Wall of Mycenaean Troy On the left is seen the wall of the VI Stratum, and on the right ap- IKjar the foundations of structures built in Roman times. In the dis- tance stretches the valley of the Simois. THE VANDERBILT ORIENTAL SERIES V* -A edited by Herbert Gushing Tolman and James Henry Stevenson WEISSENBORN'S HOMEEIC LIFE TRANSLATED AND ADAPTED TO THE NEEDS OF AMERICAN STUDENTS BY GILBERT CAMPBELL SCOGGIN, M.A. Vanderbilt University AND CHARLES GRAY BURKITT, M.A. Vanderbilt University ILLUSTRATED NEW YORK : CINCINNATI : CHICAGO AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY VAiNDEl!r.lLT ORIENTAL SERIES EDITED BY PROFESSORS HERBERT GUSHING TOLMAN, Ph.D., AND JAMES HENRY STEVENSON, Ph.D. INDEX TO THE CHANDOGYA UPANISHAD ' {Ready) By Charles Edgak Little, Ph.D. THE CHANDOGYA UPANISHAD (Nearly Beady) Translatert by C. E. Little THE TEXT OF THE CHANDOGYA UPANISHAD Edited by C. E. Little ' INDEX OF RITES TO THE GRIHYA SUTRAS By H. C. TOLMAN OUTLINE OF VEDIC MYTHOLOGY By H. C. TOLMAN ASSYRIAN AND BABYLONIAN CONTRACTS (with Aramaic Reference Notes). Tran.scribed from the Orijdnals in the British Museum, with Trausliteratiou and Translation (Ready) By J. H. Stevenson HISTORY OF THE DISCOVERY AND DECIPHERMENT OF THE CUNEIFORM INSCRIPTIONS By J. H. Stevenson FINAL CLAUSES IN THE SEPTUAGINT (Nearly Ready) By John Wesley Rice, Ph.D. HEBREW SYNONYMS By Dr. Isidore Lewinthal ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE JEWISH SYTVAGOGUE By Isidore Lewinthal HERODOTUS AND THE EMPIRES OF THE EAST. Based on Nikel's Herodot und die Keilscliriftfor.'*chung (Ready) By the Editors THE BOOK OF SAMUEL. Text, Vocabulary, and Grammatical, Syiiiactical, and Exegetical Notes for the Use of Intermediate Classes By J. H. Stevenson THE MYCENAEAN ARMOR. Based on the Recent Conclusions of Reichel and Robert By Benjamin Magruder Drake, Ph.D. HOMERIC LIFE. By Professor Edimiiid Weisseiiborn. (Ready) Translated by G. C. Scoggin, M.A., and Charles Gray Bdr- KITT, M.A. THE RIG VEDA. Part I. The A^vin Hymns Translated by Herbert Z. Kip, Ph.D. Further Announcements Will Follow Copyright, 1003, by Gilbert Campbell Scoggln and Charles Gray Bcrkitt PREFACE In translating Professor Edmund Weissenborn's Leben und Sitte hel Ilomer we have endeavored, as far as possible, to adapt it to the needs of American students. Consequently, some sections which are of interest chiefly to German readers have been omitted, while others have been amplified. For a more complete discussion of the various sub- jects treated, references have been given to: Harring- ton and Tolman's Greek and Roman Mythology^ for a fuller treatment of the origin and development of the myths; Reichel's IloineviscJie Waffen (edition of 1901), for modern theories respecting Homeric armor; Tsountas and Manatt's The Mycenaean Age, for a more detailed account of the recent excavations. We regret that we have not been able to refer to Professor Sey- mour's Greece in the Homeric Age, soon to appear in the Yale Bicentennial Series. For illustrative material we are indebted to: Bau- meister's Denhmdler ; Brunn's Griechische Gotter- ideale,' Guhl and Koner's Lehen. der Griechen %md Romer; Dorpfeld's Troja, 1893; Heinrich's Troja hei Homer und in der Wirhlichkeit. The chapter dealing with the Troad is from an article by Professor H. C. Tolnian, written soon after a visit to the East, and is quoted with his permission. The chapter on Hissarlik is translated from Dr. Wil- helm Dorpf eld's Troja, Bericht ilher die im J alive 1893 in Troja veranstalteten Ausgrahungen. (5) 4961^82 6 PREFACE A select bibliography has been added, which we hope will prove a valuable feature of the work. We are aware that absolute consistency in the ren- dering of Greek names is, as yet, an impossibility. As a rule, the Latin form has been given when such exists, but in a few cases unfamiliar names are mere- ly transliterated. Our purpose has been to avoid all strange and uncouth forms by giving those current in English literature. In referring to Homer we have adopted the com- mon method of using Greek capitals for the books of the Liad, and small letters for those of the Odyssey. We would here express our thanks to Professor Weissenboru, of the Gymnasium at Mtihlhausen, for his generous permission to use freely his excellent little volume. Acknowledgment is due to Professor Thomas Car- ter and Dr. B. M. Drake, of Vanderbilt University, for their careful reading of the proof. To the editors of the Vanderbilt Oriental Series, Professors H. C. Tolman and J. H. Stevenson, we are greatly indebted for many valuable suggestions and criticisms. Especially to Professor Tolman, our teacher, we wish to express our gratitude for his constant inter- est and oversight during the preparation of this en- tire work. Gilbert Campbell Scoggin, Charles Gray Burkitt. Vanderbilt University, NashviUe, Tenn., Feb. 14, 1903. TABLE OF COIS^TENTS THE NATIONAL EPIC Page 1. Mythical Elements 21 2. The Hero-Tales of the Trojan War 23 3. Blending of Myth and Hero-Tales among the Greeks. 24 4. Relation of Myth and Hero-Story Illustrated by the Nibelungenlied 26 5. Rise of Hero-Epic 28 6. Unity of Action 29 7. The Beginning of the Epic Introduces Us into the Midst of the Action 30 8. Brevity of the Main Action: the Episodes 81 9. The Epic Is a Detailed Picture of an Entire Period of Civilization 32 10. Similes 33 11. Ornamental Epithets 40 12. Meter 40 RELIGION THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 13. Origin of Religious Conceptions 43 Ckonidae 14. Zeus 44 15. Hera 46 16. Demeter 46 17. Hades 47 18. Poseidon 47 Other Olympic Gods: Children of Zeds 19. Apollo 49 20. Artemis 50 (7) 8 CONTENTS ~~~ Page 21. Pallas Athena J 50 22. Ares 51 23. Aphrodite 51 24. Hephaestus _ 52 25. Hermes 53 Worship 26. Relation of Man to Deity 53 27. Sacrilice and Prayer 54 28. Prophecy 55 29. The Oath 57 HOMERIC SOCIETY Public Life 30. The Kingly Power 58 31. The Aristocracy , 59 32. The Middle Class 59 33. The Slaves 60 Private Life 34. The Family 61 35. Marriage 61 36. The Marriage Ceremony 62 37. The Housewife 64 38. Children 64 39. Squires 65 The Rights of Strangers 40. Piracy 66 41. Hospitality 66 42. The Suppliant 67 43. Forms of Social Intercourse 68 HOMERIC ANTIQUITIES The Homeric House 44. The Plan of the House 71 4o. 'J'he Interior of the Palace 74 40. Furniture 75 CONTENTS 9 Clothing and Mode of Life Pagk 47. Weaving • '<^7 48. The Dress of the Men 78 49. The Dress of the Women 'i'8 50. The Three Meals 79 51. The Chariot «1 53. Armor • 83 Warfare 53. The Duel « 89 54. Conflicts between Champions 90 55. The General Engagement 92 The Homeric Ship 56. The Shipbuilder 92 57. The Barge of Odysseus 94 Business, Trade, Sport, and Amusement 58. Trade 94 59. Industrial Activity 95 60. Artists 97 61. The Wealth of the Homeric Princes and Nobles 97 62. Horticulture 99 63. Fishing 99 64. Hunting • 100 65. Contests and Dancing 102 HOMERIC GENEALOGY 66. The Dardanidae of Ilios 105 67. The Aeacidae of Aegina 105 68. The House of Odysseus of Ithaca 106 69. The Tantalidae of the Peloponnesus 106 LANDS AND PEOPLE 70. Greece 107 71. The Greek Islands 108 72. The Asiatic Coast 110 73. More Distant Countries 110 74. Fabulous Countries and Nations 112 75. Coui-se of the Wanderings of Odysseus 112 10 CONTENTS THE TROAD Page 76. General Description of the Plain 115 77. The Scamander 120 78. The Simois 123 79. Bunai-bashi 124 80. Schliemanu's Troy. 11 Stratum 126 81. Dorpfeld's Troy. VI Stratum 128 82. Mycenaean Civilization 132 83. Was There a Real Troy? 138 HISSARLIK. 84. The VI Stratum and the Homeric Pergamos 141 85. Table of the Kine Strata 143 86 The Dimensions of the Sixth City Compared with Oth- er Citadels 144 I LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Fio. Paok Wall at Mycenaean Troy. VI Stratum (Frontispiece) . 1. Homer (Naples, National Museum) 27 2. Odysseus Presenting Cup to Polyphemus 37 3. Olympian Zeus (from a Coin of Elis) 44 4. Zeus Otricoli (Rome, Vatican) 45 5 The Praying Boy (Berlin) 54 6. Hera Ludovisi (Rome, Museo Boncampagni) 56 7. Demeter of Cnidus (British Museum) 68 8. Poseidon (Rome, Lateran) 70 9. Kyanos Frieze (from Palace at Tiryns) . . 74 10. The Tiryns Bull (Fresco from Palace) 75 11. Armchair 76 13. Loom 77 13. Gold Cup from Mj^cenae 80 14. Apollo Belvidere (Rome, Vatican) ' 82 15. War Chariot 83 16. The Warrior Vase from Mycenae 84 17. Breastplate ' 86 18. Artemis of Versailles (Louvre) 88 19. Aphrodite of Melos (Louvre) 91 20. Ship 93 21. Barge of Odysseus 94 22. Inlaid Dagger Blade from Mycenae 96 23 Hephaestus (Rome) 98 24. Hermes (Florence, UflSzi) 101 25. Athena Parthenos (Athens, National Museum) 104 26. Mount Ida from the Sea 115 37. The Site of Troy 118 28. Siege Scene from Silver Vase (Mycenae) 125 29. Gold Ornaments (with Spirals and Rosettes) from II Stratum 127 30. Great North-East Tower at Troy 131 31. P'alse-Necked Mycenaean Jar 133 (H) 12 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Page 32. The Lions' Gate at Mycenae 133 83. False-Necked Amphora from Crete 135 34. Gold Cups from Vaphio, Near Sparta (Athens, Nation- al Museum) 136 LIST OF PLANS Plan I. Palace of Odysseus 72 Plan II. The Citadel of VI Stratum 129 LIST OF MAPS Map A. The Wanderings of Odysseus Ill Map B. The Troad 131 SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY Mythology K. P. Harrington and H. C. Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, Sanborn & Co., Boston, 1897, Valuable for a study of the origin and development of the various myths. C. M. Gayley, The Classic Myths in English Literature, Ginn & Co., Boston, 1893. H. A. Guerber, Myths of Greece and Rome, American Book Co., New York, 1893. The last two are helpful in the study of the myths from a literary standpoint. They are beauti- fully illustrated. A. S. Murray, Manual of Mythology, revised by W. H. Klapp, Altemus, Philadelphia, 1898. Bullfinch, Age of Fable, revised by J. L. Scott, Philadelphia, 1898. John Eiske, Myths and Myth-makers, Houghton, Mifflin & Co., Boston, 1897. Louis Dyer, The Gods in Greece, London, 1891., E. H. Myer, Indogermanische Mythen, Berlin, 1883. L. Preller, Griechische Mythologie, revised by C. Robert, Berlin, 1887. W. H. Roscher, Studien zur vergleichenden Mythologie der Griechen und Romer, Leipzig, 1872. W. H. Roscher, Ausfiihrliches Le:x:ikon der griechischen und romischen Mythologie, Leipzig, 1884. Luigi, Religion et Morale d'Homere, 1891. Translating Homer Matthew Arnold, Studies in Celtic Literature and on Trans- lating Homer, Macmillan, New York, 1883. (13) 14 HOMERIC LIFE H. C. Tolman, The Art of Translating, Sanborn & Co., Bos- ton, 1900. C. E. Bennett and George P. Bristol, The Teaching of Latin and Greek in the Secondary Schools, Longmans, Green & Co., New York, 1900. Veese Translations George Chapman, The Iliads of Homer, Prince of Poets, nev- er before in any language truly translated; with a comment upon some of the chief places, done according to the Greek. The translation of the Iliad was published 1598- 1611; the Odyssey, 1614-1615. Alexander Pope, Iliad (1720), Odyssey (under his supervision 1735). William Cowper, Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, 1791. W. C. Bryant, The Iliad of Homer, 1870; The Odyssey of Ho- mer, 1871. Prose Translations Lang, Leaf, and Myers, The Iliad of Homer, Macmillan & Co., 1883. John Purves, The Iliad of Homer, London, 1891. G. H. Palmer, The Odyssey of Homer, Houghton, Mifflin & Co., Boston, 1891. Butcher and Lang, The Odyssey of Homer, Macmillan & Co., 1879. Critical Texts A. Ludwich, Homeri Carmina, Ilias, Vol. I.. Leipzig, 1902. Van Leeuwen and da Costa, Homeri Odysseae Carmina, Leyden, 1898. P. Cauer, Homeri Ilias, Leipzig, 1891. Pick, Die homeriche Ilias nach ihrer Entstehung betrachtet SELECT BIBLIOGRArHY 15 und mit der urspriinglichen Sprachform wiederherge- stellt, 1885. Fick, Die Odyssee wiederhergestellt, 1887. Fick, Das Lied vom Zorne Achills, Bzzb., Beitr., 1895. Fick, Die Erweiterung der Meuis, Bzzb., Beitr., 1898. Annotated Editions Ameis and Hentze, Homers Ilias fiir den Schulgebrauch er- kliirt, Leipzig. A most lielpful edition, and annually revised. W. Leaf, The Iliad of Homer, Macmillan, 1894. D. B. Monro, Homer, Iliad, Oxford, 1893. Leaf and Bayfield, Homer, Iliad, Macmillan, 1898. Merry, The Odyssey, Oxford, 1888. Lexicons Ebeling, Lexicon Homericum, Leipzig, 1885. Gehring, Index Homericus, Leipzig, 1895. Ebeling, Schulworterbuch zu Homer, Leipzig, 1890. Capelle, Worterbuch iiber die Gedichte des Homeros und die Homeriden, 1889. Autenrieth-Keep, Homeric Dictionary, American Book Com- pany, 1891. The Homeric Question Frederich August Wolf, Prolegomena ad Homerum, 1795. Karl Lachmann, Betrachtungen iiber Homers Ilias, 1837. Grote, History of Greece, Vol. II., 1846. Kirchhoff, Die homerische Odyssee und ihre Entstehung, 1839. W. Christ, Homeri Iliadis Carmina seiuncta discreta emen- data. H. Bonitz, Ueber den Ursprung der homerischen Gedichte, 1880. 16 ^OMEKIC LIFE P. Cauer, Grundfragen der Homerkritik, 1895. C. Robert, Studien zur Ilias. 1901. E.Weissenborn, Achilleis und Ilias. EiaVersuch zurEinigung in der homerischen Frage (Progr. von Miihlhausen in Thur.), 1890. W. D. Geddes, The Problem of the Homeric Poems, London, 1878. W. Leaf, A Companion to the Iliad, London, 1893. A. Lang, Homer and the Epic, London, 1893. Study of Homek in Antiquity Dindorf and Maass, Scholia, eight volumes, 1855-1887. La Roche, Die Homerische Textkritik im Alterthum, 1866. Lehrs, De Aristarchi Studiis Homericis, 1882. Ludwich, Aristarchs Homerische Textkritik, 1885. Language Monro, Homeric Grammar, Oxford, 1891. Seymour, Homeric Language and Verse, Boston, 1885. Piatt, Homer's Similes (Journal of Philology), 1895. Hunt, Homer's Wit and Humor (Transactions of American Philological Association), 1890. Jebb, Introduction to Homer, London, 1893. Symonds, Greek Poets, Vol. I . 51-160. Antiquities Seymour, Greece in the Homeric Age, Yale Bicentennial Pub- lications (in preparation). Tsountas and Manatt, The Mycenaean Age. Boston, 1897. Schuchhardt-Sellers, Schliemann's Excavations, London and New York, 1891. Frazer, Pausanias, Vols. III. and V., London and New York, 1898. SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY 17 Dorpfeld, Troja, 1893. Bericht iiber di« im Jahre 1893 in Troja veranstalteten Ausgrabuugen, Leipzig. Dorpfeld, Mittheilungen des archiiologischen Institutes, Athen, 1894. Reicliel, Homerische Waffen, 2d Edition, Wien. 1901. Drake, M3^cenaean Armor, based on the recent conclusions of Reichel and Robert, Vanderbilt Oriental Series (in preparation). Buchholz, Homerische Realien, 1885. Helbig, Das homerische Epos aus den Denkmiilern erkliirt, 1887. Robert, Studien zur Ilias, 1901 Joseph, Die Palaste des homerischeu Epos, 1895. Keller, Homeric Society, New York, 1902. Moreau, Les assemblees politiques d'aprus I'lliade et I'Odys- sre, 1892. Muller, Die Sage von trojauischen Kriege und die homer- ische Dichtung, 1893. Scbenkl, Die homerische Palastbeschreibung in Od. und ihre alten ErkUirer, 1893. rorchhammer. Homer. Seine Sprache; die Kampfplatze seiner Heroen und Gotter in der Troas, 1893. Ludwich, Schliemanns Ausgrabungen und die homerische Kultur, 1893. Doerwald, Der Palast des Odysseus, 1894. Fellner, Der homerische Bogen, 1894. Albrecht, Kampf und Kampfschilderung bei Homer, 1895. Heinrich, Troja bei Homer und in der Wirklichkeit, 1895. Tolman, A visit to the plain of Troy, with brief account of the excavations of 1893. Fellner, Die homerische Flora, Wien, 1897. 