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οἷς γʼ ἀπώλεσαν Φίλιππον ἐν δίκῃ τὸν Γοργίου.
The sentence contains a crux regarding the identity of 'Philip' (Φίλιππον). While the dative plural article οἷς suggests a relative clause referring to a group previously mentioned (likely the jurors or the 'Wasps'), the verb ἀπώλεσαν (they destroyed/lost) combined with the accusative Φίλιππον presents a historical difficulty. There is no record of a 'Philip, son of Gorgias' being lost in a legal proceeding in the context of Aristophanes' *Wasps* (422 BCE). This has led some scholars to conjecture a textual corruption, suggesting the name might be a later interpolation or that the name refers to a figure whose historical attestation is obscure or the name is a pun on a different figure (e.g., Philip of Amphipolis, though chronologically problematic for the play's original performance, or a reference to a lost play by Aristophanes). Alternatively, some propose that Φίλιππον is a corruption of a different name, possibly related to the historical figure Gorgias himself or a specific defendant in a known case, but the phrase 'lost Philip, son of Gorgias' in a trial context remains a significant unexplained anomaly in the text's transmission and interpretation.
Wasps. Aristophanes. . 2026-09-08.