Cephalion

Lesserfolk-consensusClassical antiquityLate-antique Christian chronographyGreco-Roman world

Cephalion is attested in classical and late-antique sources as a human name appearing in two distinct registers: (1) an authorial/historian or rhetorician cited by later chroniclers (placed by one source in the time of Hadrian and by another as author of a multi-volume history beginning with Assyria), and (2) a mytho‑genealogical figure named as the son of Amphithemis and the nymph Tritonis. The supplied materials present these as separate, unreconciled references rather than as a single supernatural entity.

Origin

Literary/authorial attestation: In the literary and chronographic tradition preserved into late antiquity, Cephalion appears as a named author or rhetorician whose works were known to later compilers. One modern summary entry identifies a Cephalion as a Roman historian 'of the time of Hadrian,' and a linked data entry characterizes him as an ancient Greek rhetorician credited with a nine-volume history beginning with Assyria. Eusebius' Chronicon (as cited in the provided material) lists Cephalion among earlier writers consulted for chronology alongside authors such as Berosus, Josephus, and Diodorus, indicating his placement within the network of sources used by late-antique chroniclers. Mythic/genealogical attestation: Separately, a classical reference list records a Cephalion as the son of Amphithemis and the nymph Tritonis, placing the name in a mythic genealogical register rather than the authorial one. The supplied sources do not connect or reconcile the two usages of the name.

Appearance

The supplied materials contain no physical or anthropomorphic description of Cephalion. He is attested only as a personal name in literary lists and genealogical records: as an author cited by later compilers and, in a separate entry, as a named son within a mythic genealogy. No iconography, physical traits, or visual attributes are described in the provided excerpts.

Abilities

The materials ascribe to Cephalion capacities appropriate to a human intellectual: authorship of historical works (Wikidata credits him with a nine-volume history 'from Assyria onwards'), rhetorical composition (described as a rhetorician), and functioning as a source cited by later chroniclers (Eusebius lists him among authorities used for constructing chronologies). The sources attribute no supernatural powers or behaviors; his influence is textual and authorial rather than magical or spiritual.

Community Record

Sources
  1. [1]
    Cephalion — Wikipedia. Wikipedia entry 'Cephalion' (summary listing a mythic Cephalion and 'Cephalion (historian), Roman historian of the time of Hadrian').wiki
  2. [2]
    Cephalion — Wikidata. Wikidata entry describing Cephalion as an 'ancient Greek rhetorician and author of a 9-volume history from Assyria onwards' (as provided in extract).other
  3. [3]
    Eusebius' Chronicle (Chronicon) — archive description. Eusebius' Chronicon listed in the provided archive description: 'Among these are: Berosus, Alexander Polyhistor, Abydenus, Josephus, Castor, Diodorus, Cephalion...'.literary
  4. [4]
    The Fables of Hyginus (LP0079 - Launch of the Argo) — archive record. Archive collection containing classical reference materials used in the provided research notes (included as contextual material in the supplied sources).literary
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