18 HOMERIC LIFE Kretsclimer, Die thrakisch-phrygischen Stamme (Geschichte der Griech. Sprache), Gottingen, 1896. Hellems, The Women of the Homeric Poems, 1895. Piatt, The Slaying of the Suitors (Journal of Philology), 1895. Beisch, Ithaka, 1895. Isham, Homeric Palace, 1898. Terret, Homer, Etude Historique et Critique, 1899. Kluge, Vorhomerische Abbildungen homerischer Kampfsce- nen (N. Jahrh. f. Phil.), 1891. Gardner, New Chapters in Greek History, 1892. Menge, Ithaka der Wirklichkeit(Zeitsch. f. d. Gymn. XXXV.), 1891. Heicliel, Die Orsothyre in homerischen Megaron (Archaeol. Epigraph. Mittheilgn. ausOesterreich-Ungai'n), 1895. Pavlatos, 'H a'Arfii/q 'IdoK// Toi) H)jifjpov. Michael, Das homerische und das heutige Ithaka. Jevons, Iron in Homer (Journal of Hellenic Studies), 1892. Haskins, Homeric Fishingtackle (Journal of Philology), 1891. Seymour, Homeric Viands (Proc. Am. Philol. Assn.), 1899. HOMERIC LIFE (19) 7roA.Aa»v 8' avOpiiiTTOiv lhf.v aorea koa, voov eyvw (20) THE :n"atio^al epic 1. Mythical Elements. The National Epic takes its subject-matter from primitive folk-myths and hero- contests. By the Greeks all nature was peopled with godlike beings. The bright noonday sky they adored as Zeus, and the starry heaven of night as his spouse, Hera. The radiant sun was worshiped as Phoebus Apollo, the moon as Apollo's sister, Arte- mis. The blue sky, returning after the thunder- storm, was deitied as Pallas Athena, the daughter of Zeus, sprung from his head, and the storm wind be- came Hermes, messenger of the gods. In every fountain dwelt a nymph, in every river a god; the shady grove was inhabited by dryads (Z, 420), and the strangely formed stalactite cave was the Naiads' home (v, 107). About these divinities imagination invented strange myths. In South Thessaly, where Mount Pelion overlooks the surrounding landscape, old Peleus ruled as king. He had married the sea nymph Thetis, and the fruit of this union was swift-footed Achilles, who was nur- tured and brought up in his youth by Chiron, the mountain centaur. The mists rising from the sea settled about the summit of Mount Pelion; out of the bosom of the cloud sprang the waters, which, gather- ing into a small mountain stream, flowed downward with ever-increasing speed and uproar.^ Like a ^Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, 77, 78. (21) 22 HOMERIC LIFE youthful hero, all-conquering, himself unconquered, the mountain stream (Achilles) rushed to the vale below, and thus far was he his father's glory (Pa- troclus). But in the plain the brook slackened its speed, trickled away in the sand, and was finally dried up by the heat of the sun ; the hero was slain by the arrows of Apollo. There is another myth which came from those primitive times when the Greeks were still a wan- dering people. Zeus, who likewise bore the names of Agamemnon and Menelatis, was deprived of his consort, Helen (the moonlight), by Paris, the god of the underworld (the darkness); but subsequently she was victoriously regained. In another district the hero of light, who fought with the god of darkness and was wounded by him in the heel, was called Di- omedes, a favorite of Zeus and Athena. In like manner poetic imagination pictured time as a never-aging woman, who, sitting at the loom, spins day after day, only to undo her work again at night. In her youth she had been married to the bright god of spring, but the hero of the changing seasons cannot remain with his spouse; he must depart from her in order to make a journey to the far west, for the year is passing and life is fleeting. Therefore Odysseus must enter the realm of shades. The all-concealing underworld. Calypso, receives him and wishes to de- tain him; with her he should live forever in happi- ness and delight. Furthermore, there was a belief, largely based on Egyptian ideas, that, like an enchant- ress (Circe), this lower world changes into wild beasts those coming to her in the course of their souls' wan- dering. While the wife, grieving for the companion THE NATIONAL EPIC 23 of her youth, again at night unravels her fabric, the thousand shining stars swarm about her as suitors. But the reahu of the dead cannot detain the hero. With a nfever-failing regularity the year rolls round and ushers in the spring. So Odysseus returns home to Penelope, who is faithfully awaiting him, and at the feast of Apollo the sun god's arrows dissipate the night with all her stars. 2. The Hero-Tales of the Trojan War. Furthermore, tradition told of great wars that were waged in the time of the Greek migration. As memorable events of those early days there stood out prominently the futile battles about seven-gated Thebes and the final capture of Troy. The excavations in the sixth stratum of the nine buried cities of Hissarlik, begun by Schliemann and continued by Dorpfeld, support the view that ancient Troy belonged to the period of Mycenaean civilization.^ The tales of the rape of Helen and the capture of the city by means of the wooden horse point to the fact that the Trojan war fell in the time of the first migration of the Greeks into the country bordering on the Mediterranean, since they, being inexperienced in navigation, still called their vessels "horses of the sea." At the same period occurred also the long-continued strug- gles on the part of those early settlers at Tiryns, My- cenae, Thebes, and Orchomenus, a people who were probably of Phoenician origin, and who had already reached a high state of civilization. These contests, which finally led to a political union of hostile tribes, found expressi(m in the horrible tales concerning the iSee §81. 24 HOMERIC LIFE house of Mycenaean Atreiis and the family of The- ban LabdacLis, in the story of the fratricidal war be- tween Eteocles and Polynices, and in the recital of the wretched fate of the heroes who returned from Troy. 3. Blending of Myth and Hero - Tales among the Greeks. Handed down from parents to children, from times immemorial, were various myths which had lived in the mouths of the people, and which, being associated with the events of the great struggle about Troy, had grown into a single narrative. Among these may be mentioned the rape of Helen, the pre- mature death of the youthful hero, Achilles, the wan- 'derings of Odysseus into the realm of the shades, and the faithfulness of Penelope. In the course of cen- turies the stories of the siege of Troy and the events connected with it so magnified this war at home that everything centered about it. Hence out of these mythical creations arose kings and heroes whose fates were closely associated with the Trojan war, and whose divine descent alone recalled their original di- vine nature. The difierent epithets which oneand the same god bore among difierent tribes, or as a result of diflferent divine manifestations, made it possible to create new personalities. So Agamemnon and Mene- laiis, which were in reality only different epithets of Zeus, became the two royal brothers; so Patroclus, who was originally the same person as Achilles, be- came the friend of the latter and suffered the self- same fate at the hands of Apollo; so the mistress of the realm of shadows, Calypso-Circe, became two goddesses, both of whom detained Odysseus. Recol- lection of early immigration became so obscure that THE NATIONAL EPIC 25 the Greeks believed themselves to be indigenous to the soil, and only the nol)le families preserved tradi- tions concernino^ that foreign land whence they had come. The Cadmaeans regarded Phoenicia as their home; the Pelopidae, Phrygia; the Danaidae, Egypt. In this way, what had been an immigration into Greece now was regarded as an expedition from Greece. When many centuries had passed after thos6 great national movements, such as the siege of Troy, the struggle for the possession of Mycenae, and the battles about Thebes, the wandering of the Do- rians — the last stragglers in the migration — again threw the Greek peninsula into commotion. Through the pressure of the Aeolians on the north and the strength of the Achaean sovereignty in the Pelopon- nesus, these tribes were forced to emigrate to the islands of the sea and to the coast of Asia Minor. The lonians, also disturbed by the Dorians, were fired with the common desire of migrating eastward, since the fruitfulness of the Asiatic coast allured them, and the rich conquests of the first emigrants drew others after them. But the new struggles with the Asiatics recalled the old traditional war about the walls of Ilios. The contact and cooperation of the various tribes led to the belief that they, with their myths and hero-contests, were related to the Trojan war, and that every district, with its chief, had participated in it. Accordingly, a creative and all- comprehensive imagination wove the complete cycle of Trojan tales into a single long narrative, which was repeated from generation to generation. It be- gan with the marriage of Pelcus and Thetis, and ex- tended down to the final capture of the enemy's city 26 HOMERIC LIFE and the return of the heroes. The poets sought glory by rehearsing, with the accompaniment of the lyre, at royal feasts and popular festivals, the most beauti- ful episodes out of this material relating to Troy. In the person of Homer there arose the great poet of the national hero-epic, who, with his Achilleid, so far eclipsed all other poems that they passed into obliv- ion, and whom as the master of heroic song all suc- ceeding poets followed closely in form and content. Hence out of the successive contributions of later bards were formed the two great epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey. 4. Relation of Myth and Hero-Story Illustrated by the Nibelungenlied. Even in more modern times the stu- dent can see a striking illustration of the relation of myth and hero-story in the German Nibelungenlied. As in the Iliad and the Odyssey the principal heroes and actors are of mythical origin, so likewise Sig- fried, Brunhild, the Nibelungs, Kriemhild, and Ha- gen are godlike beings. Sigfried, the shining god of spring with all its blessings, overcomes the dragon of winter and liberates from her sleep of death Brun- hild (earth), who is surrounded by the fires of hell. But the spring is of short duration; the hero must go forth upon an adventure. Victoriously he penetrates the realm of mist; marries Kriemhild, the sister of the Nibelungs; wins for the Nibelung Gunnar his former love, the Valkyrie Brunhild, and in conse- quence suffers death at the hands of Hagen. But the events of the German migration, with their all- convulsing, all-transforming battles; the destruction of the Burgundiau kingdom by the Huns under Gun- ther; the great battle at Chalons; the murder of At- iifeiiiiiiiilMi^^ Fig. 1. Homer (Naples, National Museum.) (27) 28 HOMERIC LIFE tila by his wife Ildico, who as sister of the Burgun- dian kings avenged their death; the mighty deeds of the victorious Theodoric — all result in a transforma- tion and a final blending of mythical action with his- torical events. While the myths and stories of the migration were handed down for centuries, imagina- ry forms and miraculous deeds, in the popular mind, lost all supernatural character. The godlike beings were changed to men, and became companions of the celebrated warrior kings. The myths perished en- tirely in the story of the splendor of the Burgundian kingdom, the mighty battles of the Burgundian kings, and their destruction by the Huns. 5. Rise of Hero-Epic. In the Nibelungenlied we meet a process remarkably similar to that which was at work in the composition of the Iliad and the Odyssey. When the recollection of the stories of the great migrations became again vivid through the crusades, with those splendid wars and achievements which stirred and transformed the whole world, the poet was impelled to sing in hero-song what had come down to him from the past. To a striking degree the German epic resembles the Iliad. In the former, the war with the Huns does not constitute the main ac- tion, nor in the latter do the contests of the Trojans; but, as in the Iliad, Achilles's heroic character and devotion to his friend constitute the central point about which everything is grouped and to which all the war tales are linked, so, in the Nibelungenlied, the central point is Sigfried's love and death. As the whole Iliad is pervaded by the thought that in the mind of the hero honor and loyalty to a friend stand higher than even his own life, as Odysseus rejects im- THE NATIONAL EPIC 29 mortality and a life of abundance and delight for his home and wife, so likewise in the Nibelungenlied, in spite of the looser connection of its parts, the idea prevails that men must preserve loyalty under all circumstances. So Sigfried remains steadfast even unto death in the service to which he has voluntarily pledged himself; Kriemhild as a faithful wife avenges the death of her beloved to the destruction of her own family; Gunther and his brothers, Hagen and Volker, maintain their loyalty as men and kings in their devotion to their people. 