Around 500 BC, a poet named Simonides was hired to perform at a feast. He was the first Greek poet known to demand payment for his verses. Legend says he kept two chests, one for gratitude, which stayed empty, and one for money, which he actually valued. This is the legend of how the memory palace began, the technique of memorizing anything by placing it in an imagined building. The Roman orator Cicero told the story, and it is a legend, not a record of that night. The host was a nobleman named Scopas, and the evening was meant to display his power. Simonides expected to be paid for a poem. Before the night ended, the hall would lie in ruins, and Simonides would be the only guest standing outside it.
Simonides and the Memory Palace
A poet stepped out of a banquet at Crannon, the stone roof fell on everyone inside, and the memory palace was born.
Chapter 1
The Poet Who Charged Fees
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the method of loci, also called the memory palace?
It is a memory technique in which you place vivid mental images in the rooms or spots of a building you know well. To recall the information, you walk through the building in a fixed order and collect each image. Roman teachers called it the Art of Memory.
Why did Simonides leave the banquet hall before it collapsed?
According to the legend told by Cicero, a messenger said two young riders were waiting for him at the gate. He went out and found no one. In the legend, the riders were the gods Castor and Pollux, repaying their half of a debt by saving his life.
How did Simonides identify the dead after the roof fell?
The bodies were crushed beyond recognition, but Simonides remembered where each guest had been reclining at the table. He led the families through the rubble and named the person who had occupied each spot. This let the families bury their relatives separately.
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