miTt< U K *& s ( ■■' I -TJ ^^*Q_ >^ a -• < * / m • fe THE PANTHEON: OR, FABULOUS HISTORY OF I'HE H E A T II EN GODS, GODDESSES, HEROES, &c. Explained in a Manner entirety neiv ; And rendered much more useful than any hitherto published? ADORNED WITH Figures from ancient Paintings, Medals, and Gems, for the (Jle of those who v«>uld understand History. Poetry, Painting, Statuary, Coins, Medals, £cc. WTl 11 A Dissertation on the Theo'^gy ind Mythology of the Heath- ens, from the Writing* of Moses, the ./Egyptian, Grxcian, Roman, ,::d Eastern Historians, Philo- so] hers, foets, ckc. By SAMUEL BOYSE, A. M. AN APPENDIX, Treating of rheir Astrology. Prodicjies, Aihtbries, Auspices, Oracles, &c in which the Origin of each is pointed out; and an Historical Account of the R.^; oi Altars, Sacked Groves, Priests and TfiM i-i.ES. By WILLIAM COOKE, A. M. i - Rector of Oldbury, Vicar of Enfold, Chaplain to the Earl oi Suffolk, -nd Author of t;>t Medalfic History of Imperial Rome, z vols, in 4:0. THE TENTH EDITION. ■ ■■iriMi— TO WUICH IS NOW FIRST ADDED, A further Illustration of the D11 Majores of the Romans, particularly adapted to the Classics. DUBLIN: PRINTED IFOR P. WOGAN, AND A. CROSS. 1809. Stacfc Ann«S :> \ TO HIS GRACE [V, H E N R Y; DUKE OF BEAUFORT. MAY IT PLEASE YOUR GRACE, IT has been long objected to the mo- dern method of education, that so great and valuable a part of youth is spent amidst the ruins of Idolatry ; whence an early taint, and corruption (hard to be got over) both in principles and morals, has sometime** ensued. Indeed the Heathen Theology is so interwo- ven with the writings of the ancients, and makes so large a part of classic. tl learning especially, as to be utterly A 2 jj>_ iv DEDICATION. inseparable from it. He, therefore, who sha'l effectually divest it of the marvellous, leaving it rational and ac- countable, and, at the same time, make the whole subservient to the cause of virtue and true religion, will be allowed to have rendered an acceptable service to mankind. Such was the attempt of the msreni- ous author of this work. It must be admitted that he has in great part suc- ceeded. Had he lived to revise it care- fully, and to prepare it for another edi- tion, all foreign assistance had proba- bly been needless. As it is, what veemed wanting, or the effect of inad- vertency and error, I have endeavour- ed to supply and amend. Having thus done what I could for this adopted offspring, it is time that I recommend it to a better and more able benefactor, whose further support may be of use towards its settlement in the world. DEDICATION. * world. And my acquaintam e with the goodness of your- Grace's . ;• ritod h ny occasions leaves me no room to doubt, that yon will take this orphan also into your protection. Indebted to your Grace's illustrious house for all that I am, thither every grateful consideration is wont to direct my views and affections. An appre- hension which then struck me, that such a pertonnauee Height be particu- larly serviceable to your Grace, tirst inclined me to listen to the overtures Which were made for pre] >aring another and more complete edition of tins tVork ; against which my little leisure! from other important avocations had else determined me. \\ lien, therefore, T sat down to examine the contents of it, and saw evidently the general use- fulness ©f the design, 1 could withf-hold no longer the little assisl mcii winch I was capable of giving. Your Grace's name will bring it to the public test. If a 3 thea yi DEDICATION, then it shall appear in some sort to an- swer the intent, and be possessed of intrinsic worth enough to save it, I shall find my great and leading expec- tation answered in the same degree ; which was that it might he improved into something agreeable and useful to your Grace ; an end, which will ever principally command the attention of, May it please your Grace, Your Grace's most dutiful And devoted humble Servant, WILLIAM COOKE. THE ( vii ) THE P It E F A C E. \\ E have here no defign to raife the repu- tation of this work, by depreciating the many others that have already been publifhed on this fubjett : it is fufficient for us to fay, that we have followed a plan entirely new, and, at the fame time, fuch an one as appeared to us much more ufeful, more rational, and lefs dry, than any that has gone before it. As all works of this kind muft neceflarily confift of materials colleded from other au- thors, no expenfe, no labour has been fpared ; the molt celebrated works on this iubject have been confulted and compared with each other, and it has frequently happened, that fcattered hints, widely difperfed, have ferved to clear up the moft difficult and intricate meanings, to a degree of demonftration; but amongft all the authors to which we have had recourfe, we muft here particularly acknow- ledge the great advantage we have received from that ingenious gentleman the Abbe Pluche, in his hiftory of the heavens. But as that learned and valuable writer feems now and then to have carried matters a Tittle too far, Vlll PREFACE. far, the reader will find lefs ufe made of him than in the tirft edition. Wo h«ve been care- ful to allow all things to evidence and reafon; but as little as might be to conjecture. We have alio received Come ufeful hints from the Abbe Burner's r&ytholo'gy. But it behoves us elpeciaiiy to acknowledge the great fer- vice which we have received from the wri- tings of the learned Bochart, Pignorius, Cufalius, Kircher, Lipfius, Montfaucon, and others, who have ^r^feff.d to treat of the Phoenician, Egyptian, Greek, and Romaa antiquities. Some acquaintance with the heathen gods and the ancient tables is a neceiTary branch of polite learning, as without fhi-s ir is im- poffible to obtain a competent knowledge of the Ciaiiics ; impoffible to form a judgment of antique medals, (tatues, <>r paintings ; or even to underitand the perfbr manxes of tin; modern in fhefe polite arts. Hence thue (Indies have been generally efteemed neceflary lor the improvement of youth ; but in uorks of this kind, fufficient care has not been taken to unfold the origia of the heathen gods, which has generally been mhtaken. Some imagining that they had been kings and* princes ; others, that thev were the various parts of nature ; and others, that they were the patriarchs and heroes of the Jewifh nation. But each of thele have been found equally contrary to truth. PREFACE. IX truth, when applied to the pagan theology, though fome of their fables have been e:n- bellifhed with many circumftances related in the Mofaie hiftory. In works of this kind, no care has hitherto been taken to give the lealt intimation of abundance of circumftan- ces nec< flfary to be known ; and a perfon reads the hiftory of the gods without finding any thing added, that can help him to un- ravel the rayileries he meets with in every page, or to entertain the leaft idea of the re-, ligion of the worlhippers. The Greeks were entirely ignorant as to the origin of their gods, and incapable of tranfrnitting their hiftory to posterity. He- rodotus informs us, that the gods of the Greeks were originally brought from Egypt andMPhcenicia, where ihey had been the ob- jects of religious worfhip before any colonies from thefe countries fettled in Greece. We ought then to fearch in Egypt and Phoenicia for the origin of the gods ; for the gods whofe worlhip was chiefly promoted by the Egyptians, and carried by the Phoenicians ' over all the coafts of the world then known. The firft Egyptians, unacquainted wkh let- ters, gave all the informations to the people, all the rules of their conduct, by erecting figures, eafily underftooch, and which ferved as rules and orders necc'Liry to regulate their behaviour, and as adveniiements tcfl^rovide for their own fafety. A very few figures diverfined by what they held in their fronds, or carried on their heals, were fufricieiwBbr this X PREFACE. this purpofe. Thefe were ingenious contri- vances, and fuch as wereabfolutely neceflary in a country, where the lead miftakein point of time was fufficient to ruin all their affairs. But thefe Egyptian fymbols, giving way to the eafy method of reaping inftru&ion from the ufe of letters, which were afterwards introduced, foon became obfolete, and the memory of fome particular virtues flill re- maining, they were revered as the images or reprefentations of fuperior and friendly be- ings, who had frequently delivered them from impending dangers, and foon were worfhipped as the gods of their fathers. Their hiftories were wrote in verse, and em- bellifhed with fictions founded on ancient traditions. The prie(ts of different countries increafed the delufion ; they had read the Mofaic hiftory, or at lead, had heard that the fons of God had converfation with the daugh- ters of men, and from hence, influenced by luft or avarice, cloaked their own debauche- ries, and fometimes thofe of princes and great men, under thofe of a god ; and the poets, whenever a princefs failed in point of modef- ty, bad recourfe to the fame method, in or- der to fhelter her reputation from vulgar cenfure. By this means the deities in after times were laid to live in various countries, and even in far diffant ages. Thus there be- came three hundred Jupiters, an opirion derived from there being a number of places iii which, in different ^ges, Jupiter was laid to have lived, reigned, and performed fome extra- PREFACE. XI extraordinary actions, which ancient fables^ the ncYions of the poets, and the artifices of the prielts had rendered famous. But not- withftanding all thefe fables, Jupiter was always acknowledged by the wifefl heathens to be impeccable, immortal, the author of life, the univerfal creator, and the fountain of goodneis. This fcheme is here carried on and ex- plained with refpect to each heathen deity, and added to the common hiftories and fables of the gods and goddeftes. In the fhort Diflertation on the Theology of the Ancients we have fhewn the rife of idolatry, and its connexion with the ancient fymbols. We have there exhibited the fen- timents of the Pagans with regard to the unity of the deity, and the perfections they afcribe to him, from the concurrent teftimony of the philofophers in various ages, amongit the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. And the whole is concluded with a (hort account of the progrefs of idolatry. In the Diflertation on the Mythology of the Ancients, we have endeavoured to ac- count for the rife of a variety of fables from the licence of poetry, embellifhing the com- mon incidents of life, by perfonating inani- mate beings, introducing fictitious characters, and fupernatural agents. We have given the hiftory of the creation of the world, the (late Xll PREFACE. flate of innocence, the fall of man, the uni- verfal deluge, &c. according to the traditions of different nations, and the opinions of the poets and mod eminent philofophers, and compared them with the account given by IVIofcs. In fhort, we have here given a view of their religious, as well as moral fenti- menis. To the whole is added, by way of Appen- dix, a rational account of the various fuper- ilitious obfervances of afbology, and the manner by which influences and powers be- came afcribed to the figns and planets ; of prodigies, auguries, the aufpices and oracles; of altars, facred groves, and facrifices ; of priefts and temples, &c. In which the origin of each is pointed out, and the whole inter- fperfed with fuch moral reflections, as have a tendency to preferve the minds of youth from the infection of fuperflitious follies, and to give them fucfi fundamental principles, as may be of the greateft fervice in helping them to form jult ideas of the manners, principles, and conduct of the heathen nations. THE ^pwjrt^w^wy « THE Theology and History O j OF THE II E A T II E N S, fXPVAiSFD AND ILLUSTRATED. CHAP, I. Hi Of Chat ESIOD, tlic first author of the fabulous system of the creation, begins his genealogy of the gods with Chaos. Incapable of conceiving how something could be produced from nothing, he assented the eternity of matter, and imagined to himself a co; fused muss lying in the womb of nature, which contained the principles ■of ail brings, and vthich ane -wards rising hy degrees in- to order and harmony, at length produced the universe. Tims the Heathen poets endeavoured to account for the t>rrgii.] oi the worlds of which they kn?w so little, that it is no wonder they disguised rather than illustrated the . .h' r ct in their writings. V\ r e find Virgil represent- Chaos a» one of the infernal deities, and Ovid, at his tir-t setting o.it in the Metamorphosis, or transfor- mation of tiie GoJi, giving a very poetical picture of that disorderly s; - ;ltc ' ' which all tin- el merits lay bit ;.d- ithout order or distinction. It is easy to sei , under all thi» confusion and perplexity, the rtmukt ei truth; U the 2 FABULOUS HISTORY OF the ancient tradition of the creation being obscured with a multiplicity of images and allegories, became an inex- haustible fund for fiction to improve upon, and swelled the heathen theology into an unmeasurablc compass: so that in this sense, Chaos may indeed be properly stiled the father of the gods. Though it does not seem easy to give a picture, or graphical representation of Chaos, a modern painter (\ ) lias been so bold to attempt it. Beyond the clouds, which compose the body of his piece, he has represented an immense abyss of darkness, and in the clouds an odd medley of water, earth, fire, smoke, winds, &c. But he has unluckily thrown the signs of the Zodiac into hi* <>ork, and thereby spoiled his whole design. Our great Milton in a noble and masterly manner has painted the state in which matter lay before the creation. On !>e:ivcnl:j ground they stood, an J from the shore They vh-w'ti the vast unmeasurablc abyss Qitlra^ous as a sea, dark, wasteful, 'wild, * '• ft om the bottom turn'd by furious 'winds And surging 'waves-, as mountains, to assault f'avcn's height, and with the centre mix the fiole. Book VII. 1. 215. C H A P. II. 0/ C't-.'j and Terra, V. f<~- ' A S, ■" Uranus, as h called by the Greeks, iid to be -the offspring <• Gaia or Terra, The god* had given him birth, thai e might be surrounded < and ['] ' ti. •-:"-, v.:, AHraham t>iej»»nl»ek«. He-waa ■ . id ft) forrte rini'e studied under . tJ . ter ' I y. fl , i,i hi, t)9ok entitle I /'•• hnigcsuei ,.,r., jrivc him the char*vlcr-o# a great artill, pacticuiariyih oa |„i Ihe piece, above mentioned li.is been con- '. iv imufl ptoph a-, a " ry ingenious jumble, and t is plain i . i i -f it; iw iic wio;c M6 n^mc .!: the VUift tO :iKiij>Ut. the c>;iiu;ioii. THE HEATHEN G0D5. 3 and covered by him, and that he might afford a mansion for the gods. She next bore Ourea, or the mountain*, the residence of the wood nymphs; and, lastly she be- came the mother of Pelagus, or the ocean. After this she married her son Uranus, and had by him a numerous offspring, among whom were Oceanus, Carue, CreUBj Hyperion, Japhtt, Theia, Rhea, Themis, Mr.rmosyin , Phoebe, Tethys, Saturn, the three cyclops, viz. Bron- tes, Steropes, and Arges: and the giants Cottes, Gyges, and Briareus. Terra, however, was not so strictly bound bv her conjugal vow, for by Tartarus she had Typhacns, or Typhon, the great enemy of Jupiter. Ca?lus-ha\ ing. for some offence imprisoned the cyclops, h's wife, to revenge hen 'if, incited her eon Saturn, who by her as- sistance took the opportunity to castrate his father with an instrument she furnished him with. Thebiooeof the wound produced the three Ames, the giants and the wood nymphs. The genital parts which fell into the 6ea, impregnating the waters, formed^ Venus, the most potent and charming of the gorl-'c?se?, According to Lactantius, Cxlus was an ambitious and mighty prince, who, affecting grandeur, called bim- self son of the shy; which title i is son Saturn also as- sumed iu his turn. But Diodorus makes Uranus the first monarch of the Atlantides, a nation inhabiting the western coast of Africa, and famous for commerce and hospitality. From his skill in astronomy the starry hea- vens were called by his name, and for his equity and be- neficence he was denominated king of.the universe. Nor was his queen Titea less esteemed for her wisdom and goodness, which after her death procured her the honour of being deified by the name of Terra. She is repre- sented in the same manner as Vesta, of whom we shall have occasion to speak more particularly. C HAP. III. Of Hyperion and Theia. HEIA, or Bisilca, succeeded her parents, Callus and Terra, in the throne : she was remarkable for her B 2 modesty 4 FABULOUS HISTORY OF modesty and chastity ; but being desirous of heirs, married Hyper;on her brother, to whom she bore Helios and Selene f the sun and moonj, as also a second daugh- ter, called Aurora for the morning,) ; but the brothers of Theia conspiring against her husband, caused him to be assassinated, and drowned her son Helios in the river Eridanus [2]. Selene, who was extremely fond of her brother* on hearing his fate, precipitated herself from a high tower. They were both raised to the skies, aTTl Theia, after wandering distracted, at la/t diappeared iu a storm of thunder and lightning. After her death the conspirators divided the kingdom. Historians say, that Hyperion was a famous astrono- mer, who, on account of his discovering r:e motions of the celestial bodies, and particularly the two greet lumi- naries of heaven, was called the father of those planets. CHAP. IV. Of Oceanus and TetKy '• * HIS deity was one of the eldest sons of Oelus and Terra, and married his sister Tethys, besides whoro he had several other wives. Each of them possessed an hun- dred woods and as many rivers. By Tethys he had Ephyre, who was matched to Epimctheus, and Pleione t! ■ wife of Atlas. "He had several other daughters and sons, whose names it would be eadless to enumerate, and indeed they are only those of the principal rivers of the world. Two of the wives of Oceanus were Pamphyloge and Parthenope. By the first he had two daughters, Asia and Lybia ; and by the la;t, two more called Eltropa and Thracia, who gave their names to the countries so deno- minated. He had also a daughter, called Cepi.yra, who - ducated Neptune, and three sons, rip. Triptqlemus, the favourite of Ceres, Nereusj who presided over salt waters, and Achelous, the deity of fountains and rivers. ; The 2) This feems copied from die ftory oi PI. acton. * tup: heathen con 1 ; 5 The ancient, regarded 0< inns as the father cf gods and men, on account of the ocean's encompassing the earth with its waves, and because he w,s the principle ofth--.t radical inoistui i diffused through tuMversalmatter, without winch, according to Thalea, nothing couldeithi r be produced or gul gi t. Homer makes Juno -visit hrm at the remotest limits of the earth, and acknowledge bkn and TetLv: as the pa- rents of the gods, adding that she her elf bad been brought •:p Under their faition. Oceanus was dep: cted with a bull'? head, to represent the racre and bellowing of the ocean when agitated by storms. AV C H A P. V. Of Aurora and Tithouut. \ E have already observed, that this goddess was fhr. youngest daughter of Hyperion and Theia, — By the Greeks she was stiled iu$ , and by the Latins Aurora* on account of her .bright or golden colour, and the dejr which attends her. Orpheus calls her the barb rigor of Titan, because the dawn bespeaks the apj roai u o( t:.e Hun ; others make her the daughter of Titan and '.:.•_* earth.. She fell in love with a beautiful youth named Cephalus, /whom some suppose to be the same with the sun^l by whom she had Phaeton. She had also an an .«.;•:• with Orion, whom sne first saw a hunting in the woods, and Carried him with her to Deles. By Astreas her hus- band, one of tiie Titans, shehad the stars, and the winds, Argeetus, Zephyrus, Boreas, and NotUS. Bfit lier greatest favourite wasTithcnus, to whom-she bore M.xt\&- thion a'id Mesnhon. This young prince she transported toDelos, thence to ./Ethiopia, and Li; t into Heaven, « she obtained for him, from the destinies* the gift; of n- mortality ; but at the same time forgot to add youth, which alone could render th z present valuable. Trthonus grew old, and so decrepid as to be rocked to sleep like ao infant. His austiess, Dot beincr able to procure di . BS to G FABT-.LOi;s HISTORY OF T^v rrid his misery, changed him into a grasshopper ; -an i. :•;.-:. which by casting its skin r n , and in its chirping still retail s thejoquacitv of old acre. ■ h st i irians say, that Tithonus w isagre; I improver of astronomy^, and uBed to ride b< fore morning to make hh observations. They ad'.!, that his vHriHnce and tem- per:!, ice were rewarded with a long Hfe ; but wWeti tl e infirmities of old age came on at last, Aurora, by the help of oriental drugs, restored hi.n to health and vigour. Thus have t'i y clone Justice to the sal I r ;■• • ■{ the morn- ing, T^hia prince is .said to have reigned in Media, where he found d the city of Snsa on the river Choasnes, which became afterwards the sent of* the Persian Empire. The story of Cephalus is related differently. He was the nephew of iEolue, and had married Procris, daughter of Erichtheus, kin;r of Athen'r. Aurora seeing him often early in the woods, intent on his sport, conceived a vio- leat passion for him, and carried him wilh her to Heaven, where she in vain us?d all her arts to engage him to Vio- late his con'ugal vow. The prince, as fond of his wile as the goddess was of him, lemained inexorably faithful. Aurora therefore, to undeceive him, sent him to Procris in the disguise of a men h*nfr, to tempt her constancy by large presents : this artifice succeeded, .and jnst when Lis soouse was on the point of yielding, the unhappy hrs- band discovered himself, and Procris fled to the woods to hide her shame. But being afterwards reconciled, she made Cephalus a present of an unerring dart. A present like this increased his inclination to hunting, and proved doubly fatal to the donor. It happened the young prince, one dav, wearied with his toil, sat down in the wooci , and called for Aurora, cr the gentle breeze, to cool bird [3] : this being overheard, was carried to Procris, who, Enough inconstant, w;:s woman enough to be jealous : inHuen ed by th ; s passion, she followed her husband, and concealed herself io a thicket, where Bhe coild observe his motions. Unluckily the noise she made alarmed her husband, who thinking some wild beast lay concealed, discharged (•}) Fn a cap'.ral picft'ire, near the Hajruc. this foddefs is repre- (eateil in x golden rh iriot drawn by white horfus winged, on her . h 1 is the morning (tar, ^A Ihc is attended by Phoebus aud the dawn. THE Hi:AT'trN T GODS. 7 barged the infallible arrow, and pierced her to the heart. Mr. Pope, in some lines upon a lady's fin of hia own i ;n, painted with this story, has writh his wonted de* lie -iv y and judgment applied it. C'.nie, gentle a r ! th' ALoliav shepherd soul, While Procris fianled in the secret shade ; Come, gent e air, the fairer Delia , rie ; While at. her feel her swain expiring he*. I.n the glad gales o'er all her beaut ss .r.v ;: Breathe on her lifts, and in her bosom plug .' Li JJe'ia's hand this toy is fatal found, Nor could that fabled dart more surety ivound, Both gifts destructive to the givers prove ; Alike both lovers fall by those they love. Tet guiltless too this brig/it destroyer lives, At random wounds-, nor knows the wound she gives ; Ski views the story with attejttipe eye&, And pities Procris while her lover dies. There is no goddess of whom we have ro many beau- tiful descriptions in the poets as Aurora. Indeed it is no wonder they are luxuriant on this subjecf, as there is per- h::ps no theme in nature winch affords such an extensile field for poetry or painting as the varied beauties of the nmming, whose approach seems to exhihrate and enliven the whole animal creation. CHAP. VI. Of Atlas. A TLAS was the son of Japetus and Clymene, and t 1 •■ brother of Prometheus. In the division of his father's dominions, Mauritania i . 11 to his share, where he gave his own name to that mountain, which still bears it. As he was greatly skilled in astronomy, he became the first in- ventor of the sphere, which gave rise to the fable of his supporting the heavens on his shoulders. He rnd many children. Of his sons the most famous was Hesperus. - (Tooke J? FABULOUS HISTORY O? { Toofce calls him his brother, p. 32 5) who reigned some time in Italy, which from him was called Hesperia. It is saj,d> this prince being on mount Atlas to observe the motion of the stars, was carried away by a tempest, and, in honour to his memory, the morning star was after- wards c:dl"d by his name. He left three daughter?, JEg\e, Aruthusa-, and Hesperithusa, who went bv the g meral appellation of Hesperid s, and were possessed of those famous gardens which bore golden fruit, and were guarded by the vigilance of a formidable dragon. Atlas had seven daughters, called after his own name Athmtides, viz. Maia, Electra, Taygete, Astevope, Me- rope, Alcyone, and Celasno. Ail these were matched either to gods or heroes, by whom they left a numerous posterity. These from their mother Fleione, were also stiled Pleiades (I). Busiris, king of Egypt, carried them off by violence; but Hercules, travelling through Africa, conquered him, and delivering the princesses, restored them to their father, who to requite his kindness taught h:;n astronomy, whence arose the iable of that hero's supporting the heavens for ?. day to ease Atlns of his toil. The Pleiades, however, efk sred a new persecution from Orio:, who pursued them rive years, till Jove, pre- vailed on by their prayers, took them up into $be hea- ven:., where they form the constellation which bears then name. By yEthra, Atlas was the father of seven daughters, called Ambrosia, Endora, Pasithoe, Coronis, Plexaiis, Pytho, and Tyche, wiw bore one common appellation of the Hyades (5)- These virgins goeved so immode- rate ly for the death o: their brother Ilyas, devoured by a lion, that Jupiter, out of cornpaosion, changed them into stars, and placed then in the r^-ad of Taurus, where they still retain their grief, their rising and setting being attended with Extraordinary rain. Others make, these last the daughters of Lyeu.ges, born in the isle of* Nay.os, and translated to the skies, for their care in the education of Bacchus, probably because these showers are of great ber.erit in forwarding the vintage. According (4) So call'd from a Greek word, which %nif!e= failing ; becaufc they w.ere :<.chont'i favourable to iiavigation. (<, ) From the Greek verb to raitv, thfl Latins called them suculx, from the Greek t»i, or 3wine > because li.ey leaned to delight in wet or dirty We»lh«« THE HEATHEN GODS. 9 According to Hygirms, Atlas having assisted the gar.ts in their war agaimrt Jtfpiter, was by the victoriotif pod doomed, as a punishment, to sustain the weight oi the heavens. Ovid reives a very different account of Atlas, who, as he says, was the w.i of Japetus and Asia. He represents him as a powerful and wealthy monarch, proprietor of the gardens which bote golden fruit ; he tells us, that being warned by the oracle of Themis, that he should suffer cprrie great injury from a son of Jnj iter, he strictly forbad ell foreigners access to his court or presence. Perseus* however, hed the courage to appeal fceiore him, b il vtas ordered to ire, with strong menaces in case of disobedience. But b< hero presenting his shield with the dread ffll head of Medusa to him, turned him into the mourtain which still bears his name. The Abbe La Pluehe has given a very clear and in- genious explication of this fable. Of all nations the Egyptians had, with the great -at assiduity, cultivated astronomy. To point out the difficulties which attend the study of this science, they represented it by an image, bearing a globe or sphere on its ack, and which they called Atlas, a word signifying (6) great toil or 1 clour. But the word also signifying stiff ?rt (7),the Phoenicians, led by the representation, took it in this last sense ; and in their voyages to Mauritania, seeing the high moun- tains of that "country covered with snow, and losing their tops in the clouds, gave them the name of Atlas, and so produced the fable, by which the- symbol of astronomy used among the Egyptians became a Mauritanian king, transformed into a mountain, whose head supports the heavens. The rest of the fable is equally easy to account for. The annual inundations of the Nile obliged that people to be very exact in observing the motions of the hea- venly bodies. The Hyades or Huades, took their name from the figure V which they form in the hi ad of ■ % Taurus. f&) Firm Talaah' to flrivc, comes AtTi*h,*»»h wr-encfrthe Greeks derived their ctvrXti or labour, and the Romans txantto, to furmount great <:iflicultie? . /-) From afela"), to (ufpend, is derjwed Atlafc. upP OIt > whence the Greek word Lrr.h, for column or pillar. JO FABULOUS HISTORY OF Taurus. The Pleiades were a remarkable constellation, and of great use to the Egyptians in regulating the sea- sons. Hence they became the daughters of Atlas j ' a Orion, who rises just as they set, was called their lover. By the golden applrs that grow in the garden of the Hesperides, the Phoenicians expressed the tich and be- neficial commerce they had in tlse Mediterranean ; which being carried on during three months of the year only, g\ivj rise to the fable of the Hesperian sisters (8). CHAP. VII. Of Jjf:et'.»3, and his sons E/iimc'leus and Prometheus \ of Pandora's Box, and the Story of Diuccdion and Pyrrka. K f APETUS was the offspring of Castas and Terra, and one of" the giants who revolted against Jupiter. H* wa6 a powerful and haughty prince, who lived so long that his age became a proverb. iiefore the war he iiad a daughter, called Anchiale, who founded a city of her own name in Cilicia. Pie had several sons, the chief of whom were Atlas, (mentioned in the preceding chapter) Euphagus, Prometheus (9), and Epimetheus. Of these, Prometneus became remarkable, by being the object of Jupiter's resentment. The occasion is '•kited thus : Having sacrificed two bulls to that deity, he put ail the f'.-sh of both in one skin, and the bones ii the other, and gave the god his choice, whose wisdom for once failed him so, that he pitched upon the worst lot. Jupi- ter, incensed at the trick, put upon him. took away fire from the earth, 'till Prometheus, by the assistance of Minerva, stole into heaven, and lighting a stick at tne chariot of the sun, recovered the blewing, and brought it down again to mankind. Others say the cause of .'u- piter's anger was different. Prometheus being a great artist , had formed a man of clay of such exquisite work- manship, (8) Fr^m Ffper, the pn«d fharc or beft Int. ■ 9) So called from r» s xfpntuts, or providence, that it his skill in divination. THE HEATHEN GODS. H ncmship.that Pallas, charmed with his ingenuity, offered him whatever in heaven could contribute to finish lus- design : for this end she took him up with her to the celestial mansions, where, in a ferula, he hid some of the fire of the sun's chariot wheel, and used it to animate his image ( 1 ) . Jupiter, either to revenge his theft, or the former affront, commanded Vulcan to make a wo- man, w-.ich, when he had done, she was introduced into the assembly of the gods, each of whom bestowed on her some additional charm of perfection. Venus gave her beauty, Pallai wisdom, Juno riches, Mercury taught her eloquence and Apollo rmtffc : from all these accom- plishments she was stiled Pandora ( 2 ) and was the first of her sex. Jupiter, to complete his designs, presented her a box, in which lie had enclosed age-, diseases, war, famine, pestiL net, d'ueord, envi/,caluv.ng, and in short, all the evils and vices which he intended to afflict the world with. Thus equipped, she was sent down to Prome- theus, who wisely was on his guard against the mischief designed him. Epimetheus his brother, though fore- warned of the danger, had less resolution ; for enamour- ed with tWe beauty of Pandora (3), he married her; and opened the fatal box, the contents of which soon over- spread the world. PI ope alone rested at the bottom. But Jttpuer, not yet satisfied, dispatched Mercury and Vnlca.' to sejz.e Prometheus, whom they carried to mount Caucasus where they chained him to a rock, and an eagle or vulture was commissioned to prey on his liver, which ever" night was renewed in proportion as it was consumed by day. But Hercules soon afteiHjlled the vulture and delivered him. Others say, Jupiter restored him his freedom for discovering his father Saturn's con- spiracy (4'), and dissuading his intended marriage with Thetis. (\) Some fay his crime was not the enlivening a man of clav : but the formation of woman, ( l l) So called from *-*> 3sy»j j- e. loaded with gifts or Rccomplifaments. Ktfiod has given a fine description of her in his fheogony, Cook. p. 770. (3) Others fay Pandora ouly jrave the hex to the wife <>f Epimethc'us, who opened U from a curioGty natural t" h<:r fex. (4) Lucian has a very 1 ne Dialogue between Prometheus \a\ Jupiter upon this fu bj.it. ]'2 FABULOUS HISTORY OF Thesis. Nicander, to this fable of Prometheus, lends an additional circumstance. He tells us Borne ungrateful men discovered the theft of Prometheus hist to Jupiter, who rewarded them with perpetual youth. This present they loaded on the back of si as*, who stepping at a ^^nihtain to quench his thirst, was hindered by a water 5 ko, who would not let him drink till h« gave hit a the burthen he carried. Hence the Serpent renews Ins youth upon changing his skin. Prometheus had an altar in the academy at Athens, in common with Vulcan and Pallas. His statues arc represented with a scepter in the hand. There is a very ingenious explanation of this fable : It is s.tid Prometheus was a wise Prince, who reclaiming his subjects from a savage to a social life, was said to have animated men out of clay : Lie first instituted sacri- fices (according to [.">] Pliny) which gave rise to the story of the two oxen. Being expelled his dominions by Jupiter, he fled to Scythia, where he retired to mount Caucasus, either to make astronomical observa- tion?, cr to indulge his melancholy for the loss of his dominions. This occasioned the fable of the vulture feeding upon his Hver. As he was also the first inven- tor of forging metals by fire, he was said to have stole the element from heaven. In short, as the first know- Icdge of agriculture, and even navigation, is qscribed to him, it is no wonder if he was celebrated for forming a living man from an inaninv-ted substance. Some authors -imagine Prometheus to be the same with Noah The learned Bochart imagines him to be Magoj '. Each opinion is supported by arguments, which do not want a shew of probability • The tory of Pandora affords very distinct traces of the tradition of the fall of our first parents, and the se- duction of (Vdam '.>v his wife live. CHAP. [S] PKny, Pock 7, cap. j6. I '/- r-7 THE HEATHEN GODi. 1 3 C II A P. VI II-. Of Devciihqn and Pyrrfia. I J EUCALION was the son of Prometheus, and had married his cousin-germah Pyrrha, the daughter of Epi- metheus, who bore him a sou, called Helenas, who gave name to Greece. Deucalion reigned in Thessaly (6), which he governed with equity and justice ; but his country, for the wickedness of the inhabitants, being destroyed by a flood, he and his queen only escaped by 8fving themselves on mount Parnassus. After the de- crease of the waters, this illustrious pair consulted the oracle of Themis in their distress. The answer was in these terms, Depart the temple, veil uour heads and faces % unloose your girdles, and throw behind your backs the bones of your grandmother. Pyrrha was shocked at an advice, which her piety made her regard with horror: but Deu- calion penetrated the mystical sense, revived her, by tai- ling her the earth was their grandmother, and that the bones was only stones. They immediately obey the oracle, and behold its effect : the stones which Deuca- lion threw, became living men ; those cast by Pyrrha rose into women. With these, returning into Thcssaly, that prince repeopled his kingdom, and was honoured as the restorer of mankind* To explain this fable it is necessary to observe, there were five deluges, of which the one in question was the fourth, in order of time, and lasted, according to Aristo- tle's account, the whole winter. It is therefore need- less to waste time in drawing a parallel between this sto- ry and the Mosaic flood. 1 he circumstance of the 6 tones .('?) seems occasioned by the same word bearing two sig- nifications ; so that these misterious stones are only the children that escaped the general inundation. C C H A P. (6) By the SrundeliaB r.i3»-h'lc», Deucalion ruled at 1 rcorM, in t!ie ntfighborirlrood of Pattiaffus, about the begiami g oi the reign of Cecrops, king of Athens . ^ (7) The Phacniciati word Aben, or Eben, figtufks bot.i a ftone arid a child; and die Greek word A*«*, or A#fl;, J." nyrci either a done or a people. 14 FABULOUS HISTORY OF CHAP. IX. OfSafairri. s k y AT URN was the youngest son of Caclus ar.d Terra, and 'nan led Ins vster Vesta. Under the article of Cae- I , re have taken notice how he treated his father. We find a new proof of his ambition in his endeavour- ing, by the aSi • of his mother, to exclude his elder broth r Titan from the throne, in which he so far suc- ceeded, that this prince was obliged to resign his birth- right on these term*?, that Saturn should not bring up any male chfldrerj, so that the succession might devolve I j the right mule line again. Saturn, it IS said, observed these conditions so faith- hilly, that he devoured all the sons he had by his wife, i* soon as born. But hi* exactness in this point was at 1 1 ,-,r frustrat&l by the artifice of Vesta. Having brought forth the twins, Jupiter and Juno, she presented the litter to her husband, and concealing the boy, sent him to be nuf&ed bn mount Ida in Crete, committing the care of him to the Curetes and Corybantes. Saturn, however, getting some intelligence of the affair, de- manded the -child, in whose stead his wife gave him a stone swaddled up, which he swallowed. This stone h id the ii me of Ab-addir, (or the potent father) and received divine honours. lis fiction, of Saturn's devouring his sons, according [r. Le CJefc fS , was founded upon a custom which lie had of banishing or confining his children tor fear £l v should o.ic day rebi 1 against him. As to the stone it urn is sud to swallow, this is another fiction, on the double meaning of the woid Eben, both a Stone and a child, and means no hat Saturn was deceived by Rhea's substi- fcjng the room of Jupiter. Vita I finding the mutual compact made between him aim his brother thus violated, took arms to revenge the ind not only defeated Saturn, but made him and vife Vesta prisoners, whom he confined in Tartarus, a place (3) Re-' rl upon H-.Tiod. THE HEATHEN GODS. 15 a place so dark and dismal, that it afterwards bee one of the appellations of the infernal regions. In mean time Jupiter being grown up, raised an armv n Crete for his father's deliverance. He afro hired the Ct crops to aid him in his expedition j but on their re- fusal to join him after taking the money, lie turned them into apes. After this he marched against the Titans, and obtained a complete victory. The eagle which ap- peared before the engagement, as an auspicious omen, was ever after chosen to carry his thundei . From r n _• blood of the Titans, slain in the battle, proceeded se*- pents, scorpions, and all venemous reptiles. Having bv this success freed his parents, the young prince caused all the gods assembled to renew their oath of fidelity to Saturn, on an altar, which on that account has been raised to a constellation in the heavens. Jnjke-r after this married Metis, daughter to Oceana?, who it is He- ported gave Saturn a potion, which caused him to bring up Neptune and Pluto with the rest oi the ci H dren he had formerly devoured (2). The merit of the son, fas it often happens;) only- served to increase the father's jealousy, wdrich weceived new strength from an ancient oracle or irad't'O 1 .. tl < should be dethroned by one of his sons. Jupiter fchert fore, secretly it.?Ormed of the measurer, taken to destroy him, suffered his ambition to get the ascendant c\er his duty, and taking up arm?, deposer! his father, vl. by the advice of Prometheus, he bound iii fetters, and threw into Tartarus wr. ':. Japetua hi- oneb Here Saturn suffered the same barbarous punishment of castration he had inflicted on his father Cselust Mncrobius searches into the reason why this god was bound in fetters of wool, and addr, £rova the testinru of Apollodorus, that he broke fiese cords once a ye?-. at the celebration of the Saturnalia ( I ). This lie ex plains by saying, that this fable alluded to the corn, which being shut up in the earth and detained by ch soft and easily broken; sprung forth t id annually arrived at maturity. The Abbe Baivier • says /"..'-, tlr.i th C J Greets (9) By this, Jupiter iL..uid !>c the youngest fen of Salt (I) Sat. lib. 1. 1. 8. (2) B Amur's Mythology, vcK 1. 18;. lf> FABULOUS HISTORY OF Greek* looked upon the places situated to the east as higher than those that lay west ward, and fiomlie.ee concludes, that by Tartarus, or Hell, they only nit ant Spain. As to the castration of Saturn, Mr. Le Clerc conjectures (3), that it only means that Jupiter had corrupted his father's council, and prevailed upon the most considerable persons of his court to desert him. The manner in which Saturn escaped from his prison is not related. He fled to Italy, where he was kindly received by Janus, then king of that country, who asso- ciated him in the government. From hence that part of the world obtained the name of Saturma Tellns, as also that of latium, from latco, to lie hid, because he found a refuge here in distress. On this account money was coined with a ship on one side, to signify his arrival, and a Janus with a double head on the other, to denote his sharing the regal authority. The reign of Saturn was so mild and happy, that the poets have given it the name of the goldln age, and celebrated it with all the pomp and luxuriancy of imagi- nation (4). According to Varro, this deity, from his instructing the people in agriculture and tillage, obtain- ed his name ( 5 J of Saturn. The sickle winch he used hi reaping being cast into Sicily, gave that island its ancient name of Drepanon, which in Greek signifies that instrument. The historians give us a very different picture of Sa- turn. Diodorus represents him as a tyrannical, cove- tous, and cruel prince, who reigned over Italy and Si- dy, and enlarged his dominions by conquest : he adds, that he oppressed his subjects by severe taxes, and kept them in awe by strong garrisons. This account agrees very well with those who make Saturn the first who in- stituted human sacrifices, which probably gave rise to the fable of his devouring his own children. Certain it is, that the Carthaginians (G) offered young children to Remarks upon Hciiod. U; The reader Vill *ee more on this head under the succecd- artie'e* From Satu», that i*» fovring or feed time. (6; Mr.Selden, in his treatise of the Syrian {rods, fpeakmpj of Moloch, imagines, horn the cruelty of his facrifcees, he.v:i* THB HSATHEN GODS. ]? to this deity ; aad amongst the Rom in >, hie pfieats w.;r clothed in red, .md at lus festivals gladiator^ wereei ployed t > till ea< h other. Tiio feasts A this def y were celebrated wis ! i great so- leminty among^ the Romans-abouttbeiuii ■ ■ :.,■■',.. ber. They were first instituted by Tullus Has) though Livy dates them from the coasulslup of M id us and Sempronius. They lasted but oiie day till i v time of Juliu3 Caesar, who ordered them to be protected to three days ; and in process of time they were exten- ded to five. During these, all public business wis stop- peel, the senate never assembled, no war could be pro- claimed, or offender executed* Mutual presents of all kinds, f particularly wax lighrs^ were sent and received, servants wore the //ileus or cap of liberty, and were waited on bv their masters at table. All of which was designed to shew the equality and happiness. ©f mankind under the golden age. The Romans kept in the temple of Saturn thclilri titfikanti it, or rolls containing the names of the Roman citizens, as also the public treasure. This custom they borrowed from the Egyptians, who in the temple of Sudec, or Chrone, deposited their genealogies of fami- lies and the public money. •Saturn, like the otlr-r heathen duties, had his amours. He fell iu love with the nymph Phyllyra, the daughter of Oceanus, and was. by his wife Rhea so near being sur- prised tn Iier company, that he was forced to assume the. form of a horse. This sudden transformation had such ;>.n effector, his mistress, that she bore a Creature whose upper part was like a man, and the rest like a horse. This son of Saturn became famous for his skill in muiic and surgery. A modern author, M. La Pluche, has very justly ac- counted for this fabulous history of Saturn,, which cer- tainly derived its origin from Egypt. The annual meet- ing of the judges in that country was nocificd by an image with a long beard, and a scythe ia ins baud. The C 3- rirst i the fame as Saturn. In the reign of Tiberius, (list prince crucifii d the priefts of Saturn fur offering young infants at L:s a'tars, 'i his idea of Saturn'^ malignity is, perhaps, rhe in : Ton why the planet which b ar-i that n^iiic, w.is thought fo ic^u^kio'jsjnd- UB&ien«Uj to mankind* 18 FABULOUS HISTORY OP first denoted the age and gravity of the magistrates, and the latter pointed out the season of" their assembling, just before the first hay-making or harvest. This figure they called by the names of Slidcc [7], Chrone [H], Chiun [9], and Saterin [1]; and in company with it always exposed another statue representing Isis, with several breasts, and surrounded with the heads of ani- mals, which they called Rhea [2] ; as these images con- tinued exposed till the beginning of the new soiar year, or the return of the Osiris f the Sun,), so Satum became regarded as the father of time. Upon these occasions the Egyptians depicted him with eyes before and behind, some of them open, others asleep ; and with four wings, two shut and two expanded [.'?]. The Greeks took these pictures in the literal sense, and turned into fabu- lous I istory what was only allegorical. Bochart, and some other learned antiquaries, conceiv- ed Saturn to be the same with Noah, and drew a parallel in many instances, which seem to favour their opinion. Saturn was usually represented as an old man, bare- headed and bald, with all the marks of age and infirmi- ty in his face. In his right hand they sometimes placed a sickle, or scythe, at others a key, and a serpent biting its owr; tail, and circumflexed in his l.ft. He sometimes was pictured with sir wings, and feet of wool, to shew how insensibly and swiftly time passes. The scathe de- noted his cutting down and impairing all tilings, and the serpent the revolution of the year : Quod in scse volvitur annus. C II A P. ( 7 ) Vfva TfidJc, or Seine, justice, or tlic just. (' ) F nm K^ron, fpteudaur, the na-ne given to Mofci on hi9 Present from the mount ; henrtthe Orrek %?<>'->*$' (9) From Chocn a priert, k derived Kcunah.or the facertlo- Ui oflicc. (l) From Seter, a judge, is the plural Seterim, or the judges. (:) From Rahah, to feed, coitus Rehea. or Rhea, a nude. i •;] l'his nVure f«ms borrowed from the Cherubim of the rt«tirt»»"i. THE HEATHEN GODS. 19 CHAP. X. Of the Golden Jge. VJ IFFICULT as it is to reconcile the inconsistencies between the poets and historians in the proceeding ac- count of Saturn, yet the concurrent testimony of the former in placing the golden age in his time, seems to determine the point in his favonr ; and to prove that he was a benefactor and a friend to mankind, since they enjoyed such felicity under his administration. We can never sufficiently admire the masterly description given by Virgil of these halcyon days, when pence aid inno- cence adorned the world, and sweetened all the blessings of untroubled life. Ovid has yet heightened the descrip- tion with those touches of imagination peculiar to him. Amongst the Greek poets, Hesiod has touched this subject with that agreeable simplicity which distin- guishes all his writings. By the Golden Age might be figured out the happi- ness of the primaeval state before the first and universal delude, when the earth remained in the same position in which it was first created, flourished with perpetual spring, and the air, always temperate and serene, was neither discomposed by storms, nor darkened by clouds. The reason of affixing this time to the reign of Saturn was probably this, the Egyptians held the first annual assembly of their judges in the month of February, and as the decisions of these sages were always attended with the highest cqui' > , so the people regarded that season as a time of general joy and happiness, rather as all na- ture with them was then in bloom, and the whole coun- try looked like one enamelled garden or carpet. But after all it appears, that these halcyon times were but of a short duration, since the character Plato, Py- thagoras, and others, give of this age, can only relate to that state of perfect innocence which ended with the fall. CHAP. 20 FABULOUS HISTORY OF C K A P. XI. Of the Giants. 1 HE giants were produced (as has been already ob- served) of the blood which flpwed from the wound of Saturn, when castrated by his son Jupiter. Proud of their own strength, and fired with a daring ambition, they entered into an association to dethrone Jupiter ; for which, purpose they piled rocks on rocks, in order to scale the skies. This engagement is differently related by authors, both as to the place where it happened, and the circumstances which attended it ; some wntershiy- ing the scene in Italy [i], others in Greece [5]. It seems the father of the gods was apprised of the danger, a^ there was a prophetical rumour amongst the deities, that the giants should not be overcome, unless a mor- tal assisted in the war. For this reason Jove, by the advice of Pallas, called up Hercules, and being assisted by the rest of the gods gamed a complete victory over he rebels, most of whom perished in the conflict. Her- cules first slew Alcyon with an arrow, but he still sur- vived and grew stronger, till Minerva drew him out of the moon's orb, when he expired. This goddess also cut off the heads of Ericeladus and PaUantcs, and after- ward? encountering Alcyoneus at the Corinthian isthmus, killed him in spite of his monstrous bulk. Forphyns about to ravish Juno, fell by the hands of Jupitfii and Hercules. Apollo and Hercules dispatched Ephialte*, and Hercules slew Eurytus, by dartti q an oak at him. Clytius was slain by Hecate, and *olybotes, flying through the sea, came to the isle ol Coos, where Nep- tune, tearing off part of the land, hurled it at him, and formed the isle of Nisyros. Mercury slew HijiDolyfeus, Gratian was vanquished by Dian?, and the Pare* claimed their share in die victory, by the destruction of Agryus and ( A ) Tr. the PhleRrxati plains, in Campania, near Mount Vc- fimtij, wich abounded witb fubterraneous fires, and hot mineral ( 5 ) Where theyfet mount Ofo on Pelion, in order to hfeend the skies* THE HEATHEN GODS. 21 and Thoan. Even Silcnus's ass, by his opportune bray- ing contributed to put the giants in confusion, and complete their ruin. During this war, of which Ovid has left us a short description, Pallas distinguished her- self by her wisdom, Hercules by his strength, Pan by his trumpet, which struck a terror in the enemy, and Bacchus by his activity and courage. Indeed their as- sistance was no more than seasonable : for when the giants first made their audacious attempt, the gods were so a toriwhed, that they fled into Egypt, where they concealed themselves in various shapes. But the most dreadful of these monsters, and the most difficult to subdue, was Typhon or Typhseus ; whom, when he had almost discomfited all the gods, Jupiter pursued to mount Caucasus, where he wounded h rt with his thunder ; but Typhon, turning upon him, took him prisoner ; and after cutting with hifl own sickle the nerves of his hands and feet, threw him on his back, carried him into Cilicia, and imprisoned h:m in a cave, whence he was delivered by Mercury, who re-stored him to his former vigour. After this, Jove had a second engagement with Typhon, who, flying into Sicily, was overwhelmed by mount JEtna. The giants are represented by the poets as menof huge stature and horrible aspect, their lower parts being of a serpentine form. But above all, Typhon, or Typhaeus, is described in the most shocking manner : Hesiod has given him an hundred heads of dragons, uttering dread- ful sounds, and having eyes that darted fire he makes him, by Echidna, the father of the dog Orthus, or Cer- berus, Hydra, Chimxra, Sphinx, the Memsan lyon, the Hesperian dragon, and of storms and tempests. Historians say, Typhseus was the brother of Osiris, king of Egypt, who, in the absence of this monarch, formed a conspiracy to dethrone him at his return ; for which end he invited him to a feast, at the conclusion of which, a chest of exquisite workmanship was brought in, and offered to him who lying down in it should be found to fit it best. Osiris, not distrusting tbe contrivance, had no sooner got in but the lid was closed upon him, and the unhappy king thrown into the Nile. Isis, his queer, to revenge the death of her beloved husband, raised an army 22 FABULOUS HISTORY OF army, the command of which she gave to her son Orus, who, after vanquishing the usurper, put him to death. Hence the Egyptians, who detested his memory, painted him in their hieroglyphic characters in so frightful a manner. The length and multiplicity of his arms denot- ed his power, the serpents, which formed his heads, mgfli- fied his address and cunning ; the crocodile scales which covered his body, expressed his cruelty and dissimulation ; and the flight of the gods into Egypt, shewed the pre- cautions t§ken by the great men to shelter tliefnselvcs from his fury and resentment. It is easy in this story of the giants to trace the Mo- saic history, which informs us how the earth was afflicted with men of uncommon stature and great wickedness. The tradition of the tower of Babel, and the defeat of that impious design, might naturally give rise to the at- tempt of these monsters to insult the skies and make war on the god;. But there is another explication of this fable, winch seems both more rational and curious. Amongst the names of the giants we find those of Briareus (6), Ra- dius (7), Othus (8), Ephialte: (9% Prophyricn (i), Enceladus {2), and Mimas (?>). Now the literal sig- nification of these, leads us to the sense of the allegory, which was designed to point out the fatal consequence* of the flood, and the considerable changes it introduced with regard to the face of nature. Tins is further con- firmed by their tradition, that their Osiris vanquished the giants, and that Orus, his son, in particular, stopped the pursuit of Roechus, by appearing before him in the form jf a lion. By which they meant, that that indus- trious [6] From Berij ferertfty, an! Harcus, loft, tofhew the tcmr*- rature of the air dc (Iro i d. [?] From Keuach, the Winn*- . [8j Fro.uOuitta, or Othus, the times, to typify the vicilliturte •f the feafoas, , - f . (a) From Evi, or Ephi, clouds, and Altah, darVnets, i. c. dark cl^omy clov<;-., (\) From Phaii, to break, comes Pharpher. to ffparaterm- ■utdy ; to denote the general diffoiution of the Primaeval (yilem. (%) From Enceled, violent Springs or torrent*. (I) From Maim, great and heavy rains. Now aH thefe were Phenomena new and unknown lielore tho flood, bee La 1 ni- che's hiftory of the heavens, vol. «. p. 60. THE HEATHEN GODS. 23 trious people had no way of securing themselves no-ainst the bad effects of the vernal winds, which brought on their annual innUndation, but by exactly observing the siin'6 entrance into Leo, and then retiring into the luVh grounds, to wait the going off of the waters. It may not be improper to add, that from the blood of the giants defeated by .b.ipiter, were produced scr- pents and all kinds of venomous creatures. 1 H C II A P. XII. Of Janus. !E connection between Saturn and Janus renders the account ot the latter a proper supplement to the history of the former. Writers vary as to the birth of this deity, some making him the son of Cslus and Hecate, others the offspring of Apollo, by Creusa, daughter of Erictheus, king of Athens Kesiod is silent about him in his Theogony, and indeed Janus was a god little known to the Greeks. According to Cato, lit was a Scythian prince, who, at the head of a victo- rious army, subdued and depopulated Italy. But the most probable opinion is, that he was an Etrurian king, a. >d one of the earliest monarchs of that country , which heguverned with great wisdom, according to the testi- mony of Plutarch, who says, Whatever he was, whether a ling or.a god, he ivas a great politician, Pliny to prove, that the ancients did in t ufo this gum Ui their f:icri Ices; but the ^ :■■ of ilotcKtuM; qui eKorkns afcriat i >■ , o.nJciif clavdat Aiacrob. £ l. l y. /' //. i :>.i. THE Hl'ATHLN GODS. 2'7 nation of his historv. That nation represented the open- !• ; of their a Asr year by an image, with a key in its hand, and two faces, one old, and the other young, to ty- pify or mark me old or new year. King Pious (with a hawk's head, who is usually drawn near Janus, leaves no doubt but that the symbol of this deity was borrowed from that people. The reader, after putting all this to- gether, will reasonably conclude, that bv this figure could only be intended the sun, the great ruler of the year. c 11 a r. xin. Of the Elder Festa\ or Cybek, the 1 Fife of Saturn. J T is highly necessary) in classing the Heathen divini- Hes, to distinguish between this goddess, who is also called Rhea and Ops, from another Vesta, their daugh- ter, because the poets have been faulty in confounding them; and ascribing the attitudes and actions of the one to the Other. Tiie elder Wsta, commonly called Estia by the Greeks, Was the daughter of Cselus and "Ifcrra', and married to her brother Saturn, to whom she bore a numerous offs- pring. She had a multiplicity of names besides, of which the principal wen? (\ bele, Magna -Mater, or the great mother of the Gods ; and Bona Dea, or the good goddess, &c. under different sacrifices. Vesta" is generally represented upon ancient coins fit- ting, though sometimes 'standing, with a lighted torch in one hand, and a sphere in the other. Under the character of CybeLe she makes a mere magnificent appearance, being rented on a lofty chariot d- awn by lions, crowned with towers, and having a key extended in lier hand. Some indeed make the Phrygian Cybele a d : fferent person from Vesta : they say she was the daughter of Mteones, an ancient king of Phrygia and Din'djrma, and that her mother, for some reasons, exposed Ler On mount Cybei'is, where she was nourished by Hens. H -r pa- rents afterwards owned her, and sb- fell in love with Atys, by whou. conceiving, her father caused i.er lover D to 26 FABULOUS HISTORY OF *o be slain, and his body thrown to the wild brasts ; Cybele upon this ran mad, and filled the wood? with her lamentations. Soon after, a plague and famine laying nasi;- the. country, the oracle was consulted, who advised them to bury Atys with great pomp, and to worship Cybele as a Goddess. Accordingly they erected a temple to he; - honour at Pessinus, and placed lions at her fe *t to denote her bung educated by these animals. Ovid relates the story a little more in the marvellous mj : Atys was a boy so called by Cybele, whom she appointed to preside in her rites, enjoining him invio- late chastity ; but the youth happening to forget his vow, in resentment the goddess deprived him of hissenses: but at last pitying his misery she turned him into a pine tree, winch, as well as the Lox, Was held sacred to her. The animal commonly sacrificed to Cybele was the sow, on account of its fecundity- The priests of this deity were the Corybantes, Curr- ies', Idasi Dacfyli, and Telchines, who in their mystical riles made great me of cymbals and other instruments of brass, attended with extravagant cri?s and howlings. They sacrificed sitting on the earth, and offered only the hearts of the victims. The goddess Cybele was unknown to the Romans till the time of Hannibal, when, consulting the SiLylline oracles, they found that formidable enemy could not be expelled till they sent for the Idaean mother to Rome. Attains, then king of Phrygia. at the request of their embassadors, sent her statue, which was of stone. But the vessel which carried it arriving in the Tyber, was miraculously stopped, till Claudia, one of the Yestal- Viranns, drew it ashore with her girdle. This Vesta, to whom the living flame \w.s sabred, is the same with the Egyptian Isis, and represented the pureatheri inclosing, containing a:,d pervading all things. Their expressing^ and attributes are alike. She was considered as thr cause of generation and motion, the parent of all the luminaries, and is confounded with na- ture and the world. She obtained the name of Estiu, ^s being the life or essence of all things (."•). At to the prints of Cybele, the Corybantes, Cure- tts ScC they are of the same original, Crete was a colony _ji) r; n - in Cratylo. THE HF.ATHEN GODS. 27 colony of the Egyptians, consisting of three classes ot people. 1. The Corybantes or priest:, ('*)• £ Thte Curetes 1 1 ), or husbandm-.-n, a id inhabitants of towns. 3. The DactyK (2), or r.trh<-rs and labouring poor. All which names are of Egyptian detivation. f Cybele was honoured at Kome by the title of Bona Pea, or good goddess. But this devotion was only paid her by the matrons, and the rites were celebrated in so secret a manner, that it was wo less than death for any man to be present at the assembly (.Si) Whence they were called Opevtoria. The Roman farmers and shepherds worshipped Cybe- lr or Vesta, by the title of Magna Pahs, or the goddess of cattle and pasture. Her festival was in April, at which time they purified th?ir flocks and herds With the fumes of rosemary, laurel, and sulphur offered sacrifices of milk and millet cakes, and concluded the ceremony by dancing round straw fires. These annual feasts were called Palilia, and were the same with the <&tctio$c p..; of the Greeks, and probably of Phcenician or Egyptian original. The great festival of Cybele, callvd Megalesia, »aa always celebrated in April, and huted eight df.ya £t Rome. CHAP. XIV. Of fiesta the Younger, c OLLECTED fire is the offspring of author. He^nce we have another Ve^t::, said to be the daughter of the other, by Saturn, or time, and the s.nter of Ceres, June, Pluto, Neptune, and Jupiter. She was so fond of a single lie, that whtn her brother Jupiter ascended the throne, D 2 and (9) From Corban, a facrifice or oblation. (1) From Kerct. a city or town, comes the p'ura! K^r'tim, to fignify the inhabitants (2) Fromettic, poor. an i tutor M. a miprati^iii j he: cc nuru!- tirea rhule. The Greeks f<-r th'. faoM reafm c; I! the fingers Dac- tyli, becaufe they are the inflnn.ie'.ts of Ijbour. (;") So we learn from Tibullus Fclogue Vi. 28 FABULOUS HISTORY Of and offered to grant whatcve - she asked, she d; sired or.'y the preservation of her virginity, and that she n have the first oblation in all sacrifices [t], which she ob- tained. According to Lacfantius, the chastity of Vesta is meant to express the nature of fire, which is incapa- ble of mixture, producii.^ nothing, but converting Al things into itst ■'/. Numa Pompiiius, the great founder of religion a- mong the Romans, is s;; id fir.,t to have restored the an- cient rites ai:d worship of this goddest:, to whom he erected a circular temple, which) in succeeding ages, was much embellished. He also appointed four priestesses to be chosen out of t!t^ noblest families in Rome, a;:d of spotless character, whose office was to attend the sa- cred fire kept continually burning near her altar. 'I Vestal Virgr • continued in their charge for thirty years, and had very y;reat privileges annexed to th ir dignity. This fire wrs annually renewed will; great ce- remony, from the rayt of the sur, on the i. Much. It was preserved in earthen pots suspended in the air, and esteemed so sacred, that if by any misfor- tune it became i >.','. nguished (as happened pace) ace: ra- tion ensued from ail business, till they had expiated the prodigy. If this accident appeared to be owing to the neglect of thr- Vestals, they were severely punished ; and if they violated their vow of chastity, they were in- terred alive. As Vesta was the goddess of fir-", the Remans had no images ir. her temple to represent her, the reason of which we leaii in Ovid [, r )J. Yet, as she was the guardian of houys or hearth, her image was usually placed in the porch or entry, and daily sacrifice ofF< r. [6]. It is certain nothing could be a stronger or more livc- Jr simbol of the supreme Being, than lire. Accord 7y we find this emblem in earl) tl e tl rouj hoUt all the east. The Persians held it in veneration long before Zoroaster, (\) ft i< a quefn'on if thi6 privilege did not r^thtr belong to the Vi n \ in common v ith J.inus. - Hi$ w Ofda ire ; i;.. !.