Philogelos: The First Joke Book

NML proudly presents our first virtual exhibit.

The Philogelos, typically translated as “the joker” or “the one who loves laughter”, is an ancient Greek collection of approximately 265 jokes. Dating to the 4th or 5th century CE, it typically bears the title of the world’s oldest surviving collection of jokes. NML Associate and Latin teacher Linda Thompson created these cartoons from the collection. Click on the images below to read about each joke.

Joke #1 – The Lamp	Joke #4 – Teeth	Joke 6 – Doctor Shame
Joke #12 – New Math	Joke #15 – Sleeping Barefoot	Joke #22 – Trustworthy
Joke #39 – A Black Hen	Joke #43 – Back Way	Joke 44: Sleep-eating
Joke #51 – The Well	Joke #55 – Books Support Scholar	Joke #64 – Shaving
Joke 94 – Indigestion	Joke # 99 – A Cloak	Joke #154 – The Dead Guy
Joke # 160 – Louder	Joke 164 – Dive Under!	Joke #173 – A Pot of Honey
Joke# 197 – Madam	Joke 265