Charles Graux (23 November 1852 – 8 January 1882) was a French classicist and palaeographer. Apart from scores of articles and reviews, he published important critical editions of works by

Xenophon Xenophon of Athens (; grc, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Greek mercenary armies o ...

and

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ' ...

and pioneering, descriptive catalogs of the medieval copies of ancient Greek texts preserved in the libraries of Spain and Denmark. His most enduring contributions were to the history of ancient

stichometry Stichometry is the practice of counting lines in texts: Ancient Greeks and Romans measured the length of their books in lines, just as modern books are measured in pages. This practice was rediscovered by German and French scholars in the 19th ...

. In an article that Kurt Ohly called 'epoch-making' he proved that ancient Greek authors and scribes measured the length of prose texts in standard lines just as modern books are measured in pages and computer files in words. This standard unit, he showed, was equal in length to a Greek hexameter (about fifteen syllables or 35 letters). Graux’s survey of hundreds of ancient stichometric line-counts preserved in medieval manuscripts confirmed that the same standard line was in use from the fourth century BCE through the Christian authors of late antiquity. These results launched the rigorous study of ancient stichometry during the golden age of papyrology and led to Ohly’s definitive monograph fifty years later. Stichometry now plays a small but useful role in the study of ancient Greek and Latin papyri, and especially of the scrolls evacuated in

Herculaneum Herculaneum (; Neapolitan and it, Ercolano) was an ancient town, located in the modern-day '' comune'' of Ercolano, Campania, Italy. Herculaneum was buried under volcanic ash and pumice in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Like the ...

. Charles Graux was born in

Vervins Vervins (; nl, Wervin) is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. It is a subprefecture of the department. It lies between the small streams Vilpion and Chertemps, which drain towards the Serre. It is surrou ...

, France. He studied for three years at the

École pratique des hautes études The École pratique des hautes études (), abbreviated EPHE, is a Grand Établissement in Paris, France. It is highly selective, and counted among France's most prestigious research and higher education institutions. It is a constituent college ...

from 1871 and became a teacher there in 1874. In 1881, he earned a doctorate for his work and was appointed to a teaching position at the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

. He was an editor for several leading journals. With funding from the French government, he made his first 'scientific mission' to Spain in 1875-6 to study and catalog the Greek manuscripts in the national collections. He was received by the Spanish king and visited 60 libraries. He 'discovered' or at least brought to the attention of modern scholars some 450 Greek manuscripts. He later traveled to Sweden and Denmark and made two more voyages to Spain. On a trip to Italy, he apparently contracted

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several d ...

and died in Paris at the age of 29.Lavisse, ''Mélanges'', p. XLVIII.

References

External links

''Mélanges Graux'': memorial volume with biography''Les Articles Originaux'': collection of articles by Graux, esp. on stichometry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graux, Charles 1852 births 1882 deaths People from Aisne École pratique des hautes études alumni Academic staff of the École pratique des hautes études Deaths from typhoid fever