"Dionysos Mystes" by G. Rizzo; Zagreus, Studi sull' Orfismo by V. Macchioro Review by: E.

Douglas van Buren The Journal of Roman Studies, Vol. 9 (1919), pp. 221-225 Published by: Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/296011 . Accessed: 28/08/2012 18:48
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in the old system was that in its exclusive cult of memory it starved thought to death; the result of all the Virgilian paraphrasing, all the dictiones ethicae and artificial disputations, had been an extraordinary dearth of men able to concentrate on any real or new problem. The Church, by forcing men to think, restored a living interest in thought. It also brought history back into an honest connexion with fact; the first ecclesiastical chronicles were dull, but they were history, and neither mythology nor panegyric. There were other respects in which the old academic teaching was humanized. The monastic training brought handicrafts within the sphere of education. This probably helped forward an appreciation of art by the decoration of church buildings with mosaics and frescoes, and by the illumination of books, much as the development of choirs was good for music. The merit of the wide views held by the greater churchmen was the higher in that the adoption of so much from pagan culture was not carried without a struggle. In the end the men of broader minds, a Jerome, an Augustine, an Ennodius, a Hilary of Poitiers triumphed; but most centuries had their Tertullians and their Martins ready to declare the way to polite learning the broad path to damnation. The Church, by using humanism in the service of its ' forwardideals,' drew it from the slough of retrospection, and set it on the path, rough but firm, along which progress in the barbariankingdomswas alone possible. By doing this the monastic schools redeemed much of their own seeming barbarism; the humanities owe more than is commonly acknowledged to mediaeval monkish Latin. Many subjects are discussed in these pages which can here receive no more than a bare mention: the extent to which the Visigoths and Frankswere affected by Roman culture ; the education of women ; discipline in schools; the authors read and the teaching of Greek; the Celtic backgroundin the Gauls ; the favourable position of the province in the fourth and fifth centuries, which gave it a leading place in the Roman system. All these things the reader will find sufficiently treated within the limits permitted in a small volume. The work of a Rhodes scholar now on the teaching staff of the University of Capetown, the book is one among many signs of the benefits conferred by the Rhodes Trust on the higher education of the empire.

" DIONYSOS MYSTES " (in Mem. Accad. arch. Napoli, iii, I918). By G. Rizzo. pp. 39-102. ZAGREUS, STUDI SULL' ORFISMO. By V. MACCHIORO. pp. 269. Bari, Laterza, I920. Price It. lire i6.50.

The paintings of the Villa Item at Pompeii appear to furnish endless material for discussion. They were first made known to readers of this Journal by Miss Mudie-Cooke (7.R.S. iii, I913, pp. 157-174, pl. viii-xiv) whose valuable observations pointed out the line of investigation which other scholars have since carried further with remarkable results. Professor Rizzo believes that these pictures illustrate the education of Dionysos and depict him especially as the first, the typical initiate. To prove this interpretation he draws upon a vast store of literary and figurative material, relying largely upon the description furnished by Nonnus, amplified by representationson gems, vases and reliefs. Thus in the first scenes Mystis herself reveals ra &eLKv/4ceva to the young Dionysos; the threads or narrow ribbons hanging from the fingers of the woman in B must be the woollen K&6KLVOL rTzoVes, symbolical of purification. Rizzo considers that the winged figure is about to chastise the kneeling woman who sacrilegiously uncovers the liknon and that the scene in F is quite separate from E. The last three panels G, H, I are mere genre scenes, the usual quiet close to the passion and movement of a Greek drama. ProfessorMacchioro, on the contrary, thinks one should begin with these scenes, the first of a series illustrating the whole sequence of rites of the Lesser Mysteries performed at Agrae as an introduction to the Greater Mysteries at Eleusis. He points out that if one enters straight from room I6 (see his plan) by the small door in the corner, the first scene which greets the eye is that on the wall opposite, G of Rizzo's enumeration: the

