Phlegon’s letter on Philinnion’s return from the dead

October 13, 2026General

Source: ANCIENTS Were Recording GHOST Encounters And They Had No Reason To Lie by The Archivist's Journal

An ancient Greek ghost story survives in a letter quoted by Phlegon of Tralles. Philinnion, daughter of Deostratos and Cito, was an unwed maiden who died before marriage—not a general’s wife serving Alexander. A young man named Machates said she visited him after death, leaving her ring and burial cloth. Her parents saw her, and she died again. Her body later vanished from the tomb and was found in the room where Machates stayed; a ring he had given her was found in a cup. Haparcus wrote to Phaedimus about the case. Phlegon included the letter in his second-century AD collection of unusual events. The video argues that it was an administrative record unlikely to have been embellished; that is the video’s interpretation, not an established fact. 🔗🗿

Key facts

Phlegon’s Philinnion, daughter of Deostratos and Cito, was an unwed maiden who died before marriage; the account does not say she married a general serving Alexander or died six months into a marriage.
Machates, a young man connected with the family, said Philinnion visited him at night and gave him her ring and a piece of burial cloth.
When her parents saw Philinnion, she died again. Her body later disappeared from the tomb and was found in the room where Machates had stayed; the account also mentions a ring Machates had given her in a cup.
The story is presented as a letter from Haparcus to Phaedimus asking whether the matter should be brought to the king’s attention; the sources do not identify Haparcus as a local official.
Phlegon of Tralles preserved the letter in his second-century AD collection of unusual events, De Mirabilibus.
The video argues that the letter was an administrative record and that its writers had no motive to embellish; that interpretation is not established by the surviving account.

Sources

Philinnion and Machatesartandpopularculture.com

"Philinnion and Machates" is a ghost story by Phlegon of Tralles published in De Mirabilibus. It is the story of Philinnion, an unwed maiden ...

Ancient Greek Ghost Stories, Part Threetalesoftimesforgotten.com

Philinnion, risen from the dead, Philinnion, though supposedly dead, was still able to eat and drink. He secretly sent his slaves to fetch ...

An Ancient Ghost Story: Philinnion & Machatesworldhistory.org

The story of Philinnion & Machates warns against trusting anyone who returns from the realm of the dead. Ghosts in ancient Greece and Rome (and ...

The Ghost of Philinnion (Literature)tvtropes.org

"The Ghost of Philinnion" is a ghost story from Ancient Greece, passed around as a "true" story which supposedly took place during the reign of King Philip II ...

PHILINNION - Macedonian Ghoul of Ancient Greek Legendtheoi.com

PHILINNION was an unwed maiden who died prematurely and returning as a ghost-inhabited corpse consorted with a handsome youth named Makhates,

Was this story useful?

← All stories