■ li'-i'icm nulla nt Vefla nee ignit bttket Fafti, lib. VI. N*i image Vefla a Frmblonce can exprefa, Fire is t "<> fu >ctc to admit of drefa (f>) Hence tl e won! veftibulum, tor a porch or entry; ami the Romans called their round table" veft.x .-sthe Greeks ufcJ the common word Erm, to signify chimnies in altars. THE HFATHEN GODS. ~9 Zoroaster, who, in the rei :;n of Darius Il/staspes, in- duced the worship of it to a certain plan. The Pryta- neiof the Gn ;ks were perpetual and holy iires. We find jEueas bringing with ii n to Italy his Penates (or houshold gods), the Palladium, and the sacred lire. The Vesta of the Etrurians, Sabines, and Romans, was the same. CHAP. XV. Cf Juftier. We come now to the great king, or master of the gods. This deiiy was the son of Saturn, and Rhea, or Vesta, ;it least this is that Jupiter to whom the actions of all the others were chiefly ascribed. For there were so many princes called by his name, that it seems to have been a common appellation in early times For a powerful or victorious prince (7). The most conside- rable of these was certainlj the Cj .can Jove above men- tioned, of whose education we have very various ac- counts, as well as the place of his birth. The Messeni- ans pretended to shew in the neighbourhood of their city a fountain called Clepsydra, where Jupiter was educated, by the nymphs Ithome and Neda, others say he wa.- born at Thebes in Beeutia ; but the most general ar.u received opinion is-, that he was brought up ueai mount Ida in Crete. Virgil tells us he was fed by the beet,. out of gratitude for which he changed them from aa irbn to a. gold e: colour. Sen:, gay hii nurses were Amalthaea and Melissa, daughters or Meli Eseus king of te, who gave him goats milk and hone} ; others, that Amalthaea was the name of the g< it thaj nursed him, wh< iiom he presented to those inci s with this privilege annexed, that whoever [ os ;essed it should, immediately hawe whatever "Iheydeaiitd ; wh •.. it came to be called the horn of FieJity. After the | dying, Jupiter placed her amongst thestars, and by advice of Themis covered his, shield with her skin to strike terror in the giants, whence it obtained the name I>3 of (7 ) Varrr redtcned wp 300 JV.j. iters, and each nation xemed to liaveJiad on-, poculwr to ui'eif, 30 FABULOUS HISTOftV OF of HLq*. According to other?, he and his sister Jtino racked the breasts of Fortune. Some allege his mo- ther Vesta suckled him ; so mo, tint he w.:s fed by wild-. pigeons, whobrouglft him ambrosia from Oceanus, and by au 5"aglc, who carried nectar in his beak from a : ro:'c ; ii reco;rrpenee of vvliich service^ he lande form?- the foretellers of winter and' summer, and gave the litter the reward of in;, HOTtaWty, and the ofHc bearing his thunder. Jn sh rr/, the [lymphs and the hears claim a share iii the honour of hi:; education, noi is it yet decided which Ivas tin bet title to it. Let us now come to the actions of Jupiter. The first, and indeed the most memorable of his exploits, wis his expedition against the Titans, for his father's deliverance and restoration, of which We have already gpokeh under the article of Saturn. After tl * he de- throned his father, and having possessed hi;ns?lf of his throne, was acknowledged by all the grids in quality of their supreme. Apollo, himself, crowned With laureT, and robed with purple, condescended to sing his praises to his lyre. K' re>;]e-, in Order to perpetuate tlie me- mory of his triumphs, instituted the olympic games, where it is said that Piicebus carried off the first prize, by overcorninw Mercury at the race. After thisj Jupi- ter being fully settled, divided Lis demrra'oris with his brothers Neptune and Pluto, as will be shewn in these* fiuel. Jupiter, however, is thought to me his power in a little too tyrannical a manner, for vvliich we find Juno, Neptune, and Pallas, Conspired against, and actually 8 ■'. d his person. But the giants Cottus, Oyges, and Briareus, who were then his guards, and whom Thetis called to his assistance, set him at liberty. How tliese gipnts, with others of their race, afterwards revolted against him, and were overthrew!), has been already mentioned in its place. The story of Lycaon is not the least distinguished of his actions. Hearing of t*!e prevailing wickedness of mankind, Jove descended to the earth, and arriving at the pal-ce of tli )«? monarch, king of Arcadia, declared who he was, on which the people prepared sacrifices, ard the other honours due to him. But Lycaon, both im- pious and incredulous, killed one ef his domestics, and served THE HEATHLN CI served up the flesh dressed at the c - rti inmefit he ga..- the god, who detesting such horrid Hthnmanfty, in n - diat-ly consumed the palace with lightning, and I cd the barbarian into a wolf. Ovid has related this -'>■- iy with his usual art. But as ambition, when arrived at the height of its wishes, seldom strictly adheres to the rules of moderati* on. BO the air of a court is al v ays in a peculiar manner fatal to virtue. If any monarch deserved the character ctf encouraging gallantry by his example, it was certain- ly Jupiter, whose amours arc as numberless as the meta- morphosis he assumed to accomplish them, and have af- forded an extensive field of description to the poets and painters, both ancient and modern. Jupiter had several wives: Metis, or Prudence, hh first, he is said to have devoured, when hi^ with child, bv which himself becoming pregnant, Minerva issued out of his head adult and completely armed. His se- cond was Themisjor Justice, by whom he had the Hours, ;■ . '.'ung regi Ict'nn oF time; Eunomia, or good order; Dike, or few; Eirene, or pence ; and the Destinies. He also married Juno, his sister, whom it is reported! he deceived under the form ot a cuckoo, who to shun the violence of a storm, fled for dicker to her lap (8). She bore him Hebe, Mars, Lucina, and Vulcan. By Euryncmc, he had the three Graces ; by Ceres, Pro- serpine; by Mnemosyne, the nine Muses; by Latona, Apollq ar.d Diana; by Mai?, Mercury. Of his intrigues we have a pretty curious detail. One of his first mistresses was Calisto,the daughter of Lyca- on, one of the nymphs of Diana. To deceive her, he assumed the 7 form of the goddess of Chastity, and suc- ceeded so far as to make the virgin violate her vow. But her di .grace being revealed, as she \ and rais. I him to the joint functions of his cup-bearer and catamite. It was indeed difficult to escape the pursuits of a god, who by his unlimited power made ail nature subservient to his purposes. Of this we nave a remarkable instance in Danae, whose fr.ther, Acnsius, jealous of her con- duct, had secured her in. a brazen tower; but Jupiter, descending in a golden shower, found means to elude all the vigilance of her keepers. He er. flamed iEgina, the daughter ot JEsopi^ king of Bcoeiia, in the similitude of a lambent fire, ?md then carri d her from Epidaurus to a desert isle called Oenope, to which she gave her own name (.'>) . Clytoris, a fair virgin of Thes:;aly } he debauched in the shape of an ant; but to corrupt Alcmena, trie wife of Amphitryon, he was obliged to assume the form of her husband, under which the fair one, deceived, iuaocesitly yielded to his desires* By Tha- lia he had two soiib called the Pallaci; and two by Pro- togenia, i ;z. .ZEthlius, the father of Endymion, and E >aphus* the founder oi Memphis in Egypt, and fa- ther of Lybia, who gave her name to the .continent oi Africk. Electra bore him Dardanus, Laodamia, Sarpeuon, a:id Argu;., Jodamus, Deucahwn, with many (2) The Urra Minor of the Latins, and the Cynofura of the Greeks. (j> The lile of iEgina.in the Arcliipeh.go. THE HEATHEN GODS. ! ' mn-iv others too tedious to enumerate, though mention- ed by th<- poets. It is very v < ident that most, if not all the stories re- fating to '. ke amours of the gods, were invented by their tespective priesta, to cover their corruption or debaucbi - ry. Of which this of Danee seems at least a palpable i arrce, atid may serve to give some idea of the rest: Acrisins was informed by an oracle, that his grandson would one day deprive Jinn of his crown and life; on which he shut up Ins daughter Danae in a brazen tower" of the temple of Apollo at Dclphos, the priests of which oracle probably gave hirn this information, with no other view than to forward their scheme, which tended to gra- tify the lust of Praitus, the king's brother, who being lot through the roof, pretended to be Jupiter, and throwing large quantities of gold amongst the domes- tics, obtained Ins wishes. Two particular adventures of his are too remarkable to bt passed in silence. He had deluded by his arts Se- mele, daughter of Cadmus, king of Thebes who prov- ed with child. Juno hearing, of it, and intent on re- venge, under the disguse of Beroe, nurse to the prin- cesc, was admitted to her presence, and artfully insinuat- ed to her that she might not be deceived in her lover, she advised her the next time he visited her, to request, as a proof of his love, that she might see him in the same majesty with winch he embraced Juno. Jupiter grant- ed, not without reluctance, a favour he knew would be so fatal to his mistress. The unhappy fair-one, unable to bear the dazzling effulgence, perished in the flame;, and with her, her offspring must have done so too, if the god had not taken it out, and enclosed it in his thigh, where it lay the full time, when it came into the world, and was named Bacchus. Jupiter next fell enamoured with Io, the daughter of luachus, and, as some say, the priestess of Juno : hav- incone dav met this virgin retnrnintr from her father's grotto, he endeavoured to seduce her to an adjacent fo- rest; but the nymph flying' his embraces, he involved her in so thick a mist, that she lost her way, so that he easily overtook and enjoyed her. Juno, whose jealousy always kept her watchful, missing her husband, and per- ceiving a thick darkness o\i the earth, descended, dispel- led 34 FABULOUS HISTORY OF led the cloud, and had certainly discovered the intrigt*, had not Jupiter Suddenly transformed Io into a wJH«! heifer. Juno, pleased with the beauty of the animal, begged her, and to allay her jealousy, he was obliged to yield her up. The goddess immediately gave her m charge to Argus, who had an hundred eyes, two of which only slept at a time. Her lover pitying the mi- sery of Io in so strict a confinement, sent Mercury down disguised like a shepherd, who with his flute charmed Argus to sleep, sealed his eyes with his caduceus, or rod, and then cat* off his head! Juno, in regard to his-ma- morv, placed his eyes in the tail of the peacock, a bird sacred to her, and then timing her rage against Io, sent the furies to pursue her wherever she went (6): so thatf the wretched fugitive, weary of live, implored Jove to end her misery. Accordingly the god intreats his spouse to shew her compassion, swearing by Styx never to g;re her further cause of jealousy. Juno on this becomes ap- peased, and Io being restored to her former shape, is worshipped in Egypt by the name of Ie ; s. The fable of Io and Argus is certainly of Egyptian birth, and the true mythology is this: the art of weaving , first invented in Egypt, was by the fcofonoa of that na- tion carried to Greece and Colonis, where it was prac- ticed with this difference, that the season ■• for working were varied in each country according to the nature c-t the climate. The months of February, March, Apn', aid May, they employed in Egypt, m cultivating their lands; whereas these being winter months with the Gre- cians, they kept the looms busy. New the Isis, whiuh pointed out the n&meni*, or monthly festivals in Egypt, was always attended with an karus, or figure expressive ef the labour perculiar to the season. Thus the fonts of the weaving months- was a little figure stuck over with eyes to denote the many lights necessary fur working by (G) Dr Kinjr relates thi- - -ry a little differently, lo ; pur- fad fay riDphone/WofthefurlcO fell into the fca, and was carried firft 'to 1 hracian Bo^(h..ru6, and thence into '*??{*. where the nxjofter IKH purfuing Her, was r<-pelled by the Nile. Aft-r this (he was deified by Jupiter, and appointed to preudr. over windaand navigation It iscafy to fre th« agrees better with the Egyptian mythology. THE HEATHEN GODS. 35 fey njghti This image was called Argos (7), to signify his intention. Now the vernal lsu being depicted the head of a heifer, to exemplify the fertility and pleasant- ness of EgJ pt, on the sun's entering into Taurus, at tt.« approach of winter s'u quitted tins form, and so was laid to be taken into custody of Argos, from whom bhe vas next season delivered by the hortts, representing Anubis for Mercury), that is, the rising of the dog-star. The taking these sy nodical representations into a li- teral sense, gave rise to the fable. It is no wonder if the number of Jupiter's gallantries made him the subject of detestation among the primitive Christians, as well as the ridicule of the wiser among the Heathens. TertuLlian observes with judgment, That it waf no way strange to see all ranks so debauched, ivheu they lucre encouraged in the most infamous crimes by the ex- ample of those they •worshipped, and f run whom they were to expect rewards and punishments. Lucia rt, in his dialogues, introduces Mom us pleasantly rallying Jove ■with regard to his amourons metamorphoses ; / have i ft en trembled for you (says he) lest tv hen yon appeared Hie a bull, they should have carried you to the shambles, o> clapped you into the plough ; had a. goldsmith catched you when you "visited Danjc, he would have melted your godsh'p in his crucible ; or when y;u courted J^eda like a swan, what if her father had put you on the spat ? Jupiter had a multiplicity of names, either from the places where he was worshipped, or the attributes as- cribed to him ; He had the epithets of Xcaius, or the hospitable; and Dodonaeus, on account of the oracular grove at Dodona, consecrated to him, and famous through all Greece. Amongst the Romans he had the appellations of Op- timus Maximus, on account of his beneficence and pow- er ; Almus, from his cherishing all tilings ; Stabil.tor, from his supporting the world ; Opitulator, from his helping the distressed ; Stator, from bis suspending the flight (7) From argoti, or «rgu,' weaver'* work; whence the Greeks hoi rowed their L'f/av, o^ru:. or a work. Hence the isle -of Amorgos one of the Ajjean isle*, derives its naaie from Am, mother, and Orgin, w avers, or the mother or c«Vny 01 Wtawrs, being first planted from Egypt. 3Q FA3ULOUS HISTORY C«f fright of the Romans at the prayer of Romulus ; and Praedator, on Recount of part of the plunder being sa- cred to him in all victories. From the temple at the Capitu;, OR the Tarpeian rock, be was called Cajn'toli- hi:s and Tarpeius. When a Roman king or general file** an enemy ot the same quality, the spoils were offered to him by the name of Feretrius. The reign ot Jupiter not having been so agreeable to his subjects as that of Saturn, gave occasion to the no- tion of the silver AOt ; by which is meant an age in- ferior in happiness to that which preceded, though su- perior to those which followed. This Father of Gods and Men is commonly figured n6 a majestic man y.ith a beard, enthroned. In his left hand h< holds a victory, and in his right hand grasps the thunder. At his feet an eagle vv.th his wings displayed. The Greeks called him Z«v« : and A;p, t«vt-5i» «lv«/;!(Ki UdWf&tf irtS, Zs-j? 4 £A;i>j' xpxvov lofiirj iv eiiSipi y.ui viji-.amtiv. Opu . Mythplog. p. S26 & 327- (l) AfktCeboc fuhlime tanden:, qntm •■• nrant MMfjJoVCIH. (2j i -'■ / , '" i rime 'ri at urn at!. era, /..» re r. ,/./i: sireufttjeeiy ami at ■■>, Hunt fummunt bubcto divum ; bunc pcrhib;to Jovcm. Ck :ro cic Nat. DcoriUR, 1. Z THE HEATHER GODS. 3*7 middle; the giver of all things ; the ■ foundation of the earth and starry heavens ; he is both male and female, andimmor~ tal. Jufiiter is the source of enlivening jire^ and the spit ft ef all things. CHAP. XVI. Of fun f. J, UNO, the sister and consort of Jupiter, was on that account stiled the queen of heaven, and indeed we find her in the poets supporting that dignity with an ambi- tion and pride suitable to the rank she bore. Though the poetical historians agree she came int« the world at a birth with her husband, yet they differ as to the place, some placing her nativity at Argos, others at Satnos near the river Imbrasus. Some say she was nursed by Eubpea, Porsymna, and Araea, daughters of the river Asterion ; others by the Nymphs of the ocean. Otes, an ancient poet, tells us she was educated by the Hone or Hours : ai.d Homer assigns this post to Oceanus and Tethys themselves. It is said that this goddess, by lathing annually ia the fountain of Canatho near Argc% renewed her vir- ginity. The places where »he was principally honoured were Sparta, Mycene, and Argos. At this place the sacrifice offered to her consisted of 100 oxen. Juno in a peculiar manner presided over mprriage and child birth ; on the rh'st occasion, in sacrificing to her, the gall of the victim was always thrown behind the altar, to denote no spleen should submit between married persons. Women wire peculiarly thought to be under her protection, of whom every one had her Juno. z% every man had his guardian genius. Numa ordered, that if any unchaste wdman should approach her temple, ahe should offer a female lamb to expiate her offence. The Lacedemonian! sriled her ./Egophaga, fiom the goat which Hercules sacrificed to her At Elis the wa« cnlled Hoplosmta, her statue being completely armcr'. E At 33 FABULOUS HISTORY OF At Corinth she was termed Eunosa from Euno, who erected a temple to her there. Sh# had another at Eu- boca, to which the Emperor Adrian presented a magni- ficent offering, consisting of a crown of gold, and a purple mantle embroidered with the marriage of Her- cules and Hebe in silver, and a large peacock whose body was gold, and his tail composed of precious stone* resembling th^ natural colours. Amongst the Romans, who held her in high venera- tion, she had a multiplicity of names. The chief were Lucina, from her first shewing the light to infants ; Pronuba, because no marriage was lawful without pre- . vior.sly invoking her : Socigena and Juga, from her in- troducing the conjugal yoke, and promoting matrimo- nial union ; Domiduca, on account of her bringing home the bride : Unxia, from the annointing the door posts at the ceremony ; Cinxia, from her unloosing the virgin zone, or girdle ; Perfecta, because marriage com- pletes the sexes ; Opigena and Obstetrix, from the assist- ing women in labour , Populosa, because procreation peoples the world ; and Sospita, from her preserving the female sex. She was also named Quiritis or Curitis, from a spear represented in her statues and medals ; Ka- Icndaris, because of the sacrifices offered her the first day of every month ; and Moneta, from her being re- garded as the goddess of riches and wealth. It is said when the gods fivd into Egypt, Juno dis- guised herself in the form of a white cow, which animal was, on that account, thought to be acceptable to her m h f, r sacrifices, Juno, as the queen of heaven, preserved a good deal of state. Her usual attendants were Terror and Bold- ness, Castor and Pollux, and fourteen nymphs ; but her . most faithful and inseparable companion was Iris, the daughter of Thaumas, r:hu, for her surprising beauty, was represented with wings, borne upon her own rain- bow, to denote her swiftness. She was the messenger of Juno, as Mercury was of Jove ; and at death sepa- rated the souls of women from their corporeal chains. This goddess was not the most complaisant of wives. We iinJ in Homer, that Jupiter was sometimes oblig- ed to make use of. his authority to keep her in due subjection. When she entered into that famous con- spiracy THE HEATHEN GODS. 39 jpiracy against him, the same author relates, that, hy way « punishment, she had two anvils tied to her feet, goUJen manacles fastened to her hands, and so was sus- pended in the air or sky, where she hovered, on account of her levity, while all the deities looked on without a possibility of helping her. By this the mycologists say is meant the harmony and connection of the air with the earth, and the inability of the gods to relieve her, signifies that no force, human or divine, can dissolve the frame or texture of the universe. According to Pausanias, the temple of Juno at Athens had neither doors nor roof, to denote that Juno, being the air in which we breathe, can be inclosed in no certain bounds. The implacable arrogant temper of Juno once made her abandon her throne in .heaven, and fly into Euboea. Jupiter in vain sought a reconciliation 'till he consulted Citheron, king of the Platasans, then accounted the wisest of men. By his advice the god dressed up a mag- nificent image, seated in a chariot, and gave out it was Platsea, the daughter of iEsopus, whom he designed to make his queen. Juno upon this resuming her an- cient jealousy, attacked the mock bride, and by tearing off its ornaments found the deceit, quieted her ill hu- mour, and was glad to make up the matter with her husband. Though none ever felt her resentment more sensibly than Hercules, he was indebted to her foi his immor- tality ; for Pallas brought him to Jupiter while an infant, who, while Juno was asleep, put him to her breast. But the goddess walking hastily, some of her milk falling upon heaven formed the milky way. The rest dropped, on the earth, where it made the lilies white, which be- fore were of a saffron colour. Juno is represented by Homer as drawn in a chariot adorned with precious stones, the wheels of ebony nailed with silver, and drawn by horses with reins of gold ; but most commonly her car is drawn by peacocks, her fa- vourite bird. At Corinth she was depicted in her temple as seated on her throne, crowned, with a pomegranate in one hand, and in the other a sceptre with a cuckoo at top. This statue was of gold and ivory. That at Hiera- polis was supported by lions, and so contrived as to par- E 2 ticipate 40 FABULOUS HISTORY OF ticipate of Minerva, Venus, Luna, Rhea, Diana, Ne- mesis, and the Destinies, according to the different points in view. She held in one hand a sceptre, in the ether a distaff. Her head was crowned with rays and a tower ; and she was girt with the cestusof Venus. As Jupiter is the ether, Juno is the atmosphere. She is female on account of its softness ; and is called the wife and sister of the other, to import the intimate eo»- jur.cU on between these two. (3) i HI C H A P. XVII. Of Neptune. S remarkable deity was the ron of Saturn acd Ve3tr, or Ops, and the brother of Jupiter. Some say lie was devoured by his father. Others allege, his mo- ther gave him to seme shepherds to be brought up amongst the lamb?, and pretending to b« delivered of a foal, gave it instead of him to Saturn. Some say hi» nurse's name was- Arno ; others, that he was brought up by his sister Juno, His most remarkable exploit was his assisting his bro- ther Jupiter in his expeditions, for which that god, when he arrived at the supreme power, assigned him the tea and the islands for his empire. Others imagine he was admiral of Saturn's fleet, or rather, according to Pamphus, generalissimo of his forces by sea and land. The favourite wife of Neptune was Amphitnte, whom he courted a long time to no purpose, till he sent the dolphin to intercede for him, who succeeding, the god in acknowledgment placed him amidst the stars. By her he had Triton. Neptune had two other wives, the one called Salac ; a, from the salt-water, the other Neuilia, from the ebbing and flowing of the tides. Neptune ( 3 ) /tr auttm , ut fielel dtfputant, inter mart iSf calum. Junonh no- mine co ftcr.itur, virh if ;it B^'.- ion, ami that it w-s carried for u i- [ u r uoie in an *:.', boot 50 FABULOUS HISTORY OF We are indebted to a late ingenious writer for the true mythology of these characters. They were nothing more originally than the mystical figure or symbols, which represented the months of January, February, and Much, amongst the Egyptians. They depicted these in female dresses, with the instruments of spinning and weaving, which was the great business carried on in that season. These images were called (\ ) Parcae, which signifies linen clotk, to denote the manufacture pro- duced by this industry. The Greeks, who knew nothing of the true sense of these allegorical figures, gave them a turn suitable to their genius, fertile in fiction. The Parcae were described or represented in rcbes of whil >, bordered with purple, and seated on the thrones, with crowns on their heads, composed of the flowers of the Narcissus. CHAP. XXTI. Of the Harpies, i HE next group of figures we meet in the shadowy realms are the Harpies, who were three in number, O- leno, Aello, and Ocypete, the daughters of Oceanus ■i A Terra. They lived in Thrace, had the feces of vir- gins, the ears of bears, the bodies of vultuics, with hu- man arms and feet, and long claws. Pl.encus, king of Arcadia, for revealing the mysteries of Jupiter, was so tormented by them, that he was ready to peris! ■ >rhun- ■r. r, they devouring whatever was set befon him, tdl the sons of Borens, who attended Jason in hid t -'on to Colchis, delivered the go d old king, an these monsters to the islands called Kchinades, compel* line; theTn to swear to return no more. ' This fable k of the Basne original with the former one During ihe ihonths of April, May, and June, especially the two latter, Egypt was greatly subject to stormy i 'inds which hud waste their olive grounds, and brought uumerou iq of grasshopper; md other troublesome insects {ij <-■ , " rrc, or Paroket, J cloth, curtain, or fail. THE HEATHEN GODS. 51 insects from the shores of the Red Sea, which did infi- nite damage to the country. The Egyptians therefore gave figures, which proclaimed those three months, a fe- male face, with the bodies and claws of birds, and called them Harop (2J, a name which sufficiently denoted the true sense of the symbol. All this the Greeks rea- lized, and embellished in their way. CHAP. XXIII. Of Charon and Cerberus. V_ HA RON, according to Hesiod's theogony, was the BO . of Erebus and Nox, the parents of the greatest part of the infernal monsters. His post was to ferry the sous of the deceased over the waters of Acheron. His fare was never under oue half-penny, nor exceeding three, which were put in the mouth of the persons interred ; for as to such bodies who were denied funeral rites, their ghost3 were forced to wander an hundred years on the banks of the river, Virgil's jEneid, VI, 3S0. before they could be admitted to a pass; ge. The Hermonien- ses alone claimed a tree passage, because their country lav so near hell. Some mortal heroes ;.lso, by favour of the gods, were allowed to visit the infernal realms, and return to fight ; such as Hercules, Orpheus, Ulysses, Theseus, and ./Eneas. This venerable boatman of the lower world is repre- sented as a fat squalid old man, with a bushy grey beard and rheumatic fiyes, his tattered rags scarce covering h;s nakedness. His disposition, is mentioned as rough and morose, treating all Iris passengers with the same impar- tial rudeness, without regard to rank, age, or sex. We shall in the sequel see that Charon was indeed a real per- son, and justly merited this character. Atter crossing the Acheron, in a den adjoining to the entrance of Pluto's palace, was placed Cerberus, or th« three-headed dog, born of Typhon and Echidna, the F 2 dreadful (x) Erom Haroph, or Harop, a noxious £y ; or from Art eh, a kctiit. t 52 FABULOUS HISTORV OF dreadful mastiff, who guarded these gloomy abodes. He fawned upon all ivho entered, but devoured all who at- tempted to get back ; yet Hercules once mastered him, and dragged him up to earth, where in struggling, a foam dropped from his mouth, which produced the poi- sonous herb called aconite or wolfsbane. Hesiod gives Cerberus fifty, and some an hundred heads ; but he is commonly represented with three. As to the rest, he had the tail of a dragon, and instead of hair, his body was covered with serpents of all kinds. '.I he dreadfulness of his bark or howl, Virgil's iEr.eid, "V I. 416, and the intolerable stench of his breath, height- ened the deformity of the picture, which of itself was sufficiently disagreeable. CHAP. XXIV. OfNex, and her Piogeny, Dealh, Sliefi, Z5c XT i^ OX was the most ancient of the deit:ef, and Orplie- us ascribes to her the generation of j^ods arid men. She was even reckoned older than Chaos. She had a nume- rous offspring of imaginary children, as Lyssa, or Mad- ness, En's, or Contention, Death, Sletp, and Dreams; all which she bore without a father. From her marri- . t with Erebus proceeded Old Age, Labour, Love, Fear, Deceit, Emulation, Misery, Darkness, Com- plaint, Obstinacy, Partiality, Want, Care, Disappoint- ment, Disease, War, and Hunger : in short, all the evi's which attend life, and which wait round the palace of Pluto, to receive his commands. Death brings down all mortals to the infernal ferry. It is said that her mother Nox bestowed a peculiar can in i.er education, and that Death had a great affection for her brother Somnus or Sleep, of whose palace Virgil has given us a fine description, iEr.eid, VI. 894. Sorn- i.us had several children, of whom Morpheus war, tlit? most remarkable for his satyrical humour, and excellent talent in mimicking the actions of mankind. Amongst THE H1ATHEH GODS. 53 Amongst the Eleahs, the goddess No/, or Night was represent-.d by a woman holdi ..<-■'' hand a })iij asleep, with their legs distorted ; that in her right was white, to signify sleep, that in her left, black, to i or represent death. The sacrifice offered to her w; h cck, because of its enmity to darkness, and rejoicing. at the light. Soir.nus was usually represented with wings, to denote his universal sway. CHAP. XXV. Of the Infernal Judges, Minos, RhaJamanthus, and M^dCUS- A FTER entering the infernal regions, just at the se- paration of the two roads which lead to Tartarus and Elysium, is placed the tribunal of the three inexorable judges, who examine the dead, and pass a final 'sentence on departed souls. Tiie chief of these was Mines, the son of Jupiter by Europa, and brother of Rhadaman- thus and SarpedOn. After his father's death the Cre- tans would not admit him .0 succeed in the kingdom, till praving to Neptune to give him a sign, that God caused a horse to rise cut of the sea, on which he obtained the kingdom^ Some think this aliucks to his reducing the islander^ to subjection, by means of a powerful fleet. It is added, that Jove kept him nine years concealed in a cave, to teach him laws and the art of government. Rhadamanthus, his brother, was also a gnat legisla- tor. It is said that having killed his brochc; , he fled to Orchaha in Bccotia, where he married Alcmena, the widow of Amphitryon. His province was to judge such as died impenitent, iiLacuswasthe von of Jupiter by^Eginn Whenthe isle ofJEgina f so called from his mother) wasdepopulated by a plague, his father, in compassion to his gfcief, changed all the ants there into men and women. The meani o 4 . which fable is, that when the prates depopulated the country, and forced the people to fly to caves, j£ac 08 encouraged them to come out, and by commerce aa dustry. recover what they had lost, His character for E 3 justice 5\> FABULOUS HISTORY OF justice wns such, that in a time of universal drought Be was nominated hy the Delphic oracle to intercede for Greece,vmd his prayer was answered. Rha.damanthus and ^Eacus were only inferior judges, the first of whom examined the Asiatics, the latter the Europeans, and bore only plain rods as a mark of their office. But all difficult casts were referred to Minos, who sat over ibem with a sceptre of gold; Their cow t was held in a large meadow, called the Field of Truth. Plato and Tully add Triptolemus to these as a fourth judge. CHAP. XXVL Of Tartarus, and the Eumenides y or Furies* J N the recesses of the infernal regiems lay the seat or abode of the wicked souls, called Tartarus, r -presented by the poets as a vast deep pit, surrounded with walls and gates of brass, and totally deprived of light. This dr*idful prison is surrounded by the waters of Fhlege- thon, which emit continual fi:-uies. The custody of the unfortunate wreroes doomed to this place of punish- ment is given to the Eumenides, or Furies,, who are at once their gaolers and executioners. The names of these avengeful sisters were Tisiphone, Alecto, and Megaera : but they went by the general appellation of the Furiae, on account of the r5. It vrere er.dfrss to give all the variety of . riptio s, which, a subject ofthw natureaf- fords room for. An eternal spriag of ftowew • nd v> r- dure, a sky always serene, ai d farined bv ambrosial breezes, t.n universal harmony and uninterrupted toy embalmed th delig] tful regious. But at the end of a certain period the souls placed he;v ; | > the world to reanimate new bodies, befa ■ which th( f were obliged to drink at the river of L v ■ \\ • ; ers had the virtue to create an oblivion of all that had pas- red in the former part of their lives, To illustrate all this oomplexed chaos of fable, let us once more have recourse to the F. mvtho- , where we shall find the whole secret of Tarta- rus, and the Elysian Fields unravelled. There was near each of the I tian towns a ce: round appointed (l) He afterwferdi dethroned Danai . (&) Awe t»js Axc%, or oblivion. ■ THE HEATHEN GODS. 59 appointed for a common burial-place. That at Mem- phis, as decribed by Diodorus, lay on the other side of the lake Acherusia fUJ, to the shore of which the deceased person was brought and set before a tribu- nal of judges appointed to examine into his conduct. If he had Hot paid his debts, his body was delivered to his creditors, till his relations rtleased it, by col- lecting the sums due. If he had not faithfully ob' served the laws, his body was left unburied, or proba- bly thrown into a kind of common shore called Tarta- rus (1). The same historian informs us, that near Memphis there was a leaking vessel into which they incessantly poured Nile water, winch circumstance gives ground to imagine, that the place where unburied bo- dies were cast oe*, was surrounded with emblems ex- pressive of torture and remorse, such as a man tied on a wheel always in motion, another whose heart was the prey of a vulture, and a third rolling a stone up a lull with fruitless toil. Hence the fables of Ixion, Prome- theus, and Sisyphus. When no accuser appeared against the deceased, e a censer was convicted of falsehood, they ceased iroent him, and his panegyric was made ; after which he v as delivered to a certain severe ferryman, who by the onder of the judges, and never without it, received the body into his boat (2) and transported it, across the lake, to a plain embellished with groves, brooks, and other rural ornaments. This place was callrd feljsout fSj, or the habitation of joy. At the entrance of it was placed the fignre of a dog, with three pair of jaws, which they called Cerebus (^)\ and fSj Finn,,.' rei, after, and ifh, a man, con cs Achari's, or the lail ftitc of man ; or Acheron, that is the ultimate con- dirlon. (I) From the Chaidr.ic Tarah, aduonition, doubled, come* Tarcarah Tartarus, that is an extraordinary warning. (z) Sometimes the judees denied even their kings funeral rites, on accoirit of their mis-government. (t,j From t-'.lizout, full fatisfa&ion, <>r place of rtpofo and j r • y . (4) They 4) laced this ini :ec 01. account of that'ui:ma!'skn<>wu fidelity frf man. > he t!in*r h ads denoted ti.e three funeral cries over the corpfe. which is the meaning r!,.« inhabited by ihq/iicnis. (3,' Tt lo*ei olim. niJntfJdiJiffi.1 Pit . . Apollo resembled his father Jupiter in his great pn - pensity to love. He spent some time with Yf uus in tiie isle of Rhodes, and during fcheir interview it is said the sky rained gold, and the earth was covered with fillies and roses. His most celebrated amour was with Da- phne [the daughter of the river Peueus] a virgin of Thessaiy, .;<> vac herself prepossessed in favour bf" Leucippus, a youth of lifer own age. Apollo, to be re- venged upor n>. c rivat, put it into bis bead to disguise himself amongsf the virgins who went bathing, who discovering the deceit, stabbed him! After this the god pursued Dnphne, who flymg to preserve her chas- tity, was, on her intreaticj " the gods, changed inU a laurel [1], whose leav Ap6llb immediately conse- crated to bind his tempos, and made t'hrt tree the re- ward of pcttry. G 2 r J / f (8) Ovid, Book VI l. 3'ro. (c) I'hc ftatue of 'Nile in t u c Thuilleries at Paris, had four teen i titdrcu piac], from the pestilential heats : to signify the former, *.ne ancients placed the graces in his right hand, and" for the latter a bow and arrows in his left ; Nommus, or the shepherd, from his fertilizing the earth, and thence sustaining the animal creation ; Dehus [">], from his rendering all things manifest ; Pythias, from his victory over Python ; Lycius, Phoebus, and Pha.- neta, from his purity and splendor. The principal places where lie was worshipped were Chrysus, Tenedos, Smintha, Cylla, Cyrrha, Patrcea, Claros, Cynthius, Abxa, a city in Lycia, at Miletus, and amongst the Maeonians, from all which places he was denominated. He had an oracle and temple at Tegyra, near which were two remarkable fountains, called the Palm and the Olive, on account o-f the sweetness and transparency of the water. He had an oracle at Delos, for six months in the summer season, which for the rest" of the year was removed to Patara in Lycia, and these removals \seie made with ('2 J Tl>/»nce called Oftalian fiftcrfc. (%) Ovid, Book IV. I. 205. r 5"l A-T.C Td J.) Art VKVTA 7!-»H< r '. > THE HEATHEN HODS. 65 with great solemnity, But his, most celebrated temple was at Delphos, the ori ' 5 thus: ApoHg being instructed in the art of - • by Pan, the er, and J ' Tl ymbris, went to this de, where at that time Theinis g iswere : but the s rpe it Python Hindering him fn • i approach- ing the oracle, he slew him, and so took possession it." His temple here, '■' proc* s o£ time, became so frequented, that it was railed tl : praclc cf the earth, an ! all the natii w I princes of t- e world tied . gith each other in their munificence to it. pree'sus, kn - of Lydia, gave at one time a thousand talents of g >\d to make an altar there, besides presents of immense liie at Other times, Phujaris, the tyrant cf Agrig turn, pre ented it ■ ' raze>n bull, a m; ster-pieee oj r.t The response*! here were delivered by a virgin priestess [6] called, Pythia; or Phoebus, placed on a tripos [1 } or stool with three feet, called also Cortina, from the skin of the Python with which it wascovered- Tt isfh- certairl after what manner these oracles were delivered, though Cicero supposes the Pythoness was inspired, or rather intoxicated by certain vapours which ascended from the cave. In Italy Apollo had a celebn ■ 1 i ie at ih< unt Soraete, where his priests were so r '-'- ma for sanctity, thai they could walk on burr.-, iug co;ds imhurit. The Romans erected to him mas y oples. After the battle of Actium,' 'which decided the fate of the world, and secured the empire to Augi tits, this prince not only built him a chapel on that pro- montory^ and renewed the solemn games tu htm, but sv on after raised a most magnificent temple to him on mount Palatine, in Rjme, the whole of Parian marble. The fates were of ivory exquisitely curved, and over the frontispiece were the solar chariot and horses of massy gold. The portico contained a noble library o§ tit- Greek and Latin authors. Within, th< place was decoiated with noble painting", and a statue of the god by the famous Scopas, r.ttented by a gigantic G 3 figure (6) Sorre fay the Pithr^»'V^'ri£ once cibwichcd, rfifc or^cl- 3 were aftrrwarUs dcliv-.-icv by an ind womgfl in the tfnei irf a; young in,. id. {*) Authors vary as to ;hc trip o» } f^mc making it s. vcflcl ia whkh the piielU bathed," 66 fabulous history of figure in brass fifty feet high. In the arcn were four brazen cows, representing the daughters of Pru-tus, king of the Argives, who were changed into that fortn for presuming to rival Juno in bAuty. These ataues were wrought by Myron. The usual sacrifices to Apollo were lambs, bulls, and o ;en. The animals sacred to him vsere the wolf, bom his acoteness of sight ; the cow, from her augury, or foretelling the weather; the s \au, from, its divining its own fieatb ; the hmvk, from its boldness in flight ; and the cock, from its foretelling his rise. The grashoppcr was also reckoned agreeable to him on account of its music. Of trees, the laurel, palm, olive, and juniper, were most in esteem with him. Ail young men, when their beards grew, consecrated their locks in his temple, as the virgins d ; d theirs in the temple of Diana. The four great attributes of Apollo e ere ifivinairott, healing, music, Bttd afckera ; all which manifestly refer to the sun. L.ight dispelling darkness is a strong em- blem of truth dissipating ignorance ; what conduces more to life and health than the solar warmth ; or can there be a raster symbol of the planetary harmony than Apollo's [7] lyre ? As his darts are said to have destroy- ed the monster Python, so his rays dry up the noxious moisture, which isperrrc'ous to vegetation aadfruitfulness. The Persians, wfho had a high veneration for this planet, adored it, and the light proceeding from it, by the names of Kfithra and Orosmanes ; the Egyptians by those of Osiris and Or us ; and from their antiqui- ties let us now seek some illustration of the birth and advent arts of Apollo. The I sis which pointed ovt the nemen'w, or monthly festwal, before their annual iimundation, was the symbolical figure of a creature with the upper part of a woman, and the hinder of a lizard, placed in a reclining posture. This they called Leto [8], and uw d it to signify to the people the necessity of laying in the provisions of olives, parched corn, and Sjch other kinds of dry food, for their substinence, fluting the flood. Now when the waters of the Nile decreased (l) The feven ft. i gs of which are faiJ to reprcfent the feven (ij From Lcro, or l.ctoah, a liza/il. THE IIEATHKN GOB& 67 decreased time enough to allow i!nm a month, b< the i • . irtnce of the sun into Sagittarius, the Egypl farmer was sure of leisure enough to survey and sow his ground, and of remaining in absolute Becurity ti 1 harvest. This conquest of the Nile was n presented by an Otu.% or image, armed with arrows, and subduing the monster Python. This they called Ores [i>], or Apollo [1]. The ■figure of Isis above-mentioned they also stifed Deione, or Duma ["]> and they put in her 1 hand the Iqu'ail, a biid which w ith them was the emblem of security ['■':'}■ These emblems, carried by the Phoenicians into Greeoe', gave rise to all the fable of Latona persecuted by the Python, and flying to Delos in the form of a quail', where she bore Orus and Dione, or Apollo and I3iana. Thus (as on former occasions) the hiefogly- phicks, only designed to point out the regular festivals, and to instruct the people in what they were to do-, be- came in the end the objects of a senseless and gros? ido- latry. When Tvre was besiecr r 'cl bv Alexander, the citizens bound the statue of Apollo with chains' of gold ; but when that conqueror took the place, he released the deity, and thence obtained tlie name of Philalexandrus, cr the friend of Alexander. At Rhodes, where he was worshipped in a peculiar manner, there was a colossal : • oi him at the mouth of the harbour, seventy cu- bits high [+"|. Fhccbus [5] was very differently represented in different countries and times, according to the cnaracter he assumed. To depnt the solar light, the Persians used a figure with the head of a lion covered with a Tiara, in the Persian- t^arb, and holding a mad bull by the horns, a symbol pLinlv of (9} From Mores, n deflrryir rr waiter. ( i '1 &pollo fienifies the funic. (i) from Dei, fufficiency, cotne? Dticne, obundanre. , (3} Sclavs in tlie Phaenician fignifieafeenritr, aj alfo ?. quail ; rencethty ufcrt tlie quail :o fignily the thicg. rhe LaM: u orus ?*a!'. s a:,d Sa!-. o are derived from hence. (4) u'e fiipll (peak of rhis herc^ffar. '(.$) Frcm Pheob, the fource, and ai, the nverrlnnving, or ths fiurce cf tie inilndatien, the Egyptians er-iprefliug the annual cx- cefs cf the .Nile by a fun, with a river proceeding frcm i:e ;r.uuih. 68 FABULOUS HISTORY OF of Egyptian original. The bitter people expressed him sometimes by a circle with its rays ; at ether tin ■■; hy a sceptre wilh an eye over it ; btic their great euiblj m o£ the solar light, as distinguished from the orb itself, was the golden seraph, or fiery flying serpent (fy (so that Mars is but one of his at- tributes) ; this bespoke him irresistible and ruling all things : in b'.s left hand was * flower, intimating the . ihi- creatipji nourished, ma; tnvd, and continued by his beams . around his shoulders he wore a vest, de- picr< •'• with gorgons arid snakes : this takes in Minerva, a id by it is expressed the virtue and vigour of the solar nith, enlivening the apprehension and promoting wisdom ; whence ai;o he is v. ii.li great propriety the p»c- sidi it of tlie muses : close by wi re the expanded wings cf the eagle, representing the xther, stn tchecTbut from him as from it proper center : at his feet v. ere three female figures encircled by a sera phi that m the midst being the emblem of the earth rising in beauty from the midst pf nature and confusion (the other two) by the emanation of his ligHt, signified by the seraph or dra- g on « Under the character of the sun, Apollo was depict- ed in a chariot drawn by lour hoi ., ' use names the poets have taken care to give us as well us those of Plu- to. 'The poets feigned each night that he went to rest vvith Thetis in the ocean, and that the next morning the Hours got ready his horses for him to renew his course, (.see Camibray'e Teleroaque for a picture) and unbarred "the gates of d ; ty. It is no wonHer they have been lavish on a subject, which aiioids sucli extensive room for the imagination to dispkiy itself, as the beau- ties of the sun-rising. When represented as Librr Pater (7), he bore a shield to shew his protection of mankind ]t 1 Vide Macrob. Saturn. 1. I, c i r. ['/ ) Viigilgivesbi.u this, name in histhft Gtor^ic. VoSy flat tJprr.J r/.unJi I :tr. •/■/!, lnbcntt.m r^h quidueitLi OBfUIp, . .. • '<£> aimt Cent. THE HEATHEN GODS 69 mankind. At «iher times he was drawn as a beardless youth) his locks dishevelled, and crowned with laurel, holding a bow in his tight hand with hje arrows, av.d t., lyre in his left. 'Hie palace of the sun has been admi- rably described by Ovid, as well as his car, in the second book ot his Metamorphosis. e CHAP. XXX. Of :he sons or 'Jfs firing of jipollo, JF.srvlnfi'ius, Phartov, Orpheus, Idmon, AruLgus, &c. A. S Ape'lo was a very gallant deity, so he had a very numerous issue, of w hich it is necessary to give sumo ac- count, ae tney make a considerable figwrein the poetical try. Tile first ai.d most ngted of his sons was x£s- culapius, whom he had by the nymph CoromY. Seme say that Apollo shot his mother when big with child of him, on account cf her infidelity; but repeating the fact, saved the infant, and gave hirn to Chiion to be instructed (8) in physic. Others report, that as *kiiig Phlegyas, her father was carrying her with him into Peh :pohnesus, her pains surprised her ou the confines of Epidauria, where, to conceal her shame, she exposed the infant on a mountain. However this be, under the care of this new master he made sueli a progress in the medical art, as gained him a high reputation ; so that he was even reported to have raised the dead. His first cures were wrought upon Ascles, king of E- pidaurus, and Aunes, king of Daunia, which lest was troubled with sore eyes. In short, his success was so great, that Pluto, who saw the number of his ghosts dai- ly decrease, complained to Jupiter, who killed him with his thunderbolts. Cicero reckons up three of his name. The first the sou of Apollo, worshipped in Arcadia, who invented the [8] Ovid, who relates the fiery of Coron^ In V- is Fweiful v ay tell* us that Corvns, or the raven, who difcovrred hei amour, had, by Apollo, his feathers changed fr.^ru \u/..t: K> Out t. 70 FABULOUS HISTORY OF the probe and bandages for wounds : the second, the bro- ther of Mercury, killed by lightning ; and the third, the son of Arsippus and Arsiofte, who first taught the art of tooth-draw -ing and purging, Others make Aes- culapius an Egyptian, king, of Memphis, antecedent by a thousand years to the iEsculapius of the Greek-. 1 he Romans numbered him amongst the Dii Adscititu, oi such as were raised to heaven by their merit, as Her- cules, Castor, and Pollux, &c. The Greeks received their knowledge of JEsculapui* from the Phoenicians and Egyptians. His chief temple* were at Pergamus, Smyrna, 'at Trica, a city of Ionia, and the isle of Coos ; in all which, votive tables wore hung up f9J, shewing the diseases cured by his assis- tance ; but his most famous shrine was at Epidaurus, where every five years in the spring, solemn game* were instituted to him nine days after the Isthmian games at Cormth The Romans grew acquainted with him by an acci- dent : a plague happened in Jtaly, the oracle was con- suited, and the reply was, that y should fetch the god AUculapius fromEpidVuVus. An Embassy wasapoint- ed of tea senators, at the bead of whom was Q. Ogul- nius. These deputies, on their arrival, visiting the temple of the god i huge serpent came from unijer the altar, and crossing the city, went directly to their ship, and lay down in the cabin of Ogulnios ; upon which th ei sail immediat Iy|a id : ivi ig'hi theTfeer, the Serpent quitted the ship, and retired to a little island op'pVslte; the city, where ' a temple, was erected to the god, and the pestilence • ' The animals, sacrifice d i ■ ' ■ lilapius were the goat ; som t - sayj'on account o{ hei nursing him ; others, be- cause this creature is unhealthy, as labouring under a perpetual fever. The d an I th cock were sacred to him, on account of theii fi leiity and vigilance. The raven was also devotee! to hi -.. for its forecast, and being skilled in divination. An lies are not agreed as to his being the inventor of physic, fee-trie affirming that he only perfected that part which relates to the regimen ot the sick. T Let f.; 1 From in- •(". tallies or votive inferiptions, Hipocrates i» fuid to have colledhd his aphorifms. THE HEATHEN GODS. 71 Let us now seek, for the origin of this fable. The pub- lic sign or smybol exposed by the Egyptians in their assemblies, to warn the people to mark the depth of the inundation, in order to regulate their ploughing accord- ingly, was the figure of a man with a dog's head, carry- ing a pole with serpents twisted round it, to which they gave the names of Anabis ( \ ), Thaaut '(2), and ./Escu- lapius (L5). In process of time they r made use of this re- presentation for a real king, who, by the study of physic, sought the preservation of hje subjects. Thus the dog and tkc serpents became the characteristics of jEfxula- palius amongst the Romans and Greeks, who were en- tirely strangers to the original meaning of these heiic- glyphics. ./Eseulapms had, by his wife Epionc, two sons, Mac- haon and Podalirius, Loth skilled in surgery, and who arc mentioned by Homer as present at the siege of Troy, and were very serviceable to the Greeks. He had also two daughters, Hygiaca and Jaso. This deity is represented in different attitudes. At Epidaurus his statue was or" gold and ivory i 4), seated on a throne of the same materials, his head crowned witluiav :, and a long beard, having a knotty stick in one hand, the other entwined with a serpent, and a dog lying at his feet. The Phliasians depicted him as beard- lesBj and the Romans crowned him with laurels, to denote his descent from ApoMo. The knots in his staff signify the difficulties that occur in the *>tudy of medicine, Phaeton was the son of Apollo arid the nymph Cly- rnene. Having a dispute with Epaphus, the son of Jupiter _ and lo, the latter upbraided him, that he was not real- ly the son of his father, and that his mother only made use of that pretence to cover her infamy. The youth, fired at this reproach, by his mother's advice carried his complaint to his father Ph.ebus, who received him with great teudernesss, and, io allay his disquietude, swore by Styx to grant him whatever he requested, as a mark of his [i] Prom Hannobeach, which ia Phoenician fignifks the harkrr or warner, Anfihis | i] r'.e word favailc, fignifies the dog. U"| t'rom Aifli. raan, aiid Laic; k, dog, comes. iSfraleph, the trwndog, ur ^Eiculapius. I'his image was the wwk of Tluafymedcs, fi b of Arlg- !i^i«», a native el Vita*. 72 FABULOUS HISTORY OF his acknowledging him for his son. Phaeton boldly asked the direction of the solar chariot for one day. The father at once grieved and surprised at the demand, lined all arguments in vain to dissuade him from the attempt ; being by his oath reduced to submit to his obstinacy, he )• Linen cloth was the great manufacture of Egypt, and the bleaching of it conse- quently (i : great importance. The image exposed for directing this, was a youth with rays round his head, airjd a whip in his hand, seated on an orb, to which they gave £he name of Phaeton f7], and Pen Climmah [S]. ESrobably the months of M iy, June, and July, were the • • iters of Phaeton, because during these months they washed their linen white, of v. Such Cygnus, or the swan, the friend of Phaeton, is a further symbol. Now as the word A lbanoth, applied to these months [9], sig- nifies also popl«r treet, it gave rise to this metamor- phosis Orpheus (<.) Ovid Metamorpfc . lib II in priruinia. (i' ; I .a Pluche hilt, dc Ci« |;] L'l'in Ph.; tht month, ami Eton linen, ..• made Phaeton that Is . I i hrvn of th ; Jihi fi V. • r!:. [81 Ben -Climmah, the Ion ol hot weather,, He ce the ftory of Phact n's burning the world. [9] Alhan „' l i, or I e! .mo h, fignifie* tie, wKtcning fields or y^rdslor bleael THE HEATHEN GODS. 73 Orpheus was tin- son of Phoebus, by the muse Calli- ope [J]. lie v.-a-i born in Thrace, and resided near mount Rhodope, where he married E.irydice, a prin- cess or that country. Aristeus, a neighbouring prince, who Ml in love with her, attempted to surprise her, and in her flight to escape his violence, she was killed by the bite of a serpent. Her disconsolate husband was so affected at his loss, that he descended by the wav of Tsnarus to hell, in order to recover her. As music and poetry were to him hereditary talents, he exerted them in so powerfol a manner, that Pluto and Proserpine were so far touched, as to restore him his beloved con- tort on one condition, that he should not look back on her, till they came to the light of the world. His im- patient fondness made him break this article, and he lost her for ever. GritVed at her loss, he retired to the woods and forests, which it is said were sensible of his harmony ['2J. But the Mxnades or Bacchaj, either iricensed at his vowing a widowed life, or, as others Bay, instigated by Bacchus, whose worship he neglected [3], tore him in preces, a id scattered his limbs about the field*, which were collected u. .1 buried hy the Muses. His head and harp, which were cast into the Kebrus, were carried to Lesbos, and the former interred there. His harp was transported to the skies, where it forms one of the constellations. He himself was changed into a swan, and left a .son called Methon, whofouncedinThraceacity ofliis own name. Ovid has given us this whole story [41 ; but contrary to his usual method, has broke the thread of a, by interspersing it in different pnrts of his work. It is certain that Orpheus may be placed as the ear- lifst poet oi Greece, where he first introduced astron- <-, divinity, music, and poetry, all which he had learned Egypt. He wrote many volumes in natural philoso- phy «ad antiquities [5], of which only a few irirpeiv H feet 1 1 Some m&e him the fon <,f Oegrm and Calliope - 0\ I J etam. lib Xi. in priicinio. [3i<*h«* Uyby Venus, onacefiUBtofhis.dcfpauwher^i-, t u:c ryn pn s excited by her, tor, turn in pice?, ln ft, £' • wj o ih« uld have him. 4 'u hii Ath dq ; Xlth books. . :' H ; "" je a book QThyihn^ andtreattesoa thegeneiaOc* V , •;■>»■"*; « S th,.p i ,t--w,r;onth l rape of Fro^4 • ! i- X J\ f f hl U " " f . Herculcs i * «o«« -: on the rues ano rAvftJ Wli 01 till.' I ■ ' 74 FABULOUS HISTORY OF . ' feet fragments have escaped the rage of time. In his book of stones, he bays of himself, He could under- stand the flight and language of birds, stofi the course oj n- ptrs, overcome th: jiohon of serpents, and even penetrate the thoughts of the heart [6]. . Let us seek the origin of this fable once more in £,- evut, the mother-country of fiction. In July, when the sun entered Leo, the Nile overflowed all the plains. To denote the public iov at teeing the inundation nse to its due height, they exhibited a youth W«£ on the lvre or sistrnm, and sitting by a tame lion. When the waters did not increase as they should, tins Horus was represented stretched on the bark of a lion as dead. This symbol they called Oreph or Orpheus [TV to sig- nify that agriculture was then quite unseasonable ana dormant. The songs they amuse, themselves With at this dull season, for want of exercise, were called the hymns of Orpheus ; and as husbandry revived immedi- ately after, it gave rise to the fable of Orpheus > ; t,rn- ing fjdm hell. The Im placed near this HottW, fftey called EufydiceiTO and as the Greeks took all these fibres m Vie literal; ixA not Id the emblematical seine, they made Eurydice the wife of Orpheus. 1 , .,, wa, the son of Apollo by Asteria. and attend- ed t*fe Ar in their expedition to Colchis, being formi for his skill in augury ; but wandering from h.s companion*, as they occasionally landed, he was killed °' J toother o^the children of Apollo was Linlts, whom he had by th : A !iore. He was born at Thebes, ami eminent for fearnhig, if it be true hat TUamyris Orpheus, and tf^wfes, wereall to scholar* linB) tkelattei Foi r,,l,cuhnghim; but . |heils (MOthc . aflttta) lived a hundred years be- . i reulea, it is rather probable ihat Lmus was the • HoWver tins be,' Linus wrote ■ ; in of ih, world, the course ol the sun and moo.', ?-d the production oi animal*. ^ r0 j Thi , p. obaMj C-v. rife to the fable of hit making-rocks ;; oJc'ptorthebackpanoJthehc^ ■ Dooa, fanned fttocj, ..... .,.,,, •„, , .>,,, ,.. i.e. the violence or rage of the .:. < : ' "' ' ' n: "' THE HEATIHN GODS. J5 After all, Linus was only a symbol of the Egyptians, which the Greeks, according to custom, personated. At the end of autumn or harvest, the Egyptians fell to their night-work, of making linen cloth [9], and the figure then exposed was called Linus []], and denoted the sitting up or watching during the night. Arist lUs was the son of Apollo, by Cyrene, a virgin nymph, who used to accompany him in hunting, and whom he first fell in love with on seeing her encounter a lion. He was born in L bya. He received his edu- cation from the nymphs, who taught him to extract oil from olives, and to make houey, cheese, and butter ; all which arts he communicated to mankind. On this account he was regarded as a rural deity. From Africa he paesed into Sardinia and Sicily, from whence he travelled into Thrace, where Bacchus initiated him in his mysteries. We have already mentioned how his passion occasioned the death of Eurvdice, to revenge which the wood-nymphs .Lv.t/cvcd his '.w-r-hives. Con- cerned at this loss, he advised with his mother, and was told by the oracle to sacrifice bulls to appease her shade ; which counsel following, the bets which issued from the carcasses fully supplied the demages he had siwtau - ed [2] He died near momit Haemus, and was defied on account of the services he had done to mankind by his useful inventions. He was a*-o honoured in the isle of Coos, for his calling the Etsian winds to relit ve them in an excessive time of heat. Herodctus says. that he appeared at Cvzicum after Lis death, and three hundred and forty years after \vr.s seen in Italy, at Me- tapontmr., where he enjoined the inhabitants to erect a statue to him near that of Apollo ; which, on consult- ing the oracle, they performed. Circe was the daughter of Phoebus, by Persis, the child of Oceanus, ar,d a celebrated sorceress. Pier fir&t husband was a king of the Sarmatae, whom she poison- H2 ed, (9) This was their chh.f irarv.ifdcfiire. [ I ] Linns, from j.yn, to watch, whence cur wcrd linen, th:.t IB' the work, f r the tirr.e of. oing it. r ?] Virgil has in'md'.ired this ftory with e'e^ar.ce ui.c! pro- priety, in his IVth Gcorgic, ]. 314. 76 FABULOUS HISTORY OF cd, fer which she was expelled the kingdom, and fled to a promontory on the coast of Tuscany, which afterwards took her name. Here she fell in love with Glaucus, one of the sea deitie?, who preferring Scylla to her, she changed her into a sea monster. Picus, king of die Latins, her next favourite, for rejecting her ad- dresses, was metamorphosed into a woodpecker. The most remarkable of Circe's adventures was with Ulysges. The prince, returning from Troy, was cast away on her coa*t, and his t?~«n, by a drink she gave them, were transformed to swine, and other beasts. Ulysses was preserved by Mercury, who gave him the herb moly, to secure him from her enchantments, and instructed him, when she attempted to touch him with her wand, to draw his sword, afid make her swear by Styx, she would use him as a frier.d, otherwise he would kill her. By this means, he procured the liberty of his companions, and continued a year with Circe, who bore him tw-) children, viz. A grins and Latinus. Circe had a sepulchre in one of the isles, called Pharmacusae, Bear Salamis. Circe was no other than the Egyptian Is!?, whose Horns, or attending image, every month assuming some different form, as a human body, with the head of a lion, dog, serpent, or tortoise, gave rise to the fable of her changing men by her inchantments into these ani- mals. Hence the Egyptians gave her the name of Circe, whhich signifies the ./Enigma. Apollo had many other children. iEthusa, the daughter of Neptune, bore him Elutherus. By Evadne he had Janus ; by Atria, Miletus, Oaxus, and Arabus, who gave his name to Arabia ; by Melia, he had Isme- r.;us and Tasnarus ; by Aglaia, Thestor ; by Mav.to, Mopsus ; by Anathrippc, Chius ,- by Achalide, he had Delphus, and many others too tedious to enumerate. CHAP. TIIK HtATHI'N GODS. 77 C II A P- XXXI. Of the Muses, and Pegasus, the Graces, and the St/rer.s. A HEvSE celebrated goddesses, the Muse?, were the daughters of Jupiter mid Mnemosyne, though some think them bom of Cabin. Their numbet at lirst w..s only three or four f -v\ but Homer and Hesiod have fixed it at nine (^)t which it lias never since exceeded. They were bonbon mount Pierus, and educated by the iph Eupheme. They had many appellation* common to them all, as Piendes, from the place of their birth ; Heliconides, mount Helicon, in Bceotia ; Parnassides, from the bill of Parnassus^ in Pbocis ; CitbcrideS, from mount) n,a,place1 - iuch frequented ; Aohides, from Aoui [ippoi . Agannipidesj and Castalides, from different founl i is • secrated to I hem, or to winch thcyw ■< supposed to resort. In geiierjil 'hey were t'.e tutelar, goddesses of all sa- s, , I the patronesses of all po- lite i ' ■ arts. They supported virtue in disuess, - actions frjim oblivion. Homer.caUs, u\ *se« and c irrectresa s of manners { r> )• V* t « i i l the sciences, these sisters had each 'their parti*" ■ province or department, though poetry seemed more immediately under their u/ated protection. Calliope ("So called from sty sweetness of he; voice) '•.led over rhetoric, and'vv.. reckoned the first of me ■me sisters. II 3 - Clio, fj]/. : «iM ; f-> , MeltU tha^iL Memory, Singing and .V<- dijoti hich fome add l'he|ix*wp< [4I fome l^^n <•■? r. rfei fon f.-i fi'.i- that wheh-the citizens of ;.-:ii ill Itaj nne* io in-tktr each ti r< 1 .J- iftlie three miifes, tnty werif all fo well evecuted that they oft know whjch ro chebfe hct ert&ed nil the 1 ine, and that htuoi! only gaVe iftem names. 