Eratosthenes of cyrene biography of william hill

Eratosthenes of Cyrene was a natural philosopher and poet who is best known for his development of modern cartographical principles. He is best known for correctly calculating the circumference of the Earth and the tilt of its axis, and for making the first world map with latitude lines. His abilities were so great in so many different fields that some of his contemporaries nicknamed him Pentathalos, as a champion of multiple skills.

Biography

Eratosthenes was born in Cyrene (in modern Libya) sometime between 285 and 276 BC.

The exact year is not known. According to the 10th-century Suda, a Byzantine encyclopedia, he was born in the 126th Olympiad (276-273 BC). His later move to Alexandria can be accurately dated to either 245 or 246 BC, and is believed to have taken place when Eratosthenes was in his mid-40s.

Eratosthenes’ father was Aglaus.

He is mentioned nowhere else in Cyrenaean records, so his family was probably not pr