Roman and European

Mythologies
Roman and European
Mythologies
Compiled by

YVES B O N N E F O Y

Translated under the direction of

WENDY DONIGER

by Gerald Honigsblum,
Danielle Beauvais, Teresa Lavender Fagan, Dorothy Figuiera,
Barry Friedman, Louise Guiney, John Leavitt,
Louise Root, Bruce Sullivan, and David White

The University of Chicago Press •Chicago and London

 YVES BONNEFOY,
a scholar and poet of world renown, is
professor of comparative poetics, Collège de France.
Among his many works to have appeared in English, two
have been published by the University of Chicago Press—a
volume of poetry, In the Shadcnv’s Light (1991), and a work
of criticism, The Act and Place of Poetry (1989), both
translated by John T. Naughton.

WENDY D ONI G E R
is the Mircea Eliade Professor in the
Divinity School, and professor in the Department of South
Asian Languages and Civilizations, the Committee on Social
Thought, and the College, at the University of Chicago.
Under the name of Wendy Doniger O'Flaherty she has written,
among other books. Women, Androgynes, and Other Mythical
Beasts (1980), Dreams, Illusion, and Other Realities (1984),
and Tales of Sex and Violence: Folklore, Sacrifice, and
Danger in the laiminiya Brâhmana (1985), all published
by the University of Chicago Press.

The University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637

The University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London
© 1991, 1992 by The University of Chicago
All rights reserved. Published 1992
Printed in the United States of America
01 00 99 98 97 96 95 94 93 92 5 4 3 2 1

This paperback is drawn from Mythologies, compiled by

Yves Bonnefoy, translated under the direction of Wendy Doniger,
and published by the University of Chicago Press in 1991.
That work was originally published as Dictionnaire
des mythologies et des religions des sociétés traditionnelles et
du monde antique, sous la direction de Yves Bonnefoy
publié avec le concours du Centre National
des Lettres, © 1981, Flammarion, Paris.

The preparation of the complete English edition was

supported by grants from the French Ministry of Culture,
the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the
National Endowment for the Humanities.

This book is printed on acid-free paper.

Paperback ISBN: 0-226-06455-7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Dictionnaire des mythologies et des religions des sociétés
traditionnelles et du monde antique. English. Selections.
Roman and European mythologies /compiled by Yves Bonnefoy;
translated under the direction of Wendy Doniger by Gerald Honigsblum
. . . [et al.],
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Mythology, European—Encyclopedias. 2. Mythology, Roman—
Encyclopedias. 3. Mythology, European, in literature—
Encyclopedias. I. Bonnefoy, Yves. II. Title.
BL689.D5313 1992
291.1 '3'094—dc20 92-15402
CIP
 Contents

Preface to the Paperback Edition, by Wendy Doniger vii

Preface to the English Edition of the Complete Work, by Wendy Doniger ix
Preface to the French Edition of the Complete Work, by Yves Bonnefoy xv
Contributors xxi

PARTI INTRODUCTION:
T H E I N T E R P R E T A T I O N OF M Y T H O L O G Y
Toward a Definition of Myth 3
The Interpretation of Myths: Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Theories 5
Myth and Writing: The Mythographers 10
Prehistoric Religion 11
"Nomadic Thought" and Religious Action 21

PART 2 ROME

Italy 25 Greco-Italic Traditions and Legends, from the Bronze

Religion in Pre-Roman Italy: The Historical Age to Virgil 55
Framework 25 Roman Religion 58
Sacrificial Cults and Rites in Pre-Roman Italy 32 Roman Gods 68
Conceptions of the Afterlife among the Peoples of Roman Sacrifice 77
Pre-Roman Italy 34 The Religion of the Roman Republic: A Review of
Etruscan Religion 36 Recent Studies 81
Etruscan Daemonology 40 Roman Festivals 92
Etruscan and Italic Divination 42 Roman Divination 94
The Doctrine and Sacred Books of the D isciplina Roman Religion and Greek Philosophy 107
Etrusca 43 The Decline and Survival of Roman Religion 110
The Religion of the Sabellians and Umbrians, Italics of Anna Perenna 112
Central and Southern Italy 46 Apollo in Rome 112
The Beliefs and Rites of the Apulians, an Indigenous The Arval Brethren 113
People of Southeastern Italy 50 Augurs and Augury 115
Myths and Cults of the Ancient Veneti, an Indo- The Religious Policies of Augustus 116
European People of Northern Italy 51 Ceres 121
Ver Sacrum : The Italic Rite of the "Sacred Spring­ Cicero as Theologian 123
time" 52 Diana 125
The Latins and the Origins of Roman Religion 54 Faunus 126
C O N T E N T S

Genius 127 Neptune 137

Hercules 128 The Penates 138
Janus 129 Priapus: The Last of the Gods 139
Juno 130 Psyche 142
Jupiter 131 Quirinus 144
The Lares 132 Silvanus 146
The Manes 133 Venus 146
Mars 134 Vesta 148
Mercury 135 Virgil's Religious Vision 149
Minerva 137 Vulcan 155

PA T 3
WESTERN CI VI LI ZATI O! IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

The Survival of Myths in Early Christianity 159 Popular Customs and Rituals in France 256
Christian Judgments on the Analogies between Romanticism and Mythology: The Use of Myths in
Christianity and Pagan Mythology 165 Literary Works 262
The Euhemerism of the Christian Authors 176 Romanticism and Myth in Blake, Nerval, and
Christianity and Mythology in the Greek Balzac 266
Church 181 The Mythology of European Decadent and Symbolist
The Naassenes' Use of Pagan Mythologies 185 Literature 268
The Gnostics and the Mythologies of Paganism 187 The Androgyne 274
The Perates and Their Gnostic Interpretation of The Androgyne, the Double, and the Reflection:
Paganism 190 A Few Myths of Romanticism 275
Eros among the Gnostics 192 Romantic Myths of the Rebel and the Victim: Satan,
Hecate in Greek Esotericism 195 Prometheus, Cain, Job, Faust, Ahasuerus, Don
Justin the Gnostic: A Syncretistic Mythology 196 Juan, and Empedocles 277
The Medieval West and "Mythic Thought" 198 Spirits of the Elements in the Romantic Period:
The Survival of the Ancient Gods in the Middle Ages Sylphs, Water Sprites, Salamanders, Gnomes, and
and the Renaissance 202 Elves 281
Alchemy and Mythology 211 Orpheus and the Poetic and Spiritual Quest of
Cabala and Mythology 214 Romanticism 282
Pan among the Cabalists and Alchemists of the The Isis of Romanticism: The Myth of the Wife-
Renaissance 215 Mother— Helen, Sophia, Mary 284
Fables and Symbols from Sixteenth- and Seventeenth- Julian the Apostate in Romantic Literature 285
Century Hermeticism 216 Napoleon as Myth 287
Hercules in Alchemy 221 Modernity's Challenge to Myth, in the Poetry of
Orpheus in the Renaissance 222 Hölderlin, Heine, Baudelaire, Mallarmé,
King Arthur, the Romances of the Round Table, and T. S. Eliot, and Rilke 288
the Legend of the Grail 223 Hölderlin's Dionysus 291
Tristan and Isolde 227 Myth in Twentieth-Century English Literature 293
Gypsy Myths and Rituals 228 The Survival of Ancient Myths in Modern Greek
Fable and Mythology in Seventeenth- and Eighteenth- Poetic Consciousness 297
Century Literature and Theoretical Imagination and Mythology in Contemporary
Reflection 232 Literature (Tolkien, Lovecraft) and Science
The Mythology of Ancient Switzerland 243 Fiction 300
Mythic Elements in French Folklore 244 Myth and Political Theory: Nationalisms and
French Fairy Tales, Folktales, and Myths 248 Socialisms 303
Folk Beliefs and Legends about Fairies in
France 253

Epilogue: The Contemporary Need for Myths— a Testimonial 307

Index 313
 Preface to the Paperback Edition
This is one of four paperback volumes drawn from the full,
clothbound, two-volume English-language edition of Yves
Bonnefoy's Mythologies. These paperbacks are not an after­
thought, but were part of the publication plan from the very
beginning. Indeed, one of the reasons why we restructured
the original French edition as we did was in order ultimately
to make these separate volumes available. For though there
is of course a sweep and majesty in the full editions, both
French and English, a breathtaking scope that is the true
raison d'être of the work as a whole, there is also, in the
English version, a pattern that allows readers to focus on one
culture at a time. And it is with such readers in mind that the
University of Chicago Press is issuing these paperbacks,
which will include (in addition to the present volume) Greek
and Egyptian Mythologies, Asian Mythologies, and African and
American Mythologies. Each book draws from the full work
not only the culturally specific material but also the two
prefaces and the general introductory essays, which deal
with methodological issues pertaining to all the cultures
discussed.
Since each culture poses different problems, and each sec­
tion of essays embodies the work of a different group of
French scholars, each has its own methodological flavor and
its own contribution to make to the more culturally specific
study of mythology. The present volume begins with Roman
mythologies and goes on to trace the ways in which Greek
and Roman myths (known primarily in their Roman form)
continued to inform and animate early Christian and later
European literature. The particular innovation in these es­
says lies, I think, in the ways in which they apply the meth­
ods of mythologists to works that have previously been
treated primarily by theologians and literary critics. This ap­
proach brings into focus an entirely new line of development
in the great literary classics of the West and encourages us to
take a fresh look at the problems of cultural and historical
diffusion.
vii
For example, there is one theme that several of the authors
chose to select out of thousands of possibilities— the theme
of the ways in which other cultures saw the links between
their myths and those of others, and in particular the ways in
which the dominant culture of the West, European Christi­
anity, looked at the mythologies of the world. Thus, in the
essay entitled "Christian Judgments on the Analogies be­
tween Christianity and Pagan Mythology," the author ex­
plains how the early Christian fathers came to terms with the
striking resemblances between their own religion and the
pagan myths of the dying and rising god. My favorite argu­
ment is this one:
In [Justin's] eyes, demons find a choice ground for their
manipulations in particular pages of the Scriptures: in the
Messianic prophecies, inspired visionaries mysteriously
described the Savior long before his coming. So the de­
mons, in order to deceive and mislead the human race,
took the offensive and suggested to the poets who created
myths that they give Zeus many sons and attribute mon­
strous adventures to them, in the hope that this would
make the story of Christ appear to be a fable of the same
sort, when it came.
From these humble beginnings, European theologians con­
tinued to lock horns with Roman deities, even as European
peasants continued, blissfully unaware of these theological
battles raging over their heads, to incorporate ancient myths
into their living folk traditions. And, on a rather different
track, European poets continued to draw upon, and rein­
terpret, the great Greek and Roman myths to express their
individual geniuses. We should hardly be astonished to find
that French folklore and literature hold a central place in
these essays, but almost equal time is given to the great En­
glish Romantic traditions up to the present. And the volume
concludes with an argument for the relevance of these myths
in our own lives and thoughts today.
Wendy Doniger
 Preface to the English Edition
of the Complete Work
Yves Bonnefoy in his preface (which follows this preface)
explains why he organized his book—and after all, this is his
book—as he did. He had good reasons, and he is eloquent in
their defense. But it remains for me to explain the ways in
which the English edition differs from the French in more
than the language in which it is expressed, since some of
what M. Bonnefoy will say does not in fact apply to this
edition at all, particularly in what concerns the arrangement
of the articles.
M. Bonnefoy graciously if reluctantly allowed me to re­
structure his work. As he put it, "O f course I will miss the
formula of the dictionary, for the reasons that I indicate in my
preface (the rupture with all the apriority of classification, the
possibility of surprising juxtapositions, in short, the irony),
but I absolutely do not oppose your choice, which is in response
to very good reasons, and which is better adapted to the
English-speaking world in which your edition will appear. I
therefore give you carte blanche, with the understanding
that you will publish my preface as is. For it is a good idea to
point out that the book was originally what I indicate in that
preface—this will bring in a supplementary point for
reflection."1 On another occasion,2 he remarked that there
was another consideration (one that, I must confess, had not
occurred to me) that had persuaded him to organize his
original version of the book in what he termed "the random
way," while we might be able to rearrange our version in
"the more organized way": French students, he pointed out,
have only limited access to open stacks in the French libraries
(since there is not enough room to accommodate them) and
few of the bookstores are quiet enough to read in. French
students therefore have apparently not formed the habit of
browsing—except in a dictionary.
Without denying the validity of his arguments, let me state
my reasons for the reorganization. And in order to justify the
changes, I shall first state my conception of the strengths and
weaknesses of the French work itself.
The Strengths and Weaknesses of the French Edition
To begin with, even in its French form, with all the articles
arranged alphabetically, it is not a dictionary, nor even an
encyclopedia, nor a dispassionate fact-book even for those
topics that it covers (and many major items are omitted). It is
ix
a quirky and idiosyncratic set of essays, long and short, by a
particular group of mythologists, most or whom are French
and all of whom participate in the French school of mythol­
ogy in its broadest sense. The patent omissions and biases
have prompted a certain amount of criticism leveled at the
French edition,1 criticism of imbalances, of inconsistencies
(in the selection of topics, in the manner of their treatment,
in the style, in the methodologies, etc.), and of the choice of
illustrations, as well as more substantive criticisms of the
interpretations.
Some of these criticisms are just; some are not. The
arguments about what is there (what is said about the
mythologies that are discussed) are interesting; the argu­
ments about what is not there are, I think, beside the point.
Many of the scholars involved in the project chose not to
write about what other people (including certain reviewers)
regarded as "central" or "basic" themes of the mythologies
they treated; they wrote long essays on the subjects they
cared about personally, and gave short shrift to subjects to
which other scholars might have given pride of place. The
reader who continues perversely to look for ways in which
the glass is half empty rather than half full will notice
immediately, for instance, that there is almost nothing about
Islam or Judaism in the book. This is primarily because Yves
Bonnefoy had originally intended to save this material for
another volume, on the mythologies of monotheistic
religions—a volume that has not yet materialized. It might be
argued that this justification is disingenuous, for some of the
very best material in the extant volume is on Christianity,
which is by most standards monotheistic. But on closer
inspection it is quite clear that while the book does treat the
appropriation of classical mythology by Christianity, and the
incorporation of "pagan mythologies" into what might be
called "rural Catholicism," it rightly does not treat main­
stream, monotheistic Christianity as a mythology. Moreover,
to have dealt with the central traditions of Islam and Judaism
in this way would certainly have been tantamount to a
betrayal of what the adherents of those religions regard as
their basic tenets. Yet this Jewish and Islamic silence is also in
part accounted for by the simple fact that the authors who
were assembled to prepare this book did not choose to write
articles on these subjects. Similarly, the African articles deal
almost exclusively (though hardly surprisingly) with Franco­
P R E F A C E TO THE E N G L I S H E D I T I O N
phone Africa; yet these articles constitute superb paradigms
for the study of other African mythologies. So, too, there are
only two articles on Buddhism per se, and there is virtually
nothing about Buddhism (or Islam, for that matter) in
Southeast Asia (though there is a great deal of wonderful
material about indigenous Southeast Asian religions, and
those two articles on Buddhism are fascinating). On the
other hand, there is extensive coverage of the Turks and
Mongols, whose mythologies are relatively unknown to
Western readers. This sort of imbalance might be regarded as
a kind of mythological affirmative action.
This is, therefore, certainly not an encyclopedia. In a
famous painting by the surrealist René Magritte, a caption in
his neat script, under a painting of what is clearly a pipe,
declares, "This is not a pipe." I would have liked to write on
the cover of this book, "This is not a dictionary of mytholo­
gies." Rather like the ugly duckling that turned out to be a
terrific swan, as a dictionary this book leaves much to be
desired, but as a book of mythologies it is superb, indeed
peerless. If it is not a dictionary, what is it, then? It is a most
exciting ( far more exciting than an encyclopedia ought to be)
collection of essays on some aspects of some mythologies,
written by a group of brilliant and philosophically complex
French scholars. It is highly opinionated and original, and
should inspire hot, not cold, reactions. Like all multiau-
thored works, it is a mixed bag; there is some jargon, some
wild theorizing, some boring surveys, some overclever inter­
pretation, and some of what I would regard as simple errors
of fact, but there is also an overwhelming proportion of very
sound and/or brilliant articles about mythology in general
and about a number of mythologies in particular. This is not
primarily a book, for instance, to consult for all the stories
about Apollo; one has Robert Graves for that (though this is
a far better book with which to begin to formulate some ideas
about the meaning of Apollo). It is, however, a book in which
to discover the delightful and useful fact that in the ritual
celebration of the Brazilian god Omolu, who is of Yoruba
origin but came to be syncretized with Saint Lazarus, people
dance to a beat called "he kills someone and eats him." I was
thrilled to come upon a hauntingly sad and beautiful Inuit
myth about the cycle of transmigration of a mistreated
woman, a myth that agrees, in astonishing detail, with
certain complex myths of transmigration that I know from
medieval Sanskrit philosophical texts. Other readers will
undoubtedly stumble upon strange stories that are curiously
familiar to them—stumble upon them quite by chance, just
as Yves Bonnefoy intended them to do.
But if the selection is not as complete as a dictionary
should ideally be, neither is it as arbitrary as a nondictionary
can be. Most of the great mythological traditions are covered,
and within those areas most of the important myths are
treated. But this is not the point. What is treated very
thoroughly indeed is the problem of how to understand a
mythology, what questions to ask, what patterns to look for.
More precisely, this is a book that demonstrates what hap­
pens when a combination of two particular methodologies,
those of Georges Dumézil and Claude Lévi-Strauss, is ap­
plied to any mythology. It is, as its title claims (in English as
in French), not so much a book about myths (sacred narra­
tives) as a book about mythologies (whole systems of myths,
or even systems of ideas about myths). It is that rare and
wonderful fusion, a book about methodology that simulta­
neously puts the methodology to work and shows you just
what it can and cannot do. It is a mythodology.
Many of these articles tell the reader how to study mythol-
ogy in general and, more important, how to study each
particular body of mythology, how to solve (or, more often,
to approach) the particular problems that each mythology
presents. Some tell the reader why it is not possible to write
an article about that particular mythology at all (a consider­
ation that does not, however, prevent the author from
writing the article in which this assertion is made). The most
hilarious example of this (I will leave the reader to decide
which article it is) is almost an unconscious satire on the
pusillanimity of scholars in certain fields; in it, the author
goes on for pages and pages (it is one of the longest articles
in the book) telling us, over and over, why there are
insufficient data, why the data that we have are skewed,
why the extant interpretations of the data are skewed, why
all hypotheses and generalizations about the data are worth­
less, why in fact it is impossible to make any valid statement
about the mythology at all. This is in its way a masterpiece,
a kind of Zen nonarticle on a nonsubject, a surreal piece of
nonscholarship worthy of Samuel Beckett. And yet even this
article has its value here as a striking example of one
particular methodology, one approach to the subject, that
argues in great detail, and rightly, the obstacles that oppose
any truly responsible survey of the subject.
But this is the exception, not the rule. The book teems with
marvelous primary material, both myths and rituals (with
which many myths are inextricably linked), using the mate­
rials and the methodological considerations to animate one
another, the soul of data within the body of theory, and the
soul of theory within the body of data. Sometimes the
methodology is in the foreground, sometimes the data;
usually they are in a fine balance. In the Greek and European
sections, for instance, there are startling reinterpretations of
well-known stories, or new emphases on previously over­
looked details in well-known stories; many of the articles on
the Greeks demonstrate the cutting edge of French structur­
alism. As Arthur Adkins has remarked, "The dictionary in its
French version is a truly remarkable work. The Greek section
in particular is quite unlike any other dictionary known to
me. (It] for the most part presents the views of the Paris
school, and the writers come out fighting. The Paris school is
undoubtedly producing the most interesting work in the
field at present. . . . [The work] represents more of a parti pris
than the title 'Dictionary' may suggest."4 The Vietnamese
section, by contrast, abundantly documents a fascinating
mythology that is virtually unknown to the English-speaking
world, and presents it, moreover, in the context of an
enlightened political awareness that is almost unprecedented
in scholarly treatments of mythology anywhere (but that is
also a notable virtue of the articles in this volume that deal
with the Americas and Oceania).
If this is a book as much about method as it is about myths,
what is the method? It is a masterpiece of what might be
called trifunctional structuralism, a joint festschrift for
Claude Lévi-Strauss and Georges Dumézil, a vision of the
world of mythology seen through their eyes, la vie en
Lévi-Strauss and Dumézil. To combine the methodologies of
these two scholars is in itself a most extraordinary and
fruitful achievement. If I may oversimplify both approaches
for a moment, Lévi-Strauss's basic method, a variant of
Hegelian dialectic, is to seek the intellectual or logical frame­
work of the myth in binary oppositions that are mediated by
a third term; the Dumézilian approach is to gloss the main
figures of a myth in terms of three functions that have social
referents: religion and government, defense, and material
production. These two theories are in no way contradictory,
especially if one resolves the potential conflict between
Dumézilian tripartition and Lévi-Straussian bipolarization by

taking into account the mediating third term and thus
making Lévi-Strauss, too, tripartite. In this sense, both of
them operate with triads, though very different triads.
Furthermore, they complement rather than contradict one
another because they focus on different levels (Lévi-Strauss
on abstract intellectual concepts, Dumézil on social func­
tions). Combined as they are in this volume, they. are
startlingly innovative.
Indeed, the beauty of the book is that it is not doctrinaire
in its application of the theories of these two great scholars,
but rather creative and imaginative. Dumézil's trifunctional
analysis of Indo-European mythology is applied, quite
loosely to be sure, even beyond the bounds of the Indo-
European world (where it is, properly speaking, no longer
trifunctional but tripartite), and a general way of thinking in
terms of oppositions and inversions forms the armature of
many analyses in which the name of Lévi-Strauss is not
actually invoked. The search for tripartitions of both sorts is
the driving force behind many of the analyses in this book.
The book is so very French that I thought seriously of
putting the word "French” in the title of the English edition:
Mythologies According to the Contemporary French School, or The
View from France, or Essays in the French Style, A French
Collection, A Paris Collection, The French Connection, and so
forth. Yves Bonnefoy's remarks, in his preface, explaining
why he chose primarily French scholars are delightfully, if
unconsciously, Francophile. He has maintained elsewhere
that the preponderance of French scholars was simply a
natural outcome of choosing to organize the scholarship
from the geographical center of the project, Paris, rather than
to range over the world at random. But as anyone who has
ever had the privilege of working at the Sorbonne will
immediately realize, most French scholars think that the only
people who know anything are other French scholars. In this
instance, at least, they would be right: such is the hegemony
of French scholarship in the field of mythology right now
that a well-read American or British mythologist would
probably draw on precisely these same "French" ap­
proaches.
This is one of the great values of the book: it represents, as
few other works in any field do, the achievements of the
crème de la crème of an entire generation of French scholarship
in a large and important field. Yves Bonnefoy himself has
remarked that he loves the book because it freezes a moment
in time, in history, and in space; it is the embodiment of the
beauty of the Ecole Pratique.
But in a way, the guiding spirit of the book is not just that
of the twin gods, Dumézil and Lévi-Strauss. It is the spirit of
Yves Bonnefoy himself. This is, after all, a book put together
by a poet, not by a philologist. The editor of this nondic­
tionary is also, let me hasten to say, a scholar of the first rank,
but he is at heart a poet. The reader who keeps this in mind
is more likely to get from the book what it has to give than
the reader who picks it up hoping that it will be a kind of
mythological Guinness book of records.
The Restructuring of the English Edition
We decided to restructure the book in order to minimize its
weaknesses, emphasize its sometimes hidden strengths, and
make it useful to the English-speaking reader in new ways.
Its primary weakness is, as I have admitted, that it is not a
true encyclopedia. If the English edition were arranged
alphabetically, as the French edition is, readers might look
for things and not find them and get mad, as some of the
French reviewers did; and, on the other hand, readers might
P R E F A C E TO THE E N G L I S H E D I T I O N
overlook a lot of strange and beautiful essays that no one
would ever dream of looking up on purpose at all.
Bonnefoy in his preface explains why he wanted to use a
dictionary format: to avoid all prearranged categories, to let
the reader find things by chance, to allow accidental juxta­
positions to give rise to unexpected ideas. But to some extent
this argues for a false naïveté on the part of the reader and
even, perhaps, on the part of the editor, for both of them are
looking for something. In choosing the arbitrariness of alpha­
betical order, Bonnefoy is indeed shuffling the deck; but he
does still have a deck, which, like all decks, is highly
structured. The alphabetical shuffle conceals the true order
but does not destroy it. Thus, for instance, all the articles on
a certain subject are written by a single author, an expert on
that subject. Clearly the articles were originally commis­
sioned in this way, and they are still listed this way in the
front of the French edition. And each author does have his
methodological presuppositions, which the reader encoun­
ters every time he or she wanders (arbitrarily, accidentally)
into that territory. Bonnefoy chose to conceal the patterns
that he saw in the material in order to let readers discover
them by chance; I have chosen to set out in the open the
patterns that I see, and to let readers decide whether or not
they want to follow those patterns. The difference lies in
what sort of browsing is encouraged, cross-cultural (through
the French edition's physical juxtaposition of the major
articles on creation or on sacrifice) or intracultural (through
the English edition's grouping of all the Siberian or Celtic
articles).
Several of the translators, the Honigsblums in particular,
arranged the work according to geographic areas or cultures,
which made it easier to check the consistent use of technical
terms. Gradually it occurred to us that this arrangement
would also be useful to readers. Bonnefoy chose to mix the
cultures together to encourage cross-cultural aperçus; I chose
to separate out each culture to encourage consecutive read­
ing in each tradition. (Another, related advantage of the
present arrangement lies in the fact that this arrangement
will make it possible in the future to publish sections of the
work as individual books, making them available to special­
ists in particular cultural fields.) For the overall structure I
decided to use a kind of geographical swing: beginning with
Africa, then traveling up through the Near East, the ancient
Mediterranean, the Indo-European world; remaining in
place geographically but moving forward in time to later
European culture, then back in time to South Asia; on in both
space and time to Southeast Asia, East Asia, Inner Asia; across
the Bering Strait to North America, South America; and fin­
ishing the journey paradisiacally in the South Pacific. Within
each category of culture (Greek, Celtic, etc.), I have put the
long, meditative, general essays first, and the shorter, more
straightforward dictionary entries second. Several pathbreak­
ing essays that are not tied to a particular culture, and that
immediately establish the Dumézilian and structuralist stance
of the book, form an introductory sequence.
Of course, since both the French and the English editions
have detailed indexes, and the French edition has an outline
listing the articles according to cultures, it comes down to a
matter of emphasis, for in either edition the reader can find
materials that are arranged alphabetically (both in the index
and in the body of the work in the French edition, and in the
index in the English edition) as well as materials that are
grouped according to the culture (in the outline of the French
edition, and in the body of the work in the English edition).
In the restructured English edition, the reader can still use
the index as Bonnefoy suggests the French index might be
P R E F A C E TO THE E N G L I S H E D I T I O N
used, to find his or her favorite Naiad or Norse god, and also
to find all the articles on, say, creation, or sacrifice, which cut Lavender Fagan, Louise Guiney, Louise Root, Michael Sells)
across methodological lines. This is, after all, the same book,
and can ultimately be used in all the same ways.
New problems arise out of this rearrangement, however,
for some cultures don't really fit into any of the large
categories—Turks and Mongols, Armenians and Albanians,
Ossets and Georgians, Siberians, Malagasy, Maghreb—and
so I had to settle for putting them where they seemed least
out of place. Another disadvantage of my rearrangement ir
the fact that it exposes repetitions, necessary in an encyclo­
pedia (where the author of any one article, who cannot
assume that the reader will have read any other article, may
therefore have to resupply a certain amount of basic mate­
rial), but rather jarring in a book such as this (where the
reader may well find it annoying to read the same story, or
the same theory, almost verbatim in consecutive articles). A
good example of this recycling is provided by the very first
part, on West Africa, with its recurrent motifs of twinning
and sexual mutilation; another occurs in the South Asian
section, which pivots around the sacrificial pole and the
avatar.
I decided not to cut any of these repetitions, however, for Dankoff, Turks and Mongols. I did the South Asian and
several reasons. First of all, I decided not to abridge or revise
(a decision I will attempt to justify below). Second, some
readers may only pick up isolated articles and will therefore
need the basic information that also appears in other articles.
And, finally, these repetitions demonstrate how certain
scholars always think in terms of a limited number of
particular myths, dragging them into whatever other subject
they are supposed to be discussing. For scholars, like their
native informants, do just what Lévi-Strauss says they do:
they continually rework the same themes in a kind of
academic bricolage, and no two variants are ever quite alike.
For the most part, I think the rearrangement is a positive
move. For one thing, it makes it possible to read the book,
instead of merely browsing in it or looking things up in it
(though, as 1 have said, readers can still engage in both of
these activities in the English edition). For another, it may
prove more useful in this form not only to mythophiles and
area specialists, but to people interested in French anthro­
pology and philosophy.
The book is therefore restructured, because of course it was
originally highly structured, ideologically if not organization­
ally. Its English title, Mythologies, to me echoes the wonderful
books by Roland Barthes and William Butler Yeats, both with
the same title, and further resonates with the French title of
the great Lévi-Strauss trilogy, Mythologiques (treacherously
translated in one English edition as A Science of Mythology).
Mythologies has, finally, the advantage of being simulta­
neously an English and a French word, a last attempt at
bilinguality before the Fall into the English version.
The English Translation
This edition was prepared "under my direction" in not
nearly so important a sense as the original was "sous la
direction de Yves Bonnefoy." Certain parallel procedures
probably exacerbated rather than minimized the inevitable
slip twixt French cup and English lip, and one of these was
the employment of a team of English scholars to translate the
text that was originally composed by a team of French
scholars.
Gerald Honigsblum translated the entire second volume of
the French edition, with the editorial assistance of Bonnie
Birtwistle Honigsblum. The first volume was translated by a
xii
group of professional translators (Danielle Beauvais, Teresa
and another group consisting of some of my students in the
history of religions (Dorothy Figueira, Barry Friedman,
Daniel Gold, John Leavitt, and David White). Their initials
follow those of the original authors of the French articles.
Bruce Sullivan did the bibliographies.
The translated articles were then checked for accuracy (in
the transliteration of names, technical terms, and so forth) by
specialists in each of the particular fields. Arthur Adkins did
by far the most difficult task, working painstakingly and
courageously through the enormous and often very tricky
articles on the Greeks and Romans. Lawrence Sullivan vetted
Africa and the Americas for us; Robert Ritner, Egypt; Walter
Färber, Mesopotamia; Dennis Pardee, Semites; Richard Beal,
Hittites; Laurie Patton, Celts; Ann Hoffman, Norse; Zbig­
niew Golab, Slavs; Frank Paul Bowman, Richard Luman, and
David Tracy, early Christianity; Anthony Grafton, medieval
and renaissance Europe; Françoise Meitzer, modern Europe;
Charles Keyes, Southeast Asia; Anthony Yu and Jane
Geaney, China; Gary Ebersole, Japan; Bruce Cummings,
Korea; Matthew Kapstein and Per Kvaerne, Tibet; Robert
Indo-Iranian sections.
There are thus several levels at which inconsistencies— in
style, in format (citations of texts, abbreviations), in translit­
eration, in ways of dealing with specific untranslatable
concepts— could have slipped in: differences between the
technical languages (not to say jargons) and the methodolo­
gies employed by the various academic guilds that regard
themselves as the proprietors of each culture (anthropolo­
gists in Africa, Sanskritists in India, archaeologists in Sumer,
and so forth); differences between the approaches of individ­
ual French authors, between our several translators, between
our experts; and, over the long haul, differences in my own
decisions at particular stages of the final supervision, and in
the decisions of our copyeditors at the Press. We have tried to
minimize the inconsistencies, but we know that many re­
main.
We left the bibliographies basically in their original form,
with the following exceptions: in some cases we have sub­
stituted English editions for French editions, or extended the
dates of continuing series, and in several cases we have
added supplementary bibliographies (clearly designated as
such and distinguished from the original French text). But
many bibliographies and articles still cite the French editions
of texts that have subsequently appeared in English.
We did not follow the usual practice of citing standard
English translations of Greek or Latin or Sanskrit works that
the French, naturally enough, cited in French. Instead, we
translated the French translation of the classical text into
English. At first glance this procedure may seem unwise, but
we found it necessary because the French version of the
classical text (and the subsequent analysis, which depended
upon that version) often differed so dramatically from any
extant English translation that the sense of the discussion
would be totally obscured by the introduction of such a
translation. We made an occasional exception, using a stan­
dard English translation where there were long quotations
not directly analyzed in the French text, or where the
available English translation was very close to what the
French author had made of the original. (We were also,
unfortunately, forced to translate back into English a few
citations from English primary and secondary sources that
time and other constraints prevented us from obtaining in
the original form, and to retranslate several entire French

articles that we know were originally written in English,
because the English originals were for one reason or another
no longer available to us.)
We decided to give Greek and Roman names, wherever
possible, in the form used by the Oxford Classical Dictionary,
which unfortunately is inherently inconsistent. The OCD has
the advantage of avoiding pedantry by spelling most names
in the way that people in English-speaking countries are
used to seeing them. This means Latinizing most of the fa­
miliar Greek names (not, of course, substituting Roman
names: thus we have Heracles, not Herakles, for the Greek
god, but Hercules only for the Roman god), but not Latiniz­
ing the unfamiliar Greek names, and not Romanizing any of
the Greek words when they are not names. All words, in­
cluding proper names, that are printed in the Greek alphabet
in the French edition have here been transliterated. No ac­
cents are indicated, and macrons are used not to distinguish
long and short a, i, and u, but only on e and o, to distinguish
epsilon from eta and omicron from omega.'
We also sought to standardize the transliteration of non-
Greek names and terms, such as GilgameS (vs. Gilgamesh)
and éiva (vs. Shiva), and we used the Pinyin system for most
Chinese names.'’ But this general policy was sometimes over­
ruled by the demands of a particular article. We strove
for consistency within each article— using English titles for
Greek works where the meaning was needed and traditional
Latinized titles where it was not, full citations or abbrevia­
tions as appropriate, and so forth. Assuming, perhaps snob­
bishly, that anyone who couldn't read French couldn't read
Greek or Latin, 1 have translated many titles and quotations
that my sanguine French colleague, Yves Bonnefoy. had left
in their classical splendor. Except for the titles of certain
works generally known to English speakers in their original
form, and terms that either are familiar to readers or have no
English equivalent, I have translated everything, even terms
like polis (for the most part), and savoir faire, and, sometimes,
par excellence. I fear that this may insult some readers, but 1
suspect that it will be a welcome (and in any case probably
invisible) crutch to hoi polloi.
Despite everything, the book remains idiosyncratic, but
the idiosyncrasies are in large part a true reflection of the
original French edition. In general, we have not corrected the
original text at all, since, as I noted above, the work is valu­
able not only for the information and ideas that it contains
but for being what it is,' a moment frozen in time, a fly in
amber, an incarnation of the École Pratique as it was in 1981,
warts and all. The warts include matters of style and politics,
such as sexist and occasionally racist language in the original
text. These problems were sometimes ameliorated and some­
times exacerbated by the transition from French to English.
Thus, to ameliorate, we often chose to translate homme as
"hum an" rather than "m an"; but the English "savage" (often
more apt than "w ild" or "primitive") exacerbates the nega­
tive connotations of sauvage, which the French often use in a
positive sense.
Our respect for the integrity of the French text made us
resist the temptation to correct what we regarded as errors in
that text. (Of course, we made our own errors, and unfortu­
nately the reader who does not have the French edition will
not know, if he or she finds a mistake, which side of the
P R E F A C E TO T H E E N G L I S H E D I T I O N
Atlantic it originated on.) We certainly made no attempt to
correct such major problems as wrongheaded (in my opin­
ion) opinions, nor to decipher the impenetrable semioticisms
in one or two articles or to excise the unreadable lists in
others. At the other end of the spectrum, however, we did
correct typographic errors and a few outright howlers (such
as a reference to the Iliad when the Odyssey was clearly
intended). It was trickier to decide what to do about the
middle ground: infelicities of expression, repetitions, and so
forth. Of course we tried to clarify unclear thoughts, though
we certainly did not always succeed. But for the most part,
we respected our French colleagues' right to live with their
own sins.
At first we made no attempt to smooth out the English,
striving only to make the French thought accessible in En­
glish, leaving it awkward when it was awkward. We did try,
however, to say well in English what was well said in French.
In the end, however, our collective gorge rising again and
again in response to such massive proportions of transla-
torese and the fatal attraction of the cliché juste, we did try to
relax the translation a bit.
By and large, I opted for fidelity over beauty. This is rather
a shame, for the original French text is, on the whole, very
beautiful. Not for the first time I take comfort in Claude Lévi-
Strauss's famous dictum that, whereas poetry may be lost in
translation, "the mythical value of myth remains preserved
through the worst translation."7 I fear that we have lost
much of Yves Bonnefoy's poetry; I can only hope that we
have found, for the English reader, most of Yves Bonnefoy's
mythology.
Wendy Doniger
NOTES
1. Yves Bonnefoy, personal communication, 28 June 1984.
2. Notes on a meeting with Yves Bonnefoy, 6 June 1988.
3. As, for example, by Robert T urcan , in "Mythologies et reli­
gions: Notes Critiques, à propos du Dictionnaire des Mythologies. . .
in Revue de l’Histoire des Religions 200, no. 2 (April-June 1983): 189-98.
4. A rthur A dkins, personal communication, 2 March 1988.
5. Our attempt to follow, consistently, the above rule resulted in
the following apparent inconsistencies. A distinction is made be­
tween the treatment of two forms of the same word when it is used
both as a name and as a noun: thus we have Eros (the god) and ews
(the emotion), Cyclops (plural: Cyclopes) for the individual and
kuklops for the class pf creature. Exceptions to the general Latiniza-
tion occur in certain familiar spellings particularly with regard to elk
(Clytemnestra, following the regular policy, but Kronos, following
general usage); to -osl-us (Pontus, following the rule, but Helios, fol­
lowing general usage); and to certain plurals (Kronides, but Oceanids
and Atreidae; Melissae, but Moirai). In general, upsilon is translite­
rated as y in Latinized names, such as Polyphemus, but as u in
nouns, such as polumêlis. And so forth.
6. For the Yoruba names, we chose to follow the French edition in
using a simplified transliteration, for the system that is technically,
and politically, correct is extremely cumbersome and incompatible
with the methods used in other parts of the work.
7. C laude L évi-Strauss , Structural Anthropology (New York 1963),
210.
xiii
 Preface to the French Edition
of the Complete Work
I ent on which all scholarship thrives, will have lost its seminal
A few words of introduction, not in justification of the
enterprise, but in order to clarify certain of its intentions and
various points of method.
One of our primary convictions was of the need to adopt
the dictionary format. Encyclopedias, invariably too lengthy
to be read in a single sitting, are usually approached through
the index, thereby functioning like dictionaries but with
certain disadvantages that dictionaries do not have. For one
thing, readers of encyclopedias are deprived of those sudden
juxtapositions that alphabetical order can effect between two
topics that may have something in common but occur in
different contexts: chance encounters from which fresh in­
sights can emerge. And for another thing, an encyclopedia,
no matter how rationally intended the order of its contents,
cannot but reflect the preconceptions of the time when it was
written; it thus rapidly becomes dated and, even, from the
very moment of its conception, imposes certain constraints
on its readers. We have only‘to think of the treatises of the
not very distant past and their way of drawing distinctions
between the Mediterranean world and what is loosely re­
ferred to as the Orient, as if western Europeans lived at the
center of the world! Progress has been made in this respect,
but potentially dangerous prejudices are undeniably still at
work in our thinking today. "Any classification of religions
. . . will always in some way be factitious or one-sided; none
is susceptible to proof," wrote Henri-Charles Puech.1 Only
alphabetical order, arbitrary by definition, can eliminate
hidden dogmatism or prevent the consolidation of an error
as yet unperceived as such.
Furthermore, and as a corollary to its primary task of
rational organization, an encyclopedia also tends toward a
kind of unity— if not homogeneity—of discourse; and be­
cause any work of this kind attempts to say the most in the
least possible number of pages, there will be—in order to
achieve coherent exposition of the most important
material—an attenuation of what, in a monograph, would
remain undiminished or would even be enhanced: diversity
of viewpoint, the clash of ideas and methods, to say nothing
of the irreconcilability of different scholars' feelings, aspira­
tions, and temperaments. Even when there is consensus on
some point, we cannot believe that this disparity, the nutri­
xv
value. The advantage of a dictionary, which allows free rein
to a greater number of authors, and which facilitates the
juxtaposition of both detailed analysis and broad synthesis,
is that it can more comfortably, or more immediately, accom­
modate a living science whose very contradictions and even
lapses into confusion serve as a lesson that can inspire, and
on which we can reflect. We might say that a dictionary can
aspire to a totalization which, because it is still only potential,
is less subject to the perils of dogmatic deviation. Within a
dictionary's open-ended structure, every aspect of scientific
research— classification or comparison, hypothesis or explana­
tion, discovery of a law or conjecture as to its significance— will
be allowed to reveal its specificity and find its own level. We
may, therefore, regard the dictionary format as the most
adequate expression of today's scholarship, which is suspicious
of all systems, instinctively realizing the complexity and plural­
ities inherent in its objects of study as well as the interaction
between these objects and its own methods.
There is, in short, a kind of spirit or "genius" in what
might simply appear to be the way the subject matter is
arranged; and in direct consequence of this conception came
the following decision: that in making the choices rendered
necessary by the limited space, preference would be given to
the process of discovery rather than to what has already been
discovered; to new challenges, new departures, and new
divergences rather than to the syntheses of the past, even
those still found acceptable today. In deciding what to
include in the dictionary, our preference has been, in other
words, for new problems rather than old (and hence overfa­
miliar) solutions, even major ones. Research, the only en­
deavor, today, to which we habitually apply the word
"pure," has been our true objective. In this book the reader
will find what are at this very moment the pivotal points
being debated in regard to this or that myth or religious
festival, and not a mere enumeration— the comprehensive­
ness of which would in any case be difficult to establish—of
points already settled in the past. And let us remark in
passing that, by so doing, we are merely making public, for
the sake of a more general reflection, a practice that has
already proved itself in certain scientific circles, but only to a
privileged few. The introduction to the Annuaire of the École
des Hautes Études (section V, religions), states that the
P R E F A C E TO THE F R E N C H E D I T I O N
teaching dispensed by the professors of this institution is a
science "in process" and that "those responsible for teaching
others will find no better way to exercise their function as the
initiating and motivating force behind their students' re­
search than by sharing . . . the results of their own, even if
this means admitting to failures." In this dictionary we have
not always been quite so radical as these admirable words
advise, but we, too, have attempted not to "transmit what is
already known, but to demonstrate as concretely as possible
how knowledge is acquired, and how it grows."2
It should therefore come as no surprise to the reader that
some of the assignments normally charged to works on
mythology were eliminated from our project at the outset,
notably those detailed accounts of demigods, nymphs, de­
mons, genies, and heroes that occupy the forefront of less
recent or more conventional studies. Insofar as these figures
do not appear prominently among those chosen by contem­
porary scholars for réévaluation, merely to have listed them
and added a few perfunctory remarks about each one—
which, as there are thousands of them, is the best we could
have done—would have been once again, and once too
often, to present only the chaff instead of getting at the grain
deep within, to rethrash the oversimplifications of yesteryear
with an outward show of scientific objectivity. Apart from a
few minor protagonists of Greek myth— retained because of
their artistic or literary importance, through centuries of
survival or revival or nostalgia for the gods of antiquity—we
have chosen to deal, rather, with the innumerable minor
characters in the drama of creation and the cosmos within
the context of broader-based articles concerned primarily
with structures: creation, cosmos, sacrifice, the divinity of the
waters, divine animals or ancestors, etc.—the structures that
modern science has taught us better to discern beneath the
apparent disorder of myths. For only through these more
active concepts, these more all-encompassing frameworks,
can we realize the ultimate meaning of something that has
always been only an element in the symbolic totality arising
from man's desire to know; only in this way will we be able
to perceive the differences, similarities, resonances, and,
what is more, the perhaps hidden truth, the quality of mys­
tery, even the power to terrify, that underlies figures who
became, in the mirror of classical paintings or in the Mythol­
ogies of our grandparents, elegant Marsyas or lovable Flora.
The reader will, however, be able to find the information that
our articles do dispense about many of these tiny sparks from
the larger fire, by referring to the index, where many names
that he may have regretted not finding more prominently
displayed in the columns of the text have been assembled.
We have, on the other hand, been generous in allotting
space—and sometimes a great deal of space— to what at first
glance might appear to be an excessively specific or technical
development on a minor point in a remote religion, or an
almost unknown tribe. We have done so because some
important aspect of the most recent research in the field is
thereby revealed, is therein at work, and the essay is
therefore being offered, indirectly, as a concrete example of
today's practical methods. In a situation of overwhelming
possibility, the guiding principle presiding over the choices
we did in fact make was consistently to prefer the illuminat­
ing example over the supposedly exhaustive enumeration;
except on those occasions when a truly extensive, minutely
scrupulous coverage of a field narrow enough to be included
in the book in its entirety could also be made to serve as one
of our major exemplary cases. This dictionary is in large
measure a network of examples, each with some bearing on a
particular level or category of religious experience or scien­
xvi
tific method; if we have included a study of sacrifice in a
religion in which sacrifice is especially important, we have
deliberately omitted an article on sacrifice for another region
of the world in which, by the same token, animals or the
presence of the dead have been selected from a mythic
narrative in which they are felt to be essential. The advantage
of this principle is that it allows us to plumb the depths,
which is one way to achieve universality and thus to speak of
everything, despite the occasional appearance of superfici­
ality. The reader will note that our articles are seldom very
short; allowing for the stylistic terseness characteristic of
dictionaries, we strove for an average length that would
permit us to publish what are actually brief monographs; I
am pleased to note that the present enterprise has served as
the occasion for much research, some of it completely new,
either in subject matter or in approach. The reader will thus
be a witness to the creative process in action.
And if he should be annoyed because he cannot find in our
table of contents or even our index some name or subject to
which several lines have been devoted in the Oxford Classical
Dictionary or the Real-Encyclopédie, he should also bear in
mind the intellectual character of our endeavor, and should
listen in the depths of our pages for the stirrings of research
in process, that catalyst through which, from the womb of
needs as yet unsatisfied, hypotheses as yet unproved, oppo­
sitions and even conflicts, are bom the research projects,
innovations, and ideas that tomorrow will provide the ma­
terial for new articles in the still open dictionary and, later,
for a whole new volume. Any dictionary worthy of the name
must affirm, with real fervor, that it will continue thus; that
is, that it will turn into a serial appearing twelve times a
century, an institution whose past becomes future, a rallying
ground that will help keep a discipline alive.
II
What is this discipline, exactly, in our own case? And how
did we define or, rather, how were we able to recognize the
subjects appropriate to our dictionary?
It is entitled Dictionary of Mythologies and Religions in
Traditional Societies and in the Ancient World—thus, apparently,
introducing two distinct subjects. What really is the subject,
and what, in terms of specific content, will the reader find in
the book?
Let us state at the outset that what our French publisher
wanted was a "Dictionary of Mythologies," explanation
enough in itself, because it refers to a specific area and one
abundantly rich in problems of great scientific interest today.
To quote again from section V of the Annuaire: the current
tendency for the science of religion to assume a central place
in anthropological studies is due to "the increasing impor­
tance being accorded to 'myth' for the interpretation and
comprehension of the human phenomenon. On this point,
the most diametrically opposed schools of contemporary
thought are undivided. Religious myths have attained high­
est priority as objects of study by the most disparate scientific
disciplines and schools of philosophy, whether they are
regarded as images or projections of a system of communi­
cations among men; as manifestations of archetypes of the
psyche; or as the special objects of a phenomenology of
human consciousness . . ."3 Certainly we no longer believe,
as did the Socrates of Plato's Phaedrus, that there is no need
to study myth because the important thing is to know
ourselves— rather the reverse. Mythology appears to us ever
more clearly as one of the great aspects of our relationship
with ourselves, as well as being a conception of the world

and the terrestrial environment that has been undoubtedly
useful; we therefore ought to draw up a balance sheet—
however provisional—of the discoveries made by the present
century in the various chapters of man's reflection onjnyth.
That there is still not complete agreement among scholars as
to how myth should be defined matters little; that the
problem of definition may even be premature also matters
little, precisely because the plurality inherent in the enter­
prise of a dictionary as defined above actually makes the
juxtaposition of contradictory propositions seem natural and
allows them to be compared with one another. Neither in
this introduction nor in the body of the book, where the
actual choices have been made, will the reader find a
definition of myth decreed as law, as if the die were cast. Our
only methodological limitation, one that in our view safe­
guards the rights both of the study of myths as archetypes
and of the methods appropriate to myths approached as
systems of communication, is to apprehend myth on the
level of collective representations, where, as one of our
contributors writes, myth is “the form in which the essential
truths of a particular society are articulated and communi­
cated." Despite what may be the apparent freedom of the
narrative, our task must be to seek within it a body of
collective knowledge in contradistinction to the ephemeral
creations of the individual consciousness, no matter how
impressive these may be in great novels or poems. Apart
from a few fleeting insights, included solely that we might
better understand and recognize the limitations we have set
for ourselves, there are in our dictionary none of the "per­
sonal myths" that come from art and the free play of
imagination and that perhaps belong to a dialectic entirely
different from those that unite human beings under the sign
of their communications in the real world, of their confron­
tation with real necessities, and that are accompanied and
made possible by rituals and beliefs. We have similarly
omitted from the book what are sometimes referred to as
"modem myths," representations that are circulated by
popular literature or the media, myths that do indeed touch
many spirits but that differ from the great majority of mythic
narratives in that they are not so much the expressions of a
society as they are the expressions of a yearning for a
different society, or of the fear of forces that the structures of
our societies have not integrated. In our view, the place for
the study of these is, rather, in a dictionary devoted to the
basic categories of religious experience as such, in particular,
transcendence, eschatology, and salvation.
In short, the myths in this book have been culled only from
the mouths of societies or groups. This does not indicate a
refusal to study the connection between myth and the deep
structures of the human psyche; it merely delimits, in order
to avoid any confusion, an object of thought that could then
be connected with others, or analyzed in other ways than has
been done here. The one form of individual creativity we did
consider appropriate to include, at least through a few major
examples, is the reflection of those who, although they may
have relied on highly subjective spiritual or philosophical
preconceptions, nevertheless attempted—as did Plato, for
example, or Cicero—to understand myths as society pro­
duces them or assumes them. Objective as contemporary
scholarship aspires to be, there are a few preconceptions
similar to theirs still at work today, perhaps; so who can tell
if in these ancient interpretations of myth there is not some
lesson that could be of use to future investigations either of
myth as the expression of social relationships, or of mytho­
logical figures as spearheads cutting through local custom
and belief toward more universal spiritual forms?
P R E F A C E TO T HE F R E N C H E D I T I O N
But assuming nothing about the essence or function of
myth except its relationship to a society does not necessarily
mean that erecting the boundaries for a dictionary of mythol­
ogies presents no further problems. For no myth exists in
isolation; none is a narrative drawing only on itself for its
terms and its conventions. We still had to decide what,
precisely, from a given society or culture, and from among all
its conscious or unconscious communal acts, ought to be
included in the book so that none of the discussion or
information would be elliptical or too allusive. In other
words, what complementary studies must be integrated into
a dictionary of mythologies to ensure that the overall state­
ment that it makes will not be hobbled, giving only an
impoverished and therefore dangerous idea of the field?
Here is where we can justify the ambiguous precision of
our title, in which the word "religion" appears next to the
word "mythology." Proceeding empirically, at no great philo­
sophical risk, we may hold as evident that in every human
society mythical narrative and religious practice are closely
related; and thus, that everywhere, or almost everywhere, it
is the historian or analyst of religions who also studies
mythologies. As a corollary to this, surely we can affirm that
it makes little sense to classify and analyze myths without
reference to those aspects of religion that have determined
them and will certainly clarify them. And, further, if we do
so, in order to make room for this additional material we
should also be prepared to sacrifice some of the data about
myths properly speaking: what is lost in comprehensiveness
will largely be regained in the comprehension of the place
and the meaning of myth. This book deals with religions as
well as with myths; or, rather, it stands at the intersection
where the two roads meet—always with the proviso, how­
ever, that each of our contributors has been left free to decide
for himself how to apportion the two concerns in practice,
taking account of the vastly different forms that the same
scientific goal can assume in areas as diverse as Indonesia,
for example— that huge complex of societies, languages, and
religious influences, where current research is still at the
stage of amassing data that must subsequently be put in
order—or Vedic India, or Greece, which we know plenty
about.
We do not mean that all things religious are therefore in a
relationship of complicity, or even of continuity, with the
production of myths and the sometimes evanescent, some­
times enduring, figures of myth; there is a dividing point at
which one must take sides; the consequences are bound to be
great and it is important to justify them. It may come as a
surprise to the reader that the religions of Sumeria, Egypt,
and Persia are included in the book, while Judaism, Christi­
anity, and Islam are not; that the divinities— if that is the
right word—of Buddhism are included, but that no reference
is made to the spiritual essence of this major religious
experience as it occurs in China, Japan, or elsewhere. It may
also cause surprise that, more specifically, the studies of the
religions which have been included do not mention what has
often made them forms of transcendental experience, mys­
teries, quests for the Absolute, arenas of soteriological am­
bition for the yearnings or the nostalgia of individuals or of
sects. This is because, during such phases in a religion's
development, the religious principle— in its essence, per­
haps, a contradictory one— turns against the mythic narra­
tive by which it is at other times nourished. When this
happens, the spirit is no longer content to rest at the level of
the gods but aspires to a transcendence that it senses as
amounting to something more than the representations of it
provided by myth; it rejects myth or creates in place of it a
xvii
P R E F A C E TO THE F R E N C H E D I T I O N
gnostic system to uncover its secret meaning. And the effort
thus made by the religious spirit to reach the divine within
mythical manifestations that it regards as paradoxical or
imperfect consequently determines that this aspect of the
religious experience has no place in a dictionary of myth and
of the rituals and beliefs associated with myth. We have not
taken into consideration here the aspect of religion that fights
the gods, the mediating powers, that holds them to be
paganisms; this aspect in itself is so complex and so rich that
it would take another book at least the size of this one to do
it justice. The reader will therefore not find among thr
religions introduced in this volume those whose essential
vocation is— let us try to be succinct— the direct experience of
transcendent divinity; nor those which tend to have a
universal message, addressed to all people everywhere, no
matter what their culture or where they live; not even those
religions whose moorings in the history of a specific society
ora specific people have enabled them, through a founder, a
theophany, a prophet, or their reform of a previous pagan­
ism, to attach to themselves legends or histories closely
resembling myths. In practice, we have excluded from this
book the great religions of a Word, a Promise; and especially
the mystery religions, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Gnosti­
cism, Taoism, and the legacies of the Buddha. The one
exception to this rule consists of certain incursions justified
by the "pagan" nature of some of their minor aspects, such
as the cult of the saints in our own churches or the gods and
demons of Buddhism.
Let us hope that these religions will one day form the
subject of another dictionary, one dealing, as it were, with
divinity, as opposed to gods; with universal theologies and
experiences of unity, in contrast to the rivulets of myths,
rituals, and holy places. Upon further reflection, we ought
also to reserve for another volume certain problems of
boundaries, such as the way in which past and present
evangelistic missionaries have regarded the myths of societ­
ies they set out to convert, not without repercussions on
Christian doctrine; or— to come closer to home— the way in
which at certain moments Christianity itself has played the
role of a myth: a myth of truth, or progress, even at the price
of relinquishing a good part of its aptitude for genuine
communion. As one of our authors writes, myths are never
recognized for what they are except when they belong to
others; it is therefore our duty to apply to our own behavior
as people of the Western world the same methods that our
science reserved only yesterday for so-called primitive soci­
eties. But a great religious experience must first be described
before we can go beyond it and begin the task of distinguish­
ing its ambiguities.
And yet certain religions which might be said to represent
a quest for the Absolute as obvious as any other— those of
India, for instance, and perhaps also of Egypt—have been
included; but this is because in their search for unity they
involve myth in a very intimate, almost ultimate, manner, if
only in an initial stage and as one more form of illusion. We
have not used the word "polytheism" to designate the
religions whose myths are dealt with in this dictionary,
despite its apparent reference to the differentiation, the
polymorphy, of the divine. For although there are resolutely
polytheistic religions, such as those of ancient Greece or
Rome, in other cultures and other lands there are religions
based on more complex intuitions, in which the multiplicity
of representations at once clear-cut and diffuse exist in a sort
of breathing of the spirit that seems to refute our own
exaggerated distinctions between entity and nonentity, be­
tween the one and the many. Might we not, perhaps, call
xviii
these religions "poetic" or "figurative," since an artist knows
well the imaginary nature of the figures that, nevertheless,
alone can express, in the artist's vision, the essential reality?
In any case, such religions belong in this dictionary by virtue
of their massive and continuing recourse to the logic of myth.
Ill
And now for a few words of clarification concerning the
geographical and historical area covered by our enterprise.
Or rather—since this dictionary by definition covers all
terrestrial space and every era of terrestrial history—
concerning the relative proportions we decided upon for the
various parts of our inquiry.
First, one remark that may be useful: if we have designated
and defined myth in the context of an inquiry that by rights
extends to the farthermost regions of the globe, this in no
way means that we wish to affirm, by emphasizing the most
powerful of these mythologies—whose links with the lan­
guages in which they are expressed are obviously close—that
there is any uniformity on earth in this mode of conscious­
ness. As has frequently been pointed out, the word myth
itself comes from the Greek, and the concept that we project
into this word, although adjusted to accommodate overlap­
pings and overflowings, also has a logic, a coherence, and
still bears the mark of its origin; there is therefore no
foundation for believing that what some other ethnic group
has experienced under the forms that we call myth corre­
sponds to the same laws with which we are familiar. Perhaps
there are societies that do not tend to integrate their myths
into some meaningful whole but leave them as fragments
that flare up and then are extinguished without, in passing,
casting any light on what we ourselves are tempted to look
for or to find everywhere: the outline, if only a rough one, of
the vault of a universe. If in these cases we can often see
nothing but an incoherent babble opening the way to higher
forms of consciousness, might it not also be possible for us to
sense in them an entirely different mode of consciousness,
one in which the discontinuous, the partial, the forever
incomplete would themselves be perceived as the very being
of human meaning? Could we not see them as an ontology of
the superficiality of our inscription on the world—an ontol­
ogy that the planet's recent history would tend rather to
confirm than to deny—somewhere beyond the ruin of our
own aspirations? The representation of the divine can obey
laws as diverse as those of artistic representation, which
extends from the controlled irrationality of a Poussin, who
was, in fact, an heir to the Greeks, to the fugitive traces on
the gray wall of some works of art of our time.
This should remind us if need be that a dictionary like
ours, if it is to fulfill its task of describing the variety of
mythologies, must supplement its descriptions of the reli­
gious data with additional material on the cultures, mental
structures, languages, and functionings of the social collec­
tivity. To the extent that myth is one of the forms of asking
questions about mystery, it represents a relationship be­
tween the human consciousness— in its cognitive functions,
its praxis, its historical memory, or its exploration of the
outside environment—and the culture as a whole. Recent
research has clearly demonstrated that myth's manifest com­
plexity makes it one of the most useful tools for an archae­
ology of the imagination, of philosophy, or of science. It was
therefore essential to the present undertaking that myth
appear not only as an act of speech about the divine, but as
a text in which the divine is infinitely embedded in signifiers;
and it is the task of the ethnologist, the sociologist, and the

linguist to decipher and analyze these signifiers. A back­
ground in the social sciences is much more than an impera­
tive for this book; it is its natural and inevitable locus, and
one from which many of our contributors, either explicitly or
implicitly, have strayed but little. But this consideration even
further restricts the space available for the purely mytholog­
ical material within the finite number of pages at our dis­
posal. When the whole world demands to be heard, the time
for each part to speak must be allotted sparingly.
How to mitigate this disadvantage? It would have been
tempting to reverse ethnocentric custom and to eliminate at
a stroke every trace of exclusiveness, every hierarchy; to
relinquish forever the specious charm of the old Greco-
Roman monopoly, and its belated acceptance of Egypt and
the Near East; and thus to have offered to each separate part
of the world an equal number of pages. But rational and fair
as this was in principle, we knew that in practice it could
never be other than a utopian ideal, at least for the foresee­
able future. The first and major reason is that the analysis of
myths that is most familiar to us is the work of scholars who
write or read in French, English, Italian, German, and more
rarely in other languages, still mostly Western ones. With all
of its virtues and all of its limitations, this linguistic given
constitutes an intangible fact that we must first examine
before our own consciousness can be raised, before it can be
made to apprehend from within how to circumscribe its own
difference so as to be more receptive to categories other than
its own. If the mythology of Africa or of ancient Japan is an
object of study for our language, the myths and divinities of
Greece and Rome, not to mention those of the Celtic and
Germanic worlds, survive through hidden symbolisms,
overt conditionings, artistic or philosophical references,
even—and above all— through concepts, in the most inti­
mate being of mythology, that operate on the very level on
which our language apprehends and analyzes the object.
And these components, all too familiar but never sufficiently
explored, never sufficiently distanced, therefore demand an
almost excessive attention if we in the West are ever to
achieve a valid understanding of the other civilizations of the
world.
This invaluable opportunity to psychoanalyze our meth­
ods, we felt, should not be sacrificed by unduly abbreviating
that portion of the book dealing with our own origins; so, an
important place, even though in a most attenuated manner,
should once again be given to the cults and mythologies of
more or less classical antiquity and to their later effects on the
religious, artistic, and intellectual life of Europe, of which
we, of course, are a product. And because for other parts of
the world we have also had to take into account the very
variable degree of progress in the field, so that it would have
been unfortunate to weigh each contribution equally, we
have resigned ourselves without compunction to being bi­
ased in our allocation of space, believing that to define where
we stand does not— or at least so we may hope—imply a
valorization of what lies nearest to us or any dogmatism. We
have reserved almost half the work for the Mediterranean
world, the Near and Far East, and for the historical relations
between their mythologies and the European consciousness,
as demonstrated by such phenomena as the survival of the
classical gods or the fascination with Egypt after the Italian
Renaissance. The other half of the book is for the rest of the
world, here again, however, taking into account the actual
importance that one region or another may have today
assumed in a field that naturally is not static and that will
have fresh insights to contribute to future supplements to the
present volume. It is unfortunately only too true that the vast
I’ R E F A C E T O T H F \ R K N C II I! I) I I I O \'
societies of Africa and Asia have in our columns once again
been given less space than the tiny population of Greece. Bui
a particular problem concerning a particular, vanishing soci­
ety in Vietnam has, on the other hand, merited more of our
attention than many perhaps expected aspects of our classi­
cal world. We can only hope that the reader will not find our
distribution of the materials too misinformed.
IV
Here now is some practical information to help the reader
find his way through the labyrinth of the dictionary. (The
rearrangement of articles in the English-language edition
obviates the problems discussed in this paragraph, which we
have therefore abridged.] Certain religions or cultures to
which, regretfully, we could only allot a few pages are
represented by a single article that can easily be found under
the name of the country or geographical area, thus, Albania
or Crete. Generally speaking, however, our contributors had
more space at their disposal and were able to address various
questions that they considered not only basic but exemplary,
in articles spread throughout the book. A list of the names of
all the authors, in alphabetical order of their initials, allows
the reader to go from the initials at the end of each article to
the complete name of the author.
This same list also indicates the academic affiliations of the
hundred or so scholars who were willing to contribute to the
dictionary; it will be noted that most of them teach at the
Collège de France, the École Pratique des Hautes Études, or
in French universities. Why this preference for the French, in
a century when intellectual exchange is so abundant, be­
tween some countries at least, and in which we see so many
publications—of, for example, papers delivered at colloquia—
that mix together in their abstracts the names of professors
from Tübingen or Yale with those from Tokyo or Nairobi? It
may at once be pointed out that contributions to this type of
publication are usually printed in the language in which the
original paper was delivered, obviously requiring of the reader
that he be made aware of the linguistic and conceptual appa­
ratus presiding at their conception. French scholars know that,
in dealing with ideas originally conceived in German, or in
English, they must undertake the task of recognizing schools
of thought, cultural or religious conditionings or customs,
the influence exerted by the words themselves—since every
language has its own semantic nodes, as complex as they are
uncompromising; and they also know this task may take a
long time, demanding further reading or travel abroad. They
further understand that it is only in connection with these
vast extratextual areas that they will be able to identify and
appreciate the meaning of the text itself. It is of course always
possible to translate, and to read a translation. But we must
not forget that it takes more than a mere rendering of
sentences into a new language for these backgrounds to be
revealed and for the underlying meaning to be made clear.
This is precisely the risk that prevails when an enterprise
such as ours is opened to authors who think and write in
different languages—which would have to be many in num­
ber for all the major trends in international scholarship to be
represented as they deserve. We believed that scholars who
thus had to express themselves through translation would
find their work deprived of a part of its significance at the
very moment when we would seem to be listening to it.
Moreover, the converse is also true: problems can best be
differentiated, and even antagonistic methods best be re­
vealed, through the widest possible deployment of the unity
and diversity—the cluster of potentialities simultaneously
xix
P R E F A C E TO THE F R E N C H E D I T I O N
contiguous and concurrent— that is embodied in a single
language at a precise moment in its history. We therefore
deemed it preferable to call primarily on French scholars and,
since those responding to our call number among the most
eminent and the most representative, thus to offer to the
reader, as an adjunct to our panorama of mythologies and
religions, a matching panorama of the contemporary French
schools of history, sociology, and religious studies, all of
which are of the first rank and deserve to be known as such.
To sum up: while a few of the original contributions to the
Dictionary of Mythologies were translated from languages
other than French, for the most part the material can be
viewed as a whole, produced by a single society—an ever
evolving one, to be sure, and one not inattentive to other
cultures—at a crucial juncture in the development of a
scientific discipline that is still young. This dictionary is
French, the expression of a group of scholars all working
within reach of one another, as sensitive to their areas of
disagreement as they are gratified by their points of conver­
gence. It is our hope that, if it should be translated, the
translator will find it vast enough to allow for the emergence,
here and there within its mass, of the unstated concept of
implied bias not readily discernible in briefer texts; and that
these underlying elements will be revealed in a translation
offering the reader, and serving as the basis for future
debate, an intellectual effort seen whole: not just the visible
tip of the iceberg, but its hidden, submerged bulk as well.
V
Such were the guiding principles determining how our
work should be organized. It is only proper to add, however,
that despite the great trust which it was the present editor's
pleasure to encounter in his authors— who sometimes pro­
duced material for him equivalent in volume to a small
book—the above principles are primarily the expression of
his own concept of what scholarship is, and what it is that
scholars are attempting to do. Only he can be held directly
responsible for them.
I have just used the word "trust." Going back to the source
from which all trust springs, however, I should rather have
said "generosity," because this word, glossing "trust," better
characterizes both the reception that I as editor was given by
specialists in their fields who could so easily have refused to
credit any but one of their own, and the quality of their
contributions, which to me seems patent. I see this now that
the enterprise has been achieved. Most of these scholars, all
of them with many tasks competing for their time, have been
with our project from the beginning, when, responding to
my appeal, they consented to represent their respective
disciplines in a dictionary that was still just an idea—an idea
to which they themselves had to give meaning. Most of them
also agreed to oversee the illustration of their articles,
thereby enriching the text with a variety of often rare,
sometimes previously unpublished, documents directly rel­
xx
evant to the text. Whenever minor vicissitudes befell the
project thereafter, decisions were always made in a spirit of
mutual understanding and cooperation. I am extremely
grateful to all the authors of this book, and to those eminent
individuals who were kind enough to advise me when initial
decisions had to be made. Indeed, my only great regret is
that I am unable to express this gratitude today to two men
who are no longer with us, two men who possessed con­
summate wisdom, foresight, and discipline, and whose
example will stand as an enduring one. Historian Eugène
Vinaver's masterly command of Arthurian Romance, a bor­
derline topic standing between myth and literature, is well
known. So, too, is Pierre Clastres's intense involvement with
the Indian civilizations of South America; the articles by him
that we are publishing here were the last pages he ever
wrote.
I now have the pleasure of thanking Henri Flammarion
and Charles-Henri Flammarion, who wanted this dictionary
to exist, and who showed such keen interest in the questions
with which it deals. My thanks also to those who trans­
formed typescripts, photographs, and graphics into the
reality of the present book. First on the list of these is Francis
Bouvet, a man attached to the project from the moment of its
inception and now, regrettably, only a memory, but a cher­
ished one. My thanks to Adam Biro, who took over the same
functions and brought to them the same understanding and
the same invaluable support. Thanks to Claire Lagarde, who
from start to finish, and with intuitive devotion and unfailing
good humor, sent out requests, acknowledged receipts, sent
out requests again, read, filed, saved, and expedited con­
tracts, typescripts, documents, and proofs, even at times
when her other duties were pressing. And, finally, thanks to
Pierre Deligny, who, simply because he was asked, since we
had no legitimate claim to his assistance, unhesitatingly
accepted in his own name as well as in that of Denise Deligny
and Danielle Bornazzini the crushing responsibility for
correcting three successive sets of proofs, with their intricate
web of unfamiliar names, cross-references, rearrangements,
accent marks, and emendations, and who brought the job to
a successful conclusion, with Mesdames Deligny and Bor­
nazzini specifically undertaking responsibility for compiling
the index. Yes, to these other authors of the Dictionary of
Mythologies, many thanks, in the name of the authors of the
text.
Yves Bonnefoy/l.g.
NOTES
1. Preface, Histoire des religions, vol. 1 (Paris 1970) (Encyclopédie de
la Pléiade).
2. Annuaire of the École des Hautes Études, Paris, vol. 83, no. 1
(1975-76), p. 4.
3. Ibid., p. 3.
 Contributors

A . L.-G André Leroi-G ourhan , professor, Collège de
France.
B . B, Bernard Böschenstein , professeur ordinaire, Uni­
versity of Geneva.
C . Me. Claude M ettra , producer, France-Culture.
E.P. Evelyne Patlagean, professor, University of Paris X.
E. V. Eugène V inaver, professor, Manchester University.
F.C. Françoise C ozannet, cultural attachée, Ministère de
la Recherche et de la Technologie.
F.F1. François Flahault, chargé de recherche, Centre na­
tionale de la recherche scientifique.
F.S. François S ecret, directeur d'études, École pratique
des hautes études, Ve section (sciences religieuses).
J.C . Jeannie C arlier , chef de travaux, École des hautes
études en sciences sociales.
J.-C .S. Jean-Claude S chmitt , maître assistant, École des
hautes études en sciences sociales.
J.E .J. John E. J ackson, professor of French literature, Uni­
versity of Bern.
J.M . Jean Molino , professeur ordinaire, University of
Lausanne.
J.P. Jean P épin , directeur de recherche, Centre national de
la recherche scientifique.
J.R i. Jean R icher , professor emeritus, University of Nice.
J.Se. Jean S eznec, member of the British Academy;
formerly professor, Oxford University and Harvard
University.
J.S t. Jean S tarobinski, professor, Faculty of Letters, Uni­
versity of Geneva.
M .D. Marcel D etienne , directeur d'études, École pratique
des hautes études, Ve section (sciences religieuses).
M.Ed. Michael E dwards , professor of English and com­
parative literature, University of Warwick.
M.E1. Mircea Eliade , professor in the Divinity School,
University of Chicago.
M .O. Maurice Ö lender, attaché. Centre de recherches
comparées sur les sociétés anciennes.
M.P. Massimo Pallottino , member of the Institut de
France and the Accademia dei Lincei; president, Institute
of Etruscan and Italic Studies; professor emeritus, Uni­
versity of Rome.
M. T. Michel T ardieu , directeur d'études, École pratique
des hautes études, Ve section (sciences religieuses).
N.B. Nicole Belmont, directeur d'études, École des
hautes études en sciences sociales.
P.Br. Pierre B runel , professor, University of Paris I.
R.C. Raymond C hristincer , professor. University of
Geneva.
R.R. Renée R icher , professor. University of Nice.
R.S. Robert S chilling , professor emeritus, École pratique
des hautes études and University II of Strasbourg.

xxi
 P A R T

Introduction:
The Interpretation of Mythology
 c u l t u r e if o n e i g n o r e s t h e c o s m o g o n i c m y t h s a n d t h e m y t h s
T ow ard a D efin it io n o f M yth o f o r i g i n t h a t a r e p r e s e r v e d in t h e Enûma Liis o r in t h e e p i c o f
G ilg a m e s . I n d e e d , a t th e b e g in n in g o f e a c h new y e a r , th e
fa b u lo u s e v e n ts re co u n te d in th e Enûma Elii w ere ritu a lly
From P la to and F o n te n e lle to S c h e llin g and B u ltm a n n , re e n a c te d ; a t e a c h n e w y e a r th e w o rld h a d to b e r e -c r e a te d —
p h ilo s o p h e rs a n d th e o lo g ia n s h a v e p r o p o s e d n u m e r o u s d e f ­ a n d th is r e q u ir e m e n t r e v e a ls to u s a p r o f o u n d d im e n s io n o f
in itio n s o f m y th . B u t a ll t h e d e f i n i t i o n s h a v e o n e t h i n g in M e s o p o ta m ia n th o u g h t. The m y th of th e o r ig in of m an
c o m m o n : th e y a r e b a se d o n G re e k m y th o lo g y . F o r a h isto ria n e x p l a i n s , a t l e a s t in p a r t , t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c v i s i o n a n d p e s s i ­
o f r e l i g i o n s , t h i s c h o i c e is n o t t h e h a p p i e s t o n e . It i s t r u e t h a t m ism o f M e s o p o ta m ia n c u ltu r e : M a rd u k d r e w m a n o u t o f th e
m y t h , in G r e e c e , i n s p i r e d e p i c p o e t r y a n d t h e a t e r a s w e ll a s e a rth , th a t is, o u t o f th e fle sh o f th e p rim o rd ia l m o n ste r
t h e p l a s t i c a r t s ; y e t it w a s o n l y in G r e e k c u l t u r e t h a t m y t h T ia m a t, a n d o u t o f th e b lo o d o f th e a r c h d e m o n K in g u . A n d
w a s su b je cte d to p ro lo n g e d a n d p e n e tr a tin g a n a ly s is , fro m t h e t e x t s p e c i f i e s t h a t m a n w a s c r e a t e d b y M a r d u k in o r d e r t o
w h ic h it e m e r g e d ra d ic a lly " d e m y th o lo g i z e d ." If t h e w o r d w o r k th e la n d a n d to e n s u r e th e s u s t e n a n c e o f th e g o d s . T h e
" m y t h , ” in a ll E u r o p e a n l a n g u a g e s , d e n o t e s " f i c t i o n , " it is e p ic o f G ilg a m e s p r e s e n ts a n e q u a lly p e s s im is tic v is io n b y
b e c a u s e t h e G r e e k s d e c l a r e d it t o b e s o t w e n t y - f i v e c e n t u r i e s e x p la in in g w h y m a n d o e s n o t (a n d m u s t n o t) h a v e a c c e s s to
ago. im m o r ta lity .
A n e v e n m o r e s e r i o u s m i s t a k e in t h e e y e s o f t h e h i s t o r i a n H is to ria n s of r e lig io n s th e re fo re p refer to w o rk on all
o f r e l i g i o n s is t h a t t h e m y t h o l o g y t h a t H o m e r , H e s i o d , a n d categories o f m y th o lo g ic a l c re a tio n s , b o th th o s e o f th e " p r i m ­
th e tra g ic p o e ts te ll us about is th e re s u lt of a s e le c tiv e itiv e s " a n d th o s e o f h isto ric p e o p le s . N o r d o th e d iv e r g e n c e s
p ro c e s s a n d r e p r e s e n ts a n in te rp re ta tio n o f a n a r c h a ic s u b je ct th a t r e s u lt fro m to o n a rro w a d o c u m e n ta tio n c o n s titu te th e
w h ic h h a s a t tim e s b e c o m e u n in te llig ib le . O u r b e s t c h a n c e o f o n ly o b s ta c le to th e d ia lo g u e b e tw e e n h is to r ia n s o f re lig io n s
u n d e r s t a n d i n g t h e s t r u c t u r e o f m y t h i c a l t h o u g h t is t o s t u d y a n d t h e i r c o l l e a g u e s in o t h e r d i s c i p l i n e s . It is t h e a p p r o a c h
c u l t u r e s in w h i c h m y t h is a " l i v i n g t h i n g , " c o n s t i t u t i n g t h e its e lf th a t s e p a r a t e s t h e m f r o m , f o r e x a m p l e , a n t h r o p o l o g i s t s
v e r y s u p p o r t o f r e l i g i o u s l if e — c u l t u r e s in w h i c h m y th , far a n d p s y c h o lo g i s ts . H is to r ia n s o f re lig io n s a r e to o c o n s c i o u s
fro m p o r tr a y in g fiction, e x p r e s s e s th e supreme truth, s i n c e it o f t h e a x i o l o g i c a l d i f f e r e n c e s in t h e i r d o c u m e n t s t o p u t t h e m
s p e a k s o n ly o f r e a litie s . a ll o n t h e s a m e l e v e l . A t t e n t i v e t o n u a n c e s a n d d i s t i n c t i o n s ,
T h i s is h o w a n t h r o p o l o g i s t s h a v e p r o c e e d e d f o r m o r e t h a n th e y c a n n o t b e u n a w a r e th a t th e re a r e im p o r ta n t m y th s a n d
h a lf a c e n tu r y , c o n c e n t r a t in g o n " p r i m i ti v e " s o c ie tie s . R e a c t­ m y th s o f le s s e r im p o r ta n c e , m y th s th a t d o m in a te a n d c h a r ­
in g , h o w ev er, a g a in s t an im p ro p e r c o m p a r a tiv e a n a ly s is , a c te r iz e a r e lig io n , and seco n d ary , r e p e titiv e , or p a r a s itic
m o s t a u t h o r s h a v e n e g le c te d to c o m p l e m e n t th e ir a n t h r o p o ­ m y th s . T h e Enûma Elis, fo r e x a m p le , c o u ld n o t b e p la ce d o n
lo g ic a l r e s e a r c h w ith a r i g o r o u s s tu d y o f o t h e r m y th o lo g i e s , th e sam e lev el as th e m y th o lo g y of th e fe m a le dem on
n o ta b ly t h o s e o f th e a n c ie n t N e a r E a s t, p rim a r ily M e s o p o t a ­ L a m a sh tu ; th e P o ly n e s ia n co s m o g o n ic m y th has a com ­
m ia a n d E g y p t; t h o s e o f th e I n d o - E u r o p e a n s , e s p e c ia lly th e p le te ly d iffe re n t w e ig h t fro m th e m y th o f th e o r ig in of a
g r a n d io s e a n d e x u b e r a n t m y th o lo g y o f a n c ie n t a n d m e d ie v a l p la n t, s in c e it p r e c e d e s it a n d se rv e s as its m o d e l. S u ch
In d ia ; a n d fin a lly th a t o f th e T u r c o - M o n g o l s , th e T i b e t a n s , d i f f e r e n c e s in v a l u e d o n o t n e c e s s a r i l y c o m m a n d th e a t te n ­
a n d t h e H i n d u i z e d o r B u d d h i s t p e o p l e s o f S o u t h e a s t A s i a . In tio n of th e a n th ro p o lo g ist or th e p s y c h o lo g is t. T hus, a
lim itin g r e s e a r c h to p r im itiv e m y th o lo g i e s , o n e ris k s g i v in g s o c io lo g ic a l s tu d y o f th e n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y F r e n c h n o v e l o r
t h e i m p r e s s i o n t h a t t h e r e is a g a p b e t w e e n a r c h a i c t h o u g h t a p s y c h o lo g y o f th e lit e r a r y i m a g i n a ti o n c a n m a k e e q u a l u s e
a n d t h a t o f p e o p l e s c o n s i d e r e d " o f h i s t o r y ." T h i s g a p d o e s n 't o f B a lz a c a n d E u g è n e S u e , S te n d h a l a n d Ju le s S a n d e a u . B u t
e x is t; in d e e d , b y r e s tr ic tin g i n v e s tig a tio n to p rim itiv e s o c ie t­ fo r th e h is to r ia n o f th e F r e n c h n o v e l o r fo r th e lite r a r y c ritic ,
i e s , o n e is d e p r i v e d o f t h e m e a n s o f m e a s u r i n g t h e r o l e o f s u c h m i x i n g is u n t h i n k a b l e , f o r it d e s t r o y s t h e i r o w n h e r m e ­
m y t h in c o m p l e x r e l i g i o n s , s u c h a s t h o s e o f t h e a n c i e n t N e a r n e u tic p rin c ip le s .
E a s t o r o f I n d i a . F o r e x a m p l e , it is i m p o s s i b l e t o u n d e r s t a n d In t h e n e x t g e n e r a t i o n o r t w o , p e r h a p s e a r l i e r , w h e n we
th e re lig io n a n d , m o r e g e n e r a l l y , th e s ty le o f M e s o p o t a m i a n h a v e h is to r ia n s o f r e lig io n s b o rn o f A u s tr a lia n o r M e la n e s ia n

3
I N T R O D U C T I O N
tribal societies, I have no doubt that they, among other
critics, will reproach Western scholars for their indifference
to the scales of indigenous values. Let us imagine a history of
Greek culture in which Homer, the tragic poets, and Plato
were passed over in silence, while the Interpretation of Dreams
by Artemidorus of Ephesus and the novel by Heliodorus of
Emesa were laboriously analyzed under the pretext that they
better clarified the specific characteristics of the Greek spirit,
or helped us understand its destiny. To return to our subject,
I do not believe it possible to understand the structure and
function of mythic thought in a society in which myth still
serves as a foundation without taking into account both the
body of mythology of that culture and the scale of values that it
implies or declares.
Indeed, wherever we have access to a still living tradition
that is neither strongly acculturated nor in danger of disap­
pearing, one thing immediately strikes us: not only does
mythology constitute a kind of "sacred history" of the tribe
in question, not only does it explain the totality of reality and
justify its contradictions, but it also reveals a hierarchy in the
sequence of the fabulous events it relates. Every myth tells
how something came into existence—the world, man, an
animal species, a social institution, etc. Because the creation
of the world precedes all others, cosmogony enjoys particu­
lar prestige. As I have tried to show elsewhere (see, for
example, The Myth of the Eternal Return, New York, 1954;
Aspects du mythe, Paris 1963), the cosmogonic myth serves as
a model for all myths of origin. The creation of animals,
plants, or man presupposes the existence of a world.
Of course, the myth of the origin of the world is not always
cosmogonic in the technical application of the term, like
Indian and Polynesian myths, or the myth told in the Enùma
Elis. In a large part of Australia, for example, the cosmogonic
myth in a strict sense is unknown. But there is still a central
myth which tells of the beginnings of the world, of what
happened before the world became as it is today. Thus one
always finds a primordial history, and this history has a
beginning—the cosmogonic myth properly so called, or a
myth that introduces the first, larval, or germinal state of the
world. This beginning is always implicit in the series of
myths that tell of fabulous events that took place after the
creation or the appearance of the world, myths of the origin
of plants, animals, and man, or of death, marriage, and the
family. Together these myths of origin form a coherent his­
tory, for they reveal how the world has been transformed,
how man became what he is today— mortal, sexual, and
obliged to work to sustain himself. They also reveal what the
Supernatural Beings, the enculturating Heroes, the mythical
Ancestors, did and how and why they moved away from the
Earth, or disappeared. All the mythology that is accessible to
us in a sufficient state of conservation contains not only a
beginning but also an end, bounded by the final manifesta­
tions of the Supernatural Beings, the Heroes or the Ancestors.
So this primordial sacred history, formed by the body of
significant myths, is fundamental, for it explains and justifies
at the same time the existence of the world, of man, and of
society. This is why myth is considered both a true story—
because it tells how real things have come to be—and the
exemplary model of and justification for the activities of man.
One understands what one is— mortal and sexual—and one
assumes this condition because myths tell how death and
sexuality made their appearance in the world. One engages
in a certain type of hunting or agriculture because myths tell
how the enculturating Heroes revealed these techniques to
one's ancestors.
When the ethnologist Strehlow asked the Australian
4
Arunta why they celebrated certain ceremonies, they invari­
ably replied: "Because the [mythical] Ancestors prescribed
it." The Kai of New Guinea refused to modify their way of
living and working and explained themselves thus: "This is
how the Nemu [the mythical Ancestors] did it, and we do it
the same way." Questioned about the reason for a certain
ritual detail, a Navajo shaman replied: "Because the Sacred
People did it this way the first time." We find exactly the
same justification in the prayer that accompanies an ancient
Tibetan ritual: "As has been passed down since the begin­
ning of the creation of the earth, thus we must sacrifice. . . .
As our ancestors did in ancient times, so we do today" (cf.
Aspects du mythe, pp 16ff.). This is also the justification
invoked by Hindu ritualists: "We must do what the gods did
in the beginning" (èatapatha Brâhmana, 8.2.1.4). "Thus did
the gods; thus do men" (Taittiriya Brâhmana, 1.5.9.4). In sum,
the governing function of myth is to reveal exemplary
models for all rites and all meaningful human activities: no
less for food production and marriage than for work, educa­
tion, art, or wisdom.
In societies where myth is still living, the natives carefully
distinguish myths— "true stories"—from fables or tales,
which they call "false stories." This is why myths cannot be
told indiscriminately; they are not told in front of women or
children, that is, before the uninitiated. Whereas "false
stories" may be told anytime and anywhere, myths must be
told only during a span of sacred time (generally during autumn
or winter, and only at night).
The distinction made between "true stories" and "false
stories" is significant. For all that is told in myths concerns the
listeners directly, whereas tales and fables refer to events
which, even when they have caused changes in the world
(for example, anatomical or physiological peculiarities in
certain animals), have not modified the human condition as
such. Indeed, myths relate not only the origin of the world
and that of animals, plants, and humans, but also all the
primordial events that have resulted in humans becoming
what they are today, i.e., mortal, sexual, and societal beings,
obliged to work fora living, and working according to certain
rules. To recall only one example: humans are mortal because
something happened in the beginning; if this event hadn't
occurred, humans wouldn't be mortal, they could have
existed indefinitely, like rocks, or could have changed their
skin periodically, like snakes, and consequently would have
been able to renew their life, that is, begin it again. But the
myth of the origin of death tells what happened in illo
tempore, and in recounting this incident it explains why
humans are mortal.
In archaic societies, the knowledge of myths has an
existential function. Not only because myths offer people an
explanation of the world and of their own way of existing in
the world, but above all because in remembering myths, in
reenacting them, humans are able to repeat what the Gods,
the Heroes, or the Ancestors did ab origine. To know myths is
to learn not only how things have come into existence, but
also where to find them and how to make them reappear
when they disappear. One manages to capture certain beasts
because one knows the secret of their creation. One is able to
hold a red-hot iron in one's hand, or to pick up venomous
snakes, provided one knows the origin of fire and of snakes.
In Timor, when a rice field is growing, someone goes to the
field at night and recites the myth of the origin of rice. This
ritual recitation forces the rice to grow beautiful, vigorous,
and dense, just as it was when it appeared for the first time. It
is magically forced to return to its origins, to repeat its exemplary
creation. Knowing the myth of origin is often not enough; it

must be recited; knowledge of it is proclaimed, it is shown. By
reciting myths, one reintegrates the fabulous time of origins,
becomes in a certain way "contemporary” with the events
that are evoked, shares in the presence of the Gods or
Heroes.
In general one may say:
— that myth, such as it is lived by archaic societies,
constitutes the story of the deeds of Supernatural Beings;
—that the story is considered absolutely true (because it
refers to realities) and sacred (because it is the work of
Supernatural Beings);
—that myth always concerns a "creation"; it tells how
something has come into existence, or how a way of behav­
ing, an institution, a way of working, were established; this
is why myths constitute paradigms for every meaningful
human act;
— that in knowing the myth one knows the "origin" of
things and is thus able to master things and manipulate them
at will; this is not an "external," "abstract" knowledge, but a
knowledge that one "lives" ritually, either by reciting the
myth ceremonially, or by carrying out the ritual for which it
serves as justification;
— that in one way or another one "lives" the myth,
gripped by the sacred, exalting power of the events one is
rememorializing and reactualizing.
To "live" myths thus implies a truly "religious" experi­
ence, for it is distinct from the ordinary experience of daily
life. This experience is "religious" because it is a reenactment
of fabulous, exalting, meaningful events; one is present once
again at the creative works of the Supernatural Beings.
Mythical events are not commemorated; they are repeated,
reiterated. The characters in myth are brought forth and
made present; one becomes their contemporary. One no
longer lives in chronological time but in primordial Time, the
Time when the event took place for the first time. This is why
we can speak of the "strong time" of myth: it is the
prodigious, "sacred" Time, when something new, something
strong, and something meaningful was made fully manifest.
To relive that time, to reintegrate it as often as possible, to be
present once again at the spectacle of divine works, to
rediscover the Supernatural Beings and relearn their lesson
of creation—such is the desire that can be read implicitly in
all ritual repetitions of myths. In sum, myths reveal that the
world, man, and life have a supernatural origin and history,
and that this history is meaningful, precious, and exemplary.
M.El./t.l.f.
T he I nterpretation of M yths : N ineteenth -
and T wentieth - C entury T heories
If we fail to trace its outline clearly at the outset, the subject
we discuss here risks either being merely a collection of
rather curious interpretations accepted in their own periods,
or else getting lost in the underbrush of the most varied
hermeneutic enterprises. There are two indispensable points
of reference. We must, first of all, distinguish interpretation
from exegesis. We will define the latter as a culture's inces­
sant but immediate commentary on its own symbolism and
practices, its most familiar stories. There is no living tradition
without the accompanying murmur of its exegesis of itself.
Interpretation, on the other hand, begins when there is some
distance and perspective on the discourse of a tradition
THE I N T E K T R E I A T ION OE M Y TH S
based on memory. Its starting point is probably, as Todorov
suggests, the inadequacy of the immediate meaning, but
there is also the discrepancy between one text and another,
from which the strangeness of the first can become evident.
For, in the work of interpretation, it is the prefix inter of the
Latin word interpretatio that designates the space of deploy­
ment of hermeneutic activity. In the Western tradition, from
the Greeks to ourselves by way of the Romans and the
Renaissance, the first hermeneutics appears in the gap
opened up by what a new form of thought decided to call
muthos, thus inaugurating a new form of otherness which
makes one text the mythologist of the next. But this inter­
pretive path required one more marker to give it its definitive
orientation. From Xenophanes and Theagenes in the sixth
century n.c. to Philo and Augustine, hermeneutics took as its
privileged object the body of histories that a society entrusts
to its memory, what today we call a mythology. But the play
of allegory often based itself on nothing more than a name,
a word, or a fragment of a text, on which it could graft the
bourgeoning symbolism whose discourse became all the
more triumphant when, with the affirmation of Christian
doctrine, the certainty of possessing the truth unleashed the
audacities of a hermeneutics like that of the City of Cod. It is
only with Spinoza—as Todorov has recently stated— that a
theory of interpretation takes shape on which our modern
readings still largely depend. It was he who formulated rules
whose mere application was enough to uncover the truth of
a meaning, inside the text and within the bounds of a work.
But before it could become philology in the nineteenth
century, this theory of interpretation, which Spinoza applied
to Scripture, still needed the presence of a cultural object
with a clearly defined shape—mythology— understood as a
discourse that is other, with its own distinctive traits.
Within these limits and for both of these reasons, an
archaeology of theories of the interpretation of myth can
restrict itself to the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Travel accounts since Jean de Léry have traced an axis of
otherness whose two poles are the savage and the civilized,
between which the Greeks serve as mediator. It is the
exemplary values of Greece that are evoked, in good Renais­
sance style, and Lafitau (1724)— while orienting it toward a
deciphering of the present by the past—was merely to
systematize the path already beaten, throughout the seven­
teenth century, by Yves d'Évreaux, Du Tertre, Lescarbot, and
Brébeuf. One of the best understood differences—the impor­
tance of which has been shown by Michel de Certeau— is
that between nakedness and clothing. The detour via the
Greeks allows the naked body, which a purely and simply
Christian education leads one to reject as belonging to
paganism and noncivilization, to be made an object of
pleasure, and it may also allow the surprise of a return to
oneself. Savages are so handsome that they can only be
virtuous. And men's stature, the proportion of their limbs,
their nakedness in the midst of the forests, in the beauty of
a nature not yet offended by civilization, remind most of
these voyagers of the lineaments of Greek statues and the
natural privilege which distinguished, in their eyes, the
heroes of Homer and Plutarch. As a Jesuit father wrote in
1694, "We see in savages the beautiful remains of a human
nature that is completely corrupted in civilized peoples."
Nothing could be more like an American savage than a Greek
of Homeric times. But this splendid animal, whose develop­
ment has known no obstacles, whose body is not deformed
by labor, evokes the citizen of Sparta or the contemporary of
the Trojan war only on the moral and physical level. There is
no meeting on an intellectual level; all that the travelers of
5
I N T R O D U C T I O N
the seventeenth century expected from savages was that
they bear witness to a natural religion of which they were the
last trustees. Never, it seems, is the mythology of Homer or
Plutarch compared with the stories of these first peoples of
nature. One reason is probably that classical mythology,
thoroughly moralized, had by then been integrated into a
culture dominated by belles lettres. Myths would remain
masked as long as they were not assigned their own space.
The nineteenth century saw the discovery of language as
the object of a comparative grammar and a renewed
philology. In this linguistic space, which is to the highest
degree that of the sounds of language, mythical discourse
suddenly appeared. It did so in the modality of scandal,
which would feed the passionate discussions and theories
of two rival schools of the second half of the nineteenth
century: the school of comparative mythology, and the
anthropological school. As the Sanskritist and comparative
grammarian Max Müller wrote, “The Greeks attribute to
their gods things that would make the most savage of the
Redskins shudder.” Comparison defines the nature of the
scandal. It is as if it were suddenly discovered that the
mythology of Homer and Plutarch was full of adultery,
incest, murder, cruelty, and even cannibalism. The violence
of these stories, which seemed to reveal themselves brutally
as "savage and absurd,” appeared all the more unbearable
since they were being read at the same time as the stories of
distant lands, lands that colonial ethnography was both
inventorying and beginning to exploit. The scandal was not
that the people of nature told savage stories, but rather that
the Greeks could have spoken this same savage language.
For in the nineteenth century all that was Greek was
privileged. The romantics and then Hegel affirmed this
enthusiastically. It was in Greece, they said, that Man began
to be himself; it was Greek thought that opened up the path
leading from natural consciousness to philosophical con­
sciousness; the Greek people were believed to have been
the first to have attained "the uttermost limits of civiliza­
tion," in the words of a contemporary of Max Müller, the
anthropologist Andrew Lang. From the moment that the
mythology of Greece could resemble the language spoken
by "a mind struck temporarily insane" (Lang), neither our
reason nor our thought is definitively safe from an unfore­
seeable return of the irrational element which, the voice of
the savages teaches us, is buried at the very heart of those
stories that once seemed so familiar.
The mythology that is subjected to the trial of interpreta­
tion is, primarily, nothing but an absurd, crazy form of
speech which must be gotten rid of as quickly as possible by
assigning it an origin or finding an explanation to justify its
oddness. On this point. Max Müller and Andrew Lang are in
full agreement. Their divergence appears from the time
when the presence of those insane statements at the heart of
language and in mythic discourse has to be justified. For Max
Müller, a contemporary of the discovery of comparative
grammar, the only possible explanation was a linguistic one.
And his Science of Language argues that a stratigraphy of
human speech reveals a mythopoeic phase in the history of
language. Since 1816, when Franz Bopp published the first
comparative grammar, language had been understood as a
set of sounds independent of the letters that allow them to be
transcribed; a system of sonorities, animated with its own
life, endowed with continual activity and traversed by the
dynamism of inflection. In the history of language, after what
is called a thematic stage, in which terms expressing the most
necessary ideas are forged, and what is called a dialectal
stage, in which grammar definitively receives its specific
6
traits, an age begins that Max Müller designates as mytho­
poeic, in which myths make their appearance in very specific
circumstances.
At the beginning of its history, humanity possessed the
faculty of uttering words directly expressing part of the
substance of objects perceived by the senses. In other words,
things awakened sounds in humans which became roots and
engendered phonetic types. Humans "resonated" at the
world, and thus had the privilege of "giving articulated
expression to the conceptions of reason." As soon as the
individual lost the privilege of emitting sounds at the spec­
tacle of the world, a strange disease fell upon language:
words like "night, day, morning, evening" produced strange
illusions to which the human mind immediately fell victim.
For as long as humans remain sensitive to the meanings of
words, these first sonic beings are conceived of as powers,
endowed with will, and marked by sexual traits, though the
physical character of the natural phenomena designated by
the words is not forgotten. As soon as the double meaning
becomes confused, the names of the forces of nature break
free: they become proper names, and from a spontaneous
expression like "the sky rains," a myth abruptly emerges
based on "Zeus makes the rain fall." There is an excess of
meaning at the source of mythopoeic creation, an uncon­
trolled surplus of signification, which tricks the speaker, prey
to the illusions of a language within which the play of these
"substantive verbs" produces, in a burgeoning of images,
the strange and often scandalous discourse of myths.
To this theory, which based the metaphors of language on
natural phenomena and declared that a good mythologist
should possess a "deep feeling for nature," without which
linguistic knowledge is futile, the anthropological school
immediately objected that comparative grammarians
seemed to have forgotten somewhere along the way that
"the Redskins, the Australians, and the lower races of
South America" continued even today, in the forests and
savannas, to tell the same savage tales, which can hardly be
explained as the unwonted result of a few misunderstood
phrases. The road the anthropological school would follow
led in the opposite direction from that of the grammarians.
It was no longer the past or origins that were to explain the
present, but rather the mythology of contemporary savages
that could account for the "savage" stories of the past. And
Lang attempted to show that what shocks us in the
mythology of civilized peoples is the residue of a state of
thought once prevailing in all humanity. In contemporary
primitives we can see the power of this state of thought as
well as its coherence. At the same time, anthropologists
began to investigate these gross products of the primitive
human mind and to discover that things which to our eyes
seem monstrous and irrational were accepted as ordinary
events in everyday life. They soon came to the conclusion
that whatever seems irrational in civilized mythologies (the
Greco-Roman world, or India) forms part of an order of
things that is accepted and considered rational by contem­
porary savages.
This position led to two orientations, which anthropology
attempted to explore in parallel. For the first, which leads
from Frazer to Lévy-Bruhl, mythology remains the discourse
of madness or mental deficiency. In 1909, before he pub­
lished the thousands of pages of The Golden Bough, the
prolegomena to a history of the tragic errors of a humanity
led astray by magic, James George Frazer wrote a small book
{Psyche's Task) in which he asked how folly could turn to
wisdom, how a false opinion could lead to "good conduct."
And at the center of his reflection Frazer places a paradox:
 THE I N T E R P R E T A T I O N OF MY TH S

p rim itiv e s u p e r s titio n s w e re th e fo u n d a tio n of w hat now e t h n o g r a p h e r , o n c e in tr o d u c e d i n to th is p o l y s y m b o l ic w o r l d ,

seem s d e sira b le to us in s o c ie ty : o rd er, p ro p e rty , fa m ily , is i n s e r i o u s d a n g e r o f " h a v i n g n o t h i n g m o r e t o s a y a b o u t
r e s p e c t f o r l if e . P r e j u d i c e a n d s u p e r s t i t i o n in f a c t s e r v e d to D ogon s o c ie ty th a n th e D ogon say th e m se lv e s " (P ie rre
s tr e n g th e n re s p e c t fo r a u th o r ity a n d th u s c o n tr ib u te d to th e S m ith , 1 9 7 3 ). '
r u l e o f o r d e r , t h e c o n d i t i o n o f a ll s o c i a l p r o g r e s s . F r a z e r h a d In 1903, b e fo re F razer an d L é v y -B ru h l had begun th e ir
g i v e n h u n d r e d s o f e x a m p l e s in h i s a l r e a d y p u b l i s h e d w o r k s , in v e s ti g a t i o n s , M a rc e l M a u s s , fo llo w in g th e F r e n c h s o c io lo g ­
a n d in t h i s s l i m v o l u m e h e is n o l e s s e n t h u s i a s t i c a n a d m i r e r ical s c h o o l, set fo rth in a fe w pages a p ro g ram o f w h ic h
o f th e c o n d u c t o f th e s o n -in -la w in a p r i m i t i v e s o c i e t y w h o G e o rg e s D u m é z il w o u ld one day p ro v e to be th e m a s te r
a v o i d s s p e a k i n g to o r b e i n g a l o n e w ith h is m o th e r-in -la w , c r a f t s m a n . T h r e e p o i n t s s e e m e s s e n t ia l . 1. T o d e t e r m i n e th e
s u rro u n d in g h e r w ith ta b o o s , as if t h e s e p e o p le , not yet m e c h a n is m o f th e fo rm a tio n o f m y th s m e a n s to s e e k s o m e o f
c a p a b l e o f e l a b o r a t i n g a t h o u g h t - o u t s e t o f l a w s , s ti ll h a d a t h e l a w s o f t h e m e n t a l a c t i v i t y o f m a n in s o c i e t y . 2 . M y t h o l ­
sense th a t an in tim a te c o n v e r s a tio n b e tw e e n th e se tw o og y can be red u ced to a s m a ll n u m b e r o f m y th s , a n d e a c h
p e o p le c o u ld e a s ily d e g e n e r a t e in to s o m e t h in g w o r s e , a n d t y p e is m a d e u p o f a c e r t a i n n u m b e r o f c o m b i n a t i o n s . 3 . T h e
th a t th e b e s t w a y to p r e v e n t th is fro m h a p p e n i n g w a s to r a is e a p p a r e n t i l l o g i c a l i t y o f a m y t h i c n a r r a t i v e is i t s e l f t h e s i g n o f
a s o l i d w a ll o f e t i q u e t t e b e t w e e n t h e m . W i t h o u t k n o w i n g i t , its d i s t in c ti v e lo g ic . For M au ss, D u r k h e i m 's nephew and
a n d a lm o s t re lu c ta n tly , p rim itiv e t h o u g h t , e v e n in i t s m o s t c o lla b o r a to r , m y th s a r e s o c ia l i n s titu tio n s , th a t is, w a y s o f
o b s tin a te e rro rs, p re p a re d th e w ay fo r th e tr iu m p h s of a c tin g and th in k in g w h ic h in d iv id u a ls fin d a lre a d y e s ta b ­
m o ra lity a n d c iv iliz a tio n . lis h e d and, as it w e r e , read y to hand; th e y fo rm a f u l ly
F o r L u cie n L é v y -B r u h l, w h o p u b lis h e d Les fonctions men­ o rg a n iz e d p a tte r n of id e a s and b e h a v io rs w h ic h im p o s e s
tales dans les sociétés inférieures in 1910, p rim itiv e s o c ie tie s i t s e l f m o r e o r l e s s f o r c e f u l l y o n t h e i n d i v i d u a l s i n s c r i b e d in a
d iffe re d fro m o u rs in th e ir m e n ta l o r g a n iz a tio n : th e ir s o c i e t y . M y t h is a b o v e a ll obligatory in n a t u r e ; it d o e s n o t e x i s t
t h o u g h t , c o n s t i t u t e d d i f f e r e n t l y f r o m o u r o w n , is m y s t i c a l in u n l e s s t h e r e is a s o r t o f n e c e s s i t y t o r e a c h a g r e e m e n t o n t h e
n a t u r e ; it is r u l e d b y a " l a w o f p a r t i c i p a t i o n " t h a t m a k e s it t h e m e s th a t a r e its r a w m a t e r i a l a n d o n th e w a y t h e s e t h e m e s
in d iffe re n t to th e lo g ic o f n o n c o n tr a d ic tio n o n w h ic h o u r o w n a re p a tte rn e d . But th e co n stra in t com es s o le ly fro m th e
s y s t e m o f t h o u g h t is b a s e d . L é v y - B r u h l f i n d s t h e c h a r a c t e r ­ gro u p its e lf , w h ic h t e l l s t h e m y t h b e c a u s e it f i n d s i t s o w n
is tic s o f p r im itiv e t h o u g h t , w h ic h s u r r e n d e r s its e lf to a ff e c - t o t a l e x p r e s s i o n i n it.
tiv ity a n d to w h a t h e c a lls " m y s t i c i s m ," a m o n g b o th s c h i z o ­ A s y m b o l t h r o u g h w h ic h s o c ie t y t h in k s its e lf , m y th o lo g y
p h re n ic s a n d c h i l d r e n , w h o a l s o t h i n k in a n a f f e c t i v e w a y i n f o r m s e x p e r i e n c e , o r d e r s r itu a l a n d th e e c o n o m y , a n d g i v e s
and e s ta b lis h c o m m o n a litie s b e tw e e n th in g s and b e in g s a r c h a ic s o c ie tie s th e ir c a te g o r ie s and c la s sifica to rv fra m e ­
w h o s e m u t u a l d i s t i n c t i v e n e s s is o b v i o u s t o t h e i n t e l l i g e n c e o f w o rk s . F o r th e D u rk h e im ia n s c h o o l, m y th s — w h ic h , in c id e n ­
a c iv iliz e d a d u lt . L é v y -B r u h l w o u l d i n c r e a s in g ly i d e n tif y th is t a ll y , a r e h a r d l y m e n t i o n e d in t h e Année sociologique— a re of
" p re lo g ic a l" s ta g e w ith " m y s t i c e x p e r i e n c e ," and V an d e r th e sam e ord er as lan g u ag e, "a p ro p e rty of w h ic h th e
L e e u w , w h o e x te n d e d h is a n a ly s is , w o u ld try to s h o w th a t p r o p r i e t o r is u n c o n s c i o u s " ; a n d , i n s e p a r a b l e fr o m th is , ju s t
p r i m i t i v e t h o u g h t s u r v i v e s in e v e r y h u m a n m i n d , t h a t it is a a s a la n g u a g e c o n tin u e s to b e a r c e n tu r ie s -o ld v o c a b u la ry a n d
c o m p o n e n t o f a ll f o r m s o f r e a s o n , a n i n d i s p e n s a b l e e l e m e n t s y n t a x , m y th o lo g y im p lie s a c e r ta in tra d itio n a l w a y o f p e r ­
w h ose s y m b o lic lo a d and im a g e -m a k in g pow er h e lp to c e i v i n g , a n a l y z i n g , c o o r d i n a t i n g . T h e a n a l o g y is e v e n m o r e
b a l a n c e th e c o n c e p t u a l d e v e l o p m e n t o f o u r t h o u g h t . In th e p r e c i s e : l ik e l a n g u a g e , m y t h o l o g y is t r a d i t i o n i t s e l f , it is t h e
Notebooks, w h ic h w e r e p u b lis h e d a f t e r h is d e a t h , L é v y -B r u h l s y m b o lic s y s te m th a t p e rm its c o m m u n ic a tio n b e y o n d w o rd s ;
f o u n d it n e c e s s a r y t o r e v i s e h i s p o s i t i o n o n t h e m e n t a l a n d it is t h e h i s t o r i c a l u n c o n s c i o u s o f t h e s o c i e t y . In t h i s p e r s p e c ­
in te lle c tu a l g a p b e tw e e n o u rse lv e s a n d " s a v a g e s ." B u t h is tiv e , th e im p o rta n ce o f m y th s d e riv e s fro m th e com m on
w o r k , in p r o f o u n d a c c o r d w ith th a t o f F r a z e r, s e e m s to u s n a tu re th a t lin k s th e m to th e m o st a r c h a ic e le m e n t of
t o d a y to b e p a r t o f a f e n c in g in o f s a v a g e t h o u g h t (la pensée l a n g u a g e , in t h a t d o m a i n w h e r e s o c i o l o g y h o p e d t o d i s c o v e r
savage), c o n f i n i n g it i n t h e p r e l o g i c a l a n d t h u s a v o i d i n g a n y som e of th e fu n d a m e n ta l la w s of th e m i n d 's a c tiv ity in
c o n ta m in a tio n w h ic h m ig h t th r e a te n o u r o w n r e a s o n . s o c ie ty .
A t th e v e r y m o m e n t w h e n th e s e a r m c h a ir a n th r o p o lo g is ts It w a s M a u s s o n c e a g a i n w h o , a g a i n s t L é v y - B r u h l , i n 1 9 2 3
w e r e in te r n in g p r im itiv e th o u g h t , o t h e r s w e r e s e tt in g o u t o n d e fe n d e d th e th e s is th a t c o n sid e ra b le p a rts of our ow n
v o y a g e s o f d isco v e ry to A fric a a n d O ce a n ia , a n d so w e re m e n ta lity a re s ti ll i d e n t i c a l t o th o s e o f a la rg e nu m b er of
d i s c o v e r in g , a liv e a n d f u n c tio n in g , th e ra tio n a lity o f a fo rm s o c i e t i e s c a l l e d p r i m i t i v e . B u t it w a s f i r s t M a r c e l G r a n e t , t h e n
o f t h o u g h t t h a t o p e r a t e s th r o u g h a n d in m y th — a r a t io n a li t y L o u is G e r n e t, w ho d e v e lo p e d a s o c io lo g ic a l a n a ly s is of
d iffe re n t fro m o u r o w n , b u t n o le s s i m p r e s s iv e fo r th a t. T h e re lig io n w ith its le g e n d s and m y th s . For th e S in o lo g is t
g r e a t l i v i n g m y t h o l o g i e s o f t h e P a c i f i c o r t h e S u d a n fu lfill a n G r a n e t, a t te m p t i n g to p r o c e e d fro m l a n g u a g e to th e fu n d a ­
i n d i s p e n s a b l e f u n c t i o n in t h e s e s i m p l e r c u l t u r e s . R e v e a l i n g a m e n ta l fra m e s o f th o u g h t, th e m y th o lo g y o f th e C h in e s e
d i s t in c ti v e r e a lity , g u a r a n t e e i n g th e e f f e c ti v e n e s s o f w o r s h ip , p ro v id e d m a te ria l in w h ic h th e e m o tio n s c h a ra c te ris tic o f
m y th s c o d ify th e b e lie fs , fo u n d th e m o r a l r u le s , a n d d e t e r ­ a n c ie n t f e s tiv a ls w e r e r e c o r d e d . B e h in d th e le g e n d a r y a n d
m in e ev ery p r a c tic e of d a ily l if e . W hen M arcel G ria u le m y th ic ta le s w ere r itu a l d an ces and d ra m a s fro m w h ic h
b ro u g h t b ack th e D ogon c o s m o lo g y , w ith its a s to n is h in g im a g in a tiv e s c h e m a s e m e r g e d th a t im p o s e d th e m se lv e s on
a r c h ite c tu r e s o f s y m b o lic c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s , th e re c o u ld no th e m in d a n d o n a c ti o n . F a r th e r a l o n g , s o c ia l c o n t e x ts a n d
lo n g e r b e a n y d o u b t th a t m y th o lo g y w a s in d e e d th e k e y s to n e g r e a t te c h n ic a l fe a ts th a t c r y s ta lliz e th e p r o d u c tio n s o f th e
o f a r c h a i c s o c i e t i e s , t h e i n d i s p e n s a b l e h o r i z o n o f a ll c u l t u r a l im a g in a r y o r d e r c o u ld b e g l im p s e d . F o r th e H e lle n is t G e r n e t,
phenom ena and o f th e w h o le p a tte r n in w h ic h s o c ie ty is in a b r e a k w i t h th e e s ta b lis h e d p o s itiv is t h is to r y th a t w a s
o r g a n i z e d . M y th s n o t o n ly c o n s t i tu t e th e s p iritu a l a r m a t u r e c o n te n t to n o te th e g r a tu ito u s p la y o f th e im a g in a ry , m y th s
of hum an liv e s ; th e y a re b earers of a re a l "th e o re tica l re v e a l a s o c ia l u n c o n s c io u s . J u s t a s s e m a n ti c a n a ly s is g iv e s
m e t a p h y s ic s ." F o r th e first tim e , th e n , m y th s c a m e to be access to th e g reat s o c ia l fact of la n g u a g e , th e s tu d y of
s tu d i e d in t h e ir e n t ir e t y , a s t u d y in w h ic h e v e r y d e t a il , e v e n le g e n d s a n d o f c e rta in m y th ic th e m e s a llo w s o n e to g o b a ck
t h e m o s t i n s i g n i f i c a n t , f o u n d i t s p l a c e in a h o l i s t i c i n t e r p r e ­ to tr a n s p a r e n t o r e x p lic it s o c ia l p r a c ti c e s . T h e m y th ic i m a g e
ta tio n , an in te rp re ta tio n so rich , so e x h a u stiv e , th a t th e th u s o ffe rs th e m o st c o n v e n ie n t m e a n s o f a c c e s s , n o t to a

7
I N T R O D U C T I O N

t im e le s s m e m o r y , b u t to a r c h a ic b e h a v i o r s a n d s o c ia l a c ti o n s r e t u r n t o m y t h a n d t h e r e l i g i o u s ; b u t in s e e i n g b o t h o f t h e s e
a n d — g o i n g fa r b e y o n d th e s o c ia l d a t a th a t h a v e , a s G e r n e t a s m e r e l y th e v is ib le tip o f th e ic e b e r g o f th e " U n c o n s c i o u s ,"
p u t s i t, "a d ire c t re la tio n to m y th ” — to f u n d a m e n ta l p h e ­ f o r g e t t i n g t h a t a n a l y t i c a l s p a c e i s t h a t o f f r e e a s s o c i a t i o n , it
n o m e n a o f m e n t a l l if e , t h o s e t h a t d e t e r m i n e t h e m o s t g e n e r a l has con d em n ed m y th o lo g y to b e in g n o th in g b u t th e s y m ­
fo rm s o f th o u g h t. b o lic a n d o b s e s s iv e re p e titio n o f a fe w u n c o n s c io u s r e p r e s e n ­
T h e s p e c i f i c i t y o f t h e G r e e k s p o i n t e d G e r n e t in y e t a n o t h e r ta tio n s c e n t e r e d o n s e x u a lity .
d i r e c t i o n . M y t h s , in t h e i r f r a g m e n t s , s h i n i n g s p l i n t e r s , o f f e r It w a s in t h e d i r e c t i o n o p e n e d u p b y M a u s s i a n s o c i o l o g y
n o t o n ly th e p r e h is to r ic b e h a v io r s th a t w e r e th e ir r e a s o n fo r t h a t t h e o r e t i c a l w o r k o n m y t h b e c a m e i n v o l v e d in t h e f i r s t
b e in g ; th e y a r e a t th e s a m e tim e p a rt o f a g lo b a l w a y o f s tru c tu ra l a n a ly s e s . R e su m in g th e p ro je c t o f c o m p a r a tiv e
th in k in g , w hose c a te g o r ie s , c la s s i f i c a t io n s , p re co n ce p tu a ' m y th o lo g y th a t h a d b e e n w reck ed b y th e e x c e s s e s o f M a x
m o d e l s e x e r t a m a j o r i n f l u e n c e o n p o s i t i v e t h o u g h t a n d i ts M ü lle r and h is d is c ip le s , G eo rg es D u m é z il, th an k s to a
v a r io u s ad van ces. Thus G e rn e t, s ta r tin g fro m a s e rie s of d e c is iv e d is c o v e r y , f o u n d e d th e c o m p a r a t iv e s tu d y o f In d o -
tr a d itio n s a b o u t t y p e s o f p r e c io u s o b je c ts , a t te m p t s to s h o w E u ro p e a n r e lig io n s b y c e a s in g to re ly on p u re ly l in g u is tic
h o w m o n e y a n d th e e c o n o m y e m e r g e fro m a s e t o f b e h a v io rs c o n c o rd a n c e s b e tw e e n d iv in e n a m e s a n d a d o p tin g in ste a d
lin k e d to th e m y th ic a l n o tio n o f v a l u e — a n o tio n th a t in v o lv e s th e m o r e s o lid b a s e o f a r t ic u la t e d s e ts o f c o n c e p t s . A fa c tu a l
d o m a in s w h ic h , th o u g h s e p a r a te n o w a d a y s , u s e d to o v e rla p d i s c o v e r y — in R o m e , t h e t h r e e flamines majores c o r r e s p o n d i n g
o r m e r g e t o g e th e r : th e r e lig io u s , th e p o litic a l, t h e a e s th e t ic , to th e J u p i te r - M a r s -Q u ir i n u s tr ia d ; in I r a n , th e t r ip a r titio n o f
th e j u r id ic a l. M y th o lo g y is t h u s p a rt o f a g lo b a l re lig io u s s o c ia l c la s s e s — o p e n e d th e w a y to s tr u c tu r a l a n a ly s is o f th e
s y s te m t h a t is s y m b o l i c in c h a r a c t e r , w i t h a w e b o f m u l t i c o r ­ I n d o -E u r o p e a n w o r ld : th e tr ip a r tite s c h e m a w a s a n e s s e n tia l
resp o n d en ces fro m w h ic h la w , p h ilo s o p h y , h isto ry , and s t r u c t u r e in t h e t h o u g h t o f t h e I n d o - E u r o p e a n s . E v e r y o r g a ­
p o litic a l th o u g h t w ill e m erg e and b ecom e p ro g re s siv e ly n i z e d s o c i e t y is b a s e d o n t h e c o l l a b o r a t i o n o f t h r e e d i s t i n c t
d is tin c t. B u t s in c e G e r n e t t h o u g h t o f m y th s a s ra w m a te ria l b u t c o m p le m e n ta ry fu n ctio n s : s o v e r e ig n ty , m a rtia l p o w e r,
f o r t h e t h o u g h t t h a t a r o s e w i t h a n d in t h e G r e e k c i t y , in t h e fe c u n d ity . P a ra lle l to th is , th e gods fo rm a f u n c tio n a lly
s p a c e o f t h e p o l i s , h e e x a m i n e d t h e m y t h i c e l e m e n t o n l y in w e ig h te d tria d , w ith in w h ic h th e S o v e r e ig n , th e W a rrio r, a n d
t e r m s o f w h a t w a s b e y o n d i t, in a b r e a k w i t h i ts o w n n a t u r e th e g r o u p o f d iv in itie s w h o p r e s id e o v e r fe c u n d ity m u tu a lly
a n d its f u n c t i o n i n g . B y f a i l i n g t o s e p a r a t e m y t h o l o g y e i t h e r d e fin e o n e a n o th e r. S in c e th e re w a s n e v e r a n y q u e stio n o f
fro m l a n g u a g e o r fro m th e in s titu tio n a l s y s te m , th e s o c io lo g ­ rep ro d u cin g a d e fin ite ly In d o -E u ro p e a n m y th or r itu a l,
ic a l m o d e l o f m y t h c u l m i n a t e d in t h e p a r a d o x o f s o m e t i m e s D u m é z il h a d to u s e p r e c is e a n d s y s te m a tic c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s
lo s in g s ig h t o f th e v e r y o b je c t th a t s e e m e d f i n a ll y t o h a v e to t r a c e a g r o u n d p la n o f th e c h o s e n m y th o r r itu a l, i n d ic a t­
b e e n r e c o g n iz e d a n d le g itim a te d . i n g i ts a r t i c u l a t i o n s , i ts i n t e n t i o n s , i ts l o g i c a l s i g n i f i c a t i o n s ,
M ore s e rio u s , c e rta in ly , w as th e m is u n d e r s ta n d in g b e­ a n d t h e n , o n th e b a s is o f th is s c h e m a t ic fig u r e , p r o j e c te d in to
tw e e n F re u d ia n p s y c h o a n a ly s is and th e a n th ro p o lo g ica l p re h isto ry , to try to c h a r a c te r iz e th e d iv e rg e n t e v o lu tio n s
p ro b le m a tic , w h ic h seem s to g iv e a c c e s s to a fo rm o f th e w h i c h h a v e l e d t o a n a l o g o u s a n d d i v e r s e r e s u l t s in d i f f e r e n t
u n c o n s c io u s in s c rib e d in m y t h . In h i s s e l f - a n a l y s i s , a s r e ­ p la c e s : In d ia n m y th , R o m a n m y th , S c a n d in a v ia n m y th , o r
c o u n te d in h is le tte r to F lie ss o f O c to b e r 15, 1897, Freud V e d i c r i t u a l in r e l a t i o n to th e L a tin r ite . F o r D u m é z il, re li­
d i s c o v e r s t h a t h i s l ib i d o a w o k e b e t w e e n t h e a g e s o f t w o a n d g io n s a re w h o le p a t t e r n s in w h i c h c o n ce p ts, im a g e s , a n d
tw o a n d a h a lf, a n d tu rn e d to w a r d matrem (c o n f e s s o r s ' L a tin a c tio n s a r e a rtic u la te d a n d w h o s e in te rc o n n e c tio n s m a k e a
fo r th e n a m e o f th e m o th e r ) . F r e u d r e f e r s th is d e s i r e fo r th e s o r t o f n e t in w h i c h , b y r i g h t s , t h e e n t i r e m a t e r i a l o f h u m a n
m o th e r to a G re e k tra g e d y , Oedipus the King, a re fe re n c e b o th e x p e r i e n c e s h o u ld fin d its d is tr ib u tio n .
c u ltu ra l a n d p a ra d ig m a tic . T h e first t h in g th a t S o p h o c le s ' B y f o c u s in g h is e x a m in a tio n o n th e c o n c e p t a n d o n o r g a ­
O e d i p u s g i v e s F r e u d is a b e t t e r u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f h i m s e l f — n iz e d p a tte rn s , D u m é z il ra d ic a lly p a rts com p an y w ith a
b u t th e c h o ic e o f a G re e k p a ra d ig m a lre a d y a n n o u n c e s th e h isto ry o f re lig io n s th a t th o u g h t in te rm s o f g e n e s is an d
u n iv e rs a l c h a r a c t e r o f F r e u d 's d is c o v e r y o f th e h e a r t o f th e a f f e c t i v i t y . F o r h i s t o r i a n s l ik e H . J . R o s e a n d H . W a g e n v o o r t ,
m a tte r . The e a rly h y p o th e s is , th a t l i t t le S ig m u n d is like a ll r e l i g i o n i s r o o t e d in t h e s e n s e o f t h e " n u m i n o u s " t h a t t h e
Oedipus, sh ifts to w a rd th e F re u d ia n th e sis th a t O e d ip u s hum an race e x p e rie n ce s s p o n ta n e o u s ly w hen c o n fro n tin g
m a rry in g h is m o th e r must have been the same as ourselves. t h e p h e n o m e n a o f n a t u r e : t h e r e is n o d i v i n e p o w e r w h o w a s
W h i l e F r e u d ' s e n t e r p r i s e , b y s h o w i n g t h a t t h e r e is n o e s s e n ­ not first one of th e se numina, in w h ic h m a g ic o -r e lig io u s
t ia l d iffe re n ce b e tw e e n th e m e n ta lly ill p e rso n and th e fo rce , d iffu se d in th e n a tu ra l w o rld , is c o n c e n t r a t e d . For
h e a lth y p e r s o n , s e e m s to in v e r t th e s e p a r a tio n m ark ed by D u m é z il, b y c o n t r a s t , th e o b s e r v e r n e v e r r e a c h e s iso la te d
L é v y - B r u h l , it d o e s a s s u m e , f r o m t h e b e g i n n i n g , a s e g r e g a ­ fa c ts , and r e lig io n is not a fo rm of th o u g h t soak ed in
tio n o f G r e e k m y th s fr o m t h o s e o f o t h e r p e o p l e s . F o r F r e u d , e m o t i o n a l i t y . It is in t h e i r m u t u a l r e l a t i o n s t h a t t h e v a r i o u s
Oedipus the King s till e x c i t e s u s a n d e x e r t s a p r o f o u n d e f f e c t e le m e n ts c a n be a p p re h e n d e d , an d th e re a lw a y s re m a in s,
o n u s b e c a u s e e v e r y m a n , a lw a y s a n d e v e r y w h e r e , fe e ls lo v e v i r tu a lly o r in a c ti o n , a r e p re s e n ta tio n o f th e w o rld o r of
fo r h is m o th e r a n d je a lo u s y o f h is fa th e r; a n d fro m th e d a y hum an a c tio n th a t fu n ctio n s on d iffe re n t le v e ls, under a
F r e u d first a d o p t e d th is v ie w , th e G r e e k m y th w a s i n v e s te d p a rtic u la r ty p e on each le v e l. The re lig io u s s y s te m of a
w ith a n e w p riv ile g e : th a t o f t r a n s l a ti n g b e t te r th a n a n y o t h e r hum an g ro u p is e x p r e s s e d " f i r s t o f a ll in a m o re o r le ss
" a n in s tin c tu a l a ttr a c tio n w h ic h e v e r y o n e r e c o g n iz e s b e c a u s e e x p lic it c o n c e p tu a l s tru c tu re , w h ic h is a l w a y s p re se n t, if
e v e r y o n e h a s e x p e r i e n c e d i t .” s o m e t i m e s a l m o s t u n c o n s c i o u s , p r o v i d i n g t h e fi e ld o f f o r c e s
It w a s t o G r e e k m y t h o l o g y t h a t F r e u d w o u l d c o n t i n u e t o upon w h ic h e v e r y th in g e lse com es to be arran g ed and
t u r n in h i s q u e s t f o r s u c c e s s i v e p r o o f s o f t h e r e a l i t y o f t h e o r ie n te d ; th e n in m y th s , w h ic h re p re se n t and d ra m a tiz e
u n c o n s c io u s , c o m p a rin g th e d is c o u rs e o f d r e a m s a n d fa n ta ­ th e se f u n d a m e n ta l in te lle c tu a l r e la tio n s h ip s ; a n d th e n , in
s ie s w ith th e le g e n d s o f O ly m p u s, w h ic h h is s u c c e s s o r s , t u r n , in r itu a ls , w h ic h a c tu a l iz e , m o b iliz e , a n d u s e th e s a m e
s t u b b o r n l y b u t n o t w i t h o u t f i d e li t y , w e r e t o p r o c l a i m a s t h e r e la tio n s ." In d e p e n d e n tly of th e se g a in s in th e In d o -
l a n g u a g e in w h i c h w e c a n m o s t e a s i l y r e a d t h e d r i v e s a n d E u r o p e a n d o m a i n , D u m é z i l 's m e t h o d a f f i r m e d t h e v i r t u e s o f
w o r k s o f d e s i r e . In a s k in g fo r a n a d m i s s io n o f g u ilt w ith in th e c o n c e p t th a t c a n e q u a lly in fo rm a m y th o r u n d e r lie a
th e O e d ip a l c o n f ig u r a tio n , p s y c h o a n a ly s is in d e e d m ark s a r i t u a l . F r o m t h i s p o i n t o n , " t h e s u r e s t d e f i n i t i o n o f a g o d is
 T H E I N T E R P R E T A T I O N OF M Y TH S

d iffe re n tia l, d a s s i f ic a to r y ," and th e o b je c t o f a n a ly s is b e­ s e n te n ce r e la tio n s , th e n , a re d is tr ib u te d on tw o a x e s: o n e

c o m e s th e a rtic u la tio n s , th e b a la n c e s , th e ty p e s o f o p p o s i­ h o r iz o n ta l, fo llo w in g th e th r e a d o f th e n a r r a tiv e , th e o th e r
tio n s th a t th e god re p re s e n ts . A g a in s t th e h isto ria n s of v e r t i c a l , in c o l u m n s , g r o u p i n g t o g e t h e r r e l a t i o n s b e l o n g i n g
g e n e s i s , D u m é z il a f firm s th e p r i m a c y o f s tr u c tu r e : th e e s s e n ­ t o t h e s a m e " b u n d l e . " It i s o n t h e l e v e l o f t h e s e b u n d l e s o f
tia l p r o b l e m is n o t t o d e t e r m i n e th e p re rise o r ig in o f th e re la tio n s th a t th e re a l m y th e m e s a re lo c a te d . A t th e s a m e
v a r io u s e l e m e n ts t h a t h a v e b e e n f itte d t o g e t h e r b u t t o a c c e p t tim e , s tr u c tu r a l a n a ly s is p o s e s t w o p r in c ip le s a s e s s e n tia l to
th e fact of th e s tru c tu re . The im p o rta n t th in g , D u m é z il its p r a c ti c e : t h e r e is n o a u t h e n t i c v e r s i o n o f a m y th in r e la tio n
d e cla re s, is to b rin g th e s tr u c tu r e its e lf to lig h t, w ith i ts to o th e r s th a t a re fa lse ; c o rre la tiv e ly , e v e r y m y th m u st be
s ig n ific a tio n . It w o u l d seem to f o llo w th a t s tru c tu re s are d e fin e d b y th e w h o l e s e t o f its v e r s i o n s . T h e r e t h u s ta k e s
th e re , t h a t it i s e n o u g h to b e a tte n tiv e to th e m , to a v o id shape th e p ro je c t o f o rd e rin g a ll t h e know n v a r ia n ts o f a
f o r c i n g t h e m , a n d t o s h o w a l i t t l e s k ill i n d i s e n g a g i n g t h e m . m y th in a s e r ie s f o r m i n g a g r o u p o f p e r m u t a t i o n s .
T h u s it is n o t n e c e s s a r y t o c o n s t r u c t s t r u c t u r e s a s o n e w o u l d T h e n e x t s ta g e o f h is in v e s tig a tio n ( " T h e S to ry o f A s d i-
e la b o ra te a m o d e l o f th e s e t o f p r o p e r tie s a c c o u n tin g fo r a w a l , " 1 9 5 8 ) l e d L é v i - S t r a u s s t o p r o p o s e t h a t m y t h m a k e s fu ll
g r o u p o f o b j e c t s . In a s e n s e , s t r u c t u r a l i s m is s ti ll i n t h e a g e o f u se of d isc o u rs e , but at th e sam e tim e s itu a te s its ow n
h u n tin g a n d g a t h e r i n g . M y th s , fo r D u m é z il, a r e th e p riv i­ m e a n in g fu l o p p o s itio n s at a h ig h e r d eg ree o f c o m p le x ity
le g e d th e a te r th a t m akes v is ib le fu n d a m e n ta l co n ce p tu a l t h a n t h a t r e q u i r e d b y n a t u r a l l a n g u a g e . In o t h e r w o r d s , m y t h
r e l a t i o n s . B u t in t h e s p i r i t o f M a u s s ' s s o c i o l o g y , t o w h i c h h e is a m e t a l a n g u a g e a n d , m o r e p r e c is e ly , a lin k e d s e q u e n c e o f
o w e s a c u r i o s i t y f o r ''t o t a l s o c ia l f a c t s '' t h a t c a u s e s h i m to c o n c e p t s . A t t e n t i o n w il l b e t u r n e d , t h e r e f o r e , t o r e g i s t e r i n g
e x p l o r e s i m u l t a n e o u s l y a ll t h e w o r k s p r o d u c e d b y th e h u ­ th e v a r io u s le v e ls o n w h ic h m y th can b e d is trib u te d . T h e
m a n m i n d , m y th s c a n n o t b e d e c i p h e r e d u n til t h e y h a v e b e e n c u t t i n g u p o f t h e m y th i c n a r r a t iv e w h ic h in th e fir s t p h a s e
p u t b a c k in to th e to ta lity o f th e re lig io u s , s o c ia l, a n d p h ilo ­ (1 9 5 5 ) s e e m e d to b e e n tr u s te d to th e w h im o r in g e n u ity o f
s o p h i c a l life o f t h e p e o p l e s w h o h a v e p r a c t i c e d th e m . T h e th e m o d e l - b u il d e r , is n o w s u b je c t to te s tin g — in d is p e n s a b le
m y th o lo g y p o s ite d b y th e e a r lie r c o m p a r a t iv i s m o f F r a z e r ia n to a ll f o r m a l a n a l y s is — in t e r m s o f t h e referent: "th e e th n o ­
in s p ir a tio n as s e p a r a te fro m la n g u a g e , as a m o re or le ss g r a p h i c c o n t e x t ," w h ic h th e la te r tr a n s fo rm a tio n a l o r ie n ta ­
a u t o n o m o u s o b je c t, e n d o w e d w ith p e r m a n e n c e a n d c h o s e n t io n o f t h e Mythologiques w o u ld c e a s e to p u rs u e . T h e s u r v e y ­
to lo c a te th e com m on th em es e la b o ra te d by th e In d o - i n g o f p e r t i n e n t o p p o s i t i o n s in a m y t h i c s e q u e n c e t h u s f i n d s
E u ro p e a n s , w as referred b ack to th e l a n g u a g e o f w h ic h it th e f u n d a m e n ta l g u a ra n te e of its le g itim a c y in p re v io u s
fo rm e d a p a rt a n d , th ro u g h th is l a n g u a g e , to th e i d e o l o g y k n o w le d g e o f a n o r g a n iz e d s e m a n tic c o n te x t, w ith o u t w h ic h
t h a t g r o u n d s it a n d r u n s t h r o u g h i t. t h e m y t h is in p r i n c i p l e i n c o m p r e h e n s i b l e . R i t u a l p r a c t i c e s ,
The s tru c tu ra l a n a ly s is d e v e lo p e d by L é v i-S tr a u s s w as r e l i g i o u s b e l i e f s , k i n s h i p s t r u c t u r e s : t h e w h o l e o f s o c i a l life
e s ta b lis h e d u n d e r th e s a m e k in d o f c o n d itio n s a s th e c o m ­ and s o c ia l th o u g h t is c a lle d upon to d e fin e th e l o g ic a l
p a r a tiv e a n d p h ilo lo g ic a l a n a ly s is o f th e n i n e t e e n t h c e n tu r y . re la tio n s fu n c tio n in g w ith in a m y th , a n d a t th e s a m e tim e to
T h e g r a tu ito u s a n d in s a n e c h a r a c te r o f m y th ic d is c o u r s e w a s e s ta b lis h th e d if f e r e n t t y p e s o f lia is o n b e t w e e n t w o o r m o r e
a g a in th e p o in t of d e p a rtu re . For M ax M ü lle r th is w as m y th s . In th e f o u r -v o lu m e Mythologiques (1 9 6 4 -1 9 7 1 ), th e
s h o c k i n g ; f o r L é v i - S t r a u s s it w a s a c h a l l e n g e . H e t o o k u p t h e p ro g re ssiv e a n a ly s is c o n tin u e s to show r e la tio n s b e tw e e n
c h a lle n g e afte r he had sh o w n th a t k in s h ip r e la tio n s , in m v th s , th e s o c ia l lif e of th o s e w ho te ll th e m , and th e
a p p e a r a n c e c o n tin g e n t a n d in c o h e r e n t, c a n b e r e d u c e d to a g e o g r a p h i c a l a n d t e c h n o l o g i c a l i n f r a s t r u c t u r e , b u t it d o e s n o t
s m a l l n u m b e r o f s i g n i f i c a n t p r o p o s i t i o n s . If m y t h o l o g y i s t h e r e s tr i c t its e lf to th is b a c k - a n d -f o r t h b e t w e e n l e v e ls o f s ig n ifi­
d o m a i n in w h ic h t h e m in d s e e m s to h a v e t h e m o s t f r e e d o m c a tio n a n d a n e th n o g r a p h ic c o n te x t th a t re v e a ls th e p h ilo s o ­
to a b a n d o n its e lf to its o w n c r e a ti v e s p o n ta n e i t y , t h e n , s a y s phy of a s o c ie ty . The m e a n in g of a m y th is no lo n g e r
L é v i-S tr a u s s , to p r o v e th a t, o n th e c o n t r a r y , in m y th o lo g y i n s c r i b e d in i ts s t r u c t u r e s ' r e f e r e n c e t o a s o c i a l i n f r a s t r u c t u r e ;
t h e m i n d i s f i x e d a n d d e t e r m i n e d in a l l o f i t s o p e r a t i o n s is t o r a th e r , th e p o s itio n th e m y th o c c u p i e s in r e l a ti o n to o th e r
p r o v e t h a t it m u s t b e s o e v e r y w h e r e . T h e s t r u c t u r a l a n a l y s i s m y t h s w i t h i n a t r a n s f o r m a t i o n g r o u p is h e n c e f o r t h t h e v e c t o r
o f m y th s t h u s fin d s its p l a c e in a w id e r p r o j e c t, w h ic h a i m s o f a n a n a ly s is th a t re v e a ls th e a u t o n o m y o f a m y th ic th o u g h t
at an in v e n to ry of m e n ta l c o n s tra in ts and p o stu la te s a in w h ic h e v e r y n a r r a t iv e r e f e r s b a c k in t h e first i n s t a n c e to
s tr u c tu r a l a n a l o g y b e tw e e n v a r io u s o r d e r s o f s o c ia l f a c ts a n d a n o t h e r , p i c k i n g u p a n d o r g a n i z i n g i t s e l e m e n t s in a d i f f e r e n t
la n g u a g e . w a y . J u s t a s e a c h t e r m , its e lf w it h o u t in tr i n s i c s ig n if i c a t i o n ,
T h is w h o le a p p r o a c h to m y th a p p lie s to a n e w d o m a in th e h a s n o m e a n i n g o t h e r t h a n a p o s i t i o n a l o n e i n t h e c o n t e x t in
m e t h o d s o f a n a ly s is a n d p r in c ip le s o f d iv is io n d e v e l o p e d fo r w h i c h it a p p e a r s t o u s , i n t h e s a m e w a y e a c h m y t h a c q u i r e s
lin g u is tic m a t e r i a ls in th e m e t h o d s t h e o r i z e d b y th e P r a g u e a s i g n i f y i n g f u n c t i o n t h r o u g h t h e c o m b i n a t i o n s in w h i c h it is
s c h o o l a n d m o r e p a r tic u la r ly b y R o m a n Ja k o b s o n . B u t w h ile c a l l e d u p o n b o t h t o f i g u r e a n d t o b e t r a n s f o r m e d . It i s t h e s e
m y th is a s s i m il a t e d to a l a n g u a g e f r o m t h e o u t s e t , it is n o t t r a n s f o r m a t io n s w h ic h , in t h e l a s t a n a l y s is , d e f i n e th e n a t u r e
id e n tic a l e i th e r to th e w o r d s o f a te x t o r to th e s e n t e n c e o f o f m y th ic th o u g h t.
c o m m u n i c a t i v e d i s c o u r s e . M y t h o l o g y is a u s e o f l a n g u a g e in It has b een o b je c te d th a t th is p r a c tic e of m y th o lo g ic a l
t h e s e c o n d d e g r e e ; it is n o t o n l y a n a r r a t i v e w i t h a n o r d i n a r y a n a ly s is m a k e s a c h o ic e fo r s y n ta x a g a in s t s e m a n tic s ; a n d ,
lin g u is tic m e a n i n g : m y th is in l a n g u a g e a n d a t t h e s a m e tim e l i k e w i s e , t h a t w h i l e it h a s b e e n p o s s i b l e t o a p p l y t h e p r a c t i c e
beyond n a tu ra l la n g u a g e . In t h e firs t s ta g e o f a n o n g o in g s u c c e s s f u lly to th e m y th o lo g ie s o f s o -c a lle d to te m ic s o c ie tie s ,
in v e s tig a tio n ( “ T h e S tr u c tu r a l S t u d y o f M y t h ," 1 9 5 5 ), L é v i- s in c e th e s e a re rich in d a s s i f i c a t o r y s t r u c t u r e s , it e x c l u d e s
S tra u ss trie s to d e fin e th e c o n s titu e n t u n its of m y th in S e m i t i c , H e l l e n i c , a n d I n d o - E u r o p e a n s o c i e t i e s f r o m i t s fi e ld
re la tio n to t h o s e o f s tr u c tu r a l lin g u is tic s . M y t h e m e s a r e b o th o f i n te r e s t, s o r i e ti e s w h o s e m y th o lo g i c a l t h o u g h t is m a r k e d
in th e s e n te n ce and beyond it. In th is p e r s p e c tiv e , th e by r e n e w a ls o f m e a n in g and by a s e m a n tic ric h n e s s th a t
c o n s t i tu e n t u n it is a v e r y s h o r t s e n t e n c e , w h ic h s u m m a r iz e s e x c e e d s th e p o w e r s o f s tr u c tu r a l a n a ly s is . O n e c a n re p ly , o n
th e e s s e n tia l p a rt o f a s e q u e n c e a n d d e n o te s a re la tio n : “ a th e o n e h a n d , th a t fo r th is t y p e o f a n a l y s is , w h ic h g e t s a t th e
p r e d i c a t e a s s i g n e d t o a s u b j e c t ." B u t th is s e n t e n c e is n o t p a r t m e a n in g s o f m y th s b y m u ltip ly in g th e fo rm a l o p e r a tio n s th a t
o f t h e e x p l i c i t n a r r a t i v e ; it i s a l r e a d y o n th e o r d e r o f in te r ­ a llo w u s to u n c o v e r t h e lo g ic a l f r a m e w o r k o f s e v e r a l n a r r a ­
p r e ta tio n , th e p ro d u ct of an a n a ly tic a l te ch n iq u e . These t iv e s , th e s e m a n t i c s o f m y t h s is n e c e s s a r il y e n r i c h e d t h r o u g h