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beginning of a chain linked together in almost every instance by a figure on the extreme right who does not participate in the action depicted within the same panel but moves or looks towards the scene which comes next in order. The argument is as follows: the whole cycle tells the story of one woman, she who in G is robed as the mystic bride, for she wears the sindone, and the myrtle with which many of the figures are crowned was a nuptial plant; she approaches the reading child in A; passes on to B carrying a dish; flees thence in terror at what she sees or hears in D; uncovers the liknon in E; hides her face in the lap of the priestess in F and finally dances as a Bacchant. It is therefore a human story, and all the acts and facts are human; but it is presented as a sacred drama, and the Silenoi and Satyrs are merely actors disguised in these roles. The only non-human beings are Dionysos and Kore, conceived as invisibly watching the mime which is performed before them. An important detail is the plinth found in almost all these scenes, strange in shape and without architectonic or decorativeelements. These plinths are frequent in Eleusinian and Dionysiac rites, and the single plinth must derive from the ayXac-7ro5 precpa of Demeter, probably a stone used from the earliest times with magic intent, which served was the first. The double as thronos in the initiation ceremonies of which the p6povwoL plinth-upon which sits the Seilenos in D and the woman in F-was Dionysiac, as is shown by the numerous vase paintings where Satyrs sit upon a double plinth (Reinach, Rep. Vasesii, p. 201, 2; p. 303, I and 5; Macchioro, figs. 8-12). The Andania inscription (I.G. v. I390) teaches us that the headdress worn by the seated woman in B and the kneeling figure in E is the ritual 7rZXos. B shows the agapewhich precedes the initiation; C signifiesthe communion or rebirth of Zagreus: Euripides in the Bacchae, 699 ff., describes such a scene. The Satyr and Satyriska are seated upon a plinth and she is intent upon suckling a fawn which here symbolises the child Dionysos attracted by the sound of the mystic syrinx, thus typifying by an allegory the rebirth of the initiate. In D is a scene of katoptromancy, not lekanomancy,for the bowl is white to denote silver, like a poculum in shape, similar to those mirrorsdedicated in the temple at Smyrna (Plin. N.H. xxxiii, I29). A mirror was often used to foretell the future, but Nonnus (Dion. xxiv, 129 ff. ed. Koechly) relates that Dionysos was slain by the Titans while gazing in the mirror at his distorted face-obviously a concave mirror, the monstrificum of Pliny. Here the Satyr sees, not himself, but the mask shown in Dionysiac scenes upon altars, etc., as a sign that the god was present. The Seilenos who holds the bowl repeats the message to the terrified maiden, and this annunciation is the most important of the ceremonies, for by its means the initiate becomes conscious of her destiny. The youth approaches the magic mirror in the expectation of the supernatural and beholds-not himself-but a Seilenic mask which gazes at him strangely. He believes he is about to be transformed into the Seilenos, that he is no longer man but god. The neophyte kneels before the winged figure in E and by her action in uncovering the liknon implores the sacred union with the god which, however, can only be obtained by suffering, and the rod falls upon the back of the initiate who is the same person, resigned to her fate. Whosoever was flagellated in the mysteries of Zagreus died like him, and was, like him, reborn. The winged divinity is Telete herself, daughter of Dionysos and Nikaia, personification of the mystic ceremonies and following of Dionysos (Nonnus, Dion. xvi, 400). The last scene shows the rebirth of the neophyte, and her Bacchic state is indicated by her unbound locks. When Tertullian (Adv. Valent. i) accuses the Valentinians of imitating the mysteries at Eleusis he refers to the unveiling of the liknon, a rite strictly connected with Agrae, of Demeter. Therefore where also we find the legend and cult of the a-yeXao-rog 7rETpa the companion of Dionysos is Kore, because the Lesser Mysteries at Agrae were sacred to Kore alone, not to Demeter and Kore. There is no special scene setting, because the environment was suggested by symbols, the mere sight of which sufficedto throw the neophyte into an ecstasy. Only two persons are portrayed as speaking, the hierophant and the terrified maiden: the rest are mute,

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with closed lips and inexpressive faces. For this is a pantomime in successive pictures, founded upon a theological dogma, an article of faith which promised to initiates eternal bliss. These are the essential points of Professor Macchioro's argument, backed up by a wealth of references both literary and figurative, and certainly convincing in its main thesis that the pictures represent successive scenes in a liturgy. They are too esoteric to be appropriate decoration for a triclinium, and Macchioro's view that the room in question was an Orphic basilica or private chapel is strengthened by the nature of the decoration in the preceding rooms, 15 and I6, subjects of Satyrs, Bacchants, priestesses, and scenes of sacrifice. The large window presents a difficulty, although it is not uncommon in country villas, for it cannot have been designed to shed more light upon the proceedingsas Macchiorosuggests,becauseinitiation ceremonieswere alwaysperformed at night, and it was only the processions and such public or exoteric functions which took place by day. It is probable that only the actual participants in the rite stood within the room, whilst the onlookers, already initiated, gathered without in the portico E and looked through the large window space at the doings within, illumined by torches: the liturgy accomplished, the ministrants who had entered through the small door from 1.6passed out in procession by the main entrance on to the terrace F. It is certainly more logical to begin with G which thus falls into place in the cycle; the hieratic seated figure of I has an almost exact counterpart in a painting from Herculaneum (Herrmann-Bruckmann, pl. 3), where also a priestess enthroned watches her attendants who, wreathed in myrtle, prepare for the sacred rites. But we cannot agree that the same woman is the protagonist in each scene : for ancient art, when it unrolled a story in the continuous method, portrayedthe hero each time in the same guise, so that there might be no mistake as to his identity. Neither can one argue that art does not distinguish between the real and the feigned, for whenever in ancient art the subject is a performanceby actors the fact is made clear by the masksthey hold in their hands, as on the Pronomos vase in Naples, or by their theatrical costumes, as for example in the scenes of the fury of Herakles or the amours of Zeus. In the child reading from the scroll M. Pottier (Rev. Arch. Ser. v, ii, I915, p. 325) sees Iacchos, although his objection to the identification as Dionysos, because in D he is represented as fully grown, is negatived by reliefs depicting his education where he appears in various stages of growth. In his instructress perhaps we should see Telete rather than Mystis with Rizzo : for on the Thyrea relief Telete is seated in very similar fashion and it would seem more appropriate that she who reveals r& 5eLKv'6jLeva to the neophyte should be the personificationof the mysteries, rather than the raging Fury who purifies by castigation and is more probably A1&bs,modest reverence. To designate the head-dress worn by two of the figures as a 7rXos seems rather a misnomer: that term signifies a peaked cap or stiff head-gear, since it was sometimes
made of skin, whereas these women wear a soft o-dKKOS.