6. Unity of Action. Not only do both Iliad and Odyssey present one hero and one idea, but unity of treatment prevails' throughout both epics. The strife between Achilles and Agamemnon, at the opening of the Iliad, is the cause of all the disasters of the poem up to the death of Hector. When Achilles with- draws from the light on account of the inconsiderate action of the tyrannical and selfish king, Agamem- non goes forth against the Trojans without him, but is defeated, and along with other heroes is seriously wounded. The distress of the Greeks, whose vessels are already threatened by the Trojan firebrands, im- pels the sympathetic Patroclus to don Achilles's ar- mor and to advance at the head of the Myrmidons to assist the Greeks, who are sorely pressed. Here he perishes. The deep grief at the loss of his dearest friend becomes in Achilles the dominant passion, causing him to forget his resentment toward Aga- memnon. Although Achilles knows that soon after Hector's fall he too must meet his fate, yet he is driven by loyalty to his friend and by his heroic character to avenge the death of Patroclus, and does 30 HOMERIC LIFE not rest until he has slain Hector. The unity of ac- tion pervading all the events of the Iliad is the chief reason why we must regard one poet as the creator of its principal part, the Achilleid, the main action of which is assumed by the other portions of the poem. Likewise in the Odyssey the central idea is that the man of noble character values love for his own peo- ple and loyalty to his nation far beyond a life of pleasure and delight in exile. In the same way (to illustrate again by the German epic) unity pervades the whole Nibelungenlied. Although the connection of the adventures appears much looser, and the poem itself falls into two great divisions, yet the one idea of loyalty is everywhere supreme. Kriem- hild is the character which binds both parts into a whole, and all episodes become subordinate to the main action. The exploits of the Trojan war, the re- turn of the heroes, and the tribal migrations, which influenced and convulsed the whole nation for centu- ries, afterwards furnished material for the national epic. So it is that this setting forms the broad and dark background for brilliant and soul-stirring ac- tion. 7. The Beginning of the Epic Introduces Us into the Midst of the Action. The poem plunges in medias res. It begins with that point of the action or situation which is a crisis so comprehensive as to open up a wide perspectiv>e toward the future and the final goal. The description of the plague and the fateful strife between the great hero and the king furnishes us a clear insight into the conditions of the war and the situations in the camp. It also reveals to us the inner nature and the different characters of the he- THE NATIONAL EPIC 31 roes and awakens our sympathy for Achilles, who, so popular and so noble, is to meet an early death. In the Iliad we visit the Greek camp with Chryses, the priest of Apollo, as he comes to ransom his captive daughter. In the Odyssey we accompany the god- dess Athena to Ithaca, and there learn the vain im- portunities of the suitors and the helpless condition of the family of the absent Odysseus. We hear the goddess as she encourages Telemachus to seek infor- mation about his absent father. Our sympathy for Telemachus and our aversion to the arrogant nobles reach their highest point when we hear of their plots against the life of the young prince. 8. Brevity of the Main Action: the Episodes. Unity of treatment requires that the action be limited to fi comparatively short time. Accordingly, out of the ten years of the Trojan war Homer has selected only a few days — up to the death of Hector only six eventful days— in which the great events take place. Of the forty-one days embraced in the action of the Odyssey, only sixteen form a vital part of the narrative; and if we take the Telemachy as contem- poraneous with the adventures of Odysseus, the num- ber is actually reduced to ten. So, too, in Goethe's Hermann und Dorothea, where the author endeavors to imitate Homeric style, we find the action limited to half a day. In his treatment of the action the poet is accustomed to interweave a retrospect of the events which have preceded. Hence Homer has Odys- seus himself relate his adventures from the sack of Troy to his arrival at the Isle of Calypso; in the Ni- belungenlied, Hagen narrates Sigfried's youthful deeds; and in Goethe's poem, cited above, the magis- 32 HOMERIC LIFE trate depicts the terrors of the revolution and Doro- thea's fate. In general, where the poet comes to speak of new persons and great events, he treats with clearness, breadth, and faithful minuteness all that is known to him of their past. This addition of episodes and their relative independence of the main action form a striking peculiarity of epic poetry. There are depicted for us the quiet existence and ac- tivity of men and events in all their completeness. Therefore we do not hasten impatiently toward the goal, but tarry with interest at every step. 9. The Epic Is a Detailed Picture of an Entire Period of Civilization. The poet gives everything which stands in relation to the main action; so the stream of his narrative flows along, ever broader, ever richer, ever mightier, and his poem assumes the shape of a world picture. All antiquity, with its conditions, the customs of the people, the public and private life in all phases, are revealed before our eyes. The fates of the heroes are under the influence of a world of law and morals, for "the will of Zeus is accomplished" (A, ,5). The poet surveys with deep insight the activ- ity of the world, and penetrates the relation of things; he realizes how all human action strives to- ward a divinely appointed goal; he perceives that greatness is reached only when one is in harmony with the divine, and that those who insolently disre- gard the right bring upon themselves an avenging fate. Zeus, the father of men and gods, is the giver of every blessing, being himself the personification of kindness and compassion; he is the protector of the weak, the wretched, the persecuted, and he weighs destiny in his righteous hand; the gods are his help- THE NATIONAL EPIC 33 ers and agents in the exercise of his universal sov- ereignty. 10. Similes. Similes enliven epic poetry. By means of a comparison with well-known phenomena of na- ture or of human life they bring the point of the ac- tion or situation ^ vividly before the imagination. A peculiarity of Homeric similes consists not so much in the fact that they render conspicuous and emphatic the point of similarity as that they give in the com- parison a complete and well-rounded picture, with all details and attendant circumstances. Thus we are led into a new circle of ideas; our imagination is excited; we grasp the epic deed or situation easily and quick- ly, and present it vividly to our minds. Similes con- stantly accompany the episodes. The poet is accus- tomed to employ them especially where a new element enters into the action or where things take a new turn. In order to render such a point conspicuous, several similes often follow in quick succession. For example, the first advance of the Greeks to battle (B, 45.5-480) is clearly portrayed by means of six pictures illustrating different stages, from the assembling of the troops to their final preparation for attack. When Menelaiis (F, 23) perceives Paris boastfully striding forward, clad in his leopard's skin, he springs down from his chariot and rushes toward him as the bloodthirsty lion which leaps upon its prey. Paris shrinks back in terror like the man who, pale with horror, starts back before a threatening serpent (r, 33). ^ The last decisive onslaught of the Trojans, at the ^Seymour, Homeric Language and Verse, pp. 16, 17. 3 34 HOMERIC LIFE end of the 15th book, is pictured by four compari- sons (O, 605-634). The sorrow of Patroclus at the misfortune of the Greeks is depicted in two similes: Tears spring from his eyes like the fountain from the rock (11, 3); and he weeps like a little girl who clings to the gar- ment of her mother, and with tears in her eyes begs to be taken up into her arms (n, 6). The Myrmidons are eagerly bent upon battle, like wolves that have sated themselves upon the stag, and. dripping with blood, rush forward to the forest stream (11, 156). The Greeks pour forth from the line of ships like a swarm of exasperated wasps that rush upon the first passer-by (IT, 259). When Achilles (T, 356) arouses the Greeks to bat- tle, the troops stream forth from the ships, and every where bronze helmets, shields, and lances gleam like glittering snowliakes that fall from heaven under the breath of the cold north wind. Achilles's shield, when he has donned his armor (T, 375), flames in bright splendor as a fire which, burning upon the mountain, shines far out to sea. When the plain of the Scamander ( Y, 1 64 ) is fil led with warriors and char- iots, and Aeneas steps forth from the foe, Achilles starts up like a lion that, hard pressed by a crowd of hunters, lashes his sides with his tail and, foaming with rage, makes ready for the fray. Achilles rushes toward the city as a victorious race- horse dashes over the plain (X, 22). He flashes in the gleam of his bronze armor (X, 26) as Orion, the most brilliant among the stars of night. As the ser- pent which has sated itself upon the poisonous herbs coils about its hole and awaits the approaching man THE NATIONAL EPIC 35 (X, 93), SO Hector awaits his opponent at the Scaean gate. When Achilles approaches, Hector trembles and flees; Achilles rushes after him, like the mountain hawk after the fleeing doves (X, 139). As horses crowned with victory bend their course around the goal (X, 162), so the heroes three times encircle Priam's wall. As the hound pursues the young stag startled from its covert, and as often as it tries to conceal itself rouses it up (X, 189), so Achilles drives the fleeing Hector aside into the fleld again when he attempts to approach the city walls. As in a dream one cannot overtake a fleeing form (X, 199), and the other cannot escape, so Achilles can- not reach Hector, and Hector cannot escape his pur- suer. Finally Hector craves the assurance that the body of whoever is slain maybe inviolate, but Achilles answers (X, 262) that as no compact is possible between men and lions, and as wolves and lambs will never be- come reconciled to each other, so there can be no pledge between them. In this manner the action of the Iliad is clearly in- dicated and rendered conspicuous in all its chief points by more than a hundred similes which are found dis- tributed throughout the poem. The Odyssey has thirty-four similes. As in the Ni- belungenlied Kriemhild's sad fate and the issue of thinofs in the distant future are set forth bv her dream, so the first simile in the Odyssey gives in picturesque completeness the outline of the incidents at Ithaca and the prophecy of their outcome. "As when in the lair of the lion a hind prepares a bed for her young the lion brings sudden destruction to all (S, 333-34:0), so Odys- seus, returning home, will bring death upon the suit- 36 HOMERIC LIFE ors." It is striking how similes almost everywhere stand iu the closest connection with the action. The significant moments of Odysseus's departure from Ca- lypso and his reception by Nausicaa are presented in nine similes. Hermes hastens over the waves like the gull diving after fish (e, 51-54). When Poseidon unchains the storm, which defies all description, the poet again supplies pictures to assist the imagination. As the north wind scatters the thistledown over the field, so the tempest tosses about the rudderless wreck (e, 328-332). As the storm scat- ters a heap of chaff, so the hurricane scatters the tim- bers of the ship (e, 368-370). The poet uses simile especially to give full expres- sion to the feelings. As children rejoice when their father begins to recover from a severe illness, so is Odysseus happy when he beholds the land after the terrors of the storm (e, 394—398). As many little pebbles hang to the suckers of the polyp, so the pieces of skin flayed from his hand cleave to the rocks (e, 432-435). The rescued Odysseus barrows under the bush deep in the dry leaves, just as a farmer keeps alive in ashes the spark of the fii"el)rand (e, 488-491). Again the poet makes use of simile in order to por- tray effectively the impression made by personal ap- pearance. As Artemis surpasses in stature and noble bearing the beautiful mountain nymphs in her train, so is Nausicaa distinguished among her attendants (^, 102-107). As the hungry lion seeking his prey in wind and storm dares to approach a guarded fold, so necessity drives Odysseus to address Nausicaa (^, 130- 135). Slender as the sacred palm which Odysseus THE NATIONAL EPIC 37 once saw and admired in Delos, the maiden stood 1)6- fore him woudrously beautiful {C 166-169). As the goldsmith by o:ilding lends a charmino; brilliancy to a silv^er ornament, so Athena had spread over the shoulders of Odysseus dazzling grace (^, 232-235). Fig. 2. Odysseus PitESENTiNa Cup to Polyphemus The sobbing of Odysseus is like the wail of a capti\'e woman {0, 523-531). The effort to blind the eye of Cyclops is as the strenuous lal)or of the shipbuilder and his companions at the drill (c, 383-388). The enchanted wild beasts of Circe are compared to the dogs which the master feeds (k, 216-219). The calves skipping with joy about the cows as they return to their stall give a picture of the thronging of Odys- seus's companions around him on his return ( k, 410- 38 HOMERIC LIFE 417). His companions seized by Scylla are compared to the fish floundering at the end of the rod {/j., 251-255). The following simile beautifully portrays not only the longing, which is the real point of comparison, but also the rest which, after long suffering, will final- ly fall to the lot of the hero: As the field laborer after the day's toil longs for the setting of the sun in order to return home to his evening meal, and his knees totter as he plods along, so Odysseus yearns for the sunset (v, 31-35). It seems to us that we see the ship advancing when it is said that as horses, lightly lifting their feet, hurry over the plain, so the ship, lightly rearing its stern over the level surface of the sea, moves onward and the waves swish around the keel (v, 81-85). The poet is impelled to paint vividly the emotions of the actors. Eumaeus receives Telemachus as a father would receive his son (tt, 17-21). Odysseus and Telemachus hang in each other's embrace and sob, as sea eagles and vultures scream when deprived of their young (tt, 216-222). Eumaeus listens to the words of Odysseus as an audience to the recital of a singer (p, 518-521 ). As the melting snow disappears, so beneath her tears fades the color from the cheeks of Penelope (t, 205-208). Heavy thoughts trouble Penelope's heart, for she hesitates whether to remain with Telemachus or to follow one of the suitors, as the sorrowing nightingale complains to the night of her woes in ever-changing melodies (t, 518-524). The heart of Odysseus rages with anger at the shame- ful deeds of the suitors as a dog, protecting her young, barks wildly at the stranger (v, 14-17). Penelope, in her sorrow, wishes herself out of the world, just THE NATIONAL EPIC 39 as the storm wind, according to tradition, carried away the daughters of Pandarus (u, 60-79). The final revenge is very impressively portrayed. Odysseus stretches the cord of the bow as the player does the lyre string. It gives forth a sound as beau- tiful as the clear voice of the swallow {, 405-410). While the conflict rages in the hall, and Athena holds aloft her aegis, the suitors flee like oxen pur- sued by the gadfly. As hawks that pounce upon a flock of birds settling upon the plain, so Odysseus and his loyal followers slay their wretched victims (x> 299-307). All the suitors lie crowded together in blood and dust, like fish which have been drawn up out of the sea in a large net and emptied on the sand (x, 383-390). All dabbled with gore, Odysseus appears to Eurycleia like a lion who has sated him- self upon an ox, and drips with blood, while his eyes roll frightfully (x, 401-406). The act of re- venge closes with the death of the faithless maid- servants, who end their lives like thrushes in the snares (x, 468-473). The boundless joy of the reu- nited pair is like that of the shipwrecked who have saved their lives by swimming to the shore («/', 233- 240). The souls of the suitors conducted by Her- mes to the lower world are compared to bats flutter- ing hither and thither in the darkness (o>, 6-10). The double relation of the simile to the significant turn of the action and to the inmost feeling of the person, as we have repeatedly seen above, renders clear to us the excellent imitation of the Homeric style of Hermann und Dorothea in the passage where Hermann seeks Dorothea in marriage and comes upon her at the fountain: 40 HOMERIC LIFE As the man on a journey, who, just at the moment of sunset, Fixes his gaze once more on the rapidly vanishing planet. Then on the side of the rocks and in the dark thicket still sees he Hov'ring its image; wherever he turns his looks, on in front still Runs it, and glitters and wavers before him in colors all splen- did, So before Hermann's eyes did the beautiful form of the maiden Softly move, and appeared to follow the path through the cornfields. — Borvrmg's Translation. 