Der Totengeist des Laius in Statius’ Thebais

Abstract

According to a widespread tradition, Laius was buried in Phocis after his death. Areview of the relevant passages in Statius’ Thebaid shows that the poeta doctus alludes to thisversion of the story, but he himself follows a different mythical variant: The body of Laiusremained unburied, which meant that his ghost could not cross the border river to theunderworld. In this way the denied or perverted burial, a dominant thematic concern in theThebaid, is projected back into the prehistory of the plot.