The great objection to seeing in B an agape is the fact that there is no. sign of, and no indication of preparation for, a meal, and, above all, the neophyte takes no part. The scene is best explained by the sacred formula (Clem. Alex. Protrept. ii, I8) : ' I fasted; I drank the kykeon; I took from the basket. ... I put back in the basket and from the basket into the chest.' The monuments cited by Macchioro certainly appear to prove that the double plinth had some significance in scenes taken from the Satyric cycle, but it is hard to believe that the single plinth typified the a,ytAXa-Tos irrpa which, from the evidence of the legends, was an outcrop of the natural rock upon which the goddess rested (P. Foucart, Les Mysteres d'Eleusis, Paris I912, p. 342; Rubensohn, Ath. Mitt. 1899, pp. 46-54). To cover such seats with a clo h or mantle may have been enforced, but it was certainly the natural and obvious thing to do, for a stone seat is both hard and chilly. Moreover,
the words of the Andania inscription are : 8ifpous 8
gxovro aT lepct, and there

is no

mention of plinths. If the fawn in C suckled by the Satyriska is a personification of Zagreus, then any

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wild animal suckled by a Bacchant would be the embodiment of the divinity, although under the influence of the divine madness they did not nourish gentle fawns only, bnt wolf-cubs and panthers. The pictorial evidence noted by Macchioro of mirrorsused in Dionysiac rites displays an ordinary flat mirror, and the literary evidence he quotes refers to lekanomancy, not katoptromancy. In either case, of course, the result would be the same, a vision materialised in the bowl. But it is the fate of the maiden, not'his own, which the young Satyr sees and announces by the medium of the Seilenos, a presage of bliss but also of suffering in the attainment. The companion of Dionysos has been called Semele, Kore Ariadne and even Demeter. A connexion with Kore would imply a chthonic character which Dionysos in this aspect did not possess. The composition is one frequently used for portraying Dionysos and Ariadne, and the latter, a mortal raised from desolation to union with a divine lover, was looked upon as a symbol of the human soul, and is therefore appropriatelyintroduced here as foreshadowing the progress of the initiate from earthly care to mystic felicity. It is incredible that the woman who unveils the liknon can be the initiate pleading by this action for union with the god, since at this stage she has not been fully initiated; for one who is not yet really of the elect to come thus into contact with the sacred symbols, to profane the mysteries in such a way would be sacrilege unspeakable. As she wears a costume and head-dresssimilar to that of the priestess in B she may be a priestess engaged in one of the sacred offices or one of the higher order of initiates-a fully evolved Bacchant. It cannot be upon her that the lash falls: her attitude is calm, and there is not a sign of shrinking or terror. The gesture of repulsion made by the winged figure is often found on gems, terra-cotta reliefs, etc., but in every instance she is in the act of fleeing and does not hold the whip. In the painting her figure is perhaps the least successful artistically of the whole series : the feet are most awkwardlyplaced, the wings are absolutely inorganic. Rizzo thinks she has just alighted; but a being who alights after a flight rests upon the tips of her toes like the Nike of Paionios, not with the front foot treading upon the back one, and a person poised to strike a powerful blow stands with the feet a little apart to give balance. These considerationssuggest that the figure is a contaminatiofrom at least two different scenes, the shunning of the sacra and the mystic flagellation, here not very happily telescoped by the artist in order to link together the two scenes, and possibly to avoid the introduction of two winged beings juxtaposed in a cycle where all the other personagesare without wings : perhapshe was also hampered by want of space. Miss Mudie-Cooke's opinion that the primary purpose of ritual flagellation was purification and the expulsion of evil is better supported by evidence drawn from -comparative religion than Macchioro's theory that ' whoever was flagellated in the mysteries of Zagreus died like him and, like him, was reborn.' An interesting parallel to these scenes is furnished by the painting which its ' seventeenth-century discoverers named the Aldobrandini Marriage.' Interpreted as a marriage rite, many of the elements are incomprehensible. Why should the ceremony take place under the open sky ? Above all, why should the bridegroom sit upon the threshold in a state of heroic nudity ? Interpreted as part of a series representing the mysteries, these puzzling details fall into place. The neutral background typifies the temple precinct or basilica: to the left we have the counterpart of the Villa Item scene B, for here also myrtle-wreathed attendants minister to the priestess who performs the ritual lustration. In the centre those who are fully initiated encourage the neophyte to endure the ordeal before her. Upon the sacred plinth sits Iacchos, possibly as invisible witness for the due performance of the mysteries, probably as guardian of the threshold 'betweenthe profane and the full joys of the initiated who are shown to the right, dancing in ecstasy. Each scholarwho has discussed these enigmatical paintings has contributed something towards their interpretation : probably a study of all the scenes of ritual and sacred drama would reveal even more. But to ProfessorMacchioro belongs the merit of having