11. Ornamental Epithets. Ornamental epithets {epi- theta ornantia) which might be called characteristic, ;)r, still better, graphic, serve the same purpose as similes — namely, to stimulate our imagination and to make vivid the picture. It is at the same time char- acteristic and graphic when we hear the herald de- scribed as "loud-proclaiming;" the horses, "beauti- ful-maned;" the earth, "fruit-producing;" and the sea, "loud -roaring." Such expressions force our imagination to contemplate all objects with special reference to their dominant characteristics.^ We here cite a limited number of epithets, examples of which occur on every page: "Graciously beaming eyes," the " sih'^er-shining veil," the "silver-colored linen," the "tawny hero, Menelaiis," the "man-hon- oring battleiield," "plume- waving Hector," the "long- shadowing lance," "garment -trailing wom- en," "beautiful -rimmed ships," "sea -sailing ves- sels," the "venerable mother," the "virtuous wife," "winged words." 12. Meter. Every syllable is distinguished by three characteristics: ( 1 ) The stress of tone, which is dependent upon the force with which the breath is expelled. 1 Sevmour, Homeric Language and Verse, pp. 11-13. THE NATIONAL EPIO 41 (2) The pitch of tone, which is conditioned upon the vibrations of the vocal chords and determines the character of the vowel. (3) The duration of tone, which we call quantity. In English our accent is mainly the stress accent, and it becomes the controlling factor in our versifica- tion — e. g. : *'L6t me essdy, O Muse! to follow the wdnderer's footsteps." {Longfelloiv' s Evangeline.) The Greek accent marks do not indicate the stress accent, but the pitch or musical accent; for example, of the two vowels e and o^ the former is of the higher pitch. This old law goes back to the time of our mother-speech, the Indo-European, where the relation between the stress accent and pitch accent was closer. Examples of pitch accent we see in such variations of vowels as appear in the Greek -rreTOfmi. and TroTao/uai and in the English hhid and hcoid. Greek versification is dependent upon the duration of tone. One short syllable is the unit of measure — one time (Latin mora). This corresponds to one eighth note in music. A long syllable is equivalent to two short syllables; hence it corresponds to one quar- ter note. Every foot contains one syllable which has the stress or ictus upon it. Such a syllable is desig- nated, in technical language, the arsis.^ while the rest of the foot is called the fhesis\ This nomenclature is directly opposite to that of the Greek, since thesis denoted the putting down of the foot, which of course was simultaneous with the ictus, and the arsis the raising of the foot. The confusion of terms was due to Roman writers, who applied a7\HS to the raising of the voice and thesis to its lowering. 42 HOMERIC LIFE Let the student remember that in scanning he is not reading the Greek with reference to stress accent, as he reads his English poetry, but with reference to duration of tone (quantity), the height of tone (ac- cent), and the stress of tone (ictus). The meter of the Iliad and the Odyssey is dactylic hexameter, consisting of six dactyls (— w^), the last of which is incomplete and resembles a trochee. The original form of this heroic hexameter, as it is also called, is as follows: Two short syllables can be contracted into one long syllable in every foot except the fifth, which usually remains a pure dactyl. Hence the dactyl may be re- placed by a spondee: This hexameter can be divided by a caesura into two parts: Or into three parts by two caesurae: The varied structure of the verse and the different ways in which single words are distributed into feet bring such a rich variation into the hexameter that the rhythm of the Homeric poems never becomes mo- notonous, although the same verse is repeated 12,110 times in the Odyssey and 15,693 times in the Iliad. RELIGIOK THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 13. Origin of Religious Conceptions. The oldest form of the Greek religion was similar to the nature-wor- ship of the other Indo-European races. ^ Under the title of Zeus (Indo-European dieus, Sanskrit dycius^ Latin Ju-pUer) the Greeks worshiped the bright sky from which all life, all blessings come. Apollo, his son, signified the bright ray of light which now invigorates, now consumes with heat. Athena is the blue vault of heaven shining serenely out of the clouds. We still recognize this original trinity in the solemn invocation: "O Father Zeus, Athena, and Apollo!" The imagination exalted all natural phenomena to the position of divine beings who were children of the sky-father. The storm wind driving the clouds became the messenger of the gods, Hermes. The moon was Apollo's twin sister, Artemis. The morning and evening stars became the two children of Zeus, Castor and Pollux. The sky of night, ablaze with brilliant stars, was regard- ed as the majestic consort of the king of gods. The divinities were thought to be enthroned upon the heavenly Mount Olympus. Primitive traditions told of various prehistoric transforniations of the world, wrought by earthquakes and floods. The religious im- 1 Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, 20. (43) 44 HOMERIC LIFE agination created a pre-Olympic kingdom of Cronus, who was a personitication of endless time,^ The Titans likewise were divinities of this period. The upheavals of the earth were conceived as battles of the primitive gods with the younger Zeus. Cronus Fig. 3. Olympian Zeus (From a coin of Elis.) and his wife Rhea, deprived of their sovereignty, were consigned to Tartarus, which lies as far be- neath the world as heaven is above it. They were the parents of Zeus, Hera, Demeter, Poseidon, god of the sea, and Hades, god of the lower world. Among the pre-Olympic divinities were numbered the earth (Gaia), the sun (Helios), Atlas, the father of Calypso, Themis (justice), and the Erinyes, the aveng- ers of wrong. Cronidae 14. Zeus, dwelling in the sky, the loud thunderer, rejoicing in the lightning, brightly shining, the cloud- ^So Weissenborn. Rather was Cronus the sun god, who ripened the harvest and caused vegetation to wither; ef. Har- rington and Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, p. 21. Fig. 4. Zeus Otricoi.i (Rome, Vatican.) (45) 46 HOMERIC LIFE gatherer, cloud-wrapped, the bearer of the aegis (storm shield), is the master of the world, the father of men and gods, the exalted ruler, the supreme coun- selor, the omnipotent, the omniscient. As lord, he is the protector of all human order, of government, of laws, of the oath, and of hospitality. He is the kind guardian of Zeus-born kings. As god of the family, he receives his sacrifice upon the household altar. As lord of hospitality, he is the special protector of the stranger and the beggar, of the poor and wretched (^, 207). Zeus is the source of all revelation. His primitive oracle is at Dodona, in Epirus. He loves to sit upon Gargarus, the highest peak of Mount Ida; his abode is upon Olympus, the mountain of the gods. The eagle circling high in air is sacred to him.^ 15. Hera is really the glorious sky lighted with stars by night; therefore the peacock, with his motley tail, is sacred to her. As queen of heaven she is the coun- terpart of Zeus, but in certain respects she is con- trasted with him. She was conceived of as a majes- tic tigure, with large features, large eyes, of dazzling whiteness; therefore she is the exalted, the honored goddess, the glorious and adorable wife of Zeus, the golden-throned, beautiful-haired, ox-eyed (majestic- looking) Hera. She is the guardian of marriage;^ hence her hatred of the woman-stealer, Paris, and his nation. Her favorite cities are Argos, Sparta, and Mycenae (A, 51). 16. Demeter is the personification of the fruit-bear- ' Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, 33-38. 2 Ibid, 56. THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 47 ing earth ;^ therefore Homer calls' the grain the fruit of Demeter. She is the fair one of beautiful locks. Her daughter by Zeus is Persephone, the goddess of the lower world. The latter's abduction by Hades, the wandering of the mother over the earth in search of her daughter, her abode in Eleusis, and the found- ing of the Eleusinian mysteries, the secret cult of Demeter, all belong to later tradition. 17. Hades appears in Homer as Aides and Aidoneus — /. e., the invisible. He is lord of the underworld, the mighty guardian of the gate (X, 277), the inex- orable, the immovable, the hated god. He is re- nowned for his steeds, apparently because, according to earlier representation, he carried away the souls of the departed in his chariot. The wife of Hades is Persephone, the death bringer, the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, the awful, fearful, exalted goddess. The Erinyes, the avenging divinities,^ stand in the service of the gods of the lower world to fulHll the curse upon the ofl'ender. They uphold the authority of the elder brother over the younger; they punish the perjurer (T, 260) and the violator of the laws of hos- pitality; even the gods are subject to their vengeance. In a mysterious manner they rove through the dark- ness, are inexorable, and visit the wrong-doer with unerring certainty. 18. Poseidon, the god of the sea, being the younger son of Cronus, was obliged to relinquish to his elder brother, Zeus, the lordship of the world. He has his palace in the depths of the sea, near Aegae, in Achaia. ^ Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Kouian Mythology, 94. 2 Ibid., 41. 48 HOMERIC LIFE Whenever in his golden chariot, drawn by golden steeds, he drives over the sea (N, 21), clad in his golden garments, flourishing his golden whip, the waves part of their own accord, so that the axles are not wet, and the monsters of the deep dance with joy around their lord. He is called the widely ruling, the earth-encompassing, black-locked god, the earth shaker, who stirs the sea with his trident (e, 292), and makes the earth heave (Y, 57). Ajax, the son of Oi- leus, who, on his way home after the sack of Troy, escaped shipwreck upon the Gyraean cliffs on Euboea, was destroyed by him because he had boasted that he would return in spite of the gods (8, 500). Poseidon, in company with Apollo, is said to have served the Trojan king, Laomedon, in the construction of his wall; being cheated of his reward, he bears a grudge against all the Trojans, with the exception of Aeneas ($, 444). The horse was sacred to Poseidon since the leaping waves were compared to horses.' The land of the Phaeacians, especially, was called the place of his worship, and here in the marketplace a sanctuary was reared in his honor (C, 266). The Cyclops Poly- phemus was Poseidon's son, and Chary bdis, the frightful, unconquerable monster of the deep (/x, 118), was his daughter. Other sea-divinities are: Am- phitrite, the beautiful blue-eyed daughter of the ocean, clearly a personification of the sea itself, con- sequently described as loud-groaning (yu., 97); Leuco- thea, who had been changed into a sea goddess, for- merly being Ino, the daughter of Cadmus (e, 334); * Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, 74. THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 49 Proteus, tho infallible old man of the sea, dwelling upon I'huios, an island lying off Egypt (S, 385, ) who is the mighty, godlike servant of Poseidon, knows all the depths of the sea, and can change himself into various forms of life, and even into water and fire; Nereus, the father of the Nereids, of whom thirty- three are mentioned (2, 37). Among these Nereids is Thetis, the spouse of Peleus and mother of Achilles. She is the daughter of the old man of the sea, and her epithets are silver-footed, beautiful-haired. She con- cealetl Dionysus in her grotto when he fled before Lycurgus (Z, 132), and she received Hephaestus, who, on account of his ugliness, was thrown down by his mother Hera from Olympus (2, 395). When Posei- don, Hera, and Athena wished to put Zeus in chains (A, 396), Thetis called upon the giant Aegaeou for help. Other Olympic Gods: Children of Zeus 19. Apollo, the son of Zeus and Leto, was born at Delos; his altar on that island is mentioned in ^, 102. He is the personification of the beaming sunlight,' Phoebus signifying the shining one, and Apollo the archer. He is called the light-born, the fire darter, the god with the silver bow, the far-worker, and the possessor of the famous bow. As god of light, he re- veals the future to men through prophecy. His fa- mous oracle is rocky Pytho {0, 80) afterwards known as Delphi, rich in votive off'erings; from him Calchas and Amphiaraiis received their gift of prophecy Ularriugtou aud Tolman. Greek and Kornau Mythology, 49. 4 50 HOMEEIC LIFE (o, 244). Since the light of the soul is revealed in po- etry, Apollo is also called the god of song (^, 488), and in his service are the Muses, who inspire the poet. The swift hawk is sacred to him (o, 525). He also sends gentle death; whoever dies suddenly is smitten by his arrow. Helios, the sun-god, is not identical with Apollo, but, as a Titan, is numbered among the primitive divinities. He is called the god who wan- ders in mid-air, and is the personification of the sun itself. 