5 l Hence tire < Id banU and poets were in farh bigh cfteem, that when Agamemnon wtnt o; the i\ ge of 1 t*>y l.e I ft u::e •wiih Clytemneftra, to i.eep bet fairhfuL, md i -ailtus couid not ccrioj t i.Lj, tail he bad d?ftrcy80 FABULOUS HISTORY OF they gate different appellations (\). Eteoeles, kitg of the Orchomenians, was the first who erected a tem- ple to theim. Pegasus was a winged horse produced by the blood which fell from Medusa's head, when she was killed fey Perseus. He flew to mount I \ jhcon, tha seat of the Mules, were, with a stroke of his hoof, he opened a fountain called Hippocrene, or the horse's spring ( l l). The unravelling these figures will convince us how justly they belong to this article, as, they complete it? il- lustration. Near the nine female figures which betok- ened the dry season, were placed three others, represent- ing the three months of inundation, and' were drawn sometimes swathed, as incapable of using thuir hands and feet. These were called Charkout ($), or the fa vorce. The resemblance of this word to the Greek Cha- rities, which signifies thanksgivings or favours, gave rise to the fable of the Graces, 01 three goddesses presiding over benefits and outward charms. | Yet, as during the inundation, all parts could not V? so hilly supplied, 1nit that some commerce was necessary, they had recourse to small barks, to sail from one r?y to the other. Now the emblematical figure of. a ship or vessel, in Egypt and Phoenicia, was a winged horse ( i), by which the name the inhabitants of Cadiz, a Phenic.an colony, called their vessels. Now, if the Muses a.id Graces are the goddesses which preside over arts ai gratitude, this emblem continues unintelligible ; but if v, t take the nine Muses from the months of act'on and industry, "and the three Graces for the three months of in- undation and rest, the winged horse, or boat with sails, ; s a true picture of the end of navigation, and the re- turn of rural toils. To this figure the Egyptians gave the kindness oucrht never to die ; Euphrofyne, 05 cfeearfuJnefe, to figuify that' favours fhonld he confeircd and received with rau. > aal pie mire. , . , "' r 1 ] 1 he Spartan Graces were Clito and Phaena ; thole of A- thens, Auro and H'-cnm. [2! FonsCaballinus. See Perfius, fatyr I. (\) From Charat, to divide, comes Chaiuout, the repara- tion of comnv rce. • _ . (i,j Strabo Gcogiaph. Lib. 11. p. 99. cd.t. Reg. Pans. THE HEATHEN GODS 81 the name of Pegasus (5), expressive of its true mean- ing. All th gcs transplanted to Greece, became the soune of endless cocfuiion "and fable.- By the Latin ar.d Greek poets, the Graces are repre- sented as beautiful voting virgins, naked, or but very Brightly clothed (6), and having wings on their feet. Tl i y are also joined hand in hand, to denote their unity. The Syrens were the daughters of Achelous. Their Jcv.er parts were like fishes, and their upper like women ; but they were so skilled in music, that they ensnared all who heard th< m to destruction. Presuming to contend with the Muses, they were vanquished, and stripped at crce of their feathers and voice?, as a punishment for their folly. The Egyptians sometimes repr?ser.tedthe three months of inundation hy figure's of half female and half f.sh, to denote to the inhabitants their living in the midst of the waters. One of these images bore in her hand the fist* rum, «r Egyptian lyre, to shew the general joy at the flood's arriving to its due height, which was the assu- rance of a succeeding year of plenty. To these sym- bols they gave the name of Syrens (7), expressive of their real meaning. The Phoenicians, who carried them into Greece, represented them as real persons, and the Greeks and Romans had too strong a taste for the fa- bulous, not to embellish the story. (8J. H- CHAP. XXXII. Of Diana , Luna, or Hecate. AVING treated of the god of wit and harmony, with his offspring and train, let us now come to his twin-sisttr Diana, the goddess of chastity, and the daughter (j) From Pag, to ce^fe, and Stu, a fhip, Feg?.fus, or the eel- fat icu of navigation. (6) Solutis Grati.-e Zonh. Ode XXX. 5. Jun£!crqi;c nyr-j Lis Gn.t'ia rfec-.n'.ti Alt;rno tcrriW! quniiunt pedr. Horace. Lib. I. Ode IV. ". (7) From Shur, a nymn, nnd Pan;m, to "ing. (8 Hence the imaginary form el Mermaid. 82 FABULOUS HISTORY OF daughter of Jupiter ami Latona. Her father, at her re- quest, granted her perpetual virginity, bestowed on her a bow and arrows, appointed her queen of the woods and forests (2), and assigned her a guard of nymphs to attend her (3). She became the patroness of hunting thus: Britomartis, a huntress-nymph, being one day entang- led in her own nets, while the wild boar was approach* ing her, vowed a temple to Diana, and so was preserved. Hence Diana had the name of Dictynna. Others relate the story differently, end say that Britomartis, whom Diana favoured on account pf her passion for the chase, flying from Minos her lover, fell i.io the ma, and was by her nnide a goddess. The adventures of Diana rmde a pretty considerable figure in poetical history, and serve to shew that the vir- tue ct this goddess, if inviolable, was also very severe. Actaecn experienced this truth to his cast. He was a young prince, the son of Aristxus and Autoiuv, the djagh^cr ■ ■■ £a! --...-, ~-.g ~f Tl^bes. As he waj dm. sionately fond of the sport, he had the misfortune one day to discover Diana bathing with her i:yt ,;>hri. The goddess, incensed at the intrusion, changed him into a stag ; so that his own dogs, mistaking him for their game, pursued and tore him to pieces. Ovid has wrought up this scene with great art and imagination (k). Tiie truth of this fable is said to Le as follows: Ac- tion was a man of Arcadia, a great lov.-r of dogs and bunting, and by keep'...** many dogs, and ft • ncjmg his time in hunting on the mountains, he entirely neglected his domestic affairs, and being brought to ruin, was ge- nerally called the wretched Actaeon, who was was de- voured by his own dog". Meleager was another unhappy victim of her resent- ment, and the more so as his punishment was owing to no crime of his own. Oeneus, his father, king of iEtolia, in offering sacrifices to the rural deities, bad forgot Diana. The goddess was not of a cha- racter to put up with such a neglect. She sent a huge wild boar into the fields of Calydon, who laid every thing (2) ^rtonlium c-tfloi ntmorunqus virvo H'»rat. IJb. III. ( 3) Sixty nymph* cal'cd Oceaninx and twenty of" the Afia: (4) Ovid, Lib. ill. IJ. THE HEATHEN GODS. 83 thing waste before him. Mclergar, with Theseus, and the virgin Atalanta, undertook to encounter it, The virgin gave the monster the first wound, and Mclearar, who killed it, presented her the skin, Winch his uncles took from her, for which he slew them. Altha-a, his mother, hearing her tv/o brothers had p »i ,m! in this quarrel, took an uncommon revenge. She rcinemhe%d at the birth of lur son the Fattia hud thrown a billet Into the chamber, with an assurance the hoy would live, as that remained uiiconsunled. The mother had till now carefully saved a pledge on which so much depend- ed ; bill i ispiredby her present fury, she threw it into the flames, and Mefeager instantly seized with a consuming disease, expired as soon as it was burnt. His sisters who excessively mourned his death, were turned into hen- turkies. Ovid had not forgot to embellish his collection with this Bton [.■)]. Others relate the story o: Meleager thus: Diana had, to aveftge herself dfOeneusj raised a war between the Curetes and jEtoIians. Meleager, who fought at the h ad of his father's troop?, h.ad always the 11 killing two of his mother's brothers, his mother Althea loaded him r/ith such imprecations, that he retired from the field, lac Curetcs upon this ad- vanced, and attacked the capital of JE.tohr->. In vaia Oeueils .1 W arm and repel the foe; ;in his mother forgive^ and intreats him. He is inflexible, till Cleopatra, his wife, falls at his feet, and represents their mutual danger. Touched at this he cells for'his armour, issues to the fight, and repels the • Nor was Diana less rigorous to her own sex. Chione. the di". ''''- of Dvpd'dioii, being caresssed both by A- pollo and Mercury, bore twins, Phil.au on, the son of A- pullo,afamous musician, and Autolycus, the son of Mer- cury, 3 skilful juggl« ror cheat. The mother was so i:r- pntdeht to hoa^t of her si: ime, and prefertlhe honour of being"*nfi*trcss to two d'ities to the modesty of Diaiia, which she ascribed to her wai.t of beauty; for this the goddess pierced her tongue with an arrow, and deprived hrr of the power of future boastitfg or .calumny. The ri*er Alpheus fell violently enamoured of Di- ana, and having no hopes of success, had recourse to .'5; Ovid, Lib. VIII. 161. 84 FABULOUS HISTORY OF to force. The goddess fled to the Letrini, where she amused herself with dancing, and with some art so dis- guised herself and her nymphs, that Alpheus no longer knew them. For this, these people erected a temple to her. During the chase one day, Diana accidently shot Chenchriiis, son of the nymph Pryene, who bewailed him so much, that she was tinned into a fountain. Diana had a great variety of name:;: she was called Cynthia and Delia, from the place of her birth ; Arte- mis, on account of her honour and modesty. By the Arcadians she was named Oithosia ; and by the Spar- tans, Orthia. Her temples were many, both in Greece and Italy ; but the most considerable was at Ephesu?, where she was held in the highest veneration. The plan of this magnificent edifice was laid by Ctesiphcn, and the structure of it employed for 220 years the ablest architects and statuaries in the world. It was net on fire by Erostratus, on the day that Alexander the Great came into the world ; but was soon rebuilt with equal splendour under Diuocrates, who also built the city of Alexandria. The sacrifices offered to Diana were the first fniits cfthe earth, oxen, rams, and white hinds; human vic- tims were sometimes devoted to her in Greece, as we find "In the case of Iphigenia, Her festival was on the ides of Augii6t, after which time all hunting was prohi'.ited. Diana was represented of an uncommpn high btature, her hair dishevelled, a bow in her hand, and a quiver at her back, a deer-skin fastened to her b] last, and her purple lobe tucked up to her km es, with gold buckles or clasps, and attended by nymphs in a hunting dress, with nets and Sounds. Diana was also cv.lled Dea Trifqrmis or Tcrgemina, on account of her triple character, of Luna in heaven, Diana on earth, and Hecate in the infernal regions; though the actions of the first and last are a.;i bed to her under the second name ((>)■ Luna was thought to be the daughter of Hyperion and Theia. The Egyptians woi shipped this deity both as male and female, the men sacrificing to it as Luna, the women' as Luilms, and each sex on these occasions (6) Hc-r.oJ makes Luna, Diana, a; d Hecate, three distinct, guddefies. THK HRATHlN CODS. &9 occasions assuming the dte»9 nf the other'. Indeed goddess was no other than the Venu* Urania', or Co:- 1> Bt is of the Assyrians, whose worship and rites the Phoe- nicians introduced into Greece. Under this character Diana was also called Enema, £& name she held in common with Juno^ and had the protection of women in labour (1 ), though some make Cucina a distinct goddess from cither (8j. By th ; s name she was ador- ed by the iCginensee and Eleans. If Diana was so ri > ; d in point of chastity or. earth, her virtue grew a little more relaxed when she got to the s'cies. She bore Jupiter a daughter there, called I>sa, or the Dew ; and Pan, who was not the most pleasing of the gods, deceived her in the shape of a white ram. Bnt her most celebrated amou; was with Endymion fl^, the son of iEthlius, and grandson of Jupiter, who took him up into heaver , where he had the insolence to solicit Juno, for which he was cast into a profound sleep. Luna had the kindness to conceal him in a cave of mount Lat- mos in Caria, where she had fifty daughters by him, and a son called iEtolus, after which he was again exalted to the skies* The fable of Endymion had its -origin in Egypt. These people in the neomenia, or feast, in which they celebrate the antient state of mankind, chose a grove or some retired shady grotto, where they placed an Iris, with her crescent or moon, and by her side an Horut asleep, to denote the security and repose which mankind then enjoyed. This figure they called Endymion (*2J, and these symbolical figures, like the rest, degenerated into idolatry, and became the materials for fabulous history. As the moon, Diana was represented with a crescert on her head, in a silver chariot drawn by white hind?, I with (7) ff is faid Hie afiiftid Latrna. her mr.ther, at the birrh ot Apollo, but was lo terrified at tin. pains, that fhe vowed perpe- tual vir^iii f y (%) Some make Lticina the daughter of Jupiter and Juno, and born in Crete ' (1) Others tiffirm, that Endymion was a kinjr of F.li«, much giviii to aOmncinv ruid lunar obiVrvationi, for wnich he was laid to be in leve » ith the rr.oon. and canefltd by her. (2) Fr m En, a £f*tto or ftfn tain, and Dimtnq, re'en ■ btai'ce, ismais EuupttiOa, or the grotto if <£f »r >..;\-7.vi'V- 86 FABULOUS HISTORY OF *■•!]: gold harden which stfmc change to mule?, brc?\wc th-.t ■■ 1 is barren (.",). Seme make her conductor a. hitfc and black horse ('< } ; othets oxen, on account Of the 1 -im. Hecate was the daughter of Jupiter and Ceres. As to $e origin of the name there is some variation (5). . She was the. goddess of the infernal regions and on that account is often co-founded with Proserpine. She presid- ed over streets and highways : for which cause she was cal- led Tiiut, as also Propyla, because the doors of houses weiv under tier protection (6). The appellation of Btirno i en her on account of her dreadful shrieks, wheu Mars, Apollo, and Mercury, meeting her in the woods, attempted to ravish her. She was also famous I botany, eapecially-for discovering baneful and poi- gpnpus herb* and rods ; as also for her skill in enchant- • ;,ts and magical arts, in the practice of which her came was constantly invoked (1 ). Hesiod has given a v iy r ompous description of the extent ot her powcr^S;. ^he-was stiled in Egvpt Bubastis. As Hecate, Diana Was represented of an excessive height, her head covered with frightful snakes, and her feet of a s?rueinir-v foini, and Mirrounded with dogs, an suiimJ sacred to her, and under whose form she was sometimes- represented* She was also esteemed the goddess of inevitable fate- ' Jfwe bav« reouur* to the Egyptian key, we shall hnd tfus threefold, goddess the same symbol with the Juno and Cybele >.e have already treated of. The Greek sculptors bid too good a taet«. to endure the head of the bullor goat pn their deities, which they borrowed from that coun- try. They therefore. altered these l.;eroglyphical figures 1 to f*j To ojprefs that the mopn 1 ad no li^ht of Iv r own, but whatfhc borrowed from the iun. ■ \ Taexpr«»the vane and lull oi the, moon- (-') Either from w^f, at a distance, because the inooil darts her rays afar off ; or from «*t«, a hundred, /6 - u eTcry new »• en the Athenian* made a Cupper for her i, t , t p^n areet, which in the aight was eaten up by the poor 3o Di i°> ' p Virr article of Apollo. Being caressed when an infant m Vulcan's arms, be stole Sway his tools. The same day he c feated Cupid at wrestling, and while Venue praised him aiU> r his victory, he found means to convey away her cesi He pilfered Jupiter's sceptre, jmd had done the thing by his thunderbolts, but they wew too. hot- foi fingers. He served Battus a very sjipperj trick. 1 his man saw him stealing king Admettia's cows from Apollo h.i« I 2 herdsman; (t)} Achate, tht only or excellent, or Arho", • in &t Sj the (i b r. ( ' . ) Peio, or Deione. from r)ci,fuffiet*r>cy ; or Dei Dei, and Mater, rain, i. c plenty if iain. 8S FABULOUS HISTORY OF herdsman. To bribe him to silence, be gave him a fine cow, and the clown promised to keep it secret. Mercury to try him assumed another shape, ruid offering a higher reward, the fellow told all he knew, on which [ 4 2] the god turned him into a touchstone. Mercury had several appellations. He was called Her- mes [3] and Cyllenius, from his temple upon mount Cyl- lene. Nor were his employments less various. He was the cupbearer of Jupiter till Ganymede took his place. He was the messenger of the gods, and the tutelar god of roads and cross-ways [4], the inventor of weights and measures, and the guardian of all merchandize and coi merce, though this office seems but ill to agree with the actions ascribed to him. He was in a peculiar manner the protector of learning, being the first disco- verer of letters, and the god of rhetoric and oratory. Ho was also famous fur his skill in music, and so eloquent, that he waa not only the arbitrator in all quarrel:, a- mongst the gods, but in all leagues and negotiations par- ticular regard was paid [5] to him. Together with TettiM and Plato, Mercury was invok- ed amongst the terrestrial gods. In conjunction with Her- cik-c- he presided over wrestling and the gymnattic exer- cii -?s, to shew that address on these occasions should al- ways be joined to f rce. He was also believed to pre- tiJe over dream?, though Morpheas claims a share with him in this department. Annually, in die middle of May, a festival was cele- brated to his honour at Rome, by the merchants and traders, who sacrificed a sew to him, intreating he would prosper their business, and forgive their frauds. In all sacrifices offered to him, the tongues of the victims were burnt, which custom was borrowed from the Megaren- se c « [l] Ovid has given a fine decriftion of this incident. Metam. lib ll.rtto. [ 3 1 *&ymf, the interpreter, becaufe he interpreted the minds cf tie god* an d men. [4 1 Where the Greeks and Romans placed certain figure*, called Hermac, from him, being of marble or brafr, with the head of a mercury, but downward of a fquare figure. [5] As the Feciaics, cr priest" of Mars, proclaimed var; fo the Caduceatores, or priests ofMercary, were employed in ail embattles and treaucs of peace. THE HITATHEN GODS. 89 scs. Persons wjio escaped jmTrs'«e»t dangers sacrificed to him a calf with milk and hoflcy. The aiiin>a!\ .cied to him were the dog, the goat, and the cock) By his sister Venus lie had a sop called Hermaphrodi- tu»,a great hunter; a wood n\ i -ij.iu called Salmaeis, fell in love with him, but had the mortifi :ation to be n puls- ed. Upon this, inflamed by I"" gassioi), she wuiched n.'ar a fountain where he used to'batae, and whrn she saw him naked in the water, rushed to ernhr^ but the youth st ill avoiding her, she pra] < a the g( d; il.ei: bodies might become one, vvhjch was ln.rrviuv.- y,\ i -' ed ; and what was yet more wonderful, the I- "■ tai i re- tained the virtue of making all those . HerSjapnrod who used its waters £(*]. A late author gives tins story another turn. He it ; s, the fountain Salmaeis [7] being enclosed with high waiU, very indecent scenes passed there ; but that a. certain Greek of that colony building a;) inn there for the en- tertainment of strangers, the barbarians, who r< sorted i.o it, by their intercourse with the Greeks, became sof- tened and civilized, which gave rise to the fable ot thejr changing their sex. Mercury had other children, particularly Pan, Dq- lops, Echion, Caicus, Erix, Buns, Phares, and the Lares, with several others Such was the Mercury of the Greeks and Romans. But the origin of this deity must be looked for a- mongst the Phoenicians, whose image is the symbolical figure of thei' great ancestor and founder, and the pro- per arms of that people. By the bag of money which he held, was intimated the gains of merchandize. By the wings with which Ids head and feet were furnished, was shadowed the shipping of that people, their exten- sive commerce and navigation. The caduceui, with which [8] he was said to conduct the spirits of the de- ceased to Hades, pointed out the great principles of the soul's immortality, astateof [9] rewards and punishments I 3 after [6] See Ovid's defection of this adventure. Metam. book IV. [',} In C;'.ria,nc;u the city of HnlicarnafTu*. fol Flr'-tnue lev ip correct ■■ " Aurtd torlntm. [a] Tu'plas Lttil jr.irjJS uponit ■ ' SedAvt, Horace. 90 FABULOUS HISTORY OF (1) after death, and a [2] resuscitation of the body. It is described as producing three leaves together: hence called by Honv r the galden three laaved wand. The doctrine alluded to by this was more distinctly taught by the emblems adorning the hermetic wand: for to ths extremity of it was annexed the ball or circle. Two Seraphs entwined the rod ; over which were the ex- panded wings, forming the complete heiroglyphic of the mighty ones. The name of Mercury is a com- pound of the Celtic Merc, merchandize, [!)] and Ur, a nan; and corresponds very exactly with the Hebrew Etymology, rendering the meaning of the word Cnaan, or Canaan, a merchant or trader, This symbolical figure (like many other?, which at first were very innocent,) became in time the object of idolatrous worship to most nations. Wa are not to won- der that the Egyptians particularly, whose country was the land of Ham, the fr.ther of Canaar, should do ho- nour to this figlire, and apply it to their purposes ; for it is more than probablr, that, being so near at hand, he might be greatly assisting to his brother Muraim in the settlement of that country ; besides the consideration of their after-obligations to his" descendant the Phoenician. who is called the ^Egyptian Hercules. CHAP- XXXIV. Of Venus. \ HE next deity that offers is that powerful goddess whose influence is acknowledged by ^iods and men. Ci- cero mentions four of this name [+} ; but the Venus generally known is she who is fabled to have sprung from ihe frotn or fermentation; raised by the genitals of Saturn, when cut off by Ids son Jupiter, and thrown into the scp. Hence she gained the name of Aphrodite [5]. As soon as (t) line alias fub trisiia Tar tar a mittit , \lS Dt't '"wiij. adimilque, »IRCI T . (3) From Rac-U or trade, comes Marcolet, merchan'life. (4) The first the daughter «>f C»lum ; the fecond Venus A- ■hr'tdita; the thiid born of Jupiter and Dione, and the wife oi Vulcan ; »nd the fourth Aftam, cr the Syrian Venus, the ua&rak 0* Adunij. THE HEATHEN GODS. 91 as born she was laid in a beautiful couch or shell, embel- lished with pearl, and by gentle zephyrs wafted to tie* isle of Cythera, in the ./Egean sea, from whence she sail- ed to Cyprus, which she reached in April. Here, as soon as she landed, flowers rose beneath her feet, the Hours received her, and braided her hair with golden fillets, after which she was by them wafted to Heaven. Her charms appeared so attractive in the assembly of thegods, that scarce one of them but what desired her in marri- age. Vulcan, by the advice of Jupiter, put poppy m her nectar, and, by intoxicating her, gained possession. Few of the deities have been so extensively wor- shipped, or under a greater variety of names. She was called Cytherea, Paphia, Cypria, Erycina, Italia, Aci- dalia, from the places where she was in a particular man- ner adored. Other appellations were given her from her principal attributes. She was stiled Victrix (6), to de- note her resistless sway over the mind ; Arnica, from her being propitious to lovers ; Apaturia, from the deceit and inconstancy of her votaries ; Ridens, from her love of mirth and laughter (7) ; Hortensis, from her itiflu- encingtlie vegetation of plants and flowers ; Marina, f--om her being born of the sea ; Melanis, from her delight- ing- in nocturnal (8) amours ; Meretrix, from the pros- titution of her votaries ; and Genitrix, from her pre- siding over the propagation of mankind. The epithet of Migonitis was given, her from her power in the ma- nagement of love (9) ; and that of Murica and Myrtca, on account of the myrtle consecrated to her. She was- Ramed'Verticordia, from her power of changing the heart ; (5) From 'Ap^s, froth, though some derive it from «fg*», ran mad, because all loveismfatuationorfrenzr, (6) Under this character fhe isrepr. fented ieaning on a (hie id, and carrying victory in her right hand, ar.d a jceptre in her kft. At other times with a helmet, and the appieo' P^ris in her hand. (7) Horace, lib. I. ode 2, Si-vf tum^jis Kryeina ridens ; fo Homer •alls her (ptXotii^i^, or the laughter -losing queen. (8) From [4-iXu.r, black, because lovers chose the night. (9) From fti^nifti, to mix or mingle ; so Virgil, ■ . Mini j Dn ;»lu!kr. 92 FABULOUS HISTORY OF h^art ; for which reason the Greeks stiledher Y.v^-rfaQ*. the Spartans called her Venus Armata, because when besieged by the Messeniaus, their wives, unknown to their husband?, raised the siege. The Romans also term- ed her Barbata,' because when a disease had\se:/ed the women, in which they lost &U theii hair, on th<;r pray- ers to Verms it grew again; A temple was dedicated to her by the appellation of Calva ; because when the Gauls invested the capitol, the women offered their hair to make ropes for the engines. She had also the epithet of Clu- acina ( ]J, from her image being erected in the place where the peace was concluded between the Romans ai:d Sabines. Let us now enquire a little into the actions ascribed to this goddess. Her conjugal behaviour we shall see under the article of Vulcan, and find it was none of the most edifying. Her amours were numerous Not to mention Apollo, Neptune, Mars, aud Mercury, who all boasted of her favours ('.!), she had Mn?Q& (.2} by Anchiscs ; •but hcrprincipa' favourifwas Adonis, the son of Cynaras, king of Cyprus, and Myrrha, and a youth df incompara- ble beauty, unfortunately >« hunting killed by a wild hoar- Venus, who flew to his assistance, received a prick in her foot with a thorn- and the blood which dropped from it produced the damask rose (\), but cooling too late to •save him she changed him into the flower Anemone, which st ill retains a crimson colour ($). After this she obtained of Prtisefpine, that Adonis should continue six .months with her on earth, and six months remain in the lower regions. The . From Cluo, to hear, Mm, or apree. (i) By taoftofce'KaH i:!f-!'ryon, and five fan* ; by Neptune, F.ryx, and Metijrunis', a daughter ; by M*rs, Timor and PcUprtf and bv Mercury, ) 1,-r uavhroditus. .... f\j Shcinnnortalwed Mn&u, by purifying and arointing his body wijh anuirqOal effenc^ and the Romanjdwficfl him by the nami of Indigos. We h-ve Xtenl antiem inscriptions, Dto I»d>- gcti. / 4 ;Ovi.l, lib. X. 505' . ., , .,-,,. ff) SoaTe mithol,iciz.e this Hrry, to flgmfy by Adonii the Sun, w ho, during the fummer tign-, rebec, with Venus Mi the earth, and daring the whiter with Wrfeipifle. ty* wild boar which kiiicd him is th) Col THE HEATHEN GODS. 03 The most remarkable adventure of Venus was her fa- mous contest with Juno and Minerva for beauty. At the marriage of Peleue and Thetis, the goddess Discord, re- senting her not being invited, threw a golden apple amongst the company with this inscription, Let it be ji- ven to the fcirest [T>j\ The competitors for this prize were the thiee above-mentioned. Jupiter referred them to Perls, youngest ecu of Priamus, king of Troy, who then kept his father's flocks on mount Ida. Before him the goddesses appeared, as most say naked. Juno of- fered him empire or power ; Minerva, wisdom ; and Ve- nus endeavoured to bribe him with the promise of the fairest woman in the world. Fatally for himself and fa- mily, the shepherd was more susceptible of love than of ambition or virtue, ai.d decided the point in favour of Venus. The goddess rewarded him with Helen [7}» whom he carried off from her husband Menelaus, king of Sparta, and the rape gave rise to the formidable as- sociation of the Greek princes, which ended in the de- itruction of his family, and the ruin of Trov. Venus, however propitious she was to lovers, was very •evere to such as offended her, She changed the women of Amathus, in Cyprus, into oxen for their cruelty. The Propnstides, who denied her dignity, grew so shameless- ly impudent, that they were said to be hardened into ■tones [8]. Hippomenes and Atalanta were another in- _ stanceof herresentment; forafter she had assisted to gain ^ him the virgin, on their neglect to pay her the due offer- ings, she;nfatuated them so, that they lay together in the temple of Cybele, who, for that profanation, turned them into lions (9). Nor was she less favourableto her votaries. Pygmalion, a famous statuary, from a notion of the inconveniencies of marriage, resolved to live single. He had, however, formed a beautiful image of a virgin in ivory, with which he fell so deeply enamoured, that he treated it as a real mistress, and continually solicited Venus, by prayers and sacrifices, [6] Detur Puhhriori. \j \ Such Helen -was. and who can hlame the boy, Who in fo bright a flame anfum'd hit Tray P WaLLH. T81 See Ovid, lib. X. I. ^3. y] See the article Cybclc, aud Ovid, lib. X. 5*0. 94 FABULOUS HISTORY OF sacrifices, to animate his beloved statue. His wishes were granted, and by this enlivened beauty he had a son cal- led Paphos, who gave hie name to the city of Paphos in Cyprus [I.] A jjoddess so universalis known and adored could not fail of temples. That of i*.iphos in Cyprus was the priu- cipal. In that at Rome, dedicated to her by the iitle of Venus Libitina, were sold all things necessary tor tu* nerals. She had also a magnificent shrine, built lor her by her son JEneas,- on mo.int Eryx in Sicily. The sacrifices usually offered to her were white goats and swine, with libations of wine, milk, and honey. The victims were crowned with flowers or wreaths of myrtle. The birds sacred to her were the swan, the dove r and the sparrow. So far for the Venus Pademos, or Popularis, the god- dess of wanton and effeminate love ; but the ancients had another Venus, whom they styled Urania and Celestis, ( who was indeed no other than the Syrian Astartej and to whom they ascribed no attributes but such as were strictly chaste u>nd virtuous. Of this deity they admitted no corporeal resemblance; but she was represented by the form of a globe ending conically, [ v 2] and only pure fire was burnt on her altars. Her sacrifices were called Nephalia, on account of her sobriety; only honey and wine being offered ; but no animal victims except the heifer, nor was the wood of figs, vines, or mulberries, suffered to be used in tiv-'m. This distinction of two Venusses, the chaste and the hnfiure one, leads us to the true explication of the fable. In the different attributes of the Egyptian Ms, we see these contradictor/ characters explained. The Isis crown- ed with the crescent, star, or some zodical sign, is the celestial Venus. The Isis with the terrestial symbols, such as the heads of animals, a multitude of breasts, or a child in her lap, became the goddess of fruitfulncss and generation, and consequently the Venus Pandemott As the latter was regarded as a divinity propitious to luxury and pleasure, it is no wonder if she soon gained the (l) Ovid, lih. V. 245. (i) This manner oi representation was borrowed from the Artbiani and Syrians, who thought trr: diity was ho: Co be •xprciHd by any corporeal form. THE HEATHEN GODS. 0/7 the ascendant over her rival. In Phoenicia and Egypt, the young girls (:') consecrated to the service of the ter- restrial Isis., usually resided in a tent or grove near the temple, and were common prostitutes ; whereas those de- Toted to the celestial Isis, or Venus Urania, were strictly- chaste. These tabernacles were calfed the pavilion of the girls (4- J, and gave rise to the name of Venus ascribed to the goddess of love. The Syrians also called the ter- r-'Mnal lb-is Mylitta, or IHithe (SJ, and the Greeks arid Romans adopted the same name. Thus the symbolical IsiS of Egypt, after producing the different deities of Cybele« Rhea, Vesta, Juno, Diana, Luna, Hecate, and Proserpine, also formed the different characters of the common and celestial Venus ; so easily does superstition and invention multiply the objects of idolatry. As Venus was the goddess of love and pleasure, it is no wonder if the poets have been lavish in the descrip- tion of her beauties. Homer and Virgil have (6) given us ti.;e pictures of this kind. Nor wore the antieut sculp- tors and painters negligent on so interesting a subject. Phidias formed her statue of ivory and gold, with one foot on a tortoise (1 ). Scopias represented her ridino* on a he-goat, and Praxiteles wrought her statue atCnidos of (■}, ,' l'hey were called the KtfriQopi, or barket-bearrc, be- caufc they carried the offerings. (*,} ^urcoth Venal h, r.1 e tnhernacls of the gir's. The Greeks and R (jin mis. who could nor prom uuce the wnd Vcnoth, c-dled it V'ciios', or Venus* and hearing tii;; tc-ot ol Venus i".i 6ttc.ii men- tioned, took it for the name of the gi udoi's hcrMf. ($j From Jcled to beget, Comes Ulitta, generation, wliich the Latins well expreffed l>> Diva Gemtrix, or Genitalis. See Horace, carmen feeuhire 1. 14. / 6 J S/rJli/J, and turning round her neckjbe JbtM>"d^ 'T'o I ii-ill.' veteftial charms divinely gL%o*d ; Ha iva-vin? loctl immortal fragrance /':■.', And bi catlj' J j/iLro/iul ftvects around her head ; In jloicinv p It were endless to mention the variety of attitudes in which she is represented in antique "-ems and medals (&) ; sometimes she is clothed in purple, glitter- jug with gems, her head crowned with roses, and drawn in her ivory car, by swans, doves, or sparrows. At others she is represented standing with the Graces attending her; but in all positions, Cupid, her son, is ber insepa- rable companion. I shall only add, that the statue cal- led the Medicean Venus is the best figure of her which time has preserved. C H A P. XXXV. Of the Attendants of Venus, v i*. Cuftd, Hymen, and the Aor• - r go /' no /■■•. THE HEATHEN GODS. 07 I do little execution. Indeed the pods, it they invuJ r, seldom fail to make their ■son(l). Perhaps this consciousness i O'.vm dered this littTe di inity so ar- l i ons, he forgets his filial duty. This Cup'' J belonged to; Vc i&Pandemos, or i i*, and was called Anteros, or Lust. Bat the an nention another Cupid^ $or. of Ju- piter and Venus, of a nobler cl -.racier, whose d 'o raise refined si I s of -love and virtue, wl - oili-r inspired base and impure desires. His ■ s, or true love. Eros bore a gold t, which caused real jo- i ; Anteros a leaden arrow, h raised a fleetu j >n, ending in satiety and dis- gust. Cupid was represented usmlly naked, to shew t 1 '. : own. He is ' • his] nindj and crowned with r< • the delightful but ( sitory pic . Sometimes he Is dej ' love sees no' fa tit i in the object be- ■ ; at others he appears with a ro?e in oi md : s seen 1 Mercury, tdsignif ;icj md valour in love ; at others be is placed near Fortune, to express how much xessoili iddess. H : with wings, to typify that notliing is mi . than ti. : passion he excites, Th : Horns, which attended the terrei- trial Isis, or ire Venus Popularis, or . according to the custom of the neomenia, . with difl • teS ; son. n tl .. inrrs of tl wind, at ethers with the cluH of Her- (2J, the arrows of , sitting on a lion, . bull, tying a ram, 01 I i - a large fish \a his nets. T rent seasons oi ye«;, gave r!ie to as many fables. The empire of K Eros, [ilSes Horace, Kb 1. Qdcxxr. & paflim. fij '"here is a gcrn in Mr. Qgle'a pol IE n, anfwmng thii dtcriptioe. 53 FAB.UX.OUS HIST0R.Y OF Era?, or Love, was made to extend to heaven and earth, and even to I tha of th ; and this little but Is and m i. Hymen, the «econdai ;s, was the god of marria ; •, a id tlve s >n i i B and that ( ■■). He is said to I - I •.'.•herein: m; de it his b.;s n ss to re ;cue yir ^ins eai ried off by robb to restore them to their parents. On this accbunl 1 offere i es to him ; as - goddess of concord. He was invoked in the nup- tial ceremony ( \ ) in a particular manner. This god was represented of a fair complexion, crown- ed with amaric is, or the herb ; ve •'. marjoram, and r» ' in a vj:1 of saffron l colour ( representative of the bridal blushes) with a tor.' i in h. . because the bnde wis carried always home ! y torch-Eg bt. Ev< i kti »ws it was a constant custom of the orien- tal nations^ on the • . ,r > to attend the bride- groom and bride with to;-_li-s and lamps. The chorui on these oefcasiphs was Ha ! Humekeh ! Hire he comes I This is the festival ! (5). The fig 1 bited on th s occasion in Egypt was a young man bearing a lamp or \ plac d dearth* female figure, which denoted the of the month fixed for the y. G , who always attended Venn's, have been air tdy described with the Muses under the article of Th ■, or Hours. Were the daughters of Ju] tei .'. . >11< . Tl .also .' ses of V . , i i \ 11 as her dressers^ and made a necessary part of her train. C II A P. lit to b the (ok of the god Itfs V.nus {'...-. 9, or the ci .': oft ii iIk w r 's. Hyni.r 5 O Hym nzl 15 i j . u ' !o 1 .or-bj ... . tha feaft or fecrifr.-e, comes HFyaienstm. THE HEATHE*} GODS. 9$ chap, xxxv 1. 'Of Vulcan, X KCUGH the husband should usually precede the wife, yet Vulcan was too un nappy in wedlock to obta::i (his distinction. There were several of the name (i'i j ; the principal, uhn awived at the honour cf being deified, was t' f Jupiter and Juno, or, as others say, of Junoaloric ; however this be, he was bo ri ! d< - formed, that bis father threw him down from heaven to the isle ci Lemnoe, and in the fall he broke his leg (7). Others report, that Juno herself, disgusted at hurled him into the sea, where he was nursed by Thetis The first residence of Vulcan on e?rth vac the isle of Lemnos ;9), where he set up his forge, and taugl men how to soften and polish brass aid iron. Freni thence he removed to the Liparean isles, near Sicily, where, with tl ranee of the Cyclops, he made Jupiter fresh thunderbolts, as the .old grew decayed. He also wrought an helmet foi Piuto, which rendered Kim invisible ; • a trident for Neptune, that shook both land and sea ; and a dog oi brass for Jupiter, which he animated, so as to perform (J) all the natu- ral functions of the animal. Nor is this a wonder, when wc consider that, at the desire of the s: me god, he fbrn i idora, who was sent with the fatal box to Prometheus, as has been related in its place. In short, Vulcan was the general armourer of the gods.- He, made Bacchus a golden crown, to present K 2 Ariadne ; (6) Tl; id to Le fori of Cx'us j the fecond, th? foti of Niius, called Op t- ; the third, the Vu'.can, foi: cf Jupiter and JUnOjVner.tii , ahd'the fourth, ihft fon of Mse&a'ius, « ho i ian <>r i.ipareun ifl-'«. '7) He i ; by the J emniar.f <-r re had bspke his Deck. It i^ ■ was a ( fole day in fniiji g. () ! Otl ' 1 . n the land, ar.d v.-.cs mirfrd by ipes I that j -.1 hir,, the fkies fo» attempt- to refi ue .•■ • h m. (')j Became Ltmnoi hot fprings. (ij Jvpiter gave hi Ce to Pr^ciis.ar.d by hr it was given to Ccphalus 1... hufband, . piter after . i :■■ a flona. 100 FABULOUS HISTORY OF Ariadne ; a chariot for the Sun, and another for Mars. At the request of Thetis, he fabricated the divine armour of Achilles, whose shield is so beautifully described by- Homer (2) ; as also the invincible armour of JEneas, at the entreaty of Venus. To conclude with an instance is skill this way, in revenge for bis mother Juno's idness, he presented her a golden chair, ; by such unseen springs, that when she sat clown in it she was riot able to move, till she was forced to beg her vc ranee from him. Vulcan, like the rest of the gods, bad several names or appellations: he was called L , from the isle of Lenuns, consecrated to him , Mulciber, c-r Muleifer, from his art of softening steel and iron. By the Greeks, Hephaistos, from hi r in ? ?s, or fire ; and YEtneus and Lipa-eus, ifrora the places supposed to be his forges (3). As to bia worship, he had an altar in common with Prometl (-{•), and was one of the gods who presided over mar- i . because he fust introduced the use of toreb.es at the nuptial rites. It was customary with many na- tions after victory to gather the enemy's arms in an heap, and offer them to Vulcan. His principal temple in a consecrated grove at the foot of Mount ./Etna, guarded by dogs, who had the discernment to distin- | h his votaries, to tear the vicious, and fawn upon the virtuous. The proper sacrifice to this deity was a lion, to de- note the resistless fury of fire. His festivals were differ- ent : at those called Protervia (amongst the Romans) they ran about with lighted torches. The Vulcania were celebrated by throwing living animals into the lire. Lampadophoria were races performed to his honour, where the contention was to carry lighted torches to the goal ; but whoever overtook the person before" him, had ti.e privilege of delivering him his torch to carry, and to retire with honour. Vulcan, however disagreeable -rsou, was sensible of love : his fir^t passion was for Minerva, and he - i R. (3 ■ On account i • th< volnnoej »n : r ry rrupti r' there, firll invented lire, Vulcan the ui'c oi it, i» , .. .■■ c utcni THE IT F ATM FN ODD*. 101 he had Jupiter's c r; ' rt ills court li i be 81 to Vi i mto boast his lot. Hi a beauty to be constant, a:.". Vulcan too : to be hap he chose Mai - for h< ' and the in- trigue for some tiwcw :>y- As Ap< or the Sun, had a friendship for the husband, Mars wag particularly fearful of Iris discovering I fir, and therefore seta Lx y called Al ctryorf, or Gallus, to warn him and his fair mistress 1 of the Sun's approach. Th« tehtinel unluckily fell asleep, and so the Sun saw thi m together, and let Vulcan pi into th . The blacksmith god, to revenge the injury, against their next meeting contrived so fine and ii ptil le a net -work, that they were taken in their guilt, a&d exposed "to tht le of the gods, -till i : at the iu - .-ion of Neptune. Mars, t , tryon for his neglect, - changed hinvinto" a cock, who, to atone tor h-s taint, by his ■ gives c, :a ' n the sun- rise fS'). ■ This deity, as the god < >' fir •, w s n eusly i I ;nt nations. Tire Egyptians - proceedinj ed in the mouth of J td denote the radical or natural d thr< i < , iaris make him one of 1 ■ first E who for his goodness was deified ; I add, that king Menes erected a noble temple to I at Thebes, with a colossal statue seventy-live feel high. ■ The Phoenicians adored him by the name, oi and thought him the author and cause cf lightning .• aH-fieryexl is. Some writers confound him with the T-ubaf Cain of scripture. In - I gem,sand m - ( eks and s he figi a lame, ■ t ; arid Bqualid man, working at the anvil, aj . gu tended by iws nv»n the Cyclops,' or by spc*£ •"•od or goddess who came to ask his as"s i ce. To examine into the ground of this'fable, we r have once more recourse to the Egyptian aatiquitie - The Horus of the Egyptians was the most mutebie juie on earth ; for he assumed shapes suitable to K 3 s . >.^.t * (S) See Ovid, JL:b. IV. 1*7. 102 FABULOUS HISTORY nsof time' and- ra»k6 of ] ' : to direct the hus. baudman he wore a rural dre • • ■ f attri- 1 > lie bee instructor of the smithsand other artificers, wh >se instruments he appeared adorned with. rus of the smiths kid a short or lame V pify tiire or V It without theai ft or mechanic arts. In this appar ho was. called Mulciber (6), Kephaistos (7), and Vulcan (8),i a tiie G Romans adopted ch as usual th ■> co iverted from a j] to a god. Now as this HorOs was removed from the side of the beautiful lsis (or the Venus Pandem to make room for the martial Horus, exposed in tin • war, it >cca iuaed the jest of the- assistants, and gav to the Fable'of Vulcan's being supplanted in his v i affections by cue go J ef war. C H A P. XXXVII. Of the Offspring of Vulcan. X HOUGH Vulcan had no issue with Venus, yet he lad a. pretty numerous offspring, We.have already n tioned his passion for Minerva : thio goddess coming oi.e day to b some armour of him, he attempted to h hj r and in his struggle his seed fell on the ground, and produced the monster Erfchtbouius (9). Minerva nourished him ui her thigh, and afterwards gave him to be nursed by Aglauros, Pahdro&us, and Herse, but with a strict caution not to look in the cradle or coffer which held him. The first and last neglecting this advice ran mad. Erichthonius being bora with deformed, or, as some (&') From ?.Ta!ac, to direA ana" manage, and B.$«j and %(«?&, or Earth and Conte itipBi THE heath: N GODS, 10 - . • -, • it inventor of : | to ride in. 1 1, wa it] of At] :, ■ prince of gn t justice and equity . Caci", another son of Vul • of a different cha* racier. I! bber, a '1 received his i ame from his cpnaummate villainy (i )• He fixed him» self on i Mint Aventine, and from thence infested all Italy with his depredations ; bi » stolen some oxen from Hercules, he dragged them backwards to his c: ('_), that the robbery might not be discovered by the track. Hercules, however, passing tlr.it way, heard the lowing of his cattle, broke open the doors, and seizr ing the wretch, put him to death. A third son of Vulcan, Caecuhis (3), so called from his little eyes, resenjbled his brother Cacus, and lived by I a laid his mother sit i ig by the fire, a spark flew into her lap, which. she conceived-. Others jay some shepherds fou in the fire aa soon as born. He fou ided the city Prxneste. By his wife Aglaia, one of the Graces, Vulcan hr>d several sons, as Ardalus, the inventor of I called Tibia ; Brothens, who', being deformed like his father, destroyed himself in the lire, to avoid the reproaches he m t with ; iEthiops, who gave his name- to the VEthio- pians, : .ailed jEthereans ; Oleuus, the founder o£ a city of his. own name in Dxsotia ; JEgyptuS, from whom Egypt was called ; Albion ; Periphenus - t Mor- gion ; Acus, and several others. • «• • CHAP. XXXVIII. Of the Cyclops and Polyphemus. J- PI E Cyclops were the sons of Nentunr and Am. pl.itrite. The principal were Bronte?, Steropes, and Pyracmon, (\) From x«y-©->, bad or wicked. (i) Virgil has given a fine description of this cave, but he joakes him but half became the assistants of our god. They he'd each but one eye ( I :d in the middle of : leads, and lived, on si", h fruits and herbs as L i .Brought forth without cultivation. They are reported t<> have biiilt the walls of Mycen* and Tynnthe with such massy stores, that I required two yoke of to draw it. The dealers in mythology say, that the Cyclops signify the vapours raised in the air, which occasio 1 lightni With these we may class Polyphemus, though he was >H of Nttptune, having like the ' .' .clops but one ej e ; but of so gigantic a stature, that his very aspect was terrible. His abode was in t-icdy, where he surprised and his companions, Om he di ?oUn d si ; but Ul fsses maki itb a fire- nd so escaped with the rest. Yirfcil had givta ■ us a fine description of this scene (5). CHAT. XXXIX. Of Minerva or Pall* W E come nr xt to Minerva or Pallas, one of the most distinguished of the Dii Majores, as being the god- dess of sciences and wisdom. Gicero mentions live ((')) of this name ; but the most consi was the daughter of Jupiter, not by an infamous amour, nor ( + ) 7rom KvxX(&>, Circulus, and.«y, Oculus, that is the one-eyed man. (5; ' i!"s JEneid, Lib 1!!. (r I -the whole defcrip- tion. though admirable, is too lon^ to be co;>. (i J 1, the mother of Apollo, or Latona; thefeccrod, produced from 'he Nile, and worihi;>ped at Saw, in Egypt ; the third, the child of Jupiter'* brain; the fourth, the da Jupiter and Croypha, who invented chariot* with four wh Eth, the child of Pallas, v.iioniflic killed, htcaufc h« attempted M.r chauity. Tirr TTEATIir.N QOD9. 103 i erven by the < ' ', but trie child cf his brain. It is said her father, i Juno ' It his fo after . i (7). of her i I rain* d gold at Rhodes (8). II pc: ■ was in Lil | '■, ■' ei i her own beauty in the hike Triton, she from thence - Tritonis (0). tftfcers app llat'ona amorg-t the G. gbe was called Pall the bn in war. Atl ihe xfa* bor.n ft I never m whence alio she obtained the f Ametrosis, &t ■ '. The thenis, or the virgin, was or\ ac~ t perprt of Erga'tis, or the or her. ex< • ' v in spi mi ; and weaving; ' t, from her invenl > pipe j Fylrttts, lv Be her image waa set up in tl i ai d (ilau- copis, or green-eyed, because her eyes were of that cast ( i ), like those of the owl. Minerva was tl of war, wisdom and art*, such as weaving, the making oil, music, eapecti : pipe (2 J ; of building ;, over which, she presided j and, in short, w;.s the patroness of all those r; : 't is faid Vulcan warthe midwife, by cleaving bis fltulj with a hatchet ; but thatfeeiDg an armed virago come out in- fiead of a child, he ran away. Others report, t'iat when Jupiter f wallowed Metis, one of hi! wive?, fee was with child of Pal- lav ' Hence t!ie Rhodians were the fir ft who worshipped htr, as Claudfan remarks : Auratot RboJiis im'jrrs, nqjcentt Miner vt, Induxijft Jo vemferunt. Some fay it was becaufe ihe taught them the art of making co- loflal fta'. _ (<)) An ar.nur! ceremony was {Serforroe 1 ar 'his lake bv ihe virgin?, who iudfftind] bo ies attacked each other with various weapons. I he firft ti.at fell was efteenled not a mai I, and ihrowd into the !ake ; but fhe who received molt wounds was carried ofFiri triumph. ( 'r ) Yet Homer, and allthepoct3, called her the blue-eyed maid. See I\>pe. ,' ' -) It is f aid, feeing her cheeks rcflV.&ed in the wat ; r a* Hie played, (he threw away the pipe, with this expreiEon, Thai • . afed si tbs ucpaift of bt _ 106 FABULOUS HISTORY OF those sciences which render men Hseful to socicl themselves, and entitle, them to the esteem of We tlready had occasion tool goddess vowed a perpetual virginity, and in what manner she rejected the Vtflcan. She was : - 1. d very delicate 0:1 t hi'-, point ; for she deprived Tiresias of Lis sight, ."beci iw her bathing in the fowrtairi of Helicon ; but at the inter- cession of his mother Charicle, ■ • d so far, that, to compen ate his loss, she endu id him with the gift of prophecy fSj. Nor was si teyere to Medusa, who being '"•• by Neptun* temple, she 1 ed the sacrile - ■, by turning her locks into snakes, and caus- ing all who beheld 1. or utter to be cl into stones. She was equally jealous of her superiority in the arts she invented. Ai bian princess, the-- daughter ef Idmon, had tl to chal- lenge her at spinning. The st her dear : for Minerva struck with the ■ on the forehead, for which I rself through di i r the I her into a spider, in wl she still exercises t • "esslon she so much boasted of (\). The reader may consult Ovid, if he would see this story set in a beautiful light. A-s conduct is opposite, in military affairs, to brutaK valour, so Minerva is always by the poets placed in contrast to Mars. Thus we see Homer i her side with the Greeks in the, Trojan war, while the other d ity tak :s the part of the enemy. Tl ■ cess is an- swerable to this disposition (5), and we see prudence anil discipline victo r valour without counsel, and force under no direction.. One of the most remarkable of Minerva's ad tares wa-, her contest with Neptune, of which no- tice har, be f under the arricle of that deity. When ' . . L, that v/h f these two deities should produce the m gift to mankind, give name to the new city. Neptune with a stroke of bis trident fu: . 6jy Ovid relates the (lory of rirefias very diiT.rciitly : lott which ( i uorph- I rb. Ill, (i6. [.,is,.. Ovid Lib. V!. i L jSee the preface to Mr. Pope's Homer. THE HEATHEN CODS. 107 formed a horse ; Pallas caused an olive to spring from the ground, and carried the prize. The n, . f this fable was to point out, that agriculture was to a ■ ■ :e than nav gation. Minerva was highly honoured, and had several trm- | ' ; both ia Greece and Italy. The Athenians, who always had a particular devotion to her, as the patro- ness of their city, in tli shing state q£ their re- public erected a magnificent temple to her by the name i, or the virgin goddess, in which they plac- ed her statue of gold and ivory thirty-nine feet high, wrought by the land of i hidias. She had a stately temple at Rome, 0.1 mount Aventinc, where her festival, called Mtnervalia, or latria, was celebrated for ' lys succe . ' I) in the month of March. She had is in common with Vulcan, some- times \. . ; le usual victim offered her was a white heif "never yoked. The animals sacred to her were the cock, the owl, and the basilisk. We must not here om't the Palladium (6) or that sacred statue of her which fell down from heaven, and was preserved in Troy, as a treasure on whose safety that of the city depended. Diomedes aid Ulysses i m i i ) <:. r ;d to steal it, and the city was soon after taken and destroyed (7)- However, it is cer- tain that JEnea3 brought either tiiis or another of the Bame hind wuh him into [taly, and de I it s «;t Lavi hum, from whence it was removed to R.ome, and placed in the temple of Vesta. When thjs edi- fice sval conymned by iir_% Metellus, a noble Roma ■, rushed in, and lit it <■ h with the loss of his eyes; in recompenee for which heroic action, hid the ; of coming to the senate in a chariot, that the honour might in some degree allay of his misfortune. The Romans, i ;'erd, in of their Trojan descent, regarded the Palladium in (f>) Aiyhirs differ as to fbis Palladium, feme waking it of Wood, Hid add :i". it cru'd move its c C8 1 ■•':'■:■ its fp e r# Others fay, t was compof .i bfthc bone* i i Pc|ap») aad fold by jhe icyth'.ans to the Froja a s m< .dl'-rr it -,vj< a counterfeit Palladium I ' n-.. r.t away', and that JEi easfcved the true one. (Jiiicn make '.v. o i\.iiaJ u~.,». 103 FA SULCUS HISTORY OF in the same light With their ancestors, and thought the sBcurif) ipire were annexed to the po8& Come we next to r into the mytholo gi 1 birth and origin of this fabled goddess, who is no other than the Egyptian 1 under a new dress or form, and the Mime with, the Pdles, or rural goddc?3 of the Sabines (S). The Athenians, who were a;i Egyptian colony from Sa;s, followed the customs of their ancestors, by particularly applying themselves to rc.iiiug flax for linen cloth, and the cultivation of the olive ; 9). Now the figure ■ worshipped at Sais, presiding over those arts, was a female in complete armour. This, as Diodorus tells us, was becn;;;e the inhabitants of this dynasty were both the best huh n and sold ot. In the hand of is image they placed a shield with a- full moon de- ted on it, surrounded by Berpents, the emblems of life and happiness. And at the feet of this symbol : Owl, to shew it was a nocturnal sacri- To th : 3 fehey gave the name of Medusa (1), exj ( £ what she was designed to represent, were ignorant of the true meaning of all t 1 not think fit to put such a favourable ♦ . ■ r I the head of Medusa, which seemed to them an ..orror, and opened a fine field fur po-tieal \t\ , ;. The pressing of the olives did indeed turn fruit into st ) ie< in a literal sense ; hence they made the : of Minerva petrify all who beheld it. To remind the people of the importance of their linen manufactory, the Egyptians exposed in their festivals another image, bearing in her right hand the beam or instrument round which the weavers rolled the warp of their cloth. Tim image they called ' [inerva f'lj. Now there are aneient figures of Pallas extant, (%) To vliofe honour the feafti called Palilia. were ceL'brat- el I' ■ thifi word it w. ' in derivation, bein^ t !v n f.om PiUel, to govern die city ; whence com:3 Pelilah, tl s public order. (9) ["he city of Sail derives its name from this tree, Zaith or S»U Genii ;. '.■<.- the oliv?. f\) .From i.'".'' 1 ] to pr fs, comes Meduflw, or Mcdufa, fht pr..-f! : p t. gee it ilah :kv. :■.. , From Mauevra, a wearer's i«ui*. THE HEATHEN GODS. 1 0L> extent, which correspond with this idea [8]. What still heightens the probability of this is, that the name of Athene, given to this goddess, ii the very word in Egypt fur the flaxen thread [1] used in their looms. Near tins figure, which was to warn the inhabitants of the ap- proach of the weaving, or winter season, they placed a- nothcr of an insect, whose industry seems to have given rise to this art, and to which they gave the name of A- rachne (5), to denote its application. All these emblems, transplanted to Greece by the genius of that people, fond of the marvellous, were converted into real objects, and indeed afforded room enough for the imagination of r poets to invent the fable of the transformation of Arachnv into a spider. Minerva, by the poets and sculptors, is usually repre- sented iu a standing attitude completely armed, with i composed but smiling countenance, bearing a golden breast-plate, a spear in her right hand, and her terrible rcgis in her left, having on it the head of Medusa entwined with snakes. Her helmet was usually entwined ■.-. ith olives, to denote peace is the end of war, or rather be- cause that tree was sacred to her. See her picture in Cambray's Tel -m;. que. At her feet is generally placed the owl or the cock; the former being the emblem of wisdom, the latter of war. C H A P. XL. Of Mars and Bellona. jS \ ARS was the son of Juno alone, who being, cha- grined that Jupiter should bear Minerva without her help, to be even with him consulted Flora, who shewed her a flower in the Ol ian fields, op touching of which she conceiwd, and became the mother of this dreadful deity(6). Thero, or Fierceness, was his nurse, and he re- L ceived (i) In the collection of prints made hv \T. de Crozac. (4) Atom j, linen thread. See Proverbs vii. 16. ( 5; From atjc!:, to n. ike line* ci th Others make him U e Ion ot Jupiter and Juno, cr of Ja- pitcr iuid Eryx. 1 10 FABULOUS HISTORY OF ceived his education amongst the Scythian';, the most barbarous nation in the world, amongst whom he was adored in a particular manner, though they acknowledged no other god. Thi-s deity had different appellations. The Greeks called him Ares (7), from »ife destruction he causes. He had the name of GradivUs, from his majestic port ; of Quirinus, when on the defensive, or at rest. By the an- tient Latins he was stiled Salisubsuius, or the dancer, from the uncertainty that attends all martial enterprises. Mars was the god of war, and in high veneration with the Romans, both on account of his being the father of Romulus, their founder, and because of their own ge- r.'us always inclined to conquest, Numa, though other- wise a pacific prince, having implored the gods during a ^reat pestilence, received a small brass buckler, called ancile, from heaven, which the nymph Egeria advised him to keep with the utmost care, the fate of the Roman people and empire depending on its conversation. To seen- so valuable a pledge, Numa caused eleven more shields of the same form to be made, and intrusted the care of these to an order of priests he instituted, called Salii, or the priests of Mars, in whose temple the twelve ancilia were deposited. The number of these priests were :;lso twelve, chosen out of the noblest families, who, ov the first of March annually, the festival of Mars, carri- ed the ancilii with great ceremony round the city, clash- ing their bucklers, and singing hymns to the gods, in vvlrci'. they were joined by a chorus of virgins chosen to as3Kt on this occasion, and dressed like themselves. This festival was concluded with a grand supper (8). Augustus erected a magmficeut temple to Mars at Rome., by the title of Ultor, which he vowed to him, vvhed he implored his assistance against the murderers of Julius Cesar. The victims sacrificed to him were the for his fierceness, the horse on account of its use- fdlness in war, the woodpecker and vulture for their no isriess, the cock for his vigilance. He was crown- , .; yith grass, because il grows in cities depopulated by 1 icea moistened with human blood. The tok'ilj. ' ■' • Cosna Saiiaris. THE HEATHEN GODS. 1 ! 1 The history of Mars furnishes few adventures. We have already related his amour with Venue, by w lorn he had Hermione, contracted to Orestes, and afterwards married to Pyrrhus, King of Epirus. By the nymph Biatonia Mars had Tereus, whoreigned in Thrace, and married Prpgne, tin- daughterofPandion, king of Athens. This princess had .. sister called Phi- lomela, a great beauty ; and being desirous to s^e her, she requested her husoand to go to Athens, and bring her sister, with her father's permission to her Tereus, by the way, fell in love with his charge, and on Iter rejecting bis solicitations, ravished her, cutout her tongue, and enclosed her in a strong tov\ er, pretending tq his wife •he died in the journey. In this condition the imhappy princesi found means to embroider her story, and'sen: it to her sister, who, transported with rage, cbntrived how to revenge the injury. 1 'irst she brought her sister .home privately j next she killed her BOO Itys, and servi d np h ; s . to hia father for supper : after he, had eat it, she exposed the head, and told him what she had dor.e ; Te- reus, mad with fury, pursued the sisters, who in their flight became transformed, Progne to a swallow, and Philomela to a nightingale. leys was. by the gods changed into a pheasant and Tereus himself nito a lapwing. Ovid has (9) given ua this story with his usual embellish- ments. Mars married a wife called Nerio, or Nerione(l), which in the nguc signifies valour or strength. He had several children, the principle of whom were By- this, who gave his name to Bithynia ; Thrax, from whom Thrace was so called ; iEnomaus, Ascalaphus, Ciston, Chalyrs, Strymon, Parthenopaeus, Tmolus, Pylus, Euenns, Calydov, &C. This deity having killed Halirothus, the son cc Nep.- time, wi ted before the assembly pi the god; I the murder, as well as for the crime of debauching Al- cippe, sister to the deceased. Twelve gods were present, of whom fix were for acquitting him; •> that by the custom of the court, when the voices we ,- e equal, the favourable side carrying u, he came oh. Some say this JL 2 ' trial (9; See Ovirl, 1 ib. VI, 4T.-- ( ; J Hence the Ciauriiitu ianiily at Rome are f*id to derive the furuamc 02 Nero. 112 FABULOUS HISTORY TJ t; ,1 was in the famous Areopagus, or hill of Mars, at Athens, a court which, in succeeding time, gained the highest reputation, for the justice and impartiality of its proceedings (2). Mrs was neither invulnerable, nor invincible, for we frio him in Homer both wounded and pursued by Dio- med ; but then.it most be considered, that Homer was .../ good a patriot, that he always affects to disgrace the gods who took the Trojans' part. Mars, whatever his appearance bo, was of Egyptian original. This nation was divided into three classes, the pr ests, the husbandmen, and the artificers ; of these, the first were by their profession exempt from war, and the latter reckoned too mean to be employed in defence of thejitate ; so that their militia was wholly taken from the second body. We liaye already observed, that in the ifices which preceded their military expedition*, thejr I sis appeared in a vvarlike dress, and gave rise to the Greek Pallas, or Minerva. The Horns which accom- panied this figure, vvr also equipped with this helmet and buckler, a,rid called by the name of Hants (3) or the formidable. The Syrians softened this word to Hazis (4) ; the Greeks changed it to Ares ; the Gauls pro- nounced it Hestts ; and the Romans and Sabines, Wareti or Mars. Thus the military Horus of the Egyptians be- came personified, and made the god of combats or war. Mars is usually described in a chariot drawn by furious horses, completely armed, and extending his spear with one hand, while with the other hand he grasps a sword embrued in blood. His aspect is fierce and savage. Sometimes Discord is represented as preceding his car, while Clamour, Fear, and Terror, appear in his traia. Virgil has given a description of this ^od pretty much agreeable to this idea (5). Bellona [2] Tl.efe judges were chofen out of prrfons of them oft Mame- Jefs characters. They fuffircd no verbal plcilinps before them. Left a filfe eloquence might varnifh a bad caufe ; and all their fenteDcea were giv.n in writing, and deliverc 1 in the daik. [3] Front Hari.-s, violence and enrage'.. Sec job. xv. tj. [4] Hazis, [Syr] the terrible in war, Pfalm xxiv. 8. The Sy- rians aifn railed hnn Ah t'5uer<>th, or the father of combats; whence the Romans borrowed rhcir CJradivus Pater. j '_ Vngil, iEneid VI 11. 7C0. THE HEATHEN GOD:. 113 Beflonaia usually reckoned the sister of Mars, though some call her both Ins sister and wife. As her inclinations • equally cruel and savage, she took a pleasure in sharing his dangers, and is commonly depicted as driving his chariot with a bloody whip in her hand. Appms Claudius built her a temple at Rome, when, in her sa- crifices called Bcllonaria, her priests used to slash them., ■elves with knives. Just opposite stood the Columna Bellica, a pillar from whence the herald threw a spear, when war was proclaimed against any natton, She is said to be the mventress of the needle (6), from V, he nc she took her name. This goddess is represented sometimes holding a light- ed torch or brand, at others with a trumpet* he,r hair composed of snakes clotted with gore, and her garments stained with blood, in a furious and distracted attitude. T CHAP. XLI. Of Ceres. _ T may not be improper new to pass to softer pictures, whos; aWeeableness mav serve as a contrast totbestron ■- t! images just displays '. As plenty and abundance re- pair d havock of vra'vw shall next eo Mars introduce Ceies, a divinity friendly and beneficent to mankind. This goddess was the daughter of Saturn and Rhea. Sicily, Attica, Crete, and Egypt, claim the honour of her birth, each country producing its reasons, though I Best has the general suffrage. In her youth she was sevbeautiful, that her brother Jupiter fell in love with her, by whom she had Proserpine. Neptime next enfoyed her ; but, the fruit of this amour is controverted , some making it a daughter called Hira, otheis a horse called Arion. Indeed as this last deity caressed her in that form, the latter opinion seenu best founded. However this be, she was so ashamed of this last affair, thst she put on mourning garments, and retired to a cave, where she L 3 continued fij From I t*s>'4i a needle. 