Roger S. Bagnall. Egypt in Late Antiquity (Princeton U P, 1993) p 65.

Exegetes. A person who explains or interprets difficult parts of written works. exegete is from Greek exegetes, from the verb exegeisthai, "to interpret," and is related to exegesis. The Exegetes handled the city of Alexandria and bore the business of this city with various tasks such as the responsibility of the city baths and the ultimate responsibilty. In this interpretation, the exegetes was the mayor of the city Alexandria in Ptolemaic and Roman times.


Of the native magistrates of the city [Alexandria], one is the exegetes who wears purple and has inherited honours and oversees the business of the city [Strabo XVII 1 12].