] During this celebration, Apollodorus says, Neaira was sexually assaulted by the guests and slaves of Chabrias while she was drunk and asleep.[28] Due to this and other mistreatment by Phrynion, in 372 BC Neaira left his household and went to Megara, taking with her her clothing and jewellery, two maids, and other possessions belonging to Phrynion.[29]

Life with Stephanus

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In Megara, Neaira continued to work as a hetaera, and in 371 met Stephanus. Stephanus offered to act as her patron if she returned with him to Athens.[30] Apollodorus claims that with her she brought two sons and a daughter to Athens,[31] but modern commentators have largely concluded that the sons in question were in fact those of Stephanus, by an Athenian woman.[32] Indeed, Christopher Carey points out that one of the sons, at least, was probably a legitimate son of Stephanus, being named after his father,[33] and John Buckler notes that Apollodorus contradicts himself on whether Neaira's alleged sons were hers by another man, or hers by Stephanus.[8]

Phrynion learnt that Neaira was back in Athens, and attempted to take her back from Stephanus. Stephanus resisted, claiming that as Neaira was a free woman he had no right;[34] a claim which Phrynion proceeded to challenge in court, though he was persuaded to settle the case by arbitration instead.[35] The arbitrators decided that Neaira was indeed free, and that in addition to this she was her own kyria (mistress);[36] this was an extremely unusual decision in a society where all citizen women, at least, had a kyrios (master).[37] Despite this unusual level of freedom, however, Neaira was compelled to split her time between the two men as they agreed, without any input herself.[36]

Trial

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Sometime between 343 and 340 BC, Neaira was brought to trial by Theomnestus on behalf of his father-in-law Apollodorus, accused of xenias (representing herself as a citizen when in fact she was not). If she was convicted, the maximum penalty Neaira faced was being sold into slavery and having her property sold.[38] Neaira herself would not have been permitted to speak at her trial,[39] though she was probably present.[40][41]

The only surviving record of the trial is the speech given by Theomnestus and Apollodorus against Neaira and Stephanus, and the outcome is unknown. No records of Neaira exist after the trial. Modern commentators have noted the weaknesses in Apollodorus' arguments,[33] though as the outcome of an Athenian trial depended heavily on what the parties involved could persuade the jury to accept,[5] and how much of their dishonesty they could get away with,[32] it cannot be said for certain that the suit failed.[42]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Macurdy, Grace (1942). "Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)". The American Journal of Philology. 63 (3): 258. doi:10.2307/290699. JSTOR 290699.
  2. ^ Trevett, Jeremy (1990). "History in [Demosthenes] 59". The Classical Quarterly. 40 (2): 407–420. doi:10.1017/s0009838800042981. S2CID 170903514.
  3. ^ Hamel, Debra (2003). Trying Neaira: The True Story of a Courtesan's Scandalous Life in Ancient Greece. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 0-300-10763-3.
  4. ^ a b Carey, Christopher (1992). Greek Orators VI: Apollodorus against Neaira [Demosthenes] 59. Warminster: Aris and Phillips. p. 3.
  5. ^ a b Johnstone, Steven (2002). "Apology for the Manuscript of Demosthenes 59.67". The American Journal of Philology. 123 (2): 229–256. doi:10.1353/ajp.2002.0024. JSTOR 1561742. S2CID 161461068.
  6. ^ a b Macurdy, Grace (1942). "Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)". The American Journal of Philology. 63 (3): 268. doi:10.2307/290699. JSTOR 290699.
  7. ^ Carey, Christopher (1992). Greek Orators VI: Apollodorus against Neaira [Demosthenes] 59. Warminster: Aris and Phillips. p. 12.
  8. ^ a b Buckler, John (1995). "Review of "Apollodorus, the Son of Pasion" by Jeremy Trevett". The Classical Journal. 90 (3): 323–325. JSTOR 3297540.
  9. ^ a b Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (1999). "Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 2. ISBN 3-11-016390-X.
  10. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (2004). "Review of "Trying Neaira" by Debra Hamel". Journal of the History of Sexuality. 13 (1): 104–107. doi:10.1353/sex.2004.0048. S2CID 142779951.
  11. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (1999). "Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 44. ISBN 3-11-016390-X.
  12. ^ Macurdy, Grace (1942). "Apollodorus and the Speech against Neaera (Pseudo-Dem. LIX)". The American Journal of Philology. 63 (3): 267. doi:10.2307/290699. JSTOR 290699.
  13. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.18
  14. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.19
  15. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.23
  16. ^ Miner, Jess (2003). "Courtesan, Concubine, Whore: Apollodorus' Deliberate Use of Terms for Prostitutes" (PDF). The American Journal of Philology. 124 (1): 21–22. doi:10.1353/ajp.2003.0023. hdl:2152/31252. JSTOR 1561932. PMID 21966719. S2CID 28158600.
  17. ^ a b Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.24
  18. ^ Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae 13.65
  19. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.21
  20. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (1999). "Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 215. ISBN 3-11-016390-X.
  21. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.22
  22. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (1999). "Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 217. ISBN 3-11-016390-X.
  23. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (1999). "Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. p. 216. ISBN 3-11-016390-X.
  24. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (1999). "Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. pp. 227–228. ISBN 3-11-016390-X.
  25. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.30-32
  26. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.32
  27. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.33
  28. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.33-34
  29. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.35
  30. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.37
  31. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.38
  32. ^ a b Fisher, Nick (1993). "Review of "Apollodorus Against Neaira: [Demosthenes] 59" edited by Christopher Carey". Greece & Rome. 40 (2): 218–220. doi:10.1017/S0017383500022816. S2CID 161469754.
  33. ^ a b Carey, Christopher (1992). Apollodorus Against Neaira: [Demosthenes] 59. Warminster: Aris and Phillips.
  34. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.40
  35. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.45
  36. ^ a b Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.46
  37. ^ Pomeroy, Sarah B. (1994). Goddesses, Whores, Wives and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity. London: Pimlico. p. 62. ISBN 978-0-7126-6054-9.
  38. ^ Pseudo-Demosthenes 59.16
  39. ^ Goldhill, Simon (1994). "Representing Democracy: Women at the Great Dionysia". In Osborne, Robin; Hornblower, Simon (eds.). Ritual, Finance, Politics: Athenian Democratic Accounts Presented to David Lewis. Wotton-under-Edge: Clarendon Press. p. 357.
  40. ^ Goldhill, Simon (1994). "Representing Democracy: Women at the Great Dionysia". In Osborne, Robin; Hornblower, Simon (eds.). Ritual, Finance, Politics: Athenian Democratic Accounts Presented to David Lewis. Wotton-under-Edge: Clarendon Press. p. 359.
  41. ^ Dover, K.J. (1968). Lysias and the Corpus Lysiacum. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 35.
  42. ^ Kapparis, Konstantinos A. (1999). "Apollodorus Against Neaira" with commentary. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. pp. 42–43. ISBN 3-11-016390-X.

Further reading

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  • Davidson, James N. (1997). Courtesans and Fishcakes: The Consuming Passions of Classical Athens. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-00-255591-3.
  • Natter, Tobias G. (2007). "Gustav Klimt and The Dialogues of the Heterae. Erotic Boundaries in Vienna around 1900". In Price, Renée (ed.). Gustav Klimt. The Ronald S. Lauder and Serge Sabarsky Collections. Munich: Prestel. ISBN 978-3-7913-3834-7.

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