As is typical with ancient writers, the details of Sophocles' life are shrouded in uncertainty. Reliable sources are scarce, and much of the information available to scholars relies on educated guesses rather than concrete biographical facts, often complicated by contradictory accounts. Sophocles, regarded as the most approachable figure among the trio of Greek tragedians (alongside Euripides and Aeschylus), is believed to have been born around 496 BC in Colonus, near Athens - a locale that becomes significant in his play Oedipus at Colonus, particularly in the Ode to Colonus beginning at line 668.
Historical records suggest that Sophocles authored 123 plays during his lifetime, with the...