9
I N T R O D U C T I O N

th e in v e n to ry in g of th e s y n ta x . On th e o th e r hand, th e 3-21 and 229-31, with bibliography, h . pinard de la boullaye , L'étude

p r a c t i c e o f s t r u c t u r a l a n a l y s i s is h a r d l y a l i e n t o o u r f a m i l i a r comparée des religions, 1 and 2 (Paris 1925). |. de vries , Forschungsge-
m y th o lo g ie s , s u c h a s th a t o f th e G r e e k s ; o n e m a y , i n d e e d , b e schichte der Mythologie. Orbis Academicus, 1, 7 (Munich 1961). K.
k Erenyi, Die Eröffnung des Zugangs zum Mythos (Darmstadt 1967). g .
s u r p r is e d a t th e re m a r k a b l e s im ila r itie s b e t w e e n th e w a y th e
van der ieelvv , L'homme primitif et la religion, Étude anthropologique
G re e k s th e m s e lv e s th o u g h t th e ir m y th o lo g y a n d th e m e th o d
(Paris 1940). p. smith, "L’analyse des mythes," Diogène 82 (1973):
u s e d b y e t h n o l o g i s t s in a p p r o a c h i n g m y t h s t o l d b y n o n l i t e r ­
91-108. m . mauss. Πuvres. V. Karady, ed., 3 vols. (Paris 1968-69). l .
a te p e o p le s. M ore p e rtin e n t o b je c tio n s have com e fro m g ernet . Anthropologie de la Grèce antique (Paris 1968). s. c. Humphreys ,
a n th ro p o lo g is ts su c h as D an S p erb er, w h o d e n o u n ce s th e "The Work of Louis Gernet," History and Theory 10, 2 (1971). |.
s e m i o l o g i c a l i l l u s i o n o f s t r u c t u r a l i s m a s w e ll a s t h e d i s t a n c e starobinski, "Hamlet et Freud," preface to French trans, by E. Jones,
b e tw e e n th e l in g u is tic m o d e ls in v o k e d and an in tu itiv e Hamlet et Œdipe (Paris 1967), IX-XL. s. viderman , La construction de
p r a c t i c e w h o s e s p e c i f i c p r o c e d u r e s , u n l i m i t e d in n u m b e r a n d l'espace analytique (Paris 1970). s. hreud, "Zur Gewinnung des Feuers,"
n a tu r e , o f fe r k n o w le d g e o f th e in te lle c tu a l o p e r a tio n s fro m in Gesammelte Werke (London 1932-39), also in English, g . deleuze
w h i c h t h e s t o r i e s w e c a ll “ m y t h s " a r e w o v e n .
and F. g ua it a ri , L anti-Œdipe (Paris 1972), "Psychanalyse et familia-
risme: La sainte famille," 60-162. h . fu gier , "Quarante ans de
M .D ./j .l .
recherches dans l'idéologie indo-européenne: La méthode de
Georges Dumézil," Revue d'histoire et de philosophie religieuse 45 (1965):
358-74. m . MESi iN, Pour une science des religions (Paris 1973), "Psycha­
BIBLIOGRAPHY nalyse et religion," 113-38. p. smith and d . spf.rber, "Mythologiques
de Georges Dumézil," Annales E .S .C ., 1971, 559-86. i .-p . vernant,
The titles listed are in the order and within the limits of the problems "Raisons du mythe," in Mythe et société en Grèce ancienne (Paris 1974),
formulated by this article. 195-250. p. RictEUR, s.v. "Mythe (3. L'interprétation philosophique),"
I. louoRov, Symbolisme et interpretation (Paris 1978). m . ot certeau , in Encyclopaedia Universalis (Paris 1968), 11:530-37. c l . lêvi-strauss.
"Ethno graphie: L'oralité, ou l'espace de l'autre," in Léry, L'écriture Structural Antlirofwlogy. 2 vols. (New York 1963, 1976), originals in
de l'histoire (Paris 1975), 215-48. c,. chinard , L'Amérique et le réiv French; Mythologiques. 4 vols. (Paris 1964-71), = Introduction to a
exotique dans la littérature française du X VIT au XVIII' siècle (Paris 1934). Science of Mythology, 4 vols., entitled The Raw and the Cooked (New
m. ni iiiwi , "Mito e Linguaggio: Da Max Müller a Claude Lévi- York 1969), From Honey to Ashes (London 1973), The Origin of Table
Strauss," in II Mito: Guida stonea ecrihca (2d ed., Bari and Rome 1976), Manners (New York 1978), and The Naked Man (New York 1981).

s y s te m o f t h o u g h t f o r g o o d , a l l o w i n g o n l y f ra il r e m a i n s t o
M yth and W riting : T he M ythographers s u r v iv e a s w itn e s s e s o f a lo s t s ta te to w h ic h o n ly tw o p o s sib le
ro a d s of access s ti ll re m a in : one is th e d isc o v e ry , by an
a n c i e n t t r a v e l e r in a f o r g o t t e n v i l l a g e , o f a t a l e s a v e d f r o m t h e
T h e w o rd niytho-logy is b u t o n e i n s t a n c e o f m a n y in w h i c h t h e c o n ta m in a tio n o f w ritin g t h a n k s to a fe w n a tiv e s u n a w a r e o f
p r o x i m i t y o f m y t h a n d w r i t i n g i n e v i t a b l y r e s u l t s in a k i n d o f t h e p r o g r e s s o f c u l t u r e ; t h e o t h e r is t h e l e s s h a z a r d o u s r o a d
v i o l e n c e , i ts v i c t i m a n o r ig in a l w o r d , s a c r e d in n a t u r e a n d o f h isto rica l a n d g e o g r a p h ic a l in v e s tig a tio n th ro u g h w h ic h
con d em n ed t o f i x it y b y a p r o f a n e o r d e r . B e y o n d t h e w o r d s o n e g a in s a c c e s s to a l o n g -d e f e r r e d v is io n o f a la n d s c a p e th a t
w h ic h b y t h e ir v e r y t e x tu r e b e a r w it n e s s to th is p h e n o m e n o n a u t h e n t i c a t e s th e n a r r a tiv e o r th e m y th s o f w h ic h it is t h e
(su c h a s niythography), G r e e k p r iv ile g e h a s h e ld f a s t. W h e n g u a r a n to r , th e r e c o v e re d w itn e s s .
s tr a n g e a n d u n f o r g e tta b le s to r ie s , w h ic h s o u n d e d v e r y in d e ­ W i t h i n t h i s f r a m e w o r k , t h e t r u t h o f t h e m y t h is e n c l o s e d in
p e n d e n t a n d y e t b o re o b v io u s re s e m b la n c e s to th e m y th o l­ a s p e e c h lik e n a tu r e , w h ic h w ritin g m o r e o r le s s o b lite r a te s , a t
o g y o f a n t i q u i t y , w e r e b r o u g h t t o u s f r o m a ll c o n t i n e n t s , e a r l y tim e s b y s h a c k lin g th e fr e e d o m o f a s e lf -e x p r e s s iv e m e m o r y
a n th r o p o lo g is ts tu r n e d in s tin c tiv e ly to G r e e c e , w h e r e a few w ith th e c o n s t r a i n ts o f a n in te rp re ta tio n s u b je c t to fo re ig n
c e n tu r ie s e a rlie r g r e a t m in d s fro m X e n o p h a n e s to A ris to tle r u le s ; a n d a t o t h e r tim e s , m o r e o f te n th a n n o t, b y r e d u c in g
h a d fa c e d th e p ro b le m o f lim itin g th e d o m in io n o f m y th s a n d t h e m y t h 's o w n speech to s ile n c e in o r d e r to s p e a k o n its
had re s o lv e d it w ith in th e ir ow n in te lle c tu a l a c tiv ity by b e h a lf a n d to c o n d e m n it t o a n a b so lu te o th e rn e s s . In a n
d r a w in g a b o u n d a r y a t w h ic h m y th ic a l t h o u g h t f a d e s a w a y a t te m p t to re c tify th is d iv is io n , s tr u c tu r a l a n a ly s is i n tr o d u c e d
b e fo r e th e ra tio n a lity o f s c ie n tis ts a n d p h ilo s o p h e r s . T h e sp lit a s u m m a r y s e p a r a tio n b e tw e e n c o ld a n d w a r m s o c ie tie s , th e
b e tw e e n th e la n d o f m y th a n d th e k in g d o m o f logos serv ed as f o r m e r d e p r iv e d o f a te m p o r a l d im e n s io n , th e la tte r o p e n to
a p r e c e d e n t fo r th e d e c is io n m a d e b y T y lo r a n d h is d is c ip le s h isto ry and to th e c o n tin u a l re n e w a ls of m e a n in g th a t
t o i m p o s e a h i s t o r i c a l l im i t o n t h e r e i g n o f m y t h o l o g y o v e r w r i t i n g f a c i l i t a t e s . T h e b o r d e r t h u s d r a w n a p p e a r e d a ll t h e
th e hum an m in d . T h is o p p o s itio n b e tw e e n tw o fo rm s o f m o r e d e f i n i t e a s it s e e m e d to r e ite r a te th e d is tin c tio n be­
th o u g h t a n d tw o s ta g e s of hum an in te llig e n c e , th e la tte r t w e e n o r a l a n d w r i t t e n l i t e r a t u r e , a d i s t i n c t i o n r e i n f o r c e d , if
c a n c e lin g th e fo rm er, to o k th e fo rm of a sh arp c o n tra st n o t ju s tifie d , b y th e d e c is io n m a d e b y th is ty p e o f a n a ly s is to
b e t w e e n r e a s o n , w h i c h u s e d a ll t h e r e s o u r c e s o f t h e w r i t t e n , l o o k f o r t h e e s s e n t i a l o f t h e " m y t h " n o t in t h e n a r r a t i o n b u t
an d a m y th o lo g ic a l a c tiv ity tu n e d to th e fa n ta sy of an in t h e s t o r y t r a n s m i t t e d b y m e m o r y , a s t o r y w h o s e n a r r a t i v e
in c e s s a n t b a b b lin g . fo rm w a s le ft to th e d is c r e ti o n a n d t a le n t o f e a c h n a r r a t o r .
H e n c e f o r th , n e v e r th e tw a in sh a ll m e e t. F o r t h o s e p r a c tic ­ Yet a n o th e r issu e a rise s , fo r w h ic h th e G reek m odel
in g h is to ria n s w ho te n d to f a v o r w ritte n tra ce s , o ra l d is ­ in s p ire s a fo rm u la tio n th a t s u g g e s ts th e p r o g r e s s iv e e m e r ­
c o u r s e h a s b e c o m e s o t o t a l l y i n a u d i b l e t h a t it is q u i t e i l l e g i b l e g e n c e o f w r itin g in a tr a d itio n a l s o c ie ty . S in c e th e tim e E . A .
w h e n e v e r it m a n i f e s t s i t s e l f a s w r i t i n g — a c o n t r i v e d w r i t i n g , H a v e lo c k first p u b lis h e d h is s tu d ie s , th e H o m e ric e p ic,
w h ic h m a s k s th e in c o h e r e n c e o f tr a d itio n s s u s ta in e d th r o u g h w h ic h M ilm a n P arry h ad re c o g n iz e d a s b e lo n g in g to o ra l
m e m o ry b y im p o s in g a fa c titio u s o r d e r o f m y th o g r a p h ic a l p r a c ti c e , c a n n o l o n g e r b e c o n s i d e r e d a n e n c l a v e o f a liv in g
c la s s ific a tio n s . F o r o th e r s , th e G r e e k s s o t h o r o u g h ly e n s u r e d tr a d itio n th a t m a d e ro o m fo r a c u ltu re o f th e w ritte n . T h e
th e triu m p h o f re a s o n a n d logos th a t th e y ru in e d th e ir f o r m e r in tr o d u c tio n o f a n a lp h a b e tic a l w ritin g t e c h n iq u e c a u s e d n o

10
 P R E H I S T O R I C R E L I G I O N

im m e d ia te c h a n g e s , n o r d id it p r o d u c e a n y p ro fo u n d up­ o n e a t t r i b u t e s t o it a m e a n i n g s e t a p a r t f r o m o t h e r p o s s i b l e
h e a v a l. G re e c e e x p e r ie n c e d n o t a re v o lu tio n o f w ritin g b u t, m e a n i n g s . In th e c o n t in u i ty o f in te r p r e t a t io n th u s o p e n e d
ra th e r , a s lo w m o v e m e n t w ith u n e v e n a d v a n c e s d e p e n d i n g up, th e h e rm e n e u tic s th a t w as fo cu sed on th e m y th ic a l
o n th e a r e a s o f a c tiv ity ; b y th e tu rn o f th e fo u r th c e n tu ry , a c c o u n t s o f I s r a e l c l a i m e d a p r i v i l e g e d p l a c e , w h i c h m a d e it
w r it i n g p r e v a i l e d m e n t a ll y a n d s o c ia lly . U n til t h e e n d o f th e m o r e s e n s itiv e to th e p erm an en ce o f f u n d a m e n ta l th e m e s
fi f t h c e n t u r y , G r e e k c u l t u r e h a d b e e n e s s e n t i a l l y o f t h e o r a l e n d l e s s l y r e v i v e d a n d r e e v a l u a t e d , b u t a l s o f o r c e d it t o b e t h e
t y p e . It e n t r u s t e d to its m e m o r y a ll t r a d itio n a l i n f o r m a t i o n in fin ite e x e g e s i s , f o r e v e r i n te r n e d w ith in its o w n sy m b o lic
a n d k n o w l e d g e , a s d o a ll s o c ie t ie s u n a c q u a i n t e d w it h w r it t e n w e a lth .
a r c h i v e s . A n d it i s h e r e t h a t w e m u s t r e v i s e t h e n o t i o n o f M .D ./g .h .
mythology, w ith w h ic h th e G reek s e n cu m b ered us as a
c o n s e q u e n c e o f th e ir e n t a n g l e m e n t w ith logos. F o r th e u n if ie d
c o n c e p t " m y t h ," w h ic h n o w h e r e s e e m s to b e d e fin e d a s a
d i s c r e te lit e r a r y g e n r e , m u s t f a d e a w a y in f a v o r o f a s e t o f BIBLIOGRAPHY
in te lle c tu a l o p e r a t i o n s fu n d a m e n ta l to th e m e m o r iz in g of
n a rra tiv e s th a t to g e th e r m a k e u p a tra d itio n . C la u d e L é v i- R. finnegan . Oral Poetry: Its Nature, Significance and Social Context
S tra u s s s u g g e s ts th e te rm mythism fo r th e p r o c e s s b y w h ic h a (Cambridge 1977). ). goody and |. watt, "The Consequences of
s to r y , in itia lly p e r s o n a l a n d e n t r u s t e d to th e o ra l tra d itio n , Literacy," Comparative Studies in Society and History, 1963, 304 -45. |.
g oo dy , "Mémoire et apprentissage dans les sociétés avec et sans
b e c o m e s a d o p t e d b y t h e c o l l e c t i v e m o d e , w h i c h w il l d i s t i n ­
écriture: La transmission du Bagre," L'homme, 1977, 29-52. e . a .
g u is h b e tw e e n th e c r y s ta l d e a r p a r ts o f th e n a r r a tiv e — th a t is,
Havelo ck , Preface to Plato (Cambridge, MA, 1963). R. koenig ,
th e le v e ls th a t a r e s tr u c tu r e d a n d s ta b le b e c a u s e t h e y r e s t o n
"L'activité herméneutique des scribes dans la transmission du texte
c o m m o n f o u n d a tio n s — a n d th e c o n je c tu r a l p a r ts — d e ta ils o r de l'Ancien Testament," Revue de l’Histoire des Religions, 1962, 141 —
e p i s o d e s a m p lifie d o r n e g le c te d a t e a c h te llin g , b e f o r e b e in g 74. CL. LÉVI-STRAUSS, Mythologiques 4 (Paris 1971): 560 (translated as
d o o m e d to o b liv io n a n d f a llin g o u t s id e th e b o u n d s o f m e m ­ Introduction to a Science of Mythology. New York 1969-). l . sebag .
o r y . E v e r y tra d itio n a l s o c ie ty d e v e l o p s , w ith v a r y i n g s u c c e s s , L'invention du monde chez les Indiens Pueblos (Paris 1971), 472-85. |.
a w id e ly sh ared c r e a tiv e m e m o ry , w h ic h is n e ith e r th e VANSiNA, De la tradition orale: Essai de méthode historique. Musée royal
m e m o r y o f s p e c ia lis ts n o r t h a t o f t e c h n ic ia n s . T h e n a r r a tiv e s de l’Afrique centrale (Tervuren 1961).
w e a g r e e t o c a ll m y t h s a r e th e p ro d u c ts o f a n in te lle c tu a l
Some mythographic texts of ancient Greece: apollodorus . The
Library, J. G. Frazer, ed. (London 1921). dio dorls of sicily . The Library,
a c ti v i t y t h a t i n v e n t s w h a t is m e m o r a b le .
vol. 4, C. H. Oldfather, ed. (London 1935). antoninus liberalis ,
W hen w ritin g a p p ears, it n e ith e r b a n is h e s tr a d itio n a l
Metamorphoses, hyginls , Astronomica. B. Bunte, ed. (Leipzig 1875).
m e m o r y t o a s t a t e o f d e c a y n o r s u s t a i n s a n o r a l p r a c t i c e in hygin ls . Fabulae. H. I. Rose, ed. (Leiden 1933). Mythographi graeci, 5
im m in e n t danger of b e c o m in g e x tin c t. W ritin g occu rs at vols., R. Wagner, Martini, A. Olivier, and N. Festo, eds., Bibl. Script,
d iffe re n t le v e ls a n d in d if f e r e n t o r d e r s , b u t a l w a y s a t th e graec. Teubneriana (Leipzig 1896-1926). Mythographi Vaticani. G. H.
e n c o u n te r b e tw e e n a n a ct o f re m e m b e rin g a n d th e w o rk s Bode, ed., vols. 1 -2 (1834; reprinted Olms 1968). a c ls ila u s o f argos ,
th a t m e m o r )' c re a te s . W ritin g w a s to in tr o d u c e a n e w m e m ­ pherecydes of athens , and HELLAMKOS of LFSBOs, in Fragmente der

o r y , w o r d -f o r -w o r d m e m o r y , w h ic h c o m e s w ith t h e b o o k a n d griechischen Historiker, F. Jacoby, ed., I: Genealogie und Mythographie

w ith e d u c a t i o n th r o u g h th e s tu d y o f w r itte n t e x ts . C o m p e t ­
(Leiden 1922; 2d ed., 1957).
in g e v e r s o s lo w ly w ith t h e f o r m e r k in d o f m e m o r y , m e c h a n ­
ical m e m o ry a lo n e is c a p a b le of e n g e n d e rin g th e id e a ,
fa m ilia r to u s , o f th e correct v e r s io n , a v e r s io n w h ic h m u s t b e
c o p ie d o r l e a r n e d e x a c tly , w o r d fo r w o r d . In G r e e c e b e t w e e n
P rehistoric R eligion
t h e s i x t h a n d fif th c e n t u r i e s , t h e f i r s t h i s t o r i a n s , t h o s e w h o m
t h e G r e e k s c a ll " l o g o g r a p h e r s , " s e l e c t e d w r itin g a s th e in ­
s tru m e n t o f a n e w k in d o f m e m o r y th a t w o u ld b e c o m e a n T o s p e a k o f " p r e h i s t o r i c r e lig io n " w ith o u t s p e c ify in g tim e
in te g ra l p a r t o f th o u g h t a n d p o litic a l a c ti o n . T h is n e w w a y o f and p la ce is ta n ta m o u n t to a s s im ila tin g under m o d ern
re m e m b e rin g w a s c o n s tru c te d on th e b o u n d a ry b e tw e e n a th o u g h t f a c ts a n d c o n t e x ts t h a t c a m e to lig h t a t v e r y d iffe re n t
t y p e o f o r a l tr a d it i o n w ith its r e m e m b r a n c e s , s p o k e n n a r r a ­ t im e s a n d p la c e s , ta n ta m o u n t to c r e a ti n g a k in d o f a v e r a g e
tiv e s , a n d s to r ie s c ir c u la tin g b y w o r d o f m o u t h , a n d , o n th e im a g e th a t c a n o n ly b e v a lid a te d b y th e ju d g m e n t o f o u r o w n
o th e r s id e , th e d o m in a n t o b s e s s io n o f th e n e w in v e s tig a to r s , w a y o f th in k in g p r o j e c te d o n t o s o m e a r b itr a r ily c h o s e n f a c ts .
w h o re s p e c te d a s k n o w le d g e o n ly w h a t h a d b e e n s e e n , a n d P r e h is to r ic r e lig io n n o l o n g e r o c c a s i o n s a d e b a te in w h ic h
w h o w o u ld u ltim a te ly c o n d e m n , w ith o u t a p p e a l, th o s e w h o e ith e r p r o - o r a n tic le ric a l c o n v ic tio n s a r e a t s ta k e . T h e s c ie n c e
a c c e p t e d tr a d itio n s o f th e p a s t th a t w e r e t r a n s m i t te d w ith o u t o f p re h is to ry h a s b e e n e n ric h e d b y m u c h n e w d a ta a n d m a jo r
p r e c is e te r m in o lo g y o r r i g o r o u s p r o o f . T h is w a s th e b a ttle ­ c h a n g e s in m e th o d o lo g ic a l a p p r o a c h e s . R a th e r th a n a r g u i n g
g r o u n d , th e w id e o p e n s p a c e o f w r itin g , fo r th e c o n f r o n t a ­ a b o u t w h e th e r th e a th e is t b ru te e v o lv e d first in to th e m a g i­
t io n b e t w e e n v a r ia n t s t h a t b e c a m e d i f f e r e n t v e r s i o n s o f th e c ia n a n d th e n in to th e p r ie s t, s c ie n tis ts h a v e g iv e n p r io r ity to
s a m e m y th , u s u a lly e x a m i n e d fro m w ith in th e c o n f in e s o f a in q u irie s th a t b r in g o u t th e d e e p c o n n e c t i o n s a m o n g p la y ,
c ity in q u e s t o f s e lf - i m a g e o r p o litic a l i d e n tity . a e s th e t ic s , s o c ia l b e h a v io r , e c o n o m i c re a litie s , a n d p r a c tic e s
E l s e w h e r e , o t h e r r o u t e s w e r e t a k e n t h a t l in k e d w r it i n g to th a t r e s t o n a m e ta p h y s ic a l fr a m e w o r k . T h e p ro o fs th a t c a n
th e p ro d u c tio n o f m y th s w h o s e s u c c e s s iv e v a r ia tio n s w e r e b e p r o lif e r a te d f ro m a s o -c a lle d re lig io u s a p p r o a c h a r e la rg e ly
in s e p a ra b le fro m th e h e r m e n e u tic a c tiv ity of scrib e s and d e riv e d fro m th e re a lm of th e u n p re ce d e n te d , fro m th e
in te rp re te rs d e v o te d to te x tu a l e x e g e s is . F r o m th e m o m e n t p r e s e n c e o f p e c u lia r f a c ts f o u n d in a c o n t e x t w h e r e t h e y a r e
th e tra d itio n a l n a r r a tiv e s o f th e B ib le , th e B o o k o f th e H e b r a ic l e a s t e x p e c t e d , s u c h a s t h e d i s c o v e r y , o n a M o u s t e r ia n s ite
w o rld , w e r e c o m m itte d to w r itin g , th e y w e r e s w e p t a w a y b y in h a b ite d by N e a n d e r th a l m an, o f fo s s il s h e l l s , w h ic h he
th e in n e r w o rk in g s o f a s y s te m o f w ritin g w h ic h , th o u g h c o lle c te d and b ro u g h t b ack to h is d w e llin g p la c e , or th e
in itia lly c o n s o n a n ta l, in its h o llo w s c a lle d fo r a v o ca lic d isc o v e ry th a t h e g a th e re d re d o c h e r o r b u rie d h is d e a d .
c o m p l e m e n t t o b e a r its m e a n i n g , s in c e o n e c a n n o t r e a d a T hese d iv e rs e e le m e n ts do not fit in w ith our v is io n of
c o n s o n a n ta l te x t u n le s s o n e u n d e r s t a n d s it, th a t is, u n le s s N e a n d e rth a l m a n . Yet how c o u ld th e re not be a s tr ik in g

11
I N T R O D U C T I O N

c o n tra s t b e tw e e n th is p rim a l b ru te w ith h is b u lk y b ro w or m e re ly th e s k u ll). A lth o u g h th e id ea of "g ra v e s" of

rid g e s a n d th e s u b tle q u a lity o f a re lig io s ity p o lis h e d b y tw o a n i m a l s h a s b e e n a d v a n c e d r e p e a t e d l y , it s e e m s t h a t n a t u r a l
m ille n n ia of C h ris tia n ity and a ll of a n c ie n t p h ilo s o p h y ? phenom ena w ere m o re o f te n at is s u e th a n m an h im se lf,
N e a n d e r th a l m a n w a s n o t , in t h e fin a l a n a l y s is , a s s h o r t o f e s p e c i a l l y in t h e c a s e o f t h e r e m a i n s o f c a v e b e a r s .
g r a y m a t te r a s w a s lo n g b e lie v e d , t h o u g h th e m e ta p h y s ic a l T h e b u ria l g r a v e s o f fo ss il Homo sapiens a r e ra r e , a n d h a rd ly
le v e l o f h is c u ltic a c tiv itie s w a s c e r ta in ly v e r y d iffe re n t fro m a s in g le g r a v e d a t in g fr o m th e U p p e r P a le o lith ic A g e ( 3 0 , 0 0 0 -
o u r s (a t le a s t, a s w e im a g in e o u r s to b e ). 9000) has been e x ca v a te d e ith e r w ith ca re o r w ith a ll t h e
W h a t m a t te r s is th e e x i s t e n c e o f p r a c ti c e s w ith in a p s y c h o ­ te c h n ica l m e a n s th a t w o u ld h ave a ssu red its d o c u m e n ta r y
lo g ic a l r e a lm n o t d i r e c t ly tie d to t e c h n i q u e s o f a c q u is itio n , v a lu e . W e d o , h o w e v e r , h a v e a c e r ta in n u m b e r o f fa c ts a t o u r
m a n u f a c t u r e , o r c o n s u m p t i o n , e v e n if t h e s e p r a c t i c e s d o f l o w d is p o s a l ( g r a v e s ; b o d ie s , e ith e r c u r le d u p o r s tr e t c h e d o u t ; a
b a c k i n t o m a t e r i a l l if e . M a n a c q u i r e d r e l i g i o u s b e h a v i o r w h e n h ead p r o te c te d by a s to n e ; ocher d u stin g ; and fu n ereal
h e d e v e lo p e d th e w h o le s y s te m o f s y m b o lic th o u g h t , w h ic h h o u s e h o ld o b je c ts , in c lu d in g , at th e le a s t, c lo th in g and
c a n n o t b e s e p a r a t e d f r o m l a n g u a g e a n d g e s t u r e a s it w o r k s o rn a m e n ts w o rn by th e dead p e rso n ). In a d d itio n , th e
o u t a n e tw o r k o f s y m b o ls th a t p r e s e n t a c o u n te r im a g e o f th e d o u b l e c h i l d r e n 's t o m b a t S u n g i r , n o r t h o f M o s c o w , w h e r e
o u ts id e w o rld . That N e a n d e r th a ls had a lre a d y d e v e lo p e d h u n d r e d s o f o r n a m e n ta l e le m e n ts a d o r n th e b o d ie s a n d la rg e
t h i s n e t w o r k o f s y m b o l s is b e y o n d d o u b t , b u t w h e t h e r o n e s p e a rs m a d e o f m a m m o th iv o ry w e re fo u n d in t h e g r a v e ,
c a n g o o n to d is tin g u is h e v id e n c e o f a p r im o rd ia l re lig io n o r b e a r s w itn e s s to th e d e v e l o p m e n t o f th e c o n c e r n to e q u ip th e
an e x tre m e ly d iffu se s y m b o lic c o m p le x re m a in s q u e s tio n ­ d e a d , a d e v e l o p m e n t th a t o c c u r r e d a t a r e m o te p h a s e o f th e
a b le . T h e g a th e r in g o f m a g ic a l s h e lls a n d o c h e r s u p p o r ts th e U p p e r P a l e o l i t h i c A g e . O b v i o u s l y , g r a v e s d o n o t a ll r e f l e c t
v ie w th a t th e p u m p h a d b e e n p rim e d fo r th e s im u lta n e o u s id e n tic a l r e lig io u s in te n tio n s , n or can w e b e c e rta in w hat
e v o l u t i o n o f th e fie ld s o f a r t , p la y , a n d r e lig io n , t h r e e fie ld s k in d o f s e n t i m e n ts le d to th e s e e m o tio n a l d is p la y s . M o r tu a r y
w h ic h to th is d a y c a n n o t b e s e p a r a te d . f u r n i t u r e i s o r d i n a r i l y l e s s s u m p t u o u s . In s e v e r a l c a s e s w e
Homo sapiens p ic k e d u p w h e r e N e a n d e r th a l m a n le ft o ff, m ig h t e v e n s p e c u la te th a t th e p r e s e n c e o f c e rta in v e s tig e s
w ith re g a rd to th e g a th e rin g of “ c u r i o s '' (s h e lls , fo ss ils, w as c o n n e cte d w ith a c c id e n ta l c o n d itio n s s u r r o u n d in g th e
c ry s ta ls , iro n p y rite s , s ta la c tite fr a g m e n ts , e t c .) s o m e tim e s f i ll i n g of th e g rav e. But a ra th e r co n sta n t fa c to r is th e
f o u n d t o g e t h e r in t h e s a m e p i l e . O c h e r b e c a m e m u c h m o r e p re se n ce o f o c h e r , w h ic h v a r ie d a c c o r d in g to th e p o p u la ­
p le n tifu l. T h e first u s e o f m a n g a n e s e d i o x i d e , a b la c k d y e , t i o n 's w e a lt h in d y e s . O c h e r g a v e t h e s o il a n d t h e s k e l e t o n
c o in c id e d w ith th e p r o d u c tio n o f a g r e a te r n u m b e r o f d r a w ­ t h a t it c o v e r e d a r e d d i s h c o l o r a t i o n . T h i s p r a c t i c e , c o m m o n
in g s e n g r a v e d o n b o n e o r s to n e s u r fa c e s . B y th e A u rig n a c ia n d u r i n g t h e U p p e r P a l e o l i t h i c A g e , is t h e i n d i s p u t a b l e s i g n o f
p e r io d , th e s e d r a w in g s to o k th e fo rm o f r h y th m ic in c is io n s a c ts w h o s e m e a n in g g o e s b e y o n d a s im p le n a tu r a l e m o tio n .
and fig u ra tiv e tra cin g s . By 3 0 ,0 0 0 b . c ., fig u ra tiv e art had If t h e u s e o f o c h e r s u p p o r t s v a r i o u s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s a c c o r d i n g
d e v e lo p e d to th e p o in t a t w h ic h s u b je c ts c o u ld b e d iv id e d to h a b it a t , th e s h e e r fa c t o f its b e in g b r o u g h t i n to a g r a v e
in to th e fo llo w in g g r o u p s : f e m a le s e x u a l s y m b o ls (s o m e tim e s w h ere a b od y had b een l a id c o n s titu te s th e m o s t d is tin c t
a ls o m a le ), fig u re s o f a n im a ls , a n d r e g u la r ly s p a c e d in c is io n s f e a t u r e o f t h e b e l i e f in a n a f t e r l i f e , s i n c e t h e d e a d p e r s o n w a s
o r p u n c tu a tio n s . These th e m e s p re d o m in a te d th ro u g h o u t c o n s i d e r e d s till c a p a b l e o f u s i n g w h a t h e w a s o f f e r e d .
th e d e v e l o p m e n t o f P a le o lith ic a r t , a s u b je c t to w h ic h we
s h a ll r e tu r n .
P e rs o n a l A d o r n m e n ts

J e w e l r y a p p e a r e d i n t h e W e s t a r o u n d 3 5 , 0 0 0 b .c . I t s p r i o r
B u ria l G r o u n d s a n d th e C u lt o f B o n e R e m a in s
o r ig in is unknow n. T h ro u g h o u t E u ro p e, its a p p earan ce
N e a n d e r th a ls b u rie d th e ir d e a d . T h e p r a c tic e o f i n h u m a ­ c o in c id e d w ith th e first m a n if e s ta tio n s o f th e U p p e r P a le o ­
t i o n is a t t e s t e d b y s e v e r a l o b v i o u s t o m b s a n d , s t a t i s t i c a l l y , b y lith ic A ge. D u r in g th e C h â te lp e rro n ia n ep och ( 3 5 ,0 0 0 -
t h e n u m e r o u s f i n d s o f s k e l e t o n f r a g m e n t s . S h a n i d a r i n I r a q is 3 0 , 0 0 0 ) , it a p p e a r s a l r e a d y q u i t e d i v e r s i f i e d : a t t h a t s a m e t i m e
t h e s i t e o f t h e o n l y d i s c o v e r y o f a N e a n d e r t h a l l a id o u t o n a w e f i n d a n n u l a r p e n d a n t s c a r v e d o u t o f b o n e , a s w e ll a s t e e t h
bed o f flo w e rs , fro m w h ic h a great n u m b e r o f f o s s iliz e d fro m v a r io u s a n im a l s p e c ie s ( f o x , w o lf, m a rm o t, a u r o c h s ,
p o l l e n s w e r e f o u n d . In M o n t e C i r c e o ( I t a l y ) , in a s i m i l a r l y e t c .) , m ade so th a t th e y c o u ld be hung by m eans of a
c o n v i n c i n g f i n d , a s k u l l w a s p l a c e d in t h e c e n t e r o f a c a v e p e r f o r a t i o n o f t h e r o o t o r a s l i t . F o s s i l s h e l l s w e r e t r e a t e d in
c h a m b e r . In t h e f a c e o f s u c h s t r i k i n g t e s t i m o n y , it i s d i f f i c u l t th e s a m e w a y . It m a y s e e m fa r -f e tc h e d to r e g a r d o r n a m e n ta l
n o t to a s crib e to th e im m e d ia te p r e d e c e s s o r s o f h u m a n k in d p e n d a n ts a s a n y th in g o th e r th a n p u r e ly a e s th e tic o b je c ts ,
as we know it to d ay s e n tim e n ts a n a lo g o u s to our ow n and, in f a c t, som e m ay have h ad e x c lu s iv e ly d e c o ra tiv e
re g a rd in g th e a fte rlife in a p a r a lle l u n iv e rs e , a u n iv e rs e fu n c tio n s . H o w e v e r, a m o n g th e h u n d r e d s o f p e n d a n ts a c ­
w h ic h m ay h ave been a s in e x p licit a s th a t o f th e a v e r a g e q u ir e d f ro m E u r o p e a n s ite s , th e m a jo rity re v e a l a p r e o c c u ­
s u b j e c t o f a n y o f t o d a y ' s m a j o r r e l i g i o n s . D if f i c u l t a s it m a y p a tio n w ith m a g ic at one lev el or a n o th e r. T h o se th a t
b e , g iv e n th e a v a ila b le e v i d e n c e , to d e sc rib e N e a n d e r th a l u n a m b ig u o u s ly re p re se n t m a le and fe m a le sexual o rg an s
m a n 's a ttitu d e to w a rd th e su p e rn a tu ra l, it is e v e n m o re m u s t s u r e l y h a v e h a d s o m e s o r t o f s y m b o l i c v a l u e ( f i g . 1 ).
d i f f i c u l t t o d e m o n s t r a t e t h e m e a n i n g o f w h a t f a l ls i n t o t h e T h e c y lin d ric a l f r a g m e n ts o f s ta la c tite a n d p o in ts o f b e le m -
c a te g o r y o f th e " c u l t o f b o n e r e m a i n s ." B e c a u s e b o n e is th e n ite s d e s ig n e d to h a n g m a y h a v e a m e a n in g o f th e s a m e
o n ly p h y s ic a l e le m e n t (h u m a n or a n im a l) th a t s u rv iv e s o r d e r . T h is s y m b o lic fu n ctio n o f s e x u a l im a g e s m a y have
d e c o m p o s i ti o n , a n y b o n e s f o u n d a s e v i d e n c e in a n u n u s u a l been e x te n d e d to in clu d e f ra g m e n ts o f s h a tte re d asseg ai
s itu a tio n c o u ld h a v e p l a y e d a p a r t in a c u l t . W h e t h e r w ith s p e a r s th a t w e re p e rfo ra te d b u t o th e rw is e u n tr e a te d (s e e th e
re s p e ct to N e a n d e r th a l m an o r to Homo sapiens, we h ave s y m b o lis m o f th e a s s e g a i b e lo w ). T h e ro le o f te e th d e s ig n e d
s o m e e v i d e n c e t h a t c a n b e e x p l a in e d in t e r m s t h a t a r e n o t a t t o h a n g m u s t h a v e b e e n r a t h e r c o m p l e x , a t l e a s t in th e e a r l y
v a r ia n c e w ith a n i n te r p r e t a t io n b a s e d o n t h e s u p e r n a t u r a l . s ta g e s , fo r th e te e th of som e a n im a ls , th e m arm o t fo r
S e p a r a te d b y s e v e ra l s c o r e s o f m ille n n ia , th e s k u lls o f M o n te e x a m p le , d o n o t s e e m to h a v e th e c h a r a c te r is tic s o f a tro p h y
C i r c e o ( M o u s te r i a n ) a n d th e s k u ll f r o m M a s - d 'A z i l ( M a g d a l e - o r a t a l i s m a n . T h i s is n o t t r u e o f t h e a t r o p h i e d c a n i n e s o f
n ia n ) a tte s t th e sp e c ia l c h a r a c te r o f th e h e a d (th e w h o le h e a d re in d e e r , w h ic h e v e n to d a y a r e s y m b o ls o f m a s c u lin ity a n d

12

Pendants with genital designs. Lett: series of female symbols; right:
phalloid symbol. 7.5 cm Isturitz (Pyrénées district). (Fig. I)
were imitated in bone or soft stone when pendants first
appeared.
The same applies to shells. For the most part they seem to
have a purely aesthetic function, but the rather frequent
discovery of porcelain (Cyprea), universally attested in pre­
historic and historic times as a protective female symbol,
makes it highly probable that the collection of shells served
as talismans. In short, having gone beyond a strictly decora­
tive function, long and oval pendants encompassed both the
aesthetic and the religious realms, and probably the social
realm as well, although we still have too little data to clarify
the matter.
T h e O c c u r r e n c e o f W a ll P a i n t i n g
The development of personal adornments does not dimin­
ish the importance of the collections of natural curiosities;
rather, it was an added feature that prevailed until the end of
the Upper Paleolithic Age, ca. 9000. Adornments evolved
throughout this period. But in the Aurignacian and the
Perigordian Ages, the main event was the spread of pictorial
[’ K I: I I I S T O K I C R I- I. I t, I () \
works. Between 30,000 and 20,000, certain forms began to
appear in engravings. These first forms were executed on
blocks and probably on the walls of rock shelters as well.
Despite their crudeness, they shed light on the concerns of
their creators. The repertoire of these works is very limited;
representation of the female genitalia, highly stylized, is the
most widespread. A few representations of the male genita­
lia can be found, but they were apparently replaced quite
early by abstract symbolic figures: dotted lines or bar lines
that seem to accompany explicitly female figures. There are
also highly geometrical figures of animals, parallel to one
another and often juxtaposed or superimposed on one
another. The Aurignacian-Gravettian bestiary includes the
horse, the bison, the ibex, and other imprecise figures
indicating that from the very beginning art made use of two
clearly defined registers: human figures symbolically ren­
dered, starting with the representation of the entire body
and progressing, by way of genital figures and animals, to
geometric figures. During the ensuing 20,000 years, the
details may have varied but the basic figures, human and
animal, remained in the same relationships. These relation­
ships cannot easily be established on the basis of the en­
graved blocks alone; displacement in the course of time and,
especially, following excavations has destroyed the spatial
ties that might have guided us to their meaning. But some­
thing happened, perhaps by the Gravettian Age but certainly
around 15,000: penetration deep into caves and the execution
of paintings or engravings, sometimes more than a kilometer
from the opening. This boldness on the part of Paleolithic
men is of immediate interest to us because the works
produced at such locations preserved their positions with
respect to one another and with respect to the wall itself. We
can therefore raise questions about the possible religious
ideology of the creators of these figures. What motives could
have inspired the Magdalenians of Niaux or Pech-Merle to
their speleological adventure? It is hard to believe that it was
just a matter of curiosity, and one is inclined to think that in
their eyes the cave must have seemed a mysterious amalgam
of female forms. Direct evidence is furnished by the numer­
ous oval cavities or cleft lips painted on the inside in red
ocher (Gargas, Font-de-Gaume, Niaux). The execution of
numerous genital symbols in deep side passages indirectly
reinforces the hypothesis of the woman-cave. To date, ex­
plicit male symbols are rare but one may find, on Aurigna­
cian blocks, for instance, signs made up of series of dots or
rods accompanying oval or triangular figures depicted with
different degrees of realism. All stages of development come
together, with regional nuances, from the whole female
figure to the pubic triangle rendered as an empty rectangle.
This tendency of male and female signs to conceal them­
selves behind abstract graphics may well have been a re­
sponse to taboos of a socioreligious character. This hypoth­
esis becomes all the more plausible as other figurative
anomalies give evidence of the same meaning. Not only is
there no known instance of human or animal mating any­
where in Paleolithic art, but sexual organs are explicitly
represented on relatively few figures. At Lascaux (where,
however, the bulls have obvious sexual characteristics), two
figures appear (fig. 6): the “jumping cow" in the Axial
Diverticulum and an engraved horse in the Passage, both of
which have their hooves turned in such a way that the
underbelly on both animals is visible and completely empty.
This strange mannerism in figure drawing is not easily
explained, but it does show the complexity of Paleolithic
thought. Curiously, secondary sexual characteristics (the
antlers of the cervidae, the thick withers of the bovidae, and
13
I N T R O D U C T I O N
the horns of the ibex) are rendered very exactly; and,
moreover, the animals are frequently depicted in couples,
the female in front and the male behind. It is certain that the
figures basically connote what might be thought of as a
"fertility cult," a generally banal statement that takes on a
subtlety in the present instance by virtue of the apparent
contradiction of the representation.
Animals
Paleolithic materials yield other peculiar data. The hun­
dreds of figures that cover the walls of caves seem at first
glance to defy any kind of order. Even though the idea of a
coherent whole emerges from the way the figures are ar­
ranged, few prehistorians have used this possible organiza­
tion to delve further into the ideology of the artists. One
rather surprising fact stands out: the fauna that are repre­
sented display variations that seem to reflect the environ­
ment. In some caves the bison, together with the horse, is
the principal subject ( Font-de-Gaume, Niaux, Altamira),
whereas in others the aurochs plays the main role (Lascaux,
Ebbon). But in all the cases cited above, the complementary
bovid (bison or aurochs depending on the site) is represented
by one or more figures separated from the rest. Another
point should also be mentioned: the reindeer that figure in
14
Middle part of the first great panel of the Cave of Pindal (Asturias).
Animals A and B (horse and bison) are reduced to the minimal
identifiable size: dorsal line and horns for the bison, which also bears
a scar from a wound in the shape of an inverted V; central portion of
the head and the neck and withers for the horse. Above the bison
and the horse, S2 line of the so-called claviform type (see fig. 5). The
photograph includes only the right side of a series of red and black
paintings. Between group A-B and the doe (C), there are several
groups of S1 and S3 signs. The doe is 85 cm long. (Fig. 2)
great numbers among the food wastes of the hunters at the
time of these works occupy little space in the iconography of
certain grottoes such as Lascaux, Niaux, or Altamira. At
Lascaux, rather paradoxically, though the bony remains of
reindeer make up almost all the animal wastes, only one
figure can be attributed to the reindeer, and even that is
somewhat doubtful. Thus the fauna depicted do not always
correspond to what Paleolithic man hunted. This fact is
important because, if it were confirmed, it would lead us to
conclude that at least some of the animals represented
played a role unconnected with the food that people then
lived on. The number of sites for which it was possible to
draw up a list of the animals depicted and a parallel list of the
animals consumed as meat is unfortunately too limited to
verify this hypothesis.
Groupings
We referred above to groupings of animal figures and
signs, starting with the Aurignacian Age (30,000). The most
frequent, almost exclusive animal grouping is of horses
(100%) and of bison (56%) (or of aurochs, 39%, in other
words, 95% for bovidae). This initial dyad, moreover, occu­
pies the center of all surfaces used, and may be repeated

several times in the same cave. The groupings in wall
paintings have a complexity that derives from the diversity of
the caves in which the decorations appear. So, too, geo­
graphical location and chronological evolution are reflected
in various applications of the initial figurative formula and in
the more or less pronounced use of natural forms. In any
case, it is likely that the cave or the surface of the shelter wall
was the object of a deliberate choice, and that the figures
were not piled one on top of another haphazardly.
The horse(A)-bovid(B) twosome appears at all sites (fig.
7.1). Although we must allow for the possibility of caves or
shelters that might not fit the basic AB formula, practically
speaking the AB group is always present and dominates the
groupings both numerically and topographically. But rarely
does the AB group appear alone. Another category of
animals intervenes, namely, group C (stag, mammoth, and
occasionally chamois and reindeer). Among the wall paint­
ing groups, the ibex is most often the accompanying animal,
but the stag, hind, mammoth, and reindeer also play the
same role, most often on the sidelines, on the outer perim­
eter of the central panel groupings, or in the intermediary
sections. The most frequent formula is thus AB -I- C, making
up a triad with one interchangeable element: the ibex at
Niaux, the mammoth at Rouffignac, the stag at Las Chime-
neas. In the same cave, we can also see "moving” animals, or
the following: at Niaux, the stag marks the deepest part of
Cave of Pech-Merle (Lot). Middle and left of the great frieze painted
in black. Two groups of animals can be seen: the group on the left
and the group on the right each include a horse (A) and two bison on
the right, two aurochs on the left. The mammoths present in both
groupings make up group C. Between the two groupings, there are
also three animals marked by signs: (1) a bull (B2) bearing a sign (S1)
with a male connotation on his side (see fig. 5); (2) a cow (B2) marked
by wounds (S2); (3) diagonally across from both animals, a mammoth
bearing three rows of thick red dashes. The figures are between 60
and 120 cm long. (Fig. 3)
P R E H I S T O R I C R E L I G I O N
the large painted surface, the rather numerous ibexes fram­
ing the AB figures; at Lascaux, the situation is similar—
ibexes appear three or four times immediately to the side of
a group of animals, stags being equal in number but farther
to the side. In a cave like the Combarelles, in which the
figures number into the hundreds, the "third animal" is
represented by the reindeer, the ibex, and the mammoth,
which are concentrated in the general area of the side panel
of each decorated gallery.
Finally, there is also a D category to which fierce animals
belong: the rhinoceros, the bear, and the big cats. The bear is
a relatively rare animal in Paleolithic iconography and has no
clearly defined place, but the rhinoceros and the big cats are
marginal animals, most often situated in the deepest or most
peripheral parts of the figured group. At Lascaux, Font-de-
Gaume, the Combarelles, to cite only a few, the big cats are
in this position. In these three places, the rhinoceros occu­
pies an analogous position: at Lascaux, at the bottom of the
Well; at Font-de-Gaume, at the end of the main gallery next
to the big cat; and at the Combarelles, superimposed over the
"lioness" from the end of the second gallery. The complete
formula for the grouping is C + AB + C ( + D) in the case of
a cave with a single composition, one that forms part of a
series. In extreme cases, as in Lascaux or Combarelles, one
may encounter a series of groupings with the basic formula
repeated time and again.
15
I N T R O D U C T I O N

Signs
Signs seem to follow the same general patterns as animal
figures. They fall into three categories (fig. 5). The first is
made up of male symbols (S1) ranging from the human body
depicted in its entirety to a simple little stick. In between are
sometimes very abstract transitions (lines branching out with
two extensions at the base, as in Lascaux). The signs of the
second group (S2) correspond to female symbols. Like the
signs of the first group, they range from a complete female
representation to an empty or partitioned rectangle. Tne
third group (S3), in comparison with the other two, is
homologous to the animals of group C or CD. It is made up
of aligned dots or a series of little sticks aligned or clustered.
In several cases, the S3 signs are repeated at the beginning
and the end of the figurative series. This phenomenon is
quite evident at Lascaux, where the aligned dots are found at
the entrance and at the far end of the Axial Diverticulum,
between the Passage and the Nave, at the bottom of the Well,
and at the end of the Diverticulum of the Big Cats. The signs
of the third group, therefore, occupy a position rather set
back, most often in the background, as at Font-de-Gaume,
Pech-Merle, and El Castillo.
The relationship between signs and animals corresponds
to the following broad lines: the S 'S 2 group is found juxta­
posed with the animals of groups A and B (fig. 2), as in the
case of the Diverticulum of the Big Cats at Lascaux (fig. 6), in
which the S’S2 signs are in the central panel, right across
from an AB group (horse-bison). But the signs may be
independent of the animal figures, grouped in a separate
diverticulum. Good examples can be found at Niaux (Black
Room), at El Castillo, at La Pasiega, and, notably, at Coug-
nac. The relationship between animals and signs may thus
be defined by the following formula:

C + AB + C + D
S3 + S ^ 2 + S3
Cave of Gargas (Hautes-Pyrénées). Panel showing "negative" hands
with "m utilated" fingers. Most such hands, colored red or black, are
C + AB + C + D/S'S2, grouped in twos by subject, and appear to have been executed by
S3 S3 folding in the fingers or by applying a stencil. (Fig. 4)

Both formulas can even be found in the same cave (La

Pasiega).
This complex arrangement must have encompassed an
ideology whose elaborate character may be perceived
through the arrangement. The situation is further compli­
cated, however, by the role played by the cave itself. Natural
caves have many accidental features that evoked, for Paleo­
lithic man, sexual forms, generally female. These natural
structures, fissures or stalagmitic formations, sometimes
underscored in red (Gargas, Niaux), are also frequently
completed with an S 1 sign (little sticks or dots: Gargas,
Combel de Pech-Merle, Niaux), proving that the natural
phenomenon was considered equivalent to S2. This is par­
ticularly clear in Niaux, where two fissures in the inner
gallery were marked at the entrance by a sign of male
connotation (branching sign) accompanied in one of the two
cases by a horse with its head extended in the direction of the
fissure.
In the course of millennia and in a territory as vast as that
of Paleolithic cave art, figurative traditions must have under­
gone numerous variations, and it is remarkable that we
should come across an ideographic system that is so well
constructed. Yet two rather important questions, concerning
the role of wounds on animals and the role of hands, remain
largely unresolved.
Wounds
In art objects as well as mural art, we find animals with
wounds. Ever since research on prehistoric religion began,
this detail has been thought to reveal the practice of magic
spells. This explanation is not altogether impossible, but
certain elements lead us to believe that it does not resolve the
problem entirely. In fact, 96% of the animal figures on file
(between 2,500 and 3,000) show no wounds. We might ask
ourselves if the two series, animal and sign, really belong to
the same symbolic system, or if two lines of symbols might
have existed without any organic ties between them. Signs
do seem to have played their role at the same times and in
the same places as animals. What is more, both evolved
synchronically, and both underwent parallel stylistic trans­
formations. It is very unlikely that signs were slipped in
among animals, with no connection to them, in the course of
various rituals; too many signs are connected to animals by
their position for the relationship not to be a close one, as the
Pech-Merle paintings show (fig. 3). This does not preclude
the claim that signs are sometimes independent, as at
Altamira, where the signs and the animals of the Great
Ceiling make up two distinct clusters; or as at El Castillo or
La Pasiega, where, for one important portion, the painted

16
 P R E H I S T O R I C R E L I G I O N

Geometrization of male and female symbols. S ’: phalloid deriva­

tives. S2: principal series of vulvar derivatives. S3: rows of punctua­
tion (dotted lines) and barred lines. Below, from left to right: S'-S2
groupings. El Castillo (Santander): triangle derivatives and branch­
ing sign. Lascaux (Dordogne): maximal geometrization and abstrac­
tions (empty rectangle and bar). Lascaux: crooked bar (S') and seven
aligned wounds (S2). S', S2, S3 groupings. Niaux (Ariège): bar (S’),
claviform (see same S2 figure), cloud of dots (S3). Pech-Merle (Lot): at
the entrance of a deep side passage, three figures that appear to
correspond in value to S ’: dotted line with four lateral dots (see same S3
figure). The negative hand probably corresponds to S2, and the cloud of
dots, farther into the passage, probably corresponds to S ’. (Fig. 5).
Lascaux (Dordogne): (1) Engraved horse with rump turned such that
the perineal region is exposed but devoid of primary sexual charac­
teristics. 60 cm. (2) Paintings from the axial gallery, central part of the
righthand wall. Aurochs in the same posture as the horse in front.
Secondary sexual characteristics (general profile) are attributable to a
cow, but primary characteristics, notably the udder, are invisible.
This figure is included in the grouping formula A-B S'-S2 (horse-
aurochs, bars, gridlike sign; see fig. 5). 1.70 m. (Fig. 6)
Gourdan (Haute-Garonne). The principle of association of animals A
and B may also be applied to portable objects. This engraving on
bone plaquette represents the aurochs-horse twosome with the
heads of both animals assembled like the faces on playing cards.
About 6 cm from nose to nose. (2) Raymonden (Dordogne). Partial
pendant (or fish spatula). A scene of a religious nature seems to be
unfolding: six or seven persons (perhaps more) are lined up on
either side of a line resembling barbed wire at the end of which is the
severed head of a bison and two paws with ill-defined hooves. Near
the knee, one of these legs bears a "chestnut," a horny growth that
is the vestige of the multifingered hoof of the ancestors of the equidae.
It may indeed be a horse leg, and this grouping with its sacrificial
look may refer to the A-B model. (3) Torre (Guipuzcoa). Roll of fine
engravings around a bone tube. From left to right: stag, man, horse,
chamois, two small ibex with frontal horns, and aurochs. This series
of animals referring to A-B model + C is of more than purely artistic
interest: between the subjects are abstract tracings (parallel or
crossed strokes, beginnings of spherical figures, clouds made of fine
dots, etc.) which must have ensured that Magdalenians could
"read" this mythogram. (4) Mas-d'Azil (Ariège). Bone plaquette
engraved with horses and fish, already strongly geometrized. My-
thographic theme bom out by several examples. (5) El Valle
(Santander). Bone tube with engraved bird. Subject related to
preceding one: two horses, one behind the other, a stag facing
forward, numerous features with no apparent meaning, perhaps a
snake, and some oval figures, probably fish. (6) El Pendo
(Santander). Bone tube engravings, like the preceding ones, but
virtually uninterpretable. There remains a part of the head and neck
of a horse and a herbivore with visible horns (or antlers) and ears
borne by a very long neck. Note that these two figures occupy the
same situation as those of the El Valle tube. (Fig. 7)

17
I N T R O D U C T I O N

s ig n s a r e c o lle c te d in a s i d e p a s s a g e ; o r a t C o u g n a c ( L o t ) , h a n d s in a g r o u p i n g th a t i n c l u d e s a n a u r o c h s , t w o h o r s e s ,
w h e r e S ' a n d S 2 s i g n s a r e l o c a t e d in a s i d e a l c o v e a w a y f r o m a n d o n e b i g c a t , a ll t r e a t e d in a v e r y p a r t i c u l a r s t y l e .
t h e a n i m a l f i g u r e s , w h i l e t h e S 3 s e r i e s o c c u r s in t h e f i g u r e d T h e re a r e s e v e ra l ty p e s o f n e g a tiv e h a n d s , p ro b a b ly c o r r e ­
p a n e ls . s p o n d i n g t o s e v e r a l d i f f e r e n t t r a d i t i o n s . T h e f i r s t c a t e g o r y is
W h e t h e r th e s e a r e tw o s e r ie s o f s y m b o ls e x e c u t e d s im u l­ m a d e u p o f h a n d s in te g ra te d in a g r o u p i n g t h a t i n c l u d e s ,
ta n e o u s ly a n d e x p e r ie n c e d a s fo r m in g th e fra m e o f a s in g le n o t a b l y , d o t t i n g s ; t h i s is t h e c a s e i n P e c h - M e r l e , w h e r e in s ix
i d e o lo g ic a l b lo c k , o r w h e th e r th e y a r e t w o s e p a r a te s e r ie s in sta n ce s h a n d s a re a s s o c ia te d w ith d o tte d l i n e s in c lo s e
w ith e le m e n ts th a t w e r e to e n t e r o n e a n o t h e r o n s y n c h r o n ic p ro x im ity to th e tw o c ris s c r o s s e d h o rses and on ce w ith
b u t d is tin c t le v e ls — e ith e r c a s e p r e s u p p o s e s a h ig h ly c o m p le x e le v e n d o tte d lin e s a b o v e th e o p e n in g o f a v e r y lo w s id e
in te lle c tu a l c o n t e n t , in tim a te ly tie d to an e la b o ra te s o c ia l p a s s a g e (fig . 5 ) . T h e s a m e a r r a n g e m e n t o f a n im a l fig u r e s a n d
s y s te m . C o u ld th e y b e s y m b o ls o f th e p ro p a g a tio n of hu­ d o t t i n g s is f o u n d in El C a s tillo . In th e P é rig o rd , n e g a tiv e
m ans and a n im a ls , a cosm ogon y th a t c a lls in to p la y th e h a n d s a p p e a r in is o la tio n (o n e a t F o n t-d e -G a u m e , o n e at
c o m p l e m e n t a r y f o r c e s o f m a l e a n d f e m a l e ? It is d i f f i c u l t t o C o m b a re lie s , s e v e ra l g r o u p e d a t B e rn ifa l, e t c .) . A t R o u c a d o u r
r e a c h a c o n c lu s io n w ith o u t g o in g b e y o n d th e a v a ila b le d a ta , (L o t), th e h a n d s a r e s u p e r p o s e d o v e r th e a n im a ls , a n d th e y
b u t c e r ta in ly we a re in th e p resen ce o f s o m e th in g q u ite h a v e lo n g p o in te d fin g e rs in cise d on a b la ck b a c k g r o u n d .
d if f e r e n t fr o m w h a t w a s l o n g i m a g in e d a b o u t “ th e P a le o lith ic T h e P e c h -M e rle h a n d s g iv e th e im p re s s io n o f b e in g in se rte d
s a v a g e s .” in a n a r r a n g e m e n t w h e r e t h e y p l a y a n i m p o r t a n t r o l e , s u r e l y
O f th e 4 % o f a n i m a l s s h o w i n g w o u n d s in t h e t h o r a c i c o r a s i m p o r t a n t a s th e S 2 s ig n s w ith t h e ir f e m a le c o n n o t a t io n .
th e n e ig h b o rin g a b d o m in a l areas, if w e do a p e rc e n ta g e T h e h a n d s i n t h e c a v e o f G a r g a s ( H a u t e s - P y r é n é e s ) , l ik e
c o u n t b y s p e c ie s , th e g r e a te s t n u m b e r g o e s to th e b iso n (8 % ), t h o s e in t h e n e i g h b o r i n g g r o t t o a t T i b i r a n , a r e v e r y d i f f e r e n t
th e n to th e h o r s e ( 2 .5 % ) , w ith z e r o o r le s s th a n 1% f o r a ll in n a t u r e ( f i g . 4 ) . R e p e a t e d s c o r e s o f t i m e s in d i f f e r e n t p a n e l s
o t h e r s p e c i e s . T h e r e is y e t a n o t h e r s t r i k i n g f a c t . A l t h o u g h and h o llo w s o f th e c a v e , th e y have th e sp e c ia l fe a tu re o f
w o u n d e d a n im a ls a r e e n c o u n te r e d th r o u g h o u t th e F r a n c o - c u t - o f f o r , m o r e l ik e l y , b e n t - i n f i n g e r s . T h e v a r i o u s c o m b i n a ­
C a n t a b r i a n r e g i o n , m o s t c a s e s o c c u r in t h e A r i è g e s e c t o r o f tio n s o f f in g e rs m ig h t h a v e b e e n p a r t o f a k in d o f s y m b o lic
th e P y r e n e e s , w ith th e g r e a te s t n u m b e r r e p r e s e n te d a t N ia u x c o d e o f th e a n i m a ls m o s t c o m m o n ly r e p r e s e n te d in fig u r a tiv e
(2 5 % of fig u re d a n im a ls ). The v a lu e of th e w ound as a a r t ( h o r s e , b is o n , ib e x , e t c .) . T h e s a m e d ig ita l f o rm u la a p p e a r s
te s tim o n y to m a g ic sp e lls fo r g a m e m ig h t be m e re ly an a g a i n in s i d e - b y - s i d e h a n d s r e p e a t e d tw ice a n d a lte rn a tin g
a c c e s s o r y p h e n o m e n o n , b u t th e h u n tin g s y m b o lis m to w h ic h b e t w e e n re d a n d b la ck (fig . 4 ) . E x a m p l e s c a n a l s o b e fo u n d a t
it r e f e r s is c e r t a i n . T h e f a c t t h a t w o u n d s a p p e a r e s s e n t i a l l y t h e o p e n i n g s o f n i c h e s o r f i s s u r e s , in t h e p o s i t i o n n o r m a l l y
o n ly on th e b o d ie s o f th e b a s ic t w o s o m e is p e r h a p s c o n ­ o c c u p ie d b y a n im a ls o r s ig n s o f C D a n d S 1 g r o u p s . A s s tra n g e
n e c te d w ith th e A B = S 'S 2 e q u a tio n , th e w o u n d s b e in g th e a s it m a y seem , th e "m u tila te d h an d s" o f G a r g a s , w h ic h
e q u i v a l e n t o f S 2 , t h a t is , t h e f e m a l e c o n n o t a t i o n . T h r e e p i e c e s i n c l u d e m a n y c h i l d r e n ' s h a n d s , a r e n o t m i s s i n g a ll f i v e f i n ­
of e v id e n ce m a y b e in v o k e d to s u p p o r t th is c o n t e n t i o n : a g e r s . T h e y s e e m to c o r r e s p o n d to a fa irly ra tio n a l a p p lic a tio n
h o r s e a t L a s c a u x b e a r i n g s e v e n w o u n d s o n i ts b o d y a n d a n S 2 o f s ig n a ls in v o lv in g v a r ia b ly b e n t f in g e rs , g e s t u r e s th a t c a n
s i g n ( f ig . 5 ) o n i ts n e c k a n d w i t h e r s ; a b i s o n a t B e r n i f a l w h o s e s ti ll b e o b s e r v e d to d ay am ong c e rta in g r o u p s o f h u n te rs ,
s h o u l d e r h a s a n o v a l w o u n d f l a n k e d b y t w o l it t le s t i c k s ; a n d n o ta b ly th e B u s h m e n . A s id e fro m th e m o n u m e n ta l a s p e c t o f
a b is o n a t N ia u x e n g r a v e d o n c la y , w h ic h h a s t h r e e w o u n d s th e c o n n e c t i o n s b e tw e e n th e g r o u p s o f h a n d s a n d th e ir n a t­
a n d t w o l it t le s t i c k s o n i ts s i d e . T h e s e p a r a l l e l s t i c k s b e l o n g t o u r a l s u p p o r t , t h e i d e o g r a p h i c a s p e c t is e x t r e m e l y i m p r e s s i v e .
th e h ig h ly v a r ie d p o rtio n o f m a s c u lin e s y m b o ls . O n e o f th e A n im a l a n d h u m a n f ig u re s m a k e u p th e g r o u n d o n w h ic h
b e st e x a m p le s o f th e re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n s ig n s a n d a n im a ls o u r t e n t a t i v e e x p l a n a t i o n o f w a ll p a i n t i n g r e s t s . T h i s e x p l a ­
is t h a t o f t h e g r e a t p a n e l o f P e c h - M e r l e ( f i g . 3 ) m a d e u p o f n a t i o n c a l l s o n d a t a w h i c h , in t h e w a y t h e y a r e a s s e m b l e d ,
tw o g r o u p in g s th a t s h a r e th e s a m e C a n im a l (C 2 m a m m o th ). s u g g e s t a c o m p le x id e o lo g ic a l c o n s t r u c t. T o w h a t e x t e n t c a n
O ne is t h e a u r o c h s - h o r s e ( A B 2 ), a n d th e o t h e r th e h o r s e - o b je c ts th a t a r e fo u n d not on w a lls b u t o n s ite s o f liv in g
b i s o n ( A B 1). B e t w e e n t h e t w o g r o u p i n g s o f f i g u r e s a r e t h r e e q u a r t e r s c o r r o b o r a t e th is c la im ?
a n im a ls : a b u ll, a c o w , a n d a m a m m o t h . E a c h b e a r s d if f e r e n t
s i g n s . T h e b u ll b e a r s a d o u b l e lin e o f d a s h e s w ith la te ra l
Objects
e x t e n s i o n s ( S ', o f m a le c h a r a c t e r ). T h e c o w is r i d d l e d w i t h
w o u n d s th a t s e e m to p la y th e ro le o f S 2 s ig n s . T h e m a m m o th C a v e s c o n t a i n p a r t i c u l a r l y p r e c i o u s d a t a , if o n l y b e c a u s e
is c o v e r e d w i t h r e d s p o t s a l i g n e d t o f o r m t h e e q u i v a l e n t o f th e i m a g e s h a v e p r e s e r v e d th e ir lo c a tio n o n w a lls. A n o le ss
th e S 3 s ig n . From th is e v i d e n c e w e can h y p o th e s iz e th a t p re c io u s s o u rc e o f in fo rm a tio n , h o w e v e r , m a y b e fo u n d o n
" w o u n d s " h a v e th e v a lu e o f a fe m a le s y m b o l. E s ta b lis h in g th e s u r f a c e s o f P a le o lith ic flo o r s s tr e w n w ith o b j e c ts th a t b e a r
th is s y m b o lis m w o u ld o p e n a v a s t r e a lm o f p o s s ib ilitie s fo r h u m a n a n d a n im a l f ig u r e s . S o m e o f t h e s e o b je c ts a r e fa irly
th e s y m b o lic s y s te m o f P a le o lith ic a r t , o n e th a t i n v o lv e s th e so ft fra g m e n ts of s to n e or f ra g m e n ts of bone on w h ic h
a l t e r n a t i o n o f s y m b o l s o f lif e a n d d e a t h . f ig u re s h a v e b e e n in c is e d o r s c u lp te d . N o p ra c tic a l f u n ctio n
can be a ttrib u te d to th e m , and we a re s tr u c k by th e ir
r e s e m b la n c e to th e f ig u re s o n w a lls. G iv e n th e ir ic o n o g r a p h ie
H ands
c o n te n t, w e a s k w h e th e r th e y c o u ld h a v e p la y e d th e s a m e
W h ile th e p ro b le m o f w o u n d s a llo w s u s to d o n o m o r e ro le in l iv in g q u a r t e r s a s t h e fig u r e s p l a y e d in th e c a v e , a n d
th a n h in t a t s o m e k in d o f m e ta p h y s ic a l s o lu tio n , positive w h e th e r th e y w e re u sed to re p r o d u c e th e s a m e c o m b in a ­
h a n d i m p r i n t s ( in w h i c h a h a n d is s m e a r e d w i t h c o l o r a n d t io n s . T h e s e q u e s t i o n s a r e d iffic u lt to a n s w e r d e c is iv e ly , fo r
p r e s s e d f la t a g a i n s t t h e w a l l ) a n d negative h a n d i m p r i n t s ( in th e p o s s ib ilitie s o f i c o n o g r a p h i e c o m b i n a ti o n s a r e e x t r e m e l y
w h ic h a h a n d is l a id flat a g a i n s t th e w a ll a n d o u t l in e d in v a r ie d . T h e fig u re s (s t a tu e t t e s , p la q u e tte s o r b lo c k s , w e a p ­
c o lo r) ra ise q u e stio n s e q u a lly re s is ta n t to c le a r an sw ers. o n s o r to o ls , p e r s o n a l a d o r n m e n t s ) m a y h a v e b e e n a s s e m ­
P o s itiv e h a n d s a r e s u b s ta n tia lly r a r e r th a n n e g a tiv e h a n d s b le d in a m e a n in g f u l w a y ( a c c o r d i n g to th e C -A -B -C + D
a n d s h o w u p i n f r e q u e n t l y in g r o u p i n g s , b u t t h e B a y o l c a v e in m o d e l), a c o n f ig u r a tio n th a t m a y p r e s u p p o s e , fo r e x a m p le ,
t h e A r d è c h e r e g i o n h a s a g o o d e x a m p l e . It s h o w s s i x p o s i t i v e e ith e r s e v e ra l p la q u e tte s e a c h b e a rin g o n e fig u re , o r s e v e ra l

18
 PRE HI ST O RI C REL IG ION

p la q u e tte s each b e a rin g sev eral a n im a l fig u re s . U n f o r tu ­ tw o a n im a ls A -B , o f te n a s s o c ia te d w ith o n e o r tw o a n im a ls

n a t e l y r a r e a r e t h e c a s e s w h e r e p o r t a b l e o b j e c t s a r e f o u n d in fro m g r o u p C . H u m a n fig u re s a n d m a le a n d fe m a le s y m b o ls
th e ir f u n c tio n a l p la c e s , a n d even ra r e r a r e s ite s w h e r e th e a r e a l s o p r e s e n t , a s t h e y a r e in w a l l p a i n t i n g s . T h e s p e c i a l ­
e x c a v a t o r s to o k th e tro u b le to r e c o r d th e e x a c t p o s itio n o f th e iz e d u s e o f c e r ta in o b je c ts m a y h a v e in f lu e n c e d th e c h o ic e o f
re lic s. Y e t w e c a n b e g in b y a s s u m i n g t h a t, s in c e c a v e s e x is te d th e f ig u re s th a t w e r e d r a w n o n th e m . T h e r e w e r e r e la tiv e ly
o n l y in a l i m i t e d n u m b e r o f a r e a s w h i l e v a s t t e r r i t o r i e s l e n t fe w d e co ra te d o b je c ts d u rin g th e first m ille n n ia ; re a lis tic
th e m se lv e s o n ly to o p e n -a ir s e ttle m e n ts , th e p la q u e tte s o f f i g u r e s , a t l e a s t , w e r e r a r e . It is n o t u n t i l t h e m i d d l e a n d l a t e
s to n e , iv o ry , or bone or th e s ta tu e tte s w h ic h s o m e tim e s M a g d a le n ia n A g e , fro m 1 2 ,0 0 0 to 9 0 0 0 , th a t o b je c ts m a d e o f
abound at such s ite s f u l f il l e d th e ro le th a t o th e r w is e de­ re in d e e r h o rn and b o n e b e g in to b e c o v e r e d w ith fig u re s.
v o lv e d u p o n c a v e w a lls . P r o p e llin g d e v ice s— h o o k ed p ie ce s p ro b a b ly d e s ig n e d to
We m ay a lso assu m e th a t th e o th e r d e co ra te d o b je c ts h u rl a s s e g a is a t g a m e — m o s t o f te n d e p ic t a s in g le a n im a l,
r e f l e c t , in w h o l e o r in p a r t , t h e s a m e i d e o l o g i c a l s c h e m e t h a t c lo s e to th e hook. On o b je c ts in th is c a te g o ry th e m o st
is d i s p l a y e d b y t h e g r o u p i n g o f t h e f i g u r e s o n t h e w a l l s . e c le c tic a s s o r tm e n t c a n b e fo u n d : h o rs e , b iso n , m a m m o th ,
ib e x , re in d e e r, b ig c a t, fish , b ird . The p ro p e llin g d e v ic e s
(th e ir real u se is s ti ll unknow n) th u s fa ll in th e sam e
Statuettes
ico n o g ra p h ie c a te g o ry a s p la q u e tte s a n d s ta tu e tte s .
S t a t u e t t e s o f a n i m a l s a r e r e l a t i v e l y r a r e in t h e P a l e o l i t h i c a r t
o f w e s te rn E u r o p e . T h e c a v e o f I s tu ritz (B a s s e s -P y ré n é e s )
s ta n d s o u t a s a n e x c e p t i o n w ith its n u m e r o u s a n i m a ls (b is o n , Perforated Sticks
h o r s e s , b e a r s ) i n c is e d in s o f t r o c k . T h e t r u e d o m a i n o f a n im a l
P e r f o r a te d s tic k s a r e a d if f e r e n t s to r y . A k in d o f le v e r m a d e
f i g u r e s in r o u n d r e l i e f is c e n t r a l a n d e a s te rn E u ro p e. T h e
o f r e in d e e r h o r n s , th e s tic k c o n s i s ts o f a c y lin d r ic a l h a n d le
p ic to r ia l r e p e r t o r y o f E u r o p e e a s t o f t h e R h in e is m o s t ly m a d e
w ith a b if u r c a t io n a t o n e e n d in w h ic h a h o l e t h r e e c e n t i m e ­
u p o f s t a t u e t t e s m o l d e d in c l a y m i x e d w i t h p o w d e r e d b o n e
t e r s in d i a m e t e r h a s b e e n p i e r c e d a t th e t h ic k e s t p o i n t . Its re a l
( M o r a v i a ) , i n c i s e d in b o n e o r i n m a m m o t h iv o ry ; a n d fig u ­
u s e w a s to s tr a i g h t e n o u t , w h ile h o t o r c o ld , th e lo n g a s s e g a i
rin e s o f m a m m o t h , h o r s e , b is o n , a n d b ig c a ts . T h e f u n c tio n s
s p e a r s th a t h a d k e p t th e c u r v a t u r e o f th e h o r n s fro m w h ic h
o f th e s e s ta tu e tte s a r e a s y e t u n c le a r, b u t s in c e th e y m u s t
th e y h a d b e e n m a d e . T h e c la s s o f p e r f o r a te d s tic k s in c lu d e s
h a v e a s s u m e d th e s a m e r o le a s th a t p la y e d b y th e e n g r a v i n g s
a l a r g e n u m b e r o f c a r e f u l l y d e c o r a t e d o b j e c t s . In a s i g n i f i c a n t
a n d p a i n t i n g s in t h e c a v e s , t h e y m u s t h a v e t h e s a m e s y m ­
p r o p o r t i o n o f t h e m , t h e h a n d l e is s c u l p t e d in t h e s h a p e o f a
b o lic r a n g e s .
p h a llu s . S o m e tim e s b o th e x te n s io n s o f th e h e a d o f th e o b je c t
O n e c a t e g o r y o f f i g u r e s is m a d e u p o f f e m a l e s t a t u e t t e s ,
h a v e th is d e c o r a t io n . T h e r e a r e a l s o m a n y p e r f o r a te d s tic k s
in a c c u r a te ly c a lle d " V e n u s ” f i g u r e s , t h a t a p p e a r in v a r i o u s
th a t b e a r th e A -B g r o u p in g (h o r s e -b i s o n ) o r th e th ird a n im a l,
fo r m s d e p e n d i n g o n th e s ta g e s o f th e P a le o lith ic e p o c h a n d
in t h e f o r m o f a s t a g , a r e i n d e e r , o r a n i b e x . A w h o l e s e r i e s o f
th e r e g io n s in w h ic h t h e y w e r e e x e c u t e d . T h e i te m s d i s c o v ­
p e r f o r a te d s tic k s a r e d e co ra te d on th e ir la te ra l e x t e n s i o n s
e r e d a t K o stie n k i (o n th e D o n R iv e r), o n U k r a n ia n s ite s , a t
w ith tw o heads of b iso n , h ig h ly g e o m e triz e d and o f te n
P r e d m o s t in M o r a v i a , W i l l e n d o r f in A u s t r i a , a n d a t B r a s s e m -
r e d u c e d to tw o s e ts o f p a ra lle l b a r s . T h is d e c o r a t iv e e le m e n t
pouy and L esp u g u e in s o u th w e s te rn F ran ce show in th e
c a n b e fo u n d fro m th e A s tu ria s to S w itz e rla n d . S o m e p e r f o ­
d e ta ils of th e ir e x e cu tio n th a t th e y b e lo n g to th e sam e
ra te d s tic k s fe a tu re r e a lis tic scen es, such as th e one at
p icto ria l tra d itio n s . W e re th e r e lig io u s t r a d itio n s th a t th e y
D o rd o g n e in L a u g e rie -B a sse , w h ic h on one s id e show s a
w e r e s u p p o s e d t o i l l u s t r a t e o f t h e s a m e n a t u r e ? T h a t is h a r d
m a n k n o c k e d o v e r b y a b is o n a n d o n th e o t h e r s id e a h o r s e ;
to a n s w e r , fo r th e g o o d re a s o n th a t fe m a le s ta tu e tte s c a n o n ly
o r t h e o n e in L a M a d e l e i n e , w h i c h h a s a m a n , a s n a k e , a n d
s y m b o l i z e a lim ite d n u m b e r o f f u n c t i o n s , g e n e r a l l y r e l a ti n g
tw o h o rse s on one s id e , and tw o b iso n on th e o th e r.
to fe rtility . B ased on w hat we know to d ay , it w o u ld be
C e rta in ly th e se a n im a ls w ere n ot g ro u p ed in a f o rtu ito u s
d iffic u lt to s a y a n y m o r e a b o u t t h e m , e x c e p t p e r h a p s t h a t th e
m a n n e r : th e H -B + A fo r m u la ( H u m a n - b is o n + h o r s e ) is t h e
s t a t u e tt e s d i s c o v e r e d in liv in g q u a r t e r s m a y h a v e p l a y e d a n
s a m e f o r m u l a a s in t h e f a m o u s s c e n e o n t h e W e l l a t L a s c a u x
i d e n t i c a l r o l e t o t h a t o f t h e s i g n s in t h e g r o u p i n g s o f f i g u r e s
(a m a n k n o c k e d o v e r b y a b is o n , w ith a h o r s e o n th e o p p o s i t e
o n th e w a lls . M a le f ig u re s b y th e ir v e r y s c a r c ity s e e m to h a v e
w a ll). The seco n d scen e, h ow ever, m u st re fe r to a n o th e r
o c c u p ie d a m u c h m o re m o d e s t p la ce .
m y th ic c o n te n t, f o r its f o r m u la , H -A + B ( + S) (H u m a n -
In b r i e f , p l a q u e t t e s , w h i c h a r e f a r m o r e n u m e r o u s in t h e
h o rse + b i s o n [ a n d s n a k e ] ) , h a s n o k n o w n e q u i v a l e n t , b u t it
W e s t th a n s ta t u e tt e s , a n d s ta t u e tt e s , w h ic h a r e m o r e n u m e r ­
d o e s h ig h lig h t th e i m p e r a tiv e c h a r a c t e r o f th e r e p r e s e n ta t io n
o u s th a n p l a q u e t t e s in c e n t r a l a n d e a s t e r n E u r o p e , s e e m to
o f t h e c o m p l e m e n t a r y a n i m a l : in t h e f i r s t c a s e , t h e h o r s e ; in
have had th e s a m e fu n c tio n s . G iv e n th e re s e m b la n c e s b e ­
th e seco n d , th e b iso n . We s h o u ld a lso n o te th a t, as at
tw e e n p o rta b le a r t (o n p la q u e tte s a n d s ta tu e tte s ) a n d m u ra l
L a s c a u x , t h e s e c o n d a n i m a l is o n t h e s i d e o p p o s i t e t o t h e o n e
a r t, w e c a n a s c rib e id e n tica l fu n c tio n s to th e m a n d a s s im ila te
w ith th e s c e n e .
th e m to th e s a m e re lig io u s p r o c e s s . U n f o r tu n a te ly , th is d o e s
n o t e n t ir e l y c la r if y th e d e t a il s o f t h e p r o c e s s t h a t w e k n o w to
have b o rro w e d th e sam e b a sic s y m b o ls t h r o u g h o u t a ll o f
Assegais
E u r o p e fo r t w e n ty t h o u s a n d y e a r s . T h e fo rm u la A -B , C , D +
S ', S2, S 1 d id not n e c e s s a r ily have th e sam e id e o lo g ic a l A s s e g a is m ake up a c a te g o ry of p a rtic u la rly e x p re s siv e
i m p l i c a t i o n s in t h e U r a l s a s it d i d o n t h e b a n k s o f t h e V é z è r e . d e c o r a te d ite m s . T h e o r n a m e n ta tio n o n th e s e s p e a r s a p p e a r s
The h u n d red s of p la q u e tte s of e n g ra v e d sch ist fro m r e la tiv e ly e a rly , a ro u n d 2 0 ,0 0 0 , and c o n s is ts of g e o m e tric
G ö n n e r s d o r f (d a tin g f ro m th e M a g d a le n ia n e p o c h c a . 1 0 ,0 0 0 ) p a tte rn s , s o m e tim e s of a h ig h ly s im p lif ie d a n im a l fig u re .
le ft ly in g o n th e g r o u n d m a y n o t h a v e h a d th e s a m e fu n c tio n T h e s e m a r k i n g s m a y c o r r e s p o n d t o d i f f e r e n t h u n t e r s in t h e
as th e heavy e n g ra v e d b lo c k s of th e A u rig n a c ia n epoch s a m e g r o u p . B u t a s tim e w e n t b y , th e a n im a l f ig u re s m u lti­
a r o u n d 3 0 ,0 0 0 . p lie d o n s o m e o f t h e s e a s s e g a is . D u r in g t h e l a te M a g d a l e n i a n
It s e e m s p o s s i b l e n e v e r t h e l e s s t o d i s c e r n in t h e g r o u p i n g s e r a , s o m e w e r e c o v e r e d w ith r o w s o f h o r s e s o n a r a i s e d fie ld ,
o f a r t o b je c ts a n d m u r a l a r t a lik e th e s y s te m a t i c p r e s e n c e o f w h ic h s u g g e s ts th a t th e y s e r v e d a s i n s tr u m e n ts fo r p a r a d e s

19
I N T R O D U C T I O N

or r itu a ls ra th e r th a n as e f fe c tiv e w eap on s. The ends of s e e m to b e p a r a d i n g in f r o n t o f a b is o n , o r a n o t h e r ite m f ro m

a s s e g a is a r e o f te n p e r f o r a te d to m a k e th e m in to p e n d a n ts . C h a n c e la d e (fig . 7 .2 ) on w h ic h sev en hum an s ilh o u e tte s
S u ch p ie ce s m a y h a v e b e e n p a rt o f a p a rtic u la r a s s e g a i th a t a p p e a r to s u r r o u n d a b i s o n 's h e a d a n d s e v e r e d fr o n t h o o v e s .
w a s l u c k y in i ts h u n t i n g a n d t h e r e b y s e r v e d a s a “ t a l i s m a n . " T h e s e tw o e x a m p le s , p ro b a b ly v a r ia n ts o f th e s a m e th e m e ,
T h e n u m e r o u s p e n d a n t s f o u n d in t h e U p p e r P a l e o l i t h i c A g e show how th e d is c o v e ry o f n e w v e r s io n s m ig h t h e lp u s to
a r e la rg e ly in sp ire d b y s e x u a l s y m b o lism (c o w rie s h e ll, o v a l d e c ip h e r a n in c r e a s in g ly im p o rta n t p a rt o f th e P a le o lith ic
p e n d a n t s , s t a g c a n i n e s , e t c . ) . It is t h u s l ik e l y t h a t t h e a s s e g a i m essag e.
p la y e d a d u a l s y m b o lic ro le . A fe w in d ic e s s e e m to s u p p o rt A s ig n ific a n t n u m b e r o f s p e c im e n s (fig s . 7 .4 , 7 .5 , 7 .6 ) b e a r
t h i s c o n t e n t i o n , n a m e l y , t h e p r o b a b l e a s s i m i l a t i o n in m u r a l a n o r n a m e n ta tio n t h a t is v e r y d i f f i c u l t t o i d e n t i f y : a r o w o f
a r t o f m a le s y m b o ls w ith th e a s s e g a i a n d f e m a l e s y m b t Is c u r v e s a n d o v o id fig u re s in c lu d in g a r e c o g n iz a b le h o r s e h e r e
w ith th e w ound. M any d e ta ils fro m th e n a tu ra l re lie f o f and t h e r e o r a h ig h ly s im p lif ie d s ta g , o r s o m e t im e s a fish .
w a lls , s u c h a s o v a l n ic h e s p a in te d re d a n d th e w o u n d s o n G iv e n th e c o n s ta n c y w ith w h ic h g e o m e tr ic m o tifs r e p la c e
c e r t a i n a n i m a l s , s u p p o r t s u c h a h y p o t h e s i s . B u t it is d i f f i c u l t e x p lic it f ig u re s , w e c o u ld a lm o s t s p e a k o f id e o g r a m s , th o u g h
to c o n s o l id a t e th e id e o lo g ic a l a s p e c t s o f th is s y m b o lic f r a m e w e n e e d n o t s e e in t h e s e s e m i g e o m e t r i c f i g u r e s t h e e l e m e n t s
of referen ce. o f " w r i ti n g ." W e c a n a s s u m e th a t th e g e o m e tr iz e d s y m b o ls
O th e r d e co ra te d o b je c ts th a t m ig h t shed lig h t on th e p r e s e r v e d t h e i r m e a n i n g , s o t h a t a g r o u p i n g l ik e " c h e v r o n s -
re lig io u s th o u g h t o f P a le o lith ic m a n re q u ire a n e v e n m o re b ro k e n lin e s " c o u ld b e e q u iv a le n t to , fo r i n s ta n c e , " h o r s e -
s e n s itiv e in te r p r e ta tio n . H a r p o o n p o in ts w ith r e a lis tic d e c o ­ s n a k e , " c h e v r o n s b e i n g t h e ta il e n d o f a r o w o f h o r s e s , a n d
ra tio n a r e e x tr e m e ly r a r e . C o n v e r s e ly , w e d o h a v e a c o n s i d ­ t h e b r o k e n l in e b e i n g t h e g e o m e t r i z a t i o n o f th e s n a k e 's b o d y :
e r a b l e n u m b e r o f s p a t u l a s in t h e s h a p e o f f i s h , o f t e n h i g h l y b o t h c a s e s e x i s t in a n e x p l i c i t f o r m .
g e o m e triz e d . T h e y m a y b e a r s y m b o lic m e a n in g , b u t a t w h a t It m ig h t seem s u r p r is in g to hear so l it t le s a id ab ou t
le v e l? T h e s c a le o f v a lu e s m a y r a n g e fro m a r e p r e s e n ta tio n o f " p r e h i s t o r i c r e l ig i o n ." A s f a r a s p r a c ti c e s a r e c o n c e r n e d , o u r
a p rim a rily a e s th e tic c h a r a c t e r to a n i n s tr u m e n t in d is p e n s ­ k n o w le d g e c o n s is ts m a in ly o f g a p s . W e m a y im a g in e th a t th e
a b le fo r th e e x e c u tio n o f a ritu a l. T h e s a m e m a y b e s a id o f th e caves w e re s h r i n e s in w h ic h h ig h ly e la b o ra te ritu a ls to o k
r i n g s o f b o n e , t h r e e o r f o u r c e n t i m e t e r s in d i a m e t e r , w i t h a p l a c e , b u t a ll w e have i s w a ll d e c o r a t i o n s . T h e f a c t t h a t t h e
v e r y e c le c tic r a n g e o f a n im a l e n g r a v i n g s o n b o th s id e s . T h e d e a d w e r e b u r i e d w i t h o c h e r a n d , a t l e a s t in s o m e c a s e s , w i t h
fi s h s p a t u l a w i t h i ts i n e v i t a b l e i c o n o g r a p h i e b a s e ( u s u a l l y a fu n e ra ry p erso n al e f f e c ts , le a d s us to a scrib e to U pper
sp e c ie s o f Salmonidac), and th e rin g s o f b o n e o n w h ic h a ll P a le o lith ic m a n som e n o tio n of an a fte rlife , b u t w e k n o w
s p e c ie s a r e r e p r e s e n te d (in c lu d in g th e h u m a n s p e c ie s ) p r o ­ n o th in g a b o u t i ts m o d a litie s in any d e ta il. The ta b le ts o r
v id e u s o n l y w ith a b a s ic a s s u m p t io n a n d c e r ta i n ly n o t w ith e n g rav ed b lo c k s te ll us about ico n o g ra p h ie a c tiv itie s th a t
e v i d e n c e f o r a n e n t i r e s u p e r s t r u c t u r e o f b e l i e f s . It is t h e r e f o r e m u s t h a v e h a d a r e lig io u s p u r p o s e , b u t w e a r e fa r fro m b e in g
b y r e f e r e n c e to th e fig u r e s o n w a lls a n d p l a q u e t t e s th a t th e a b l e t o a s s e r t w h a t k i n d o f p u r p o s e it w a s . T h e s a m e a p p l i e s
ic o n o g r a p h y o f p o r ta b le o b je c ts c a n b e a n a ly z e d . W e m ay to d e c o r a te d o b je c ts ( p e r f o r a te d s tic k s , p ro p e llin g d e v ic e s ,
a l s o w a n t t o v i e w in t h e s a m e s p i r i t t h e s o - c a l l e d s i l h o u e t t e s p a t u l a s , e t c .) o f w h ic h w e c a n n o t e v e n c la im to k n o w th e
o u tlin e s , s m a ll p e n d a n ts ca rv e d out of a h y o id bone, of e xact u sag e. N e v e r th e le s s , th e w e a lth o f th e ic o n o g r a p h y
w h ic h th e re a re m a n y k n o w n e x a m p le s s h o w in g h e a d s o f an d th e c o n s ta n c y o f c e rta in re la tio n s h ip s b e tw e e n fig u re s
h o r s e s a s w e ll a s a g r o u p o f e i g h t e e n ib ex h e a d s a n d one a n d b e tw e e n fig u re s a n d th e s u r f a c e s o n w h ic h th e y a p p e a r
b is o n h e a d , w h ic h m a y r e m in d u s o f th e tria d h o r s e - b is o n - m a k e it p o s s i b l e f o r u s t o s k e t c h t h e b a r e o u t l i n e s o f a s y s t e m
i b e x , t h e m o d e l o f w a ll d e p i c t i o n . of r e lig io u s th o u g h t, th o u g h its b ack g ro u n d is s ti ll very
O n e l a s t c a t e g o r y o f m a t e r i a l s is m a d e u p o f g r o u p i n g s o f m u rk y . T h e c o m p le x ity a n d q u a lity o f th e s e g r o u p in g s e x ­
fig u re s e n g r a v e d m o s tly o n c y lin d ric a l o b je c ts (tu b e s o f b ird p r e s s fe e lin g s (w ith n u a n c e s tie d to p l a c e s a n d tim e s ) th a t
b o n e , a s s e g a i s h a f ts , e t c .) , s im ila r to th e p e r f o r a te d s tic k s re fle ct s im u lta n e o u s ly th e a e s th e tic and re lig io u s life of
re fe rr e d to a b o v e . S o m e o f th e s e o b je c ts b e a r e x p lic it fig u re s , P a le o lith ic m a n .
l ik e t h e b o n e t u b e o f T o r r e ( S p a i n ) , w h i c h in t h e s p a c e o f A .L .- G ./g .h .
fifte e n c e n tim e te r s d e p ic ts a s e r ie s o f b u s ts in c lu d in g a s ta g ,
m an, h o rse , c h a m o is , ib ex, and a u ro ch s (fig . 7 .1 ) . T h is
g r o u p in g , w h ic h m a y a l s o i n c o r p o r a t e s ig n s in p a ra lle l o r
BIBLIOGRAPHY
c o n v e r g i n g l i n e s c r o s s - h a t c h e d i n s i d e w i t h l a d d e r s , is n o t f a r
rem o ved fro m c e r ta i n w a ll g r o u p in g s , s u c h a s th e d i v e r o f H. br eu il , Quatre cents siècles d'art pariétal (Montignac 1952). r. gra z io si ,
P o r t e l ( A r i è g e ) , w h o s e m i d d l e p a r t is o c c u p i e d b y a h o r s e , a L'arte dell’antica eta della pietra ( Florence 1956). a . i. am in c -em pera ir e , La
b iso n , a n d m a le a n d fe m a le s ig n s , w h ile th e p e rip h e ry is signification de Varl rupestre paléolithique (Paris 1962). andrê i.eroi-
o c c u p i e d b y th e th ird s ig n (S 3), a n ib e x , a n d a s ta g . It w o u ld g o u rh an . Préhistoire de Part occidental (Paris 1965); Les religions de la
b e h a rd n o t to re g a rd th e s e v a r io u s a s s e m b le d a n im a ls a s th e préhistoire (Paris 1971); "Les signes pariétaux de Paléolithique’su­
p r o ta g o n is ts o f a m y th ic a l s to ry , a m y th o g r a m r a th e r th a n a périeur franco-cantabrique," Simposio intern, de arte rupestre (Barce­
c a ta lo g u e of th e p resu m ed v ic tim s of a s p e ll of h u n tin g
lona 1968), 67-77, fig.; "Considérations sur l'organisation spatiale
des figures animales dans l'art pariétal paléolithique," Actes del
m a g ic . B u t w h a te v e r th e f ig u re s m a y d e s i g n a t e p re c is e ly , w e
Symposium intern, de arte preliis. (Santander 1972), 281-308; "Iconog­
c a n n o t y e t a ffo rd to g o o u ts id e th e re a lm o f fa ct to v e n t u r e a n
raphie et interprétation," Val Camonica symposium 72 (Capo di Ponte
e x p la n a tio n . T h u s w e h a v e a w h o le s e rie s o f g r o u p in g s o n 1975), 49-55. a r let te le ro i -c o u r iia n , "The Flowers Found with
c y lin d e r s o r p la q u e tte s , g r a p h ic a lly e x p lic it b u t ju s t a s m y s ­ Shanidar IV, a Neanderthal Burial in Iraq," Science 190 (1975):
t e r io u s a s e v e r , s u c h a s th e s tr a n g e o b je c t f o u n d in L e s E y z ie s 562-64. L. m eroc , "Informations archéologiques, Circonscription de
o n w h ic h e ig h t h u n te r s c a r r y in g a s s e g a is o n th e ir s h o u ld e r s Toulouse, Mas d'Azil," Gallia Préhistoire 4 (1961):256-57.

20
 " N O M A D I C T H O U G H T " A N D R E L I G I O U S A C T I O N

T h e m y th o lo g y o f h u n te r -g a th e r e r s o c ie tie s p r e s e n ts n o ta ­
" N omadic T hought " and R eligious A ction b le s im ila ritie s . T h e m y th s th a t r e t r a c e th e o r ig in s o f a s o c ie ty
a r e a p p a r e n t l y u n i v e r s a l a n d c o m e o u t o f t h e s a m e m o l d . In
th e se m y th s , th e c u ltu re h ero c re a te s m a n k in d and i ts
W h e n th e ra in y s e a s o n c o m e s , th e m e n d ic a n t m o n k s to p s
c u s to m s ; h e d o m e s tic a te s fire , te a c h e s a r ts a n d c r a f ts , a n d
w a n d e r in g a n d h e a d s b a ck to h is m o n a s t e r y .1
s h a p e s t h e l a n d s c a p e a n d a n i m a l s . In t h e c o s m o l o g y , s p i r i t s
For som e years now , n o m a d ic s o c ie tie s have aw akened a re not g o d s: cu ltu re h e ro e s or c re a to r s p ir its no lo n g e r
s tro n g and re n e w e d in te re s t am ong e th n o lo g is ts . On an i n t e r v e n e in t h e a f f a i r s o f m e n , a n d t h a t i s w h y t h e y a r e n o t
in tu itiv e le v e l, th e s e s o c ie tie s s c a t te r e d o v e r th e g lo b e s e e m w o rs h ip e d . T h e y h a v e to d o w ith e x is te n tia l id e o lo g y a n d
to b e m u tu a lly c o m p a r a b l e , a n d a t te m p t s h a v e b e e n m a d e to n o t w i t h n o r m a t i v e i d e o l o g y . J u s t a s t h e a c c e n t is p l a c e d o n
c o n s tr u c t m o d e ls o f s u c h s o c ie tie s , th a t is, to g o b e y o n d th e th e p erso n in n o m a d ic s o c ie ty , so th e w o rld o f s p ir its is
e m p iric a l d iv e r s ity th a t s c ie n c e seeks to o v e r c o m e . These s tr o n g ly in d iv id u a liz e d ; e g a lita r ia n is m w ith in th e g r o u p is
a t te m p t s a t s y n t h e s i s , n o ta b ly th e c o lle c tiv e w o r k p u b lis h e d r e f l e c t e d in t h e a b s e n c e o f a n y h i e r a r c h y a m o n g t h e s p i r i t s .
u n d e r th e d ire c tio n o f L e e a n d D e V o re 2 o n h u n te r -g a th e r e r s , T h e in d iv id u a l d e a ls d ir e c tly w ith th e w o r ld o f th e s u p e r n a t ­
and th e w o rk s of B. S p o o n e r1 on p a sto ra l nom ad s, a re u ra l. E xcep t fo r th e s h a m a n /d o c to r, th e re is no r e lia b le
e v i d e n c e o f th e s p e c ia l p o s itio n th a t n o m a d ic s o c ie tie s o c ­ m e d ia tio n b y s p e c ia liz e d in d i v id u a l s .7 T h e c u l t u r e h e r o w h o
c u p y t o d a y in e t h n o l o g y . o f f e r s t h e w o r l d t o h u m a n s a f t e r h e h a s c r e a t e d t h e m is n o t
T h e te rm " n o m a d i s m ” c o v e r s q u ite d iv e r s e p h e n o m e n a : to ta lly ab sen t fro m n o m a d ic s o c ie tie s ; but p ro b a b ly m o re
h u n te r-g a th e re rs a n d p a sto ra l n o m a d s m o v e o v e r g r e a te r o r c h a r a c te r is tic of su ch s o c ie tie s is th e s tr o n g ly e x is te n tia l
le ss e r d is ta n c e s , m o r e o r le s s f r e q u e n tly ; h u n te r - g a th e r e r s a s p e c t o f th e i d e o l o g y a s w e ll a s e g a l i ta r ia n i s m . T h e a b s e n c e
m ake u se o f w ild o b je c ts , a n d p a sto ra l nom ads d o m e s tic o f a u th o r ita r ia n c h ie fs a n d o f a c e r ta in ty p e o f p o w e r e x ­
o b je c ts , to m e d ia te th e ir re la tio n w ith th e n a tu r a l e n v ir o n ­ c lu d e s c e rta in ty p e s o f d iv in e fig u re s . M o re o v e r, n o m a d ic
m e n t. A lth o u g h n o m a d ic s o c ie tie s d iffe r a m o n g th e m s e lv e s h u n te r s p a y little a t te n t io n to w h a t d o e s n o t in v o lv e th e m
in t h e i r t y p e o f e c o n o m y a n d in t h e b r e a d t h a n d f r e q u e n c y o f d ir e c tly . A c c o r d in g ly , th e M b u ti a r e m o r e c o n c e r n e d w ith th e
th e ir m o v e m e n t s , a s a g r o u p th e y c o n t r a s t w ith s o c ie tie s th a t p r e s e n t th a n w ith th e p a s t o r th e f u tu r e . T h e y a r e p ra c tic a l
d o n o t m o v e , s e t t l e d s o c i e t i e s , a n d it is in t h i s l i g h t t h a t w e p e o p l e . T h e y e s c h e w a ll s p e c u l a t i o n a b o u t t h e f u t u r e o r t h e
s h a ll c o n s i d e r th e m fo r th e p u r p o s e s o f th is s tu d y , s e tt in g h e r e a f te r o n th e g r o u n d s th a t n o t h a v in g b e e n th e re th e y d o
a s id e th e w ays in w h ic h th e grou p co u ld be su b d iv id e d . n o t k n o w w h a t it is l ik e a n d n o t k n o w i n g w h a t it i s l ik e t h e y
D i s s i m i l a r in m a n y w a y s , b o t h s o c ia l a n d e c o n o m i c , th e se c a n n o t p r e d i c t w h a t t h e i r b e h a v i o r w il l b e . T h e y s a y t h a t t o
s o c ie tie s s h a r e n o t o n ly iti n e r a n t b e h a v i o r b u t a l s o c e r ta i n t r y t o l o o k i n t o t h e f u t u r e is t o " w a l k b l i n d l y . " 8 k n o w l e d g e is
c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , w h i c h w e w ill e x a m i n e in o r d e r t o d e t e r m i n e co n sid e re d a w ay of liv in g ra th e r th a n a ru le . And it is
w h e th e r th e y a re re fle cte d at th e le v e l of th o u g h t an d p r e c i s e l y in t h e i r b e h a v i o r in t h e f a c e o f — r a t h e r t h a n b y t h e
w o r l d v i e w . S t a r ti n g w ith a lim ite d a m o u n t o f w o r k d o n e o n c o n te n t o f— m y th o r th e s u p e r n a tu r a l th a t th e c le a r o u tlin e s
th is s u b je c t, w e c a n b u t s u g g e s t a d ir e c tio n o f s tu d y a n d p o s it o f a w a y o f th in k in g p e c u lia r to n o m a d s b e g in to e m e r g e . W e
s o m e h y p o t h e s e s fo r r e s e a r c h . T o fin d p a n t h e o n s c o m m o n to s e e in h u n t e r - g a t h e r e r s c e r t a i n f e a t u r e s a l r e a d y o b s e r v e d in
n om ad s, if s u c h a th in g w ere p o s sib le , w o u ld re q u ire fa r th e p a sto ra l nom ad s, and p r o f o u n d ly d iffe re n t fro m th e
m o r e c o n c e r t e d a n d e x h a u s t i v e s t u d i e s . B u t it m a y a l r e a d y b e re lig io u s a t ti t u d e s o f s e ttle d s o c ie tie s . B e fo re we d e sc rib e
p o s s ib le to i s o la te fr o m its v a r io u s c o n t e x t s a n a t ti t u d e to th e n o m a d ic s o c ie tie s as n o n re lig io u s or h a rd ly re lig io u s , we
s u p e r n a t u r a l w o r l d a n d r e l i g i o n t h a t is c o m m o n t o n o m a d s , m ig h t first ask w h e th e r e th n o lo g is ts h o ld to o n arro w a
and to d e fin e a fram ew o rk w ith in w h ic h we m ig h t s tu d y co n ce p tio n o f ritu a l and s y m b o lic b e h a v io r, and w h e th e r
th e ir m y th o lo g y . t h e ir a n a l y t ic to o ls m a y b e t o o c lo s e l y tie d to th e c a t e g o r i e s o f
" F r e e , in d iv id u a lis tic , s u b je c t to n o s ta t e n o r to a n y ty r­ s e ttle d s o c ie tie s , w h ic h w o u ld h a m p e r th e ir p e r c e p tio n of
a n n y ," su ch is t h e " t r a d i t i o n a l s t e r e o t y p e " o f th e p a sto ra l r e lig io u s p h e n o m e n a a m o n g n o m a d s .
n o m a d . B u t it is a l s o a n o b j e c t i v e p i e c e o f i n f o r m a t i o n t o t h e A m o n g th e B a s s e r i, p a s to r a l n o m a d s o f I ra n , th e p a u c ity o f
e x t e n t t h a t it is d e r i v e d f r o m t h e i m a g e t h a t t h e n o m a d h a s o f r i t u a l a c t i v i t y is s t r i k i n g ; 9 t h e y a r e i n d i f f e r e n t t o m e t a p h y s i c a l
h im s e lf . W h e n th is s e lf - i m a g e c o m e s i n to c lo s e c o n t a c t w ith p r o b l e m s a n d t o r e l i g i o n . B u t is t h i s r e a l l y a l a c k , o r a r e t h e
s e ttle d s o c ie tie s , it m a y even be m o re p ro n o u n ce d , th u s d e s c r ip tiv e c a te g o r ie s th a t a r e b e in g u s e d in c a p a b le o f d e ­
a f f i r m i n g in a d e l i b e r a t e w a y t h e d i f f e r e n c e b e t w e e n n o m a d i c s c r i b in g th e r e a l it y o f th e s it u a ti o n ? T h e c e n t r a l r ite o f th e
an d s e ttle d id e o lo g ie s . P a sto ra l n om ads have a re a lis tic s o c i e t y is m i g r a t i o n i t s e l f . F o r t h e B a s s e r i , m i g r a t i o n is l a d e n
v i s i o n o f t h e w o r l d a n d a r a t h e r m e a g e r c e r e m o n i a l l if e . T h e y w ith m e a n i n g , t h o u g h n o t e x p r e s s e d b y m e a n s o f te c h n ic a lly
p r a c t i c e a g r e a t d e a l o f d i v i n a t i o n b u t l i t t l e w i t c h c r a f t . R e li ­ u n n e c e s s a r y s y m b o lic a c ts o r e x o tic p a r a p h e r n a lia . T h e B a s ­
g i o n is c e n t e r e d o n t h e i n d i v i d u a l r a t h e r t h a n o n t h e g r o u p ; s e ri r e s p o n d n o t to th e u tilita ria n a s p e c t s o f a c tiv itie s b u t to
in d e e d , a p a n th e o n co m p risin g a great n u m b e r o f d iv in e m o v e m e n t a n d its d r a m a t i c f o r m s , t o th e m e a n i n g s im p lic it
f i g u r e s s e e m s t o b e m o r e c o m m o n a m o n g f a r m e r s . If n o m a d s in t h e s e q u e n c e o f t h e i r a c t i v i t i e s . 10 Is it n o t r a t h e r e t h n o c e n ­
show l it t le i n t e r e s t in r e l i g i o n , a n d if t h e y r e f e r t o m a n i f e s ­ tric to assu m e th a t a n a c tiv ity th a t is i m p o r t a n t fro m an
t a t i o n s o f t h e s u p e r n a t u r a l in " s t o i c t e r m s ," th is d o e s n o t e c o n o m ic p o in t o f v ie w ca n n o t a lso be im p o rta n t fro m a
m ean th a t th e y a re any m o re " s e c u l a r " ’’ t h a n any o th e r r itu a lis tic or sy m b o lic p o in t of v ie w ? The m ig ra tio n s of
grou p . The co sm o lo g y o f p a sto ra l n om ads in th e M id d le n o m ad s a re m o re th a n m ere b u s in e s s tr ip s ; th e y a re a lso
E a s t, fo r e x a m p le , te n d s to b e e x p r e s s e d in I s l a m i c t e r m s . ritu a lly m o tiv a te d and d e te rm in e d , and o u r d iffic u ltie s in
T h ro u g h th is f i lt e r , as Spooner p o in ts o u t, it s h o u ld be o b s e rv a tio n seem to b e d u e to o u r c o n f la tio n o f th e s e tw o
p o s sib le to s e e th o s e e le m e n ts o f c o s m o lo g y th a t a n te d a te d o m a in s.
I s l a m o r a r e n o t i n t e g r a l t o i t. W h e n t h e s e a r e c o m p a r e d w i t h In th is d is c u s s io n o f th e re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n r e lig io u s
o th e r c o s m o lo g ie s fro m n o m a d ic p o p u la tio n s in r e g io n s a ttitu d e (ta k e n in a ra th e r b ro a d sense) and n o m a d ism ,
la c k in g such a c u ltu ra lly d o m in a n t id e o lo g y , it m ay be s o c ie tie s w ith s e a s o n a l v a r ia tio n s a r e b o th e x c e p tio n a l a n d
p o s s ib le to is o la te th e e l e m e n ts th a t d e r iv e fro m th e n o m a d ic ty p ic a l b e c a u s e th e y a r e a l te r n a t e l y n o m a d i c a n d s e ttle d . T h e
a d a p ta t i o n .6 g a th e re d h a b ita t of th e w in te r seaso n c o n tra sts w ith th e

21
I N T R O D U C T I O N

s c a t t e r e d h a b i t a t o f t h e s u m m e r s e a s o n , w i t h i ts m o b i l i t y a n d is c o n t r o l l e d b y o b j e c t s a n d a w o r l d t h a t a r e wild, a n d h e i s in
t h e s p l i n t e r i n g o f t h e g r o u p i n t o f a m i l i e s in t h e n a r r o w e s t d ire ct to u ch w ith n a tu re . The d o m e s tic a n im a ls th ro u g h
s e n s e o f th e w o rd . T h e re a r e tw o w a y s o f o c c u p y in g la n d , w h ose in te rv e n tio n he e x p lo its th e w ild o b je c ts , if h e is
but th e re a re a lso tw o w ays of th in k in g : “ T h is c o n tra s t p a s to r a l, s e r v e o n ly to m e d ia te th is r e la tio n s h ip w ith n a tu r e .
b e t w e e n lif e in w i n t e r a n d life in s u m m e r is r e f l e c t e d n o t o n l y W h e t h e r h e is a h u n t e r - g a t h e r e r o r a s h e p h e r d , h e d o e s n o t
in r i t u a l s , f e s t i v a l s , a n d r e l i g i o u s c e r e m o n i e s o f a ll s o r t s . It im p o s e h is C u lt u r e o n N a tu r e a s d o s e tt le d p e o p l e s . M o b ility
a l s o p r o f o u n d l y a f f e c t s i d e a s , c o l l e c t i v e r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s , in a and f lu id ity of g rou p s and w ith in g ro u p s; d e c e n tra liz e d
w o r d , t h e w h o l e m e n t a l i t y o f t h e g r o u p . 11 . . . In s u m m e r , life s o c ie tie s , o r r a th e r s o c ie tie s w ith m u ltip le c e n t e r s ; e g a lita r i­
is som ew hat s e c u l a r i z e d . " 12 T h e e c o lo g ic a l c o n s tr a in ts to a n is m ; d ir e c t c o n t a c t w ith n a t u r e — s u c h a r e th e p o le s th a t
w h i c h t h e g r o u p is s u b j e c t m a k e n o m a d i s m n ecessary , an 1 m a y a ffe c t th e id e o lo g y o f n o m a d s a n d th a t m a y b e re fle cte d
t h e g r o u p 's r e q u i r e m e n t s c o m e t o r e s tr i c t r e l ig i o u s t h o u g h t i n c o l l e c t i v e r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s a n d in r i t u a l s .
and p ra c tic e . But ju s t as we m u st c o n s id e r th e ro le of W ith a fe w e x a m p l e s , w e h a v e s o u g h t to c o m e to te r m s
a d a p ta tio n to th e en v iro n m e n t, we m u st a lso re fin e our w ith n o m a d is m and its u n d e r ly i n g id e o lo g y a s a "c e rta in
c a te g o r ie s o f a n a ly s is , a n d w h e n a p p e a r a n c e s e v o k e s e c u la r ­ ty p e of b e h a v i o r , " 16 r a t h e r th a n as a m ode o f e c o n o m ic
i z a tio n , w e m u s t u n d e r s ta n d th a t th e f o u n d a tio n h a s y e t to p r o d u c tio n o r a s a v a r ia b le d e te r m in e d b y e n v i r o n m e n t . T h is
be d e cip h e re d . The m o b ility th a t c h a r a c te r iz e s n o m a d ic p a r t ic u la r a t ti t u d e , in th e f a c e o f th e s u p e r n a t u r a l a n d th e
s o c i e t i e s is i n d e e d t h e c e n t r a l f e a t u r e o f t h e i r o r g a n i z a t i o n , s y m b o lic w o rld , is go vern ed by w hat we m ig h t c a ll a
b u t it is a l s o t h e m a i n o b s t a c l e t o o u r u n d e r s t a n d i n g . n o m a d ic w ay o f th in k in g th a t p a rtic ip a te s in th e "p rim i-
"W e m u st b ew are of any te n d e n c y to tre a t fix e d and tivelw'M/sauvage" w ay o f th in k in g but p reserv es i ts ow n
p e rm a n e n t tie s lin k in g to g e th e r a g g re g a te s of p e o p le as c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s w i t h i n i t. T h e a n a l y s i s o f t h e c o n t e n t o f t h e
n o rm a l, a n d lo o se , im p e rm a n e n t b o n d s a s ab n o rm al an d m y th s o f v a r io u s n o m a d ic s o c ie tie s m a y in d e e d h ig h lig h t th e
r e q u i r i n g s p e c i a l e x p l a n a t i o n . " 11 T h e m i g r a t i o n s o f h u n t e r s lin e s o f f o r c e a r o u n d w h ic h " n o m a d i c t h o u g h t " is o r g a n i z e d ,
or p a sto ra l nom ads by far exceed th o s e th a t w o u ld be a n d w il l f i n a l l y a l l o w u s t o s p e l l o u t t h e s p e c i f i c i t y o f a w a y
re q u ire d b y th e d e m a n d s o f th e n a tu ra l e n v ir o n m e n t a n d o f o f t h i n k i n g i n w h i c h w h a t i s n o r m a l is n o t w h a t is f i x e d , a n d
access to n a tu r a l re s o u r c e s . The flu id ity a n d th e c o n s ta n t t h e f l u id a n d t h e m o v i n g a r e o r d e r a n d n o t c h a o s .
c o m i n g a n d g o i n g , b o th o f g r o u p s a n d o f in d iv id u a ls w ith in F .- R .P ./g .h .
t h e g r o u p s , h a v e a p o l i t i c a l f u n c t i o n : t h e y m a k e it p o s s i b l e t o
e n s u r e o r d e r , th e re s o lu tio n o f c o n flic ts , a n d , p a ra d o x ic a lly ,
NOTES
c o h e s i o n , b e c a u s e th e lin e s o f fu s io n a n d fis s io n o f g r o u p s
and in d iv id u a ls d o n o t n e c e s s a r ily fo llo w th e lin e s o f k in ­ 1. M. Mauss, "Étude de morphologie sociale," in Sociologie et
s h ip . A m ong n om ads, s o c ia l re la tio n s b eco m e a c tiv a te d anthrofiologie (Paris 1966), 472.
th ro u g h chan ges of p la ce : p ro x im ity or d is ta n c e a re not 2. R.-b. lee and i. dévoré, eds., Man the Hunter (Chicago 1968).
r e l e v a n t , a n d s p a c e is in a s e n s e n e g a t e d . F i n a l l y — a n d , in 3. b . Spooner , "Towards a Generative Model of Nomadism,"
o u r v i e w , t h i s is a n e s s e n tia l p o in t— th e c h a n g e s o f p la c e Anthropological Quarterly 44, no. 3 (1971): 198-210; "The Cultural
h a v e a re lig io u s f u n c tio n : th e y a r e h ig h ly v a lu e d , s o h ig h ly Ecology of Pastoral Nomads," in Addison-Wesley Module in Anthropol­
t h a t B a r t h s e e s t h e m a s t h e c e n t r a l r i t e a m o n g t h e B a s s e r i . It
ogy, no. 45 (Reading, MA, 1973).
4. b. Spooner , "Cultural Ecology of Pastoral Nomads," 35.
is m o v e m e n t t h a t l e a d s n o m a d s " i n t o c l o s e r r e c o g n i t i o n o f
5. Ibid., 39.
th e one c o n s ta n t in th e ir l iv e s , th e en v iro n m e n t and i ts
6. Ibid.
l ife -g iv in g q u a litie s . U n d er such c o n d it i o n s o f flu x w h e r e 7. e . R. service . The Hunters (Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1966).
b a n d a n d e v e n fa m ily r e l a ti o n s a r e o f te n b r ittle a n d f r a g m e n ­ 8. c. M. turnbull, Wayward Servants (Garden City, NY, 1965), 247.
t a r y , t h e e n v i r o n m e n t in g e n e r a l , a n d o n e 's o w n h u n tin g 9. F. Barth , Nomads of South Persia (Boston 1961), 135.
te rrito ry in p a r t i c u l a r , b e c o m e fo r e a c h in d iv id u a l th e o n e 10. Ibid.
re lia b le a n d r e w a r d in g f o c u s o f h is a t te n t io n , h is lo y a lty , a n d 11. m . Mauss, "Étude de morphologie sociale," 447-48.
h i s d e v o t i o n . " M In o t h e r w o r d s , t h e n o m a d " d o e s n o t h a v e 12. Ibid., 444.
th e im p r e s s io n o f in h a b itin g a m a n - m a d e w o r ld . . . . H e is
13. |. wooDBURN, "Stability and Flexibility in Hadza Residential
Groupings," in Man the Hunter, Lee and DeVore, eds., 107.
c o n tro lle d by o b je c ts , not p erso n s. . . . T h e re is not an
14. c. M. turnbull , "The Importance of Flux in Two Hunting
a n t h r o p o m o r p h i c c o s m o s . H e n c e t h e r e is n o c a ll f o r a r t i c u ­
Societies," in Man the Hunter, Lee and DeVore, eds., 137.
la te f o r m s o f s o c ia l i n te r c o u r s e w ith n o n h u m a n b e in g s a n d 15. m . Douglas , Natural Symbols (London 1970), 60-61; cited in
n o n e e d fo r a s e t o f s y m b o l s w ith w h ic h to s e n d a n d r e c e iv e Spooner, "Cultural Ecology of Pastoral Nomads," 40.
s p e c ia l c o m m u n i c a t i o n . " 11 T h e nom ad does not seek to 16. c l . l Evi-strauss, "Hunting and Human Evolution: Discussion,"
i m p r o v e t h e e n v i r o n m e n t in w h i c h h e l i v e s . In t h i s s e n s e , h e in Man the Hunter, Lee and DeVore, eds., 344.

