Hesiod, the Homeric Hymns, and Homerica

Hesiod was an early Greek poet and rhapsode, who presumably lived around 700 BC. Hesiod and Homer are generally considered the earliest Greek poets whose work has survived since at least Herodotusas time and they are often paired. Hesiodas writings serve as a major source on Greek mythology, farming techniques, archaic Greek astronomy and ancient time-keeping. Of the many works attributed to Hesiod, three survive complete and many more in fragmentary state, these include: Works and Days, Theogony and The Shield of Heracles. Homer was an ancient Greek epic poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey. They are commonly dated to the late 9th or early 8th century BC, and many scholars believe the Iliad is the oldest extant work of literature in the ancient Greek language, making it the first work of European literature. The ancient Greeks generally believed that Homer was a historical individual, but some modern scholars are skeptical: no reliable biographical information has been handed down from classical antiquity.