114 FABULOUS HISTORY OF continued so long, that trie world was in danger of pe- rishing for want (7). At last Pan discovered her retreat, and informed Jupiter, who, by the intercession of the Pare?.-, or Fate:., appeared her, and prevailed on her to return to the world. For some time she took up her abode in Corcyra, From whence she removed to Sicily, where the misfortune be- fell her of the rape of Proserpine her daughter by Pluto. The disco isolate mother immediately carried her com- plaints to Jupiter, upbraiding luiu with "his permitting such an injustice to be committed, especially on the per- son of his own daughter. But obtaining little satisfac- tion, she lighted her torches at mount yEtna, and mount- ing her car drawn by winged dragons, set out in search of her beloved daughter. As her adventures in this jour- ney were pretty remarkable, we shall mention them in their order. Her first stop was at Athens, where, being hospitably received byCeleus, she in return taught him to sow com, mid nourished his son Triptolemus with celestial milk by day, at night covering him with fire, to render him im- mortal. Celeus, out of curiosity, discovering this last particular^, was so affrighted, that he cried out and re- vealed it himself, on which the goddess killed him. As to his son, Ceres lent him her chariot, and sent him thro* the world tij instruct mankind in the art of agriculture. She was urn entertained by Kypothoon and Megani- n (eir resentment by going into mouniir.g. This festival was closed by a banquet and pubhc horse-races. 1 he A ■ ts celebrated by the Roman husl tog, to render Ceres propitious, by lua- tratii of afainily furnished a i ctifli v. thai kenwre; nd its neck, which he led thrice round , followed by his family sing- ing hymn6, and dancing in honour of the goddess. The often lustration were milk and new wine. At the closeofthe I thece was a second festival t in which the god *vas pi sented with the first fruits of the and an entertainment provided for th« rela- tions an I r c rhbou*s. The beginningof April the gardener/ sacrificed to Ce- res, to obtain a plentiful produce of their grounds, which woe under h or ion. Cicero mentions an ancient temple of hers at Cutanea', in Sicily, in which the offices were performed by matrons and virgins only, no man be- ing admitted. The usual sacrifices to this goddess were a sow with pig, or a ram. The garlands used by her in her sacrifices were of myrtle or rape-weed : but flowers were prohibited, because Proserpine was lost as she ga- thered them. The poppy alone was sacred to her, not only because it grows amongst corn, but because iu her distress Jupiter gave it her to eat, that she might sleep and forget her troubles. Let us now endeavour to find some explanation of this history of Ceres. If we have recourse to our former kev, we shall find the Ceres of Sicily and Eleusis, or of Rome and Greece, is no other than the Egyptian Isis ; brought by the Phoenicians into those countries. The very name of Mystery (5) given to the Eleusinian rites, shews they aie of Egyptian origin. The Isis, which appeared at the feast appointed for the commemoration of the state: of (i,) This appears from a medal of this magistrate on which i 1 - the effigy of Certs holding- in one hand three enrs cf corn, \v the other a torch, and with her left foot treading on a supine. (Sj From Mi.-tor, a veil or covering. 118 FABULOUS HISTORY OF of .mankind after the flood, bore the name of Ceres (G), suitable to her intention. Shs was figured in mourning, end with a torch, to denote the grief she felt for the I099 of Persephone (7) her favourite daughter, and tin* pain. 1 , she was at to recover her. The puppies with which this I sis was crowned, signified the joy men received at their first abundant crop (8). Triptolemus wad only the attendant Horus (9 , bearing in his hand the handle of a plough, and Cel was no more than 1) the name of the tools used in the forming this useful in- strument of a iire. Eumoipus expressed '2 the regulation' or formation of the people to industry and til— lage; and Proserpina or Persephone being found again, a lively syriil h • recovery of corn almost lust in the delugej and its cultivation with success. Thus the emblems, almost quite simple, of the. most important event which ever happened in the world, became, when transplanted to Greece and Rome, the sources of the most ridiculous fable and grossest idolatry. Ceres was usually represented of a tall majestic stature, fair complexion, languishing e)(-s, and yellow or flaxen hair ; her head crowned with poppies, or ears of corn, her breads full and swelling, holding in her right hand a bunch of the same materials with her garland, and in her left a lighted torch. When in a car or chariot, she is drawn by winged dragons, or lions. C H A P. ft I From Cerets dissolution or overthrow, Jeremiah xlvi. to, [7] From Peri, fruit or corn, and .-aplian loll, comes Perfe- phone, or the corn ioft. [8] Eobo fignifics a double crop, and is also the name for the poppy. [)] From Tarap, to break, and Telem, a furrow, comes Trip- . totem, or the act of ploughing. (1) Celeus, from Celi, a teol or veffel. Firgta frettrea Celi mlifqutfupelttx, Viroil Geo. (2) From Warn, people, and Aiep, to learn, is derived F.u- molep, or Euirtoipus, i. e. the people regulated or inttru'Std. THF. HEATHEN GODS. 119 CHAP. XLII. Of Bacchus. /IS corn and wine are the noblest gifts of nature, so it is no wonder, in the progress of idolatry, if they be- came deified, and had their altars. It is therefore no unnatural transition, if from Ceres we pass to Bacchus. This deity was the son of Jupiter and Semele, [ as has I observed in the article of Jupiter) and wag born at Thebes. Cicero mentions live (3 J of the name. It is said the nymphs tool; care of his education, though some ascribe this office to the Hora or Hours ; others to the Naiades. Mercury after this carried him into Eubcea to Macris, the daughter of Aristeus Aj, who anointed his lips with honey ; but Juno, incensed at his finding a protection in a place sacred to her, banished him. thence; so that Macris Med with him into the country of the Phoenicians, and nourished him in a cave. Others say, that Cr.dmus, father to Semele, discovering her crime, put her and the child into a wooden ark, which by the tides was carried to Oreatre, a town in Laconia, where Semele being found dead, was buried with great por.ip, and the infant nursed by Ino in a cave. During this persecution, being tired in his flight, he fell asleep, and an Amphisber.a, or two-headed serpent, of the most poisonous kind, bit his leg; but awaking, he struck it witli a vine twig, and that killed it. In his infancy some Tyrrhenian merchants found him asleep on the shore, znA attempted to earn- him away ; but suddenly he transformed himself into monstrous shapes ; at the tame time their ma>ts were encompassed with vines, and their oars with ivy, and, struck with' madness, they jumped into the sea, where the godchan- ed them into dolphin;. Homer has made thio the sub- ject of one of his hymns. Bacchus', (.V The I ft, for. ofJupiWr and Proserpine ;?hc id, the Fgyp- tian Bacchus, the fan »i Nile. wh<- lulled tfjaa; the 3d, the ion of Caprius vvho reigned in \fu; the 4th, the son i.f Jupiter and 1. una ; and the 5th horn "f Niius and l'hione. fi) Others fcy Mercury carried him 10 Nyia, a ci:y of Ara- bia, Dcai Egypt. 120 FABULOUS HISTORY OF Bacchus, during the giant's war, distinguished him- self greatly by his valour in the form of a lion, while Jupiter, to encourage his son, use! the word Euhoe, which became afterwards frequently used in his sacri- fices; Others say, that in this rebellion the Titans cut our deity to pieces ; but that Pallus took his heart, while yet panting, and carried it to her father, who col- lected the limbs, and re-animated the body, after it had slept three nights with Proserpine [5] . The most memorable exploit of Bacchus was his ex- pedition to Ind'a, which employed him three years. He let out from Egypt, where he left Mcrcurius Trisme- gistus to assist his wife in quality of co-regent, and ap- pointed Hercules his viceroy. Busiris he constituted president of Phoenicia, and Antceus of Libya ; after which he marched with a prodigious army, carrying with him Triptoletnus and Maro, to teach mankind the arts of tillage and planting the vine. His first progress was westward [()], and during his course he was joined by Pan and Lusub, who gave their names to different parts of Iberia, Altering his views, he returned through Ethiopia, where the Satyrs and Muses increased his ar- my, and from thence crossing the red-sea, he penetrated through Asia, to the remotest parts of India, in the mountains oi' which country, near the source of the Ganges, he erected two pillar?, to shew that he had vi- sited the utmost limits 6i the habitable world (7). Af- ter this, returning home with glory, he made a trium- phant entry ii to Thebes, o!fered part of his spoils to Jupiter, and sacrificed to him the richest spices of the east. He then applied himself solely to affairs of govern- ment, to reform abuses, enact good laws, and consult the happiness of his people, for which he not only obtain- ed (5) The Mythnlngiftti fay, this is ro denote that the cut- r>f vine will grow, but that they will be three y.ar» be« f. ■ they come to bear. I'an sr» v e his name to Spain, or Hifpar.ia, Luius to J.ufi- or Port [7] in Lis return he built Nyfa, and other cities, and palling the H pont <. me intoTMrac he Itft Maro, who founded the city Ma roosea. To Macedo he gave the country frtmi him called Macedonia, and left friptolehaui in Attica to iuitiuA the people. THE HEATHEN GODS. 121 •J ^be title of the law-giver, by way of excellence, but was deified after death. Juno having struck him with madness, he had before ' this wandered through part of the world. Proteus, king of Egypt, was the first who received him kindly. He next went to Cybella in Phrygia, where being expiated by Rhea, he was initiated in the mysteries of Cybele. Lycurgus, king of the Edoni, near the river Strymon, affronted him in this journey, for which Bacchus de- prived him of his reason ; so that when he thought to prune his vines, he cut off cue legs of his son Dryas and his own. By command of tl - ;?, his .subjects. im- prisoned him, and he was torn in pieces by wild hoi i •;. It is easy to see how inconsistent these accounts of the same person are, and that the actions of different Bat- ch uses are ascribed to one We have two other instances recorded of the resent- ment of this deity. Alcithoe, a Theban lady, derided his priestei I was transformed into a bat; Pentheus, the son of Echion and Agave, for ridiculing his sclem- nit , Hed Orgia, was torn in piece: by his own mo- ther am a (8 J, who in their madness took him for a wild boar. The favourite wife of Bacchus was Ariadne, whom he found in the isle of Naxos, abandoned by Theseus ; he loved her so passionately, that he placed the crowja she wore as a constellation in the skies. By her he had Staphilus, Thyoncus, Hymenseus, &C Cissus, a youth whom he greatly esteemed, sporting with the Satyrs, was accidentally killed. Bacchus changed him into the plant ivy, which became in a pe- culiar manner consecrated to his worship. Silenus, ano- ther 01 his favourites, wandering from his master, came to Midas, king of Phrygja, at whose court he was well received. To requite this favour, Bacchus promised to grant whatever he requested. The monarch, whose ruling passion was avarice, desired all he touched might I turned to gold ; but he joon Felt the inconveniency of having his wish granted, when he found his meat and drink converted into metal. He therefore prayed the god to recall hie; bounty, .1 d release him from his mise- M rv. [S]Cvid, Lib. 11.630. 1T2 FABULOUS HISTORY OF tf. He was commanded to wash in the river Pactolus, which, from that time, had golden sands (9). ( 1 ) Bacchus had a great variety of names : he was cal- led Dionysius ('2), from his father's lameness while he carried him in his thigh : the appellation of Biformis was given him, because he sometimes was represented as old, sometimes as yonng ; that of Brisaeus, from his in- ventingthe wine- press fSJ ; that ot Bromiui-, from the crackling of fire heard when Semcle perished by the lightning of Jupiter ; that of Bimatcr, from his having two mothers, or being twice born. The Greeks stiled him Bugenes, or horn of an ox, because he was drawn with horns ; and for the same reason the Latins called him Tauriforrnis. He was named Dxmon Bonus, be- cause hi all feasts the last glass was drank to his honour. Evius, Evous, and Evan, were names used by the Bac- chanals in their wild processions, as were those of Eleus atid Eleleus. He was stiled iacchus, from the noise ( i) made by his votaries in their drunken frolicks ; Lenseus, because wine assuages the sorrows and troubles of life (5J\ Liber, and Liber Pater, beea use he sets men free from constraint, and puts them on an equality ; and on the same account he was surnamed Lyjeus, and Lycsus ~(tij 5 Nyclilius was an appellation given him, because his sacrifices were often eel 'brated in the night ; from his education on mount Nysa, he gained the epithet of IVsaeus, as also that of Thyoneus, frdm Thyo his nurse ; and that of Trinmpluis, from his. being the hrst who in- stituted triumphs. The principal festivals of Bacchus were the Oscopho- ria, instituted by the Phoenicians. The Trieterica celebrated ( 9 ) Ovid, Lib. XL 86. ( 1 ) From Ba*xwy> to run mad, because wine infla- me-, atid , God, and n/o-os, lame or crippled. (3)3 me rierivc it from Biifi his.nprfe ; other: i. : pio- mnutory Briia, in the uTe vf f/flfbos. where he waVchicfly Wor- f^t) Froth 'utx%»a, to exclaim or roar. See Claudian's rupi ul 1'roi'erpine. V-) From If-nio, to foften ; I ut Serviua gives the epithet a Greek etymology, from Am? a wine-press. The first r.M'i.auK- i« I)'. It n'j)port..J by the poets. l.t.iajrgh, mutto ai'ii.t. '/tic mere, Ovid. ((j) From au*, to unloose ot set free. THE HEATHEN GODS. 12.'} (7), celebrated in remembrance of his three years expe- dition to India. The Epilcenea were games appointed at the time of vintage, in which they contended who should tread out most must or wine, and sung hymns to the deity. The Athenians observed a certain feast cal- led Apaturia ; as also others called Ascolia and Arrbro- »ia. The latter were celebrated in January, the month sacred to Bacchus ; the Romans called them Brumalia, and kept them in February and August [8] ; but the most considerable of the Romans, with regard to tins god, were the Bacchanalia, Dionysia or Orgia, solem- nized at mid-day in February, by women onlv at first, but afterwards by both sexes. These rites were attend- ed with such abominable excesses and wickedness, that the senate abolished them by a public decree (9). The victims agreeable to Bacchus were the goat and swine, because these animals are destructive to the vines ; the dragon, and the pye on account of its obatterjfi The trees and plants used in hie garlands were the ivy,- ' the fir, the oak, and the herb rape-weed ; as also the flower Daffodil or Narcissus. Bacchus was the god of mirth, wine, and good cheer, and as such the poets have not been sparing ;u his praises. On all occasion* -*" pferare and social joy they never failed to ir.vcke his presence, and to thank him for the blessings he bestowed. To him they ascrib- ed the forofetfulness of their cares, and the soft trans- ports of mutual friendship and cheamil conversation, it would hf the reprefejitation. f\) See Genefis xlvi. art, (peaking of Jacob'i children, or who came out of his thigh. THE HEATHEN GODS. 125 as Io Terombe [5] ! Io Bacche [G ] ! Io Baccoth ! Je- hova! Hevan, Hevoe. and Eloah [7] ! and Ha Esh ! Atta Esh [8]. These exclamations were repeated after- a°x'S by *h-f people, who had no longer any sense of their true sigmrijjUion, but applied them to the objects of their idolatry. In their huntings they used the outcries of Io Saboi [91 ! Io Nissi ! which, with a little alteration, be- came the deity we are speaking of. The Romans or Latins, of all t'.iesc, preferred the name of Baccoth, out of which they composed Bacchus. The more delicate ear of the Greeks chose the world Io Nissi, out of which they formed Dionysius. Hence it is plain, that no Bacchus ever existed, but that he was only a masque or figure of some concealed truth. In short, whoever at- tentively reades Horace's inimitable ode to Bacchus [l] r will see that Bacchus meant no more than the improve- ment of the world, by the cultivation of agriculture, and the planting of the vine. CHAP. XLIII. Gfthe Attendants of Bacchus ; SUentfi, Sylvanus^ and the Mxnades or Baccha, the Satyrs, Fauni, and Selc'nt. A, . S Bacchus was the god of good-humour and fellow- ship, so. none of the deities appeared with a more nume- rous or splendid retinue. • Silenus, the principal person in his train, had been his preceptor, and a very suitable one for such a deity, for the old man had a very hearty affection for his bottle ; yet M 3 ( Silenus (5) lo Terombe! let us ery to the Lord; hence Dithyrambus. (6) Io Baccoth ! God fee our tears ! whence Bacchus ("I ) Jehova ! Hevan or Hevoe, the au hor of ixiUence ; Eloah, the mighty God I hence Evoe, Evous, tkc (%) Hu Efh I thou art the fire ! Atta efti I thou art the life ! hence Attes and Ves. (qj Io Saboi ! Lord, thou art an Hod to me ? Io Nifli [ ( ord, be my guide ! hence Sebafiub and DionyCus, the nanus of Bac* rhns. ft; Hurtce, lib, II. Ode XIX, 126 FAT. C1,0 T JS HISTORY OF Silenus distinguished himself in the giants' war, by ap- pearing on hi? ase, wlicse braying put those daring rebel* into confusion [2]. Some say he was born at Malea, a city of Sparra ; others, at Nysa in Arabia ; bu fl 'r'° most probable conjecture is, that he was a prince of Caria, noted for his equity and wisdom [3]. However this be, he was a constant attendant and a companion of his pupil in all his expeditions. Silenus was a ■ notable good mo- ralist in his cups, as we find in Virgil, who has given us a beautiful oration of his on the noblest subjects [4], in the fine eclogue which bears his name. Silenus is depicted as a short corpulent old man, bald- headed, with a flat nose, prominent forehead, and big ears. He is usually described as overloaded with wine, and seated on a saddle-backed ass, upon which he sup- ports himself with a long staff; and in the other hand carries a cantharus or jug, with the handle worn out almost by frequent use. Silvanus was a rural deity, who often appears in the train of Bacchus ; some suppose him the son of Saturn, others of Faunus. He was unknown to the Greeks ', but the Latins received the worship of him from the Pelasgi, who, upon their migration into Italy, consecrated groves to his honour, and appointed solemn festivals, in which milk was offered to him. Indeed the worship of this imaginary deity seems wholly to have risen out of the an- tient sacrrd use of woods and groves. The Mrenades were the priestesses and nymphs who attended Bacchus, and were also called Tbyades, from their fury ; Bacche, from their intemperance ; Mimal- lones, from their disposition to ape and mimic others, which is one of the qualities of drunken people. These bore thyrsuses bound with ivy, and in their procession shocked the ear and eye with their extravagant cries and ridiculous and indecent contortions. The (2) For which it wasraiftd to the Ikies, 2nd made a conftell*. 10 (\) On this account arofe the fable of Midas lending him his cars It is faid that beintf once t*ken priibner, he purchafed his liberty with this remarkable fentence, that it ivas bejl not to be lorn ; and next that, mojl eligible to die quietly. [4] Virgil, Eclogue VI. 14. THE HEATHEN GODS. 127 The life-guards or train bands of Bacchus were the Satyrs. It is uncertain whence these half creaturei sprung ; but their usual residence wag in the woods and forests, and they were of a very wan. on aid lustful dis- position ; so that it was very dangerous for a stray nymph to fall into their hands. Indeed it was natural for them to use compulsion, for their form was none of the most in- viting, having deformed heads, armed with short horns, crooked hands, rough and hairy bodies, goats feet and legs, and tails as long as horses. We are now to seek some explanation of this group of figures, and to do this we must have recourse to the Egyptian key. As idolatry improved, the feasts or re- presentations of those people grew nice pompous' and solemn, show degenerated into masquerade, and religion into farce or frenzy. The Ben-Semele, or child of re- presentation, mentioned in the explanation of Bacchus, became a jolly rosy youth, who, to adorn the pomp, was placed in a chariot, drawn by actors in tygers or leopards skins, while others, dressed in thoseof bucks orgoats, sur- rounded him ; and, to shew the dangers they had p-one through in hunting, they smeared their faces with dregs of wine, or juice of mulberries, to imitate the blood of the beasts they killed- These assistants were called Satyrs [51, "Fauns [(S], and Tliyades [7], and Mcenades [8], and Bassaridas [9]. To close the procession, appeared an old man on an ass, offering wine to the tired youth, who had returned from a prosperous chace, and inviting them to take some rest. This person they called Sylen []], or Sylvan, and his dress was designed to shew, that old men were exempt fromjthose toils of youth, which, by extirpating beasts of prey, secured the approaching har- vest. All these symbols were by the Greeks and Romans a- dopted in their way, and the actors of masks of Eo-ypt became the real divinities of nations, whose inclination to the ma .tl' >us made them greedily embrace whatever flattered that prepossession. CHAP. (5) From Sat or, hidded or dlfguifed. (6) From Phanim, a mafejue or falfe face. /- liorr Phouak, to v-amW or run about wildly. (61 From Mcxmm,, to intoxicate or drive mad. 1 1) ' From Eatfar, to gather the grapes, [i) From Sclau, fafety or repofe. 128 FABULOUS HISTORY O* CHAP. XLIV. Of Hercules and his Labours., H AVING gone through the Dii Majores, or celestial deities of the first rank we shall proceed to the demi- gods, who were either those hero* s whose eminent actions and superior virtues raised them to the skies, or those terrestrial divinities, who for their beauty and goodness to mankind were classed with the gods. To begin with the former, Hercules undoubtedly claims the foremost place. There were several of this name [2] ; but he to whom, amongst the Greeks, the greatest glory is attributed, was the son of Jupiter and Alcmena, wife of Amphitryon king of Thebes. This monarch being gone on an expedition against the JiLto- lians, Jove assumed his form, and under that safe disguise .easily enjoyed his desires. It is said he was so enamoured, that he prolonged the darkness for three days and three nights successively. Hercules w r as the fruit of this ex- traordinary amour, and at the same time Alcmena bore twins to her husband, Laodamia, and Iphiclus,. who was remarkable for his extraordinary swiftness. This intrigue of Jupiter, as usual, soon came to the ears of his jenlous wife, who from that moment me- ditated the destruction of Hercules. A favourable oc- casion offered to her resentment. Arcluppe, the wife of Sthenelus, king of Mycene, being pregnant at the same time with Alcmena, Jupiter lud ordained, that the. child first born should have the superiority or command over the other. Juno caused Archippe to be delivered at the end of seven months of a son, called Eurystheus, and to retard the labour of Alcmena, in the form of an old woman she sat at the gate of Amphitryon's palace with her legs across, and her fingers interwoven. By this secret inchantment that princess was seven days and nights in extreme pains, till Galanthis, one of her attendants, seeing Juno in this suspicious posture, and conjectur- ing (2) The Egyptian Hercules is reckoner! the deleft of thefe who fignalized himfelf in the giants war, and wa» one of the - principal divinitiei of that country. THE HEATHEN CODS. 1 2f) ing the cnuse, ran hastily out with the news that her mistress was delivered. The goddt 88 starting up at the news, Alcmena was that moment fre*-d of her burLhen ; but Juno was so incensed at Galathir, that she changed her into a weesel. *" During his infancy* Juno sent two serpents to destroy him in his cradle, but the undaunted child strangled them both with his hands. After this, as he grew up, he discovered an uncommon stature and strength of bo- dy (:>), as well as heroic ardour of mind. These great qualities of nature were improved by suitable care, his « lucation being entrusted to the greatest masters (4 ) ; so t bat it is no wonder if, with such considerable advanta- ges, he made such a shining figure in the world.- His extraordinary virtues were early put to the trial-, and the tasks imposed ophim by Euristheus, on account of the danger and difficulty which attended their execu- tion, received the name f'the Laboure of Hercules, hi:J are commonly reckoned twelve in number. 1 . The first labour or triumph of Hercules, was the death of the Nemsean lion. It is said this furious ani- mal, by Juno's direction, fell from the orb of the Moon, and was invulnerable. It infested the Nemsean woods, between Philus and Cleone, and did infinite mischief. The hero attached it both with hi3 arrows and club, but in vain, till perceiving his error, he first strangled, and then tore it in pieces with his hands. The skin he pre- served, and constantly wore, as a token of his victory. 2. His next enterprize was against a formidable ser- pent, or monster, which harboured in the fens of Lerna, ai'd infected the region of Argos with his poisonous ex- halations. The number of heads assigned this creature is various (.3) ; but all authors agree, that when one wag cut (3) Some fay when he arrived at manhood he was four cubits high, and had three rows of teeth. (4) Linus, the fon of Apollo, inftructcd him in philofnphy; Eurycus taught him archery; Eumnlplnis, mufic, particularly the art of touching the lyrt ; from Harpalychus, the fun of Mer- cury, he learnt wreltling and the gymnaltic exercifes ; C-ftor fheweH him the art of managing his weapons; anrt to compkteall, Chiron initiated him in the principles of aitnmomyand medicine. (5 ) Some make the heads of the Lcrnsean Hydru to be feven ; others nine ; others fifty. 130 FABULOUS HISTORY OF cut off, another succeeded in its place, unless the wound was immediately cauterised. Hercules, not discou- raged, attacked this dragon, and having erased lolaus to cut down wood sufficient for flaming brands, as he cut oft. the heads r applied them to the wounds, and by that means obtained the conquest, 'and destroyed the Hydra. Some explain this fable, by supposing Lerna a marsh, much troubled with snakes, and other poisonous animals, Which Hercules and his companions destroyed, by setting fire to the reeds, Others imagine he only drained this fen, which was before impassable. Others make Lt-rna a foi t or castre of robbers, under a leader called Hydra, whom Hercules extirpated. However this be, in consideration of the service of lolaus, on this occasion, when he grew decrepid with old age, his master, by his prayers, ob- tained a renewal of his youth. 3. The next task imposed on him by Enrysthcus was fo brinr.- him alive a huge wild boar, which ravaged the forest of Erymanthus, and had been sent to Phocis by Diana, to punish Oneus for neglecting her sacrifices [6]. In his way he defeated the Centaurs, who had provoked him by insulting Phohis his host. After this he seized the fierce animal in a thicket, surrounded with S'iow, and,, pursuant to his injunction, carried him bound to Eurist- heus, who had like to have fainted at the sight. 4. This monarch, after such experience of the force and valour cf Hercules, was resolved to try his agility : for this end he was commanded to take a hind which fre- quented Mount Mnenahi?, and had brazen feet and golden horns. As she was sacred to Diana, Hercules durst not wound her, and it was not easy to run her down : this chace cost him a whole year's foot-speed. At last, be- ing- tired out, the hind took to the recesses of mount Artemesius, but was in her way overtaken, as she crossed the river Ladon, and brought to Mycene. 5. Near the lake Stymphalus, in Arcadia, harboured certain birds of prey, with wings, beaks, and talons of iron, who preyed on human flesh, and devoured all that passed that way. These Eurystheus sent Hercules [6]This fiory ha»a near rcfemblance with the boar of Calycion, mentioned in the article of Diana. THE HEATHEN GODS, 131 Hercules to destroy. Some say lie killed them with his arrows [7] ; others, that Pallas lent him some brazen rattles made by Vulcan, the sound of Which frightened them to the island of Aretia. Soiv.e suppose tiie birds called Stymphalides, a gang of desperate banditti, who had their haunts near that lake. 6. His next expedition was against the Cretan bull. Minos, king of that island, being formidable at sea, had forgot to pay Neptune the worship due to hiivi. The deity, to punish his neglect, sent a furious bull, whose' nostrils breathed fire, to destroy the country. Hercules brought this terrible animal bound to Euristheus, who o:i account of his being sacred, let him loose in the terri- tory of Marathon, where he was afterwards slain byThfe- 8CU5. Some reduced the story to this, that Hercules only was sent to Crete, to procure Euristheus a bull forbreed- ing out of. 7. Dtomede, king of Thrace, the son of Mars and Cyrene, was a tyrant possessed of a stud of horses, so wild and fierce, that they breathed lire, and were constantly fed with human flesh, their master kiUing all stran- gers he could meet with for provender for his catr'.'. Hercules having vanquished him, gave him as a prey to them, and killing some, brought the rest to EurysthetiR. 8. The next employment of Hercules seems a little too mean for a hero, but he was obliged to obey a severe task-master, who was to sensible of his own injustice in these injunctions, that he did not care to trust himself in the power of the person he commanded fttj. Augeas, kmg of Elis, had a stable intolerable from the stench arising from the dung and tilth it contained, which is not very surprising, if it be true, that it sheltered three thousand oxen, and had not been cleaned for thirty years. This place Eurystheus ordered Hercules to clear in one day, and Augeas promised him, if he performed it, to give him a tenth pari, of the cattle. Hercules, by turning (!) There is an ancient gem ex .• tflive of this. See Ogle's anti- quities. (%j Itisfaid F.uryftheus never would fuffcr Hercules to enter Mycene, but notified his commands to turn uver the vt*1!i by Cipro**, an hxriid. ' ' 132 FABULOUS HISTORY OF turning the course of the river Alpheus through it, ex- ecuted- his design ; which Augeas seeing, refused to Bt« • d by his ^.otgement. The hero, to reward his per- fidy, slew him with his arrows, and gave his kingdom to PI yieas, his son, who had shewed his abhorrence of his father's treachery. Some add, that, from the spoils taken at Ehs, Here" ales instituted the 01) mpic games of Jupiter, celebrated every fifth year, and which after- wards gave rise to the Grecian aera. 9. Eurystheus, desirous to present his daughter Ad- meta with toe belt or girdle worn by Hippolyta, queen ef the Ama?.ons, Hercules was sent on this expedition ; he was but slenderly provided, having but one ship ; but valour like his was never destitute of resources in dis- tress. In Ins way he defeated and killed Mygdon and Amycus, two brothers, who opposed his passage, and subduir.g Bebrycia, -gave it to Lycus, one of his com- panions," who changed its name to Heraclea, in memory of his benefactor. On his approach to Themiscyra, he leant that the Amazons had collected all their forces to meet him. The first engagement was warm on both r,' .'s, several of the bravest of these viragoes were killed, and others made prisoners. The victory was followed by the total extermination of that female nation, and Hyppolyta, their queen, was by the conqueror given to Theseus, as a reward for his valour. Her belt tie brought to Eurystheus, J 0. His succeeding exploit war. against Geryon, king of Spain, who had three bodies, and was the son of Chrysaoris and Callirrhoe. This monarch had a breed of oxen of a purple colour, who devoured all strangers cast to them, and were guarded by a dog with two heads, a dragon with seven, b< sides a very watchful and severe keeper. Hercules killed both the monarch and his guards, and carried the oxen to Gadira, oi Cadiz, hoftt whence he brought them to Eurystheus. It was during this expedition, that our hero, as eternal monuments of 'his glory, erected two pillars at Calpe and Abyle, upon the utmost, limits of Africa and Europe. Some give a more simple turn to the wholcj by saying Ge- ryon was a king of Spain, and governed by means of three sons famous for valour and prudence, and that Her- cules T^f^. THE HE^THFN -GODS. J S3 rules having raised an army of mercenary troops in Crete, first overcame tliem, and subdued that country. 1 1. The next task enjoined him by Eurystheus was to fetch him the golden apples of the Hesperides f9j, which were guarded by a dragon with a hundred heads. The injunction was not easy, since Heresies was even ignorant of the place where they grew. The nymphs of Eridanus, whom he consulted, advised him to^o to Pro- methettfi f I)' who ei' lve n ' m tne ^formation and direc- tions he wanted, after which he vanquished the dragon, and "brought the precious fruit to his master. 1 2. The last command of Eurystheus was for , him to go down to hell, *.nd bring away Cerberus, lluto's mastiff. HeroulfeSj haying sacrificed to the gods, entered the in- fernal regions, by a cavity of mount Taenarus, and on the banks of Acheron found a white poplar-tree, of which he made him a wreath, and the tree was ever after consecrated to him : passing that river he discovered Theseus and Piritlious chained to a stone : the former he released, but left the latter confined. Msenetius, Pluto's cowherd, endeavouring to save his master's dog t was crushed to death. Cerberus, for refuge, fled be- neath Pinto's throne, from whence the hero dragged him out, and brought him upon earth by way of Trsezcne. At fight of the day, the monster vomited a poisonous matter, from whence sprung the herb aconite, or wolf's- bane ; but being presented to Eurystheus, he ordered him to be dismissed, and suffered him to return to hell. It would be almost endless to enumerate all the actio»3 of this celebrated hero of antiquity, and then fore we shall o:ilv touch on the principal. He delivered Creon, king of Thebes, from an unjust tribute imposed on h;m by Erginusand the Mynisr, for which service that prince gave him his daughter Megara, by whom he had several sons; but Juno strikinghim with frenzy, heslewlhesechil- N uren, [•9] Juno, on her niarrirgr with Jupiter, gave him thefe trres, wJiicli i>( iv golden fruit, ar.j were ktpt by the nyn-ph* /v**'e, A re th lira and Hefptrt thula, daughters of HeijjtJTU*, »h« Were called the Helperidts. ^1 I Or ap other-, fay, to Ncrcus, who eluded his tpmiiry, by sf. timing various ih.ipes. 134 FABULOUS HISTORY OF dKfi and Mi recovering his senses, became so shocked at hi cruelly, that he abstained from all human society for some time. In his return from the expedition against the Amazons, Laomedon, king of Troy, by the pro- mise of some 6«e horses, engaged him to deliver hit daughter Hesione, exposed to a vast sea monster sent by Neptune ; but when he had freed the princess, the de- ceitful monarch retracted his word. Upon this, Hercu- les took the city, killed Laomedon and gave Hewoue to Tehmon, who first scaled the walls (U). Atterthishe slew Timolus and Telegor.os, the sons of Froceus, two celebrated wrestlers, who put to death all whom they overcame. He also killed Scrpedon, son of Neptune, a aotorious pirate. p, rm iw During his African expedition, he vanquished Cyniifc, irW of fhessalv, the son of Mars and Cleobuhna, a sa- t*S prn.ee, who had vowed to erect his father a temple S the heads or skulls of .he strangers he destroyed. InLvbia, he encountered the famous Ant us, tne son of Earth, a giant of immense stature, who forced all whom he met to wrestle with h.m, and so strangled them. He challenged Hercules, who flung him ihncc^aud Sought each time he had killed him ; but on 1ms touch- \Z tlie -round he renewed his strength. Hercules be- In! app«**« of this, held him up in the air and squeezed urn m such a manner, that he soon exptred I 3) In 1.,. progress from Lybia to Egypt, Bu*ns, a cruel prince Ld an ambusc.de to surprise hm, but was lums.lf and Lis son Amphiadamus, s„ vine, a by the Victor on the al- ^heha^oi.faned. In Arabia ne beheaded Emath, on the^onofTithon.'.s, for his want of ho, pitauU at- Ter' which, crossing mount Caucasus, h< -delivered Pro- th u • In Calvin, he unstled with Ac^OUS, for oUa P ri.ethanDeiani,a, daughter to lung Oeneus. The^te^was long dubious, for his »WP«^** faculty of assuming all shapes ; but as he took that of a b 11, Hercules tore off one of his horns, so that he was Led to submit, and to redeem it, by givmg the con <1 her brother Priamus; who wm ! in a double antique ftatue beloi* iS l KSSM HuibotWin ft»mpftire. (2) ThiMrinccfs redefine »f er*ar£' ««g £ ^ r y e ffcd in a double antique flatue belong • I l.u.snr.'ly expreuenin i n a „M,{hire. in* t" THE HEATHEN CODS. 135 queror the horn of Amalthxa, the daughter of Hai dius ; which Hercules rilled with a variety of fruits, and consecrated to Jupiter. Some explain the k.Me thus ; Achelou* is a winding river of Greece, wiioae stream Was so rapid, that it overflowed the banks, rearing like .. hull : Hercules forced it into two channels ; that is, lie broke off one of the horns, and so restored plenty to the country. This hero reduced the isle of Coos, and put to death Eurylus, kingo: it, with his sons, on account of tlu r injustice and cruelty ; but the princess Chalctttope, the daughter, he married, by whom f e had a'som oa Thessalus, who gave his name to Thees liy. He subdu- ed Pyracmos, king of Eubcca, who had* without a gads®, made war on the Bceotir.ns. En tas> -.y to the Hesperides, he wa 5 opposed by Albior., and Brigic, two giants, who put hhn in a great hazard, his arrows bei spent. Jupiter, on IttS prayer, overwhelmed th«*i a shower of k- vjfe». w '" cc the place W»8 eali to iy field. It lies in the Gulha NVbonensh. Hercalea I great service h Gaol, b y destroying rohberp, sup tyrants :uk1 op;:-. '?•;.>::, ,;.:d >;Vr-r actions triJ_, •, •.- syut the ehfHfflfCtet ..: a her/1 : ;;He. which, i^sr,^. the city Alesia, and made it the cap: ta] of the Celiaei on Gauls. He also evened his way through the Alps i:.:^ Italy, and by the coast- of Ligurh and ';/• ■;.. rived on the banks of the Tyber, arid slew the furious robber Cacus, whxj from his d<;n bfl mount Av»eBtine in- fested. that country. Being denied the rftes of hoapita- lity, he killed TheodansWj the father of Kylas, but took the latter with him, ami treated him kindly. Hercules, however intent on fame and glory, WAS* like other herors, but too susceptible of 'ove. We fiw I an instance 'of this in Ompbaie, queen of Lydia, who gained such an ascendant ovirhi W, that he was not ashamed Lo assume a female dfesa, to spin RmohgSfi her women, and submit to be corrected by her aCe > ■ ling to her caprice. His favourite wite was Deiahira, before-rnentioned, and whose jealousy was the fatal occasion of in's death. Travelling with this princess through JEtoifa, they Occasion to pass a river, swelled by the sudden rains. X •- ,us, the centaur, pffered Hercules his oefvice to carry over- his CQneort, who, accepting it, crossed over before N 2 them, I3C FABULOUS HISTORY OF them. The monster, seeing the ^opportunity favourable, offered violence to Deianira, upon which her husband, from the opposite bank, pierced him with .one ol those dreadful arrow?, which, bein g dipped in the blood oi the J,ernasan Hyd'a,. gave a wound incurable by art. Nes- sus expiring gave the princess his garment all bloody, as a sure remedy to recover her husband, if ever he should prove unfaithful. Some years after, Hercules having subdued Oechalin, fell in love with Iole, a fair captive, whom he brought to Eubcea, where, having erected an altar to sacrifice to Jove for his victory, he dispatched Lycu3 to Deianira, to carry her the news, and inform her of his approach. This princess, from the report of the messenger, suspecting her husband's fidelity, sent him lis a pr^ent the coat of Neastis, which he no sooner put OS, but he Jell ii;-o a delirious fever, attended with the inost excruciating torments. Unable to support his pains, he retired to mount Oeta, and erecting a pile of wood, to which he set fire, threw himself &~o tiie flames, and was consumed (4-). Lycus, his unhappy friend and companion, in his agony, he first hurled into the river Thermopotis, where he became a rock ; his arrows he bequeathed to Philoctetes, who buried his remains in the river Dyra. So perished this great hero of antiquity, the terror of oppressors, the friend of liberty and mankind, for whose happiness (as Tully observes) he braved the greatest danger?, and surmounted the most arduous toils, going through the whole earth with noother view than the es- tablishing peace, justice, concord,, and freedom. No- thing can be added to heighten a character so glorious as ttiis. Hercules left several children. By Deianira he had an only daughter, called Macaria ;by Melita, who gave her jtame to the irde of Malta, he had Hylus : Afar, Lydtis, and Scythe?, were his sons, who are said to have left their appellation to Africa, Lydia, and Scytlna : be- eides winch, lie it. said to have had fifty sons by the fifty daughters {4) There i -at Wilton, the Cent of the carl of Pemhrche, . ilil a miilr uaW: of other valtiahle ClirtofjtiiN a fmaH motile rue of I.vcuv fupportlng the dyilig Hercnles, of inimitable ...anlhip. in which the ch.lk! appear* to be infinitely fuj-a- lit*; :u -lie pencil. THE HEATMfN GODS. J37 daughters of Thestiusl However, his offsprii g were so numerous., tTia! above thirty • ■ F r . i s d I boh name, whost bbiifg all attributed to him, pro- duced the confusion eve find injiis history* Enryst.heus, after his >'•'.:-, v is so afraid of- these Heraclidae, that by his ill - tg< ■■■ forced them to fly to Athens, and then sent an embassy ta that city to deliver them up, with me.-.aces of a war in fase oi refusal. lo- laus, the friend of Hcrcui ■, who was then in the shades, was so concerned for his master's posterity, tbatbe j * leave from Pluto to reiurn to earth, and ki.'l the ty ■>. •„ after which he willingly returned to hell. Hercnles, who was also called Alcides^ was", after death, by his father Jupiter defied, and with great - >■ iemilrty married to Hebe his hail sister, ths goddess ot youth. At rirst sacrifices were only offered to him a< * hero ; but Phsretius coming into Syeiohia altered that method. Both the Greeks arid Rjdwi&bs honoured hnn as a goo 1 ,, and erected terriple6 to htm .1 that (jualrfy. His wctirns'wew bull? or h.ivtbs. on aofcoui t of his pi. - serving- the flocks from wolves, 1. e. delivering men from tyrant* and robbers. He was called also Melius, from htS taking the Hesperian fruit ; for whicn reason apples were used (.•">) in his sacrifices. Mehercuie, or by K r- eules, was, amongst the Romans; an cat!. only used t 7 the rr'.'n. Many persons were fond ofusing this celebrated nan e. Hence Diedows reckons up three; Cieero six ; others to the number of forty -three. But the Greeks a?ci il d to the.Theban Hercules the actions of all the rest, i it the foundation of all was laid in the Phoenician or Egyp- tian Hercules . for the Egyptians d:d not borrow u;c name from the Grecians, but rather the Grecian*, espe- cially those wh.» gave it to the son of Atnpbytnon, from the Egyptians ; principally, because Aiuphytron and Alcmenc, the parents of the Grecian H-rcuhs, were both of Egyptian descent (j6.)i The name too is of Phoenician extraction (7). a Dame given to ti:e discover- ers of new countries, and the plai ters of colonies there ; wlvo frequently signalized themselves no less by civilizing N 3 the ^5\7rovn utys, an apple. (6) Herodctusir. Euterpe.. fjj Haio&el, a-D.eichaiji. 138 F-ABUl-OU.fi HISTORY OF the inhabitants and freeing then, from the wild beast* that infested them, than by the commerce which they establised ; winch no doubt was -tin sou ee of ancient heroism and war f8 . And however the Phoenician and JKgyptian horo of this name may have been distinguished | _ a multitude of authors, I am fully persuaded, after the mo't diligent enquiry, tm.t they were indeed one and the same person : of whose history let us take a short review. About the year of the world 2131, the person distin- guished by the namajof Hercules Asais (9), succeeded .tanias as king of Lower Egypt, being the last of the Hysees, or shepherd kings frqrn Canaan ; who had held the country 259 years. He continued t}^> war with the kings of Upper Egypt 4-9 years, and then by agreement hew, with his subjects, to the number of 24-0,000. In his retreat he is said to hive founded fi'-.t the city of Jerusalem f\j, and afterwards that of Tyre, where he was called Melcarthus (2 J. From Egypt be brought the computation of 365 days to the year, and settled it in his own kingdom, where it continued many ages. In his voy- ages he visited Africa, whereheconquered Ant khs; Italy, France, Spain as faras Cadiz, wherehe slew Geryon;and proceeded tVnceeven to the British isles ; settling colo- nies, and raising pillars wherever became, as the standing monuments of himself, and of the patriarchal i\ligion which he planted ; for pillars placed oh eminences in cir- cular order were the temples of those early tiroes, and as yet wc find no footsteps of idolatry, either in Egypt or Phcenicia. To his arrival in these islands fand not in LrguriaJ must be applied whatever is related of bis en- counter with Albion and Bergion, and of his being assiit- cu, when his weapons were spent, by a shower of stones from heaven. Albion is the name given afterwards to this country ; and by the miraculous shower of stone., no more is intended, than that the inhabitants were at last reconciled to him on account of the divine religion which h* (%) Hanier's mytho'rpy, vol. i*. p. 7a. (9) Aflis, valiai.t ; fo that Hercules Aflis, is the heroic mer- chant. (1) Manetho apud Jofephum , 1 1. contra Apion. (2) Or king of the city, from Mtkk, king, ajj J Car- tha, city. THE HEATHEN GODS. 139 he taught, and the great number of these open temple?; erected by him. He is said to have been attended by Ap'»rr, the grandson of Abraham, whose daughter fie married, and by whom he had it son named Dodorusf ",/. To him the Phoenicians wore indebted for the gainful trade of tin, which gave name to these islands (A<). I ie found out alsdllie purple dye, ai.d seems to have been the fiibt who applied the loadstone to the purposes of na- vigation, thence called Lapis Heraclius. He is supposed to bave been drowned at 1 ist ; and became afterwards oi.e of the first objects of idolatry amongst his countrymei - The solemnities were performed to him in the night, as to one, who after all his great fatigues and labours, had at length gained a time and place of rest. Manetho calls him Arcles. Hercules is usually depicted in a standing attitude, having the skin of the Nerna-an lion thrown over his shoulders, and leaning on his club, which is Ids insepa- rable attribute. The judgment of this iicro, or his pre- ference of Virtue to Vice, who both solicit him to em- brace their party, makes one of the finest pictures of an- tiquity. The choice he made did no dishonour to his memory. It may not be afni&s to add the explanation of the fa- ble of the Hespendts, as given by a late ingenious au- thor (5), and which sufficiently shews how the most im- portant and useful truths, represented under the plainest symbols, became disguised or disfigured by error and fic- tion The Phoenicians were the first navigators in the world', and their trade to Hesperia and Spain was one of the noblest brandies of their commerce. From then they brought back exquisite wines, rich ore of gold and silver, and that fine wool to which they gave so precious a purple dye. From the coast of Mauritania they drew the best corn, and, by the way of the Red Ser 1 , they ex- changed iron ware and tools of small value for ivory, ebo- ny, and gold dust. But, as the voyage was long, the adventurer* (3) Jofcphus, froro Polyhiffora'-,! Clerlenvus. Ic!eni in Antiq. I ShincLer's I.ssicon. See Ftukrly's .\bury and Stonehe&ge ; and Cookers Enquiry into the Patriarchal Religion. '4] Brit niLiia is (rorn Barat-anac, the land of tin. [s] La riuclie't. hiftory cf the heavens, vul. 11. 150. 14-0 FABULOUS HISTORY r*»F adventurers -'.ere obliged to associate and get their car- goes ready in winter, so as to set out early in 'pring. The public s*gn, exposed on these occasions, was a tree. with golden fruit, to denote the riches arising from this commerce. The dragon which guarded toe tree, signi- fied the dinger and difficulty or the voyage. The Capri- corn, or Sometimes one horn placed at the root, expres- sed the month or season ; and the three months of win- ter, during which they prepared for the expedition, were represented by three nymphs, who were supposed to be proprietors of the tree, and had the name of Hesferi- des 6) ; which fully shewed the meaning pi' this emble- matical group, from whence the Greeks, mistaking its design and u^c, composed the Romance of the Hesperi«m gardens*. CHAP. XLV. Of JJtl-e amd Guvymtde* IT £ JL EBE, the goddess of youth, wasj according- to Homer, the daughter of Jupiter ond June. But the generality of writers relate her birth thus : Juno, being invited to an entertainment Ivy Ai-eho, eat \ery eagerly some wild lettuces, upon whu'i she conceived, and in- stantly brought forth this goddess. Jove was so pleased With her beauty, that he made her his cup-bearer, in the discharge of which office slie always appeared crowned witli flowers. Unluckily at a festival of the gods in Ethiopia, Hebe being in. waiting, slipped her foot, and. got so indecent a fall, that Jupiter was obliged to re- move her from her Usual attendance. To repair this disgrace, as well as the loss of her post, Jupiter, upon ; lercules being advances to the skies, married him to Hebe, and their nuptial: were celebrated with ad the pomp becoming a celestial wedding. By this union she had a son named Anicetr.s, and a daughter called Alex- iare. Hebe was held in high veneration amongst the Sicyonians, who erected a temple to Ltt by the name of [6 J From Efper, the good fhare or beft lot S«e J Samuel v>. THE HEATHEN CODS. HI of Din. She had another at Corii.th, which was a sanc- tuary for fugitives ; and the Athenians consecrated an altar in common to her and Hercules. Ganymede, who succeeded to her office, wartheson ©fTros, king of Phrygia or 'J'ny, and a prince pf such wisdom and personal beauty, that Jupiter, by the advice of the gods, resolved to remove him from earth to the skies. The eagle dispatched on this commission found him just leaving his fleck of sheep to hurt on mount Id.', and seizing him in his talons, brought him unhurt to the heavens, where he entered on his new office of filling nectar to Jupite* ; though others say, he was turn- cd into that constellation, or sign of. the Zodiac, which gees by the name of Aquarius (1 j- The mycologists make Hebe signify that mild tem- perature of the air, which awakens to life the trees, plants, and flowers, and clothes the earth in vegetable beauty ; for which cause she is called the goddess of per- petual youth. But when she slips or falls, that is. when the flowers fade, and the autumnal leaves drop, G«r.y- mede, or the winter, takes her place. CHAP. XLVI. Of Caster and I cllf>x. XV v v IT have already, under the article of Jupiter, m?n- tiont rl bis amours with Lcda, the wife of Tyndarns, ] . of Sp irta, in the form of a swan, on which accdunt placed that figure' amongst the constellations. Lcda flit forth two eggs, each containing twins. From that impregnated by Jupjter proceeded Pollux ard Hele- na, both immortal; from the other Caster and Oyttni- nestra, whobeine betrot bv Tyndarus, Were both mortal. They teerit, I ow \. til by the common name of Tyn- da; idae, and were born and educated in Paphnus, an island belonging to Lacad demon, though the Messinians disput- ed this honour with the Spartans. The two brothers, however (7) The winter Viejnjr attended with Frequept min*. it is not improbable that Ganymede fhould bv the b*»n ri.qu.aius. J 42 FABULOUS HISTORY OF however differing in their nature and temper (8), had entered into an inviolable friendship, which, lasted for life. Jove soon after sent Mercury to remove them to Pellene, for their further improvement. As Jason was then preparing for his expedition to Colcliis in search ef the golden fleece, and the noblest youths in Greece crowded to become adventurers with him, our two bro- thers offered their services, and behaved, during the voy- age, with a courage worthy of their birth. Being ob- liged to v\ater on the coa-st of Babrycia, Amycus, son ©f Neptune, king of that country, challenged . W vita Afgoeawtfi to box with him, Pollux accepted the brava- do sad kihed him. After their return from Colcliis, the two brothers were very active in clearing the seas of Greece from pi- rates. Th«tgeu8, in the mean time, had stolen their sisl er Helena ; to serover whom, they took Alliens by storttt, spared all the ■inhabitavts, expect. J&tkra\ mother tb Theseus, v. \ ori they carried away cipfrte. F<* this cL'tueiiey they otatai u title 6i Dioicnri (' l Jj ; yet love booh plunged them >« the same error the} hau > to punish in the person of rheseus. Lncippus and Ar- sione had two be;fatiful daughters, cafled Phoebe and Talayra. These virgins were contracted to Lynceus and Ida, the sons c£ Aphareus. The twe brothers, without regard to these engagements, carried them off by force. Their lovers flew, to their, relief, and met the ravishers with their prize near mount Taygetus. A smart conflict edj in which Castor was killed by Ly;iceus, who, in return? fell by the hands of Pollux. This immortal brcther had been wounded by Ida, if Jupiter had not struck him with his thunder. Pollux, however, was so touched witli his loss, that he earnestly begged of this deity to make Castor immortal ; but that rcuuest being impossible to grant, he obtained leave to share his own immortality with his brother ; so that they are said to live and die alternately every day (\ ). They were buried in (Z) This particular wc learn from Horace : Cajior r.n/.'ct 'fu's • ovo pro^natus todrm Pttgm : >ru-d afiiti/m vivirnt iolidrtrt jhtjiorttm miUia. Horat. [9] The fens of Jupiter. (1 ) Virgil allpdp to this ; *\ '■'■./' ' ' "" Pollux alterna morti nitwit -——2t~u: ttarque tie overtaken with a tempest, during which Orpheus offered vows for the safe- ty of the ship ; immediately two lambent flames were discovered over the heads of GaBtor and Pollux, which appearance was succeeded with so great a calm, as gave the crew a notion of tkeir divinity. In succeeding times these fires, often ?^en by them arinersj were always taken as a good or favourable omen. When one was seen alone, it was reckoned to forbode some evil, and was called Helena ($J. TheCjphalenses for inhabitants of Cephalonia^ plac- ed these two deities .;nongi>t the l);i Magni. The victims offered them were white lambs. The Romans paid them particular honours for th'*ir ase&tUnce in an engagement with the Latins, in which they appeared on their side, mounted on white horses, and turned the scale of victory in their favour. For this a temple was erected to them in the Forum. Amongst the Romans, iEcnstor was an oath peculiar to the women, but JEdopol was used indis- criminately by both sexes. Castor and Pollux were represented as two beautiful youths, completely armed, and riding on white horses, with stars over their helmets. These deities were un- known to the Egyptians or Phoenicians. CHAP. XLVII. Of Perseus and Bellerophcn. JL HIS hero was the sr>n of Jupiter and Danae, whose amour has been already mentioned, and is inimitably described (%} Trm cape lies near Troy. ($j The rirft Helena carried off by Thcfcus. 14 '* FABULOUS HISTORY OF described by Horace (\). Acnsius her father, on hear- ing of his daughter's disgrace, caused her and the infant to be shut up in a chest and cast into the sea, which threw them on the isle of Seriphus, governed by king Polydectes, whose brother Dictys being a fishing, took them up, and used them kindly. When Perseus, for so he was c died, was grown up, Polydectes, who was enajnoured of his mother, finding he would be an ob- stacle to their courtship, contrived to send him in an ex- ploit he judged would be fatal to him : this was to bring him the head of Medusa, one of the Gorgons. This enchantress lived near the Tritonian lake, and turn- ed all who beheld her into a stone. Perseus in this ex-' pedition was favoured by the gods Mercury equipped him with a scymeter, and the wings from his heels ; Pal- las lent him a shield, which reflected objects like a mirror; and Pluto granted him his helmet, which gave him the privilege of being invisiole. In this manner he flew to Tartasses in Spain, where, directed by his mirror, he cut off Medusa's head, and putting it in a bag lent him by the nymphs, brought it to Pallas. From the blood. arose the winged horse Pegasus, and all sorts of serpents. After this the hero passed into Mauritania, where his interview with Altas has been already spoken of under its proper article (5) In his return to Greece pothers say, at his first setting o\\X ) he visited jEthiophia. and mounted on Pegasus, delivered Andromeda, daughter of Ophus, king of that country, who was exposed to a sea monster. After his death this princess, and her mother Os:.iope, or Cassio- peia, were placed amongst the celestial constellations. Perseus was not only famous for arms, but literature, if it be true that he founded an academy on mount Helicon. Yet he had the misfortune inadvertent 1 }' to commit the crane of parrcide ; for being reconciled to his grand- father Acrisius, and playing with him at the discus or quoits, a game he had invented, his quoit bruised the old king in the foot, which turned to a mortification, and carried him off. Perseus interred him, w ith great so- lemnity, at the gates of Argos. Perseus himself was bu- ried (*) Horat. Lib II'. Ode XVf. ( jj Sc-c il.o article ol Atl». r\ r wlL i /' 46? TRE HPATHEN GODS. 14J fed :u lb? way between Argos and Mycenae, had divine honour, di i r^ed him, and was placed amongst the stars. Bellerophon, the 8o.i of Glaitcus, king of Ephyra, ad grand on of Sisyphus, was born at Corinth. Hap- y to kill liis brother, he fled to Pee- king of Argos, who gave him an hospitable recep- tion ; bul Sthenob;ea, his queen, falling-enamoured with the beautiful stranger, whom no entreaties could pre- vail on to injure his b< no fact or, accused him to her hus- Lycia, with tetters to Jobates, his father-in- desiring him to pUiroh the crime. This prince, ■ ■■ ; c< ipc oT the order, was celebrating a festival of nine d.tyj, which prevented Bellerophon's fate. In tie. mean time he sent him to subdue the Solymi and Ama- zoi;s, which he performed with success. Jobates next employed him to destroy the chimaera" (7), a very un- common monster. Minerva, or, as others say, Neptune, ting his innocence, exposed to such repeated I him with the horse Pegasus, by whose victorious. Jobates, on his return, convinced of his truth and integrity, and charmed with his virtues, gave him his daughter Philonoe, and associ- ated him in his throne. Stnenobnea, hearing how her m.dice was disappointed, put an enel to her life. But, like other princes, Bellerophon grew foolish with too ^ much prosperity, and, by the assistance of Pegasus, re- rd to ascend the skies ; Jupiter, to check his pre-i sumptioL), struck him blind in the flight, and he fell b.tck to the earth, where he wandered till his death, in misery and contempt. Pegasus, however, made a shift to get into Heaven, where Jupiter placed him amongst the constellations. Let us once more try to give some explanation of these two fables. The subjects of Cyrus, who before this time had been known by the name of Cothie&ns and Islamites, henceforward began to be distinguished by that of the Persians (8), or horsemen. For it was he O who {6 J King, in his hiftory, imkes Johafes J. is fnn-in-law. (-, i i lie chiaiaera wa> ani'-.ntfer «yith the forepart like a lio;i f the middle !:Wc a goat, and the uil like a ferine. (Zj l'eiihu, l\jrleincn. 146 FABULOUS HISTORY OF who first inured tjiem to equestrian exercises, and ever-. made it scandalous for one of tliem to be seen on foot. Perses, or Perseus, then is a horseman, on. who had learned the art of horsemanship from the 1 Liceni* who attended Cadmus into Greece. The wings at heek, with which he is said to have been supplied by Mercury, were the spurs he wore ; by the assurance of which he made such speed. The Pegasus was no more tlwn a reined steed (9). His rider, lidlerophon, is the captain of the archers or lancemen (1). The chraiaert, having the form of a lion before, a dragon behind, and a K pat between, is but the innocent representative or 'three captains of the Solymi, (a colony of the Phoeni- cia™ in Pisidia) whose names, in the language ot that people happened to signify these three creature* (2f And the very place in the country of the Argues where Bellerophon mounted his horse and set forward, the Greeks called Kenthippe (3). From such tv grounds, the industrious Greeks, ao , tJo then custom, wove this wondrous tale. C H A P. XL VIII. Of Jason-, and ih Gd.Un FJecce. I HIS ancient Greek hero was the son of of Thessaly, and Alcimede ; and h= ; ''< ;i - hed to iLolus. Fellas, his uacL, wl Ml l-« guardian, sought to destroy him ; but I e was conveyed U his father's friends to a eve, where I ructr ed him in phvsic, whence he to(,ktli [•*)• Arriving at "years of maturity, he returned-*) h who, probably with nofavourabl tjon to ! 1 ' inspired iers or fa) From Peea, a bridle; and Sus, a hor'ft. .'/.■ I rem Bal, a lord or captain, md rlarr.v.n, arche fail ciPtn. , ., . -i « • j fj)\rt a4ion; Tfoban.adf~Ron: md Aral or Uizil, aft*A (37From«»««; to stimulate or spur, and. nr«K. an fj ,r ■ - Vockart'i Hkn zijo- . 1. - ■ > ( A J Or 1 Leah r, his former name being Dwmcd*. THE HEATHEN GODS. 147 1!1S pired him with the notion of the Colchian expedi- tion, and agreeably flattered his ambition with the Mew of so tempting a prize as the Golden 1 leece, Athamas, king of Thebes, by lus first wife had Hefc IPhnxus. Ino, his second, fell m love mth Ph™ us, her son-in-law ; but being rejected m her advano She took the opportunity of a great famine to indulge her revenge, by persuading her husband, that the goa ^^Ulie^tiUhe* a jficedhi.«o.nd daughter. But as they stood at the altar, Neplelf, their mother (5), invisibly carried them oft, giving them a golden ram she had got from Mercury to bear them tWh the air ; however, in passing the Streights be- tweea'Aiia and Europe, Helle fell into the sea, which from thence was called Hellespont. Phnxus continued 1,;, course to Colchis; where jEta, king of the coun- brv, entertained him hospitably : after winch he offered up his ram to Jupiter (6), and consecrated the sW>r hide in the grove of Mars. Tt was called the GoBfen Fleece fromits colour (7;, and guarded by bulb breath- ing fire, and a watch&il dragon that never siept, as a pledge of the utmost importance. Jason, being d termined on the voyage^ built a vessel at Colchos, in Thessaly, for the expedition , 8 J. ll»e fame of this design soon drew the bravest and met dis- tinguished youth of Greece to become adventured with him, though authors are not agreed as to the names or number of the Argonauts, for so they were called ( J J* The fire: place which Jason touched at was the isle ot 3>ranos, wheic he continued some time with Hip$ig»e, the queen, who bore him twins. He next visited Fhi- oeiw, king of Paphlagonia ; from wrtom, as be had the ° 2 g ;tt fS) Neprd*, i' 1 Gre, " k - % r ' ;fi " z cloud.- Who placed it amongft the confutations. Some irTakr tl.e fleece of a purple cd.