22
P A R T

Rome
 e n t i a t e s it f r o m G r e e c e a t t h e s a m e p e r i o d . I t a l y c a n b e s e e n
I ta ly as a m o s a ic of p e o p le d is tin c t in o r ig in , la n g u a g e , and
c u ltu r e , a n d o f s o c ia l g r o u p s a t d if f e r e n t s ta g e s o f d e v e l o p ­
m e n t. We know th e h is to ric a l nam es of th e m a in e th n ic
It is i m p o s s i b l e t o s p e a k o f a “ r e l i g i o n o f a n c i e n t I t a l y " i n t h e
g r o u p s w h ic h e x iste d a t th e b e g in n in g o f th e R o m a n con ­
s a m e w a y t h a t o n e m i g h t s p e a k o f " t h e G r e e k r e l i g i o n . " In
q u e s t (L a tin i, C a m p a n i, A p u li, C a la b r i, L u c a n i, B ru ttii, S a m ­
th e t r a d itio n a l f r a m e w o r k o f t h e c la s s ic a l w o r l d , b u ilt o n th e
n iti, S a b in i, P ic e n i, U m b ri, E tr u s c i, L ig u ri, V e n e ti, H is tr i,
tw o g r e a t c iv iliz a tio n s o f G r e e c e a n d R o m e , I ta ly d o e s n o t
G a lli); t h e s e n a m e s r e a p p e a r in t h e n a m e s o f t h e r e g io n s o f
r e p r e s e n t a u n ite d a n d c o n t in u o u s h is to ric a l re a lity a s G r e e c e
u n if ie d Ita ly a t t h e t im e o f th e e m p e r o r A u g u s t u s (I. L a t iu m
d o e s . I n i ti a l ly , d u r i n g t h e f i r s t m i l l e n n i u m b .c ., I t a l y ' s t e r r i ­ and C a m p a n ia ; II. A p u lia and C a la b ria ; I II. L u ca n ia and
to ry w a s d iv id e d in to z o n e s in h a b ite d b y d iv e rse p e o p le s,
B r u t t i i ; IV . S a b i n i a n d S a m n i u m ; V. P ic e n u m ; V I. U m b ria ;
e a c h h a v i n g t h e ir o w n b e lie fs a n d c u s t o m s — z o n e s to w h ic h
V II. E tru ria ; V III. [G a llia ] C is p a d a n a , th e n A e m ilia ; IX .
w ere ad d e d th e b a n d o f G r e e k c o lo n ie s a l o n g th e s o u t h e r n
L ig u r ia ; X . V e n e tia a n d H is tr ia ; X I. [G a llia ] T r a n s p a d a n a ) ,
c o a s t s o f t h e p e n i n s u l a a n d in S i c i ly . L a t e r , b e g i n n i n g a t t h e
and som e o f th e se , s o m e tim e s w ith som e a lte r a tio n s a n d
tim e o f th e R o m a n c o n q u e s t a n d c o n tin u in g to th e e n d of
d isp la ce m e n ts, s u rv iv e to th is d ay. But w e m ust k eep in
a n tiq u ity , th e re lig io n o f a n c i e n t Ita ly b e c a m e id e n tifie d w ith
m in d th a t th is s u b d iv is io n o n ly p a rtly co rresp o n d s to th e
R om an r e lig io n . T h e r e f o r e se v e ra l a rtic le s s h o u ld be con ­
o r ig in a l e t h n o g r a p h i c a n d h is to r ic a l c o n d it i o n s a s t h e s e a r e
s u l t e d o n t h i s t o p i c : t h e f o l l o w i n g a r t i c l e o n p r e - R o m a n I t a ly ,
r e v e a le d to u s b y l in g u is tic s a n d a r c h a e o l o g y . In f a c t, e x c e p t
a l o n g w i t h t h e a r t i c l e s t o w h i c h it r e f e r s , a n d t h o s e a r t i c l e s
fo r s o m e m in o r a n d h e te ro g e n e o u s g ro u p s h a rd to c la s s ify
th a t d e a l w ith R o m a n r e lig io n .
( s u c h a s t h e L i g u r i a n d t h e A l p i n e p o p u l a t i o n s ) , w e c a n lis t
M .P ./ d .b .
th e fo llo w in g f o r m a tio n s o n Ita lia n te rrito ry : (a ) th e E tr u s ­
c a n s , w ith t h e ir o w n l a n g u a g e , w h ic h is n o t I n d o - E u r o p e a n ;
(b ) th e Ita lic p e o p l e s w h o s p o k e I n d o - E u r o p e a n l a n g u a g e s ,
b u t d iffe re n t o n e s fro m th e L a tin s , th e A p u lia n s , th e U m b ro -
R e l ig io n in P re - R o m a n I t a l y : S a b e ll i a n s , a n d t h e V e n e ti; ( c ) t h e G r e e k c o l o n i e s a l o n g th e
c o a s t s o f s o u t h e r n I t a l y ( M a g n a G r a e c a ) a n d S i c i ly . T o w a r d
T h e H is to r ic a l F r a m e w o r k
th e e n d o f th e a r c h a ic p e r i o d , th e d o u b le r o le o f c o h e s io n a n d
d iffu sio n th a t th e c itie s p la y e d is s u p e r i m p o s e d on e th n ic
P re -R o m a n I ta ly o ccu p ie s a s p e c ia l p la ce in th e g en eral f a c t o r s , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t h e z o n e s o f t h e G r e e k c o l o n i e s a n d in
d e v e l o p m e n t o f th e r e lig io u s c o n c e p t i o n s o f th e M e d i te r r a ­ T y r r h e n ia n I ta ly (E tr u r ia , L a tiu m , C a m p a n ia ). In th e fifth
n ean p e o p le s o f a n tiq u ity , e v e n if i t s r o l e w as m u ch le s s a n d s i x t h c e n t u r i e s b . c ., t h e f a c e o f p r e - R o m a n I t a l y w o u l d b e
im p o rta n t th a n th a t o f th e G re e k w o rld , b y w h ic h it w a s p ro f o u n d ly chan ged by th e e x p a n sio n of th e S a b e llia n -
g r e a tly in flu e n c e d . The term "p re -R o m a n " u su a lly d e sig ­ U m b ria n p e o p le s (th a t is, th e S a b in e s , th e S a m n ite s , th e
n a te s th e p e rio d fro m th e b e g in n in g of h isto rica l tim e s C a m p a n ia n s o r O s c i, th e L u c a n i , th e B ru ttii, th e P ic e n i, th e
a r o u n d t h e e i g h t h c e n t u r y b .c . t o t h e p o l i t i c a l , l i n g u i s t i c , a n d U m b r ia n s , e t c .) o v e r a la rg e p a rt o f th e p e n in s u la , a n d b y th e
cu ltu ra l u n if ic a tio n of I ta ly under R om an d o m in a tio n be­ p e n e tr a tio n o f th e C e lts (G a u ls ) v ia th e A lp s in to n o r th e r n
t w e e n t h e t h i r d a n d f i r s t c e n t u r i e s b .c . ( o b v i o u s l y w e m u s t a n d c e n t r a l I t a ly .
n o t f o r g e t th e e x i s t e n c e o f R o m e , th e n a t th e v e r y b e g in n in g It w a s n e c e s s a r y t o p a u s e f o r t h e s e h i s t o r i c a l p r e l i m i n a r i e s
o f its d e v e l o p m e n t — w h ic h to o k p l a c e in p a r a lle l w ith t h a t o f in o r d e r t o u n d e r s t a n d th e c o m p le x ity a n d v a r ie t y o f re li­
th e o t h e r c e n t e r s o f c u l t u r e o f t h e Ita lic w o r l d ). g i o u s e x p e r i e n c e in s u c h a c o m p o s i t e w o r l d . I t is e v i d e n t t h a t
T h e a b s e n c e o f u n it y a n d c o h e r e n t p r o g r e s s is th e e s s e n t ia l each of th e p rin cip a l cu ltu re s s h o u ld be th e o b je c t of a
c h a r a c t e r is t ic o f p r e - R o m a n Ita ly , a n d o n e t h a t c le a r l y d if f e r ­ s e p a r a t e s tu d y , s u i t e d t o its o w n s p e c i f ic c h a r a c t e r : t h u s w e

25
ROME
should deal with Hellenic Italy in terms of Greek religion,
and with Rome from its origins in terms of Roman religion;
for Etruria and the various Italic populations, we must refer
to the most characteristic aspects that can be glimpsed
behind what is known of their religions, and for the Gauls, to
Celtic religion. At the same time, we must not neglect the
insular territories (Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica), which, while
not part of Italy in the ancient sense of the word, that of con­
tinental Italy, had close historical and cultural relations with the
mainland, while at the same time local cultures spread and
Phoenician and Carthaginian colonies were established.
Yet from a more general, historical point of view, we must
get the religions of all of Pre-Roman Italy into perspective in
order to attempt to determine their place, functions, and
consequences.
If we set aside the Roman sources, what is known on this
subject is relatively restricted, fragmentary, and heteroge­
neous. The absence of an indigenous literature among the
Italic peoples, or its loss (where it did exist, as it certainly did
in Etruria) following the disappearance of the local languages
and their replacement by Latin, constitutes a fundamental
negative factor in comparison with other ancient civiliza­
tions. The data recorded by classical Greek and Latin writers
are indirect, fortuitous, and often uncertain, especially when
the sources are relatively late. Even for the Greek colonies,
the literary accounts are full of gaps due to the loss of a large
part of the works of local authors. Outside the Greek
colonies, the few remaining documents, mainly epigraphs
written in Etruscan, Umbrian, Oscan, Messapian, and Vene­
tian, give us some useful data on beliefs and cults. But for the
rest we only have the evidence of archaeological monuments
26
and records—the remains of sanctuaries and necropolises,
images and pictorial scenes, coins, furnishings, etc.
The most important general facts can be summarized as
follows;
1. The persistence of prehistoric traditions and primitive concep­
tions. The transition to the historical period is not clearly
marked. The innovations that characterize this transition (the
formation and definition of the main ethnocultural units at
the beginning of Greek colonization, the opening to the
forms and ideas of the great civilizations of the eastern
Mediterranean, evolution to urban structures, development
of political and religious institutions, the adoption of writing,
etc.) are gradual. At first they are limited—outside the Greek
colonies, of course— to the Tyrrhenian coast and particularly
to Etruria and the Etruscan sphere of influence; in most of
the rest of Italy, that is, in the interior of the peninsula, on the
Adriatic slope, and in the north, their penetration was very
slow and remained marginal. These latter territories pre­
served, almost until the time of the Roman conquest, certain
essential aspects of the way of life and organization charac­
teristic of Iron Age cultures, as well as survivals of prehistoric
ritual customs such as the celebration of cults in grottoes or
rock sanctuaries, and the practice of pictorial engravings
(characteristic of the Alpine valleys), anthropomorphic ste­
lae, the proximity of houses and tombs, etc. But even in the
more advanced cultural centers, except for the Greek colo­
nies, traces survived of primitive conceptions and practices
so distant from the rationality of the classical world that they
sometimes provoked the astonishment and incomprehen­
sion of writers in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Most
striking are the suggestions of an animistic conception of the
supernatural; the omnipresent importance of divine signs
and divination; the high social and religious status of women
(in Etruria and even in early Rome), which have been
interpreted as survivals of matriarchy; and the tenacious
belief in the material survival of the dead in their place of
burial, and all the rites implied in such a belief (house­
shaped urns and tombs, portrait images, rich funerary appa­
ratus, funeral games, etc.).
2. External influences, especially from Greece. In addition to the
conditions that it inherited from prehistory and protohistory,
Italic religiosity was profoundly interwoven with Oriental and
Greek themes that, in certain respects, marked it decisively.
During the “Orientalizing'' period between the eighth and
sixth centuries b. c ., along with a great number of objects and
pictorial themes imported from the Aegean world and the Near
East (Egypt, Syria, Mesopotamia, Urartu, Anatolia) via the
great currents of Phoenician and Greek maritime traffic, prob­
ably echoes of the beliefs of the ancient Oriental civilizations
and archaic Greece at the beginning of its development pene­
trated widely in Italy. Evidence of this is provided
by certain divine or monstrous beings and their iconography
(“mistress of animals," sphinx, griffin, centaurs, etc.), the
legendary traditions that integrate the elements of the newly
emerging Greek mythology, and symbolism in general. Certain
characteristic phenomena, which were not manifested clearly
until later, seem directly linked to the Asiatic world—for
instance, Etruscan haruspicy used little models of animal livers,
as in Mesopotamia and Anatolia. As for the influence of the
Semitic religions, aside from their diffusion in the Phoenician
and Carthaginian colonial domain of Sicily and Sardinia (dis­
cussed above), we can cite the unusual case of the consecration
of a sacellum to the goddess Astarte, assimilated to the Etruscan
goddess Uni, in the sanctuary of Pyrgi on the Tyrrhenian coast.
But it was mostly Greek religion, directly transplanted to the
 R E L I G I O N IN PRE - R O M A N I T A L Y

c o l o n i e s o f s o u t h e r n I t a ly a n d S i c i ly b e g i n n i n g in t h e e i g h t h ch a ra cte r a n d te n d e n c ie s o f e a c h o f t h e m . In t h e E tru sc a n
c e n t u r y b .c ., t h a t g a v e t h e I ta lic c e n t e r s i ts d i v i n e m o d e l s w i t h w o r ld , fo r e x a m p l e , th e e a r ly r is e o f a d o m i n a n t s o c ia l c la s s
th e ir r e s p e c tiv e a ttr ib u te s ( th e lo ca l p a n th e o n t h u s c a m e to b e th a t d r e w its e x t r a o r d i n a r y e c o n o m i c p o w e r l a r g e ly fr o m th e
id e n tifie d w ith th e G r e e k p a n th e o n — th e E tr u s c a n g o d T in ia e x p lo ita tio n o f c o n s id e ra b le m in e ra l r e s o u r c e s , th a t e m p h a ­
a n d th e L a tin o -Ita lic [D ]io v e , fo r e x a m p l e , w e r e a s s im ila te d to s iz e d th e p r e s tig e of its n o b le o r ig in s , and th a t b le n d e d
Z e u s ; th e E t r u s c a n a n d L a tin g o d d e s s U n i [Ju n o ] to H e r a ; th e p r o to h is to r ic fu n e ra ry tra d itio n s w ith O rie n ta l in f lu e n c e s
g o d M a r s , r e c o g n i z e d b y a ll t h e I t a li c p e o p l e s , t o A r e s ; a n d s o c e r ta i n ly f a v o r e d th e id e o l o g ic a l a n d r itu a l d e v e l o p m e n t o f a
f o r t h ) , its m y t h s , a n d t h e s p e c i f i c t r a i t s o f i ts c u l t ( f o r m s o f a l t a r s c u lt o f th e d ead, th e e q u a l o f w h ic h is n o t to b e fo u n d ,
a n d t e m p l e s , s a c r i f i c i a l r i t e s , v o t i v e o f f e r i n g s ) . It is v e r y i n t e r ­ m a k in g a ll a llo w a n c e s , except in Egypt and, o u ts id e th e
e s t i n g , f in a lly , t o s e e t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f a n i m p r e s s i v e s t o r e o f M e d i te r r a n e a n w o r l d , in C h in a . L a t e r in E t r u r ia , a f t e r b o th
l e g e n d a r y n a r r a t i v e s a n d m y t h o g r a p h i c c o n s t r u c t i o n s l in k i n g E t r u s c a n d e c lin e a n d R o m a n s u p r e m a c y b e c a m e e v i d e n t , th e
th e h e ro ic w o rld o f t h e G r e e k s w i t h l o c a l I t a li a n t ra d itio n s , d o m i n a n t o l i g a r c h i e s , h a v i n g l o s t a ll e c o n o m i c a n d p o l i t i c a l
e ith e r b y m ix in g th e m o r b y lin k in g t h e m . in itia tiv e , s h ifte d th e ir in te r e s ts to th e ritu a l a n d s p e c u la tiv e
tra d itio n of th e ir p rie s tly c la s s , th u s c re a tin g p a rtic u la rly
3. Definitions of the different cultural environments. T h e d iv e r­
fa v o ra b le c o n d itio n s fo r th e e la b o ra tio n a n d c o d if ic a tio n o f
s ity o f p o p u l a ti o n s a n d c u l t u r e s in p r e - R o m a n Ita ly c o n s t i ­
th e s e t o f d o c t r in e s a n d n o r m s c a lle d th e disciplina, w h ic h fo r
t u t e s t h e f u n d a m e n t a l h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e ; it i s m a n i f e s t e d
th e a n c ie n ts a n d fo r u s r e p r e s e n ts th e m o s t p e c u lia r e x p r e s ­
e s p e c ia lly in th e d o m a in o f th e s a c r e d , w h ic h b y its v e r y
s io n of E tru sca n re lig io s ity . The O s c o -U m b ria n -s p e a k in g
n a t u r e p a r t ic ip a t e s in t h e d e e p e s t h e r i ta g e o f e v e r y p e o p l e
Ita lic p o p u l a ti o n s p r o b a b l y i n h e r it e d s o m e o f th e e s s e n tia l
a n d e v e r y c o m m u n ity . R eal a n d p ro f o u n d d iffe re n c e s s e p a ­
tra its o f th e ir r e lig io u s c o n c e p t i o n s a n d c u s to m s fro m p re ­
r a t e th e r e lig io n o f th e E t r u s c a n s f r o m t h a t o f t h e L a t in s a n d
h is to r y a n d fro m th e p a s to r a l a n d w a rlik e n o m a d i s m o f th e ir
of p rim itiv e R om e, as w e ll as fro m th a t of th e c o lo n ia l
a n c e s t o r s : t h u s t h e r e a r e t r a c e s o f a trib a l t o t e m i s m a n d th e
G r e e k s ; t h e s a m e is t r u e f o r t h e r e l i g i o n s o f t h e o t h e r I t a l i c
rite , w h ic h is a l s o a m y th , o f th e ver sacrum, th e "sa cre d
p e o p le s s u c h a s th e S a b in e s , th e S a m n ite s , th e U m b r ia n s —
s p r in g ti m e ," th a t is, th e m ig r a tio n o f y o u n g m e n o f th e a g e to
in d e e d , e a c h o f th e s e d e s e r v e s to b e tre a te d s e p a r a te ly , a s
b e a r a r m s — a r ite th a t w a s s u b s titu te d f o r a p r im itiv e s a c r if ic e
n o te d a b o v e . T h e d iffe re n c e s c a n b e e x p la in e d n o t o n ly b y
o f a ll l i v i n g b e i n g s b o r n in a c e r t a i n y e a r . B u t it is a l s o c l e a r
t h e d i v e r s i t y o f o r i g i n s o f a ll t h e r e l i g i o n s , b u t a l s o b y t h e
th a t th e g r e a t e x p a n s io n o f th e s e p e o p le s d u r in g th e h is to r ­
p r e c is e h is to ric a l c ir c u m s t a n c e s th a t e m p h a s i z e d th e s p e c ific
ica l p e r i o d and th e ir in c re a s in g ly freq u en t e m p lo y m e n t as
m e r c e n a r ie s c o n tr ib u te d to th e w a rlik e c h a r a c t e r o f th e ir r e ­
lig io n , a n d n o ta b ly to th e c u lt o f th e g o d M a r s o r M a m e r s ,
Hercules and Mlacuch. Mirror from Atri. London, British Museum. fro m w h o m th e m ilita r y s ta t e o f th e M a m e r tin i, fo u n d e d b y
C a m p a n ia n m e r c e n a r i e s in S i c i l y i n t h e t h i r d c e n tu ry b . c .,
d rew i ts n a m e d i r e c t l y . F i n a l l y , t h e r e w a s t h e w e ll-k n o w n
c o n n e c t i o n b e t w e e n t h e p o l i ti c a l h i s t o r y o f R o m e a n d t h e p r e ­
d o m i n a n c e o f j u r i d i c a l a n d p u b l i c v a l u e s in R o m a n r e l i g i o n .

4. Common aspects and unitary tendencies. H o w e v e r d iffe re n t

t h e y m a y b e , t h e r e l i g i o n s o f p r e - R o m a n I t a l y h a v e p o i n t s in
c o m m o n . A n d if t h e s e r e s e m b l a n c e s d o n o t d e f i n e a d i s t i n c ­
tiv e g lo b a l c h a r a c t e r t h a t w o u l d a llo w u s to o p p o s e th e Ita lic
w o rld a s a w h o le to o t h e r c u ltu r e a r e a s , th e y n e v e r th e le s s
d e s e r v e to b e e x a m i n e d c a r e f u ll y , e s p e c i a ll y s in c e th e y u lti­
m a te ly c o n v e r g e t o w a r d th e R o m a n re lig io n . A n e le m e n ta r y
g e o g ra p h ica l re a s o n , th e c o n tig u ity o f th e la n d s ly in g be­
t w e e n th e s e a s a n d t h e A l p s , m a d e I ta ly n e c e s s a r il y a p l a c e o f
co n ta cts and exch an g es. In th e co u rse of p re h isto ry and
p ro to h is to ry — a n d p a rtic u la rly at th e tim e of th e "P ro to -
V illa n o v ia n " c u ltu r e , th a t is, b e tw e e n th e tw e lv e a n d n in th
c e n t u r i e s b . c ., a t t h e e n d o f t h e B r o n z e A g e — I t a l y p r e s e n t s ,
fro m an a r c h a e o lo g ic a l p o in t of v ie w , a u n if o rm ity th a t
s u g g e s t s a n u n d e r ly in g u n ity , e v e n o n th e le v e l o f s o c io c u l ­
tu ra l s tr u c tu r e s , i d e a s , a n d c u s t o m s . F o r e x a m p l e , th e f u n e r ­
a r y e q u ip m e n t in th e v a r io u s c u l t u r e s o f th e Iro n A g e h a s
c o m m o n a s p e c t s , w h e t h e r c r e m a t i o n p r e d o m i n a t e s ( a s in t h e
n o r t h o f Ita ly a n d in th e c e n t r a l p a r t o n th e T y r r h e n ia n s id e )
o r b u r i a l ( a s i n t h e s o u t h o f I t a l y a n d in t h e c e n t r a l p a r t o n t h e
A d ria tic s id e ). The O rie n ta l and G reek in flu e n c e s , w h ic h
h a v e a lre a d y been d is c u s s e d , c o n s titu te a n o th e r s o u rc e o f
in s p ir a tio n th a t w a s m o r e o r le s s w id e ly d if f u s e d b e y o n d th e
lim its of each e th n ic grou p or cu ltu re : we can c ite as
e x a m p l e s in t h e d o m a i n o f m y t h s t h e v o y a g e s o f O d y s s e u s
a n d D io m e d e s , a n d th e p r o p a g a tio n o f th e c u lt o f H e r a c le s ,
P y th a g o re a n d o c trin e s , D io n y s ia n rite s , e tc. But E tru s c a n
c iv iliz a tio n a t th e tim e o f its s u p r e m a c y a n d e x p a n s i o n — e v e n
if it w a s s e c o n d a r y t o G r e e c e — a l s o s p r e a d i t s i d e a s , i m a g e s ,
a n d c e r e m o n i e s o v e r v a s t t e r r i to r ie s in p e n in s u la r a n d n o r t h -

27
ROME
The monster Volta emerging from a well. Urn. Volterra. Guamacci
Museum. Museum photo.
ern Italy. Archaeological data, literary sources, and epi-
graphic documents reveal the existence of bilateral and
multilateral exchanges among the major cultural centers of
the Italic world. Among the most significant examples: the
Etrusco-Latin cultural koine of the sixth century b . c ., whose
presence in the religious domain is shown not only by the
form and decoration of sacred buildings, but also by certain
cults, legends, and miracles; the system of giving dual names
to the gods, as well as to persons, a system that is shared by
the Umbrian and Etruscan pantheons (Mars Grabovius, in
the Iguvine Tables; or Fufluns Pachies in Etruria) and that is
also found in Latium and Campania; the close resemblances
between augural doctrines and practices in Umbria and
Rome; and the fusion of Greek and Italic beliefs, notably in
southern Italy. Campania, especially, is the meeting place
and the melting pot in which the Greek, Etruscan, Samnite,
and Latin traditions combine. Between the fourth and sec­
ond centuries b . c ., broad areas of integration and unification
of religious ideas and practices existed throughout the pen­
insula (which explains the vulgarization of the cults of Mars
and of Heracles-Hercules, the diffusion of terra-cotta and
small bronze votives, certain types of temples, etc.). In the
course of this process, the hegemony of Rome certainly also
plays an important role in the acceleration and catalyzing of
this process, which preceded the general assimilation of the
Italic religions by Roman religion.
28
Hercules suckled by Uni. Florence, Archaeological Museum.
Etruscans and Italians: The Poverty of Mythic Narratives
The extraordinary development of mythological imagina­
tion and erudition among the Greeks seems to contrast with
an extreme paucity of stories about gods and heroes among
the peoples of ancient Italy. Naturally when we express a
judgment—or, perhaps, an impression— of this kind, we
must take into account the limits imposed on our knowledge
by the loss of any original literatures, with the exception of
Latin literature. We have only a few fragments of the
Etruscan and Italic traditions, occasionally collected or sum­
marized much later by classical and Byzantine authors, often
with obvious alterations. A large proportion of these narra­
tives suggest a legendary world already open to the influence
of the Greek myths, if not thoroughly elaborated by the
Greeks in terms of their interpretation of the origins of the
Italic peoples, cities, and cults. In such a context it is difficult
to isolate the local elements, and especially to evaluate their
authenticity and age. The same problem exists for the
interpretation of Etruscan artistic representations, in partic­
ular for the scenes engraved on mirrors and the reliefs on
small cinerary urns and sarcophagi, sometimes with more or
less obscure episodes from local legends, or, rather, elements
of these legends inserted into Greek compositions. It is
certainly always possible that orally transmitted sagas were
at the origin of these scenes, but of these no evidence
 R E L I G I O N IN P R E - R O M A N I T A L Y

r e m a i n s . W e m a y , h o w e v e r , s ti ll f i n d s o m e e c h o o f t h e m in fle x iv e p e r io d , a n d th a t th e y re m a in e d s u b o r d in a te to th e
th e e n ig m a tic re p r e s e n ta tio n s s c u lp te d o r e n g ra v e d on fu ­ p ro ce ss o f G re c o -I ta lic m y th ic e la b o ra tio n th a t w as m en­
n erary s te la e of th e A d ria tic re g io n s (th o s e of D a u n ia in t i o n e d a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h i s a r t i c l e . In t h e m y t h i c a s p e c t s
A p u lia and th e n e cro p o lise s of N o v ila ra on th e fro n tie r o f th e tra d itio n s o f th e " s a c r e d s p r in g tim e " w e can som e­
M a r c h e s ), w ith th e ir s c e n e s o f b a ttle s , c e r e m o n i e s , n a v i g a ­ t im e s fin d a r e l a ti v e ly a u t o n o m o u s v e i n o f l e g e n d s p r o p e r to
t io n , m o n s t r o u s b e i n g s , e t c .; a n d o n a fe w a r c h a ic n a r r a t iv e th e S a b e llia n s .
v e s s e ls a n d b r o n z e s . B u t th e s e tra d itio n s , e v e n th o u g h th e y
e x is te d , m u s t b e c o n s id e r e d is o la te d p h e n o m e n a , s p e c if ic to The Divinities
e a c h e t h n i c g r o u p a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f i ts h i s t o r i c a l d e v e l o p ­
m e n t . T h e e a r l y d if f u s io n o f G r e e k m y th o lo g y , w ith its g o d s /. Ancient Italy in General
a n d h e r o e s , m u s t h a v e s m o th e r e d a n y a tte m p t to e la b o ra te A s t u d e n t o f t h e a n c i e n t I ta lia n g o d s m u s t n e v e r lo s e s ig h t
th e in d i g e n o u s l e g e n d s i n to o r g a n i z e d c y c le s , e s p e c i a ll y in o f th e r e lig io u s u n ity o f c la s s ic a l c iv iliz a tio n , th a t is, th e
th e T y rrh e n ia n a re a (E tr u r ia , L a tiu m , and C a m p a n ia ), fu n d a m e n ta l u n ity o f th e G re e k a n d R om an re lig io n s . B e­
w h ic h , w h ile m o r e a d v a n c e d , a l s o c a m e u n d e r G r e e k in flu ­ yond th e tr a its th a t, o n th e le v e l o f im a g in a tio n , m e n ta lity ,
en ce e a rlie r . On th e o th e r hand, c e rta in p r e d is p o s itio n s a n d b e h a v io r, d iffe re n tia te th e re la tio n s th a t G r e e c e , E tru ria ,
b ased on g e n e ra l w ays of th in k in g and re lig io u s con ­ th e Ita lic p o p u l a ti o n s , a n d R o m e m a i n ta i n e d w ith th e s a c r e d ,
c e p t i o n s — l ik e E t r u s c a n i d e a s a b o u t t h e m y s t e r i o u s n a t u r e o f it is e v i d e n t t h a t t h e i r i d e a s o f t h e p e r s o n a l i t i e s , f u n c t i o n s ,
th e d iv in e — c a u s e d a w e a k d e v e lo p m e n t o f m y th o lo g y , a n d lo o k s , a n d a t tr i b u te s o f th e m a in d iv in itie s a r e e s s e n tia lly th e
e s p e c ia lly o f n a r r a tiv e s th a t r e c o r d th e a c tio n s o f th e g o d s ; s a m e . T h is c a n n o t b e e x p la in e d s o le ly w ith in th e p e r s p e c t iv e
t h i s is c l e a r l y d i f f e r e n t f r o m th e e x tr a o r d in a r y im a g in a tio n o f c o m p a r a tiv e s tu d ie s o f I n d o -E u r o p e a n a n d M e d ite r r a n e a n
t h a t t h e G r e e k s d e m o n s t r a t e d in t h i s d o m a i n . d iv in itie s (th e s u p r e m e g o d o f lig h t o r o f h e a v e n , fo r e x a m ­
B u t m o d e r n r e s e a r c h e r s h a v e f o c u s e d th e ir a tte n tio n o n a p l e , o r t h e m o t h e r g o d d e s s , e t c . ) ; it is n e c e s s a r y t o t a k e fu ll
fe w p ie c e s o f p ic to ria l o r lite ra ry d a ta , w h ic h a llo w us to acco u n t o f c o n c r e te h isto rica l r e la tio n s h ip s . The fact th a t
lo c a te , if n o t t o r e c o n s tr u c t, c e rta in E tru s c a n o r E tru s c a n - th e s e d iv in e fig u re s a r e d e s c rib e d a n th r o p o m o r p h ic a lly p u ts
I t a li c l e g e n d s t h a t c a n b e g r o u p e d a r o u n d d i v i n e , d a e m o n i c , th e m w ith in th e d o m a i n o f c u l t u r e (th a t is, o f m y th o g r a p h i c
o r h e r o i c f i g u r e s . A ll, o r a l m o s t a ll, o f t h e s e s e e m to h a v e im a g in a tio n a n d e ru d itio n , o f th e c re a tio n s a n d tra d itio n s o f
been d e v e lo p e d la te , in te g ra tin g G re e k e le m e n ts a n d a lso i c o n o g r a p h y ) r a t h e r t h a n o f re lig io u s t h o u g h t . B y fa c ilita tin g
p e r h a p s m o r e o r le ss a lte r e d m e m o r ie s o f h is to ric a l f a c ts . T h e th e ir d if f u s io n , th is c h a r a c t e r is t ic a llo w s a n o s m o s i s b e tw e e n
m o s t s ig n ific a n t a r e (1 ) H e r d e (H e r a c l e s ) , “ s o n o f U n i (J u n o - a r e a s th a t, w h ile d i f f e r e n t in t h e ir in itia l r e lig io u s c o n c e p ­
)," w h o w a s n u rs e d b y th e g o d d e s s ; (2 ) M a ris (M a rs ), w h o tio n s , p a r t ic ip a t e d in t h e s a m e c iv il i z a ti o n , a s w a s p r e c is e ly
w a s p re s e n te d in a m u l t i t u d e o f i n f a n t i l e o r j u v e n i l e f o r m s th e c a s e o f G r e e c e a n d Ita ly t h r o u g h o u t a n tiq u ity . O f c o u r s e
th a t h is d iffe re n t e p ith e ts a llo w us to d is tin g u is h (M a ris G r e e k i n s p i r a ti o n w a s in itia lly a n d c o n s t a n t l y d e t e r m i n a n t ;
H a ln a , M a ris H u s r n a n a , M a ris I s m ith ia n s ); h e w a s b e lie v e d but th is d id not go so far as to su p p ress c e rta in lo c a l
to b e th e s o n o f H e r d e ; h e w a s s u b j e c t e d b y M i n e r v a to a r ite c h a r a c te r is tic s th a t w e re p re se rv e d in th e G re e k d iv in itie s
w h ic h w a s s u p p o s e d to e n s u r e h is im m o r ta lity — a n e p is o d e w h o w e r e a s s im ila te d . A lth o u g h th e n a m e s o f th e g o d s w e re
t h a t is p r o b a b l y c o n n e c t e d t o t h e s t o r i e s o f t h e l o n g e v i t y a n d d if f e r e n t, b o th n a m e s o f te n — b u t n o t a l w a y s — c o n v e y e d th e
th e trip le d e a t h a n d r e s u r r e c t i o n o f th e c e n t a u r M a r e s , th e s a m e r e a lity (th e E tr u s c a n n a m e T in jia j, fo r in s t a n c e , c a n b e
a n c e s to r o f th e A u s o n e s (A e lia n u s , Varia Historia 9 .1 6 ) ; (3 ) s e e n a s a s im p le " t r a n s l a t i o n " o f th e G r e e k Z e u s , th e L a tin
E p iu r and T ag es, c h ild re n w ho had th e ap p e a ra n ce and n a m e V e n u s o f th e G re e k A p h r o d ite , e t c .) . T h e d e g r e e o f
w is d o m o f o ld a g e ; th is s a m e T a g e s w a s s a id to h a v e b e e n th e id e n tific a tio n v a r ie s d e p e n d i n g o n th e c a s e , th e p la c e , a n d
i n v e n to r a n d m a s te r o f th e h a r u s p i c i u m , w h ic h c a m e o u t o f th e p e rio d . B u t c e rta in G reek go d s, n o ta b ly A p o llo , kept
a fu rro w in th e e a r th , a n d to have had c o n n e ctio n s w ith t h e ir n a m e s w h e n th e y w e r e in tr o d u c e d i n to I ta ly : p e r c e iv e d
T a r c h o n , th e e p o n y m o u s h e r o o f T a rq u in ia ; (4 ) th e p ro b a b ly a s fo r e ig n e r s a t first ( th e c u lt o f A p o llo w a s in tr o d u c e d in
p a ra lle l s to r ie s a b o u t th e t e a c h i n g o f th e n y m p h V e g o ia ( L a s a R o m e o n l y i n t h e f i f t h c e n t u r y b . c .), t h e y w e r e f i n a l l y m o r e o r
V écu o r V e c u v ia ) a n d h e r re la tio n s w ith a c e rta in A rru n s le s s c o m p l e te l y i n te g r a te d i n to th e Ita lic p a n t h e o n . A m o n g
V e lty m n u s, p ro b a b ly fro m C h iu s i; (5 ) th e le g e n d o f C a c u s , a th e s e g o d s , th e m o s t p o p u la r w a s H e ra c le s (in O scan h is
s in g e r w h o s e s o n g s w e r e p e r h a p s tra n s c rib e d by a young n am e b ecam e Herekle, in E tru sc a n , Herde, and in L a tin ,
m an nam ed A rtile ; b o th w ere t h r e a te n e d by th e w a rrio rs Hercules). T h is t y p e o f in f lu e n c e m u s t b e c o n n e c t e d w ith th e
A u le a n d C a ile V ip in a s ( w h o t h e m s e l v e s b e lo n g e d to a c y c le m a s s iv e im p o rta tio n o f G reek m y th s in to Ita ly , w h ic h is
o f h isto rica l e v e n ts d a rin g fro m t h e s i x t h c e n t u r y b .c . w h i c h a tte s te d on E tru s c a n m o n u m e n ts b e g in n in g in th e a r c h a ic
w e re tra n sfo rm e d in to s e m il e g e n d a r y ta le s ); e l s e w h e r e C a ­ p e rio d .
c u s is c i t e d a s T a r c h o n ' s a m b a s s a d o r t o K i n g M a r s y a s , t h e T h e G re c o -I ta lic th e o lo g ic a l k o in e , a s a g e n e r a l p h e n o m e ­
e p o n y m o f th e Ita lic p e o p l e o f th e M a r s i (S a b i n u s , Collectanea n o n , w a s b o rn o f a p ro c e s s th a t b e g a n a t th e d a w n o f h isto ric
1 .8 ) , and by V irg il ( Aencid 8 . 1 8 4 f f . ) as a cru el sh ep h erd tim e s , at le a s t w ith th e first G reek a tte m p ts to c o lo n iz e
tu rn e d b a n d it w h o w as fin a lly k i ll e d by H e r c u le s ; (6 ) th e s o u t h e r n I t a l y a n d S i c i ly , a n d c u l m i n a t e d in t h e H e l l e n i s t i c
m o n s t e r ( V ) o l t a , w h o a p p e a r e d in t h e V o l s i n i a n a r e a a n d w a s p e rio d w ith th e R om an co n q u e st of G re e ce . B u t it r a n up
k i ll e d b y K i n g P o r s e n n a (P lin y , Naturalis Historia 2 . 1 4 0 ) , is a g a in s t th e p e r s is te n c e o f c e rta in lo c a l c u lts th a t to ta lly o r
u n d o u b te d ly th e c h a r a c te r w h o m w e s e e s p r in g in g o u t o f a p a rtly e s c a p e d G re e k a d a p ta tio n s a n d tr a n s f o r m a tio n s . T h is
w e ll in t h e r e l i e f s o n s o m e u r n s , w i t h t h e h e a d o r p e l t o f a h a p p e n e d e s p e c i a l l y in o u t - o f - t h e - w a y a n d p e r i p h e r a l z o n e s ,
w o lf, a n d co n fro n tin g m e n w h o a re arm e d o r p e rfo rm in g but a lso in som e g reat re lig io u s c e n te rs in w h ic h very
r ite s o f e x o r c i s m . S o m e o f t h e s e m y th ic s c h e m a t a a r e f o u n d im p o r t a n t d iv in itie s s u r v i v e d — d iv in itie s w h ose c h a ra cte rs
beyond th e s p e c ific a lly E tru s c a n d o m a in , w h ic h im p lie s and tra d itio n s w o u ld n o t, a n d w il l n o t , a l l o w th e m to b e
r e l a ti o n s w ith t h e Ita lic w o r l d . B u t w e m u s t a s s u m e th a t th e i d e n t i f i e d w i t h G r e e k m o d e l s . T h i s is t h e c a s e , f o r e x a m p l e ,
c o n n e c t i o n s a n d fu s io n s b e t w e e n th e tr a d itio n s o f d iffe re n t o f V e ltu n e -V o ltu m n a , deus Etruriae princeps (V a rro , De Lingua
e th n ic a re a s w e re re a liz e d o n ly d u rin g a n e r u d ite a n d re­ Latina, 5 .4 6 ) , a t V o ls in ii in E t r u r ia , a n d o f th e g o d d e s s V e s o n a

29
ROME

in t h e U m b r o - S a b e l l i a n w o r l d . T h e r e w a s a d e f i n i t e i n d i g e ­ r e g i o n s l o c a t e d in t h e n o r t h e a s t , a n d t h e y c o u l d h u r l b o l t s o f
n o u s in flu e n c e o n c e r ta in p a r tic u la r c o n c e p tio n s o f th e d i­ lig h tn in g . F irs t w a s T in o r T in ia , th e s u p r e m e god co rre­
v in e , fo r e x a m p le o n th e m y s te r io u s a n d a n o n y m o u s c o lle ­ s p o n d in g to Z e u s (a n d to th e L a tin o -Ita lic J u p ite r ); h e th r e w
gia l d iv in itie s (di involuti, opertanei) in E t r u r i a , a n d on th e th r e e th u n d e r b o lts , o n e o n h is o w n , th e s e c o n d o n th e a d v ic e
indigilamenta in R o m e . B u t t h e r e w a s a l s o t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f o f th e t h r e e C o n s e n te s , a n d th e th ir d , m o s t te rrib le o n e , a t
tria d s (w h ic h G re e k a n d o t h e r a n c ie n t re lig io n s a ls o h a d ), th e o r d e r o f th e e n ig m a tic S u p e rio r a n d O b scu re g o d s, di
s u c h a s th e v e r y f a m o u s R o m a n tria d o f J u p i te r , J u n o , a n d Superiores et Involuti ( S e n e c a , Quaestiones Naturales 2 .4 1 ). N e x t
M i n e r v a , o r in U m b r i a t h e g o d s c a l l e d " G r a b o v i i ," th a t is, c a m e U n i, th e c o n s o r t o f T in (ia ) a n d h o m o lo g u e o f th e G re e k
J u p i t e r , M a r s , a n d V o f i o n o . A n d f i n a ll y t h e r e w a s t h e p r o l i f ­ g o d d e s s H e ra a n d th e L a tin J u n o — s h e w a s h ig h ly v e n e r a te d
e ra tio n o f m in o r d iv in itie s a n d d a e m o n s . in a ll th e m a in E tru sc a n c itie s , in d iffe re n t fo rm s, but
D o u b le n a m e s c o n s titu te th e m o s t im p o rta n t c h a r a c te ris tic e s p e c i a l l y a s t h e g o d d e s s o f m a t e r n i t y ( in t h e s a n c t u a r y o f
o f t h e d i v i n i t i e s o f t h e I t a li c w o r l d ; in c e r t a i n a s p e c t s t h i s w a s P y r g i s h e w a s e q u iv a l e n t to Ilith y ia o r L e u c o th e a a n d w as
c o n n e c t e d w ith th e n o r m a l u s a g e , c o m m o n a l s o in G r e e c e , o f a s s im ila te d to th e P h o e n ic ia n g o d d e s s A s ta r te ) ; M e n e r v a , th e
a d d in g a n a ttrib u te or epiklesis to th e p ro p e r an d cu rren t h o m o lo g u e o f M in e rv a a n d A th e n a ; M a ris, th e h o m o lo g u e o f
n a m e o f t h e g o d o r g o d d e s s . B u t in I t a l y ( i . e . , in U m b r i a , in M a rs a n d A re s , w h o s e e p ith e ts a n d m a n ife s ta tio n s w e r e th e
th e O s c a n -s p e a k in g a r e a s , in E t r u r i a , a n d even in R o m e ) , m o s t v a r ie d o f a ll; S e t h l a n s , th e h o m o l o g u e o f V u lca n ( th e
th is p a r t ic u la r i t y a p p e a r s w ith th e f r e q u e n c y a n d e s p e c ia lly n am e VelchJan?J is a l s o a t t e s t e d ) a n d H e p h a e s t u s . T h e s e tw o
th e c o h e r e n c e o f a s y s te m c o m p a r a b le to th a t o f th e o n o m a s ­ l a s t - n a m e d d i v i n i t i e s a l s o a p p e a r in o t h e r c e l e s t i a l z o n e s . In
tic s o f p e r s o n s b e a r i n g d o u b le n a m e s ( p e r s o n a l n a m e a n d th e n o r th w e s t re g io n s w a s a n o th e r h u rle r o f th u n d e rb o lts :
fa m ily n a m e ), a s y s te m fo u n d e x c lu s iv e ly in th e s o c ie t ie s o f S a t r e s , th e h o m o l o g u e o f th e L a tin S a t u r n u s a n d th e G r e e k
a n c i e n t I t a ly , i . e . , p r e c i s e l y a m o n g t h e E t r u s c a n s , t h e L a t i n s , O u r a n o s . O t h e r m a j o r d i v in itie s w e r e T u r a n ( lite ra lly " t h e
a n d t h e U m b r o - S a b e l l i a n s . It i s , in f a c t , v e r y l ik e l y t h a t it w a s M is tr e s s " ), th e h o m o lo g u e o f A p h ro d ite a n d V e n u s; N e th ­
u s e d to h a r m o n iz e th e r e la tiv e ly in s titu tio n a l c h a r a c t e r o f th e u n s , th e h o m o lo g u e o f N e p tu n e a n d P o s e id o n ; T u rm s , th e
g o d s ( a s w e ll a s o f d e m i g o d s a n d d a e m o n s ) w ith th e m o d e l h o m o lo g u e o f H e r m e s (th e n a m e Henne- is a l s o a t t e s t e d ) a n d
o f h u m a n s o c i e t y a n d i n s t i t u t i o n s , a s is s e e n in o t h e r c a s e s M e rc u ry . F in a lly th e r e w e r e s o m e d iv in itie s w h o w e r e b o r ­
(fo r e x a m p le , in th e g r o u p in g of c e rta in d iv in itie s in to r o w e d d ir e c tly f ro m G r e e c e : H e r d e (th a t is, H e r a c le s ), A ri-
" c o l l e g e s , " a n d in t h e p e o p l e ' s c o n c e p t i o n o f t h e d e m i g o d s , t im i o r A r t u m s ( A r t e m i s ) , a n d A p ( u ) l u ( A p o l l o ) .
w h o c o u ld b e c lie n ts , h e lp e r s , o r s e r v a n t s ) . T h e first n a m e , T h e d iv in itie s o f n a tu r e (ce le s tia l a n d te r r e s tr ia l) a n d of
w h ic h co rre sp o n d s to th e in d iv id u a l o r p e r s o n a l n a m e in n a tu r a l p r o d u c ts s e e m t o b e l o c a t e d m a i n l y in t h e s o u t h e r n
h u m a n o n o m a s t i c s , is n a t u r a l l y t h e g o d ' s p r i n c i p a l n a m e ; b u t r e g io n s of th e c e le s tia l v a u lt: th e re w e re th e s o la r gods
it c a n a lso be a n am e com m o n to m e m b e rs of a c e rta in C a (u )th a a n d U s il, a n d p ro b a b ly th e m o o n T iv (r) a n d th e
c a te g o r y o f d e m ig o d s (in E tru ria , fo r in s ta n c e , th e nam es daw n T h esan , S e lv a n s (= S y lv a n u s ), and F u flu n (s), th e
Lasa or CharulnJ a r e s o m e tim e s fo llo w e d b y a s e c o n d , m o r e h o m o l o g u e o f D io n y s u s a n d B a c c h u s . A m o n g th e d iv in itie s
s p e c ific , d e sig n a tio n ), or a "c o n c e p t" (as in th e U m b ria n o f f a te , d e a t h , a n d t h e n e t h e r w o r ld w h o u s u a lly liv e d in th e
ritu a l of th e Ig u v in e T a b le ts: Ahtu Marti = "O ra cle [o f] in a u s p ic io u s w e s te r n re g io n s a r e C ile n (s ), L e t h a ( m ) , C a lu ,
M a r s " ), o r s im p ly th e g e n e r ic n a m e in d ic a tin g th e d iv in ity V e tis ( w h o m ay b e V e iv e , i .e ., V e io v is , th e J u p ite r o f th e
(o f th e ty p e Des Fortuna; cf. th e E tr u s c a n Flere Nethuns = th e n e t h e r w o r ld ) , a n d a ls o th e g o d d e s s V a n th , th e g o d M a n tu s
g o d N e p t u n e o r t h e d i v i n i t y o f N e p t u n e ) . A s in n o b l e n a m e s , a n d h is c o n s o r t M a n ia , a n d , b o r r o w e d d ir e c tly fro m G r e e c e ,
t h e g o d ' s s e c o n d n a m e g e n e r a l l y h a s a n o b j e c t i v e m e a n i n g ; it A ita o r E ita ( H a d e s ) a n d h is c o n s o r t P h e r s i p n a i ( P e r s e p h o n e ,
c a n re fe r to a p la ce (Juno Populonjija); to a f a m ily lin e — w h ic h P ro s e rp in a ). B u t in t h i s d o m a i n it i s h a r d to m a k e a c le a r
s u g g e s ts a fa m ily c u lt ( f o r e x a m p le , Culsl Leprnal = C u ls u d is tin c tio n b e tw e e n th e g o d s s tr i c t l y s p e a k i n g a n d c e r ta in
" o f t h e L e p r n a f a m i l y " in t h e f u n e r a l e l e g y o f t h e T a r q u i n i a n in fe rn a l d a e m o n s . F in a lly w e m u s t n o te s e p a r a te ly th e tw o
p rie s t L a ris P u le n a s ); to a fu n c tio n (Keri Arentikai = C e r e s t h e d iv in itie s of V o ls in ii, V o ltu m n a ( Veltuna or Veltha in
A v e n g e r , in a n O s c a n c u r s e [ tabella deßxionis] f r o m C a p u a , E tr u s c a n — a s w e s a id a b o v e , th is d iv in ity b e c a m e th e m o s t
a n d th e p a ra lle l Mars Ultor); o r t o a n o t h e r d i v i n i t y , w h e th e r i m p o r ta n t g o d o f E tru ria fro m th e tim e th e r e p r e s e n ta tiv e s o f
b y a s s im ila tio n ( a s in Fuflunsul Pachies, in w h i c h t h e E tru sc a n t h e E t r u s c a n s t a t e s b e g a n t o m e e t p e r i o d i c a l l y in h i s s a n c t u ­
n am e Fufluns is a t t a c h e d a s a n a t t r i b u t e t o t h e n a m e o f t h e a r y ) a n d N o r t i a , p r o b a b ly th e g o d d e s s o f d e s t i n y : a n a il w a s
god B acch u s, w ho co rre sp o n d s to F u flu n s) or s im p ly by d r iv e n in to h e r te m p le e a c h y e a r (L iv y , 7 .3 .7 ) .
a s s o c i a t i o n ( Deus Fidius, Janus Junonius, e t c .) . T o th is la st ty p e A lo n g sid e th e se d iv in e fig u re s w ho w ere d e fin e d and
o f f o rm a tio n b e lo n g s th e e x t r a o r d i n a r y i n te r w e a v in g o f d i­ r e p r e s e n te d a n t h r o p o m o r p h ic a l ly u n d e r th e in flu e n c e o f th e
v in e n a m e s th a t c h a r a c t e r iz e s th e U m b r ia n p a n th e o n in th e G re e k p a n th e o n , s o m e in d ig e n o u s s u p e r n a tu r a l e n titie s s u r ­
Ig u v in e T a b le ts (s e e b e lo w ). v i v e d , o f te n g r o u p e d in c o l le g e s o f o b s c u r e a n d m y s t e r i o u s
d iv in itie s , w h ose n u m b er, se x , a n d n am e a re not know n
II. Etruria Adversus Nationes 3 . 4 0 ) . T h e s e i n c l u d e d
( V a r r o , in A r n o b i u s
O u r k n o w l e d g e o f t h e E t r u s c a n g o d s is b a s e d p r i m a r i l y o n th e Involuti et Superiores g o d s , a n d t h e Favores Opertanei ( i . e . ,
p icto ria l r e p r e s e n ta tio n s (c h ie fly e n g r a v e d m ir r o r s , b u t a ls o " h i d d e n " ) . T h e w r ite r s o f a n tiq u ity m e n tio n o t h e r " c o l le g e s "
fu n e ra ry p a in tin g s , v a s e s , s ta t u e tt e s , e t c .) , e s p e c ia lly w h e n o r c a t e g o r i e s o f d i v i n i t i e s ; t h e s e w e r e g e n e r a l l y r e f e r r e d t o in
th e s e a re a c c o m p a n ie d b y e x p la n a to r y in s c rip tio n s ; o n o th e r E tru s c a n b y th e w o rd aiser o r eiser ( = " g o d s " ) ; th e e x p re s s io n
E tr u s c a n te x ts , s u c h a s ritu a ls , v o tiv e d e d ic a tio n s , th e m in ­ eiser si-c seu-c, fo u n d in th e r itu a l o f th e Z a g r e b M um m y,
ia tu re m odel of a l iv e r fro m P ia ce n z a , e t c .; and on th e c o u ld r e f e r e i th e r t o a ll o f t h e s e o r to a s p e c if ic c u l t . T h e r e
c o m p a riso n of in fo rm a tio n p re se rv e d in c la s sica l lite ra ry m a y b e a p a r a lle l in t h e Consentes or Complices ( in E t r u s c a n
so u rces. p erh ap s Aiser Thußtha), c o u n s e lo rs of T in ia -Ju p ite r, w ho
T h e g r e a t c e le s tia l d iv in itie s h a v e c h a r a c t e r is t ic s a n d a t­ w e r e t w e l v e in n u m b e r ; b u t t h e r e w e r e a l s o t h e P e n a t e s , w h o
trib u te s a n a lo g o u s to t h o s e o f th e G re e k d iv in itie s to w h o m w e r e d iv id e d in to f o u r c la s s e s o f d iv in itie s , o f th e sk y , th e
t h e y w e r e a s s i m i l a t e d . T h e y w e r e b e l i e v e d t o i n h a b i t a ll o f w a te r, th e e a rth , and hum an s o u ls (N ig id iu s F ig u lu s , in
th e s ix te e n re g io n s of heaven, p a rtic u la rly th e first fo u r A r n o b iu s 3 .3 8 ) ; th e L a r e s ; a n d th e M a n e s , th a t is, th e s p irits

30

of the dead. The relations among all these groups are not
clear: the Consentes may have been pairs of major divinities,
but they are also sometimes identified with the Penates—
who may represent, in another form, all Etruscan divinities.
III. The Italic Populations
Outside Etruria, the archaeological evidence provided by
pictorial representations is very rare. We must therefore rely
almost entirely on epigraphic documents, with the occa­
sional help of information found in literary sources. In
addition to the scarcity of data, another problem is the
multiplicity and dispersion of ethnic groups speaking Indo-
European languages and of their ritual centers. As a result, it
is difficult to propose a synthesis of the data on the Italic
divinities, not only for the marginal zones of the Adriatic and
southern Italy, but also for the territories of the Umbro-
Sabellian peoples, whose religious experience, that is, cul­
tural experience in general, appears to have been very
different. Undoubtedly there were fairly close relations be­
tween these peoples and the ancient Latin and Roman
world, due to common underlying characteristics and to very
early contacts between the Sabines and the inhabitants of
Right: Votive statue of a woman with a child. Fifth century. Capua,
Museo Campano. Museum photo.
Votive statue of a woman with a child. Fifth to sixth century. Capua,
Museo Campano. Museum photo.
R E L I G I O N IN P R E - R O M A N ITAL Y
Latium (a large number of Roman cults were supposed to be
of Sabine origin, starting with that of the god Quirinus), but
also to later influences— and notably that of the Roman
religion in the frontier territories of the interior peninsula,
especially after the territories began to fall under the political
domination of Rome. But the Greek and Etruscan cults also
exercised their influence.
Probably many of the basic figures of the common pan­
theon of Greece and Italy were adapted to the traditions and
rituals of the Italic sanctuaries, beginning with Jupiter, who,
under the name of (D)iove-, (D)iuve-, but also lupater, accom­
panied by multiple epithets, is widely attested in the Umbro-
Sabellian area. Even though we have no epigraphic docu­
ment clearly proving the existence of a goddess
corresponding to Juno, we cannot exclude the hypothesis
that the goddess Hera, whose worship was extremely wide­
spread in Italy, influenced the cults of the mother goddess,
such as those practiced in the famous sanctuary of Capua—
but unfortunately we still do not know the name of the
divinity to whom this sanctuary was consecrated. Yet we
find references to Ceres (Kere), at Capua, Agnone, and
Rossano di Vaglio; and to Diana in the sanctuary of Diana
31
R OME

T i f a t i n a n e a r C a p u a . In C a m p a n i a a n d in t h e t e r r i t o r y o f t h e
BIBLIOGRAPHY
P e lig n ia n s , A p h r o d ite -V e n u s a p p e a r s u n d e r th e n a m e Haren-
tas, t h a t is, " t h e g o d d e s s o f d e s i r e ." T h e c u lt o f H e r a c le s 1. Introduction
( Herekle) is a l s o w e ll k n o w n . B u t t h e p r e e m i n e n t I t a l i c g o d , c. MiCALi, L'Italia avanti il dominio de' Romani ( Florence 1810; 2d ed.,
p re se n t e v e ry w h e re and a tte s te d by b o th e p ig ra p h ic a n d 1821; reprinted Turin 1887). d . randai.l maciver , Italy before the Romans
lite r a r y s o u r c e s , s e e m s to h a v e b e e n M a r s (in th e O s c a n f o rm (Oxford 1928). f . altheim , Italia, Studi e Materiali di Storia delle
Mamers), th e g o d o f w a r a n d m ig ra tio n s a n d th e p a tro n o f Religioni, 10 (1934): 125-55; Italien und Rom. 1: Die Grundlagen
m e r c e n a r ie s . T h e d i s c o v e r y o f a v e r y l a r g e n u m b e r o f s m a ll (Amsterdam and Leipzig 1941), = Römische Geschichte, 1 (Frankfurt
s ta t u e s r e p r e s e n ti n g M a r s a n d H e r a c l e s in th e v o t iv e d e p o s ­
am Main 1951). j. whatmough , The Foundations of Roman Italy (London
1937). M. PALLorriNO, "Le origini storiche dei popoli italici," in X
i ts o f s a n c t u a r i e s a l l o v e r t h e p e n i n s u l a is e v i d e n c e o f d e e p
Congresso Internazionale di Scienze Storiche, Relazioni (Florence 1955),
p o p u la r v e n e ra tio n fo r th e se d iv in itie s . T h e re are o th e r
2:3-60. g . m . a . Richter , Ancient Italy (Ann Arbor 1955). a . maigri, Arte
s p e c if ic a lly Ita lic d iv in itie s w h o d o n o t re a lly h a v e hom o­ e civiltà dell'Italia antica (Milan 1960); Études étrusco-italiques (Louvain
lo g u e s in th e G re c o -R o m a n w o rld , such as th e god d ess 1963). c. RADKE, Die Götter Altitaliens (Münster 1965). g . devoto , Scritti
M e fitis , a g r e a t d iv in e f ig u r e o f th e S a b e llia n p e o p l e s , k n o w n minori, 2 (Florence 1967). m . a . levi , L'Italia antica, 1 (Milan 1968).
e s p e c ia lly in I r p i n i a ; it i s c e r t a i n l y she w ho, w ith Ju p ite r u. h e l ic o n , Rome et la Méditerranée occidentale jusqu'aux guerres puniques
( Diove) , f o r m e d t h e c o u p l e t h a t m a y h a v e b e e n n a m e d " t h e (Paris 1969). m . pallottino, Civiltà artistica etrusco-italica ( Florence 1971);
S o v e r e i g n s " ( rego) in t h e d e d i c a t i o n s o f R o s s a n o d i V a g li o . "Sul concetto di storia italica," in L ltalie préromaine et la Rome républi­
caine: Mélanges offerts à Jacques Heurgon (Paris 1976), 771-89; Genti e
She seem s to have been p a r tly a s s im ila te d to C e re s and
culture dell'Italia preromana (Rome 1980). R. bloch . Recherches sur les
V e n u s . C e r e s J o v i a is a l s o c a l l e d " Q u e e n " in t h e i n s c r i p t i o n
religions de l'Italie antique. Centre de recherche d'histoire et de philologie
o f th e T a b le t o f R a p in o , n e a r C h ie ti. A m o n g th e U m b r ia n s (a t
de l'École pratique des hautes-études (Geneva 1976); Popoli e civiltà
P r e s tin o ) a n d th e P ic e n ia n s , th e w o r s h ip o f a n o t h e r fe m a le dell'Italia antica, vols. 2 -7 (Rome 1974-78); / Galli e l'Italia, catalog of the
d iv in ity , C u p r a , w a s w id e s p r e a d ; a f a m o u s s a n c t u a r y w as exposition (Rome 1978).
d e d i c a t e d to h e r o n th e A d r i a t ic ( t o d a y 's C u p r a M a r i ti m a ) .
B u t th e ric h e s t a n d m o s t c o m p le te d o c u m e n ta tio n o n th e
2. Etruscans and Italians
I t a li c d i v i n i t i e s w o r s h i p e d in a p a r t i c u l a r p l a c e , in t h i s c a s e g . Q. GiGi.iOLi and g . camporeale . La religione degli Etruschi: Storia

th e U m b ria n c ity o f G u b b io , is p ro v id e d by th e Ig u v in e
delle religioni (6th ed., Turin 1971), 2:537-672, and especially 598ff.
a . |. pfiffig , Religio Etrusca (Graz 1975), and especially 16ff., 198ff.,
T a b le ts. T h e T a b le ts m e n tio n a la rg e n u m b e r o f d iv in e f ig u re s
347ff., with all the references to earlier studies.
o r e n titie s , o n ly s o m e o f w h o m a r e k n o w n , s u c h a s J u p ite r,
M a rs , P o m o n o , V e s o n a , C e r f o , F is o v io , H o lo , H o n d o , T e fro , 3. The Divinities
T r e b o , V o f i o n o , e t c . W h a t s e e m s m o s t s i g n i f i c a n t t o d a y is G. bianchi, "Gli dei delle stirpi italiche," in Popoli e civiltà dell’Italia
th a t e a c h o f th e se n am es, ra re ly u sed by i ts e lf , g e n e r a l l y antica. 7 (1978): 195-236. r. bloch . Recherches sur les religions de l'Italie
fo rm s th e first p a r t o f a d o u b le n a m e , th e s e c o n d p a r t b e in g antique (Geneva 1976). g . q . gigi.ioli and g . camporeale , La religione
a n a d je c tiv e f o rm e d fro m th e n a m e o f a n o t h e r d iv in ity ( f o r degli Etruschi, Storia delle religioni (6th ed., Turin 1971), 2:537-672.
e x a m p le , C e r f o M a rtio , P r e s to ta C e r f ia , T o rs a C e r f ia , T o rs a a . ). pfiffig , Religio Etrusca (Graz 1975). g . radke . Die Götter Altitaliens

J o v i a , F i s o v i o S a n c i o , e t c . ) . A ll o f t h i s m a k e s u p a n e x t r a o r ­
(Munster 1965).
See also other more specific works cited at the end of the other
d in a r y in te r w e a v in g o f re c ip ro c a l r e la tio n s , a k in d o f g e n e a ­
articles on Italy before Rome.
lo g ic a l tr e e . A t th e to p o f th is t r e e is th e t ria d o f Ju p ite r
G r a b o v i o , M a r s G r a b o v i o , a n d V o f i o n o G r a b o v i o , a ll o f w h o m
c a n b e c o n n e c t e d to a first e n tity , G r a b o -, w h o s e o r ig in , a c ­
c o r d i n g to G . D e v o to , is a s th e p e r s o n i f ic a ti o n o f r o c k s o r o a k
t r e e s , a n d w h o is a l s o f o u n d i n t h e E t r u s c a n d i v i n e n a m e flere
in crapsti ( = g o d o f t h e g r a b - , o r in t h e grab-). T h i s is e v i d e n t l y
a s y s te m b o rn o f a c o m p le x th e o lo g ic a l e la b o r a tio n , c o m p li­ S acrificial C ults and R ites in
c a t e d a ll t h e m o r e b y t h e f a c t t h a t s o m e o f t h e s e d i v i n e e n t i t i e s P re-R oman I taly
s e e m t o b e p e r s o n i f i c a t i o n s o f c o n c e p t s o r a c t i o n s ( Vofiono-, f o r
i n s t a n c e , is " t h e s h a k e r , " Trebo- " t h e d w e ll in g ," e t c .) .
N o t h i n g , o r v e r y l i t t l e , c a n b e s a i d a b o u t t h e o t h e r I t a li c O u r k n o w le d g e a b o u t th e c u ltic f o r m s , e s p e c ia lly th e s a c r i­
p o p u la tio n s , m o r e is o la te d a n d le s s k n o w n . O n th e in d ig e ­ f i c ia l f o r m s , t h a t w e r e p r a c t i c e d b y t h e p o p u l a t i o n s o f p r e -
n o u s d i v i n i t i e s o f t h e A p u l i a n s , t h e r e is n o i n f o r m a t i o n a t a l l; R o m a n I ta ly c o m e s to u s fr o m a fe w o r ig in a l d o c u m e n t s o f
th e n a m e s o f th e G re e k g o d d e s s e s D e m e te r a n d A p h r o d ite , g r e a t im p o r ta n c e . A m o n g th e m , th e m o s t im p o rta n t d o c u ­
w h ic h a p p e a r in th e M e s s a p i a n i n s c r ip t io n s , c o u l d b e t r a n s ­ m e n t is th e U m b r i a n t e x t o f th e I g u v i n e T a b le s , th e lo n g e s t
la tio n s o f o n e o r s e v e r a l lo c a l f e m a le d i v in itie s , p a r t ic u la r l y p r e - L a t i n i n s c r i p t i o n e v e r d i s c o v e r e d in I t a ly . N e x t in i m p o r ­
s in c e D e m e te r re c a lls th e c u lt o f C e r e s , w h ic h w a s w id e ­ ta n c e a r e th e E tr u s c a n te x t in s c rib e d o n th e w r a p p in g s o f a n
spread am ong th e S a b e llia n s . O n th e o th e r h a n d , Ju p ite r E g y p tia n m um m y now in Z a g r e b a n d th e c la y ta b le t f ro m
M enzana co u ld be an a n cie n t lo c a l god of h o rses. O n ce C a p u a t h a t a l s o b e a r s a n E t r u s c a n i n s c r i p t i o n . F i n a l ly , t h e r e
a g a i n , it is a f e m a l e d i v i n i t y w h o s e e m s t o p r e v a i l i n t h e s e a re o th e r d o c u m e n ts , b o th E tru sc a n (th e g o ld e n p la te s o f
a r e a s . W e c o u ld a ls o c ite th e R e itia o f th e V e n e ti, o f w h o m w e P y rg i, th e le a d d isk o f M a g lia n o , e t c .) a n d O s c a n (th e iuvilas
h a v e a fe w r e p r e s e n ta t io n s , fo r e x a m p l e , in th e r e lie f s o n th e in s c r ip tio n s fro m C a p u a a n d th e Tabula Agnonensis). It s h o u l d
b r o n z e d i s k s f r o m M o n t e b e l l u n a , w h e r e s h e is p o r t r a y e d a s b e e m p h a s iz e d th a t th e ric h e s t a n d d e e p e s t in fo r m a tio n th a t
a potnia theron, w i t h a l a r g e k e y . A m o n g t h e e p i t h e t s o f R e it i a th e e p ig r a p h ic s o u r c e s g iv e u s a b o u t th e a n c ie n t c u ltu r e s o f
a t t e s t e d in V e n e t i a n d e d i c a t o r y i n s c r i p t i o n s i s Tora, p ro b a b ly th e Ita lic w o r l d is i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t r itu a l p r a c ti c e s . The
o n e o f t h e m o s t a n c i e n t n a m e s o f t h e g o d d e s s . In a n y c a s e , v a lu e o f th e s e e p ig ra p h ic d a ta s u r p a s s e s th a t o f a r c h a e o lo g ­
t h e e x i s t e n c e o f a s a n c t u a r y o f A r g i v e H e r a , l ik e t h a t o f J u n o ic a l d a t a ( t h e r e m a i n s o f s h r i n e s , t e m p l e s a n d t h e i r d e c o r a ­
a t P a d u a , c o n firm s th a t th e V e n e tia n c u lts w e r e e s s e n tia lly tio n s , s c e n e s d e p ic tin g s a c r e d c e r e m o n i e s , a n d s o f o rth ) a n d
c o n n e c t e d w ith fe m a le d iv in itie s . th e fr a g m e n ta r y a n d in d ire c t in fo r m a tio n s u p p lie d b y c la s s i­
M.P./j.l. c a l lit e r a r y s o u r c e s .

32
 S A C R I F I C A L C UL T S AND KI TES IN I’ K E KO M A N ITALY

Italic sacrificial rites are described in minute detail in the

seven bronze tablets from Gubbio. Although their dates have
been set at the second and first century b . c . and although
they were written partly in the Umbrian alphabet and partly
in the Latin alphabet, certain elements of their redaction go
back to much earlier times. They consist in a set of sacred
regulations that belong to the city-state of Gubbio (Iguvium).
Mentioned among them are the city's acropolis (the Fisia
acropolis), and the place set aside for the observation of
auguries (a templum) and its roads and gates. Its institutions
and its priests are named, notably the college of the Atiedii
Brethren. The ritual prescriptions are connected with various
kinds of ceremonies: a great sacrifice of expiation and puri­
fication of the city and the acropolis, a lustration of the
people followed by the exile of foreigners, sacrifices to ward
off ill fortune, the sacrifice of a dog, rites of assembly, and the
rites of the festivals celebrated every two months. The liturgy
took place in three phases: (1) the prayer ratifying the pact
with the deity (persklom); (2) the observation of the flight of
birds to determine auguries (avie); and (3) the sacrifice itself,
or the offering (esono). Different ceremonies were invoked to
gain the favor of different deities. The deities were quite
numerous; some were well-known and common to all Italic
religions (like Jupiter and Mars), while others, more obscure,
personified sacred concepts. But almost all of them were
characterized by a second name indicating the relationships
of kinship or affiliation that united them. The victims of
blood sacrifices could be oxen, calves, heifers, pigs, sheep, or
dogs, all carefully selected for their age, sex, and color, and
according to their breeding, which could be either sacred or
profane. The bloodless offerings consisted of liquids, notably
the "sacred beverage” and wine, which were used as an
accompaniment to the sacrifice or poured as simple libations;
finally, there were offerings of grain, cakes, fat, and so forth.
The officiating priest, in addition to the augur, was the
arsfertor, who corresponds to the Latin flamen. The supreme Fragment from the Iguvine Table. Gubbio, Palazzio dei Consoli.
Photo Garivati.
religious authority was vested in the uhtur (auctor, "maker” ).
This extraordinary heritage of knowledge (basically clear,
even though there are still some problems in the interpreta­
tion of the texts) opens the way to a whole spectrum of sequences, the first dedicated to a college of deities (aiser,
comparisons with Greek and Roman sacrificial rites, to which that is, "the gods," si-c seuc-), the second to a god designated
the Umbrian rites seem to be closely tied by profound by the expression flere in crapsti (which may correspond to
analogies. These analogies certainly go back partly to the Jupiter Grabovius of Gubbio), and the third to Neptune (flerc
origins, but they may also have come about through the nethuns). These three sequences seem to be intended for the
progressive assimilation of ritual customs within the envi­ purification of the sanctuary, the city, and the people. There
ronment of Hellenistic civilization and through the immedi­ are also references to ceremonies in honor of the gods Culsu
ate influence of Rome. Moreover, according to the method of and Veive (and therefore probably funerary ceremonies) and
"parallel texts" that K. Olzscha has applied in this area, the rites of lustration. There is also a reference to a "royal palace"
Iguvine Tables constitute the point of departure for any and to a temple of the goddess Uni. Sacrificial rites were
understanding of Etruscan ritual texts, primarily those of the designated by the term ais(u)na (= res divina), which is
Zagreb Mummy and the clay tablet from Capua. Indeed, connected with the form esono found on the Iguvine Tables;
there are close correspondences between the Umbrian doc­ these rites included dedications and offerings, with or with­
ument and the Etruscan text of Zagreb. The same entire out the shedding of blood. Given our uncertain knowledge
formulas appear in both; indeed, in certain cases we can of Etruscan vocabulary, it is difficult to state the exact nature
juxtapose them as if they were "bilingual." This demon­ of the victims (who are thought to be similar to the victims of
strates a basic unity in the mentality and sacred language the Iguvian ritual) or of the offerings. We can simply say that
that also applies to the Roman literary and epigraphic the offerings of liquids, notably wine (vinum), seem to have
documents that deal with ritual prescriptions (for example, been very important. The Zagreb text is more or less con­
Cato's De Re Rustica, the Acta Fratrum Arvalium, the proceed­ temporary with the Iguvine Tables and must therefore go
ings of the secular games, and so forth). back to the late phase of Etruscan civilization and to the time
The ritual that one can read on the wrapping (liber linteus) of the Roman Republic. On the other hand, the ritual
of the Zagreb Mummy describes a series of ceremonies that prescriptions of the Capuan tile belong to a much earlier
took place in a particular religious center, the shrine of Cilth period (fifth century b . c .). These mention sacrifices and
(sacni cilth-), in a chronological order that was fixed by a offerings to ancestors and to infernal deities. Both of these
calendar of religious festivals. The most important part of the great documents of Etruscan ritual mention various offici­
text is made up of three long, almost identical liturgical ating priests. The principal term designating a priest is cepen

33
ROME
(in Capua, the archaic form cipen), often followed by an exact
term indicating functions. Thus, a cepen thaurch was respon­
sible for funerary tasks. Other terms indicating priestly
functions appear on tomb inscriptions. The highest sacred
office was apparently held by the maru (that is, the Maro,
who in Umbria carried out civil functions— it was also Virgil's
family name).
M.P./g.h.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
M. rALLorriNO, "Questioni ermeneutiche del testo di Zagabria," Studi
Etruschi 6 (1932): 273-81. g . devoto . Tabulae Iguvinae (Rome 1937).
K. o lzscha , Interpretation der Agramer Mumienbinde (Leipzig 1939).
I- HEURGON, Étude sur les inscriptions osques de Capoue dites lûvilas (Paris
1942). g . devoto . Le Tavole di Gubbio (Florence 1948). m . pallottino ,
"Sulla lettura e sui contenuto della grande iscrizione di Capua," Studi
Etruschi 20 (1948-49): 159-96; "Scavi nel Santuario etrusco di Pyrgi:
Relazione preliminare della settima campagna, 1961, e scoperta di tre
lamine d'oro inscritte in etrusco e in punico," Archeologia Classica 16
(1964): 76ff. a . i . pfiffig . Religio Iguvina (Vienna 1964); Religio Etrusca
(Graz 1975).
C onceptions of the A fterlife among the
P eoples of P re-R oman I taly
I. Italian Protohistory
With the exception of the Etruscans, whom we will discuss
further on, ancient sources tell us nothing directly about the
beliefs of the peoples of pre-Roman Italy concerning the fate
of human beings in the next world. All that one can vaguely
deduce from the funeral customs and the tombs, that is,
through archaeology alone, belongs to the general category
of Mediterranean and European protohistories of the Bronze
Age and the Iron Age, including those of primitive Greece.
The data tend to demonstrate the persistence and the pre­
eminence of a fundamental conception, common to the
earliest stages of development in all human cultures: that of
a direct relationship between the spirit of the dead—always
understood as the survival in some way or another of their
individuality—and their mortal remains in their resting
place, that is, in the tomb. The tomb must therefore be a
secure shelter, and, to the extent possible, garments, food,
and objects of daily use will be placed near the body or the
ashes of the deceased for use in the future life. Until the most
recent periods, that is, approximately the Hellenistic
period—and when Rome, after unifying Italy, imposed her
civilization on it—the Italic necropolises almost without
exception preserved this ritual custom. In fact, it continued
until the time of the migrations among the European peoples
who lived on the margin of the classical world, while in
Greece it disappeared much earlier.
The simultaneous use of funerary practices as different as
burial and cremation is also found in other civilizations of the
antique world (including Greece and Rome), but it is so
characteristic of pre-Roman Italy that it makes it possible to
distinguish the different territories, ethnic milieus, cultural
horizons, and chronological periods. From the perspective of
a genuine historical reconstruction, it is not easy to describe
34
the alternation of the two rites. We can say, nevertheless,
that, essentially, the burial of bodies in a folded or straight
position is the heritage of prehistoric customs that were
widespread in Italy even during the Neolithic and the Bronze
Age and survived in a large area of the Adriatic, interior, and
southern zones of the peninsula; while the practice of
cremation, linked to the great movement of European "fields
of urns," became widespread at the end of the Bronze Age,
and continued afterward, during the Iron Age and the
historical period, to be the exclusive or preeminent patri­
mony of the inhabitants of northern and Tyrrhenian Italy.
The phase of greatest expansion of the rite, in which it took
over even southern Italy and Sicily (probably diffused from
the north by land and from the Balkans and the Aegean
world by sea), coincides in the final Bronze Age with the
culture called "Proto-Villanovian," which is found in remark­
able uniformity throughout Italy (eleventh to ninth century
B.c.). At the beginning of the Iron Age (ninth to eighth
century b . c .), we see that the zones where cremation pre­
dominates already correspond rather precisely to the territo­
ries of the Liguri (the culture of Golasecca), the Veneti (the
culture of Este), the Etruscans (Villanovian culture), and in
part to those of the Latins and the Umbrians. On the other
hand, burial seems to characterize the Sabellian-Umbrian
peoples (including the Piceni of the Adriatic), the Apulians,
and the natives of Magna Graecia and Sicily. But the practice
of burial gains ground throughout the Tyrrhenian slope
beginning in the seventh century, in Latium and in Etruria,
with the characteristic dugout tombs. Later, grave monu­
ments, chambered tombs carved into the rock and imitating
the interior of homes, and finally veritable mausoleums were
superimposed upon, or rather, in many places, substituted
for, the dugout tombs. In Etruria there was, in the end, a
fairly clear boundary between the southern cities where
burial predominated (Caere, Tarquinii, Vulci), and the north­
ern cities where cremation predominated (Volaterrae, Clu­
sium, and Perusia). It is known that in Rome in the historical
period, the two rites coexisted and were linked to different
familial traditions. It is probable that it was the same in other
cities; for it is possible that the practice of one rite or the other
depended upon the social status of the deceased.
The main ideological significance of cremation is still a
matter of dispute; in any case, this does not concern the
practice and the diffusion of the rite in Italy during the more
recent historical periods. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied
that there is some connection with the idea of a generative or
regenerative power in fire, which might also suggest a
relationship between the cinerary vase in the form of a
cabin-urn—widespread in prehistoric Latium and in
Etruria—the domestic hearth, and the cult of Vesta (Miiller-
Karpe). The form of the individual tombs would evidently
differ according to whether one buried or cremated the body;
but neither the rules about the nature and extension of the
cemeteries nor the funerary furnishings seem to have dif­
fered in any other way—which leads one to think that there
was a profound similarity between the conceptions of the
next world. Noteworthy is the general tendency to make the
urns or tombs look like a house (from the first cabin-urns to
the little urns in stone, the sarcophagi, the tomb facades and
hypogea carved into the rock), in order to offer the dead the
continuation of their milieu, that is to say a domus aeterna,
following the definition that the Romans would later give to
the tomb. More significant still is the intention to reproduce
the image of the deceased—probably in order to preserve a
corporeal support for the spirit, in conformity with the
Mediterranean tradition that went back to ancient Egypt.

This practice is manifest not only in the presence of figurines
in the proto-Latin cremation tombs, and later in the Etruscan
tombs, but especially in the fact that they tended to give
human forms to the cinerary urns (such as the "canopic
vases" of Clusium). The "portraits" of Etruscan funerary
painting and sculpture, and the imagines maiorum, that is, the
masks and busts of ancestors, of the Roman funerary custom
(Pliny, Naturalis Historia 35.6) are evidently related to this
tradition—even though, with time, what had originally
borne the mark of magic or religion became a simple com­
memoration or proud aristocratic exhibition.
The separation, because of the "impurity" of the dead,
between the locales of interment and the locales of
habitation—a separation that characterizes all the major
cultures but, generally speaking, seems alien to the world of
prehistory—is already in operation in Italy between the
Bronze Age and the Iron Age. However, it seems that in the
beginning this separation was not rigorously demarcated: in
many cases ( for example, in Rome, in Villanovian Tarquinii
and Bologna, in Este), groups of tombs are placed around
centers of habitation. It was only when the movement of
urbanization began to take hold, in the eighth and seventh
centuries b . c ., that this custom took the form of a ritual rule,
confirmed by the Roman law of the Twelve Tables ("It is
forbidden to bury or cremate a body in the city"), later to
become a general and continuous tradition. The necropolises
thus developed outside of the urban centers, along the major
routes, and attained dimensions comparable to those of the
cities, which they imitated in spacial planning and in the
arrangement of the monuments (an exemplary case is that of
Caere in Etruria, though one can cite precedents, admittedly
embryonic, in protohistorical Latium, as well as the evidence
of the recent discoveries at Decima, near Rome). The indig­
enous cities of Apulia constitute a singular exception, still
unique in all of ancient Italy: the prehistoric heritage seems
here to have crystallized into a system in which homes and
tombs were mixed indiscriminately.
II. The Etruscans
A significant amount of information about Etruscan no­
tions of the hereafter is furnished by archaeology, that is, by
the tombs and their decoration; by the study of epigraphic
documents; and finally by the echoes of their beliefs in the
literary sources of the Roman and Christian periods. The
tombs are among the most significant expressions, if not the
most significant, of the culture of the ancient Etruscans.
Contrary to other peoples of ancient Italy, they seem to have
paid particular attention and devoted great economic re­
sources to the care of their dead and to the furnishings of the
sepulchers— for which no equivalents in monumentality and
richness are found outside of certain cultures of the Near
East. This concern should correspond logically to special
psychological and ideological orientations
The faith in the survival of the deceased in his tomb,
common to all the religion of pre-Roman Italy—and to the
predassical cultures in general, as we have already seen—is
indeed manifest in Etruria, especially in the archaic period,
with remarkable clarity and intensity: the grandiose tumulus
sepulchers of the Orientalizing period with their sumptuous
furnishings (such as the famous tomb of the Regolini-Galassi
of Caere, the contents of which are conserved in the Vatican
museum), and the chamber tombs, filled with all kinds of
riches (including an incalculable number of Greek vases), the
immense necropolises at Caere (Cerveteri), Tarquinii, Vulci,
Clusium, and, in particular, because of the importance of
C O N C E P T I O N S OF THE A F T E R I . I FF.
their decoration, the painted tombs, especially those of
Tarquinii. This sudden and incomparable blossoming stands
out clearly from the common base of the protohistorical
funerary customs of the Iron Age customs which Etruria still
knew in the Villanovian period (ninth to eighth century b .c .).
The economic and political development of the Etruscan
world must have played a predominant role in this process:
the seventh and sixth centuries, its greatest period of expan­
sion, witnessed the formation of a dominant class that
controlled the wealth and wanted to glorify itself even in the
realm of funerary rites. As for the concern that these barbar­
ian potentates showed for their dead, it is probable that they
were inspired in this by models and memories of the East.
The funerary paintings of Tarquinii represent funerary cere­
monies, games, hunting scenes, dances, and feasts in which
the dead play a role, surrounded by their close friends and
relatives and their servants: there are so many subjects
borrowed from the visible reality that there are almost no
allusions to the supernatural world or the hereafter. Evi­
dently interest is entirely focused upon an immanent conti­
nuity of which the images themselves, in perpetuating the
effectiveness of the funeral rites, offered a guarantee.
But between the fifth and fourth centuries, the atmosphere
changes. Fantastic creatures begin to appear in the tombs,
most often winged, and certainly belonging to a different
world. In painting (at Orvieto) and in sculpture (the stelae of
Bologna), the theme of a "voyage" of the deceased to
another place emerges. The difference between the realm of
the living and that of the dead also materializes. It is clear
that traditional Greek beliefs about the underworld, and
probably Orphic and Pythagorean influences as well, played
a predominant role in this transformation. The realm of the
hereafter was represented as a city lined with towers, whose
door is guarded by demons. The dead arrive there by chariot
or on horseback, also led by demons. Borrowing, in part, the
iconography of archaic banquets, they would sometimes
represent the stay of the dead in the underworld as a
banquet. The rulers of the next world, Aita (Hades) and
Phersipnai (Persephone), preside over the feast, while other
demons play the role of servants and musicians. The influ­
ence of Greece is evident in the large scene of the Nekyia (the
Homeric world of the dead) on the tomb of Orco II at
Tarquinii, with Tiresias and other famous heroes of Hellenic
mythology; it was inspired by an iconographie tradition that
may go back to the tableau of Polygnotus of Thasos that was
found in the Lesche of the Cnidians at Delphi (Pausanias
10.28.7). On the other hand, the menacing demons belong to
the Etruscan imagination: Vanth and other beings armed
with torches who resemble the Erinyes; the terrifying and
omnipresent Charun, with his hammer; and the most mon­
strous of all, Tuchulcha, with his serpents.
The fact that the dead are submerged in a menacing
atmosphere may indicate a pessimistic conception of the
destiny of man in the next world. Nevertheless— in the
representations of illustrious people (from the most noble
families of Tarquinii or Orvieto), serenely lying down or
sitting down for a banquet; or in the scenes where corteges of
magistrates, with their retinue, march toward the beyond—
the accent placed upon the human dignity of the dead seems
to contrast with the basic desolation and theatrical horror,
thus creating an ambiguity that is difficult to explain. Per­
haps it is not unreasonable to seek an analogy with certain
macabre conceptions in the funerary art of the European
baroque (Pfiffig). In fact, we know from several literary
sources that it was possible, by means of the appropriate
blood sacrifices, to raise the souls of the dead to the condition
35
R OME
Canopic jar from Dolciano. Chiusi, Museo civico. Museum photo.
of "divine souls"; this is what is taught in the libri acherontici
(Ateius Labeo is here cited by Servius in his Commentary on
the Aeneid, 3.168; Arnobius Adversus Gentes 2.62). If the ritual
text of the Etruscan inscription of the Capuan tile indeed
refers, as we think it does, to the ceremonies performed in
honor of the infernal gods, then one has, as early as the fifth
century, evidence of ritual practices intended to facilitate the
survival of the dead in the next world. On the one hand,
such a document may illuminate the importance of the
funerary rites known since the archaic period, of which we
find a singular representation in the tomb of the funeral bed,
in Tarquinii: people are depicted making offerings next to a
majestic catafalque bed surmounted by two headdresses that
symbolize the presence of a divine couple (who may perhaps
be identified with the deceased themselves?). On the other
hand, the document may proclaim all those beliefs and
practices concerning the deification of the dead, which the
disciplina Etrusca would later codify. However, as far as these
last are concerned, one should probably consider the influ­
ence of the Greek mysteries and the Orphic, Pythagorean,
and Dionysian doctrines, which, coming directly from
Greece, or through the intermediary of Magna Graecia, had
penetrated into Etruria.
36
Comparing the facts furnished by the Greek and Latin
sources with the results of a careful analysis of the sacred and
funerary texts of the Etruscans allows us to widen and make
more precise our understanding of their eschatology. Thus,
we can lengthen the list of all the deities and demons of
destiny, of death, and of the hereafter that inhabit the deadly
western regions of the sky, with the names of the gods Calu,
Celi, Letha(m), Larun (or Laran), of the goddess Sur(i), of the
goddess or god Culsu (or Culsan), of the demon Leinth
(which might possibly mean "H e who causes to die"), whose
sex is undetermined, and of the female demon Nathum (or
Natinusna)—and recalling the names of the infernal Jupiter,
Veive or Vetis (Veiovis), and the divine couple Mantus and
Mania, who were certainly associated with Manes. These
last, whom the Etruscans also called man(im), are the dead
themselves, but considered as spirits, demons, or even as
gods. They are also recognized under the name apher,
corresponding to the Latin Parentes (Parentes gods); this name
denotes the ancestors who are the object of a cult in the
inscription of the Capuan tile. The concept of soul or spirit is
expressed in Etruscan by the term hinthial (for example:
hinthial Patrueles, "the soul of Patrocles"). It was thought that
the Etruscan name for the next world was Achrum, derived
from the name of the river of the underworld among the
Greeks, the Acheron—which would explain the title of the
Libri Acherontici or Acheruntici.
M.P./m.s.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
b. NOGARA, Gli Etruschi e la loro civiltà (Milan 1933), 220-89. f . de ruyt ,
Charun, démon étrusque de la mort (Rome and Brussels 1934).
f . cuMONT, Recherches sur le symbolisme funéraire des Romains (Paris
1941). M. PALLOTTiNO, "Sulla îettura e sul contenuto della grande
iscrizione etrusca di Capua," Studi Etruschi 20 (1948-49): 159-96; "Il
culto degli antenati in Etruria ed une probabile equivalenza lessicale
etrusco-latina," Studi Etruschi 26 (1958): 49-83. ). b ayet , "Idéologie et
plastique," 2: "La sculpture funéraire de Chiusi," in Mélanges
d'archéologie et d'histoire (1960), 35ff. j. m . c . t o yn bee , Death and Burial
in the Roman World (London 1971). a . j. pfiffig . Religio Etrusca (Graz
1975).
E tru sca n R e l ig io n
I. Historical Premises
The historian Livy (5.1.6) evokes the Etruscans as "a
nation that was devoted beyond all others to religious
practices, and all the more because it excelled at them."
According to a false etymology, their name of Tusci was
derived from the Greek thuoskooi, "experts in sacrifices"
(Dionysius of Halicarnassus, 1.30.3). This reputation is al­
most a commonplace in ancient literature. The Christian
writer Arnobius (Adversus gentes, 7.26) called Etruria "the
creator and mother of superstitions." It is clear that the
Greeks and Romans were impressed by Etruscan religion,
not so much by its intensity as by a particular characteristic
which must have appeared quite strange to them. This was
the Etruscans' obsessive search for contact with the super­
natural world through the interpretation and scrupulous

performance of the divine will—a search which, especially in
the final phase of Etruscan civilization, became a technique
for experts alone.
Literary sources of the Roman period, which report with
sufficient breadth and which sometimes paraphrase and
summarize data lost from the written tradition of the Etrus­
cans, reveal the existence of doctrines that were claimed to
have been handed down from an original teaching by
superior beings, and that discuss the concept of the sacred,
the relationships between the heavenly and terrestrial
worlds, the gods, the destiny of men in time and after death,
and the forms and rules of divination and worship. We do
not know to what degree these concepts, which were ar­
ranged and codified much later, correspond to the earliest
practices and beliefs of Etruscan religion, our direct knowl­
edge of which is based on archaeological evidence and
sometimes epigraphical documents. Insofar as our limited
knowledge of the Etruscan language allows us to understand
them, the most important extant Etruscan texts— dedicatory
and ritual texts such as the Pyrgian tablets, the Capuan tile,
the lead disk of Magliano, and especially the long manuscript
written on the cloth of the Zagreb Mummy from Egypt (the
sole example of a sacred liber linteus preserved from
antiquity)— offer information that not only confirms what we
have been able to learn from classical sources, but also adds
further data, especially important because of their undeni­
able and immediate authenticity. What is more important,
they demonstrate a continuity in the forms of worship and in
the sacred language that goes back at least to the end of the
archaic period, as is the case with the documents from Pyrgi.
Nevertheless, if one hopes to undertake a “historical" recon­
struction of Etruscan beliefs and their development, it re­
mains difficult to distinguish between reality and erudite
speculation.
In any case, the religion is indisputably the best known
aspect of the civilization of ancient Etruria. Considered in a
general perspective, it is one of the most interesting and
original of ancient religions, with many characteristics that
distinguish it from other Mediterranean religions. There has
always been a wish to explain these peculiarities by a theory
that the Etruscans came from the Orient. This theory,
founded on the modern interpretation of an account in
Herodotus (1.94) and other ancient sources, is buttressed by
the fact that in Etruscan religion there was no dearth of
elements having more or less direct ties with Oriental con­
cepts (such as demonology, haruspicy, and funerary cus­
toms). Some scholars, most notably A. Piganiol, have sup­
ported this point of view. But in the past few years, following
new archaeological discoveries and linguistic studies of
greater depth, the problem of the origins of the Etruscans has
opened onto ever broader, more complex and subtle perspec­
tives. In spite of the distant ties that the Etruscans might
have had with the Aegean world and Asia Minor, these new
insights make it even more improbable that there ever was,
at the dawn of historical times, a massive immigration of an
already unified people from the eastern Mediterranean. At
the same time, all evidence indicates that the Etruscan ethnic
group had already taken form in Italy at the end of the
Bronze Age at the latest. As for resemblances to Oriental
religions, these are of so heterogeneous a nature (we find
such elements at diverse periods and in relation to civiliza­
tions as distinct as those of Mesopotamia, Anatolia, and
Egypt) as to make the idea of a common hereditary tradition
unlikely; the resemblances are better explained one by one
through cultural contacts.
E T R U S C A N R E L I G I O N
It is better to refer to historical reality, that is, to character­
istics and events in the life of the Etruscans, than it is to ask
vague questions about their origins. We know that their
civilization knew a sudden and early burgeoning between
the eighth and sixth centuries b . c ., bringing with it the
formation of great urban centers and an expansion of polit­
ical and economic power, especially in the maritime sphere—
the celebrated Etruscan thalassocracy— which was very im­
portant around the Mediterranean. But its development
ended as early as the fifth century, at the end of the archaic
age, before Greece at her apogee imposed and affirmed the
universal values of classicism that would come to be identi­
fied with the progress of the ancient world and with the very
foundations of Western civilization. It is thus understandable
that the essential and deepest characteristics of the spiritual
world of the Etruscans remained fixed at the level of preclas-
sical cultures, tied to prehistoric traditions and primitive
ideas, and variously affected by Oriental and archaic Greek
motifs. This explains why so many aspects of Etruscan
beliefs would later appear distant, foreign, and obscure to
Hellenist-Roman religious and philosophical thought.
The massive penetration of influences from Greek civiliza­
tion in Etruria had noticeable repercussions in the realm of
their gods and iconography and allowed for a diffusion of
myths as well as of certain images of the afterlife. All of their
art, not only temple art but also the art of funerary monu­
ments and decorative objects (vases, engraved mirrors, jew­
elry, etc), is dominated by Greek mythological subjects. But
it must be asked to what extent Hellenization was a decisive
and determining factor in the development of Etruscan
religion, and whether this was not more of an external
veneer—a "cultural" phenomenon rather than an ideological
essence.
The reality underlying these pictorial representations was
revealed with incontestable clarity in the complex of notions
and precepts collected in Roman literature. We must there­
fore trace the elaboration of this complex to the time when
Etruria, after losing its capacity for maritime activity, was
reduced to the limits of the Tyrrhenian territory, between the
Tiber and the Arno. Caught there between the expansion of
the Gauls and the Italic peoples of the interior of the
peninsula, reduced to an essentially local economy, and
finally subjected to the domination of Rome between the
fourth and first centuries b . c ., the Etruscans would in the end
enclose themselves in the conservatism of their priestly
oligarchies and in the cult of their traditions, before defini­
tively bequeathing these vestiges and memories to Roman
religion.
II. General Characteristics of Etruscan Religion
Given the present state of our knowledge—and taking
account of the fragmentary and generally indirect character
of our sources— it is difficult to form an overall idea of the
religious ideas of the Etruscans and even more difficult to
define them with simplistic formulas. Such elements as signs
of the constant influence of supernatural forces in the world
and on human actions, intense relationships between the
living and the spirits of the dead, and apotropaic precautions
and magical practices of evocation or disguise lead one to
think of a persistence of animism. A fetishist theory, pro­
posed by such authors as C. Clemen, appears more uncer­
tain, as the venerated objects, such as weapons or worked
rocks (somewhat analogous to the Semitic sacred stones and
37
ROME

prehistoric menhirs), could also have been symbols or at­

tributes of divinities or the dead. Although cults of water,
trees, lightning flashes and the places struck by them, as well
as cults of the gods of the sky, sun, moon, and sea are often
cited, one cannot really call Etruscan religion a religion of
nature or of heavenly bodies. It seems, however, that one
might easily mark out a cosmological system founded on the
material definition and the division of celestial space accord­
ing to astronomical orientation and, in an analogous and
recurrent manner, of terrestrial space, or better, of particular
terrestrial spaces that may be identified with portions of
territory or with the areas of cities and sacred places—i.e.,
the templum, which may be reduced to the microcosm of the
viscera of sacrificed animals. The attributes, the localization,
and the hierarchies of the major and minor divinities are
inserted into such a system, and the favorable and unfavor­
able powers and presages (to the east and west, respectively,
i.e., to the left and right of a subject looking toward the
southerly sun) are distributed among them, thus concretely
establishing the procedures of divinatory practices.
As far as the realm of the divine is concerned, one may
simply define Etruscan religion as a polytheism similar to
that of the other great religions of the ancient world—
including the Greek and Roman religions— with personal
divinities largely assimilated to the major gods of the Greek
and Italico-Roman pantheon, but also to obscure divinities
who are sometimes multiple and named collectively, and
sometimes anonymous and enveloped in mystery. Further­
more, it is clearly possible to speak of an accentuated Lead disk from Magliano. Florence, Museo archeologico. Photo
polydaemonism, understood in the sense of the belief in an Sopr. Arch.-Firenze.
incalculable number of supernatural beings who have affin­
ities with the daemons and demigods of the Greek world,
but regarding whom it is difficult to establish how far they
partake of a truly divine nature (or whether these are produced because they have something to indicate" (Seneca,
individually minor gods). They have often been seen in the Quaestiones naturales, 2.32.2).
roles of attendants or servants of major divinities. Depend­ People are incessantly preoccupied with observing, recog­
ing on whether they belong to groups of female, infant, or nizing, and understanding the signs of the divine will in
warrior genies, of daemons or of monsters of the hereafter, order to derive auguries and prescriptions from them, and
they present different characteristics, as much from the then with conforming to this will in the most scrupulous way
viewpoint of their appearance as of their localization. possible by avoiding every fault, even one that is involun­
In the way in which all of these superior beings are tary. If they nevertheless commit such a fault, they strive to
conceived, there are probable signs of primitive survivals, apply a remedy to it as quickly as possible; all of this they do
especially in the indeterminate and fleeting character of by means of extremely precise rituals of great formal rigor.
certain aspects of the divine. This may also explain the Not only worship, but also every private or public form of
apparent weak development of a mythology in the sense of conduct becomes concentrated and exhausted from this
a narration linking together the actions of gods and demi­ fearful dependence on the supernatural, in the face of which
gods. Several transmitted accounts or episodes from local man is apparently bereft of both autonomous consciousness
legend that may be inferred from artistic representations (on and a sphere of activity that is proper to his own will—and
engraved mirrors, for example) seem to have developed this is the basis for the ethical and juridical concepts that are
under the influence of Greek myths or result from a late and inherent in the religion (it is in this that Etruscan religion is
scholarly fusion of Greek and local elements. But the deepest most clearly differentiated from Greek and Roman religion).
and most original import of Etruscan religion appears in the
overwhelming importance of supernatural forces and in the
nature of the relationship between men and gods. Every III. The Teachings of the Sacred Books
event and phenomenon, rather than being explained ratio­
nally, is thought to result from the direct intervention of a In order to apprehend divine injunctions with certainty
divinity. The following statement made by Seneca is partic­ and to conform to them, people needed precise instructions,
ularly significant: "Between the Etruscans, the most skilled instructions that were gathered together into the collection of
of men in the art of interpreting lightning, and ourselves teachings and norms defined by the Latin expression disci­
[that is, the Hellenistic-Roman world] there are differences. plina Etrusca, and that were collected and expounded in the
We think that lightning is emitted because clouds collide; numerous writings which constituted Etruscan sacred liter­
they hold that clouds collide in order that lightning may be ature. The origin of the disciplina Etrusca and of the books
emitted. They refer everything to the divinity: therefore they relating to each of its parts was generally attributed to
are convinced not that lightning flashes give an indication of persons of a semidivine nature, such as the infant genius
the future because they are produced, but that they are Tages for haruspicy or the nymph Vegoia for the doctrine of

38
 E T R U S C A N R E L I G I O N

l i g h t n i n g f l a s h e s a n d c e r t a i n o t h e r t e a c h i n g s . In t h i s s e n s e e v e r , to s p e c ify th e ir f u n c tio n s a n d s p e c ia liz a tio n s (a cepen

th e E tr u s c a n re lig io n m a y b e c o n s i d e r e d a re v e a le d re lig io n . thaurch m e n tio n e d in t h e Z a g r e b t e x t is c e r t a i n l y a f u n e r a r y
A s fo r th e s tu d y a n d in te rp re ta tio n o f d iv in e s ig n s a s a p r i e s t ) , j u s t a s it is i m p o s s i b l e t o k n o w w i t h c e r t a i n t y t o w h a t
th e o ry and te ch n iq u e e n tru ste d to s p e c ia lis ts , E tru ria is d e g re e "o ffic ia n t" p rie sts w e r e d is tin g u is h e d fro m d iv in a -
e s p e c i a l l y d i s t i n g u i s h e d in h a r u s p i c y a n d h e p a t o s c o p y ( i . e . , to ry e x p e r t s , e s p e c ia lly th e h a r u s p ic e s . T h e p r ie s th o o d m u s t
th e re a d in g of v is c e ra — e s p e c ia lly th e l iv e r— o f s a crifice d o f te n h a v e re c e iv e d p u b lic s u p p o r t; th e e x i s t e n c e o f p r ie s tly
a n i m a l s ) a n d in t h e o b s e r v a t i o n o f l i g h t n i n g f l a s h e s , t w o a r t s c o l l e g e s is w i d e l y a t t e s t e d .
th a t a re e x p o u n d e d in th e libri haruspicini and in th e libri
fulgurales, r e s p e c t i v e l y . In a d d i t i o n , a t t e n t i o n w a s g i v e n t o a ll
u n u su al e v e n ts and m a rv e ls (m o n s tr o s itie s , in e x p lica b le
IV. The Problem of the Hereafter
sou n d s, a p p a r itio n s , e t c .) , w h ic h a re d e sc rib e d and ex­
p la in e d in th e c o l le c ti o n s k n o w n a s oslentaria. A t th e s a m e The la st s e cto r th a t re m a in s to be co n sid e re d is th e
tim e , o n e m u s t n o t e th e lim ite d i m p o r t a n c e g i v e n t o o b s e r v ­ h e r e a f t e r . B u t it w o u l d b e w r o n g t o s e p a r a t e t h i s f r o m th e
in g th e flig h t of b ird s, w h ic h w as, by c o n tra st, h ig h ly rest of E tru sca n re lig io n , s in c e so m any of th e e s s e n tia l
d e v e lo p e d in Rom e and in U m b ria and c o n s titu te d th e a s p e c t s o f th e a fte rlife a r e s itu a te d w ith in th e m o r e g e n e r a l
fo u n d a tio n fo r R o m a n a u g u r y . T h e e s s e n tia l a s p e c t o f d iv i- id e a s o f th e r e lig io n . A m o n g t h e s e a s p e c t s a r e th e c o n f o r m ity
n a to r y p ra c tic e s — th e a s p e c t e ls e w h e r e c o n n e c te d w ith th e o f th e c h t h o n i c o r s u b t e r r a n e a n w o r ld w ith th e c o s m o lo g ic a l
v a l u e s o f t h e o r i e n t a t i o n o f c e l e s t i a l a n d t e r r e s t r i a l s p a c e — is s y s te m o f co rre s p o n d e n ce s b e tw e e n h e a v e n a n d e a r th ; th e
fo u n d in th e s tu d y o f au sp icio u s or in a u s p ic io u s om ens, a s s im ila tio n of th e dead to c e rta in d iv in e e n titie s , w ith
s in c e th e se in d ic a te th e s a tis fa c tio n or th e w ra th of th e r e s u l t i n g a n a l o g i e s in t h e s p h e r e o f w o r s h i p ; t h e d e f i n i t i o n o f
s u p e rio r b e in g s and th u s a re w a rn in g s about a ll fu tu re th e to m b as a sa cre d p la ce (sacni); and so o n . T h e b e lie f,
a c tio n . in h e r ite d f ro m p r e h i s t o r y a n d th e g r e a t p r e c la s s ic a l c iv iliz a ­
T h e o th e r a s p e c t o f th e disciplina Etrusca is i ts g e n e r a l a n d t i o n s ( o r f r o m c i v i l i z a t i o n s f o r e i g n t o t h e c l a s s i c a l w o r l d ) , in
r i t u a l n o r m a t i v i t y . It e n c o m p a s s e s e v e r y c u l t i c p e r f o r m a n c e , th e s u r v iv a l o f th e p e r s o n a litie s o f th e d ^ a d a l o n g w ith th e
re g a rd le s s o f its o r ig in or s p e c ia liz a tio n . In m o re p re c is e m a t e r i a l r e m a i n s o f t h e i r b o d i e s a n d in t h e p l a c e s in w h i c h
te r m s , w e k n o w th a t th e libri rituales in clu d e d p re c e p ts a b o u t th e s e w e r e d e p o s it e d , c o n s t i tu t e s a f u n d a m e n ta l id e o lo g ic a l
th e f o u n d in g o f c itie s , th e e s ta b lis h m e n t o f s a c r e d e d if ic e s , p r e m i s e a n d im p lie s th e n e e d to p r o t e c t, fe e d , a n d h o n o r th e
a n d e v e n th e p o litic a l a n d m ilita r y s t a t u te s o f th e s ta t e ; th is d e a d , a c c o r d i n g t o t h e i r s o c i a l r a n k . T h e c o n t i n u i t y o f l if e is
w a s , in o t h e r w o r d s , a c o d e t h a t w a s n o t o n l y r e lig io u s b u t to b e in s u r e d b y im a g e s th a t s u b s titu te d fo r (a n d th u s d id n o t
a l s o p o liti c o - in s ti t u t i o n a l (a n o n d i s t i n c t io n t h a t c o n f i r m s th e m e re ly c o m m e m o ra te ) e ffig ie s of th e dead, by u rn s and
fu n d a m e n ta l s u b o rd in a tio n o f th e h u m a n w o rld to th e d iv in e to m b s re c a llin g th e fa m ilia r h o u s e h o l d e n v i r o n m e n t , a n d b y
w o r l d ). T h e c o n c e p t o f " t h e la w o f th e la n d o f E t r u r i a " a n d th e r ic h e s t p o s s ib le d e c o r a t io n o f t o m b s w ith c lo th i n g , je w ­
th e sa cre d and in ta n g ib le c h a ra cte r of th e b o u n d a rie s of e lry , w eap on s, in s tru m e n ts , and fu rn itu re , in a d d i t i o n to
a g r a ria n p ro p e rtie s, w h ic h w ere d e fin e d by th e su p re m e fo o d a n d d rin k . T h e s e c h a r a c te ris tic s , a s a rc h a e o lo g y m o st
d i v i n i t y , s e e m t o h a v e a r i s e n in t h i s c o n t e x t ; t h e s a m e is t r u e s u g g e s t i v e l y i n d i c a t e s , a r e m a n i f e s t e s p e c i a l l y in t h e e a r l i e s t
fo r c o n s e c r a t e d o b je c ts a n d p la c e s ( s a n c tu a r i e s , b u t a ls o c itie s p e rio d s (in d e p e n d e n t o f d iffe re n c e s in fu n e ra ry p ra c tic e s :
a n d to m b s ). F in a lly th e r e w a s a w h o le c o lle c tio n o f d o c tr in e s fro m th e b e g in n in g of h is to rica l tim e s in h u m a tio n h as
fo r th e tim e , f a te , a n d d u r a t io n o f th e liv e s o f m e n a n d o f th e te n d e d to p re v a il o v e r c r e m a tio n ), b u t th e im p o r ta n t fa c t,
n a t i o n ( c o u n t e d in " c e n t u r i e s " ) , w h i c h w e r e t o b e f o u n d in and th e o n e th a t re v e a ls a te n a c io u s c o n s e r v a tis m , is t h a t
th e libri fatales. A s f o r o n e ' s fa te in t h e h e r e a f t e r , th is w a s t h e s e p r a c ti c e s c o n t in u e d u n til t h e e n d o f E t r u s c a n c iv iliz a ­
t r e a te d in th e libri acherontici: th e n o rm a tiv e p o r tio n s o f th e s e tio n . T h e p r o f o u n d ly d if f e r e n t id e a o f a n a f te rlife c o n c e iv e d
w r itin g s in d ic a te th e rite s n e c e s s a r y fo r th e p r o lo n g a tio n o f as a p la ce of d e s tin a tio n and re u n io n of th e d eceased
lif e a n d t h e d i v i n i z a t i o n o f t h e d e a d . d iffu se d o u t o f G r e e c e a n d w a s to h a v e n o ta b le r e p e r c u s s io n s
T h e ir fo rm s of w o r s h ip , at le a s t a c c o rd in g to w hat is o n t h e E t r u s c a n i m a g i n a t i o n , e s p e c i a l l y a f t e r t h e fi f t h c e n t u r y
k n o w n f ro m th e tra d itio n o f o r ig in a l E tr u s c a n te x ts a n d fro m B.c. Im ag es o n fu n e ra ry m o n u m e n ts sh o w th e d e v e lo p m e n t
th e m o n u m e n ts , d o n o t s e e m to d iffe r e s s e n tia lly fro m th o s e a n d r e f in e m e n t— m o r e o r le s s p a ra lle l w ith o ld c u s t o m s a n d
o f th e G re e k s a n d R o m an s. S acred e n c lo s u r e s , a lta r s , a n d tr a d itio n s — o f th e d e fin itio n o f a n e s c h a to lo g ic a l s p a c e b a s e d
te m p le s , u n d e r s t o o d to b e th e d w e llin g s o f th e d iv in ity , a r e u p o n th e c o n c e p ts o f th e d e s c e n t to th e u n d e r w o r ld a n d th e
c o n ce iv e d and c o n s tru c te d in an a n a lo g o u s fa s h io n , a l­ k in g d o m ( o r c ity ) o f th e d e a d . T h e d e s c r ip tio n o f th e k in g ­
t h o u g h w ith s o m e ty p o lo g ic a l p e c u lia r itie s . A m o n g th e r itu ­ dom c o m b in e s e le m e n ts of G reek in s p ira tio n (th e so v e r­
a ls, p ray ers, o ffe rin g s w ith o u t b lo o d le ttin g , sa crifice s of e ig n ty o f th e g o d s H a d e s a n d P e r s e p h o n e a n d th e p r e s e n c e
a n im a ls , and v o tiv e o ffe rin g s a re fo u n d e v ery w h ere; by o f m y th ic a l c h a r a c t e r s ) a n d p u r e ly lo c a l e le m e n ts ( m o n s tr o u s
c o n t r a s t , c o n s u l t a t i o n o f t h e v i s c e r a o f s a c r i f i c e d a n i m a l s is d e m o n s , e n o r m o u s b a n q u e ts , th e in c re a s e d im p o rta n c e a l­
ty p ic a lly E t r u s c a n . C e r ta in k in d s o f c e r e m o n i e s s e e m to b e o f w a y s g i v e n t o t h e p e r s o n a l i t y o f t h e d e c e a s e d in p o r t r a i t s a n d
p a rtic u la r im p o r ta n c e , s u c h a s c e r e m o n ie s o f f o u n d a tio n , o f in s c rip tio n s ). T h e a t m o s p h e r e o f s a d n e s s a n d f e a r in t h e s e
c o n s e c r a t i o n , a n d f o r th e e x p i a ti o n o f p r i v a t e a n d p u b lic s in s , E tru s c a n im a g e s of th e h e re a fte r is in th e la st a n a ly s is
w h ic h w e r e a ls o m o s t e s p e c ia lly c o n n e c t e d w ith th e f u n d a ­ n o th in g b u t a n i n te r p r e ta tio n th a t d r a w s o n th e G r e e k id e a o f
m e n ta l th e m e s a n d im p e r a ti v e s o f E tr u s c a n r e lig io n . T h e r e H ad es. But at th e sam e tim e th e o ld e r fo rm s of r itu a l
w e r e a l s o c a le n d a r s o f f e s tiv a ls a n d c e le b r a t io n s , a s is in d i­ o b l i g a t i o n t o w a r d t h e d e a d , in t o m b s , c o n t i n u e t o b e r e f i n e d
c a te d in th e s e r ie s of p r e s c r ip tio n s th a t are d is tr ib u te d and c o n c r e tiz e d in a c u lt of a n ce s to rs a s s im ila te d to
a c c o r d in g to t h e m o n t h a n d th e d a y in th e r itu a l t e x t o f th e d iv in itie s — a c u lt th a t im p lie s , p e r h a p s a l s o u n d e r th e in flu ­
Z a g r e b M u m m y . C u ltic a c tiv itie s w e r e p e rfo rm e d b y p rie s ts , e n c e o f th e m y s te r y re lig io n s , c e r e m o n i e s s p e c ific a lly d e s ­
a n d t h e d if f e r e n t c a te g o r i e s o f p r i e s t s a r e lis te d in E t r u s c a n tin e d to tr a n s f o r m th e hum an s o u ls o f th e d eceased in to
te x ts (d o c u m e n ts o f s a c re d c o n te n t o r f u n e ra ry in s c rip tio n s " d i v i n e s o u l s ."
c o n t a i n i n g b i o g r a p h i e s o f t h e d e c e a s e d ) . It is d i f f i c u l t , h o w ­ M .P ./ d .w .

39
ROM E

mondiale 1, 2 (1953): 344. m . pallotti.n o , Deorum sedes, in Studi in onore

BIBLIOGRAPHY dt A. Calderini e R. Paribem (Milan 1956), 223-34. r. iiir hig , "Zur
Religion und Religiosität der Etrusker," Historia 6 (1957): 123-32.
K. o. muli er and w. deecke , Die Etrusker (Stuttgart 1877; 2d ed., Graz
i.. BANTi, II niondo degli Etrusclu (Rome 1969), 235 - 54. o. q . GiGi iouand
1965). c. o. thui.in , Die etruskische Disziplin (Göteborg 1905- 9).
g . CAMPOREALE, La Religione degli Etruschi, in Storia delle religioni (6th
F. Messerschmidt , Griechische und etruskische Religion, in Studi e materiali
ed., Turin 1971), 2:537-672. g . dume/ il , La religion romaine archaïque
di storia delle religioni (1929), 5:21. b. nogara , Gli Etrusclu e Ia lora civiltà
(2d ed., Paris 1974), 661-80. m . pallo tiin o , The Etruscans (London
(Milan 1933), 156-289. c. clemen , Die Religion der Etrusker (Bonn
1975), 138-52 and 260-62. a . i . pfiffig. Religio Etrusca (Graz 1975). r.
1936). R. enkinc;. Etruskische Geistigkeit (Berlin 1947). m . pai lottino .
bloch , Recherches sur les religions de l'Italie antique (Geneva 1976). See
L’origine degli Etrusclu (Rome 1947), 135-38. a . grenier . Les religions
also Studi Etruschi, 1-44 (1927-76).
étrusque et romaine, in Les religions de l'Europe ancienne (Paris 1948),
3:1-233. a . piGANioi., Les Etrusques, peuple d'Orient, in Cahiers d'histoire

s to n e s , je w e lry , e tc . F o r th e s tu d y o f d a e m o n s o f th e w o rld
E tr u sc a n D a em o n o lo g y b e y o n d th e g r a v e , o n e m u s t ta k e n o te o f th e f r e s c o e s o f th e
s e p u lc h e r s , b u t a ls o th e s c u lp tu r e s o f s a rc o p h a g i a n d u rn s .
T h e w r itte n s o u r c e s , le s s n u m e r o u s a n d le s s e x p lic it, m u s t b e
E tru s c a n d e m o n o lo g y (m o r e p ro p e rly , d a e m o n o lo g y ) m a y b e i n te r p r e te d w ith c a r e a n d h a v e n o v a lu e e x c e p t to c o n firm
lo o k e d u p o n a s o n e o f th e m o s t in te re s tin g c h a p te r s o f th e a r c h a e o l o g i c a l d a t a . T h e y i n t e r e s t u s in p a r t i c u l a r f o r t h e i r
h is to ry o f r e lig io n s o f th e M e d ite r r a n e a n w o rld , p ro v id e d , e v i d e n c e a b o u t th e s e m id iv in e b e in g s w h o ta u g h t th e E t r u s ­
h o w e v e r , t h a t it c a n b e rid o f c e r ta in s im p lis tic a n d even can d is c ip lin e , th a t is, Tages and V e g o ia , or such o th e r
n a iv e in te rp re ta tio n s — s u c h a s th e a ll-to o -o b v io u s c o m p a r i­ le g e n d a ry m a tte r s a s , fo r e x a m p le , th e fig u re o f C a c u s , th e
s o n s w ith d e m o n o lo g i e s o f th e O r ie n t th a t a im t o p r o v e th e m o n s t e r V o lta , a n d o t h e r b e in g s o f th is k in d . O n e m u s t a ls o
O r i e n t a l o r i g i n o f t h e E t r u s c a n s — a n d t h a t it c a n b e p r o p e r l y b e a r in m i n d t h e v a s t l i t e r a r y a n d e p i g r a p h i c a l d o c u m e n t a ­
s itu a te d w ith in th e r e a s o n a b le p e r s p e c tiv e o f a c o m p a r is o n t i o n ( L a t i n ) o n t h e c o n c e p t o f t h e " g e n i u s , " w h o is e s s e n t i a l l y
w ith th e G reek w o rld . In th is essay it has b een ju d g e d th e d iv in ity w h o r e p r e s e n ts a n d g u a r d s th e v ita l p rin c ip le o f
e x p e d i e n t t o a s s e m b l e a ll t h a t h a s r e f e r e n c e t o t h e i n f r a d i ­ m e n , in s titu tio n s , a n d th e g o d s th e m s e lv e s , b u t w h o m a y
v in e , th a t is, to t h o s e e n titie s th a t m ig h t b e d e fin e d in t h e a l s o b e p l a c e d in a n i n t e r m e d i a t e p o s i t i o n b e t w e e n m e n a n d
G re e k a n d L a tin s e n s e a s " d e m i g o d s ” : n o t f o r g e ttin g , h o w ­ d iv in itie s : " s o n o f th e g o d s a n d f a th e r o f m e n ," n o te s F e s tu s ,
e v e r , t h a t in m a n y c a s e s it is d i f f i c u l t t o s p e c i f y w h e t h e r a w h o a ls o c a lls h im th e s o n o f J u p ite r a n d th e f a th e r o f T a g e s!
p a r t i c u l a r b e i n g is t o b e c l a s s e d in th e u p p e r sp h e re , th e (F e s tu s , 3 5 9 , 4 5 2 L ). T h e s e c h a r a c te r is tic s o f th e "g e n iu s "
s p h e r e o f d i v i n i t i e s , o r in t h e l o w e r s p h e r e , m o r e p o p u l o u s ju s tify th e tr a d itio n a l u s e o f th e w o r d " g e n i e " to d e s ig n a te
and le ss d e fin a b le , in w h i c h th e re a re daem ons. N o cu lt, th e b e in g s w h o a r e fo u n d o n th e lev el o f th e d e m ig o d s a n d
p r o p e r l y s p e a k i n g , is c o n n e c t e d w ith t h e s e d a e m o n s , e x c e p t d aem on s.
in a v e r y l i m i t e d f a s h i o n , f o r t h e i r p r i n c i p a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c is A d i s c u s s i o n o f E t r u s c a n d a e m i m o l o g y m u s t b e g in w ith a
th a t th e y a c c o m p a n y th e g o d s a n d s e rv e a s in te rm e d ia rie s fe w o b s e r v a tio n s a b o u t m o n s t e r s a n d o t h e r fa n ta s tic fig u re s
b e tw e e n th e m a n d m e n . F r o m th is p o in t o f v ie w o n e m ig h t o f O rie n ta l o r G r e e k o r ig in . T h e s e i n v a d e s c u lp tu r e , p a in t­
s a y th a t th e im a g in a tio n o f th e E t r u s c a n s w a s g iv e n fre e re in , in g , a n d th e d e c o r a tio n o f o b je c ts ( b r o n z e s , v a s e s , je w e ls ,
c e rta in ly m o re fre e th a n am ong th e G re e k s , as if it u s e d e t c .) in very la rg e n u m b e rs, as if th e y w e re a fa v o rite ,
im a g e s to e n rich and re n d e r m o re c o m p re h e n sib le an d o b s e s s i v e o b j e c t , b e g i n n i n g in t h e O r i e n t a l i z i n g p e r i o d , in
f a s c in a tin g th e w o rld of th e su p e rn a tu ra l. For in o th e r th e se v e n th ce n tu ry b . c .: q u ad ru p ed s w in g e d or w ith a
re s p e c ts , th a t w o rld s e e m e d d is ta n t a n d o b s c u r e to th e m — h u m a n h e a d , s p h in x e s , c e n t a u r s , s ir e n s , g riff in s , a n d p a r tic ­
m o r e d is ta n t a n d o b s c u r e , in c id e n ta lly , th a n th e G re e k g o d s u l a r l y s e a m o n s t e r s . T h e y c o n t i n u e d t o b e p r e s e n t in d i v e r s e
a p p e a re d to th e G r e e k s , s in c e m y th h a d b r o u g h t th e g o d s c o n t e x t s u n t i l t h e l a t e s t p e r i o d s o f E t r u s c a n a r t . B u t t h e i r l in k
n e a re r to m en and n e a rly red u ced th e m to th e s iz e of w ith p a r tic u la r f ig u re s s p e c ific to G re e k m y th , s u c h a s th e
m e n — fro m w h ic h a r o s e th e E t r u s c a n s ' o b s e s s io n w ith u n ­ G o r g o n , th e C h im e r a , th e S ir e n s , C e r b e r u s , e t c ., in d ic a te s
d e r s t a n d i n g a n d i n t e r p r e t i n g t h e d i v i n e w ill t h r o u g h d i v i n a - th a t th e re is s o m e t h in g th e re th a t is fo re ig n to p ro p e rly
t o r y p r a c ti c e s . T h e p o s s ib ility c a n n o t b e e n t ir e l y r u le d o u t , E t r u s c a n c o n c e p t i o n s . It is d i f f i c u l t t o b e l i e v e t h a t a ll t h e s e
h ow ever, th a t E tru sc a n " p o ly d a e m o n is m " m ay a lso have im a g e s , g e n e ra lly u s e d fo r d e c o r a tio n , c o r r e s p o n d e d to a c ­
been th e e x p re s s io n o f p rim itiv e te n d e n c ie s , m o r e s p e c ifi­ t u a l d a e m o n i c b e l i e f s . B u t d i s t o r t i o n s in m o n s t r o u s f o r m s ,
c a lly a h e r i ta g e o r r e v iv a l o f id e a s a n d c r e a ti o n s c h a r a c t e r is t ic th e m ix tu re o f e le m e n ts c h a r a c te r is tic o f d iv e rs e c r e a tu r e s ,
o f p r e d a s s ic a l c iv iliz a tio n s , s u c h a s t h o s e o f th e N e a r E a s t o r a n d t h e m i x t u r e o f n a t u r a l b e i n g s w i t h a r t i f i c i a l f o r m s ( li k e
th e M in o a n a n d M y c e n a e a n A e g e a n , w h ic h th e G r e e k s h a d th e fo rm s of vases, in th e o b je c ts c a lle d "c a n o p ic ja r s ,"
gone beyond soon er th a n th e o th e rs, w ith o u t, h ow ever, o t h e r w is e c a lle d th e a n t h r o p o m o r p h ic c in e r a r y u r n s o f C lu ­
d i s p e r s in g t h e m e n tire ly . s iu m ) s e e m to b e a s p e c ific tra it o f th e m e n ta lity a n d a r tis tic
M o s t o f o u r k n o w le d g e o n th is s u b je c t c o m e s fro m m y th ­ im a g in a tio n of th e E tru sca n s. An e x a m p le of th is is th e
o lo g ica l a n d fu n e r a r y d e p ic tio n s a n d fro m w r itte n m a te r ia ls w in g e d m o n s t e r w ith th e h ead of a cock w h ic h re c e n tly
t h a t i d e n t i f y i n d i v i d u a l s . B y f a r t h e r i c h e s t d o c u m e n t a t i o n is a p p eared as a ro o f o rn a m e n t of a re lig io u s e d ific e in th e
p ro v id e d b y s c e n e s e n g r a v e d o n th e b a ck s o f b ro n z e m irro rs , s a n c t u a r y o f P y r g i . T h e a d d i n g o f w i n g s is a f a v o r i t e m o t i f in
w i t h t h e m o s t v a r i e g a t e d s u p e r n a t u r a l b e i n g s , p o s i n g o r in th e r e p re s e n ta tio n o f h u m a n b e in g s a n d g o d s , a n d o f h o rs e s
a c tio n , m in g le d w ith i m a g e s o f g o d s a n d w ith e p i s o d e s fro m t o o , c h ie f ly in a r c h a ic a r t . B u t th a t l e a d s u s b a c k to th e w o r ld
G re e k m y th . A n a lo g o u s c o m p o s itio n s o r is o la te d f ig u re s o f o f d a e m o n s th a t a r e p ro p e rly E tru s c a n .
d e m ig o d s a n d d a e m o n s a re fo u n d , th o u g h le s s s y s te m a t i ­ F rom a g e n e r a l p o in t o f v ie w , w h ic h e x c lu d e s th e m o r e
c a lly , in th e r e p r e s e n ta tio n s on vases, re lie f s , en g rav ed s p e c ific a n a ly s is o f p a r tic u la r c a s e s , w e c a n d is c e r n s e v e r a l

40
 E T R U S C A N D A E M O N O L O G Y

tin u e d to r e g a r d a s th e m i s t r e s s a n d e v e n a u t h o r o f a p a r t o f
th e disciplina Etrusca. T h i s is a n i m p o r t a n t a r g u m e n t i n f a v o r
of th e th e sis th a t th e fe m a le fig u re s of th e se scen es, in
a d d itio n to re p re s e n tin g th e c o lle c tiv e a n d th e s e c o n d a ry ,
s o m e t im e s c o r r e s p o n d to w e ll-k n o w n a n d w e ll-d e f in e d in d i­
v i d u a l i t i e s ; t h i s i s a l s o s u g g e s t e d b y t h e i r p r e s e n c e in o t h e r
d e p ic tio n s in w h ic h th e ir n a tu re is u n f o r tu n a te ly no le ss
in d e c ip h e ra b le . S o m e o f th e s e fig u re s a r e e v e n p ro b a b ly , b y
v irtu e o f th e ir p o s itio n o f s p e c ia l d ig n ity a n d th e ir c lo th in g ,
t r u e d iv in itie s : th is w o u ld b e th e c a s e fo r T h a ln a , E t h a u s v a ,
T h a n a o r T h a n r, a n d M a la v is(ch ).
L e s s f r e q u e n t a n d c l e a r is t h e e v i d e n c e f o r o t h e r c l a s s e s o f
d e m ig o d s o r d e m o n s , s u c h a s th e m a s c u lin e fig u re s o f th e
A p o llo n ia n ty p e , or th o s e w ho lo o k l ik e S ile n u s , or th e
w a r r i o r s , o r th e s m a ll in f a n t g e n i e s , w h o a p p e a r o n m ir r o r s ,
w ith m o r e o r le s s o b s c u r e E t r u s c a n n a m e s . A m o n g th e in fa n t
or ju v e n ile fig u re s , th e fig u re of E p iu r , a s s o c ia te d w ith
H e rd e (H e ra c le s ) and w ith T in ia (J u p ite r), js e s p e c ia lly
in te r e s tin g . In c o n n e c t i o n w ith th is la s t d iv in ity , o n e m ay
r e c a ll th e t r a d it i o n c o n c e r n i n g T a g e s , t h e n e p h e w o f J u p i te r ,
a ch ild or young m an w hose ap p e a ra n ce and k n o w le d g e
w e re th o s e of an o ld m an; b o rn fro m th e e a rth , he w as
s u p p o s e d to h a v e ta u g h t h a r u s p ic y to th e E tr u s c a n s . T a g e s
and V e g o ia — T a g e s is r e p r e s e n t e d on a m irro r under th e
n a m e P a p a ( o r P a v a ) T a r c h ie s , w ith th e f e a t u r e s o f a y o u n g
h a r u s p e x — e x e r c is e d th e c h a r a c te r is tic fu n c tio n o f " in te r m e ­
d ia r ie s " b e tw e e n th e g o d s a n d m e n . B e c a u s e o f th a t th e y a r e
f u l ly c o n ta in e d in th e c a te g o ry of E tru s c a n daem ons (o r
g e n i e s ) : m o r e p a r t i c u l a r l y , t h o s e w h o r e v e a l t h e d i v i n e w il l .
O n e m ig h t a d d to th e m a y o u n g s in g e r, p e r h a p s a s e e r a s
Infernal daemon with one of the deceased. Private collection. Man- w e l l , w h o a p p e a r s o n a n o t h e r m i r r o r a n d s o m e u r n s ; h e is
fredonia. Photo Pr Ferri. c a lle d C acu , but he is c le a rly d iffe re n t fro m C acu s, th e
f e r o c io u s b r ig a n d o f th e R o m a n l e g e n d t r a n s m itte d b y V irg il.
T h e p o s s ib ility th a t th e d a e m o n s m a y h a v e b e e n c o n c e iv e d
in o t h e r t h a n a n t h r o p o m o r p h i c f a s h i o n , t h a t i s , a s s h a d o w s
c a te g o r ie s o f ty p e s a n d fu n ctio n s : a n d th a t le a d s u s to th e w i t h o u t s u b s t a n c e o r in t h e a s p e c t o f a s y m b o l , a r i s e s f r o m
fe m a le , in fa n t, m a r tia l, D io n y s ia n , m a rin e , and in fe rn a l s o m e a llu s io n s to th e ir c o n n e c t i o n s w ith p r o g e n e r a t io n a n d
d a e m o n s ( o r g e n i e s ). T h e first c la s s is e x t r e m e l y d iv e r s if ie d s e x u a lity . A p e c u lia r tra d itio n re p o rte d b y th e N e o p la to n ic
a n d in c lu d e s th e fig u re s o f y o u n g w o m e n , c lo th e d o r n u d e , p h il o s o p h e r P o r p h y r y v is u a liz e d E tru sca n d a e m o n s a s te n ­
s o m e tim e s w in g e d , w e a r in g n e c k la c e s , a n d s ta m p e d by an u o u s b o d ie s liv in g in th e lig h t o f d a y , b u t d o o m e d to b e
id e a l o f b e a u ty a n d e l e g a n c e — a n id e a o f th e d e s ir a b le . T h e ir e c lip s e d at n ig h t, w ith th e p o s sib ility , h ow ever, o f b e in g
a t ti t u d e s , th e ir a ttr ib u te s (to ile t a r tic le s ), a n d th e ir a s s o c ia ­ r e b o r n in t h e s c a t t e r i n g o f t h e ir s e e d ( P r o c l u s , in h is c o m ­
tio n w ith T u r a n o f te n m a k e t h e m a p p e a r to b e th e c o m p a n ­ m e n t a r y o n P l a t o 's Timaeus, 1 4 2 , D ; P se llu s De oper. daemon.
io n s a n d s e r v a n t s (to d r e s s h e r, fo r e x a m p l e ) o f th e g o d d e s s 8 ). T h e s e a r e , o f c o u r s e , th e la te r s p e c u la tio n s o f th e le a rn e d ,
o f lo v e ; th is m a y b e th e m e a n in g o f th e in s c r ip tio n Snenath b u t t h e y m u s t p r e s e r v e t h e m e m o r y o f a n c i e n t b e lie fs a b o u t
Turns, " f e m a l e a s s i s t a n t ( ? ) o f T u r a n . " In s o m e r e s p e c t s , t h e s e th e e x is te n c e o f o b s c u r e fo rc e s o f fe c u n d ity u ltim a te ly c o n ­
f ig u r e s re c a ll in d iv id u a ls f r o m s c e n e s o f t h e w o m e n 's c h a m ­ n e cte d w ith th e con cep t of G e n iu s . O ne m ay re c a ll th e
b e r s d e p i c t e d o n G r e e k v a s e s . B u t w e a l s o e n c o u n t e r t h e m in a c c o u n t , c e r ta i n ly o f E t r u s c a n o r ig in , o f th e b irth o f t h e k in g
c o n n e c t i o n w ith o t h e r d iv in itie s , o r c r o w n in g h e r o e s (H e r a ­ o f R o m e S e r v i u s T u lliu s , w h o w a s b o r n f r o m th e u n io n o f a
c le s , P a r is ), o r v a r io u s l y e m p l o y e d in q u it e d i v e r s e c o m p o s i ­ s la v e w ith a phallos th a t a p p e a re d in t h e h e a rth of Q ueen
tio n s , w ith o u t n o ta b le c o h e r e n c e . In s e v e r a l c a s e s , p ro p er T a n a q u il, f a m o u s fo r h e r k n o w le d g e o f th e E t r u s c a n d isc i­
n am es acco m p any th e se f ig u r e s , ty p ic a lly E tru s c a n nam es p lin e (D io n y siu s of H a lic a r n a s s u s 4 .2 ; P lin y Nat. Hist.
a b o u t w h ic h n o t h i n g e l s e is k n o w n , s u c h a s A l p a n , E v a n , 3 6 .2 0 4 ) . T h e s a m e a n c i e n t a u t h o r s e x p la in e d th is p r o d ig io u s
Z ip n a , Z irn a , Z in th re p u s , M e a n , M la cu c h , M u n th u c h , P u ­ e v e n t a s th e f e r tiliz in g i n te r v e n tio n o f a g o d o r d a e m o n w h o
n c h , R e s c ia l, a n d T a lith a . S o m e b e a r th e n a m e o f L a s a , w h ic h c o u ld co n ce iv e h is ow n m a te ria liz a tio n in th e fo rm of a
a lso o f te n ap p e a rs as th e first p art of a d o u b le nam e, s im p le s e x u a l s y m b o l. T h e m y s t e r i o u s c o n n e c t i o n b e tw e e n
a c c o r d i n g t o t h e s y s t e m w h i c h is w i d e l y p r e v a l e n t i n s y s t e m s th e s h a d e s a n d s e x u a l p o w e r m a y w e ll b e a s s o c i a t e d w ith th e
o f d iv in e n a m e s : p a rtic u la rly L a s a A c h u n u n a , L a s a V écu (o r s c e n e o f e m a c ia te d " a n i m u la e ," h o v e r in g a r o u n d a tr e e , th a t
V e c u v i a ) , L a s a T h i m r a e , L a s a R a c u n e t a , a n d L a s a S i t m i c a . It T i r e s ia s e v o k e s in t h e p a i n t i n g f r o m t h e Nekuia o f th e to m b o f
m ig h t b e p o s s ib le s o m e d a y to e s ta b lis h s o m e k in d o f c o r r e ­ O r c o II o f T a r q u i n i i , a n d t h a t a r e e x p l i c i t l y i t h y p h a l l i c ( W e i n ­
s p o n d e n c e b e tw e e n L a sa a n d th e G re e k c o n c e p t o f n y m p h . s to c k ). T h e re s to r a tiv e fe c u n d ity o f th e d a e m o n s m a y a ls o
O n e c a n n o t, h o w e v e r, e x te n d th e te rm " l a s a ," a s a g e n e ric h a v e b e e n e x te n d e d to th e s o u ls o f th e d e c e a s e d , a s a p a rt o f
d e s ig n a tio n , to a ll th e fe m a le fig u re s of th e ty p e b e in g th e b e lie fs t h a t d e t e r m in e d t h e c o m p l e x r i te s w h o s e f u n c t i o n
d iscu sse d , le t a lo n e to th e fe m a le fu n e ra ry s p ir its to be w a s to g u a ra n te e th e m im m o r ta lity a n d to d e ify th e m .
d isc u s se d fa rth e r o n . L asa V écu or V e cu v ia c a n e a s ily be T h is b rin g s u s to th e h e re a fte r, o n w h ic h th e d a e m o n o lo g -
id e n tifie d w ith th e n y m p h V e g o ia , w h o m th e tra d itio n c o n ­ ical im a g in a tio n o f th e E t r u s c a n s s e e m s to h a v e lin g e re d w ith