20. Artemis (the moonlight),^ the daughter of Zeus and Leto, is Apollo's twin sister. When the cool night wind, driving the clouds across the face of the moon, rustles through the forest, Artemis is engaged in the hunt with the nymphs on the wooded mountain (^, 102). She is the arrow -hurling, well-aiming, clamorous goddess of the chase and mistress of the game. On account of the brilliancy of the moon- light she is called the golden-throned goddess, adorned with beautiful head-gear, driving her steeds with golden reins. She is the goddess who brings death to women. 21. Pallas Athena the Trito-born, sprung from the head of Zeus, is the blue sky;^ therefore she is called the bright-eyed daughter of aegis-bearing Zeus. She herself, like Apollo, carries the storm shield, or aegis. From an intellectual standpoint she is the embodiment of divine wisdom, who brings help and victory in times of danger. Consequently she is the good-counseling protectress of shrewd Odysseus and discreet Telema- ^ Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, 57. 2 Ibid., 35. THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 51 chus; she gives prudent udvice to Achilles (A, VJ4r). In war she always reveals herself as a goddess who incites to battle, and who, couil)ining prudence with valor, leads to victory. The wise hero, Dionicdes, is under her jn-otection (E). She is the famous high- spirited goddess, intianiiug the people, the hringer of booty, and the protectress of cities. In contrast to her, Ares personifies wild, clamorous warfare.^ She is depicted as a tall, warlike deity, with helmet, lance, and aegis. 22. Ares, the son of Zeus and Hera, is the god of fierce battle; the fier}^, shrieking, storming destroyer of cities, dripping with l)l()()d, insatiate in battle, slayer of men. When Diomedes, with the help of Athena, wounds him in the thigh (E, 856), he shrieks like nine or ten thousand men; and when in the con- flict between the gods {^, 407) he is struck in the neck with a large stone by Athena, falling forward at full length, he covers seven roods of land. Zeus himself calls him the hated god. His favorite dwelling place is among the barbarous tribes of the north (N, 801). In his train follows the l)l()odthirsty Enyo; therefore he himself is called Knyalios (murderer). The alle- gorical figures, Fear, Terrf)r, Strife, Tumult, and Death, attend him constantly.'^ 23. Aphrodite, the daughter of Zeus and Dione, is the wife of Hephaestus, and is the goddess of beauty and love. On account of her ])eauty she is called the golden-beaming, graciously j^miling goddess, adorned with beautiful headband. She presents men and ^ Harrington and Tolman, Greek aud Roman Mythology, 116. 2 Ibid., lie. 52 HOMEEIC LIFE women with her gifts, which bring happiness in mar- riage. But in mm'derous battle she is a powerless goddess/ who is actually seized by Diomedes and wounded in the hand (E, 336); she is struck to the ground by Pallas Athena in the conflict between the gods, when she wished to bear away the wounded Ares ($,425). 24. Hephaestus, the son of Zeus and Hera, on account of his ugliness, was thrown by his mother from Olym- pus, and was nurtured by the sea goddesses Eurynome and Thetis. Although of powerful frame and broad- shouldered, yet as a result of that fall he had such weak and crooked legs that he moved about with great difficulty. As god of the subterranean fire,'-* he is the smith who made the divine mansions on Olympus (A, 607), the scepter of Agamemnon (B, 100), the carved ornaments in the palace of Alcinoiis {rj, 91), and the seats for the gods (H, 238). At the request of Thetis he forged new armor for Achilles. He is called artistic, inventive, strong-armed, but also the crooked-legged, hobbling god, who puffs as he moves about. 25. Hermes, the son of Zeus and Maia, born upon the Arcadian mountain Cyllene, is the messenger of the gods. He accompanies the departed to the under- world.^ Hence men, when they prepare for bed, pour to him the last libation. As dispenser of blessings and preserver, he protects Odysseus against the charms of Circe by means of the herb moJi/ {k, 302), and he accompanies Priam secretly by night to the tent of ^Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Roman Mythology, 105. siijid,, 32, 33. 3 Ibid., 48. THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 53 Achilles (O), He is called the close-observing, ready messeno^er of heaven, and the god with the golden wand. He is represented as a very slender youth, whose l)card is just beginning to sprout; his shoes and hat are furnished with wings. Dionysus, in Homer, is not yet worshiped as a god. With the twelve deities mentioned above is asso- ciated a set of minor divinities: Hebe, the goddess of eternal youth, serves as cupbearer; Iris (the rain- bow) is the wind-swift messenger; Themis calls the immortals to the assembly; Paeon is the physician of the gods; the JVIuses, who inspire the poet, sing to the accompaniment of Apollo's lyre; the Horae (sea- sons)^ dissipate the clouds before the gate of heaven whenever a god drives forth in his golden chariot; the early-born, rosy-lingered Eos (the red glow of morning) leads forth the day. Worship 26. Relation of Man to Deity. Zeus and the other gods care for the pious and the just. The divini- ties give express warning against plots (a, 37). If through pride men become insolent or unjust, mis- fortune comes as a punishment (a, 43), since right must prevail. But not every unjust act is to be wholly charged against a man as his own guilt, for often fate and infatuation work together to fill (ill the divine plans (T, 1(53; T, 136). Prayer is able to turn aside the vengeance of the gods (I, 502). Mor- 1 HarriDgton and Tolman, Greek aqd Roman Mythology, 115. 54 HOMERIC LIFE tals are constantly in need of help from heaven (y, 48), and they do well to regulate their lives accordino^ to the divine purpose. The crods gladly help the pious when it is in accord with the will of fate. 27. Sacrifice and Prayer.^ Men begin all their un- dertakings with sacrifice and prayer. At every meal there is an offering; sacrifice precedes every journey (/?, 432); and before re- tiring a tinal libation is poured to Her- mes (»7, 137). Divine support and pro- tection are implored through prayer and offering. It is customary to re- mind the god of the many sacrifices which the worshiper has offered to him in the past. By sacrifice men make atonement for sin, or give thanks for help and merciful deliverance from danger. Offerings include burnt offerings, drink offerings, and other gifts. Be- fore prayer and sacrifice the hands are cleansed wdth water. The hands are raised toward the sky when prayer is offered to the heavenly deities; they are stretched out when the divinities of the sea are entreated; and they are extended downward in sup- plicating the gods of the lower world. The offer- ing of animals is considered a meal of which the gods partake. The animal to be offered must be un- blemished. White ones are offered to the heaven- FiG. 5. The Pkaying Boy (Berlin.) ^Harrington and Tolman, Greek and Koman Mythology, 15-18. THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 55 \y divinities, black ones to divinities of the lower world; male animals are sacrificed to gods, female victims to goddesses. Old men perform the rite (A, 457; $■, 420). On offering the sacrifice (hecatomb) the horns of the bidl were gilded (y, 487). First, grains of barley were sprinkled upon the victim, and hair was cut from its head and thrown into the tire. After the slaughter, slices from the thigh were rolled in doable layers of fat, and other raw pieces taken from va- rious parts of the animal were placed upon these as a sign that the whole animal was offered to the gods. These portions of flesh were binned, with libations, upon the altar, that the gods might enjoy the smoke curling ujjward from the fat. In the meanwhile, boys stirred the fire w ith tive-prongcd forks. Every sacrifice was concluded with a feast, at the beginning of which the entrails, heart, liver, and lungs were consumed. Then the rest of the flesh was cut into small pieces, and roasted on spits. After the repast, pages mixed drink in the bowls and tilled all the gob- lets, while a portion was poured on the floor as liba- tion to the gods. 28. Prophecy.' Seers and augurs had a clear insight into the action and workings of the gods (A, 70), and endeavored to ascertain the will of heaven. By manifold signs they foretold the future. The seer Calchas knows (A, 94) that the pestilence is a pun- ishment sent by Apollo for the insult oH'ered to the priest Chryses. By the omen of the serpent de- vouring the eight young sparrows with their mother, 1 Harrington and Tolman. Greek and Koiuan Mythology, 19. (56) Fig. 6. Heka Ludovisi (Rome.) THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 57 the prophet divines the nine-year siege of Troy (B, 322) . The future was especially foretold by the flight of birds. When an eagle drops a serpent from his talons in front of the Trojun army as it is advancing against the Greek fleet (M, 200), Folydamas inter- prets it as a sign of disaster. An eagle bearing otf a white goose, in spite of the cries of its pursuers, and flying past the chariot of Telemachus, is a prophecy to Helen that Odysseus will soon return and destroy the suitors (o, 160). Thunder and lightning from a clear sky are an omen to the Greeks of imminent de- feat (0, 75). "When Penelope, alluding to the inso- lent conduct of the suitors, wishes for the return of Odysseus, and Telemachus sneezes (p, 541), she in- terprets it as a propitious sign that the beggar's prophecy will be fultilled. Odysseus (u, 98) prays for divine jissurance that his plans for vengeance may succeed; thereupon, from the blue sky, Zeus sends his thunder, and from a servant's room near by he hears a faithful maid praying that the insolent suitors may to-day, for the last time, enjoy their meal. 29. The Oath. The sacred pledge in which the high- er powers were called upon as witnesses was observed even among the gods. Hera swears to Zeus (O, 30), by the earth, heaven, and the Styx, by Zeus's sacred head and her own couch. She swears to the god of sleep (H, 271), by the water of the Styx, touching the earth with one hand and the sea with the other. Ca- lypso swears to Odysseus (t, 184), by the earth, heav- en, and the Styx, that she will truly dismiss him without harm. When the Greeks and Trojans strike a treaty before the duel between Paris and !Menelaiis (r, 273), Agamemnon cuts the hair from the head of the 58 HOMERIC LIFE sacrificial animals and distributes it among the princes who are present as witnesses. Then he invokes Zeus, the sun, all the rivers of the land, the earth, and all the avenging Erinyes, to watch over a faithful ful- fillment of the compact. After the sacrifice a liba- tion follows, but Priam carried the slaughtered ani- mals back to Troy because it is not permitted to par- take of an animal sacrificed in connection with an oath. Odysseus, clad as a beggar, swearing by Zeus, the guest table, and the hearth of Odysseus, gives the swineherd assurance that he will see the return of his master {$, 158). HOMEEIC SOCIETY Public Life 30. The Kingly Power. Among the civilized peo- ples mentioned in the Homeric poems — such as the Greeks, Trojans, and Phaeacians — we find a patri- archal form of government. At the head stands the king, who rules his people like the father of a family (c, 12). His sovereignty is derived from Zeus, and the first ancestor is always represented as a son of Zeus himself. Therefore kings are called Zeus- sprung, Zeus-blessed shepherds of the people. The king dwells in a large palace, which surpasses all other abodes in greatness and splendor and which is easily recognized (^, 300). In this castle he summons to council the nobles of the people (elders). These meetings are accompanied by a public feast. In the assemblies of the people the king bears a scepter as an outward sign of his station. Agamemnon's seep- THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 59 ter was studded with golden nails (B, loi). The scepter was also carried by the priest, the judo-e, and every one, in fact, who spoke in council. The kino; liad among his pe()])le the threefold office of priest, judge, and connnander. On account of his kingly office distinctive honors were shown him, and he received the revenue of special crown lands; the whole people contributed to the support of his house- hold, and at meals he was served with the choice pieces of food. He, however, had to entertain the elders of the people, to furnish them with old wine, to receive strangers who came seeking help, and to honor them with presents. The cost of these gifts was divided among the people {v, 13). 31. The Aristocracy. The nobles, elders, leaders, and counselors form the aristocracy. They consti- tute the court, which, with the king as judge, decides upon all weighty matters before they reach the popu- lar asseml)ly. When summoned to the king's palace they are his table companions. They are also called kings themselves, and can summon him to a council, as the twelve elders among the Phaeacians are accus- tomed to do. They receive and send out embassies, approve the action of the peo])le, go security for them, and in weighty matters they jointly administer justice. 