5 Cosmic Order, the Erinyes, and the Sun Heraclitus and Column IV (44) of the Derveni Papyrus Gábor Betegh and Valeria Piano Column IV (44) of the Derveni papyrus has received special attention from scholars for multiple reasons. Among the opening columns, this is the one which seems to bring together the two main themes of the papyrus, eschatology and cosmology, primarily through the cosmological role attributed to the Erinyes.¹ Moreover, the bottom part of the column contains arguably the earliest direct mention and quotation of Heraclitus,² raising intriguing questions about the Derveni author’s relation to Heraclitus, as well as about the text and the interpre- tation of the relevant Heraclitean fragments. Te text of this column was con- sidered relatively well-established and stable up until recently. Te most recent editions, however, introduced a number of modifications, some relatively minor, others more momentous, which necessitate a thorough reconsideration of this column.³ On the basis of the new edition of Piano, presented in this volume, we offer a systematic commentary and reassessment of the text, its reconstruction, and interpretation. In doing so, we will pay special attention to the alternative possible interpretations of the first lines of the column, to the way in which the author introduces Heraclitus in ll. 5–6, and then to the question of how much, if Tis paper is a revised version of Betegh and Piano (2019). While retaining our most important con- clusions, we tried to fine-tune our argument in a number of places, taking into account also the most recent relevant publications. Although it is the result of a joint work and intellectual exchange over a long time, the text-critical and linguistic remarks should be ascribed mainly to V. Piano and the inter- pretative arguments mainly to G. Betegh. 1 Among the many studies which highlighted this point, see Laks (1997), Most (1997), Sider (1997), Betegh (2004: 329–48), Kouloumentas (2007: esp. 123–8), Piano (2016b: 173–89, 267–74). 2 Tanks to the courtesy of Parássoglou and Tsantsanoglou, Burkert (1983) published the first, very partial, edition of col. IV (44), also noting the Heraclitus quotation. Among the many studies that fol- lowed Burkert’s paper, see especially Tsantsanoglou and Parássoglou (1988), Sider (1987) and (1997), Lebedev (1989), Livrea (2008). 3 Among the most recent contributions, see Betegh and Piano (2019) and Sedley (2019). Sedley’s novel interpretation of the first columns, which potentially affects the understanding of the entire papyrus, has its starting point in col. IV (44). See also Hladký in the present volume.