41
ROM E
particular pleasure. Even in this domain, it is difficult to
distinguish clearly between divine figures (that is, Aita-
Hades and Phersipnai-Persephone, "sovereigns" of the
world of the dead, and, in other connections, Mantus and
Mania, or Veive-Veiovis, etc.) and figures who are below the
rank of gods. It is probable that Vanth was a goddess of fate,
who recorded the fates of human beings. But the extraordi­
nary frequency of her representations in tomb paintings and
sculptures, in the costume of the Greek Erinyes (short tunic,
fillets crossed over the bosom, buskins, and the attribute c ( a
flaming torch) and often in the company of the daemon
Charun, suggests that she belongs in the first rank, among
the female daemons of the world beyond the grave, in exact
correspondence with the Erinyes or Furies, on whom
moderns have occasionally and mistakenly conferred the
name "lasa." The same thing may be said of Culsu. It is
probable that these Etruscan Erinyes, generally placed as
guardians at the entrances to the infernal world, were also
clearly individualized. The predominant role among the
male daemons belonged to Charun, the preeminent person­
ification of death, who is represented with a grey or greenish
skin, a hooked nose, sometimes wings, and hair like ser­
pents, and who is always armed with a heavy mallet. He
certainly derives from the Greek Charon, whose name he
bears. But he deviates from Charon in his appearance and
functions. He can also appear in various other guises,
differentiated by a second name, as can be seen at Tarquinii,
in the Tomb of the Charons. The other clearly characterized
daemon is Tuchulcha, who has the beak and feet of a bird of
prey, long pointed ears, hair in the form of a nest of serpents,
great wings, and enormous serpents for arms: a kind of
Mirror showing Tinia and Epiur. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale.
42
monstrous humanoid griffin. A variety of beings with ape­
like faces, more or less individualized, are also encountered,
as are kinds of infernal servants or small orchestras of
musicians of purely human appearance, except that they
sometimes have wings. Finally recall the prevalence of
infernal beings that look like animals, characterized by
chthonic symbolism, from Cerberus and Scylla to dragons,
and especially serpents. The intentionally terrifying appear­
ance of many of these daemonic images, whose role is to
frighten the deceased and also to torment them, has been
connected with what is known of the somber and even
desperate conception of the world beyond the grave among
the Etruscans in the final period of their history, between the
fourth and first century b .c . But infernal daemons of equally
monstrous appearance had already been imagined in classi­
cal Greece in the fifth century, as is proven by the description
of Eurynomos in the Nekuia of Polygnotus of Thasos (prob­
ably the distant prototype of the Nekuia on the tomb of Oreo
at Tarquinii), in the Lesche of the Cnidians at Delphi (Pau­
sanias Graeciae descr. 10.28.7). As was stated at the beginning,
this leads to the qualification of certain exaggerated hypoth­
eses about the originality of Etruscan daemonology. It is also
possible that certain Orphic and Pythagorean influences
were transmitted by the Italiot environments of the Greek
colonies of southern Italy. This last subject remains rather
obscure, however, awaiting the future research that is so
clearly desirable.
M.P./b.f.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
F. de RUYT, Charun, Démon étrusque de la mort (Rome and Brussels
1934). R. HERB1G, Götter und Dämonen der Etrusker (Mainz 1965).
s. weinstock, "Etruscan Demons," in Studi in onore di Luisa Banti
(Rome 1965), 345-50. c. Q. gigliou and c. camporeale, "La religione
degli Etruschi," in Storia delle religioni (6th ed., Turin 1971), 2:537-672.
a . ). pfiffig, Religio etrusca (Graz 1975). m . pallottino, "Nome e funzione:
A proposito di alcune divinité minori etrusche e romane," in Saggi di
antichità (Rome 1979), 2:823-32.
E truscan and I talic D ivination
The mantic world of the Etruscans, and more generally of the
Italic peoples, was fundamentally similar to that of the
Greeks, at least as far as practices were concerned: these, like
so many matters of religious life, enter into the general
framework of classical antiquity. But certain aspects of them
are distinguished characteristically—and were also seen by
the ancients as being different—especially the consequences
of certain essential ideas about the sacred and the relation­
ship between men and gods on the level of their origins and
their history. It is especially necessary to point out two
phenomena that, in a way, epitomize the originality of
divinatory practices in ancient Italy. The first is a desire to
understand the obscure wishes of the gods through every
possible sign—a desire that became so obsessive that it
dominated all of Etruscan religious ideas and finally almost
became identified with religion itself, justifying the existence
of genuine technicians of divination, such as the haruspices
and the interpreters of lightning flashes. The second was the
 THE D I S C I P L I N A E T R U S C A

d e v e l o p m e n t , t h r o u g h t h e o b s e r v a t i o n o f t h e f l ig h t o f b i r d s fulguratoria), an d p o rte n ts (ostenta), and w ith t h e ir i n t e r p r e ­

(auspicium ) , o f th e a u g u ra l d o c tr in e th a t b e c o m e s th e fu n d a ­ ta tio n .
m e n ta l d o c t r in e o f th e s a c r e d in I t a li c o - R o m a n r e lig io n . W i t h r e s p e c t t o d i v i n a t i o n b a s e d u p o n a u s p i c e s , it s h o u l d
T h e first o f t h e s e p h e n o m e n a c o n s t i t u t e s th e e s s e n c e o f b e n o t e d t h a t t h e U m b r i a n s p r a c t i c e d it a t t h e s a m e t i m e a s
w h a t w a s d e fin e d b y th e e x p r e s s io n disciplina Etrusca; th is t h e R o m a n s , a s is w i t n e s s e d b y t h e r i t u a l t e x t s o f t h e I g u v i n e
w a s first t a u g h t b y s e m id iv in e b e in g s (T a g e s a n d V e g o ia ) a n d T a b le ts; a u s p i c e s s e r v e d e s p e c ia lly a s in tr o d u c t io n s fo r s a c r i ­
w a s tra n s c r ib e d in to a s e r ie s o f b o o k s w h o s e c o n t e n t s a r e fi c i a l c e r e m o n i e s .
m o r e o r le ss k n o w n to u s . T h e s e d e a l w ith th e o b s e r v a tio n o f M .P ./ d .w .
th e v is c e ra o f a n im a ls ( haruspicina), lig h tn in g fla sh e s {ars

p ice s . T h e c o n s u lta tio n o f h a ru sp ice s e n te re d in to R om an

T h e D o c t r in e an d S a c r ed B o o k s o f th e re lig io n a n d c o n t in u e d to b e p r a c tic e d u p to th e e n d o f p a g a n
tim e s , th o u g h its E tru sca n o r ig in s w e re n ever f o r g o tte n .
D is c ip l in a E tr u sc a
F rom a rtis tic re p re s e n ta tio n s we know th e c h a r a c te r is tic
d r e s s o f th e h a r u s p i c e s , w ith a m a n tle h o o k e d t o g e th e r a t th e
T h e L a tin e x p r e s s i o n disciplina Etrusca is h e r e m e a n t t o c o v e r c h e s t a n d a h a t w ith a c y lin d r ic a l e n d . T h e o r ig in o f h a r u s -
th e w h o le c o m p le x of E tru s c a n d o c tr in e s and n o rm s, in p icy w a s tra c e d b a ck to th e te a c h in g s o f T a g e s , a b e in g o f
p a rtic u la r th o s e c o n c e r n in g d iv in a tio n , b u t a ls o , m o r e g e n ­ d iv in e b irth w h o w a s b e lie v e d to b e th e s o n o f G e n iu s a n d
era lly , th e r itu a l p ra c tic e s of th e r e lig io n and th e ru le s th e n e p h e w o f J u p ite r; h a v in g a ris e n o u t o f a fu rro w in t h e
g o v e r n i n g t h e c iv il l if e o f t h e E t r u s c a n s . A l l o f t h e s e e l e m e n t s e a r t h , h e a p p e a r e d to m e n a s a y o u n g m a n w ith w h ite h a ir.
are to be fo u n d in a s e rie s of sacred te x ts . T h is is a H e is s a id t o h a v e t a u g h t h is p r e c e p t s to T a r c h o n , th e h e r o
phenom enon th a t is w h o lly c h a r a c te r is tic of E tr u r ia but fr o m w h o m T a rq u in ii g o t its n a m e , o r to th e t w e l v e E t r u s c a n
u n i q u e in t h e c l a s s i c a l w o r l d . T h e i r u n i q u e n e s s m a y e x p l a i n k in g s a n d to th e E tru ria n p e o p le a s a w h o le , s o th a t h e w a s
th e e x tra o rd in a ry in te re s t w h ic h th e E tru s c a n tre a tis e s r e g a rd e d a s th e a u t h o r o f th o s e w ritin g s w h ic h a ls o g o b y th e
a r o u s e d a m o n g th e R o m a n s , w h o tra n s la te d o r s u m m a r iz e d nam e of Tagetici or Tagetinici. A s ce n e e n g ra v e d o n a T u scan
t h e m a n d a d o p t e d s o m e o f t h e i r t e a c h i n g s . In c e r t a i n c a s e s , m i r r o r t h a t is c o n s e r v e d in th e a r c h a e o lo g ic a l m u s e u m of
one m ay sp eak of a r e lig io u s c o n c e p tio n and a p ra c tic e F lo re n c e d e p ic ts h im under th e n am e of Papa or P ava
fo u n d e d upon p r in c ip le s fix e d by re v e a le d and w ritte n T a r c h i e s , w e a r i n g t h e d r e s s o f a h a r u s p e x , h o l d i n g a l i v e r in
tr a d itio n s , a s w ith th e H e b r a ic re lig io n . H o w e v e r , a p a r t fro m h is h a n d , a n d te a c h i n g th e d is c ip lin e to T a r c h o n (Avle Tar-
th e h is to ric a l im p ro b a b ility o f s u c h a n a n a lo g y , w e d o n o t chunus). T h e c a s u i s t r y u s e d in t h e e x a m i n a t i o n o f v i s c e r a f o r
k n o w t o w h a t e x t e n t it is p o s s i b l e t o t r a c e b a c k t o t h e e a r l i e s t d iv in e s ig n s w a s p a rtic u la rly c o m p lic a te d , a s e v id e n c e d by
s ta g e s o f E tr u s c a n re lig io n th e " s y s t e m ” o f th e disciplinarum v a r io u s a n c ie n t te x ts m e tic u lo u s ly a s s e m b le d a n d s tu d ie d b y
scripturae (V itru v iu s , 1 .7 .1 ) th a t a p p e a r s to h a v e b e e n e s ta b ­ C . O . T h u lin . R e a d in g s w e r e m a d e w ith th e h e lp o f p a t te r n s
lis h e d la te r . B u t th e disciplina Etrusca c o n t a in s in its e lf m o tif s th a t c a n be seen in d e p i c t i o n s o f h a r u s p i c e s , b u t a l s o a n d
th a t m a y b e v ie w e d a s b e lo n g in g e i th e r to " s c i e n c e " o r to e s p e c ia lly b y m e a n s o f th e f a m o u s b r o n z e la m b liv e r f o u n d
" l a w ," m o tifs th a t s e e m to e n c o m p a s s th e s a c r e d a n d p r o f a n e n e a r P i a c e n z a . T h e s u r f a c e o f t h e l i v e r is d i v i d e d i n t o s q u a r e s
a s p e c ts of one a n o th e r in an in e x tr ic a b le fa s h io n . It is in w h i c h t h e n a m e s o f g o d s a r e f o u n d ; it w a s b e l i e v e d t h a t
p ro b a b le , a t le a s t b e g in n in g fro m a c e r ta in tim e , th a t e v e r y each d iv in ity m a n ife ste d i t s e l f in i t s o w n p a r tic u la r s p a c e .
hum an a c tio n w as p erfo rm ed — o r s h o u ld have been A r o u n d th e e d g e s th e re a r e s ix te e n s q u a r e s c o r r e s p o n d in g to
p erfo rm e d — "in acco rd a n ce w ith th e disciplina Etrusca" th e s ix te e n z o n e s o f h e a v e n ly s p a c e a n d to th e ir r e s p e c tiv e
(S e rv iu s, Aen., 4 .1 6 6 ) . We m ay n e v e rth e le ss co n je ctu re , d i v i n i t i e s . T h e i n t e r p r e t e r s ' s k ill w a s t h u s e x e r c i s e d u p o n t h e
t h o u g h o n l y w ith g r e a t c a u t i o n , th a t th e o r ig in a l e x p r e s s i o n m i c r o c o s m o f t h e l i v e r a s if u p o n a v e r y s m a l l m i r r o r o f t h e
n o w lo s t, w h ic h w a s tr a n s la te d o r p a r a p h r a s e d in to L a tin a s c e le s tia l templum. The im p o rta n c e of th e ord er of th e
disciplina Etrusca, c o r r e s p o n d e d t o t h e E t r u s c a n w o r d s tesns h a r u s p i c e s — th e f a m o u s c o l le g e o f T a rq u in ii c o u n t e d s ix t y o f
teis rasnes a n d tesne rasne cei (raina = E t r u s c a n , E t r u r i a ) , t h e m — w a s s u c h th a t th e ir a u t h o r i ty a p p a r e n tl y e x t e n d e d to
w h ic h i n tr o d u c e a n d a c c o m p a n y th e c la u s e s o f a la n d c o n ­ e v e r y b ra n c h o f E tr u s c a n d iv in a tio n , a n d " h a r u s p e x " b e c a m e
tra c t m a d e b e tw e e n tw o f a m i l i e s in th e in s c r ip tio n o f th e t h e g e n e r i c t e r m d e s i g n a t i n g t h e i n t e r p r e t e r o f t h e w ill o f t h e
C ip p u s o f P e ru sia CIE 4 5 3 8 ( M a z z a r i n o ) . It a p p e a r s t h a t t h e g o d s. W e a re c e rta in th a t th e E tru s c a n e q u iv a le n t o f th is
c o n c lu s io n o f th e c e le b ra te d " p r o p h e c y o f V e g o ia " — w h ic h n am e w as netsvis ( w h e r e a s t h e L a t i n e x p r e s s i o n liber harus­
w ill b e d i s c u s s e d l a t e r — m a k e s a d i r e c t a l l u s i o n t o a r u l e o f picinus r e p r o d u c e s a n d t r a n s l a t e s t h e E t r u s c a n w o r d s zieh
c o n d u c t , if n o t t o a m o r a l p r i n c i p l e , in t h e p h r a s e , " I n th is nethsrac f r o m t h e f u n e r a r y i n s c r i p t i o n o f t h e T a r q u i n i a n p r i e s t
a v o i d a ll f a l s e h o o d a n d d u p l i c i t y : c a r r y t h e d i s c i p l i n e in y o u r L a r i s P u l e n a s CIE 5 4 3 0 ) .
h e a rt" (Agrimensores, L a c h m a n n , 1 , p . 3 5 0 f f .) . 2. T h e libri fulgurales o r de fulguratura c o n t a i n e d t h e d o c ­
T h o s e w ritin g s o n th e disciplina Etrusca th a t w e r e k n o w n to trin e o f lig h tn in g b o lts a n d o f th e ir in te r p r e ta tio n , w h ic h
th e R o m a n s c a n b e d iv id e d in to th r e e la rg e g r o u p s : (1 ) th e c o n s t i tu t e d th e o t h e r g r e a t s p e c if ic s e c t o r o f E t r u s c a n d iv in a ­
libri haruspicini, ( 2 ) t h e libri fulgurales, a n d (3 ) th e libri rituales tio n . T h is s c ie n c e w as fo u n d e d on th e d e fin itio n of th e
( C i c e r o , On divination, 1 . 7 2 ) . c e le s tia l e x p a n s e — w h ic h w a s c a lle d templum — in i t s o r i e n t a ­
1. T h e first b o o k s d e a l w ith d i v i n a ti o n b y o b s e r v i n g a n d tio n a n d its p a r t s . T h e templum w a s th o u g h t to b e d iv id e d
in te r p r e tin g th e v is c e r a — p a r tic u la r ly th e liv e r— o f s a c rific e d in to s ix te e n re g io n s , e a c h o f w h ic h w a s th e s e a t o f o n e o r
a n i m a l s ( extispicium ). T h i s p r a c t i c e w a s s p e c i f i c a l l y a t t r i b u t e d se v e ra l g o d s (C ice ro , Divin., 2 . 4 2 ; P l i n y , Hist. Nat., 2 . 1 4 3 ;
to th e E t r u s c a n s a n d w on th e m a p a rtic u la r r e n o w n . T h e M a rtia n u s C a p e lla , De nuptiis Mercuri et Philologiae, 1 . 4 3 f f . ) .
p r i e s t s w h o p e r f o r m e d th is d i v i n a ti o n w e r e c a lle d th e h a r u s ­ T h e e a s te rn s e c to r w a s j u d g e d t o b e f a v o r a b l e (pars familiaris)

43
ROME
Bronze liver. Plaisance, Museo Civico.
and the western sector unfavorable (pars hostilis): the same
concept applies to the small model of the liver found at
Piacenza, where the favorable sector is indicated (on the
convex side) by the word usils (= of the sun), i.e., the
portion of the day, while the unfavorable sector is indicated
by the word tivs( = of the moon), or the portion of the night.
Yet this does not prove that the astral element would have
had any particular importance. By collating the names of the
divinities cited by Martianus Capella with those engraved in
the squares on the liver of Piacenza, we may deduce that the
supreme gods such as Tinia-Jupiter, Uni-Juno, Minerva, and
Mars occupied the eastern sector and in particular the
northeastern quarter of the celestial vault. Some of them
were explicitly designated as throwers of the lightning bolt
(manubiae): the god Tinia-Jupiter could throw three lightning
bolts from three different celestial regions (and his name is
repeated in three of the border squares on the liver of
Piacenza). It was the nature gods in particular, such as
Nethuns-Neptune, Catha (the sun), Fufluns-Bacchus,
Selvans-Silvanus, who were found in the southern sectors.
In the western sector, the pars hostilis, were the infernal
divinities or the gods of fate, such as Letham, Cel, Culsu,
Fortuna, the Manes, and Vetis-Veiovis. Naturally, the zone
from which the lightning came indicated the divinity for
which it was the sign. The interpretation was based on the
intensity, form, and color of the lightning bolt, the noise that
accompanied it, the place where it struck, and its effects. The
casuistry was very complicated. Distinctions were made
between good and bad and private and public lightning
bolts, between those that gave advice or orders, commutable
or fixed sentences, etc. Particular rites of purification were
performed at the place where the lightning had struck and
where it was thought to remain under the surface in the form
of a small stone: this sacred place was called bidental in Latin. example: "A ewe or a ram, if it is draped with purple or with
In his Quaestiones naturales II, Seneca left an ample and
methodical summary of all of these doctrines, which ancient
tradition dated back to the writings of the nymph Begoe or
Vegoia (from which the name of the libri Vegonici also comes).
The observation and interpretation of lightning bolts was left
to a special priest called the fulgurator, from which it seems
possible to deduce the Etruscan name (trutnvt frontac) from
the bilingual Etrusco-Latin inscription of the priest L. Cafa-
tius, which is preserved in the Pesaro Museum.
3. The contents of the libri rituales were much more varied unusual shapes or aberrant growth, animals that behave
and complicated. We know (especially from Festus, 285) that
they contained a series of prescriptions for the rites of
44
foundation of cities and the consecration of altars and
temples, as well as for the civil and military organizations of
the state. Among all of these precepts, there is one that
seems to have been of particular importance to the social and
economic structures of Etruria: according to ritual norms
partly corresponding to those concerning the definition of
the heavenly space, the earth was to be divided in order to
permit its profitable use, following an ordered system of the
division of property. It is clear that land surveying as a
system is one of the fundamental factors in the technical and
economic advances introduced by Greek colonization in Italy
(as the most recent archaeological investigations, notably
those undertaken in Metapontum and at Megara Hyblaea in
Sicily, have shown), and one that was to play a fundamental
role in the life of the Roman world. But in Etruria, the
division and delimination of land, insofar as these depended
on the will of the gods, had a significance that was clearly
religious, as shown by the prophecy of Vergoia cited above,
which, within a teaching to a certain Arruns Veltymnus,
predicted for the last years of the Etruscan "eighth century"
(i.e., the beginning of the first century b . c .) a series of
disasters resulting from violations of the boundaries and
passages of properties. This probably reflects the conserva­
tive tendencies of the Etruscan oligarchies in the face of the
agrarian reforms promulgated at Rome by the Greeks and
taken up later by M. Livius Drusus.
Among the ritual books, a more specific category of
writings was established, which was called libri fatales and
which was devoted to doctrines of time and of fate, i.e., to
the durations of the lives of men, cities, and states. These
books also treated of the concept of "centuries," understood
as cycles that were not only natural but also religious, that
brought renewal and were punctuated by portents, render­
ing obligatory the performance of particular rites of purifica­
tion. Other writings, called libri acherontici (from the name of
the river of hell, the Acheron), seem to refer more particu­
larly to one's destiny after death; we know that they con­
tained instructions for ceremonies by which men could gain
immortality, i.e., transform themselves into "divine souls" or
into "gods of the soul": di animales (Servius, Aen., 3.168;
Arnobius, Adversus gentes, 2.62). Then follows a very large
section of the disciplina Etrusca that, if we go by what is
written in it, should also enter into the category of libri fatales,
i.e., the theory, classification, observation, and explanation
of odd or portentous events: of ostenta. This is probably an
occasional practice which, in unforeseeable cases, left every­
thing to the interpreter's experience and verbal responses.
Nevertheless, there were also written documents called
ostentaria (a late collection or transcription, attributed at least
in part to the Etruscan haruspex Tarquitius—the name comes
from libri Tarquitiani) of which a few fragments remain,
recorded in Latin literature, and which seem to have all the
characteristics of a summary, as may be seen in the following
gold, brings an increase of abundance to the head of the state
or country, multiplies the progeny of the country, and makes
it happier" (extract from the book of Tarquitius, cited by
Macrobius, Saturnalia, 3.7.2). Signs may be of very different
kinds; unusual celestial apparitions, rains of blood or of
stones (and logically lightning bolts should be classified
under this same heading, since they elsewhere constitute, as
we have seen, a peculiar but essential chapter in Etruscan
divination), earthquakes, the falling of statues, plants with
strangely or that have exceptional characteristics, monstrous
beings, and so on. Obviously, under this heading were also

Mirror from Tuscany. Florence, Archaeological Museum.
classified the signs of the flight of birds, which otherwise does
not seem to have been the object of a technically developed
divinatory art in Etruria, nor to have had a primordial role in
worship, as it did in the Roman and Umbrian religions. Por­
tents announce the future, but in many cases they are the
frightening manifestation of some private or public impurity
or fault, which requires purification by special and extremely
meticulous rites. Finally, we must stress the exceptional im­
portance that Roman religion placed on the Etruscan tradi­
tions of the observation of the ostenta and the expiatory rites
that they required. By contrast, the divination by oracles that
was so typical of the Greek world seems to have been wholly
foreign to the disciplina Etrusca.
We said at the beginning that there is no way of knowing
when all that has been described so far became, even in
substance, the heritage of Etruscan religion and culture. It is
very probable—and this is the general opinion of researchers
on the subject—that the disciplina Etrusca, as a written
"corpus," was systematized mainly during the last part of
the history of Etruria and thus resulted from the reflection
and traditionalism of priestly circles that were already in
contact with Hellenistic and Hellenistic-Roman scholarship.
In the same way, accounts of primordial events, such as the
"preachings" of Tages, are for the most part artificial recon­
structions of a mythical or etiological type. Nevertheless, we
cannot imagine that such a heritage of beliefs, practices, and
speculations, some of which are analogically tied to ritual
forms from distant times and places— such as the bronze
model of the liver at Piacenza which evokes small terra-cotta
THE D I S C I P L I N A E T R U S C A
models of livers used for haruspicy in Mesopotamia and Asia
Minor— could have resulted solely from scholarly inventions
from before the high point of Etruscan civilization, i.e., the
archaic period. Numerous traditions whose origins can be
traced back precisely to the archaic period (portents, proph­
ecies, and especially the testimony of the "books" attributed
to the Sibyl of Cumae— the libri Sibyllini— which are con­
nected with King Tarquinius Superbus and also with the libri
fatales: Livy, 22.9) and the fact that the existence of the
fundamental elements of haruspicy from the fourth century
onwards can be established on the basis of artistic represen­
tations suggest that the essential elements of the ideas,
norms, and practices that became known to the Romans
under the name of disciplina belong to the earliest stages of
Etruscan religion; and we should attribute to the late periods
little more than a better organization of the sacred laws,
along with a general literary definition of the sacred.
The first ideas were probably transmitted orally and in the
form of songs (Lucretius, 6.381; Censorinus, De die natali,
4.13). The attribution of these teachings to demigods such as
Tages and the nymph Begoe or Vegoia probably goes back to
fairly early local traditions. The attribution to Tages must be
related to the city of Tarquinii because of its relationship with
Tarchon, and the attribution to Begoe or Vegoia (whose
Etruscan name is Lasa Vécu or Vecuvia) to the city of Clusium
or a Vécu family— which might suggest that these cults and
myths have noble origins. But these two cases, as well as
other indications, seem to throw into relief the tendency of
the Etruscan religion to seek the "sources" of doctrines and
religious precepts in the authority of supernatural beings,
which to some extent gives it the character of a "revealed"
religion. It is likely that in the beginning these two teachings
were not clearly distinguishable from one another. Not only
haruspicy but also the ritual discipline was traced back to
Tages, in particular all that concerned the jus terrae Etruriae
and the libri acherontici (Servius, Aen., 8.398). Vegoia is cited
with regard not only to the doctrine of lightning bolts, but
also to warnings about the intangibility of boundaries, as we
have already seen. The idea that the books that circulated
under the names of Tages (Tagetici) and Vegoia (Vegonici) were
generally collections of their oral teachings emerges quite
clearly from the body of citations found in literary sources.
The legendary and semilegendary characters who collected
and spread them, such as Tarchon or Arruns Veltymnus,
must have been very important. In any case, the canonical
attributions and divisions are undoubtedly fictive and late,
especially since there are references to unknown authors,
such as the Marcii, or authors completely foreign to the
disciplina Etrusca, such as the Carthaginian Mago, all of
whom are anachronistically associated with Vegoia (Servius,
Aen., 6.72; Agrimensores, Lachmann, p. 348). With these
authors, we come to those historians who collect, develop,
summarize, and translate (from Etruscan into Latin) tradi­
tional doctrines, first L. Tarquitius (Priscus), the author of the
previously cited libri Tarquitiani, and then A. Caecina, Aquila,
Nigidius Figulus, Umbricius Melior, Capito, Labeo, and
several others into the late imperial period.
M.P./d.w.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
c. o. THULiN, Die Götter des Martianus Capella und der Bronzeleber von
Piacenza (Giessen 1906); Die etruskische Disziplin (Göteborg 1906-9)
M. PALLOTTiNO, "Uno specchio di Tuscania e la leggenda etrusca di
Tarchon," in Rendiconti della Pontißca Accadentia Romana di Archeologia
45
ROME

6 (1930): 49-87. b. niocara, Gli Etruschi e la loro civiltà (Milan 1933), p o p u la tio n s w h o s p o k e d ia le c ts o f th e O s c a n ty p e d u r i n g a
189-219. M. i’allottino . Deorum sedes, in Studi in onore di A. Calderim le s s -d iffe re n tia te d a r c h a ic p h ase. The U m b ria n s (U m b r i),
e R. Paribeni (Milan 1956-57), 223-34. s. mazzarino , "Sociologia del
w h o m a d e th e ir w a y n o r th w a r d a lo n g th e v a lle y o f th e T ib e r
mondo etrusco e problemi della tarda etruscità,” in Historia 6 (1957):
a n d b e y o n d th e A p e n n in e s to th e o u t e r lim its o f th e P a d u a n
98-122. R. bloch . Les prodiges dans l'Antiquité classique (Paris 1963),
p la in , c o n s titu te d a d is tin c tly s e p a r a te b r a n c h w ith th e ir o w n
43-76. a . |. pfiffig . Religio Etrusca (Graz 1975). c. a . mastrelli,
"Etrusco-piceno frontac e greco K e ra u n o s S t u d i Etruschi 44 (1976): i n n o v a tio n s ; b u t t h e r e w e r e a ls o s o m e s im ila r g r o u p s to th e
149-61. s o u t h , s u c h a s th e V o ls ci in L a t iu m .
If w e c o n s i d e r t h i s d i s p e r s i o n a n d t h e v a r i e t y o f g e o g r a p h ­
ical a n d h i s t o r i c a l c o n d i t i o n s , w e c a n n o t s p e a k o f a n I t a li c
r e lig io n a s a d e f in e d re a lity , u n d e r s t o o d a s a u n it a r y c o n c e p t .
M o r e o v e r , s u c h a n id e a w a s to ta lly a lie n to th e a n c i e n t s ' w a y
o f th in k in g . R a th e r w e m u s t d is tin g u is h and e v a lu a te th e
T he R elig ion o f th e S abellia n s an d U m br ia n s , fa c ts a b o u t th e p e o p le s a n d p la c e s o f th e c u ltu r e s th a t a r e

I ta lics o f C en tr al an d S o u th er n I ta ly I. b e s t k n o w n h i s t o r i c a l l y a n d t h a t a r e m o s t f u l ly d o c u m e n t e d .
W e can th u s re a lis tic a lly s tu d y th e re lig io n o f th e S a b in e s
(w h ic h w e k n o w fro m R o m a n tra d itio n ) a n d th e re lig io n o f
th e S a b e llia n s of A b ru z z i, S a m n iu m , C a m p a n ia , Irp in ia ,
I. Historical and Linguistic Background
L u ca n ia , etc. O ur k n o w le d g e of th e S a b e llia n s is b ased
T h e p e o p l e w h o liv e d in th e h e a r t o f th e Ita lia n p e n in s u la , e s s e n tia lly o n l o c a l e p i g r a p h i c e v i d e n c e in t h e O s c a n la n ­
w h o b e lo n g e d to a s in g le lin g u is tic s to c k o f I n d o - E u r o p e a n g u a g e , s u c h a s th e T a b u la A g n o n e n s is , a n d th e in s c rip tio n s
o r ig in (b u t d iffe re n t fro m L a tin ), a n d w h o m m o d e r n s c h o la r s o f C a p u a , th e C ip p u s o f A b e lla , th e c o lle c tio n o f t e x ts fro m
d e sig n a te by th e g en eral n am e of S a b e llia n -U m b r ia n s or R o ssan o d i V a g lio ; a n d in s c rip tio n s on th e a rc h a e o lo g ic a l
O s c o - U m b r i a n s , E a s t e r n I ta lic s , o r s im p ly " I t a l i c s ," m a d e u p re m a in s fro m s h r in e s . W e c a n a ls o s tu d y U m b ria n re lig io n ,
a f u n d a m e n ta l e le m e n t o f th e p o p u la tio n a n d th e r e b y o f th e o r m o r e e x a c t l y I g u v i n e r e l i g i o n , s i n c e w e k n o w it e x c l u s i v e l y
h isto ry a n d t h e c u l t u r e o f p r e - R o m a n , a n c i e n t I t a ly . O r i g i ­ t h r o u g h th e I g u v in e T a b le s, fro m Ig u v iu m , th e a n c ie n t n a m e
n a lly th e se p e o p le m ay a ll h a v e had a com m on n a tio n a l fo r G u b b io . B u t fo r e a c h o f t h e m , w ith th e e x c e p t i o n o f th e
n a m e c o n n e c t e d w ith th e r o o t sahh-, fro m w h ic h a r e d e r iv e d U m b ria n re lig io n , th e fr a g m e n ts th a t w e h a v e a r e n o t su ffi­
th e h is to ric a l n a m e s o f S a b in e s , S a b e llia n s , a n d S a m n iu m c i e n t t o g i v e a c l e a r i d e a o f t h e i r t r u e c h a r a c t e r . T h i s is p a r t l y
(Safinim in i ts i n d i g e n o u s f o r m ) , w h e n c e c o m e s t h e n a m e o f due to th e p a u city of in fo rm a tio n p ro v id e d by c la s s ic a l
th e S a u n ite s o r S a m n ite s . L e g e n d s e v o k e v e r y a n c ie n t k in ­ a u t h o r s a n d s c h o l a r s ( in c o n t r a s t w i t h t h e g r e a t i n t e r e s t t h a t
s h i p r e l a t i o n s a m o n g t h e m , a s w e l l a s s i m i l a r i t i e s in t h e a r e a th e a n c i e n t s to o k in E t r u s c a n r e lig io n ). A s a r e s u lt , a s y n t h e ­
o f th e ir re lig io u s tra d itio n s . Y e t fro m th e d a w n o f h isto rica l s i s o f a ll t h e d a t a s e e m s t o b e c a l l e d f o r .
t im e s , th is e t h n i c g r o u p a p p e a r s to h a v e b e e n fra g m e n te d
i n t o m a n y d i f f e r e n t p o p u l a t i o n s a n d t r i b e s , e a c h h a v i n g i ts
II. The Myth of the Animal Guide or Ancestor
o w n n a m e a n d c h a r a c te r is tic d ia le c t, b e h a v io r, a n d h is to ry .
T h e ir c o n ta c ts w ith th e T y rrh e n ia n ce n te rs of E tru ria , At th e o ld e s t, u n d o u b te d ly co m m u n a l, lev el th e re are
L a tiu m , a n d C a m p a n ia , a n d w ith th e G re e k c o lo n ia l w o rld , tra d itio n s a b o u t th e m ig r a tio n s o f g r o u p s u n d e r th e g u id a n c e
c o u p le d w ith th e ir e x p a n s io n w ith in th e p e n in s u la so u th ­ o r a d v i c e o f a s a c r e d a n im a l th a t m a y a ls o g iv e its n a m e to th e
w a r d a n d t o w a r d th e T y r r h e n ia n S e a , d e t e r m in e d th is v a s t e t h n i c g r o u p t h a t c l a i m s i t. F o r e x a m p l e , t h e S a b e l l i a n s w e r e
p r o c e s s o f c u ltu r a l in te g r a ti o n . A s a r e s u lt o f th is in te g r a ti o n , g u i d e d b y a b u ll ; t h e P i c e n i , b y a w o o d p e c k e r (picus, fro m
th e E a s t e r n Ita lic s b e n e f ite d m o r e a n d m o r e fr o m th e i m p o r t s w h ic h t h e y g o t t h e ir n a m e ) ; th e H irp in i a n d th e L u c a n i , b y a
fro m g r e a t u rb a n c iv iliz a tio n s , d e s p ite th e ir o w n f u n d a m e n ­ w o lf (hirpus in I t a l i c , a n d lukos in G r e e k ) . T h e s a m e r e l a t i o n ­
ta l t i e s t o p a s t o r a l a n d a g r a r i a n c o m m u n i t y s t r u c t u r e s a n d t o sh ip m ay have e x iste d fo r o th e r m in o r p o p u la tio n s and
p rim itiv e c u s to m s . T h is in flu e n c e co u ld not fa il to have t rib e s : t h u s th e F r e n t a n i a n d th e h a r t ( w h o s e I n d o - E u r o p e a n
r e p e r c u s s i o n s in t h e a r e a o f r e l i g i o n . nam e bhrento- is a t t e s t e d p a r t i c u l a r l y i n n e i g h b o r i n g A p u l i a ) ,
The p e o p le in q u e s t i o n can be id e n tifie d and c la s s if ie d and th e U r s e n tin i a n d th e b e a r. T h e r itu a l b a s is fo r th e s e
m o r e p r e c i s e l y in l i n g u i s t i c , h i s t o r i c , a n d g e o g r a p h i c t e r m s . m ig ra tio n s w as s o m e th in g c a lle d ver sacrum (th e sacred
A lth o u g h th e y h a v e a c o m m o n o r ig in , th e Ita lic l a n g u a g e s s p r in g tim e ), th a t is, th e p r o p itia to r y o r e x p ia to r y o f fe rin g to
are d iv id e d in to tw o m a in grou p s: th e s o -c a lle d O scan t h e g o d o f a ll t h o s e b e i n g s w h o w e r e b o r n d u r i n g a g i v e n
l a n g u a g e ( n a m e d a f t e r th e O s c a n s in C a m p a n ia ) , w id e s p r e a d p e rio d o f tim e . H u m a n s , h o w e v e r , w e r e n o t s a c rific e d b u t
in s o u t h e r n I t a l y a n d d o c u m e n t e d b y a s i g n i f i c a n t n u m b e r o f w e r e c o m p e lle d to le a v e th e ir o rig in a l g r o u p to g o a n d s e ttle
in s c rip tio n s th a t u s e in d ig e n o u s a lp h a b e ts , G re e k a n d L a tin ; e ls e w h e r e a n d to fin d n e w m e a n s o f s u b s i s t e n c e , w h i c h in
and th e U m b ria n la n g u a g e , know n a lm o s t e x c lu s iv e ly tu r n tr ig g e r e d th e fo r m a tio n o f n e w g r o u p s (s e e th e a rtic le
th r o u g h th e te x ts o f th e I g u v in e T a b le s o f G u b b io , w h ic h u s e " V e r S a c r u m ," b e lo w ). C le a r ly th e s e a r e c o n c e p t s p e c u lia r to
U m b ria n and L a tin a lp h a b e ts. The first la n g u a g e is th e p rim itiv e s o c ie tie s o f a p a s to r a l-n o m a d ic ty p e . T h e th e rio -
h e r i t a g e o f t h o s e p e o p l e w h o m w e c a ll S a b e l l i a n s ( S a b e l l i ) in m o rp h ic e le m e n t w a s im p o rta n t n o t o n ly a m o n g th e se p e o ­
th e b r o a d e s t s e n s e o f th e L a tin t e r m — p e o p l e w h o in c lu d e d p le b u t a lso in m o re ad van ced s o c ie tie s of th e E u ra sia n
a t t h e t i m e o f t h e R o m a n c o n q u e s t s m a l l g r o u p s s e t t l e d in w o rld , as A. A lfö ld i has re c e n tly show n. T h ere is som e
w hat now is c a l l e d A b r u z z i ( t h e M a r s i , P a e l i g n i , P r a e t u t t i i , re a s o n to b e lie v e , a lth o u g h h e s ita n tly , th a t th e s e a r e s u r v iv ­
V e s ti n i , a n d M a rru c in i)— a n d fa rth e r s o u th , th e S a m n ite s , a ls o f to te m is m .
a n d th e n th e F r e n to n i, th e C a m p a n i o r O s c i, th e H irp in i, th e T h e m y th o f th e a n im a l g u id e , o r a n c e s to r, fe e d e r, a n d
L u c a n i , a n d t h e B r u t t i i , a ll t h e w a y t o t h e M a m e r t i n i i n S i c i ly . p r o te c to r , w a s q u ite w id e s p r e a d in p r e h i s t o r i c I t a l y ; it r e ­
I t is l ik e l y t h a t t h e S a b i n e s ( S a b i n i ) o f c e n t r a l I t a l y a n d t h e i r m a i n e d e s p e c ia lly lin k e d to p a s t o r a li s m a n d t r a n s h u m a n c e ;
n e ig h b o rs th e A e q u i, th e H e rc in i, e t c ., w h o w e r e s c a tte r e d c le a r a rc h a e o lo g ic a l e v id e n c e s u p p o r ts th e v a lid ity o f th is
a ro u n d L a tiu m s in c e p r e h i s t o r y , a s w e ll a s th e P ice n ti o r r e l a ti o n s h ip in th e c u l t u r e o f th e s o - c a lle d A p e n n in e B r o n z e
P ice n i a lo n g th e A d ria tic s lo p e , b e lo n g e d to o ld e r s tr a ta o f A g e . W e e v e n f i n d it i n t h e o l d e s t L a t i n a n d R o m a n l e g e n d s .

46

Etruscan Tabula Agnonensis. London, British Museum. Museum photo.
Right: Ex-voto. Avellino, Museo Irpino. Museum photo.
In the oldest Latin legends we may recall the sow who led
Aeneas and his companions from Lavinium to Alba Longa,
or the she-wolf of Rome. The traditions and rites of the
Luperci may also be recalled. Even in prehistory these
concepts must have clashed with the substantially different
beliefs and rites of agrarian societies. They were probably
permanently obliterated in the wake of the religious ideas
that spread within the zones of proto-urban and urban
cultures of coastal Italy, notably in the south and along the
Tyrrhenian coast, under Greek and Etruscan influence. Even
in the historical period, these ancient concepts seem to have
characterized the people of inland Italy, who were still tied,
at least in their place of origin, to pre-urban structures, to an
essentially pastoral economy, and to a mobility that involved
aggressive and warlike tendencies. This fits the description
of the Sabellian-Umbrians exactly. What is most interesting is
that the ver sacrum was an enduring rite that continued to be
performed in later periods, as well as an etiological myth of
the origins of the Italic people, a myth that later became part
of the scholarly reconstruction of the legendary ethnography
of Italy in the heroic era. Their very ancient relation with the
THE S A B E L L 1 A N S AND U M B R I A N S
god Mars (in the Oscan form Mamers) stressed this warlike
feature, which must be connected with the increasing use of
mercenaries. The sources explicitly attest that animal guides,
particularly the bull and the woodpecker, were consecrated
to this god. We may therefore assume that the original
figures or the theriomorphic divine forces were gradually
transformed into simple attributes or symbols. This second­
ary character is obvious, for instance, in the representations
of the Italic bull (viteliu), which overcomes the Roman
she-wolf on the coins of the federated Sabellians who rose up
against Rome during the Social War (90-87 b .c .). That was
the last attempt by these people to assert a “national”
consciousness.
III. Personal Deities
Belief in more or less anthropomorphic, personal deities
seems to have been the ancestral patrimony of the Sabellian-
Umbrians, but it spread, becoming solidified and compli­
cated as contacts developed with the Greek and Tyrrhenian
(i.e., Etruscan, Latin, and Campanian) religious worlds.
47
Ex-voto. Avellino, Museo Irpino. Museum photo.
Many of the most ancient centers and cult sites in southern
Italy were subject to Italic occupation. Thus came into being
a vast network of correspondences, identifications, and
reciprocal influences, of common experiences and develop­
ments, which must have resulted in the diffusion of the cults
of the supreme celestial deity (D)iove-Jupiter, of Mars-
Mamers, of Herekle-Herakles, and of Kere-Ceres. But there
were also specifically Italic deities, or deities peculiar to each
48
Ex-voto. Avellino, Museo Irpino. Museum photo.
Italic environment, such as the goddess Mefitis in the Sabel-
lian area (Irpinia and Lucania), the goddess Cupra in Umbria
and in the Picenum, and the god Cerfo in Gubbio. Our
knowledge of the Umbrian pantheon is especially rich be­
cause of the Iguvine Tablets. This pantheon presents the
characteristic system of double names for gods, in which the
second element plays the role of a qualifying adjective (as in
personal names) and is often derived from the name of
 THE S A B E L L I A N S AND U M B R I A N S

a n o t h e r g o d , fo r e x a m p l e , T e fre Jo v ie (T e fro “ o f J u p i te r " ) , d e ta ile d k n o w le d g e o f th e r ite s o f U m b r ia n r e lig io n . E ach

S e rfe M a rtie (Ç e r f o " o f M a r s " ) , P r e s to ta S e rfia (P r e s t o t a " o f c e r e m o n y b e g a n w i t h t h e o b s e r v a t i o n o f t h e f l i g h t o f b i r d s in
Ç e r f o " ) . T h is c r is s c r o s s i n g o f d i r e c t o r c o lla t e r a l k i n s h ip lin e s an a p p ro p ria te a n d p re c is e ly o r ie n te d p a rt o f th e sk y th a t
g i v e s it t h e a p p e a r a n c e o f a l a r g e f a m i l y o f g o d s . T h i s d o e s co rre sp o n d e d to a p a rt o f th e e a r th , re c a llin g th e E tru s c a n
n o t n e c e s s a r il y s ig n ify , h o w e v e r , a t r u e m y th o lo g i c a l t h e o g - a n d L a tin c o n c e p t i o n o f th e templum. A s in R o m e b u t n o t in
o n y s u c h a s e x i s t e d a m o n g t h e G r e e k s a n d in o t h e r a n c i e n t E tru ia , a u g u r y r e p r e s e n ts th e s o le fo rm o f d iv in a tio n , o r at
r e lig io n s . T h e a b s t r a c t c h a r a c t e r o f c e r ta in p rim a ry n a m e s , le a s t its p rin c ip a l fo r m . A n e x p i a to r y p u rific a tio n p reced ed
s u c h a s S a ç i ( " p a c t o f s a c r e d a l l e g i a n c e " ) in th e e x p r e s s i o n th e s a c r e d a c t. R eal sa crifice s w e re p e rfo rm e d w ith a n im a l
lupater Saçe (Ju p ite r "o f S a çi"), su g g e s ts ra th e r th a t th is v ic tim s o b ta in e d fro m sa cre d b re e d in g fa rm s (sakri) o r p ro ­
n e tw o r k o f r e la tio n s h ip s w a s th e fru it o f a c o n c e p t u a l e la b ­ fan e o n e s ( perakni ) , t h e a n i m a l s d i f f e r i n g a c c o r d i n g to th e
o r a tio n p e c u lia r to th e I g u v in e r e lig io n . T h is d o e s n o t a lte r d e itie s ( o x e n , la m b s , p ig s , e t c .) . T h e r e w e r e a ls o fre q u e n t
t h e f a c t t h a t t h e d o u b l e n a m e f o r g o d s is w i d e l y a t t e s t e d , b l o o d l e s s o f f e r i n g s , i . e . , o f f e r i n g s o f f o o d a n d d r i n k . T h e r ite
t h o u g h in a le s s ty p ic a l a n d c o h e r e n t w a y , o u t s id e U m b r ia , w a s a c c o m p a n ie d b y v o w s a n d p r a y e r s in v o k in g th e p r o te c ­
n o t o n l y in a ll o f t h e S a b e l l i a n c o u n t r y b u t a l s o in L a t i u m a n d tio n o f t h e g o d s f o r th e c it y a n d th e s h r in e . T h e c u r s e p la c e d
E tr u r ia . o n f o re ig n e rs ( E tr u s c a n s , I a p u z c u s , N a h a r k u s ) w a s n o ta b le .
T h e T a b le ts a ls o p r o v i d e in f o r m a tio n o n th e v a r io u s p rie s tly
f u n c tio n s , p a rtic u la rly th o s e o f th e c o lle g e o f p rie s ts k n o w n
IV. Forms of Worship
a s th e A tie d ii B re th r e n .
The fra m e w o rk s w ith in w h ic h p e o p le u n d e rsto o d th e ir W ith in th e g e n e r a l f r a m e w o r k o f th e c o n s e r v a t is m o f th e
c o n n e c t i o n s w ith th e g o d s , a n d th e r e f o r e th e fo r m s o f th e ir Ita lic p e o p l e , t h e c u l t o f t h e d e a d a n d f u n e r a r y p r a c ti c e s w e r e
w o r s h ip , d id n o t d if f e r in e s s e n c e f r o m w h a t w e k n o w a b o u t c l o s e l y r e l a t e d t o t r a d i t i o n s w i d e s p r e a d a ll o v e r I t a l y i n t h e
th e re lig io n o f R o m e a n d , m o r e g e n e r a lly , o f th e G r e c o -I ta lic c o u r s e o f p r o t o h i s to r y , w ith a c l e a r p r e d o m i n a n c e o f t h e r ite
w o rld . T h e s e fo rm s in c lu d e th e o b s e rv a tio n o f th e s ig n s o f o f in h u m a tio n in d itc h graves. In th e A d ria tic re g io n of
d i v i n e w il l ; o b j e c t s o r l i v i n g c r e a t u r e s d e d i c a t e d a n d c o n s e ­ P i c e n u m , a n d o c c a s i o n a l l y i n b u r i a l s o f c h i e f s in l o w e r I t a ly ,
c r a te d to th e gods (devotio); p riv a te and p u b lic rite s of th e fu n e ra ry fu rn ish in g s have a p a r tic u la r o p u le n ce .
p ro p itia tio n a n d e x p ia tio n , w ith p r a y e r s , o f f e r in g s w ith o u t T h r o u g h c o n t a c t w ith th e G r e c o -T y r r h e n i a n w o r ld , a t y p e o f
b lo o d sh ed or sa crifice s ; v o tiv e g ifts; p la ce s of w o r s h ip , to m b a p p e a r e d a n d s p r e a d la te r a m o n g th e C a m p a n ia n s o f
n o ta b ly w ith o p e n - a i r a l ta r s ; la te r , t e m p le s b u ilt o n G re e k C apua and th e L u c a n ia ris o f P a e s tu m ; th e to m b s h ad th e
and E tru s c a n m o d e ls . But in th is g en eral o v e rv ie w , we s h a p e o f c a s e s a n d w e r e d e c o r a t e d w ith p a in tin g s f e a tu r in g
s h o u ld n o te c h a r a c t e r is t ic s p e c u lia r to e a c h o f th e r e lig io u s m o s tly m a rtia l s u b je c ts b u t a ls o h a d r e f e r e n c e s to th e a fte rlife
c e n t e r s t h a t w e m e n t i o n e d e a r l i e r . In C a m p a n i a , f o r i n s t a n c e , a n d c o n c e i v a b l y e c h o e s o f P y t h a g o r e a n d o c t r i n e s . It d o e s n o t
a t C a p u a , a n im p o r ta n t c o lle c tio n o f O s c a n e p i g r a p h s a t te s ts ap p ear, h ow ever, th a t th e p ro b le m of d e a th in sp ire d a
th a t s a c r e d b u ild in g s c a lle d iuvilas (p r o b a b l y a l ta r s o r s m a ll p r e o c c u p a t i o n a n d d o c tr in a l r e f le c tio n a m o n g th e S a b e llia n s
s h r in e s ) w e r e th e s ite s o f c e r e m o n i e s c e le b r a te d o n c e r ta in a n d t h e U m b r i a n s c o m p a r a b l e to t h o s e f o u n d in E t r u r ia .
d a y s o f fix e d fe s tiv a ls , s o m e t im e s e v e n w ith p u b lic m a g is ­ M .P ./g .h .
tra te s o f fic ia tin g . A lso in C apua, th e im p o s in g s h r in e of
Fondo P a ttu re lli w ith its s tr a n g e s to n e s ta tu e s d e p ic tin g
m o t h e r s s e a t e d w i t h c h i l d r e n i n t h e i r a r m s , a n d w i t h a ll i ts
t e r r a - c o tt a v o t iv e o b j e c ts , is e v i d e n c e o f a c u l t d e v o te d t o th e BIBLIOGRAPHY
g o d d e s s o f fe rtility . T h e i n s c r ip t io n o n t h e T a b u la A g n o n e n -
s is in S a n n io d e s c r i b e s a p r o c e s s i o n a l r i te w ith s t a t i o n s in F. von DUHN, Italische Grdlferkunde, 2 vols. (Heidelberg 1923, 1939); vol.
fro n t o f th e n u m e r o u s a lta r s in sid e a s a c r e d e n c lo s u r e th a t 2 with F. Messerschmidt . |. wiiATMOL'GH, The Fou lutations of Roman Italy
w e r e d e d i c a t e d t o C e r e s , F l o r a , a n d o t h e r m i n o r d e i t i e s ; in (London 1937). g . devoto . Tabulae Iguvinae (Rome 1937). e . c . evans .
c e r ta in y e a r s a h o lo c a u s t w a s c e le b r a te d . T h e s h r in e o f th e
The Cults of the Sabine Territory (New York 1939). |. iieurgo n , Étude sur
les inscriptions osques de Capoue dite Iuvilas (Paris 1942). f . vetter ,
g o d d e s s M e f i t i s i n t h e A n 's a n t o V a l l e y n e a r M i r a b e l l a E c l a n o
Handbuch der italischen Dialekte (Heidelberg 1953). i. heuroon , Trois
in th e h e a r t o f I rp in ia a t t e s t s w h a t w a s p r o b a b ly a c h t h o n i c
études sur le "Ver sacrum" (Brussels 1957). m. g . bruno , "I Sabini e la
c u l t . T h e s h r in e w a s r ic h in v o t iv e o b j e c ts a n d m a y h a v e b e e n
loro lingua," in Rendiconti dell’lstituto Lombardo di Scienze e Lettere 95
c o n n e cte d w ith th e to x ic e m a n a tio n s fro m th is w ild s ite , (1961): 501-41; 96 (1962): 413-42 and 565-640. v. pisani. Le lingue
h en ce th e m o re g e n e ra l m e a n in g of th e w o rd mephitis, dell'ltalia antica oltre il latino (2d ed., Turin 1964). a . i . pfiffig . Religio
" f o u l- s m e ll in g ." A l s o d e d ic a t e d t o M e fitis ( w h o is id e n tif ie d Iguvina (Vienna 1964). g . radke , Die Götter Altitaliens (Münster 1965).
w i t h V e n u s a n d C e r e s ) is a n o t h e r s h r i n e , p o s s i b l y c o n n e c t e d G. devoto , Gli antichi Italici (3d ed., Florence 1967); Scritti minori, vol.
w ith a n o r ig in a l c u lt o f th e w a te r s a n d d is c o v e r e d a t R o s s a n o 2 (Florence 1967). e . t . salmon , Samnium and the Samnites (Cambridge
d i V a g li o i n L u c a n i a . T h i s s h r i n e is i n t e r e s t i n g e s p e c i a l l y f o r 1967). v. ciANFARANi, Culture adriatiche d 'Italia (Rome 1970). d . adamf -
steanu and m . lejeune , II Santuario lucano di Macchia di Rossano dt
its O scan in s c rip tio n s in th e G reek a lp h a b e t, w h ic h M.
Vaglio, Memorie delle'Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Classe di
L e j e u n e h a s s tu d i e d , a s w e ll a s f o r t h e a r c h i t e c h t o n i c s t r u c ­
scienze morali, ser. 8, 16 (Rome 1971): 37-83; the complementary
tu r e s th a t s u r r o u n d a la r g e a lta r. T h e g e n e r a l f e a tu r e o f th e s e
contributions of m . leieune have been published in the reports of the
Ita lic r e lig io u s c e n t e r s w a s t h e f o r m o f th e s a c r e d e n c l o s u r e same academy, 1972, pp. 663-84; 1973, pp. 399-414. |. heurgon , "I
w ith its a l ta r s a n d v o t iv e m o n u m e n t s . T r u e t e m p le s in th e culti non greci della Magna Grecia," in Le genti non greche della Magna
G r e e k a n d E t r u s c a n - L a t in s ty le a p p e a r e d l a te a n d in i s o la te d Grecia (Atti dell'XI Coitvegnodi Studi sulla Magna Grecia, Taranto 1971)
p l a c e s , fo r i n s t a n c e , in P a e s t u m o r in P i e tr a b b o n d a n t e . (Naples 1972), 55-75. a . alfoi.di, Die Struktur des voretruskischen
T h e Ig u v in e T a b le ts, th e lo n g e s t p re -L a tin in s c rip tio n y e t Römerstaates (Heidelberg 1974). u. bian ciii, “Gli dei delle stirpi itali-
d i s c o v e r e d in I t a l y , b r i n g u s in t h e m s e l v e s a p r o f o u n d a n d che," in Popoli e civiltà dell’ltalia antica 7 (1978): 195-236.

49
ROME

T he B eliefs and R ites of the A pulians, an

I ndigenous P eople of S outheastern I taly

The Latin form Apuli is derived from, or at least related to,

the term "Iapyges" used by the Greeks to designate the
indigenous populations of southeastern Italy, i.e., ancient
and modern Apulia, including the three groups of the
Daunians, the Peucetians, and the Messapians (settled from
north to south, respectively, in the present-day provinces of
Foggia and Bari and in the Salentine peninsula). For the
territory of the Messapians, names of other ethnic groups are
also cited, such as the Salentines and the Calabrians— the
source of the geographic term Calabria (which, beginning in
the Middle Ages, spread to the southwestern extremity of
Italy and took on its contemporary meaning); in the Roman
period, the region was divided into Apulia in the north and
Calabria in the south. All of these peoples, by their ethno-
linguistic character, their traditions, and their cultural pro­
ductions, constitute a well-defined group in the populations
and cultures of ancient Italy. The language, today called
Messapian and documented by a number of inscriptions
discovered especially in the southern part of the country, is
certainly Indo-European, but, unlike those of the other Italic
peoples, it has important connections with the other side of
the Adriatic, which in a way confirm the ancient traditions of
an Illyrian origin of the Iapyges. On the other hand, their
name is related, if not identical, to that of the Iapuzcus (or
Iabusques) cited in the Umbrian inscription of the Iguvine
Tablets, that is, people inhabiting central Italy and probably
the Adriatic coast; it is also connected to the name of the
Iapodes or Iapydes of northern Dalmatia— which confirms
the original existence of important ethnic relationships be­
tween the two coasts of the Adriatic.
The culture and particularly the religion of the pre-Roman Priam surrounded by Trojan men and women. Stela from Daunia.
Photo pr. Silvio Ferri, Pisa.
Apulians present, insofar as they can be known, a peculiar
mixture of indigenous elements, chiefly connected with
prehistoric and protohistoric traditions, and Greek elements
from the colonies established on the margins of this territory
by the eighth century b .c . but preceded by precolonial
Achilles, seated, playing a lyre; on the right, Priam; and on the left incursions going back to the Mycenaean age (the role of
Andromache and Hecuba. Stela from Daunia. Photo pr. Silvio Ferri, Taranto seems to have been important). Classical sources
Pisa. transmit the memory of a web of legends elaborated by the
Greeks about the colonization of Apulia by the Arcadians,
Cretans, Illyrians, etc., and about the eponymous heroes
Iapyx, Messapus, Peucetius, and Daunus. Daunus was
known not as a foreigner but as an indigenous king and must
certainly be connected with a Paleo-Italic mythic source, as is
proved by the etymological identity of his name with the
Latin name Faunus. There are also legends about the Adri­
atic enterprises of Diomedes and his death in Daunia while
he was returning from Troy, and about the founding of cities
and sanctuaries, among which those of Athena Ilias at
Luceria and of Calchas and Podalirius on Mount Gargano are
especially famous. These tales preserve traces of local tradi­
tions, for example, of the curative powers of the waters of the
heroon of Podalirius and the oracles granted during the sleep
of anyone who slept wrapped in the skin of a sacrificed ewe.
Behind the worship of Greek goddesses such as Demeter and
Aphrodite, whose names are mentioned along with their
special attributes in the Messapian inscriptions, we glimpse
indigenous divine figures; to one god, Menzana, identified
with Jupiter, these same Messapians, who were reputed as
breeders of horses, sacrificed living horses.
The funerary domain is known exclusively through ar­

50
 MY T H S AND C UL T S OF THE A N C I E N T V E NE TI

chaeology, which provides very abundant and diverse data.

The principal rite is that of burial in stone tumuli (called
"specchie") in pits or stone containers, and only later in
room-shaped tombs that imitated houses, with rich funerary
furnishings which attest to the traditional belief in the
survival of the dead as long as their sepulcher lasts. The
beautiful anthropomorphic stelae of Daunia, decorated with
geometric designs, with customary or ritual scenes, and with
representations of mythical episodes and monstrous ani­
mals, are connected with forms diffused in European prehis­
tory and protohistory. Another remarkable expression of
conservatism is the custom of burying the dead in inhabited
zones— a custom which, even in the historical period, con­
trasts with the advanced character of the great urban centers
girded with imposing defensive walls.
M.P./j.l.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

M. mayer, Apulien vor und während der Hellenisierung (Leipzig and

Berlin 1914). i. whatmough , The Foundations of Roman Italy (London
1937). j. BERARD, La colonisation grecque de l'Italie méridionale et de la Sicile
dans l'Antiquité (2d ed., Paris 1957), 368ff., 426ff. O. parlanceli, Studi
messapici (Milan 1960). G. giannelli. Culti e miti della Magna Grecia (2d
ed., Florence 1963).

M yths and C ults of the A ncient V eneti, an

I ndo -E uropean P eople of N orthern I taly

Among the peoples and cultures of ancient Italy, the Veneti

constituted a unit well defined by the territory they occupied
(between the Alps and the Adriatic, a territory that still bears
their name); by the Indo-European language they spoke,
which was quite close to Latin; and by their particular
culture, which developed coherently from the end of the
Bronze Age to the dawn of the Roman conquest (i.e., from
the tenth to the third or second centuries b .c .), all the while
preserving a basic protohistorical stamp. Consequently, the
Paleo-Venetian world on the one hand had close natural ties
to the central European domains of Hallstatt and Slovenia, as
is understandable, and on the other hand remained open to
all of the cultural influences of neighboring northern Etruria,
particularly the Etrurian alphabet. But there were few influ­
ences from Greek culture. Venetian organization still contin­ Deity of the Veneti. Bronze plaque. Este, Museo nazionale atestino.
ued to be tied to pre-urban and proto-urban structures. The Photo Soprintendenza.
major centers, which we know best, were Ateste (modem
Este) and Patavium (modern Padua), which along with
Vicentia (modern Vincenza) and Verona became "real" cities ethnography and mythology in contact with the Italic world.
only considerably later. The port of Adria, near the mouths The Veneti were said to have originated in Asia Minor, which
of the Po and the Adige, was the principal point of contact they left under the leadership of Antenor. Their legends
with Etruscans and Greeks. To the north, Venetian culture account for the presence and cult of Diomedes, the preemi­
reached into the Alpine valleys, where it exerted its influence nent Adriatic hero and the founder of Adria; they are full of
on the territories inhabited by the Rhaetians, who spoke elements revealing knowledge of local facts, such as the fame
another language. To the east, it encountered the local of the Veneti for horse breeding. At the mouth of the Timavo
cultures of the Carni and the Istrians, with whom the Veneti River, white horses were sacrificed to Diomedes, who was
mixed freely. Celtic expansion into the Alps and northern supposedly responsible for the origin of the shrines of Argive
Italy did not reach the center of the Venetian cultural Hera and Aetolian Artemis; both of the shrines consisted of
domain, but merely touched its margins. wooded enclosures that shut in wild animals. Livy (10.2)
The Veneti, like other ancient peoples of Italy, had their reports that the main temple in Padua in the fourth century
place in the legendary cycles of origins elaborated by Greek was consecrated to Juno. All signs suggest that this was a

51
ROM E

c la s s ic a l p h e n o m e n o n o f th e tr a n s p o s itio n o r in te r p r e ta tio n in A b a n o , c o n n e c t e d w i t h t h e g o d A p o n u s . A s t h e r e a r e n o
o f a n a tiv e g o d d e s s , p r o b a b ly th e m o s t im p o r ta n t d e ity o f th e e x t a n t l it e r a r y s o u r c e s , w e c a n s a y little a b o u t th e re lig io n
V e n e ti: s h e p r o t e c te d f e r t i li ty , t a m e d p a ss io n s, a n d h e a le d w ith r e s p e c t to th e d e a d o r id e a s o f th e a fte rlife . T h e f u n e r a r y
m e n . H e r n a m e , R e i t i a , is k n o w n p r i n c i p a l l y t h r o u g h d e d i ­ cu s to m s fit in to th e g e n e ra l fram ew o rk of p ro to h is to ric
c a to r y in s c r ip tio n s o n a s h r in e in E s te and is, m o reo v er, tr a d itio n s , w ith m o r e o r le s s e la b o r a te f u n e r a r y tr a p p in g s ,
fo llo w e d b y d iffe re n t e p ith e ts th a t a r e s e p a r a te ly a t te s te d , b u t g e n e r a lly w ith a c lo s e a d h e r e n c e to th e rite o f c r e m a tio n .
s u c h a s S a in a ti. N o te th e a n a lo g y b e tw e e n h e r n a m e a n d th a t M .P ./g .h .
o f t h e R h a e t i a n p e o p l e . In o t h e r p l a c e s ( i n t h e C a d o r e ) a n d in
a d iffe re n t w a y , th e g o d d e s s a ls o a p p e a r e d a s L o u d e ra (i.e .,
L ib e r a ). T h e re w as yet a n o th e r d e ity w ith th re e fo rr s,
m a s c u l in e (id e n tif ie d w ith A p o llo ) o r f e m in in e . BIBLIOGRAPHY
T h e c u l t t o o k p l a c e in o u t d o o r s h r i n e s a d o r n e d w i t h v o t i v e
g ifts (s t a tu e t t e s , b r o n z e p la te s th a t a r e illu s tra te d o r th a t b e a r I. wHATMOUGH, The Foundations of Roman Italy (London 1937). f . von
in s c r ip tio n s a n d a lp h a b e tic a l s ig n s , v a s e s , o b je c ts fo r w o m ­ duhn and F. Messerschmidt , Italische Gräberkunde, 2 (Heidelberg 1939).
e n ' s u s e , e t c . ) , in w h i c h l i b a t i o n s a n d h o l o c a u s t s w e r e c a r r i e d g . B. Pellegrini and a . L. PROSDOCiMi, La lingua venetica (Padua 1967).

o u t. M o s t o f th e e v id e n c e is a r c h a e o l o g i c a l . W e know of M. LEiEUNE, Manuel de la langue vénète (Heidelberg 1974). g . fogolari,

v a r i o u s p l a c e s o f w o r s h i p i n E s t e , o t h e r s in P a d u a , V i n c e n z a ,
"La protostoria delle Venezie," in Popoli e civiltà dell' Italia antica
(Rome 1975), 4:61-222, with a detailed bibliography on the religion
L a g o l e d i C a l a l z o , in t h e R h a e t i a n t e r r i t o r y i n M a g r é , a n d in
of the Veneti, pp. 219ff.
S a n z e n o in t h e V a lle d i N o n . T h e r e w a s a c u l t o f s u l f u r w a t e r

L u ca n i, U rs e n tin i, e t c ., and w hy th e ir nam es evoke th e

Ve r S a c r u m T h e I ta lic R ite
: o f th e n a m e s o f a n i m a l s . A s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e s e s t o r i e s is o n e t h a t
" S ac r ed S p r in g tim e " f o c u s e s o n e v e n t s o f a l a t e r p e r i o d in h i s t o r y b u t t h a t a l s o
p r e s e n t s l e g e n d a r y f e a t u r e s a n d is b u i l t o n t h e s a m e f o u n ­
d a t io n a s th e e a r l ie r s to r ie s . In th is s to r y , a " p r i n c e p s " o f th e
T h e L a tin e x p r e s s io n ver sacrum (s a c re d s p r in g tim e ) w a s u s e d S a m n ite s n a m e d S t h e n n i u s M e t t i u s is s a i d to h a v e c o n s e ­
b y R o m a n a u t h o r s in a p r e c i s e t e c h n i c a l s e n s e t o d e s i g n a t e c r a te d to A p o llo th e ver sacrum o f a ll t h o s e w h o w o u l d b e
an I t a li c r ite th a t w as a tte s te d sev eral tim e s by so u rce s bom in t h e f o llo w in g y e a r , in a n a t t e m p t to a v e r t a p la g u e .
d e a lin g w ith th e o r ig in s a n d h isto ry o f p e o p le s c la s sifie d B u t th e p la g u e rag ed a g a in tw e n ty y e a r s la te r; th e o r a c le
t o d a y in th e S a b e llia n -U m b r ia n lin g u is tic b r a n c h . A s f a r b a c k m a d e it c l e a r t h a t n o h u m a n s a c r i f i c e h a d t a k e n p l a c e a n d
a s th e tim e o f th e v e r y first s e ttle m e n ts b y p e o p le k n o w n a s t h e r e f o r e im p o s e d e m i g r a t i o n o n a ll th e y o u n g m e n b o m th a t
t h e A b o r i g i n e s ( i . e . , t h e S a b i n e s ) i n c e n t r a l I t a l y in t h e R ie t i y e a r . T h e e x p a t r i a t e s c l u s t e r e d in S i la ( in m o d e r n C a l a b r i a ) ,
b a sin and th e tim e o f th e ir s o u th w a r d e x p a n s io n to w a rd w h ic h t h e y s u b s e q u e n t l y le ft t o c o m e to t h e a id o f M e s s in a .
L a tiu m , th e re w as a cu sto m o f c o n s e c r a tin g to a g o d th e T h e r e t h e y w e r e w e l c o m e d a n d f i n a ll y s e t t l e d . T h e y r e c e i v e d
e n t i r e g e n e r a t i o n b o m in a g i v e n y e a r a f t e r w a r s , f a m i n e s , o r th e ir n a m e , Mamertini, fro m th e g o d M a m e rs (M a rs ) ( F e s tu s ,
e v e n o v e r p o p u la tio n . Y o u n g m e n o ld e n o u g h to b e a r a r m s p . 1 5 0 L .) a c c o r d in g to th e h is to ria n A lfiu s w h o h a d w ritte n
w e r e c o m p e lle d to le a v e th e ir c o u n tr y a n d f o u n d " c o l o n i e s " an a c c o u n t o f th e P u n ic w a r s . T h is is s u r e ly a n i d e a liz e d
in n e w l a n d s ( D i o n y s i u s o f H a l i c a r n a s s u s 1 . 1 6 ; V a r r o , q u o t e d v e r s i o n o f th e s e tt le m e n t in S icily o f C a m p a n ia n m e r c e n a r ie s
b y P lin y th e E ld e r , Naturalis Historia 3 . 1 0 9 ) . T h e S a b in e s , w h o w ho fo u n d ed th e M a m e rtin e s ta te in th e t h ird c e n tu ry .
had re a ch e d th e s ite of R om e, w ere a c c o rd in g ly c a lle d S i g n ific a n tly , u n d e r G r e e k in f lu e n c e A p o llo to o k th e p l a c e o f
S acran i "b e c a u s e th e y w e re b o rn of a sa cre d s p rin g tim e " M a rs a s th e g o d w ho re c e iv e d th e v o w s . M a rs, h o w e v e r,
(F e s tu s , pp. 4 2 4 -2 5 L .; S e rv iu s Aen. 7 .7 9 6 ) . Y et a n o th e r r e m a in e d th e e p o n y m o u s g o d a n d g u a rd ia n o f th e M a m e r-
event is c o n n e c te d w ith th e le g e n d a ry d ia sp o ra of th e t i n e s , a n d h i s i m a g e a p p e a r e d o n a ll t h e i r c o i n s . A t t h i s t i m e ,
S a b i n e s , o n e t h a t s h o w e d a ll t h e e s s e n t i a l f e a t u r e s o f t h e ver a s a r e s u lt o f th e d iffu s io n o f th e m a rtia l tr a d itio n s o f th e
sacrum: d u rin g a lo n g w a r a g a in s t th e U m b ria n s , a v o w w a s S a b e llia n s , th e id e a o f th e ver sacrum a s th e u ltim a te re m e d y
m ade t o s a c r i f i c e a ll t h e l iv in g c r e a t u r e s b o r n d u rin g o n e fo r p u b lic c a la m itie s m u s t h a v e b e c o m e g e n e r a liz e d . E v e n
year. O n ce v ic to ry w as w on, th e vow w as f u l f il l e d in a R o m e , t h r e a t e n e d b y H a n n i b a l , r e s o r t e d t o t h e r i t e in 2 1 7 b.c .
d iffe re n t w a y : th e c h ild re n of m en w e re e x e m p t. W hen a a f te r th e b a ttle o f L a k e T r a s im e n e : a v o w w a s m a d e to J u p ite r
f a m i n e s t r u c k , it w a s t h o u g h t n e c e s s a r y t o i n c l u d e h u m a n s , th a t in v o lv e d o n ly a n im a ls . But w hen it c a m e to a c tu a lly
t o o , in th e v o w . T h e y w e re co n se cra te d to M a rs, a n d on c a r r y i n g o u t t h e v o w i n t h e y e a r s 1 9 5 a n d 1 9 4 b. c ., b e c a u s e o f
r e a c h in g a d u lt h o o d w e r e s e n t o f f, g u i d e d b y a b u ll, to fo u n d v a r io u s q u ib b le s a n d r e s tr ic tio n s th e y s a c rific e d o n ly s o m e o f
a c o lo n y . W h e n th e y a rriv e d in th e O s c a n c o u n try (C a m ­ th e a n im a ls (L iv y 2 2 .9 , 2 3 .4 4 , 2 4 .4 4 ) . W e c a n fu r th e r s p e c u la te
p a n i a ) , t h e b u ll s u d d e n l y c u r l e d u p o n t h e g r o u n d a s if h e l o g ic a ll y t h a t t h e t r a d i t i o n m u s t h a v e s t a y e d a l i v e p a r t i c u l a r l y
had fo u n d h is p la c e . T h e n e w c o m e r s s to p p e d , c h a s e d th e a m o n g th e S a b e llia n s, a s a t te s te d b y t h e ver sacrum v o w e d b y th e
l o c a l i n h a b i t a n t s a w a y , s e t t l e d , a n d s a c r i f i c e d t h e b u ll t o t h e It a li c i n s u r g e n t s a t t h e t i m e o f t h e S o c i a l W a r , w h i c h b r o k e o u t
god M ars. Thus w ere bom th e S a m n ite p e o p le (S tra b o e a r l y in t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b.c . ( S i s e n n a f r a g . 9 9 , 1 0 2 P ) .
5 .4 .1 2 ) . S im ila rly , th e S a b in e s , g u id e d by a green w ood­ In th e h i s t o r y o f th is s tr a n g e m a n if e s ta tio n o f Ita lic re lig i­
p eck er (picus), w h o w a s a lso c o n s e c ra te d to M a rs , e m ig ra te d o s ity , w e h a v e to d is tin g u is h th re e a s p e c ts o r " m o m e n t s " :
to P ic e n u m w h e r e th e y fo u n d e d th e P ice n i ( F e s tu s , p . 2 3 5 L .; fir s t, t h e p o s s ib le e x i s t e n c e o f a p r im itiv e r itu a l in s t it u ti o n ;
P lin y th e E ld e r , HN 3 .1 1 0 ) . s e c o n d , its fo r m a l e s ta b l is h m e n t a n d its le g e n d a r y d e f in itio n
T h e re are p ro b a b ly m any o th e r s to rie s of a m y th ic a l as an e tio lo g ic a l s a g a o f o r ig in s ; a n d th ir d , i ts p e re n n ia l
c h a r a c t e r s im ila r to t h e s e , s to r ie s th a t d e a l w ith th e o r ig in s o f n a t u r e o r its r e c u r r e n c e in th e c o u r s e o f h is to r ic a l tim e . O n
v a r i o u s I t a li c p e o p l e a n d e x p l a i n t h e m i g r a t i o n o f t h e H i r p i n i , t h e f i r s t p o i n t , it i s d i f f i c u l t t o s a y a n y t h i n g b e y o n d f o r m i n g

52
 THE I T AL I C
Poussin, Spring. Paris, Musée du Louvre. Photo Giraudon.
hypotheses. The basic themes of the legend, i.e., the migra­
tion of armed men, the proliferation of ethnic groups, the
expiatory and purificatory character of the vow, the conse­
cration only of living creatures, resulting in blood sacrifices
(with exile substituting for slaughter in the case of humans),
and the presence and the ambiguously divine meaning of an
animal guide who also played an eponymous role for the
new group— all of these themes together seem to correspond
to the living conditions and mentality of a primitive society of
herdsmen characterized by great mobility and aggressive­
ness and by theriomorphic conceptions of the divine that
recalled totemism. This type of society has numerous ele­
ments that can be compared with those of other cultures.
There are, moreover, definite signs of a spread of the pastoral
economy to the more interior populations of the Italian
peninsula during the Bronze Age. Conceivably the move­
ments of the populations of the high Apennine valleys
brought with them a wide range of beliefs and specific rites
based partly on the idea of a necessity or a sacred vocation
for migration, and in part on the attraction of more abundant
grazing lands for the animals. For the continued growth of these
populations forced them to look for new resources in order to
survive, and during their greatest expansion, the Sabellian-
Umbrian people occupied increasingly larger and richer areas.
But it is evident that the traditions tended to crystallize
into myths in the course of the Italic diaspora, probably in
cultural environments that had come under Greek influence.
(In Campania the Samnites came into contact with the
Greeks by the fifth century b .c .) The structure of the myth
has characteristic and constant features, with three basic
RITE OF THE " S A C R E D S P R I N G T I M E '
elements: (1) the consecration to the deity (notably to Mars,
the god of the Sabellians) of all that was produced in a given
year (in spring, during the month of Mars— March), because
of a vow of purification or expiation after a scourge such as a
war or a plague; (2) a migration for colonization, by young
men old enough to bear arms; (3) the role of an animal guide
(usually consecrated to Mars). Once established, the pattern
was imposed retrospectively on legendary tales about ori­
gins, which were nourished by many additional facts re­
membered about real events. At the same time, the myth
became the religious norm for rites performed later, in
historically documented times. We may conclude that this is
one of the most important examples of a dialectic relation­
ship uniting ritual and myth.
The violent political and military events that shook Italy
during the fourth and third centuries b .c . (the enormous
spread of the conquering Sabellians as far as Apulia and
Sicily; the invasions of the Gauls in the north; the enterprises
of Greek chiefs from Alexander of Epirus to Pyrrhus; and the
progressive assertion of the hegemony of Rome and the
struggles against Carthage, which culminated dramatically
with Hannibal's Italian expedition) undoubtedly provided
many occasions to resort to this extreme and venerable
remedy, the Italic rite of the ver sacrum. The evidence, as we
have noted, lies in the semilegendary episode of the Mamer­
tini and in the attenuated, peculiar version of the same rite
that the Romans adopted after the shock of Hannibal's bold
advances. But the substitution of Apollo (in the first instance)
and Jupiter (in the second) for Mars, and the partial nature of
the sacrifice in the ver sacrum celebrated in Rome, amply
53
ROME
Mars from Todi. Museo etrusco gregoriano. Rome, Vatican Museum.
Museum photo.
dem onstrates that the requirem ents of a particular time could
impose a significant deviation from the model of the myth.
Evidently, since times and circum stances had changed, it had
becom e som ething of an anachronism to express in concrete
terms a rite so ancient and so shrouded in legend— assum ing
that it had ever actually existed.
M .P./g.h.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
w. Eisenhut, Ver sacrum, in Pauly/Wissowa, Real-Encyclopädie, vol. 15 A
(1955), col. 917. |. HEURGON, Trois études sur le "ver sacrum" (Brussels
1957).
54
T he L atins and the O rigins of
R oman R eligion
The Latins ( Latini) were the inhabitants of a territory which
once stretched to the south of the low er course of the Tiber
up to the Pontine plain (Pomptinus ager: Livy 6.5 .2 ). The
Latium antiquum or vetus was bounded on the northw est by
the Tiber and by the land of the Etruscans; on the northeast
it was contiguous with the Sabine territory. It formed a vast
expanse bordered on the east by the Alban range, from
m ounts Palombara, Tivoli (Tibur), Palestrina (Praeneste), and
Cori (Cora), to Terracina (Anxur) and Circeo (Circeii); and
was bordered on the w est by the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea.
At the heart of this region are the hills that served as habitats,
such as Alba Longa, which tradition places in the middle of
the populi Latini, or M onte C avo (Mons Albanus), which was
the seat of a federal cult of Jupiter Latiaris.
To this Latium vetus, which took form in protohistory by
the beginning of the first millennium b .c . (during the transi­
tion betw een the Bronze Age and the Iron A ge), was later
added a Latium Adjectum or novum m ade up of the territory
conquered by the Romans in the historic period (starting in
the sixth century b .c .), which included the Volscian, Aequi,
Hernican, and Auruncan territories (see Pliny the Elder,
Naturalis Historia 3 .6 8 - 70).
These Latins, w hom the tradition refers to as the populi
Latini ("L atin n ation") or by the collective nam e of nomen
Latinum, settled on the hills in autonom ous groups m ore or
less tied to one another, vicatim ("b y villages"). These terri­
torial associations were basically founded on religious
grounds, creating a feeling of com m unity that was m ani­
fested later (in the historical epoch) by the existence of
federations. These united the majority of the Latins around
com m on cults, for instance, around the shrine of Juppiter
Latiaris on Mons Albanus, or around the shrine of Diana
Aricia in the Nemus Dianae ("th e sacred grove of D iana").
O ther federal cults played an im portant role in history. M ost
notable is the recently excavated city of Lavinium. Its necrop­
olis dates back to the tenth century b.c ., with rem ains of
sixth-century ram parts, a federal cult which in historic times
is attested by the discovery of thirteen archaic altars and of a
heroon in m em ory of A eneas, located near a tomb from the
seventh century b.c .1
According to the latest archaeological discoveries, the
oldest inhabitants of Latium devoted them selves principally
to raising livestock and additionally to exploiting natural
resources (salt, fruit, and gam e). The m ore the woodlands
were cleared and the m arshlands dried up, the m ore the
Latins took to farming and to the making of pottery and iron
tools.
Did these Latins, w hose language belonged to the Indo-
European family, drive back or subdue "autochthonous"
populations? Recently it was com m on to contrast the Indo-
European invaders, w ho practiced the ritual of crem ation, to
the natives, w ho w ere accustom ed to the ritual of
inhum ation.2 This schem a is not consistent with the facts.
C ontrary to the hypotheses of the previous theory, archae­
ology has at least show n that the ritual of crem ation (at the
end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age)
has alm ost always preceded the ritual of inhumation (in the
late Iron Age: eighth through seventh centuries), though
these practices did not necessarily take on any ethnic
significance.3
The advances m ade by the com m unity of the Latins can be
 G R E C O - I T A L I C T R A D I T I O N S AND L E G E N D S

v e r ifie d b y th e g r o w in g w e a lt h a n d n u m b e r o f t h e ir c e n t e r s ,
w h ic h m u ltip lie d t h r o u g h o u t th e e i g h t h a n d s e v e n t h c e n t u ­
rie s: S a tr ic u m , A n tiu m (A n z io ) , A r d e a , L a v in iu m (P r a tic a d i
M a r e ), P o lito riu m (p o s s ib ly D e c im a ), F ic a n a , P r a e n e s t e (P a l­
e s t r i n a ) , a n d o f c o u r s e R o m e . T h e f i r s t d o c u m e n t in t h e L a t i n
l a n g u a g e i s t h e i n s c r i p t i o n o n t h e g o l d e n f i b u la o f P r a e n e s t e
SUMMARY BIBLIOGRAPHY
a. Ai.FOi.Di, Early Rome and the Ijitins (Ann Arbor 1964). |. i i i i k <,<>\,
Rome et la Méditerranée (Paris 1969). Pofioli e Civillà dell' Italia antica,
Biblioteca di Storia patria (3 vols., 1974), in particular, in vol. 2,
co lo n n a , Preistoria e prolosloria di Roma e del l/tzio, pp. 273-346.

manias mcd fhefhaked numasioi ( in

(e n d o f th e s e v e n th c e n tu r y ):
Civiltà del Lazio primitivo (Rome 1976) for the state of the problems
c la s s ic a l L a tin : Manius me fecit Numerio, " M a r i u s m a d e m e ( o r and the most recent archaeological discoveries.
" h a d m e m a d e " ) fo r N u m e r iu s " ) .4
T ra d itio n c o m m o n ly a s crib e s an in c re a s in g ly d o m in a n t
ro le to R o m e . S ta rtin g w ith th e "re ig n s " o f R o m u lu s a n d
N u m a , th e R o m a n c o m m u n i ty e x t e n d e d its in flu e n c e f a r th e r
w ith th e v i c to r y o v e r A lb a ( u n d e r T u llu s H o s tiliu s ) a n d th e
c o n q u e s t o f th e c o a s ta l r e g io n s a s fa r a s O s tia a t th e m o u th o f
th e T ib e r. T h is c o n q u e s t b r o u g h t a b o u t th e e lim in a tio n o f th e G reco-I talic T raditions and L egends , from
c e n t e r s o f P o lito r iu m , T e lle n a e , a n d F ic a n a . the B ronze A ge to V irgil*
I.
R e c e n t d ig s a t C a s te l d i D e cim a (w h ich co rre sp o n d s to
P o lito r iu m ) h a v e c o n f i r m e d th e t r a d itio n o f th is c o m m u n i ty .
T h e n e c r o p o lis th a t w a s d is c o v e re d in c lu d e s to m b s d a tin g T h e i n it ia l d e e p p e n e t r a t i o n a n d d i f f u s i o n o f G r e e k c u l t s a n d
fro m th e e ig h th c e n tu r y to th e c lo s e o f th e s e v e n th c e n tu r y m y th s in Ita ly and th e c o n ta c ts th a t b o u n d th e m to lo c a l
B.c., a te r m in u s c o r r e s p o n d i n g to th e d e s t r u c ti o n o f P o lito ­ t r a d i t i o n s in a t a n g l e o f r e l i g i o u s c o n c e p t i o n s a n d l e g e n d a r y
riu m b y A n c u s M a rc iu s , a c c o r d in g to L iv y 1 .3 3 .3 .5 c o n s tr u c tio n s th a t w e c a n d e fin e b y th e e x p r e s s io n "G reco -
R o m e , w h ic h b e c a m e th e r u l e r o f L a t iu m , its e lf s u b m i t te d I t a l i c " — a ll o f t h i s c o n s t i t u t e s a p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t e r e s t i n g a s p e c t
t o t h e d o m i n a t i o n o f t h e E t r u s c a n s , a s w a s r e f l e c t e d in t h e o f th e c la s s ic a l w o r ld , o n e th a t m e rits s e p a r a te tre a tm e n t.
tra d itio n of th e la st th re e k in g s, T a rq u in iu s th e E ld e r, T h e G r e e k c o l o n i z a ti o n o f s o u t h e r n Ita ly a n d S ic ily b e g i n n in g
S e r v i u s T u lliu s , a n d T a rq u in iu s S u p e r b u s , a ll a l l e g e d l y of in t h e e i g h t h c e n t u r y b.c . c e r t a i n l y p l a y e d a d o m i n a n t p a r t in
E t r u s c a n o r i g i n . A f t e r t h e e x p u l s i o n o f t h e E t r u s c a n s in 5 0 9 t h i s p r o c e s s . B u t w e c a n s u p p o s e t h a t t h e p r o c e s s b e g a n in
b.c . , R om an d o m in a n c e w as c o n s o lid a te d f o llo w in g th e th e B r o n z e A g e u n d e r th e in f lu e n c e o f M y c e n a e a n c iv iliz a ­
b a t t l e o f L a k e R e g i l l u s in 4 9 6 o r 4 9 9 . T h e b a t t l e e n d e d w i t h tio n . On th e o th e r hand, th e phenom enon sp read w e ll
th e d e f e a t o f th e L a tin s b y th e R o m a n s a n d th e s ig n in g o f a n beyond th e d o m a in o f G r e e k c o l o n i e s , i n c l u d i n g a ll o f t h e
a l lia n c e o f " e t e r n a l p e a c e " b e t w e e n th e t w o p a r t n e r s in 4 9 3 , p e n in s u la a n d p a r t o f n o r t h e r n I ta ly ( b e s i d e s th e i s l a n d s ) —
th e foedus Cassianum.h T h e fo u n d in g o f th e fe d e ra l T e m p le o f w h ere p o p u la tio n s liv e d w h o , w ith o u t b e in g G re e k , w e re
D i a n a o n t h e A v e n t i n e a l s o t o o k p l a c e in t h i s c o n t e x t . O n e bound in som e m a n n e r, m o re or le s s d ire c tly , to G reek
la st u p ris in g b y th e L a tin s w h o to o k u p a r m s a g a in s t R o m e c u ltu re .
d u r in g th e F irst W a r o f th e S a m n ite s ( 3 4 3 - 3 4 1 b. c .) b r o u g h t
a b o u t th e fin a l d e f e a t o f th e L a tin s . T h e L a tin leag u e w as
I. G r e e k E v id e n c e o f th e L a n d s o f th e W e st
d iss o lv e d in 338 b. c . a n d in c o rp o ra te d in to th e R om an
c o m m u n ity . It is n a t u r a l t h a t n a v i g a t o r s o f A e g e a n o r i g i n b r o u g h t b a c k
R .S ./g .h . fro m th e ocean s of th e W est a n d fro m m y ste rio u s la n d s
e n c o u n te re d d u r in g th e ir v o y a g e s a r o u n d th e m m a rv e lo u s
i m p r e s s io n s , w h ic h w e r e s p r e a d l i t t l e b y l i t t l e in t h e n a r r a ­
tiv e s th a t w e re g a th e re d and p o e tic a lly e la b o ra te d in th e
Odyssey. O n e c a n c ite th e e p i s o d e s o f th e C y c lo p s , o f A e o lu s ,
o f th e L a e s tr y g o n ia n s , o f C ir c e , o f th e L a n d o f th e D e a d , o f
NOTES
th e S ir e n s , o f S cy lla a n d C h a r y b d is , a n d o f th e isla n d o f th e
1. Cf. Castagnoli, Lavinium 1: Topografia generale, fonti e storia dette T r i d e n t ( a s V . B é r a r d t r a n s l a t e s it) w i t h t h e C a t t l e o f t h e S u n .
ncerche (Rome 1972); Lavinium 2: Le tredici are (Rome 1975); with T h e e n t i r e s u b s e q u e n t c l a s s i c a l t r a d i t i o n s e t t h e s e e p i s o d e s in
collaborators. P. Sommella, "La necropoli protostorica rinvenuta a th e fram ew o rk of I ta ly and th e n e ig h b o rin g is la n d s an d ,
Pratica di Mare," Rendic. Pontif. Accad. Rom. Archeol. 46 (1973-74): m o r e s p e c ific a lly , c e r ta in p la c e s th a t r e m a in e d f a m o u s u n d e r
34-48; "Heroon di Enea a Lavinium, Recenti scavi a Pratica di t h e s e n a m e s d u r i n g a ll o f a n t i q u i t y , l ik e t h e A e o l i a n I s l a n d s ,
Mare," ibid. 44 (1971-72): 47-74. M o u n t C ir c e , th e L a k e o f A v e r n u s , a n d C u m a e — w h ic h w a s
2. Such are the conclusions of the work of A. Piganiol, Essai sur les
th e s ite fo r c a llin g u p th e n e t h e r w o r ld — th e s a n c t u a r y o f th e
origines de Rome (Paris 1916).
S ire n s at th e tip of th e p e n in s u la of S o rre n to , and th e
3. See, finally, M. Pallottino, in Civillà del Lazio primitivo (Rome
1976), p. 45. It is thus that at Lavinium the oldest incineration tombs m e n a c i n g S c y l l a a n d C h a r y b d i s in t h e S t r a i t s o f M e s s i n a . T h e
(10th century) predate the inhumation tombs: cf. P. Sommella, ibid., H o m e ric n a r r a tiv e o f th e a d v e n tu r e s o f O d y s s e u s s h o u ld b e
pp. 292-93. c o n s id e re d th e p o in t o f d e p a rtu r e and th e a lm o s t u n iq u e
4. On this document, cf. G. Colonna, ibid., pp. 372-73, and s o u r c e o f a ll t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s , i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s , e r u d i t e s p e c ­
A. E. Gordon, The Inscribed Fibula Praesnestina: Problems of Authenticity u la tio n s , and le g e n d a ry c o n s tru c tio n s of a n tiq u ity about
(Berkeley 1975). Most recently M. Guarducci, Mentone della Accadentia th e s e p la c e s , w ith th e c h a r a c t e r s , e v e n t s , a n d c u lts th a t a r e
Nazionale dei Lincei, ser. 8, vol. 24, fasc. 4 (Rome 1980), 415-574, pi. c o n n e cte d w ith th e m . N e v e rth e le s s , w ith o u t ta k in g in to
I—XI, has reopened the discussion with an essay La cosidetta Fibula
a c c o u n t th e tra d itio n s s u g g e s te d by th e a n c ie n ts , m o d ern
Prenestina, attempting to demonstrate that it is a forgery. Perhaps we
c ritic is m s o u g h t a g e o g r a p h i c a n d h is to r ic v e r ific a tio n o f th e
should conclude with a paraphrase of a verse by Virgil (Aeneid, 7,
412): Et nunc magnum manet Fibula nomen / sed fortuna fuit ("Of this p a rtic u la rs o f th e Odyssey; y e t it a r r i v e d a t c o n c l u s i o n s w h i c h ,
Fibula, only a great name remains, but his good fortune is gone"). h y p o th e tic a l a s s o m e o f th e m m ig h t s e e m b e c a u s e o f th e v e r y
5. Cf. F. Zevi, ibid., pp. 252-56. excess of th e ir d e ta ils — a s is th e case fo r th e g ra n d io se
6. Cf. Livy (2, 33, 34) and Dionysius of Halicarnassus (6, 95). r e c o n s tr u c tio n o f V icto r B é ra r d — c o n firm on th e w h o le th e

55
ROM E

v e r a c ity o f th e e p ic te s tim o n y c o n c e r n in g th e k n o w le d g e th a t n e w h e r o e s b y g e n e a lo g ic a l b o n d s . T h u s , in th e Theogony of

th e G r e e k s o f th e M y c e n a e a n A g e h a d o f th e Ita lic w o r l d . H e sio d ( 5 .1 0 1 4 ), L a tin u s , th e e p o n y m o f th e L a tin s , w h o
In d e p e n d e n t of th e H o m e ric n a r r a tiv e s , h o w ev er, th e a p p e a r s in a d i f f e r e n t l i g h t i n t h e s a g a o f A e n e a s , i s m e n ­
G re e k le g e n d a ry in h e r ita n c e g iv e s u s o th e r e v id e n c e o f th e tio n e d w ith h is b r o th e r A g riu s a s a s o n o f O d y s s e u s a n d
m o s t a n c ie n t c o n ta c ts b e tw e e n th e p ro to -H e lle n ic w o rld a n d C ir c e a n d k in g o f th e T y r rh e n ia n s . A n d o f O d y s s e u s a n d
I t a ly , e v e n t h o u g h t h i s e v i d e n c e i s p r o f o u n d l y t r a n s f o r m e d C ir c e , A u s o n is b o m , th e e p o n y m o f t h e A u s o n e s ; h e in t u r n
b y m y th . W e a r e th in k in g o f th e i n s is te n c e w ith w h ic h th e is t h e f a t h e r o f L i p a r u s , t h e e p o n y m a n d k i n g o f L i p a r a i n t h e
e n te rp ris e s o f th e A rg o n a u ts , th e w a n d e r in g s o f H e ra c le s , A e o lia n Is la n d s . L ip a ru s w as su cceed ed by A e o lu s , w ho
th e c o lo n iz a tio n s o f th e A r c a d ia n s , a n d th e m ig r a tio n s o f th e cam e fro m th e p e n in s u la and m a rrie d L i p a r u s 's d a u g h t e r
P e la sg i w e r e c o n n e c te d w ith o r e x t e n d e d t o I t a ly . B u t t h e (D io d o ru s S icu lu s 5 .7 - 8 ) . T h e e p o n y m s o f d iffe re n t p e o p le s
d o c u m e n ts w h ic h s e e m to u s to b e th e m o s t s ig n ific a n t fo r o f s o u t h e r n Ita ly , s u c h a s S ic ilu s , I t a lu s , M o r g e s , O e n o t r u s ,
th e ir m o r e d e ta ile d g e o g r a p h i c a n d c h r o n o lo g ic a l c h a r a c t e r — P e u c e tiu s , a n d Ia p y x , s e e m to b e in te rre la te d a n d re la te d to
fo r th e ir s u p e rio r h isto rica l im p o rta n ce — a re , on th e one th e A r c a d ia n s a n d th e P e la sg i (D io n y s iu s o f H a lic a r n a s s u s
h a n d , n a r r a tiv e s a b o u t th e p r e s e n c e o f C r e t a n s , n o ta b ly o f 1 . 1 1 - 1 3 ) ; b u t it is a l s o s a i d o f I a p y x t h a t h e w a s C r e t a n a n d
K i n g M i n o s a n d o f t h e a r t i s t D a e d a l u s , i n A p u l i a a n d S i c i ly th e s o n o f D a e d a lu s . P a rtic u la rly c o m p lic a te d a r e th e p r o b ­
( t h a t i s , in t h e r e g i o n s w h e r e r e l a t i o n s w i t h t h e M y c e n a e a n s le m s in v o lv in g th e n a m e a n d o r ig in s o f th e A c h a e a n c ity -
w e re th e m o s t fre q u e n t; b u t th e re a r e e c h o e s o f th e a c tiv ity o f s ta te o f M e ta p o n tu m on th e Io n ia n S e a . It w a s s a id th a t
D a e d a l u s in b o t h C a m p a n i a a n d S a r d i n i a ) ; a n d , o n t h e o t h e r M e ta p o n tu m w a s c r e a te d b y th e h e r o n a m e d M e ta b u s (w h o
h a n d , th e c y c le o f le g e n d s a b o u t th e “ I ta lia n " a d v e n t u r e s o f w a s a l s o t h o u g h t to b e k in g o f th e V o ls c i, a c c o r d in g t o th e
th e h e ro e s o f th e T ro ja n c y c le . T h e s e la tte r a r e A chaean Aeneid, 1 1 .5 3 2 f f .) or by M e ta p o n tu s, a c c o r d in g to th e
h e ro e s re tu rn e d fro m th e T ro ja n W a r (th e ir r e tu rn jo u rn e y s , T h e s sa lo -B o e o tia n le g e n d s about A rn e , M e la n ip p u s , an d
th e nostoi, w e re s u n g b y d iffe re n t G re e k p o e ts , a m o n g w h o m A e o lu s ; o r b y N e s to r, a c c o r d in g to th e P y lia n s (D io d o ru s o f
w a s S t e s i c h o r u s o f H i m e r a , w h o l i v e d i n S i c i l y in t h e a r c h a i c S icily 4 . 6 7 . 3 - 6 ; S t r a b o , Geog., 6 .1 .1 5 ) . O n e m ig h t a ls o m e n ­
p e r i o d ) : t h e r e a r e r e f e r e n c e s t o D i o m e d e s in A p u l i a , b u t a l s o tio n th e b o n d s th a t c o n n e c t T y r r h e n u s , t h e e p o n y m o f th e
in o t h e r A d r i a t i c r e g i o n s a n d i n L a t i u m ; M e n e s t h e u s a n d h i s T y r r h e n ia n s (th a t is, th e E t r u s c a n s ) , w ith th e L y d ia n d y n a s ty
A t h e n i a n s in t h e z o n e o f t h e S t r a i t s o f M e s s i n a ; E p e u s , t h e (in th e c la s s ic a l n a r r a t iv e o f H e r o d o tu s 1 .9 4 ) , w ith T e le p h u s ,
b u ild e r o f th e T r o ja n H o r s e , a n d P h ilo c te te s , w h o in h e r ite d th e k in g o f M y s ia , a n d w ith th e P e la sg i o f th e is la n d s o f
th e w eapons of H e ra cle s, on th e Io n ia n coast b e tw e e n Lem nos and Im b ro s (D io n y s iu s of H a lic a r n a s s u s 1 .2 9 f f .;
M e ta p o n tu m a n d C r o t o n ; I d o m e n e u s a n d h is C r e t a n s a t th e S tra b o 5 .2 .4 ) .
s a m e p l a c e a s h is p r e d e c e s s o r , M in o s , in A p u lia ; a n d O d y s ­
s e u s , w h o is t h e m o s t i l l u s t r i o u s o f a l l . T h e T r o j a n h e r o e s
II. The Indigenous Traditions and the Elaboration
fle e in g th e ir s a c k e d c ity jo in e d th e A chaean h e ro e s: first
of a Common Patrimony
A eneas, w h o , a fte r e m ig ra tin g to L a tiu m , w as to a c q u ire
e x t r a o r d i n a r y r e n o w n in m y t h a n d p o e t r y a s t h e f o u n d e r o f In t h e e l a b o r a t io n o f th is e n t ir e c o r p u s o f l e g e n d s , i m p o r ­
th e f u tu r e g r e a tn e s s o f R o m e ; th e n A n t e n o r , w h o w ith h is ta n t ro le s m u s t h a v e b e e n p la y e d n o t o n ly b y th e k n o w le d g e
V e n e ti s e tt le d in n o r t h e r n I ta ly ; t h e r e a r e a l s o r e f e r e n c e s to and im a g in a tio n o f th e G r e e k s b u t a ls o b y th e i n d ig e n o u s
th e T ro ja n s w h o s e ttle d o n th e s h o r e s o f th e Io n ia n S e a a t tr a d itio n s a n d e v e n , in a m o r e o r le s s a c tiv e w a y , b y th e
S i r is , a n d in S i c i ly , w h e r e t h e y w e r e r e g a r d e d a s t h e a n c e s ­ cu ltu ra l e n v iro n m e n t of Ita ly , e s p e c ia lly th e s a n c tu a r ie s .
t o r s o f t h e n a t i o n o f t h e E l y m i a n s . It s h o u l d b e n o t e d t h a t a ll B rin g in g w ith th e m th e cu lts of th e m o th e r la n d , G reek
o f th e s e s to r ie s , d e s p ite th e d iv e r s e o r ig in s o f th e ir p r o t a g o ­ n a v i g a t o r s a n d c o l o n i z e r s f o u n d in I ta ly s a c r e d p l a c e s , lo c a l
n is ts , a r e c o n s tr u c te d a c c o r d in g to s e v e r a l r e la tiv e ly u n if o rm b e lie f s , a n d c u s t o m s o f v e r y a n c i e n t o r ig in . It is p r o b a b le th a t
s c h e m a ta (w h ich a r g u e s a g a in s t th e s y s te m o f a n a lo g ie s u se d th e new a rriv a ls trie d to u n d e rs ta n d and illu m in a te th e
in e ru d ite e la b o ra tio n s ), n a m e ly , th e a rriv a l by sea of a i n d i g e n o u s e l e m e n t s in t e r m s o f t h e i r o w n c o n c e p t i o n s , a n d
fo re ig n h e r o w ith h is c o m p a n io n s , th e e n c o u n te r a n d th e th a t a t th e s a m e tim e , in th e c e n t e r s th a t r e m a i n e d fo r e ig n to
b a ttle w ith an in d ig e n o u s k in g w h o s e d a u g h te r th e h ero H e lle n is m , p e o p le w a n te d to e n n o b le th e tra d itio n a l p a tri­
e v e n tu a lly m a rrie s and w h ose k in g d o m he in h e r its , th e m o n y o f r i t e s a n d r e l i c s b y a s s i m i l a t i n g it t o t h e p r e s t i g i o u s
fo u n d in g o f s a n c tu a r ie s a n d o f c ity -s ta te s a c c o r d in g to th e m o d e l s o f G r e e k r e lig io n a n d m y th o lo g y . T h e c u l t s o f H e r a
m o d e l o f th e co lo n ia l G re e k ktisis, th e d e a t h o f t h e h e r o in h is a n d i n p a r t i c u l a r o f A r g i v e H e r a w e r e d i s s e m i n a t e d a l o n g a ll
n ew c o u n tr y , and th e c u lt at h is to m b . These a re th e th e c o a s ts o f I ta ly in t h e c o lo n ia l a n d e x t r a c o lo n ia l z o n e s (a t
w e ll-k n o w n c a s e s o f A e n e a s , D io m e d e s , a n d A n te n o r . M e ta p o n tu m , a t C r o to n , a t th e m o u th o f th e S ila ru s n e a r
B u t h a v in g re a ch e d th is p o i n t , we are c o n fro n te d w ith P o s i d o n ia in L a t iu m , a n d in E t r u r ia a n d V e n e tia ). T h e s p r e a d
re fe re n c e s — p re s e n te d m o r e o r l e s s e x p l i c i t l y in t h e G r e e k o f th e c u lts o f H e ra a n d o f o t h e r fe m a le d iv in itie s , s u c h a s
m y th ic n a r r a tiv e s — to i n d ig e n o u s p la c e s , p o p u la tio n s , a n d L e u c o t h e a , A r t e m i s , a n d e s p e c i a l l y A t h e n a o f I l i u m ( a t S i r is ,
c h a r a c t e r s . L e g e n d t e n d s to a s s u m e a n e tio lo g ic a l c h a r a c t e r , a t L u c e r a in A p u lia , a t L a v in iu m , a n d a t R o m e ), w h o s e o r ig in
th a t is, it ten d s to a cce p t, d e sc rib e , and in te rp re t lo c a l is v e r y a n c i e n t a n d is s o m e t im e s a t tr i b u te d t o th e f o u n d i n g
s it u a ti o n s a n d e v e n t s . T h e l a tt e r a r e , m o r e o v e r , b e t te r a n d a c tio n o f a h e r o , h a rm o n iz e d w ith th e d iffu sio n o f fe m a le
b e tte r u n d e r s to o d , b e g in n in g w ith t h e e i g h t h c e n t u r y b . c ., c u lts , n o ta b ly th a t o f th e m o th e r g o d d e s s , a m o n g th e in d ig ­
th a n k s to c o lo n iz a tio n , c o m m e r c ia l e x c h a n g e s ( o n e th in k s o f e n o u s p o p u l a t i o n s o f I t a ly . T h e g o d d e s s o f t h e " P e l a s g i a n "
th e G re e k s e ttle m e n t r e c e n tly d is c o v e r e d a t G r a v is c a e , th e s a n c t u a r y o f P y r g i in E t r u r ia , w h o m th e G r e e k s re fe rr e d to
p o rt of T a rq u in ii), th e s ta b ility of th e g reat c u r re n ts of u n d e r th e n a m e s o f Ily th ia o r L e u c o t h e a , is t o d a y a t te s te d b y
co m m erce, an d th e p resen ce o f G reek e n tre p re n e u rs a n d E tr u s c a n in s c r ip tio n s u n d e r th e n a m e o f U n i, th a t is, J u n o o r
a r t i s t s in t h e I t a li c c e n t e r s . S t a r t i n g f r o m th e n a m e s o f th e H e r a . T h i s l e n g t h e n s t h e l is t o f m a n i f e s t a t i o n s o f t h i s d i v i n i t y
p e o p le s and c ity -sta te s, c o m p lic a te d n a rra tiv e s a re e la b o ­ o n th e I ta lia n c o a s t.
r a t e d , e p o n y m o u s h e r o e s a r e i n v e n t e d w h o e n t e r in tu r n in to T h e lo n g p r o c e s s o f jo in in g th e lo c a l d iv in itie s w ith th o s e
th e le g e n d a r y p a tr im o n y s id e b y s id e w ith th e h e r o e s o f th e of th e G reek p a n th e o n and a s s im ila tin g th e m flu p ite r-
G re e k m y th s , a n d e v e n th e G r e e k h e r o e s a r e lin k e d to th e (D )io v e = Z eus = T in (ia ) in E tru sca n , ju st a s V enus =

56
 G R E C O - I T A L I C T R A D I T I O N S AND L E Ci E N D S

Poussin, Inspiration of the Poet, detail. Paris, Musée du Louvre. Photo Flammarion.

A p h ro d ite = T u ran in E tru sc a n , and o th e rs) m ust h ave assu m ed to have re s te d or d i s a p p e a r e d — th is is th e case
d e v e l o p e d a n d a t t a i n e d i ts c o m p l e t i o n in t h e a r c h a i c p e r i o d , n o t a b l y f o r t h e s a n c t u a r y t o m b o f t h e T r e m i t i in A p u l i a , a s
a t le a st a s fa r a s th e T y rrh e n ia n d o m a in o f th e E tru s c a n s , c e r ta in a n c ie n t a u t h o r s a t te s t. B u t th e m o s t s ig n if ic a n t e x a m ­
L a t i n s , a n d C a m p a n i a n s is c o n c e r n e d . T h e s a m e c a n b e s a i d p l e is t h e s e p u l c h e r o f A e n e a s a t L a v i n i u m , i d e n t i f i e d in a
fo r th e p e n e tr a tio n in to Ita ly o f ty p ic a lly H e lle n ic c u lts w h ic h heroon r e c e n tly d is c o v e re d near th is c ity , w h ic h can be
had no lo ca l c o rre sp o n d e n ce s, such as th o s e of A p o llo , a s c r i b e d t o t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y b .c . a n d w a s c o n s t r u c t e d a b o v e
A r t e m i s , o r th e D io s c u r i ( a tt e s t e d b y th e a r c h a ic e p i g r a p h y a t a p r i n c e l y t o m b in th e O r ie n t a l s ty le , d a t i n g f r o m t h e s e v e n t h
L a v in iu m in L a tiu m under th e nam e of qurois, a n d at c e n t u r y b .c . T h i s i n d i c a t e s t h a t t h e L a t i n s a g a o f A e n e a s m u s t
T a rq u in ii in E tru ria under th e n am e of TinascUniiaras = have sp read and d e v e lo p e d b e tw e e n th e s ix th and f if th
Dioskoroisin), a s w e ll a s th e p r in c ip a l c y c le s a n d c h a r a c t e r s o f c e n t u r i e s b .c ., p r o b a b l y a r o u n d t h e s a n c t u a r i e s o f L a v i n i u m
G re e k m y th o lo g y , w h o s e n a m e s w e r e a d a p te d in to in d ig e ­ (a n d c o n c o m i ta n t w ith th e first G r e e k v e r s i o n s o f th e c o m in g
n o u s l a n g u a g e s . J u d g i n g f r o m t h e l i n g u i s t i c d a t a , it s e e m s t o o f A e n e a s to I ta ly : H e ll a n ic u s , in D io n y s iu s o f H a li c a r n a s s u s
be a D o ric c u ltu ra l c u r re n t, p ro b a b ly C o rin th ia n (D e S i­ 1 .4 8 ) .
m o n e ) , w h ic h in tr o d u c e d t h e s e n a m e s in to E tr u r ia . O n e c a n
s i t e in t h i s c o n n e c t i o n t h e f a m o u s n a r r a t i v e o f t h e a r r i v a l a t
III. The Role of Writers
T a r q u i n i i , t o w a r d t h e m i d d l e o f t h e s e v e n t h c e n t u r y b .c ., o f
th e C o r in th ia n D e m a r a t u s , w h o b r o u g h t lite r a tu r e a n d th e The lite ra ry c irc le s o f A s ia tic Io n ia and th e G reek and
a r t s w ith h im (L iv y 1 .3 4 a n d 4 .3 ; P lin y , HN, 3 5 .4 3 ; T a c itu s , H e ll e n iz i n g c e n t e r s o f Ita ly c a m e i n to c o n t a c t w ith p o p u la r
Annales, 1 1 .1 4 , e t c .) . g o s s i p a n d c o m m u n i c a t io n b e t w e e n th e p o litic a l a n d s a c e r ­
In e s t a b l i s h i n g a c o m m o n p a tr im o n y o f G re c o -I ta lic le g ­ d o ta l m ilie u s o f th e v a r io u s c ity -s ta te s o f th e T y rrh e n ia n
e n d s in th e s a n c t u a r ie s , o n e m u s t n o t o v e r l o o k th e s u p p o s e d w o rld a n d th e G re e k c o lo n ia l d o m a in . T o g e th e r, th e y m u s t
to m b s o f th e h e r o e s a n d t h e c u l t s t h a t w e r e e s t a b l i s h e d in h a v e c o n tr ib u te d , fro m th e e a rlie s t p e rio d , to th e d iffu sio n
t h e ir h o n o r . R e c a ll th e f u n e r a l c e r e m o n i e s in h o n o r o f th e and c o lla tio n of k n o w le d g e about G reek and in d ig e n o u s
N e lid e s a t M e t a p o n t u m (S tr a b o 6 .1 .1 5 ) , w h ic h m a d e p o s s ib le c u lts a n d a b o u t th e s to r ie s tra n s m itte d in s a n c t u a r i e s . Be­
th e d iffu s io n o f n a r r a tiv e s a n d o f s o n g s a b o u t th e fo u n d a tio n t w e e n t h e f i f t h a n d t h i r d c e n t u r i e s b .c ., I t a l i o t w r i t e r s ( t h a t i s ,
o f th e c ity b y th e P y lia n s ; o r th e s a c r if ic e s to A n t e n o r a t th e G r e e k s in I t a l y ) , a n d in p a r t i c u l a r S i c i l i o t s ( G r e e k s i n S i c i l y )
m o u th of th e T im a v o (S tra b o 5 .1 .9 ) ; s im ila rly , th e m any p l a y e d a v e r y i m p o r t a n t r o le in th e r e c o n s t r u c t i o n , e n r i c h ­
n a rra tiv e s a b o u t th e d e e d s o f D io m e d e s m u s t h a v e flo u r­ m e n t, a n d s y s te m iz a tio n o f th e G re c o -I ta lic le g e n d s ; th e s e
ish ed , w h e n h e h a d b e e n d e i f i e d , in p l a c e s w h e r e h e w a s w rite rs in c lu d e H ip p y s a n d L y c u s o f R h e g iu m , A n tio c h u s ,

57
ROM E

P h ilis tu s of S yracu se, and T im a e u s of T a u ro m e n iu m in t h e Iliad. B u t b e y o n d a ll e r u d i t e r e s e a r c h o n o r i g i n s , a l l o f

(T a o r m in a ), w h ose w o rk s w e re in la rg e p a r t l o s t b u t s till th is is tr a n s f i g u r e d p o e t i c a l ly in a n e v o c a t i o n w h ic h , a c c o r d ­
s u r v i v e in a b u n d a n t e x t r a c t s a n d e x p a n s i o n s i n s u b s e q u e n t in g to th e p r o p h e c y o f A n c h is e s a t C u m a e , c o n n e c ts th e p a st
lite ra tu re . B u t o f th e h is to r ia n s , g e o g r a p h e r s , a n d e s s a y is ts to th e p re se n t, th a t is, to th e g lo ry of R om e. In b o th
o f t h e G r e e k m o t h e r c o u n t r y , l ik e T h u c y d i d e s , E p h o r u s , t h e te s tim o n ie s th e re is a co n scio u sn e ss o f th e re lig io u s and
P s e u d o -S c y la x , a n d A ris to tle , w e a ls o h a v e im p o rta n t d o c u ­ c u ltu r a l u n ity o f th e G re e k a n d Ita lo -R o m a n w o r ld s , th a t is,
m e n t s t h a t b e a r w i t n e s s t o t h e i r i n t e r e s t in t h e I t a l i c w o r l d ; o f c la s s ic a l c iv iliz a tio n , w h o s e first m a n if e s ta tio n s g o b a c k to
and b e g i n n in g in th e H e lle n is tic p e r i o d , p o e t s , m y th o g r a - th e b e g in n in g o f h is to ric a l tim e .
p h e r s , h i s to r io g r a p h e r s , G re e k a n d L a tin m e n o f le tte r s , a n d M .P ./d .f .
c o m p ile rs (f r o m L y c o p h r o n to D io d o r u s S ic u lu s , D io n y s iu s
o f H a l i c a r n a s s u s , S t r a b o , L i v y , V i r g i l , P l in y , J u s t i n , a n d l a t e r
th e sch o lia sts such a s S e rv iu s a n d T z e tz e s ) c o lle c te d and
e l a b o r a t e d t h i s m a t e r i a l in a n e s s e n t i a l l y r e f l e x i v e a n d e r u d i t e BIBLIOGRAPHY
s p i r i t , s o w e ll t h a t t h e i r w o r k r e s u l t e d in a c o m p l e t e a m a l g a m
o f o p in io n s , v e r s io n s , a n d in te rp re ta tio n s . l. BERARD and h . LANCUMiER, Odyssée (Paris 1952). m . pa llo tt in o , “Le
The ric h e s t a n d m o st c o h e re n t p ictu re o f h e ro ic G re co - origini storiche dei popoli italici," X' Congresso internazionale di Scienze
I t a l i c m y t h o l o g y t h a t w e h a v e is f o u n d in t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n t o Storiche, Relazioni (Florence 1955), 2:3-60. |. bera rd . La colonisation
th e Roman Antiquities o f D i o n y s i u s o f H a l i c a r n a s s u s a n d in grecque de l’Italie méridionale et de la Sicile dans l’Antiquité (2d ed., Paris
th e Aeneid o f V i r g i l . T h ese a re tw o p ro f o u n d ly d iffe re n t
1957). g . RADKE, Die Götter Altitaliens (Münster 1965). Santuari di
Magna Grecia. Atti dei IV' Convegno di studi sulla Magna Grecia,
w o r k s , e v e n if t h e y a r e a l m o s t c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s . T h e f i r s t is
Taranto, 1964 (Naples 1965); see especially the papers by G. Pugliese
th e p a tie n t a n d a b u n d a n t w o rk of a h is to rio g ra p h e r w h o
Carratelli, 19ff., and by W. Hermann, 47ff. n. h en cken , Tarquinia,
p r e s e n t s h is s u b je c t d ia c h r o n ic a lly , in th e p e r s p e c t iv e o f a Villanovans and Early Etruscans (Cambridge, MA, 1968), 2:603-18. c.
h is to ric a l r e c o n s tr u c tio n ; h e a s s e m b le s a n d r e c o m p o s e s th e de sim one . Die griechischen Entlehnungen im Etruskischen (Wiesbaden
v e r y d iffe re n t tr a d itio n s o f e a r lie r w r ite r s , e s p e c ia lly e m p h a ­ 1968-70). La Magna Grecia e Roma nell'etä arcaica. Atti dell’VUT
s i z i n g t h e t h e s i s o f t h e G r e e k o r i g i n o f t h e I t a li c p e o p l e s — Convegno di studi sulla Magna Grecia, Taranto, 1968 (Naples 1969); see
a m o n g w h o m a n d th ro u g h w h o m th e c ity “ th a t d o m in a te s especially the papers by J. Heurgon, 9ff., and by G. Pugliese
a ll t h e e a r t h a n d a ll t h e s e a " w a s t o c o m e i n t o b e i n g . V i r g i l 's
Carratelli, 49ff. d . m usti, Tendenze nella storiografia romana e greca su
Roma arcaica: Studi su Livio e Dionigi d ’Alicarnasso (Urbin 1970). On
p o e m , b y c o n t r a s t , is a m i r r o r t h a t s y n c h r o n i c a l l y r e f l e c t s t h e
Lavinium and the heroon o f Aeneas, see r. so m m ella , in Rendiconti
i m a g e o f th e p e o p l e s a n d l e g e n d a r y c h a r a c t e r s o f Ita ly in th e
della Pontificia Accademia Romana di Archeologia, 44 (1971-72): 47-74,
h e r o ic p e r i o d , a s w e ll a s th e a d v e n t u r e s o f A e n e a s . T h is is a and Gymnasium, 81, 4 (1974): 273-97.
ta b le a u a lm o s t c o m p a r a b le to th a t o f th e h e r o ic G re e k w o rld

S o c i o l o g y u n q u e s t io n a b l y g a v e th is m e t h o d n e w c u r r e n c y
R oman R eligion to w a rd th e end of th e la st ce n tu ry by in tro d u c in g th e
p r in c ip le o f c o m p a r is o n o f a n c ie n t s o c ie tie s w ith m o d e r n -d a y
" p r i m i t i v e " s o c i e t i e s . E m i le D u r k h e i m 's The Elementary Forms
Though th e im p o rta n ce of r e lig io n in th e a n cie n t w o rld of Religious Life ( 1 9 1 2 ) is a c o m p a r a t i v e s t u d y w i t h t h e s t a t e d
s e e m s s e l f - e v i d e n t t o u s t o d a y , t h i s v i e w is r e l a t i v e l y r e c e n t . o b j e c ti v e o f d e f i n in g re lig io n in g e n e r a l . H e w is e ly s u g g e s t e d
The s e v e n te e n th ce n tu ry w as la rg e ly co n te n t to m o b iliz e th a t " o n ly th e c o m p a r is o n o f f a c ts o f th e s a m e n a tu r e c a n
G re e k a n d R o m a n d e itie s o n g a la o c c a s i o n s a t c o u r t w ith o u t h a v e th e v a lu e o f p r o o f ." T h is a d v ic e h a s n o t a lw a y s b e e n
d is tin g u is h in g b e tw e e n th e tw o . W h e n M o n te s q u ie u w r o te h e e d e d . T h e t e n d e n c y w a s to d rift im p e r c e p tib ly to w a r d a
h isConsiderations on the Causes of the Grandeur of the Romans " u n i v e r s a l" c o m p a ra tiv is m t h a t a ll t o o o f t e n c o n f u s e d w h a t
and of Their Decadence ( 1 7 3 4 ) , h e w a s t h i n k i n g p r i m a r i l y o f is archaic w i t h w h a t is primitive (in th e s e n s e o f inferior). C an
p o litic s a n d m o r a ls . N o t u n til th e n in e te e n th ce n tu ry d id o n e s a y t h a t t h e r e m a r k a b l e w o r k o f J a m e s F r a z e r is i m m u n e
F u s te l d e C o u l a n g e s g i v e re lig io n its t r u e p l a c e a t th e v e r y to s u c h a r e p r o a c h ? T h r o u g h h is v a s t e r u d itio n , th is s c h o la r
h e a r t o f a n c ie n t s o c ie ty . T h is s c h o la r d e v o te d h is c o u r s e a t ren d e re d g re a t s e rv ice to th e h isto ry o f r e lig io n s , a n d to
th e U n iv e r s ity o f S tr a s b o u r g to th e n o tio n o f “ th e h is to r y o f R o m a n r e l i g i o n in p a r t i c u l a r , in h i s m o n u m e n t a l c o m m e n ­
a b e l ie f ” ( 1 8 6 2 - 6 3 ) , a n d in th e fo llo w in g y e a r h e p u b lis h e d a t a r y o n O v i d 's Fasti. H e d id , h o w e v e r , s e t fo rth a p e rilo u s
w o rk w h ic h b e c a m e a c la s s ic . The Ancient City (1 8 6 4 ). F o r th e p r i n c i p l e w h e n h e s a i d t h a t " h u m a n n a t u r e is much the same
first tim e , th e s tu d y o f re lig io n w a s u n e q u i v o c a ll y a c k n o w l ­ t h r o u g h o u t t h e w o r l d a n d a t a ll t i m e s . " T h i s i n s p i r e d s o m e
edged to be in d is p e n s a b le to th e u n d e r s ta n d in g of th e d a n g e ro u s co m p a riso n s, d ra w n fro m th a t a rs e n a l o f s o c io ­
i n s titu tio n s o f th e a n c i e n t s . B u t th is lin e o f in q u ir y s o m e ­ l o g i c a l e x a m p l e s t h a t is v a s t e n o u g h to p r o d u c e a p p a r e n t
tim e s h a d to g r o p e its w a y , a n d in t h e i r h a s t e t o p r o p o s e l i k e n e s s e s f o r a l m o s t a n y t h i n g : if t h e H o t t e n t o t s w ill n o t d o ,
o v e ra rc h in g e x p la n a tio n s , sev eral th e o re tic ia n s fe lt com ­ t h e Z u l u s w ill!
p e lle d to e x p o u n d e l a b o r a t e s y s te m s t h a t s u b j e c t e d r e lig io u s B y th is k in d o f im p r o p e r a s s im ila tio n , a b a sic a lly " p r i m i ­
s t u d i e s t o i n t e l l e c t u a l f a s h i o n s . F o r e x a m p l e , i n M a x M i i l l e r 's t iv is t" p ic tu r e w a s p r o je c te d o n t o th e o r ig in s o f e a rly R o m a n
s y s te m , d e itie s w e re n o th in g b u t n a m e s ( Nomina numina) s o c i e t y . P o l y n e s i a n m a n a w a s u s e d t o e x p l a i n a r e l i g i o n in
g iv e n to v a r io u s i m p r e s s io n s a r o u s e d b y th e lig h t o f t h e s u n . th e In d o -E u ro p e a n tra d itio n ; gods and go d d esses w o u ld
Then th e r e w a s W ilh e lm M a n n h a r d t, w h o e x p o u n d e d h is s u d d e n l y r is e o u t o f a v a g u e c lo u d in th e n a m e o f p r o g r e s s i v e
n a t u r i s t t h e o r y in a b o o k b e a r i n g t h e e v o c a t i v e t i t l e o f The e v o lu tio n .
Cult of the Tree among Germanic Peoples (1 8 7 5 ). T o d a y w e a re R e a c t i o n s w e r e n o t lo n g in c o m i n g . G e o r g W i s s o w a in h is
m o re s k e p tica l o f s y s te m a tic e x p la n a tio n s ; w e p re fe r m o re Religion and Cult of the Romans (1 9 0 2 ; 2 d ed. 1 9 1 2 ) firm ly
m a tte r -o f-f a c t s tu d ie s o f th e e v id e n c e . e s ta b lis h e d th e i m p o r ta n c e o f r e s p e c tin g h o m o lo g o u s a r e a s