32. The Middle Class. The middle class embraces the free men with small and independent possessions. They constitute the assembly of the ])eopIe, the com- mon coimcil, whicli entertains the ])r()posals of the elders, and they declare their approval of one or the other speaker; but they have no ])art in rendering de- cisions. In addition to those who are absolutely free, (30 HOMERIC LIFE the poems distinguish tenants, who, while personally free, yet enjoy no rights; and laborers, who are hired to the rich. 33. The Slaves. The slaves are either prisoners of war or strangers who have been seized or bought. They are also called dependents, or members of the household, as a sign that they were considered a part of the lord's family. The intimacy between master and servant is expressed in such endearing terms as those with which the swineherd Eumaeus accosts his young master, Telemachus: ""Dear child," "Sweet light of my eyes;" while Telemachus, in turn, ad- dresses the old servant as "Dear father." Eumaeus laments the fate of his master more than he could have lamented his own, and he pledges his life to re- store his master to power. Such faithful servants as Eumaeus, Dolius, and Eu- rycleia acted as overseers and had control over inferior slaves. So four herdsmen were under Eumaeus ; Eury- cleia superintended fifty maidservants, and Eurynome served under her as housekeeper and chambermaid of Penelope. It wan the duty of the slaves to guard and tend the flocks, to manage the fields and gardens, to discharge the household duties, and to perform the more menial services at the table. The female slaves, under the direction of the mistress, tended to the house- keeping, cleaning of the rooms and furniture, wash- ing of the linen, grinding of grain, baking of bread, and feeding of poultry. Maidservants superintended the meals and served the mistress. Two chamber- maids were personal attendants of the queen and her daughter. Chambermaids prepared the bed at night. Above all, the slave women had to card and spin the THE HOMEUIC DIVINITIES 61 wool. The household of Odysseus, including the herdsmen of his many flocks on the mainland and in Ithaca, together with the slaves of the field, srarden, and house, probably exceeded one hundred in number. Private Life 34. The Family. Life in the homes of the Trojan princes, in the palace of Odysseus at Ithaca, and in the royal family of the Phaeacians, presents a beauti- ful picture of the devotion of wives to their husbands, the tender regard and affection of husbands for their wives, and the reverent love and obedience on the part of children toward their parents. Although the man was naturally the head of the family, yet the wife, in the heroic age, held such a distinguished position that Helen, who had been carried away by Paris, was treated with the tenderest regard by the aged Priam and her brother-in-law. Hector. Arete was so loved and hon- ored by her husband, Alcinotis, that whoever sought the help of the king did well to win the intercession of the queen. Brothers cannot act more lovingly and kindly than did the sons of Alcinotis toward their sister. Odysseus extols matrimonial harmo- ny as the greatest happiness {C 182). The noblest example of such conjugal afiection is that of Odys- seus and Penelope themselves. Love and fidelity of the wife form the fundamental thouofht of the whole Odyssey. Odysseus, in spite of the delight of companionship with Calypso, cannot forget his wife and home, but is drawn to Ithaca by an ardent yearning. 35. Marriage. Marriage was a holy thing, and any violation of it was followed by severe punishment. 62 HOMERIC LIFE The royal house of Priam, once so happy and domi- nant, his city and his people, had to atone with their ruin for the rape of Helen by Paris. In the assem- bly of the ^ods, at the beo^inning of the Odyssey, Zeus himself points out how the bloody fate of Aegis- thus came upon him as a punishment for disloyalty to his marital vows. The love of a wife for her hus- band cannot be more deeply, more sincerely, or more comprehensively expressed than by the words which Andromache spoke to Hector as he was going into battle: " Since the death of my parents and of my brothers and sisters, and since the destruction of my home, you, O Hector, have been father, mother, and brother to me." The marriage of Zeus and Hera forms a striking contrast to this domestic peace and happiness. Hera often disagrees with her husband, and threats of violence are necessary to bring her to submission. This is a reminiscence of the primitive mythical signification of Zeus and Hera as per- sonifications of the bright sky by day and the star- ry sky l)y night, which were naturally conceived of as standing in contrast to each other. 36. The Marriage Ceremony. Originally the bride was purchased from her father, and a maiden with many suitors brought much cattle. Yet it is impor- tant that the bridegroom be acceptable to her, so that, on the whole, he seems to be the man chosen and appointed by fate. It was customary to give the young couple a dowry. The marriage celebration was accompanied by a brilliant feast, to which relatives and neighbors were invited in great numbers. Singers struck the lute, and jugglers, keeping time to the music, performed ?. Dkmktek of Cmdus (British Museum.) (63) 64r HOMERIC LIFE all kinds of entertaining tricks. Those who con- ducted the bride from the home of her parents to that of her husband were furnished with garments for the occasion. The bride also received costly ap- parel from the bridegroom; hence it happens that Helen presents to Telemachus a beautiful dress for his future bride. By torchlight the train moved through the city, while those who took part in the festival sang the marriage song (u/xcVatos, 2, 493), and the young people circled in the dance to the music of flutes and lyres. 37. The Housewife conducted the household affairs, and had the supervision of slave women. The spe- cial task of women was the weaving of garments, and those were praised who were skillful in artistic work. We read (T, 125) that Helen wove into her cloth the man-destroying battles of the Trojans and the Achaeans. Of the Phaeacian women it is said {C, 110) that they were skilled in artistic weaving. The women usually staid in the interior of the house, and preferred to remain for rest and recreation in the upper chamber; but they also associated with the men in the men's hall. Arete is actually present at the assembly of the elders in the megaron (^, 305); Penelope weaves in the hall with her wooers, and there spends the evening (p, 96). Helen takes great interest in the conversation of Menelatis with Telem- achus and Pisistratus. Yet, as soon as a woman from a royal family appears in public, or comes before men in important matters, she is veiled and is accompa- nied by two female servants. 38. Children, while they were yet young, were under the supervision of the mother. Later they THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 65 were placed under suitable servants, to bo prac- tically instructed for subsequent life. The sons gave all kinds of help and service in the sacri- fices and the feasts; they turned the spits, passed the food, mixed the wine and water in bowls, filled the goblets and passed them around. Children, while growing up, also helped in the household duties. Nausicau, in place of her mother, attended to the w^ashin^ of the linen, but her brothers kindly helped her when they returned home. Telemachus cared for the garden of the aged Laertes and the herds of Eumaeus, and Paris remained with the flocks oh Mount Ida. Special attention was given to the instruction of the growing youth in all kinds of bodily exercise — running, wrestling, throwing the discus, contesting with weapons, driving, and, above all, in dancing, singing, playing of the lyre, and the practice of speak- ing in public. Children felt deeply their indebtedness to their parents; therefore Telemachus grieves that he cannot repay his father's love (tt, 120). 39. Squires. As in the Middle Ages the noble youth followed the knight on his adventures, so likewise among the Homeric heroes there existed a comrade- ship in arms. These squires, who had often been reared from childhood with the son of a prince, ac- companied the hero into battle, where they served as chariot drivers and stood 1)V, ready to give help in the contest. Sometimes such a comrade was older than his master, and was given by the father to the young son of the prince as guide and counselor. The love and loyalty which bound these companions to- gether is seen in the relation of Achilles to Pa- troclus. 5 66 HOMERIC LIFE The Rights of Strangers 40. Piracy.^ Although it was felt to be a duty to assist a fellow-countryman in distress, yet strangers and foreigners were considered enemies whom one might rob, buy as slaves, or kill. For this reason piracy and robbery were of common occurrence and not at all dishonorable; in this respect they may be compared to the disorders caused by the robber- knights of the Middle Ages. It was customary to ask strange seamen whether they were pirates or mer- chants. Taphians robbed a rich Phoenician of his daughter (o, 427) and sold her in the Syrian isle, where the father of Eumaeus was king. When the Phoenician merchants landed there, this slave woman carried away the little Eumaeus, and after her death he was sold to Laertes in Ithaca. Odysseus himself, after the sack of Troy, made without cause a preda- tory incursion against the Cicones. 41. Hospitality. Although no custom, based on in- ternational law, protected the stranger, yet he stood, according to religious belief, under the special pro- tection of Hospitable Zeus. Even if the stranger ap- pears as a pitiful beggar, he cannot be driven away {i, 56), for all strangers and beggars are sent by Zeus, and even the smallest gift is welcome (C> 207). Hos- pitable Zeus himself is their avenger (t, 270). Only barbarous people, cannibals, such as the Cyclopes and the Laestrygones, violate this divine law. Among all civilized men mistreatment of a stranger was con- sidered a disgraceful act. On that account the inso- iTsountas and Manatt, Myceuaeau Age, pp. 354, 355 THE HOMERIC DIVINITIES 67 lent conduct of the suitors reached its highest point, bringing upon them the punishment of heaven, when their leaders, Antinotis and Eurymachus {p, 462), so shamefully treated the beggar Odysseus. This law demanded that one should conduct the stranger into his home, take the staff from his hand, and give him the place of honor at his side. If he came from a journey, a bath was prepared for him before the meal (8, 48). In any case, he was furnished with water that he might wash his hands. After- wards he was hospitably entertained, and the host offered the drink of welcome. Not until after the meal was the stranger asked his name, his coun- try, or the purpose of his coming. He was har- bored as long as he cared to remain. Before his departure he was honored with guest-presents, and whenever it was necessary he was given escort. Hospitality between families became in this man- ner a lasting bond which extended to posterity. So Glaucus and Diomedes avoided conflict when they learned of the hospitality existing between their families, a pledge which they renewed by mutual gifts (Z, 235). 42. The Suppliant, w^ho, pursued by an enemy, clasped the knees of the one he met, or who, having entered a house, fell down upon the hearth, stood under the special protection of Zeus; to help him was a sacred duty. Hence Nausicaii was ready to give Odysseus food and clothing and to accompany him to the city, telling him how he might procure from her father help and escort home. "When the suppliant had thrown himself l)eside the hearth in the hall, the oldest of the elders asked King Alcinotis to let the 68 HOMERIC LIFE stranger arise aud to show him a seat at the princely table. On account of their sacredness, the hearth and the guest-table were coupled in the oath with the name of Zeus. Only insolent men, such as the goat- herd Melantheus, violated this custom, and thereby incurred the vengeance of the Erinyes (p, 212). Even the professional beggar Irus receives his regular alms (cr, 1). 43. Forms of Social Intercourse. The Greeks, by reason of their high state of culture and their innate appreciation of beauty, had developed natural court- esy and polite forms of intercourse. When Zeus en- ters the assembly, the gods all arise and remain standing until he has taken his seat (A, 533). When Telemachus sees Athena present in the form of Men- tes (a, 119), he considers it improper to keep a stran- ger standing before his door, steps up to him, extends his hand, receives his spear, bids him welcome, and begs him to accept friendlv attention aud hospitality; finally he asks him to explain what has brought him thither. In the third book of the Odyssey Telem- achus comes to Pylos in company with Athena, who is disguised as Mentor. When Athena bids Telem- achus to go directly to Nestor, he hesitates; it is not fitting that he, a young man, should addi-ess an older one. But as soon as the Pylians perceive the strangers they hasten to them. When Telemachus tarries with Eumaeus (tt, 44), and the beggar offers him his seat, Telemachus refuses it with the words: "Keep your seat, stranger; I will find a chair some- where else. " Deference should be paid an older per- THK HOiMEKIC DIVINITIES 69 son; therefore Mentor is the first to be served with the drink of welcome (y, 50). On departing Odys- seus turns to the queen with the wish that long life may be allotted to her, and that she may. en joy un- perturbed happiness with her family and her peo- ple (v, (JD). (70) Fig. 8. Poseidon (Rome. Lateran.) HOMERIC ANTIQUITIES The Homeric House 44. The Plan of the House. ^ As we learn from the excavations at Tiryns, the prince's palace, with its walls, formed the strong fortress which attorcled pro- tection in case of war for all those dwelling around it. A protecting wall (1), provided with })attlements, in- closed the palace. A covered hallway, closed in the middle with two broad doors, constituted the entrance to the court; while two columns, before and behind the gate, probably supported the protecting roof ("2). Through this front gate one passed into a spacious court, the council place of the elders (3). The larger assemblies were held in the market i)lace (p, 52). The court had a smooth stone floor (p, 1()0), and served as a place of recreation for the suitors. Here stood an altar to Zeus (i), the protector of the court. Near the palace were several seats of polished stone for the princes. Over these seats, clear across the front of the palace, extended a broad, covered hallway (5), support- ed by columns. The entrance to the psdace itself was formes and people The geographical knowledge of Homer is limited to the countries bordering on the coast of the Aegean Sea. Lands to the west were known only from the wonderful reports of the Phoenician sailors. 70. Greece Homer had no common appellation for Greece or for the Greek people. He speaks of the country of Hellas and mid-Argos (a, .344), or Argos and the land of the Achaeaus (T, 75), when he wishes to des- ignate the Peloponnesus and the rest of Greece. The Inhabitants Are Called: 1. Achaeans^ or the sojis of the Achaeaus, with the epithets "bright-eyed," "head-covered," "quarrel- some," "strong-hearted," "bronze-armored," "well- greaved." The Achaean women are spoken of as "beautifully clad " and "beautiful-haired." 2. Argives^ "armed," "bronze-clad," "war-lov- ing," "lance-hurling." 3. Danadns^ "furnished with shields," "possess- ing swift horses," "war-loving servants of Ares." The following passages, a, 239; ^, 369; B, 404; *, 236, where the expression Pan-Achaeans occurs, and likewise B, 530, where we find the phrase "Pan-Hel- lenes and Achaeans," are probably lute interpolations. Hellas^ between the rivers Asopus and Enipeus, together with Phthia, on the river Sperchetis, consti- (107) 108 HOMERIC LIFE tutes the kingdom of Peleus, situated in South Thes- ealy. The MyrmidonH^ the Achaean people of Achilles, "hio^h-spirited," " war-lovino;," "possessing swift steeds," "contending with the spear," "resembling voracious wolves." Plerians^ on the borders of Thessaly and Macedo- nia. Tajyhians^ a race on the Avestern coast of Acarna- nia, "helm-loving pirates." Aetoliaiis^ "furious in battle." lonians (N, 685), the inhabitants of Attica, "wear- ers of long garments." In the Peloponnesus Argos, a district of Agamemnon, with the towns Mycenae (A, 30) and Argos; called "Achaean," "thirsty," "productive," "horse-producing." A7xadia, "spear-contending Arcadians." Aegialus, t'le later Achaia. J^lis, "horse-nurturing;" here rule the Epeiana, "clad in glittering armor" (N, 686). Jfessetie (, 15), with the city Pherae. Pylus^ Nestor's kingdom, embracing South Elis and Messenia, "very sacred," "sandy." Gerenia^ the birthplace of Nestor. Lacedaenion^ "low-lying," "abounding in ravines," with the principal city, Sparta. 