Ibycus was a Greek poet of the sixth century B. C. He was born in Italy. The greater part of his life was spent at the court of Polycrates of Samos. Only fragments of his poems have survived. According to an oft repeated legend, Ibycus met death at the hands of robbers while on his way to attend the Isthmian games on :"... Isthmus of Corinth. At the time, Ibycus was in a grove sacred to Neptune, within sight of Corinth. A flock of cranes flew above his head. In his happy mood—for the god Apollo had filled him with poetic inspiration—Ibycus greeted the cranes as fellow travelers. Soon he was beset by robbers and, being unused to fight, saw that he must die. No human being was near, but the poet called on the passing cranes to avenge his death. The body of the poet was found, but none to name the murderers. The people gathered sadly in the great theater at Corinth, open to the sky, as were all ancient theaters. They all had loved the pious poet; they mourned his loss, and desired the punishment of his murderers. The terrible chorus that impersonated the Furies appeared, their pallid faces ghastly in the light of their torches, serpents writhing about their heads. In their hymn they sang of woe to the evil doer who tried to bide his deeds and avoid just punishment. The innocent listened with undefined horror; the guilty with conscious terror. As the Furies left the theater a flock of cranes came into view above the heads of the people.
Just then, amidst the highest tier, Breaks forth a voice that starts the ear: "See there, see there, Timotheus, Behold the cranes of Ibycus."
In an instant, the guilty man knew that he had revealed himself and his comrade. The hosts of people knew that the murderers had been discovered. Schiller has told the story in verse.