58

in the religious realm , and he painstakingly constructed a
clear and precise catalog of the d ata. N evertheless, descrip­
tion alone, how ever faithful, w as not sufficient to make these
data intelligible. Very early on, historians noted the benefit
they could derive from the com parison of analogous reli­
gious structures, for instance, by noting resem blances be­
tween the Latin triad Jupiter-M ars-Q uirinus of Rome and the
Umbrian triad Jupiter-M ars-V ofionus of Iguvium (all three
known as Grabovio, "o f the oak tre e "). But com parativism
was destined to bear its fruits on an even gran d er scale as a
result of the illuminating w orks of G eorges Dumézil, who
based his efforts on the existence of the original com m unity
of the ancient Indians and the ancient Italians (the probable
equivalence of the Sanskrit term Brahman and the Latin term
flamen to d esignate the priest is one sign am on g m any to that
effect). As a result of D um ézil's research, the Indo-European
heritage could no longer be denied to ancient Rome. Con­
trary to the claim s of evolutionists, it w ould seem that
personal gods, classified according to a functional hierarchy
that recalls an analogous distribution of functions in India,
had existed in Rom e since its origins. C on trary to the
teachings of the "prim itivists," Dumézil revealed that the
Rom ans had inherited a millennial ideology that they had
indeed subjected to a kind of m etam orphosis: history was
substituted for m yth so that the sam e ch aracter could appear
in a divine form in a m ythology of Indo-European inspiration
and in a h um an form in Rom an history. An eloquent exam ple
is furnished by a double pair of "h o m o lo g u e s": the Roman
heroes H oratius C ocles, the O n e-E yed , and M ucius Scae­
vola, the O ne-H an d ed , co rrespond to th e Scandinavian duo
of ÖÖinn, the one-eyed m agician-god, and Tÿr, the jurist-god
w ho sacrificed one hand. The results of this vast research
were recorded by G eorges Dum ézil in his w ork Archaic
Roman Religion (1966; English trans. 1970; 2d ed. 1974; here­
after ARR).
The com parativist insight could not, h ow ever, divert us
from the main objective of the historian of Rom an religion,
namely, to define the originality of this religion as precisely
as possible. N ot all the facts can be explained, d espite great
scholarly effort, but the research that has been conducted for
som e hundred years helps us to form ulate the problem with
greater accuracy.
To w hat extent can w e speak of the originality of Rom an
religion? G eorg W issow a tried to define it using chronolog­
ical criteria. H e th ou gh t th at the Rom ans had succeeded in
protecting their institutions from foreign influences until
about the third cen tu ry b .c ., after w hich syncretism m ust
have had a destabilizing effect. That the facts did not bear out
this distinction is just as well. It w ould have been surprising
to discover that Rom e could have lived in isolation when in
the sixth century b.c . she still constituted nothing but a
m odest cell com pared with her rich neighbors, the Etruscans
(w ho contributed to her urbanization u n d er the dynasty of
the last three kings of Rom e, w h o are traditionally said to
have com e from Etruria) and the colonists of M agna Graecia
(w ho had founded w ealthy settlem ents in the southern part
of Italy).
F. Altheim believed that he could op p ose W issow a on
these grounds: he dism issed the idea of any Latin originality,
on the prem ise that foreign influence, m ost particularly
Greek influence, had been a factor since the beginning. In a
sense, his treatise, Greek Gods in Ancient Rome (1930), is a
polemic rather than a sum m ation of individual studies.
Of cou rse, this extrem e position w as open to criticism. It is
risky even to attem pt to reduce the Rom an pantheon to a sort
of carbon copy of the Hellenic pan th eon , w h eth er we adm it
R O M A N R E L I GI ON
Representation of an offering. Bone bas-relief. Rome, City Muse­
ums. Photo Oscar Savio.
the direct influence of M agna Graecia or indirect influence
through the Etruscans. If Hellenic deities such as Apollo or
the Dioscuri w ere familiar in Rom e by the sixth century, they
had been incorporated into the Latin pantheon under partic­
ular circum stances, conform ing to the hospitable attitude of
the polytheism of the ancients. Such adm issions would n ot
challenge the autochthonous traditions.
I. The N otion of R eligio and Cult
We should first acknow ledge that the term religio, which
passed into m ost m odern W estern languages, is a Latin
creation. It is a specific w ord that has no G reek counterpart;
the "an alo g o u s" expressions that are invoked, including to
sebas (respect for the god s), hë proskunêsis (adoration), hë
eulabeia (reverential fear), and hë thrëskeia (cult or w orship),
only underscore the bankruptcy of a genuine translation for
religio in that language.
This assertion is all the m ore rem arkable because the
Rom ans took great pride in being the m ost religious people
in the world: "If w e com pare ourselves with foreign n a­
tions," w rote Cicero (De natura deorum 2 .3 ), "w e m ay appear
to be equal or even inferior in various realm s, except in
religion, by w hich I m ean the w orship of the gods, in which
we are by far preem in en t" ( religione id est cultu deorum, multo
superiores). He states the sam e thing elsew here (Cicero De
haruspicum responsis 19) in a m ore concise form: pietate ac
religione omnes gentes superavimus ("in piety and in religion w e
head the list of n ation s").
This claim m ay still have had som e value at the end of the
first century b .c ., when it occasionally appeared as an expres­
sion of praise for individuals. Thus the author of a Laudatio of
a Rom an m atron know n by the nam e of Turia (end of the first
century b .c .) m entions am ong this w om an 's qualities "h e r
religious spirit free of superstition ( religionis sine supersti­
tione).''
W hat are w e to understand by this term that the Rom ans
coined in o rd er to define a situation in which they proudly
claim ed to excel, a term that w e inherited from the Latins and
that m ade its w ay into every language of the W estern world?
Philologists agree that religio com es from a verbal root (like
legio or regio), but they do not agree about which verb it
com es from. Som e derive the w ord from relegere and ascribe
59
ROME
to the prefix an intensive value that gives the expression the
meaning of "scrupulous observance." O thers prefer to derive
it from religare, with the m eaning of "to bind oneself to the
gods." Texts are quoted to support either hypothesis. The
supporters of relegere invoke the ancient verse cited by
Nigidius Figulus (Aulus Gellius 4 .9 .1 1 ): religentem esse oportet,
religiosus ne fuas ("it is fitting to be religious but not exces­
sively scru p u lou s"). The religare supporters recall the ritual­
istic use of sacred ribbons (vittae), as well as the num erous
references to the idea of religious bonds, for exam ple,
Lucretius 1.931: Religionum nodis animum exsolvere ("D eliver
the soul from religious b o n d s"); Livy 5 .2 3.10: Sc domumque
religione exsolvere ("T o free oneself and on e's ow n from a
religious obligation").
It would seem difficult to settle upon one or the other
etymological explanation, especially in view of the fact that
each represents a com plem entary aspect of the m eaning of
the expression. For it is indeed true that the religio of the
Latins implies at the sam e time both a concern for scrupulous
observance in w orship and the idea of bonds that unite the
gods and m en.
We could say that the conviction of an inescapable inter­
dependence betw een heaven and earth w as the basis for
Roman piety, the purpose of w hich was to assure the pax
veniaque deum. W ithout the friendship and grace of the gods,
a Roman felt crippled. H e therefore took pains to maintain
this "state of g race" through a meticulous cult, so meticulous
that it has often seem ed formalistic. He would be attentive to
signs sent from heaven, and if unluckily the gods should
vent their anger —lamque irae patuere deum ("th e w rath of the
gods has already been revealed "; Lucan 2.1)— he would not
rest until he had reestablished harm ony. In Rome one would
not think of rebelling against the gods; this them e was the
privilege of the Greeks, particularly in the m yth of the Titan
Dioscuri. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN.
60
Prom etheus. N ot until Lucretius do we see the first blasphe­
m ous overtones in Latin literature, and even then, w hen the
Epicurean poet raises the flag of rebellion against religion
and denounces the crimes com m itted in its nam e— tantum
religio potuit suadere malorum (Lucretius 1.101)— he borrows
his exam ple from Hellenic religion by denouncing the sacri­
fice of Iphigenia.
Although the reverential fear of the gods was the basis of
Roman piety, the concern for efficacy explains m any features
of the cult. First of all, there was that rather cautious tone in
prayers w hen a Roman was unable to identify exactly which
deity he w as supposed to appease; accordingly, in the case of
an earthquake the supplicant makes use of the following
prudent formula: si deo, si deae (w hether you be god or
goddess; Aulus Gellius Nodes Atticae 2 .2 8 .2 -3 ). W hen he
gets into a fight with a deity, he does so with a precise
stipulation, of which the carmina conveyed to us by Cato the
Elder give us a good idea. This contractual propensity has
often been interpreted in a pejorative sense, but in fact it can
only be understood as a concern to establish an irreproach­
able covenant betw een men and the gods. Piety is justice
tow ard the gods, says Cicero (est enim pietas justitia adversum
deos; Nat. D. 1.41), and in the prayer addressed by Cato's
peasant to an unidentified w oodland deity, we find this
im portant formula: uti tibi jus est ("in keeping with your
right"; De agr. 139).
This preoccupation is often translated with an insistence
that is excessive for our taste. C ato's peasant is not afraid of
repeating ponderously the exact clauses within whose
bounds he m eans to fight the deity. Perhaps w e should even
attribute to certain apparently descriptive adjectives a more
practical m eaning. Thus, adding the qualifier inferium to
vinum is supposed to prevent the consecration of all the wine
in the cellar, since the prayer concerns only wine as offering
(this according to Trebatius, as cited by Arnobius, Adversus
nationes 7.31). As a result, som e have denounced the legal­
istic harshness of Roman piety that w as supposed to be
embodied by the m otto "I shall give w hen you have given"
(dabo cum dederis). Thus the gods are informed of the condi­
tions that the Roman state required if it was to carry out its
vow to consecrate, within a predeterm ined limit of time, all
the firstfruits of the season— the ver sacrum (Livy 22.10).
The Romans certainly had a taste for precision, especially
when it cam e to draw ing up contracts, and the sam e legal­
istic mind can be seen in their prayers. But we should not
disregard the other side of Roman piety, which is expressed
by an unconditional appeal for divine kindness. W hen a
Roman general "sacrifices" his ow n person along with the
enem y arm y in the midst of battle, according to the act of
devotio, he addresses an urgent prayer to the gods— vos precor
veneror, veniam peto feroque (Livy 8 .9)— and he puts himself
entirely in their hands, w ithout bothering with restrictive
clau ses.1 This type of unconditional votum can often be found
in Roman history, for exam ple, when prom ises are m ade to
build a temple. The votum is certainly not disinterested, but
except for the quietist, what w orshiper is ever disinterested
in his devotion? The votum implies the hope of fulfillment, do
ut des ("I give so that you m ay give"). Marcel Mauss argued
that "th e gift is the archaic form of exch an ge"; implicitly it
provokes the recipient to restitution and, in the case of the
gods, to an increased level of restitution. The Romans never
stopped practicing this unconditional form of piety, which
also appears to be its m ost ancient form. They expected some
benefit from it in return in the nam e of the reciprocity of the
"good offices" that w ere the basis of pietas.
 R OMA N REL IG ION

II. Indo-European Tradition and Historical Evolution P a la tin e , t h e n th e s e v e n h illo c k s , a n d f in a lly th e Urbs cen ­
t e r e d o n t h e F o r u m . T h e c o n s e r v a t i s m o f th e R o m a n litu r g y
R o m a n re lig io n u n d o u b te d ly e x p e r i e n c e d v a r io u s v ic is s i­ a l lo w s u s to o b s e r v e th is p r o g r e s s i o n s te p b y s te p a s th e c ity
t u d e s f r o m t h e b i r t h o f R o m e till t h e c o m i n g o f t h e e m p i r e . d e v e lo p e d . D u rin g th e la st p h a s e , th e F o ru m b ecam e th e
T h e e a r ly s ta g e s o f th e d e v e l o p m e n t o f th e p rim itiv e c ity a r e re lig io u s h e a r t o f th e c ity w ith th e s h r in e o f V e s ta a n d th e
r e f le c te d e v e n in t h e l it u r g y ; f o r t h e c h a r a c t e r is t ic s o f c e r ta i n d w e l l i n g p l a c e o f t h e V e s t a l V i r g i n s . T h e h ill s i t u a t e d t o t h e
fe s tiv a ls a llo w us to d raw som e co n clu sio n s about th e fa r w e s t la te r f o r m e d th e h ig h p o in t o f th is n e w u n i t , f o r it
re la tiv e e x t e n s i o n o f th e p h y s ic a l a r e a o f R o m e . w as on th e C a p ito l t h a t th e m o s t im p o r t a n t p u b lic te m p le
In th is r e g a r d , th e f o llo w in g t h r e e f e s ti v a l s r e p r e s e n t t h r e e d e d ic a te d to th e tria d o f Ju p ite r -J u n o -M in e r v a a ro se . T h is
s u c c e s s i v e s t a g e s . T h e f ir s t, t h e L u p e r c a l i a , a p u b lic f e s tiv a l b u ild in g , w h ic h a c c o rd in g to tra d itio n goes b ack to th e
th a t fe ll ev ery year on 15 F e b ru a ry , r e v e a ls its a r c h a ic T a rq u in k in g s, sh o w s in c o n te s ta b le E tru s c a n i n f l u e n c e s .*
c h a r a c t e r i n i ts c e r e m o n i a l ( s e e t h e a r t i c l e " F a u n u s " b e l o w ) T h i s b r i n g s u s t o t h e e n d o f t h e s i x t h c e n t u r y b.c .
a n d i n t h e r o l e o f i t s p r i e s t s ( luperci, w o l f m e n o f s o r t s , c l a d i n D o t h e s e re lig io u s tr a d itio n s g o b a c k o n ly to th e b irth o f
lo in c lo th s ). T h e c e r e m o n y c o n s i s te d p r im a r ily o f a r a c e r u n R o m e ? M u s t w e b e g in w ith th is d a t e a s a n a b s o lu te s ta r tin g
by th e s e luperci, w ho c a rrie d g o a tsk in t h o n g s w ith w h ic h p o in t? A c e r ta i n p rim itiv is t s c h o o l o f th o u g h t n o t lo n g a g o
th e y s tr u c k p a s s e r s b y . T h is fla g e lla tio n w a s s a id to g u a r a n t e e s u p p o r te d th is c o n t e n t i o n , w h ic h th e c o m p a r a t iv i s t w o r k o f
fe rtility to w o m e n . N o w t h is p r e c a u t i o n a r y r a c e w a s s tr i c t l y G eo rg es D u m é z il has s in c e re n d e re d u n te n a b le . A m p le
c o n f i n e d t o th e P a la tin e , t a k in g p l a c e o n t h e o u t e r lim it o f th e e v id e n ce s u g g e s ts th a t th e o r ig in s o f R o m e h ad an In d o -
a n cie n t oppidum Palatinum th a t w a s th e c r a d le o f th e Urbs. E u r o p e a n le g a c y , w h ic h e x p la in s m a n y fe a tu r e s o f th e le g ­
T h i s f e a t u r e a l o n e m i g h t s u g g e s t t h a t it w a s o n e o f t h e o l d e s t end. Thus p o litic a l and r e lig io u s in itia tiv e s w ere d iv id e d
fe s tiv a ls o f th e R o m a n c a le n d a r , n o t to m e n tio n o t h e r c h a r ­ b e tw e e n t h e first t w o k in g s : th e f o u n d in g o f th e c ity w as
a c te ris tic s th a t c a n b e e x p la in e d o n ly b y th e p a s to ra l c u s to m s a t tr ib u te d to R o m u lu s , a n d th e re lig io u s o r g a n i z a ti o n to h is
o f a n o ld e r tim e . su ccesso r N u m a.
T h e f e s t i v a l o f t h e S e p t i m o n t i u m t h a t f a l ls o n 1 1 D e c e m b e r T h is s ty liz a tio n , a s c o m p a ra tiv is t te a c h in g te lls u s, is a
is a ce re m o n y th a t con cern s o n ly th e in h a b ita n ts of th e m a r k o f t h e I n d o - E u r o p e a n c o n c e p t o f s o v e r e i g n t y w i t h i ts
montes (feriae non populi, sed montanorum mode, a s V a r r o s a y s in d o u b le fa c e : o n th e o n e h a n d , w e h a v e th e w a rlik e a n d ferox
De lingua Latina 6 . 2 4 ) . F o r t u n a t e l y , a n c i e n t s c h o l a r s p r e s e r v e d s id e of R o m u lu s , and on th e o th e r hand, we have th e
t h e l is t o f t h e s e s e v e n montes ( w h i c h m u s t n o t b e c o n f u s e d ju rid ic a l a n d p e a c e - l o v in g s id e o f N u m a .
w ith th e s e v e n h ills o f th e f u t u r e R o m e ) . It c o n s i s ts o f th e T h e r e i s n o d o u b t t h a t t h i s I n d o - E u r o p e a n h e r i t a g e l e f t i ts
h e i g h t s o f th e P a l a ti u m , t h e G e r m a i , th e V e lia ( w h i c h l a te r t r a c e s w ith in in s titu tio n s , b o th in t h e s u r v i v a l o f r i t e s t h a t
fo r m e d th e P a la tin e ), th e F a g u ta lin e , th e O p p i a n , th e C is p ia n a p p e a r ab e rra n t if w e re fu se to c la rify th e m th ro u g h th e
(w h ic h w o u ld la te r b e a b s o r b e d in to th e E s q u ilin e ), a n d th e I n d o - E u r o p e a n id e o l o g y , a n d in t h e e x i s t e n c e o f h i e r a r c h i c a l
C a e l i a n .2 It is e v i d e n t th a t th is n e w t o p o g r a p h ic a l d e f in itio n s t r u c t u r e s t h a t c a n b e e x p l a in e d o n l y in t e r m s o f t h e s a m e
c o r r e s p o n d s to a la te r s ta g e , to a s te p i n te r m e d ia te b e tw e e n id e o lo g y .
th e is o la te d v illa g e s a n d th e d e fin itiv e o r g a n iz a tio n o f th e B y c o m p a r i n g s e v e r a l L a tin g o d d e s s e s w ith c e r ta in V e d ic
city . It is i n t e r e s t i n g to n o te th e u se o f th e te rm mons t o m y th s ,5 G e o r g e s D u m é z il w as a b le to d e v e lo p th e m o st
d e s ig n a te t h e s e h illo c k s , r a t h e r th a n th e w o r d collis, w h i c h s u g g e s tiv e r e s u lts of h is in v e s tig a tio n . T hese go d d esses,
w a s l a te r a p p li e d t o t h e n o r t h e r n h ills. w ho on ce seem ed to p r o v id e no h o ld fo r a n y s a tis fa c to ry
T h e c e r e m o n y o f th e A r g iv e s b rin g s u s to th e la st p h a s e . e x p la n a tio n , w e re th e o b je c t of co n sid e ra b le co n tro v e rsy
T h is f e s tiv a l, c e le b r a t e d in t w o s t a g e s (o n 1 6 a n d 17 M arch a m o n g s c h o l a r s . T h u s , M a t e r M a t u ta fin a lly lo s t h e r m e a n i n g
a n d o n 1 4 M a y ), b e g a n w ith a p r o c e s s i o n th a t w a s s u p p o s e d a s a d a w n g o d d e s s a n d b e c a m e a m o th e r g o d d e s s o r a G o o d
to c a r r y th e Argei, o r d o lls m a d e o f r u s h e s ( O v id Fasti 5 .6 2 1 ) , M o t h e r ; s h e w a s h o n o r e d w ith t w o u n u s u a l rite s o n th e d a y
in to th e tw e n t y - s e v e n c h a p e l s p r e p a r e d fo r th a t p u r p o s e . O n of th e fe s tiv a l of th e M a tra lia on 11 Ju n e. D u rin g th e
1 4 M a y th e y w e r e f e tc h e d fro m th e s e sacraria a n d th r o w n in to c e re m o n y th e R o m a n m a t r o n s b o r e in t h e ir a r m s a n d fo n ­
th e T ib e r fro m th e to p o f th e P o n s S u b lic iu s . T h e m e a n in g o f d le d , n o t th e ir o w n c h ild r e n , b u t th e c h ild re n o f th e ir s is te rs ;
t h e c e r e m o n y h a s b e e n m u c h d i s c u s s e d . W i s s o w a s a w it a s a th e y w o u ld h a v e a s la v e w o m a n g o in to th e te m p le o f M a te r
ritu a l of s u b s titu tio n in w h ic h e ffig ie s re p la ce d h u m an s; M a tu ta a n d w o u ld b e a t h e r w ith s tic k s b e f o r e e x p e llin g h e r.
w h e r e a s L a tte in s te a d c o m p a r e d th e s e d o lls m a d e o f r u s h e s T h e s e r i t e s c e r t a i n l y s e e m p e c u l i a r . B u t t h e d a w n g o d d e s s is
to th e oscilla, fig u rin e s th a t w e r e s u s p e n d e d fro m tre e s , fo r " o n e o f t h e m o s t s t r i k i n g f e m i n i n e f i g u r e s in t h e Rgveda,” in
t h e p u r p o s e o f a b s o r b i n g a ll t h e c i t y ' s i m p u r i t i e s . w h ic h sh e a p p e a rs n u rsin g a n d s u c k lin g th e ch ild w ho is
In a n y c a s e , t h e fe s tiv a l i n c l u d e d e l e m e n t s r e l e v a n t to o u r e ith e r " t h e com m on ch ild of D aw n and h e r s is te r N ig h t"
d i s c u s s io n . T h e r e f e r e n c e to th e P o n s S u b lic iu s , th e o ld e s t ( I n d ia , a s w e k n o w , is n o t b o t h e r e d b y c o n t r a d i c t o r y c o n c e p ­
b rid g e in R om e, b u ilt o n p ile s as its n am e im p lie s , m ay t io n s ), o r " t h e c h ild o f N ig h t a l o n e ."
p r o v i d e a s t a r t i n g d a t e : t r a d i t i o n a t t r i b u t e s it t o K i n g A n c u s A ll th e e v i d e n c e s u g g e s t s t h a t th e m o s t lo g ic a l f o r m o f th e
M a r c iu s (L iv y 1 . 3 3 . 6 ) . B u t it i s t h e r o u t e o f t h e p r o c e s s i o n th e o lo g y — "D a w n fo n d lin g th e ch ild o f h e r s is te r N ig h t" —
th ro u g h th e tw e n ty -se v e n c h a p e ls, as r e p o r te d by V arro h a d r e a c h e d a s fa r a s R o m e , b u t h e r e th e m y th v a n is h e d a n d
(Ling. 5 .4 5 - 5 4 ), th a t s u p p lie s th e m o s t p r e c is e in fo rm a tio n . o n ly th e rite s u r v i v e d , p r e s c r ib in g fo r m a t r o n s th e b e h a v io r
T h e p ro c e s sio n m o v e d th ro u g h th e h e ig h ts o f th e C a e lia n , o f th e d e ity . T h u s m o th e r s do w ith th e ir s is te r s ' c h ild re n
th e E s q u ilin e , th e V im in a l, th e Q u ir in a l, a n d th e P a la tin e , w h a t D a w n , th e s is te r o f N ig h t, d o e s w ith th e S u n , th e c h ild
c irc lin g a r o u n d th e F o r u m , w h ic h w a s h e n c e f o r t h p a r t o f th e o f N ig h t.
c i t y . T T iis t o p o g r a p h i c a l d e s c r i p t i o n t h u s c o r r e s p o n d s t o t h e The r itu a l of e x p e llin g th e s la v e w om an can a lso be
i n c o r p o r a tio n o f th e F o r u m in to th e c ity a t th e d e c is iv e p h a s e e x p la in e d by th e V e d ic p a ra lle l. "D aw n th e go d d ess
o f u rb a n tr a n s f o r m a tio n , th e R o m e o f quattuor regiones. m a rch e s, d riv in g b ack by her lig h t a ll th e shad ow s, th e
W e h a v e th u s s e e n th e c irc le g r o w l a r g e r fro m l u s tr a tio n to d a n g e r s ." T h e V e d ic h y m n s " t h u s p o r t r a y th e n a tu r a l p h e ­
lu s tra tio n . It f i r s t e n c o m p a s s e d th e Roma Quadrata3 o f th e n o m e n o n o f th e b re a k o f d a y a s th e v io le n t d r iv in g b a c k o f

61
ROM E

t h e s h a d o w s , o f t h e 's h a d o w / a s s i m il a t e d t o t h e e n e m y , to s u r p r is e d b y its n a r r o w lim its ; fo r o t h e r p e o p le s , s u c h a s th e

t h e b a r b a r o u s , t o t h e d e m o n i a c , t o t h e 'f o r m l e s s / t o d a n g e r , U m b ria n s, w h o s ta n d out am ong th e I ta lic s , o r e v e n th e
e t c .— b y D aw n or th e band o f D a w n s — n o b le go d d esses, G re e k s o f M a g n a G r a e c ia c o u ld h a v e a s p ir e d (p e r h a p s w ith a
'w o m e n o f t h e arya,' . . . T h is is w h a t t h e bonae matres, th e s tr o n g e r c la im ) to th e h o n o r o f s u p p ly in g "v a le n c e s " fo r
univirae w o m e n , a l s o a c t o u t in t h e M a tr a lia , a g a i n s t a s la v e R o m a n s o c ie ty .
w om an w ho m u st r e p r e s e n t, in co n tra st w ith th e m , th e In f a c t, th e e th n ic c o lo ra tio n o f th is th re e fo ld g r o u p in g
w ic k e d a n d b a s e b o m e l e m e n t / '6 b a r e l y c o n c e a l s its f u n c tio n a l s c o p e . It is q u ite re m a r k a b l e
T h e M a tra lia o f f e r a te llin g e x a m p l e o f th e p r e s e r v a t io n o f th a t th e R a m n e s c o r r e s p o n d s o p re c is e ly to th e c o m p a n io n s
th e rite i n d e p e n d e n tl y o f th e m y th . I n d e e d , O v i d , w h o k n e w o f th e p r ie s t-k in g , th e L u c e r e s to th e p a r a d ig m a tic s o ld ie r s ,
n o th in g o f th is In d o -E u ro p e a n th e o lo g y , d id not h e s ita te and th e T itie n s e s to th o s e w ho a re h e rd s m e n /fa rm e r s b y
la te r to ta ck o n t o th e a r c h a ic R o m a n litu rg y a n e x p la n a tio n tr a d itio n a l v o c a tio n . T h is r e fle c tio n le d G e o r g e s D u m é z il to
b o rro w e d fro m H e lle n ic fa b le . T h e s y n c r e tis t in te r p r e ta tio n re c a ll th e e x i s t e n c e o f e q u iv a le n t s tr u c tu r e s in V e d ic In d ia ,
h a d a s s im ila te d M a te r M a tu ta to th e G re e k I n o - L e u c o t h e a . w ith th e d i f f e r e n c e t h a t in In d ia th is d i s t in c ti o n w a s f r o z e n
T h e p o e t m a n a g e d to fin d in th e t a n g l e d a n d c o n t r a d ic to r y in to h e r e d ita r y c la s s e s : e a c h A r y a b e lo n g s b y b irth to o n e o f
w e b o f fa b le s a b o u t I n o - L e u c o t h e a a h o m o lo g o u s s itu a tio n th e th re e g r o u p s , B ra h m a n s , w a rrio rs , a n d h e rd s m e n /fa rm ­
th a t c o u ld ju s tify t h e r itu a l s c h e m a o f t h e R o m a n c u lt. e r s . T h e d if f e r e n c e m a y b e e x p la in e d b y th e fa c t th a t In d ia
In o -L e u c o th e a m a y a p p e a r to b e a k in d ly n u r s e fo r h e r re m a in e d a ro y a l s o c ie ty o f th e fe u d a l ty p e , w h e r e a s R o m e ,
nephew B a c c h u s , b u t s h e t u r n s o u t to b e a n e v il m o th e r to in t h e c o u r s e o f its h is to r y , n e v e r s to p p e d e v o l v i n g to w a r d a
h e r o w n c h ild r e n . O v id ju s tifie s th e litu rg y o f th e M a tra lia d e m o c r a c y o f c itiz e n s .
w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g e t i o l o g y , in w h i c h h e a d d r e s s e s a n e x h o r ­ T h is f u n c tio n a l tr ip a r t i ti o n c a n a l s o b e f o u n d in t h e h ie r ­
ta tio n to th e m o th e rs of L a tiu m : ''M a y m o th e r s p io u sly a rch y of th e th re e p rin cip a l go d s, w h ic h p re ce d e d th e
in v o k e th e g o d d e s s n o t o n b e h a lf o f th e ir o w n o f f s p r in g , fo r C a p i t o l i n e t r i a d i n R o m e . I n d e e d , it i s v i s i b l e j u s t b e l o w t h e
a s a m o th e r s h e h e rs e lf h a s h a r d ly b r o u g h t g o o d lu ck . M a y su rfa ce in th e a n c ie n t ordo sacerdotum, re co rd e d b y F e s tu s
th e y c o m m e n d u n to h e r, ra th e r, th e c h ild re n o f o th e r s , fo r ( p p . 2 9 9 - 3 0 0 L 2), w h o s a w th e fo llo w in g h i e r a r c h ic a l o r d e r :
s h e h a s b e e n m o re u se fu l to h e r n e p h e w B a c c h u s th a n to h e r t h e k in g , t h e F l a m e n D ia lis , t h e F l a m e n M a r tia lis , th e F la m e n
o w n s o n s " (O v id Fasti 6 .5 5 9 - 6 2 ).7 Q u irin a lis , th e P o n tife x M a x im u s. The th re e fla m e n s,
B y re s o rtin g to th e s a m e m e th o d t h a t is th e b a s is o f th e fla n k e d b y th e k in g a n d th e g r e a t p o n tiff, w e r e a s s ig n e d to
a n a ly s is of s tru c tu ra l co rre sp o n d e n ce s, th e c o m p a ra tiv is t th e s e r v ic e o f J u p ite r, M a r s , a n d Q u ir in u s , r e s p e c tiv e ly . O n c e
s c h o l a r s u c c e e d e d in i l l u m i n a t i n g t h e m e a n i n g o f D i v a A n - a y e a r t h e s e t h r e e fl a m e n s p r o c e e d e d in a n o p e n c h a r io t t o a
g ero n a, "w h o s a v e s th e s u n fro m th e c ris is o f th e w in te r c h a p e l o f F id e s , th e g o d d e s s o f g o o d f a ith , w h o p r e s id e d
s o ls tic e b y th e p o w e r o f s il e n c e " ; o f F o r tu n a P r im ig e n ia , a o v e r th e h a r m o n io u s re la tio n s h ip s a m o n g th e s e th re e r e p r e ­
p rim a l g o d d e s s , s im u lta n e o u s ly "m o th e r a n d d a u g h te r of s e n ta tiv e s . T h is d iv in e tria d can b e e x p la in e d o n ly b y th e
J u p i t e r " ; a n d o f L u a M a t e r , " t h e g o d d e s s D i s s o l u t i o n in t h e c o n c e p t u a l s t r u c t u r e t h a t G e o r g e s D u m é z il c a lle d " t h e id e ­
s e r v ic e o f R o m a n o r d e r ." o lo g y o f th e t h r e e f u n c t i o n s ," w h ic h c a n b e f o u n d o v e r a n d
T h ese rite s h a d b eco m e u n i n t e l l i g i b l e in R o m e o n ly b e ­ o v e r a g a i n in m o s t o f th e a n c i e n t I n d o - E u r o p e a n s o c ie t ie s ,
c a u s e th e y h a d b e e n d e ta c h e d fro m th e ir m y th o lo g ic a l c o n ­ w ith v a r ia n ts a n d a lte r a tio n s p e c u lia r to e a c h s o c ie ty .
t e x t . In r e d i s c o v e r i n g t h e s y m b o l i c m e a n i n g o f t h e s e r i t e s b y T h e s a m e t ria d a p p e a r s in th e r e lig io u s in s t it u ti o n s o f th e
c o n f r o n t i n g th e m w ith th e I n d o - E u r o p e a n d a t a , c o m p a r a t iv - a r c h a ic p e rio d . T h u s th e Regia,8 th e f o rm e r " d w e llin g p la ce
ism b y th e s a m e s tr o k e s u p p l ie d a b rillia n t p r o o f o f its o w n o f th e k i n g ," w h ic h d u r i n g t h e R e p u b lic b e c a m e th e s e a t o f
le g itim a c y . th e P o n tife x M a x im u s , h o u s e d t h r e e t y p e s o f c u lts (b e s id e s
T h e s e a r e , m o r e o v e r , m a rg in a l d iv in itie s th a t w e r e in c r e a s ­ th e c u lts o f J a n u s a n d J u n o , w h o w e re h o n o re d a s th o s e w h o
in g ly r e g a r d e d a s r e lic s in h is t o r i c t im e s . T h e I n d o - E u r o p e a n u sh e re d in th e new year and th e new m o n th ). The first
h e rita g e in Rom e is e v e n m o re fo rce fu lly m a n i f e s t in th e c o n c e r n e d J u p i te r a s p r in c ip a l g o d ; th e s e c o n d , M a r s , in th e
fu n d a m e n ta l s tr u c tu r e s . A trip a rtite id e o lo g y in s p ire s th e sacrarium Martis; and th e t h i r d , in a n o t h e r sacrarium, con ­
p o litica l s y s te m o f th e e a r l ie s t t im e s , a s w e ll a s th e h i e r a r c h y c e r n e d O p s C o n s iv a , w h o b e lo n g e d to a g r o u p o f d e itie s w h o
o f th e th r e e p rin c ip a l g o d s , J u p ite r , M a r s , a n d Q u ir in u s . a re r e p r e s e n te d by Q u irin u s on th e c a n o n ic a l l is t o f t h e
T r a d itio n k e p t a liv e th e m e m o r y o f th e t h r e e trib e s th a t trilo g y . B e c a u s e th e a u t h o r i ty o f Q u ir i n u s , t h e p a t r o n g o d o f
w e r e th o u g h t to h a v e p r o v id e d th e f r a m e w o r k o f th e o r ig in a l th e c o m m u n ity o f th e Q u irite s ( w h o w e r e re s p o n s ib le fo r
s o c ie ty : th e R am n es, th e L u ceres, and th e T itie n s e s or p r o d u c ti v e ta s k s in t im e o f p e a c e , a s o p p o s e d to th e milites
Q u ir ite s . T h is d iv is io n to o k o n a n e th n ic v a lu e : th e R a m n e s w h o w e r e s u b j e c t t o M a r s ) , c o u l d e x t e n d t o a ll a r e a s w i t h i n
w e re r e g a rd e d a s th e c o m p a n io n s o f R o m u lu s , th e L u c e r e s a s h is ju r is d ic tio n , h is fla m e n co u ld in te rv e n e w henever a
t h e E t r u s c a n a l li e s le d b y L u c u m o n , a n d t h e T i t i e n s e s a s t h e s p e c ia liz e d p rie st w a s n o t a v a ila b le . In th is r e g a r d , O v id
S a b in e s o f T a tiu s. C ic e r o c h a r a c te r iz e d th is tr ip a rtitio n p re ­ (Fasti 4 .9 1 0 ) re m a rk s th a t th e F la m e n Q u irin a lis o f fic ia te s
c is e ly : " R o m u l u s h a d d iv id e d th e p e o p le in to th r e e t r i b e s . . . b y d u rin g th e c e re m o n ie s of R o b ig u s (o r R o b ig o ), a d e ity
g iv in g th e m h is o w n n a m e , th e n a m e o f T a tiu s, a n d th e n a m e in v o k e d to p r e v e n t w h e a t b lig h t.
o f L u c u m o n , w h o , s e r v i n g a s R o m u l u s 's a lly , p e r i s h e d in t h e T h e s a m e a s s o c ia tio n jo in s to g e th e r — a fte r J a n u s , th e g o d
b a ttle a g a in s t th e S a b in e s " ( C ic e r o De republica 2 .8 ) . o f b e g in n in g s , a n d b e fo r e th e p a r tic u la r d e itie s in v o k e d o n
T h e m e m o ry o f th is tr ip a r t i ti o n h a s n e v e r v a n is h e d . Its s p e c ia l o c c a s io n s — J u p ite r , M a r s , a n d Q u ir i n u s in th e o ld
e x i s t e n c e w a s a c k n o w l e d g e d b y t h e g r e a t s c h o l a r V a r r o ( c ite d carmen o f th e devotio, a s o le m n p r a y e r b y w h ic h th e R o m a n
in S e r v i u s D a n i e l i s ad Aen. 5 .5 6 0 ) a n d r e i te r a te d in th e fo rm c o m m a n d e r -in -c h ie f " d e v o t e d " to th e M a n e s g o d s h is o w n
o f a n a p h o ris m o f th e a b rid g e r F lo r a s ( 2 .5 .6 ): " T h e R o m a n p erso n as w e ll a s th a t o f th e enem y (L iv y 8 .9 .6 ) . It a ls o
p e o p le a re m a d e u p o f a m ix tu re o f E tr u s c a n s , L a tin s , a n d in s p ire d th e o ld r a l e o f spolia opima r e c o r d e d b y F e s t u s ( p . 3 0 2
S a b in e s ." L 2), w h ic h p ro v id e s fo r th e prima spolia t o b e o f f e r e d t o
But th is trip le d iv isio n can h a rd ly be th e re s u lt of a J u p ite r , th e secunda to M a r s , a n d t h e tertia t o " J a n u s Q u i r i ­
fo r tu i t o u s a d d it i o n . W h a t is th e e x p l a n a t i o n fo r th e e th n ic n u s ." T h e tr ip a r tite s c h e m e p r e v a ils , w h a te v e r in te r p r e ta tio n
co m p o n e n ts? If t h e t r i p a r t i t i o n w e re v a lid , o n e w o u ld be one a d o p ts fo r prima, secunda, and tertia, and w h a te v e r

62

Temple of Vesta. Rome. Photo Alinari.
m eaning one gives to the expression “Janus Q uirinus''
(which I have tried to clarify in M.E.F.R.. 1960, p. 116ft'. =
R .C .D .R ., Janus dieu introducteur . . ). The association can
also be found in the triple patronage of the college of the
Salii, w ho w ere under the protection of the three deities, in
tutela Jovis Martis Quirini (Servius Danielis ad Aen. 8.663).
Finally, these Rom an facts are confirm ed rem arkably by
the parallelism in the Umbrian pan th eon . In Iguvium as in
Rom e, a triad brought together three gods: lov-. Mart-, and
Vofiono-, w ho w'ere given the com m on m odifier Grabovio- (in
this list, Voficmo- has been in terpreted by linguists as the
etym ological equivalent of Quirinus: see G eorges Dumézil,
ARR, p. 149, n o. 3).
The m em ory of a tripartite ideology th at reflects old
Indo-European conceptions seem s beyond dispute as far as
the origins of Rom e are con cern ed . It assum es that a society
cannot function harm oniously unless it is stru ctu red by three
hierarchical functions, nam ely, sovereignty (magical and
juridical), force (physical and military), and fertility and
prosperity (along with their pastoral and agrarian variants).
But it seem s that this sch em e was in a con stant state of
decline from the time w hen the Latins settled on the Italic
peninsula. By ending their itinerant status in order to be­
com e settled, they m oved from p rehistory to history.
This history w as then m arked by the tension of internal
rivalries and by the p ressure of o utside influences. Tradition
would have us believe that three m onarchs of E truscan origin
w ere the last on the list of kings— Tarquinius the Elder, Servius
Tullius, and Tarquinius Superbus— so that Etruscan influence
dom inated at the daw n of Rom an history. In fact, Etruria,
which gave its w om en a m ore im portant social role than
Indo-European society did, w as certainly familiar w ith the
substitution of tw o g od d esses, Juno and M inerva, for the
masculine consorts of Jupiter. As early as the end of the sixth
century b . c ., the new association of Jupiter, Juno, and
Minerva, to w hich a tem ple w as dedicated on top of the
Capitol, finally replaced the form er triad of Jupiter-M ars-
Quirinus.
In a sense, this ch an ge w as m ade in a spirit of continuity.
The keystone has rem ained, even though Jupiter took on the
features of Tinia, thanks to the Etruscan artist Vulca of Veii
ROMAN R E LIGION
(see Pliny [the Ekler| Saturates Histona 35.157).'’ Juno, the
protecting goddess of the Juniores, particularly of the young
men of military age. succeeded M ars, the god of war: and
M inerva, the guardian of artisans, took over for Quinn us
the patron of econom ic activities.
III. The Principal Stages of R eligious History
We wiD not attem pt to cover all the m eandenngs of the
religious history of Rom e. We can. how ever, review the
principal stages th at stake out its dévelopm ent. The expul­
sion of the kings in 509 a is an im portant event because it
marks the collapse of the keystone that ensured the cohesion
of the old system . Of course, in a m anner of speaking the
king survived on the religious level, tn the role of Rex
Sacrorum or Rex Sacrificulus, w ho inherited the liturgical
functions of the form er king. In this indirect way the
Rom ans thought they could escape the legitimate w rath of
the gods — ira deum— w ho would not have accepted the
com plete overthrow of the religious traditions. H ow ever,
this fossilized individual would no longer play any role in the
life of the city. In th e absence of a suprem e arbiter, two
classes, the patricians and the plebeians, initiated a rivalry
that w as to last for centuries. Their confrontation was ex­
pressed essentially in term s of an econom ic, social, and
political struggle that can be explained by the opposition of
their respective interests, but it w as also m anifest on the
religious level. From the beginning, patricians and plebeians
w ere far from enjoying religious equality. Patricians alone
w ere entitled to en ter traditional priestly orders such as the
pontificate and the augurate. N ot until 3 0 0 a . c . w a s the
O gulnia law passed, w hich guaranteed religious equality
betw een the tw o classes by reserving for plebeians a good
half of the seats recruited in each college. Even so. the
archaic priesthoods, such as the Rex Sacrorum , the Flam m es
M ajores, and the Salii, rem ained reserved for patricians.
This religion, so thoroughly structured in its origins, was
quickly exposed to two perils that becam e increasingly-
m enacing as time w ent by. the w ave of syncretism and the
m onopolization of certain cults by the great conquerors of
the first century b .c .
W hat is m ean t by syncretism ? Stig W ik a n d e r" clarified the
origin of the w ord, which dates back to Plutarch (De fraterno
amore 19 = Moralia 3.2 7 1 ), w here it has a different m eaning,
since sunkrêtismos, m eaning “ union, federation,” was applied
to C retans w ho had the custom of form ing a sacred union
w hen outside enem ies approached. Through several incar­
nations (syncretism designated “som etim es the attem pts
m ade to reconcile protestors, som etim es the attem pt to
reconcile the various philosophies of antiquity, especially
those of Plato and A ristotle” ), a new usage that claim ed to
justify itself through a false etym ology deriving the word
from sunkrësis o r 'm ixture“ used the term to den ote the
m ixture of m yths and religions.“ In the realm of Roman
religion in particular, it designated the contam ination of
autochthonous traditions and figures by elem ents o f Greek
or Eastern origin.
This phenom enon can be verified in the Rom an liturgy of
the lectisternia, which m ore or less assim ilated Rom an dei­
ties to G reek deities to a m ore or less pronounced degree. In
all instances it presupposed a com m on denom inator; thus,
the concept of “ spell," w hich at first in Rom e had a religious
essence ( veneror < *venes-or "I cast a persuasive spell [on such
a d e ity l"),11 drew together the Roman Venus and the Greek
A phrodite despite the fact that it had a m ore profane color tn
Greece.
63
R OME
Temple of Venus. Rome. Photo Anderson.
Syncretic action could have diametrically opposed effects.
Thus, through the Trojan legend, the goddess Venus exerted
a widespread influence that m erely deployed all the impli­
cations of her primordial function. She gradually "b ecam e"
what she fundam entally "w a s " all along, nam ely, the medi­
ating pow er betw een the Rom ans and the gods.
Conversely, the Latin Diana, w ho w as the deity of the light
of night (close to Jupiter, by her sem antic origin), experi­
enced the vicissitudes of her political m isfortunes. H er Latin
identity becam e so evan escen t12 that in the tim e of A ugustus
she w as regarded as no m ore than "A pollo's sister." As such,
she appears next to "h e r m o th er" Latona in the Palatine
temple that A ugustus erected in honor of "h e r brother"
Apollo (see Propertius 2 .3 1 .1 5 -1 6 ).
Yet another peril threatened the Roman pantheon, a peril
particularly noticeable during the last century of the Repub­
lic: the illegal solicitation of fashionable deities by anyone
who aspired to power. Deep trouble prevailed internally and
externally; social unrest (9 0 - 8 8 b .c .) and civil w ars (8 8 -8 6
b .c .) had shaken up Roman society. These troubles had been
followed by the bloody proscriptions of Sulla (8 3 -8 2 b .c .),
which anticipated the prohibitions of the trium virate of 43
b .c . In 73 b .c ., the slaves rose in rebellion at the instigation of
Spartacus.
In this climate of disarray, "sa v io rs" appeared w ho, each
in his turn, placed their ambition un d er the protection of a
well-disposed deity within the scope of their family tradi­
tions and their level of culture, or lack of it.
The earliest and least cultured— M arius— offered the spec­
tacle of utter in coh eren ce.13 He show ed evidence both of a
certain respect for tradition (after the victory over the Cimbri
64
at Vercellae in 101 b .c ., he dedicated a temple in honor of
Honos, "H on or," and Virtus, "C o u rag e") and a propensity for
strange deviations: after the victory over the Teutons at Aix
in 102 and over the Cimbri in 101, he let the Romans offer
libations "both to the gods and to M arius" (Plutarch Marius
27.8). Long under the influence of a w om an nam ed M artha,
a Syrian priestess, he turned his attention for a while toward
the M agna Mater, the goddess Cybele; but his religion,
which w as steeped in superstition, never reached the level of
a personal cult.
Sulla was altogether d ifferent.14 He took the Trojan legend
and turned it to his personal advantage, after rather eclecti­
cally soliciting the good graces of the Cappadocian goddess
Ma as well as those of H ercules. He understood the benefit of
Trojan patronage so clearly that he had himself sum am ed
Epaphroditos. This translation of the Latin cognom en Felix
show ed clearly that he intended to pass for the protégé of
Venus Felix, the goddess w ho brings luck. Sulla was the one
who was actually responsible for inaugurating the tradition
of persona] devotion to those in power.
Pom pey tried to follow this exam p le,13 but the uncertainty
of his character was reflected in his religious hesitations. He
too tried to benefit from the Trojan m ystique after his victory
over M ithridates in 66 B.c. Upon his return to Rome, he
raised above his theater— the first stone theater in Rome,
built in 55 b .c .— a temple dedicated to Venus Victrix. Pom-
p ey's m isfortune may have stem m ed from having had Julius
Caesar as his adversary. During the decisive battle of Pharsa­
lus (48 b.c .), he first chose the watchword Venus Victrix, but
had to abandon it to his adversary C aesar and instead use
Hercules Invictus.
 R O M A N R E L I G I O N

J u liu s C a e s a r w a s a b le t o re c la im t h e tu te l a r y p a t r o n a g e o f tio n . T o w h a t e x t e n t, fo r e x a m p le , d o e s th e A fric a n S a tu r n

V e n u s w i t h t h e g r e a t e s t ' l e g i t i m a c y / ' 16 s i n c e h e t r a c e d h is b rin g to m in d , th ro u g h th e a ffin itie s o f th e t w o g o d s , th e
lin e a g e d ir e c tly t o V e n u s b y w a y o f J u lu s A s c a n i u s , th e s o n C a rth a g in ia n B a a l ? 21 A n d to w h a t e x te n t w a s C a e s a r rig h t
o f A e n e a s a n d g r a n d s o n o f V e n u s. B u t C a e s a r d id n o t s to p in id e n tify in g th e great god o f G a u l w ith M e rcu rv (Gallic
a t fo u n d in g a p e rs o n a l c u lt b y e r e c tin g a m a g n ific e n t te m p le W i r 6 . 1 T ) ? 22
to V e n u s G e n e tr ix in h is n e w F o r u m . H is s tr o k e o f g e n iu s A n o th e r c h a r a c te r is tic o f th e Im p e ria l E ra w a s th e im p a c t
w a s to c r e a te a c lo s e a s s o c ia tio n b e tw e e n th e R o m a n n a tio n o f v a r io u s p h ilo s o p h ic a l c u r r e n ts upon r e lig io n , a c ir c u m ­
a n d th e J u lia n d y n a s ty : V e n u s G e n e tr ix m a y h a v e b e e n th e s ta n c e th a t has o n ly r e c e n tly been a c k n o w le d g e d . T h is
m o t h e r o f a ll t h e R om an s, w ho w e re th e d e sc e n d a n ts o f p h ilo s o p h ic a l a s c e n d a n c y w a s a p p lie d s e le c tiv e ly . It c h o s e
A en eas, but she w as p a rtic u la rly th e m o th e r of th o s e d e itie s w h o s e p e r s o n a litie s in c lin e d th e m to th is p ro cess:
d e s c e n d a n t s o f A e n e a s k n o w n a s t h e J u lii, C a e s a r 's d e s c e n ­ fro m th e first c e n tu r y , th e R o m a n H e r c u le s h a d a ttr a c te d th e
d a n ts . a tte n tio n o f th e S to ics a n d th e C y n i c s . 23 I n th is c a s e th e
T h is "d iv in e a n ce s try " m ade a ll th e m o re f e a s ib le an p h ilo s o p h ic a l e x e g e s is w a s n o t c o r r o s iv e ; to th e c o n tr a r y , to
in n o v a tio n th a t w o u ld l a te r b e in s titu tio n a liz e d d u r in g th e th e e x te n t th a t it e x a l te d H e r c u l e s 's m is s io n of s a lv a tio n
e m p i r e : t h e d e if ic a tio n o f t h e d e c e a s e d e m p e r o r ( e x c e p t in t h r o u g h o u t t h e w o r ld a n d h is tr iu m p h o v e r h u m a n p a s s i o n s ,
th e c a se s o f d e p o se d e m p e ro rs). it h a d t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o i n t r o d u c e i n to t h e r e l ig i o u s v is io n
In 4 4 B.c., t h e R o m a n s e n a t o r s to o k t h e in itia tiv e a n d p r o ­ t h e d i m e n s i o n s t h a t it h a d l a c k e d i n a n c i e n t R o m a n r e l i g i o n ,
c l a i m e d C a e s a r ' s d e i f i c a t i o n : " A n d f i n a ll y t h e y p r o c l a i m e d h i m n a m e ly , th e e th ic a l a n d e s c h a to lo g ic a l d im e n s io n s .
J u p ite r Ju liu s d ir e c tly a n d o r d e r e d th a t a t e m p le b e d e d ic a t e d to B u t th e very d iv e r s ity o f th e p h ilo s o p h ic a l sch o o ls (fo r
h i m a s w e ll a s t o t h e C l e m e n t i a C a e s a r i s b y n a m i n g A n t h o n y in s ta n c e , M a rc u s A u re liu s h a d fo u r c h a irs re s e rv e d a t th e
t h e i r p r i e s t , f o l l o w i n g d i e e x a m p l e o f t h e f l a m e n D i a l i s . " 17 T h i s U n iv e r s ity o f A th e n s fo r fo llo w e rs o f P la to , A r is to tle , th e
in itia tiv e b r in g s to m in d a p re c e d e n t: A eneas had a lre a d y S to a , a n d E p ic u r u s , re s p e c tiv e ly ) g e n e r a lly b r o u g h t a b o u t a
b e e n a s s im ila te d t o J u p i te r I n d ig e s (L iv y 1 .2 .6 ) . B u t h e r e th e v e r y d if f e r e n t r e s u lt. It tr ig g e r e d a h ig h le v e l o f s k e p tic is m
S e n a te h a d b e s t o w e d u p o n th e liv in g C a e s a r a p r iv ile g e t h a t th e a m o n g " e n l i g h t e n e d m i n d s ," w h e r e a s a ll f o r m s o f s u p e r s t i ­
L a tin s h a d a c k n o w le d g e d in th e f o u n d e r o f th e n a tio n o n ly tio n f r o m a s t r o l o g y t o m a g ic e x e r t e d a s e d u c ti v e s p e ll o n t h e
a fte r h e h a d v a n is h e d fro m th e e a rth . s o u l s o f t h e " s i m p l e - m i n d e d . " 24 A f t e r t h a t , t h e i n t e l l i g e n t s i a
In a n y c a s e , th e c u lt o f divus Julius w a s in s titu te d a fte r d id n o t h e s ita te to a d o p t a n a lto g e th e r p r a g m a tic a ttitu d e .
C a e s a r 's d e a th . T h e h e a v e n ly p r o m o tio n b e n e fite d fro m a T h e o r e tic a l a g n o s t i c i s m c o e x i s t e d w ith d e f e r e n c e t o w a r d th e
c o in c id e n c e o f e x c e p tio n a l c ir c u m s ta n c e s : th e a p p e a r a n c e o f e s ta b lis h m e n t.
a c o m e t d u r i n g th e g a m e s in h o n o r o f V e n u s G e n e tr ix , w h ic h A s e a r ly a s th e first c e n tu r y a . d ., P l i n y th e E ld e r o ffe rs
w a s g e n e ra lly in te rp re te d a s th e h a p p y p o r t e n t o f C a e s a r 's e v i d e n c e in s h a r p c o n t r a s t to t h e d e i s m t h a t w a s s ti ll p r o ­
a p o t h e o s i s . 1“ W e k n o w t h a t t h i s t it l e b e c a m e o f f ic i a l, s i n c e t h e fe sse d by C i c e r o . 25 N ot c o n te n t to cen su re th e "h u m a n
a d o p te d s o n o f C a e s a r, O c ta v ia n , w o u ld la te r ta k e th e n a m e o f f ra ilty " (imbecillitatis humanae) th a t se ek s " a r e p r e s e n ta tio n
D iv i F i l iu s ( 's o n o f t h e d e i f i e d " ) . and a fo rm of g o d ," he d id not h e s ita te to p ro p o se a
C a e s a r 's h e ir fo llo w e d th e c u s t o m s o f h is tim e s . H e to o d e fin itio n th a t r e d u c e d g o d to s o c ia l s e r v ic e : Deus est mortali
p r a c tic e d a c u lt o f c h o ic e — h is p e r s o n a l d e v o tio n to A p o llo . juvare mortalem et haec ad aeternam gloriam via ( 'T o m a n , g o d
But he w as c a lle d upon by th e fa te s to assu m e a m o re m eans h e lp in g m an and th e re in lie s th e w ay to e te rn a l
i m p o r ta n t ta s k , n a m e ly , to r e c o n c ile t h e r e s p e c t fo r th e Ju lia n g l o r y " ) . 26 T h e s a m e P lin y w h o d e rid e d "th e even g r e a te r
h e rita g e w ith th e sp irit of op en n ess to n e ce s sa ry ’ in n o ­ s t u p i d i t y " w h ic h c o n s i s te d in b e l ie v in g in i n n u m e r a b l e g o d s
v a t i o n s . 19 T h e e m p i r e h a d b e e n f o u n d e d . f o u n d it a l t o g e t h e r n a t u r a l t o a p p r o a c h th e e m p e ro r " w ith
r e l i g i o u s r e s p e c t " ( religiose J . 27
T h is f e a t u r e is s ig n if i c a n t . W h e r e a s p o l y t h e i s m w as ru n ­
IV . R e lig io n d u r in g th e Im p e r ia l E ra
n in g th e d o u b le risk of d is c r e d itin g its e lf th ro u g h b o th
B y a q u ir k o f fa te , th e la s t e m p e r o r o f th e R o m a n E m p ir e o f i n c e s s a n t p r o lif e r a tio n and th e g ro w in g s k e p ticism o f th e
th e W e s t to o k th e n a m e o f R o m u lu s A u g u s tu lu s ( d e th r o n e d i n te lle c tu a ls , th e m o s t s o lid in f r a s t r u c t u r e o f R o m a n r e lig io n
b y O d o a c e r in a .d . 4 7 6 ) , a s t h o u g h t h is d o u b l e n a m e w e r e a p p e a r e d to b e th e im p e ria l c u lt.
d e s t i n e d t o c a ll t o m i n d o n e la s t t im e t h e fir s t k in g o f R o m e A u g u s t u s 28 s a w t o i t t h a t a c l o s e l i n k w a s m a i n t a i n e d i n t h e
a n d , w ith a n iro n ic tw is t (r e c a llin g G r a e c u lu s a g a in s t G r a e ­ p r o v i n c e s b e t w e e n t h e im p e ria l c u lt a n d t h e c u lt o f R o m e .
c u s ) , t h e f o u n d e r o f t h e R o m a n E m p i r e . T h e f o llo w in g is a n T h e c u lt o f R o m e re a c h e d its a p o g e e u n d e r th e E m p e ro r
a tte m p t to is o la te th e e s s e n tia l c h a r a c te r is tic s th a t have H a d r i a n , w h o t ie d it t o t h e J u lia n c u l t o f V e n u s in t h e d o u b l e
m ark ed th e fu n d a m e n ta lly re lig io u s fa b ric of th is fiv e - te m p le w rith ap ses b a ck -to -b a ck . T h is te m p le had been
c e n tu ry p e rio d . e r e c t e d in h o n o r o f R o m a A e t e m a a n d V e n u s G e n e tr i x in a .d .
F irs t, R o m a n p o ly th e is m w a s e n r ic h e d b y e v e r y n e w h o s t 1 2 1 . 29 T h i s d o e s n o t a l t e r t h e f a c t t h a t " t h e A n t o n i n e d y n a s t y
a s t h e f r o n tie r s o f th e e m p i r e w e r e e x t e n d e d . B y d e f in itio n , in te n s if ie d and d iv e rs ifie d th e re lig io u s e x a lta tio n of th e
th is o p e n n e s s c o n f o r m e d t o o n e o f th e f u n d a m e n ta l t e n d e n ­ e m p e r o r a n d h is fa m ily . In r e s p o n s e to th e ir w is h e s , t h e c u lt
c ie s o f p o ly th e is m . T h is te n d e n c y h a d b e e n e n c o u r a g e d b y o f th e divi ( e m p e r o r s d e ifie d a f t e r th e ir d e a t h s ) to o k u p a n
th e s y n c r e tis m th a t had e n a b le d fo re ig n d e itie s to e n te r in c re a s in g ly la rg e r s e g m e n t o f th e litu rg ic a l c a le n d a r , a n d
R o m e . T h e y c a m e a t first p r in c ip a lly fro m E tr u r ia a n d M a g n a o f f i c i a l p r o p a g a n d a p r o c l a i m e d w rith i n c r e a s i n g i n t e n s i t y t h e
G ra e cia , la te r fro m th e N e a r E a s t, a n d f in a lly f r o m E g y p t. s u p e r n a t u r a l ' v i r t u e s ' o f t h e p r i n c e s . " 30
W h a t w a s t h e R o m a n a t ti t u d e t o w a r d th is p r o f u s io n o f n e w The im p e r ia l m y s tiq u e w as n u rtu re d in s id e c e rta in
d e itie s ? p r ie s tly c o l le g e s , p a r tic u la r ly w ith in t h e c lo s e r a n k s o f th e
S o m e tim e s fo re ig n d e itie s w e r e R o m a n iz e d b y v ir tu e o f th e A r v a l B r e t h r e n . 31 S u c h h a d b e e n t h e i n t e n t i o n o f A u g u s t u s ,
interpretatio Romana (a k in d o f r e n a m i n g b y e q u iv a le n c e ), a n d w h o s p e a r h e a d e d a r e n e w a l o f th is a r c h a ic c u lt. T h e A rv a l
a t o t h e r tim e s t h e y k e p t t h e ir o r ig in a l n a m e s . T h is p h e n o m ­ B re th re n saw to it t h a t in th e sa cre d grov e of Dea Dia,
e n o n c a n b e v e r i f i e d t h r o u g h o u t t h e e m p i r e . 20 H i s t o r i a n s o f sa crifice s w e re a ls o o ffe re d to th e divi.32 w h o w e re p ro g re s­
re lig io n t h e r e f o r e o f te n e n c o u n te r s u b tle c a s e s o f c o n t a m in a ­ s iv e ly a d d e d t o t h e lis t o f d e itie s in s c r ib e d in th e ir litu rg y .

65
ROME

The Arval Brethren n ever missed a chance to show their One im portant case cited with adm iration by rabbinical
loyalty to the princely house. At the start of every year, they sources— an exceptional case39— speaks of the "holy m an "
uttered the vota, solem n prayers for the reigning prince. The who through all his life had refused to look at the effigy of a
following is an exam ple, a carmen recited on 3 January of the Roman coin, in order to respect the prohibition against the
y ear 91 on behalf of Domitian: "Jupiter, very kind, very imperial cult. This anecdote provides a striking contrast with
great, if the Em peror C aesar, the son of the deified Vespa­ the account in the Gospel of M atthew (22, 20, and 21), which
sian, Domitian, A ugu stu s, G erm anicus, G reat Pontiff, tells of Christ's famous intervention with respect to the coin
holder of tribunitan power, perpetual censor, father of the with the effigy of Caesar. It reveals the existence of a new
country, and Domitia A ugusta, his wife w hom I nam e climate. After the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem (in
expressly, if all these stay alive, grant that their house rem a;n a .d . 70), the hostility against Rome found additional nour­
safe and sound on the third of January of the year about to ishm ent in the extension of the imperial cult (Revelation,
close and for the next year, this for the Rom an people and the chapters 13 and 15, refers to the threat of death that hung
Roman state, and grant that you w atch over this day and over "all who would not worship the image of the Beast)."
their persons so as to keep them from w hatever perils m ay Thus, the policy that had consisted in com pounding the
exist or com e about before that day, and grant them the joy civic allegiance with the imperial cult had run up against
of success, as I expressly state, by w atching over their serious difficulties. In any event, it left such an em ptiness of
persons so that they m ay be kept in their cu rren t situation or spirit that a reaction spread m ore and m ore widely, on both
else in an even better situation; if you will kindly grant this the theological and the ethical levels. M oving in opposition
request, w e hereby solem nly prom ise in the nam e of the to the traditional polytheism and its national gods, various
college of the Arval Brethren that w e will offer you an ox initiatives asserted the prim acy of a single universal deity. It
with golden h o rn s."33 was no accident that these initiatives revolved around deities
The developm ent of this imperial m ystique w as to provoke of Oriental origin. Thus, the figure of Hercules, w ho from
conflict between Christians and pagans.34 W hereas Roman tra­ the first century had attracted philosophers, took on even
dition w as founded on tolerance tow ard all forms of w or­ greater visibility in the theology of Julian "th e A postate,"
ship, the m andatory requirem ent of the imperial cult, which w ho tried to make him into a pagan answ er to C hrist.40
was interpreted by the Rom an authorities as a proof of Similarly, the appeal of the Egyptian Isis took on a univer­
citizenship, m et with refusal on the part of the Christians, salist character, as is attested in book 11 of the Metamorphoses
who saw in it nothing but an act of idolatry. The fam ous of Apuleius, a kind of mystical docum ent of Pan-Isiasm.41 In
exchange of letters (ca. a .d . 1 1 1 -1 2 ) betw een Pliny the it Isis is invoked as "th e m other of all nature, the sovereign
Younger, then governor of Bithynia, and the em peror of all the elem ents, the primordial origin of the centuries, the
Trajan33 sheds som e light on this historical m isunderstand­ suprem e deity" (Apuleius Metamorphoses 11.5.1).
ing. The governor had confessed his difficulty to the em ­ Finally, in the third century, the em peror Aurelian42 tried
peror. He had ordered the execution of Christians obstinate to make the cult of the sun preem inent by erecting on the
in their vow s; he had ordered the release of those w ho had Field of Mars a splendid temple to Sol Invictus (the invincible
been "d en ou n ced by anonym ous libels," and w ho had sun), in a .d . 27 4 .43 The sun, which w as already considered
recanted "in front of the im age of the em p eror and the by the em peror to be his personal protector (Conservator
statues of the g o d s" and w ho had "blasphem ed C hrist." But A ugusti), was hailed as "th e sovereign god of the Roman
since after investigating he had been unable to find anything
other than "a n unreasonable and inordinate superstition, he
had suspended the hearing pending the advice of Trajan."
The em peror replied: "T h ere is no need to investigate [the Mithra sacrificing a bull. Paris, Musée du Louvre. Photo Giraudon.
Christians]. If they are exposed and convicted, they m ust be
punished, but with the following restriction: w hosoever shall
deny being a Christian and give concrete proof of his avowal,
by w hich I m ean offering sacrifice to our gods, even if he had
been suspect in the past, he shall be granted a pardon in
exchange for his repentance. As for the anon ym ous denun­
ciations, they m u st not be entered as evidence in any
proceedings involving accusation. This is a hateful exam ple
of behavior that is not becom ing to our tim e s."36 T hrough the
spread of the imperial cult, the religious policies of the
Antonine dynasty tended to create a pow erful link between
Rome and the people of the em pire, and it did so by
exhibiting a w isdom of the kind that can be witnessed in
Trajan's decisions. This policy left its m ark throughout the
empire. It is interesting to note that in the easternm ost part
of the M editerranean basin, it w as the imperial cult that left
the strongest im print. In fact, in Rom an Palestine, out of the
whole of paganism " it w as the imperial cult that attracted
the greatest attention in the rabbinical com m entaries, as has
been dem onstrated in a recent study.37 The Jew s m ay have
obtained from the Rom an em perors a dispensation from all
cultic activity, but this "applied only to dead gods and not to
the living gods w ho w ere the deified m o n arch s."38 At the
very least, the Jew s w ere sw orn to loyalty and to participat­
ing in the official festivals.

66
 R O M A N R E L I G I O N

E m p i r e " ( D o m in u s I m p e ri R o m a n i). Its fe s tiv a l (N a ta lis S o lis) brings light") and Juno lucina ("she who brings to light"), the
w a s s e t o n 2 5 D e c e m b e r , " t h e d a t e o n w h ic h th e s ta r r e s u m e s protectress of those who give birth: cf. Catullus 34.13-14.
i t s a s c e n d i n g p a t h f o r a n o t h e r y e a r . " 44
13. On the religious attitude of Marius, see my book R .R.V .,
T h is w a s c e rta in ly th e la s t a n d th e m o s t im p re s s iv e a t ­
268ff., as well as J.-C. Richard, "La Victoire de Marius," M.E.F.R. 77
(1965): 69-85.
te m p t b y a R o m a n e m p e r o r to c r e a te a universal cu lt: p a n s o -
14. Regarding the religious innovations of Sulla, see my book
la ris m w o u ld la te r p r o v id e th e f o u n d a tio n o f th e th e o lo g y R .R .V .. 273ff. In a general way, cf. J. Carcopino, Sylla ou la monarchie
p r o f e s s e d b y M a c r o b i u s a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e fi f t h c e n t u r y manquée (Paris 1931). P. Jal, "Les Dieux et les guerres civiles," R.E.L.
A.D.45 It a ls o o f fe rs p r o o f th a t th e te n d e n c y t o w a r d h e n o t h e - 40 (1962): 170-200.
ism h a d ta k e n h o ld a t th e e x p e n s e o f p o ly th e is m . M o r e o v e r, 15. See my book R.R .V ., 296ff.
th e p re e m in e n c e o f a single d e ity o f u n iv e rs a l a p p e a l m u s t 16. On the religious attitude of Julius Caesar, see my book R .R .V .,
h a v e a p p e a r e d a s th e o n ly c h a n c e p a g a n is m h a d fro m th e n 301ff. In general, cf., most recently, Stefan Weinstock, Divus /ulius
on in th e face of th e su ccess e n jo y e d by th e m y s te ry (Oxford 1971).
r e lig io n s .
17. Dio Cassius 44.6.4. For commentary on this passage, see
G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque. 2d ed., p. 541.
I n d e e d , t h e s e re lig io n s h a d g a in e d p o p u la rity e s p e c ia lly
18. On the apotheosis of Caesar, see the texts presented and the
a m o n g th e th r o n g o f d is in h e r ite d p e o p le , b e c a u s e o f th e ir
commentary in my book R .R .V ., 316-23.
e t h i c a l p r e s c r i p t i o n s a n d e s c h a t o l o g i c a l p r o m i s e s , a ll d i m e n ­
19. Cf. the article "The Religious Policies of Augustus" below.
s io n s a lie n to tra d itio n a l R o m a n re lig io n . T h e c u lt o f M ith ra 20. J. Toutain has devoted a series of works to "Cultes païens dans
h a d b e e n s p r e a d b y s o l d i e r s a n d h a d t h r i v e d p a r t i c u l a r l y in l'empire romain" (Bibliothèque de l'École des Hautes Études); in
th e f r o n tie r p r o v in c e s o f th e e m p ir e ; th e in itia te s w h o h a d particular, vol. 3, fasc. 1: Les cultes africains: Les cultes ibériques (Paris
e n t e r e d in to th e "m ilitia o f g o o d n e s s " b y p a s s in g th r o u g h 1917); vol. 3, fasc. 2: Les cultes de la Gaule romaine (Paris 1920).
s e v e n d e g r e e s o f m y s t e r i e s w e r e g u a r a n t e e d e t e r n a l b l i s s .46 A s 21. Cf. M. Leglay, Saturne Africain. Histoire (Paris 1966); Saturne
f o r C h r i s t i a n i t y , it h a d p r o g r e s s e d i n s p i t e o f — o r p e r h a p s b e ­ Africain. Monuments (Paris 1966). In general, cf. Gilbert Charles-
cause of— th e p e r s e c u t i o n s . 47 M ore open th a n M ith ra is m ,
Picard, Les religions de l'Afrique antique (Paris 1954).
22. Cf. P. M. Duval, Les Dieux de la Gaule (Paris 1957).
w h i c h w a s r e s e r v e d f o r i n i t i a t e s , it o f f e r e d a n a s c e t i c i s m th a t
23. See my article "L'Hercule Romain et la réforme religieuse
w a s s u p p o s e d t o e n s u r e t o " a l l m e n o f g o o d w i l l " s a l v a t i o n in
d'Auguste," R.Ph.. 1942, 31-57 (= R.C.D R., same title). In general,
th e h e re a fte r. T h e R om an w o rld w a s h e a d in g fo r p ro f o u n d see M. Simon, Hercule et le christianisme (Strasbourg 1955). See also J.
m e ta m o rp h o se s . Bavet, Hercule funéraire. M.E.F.R., 1921-22, 219-66,, and 1923,
R .S ./g .h . 19ll02.
24. Cf. J. Festugière, La révélation d'Hermès trismégiste I: L'astrologie
et les sciences occultes (Paris 1944).
NOTES 25. See the article "Cicero as Theologian" below.
26. Pliny the Elder, N.H. 2.14 and 18.
The brief references are to the bibliographic lists. Abbreviations that 27. Ibid., 2.14: Innumeros quidem . . . majorem ad socordiam accedit.
are not defined in the list below conform to the rules of the Oxford Ibid., Praef. 11: "You (= Vespasianus) are approached only with
Classical Dictionary.1234567890 religious respect, even by those who come to offer homage, I know."
28. Cf. the article 'The Religious Policies of Augustus" below.
1. “I ask you and venerate you, I beg and even now I obtain your 29. Cf. Wissowa, Ruk2. 340-41. The anniversary of the temple,
favor." The editors have had a tendency to replace the manuscript dedicated 21 April, coincides with the date of the birth of Rome.
reading feroque by oroque. Georges Dumézil, La religion romaine 30. J. Beaujeu, La religion romaine à l'apogée de l'empire (Paris 1955),
archaïque (Archaic Roman Religion; ARR), 2d ed., p. 109, was right to 1:426.
reestablish it and provides an excellent commentary. 31. Cf. J. Scheid, Les Frères Armies, Recrutement et origine sociale sous
2. See in particular Festus, p. 458 L., who in affirming the number les empereurs /ulio-Claudiens (Paris 1975), 340-42.
seven adds Subura to this list. See also Servius ad Aen. 6.783. 32. Cf. G. Henzen, Acta Fratrum Arvalium (Berlin 1874), 148 - 49.
3. Roma quadrata (square Rome) designates, according to Festus, 33. CIL, 6, 2068, lines 1-9: "Juppiter optime maxime, si imperator
pp. 310-12 L., "the placement of the Palatine, situated in front of the Caesar divi Vespasiani filius Domitianus Augustus Germanicus
temple of Apollo, where are.found the objects that are customarily pontifex maximus tribunicia potestate censor perpetuus pater pa­
deposited to obtain good fortune at the time of the foundation of a triae et Domitia Augusta conjunx eius, quos me sentio dicere, vivent
town." The expression Roma quadrata figures in the Annales of Ennius domusque eorum incolumis erit ante diem III Nonas Januarias quae
(vol. 123, p. 42, of the Warmington edition). proximae populo Romano Quiritibus, rei publicae populi Romani
4. Cf. the article "Roman Gods," below. Quiritium erunt, et eum diem eosque salvos servaveris ex periculis si
5. See Georges Dumézil, Déesses latines et mythes védiques (Latin qua sunt eruntue ante eum diem eventumque bonum ita uti me
goddesses and Vedic myths) (Brussels 1956), and more recently. sentio dicere, dederis, eosque in eo statu qui nunc est aut eo meliore
Archaic Roman Religion (2d ed., Paris 1974), 66-68. servaveris, astu ea ita faxsis [sic], tunc tibi nomine collegi Fratrum
6. Cf. Georges Dumézil, Archaic Roman Religion, pp. 51-52. Arvalium bovem auratum vovemus esse futurum." This votum
7. The demonstration has been developed in my article "Ovide written in the solemn style of the Imperial Chancellery is not
interprète de la religion romaine," R.E.L. 46 (1969): 230-34 ( = presented in an unconditional fashion (like the prayer of the deivtio of
R.C.D.R., same title). Decius who surrenders himself to the gods in total confidence): it is
8. The monument is the site of recent excavations: see F. E. encumbered with clauses wherein prudence contends with guile
Brown, La protostoria della Regia, Atti della Pontificia Accademia Romana (thus, even as it asks Jupiter to preserve the present situation—"eo
di archeologia, Rendiconti 47 (1976): 15-36. statu qui nunc est"—it does not refuse the eventual improvement of
9. On the cultic statue in terra-cotta from the Capitoline temple of a better situation—"aut eo meliore"). As in all good contracts, a date
Jupiter, see, most recently, O. W. von Vacano, "Vulca, Rom und die of expiration is fixed—3 January of the following year—for the
Wölfin, Untersuchungen zur Kunst des frühen Rom," Festschrift Vogt contracting parties: the safeguarding of the imperial couple then
(= A.N.R.W.) 1,4, pp. 523-83. would be "repaid" by the ritual sacrifice of the ox with gilded horns.
10. Stig Wikander, Les “-ismes" dans la terminologie historico- 34. Cf. J. Moreau, La persécution du christianisme dans l'empire romain
religieuse, in Les Syncrétismes dans les religions grecque et romaine (Paris (Paris 1956), 40ff.
1973), 9-14. 35. Pliny the Younger, Epistulae 10:96-97. The epistolary exchange
11. Cf. the semantic analysis developed in my book R.R.V., 33ff. between the governor and the emperor is cited and commented
12. The assimilation of Diana to Artemis, in particular to Artemis upon in J. Moreau, La persécution. 41-45.
Locheia, has led to a confusion between Diana lucifera ("she who 36. Pliny the Younger, Epistulae 10:97 (trans. J. Moreau, except for

67
ROM E
some corrections). We reproduce the last Latin phrase, which has the
force of a lapidary formula: "Nam et pessimi exempli nec nostri
saeculi est."
37. Cf. Mireille Hadas-Lebel, Le paganisme dans la Palestine romaine
d'après les sources rabbmiques. Mémoire inédit de l'École des Hautes
Études, section 5, 1976.
38. J. Juster, Les luifs dans l’empire romain (Paris 1914; reprinted
1969), 2:338.
39. Cf. M. Hadas-Lebel, Le paganisme, 96-97.
40. Cf. M. Simon, Hercule et le christianisme (Strasbourg 1955), 145ff.
41. Cf. R. Merkelbach, Roman und Mysterium in der Antike (Munich
and Berlin 1962). For the abundant bibliography on Isis, see
J. Leclant, Inventaire bibliographique des Isiaca (Leiden 1972: A-D; 1974:
E-K).
42. Of Illyrian origin and of modest extraction (he was born 9
September 214 or 215), Aurelian bore the official name of Imperator
Caesar L. Domitius Aurelianus. We do not know under what
conditions he had acquired Roman citizenship as well as the name
L. Domitius. The cognomen Aurelianus is explained by the fact that
his father was the tenant of a senator named Aurelius (cf. Croag,
R.E., s.v. Domitius no. 36, c. 1351-52). Aurelian is therefore foreign
to the ancient Roman lineage called Aurelia, a lineage "that came
from the Sabine and took its name from the Sun" (Aureliam familiam
ex Sabinis oriundam a Sole dictam putant: Paulus-Festus, p. 22, 5 L.).
43. On the origin and extension of the solar cult created by
Aurelian, see Groag, R.E., s.v. Domitius no. 36, c. 1398-1400.
44. J. Bayet, Histoire politique et psychologique de la religion romaine
(2d ed. 1969), 227.
45. Macrobius Saturnales 1.17ff.
46. On Mithraism, see E. Cumont, Textes et monuments figurés
relatifs aux mystères de Mithra, 2 vols. (Brussels 1896 and 1899). St.
Wikander, Étude sur les mystères de Mithra, vol. 1 (Lund 1951). We
recall the celebrated phrase of E. Renan (Histoire des origines du
christianisme 7: Marc Aurèle et la fin du monde antique [17th ed., Paris],
p. 579): "If Christianity had been impeded in its growth by some
mortal malady, the world would be Mithraist." The modern critic is
far from ratifying this judgment: cf. M. Simon, Mithra rival du Christ?
Actes du second congrès international d'études mithraiques (Tehran 1975).
47. See P. de Labriolle, La réaction païenne: Étude sur la polémique
antichrétienne du IT au VT siècle (Paris 1934). J. Moreau, La persécution,
passim.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Principal Ancient Sources
Fasti: The Roman calendar: ed. t u . mommsen, CIL, 1 (2d ed., 1893),
for the Julian year; ed. c. mancini, N.S., 1921, 73-141, for the
pre-Julian year; complete calendar ed. degrassi, /./., XIII, pars II
(1963).
Acta fratrum Arvalium, ed. henzen (Berlin 1874); ed. pasoli (Bologna
1950); proceedings from the first century b .c . to the fourth century
A.D. of the college of the Arval Brethren. Proceedings of a . d . 218
include the carmen Arvale, which doubtless goes back to the end of
the sixth century b.c .
Carminum Saliarium reliquiae, ed. b. maurenbrecher , /. Ph., 1894,
Sup. Band. 21:314-52; fragments of the ancient carmen of the Salii.
cato . De agricultura (for the prayers and the sacrifices of the
private cult).
s. p. festus . De verborum significatu quae supersunt cum Pauli epitome,
ed. 1.INDSAV (Leipzig 1913).
m . terenti varronis . Antiquitatum rerum divinarum libri 1, 14, 15, 16,
ed. R. ACAHD, /. Ph., 1898, Sup. Band. 24:3-220; reconstitution of
Varro's lost works, based on citations of the Church Fathers.
Acta ludorum saecularium, CIL, 6, 32323ff.; proceedings concerning
the secular games, particularly the games of 17 b . c .
De Ludis saecularibus populi Romani Quiritium, Libri sex, by i. b . pichi
(2d ed., Amsterdam 1965).
Ovidius, Fastorum libri 6; com m entary on th e liturgical calendar.
All the Latin authors, particularly Virgil, should be consulted by
the historian of Roman religion.
68
Encyclopedias
Daremberg and SAGLio, Dictionnaire des antiquités grecques et romaines,
10 vols, including index vol. de ruggiero -cardin ali, Dizionario Epi-
grafico di antichità romane (Rome 1885-). roscher -ziecler . Ausführliches
Lexikon der griechischen und römischen Mythologie, 10 vols. (Leipzig
1884-1937). PAULY-wissowA, Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertum­
swissenschaft (Stuttgart 1893-).
General Studies
m . Marquardt , Le culte chez les Romains, 2 vols., trans. M. Brissaud
(Paris 1889-90). w. warde fowler , The Roman Festivals of the Period of the
Republic (London 1899); The Religious Experience of the Roman People
from the Earliest Times to the Age of Augustus (London 1911; 2d ed.,
1922). G. wissowA, Religion und Kultus der Römer (2d ed., Munich
1912). F. cumont . Les religions orientales dans le paganisme romain (Paris
1909; 4th ed., 1929). c. bailey , Roman Religion and the Advent of
Philosophy, The Cambridge Ancient History 8:423-65 (1930); Phases in
the Religion of Ancient Rome (Berkeley 1932). n . turchi. La Religione di
Roma antica (Bologna 1939). f . altheim . Römische Religionsgeschichte (2d
ed., Berlin 1965). j. bayet . Histoire politique et psychologique de la religion
romaine (2d ed., Paris 1969). k . latte , Römische Religionsgeschichte
(Munich 1960). c. dumézil . Idées romaines (Paris 1969); Archaic Roman
Religion (Chicago 1970); La religion romaine archaïque (2d ed., Paris
1974); Fêtes romaines d'été et d ’automne (Paris 1975). a . kirsopp Michels ,
The Calendar of the Roman Republic (Princeton 1967).
ABBREVIATIONS
A.N.R.W. = Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt (Berlin).
CIL = Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum (Berlin 1863-).D A. =
darember G'Saglio , Dictionnaire des antiquités grecques et romaines (Paris).
degrassi, /./. = a . decrassi. Inscriptiones Italiae, vol. 13, part 2: Fasti
anni Numani et Iuliani (Rome 1963).
Dessau , I L S. = h . Dessau , Inscriptiones Latinae selectae, 3 vols.
(Berlin 1892-1916).
ERNOUT-MEiLi.ET, D.E.4 = ERNOUT-MEiLLET, Dictionnaire étymologique de
la langue latine (4th ed., Paris).
J. Ph. = Jahrbücher für classische Philologie (Leipzig).
M.E.F.R. = Mélanges de l’École française de Rome. N.S. = Notizie
degli scavi di Antichità (Rome).
Plin y , N.H. = PLiNius, Naturalis Historia.
R.E. = PAULY-wissowA, Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswis­
senschaft (Stuttgart).
R.E.L. = Reime des études latines (Paris).
schilling , R.C.D.R. = R. schilling , Rites, cultes, dieux de Rome (Paris
1979).
schilling , R.R.V. = R. schilling , La religion romaine de Vénus depuis
les origines jusqu'au temps d’Auguste (Paris 1954).
VETTER, H.I.D. = e . VETTER, Handbuch der italischen Dialekte (Heidel­
berg).
WALDE-HOFMANN, L.E.W.3 = WALDE-HOFMANN, Lateinisches etymologis­
ches Wörterbuch (3d ed., Heidelberg).
wissowA, Ruk2 = c. wissowa , Religion und Kultus der Römer (2d ed.,
Munich 1912).
R oman G ods
T h e w o rd deus h a s u n d e r g o n e c o n s id e ra b le p h o n e tic c h a n g e
b u t h a s n o n e th e le s s b e e n p re s e rv e d b y th e v a r io u s R o m a n c e
l a n g u a g e s t o m e a n d e i t y . I t s o r i g i n is I n d o - E u r o p e a n a n d it
d e s ig n a te s a c e le s tia l b e in g . Deus c a m e p h o n e t i c a l l y f r o m t h e
o ld fo rm o f deivos ; s im ila rly , dea c a m e f r o m deiva. T h e a n c i e n t s
w e r e a w a r e o f th e d e r iv a tio n : th u s , V a rro (De Lingua Latina
3 .2 ) co n tra sts th e u su al f o r m deos w i t h t h e " o l d " v e r s i o n
 R O M A N C O D S

divos. B y v ir tu e o f th is e t y m o lo g y , deus and dea a re fo r th e O th e r f a c to rs in te r v e n e d in t h e u s e o f th e tw o te r m s : th e

L a tin s s u p e r i o r p o w e r s c o n n e c t e d w ith th e l u m in o u s h e a v e n in flu e n c e o f th e H e lle n is tic c u lt e x p la in s , fo r in s ta n c e , w h a t
(divum). V irg il m a y h a v e h a d in m i n d fa r in a d v a n c e o f t h e " d e i f i c a ­
In th is sense, th e L a tin w o rd d iffe rs fro m its G reek t io n " o f O c t a v i a n in th e p r e a m b le o f b o o k 1 o f th e Georgies.9
h o m o lo g u e , theos, w h ic h h a s a d iffe re n t e ty m o lo g y , theos, T h e s p e c if ic u s e o f divus t h a t is t h e o r e tic a lly r e s e r v e d fo r a n
w h ic h g o e s b a c k to a p r o t o ty p e *thesos ( " h a v i n g to d o w ith em p e ro r d e ifie d a fte r a p o th e o s is is o c c a s io n a lly re fu te d :
th e re a lm o f th e s a c r e d " ) , a n ill-d e f in e d t e r m t h a t l e a d s in th u s , a n a d u la to r o f N e ro p ro p o se d to th e S e n a te th a t a
a n o t h e r d i r e c t io n . T h is d i f f e r e n c e in v o c a b u l a r y b e t w e e n t h e te m p le b e e r e c te d to divo Neroni (th e d iv in e N e r o ), w h o w a s
L a tin a n d th e G r e e k w o r d s d e s i g n a t i n g d e ity d o e s n o t e x is t a t s ti ll a l i v e , 10 a c a s e o f a n t i c i p a t i o n l a t e r r e f u t e d b y t h e c o u r s e
th e le v e l o f th e s u p r e m e g o d , Juppiter (*Diou-pater) and Z eu s o f e v e n ts .
Cdyeus), w h ic h co rre sp o n d to th e sam e In d o -E u ro p e a n
th e m e .
I. T h e R o m a n P a n th e o n
The s e m a n tic v a lu e of deus le av es little d o u b t th a t th e
L a t in s s o u g h t t o r e p r e s e n t t h e d e i ty in t h e f o r m o f a p e r s o n a l Let us re tu rn to th e dei of th e R om an p a n th e o n and
and in d iv id u a l b e in g . A nd yet th is lin g u is tic tr u th w as e x a m in e th e ir c h a r a c tis tic s . W e s h o u ld b e o n g u a r d a g a in s t a
c h a lle n g e d fo r a c e rta in p e rio d in fa v o r of an a n im is tic c e r ta in r o m a n ti c i s m t h a t h a d a l r e a d y d e v e l o p e d in a n tiq u ity
c o n c e p tio n a c c o r d in g to w h ic h a " p r e - d e is t" p h a s e s u p p o s ­ a c c o r d in g to w h ic h th e R o m a n d e itie s c o r r e s p o n d e d m e re ly
e d ly p re ce d e d th e n o tio n of a p erso n al g o d . B y v irtu e o f to ro u g h o u tlin e s o f th e m s e lv e s b e fo r e E tru ria a n d G reece
" e v o l u ti o n ," in d iv id u a liz e d d e itie s w e r e s u p p o s e d to h a v e f i ll e d out th e ir p e r s o n a litie s . T hus, P lin y th e E ld e r, w ho
d ise n ta n g le d th e m s e lv e s fro m th e m u rk y n e b u la of th e e n jo y e d th e fa v o r o f th e em p e ro r V e s p a sia n , e v o k e d th e
o r ig in s . T h is t e n d e n c y w a s r e p r e s e n t e d in p a r t ic u la r b y H . J. f o llo w in g s y lv a n d r e a m : " T h e f o r e s ts w e r e o n c e th e t e m p le s
R o s e , w h o t h o u g h t h e h a d f o u n d s u p p o r t in t h e L a tin w o r d o f t h e g o d s , a n d f o llo w in g t h e a n c i e n t r i te , t h e c o u n t r y s i d e in
numen, w h i c h a p p a r e n t l y c o r r e s p o n d e d t o t h e M e l a n e s i a n its s im p lic ity c o n t i n u e s t o d a y to d e d ic a t e its m o s t b e a u tif u l
te rmmana. T h i s l a t t e r t e r m h a d g a i n e d c u r r e n c y i n 1 8 9 1 i n t r e e t o a g o d . T h e s t a t u e s in w h ic h g o l d a n d i v o r y s h i n e d o
The Melanesians b y B i s h o p C o d r i n g t o n , w h o h a d d e f i n e d i t a s n o t in s p i r e in u s a n y m o re v e n e ra tio n th a n d o th e s a c re d
" a s u p e rn a tu ra l p o w e r o r in flu e n c e . . . a fo rc e th a t p r o d u c e s g r o v e s a n d t h e i r v e r y s i l e n c e . " 11
e v e ry th in g th a t is beyond th e o rd in a ry pow er of m en, T h is n o s ta lg ia fo r s im p lic ity c a lls to m in d a r e f le c tio n b y
o u ts id e o f th e c o m m o n r u le s o f n a t u r e ." 1 V a rro , w h o a ls o to o k d e lig h t in e v o k in g th e c u lt o f y e s t e r ­
The a lle g e d e q u iv a le n c e of mana and numen w a s l a t e r y e a r . " F o r m o r e th a n o n e h u n d r e d a n d s e v e n ty y e a r s ," h e
s u p p o r te d b y H . W a g e n v o o r t in h is b o o k Roman Dynamism.2 s a id , "th e R o m a n s w o r s h ip e d th e ir g o d s w ith o u t s ta tu e s .
w h o s e title a l o n e s u g g e s t s t h e i d e a o f a " d i f f u s e f o r c e " w h ic h H a d th is p r a c ti c e p r e v a i l e d , t h e g o d s w o u l d b e h o n o r e d in a
m ig h t h a v e p re c e d e d th e w o rld o f th e g o d s . W e n e e d not p u rer w a y " (quod si adhuc mansisset, castius di observarentur).12
e n t e r in to th is d e b a te , w h ic h a p p e a r s to b e c lo s e d . G e o r g e s W h a t is e v i d e n t i n b o t h o f t h e s e s t a t e m e n t s i s t h e d i s t i n c t
D u m é z il3 h a s s h o w n d e fin itiv e ly t h a t th e L a tin w o r d numen. b e lie f o f th e R o m a n s th a t th e ir b a s ic a lly n a tiv e d e itie s h a d
m e a n in g " p o w e r " o r " m a n i f e s t a t io n ," w a s always u s e d w ith b e e n d iffe re n t " i n tim e s p a s t ." T h e castitas p ra ise d b y V arro
t h e g e n i t iv e o f th e d e i ty in q u e s t i o n d u r i n g t h e i m p e r ia l E r a . w a s a im e d d ir e c tly a t th e H e lle n ic a n t h r o p o m o r p h is m th a t
T h u s it c o u l d not be "a b s tra c te d " fro m th e god, w ith o u t a ttrib u te d hum an p a s s io n s and v ic e s to th e g o d s, as in
w hom th e re w o u ld b e n o numen.4 A f u r t h e r i r o n i c p o i n t : in H o m e r 's Iliad or in H e s i o d 's Theogony. A R om an d e ity is
h is la st a tte m p t to a ttrib u te to th e w o rd numen t h e m e a n in g d e f in e d b y a s p e c if ic c o m p e t e n c e a n d is u n f e t te r e d b y th e
o f "im p e rso n a l p o w e r" ( eine unpersönliche Kraft),5 i n 1972, H . e m b e llis h m e n ts o f a m y th o lo g y m o r e o r le s s l a d e n w ith th e
W a g e n v o o r t c ite d a s th e " m o s t a n c i e n t " p r o o f o f th e u s e o f v i c i s s i t u d e s o f l if e . I n i t s o r i g i n s it is t h e r e f o r e a s t r a n g e r t o
th e w o rd a te x t b y A c c iu s : Alia hic sanctitudo est, aliud nomen t h e k i n d o f a n t h r o p o m o r p h i s m 13 t h a t c h a r a c t e r i z e s t h e G r e e k
et numen Jovis ("H ere h o l i n e s s is o t h e r , a n d o th e r a re th e and E tru s c a n p a n th e o n s , a re m a rk a b le fa ct w h e n o n e c o n ­
n a m e a n d p o w e r o f J u p i te r " ) .6 S o m e h o w h e d id n o t n o tic e s id e rs th e c u ltu ra l p r e s s u r e e x e r te d b y th e G re c o -E tru s c a n
t h a t h e w a s p r o v i n g D u m é z i l 's p o i n t . e n v iro n m e n t.
T h e e ty m o lo g ic a l m e a n in g o f deus m a y in d e e d re fe r to a T h is fa c t m a y b e v e r ifie d e s p e c ia lly b y th e e x i s t e n c e o f a
" l u m in o u s b e i n g ," b u t t h e te r m its e lf w a s a ls o a p p lie d by n u m b e r o f d e ifie d a b s t r a c ti o n s , s u c h a s C e r e s o r F i d e s , a n d
e x t e n s i o n t o d i v i n e p o w e r s t h a t w e r e n o t " c e l e s t i a l . " S u c h is a l s o b y t h e p e r s is te n c e o f th is t e n d e n c y in h is t o r i c a l t im e s . I
th e c a s e o f th e di Manes, a te r m t h a t d e s i g n a t e d th e in fe rn a l re fe r to th e a p p e a ra n c e o f g o d s s u c h a s A iu s L o c u tiu s o r
g o d s in t h e f o r m u la o f t h e devotio, th e p ra y e r o f c o n s e c ra tio n R e d ic u lu s . T h e v o ic e th a t a n n o u n c e d t h a t t h e G a u ls w e r e
t o t h e g o d s ,7 b e f o r e it w a s r e p l a c e d , t o w a r d t h e e n d o f th e c o m i n g e v e r c l o s e r t o R o m e w a s h e a r d o n l y o n c e ; 14 y e t t h a t
f i r s t c e n t u r y b.c., b y t h e e x p r e s s i o n divi parentum o r divi w a s s u f fic ie n t r e a s o n to r a is e a n a l ta r to th e g o d c a lle d A iu s
parentes, w h i c h w a s r e s e r v e d f o r t h e d e c e a s e d i n a f a m i l y . L o c u tiu s ( " h e w h o s p e a k s , h e w h o s a y s " ) . S im ila rly , a fanum
T h e s e di Manes, f o r w h o m t h e m e a n i n g " G o o d G o d s " m o s t w a s d e d ic a te d to R e d ic u lu s ju s t o u t s id e th e C a p e n a G a te
lik e ly co rre sp o n d s to a p r o p itia to r y e u p h e m is m , a re by b ecau se H a n n ib a l, w ho had a lm o st re a ch e d th e w a lls of
d e fin itio n a lie n t o th e w o r ld o f h e a v e n l y lig h t. In t h e first R o m e , " h a d tu r n e d a w a y w h e n h e g o t to th is p l a c e " (ex loco
c a s e th e y e v o k e d t h e s p ir its d w e ll in g u n d e r g r o u n d ; in th e redierit).15 T h e s e b o rd e rlin e c a s e s n e v e r th e le s s s h o w c le a rly
s e c o n d c a s e th e y e v o k e d th e c o m m u n ity o f th e d e a d .8 t h a t in o rd e r to "e x ist" th e d e ity m e re ly had to m a n ife st
M o r e o v e r , w e s h o u l d n o t e t h a t if t h e w o r d deus re m a in e d its e lf .
a tta c h e d to th e g o d "w h o is t h o u g h t o f a s h a v i n g e x i s t e d In a d d it i o n to t h e s e e x c e p t i o n a l e x a m p l e s , s u c h a m a n i f e s ­
f o r e v e r ," t h e fo rm divus, w h ic h r e p r e s e n ts th e o ld f o rm o f th e ta tio n w as tr a n s la te d in to a p e rm a n e n t fu n ctio n . T h o se
t e r m , w a s l a te r r e s e r v e d t o d e s i g n a t e t h e " d e i f i e d " b e i n g , in d e i ti e s w h o s e f e s ti v a l s a r e i n s c r ib e d in t h e l itu r g ic a l c a l e n d a r
th is c a s e th e e m p e r o r w h o w a s g iv e n th e h o n o r s o f a p o t h e ­ a ll h a v e a s p e c ia lity , w h ic h is o f te n i n d i c a te d b y t h e t r a n s ­
o s is. p a r e n t m e a n in g o f th e ir n a m e s . T h u s , C e r e s , fo r w h o m th e
T h u s , th e c a te g o ry o f th e divi ( d e i f i e d e m p e r o r s ) i s d i s t i n ­ C e r ia lia w e r e o b s e r v e d o n 1 9 A p r i l , is in c h a r g e o f g r o w t h , in
g u is h e d fro m th e w o rld o f th e dei o f t h e t r a d i t i o n a l p a n t h e o n . p a r tic u la r th e g r o w th of c e r e a ls ; C on su s, th e god w ho

69
ROME

Mercury, Pallas, Apollo, and Diana. Rome, Villa Albani. Photo Alinari-Giraudon.

p r e s i d e s o v e r t h e g a t h e r i n g o f w h e a t , is c e l e b r a t e d d u rin g appellari volueris ( " A n d th e p o n tiffs s a id th e fo llo w in g p r a y e r :

th e C o n s u a lia o f 21 A u g u s t a n d d u r i n g th e O p ic o n s iv a o f 2 5 J u p ite r m o s t k in d a n d g r e a t, o r w h a te v e r b e th e n a m e b y
A u g u s t , in a s s o c i a t i o n w i t h O p s , t h e g o d d e s s w h o w a t c h e s w h ic h y o u p r e f e r to b e c a lle d " ). F o r w h a te v e r r e a s o n , th e
over abundance. p o n tiffs w a n te d to a n tic ip a te th e c a s e w h e n Ju p ite r m ig h t o p t
T h e s e d e itie s w e r e e i th e r m a s c u lin e o r fe m in in e ; a t th e fo r a n o t h e r a p p e lla tio n , a lth o u g h h e w a s c le a rly id e n tifie d b y
b e g in n in g , R o m e h a d n o h ie r o g a m y . A n y e x a m p l e s g iv e n to h i s C a p i t o l i n e a t t r i b u t e s . 23
t h e c o n t r a r y a r e m e r e f a n t a s i e s . C o n s e q u e n t l y , F a u n u s , 16 t h e R o m a n p o ly th e is m b y d e fin itio n c o n s titu te d a n o p e n p a n ­
"w ild ” god w ho is in v o lv e d in w hat m ay be th e o ld e s t t h e o n m a d e u p o f d e i t i e s t h a t in s o m e c a s e s g o b a c k t o t i m e
cerem o n y in R o m e , t h e L u p e r c a l i a o f 1 5 F e b r u a r y , h a d no im m e m o r ia l a n d in o t h e r c a s e s h a d b e e n r e c e iv e d a t v a r io u s
fe m in in e co n so rt. Fauna c e rta in ly lo o k s l ik e an a rtif ic ia l d a te s, o f te n f o llo w in g c ris e s o r e p id e m ic s . In th is s e n s e ,
c o n s tru c tio n o f s c h o la rly c a s u is tic s . Even th e nam e is n o t R om an r e lig io n re s e m b le d a Janus biceps g a z in g s im u lta ­
c e r t a i n , c o n f u s e d a s it w a s s o m e t i m e s w i t h F a t u a , s o m e t i m e s n e o u s ly in to th e p a s t a n d th e f u tu r e . T h e c o lle g e o f p o n tiffs ,
w ith Bona D ea, a n am e w h ic h in tu r n r e f e r s to a D a m ia , p re s id e d over by th e P o n tife x M a x im u s, lo o k e d a f te r th e
o r i g i n a l l y f r o m T a r e n t u m . 17 S i m i l a r l y , P a l e s , w h o s e f e s t i v a l , tr a d itio n a l c u lts , w h ile th e c o lle g e o f viri sacris faciundis (w h o
t h e P a r i l i a , fe ll o n 2 1 A p r i l , a d a y t h a t w o u l d l a t e r c o i n c i d e n u m b ered s u c c e s s iv e ly tw o , te n , and fifte e n , a n d w hose
w ith th e a n n iv e r s a r y o f th e b irth of R om e, h ad no m a le g e n e r a l title " i n c h a r g e o f c o n d u c t i n g c e r e m o n i e s " d id n o t
c o n s o r t . V i r g i l 18 o n l y k n e w o f t h e g o d d e s s : Te quoque magna r e f le c t its s p e c ia l m is s io n ) w ere in ch arg e o f in tro d u c in g
Pales (canemus). (H o w e v e r, o n 7 Ju ly tw o P a le s g o d d e s s e s f o r e ig n d e i ti e s , o f te n a f t e r c o n s u l t in g t h e S ib y llin e B o o k s .
w e re c e l e b r a t e d . ) 19 T h e god P a le s th a t V arro m e n t i o n s 20 T h e s ta t u s o f d e itie s d iffe re d d e p e n d i n g o n th e ir o r ig in s .
b e lo n g e d to th e E tru s c a n p a n th e o n and had no litu rg ic a l T h e ir s h r in e s w e re in sid e th e pomerium ( th e s a c r e d lim its o f
e x i s t e n c e in R o m e . t h e c i t y ) if t h e y b e l o n g e d t o t h e n a t i v e s o i l ; c o n v e r s e l y , t h e i r
W h a t a r e w e th e n to m a k e o f a fo rm u la s u c h a s s /w deus c u lts w e r e re le g a te d to th e o u ts id e o f th e p o m e r ia l z o n e (th e
sive dea, w h i c h r e a p p e a r s in s e v e r a l p r a y e r s ? 21 I t e x p r e s s e s A v e n t i n e o r t h e F i e l d o f M a r s ) , if t h e y c a m e f r o m o u t s i d e .
n o t a n u n c e r t a i n ty a b o u t t h e s e x o f a n i n d e t e r m i n a te d e ity , V e s ta w a s th e p r e e m i n e n t n a t iv e g o d d e s s , p r o t e c tr e s s o f th e
b u t m e re ly a n u n c e r ta in ty a b o u t th e identity o f th e d e ity to s a c r e d fire in th e h e a r t o f th e c ity , w h ile J u n o R e g i n a , a n a t iv e
w hom th e in v o c a tio n is a d d r e s s e d . A n x io u s to have h is o f V e i i , w a s a f o r e i g n e r w e l c o m e d t o R o m e in 3 9 2 b . c . i n a
p rayers a n sw e re d , a R om an d id n o t w is h to m ista k e o n e t e m p l e o n t h e A v e n t i n e . 24
d e ity fo r a n o th e r , a n d w h e n u n s u r e o f w h o m to a d d r e s s , h e D o e s t h is d i f f e r e n c e in o r ig in a n d s ta t u s c o r r e s p o n d t o th e
c o n s i d e r e d b o th p o s s ib ilitie s a n d t h u s i n v o k e s e i th e r a g o d o r d is tin c tio n b e tw e e n th e D i In d ig e te s a n d th e D i N o v e n s ile s ?
a g o d d e s s . 22 In th e f o rm u la o f th e devotio, th e e x p r e s s i o n a p p e a r s in th e
T h e s a m e s p irit o f c a u t i o n is e v i d e n t in a f o r m u la i c p r a y e r r e v e r s e o r d e r w ith o u t m a k in g th in g s a n y c le a r e r . T h e m e a n ­
{ad Aeneid 2 . 3 5 1 ) : Et pontifices ita
c it e d b y S e r v i u s D a n ie lis i n g i s s ti ll d i s p u t e d , 25 b u t t h e r e i s a g r e e m e n t o n t h e f a c t t h a t
precabantur: Juppiter Optime Maxime, sive quo alionomine te th e a n cie n ts and in d e e d sev eral m odem s (a m o n g th e m

70

Wissowa) made a semantic slip. They interpreted indigetes as
indigenae and took noveitsiies (-sides) to be a compound of novus
and insidere, thus contrasting the "native gods" and the
"newly imported gods." This interpretation may be suspect
literally, but it did nonetheless express an apparently real
contrast.26 In any case, the Romans were fully aware of the
ancient or recent origin of their gods. I would be inclined to
compare the term Indigetes to Indigitamenta, meaning a col­
lection of litanies, and to indigitare (to invoke ritualistically),
which would give it the sense of "one who has (always) been
invoked." If the epithet admits of this nuance, namely, the
recollection of a sustained fervor, its presence could then be
explained in the Virgilian expression Di patrii Indigetes, in
which, far from having a double meaning with patrii, it car­
ries the meaning of persuasive insistence.27
It would be surprising if these gods, so closely tied to the
ancient city, did not bear the political or social mark of its
vicissitudes.28 First of all, the Romans who had become
masters over Italy had taken up federal cults that presup­
posed ritual equality among the participants, at least at the
time of the old federation. Accordingly, every year the
Roman consuls went up to the top of Mount Alban on the
site of the former Alba Longa to celebrate the cult of Jupiter
Latiaris. Locating the festival (feriae Latinae), which in histor­
ical time was a movable feast (feriae conceptivae), on the site of
Alba Longa suggests that in former times it had not been
under the jurisdiction of Rome. This federal cult of the
Latins, presided over at that time by the Alban city, which
was later destroyed, was originally celebrated in a sacred
grove (Livy 1.31.3). Only later, probably during the rule of
the last dynasty of the Roman kings, was a shrine built and
dedicated to Jupiter Latiaris.
Forum. Temples to Castor and Pollux. Rome. Photo J. Roubier.
R O M A N G OD S
The substitution of Rome for Alba in the operation of this
cult is instructive. The consuls, accompanied by the repre­
sentatives of the state, had to proceed to the federal shrine a
short time after taking office (and in any case, before their
departure on a military campaign). They presided over the
ceremony that was attended by delegates from every city.
The essential act was the sacrifice of a white bull.29 The exta
(the consecrated entrails) were first offered to the god, and
the viscera (the profane meat) were shared among all the
representatives of the cities. This was a solemn celebration
that tied together the Latin cities of the confederation with
sacred bonds through their participation in a common sacri­
fice. For the duration of the ceremonies, all armed conflicts
were suspended.30 Rome thus respected a festival that sealed
the bonds among the cities of Latium; she was content
simply to claim the right to preside over it.
The Roman attitude toward the federal cult of Diana was
altogether different. Tradition localized this cult in Aricia,
near Lake Nemi, which was called the speculum Dianae
(Diana's mirror).31 At Aricia, as in the case of Jupiter Latiaris
of Mount Alban, a sacred grove32 preceded the shrine
dedicated to Diana. This was the center of a federation of
Latin cities that may have banded together after the dissolu­
tion of Alba Longa and that reunited around the federal altar
that was dedicated at that time by the Latin dictator Egerius
Laevius,33 a native of Tusculum, when he was president of
the Latin League. When the confederation shifted over to
Roman control, the cult was transferred to Rome and set
up on the Aventine Hill. At first it consisted of a simple
altar,34 and later of a temple that kept its federal character,
according to Varro (De Lingua Latina 5.43), who refers to it as
commune Latinorum templum (a temple common to the Latins).
But this cult continued to be federal only in appearance.
Never is any gathering mentioned of Latin cities on the
Aventine any more than in Aricia. The anniversary festival of
its temple, which fell on the ides of August, bore the name of
dies servorum (day of the slaves). Whatever interpretation3’’
we may want to give to this designation, the Aventine cult
reveals a gradual effacement of the Latin goddess. Diana
became so evanescent that she was ripe for absorption by her
Greek counterpart, Artemis.36 In Horace's Carmen Saeculare,
composed in 17 b . c . for the secular games held under
Augustus, she is merely Apollo's sister. This shows how
sharp a contrast there was between the fate reserved for the
old tutelary deity of the Latins and the honors that the
Romans bestowed on Jupiter Latiaris.
Yet another mark was made by the effects of social
tensions. As long as there was no religious equality between
plebeians and patricians (before the Lex Ogulnia of 300 b . c .) ,
there was a serious rivalry between the two classes that
explains certain ritual innovations.
Thus, at the beginning of the fifth century b . c . , a kind of
compensatory balance could be established. Two temples
were founded, the first in honor of the triad of Ceres-Liber-
Libera (493 b . c . ) , near the Circus Maximus, and the second
only a few years later, in honor of Castor, in the middle of the
Forum (484 b . c .) . The promise (votum) to build these temples
came from the same person, A. Postumius, the hero of the
famous battle of Lake Regillus that the Romans won over the
Latins in 499 b . c .
This battle became famous in the annals. It had a critical
phase that was overcome only when the Roman cavalry was
called in. While ordering his cavalry to enter the fray, the
dictator Postumius at the same time made a vow to erect a
temple to Castor (Livy 2.20.12), the reason being that Castor,
originally a Greek god (whose presence in Lavinium, outside
71
ROME

the ancient city, was verified by the recent finding of an

archaic inscription associating him with Pollux), was, more
specifically, the patron of horsemen, according to the Hel­
lenic tradition that was itself based on the Indo-European
tradition. A. Postumius had thus combined "human and
divine" means, to quote Livy's expression, by addressing a
votum to Castor while calling on his equites. Starting with the
"historical" event of Lake Regillus, the god of the patrician
class of horsemen became a national Roman god.
Before undertaking this military campaign, the same dic­
tator also made another religious innovation to satisfy the
common people. Dionysius of Halicarnassus (Antiquitates
Romanae 6.17) reports that Postumius, preoccupied with the
difficulties of getting fresh supplies, vowed to erect a temple
to the triad of Demeter-Dionysus-Kore. This temple was
consecrated by Postumius immediately after his victory, so
that he could show his gratitude for the exceptionally abun­
dant harvest (the Temple of Castor was to be dedicated nine
years later by his son). Knowing that the management of the
new cult of Ceres-Liber-Libera was entrusted to the plebs
and that the temple also served as a meeting place for the
councillors of the plebs,37 one can no longer question Postu-
mius's intentions: by balancing this plebeian cult with a
patrician cult, the dictator wanted to guarantee an even
mixture that would satisfy both classes, even while it marked
the hierarchical order. The temple of Ceres and of her
consorts was built outside the pomerium near the Circus
Maximus; the sanctuary of Castor was then to be built inside
the pomerium, in the very heart of the Forum.38

II. Foreign Influences

Along with internal factors, outside influences made their
mark on the development of Roman religion. This process
may be explained by the fact that Rome had direct connec­
tions with the Greek and Etruscan worlds. And we must not
forget that Magna Graecia bordered on Roman territory just
as the Etruscan confederation did. These connections would
later be extended still further with the conquest of Greece
and Asia Minor. Greek and Etruscan influences certainly
enhanced the more anthropomorphic character of the cult.
Tradition has it that the first terra-cotta statue of Jupiter in
the Capitoline Temple was the work of an Etruscan sculptor,
Vulca of Veii (Pliny [the Elder] Naturalis Historia 35.157), and
that the bronze Ceres as well as the decoration of the
plebeian temple were executed by Greek artists, Damophiles
and Gorgasus (ibid. 34.15). Once the deity took on human
form, it was logical for it also to obtain a home. Thus the
fanum, the holy place that was often a sacred grove (lucus),
was replaced by the aedes (shrine), which was meant to be the
dwelling place of the deity. Ordinarily the shrine would
appear later on the site formerly consecrated to the god.
TTvus Livy 3.63.7 indicates that the shrine of Apollo (aedes
Apollonis) was built in 431 b .c . in the Prata Flaminia on a spot
that already bore the name "Apollo's enclosure" (Apollinare).
New deities were not simply brought in capriciously. It
required a serious event that could challenge the Romans'
confidence in their national pantheon, or at least make them
seek additional help from some new deity. The way in which
the Greek Apollo was introduced is highly instructive. It was
not the god of the Muses, nor the sun god, that attracted the
Romans' attention, nor was it the prophet-god who would
later watch over the Sibylline Books (these titles were to be
solemnly evoked in Horace's Carmen Saeculare in the time of
Augustus). It was, rather (probably right after an epidemic),
the healing god.39 Thus, the oldest invocation recorded in
Juno Sospita. Rome, Vatican Museum. Photo Anderson-Giraudon.
the prayers of the vestals was addressed to the "physician,"
"Apollo Medice, Apollo Paean" (Macrobius Saturnalia
1.17.15). The circumstances surrounding the building of his
first temple in the Prata Flaminia explain why he was
brought in: a serious epidemic inspired the dedication of the
shrine pro valetudine populi in honor of the god who bore the
official name of Apollo Medicus (Livy 4.25.3; 40.51.6).
Of no less interest are the circumstances surrounding the
arrival in Rome of the Etruscan deity Juno of Veii, at the
beginning of the fourth century. This event merits a retro­
spective look. The war that the Romans waged on Veii lasted
longer than anyone expected and gave rise to alarming
rumors. (Like the siege of Troy, the siege of Veii was
supposed to have lasted six years [Livy 5.22.8].) After certain
miracles ("Lake Alba had risen to an incredibly high level
with no rain or any other explanation": Livy 5.15.2), the
Romans named Marcus Furius Camillus dictator. The new
chief, whom the Latin historian calls fatalis dux (for the ruin
of the Etruscan city), did not merely take measures of
military reorganization; he made a decision by directly ad­
dressing the tutelary goddess in the following prayer:
"Queen Juno, now residing in Veii, I beg you to follow me

72
 R O M A N G OD S

a f t e r o u r v i c t o r y i n t o o u r c i t y t h a t s o o n w il l b e y o u r o w n . T h ese in n o v a tio n s at th e end of th e th ird c e n tu ry u .c .

T h e re y o u sh a ll re c e iv e a te m p le w o r th y o f y o u r m a je s ty ” p r o v e t h a t R o m a n r e l i g i o n , s o f o r e i g n t o G r e e k m y t h o l o g y in
(L iv y 5 .2 1 .3 ) . A n a n e c d o te to ld b y th e L a tin h is to r ia n u n d e r ­ its o r ig in s , s u b m itte d to th e in f lu e n c e o f s y n c re tis m . The
s c o r e s th e k in d d is p o s itio n o f th e g o d d e s s : T o th e q u e s tio n , T r o j a n l e g e n d w a s u n d o u b t e d l y p r e s e n t in E t r u r i a f r o m th e
" W ill y o u g o to R o m e , J u n o ? ” a s k e d b y a y o u n g R o m a n , th e e n d o f t h e s i x t h c e n t u r y b. c . ( s t a t u e t t e s o f A e n e a s c a r r y i n g
g o d d e s s is s a id to h a v e a g r e e d w ith a la c rity (L iv y 5 .2 2 .5 ) . A n ch ise s w e re fo u n d in V e ii) a n d p e n e tra te d th e r e lig io n
T h u s R o m e b e c a m e th e s e a t o f tw o Q u e e n Ju n o s . O n e s a t o n f r o m t h e n o n , t o t h e p o i n t o f p r o v i d i n g it w i t h a n i d e o l o g i c a l
h e r th ro n e in th e C a p ito lin e te m p le next to Ju p ite r a s a fra m e w o rk th a t w as a b le to ju s tify th e im p o rtin g of new
n a t i o n a l d e i t y ; t h e o t h e r w a s p l a c e d o n t h e A v e n t i n e H ill a s c u l t s . 41 It w a s n o t j u s t a n y l e g e n d ; it w a s t o b e c o m e a k i n d o f
a d e ity o f fo re ig n o r ig in . n a tio n a l dogm a w ith Ju liu s C aesar, w ho c la im e d to be a
W e s h o u ld a ls o m e n tio n th e e n t r y in to R o m e o f C y b e le , th e d e s c e n d a n t o f Ju lu s A s c a n iu s , th e s o n o f A e n e a s . A c c o r d in g
O r i e n t a l g o d d e s s , a t t h e e n d o f t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y b. c . T h i s to th is m y th , th e R o m a n s d e s c e n d e d f ro m A e n e a s w e r e th e
e x a m p le n o t o n ly p r o v e s th a t th e R o m a n s c a s t th e ir s ig h ts p riv ile g e d b e n e fic ia rie s o f a p r o p itia to r y V e n u s w h o in te r ­
b e y o n d th e G re e k a n d E tru sca n w o r ld s , b u t a ls o re v e a ls a v e n e d o n th e ir b e h a lf s o th a t th e y m ig h t re c e iv e th e g o d s '
c e r ta i n c o n s t a n c y in t h e ir w a y s o f d o i n g th is . F o llo w in g th e grace, pacem Veniamque deum. A l l o f V i r g i l 's Aeneid is b a s e d o n
d r a m a tic v ic is s itu d e s o f th e S e c o n d P u n ic W a r, th e R o m a n s th is t h e o lo g y , w h ic h p r o m is e s th e R o m a n s d e s c e n d e d fro m
s a w o n l y t o w a r d 2 0 4 b. c . t h e h o p e o f p u t t i n g a n e n d t o m o r e A e n e a s d i v i n e b l e s s in g s in a ll o f t h e ir e n t e r p r i s e s , p r o v i d e d
th a n fo u r te e n y e a r s o f m ilita ry c a m p a ig n s . T h e h is to r ia n L iv y th e y k e e p th e pietas o f th e ir illu strio u s a n c e s to r .
n o te s th e s e rie s of w o n d ro u s e v e n ts th a t s tim u la te d th e The su ccess o f th e le g e n d o f T ro y a lso p ro v es th a t th e
re lig io u s c o n s c i o u s n e s s : " T w o s u n s h a d b e e n s e e n ; in te r m it­ R o m a n s , w h o w e r e fa r f r o m g i v in g in to a n y s o r t o f s y n c r e ti s t
te n t lig h ts h a d f la s h e d th r o u g h th e n ig h t; a tra c k o f fire w a s f a s c in a tio n , k n e w how to be s e le c tiv e . It s e e m s th a t th e y
s e e n s tr e tc h in g fro m s u n r is e to s u n s e t. L ig h tn in g h a d s tru c k w e lc o m e d s u g g e s tio n s fro m a b ro a d . . . ad majorem gloriam
a d o o r a t T e r r a c in a , a d o o r a t A n a g n i a , a n d w a lls in m a n y populi Romani. W h a t i s m o s t s i g n i f i c a n t a b o u t t h i s is t h e w a y
p l a c e s ; in t h e s h r i n e o f J u n o S o s p i t a a t L a n u v i u m a te rrib le in w h ic h A u g u s t u s w a s a b le to e x p l o i t t h e G r e e k i d e a o f th e
d in c o u ld b e h e a r d " (L iv y 2 9 .1 4 .3 ) . H o p e h a d b e e n b o r n a s c o u p le A r e s -A p h r o d ite to s e r v e R o m a n p u r p o s e s . T h e e m ­
m u c h a s a y e a r b e fo r e , fro m th e p ro c la m a tio n o f a n o r a c le p e r o r d id i n d e e d s e t a s id e a p la c e o f h o n o r fo r th is d iv in e
t a k e n f r o m th e S ib y llin e B o o k s . It s p e lle d o u t th e c o n d it i o n s c o u p l e n o t o n l y i n t h e P a n t h e o n ( b u i l t in 2 5 b . c .) b u t a l s o in
o f re o r g a n iz a tio n : " O n th e d a y w h e n a fo re ig n e n e m y w a g e s t h e p e d im e n t o f th e T e m p le o f M a r s th e A v e n g e r (b u ilt in 2
w a r i n t h e l a n d o f I t a ly , it w il l b e p o s s i b l e t o d e f e a t h i m a n d b.c .). B u t h e h ad no in te n tio n o f r e ta in in g th e H e lle n is tic
d r i v e h i m o u t o f I t a ly , if t h e I d a e a n M o t h e r i s b r o u g h t f r o m s y m b o lism (A p h r o d i te , th e p r in c ip le o f L o v e , p a c if y in g th e
P e s s in u s to R o m e " (L iv y 2 9 .1 0 .5 ) . p rin c ip le o f D is c o r d ). T o th e c o n t r a r y , h e w a n te d to " lin k th e
T h is i n n o v a t i o n , w h ic h le d th e R o m a n s to t u r n fin a lly to a n fa th e r o f th e fo u n d e r of R o m e " w ith "th e m o th e r o f th e
A s ia tic d e ity o f a p rim itiv e n a t u r e (w ith th e b la ck s to n e th a t n a tio n o f th e d e sc e n d a n ts of A en eas" in th e s e rv ice of a
w as su p p o sed to em body th e d e ity and th e G a lli, th e d y n a s tic m is s io n . M a rs th u s to o k o n a " J u l ia n " c h a r a c te r a s
e u n u c h -p r ie s ts w h o a tte n d e d h e r c u lt), m ay r e a lly be ex­ an ultor parentis patriae ( " A v e n g e r o f C a e s a r , th e f a th e r o f th e
p la in e d by th e T ro ja n c la rific a tio n th a t tra n sfo rm e d th e c o u n t r y " ) , w h i l e V e n u s , s ti ll r e m a i n i n g A e n e a d u m G e n e t r i x ,
s a v a g e M a g n a M a te r o f M o u n t Id a in to a " g r a n d m o t h e r o f t o o k o n a m o r e m i l i t a r y c h a r a c t e r in o r d e r t o d r a w c l o s e r t o
th e R o m a n p e o p l e ." O v id s tr e s s e d th is w h e n h e a ttr ib u te d to M a r s . T h u s , it w a s n o l o n g e r t h e H e l l e n i s t i c m y t h o f t h e i r
th e g o d d ess a m ira cu lo u s in te rv e n tio n th a t o v e rc a m e th e lo v e b u t r a th e r th e ir c o m m o n c o m m itm e n t to s e r v e R o m e
r e l u c t a n t A t t a l u s , k i n g o f P h r y g i a : " I t is I w h o w a n t e d t o b e and h er e m p e ro rs th a t g a v e M ars a n d V e n u s th e ir ra is o n
s o u g h t o u t; d o n o t d e la y b u t s e n d m e fo rth , I b e g y o u ; R o m e d 'ê t r e a s a c o u p le . T h is m e t a m o r p h o s i s te lls u s a g r e a t d e a l
d eserv es t o h a v e a ll d e i t i e s g o t h e r e ." F r ig h te n e d by th is a b o u t th e R o m a n r e a c tio n to f o re ig n i n f lu e n c e s .
te rrify in g v o ic e , th e k in g c rie s o u t: " L e a v e , a n d you s h a ll
a lw a y s re m a in one of o u rs; R om e can be tra c e d b ack to
III. The Groupings of Divinities in the
P h ry g ia n a n c e s t o r s " (O v id Fasti 4 .2 6 9 - 7 2 ).
Course of Roman History
T h e i n s ta lla tio n o f C y b e l e in th e t e m p le o f V i c t o r y o n t o p o f
th e P a la tin e in 2 0 4 (w h ile s h e a w a it e d th e c o n s t r u c ti o n o f h e r It m i g h t b e u s e f u l t o r e c a p i t u l a t e t h e d i f f e r e n t g r o u p i n g s o f
o w n t e m p le in 1 9 1 ) c a m e e l e v e n y e a r s a f t e r V e n u s E r y c i n a d e itie s w h o h a v e m a r k e d th e c o u r s e o f th e r e lig io u s h is to r y
w a s e s ta b lis h e d in a te m p le b u ilt o n th e C a p ito lin e . The o f R o m e . T h i s p a n o r a m i c v i e w a c r o s s t i m e w ill b e i n s t r u c t i v e
in tro d u c tio n of th e tw o c u lts had been trig g e r e d by th e fo r m o r e t h a n o n e r e a s o n . F ir s t, th e a r c h a ic t ria d o f J u p i te r -
m ilita ry re v e r s a ls s u f fe re d b y th e R o m a n s a t th e h a n d o f th e M a rs -Q u ir in u s w as re p la ce d by th e C a p ito lin e tria d of
C a r th a g in ia n e n e m y . B o th c u lts re fe rre d b a ck to th e s a m e J u p i te r - J u n o - M i n e r v a , w h ic h had i t s s e a t in t h e C a p i t o l i n e
T r o ja n l e g e n d . T h e o r d e r in w h ic h t h e y w e r e i n tr o d u c e d c a n t e m p le t h a t w a s b u ilt u n d e r th e T a rq u in k in g s a n d d e d i c a t e d ,
b e e x p l a i n e d q u i t e n a t u r a l l y . T h e R o m a n s h a d in f a c t a l r e a d y a c c o r d i n g t o t r a d i t i o n , b y t h e c o n s u l M . H o r a t i u s in 5 0 9 b. c .42
e n c o u n te r e d V e n u s , th e m o th e r o f th e ir l e g e n d a r y fo re fa th e r , As tim e p assed , G reek in flu e n c e gave rise to d iffe re n t
A e n e a s , d u r in g th e F irs t P u n ic W ar. T h e c o n s u l L u c iu s Ju n iu s a s s o c i a t i o n s o f d e i t i e s in t h e o f f i c i a l l i t u r g y . S u c h w a s t h e c a s e
d id n o t h e s i t a te to " r e c o g n i z e " h e r in th e p e r s o n o f A p h r o ­ fo r th e tria d o f C e r e s -L ib e r -L ib e r a , w h o s e t e m p le w a s lo c a te d
d ite of M o u n t E ry x; h e had s u c ce s sfu lly o c c u p ie d M ount o u ts id e th e pomerium o n t h e s l o p e s o f t h e A v e n t i n e . 43 G r e e k
E r y x in 2 4 8 in a d e f in itiv e m ove th a t le d to fin a l v ic to r y . i n f l u e n c e w a s e s p e c i a l l y m a n i f e s t e d in t h e i n s t i t u t i o n o f t h e
C o n s e q u e n tly , d u rin g th e S eco n d P u n ic W a r, th e R om ans le c tis te rn iu m , w h ic h c o n s is te d of o ffe rin g a m eal to th e
first h a d r e c o u r s e to E r y c in a , w h o c o u ld h av e a p p e a re d to s ta tu e s o f d e itie s th a t w e r e e x h ib ite d o n d is p la y b e d s . T h is
t h e m to b e a s u r e g u a r a n t e e o f v i c to r y , in th e f a c e o f t h e same p r e s e n t a t io n o f th e d e itie s o n pulvinaria ( c o u c h e s ) th a t c o u ld
e n e m y . L a t e r , s ti ll o n th e s a m e " T r o j a n " tra c k , to in c re a s e be ap p ro a ch e d m ade w ay fo r a m o re e m o tio n a l fo rm of
th e ir c h a n c e s , th e y th o u g h t o f w e lc o m in g a m o n g t h e m th e d e v o tio n , th e s u p p lic a tio n .
" G r e a t G o d d e s s " w h o e n j o y e d e n o r m o u s p r e s t i g e in t h e l a n d A p e r s i s t e n t a n d d e e p l y d i s t u r b i n g e p i d e m i c 44 r e s u l t e d in
o f t h e i r " a n c e s t o r s . " 40 t h e c a l l f o r t h e c e l e b r a t i o n o f t h e f i r s t l e c t i s t e r n i u m in 3 9 9 b. c .,

73
ROME

o t h e r h a lf a r e L a tin n a m e s th a t m a s k H e lle n ic d e itie s : D ia n a

(A rte m is ), M ercu ry (H e rm e s ), and N e p tu n e (P o s e id o n ).
A p o l l o is a t t h e h e a d o f t h e lis t: a h e a l i n g g o d , h e w a s t h e f i r s t
to b e in v o k e d d u r i n g th is p e r io d o f e p i d e m ic .
As fo r th e seco n d le c tis te rn iu m , it g i v e s e v i d e n c e of a
co n cern fo r h ie ra rch ica l g r o u p in g s (w h ic h w a s a lie n to th e
f i r s t ) in t h a t it s e p a r a t e d o u t t w e l v e p r i n c i p a l d e i t i e s f r o m t h e
p a n t h e o n . T h e b e s t p r o o f o f t h i s is t h a t J u p i t e r , w h o w a s
ab sen t fro m th e first le c tis te rn iu m , c o u ld not fa il to be
p r e s e n t in t h e s e c o n d , w h e r e h e o c c u p i e d t h e e x p e c t e d p l a c e :
t h e f i r s t . It is l ik e l y t h a t t h e d i g n i t y o f h e r r o l e a s C a p i t o l i n e
co n so rt c o u n te d in fav or of M in e rv a , w ho o c c u p ie d th e
seco n d ra n k in a s s o c i a t i o n w ith N e p tu n e . C o n v e rs e ly , L a ­
t o n a w a s e l im i n a t e d , h e r s in g le c la im to f a m e a s " t h e m o th e r
o f A p o l l o " b e i n g i n s u f f i c i e n t t o w i n h e r a p l a c e in t h e R o m a n
c u lt. A p o llo m a y h a v e lo s t " h i s m o th e r ," b u t h e d id re g a in
" h i s s is te r ," n a m e ly , A r t e m i s , w h o s e L a tin c o u n te r p a r t w a s
D ia n a .
T h e G r e e k i n s p i r a t i o n o f t h i s lis t t h a t p a i r s o f f g o d s a n d
go d d esses in to c o u p le s is o b v io u s . Thus one c o u ld see
b e h in d th e first f o u r c o u p le s Z e u s -H e r a , P o s e id o n -A th e n a ,
A r e s - A p h r o d i t e , a n d A p o l l o - A r t e m i s . In t h e c a s e o f t h e f in a l
t w o c o u p l e s , in t h e a b s e n c e o f a n y c u l t i c o r m y t h o l o g i c a l lin k
t h e y c a n j u s t i f y t h e i r p r e s e n c e in R o m e a s w e l l a s in G r e e c e ,
a s G e o r g e s D u m é z i l p o i n t s o u t , 51 o n e b y v i r t u e o f a c o m m o n
d e n o m i n a t o r (fir e : V u lca n a n d V e s ta , o r H e p h a e s t u s a n d H e s -
tia ), a n d th e o t h e r b y v ir tu e o f re la te d a c tiv itie s ( c o m m e r c e
a n d g r a in : M e rc u ry a n d C e r e s , o r H e rm e s a n d D e m e te r ).
A w o rd is in o r d e r a b o u t w h a t is m e a n t b y " a c o u p le ."
A lth o u g h th e G re e k m odel m ay at first g la n c e su ggest
m a rita l b o n d s fo r J u p ite r a n d J u n o , a n d e ro tic b o n d s fo r M a rs
Jupiter and Juno. Pompeii. Naples Photo Alinari. a n d V e n u s , n o s u c h th in g c o u ld p o s s ib ly a p p ly to th e o t h e r
p a ire d d e itie s . T h e p a irin g o f N e p tu n e (P o s e id o n ) a n d M in ­
e r v a ( A t h e n a ) e v o k e s t h e i r r i v a l r y in t h e n a m i n g o f A t h e n s
(S e r v i u s D a n ie lis ad Georg. 1 .1 2 ) ; th e a s s o c i a ti o n o f A p o llo
a f te r a c o n s u l t a ti o n o f th e S ib y llin e B o o k s b y th e duom i>iri and D i a n a ( A r t e m i s ) is b a s e d on th e g e n e a l o g i c a l tie s th a t
sacris faci undis. It g r o u p e d A p o llo a n d L a to n a (h is m o th e r ) , l in k b r o t h e r a n d s i s t e r .
H e rc u le s a n d D ia n a , a n d M e r c u r y a n d N e p tu n e in to h e t e r ­ T h e p a t t e r n o f m y t h o l o g i c a l c o u p l i n g w a s u s e d in R o m e t o
o g e n e o u s p a irs. a c c l i m a t i z e t h e i d e a o f a s s o c i a t i o n . T h i s s t a t e m e n t is v a l i d n o t
E v e n m o re d ra m a tic c ir c u m s ta n c e s , th e d is a s te rs s u ffe re d o n ly fo r th e d iv in e p a irs w h o a r e u n k n o w n to th e p lo ts o f
a t th e h a n d s o f H a n n ib a l, p ro v o k e d th e c e le b r a tio n o f th e G r e e k m y t h o l o g y ( V u l c a n a n d V e s t a ; M e r c u r y a n d C e r e s ) ; it
seco n d le c tis te rn iu m in 2 1 7 u . c . F o r t h e first tim e in th e ir a ls o a p p lie s to th e c a s e s th a t a t first g la n c e s e e m to b e th e
h isto ry , th e R om ans o ffered s a crificia l m e a ls to a dozen m o st th o ro u g h ly m ark ed by H e lle n is m . It s e e m s th a t th e
d e i t i e s , s ix g o d s a n d s ix g o d d e s s e s , g r o u p e d in to c o u p le s litu rg ic a l p r e s e n t a t io n o f th e le c t is t e r n iu m o f th e tw e l v e g o d s
a c c o r d i n g t o t h e H e l l e n i c p a t t e r n , in t h e f o l l o w i n g o r d e r : 45 m a d e it p o s s i b l e t o s h e d n e w lig h t o n a n o ld tr u th . J u p i te r
Ju p ite r a n d J u n o ; N e p tu n e a n d M in e rv a ; M a rs a n d V en u s; a n d J u n o h a d b e e n k in g a n d q u e e n o f th e c ity s in c e t h e y to o k
A p o llo a n d D ia n a ; V u lca n a n d V e s ta ; M e r c u r y a n d C e r e s . t h e ir p l a c e s s id e b y s id e in th e C a p ito lin e t e m p le , to w a r d th e
Though th is cerem o n y w as c e le b ra te d in R o m e 46 o n l y e n d o f t h e s i x t h c e n t u r y b .c .
o n c e , it w a s t h e s o u r c e o f t h e i d e a o f c o n s t i t u t i n g a n o f f ic i a l As fo r M a rs a n d V en u s, in Rom e th e y d id n o t fo rm a
c irc le o f tw e lv e p rin c ip a l d e itie s . T h e s e di consentes47 e v e n t u ­ c o u p le in th e s tric t s e n s e o f th e term . M ars w as th e o ld
a lly h a d t h e ir o w n s ta t u e s m a d e o f g ild e d b r o n z e ; t h e s e w e r e w a rrio r g o d w h o p r e s id e d o v e r R o m a n a r m s , w h ile V e n u s
p la ce d , e a c h in i ts o w n n ic h e , in s id e th e P o r tic o th a t w a s a p p e a r e d m o r e a n d m o r e a s th e tu te la r y p o w e r o f th e n a tio n
b u il t a t t h e f a r w e s t e r n e n d o f t h e F o r u m a t t h e f o o t o f t h e o f th e d e s c e n d a n ts o f A e n e a s . T h e G re e k p re c e d e n t s e e m s
C a p i t o l . 46 s im p ly to h a v e s u g g e s te d to th e R o m a n s th e id e a o f a s s o c i ­
W h at can t h e s e d i f f e r e n t g r o u p i n g s te ll u s ? 44 If w e c o n ­ a t i n g t h e t w o e s s e n t i a l c h a r a c t e r s in t h e i r h i s t o r y : A e n e a s ,
s id e r th e tw o o ld e s t tria d s , w e a r e s tr u c k b y t w o f a c ts . F irs t, th e fo u n d e r o f th e n a tio n , a n d R o m u lu s , th e fo u n d e r o f th e
Ju p ite r r e m a in e d th e k e y s to n e o f b o th th e a r c h a ic a n d th e c i t y . 52
C a p ito lin e tria d . He w as h a rd ly to u ch ed by th e w ave of A n o t h e r p r o b l e m c o n c e r n s t h e s e l e c t i v e l is t o f t h e d o z e n
a s s im ila tio n , e x c e p t to th e e x t e n t th a t h is a s s o c ia te d u r in g th e d e itie s o f th e s e c o n d le c tis te r n iu m . W h a t a b o u t th o s e w h o
s e c o n d l e c tis te r n iu m w a s J u n o , w h o w a s a l r e a d y o n e o f h is a r e m i s s i n g ? F i r s t t h e r e is H e r c u l e s , w h o h a d b e e n o n e o f t h e
C a p ito lin e c o n s o r ts . S e c o n d , o n ly o n e g o d b o r e a L a tin n a m e s ix d e itie s w o rs h ip e d d u rin g th e first le c t is t e r n iu m . W ith
th a t d id not y ie ld to any s y n c r e tis t o p e ra tio n : Q u ir in u s great in s ig h t, G eo rg es D u m é z il has r e c a lle d th e case of
(w h ich is c o n n e c t e d w ith Quirites, “ c itiz e n s "). He h as an d e itie s w h o h a d b e e n " d e m o t e d " a f te r m ilita ry c a ta s tr o p h e s :
U m b r i a n h o m o l o g u e b u t n o G r e e k e q u i v a l e n t . 50 " e x c e p t fo r th e th r e e g r e a t C a p ito lin e d iv in itie s , th e c e r e m o ­
O n t h e l is t o f t h e f i r s t l e c t i s t e r n i u m , h a l f t h e n a m e s a r e o f n ie s a fte r T ra s im e n o do not honor by n am e any of th e
p u re ly G reek o r ig in (A p o llo , L a to n a , H e rcu le s), and th e d iv in itie s in v o k e d a f te r T re b b ia ; th e n e w d i s a s te r h a s lo w -

74
 R O M A N G O D S

e re d th e m in r a n k , a s if t h e y h a d d e m o n s t r a t e d t h e i r i n d i f ­ O n e o t h e r c o n s e q u e n c e re s u lte d . T h e s e in n o v a tio n s in d i­
f e r e n c e o r t h e i r i n a d e q u a c y . A n a p p e a l is n o w m a d e t o o t h e r r e c tly s ta m p e d a s a r c h a ic th e d e itie s w h o w e r e r e s is ta n t to
d iv in itie s , to M e n s r a t h e r th a n to F o rtu n a , to M a rs ra th e r s y n c r e tis t a s s im ila tio n s . T hey d id n ot d isa p p e a r fro m th e
th a n to G e n iu s , to V e n u s r a th e r th a n to Ju v e n ta s . H e rc u le s ' litu rg y , th a n k s to R o m a n c o n s e r v a t is m . B u t m a n y w e r e s o o n
e lim in a tio n its e lf is p e rh a p s an e x p re ssio n of th is sam e to b ecom e " f o s s il i z e d ," f o llo w in g th e e x a m p le o f th e R ex
m o v e m e n t , n o t s o m u c h a d e m o t i o n a s a c e rtifie d r e p o r t o f S a cro ru m ( " t h e k in g o f th e s a c r if ic e s " ), w h o w h e n p o litic a l
h is i n c a p a c i t y t o a d j u s t to th e c i r c u m s t a n c e s /'” k in g s h ip c o lla p s e d h a d b e e n p e r p e tu a te d fo r n o r e a s o n o th e r
B e s id e s lim itin g th e s e le c tio n to th e tw e lv e p riv ile g e d th a n to a v o id d o in g a d is s e rv ic e to th e g o d s .”
g o d s , t h e l e c t i s t e r n i u m h a d e v e n g r e a t e r s i g n i f i c a n c e . A ll t h e F irs t w a s Q u ir in u s , w h o m th e e c o n o m i c a n d s o c ia l e v o l u ­
c h o s e n d e i t i e s h e n c e f o r t h h a d a r i g h t t o t h e c i t y in t h e G r e e k t io n o f th e c ity had a lre a d y e lim in a te d a t th e tim e o f th e
w o r ld a s in t h e L a tin w o r l d . T h e y w e r e w o r t h y to b e h o n o r e d C a p ito lin e tria d . A n o th e r w a s J a n u s , th e g o d o f b e g in n in g s ,
w ith th e zeal a p p ro p ria te to th e ritus graecus. T hey w ere th e god o f tr a n s itio n s , w ho p la y e d a s p e c ific ro le in th e
i m p o r t a n t t o a ll t h e p e o p l e , m e n and w om en, in a ll t h e ir R o m a n litu rg y . A n o th e r w a s G e n iu s , w h o e n jo y e d a re v iv a l
t e m p le s , w h o p r a y e d to th e g o d s to d e liv e r th e m f ro m th e ir o n ly b e c a u s e o f th e in itia tiv e ta k e n b y A u g u s tu s . A n o th e r
a fflic tio n s . L iv y ( 2 6 .9 .7 ) d e s c r ib e s th e d r a m a t ic s u p p lic a tio n w a s S ilv a n u s , th e s y lv a n g o d w h o w a s re la te d to F a u n u s .
t h a t t o o k p l a c e in 2 1 1 b .c . w hen R o m e w a s a t th e m e rc y o f A n o th e r w a s A n n a P e re n n a , w h o su rv iv e d b e c a u s e o f th e
H a n n i b a l : " T h e w a i l i n g o f w o m e n w a s h e a r d n o t o n l y in p r i v a t e fe s tiv a l th a t m a r k e d th e p a s s a g e f ro m th e o ld y e a r to th e n e w
h o u s e s , b u t e v e r y w h e r e m a t r o n s c a m e t o lie d o w n a c r o s s p u b li c y e a r . F in a lly th e r e w e r e th e P e n a te s , th e g o d s w h o w a tc h e d
w a y s ; th e y ra n a r o u n d th e s h r in e s , s w e p t th e a lta r s w ith th e ir o v e r s u p p lie s , a n d th e L a r e s , th e g o d s w h o p r o te c te d c u lti­
l o o s e n e d h a i r , fe ll t o t h e i r k n e e s , r a i s e d t h e i r h a n d s ( supinas v a te d la n d and w ho w e re p a rtic u la rly w o r s h ip e d at th e
manus) to th e g o d o f h e a v e n , a n d p r a y e d to th e m to w re s t th e h e a r th o f th e R o m a n fa m ily .
c ity o f R o m e fro m th e h a n d s o f t h e e n e m y a n d to s a v e th e R o m a n E a c h o f th e s e g o d s c o r r e s p o n d s to a n o r ig in a l a s p e c t o f th e
m o t h e r s a n d t h e i r l ittle c h i l d r e n f r o m v i o l e n c e / ' d iv in e r e p r e s e n ta tio n o f th e R om an s. T hey b e lo n g to th e
c a t e g o r y o f g o d s t h a t a r e " d i f f i c u l t to p r o n o u n c e in G r e e k ,"
to b o r r o w an e x p re ssio n fro m D io n y s iu s o f H a lic a r n a s s u s

Latona and Apollo under the palm tree of Delos. Amphora. Paris, ( 2 .5 0 .3 ). W itn e s s th e te rm " L a r e s ," w h ic h fo r la ck of an
Musée du Louvre. Photo Giraudon. a p p r o p r ia te te rm w a s im p ro p e rly tr a n s la te d b y th e G re e k s a s
heroes (fo r e x a m p le , in D i o n . H a l. 4 .1 4 .3 ) , w h e re a s R o m e,
r e c o g n iz in g o n ly g o d s a n d m e n , w a s u n a w a r e o f th e in te r ­
m e d ia te b e in g , th e h e r o .”
C o n s e q u e n tly , w h a t h a d b e e n c h a lle n g e d b y th e in n o v a ­
t i o n s o f t h e e n d o f t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y b .c . w a s t h e i r r e d u c i b l e
o r ig in a lity o f th e R o m a n p a n th e o n . S o m e d e itie s w e r e r e le ­
g a te d to th e s h a d o w s . O th e r s lo s t th e ir o n o m a s t i c p r iv ile g e
a n d w e r e h e n c e fo rth tra n s la ta b le in to a " f o r e i g n " la n g u a g e .
If t h e i r r a n g e o f i n f l u e n c e s t o o d to g a i n b y it, t h e ir id e n t i ty
w a s , o n th e o th e r h a n d , e x p o s e d to s y n c r e tis t o v e r la y s . O n e
m e re ly has to re a d O v i d 's Fasti to get a m e a su re of th e
g r o u n d c o v e r e d in t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y a .u .56 In t h i s s e n s e , t h e
end of th e th ird c e n tu ry b .c . c o r r e s p o n d s to a d e c is iv e
t u r n i n g p o i n t in t h e r e l i g i o u s h i s t o r y o f R o m e .
T h e f o l l o w i n g is a s u m m a r y o f t h e d i f f e r e n t g r o u p i n g s o f
d e itie s in R om e. The g ro u p in g s of a r itu a l n a tu re a re in
ro m an ty p e ; th e g ro u p in g s of lite r a r y fa b rica tio n a re in
ita lic s . I. T h e a rc h a ic tria d : J u p i te r - M a r s -Q u ir i n u s . II. T h e
C a p ito lin e tr ia d : Ju p ite r -J u n o -M in e r v a (se e L iv y 1 .3 8 .7 ;
1 .5 5 .1 - 6 ) . I II. T h e t r i a d C e r e s - L i b e r - L i b e r a ( i n 4 9 3 b. c .; s e e
D io n . H a l. 6 .1 7 .2 ) . IV . T h e first le c tis te r n iu m of 399 b .c .:
A p o llo -L a to n a , H e r c u le s -D ia n a , M e rc u ry -N e p tu n e (se e
L i v y 5 . 1 3 . 4 ) . V. T h e l e c t i s t e r n i u m o f th e tw e lv e g r e a t g o d s
of 217 b. c .: J u p i t e r - J u n o , N e p tu n e -M in e rv a , M a rs -V e n u s ,
A p o llo -D ia n a , V u lca n -V e sta , M e rc u ry -C e re s (s e e L iv y
2 2 .1 0 .9 ) . V I. The l is t of tw e lv e a g r ic u ltu ra l d e itie s :
Juppiter-Tellus, Sol-Luna, Ceres-Liber, Robigus-Flora, Minetva-
Venus, Lympha-Bonus Eventus ( s e e V a r r o De Re Rustica
1 .1 .4 - 7 ). V II. The lis t of tw e lv e d e itie s as a rra n g e d by
V irg il ( Georgies 1 .5 - 2 5 ), C aesar b e in g p ro p o se d as a
th irte e n th : Sol-Luna ( = clarissima mundi lumina), Liber-Ceres,
Fauni-Dryads, Neptune, Aristaeus ( = cultor nemorum), Pan-
Minerva, Triptolemus ( = unci puer monstrator aratri), Sihmnus,
a n d a t v e r s e 2 5 : Caesar. V I I I . T h e lis t o f t w e n t y Di Selecti o f
V a r r o ( c f . A u g u s t i n e De civitate Dei 7 . 2 ) : Janus, hppiter,
Saturn, Genius, Mercury, Apollo, Mars, Vulcan, Neptune, Sol,
Orcus, Liber pater, Tellus, Ceres, luno, Luna, Diana, Minerva,
Venus, Vesta.
R .S ./t .l .f .