-ur other* white. Are-, a famous ftipwright, was il« b |ild«, whence (he was c tile i Areo. , T -. , Mj Some m..ke the number foity-mne, other! rafre. I A* principil where incaus, Irbnc-n, Orpheus, Angus, Calais, L- thus, CatW, Pollux ; i - 'as their pHot, and I.ync«w«, re- markable for his q • t, their iook-cut m eafe of danger, it i a faid Hercules wis w*th then. 148 FABULOUS HISTORY OF gift of prophecy, he received some informations of ser- vice to him in his enterprise. After this, safely passing the Cyauean rocks ( 1 ), he entered the Euxine, and I; ing on the banks of the Phasis, repaired to the court el king Alia, and demanded the Golden Fleece. The monarch granted his request, provided he could over- come the difficulties which lay in his way (2), and which appeared not easily surmountable. Jason was more obliged to love than valour for his conquest. Medea, daughter to iEta, by her enchantments, laid the dragon asleep, taught him to subdue the bulls, and so by night he carried off the prize, taking with him the princew, to whose aid ho was chiefly indebted for his success (8). -.Eta, enraged at the trick put upon him, pursued the fugitive?} and, it is said, that to elude his fury, Medea tore in pieces her younger brother, Abysertes, and scat- r, ~ 1 -^ the limbs i'i his w;i\ , to ; ; t.-j> his progress (-1). Af- t>r :■>::, Jason returned Bafely to Greece, and soon heard that Pelias had destroyed all his friend?-, and made himself master of the kingdom. To revenge this action, Medea sails home before him, and introducing herself to the daughters of Pelias, under the character of a priestess cf Diana, shewed them several .uirprizing instances of her magical power. She proposed making their father young again, and to convince them of the possibility of it, she cut an old ram in pieces, and seething it in a caul- dron, produced a young lamb. The daughters, serving Pelias in the same manner, killed him (5), and fled the country. Jason, having notice of this, arrived in rheasaly, and took possession of the kingdom ; but af- terwards he generously restored it to Acastus, son of Pelias, f\ ) Cyanean ro:k-,, called the Sy mplcgades, were fo called be- caufethey floated, and often crulhed (hjps together The Argo- nauts efcv.ped this d niger, by fcnoii-.g out u pigeon, and lying by til! they taw her ft/ through, {%) Such as lulling the brazen-footed bulls, and the dragor. (I) Ovid, .jr.. VII. ir,,. (4) Others lay that ylita, to obftruct th< ir return, {rationed a flebcax the mouth of the Eyxine lea, and fo obliged Jafon to c me hi me by the weft pf F.urope. (5) Some authors relate this flo/y differently, SQdfrid fh-.ttthi* riperinHnt a a» tried hy M ... . A . n , jii'fon'i father, ^ee Ovid in the place tited. THE HEATHEN CODS. 149 Pelias, who had accompanied him in the Colchian expe- dition, ard Medea wem ami settled at Corinth. Hero Jason finding himself censured for cohabiting w'tn a 80rce*"es3 a id a stranger, quitted In r and marri- ed Crusa, daughter to Crown, king <>! the country. Medea Beemmgly approved the match, but meditated a severe revenge. She first privately killed the two chil- dren she bad ^)y him, and then s-.mt the bride a present of a robe and gold crown tinged in naptha, which set fire to her and the whole palace. The enchantress then I ? her car ((•>,., drawn by dragons, escaped th : air to Athens, wh' re she married king JE- v whom she had a son named Medus. 33ut at- on Theseus, his eldest son, and the de- being revealed, she with her son Medus fled to Asia, where he left his name to Media (7). Jason had sevcraj temples erected to him, particularly one at Athens, by Parmepio, of polished marble. The e where he waj chiefly worshipped was at Ahdcra, ill Thr.[.;t.'. , . I*-" wre seek for the real truth of the Argonautic ex- pedition wo si all '' rd it to be this : the value ofthe royal I at Colcbis had bren greatly cried up and tbfe .,-■ of it! was the thing aimed ;'t by tnj Argonautic expi dition. The word Gaza, in the Gohmian langu ne, accouling to H< rodotus, with the Egypt ece a.i tvell as a treasure. This gave ocra- sio:: tft,th« circumstance of tbe Goldeii Fleece. The wotd Sons also a wall and a bull ; Nacha.'h, brass and a s?tpent. So this treasure being secured by a double and brass doors, they formed hence a romantic story of its being a Golden Fleece, guarded by rwd buJls and a dragon (S). The mariner's compass is strppesed l[i\ to have made a part ol this treasure, (ai.d. if so, this was of itself a curiosity of infinite value) wlience the ships of Pivrixus and Jason, which eairied it, are said to have been oracular, and to have given responses, 3 CH A P. (<}) Given hwlny Phcebm, or the Sod. (•j) A r< ;.'! ii of Por - 1. (H J ht . hart iu Phakg 1. 4. c. 5 :. p. 28;. lyj (Jtuliely *- itonohtngc. • "0 TABTJI OtlS HISTORY OF C H A P. XLTX. Of Theseus end dehiltes. \'\ ITII these two-great men we shall close the lift of demi-gdds and heroes. Theseus was son to JEgeue, king of Athens, and A~L thra. la his youth he had au early passion for glory, and proposed Hercules fo," his model. Sciron, a noto- rious robber, who infested the. roacs between Megara a-nd Corinth', was by him thrown down a precipice, a:; he was accustomed to treat such as fell into his hands. Procrustes, a famous tyrant of Attica, he fastened to a bended pine, which, being loosed, tore him asunder ( r J. His first distinguishing adventure was the destruction of the Cretan rainotaur. Minos, king of that island, had made war pn -lEgeus, Kccause the Athenians had basely killed his son, for carrying .'.way the prize from them. Bnjng victorious, he, imposed this severe con- dition on the vanquished, that they should an mfally Bend seven of their noblest youths, chosen by lot, into Crete, to be devoured by the tninotaur (';>). The fourth year of this tribute, the choice foil en Th.:seus, son to . Al- gehs, or, as others say, he entreated to be sent himself. However this be, on the arrival of Theseus at the court *,f Minos, Ariadne, his daughter, fell deeply in love with him, and gave him a clue by which he got out < f the labyrinth, Tin's done, he sailed with his fair deli- verer for the isle of Naxos, where he ungratefully left her S), and where Bacchus found her, and took her tor his mistress. The (i) He was a tyrant of Attica, who fcized all ftrangcrs, ami Bteafitrcd them by his bed ; if they wore too ionw for ir, he cut them Sorter ; if too ihort, he; Hrctchcd them till they died. , and fed with human lh.fh fi) for this horj fte the article of Bicchus. THE 1-!i ; ATIU'N GODS* 151 The return of Theseus, through his own :. be- came fatal to r. The good king, at his depar- ture, bad charged I;'." , ashe ! riled, out i i R I lapk c :>i!.. to, return with tl in case he miscarried, otherwise ) Swi of Hyppolyta, queen cf the Amazons. (■)) Some fay iEfculapius reftored him to life, and that he came into Italy, where he changed his name to Vixbius, i. e. twice a man. IJ2 F.ABTJ1.0US HISTORY OF after Theseus being exiled (torn Athens, ended an illus- trious life- In (ung ooblen an at the court, named L'aurus ; that D^dalus lent his house for the bet- ter carrying on of their intrigue during a k>ng ilbess of Minos ; and that the queen in due time was delivered of two children, one of which resembled Minos, the other Trui-us, whence the minotaur : and ti>e Athenians aggravated the story, from their extreme prejudice to Minos. But what became of the Athenian youth, the tax of whom was three times paid ? The Cretan king had instituted funeral games in ho';onrof Androgcos, wherein those unhappy slaves were assigned as the prize of the conqueror. The first who bore away -all the prizes was Taurus, of an insolent and tyiainncHldispos'tion, and par- ticularly severe to the Athenians delivered u^ to him ; which contributed not J. little to tiie fable. These wretches orrew old in servitude, and were obligee! to earn their living by the most painful drr.dgtry binder Taurus, the subject of Minos ; a ;d nay therefore with some propriety lie said to have been devoured by him. Bat Jt is. certain that theyneithei fought at the^e gamer, nor Were destroyed by the cruekj of a n ouster which never existed (&). Of the game stamp is the tale ol the Centaurs. The Thesealiai s pretty early distinguished themselves from t?ie re3t of Greece, who fought only on foot or in cha- riots, by their application to horsemanship. To acquire t :^.ore agility in this exercise, they were wont to f : . !. with bulls, whom they pierced with darts or jave- hr.s ; whence they obtained the name of Centaurs (9) and Kippocentaurs (Ij. As these horsemen became formidable by their depredations, the equivocation, which appeared in the rame, made them to be accounted nonstei->, compounded of two natures. The poets catehed at this idea, which gave the story the air of the marvellous ; and they who made oranges to pass tor gol- den (8) Abbe BanierV Mythology, vol. J. p J Co. (9) Fiom Kc.riM, to prick or lance, and T*v£«»- ; a bull. (Ij From Ix-rcg, an horse THE HEATHEN GODS. 1.53 den apples, shepherdesses for nymphs, shepherds in dis- guise tor satyrs, rvid ships with sails for winged dragons, would make no difficulty in calling horsemen Centaur* Ach'Mes was the offspring of a goddess. Thetis bore him to Peleusf 8 i, and was so fond of him, that she took herself the charge of his education. By day she fed him v. ith ambioMj, and by night covered him with celestial (ire, to render him immortal (4e). She also dipped him e waters of Styx, by which his whole body became Inefable, except that part of his heel by which she held bun. She afterwards entrusted him to the care of trie Ontuar Chiron, (the master of so many heroes) who fed him with honey and the marrow of lions and wild boars, to give him that strength and force necessary for martial toil. When the Greeks undertook the siege of Troy, Chalcas, the priest of Apollo, foretold the city could never be taken, unless Achilles was present. Tnetis, his mother, who knew what would be his fate if he went there, had concealed him in female disguise in the palace of Lycomedos, king of the isle of Scyros. Ulysses, who had engaged to bring him to the Greek camp, having discovered the place of his retreat, used the following artifice: under the appearance of a merchant, he is in- troduced to the daughters of Lycomedes, and whilethey were studiously intent on viewing his toys, Achilles em- ployed himself in examining an helmet and .some other armorr, which the cunning politician had purposely thrown in his way, Thus was Achilles prevailed on to go to Troy, after Thetis furnished him with a suit of im- penetrable armour made by Vulcan {5'. His actions before Troy, as well as his character, are so finely des- cribed by Komer, that it would be doing them injustice to repeat them here. It is sufficient to say he could net escape his fate, being treacherously killed by Paris (2 J Seethe Abbe Earner's Mythology, v ;1 3, p. 5^6. [3] Kit.g ofTheflaly (4) See the Aery of Triptoletmis, under the article of Ceres. Upon Peleus tfifenvcring thi% Tlrtti- parted from hirn. (5) The description of this, ihield in liomcr i> one of that poet's atuttcr-piects. 154 FA BIT LOUS HISTORY OF Paris '6}, who with an arrow wounded him in theory part that wa3 vulnerable* Toe Greeks, after the cap- tare of Troy, endeavoured to appe3se Ins manes, by sa- crificing Polyxena. The oracle at Dodona decreed him divine honours, and ordered annual victims to he offered ' at his tomb. 1 1 pursuance of this, the Thessalians brought, hithelr'yearly two bulls, one black, the white, crowned with wreaths of flowers, and water from the river Sperchius. C H A P. L. Of Cadmus, Eurofta, slmjth'ton, am! .-irion, /\GENOR, king of Phoenicia, by the nymph M;lia, had a d^agnter called Europ.i, one of the ptjgat beautiful . pnncesf.es ci her age* She onld hardly then be suppos- ed to ejoape the notice oi' Jupiter, whose gallantries ex- tended to all parts of the world. To seduce her, he i.-.>sum.'d the folia of a white bull, and appeared in the meads .vk, where she was walking wiln her attendants. Pleased w^h the beauty and gentleness of the animal!, •he ventured on his back, and immediately the god tri- umphmr. y bare her o'F to Crete \ 7 ) ; where, laying a:,ide hit disguiaef he made the bull a constellation in the Zo- tiiac,^ and, to honour his new metres?, gave her name to the fcurta part of the world. In the mean time A~e.yjr, disconsolate for his daugh- ter's loss, sent his sons Cadmus and Thaaus, different fleets* in search of her (8), Th.?.;us settled in an island of the iE;ea,i eea, to which he gaye hw name fDj. Csdmus en g of the Delphic orach for a settlement, was aos /ered, ch.it he should follow the diivction of a cow, aid build a city where she laid down. Arriving among the f he-censes, here o;.e of Pelagon's cg*vs me t him, arid conducted him through (6) The csG: was thus : Achilles enamoured with Pulysefta, " ■! her of Priam; v !.,-> con? ilted to die match. I In- uumiiU • " to be foiemnized i;i the temple of Auolio. where Paris had pV.vat< . i tied himfelf, an.'! THE HLArilliN G')DS. I & 7 C H A P. LI. 0/ iE;/«x -W Boretu. N th" multiplication of fabulous deities, thr and ina all the rest. This province was naturally assigned to that which was the most violent and uncontrollable itself. Tor this imaginary deity they bgfowed a name from the Phoenicians, and called him Mollis (7 J, the son of Jupiter, by Acasta or Sigesia, the daughter of Hippotus. He reigned in the Liparean isles, gpr Sici- ly, from whence perhaps the Fable took its ongfflal (8) but his residence was at Strongyle, now called Stroro- bolo (9). Here he held these unruly power* enchained in a vast cave, to prevent their committing the like de- vastation they had been guilty of before they were put under his direction (\). According to some authors, the TEolian or LipararaH isles were uninhabited, till Liparus, the son of Ausonis, settled a colony here, and gave one of them his name. Solus, the son of Hippotus, who married his dattgh- ttr, peopled the rest, and succeeded him in the throne. He ruled his subjects with equity and mildness, was a hospitable good prince, and being skilled in astronomy, by means of the reflux, of the tides which is remarkable near those islands, as well as by observing the nature o; the volcanos with which they abound, he was 2h;e to foretell the winds that should blow from such a gar- ter w . , . We are indebted to Virgil for a fir.- p > tical descrip- tion of this god, when Juno visits his cave to desireifcs assistance to destroy i-Kneas in his voyage to Italy. p Borear f-jj rYorn Aol or ATol, a ftorru, whirlpool or fttnpeft. (tj Thelc iflandt, being greatly fubb'S to win \i and ftdrwu.f (9) Famous for its volcano, though fume place his rciidencc it Reggie in Calabria (X) They had disjoined Italy Ernjn Sicily, ard by difnnUUW rope from Vlrica, opened a pafLgc for the ocean to forte the •• Uditerraeeaii lea -(i) It is raid taat before :. foutheriy wind blows, I/pra u covered with a thick cloud ; but when it changes to the uortky. *he volcano emits cl«ar flame, with a remarkable roilc. 15S VABULOUS HISTORY O Boreas was of uncertain parentage ; but his usual residence was in Thrace (3). When Xerxes, king of Persia, crossed the Hellespont with his numerous armada to invade Greece, the Athenians invoked his assistance, and he scattered and destroyed the greatest part of their fleet. This deity, notwith- standing his rage, was not inflexible to love. He de- bauched Chloris, the daughter of Arcturus, by whom he had Hyrpace, and carried her to mount Nipbates, (called the bed of Boreas) but since known by the name of Caucasus : but his favourite mistress wa» Orithya, the daughter of Erictheus, king of Athens. By this princess he had two sons, Zetes and Calais, who attended Jason in the Colchic expedition, deli- vered Phineus from the Harpies (1), and were after- wards killed by Hercules : as also four daughters, Upis, Laxo, Hecaerge, and Cleopatra. Perhaps the north wind, or Boreas alone, was deified, because, of the re- gular winds, it is the most tempestuous and raging that blows. CHAP. LII. Of Momus and Morpheus. iVl OMUS was the god of pleasantly and wit, or rather t '.■'•■ of the celestial assembly; for, like other great, monarchs, it was but reasonable that Jupiter should have his fool. We Lave an instance cf his sarcastic humour in the contest between Nep- tune, Minerva, and Vulcan, for skill. The first had made a bull; the second a hoiise ; and the third a man ; Momus found fault with thejm all ; he disliked the bull, because his hops were not placed before his eyes, that he migTit give a surer blow; he con- d mn^d Minerva's house, because, it whs immovea- ble, and so could not be takkn, away if placed in a bad h ] ProbuMy Kccjufc this country i»much fubject to \\.e cold ° U) Sqou fay out of enyy for their fwiftnefr; rttkef», b.cmfV ifctf futltT had bjy.a ttirifcfl defcroyed the iile cl Cos. THE HEATHEN GODS. 1-59 bod neighbourhood. With regard to Vulcan's ma^ he saM he ought to have made a window in his breast HeS 1 makes Momus (5) the son of Somnus and Nox Morpheus [6] was the god of dreams and he sor i o Somnus, whom 6vid calls the most p ^ d ^^ d ties. Mr. Addison observes, that he is still represented by he ancient statuaries under the figure of a boy asleep, vath a bundle of poppy in his hand : an d b^k marble, from the relation which it bears to night, has With great propriety been made use of. C H A P. LIU. Of Oricn. Til E origin, or birth of Orion, borders a little on the marvellous. Hyricus, a citizen of Tanagra, m Bee- ctia, was so hospitable to strangers, that Jupiter, Nep- tune, and Mercury, were resolved, under the -character of beni-hted travellers, to know the truth. Their en- tertainment was so agreeable, that, discovering their Quality, they offered the old man whatever he shouldask ; his request was a son [7], the gods to gratify his wish called for an ox hide, in which having deposited their urine, they bid him keep it under ground for ten months; at the expiration of which time he found it produced a boy, who was at first called Unon, to express his origin ; but after, for decency Sake, his name was changed to Orion. He was a remarkable hunter, and kept a fleet pack of hounds. Neptune gave him the power of walking on the surface of the waters, with the same sfceed that Ipiclus did [8] over the ears o. corn. 1 his faculty seemed needle,,, if it be true tnat Onon was so tall, that the deepest sea could not cover his p o shoulders, f 5 ] From M*;*®-, .cavi'ling or finding fault. (b) From M«?«, a form or vision. / 7 /His Wife havW left hun chiUMr, v,hom on her death- bed he pron.ifcd never to niarrs again. (8) Brother to.Herculc See the article of that god. 160 FABULOUS HISTORY OV shoulders. Asa proof of this he crossed frcm the con- tinent of Greece to the isle of Chios, where attempting to Vitiate iErcpe, the wife of kir.g Genopion, th.it mo- narch deprived him of bis eye-sight (9). From Chios ke proceeded and found his way to Lesbos, where Vul- •••... receiy* ! him kindly, and gave him a guide to the palace of the sun, who restored him to sight. He then made war on Genopion, who concealed himself under ground to escape his vengeance ; so that frustrated of his design he went td Crete, where he pursued his favou- rite exercjise of hunting. But having by some means Offended Diana ( ] ), that goddess put him to death (2 ) ; but afterwards relenting^ prevailed on Jupiter to raise skies, where iie forms a constellation (3), re- ••■ dieting raiti aad tempestuous weather. CHAT. LIV. 0/ the Marine Deities, Oceanus, Nerevs, Triton, Iacj Palemon, and Glaucus. A . S the ancient theogany took care to people the heavens and air with deities, so the sea naturally came in for its share, nor was it just to leave the extended realms of water without protection and guardianship. Neptune, though monarch of the deeps, could not he present every where, and it was proper to assign him deputies, who might relieve him of some part of the ■veight of government. Nereus, son of Oceanus, settled himself in the jfigean sea, and was regarded as a prophet. He had fhe faculty of assuming what form he pleased. By his [9] His purfnit of the Plciudci has been mentioned under the irticle of Atlas. (i ) Either for attempting her chiflity, or for boafting hii fu- pefior fkill in the chace ; others lay, for endeavouring to de- bauch Opis, one of her nymphs. (2) Either by her arrows, «r, as others fay, raifing a fcorpion, which gave him a moful wound- (3) Virgil calls it Nimhofus Orion, on account of the (howeri which attend hii rifuig. TErieid I. 535. Lib. IV. ,53. THE HEATHEN GODS. 161 his wife Doris he had fifty nymphs, palkd Nereids (t) who constantly attended on Neptune, and when he went abroad surrounded his chariot. _ Triton was the son of Neptune and Amphitnte (5J, and was his father's herald. He sometimes delighted in mischief, for he carried off the cattle from the lana- cn-ian fields, and destroyed the small coasting vessels ; so that to appease his resentment, those people ohered him libations of new wine. Of this he drank so freely that he fell asleep, and tumbling from an eminence, one ot the natives cut off his head. He left a daughter called Tristia, by whom Mars had a son named Menalippus. This god is represented of a human form from the waist upwards, with blue eyes, a large mouth, and hair matted like wild parsley. His shoulders were eovered with a purple skin, variegated with small scales, his ieet resembling the fore feet of a horse, and his lower parts turned like a dolphin with a forked tail. Sometimes he is drawn in a car with horses of a sky colour. His trum- pet is a larae conch, or sea shell. Ovid (6) has given two very beautiful descriptions of him. There were w- deed many Tritons, who composed the numerous equi- page of Neptune, and were reckoned as deities propi- tious to navigation. Ino was the daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia, and married to Athamas king of Thebes. This prince hav- ing the misfortune to lose his senses, killed his son Lear- chus in one of his mad fits, upon which his queen, to save Melicertes, her remaining boy, leaped with him from the rock Molyris into the sea. Neptune received them with open arms, and gave them a place amongst the marine gods, only changing their names. Ino being called Leucothea, and Melicertes, Palemon (7); iov this we are indebted to the fertile invention of the p 3 Greeks, (4) By which are meant the rivers which empty themfelve» in the ocean. (5) Seme fay of Neptune and Cxleno, other* of Nereus or Oceanus. (6)0*id. Met. Lib. I. (1) The Romans called him Portunus; and painted him with a kay in his hand, to denote him a guardian of harbours, lo Ino they gave the name of Matwu, being reputed the goddsf* that viber* in the morning. 162 FABULOUS HISTORY OF Greeks, Melicertes being no other than Melcarthus or Hercules of Tyre, who, from having being drowned ia it, was called a god of the sea, and from his many voy- ages the guardian of harbours. Glaucus was a fisherman, whose deification happened in a comical manner. His parentage and country (8) a> variously reported ; but he was an excellent swimmer, and a skilful fisherman. Having one day taken a large draught in his nets, he observed with surprize, that the fishes, on tasting acertain hcrh, jumped into the sea again. Upon trying the experiment upon himself, he followed them, and became a sea god. Some ascribe to Glaucus the o-ift of prophecy. Ovid has not foigot his trans- formation amongst his metamorphoses (9). Virgil h:\% given an elegant list of the sea deities in his fifth jEiieid (1). CHAP. LV. 6/ Proleus and Fhorrys, iv'ith the Graa and G-rgons. ScyUa and Charybdis. \ ROTEUS, the son of Neptune, by the nymph Phaenice, was by his father appointed keeper of the Pho- rx, cr sea-calves. His residence was at Alexandria, in Egypt, from whence in a journey he made to Phlegra ( 2), he married the nymph Torone, who bore him Tmolous ?nd Telegonus, both killed by Hercules for their cruelty to strangers. Their father Proteus, who left them on acCOttnt of their inhospitable temper, it is said was not much concerned at their death. By Torone he .!- ad also three daughter?, Cabera, Ratio, and Idothea. Proteus had the art of assuming all forms [3] ; as also the ?ift of prophecy or divination : Orpheus calls him the universe principle of nature. Historians '(%) Rome make him the fon of Mercury, others of Neptune, ©titers of Anthadon ; on account of his (kill m fwimmirig he was calied Pontic. (9) 0vi « ' ;b XMI - 8 99- (1) JEnrid, Lib. V. %l%. (1) A iown in Camping (V '., <. . jb. VIII- ;;c. THE HEATHEN COD?. 163 Historians make Proteus king of Carpsthus (*•), who, on account of his great character fop m isdom and equity, was chosen king of Egypt, and deified after his death. According to Herodotus, Paris and Helena, in their flight from Sparta, were received at his court, where Helen continued all the time of the Trojaa siege, after which he restored her honourably to Menelaus. Proteus is usually represented in a chariot drawn by horses, in the form of Tritons. His half brother Phorcys, or Phorcus, was the son of Neptune, by the nymph Thesea [5] He married hii •ister Ceto, bv whom he had the Phorcydes and Gor- gon s, Thoosa [H] and Scylla. He was vanquished by Atl.ts, who threw him into the sea, where his father raised him to the rank of a sea god. The Gordons Were in all four sisters, of whom Medu- sa was the chief. They had hair like snakes, tusks like wild boars, brazen hands and golden wings. On the death of their sister, they pursued Perseus, who saved himself by putting on the helmet lent him by Pluto, and which rendered him invisible. The Gneae were their sisters, and are represented z% three old women, who lived in Scythia, and had but one eve and tooth in common amongst them, which they used as they had occasion, and afterwards laid up in a coffer. For the preservation of this valuable legend we are indebted to Palaephatus. Scylla [7], another daughter of Phorcys, by her fa- miliarityr with Glaucus- excited the jealousy of Circe, daughter of the San, who by magic spells, or poison, jio infected the fountain in which she bathed, that she be- came a monster [S], upon which, through despair at the loss of her beauty, she threw herself into the sea, and was (a, I An Jlland in the iEgean f.a, between Rhodes and Crete row Scarp3nto. (t ) Others caM him the fon of Pqntosand Terra. (6) By whom Neptune had the Cyc'oos F< ■■yphemus. (7) Some make her the daughter of Pronfs and Hecate, and' fay that her mis-fort nne was owing to the jealoufy of Amphitryte, for her cohabiting with. Neptune, f? x Author* disagree as to her firm; fpmefayfhe retained her beauty from the neck downwards; buthad fix dftgs heads ; others naintani 1Gb fABULOUS HISTORY OF veaa changed into a rock (9), whxh became infamous for the multitude of shipwrecks it occasioned. Those who would see a beautiful description of Scylla will find it in Vinnl { 1 ). Care must be taken not to confound this Scylla with another of the same name, and daughter of Nisus, king of Megara. Minos had besieged this monarch in his capitah but the oracle hud pronounced Nisus invincible, while he preserved a purple lock of hair which grew on his head. S -jylla, who was secretly in love with Minos, betrayed both her father and Country into his hands, by cutting off the lock ; but the conqueror, detesting her treachery,, banished her his sight. Unable to bear the treatment she so justly merited, she cast herself into the sea, and was changed into a lark (2). Her father, trans- formed into a hawk, still pursues her for her ingratitude and perfidy. Charybdis was a female robber, who, it is said, stole Herculcs's oxen, and was by Jupiter, on that account, changed into a whirlpool [3], which is very dangerous to sailors, and lying opposite to the rock Scylla, occa- sioned the proverb of running into one danger to avoid another [4]. CHAP. LV1. Of Pan and Fdunus ; of the Nj/m/i/ts, and the God- desses Feronia and Pahs. £T is now time to revisit the earth again, and see the numerous train of inferior deities, appropriated to the- maintain, that her upper parts continued entire, but that (he had below the body of a wolf, and the tail of a ferpent. (c) It lies between Sicily and Italy, and the noife of the waves beatiftg on it gave rife to the fable of the barking of dogs and howling of w.ilvcs, afcribed to the monlter. (I) Virgil make* her changed to a rock, which confound* ker with the other Scylla. JEneid, Lit). III. 414. (Xj Ovid, Lib. V1!I. 14*- ({) An eddy, or whirpool, on the coaft of Sicily, as you «n« \k.t tie fuii of VivfTina. See Virgil, JEneid III. 410. (4 , Intidii in Scyllam qui wit vitart Charybdim. THli lU'ATHfcN GOBii. 165 ihe forest., woods, a»d those recesses of nature whMB prospect fills the imagination witb a bjao] i upon as the symbol of nature. His hoi t te n ytholugiste) re- present tii i iy&of the sun ; arj 1 r'ie vivacity and ruddi- ness of his complexiois , ess oi ttrc heavens ; the star on his breastj the fids tor being drunk, and then made her a jjoddtis: for which r~afon no myrtle was un.d in her tem- ples ; the Yeftels were covered, ami the wine ofLrtd was called ftulk. 103 FABULOUS HISTORY OF Oredea%j or Oresteadea, presided over the mountains (4). Of these Diana had a thousand ready to attend her at her pleasure. It is said, they firet reclaimed men from eating or devouring each other, and taught the use of vegetable food. Melissa, one of these, was the first in- ventrcss of honey (5). The Napex were the tutelar guardians of vallies and flowery meads.' The Dryades inhabited the forests and woods, residing in their parti- cular trees, with which tiiey were thought to be coeval, as several instances prove (6). The oak was generally their choice, either from its strength or duration. Some were called Hamadryades, whose existence was insepara- bly united to that of the tree they animated. The Nai- ades were the nymphs of brooks and rivers; the Limni- ades frequented the lakes, and the Ephydriades delight- ed in springs and fountains. Thus all the face of nature became enlivened by the force of imagination, and the poets did not fail to improve so ample a field for descrip- tion. The mycologists destroy all this fate landscape, by making the nymphs only signify the universal mois- ture which is diffused through all nature. There were also celestial nymphs of a higher rank, who attended the Dii Majores. Jupiter boasts of his in Ovid (7). The Muses were the nymphs or attendants of Apollo, as the Bassorides, or Maenades, Lvlonged to Bacchus. Juno had fourteen who waited on her (8) nersoir; and Neptune had no less than fifty Nereids at his beck, on which account he was called Nymphagater, or the captain of the Nymphs [9] , The usual sacrifices to these deities were goats ; but mere commonly milk, oil, honey, and wine. The nvmphs were always young and beautiful vyrgins, and dressed hi Buch a manner as was suitable to the character ascribed to them. -. m To the. tram of Pan we may join two rural goddesses, of whom the first is Feronia, or the goddess of woods and orchards. (>\ Some make them five only, ard call them the daughters ■fHecatau*; bjit Homsrtftilcs them the offspring of Jupiter. ft I V. i ence tl e bees ?re called Mcliffx. fit ArcAS-prefcrving » decayed©**, by water ing the roott, Cj Ovid Met lib- 1, (8)Vtffc»l ^»«d ..75. fa) Uc tieaod and P. ; n lar. \ THE HEATlIfcN GODS. 169 orchards (\). The Laced .cmonians fust introduced her worship into Italy under Evander, and built her a tem- ple in a ;{rove near mount Soracte. This edifice being «et on fir?-, and extinguished, the neighbours resolved to remove her statue, when the grove became green again cf a sudden (*- ; ). Strabo tells us, that bee priests or vota- ries could walk barefoot over burning cods unhurt. Slaves received the cap of liberty in her temple, o» which account they regarded her as their patroness. Pales was the protecting deity of shepherds and pastu- rage. Her festival was observed by thefcouiury people in May, in the open fields, and the offerings wert milk, and cakes of millet, in order to defend their flocks from wild beasts and infectious diseases. These feasts were called PaWia. Some make Falcs the same with Vesta or Cybele. This goddess is represented as an old woman. Both these deities were peculiar to the Romans, and wholly uuknowu in Greece. CHAP. LVIT. Of Priapus and Terminus. I RTAPUS was, as the generality of author* agree, the son of Bacchus and Venus (3). This goddess meet- ing him in his return from his Indian expedition, their amorous congress produced this child, who was born at Lampsacus (4), but so deformed, that his mother, ashamed of him, abandoned him (5). Being grown up, the inhabitants of that place banished him their territo- ry, on account of his vices ; but being visited with an epidemical disease, upon'coniultinjf the oracle of Do- Q dona, (\ ) From Fero, to bet r or produce. (i) this mir.iclc i» ^Iciibed to other deities. (3) Some in.vke him the (on of 'iacchus and Nai» ; others tef Chione u*« his mother. r 4| A city'of Myfia at the mcu»h of t'^e Hellefpont. [5] Some J > that Tuno being called to affift at the labour, out ©f hatred to Bacchu^ the lou of her ri»al oemele, fpoilt tkw in* feat m thebkth. 170 FABULOUS HISTORY or dona, he was recalled [(>]. And temples were erected to him as the tutelar deity of vineyards and gardens, to defend them from thieves and birds destructive to the Priapufl had several names. He was called Avistupor, for the reason just mentioned. The title of Hellespon- tiacus was given him, because Lampsacus was seated on that 8treight orarmof the sea. It is uncertain how he came by the epithet of Bonus Deus, ascribed to him by Phur- nutius. Those of Phallus and Fascinum were assigned him on a very obscene account, and indeed his whole figure conveyed such an idea of ugliness and lewdness, that the poets generally treat him with great con- tempt [7]. The sacrifice offered him was the ass, either because of the natural uncomliness of that animal, and its strong propensity to venery, or because, as some say, Priapus attempting the chastity of Vesta when asleep, she was awakened by the braying of old Silenus's ass, and so escaped the injury designed her. This deity is usually represented naked and obscene, with a stern countenance, matted hair, and carrying a wooden sword [8] or sickle in his hand. His body end- ed in a shapeless trunk or block of timber. Some of the mythologies make his birth allude to that radical moisture, which supports all vegetable produc- tions, and which is produced by Bacchus and Venus, that is, the solar heat, and the water, or liquid matter, whence Venus is said to spring. The worship of this in- famous deity was taken from the Syrians of Lampsacus. With Priapus we may associate Terminus, a very an- cient deity amongst the Romans, whose worship was first instituted by Numa Pompilius, who erected him a tem- ple on the Tarpeian H.ll [91- Thi sdeity was thought to preside over the stones or landmarks, called Tennu.i, which were held 80 sacred, that it was sacrilege to more them, and the criminal becoming devoted to the gods, it was lawful for any man to kill him?. I fat (6) Other, fay, that the #on«.; »f L.mpfacus prevailed or »fc»ir hu&iiu'* to tecall hung ., •_ ___ 7$) Ho£t utyr VIII. (*>?*& Georg.lY. (,) V* hich w«« ortn a tcf . THR HEATHEN OODS. 171 The feasts called Terminafia were celebrated annu- about the end of February, when the ancient Ter- mini, or landmarks, were carefully visited and crowned with garlands. At first the sacrifices to these rural dei- ties were very simple, such as wheat cakes, and the first fruits of the field, with milk [1] ; but in later time* the victims were lambs, and sow;; that gave buck, whose blood was sprinkled upon the stones. The Roman Termini were square stones, or post6, much resembling our mile stones [2], CHAP. LVTIL Of FLra. A HE poets make this goddess the same with Chloria, the wife of Zephyrus [81, mentioned by Ovid ; but the historians agree that she was a celebrated Roman courte- xan, who having amassed a considerable fortune by her profession, made the Roman people her heirs, on condi- tion that certain games, called Fioralia, might be annu- ally celebrated en her birth-day. The senate, to give a. gloss to so infamous a prostitution of religion, pretended this festival was designed in honour of Flora, a certain Sabine goddess who presided over flowers. These spoits were held in the Ciunpus Martius, and proclaimed by sound of trumpet. No women appeared at them, but the most immodest of the sex [4]. Yet when Cato, du- ring his censorship, came to behold them, they suspended the ceremonies through shame, till he thought fit to with- draw ; such an influence had the virtue of one man over a corrupt and dissolute multitude. Flora's image, in the temple of Castor and Pollux, w?.s dressed in a close habit, holding in her hands tne flowers .) r peans and beans ; for, at the celebration of her rit-^s, the sediles scattered these and other pulse amongst the people [.5j. The modern poets and painters have set O 2 off (l) Tq fhew that «o force or violence fnould be ufed infettiing mutual boundar (%) O lib H. ($) Ovid I . (4J Juvenal, lit. VI. 5 See Valerius Mavimus, lib. I . 112 FABULOUS HISTORY OF off her charms in a more lavish manner, and not without reason, since no part of nature affords such innocent aid exquisite entertainment to the sight and smell, as the wariety which adorr.s, and the colours which embalm thd fr«ral world. C. Cf Pomona and Vtrlumtius. i HE goddess Pomona wr.s a Latian.nymph, whora phat nation honoured' at a tutelar deity of orchards *ml ir.iit-trees. Vertumnus (the Proteus of the Roman ri- tual) [61 was the god of tradesmen, and, from the pow- er he had of assuming any s v .opc, vrn* believed to pr-^'r :vcr the thoughts of mankiad. His festivals, called Yertummdia, were celebrated i:> October. Vertumrus's courtship makes one of the most elegant and entertaining stories in Ovid [7]. Under the disgu ire oi an old woman he visited the gardens of Pomona, ■*-hom he found employed in looking after her planta- tions. He artfully praises the beauty of her fruit, and commends the care which produced it. Thence from the *iew of the vine, supported by the elm, he insinuates to her the necessity and pleasure of a married life. The goddess heard all this eloquence with an indifferent ear. Her heart remained untouched, till, throwing off his disgbise, the god assumed his youthful beauty, and by his form gained the goddess's consent. Some imagine Vertnmrus an emblem of the year, which though it assumes different dresses, according to the different seasons, is at no time so agreeable as in au- tumn, when the harvest is crowned, and the richest fruits appear in their full perfection and lustre. The historians say, that this god was an ancient Tuscan prince, who first taught his subjects to plant orchards, and to graft and prune fruit trees ; whence he is said to have married Pomona. Both these deities were unknown to the Greeks, and •nly honoured by the Romans. „ y ? CHAP. (6) B«vjfeof the turns prfluduanoni to which tiadc is fub ■ (?)o*;j, i;b. xiv. 622. /V; /'/;■: I THE HEATHEN GODS. 17:> C II A P. LX. Of the Lares. J HE Lares wre tlie offspring of Mercury. Tl>e nymph Lara having offended Jupiter, by disclosing some of hia intrigues to Juno, that deity ordered her tongue to be cut out, and banished her to the infernal mansion*. Mercury, who was appointed to conduct her into exile, ravished her by the way, and she brought forth the Lares [8"|. These deities not only presided over the highways, and the conservation of tlie public safety, but also over private houses, in most of which the Romans had a par- ticular place called Lararium, where were deposited the images of their domestic gods, the statues of their domes- tic ancestors, and the Lares. Their festival, called Compitalia, was celebrated in January, in the open streets and roads. At first boys were sacrificed to them, but that savage custom was soon disused, and images of wool and straw [J)], with the first fruits of the earth, wine, incense, and garlands of flow- ers, were the offerings. When the Roman youth laid aside the bulla, an ornament they constantly wore [1] till fourteen years of age, they consecrated or hung it up to the Lares, who were regarded as infernal as well a* domestic deities. The ancients supposed, according to some autbovsv that the souls of men after death became a kind of de- mons, called Lemures ['i]. These they subdivided into two classes, the one benevolent and friendly to mankind, which they termed Lares ; the other, who being wicked during life, retained a malicious disposition in their dis- embodied state, they stiled Larva?. The Lares were represented as voung bovs with dogs •kins about their bodies (2, ), and with their heads co- Q 3 wred /'8;ovi,jr : r.i;h. v. (<)) I hey hung up as many images as there w.-r rtr.-r.j of s.11 fcitsand a^enin the family, and a wooili n ball forever yferval t. (i) 1 he bulla was a gciotn ornament ihaped like a heart, buc hollow. (i) So called, from Remus, brother of Romulus, vrhofe ghoft Munrtdhis brother. The Lamuralia was celebrated in therm. d\c of May, daring which ic~.vas unlawful to marry. {$) Some i*y the in**gc» were Lktdujfs, ]74 TABUI.OUS HISTORY ©F voieil, which was a sign of that freedom and liberty which men ought to enjoy in their own houses. They had always the image of a dog near them, to denote their fidelity in preserving the places allotted to their charge, en. which aoiM.it this animal was peculiarly consecrated to them. Some confound these with the Penates and Genii. new CHAP. LXI. Of the Penates. HE Penates [4] were the deities who presided over , born infants. The ancient Hetrusci called them Consentes, or Complices, though others make of them four of the Dii Majorcs [5]. But there were three classes or ranks of them : those who presided oyer em- pires and states [6] ; who had the protection of cities ; who took the care or guardianship of private families, and were called the lesser Penates (1 • The domestic gods were placed in the utmost recess of the house, thence called Pcnetrale (3). Dardanus brought thorn from Samothracia to Troy, whence, on the destruction of that city, Mae&s transported them t 9 Italy. Th^y were reckoned so sacred, that the expres- sion of driving a man from his Penates [9], was used to ■ijrnify his beln- proscribed, or expelled his country. Dionyshw of Halicamassift, lib. 1, says, that he had seen them at , under the figure of two young men suth.g, with spfesrs in their hands. C HAP. U] So called, from Pern,*, •idto', cither becaufc they prefid. over U.. or were placed in the M ^A*^ *£■ [*, Viz. Jupiter, Juno, ^^^g VdUs others D uke them only t«. N eptun J (9 J VugU, JEncidlV,*!. THE HEATHEN GODS. 175 CHAP. LXII. Of the Genii. ijOME do not distinguish between tliese and the Pe- nates, or Lares ; but they were very different. The ancients assigned to every thing its guardian or peculiar genius ; cities, groves, fountains, hills, were all provi- ded with keepers of this kind, and to each man they ate lotted n0 ^ ess than two, one good, tlrj other bad [I], who attended him from the cradle to the grave. The Greeks' called them Dxraons. They were named Prxo- tites, from their superintending human affairs. The sacrifices offered these divinities were wine £2] and flowers, to which they joined incense, pare! 1 xvb at, and salt. Sonitthn-s the victim was a swine [.:], tho* animal ■ not usual to them. The Genii wen- r > such as thos:? of boys, girls, old men, and eve serpentSi These images were crowned with plane-tree leaves, a tree consecrated to the Genii. rage 87, of whose caduceus these are the attributes, and'on his head a cre- scent, with the sun over that. By the small hi^ro-ly. phic characters near the Isis, she is said to be Tht si -it tfthe- world, jtenetrating all things with the cm of Divine Providence f and the bond of the sup.no/and ir^rlor worlds. J Exfilanatien of the Plat; of Osiris. 0*J RIS ™ re P resented » a ^d here on a tesaehted ^ throne, toexpress dominion and vicissitude of davar.d ntn-V. i ISO FABULOUS HISTORY OF night, which depend upon him. He hw thfl head i»f as hawk, a bird, from his strength of vision, by winch he is slid' to look steady on the meridian sun, frequently depicted for the symbol of the solar orb. He is crowned with a mitre, Full of small orbs, to imitate his supen- ority over all the globef* The gourd upon the mitre implies his action and influence upon moisture, which, jind the Nile particularly, was termed by the Egyptian* '♦he efflux of Osiris. The lower part of his habit is made up of descending rava, and bis body is surrounded with orbs His rio-ht hand is extended in a commanding at- titudc and his left holds a thyrsis or staff of the papyrus, pointing out the principle of humidity, and the fertility thence flowing, under his direction. Explanation of the Figure of Orus. THE TvrureofOruft, which is the emblem of the so- kr efflux, is juvenilis perpetually renewed and re. aewing youth and vigour. He stands, to denote the un- abated activity of light, and is habited in a sort of net- work, composed of globules of light pushing ***** acting each other every way. I le Holds a staff crosse d. ^pressui" his power in the four elements; and on it the head of the hoop, a transient bird, to represent the con- tinial change of things which he produces by those ele- men This staff, the symbol of his rule, i. further adorned with a gnomon and trumpet, «*£**"»* and symmetry, harmony and order At hi. > back . a Wangle with a globe fixed to it ; shewing the regular Ung\fthe world to depend upon him. The side. of the porta!, which he stands in, are decorated with the !££l bodies, and orvthe top of it is the circle : Wgfc expanded wings. The hieroglyphics, engraven on the baK, call him, The Parent of vegetable Nature ; the bZJL of Mature: Protector of the Ntk ; Avert* ./£■(, „^u, **&*//««» >■<■ IlHK HI-ATHEN GOD* 18f C H A P. LXIV. Of the Cabin, < ' AjOCH ART says, that the Cabiri were the Gods of the Phoenicians, and observes justly thatCabir signifies, both in the Hebrew a;;d Arabic tongue, Great or Miki- ty ; so that Cabira, in the plural, ' are The Gf.eat or" Mighty Ones. He that ministered in holy things vent by the appellation of Cohes, a manifest corruption of the Hebrew Cohen, prisst or intercessor. They are spoken of by the names of Axiero?, Ax'.o- chersosand Axiochersa; as three distinct persons : and in them our author thinks that he has found Ceres, Proser- pine and Pluto: the Abbe Pluche, Osiris, Oris, and Isis: others, jUpiwTj Ceres, and Bacchus. To these, the Scholiast upon Apollonius has added a fourth, Casmilus* or Cadmilus ; the same says he, is Hermes, or Mercury, whom Varro declares to be only a minister attendant o.i ■ the Cabiri. Several authors have confined the appellation of Ca- biri to Jupiter, Minerva, and Jur.o. Nor is it at all im- probable that these should have been so called in aft t age?, viu.ii the world in general had forsaken the wor- sh.p of the Creator for that of the creature, and under- stood by these terms those things which must indeed be ■x i the most proper ai.d significant emblems of the vine personalities (2 ) ; the solatr fire being meant by , T i'pitev.(3 , : by Minerva, darting from the head of hi i, Hie light thence springing ; and by Juno, theret' er ("n- cluding tlie air)-, the natural P'p:\sentative of the >°.\- CR£D Spirit. These are indeed the same with the Egyptian Osiris, Orus, aid It's. But in earlier times it was Judged an act of irreverence to pronounce their names ; which was the case of the tetniganimaton with the Jews. Tney were llwrefone 9! ly spoken of by the general denomination of Djosco- uroi, or sprung from Jove ; a title afterwards conferred upon Castor and Polijx. R E/< {l) Sic Ucttlints net e Dsos, qu-i erJrus /E'.tr Occutk W.tlUur pro Jove forma J.ovw ^ Ov:». f$j Macron, i. i c. iy i'ijiv in ri-t-d. 3^ *&*$ Sti. 182 FABULOUS HISTORY OF Even children tiated into these mysteries, and thought by their parents to be afterwards secure trom danoers of any kind. Such as were permitted to par- take of the ceremonies, were wor* to assemble in a wood or -rove, which was held sacred and became a sanctuary. By the initiation men were believed to become more holy, just and pure ; and it is said that none ever duly performed the ceivmouies, without being amply reward- ed for hi* piety.' ._ ' \ ,, „„ A 5 to wWh said of a man's being, sacrificed in these mysteries upon some extraordinary occasion, I cannot , to be well grounded. Julius Firmicus .... lXm ,.,, Calm were three brothers, one of other two, and then deified; and k§ of & y, Q .-, ^holding up their WoQdy hands to-: i? which. may refer cithc-i to ,,.],;,. brdedinthc blood of the ordinary Like lispoVition of ^ that conquer- ,;.• B«t,i£ the tluHgljBftct.lt ro.n an assurance that:roch a .ao» fi(< j .promot. i be happiness of mankind. C H a r. LXV. to t/ictr Defease, T Tv j'iini almoil enule Mo enter into a mi- „,*. datalUf the infiirioi ' acknowled ,'1 by the Gt • nd R ■ ' name6ofthese.v )S ,onarybe. ,., 0l ,„, so seldom in the cW^uthors, that it is ,. : ■ barely to npl their d tutelary ;"%$* p;1 • , afld phe goddesses l,umdoi,ra (6), - . i«hi« v » .i'f- 'l- I »ding opinion, of the ' 5ri , ti(h ....... , ,,„„, CxCCooun. l.«, c -,.,,, pi-.iim. apeftte, or from Pello, to Jrive away, b-; . J^^vhahaichetco no k< :^.;3. THE HEATHEN GODS. 1S3 and Deverra ( 7 ) . The signification of these names se< ins to point out the necessity of warmth and clt.aiJn.eho to persons. in this condition. Besides the superior goddesses Jiino-Lycina, Diana, Ilythia, and Latooa, who ail presided at the Girth, there were the goddesses Egeria (8), Prosa (9). and Mana- geneta (1), who with the Dii Nixii (/_, had lit the care of women in labour. To children, Janus performed the office of door-kerj - er or midwife, and in this quality was assisted by the goddess Opis, or Ops 3) ; Guoia rocked the cradle, while Carmenta sung their dec-tiny ; Levana lifted them from the ground ( t , , and Vegitanus took care of tl • m when they cried; Rumina (J) watched tberfl while they lucked ; Potina furnished them with drink, and Edaca with food or nourishment ; Ossilago knit their bones, and Carna (6) strengthened their constitutions j Nuri- dina (7) was the g*w]drr,3 of children's pur ; :;- ;atioil i StatillvtUS, or StJtfaniis, instructed them to walk, and kept them from falling ; Fabuliftus learnt them to prat- tle ; the goddess Patentia preserved them h era fright* (8), and Camaena learnt then to sing. Nor was the infant, when grown" to riper years, 1. ft without his protectors ; Juventaswas the god of. youth ; Agenoria excited men to action ; and the goddes'ses Si- mula and Strenua inspired courage a.id vivacity; Horta (9) inspired the love of fame or glory ; and Sentia R 2 gave (7) The inv!itr**s ofhroonw. (8) From casting ou. th« birth. (<}) Aulas Gelbus, tl.ap. xix (\j yEhan. (ij Frew liniter, to ftrugjjle. See Aiii'mins, '-civil, xi (},) Some make her dhe -. h Rhea or V-. r .. (i,) Ahiongit the Romans the mid'WHe always laid the child on the ground, ;nd the father, or feme body he appointed, lifted it up; hence the exprtfEwn ot' Tolltre Liberos, to e<;urai«; chih ren. ( *> } lne geddefs had a temple at Rome, and her offerings were milk. (6) On the kalends of J'.ne sacrificfs were offw.-d to Can of bacon and bean-flour cakes; whence they »trc called ! o- barix. % (■j) Boys were named always on the 9th day after their birth girU on the 8th. fi) From Pavorema wrtindo. (S) She had a temple at Rottw, which always flood open. .154 FABULOUS HISTORY OF gave them the sentiments of probity and justice ; Qirtes was the goddess cf repose or ease ( t ) ; and Idolena, or laziness,, was deified by the name cf Murcia (2 ; Vacuna Detected the idle ; Adeona and Abeona secured people roing abroad ai.d returning ( 3) ; and Vibilia, if they dtred, was sq kind as to put them in the right way in j Fessohia refreshed the weary and fatigued ; and V farina healed the sickly (4-) ; Vitula was the patso- ? ess cf mirth and frclic (5)'} Volupia, the goddess who . Lcstowed pleasure (6) ; Oibon? was addressed, that pa- tents may not loose their offspring; Pellonia averted liuBchiefs I and dangers-; and Numeria taught people to t ast and keep accounts ; Angerona (7 ) cured the anguish t r sorrows of the mind : Haeres-Martia secured heirs to the estati t; they expected ; and Stata, or Stajua Mater, secured the forum or market-place frcm fire ; even the thieves had a protectress in Lav.r ta (3) ; Averrunctis prevented sudden Misfortunes ; and Cousus was always disposed to give good adviee.to such as wanted it ; Vo- br.mus inspired men with a disposition to do well; and Hpuorus rajseti them to preferment and honours. |7ur was the marriage-state without its peculiar defen- ders'. Five deities were esteemed so necessary, that no marriages were solemnized without asking their favours; these were Jupiter-perfectus, or the Adult, Juno, Venus, Soadela (9), and Diana. Jugatinus tied the nuptial knot ; Domiducus ushered the bride home ; Domitius took care to keep her there, and prevented her gadding ab.oad; Man- turna (\) She had 3 temple without the walls. (i) Murcia had her temple on mount Aventioe. (i,) From Abeo to go away, and -Vdro to come. (4) The fefHyal of this god. lei's v as in September, when tfce Romans ('rank new wine mixed with oil by way of phyfic, ( c,) From Vimlo, to leap or dance. (i>) From Yoluptus (~ ( ) In a great murrain which deflrnyed thuir cattle, the Ro- ma-is invoked this goddefs, and frit removed the plague, (Z) 'The image was a head without a body. Horace men- tion* her, )jb. l! epift. XVI. 6o. fhe had a temple without the walls, which gave the name to the Porto I.avernalis. ( whose temple at Rome the undertakers furnished with all the necessaries for the interment of the poor or rich ; all dead bodies were carried through the Porto Libitina, and the Rati ones Libitinee, mentioned by Suetonius, very nearly answer our bills of mortality. R 3 C H A P. (l) She was alio called Cinxia Juno. (%) From FebrucL to pur^e ft) She wasjii d.'i Sabine deity. Some make heir the fame with Ceres; _ but Varro imagines her to he the goddefs of vic- tory, the iruits of winch are eafe and repose. (\) Horace, Lib. I. ITpiit. 10,49. I 5; Ovid Faft. Lib. Vl. (it) From this distribution afofe, perhaps, the fchemr of OOC modern attrologers, v ho a(Ti ^n the different parts oi' the bq ly to the celeftial conftellations, or figns of the Zodiac; as the head to Aries, the neck to Taurus, the flibuWeYstb tjemini, th* heart to Cancer, the bread to Le0, the belly to Virjjo., the die fecretsto Scorpio, the thighs t« Sagittarius, nets to Capricorn,, the legs. to Aquarius, and the leet to Pifecs. (-,) Some confound thij goddefi with. Profecpibe, others vith Venus. 286 JAJULOUS HISTORY OF CHAP. LXVI. Of the inferior Rural Denies. rn , . X HE Romans were not content with the great variety of gods, which filled their ritual. They were daily in- venting new deities of an inferior order, to answer the demands of superstition, and increase the kalendar. Rusina thus became the name of a goddess, who presided over the country in general. Collina had the charge of the hills, aad Valrbna the inspection of "the vaHies ; Hipponawas the guardian of stables and horses; and BubonatooK care oi oxen ; Seia, or Segetia, watched the seed till it sprouted; and P^uncina weeded the young #orn ; Sarritor was the god of sowing, and Occator of harrowing • Robiguskept the blights of mildew away |8)j -Stewfu'tins manured or dunged the ground; No- dotus, or Nodo&lfe, took care to strengthen or knit the stalks of the corn ; Volusia watched the blade ; Patehna uafoldrd the ear; Lactucina filled it; and Matura brought it to due ripeness ; Kestilina produced a plen- tiful cropland Tutelina took cure to reap and get it safe in ; Piliinntu kneaded the bread ; and Fornax baked it, (9); Mellona was the goddess of honey; but the truth is, these fanciful deities are so little mentioned in authors, that we may call them the refuse or scumot the gods. C II A P. LXVII. Of Themis, Astren, and Nemesis. THEMIS was the daughter of Cjelum and Terra, and the goddess of laws, ceremonies, and oracles. Jupiter consulted her m the giants' war, and after- ward* espoused her ; she instructed Deucalion how to reJjeople the world after the deluge, and was rather indeed a moral than a historical deity, as she ,a " sigiuiitt (« ; Hi* fofthnUrfW Robig^lia, was celebrated in »h«b<- .{9) Ov*J t'etti. lab.VU THE KFATHEN CODS. ' v 1 J7 signifies that power which reward? virtue und punishes vied To Jupiter, Themis, besides a numerous offspring, already spoken of, bore the goddess Astnea, who jvsided on earth during the golden age, and inspired mankind with the principles of justice and equity ; but as the world grew corrupted she returned to heaves ( 1 ), and became that constellation in the Zodiac which is called Virgo. This goddess is represented with her evet bound or blinded, having a sword in one hand, ai.d in the other a pair of balances equally poised. Nemesis was the daughter of .lupitei and Necessity (2). She had the title of Adrantea, because Adrastus, king of Argos, first caised an altar to her. She had a rt ag- nificent temple at Rhamr.us in Attica, with a statue. She is represented with a stern aspect, having in one haYid a whip and in the other a pair of scales. CHAP. LXVIII. Of the Goddess F); she was also termed Caeca, not unjustly, on .count oftheinjudi< • distribution of her favours. She was honoured at Romfe by the title of Fortuna EqueStris (6). In a tempfe she had near that of Venus, she bore the appellations of Mascula and Virilis. At other time* she was named Mammosu (7), Primogenia (8), and Privata, or%opria (9). In the quality of Fortuna Virgo, coats of young children were offered to her before they put them on ; and she was stiled Viscata. or Viscosa ( 1 ), «n account of her alluring or attracting people by her deceitful kind- ness. The principal temple of this goddess was at Preneste, whence she was called Praencstina. She is usually repnv sented blind, standing on a wheel in a moving attitude, and holding a cornucopia, from whence she pours wealth, and all the emblem? of prosperity, Horace has a very masterly picture of her in an ode to Maecenas (y ). She is sometimes figured in a flying attitude, with broad wings, sounding a trumpet, and her flying robe wrought all over with eyes, ears and tongues, to de- note the surprize, attention and discourse she excites. Virgil (3) has given an inimitable description ot her, nor does Ovid fall much short of him. ( 1)- Peace ( 5 ) He alfo called her Obfequens, from h< r favouring his wifhes. Horace callc d h t Sseva mi a quite contrary account. (6) rhistemvlewasereiaedyip i li pceol avowof tn*pr et« Q_ Fulvius Flaccus, for a vi&ory he obtained in Spain hy tn< mi of nis cavalry (7) Either from her having large brealh, or the plenty me iup- plies. (P) From her {riving birth to the cry and empire. (0) Frontier favouring particular perfons. fhefe twolalt ap- pellations were jr.w.n her by Scrviotib Tulliua, a v^ry grout admi- rer of her divinity. P , > ( 1 ) From Vifcus, birdlime. Hence Seneca Jays, btnafiaa funt viftcfa'i obligations are catching. (*) Horace, Lib. 111. Ode XXIX. 40. OJ Virgil, iEneid I. (4; Ov»d, Metau. 41, °j. THE HEATHFN CODS. 180 Peace is a blessing so universally esteemed, that it is no wonder ; v she was deified. The Athenians (accord- ing -to FlutarchJ ejected her an altar with her statue, attended by that of PluUis, the god of riches, to shew that she was tb ■ source of plenty,. At Rome she had a magnificent temple in the Forum f.~), which was con- sumed by fire in the r ign of Commodus. On medals, this goddess is represented before an altar, Betting fire with a torch in her 1 rft band to a pi'e of arms, and with the othei holding an olive branch. Behind her, e>n a column, appears the imacre of a miked bodv or man, extending his arms in a rejoicing posture (6) The po- rts geHerally introduce her in company with the most shirtirfg virtues (7). And Virgil represents her as the common wish rf mankind (8). Claudia has composed her panegyric in a very distinguished manner. Some- times she appears like a matron holding a hunch or ears of corn, arsd crowned with olive or roses. The goddess Concordia, or Concord, was another divinity of the Remans. At the request of his mo'her Livia, widow of Augustus, a temple was dedicated to her by Tiberius at Rome, one h?d several other mag- nificent temples ; in o:i a of these were dt posited the rich spoils of the temple of Jerusalem. Virtue and Honour had their temples at Rome. That to Virtue was erected by M. Marcellus (9), and was the only passage to the temple of Honour, to shew that worthy actions were the true foundation of lasting fame. The sacrifices to Honour were performed by the priests bareheaded. Virtue was represented like an elderly, matron sitting on a square stone ; in ancient medals thev appear jointly ; however, upon some of Gordian and Nemenian, she is fount? in the figure of an old man with a beard. Fides, or Faith, had a temple near the capital, found- ed by Numa Pompilius. No anisnals were offered, or blood (s) Begun by Claudius and finift.ed by Vefpafian. (6) The legend of this nuHa], which was /truck by Vefpatian on the cotiqell of Judsea, in Pad Orhh Tcirarwn. Onanediief ris fen Vitus, fhe is frcn with a palm in one hand ardafceptre in the other, the infeription Pax JEtemu. (") Horace, Carmen Sec. 57. (8) jEocid, XI. 36s. (q) Son of .Auguftu*. 190 f ABULOt/S HISTORY Cf blood spilt in the sacrifices; during the performance of her rights, her prists were clothed iu white vestment?, au a tl hands covered with linen cloth ; to shew t\»\ fidelity ought tope secret. Her *ymbol was a v , •;.:■ , ... .". a, figure, where two women are jpming hand.