71. The Greek Islands On the Western Coast Tthaca (i, 21), containing a few square miles, indi- cated by Homer as the most westerly of the islands. LANDS AND PEOPLE 109 It is now supposed to be the peninsula Leucas, and not the island which to-day bears its name. Since it was mountainous, it was adapted to the rearing of cattle, but not of horses. This island, together with Dull- chiam^ Satnos^ and well-wooded ZacyntJius inhabit- ed by the Cephallenians, formed the kingdom of Odys- seus. Asieris, a small rocky isle near Ithaca (8, 84-6). Taphus, on the western coast of Acarnania (a, 417). Islands in the South Cytliera^ near the promontory Malea (t, 81). Crete^ a large, fruitful, and populous island, with ninety towns (t, 172). The large city Cnosus was the ancient capital of the mythical King Minos. Va- rious nationalities were here represented — primitive Cretans, Pelasgians, C3^donians, Achaeans, and the Dorians, who fall into three branches. Islands in the East Salamis and Aegma^ in the Saronic Gulf, belong- ing to Diomedes. Euhoea and 8cyrus (Neoptolemus). Islands between Greece and Asia Dia (Naxos) and Delos {I, 162). Samothrace^ hibrox^ Levinos ("rugged," "holy"), Tenedos^ Leshos^ Chios ^ Cos^ Rhodes ^ Cyi^rus (sacred to Aphrodite). More distant islands are Sicania (Sicily: w, 307), and Pharos^ at the mouth of the Nile (8, 355). 110 HOMERIC LIFE 72. The Asiatic Coast Asia, deriving its name from the Asian mead at the mouth of the river Cayster, near Ephesus. T?'oi/, with its principal city, Ilios. Trojans, "bronze-clad," '"manly," "haughty," "strife-loving," "horse-taming." Trojan women, "beautiful-haired," "deep-girdled," "garment-trailing." Trojans and Lycians and Dardanians, "fighting hand to hand" (®, 173). Dardanian women, "deep-girdled." Mysians, on the river Aesepus, "fighting hand to hand," "strong-spirited." Leleges, opposite Lesbos, "war-loving." Maeonia (Lydia), "lovely Maeonia" (A, 141). Carians, "uncouth of speech." Papldagonians, on the Pontus, "high-spirited," "equipped with shields." Caucones, in Bithynia. Lycians, "shield-bearing." Cillcia, in Phrygia, with the towns Thele, at the foot of Mount Placus, and Lyrnessus. Aseania, a district in Bithynia. PJirygia, lying on the river Sangarius, "rich in vines." 73. More Distant Countries Phoenicia (8, 83; ^, 291), "very crafty" Phoeni- cians (o, 419), "renowned seamen," "cheats." Sidonia, the Sidonians "skilled in art," "famous." Soiymi (Z, 184; c, 283). Egij2)t, "bitter Egypt" (p,448). Lihya, west of Egypt. 112 HOMERIC LIFE 74. Fabulous Countries and Nations Ethiopians^ ''distant," "remotest of men," "be- loved of the o^ods." A7nazo7is^ "manlike," "warlike." Giants^ "earth-born," related to the Phaeacians (7/, 59), a race hostile to the gods, annihilated by Zeus. Centaurs^ a savage race in Thessaly, "inhabiting caves" (A, 268). 75. Course of the Wanderings of Odysseus C'icones^ a people on the Thracian coast. LotopJiagl^ evidently a people on the northern coast of Africa, living on the fruit of the palm. Cyclopes^ a wandering tribe at the lowest stage of civilization, without political unity. Near these was an uninhabited isle filled with goats. Aeolia., an island lying toward the north, belonging to the wind god Aeolus. Laestrygones, man-eating giants of the north, dwell- ing in small towns, with political organization. Aeaea^ in the extreme northwest, the island of Circe. South of this, in the Western Ocean, lie the Mand of the Sirens^ the Wandering Rocks^ and the ^Vlilte Rock. Tlirinacia^ the isle of Helios, with Scylla and Cha- rylidis near by. Ogygla^ in the Western Ocean, the island of Ca- lypso. Scheria, the island of the Phaeacians. Clearly in these wanderings information concern- ing: the islands situated in the western Mediterranean Sea is so mingled with all kinds of sailors' tales about wonderful isles in the ocean that it is impossible to determine more closely the situation of individual countries. THE TEO^VD By Professor H. C. Tol.man HISSARLIK Translated from Dr. Wilhelm Dorpfeld's Troja 8 Icro-cTat ^fJMp, or' av iror' oXciXr; "IXtos ipr} Kol Elpta/u.os Ktti Xaos ivfifxeXio) TLpidfxoi.o (114) THE TROAD We quote the following (§§ 7G-83) from an article by Professor H. C. Tolman, on a Visit to the Plain of Troy. 76. General Description of the Plain. As we ap- -'/«' ^^^.u. r'li'b-^ V ^ V •^' ir"*.„ i'lci. 2G. Mount luA proach the coast of Asia Minor, "fair-stablished" Lesbos (I, 664; 8, 342; p, 138) appears on our right. Gradually there comes into view the whole panorama of the Troad. Far in the extreme south rises a high 1 (115) 116 HOMERIC LIFE mountain peak, from which extend ramifications, northeastward and southwestward, so numerous and multiform that by old writers the mountain was likened to a monstrous centipede.^ This is "many ridged" Ida (X, 171; A, 112; Y, 91), and that topmost crest is Gargarus,^ rising almost six thousand feet, blue and majestic, its ranges broken by river valleys, until at last a line of hills runs to the Hellespont and completes the eastern boundary of the Trojan Plain. On this summit sat Zeus, "exulting in glory, look- ing down upon the city of the Trojans and the ships of the Achaeaus" (®, 47-52). Here was his sanctu- ary (©, 48). Hither repaired Hera (H, 292). A little distance from the coast is an island rising like a hill out of the sea. Its proximity to the shore makes it a conspicuous object in the Trojan country. Est in conspectu Tenedos, notissima fama Insula dives opum, Priami dum regna manebant. The theater of the Homeric wars is before our eyes. Tenedos (A, 38, 452; A, 625; N, 33; y, 159) lies in front of the wide Besika Bay, about four miles from the mainland and twelve from the Hellespont. Farther in the distance is "rugged" Imbros (N, 33; fl, 78), above which towers the huge Samothracian mountain.^ It was from this summit that Poseidon looked upon the battle, "for thence was plain in sight all Ida, and plain in sight were Priam's city and the ships of the iStrabo, XIIL, 583. 2 Gargarus (called to-day Kazdagh) is mentioned in 0,48; S, 292, 352: 0, 152. ^Called by a Scholiast to N, 11, Saoke. THE TROAD 117 Achaeans" (N, 11-14). In a clear day "holy" Lem- nos (B, 722) shows its outline in the west, while, over one hundred miles distant, Mount Athos (H, 229) is dimly seen at sunset. Between the Thracian Chersonesus, which in the clear atmosphere of the Troad seems close at hand, and a sandy promontory guarded by the crumbling old fortilication of Kum Kaleh ("sand fortress"), the "strong-flowing" Hellespont (B, 845; M, 30) meets the sea. Near the entrance juts out Cape Sigeum, where to-day is the Christian village of Yeni Shehr, while about four miles to the east is the rocky shore of Rhoeteum {RJioeteae orae^ Verg. Aen., III., 108). Between these two points, not very far from Troy (for heralds go and return before sunrise), was drawn up the Greek fleet, "row behind row, filling up the shore's wide mouth which lay betwixt the headlands" (H,33). Along the Aegean Sea a low line of hills slopes somewhat abruptly toward the water's edge. The eastern range, stretching from the highest crest of Ida, after repeated interruptions, ends at Khoeteum. Between these eastern and western ranges lies the deep-soiled valley of the Scamander, with here and there groves of oaks, while reed and tamarisk line the river bank, as in Trojan days.^ Another valley — this time of an insignificant swamp stream, called Dum- brek Su, and often identified with the Simois— cuts the eastern chain of hills at a little distance from the Hellespont. Here at the southern point of meeting of the two valleys of the Scamander and the Dumbrek Su is the >Cf. Fellner. Die homerische Flora, Wiea, 1897. 118 HOMERIC LIFE mound of Hissarlik, rising about sixty feet above the plain, and over three miles distant from the sea and from the Hellespont,^ The hillside is rather precipi- tous on the north, where it meets the swamp of the lat- ter stream, forming a marked contrast to its gentle in- cline westward into the broad and level plain of the Scamander. The name Hissarlik ("little fortification '') was given to this locality because of the Hellenistic remains (Reproduced, by permission, from Schliemanu'! Fio. 27: The Site op Troy ' Ilios Copyright, 1880, hy Harper & Brothers.) which were here visible. In fact, the inhabitants of the little settlement of Tshiblak, a mile or so distant, designated it the "Place of Ruins" (Asarlik). To- day it is a place of ruins indeed, and, we may add, of isolation and desolation as well. A more lonely spot the traveler rarely visits, and he can find shelter If cite some of the early adherents of the Troy-Hissarlik theory: Maclaren, Topography of the Plain of Troy, 1833; Grote, History of Greece, 1846 ; Schliemann, Ithaka, 1869; Gladstone, Homer, 1878 ; Sayce, Contemporary Review, 1878; Eckenbrech- er, Die Lage des homerischen Ilion, 1843: Braun, Homer und sein Zeitalter, 1858; Christ, Topographic der troianischen Ebene, 1874 ; Meyer, Geschichte von Troas, 1877; Lenormant, Les Antiquites de la Troade, 1876. THE TROAD 119 for the night only in the miserable little villages of Yeni Shehr or Yeni Koi. Yet this insignificant hill probably marks the site of the Homeric Pergamos, or at least that city whose siege and capture formed the historical basis of the poems. On the same pla- teau was built the Grseco-Roman Ilion, with its world- renowned Athena temple. Xerxes (Herodotus, VH. , 43) and Alexander (Arian, I., 11) ascended the cita- del, believing that they stood in "divine Ilios." As the eye surveys the Trojan country, it is attract- ed to those heights near Bunarbashi, almost ten miles distant from the Hellespont, amid which, in the mountain fastnesses, where the Ida range is high and steep, is the fortress of Balidagh. Rising as it does five hundred feet, it forms an excellent spot for an impregnable stronghold. In early times many believed that it was Priam's citadel.^ The mention of objects familiar only to one who knows the Trojan country suggests that the poet had seen the Troad;^ that, as he observed the sun set be- ^Lechevalier, Voyage de la Troade (Lechevalier visited the Troad iu 1785); Cholseul-Gouffier, Voyage pittoresque de la Grece, 1820; Texier, Description de I'Asie Mineure, 1839; Per- rot. Excursion a Troie, 1874; Lenz, DieEbeue von Troia, 1798; von Moltke, Brief e liber Zustiinde und Begebenheiten in der Tiirkei, 1841; Forchhammer, Beschreibuug der Ebene von Troja. 1842; Welcker. Kleins Schriften, 1844; Kiepert, Memoir iiber die Construction der Karte von Kleinasien, 1854; Hahn, Die Ausgrabungen auf der homerischen Pergamos, 1864; Has- per, Beitriige zur Topographie der homerischen Ilias, 1867; Curtius, Griechische Geschichte, 1874; Leake, Journal of a Tour in Asia Minor. 1824; Fellowes, Excursion in Asia Minor, 1838; Aclaud, The Plains of Troy, 1839; Rawlinson, Herodo- tus, 1875. ^Heinrich, Troja bei Homer und in der "Wirklichkeit, 1895. 120 HOMERIC LIFE hind Imbros and "wooded" Samothrace, bringing them boldly out in the ruddy glow of the twilight, he pictured deity on the mountain's topmost crest. A man as conservative in this matter as Professor Christ is led to assert ( Geschichte der griechischen Lltteratur^ 1898, p. 55): "His descriptions of Mount Ida, of the plain of the Scamander (E, 773), of Posei- don's high lookout from Samothrace (N, 10), are so true to nature {zeigeiiso viel Natnrvmhrhelt') that we must feel that the poet had looked with his own eyes upon the theater of his heroes' deeds." At any rate, the traveler, as he looks down upon the city and land of the Trojans, does not feel inclined to be skeptical; rather is he ready to exclaim: O patria, O divum domus, Ilium, et incluta bello Moenia Dardanidum! Every spot before him seems pregnant with the bur- den of Troy's story: Hie Dolopum manus, hie saevus tendebat Achilles ; Classibus hie locus; hie acie certare solebatit. 77. The Scamander. Before it broadens out into the plain, the Scamander (Meudere) flows through a rocky valley. Its present course is considerably over a mile distant from Hissarlik. It empties into the Hellespont at the extreme west corner of the plain. Consider the situation: the distance of the Scamander from Hissar- lik; its outlet, near Sigeum, to the extreme west; the Greek fleet along the Hellespont, and, accordingly, on the rio-ht bank of the river. Now Homer's pic- ture puts the Greeks on the opposite side. Beloch represents the Scamander of Homer as flowing its THE TROAD 121 present course.^ In doing this he is compelled to give a forced interpretation of n, 692, a wrong ex- planation of A, 498, and 4>, 1 fg.^ These difficulties have induced many to believe that the poet had no //ei/e'^/'^''^ Kojn Kalcft JennSJifli' Map B. TheTroad acquaintance with the Troad. He puts the Greek host along the Hellespont; again he represents them on the left of the Scamander. Priam has to ford the river to visit the tent of Achilles. Surely there is no room along the Hellespont between the mouth of the iGriechische Geschichte. 1893 2H, 433. and H, 395 fg., are ignoreil by him. Cf. Ileinrich, Troja bei Homer und in der Wirklichkeit, 1895. 122 HOMERIC LIFE present Scamander and the sea. The Greek camp must, therefore, lie to the right; and if so, how would Priam have occasion to cross the stream ? An old river bed is seen close to Hissarlik, dry in summer, with here and there pools of water. This has been identified with the ancient course of the Sca- mander. It is flooded in the rainy season, and bears the name Kalifatli Asmak, from the little village of Kalifatli by its side. But we have not yet enough to explain the situation in the Iliad; for after passing Kum Koi ("sand village"), which lies a little to the northwest of Hissarlik, the small stream has made a sharp bend, and empties through a delta too far to the west to allow the position of the Greek fleet be- tween its mouth and the sea. The Homeric description needs the following: At Rhoeteum, near a mound, which is called to-day In Tepeh, but which tradition styles the "Tomb of Ajax," is observed a streamlet which almost joins in a direct line the Kalifatli at the point where the latter makes its bend to the westward. Here we may mark the mouth of the historic river. In that case the Scamander of Trojan times flowed along the eastern range of hills, passing under the mound of Hissarlik, and from thence making its course in a straight line to the Hellespont, which it joined at Rhoeteum. This would leave the bend of the sea from Sigeum to Rhoe- teum free for ships, and would place the Greeks on the opposite side of the river to the Trojans. Deme- trius of Skepsis, misinterpreting a statement in He- rodotus,^ supposed that the shore along the Hellespont 1 Herodotus, II., 10. THE TROAD 123 had advanced. Virchow has made geological tests and failed to find anything to indicate that this por- tion of the plain is an alluvial deposit. He shows also how it is impossible for land to form against such a swift torrent.