75
ROM E
NOTES
The abridged references refer to bibliographic collections. See the
articles "Roman Religion" above, and "The Religion of the Roman
Republic" below.
1. Text cited by G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque (2d ed.,
1974), 36.
2. The book Roman Dynamism (1947) by H. Wagenvoort is the
translation by H. J. Rose of the book published originally in the
Netherlands under the title Imperium: Studien over het manabegriy in
zede en taal der Romeinen (1941). Note that the Dutch title makes
explicit reference to the idea of mana.
3. G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., pp. 36-48.
4. It was only from the Augustan Age that the poets had
occasionally used—by metonymy—numina in place of dei; but the
older usage was not lost, as is attested by the Virgilian expression quo
numine laeso (Aeneid 1, 8), which means "which will (of Juno) having
been violated": cf. the exegesis of Th. Birt, Zu Vergil Aeneis I, 8: quo
numine laeso, B PhW, 38 (1918): cols. 212-16 (ibid., 46-47).
5. H. Wagenvoort, Wesenszüge altrömischer Religion, in Aufstieg und
Niedergang der römischen Welt, 1, 2, pp. 352ff.
6. L. Accii tragoediarum fragmenta, ed. Q. Franchella (Bologna
1968), § 596 ( = 2d ed. Ribbeck, Scaenicae Romanorum poesis fragmenta,
§ 646 = H. Warmington, ed.. Remains of Old Latin, 2:546, § 650).
7. Cf. Livy, 8.9.6.
8. The formula D(is) M(anibus) became usual on the epitaphs. It is
followed by either the genitive or the dative of the form designating
the deceased.
9. On this problem, see Le culte des soinvrains dans l'Empire romain
. . . Entretiens préparés et présidés par W. den Boer (Geneva 1973), as well
as the review by J. Béranger, Gnomon 48 (1976): 379-84. What are we
to think of the deus of the first Bucolic of Virgil—a title which a
shepherd gives to his benefactor Octavian? The shepherd promises
to worship his god. The religious aspect is thus revealed here more
than in the fervent eulogy of literary inspiration which is addressed
by Lucretius (5.8) to Epicurus: "deus ille fuit, deus, inclute Memmi."
10. Tacitus, Ann. 15.74.3 (example cited by J. Béranger, /./., 383).
11. Pliny, Natural History (N.H .) 12.3: Haec (sc. arboreset silvae) fuere
numinum templa priscoque ritu simplicia rura etiam nunc deo praecellentem
arborem dicant. Nec magis auro fulgentia atque ebore simulacra quam lucos
et in iis silentia adoramus.
12. Varro cited by Augustine, City ofG od (C.D.) 4.31.
13. Some have wanted to explain the absence of anthropomor­
phism by a "technical incapacity" of the Romans. This hypothesis
does not stand up well to recent conclusions of archeology which
have found figurines in the oldest tombs of Latium (these testify at
least to the ability to represent the human figure); cf. E. Gjerstad,
Early Rome. 4, 2 (Lund 1966), 579-81. See the observations of
P. Boyancé, REA, 57 (1955): 66-67, and of G. Dumézil, La religion
romaine archaïque. 2d ed., pp. 44ff.
14. Cf. Livy 5.32.6.
15. Cf. Festus, p. 354, 28 L.
16. The ancient etymology which had explained the name "Fau­
nus" by favere (Servius ad Georg. 1.10) has been contested by the
moderns, but perhaps we may return to it: cf. Latte, R.R.G., 83, n.
3. In that case, one must understand the expression "Faunus" ("the
propitious god") in the same way as "Di Manes," as a euphemism of
propitiatory value.
17. Cf. G. Wissowa, Ruk2, 216 (with indications of ancient sources);
G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., p. 355.
18. Virgil Georgies 3.1 and 294.
19. Cf. G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., pp.
385-87: The Pales of the Parilia is concerned with small livestock,
while the two Pales of 7 July are concerned with sheep and cows.
20. Varro, cited by Servius ad Georg. 3.1.
21. Wissowa (Rule2, 38, n. 1) has commented on the principal
passages: Actes des Arvales (CIL. 6, 2099 2, 1, 3; 2104, 2; 2107, 9);
Cato De agricultura 139, etc.
22. As G. Dumézil notes (La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., p. 59,
n. 2), the case of Macrobius, Saturnalia 3.9.7, is different: Si deus, si
dea est cui populus civitasque Carthaginiensis est in tutela (in the formula
of the evocatio) corresponds to a known Latinism: "every one of the
76
gods and goddesses who protect the people and the city of Carthage
23. The reference on the inscription of the shield of the Capitol,
noted also by Servius (ad Aen. 2.351: Genio Romae, sive mas sive
femina), calls on an analogous commentary. To the extent to which
"Genius" can only be a masculine, the siiv mas siiv femina cannot
apply to the divinized Rome. God or goddess? In ignorance, the
formula allows either hypothesis.
24. This is the classic example—and, moreover, unique in the
annals—of the transfer of a cult of foreign origin to Rome. Toward
the end of the siege of the Etruscan city of Veii (in 3% b . c .), the
Roman dictator M. Furius Camillus ensured the good graces of the
tutelary goddess by the evocatio—a prayer in which he asked Juno
Regina to abandon her city in exchange for a "temple worthy of her
grandeur" in Rome. Cf. above, this article. As we know, the
pomerium is the sacred frontier that delimits the zone of urban
auspices in opposition to the ager effatus ( = the adjacent ground
made available for other auspices); the pomerial line was indicated
by a series of cippus columns: cf. Aulus Gellius 13.14.1; Varro L.L.
5.143.
25. Cf. the argument made against Latte, R.R.G.. pp. 43 and 45, n.
1, by G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., pp. 108-10, an
argument that bears on not only the meaning but also the antiquity
of the formula.
26. G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., p. 110, n. 1,
has noted a text of Ovid (Metamorphosis 15.861-70) in which the
same typology appears, recalling the conjoint formula Indigetes and
Noivnsiles.
27. Virgil G. 1.498. We note also the cult of Jupiter Indiges at
Lavinium (Livy 1.2.6); the cult of Sol Indiges, which, very important
at the origin, is entered in the calendar on the date of 11 December
(for documentation, cf. Latte, R.R.G., pp. 44 and 73). Pliny's
reference to a locus Solis Indigetis near the Numicus at Lavinium
(N.H. 3.56; for this reading of the manuscripts instead of the
correction of Barbarus lucus /ovis Ind.. see Castagnoli, Lavinium, 1, p.
93, n. 10), as well as the comments of Dionysius of Halicarnassus
(1.55.2), confirm the antiquity of the cult.
28. J. Bayet, Histoire politique el psychologique de la religion romaine
(2d ed., Paris 1969), has rightly insisted on this aspect.
29. This detail of the bull "white as snow" offered to Jupiter
Latiaris is due to Arnobius Adversus nationes 2.68 (In Albano antiquitus
monte nullos alios licebat quam nivei tauros immolare candoris). The same
author indicates that later a senatorial decision also authorized
animals with red (rufulos) hair. If the account of Arnobius is correct,
the sacrifice on Mount Alban departed from the ritual pattern that
required castrated animals for Jupiter: cf. Ateius Labeo, cited by
Macrobius (S. 3.10.4). It is true that according to Virgil (G. 2.146-48)
and Servius (ad locum) the bull was also sacrificed to Capitoline
Jupiter by the winners on the day of the ceremony of triumph.
30. The suspension of all war during the feriae Latinae, as well as
the communio sacrorum, has suggested to Latte (R.R.G., p. 145) the
idea of a possible influence of the Greek amphictyony, which might
have been transmitted by an Etruscan intermediary: the Etruscan
confederation of the "twelve cities," which met near the sanctuary of
Voltumna, located near the Volsinii (Livy 4.23.5; 4.25.7, etc.).
31. Servius ad Aen. 7.515.
32. In an inscription (CIL, 1, 22, 2444), Diana of Aricia is called
Diana af louco ("Diana of the sacred forest").
33. Cato, Orig, frag., H.R.F., 58, P. Cf. Festus, p. 128, 15 L; Manius
Egerius lucum Nemorensem Dianae consecravit ("Manius Egerius con­
secrated to Diana the sacred forest of Nemi").
34. The statute of the cult, which served for those that followed as
a model for other foundations, made an allusion to an altar: lex arae
Dianae in Aventino ("regulation of the altar of Diana on the Aven­
tine": CIL, 3, 1933).
35. Different interpretations have been proposed by G. Wissowa
(Ruk2, 250-51), L. Latte (R.R.G., 173), and G. Dumézil (La religion
romaine archaïque. 2d ed., 412-13).
36. Regarding the cult of Diana and the effacement of the Latin
goddess under Roman hegemony, cf. R. Schilling, "Une victime des
vicissitudes politiques: La Diane latine," Coll. Latomus, 70 ( = Hom­
mages à Jean Bayet), 1964, 650-67; reprinted with the same title in
R.C.D.R.
 R O M A N S A C R I F I C E

37. Cf. H. Le Bonniec, Le culte de Ce res à Rome des aridities à la fin de
la république (Paris 1958), 277-311. For an opposing view, see
A. Alföldi, Il Santuario federate latino di Diana sh//'Aventino e il tempio di
Ceres, S.M .S.R., 32 (1961): 21 -39. (This scholar moves fhe date of the
foundation of the temple and of its political role after the reform of
the Decemvirs back to the second half of the fifth century b.c .)
38. Cf. R. Schilling, Les Castores romains à la lumière des traditions
indo-eurofHvnnes, Collection Latomus ( = Hommages à Georges
Dumézil) (Brussels 1960); reprinted with the same title in R.C.D.R.
39. Cf. J. Gagé, Apollon romain (Paris 1955), 158ff.; 167.
40. Cf. Robert Schilling, La religion romaine de Vénus (Paris 1954),
242-66.
41. Regarding the statuettes of Aeneas and Anchises from Veii, the
proposed date varies from the sixth to the fourth century b.c . It
seems reasonable to accept at the latest the beginning of the fifth
century. See, in particular, A. Alföldi, Die trojanischen Urahnen der
Römer (Basel 1957). See, most recently, W. Fuchs, Die Bildgeschichte
der Flucht des Aeneas, A.N.R.W.. 1, 4 (1973), 615-32.
42. With regard to the line of continuity that exists between the
two triads, see the article "Roman Religion," above.
43. Cf. above, this article. The cult of Ceres is classed by Festus (p.
268, 31 L.) among the sacra (vregrina ("foreign cults"). Although
Indo-European in its structure, the triad here seems influenced by a
Greek model. For a discussion, see H. Le Bonniec, Le culte de Cérès à
Rome, 277- 311; for an opposing view, see A. Alföldi, Early Rome and
the Latins, 95-100.
44. Cf. Livy 5.13.4-6. This Hellenic rite, which came from the
Etruscan town of Caere, was repeated four times consecutively in the
course of the following years: cf. Wissowa, Ruk2, p. 422 and n. 7.
45. An undifferentiated list is furnished by Ennius, Annales, 60-61
(ed. Warmington): Juno Vesta Mi nenn Ceres Diana Venus Mars Mercu­
rius Jovis Neptunus Vulcanus Afwllo. The hierarchical order is indicated
by Livy (22.10.9; cf. also 22.9.10).
46. We know that the lectisternium of the twelve divinities must
have inspired in Octavian one day the idea of organizing a joyous
masquerade—the cena dôdekatheos—in the course of which the twelve
guests were disguised as gods and goddesses (Suetonius Aug. 70).
47. The twelve di consentes of the Forum are cited by Varro
(R.R . 1.1.4). The expression is unique: the term consentes ("who are
together") was assimilated by the Latins to consentientes ("who
decide in accord").
48. Cf. G. Lugli, Roma antica: II centro monumentale (Rome 1946),
114-15.
49. We have retained here only the divine groupings that have a
ritual existence. However, the number twelve influenced the group
of twelve "agricultural divinities" imagined by Varro (De re rustica
1.1.4-6), as well as the semireligious, semimythological list of Virgil
(G. 1.5-20). Elsewhere, Varro, cited by Augustine (C D. 7.2), had
drawn up a list of twenty principal divinities (deos selectos).
50. Regarding the equivalence of the Latin Quirinus and the
Umbrian Vofiono-, see G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d
ed., p. 161 and n. 3.
51. Cf. ibid., p. 475.
52. These phrases reproduce a part of the commentary of my book
R .R.V ., 207-8.
53. G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., p. 475.
54. Cf. Festus, p. 422 L.: "He who performs the ceremonies that
the kings used to perform is named Sacrificulus Rex (or Rex
Sacrorum)."
55. The word heros, copied from the Greek, appears only later, in
the language of the poets, for example, in Virgil.
56. Cf. R. Schilling, "Ovide interprète de la religion romaine,"
R.E L. 46 (1969): 222-35; reprinted in R.C.D .R., same title.

Juppiter, te hoc ferto obmovendo bonas preces precor, uti sies volens
R o m a n S ac r ifice propitius milii liberisque meis domo familiaeque meae mactus hoc
ferto ( J u p i t e r , in m a k i n g t h i s o f f e r i n g t o y o u , I p r a y w i t h g o o d
p r a y e r s th a t y o u w a tc h o v e r m e a n d b e g r a c io u s u n to m e , m y
In i t s i n t r i n s i c m e a n i n g , t h e t e r m s a crifice (sacrificium) in d i­ c h i l d r e n , m y h o u s e , a n d a ll m y h o u s e h o l d ; m a y t h i s o f f e r i n g
c a t e s th a t s o m e t h in g is v o l u n t a r i ly t a k e n a w a y b y m a n fr o m b e a c o m f o r t t o y o u ) . T h i s u t t e r a n c e is a s c l e a r a s it is p r e c i s e .
t h e p r o f a n e w o r l d t o b e o f f e r e d t o t h e g o d s ( sacrum facere). To H e n a m e s th e in te n d e d g o d , th e o f fe rin g (th e fertum i s a k i n d
w h a t e n d ? P r o b a b ly , in a c c o r d a n c e w ith th e w o r l d v i e w a t th e o f c a k e ), th e le g itim a c y o f th e re q u e s t (bonas preces), a n d t h e
o r ig in , th e p u rp o se w as to c o m f o r t th e g o d s , w ho in th e p u rp o se o f th e sa crifice . A m ong a ll th e s p e c ific te rm s in
R o m a n c o n c e p tio n w e r e a llie s o f m a n k in d . T h e R o m a n s w e r e th is te x t, so flo rid w ith its a r c h a ic l a n g u a g e ,2 w e s h o u ld
tie d to th e g o d s b y b o n d s o f r e c ip r o c i t y d e f i n e d b y th e n o t i o n re m a rk on mactus, w h i c h t h e a n cie n ts i n te r p r e te d in th e
of pietas, b y v ir tu e o f w h ic h m en had t o h o n o r ( colere) t h e sense of magis a u c t u s it s e e m s to re fle ct th e o ld c o n c e p t th a t
g o d s w h o in t u r n o w e d m e n p r o t e c t i o n . d iv in e p o w e r h a d to b e " c o m f o r t e d " w ith th e s a c r if ic e .
N o t h in g illu m i n a t e s t h e m e a n s a n d e n d s o f s a c r i f i c e b e t te r T h u s, th e s a c r i f i c e in t h e b e g i n n in g s e e m s to h a v e c o n ­
th a n th e a c c o m p a n y in g p ra y e r th a t a R om an p easan t ad ­ s is te d e s s e n tia lly in " s u s ta in in g " th e god. T h is id e a is
d r e s s e d t o a p a r t i c u l a r g o d . In t h i s c a s e , C a t o ' s f o r m u l a t i o n c o n firm e d by th e e p ith e t dapalis t h a t is a p p l i e d to Ju p ite r
(De Agricultura 1 3 4 ) l is ts th e a r r a n g e m e n t s th a t s h o u ld be w h e n h e b e c o m e s th e re c ip ie n t o f a m e a l (daps) th a t c o n s is te d
m a d e to o f fe r a p ro p itia to r y s a crifice to C e r e s , th e g o d d e s s o f o f a " j u g " o f w in e (urna vint) a n d a n o f fe rin g o f s a c r e d flo u r
g r o w th , b e f o r e th e h a r v e s t . F ir s t, th e s a c r if ic e c o u ld n o t b e w ith th e v a lu e o f o n e as ( a R o m a n c o in o r w e ig h t), assara
lim ite d to C e r e s a l o n e . A c c o r d i n g t o t h e r u l e s o f th is p o l y ­ pecunia.4 T h e c e le b ra n t a n d th e p a r tic ip a n ts d id n o t re m a in
th e is tic h ie r a r c h y , o n e m u s t first a d d r e s s J a n u s , th e g o d o f s tr a n g e r s to th e c e r e m o n y , s in c e a p a rt o f th e fo o d th a t w a s
b e g in n in g s , a n d th e n th e s o v e r e ig n g o d , Ju p ite r (th e te x t a ls o n o t co n se c ra te d w a s d is trib u te d fo r th e u s e o f la y m e n a n d
m e n tio n s J u n o , a r a th e r s u s p e c t a d d itio n ). O n c e th e s e p r e ­ c o n s u m e d b y th e p a r t ic ip a n t s .s
lim in a r ie s have been a tte n d e d to , th e o ffe rin g to C e re s A lth o u g h th e daps r e p r e s e n ts a s a c rific e a t th e fa m ily le v e l,
c o n s i s ts o f th e e n t r a il s o f a s o w a n d a lib a tio n o f w in e . T h is th e epulum c o rre s p o n d s to a m o re s o le m n m e a l o rg a n iz e d
is a l r e a d y a R om an in n o v a tio n , n a m e ly , th a t th e p art set a n d s u b s id iz e d b y th e s ta te . T h e epulum Jovis w a s o f f e r e d to
a s i d e f o r t h e g o d w h e n a b l o o d s a c r i f i c e is p e r f o r m e d s h o u l d Ju p ite r every year on 13 N o v em b er, on th e C a p ito lin e ,
b e th e exta, o r e n tra ils , o f th e a n im a l, in c lu d in g th e h e a rt s t a r t i n g a t t h e e n d o f t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y b. c . A c c o r d i n g t o t h e
(cor), lu n g s (pulmones), liv e r (jecur), a n d g a llb la d d e r (fel) . 1 d e s c rip tio n p ro v id e d b y V a le riu s M a x im u s ( 2 .1 .2 ) , " T h e g o d
The w o rd in g of th e p ray er to Ju p ite r c o n ta in s a ll th e w a s in v ite d to ta k e h is p la c e o n a c o u c h , J u n o a n d M in e r v a
c h a r a c te r is tic e le m e n ts th a t re cu r in th e o th e r f o r m u la s : o n c h a i r s ." T h is epulum t h u s d e a lt w ith th e C a p ito lin e tr ia d ,

77
ROME
Sacrificial scene (relief). In the background: facade of the temple of
the Capitoline Jupiter and wall topped with statues of men and
animals fighting. In the foreground: Emperor Marcus Aurelius, capite
velato, assisted by the flamen Dialis wearing his apex cap; he pours a
libation on the flame of the tripod altar. Behind him, a bearded man
wearing a toga and a crown of laurels, probably representing the
senate. In front of him, a camillus holding a casket of incense (acerra)
and a pipe player; the head of the victim hovers over them. To the
right, sacrificers, one holding an ax, the other a jar (situla). Rome,
Museo dei Conservatori. Photo Alinari-Giraudon.
and gods and goddesses conformed to the prevailing cus­
toms of the men and women of the times. The word epulo
was hardly ever used as an epithet of Jupiter, which would
have resulted in an expression symmetrical to Juppiter Dapa­
lis, but it did serve to designate the priests specially charged
with the responsibility to celebrate official sacrifices in order
to relieve the pontifex; this college of priests was known as
the septemviri epulones.
What kinds of food could one offer the gods? Particular
preferences aside, the following list was drawn up by Verrius
Flaccus, a great scholar in the time of Augustus, and pre­
served in a summary by Festus:6 "commodities that can be
offered in sacrifice: grain, pearl barley, wine, leavened bread,
dried figs, pork, lamb, cheese, mutton, bran, sesame and oil,
fish with scales except angelfish (a saltwater fish also known
as monkfish)."
In addition to these foods, the firstfruits of the harvest
were offered to the appropriate protective deities, for in­
stance, the first must (sacrima) was offered to Liber Pater. We
78
should also point out that the list drawn up by Festus is not
complete. It mentions cheese, but it omits milk, for example,
which was an older offering than wine: lukewarm milk was
a favorite of one of the oldest deities, Pales, the goddess of
shepherds and their flocks, whose festival, the Parilia (21
April), coincided with the anniversary of the founding of
Rome.7
Alongside these bloodless sacrifices are blood sacrifices
that can be traced back to equally ancient times.8 The usual
victims are animals belonging to the pig, sheep, or cow
families. Perhaps we should distinguish between what are
called hostia9 (expiatory victims to appease the wrath of the
gods) and victima (victims offered as signs of gratitude). But
these fine distinctions seem to have disappeared in historical
times.
On the other hand, the Roman liturgy seems to have been
subject to precise general rules. The animal has to be of a
certain age that varies depending on the circumstances.
Thus, we can distinguish among victims that still suckle
(lactentes), two-year-olds (bidentes), and adult victims (hostiae
majores). Normally a god demands a male victim and a
goddess, a female.10 By the same principle of analogy, a sky
god requires a light animal, and a netherworld god a dark
one. But exceptions to these rules do occur.
There are particular sets of rules for certain deities. Jupiter
is to receive a castrated animal,11 whereas Apollo, Neptune,
and Mars demand an intact male, such as a bull.12 Mars has
the honor of being the recipient of a triple offering that
groups the representatives of the three animal species: boar,
ram, and bull, designated by the term suovetaurilia. 13
How does the sacrifice actually proceed? First it presup­
poses certain conditions on the part of the celebrant, who
must be in a state of ritual purity. For example, he cannot
perform his duties if a member of his family has just died,
making the family funesta (in mourning).14 Wearing a toga
that is rolled up into a cinctus Gabinus ( freeing the arms), the
celebrant washes his hands in a bowl (malluvium) and dries
them with a towel (mantele). So as not to be disturbed during
the ceremony, he covers his head with a tail of his toga. He
thus appears capite velato, which to the ancients was a
peculiarly Roman attitude, in contrast with the uncovered
head, capite aperto, of the Greek ritual.15
Among the sacrifices, some are performed within the
family circle, for instance, the Lemuria which the paterfamil­
ias celebrates according to an archaic liturgy that aims at
expelling the Lemures, evil spirits, from the house.16 Others
are celebrated within the social group as constituted by the
curia, among them the Fornacalia celebrated in honor of
Fornax, the goddess of ovens, during the roasting of grain;17
or the Fordicidia, the sacrifice of a pregnant cow (forda) to the
goddess Earth, who is supposed to be full of seed on that day
(15 April).18 The most solemn sacrifices are the publica sacra
"which are offered for the people at the expense of the
state."19
These sacrifices require a ceremonial regulated by an
ordering of several phases. First of all, the probatio, a kind of
admission test— the chosen animal must be beyond re­
proach: it must be appropriate to the deity and have no
physical defect; it must conform to precise norms. Thus, as
Pliny the Elder reminds us, "a calf is admitted only if its tail
reaches the knucklebone; if it is any shorter, the sacrifice will
not please the gods."20
The victim is adorned with boughs (verbenae), and its head
is decorated with white or scarlet headbands (infulae). Often
if it is a cow or an ox, its horns are gilded (taurus auratus et bos
femina aurata, in the liturgy of the Arval Brethren, designates
 R O M A N S A C R I F I C E

a b u ll o r h e i f e r w i t h g o l d e n h o r n s ) ; 21 c a t t l e o r p i g s w e a r a re c o rd s th e litatio, o r th e a p p r o v a l g i v e n b y t h e g o d s f o r h is
k i n d o f c o v e r ( dorsuale) o n t h e i r b a c k s , b u t n o t s h e e p , w h i c h s a c r i f i c e . If t h e y a r e n o t g o o d ( if , f o r e x a m p l e , t h e h e a r t o r
a r e o f f e r e d w ith th e ir th ic k f le e c e (altilanei), w h ic h h a s n e v e r p a r t o f t h e l i v e r i s m i s s i n g ) , 30 t h e s a c r i f i c e h a s t o b e g i n a g a i n ,
b e e n s h e a r e d . 22 s u b s titu tin g a new v ic tim (hostia succidanea) fo r th e first
T h u s a d o r n e d , t h e v i c t i m i s l e d n e a r t h e a l t a r ( ara ) , in f r o n t a n i m a l. R o m a n t e n a c i ty is e v i d e n t in a d e c i s io n b y th e s e n a t e
o f t h e t e m p l e ; n e x t t o t h e a l t a r is p l a c e d a m o v a b l e h e a r t h (in 1 7 6 B .c .) t h a t e n j o i n e d t h e c o n s u l s w h o h a d fa ile d t o g e t a
(Joculus), o f te n g a r n is h e d w ith tu r f (caespite)23 a n d in te n d e d litatio (in s p e c tio n had re v e a le d a liv e r in a s ta te of to ta l
t o r e c e i v e t h e p r e l i m i n a r y l i b a t i o n s o f w i n e a n d i n c e n s e . 24 d e c o m p o s i ti o n ) " t o s ta r t s a c r if ic in g a g a in w ith a d u lt v ic tim s
A n o r d e r g o e s o u t c a llin g fo r s ile n c e (Favete Unguis!)25 w h i l e u n til th e y o b ta in e d th e g o d 's a p p ro v a l" (usque ad
a flu tist (tibicen) "is h e a rd try in g to cover up a ll o th e r litationem).31
s o u n d s ." T h e c e le b r a n t th e n p r o c e e d s to th e immolatio: The O n c e th e litatio is o b t a i n e d , t h e n e x t p h a s e c a n p r o c e e d .
v i c t i m 's h e a d is d u s t e d w ith mola salsa (lo o s e flo u r m ix e d T h e exta a r e r e m o v e d f r o m t h e v i c t i m ; t h e y a r e t h e n d u s t e d
w ith s a lt, p rep ared by th e v e s t a l s ) , 26 a n o p e ra tio n t h a t is w i t h mola salsa; a f e w a d d i t i o n a l p i e c e s a r e t h r o w n i n ,
c o m p le te d w ith a lib a tio n of w i n e . 27 T h e v ic tim is th e n augmenta o r magmenta.32 T h e s e s u p p l e m e n t s m u s t r e p r e s e n t
s tr i p p e d o f a ll its t r a p p in g s , t h e dorsuale a n d th e infulae. The t h e r e s t o f t h e v i c t i m . B o t h exta a n d augmenta a r e t h e n c o o k e d
c e l e b r a n t p a s s e s h is k n if e a l o n g t h e a n i m a l 's b a c k b o n e f r o m in a p o t (olla extaris). T h i s i s t h e w a y t h e y a r e o r d i n a r i l y
h e a d t o ta il. T h is s y m b o l i c g e s t u r e o f p o s s e s s i o n c o m p l e te s c o o k e d in t h e h is t o r i c a l p e r i o d , b u t t r a d it i o n a l s o m e n t io n s
th e a c t o f th e consecratio. b ro ilin g th e exta o n a s k e w e r . 33
Then th e c e le b ra n t re c ite s th e fo r m u la ic p r a y e r t h a t a n The exta a r e t h e n c u t u p ( e x c e p t in s a c r i f i c e s o f l u s t r a ti o n
a s s is ta n t re a d s to h im "to a v o id any o m is s io n or o f f e r e d b y t h e c e n s o r s ) . 34 T h e s e prosecta, or prosicies. can now
i n v e r s i o n . " 28 T h e m o m e n t o f d e a t h h a s a r r i v e d . It i s a c h i e v e d b e o f f e r e d t o t h e g o d . T h e w h o l e o f f e r i n g is t h e n b u r n e d o n
m o s t o f te n th ro u g h th e m e d ia tio n o f t h e c e l e b r a n t 's a s s i s ­ to p o f th e a lta r th a t h a s a lre a d y been s p r in k le d w ith th e
ta n ts . O ne assista n t s a crifice r (victimarius or popa) asks, b lo o d . Exta porricere, or dare, is t h e n a m e o f t h i s o p e r a t i o n .
Agone? (" S h a ll 1 g o a h e a d ? " m e a n in g " S h a ll I p e rfo rm th e The ritu a l o f th e A rv a l B re th re n u ses a m o re s u g g e s tiv e
s a c r i f i c e ? " ) H e th e n s tr ik e s th e fo r e h e a d o f th e v ic tim w ith a e x p re s sio n , n a m e ly , exta reddere: in fa c t it i s a m a tte r of
h a m m e r o r a n a x , p r o b a b l y t o d a z e i t. A n o t h e r a s s i s t a n t , t h e "re n d e rin g u n to " th e d e ity th e c o n se c ra te d p a rt th a t is
cultrarius, s ta b s th e j u g u la r v e in w ith a k n if e (culter). The d u e t h a t d e i t y . 35 T h e c e l e b r a n t a n d h i s a s s i s t a n t s a r e e n t i t l e d
g u s h i n g b l o o d i s c o l l e c t e d a n d s p r e a d o v e r t h e a l t a r . If t h e to c o n s u m e th e viscera, o r " m e a t , " 36 w h i c h is s e t a s i d e f o r
a n im a l ever re s is ts in th e co u rse of th e se o p e ra tio n s, or p ro fan e u se.
w o rse y e t, e s ca p e s (hostia effugia), it p o r t e n d s b a d l u c k . R om an litu r g y t h u s c le a r ly d i s tin g u is h e s th e s a c r e d p art
If t h e p r o c e e d i n g g o e s a c c o r d i n g t o p l a n , t h e b o d y o f t h e fro m th e p ro fan e p a rt. It u n d e r s t a n d s th e b lo o d and th e
a n im a l is o p e n e d up to a llo w an in sp e ctio n o f its in te r n a l e n tra ils to b e th e p a r ts r e s e r v e d fo r th e g o d s , b e c a u s e th e s e
o rg an s (inspicere exta). T h is e x a m in a tio n is o n ly to m ake o r g a n s a r e r e p u t e d t o b e t h e s e a t s o f lif e i t s e l f , a c c o r d i n g t o
c e r ta i n t h a t th e o r g a n s a r e in g o o d c o n d it i o n to e n s u r e th e th e p r in c ip le d e fin e d by T re b a tiu s: sola anima deo sacratur
a p p ro v a l o f th e g o d s (litatio). T h u s , w e fin d in th e m in u te s o f ( " t h e s o u l a l o n e is c o n s e c r a t e d t o t h e g o d " ) . 37 R o m a n s a c r i ­
th e A rv a l B re th re n t h e e llip tic e x p r e s s i o n : hostiae litationem fice d iffe rs f u n d a m e n ta lly fro m G r e e k s a c r i f i c e , w h ic h c a lls
inspexerunt ( " t h e y e x a m i n e t h e v i c t i m fo r th e p u rp o se of fo r a n undifferentiated d is trib u tio n o f a ll p a r t s o f t h e v ic tim
litatio” ).29 T h i s p r o c e d u r e c o n f o r m s t o th e p r e s c r ip tio n s o f b e tw e e n th e g o d a n d t h e w o r s h i p e r s , 38 n o t t o m e n t i o n t h e
th e R o m a n litu rg y a n d is t h e r e f o r e a lie n to th e d iv in a to ry tric k of P ro m e th e u s , w ho, to m ake m a tte r s even w o rse ,
c h a r a c te r o f th e c o n s u lta tio n o f th e exta. w h ic h w a s in tr o ­ s o u g h t t o d e c e i v e t h e g o d s . 3<)
d u c e d in to R o m e t h r o u g h E tr u s c a n h a ru s p ic y . But R om e a lso w itn e s s e d th e ritus graecus, th e G re e k
If t h e r e s u l t s o f t h e e x a m i n a t i o n a r e g o o d , t h e c e l e b r a n t litu rg y th a t w a s u s e d n o ta b ly fo r th e c u lt o f H e rc u le s a t th e
A r a M a x i m a , 40 w h e r e p a r t i c i p a n t s in t h e s a c r i f i c i a l o f f e r i n g
w e r e a l s o p e r m i t t e d t o c o n s u m e t h e exta. O n t h e o t h e r h a n d ,
t h e g o d c o u l d r e c e i v e " a l l k i n d s o f f o o d a n d d r i n k " (Herculi
Marcus Aurelius offering a sacrifice. Bas-relief. Rome, Palazzio dei autem omnia esculenta posculenta).'*' T h e d i s t i n c t i o n w a s t h u s
Conservatori. Photo Alinari-Giraudon.
n o l o n g e r m a d e b e t w e e n t h e exta, r e s e r v e d f o r t h e g o d (deo
dicata), a n d t h e viscera profana, t h e p r o f a n e m e a t l e f t f o r
c o n s u m p t i o n b y th e a s s i s t a n ts . T h e v o c a b u l a r y u s e d in th e
litu r g y a t th e A r a M a x im a w a s s p e c ific : to H e r c u le s o f th e A ra
M a x im a w e n t a n o ffe rin g o f th e decuma, a tith e o f g r a in th a t
th e g o d w as su p p o sed to h a v e o b ta in e d fo r h is fo llo w e r s ;
pollucere, " t o o f f e r ," c o u l d a p p ly b o t h to t h e g o d a n d to m e n .
I n P l a u t u s , 42 polluctum d e s i g n a t e s a la v is h fe s tiv a l t h a t d e ­
lig h ts b o th th e g o d a n d th e h a p p y g u e s t s .
It is o n l y by chan ce th a t w e know of a n o th e r fo rm of
s a c r i f i c e in R o m e , n a m e l y , t h e h o l o c a u s t , w h i c h c o n s i s t e d o f
b u r n in g th e v ic tim w h o l e . In th e Aeneid ,43 A e n e a s o f fe rs to
P lu to , "th e k in g of th e S t y x ," b u lls b u rn e d w h o le . The
p r a c t i c e o f t h e h o l o c a u s t is m e n t i o n e d o n l y in t h e m i n u t e s o f
th e s e c u la r g a m e s . D u rin g th e g a m e s c e le b r a te d b y A u g u s tu s
i n 1 7 b . c ., n i n e e w e l a m b s w e r e a p p a r e n t l y s a c r i f i c e d t o t h e
P arcae (deis Moeris J , 44 a c c o r d in g to th e G r e e k ritu a l (Achivo
ritu), a n d s im ila rly a t th e s e c u l a r g a m e s o f S e p tim u s S e v e r u s
in A.D. 2 0 4 , a s o w w a s s a c r i f i c e d w h o l e t o t h e g o d d e s s E a r t h
(Terrae Matri).*5

79
ROM E

These s a crificia l fo rm s of fo re ig n o r ig in h ig h lig h t e v e n 5. Cf. my commentary' on the text of Cato 50.2; Ubi daps profanata
m o r e t h e o r ig in a l i ty ' o f t h e R o m a n l itu r g y ', w h i c h w a s n e v e r , comestaque erit . . . . ibid., pp. 961-62.
h o w ev er, c o m p le te ly free of c o n ta m in a tio n . Q u ite e a rly , 6. Festus, p. 298 L.: "Pollucere merces . . . liceat: sunt far,
E t r u s c a n h a r u s p i c e s p r a c ti c e d s id e b y s id e w ith th e R o m a n
polenta, vinum, panis fermentatus, ficus passa, suilla, agnina,
casei, ovilla, alica, sesama et oleum, pisces quibus est squama,
c e le b r a n t, w h e n s im p ly r e p o r tin g th e litatio w a s n o t f e lt t o b e
praeter squatum . . ." The enumeration is obviously in disorder. (It
s u f fic ie n t, b u t c u r io s ity to k n o w th e fu tu re d e m a n d e d th e
ends by noting that all the provisions [esculenta] and all the
p ra c tic e o f th e d iv in a to ry c o n s u lta tio n o f th e exta. beverages [poscu/cnfa] are permitted by Hercules.)
C a t o 's f o r m u la r ie s a n d t h e m i n u t e s o f t h e A r v a l B r e t h r e n 7. Cf. Ovid. Fasti 4.746.
p reserv ed th e o rig in a l ritu a l o f th e R om an s a crifice m o st 8. Archeology has recovered, for the period of the Iron Age—the
f a i th f u l l y . I n t h e f i n a l a n a l y s i s , w h a t is s t r i k i n g in t h i s l i t u i g y "preurban period"—sacrificial remains (no doubt from ceremonies
is i t s c o n c e r n f o r e f f i c a c y ', i ts t e m p e r a n c e , a n d i t s p r e c i s i o n . In for the dead) of sheep, pigs, and cows: cf. E. Gherstad, Early Rome
o rd e r n o t to fa il in i ts p u r p o s e , th e l it u r g y ' m u l t i p l i e d its (Lund 1966), 4, 1. p. 64.
p r e s c r ip tio n s fo r th e d r e s s , g e s t u r e s , a n d u t te r a n c e s o f th e
9. Cf. Emout-Meillet, D.E.\ s.v. hostia.
10. Cf. Arnobius 7.19.
c e le b r a n t. F o r th e s a m e re a so n s, it s t r o v e to p re se rv e th e
11. Cf. Macrobius 3.10.3.
s e re n ity ' o f th e c e r e m o n y t h r o u g h a p ro p itia to r y ' s ile n c e a n d
12. Cf. ibid. 3.10.4.
th e r itu a l s o u n d o f th e f lu te . 13. Cf.. for example. Cato 141. where Mars is gratified by a
T h e s a c rific e w a s in v a ria b ly a c c o m p a n ie d b y a p r a y e r th a t suovitaurilium of suckling beasts— suovitaurihbus lactentibus.
ad d ressed th e d e ity by nam e, d e ta ilin g th e te rm s o f th e 14. Cf. the anecdote related by Livv (2.8.7-8). At the moment
r e q u e s t. F r o z e n r itu a lis m , o n e m ig h t c la im . C e r ta in ly s u c h a when the consul Horatius went to the consecration of the temple of
c a u t i o u s f r a m e w o r k h a d a rig id ity ' a b o u t i t. T h i s is e s p e c i a l l y Capitoline jupiter, his adversaries released the news that his son was
tru e w hen we th in k of th e supplicationes s u r ro u n d in g th e dead. But Horatius sought to excuse this attempt at obstruction.
15. So, too, in the ntus Graecus of Hercules at the Great Altar, the
le c tis te rn ia , w h ic h g a v e fre e e x p r e s s io n to a m o r e p a s s io n a te
officiant had his head uncovered (cf. Servius ad Aen. 3.407). In fact,
a n d tu m u ltu o u s d e v o tio n . L iv y s e v e ra l tim e s e v o k e s th e s p e c ­
the prescription of the "covered head" is not applied to two Roman
ta cle o f " R o m a n s ru s h in g in to e v e r y s h r in e , w o m e n p r o s tr a te d divinities, either: Satum (cf. Festus, p. 432 L.. and Servius. /./.) and
ev ery w h ere, s w e e p in g th e te m p le s w ith t h e i r h a i r . " 4” The Honos (cf. Plutarch Quaestiones Romanae 266).
s e n a t e i ts e lf e n c o u r a g e d t h i s k i n d o f d e v o t i o n . . . in t i m e s o f 16. Cf. Ovid. Fasti 5.421 ff. The ceremony took place every year, at
c r is is . midnight, thrice repeated, 9, 11. and 13 May.
B u t th e o f f ic i a l h in rg y g u a r j i g H g h tc if t h e r e w as 17. Cf. Ovid. Fasti 2.527. Though Ovid assigns this festival to the
i n d e e d r i t u a l i s m , 47 t h i s r i t u a l i s m c a n b e e x p l a i n e d , in t h e l a s t Curia, Festus (p. 298 L.) ranks it among the popularia sacra, quae
a n a ly s is , b y a d e e p c o n c e r n fo r pietas, t h e p i e t y t h a t C i c e r o omnes cives faciunt"—which is not contradictory, to the extent that the
popular:.! sciera are not to be confused with the publica sticra (see note
(De Satura Deorum 1 .1 1 6 ) d e f i n e d a s justitia erga deos ( " j u s t i c e
19).
t o w a r d th e g o d s " ) . U n lik e P r o m e th e u s , w h o d id n o t h e s i t a te
18. Cf. Ovid. Fasti 4.629 - 34.
t o d e c e i v e Z e u s in t h e s a c r i f i c i a l d i s t r i b u t i o n , t h e R o m a n w a s 19. Cf. Festus, p. 284 L.
im b u ed w ith a s c r u p u lo u s r e s p e c t fo r w h a t w a s th e g o d s ' 20. Pliny S .H . 8.183. In the preceding context, Pliny had remarked
due. Votum solvit libens merito ("h e c a rrie s out h is vow that of all the animals that have long tails, the cow is the only one
w h o l e h e a r te d l y a n d d e s e r v e d l y " ) w a s th e r itu a l f o r m u la . whose tail continues to grow.
T h is s p irit o f f a irn e s s a ls o e x p la in s th e i n n o v a tio n o f o n e 21. Cf. G. Henzen, AcM Fratrum A nalium (Berlin 1874), 122.
S c ip io A e m ilia n u s , w h o h a d a p u b lic p r a y e r e m e n d e d in a 22. Cf. ibid., p. 144, for examples.
re s tric tiv e s e n s e , th e p r a y e r b e in g th e o n e s a id d u r in g th e
23. Cf. ibid., p. 23.
24. On the significance of this foculus, cf. G. Dumézil. La religion
c lo s in g c e r e m o n y o f th e c e n s u s . In s te a d o f a s k in g th e g o d s
romaine archaïque. 2d ed.. pp. 321 and 549.
f o r " t h e b e t te r m e n t a n d g r o w th o f th e R o m a n R e p u b l i c ," h e
25. The Latin formula translates the meaning of the omen as "Be
s a id , "T h e R e p u b lic is s t r o n g en ou gh and b ig enough; 1 propitious in holding your tongue!" For all the information on the
th e re fo re s im p ly p ray th a t th e gods m a in ta in it in good course of the sacrificiai ceremonial, see Pliny S .H 28.11.
c o n d i t i o n f o r e v e r m o r e . ” 4* 26. Cf. Paulus-Festus, p. 97 L.: Immolare est mola, id est farre mollito
R .S . g . h . et sale, hostiam persfvrsam sacrare ("To immolate is to consecrate the
victim in the mola mixture, i.e., in wheat flour and salt").
27. Latte. R .R .G .. p. 387. interprets these preparations as a
"Verstärkung der Segenskraft des Opfertieres" (a reinforcement of
SOTES the beneficial potential of the victim).
28. Cf. Pliny S .H . 28.11.
1 Cf. Lucan, 1. 621. Sometime later the pentoneum (omentum) is 29. Henzen, Acta Fratrum A nxihum . p. 26.
added. It has been suggested that exta is from ex-secta: (organs) set 30. Paulus-Festus, p. 287 L.
apart (from the victim): cf. Emout-Meillet. D.E.*. s.v. exta. This is 31. Cf. Liw 41.15.1-4.
only a hypothesis. 32. Cf. Varro L.L. 5.112.
2. Note the specific words, fertum (which the ancients had 33. Cf. Chid, Fasti 2.362.
connected with tero), which may alternate with strues, designating 34. Cf. Servius Danielis ad Aen. 8.183. We note this exception to
also a sacrificial cake; obmovere, which is employed for solid offer­ show the minutiae in the precision of Roman liturgy.
ings, in contrast with inferre (vinum). The order of precedence of the 35. Cf. Henzen, Acta F .A .. p. 23.
beneficiaries reflects the mentality of the ancient paterfamilias. What 36. Viscera means "all that is found between the skin and bone"
is the place of the wife? I believe that she is included in the final (Servius ad Aen. 6.253). It is appropriate, however, to note two
group of the familia. exceptions that pose a problem. (1) The reference in the proceedings
3. This etymology has been taken up again by certain modems of the Arval Brethren of a . d. 240, 29 May: et de sangunculo porciliarum
who would like to derive the participle from a verb *magere (cf. vesati sunt ("and they consumed the blood of young female pigs”)—
Walde-Hofmann, L E W.3, s.v. mactus). Note that the corresponding a tasting that follows the sacrifice of porciliae in the sacred wood of
verb, mactare, which in the historical period means "to honor by a dea Dia (cf. Notizie degli sorti, 1914, fasc. 12, p. 464ff.). (2) The
sacrifice, to sacrifice," is well attested. reference to sanguinem gustare antea frequenter solebant, in an indeter­
4. Cf. Cato, De Agricultura 132. On the interpretation of the text, minate fragment of the calendar of Praeneste (cf. Sotizie d.s. . 1921, p.
see mv "Sacrum et profanum," Latomus. 1971, pp. 960- 61, reprinted 277ff.): O. Marucchi comments on the two texts, S'ot. d.s.. 1921, p.
in R C.D R. 277ff.
 TH E R E L I G I O N OF T H E R O M A N R E P U B L I C

37. Trebatius, the author of a treatise De religionibus, is cited by
Macrobius (S. 3.5.1). A. Magdelain (Essai sur les origines tie la Sponsio
[Paris 1943|, pp. 35-41) had the merit of isolating the information of
Trebatius and of arranging the texts on this problem.
38. Concerning these differences, see my Sacrum el profanum, pp.
963-64, reprinted in R.C.D.R.
39. Cf. Hesiod, Theogony, 535ff.
40. See Jean Bayet, Les origines de l'Hercule romain (Paris 1926),
passim. On the particular point of the ritus graecus, see my "Sacrum
et profanum," cited in note 38.
41. Cf. Festus, p. 298 L.
42. Cf., for example, Plautus, Rudens, 1419.
43. Virgil Aeneid 6.253: El solida imponit taurorum viscera flammis.
44. Cf. CIL., 6, 32323 = Pighi, De ludis saecularibus (2d ed.,
Amsterdam 1965), 113-14, lines 90-91: Nocte insequenti, in Campo, ad
Tiberim deis Moeris imp. Caesar Augustus immolavit agnas feminas IX
prodigivas Achiw ritu . . . "The following night, the emperor Caesar
Augustus sacrificed, on the Field (of Mars), by the Tiber, nine whole
lambs, according to the Greek rite . . ." Note the extension of the
meaning of the verb immolare, "to sacrifice." For the meaning of
prodigivas, cf. Festus, p. 296 L.: prodiguae hostiae vocantur . . . quae
consumuntur. "One gives the name of prodigivae, 'victims,' to those
who are destroyed by fire." See Latte, R.R.G., p. 392.
45. CIL, 6, 32329 a, line 49 = Pighi, De ludis saecularibus, p. 162:
Geta Caesar immolavit Terrae matri suem plenam Graeco A(chivo) r(itu)
prodigivam . . . : "Geta Caesar (one of the sons of Septimus Severus)
sacrificed to the goddess Earth a whole sow in the fire according to
the Greek rite."
46. Livy 3.7.8. It was a matter of averting an epidemic in 463 b . c .
Cf. ibid. 26.9.7 (in 211 n.c.): undique matronae in publicum effusae circa
deum delubra discurrunt crinibus passis aras verrentes, nisae genibus,
supinas manus ad caelum ac deos tendentes . . . "Most of the mothers of
families rushed together in public; they gathered around the sanc­
tuaries of the gods, sweeping the altars with their disheveled hair;
prostrated on their knees, they turned their palms toward heaven
and toward the gods . . ." (The panic was due to Hannibal's
approach to Rome.)
47. The precision of ritualism was pushed to the point of antici­
pating a profane time {fas in liturgical terms) between the killing of the
victim and the presentation of the internal organs (inter hostiam
caesam et exta porrecta).
48. Cf. Valerius Maximus 4.1.10. The text adds: "And the censors
of the following census adhered to this more modest formula."
ESSENTIAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
c. dumézil , La religion romaine archaïque (2d ed., Paris 1974), 545- 51
(succinct, exact analysis, with bibliography), r. e . krause , Suppl. 5
(1931), s.v. "hostia," c. 236-82 (encyclopedic study). K. latte . Römi­
sche Religionsgeschichte (R.R.G.) (Munich 1960), 375-93 (detailed
study, marred by an important error on p. 391: according to Latte,
the participants in a Roman sacrifice had to have part of all the pieces
of the victim; the author misses the distinction between exta and
viscera), c. wissowa. Religion und Kultus der Römer, 2d ed. (Ruk2)
(Munich 1912), 409-25 (a technical and well-documented study).

c e n t u r y — w e a r e n o w tr y in g to e s ta b lis h th e o r ig in a l le g a c y o f
T he R elig io n o f th e R o m a n R e p u b l ic : R o m e , w h i c h i s m a n i f e s t e s s e n t i a l l y in R o m a n c u l t s a n d r i t e s .

A R ev iew o f R e c e n t S tu d ie s O f c o u r s e s u b s titu tin g " r e l i g i o n " fo r " m y th o lo g y " d o e s n o t

in and o f its e lf c o n s t i t u t e a m a g ic p a ssw o rd , nor does it
p r e c lu d e b a s ic a n d s ig n if ic a n t d i v e r g e n c e s . K u rt L a t te , w h o
T h e tw e n ty -fiv e -y e a r p e rio d b e tw e e n 1950 and 1975 w as a su cceed ed W i s s o w a in t h e s a m e s e r ie s {Handbuch der Alter­
f e r t i l e t i m e f o r s c h o l a r s h i p , a s is i n d i c a t e d b y t h e s h e e r s i z e o f tumswissenschaft), d id not h e s ita te to ta k e h is o w n s ta n c e
t h e a p p e n d e d b i b l i o g r a p h y , 1 f o r it p r o d u c e d i m p o r t a n t e d i ­ v i s - à - v i s h i s p r e d e c e s s o r . In 1 9 5 7 h e w r o t e in a l e t t e r : " W h a t
tio n s o f te x ts a b o u t th e re lig io n s o f R o m e a n d m a n y w o r k s o f I l o o k e d f o r in R o m e w e r e f i r s t o f a ll n e w in s c rip tio n s a n d
a b ro a d s c o p e . T h e q u a r r y in g o f p r im a r y s o u r c e s r e m a in s th e a r c h a e o lo g ic a l f a c ts . . . . A m o d e rn tre a tm e n t o f th e su b je ct
b a sis fo r s p e c u la tio n in r e lig io u s s tu d ie s , a d e c is io n th a t can no lo n g e r b e g in w ith th e g o d s, a c o n ce ssio n a lre a d y
b o d e s w e ll f o r th e s t r e n g t h e n i n g o f th e g r o u n d w o r k a n d a l s o m a d e b y W is s o w a "— a co n ce p tio n "th a t d a te s b ack to th e
d e m o n s tr a te s th e in te re s t g e n e r a te d b y th e s e s tu d ie s a m o n g c e n t u r y o f L o u is X I V ." 3 L a t t e 's o w n p o s itio n a ls o tr ig g e r e d
a w id e r a n d w id e r p u b lic . The m any books and a rtic le s v i g o r o u s r e a c t i o n s . T h i s is a f u n d a m e n t a l i s s u e , t o w h i c h w e
d e a lin g w ith d iv e r s e s u b je c ts o f f e r a f u r th e r c o n f ir m a tio n o f w ill r e t u r n , o n e t h a t o f t e n s u r p r i s e s t h e l a y m a n : w h y is it t h a t
th e v ita lity o f t h e fie ld . W e s h a ll firs t f o c u s o n th e y e a r 1 9 5 0 th e m o s t im p o r ta n t c o n t e m p o r a r y s c h o l a r s h a v e f r e q u e n tly
a n d th e n id e n tif y th e t h e m e s a n d t e n d e n c ie s t h a t e m e r g e in been in c lin e d to c ritic iz e one a n o th e r o r to "ig n o re " one
th e lig h t o f t h e s e w o r k s ( n o tin g s o m e o f th e ir d i f f e r e n c e s ). a n o th e r w ith a d isa p p ro v in g s ile n c e ? D oes th e p erso n al
W e w ill t h e n d is c u s s th e p ro b le m s th a t h a v e re c e iv e d th e c o e fficie n t a ffe c t re se a rch in r e lig io n so s tr o n g ly th a t th e
m o s t a tte n tio n . re se a rch c a n n o t fin d a g r o u n d of com m on con cern in th e
We need o n ly c o m p a re th e title s of c la s sica l re fe re n c e m id s t o f th e f a c ts ?
w o rk s fro m th e n in e te e n th c e n t u r y w ith th o se o f o u r o w n V e t to t h e e x t e n t t h a t t h e y a r e p e r c e p t i b le a n d i n te llig ib le ,
t i m e t o n o t e t h e d i f f e r e n c e in p e r s p e c t i v e . T h e w o r d “m y­ fa c ts a re w h a t m a tte r . L a tte w a s c e r ta in ly rig h t: a r c h a e o lo g y
t h o l o g y " f i g u r e s in t h e t i t l e s o f L . P r e l l e r ' s w o r k Römische and e p ig ra p h y h a v e en rich e d o u r k n o w l e d g e in t h is fie ld .
Mythologie ( B e r l i n 1 8 5 8 ) a n d o f W . H . R o s c h e r ' s e n c y c l o p e d i a , H o w e v e r o n e m a y ju d g e th e e x c a v a tio n s o f E in a r G je r s ta d ,
Ausführliches Lexikon der griechischen und römischen Mythologie th is s c h o l a r h a d t h e m e r i t o f o p e n i n g u p f ru itf u l d i s c u s s i o n s
(L e ip z ig 1 8 8 4 ). G e o r g W is s o w a in tr o d u c e d th e w o rd "re li­ o n t h e d a t i n g o f t h e r e l i g i o u s e v e n t s in t h e a r e a o f t h e R o m a n
g io n " o n ly w h e n h e p u b lis h e d th e fa m o u s r e fe re n c e w o rk F o r u m . C a re fu lly ta rg e te d re se a rch h a s y ie ld e d s u g g e s tiv e
Religion und Kultus der Römer (M u n ic h 1 9 0 2 ; 2 d e d . 1 9 1 2 ) o n r e s u lt s . T h u s , A . B a rto li w a s a b le to s h o w in h is r e p o r t , /
h is o w n a u t h o r i ty .2 pozzi delTarea sacra di Vesta ( c . 1 3 f f . ) t h a t t h e m a t e r i a l f o u n d in
" R e l i g i o n " v e r s u s " m y t h o l o g y " : t h e c h a n g e is s ig n if ic a n t t h e " a r c h a i c w e l l , " p r i m a r i l y p o t s ( olle ) , d a t e s b a c k t o a t i m e
fo r m o d e rn e x e g e s is b ecau se it c o r r e s p o n d s to a d e c is iv e "b e tw e e n th e se v e n th c e n tu ry and th e b e g in n in g of th e
tu r n in g p o in t. I n s te a d o f v ie w in g R o m a n r e lig io n a s a m o r e s ix t h ." T o ta k e a n o t h e r e x a m p l e , P. R o m a n e l l i w a s a b l e t o
or le s s fa ith fu l copy o f G reek m y th o lo g y — s u c h w as th e s e t t l e a q u e s t i o n a b o u t t h e c u l t o f C y b e l e in R o m e t h a t h a d
im p lic it p re m ise of th e s c h o la rs h ip of th e n in e te e n th p r e v i o u s l y d i v i d e d s c h o l a r s . H is p u b lic a tio n Lo scavo al tempio

81
R OME
The Palatine. View from the Campanile of S. Francesca Romana. Rome. Photo Alinari-Giraudon.
della Magna Mater sui Palatino e nelle sue adiacenze (c.
281 ff.) shows that the discovery of numerous statuettes of
Attis from the first century b . c . left no room to doubt the
presence of this consort god side by side with the Magna
Mater.
No less interesting have been the epigraphic findings in
Pratica di mare, a zone that corresponds to the ancient
Lavinium. Prior to these discoveries, three inscriptions en­
graved on cippi that came from Tor Tignosa had already
attracted attention to this region:
Parca Maurtia dono
Neuna dono
Neuna Fata
Dated in the third century and first published by M.
Guarducci,4 they were the object of commentaries by St.
Weinstock15 and L. L. Tels-de-Jong,6 among others. Shortly
after this discovery, M. Guarducci published research con­
cerning another inscription engraved on a bronze plaque
found in the same region and also dating from the third
century.7
CERERE AUUQUOQUIBUS VESPERNAM PORO
Almost every word of this inscription has been read and
interpreted in conflicting ways by various scholars.8 c e r e r e is
sometimes read as an accusative (with an m missing) and
sometimes as a dative; v es p e r n a m is sometimes taken to be a
nominalized adjective or an adjective suggesting an implicit
c en a m (which would designate an evening offering) and is
sometimes taken to be a proper noun, v e s p e r n a , which would
82
correspond to a goddess of food associated with Ceres; poro
to one scholar is an adverb (por( r) o meaning "henceforth”);
to another it is a verb (an altered form which should be
corrected to read por [ r ic it ] o ); to still others, it is a noun—
po r ( r ) o , "leeks," in the ablative singular with a collective
sense. Only the term a u liq u o q u ib u s met with unanimity, as a
result of a commentary by Paulus-Festus (Glossaria Latina p.
22 L) which helped identify these aulicocia exta as the sacrifi­
cial viscera boiled in a pot. After so many diverse attempts,
it might seem foolhardy for us to propose the interpretation
that seems most plausible.9
In 1958, Lavinium had already emerged as a likely place for
archaeological exploration. In the same domain, Tor
Tignosa—where the archaic inscriptions Parca Maurtia, Ne­
una, and Neuna Fata were discovered—was also the site of
another inscription dating from the third century: l a r e
a in e ia . 10 The exceptional importance of this discovery was
obvious: for the first time, on this site that was considered to
be the cradle of the Trojan legend, an epigraph mentioning
Aeneas appeared. He was no longer a simple hero whose
praises were sung by poets, but a god honored by a cult. He
is referred to by the term Lar, which dates back to the archaic
vocabulary of Rome (e.g., the Lases of the Carmen Arvale and
the Lar familiaris), though we should not jump to the conclu­
sion that Lar was merely a synonym for "hero" (interpreted
in the Greek manner).
In the same area in the same year (1958), at a place called
Madonnetta, F. Castagnoli and L. Cozza unearthed a bronze
plaque that dated from the sixth or fifth century and that bore
the dedication Castorei Podlouqueique qurois.u The early date of
 THE R E L I G I O N OF THE R O M A N R E P U B L I C

th is in s c r ip t io n , its a s s o c i a ti o n w ith th e d i v i n e t w i n s , a n d t h e ir e s is o f a n in te rc a la r y m o n th th a t s u p p o s e d ly had tw e n ty -

d e sig n a tio n b y th e e x p re s s io n quroi p ro v id e d a m p le m a te ria l seven or tw e n ty -e ig h t days a lte r n a tiv e ly ). A. K irs o p p -
f o r t h e r e f l e c t i o n o f s c h o l a r s . 12 F o r it w a s k n o w n t h a t o r i g i n a l l y M i c h e l s ' s n e w h y p o t h e s i s is i n g e n i o u s a n d m o r e e c o n o m i c a l
C a s to r a lo n e w a s a d m itte d in sid e th e pomerium i n R o m e : a s th e th an th e p re v io u s e x p la n a tio n , w h ic h f a lte r e d b e fo re th e
p a tro n g o d o f h o rse m e n , h e re c e iv e d th e g r a ti t u d e o f th e A n tiu m d ocu m en t w h ic h fe a tu re s o n ly one intercalaris of
R o m a n a u th o r itie s a f te r th e f a m o u s v ic to r y o f L a k e R e g illu s , t w e n t y - s e v e n d a y s . ( T h e r e a d e r s h o u l d r e f e r t o t h e w o r k in
w h ic h w a s w o n b y A . P o s t u m iu s , w h o e n lis te d th e h e lp o f th e q u e s tio n fo r a m o r e d e ta ile d d i s c u s s i o n .)
R o m a n c a v a l r y , a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i f t h c e n t u r y . 13 H e n c e ­ T h e h o p e o f h a v i n g in o n e c o l l e c t i o n t h e i l l u s t r a t e d d o c u ­
f o r th , it w a s s im p l e to p r o v e t h a t R o m e h a d n o t n e e d e d to g o m e n t s t h a t c o n c e r n R o m a n r e l i g i o n h a s n o t p r o v e d i n v a i n . I.
v e r y fa r to b e c o m e fa m ilia r w ith th e D io s c u r i; th e ir c u lt w a s S c o tt R y b e r g illu s tr a te d h is b o o k Rites of the State Religion in
c e l e b r a t e d n e a r L a v i n i u m , w h e r e it h a d c o m e f r o m M agna Roman Art (MAAR 22, 1 9 5 5 ) w ith n u m e ro u s p h o to g ra p h s
G ra e cia a n d n o t, a s had been th o u g h t, fro m E tru ria . T h e t h a t m a k e it p o s s i b l e t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e c o n c r e t e r e a l i t i e s a n d
R o m a n a t ti t u d e is e v e n m o r e in te re s tin g : C a s to r h a d been sa crificia l c e le b ra tio n in R o m a n re lig io n fa r m o r e p re c is e ly
" c h o s e n " b e c a u s e o f h is s p e c ia lty a s a " h o r s e m a n " a n d b e ­ t h a n is p o s s i b l e w ith m e r e l e n g t h y d e s c r i p ti o n s .
c a u s e o f a p a rtic u la r h is to rica l c ir c u m s ta n c e . In t h i s o v e r v i e w o f s c h o l a r s h i p , it is a p p r o p r i a t e t o m e n ­
T h e e p ig r a p h ic fin d o n th e s ite o f L a v in iu m m ay p resag e tio n t w o r e c e n t e d i ti o n s o f t e x t s o f r e lig io u s i n te r e s t. T o th e
f u r t h e r d i s c o v e r i e s . A t l e a s t t h a t w a s w h a t it s u g g e s t e d to c la s s ic w o rk s of von R.P a n t a ( Grammatik der Oskisch-
th e s c h o la r w h o d e v o te d h i m s e l f t o t h i s t a s k . F. C a s t a g n o l i umbrischen Dialekten, v o l . 2 , S t r a s b o u r g 1 8 9 7 ) , R . S . C o n w a y
w ro te th a t th e c u r r e n t in v e s tig a tio n s fo c u s " o n a p a rt o f th e (The Italic Dialects, C a m b r i d g e 1 8 9 7 ) , a n d G . D e v o t o (Tabulae
o u te r w a lls of th e east s id e . T hese a re w a lls in opus Iguvinae) w e m u s t a d d t h e m o r e r e c e n t p u b l i c a t i o n o f J .
quadratum w ith re m a in s of a g a te and a s tr e e t. S e v e ra l W i l s o n P o u l t n e y ' s The Bronze Tablets o f Iguvium (Mon. Am. Ph.
p h a s e s c a n b e id e n tifie d , th e o ld e s t o n e g o i n g b a c k to th e A ss. 1 7 , 1 9 5 9 ).
s i x t h c e n t u r y . " 14 F in a lly , b y f a r t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t c o m m e n t a r y o n O v i d 's
T h e n e w in s c r ip t io n s w e r e p u t t o g e t h e r in a c o l le c ti o n th a t Fasti s i n c e
S i r J a m e s G e o r g e F r a z e r p u b l i s h e d The Fasti of Ovid
is e a s y t o c o n s u l t , a n d w a s p u b li s h e d th r o u g h th e e f f o r t s o f ( L o n d o n 1 9 2 0 ) is t h e w o r k o f F . B o e m e r 13 (P. Ovidius Naso, Die
A. D e g ra s si: Inscriptiones Latinae liberae rei publicae, v o l. 1 Fasten, I, Einleitung, Text und Übersetzung, H e i d e l b e r g 1 9 5 7 ) .
(F lo re n c e 1957) and v o l. 2 (F lo re n c e 1 9 6 3 ). T h is e x c e lle n t T h is p u b lic a tio n c o r r e s p o n d s to th e r e tu r n to f a v o r o f O v id a s
p u b lica tio n m a k e s a c c e s s ib le fo r s tu d y th e m o s t im p o rta n t a " r e l i g i o u s e x e g e t e . " It s e e m s t o h a v e b e e n e s t a b l i s h e d l o n g
e p ig r a p h ic t e x ts w ith a n u p d a te d b ib lio g ra p h y . W ith a s im ila r ago th a t th e p o e t o f th e Amores s h o u ld n ot be ta k e n to o
p u r p o s e , A . P a so li re w o r k e d a n e d itio n o f th e Acta Fratrum s e r i o u s l y in m a t t e r s o f r e l i g i o n ; 1 h a v e a t t e m p t e d to s h o w
Arvalium (B o lo g n a 1 9 5 0 ) b y g o i n g b a c k to th e Acta p u b l i s h e d t h a t t h i s a t t i t u d e l a c k e d s u b t l e t y a n d s e r i o u s n e s s . 16
by G. H enzen (B e rlin 1874) and c o m p le tin g th e m w ith W o r k s o f g e n e r a l in te re s t th a t h a v e a p p e a r e d d u r in g th e
in s c rip tio n s d is c o v e re d s in c e th a t d a te . We s h o u ld n o te , tw o d ecad es s in c e 1955 and th a t e s ta b lis h c e rta in b a sic
h o w e v e r , t h a t in th is c a s e th e a n n o t a t i o n s a r e s p a r s e ; H e n - p o s i t i o n s w i t h i n t h e f i e ld i n c l u d e , a m o n g o t h e r s , G . R a d k e ' s
z e n 's c o m m e n t a r y r e m a i n s i n d i s p e n s a b l e . book, Die Götter Altitaliens ( M ü n s t e r 1 9 6 5 ), w h ic h t a k e s th e
F o llo w in g T h . M o m m s e n 's p u b lic a tio n (C /L , I2 ) , a n ew fo r m o f a d i c t io n a r y t h a t lis ts t h e d if f e r e n t d e i ti e s in a l p h a ­
e d itio n o f t h e R o m a n c a le n d a r w a s n e e d e d , e s p e c ia lly s in c e b e tic a l ord er. E ach of th e e n trie s ra ise s p a rtic u la r p o in ts
th e d isco v e ry o f th e p re -Ju lia n c a le n d a r o f A n tiu m ( N.S. w h ic h b e a r s im u lta n e o u s ly o n th e w o rk a s a w h o le a n d o n
1 9 2 1 , p p . 7 3 f f .) h a d p ro v id e d a d o c u m e n t in v a lu a b le fo r a th e i n te r p r e ta tio n o f th e p a r t ic u la r e le m e n ts . W h ile w e m ig h t
n e w in c lu s iv e s tu d y . T h is c o n s id e r a b le w o r k w a s c o m p l e te d d is c u s s b o th th e o v e ra ll p r e s e n ta tio n o f th e w o rk and i ts
w ith a d m i r a b le c a r e b y A . D e g r a s s i . It c o n s t i t u t e s s e c t io n 2 o f i n te r p r e ta tio n o f th e f a c ts , w e s h a ll in s te a d m e r e ly p o in t o u t
v o lu m e 1 3 o f th e Inscriptiones Italiae d e v o t e d t o Fasti et Elogia th e a u t h o r 's p r in c ip a l i d e a . H e c la i m s ( p . 8 ) to h a v e w a n te d
( R o m e 1 9 6 3 ) u n d e r t h e t i t l e Fasti anni Numani et Juliani t o r e t u r n t o V a r r o 's o b j e c t i v e , b u t u n d e r c o n d i t i o n s i m p r o v e d
( s e c t i o n 1 a p p e a r e d in 1 9 4 7 a n d i n c l u d e d Fasti consulares et by p ro g re ss in lin g u is tic s , s in c e V arro w as n o te d fo r h is
triumphales). I n s e p a r a t e p u b l i c a t i o n s , t h e a u t h o r p r e s e n t e d " e t y m o l o g ic a l in v e s ti g a t i o n s ." R a d k e r e a s o n s t h a t, "A ll to o
a ll th e e p ig ra p h ic fr a g m e n ts , o f te n re p ro d u ce d in c o lo r o f te n a n tiq u ity le ft u s n o th in g but a n a m e . " 17 W h i l e th is
f a c s im ile s , b e fo r e o f fe r in g a g e n e r a l c o m m e n t a r y th a t ta k e s m e t h o d m a y s e e m a l t o g e t h e r t o o r e s t r i c t i v e i n g e n e r a l , it m a y
in to a c c o u n t t h e p r in c ip a l w o r k s o n th e s u b je c t. " p a y " in d i f f i c u l t o r h o p e l e s s c a s e s . T a k e , f o r e x a m p l e , t h e
W ith reg ard to th e c a le n d a r , we s h o u ld m e n tio n A. tw o c a s e s th a t s e e m to r e s p o n d b e s t, a p rio ri, to th e s p irit o f
K ir s o p p -M ic h e ls , Calendar of the Roman Republic (P rin c e to n th is m e t h o d o f in q u iry : F a la c e r a n d D ea D ia . In d e e d , we
1 9 6 7 ), w h ic h trie d to s e ttle th e o f te n in tric a te p ro b le m s o f h a v e a lm o s t n o i n f o r m a tio n a b o u t th e s e t w o e x c e p t fo r th e ir
c a le n d r ic a l p r a c tic e d u r i n g th e R e p u b lic . U n lik e h e r p r e d e ­ n a m e s . 18
c e s s o r s , K i r s o p p -M i c h e l s s u g g e s t s ( p p . 1 6 0 f f .) th a t t h e mensis T h e p a r a d o x o f F a l a c e r i s t h a t h e is p r o v i d e d w i t h a f l a m e n
Intercalaris or Mercedonius o f th e p re -J u lia n c a le n d a r a lw a y s e v e n th o u g h n o o n e k n o w s a n y th in g a b o u t th e s ig n ific a n c e
had tw e n ty -s e v e n d ays, as is show n by th e e p ig ra p h ic o f th e g o d . W e k n o w n o m o re a fte r re a d in g th e p a ra g ra p h
d o c u m e n t o f A n t i u m ( Fasti Antiates majores). T h e in s e r tio n o f d e v o t e d t o h i m . A n d f o r D e a D ia t h e i n a d e q u c y o f a m e t h o d
th is m o n t h , w h ic h i n te r v e n e d e v e r y o t h e r y e a r , w o u ld h a v e b ased s o le ly on o n o m a stics is a l s o c le a r. R adke a d o p ts—
been done s o m e tim e s afte r 23 F e b ru a ry (T e rm in a lia ) a n d ju s t if i a b l y — A l t h e i m 's p r o p o s a l o f c o m p a r i s o n w it h t h e r o o t
s o m e tim e s a f te r 2 4 F e b ru a ry (th e n co n sid e re d an o rd in a ry *diu-, b u t h e r e d i r e c t s t h i s s c h o l a r ' s l i n e o f t h o u g h t in a l e s s
d a y a n d n o t t h e R e g i f u g i u m ) . In t h i s w a y , t h e a u t h o r s e e k s t o fo r tu n a te d ire c tio n , b y a s s im ila tin g th e g o d d e s s to th e m o o n .
r e c o n c ile th e A n tiu m d o c u m e n t w ith th e r e m a r k s o f C e n s o r i ­ T hen he h as re co u rse to th e a lto g e th e r g ra tu ito u s " r e c o n ­
nus (De die natali 2 0 .6 ) a n d M a c r o b i u s ( Saturnalia 1 . 1 3 . 1 2 ) , s tru c tio n " of a Doppelnamen, Dia Luna. Y et th e o p p o site
w h o m e n tio n a n in s e r tio n ( f o llo w in g th e F e b r u a r y T e r m in a ­ a p p ro a ch w o u ld seem to b e d e m a n d e d h e re , to a v o id th e
lia ) w h ic h w as s o m e tim e s tw e n ty -tw o and s o m e tim e s excesses of a p u re ly e ty m o lo g ic a l e x e r c is e in th e n am e of
tw e n t y - t h r e e d a y s lo n g a n d w h ic h c o n c lu d e d e a c h tim e w ith l i t u r g y . In f a c t , D e a D ia e n t e r s i n t o t h e p r i n c i p a l l i t u r g y o f t h e
th e la st fiv e d a y s o f F e b r u a r y ( h e n c e th e tr a d itio n a l h y p o th ­ A rv a l B re th re n as th e d e ity in v o k e d in th e s e a s o n t h a t is

83
ROME
decisive for harvesting (the month of May), in order to
dispense good light, in other words, good weather. Far from
being confused with Diana, she is differentiated from the
goddess of the night precisely because she is responsible for
diffusing the daylight.19
An attempt in the opposite direction can be seen in Jean
Bayet's Histoire politique et psychologique de la religion romaine
(Paris ed. 1957; 2d ed. 1969), to the extent that the author in
the course of his investigations attempts to deal with reli­
gious phenomena in the context of Indo-European tradi­
tions, the political institutions of the city, and the events of
history, without neglecting the topographical features of the
Roman site. Since 1 have already devoted a special review to
this book,201 shall limit myself to recalling the broad outline.
Nothing was more alien to Jean Bayet than complacency in
pure abstraction; precisely because in Rome many deities
have names with transparent meanings, such as Ceres or
Fides, just to mention the oldest, he felt the need to "incar­
nate" them into the process by which they became real gods.
Hence he paid attention to history in the full sense of the
term, to Roman religion from the migrations of the Italians
and the settling of primitive Rome to the final stages. This
"stratigraphic" preoccupation, borrowed from archaeology,
works well throughout Bayet's book. It has the advantage of
heightening the contrast between such archaic rites as the
Lupercalia and later religious forms. It is counterbalanced by
Bearers of Lares. Rome, Vatican Museum. Museum photo.
84
an awareness of the constants not only within the "religious
mentality of the Romans" but also within the frameworks
and institutions of public worship.
Not all of the proposed analyses have received the same
high approval. Since the first edition in 1957, two points in
particular deserve to be reexamined: the origin of the Dios­
curi in Rome and the Ara Maxima cult of Hercules. On the
first point, I indicated in my review21 "that it is not certain
that the Dioscuri had been 'evoked' from Tusculum." The
discovery of the archaic dedicatory inscription to Castor and
Pollux on the site of ancient Lavinium contributed substan­
tially to this subject. The "evocation" itself seems improba­
ble, for reasons stated in my article on the Dioscuri. On the
second point, a new explanation was proposed by D. van
Berchem, who dates the founding of the Great Altar to
between the ninth and eighth centuries and attributes it to
Phoenicians who came up the Tiber.22 The author took care
to explain several rites and taboos of this cult, as well as the
name Potitii, which he interprets to mean "the possessed"
by arguing that a gens Potitia did not exist.23 It is, however,
impossible to prove such an initiative on the part of Phoeni­
cians that early.24 Only later (in the sixth or early fifth
century, according to scholars) is there evidence, in the
golden plaques of Pyrgi discovered by M. Pallottino's archae­
ological team.25 This provided both a document in the
Phoenician language and two texts in Etruscan that the
 THE R E L I G I O N OF THE R O M A N R E P U B L I C

s p e c ia lis ts a ttr ib u te to P u n ic c o lo n is ts r a t h e r th a n to P h o e n i­ f r o m t h e n e e d s o f p e a s a n t o r m a r t i a l l i f e ) . 34 T h e r e s u l t is t h a t
c ia n s . T h is la st d is c o v e r y w o u ld h ave d e lig h te d K. L a tte , M a rs re p re s e n te d fo r th e p e a s a n t th e w ild n e s s (der Wilde)
w ho w a s a lw a y s o n th e lo o k o u t fo r e p ig ra p h ic n o v e ltie s . th a t th e p e a s a n t tr ie s to k e e p a w a y fr o m h is f ie ld s , w h ile fo r
S u ch d o c u m e n ts a r e a g r e a t a id to r e s e a r c h , 26 t h o u g h we th e w a r r io r M a rs re p r e s e n te d an a c c r e d ite d p ro te c to r w h o
n e e d n o t " l e a v e t h e g o d s " in t h e n a m e o f a n e w s o c i o l o g i c a l w o u l d " l a t e r " b e c o m e t h e g o d o f w a r . 33
h isto ricis m . T h is m e th o d c o n f u s e s tw o d iffe re n t id e a s : th e id e n tity o f
W e s h a ll n o w tu rn to o t h e r s y n t h e s e s th a t h a v e a p p e a r e d t h e d e i t y a n d t h e r e a l m o f h i s c o m p e t e n c e . In R o m e , t h e r e is
in t h e l a s t t w e n t y y e a r s , b e g i n n i n g w i t h t h e p u b l i s h e d w o r k s n o g o d w i t h a v a r i a b l e d e f i n i t i o n i n t h e w a y t h a t , in o u r t i m e ,
o f F. A l t h e i m ( w o r k s t h a t p r e c e d e t h i s p e r i o d , b u t t h e r e h a v e th e re a re a ir p la n e s w ith a v a r ia b le g e o m e try . G ods w ere
b e e n n e w e d itio n s o f h is Römische Religionsgeschichte).27 A l t h - in v a ria b ly id e n tif ie d . T o g o b ack to th e e x a m p le o f M a rs,
e i m ' s t h e s i s is w e l l k n o w n . It is m o s t v i v i d l y e x p r e s s e d in h i s L a tte s h o u ld h a v e b e e n a le rte d b y a n a r c h a ic d o c u m e n t— th e
book. Griechische Götter im alten Rom ( G r e e k g o d s in a n c i e n t Carmen Arvale,36 in w h ic h M a r s is c h a r a c t e r i z e d a s ferus. T h is
R o m e [G ie s s e n 1 9 3 0 ] ), th e title o f w h ic h is in a n d o f its e lf s o e p is o d e , h o w e v e r , d o e s n o t w a r r a n t re fe rr in g to h im a s a n
te llin g . No one has ever d o u b te d th e u se fu ln e ss of th is Exponent der unheimlichen, unvertrauten Welt draussen (a n e x ­
re a c tio n a g a in s t th e con cep t th a t d a te s b ack to W iss o w a p o n e n t o f t h e u n c a n n y , u n r e l i a b l e w o r l d o u t s i d e ) . 37 T h e b e s t
(Religion und Kultus der Römer [M u n ic h 1902; 2d ed . 1 9 1 2 ]), p r o o f o f t h i s l ie s i n t h e f a c t t h a t M a r s i s s u m m o n e d to th e
w h ic h te n d e d to e x a g g e r a t e th e is o la tio n o f th e L a tin w o rld d e f e n s e o f th e ager Romanus in a r e f e r e n c e th a t le a v e s no
fro m i ts n e i g h b o r s , a t l e a s t u n t i l t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y b. c . B u t d o u b t a s to its m e a n i n g : limen sali ( l e a p t o th e f r o n t i e r ) . 38
o f t e n in s u c h c a s e s r e a c t i o n g o e s t o e x t r e m e s . It s e e m s l e s s M a r s is i n v o k e d in th is p r a y e r , a l o n g w ith t h e L a s e s a n d th e
and le s s tr u e th a t R o m e d id n o th in g b u t p a ss iv e ly a c c e p t S e m o n e s , b u t in a c c o r d a n c e w i t h t h e d e f i n i t i o n o f h i s o w n
G r e e k o r E t r u s c a n c o n c e p t s . 28 T h i s e x c l u s i v i t y in o r i e n t a t i o n o f f i c e . H i s t a s k is t o e n s u r e t h e d e f e n s e o f b o r d e r s , j u s t a s t h e
m a y h a v e le d K . L a t te to w r it e th a t a d i s c u s s i o n w ith A l th e im t a s k o f t h e L a s e s is t o p r o t e c t t h e t il l e d l a n d , a n d t h e t a s k o f
w a s h o p e l e s s , " a u s s i c h t s l o s . " 29 t h e S e m o n e s is t o p r o m o t e t h e g r o w t h o f s e e d s .
N o o n e h a s c r itic iz e d th e p r in c ip le s a ffirm e d b y L a tte a t th e Ferus, th e re fo re , d o e s n o t m e a n " th e s a v a g e a g a in s t w h o m
tim e w h e n h e c o m p o s e d h is o w n h a n d b o o k , p r in c ip le s th a t o n e w a n t s t o p r o t e c t o n e ' s f i e l d s , " 39 b u t t h e g o d o f s t r e n g t h ,
re c o g n iz e d th e v a lu e o f e p i g r a p h y a n d a r c h a e o l o g y . B u t th is w h o is c a p a b l e o f u n l e a s h i n g h i s furor a g a in s t a p o te n tia l fo e;
very te n d e n cy m ay have d e v e lo p e d in an u n w a rra n te d th u s , ferns, w h i c h is l i n g u i s t i c a l l y r e l a t e d to ferox,40 ch arac­
m a n n e r in h is h a n d s . T h is s ta t e o f m in d had m ade L a tte t e r iz e s th e w a rlik e n a t u r e o f th e g o d .
s e e m in g ly im p e r v io u s to a n y n o tio n o f s y s te m . T h is la tte r - B u t w e s h o u ld ta k e L a tte to ta sk n o t fo r th e s o u r c e s h e
day d o u b tin g T hom as of th e h isto ry of re lig io n s h ad an a d v o c a t e s b u t f o r t h e o n e s h e o m i t s . In t h e c a s e o f l i t e r a r y
in s a tia b le n e e d fo r c o n c r e t e p r o o f s . N o t h in g is m o r e r e v e a l ­ so u rce s. L a tte is ju stifie d w hen he ca u tio n s s c h o l a r s 41 to
in g th a n h is a ffe c te d ig n o ra n ce of th e id ea of an In d o - g u a rd a g a in s t th e d is to r tio n s o f a r c h a ic d o c u m e n ts b y th e
E u ro p e a n s u b s tr a tu m . H e th u s d is m is s e s a p rio ri th e v e r y N e o p l a t o n i c o r S t o i c s c h o o l s . Y e t it is s u r p r i s i n g t h a t in t h e
e n t e r p r i s e o t D u m é z i l , weil die Pfeiler . . . auf denen sie Idie ta b le of c o n te n ts one fin d s th e nam es o n ly of N ig id iu s
Erneuerung dieser VersucheI ihr Gebäude errichtet, hei philologis­ F ig u lu s , V a rro , L u cre tiu s , a n d C ic e r o , a ll o f w h o m caught
cher Kritik des Materials wegbrechen ( b e c a u s e t h e p i l l a r s o n L a t t e 's a t t e n t i o n o n ly b ecau se th e y re p re s e n te d th e p h ilo ­
w h i c h it [ t h e r e n e w a l o f t h i s a t t e m p t ] b u i l t i t s s t r u c t u r e s f a l ls s o p h ic a l o p i n i o n s o r r e lig io u s b e lie fs o f t h e ir t im e s .
a p a r t a t t h e p h i l o l o g i c a l c r i t i c i s m o f t h e m a t e r i a l ) . 10 C e r t a i n l y P l a u t u s is c i t e d s e v e r a l t im e s w ith r e f e r e n c e to
W e have now r e a c h e d t h e h e a r t o f t h e p r o b l e m . W h a t is c e rta in e x p re s sio n s fo rm u la te d in re lig io u s la n g u a g e , and
t h e " r i g h t " m e t h o d a c c o r d i n g t o L a t t e ? In t h e c h a p t e r d e a l i n g L iv y w ith r e f e r e n c e to c e r ta i n i n s t it u ti o n s , s u c h a s th e r itu a l
w i t h s o u r c e s , 31 h e m e n t i o n s t h e c a l e n d a r , i n s c r i p t i o n s , a n d o f th e fe tia le s o r th e inauguratio. B u t t h e t r e a t i s e s o f C i c e r o ,
lit e r a r y s o u r c e s . O n e c a n im m e d ia t e l y s e e th e d r a s ti c c h a r ­ su ch as De natura deorum, De divinatione, a n d De legibus,
a c te r of th is lim ite d l is t. L a tte re je cts c o m p a r a tiv is m by d e s e r v e m o r e c o n s i d e r a t io n d e s p i t e t h e ir a u t h o r 's t e n d e n c y
c h a lle n g in g th e v a lid ity o f th e c o m p a r a t iv e m e th o d a n d b y to ra tio n a liz e . It is t o C i c e r o th a t w e ow e th e su rv iv a l o f
c itin g a b u s e s c o m m itte d b y th e n o m in a lis m o f th e n in e te e n th p re c io u s f r a g m e n ts fro m th e e a rlie s t tim e s , p re c is e ly b e c a u s e
ce n tu ry (w h ich had trie d h ard to id e n tify d e itie s th r o u g h he p reserv ed th e m in q u o t a t i o n s in h i s t r e a t i s e s . F o r e x a m ­
a f f i n i t i e s s u g g e s t e d m o r e o r l e s s b y e t y m o l o g y ) . 32 p l e , C i c e r o c i t e s a f r a g m e n t f r o m a t r a g e d y b y E n n i u s 42 t h a t
T h is lin e o f t h o u g h t le d h im to ig n o r e th e s tr u c tu r e s o f refers to a d ia lo g u e d u rin g w h ic h C a ssa n d ra speaks as
r e lig io u s o r g a n iz a tio n , w h ic h m ake up one of th e m o st fo llo w s :
o r ig in a l d im e n s io n s o f R o m a n r e lig io n . F o r in s t a n c e , h e d o e s
Missa sum superstitiosis hariolationibus;
n o t m e n tio n th e a r c h a ic tria d o f J u p i te r - M a r s -Q u ir i n u s , n o r
Namque Apollo fatis fandis dementem invitam ciet.4*
d o e s h e m e n tio n th e h ie r a r c h y o f th e th r e e m a jo r fla m e n s
w ho each co rresp o n d to one o f th e se th re e g o d s. In h is T h is te x t is re m a rk a b le fo r its u se of th e e x p re s sio n s
e s tim a tio n , th e se a re Ortsgottheiten w ho, far fro m h a v in g superstitiosis hariolationibus, w h ic h do not c a rry h ere th e
b e e n a r r a n g e d in a c o m p l e m e n t a r y h i e r a r c h y , h a d b e e n m o r e p e jo ra tiv e c o n n o ta tio n th a t th e y w o u ld la te r h a v e , a n d fo r
o r le ss a ttr a c te d a c c o r d in g to th e v a g a r ie s o f h isto rica l a c c i­ th e e ty m o lo g ic a l fig u re fatis fandis, w h i c h c a n b e i n v o k e d in
d e n t a n d w e r e s u b je c te d to th e c o u n te r b l o w s o f a n in te rn a l th e a r g u m e n t a b o u t th e e ty m o lo g y o f fatum.44
riv a lry . T h u s w e le a rn th a t Q u ir in u s , Gottheit vom Quirinal, E q u a lly s u r p r is in g is t h e m e a g e r s h a r e a llo tte d to V irg il
h a d b e e n e c l i p s e d b y M a r s in t h e m i n d s o f h i s w o r s h i p e r s . 33 and H o ra ce , t w o p o e ts w h o s e v o c a b u la r y a n d a llu s io n s to
W h a t is m o r e , t h e v e r y p e r s o n a l i t i e s o f t h e d e i t i e s b e c o m e c u ltic in s titu tio n s c o n s t i tu t e a m in e o f in fo rm a tio n fo r th e
s o m a lle a b le th a t th e y s e e m to b e p a tte r n e d fro m th e v ic is ­ h isto ria n of R om an r e lig io n . F in a lly , L a t t e 's ju d g m e n t of
s i t u d e s o f h i s t o r y . N o t h i n g is m o r e r e v e a l i n g t h a n a s e n t e n c e O v id , th e a u th o r of Fasti, m u s t a lso b e a d ju s te d , in d eed
Dieselben Göttergestalten nehmen verschiedene
s u c h a s th is o n e : r e v is e d , p a rtic u la rly w h e n it c o m e s t o s u c h a s t a t e m e n t a s :
Aspekte an, je nachdem sie aus den Nöten des bäuerlichen oder Altrömische Religiosität lag diesem modernsten unter den römi­
kriegerischen Lebens angerufen werden ( T h e s a m e d i v i n e f o r m s schen Dichtern recht fern ( " A n c i e n t R o m a n r e l i g i o u s f e e l i n g
ta k e o n v a r io u s a s p e c t s e a c h tim e th a t th e y a r e c a lle d fo rth re m a in e d fa r aw ay fro m th is m o st m o d ern of R om an

85
ROME

p o e t s ' ' ) . 45 E l s e w h e r e 1 h a v e t r i e d t o s h o w w h y a n d h o w O v i d u l a r c h a r a c t e r in D u m é z i l ' s l a n g u a g e . O n t h e b a s i s t h a t t h e

c a n b e o f u se to m o d e r n r e s e a r c h . T o c o u n t e r L a t t e 's c o n ­ a r c h a ic R o m a n tria d J u p ite r -M a r s -Q u ir in u s , w h ic h c a n a ls o
d e m n a tio n o f th e Fasti o n e n e e d o n l y r e c a ll th e i m p r e s s iv e be fo u n d am ong th e U m b ria n s at Ig u v iu m , can o n ly be
a c c o u n t th a t O v id g iv e s o f th e n o c tu r n a l c e r e m o n y o f th e e x p la in e d b y h is to ric a l, to p o g r a p h ic a l, a n d e th n ic c o n s i d e r ­
Lemuria. H e e v o k e s a n a t m o s p h e r e o f a r c h a i c t i m e s t h a t is a t a tio n s , th e a u th o r d e m o n s tr a te s th e n e c e s s ity o f r e c o g n iz in g
once m a g ic a l and r e lig io u s , w ith o u t y ie ld in g to lite ra ry a th r e e -le v e l re lig io u s c o n c e p t i o n , a th e o lo g ic a l s tr u c tu r e .)
e m b e l l i s h m e n t s o r G r e e k f a b l e s . 46 T h e t h i r d p a r t is d e v o t e d t o " E x t e n s i o n s a n d M u t a t i o n s " o f
We s h o u ld add th a t th e poet g iv e s c lu e s th a t can be R o m a n re lig io n . T h e fo u r th a n d la st p a r t d e a ls w ith th e c u lt
v a l u a b l e in fi ll i n g in t h e l a c u n a e in o u r k n o w l e d g e . T h u s 1 (c e re m o n ie s , p rie sts, signa, and portenta), w ith a ch a p te r
J a n u a r y o n th e p r e -J u lia n c a le n d a r la c k s th e n a m e o f a d e ity . d e v o te d t o p r i v a t e c u l t s . A n a p p e n d i x c o n c e r n s th e re lig io n
S h o u ld one s u p p l y co /ns /o , a s M a n cin i w o u ld h ave i t, o r o f th e E tru s c a n s .
co ( r } o ( nidi), a s D e g r a s s i s u g g e s t s ? O v i d ' s t e s t i m o n y a l l o w s u s T h e " P r e lim in a r y R e m a r k s " g iv e th e r e a d e r a c le a r u n d e r ­
t o r e s o l v e t h e q u e s t i o n a n d o p t f o r t h e s e c o n d h y p o t h e s i s . 47 s ta n d in g o f th e a u t h o r 's m e th o d . The re a d e r le a rn s how
I h a v e g r e a tly c ritic iz e d L a t t e 's w o r k , b e c a u s e th e e n t e r ­ c o m p a ra tiv is m w a s a b le to lift u p th e heavy h y p o th e tic a l
p r i s e o r i g i n a l l y i n s p i r e d e q u a l l y g r e a t h o p e . I t m a y s ti ll h a v e s tr u c tu r e th a t s e e m e d to w e ig h irre trie v a b ly o n th e a r c h a ic
s i g n i f i c a n t v a l u e f o r r e s e a r c h in t h e f i e ld . L a t t e p u t t o g e t h e r p e rio d o f R o m a n h is to ry , e v e r s in c e th e e ig h te e n th c e n tu r y ,
a g r e a t m a s s o f d o c u m e n t s t h a t m a k e it p o s s i b l e t o b e g i n t o w hen L o u is d e B e a u fo rt w r o te h is f a m o u s Dissertation sur
e s ta b lis h fi le s f o r p r o b l e m s y e t t o b e s o l v e d . H is p r in c ip a l l'incertitude des cinq premiers siècles de Rome (1 7 3 8 ).
c o n c e r n w a s to b e th e first to o f fe r to th e s c h o la r ly w o rld a B e y o n d th e h y p e r c r itic a l w a v e o f th e n in e te e n th c e n t u r y
fre s h h a r v e s t o f e p ig r a p h ic a n d a r c h a e o lo g ic a l n o v e ltie s th a t th a t w a s o n e o f th e lo g ic a l c o n s e q u e n c e s o f th is m e t h o d o f
c o u l d f e r t i l i z e r e s e a r c h in t h e h i s t o r y o f r e l i g i o n s . In t h i s h e d o u b t, D u m é z il o p e n e d u p a n e w w a y , fo llo w in g a s y s te m ­
su cceed ed . He m ay n o t h a v e s u p p la n te d th e w o rk o f h is a t i c i n v e s t i g a t i o n t h a t r e v e a l e d c o r r e s p o n d i n g s t r u c t u r e s in
p r e d e c e s s o r W i s s o w a , b u t h e d i d fill in a g a p o f f i f t y y e a r s ' th e re s p e c tiv e a reas of th e In d o -E u ro p e a n re a lm , fo r in ­
w o rth o f in fo rm a tio n . H is j u d g m e n t s m a y not h ave been s ta n c e , th e c o m p a r a b l e a n t it h e s e s R o m u l u s - N u m a in R o m e
i n f a ll i b l e , b u t h e d i d p r o d u c e i n h i s t e x t a n d in h i s n o t e s a and V a r u n a -M itr a in V e d ic I n d ia , a n d th e p a ra lle l c o n j u n c ­
n u m b e r o f r e l e v a n t a n d s u g g e s t i v e t h o u g h t s . H e is a s c h o l a r t i o n s o f C o c l e s - S c a e v o l a ( o r " t h e C y c l o p s a n d t h e L e f t y " ) in
w h o s e w o r k s , fa r fro m le a v in g th e r e a d e r in d iffe re n t, m a k e R o m e a n d Ö Ö in n -T y r ( " t h e o n e - e y e d g o d a n d th e o n e - a r m e d
h im th in k . H e th e r e f o r e d e s e r v e s o u r th a n k s . g o d " ) in S c a n d i n a v i a n m y t h o l o g y .
A n a l to g e t h e r d iffe re n t s p irit c h a r a c t e r iz e s th e w o r k s o f The h isto ry of R om e need no lo n g e r be c o n sid e re d a
G e o r g e s D u m é z il. N o t th a t th is s c h o l a r d i s r e g a r d e d a r c h a e ­ d o u b tfu l fa b ric a tio n c o m in g o u t o f th e h e a d q u a r te r s o f fa n ­
o lo g ica l o r e p ig ra p h ic d o c u m e n ta tio n . O n th e c o n tr a r y , h e c if u l a n n a l i s t s . It i s a c t u a l l y a s t y l i z e d h i s t o r y t h a t e x h i b i t s —
u s e d it b r i l l i a n t l y w h e n , f o r i n s t a n c e , h e p r o p o s e d a n i n t e l ­ o n t h e b a n k s o f t h e T ib e r in a h is to r ic a l f o r m — a n i d e o lo g y
l ig ib l e d e c i p h e r m e n t o f t h e f r a g m e n t s o f t h e a r c h a i c i n s c r i p ­ t h a t is e l s e w h e r e m y t h i c a l . N o w , a l t h o u g h t h e r e is a n " I n d o -
tio n s o f th e tru n ca te d s te la o f th e F o r u m . 48 B u t h i s m a i n E u ro p e a n h e rita g e " in R om e, it i s n o lo n g e r p o s sib le to
co n cern has a lw a y s been to d isc e rn th e s tr u c tu r e s th a t re d u ce th e d iv in e , in th e o r ig in s of th e e a rly Rom e of
c h a r a c t e r iz e a g i v e n r e lig io u s s it u a ti o n o r s o c ia l o r g a n i z a ti o n . R o m u lu s, to a n e m b ry o n ic w o rld o f d iffu se fo rces o u t o f
S in c e La religion romaine archaïque, avec un appendice sur la w h ic h , b y v ir tu e o f a p r o c e s s o f e v o lu tio n , " n u m i n a l" d e itie s
religion des Étrusques ( P a r i s 1 9 6 6 ) , 49 D u m é z i l h a s p u b l i s h e d in e m e r g e d w h o w e r e e n d o w e d w ith a n u m e n n o t u n lik e th e
s u c c e s s i o n Idées romaines ( P a r i s 1 9 6 9 ) ; Mythe et Epopée, v o l . 1 M e la n e sia n m a n a .
( P a r i s 1 9 6 8 ) , v o l . 2 ( P a r i s 1 9 7 1 ) , v o l . 3 ( P a r i s 1 9 7 3 ) ; a n d Fêtes C o n s e q u e n tly th e t ria d o f Ju p ite r-M a rs -Q u irin u s , w h ic h
romaines d'été et d'automne ( P a r i s 1 9 7 5 ) ; a n d h e h a s r e v i s e d e x i s t e d in b o t h R o m e a n d I g u v i u m ( p r e d a t i n g t h e C a p i t o l i n e
a n d u p d a t e d La religion romaine archaïque ( 2 d e d . P a r i s 1 9 7 4 ) . 50 a s s o c ia tio n o f J u p ite r-Ju n o -M in e r v a ), c a n o n ly b e a n a c c id e n ­
T h i s w o r k is b y f a r t h e m o s t s t r i k i n g o f t h o s e o f t h e s e l a s t ta l a n d l a t e g r o u p i n g . W i s s o w a h a d a l r e a d y r e c o g n i z e d t h i s
tw e n t y - f i v e y e a r s , b e c a u s e o f b o th its b r e a d t h a n d its o r ig i ­ a r c h a ic " D r e i v e r e i n " (T rin ity ), w h ic h L a tte w o u ld la te r c h a l­
n a l i t y . T h e l a s t p u b l i c a t i o n s a r e t h e fu ll h a r v e s t o f o v e r t h i r t y le n g e . T h is m a y b e a c a s e o f h a irs p littin g , b u t h a irs p littin g
y e a r s o f f r u i tf u l l a b o r a n d r e f l e c t i o n . T h e y r e p r e s e n t a k i n d o f c a n le a d to b lin d n e s s : o n e c a n n o t s e e th e f o re s t fo r th e t r e e s .
b a la n c e s h e e t th a t th is a u t h o r h a s trie d to d ra w up. The T h is t h r e e f o ld h i e r a r c h y c a n a l s o b e f o u n d in th e p r ie s tly
e le m e n ts th a t w e re th e o b je c t of th e in d iv id u a l s tu d ie s s t r u c t u r e s a n d th e r itu a l in s t it u ti o n s . T h e tr ip le flamonium is
b e c a m e i n te g r a te d in to th e w h o le , s o th a t th e w h o le b e n e ­ in its e lf a v e ile d re fe re n ce to th e d iv in e tria d . The th re e
f i te d f r o m i n d i v i d u a l a n a l y s e s , a n d c o n v e r s e l y , c o m p r e h e n ­ p r i e s t s w h o in t h e h i e r a r c h y o f p r e c e d e n c e c o m e i m m e d i ­
s i v e v i e w s o f t e n s h e d l i g h t o n p a r t i c u l a r i s s u e s . 51 a t e ly a f t e r th e R e x ( tu r n e d R e x S a c r o r u m o r R e x S a c r ific u lu s
F o r th e first tim e th e r e a d e r h a s a c c e s s to a n i n te r p r e t a t io n d u rin g th e R e p u b lic) are, in th e ir re s p e c tiv e o rd er, th e
of R om an re lig io n in th e lig h t of th e c o m p a r a tiv e In d o - F la m e n D ia l i s a s sig n e d to J u p ite r , th e F la m e n M a rtia lis
E u r o p e a n tra d itio n . T h is w a s th e in te n d e d p la n b e h in d th e a s sig n e d to M ars, and th e F la m e n Q u irin a lis a s s ig n e d to
w h o le e n te r p r is e . A n im p o r ta n t in tr o d u c tio n th a t b e a r s th e serv e Q u irin u s . These th re e fla m e n s p ro c e e d e d to g e th e r
m o d e s t t it l e o f Primary Remarks opens th e d is c u s s io n and o n c e a y e a r in a n o p e n c h a r i o t t o a c h a p e l o f F i d e s , o r G o o d
g iv e s th e a u t h o r a c h a n c e to d e f in e h is lin e o f in q u iry . T h is F a ith , w ho w as n ecessary fo r h a rm o n io u s re la tio n s h ip s
s e c tio n a l o n e (1 5 1 p a g e s ) c o u ld h a v e b e e n a b o o k . A f t e r th a t, a m o n g p e o p l e in a ll w a l k s o f lif e .
th e m a te ria l is arran g ed in to fo u r p a rts . The first p art D u m é z i l a l s o s h o w s t h i s t h r e e f o l d g r o u p i n g 52 i n t h e a r ­
in tro d u c e s ''T h e G reat G ods of th e A rc h a ic T r i a d ." The c h a ic fo r m s o f th e c u lt. T h u s , th e R e g ia , th e f o r m e r " h o u s e o f
s e c o n d p a r t u s h e r s u s in to R o m a n h is to r y — th e e n d o f th e th e k i n g ," w h ic h d u r i n g th e R e p u b lic b e c a m e th e s e a t o f th e
m o n a r c h y a n d th e b e g in n in g s o f th e R e p u b lic — b y d is c u s s ­ P o n tife x M a x im u s , a c c o m m o d a te s th re e ty p e s o f c u lt. T h e
in g v a r io u s a s p e c t s o f " A n c ie n t T h e o lo g y ," a m o n g t h e m th e first c o n c e r n s J u p i te r (in a d d it i o n to th e c u l t s o f J a n u s a n d
C a p ito lin e t r ia d , th e p u b lic c u l t o f V e s ta , a n d th e f o r c e s a n d J u n o , w h o w e r e h o n o r e d a s t h o s e w h o u s h e r in t h e n e w y e a r
e le m e n ts th a t c h a r a c te r iz e th e " th ird , seco n d , and first and th e new m o n th ); th e seco n d , M ars, in th e sacrarium
f u n c t i o n s ." (T h e n o tio n o f f u n c tio n h a s , o f c o u r s e , a p a r t ic ­ Martis; th e th ir d , in a n o t h e r sacrarium, O p s C o n s iv a , w h o
 THE R E L I G I O N OF THE R O M A N R E P U B L I C

o b s e r v e d ," h e s ta t e s , " w it h th e s p e c ia l p e c u lia r itie s o f e a c h o f

th e s o c ie tie s , am ong th e In d ia n s and Ira n ia n s as w e ll as
am ong th e a n cie n t S ca n d in a v ia n s and, w ith m o re p ro ­
n o u n c e d a lte r a tio n s , a m o n g th e C e lts . T o ju d g e fro m som e
s u r v iv a ls w h ic h a r e to b e fo u n d d e s p ite th e e a rly re o r g a n i­
z a t i o n o f t h e t h r e e t r a d i t i o n s , it w a s a l s o k n o w n to s e v e ra l
w a v e s o f G re e k in v a d e r s , th e A c h a e a n s a n d th e Io n ia n s . . . .
T h e p rin cip a l e le m e n ts a n d th e m a c h in e r y o f th e w o rld a n d
o f s o c ie ty a r e h e r e d iv id e d in to t h r e e h a r m o n i o u s l y a d ju s te d
d o m a i n s . T h e s e a r e , in d e s c e n d i n g o r d e r o f d ig n ity , s o v e r ­
e ig n ty , w ith its m a g ic a l a n d ju rid ic a l a s p e c t s a n d a k in d o f
m a x im a l e x p r e s s io n o f th e s a c r e d ; p h y s ic a l p o w e r a n d b r a v ­
e ry , th e m o s t o b v io u s m a n ife s ta tio n o f w h ic h i s v i c t o r y in
w a r ; a n d f e r t i l i t y a n d p r o s p e r i t y w i t h a ll k i n d s o f c o n d i t i o n s
and con seq u en ces, w h ic h a re a lm o st a lw a y s m e tic u lo u s ly
a n a ly z e d a n d r e p r e s e n te d b y a g r e a t n u m b e r o f re la te d b u t
d iffe re n t d iv in itie s , a m o n g w h o m now on e, now th e o th e r,
ty p if ie s t h e w h o l e in f o r m u la r y e n u m e r a t i o n s o f g o d s . T h e
'J u p i t e r - M a r s - Q u i r i n u s ' g r o u p i n g , w i t h t h e n u a n c e s a p p r o ­
p r i a te to R o m e , c o r r e s p o n d s t o t h e lis ts f o u n d in S c a n d i n a v i a
and in V e d ic and p re -V e d ic In d ia : Ö ö in n , T h o r, F rey r;
M i t r a - V a r u n a , I n d r a , N ä s a t y a . " 56
T h e r e i n l ie s t h e v e r y h e a r t o f a p r o o f t h a t in t h e c o u r s e o f its
d e v e l o p m e n t t o o k g r e a t p a i n s t o a n s w e r e x h a u s t i v e l y a ll t h e
c r i t i c i s m s r a i s e d a g a i n s t it. T h e r e a d e r i s u r g e d t o r e f e r t o i t. It
is i m p o r t a n t t o a d d t h a t D u m é z i l a l s o d e m o n s t r a t e d t h e f e r t i li ty
o f h is c o m p a r a tiv is t m e t h o d in th e a r e a o f m a r g in a l c u lts . T h e ir
a rc h a ic r ite s had been in c o m p re h e n s ib le to R o m a n s o f th e
c l a s s i c a l e r a f o r m o s t o f t h e t i m e . O n e e x a m p l e w ill s u f f i c e ,
n a m e ly , th e f e s ti v a l o f t h e M a tra lia on 11 Ju n e— a s tr a n g e
l i t u r g y in w h i c h R o m a n l a d i e s i n t r o d u c e a s l a v e w o m a n i n t o
th e t e m p le o f M a te r M a tu la (itse lf a n e x c e p tio n a l a c t) a n d th e n
d r iv e h e r o u t , h ittin g h e r w ith s tic k s . D u r in g th is rite th e la d ie s
h o l d in t h e i r a r m s n o t t h e i r o w n c h i l d r e n b u t t h o s e o f t h e i r
s is te r s . T h e s e r ite s s e e m i n c o m p r e h e n s ib le w h e n v ie w e d s o le ly
in a R o m a n c o n t e x t . B u t w h e n c o m p a r e d w i t h V e d i c m y t h o l ­
ogy, th e y b eco m e c le a r, b ecau se M a te r M a tu ta r e p r e s e n ts
D a w n . 57
Ara pietatis. Temple relief. Rome, Museo dei Conservatori. Photo
It is g r e a t l y t o h i s c r e d i t t h a t D u m é z i l w a s a b l e t o s h e d l i g h t
Alinari-Giraudon.
o n th e fu n ctio n o f a w h o le s e rie s o f d e itie s w h o s e litu rg y h a d
b e c o m e u n in te llig ib le b e c a u s e o f th e " l o s t m y th o lo g y ," a n d
th u s to g iv e th e m t h e i r t r u e i d e n t i t y . T h e y w e r e s t u d i e d in
b e lo n g s to th e g r o u p o f d e itie s r e p r e s e n te d b y Q u i r i n u s in th e book a p p ro p ria te ly e n title d Déesses latines et mythes
t h e c a n o n i c a l l is t o f t h e flamines majores. védiques (B r u s s e ls 1 9 5 6 ), w h ic h w a s f o llo w e d b y s tu d i e s o n
The sam e g ro u p in g in clu d e s — a fte r Jan u s, th e god of C a m a (1 9 6 0 ) a n d o n th e t w o P a le s ( 1 9 6 2 ). T h e r e a d e r w h o
b e g i n n in g s , a n d b e f o r e th e s p e c i f ic d e i ti e s in v o k e d in s p e c ia l t a k e s t h e t r o u b l e t o f o l l o w t h e s e d e m o n s t r a t i o n s w il l b e c o m e
c ir c u m s t a n c e s — Ju p ite r , M a r s , a n d Q u ir i n u s in th e a n c ie n t a w a r e o f t h e " a r c h a i c d i m e n s i o n " o f R o m a n r e l i g i o n , a s w e ll
carmen o f th e devotio ( L i v y 8 . 9 . 6 ) . I t a l s o i n s p i r e s t h e o l d a s t h e c o n s t a n t s t h a t e m e r g e h e r e a n d t h e r e in th e r e lig io u s
th e o ry o f spolia opima r e c o r d e d b y F e s t u s ( p . 3 0 2 L . 2 ) , w h o m e n t a l i t y , d e s p i t e g r e a t g a p s in t i m e .
te lls th a t t h e prima spolia a r e o f f e r e d t o J u p i t e r , t h e secunda D u m é z il w illin g ly t o o k r is k s b y th e v e r y m e t h o d th a t h e
spolia to M a r s , a n d t h e tertia t o " J a n u s Q u i r i n u s . " T h e a d o p t e d . B e c a u s e h e e x p o s e d h i s t h o u g h t s t e p b y s t e p a s it
th re e fo ld s c h e m e p e rs is ts , n o m a tte r w h a t in te rp re ta tio n w e p r o g r e s s e d , h e w a s r e p r o a c h e d fo r e x c e s s iv e flu id ity a n d b y
a d o p t fo r prima, secunda, tertia, w h e t h e r it i s b a s e d o n t i m e o r s o m e p e o p le fo r fic k le n e s s . " H i s la te s t s ta t e o f m i n d ," o n e
r a n k . T h e c h o i c e i s o p e n . W e s h o u l d n o t e t h a t o n t h i s p o i n t 53 s u c h d i s p a r a g i n g o b s e r v e r m a l i c i o u s l y c a l l e d i t. O f c o u r s e , a
L a tte a g r e e s w ith D u m é z il b y a c c e p t in g th is e v i d e n c e a b o u t p u b lic a tio n th a t p r o c e e d s b y s u c c e s s i v e a l te r a t i o n s a n d c o r ­
th e tr ia d : L a tte su g g e s ts an in te rp re ta tio n of th e prima, re c tio n s is lia b le to be a p ro b le m . But to each h is ow n
secunda, tertia a s a fu n c tio n o f w o r th a n d n o t o f tim e , w h ic h r h y t h m . D u m é z il h a s e n j o y e d i n s p i r in g c r itic a l r e a c ti o n in a n
is c o n s i s t e n t w i t h th e tr if u n c ti o n a l e x p l a n a t i o n o f t h e tria d a r e a in w h i c h h e h a s o f t e n b e e n a p i o n e e r . T h u s , h i s s t u d y o f
p ro p o se d by D u m é z i l . 54 F i n a l l y , th e sam e sch em e can be th e in s c rip tio n o f th e lapis niger b e n e f ite d f ro m s u g g e s tio n s
f o u n d i n t h e t r i p l e p a t r o n a g e o f t h e c o l l e g e o f t h e S a l ii w h o and c o r r e c ti o n s o f d e ta il p r o p o s e d b y o th e r sch o la rs. T h e
are in tutela Jovis Martis Quirini.55 t h r u s t o f h is a r g u m e n t , w h ic h re v e a le d th e a u g u r a l p r e s c r i p ­
But does th is tr ip a r titio n co rre sp o n d to a n y th in g th a t tio n f o r t h e juges auspicium, w a s n o t d i m i n i s h e d b y i t. W e ow e
w o u ld n o t q u ic k ly d is s o lv e th r o u g h h is to r ic a l e r o s i o n , a s th e th e fin e c o lle c tio n Idées Romaines ( P a r i s 1 9 6 9 ) t o t h i s m a tu ra ­
C a p ito lin e tria d re p la ce d th e o ld In d o -E u ro p e a n tria d as t io n o f th in k i n g . (In it, t h e a u t h o r m a d e e v e r y e f f o r t t o u s e
e a r l y a s t h e s i x t h c e n t u r y b. c .? D u m é z i l ' s o w n d e f i n i t i o n o f h is e n t ir e e x p e r i e n c e a s a s c h o l a r in f o r m u la t i n g h is f u n d a ­
th e " id e o lo g y o f th e th re e fu n c tio n s " a p p lie s h e r e . " I t c a n b e m e n ta l id e a s a b o u t R o m a n c iv iliz a tio n . H e a l s o a d d e d s e v e r a l