-,, • its the godde 8. Hope is another of the passions deified by the Romans. She had a tonvile in the herb-marker, which? was con- «umed by lightning. On medals she appears in a stand- ing attitude, with her left hand holding up hghtjy her Irose robes, and leaning on her elbow ; in her fight she has a plate, in which is placed a cibonum, or cup, fashio ! stower, with this inscription, Spes, P. R. the hope of the. Roman people ( 1 ). In the modern s.ta- tiles and paintings, her cha den anchor. Pfety, or fdial Affection, 1 lapeHtlB cp«- sec rated by the Duumviri Attilius and Glabtto on a re- markfeble occasion ; 4i A man bei " W* « imprisonment. h» daughtgr, who was then a nurse, «« .daily tiflited him, and . - rictly searched by the m HoaleV, W see she brought no food to the prisoner. <« At last a discover],' saa made, that she supported him *' with feeT hulk. This instance of piety gained, her " father's freedom. They were both afterwards sup- , « ported at the public expense, and the place was con- " secrated to this goddess ('2;." Pudicitia, or Chastity, wis honoured at Rome under two names. Into the temple of Pudicitia Patricia, none were admitted but ladiet of noble birth. Virginia, the daughter of Aulns, having married a Plebeian, so offended these, that they exclu-' their assemblies : upon which Virginia called a meetmg of the plebium matrons, dedicated* a chapel to this goddess by the name of Pu- dicitia Plebeia (3). Her speech on this occasion was truly great : « I dedicate," says she, •« this altar to « Pudicitia Plebeia, and desire you wfll adore Chastity « as much as the men do Honour ; and I wish that this «* temple may be frequented by purer votaries (if possi- (i) The reverfe is ahead of Adrian. /*; Pliny's «»'• Hill. Hb VII. cap. tf. '■ (%) All matron, who married but once, were honoured with the Corona Pudicitia;, or crown of diaftity. THE H£ATH£N OODS. 191 " l)le) .than that of Pudicitia Patricia." In bctl. <-f ■ temples no matron was permitted to sacrifice unless she had an unblemished character, and was but once mar- ried. In medals this deity is represented under the ii- gure of a woman veiled, pointing with the fore-linger of her right-hand to her face, to signify that she had no reason to blush. Mercy, or Clemency, had an altar at Athens, erected by the kindred of Hercules. At Rome was a temple -ited to the Clemency of Cccsar (1). Both the . and Greeks gave the name of Asylum to the temples each had erected to this goddess. Truth, arc to Plutarch, was the daughtel of Saturn and Time, ai d the mother of Virtue, and was represented as a young virgin of a" proper stature, mo- destly clad in a robe, who*,' whiteness represented that of snow. 1) is, to give ait idea of the difficulty of her being found, sai i that she is concealed in the bottom of a well. Liberty was so much the 4 light F the Romans, that it was bat natural for them to imagine her a goddess, arid to consecrate to her temples and altars. She was entcd in the form of a virgin clothed in white, holding a sceptre in her right hand, and a cap in her left. e", oi Understanding \_Mcr.s~], was honoured with an altar in the Capitol, by M. iEmilius ; and At- tains the prastor erected her a chapel. Faufetitas, or the public Felicity and Welfare, had many altaiM, and was. adored both by the Greeks and Romans ': the former honoured this goddess under the of 'Endamipnia tfnd Macaria. The Athenians tihSng an orach on ; tfie success* of a battle, were i, that the) should win the victory if one of the chil ' Hercules would submit to a voluntary death -. ori this Macaria, one o'c his daughters, killed herself, and the Athenians becoming victorious, paid her ado- ration under the name of Felicity. She was represented ifi riinting as a lady clothed irt a purple vestment uned with silver, sitting on an imperial throne, and ling in one hand a caduceus, and in the other a cor- Victory (4) This temple was built by a decree of. the fenate, after the death oi Juhus C^l'ar. 192 FABULOUS HISTORY OP Victory was honoured by several nations as a goddess. According to Hesiod, she was the dai-ghterof Sty* and. Pallas : she was painted by the argents in the term ot a woman chid in cloth of gold, and - "P«^« aoine medals with wings, flying through the ai r, holding a palm in one hand, and a LuueUrown m the other;* oSers she is to be seen standing upon* globe, Witt. ue same crown and branch of palm. ' > ^ The goddess Sains, or Health, had a temple at Rome near thc°gate, from thence called [Wo Saiutans ; a,d a the blefsings she bestow, are known to all, so no doubt but she had a great number of votaries She , w - . eprc- wntedbya woman sitting on a throne, a^d^g globe in her hand. Near her stood an altar, with a onake entwined round it. In this temple was performed the Augurium Sahtti*, a ceremony which Augustus revmd from desuetude. It was a day set apart ^^Y>™ enquiring of the gods by divination, whether they won d allow the people to pray for peace J On tins day he Roman armies were forbid to march or engage It* worthy of remark, that the pnests of .'this temple had arrogated to themselves the sole p.rolege of offering «kp. plications for the health of every indiuoual, as well « for the state. The God Genius was adored by the Greeks, and according to Pausumus, had a temple in the road leading To mom* Minalus. At the close of supper a cup was always offered him of wine and water, and called die 61 WeS has such an influence on the affairs of life, that it has i„ all ,gcs been the ^ object of public >**&&" of secret idolatry, Thus the Romans deified both I luUS a. d l'ccunia, or Money. Menander wittily observes I li b,ect, -That'if you can possess tins j deity i '' ,>u may ask and have what you please > even the gods *«' themselves'shall beat your devotwn. Silence was, amongst the Romans, both a mak and female- deitv, by the names of Harpocrates and Aflgero- „ , but the latter seems oniy to have been a female ,„.,- Aon of the former, whom they borrowed from the Egyptians. He was the sow of 1 si,, begotten by 0«n, 2'a ms death, aodo* that account said to have been a weakly r.ur,'.J7C> os ' ,l1 k OiSI 9 "^Mn-.P5 |HWIfflfc|fflll"TIHII-.rafc||HHrai' i rf'-Z"'" ■<:>!, '/;,/■/,■■,,■„■<;, , , ,,/.;/■,■,„■! • ;> THE ITFATHEN CODS. 193 a weakly child. His statue wasmlaced at some small dis- tance from those of Osiris, Orus, and I is, with his fi on his mouth ; intimating to the worsi ippers, that not a \\Mi-d w is to be said that those deities had once I eea mortal. The Greeks and Romans appropriated to themselves this symbol of Silence, but in general were ignorant of its original intention. Nor were these the only visionary- deities erected by the heathens. Fear, Hope, Diseases, Calamities, and even Vices, were honoured, with a view of averting their visitation, or allaying their noxious influences. Thus Febi's, or the Fever, had her altars at Rome. Hostt- lius Tullus vowed a temple to the goddesses Terror and Paleness. M. Marcellinus, after escaping a storm near Sicily, built a chapel to the god Tempestas, without the gate of Capena. And Poverty and Art were both de- ified by the people of Gadara, because Necessity is the mother of invention. Envy was a goddess whose person and abode are inimitably described by Ovid (5). Calumny hid an altar erected to her by the Athenians, We have a vary remarkable picture of this mischievous god less, as drawn by the hand of the great Apelles. Credulity, represented by a man with large open ears, invites this deity to him, extending his hand to receive h>r. Ignorance and Suspicion stand just behind him. Calumny, the principal figure of the piece, appears ad- vi u ing, h -r countenance ruffled with passion, holding in her left hand a lighted torch, and with her right drag- ging along a youth, who lifts up his hands as supplicat- ing the gods. Just before her goes Envy, pale and squinting. Oi her right side are Fraud and Conspiraer. Behind her follows Repentance, with her clothes torn, and looking backwards on Truth, who slowly closes up the rear ('->). Contumely and Ignorame were also ho- noured by the Athenians under the figure of partridges, esteemed a very bold bird. Discord is represented as a goddess by Petrositis Arbiter, who;.* description of h r is worthy so masterly a pencil ; and Virgil has given us a picture of Fury, a deity much of the same stamp. — It is now time to close the particular account, and to pro- ceed to a consideration atlargeof the HeathenTiieo'o"-^. 3 A DIS- fS ) Metam. lil>. (!. 76*. (G) Luc'jm. 19* A / DISSERTATION OS THE , THEOLOGY OF THE HEATHENS. HE religion of mankind was at first one, like tlie object of it. But when the latter -was changed, the mode and ceremonial of worship continued still the same; for idolatry, that worst of things, was but In its origin the corruption of true religion, which is the best! We are not therefore to wonder, if we see the same tisag,: of t mples, akars, priests, sacrifices, first fruits, ice. common to the patriarch* and unbelievers. We even behold in these, and many other instances, the SM&e religious customs amongst the heathens, which it pleased the Divine Being to enforce the continuance of by the Mosaic dispensation ; a convincing argument that they must have beea oacorrupl and innocent in their original Nor did mankind in general lose sight of the original object so soon, or so totally, as is commonly apprehend* ed. Since we fp id a n i , " : I : d in- deed amongst several of the Greeks and Romans, the most exalted ■ p>vme Being, the Creator of heaven and earl According to tb ' tians (1 ), Ekton, or the firit God, existed in Ks solitary •;■ . i.'r i; the first princi **, f£< U n|, m- compn . ■., and the father . . Her- mes says, likewise, that this Supreme Qod has con- stitute*! another God, catted E , to be bead over :.;1 Bpiril , wfeeth r h empyi in, 01 celestial* snlthnt this second God, whom he si i! •: the Guide, i., a wisdom that trans!.. crts into itself all spirit: .1 bei . He makes r<. , superior to i ti« godvg . i ept the first t, Hud fir^t intelligible, who ought to be adored m silence. He adds, (f Panblkti ie My6t, I'- t ypt, Ed. Lugd, iff*. P- l :i< 4- TKEOl.GCV, &C. 3 95 adds, that the spirit which produceth all things has different names, according to his diflen pertks and operations ; that he is called in the Egyptian lan- guage Amoun, as he is wise ; Ptha, as he is the Hfe of all things ; and Osiris, as he is the author of all good (2). Let us proceed to the Greeks, amongst whom Or- pheus claims the first place in" right of his antiquity, and to whose theological sentiments the preference is ai .vavsgiven by the early writers in favour of Christianity. " There is one unknown being, exalted above, and " prior to all beings (S), the author of all things, even •« cether : this exalted being is lift;, light, and '* wisdom ; which three names express only one and the " Same power, which drew all being?, visible and ravi- " sibie, out of nothing." Thus also the divine Plato : " That which (4) give* " truth and reality to things unknown, and endues «' the kcewer with the power of understanding j this u call thou the idea of the Good One, the source of •< wisdom and truth." But God is every where dis- tinguished throughout, the works of this illustrious phi- losopher, as the beautiful, the good, the just one, Would you see the being and the providence of Gcr> d'T.o istratcd from, the <".\!cr and . istration of the world ? You will no where find it more convinci than in the rcas. ning of Balfcus in Cicero ; and frcun which observations you must of necessity draw the same i -.elusion which he does, that (5) " All things in " the world are wonderfully directed by a divine mind " ar.d counsel, to the s:i;<_ty and conservation of the " whole." S 2 These ( ) See Ramsay's Theology, annexed to Cyrus, 4to cil. p. 14 r.n 1 if (3) Miid de Orph p. 35c, and Ccdito us, p. 47. . . TksIOD, (6) E/l2«fttt >'f v nfuf. lifsKn. ', S '.'»q r,v It ' . HuMKR. *■-', fit p .-. : »l TV TlTl'hlr,0 CZ~- KVTCt,. HoMFR. • ■; ;f. 1 .', iXvtryivcc rrxvrct rtTVXTeU. Li!*. ■ --- !•- - •- Ca LLI' T . Vide Cl< • n't. Mi x Storm I ■ ' . . Syi>e of to denote even the glorious appearance of the cherubim (2 ). This is the same symbol which was erected by Moses in the wilderness. But this also was at length prostituted to abominable purposes, and made the attribute of all the ./Egyptian deities (3). Expanded Wings made a third emblem of the divinitv. This was the hieroglyphic substituted for the jsther» which f;T D-.u'rro^om. c. v, 15. 18") Fze!.it 1, c. xr.. to. ii T3. ius. [1 } Seraph, a Pa>r,c <>r 1 ar:;:; e [a] Isaaih, vj. [3] Crus Apollo; ad inkam. 200 THEOLOGY OF which was considered as the natural symbol of the divhie spirit, and, as such, succeeded to a share of idolatrous worship (4). In some of the original open temples, particularly in that wonderful one of Abiry in Wiltshire, the complex figure of the Circle, and Seraph, with ex.- p -i.ided wings, was represented entire. ' Such were the natural emblems of the divine Being, and so plain and simple their hieroglyphical representa- tions ; the original intent of which is explained to us by Kircher (5), from a p.cce of antiquity in the Phoenician language : " Jove," says this fragment, " is a figured *' Circle: from it is pioduced a Serpent: the Circle " shews the div:..** nature to be without beginning or " end ; the Serpent, his word, which animates the " world and makes it prolific ; his Wings, the spirit of " God, which gives motion to the whole sj stem." The -commencement of idolatry, avowed and aiming at some establishment, must bear date from the extraor- dinary project set oa foot at Babel. The design, as appears from the original account of it (6), was to build a city and a tower, the citadel or commanding part of which was to be erected to these powers, which are there distinguished as the Shemim, or Heavens. The supposition of its being to reach unto the heavens is an addition of the translators. The confusion there spoken of, was the confusion of the lip, or religious confusion,. The true believers on this occasion separated from the idolaters* (4) Tint c)/i x-xi a-iftvuav mm >.iyu Secv, a MiyiXte xai KAtVi*. ? : A po» Oupzviv ; ov x.xi oixoiiotcctcv, uc %v/*7Tcciiti; xXXot }xiur,:-- *po* Ktu Jid rif.i£y ri rict iu%tf&iet }ixp-pvTu; ccvtu Tav at y.xt T#v u.\>,&v rfriov tvyttXay ireu r«v y.utv xvtov ytyo- vivai, ■Ku/'y-i drevut* yoiuiv. Platon Epinomis. 2 oni & rtliqu'it fert St'oieit JE /•■• vi ntur suir.mus Deus,mfti!t brx-itus, qua cmniu regantur- Cia-ron Academ. Qna.-st. 1. 4. c, 41.. Clea'ntha auttm, qui Zenomen audivit, turn uitimum \SX altissimum ■,: vmiique circvtnfusuttl, ^S e.\t tmum omiiiu c'mgaitcm, atque torn— p lex 1/01 a dor im, qui JEthcr nominator : cett'u imvm Deum judical. Id t'c Nat. Dior. 1. I. c. 14. See chap 92 of Isis, Osiris and Orus.. (r) Obel Pamph). p 403. ( y, siid to have sent judgments upon Pharoah's jjiinuy, because of Abraham's wife ; and the king of Egypt - to have been no stranger to the true (Jon, but to have had the Fear of him before his eyes, and to nave been i iftu need by it in all his actions ( I ). Abraham was entertained by him without the appearance of any i ; .-. lit) >n towards him, or any the least sign of their a different religion. Even the heathen writer* s.r. th the Egyptians were at '."first worshippers of the true Gon. Pliftarch testifies, that in Upt I vpt, the inhabitants paid no part of the taxes raised for the idolatrous worship ; asserting themselves to own no mortal being for God ( C 2J, but professing to worship their God Cneph only. Porphyry calls this Egyptian Cneph, Tin Aw; So (i) Ste ShuckforcTi Connection, vol. I. p. iSt, and ;.tv ( ) !>■ Md ft Qfinde. fXj Vide foli Synop&iu. in Gen. 46, vers, wh.'n. (4J Ueutr. 34, 17. THE HEATHENS. 203 So that Eusebius, Lactantius, Cassias, Lucian, with many of the Jewish Rabbics, as well as Vossius, the Abbe Banier, and tlie moderns in general, appear to have been grossly mistaken, in making either Phoenicia or Egypt the birth-place of idolatry, liut this symboli- cal rogiyphical divinity proceeded from Assyria through Phoenicia to Egypt. But it was the Phoenician commerce which spread it in the remotest quarters of t lie • Id; and it is observed, diet in all the religions we know, even in the East and West Indies, there is not one of them, whose theology is not full of the like Mcrns. Tt must be confessed that the multiplication of Sytn- ame at length an inexhaustible fund of idolatry. use characters which, before the knowledge of letters, were innocent and even necessary, being by that render^ cd in a short time useless, generally neglected, under- stood by fs>v, and at last grievously perverted, were the occasion of infinite errors- This may be well exempli- fied by a short account of tile Zodiac (5). The crab, an animal walking backwards or obliquely, seemed a proper emblem of the sun, who a at this sign begins his retrogradation (6). The- 'wikl goat, on the contrary, whose custom is to feed as he ,bs, was chosen to denote the Sun, who, on comi- g te this psi i. of the heaven, quits the lowest part of his course to regain the highest. The mm, the bull, and two kid name to the three celestial houses, thru; wh Jun ] ises in spring. This distinguished the rids of young cattle, produced in this t i as they naturally si ■ eded each other: the Iambs ap- p -■■\\ g first the calves next, and the kids last. Two of lattdf were chosen, on account of the peculiar fraitfulness of the goat, which generally bears twins. i' .it these the Greeks displaced, substituting the twin brothers, Castor and Pollux* The fury of the Lion justly expre the heat of the Sun, on his having Can- cer. The virgin crowned with ears of com, was an em- blem of the harvest, usually ending about that time. Nothing could better denote the equality of days and nights under the autumnal equinox, than the balance Libra* (z ) S<_»? Abbe P'ucl-.e's Hist. of the Heavens, vol. I. p. io & sc^. (6) Macrob. faturn. 1. i. c. 17. O04< THEOLOGY OF T ihra The diseases, consequent upon the fall of the Uaf 'were characterised by the Scorpion. i he chase of wild beasts, annually observed at that time, was not improperly distinguished bj Sagittarius, a man en horse- back armed with a bow and arrow. Aquarius repre- Sited the rains of winter; and the two Fishes bound to- Lher, or inclosed in a net, indicated the season for fishinfi ever best at the approach o f spring. ^ hat could be more sample and useful than this division of the Sun's annual course into twelve equal portions, cxpres- od by 30 many visible signs, which served to regulate and deter be the seasons and the business proper to each. These rude delineations of the celestial houses probably crave birth to painting. But then these images present- fd to the mh!d a meaning very different from the idea conveyed to the eye. And when tins meaning was lost, the imagination was quickly at work to supply another mo-" agreeable to it* own corrupts. The kingdom of Egypt, on account of its peculiar ?itU at on, beeame the great school of this symbolical Parmn" and thence, in process of time, the grand : A of idolatry, It as not improbable that the priests mkk endeavour to stem the torrent of superstition that e^fued from it, till finding all their strength ineffectual, tbrt submitted to the times, and from views of avarice S ambition became public defenders of those error* V- ch ecretly they condemned. For, it » certain, that while thus they complied with the popular language they yet studied all they could collect of the ancient and real Unification of the symbolical figures, taking care to re- cuhe a profound secrecy of all persons whom they »- ^ ctedm this kind of knowledge. And for this reason 'Sixes were placed at the entrances of them temples, I Iting to those whp approached that they were to look for a further meaning in what they should see ; for that all was mysterious there. Such was the origin of those initiations so much sought a f er in Emrpt, Asia, and afterwards m Greece. Indeed ^myste^s'themiNes were in the end most grossly abused yet there is no question, but that in their pn- ^n institution they were intended to expkun the natu- ral and divine things couched under those representations For they did not only unfold the nature of things, though THE HEATHENS. 205 this seeni9 to have had [7] the greatest share in them ; but inculcated also the immortality of the soul, a fu- ture state of [8] rewards and punishments, the conse- quent necessity of virtue, and the other great truths of religion which had been handed down from the earliest o ages. Thus the ancient Eastern nations had a reserved mean- ing in all their emblematical figures ; which it is fre- . quently in our power, even at this distance of time, to make out. Much of the language spoken by them is still existing : by the means of which, matters of so re- mote antiquity may in a great measure be disengaged from that mysterious darkness, in which the ignorance of some ages, and the follies of others, have involved them. 1 shall be easily understood to speak this of the Hebrew tongue ; so much of which, I say, is yet remaining to us, as will easily, by a comparison with other languages, manifest it to be an original : and all others, on examination, will discover, how largely they have drank of this fountain. The names of animals, so intimately expressive of their properties, bespeak it to have been given by the great author of nature ; and tho->e of the first men [9J, so nicely applied to their respective conditions and circumstances, leave no room to doubt that they were coeval with the persons them- selves. The Greeks borrowed their idolatry from Phoe- nicia and Egypt, which indeed the innovating spirit of T that (' ) Omiita Elcufsnam fan£lam Warn lef awyvjlam^ Ulii initiantur gentes oraruiit ultima, PraUrca Siirnitbrcciam. cquc ■ ''• ' Qua Lemxi P\c8urn* arlitu occulta coluniur Sylveflribiis fepibut Jen/a : Qjitrxi exp'ic.itis, ad rjlinnemqac revoeotts, rerun magis Naiicrtc ctgnofcitur qu<:i7t Der,r;im. Cicero de Nat Dcor. 1 1.6. 42. ( 8 ) TsAsT^j o< «£r^»vT.:r srspi « tj}? ii ,3j« teA-jt"? km,i cx r'jfixirag a.t>>vc;iu!i j exhttia divinaque videntttr Athena feperiJTe, atfut in •uiict hoiainum a't :'ijfe, turn nihil mt'liut illis rnificriis. quibut ex a* grtfli immaniq:!' "ciiu, txiulta ad bun.cinitcrianXcf miligati J'umtit : irti- tinque, ut appdijritur, it,: re vera pri^cip'ui •vita' ccgn >virr.ut ; neque foLm cum latitia vivendi rationcm accepimus. fed ctiam cum (pc meliore manendi. Cicero dc ktribus, 1. 2 c. 14. (9) Sec origin of Languages bj the late DoScr Grejorv Shurpc. "20G THEOLOGY OF that people improved in the most extravagant mannei ; and it is not possible to explain their religious antiqui- ties without hiiving recourse to the language of those countries from winch they were transplanted. When therefore this is done, without force or constraint, pro- pping an interpretation natural and easy, not to re- ceive it were to reject the only means (in many cases) of information, which remain to us at this immense dis- tance of time. The reader will consider this as an apo- louy for the free use which is made of this tongue in the preceding sheets ; where he will find a great num- ber of strange, and otherwise unaccountable stones, hav- ing their foundations solely in the different meanings of the same word : So that an account, in itself innocent and easy, by being perversely rendered, became fre- quently the 'source of idle wonder, and at length of idolatrous veneration. It is not from the idolatrous Greeks themselves that we are to expect full satisfac- tion m these matters. Very few of them gave them- selves the trouble to enquire into the meaning of their own ceremonies. Every thing that was but Egyptian was readilv adopted, and the very names of the gods they worship,' ed were originally taken upon trust. For the Pelasgiaus, as Herojdotus informs us [1], had tor- ■morly saovme -d and prayed to gods in general, wilh- ,. | attributing .either name or sirname to any deity, .-', in those times they had never heard of; but . / thorn gods ; because they disposed and . ,...,./ a U j ctions and countries. After a long time of the ether gods were brought among them n Eafr:t, and last of all that of Bacchus* upon which they consulted the oracle of Dodona, still ac- counted the most ancient, anil then the only oracle in ecce, and having enquired whether they should re* * ive these names from the barbarians, the oracle an- swered, they should. So from that time they invoked i u- nnd Isjs lived not t. ' . . ->.r: of Lynceufcj i' 1 - the eleventh generatf* tin after M'i«j, It has been general!/ allowed, that the persons, whose memory was thus religiously preserved, were such as hail been greatly distinguished for the invention of use- ful arts, and their beneficence to mankind [:<]. But to make this species of idohitry go down with the peep.!;, something more than a pretended deification seems to have been necessary ; 'because, itf orocr to secure tfcaq extrava ;a. t honour to their favourites, we find the Egyptians arraying their images with various ensigns and attributes ; thus making them the representatives cf sue* natural things as were adored already by the superst'* ' herd. Thus we find Osiris adorned with the "' . , of the sun, Isis decked with those off the« fldr ' an ,, T 2 golden fa] Strr.mat. I. T. p. »*z. . . i ■ r.l e > .»•* . i, i ■ uetuJoquc eo-rrr.: nts, ut bene ' eictro de Nit. Dao. L 4, «»*4» 208 THEOLOGY OF golden Seraph inseparable from Orus [4]. Granting therefore that there were such persons in the world as Jupiter, Apollo, Bacchus, I&is, &c. yet we must allow trie attributes given and the ceremonies paid to them to be solely applicable to the luminaries, or to the natu- ral causes and effects, which, it is manifest, were repre- sented by them. Or it may be that mankind were not altogether so eager and so hasty in their corruptions ; that the conse- cration of eminent and virtuous men was no more in the tirst place than a sort of canonization ; and that the wor- ship paid to them was only considered as a public testi- mony of their. belief, that such persons were receive! into the abodes of the blessed, and numbered among the *r>ns of God. This at least was the opinion of Ci- cero (5). For that the law commands those who were consecrated from amongst men, to be worshipped ; it shews indeed, says he, that the souls of all men arc im- mortal ; but that those of the brave and the good are divine. May we not therefore conclude, with regard to the ancient Egyptians particularly, that they were not ig- norant of One Supreme Being, who by his knowledge conceived the world, before he formed it by his will ; but to comply with the growing corruptions of man- kind, in which compliance they were extremely guilty, allowed them to adore (and in this no doubt they found their account) the different attributes of this essence, and the different effects of his goodness uuder the symbols of the heavenly powers, of renowned personages, and at last even of terrestrial bodies, as plants and animals ; thus wilfully laying the foundation of the grossest su- perstition and idolatry. How little the besotted Greeks had to say for them- selves on his head, and how ignorant indeed they were K their own religious rites, has been remarked alrea- d ) T ' *^3 these took their gods so fondly from the Egyp- tians, r,(, 4 - d t j ie R omana theirs chiefly from them. This appears at -^ fa t h e preceding sheets. It must be confessed (^) itfantemqut vi,£-> n . x p ar rtclumque dracor.tm. Ovid. Sec chap, 63. of Ifis, ^firis, and Orus. fSj SPuoJautem ex bominum gtnere confccratos,fuut Herculcm is' rtteres^eoii Icxjulet, indie at omnium ft/idem animoi immortelles ej[t,f;d /crtijrt lonci ifnque ttivvut, De Legibli?, 1. ?,. C. XI. THE HEATHENS. 209 confessed, at the same tine, that as some of these last refer the whole multitude of their divinities to the sun, the origininal object of idolatry, thence called the uni- versal one (§) ; so did others of them to the Great Author of Nature, affirming-, " Jupiter to be the " soul of the world (1), who formed the universe of « the four elements, and fills and moves it thus com- ** pacted." In the aether he is Jupiter; in the sir, Ju- no ; in the sea, Neptune ; in the lower parts of the sea, Salacia ; in the earth, Pluto ; in hell, Proserpine ; in domestic fires, Vesta ; in the working-furnace, Vulcan { in the heavenly bodies, the Sun, Moon, and Stars ; amongst diviner?, Apollo ; in trade, Mercury ; in Ja- nus, the Beginner ; in boundaries, the Terminator ; in time, Saturn ; in war, Mars and Bellona ; Bacchus in the vintage ; Ceres in the harvest ; in the woods, Diana ; in the sciences, Minerva ; and is himself, in fine, the whole multitude of vulgar gods and goddesses. These are all the one Jupiter, whether they be consider- ed, according to some, as parts of himself, or, accord- ing to others, as his virtues and attributes. This is ex- actly of a piece with the reasoning of Seneca ; who as- serts that God may have names in number equal to his gifts (8).. Notwithstanding this,- we find on some occasions even among these the monstrous absurdity of making new gods arrived to such a pitch, that temples have been every now and then vowed and erected by magistrates and commanders, even to creatures of their own sud- den imagination ; such as the chance of war, or their own wishes or fears had raised. So that Pliny's obser- vations (9), with some allowance for the latitude of ex- pression, may seem to have been not ill-founded ; that F TS the (6) Divttf* virtutes fol'u nomina Diis didctunt : undc fapitnttvi frincifes prodi.'erunt. Macrob. Saturn. 1 c. J?. (7) St. Auguftin dc civitate Dei, c l i. Tome 5. p. 41. 43. (8) Jo-vem ilium optimum ac maximum rite dices fcf H/iantem IS' fatorcm, quodfant benefcio ejus omnia, Jiator Jlakilttoi f moral virtue. As the Greeks and Romans had received their divinities from Phoenicia and Egypt, and by mis- taking the manners, the customs and language of those nations, had made gods of the common symbols which they employed to teach the people to honour one Gcd, the author of all good, to live in peace, to express the times and seasons for the performance of the common oc- currences of life, and to expect a better state to come ; so their religion became obscured by fables, and a va- riety of fictions, which, while the vulgar understood in a literal sense, their «ages endeavoured to explain and re- duce to ingenious allegories, and thereby to render the heathen worship consistent with ajl the natural notions of a supreme Deity, the wise governor of the world, . 1 by accounting for the introduction of moral evil, to vindicate the rules of his providence, and to justify the \, ; vs of God to man. Fables are indeed a very ancient method of convey- ing truth, and veils of so fine a texture as not wholly conceal the beauties that lie beneath them. " Thus." says 212 MYTHOLOGY OF says Origin (\), " the Egyptian philosophers have "'sublime notions with regard to the Divine Nature, " which they keep secret, and never discover to the V people, but under the veil of fables and allegories. •« AlUhe Eastern nations, the Persians, the Indians, the « Syrians, conceal secret mysteries under their religious " fables. The wise men of all nations ( c l) see into the « true sense and meaning of them, whilst the vulgar go " no further than the exterior symbol, and see only the «• bark that covers them." This was frequently the case when foreign and distant nations adopted what they but imperfectly understood. Allegories became objects of faith. Thus could any thing give a more lively idea of the state of retribution, than the ceremonies with which the Egyptians buried their dead. The Greeks and Romans, struck with the ideas that were so strongly conveyed, took the type for the reality ; the boat which was to convey the body to the place of burial, which was with the Egyptians an emblem of death, and was called Tranquillity, because it carried over none but the just, was represented by the Greeks and Romans as a boat to carry souls. Cerberus, an hieroglyphic, carved out of wood or stone, to express the lamentations bestowed on the virtuous, became an animated monster. The lake of Acherusia became a vi- sionary river of Tartarus, and was called Acheron. The judges that decided the merit of the deceased, were represented as consigning the spirit to final happi- ness or misery, and the flowery field where the righteous alone were buried, into that place of joy which the eh- /out of the Egyptians was only designed as a faint re- presentation of. ' Yet, notwithstanding the fables into which these mysteries were turned, this very important truth was still conveyed, that there would be a state of judgment in which the virtuous would be rewarded, and (ll Or'jren contra Cclfnm, lib. i.q. n. , , t UV'Yho'c who are acquainted with thefe myftenes fayj liberates. " infure themfclves very pleafinR hopes againft the « hour of death , and which extend to a whole eternity. « 1 neic .« mvfterics ffavs Epi&etu*; were cftablifhed by theanc.ents, to •< repulate the live, of men, and to banifb borders from the •' wl>r!J. ,, THE HEATHENS. 2! 3 the vicious punished. The very prayer, or form of ab- solution, which was given by the Egyptian priests to the relations of the deceased, contained a useful lesson to the living, as it exhibited a concise system of those mo- rals which were to entitle them to the Divine Favour, and to a decent burial in the plains, on the confines of the lake Acherusia. This prayer was preserved by Porphyry, who copied it from Euphantes, whose works are now lost, and h as follows ; " O Sun, thou " tiiit divinity ! and ye celestial Gods, who gave life to " man ! vouchsafe to receive me this day unto your ho- " ly tabernacle?. I have endeavoured, to the best of '* my power, to render my life agreeable to you ; I *' have behaved with the highest veneration towards the " G .ids, v/th whom I was acquainted in my infancy ; " I have never failed in my duty to those who brought " me into being, nor in natural affection to the worrb * { that bore me. My hands are pure from my neigh- •' hour's blood ; I have maintained an inviolable reVard • e to truth and fidelity ; and may I not appeal to the si- <; lence of mankind, who have nothing to lay to my n charge, as a sure and certain testimony of my in- 41 tegrity ? If however, any personal and secret fault " has escaped me, and I have offended in eating or in " drinking, let these entrails bear all the blame." Here the entrails of the deceased were produced by the relations, and immediately thrown into the lake. But however useful these ceremonies might be, as practised among the Egyptians, yet being considered as realities by the Greek!-', and rendered more ridiculous by the absurdity of their fables, it is no wonder that they lost their efficacy, and became, as Juvenal informs us, disbelieved even by their children. But it is not at all strange, that this should be the case with the Greeks, when the Egyptians themselves were fallen into idolatry, and those simple emblems, once so well known to this people, were become the medium of their prayers and adorations. Every thing had an air of mystery, and these mysteries were under- stood by none but the priests, or those to whom they we're pleased to explain them, which was always done under the seal of secrecy- The vulgar were suffered to continue in their errors, since it might have been dan- gerous i>14 MYTHOLOGY' CF gerour even for the priests to attempt to open the* eyes, and to red. ice their worship to the iknplicity ot the ancient practice. Nothing has ever contribute J more to disseise tlic tr.ith, and to corrupt the worship of the Greeks and Romans, than 'he multitude of fictions introduced by their poets. It is this that hap :. isipned that jumble of images, that indecov n? in character^ and thajt absurdity in their fictions, which are giojusflj condemned by their wisest philosophers. It is the province of poetry to change the face of na- ture, to give life ard activity to inanimate beings, sub- stance and form to thought ; to deify the passions, and to create a world of its own. The poet is not bound by the same laws as other me:. ; he has a power tm.t enables him to create and destroy at pleasure,, and with the same ea^e he forms geds (3), heroes, men, and monsters^ He makes q.uLk trar.sitio-.r, from reality to fiction, from fiction to reality, and from those gods which he believes to those of his own creating ; a' d from hence arises a principal source of that confusion which has given such different interpretation* J;o, a; d which renders it so driheuk to explain the ancient my- thology. The Greek a'., J Rofoan « liiost always prejferred tlie marvellous or.. •■■-•; to the simplicity of raked truth. If a p hod pi grief for the loss of her husband or her chii 1, she was changed into a rock or fountain ;' instead Si lying that Cephalus rose with the sun, Aurora must be in love with the vouth, and force him abroad. To represent thVlong life of loalus, tjiegodde^'pf ] m,'st re- new his age. Instead of saving that Eodyrhion studied in the mountains of ( Cf | ia the course of t n, they teil us, that he jn. -i ti • r" an mtcrvlev. with Diana and that her staying with hu gallant was the cause ci eclipse, ; but as thc'.e amours could not last for -ver, they were obliged to invent a new fable, to account for them another way, and therefore the) feigned that some for- ceress of Thesealy, by In r enchantments, drew d< the moon to the earth. To account for the perpetual ver 1 .- ■ of the laurel, they talked of the amours of Apollo f-j/TiV: ancient heroes Were fuppofed to be a middle I.J- beings, tha« p>rto »k bath "i i'ic; nature of gods and fcien. THfc Hi'ATi:::NS. 21.V Apollo and (4) Daphne. To express the agility ail J S Peridymnui, they affirmed thnt tie was ■ all shape*, and at last turhe^himseif into as eagle. Amphiou, by his oratory, prevailed oil a " a: ' : , !e to build a city, aud to dwtrll \t . (K .; e . tv : he is tker fore s lid Co r; lee up the walls of Th-b-s by the sduud oi his lyre ; and Orpheus to char in the J ,oni h and to move thp'rocfes ■ fl trees ty his harmony, because uothi-.g could v ; suasi- on, or resist the force of his el >quen :e Who would imagine tl gs ,,f Dedalus and lean-, were - t That ad ous? Thai by , ; do .. ei tfith I f :' jvev ' ' ■ at was raised to pre- < ve " ■' g ? That Heretics encountering the hydra of Lerna, signified no more than a man's drain- a marshy country? or that Hercules separating with his hands the two mountains Calpe ar.d ' Abvhf when the ocean rushed in with violence, and found a paSage.into the Mediterranean, meant ita more, perhaps, than that, in the time of one Hercules, the ocean, "by the assistance of an earthquake, broke a neck of land and formed the straits of Gibraltar: Or that the fable of tair/a nothing but an intrigue of the queen of Crete with a captain named Taurus ? Who could believe that Scylla and Charvbdis were only two dangerous rocks near the island of Sicily fre d to mariners ? That the frightful monster ch ravaged the plains of Troy, was the inundations « the sea ; or that Hcsione's being exposed to this monster, meant : o more than that she w#8 to be biv #a to mm who out a stop to these inundations ? Thus what Homer and Virgil ascribe to Minerva, is •• Be ail ifeuted to prudence and good conduct. It is no 1 >nger the exhalations that produce thunder but Ji p ter armed to affright mortals. If a mariner' per- • r a rising storm, it is avgry Neptune swelling the 1 ■ Echo ceases to be a mere sound, and becomes b b< wailing the loss of her Narcissus. Thus, [4] Tfc« laurel ww •,.«'. e eriu . who ord 're.i , fof Auubis to be thrown into the fiber, his pri -•■ irnl . v< , ar.J .\ s< ui «nto exile. Ben i. ;. 218' MYTHOLOGY OF confusion ; Chaoe must have an offspring, and there- fore, itetead of saying like Moses, that darkness was upon the face of the deep, he bays Chaos brought forth Gloominess and Night; and, to continue the genealogy, instead of saying with the inspired writer, God divided the light from the darkness, he express, s something like the same idea, by adding, that from Night sprang Air and Day. Muses says that God ordered the dry land to r.-.'a-id created the firmament, nvhrch he called he, ven : H'esiod says, that the Earth begat Heaven, the high Mountains, and the Caves. He then informs us of the origin of the Ocean, who was the father of Springs and Rivera of the birth of the Sun and Moon, and sc- , crs i o- i:.e like kintL It is very evident, that this whole account is nothing o than art allegorical history of the formation of all things, in which the various parts of nature are perso- d ; but B?ie hand of the great Architect is wanting. Ovid tresis this subject in a more intelligible manner, - | ' t beaut j r introduces the Creator, whom he Qi God\ or Nature, forming the various parts with and order. But in nothing does . ., as in the account he gives of the formation of man, which, as well as Moses, he ma fc£ S k of the creation, and introduces .:', forming him of clay, in the itiaagt -A ' :S: j ,,..... nore ' • <•' hind Was nx . yet, erf d the u was man designed} Conscious of. thivght, of more capacious breast, For empire fori & t° riile *&* rest f s J' o?,. , r , . -tion it will not admit of a doubt, but that Ovid ■-. t-he story of Prometheus in the .-.,.■ i3 to the circumstance which lie ■ from heaven to animate the lu] .is, sayfc a modem ardor, but in{o hi; nostrils -he breath of life ? ^ An; | ' ■ x be im] »ei i ition a fable, v , outh of Aristoplianes >'.)) : :d mcilicr, and cleave unto his wife (2). Hence it seems at least probable, that the writings of Moses were not unknown to the Greek", which makes it the more likely, that these writings, or a more ancient tradition, gave rise to the different representations the Pagans have given us of an original state of inrcter.ee, which was an object of faith amongst all civilized na- tions. This has been painted in the most beautiful colours by the heathen poets, under the distinction of the golden age, or the reign of Saturn. In several things, indeed, both Moses and the heathen philosophers agree : they equally assert, that man was created in a state of innocence, and consequently in a state of happiness, but that debasing his nature, and alienating himself from God, he became guilty, subject U 2 to (:) 0<*n. i. 27. (i) On. ii . 21, 21, 23, 24, 2'20 MYTHOLOGY OF to pain, diseases, and death, and to all these afflictions which are* necessary to awaken his mind, and to call him to his duty ; that we are strangers here, that this is a state of trial, and that it is as much our interest as daty to fit ourselves, by a course of virtue and piety, for a nobler and more ewltcd state of existence. The Egyptians (S) and Persians (4) had other schemes, wherein the same importanttruths were conveyed, though according to the genius of those countries, they were wrapped up in allegories. Plutarch has given us his sen- timents on the same subject, and they are too just and rational to be omitted. The world, at its birth, says ' he, (.5) received from its Creator all that is good ; " whatever it has at present that can be called wicked «.« or unhappy, is an indisposition foreign to its nature : " God cannot be the cause of evil, because he is spro- • ( reignfy good ; matter cannot be the cause of evil, be- " cause it has no active force; but evil conies fcom a • c third principle, neither so perfect as God, nor so im- " perfect as matter." The notion of guardian angels has been contended for by many Christians, who allege several passages of scripture that seem to favour this doctrine, while others have turned all that has been said of these genii into al- legory ; and assert, that by the two daemons, the one good and the other bad, are meant the influences of conscience, and the strength of appetite. It is very evident, however, that the Greeks had an idea of these beings, and that their existence was generally {$) The Egyptians derive the source of natural and moral evil from a wicked spirit whom they call Typhofi f4j The Persians deduce the origin of all the disorder and wickedness in the world from evil spirits the chief of whom they rail Ahrim or Arimanius. Light, say they, can produce nothing ! Dt light, and never can be the origin of evil ; it produced se- veral beings, all of them spiritual, luminous and powerful ; but Arimanius, their chief, had an tvii thought contrary to the light : doubted, and by that doubting became dark ; and from hence proceeded whatever is contrary to the light. They also teli US, that there will come a time v\ liui srimanius shail bo c< mpletely roved, when the earth shall change its form, and when all ankind shall enjoy the same life, language and government. Si e L>r. Hyde's anci( nt religion of the Persians. _ (5) Plutarch de Annn form. p. 1015. THE HEATH SNS. 221 generally believed. Hence, according to Plutarch-, came their fables of the Titans and Giants, and the en- ems of Python again t Apollo ; which have so nblance to the iictions of Osiris ar.d Typbon. These were beings superior to men, and yet composod a spiritual and corporeal nature ; and consequently capable of animal pleasures and j am.--. The fictions . 'ting to the giants, in Mr. Banler's opinion f6J, took, their rise from a passage in Genesis; where it is said, that the (7) sons of God, whom the ancients sup- posed to be guardian angels, became enamoured with the daughters of men, and that their children were mighty men* or giants, the word in the original signify- ing either giants, or men become monstrous by tl crimes ; their, heads, instead of their guilt, were said tJ reach to the clouds, while the wickedness of their lives might not improperly be termed lighting against God, and daring the thunder of heaven. But however this be, it will hardly be doubted but that this passage might give rise to the amours of the gods and goddesses, and their various intrigues with mortals. As the frequent appearance of real angels to the patriarchs, and the hos- pitable reception they met with under the disguise of travellers, might give room for the poets to form, upon the same plan, the tales of Baucis and Philemon, and to contrast that beautiful picture of humble content, arid of the peace that blesses the homely cottages of the innocent and good, with the story of Lycaon ; who wanting, humanity, and being of a savage inhospitable temper, is, with great propriety, said to change his form into one more suitable to the disposition of his mind. The moral of this fable is, that humanity is the cha- racteristic of man ; and that a cruel soul in a human body is only a wolf in disguise. It is certain that the traditions relating to the uni- versal deluge, have been found in almost all nations ; and though the deluge of Deucalion should not appear to be the same as that of Noah, it cannot be doubted, bat that some circumstances have been borrowed from U 3 Noah's {*) Banier, vol. I. :n. 12' (;) Oai. vi z. Ey the sons of God is 1 e re undoubtedly meant the descendants of octh , vhu had probabl) this title g'ven them to distinguish them I'rom the uuecmlunu of C'uir., who were called the ser.s of aien. 222 MYTHOLOGY OF Noah's history, and that these are the most striking parts of the description. Lucian, speaking of tjie an. cient people of Syria, the country where the deluge of Deucalion is supposed to have happened, says (S) that " The Greeks assert in their fables, that the fiist men, " being of an insolent and cruel disposition, inhuman, « inhospitable, and regardless of their faith, were all '■ destroyed by a deluge ; the earth (9) pouring forth *•' vast streams of water, swelled the rivers, which, to- !« gether with the rains, made the sea rise above its 44 banks, and overflow the land, so that all was laid un- " der water ; that Deucalion alone saved himself and V family in an ark, and two of each kind of wild and '■^tame animals, who, losing their animosity, entered •' i:it'> it of their own accord ; that thus Deueahcn " floated on the waters till they became assuaged, and «' then repaired the human race." We are also informed, that this vessel rested on a high mountain ; and Plutarch even mentions the dove, and Abydenus speaks of a certain fowl being let out of the ark, which, finding no place of rest, returned twice in- to the vessel. We are told too, that Deucalion, a person of strict piety and virtue, offered sacrifice to Jupiter, the saviour. Thus the sacred writings infoim us, that Noah offered sacrifices of clean beasts, in token of gra- titude to God, for having graciously preserved him and his family. Tims it appears, thai idolatry and fables being once set on foot, the people, who still retained confused ideas of some ancient truths, or the most remarkable particu- lars of some past transactions, adapted them to the pre- sent mode of thinking, or applied them to such fab as seemed to have any relation thereto. By this mc truth and falshood were blended together ; and thus it hmpens, that we frequently find some traces of history intermingled with the most ridiculous fictions, and re- markable transactions sometimes pretty exactly related, though at the same time confounded with tiie grossest absurdities. It is very evident, that the division of time into seven days could only be a tradition constantly preserved, and f? ) «">e Ha c vria (,) T.;e .-ame 'thought is eapredled hy Moses, who says, Tit mountain' oj the greet deep ivcre broken up. THE HEATHENS. 223 and handed down from the early nge*. Th raw to be the most ancient method of reckoning time, since it wa- very early observed by the Egyptians^ But of this HBe. have said enough in the prt ertatioos, to which it properly belongs. It appears from '.tie account we have given of tl e theology of the ancients, that the Egyptians , Greek;, and Romans worshipped only one Almighty, indepen- dent Being, the Father of gods and men, with a su- .■ adoration ; and that the several superior deities publicly worshipped, were only different names or attri- butes of the same God. This is asserted not only by several of the Pagans, but even by St. Austin. Wl iher this distinction was maintained by the bulk o I people among the Greeks and Romans is not so ea?y to determine; it improbable, that they might i them distinct beings, subordinate to the suprtrre. How< ■ there were others universal!;.' allowed to be of an n.fe- rior class, and these were the national and tutelary dei- ties ; among which last number we may rt c I: •, t : ic good demons, or houshoid gods, which the Romans, upon Conquering any nation or city, invited to take up the'r residence amongst them. These were undoubtedly wor- shipped with an inferior kind of adoration, since the Stoic and Epicurean philosophers, who allowed existence, believed them to be mortal, and that they were to perish in the general conflagration, in w the world was to be destroyed by fire. To this Piiny alludes,, when describing the darkness and horror that attended the eruption of Vesuvius, he says, that some were lifting up their hands to the gods ; but that the greater part imagined, that the last and eternal night was come, which was to destroy both the gods and world together. This distinction may be justified by the united testi- mony of the ancients ; and indeed it in a great rre removes the absurdity of the continually introducm?- what were called new gods ; that is new mediators, and new methods or ceremonials to be added, on particular occasions, to the ancient worship. The idolatry of the Pagans did not consist in nav- ing a direct adoration to the statues, but in rr.a them 224 MYTHOLOGY OF them the (\ ) medium of worship ; and therefore, whe- ther the several deities were reckoned to be inferior beings, or only din-rent names or attributes of one sit- preine; yet their symbols, the sun, moon, and stars, or the statues erected to the honour of their god*, were never (except amongst the lowest and most igno.ant of people) acknowled d as the ultimate objects of wor- ]. In these st tfwes, however, the deity was supposed to icside in a peculiar manner. _ _ But even this Was not always the case ; it is very cvi- de it that the statues erected to the passions, the virtues, and the vie a, were nut of this class. The Romans had particular places for offering up particular petitions; they Offered up their prayers for health m tne temple of Sclus; the: prayed for the preservation of their liber- ty before the statue of Li erty, and offered their sa- crifices to the Supreme before a figure expressive ot their wants. Fever, in the opinion of the most stupid of the vulgar, could never be considered as a god, yet at the altar of Fever they besought the Supreme to pre- serve them from being infected with tins disorder, or to cure their friends, who were already infected by it : and at the altar of Fear, they put up their supplications, that ,'t » The folly of representing tU infinite and omnipotent spirit by a sensibk image, is obvious from* very .mall degree of j-eflec- SnS Horn hence arises t! e cr.me ol . olauy, o re, roent- ' hi o bv the vs orks of nature or those oi other men S hands, LeVls a degradation of the deity, and an affront to the Being, X g 2.us essence U unlimted and unconfirmed; and from hence proceed, that exclan atbn oi the prophet, Wh.rcunto .Ul veu LIKEN me, saiib the Lord, &i. y Uhtn the sraelites made .1', golden calf, ami cried out, Tbu is //,;,/ thai brought - ouiofth, < ,/ ./Egypt, they must besBp- osc, tomean Tbh ^reut.ts the GoUi ,t b, htu t outof*b,layi K Phey had lit.ly hit a country fond of symbols, where {cv Sd hen us A to sec one thing repr, scntedby annth. r; an 1 iU u7 the mp,t glorious hnbg« ol the deny when be enters Tun, n T! tdJ I" Hadtheyb.ensp.tup.da, to m.apine AU calf, whicl .hey had just mane to be the god . L^fftW; the god that had wrought so many miracles for yhad given him existence; then folly would b V ;,:,. . htentwhhthe»t:ol»Uitur«f«in,aiKlther l„v been abwluteh incapable bethel moral and c.v,| govw ment, and could onlj be .counted ideota or madmen. THE JIEATHkNS. 225, that they might be preserved from the influence of a shameful panic in the field of battle-. As this appears evidently to be the case, it is no won- der that the number of these- kinds of gods became very great. Some of these, -by the parade of ceremonies that attended this method uf devotion, were found to have a mighty effect on the minds of the vulgar: So that when airy virtue began to lose ground* a temple* or, at least, an altar erected to its honour, was sure to raise it from its declining state, and to reinstate its in- fluence oil the h art of man. Plus appears to be a true representation of the case, from the account which Ficnysius of Halicarnassus -J of the reasons which induced Numa Pompi- lius to introduce Faith into the number of the Roman ', and which, doubtless, gave rise to all thi r deities of the same bind, that were afterwards introduced. " To engage his people to mutual faith ■' and fidelity, says lie, Nu i. had recourse to a method "hitherto unknown to .the most celebrated legislators. " Public contracts, he observed, were seldom violated, " from the regard paid to those who were witnesses to " any engagement; while those made in private, though 1 in their own nature no less indispensable than the ' other, were not so strictly observed ; whence he " concluded, that by deifying Faith, these contracts 1 would be still more binding : besides, he thought i^ ' unreasonable, that while divine honours were paid to " Justice', Nemesis and Themis, Faith, the most sacred •< and venerable thing in the world, should receive ne- '■* thcr public nor private honour ; he therefore built a ' temple to public Faith, and instituted sacrifices, the |« charge of which was defrayed by the public. This he ' did with the hope, that a veneration for this virtue, 1 being propagated through the city, would insensibly ' be communicated to each individual. His conjec- ' tures proved true, and Faith become so revered, that ' she had more force than even witnesses and oaths ; so ' that it was the common method, in cases of intricacy, " for magistrates to refer the decision to the faith of the M contending parties." 1 nut. (z) Dion. Kalic. I. 2. c IS- *22G MYTHOLOGY, &C. Thus it appears evident, that these kinds of gods, and the temples envied to tlnnr honour, were founded not only on political, but on virtuous principles. This was undoubtedly the case with respect to the Greeks as well as the Romans ; for a proposal being made at Athens to introduce the combats of the gladiators ; first throw down, cried out an Athenian philosopher from the midst of the assembly, throw down the altar erected by our ancestors above a thousand years ago to Mercy. Was not this to say, that they had no need of an altar to inspire a regard to mercy and compassion, when they wanted public spectacles to teach a savage ei-ucltv and hardness of heart. APPEND! % APPENDI X. CONTAINING An Account of the various Methods of Divination by Astrology, Prodigies, Magic, Augury, the Auspices and Oracles ; with a short Account of Altars, sacred Groves and Sacri&ces, Priests and Temples. A: I. Of Astrology. STROLOGY was doubtless the first method of divination, and probably prepared the mind of man for the other, no less absurd, ways of searching into futuri- ty ; and therefore a short view of the rise of this pre- tended science cannot be improper in this place, especi- ally as the history of these absurdities is the best method of confuting them. And indeed, as this treatise is chiefly designed for the improvement of youth, nothing can be of greater service to them than to render them able to trace the origin of those pretended sciences, some of which have even still an influence on many weak and ignorant minds. But to proceed. The Egyptians becoming ignorant.of the astronomi- cal hieroglyphics, by degrees looked upon the names of the signs as expressing certain powers with which they were invested, and as indications of their several o Rices. The Sun, on account of its splendor and enli- vening influences, was imagined to be the great mover of nature ; the Moon had the second rank of power*, and each sign and constellation a certain '-hare in the cro- vernment of the world ; the Ram had a strong influence over the young of the flocks and herds ; the Balance could inspire nothing but inclinations to good order and justice ; and the Scorpion excite only evil disposi- tions; and, in short, that each sign produced the good or evil intimated by its name. Thus, if the child happen- ed to be born at the instant when the first star of the Ram rose above the Horizon, (when, in order to give this nonsense the air of a science, the star was supposed to 228 APPENDIX. to have its greatest influence) he would be rich in cat" tie ; anil that be who should enter the world under the Crab, should meet with nothing but disappointment, and all his affairs should go backwards and downwards. The people were to be happy whose king entered the world under, the sign of Libra ; b incompletely wretch- ed if he should light ur-der the horrid sign Scorpion : the persons born under Capricorn, especially if the Sun at the same time ascended the Horizon, wen- sure to meet with success, and to rise upwards like the Wild Goat and the Sun which then ascends for six months tof ether ; the Lion was to produce heroes ; and the Virgin with her ear of corn to inspire chastity, and to mute virtue and abundance. Could any thing be more extravagant and ridiculous! " This way of ?rgmng," says an^ingenious modern author, " is nearly like that " of a man, who should imagine, that, in order to " have good wine in his cellar, he need do no more than " hang a good cork at the door." The case was exactly the same with respect to the pla- nets, whose influence is only founded on the wild sup- position of their being the habitation of the pretended deities! whose name they bear, and the fabulous charac- ter-, the poets have given them. Thus to Saturn they gave languid and even destructive influences, for no other reason, but because they had been pleased to make this planet the residence of Saturn, who was painted with grey hairs and a scythe. To Jupiter they gave the power of bestowing crowns, and distributing long life, wealth, and grandeur, merely because it bears the name of the father of life. Mars was supposed to inspire a strong inclination for war, because it was believed to be the residence of the God of war. Venus had fie power of rendering men voluptuous and fond of pleasure, because, they had been pleased to v;ive it the name of one, who, by some, was thought to be the mother of pleasure. Mercury, though almost always invisible, would ne- ver have been thought to superintend the prosperity of Mates, and the affairs of wit and commerce, had not men, without the least- reason, given it the name of one who was su] to be the inventor of civil polity. According APTENDIX. 229 According to the astrologers, the power of the as- cending planet is greatly increased by that of an ascend- ing sign ; then the benign infl ^v all united, and fall together on the beads: of all the happy infants which at that moment enter the world ( ] ) ; yet can any- thing be more contrary to experience, which shews us, that the characters and events, produced by persons born under the same aspect of the stars, arc so far from being alike, that they are directly opposite. Thus it is evident, that astrology is built upon no principles, that it is founded on fables, and on influences void of reality. Yet absurd as it is, and e\er was, it obtained credit, and the more it spread, the greater in- jury was done to the cause of virtue. Instead of the exercise of prudence and wise precaution, it substituted superstitious form3 and childish practices, it enervated the courage of the brave by apprehensions grounded on puns and quibbles, and encouraged the wicked by mak- ing them lay to the charge of a planet those evils which only proceeded from their own depravity. lint not content with these absurdities, which des- troyed the very idea of liberty, they asserted that X these (i) " What complete* the ridicule, fay? the Abbe ia Pluche, " to whom we are obliged for thefe judicious observations, it M that wh it aftronomers cull t^efirl degree of the Ram, of the ** Balance, or of Sagif carius, is no longer the fit ft fign, which *• gives fruitfubiefa to the flocks, infpires men \vi;h a love of juf- ' t ice, cr forms the hcio. It hu 1 * been found that all the cc- " leltia! figns have by little receded from the vernal Equinox, " and drawn back to the ciift : notwithstanding this, the point " of the zodiac that cuts the equator is dill called the flrlt de- " gree of the Ram, though the firft liar of the Ram be thirty " degrees beyond it, and ali the other fi?:is in the fame pro- " portion- When therefore, any one is laid to be born under " the lirli de«ree of the Ram, it was in reality one cf the tie- ''• grees of Puces that then came abo*e the horizon.; and whea " another is faicf to be born with a royal foul, and heroic dn- " petition, bec.m.'e at" his .birth the planet Jupiter afcended the •■ noriz n in conjunction with th« firft ftar of SagUtary ; Jupi- " ter was iadced at that time ii col junction with-a ftar tnirty " degrees eaftward of Sagittary, and in good truth ii was the *' pernicious .Scorpion thatpreuded at the birth of ifcu haypy, bis i c mparaple child." Abbe Plucht's Hiftory ,{ the " lleavet.s, Vofc I. p. "jj. t'ZO A?PENDJX. thele st?.rs, which bad not the least connection with mankind, governed all the parts of the human body (2), and; ridiculously affirmed, that" the Ram presided over the head ; the 'Lull over the gullet ; the Twins over the breast ; the Scorpion over the entrails ; the Fishes over the feet, &c. By this means they pretended to ac- count for the various disorders of the body ; which was supposed to be in a good of bad disposition, according to the different aspects of the signs. To mention only one instance ; they pretended that great c. uti< n eugl t to be used in taking a medicine under Taurus, or the bull, because as this animal chews his cud, the person would not be able to keep ft in his stomach. Nay, the influences of the planets were extended to the bowels of the earth, where they were supposed to produce metals. From hence it appears, that wl superstition and folly are once on foot, there is no set- ting bounds to their progress. Cold, to be sure, must be 'the production of the sun, and the conformity m point of colour, brightness and value, was a sensible proof of it'. B) the same way of reasoning, the Moon produced all the silver, to which it was related by co- lour ; MaT :, all the iron, which ought to be the favour- ' ite metal of the God of War ; Venus presided over per, a tiich she might well be supposed to produce, since it w; s found in plenty iu the isle of Cyprus, which was supposi i to be the favourite r ■ tins god- is. By the same ■ / of reasoning, the other planets presided over the other metals. The languid Sa- tura was set over nines of lead ; and Mercury, on ac- count ,rcf'fli< :.- h ' I ■ wfe« £Ven A a * ml*] wdJ re. The pci d : »*■ hap| tS j ■ and i the wed w« r ' ore r.ven umesteven, , • , r« d to have a fury. > . .... .ecamedii . II I . . thef mi ■ in I I a« - hy thelttrAigth. oflmagv aatM, brought •:• the moft faul effcifts. APPENDIX. count of his activity, had the superiutendancy of quick- silver ,- while 11 was the province of Jupiter to preside over tin, as this was the only metal that was left hiin. From hence the noetals obtained the names of the plan ts ; and from this opinion, that each planet engen- dered it£ o tal, they at length conceived an opinion, that as one planet was more powerful than ■i f, : ' produced by the weakest Was con- * into another! y th • influence of a stronger planet* Lead, though a real metal, and as perfect in its kind as a ly of the rest, was considered, as only a h tal, which, through the languid influences of old Saturn, feet ; and therefore, under the aspect of Jupiter, it was converted into tin ; under that of Ve- nus, into ( id at last into gold, under some particu i of the Sun. And from hence at . arc- opinions of the alt ' , who, w I i wo i '. rfi . end to And out means for hast these changes or transmutations, which, as tbey c mceiyed, the planets performed loo slowly; but, at last, the world was convinced that the art of the alchyn ial as the i. ifli of the phi i, hi a long sua . had never a mahc of lead Lo titat of tin, qi II. Of Prodigies. HOEVER reads the Roman! historians (3) must? be surprised at iber of pro I which are con- >pl with the most dreadful Jon9- It must' be con- : these tber supernatural ; wh ..,'•. ., ■ pi the Uncommon pr< is of natui . ii superstition always atti b ited t w erior cause, and represented as the prog $ ne imj tiding misfortune. Of this class may be reckoned the appearar.ee of two suns, the nights illuminated by rays of light, the views X 2 of [3) ' ' riy Livy, Dionysiu6 of Hniicarnassus, Pliny, and YaJerii ius. 232 APPENDIX. of fighting armi ■. )v ■ ■ Is and spears darting through the air; showers of milk, of blood, of atones, of ashes, or of fire; and the birth of monsters, of children, or of beasts who had two heeds, or of infant* who had some feature resembling those of the brute creation. These were all dreadful prodigies, which filled the peo- ple with inexpressible astonishment, and the whole Ro- 1 empire with an extreme perplexity ; and whatever unhappy event followed upon these, was sure to be cither caused or predicted by them. Yet nothing is more e.is/ than to account for these productions, which have no relation to any events that may happen to follow them. The appearance of two is has frequently happened in England, as well as in other places, and is only caused by the clouds being placed in such a situation, as to reft ct the image or th it luminary; r.ccturnal fires, inflamed spears* fighting ar- mies, were no more than what we call the aurora borea- lis, northern lights, or inflamed vapours floating in the r.ir : showers of stones, of ashes, or of fire, were no other than the effects of the eruptions of some volcano at a considerable distance ; showers of milk were only caused by some quality in the air condensing, and giv- ing a whitish colour to the water ; and those of blood are now well known to be only the red spots left upon the earth, on stones and the leaves of trees, by the but- terflies which hatch in hot or stormy weather (4). III. Of Mugk. j\'l AGIC, or the pretended art of producing, by the assistance of words and ceremonies, such events as are above the natural power of man, was of several kind*--, and chiefly consisted in invoking the good and benevo- lent, or the wicked and mischievous spirits. The first, which was called Theurgia, was adopted by the wisest ©f the Pagan world, who esteemed this as much as they despised the latter, which they called Goetia. Theur- gia was, by the philosophers, accounted a divine art, which U1 This has b en fully proved by M. Reymur, in his history t>[ insect* APPENDIX. '253 which only- served to raise the mind to higher perfection* and to ex.ilt the soid to a greater degree of purity ; and they, who, by means of tin's kind of magic, were ima- gined to arrive at what was called intuition, wherein they enjoyed an intimate intercourse with the d..