From the book
Stobaeus, Volume I
John Stobaeus · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordKrystallos denotes ice in the selected classification.
- In StobaeusThe Timaeus arranges frozen water by both location and degree of freezing: fully frozen water on earth is ice, while its counterpart above earth is hail.
- In this edition“Ice” is required in this account of water; “crystal” would suggest a different material.
- A place to beginIce is distinguished from hail by location in the proposed scheme.
- English renderings
- ice; crystal
Meaning
Krystallos denotes ice in the selected classification. In other settings the term and its derivatives can evoke crystal-like clarity or solidity.
Use in the book
The Timaeus arranges frozen water by both location and degree of freezing: fully frozen water on earth is ice, while its counterpart above earth is hail. Snow and frost occupy the less fully frozen branch of the account. The structure of the classification governs the meaning here.
Places to read
- I.31.9.2Ice is distinguished from hail by location in the proposed scheme.
Translation in this edition
“Ice” is required in this account of water; “crystal” would suggest a different material.
Source note
Wachsmuth, volume I, printed pp. 247. The explanation invokes the departure of fire and air from water; it is an ancient physical account rather than a modern phase diagram.