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shown that the whole series depicts a liturgy, a logical sequence of ritual acts, beginning with the preparationfor initiation and culminating in the care-freeemancipationof perfect spiritual knowledge.
E. DOUGLAS VAN BUREN.

INSTITUT

D'ESTUDIS

CATALANS, ANUARI, I9Ii,

19I2.

A further volume of this excellent publication, in every way worthy of its predecessors, has recently been issued. Both in the interest of the subjects treated and in the typographical and illustrative sections, this volume constitutes an historical and archaeologicalwork of very high order. It is, as usual, divided into sections, the principal of which are the historical, archaeological, literary and jurisprudential. Most of the articles, as is only natural, are written in the Catalan language, but there are several in Spanish and one, of considerable importance, in French. We propose to touch only upon the archaeologicalsection in these notes. M. Lluis M. Vidal contributes an exhaustive study of the Abris sous roche and caves at Capelladesand Santa Creu d'Olorde, in the province of Barcelona,which have afforded evidence of their use during the Mousterian, M/agdalenian, and neolithic periods. M. Vidal carefully sifts the evidence brought to light by his investigations, which has led him to the conclusion that there was an important factory of flint implements of the Mousterian period at l'Abrich Romanil at Capellades, and that it was consequently one of the oldest in Catalufia. The deposit, which is twelve metres deep, points to habitation during a very long period. The flint implements found at Estacio Agut bear considerable resemblance to those from the Mousterian deposits at La Ferrassie in France. An interesting point in connexion with M. Vidal's investigations was the discovery in the Magdalenian stratum of the shell of Mitra striatula, believed by many naturalists to have disappearedfrom the marine fauna in late tertiary times, but now shown to have existed in the Mediterranean during the early part of the quaternary period. Another rare specimen found is the Pleurotoma undatiruga,which now only occurs on the Algerian coast. The district explored by M. Vidal, to judge by the large number of caves containing debris of pottery and polished stone implements, was thickly inhabited during the neolithic period. Some of the pottery illustrated in the article shows evidence of trading relations between the then inhabitants of Catalufia and some of the Portuguese tribes. A very good series of plates illustrate a large number of the finds among which those from the Magdalenian and Mousterian strata at l'Abrich Romani predominate. In ' Els Temples d'Empuries' (the Temples at Ampurias)M. Puig y Cadafalchgives a carefully considered account of the work carried on during I9Io-II by the Museums Commission on the site of the ancient city of Emporion (founded about 550 B.C.), in which he makes special reference to the traces of the temples then discovered. The Emporion site has been excavated, systematically and carefully, for several yearspast and has yielded much material of considerable archaeologicalvalue, the most notable being, perhaps,the series of pottery which includes examples of Greek ceramic art of the finest period. M. Puig ascribes the temples to the second or Hellenistic period of the city, and the time of their construction to the Roman occupation of the north-eastern portion of the peninsula. The soil on which they stood is full of pottery sherdsof the well-known Campanianware of the third and second centuries B.C.,while the underlying stratum, that of the Greek city proper, abounds in red-figure pottery of the fifth and fourth centuries preceding the Christian era. A plan of the excavations, which would have been rendered more instructive had some indication been given as to the meaning of the dark and lighter drawn portions, shows the site of the temples, of which that dedicated to Aesculapiusis the best preserved. The lower part of the statue of the god was found in the ' cella.' It has been found possible to reconstitute it with the fragments of the
1 Discovered by D. Amador Romani in
I909.