-ity, were believed to be invested with their powers ; so that it was imagined, that nothing was impossible for them to perform. All who made profession of this kind of magic aspired to this state of perfection. The priest", who was of this oider, was to be a man of unblemished morals, and all who joined with him were bound to a strict purity of life ; they were to abstain from women, and from ani- mal food ; and were forbid to defile themselves by the touch of a dead body. Nothing was to be forgot in their rites and ceremonies; the least omission or mistake- rendered all their an ineffectual ; so that this was a con- stant excuse for their not performing all that was requir- ed of them, though as their sole employment (after hav- ing arrived at a certain degree of perfection by fasting, prayer, and the other methods of purification) was the study of universal nature, they might gain such an in- sight into physical causes, as might enable them to per- form actions, that might fill the ignorant vulgar with amazement. And it is hardly to be doubted, but that this was all the knowledge that many of them everasoir- ed after. In this tort of magic, Hermes, Trismeo-istus and Zoroaster excelled; and indeed it gained great re- putation amongst the Egyptians, Chaldeans, Persians, and Indians. In times of ignorance, a piece of clock- work, or some curious machine, was sufficient to entitle the inventor to the works of magic ; and some have even asserted, that the Egyptian magic, that has been, rendered so famous by the writings of the ancients, con- sisted only in discoveries drawn from the mathematics and natural philosophy, since those Greek philosopher* who travelled into Egypt in order to obtain a knowledge of their sciences, returned only v ith a knowledge of nature and religion, and some rational ideas of their ancient symbols. But it can hardly be doubted, but that magic in its- grossest and most ridiculous sense was practised in Egypt, at least amongst some of the vulgar, long before Pytha- goras or Empcdocles travelled into that country, X S The 234 APPENDIX. The Egyptians bad been very early accustomed to vary the signification of their symbols, by adding to thetn sever;.!' plants, ears of corn, or blades of grass, to express the different employments of husbandry ; but under- standing no longer 'their meaning, nor the words t 1 had been mad-/ Use of on those occasions, which were equally unintelligible, the vu%ar might mistake these for so many mysterious practices observed by their la- thers ; ar.d hence they might conceive the notion, that a conjunction of plants, even without being made use of as' a remedy, might be of use to preserve or pro- cure health. « Of these, says the Abbe Pluche, they '< made a collection, as an art by which they pretended » to procure the blessings, and provide against the evils " of life*'/ By the assistance of these, men even at- tempted to hurt their enemies, and indeed the know- ledge of poisonous Of useful simples might, on particu- lar occasion, give sufficient weight to their empty curses or invocations. But these magic incantations, so con- trary to Humanity* were detested and punished by almost ad hi nor could they be I d in any. Pliny, after mentioning an herb; the throwing of which int< sin arm . it was said, wa sufficient to .put it to tli- rout, asks, •' '■'■ ' •"•' Rume w:is m distress^* %j the Ga bri arrdTeutoWes? Why did not t ; u . r . rbefl Lucuilus cut their tftiops in pieces i V> t an ong&t all the i ■, ions of magic* t solenn, as w< 11 a i the most I , was that of ca 1 np the spirits of the dead ; this indeed was the qumt- < - tje of their art j atfd the reader cannot be displeased to find this ■ | t ry unra\ Hed. # An affection for the bod) of ft per > m Ins h - tin I .loved, induced th< dead in a decent manner; and to add to t land oy i ,< n C e of ' ; > '"> thote « i i I • ■ j - ti,- " p regard 1 ir nev. > the P 1ace , f ] [trial, confo uable to the cftli of charactensing . orthos : ti • ' byajnemora- ., ,, , ;> . , Rted a larj : stone or pillar, rais- ( .,\ r jr. To this place fa nd, ■■ on- oernwasgener *1 ir, where, » ul " vvlIie > °?> ho - 1 ' ney, APPENDIX. 235 nev, and flour ; and here tliey- sacrificed and cat in com- morr; I a trench', rd which they burned the entrails of the victim, and into which the libation and the blood Was made to flota. They began with ng given them life, and providi their aeces tary fo id; a.,d then \v,. ,. rn for the good implea they had been favotii . Froratl ■■. - me- lancholy riftS were banished all licentiousness and levity and while other c istoms ch ; d, these continued the same. They roasted the flesh of the victim they had red, and eat it in common, discoursing on the vfr- I ! of him they came to lament. All oth. -r feasts were distinguished by names suitable to the cerem< . that attended them. These funeral meetings were simply called the Manes, that is, the as- bry. Tbu-s the manes and the dead were words that became synonirabus. In these meetmj s, tl ej Imagined that they renewed their alliance with the deceased, who t i< j supposed, had still a v For the concerns of their country and family, and who, as affectionate spirits * ■■ :ld do no less than inform then", of whatever was ne- cessary for them to know. Thus the filneraJs of the dead were at last c< d into methods of divination : d in innocent institution into one of the grossest paces of folly and soperatiti But they did not stop here; they grew so extravagant- ly credulous, as to believe that the phantom drank the li- batibils that hi.d been poured forth, while the relations were feasting on the rest of the sacrifice round the pit; and from hence Kcame gpp ' st the rest ef the dead should promiscuously throng about this spot to tret a share in the repast tbey were ipposed to be so fond of I leave nothing for the dear spirit for whom the fi ast B intended. (.'/) They then made two pits or ditches, into one of which they put wine, honey, water, and flour, to employ the generality of the dead ; and in the other they poured the bl.cd of the victim; When sitting down on the brink, they kept off, by the sight of their iwords, the crowd of dead who had no concern in their ail, , Homer ^ives the same aecoijnt of these cereii hen es raises the s n of I ir - s; ;>n' : ■■>■> ;! "d entrusted to the care of a person, who, on account of his office, was called PuHariue. The augur, after having commanded silence, ordered the pen to be onened, and threw upon the ground a hand J i I corn. If the chic- kens instantly 1 . .. out of the pen, and pecked up the corn ferness as to let some of it fall from their beaks, the augury was called TripudLum, or Tn- p ud im Solistium, from its striking the earth, and was c i i m d a most auspicious omen ; but if they did not i: li itely run to the corn, if they flew away, if they w k ■ i by it without minding it, or if they scattered it abroad with thejr wings, it portended danger and ill suc- cess. APPENDIX. 233 cess. Thus the fate of the greatest undertaking, and even the full of cities and kingdoms, was thought to de- pend ou the app-rite of a few chickens. Observations were also taken from the chattering, . or hooting of crows, pies, owls; &c. and from running of beasts, as heifers, asses, rams, hares, wolves, foxes, weesels, and mice, when they appeared in uncommon places, crossed the way, or ran to the right or left, &c. They also pretended to draw a good or bad omen from the most common and trifling actions or occurrences of life, as sneezing, stumbling, si i rl I .-, the numbness of the little finger, the tingling of the ear, the spilling of salt upon the table, or wine upon one's clothes, the accidental meeting of a bitch with whelp, &c. It was also the business of the augur to ?rpret dreams, oracles, and prodigies. The college of augurs, at first instituted at Rome by Romulus, was only composed of three persons, taken from the three tribes, into which all the inhabitants of the city were divided ; but several others were after- wards added, and at last, according to a gulati< i of Scylla, this college consisted of fifteen persons, all of the first distinction, the eld ' of v 10m \ ts called the master of the college : " It was a priesthood for life, u of a character i lich no crime or forfeiture " could efface ; it was necessary that every candidate *'■ should be no 'to the people by two augurs, who •• gave a solemn testimony upon oath of his " i- e (7)-" I ■ • I precautions were indeed taken in this election ; for as they were in- ited with such extr lary privileges, none v. qualified but iblai slife, and free from all -. The . • could assemble in no pi but what they had consecrated. They oc- casioned th j of magistrates, and the defer; of public assemblies. ' the senate, at last, coiisi- " dcring that such an unlimited power was capable of au- " thorising a number of abuses, decreed that they should - •' not i their power to adjourn any assembly that " had been legally convened (8)." Noth ng can be more astonishing, than to find so wise a j .. the R addicted to s ich childish foole- (-, ton'f I f ro. 240 APPFNDIX. rios. Spicio, Augustus, and many others, harp, without any fatal consequei a 5, despised the chickens and the other arts of divination ; bat when generals miscarried in any enterprise, the people laid the whole blame >n lessness with which they had been consulted ; and it" he had entirely neglected consulting them, all the blame was thrown upon him who had preferred his own forecast to that of the fowls ; while those who made these kinds of predictions a subject of raillery, were ac- counted impious and prophanfe. Tims they construed • i a punishment from the gods the defeat of Claudius Pulcher, who, when the sacred chickens refused to eat what was set before them, ordered them to be thrown bto the sea : tfthey ivonf eat, said he, i/try shall drink. V. Of the Auspices. IN fhe most early ages of the world a sense of piety and a regard to decency, had introduced a custom «f never sacrificing to him, who gave them ad their bles- liaffS, any but the soundest, the most fat and beautiful victims. They are examined with the closest and most exact attention. This ceremonial, which doubtless .prang at first from gratitude, and some natural ideas ot fitness and propriety, at last degenerated into trifl.ng niceties aad superstitious ceremonies. And it having be Cn once imagined, that nothing was to be expected from the gods when the victim was imperfect, the idea of perfection was united with abundance of trivial car- cumstances. The entrails were examined with peculiar and if the whole was without blemish, their duties ' MfiHed ; and under an assurance that they had en- ,d8 1. 1 be on their side, they engaged m war, in the most hazardous undertakings, with such a confidence of success, as had the greatest tendency to p '.-arc it. , . , . All the motiona of the victim that was led to the al- tar became so many prophecies. If he advanced with an easy air in a straight line, and without offering resis- tance- if he made no extraordinary bi llowing when he received the blow ; if he did not get loose from the per- son that led him to the slaughter, it was a prognose ~f at, »a(T nnd flowing SUCCCSS. A1 J PKND1X. 241 The victim was knocked down, but before its belly- was ripped open, one of the lobes of the liver was allot- ted to those who olL-red the sacrifice, and the other to the enemies of the state. That which was neither ble- mished nor withered, of a bright red, and neither larger uor smaller than it ought to be, prognosticated great prosperity to those for whom it was set apart ; that which was livid, small, or corrupted, presaged the most fatal mischiefs. The next thing to be considered was the heart, which was also examined with the utmost care, as was the spleen, the gall, and the lungs ; and if any of these were let fall, if they smelt rank, or were bloated, livid or withered, it presaged nothing But misfortunes. After they had finished their examination of the en- ils, the lire was kindled, and from this also they drew rral presages. If the flame was clear, if it mounted up without dividing, and went not out till the victim was entirely consumed, this-was a proof that the sacrifice was accepted ; but if they found it difficult to kindle the fire, if the flame divided, if it played around, in- Stead of taking hold of the victim, if it burned ill, or went out, it was a b?d omen. At Rome, the auspices were always chosen from the best families, and as their employment was of the same nature as the augurs, they were as much honoured. It was a very common thing indeed to see their predictions verified by the event, especially in their wars : nor is this at all wonderful, the prediction never lulled them into security, or prevented their taking every necessary pre- caution ; but, on the contrary, the assurance of victory inspired that intrepidity and high courage, which in the common soldiers was the~principal tiring necessary to the attainment of it. But, if, aft. r the appearance of a com. plete favour from the gods whom they had addressed* their affairs bappeaed to miscarry, the blam v - hid on some other deity : Juno or Minerva had been ne» glected. They sacrificed to them, recovered their spirits, and behaved with greater precaution. However, the business of the auspices was not re- strained to die altars and sacrifices, they had an equal right to explain ail other portents. The senate frequent- ly consulted them on the most extraordinary prodigies. Y « The 24<2 APPENDIX. «'« The college of the auspices (9 J, as well as those *' of the other religious orders, had their partii ilar re- gisters and records, such as the rrcm< rials of thunder «« and lightning, the ( 1 J Tuscan histories, &c " VI. Of Oracles. \y F all the nations upon earth Greece was the most famous for oracles, and some of their wisest men have -endeavoured to vindicate them upon solid principle*, and refined reasoning. Xenophon expatiates on the ne- cessity of consulting the gods by augurs and oracles- lie represents man « naturally ignorant of what is ad- vantageous and destructive to himself ; that he is so fir from being able to penetrate into the future, that the present itself escapes him ; that his designs maybe frus- trated by the slightest objects ; that the Deity alone, to whom all ages are present, can impart to him the infalli- ble knowledge of futuiity ; that no other being can give miccess to his enterprizes ; and that it is highly reasonable to believe that he will guide and protect those who adore him with a pure affection, who call upon him and con- sult him with a sincere and humble resignation. How surprizing it is that such refined and noble principles should be brought to defend the most puerile and absurd .opinions ! Foi what arguments can vindicate their pre- suming (<)) Rennet's Roman Antiq. lib. II. c 4. (i / Romulus, who founded the institution of the auspices, borrowed it from the Tuscans, to whom the senate afterwards s T,t twelve oi the sons of the principal nobility to be instructed in these mysteries, atid the other ceremonies of their religion. The origin of this art amongst the people of Tuscany 11 related lv Cio 10 in the follow ing manner: " A peasant (SHys he) plon|h- H'ing in the fittd, his ploughshare rnnmng pn tty d< cp in the "earth, tuned up a clod, from whence fprung a child, who " taug'ht'him and the or!-..:,- lui ans the art 01 divination.*' fcee Ciccrto de Dfv. I 2. This fable undoubtedly meant no mnrt than thai this .:hild, sai-J to spring from a clod nf earth, Was a ronth of-a very mean and obscure birth, and that from him the Tuscans learnt thismethod of divination. But it is not kntfwfl whether he was the author of it, or whether bckarntil of the Greeks or other llanos:. APPENDIX. 2'fS suming to interrogate the most High, and oblige him to give answers concerning every idle imagination, and unjust enterprize ? Oracles were thought by the Greeks to proceed in a more immediate manner from God than the other arts of divination ; and on this account scarce any peace was concluded, any war engaged in, any new laws enacted, or any new form of government instituted without con- sulting oracles. And therefore Minos, to give his laws a proper weight with the people, ascribed to them a di- Msanetio i, and pretended to receive from Jupiter in- ctions how to new model his government. And Ly- curgus made frequent visits to the Delphian oracle, that the people might entertain a belief, that he received from Apollo the platfonn which he afterwards communicated to the Spartans. These pious frauds were an effectual means of establishing the authority of laws, and engag- ing the people to a compliance with the will of the law- giver. Persons thus inspired were frequently thought wortjiy of the highest trust ; so that they were some- times advanced to regal power, from a persuasion, " that ** as they were admit Led to the counsels of the gods, they " were best able to provide for the safety and welfare of '" man (I)." This high veneration for the priests of the oracles be- ing the strongest confirmation that their credit was tho- roughly established, they suffered pone to consult the gods bat those who ftroilgnt sncrlilees and rich' prjsen & to them ; whence few, besides the great, were admitted. This proceeding served at ov.ee to enrich the priests, and to raise the character of the oracles amongst the popu- lace, who are always apt to despise what they are too i u:\iliarly acquainted with ; nor were the rich, or e the greatest prince admitted, except at those particular times when the god was in a disposition to be consulted.' One of the most ancient oracles of which we have re- ceived any particular account, was thai of Jupiter at 1 dona, a city said to be built by Deucalion, after that fa- mous deluge which bears his name, and which desfcro' the greatest part of Grime, it was 8 : ; i3, and here vyas, the first temple that everwao seen in C- tee. According to Herodotus, both this and the oracle of Y 2 JupiUf (i) Potter'* Antiquities t£ Circece, vol. I. p J63. 24-1 APPENDIX. Jupiter Hammon had the same original, and both owe their institution to the Egyptians. The rise of this ora- cle is indeed wrapped up in fable. Two black pigeons, lay ti.cy, flying from Thebes in Egypt, one of them lettlet in Lybia, and the other fk-w as far as the Forest of Dodonaj a province in Epirus, where sitting in an bak, she informed the inhabitants of the country, that • c was the will of Jupiter that an oracle should be found- eel in that place. Herodotus gives two accounts of the rise of this oracle, one of which clears rip the mystery of this fable. He tells us, that he was informed by the priests of Jupiter at Thebes in Egypt, that *O v ie Phoenician merchants carried oft" two priestesses of T lubes, that one was carried into Greece, and the ether into Lybia. She that was carried into Greece took up her residence in the forest of Dodona, and there at the foot of an oak, erected a small chapel in honour of Jupiter, whose priestess she had been at Thebes (3). We learn from Servius (4-), that the will of heaven was here explained by an old woman, who pretended to find out a meaning to explain the murmurs of a brook that flowed from the foot of the oak. After this, another method was taken, attended with more formalities ; brazen kettles were suspended in the air, with a statue of the same metal, with a whip in his hand (5) : this figure, when moved by the wind, struck against the kettle that was next it, which also causing all the other kettles to strike against each other, raised a clattering din, which continued for some time, and from these sounds she formed her predictions. Both these ways were equally absurd, for as in each tlie answer depended solely on the invention of the pries- tess, she alone was the oracle. Suidas informs us, that the (j) The Abbe Sallicr takes this fable to be built upon the double meaning of the word w&iteit, which in Attica, Rnd several other parts of Greece, signifies pigeons, while in the di; lect of I pirus.it meant old women. See Mem. Acad. Belies l.ettr^s, vol. V p. 35 {4) Senrku in 3. ./En. 5. 466. (5) As this was evidently a figure of Osiris, which was on particular oecatVns represented with a whip in his hsijd, it i» an additional proof that this orack was derived from Egypt. API'ZUDIX. 21J rhe answer was given by an. oak in this -grove, as Homer > has delivered ((>) ; aiiuas it was generally believed to proceed from the trunk, it is easy to conceive how this was performed ; for the priest had nothing more to do than to hide himself in the hollow of an old oak, a id from thence to gjve the pretended sense of the oracle,. which lie might the more easily do, as the distance the suppliant was obliged to keep was an effectual means to prevent the cheat from being discovered* There is one remarkable circumstance relating to thir oracle yet remaining, and that Is, that while all. the othen nations received their answer from a woman, the Boeo- tians alone received it from a man, and the reason gives thy it is as follows : During the war between the Th'ra* cians and Bcsotians, the latter sent deputies to consult this oracle of Dodona, when the priestess gave them this answer, of which she doubtless did not foresee the consequence : Ij you would meet with success, you must hi guilty of some imjiibut action. The deputies, no doubt surprised, and perhaps exasperated, by imagining that the priestess prevaricated with them in order to please the Pelasgi, from whom she was descended, ami who were in a strict alliance with the Thracians, resolved to fulfil the decree of the oracle ; and therefore seizing the priestei.s, burned her alive, alleging, that this action" was Justifiable in whatever light it was considered; that if she intended to deceive them, it was. fit she should be punished for the deceit ; or, if she was sincere, they had only literally fulfilled the sense of the oracle. The two remaining priestesses, (for, according to Strabo, the oracle at that time had usually three) highly exasperat- ed at this cruelty, caused them to be seized, ami as they were to be their judges, the deputies pleaded the illega- lity of their being tried by women. The justice of this plea was admitted by the people, who allowed two priests to try them in conjunction with the priestesses ; on which, being acquitted by the former, and condemn- ed by the hitter, the votes being equal, they were release J, For this reason the Boeotians, foi the future, received their answers from the priests. Y 3 The (o) Tot dig fcucuiw Jp4re Bti/xivxi, oippec Sttio Ex o%vls,vytxoftoi& Aia; BoAr.c imxsfTt). Hon. Od,. IS. £46 AFPfNDlX. The oracle of Jupiter Hammon in Lybia, v/e have already said, was derived from Egypt, and is of the same adtiquity as the former at Dodona, and, though sur- rounded by a large tract of burning sands,, was extreme- ly famous.^ This oracle gave his answers not by words, liit by a sigh. What was called the image of tlie god was carried about in a gilded barge on the shoulders of his priests, who moved whithersoever they pretended the divine impulse directed them. This appears to have been nothing more than the mariner's "compass (7), the use of which was not entirely unknown to that age, though so long kept a secret from the Europeans. It was adorned with precious stones, and the barge with* many silver goblets hanging on either side ; and these processions were accompanied with a troop of matrons and virgins singing hymns in honour of Jupiter. These priests refused the bribes offered them by Lysander, who wanted their assistance to help him to change the suc- cession to the throne of Sparta. However, they were not so scrupulous when Alexander, either to gratify his vanity, or to screen the reputation of his mother, took that painful ma'rJh through the desarts of Lybia, in or- der to obtain the honour of king called the son of Ju- piter; a priest stood ready to receive him, and saluted him with the title of soil of the king of gods. The oracle of Apollo at jDelphbs was one of the most famous in all antiquity. This city stood upon a declivity about the middle of mount Parnassus: it wa» built rAi a small extent of even ground, and surrounded wuh precipices, that fortified it without the help of art (Sj. Diodorus Siculns relates (9) a tradition of a wry whimsical nature, which was said to give riue to this oracle. There was? a hole in one of the vallies, at the foot of Parnassus,, the mouth of which was very straight ; the goats that were feeding at no great distance, coming near it, began to skip and frisk about in such a manner that the goat-herd* being .'.truck with surprise, came up to the place, and leaning o\er it, was seized with such an enthusiastic impulse, or temporary madness, as prompted f7> Utubil/n shniHi. smaragdo fcr gemtnis toatrmeatattts, J3*i*i r. ■■■!, u,aijv .(.i„t u T> ..-.-■J i, .. O. C'UK'IIU^, J. 4 C 7 (%J btrabu, lib. siv. p. 427, 4U5. ,'p, Live 4 I. APPfcNDIX. 547 prompted him to Utter seine extravagant expressions* which passed for prophecies. The report of this extraordi- nary event drew thither the neighbouring people, who, on approaching the hole, were seized with the same trans- ports. Surprised at so astonishing a prodigy, the cavity was no longer approached without reverence. The ex- halation was concluded to have something divine in it ; they imagined it proceeded from some friendly deity, and from that time bestowed a particular worship on the divinity of the place, and regarded what was delivered in those fits of madness as predictions ; and here they afterwards built the city and temple of Delphos. This oracle, it was pretended, had been possessed by several successive deities, andatlast by Apollo, who rais- e.l its reputation to the greatest height. It was resorted to by persons of all stations, by which it obtained im- mense riches, which exposed it to be frequently plunder- ed. At first it is said the god inspired all indifferently w'.io approached the cavern ; but some having in this fit of madness thrown themselves into the gulf, they thought fit to choose a priestess, and to set over the hole a tripos, or three-legged stool, whence she might without danger catch the exhalations; and this priestess was called i'y- thia, from the serpent Python, slain by Apollo. For a long time none but virgins possessed this honour, till a young Thessalian, called Echecrates, Falling in love with the priestess, who was at that time very beautiful, ravished her ; when, to prevent any abuses of the like kind for the future, the citizens made a law to prohibit any woman being chosen under fifty years old. At first they had only one priestess, but afterwards they had two or three. The oracles were net delivered every day, but the sa- crifices were repeated till the god was pleased to deliver them, which frequently happened only one day in the year. Alexander coming here in one of these intervals, after many intreaticir'to engage the priestess to mount the tripod, which were all to no purpose, the prince growing impatient at her refusal, drew her by force from h?r cell, and nfas leading herto the sanctuary, when s-.y- i.'>;, J)Ty son, thou art invincible t he cried out, thathe was saticikd, and needed no other answer. Nothing £43 APFLNDIX. Nothing was wanting tq keep up the air of mystery, in order to preserve its reputation, and to procure it ve- neration. The neglecting the smallest punctilio was suf- ficient to make them renew the sacrifices that were to precede the response of Apollo. The priestess herself was obliged to prepare for the discharge of her duty, by fasting three days, bathing in the fountain of Casta- lia, drinking a certain quantity of the water, and chew- ing some leaves of laurel gathered near the fountain. After these preparations, the temple was made to shake, which passed for tile signal given by Apollo to inform them of his arrival, and then the priests led her into the sanctuary and placed her on the tripod, when beginning to be agitated by the divine vapour, her hair stood an end, her looks became wild, her mouth began to foam, and a fit of trembling seized her whole body. In this condi- tion she seemed to struggle to get loose from the priests, who pretended to hold her by force, while her shrieks and howlings, which resounded through the temple, filled. the deluded by-standers- with a kind of sacred horror. -At first, being no longer pble to resist the impulses of the god, she submitted, and at certain intervals uttered seme unconnected words, which were carefully picked up by the priests, who put them in connection, and gave them to the poets, who were also present to put then* into a kind of verse, which was frequently stiif, unbar- monio'is, and always obscure ; this occasioned that piece of raillery, that Apollo, the prince of the muses, was the worot of the poets. One of the priestesses, who was- called Phemonoe, is said to have pronounced her oracles in verse: in latter times they were contented with deliver- ing them in prose, and this, in the opinion of Plutarch, was prie of the reasons of the declension of this oracle.. Ocesr.s intending to make trial of the several oracles of Greece, as well as that of Lybia, commanded the re- spective ambassadors to constdt them all on a stated day,, and to bring the responses in writing. The question proposed was, " What is Crccsns, the son of Alyattes, " king of Lydia, now doing V The rest of the oracles failed ; but the Delphian answered truly, that n He « was boiling a lamb and a tortoise together in a braz.en " pot." T I his confidence, and a profusion of the rich: . • In return, the oracle, on the next inquiry APPTNDIX. 249 inquiry, informed him, that " By making war upon the Persians, he should destroy a great empire." The event is well known. This vain confidence lost him both his crown and liberty ( 1 ). Trophonius, who, according to some authors, was no more than a robber, or at most a hero, had an oracle in Bueotia, which acquired great reputation. Pausanias, who bad consulted it, and gone through all its formali- ties, has giver a very particular description of it, and n him we shall extract a short history of this oracle. The sacred grove of Trophouius, says this author (2), is at a sinnll distance from Lebadea, one of the finest cities in Qreeee; and in this grove is the temple of Tro- 1- • inius, with his statue, the workmanship of Praxiteles. Those who apply to this oracle must perform certain monies before they are permitted to go down into the cave where the response is given. Some davs must be spent in a chapel dedicated to Fortune and the Good Genii, where the purification consists in abstinence from all things unlawful, and in making use of the cold bath. Pie must sacrifice to Trophouius and all his family, to Jupiter, to Saturn, and to Ceres, sirnamed Europa, who was believed to have been the nurse of Trophouius. The diviners consulted the entrails of every victim, to dis- cover if it was agreeable to Trophouius that the person should descend into the cave. If the omens were favour- able, he was led that night to the river Hercyna, where two boys anointed ids body with oil. Then he was conducted as far as the source of the river, where he was obliged to drink two sorts of water^ that of L^the, to efface from his mind all profane thcuo-hts, and that or Mnemosyne, to enable him to retain whatever he was to see in the sacred cave ; h~ was then presented to the statue of Trophonius, to which he was to address a short prayer ; he was then clothed in a linen tunic adorned with sacred fillets ; and at last was conducttd in a solemn manner to the oracle, which was inclosed within a stone wall on the top of a mountain. v In (i) Hereuot in CKo. (?.; Pau»a.lib.a j>. 602,604. 250 APPENDIX. In this inclosure was a cave formed like an oven, the mouth of which was narrow, and the descent to it not by steps, but by a short ladder : on going down there appeared another cave, the entrance to which was very straight. The suppliant, who was obliged to take a cer- tain composition of honey in each hind, without winch be could not be admitted, prostrated himself on the ground, and then putting his feet into the mouth of the cave, his whole body was forcibly drawn in. Here some had the knowledge of futurity by vision ; a^d others by an audible voice. They then got out of the cave in the same manner as they went in, with their feet foremost, and projirate on the earth. The suppliant orbing up the ladder was conducted to the chair of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory, in which being ??ated, he was questioned on what he had heard and jeen ; and from thence he was brought into the chapel (; r the Good Genii, where having staid till he had re- covered from his affright and terror, he was obliged to write in a book all that he had seen or heard, which the priests took upon them to interpret. There never was but one man, says Pausanias, who lost his life in this cave, and that was a spy who had been sent by Deme- trius, to see whether in that holy plate there was any thing worth plundering. The body of this man was afurWWls found at a great distance; and indeed it is not unlike]-, that this Tacit. Annal. 1. a. c. 54. 252 APPENDIX. Nothing is more remarkable than the different man- ners by which the sense of the oracles was conveyed: besides the methods already mentioned, in some the ora- cle was given from the bottom of the statue, to which one of the priests might convey himself by a subterra- nean passage ; in others by dreams, in others again by lots, in the manner of dice, containing certain character* or words, which were to be i by tables made for that purpose. In some temples the inquirer threw then himself, and in others th< y were dropped from a box ; and from hence arose the proverbial phrase, The lot is fallen. Childish as this method of deciding the success of events by a throw of dice may appear, yet it was al- ways preceded by sacrifices and other ceremonies. In others the question was proposed by a letter, sealed up, and given to the priest, or left upon the altar, while the person sent with it was obliged to lie all night in the tempt, and these letters were to be sent back unopened with the answer. ~ Here this wonderful art consisted in the priests knowing how to open a letter without injur- ing the seal, an art still practised, on particular occasions, in all the general post-efhees in Europe. A governor of Cilicia, whom the Epicureans endeavoured to inspire with a contempt for the oracles, sent a spy to that of Mopsus at Mallos, with a letter well sealed up ; as this man was lying in the temple, a person appeared to him and uttered the word Black. This answer he carried to the governor, which filled him with astonishment, though it appeared ridiculous to the Epicureans, to whom he commui.ic'itedit, when to convince them of the injustice of the raillery on the oracle, he broke open the letter, and shewed them that he had wrote these words, Shall I sacrifice to thee a ixjhite ox or a Unci: ? The emperor Trajan made a like experiment on the god at Heliopolis, by sending him a letter sealed up, to which he requested an answer. The oracle commanded a blank paper, well fol Jed and sealed, to be >;iven to the emperor, who, upon \m receiving it, was struck with admiration at seeing an answer to correspond to his own letter, in which he had wrote nothing. The general characteristic of oracles, says the justly admired Rollin (5), were ambiguity, obscurity, and convcrtability : (5) Aucicnt Hub vol, 5. p. 25. APPENDIX. 2J3 convertahilily ; so that one answer would agree with se- veral different and even opposite events ; and this was generally the case when the event was in the least dubious. Trajan, convinced of the divinity of the oracle by the bla:.k letter above mentioned, sent a second note, where- in he desired to know, whether he should return to Rome after i he conclusion of the war which he had then in view ; the oracle answered this letter by ending to him a vine broke in pieces. The prediction of the oracle was certainly fulfilled ; for the emperor dying in the war, his body, or, if you please, his bones, repre- sented by the broken vine, were carried to Rome. But it would have been equally accomplished had the Romans .-conquered the Parthians, or the Parthianf the Remans ; and whatever had been the event, it might have been constructed into the meaning of the oracle. Under such ambiguities thev eluded all difficulties, and were hardb' ever in the wrong. In this all their art, and all their superior knowledge consisted ; for when the question wat plain, the answer was commonly so too. A man re« questing a cure for the gout, \va6 answered by the ora- cle, that he should drink nothing but cold water. Ano- ther, desiring to know by what means he might become rich, was answered by *he god that he h?d no more to do but to make himself master of all between Sicyon and Corinth (rj). VII. Of Jltart, open Temfifes, Sacred Grove*, and Sacrifices. -*- -*-LTA RS and sacrifices mutually imply each othei > and were immediately consequent to the fail cf man : though the original altars were simple, beii g ci 1 poe d of earth or turf, or unhewn stones. There is great 110- bability that the clothing of our first parents cors'-t, i of the skin of beasts sacrificed by Adam in the interval between his offence and expulsion from paradise. Cai* and Abel, Noah ar.d the patriarchs, pursued the practice. Even those who forsook the living God yet continued this early method of worship. These idolaters at fist imitated the simple manner in which the) bid been 'aised Z b T ((>} Daniir, vol. I; 2^4 APRENBJX. by Noah. But the form and materials insensibly chang- ed ; there were tome square, others long, round, or tri- angular. F/tch feast obtained a p ;ci Har ceremonial, and an altar of a particular form. Sometimes they were of common stone, sometimes of marble, wood, or brass. The altar was surrounded with carvings in bap relief, and the corners ornamented with heads of various animals. Some reached no higher than to the knee, others were roared as high as the waist, whilst others were much higher. Some again were solid, others hollow, to re- re the libitations and blood of the victims. Others were port Vole, resemblitg a trevet, of a magnificent form, to hold the offering from the fire, into which they threw frankincense, to overpower the disagreeable smell of the blood and burning fat. In short, what had been approved on seme important occasions passed into a custom and became a law. Where the altars were placed, there was said to be in the early ages of the world an house or temple of Jehovah, which was mostly upon an eminence, and al- ways uncovered Where trey ecu d be had, nprig! t it -meswere erected near their. This in scripture is called setting ufi a pillar ; nor was it done without a particular form of consecration. The behaviour of the patriarch Jacob, to which we refer the reader (7), will explain the whole. It is said of Moses likew.se, That he rose up early in the morning, and Inn! Jed an altar Wider the hill, and twelve ftiljars, iffc. (*8J. The entire work of these sacred emi- nences was surrounded at a convenient distance by a mound or trench thrown up, in order to prevent the profatve intrusion of the people (9 J. At other times the walls were inclosed by groves oi o A (lj j whence this tree is said to be sacred to Jove. The heathens, when they left the i bject, yet continued this usage also uf the original worship ; which indeed is so linked to idolatry, that it became necessary for Moses to forbid the Hebrews planting groves about their altars, (7) Gem xxvii'. 18, to. ao, at. 2a, atu! xxxv. *, 14, 15. (&) Exnd. xxiv. 4. Tbtcletb, infiritit, dcorfum, en ihc declivity of tr e hill (9) IiLoJ. xix.. 12, 1 U ft J f ~< •>> . : . ?j. xii. 6. 7, xxxv. 4. xiii 18. Dtut, xi. 30. Judges ix 6, y . APPENDIX. 25.'> altars, to prevent their falling into the practices offtie nations round about them. These gropes were hung with garlands and chaplets of flowers, and with a variety of offerings in so lavish a manner, as almust entirely to exclude the light of the sun. They were considered as the peculiar residence of the deity. No wonder there- fere, that it was deemed the most inexpiable sacrilege to cut them down (12). The Ijigh antiquity and universality of sacrificing be- speak it a divine institution. The uttt-r impossibility that there should be any virtue or efficacy in the thing itself shews plainly that it must have been looked upon as vicarious, and having respect to somewhat '.ruly meri- torious, and which those that brought the sacrifice were at first sufficiently aqnaintdd with the nature of. For it is not to be presumed upon what grounds men could- indaeedto think of expiating their sins, or procuring the divine favom by sacr-iicial oblations. It is much more reasonable to conclude it a divine appointment. All nations have used it. They who were so happy as to walk with Gad, were instructed in it from age to age. And thr-v w'.io rejected him, still sacriiked. But they invented new rite? ;. and at length, mistaking and per- verting the original intent and meaning, offered even human victims ! It is indeed most surprising to observe, that almost all nations-, from the use of bestial, have advanced to human sacrifices ; a.idmany of them, from the same mistake and perversion, even to the sacrifice O-i their own children ! Tnis most cruel custom, amongst the Carthaginians, pf offering children to Saturn (3), occasoned anembas:y og sent to them from the Romans., in order to per- suade them to abolish it. And » the reign of Tiberu:-, Z 2 the ,'i) Lucan ment'onir.g the tree? which Cxfur ordered v< he I lied, to make his warlike engines, defcribes the tonfteraa- tion 1 1 tin- foldiets, who rcluscd t: o!»ey his erccrs, t.ll taking an axe, he tut <\>-.vn un< of chem ftimfelf. Struck with a religious reverence for the fanditj of the goovej they imagined that -i d ey prcfumptuoully attempted to cut dowii any of its trees, the ai* Would have recoiled upon themielvea. I hey hov.evei believe« it lawful to prune and clssrthem, and tu fell tnoierretN, Which thtj imagined attracted the t'.u::.:er. (3> Thefc facrifici t were pra&ifed annually by the Oath? »ns, who firir. offered the fons of the principal citizens; but af- terwards privately, brought up ehiidicn for thut purpofea 256 APPENDIX. the priests of Saturn were crucified for presuming to sacrifice children to him; and Amasis, king of Egypt, made a law, that only the figures of men should be sa- ciiiced, instead of themselves. Plutarch informs u% that at the time of a plague, the Spartans were ordered by an oracle to sacrifice a virgin ; but the lot having fallen upon a young maid whose name was Hden, an eagle caried away the sacrificing knife, and laying it on the head of an heifer, it was sacrificed in her stead. The same author informs us, that Pelopides the Athe- nian general, dreaming the night before an engagement, that he should sacrifice a virgin to the manes of the daughters of Scedasus, who had been ravished and mur- dered, he was tilled with horror at the inhumanity of such a sacrifice, which he could not help thinking odious to the gods ; but seeing a mare, by the advice of Theo- critus the soothsayer, he sacrificed it, and gained the victory. The ceremonies used at sacrifices were extremely dif- ferent, and to every deity a distinct victim was allotted (4) ; but whatever victims were offered, the greatest care was to be taken in the choice of them ; for the very same blemishes that excluded them being offered by the Jews, rendered them also imperfect among the Pagans. The priest having prepared himself by continence, daring the preceding night, and by ablution ; before the procession went a herald crying hoc age, to give the peo- ple notice that they were to give their sole attention to what they were about ; then followed the players on se- veral instruments, who, between the intervals of playing, exhorted the people in the same manner. The priest, and sometimes the sacrificers, went before, clothed in white, and the priest, besides being dressed in the vest- ments belonging to his office, wis sure to be crowned with a chaplet of the leaves of the tree sacred to the god for whom the sacrifice was appointed ; the victim had his horns gilt, and was also crowned with a chaplet of the same Laves, and adorned with ribbands and fiU . . lets. fa) Iiiicnn inform*, that '' The victims were alfo different, ar> ™, COrding to the qualify and circumftancc of rhe pcrfons who " offered them. The hufbandman, fays he, facrinces an ox ; the " lhepherd, a lamb ; the goat herd, a g- -at. There are fonae who " offer only cikes, or incense : and he that has nothing, o.icri- " £ces by killing hid right hand.'' Dc .Sacr. APPENDIX. 257 Jots. Tn Greece when the priest approached the altar, he- cried, Who it here ? To which the spectators answer- ed, Many G'.od people (5). The priest then said, Be gcnCy all ye firofatte, which the Romans expressed by saying, Promt ■:■'■- fifofdnu The victim arriving at the altar, the priest laid one hand upon the altar, aitd began with a prayer to all the gods, begining with Janus, and ending with Vest?, during which tfie strictest silence was observed. Then the sacrifice began, by throwing upon the head of the victim corn, frankincense, flour, and salt, laying upon it cakes and fruit (6), and this they called immolitio, or the immoliti n. Then the priest took the wine, which having first tasted, he gave it to the by-standers to do so too (7 1 , and \ -mt 1 poured it out, or sprinkled the beast with it between the horns- After this the priest plucked off some of the rough hairs from the fore- head of the victim, threv/ them into the fire, and then, turning to the east drew a crooked line with his knife along the back from the forehead to the tail, and then ordered the servants ($) to slayt he victim, which they had no sooner done than he was opened, and the duty of the aruspex began, which was no sooner over, than the carcase wis cut in quarters, and then into smaller pieces, and, according to Pausnnias (9), and Apollonius Rhodius ( 1 j, the thighs were covered with fat, and sa- crificed as the part allotted to the god(2y); after whichr they regaled themselves upon the rest, and celebrated this religious feast with dancing, music, and hymns bung in honour of the gods. Upon signal victories* or in the midst of some public- calamity, they sometimes offered in one sacrifice an hun- dred bulls, which was called an hecatomb : but some- times the same name was given to the sacrifice of an hun- dred sheep, hogs, or other animals,. 'Tis said that Z 3 Pythagoras (5) lUhXti £*>«<•«*. ft ) All tliefc were not uf d for every fkerifieev I i ) This was called libitio. (&) riief'e if.feriof officers, v.hofe buGnefs ittvfis to kilf, to- embowel, to Any, and to wafh the viiilim, were caiied PiSii.narii frfie, Afc 'tis, l.i trjrii. (9.) Lib 5. p 192. (l) In Atf, p. 4a. (1) Ifi the holhca uft.3, the whole viflim wasburnt, anuno'hinmer. When the ancient.; chose a priest, the strictest enquiry was made into the life, the m; : ners, and even the bodily external perfections of the person to be chosen. Th. v were generally allowed to marry once, but were, al- lvavs forbid second marriapve. The Greeks and Roman : .' evefal orders of priests ; bat as Greece was divided into ftiarfy iridepend* nt state*, there laterally arose different hierarchies. In several c ities of Greece the government of rehVion was intrust) <1 to women, mothers it was conferred on the men; v.-: gtan, in others, both in concert had a share in the ! isnagement of it. 'I lie priestesses of A^gos were v< 1 v famous. At Athens a priestess presided ever the wor- rbip of Mirierva ; there was also a priestess for Pallas, at Clazcmens ; for Ceres, at Cantanea, &c. The Hiero- ifthtse were very famous, priests of Athens', and both, • ivy and their wives* who were called Hieronhahtidbe, were set apart for the worship of O res and Hecate • as ■ere the Qrgiophantie, and the women stiled Orgjasiht, ted te ; i de over the orgies of Bacchus; i?L. Besides. the priestess* of Apollo, at Delphos, who. . way of eminence called P\ :hia (f:\ there belppged to { hut, Uif _ Vr : . f!.f- of Pallatf, al ( !azomen;c, vn< cali- - 1 Heiychia, and that of Bacchus, Thyas; nj*d in Oj that ofCybele, Mc'ifla. Am n» the Athenians, th or mir.iflcrs were ftiled Parifiti, a word that did no fh'at time carry with it any mark of reproach ; (or it is n <>>'iru,- ia. Tlje priests of Rome enjoyed several very consider? - privileges ; they were exempted from going- to war, aid excused from all burthensofne effic< s in the state. They had commonly a branch of laurel aid a torch carried before them, and wire allowed to ride in a chariot to the capitbl. Romulus instituted sixty priests, who were to be at least fifty years of o great, and his office so much revered, "that all the emperors, after the exam- " pie of JuKus Caeskr and Augustus, either actually took. *' Upon them the officej or at least used the name /4- ).'* He was not allowed to go out of Italy, though this was dispensed w thin favour of Julius Q&sar; whenever he a - tended a funeral, a veil was put between him and ■ funeral bed ; for it was thought a kind of profana- tion for Lm to ice a dead bod v. The Rex Sacrorum (5J y according tp Dionysius of Halicarriaesus (6J, was instituted after the expulsion of , to perpct uate the memory of the great services some of them had done the str.ie. On this ac- int the kugurs and ifices were directed to choose it a fit person, who should devote himself to the care of religious worship, and tLe ceremonies of religion, without fices, t ; ie i re fbou'd Hs referved f r the £.irncs an ' the or! e r chcpi ieiifi and t.ad a jiiiir iiuiuii;,' !,',; r'.iicf magistrate*, :iiid principal part of their en»i laymen t was to choofe the wheat appointed io. Ucii satn- fnc. - nier*s Mythology, Vol. i. p. $$t, ,» I met'* Rom. Attiq. (:', He v.a% alio filled Kti SacrUkuJiw, (61 Lib. I. 260 APPENDIX. without ever interfering in civil affairs; but Test the nutn? of Wiig, which was become odious to the people, should raise their jealousy, it was at the same time ap- pointed, that he should be subject to the high priests. ] [i wife had the title ofRegina Sacrorum. The Flamir.es, according toLivy (7), we re appointed by Numa Potopilius, to discharge those religious offices which he imagined properly belonged to the kings. At first there were but three (8), which were chosen by the people, and their election confirmed by the high priest. They were afterwards encreased to fifteen, three of whom were chosen from among the senators, and were called Flamir.es Majores ; and the other twelve, chosen from the Rlebieans, were stiled Flamines Mi- nores. The Feciales were also instituted by Numa and con- sisted of twenty persons, chosen out of the most distin- guished families. These were properly the heralds of the republic, who, whenever it was injured, were sent to demand satisfaction, which, if they could not obtain, they called the gods to witness between them and the enemy, and denounced war. They had the power of ratifying and confirming alliances, and were the arbi- trators of all the differences between the republic and other nations ; so that the Romans could not lawfully take up arms, till the Feciales had declared that war was most expedient. The Pater Patratus derived his name from a circum- stance necessary to his enjoying the title ; and in order that he- might be more strongly interested in the fate of his country,, he was to have both a father and a son living at the same time. He was chosen by the college of Feciales out of their own body, to treat with the enemy on the subject of war and peace. The Epulones were ministers appointed to prenare the sacred banquets at the solemn games, and had the privilege (7) Liv lib. i. f?) The Flflwiendiafisof Jtipiter,the Martialis of Mars.and the Quirreali' of QuirinUB. The firft fatred to Jupiter was a perfon of a very high diftintftion, though he wat obliged to fubmlt to burthenf >m« regulations and ftiperftltious obferva'ncei : his wife •.■ » i prieftef», and had the title- of Flamfoica; and alfo enjoyed • . fame priTiligea, and was under the f.me reftri<5ttous us her l.Libar.J. Aldus Gdlius, Noft, Att. 1. io. c. 15. APPENDIX. 2G1 privilege of wearing a robe like the pontiff*, bordered with purple. Those ministers were originally three in Dumber, to which two were afterwards added, and then two more, till in the pontification of Julius Csesar they increased to ten. The most considerable of tae privileges grunted to the Edulones was one which th / enjoyed in common with the other ministers, their not ig obliged to make their daughters vestals (9). Besides these were the Salii, or priests of Mars j the Phaebades of Apollo ; the Bassarides of Bacchus ; the Luperfci of Pan ; and several others who presided over th< worship of particular deities, each of which had a particular college, and constituted a distinct commu- nity. O Of the Temples ./ tJfe Pagans. 'A KEN groves, with a circi.laropening in the midst, or upright stones placed in the same order, inclosiig an altar, were the original temples. The first covered one was that of Babel, and in all probability it was the only one of the kind, till Moses, by erecting the tabcrr.acle, might give the Egyptians the first thought of building also a house for their gods. Had temples been built in Egypt at tbe time when Moses resided there, it can hardly be conceived but that he would have mentioned them ; and tiiat this moving temple might serve as a model for the rest is the more probable, as there is a near resemblance between the .Sanctum Sanctorum and J he holy places in the Pagan temple. In that of Moses, God was consulted, and none suffered to enter but the priests : this exactly agrees with the holy places in the Heathen temples, where the or'-icle was delivered. It was the opinion of Lucian, that the first temples were built by tbe Egyptians, a; d that from them the custom was conveyed to the people of the neighbour- ing countries ; and from Egypt aid Pi:cenicia it passed into Greece, and from Greece to Rome. They all began with little chapels, which were gene- rally erected by private persons, and the§£ were soon succeeded by regular buildings, aid the most magnificent structures, [9] Aulus Gdlius, lib. I. c. 12. 262 APPENDIX. Mructures, when even the grandeur and beauty of the Idings heightened the veneration that was entertained for them. Tiiey had often porticos, and always an as- cent of steps, while some of these were surrounded by galleries supported by rows of pillars. The first part in entering these temples was the porch, in which was placed the holy water for the expiation of those that en- tered into the temple. The next was the nave ( 1 ), into which norte but the priests were allowed to enter. Some- times there was behind the buildings another part, called the back temnle. The inside was frequently adornedwith paintings, gild- ings and the richest offerings, among which were the trophies and spoils of war. But the principal ornaments were the statues of the gods, and those of persons distin- guished by great and noble actions, which were sometimes of gold, silver, ivory, ebony, and other precious materia' . The veneration for these buildings was carried by the Romans and other nations to the most superstitious ex- cess. Before the erecting one of these noble edifices* the Aruspices chose the place, and fixed the time for bfginning the work ; for here every thing was of impor- tance. Tiiey began when the air was serene, and the sky clear and unclouded ; on the limits of the building were placed fillets and garlands, and the soldiers whose names were thought auspicious, entered the enclosure with bows in their hands ; then followed the vested vir- gins, atteuutti u'j -;-'. Leys »nd girl* who had the hap- piness to have their fathers and mothers Jiving, and these assisted the vestals in sprinkling ail the ground with clear water ; then followed a solemn sacrifice, and prayers to the gods to prosper the building they were going to erect for their habitation ; and this hieing over, the priest touched the stone that -was to be first laid, and bound it with a fillet, after which the magistrates, rnd persons of the greatest distinction, assisted the pecple, with the utmust joy and alacrity, in removing the stone, which was extremely laige, fixed it for a foundation, throwing i,i with it several Small gold coins, and other pieces of money. When f ] ) N»)f. (>) (Jailed Penetrans, Sacrarmm, Kiyt\ APPENDIX. '-" I When these buildin. c finis) rd, they were con- secrated with abund ■ ii ceremony, and so great was the veneration felt by tut people for the temples', that they frequently, as a mark of humiliation, clambered up lo them on their knees; and so holy \v::.s the place, t it wps thought criminal for a n ar. to ppit or blow his nose in it. The women prostrated ttan civet in them, and swept the pavements with their ha r. They became sanctuaries for debtors and crimi , and 0:1 all holidays were constantly decked with branches ol laurel, olive, and ivy. One of the first temples built in Egypt was that of Vulcan at Memphis, erected by Menes : At first it tad i'i primitive simplicity of all other ancient buildings, add without statues (3 J ; but the successors of this prince strove to excel each other in embellishing this work with stately porches and statues of a monstrous size. There were indeed a great number of temples in Egypt, but the must extraordinary thing of this kind was a chapel hewn out ot a single stone, which by order of Amasis vva-, cut out of the quames in upper Ej yrpt, and with incredible difficulty carried as far as Sais, where it was designed to have been set up in the temple ot Minerva, but was left at the gate. Herodotus mentions this work • marks of astonishment: " What I admire more," says he, " than all the other work's of Amasis, is his 14 causing a house to be brought from Elephantina, a " house hfwn out of a single stone; which two thousand '•' men were unable to move thither in less than three '• v ms. This house was thirty-one feet in front, *' twenty- one feet in breadth, and twelve in height ; "and on the inside twenty-seven feet in length, and «' sevtfn feet and a half high." The temple of Diana at Ephesug (4-) has been al- ways admired as ore cf the noblest pieces of architec- ture that the world has ever pioduced. It was i^ur huudred and twenty -five feet long, two hundred feet broad, fjj Acrording to the best hisroriaiiF, there Were no st.nuc«iu the ancient tempjesof E t yj r. But this is not at -.'. strai ge sir.ee Plutarch, who Las his authority from Varro, siys, " Thai the " Romans were a hundred and seventy years witi oat statue*; ** N'uma prohibit- d tlum by a law ; and • rfUl in lets us know, " that even in his time there were 1. . .. 1 • it had no n ftatuts." \4j 1 his temple was accounted one of the wonders of theworJ 264 APPENDIX. bro d, and supported by a hundred and twenty-seven columns of" marble sixty feet high, twenty-seven of which were beautifully carved. This temple, which was 200 years in building, was burnt by Erostratus, with no other view than to perpetuate hjjs memory ; however, it was rebuilt, and the last temple was not inferior, either in riches or beauty, to the former, being adorned with the works of the most famous statuaries of Greece. The temple of Ceres and Proserpine was built in the D;-nc order, and was of so wide an extent as to be able to contain thirty-thousand men ; for there were fre- quently that number at the celebration of the mysteries of the two goddesses. At first this temple had no co- lumns on the outside ; but Philo afterwards added to it a magnrfice it portico. The f. iple of bipiter Olympiiis, as well as the ad- mirable statue of Jupiter placed in it, were raised from the spoils which the Elians took at the sacking of Pisa (5). This temple was of the Doric order, the most ancient, as well as the most Biiitable to grand undertak- ings ; and on the outside was surrounded with columns, which formed a noble perystile. The length of the temple was two hundred and thirty feet, its breadth ninety five, and its height, frem the area to the roof, two hundred and thjrty. From the middle of the roof hung ? gilded victory, under which was a golden shield, on which was represented Medusa's head ; and round the temple, above the columns, hunff twenty-one gilt bucklers, which Mummius consecrated to Jupiter after the sacking of Corinth. Upon the pediment in the front was represented, with equisite art, the chariot race between Pelops and Oenomaus ; and, on the back pedi- ment, the battle of the Centaurs with the Lapithse at the marriage of Pirithous ; and the brass gates were adorned with /the labours of Hercules. In the inside, two ranges oftaHa d stately columns supported two galleries, un- der vlr'ch was the way that led to the throne of Jupiter. The statue of the god and his throne were the mas- ter-pieces of 1 he great Phidias, and the most magni- ficent and highest finished in all antiquity. The sta- tue, which was of a prodigious size, was of gold and ivory, so artfully blendid as to fill all beholders with (%) Paufa-va? in tfiac, p, 305, & feq. APPENDIX. 2G5 with astonishment. The god wore upon hib head an olive crown, in which the leaf of" the olive was imitated in the nicest perfection. In his right hand he held the figure of victory, formed likewise of gold and ivory ; and in his left a golden scepter, on the top of which was an eagle. The shoes and mantle of the god were of gold, and on the mantle were engraven a variety of flowers and animals. The throne sparkled with gold and precious stones, while the different materials, and the assemblage of animals and other ornaments, formed a delightful variety. At the four corners of the throne were four Victories, that seemed joining hands for a dance ; and at the feet of Jupiter were two others. On r'ue foreside, the feet of t e throne were adorned with spinxes plucking the tender infants from the bosoms of the Theban mothers, and underneath were Apollo and Diana slaying the children of Niobe with their arrows, &c. At the top of the throne, above the head of Jupi- ter, were the Graces and Hours. The pedestal, which sup- ported the pile, was equally adorned with the rest ; it was covered with gold ; on the one side, Phidias had en- graven Phoebus guiding his chariot ; on the other, Jupi- ter and Juno, Mercury, Vesta, and the Graces ; here Venus appeared as rising from the sea, and Cupid recei- ving her, while Pitho, or the goddess of persuasion, seemed presenting her with a crown : there appeared Apollo and Diana, Minerva and Hercules. At the foot of the pedestal were Neptune and Amphitrite, with Di- ana, who appeared mounted on horseback, In short, a woollen veil died in purple, and curiously embroidered, hung down from the top to the bottom. A large ballu- strade painted and adorned with figures encompassed the whole work ; there, with inimitable art, was painted Atlas bearing the heavens upon his shoulders, and Her- cules stooping to ease him of his load ; the combat of Hercules with the Nenlean lion ; Ajax offering violence to Cassandra : Prometheus in chains, and a variety of other pieces of fabulous history. This temple was paved with the finest marble, adorned with a prodigious number of statues, and with the pre- sents which several princes had consecrated to the God. Though the temple of Apollo at D lphos was greatly inferior in point of magnificence to the former, yet the •A. a imnie 2CC APPENDTX. immense presents sent to it from every quarter rendered it infinitely more rich. The principal value of the for- mer arose from its containing the works ol Phidias, and his master-piece was really invaluable ; but what this temple wanted, in not containing the productions of so curious an artist, was amply made up by a profusion of treasure, which arose from the offerings of those who went to consult the oracle. The first temple which was built being burnt, the Amphictones, or general council of Greece, took upon themselves the care of re- building it ; and for that purpose agreed with an archi- tect for three hundred talents, which amounts to forty- five thousand pounds, and this sum was to be raised by the cities of Greece ; collections were also made in fo- reign countries. Amasis, king of Egypt, and the Gre- cian inhabitants of that country, contributed considera- ble sums for that service. The Alomaeonades, one of the jnost powerful families in Athens, had the charge of con- ducting the building, which they rendered more magni- ficent, by making, at their own expense, considerable additions that had not been proposed in the model. After the temple of Delphos was finished, Gyges, king of Lydia, and Crcesus, one of his successors, en- riched it with an incredible number of the most valuable presents; and, after their example, many other princes, cities, and private persons bestowed upon it a vast num- ber of tripods, tables, vessels, shields, crowns, and sta- tues of gold and silver of inconceivable value. Herodo- tus informs us (6), that the presents of ^old made by Crcesus alone to this temple amounted to more thaa two hundred'and fifty talents, or 33,500). sterling ; and ft is probable that those of silver were not of less value. And Diodorus Siculus (7) adding these to those of the other Piute's, computes them at ten thousand talents, or about l,-500,000l. (8). Plutarch informs us (9), that amongst the Statues of gold, which Crcesus placed in the temple of Delphos, was one of a female baker, of which lhi9 was the occa- sion ; (6) Her. lib. V c.'jya.'jii (» ri'jd Wbrf\ <\ 4 ?3- (%j It is in I i/tfibfe to fdrfo any tolerable iii'.