87
ROME
Funeral procession. Aquila, Museo nazionale d'Abruzzo. Museum photo.
studies on the ideology of the three functions and some
analyses outlining deities [Venus, Carna, Pales, Consus, and
Ops].)
The preceding observations allow us at least to recognize
certain broad outlines of research in the field of Roman
religion. They are not so much contradictory as complemen­
tary. They emphasize approaches that attempt to solve
problems in various ways. The bibliographies that follow
allow the reader to take into account a wide variety of
studies. It is not my intention to cast my lot for one work
rather than another, but simply to offer a few final reflec­
tions.
First we must come to terms with the fact that many points
in this vast field of investigation still remain obscure. Such
ceremonies as the Lupercalia and the Argei may never be
really explained. Of course some aspects of them have given
rise to plausible or probable explanations, but the enduring
mystery gives us some idea of the level of our ignorance. We
may dream of an ideal colloquium of scholars concerned with
the same problem: they would leave their egos aside and
gather about a round table instead of working in isolation pro
virili parte and subsequently making exclusive, rather polem­
ical, pronouncements.58
But aside from the problems that remain unsolved, these
two decades have undoubtedly been among the most fertile
in the history of research on Roman religion, thanks to
archaeological finds and the sustained efforts of many peo­
ple. Unquestionably the problem of origins has benefited
from a renewal of effort on a level unknown until now,
through archaeological digs, philological inquiry, and the
comparativists' contributions to the field.
Furthermore, the originality of Rome emerged far more
clearly after the extreme swings of the pendulum repre­
sented by Wissowa and Altheim. Monographs that appeared
in France and elsewhere during this period played a signif­
icant role in this respect. Not only have they contributed to
the settling of specific issues but they have also often cast a
new light on general problems through a kind of inverse
reaction.
Luckily for researchers, many questions remain open. First
is the problem of syncretism, which affects all societies that
are not isolated from the rest of the world. This was true of
Rome as much in the archaic period as in the classical and
postclassical periods. Syncretism cannot be defined as a
passive assimilation. The study of homologous deities in
Greece, Etruria, and Rome shows clearly how the true
question to understand is not so much the origin of the
borrowing as the process by which the borrowing took
place.59
The Augustan Age is particularly fascinating, though this
is not always suspected. In the Fasti, Ovid confronted the
awesome problem of reconciling the national tradition with
an ideology of Greek inspiration. Although Ovid succeeded
unevenly in this task, his modern critics have often failed to
appreciate its inherent difficulties. The Imperial Age left
some interesting liturgical documents, the Acta of the Arval
Brethren. Nothing could be more revealing than the names
of the dignitaries of the city who considered it an honor to
be, along with the emperor, part of a college originally
designed to promote an agrarian cult.60 Nothing could be
more instructive than sorting out archaic traits that demon­
strate the great age of rites and invocations that were
introduced later.61
Another question focuses on the connection between
magic and religion. How is it possible that these two men­
talities, which contradict each other in certain respects,
managed to coexist within certain calendrical festivals?62
How does one go about interpreting certain rites that clearly
come under the rubric of magic, such as releasing foxes
"with torches tied to their burning backs" during the festival
of the Cerialia?63 Are we to see in it "a magical/religious
process to promote fertility"?64 Or, on the contrary, are we to
consider these foxes "the symbolic representatives of the
solar heat which must be kept in check"?65
In general, it is not always easy to distinguish the bound­
aries between these two mentalities; sometimes they over­
lap, as in the formula of the carmen in the devotio of Decius, as
reported by Livy (8.9.6), which partakes simultaneously of a
 T HE R E L I G I O N
re lig io u s s u p p lic a tio n and a c o m p e llin g m a g ic : vos precor
veneror veniam peto feroque ( “ I p r a y t o y o u a n d I h o n o r y o u , I
a s k f o r a n d I o b t a i n y o u r a c c e p t a n c e , y o u r f a v o r " ) . 66
A n o th e r o f th e q u e s tio n s L a tte ra is e d w a s , T o w h a t e x te n t
c a n o n e s ti ll s p e a k o f a l i v i n g f a i t h in h i s t o r i c a l t i m e s ? 67 T h i s
fo rm u la tio n m a y p e r h a p s r e fle c t to o m o d e r n a p o in t o f v ie w .
T h e R o m a n s o f th e first c e n tu r y , fo r th e m o s t p a r t ( e x c e p t
L u c r e tiu s ), s e e m to r e c o n c ile r e s p e c t fo r tr a d itio n s w ith g r e a t
p h ilo s o p h ic a l f r e e d o m . T h e i r s it u a ti o n in th e f a c e o f n a tio n a l
r e lig io u s in s t it u ti o n s is t h u s n o t e n t ir e l y c o m p a r a b l e to th a t
o f th e m o d e r n b e lie v e r w h o s e p a r a te s h im s e lf c le a r ly fro m
t h e " u n b e l i e v e r " b y v i r t u e o f h i s b e l i e f . 68
N e v e r t h e le s s , w e m i g h t a s k th e q u e s t i o n in d if f e r e n t
t e r m s . W h a t r e lig io u s id e a ls p e r v a d e d m in d s in th e v a r io u s
p e r i o d s ? O n th e o f fic ia l l e v e l, R o m e 's i d e o lo g ic a l c h o i c e w a s
m a n i f e s t e d in p a r t i c u l a r b y t w o r e m a r k a b l e i n i t i a t i v e s . A t a
t i m e w h e n it w a s f u l ly e x p o s e d t o t h e s y n c r e t i s t m o v e m e n t o f
i ts n e i g h b o r s E t r u r i a a n d M a g n a G r a e c i a , R o m e a d o p t e d t h e
T r o ja n le g e n d . T h is w a s a c h o ic e w ith a n e n o r m o u s im p a c t,
w h ic h w o u ld l a te r a llo w th e c ity to u s e a m y th o f G re e k
o r i g i n ad majorem gloriam populi Romani. W e k n o w t o d a y h o w
t h i s m y t h , a l r e a d y p r e s e n t in I t a l y in t h e s i x t h c e n t u r y ,
i n s p i r e d t h e R o m a n b a r d s o f t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y b e f o r e it
p r o v i d e d a n o f fic ia l d o c t r in e fo r th e p o e t s o f th e A u g u s t a n
A g e a n d fo r th e re g im e th a t w o u ld l a te r c la im Ju liu s C a e s a r
a s its a u t h o r i ty .
M o r e o v e r, th a n k s to th e te a c h in g s o f th e E tr u s c a n s , R o m e
w a s f a m i l i a r w i t h t h e d o c t r i n e a c c o r d i n g t o w h i c h t h e saecula
h a d to b e p u r s u e d u n til t h e y r e a c h e d th e e n d o f a s e r ie s o f
t e n , w h i c h w a s s u p p o s e d t o fill o u t a g r e a t p e r i o d . R o m e w a s
n o t i n d if f e r e n t to th is d o c t r in e , s in c e th e i n s t it u ti o n o f th e
s e c u l a r g a m e s , w h i c h m a t e r i a l i z e d in t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y b y t h e
c o m m a n d o f t h e Sibylline Books, h a d a s e q u e l ( e s p e c i a l l y t h e
s o l e m n c e l e b r a t i o n o f 1 7 b .c .), w h i c h a r e f e r e n c e t o t h e " g r e a t
s e r i e s o f c e n t u r i e s " i n t h e f o u r t h Bucolics p l a c e s o n t h e s a m e
le v e l. B u t a n o t h e r th e m e w a s to e c lip s e th e first: th e th e m e o f
Roma aeterna t h a t V i r g i l a d v a n c e d a s a n o f f i c i a l d o g m a in t h e
Aencid b y h a v i n g J u p i t e r u t t e r t h e f o l l o w i n g v e r s e s f o r t h e
b e n e fit o f th e R o m a n s , w h o tra c e d th e ir d e s c e n t fro m A e ­
n eas:
Hic ego nec metas rerum nec tempora pono:
Imperium sine fine dedi
" I fix n o l i m i t s f o r t h e m in t i m e o r in s p a c e :
I g i v e t h e m a n e m p i r e w i t h o u t e n d . " 69
H e r e a g a i n t h e c h o i c e is s i g n i f i c a n t a n d g i v e s m a t e r i a l f o r
t h o u g h t . O n e q u e s t i o n o f t e n l e a d s t o a n o t h e r . It s h o u l d n o t
s u r p r is e u s th a t s e v e ra l s c h o la rs g o b e y o n d th e ir p a rtic u la r
a n a ly s e s to p o n d e r th is f u n d a m e n ta l p r o b le m : w h a t c o n s t i ­
tu te s th e b a s ic i n n o v a tio n o f th e re lig io u s p a tr im o n y o f
R o m e ? T h is m a t t e r s h o u ld n o t b e d e a l t w ith b y c la s s i f y i n g
t y p e s o f e x p la n a tio n s b u t r a t h e r b y p r o v id in g th e b ib lio ­
g r a p h i c r e p e r t o r y . In a n y c a s e , t h e a n s w e r c a n n o t b e e a s y n o r
c a n it e x h a u s t t h e f a s c i n a t i o n o f t h e h i s t o r i a n o f r e l i g i o n s f o r
a h e r ita g e o f tr a d itio n s s e v e r a l m ille n n ia o ld .
R .S ./g .h .
NOTES
1. Among the reviews bearing upon the period before 1950, weof Lavinium.
emphasize N. Turchi, "Studi sulla religione Romana," 1940-50,
StudRom 2 (1954): 570-77; A. Brelich, "Storia delle religioni: Reli­
gione Romana," 1939-48, Doxa 2 (1949): 136-66; H. J. Rose, "Roman
Religion," 1910-60, /RS 50 (1960): 161-72. It is sufficient to mention
for the rest the collections published from time to time in the journal
OF T HE R O M A N R E P U B L I C
Studi Romani: N. Turchi, "Recenti studi sulla religione Romana,"
StudRom 6 (1958): 591-94; U. Bianchi, ibid. 9 (1961): 301-7; ibid. 11
(1963): 581-89; ibid. 15 (1967): 70-78.
2. We must not forget that, collaborating on the Handbuch der
römischen Alterhtimer of j. Marquardt and Th. Mommsen, Wissowa
had edited the third volume (2d ed., Leipzig 1885) under the generic
title Römische Staatsverwaltung, which included the subtitle Das
Sacralwesen.
3. Extract of a personal letter from K. Latte to me in French, dated
27 October 1957.
4. M. Guarducci, BCAR 72 (1946-48): 2ff. Cf. A. Degrassi,
Inscriptiones Latinae liberae rei publicae (= I.L.L.R.), nos. 10-12.
5. St. Weinstock, Festschrift. A. Rumpf (Cologne 1952), 151 ff.
6. L. L. Tels-de-Jong, Sur quelques divinités de la naissance et de la
prophétie (Delft 1959), passim. Cf. my review of this work in Gnomon
32 (1960): 650- 53.
7. M. Guarducci, Arch. Class 3 (1951): 99ff., and "Ancora sulla
legge sacra di Lavinio," ibid. 11 (1959): 204ff. (cf. A. Degrassi,
I.L.L.R., no. 509).
8. We refer to St. Weinstock, 1RS 42 (1952): 34ff., and RE, 8, 2
(1958): cc, 1712-13 s. v. Vesperna; R. Bloch, CRAI, 1954, 203ff.; H. Le
Bonniec, Le culte de Cérés à Rome (Paris 1958), 463ff.; Ae. Peruzzi, Un
problema etimologico latino, Maia 11 (1959): 212ff.; K. Latte, Römische
Religionsgeschichte (Munich 1960), 70, n. 1.
9. In spite of the efforts of Weinstock (who cites elsewhere the
passage of Festus, p. 505 L: Vesperna apud Plautum |fr. inc. 45| cena
intellegitur), the divinity of Vesperna seems suspect to me. I will
understand it as a matter of a lex sacra, until proof to the contrary (in
particular, an irrefutable attestation of this supposed divinity):
"presents to Ceres, in an evening offering, viscera boiled in the pot."
10. Published by M. Guarducci, BCAR 76 (1956-58), appendix pp.
3ff.; it is cited by A. Degrassi, I.L.L.R., no. 1271, with an important
bibliography from which it is advisable to single out A. Alföldi, Die
trojanischen Urahnen der Römer (Basel 1957); Early Rome and the Latins
(Ann Arbor 1963), 255ff.
11. F. Castagnoli, SMSR 30 (1959): 109ff.
12. Cf. A. Degrassi, I.L.L.R., no. 1271a, with bibliographic refer­
ences.
13. Cf. A. Alföldi, Early Rome and the Latins, 268ff., and my article
"Hommages à Georges Dumézil," Coll. Latomus, 45 (I960), 177ff.
(= R.C.D.R., Les Castores romains . . .).
14. In a letter of 15 March 1971, F. Castagnoli courteously informed
me of the then impending publication of the results of the excava­
tions at Lavinium, with cited details: "Nei due ultimi anni gli scavi
hanno riguardato un tratto delle mura sul lato orientale: sono mura
in opera quadrata con resti di una porta e una strada. Presentano più
fasi, la più antica databile al VI secolo."
15. The same author is publishing a commentary on Ovid's
Metamorphoses, of which the first volume, Kommentar, books 1-3
(Heidelberg 1969), has appeared. An edition "for the educated
public" of Fastes, by H. Le Bonniec (text, translation, notes), 2 vols.
(Catana 1969), has appeared.
16. Let me cite my two articles on Ovid, reprinted in R.C.D.R.
17. Radke, op. cit., p. 8: "Und doch bietet sich uns in immer
wiederkehrenden Fällen kaum etwas Anderes als der Name."
18. It is by design that I have not included Venus, which would
have given the discussion a very personal turn. Always appreciating
the moral of the fable of La Fontaine, The Miller, His Son, and the
Donkey, I will not here oppose Radke's denial of the public agree­
ment accorded to me by Hans Herter, Kurt Latte, Jean Bayet, and
Georges Dumézil.
19. Cf. the argument developed in my article on Dea Dia, Coll.
Latomus, 102 (1969), 2: 675- 79 (= R.C.D.R., Dea Dia . . .).
20. Cf. R.E.L. 35 (1957): 424-31.
21. Ibid., pp. 428-29. The idea of making the cult of Castor come
from Tusculum was a common enough opinion (cf. Latte, R.R.G., p.
23) before the discovery of the archaic dedication on the ancient site
22. D. van Berchem, Hercule Melquart à l'Ara Maxima, RPAA 32
(1960): 61-68.
23. J. Carcopino (Aspects mystiques de la Rome païenne [Paris 19411)
sees in the Pontitii a function of Pythagorian origin, coming from
Taranto after 370. In the second edition of his book ([1969], p. 289),
89
ROM E
J. Bayet remarks with good reason that Hercules already appears in
the first Roman lectisternium of 399.
24. "But what might attract them (the Phoenicians) into this poor
region?" asks J. Bayet (ibid. 11969], 289).
25. Cf. M. Pallottino, Scavi net santuario di Pyrgi. Arch. Class. 16
(1964): 58-63; 76-104; 104-17.
26. Cf. the observations of R. Bloch (Un mode d'interpretatio à deux
degrés: De l'uni de Pyrgi à llithye et Leucothee. Arch. Class. 21 [1969|:
64-65) on the presence of Thesan on a bronze lamella discovered by
M. Pallottino at Pyrgi and published by him: Un'altra laminelta di
bronzo con iscrizione etrusca recuperata dal materiale di Pyrgi, Arch.
Class. 19 (1967): 336-41. R. Bloch wrote: "Thesan is nothing but ‘he
dawn known in Rome under the characteristics of Mater Matuta and
subsequently assimilated to the marine goddess Leucothea." This
identification is all the more interesting because Mater Matuta—to
whom C. Dumézil restored her true identity, transcending all the
confused discussions (La religion romaine archaïque [2d ed., Paris
1974], 66ff.), at the same time that he explicated the rites of the
Matralia of 11 June—had a temple not only at Rome and Satricum-
Conca, as R. Bloch called it, but also a cult, precisely at Caere (to
which Pvrgi served as port), as I have observed in R.E.L. 43 (1965):
74; cf. Övid F. 6 475ff.
27. F. Altheim, Römische Religionsgeschichte (Baden-Baden 1951-53;
2d ed., Berlin 1956). It is advisable not to rely on a French work
published by the same author. La religion romaine antique (Paris 1955).
I have observed, in RHR 159 (1961): 242-45, that it is less a
translation than an adaptation, presented in language often incor­
rect.
28. I refer, for example, to the work of H. Le Bonniec, for Ceres
(1958); to my work for Venus (1954); and to my articles on the Castors
(1960) and Diana (1964), reprinted in R.C.D.R.
29. K. Latte, R.R.G.. 15, no. 1.
30. Ibid., 9 and n. 3.
31. Ibid., Iff.: Quellen.
32. Ibid., 9.
33. Ibid., 114: "Der Gott, der Quirinus im Bewusstsein seiner
Verehrer zurückgedrängt hat, war Mars."
34. Ibid., 18: "The same divine figures appear under different
aspects according to whether the invocation expresses the needs of
agriculture or of military life."
35. Ibid., 18: "Mars, der Gott der Welt jenseits der Siedlung, ist für
den Bauern der Wilde, von dem er wünscht, dass er seine Fluren
verschonen möge, für die Krieger, die die Grenzen der eigenen
Siedlung überschreiten, ist er der gegebene Schirmherr und wird so
zum Kriegsgott."
36. Cf. Degrassi, I.L.R.R., n. 4, with notes and bibliographic
references.
37. Cf. Latte, R.R.G., 114.
38. The complete verse Satur fu. fere Mars: limen sali, sta herber can
be translated "Be satisfied, ferocious Mars; leap tolhe frontier and
mount guard." Cf. the explicit explanation of G. Dumézil, La religion
romaine archaïque, 2d ed., 239ff. It is possible that "be satisfied"
should be understood with the implicit idea of "by our offerings," as
H. J. Rose has suggested.
39. According to the terms of Latte, R.R.G., 114: "Das Arvallied
wünscht, der Wilde möge satt sein, und wenn man ihm beim
Flurumgang opfert, so möchte man seine Felder gegen ihn
schützen."
40. Cf. A. Ernout and A. M. Meillet, Dictionnaire étymologique de la
langue latine (4th ed., Paris 1959), 230, s. v. ferus.
41. Latte, R.R.G.. 1.
42. Cicero De divinatione 1.66. The passage from Ennius is attrib­
uted to a tragedy by Ennius, "Alexander"; cf. the edition by A. S.
Pease (Darmstadt 1963), 211.
43. "I had been sent to make prophetic predictions; Apollo impels
me in spite of myself in my delirium to reveal fate."
44. A brief reference to this passage (Ennius, seen. 57 V2) is made,
among other texts, in a note by Latte (R.R.G., 268, n. 1). For the
meaning of superstitiosus, see, most recently, E. Benveniste, Le
vocabulaire des institutions indo-européennes (Paris 1969): 2:274ff.; for the
etymology of fas, fatum, cf. ibid., 133ff. (the author refuses the
derivation from the theme dhés- in favor of the link with fart).
45. Latte, R.R.G., ("This poet, one of the most modern among his
90
contemporaries, was quite a stranger to the spirit of old Roman
religion").
46. Ovid F. 5.429-44.
47. Cf. A. Degrassi, Inscriptiones Italiae, 13, 2 (1963): 388, with
reference to my article "Un passage lacunaire du calendrier préjulien
d'Antium éclairé par le commentaire d'Ovide" (F. 1.289-94), Coll.
Latomus, 44 (1960): 694-97; reprinted in R.C.D.R. In the editio minor
of the Inscriptiones Latinae liberae rei publicae (Florence 1957), 1:23,
Degrassi has again put a question mark after his restoration.
48. Cf., most recently, G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d
ed., 99-103.
49. Cf. my article REA 70 (1968): 83-91.
50. An English translation. Archaic Roman Religion (Chicago 1970),
is based on the first French edition.
51. I return here to certain developments presented in my review
(RHR 172 [1967]: 217-20) and in my article (REA 70 [1968]: 83-91).
However, all the references on this subject are to the second edition.
La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., and to the English translation.
Kohlhammer at first expected to publish this work in German. But
"the delays required by translation into German were prolonged," so
it is the French edition which represents the latest state of the
author's thought, and he has kept the book up-to-date.
52. G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque, 2d ed., 183-86.
53. K. Latte, R.R.G.. 204- 5.
54. G. Dumézil, La religion romaine archaïque. 2d ed., 178 - 80.
55. Cf. Servius, ad Aen. 8.663.
56. G. Dumézil, Archaic Roman Religion, p. 161.
57. Cf. ibid., pp. 51 and 337-39.
58. An experiment of this type has been carried out for the gold
lamellae of Pvrgi: see "Tavola rotonda: Le lamine di Pvrgi" (Rome
1970).
59. In France, in the line of monographs devoted to divinities,
jean-Louis Girard, a former student of the E.N.S., intends to write a
thesis on Minerva.
60. Les Frères Areales, recrutement et origine sociale . . . (Paris 1975).
61. I have tried to cover some problems in the Annuaire de l'École
des Hautes Études (Paris 1969 - 70), 256-57.
62. In the article on this question (Annuaire de l'École des Hautes
Études (Paris 1967-68], 31-55 = R.C.D.R.. Religion et magie à Rome),
I have examined in particular the festival of the Robigalia.
63. Cf. Ovid F. 4.681-82. F. Börner (Die Fasten, 2, ad loc.) has
denied the reality of this rite, which most commentaries take into
consideration.
64. This is the idea of J. Bayet (RBPh 29 [1951]: 5-32), whom H. Le
Bonniec follows on this point (Le culte de Cérés à Rome [Paris 1958], 122).
65. This is the suggestion of K. Latte (R.R.G., 19).
66. Cf. G. Dumézil, Archaic Roman Religion, p. 94, for the commen­
tary on this carmen. It is advisable, this scholar demonstrates, to
respect the reading feroque. for which most editors have arbitrarily
substituted the conjecture oroque.
67. Latte, R.R.G., 15: "Es gilt zu ermitteln, was in historischen
Zeiten noch lebendiger Glaube war."
68. With respect to "respect for traditions," a supposed "remark"
about an augur who could not look at another augur without
laughing is often attributed to Cicero, who was himself an augur. In
fact, Cato's remark, reported by Cicero, applies, not to the Roman
augur, but to the diviner who in that era was still considered a priest
of Etruscan allegiance. See the texts: Cicero De divinatione 2.51:
"Vetus autem illud Catonis admodum scitum est, qui mirari se aiebat
quod non rideret haruspex haruspicem cum vidisset"; De natura
deorum 1.71: "mirabile videtur quod non rideat haruspex cum
haruspicem viderit."
69. Virgil Aen. 1.278- 79: "I have not fixed limits for them in time
or in space: I have given them an empire without end."
PRINCIPAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Editions of Texts of Religious Significance
f. BOMER, P. Ovidius, Naso, Die Fasten 1: Einleitung, Text und
Übersetzung (Heidelberg 1957); 2: Kommentar (Heidelberg 1958).
Inscriptiones Italiae. 13, Fasti et Elogia, fase. 2, Fasti anni
a . degrassi,
 THE
Numani et Juliani (Rome 1963); this fascicle 2 completes the publica­
tion by the same author of fasc. 1, Fasti consulares et triumphales (Rome
1947). It is the most complete edition and the most important
commentary on the Roman calendar; Inscriptiones latinae liberae rei
publicae, fasc. 1 (Florence 1957); this edition, with interesting notes,
concerns Roman religion especially in nos. 1 (Tituli a saeculo septimo
ad quartum) and 4 (Numina et sacerdotes; ibid., fasc. 2 [Florence 1963]);
this publication, conceived according to the same method, is to be
consulted especially for nos. 9, (Leges sacrae); 14 (Magistratus et
sacerdotes civitatum, pagorum, vicorum); 23 (Tabellae defixionum); addit­
amenta (the most recent religious inscriptions), c. devoto, Tabulae
Iguvinae (3d ed., Rome 1962). a . ernout, Le dialecte ombrien: Lexique du
vocabulaire des "Tables Eugubines" et des inscriptions (Paris 1961).
a . pasoli . Acta Fratrum Arualium (Bologna 1950); this edition was
completed by the inscriptions published afterward by g . henzen (Acta
Fratrum Arualium [Berlin 1874]); but it does not replace his commen­
tary, which remains indispensable, a . |. pfiffig, Religio Iguvina:
Philologische und religionsgeschichtliche Studien zu den Tabulae Iguvinae
(Vienna 1964). |. w. poultney, The Bronze Tablets of Iguvium, Mon. Am.
Ph. Ass. 17 (1959). e . vetter, Handbuch der italischen Dialekte (Heidel­
berg 1953).
2. General Works and Summaries
a . ALFOLDi, Early Rome and the Latins (Ann Arbor 1963). f . altheim, La
religion romaine antique (Paris 1955) (mediocre translation). Römische
Religionsgeschichte (Baden-Baden 1951-53; 2d ed., Berlin 1956).
I. Bayet, Histoire politique et psychologique de la religion romaine (Paris
1957; 2d ed., Paris 1969); Idéologie et plastique (Rome 1974).
E. BENVENisTF, Le vocabulaire des institutions indo-européennes 2: Pouvoir,
droit, religion (Paris 1969). w. den boer . Le culte des souverains dans
l'empire romain. Entretiens sur l'antiquité class. 19 (Geneva 1973).
p. boyancé. Études sur la religion romaine (Rome 1972). m . h . crawford .
Roman Republican Coinage. 1-2 (Cambridge 1974). p. de francisci,
Primordia civitatis (Rome 1959). g . Dumézil, Les dieux des Indo-Européens
(Paris 1951); L'idéologie tripartie des Indo-Européens (Brussels 1958);
Archaic Roman Religion (Chicago 1970); Idées romaines (Paris 1969);
Mythe et épopée, 3 vols. (Paris 1968-73); Fêtes romaines d'été et
d'automne (Paris 1975). |. ferguson, The Religions of the Roman Empire,
Aspects of Greek and Roman Life (London 1970). h . fugier. Recherches sur
l'expression du sacré dans la langue latine (Paris 1963). e . gierstad, Early
Rome 1: Stratigraphical Researches in the Forum Romanum and along the
Sacra Via (Lund 1953); 2: The Tombs (1956); 3: Fortifications, Domestic
Architecture, Sanctuaries, Stratigraphie Excavations (1960); 4; Synthesis of
Archaeological Evidence (1966); 5; The Written Sources (1973). p . grjmal.
Dictionnaire de la mythologie grecque et romaine (Paris 1951; 4th ed.,
Paris 1969). f . c . grant. Ancient Roman Religion (New York 1957).
w. R. HALLiDAY, Lectures on the History of Ronuin Religion (New York 1950).
j. HEURGON, Rome et la Méditerranée occidentale jusqu'aux guerres puniques
(Paris 1969). h . hunger, Lexikon der griechischen und römischen Mythologie
(5th ed., Vienna 1959). a . kirsopp Michels, The Calendar of the Roman
Republic (Princeton 1967). k . latte. Römische Religionsgeschichte (Munich
1960). m . Leglay, La religion romaine (Paris 1971). r. m . ogilvie. The Romans
and Their Gods in the Age of Augustus (London 1969). r. e. a . palmer,
Roman Religion and Empire (Philadelphia 1974). a . pastorjno, La religione
romana, Problemi di storia 21 (Milan 1973). s. perowne, Roman Mythology
(London 1969). g . b . pichi. La religione romana, Lezioni Augusto Rostagni
3 (Turin 1967). j. poucet, Recherches sur la légende Sabine des origines de
Rome (Kinshasa 1967). c. radke, Die Götter Altitaliens (Munich 1965).
h. ). rose, Ancient Roman Religion (London 1949; New York 1950). i. scorr
ryberc, Rifes of the State Religion in Roman Art, MAAR 22 (1955).
r. schilling, The Roman Religion: Historia Religionum (Leiden 1969).
e . sydenham. The Coinage of the Roman Republic! London 1952). r. thomsen.
Early Roman Coinage (Copenhagen 1957). g . van der leeuw, Phänomeno­
logie der Religion (Tübingen 1956). s. weinstock, Divus Julius (Oxford
1971), religion at the time of Caesar.
3. Monographs and Specialized Studies
a . alfoldi, Der frührömische Reiteradel und seine Ehrenabzeichen
(Baden-Baden 1952); Studien über Caesars Monarchie (Lund 1953); Die
trojanischen Urahnen der Römer (Basel 1957). a . bartoli, /pozzi dell’area
sacra di Vesta (Rome 1959). m . c . bertinelli angeli. Nomenclatura publica
e sacra di Roma nelle epigrafi semitiche (Genoa 1970). r. bloch. Les
prodiges dans l'antiquité classique (Paris 1963). m . bollini, Minerva medica
R E L I G I O N OF T H E R O M A N R E P U B l. 1 C
minor: Atti del III Congresso di Siudi Veleiati (Milan-Varese 1969).
F. BOMER, Rom und Troja (Baden-Baden 1951). p . boyancé , La religion de
Virgile (Paris 1963). a . brei.ic h , Tre variazioni sui terna delle ongini (Rome
1955) . a . Brühl , Liber Pater: Origine et expansion du culte dionysiaque à
Rome et dans le monde romain (Paris 1953). p. catai ano . Contributi allô
studio dei diritto augurale, 1 (Turin 1960). f . cramer . Astrology in Roman
Law and Politics (Philadelphia 1954). i . dit acte, Recherches sur quelques
fêtes mobiles du calendrier romain (Liège 1957). w. deonna and m . renard .
Croyances et superstitions de table dans la Rome antique (Brussels 1961).
g . dumézil . Aspects de la fonction guerrière chez les Indo-Européens (Paris
1956) ; Rituels indo-européens à Rome (Paris 1954); Jupiter, Mars, Quirinus
(Paris 1941); Déesses latines et mythes védiques (Brussels 1956).
r. DUTHOY, The Taurobolium: Its Evolution and Terminology, Études
prélimin. aux relig. orient, dans l'empire rom. 10 (Leiden 1969).
L. FERRERO, Storia del Pitagorismo nel mondo romano: Dalle origini alla fine
della Repubblica (Turin 1955). H. freier , Caput velare (diss., Tübingen
1965). |. g a g é , Apollon romain: Essai sur le culte d'Apollon et le
développement du "ritus graecus” à Rome, des origines à Auguste (Paris
1955) ; Matronalia, Essai sur les dévotions et les organisations cultuelles des
femmes dans l'ancienne Rome (Brussels 1963); Basileia: Les Césars, les rois
d’Orient et les mages (Paris 1968). c. K. galinsky , Aeneas, Sicily and Rome
(Princeton 1969). h . gesch e . Die Vergottung Caesars, Frankfurter alt-
hist. Studien 1 (Kallmün 1968). u. g eyer , Der Adlerflug im römischen
Konsekrationszeremoniell (diss., Bonn 1967). d . r. gordon , The Evidence
for the Survival of Italian Agricultural Cult (Madison, WI, 1968,
microfilm), b. crassmann -fischer . Die Prodigien in Vergils Aeneis (Mu­
nich 1966). F. GUizzi, Aspetti giuridici del sacerdozio romano: ll sacerdozio
di Vesta (Naples 1968). l . halkin . La supplication d'action de grâces chez
les Romains (Liège 1953). g . h . halsberche . The Cult of Sol Invictus
(Leiden 1972). |. heurcon . Trois études sur le "Ver sacrum" (Brussels
1957) . m . w. Hoffman lewis , The Official Priests of Rome under the
lulio-Claudians (Rome 1961). l . a . mac kay , /hums (Berkeley 1956). c.
k och . Der römische luppiter (Frankfurt 1937; new edition Darmstadt
1968); Religio, Studien zu Kult und Glauben der Römer (Nuremburg
1960) , d . LADAGE, Städtische Priester- und Kultämter im lateinischen
Westen des Imperium Romanum zur Kaiserzeit (diss., Cologne 1971).
h . le BONNiEC, Le culte de Cérès à Rome, des origines à la fin de la République
(Paris 1958). |. le g a ll , Recherches sur le culte du Tibre (Paris 1953).
a . macdelain . Recherches sur I’"Imperium": La loi curiate et les auspices
d'investiture (Paris 1968). r. |. mellor , Dea Roma: The Deivlopment of the
Idea of the Goddess Roma (diss., Princeton 1967). r. merkelbach, Isisfeste in
griechisch-römischer Zeit, Daten und Riten (Meisenheim-am-Glan 1963).
M. mesun , La fête des kalendes de janvier dans Empire romain: Étude d'un
rituel de Nouvel An (Brussels 1970). w. mueller . Die heilige Stadt, Roma
quadrata, himmlisches Jerusalm und die Mythe vom Weltnabel (Stuttgart
1961) . r. M. o gilvie , The Romans and Their Gods in the Age of Augustus
(London 1969). d . g . orr , Roman Domestic Religion: A Study of the Roman
Household Deities and Their Shrines at Pompeii and Herculanum (diss.
University of Maryland 1972, microfilm), r. e . a . palmer , The King and the
Comitium: A Study of Rome's Oldest Public Document (Wiesbaden 1969);
Roman Religion and Empire (Philadelphia 1974). g . piccaluga , Elmenti
spettacolari nei rituali festivi romani (Rome 1965). c. b. pichi. De ludis
saecularibus populi Romani Quiritium (Milan 1941; 2d ed., Amsterdam
1965); La poesia religiosa Romam (Bologna 1958). g . charles-picard , Les
trophées romains: Contribution à l’histoire de la religion et de l’art triomphal à
Rome (Paris 1957). g . pfannmueller , Tod, Jenseits und Unsterblichkeit in der
Religion, Literatur und Philosophie der Griechen und Römer (Munich and
Basel 1953). p . romanelu , Lo scavo al tempio della Magna Mater sul Palatino
e nelle sue adiacenze (Rome 1962). d . sabbatucci, L’Edilitä romana: Magis­
tratum e sacerdozio (Rome 1954). r. schilling , La religion romaine de Vénus,
depuis les origines jusqu'au temps d’Auguste (Paris 1954); Rites, cultes, dieux
de Rome (Paris 1979). u. w. scholz , Studien zum altitalischen und altrömi­
schen Marskult und Marsmythos (Heidelberg 1970). l . schumacher , Proso-
pographische Untersuchungen zur Besetzung der vier hohen römischen
Priesterkollegien im Zeitalter der Antonine und der Severer, 96 -235 n. Chr.
s. /. Simon (M a in z 1 9 7 3 ). s. |. simon. The Greater Official Priests of Rome under
the Flavian and Antonine Emperors (d is s ., U n iv e rs ity o f C h ic a g o 1 9 7 3 ,
m icro film ), p. stehouwer , Étude sur Ops et Consus (d is s ., G ro n in g e n
1956) . L. storoni MAZZOLANi, Sul mare della vita (Milan 1969), on the
conception of death in Rome. c. j. szemler . The Priests of the Republic: A
Study of Interactions between Priesthoods and Magistracies (Brussels 1972).
L. tels-de -jong , Sur quelques divinités romaines de la missance et de la
prophétie (Delft 1959). |. trier, Venus: Etymologien um das Futtcrlaub
91
ROME

(Cologne 1963). r. tlrcan , Les sarcophages romains à représentations ta l w o r d s a n d th e m a g is tr a te w a s f o r b id d e n to h o ld a s s e m ­

dionysiaques (Paris 1966). h . s. veksnfi., Triumphus: An Inquiry into the b lie s . T h e s e d a y s h a d r e lig io u s o v e r t o n e s o n l y to th e e x t e n t
Origin, Dnvlopment and Meaning of the Roman Triumph (Leiden 1970). n. t h a t if t h e p r a e t o r w e r e to tra n s g re s s th e ru le b y m ista k e
w a g fw cxiri . Studies in Roman Literature: Culture and Religion (Leiden
(imprudens), h e w o u l d h a v e to p e rfo rm a n e x p ia to ry s a crifice
1956). a . wi.osoK, Die Göttin Venus in Vergils Aeneis (Heidelberg 1967). r.
k. YLRKLs, Sacrifice in Greek and Roman Religions and Early judaisnt (New
(piaculari hostia). A n d if, o n th e c o n tra ry , he v io la te d th e

York 1952). p ro h ib itio n k n o w in g ly — prudens— h e w o u ld b e s tr u c k w ith

impietas, a n i n e x p i a b l e w r o n g . 10 O t h e r w i s e t h e s e dies nefasti
d i d n o t i m p e d e t h e h o l d i n g o f a s s e m b l i e s in t h e s e n a t e , t h e
m e e tin g s o f th e contiones, o r t h e a c t i v i t i e s o f t h e m a r k e t s . 11
The tru e f e s tiv a l d ays— dies fasti — w h ic h carry p ro p e r
n a m e s in c a p i t a l l e t t e r s o n t h e c a l e n d a r , g e n e r a l l y 12 h a v e t h e

R oman F estivals s ig n NP: th e s e tw o lig a tu re d le tte rs have g iv e n rise to a

s e r ie s o f d e b a te s w h ic h h ave never com e to any c e rta in
feriae publicae
c o n c l u s i o n s . 13 B u t t h e s e a r e u n d o u b t e d l y set
T h e v e r y w o r d f o r f e s t i v a l is a L a t i n t e r m th a t d e riv e s fro m a s id e fo r th e g o d s , dies deorum causa instituti a c c o r d i n g to
festa — a n e u t e r p l u r a l t h a t c o r r e s p o n d s t o t h e c l a s s i c a l e x p r e s ­ V a r r o 's d e f i n i t i o n . 14 T h e y a r e c h a r a a c t e r i z e d b y s a c r i f i c e s t o
s i o n festus (dies). T h i s l e a d s u s b a c k t o t h e r o o t *dhe-, w h i c h t h e g o d s a s w e ll a s b y c e r e m o n i e s a n d r e j o i c i n g . 15 T h e y i m p l y
s e r v e s t o f o r m t h e s t e m *dhès-, T h i s s t e m is t h e b a s e b o t h f o r a n o b lig a tio n to r e s t: th e s e a r e dies quieti, d e c la re s C ic e r o (De
t h e L a t i n n o u n fanum ( w i t h t h e r o o t in i t s w e a k f o r m ) a n d t h e legibus 2 . 5 5 ) , d a y s " e x e m p t e d f r o m a ll l i t i g a t i o n , " o n w h i c h it
w o r d s festae— w h i c h r e n d e r s feriae — a n d festus (dies) ( w i t h t h e is p r o p e r t o c e l e b r a t e " c o m p l e t e d t a s k s , in t h e m i d s t o f o n e ' s
r o o t in i t s s t r o n g f o r m ) . It i s c e r t a i n l y d i f f i c u l t t o d e f i n e t h e s e r v a n t s . " 16 F r e e m e n a r e t o r e n o u n c e t h e i r l a w s u i t s a n d q u a r ­
s te m *dhës-, w h ic h a c c o r d in g to B e n v e n is te 1 "d e s ig n a te s re ls , a n d s la v e s a r e to b e n e fit fro m th e rig h t to re s t fro m th e ir
som e re lig io u s o b je c t o r rite w hose m e a n in g we can no la b o rs a n d t h e i r t r o u b l e s . 17 T h i s p r e s c r i p t i o n fo r re s t w a s
lo n g e r a s c e r ta in ; in any case, it is re la te d to th e sacred co m b in e d w ith a p r e c i s e s e t o f r u l e s , if w e a r e to b e lie v e
s p h e r e ." M a c r o b i u s : 18 " T h e p r i e s t s u s e d t o m a i n t a i n t h a t t h e c e l e b r a ­
T h e la ck o f p re c is io n o f th is d e fin itio n in d ic a te s th e d e g r e e ti o n o f t h e f e s t i v a l w a s d e s e c r a t e d if, a f t e r it h a d b e e n o f f ic i a ll y
of p re s e n t-d a y ig n o r a n c e and in d u c e s us to le a rn about p r o c l a i m e d , a n y o n e w o r k e d . " In p r a c t i c e , e x c e p t i o n s w e r e
a n c i e n t b e lie fs o n th e s u b je c t. T h e fo llo w in g a r e th e s ta t e ­ p r o v i d e d , f o r e x a m p l e f o r c e r t a i n a g r i c u l t u r a l w o r k , 19 a n d t h e
m e n t s o f M a c r o b i u s ,2 w h ic h go b ack to th e o r ig in o f th e l a w m a k e r s e l a b o r a t e d a k in d o f c a s u i s t r y to th is e n d . W h e n
in s titu tio n o f th e c a le n d a r : " N u m a , h a v in g d iv id e d th e y e a r a s k e d w h a t o n e w a s p e r m itte d to d o o n th e d a y o f a re lig io u s
i n t o m o n t h s , w e n t o n t o d i v i d e e a c h m o n t h i n t o d a y s , a ll o f f e s ti v a l , S c a e v o l a r e p l i e d : " T h a t w h i c h if o m i t t e d w o u l d d o h a r m
w h ic h w e r e k n o w n a s dies festos ( fe s tiv a ls ) o r profestos (w o rk ­ t o s o m e o n e . " 20 M a c r o b i u s , w h o c i t e s t h is r e s p o n s e , i m m e d i a t e l y
in g d a y s ) o r intercisos ("in te rru p tio n s " or " in te rm itte n ts ": g i v e s t w o c o n c r e t e e x a m p l e s : " I f a n o x fell i n t o a p it a n d t h e h e a d
m o rn in g a n d e v e n in g are f e s tiv a ls , w h ile th e in te rv a l b e ­ o f t h e h o u s e h o l d p u ll e d it o u t w i t h t h e a i d o f h i s l a b o r e r s , h e
tw e e n th e m is a p e rio d fo r w o rk ). The f e s tiv a l d a y s are w o u l d n o t b e t h o u g h t t o h a v e d e s e c r a t e d t h e f e s ti v a l ; n o r a m a n
d e d ic a te d to th e g o d s , o n w o r k in g d a y s m e n m a y tr a n s a c t w h o , s e e in g th a t th e m a in b e a m o f h is r o o f w a s b r o k e n , p r o p p e d
t h e i r p r i v a t e a n d p u b l i c b u s i n e s s , a n d t h e 'i n t e r r u p t i o n s ' a r e it u p t o a v o i d i ts i m m i n e n t c o l l a p s e . " 21
d a y s s h a r e d b e tw e e n g o d s a n d m e n ." It is n e v e r t h e l e s s i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h a t t h i s p r e s c r i p t i o n
T h i s d i s t i n c t i o n r e m a i n e d in e f f e c t b o t h f o r t h e c a l e n d a r o f r e ta in e d an a b so lu te c h a ra cte r v is -à -v is th e h ig h p rie s tly
th e re p u b lic a n ep och , w h ic h is su p p o sed to have been d ig n ita r ie s , th e k in g o f th e s a c rific e s a n d th e fla m e n s (a m o n g
i n s t i t u t e d b y K i n g N u m a ( a n d w h i c h is c h a r a c t e r i z e d b y t h e w hom th e flamen Dialis w as quotidie feriatus, " e v e r y d a y in a
p e rio d ic in s e r tio n , e v e r y tw o y e a r s , o f a n i n te r c a la r y m o n th , 'f e s t i v e ' s t a t e " ) . M a c r o b i u s in f a c t s p e c i f i e s t h a t " t h e k i n g o f
mensis intercalaris or mercedonius, to c o m p e n s a t e fo r th e d e ficit th e s a c rific e s a n d th e fla m e n s d id n o t h a v e th e rig h t to s e e
o f t h e l u n a r y e a r — 3 5 5 d a y s — in r e l a t i o n t o t h e s o l a r y e a r o f a n y o n e w o r k i n g o n f e s tiv a l d a y s ; th e y a l s o h a d a p u b lic c r ie r
3 6 5 '/ .t d a y s ) ,1 and fo r th e Ju lia n c a le n d a r, w h ic h w as p r o c la im t h a t a ll w e r e t o a b s t a i n fro m w o rk ; w h o e v e r n e ­
r e f o r m e d in 4 6 b .c . b y Ju liu s C a e s a r a n d w h ic h , e x c e p t fo r a g le c te d th is p r e s c r ip tio n w a s fin e d . B e s id e s th e fin e , th e c o d e
c o rre c tio n m ade by Pope G re g o ry X II I in th e s ix te e n th p ro v id e d th a t if a p erso n d id any w o rk on th e se d ays
c e n t u r y , is s ti ll in u s e i n s o c i e t i e s o f L a t i n t r a d i t i o n . t h r o u g h c a r e l e s s n e s s , h e w a s t o s a c r i f i c e a p i g in e x p i a t i o n ;
N e v e r th e le s s , th e d is trib u tio n o f th e d a y s a s p r e s e n t e d b y o n t h e o t h e r h a n d , if h e h a d a c t e d k n o w i n g l y , t h e r e w a s n o
M a c r o b i u s d o e s n o t a p p e a r in a d i r e c t r e a d i n g o f t h e d i s t i n c ­ e x p ia tio n fo r h im , a c c o r d in g to th e o p in io n o f S c a e v o la th e
tiv e m a r k s o f th e c a le n d a r . A s th is d o c u m e n t w a s e d i te d fo r p o n t i f f . " 22 Y e t M a c r o b i u s m i t i g a t e s t h i s o p i n i o n o f S c a e v o l a
th e u s e o f m e n , th e d a y s b e a r a s ig n w h ic h in d ic a te s w h e th e r w ith a c o r r e c t i v e : 23 " T h e r e is n o p r o f a n a t i o n , if t h e w o r k
o r n o t th e y a r e s u ita b le fo r p r o f a n e u s e : F d e s ig n a te s th e dies co n cern ed t h e g o d s o r t h e c u l t , o r if a n u r g e n t s i t u a t i o n o f
fasti, in w h i c h it is fas, " r e lig io u s ly l e g i ti m a t e ," 4 to a tte n d to v ita l i n te r e s t p r e s e n t e d i ts e lf ."
t h e c o n c e r n s o f e v e r y d a y l if e : in p a r t i c u l a r , t h e p r a e t o r c o u l d A m o n g th e feriae, p r iv a te fe s tiv a ls , feriae privatae (su c h a s
p r o n o u n c e th e th re e s a c ra m e n ta l w o r d s , tria verba sollemnia, th e Lemuria o f 9 , 1 1 , a n d 13 M a y , w h ic h w e r e c e le b r a te d b y
" d o , d ic o , a d d i c o " 5 w h ic h p e r m itte d th e e x e r c is e o f th e legis th e head o f th e h o u s e h o ld to d riv e th e Lemures fro m th e
actio, l e g a l p r o c e d u r e . T h e l e t t e r C s i g n i f i e s c o m i t i a l d a y s ( dies h o u s e — o r th e Denicales, w h o s e a im w a s to p u rify a fa m ily
comitiales) o n w h i c h t h e h o l d i n g o f comitia ( a s s e m b l i e s ) w a s t h a t h a d b e e n in m o u r n i n g ) , 24 a r e t o b e d i s t i n g u i s h e d f r o m
a l s o a u t h o r i z e d .* p u b lic f e s tiv a ls , feriae publicae.
N m a r k e d t h e d a y s ( dies nefastos) o n
B y c o n t r a s t , th e le tte r T h e l a t t e r , w h i c h w e r e o f f i c i a l l y c e l e b r a t e d in t h e g e n e r a l
w h ic h non licebat lege agere,7 b e c a u s e s u c h d a y s w e r e r e s e r v e d in te re s t, pro populo, w e r e s u b d i v i d e d in to fix e d a n d m o v a b le
" f o r t h e w ill o f t h e g o d s , " deorum causa, t o u s e V a r r o 's f e a s ts — feriae conceptivae, w h i c h w e r e an n ou n ced each year at
e x p r e s s i o n . 8 T h e t e r m nefastus t h u s d o e s n o t h a v e t h e p e j o ­ a v a r ia b le d a te but w ith in th e sam e seaso n (th e s e a re
r a t i v e s e n s e t h a t it t o o k o n l a t e r , 9 b u t s i m p l y i n d i c a t e s t h a t e s p e c ia lly a g r ic u ltu ra l fe s tiv a ls , such as, fo r e x a m p le , th e
th e p r a e t o r w a s fo rb id d e n to p r o n o u n c e th e t h r e e s a c r a m e n ­ Sementivae)— and feriae imperitivae, o rd a in e d b y t h e c iv il o r

92
 R O M A N F E S T I V A L S

re lig io u s a u th o ritie s u n d e r e x c e p tio n a l c irc u m s ta n c e s (fo r a g r i c u l t u r a l f e s t i v a l s t a k e p l a c e in D e c e m b e r t o e n s u r e g o o d

e x a m p le , u p o n th e a p p e a r a n c e o f a p ro d ig y o r to c e le b ra te a p r e s e r v a tio n o f th e w in te r h a r v e s t: th e s e a r e th e Consualia of
v ic to r y ). O n ly fix e d fe s tiv a ls , feriae publicae stativae, n o rm a lly 15 D e c e m b e r a n d th e Opalia o f 19 D ecem b er.
a p p e a re d on c a le n d a r s (w h ich w ere u sed by th e Corpus T h u s it is e v i d e n t t h a t in R o m a n s o c i e t y t h e l i t u r g i c a l y e a r
Inscriptionum Latinarum). w a s m o d u l a t e d a c c o r d in g to s ig n if ic a n t r h y t h m s : fo r f e s tiv a ls
It is a p p r o p r i a t e a t t h i s p o i n t t o e x a m i n e t h e d i s t r i b u t i o n o f p e r ta in in g t o w a r , it w a s p u n c tu a te d by tw o p e rio d s th a t
th e v a r io u s f e s tiv a ls over th e co u rse of th e year. T h e ir co rresp o n d ed to th e o p e n in g and c lo s in g of th e m ilita ry
a rra n g e m e n t on th e c a le n d a r, as w e ll as th e ir r e s p e c tiv e c a m p a ig n s . A s fo r fe s tiv a ls o f a p a s to r a l o r v e g e ta b le n a t u r e ,
m e a n in g s , fu rn ish e s v a lu a b le in fo rm a tio n : th e c a le n d a r c o n ­ th e c a le n d a r w a s d iv id e d in to th re e p e rio d s w h ic h co rre ­
s titu te s a n a c c u r a t e m i r r o r o f th e re lig io u s m e n ta lity o f th e s p o n d e d to th e th re e s e a s o n s o f g r e a te s t im p o rta n c e to p la n ts
R o m a n s . H is to r ia n s o f R o m a n re lig io n a ls o h a v e a d o c u m e n t a n d a n im a ls : s p r in g , s u m m e r , a n d w in te r.
t h a t is u n i q u e o f i t s k i n d : t h e p o e t O v i d ' s l i t u r g i c a l c o m m e n ­ W h ile it m a y be th a t th e se tw o grou p s o f f e s tiv a ls a r e
ta ry o n th e Fasti. In s p ite o f its s y n c r e ti s t in s p ir a tio n , w h ic h con cern ed w ith th e tw o great p re o c c u p a tio n s of a n c ie n t
m i x e s R o m a n r e l ig i o n w it h G r e e k m y t h o l o g y , O v i d 's p o e m s o c ie ty — d e f e n s e a n d s u b s is te n c e — th e y d o n o t c o m p le te th e
c o n s titu te s a u sefu l and v a lu a b le so u rce by v irtu e of i ts r e l ig i o u s t a p e s t r y . It w o u l d b e e s p e c i a ll y i n te r e s ti n g to s tu d y
i n t e r n a l s t r a t i f i c a t i o n . T h i s is b e c a u s e O v i d ' s m e t h o d g e n e r ­ th e g r e a te s t f e s tiv a l: th e Vinalia ad d re sse d to Ju p ite r. T h is
a l l y c o n s i s t s in p r e s e n t i n g r e l i g i o u s d a t a o n t h r e e l e v e l s : h e f e s t i v a l is e x c e p t i o n a l i n s e v e r a l w a y s — in i t s d o u b l e a r t i c u ­
d e s c r i b e s r ite s , h e s it u a te s t h e ir in s t it u ti o n a l i z a ti o n in h is to r y , la tio n in t h e c a l e n d a r ( 1 9 A u g u s t a n d 2 3 A p r i l ), in th e q u a lity
a n d h e a t te m p t s to e x p la in th e ir m e a n i n g th r o u g h a m y th . o f th e g o d ( h e is t h e s u p r e m e g o d ) a n d o f th e p rie s t (th e
T h e q u e s tio n th e n a r is e s a s to w h e th e r th e re la tio n s h ip s flamen Dialis is t h e c h i e f p r i e s t i n t h e c i t y ) , a n d b y i t s o b j e c t ,
b e tw e e n th e s e th re e le v e ls a r e a rb itra r y o r w h e th e r , ra th e r, th e a n n u a l re n e w a l o f th e a llia n c e b e tw e e n th e s o v e r e ig n g o d
th e y co rre sp o n d to a c o m p le m e n ta ry c la rific a tio n of th e a n d t h e R o m a n p e o p l e . 28
r e lig io u s r e a lity . A g e n e r a l r e s p o n s e is n o t p o s s i b l e . T h e r e a r e O ne fin a l a s p e c t m ust be co n sid e re d . A r c h a ic fe s tiv a ls
a s m a n y s p e c i e s a s t h e r e a r e p a r t i c u l a r p h e n o m e n a . 25 W h a t o f te n le n t t h e m s e l v e s to a c e r ta i n r e j u v e n a t io n in th e c o u r s e
m u st b e e m p h a siz e d is t h a t a s a b o r n o b s e r v e r , O v i d is a n of tim e . So it is th a t th e litu rg y of th e Consualia, w h ic h
in c o m p a ra b le w itn e s s to litu rg y : in th is re sp e ct he o f te n in c lu d e d a h o r s e ra c e , s e t th e s ty le fo r th e ludi, t h o s e c h a r io t
h e lp s us to e lu c id a te th e m e a n in g o f a rc h a ic c e re m o n ie s ra c e s th a t w o u ld a n im a te th e G re a t C ir c u s . T h u s th e ritus
b e y o n d h is o w n in te r p r e t a t io n , p r e c is e ly b e c a u s e h e d id n o t graecus, w i t h i ts l e c t i s t e r n i a a n d i t s supplicationes o f m a tro n s
h e s i t a te to d e s c r i b e f a ith f u lly r i te s th a t a p p e a r e d s t r a n g e to in v a d i n g th e t e m p le s in tim e s o f p a n ic , m o d if ie d th e h i e r a ti c
h is c o n te m p o r a r ie s . ap p e a ra n ce of th e R om an ce re m o n ie s. But th e b a sic e n d
The re c o g n itio n of an In d o -E u ro p e a n h e r ita g e a t R o m e , re m a in e d th e sam e: ferias observare29 a lw a y s c o n s is te d of
w h ic h in F r a n c e h a s b e e n th e w o r k o f G e o r g e s D u m é z il , h a s o ffe rin g to th e gods a tim e set a s id e fro m th e p ro fa n e
m a d e it p o s s i b l e t o d e c i p h e r a r c h a i c r i t e s w h o s e m y t h o l o g i c a l t a p e s t r y in o r d e r to o b t a i n , to u s e t h e o f t - r e p e a t e d w o r d s o f
k e y h a d l o n g b e e n l o s t . I a m t h i n k i n g , f o r e x a m p l e , o f t h e 11 L iv y , pacem veniamque deum, "th e fav o r a n d g race of th e
Ju n e Matralia i n w h i c h m o t h e r s o f h o u s e h o l d s , b y f o n d l i n g in g o d s ."
t h e ir a r m s t h e ir s i s te r 's c h ild r a t h e r t h a n t h e ir o w n , c a r r ie d R .S ./d .w .
o u t a c e r e m o n y w h o s e m e a n in g th e y d id n o t k n o w , b u t o n e
th a t c o r r e s p o n d s to a p ro ce d u re o f s y m p a th e tic m a g ic in
V e d i c I n d i a : t h e g o d d e s s D a w n t a k e s c a r e o f t h e S u n , w h o is
t h e s o n o f N i g h t , h e r s i s t e r . 26 NOTES
T hese are n e v e rth e le ss e x tre m e cases; th e m a jo rity of
r e lig io u s f e s tiv a ls c le a r l y r e m a i n e d in te llig ib le to R o m a n s o f
1. E. Benveniste, V.LL. 2:133.
t h e c l a s s i c a l a g e . 27 It i s s u f f i c i e n t t o t a k e a l o o k a t t h e c a l e n d a r
2. Macrobius S., 1.16.2: Nunm. ut in menses annum, ita in dies
mensem quemque distribuit diesque omnes nul festos aut profestos aut
to re a liz e th a t tw o g ro u p s e m e rg e fro m th e w h o le : th e
intercisos vocavit. Festi dis dicati sunt, profesti hominibus ob administran­
f e s tiv a ls o f m a r tia l i m p o r t in th e m o n t h o f M a r c h i n a u g u r a t e dam rem privatam publicamque concessi, intercisi deorum hominumque
m ilita ry c a m p a ig n s in th e s p r in g (1 4 Equirria; 1 7
M arch : communes sunt. The dies intercisi are eight in number (cf. Varro De
M a r c h : Agonium Martiale; 1 9 M arch : Quinquatrus; 2 3 M a r c h : Lingua Latina 6.31). It is also necessary to mention the three dies fissos
Tubilustrium), a n d t h e p a s t o r a l o r a g r ic u ltu r a l f e s tiv a ls ta k e (24 March and 25 May, designated by the initials Q[uando] R[ex]
p l a c e in th e m o n th o f A p ril (1 5 A p ril: Fordicidia; 1 9 A p ril: C(omitiavit) F[as], and 15 June, designated by the initials Q[uandoj
Cerialia; 21 A p ril: Parilia; 2 5 A p ril: Robigalia). St|ercus] D[elatum) F[as)), which are subdivided into a first, sacred,
C o r r e s p o n d i n g to th e f e s tiv a ls th a t c e le b r a te th e o p e n i n g
part and a second, profane, part: cf. Servius ad Aen. 6.37.
o f t h e m i l i t a r y y e a r a r e t h e f e s t i v a l s t h a t c l o s e it a t t h e e n d o f
3. The economy of this pre-Julian calendar is well known because
of the discovery of the Fasti Antiates veteres, a document found at
m ilita ry o p e r a tio n s : th e p u r if ic a to r y c e r e m o n y o f th e Tigillum Antium and published for the first time in the N.S., 1921.
Sororium o f 1 O c to b e r, th e s a crifice o f th e w in n in g h o r s e o f
4. The etymology of fas is contested. E. Benveniste, V .1.1., 2:133,
th e 1 5 O c to b e r ra c e , a n d th e Armilustrium o f 19 O cto b e r. following the suggestion of the ancients, brings together fas and fari,
A s fo r a g r ic u ltu r a l o r p a s to r a l fe s tiv a ls , th e s e ta k e p la c e derived from the root *bhâ-: fas designates "divine speech," the
d u r i n g t w o f u r t h e r p e r i o d s o f litu r g ic a l in te n s it y , in s u m m e r divine law. On the other hand, G. Dumézil (La religion romaine
a n d w i n t e r . In t h e m o n t h s o f J u l y a n d A u g u s t t h e y s u c c e s ­ archaïque. 2d ed., p. 144) prefers to connect fas with the root *dhe-
s iv e ly c e le b r a te d th e Lucaria ( 1 9 a n d 2 1 J u l y ) , t h e Neptunalia (zero grade: dhas-), which is the base of fanum and fenae, in giving it
(2 3 Ju ly ), th e Furrinalia ( 2 5 J u l y ) , t h e Portunalia ( 1 7 A u g u s t ) , the meaning "mystic basis," "which underlies all the arrangements
th eConsualia (2 1 A u g u s t ) , t h e Volcanalia ( 2 3 A u g u s t ) , t h e
and visible connections defined by the ius."
5. Do (iudicem), dico (ius), addico (litem): cf. Macrobius S. 1.16.14.
Opiconsivia ( 2 5 A u g u s t ) a n d t h e Volturnalia ( 2 7 A u g u s t ) . A ll o f
See A. Giffard, Études de droit romain (Paris 1972), 19.
th e s e s u m m e r f e s tiv a ls a r e i n te n d e d to p r o m o t e th e h a r m o ­
6. Cf. Macrobius S. 1.16.14.
n io u s a rriv a l o f th e p r o d u c ts o f th e la n d o r th e p r o s p e r i ty o f 7. The expression is from Gaius Institutiones 4.29. Cf. Varro L.L.
th e liv e s to c k . T h e n f o llo w s a litu r g ic a l r e c e s s : t h e m o n t h s o f 6.53.
S e p te m b e r a n d O cto b e r a re a b so lu te ly " e m p t y .” The la st 8. Varro L.L. 6 12.

93
ROME

9. By the second century a . d . Aulus Gellius (Noctes Atticae 5.17) 18. Macrobius S. 1.16.9: affirmabant autem sacerdotes pollui ferias, si
indicates the evolution of meaning that has given nefastus the
pejorative value of "inauspicious," which the modern language has
conserved and which was expressed in the classical period by the
adjective ater (or religiosus). See also Nonius Marcellus, p. 103 L.: atri
dies dicuntur quos nunc nefastos aut posteros i>ocant.
10. Cf. Varro L.L. 6.30.
11. A. Kirsopp Michels (The Calendar of the Roman Republic, p. 68)
has rightly stressed this aspect, in reaction against the interpretation
of the classical manuals. For example, Wissowa (Ruk2, p. 435)
presents the following table: making a deduction of 11 special davs
(8 intercisi days and 3 fissi days), 344 days remain in the pre-Julian
year; 235 belong to men (192 dies comitiales, 43 dies fasti), 109 to the
gods (all the ides, half of the calends—February, March, June, July,
October, December—a third of the nones—February, April, June,
July)—and the 45 days that bear a particular name and correspond to
the feriae publicae.
12. With the exception of some nine festivals: A. Kirsopp Michels
(op. cit., pp. 76-77) tries to explain the initial N by the Regifugium (24
February), the three Lemuria (9, 11, 13 May), the Vestalia (9 June), and
the Matralia (11 June), and the initial F by the Feralia (21 February). As
for the Vinalia of 23 April marked by the letter F and the Vinalia of 19
August which bears the initials FP, the author reserves judgment. 1
have offered an explanation in my book R.R.V., pp. 129-30,
proposing, following a suggestion by Wissowa, to transcribe FP in
Feriae publicae (1 wrote Feria publica, but the plural Feriae publicae alone
is used in the classical period); in this hypothesis, the stonecutter has
omitted by error the P at least for the Vinalia of 19 August.
13. After Wissowa, who has proposed (Rule, p. 438) the transcrip­
tion nefas (feriae) publicae, A. Kirsopp Michels (op. cit., p. 76) suggests
the reading (dies) nefasti publici.
14. Varro L.L. 6.12ff.
15. Cf. Macrobius S. 1.16.4.
16. Cf. Cicero De legibus 2.19: Fenis jurgia amovento, easqiie in
famulis, operibus patratis, halvnto . . .
17. Ibid. 2.29: cum est feriarum festorumque dierum ratio, in liberis
requietem habet litium et jurgiorum, in servis operum et laborum.
indictis conceptisque opus aliquod fieret.
19. Cf. Cato, De agrie. 138; Pliny Naturalis historia 18.40.
20. Macrobius S. 1.16.11: Scaevola denique consultus quid feriis agi
liceret, rspondit quod praetermissum noceret.
21. Ibid.
22. Ibid. 1.16.9-10.
23. Ibid. This corrective is attributed to someone named umbro,
who is otherwise unknown.
24. On the Lemuria, cf. Ovid Fasti 5.421-44. On the Denicales, cf.
Festus, p. 61; 282, 16 L.
25. Cf. my study Ovide, interprète de la religion romaine, R.E.L., 46,
1969, p. 222ff. Reprinted in R.C.D.R.
26. Cf. Ovid F. 6.475ff., for the description of Roman rites; G.
Dumézil, R.R.A.2, 66ff.
27. On the details of these festivals, see in addition to the classic
work of G. Wissowa (Ruk2), the R.R.A.2 of Georges Dumézil and his
Fêtes romaines d'été et d'automne.
28. Cf. Robert Schilling, R.R.V.. p. 71ff., especially 124-55.
29. Cf. Macrobius S. 1.16.4.
S U M M A R Y BIBLIOGRAPHY
c. wissowa, Religion und Kultus der Römer (Munich 1912), 432-49,
"Die Festzeiten" (= Ruk2). c. d lm ézil , La religion romaine archaïque (2d
ed., Paris 1974), 551-58, "Sacra publica" (= R.R.A.2); Fêtes romaines
d'été et d'automne (Paris 1975). ernolt -m eillet , Dictionnaire étymologique
de la langue latine (4th ed., Paris 1959), s.v. ferme, e . benveniste, Le
vocabulaire des institutions indo-européennes (Paris 1969), 2:133ff ( =
V .1.1). a . kirsopp Michels , The Calendar of the Roman Republic (Prince­
ton 1967), especially 69-83. marqlardt -wissowa, "Die Feiertage des
römischen Kalenders," in Römische Staatsverwaltung, pp. 567-89.
R. schillin g , La religion romaine de Vénus . . . (Paris 1954) ( = R.R.V.),
and Rites, cultes, dieux de Rome (Paris 1979) (= R.C.D.R.).

s u b s ta n tiv e : th u s h e u s e s divinitas in t h e p l a c e o f divinatio (fo r

R oman D ivination ex a m p le , On Divination, 2 . 8 0 ) . It is t r u e t h a t t h e c h o i c e o f t h e
t e r m in t h i s c o n t e x t m i g h t h a v e b e e n i n f l u e n c e d b y a c o n c e r n
fo r s ty lis tic s y m m e t r y : in th is p a s s a g e , th e e x p r e s s i o n "ex­
p e r t s in d i v i n a ti o n " (divinitatis auctores) d e sig n a te s m e n w h o
1. Divination or Auspices: Roman and Italic Traditions are accu sed of b e in g ig n o ra n t, "s tra n g e rs to h u m a n ity "
In R o m e t h e e x p r e s s i o n divinatio is o f r a t h e r r e c e n t d a t e ; it (humanitatis expertes). B u t o r d in a rily th e id e a o f d iv in a to r y
d o e s n o t a p p e a r u n t i l C i c e r o , w h o d e f i n e s it in t h e f o l l o w i n g p r a c ti c e s is r e n d e r e d b y th e n e w w o r d divinatio.
m a n n e r: "A c c o rd in g to a n a n c i e n t b e lie f th a t g o e s b a c k to If t h e s e m a n t i c e x t e n s i o n o f t h e w o r d divinus ( = d i v i n e r )
h e r o i c t i m e s a n d t h a t is c o n f i r m e d b y t h e g e n e r a l a g r e e m e n t a n d th e c r e a tio n o f th e s u b s ta n tiv e divinatio a r e r e c e n t , h o w
o f t h e R o m a n p e o p l e a n d o f a ll n a t i o n s , t h e r e e x i s t s a m o n g a r e w e to e x p la in th e d is c re p a n c y w h ic h s e e m s t o e x i s t in
m e n a c e r ta in fo rm o f divinatio, w h i c h t h e G r e e k s c a ll mantikê R o m e b e t w e e n th is n e w v o c a b u l a r y a n d a r e p u t e d l y a n c i e n t
( p r o p h e c y ); th a t is, a fa c u lty fo r k n o w in g th e fu tu re a h e a d o f s e t o f p r a c t i c e s ? D id n o t R o m e h a v e a v e n e r a b l e i n s t i t u t i o n
tim e — praesensionem et scientiam rerum futurarum " (On Divina­ th a t a n s w e r e d to th is s o r t o f p r e o c c u p a t i o n — th e c o lle g e o f
tion, 1 .1 ; On Laws, 2 . 3 2 ) . 1 au g u rs?
T h e w o r d is a s u b s t a n t i v e d e r i v e d f r o m divinus, w h i c h is In f a c t, t h e R o m a n s o f t h e f ir s t c e n t u r y b.c . d id n o t a g r e e
i t s e l f c o n n e c t e d w i t h divus ( = t h e a n c i e n t deivos, w h i c h , on th e s ig n ific a n c e of th is a u g u ral in s titu tio n . D id th e s e
t h r o u g h t h e l a w s o f p h o n e t i c s , e n d s u p a s deus), " d i v i n i t y . " "o fficia l in te rp re te rs o f J u p ite r " (On Laws, 2 .2 0 ) s im p ly h a v e
T h e m e a n i n g o f divinatio m a y b e e x p l a i n e d b y t h e s e m a n t i c th e ta s k o f r e v e a lin g , t h r o u g h th e e lu c id a tio n o f th e a u s p ic e s ,
d r i f t t h a t t o o k p l a c e in t h e c a s e o f divinus: t h i s t e r m , w h i c h J u p i t e r 's a p p r o v a l o r d i s a p p r o v a l o f a n y g i v e n h u m a n i n it ia ­
o r ig in a lly m e a n t " o f d iv in e n a t u r e ," a ls o to o k o n th e s e n s e tiv e ? O r d id th e y a ls o h a v e th e c h a r is m a tic v ir tu e o f b e in g
" i n s p i r e d b y t h e d i v i n i t y ." a b l e t o p r e d i c t t h e f u t u r e ? T h i s is t h e b a s i c p r o b l e m t h a t b e s e t
It is in t h e w r i t i n g s o f C i c e r o t h a t t h e w o r d divinus i s f i r s t th e m e m b e r s o f th e c o l le g e in th e t im e o f C ic e r o . A n d th a n k s
u s e d in t h e s e n s e o f " d i v i n e r " ( s e e , f o r e x a m p l e , On Divina­ t o C i c e r o 's a l lu s io n s in h is t r e a ti s e On Divination, th is d e b a te
tion, 2 .9 , 1 0 , 1 1 ). T h e n e w m e a n in g a r is e s fro m th e first, th e r e m a in s a c c e s s ib le to u s .
d i v i n e r e s s e n t i a l l y p a s s i n g f o r o n e o f d i v i n e n a t u r e w h o is A s th e d e b a te is p r e s e n t e d to u s , th e a u g u r A p p . C la u d iu s
in s p ire d . T h is re la tio n s h ip is s t r o n g e n o u g h fo r C ic e ro to P u lc h e r h a d n o d o u b t s a t a ll a b o u t h i s d i v i n a t o r y p o w e r s
co m m it th e sam e s e m a n tic s lip p a g e on th e le v e l of th e w hen in 6 3 b .c . h e an n ou n ced to th e c o n s u l C ic e ro "th e

94
 R O M A N D I V I N A T I O N

i m m i n e n c e o f a c iv il w a r t h a t w o u l d b e s i n i s t e r a n d d i s t u r b ­ p o s s e s s p r o p h e t i c p o w e r s . C e r ta in ly , a k in d o f g o l d e n le g e n d
in g " (On Divination, 1 .1 0 5 ) : th is p re d ic tio n th a t f o r e s e e s th e e x a l t e d t h e r o l e o f c e r t a i n a u g u r s . S o it is t h a t t r a d i t i o n k e p t
C a tilin e c o n s p i r a c y w a s b a s e d u p o n " i n c e r t i tu d e s c o n n e c t e d a liv e th e m e m o ry of th e augur A ttu s N a v iu s, w ho liv e d
w ith th e a u g u ry of p ro s p e rity "— addubitato salutis augurio d u r i n g th e re ig n o f T a rq u in iu s th e E ld e r (On Div., 1 .3 1 - 3 2 )
(fro m D io C a s s i u s , 3 7 . 2 4 . 2 , w e know th a t th is in v o lv e d a a n d w h o b e c a m e fa m o u s fo r h is e x c e p tio n a l g ifts. " I n o r d e r
k in d o f r e q u e s t a d d r e s s e d t o t h e g o d s t o f i n d o u t if it w a s t o t e s t h i s k n o w l e d g e , t h e k i n g h a d a s k e d h i m if w h a t h e w a s
o p p o rtu n e to ask fo r p r o s p e r ity fo r th e p e o p le ). He w as th in k in g c o u ld c o m e t o p a s s . A f te r ta k in g th e a u g u r y , A t t u s
rid ic u le d b y h is c o l le a g u e s , w h o c a lle d h im a c h a r la t a n a u g u r r e s p o n d e d th a t s u c h w a s p o s s ib le . T a r q u in iu s t h e n to ld h im
(in th e t e r m s o f t h e tim e : a n " a u g u r o f P i s i d ia ," " a u g u r o f t h a t h e h a d t h o u g h t t h a t a p i e c e o f f l in t c o u l d b e s l i c e d i n h a l f
S o r a " ). " H e a lo n e , o v e r th e p a s t s e v e ra l y e a r s , h a s c a rrie d o n w ith a r a z o r , a n d o r d e r e d A t t u s to p e r f o r m th e e x p e rim e n t.
a n a r t th a t c o n s i s te d n o t o n l y in r e c it i n g a n a u g u r a l f o r m u la , T h u s , a p i e c e o f f l in t w a s b r o u g h t t o t h e m e e t i n g p l a c e o f t h e
solus enim, multorum an­
b u t a l s o in p r a c t i c i n g d i v i n a t i o n " — C o m i t i u m , a n d b e f o r e t h e e y e s o f t h e k i n g a n d t h e p e o p l e , it
norum memoria, non decantandi augurii, sed divinandi tenuit w a s c u t b y th e r a z o r . F o llo w in g th is , T a rq u in iu s m a d e A t t u s
disciplinam. S u c h is a t l e a s t t h e v e r s i o n o f Q u i n t u s , t h e N a v iu s h is a u g u r a n d th e p e o p le b e g a n to c o n s u lt h im a b o u t
b r o th e r o f C ic e r o , w h o h ig h ly a p p r o v e d o f th is c o n c e p t i o n o f t h e ir a f f a ir s . A s f o r t h e flin t a n d t h e r a z o r , t h e y w e r e b u r ie d
th e a u g u r a l a rt. in th e C o m i t iu m a n d c o v e r e d w ith a puteal (a s a c r e d e n c l o ­
B y c o n tr a s t, a n o th e r a u g u r , C . C la u d iu s M a rc e llu s , a ls o a s u r e ], a c c o r d in g to tr a d it i o n ."
c o lle a g u e o f C ic e r o , p r o f e s s e d q u ite a d if f e r e n t o p in io n (On W h a t i s s t r i k i n g i n t h i s a c c o u n t is t h a t t h e r e p u t a t i o n of
Divination, 2 .7 5 ) , w h ic h C ic e r o s h a r e d : " t h e rig h t to a u g u r — A ttu s w a s c re a te d by m eans of an in cid e n t th a t o w e s i ts
in w h ic h a d iv in a to ry pow er w o u ld have o r ig in a lly been ren o w n le ss to th e p r a c tic e o f th e a u g u r a l a r t th a n to th e
a c k n o w le d g e d — h a s b e e n s u b s e q u e n tly m a in ta in e d a n d p r e ­ " m i r a c l e " o f t h e f l in t c u t b y t h e r a z o r . U n d o u b t e d l y A t t u s
s e r v e d o n l y in t h e i n t e r e s t o f t h e s t a t e . " C i c e r o a t t e m p t s t o h ad co n su lte d th e a u s p ic e s a h e a d o f tim e , b u t h is s u c c e s s
ju s tif y th is p o s itiv is t c o n c e p t i o n , a n d in th is s e n s e h e s h o w s o w e s m o r e t o t h e " m a r v e l o u s " f r a c t u r i n g o f t h e f l in t b y t h e
a c ritica l lib e r ty in On Divination th a t c o n tra sts w ith th e r a z o r th a n to th e c o n firm a tio n o f h is a u g u r a l p e r f o r m a n c e .
n u an ced d e c l a r a t i o n s o f On Laws: "b y th e e v o lu tio n and Q u it e a d i f f e r e n t i m p r e s s io n is m a d e b y th e a c c o u n t o f a n
p r o g r e s s o f l e a r n in g ." " R o m u l u s , w h o fo u n d e d th e c ity a f te r a u sp icia l c o n s u lta tio n , as it a p p e a r s , fo r e x a m p le , in th e
ta k in g th e a u s p i c e s , w a s c a p a b le o f th in k in g th a t th e a u g u r ­ n a r r a tio n b y th e p o e t E n n iu s o f w h a t to o k p la c e u n d e r th e
in g s c ie n c e c o n s is te d o f p re d ic tio n (th e a n c ie n ts w e r e m is ­ c o n d itio n s th a t p r e c e d e d th e f o u n d in g o f R o m e . T h e p a s s a g e
ta k e n o n s e v e r a l p o i n t s ) " (On Divination, 2 .7 0 ) . w a s c ite d b y C ic e r o (On Div., 1 .1 0 7 - 8 ) a n d m e rits a n a tte n ­
A n d to d e m o n s t r a te th e illu s o ry c h a r a c t e r o f th e a u s p i c e s , t i v e r e a d i n g . It d e p i c t s R o m u l u s a n d R e m u s w h o , a s a u g u r s ,
C ic e r o a n a l y z e s th e p r o c e d u r e e m p l o y e d in th e c o n s u l t a ti o n a s k fo r a d e c is io n f ro m th e g o d s : " T h e n , w ith g r e a t c a r e , th e
o f th e s a c r e d c h ic k e n s w h o , w h e n little p e lle ts o f fo o d fe ll a s p i r a n t s fo r th e ru lin g p o w e r a p p ly t h e m s e l v e s a t th e s a m e
fro m th e ir b e a k s — b u t h o w c o u ld t h e y n o t fa ll? — w e r e e x ­ t im e to s o lic it th e a u s p i c e s a n d th e s a c r e d in v e s titu r e (dant
p e c te d to f u rn is h th e c o n s u l t a n t w ith th e f a v o ra b le a u s p i c e s operam simul auspicio augurioque) . . . O n t h e h ill ( n o t s p e c i f i e d
o f th e tripudium solstimum (On Div., 2 .7 1 ) . H e d e n o u n c e s th e fu r th e r ), R e m u s c o n s e c r a te s h im s e lf to th e a u s p ic e s a n d s e e s
m e c h a n ic a l n a tu re o f th e q u e s tio n s a n d a n s w e rs e x c h a n g e d o n ly o n e fa v o ra b le b ird . A s fo r th e fo r tu n a te R o m u lu s (at
b e tw e e n th e m a g is tr a te -c o n s u lta n t a n d th e a u g u r a n d w a x e s Romulus pulcher), h e w a its o n th e s u m m it o f th e A v e n tin e a n d
iro n ic about th e a u to m a tic re s u lts of th e se "a u s p ic e s ob­ s e e s t h e w i n g e d b r o o d o n i t s h e i g h t s . T h e c i t y w il l b e c a l l e d
ta in e d th r o u g h c o n s t r a i n t." R om a or R em ora: th is is w hat is at s ta k e . E v e ry o n e is
It is t r u e th a t th is " a u s p ic ia l s im u la tio n " ( C i c e r o 's o w n c o n c e r n e d t o k n o w w h i c h o f t h e t w o w ill b e t h e m a s t e r . . .
e x p r e s s i o n ) h a d a l r e a d y b e e n d e n o u n c e d in e q u a ll y c a t e g o r ­ In t h e m e a n t i m e , t h e w h i t e s u n (sol albus) h a s h i d d e n i t s e l f in
ical te r m s b y Q u in tu s (On Div., 1 .2 8 ) . B u t C i c e r o 's b r o t h e r t h e d e p t h s o f t h e n i g h t . T h e n , s u r g i n g f o r t h in t h e b r i l l i a n c e
h a d e x p l a i n e d t h i s d e c a d e n c e in a u g u r a l p r a c t i c e s a s b e i n g o f its r a y s , th e lig h t a p p e a r s . And a t th e sam e tim e a s a
th e r e s u lt o f i g n o r a n c e a n d t h e n e g l i g e n t l a x ity o f t h o s e in b e n e f ic e n t b ird (pulcherrima avis), w in g in g s w iftly a w a y fro m
c h a r g e a t th e c o lle g e . C ic e ro , b y c o n tr a s t, g o e s m u c h fu rth e r t h e d i s t a n t h e i g h t s , v e e r s to th e le ft, th e g o l d e n s u n a p p e a r s .
in h i s c r i t i c i s m , b y d e n y i n g t h e e x i s t e n c e o f a n y d i v i n a t o r y F r o m th e s k y th r e e tim e s fo u r b ird s d e s c e n d , s a c r e d m e s s e n ­
v a lu e in th e a u g u ra l in s titu tio n : "I am not one of th o se g e r s , w h o d ire c t th e m s e lv e s to w a rd th e p la c e b le s s e d b y th e
a u g u r s w h o p r e s u m e s h im s e lf c a p a b le o f te llin g th e f u tu r e b y om ens (praepetibus sese pulchrisque locis dant). R o m u l u s t h e n
o b s e rv in g b ird s a n d o th e r s ig n s " (On Div., 2 .7 0 ) . p e r c e iv e s (conspicit) t h a t h e is t h e o n e w h o h a s b e e n a c ­
T h e tim e h a s n o w c o m e to a s k w h e th e r th e a r g u m e n t th a t c o r d e d , w ith th e g u a r a n t e e o f th e a u s p i c e s , a s e a t a n d la n d to
a r o s e i n t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b . c . in t h e h e a r t o f t h e c o l l e g e o f r u l e o v e r ." (W e k n o w th a t in t h e l a n g u a g e o f a u g u r y pulcher
a u g u rs and th a t is re fle cte d in C i c e r o 's tre a tis e d id not m e a n s e i t h e r " b e n e f i c e n t , " in t h e a c t i v e s e n s e , o r " b e n e f i ­
o r ig in a te fro m a c e rta in c o n f u s io n , th e s a m e c o n fu s io n th a t c i a r y o f t h e a u s p i c e s , " in t h e p a s s i v e s e n s e ) .
c a u s e d s e v e ra l v e r y d iffe re n t m o d e s o f d iv in e c o n s u lta tio n to T h e r e is n o t h i n g in th is a c c o u n t t h a t a l lo w s u s to i n te r p r e t
b e c l a s s i f i e d u n d e r o n e a n d t h e s a m e h e a d i n g . It i s a f a c t t h a t th e R o m a n a u g u r a s a d iv in e r w h o f o re te lls t h e f u tu r e . F o r
th e title o f C i c e r o 's t r e a t i s e c o v e r s s o m e q u it e v a r i e d d i v i n in g w h a t d id "th e tw o au g u rs" w ho w e re c a n d id a te s fo r th e
te c h n iq u e s . W h e n h e in tr o d u c e s th e d iffe re n t divinandi genera R om an th ro n e a s k ? T o b e c h o s e n fo r th e s a c ra l in v e s titu re
(On Div., 1 .1 2 ), C ic e r o f i n d s it q u i t e n a tu ra l to g r o u p th e (augurium), w h i c h each o f th e m s o lic ite d b y o b s e r v in g th e
a u g u r s t o g e t h e r w ith th e h a r u s p i c e s ( s p e c ia l is t s in t h e e x a m ­ b i r d s (auspicium). T h e ap p e a ra n ce o f th e greater number of
i n a tio n o f v i c ti m s ' v i s c e r a a s w e ll a s o f p o r t e n t s a n d lig h tn in g b ird s (s u c h a p p e a r s to b e th e v e r s io n a d o p te d b y E n n iu s ), o n
fla s h e s ), th e in te r p r e te r s o f th e Sibylline Books, th e a s tr o lo ­ th e left s id e (w h ic h is, a c c o r d in g to a u g u r a l te c h n iq u e s , th e
g e r s , a n d th e in te r p r e te r s o f o r a c le s a n d d r e a m s : a h e te r o g e ­ fa v o ra b le s id e ), m a n ife s te d th e d iv in e d e c is io n in f a v o r o f
n e o u s l i s t , if e v e r t h e r e w a s o n e . R o m u lu s.
F r o m th is th e q u e s tio n a r is e s o f th e p o s s ib le e x i s t e n c e h e r e T h u s , t h e o n l y g o a l o f t a k in g a u s p i c e s is t o o b t a i n fro m
o f a k in d o f i m p r o p e r c o n t a m in a t io n th a t w r o n g ly c la s s ifie d J u p i t e r t h e i n d i c a t i o n o f h i s w i l l : if t h e a u s p i c e s a r e f a v o r a b l e ,
t h e o f f ic i a l R o m a n a u g u r s a m o n g t h o s e s p e c i a l i s t s r e p u t e d t o th e s o v e r e ig n god is e x p e c t e d to a p p ro v e th e re q u e s t a n d

95
R OME

c o n f e r th e in v e s titu r e . (T h e s a m e g o e s fo r th e in a u g u r a tio n o f dextris fulgoribus edit ( " F a v o r a b l e o m e n s : J u p ite r th r o w s h is

K in g N um a, as d e sc rib e d by L iv y , 1 .1 8 .6 - 1 0 .) I f, o n th e lig h tn in g b o lts to th e r i g h t " ) .
c o n t r a r y , t h e a u s p i c e s a r e a b s e n t o r u n f a v o r a b l e , it i s b e t t e r t o M o reo v er, th ere is e v e n a d is p a rity w ith in th e R om an
s u s p e n d t h e p r o c e s s t h a t is u n d e r w a y . d is c ip lin e o f au g u ry . " W h y ," C ic e ro a s k s a g a in (On Div.,
T h u s o u r i m p r e s s io n is v e r if ie d : th e i n s titu tio n a l a u g u r , a s 2 .8 0 ) , "d o c e rta in b ird s h a v e th e p r iv ile g e o f f u r n is h in g a
h e c o n f o r m s to th e p o rtr a it d r a w n b y E n n iu s a n d L iv y , m a k e s f a v o r a b l e a u s p i c e w h e n t h e y fly t o t h e l e f t , w h i l e f o r o t h e r s ,
n o p r e te n s io n s a b o u t b e in g a b le to p r e d ic t th e fu tu r e b u t it is w h e n th e y f ly t o th e r ig h t? " T h is s o r t o f o p p o s itio n ,
l i m i t s h i m s e l f t o a n n o u n c i n g t h e w ill o f J u p i t e r b y m a k i n g w h i c h m a y s e e m s t r a n g e , is r e c o r d e d in t h e t r a d i t i o n . In t h e
u se o f a c o n s u lta tio n b a se d u p o n a rig o ro u s te c h n iq u e . T o " C o m e d y o f th e A s s e s " (Asinaria, 2 5 9 - 6 1 ) o f P la u tu s , th e
h i m m i g h t w e ll b e a p p l i e d t h e d e f i n i t i o n t h a t C i c e r o c l a i m s s la v e L ib a n u s t r ie s to fin d a s o l u ti o n to h is fin a n cia l p r o b ­
fo r h im se lf (On Div., 2 .7 0 ) : “ I a m n o t a m o n g th o se a u g u rs le m s ; u s in g th e la n g u a g e o f a u g u r y , h e c rie s :
w h o p r e t e n d t o b e a b l e t o f o r e t e l l t h e f u t u r e . " T h e s e d i d in
“Impetritum, inauguratumst; quovis admittunt aves.
f a c t e x i s t , b u t t h e y d o n o t b e l o n g t o t h e o f f ic i a l c o l l e g e : t h e y
Picus et cornix ab laeva, corvus, parra ab dextera
a re d e s ig n a te d b y th e s co rn fu l te rm " M a r s ia n a u g u r s ," a n d
Consuadent; certum herclest vestram consequi sententiam."
t h e y a r e f o u n d in t h e lis t e n u m e r a t e d b y Q u i n t u s (On Div.,
( " O m e n s a s k e d fo r, a u g u r i e s t a k e n . G o o d : e v e r y d ir e c tio n
1 .1 3 2 ) , a l o n g w ith v illa g e h a r u s p i c e s , tr a v e l i n g a s tr o lo g e r s ,
is a l l o w e d f o r b y t h e b i r d s . G r e e n w o o d p e c k e r a n d c r o w
w o r s h i p e r s o f I s is w h o te ll t h e f u t u r e , i n t e r p r e t e r s o f d r e a m s ;
to th e le ft, rav en and n ig h tja r to th e rig h t a g r e e . I t 's
th a t is, " t h e im p o s te r c la i r v o y a n t s " (impudentes harioli), ac­
d e c i d e d ; b y J o v e , I'll t a k e y o u r a d v i c e . " )
c o r d i n g t o E n n i u s 's e x p r e s s i o n . A r i g o r o u s t e c h n i q u e ? A c t u ­
a l ly , a g r e a t c o n c e r n f o r s o b r i e t y in t h e p r a c t i c e o f t h e a u g u r a l T h a t th e d is a g re e m e n t b e tw e e n th e G re e k s a n d th e R o ­
f u n c t i o n is r e v e a l e d b y t h e n u m e r o u s p r e c a u t i o n s t a k e n in m a n s o v e r th e fa v o ra b le s id e w a s c o m m o n k n o w le d g e s e e m s
th e ru le s. T h e re s e e m s to h a v e b e e n a d e s ire to fo re w a r n n o r m a l. B u t th e fa c t th a t th e m o s t s u b tle k n o w le d g e a b o u t a
a g a in s t a n y m a n ife s ta tio n th a t m ig h t b e to o p e rs o n a l, or d iv is io n o f b ird s in to f a v o ra b le a n d u n f a v o ra b le c a te g o r ie s
a g a in s t a n y te n d e n c y to w a rd a " m y s t i c " furor. a c c o r d in g to t h e ir s p e c i e s h a d s p r e a d b e y o n d th e m ilie u o f
F irst of a ll, th e augur never a c ts a lo n e , on h is ow n th e s p e c ia lis t s h o w s to w h a t e x t e n t th e p u b lic m e n ta lity w a s
in itia tiv e . He m u st be in lia is o n w ith a m a g is tr a te w ho s e n s itiv e to th is s o r t o f p re o c c u p a tio n (H o r a c e o ffe rs u s a n
h im s e lf h a s th e rig h t to ta k e th e a u s p i c e s , w h ile th e a u g u r a n a lo g o u s e x a m p le a t th e b e g in n in g o f O d e 2 7 o f b o o k 3 ).
h a s o n l y th e r ig h t to c o l le c t a n d a n n o u n c e th e m (in th e c a s e It is n o t t h e task o f m o d e rn s c h o la rs to r e s p o n d to th e
of R o m u lu s evoked by E n n iu s , th e re w as th e u n u su al c r itic is m s ra ise d by th e augur C ic e ro . N e v e r th e le s s , it is
c o m b in a tio n o f th e t w o f u n c t i o n s in th e s a m e p e r s o n ) . p e r h a p s p o s s i b l e t o g l i m p s e c e r t a i n e l e m e n t s o f a r e s p o n s e . It
N e x t th e a u g u r m u s t la y o u t a n e n clo se d and o r ie n te d m a y b e th a t th e c o n tra d ic tio n b e tw e e n th e G re e k s a n d th e
a re a — th e templum— w ith in w h ic h he c la im s to m ak e h is R o m a n s re g a r d in g th e fa v o ra b le s id e is o n l y an ap p aren t
o b s e r v a tio n s , a c c o r d in g to s p e c ific c o n d itio n s . one. V a rro (c ite d by F e s tu s, p . 4 5 4 L ) g iv e s th e fo llo w in g
N o t e , f i n a ll y , t h a t a ll o p e r a t i o n s m a y b e p r o t e c t e d fro m c o m m e n ta r y : " W h e n o n e lo o k s , fro m th e h o m e o f th e g o d s ,
c o n t r a r y o r u n f o r e s e e n c i r c u m s t a n c e s . I n o t h e r w o r d s , it is t o w a r d t h e s o u t h , t h e e a s t e r n p a r t o f t h e w o r l d is f o u n d o n
p o ssib le to a rm o n e s e lf in advance a g a in s t u n f a v o r a b le t h e l e f t a n d t h e w e s t e r n p a r t o n t h e r i g h t ; it t h u s f o l l o w s , in
a u sp ice s . P lin y th e E ld e r speaks of th is (Natural History, m y o p i n i o n , th a t th e a u s p i c e s o f th e le ft w e r e j u d g e d to b e
2 8 .1 7 ) : "In th e au g u ral tra d itio n , it is a ru le th a t n e ith e r b e tte r th a n t h e a u s p i c e s o f t h e r i g h t . " T h u s , a ll is c l e a r f o r
im p re ca tio n s n o r a u s p ic e s o f a n y s o rt c a n a ffe ct th o s e w h o , V a rro : th e R o m a n s lo c a te d th e a b o d e o f th e g o d s to th e n o r th ;
b e fo r e a n u n d e r ta k in g , d e c la r e th e ir r e fu s a l to ta k e a c c o u n t in t h e p e r f o r m a n c e o f h i s f u n c t i o n s ( s e e V a r r o , On the Latin
o f th e m : th e r e e x is ts n o g r e a te r s ig n o f th e g o o d n e s s o f th e Language, 7.7) th e a u g u r o r d in a r ily faced s o u th and th u s
g o d s ." T h e b e h a v io r o f th e a u g u r M . M a rc e llu s (th ird c e n t u r y p l a c e d th e e a s t , th e r e g io n o f th e ris in g s u n , o f b irth a n d o f
B .c .) is r e v e a l i n g : " W h e n h e w i s h e d t o u n d e r t a k e s o m e t h i n g , l if e , t o h i s l e f t.
h e w o u ld t r a v e l in a n e n clo se d p a la n q u in s o a s n o t to b e N ow th e s it u a ti o n is r e v e r s e d fo r th e H e lle n e . H e " turns
h in d e re d b y th e a u s p ic e s " (On Div., 2.77). towards the gods t o q u e s t i o n t h e m " (B o u c h é -L e c le r c q , Histoire
It w o u l d t h u s s e e m w i s e t o l i m i t o u r s e l v e s t o t h e h i s t o r i c a l de la divination dans l'antiquité, 4, p . 2 3 , P a ris 1 8 8 2 ). T h u s th e
p e rio d a n d n o t to r e c o n s tr u c t, a fte r th e m a n n e r o f C ic e ro , H e lle n e o r ie n te d h im se lf to w a rd th e n o rth and fro m th is
" t h e a u g u r o f th e o r ig in s ," w h o w o u ld h a v e h a d " a p o w e r to p e rs p e c tiv e p la ce d th e east to h is rig h t. H ere a g a in th e
see in to th e fu tu re " (On Div., 2.77). N o th in g seem s le ss fa v o ra b le d ir e c tio n c o r r e s p o n d s to th e d ire c tio n o f th e risin g
c e r ta i n th a n th is . E v e r y t h i n g p o i n t s , o n th e c o n t r a r y , to th e s u n , t o w a r d w h i c h t h e d o o r s o f t h e t e m p l e s o p e n e d . B u t in
fa c t th a t p u b lic a u g u r y in R o m a n r e lig io n h a d a l w a y s c o n ­ re la tio n to th e o b s e r v e r , th e o r ie n t a ti o n is r e v e r s e d . T h e s e
t e n t e d i t s e l f , a c c o r d i n g t o t h e o f f ic i a l d e f i n i t i o n , w i t h b e i n g n o t i o n s o f le ft a n d rig h t t h u s a p p e a r to b e q u ite re la tiv e ,
th e " i n te r p r e t e r o f th e v e r y g r e a t a n d very good J u p i te r ." b e c a u s e w ith re f e r e n c e to th e b a s ic o r ie n ta tio n b o th o f th e m
A f t e r t h i s , w h a t is l e f t o f C i c e r o ' s c r i t i c i s m ? F i r s t o f a l l , t h e d e s ig n a te th e s a m e e a s te r n d ire c tio n , th e s o u rc e o f fa v o ra b le
d e n u n c ia tio n o f c e r ta in d e v ia tio n s w h ic h h a d , fo r e x a m p le , om ens.
tra n sfo rm e d th e c o n s u lta tio n o f th e s a c r e d c h ic k e n s in to a B u t w h a t a b o u t b ird s th a t g iv e c o n tr a d ic to r y s ig n s a c c o r d ­
"s im u la tio n o f th e a u s p i c e s ." in g to w h e th e r th e y a p p e a r to th e le ft o r th e rig h t? T h e
N e x t le t u s c o n s i d e r th e r e m a r k th a t th e c o n v e n t i o n s o f e x a m p le fro m th e Asinaria s h o w s c l e a r l y t h a t , in o r d e r t o b e
a u g u r y a p p e a r to b e r a t h e r a rb itra r y . " W h y ," o b s e r v e s C ic e r o fa v o r a b le , th e g r e e n w o o d p e c k e r a n d th e c r o w s h o u ld b e to
(On Div., 2 .8 2 ), " i s th e re d is a g r e e m e n t a b o u t th e fa v o ra b le t h e l e f t , a n d t h e r a v e n a n d t h e n i g h t j a r t o t h e r i g h t . It m u s t
s i d e , w h i c h is s i t u a t e d o n t h e l e f t f o r t h e R o m a n s a n d o n t h e b e a d m i t t e d t h a t t h i s h a r m o n i o u s c o n j u n c t i o n o f o p p o s i t e s is
rig h t fo r th e G r e e k s ? " A n d h e c ite s a v e r s e fro m E n n iu s : Turn m o re s u r p r is in g . W e m ig h t s u r m is e th a t th e g e n e ra l R o m a n
tonuit laevum Irene tempestate serena ( " T h e n it t h u n d e r e d o n t h e r u l e r e m a i n s in f o r c e f o r t h e g r e e n w o o d p e c k e r a n d t h e c r o w
left s id e w h e n th e w e a th e r w a s c le a r : a h a p p y o m e n " ) a n d a (w e s h o u ld re m em b er th a t th e green w o o d p e c k e r is th e
v e r s e fro m H o m e r , tr a n s la te d in to L a tin (Prospera Juppiter his p re e m in e n t b ird o f a u g u rie s : th e "b ird of M a rs"; to c ite

96
 R O M A N D I V I N A T I O N

O v i d ' s d e f i n i t i o n [ in F., 3 .3 7 ) , a c c o r d in g to le g e n d h e h e lp e d A tie d ii B re th r e n , w h o n a m e a n arfertur (th e e q u iv a le n t o f th e

to fe e d S i l v i a 's tw in s w hen th e y w ere abandoned in th e L a tin flamen) to p r e s id e o v e r th e m .
w ild e rn e s s ), w h ile th e ra v e n and th e n ig h tja r w ere th e T h e i n te r e s t t h a t t h e s e d o c u m e n t s (in p a r t ic u la r , t a b le ts 6 a
e x c e p tio n — a n e x c e p tio n th a t c a n b e e x p la in e d b y th e in trin ­ a n d b ) h o l d f o r o u r p u r p o s e s is t h a t t h e y p r o v i d e u s w i t h t h e
s ic n a t u r e o f t h e s e b ir d s . te rm s of th e fo rm u la s fo r ta k in g a u sp ice s ( 6 a .1 - 7 ) , fo r
It is h a r d l y p o s sib le to d e v e lo p su ch h y p o th e s e s h e re . d e te r m in in g th e templum ( 6 a . 8 —1 1 ) , a n d f o r s e t t i n g t h e l i m i t s
W o u ld th e r a v e n , w h o p a s s e s fo r th e o f fic ia l m e s s e n g e r o f o f th e pomerium ( 6 a . 1 2 - 1 6 ) . E v e n if t h e r e a r e d i v e r g e n c e s o n
A p o llo (s e e A e lia n u s , On the Nature of Animals, 1 .4 8 ), th u s d e ta ils , th e a n a lo g y o f h o m o lo g o u s te r m s a n d r itu a l s it u a ­
c o n f o r m fo r th is r e a s o n to th e G r e e k p e r s p e c t iv e ? A s fo r th e tio n s is s trik in g en ou gh to m ake th e T a b u la e Ig u v in a e a
parra ( w h i c h w e h e s i t a n t l y i d e n t i f y h e r e a s t h e n i g h t j a r ) , it is p r e c io u s d o c u m e n t th a t p ro v id e s, a t a n o t h e r p o i n t in th e
o f te n c o n s id e r e d b y L a tin a u t h o r s to b e a b ird o f e v il o m e n , Ita lic d o m a in , an in s tr u c tiv e p a ra lle l to th e tra d itio n of
b y its v e r y n a t u r e ( s e e H o r a c e , Odes. 3 .2 7 .1 , a n d V a rro , On a u sp ice s and th e in s titu tio n of au g u rs th a t d e v e lo p e d in
Agriculture, 3 .5 .1 8 ) . A r e w e to im a g in e , th e n , th a t b y p a s s in g R o m e .7 In I g u v i u m a s in R o m e , t h e r e w a s a r i t u a l o b s e r v a ­
fro m th e le ft to th e rig h t it c h a n g e s its s ig n so th a t th e (aveis aseriater, 6 a . 1 ,
tio n o f b ir d s c o r r e s p o n d i n g to th e L a tin
u n fa v o ra b le b e c o m e s fa v o ra b le ? avibus observatis) b e f o r e a n y o n e began a ce re m o n y or an
It is e v i d e n t t h a t t h e s e q u e s t i o n s c a n n o t b e r e s o l v e d i n t h e im p o r ta n t u n d e rta k in g .
a b s e n c e o f th e libri augurales. N o th in g re m a in s b u t th e v e r y
m in u tia e o f e v e r y p r e s c r ip tio n to p r o v e th e e x t e n t to w h ic h
2. Divination: Sibyl, Haruspicy, S o rtes
th e a u g u ra l in s titu tio n w as "p ro te c te d ” by a n e tw o rk of
r i g o r o u s r u l e s . I n t h e e n d , it w a s t h e a u g u r s a l o n e w h o w e r e T h e s ib y l, h a r u s p ic y , a n d sortes a re te c h n iq u e s th a t c a m e
r e s p o n s i b l e f o r t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e a u s p i c e s : it fe ll t o f ro m f o re ig n l a n d s a n d in tr o d u c e d e x t e n s i v e d iv in a tio n in to
th e m to k n o w w h e th e r th e c ity w o u ld e n jo y th e pax veniaque R o m e a s a m e a n s o f p r e d i c t in g t h e f u t u r e . In th is r e g a r d , tw o
deum: in o th e r w o rd s, w h e th e r o r n o t it w o u l d have th e c iv iliz a tio n s e x e r t e d a p r e p o n d e r a n t in flu e n c e fro m a very
b le s s in g o f th e g o d s. W e can th u s u n d e rsta n d w hy th e ir e a r ly p e r io d : th e H e lle n ic a n d th e E t r u s c a n . T h e y g a v e R o m e
f u n c tio n , fa r fro m b e in g a b a n d o n e d to th e im p ro v is a tio n s o f th e b e n e fit o f th e ir r e s p e c tiv e g ifts o f th e Sibylline Books and
p r o p h e t s , w a s tig h tly r e g u la te d . h a ru sp icy .
In t h e e n d , th e fu n ctio n o f t h e o f f ic i a l a u g u r o f R o m a n In a s t r i k i n g f o r m u l a , P l i n y t h e E l d e r d e f i n e s t h e u n i q u e
r e l i g i o n d o e s n o t i n c l u d e a d i v i n a t o r y r o l e in t h e p r o p h e t i c g ifts o f th e S ib y l: divinités et quaedem caelitum societas nobilis­
s e n s e o f t h e w o r d : t h e p r i e s t is c h a r g e d o n l y w ith t r a n s m i t ­ sima (N.H., 7 .1 1 9 ) , "a p o w e r o f d iv in a tio n and a k in d of
tin g to th e c ity th e s ig n s th a t m a n ife st th e agreem en t or g lo r io u s c o m m u n i c a t io n w ith th e c e le s tia l w o r l d ." A c c o r d in g
d i s a g r e e m e n t o f th e g o d s ( a n d p r in c ip a lly o f J u p ite r ) w ith a to an o f te n -c ite d le g e n d , th e S ib y l o f C u m a e o ffe re d her
p a rtic u la r h u m a n in itia tiv e o r u n d e r ta k i n g . T h e n a t iv e R o ­ b o o k s fo r s a le to K in g T a rq u in iu s S u p e r b u s . T h e k in g b o u g h t
m a n tr a d itio n th u s p r e s e n t s a g r e a t c o n t r a s t w ith th e G re e k th r e e , w h ic h h e h a d d e p o s ite d in t h e t e m p l e o f C a p i t o l i n e
in s titu tio n o f o r a c u l a r c o n s u l t a ti o n . T h e D e lp h ic P y th ia w a s J u p ite r . It w a s th e re th a t th e libri Sibyllini c o u ld la te r b e
not co n te n t m e re ly to m ake A p o ll o 's o p in io n know n by c o n su lte d , on o r d e r o f th e S e n a te , b y p r ie s ts s p e c ia lly a p ­
p r e s c r ib in g p u r if ic a tio n s o r d ic ta tin g m o ra l m a x im s ; s h e a ls o p o in te d fo r th a t o f fic e , th e viri sacris faciundis.H T h e y w ere
g a v e o r a c le s , w h ic h c o n trib u te d th e m o s t to h e r p re s tig e , e s p e c i a l l y c o n s u l t e d in c a s e o f s e r i o u s c r i s e s o r p a n i c b r o u g h t
"an d o n e m u s t s u p p o s e t h a t t h e g o d o f D e lp h i w o u l d not a b o u t b y m i l i t a r y d i s a s t e r o r b y a n e p i d e m i c : s o it w a s i n 2 1 7
h a v e e n jo y e d th e r e p u ta tio n h e h a d if h e h a d n e v e r g i v e n B.c., w h e n R o m e , b a tte re d b y th e d e fe a t a t L a k e T r a s im e n e ,
a u th e n tic a n s w e r s ." 2 f e a r e d " H a n n i b a l a t t h e w a l l s o f t h e c ity ."* * T h e c o n s u l t a t i o n
D o e s t h i s t r a d i t i o n t h a t is s o m a r k e d b y s o b r i e t y a n d r i g o r of th e S ib y ls o r d in a rily in v o lv e d e x p ia to ry sa crifice s and
c h a r a c t e r i z e R o m e a l o n e i n a n c i e n t I t a l y ? A c t u a l l y , it is f o u n d s o m e t im e s th e i n tr o d u c tio n o f n e w c u lts w ith a p o te n tia l fo r
e lse w h e re in I t a ly . Is it n ecessary to c ite th e "M a rs ia n r e m e d y i n g t h e s i t u a t i o n : f o r e x a m p l e , in 2 1 7 b . c ., t h e r e p o r t
a u g u r s " ? B u t th e s e a r e m e n tio n e d b y C ic e r o (On Div., 1 .1 3 2 ; of th e viri sacris faciundis re c o m m e n d e d th a t th e S e n a te ,
2 .7 0 ) o n ly a s c h a r la ta n s w ho do n ot d eserve to b e ta k e n a m o n g o t h e r th in g s , e r e c t a te m p le to V e n u s E ry c in a a n d
s e rio u s ly . T h e y c la im to b e th e d e s c e n d a n t s o f th e s o n o f th e a n o t h e r to M e n s . T h e a llu s io n is o b v io u s : V e n u s fr o m M o u n t
s o r c e r e s s C ir c e 3 a n d c h ie fly h a v e a r e p u ta tio n a s h e a le rs a n d E r y x i n S i c i ly , w h o h a d " p a t r o n i z e d " t h e R o m a n v i c t o r y in
sn ak e ch a rm e rs. t h e F i r s t P u n i c W a r , w a s e n t r e a t e d t o i n t e r c e d e o n c e a g a i n in
H is to r y h a s a lso p reserv ed th e nam e of a c o n f r a te r n ity fa v o r o f h e r p r o té g é s , th e R o m a n s , w h o w e r e n o w f ig h tin g
w h ic h , a c c o r d in g to T a c i tu s ,4 w a s c r e a te d by K in g T itu s a g a i n s t H a n n i b a l , t h e s o n o f H a m i l c a r w h o w a s d e f e a t e d in
T a t i u s t o m a i n t a i n t h e S a b i n e r i t e s : t h e s e a r e t h e S o d a l e s T i t ii , th e first w ar. As fo r M en s, th e g o d d ess of l u c id ity , th e
w h o "d e riv e th e ir n a m e fro m th e b ird s o f T itu s (ab avibus R o m a n s a p p e a l e d t o h e r in t h i s t i m e o f d i s a r r a y i n c o n f o r m i t y
Titiis), w h ic h th e y c u s to m a rily o b serv e a c c o rd in g to p re ­ w ith th e o ld in s tin c t th a t le d th e m to in v o k e th e fu n ctio n a l
s c rib e d a u g u ra l p r o c e d u r e s ." 5 B u t th e s e sodales h a rd ly o ffe r a d iv in ity th a t a p p e a r e d to b e th e m o s t a p p r o p r i a t e to a g iv e n
f o o t h o l d f o r f u r t h e r i n v e s t i g a t i o n , a n d if t h e " b i r d s o f T i t u s " s itu a tio n .
p ro v e th e e x iste n ce of an a u g u ra l c o n s u lta tio n , it is o n e T h is e x a m p le show s th a t th e u se of th e se "p ro p h e tic
w h i c h r e m a i n s f u ll o f m y s t e r y . b o o k s " e n ta ile d n o risk fo r th e R o m a n s ta t e . C o n t r a r y to th e
At Ig u v iu m , th e U m b ria n c ity th a t c o rre s p o n d s to th e o ra cle of A p o llo , w h ic h s o m e tim e s gave out am b ig u o u s
m o d ern G u b b io , it is q u i t e a n o th e r s to ry . In 1444 sev en d e c l a r a t i o n s , 10 t h e re s p o n se o f th e S ib y l w a s a lw a y s "fil­
b ro n ze ta b le ts w e re fo u n d th e re , d e sig n a te d th e T a b u la e t e r e d " a n d s u b m itte d to v e r ific a tio n a n d c e n s o r s h i p b y th e
Ig u v in a e ("Ig u v in e T a b le ts "; Eugubio is a s y n o n y m fo r Cub- S e n a te . T h e m e a s u r e s p r e s c r ib e d f o llo w in g th e c o n s u lta tio n
bio). T h e s e c o n t a in , in th e U m b r i a n la n g u a g e , p re c is e p r e ­ o f th e b o o k s a r e a lw a y s p re c is e a n d re a s s u rin g . C ic e ro (On
s c rip tio n s fo r th e Ig u v iu m rite , c o n c e r n i n g th e v a r io u s c e r e ­ Div., 2 .1 1 2 ) c r e d it s th is to th e w is d o m o f th e a n c i e n t s a n d th e
m o n ie s o f lu s tr a tio n and s a c r i f i c e .6 T h e s e c e re m o n ie s a re r o le p la y e d b y th e S e n a te . H e a d d s th is s ig n if ic a n t o b s e r v a ­
p la ce d u n d e r th e a u th o r ity o f th e c o n f r a te r n ity o f th e tw e lv e tio n : " L e t u s t h u s l e a v e th e S ib y l w e ll p r o t e c t e d in h e r r e t r e a t

97
ROME

Relief from the forum of Trajan. The scene on the left represents an extispicium (examination of the vital organs) carried out by a victimary
under the supervision of the haruspex. On the right, carved onto the facade of the Capitoline Temple of Jupiter, a group of figures wearing
togas (and, in the background, a figure wearing a cap with apex, designating the flamen Dialis) surround a figure facing forward—probably
the emperor Trajan. This group awaits the result of the divination before departing on a military campaign. Paris, Musée du Louvre. Photo
Giraudon.

('Quamobrem Sibyllam quidem sepositam et conditam habeamus) . . .
and, conforming to the example of our ancestors, let us use the
Sibylline Books to calm religious fears rather than to incite them."
Along with the Sibylline Books, Rome also knew of other
"prophetic" books, at least episodically, in the Carmina
Marciana. Livy (25.12.1) attributes these versified predictions
to a Marcius who was said to have been an "illustrious
diviner" (vates illustris). In fact, his identity is imprecise:
although Livy, in agreement with Festus (p. 438 L) and Pliny
the Elder (N.H., 7.119), cites a single Marcius, another
tradition, represented by Cicero (On Div., 1.89; 2.113), men­
tions "brothers by the name of Marcius" (Mardos quosdam
fratres), except in one passage (ibid., 1.115) where he uses the
singular.
Whatever may have been their source of inspiration, these
Carmina Marciana were collected in 213 b.c . among the
superstitious works seized by order of the Senate during that
time, when Rome lived in terror of the approach of Hannibal.
But Livy states (1.1), "of two predictions, the confirmation
given to the one which had been published after the event
(i.e., the disaster at Cannes in 216) conferred a certain
authority upon the other (i.e., the promised defeat of Han­
nibal), whose time had not yet come." In the second predic­
tion, an injunction was made to the Romans to celebrate
games in honor of Apollo, games which were to be renewed
each year; and the decemviri sacris faciundis were commanded
to perform sacrifices according to the Greek rite. This last
prescription brought the intervention of the Senate, which
asked the decemviri to consult the Sibylline Books: so the
annual games in honor of Apollo, the ludi Apollinares, were
introduced in 212 b.c .
The allusion in the Carmina Marciana to priests specially
appointed for the consultation of the Sibylline Books gives rise
to the suspicion that the "Marcian prophecy," far from being
of native stock as Pliny the Elder claimed, was born in a
Hellenic milieu.11 It is thus possible that this prophetic
manifestation played a part in the inspiration of the Sibylline
Books.12
The other divinatory technique is of Etruscan origin and
has the name haruspicinae disciplina, "the teaching of harus-
picy." According to a legend told most fully by Cicero, a man
ploughing his fields at Tarquinii one day saw "a certain
Tages" arise out of the earth from under the blade of his plow
and speak to him: his instructions were to constitute the
source of haruspicy.13 In broad terms, this art is divided into
three spheres: the examination of exta (i.e., the viscera of
sacrificed animals) or extispicy;14 the observation of lightning
flashes (fulgura); and the interpretation of portents (prodigia
or portenta).1* We also know of the libri haruspicini, the libri
fulgurales, and the libri rituales.16 These works are indicative
of the great effort exerted by the Etruscans to divine the
future by scrutinizing every available "sign" in the world.
For this was their major concern. To this end, the Etrus­
cans distinguished between these omens that were solicited
(impetrita) and the signs offered by the gods (oblativa), par­
ticularly those portents that were the object of special trea­
tises, ostentaria (one of these was translated into Latin by
someone named Tarquitius).17
Nothing reveals the Etruscans' mentality more than their
attitude toward the observation of birds. Where the Roman
augur contented himself with recording Jupiter's agreement
or disagreement according to the flight of birds (alites) or the

98
 R O M A N D I V I N A T I O N

s o u n d o f th e ir c r ie s (oscines), th e E tru s c a n saw a b a s is fo r (Decio caput jocineris a familiari parte caesum haruspex dicitur
p r e d i c t io n . S u c h w a s t h e c a s e w it h T a n a q u ila o f T a r q u in ia , ostendisse).21
th e w ife of th e L u cu m o n w ho w o u ld b ecom e th e first T h i s w a s t h e p r e d i c t i o n o f a n u n h a p p y e v e n t . I n f a c t , in
E tr u s c a n k in g o f th e R o m a n s u n d e r th e n a m e o f T a rq u in iu s th e c o u r s e o f th e e n g a g e m e n t, th e le ft w in g c o m m a n d e d b y
th e E ld e r . S h e h a d s u c c e e d e d in p e r s u a d i n g h e r h u s b a n d to th e c o n s u l D e c iu s c o lla p s e d a n d its l e a d e r h a d re c o u rs e to
l e a v e T a rq u in ia to try h is lu ck in R om e. "W e had n e a rly t h e m o s t e x t r e m e s o l u ti o n f o r s u c h a c a s e : in o r d e r t o s a v e
a r r iv e d a t J a n ic u lu s , w h e n L u c u m o n , s e a te d w ith h is w ife o n h is R om an le g io n s he "d e v o te d h im se lf" by th e o f f ic i a l
h is c h a r io t, s a w a n e a g le g lid e s lo w ly d o w n w a r d , ta k e o f f h is p ro c e d u re o f th e devotio, b y lin k in g h is o w n d e a th to th e
h e a d g e a r, s w o o p u p w ard above th e c h a r io t c r y in g lo u d ly , d e s tru c tio n of th e enem y a r m y . 22 Thanks to th is s e lf-
a n d , a s if i n v e s t e d w i t h a d i v i n e m i s s i o n , a d r o i t l y r e p l a c e t h e s a c r i f i c e , " h e t u r n e d a g a i n s t h is o w n p e r s o n a ll th e d a n g e r s
h e a d g e a r o n h is h e a d ; th e n th e e a g le fle w a w a y a c r o s s th e a n d a l l t h e t h r e a t s o f t h e g o d s o f h e a v e n a n d o f h e l l . " 23
s k y . T a n a q u i l a , it i s s a i d , g r e e t e d t h i s o m e n (id augurium) w i t h By co n tra st, th e h a ru sp e x had g iv e n M a n liu s , D e c i u s 's
jo y , b e in g a w om an w ho w as e x p e rt, as th e E tru sca n s c o l le a g u e , th e a s s u r a n c e t h a t h is s a c r if ic e h a d b e e n w h o lly
g e n e r a l l y a r e , in c e le s tia l p o r t e n t s . K is s in g h e r h u s b a n d , s h e su ccessfu l (Manlium egregie litasse).2*
e x h o r t e d h i m t o e x p e c t a h i g h a n d n o b l e d e s t i n y : 'T h i s b i r d , T h is a c c o u n t is h i g h l y i n s t r u c t iv e . It a l lo w s u s to u n d e r ­
c o m in g fro m th a t re g io n o f th e s k y o n th is d a y , h a s b r o u g h t s ta n d w h y th e u s e o f h a r u s p ic y c o u ld h a v e s e e m e d u s e f u l.
a m essag e; th e a u sp ice w h ic h it has g iv e n con cern s th e A c c o r d in g to R o m a n litu rg ic a l r u le s , th e s a c r if ic e w o u ld h a v e
h ig h e s t p a rt o f th e p e r s o n : h e to o k o ff a n o r n a m e n t p la c e d o n had to b e d e c la re d n u ll a n d v o id b e c a u s e o f th e d e fe c tiv e
a h u m a n h e a d a n d p u t it b a c k b y d i v i n e o r d e r . ' " 18 s ta te o f th e v i c t i m 's liv e r. T h e o f f ic ia n t w o u l d have b een
T h is is fa r f r o m th e s im p l e R o m a n s ty le o f ta k in g a u s p i c e s . red u ced to d e c la rin g : non litatum est ("th e gods have not
A ll of th e e le m e n ts in th is scen e le n d th e m se lv e s to a g iv e n th e ir a g r e e m e n t" ) . A n d th e c o n s u ls w o u ld h a v e b e e n
s y m b o lic i n te r p r e ta tio n : th e lo c a liz a tio n o f J a n ic u lu s d e s i g ­ b a rre d fro m d o in g th e sa crifice a g a in : a t a n y ra te , th e y w o u ld
n a te s th e p la c e o f e le c tio n ; th e e a g le , c o n s e c r a te d to Ju p ite r, n o t h a v e b e e n a u t h o r i z e d to g o in to b a ttle o n th e s a m e d a y .
a u th e n tic a te s th e m e s s a g e o f th e s o v e r e ig n g o d ; th e c h o ic e o f T h e in te r v e n tio n o f th e h a r u s p e x s e t a m u c h m o r e s u b tle
th e head of L u cu m o n , w h ic h is s u c c e s s iv e ly b a re d and and n u an ced p ro ce d u re in m o t i o n , w h ic h a llo w e d fo r th e
c o v e r e d b y th e b ird , a u g u r s a fu tu re c o r o n a tio n . W h a te v e r p o s s ib ility o f s u c c e s s in s p i t e o f t h e a n n o u n c e m e n t o f d a n ­
th e c a s e , th is n e w m a n n e r o f ta k in g a u s p i c e s o p e n s m u c h g e r s . A c c o r d in g to th is e x e g e s i s , th e s a c r if ic e w a s fa r fro m
rich e r a n d m o re p re c is e p e r s p e c tiv e s o n th e k n o w le d g e o f b e in g a to ta l fa ilu re : a l th o u g h D e c iu s w a s t h r e a te n e d , M a n ­
th e fu tu re . l iu s w as " w h o lly s u c c e s s f u l ." It w a s up to D e ciu s to be
It is q u i t e u n d e r s t a n d a b l e f r o m t h i s t h a t t h e R o m a n s w o u l d c a u t i o u s . A n d in f a c t D e c iu s w a s a b le t o a v e r t th is d a n g e r , to
have hoped to b e n e fit fro m th e s e genera divinandi. C ic e r o re m e d y it w i t h a procuratio. A t th e c ritic a l m o m e n t o f th e
a d m i t s t h i s a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f h i s t r e a t i s e o n d i v i n a t i o n : 19 b a ttle h e s a v e d th e g e n e r a l s itu a tio n b y t u r n in g u p o n h im s e lf
"A s th e te a c h in g s of th e h a ru sp ice s seem ed to be q u ite a lo n e (a n d upon h is e n e m ie s ) th e d a n g e r s th a t th e d iv in e r
v a lu a b le fo r th e s o lic ita tio n a n d o b s e r v a tio n o f p r e s a g e s (in h ad an n ou n ced .
impetriendis consulendisque rebus) a n d f o r t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n S u c h a fle x ib le a n d s u b t l e p r o c e d u r e c a p t i v a t e d t h e s p ir it o f
a n d c o n j u r a t i o n o f p o r t e n t s (in monstris interpretandis ac th e tim e . O f c o u r s e f e e lin g s m u s t h a v e b e e n m ix e d : to w h a t
procurandis), t h e R o m a n s u s e d a l l o f t h i s k n o w l e d g e o r i g i n a t ­ e x t e n t w a s t h is " f o r e i g n " t e c h n i q u e c r e d ib l e ? C i c e r o 's r e f l e c ­
in g fro m E tru ria s o a s n o t to a p p e a r to h a v e n e g le c te d a n y tio n s a r e r e v e a lin g : " H o w w e r e th e h a r u s p i c e s a b le to d e c i d e
d iv in a to r y p r o c e d u r e ." th a t a c e rta in p a r t o f th e liv e r b e lo n g e d to th e e n e m y a n d
T hus, th e R om an s ta te b ecam e a c cu sto m e d to re ly in g a n o t h e r to th e c o n s u lta n t; th a t a c e rta in le s io n p re sa g e d a
o c c a s io n a lly u p o n th e h e lp o f th e E tr u s c a n h a r u s p ic e s . W h e n d a n g e r a n d a n o t h e r a n a d v a n t a g e ? " 25 T h e r e a r e o t h e r a l l u ­
th e y a p p e a le d to th e ir g o o d o f fic e s , it w a s g e n e ra lly fo r s io n s in th e s a m e v e i n . Even if p e o p l e w a n t e d to u s e th e
e x t i s p i c y . I t is t r u e t h a t t h i s l a t t e r h a d s o m e t h i n g s e d u c t i v e h a ru sp ice s, th e y w o u ld s ti ll a lw a y s be "fo re ig n and
a b o u t i t. A c c o r d i n g t o i t s b à s i c p o s t u l a t e , e v e r y t h i n g i n t h e b a r b a r i a n . " 26 W h o d o e s n o t k n o w t h e f a m o u s s a y i n g o f C a t o ,
w o rld w a s jo in e d to g e th e r b y v irtu e o f a fu n d a m e n ta l h a r ­ t w i c e c i t e d b y C i c e r o : " I t is a m a z i n g t h a t o n e h a r u s p e x c a n
m ony (sumpatheia); in p a r t ic u la r , th e liv e r o f a v ic tim o f f e r e d k e e p fro m l a u g h i n g w h e n h e s e e s a n o t h e r h a r u s p e x " ? 27
to th e g o d s c o n s titu te d a m ic r o c o s m w h ic h w a s d iv is ib le in to C ic e r o w a s s o f re e w ith h is l a n g u a g e h e r e o n ly b e c a u s e h e
d iffe re n t z o n e s c o r r e s p o n d in g to a s m a n y h o m o lo g o u s z o n e s fo u n d h im s e lf w ith in a c irc le o f frie n d s th a t w e r e o p e n to
i n t h e m a c r o c o s m o f t h e w o r l d . 20 A n a t t e n t i v e c o n s u l t a t i o n o f arg u m e n t (Soli sumus: licet verum inquirere ... : "W e a re a lo n e ,
th e s ta t e o f th e liv e r w a s t h u s e x p e c t e d to le a d to c o n c lu s io n s o u r s e lv e s , fre e to s e e k th e tru th . . . " ) . 28 A n d it w o u l d b e
about th e s itu a tio n in th e c o rre s p o n d in g r e g io n s of th e a n a c h ro n is tic to a ttrib u te th e sam e c ritic a l s p irit to th e
w o rld . T h is u s e o f e x tis p ic y w a s n o t w ith o u t c e rta in c o n s e ­ R o m a n s o f t h e t h i r d a n d s e c o n d c e n t u r i e s b .c . H i s t o r y s h o w s
q u e n c e s fo r th e R o m a n ritu a l o f s a c r if ic e , w h ic h in c lu d e d a n th a t th e S e n a te b e c a m e a c c u s to m e d to c o n s u ltin g th e h a r u s ­
im p o rta n t s ta g e in its ord er of d iffe re n t o p e ra tio n s: th e p ice s m o re th a n o n c e .
e x a m in a tio n o f th e exta, w h ic h had to b e fla w le s s , o r th e It m u s t n e v e r t h e l e s s b e n o t e d th a t th e S e n a te a d d r e s s e d
s a crifice w o u ld be n u ll a n d v o id . The s im p le in sp e ctio n - its e lf a t th e s a m e tim e to h a r u s p i c e s a n d to th e in te r p r e t e r s o f
r e p o r t o f th e exta, w h ic h w a s th e ta s k o f th e s a c rif ic e r , s e e m s th e Sibylline Books, a s if, i m p e l l e d b y a n i n s t i n c t i v e d i s t r u s t , it
t o h a v e h a d s u p e r i m p o s e d u p o n it, in t h e c o u r s e o f t im e , a w a n te d t o v e r ify th e a c c u r a c y o f o n e p r o c e d u r e b y c h e c k in g
c o n s u lta tio n o f a d iv in a to ry n a tu r e . T h is c o n ta m in a tio n m a y it a g a i n s t t h e o t h e r . O n e o f t h e s e d o u b l e c o n s u l t a t i o n s e n t e r s
b e v e r if ie d in t h e d e s c r i p ti o n o f s a c r if ic ia l c e r e m o n i e s in L iv y . in to th e p e rio d of te n sio n th a t p re ce d e d th e w a r a g a in s t
T h u s , b e fo r e g o i n g in to th e d e c is iv e b a ttle w ith th e L a tin s a t P e rs e u s , th e k in g o f M a c e d o n ia . T h is w a s p r o v o k e d in 1 7 2
V e s e ris, on th e fo o t o f M ount V e s u v iu s, in 340 b . c ., th e b . c . b y a p o r t e n t : t h e fa ll o f a r o s t r a l c o l u m n t h a t s t o o d u p o n
R o m a n c o n s u ls o ffe re d a sa crifice . A h a ru s p e x w a s th e re w h o th e C a p it o l ( w h i c h p r e s e r v e d in its rostra— m a d e o f th e p ro w s
a n n o u n c e d t o o n e o f th e c o n s u l s , D e c i u s , " t h a t , in t h e p a r t o f o f c a p tu r e d s h ip s — th e m e m o r y o f a n a v a l v ic to ry ).
th e liv e r th a t c o n c e r n e d h im , t h e r e w a s a le s io n a t o n e e n d " Im m e d ia te ly , " t h e S e n a te g a v e th e o r d e r to th e h a r u s p ic e s

99
ROME

to g iv e a r e p o r t a n d to th e decemviri to c o n s u lt th e Sibylline n a ry . A m o n g s ig n s a s d iv e r s e a s " I n th e P ic e n u m , a ra in o f

Books.”29 It is i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h e d i f f e r e n c e s b e t w e e n t h e s to n e s f e ll" a n d " I n G a u l, a w o lf c a r r ie d o ff th e s w o r d o f a
t w o “ a n s w e r s ." T h e S ib y llin e in te r p r e t e r s lim ite d t h e m s e l v e s s e n tin e l by p u llin g it o u t o f its s c a b b a r d ," th e f o llo w in g
to p ro p o sin g m e a su re s of p u rific a tio n and re lig io u s acco u n t ap p e a re d : "A t C ae re , th e d iv in a to ry ta b le ts have
d e v o t i o n . 1*’ T h e h a r u s p i c e s d i d n o t h e s ita te to p re d ic t th e s h r u n k " — -Caere sortes extenuatas .40 T h e f o l l o w i n g y e a r , in t h e
f u t u r e : " t h i s p o r t e n t w o u l d b e f o r t h e b e t t e r ; it p r e d i c t e d a n s p r i n g o f 2 1 7 , t h e s c e n e p a i n t e d b y L i v y is e v e n d a r k e r . ( T h e
e x te n s io n o f th e f ro n tie rs a n d th e e x te r m in a tio n o f e n e m ie s ; c o n s u l F la m in iu s , w h o h a d g o n e o u t o n a m ilita ry c a m p a ig n
fo r th e rostra, w h ic h th e s to r m h a d b lo w n o v e r , w e r e s p o ils o f w i t h o u t r e g u l a r l y t a k i n g t h e a u s p i c e s , h a d b e e n k i ll e d in t h e
t h e e n e m y t h a t w o u l d b e t a k e n in t h e f u t u r e . " 31 B y r e s o l u t e l y co u rse o f th e d is a s te r a t L a k e T r a s i m e n u s .) T h e p o rte n ts
a d o p tin g d iffe re n t p e r s p e c tiv e s , th e s e tw o m o s t re p r e s e n ta ­ i n c r e a s e d e v e r y w h e r e . In p a r t i c u l a r , " a t F a l e r i i , t h e s k y s p l i t
t i v e d i v i n a t o r y p r o c e d u r e s r a n l it t le r i s k o f c o n f l i c t i n g w i t h o p e n a s if t o r n , a n d f r o m th is o p e n i n g a g r e a t lig h t s u r g e d
o n e a n o th e r. f o r th ; th e d iv in a to r y ta b le ts s h r a n k s p o n ta n e o u s ly , a n d o n e ,
W e re th e re o th e r d iv in a to ry p e r s p e c t iv e s in Ita ly w h ic h b e a r i n g t h e i n s c r i p t i o n ' M a r s s h a k e s h i s l a n c e , ' f e l l . " 41
m i g h t h a v e e n j o y e d s o m e a u t h o r i ty in th e e y e s o f th e R o m a n T h i s is a p o r t e n t w h i c h r e p e a t s i t s e l f in t w o d i f f e r e n t c i t i e s
S e n a t e ? It s e e m s t h a t t h e r e w e r e n o t , e v e n t h o u g h I t a l y k n e w a y e a r l a t e r . N e i t h e r in C a e r e n o r in F a l e r i i a r e t h e t a b l e t s
im p o rta n t c u lts o f th e g o d d e s s F o rtu n a , w h o s e o ld e s t a n d c o n n e c t e d w i t h a c u l t o f F o r t u n a . E v e n if w e c o u l d a s s u m e
m o s t r e n o w n e d s a n c t u a r ie s w e r e s it u a te d in P r a e n e s t e a n d th a t th e sortes s h o u l d o r d i n a r i l y h a v e b e e n c o n s u l t e d t h e r e in
in A n t i u m . 32 T h e r e c e r t a i n l y w a s , e s p e c i a l l y in P r a e n e s t e , a th e sam e w ay as in P ra e n e ste , th e re is n o q u e stio n of a
m e a n s t o c o n s u l t F o r t u n a b y u s i n g ta b le ts c a lle d sortes. C ic e ro d i v i n a t o r y c o n s u l t a t i o n h e r e . It is o n l y t h e m i r a c u l o u s c h a r ­
re c a lls th e l e g e n d th a t w a s c o n n e c t e d w ith th e o r ig in o f t h e ir a c t e r o f t h e s h r i n k i n g o f t h e t a b l e t s t h a t is e m p h a s i z e d , a l o n g
d i s c o v e r y . 33 A P r a e n e s t i a n o f n o b l e f a m i l y , N u m e r i u s S u f f u s - w i t h , a t F a l e r i i , t h e a g g r a v a t i n g c i r c u m s t a n c e o f t h e fa ll o f a
tiu s , h a d a d r e a m in w h i c h h e w a s c o m m a n d e d to c a rv e a t a b l e t b e a r i n g t h e a n n o u n c e m e n t t h a t M a r s h a s b e e n s e t in
n o t c h in a r o c k w h o s e lo c a tio n w a s to ld to h im . F r o m th e m o t i o n . T h e b e s t p r o o f o f t h i s is t h a t in b o t h c a s e s t h e S e n a t e
c r a c k , " w o o d e n t a b l e t s ( sortes ) c o v e r e d w i t h a n c i e n t l e t t e r i n g o rd ered a c o n s u lta tio n of th e Sibylline Books in o rd er to
p o u r e d o u t ." F o llo w in g a c o n s u lta tio n b y th e h a r u s p ic e s , th e p ro v id e fo r th e procuratio o f a ll o f t h e s e m a n i f e s t a t i o n s o f t h e
sortes w e r e e n c l o s e d in a b o x m a d e o f o l i v e w o o d . W h e n a a n g e r o f th e g o d s .
c o n s u lta n t re c e iv e d a w a r n in g fro m F o r tu n a , th e y d r e w lo ts: F o r— a n d w e m u s t m a k e n o m is ta k e o n th is s u b je c t— th e
a c h ild m ix e d u p th e ta b le ts w ith h is h a n d a n d d r e w th e m a ttitu d e o f th e o f f ic i a l a u t h o r i t i e s ab ou t th e sortes r e v e a ls
o u t o f th e b o x . d e e p t e n d e n c i e s t h a t w o u l d o n l y d e v e l o p in t h e f u t u r e . T h e
C ic e ro h a s te n s to a d d th e fo llo w in g : " T h e b e a u ty o f th e sortes m i g h t w e ll h a v e b e e n d e v a l u e d a s f a r a s t h e ir p r o p h e t i c
s a n c tu a ry and th e a n tiq u ity of th e ta b le ts of P ra e n e ste f u n c tio n w a s c o n c e r n e d — th e ir d is c r e d it w o u ld b e c o m p le te
c o n tin u e to b e r e n o w n e d to th e p r e s e n t d a y — a t le a s t b y th e b y C i c e r o ' s t i m e — b u t t h e y s till r e t a i n e d s o m e i m p o r t a n c e a s
m a sses. W h at so rt of p e rso n is in f a c t t h e i r a d m i n i s t r a t o r , w a r n in g s ig n s . T h u s , th e s h r in k in g o f th e sortes o f C aere an d
w h a t s o rt o f p ro m in e n t m a n c o n s u lts th e m ? E v e r y w h e r e e lse F a l e r i i n o l o n g e r i n v o l v e s t h e i r d i v i n a t o r y c r e d i b i l i t y : it e n t e r s
th e sortes h a v e f a l le n i n t o d i s u s e . " 34 d ir e c tly in to th e c a te g o r y o f p o r te n ts .
T h e o f f ic i a l d i s c r e d i t i n g w a s n o t p e c u l i a r t o C i c e r o ' s t i m e .
The in s c rip tio n s fo u n d at P ra e n e s te at th e tim e of th e
3. D iv in a tio n : P o rte n ts a n d O m e n s
a r c h a e o lo g ic a l e x c a v a tio n s o f th e te m p le , w h ic h had been
s u m p tu o u s ly r e s to r e d b y S u lla , re v e a l o n ly th e d e v o tio n o f A p p r o a c h i n g t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b . c ., w e c o m e t o a t u r n i n g
l e s s e r p e o p l e a t t h e p l a c e o f t h e g o d d e s s . 35 I n a g e n e r a l w a y , p o i n t . In a p p e a r a n c e , t h e p r o c e d u r e s a r e s ti ll t h e s a m e : t h e
L a t t u s is c o r r e c t in s u m m a r i z i n g h i s e v a l u a t i o n i n t h e f o l l o w ­ a p p a r a t u s o f th e s ta t e g o e s in to a c tio n w h e n th e d e s tin y o f
in g fa s h io n : "It is n o t th e in te re s ts of th e s ta te , but th e R o m e s e e m s t o b e in q u e s t i o n . P o r t e n t s a r e r e p o r t e d f r o m
q u e s t i o n s o f p e o p l e w o r r i e d a b o u t b e i n g t ric k e d o r p r e o c c u ­ e v e r y w h e r e in I t a l y ( t h e y w e r e s c r u p u l o u s l y g a t h e r e d b y t h e
p ie d w ith th e o u t c o m e o f s o m e u n d e r ta k i n g th a t r e c e iv e a n a n n a li s ts ), a n d th e a l e r t is g iv e n to th e c ity l e a d e r s . T h e s e a r e
a n s w e r h e r e . " 36 a d d r e s s e d to th e h a ru s p ic e s o r th e decemviri (a n d s o m e tim e s
W h a t w a s th e re a l ro le o f th e s e sortes, w h ic h s o m e h a v e to b o th p r ie s tly b o d ie s ). T h e c o n s u lta tio n o f s p e c ia lis ts r e ­
s e e n a s " I t a l i c o r a c l e s " ? P e r h a p s it i s b e s t f i r s t t o i n d i c a t e t h e s u lte d in d iv e rs e p re s c rip tio n s : s o m e tim e s th e o ffe rin g o f
c e n te rs th a t m ay be c o n s id e re d a u th e n tic r e p o s ito rie s of e x p ia to r y s a crifice s a n d s o m e tim e s th e in tro d u c tio n o f n e w
p r o p h e tic ta b le ts . c u l t s . T h e w h o l e s c e n a r i o is f o u n d e d u p o n o n e b a s i c p o s t u ­
N o th in g in d ic a te s th a t w e s h o u ld in c lu d e A n tiu m , w h ic h l a te : th ro u g h p o rte n ts, th e c ity w as w arn ed th a t it had
w a s th e s e a t o f a c u lt o f tw o F o rtu n a s w h o m M a rtia l w o u ld in cu rre d th e w ra th o f t h e g o d s ; it s h o u l d now p la c e its e lf
la te r n a m e " t h e t r u t h f u l s i s t e r s . " 37 In f a c t , w e k n o w very o n c e m o r e in t h e f a v o r , p e a c e , a n d b l e s s i n g o f t h e g o d s —
l it t le a b o u t h o w t h e y w e r e c o n s u l t e d , e x c e p t f o r a l a t e p i e c e pacem veniamque deum.
o f in fo rm a tio n fro m M a c ro b iu s , w h o m e n tio n s a p ro c e s s io n So it w a s t h a t o n c e a g a i n t h e e v e n t s o f 1 6 9 b . c . u n f o l d e d . It
o f s t a t u e s f o r d i v i n a t o r y p u r p o s e s . 38 is t h e e v e o f t h e w a r t h a t w ill b e f o u g h t a g a i n s t P e r s e u s , t h e
N e ith e r d o e s it s e e m th a t P a d u a s h o u ld e n t e r in to th is k in g o f M a c e d o n ia . L iv y g iv e s a c o m p le te p ictu re o f th e
c a te g o r y , e v e n ta k in g in to a c c o u n t th e fa c t th a t T ib e riu s d r e w p o r te n ts : " A t A n a g n ia , tw o p o rte n ts w e re a n n o u n c e d th is
l o t s w i t h t a b l e t s t h e r e . 39 A p a r t f r o m P r a e n e s t e , t h e o n l y c i t i e s y e a r : a to r c h a p p e a r e d in th e s k y , a n d a c o w s p o k e — s h e is
th a t a r e e x p lic itly m e n tio n e d in c o n n e c t i o n w ith sortes are n o w b e i n g k e p t a t t h e e x p e n s e o f t h e c it y . A l s o a t M i n t u r n a e ,
C a e r e a n d F a le rii. B u t in n e i th e r c a s e is t h e r e a n y c o n s u l t a ti o n th e s k y w a s illu m in a te d fo r s e v e r a l d a y s w ith a b rillia n t lig h t.
o f t a b l e t s . T h e t a b l e t s a r e m e n t i o n e d b y L i v y e a c h t i m e in t h e A t R e a t e , it r a i n e d s t o n e s . A t C u m a e , t h e s t a t u e o f A p o l l o in
c o n te x t o f a g ro u p o f p o rte n ts th a t m a n ife ste d th e m se lv e s th e c ita d e l w e p t fo r t h r e e d a y s a n d th re e n ig h ts . A t R o m e ,
d u r i n g t h e S e c o n d P u n i c W a r , b y w h i c h it w a s l e a r n e d t h a t te m p le g u a r d s g a v e r e p o r ts : o n e , th a t a c r e s te d s e r p e n t h a d
H a n n i b a l w o u l d i n f li c t h e a v y d e f e a t s u p o n t h e R o m a n a r m i e s . b e e n s e e n b y s e v e r a l p e r s o n s in th e s a n c t u a r y o f F o r t u n a ,
D u r i n g t h e w i n t e r o f 2 1 8 b . c ., t h e R o m a n s w e r e a l a r m e d b y a n d a n o t h e r , t h a t t w o p o r t e n t s w e r e s e e n in t h e s a n c t u a r y o f
a s e rie s o f e v e n t s th a t w e r e a t o n c e d is p a r a te a n d e x t r a o r d i ­ F o r t u n a P r i m i g e n i a o n t h e h ill ( o f t h e Q u i r i n a l ) : a p a l m t r e e