^ Furthermore, in a work at- tributed to an old geographer Scylax, the statement is made that llion is twenty-five stades from the sea, which is practically the distance of Hissarlik from the Hellespont to-day. This theory for the old course of the Scamander is still uurefuted.^ 78. The Simois. The insignificant swamp brook (Dumbrek Su), often identified with the Homeric Simois, can hardly be classed with VergiFs buffeting river: Ubi tot Simois correpta sub undis Scuta virum galeasque et forUa corpora volvit. It seems that this stream ought not to have a prom- inent place in Homer; yet it is referred to seven times, with no hint of its being smaller than the Scamander. Hercher argues that the mention of the Simois in the Homeric poems is a late interpolation by one who knew nothing of the Trojan country.^ Rossmann takes the opposite extreme view, and believes that only one thoroughly versed in the Troad could pic- ture the Simois in the light it is. He bids us look at the picture of the Scamander imploring the Simois to aid against Achilles (*, 308 fg.), and supposes that such a scene would be inapplicable to an independent iBeitriige zur I^andeskunde der Troas, 1879. 2 "Und es scheint niclits dagegen zu sprecben." Heinrich. sUeber die homeriscbe Ebene von Troja, 1875; Heinrich. Troja bei Homer und in der Wirklichlieit. 1* 124 HOMERIC LIFE {selhstandiger) stream; that it is highly fitting that the Simois flow its sluggish and lazy course, remaining in the swamp till through the pressure of high water it reaches the Scamander. Yet Rossmann's argument (quoted wdth favor by Heinrich) loses its force when we consider that in all probability this portion of the Iliad belongs to the third stratum of the poem. 79. Bunarbashi. To the old arguments identifying the heights of Bunarbashi with ''steep" and "windy" Troy,^ Nikolaides, in the 'E(f>r]ix€pU apxaioXoyiKij, 1894, adds a new one so unique that 1 take space to give its substance. From Grave IV on the Acropolis of Mycenae, a grave which is the oldest of the shaft tombs, was taken a silver vase whereon was pictured a battle scene. The vase is shattered, but one large fragment and several smaller ones are preserved. The engraving was obscured by a thick accretion of oxide; hence this most interesting relic lay in the National Museum unnoticed. Koumanoudes was the first to bring the scenes to light, and Tsountas to give them to the world in the 'E<^^^cpts apxcuoXoytK^, 1891. A contest before a walled city is clearly seen. On the steep hillside rise the fortifications, towering above which, like terraces, are squares upon squares, which may represent the roofs and towers of the city. On the wall stand women, five in number, while the hand of a sixth is seen upraised. They appeal wildly to the struggling warriors to save the city. Immediately under the battlements are two fio-ures. upright and serene. These may be the elders of the town come out beyond the gates to inspire resolution, ^ See footnote on page 119. THE TROAD 125 clothed with thechlaina; ^ or they may be spearmen, with shield aud spear, ^ Before the two figures kneel bowmen, with arrows fixed; and in front of these At the bottom stand slingers in the midst of action ^rjWM ^.';# Fig. 38. Siege Scene from Silver Vase (Mycenae.) appear the head and breast of a helmeted warrior wearing a short chiton. Twomen are crouching among ^ So The Mycenaean Age, p. 162, 1897. "A necessary comple- ment was the chlaina, or thick woolen cloak, reaching to the knees, or even to the ankles, and doubtless Avorn habitually by the elders, and in winter at least by the younger men. It ap- pears on the two old men just behind the bowmen on the back- ground of the siege scene." 2SoRossbach, Philologus, 1892. 126 HOMERIC LIFE the slingers. This picture almost fits the battle scene on the shield of Herakles. ^ Nikolaides startles us by seeing on this vase the battlements of Troy. From the wall Hecuba, An- dromache, and other women are looking on the fate of Hector (X, 405), while Achilles nods to the Greeks not to strike at Hector, but to leave to him alone the glory of his death. Lines below the combatants are interpreted as the two springs — the one warm, the other cold — which the adherents of the Bunarbashi theory think they find on this spot.^ If this be Troy, the steep upon which stands the city suits Bunarbashi far better than Hissarlik. Nikolai- -des, however, fails to consider that the vase is prob- ably older than the period of the Trojan War.^ As I recall the elevation of Bunarbashi, 1 think of the words of Count von Moltke respecting it: "We who are no scholars allow ourselves to be guided solely by military instinct to the spot which, in old times as well as now, men would have selected for an inac- cessible citadel." 80. Schliemann's Troy. II Stratum. At first Schlie- mann found on the hill of Hissarlik seven distinct layers, one above the other.* The first was prehis- toric; the second he believed to be the Ilios of Priam. On the gold ornaments exhumed were the rosettes iHesiod, Shield of Herakles, 237 fg. 2Lechevalier, Voyage de la Troade, 1802. Cf. Heinrich, Troja bei Homer und in der Wirklichkeit. ^Frazer, Pausanias, HI., 117. ^Schliemann, Ilios; Schuchhardt-Sellers. Scbliemann's Ex cavations, 1891; Perrot et Chipiez, Hist, de I'Art dans I'An- tiquite, 6, 176. THE TROAD 127 and spirals similar in pattern to what we designate to-day as the gold work of the oldest stage of Myce- naean civilization. A palace was discovered corre- sponding somewhat in general arrangement to the pal- aces of Tiryns and Mycenae. The walls of defense of Fig. 29. Gold Ornaments (with Spirals and Rosettes) FROM II Stratum the citadel were of considerable magnitude. A confla- gration had destroyed the town. This must be, Schliemann thought, the Homeric Troy. In perfect assurance he apjilied to every object found an appro- priate name. The gold ornament, with its countless tassels, became part of the "Treasure of Priam" 128 HOMEKIO LIFE {Scftatz des Friamos). In the Museum ftir Volker- kunde, at Berlin, where most of the discoveries are preserved, we used to read a label as significant as the following: "Skull of a Trojan Warrior" {Schddel eines trojanischen Kriegers). We cannot condemn such enthusiasm when we realize that the all-con- trollino- ambition of Schliemann's life — a life which reads like romance— was to find the Homeric Per- gamos. It is pathetic to remember that he died just as "Mycenaean Troy" was brought to light. How- ever much his statements may be modified or his the- ories chano;ed, the name of Heinrich Schliemann will be spoken reverently as long as history, literature, and art have place among men. We are now able to assign the date of Stratum H to about the period of Cretan dominion (2500-2000 B.C.), and in so doing we recall the tradition that Teucer, founder of the most ancient Trojan city, came from Crete. Surely the archaic pottery of this stratum is inferior to that found at Thera (dated circa 2000 B.C.). 81. Dorpfeld's Troy. VI Stratum. In the excava- tions which Schliemann and Dorpf eld carried on con- jointly in 1890 nine layers of settlements were dis- tinguished instead of seven. In the sixth stratum (in the megaron of VI A) was found the lustrous class of pottery characteristic of the best Mycenaean period.^ Ruins of city buildings were also discovered. The neglect in former excavations to appreciate the importance of this settlement is partly due to the 1 Schliemann, Bericht iiber die Ausgrabungen in Troja im Jabre 1890 (Taf. I, II). z H > c r (I2y) 130 HOMERIC LIFE fact that the Romans cut away old buildings to ob- tain a level foundation for the new city. Dorpfeld continued the work after Schliemanu's death. Fortification walls, dwellings, gates, towers were unearthed.^ Some of the streets were paved with gypsum. The citadel was terrace-formed. The houses consist of a large apartment and antechamber, resembling in this respect the megaron of the palace discovered at Gha, the private house exhumed close to the south wall of the citadel of Mycenae, and the women's hall at Tiryns. Although the large megara at Mycenae and Tiryns are distinguished by ante- chamber (tt/joSo/xos) and vestibule {aWovaa)^ the Ho- meric description tits the simpler arrangement of a single anteroom designated by both names. The columns of the Trojan megaron are absent, with one exception. This may show that the design was taken from the buildings of the prehistoric settlements, especially the palace of the second stra- tum. The wall of the city, built out of blocks of limestone, is seen on the south, west, east. The foun- dation wall, sixteen feet thick and fifteen to twenty feet high, is scalable on the east side. Upon this is built a perpendicular upper wall, six feet thick. There are three gates — one on the south, another on the southwest, another on the east. A tower stands by the south gate, another juts out farther toward the east wall, while at the northeast corner rises a mighty tower which guards the water supply.' * Dorpfeld, Troja, Bericht uber die im Jahre 1893 in Troja veranstalteten Ausgrabungen. 2D6rpfeld, Mitth. Ath., 1894. ,.^'^.^i^at■:««!fi^it!i^^. .^'> FiG. 30. Gkeat Noktii-East Towek at Tuoy (131) 132 HOMERIC LIFE Vases of Mycenaean pattern were exhumed, includ- ing the histrous "false-necked" Mycenaean jars. Each of these jars — unique specimens of ceramic art — has a closed neck with a spout close beside it, through which the liquid is poured, while the handles. Fig. 31. False Necked Mycenaean Jak joining the neck, reseml^le a pair of stirrups; hence the German name, ' ' stirrup-jar " ( Bugelkanne). Since the general type of pottery of this stratum is the de- veloped monochrome and probably a native product, the Mycenaean ware must be explained as importa- tions.^ 82. Mycenaean Civilization. What do we mean by "Mycenaean pottery," ""Mycenaean Troy"? The term "Mycenaean" is roughly applied to those pal- aces, dwelling houses, tombs, pottery, weapons, gems, and ornaments which exhibit a similarity, more or less striking, to those found on the citadel of Mycenae — monuments which evidently are the work of one and thesamerace. Recent excavations have shown theex- tent of Mycenaean influence to be broader than schol- ars of a few years ago even dreamed of believing. We ^Briickner, Die keramischen Funde, Troja, pp. 80-120. (133) 134 HOMERIC LIFE venture to burden the reader with a list of some forty localities which unmistakably had come in touch with this civilization. Jt is noteworthy how many districts mentioned in the Homeric poems are here included. In addition to the monuments at Mycenae, Tiryns, and Hissarlik/ Mycenaean remains have been found at the Argive Heraeum,^ Nauplia,^ Midea (near Nauplia),* Asine^ (in Argolis), Kampos^ (near ancient Gerenia), Arkina^ (six hours from Sparta), Vaphio^ (the an- cient Pharis; cups of exquisite workmanship found), Pylus^ (Nestor's home), Phigalia,^'^ Masarakata^^ (in Cephallenia), jSIegara,^- Menidi^^ (seven miles from Athens), Spata^* (nine miles from Athens), Thori- cus^^ (in Attica), Acropolis of Athens^® (prehistoric iScliliemann, Mycenae and Tiryns; Schucbhardt- Sellers, Schliemaun's Excavations; Tsountas and Manatt, Mycenaean Age; Frazer, Pausanias III., 97-230; Dorpfeld, Troja. 2 Report of American School at Athens; American Journal of Archaeologj'. 3 Frazer, Pausanias. 111.. 141; WijaKTtKa Tfjg 'Apxaiol. 'ETaifjiag, 1892, 52. < Frazer, op. cit., 111., 231; Mittb. Athen., 17, 95. fi Frazer, op. cit., V., 601. ^Frazer, op. cit.. III., 136; Tsountas, UpoKTiKa r^ 'Apxawl. 'ETaifjiac, 1891, 23. ^Frazer, op. cit., III., 136; 'Epj/ieplg apxmoloyiKv, 1889, 133. ^Frazer, op. cit. III., 134; Gardner, New Chapters in Greek History, 70; Brunn, Griechische Kunstgeschichte, I.. 46. ^Frazer, op. cit., V., 608; Bulletin deCorresp. Hellenique, 20, 388. '"Milchhofer, Anfiinge der Kunst in Griechenland, 54. "Wolters, Mitth. Athen.. 19, 488. i^Furtwangler and Loschcke, Mykenische Vasen, 53. i3Frazer, op. cit.. III., 137; Lolling, Mitth. Athen., 12, 139. "Frazer, op. cit.. III., 143; Mitth. Athen., 3, 83, '5 Frazer, op. cit.. III.. 138, Af An'ov apxaioloyiKov, 1890, 159. '^Tsountas and Manatt, op. cit., p. 8. THE TROAD 135 palace), Halike^ (ancient Halae Aixonides, south- east of Athens), Kapandriti^ (ancient Aphi(hia), Eleusis,^ Salamis,* Aegina,^ Calauria,^ Gha^ (near Lake Copais, identified by some with the Homeric Arne; extensive remains of prehistoric palace Fig. 33. False-Necked Amphoka from Crete found), Orchomenos^ ("Treasury of Minyas"), Thebes,'^ Tanagra,!*' Lebadea,^^ Delphi,^^ Daulis,i^ iTsountas and Manatt. op. cit., p. 9. ^Frazer, op. cit., III., 144. ^Furtwangler and Loschcke, op. cit., 40; Gazette arch^o- logique, 8, 248. •»Tsountas aud Mauatt, op. cit., 387. ^Ibid., 388-394; Evans, Journal of Hellenic Studies, XIII., 195. 6Frazer, V., op. cit., 596: Mitth. Athen.. 20, 267. ^Frazer, op. cit., V., 121; Tsountas and Manatt, op. cit., 374. ^Frazer, op. cit., V., 188. **Furtwiingler and Loschcke, op. cit., 43. 10 Ibid., 43. "Ibid., 42. i^Frazer, op. cit., V., 398; Bulletin de Corresp. Hcll^uique, 18, 195. i^Furtwiingler and Loschcke, op. cit., 43. (136) THE TKOAD 137 Goura (Phthiotis), Diraini^ (three miles to the west of Volo, the ancient lolcus), Melos' (four superim- posed settlements, the last of which is Mycenaean), lalysus^ (in Rhodes), Thera,* Crete ^ (prehistoric pal- ace at Cnosus, and extensive Mycenaean remains at Goulas, Gortyna, Courtes, Kavousi, Marathokephala, Anavlochus, Erganos), Cyprus,^ Egypt, ^ Sicily,^ Italy. 3 Of Mycenaean pottery we distinguish two main types: the older dull type, ornamented with linear dec- orations — e. j7., spirals, parallels, circles, curved and straight lines — painted iu dark red, violet, brown, but sometimes white; the later lustrous type, adorned with geometric patterns, bands, spirals, but more gen- erally with scenes from marine life — e. 1Q98 FEB2 2I988 REC'D LD-URL FEB 1 3 1990 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY AA 000 447 688 3 /)]^L