-a 6f theft i'um* without hi. . U lie tbi .iCi i iml rl" a-n>|. ••■•live icai city of gold a: that t me, which, rendered its r^al value vatily grea- ter t ari wi>ai ■* bcariat nrcJent fne mines of Mexico aud perti I avc d'eflri y..i all ccnnpa'rilbn. (ijj 1'iot. tie i;. tli. Orac. p. 4*1. APPENDIX. 267 •ion : Allyatui, the father of Croesus, having married a second wife, by whom he had children ; she formed the design of securing the crown to her own issue, by putting a peciod to the life of her son-in-law ; and with this view engaged a female baker to put poison into a loaf, that was to be served up at the table of the young prince. The woman, struck, with horror at the thought of her bearing so great a share in the guilt of the queen, let Croesus into tiic secret ; on which the loaf was served to the queen's own children, and their death secured his succession to the throne, which when he ascended, from a sense of gratitudv- to his benefactress, he erected this statue to het* memory in the temple of Delphos ; an honour that, our author says, she had a better title to, than many of the boasted conquerors or heroes, who rose to fame ■>•■ ly by murders and devastation. Italy was no less famous for a multiplicity of temples than Greece ; but none of them were more noble, or more remarkable for the singularity of their form, thai* the Pantheon, commonly called the Rotunda, originally consecrated to ail the gods, as it is dqw to all the saints* It is generally believed to have been built at the expense of Agripp:;, son-in-law to Augustus. This noble fabric is entirely round, and without windows, receiving a suf- ficient degree of light from an opening admirably con- trived in the center of the dome. It was richly adorned with the statues of all the gods and goddesses set in niches* But the portico, composed of sixteen columns or granite mart.! , each of one single tone, is more beautiful and more surpnxingthah the temple itself, since tl ese c< lumna a v five feet i diameter, and thirty-seven feet ' igh, with- out mentioning the basis and chapiters. Trie emperor Constaijtius the 3d. stripped it of the plates of gilt brass that covered the roof, and of the beams, which wete of the same metal. Of the copper plates of the portico, Pope Urban Eighth afterwards formed 1 the canopy of St. Peter, and even of the nail's, which fastened them, cast the great piece of artillery, which is still to be seen in the castle of St. Angefo. But of the Roman temples the Capitol was the prin- cipal ; with an account of which we shall therefore con- clude. In the last Sabine war Tarquinius Priscus vowed A a 2 a temple 52 G 8 APPENDIX. a temple to Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. The event of the \yar corresponded with his withes, and the Auspices unanimously fixed upon the Tarpeian mountain for the destined structure. But little more seems to have been done towards it besides this designation, till the reign of Tarquinius Superbus, a prince of loftiness and spi- rit conforming to his name, who set about it in eafnest ; haying laid out the design with such amplitude andHmag- mricence as might suit the king of gods and men, the glory of the rising empire, and the majesty of the situ- ation. The Volscian spoils -Were dedicated to this ser- vice. An incredible sum was expended upon the foun- dation only, which were quadrilateral, near upon two hundred feet every way 5 the length exceeding the b . adth not quite fifteen feet. When the foundations were dearing, a human head was found, with the line- aments of the face entire, and the blood yet fresh and flowing, which was interpreted as an omen of future empire. This head was said to have belonged to one Ollus, or Tollus, whence the structure received its compound name. Though possibly it might be as well to redr.c- the r.srne fYorr. Ohfiut c;;Iy ; ^.;d that too upon another account, because it was the commanding 'part, the head and citadel of Rome, and the chief place of its religious worship. The edifice was not finished till after the expulsion of the kings ; the completion of it be- ing a work, says Livy, reserved fur the days of liberty. It stood the space of 425 years, to the consulate ol Scipio and Norbanus, when it v\as consumed by fire ; but it was rebuilt by Sylla, whose name was inscribed in letters of gold upon the fastigium or pediment of it. In the midst were formed three cells or temples separated by thin partitions, in which stood the golden images of the dei- ties to whom it had been devote d. Those of Juno and Minerva were on each side of Jupiter ; for it was not usual for him to be worshipped without the company of his wife and daughter. The three temples were covered by one eagle with his wings expanded. This wonderful structure seems to have b^en of the Doric order, in imitation of those raised to the same deity in Grefce, and abounded with curious engravings and every plaistic •rnament, particularly Fastigium. The spacious entran- ces, or tresholds, were composed of brass. The lofty folding APPENDIX. 269 folding doors, which were of the same metal, most elegantly embossed, grated harsh thunder upon brazen hinges, and were afterwards entirely overlaid with plates of gold. The tessellated pavement struck the eye with an astonishing assemblage of rich colours from the va- riegated marble. The beams were solid brass ; and the splendour of the fretted roof was dazzling ; where ( 1 ) The glitt'ring flame Play'd on the temple's gold and awful height, And shed around its trembling rays of light. Without, the covering was of plates of brass, fashion- ed like tiles ; which, being guilt with gold, reflected the sun-beams with excessive lustre. The front to the south, was encompassed with a triple row of lofty marble co- lumns beautifully polished, brought from the temple of Olympian Jove at Athens, by order of Sylla : all the other sides by a double row. The ascent was by an hundred steps that gently rose, which made the passage to it extremely grand and striking. But this Capitol was likewise burnt in the civil war between Vetellius and Vespasian, and restored by the lat- ter, with some addition of height : it quickly after un- derwent the same fate,, and was raised again by Domitian with more strength and magnificence than before ; who- arrogated the whole honour of the structure to him- self. The poets were mistaken, when they promised to this last fabric an eternal duration, for not many years intervened before it was fired by lightning, and a great part of it consumed, The left-hand of the- golded image of Jupiter was melted. Afterwards,, un- der Arcadius and Honorius the plunder of it was begun by Stilicho ; who stripped the valves or folding-doors. of the thick plated gold which covered them : in one part of which was found a grating inscription, declare ing them reserved for an unfortunate prince. Genseric, king of the Vandals,, carried with him into Africa most of its remaining ornaments, among which were one-half of the gilded tiles of brass ; and great part of it was des- troyed by Totilas the Goth. Theodoric indeed made some attempts to repair the Capitol, the Amphitheatre,, and others of the more spiendid buildings of the city ; A a 3 but $ 1 ) Tlamma niiort fuo t^mfrlcrum vtrberat aurum, £t trtmuLmfunima jparg:t fa ^tjubur. Ovjfi Fast. 1. #. 210 APPENDIX. but in vain, the prevailing light of Christianity left them for the most part useless and deserted. Of the USEFULNESS ok FABLE. By Mr. Ratlin, Professor of Ehquer.cc in the Royal Col* legs at Pnris, and Memler of the Royal Academy of Instrljitivns and Belles Lettres* VV'HAT I have already oberved (says this learned author) concerning the origin of fables, which owe birth to fiction, error, and falshood, to the alteration «f historical facts, and the corruption of man's hearty may give reason to ask, whether it is proper to instruct Christian children in all the foolish inventions, absurd ti'id idle dreams, with which Paganism has filled the boukr. of antiquity. Tuis study, when applied to with all the precautions. and wisdom which religion demands and inspires, may be very useful to youth. Fii-'t, It teaches them what they owe to Jesus Christ > their Reaeeiaer, who. had delivered them from the pow- er of darkntss, to bring them into the admirable light of the Gospel. Before Kim what were even the wisest and best ol men, those celebrated philosophers, those great. politicians, those famous- legislators of Greece, those grave senators of Rome ; in a word, all the best go- verned and wisest nations of the world ? Fable informs us, thev were blind worshippers of the devil, who bent their knees before gold, silver, and rr.aible ; who offered L cense to statues, that were deui~ and dumb ; who ac- knowledged as Gods, animals, reptiles, and plants; who. were'n6t ashamed .to adore an adulterous Mars, a pros- tituted Venus, and an incestuous Juno, a Jupiter polluted! w rh .dl manner of crimes, and for that reaoon most wor- I : 'It first place among the Ch..ds. What great impurities, whr.t monstrdtW abominations were admitted into (heir ceremi ie«, their solemnities, and mysteries ? The temples of their god i Were 8Cfl< ols ©f licentiousness, their pictures invitations to sin, their groves places of |(up€rtti\iofl and cruelty. In APPENDIX. 271 In this condition were all mankind, except the people of the Jews, for near four thousand years. In this state were our fathers, and we should have like- wise been, if the light of the Gospel had not dispersed our darkness. Every story in fabulous history, every circumstance of the live; of the Gods, should fill us at once with confusion, admiration and gratitude, and seem to cry out to us aloud in the words of St. Paul to the Ephesians : Remep.ber, and forget not, that being sprung from Gentiles, ye were strangers from the covenants, of pro- mise, having no hope, ana' without God in the wot hi. A second advantage of fable is, that in discovering to us the absurd ceremonies and impious maxims of Pa- ganism, it ought to inspire us with new respect for the august majesty of the Christian religion, and the sanctity of its morals. We learn from ecclesiastical history, that an holy bishop, in order to eradicate entirely all dispo- sition to idolatryout of the minds »f the faithful, brought to light and publicly exposed all thai was found in the in- side of a temple he caused to be demolished, the banes of men, the members of children sacrificed to devils, and several other footsteps of the sacrilegious worship, which the Pagans paid to their deities. The study of fable should produce a like effect in the mind of every sensible person, and it is this use the holy fathers and all the apologists of Christianity have, made of it. It is impossible to understand the books which have been writeu upon this subject, without having some knowledge of fabulous history. St. Auguatin's great work, entitled Df Civifbte Dei, which has done so much honour to the Church, is at the same f'me both a proof of what I lay down , and a perfect model ofthe manner how we ought to. tify profane studies. The same may be said of the other fathers, who have gone- upon the same plan from the beggimng of Christianity* Theophiiusof Antioch, Ta- tiau, Arobius, Lactantius, Theodoiet, Ens- tins ofC*- sarea, and especial^ St. Clement of Alexandria, whose Stromata are rot to be undersood by any ore that is not versed in this part of ancient learning. "Whereas the k:\uvledgeoffablenTpkestheknovvledgeofthemextrtine- ly easy, which we ought to look upon as no small advan. tage. It is also very useful (and particularly to youth, for whom 272 APPENDIX, whom I writ,*) for the understanding both of Greek* Latin, French, and English authors; in reading of w licli they must be often at a stand, without some ac- quaintance with fable. I don't -peak only of the poets, to whom we know it is a kind of natural language ; it is also frequently made use of by orators, and sometimes, by an happy application, supplies them with veiy lively and eloquent turns: Such, for instance, amongst a great many others, is the following passage in Tully's oration concerning Mithridates, king of Pontus. The orator takes notice, that this prince flying before the Romans, after the loss of a battle, found means to escape out of the hand.- of his covetous conquerors, by scattering upon the roads from time to time a part of his treasures and spoils. In like maner, says he, as it is told of Medea, that when she was pursued by her father, in the same country, she scattered the members of her brother Ab- syrtus, whom she had cut to pieces, along the way, that his care in gathering up the dispeised members, and his grief at the sight of so sad a spectacle, might retard his pursuit. The resemblance is exact, except that, as Tul- ly remarks, iEeta, the father of Medea, was stopped in his course by sorrow, and the Romans by joy. There are different species of books exposed to the view of the whole world, such as pictures, prints, tapes- try, and statues. These are so many riddles to thosewho are ignorant of fabulous history, from whence their ex- plication is frequently to be taken. These matters are likewise frequently brought into discourse, and it is not, in my opinion, over agreeable to sit mute, and seem stu- pid in company, for want of being instructed, whilst young, in a matter so easy to be learnt. One only Supreme GW, omnipotent, andtnc author of fate. l\ OTWITHSTANDING themonstrousmultipli- city of Homer's Gods, he plainly acknowledges one first being, a superior God, upon whom all the other Gods depended. Jupiter speaks and acts every where as abso- lute, and infinitely superior to all the other Gods in pow- er and authority, as able by a word to cast them all out of . APPENDIX. 273 of heaven, and plunge them into the depths of Tartarus* as having executed his vengeance upon some of them ; whilst all of them own his superiority :md independence. One single passage will suffice to shew the idea which the ancients conceived of Jupiter. *' Aurora now, fair daughter of the dawn, " Sprinkled with rosy light the dewy lawn ; ** When Jove conven'd the senate of the skie**, " Where high Olympus' cloudy tops arise; 11 The Sire of Gods his awful silence broke, '* The heav'ns attentive trembled as he spoke : '• Celestial slates, immortal Gods, give ear! ** Hear our decree and reverence what you hear ; ** The fix'd decree, which not all heav'n can move., " Tii;ii, Fate ! fulfil it ; and ye powers approve I " What God but enters yon forbidden field, •* Who yields asioiance, or but wills to yield, «* Back to the skies with shame he si id be driv'n, *' Gash'd with dishonest wounds, the scorn of heav'n j " Or far, oh ! far from steep Olympus thrown, *' Low in the dark Tartarean gulph shall groan, 14 With burning chains fix'd to the brazen floors, " And lock'd by'hell's inexorable doors; '< As deep beneath tV iufgroal i^iM hurl'd, *' As from that centre to the aethtrial world. *' Let him, who tempts me, dread these dire abodes ; " And know, th' Almighty is the God of Gods ! f* League all your forces then, ye pow'rs above, " Join all, and try th' omnipotence of Jove : " Let down our golden, everlasting chain, '• Whose strongembraceholds heaven ,-mdearth, and main: *' Strive all, of mortal and immortal birth, " To drag by this the Thund rer down to earth : " Ye strive- in vain ! If I but stretch this hand, 11 I heave the Gods, the ocean, and the land ; " I fix the chain to great Olympus height, " And the vast world stands trembling in my sight. "For such 1 reign, unbounded, and above, " And such are nwn and Gods compared to Jove- " Th Almighty spoke, nor durst the pow'rs reply, "A rev'rend horror sikne'd all the sky : i: Trembling they stood before their sov'reign's look. Pope- a fur- A FURTHER ILLUSTRATION OF THE DII MAJORES OF THE ROMANS', Particularly adapted to the Classics. i N the works of the poets, painters, and statuaries;, the greats t characteristiek of Jupiter is majesty. The ablest of the hist was Phidias of Athens, and the Jupiter Olympus wis his muster-piece. Being asked from what pattern he framed so divine a figure, he answered, from the archetype which he found in Horn r, ( A. 1. 528, 2$, 30,) which Mr". Pope has thus translated, He spoke, and awful bends his sable brows : S'i ikes his ambrosial curls and gives the nod, The stamp of Fate ai*l sanction of the God : High heav'n with trembling the dread signal took, And all Olympus to the centre shook. It is observed, that all the personal strokes in this de- scription relate to the hair, the eye-hrows, arid the beard (before spoken of) ; and to these the best heads of Ju- piter owe most of their dignity. However mean our opinion may be of these appurtenances, and of tht hist particularly, yet all over the east a full beard still conveys the idea of majesty, as it did then amongst the Greeks; a» their bust of Jupiter and the medals of their kings t« Bti- fv. But Rome, long before she lost her liberty, had parted with this natural ornament ; insomuch that a beard was only worn by persons under disgrace or mis ■ fortune. Virgil therefore, in his imitation of this pas- sage AL\. 9. 1. I0t, 5, 6\ has preserved only the nod, with its stupendous effect ; but neglected the hair, the eyebrows, and the beard, those chief pieces of imagery , whence the artist took the idea of a countenance proper for the king of gods and men. His statue in the Verosp'i palace at Rome, though one of the best extant, does by no rr^ans come up to the idea which the ancient poets have impressed of him. Yet the A FURTHTR ILLUSTRATION, &C 275 jty of his U ok, the 1 I ! -nt his face, the Venerable beard, thi ' ■ left 1 nd, and the fulmen in his right, easil) bt j ■ the deity re- presented. But the ancient sceptr:s were not short a. d, like the modern ; but us long, at least, as the | .-.••-. Originally they were no othei than walking-sticks. That of Latinus was a young tree stript of its branches* JE$. xii. The fulmen had three different meanings, as diffe- rently represented. One way it was a conical wreath of flames, like the bolt. This-wis held down in the hand, ar.d shewed Jupiter to be mild and calm. Another way St is the same figure, with two Uanverse dart of light- ning, and sometimes with wmgs on each side, to d< note rapidity : this represented him as executing vengeance. The thundering legion bore this upon their shields, which spread over all the field ; as is seen in the Antonine pil- lar. The epithets of trifidunt and tr'ifulcum (three-fork- ed) are given to this. The third way is a handful of flames, which Jupiter holds up when exacting punish- ment in a more extraordinary maimer. But it was nei- ther the sceptre nor fulmen of .Jupiter, but that air of majesty which the artist endeavoured to express in his countenance, which chiefly indicated thc'Superiority of Jupiter on all occasions. The last kind are the iracum, : a fulniina of Horace. On a gem at Florence, the mild Jupiter appears with a mixture of dignity and ease; that serene majesty which Virgil gives him, when receiving Venus with such pa- ternal tenderness in the first iEneid. But the statues of the terrible Jupiter differ in every particular from those of the mild. The last were gene- rally of white marble, the others of black. The mild sat with an air of tranquillity. The terrible stood, and was more or less disturbed, with angry or clouded countenance, and the hair so discomposed as to fall half way down the forehead. Yet he is never represented an angry but that he still retains his majesty. O.i medds a. id gems the thundering Jupiter hold;, up the three-forked fulmen, standing in a chariot ban I on bv four horses. And the poets describe the noise of his thunder, as caused by the rattling of his chariot and horses 176 A FURTHER ILLUSTRATION OF THE horses over the arch of heaven. Thus Horace, (Ocl, I 1. 3i.) according to Mr. Francis, For lo ! that awful hcav'nly sire, Who frequent cleaves the clouds with fire, Parent of d 'y, immortal Jove, Late through the floating fields of air, The face of heav'n serene a:,d fair, His thundering steeds and winged chariot drove ! Juno had various characters among the Romans. The Juno Matrona is covered like a Roman matron, with a long robe from head to foot. By this name Ho- race speaks of her in the battle of the giants ; though at other times she is indifferenly called by this, or that of the Juno Roinana. So gens togala signified the Roman people. But the Juno Regina, and the Juno Moneta, are al- ways in a more splendid and magnificent habit. In the first iEneid, Virgil speaks of the Carthaginian Juno ; in the second of the Juno Argiva, who was worshipped under that name even in Italy. The mild Juno appears on a Greek medal, with a gen- tle and good-natured countenance, standing in a chariot drawn by peacocks. Here she appears almost naked. So Homer gives her the epithet of XtvxvXivf,^ with white elbows or arms. But he is never immitated in this by the Roman poets. She is represented by all of them as an imperious and jealous wife, oftener scolding than caressing. It is wonderful that she could be thus gene- rally exposed in a disagreeable light, when considered on all hands as the patroness of marriage. Pallas or Minerva is a beauty, but of a severer kind, having none of the graces or softnesses of Venus. Dig- nity, "firmness, and composure, with a kind of masculine sternness, form the distinguishing character of her face ; which has therefore been often mistaken for that of Al- exander the Great. Her dress and attributes arc well adapted to her character. Her head is armed with an helmet and the plume nods dreadfully in the air. Her right hand hold a spear, and her left a sheild, with the head of the d/ing Medusa thereon The same figure is see \ upo;i her breast-plate, and is someti ncs most beauti- ful, and sometimes quite the reverse. The Strozzi-Me- dusa DII MAJORfiS OF THE ROMANS. 277 dufa at Rome has indeed a dead look, but with a be?.u ty which death itfelf cannot cxtingulfh. The poctsde • cribe both the beauties and horrors of Medufa'a face and her ferpents, particularly two, whofe tails are en twined under her chin, and their heads reared over her forehead. (Ovid. Met. it. 795.) Minerva herfelf hai fometimes ferpenti abojt her bofoiB and fhoulders. The poets and art'fis agree. They give to the afped") of Minerva much beauty, but more tenor. With all her grace, (he it entitled the virago, and the Mem god- defs. They fpeak of a threatening turn in her eyes, il afcribei a fiery motion to thofe of the Palla- dium (the tutelary Minerva.) As making her appear- ance fitft in Africa, (he has much of the Moor in her complexion ; and hei light-coloured eye ftiews it more ftrongly. From this colour of her eyes (he is called by Homer y*«w***-«, or grey eyed; though it is ilrange that no poetof the Auguftan age hascopiedthis epithet. Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva, are frequently joined together by the Roman authors, as well as in ancient rnferiptiona and in the works of the artifts. They were confidered as the guardians of the empire, and invoked by name, while the reft were referred to in general. Hence Cicero addreffes — " Thee, O greateit Jupiter! M —and tliee, O royal Juno ! — and thee, Minerra ! — ** .ind ye, the other immortal gods and goddelTes !" — The fime diftiuction is in Livy. They are frequently feed together on gems and medals ; and fometimes (»s in a medal of Antoniaus) they are reprefented by their attributes only ; as Minerva, by the owl ; Jupiter, by the eagle ; and Juno, by the peacock. Neptune is generally reprefented (landing with a long trident in his right hand, (Ovid. Met. ?i. I. 77.) The god of ocean, figur'd Handing, here With his long trident ftrikes the ragged rock. This was his peculiar fceptre ; and the fame poet fayij that with the ftrokc of it, the waters were let loofe for /the general deluge, (Met. 1.) Then with his mace the monarch firuck the ground, With inward trcmblir And rifing ftreams a B b l. v *. . a . 1 he monarch firuck the ground, 1 ing earth receiv'd the wound, > ready pa.Tage fo« id. 278 A FURTHER. ILLUSTRATION' OF THS But this was bid afide when he was to appeafe the ftorm (Met i. I. 331.) The fea-god Lys afide K.s trident mace, And fmoo.ths the waves. His afpe&ia always mafeftic, fcrene and ihcid in [rood 1 ;. v .;r tever dtcafion may bo given for anger and &n. 1. 1. 130, 1.) Much tr.ov'd and feeing from his Wat'ry I pve the waves he rear'd bis placid head. He a defcribed by the poets as palling over the furfaoe f the waters, in his chariot .drawn fwiitly by ica- hoifes, (Virgil jEh. I. 1. 159, fco.) Hisfteeds he turns, upborne in open air, And giving to his eafy car th With rapid flight he Ikims the liquid plains. V^nusis figured wil 1 theprettieft face that can be co iceived. She has all the taking airs, wantonneues, and graces, which the poets and artifts coulJ I confer upon her. Her fhape the moft bewitching ; all foft and full of tcr.deinefs. Her complexion Co exquifite, that it required the utmoft flcfll of Appelles, to exprefs it. Her eves were occafionally wanton, quick, languifhing, or petulant. Her face and air were correfpondent.— Sometimes a treacherous fmile is evident on her face But in whatfoever circumftances (he is reprefented, all about he* is graceful and charming. And this no where - more coiifpicuuus than in the Vendor Medici. If in Thi tigu.c Ihe U not really modeft, fte at leaft counter- feits modefty extionuly Well, accoi ding to Ovid. (Dc Art. Amand. U 2. 1 613, 14-) Where Venus ' fdf, with half-averted face, With her left hand o'erihades the fecret place. With regard tfi fhape and proportion, this ftatute will Pvetbe theftandard of ferrule beauty and foftoefe. Some p t ftcd the head.but without fufficientrea. fon to have been the work of another artift ; wh.le otheisba^ differed beauties, which feem only to ?" fancies 1 hey fay that SS **«« paffionsare e*j reffed in it ; that at your S r ft app , .,,h, averfion appears in her look. Move a ' p0 (tWO,aod youpeiccvecomphance in It. One DI1 MAJORES OF THE ROMANS. ftep more (fay they) to the right, turns it into a little infulting fmile.as if me had made fure of you. Befides the infulting fmile with which fhe appear! in fome figures, fhc is reprefented fmiling in others, and in a moil perfuafive attitude. Such was the Eryciru ridens of Horace, and the Venus Appias in the forum ; and fuch wa» the defign on the medal of Aurelius, in which Venus is entreating Mars. Thislaft was infer ib- ed to the Veneri Victrici, as fure of canying her point. In a ftatue at Florence, file holds one of her hands round the neck of Mars, and the other on his bread enfo her requeil. Virgil defcribes het in theie circumltances urging her petition to the demurring Vulcan, (iEn. viii. 1. 387, 8.) ———She fpoke, and threw Her arms around him with icfiftlefs grace, And footh'd him, doubting, with a foft em! 1 She i3 alfo frequently reprefented as the genius of in- dolence, reclined on abed in a languishing pofture, and rally attended by Cupids, the nainifters of her com- is, She thus appears in one of the fine ft- coloured ire9 in the Barnardini Palace at Rome. The air of the hctd rivals Guido, ?s the colouring dees Titian. Yet in the poets of the third age, as piaccus and Sutius, flic appears in a quite contrary character,?.- t le furious Venus, or the goddefs of jealoufy, The laft of thefe poets has a Venus in:proba. Tf this he noYthe fame with the furious, it can only fuit the vicious or abandoned Venus. Mars is never teprefented without hi? attribnt.:;, the helmet and fp^ar. He does not even q'lii thefe '." ing on his amours. Hi? molt celebrated one, rest to that with Veni-6, was with Rhea Sylva, the mother of Romulus and Remus, in a relievo belonging to Bellini Family at Rome, having defended, he moves towards Rhea, who lies afleep. On the reverfe of the medal of Antoninus, he is fufpended in the air, jrft over the Veftal Virgin. There is a pniLge in Juvenal, on this occafion, which (hews the ufefulnefa of antiques for the explanation oFthe poets fjuv. Sat. li.J Or eife a helmet for himfelf he ma le, Where various warlike figure; v^rc inlaid : b 2 The *?0 A FURTHER ILLUSTRATION OF THE The Rom?™ wolf fuckling the twins was there, And Mars himfelf armed with Lis fhield and fpear, Hov'ring above his creft, did dreadful fhow, As threatening death to each rtlilling foe, Drydbn. Juvenal here defcribes the fimplicity of the old Ko- mai) foldiers, and the figures that were generally en- : raved on their helmets. The firll was the wolf gi\ fuck to Romulus and Remus.- The iecond, which ia con ded in the two laft verfes, is not fo intelligi- ble. The commentators are extremely at a lofs to know what is meant by the Pendentifquc Dei, as it is in the original. Some fancy it to exprefs only the great etn. feoffment of the figure ; others, that it hung off the helmet in alto relievo, as in the foregoing translation. Lubin thinks him faid to be hanging, becaufe the fb which bore him, hung on the left fhoulder. One old interpreter thinks, that by hanging, is only meant a pof- ture of bending forward to ftnke the enemy. Several* learned men imagine a fault in the tranferiber, and that it Ihould be pandenlis ; but upon no authority. Mr, Addifon ha6 certainly hit upon the true meaning. The Roman foldiers ("fays he,/, who were not a little proud -» of their founder and the military geniur. of the repub- lic, ufed to bear on their hilniets the firlt hiltory of Romulus, who was begot by Mars and fuckled by a wolf. The figure of the god was made, as if defend- ing on the pricitefs. The occaiion required that his body (hould be naked. (Ox'iA. de Fait. \. $■) Then too, our mighty Sire, thou was difarmtd, When thy rapt foul thy lovely prieftlefs charm'd That Rome's high founder bore — though on other occafions he is drawn as Horace de- fcribes him, Begirt with adamantic coat of mail. The fculptor, however, to diftinguifh him, has given iiira bis attributes, a fpear in ope hand, and a (hi. Id in the other. As he was reprefer.tcd defeending, hie figure ap- pealed fufpended in the air over the Veftal Virgin, in which fenfe the word pendente* is extremely proper and poetical. The fame figures are alfo on another medal of Antoninus Piu?, damped in compliment to that empe- ror ith the wind, bled in the fhade, ~) ough the meadow ( : gentle maid. J D1I MAJORES OF THE ROMANS. 2S1 ror for his excellent goverumen/, whom the fenatc re- garded as a fecond founder. The ftory alluded toil thus related by Ovid (de Fad. lib. 3. clerg. \J. As the fairVeftal to the mountain came, (Let none be ftartled at a Veftal's name) Tir'd with the walk, lire laid her down to reft, And to the wind3 expos'd her glowing bread To take the freflmefs of the morning air, id gather 'd in a knot her flowing liair : :le thus fhe reded on her arm reclin'd, The hoary willows waving with the wind, And feat': i'd choirs that warbled in the fhad< And pniling dreams that througl flray'di In drowfy murmurs lull'd the The god of war beheld the virgin lie, The god beheld her with a lover's eye ; And by i~o tempting an occafion prefs'd, The beauteous maid, whom he beheld, poffefs'd : Conceiving as fne flept, her fruitful womb ith the founder of immortal Rome. Addisok, lean, \\\z god of fire, is never otherwife defcribed ■ as a mere immortal blaokfmith. But the poeti have given him the additional difgrace of laraenels. f Horat. Od. I. \). While Vulcan's glowing breath infpires The toilfome forge, and blows up all its fires. He is black, and hardened from his cnllomary labour, with a tiery red face; thence called ardent Vulcanut. He it ever the fubject of pity or ridicule ; thegrandcuckold of heaven ; and his lamenefs ferved only to divert the u ^Ovid. de Art. Amand. lib. 2. v. 567, S, 9, io- How oft would'd Vulcan's toolafcivious brills His large fplay-feet and callous hands deride, And hobbling, while his abfence this allow.*, Ape, before Mars, the limping of her fpoufe ! ' Twas pretty all ; whatever (he did became ; Such winning grace adorn'd the lovely dame. Vefla had no ftatue. One indeed fpeaks of her mages in one pla:e f Fad. lib. 3. v. 45, 6) ; but in the B b 3 courfe "S2 A FURTHER ILLUSTRATION OF T1IR courfc of the Time work corre&s himfclf fEaft. lib. 6. v. 295 and feq. ' Long thought I, Veda had her (latues too, But in her temple no fuch form I view ; Fire unextinguifiVd there indeed is known, Bit Veda and the fire no image own, The figures which are fuppofed to be hers, having no- thing which would not be as proper for a Veftal Virgin. Even thofe on medals, which have her name, may only mean one of the Veftals her reprefentatives. And in- deed there is one inferibed with the name of Veda, •wherein the figure is in the act of facrificing, which is applicable to the priedefs, but by no means to the god» defs. Apollo is always to bedidinguifhed in hisdatnes and heads by the beauty of the face, in which there is an air of divinity not to be conceived without the help of the artid. fie is more comely than Mercury, but not fo ef- feminate as Bacchus, who rivals him in beauty. His ..lures are quite regular, his limbs exactly proportion- ed, and there is as much foflr.efs as is confident with flrength. He is ever ycung and beardlefs. His long and beautiful hair falls in eafy waves down his fhoul- ders, and fometirries over his bread. A grace rtfnlts from the whole, which it were a vain taik to cefcribe to any perfon who has not feen the Apolli Belvidera, fTibull lib. 2, eleg. 3. v. 1 1, \z.) Admetus' herds the fair Apollo fed ; Nor ha.p, nor ur.lhorn locks avail'd him then. In the datue juft mentioned, the nobled in the world, he i. ; refented as the Apollo Venator. His hair is gathered a little above his forehead. His rube, fallen- ea 1 with a gem over his bread, falls loofely down his back, and is thrown over his arm. His feet are covered with fine buflcins : the reft of his body is naked ; and he has a bow in his hand, as if he had difcharged an am r. The Mufical Apollo is fometimes naked, with the hair gathered over the forehead, his lyre in one hand, - :i : his plccVum in the other. Sometime! he is dreffed in a long robe, with hi6 hair flowing at full length, and , i jwntd with laurel. Diana Dn MAJOR.BS OF THE ROMANS. Diana, the goddefs of the chace, is commonly rep," - fented as running, with the veft flying back, though girt around her. Her flatue is tall, and her face, though very handfcrrie, is fomewhat manly. Her legs are caked, well fhaped and ftrong. Her feet are fometimes clad i:i bufkins, and fomeiimes bare. A quiver adorns her fhoulder, and (he has in hei right-hand a fp ar or bow. Thefc ftatues were frequent in woods. The it cry of AcHon is to be'feen on a gem in M .fi\ i'a Collection. Ceres had her head crowned either with corn or pop- pies, and her robes fall down to her feet. Her beauty feems to have been of the brunette kind ; and her drefs was adapted to her compk&ion. But her breads are in mod figures reprefented very large. Virgil de- fcribes her as regarding the hufbandman from heaven, and bleffing his work. (Georg. lib. i. v. 95, 6 ) Not from high heav'n amid the ftary train The yellow Ceres him beholds in vain. In this character fhe appears in a picture in the Vatican manufcript. Mercury, as the mefienger of Jupiter, 13 young, airy, and light ; all proper for fwiftnew. His limbs are finely turned, and he is inferior in beauty to none of the gods, except Apollo and Bacchus. ( Horat. Carra, lib. I. ode 2. v. 41 andfeq.) Or thou, fair MaiVs winged fon, appear, And mortal fnape, in prime of manhood, bear ; Declar'd the guardian of th' imperial ftate, Divine avenger of great Csfav's fate. The attributes by which he his diitinguifhed are the pe- tafus, or winged cap ; the talari, or wings for his feet ; and the caduceus, or wand, entwined by two ferpents. His harp, or long fword, is added to thefe, with "a par- ticular hook to the latter. He is thus reprefented in the Vatican manufcrpt, with his vtft floating behind him in the air, to denote his fwiftnefs. We have aheady given a full account of this deity, in the chapter of Mercury ; fo that nothing material can be here added. We (hall therefore take leave of the reader by prefenting him the tranflation of an ode, probably written for the celebration of Lis fealt, in which 28* A FURTHER ILLUSTRATION OF THE which his ingenuity and office are fully defctibed. [Hurat. Carm. lib. I. ode 10 "] Thou God of Wit,from Atlas fprung, Who by perfuafive pow'r of tongue, And graceful exercife, refin'd The fivage race of human kind ; Thou winged mefTenger of Jove, And all th' immortal pow'rs above ; Thou parent of the bending lyre, Thy praife (hall bed its founds infpire ; Artful arid cunning to conceal Whate'er in playful theft you Ileal ; When from the god, who gilds the pole, Ev'n yet a boy, his herds you Hole, With angry look the threatening pow'r Bad thee thy fiaudful prey rettore ; But of his quiver too beguil'd, Pleas'd with the theft, Apollo fmil'd. Thou waft the wealthy Priam's guide, When fife from ilern Atrides' pride, Through hoftile camps, when round him fpread Their watchful fires, his way he fped. tLn .1 rned i:.to a flag, and devoured by his own dogs, 6a. '1 he ii; of thefal ' Hid Adorns beloved by Veausj 0*, Killed by a wild boar, and ted by that id he flower anemone ibid ./Eacui , who, his niftory c_j throws himftlf ffom arock. ?.nd is drowned in the feu, which afterwards led the iEgean lea 151 's (hii : 1, wh) ealhd by this name 30 .dEgina, corrupted by Jupiter undei the appearance of fire 3a ua, one of the graces 73 Aiol-.i-,, god ■■! the winds, hishiftory \yj ulapius t 1 ■ .. i of phyfic,his birth and fkiil 69. His com- ing to Italy in the form of a ferpent, 70. Killed by Jupiter, ibid in of this table, Ji. 1 he manner in which he was re- presented . ibid. /( ta, the father of Medea, deprived of the golden fleece 148 ua, one of the; graces, and the wife of Vulcan 'y Alchymy, or the tranimutation of metals, <5cc. founded only on the names given to the planets 230 Alcides, one ol the names of Hercules t37 Alctthoe, fcr deriding the prieftefles of Bacchus, transformed into a I ill Alcmena, deceived by Jupiter under the 1 rj ufband Amphytrion 34 Aledto, one of the furies 56 Alpheus, in love with Diana 85 Altars. INDEX. Altars, ficred groves, and facrifices, %$%. Of the Gmplicity of the moft early ages, and the introduction of altars, 154. The criminal of Sacred groves, ibid. Of the ancient facriiices, ibid. .Of human victims, 155. The ceremonies ufed at facrifices, and the" manner in which thpy were performed 156, 357 Althxa caufes the death of her fon 83 Amalthsea, the goat that nurfed Jupiter ■ 90 Amathus (the women of) changed into oxen 93 Amazons defeated by Hercules 13* Ambarv.ili.3, feftivals in honour of Ceres, how performed t\J Amphion.faid to raife the walls of Thebes by the harmony of- his lyre 1 56 Amphyrrite, Neptune's wife 41 Amycus, fon of Neptune, killed by Pollux 14* Ar.cile, a brafs buckler, faid to be fent from hoaven r 10 Andromeda, expofed to a fea monfter, delivered by Perfeus 144 Antcus, a giant fqueezed to death by Hercules 134 ;e, dcL .uched bv Jupiter in the form of a fatyr 3* r >!lo, his birth and adventures, 63. The principal placet where he wa« worshipped, 64. The origin of the fable of Apollo, 66, In what manner he w,i» reprrfented, 6b, His off- Ig, 69. His oracie at Dclphos described 65 Arachne, pretending to excel Minerva in weaving. i» turned into a Ipii'.er, 106. The origin of this fable J 8 Ariadne gives 1 hefeus a clue, by which he get! out of the Lby- . h ; but he ungratefully leaves her; fhe is found by liacchus, who takes her, izi. Her crown turned intoa confleflfttion,Y8/rf Argonauts, Jafon's companions, who attended him in hit expe- dition to fetch the golden fleece, 1/7. The origin of the fa of the Ajgonautic expedition 149 Argus, wh ' had an hundred eyes, ordered to watch lo, but is killed by Mercury, when Juno turns him into a peacock, 34. This fable explained ibid Arion, a fkilful muflcian, bein? robbed and thrown into the fea, Tried to land on the back of a dolphin 1 56 Arifixus, his hiftory 7J Aurufpices, or foretelling future events, by ir.fpecting the en- trails of victims. 141. From whence thefe fuperftitiousobfer- vances were derived, ibid. The manner in which the entrails were examined, and what ivcre the rules of judging 24T AFcalphus, telling that Proferpine had eaten forne grains ol a pomegranate, is transformed into a toad 45 Aiterio, carried away by/ Jupiter in the ihape of an eagle 3a Aflrea returns to heaven, and is changed into the conltellation Virgo 1X0 Auroiojxy, its ori/in, 127. The mines of the Zodiac, and thofc of the planets, imagined to bo indications of their fevcral of- fices, and to produce good and evil, according to the names, 228 The figns fuppofedto preiide over all partsofthe human body 230 Atalanta and Hippomene; turned into lions 93 Atlas INDEX. ^5, his descent, and offspring, ). His exploit!, 8. P« fcut, by flicwinghim Meduta's head, turns him into a moun- tain, 9. The origin of t:ic fable of Atlas ibid Atropos, one of the deflinies 49 Atys, beloved by Cybeic, is murdered by his father's order 26. Turned into a pine tr - ,/;',/ Augcas's ftable, containing three thoufand oxen, cleanfed by Hercules in a day and himfelf flain for his perlidy 131 Augury, or forming a judgment of futurity by the flight of birds, 236. From whence it arofe, 237. i he maim r in which theceremony was performed, and what were the rules of jirig- ir g, ibid. Cf the faered chickens, and the other methods of di- vination, 238. Oi tne college of augurs, ami the qualifications neceffary gto render a perfon capable of being chofen into the office %x() Aurora, her defrent, 5. Carries Cephalus and Trthonus into heaven, ibid. Her defcription 6 B Bacchanalia and Brumalia, feflivals in honour of Bacchis 113 Bacchus, his education and exploits, 119. Mis names, lit. Hi', principal fclliv^ls, 123. How reprelenud by tiie poets and painters, ibid. The true origin of this fabulous ucity, 124. His attendants 12<- Battus turned into a touch-fione 88 Belides, their crime and punifhment in Tartarus cj EcKerophon, hishiflory, 145. The origin of the fable Hid L' llona, thegeddefs of war, defenbod jr^ of Erimanthus taken by Here lies X30 Ljiina, to fave herfeif from Apollo throws herfelf into the fea 64 Bona Dea, one of the titles of Cybele 25 .as the North wind, his luftory and rfT yr.n^ chidjB, oracle of Ej comarris, being entangled in her cwn nets, isfaved by Diana Sj Bull, one that breathed fire : taken by Hercules 131 Eufiris, a cruel tyrant taken by Hercules, and faerie. Neptune ,^ Cabiri, three great deities introduced from E»ypt into thrac . ' -' , , Cacus, thefon of Vul 1 otorious robber, billed by les . C.dmus, hisnlftory, 154. He and his wife Hermioce turned to rerpents, 135 rhis fable explained Cxlus, the Ion of Gaia or i'crra \ Calculus, the fo;i ol Vulcan x -, Cxnis, transformed irto a man Calisto, defcaud Jupiter under the form of Diana; tun a bear, and 1 ia< e a con tellati( a Ca.iiope, one of tl 1 pxefiding over thetorick 77 Calumny an altar erected to her, 193. ,\ picture of this go drawn by Appd.cs defended ,. ; .. Ctt] itol ut Rome dclcribed ~~ CaAa.i* * INDEX. to a fountain 64 .01 a J( J Pollux, their birih and actions, 141. Their fharing immotality between them, and being made the conftellation Gemini ., 143 Cecrops turned into ape* 15 Celeus, Lilted by Ceres II 4 CephaUis, beloved by Aurora, 5. Kills his wife Procr it with- out defign ' 4 Cerberus defcribed, 51. Dragged out of hell by Hercules, 1 ;,v The origin of the fables relating to this monftcr 5$ Ceres, her birth, 113 Her adventures while in fearch of lnr daughter Pi oferpine, 114. Her feveral names, and defcrip- tioti of the manner in w ich iacrifkes w ere offered to her, 1 it The origin of the fables ann of -the myfterioui ritrs ( 1' Ceres, 1 1 6. The manner in which (he is reprefei ted hy the poets and painters, 118. The temple of Ceres and Profer- pine ><■ 4 .os, according tn Hefiod, the father of the gods I. Why rc- prefentcd as a god ibid Chafyhdis, turned into a whirlpool if>4 laron, his office and character, 5 1. The origin of this faLn- lous character 60 ( '-lenchrius, kil!:.' by Diana, and transformed into a fountain 84 Chimaera deftroyedby Kc'lerophon 146 • '< , deprived of f'petch by Diana 83 Circe a famous forcerefs, banifhed for killing her hufband, 76. in lov with G!aucus,nnd turns her rival Sy Ha into a fea morfter, ibid. Turns the companions of Uiyffes into fwinc, ib'td 'J he origin of this fable ibid Cfiflus, transformed by Bacchus into the plant ivy lir Clemency, altars and images credited to this virtue J91 '"lio, *>ne of tie Mufes ptefjding over hiftory 7S ' 'hi ho, ope of the deftinies 49 Clyde, changed into a fun-flower 64 Clytoris, deflowenrd by Jup'ter in the fhape of au ant 53 lyttis, one of the infernal rivers 49 pitalia, a feftival ir. honour of tke Lares 1 73 rdia, ir concord, ag ddefs 185 ipi*d two of this name mentioned by the poet?, 97. Theman- nerin whichCupidisreprefentedby the poets and pai lers+ibid The orig::. cl this little god derived from the Egyptian rus y8 ' . te, orV< fta the elder, her hiftory ;° Feronia, the godn< U of woods and orchaids 10* fides or Faith, the maimer in which her tucnfices were per- formed *? Fhimines, their office a6 ° Flora, goddefs of flowers \1* Fioralia feafts in hon.ur of Fh>-a »«« Fortuna, or Fortune, worihipptd as a goddefs, 187. Her van- ouV names, ibid. How represented r ., , .f Fui ies, their office, charaders and perfons de.cnued, 55. 1 tie. fable of the Furies explained ">< J a. Gaianthis changed into a we.afel _ H9 « '.alius, or Aledryon. transformed into acock Iul Ganymede, carried by Jupiter into heaven, and made his cup- GenH.or Dsetnatis", attendant fpirits, 175. The facrifices and offerings made them '^" / Geryon, king of Sp an, who had three bodies, killed by Her- cules ,. I3 . % Giants, their war with Jupiter, and defeat, ao. An expirati- on of this f.ible »*'■*• Glaucus, a fiihorrrtan, made a fea god IO» Golden Agedefcribed . *9 Golden Fleece, an account of the ram that bore it, 1 49. Us be- ing guarded by a dragon and bulls breathing fire,/W. And of its being carried away by Jafon • >^d Good Genius, a temple ereded to him >a* Good Senfe, an akar ereded to him >9* Gordons defcribed , . • *?l Graces three attendants on the Mufes, 79. Their origin, ibid. How reprehnted ^° Givejb, Ciders to the Gorgons defcribed 1 03 Groves, from whence they were confidered as faired ij\ H. Hamadryadcs, nymphs who animated fome tree l63 Harpits.'their names, and a description of them ; with the my- thology of their charaders S° Harpocrates, the god of fileiice, his origin 19* Health, her temple »9* Hel.e, her birth and hiftory, 140. Her temple* *M Hecate.ona of the names given to Diana, 86. Her figure as ooddefs of the infernal regions, ibid. The otigin of tins goddefs,, and of hrr different name* and charad -.is Helena, carried away by I hefeus _ \Sl Helie, when on the point of being facrifked, ts earned th'ough the air on the ram that bore the golden fleece ; hut falling, if drowned in that fea, which, from her, is called the Hellcfpoht '47 Hercules, his birth, 128. His labours, 1*9, 130, ';i. 13*, IJ3* 134, 135. His death' 136. The origin of tbefe l hie, 139 Hermaphroditusaod Salmaci*, formed into on.' perfon called an He • iphrodite „ 8 ^ [1<> INDEX. H-rmcs, on? of Mercury's names 88 Hermione, the wife of Cadmus, turned into a ferpent i$$ Hcfione, expofed to a fca mouiler, and deiive:ed by Hercules '34 Hefperide?., their garden guarded by a dngon with an hundred ds; Hercules kills tne dragon, and take? away the golden fruit, 133. An explication oi rlie f.ible of the Hefperiaes I39 Hefperus the fon of Atlas, transformed into the morning liar 3 Hind, with brazen feet and golden horns, tnktn by Hercules t 30 Hippolitus, rejeeds the felicitations of t hasdra, Hies to efcape the effects of her revenge, and is killed by a fail from his chariot Hippcm:nes and Atalanta, turned into lions 10.3 Honour, her temple 189 Hope worfhipped, 190. How reprefented ibid Horse, or the Hours, their defcent, and how employed y!$ Horn of plenty, it* origin 19 Hyacinthus, killed by Apollo, and changed into a flower 61 Hyades, lamenting the loi's of their brother Hyas, are turned into (far « 8 Hydra, a monftrous ferpent, killed by Hercules 130 Hymen, his birth, and the manner in which he was reprefcia- ed, 98. His origin an Egyptian Horus ibid Hyperiod, the fon of Caslu* and Terra, affaffi rated 4 J & I- Jinus, his hiftory, 13. His image defcribed, 24. The mean- ing of the fable of Janus 25 Japetus, the father of k pimetheus and Pmmetheus JO jalou. his birth una education 146. Undertakes a voyage to h the go.aen fleccj, which he gains by the afiilfauce of j :\c acti' ns ot this luiccrds, who follows him to Greece, i/.iJ. Jafon's leaving her, and her revenge 149 f d a i 1 a , one of the names of Ventii 91 Idmon, the foii of Apollo, kiilea by a wild boar 74 I lolatry, its original 19V 1 iufl: ation of the Dii Majores of the Romans 275 Infernal regions d§£ 'ibed » 48 Inferior deities, at ending mankind from tbeir birth to their acC"jie l8i Inferior rural deities 186 lno and Mclicertes turned into Marine deities, ai:d take the names of Leucothea and Palemon 161 lo, her ftery 34 loiius, at the interceffion of Hercules, refinred to youth, after his death r< tur. is to cat th to revenge tne inluits offered to the Heraelidie 137 ,- ,> r Juno 3i4 Ins. an Eyptiai) gbddeis, whofe worfhip was intr duced at Rurne I/O ltys, murdered by Prcgne, and turned into a pheafant 11 1 Juno, her birth aud name, 37. The maimer in which fbe was reprefented 3* C c a j-j itcv, INDEX. Jupiter, his birth anil education, 2<). His war with the giants, 30. His other exploits, 31, . Aril . cation of the fables related of Jupiter, 3,-. I he mann ■: . ■ • ■ srcj>refeBted, '6. His oracle at Dndoha describ- ed, 246 Aiui that of'Jupiter Amnion in 1 ybia, 147. 1 ne temple of Jupiter Ojympitis, eke. iC.4 Lion, Lis crime and Duniflunent in Tartarus 56, 57 L-.iJicCs, one of the deftinies 49 J res, dome flic gqds, their defcent, 17,3. The manner hi which they were rcprcfent :d . ibid- Laf>ni, the mother of Apollo and Diana, turns the clowns of Lvcia ii 1 ' or flefufingfo let her drink 60 Le.ia, dehauched by Jupiter in the fhape of of a fwan, 31 1 ii gs forth tv. u eggs iai Lethe, the r>ver ol forgetfjihiefs :■"> ippus ftabbed 63 1 icotnoe turned into the tree that hears frankincenfe 04 Liberty, altars and temples coniecrated to her lot Liimniades, nymphs who frequented la 168 Linccus, kills Caftor, and is himfelf killed by Pollux 14a Linus, punifhed with death, for prefuruing to fing with Apollo 6a Linus, fun of Apollo, his ftory, 74. The origin of the fable, 75 Lucina, one of the names of Juno and of Diana, 38, 85 Luna, or the moon, one of Diana's names 84 Luptrculia, a feafl celebrated in honour of Pan 166 Lycuon, for his impiety and inhumanity, turned into a wolf 31 Lycas, being hurled into the air by Hercules, falls into the river Tlurmopolis, where he is transformed into a rock 136 Lyciun clowns, turned into frogs, for muddying the water when Ceres wanted todrinfc * T 5 Lveurgus, having affronted Bacchus, is deprived of his rcafon HI M Manades, the priefteffes and nymphs of Bacchus 126 Macris, the nurfc of Bacchus ' 19 Magic, of two kinds, afl*. Its origin, 234. Of calling up the Ipirits of the d ibid. Magna Pales, one of the names of Cybele 7 7 JMais, how produced, 100. His different names, no. His intrigue with Venus, 101. His offspring, HI The origin Of the fables relating to this god, m. The manner in which he has been reprefented by poets, painters and fla- tuancs ibid. Marfyas, pretending to enual Apollo in mufic, is flead alive, and afterwards changed into a river 6a Medea, a i'orccn is, aflilU Jal'on in obtaining the golden fleece, 14?- Her exploits 'bid. Medufa, her hair turned to fnakes by Minerva, ic6. All that looked at her turned into ftonch, ibid. Her head cut oil by J»erfeu» «44 Mega:ra INDEX. Megacra, oi-.eofthe furies jfl Meiantho, furprifcd by Neptune as flic w.« riding on a Dolplu 1 41 Meleager, his flory. 8a. His (liters turned into hen turkiei B3 Melpomene, one of the Mufes, who prelided over lyric and epic poetry 7,3 Mentha, change i ii to mint 31 Mercury, hi, birth, tl eft-, and his other exploits, 87. His vi- rious offices, i>8. The real origin of this fabulous deity, 89 His oracle at Ach.iia 251 Mercy, altars and temples erected to this virtue 191 Metra, transforms herfelf into vaiium fhapes, and Is as often fold by her father 4i Midas, lor giving an unjufl fenttnee again ft Apollo, is reward- ed with afTcs 1 ears, 6i. Bacchus grants his wifli that what- ever he touched might be changed into gold ut Minerva, her fever a 1 names, iO$. Her chara^ar and exploits, 106. Her temples, Ikuues, &c. 107. The origin of this goJJcfs, and of toe fables related of her, ibid. How reprefente d by the potts and fculptors ig> Minos, one of the judges of hell, hishiftory rj Minotaur, a monfttr who lived on human fieili, killed b/ Thcfeus, 150. This fable explained Iji Mamades, tear Orpheus in pie:es y* Momus cenfures the actions of the gods 138, ij_> Morpheus, the god of fleep, defcribed 15; Mufes, th;ir birth and diftinct ; rovinces, 77. Their origin 79 Mythology of the heathens, Six. Of fiction in general, ibid. 3y what means allegories became objects of faith, illullrate J by fome obfervatlous on the ceremonies with which the Egyptians buried their dead, 212. \ prayer ufei by the Egyptians at their funerals, 213. Many of the heathen fabks derived from the fictions of the poets, a concern fur the hon ur of the Indies, and a fimilitudc of names, JI4. The fentiments of the Pagans in relation to the origin of tfce world, compared with thole grven us by Moles, 217. Of the golden age, as defcribed by the pi i'ofophers and j . ts, 819. ofthefallof man, as defcribed by Pythagoras, Plato, and fevers] Indian and Ghlnefc authors, 220 Of good or bad daemons, ibid. Of the fables of the Titans and Giants, ibid. Traditions relat.n^ to the univerfal de- luge, 222. the heathen fables filled with noble fenti- ments, 245. Of the morals of the Greek and Roman philufophtrs, ibid. In what Pagan idolatry confifted %f\ N, Naiades, nymphs of brooks and rivers 16? Napeae, the tutelar guardians of Tallies and flowery meads ibid Naemean lion killed by Hercules 129 Nemefis, one of the goddeffes of jufticc, how reprefented 187 Neptune, his detent, 40. His temarkable actions, 41. I h:i mythological fenfe of this fable, 43. The manner .11 which he was painted ibid % C c 3 • N-. : . INDEX. t^ereui, a fea god 163 < Nereids, fea nymphs, the fifty daughters o! Nereus 161 Ntffus. the centaur, killed hy Hercules with a poiforcd arrow 136 Miobe's children flain by Apollo, and herfelf, ftupid with grief for the lofs of her children, is turned into a ftone, 63. The origin of this fable 'kd Nox, and her progeny 5* Nyfus, after having loft bis purple lock of hair, and his king- dom, is transformed intca hawk 164 O. ■}. The origin of this Fable 74 Oracles, 242. Chut much of the hapinefs-of life is-owing to our ignorance oi fu urity, ibid. On the firft rife of orach s, .and the me made ol them by the greateft legislators, 243. Of the oracle r-f Jupiter at Dodojia, UiJ. A remarkable circum- itauce re' ring to this nr^"!e. -245. Of the oracle of Jnpiter tmnn in Lybia, 246 Of the oracle of Apollo at Detphvs, a tradition concerning the rife of it, and the manner in which itsarr'wers were delivered, 147 Oi theoracleof rriphonins, 149. Of the oracle* of the Branehidae, a^O. Of Apolio at L laros, and that of Mercury in ■' chflla, 151. Some obfer\ Oii on trie different ways by which the fenfe of the oracles * ere cpnvej ed a 5* :a, leftivals in honour of Bacchus 123 Orus, an Egypti a deity '77 t», an Hgvptian deity 176 P. Pdlem< n and fno, changed into marine deities Jo* Pales tbegoddefs;of fhepherds - i6j P tii'Ia. feafts in honour of Pal ■ Uid Palladium, u lbtue of Minerva, faid to fall down from her? n « 7 Pallas, one of names ol Minerva IOJ Pan, the chief of all the rural gods, t6j His amours, fbid. flis feftivals, and the manner in which he is dtferibed by poets and painters . "'9 Pater iatiaius, hi* ifFee 260 Pandora, the firft woman, IX. Her box, and the evils that fpread u nee anion; ft mankind Pircae or Deftinies, theii office and the mythology of tl r cl.arcCiirs ^9 P Lfis.decides.tbe Difpnte between the three Goddcffts. ?.nd gives the golden apple to V nus 93 Phirthenis, iu n the names of .Minerva icj INDEX. Peace, an altar creeled to her, 189. Ho.. ;ced fit/. Pecunia, o-- Mmvy. a 1 ■>% Ptgafus, or flyinghorfe, how produced, So. The origin of the t. b ! e • U ■/. Penates, domeflic deities, i"4. Three ranks of them ibid. Pentheus, torn in pieces by hi.s own mot'm F and fail :rs izi :us, his defcent, 143 The gifts h ■ roc ived from the gods, 144. Cms off i\1edufa'shead, ii»V rums Atlas into a mountain, 9. Delivers Andromeda, founds an academy, ardis placed among the Has, 144. <\n explanation of the fable of Ptrfeus and AnJro-v, I46 Phoebe and l'alayra carried away by Caftor and Pollux 14a Phoebus, on* of the names of Apollo 64 Phaedra, attempts to debauch her iin Hippolitus; her fuit is re- jected aad the lays violent hands on i. 151 pha.cn r>' t j '■- >fhis Father \pollo to drive the chariot > f the iun for one day, bur lofing t : e n ins, i.- ftruck down by Inpiter, 72. His lifters turatd into poplar-trees, ibid. ! he origin 01 this fable Philomela, turned into a Nightingale jri neus, tormented by tlie harpies, for revealing the myfteriea of Jupiter 50 gc r hcn, one of the infernal rivers 49 ■ ■"■■, burns 'lie temple 9] Apollo, is punifhed in Tartarus 56 Phorcus, or Phorcya, one of the Ions o! Neptune, being van- qnifhed by Atlas, v. ho threw him into the fea, is changed into a fca-god 163 Phr] xus, r.j'cVs the advances of Ino. and efcap-s the efTcdrs of her revenge, by being earned through the air on the ram that bt.re the golden fleece i 4 7 ]';cus turned into a woodpecker -hi Pi-ty, or filial affe&ion, what it was ihat occafioned a chapel biii!-_ r erected to this virtue I^O Planets, the names giv n them, b'.rame indications of their le- v.ral offices, 2i8. Why ihey were fuppofed to produce metal* • Pleiades, the aeughtersof Atlas taken up into haven, wh.-re they form the c< :i that bears r eir name I Pluto, his defcent, 44 Steals away Proferp-ine, 45. The man- ner in which he is reprefented by the painters and poets, 46 The mytl - y of the fable tffcf m Pluru* and Pecunia, deified by the Romans iq^ Pollux and Caftor their birth and exploits, fhare immortality bet n. and are made the conftcllation Gemini, I43 A t-np'e erected to them ibid; Polyhymnia, one of the Mufes who prefided over harmony of voice and gature *g 1 • . , a meaftrou* giant with bur. one ere 104 Pomona, the g'ddefs of fruit- trees, courted ai.d married by Veitumrus j.j Pontifex tvlaximus, or the high-pried, his office 25a Priaj us. the tutelar deity of vane-yards and gardens i'he feve- Cai names given iiim, alA his image defcribed j^o INDEX. Pncfts ami priefteflcs of the Greeks and Romans, it$. Of the Pontiicx Maximus, or the hk'h-prieir., 259. Of the Rex Sa- croruni, ibid. Of the Flamines, 260. Of the Feciales, Of t! e Pater Patratus, ibid. Of the Kpulor.es Procrls, makes Cephaius a prefentof an irlferring dart 6 Procruftcs, killed by Thefeiu 150 Prodigies, the fuperfHtion of the Romans in relation to them, and how they may he accounted for 231 Progne, turned into a (wallow 1 1 1 Prometheus makes a man of clay, and animates him with fire ilojen from heaven, 10. H;s punifhment, 11, Delivered by Hercules, ibid. 1 his fable explained Ii Prop.-etides turned into Irenes y5 Proierpine carried away by Pluto, 45. Her various names, 47 The mythological fenfe of the fuble 48 Protetts the ion of Neptune, one that could transform hfmfelf into any fhape l6i Pryene turned into a fountain ij Pudicitia' or Chaflity, honoured at Rome under two names t >0 Pygmalion falls in love with a iiatue oi his own making, which Venus, at his own rtquefr, turns into a woman 95 Phvrrha, the v\ ife of Deucalion 93 Python, a monftrous ferpent, flain by Apollo; and the origin of the fable 63 R Rhadamanthus, one of the judges of hell £ 3 Rex Sacrorum. his office 259 Rhea, ones of the names of Cyhele 2j S Sacrifices originally extremely Gmple, 254. Of human victims, 2,5,. '] he ceremonies ufed at faerifices, and the manner IB which they were performed 256 Salmoneus punifhed in Tartarus, for imitating thunder, &c. 57 Salus, or Health, her temple, 192. How reprefented U. batuin devqurs his maJe children, 14. Taken prifner by Ti- tan, but fct at liberty by Jupiter, who afterwards dethrones him. 15. The fable of Sa urn explained, 14, 15, 16, 17. Feliivals in honour of Saturn, ibid. His .miours ibid. Sat>r.<, the attendants of Bacchus, defcribed, 127. Their ori- gin al »*»<* Scirob killed by Thefeus 152 bcyila, the daughter of Phorcus, turned by Circe into a meoftef , throws herielf into the fea, and is changed into a rock 163 Srylla, the daughter of NyfttS, betrays her father, by cutting off a purple lock of hair, and is turned into a lark io.; S tnele, deftroyed by Jupiter';, embraa s 33 ace, worflupped by the Romans, 192. The origin of this fuppok J deity _ ( _ \bid. SifcMus, the companion of Bacchusj defcribed, t2J< Theorigin of this fabulous character > -' 7 r age defcribed 3& , Uu«, his punifliinem in I'artaius 57 — cubic INDEX. Stable of Augean cleaned by Hercules '5* Stympha ides, monftrous-birds deftrtyed by Hercules I 61 Styx, a river of hell *2 Sylvanus, a rural deity Ivaniy who ,67 Syre ! , 81. The origin of the fable ^ »*» Syrinx flies from Pan, and is changed into a tuft of reeds 105 Tantalus, his crime and puniihmcnt in Tartarus 57 Tartar us delcribed, 54. I he fabulous pcrfons punifhcd there, j6. rhe origin oftbc e Tables .57 Temples irft built by tl : Egyptians* i-5i . The ceremonies nied bv the Romansbefi re they began to build a temple, 262. O/ tl pie of \ ulcan at Memphis, and an extraordinary cha out 3 Tethys, the \\ ife ai d filler of Ojeanus 4 Thei-,., the daughter of Caelus and Terra marries Hyperion, 4« Difappsars in a llorm of thunder and lit* hti •-■ d Theophane. changed ii to an ewe by Reptune, who debauches her under the form of ara 4- Thtfeus. hi-, birth and exploits i 5 u Theti*, the mother of Achilles *53 1 ireli as, deprived ■ t by Minerva, but receives the j pro] hecy »oo hone, one i^ke h ies, 1 ring rtjic d I y Cytl.xron, ki.n him by tin c v. i^^ie ct hex fcakes at him _ 55 Thaaa INDEX. Tit ^n» make war on Jupiter, and are fubdued 20 Tifhonus marries Aurora, and obtains immorialitv ; but grow- ing decrepid with age, is turned into a grasshopper 56 Tityu*, his punifhment in Tartarus 5^ Triptolemus.fed by Ceres, and fent by her in a chariot tcjirftruct mankind in the benefit of tillage If 4 Triton, the fon of Neptune, defcribed 161 Trophonius, his oracle defcribed I ?4°< Truth, how repaefeoted *9* Tyr.daridaj, who *4* Typhon or Typhxns, one of the giants who made war again!! Jupiter, 21. His figure defcribed »W Tyrrhenian merchants changed by Bachus into dolphins 119 9 V f o; Gaia or Terra * X- Xduthrus, faved from the delude, a Chaldxan tradition 1'% Z Zephvrus blows 4pollo'f%loit againft Hyaciathus's head, and kills him . 6r Zodiac, us invention, ar.d the reafon of the names given to the figns a°3. 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