100
 R O M A N D I V I N A T I O N

h a d g r o w n t h e r e , a n d i n t h e m i d d l e o f t h e d a y it h a d a r a i n e d eve o f th e id e s, a w ren ca rry in g a la u re l b ran ch fle w up

b l o o d .' " * 2 ( A c o n s u lta tio n o f th e Sibylline Books w as m ade t o w a r d t h e c u r i a o f P o m p e y ( i . e . , t h e S e n a t e ) , w h e r e it w a s
w h ic h p r e s c r ib e d th a t s a c r if ic e s b e o f fe re d a n d th a t a s o le m n p u rsu ed b y b ird s o f e v e r y s p e c ie s , w h o h a d c o m e o u t o f a
supplicatio b e m a d e .) n earb y g ro v e; an d in th e c u r ia its e lf th e b ird w a s to rn to
B u t th is tim e L iv y p r e f a c e d h is r e p o r t w ith a c o n f id e n c e p i e c e s ." F in a lly , "th e n ig h t b e fo re th e d a y o f th e m u rd er,
th a t w a s o u t o f c h a r a c te r fo r h im : " I a m n o t u n a w a r e o f th e C aesar saw h im s e l f in a d r e a m s o m e t im e s fly in g a b o v e th e
fact th a t, b ecau se of th e in d iffe re n c e th a t m akes p e o p le c lo u d s , s o m e tim e s s h a k in g th e hand o f J u p ite r; a s f o r h is
g e n e ra lly d is b e lie v e in th e p o rte n ts g iv e n by th e go d s, w ife C a lp u r n ia , s h e d r e a m e d th a t th e p e a k o f th e ro o f h a d
p o rte n ts are no lo n g e r p u b lic ly an n ou n ced n o r a re th e y c a v e d in a n d t h a t h e r h u s b a n d w a s p i e r c e d t h r o u g h b y t h e
en te re d any m o r e in to th e a n n a ls . A s fo r m y se lf, a s 1 a m d e b r i s a s h e la y in h e r a r m s . T h e n , s u d d e n l y , th e d o o r o f th e
tre a tin g o f a n a n c ie n t s u b je c t, 1 h a v e ta k e n on an a n tiq u e b e d r o o m o p e n e d b y i ts e lf ."
m e n ta lity ; a k in d o f re lig io u s s c r u p le k e e p s m e fro m r e je c tin g T h i s lis t e n u m e r a t e s s o m e v e r y d i f f e r e n t k i n d s o f o m e n s :
a s u n w o r t h y o f p u t t i n g in m y a n n a l s t h o s e e v e n t s w h i c h o u r to th e omina— in t h e p r o p h e t i c s e n s e o f th e w o r d — a r e a d d e d
a n c e s t o r s , in th e ir g r e a t w is d o m , j u d g e d w o r t h y o f b e in g o ffi­ th e h a r u s p e x 's p re d ic tio n , th e d e c is iv e o m e n o f th e w ren
c ia l ly r e c o r d e d . " 43 to rn a p a rt b y m e m b e r s o f i ts o w n sp e cie s, a n d f in a lly th e
W h a t a r e w e to u n d e r s t a n d b y th is d ia g n o s is b y L iv y , w h o p r e m o n ito r y d r e a m s o f C a e s a r a n d C a lp u r n ia , in te r r u p te d b y
l i v e d in t h e r e i g n o f A u g u s t u s ( h e w r o t e f r o m 2 7 b . c . u n t i l h i s t h e s u d d e n o p e n i n g o f t h e d o o r . 49
d e a t h i n a . d . 1 7 ) ? T h e r e is n o r e a s o n t o d o u b t t h e g r o w i n g W h a t w a s C a e s a r 's r e a c ti o n ? In a s e n s e , w h e t h e r o r n o t h e
sk e p ticism th a t h e d e n o u n c e s . B u t th e s k e p tic is m is m o s t l y b e l i e v e d in a ll o f t h e s e " s i g n s " is o f l i t t l e i m p o r t a n c e . ( A t o n e
a b o u t th e p r o c e d u r e s a n d p r o c e s s e s th a t c la im to r e v e a l th e p o in t, S u e to n iu s n o t e s th a t C a e s a r " p o n d e r e d fo r a lo n g tim e
fu tu re . T h e b a sic e le m e n ts u s e d in th e ir e la b o r a te lite ra ry w h e th e r h e s h o u ld g o to th e S e n a te , b e c a u s e o f th e s e o m e n s
w o rk s w o u ld c o n tin u e to im p r e s s p e o p le . A s w e can see, and b e c a u s e o f h is p o o r s ta te o f h e a l th ." B u t la te r o n he
r e lig io u s in d if f e r e n c e c u r io u s l y a llie d its e lf w ith a n in c r e a s e s t r e s s e s , o n t h e c o n t r a r y , C a e s a r 's in d i f f e r e n c e to t h e r itu a l
in s u p e r s t i t i o u s a t t e n t i o n t o p o r t e n t s . fa ilu re o f h is o w n s a c r if ic e s — cum litare non posset— a s w e ll a s
P e o p le la u g h e d a t th e h a r u s p ic e s a n d g r e e te d th e r e c o m ­ h i s m o c k e r y o f t h e h a r u s p e x S p u r i n n a . ) In t h i s f a t a l i s t i c p e r ­
m e n d a tio n s o f th e Sibylline Books w ith c ir c u m s p e c ti o n , b u t s p e c t i v e , t h e o m e n s h a d t o c o m e t r u e i n a n y c a s e . T h e r e is n o
t h e y s till p a i d a t t e n t i o n t o p h e n o m e n a t h a t w e r e o u t o f t h e lo n g e r a n y q u e s tio n o f c la im in g th e p riv ile g e o f th e in s titu ­
o rd in a ry , to prodigia or ostenta. P e o p l e w e r e s ti ll s e n s i t i v e t o tio n a l a u g u r t h a t P lin y th e E l d e r r e c a ll e d — th e ri g h t to p r o ­
o m e n s : th is w a s a c o n s t a n t o f th e R o m a n m e n ta lity . t e c t o n e s e l f i n a d v a n c e a g a i n s t u n f a v o r a b l e s i g n s . 50
W h a t a re w e to u n d e r s ta n d b y th e w o rd o m e n ? A r e c e n t In f a c t, e v e n th e m o s t p o w e rfu l m e n o f th e p e rio d suc­
e ty m o lo g ic a l essay su g g e ste d th a t it s h o u l d b e g iv e n th e c u m b e d to th e o b s e s s io n fo r o m e n s . A lth o u g h C a e s a r m a n ­
m e a n i n g o f " t r u t h f u l p r e s a g e . " 44 A fa m o u s e x a m p le o f a n ife s te d , m o re th a n o n c e , a n a lo o f s k e p tic is m th a t s o m e tim e s
o m e n w a s c i t e d b y C i c e r o . 45 W h e n C r a s s u s w a s e m b a r k i n g h i s b o r d e r e d o n in s o le n c e , h is s u c c e s s o r A u g u s tu s c o u ld h a rd ly
a r m y a t B rin d isi ( fo r th e e x p e d itio n a g a in s t th e P a rth ia n s w h ic h be c la s s ifie d am ong th e " s t r o n g - w i l l e d . " 51 F r o m th e very
w o u l d e n d m i s e r a b l y w i t h t h e d i s a s t e r o f C a r r h a e i n 5 3 b . c .), h e b e g in n in g , S u e to n iu s in d ic a te s to w h a t d e g r e e A u g u s tu s w a s
h e a r d a m e r c h a n t p r a i s i n g h i s f i g s f r o m C a u n u s ( a c i t y in C a r i a ) , a tte n tiv e to s ig n s a n d om en s— auspicia et omina.52 T h e sam e
c r y i n g , " C a u n e a s ! " ( " f i g s o f C a u n u s " ) . If h e h a d g r a s p e d t h e C i c e r o w h o r a i l e d a g a i n s t t h e m a n i a t h a t c o n s i s t e d in t a k i n g a s
o m e n , C ra s s u s w o u ld h a v e u n d e rs to o d : Cave ne eas ( 'T a k e c a r e a n o m e n e v e r y i n c i d e n t o f e v e r y d a y life ( e v e r y t i m e w e " s t u b
n o t to g o t h e r e " ). o u r t o e s " ) d id n o t d o u b t fo r a m o m e n t th a t th e fo u n d e r o f th e
R e m e m b e r th a t C ic e r o , w ho p e rm its h im s e lf to c riticiz e R o m a n E m p i r e w a s s u b j e c t t o t h i s v e r y w e a k n e s s . 53 In f a c t t h e
su ch m a tte r s o p e n ly am ong h is frie n d s in On Divination, firs t e x a m p l e t h a t A u g u s t u s 's b io g r a p h e r g i v e s to ju s tif y h is
c a n n o t k e e p fro m a d d in g th is c o m m e n t a r y : " O n c e w e ta k e p o i n t is t h e f o l l o w i n g : " I n t h e m o r n i n g , if h e ( i . e . , A u g u s t u s )
th is p a t h , a s tu b b e d t o e , a b r o k e n b rid le s tr a p , a n d a s n e e z e u n t h i n k i n g l y p u t h i s l e f t s h o e o n h i s r i g h t f o o t , h e s a w t h is a s
a ll b e c o m e o m e n s . " B u t C i c e r o m a y h a v e b e e n a l o n e i n h i s a m e n a c i n g o m e n . " 54
d e sire to d ra w th e lin e c le a rly b e tw e e n s u p e r s titio n and T h e e v i d e n c e a b o u t t h e lif e o f A u g u s t u s s h o w s t o w h a t
r e l i g i o n . 46 H i s th e o re tic a l p ro te s ts d id not c o rre sp o n d to e x t e n t h e w a s s u b j e c t t o a ll s o r t s o f s u p e r s t i t i o n s . H e w as
g e n e ra l p ra c tic e . m o re re c e p tiv e to omina th a n C ra s s u s o w a s ; th u s " h e n e v e r
O m e n s i n v a d e a ll a s p e c t s o f e v e r y d a y l if e : t h e y a re a c ­ u n d e r to o k a n y th in g s e rio u s o n th e d a y o f th e n o n e s , b e c a u s e
ce p te d in d e p e n d e n t o f a n y re lig io u s a t ta c h m e n ts and a re o f t h e e v i l o m e n i n h e r e n t in t h e w o r d " ( Nonis = non is, i .e .,
t h o u g h t t o h a v e a c e r t a i n i n t e r n a l n e c e s s i t y . 47 S i g n i f i c a n t in " D o n ' t y o u g o t h e r e " ) . 55 T h e o m e n c o u l d b e f a v o r a b l e : t h e
th is re g a r d is S u e t o n i u s ' s p r e s e n ta tio n o f th e om ens th a t f u tu r e A u g u s t u s h a d th e jo y o f e n c o u n te r i n g a n a s s a n d h is
a n n o u n c e d t h e m u r d e r o f J u l i u s C a e s a r . 48 F i r s t , t h e r e w a s t h e m a s t e r b e f o r e t h e b a t tl e o f A c t i u m . T h e a n i m a l 's n a m e w a s
d isco v e ry m ade by th e c o lo n ists w h o w e re e s ta b lis h e d at N i c o n a n d h i s m a s t e r ' s w a s E u t y c h u s . 56 A n o t h e r o m e n le d
C a p u a u n d e r Ju lia n la w (r e g a r d i n g th e d iv is io n o f l a n d s in to h im t o u n d e r s t a n d t h a t h e w a s n e a r i n g t h e e n d o f h i s lif e .
lo ts): th e y fo u n d th e to m b o f th e f o u n d e r o f C a p u a , C a p y s , " W h e n in t h e m i d s t o f a g r e a t p o p u l a r c o m p e t i t i o n h e c l o s e d
w h ic h c o n ta in e d a b r o n z e ta b le t b e a r in g th e G r e e k i n s c r ip ­ th e lu s tra tio n c e re m o n ie s on th e F ie ld o f M ars, an e a g le
t io n : "W h en th e bones of C ap ys see th e lig h t o f d a y , a d e s c r ib e d s e v e r a l c ir c le s a b o v e h im a n d th e n fle w t o w a r d th e
d e s c e n d a n t o f Ju lu s ( i .e ., A s c a n i u s ) s h a ll p e r is h u n d e r th e n e x t s a n c t u a r y a n d a lig h te d a b o v e th e first l e tt e r o f th e n a m e
b lo w s o f c lo s e re la tiv e s , a n d fo llo w in g th is , h is v e n g e a n c e o f A g r ip p a " : A u g u s tu s im m e d ia te ly ch arg ed h is c o lle a g u e
s h a ll g i v e r is e to g r e a t d i s a s te r s in I ta ly ." (w h o h e ld th e p o s itio n o f c e n s o r ) t o t a k e h i s p l a c e in t h e
N e x t th e re w a s th e a n n o u n c e m e n t m a d e to C a e s a r : th e r e a d in g o f th e v o w s th a t w o u ld n o rm a lly h a v e b e e n re a d fo r
h o rse s th a t he had p re v io u s ly c o n se c ra te d to th e riv e r t h e f o l l o w i n g l u s t r u m . 57
R u b ic o n o b s tin a te ly refu sed a ll f o o d and w e p t co p io u sly . A s fo r th e prodigia, th e y s t u d d e d th e w h o l e o f A u g u s t u s 's
Then it w a s t h e w a r n i n g g i v e n b y th e h a r u s p e x S p u rin n a l if e , e v e n f r o m b e f o r e h e w a s b o r n . W a s it n o t r e p o r t e d t h a t
d u r i n g h i s s a c r i f i c e : " C a e s a r s h o u l d w a t c h f o r a p e r i l t h a t w ill "so m e m o n th s b efo re h is b ir th , a p ro d ig y w as p ro d u ced
c o m e n o la te r th a n th e id e s o f M a r c h ." A n d th e n : " O n th e b e f o r e t h e e y e s o f a ll a n n o u n c i n g t h a t N a t u r e w a s t o g i v e

101
ROME

b i r t h t o a k i n g f o r t h e R o m a n p e o p l e " ? 58 I n t h e s a m e v e i n , o f t h e u n i v e r s e h a d b e e n b o m . " 71 L a t e r , d u r i n g h i s s t a y in
th e fo llo w in g s to ry c irc u la te d : A tia cam e by n ig h t to a A p o llo n ia , O c ta v ia n a c c o m p a n i e d A g rip p a to th e o b s e r v a ­
c e r e m o n y in h o n o r o f A p o l l o . S h e h a d h e r p a l a n q u i n p l a c e d to ry o f th e a s tr o lo g e r T h e o g e n e s . A s T h e o g e n e s h a d m a d e
in t h e t e m p l e a n d " k n e w " a s e r p e n t w h i l e s h e s l e p t . O n t h e m a rv e lo u s p r e d ic tio n s a b o u t h is c o m p a n i o n , O cta v ia n re­
f o l l o w i n g d a y , s h e h a d a s p o t in t h e s h a p e o f a s e r p e n t o n h e r f u s e d to g iv e in f o r m a tio n a b o u t h is o w n b irth . H e e n d e d u p
b o d y , w h ic h p r o v e d to b e in d e lib le : " T h u s A u g u s t u s , b o r n c o n s e n tin g : " T h e n T h e o g e n e s le a p t fro m h is s e a t to a d o r e
n i n e m o n t h s l a t e r , w a s c o n s i d e r e d t o b e t h e s o n o f A p o l l o . " 59 h i m . " 72 A u g u s t u s m u s t h a v e d r a w n g r e a t c o n f i d e n c e f r o m
And a s e rie s o f p o r te n ts a c c o m p a n i e s h is e n tir e in fa n c y h is h o ro sco p e , as he "la te r had h is a s tro lo g ic a l ch art
a n d a d o le s c e n c e : w h e n h e w a s s ti ll a l i t t l e b a b y , h e d i s a p ­ p u b lis h e d " and s tru c k s ilv e r c o in s b e a rin g th e im a g e of
p eared one day fro m h is c r a d le and w as fo u n d a g a in at C a p r i c o r n . 73
d a w n , " s tr e t c h e d o u t o n th e to p o f a t o w e r , fa c in g th e ris in g O t h e r d i v i n a t o r y f o r m s a p p e a r in t h e c o u r s e o f A u g u s t u s ' s
s u n . " 60 H e h a r d l y k n e w how to ta lk w h e n he ord ered th e e x c e p t i o n a l l if e . T h e s e e n t e r i n t o a d i f f e r e n t c a t e g o r y , a c c o r d ­
f r o g s t h a t w e r e d i s t u r b i n g h i s f a m i l y 's c o u n t r y h o u s e t o b e in g to C ic e r o , w h o s e p a r a te s t h o s e i n te r p r e ta tio n s b a s e d o n a
s ile n t: " a f t e r th a t d a y , it is s a i d , th e fro g s n e v e r cro ak ed te c h n iq u e (ars) f r o m t h o s e m a d e u n d e r t h e i m p e t u s of a
a g a i n . " 61 n a tu ra l fo rce (m tura).7* T h e l a t t e r d e s i g n a t e d o r a c l e s and
O th e r p o r te n ts in d ic a te d th a t h is ris e to g lo ry w a s n e a r. A t d ream s.
th e m o m e n t w h e n h e first p u t o n h is to g a o f m a n h o o d , th e In f a c t o r a c u l a r c o n s u l t a t i o n s a l m o s t n e v e r o c c u r r e d . S u e ­
la tic la v e b ecam e u n sew n on b o th s id e s and fe ll to h is to n iu s c ite s o n ly one e x a m p le , and th is o r ig in a te s in an
f e e t-" w h ic h c le a rly s ig n ifie d th a t th e S e n a te , w h ic h w as in itia tiv e ta k e n n o t b y A u g u s t u s b u t b y h is f a th e r O c ta v iu s .
d i s t i n g u i s h e d b y t h i s d r e s s , w o u l d o n e d a y s u b m i t t o h i m . " 62 W h ile th e l a tt e r le d h is a r m y a c r o s s th e w a s t e s o f T h r a c e , h e
The b io g ra p h e r re m in d s u s o f a n o t h e r s im ila r p r o d ig y : h a d a c o n s u l t a t i o n o n t h e s u b j e c t o f h i s s o n , p a r t i c i p a t i n g in
w h e n J u l i u s C a e s a r , in o r d e r t o s e t u p h is c a m p c lo s e to a " b a r b a r i a n c e r e m o n y " ( barbara caerimonia) in a f o r e s t c o n ­
M u n d a , h a d s e v e ra l tre e s c u t d o w n , h e s p a r e d a p a lm tre e , s e c r a t e d to B a c c h u s . T h e lib a tio n o f w in e c a u s e d a fla m e to
a s a n o m e n o f v i c t o r y —ut omen victoriae; th is p la n t im m e d i­ shoot up so h ig h th a t it w ent beyond th e ro o f of th e
a t e l y p u t f o r t h a s h o o t t h a t in a f e w d a y s o u t g r e w i ts m o t h e r te m p le — a n o m e n o f s o v e r e ig n ty (th e p rie s ts a s s u re d h im )
s to c k a n d a ttr a c te d a flo ck o f d o v e s th a t n e s te d i n i t; t h i s th a t u n til th e n o n l y A l e x a n d e r th e G r e a t h a d r e c e i v e d .7’
ostentum, it is s a i d , w a s C a e s a r ' s m a i n m o t i v e f o r d e s i g n a t i n g A s fo r somnia, p r o p h e t i c d r e a m s , t h e y a r e a b u n d a n t in t h i s
h i s g r a n d n e p h e w a s h i s s u c c e s s o r . " 63 " e d i f y i n g " l i t e r a t u r e . F i r s t it is A t i a " w h o , b e f o r e g o i n g i n t o
A fte r th e m u r d e r o f C a e s a r , O c ta v ia n r e tu r n e d to A p o llo ­ c h ild b irth , saw in a d re a m her e n tr a ils ris in g up to th e
n ia (in Illy ria ) to c o m e to R o m e ; h e " s u d d e n l y s a w , a t a tim e h e a v e n l y b o d i e s a n d s p r e a d i n g o u t o v e r t h e p e r i m e t e r o f a ll
o f c le a r a n d p e a c e f u l w e a th e r , a k in d o f r a in b o w th a t r in g e d o f th e e a r t h a n d s k y ." O c t a v i u s " h i m s e l f d r e a m e d th a t th e
th e s o la r d i s k ." M lig h t o f th e sun w as c o m in g out fro m th e w om b of h is
In th e lis t of p o rte n ts th a t tra d itio n has tr a n s m itte d , w i f e . " 76 L a t e r , d u r i n g t h e n i g h t t h a t f o l l o w e d h i s v i s i t t o t h e
l i g h t n i n g a n d t h u n d e r a p p e a r m o r e t h a n o n c e . In h i s n a t i v e o r a c l e o f B a c c h u s in T h r a c e , O c t a v i u s h a d a n o t h e r d r e a m :
c i t y o f V e l i t r a e , it w a s r e m e m b e r e d " t h a t t h e l i g h t n i n g o n c e " H e s a w h i s s o n , c l o t h e d in a s u p e r h u m a n m a j e s t y , c a r r y i n g
s t r u c k a p o i n t o n t h e r a m p a r t s : it w a s p r o p h e s i e d t h a t o n e o f th e th u n d e r b o lt, th e s c e p te r , a n d th e a ttr ib u te s o f th e v e r y
i ts c i t i z e n s w o u l d o n e d a y a t t a i n t h e s u p r e m e p o w e r . " 65 great an d g o o d J u p i t e r , a s w e ll a s a r a d i a t i n g c r o w n , o n a
A p p a re n tly A u g u s tu s h a d a p a th o lo g ic a l te r r o r o f th u n d e r c h a r io t d e c o r a t e d w ith la u re ls a n d d r a w n b y tw e lv e h o r s e s o f
a n d l i g h t n i n g . 66 H e e r e c t e d a t e m p l e t o T h u n d e r i n g J u p i t e r a b r i l l i a n t w h i t e n e s s . " 77
to th a n k h im fo r h a v in g sp ared h im w hen lig h tn in g had O u ts id e of th e n arro w fa m ily c irc le , o th e r p e o p le are
b r u s h e d h i s p a l a n q u i n d u r i n g a n e x p e d i t i o n a n d k i ll e d t h e m e n t i o n e d a s h a v i n g b e e n w i t n e s s e s in t h i s r e v i e w o f p r e ­
s l a v e c a r r y i n g t h e t o r c h in f r o n t o f h i m . 67 N e v e r t h e l e s s , h e m o n ito ry d ream s. In 63 b . c ., Q. C a tu lu s , w ho h ad ju st
knew how to g e t in fo rm a tio n fro m such m a n ife s ta tio n s — d e d ic a te d th e n e w C a p ito lin e te m p le (th e o ld o n e h a d b e e n
o f te n b y re ly in g o n th e a r ts o f th e h a r u s p ic e s . b u r n e d in 8 3 d u r i n g t h e c iv il w a r ) , d r e a m e d t w o n i g h t s in a
L ig h tn in g h a d s tr u c k th e to m b o f Ju lia , th e d a u g h t e r o f ro w . The first tim e he saw J u p ite r choose fro m am ong
J u liu s C a e s a r , s e v e r a l tim e s o n th e s a m e d a y th a t O c t a v i a n c h ild re n w h o w e re d re s s e d in p r a e t e x t a ( m a g i s t e r i a l t o g a s )
h a d s e e n th e s u n c r o w n e d b y a ra in b o w o n h is w a y b a ck to a n d w e r e p la y in g a r o u n d h is a lta r, to p r e s e n t a n im a g e o f th e
A p o l l o n i a . 68 It h a d s t r u c k a p a r t o f h i s o w n h o u s e , o n t h e s ta te to o n e o f th e m ; th e s e c o n d tim e , h e s a w th e s a m e ch ild
P a la tin e : f o llo w in g th e a d v i c e o f th e h a r u s p i c e s , A u g u s t u s o n th e la p o f C a p ito lin e J u p i te r , a n d w h e n h e trie d to ta k e
h a d a t e m p l e e r e c t e d t o A p o l l o in t h e s a m e p l a c e . 69 A t a b o u t h im d o w n , J u p ite r h e ld h im b a c k , e x p la in in g th a t h e w a s
t h e s a m e t i m e a s t h e e a g l e h a d d e s c r i b e d i ts o m i n o u s c i r c l e s b rin g in g th is c h ild u p fo r th e s a lv a tio n o f th e s ta te . " T h e n e x t
a b o v e h im , lig h tn in g h a d s tr u c k h is s ta tu e a n d e r a s e d th e d a y , C a tu lu s h a p p e n e d to m e e t th e fu tu re A u g u s tu s , w h o m
first le tt e r o f h is n a m e , C a e s a r : a c c o r d in g to th e h a r u s p i c e s , h e d id n o t k n o w ; g r e a tly a s to n is h e d , h e c o n te m p la te d h im
th e le tte r C fo re to ld " t h a t h e h a d n o m o r e th a n a h u n d r e d a n d p r o c l a im e d h is p e r f e c t r e s e m b la n c e to th e c h ild o f h is
(centum) d a y s to liv e , b u t th a t h e w o u l d jo in th e r a n k s o f th e d r e a m s . " 78
g o d s, b ecau se aesar, f o r m e d b y th e r e s t o f th e le tt e r s o f h is E v e n C i c e r o is c i t e d a m o n g t h e w i t n e s s e s . A c c o r d i n g t o
n a m e C a e s a r , m e a n t ' g o d ' in t h e E t r u s c a n l a n g u a g e . " 70 S u e to n iu s , C ic e ro c o n fid e d th e f o llo w in g d re a m to J u liu s
T h e s e w h o lly c la s s ic a l m a n i f e s t a t io n s o f prodigia and signa C a e s a r : h e h a d s e e n a c h ild w ith v e r y d i s t in g u is h e d f e a t u r e s ,
d id n o t c o n s titu te th e o n ly e le m e n ts th a t m a d e u p th e g o ld e n w h o h a d c o m e d o w n o u t o f th e s k y b y m e a n s o f a lo n g g o ld
l e g e n d o f A u g u s t u s . H i s lif e s e t t h e s t a g e f o r o t h e r d i v i n a t o r y c h a in , s to p p e d b e fo r e th e d o o r o f th e C a p ito l, a n d r e c e iv e d a
te s tim o n ie s , above a ll fo r p re d ic tio n s d ra w n fro m w h i p f r o m t h e h a n d s o f J u p i t e r . 79 W h e n h e l a t e r s a w O c t a ­
a s tr o lo g y — w h ic h w a s fo re ig n to th e o ld R o m a n tra d itio n . v i a n , w h o w a s s ti ll u n k n o w n t o m o s t p e o p l e , in C a e s a r ' s
W h i l e a t t e n d i n g a m e e t i n g o f t h e S e n a t e i n 6 3 b . c ., t h e e n t o u r a g e , h e im m e d ia t e l y id e n tif ie d h im w ith th e f ig u r e in
P y th a g o re a n P. N i g i d i u s l e a r n e d o f t h e b i r t h o f t h e f u t u r e h is d r e a m .
A u g u s tu s fro m h is fa th e r O cta v iu s , and "as soon as he A u g u stu s h im s e lf b e n e fite d fro m a p re m o n ito ry d ream
k n e w th e h o u r o f th e c h ild b irth , h e a n n o u n c e d th a t a m a s te r t h a t s a v e d h i s l if e in t h e b a t t l e o f P h i l i p p i , u n d e r t a k e n i n 4 2

102
 R O M A N D ! V I N A T I O N

B.c. a g a in s t th e m u r d e r e r s o f Ju liu s C a e s a r . O n c e w h e n h e h a d m a n y c r u c i a l e v e n t s i n t h e l if e o f A u g u s t u s : h i s s u p e r n a t u r a l
d e c id e d to s ta y in h is c a m p b e c a u s e o f th e s ta t e o f h is h e a lth , c o n s e c ra tio n (f o r h e w o u ld b e c o m e A u g u s t u s ) , h i s v ic to r y -
h e w a s d i s s u a d e d fro m th is b y o n e o f h is frie n d s w h o h a d h a d o v e r h is r iv a ls ( f o r h e w o u ld t r iu m p h d e fin itiv e ly a t A c tiu m
a d r e a m . H e d id w e ll to t a k e h is a d v i c e : t h e e n e m y p illa g e d in 3 1 b. c . ) , a n d h i s e n d , w h i c h w a s n o t f a r o f f ( f o r h i s f a t e
h is c a m p , t h r e w its e lf u p o n th e p a l a n q u i n w h e r e h e n o r m a ll y w o u l d b e s e a l e d i n a . d . 1 4 ) . 87
w o u l d h a v e b e e n r e s t i n g , a n d c o m p l e t e l y t o r e it a p a r t . 80 B u t i n t h e e n d , t h i s is a d i s t o r t i o n o f t h e a n c i e n t m e a n i n g
S u ch w a s th e v a s t a r r a y o f divinandi genera th a t flo u rish e d o f th e a u s p i c e s . C e r t a in l y th e a lle g o r ic a l in te r p r e t a t io n o f th e
at th e advent and d u rin g th e re ig n of A u g u s tu s . To a ll b e h a v i o r o f b i r d s i s f o r e i g n t o t h e s t r i c t r u l e s o f a u g u r y -. Y e t
a p p e a r a n c e s , t h e p i c t u r e is q u it e v a r ie d . Y e t o n c lo s e r i n s p e c ­ th is p r a c ti c e , f a v o r e d b y th e a c tiv itie s o f th e h a r u s p i c e s , d id
tio n , th e tra d itio n a l f o r m s o f d iv in a tio n h a d n ot b een sub ­ n o t o b lite ra te th e respect fo r a n c e s tr a l p r a c tic e s . A u g u r y lo st
m erg ed , in s p ite o f th e in v a s io n o f o n e iro m a n cv and th e n o n e o f its o f fic ia l i m p o r t a n c e .
(m o re tim id ) in c u r s io n o f a s tro lo g y . A n y th in g e lse w o u ld T h e b e s t p r o o f o f th is is t h e fo ll o w i n g t e s t im o n y : " D u r i n g
h a v e b e e n a s to n is h in g d u r in g th e re ig n o f a n e m p e r o r w h o h is t a k in g o f t h e a u s p i c e s , a t t h e t im e o f h is [ O c t a v i a n 's ] first
lo o k e d to m a in ta in b a la n c e d q u a n titie s o f th e tra d itio n a l a n d c o n s u la te , tw e lv e v u ltu r e s a p p e a r e d to O c ta v ia n a s th e y h a d
th e in n o v a t i v e in h is r e lig io u s p o lic ie s . W h e n h is b i o g r a p h e r t o R o m u l u s i n t h e p a s t . " 88
w r ite s th a t h e w a s p a r tic u la r ly s e n s itiv e to ostenta, it m u s t n o t T h e e x c e p t i o n a l c h a r a c t e r o f th e s e a u s p i c e s , w h ic h w e re
b e f o r g o tt e n t h a t in o r d e r t o i n te r p r e t t h e m , h e a l m o s t a l w a y s re se rv e d fo r o n ly tw o p e rso n a g e s in R om an h isto ry , w as
tu r n e d , f o llo w in g th e o ld c u s t o m th a t h a d b e e n a d a p te d to s tre s s e d b y A u g u s ta n p r o p a g a n d a . T h e c o n n e c tio n b e tw e e n
R om an w ays, to q u a lifie d e x p e rts, th e h a ru sp ice s , fo r th e R o m u lu s a n d A u g u s t u s , b e n e f ic ia r ie s o f th e s a m e h e a v e n ly -
i n te r p r e t a t io n o f lig h tn i n g f la s h e s a s w e ll a s o f th e ex ta (th e fa v o r, h e ld a c le a r m e a n in g fo r th e c o n te m p o r a r ie s o f th e
v i c t i m 's v i s c e r a ) a n d t h e auspicia ( t h e o b s e r v a t i o n o f b i r d s ) . 81 la tte r: a t a d is ta n c e o f s e v e r a l c e n tu r ie s , th e f o u n d e r o f th e
F o r m o s t o f th e p o r te n ts p ro v o k e d b y lig h tn in g th a t h a v e e m p ire h ad ra ise d h im se lf u p to th e g lo rio u s ran k o f th e
been e n u m e ra te d , th e h a ru sp ice s w ere c o n s u lte d b o th to f o u n d e r o f t h e c ity .
in te rp re t th e e v e n t a n d to s ta v e o f f its u n p le a s a n t c o n s e ­ F u rth e rm o re , A u g u s tu s w o u ld never have d re a m e d of
q u en ces. d is d a in in g th e d ig n ity o f a u g u r y . N o t o n ly d id h e h im s e lf
The sam e s p e c ia lis ts a llo w e d A u g u s tu s to b e n e fit fro m h o ld th is o f fic e — w h ic h w o u ld appear to have been th e
t h e ir c o m p e t e n c e in e x t is p ic in a r v c o n s u l t a ti o n s . T h u s , in th e e a r l i e s t o f h i s p r i e s t l y p o s i t i o n s 8**— b u t h e a l s o s c r u p u l o u s l y -
c o u r s e o f a s a crifice th a t O c ta v ia n o ffe re d d u rin g h is first re sp e cte d th e Ju lia n tra d itio n w h ic h in c lu d e d g iv in g m a jo r
co n su la te , "th e h a ru s p ic e s u n a n im o u s ly in te r p r e te d as an p o w e r t o t h e a u g u r a l o f fic e .** 0 A n d w h e n h e w o u l d l a t e r e r e c t
o m e n o f p r o s p e r i t y ' a n d g r a n d e u r t h e f a c t t h a t t h e l i v e r s o f a ll a s a n c t u a r y to h is d e ifie d fa th e r , h e w o u ld ta k e c a r e n o t to
o f t h e v i c t i m s w e r e f o l d e d i n w a r d . " 82 In t h e s a m e w a y , t h e y fo rg e t th e a ttrib u te o f th e a u g u r: o n a g o ld d e n a riu s th a t
in te rc e d e d n ear P e ru sia in th e co u rse of a s a crificia l re p re s e n te d th e c u ltic s ta t u e o f th e e m p e r o r s ta n d in g be­
c e le b ra tio n — a n d h e re th e w a y th a t th e y a c te d s h o w s w ith n e a th th e p o rtico o f h is te m p le , C a e sa r a p p e a rs w ith th e
w h a t r a p id ity t h e y c o u ld a d a p t t h e m s e lv e s to c ir c u m s t a n c e s . litu u s91
A u g u s tu s , w h o h ad n o t b e e n a b le to o b ta in th e litatio (th e
g o d s' a p p ro v a l of h is sa crifice ), had g iv e n th e ord er to
4. Divination and Syncretism
in c re a s e th e n u m b e r o f v ic tim s , w h e n s u d d e n ly th e e n e m y
ru sh ed in a n d c a rrie d o f f a ll th e s a c r e d p re p a ra tio n s . T h e A l t h o u g h th e re ig n o f A u g u s t u s r e v e a ls a k in d o f e q u ilib ­
r e a c tio n o f th e h a r u s p ic e s : "A ll th e p e rils a n d e v ils f o re to ld to riu m b e tw e e n th e a n cie n t tra d itio n s and new fo rm s of
t h e s a c r i f i c e r w o u l d f a ll u p o n t h o s e w h o h e l d t h e exta (th e d iv in a tio n , it m u st be added th a t th is e q u ilib riu m w as
v i s c e r a o f t h e v i c t i m s ) , a n d s o it c a m e t o p a s s . ' ' 83 p r e c a r i o u s . It w o u l d n o t t a k e l o n g t o a c c o m p l i s h a n e v o l u t i o n
T h e o b s e r v a tio n o f b ird s a ls o a llo w e d fo r e x e g e s e s " i n th e th a t w o u ld m ake th e o ld o p p o s itio n d is a p p e a r . We h ave
E tr u s c a n s ty le ," i .e ., fo r s y m b o lic in te r p r e ta tio n s th a t w e n t a lr e a d y s h o w n th e f u n d a m e n ta l d iffe re n c e b e tw e e n R om an
beyond th e fu n ctio n s of th e R om an au g u r. On sev eral a u g u ry a n d E tru s c a n h a ru sp icy .
o c c a s i o n s t h e a p p e a r a n c e o f a n e a g l e is n o t e d i n t h e c o u r s e o f R o m a n a u g u ry - w a s n o t d i v i n a to r y in th e s tr i c t s e n s e o f th e
A u g u s t u s 's c a r e e r . w o r d : its ta s k w a s to g u a r d th e g o o d r e l a ti o n s b e t w e e n g o d s
T h e firs t t im e is p a r t ic u la r l y s ig n if i c a n t . " W h i l e O c t a v i a n a n d m e n . T h e h i g h e s t m a g i s t r a t e a l o n e ( w h o w a s c l o t h e d in
w as h a v in g h is lu n ch in a fo rest c lo s e to th e fo u r th th e imperium ) w a s i n v e s te d w ith th e rig h t to ta k e a u s p i c e s : h e
m ile s to n e o n th e w a y to C a m p a n ia , a n e a g le s u d d e n l y s to le re lie d o n th e te c h n ic a l a s s i s t a n c e o f th e a u g u r to a s c e r t a in th e
t h e b r e a d f r o m h i s h a n d ; it f l e w h i g h i n t o t h e s k y a n d t h e n a g re e m e n t o r d isa g re e m e n t o f h e a v e n w ith an e n te rp ris e .
s u d d e n l y d e s c e n d e d s l o w l y ( leniter ) a n d r e t u r n e d t h e b r e a d T T ie i n i t i a t i v e t a k e n b y t h e k i n g - a u g u r R o m u l u s r e t a i n e d a n
to h i m . " 84 T h i s " m i r a c le ," w h ic h b o re th e p ro m is e of a e x e m p l a r y v a l u e o v e r t h e c e n t u r i e s : it is n o t b y c h a n c e t h a t
h e a v e n ly c o n s e c r a t io n , r e c a lls th e a n a l o g o u s p o r t e n t o f th e A u g u s t u s in s is te d o n en jo y -in g th e s a m e c e le s tia l p riv ile g e .
e a g l e t h a t t o o k a w a y a n d r e t u r n e d L u c u m o n 's h e a d g e a r o n H a ru s p ic y , b y c o n tr a s t, m a n ife s te d d iv in a to r y p r e te n s io n s
t h e r o a d t o R o m e . 85 fro m th e very s ta r t. To th is end, it u sed th re e p rin cip a l
A n o th e r o m e n c a r r ie s a n e q u a lly t r a n s p a r e n t s y m b o lis m . p r o c e d u r e s : th e e x a m in a tio n o f th e exta, e s s e n tia lly o f th e
T h e t r i u m v i r a t e h a d j u s t b e e n e s t a b l i s h e d ( i n 4 3 b. c .) b e t w e e n liv e r; th e in te r p r e t a t io n o f p o r t e n t s ; a n d th e o b s e r v a tio n a n d
A n to n y , L e p id u s , and O cta v ia n , w hen th e tro o p s o f th e c o n j u r a ti o n o f lig h tn i n g . In c o n t r a s t w ith t h e s o b r i e ty o f th e
th r e e w e r e w itn e s s to th e fo llo w in g s ig h t a t B o lo g n a : " A n a u g u r a l a r t , h a r u s p i c y p r o f ite d f ro m th e p r e s tig e o f a te c h ­
e a g le , p e rc h e d on th e te n t o f O c ta v ia n , s tru c k dow n and n iq u e th a t w a s m o re p e rfe c te d and r i c h e r in p r o m is e s : it
k i ll e d t w o c r o w s t h a t h a d b e e n h a r a s s i n g it f r o m e i t h e r s i d e ; c o u ld p re d ic t th e fu tu re !
th e e n tire a r m y n o te d th a t o n e d a y th e re w o u ld b e d is c o r d — A s s u c h , it a r o u s e d b o t h t h e m i s t r u s t a n d t h e c u r io s i ty o f
as h ad been s h o w n — b e tw e e n th e th re e c o lle a g u e s , and th e R o m a n s . B e in g re a lis ts , th e R o m a n s d id n o t in te n d to b e
f o r e t o l d t h e o u t c o m e . " 86 d e p r iv e d o f th e s e r v ic e s o f h a r u s p ic y a n y m o r e th a n o f th e
R e ca ll th e o m in o u s e a g le o f th e c e r e m o n i e s o f th e lu s t r u m , "p re d ic tio n s " o ffered by th e Sibylline Books, w h ic h , even
w h e n J u p i t e r 's b i r d s e n t t h r e e o m e n s t h a t c o r r e s p o n d e d t o a s th o u g h th e y w e re of H e lle n ic o r ig in , had com e to th e m .

103
ROME

a c c o r d in g to tra d itio n , t h r o u g h th e in te r p o s itio n o f a n E tr u s ­ p o s sib ly o f t h e J e w s . 9” A f t e r v a r i o u s chan ges in fo r tu n e ,

can k in g , T a r q u in iu s S u p e r b u s . B u t th e y su b je cte d th e re ­ b e t w e e n t h e y e a r s a . d . 3 6 a n d 3 9 t h e E g y p t i a n I s is h a d f i n a ll y
q u e s t s m a d e t o t h e h a r u s p i c e s , a s w e ll a s t h e c o n s u l t a t i o n s o f o b t a i n e d a n o f f ic i a l t e m p l e i n R o m e , w h i c h w a s s i t u a t e d o n
th e in te rp re te rs o f th e Sibylline Books, to s tr ic t c o n tr o l b y th e t h e F i e l d o f M a r s . 99 T h i s w a s q u i t e a n e x c e p t i o n a l r i s e , s i n c e
S e n a te — w h o a lw a y s c o u ld m a k e d e c is io n s , a s a la st r e s o r t. t h i s c u l t w a s s till b e i n g p e r s e c u t e d u n d e r T i b e r i u s ( in a . d . 1 9 ,
T h u s , t h r o u g h o u t a ll o f t h e R o m a n R e p u b l i c , t h e p r i e s t l y a f t e r a s c a n d a l , t h i s e m p e r o r h a d a c h a p e l t o I s is d e s t r o y e d
body of au g u rs w as p la ce d in a k in d o f riv a lry w ith th e a n d its c u l t ic im a g e t h r o w n i n to th e T ib e r ). T h is w a s o n ly a
“ fo re ig n " p rie sts. O ur so u rces in d ic a te th a t th e re w as a b e g in n in g , c o n sid e rin g th e e x p a n s io n th a t it m u st have
c e r ta in te n sio n b e tw e e n th e n a tiv e p rie s ts a n d th e fo re ig n k n o w n in t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y , d u r i n g w h i c h t h e r e f l o u r i s h e d
" d i v i n e r s ." T h e a n e c d o te a b o u t th e h aru sp ex r e p o r te d by a m y s t i c i s m o f I s is t o w h i c h b o o k 11 o f t h e Metamorphoses of
C ic e ro is s y m p t o m a t i c of th is . C ic e ro , w ho h ad b een an A p u l e i u s is a l i t e r a r y w i t n e s s .
a u g u r a n d w h o w a s n o t a m a n w h o w o u ld m a k e fu n o f a In a g e n e r a l s e n s e , t h e s t r u c t u r e s o f t h e o f f ic i a l r e l i g i o n
R om an p rie st, re c o u n te d w ith g r e a t d e l e c t a ti o n th e s a y in g co u ld n o t h o ld o u t a g a in s t th e s e d u c tio n s o f O r ie n ta l c u r ­
a ttr ib u te d to C a to , th a t " o n e h a r u s p e x c a n n o t lo o k a t a n o t h e r r e n t s o f t h o u g h t . In a r e v e r s a l o f t h e p r o g r a m t h a t C i c e r o h a d
h a r u s p e x w i t h o u t l a u g h i n g . " 92 T h i s s h o w s h o w w r o n g s o m e p r e v i o u s l y s a n c t i o n e d , r e l i g i o n g a v e w a y t o s u p e r s t i t i o n . 100
m o d e r n s c h o la rs c a n b e w h e n th e y in te r c h a n g e a u g u r a n d A fo rm o f s u p e r s titio n w h o s e h o ld o v e r th e m in d b e c a m e
h a ru sp e x . s t r o n g e r a n d s t r o n g e r w a s a s t r o l o g y . W h i l e it h a d h e l d t h e
T h e tr e n c h b e tw e e n th e in d ig e n o u s a n d m ig r a to r y p r ie s tly a t te n t io n o f A u g u s t u s o n ly e p is o d i c a ll y (b y th e c h a n c e v is it to
b o d i e s w o u l d s o o n b e fi ll e d u p , h o w e v e r . C i c e r o h a d d r a w n T h e o g e n e s' o b se rv a to ry ), 11 it p l a y e d a g r e a t e r r o l e in t h e life
a c le a r lin e b e t w e e n R o m a n p r i e s t s a n d a u g u r s o n th e o n e o f T i b e r i u s , w h o a d m i tt e d th e a s tr o lo g e r T h r a s y l l u s i n to h is
h and and S ib y llin e in te r p r e te r s and h a ru s p ic e s on th e c i r c l e o f i n t i m a t e f r i e n d s . 102 S u e t o n i u s ' s r e m a r k a b o u t T i b e ­
o t h e r . 93 T h i s b o u n d a r y w o u l d b e c o m e b l u r r e d a f t e r t h e r e i g n r i u s i s q u i t e i l l u m i n a t i n g : 103 " U n c o n c e r n e d w ith g o d s a n d
o f A u g u s t u s . In t h e s y n c r e t i s t c l i m a t e t h a t c a m e t o c h a r a c ­ c u lts , s in c e he w as a f e r v e n t b e l i e v e r in a s t r o l o g y (quippe
te riz e th e e m p ire m o re and m o re, th e p o e ts s o m e tim e s addictus mathematicae) a n d w a s e n t i r e l y p e r s u a d e d t h a t a ll w a s
a n tic ip a te d in s titu tio n a l r e f o r m s . r u l e d b y f a t e (fato), h e n e v e r t h e l e s s h a d a n e x c e s s i v e fe a r o f
S o it w a s t h a t T i b u l l u s , o n t h e o c c a s i o n o f t h e e l e c t i o n o f t h u n d e r ; w h e n t h e s k y w a s s t o r m y , h e n e v e r fa ile d t o p l a c e a la u re l
h is frie n d V a le riu s M e s s a lla a s quindecimvir sacris faciundis, c r o w n o n h is h e a d b e c a u s e t h a t fo lia g e , it is s a id , c a n n o t b e t o u c h e d
a p p e a le d to A p o llo a s th e g o d w ho w o u ld th e n c e fo rth be b y l i g h tn i n g ." In t h e s a m e w a y , C a li g u l a re lie d o n th e g o o d
th o u g h t to co n ce n tra te a ll of th e d iv in a to ry p o w ers in o f f ic e s o f t h e a s t r o l o g e r S u lla . " M
h i m s e l f . 9 '1 T h e p o e t d o e s n o t e v e n h e s i t a t e , in p u s h i n g t h e It is n e v e r t h e l e s s t r u e th a t th e Ju lia n e m p e r o r s d id not
s p irit o f " c o n t a m in a t i o n " to th e e x t r e m e , to p la c e th e R o m a n r e je c t th e le g a c y o f th e A u g u s ta n tr a d itio n s . T h u s , C la u d iu s
a u g u r u n d e r th e o b e d ie n c e o f th e g o d : " P h o e b u s , b e p ro p i­ r e m a in e d lo y a l to th e m e m o r y o f th e f o u n d e r o f th e d y n a s ty
t io u s : a n e w p r ie s t e n t e r s in to y o u r s a n c t u a r y . . . Y o u , y o u t o t h e p o i n t o f c o n s i d e r i n g t h e v o w in t h e n a m e o f A u g u s t u s
s e e f a r i n t o t h e f u t u r e ; it is t o y o u t h a t t h e a u g u r w h o k n o w s t h e m o s t s a c r e d . 105 It w a s i n t h e s a m e s p i r i t t h a t h e i n t e r ­
th e fa te a n n o u n c e d b y th e p r o p h e tic b ird c o n s e c r a t e s h im ­ c e d e d in h i s r o l e o f s u p r e m e p o n t i f f in o r d e r i n g p r o p i t i a t o r y
s e lf; y o u g o v e r n th e o r a c l e s ; b y y o u r g r a c e , th e h a r u s p e x c a n p ra y e rs w hen a b ird of ev il om en w as re p o r te d at th e
s e e i n t o t h e f u t u r e , w h e n t h e s ti ll t h r o b b i n g v i s c e r a c a r r y t h e C a p i t o l . ,0f>
s ta m p o f th e g o d ; it is t h r o u g h y o u r in s p ira tio n th a t th e N e v e r t h e le s s , th e w a v e fro m th e E a st w o u ld f i n a ll y s u b ­
R om ans have never been m is g u id e d by th e S ib y l w ho m e r g e e v e r y t h i n g b y p r o g r e s s i v e l y u n d e r m i n i n g t h e o f f ic i a l
a n n o u n c e s h i d d e n d e s t i n i e s in s i x - f o o t e d v e r s e s . " 95 T h u s h e o r g a n s o f d i v i n a t i o n ( w h i c h c o n t i n u e d t o b e r e g i m e n t e d ) in
b r o u g h t to h e e l th e R o m a n a u g u r w h o , a l th o u g h t h e w a s n o t fa v o r o f a s a v a g e a n d u n c o n tro lle d fo rm o f p r o p h e c y . S o o n
l o n g b e f o r e " t h e i n te r p r e t e r o f J u p i te r ," n o w e n t e r s i n to th e Ju v e n a l w o u ld w rite th e f a m o u s v e r s e s : 107 " I c a n n o t , c i t i ­
s e r v i c e o f a g o d o f fo r e ig n o r ig in s ; in a d d it i o n , h e i n c o r p o ­ z e n s , t o l e r a t e a G r e e k R o m e ; a n d y e t , w h a t is t h e p r o p o r t i o n
r a t e d a ll d i v i n a t o r y f o r m s e x c l u s i v e l y u n d e r A p o l l o . o f t h e A c h a e a n e l e m e n t in t h e s e d r e g s ? It h a s b e e n a l o n g
It fe ll t o t h e e m p e r o r C l a u d i u s t o p r o c e e d w i t h t h e i n s t i ­ tim e now th a t th e riv e r o f S y ria , th e O ro n te s, has been
tu tio n a l re o rg a n iz a tio n . He gave a speech to th e S e n a te p o u r i n g i n t o t h e T i b e r . " F o r J u v e n a l , a G r e e k is c a p a b l e o f
re m in d in g th e m o f th e m e r its o f th e c o lle g e o f th e h a r u s ­ p ra c tic in g any k in d of tra d e ; to b e , am ong o th e r th in g s ,
p ice s , a n d a fte r a senatus consultum, h e o b ta in e d th e ir in c o r ­ " m a s s e u r , a u g u r , d o c t o r , m a g i c i a n . " ,<)8 A n d t h e p o e t a d d s a
p o r a t i o n i n t o t h e o f f ic i a l p r i e s t l y o r d e r . 9'’ It i s c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s a r c a s tic c o n f e s s io n : " W h a t w o u ld I d o w ith R o m e ? I c a n n o t
t h a t , in h i s a r g u m e n t s f o r h a r u s p i c y , C l a u d i u s p l a c e d th is t e ll a l ie . . . I d o n o t w is h to n o r c o u ld I p r o m is e a s o n th e
" m o s t a n c i e n t k n o w l e d g e in I t a l y " i n o p p o s i t i o n t o " f o r e i g n d e a th o f h is fa th e r. I h ave n e v e r e x a m in e d th e v is ce ra of
s u p e r s titio n s ." f r o g s . " 109 W h a t e v e r e x c e s s e s o f l a n g u a g e w e a l l o w a s a t i r i c a l
But th is re in fo rc e m e n t and c o n s o lid a tio n of th e I t a li c p o e t , h e s t i g m a t i z e s a d iv in a tio n t h a t h a d b e e n d e g r a d e d in to
p rie s tly b o d y d id n ot im p ed e th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f a n o th e r a ll s o r t s o f d e v i a n t f o r m s — a p h e n o m e n o n t h a t w a s a ll t o o
p h e n o m e n o n w h ic h w a s to g r o w m o r e a n d m o r e p o w e rfu l:
th e " s a v a g e " s u p e r s t it io n th a t w o u l d w in o v e r a t e v e r y le v e l.
C i c e r o ' s b r o t h e r , w h o a d m i t t e d t h e l e g i t i m a c y o f t h e o f f ic i a l
m e a n s o f d iv in a tio n , a t th e e n d o f h is r e p o r t d e n o u n c e d th e
c h a r la ta n s of th e p ro f e s s io n : "d ra w e rs of lo ts, d iv in e rs
greed y fo r p ro f it, c a llin g up s o u ls ( p s y c h o m a n c y ] ." He
NOTES
re je c te d e q u a lly " M a r s ia n a u g u r s , v illa g e h a r u s p i c e s , c ir c u s
1. The word "auspice" used in the title of this section and later
a s tr o lo g e r s , p ro p h e t-v o ta rie s of Is is , and in te r p r e te r s of in the text is to be understood in the etymological sense: "observa­
d r e a m s " — a ll o f w h o s e p r o p h e c i e s w e r e b a s e d o n n o th in g tion of birds" (auspicium from avis and specio).
b u t i m p o s t u r e . 97 2. J. Defradas, La divination en Grèce, in La divination (Paris 1968),
W hen C la u d iu s a llu d e d to th e externae superstitiones, he 1:194.
w a s p r o b a b l y t h i n k i n g i n p a r t i c u l a r o f t h e d i v i n e r s o f I s is a n d 3. Pliny, N.H., 7.15.

104

4. Tacitus, Atm., 1.54.
5. Varro, L.L., 5.85. Cf. the note by J. Collart in his edition of
book 5 of Varro (Paris 1954), 198, n. 5.
6. The most important editions of the Iguvine Tablets are:
G. Devoto, Tabulae Iguvinae (2d ed., Rome 1940); Le tavole di Gubbio
(Florence 1948); J. W. Poultney, The Bronze Tables of Iguvium (Balti­
more and Oxford 1959); see also the linguistic commentary by
E. Vetter, Handbuch der italischen Dialekte, 1 (Heidelberg 1953). The
text has been elucidated, except for certain specific points.
7. For example, the observation of omens of the Iguvine Tablets
(6a, 1-7) includes the following distribution of birds: in one category
the parra (Umbrian parfa) and cornix (Umbrian curnase ); in the other,
the picus (Umbrian peiqu) and pica (Umbrian peica). On the other
hand, the text of Plautus (Asinaria, 259-61) arranges in the same
category the green woodpecker (picus) and the crow (cornix) and in
another category the nightjar (parra) and the raven (corvus). Thus,
two differences appear from the beginning between these two
divinatory formulae: (1) the magpie (pica) of the Umbrian text takes
the place of the raven (corvus) of the Latin text, the two birds
otherwise belonging to the same family of Corvidae; (2) a reversal is
observed in the distribution: contrary to the Latin text, which groups
cornix and picus, the Umbrian text associates cornix and parra;
corresponding symmetrically to the Latin group cotvus and parra is
the Umbrian pair pica and picus. With regard to the respective
orientations of these pairs of birds, the obscurity of certain Umbrian
words makes it impossible to resolve the problem: thus the dispute
over the meaning of dersua continues between G. Devoto (Tab.
Iguvinae, 1940, p. 142), who favors the Latin translation dextra, and
E. Vetter (Handb. der Hal. Dial., 1953, 1:229-31), who opts for the
Latin translation prospera, excluding the meaning of "right."
8. Cf. Pliny, N.H., 13.88; Dionysius of Halicarnassus, 4.62;
Aulus Gellius, N.A., 1.19. The Sibyl had first proposed nine books to
Tarquin the Proud. When the king found the price too high, she
burned three and offered the six others at the same price. Refused
again by the king, she destroyed another three books. Impressed,
the king decided to buy the three remaining books at the price set for
the set of nine. The Sibylline Books deposited in the temple of
Capitolinus Jupiter were lost when this monument burned in 83 b. c.
More or less reconstructed, they were subject to a selection under
Augustus and were transferred to the Palatine, where they were
placed "under the statue of Palatine Apollo" (Suetonius, Aug., 31.1).
They remained there until the time of Honorius: then the regent of
that emperor, Stilicho, burned the "Sibylline oracles," which in the
eyes of Roman traditionalists were regarded as "pledges of the
Empire's eternity given by Fate"—aeterni fatalia pignora regni (Rutilius
Namatianus, De Reditu Suo, 2.52-55). The viri sacris faciundis succes­
sively increased in number from two to ten, and finally to fifteen.
9. Cf. Livy, 22.9.7-8. On this subject see my book La religion
romaine de Vénus (Paris 1954), 96ff., 228-29.
10. Cicero (De divin., 2 . 116) gives as precedent a verse by Ennius
(Ann., 174- 76, ed. Warmington), a Latin transposition of Apollo's
response to King Pyrrhus: A to te, Aeacida, Romanos vincere posse. The
meaning may be either "I affirm, O descendant of Aeacus, that you
can vanquish the Romans," or "I affirm . . . that the Romans can
vanquish you."
11. Pliny the Elder, N.H., 7.119. Bouché-Ledercq, Histoire de la
divination dans l'Antiquité, 4:129- 30, has expressed, with good rea­
son, the hypothesis of a Hellenic influence. With respect to the
plural Marcios quosdam fratres (Cicero, De divin., 1.89), which com­
petes with the singular Marcius (of the tradition represented by the
majority of authors), it seems arbitrary to reduce it to duality.
Contrary to the statement of Bouché-Ledercq (Histoire de la divina­
tion: "Cicero attributes the prophesies to the collaboration of two
brothers of that name"), Cicero has sometimes used an indetermi­
nate plural (ibid., 1.89; 2.113), sometimes the singular (ibid., 1.115).
12. This is the suggestion made by G. Wissowa (Encycl. of Relig.
and Ethics, 4:821 [1912]), who proposed a Latin verse transposition
drawn from the Sibylline Books.
13. De divin., 2.50. Servius cites (ad Aen., 6.72) a nymph Begoë
quae artem scripserat fulguritarum fsic) apud Tuscos.
14. In France there is a tradition of translating exta by entrailles
(entrails). This word seems wrong to me, however, because it merely
designates "l'ensemble des organes enfermés dans l'abdomen"
R O M A N D I V I N A T I O N
("the group of organs enclosed in the abdomen") (Diet. Robert). I
prefer the translation fressure (viscera), which has the advantage of
designating a set of visceral organs including the heart, liver, lungs,
and spleen. Except for the spleen, which the ancients replaced by the
gall bladder (fel)—but in ancient medicine "the spleen was thought
to secrete the bile"— these are exactly the organs that the Romans
understood (adding sometimes the peritoneum, omentum) under the
name exta: cor, jecur, pulmones.
15. Cf. Cicero, De divin., 1.12 and 35.
16. Cf. ibid., 1.72.
17. Cf. Macrobius, S., 3.7.2.
18. Livy, 1.34.8-9.
19. Cicero, De divin., 1.3.
20. Cf. the report by Cicero, De divin., 2.34.
21. Livy, 8.9.1.
22. On the process and the finality of the devotio, cf. G. Dumézil,
La religion romaine archaïque (2d ed., Paris 1974), 108-10; R. Schilling,
Religion et magie à Rome, Annuaire de l'École des Haute Études, Sciences
religieuses (1967—68), 39-40; reprinted in R.C.D.R.
23. Cf. Livy, 8.10.8.
24. Ibid., 8.9.1.
25. Cicero, De divin., 2.28.
26. An vos Tusci ac barbari auspiciorum populi Romani jus tenetis?
("Do you, Etruscans and barbarians, possess the right of divination
of the Roman people?"), wrote the father of the Gracchi, Tiberius
Sempronius Gracchus (consul in 177 b.c .), in his address to the
diviners who came to report to the Senate the illegality which he
had committed in the course of presiding over the meetings. It is a
cry from the heart, inspired by anger (Turn Gracchus . . . , incensus ira
. . . ). The scene is reported by Cicero (N.D., 2.11).
27. Cicero, De divin., 2.51. In the treatise N.D., 1.71, Cicero cites
the "saying" without referring to Cato. This citation has been
remembered incorrectly by moderns, who have substituted the
augur for the diviner. This is a contradiction that violates the "spirit"
more than the "letter" of the text of Cicero.
28. Cicero, De divin., 2.28. In the preceding context, Cicero had
wanted to give reassurance in advance, by declaring "that it is
necessary to respect the diviner out of regard for the interests of the
state and the communal religious practices."
29. Livy, 42.20.
30. Ibid., 42.20.3: The decemviri made the following recommen­
dations: "It is necessary to proceed to a lustration of the city, to
organize supplications and solemn prayers, to sacrifice victims of
great size on the Capitoline in Rome and at the Promontory of
Minerva in Campania; the games should be celebrated for ten days
as soon as possible in honor of Jupiter, the good and great." (On the
Promontory of Minerva, facing the Isle of Capri, is a temple of
Minerva.)
31. Ibid., 42.20.4.
32. For the two cults of Praeneste and Antium, see the recent
restatement with the essential bibliography of K. Latte, Römische
Religionsgesclnchte, 176ff. On the interpretation of Fortuna Primigenia,
cf. G. Dumézil, Déesses latines et mythes védiques (Brussels 1956),
71-98.
33. Cicero, De divin., 2.85.
34. Ibid., 86-87.
35. These investigations have been published by F. Fasolo and
G. Gullini, II santuario della Fortuna Primigenia a Palestrina (Rome
1953).
36. K. Latte, Römische Religionsgeschichte, p. 177: "Nicht Sorgen
des Staats, sondern Fragen von Leuten, die Angst haben, getäuscht
zu werden, oder um den Ausgang einer Unternehmung besorgt
sind, werden hier beantwortet." Latte then wonders, "Vielleicht war
es in alter Zeit anders." I do not think that it was different long ago:
with his customary conscience, Livy would not have omitted to
mention an official consultation of the sortes. But he does not cite this
in the outline of a set of marvels: see the documentation cited below.
37. Martial, 5.1.3: Tua responsa veridicae discunt sorores. Since the
tua responsa refers to Domitian, these "sisters" contented themselves
with repeating "the truth" of the emperor.
38. Suetonius (Caligula, 57.6) limits himself to noting that Caligula
was warned by the Fortunes of Antium to take precautions against
Cassius (Monuerunt et Fortunae Antiatinae ut a Cassio caveret). As for
105
ROM E
Macrobius (1.23.13), he says that at Antium they take the statues of
the Fortunes out on procession "to get answers," and he makes the
connection with the statue of the god of Heliopolis, carried on a litter
by the notables who advance "not according to their whim, but
under the influence of the god who guides them as he wills."
39. Patavium (Padua) was the seat of an oracle of Geryon.
Tiberius went to consult him: "He drew out a tablet which invited
him to throw golden dice into the source of the Aponus; it happened
that the dice he threw indicated the highest figure" (Suetonius,
Tiberius, 14.4). It was a good omen for his future reign.
40. Livy, 21.62.5. Further on, § 8, Livy takes up the expression
again with a variant: Caere, ubi sortes adtenuatae erant. With regard to
the miracle of the shrinking of the sortes. Pliny the Elder (N.H.,
34.137) cites an analogous case: the family of the Senulii possessed a
triens (one-third of an as) that had the property of increasing and
decreasing.
41. Livy, 22.1.11: Et Faleris caelum findi vehit magno luatu visum,
quaque patuerit, ingens lumen effulsisse; sortes sua sponte adtenuatas
unamque excidisse ita inscriptam: Mavors telum suum concutit.
42. Livy, 43.13.3-6. With respect to the two sanctuaries of
Fortuna in Rome, it is probable that the first is designated the
sanctuary of the Forum boarium. Cf. J. Lugli, Roma antica. II centro
monumentale (Rome 1946), 554. With respect to the second, Fortuna
Primigenia, which is situated on the hill (of Quirinal), cf. J. Lugli,
Fontes ad topographiam veteris urbis Romae pertinentes (Rome 1957),
4:207, nos. 39, 40.
43. Livy, ibid., 43.13.1-2.
44. E. Benveniste, Le vocabulaire des institutions indo-européennes
(Paris 1969), 2:256: "the Latin radical ô (of omen) may be directly
compared with the Hittite verbal theme ha 'to believe; to hold as
true'; consequently, omen is interpreted as 'declaration of truth.’ A
fortuitous word, pronounced in a decisive circumstance, may be
accepted as an omen, as a true presage, as a sign of destiny." In the
same chapter the author analyzes "the series of words with precise
meaning: miraculum, monstrum, ostentum, portentum, prodigium. The
curious reader who is eager to grasp the semantic nuances that
distinguish these different terms should consult this book. The
relative abundance of similar terms in Latin, in the face of the unique
Greek word teras, is a fact symptomatic of the state of mind that we
are describing: E. Benveniste has restored the contrast on the
linguistic level.
45. Cicero, De divin., 2.84.
46. Cf. the text of De divin., 2.148, discussed in the article "Cicero
as Theologian" below.
47. J. Bayet, in the chapter "Présages figuratifs déterminants dans
l'antiquité gréco-latine," in Croyances et rites dans la Rome antique (Paris
1971), 60 and 63, rightly emphasized this aspect.
48. Suetonius, fulius, 81.
49. Incontestably a more menacing omen. Recall that in time of
war the doors of the temple of Janus are also open.
50. Cf. the text of Pliny, N.H., 28.17, cited above in § 1, "Divina­
tion or Auspices?"
51. Cf. Suetonius, luhus. 77.2: "He (Caesar) had the insolence to
say one day when the haruspex announced a bad omen after
examining organs in which the heart was lacking: the omen could
have been favorable if it had pleased him; it was not necessary to
interpret as a wonder the fact that the beast had no heart."
52. Suetonius, Aug., 92.1: Auspicia et omina quaedam pro certissimis
observabat ("He considered certain signs and omens to be absolutely
true").
53. Cf. the text of Cicero, De divin., 2.84, cited above.
54. Suetonius, Aug., 92.1 : si mane sibi calceus perperam ac sinister pro
dextro induceretur, ut dirum (observabat).
55. Ibid., 93.5. The nones correspond to the fifth day of the
month, except in March, May, July, and October, in which they fall
on the seventh day. But they are always on the ninth day (hence
their name) before the ides of the month (i.e., the thirteenth or
fifteenth).
56. Ibid., 96.5. In Greek Nikon means "victor," and Eutychus,
"fortunate, happy." The battle of Actium (31 b.c.), by eliminating
Antony, the ally of Cleopatra, confirmed the supremacy of Octavian,
the future Augustus. The biographer adds that later, Augustus had
106
a bronze statue of the ass and ass driver made (in the temple that he
built) at the site of his camp.
57. Ibid., 97.2. The "adjacent sanctuary" must be the Pantheon,
whose frieze door (even today) bears the inscription of the founder
in large capitals: M. AGRIPPA L(ucii) F(ilius) COS. TERTIUM FECIT.
By alighting above the letter A, the eagle, the messenger of Jupiter,
designates Augustus, who is believed to have been "called" by
heaven.
58. Ibid., 94.3. Suetonius invokes the testimony of Julius Mar­
athus for this prodigium.
59. Ibid., 94.4. Recall that, through his mother Atia—the daugh­
ter of Julia, who was the sister of Julius Caesar—the future Augustus
was the grandnephew of Julius Caesar before becoming his adopted
son.
60. Ibid., 94.9.
61. Ibid., 94.10.
62. Ibid., 94.15. The laticlavus was a tunic with two large bands of
purple that was reserved for senators. The anecdote is explained by
the fact that the children of senators also had the right to wear the
laticlavus (cf. ibid., 38.2).
63. Ibid., 94.16. The battle of Munda (45 b.c .) won over the sons
of Pompey and assured the definitive victory of Caesar. Later
Augustus transplanted to the interior of his home, near the Penates
and the opening of the compluvium, a palm that had grown in front
of his house (ibid., 92.3).
64. Ibid., 95.1. This marvel implied an omen of victory (the
crowned sun) by playing on the same symbolism many times:
Octavian, who was considered a son of Apollo (see the text of
Suetonius cited in note 59), returns to Apollonia and sees a solar
phenomenon.
65. Ibid., 94.2. The biographer adds that on the strength of this
promise, the inhabitants of Velitrae fought a series of unfortunate
wars against the Romans. "It was only later that events revealed that
the omen (of the thunderclap) had announced the power of Augus­
tus."
66. Ibid., 90.1. "To remedy it, he always carried with him a bit of
sealskin."
67. Ibid., 29.5.
68. Ibid., 95.1.
69. Ibid., 29.4.
70. Ibid., 97.3. Recall that after his adoption by Julius Caesar, he
bore the name C. /ulius. C(ai) f(ilius) Caesar. His contemporaries (and
after them the moderns) named him Octavianus, although he had
never borne this cognomen that named his family of origin. After 27
B.c. his official name had been Inifterator Caesar Augustus.
71. Ibid., 94.6.
72. Ibid., 94.17 . . . exiluit Theogenes adoravitque eum.
73. Ibid., 94.18. The sign of Capricorn still appears on the side of
the emperor's head on the large cameo of Vienna; it also served as
the emblem of the legions created by Augustus: cf. F. Cumont,
Dictionnaire des antiquités grecques et romaines, s.v. "zodiacus," p.
1054a. The interpretation of this sign seems to have led to confusion.
Suetonius (ibid., 94.18) wrote: "He coined pieces of silver in the
effigy of Capricorn, under which he was born" (nota sideris Capri­
corni, quo natus est . . . ). F. Cumont (Dictionnaire) has observed with
good reason that the sign of Capricorn, which corresponds to
January, can only designate the month of his conception and not that
of his birth (23 September of the year 63).
74. Cicero, De divin.. 1.11-12: Duo sunt enim divinandi genera,
quorum alterum artis est, alterum naturae. In the first category he
classes haruspicy (subdivided into the examination of the viscera,
the interpretation of marvels and omens, and lightning), augury,
astrology, and the interpretation of the sortes; in the second, oneiro-
mancy and predictions from dreams (somniorum aut vaticinationum
praedictio). See further ibid., 1.34.
75. Suetonius, Aug., 94.7.
76. Ibid., 94.5. The same dreams are recorded by Dio Cassius,
45.1.3.
77. Ibid., 94.8. The "transfiguration" of Augustus recalls the
ritual aspect of the conqueror during the victory ceremonies, even
while it suggests "by the air of superhuman majesty" (mortali specie
ampliorem) a very marked assimilation to Jupiter.
 R O M A N R E L I G I O N AND G R E E K P H I L O S O P H Y

78. Ibid., 94.12. The report of the first dream of Catulus includes
variants: cf. ibid., 94.13, and Plutarch, Cic.. 44.
79. Ibid., 94.14. The same dream is reported, with some varia­
tions of detail, by Dio Cassius, 45.2.2.
80. Ibid., 91.1. Cf. the similar accounts of Velleius Paterculus,
2.70, and of Valerius Maximus, 1.7.1.
81. Ibid., 92.2: Sed el ostentis praecipue movebatur.
82. Ibid., 95.2. Cf. the version (which gives a variant reading) of
Dio Cassius, 46.35.
83. Ibid., 96.3.
84. Ibid., 94.11. Cf. Dio Cassius, 45.2.1.
85. Cf. above, § 2, for the commentary on the text of Livy,
1.34.8-9.
86. Suetonius, ibid., 96.1. Cf. Dio Cassius, 47.1.3.
87. Cf. above.
88. Cf. Suetonius, ibid., 95.2. With regard to Romulus, see above,
§ 1-
89. Octavian had been augur in 37 b.C. at the latest; quindecimvir
sacris faciundis. between 37 and 34; septemvir epulonum, in 16; Pontifex
maximus, in 12 b.c. Cf. R. Cagnat, Cours d'épigraphie latine (Paris
1914), 177.
90. On the exceptional character that Julius Caesar, like Sulla,
attributed to the law of auspices, see my book La religion romaine de
Vénus, p. 304.
91. The type of this aureus is described in the passage cited in the
preceding note.
92. Cf. above, § 2, especially note 7.
93. Cicero, .V.D.. 3.5: "Roman religion is divided into celebrations
and auspices; a third part has been added to it that consists of
warnings of a divinatory nature made by the oracles of the Sibyl or
the diviners, after man-els and omens."
94. M. Valerius Messalla Messallinus appeared as Quindecimvir
of the secular games of 17 b.c.: cf. Pighi, De ludis saecularibus (2d ed.,
Amsterdam 1965), 236, n. 35. On his personality, see D. von Lunzer,
in Pauly Wissowa, Real-Encyclopadie. s.v. Valerius Messalla Messalli­
nus, (sic), no. 264, cols. 159- 62.
95. Tibullus, 2.5.1 and 11-16. According to this text Valerius
Messalla also had to be an "interpreter of the Sibyl." The sanctuary
to which verse 1 alludes is called the temple of Palatine Apollo,
where Augustus had deposited the rest of the Sibylline Books.
96. Cf. Tacitus, Annales. 11.15.
97. Cicero, De divin., 1.132. The last phrase paraphrases the
expression of Ennius, cited by Quintus, the brother of Cicero:
impudentesque harioli.
98. Cf. Suetonius, Claud., 25.11: "As the Jews were agitated
continually at the instigation of someone named Chrestos (impulsore
Chresto), he expelled them from Rome." Orosius (Adversus paganos.
7.6.15) has cited and commented on this passage, substituting
Christo for the reading Chresto of Suetonius. When Tacitus (Annales,
15.44.5) speaks of Christ, he uses the form Christus. Egyptian and
Jewish cults are associated in the repression ordered by Tiberius: see
Suetonius, Tib., 36.1.
99. Cf. the sources indicated by G. Wissowa, Religion und Kultus
der Römer (2d ed., 1912), 352-55.
100. Cicero, De divin.. 2.148: "it is necessary to spread religion at
the same time as the study of nature, as much as it is necessary to
extirpate all the roots of superstition."
101. Cf. Suetonius, Aug., 94.17. Text cited in § 3 above, "Divina­
tion," especially note 72.
102. Cf. Suetonius, Tib.. 14.6. Cf. ibid., 14.3: a promise had been
made to Livia by the astrologer Scribonius that one day Tiberius
would rule.
103. Ibid., 69.
104. Suetonius, Calig ., 57.5.
105. Suetonius, Claud., 11.3.
106. Ibid., 22.2.
107. Juvenal, Satir.. 3.60ff.
108. Ibid., 7 6 - 77.
109. Ibid., 41-45.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
(See also the bibliography at the end of the article "Augurs and
Augury" below)
i. BAm, "Présages figuratifs déterminants dans l'antiquité gréco-
latine," in Croyances et rites dans la Rome antique (Paris 1971), 44 -63.
R. bloch. Les prodiges dans l'antiquité classique (Paris 1963). P. catalano,
Contributi alio studio dei diritto augurale. 1, Memorie dell'Istituto
giuridico (Turin 1960). f. clmovt. Astrology and Religion among the
Greeks and Romans (New York and London 1912). s. weinstocx, Diuus
Julius (Oxford 1971).

P o l y b i u s , w h o h a p p e n e d t o b e s ta y in g in R o m e a n d w a s a
R o m a n R e l ig io n and G r eek P h il o s o p h y frie n d o f P. C o rn e liu s S c ip io A e m ilia n u s , p ro n o u n ce d an
a d m ir in g j u d g m e n t o n th e R o m a n in s titu tio n s t h a t s e e m e d to
h im to r e p r e s e n t a h a p p y b a la n c e a m o n g e le m e n ts th a t w e re
T h e R o m a n s h a v e n e v e r b e e n n o te d - fo r th e ir " p h i lo s o p h i c a l m o n a rc h ic a l (th e C o n s u ls ), a r is to c r a tic (th e S e n a te ), and
b r a i n s ." T h is c o m m o n p la c e , th o u g h it h a s som e b a sis of d e m o c r a tic (th e R o m a n p e o p le a s s is te d b y th e trib u n e s o f th e
tru th , s h o u ld be te m p e re d . P lin y th e E ld e r (in Naturalis P le b e ia n s ). W h a t d id h e r e g a rd a s th e s e c r e t o f th e R o m a n
Historia 7 .1 1 2 ) te lls a f a m o u s a n e c d o te a b o u t th e r e a c tio n o f s u c c e s s ? C e r t a i n l y h e g a v e it n o p h i l o s o p h i c a l b a s i s ; n o c o d e
C a to th e E ld e r to th e first G re e k p h ilo s o p h e r s w h o w e re s u c h a s th a t o f A th e n s in s p ire d b y th e " w i s e " S o lo n w a s to
h e a r d in R o m e . T h e r e w e r e t h r e e o f t h e m , w h o h a d c o m e o n b e f o u n d a n y w h e r e h e r e . P o ly b iu s ( 6 .5 6 ) d id n o t h e s i t a te to
a m i s s i o n i n 1 5 5 B .c . t o p l e a d t h e c a u s e o f t h e d t y o f A t h e n s , s a y : " O n e o f th e g r e a te s t a d v a n ta g e s o f th e R o m a n c o n s titu ­
w h ic h at th e tim e w as in c o n flic t w ith th e A ttic c ity of tio n s te m s fro m its c o n c e p t i o n o f d iv in ity . T h e s tr e n g th of
O ro p u s . T h e y re p re s e n te d th re e p h ilo s o p h ic a l te n d e n c ie s : R o m a n d o m i n a t io n c o m e s f r o m a t h in g t h a t is c o n s i d e r e d a
C a r n e a d e s , th e A c a d e m y ; D io g e n e s , S to ic is m ; a n d C r ito la u s , fla w a m o n g o t h e r m e n , a n d b y th a t I m e a n th e deisidaimo-
th e P e rip a te tic s c h o o l. A fte r lis te n in g to C a r n e a d e s , C a to th e nian.” (T h e G reek term is a m b i g u o u s ; it c a n m ean b o th
c e n s o r c rie d o u t, "T h e a m b a s sa d o rs h a v e to b e se n t b ack " r e v e r e n tia l f e a r " a n d " s u p e r s t it i o u s f e a r " o f th e g o d s .)
im m e d ia te ly , fo r th e d ia le c tic o f s u c h a m a n (illo viro argu­ L e t u s tu r n t o th e R o m a n s o u r c e s . In th e s e c o n d c e n t u r y
mentante) m a k e s it im p o s s i b le t o d i s c e r n th e t r u t h ." (P lin y b.c . , th e L a tin a d a p ta tio n s o f th e poet E n n iu s (2 3 9 -1 6 9 ),
c a n n o t h e l p a d d in g t h a t t h e c e n s o r 's g r e a t g r a n d s o n , C a to Epicharmus and Euhemerus sive Sacra Historia, h e lp e d to
U tic e n s is , b r o u g h t t w o G r e e k p h il o s o p h e r s b a c k w ith h im a t s p r e a d th e p h ilo s o p h ic a l id e a s o f E p ic h a r m u s , a p h ilo s o p h e r -
th e e n d o f h is m is s io n s a b r o a d . Quanta morum commutatio! p o e t fro m C o s (5 4 0 -4 5 0 ), an d o f E u h e m e r u s , a ra tio n a lis t
c o m m e n t s t h e n a tu r a l s c ie n ti s t .) th e o re tic ia n (b o m c a . 3 4 0 b . c ., a n d o f u n c e r t a i n o r i g i n ) . F o r
In a n o th e r te s tim o n y d a tin g fro m a tim e c lo s e to th is b o th , th e g o d s w e r e n o th in g b u t fo r m e r m o r ta ls w o r s h ip e d
m is s io n of th e G reek p h ilo s o p h e r s , th e G reek h isto ria n by m a n k in d as a re s u lt of th e ir good d eed s. F la g ra n tly

107
ROM E

c o n tra d ic tin g th e R om an tr a d itio n s w h ic h m u st have im ­ th e E p ic u r e a n p o e m o f L u c r e tiu s , th e De rerum natura (b e fo re

p r e s s e d P o ly b iu s w ith th e ir fo r c e , th e s e id e a s p r o b a b ly d id 5 5 b.c . ). W h e n De natura deorum, w r i t t e n b y C i c e r o in 4 5 b. c .,
n o t o v e r s te p th e lim its o f th e c ir c le s o f " i n i t i a t e s ," s u c h a s i n s i s t s in i t s p r e a m b l e o n t h e o p p o r t u n i t y , i n d e e d t h e n e c e s ­
" t h e c i r c l e o f t h e S c i p i o s " ( s e e P. G r i m a i , Le Siècle des Sapions sity , f o r t h e o l o g i c a l r e f l e c t i o n , it r a p i d l y c i r c u m s c r i b e s t h e
( 2 d e d . , P a r i s 1 9 7 5 ] ) . P a r a d o x i c a l l y , it is i n t h e w o r k o f t h i s d e b a te b e tw e e n th re e m a jo r te n d e n c ie s : E p ic u re a n is m (r e p ­
" e n l i g h t e n e d " a u t h o r t h a t a t te m p t s h a v e b e e n m a d e to fin d re s e n te d b y C . V e lle iu s ), S to ic is m (b y Q . L u c iliu s B a lb u s),
a f o rm u la th a t w o u ld " e x p l a i n " th e m e n ta lity o f th e a v e r a g e a n d th e n e w A c a d e m y (b y C . A u r e liu s C o tta ). A b o v e a ll, th e
R o m a n . S o m e o n e n a m e d N e o p t o l e m u s c r ie s o u t in a tr a g e d y d isc u s sio n p its th e E p ic u re a n te a ch in g a g a in s t th e S to ic
o f E n n iu s (Tragoediae § 4 0 0 , e d . E . H . W a r m i n g t o n [ 1 9 6 7 ] , v o l . d o c trin e , w h ile th e re p r e s e n ta tiv e of th e new A cadem y
1, p . 3 6 8 ) : philosophari mihi necesse, paucis, nam omnio haud a s s u m e s t h e r o l e o f a m o d e r a t o r w h o c l a i m s t o b e f r e e o f a ll
placet (I m u s t p h i l o s o p h i z e — s o m e t i m e s ; b u t I c a n n o t k e e p d o g m a tic p re ju d ic e .
d o i n g it a l w a y s a n d i n e v e r y t h i n g ) . T h i s r e m a r k o f a c h a r a c ­ In t h e c o u r s e o f t h i s d i s c u s s i o n , t h e f u n d a m e n t a l c o n t r a s t
t e r w i t h a G r e e k n a m e , w h i c h is t a k e n f r o m a f r a g m e n t o f a b e tw e e n E p ic u re a n is m and S to icism in m in d s s te e p e d in
lo s t t r a g e d y , te lls u s n o t h i n g s p e c if ic a b o u t th e s ta t e o f th e R o m a n t r a d i t i o n s is r e v e a l e d in a s u d d e n b u r s t . T h e m o r e t h e
R o m a n m in d , a n y m o re th a n a n o th e r re m a rk g le a n e d fro m re lig io u s p o stu re o f E p ic u re a n is m seem ed a lie n to th e m ,
th e s a m e a u t h o r e n lig h te n s u s a b o u t th e m o tiv e s b e h in d th e even d e v ia n t, th e m o re S to icism seem ed c lo s e to c e rta in
p o e tic in s p ira tio n o f E n n iu s : numquam poetor, nisi si podager (I e s s e n t ia l a s p e c t s o f R o m a n t h e o lo g y . F irs t o f a ll, t h e r e w a s
n e v e r in d u lg e in p o e t r y u n le s s I a m s u f fe rin g fro m g o u t: th e c o n c e p tio n o f th e g o d s . E p ic u re a n is m is k n o w n t o h a v e
Saturae § 2 1 , i b id . 1 , p . 3 9 0 ) . N e o p t o l e m u s ' s o b s e r v a t i o n w a s lo c a liz e d th e m in th e intermundia, th e s p a c e s b e tw e e n th e
la te r to g iv e C ic e r o (Tusculanae Disputationes 2 . 1 - 2 ) th e o p ­ w o r ld s . T h e y a r e s u p p o s e d to h a v e a h u m a n a p p e a r a n c e , b u t
p o rtu n ity to o p p o s e th is a s s e r tio n (w h ich h e e x p la in e d in w it h o u t a n y f u n c tio n c o r r e s p o n d i n g to th e o r g a n s ; a b o v e a ll,
t e r m s o f c l a s s : N e o p t o l e m u s " w a s a m i l i t a r y m a n a b s o r b e d in th e y a re b e reft o f a n y a c tiv ity and a re re p u te d to e n jo y
h is c a r e e r " ) a n d to p r o c la im th e b e n e fits o f th e p e r m a n e n t e te rn a l h a p p in e s s .
p r a c tic e o f p h ilo s o p h y . N o th in g c o u ld h a v e s h o c k e d a R o m a n m o re , a c c u s to m e d
The co n tra sts re v e a le d in th e secon d ce n tu ry b.c . ( t h e a s h e w a s to c o n c e i v e o f a d e ity w ith a fu n c t i o n . T h u s th e
r e a c tio n o f C a to th e E ld e r to E n n iu s , w ho w as open to s p o k e s m a n fo r th e n e w A c a d e m y d id n o t h e s ita te to m o ck
H e lle n is m ) s h o w a t le a s t th a t a n c ie n t R o m e , a t la st v ic to r io u s th e s e gods "d e p riv e d of any r e a lity " (C ic . Nat. D. 1 .7 5 ) ,
o v e r th e m o s t f o r m id a b le e n e m y in its h i s t o r y ( th e v i c to r y o f "w ith o u t s o lid ity or th re e -d im e n s io n a l fe a tu re s" ( ib i d .
S c i p i o A f r i c a n u s o v e r H a n n i b a l a t t h e b a t t l e o f Z a m a in 2 0 2 1 .1 0 5 - 6 ) , w ho cann ot even be happy, s in c e th e y have
b.c . w a s to be capped by th e to ta l d efeat and s o le m n p e r m a n e n t i n s ta b ility (b y d e f in itio n , t h e ir e x i s t e n c e d e p e n d s
d e s t r u c ti o n o f C a r t h a g e in 1 4 6 ) , th e R o m e w h ic h h a d u n til o n a p r e c a r io u s b a la n c e b a s e d o n th e i n c e s s a n t flo w o f a t o m s ,
th a t d a t e liv e d o n s tr o n g a n c e s t r a l tr a d it i o n s (Moribus antiquis c o m p e n s a t e d fo r b y th e p e r p e tu a l e m is s io n o f " i m a g e s " fro m
res stat Romana virisque, " T h a n k s to th e c u s to m s a n d to th e t h e i r o w n b e i n g : i b id . 1 . 1 1 4 ) .
m en o f th e p a st, th e R om an s ta te s ta n d s firm "— a n o th e r Then t h e r e w a s th e n o tio n o f p ie ty . T h is w a s n o t o v e r ­
v e r s e o f E n n iu s [Annals § 4 6 7 , e d . W ., v o l. 1 , p . 1 7 4 ] ) — th a t lo o k e d by E p ic u ru s , w ho d e v o te d a tre a tis e to it, Peri
v ery Rom e w o u ld face o u ts id e in f lu e n c e s , e s p e c ia lly th e Hosiotëtos, w h ic h th e a c a d e m ic ia n C o tta m e n tio n s ( ib i d .
in flu e n c e o f G re e k s c h o o ls o f p h ilo s o p h y , a f te r th e c o n q u e s t 1 .1 1 5 ) . E p ic u ru s a d v is e d th e w is e to h o ld " p io u s o p in io n s
a n d s u r r e n d e r o f G r e e c e in 1 4 6 b. c . f o l l o w i n g t h e d e s t r u c t i o n a b o u t th e g o d s " (Letter to Menoeceus 1 3 3 ). A c c o rd in g to h im ,
o f C o rin th . " T h e i m p i o u s p e r s o n is n o t t h e o n e w h o d e s t r o y s t h e m o b ' s
A lth o u g h th e secon d c e n tu ry b. c . s h o w e d e v id e n ce of b e l i e f in t h e g o d s , b u t t h e o n e w h o a t t r i b u t e s t o t h e g o d s t h e
b a r e ly p e r c e p tib le s ti r r i n g s o n l y in e d u c a t e d c ir c le s — a n d th is c h a r a c te ris tic s b e s to w e d on th e m by th e m o b 's o p i n i o n s "
i d e o lo g ic a l c u r r e n t c o u ld n o t h a v e d istu rb e d th e mos maio­ ( ib i d . 1 2 3 ). E p ic u re a n p ie ty c o n s is ts in th e w is e m a n 's
rum, o n th e e v id e n c e o f P o ly b iu s — s u c h w a s n o lo n g e r th e m o d e lin g o f h im se lf o n d iv in e b e a titu d e : "Y o u s h a ll th u s
c a s e in t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y , a n d f o r a n u m b e r o f r e a s o n s . F i r s t , n e v e r e x p e rie n ce tro u b le , e ith e r d r e a m i n g o r w a k in g , but
th e c o n ta c ts b e tw e e n R o m e a n d G re e ce a n d th e N e a r E a st y o u s h a l l l iv e l ik e a g o d a m o n g m e n " ( i b i d . 1 3 4 ) .
b e c a m e m o r e f re q u e n t fo llo w in g th e m ilita ry c a m p a ig n s o f C o t t a 's r e a c t i o n t o t h is t e a c h i n g w a s a f u n c t i o n m o r e o f h is
S u ll a a n d P o m p e y in G r e e c e a n d in A s i a M i n o r . P l i n y t h e ro le as th e R om an p o n tife x th an of h is p o s itio n as an
E ld e r (Naturalis Historia 7 .1 1 2 ) te lls a r e v e a li n g a n e c d o t e th a t e x p o n e n t o f th e n e w A cad em y. "H o w c a n y o u e x p e c t ," h e
s h o w s h o w a g r e a t R o m a n w a r c h ie f w a s n o t im p e rv io u s to c r i e s t o V e l l e i u s , " t h a t m e n w ill honor g o d s w h o n o t o n ly d o
th e c h a r m o f G re e k w is d o m . W h e n P o m p e y r e tu r n e d fro m not treat men with honor, but h ave no con cern fo r th e m
th e w a r a g a in s t M ith r id a te s , h e s to p p e d t o v is it t h e S to ic w h a t e v e r a n d d o n o t h i n g ? " In L a t i n t h e f o r m u l a t i o n is m o r e
P o s i d o n iu s ( w h o liv e d o n th e is la n d o f R h o d e s ), p a id h im h is f o r c e f u l b e c a u s e it u n d e r s c o r e s t h e r e c i p r o c i t y o f t h e r e l a t i o n ­
re s p e c ts , and "m ad e h is tro o p s bow b e fo re th e g a te of s h ip (w h ich necessarily e x ists b e tw e e n m en and gods in
w is d o m ." R o m a n re lig io n ) t h r o u g h th e univocal
colere, u se o f th e w o rd
M o r e o v e r, a p ra c tic e h a d b e c o m e e s ta b lis h e d , o f c o m p le t­ Quid est enim cur
" t o h o n o r " a p p lie d to b o th g o d s a n d m e n :
in g th e e d u c a tio n of a yo u n g R om an w ho had begun h is deos ab hominibus " colendos" dicas, cum di non modo homines non
litterator ( w h o t a u g h t h i m
s tu d i e s w ith a r e a d in g a n d w ritin g ) ''colant,” sed omnino nihil curent, nihil agant? ( C i c . Nat. D.
an d a grammaticus ( w h o s t a r t e d h i m i n th e in te rp re ta tio n o f 1 .1 1 5 ) .
" c l a s s i c a l " t e x ts , G r e e k a s w e ll a s L a tin ) b y s e n d i n g h im to A fte r th a t, th e s o lip s is tic in d iffe re n c e o f th e E p ic u r e a n
s p e n d s o m e t i m e in G r e e c e t o r e c e i v e t r a i n i n g i n p h i l o s o p h y . g o d s c o u l d o n l y s c a n d a l i z e a R o m a n ' s m i n d . A l t h o u g h it is
C i c e r o is a g o o d e x a m p l e o f t h i s . tr u e th a t p ie ty fo r h im m a n ife s ts a re v e r e n tia l a n d e q u ita b le
C ic e ro a p p lie d h im se lf to th e ta sk of tra n s m ittin g th e g r a titu d e to w a rd th e k in d ly gods (est enim pietas justitia
h e r ita g e o f G re e k th o u g h t to h is R o m a n c o n t e m p o r a r i e s . T h e adversum deos: i b id . 1 .1 1 6 ), E p ic u re a n is m ap p ears to be
c h o ice th a t h e m ade is i n s t r u c t i v e , e s p e c i a l l y b ecau se th e m e re ly h a rm fu l a n d d e s tru c tiv e . T h e re fo re C o tta , w h o h a d at
w h o le C ic e r o n ia n e n te rp ris e b e lo n g s c h r o n o lo g ic a lly a fte r first g r a n t e d t h e s in c e r it y o f E p i c u r u s 's b e lie f in t h e g o d s

108
 R O M A N R E L I G I O N AND G R E E K P H I L O S O P H Y

( ib i d . 1 .8 6 ) , f i n a ll y c o n c l u d e s b y ra lly in g b e h in d th e S to ic 2 .6 6 ) . F in a lly , C ic e ro v ie w e d th e e n tire w o rld as a c ity

P o s i d o n iu s (ib id . 1 .1 2 3 ) , fo r w h o m E p ic u ru s w a s o n ly an c o m m o n t o b o t h g o d s a n d m e n ( i b i d . 2 . 7 8 ) , in w h i c h a ll t h e
a t h e is t in d i s g u i s e w h o p r o f e s s e d fa ith in t h e i m m o r ta l g o d s e le m e n ts — e a r th , w a te r, a ir, and fire — a r e m a in ta in e d in
o n l y in o r d e r t o a v o i d b e c o m i n g o d i o u s : invidiae detestandae p e rfe c t c o h e s io n b e c a u s e o f th e d iv in e s p irit th a t p e n e tr a te s
gratia. A fte r th a t any re c o n c ilia tio n b ecom es im p o s s ib le . e v e r y th in g .
C o tta seem s to b e ra isin g h is v o ic e in th e n a m e o f a ll o f T h e id e a o f a w o rld w h o lly c o n tro lle d b y d iv in e p ro v id e n c e
R om an tra d itio n w hen he la u n c h e s th is fin a l ju d g m e n t: (omnia regi divina mente atque providentia: i b i d . 2 . 8 0 ) is a t t h e
“ E p ic u r u s c o m p l e te l y e r a d i c a t e d re lig io n f r o m m e n 's h e a r t s o p p o site e n d o f th e s p e c tru m fro m th e E p ic u re a n is m th a t
w hen h e d e p riv e d th e i m m o r ta l g o d s o f th e p o s s ib ility o f p o s t u l a t e s i n d i f f e r e n t g o d s i n a n i n f i n i t y o f w o r l d s . It is v e r y
g r a n t i n g t h e m h e lp a n d g r a c e " (ib id . 1 .1 2 1 ) . c l o s e t o t h e t r a d i t i o n a l r e l i g i o u s v i s i o n a n d t h e r e f o r e i s n o t in
S t o i c t h e o l o g y is p r e s e n t e d q u i t e d i f f e r e n t l y . A t f i r s t it d o e s d a n g e r o f r u n n in g u p a g a in s t th e R o m a n pietas, w h ic h w a s
n o t s e e m a n y c l o s e r t o R o m a n t r a d i t i o n . O n t h e c o n t r a r y , i ts b a s e d o n t h e n o t i o n o f m u t u a l e x c h a n g e . O n t h e c o n t r a r y , it
c o s m ic c o n c e p t i o n d e ifie s th e w o r ld a n d th e s ta r s , re le g a tin g c a lls fo r a m o r e re fin e d fo rm o f p ie ty fo r th e b e lie v e r, o n e th a t
th e tr a d itio n a l d e itie s to th e r a n k o f m e n d a c i o u s in v e n tio n s a llo w s h im to d is tin g u is h b e tw e e n re lig io u s a t ti t u d e s a n d
o f fa b le : ad commenticios et /'ictos deos, to q u o te th e e x p r e s s io n a c t s o f s u p e r s t it io n (ib id . 2 .7 1 ) .
o f B a lb u s, th e s p o k e s m a n fo r S to icism (C ic . Nat. D. 2 .7 0 ) . B u t It r e c o m m e n d s an in n e r p ie ty in a d d itio n to th e m e re
b y a ffirm in g th e d iv in e on en ess w h ic h he d e fin e s a s "an f o r m a l p u r i t y o f t i m e p a s t . T h e o l d w a y is i l l u s t r a t e d b y a n
a rtfu l a n d c r e a ti v e fire th a t p e n e tr a te s th e w o r ld m e th o d i­ a n e c d o te th a t L iv y ( 1 .4 5 .6 ) te lls about th e R om an w ho
c a lly " (ignem artificiosum ad gignendum progredientem via: i b id . r e m in d s th e S a b in e o f h is o b lig a tio n to w a s h h is h a n d s b e fo r e
2 .5 7 ) , S to icism p ro v es to be h ig h ly fle x ib le in th e face o f o f f e r i n g h i s m a r v e l o u s h e i f e r in s a c r i f i c e , a s t r a t a g e m w h ic h
p o ly th e is tic p lu r a lis m . In fa c t, a lth o u g h d iv in e pow er is a llo w s th e R o m a n to b e n e f it, b y w a y o f s u b s titu tio n , f ro m th e
p r im a rily r e v e a le d " i n th e a d m ir a b le o r d e r a n d th e in c re d ib le p r e d ic tio n o f p r o s p e r i ty tie d to th is s a c r if ic e . T h u s , " t h e c u lt
re g u la rity of th e h e a v e n ly b o d ie s" (ib id . 2 .5 6 ) , it i s a l s o o f t h e g o d s w il l b e s t a m p e d w i t h a g r e a t e r p u r i t y a n d a m o r e
m a n i f e s t i n o t h e r w a y s . A l l o n e h a s t o d o is s e t a s i d e t h e p e r f e c t p i e t y , if o u r w o r s h i p is e x p r e s s e d th ro u g h p ray ers
fa b le s to r e d i s c o v e r p h ilo s o p h ic tr u th . O n e c a n th e n k n o w t h a t r e v e a l a n ir r e p r o a c h a b le s t a t e o f m i n d " (ib id . 2 .7 1 ) .
t h e g o d w h o p e n e t r a t e s a ll r e a l i t y i n t h e w o r l d ( deus pertinens F u rth e rm o re , S to ic is m w en t beyond th e tra d itio n a l re li­
per naturam cuiusque rei), n o m a tte r w h a t n a m e c u s to m m ay g io n s , w h ic h had exp osed th e m se lv e s to c ritic is m . In th e
h a v e d r e s s e d h i m u p in (quoque eos nomine consuetudo nuncu­ n a m e o f d iv in e p re d ic tio n and p r o v i d e n c e , it r e h a b i l i t a t e d
paverit): "C e re s fo r th e lan d s, N e p tu n e fo r th e seas, or t h e l e g e n d a r y a c c o u n t s o f t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n s o f t h e g o d s in
w h a t e v e r o t h e r n a m e fo r w h a t e v e r o t h e r r e a l m " (ib id . 2 .7 1 ) . h u m a n a ffa irs , fo r e x a m p le , th e a p p e a r a n c e o f C a s t o r a n d
In t h i s w a y , t h e t r a d i t i o n a l g o d s a n d t h e S t o i c c o n c e p t i o n P o l l u x " w h o in t h e c o u r s e o f t h e B a t t l e o f L a k e R e g i l l u s ( in
o f d iv in ity are r e c o n c ile d : a ll th e se nam es c o rre sp o n d to 496 B.c.), w ere seen le n d in g a h a n d to th e R o m a n tro o p s"
v a r i o u s a s p e c t s o f t h e s a m e d i v i n e b r e a t h o f lif e t h a t g o e s ( i b i d . 2 . 6 ) . S i m i l a r l y , it c r e d i t e d t h e p r e d i c t i o n s o f d i v i n a t i o n
th ro u g h th e w o rld , pneuma noeron kai purödes ouk echon in i t s v a r i o u s f o r m s . T h u s , t h e a u g u r A t t u s N a v i u s w a s s a i d
morphên: "a fie ry a n d in te llig e n t b r e a th , fre e o f a n y fo rm " to m e rit th e p r e s tig e th a t tra d itio n b e s t o w s o n h im , s in c e th e
(id e n tifie d w ith th e h e a v e n ly e th e r). For a R om an, th is r e v e la tio n o f th e fu tu re m a y b e g r a n te d b y th e g o d s to c e rta in
d e fin itio n had th e g reat m e rit of g o in g beyond H e lle n ic m e n (ib id . 2 .9 ) . T h e e x i s t e n c e o f a u g u r s e v e n g i v e s B a lb u s
a n th ro p o m o rp h is m to jo in a n a n c e s tr a l id e a . V a rro (c ite d b y th e c h a n c e to p r o p o s e a n e w p r o o f o f th e e x i s t e n c e o f th e
A u g u s tin e , De Civitate Dei 4 .3 1 ) re m in d s u s " t h a t fo r m o re g o d s , in t h e f o r m o f th is c u r io u s s y llo g is m (ib id . 2 .1 2 ) : " I f
th a n 1 7 0 y e a r s th e a n c ie n t R o m a n s w o r s h ip e d g o d s without s o m e o n e h a s in te r p r e te r s , h e m u s t h im s e lf e x is t. N o w , th e
statues. If t h i s p r a c t i c e h a d p r e v a i l e d u n t i l t h e p r e s e n t d a y , " g o d s h a v e in te r p r e te r s . L e t u s th e r e f o r e r e c o g n iz e th a t th e
he added, "th e c u lt o f th e g o d s w o u ld be p u re r" (quod si g o d s e x i s t ." (In fa c t, th is " p r o o f " is g r a t u i t o u s , s i n c e " t h e
adhuc mansisset, castius dii observarentur). e x i s t e n c e o f t h e g o d s is a n o t i o n i n n a t e t o a ll m e n , in s o m e
In th is p e r s p e c tiv e , th e . c u lt of d e ifie d a b s tr a c tio n s in w ay ca rv e d omnibus enim innatum est et in
in to th e s o u l":
R o m a n r e lig io n b e c o m e s e n t ir e l y ju s tif ie d ( C ic . Nat. D. 2.79): animo quasi insculptum, esse deos.)
Mens ( i n t e l l i g e n c e ) , Fides ( l o y a l t y ) , Virtus (a c tiv e v irtu e ), O f c o u r s e , E p ic u re a n is m a n d S to icism w e r e n o t th e o n ly
Concordia ( h a r m o n y ) . T h e s e r e f e r t o v i r t u e s i n h e r e n t in th e p h ilo s o p h ie s to th r iv e in R o m e , b u t t h e y c e r ta i n ly e lic ite d
d iv in e p o w e r. S to icism d id n o t in te n tio n a lly lim it its e lf to m u c h s t r o n g e r r e a c t i o n s t h a n a ll t h e o t h e r m o v e m e n t s ( f o r
th e s e sp e c ia l c a s e s . It m e a n t t o d e m o n s t r a t e i ts a b i l i t y to e x a m p le , th e E u h e m e rism th a t is p r e s e n t in th e w o rk s o f
e x p la in e v e r y t h in g a t th e h e a r t o f a w o r ld p e n e tr a te d b y th e E n n iu s o r th e P y th a g o r e a n is m th a t s u p p o s e d ly in flu e n c e d
d i v i n i t y . B a l b u s d o e s n o t fa il t o s h o w t h a t t h e s u b t l e e x e g e s e s N ig id iu s F ig u lu s ). N e v e rth e le s s , th e y had q u ite d iffe re n t
o f a Z e n o , a C le a n t h e s , a n d a C h r y s ip p u s w e n t s o fa r a s to a u d ie n c e s a m o n g th e R o m a n s . B e c a u s e o f th e re la tiv e c h r o ­
d is c o v e r th e d e e p m e a n in g o f a s o m e tim e s s c a b r o u s m y th o l­ n o l o g y ( th e d i a lo g u e o f th e p r o t a g o n i s t s in De natura deorum
ogy (phusica ratio non inelegans inclusa est in impias fabulas: i b id . is b e lie v e d to have ta k e n p la ce b e tw e e n 77 and 75 b . c .),
2 .6 4 ) . H e c ite s th e m y th o f C a e lu s ( = O u ra n o s ), w ho is n e i th e r V e lle iu s , n o r B a lb u s , n o r C o t t a , m a k e s a n y r e f e r e n c e
m u tila te d b y h is o w n s o n Ju p ite r ( = Z e u s ); th is n a r r a tiv e to th e p o e m by L u c re tiu s . H ow i n te r e s tin g it w o u l d have
s y m b o liz e s th e fa c t th a t " t h e e th e r , th a t is, th e fire o f th e been to re c o rd th e ir f e e lin g s a b o u t th e m a g n if ic e n t p r o f e s ­
h i g h e s t r e g i o n , c a p a b l e o f e n g e n d e r i n g a ll t h i n g s b y i t s e l f , s i o n o f E p i c u r e a n f a i t h in t h e De rerum natura.
d o e s w it h o u t t h a t p a r t o f t h e b o d y t h a t r e q u i r e s u n io n w ith In any case, th e poem by L u c re tiu s a p p e a rs to be an
th e o p p o s ite s e x to p r o c r e a t e ." is o la te d fla sh o f lig h tn in g in th e lite ra ry sky. Fo r re a so n s
By th is m e th o d , S to icism f in a lly su b su m ed th e e n tire m e n tio n e d e a rlie r , th e R om an m in d in th e e n d re m a in e d
tra d itio n a l h e r ita g e . It c l e v e r l y m anaged to fin d th e rig h t s t u b b o r n l y r e s i s t a n t t o E p i c u r e a n i s m . O n t h e o t h e r h a n d , in
e q u a tio n s b e tw e e n r e lig io u s n a m e s a n d p h y s ic a l o r p h ilo ­ m o r e th a n o n e in s ta n c e , S to icism s tru c k s y m p a th e tic c h o r d s
s o p h ic a l c o n c e p t s . T h u s J u p i te r c o r r e s p o n d s to th e e th e r , a n d d e e p i n t h e R o m a n s o u l . B y i t s t o n e , it a t t r a c t e d C i c e r o , f o r
J u n o r e p r e s e n t s t h e a i r b e t w e e n t h e s e a a n d t h e s k y ( ib i d . one (Nat. D. 3 .9 5 ) , w ho b ecam e its a d v o ca te d e s p ite h is

109
ROME

a tta c h m e n t to th e p ro b a b ilis m of th e new A cadem y. It p o l y t h e i s m . A b o v e a ll, b y d e v e l o p i n g th e n o tio n o f p r o v i ­

f e rtiliz e d th e e n t ir e p h il o s o p h ic a l a n d d r a m a t ic p r o d u c ti o n o f d e n c e , S to ic is m r e i n f o r c e d th e b a s is o f R o m a n p ie ty , w h ic h
S e n e c a , to c ite o n ly o n e f a m o u s e x a m p le . c o u ld o n ly c o n c e i v e o f b e n e fic e n t g o d s . O n e r e v e a lin g fa c t
I n s te a d of re je ctin g th e R om an p a n th e o n o u trig h t, as a m o n g o th e r s : a s C ic e ro {Nat. D. 2 .6 4 ) p o in ts o u t , p o p u la r
E p i c u r e a n i s m d i d , S t o i c i s m w a s a b l e t o s u b s u m e a ll t h e g o d s in te rp re ta tio n h a d a lw a y s m o c k e d th e e ty m o lo g y p ro p o s e d
o f th e tra d itio n b y in te r p r e tin g th e m a s ju s t s o m a n y m a n i­ b y s ch o la rs , w h o s a w in t h e s u p r e m e g o d Juppiter a Juvans
f e s t a t i o n s o f t h e s a m e d i v i n e p o w e r . T h a t is h o w it s u c c e e d e d pater, a "h e lp f u l F a t h e r ."
in r e c o n c i l i n g t h e p h i l o s o p h i c a l r e q u i r e m e n t t h a t p o s t u l a t e d R .S ./g .h .
th e o n e n e s s o f th e d iv in ity w ith th e p r a c tic e s o f tra d itio n a l

re fe rs to "p ag an " fe s tiv a ls , d e s p ite th e a u t h o r 's C h r is t ia n

T he D eclin e an d S u r v iv a l of R o m a n R elig ion f a i t h . It r e f e r s , f o r e x a m p l e , t o t h e C a r m e n t a l i a in J a n u a r y
a n d t h e L u p e r c a l i a in F e b r u a r y ( s e e A . D e g r a s s i , Inscriptiones
Italiae, v o l . 1 3 , 2 , p p . 2 6 4 - 6 5 ) . A t t h e e n d o f t h e f if th c e n t u r y ,
It is a w e l l - k n o w n f a c t t h a t t h e R o m a n E m p i r e w a s p r o g r e s ­ a p o p e w a s c o m p e lle d to p r o te s t a g a in s t th e c e le b r a tio n o f
s iv e ly in v a d e d b y E a s t e r n re l ig i o n s , a m o n g t h e m C h r is t ia n ­ th e L u p e rca lia in R o m e .2 A n d even in th e s ix th c e n tu ry ,
i ty , w h i c h w a s t o t r i u m p h in t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y . B u t it m a y b e w hen B e lisa riu s, J u s t i n i a n 's g e n e ra l, h e ld out in R om e
w e ll to p r e s e n t s o m e o f th e n u a n c e s c o n n e c t e d w ith th is fa c t. a g a i n s t a d iffic u lt s ie g e b y th e G o t h s , R o m a n s r e m e m b e r e d
O n t h e e v e o f i ts v i c t o r y , C h r i s t i a n i t y w a s i n c l i n e d t o a i m its th e a r c h a ic r ite th a t p re s crib e d o p e n in g th e g a te s of th e
p o le m ic le s s a g a i n s t t r a d itio n a l R o m a n re lig io n th a n a g a i n s t s a n c t u a r y o f J a n u s Q u i r i n u s in t i m e o f w a r , a n d i n o r d e r t o
th e s c a n d a lo u s fictio n s o f G re e k m y th o lo g y a n d th e e x t r a v ­ co n fo rm to th e a n c ie n t p re s c rip tio n th e y s e c re tly u n d e rto o k
a g a n c e s o f t h e m y s t e r y r e l i g i o n s . A t l e a s t t h a t is t h e i m p r e s ­ to f o rc e o p e n th e g a te s o f th e te m p le , w h ic h h a d b e e n c lo s e d
s io n le ft b y a n a n o n y m o u s p a m p h le t d r a f t e d a fe w y e a r s a f te r s in c e th e a b o litio n o f p a g a n i s m .3
3 9 4 , th e Carmen Contra Paganos,' w h ic h d i s c h a r g e s its m o s t C h r i s t i a n i t y t h u s f o u n d i t s e l f in c l o s e c o m b a t w i t h p a g a n
v iru le n t s h a f ts a g a in s t th e cu lts of Is is , M ith ra , and th e v e s t i g e s a l i v e e n o u g h t o p r o v i d e it w i t h u s e f u l s u b s t i t u t i o n s .
M a g n a M a t e r , a ll o f w h i c h w e r e m e r e l y f o r e i g n c u l t s , sacra The m u t a t i o n s p r o v i d e , in t h e ir w a y , e v i d e n c e o f th e o ld
peregrina, in a n c i e n t R o m e ( e x c e p t f o r t h e M a g n a M a t e r , w h o i n s t i t u t i o n s . T h u s , a w h o l e s c h o o l o f r e s e a r c h w a s b o r n in t h e
w a s also o f R o m a n " k i n s h i p " t h r o u g h h e r r o l e in t h e T r o j a n w ak e of Antike und Christentum b y E . J. D ö lg e r. F o r e x a m p le ,
le g e n d ). th e id e a of p u rific a tio n th a t in s p ire d th e fe s tiv a l of th e
In a n y c a s e , t h e d e a t h a g o n y o f R o m a n r e l i g i o n w a s p r o ­ L u p e r c a l i a w a s t a k e n u p a g a i n in t h e f e s t i v a l o f t h e P u r i f i c a ­
lo n g e d t h r o u g h o u t th e e n tir e fo u r th c e n tu r y , b e g in n in g w h e n tio n o f th e V ir g in . T h e A m b a r v a li a , w h ic h w e r e m e a n t to
C o n s ta n tin e p ro c la im e d h im s e lf th e p r o t e c to r o f C h r is tia n ity e n s u r e th e lu s t r a ti o n o f th e fie ld s , w e r e t r a n s p o s e d i n to th e
in 3 1 3 w i t h th e E d ic t o f M ila n , th o u g h h e d id n o t a b o lish p ro c e s s io n s o n R o g a tio n D ays. Even th e c u lt o f th e d e a d
p a g a n ism . V a rio u s e p is o d e s m ark ed th e c o n f r o n ta tio n be­ p r e s e r v e d th e a n c ie n t p ie ty ; th e re w a s n o l o n g e r a t a s te fo r
tw e e n th e n e w re lig io n a n d th e a n c i e n t i n s t it u ti o n . T h e c a s e lib a tio n s (w h ic h M o n ic a , th e m o th e r of A u g u s tin e , s till
o f th e s ta tu e o f V icto ry , w h ic h m a tch e d S ym m ach u s, th e p r a c t i c e d ) , b u t p e o p l e u s e d f l o w e r s — O v i d ( Fasti 4 . 5 3 9 ) r e c ­
pagan p re fe c t o f R o m e , a g a in s t S a in t A m b ro s e , B is h o p o f o m m e n d s v i o l e t s . A n d t h e c u l t o f t h e s a i n t s is k n o w n o f t e n
M i l a n , is p e r h a p s t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t s y m b o l i c a l l y . T h e s t a t u e to h a v e ta k e n o v e r th e c u lt o f th e lo c a l d e ity .
o f V i c t o r y w a s f i n a ll y r e m o v e d f r o m t h e t h e a l t a r o f t h e S e n a t e . A n o t h e r l e g a c y o f R o m a n r e l i g i o n r e m a i n s in t h e s a c r e d
O t h e r s a t t a c k e d t h e o l d r e l i g i o n w i t h e v e n m o r e f o r c e . In a . d . v o c a b u la r y . B e g in n in g w ith th e s e c o n d c e n t u r y , w h e n L a tin
3 7 5 , th e E m p e r o r G r a ti a n r e n o u n c e d th e title o f P o n tif e x M a x ­ re p la ce d G reek in th e litu rg y o f th e W e s te rn ch u rch , th e
i m u s a n d in a . d . 3 8 2 h e w i t h d r e w t h e s u b s i d i e s o f t h e p a g a n w e a lth o f th e L a tin l a n g u a g e b e c a m e a v a ila b le to C h r is tia n s .
te m p le s a n d th e s a la rie s o f th e ir p rie s ts . T h e tr a n s f e r w a s n o t m a d e d ire ctly , o f c o u r s e . (T h e r e a r e n o
T h e e m p e r o r T h e o d o s iu s d e liv e r e d th e d e c is iv e b lo w s . H e ru le s w ith o u t e x c e p tio n s : th e in v o c a tio n Regina caeli ad­
h a d a lr e a d y d e c r e e d th e c lo s in g o f th e t e m p le s , fo rb id d e n th e d r e s s e d t o I s is b y A p u l e i u s w a s t a k e n u p a g a i n in t h e p a s c h a l
c e le b ra tio n o f p u b lic s a c rific e s , a n d o r d e r e d an end to th e a n th e m in h o n o r o f th e V irg in M a r y .) O f te n th e a d o p te d
d o m e s tic c u lts o f th e L a r e s , G e n ii, a n d P e n a te s ; h is v ic to ry w o r d n o l o n g e r c a r r i e d i ts e x a c t o r i g i n a l m e a n i n g b u t t o o k o n
o v e r E u g e n i u s in 3 9 4 a s s u r e d th e triu m p h o f C h r is tia n ity a new r a n g e o f c o l o r s , a s a b r o n z e is c o l o r e d b y a p a tin a
o n c e a n d f o r a l l. T o w a r d t h e y e a r 4 0 0 , S a i n t J e r o m e w a s a b l e t h r o u g h t h e p a s s a g e o f t i m e . T h u s , in t h e c l a s s i c a l l a n g u a g e ,
t o w r i t e t h a t " t h e g o l d o f t h e C a p i t o l is p e e l i n g , s o o t a n d th e w o rd religiosus e v o k e s th e id e a o f ta b o o o r s c ru p le s , a n d
c o b w e b s c o v e r a ll t h e te m p le s o f R o m e " ( Epistolae 1 0 7 . 1 ) . th erefo re can be a p p lie d to an in a n im a te o b je c t ( a locus
A r o u n d th e s a m e tim e , S tilic h o , th e m in is te r o f th e e m p e r o r religiosus is in v io la b le ) o r to a p e r s o n a l s u b je c t (a religiosus
H o n o r iu s , w h o m th e p o e t R u tiliu s N a m a ti a n u s (De reditu suo m an is e x c e e d in g ly s c ru p u lo u s ). But in th e la n g u a g e of
2 .4 1 a n d 5 2 ) c a lls th e dirus Stilicho (s in is te r S tilic h o ), h a d th e A p u le iu s , th e te rm s e e m s t o h a v e lo s t th is a l to g e t h e r n e g a ­
p ro p h e tic b o o k s o f a n c ie n t R o m e , th e Sibylline Books, b u rn ed . tiv e v a lu e . T h e a u t h o r o f Metamorphoses ( 1 1 . 1 3 . 6 ) d e l i g h t s in
F r o m t h a t p o i n t o n , is it c o r r e c t t o s p e a k o f t h e s u r v i v a l o f c o n tr a s tin g th e c o m m o n p e o p l e ( populi) o r t h e i m p i o u s
a re lig io n th a t had begun to w a n e som e fifte e n h u n d red (inreligiosi) w ith t h e religiosi, w h o a r e t h e f a i t h f u l w o r s h i p e r s
y e a r s b e f o r e ? T h e s lo w p a c e o f its d e m i s e , h o w e v e r , s p e a k s o f th e d iv in ity o f Is is . T h is " p o s i t i v e " m e a n in g re m a in e d
f o r t h e s t r e n g t h o f i ts d e e p e n t r e n c h m e n t . I n d e e d , s u r p r i s i n g a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e w o r d a f t e r C h r i s t i a n i t y a d o p t e d i t. S a i n t
re s u rg e n c e s p ro v e th a t th e d e a th w a rra n t issu e d by T heo­ J e r o m e ( Epistulae 1 0 7 . 2 ) c e r t a i n l y m e a n t t o c o m p l i m e n t h i s
d o s iu s a t th e e n d o f th e fo u r th c e n t u r y w a s n o t th e la st w o r d . c o r r e s p o n d e n t w h e n h e s a id h e r e g a r d e d h e r a s religiosissima
T h u s , t h e c a l e n d a r o f P o l e m i u s S i l v i u s , d a t e d a . d . 4 4 9 , s till in Christo filia.

110
 THE D E C L I N E
Scene from the Isiac ritual. Painting from Herculaneum. Naples,
National Museum. Photo Alinari-Giraudon.
Another term worth noting is sacramentum. Again
Apuleius, a magician in the art of stretching vocabulary,
seems to have played the role of intermediary. Speaking of
the holy militia of Isis into which his hero is to enlist the next
day, he calls the enlistment a sacramentum (Apuleius Meta­
morphoses 11.15.5). Used in this way, the word still retained a
link with the military meaning appropriate to its classical
usage, while revealing its religious vocation through its
context. Sacramentum in the mystical sense then became
possible for the Christian language.
This example also shows that when it was necessary,
Christians knew how to transpose onto the sacred register
words that were originally profane. The method of "recy­
cling" appears as frequently in vocabulary as it does in
paleo-Christian architecture and sculpture. An investigation
into the Leonine sacramentary yields much insight.4 We
discover the vota that the Lord is asked to receive with favor,
and the hostia that ceases to be bloody and becomes salutaris
or spiritualis and designates Christ.5 Even the most sacred
vocabulary of Rome appears with specific words like venerari
and venia, along with the ritual practice of associating prayer
and sacrifice: "Ecclesiae tuae, quaesumus, Domine, preces et
hostias apostolica commendet oratio ut quod pro illorum
gloria celebramus prosit ad veniam."6
But Rome did not limit itself to a lexicographical legacy
whose most prestigious term was religio. The Roman spirit
strongly marked the style of Christianity, a style that is
visible in the structure of the prayers that preserved the
qualities of sobriety and clarity that had distinguished the
carmina of older times, avoiding all dull sentimentality and
establishing relationships based on a clear confidence be­
tween men and heaven. According to one formula of Augus­
tine (De Doctrina Christiana 3.11), Christianity was able to
AND S U R V I V A L OF R O M A N R E L I G I O N
Coin with likeness of Theodosus. Photo Arthaud/Martin.
carry away the "gold and silver vases" of its adversaries and
use them in its own way. The style is perhaps even more
striking (it shows up, if not at the beginning, at least at the
time of the turmoils and heresies) in its sense of order and in
its spirit of organization. One fact seems to take on a
profoundly symbolic value. It is well known that the first
popes simply bore the title of bishop (episkopos); but it is not
just an accident that the tradition later revived the title of
Pontifex Maximus and gave it to the ruler of Christendom.
Consciously or unconsciously, it was a way of paying mag­
nificent homage to the traditions of ancient Rome.
R.S./g.h.
NOTES
1. Carm en contra paganos is a satirical poem directed against Virius
Nicomachus Flavianus, praefectus Italiae, Illyrici et A fricae, who had
exercised his functions first under Theodosius, in a . d . 390-91, and
then in the reign of the usurper Eugenius in 393-94. The author of
Carm en attacks, without naming him, the praefectus who had restored
the pagan rites at Rome and made war “on the true God," before
“dying a miserable death“ ( Flavianus committed suicide during the
battle of the river Frigidus, 5 - 6 September a . d . 394). The identifica­
tion proposed by Mommsen and the date (a little after 394) have
since been confirmed: see A. Chastagnol, H om m ages à M arcel Renard.
2:143, and J. F. Matthews, "The Historical Setting of the Carmen
contra Paganos," H istoria, 1970, 464-79. See the edition of the poem
(with Italian trans, and notes) by G. Manganaro, in N uovo Didaska-
leion 11 (1961): 2 3 -45 (but the author wishes to propose— wrongly—
too late a date).
2. Usually the treatise on the Lupercalia is attributed to Pope
Gelasius. Recent criticism has tended to attribute the authorship to
Pope Felix III: cf. P. Nautin, Diet, d'hist. et d e géogr. eccl., no. 32, Felix
ID, col. 894.
111
ROM E

3. Cf. Procopius, De Bello Gothico 1.25, ed. Comparetti (Rome
1895), 1:184-85.
4. We have kept the name "Leonine sacramentary," which is the
one most widely used to designate the collection that contains the
most ancient prayers of the Latin church. It is under this title (which
attributes it to Pope Leo the Great) that it has been published,
notably in volume 55 of Migne's Patrologiae Cursus Latina. One
edition, more recent and more learned, has been produced by
L. C. Mohlberg under the title Sacramentarium Veronense, in the
collection Rerum ecclesiasticarum documenta, where it constitutes vol­
ume 1 of the Fontes (2d ed., Rome 1966). This new title refers to »he
source, a manuscript from Verona (no. 85 of the Capitulary Library)
which, written in uncial script, dates from the first half of the
seventh century and originates from Italy—no doubt from Verona.
5. Cf. Sacramentarium Veronense, ed. Mohlberg (2d ed., Rome 1966),
p. 33, l.lOff. (= Migne, P.L., 55, c. 46): "Remotis obumbrationibus
carnalium victimarum, spiritalem tibi, summe Pater, hostiam supplici
servitute deferimus . . . " (Abandoning the gloomy sacrifices of
bloody victims, we offer, O sovereign God, as humble supplicants, a
spiritual sacrifice . . . ).
6. Cf. ibid., p. 43, 1.9ff. (= Migne, P.L., 55, c. 53-54): "O Lord,
may the intercession of the apostles commend the prayers and
sacrifices of thy Church, in order that the festival that we celebrate in
your honor may serve to gain us thy favor." See the index to the
words venerari and venia in Mohlberg's work, pp. 430-31.

A nna P ér en n a
T h e d o u b le n a m e o f th is R o m a n g o d d e s s is c l a r i f i e d b y a
c o m m e n t a r y f r o m M a c r o b i u s (Saturnalia, 1 . 1 2 . 6 ) : Eodem quo­
que mense ( = Martio) et publice et primtim ad Annam Perennam
sacrificatum itur ut annare perennareque commode liceat. " I t is
a l s o i n t h e s a m e m o n t h ( o f M a r c h ) t h a t b o t h i n p u b l i c a n d in
p r i v a t e s a c r i f i c e s a r e o f f e r e d t o t h e w o o d o f A n n a P e r e n n a in
o r d e r t o l iv e h a p p i l y t h r o u g h t h e e n t i r e y e a r . " ( T h e s a c r e d
in t h e t h e a te r , b e a t in g t im e t o th e w o r d s w ith t h e ir h a n d s .
A m a n s e ts a b o w l d o w n o n th e g r o u n d a n d b e g in s a fe w
c l u m s y s t e p s , w h i l e h i s s w e e t h e a r t , a ll d r e s s e d u p , d a n c e s
a r o u n d w ith s tr e a m i n g h a ir. T h e y s t a g g e r h o m e , a p u b lic
s p e c ta c le : "H o w h a p p y y o u a r e !" c r ie s th e c r o w d a s th e y
m e e t t h e m . I m e t a p r o c e s s i o n l a te ly , w o r t h m e n t io n in g : a
d r u n k o ld w o m a n d r a g g i n g a d ru n k o ld m a n .
T h is jo y o u s fe s tiv a l, a n im a te d b y g e n e ra l c a r o u s in g a n d
s p i c e d w i t h o b s c e n e w o r d s ( obscena: O v i d , F . , 3 . 6 9 5 ) s u r e l y o f
a p o t r o p a i c s ig n if ic a n c e , i n a u g u r a te d th e n e w y e a r o n a d a te

w ood, nemus, o f A n n a P e r e n n a i s m e n t i o n e d b y M a r t i a l , th a t w a s n o ta b le o n th e a n c ie n t c a le n d a r : th e id e s o f M a r c h ,

4 .6 4 .1 7 .) If Anna i s t h e p e r s o n i f i c a t i o n o f t h e n e w y e a r , th e b r i g h t e s t d a y o f th e firs t m o n t h o f th e a n c i e n t y e a r . It w a s

Perenna (*perennus, d o u b l e t o f perennis) m u s t a l l u d e t o t h e c o n s e c u tiv e (a c c o rd in g to th e c a le n d a r of P h U o c a lu s ) or

w h o l e y e a r ( b y r e f e r e n c e t o t h e v e r b perennare o r perannare), c o n c o m ita n t (a c c o rd in g to L yd u s, De Mensibus, 4.49) w ith

b u t m a y a ls o b y e x te n s io n d e s ig n a te a p e rio d o f tim e w ith o u t a n o t h e r p o p u l a r , if n o t o f f i c i a l , c e r e m o n y : t h e M a m u r a l i a , a

e n d ( f o r th is m e a n in g , s e e O v id , Fasti, 1 .7 2 1 ) . f e s tiv a l th a t c o n s i s te d o f t h e e x p u ls i o n o f M a m u r i u s V e tu ­

T h e " jo y o u s f e s tiv a l" o f A n n a P e re n n a (cf. O v id , F., 3 .5 2 3 ) ri u s . T h is d o u b l e n a m e (w h i c h a p p e a r s in t h e s o n g o f th e

w a s c e le b r a t e d o n 1 5 M a r c h in a nemus s itu a te d a t th e first S a lia n s : c f. V a rro , De Lingua Latina, 6 . 4 9 ) is i n t e r p r e t e d to

m ile s to n e o f R o m e , n e a r th e b a n k s o f t h e T ib e r. It w a s a m e a n th e " o ld M a r s " ; th a t is, th e " o ld y e a r " (cf. A . D e g ra s si,

festum geniale o f th e a n c ie n t a n d o f fic ia l t y p e , v iv id ly de­ Inst, lust., 1 3 .2 , p p . 4 2 2 - 2 3 ) . T h u s th e a r tic u la tio n o f th e tw o

s crib e d b y O v id (F , 3 .5 2 5 - 4 2 ): c e re m o n ie s ta k e s o n a tra n s p a re n t m e a n in g .
As fo r th e c h a ra cte r o f A n n a P e r e n n a , a n c ie n t e tio lo g y
T h e c r o w d a r r i v e s , a n d s c a t te r e d h e r e a n d t h e r e o v e r th e c o n n e c t s h e r w ith s e v e ra l d iffe re n t le g e n d a ry o r h isto rica l
g r e e n g r a s s th e y d rin k , e v e r y la d re c lin in g b e s id e h is la s s . f ig u r e s . O v i d ( F , 3 .4 4 9 f f .) lis ts d i v e r s e a t t e m p t s a t id e n tifi­
S o m e c a m p u n d e r th e o p e n s k y ; a fe w p itc h t e n ts ; s o m e c a tio n : th e g o d d e s s w a s a s s im ila te d to th e s is te r o f D id o , th e
m a k e a h u t o f b o u g h s a n d l e a v e s . O t h e r s s e t u p r e e d s in A n n a w h o b e c a m e " t h e N y m p h o f N u m ic iu s " a t L a v in iu m
th e g u is e o f rig id p illa rs a n d s tr e t c h o u t th e ir t o g a s o n th e (F ., 3 . 5 5 7 - 6 5 6 ) — o r to A n n a o f B o u illa e , a n o ld w o m a n f r o m
r e e d s . B u t t h e y g r o w w a r m w ith s u n a n d w in e , a n d th e y a n a r e a n e a r R o m e , w h o fe d th e c o m m o n p e o p le w ith " r u s ti c
p ra y fo r a s m a n y y e a r s a s th e y ta k e c u p s , a n d th e y c o u n t cak es" d u rin g h e r re tre a t o n th e S acred M o u n ta in ( i b i d .,
t h e c u p s t h e y d r i n k . T h e r e y o u w il l f i n d m e n w h o d r i n k a s 3 . 6 6 1 - 7 4 ) , a s w e ll a s o t h e r a s s o c i a ti o n s th a t th e p o e t b a r e ly
m a n y c u p s a s th e y e a r s o f N e s to r, a n d w o m e n w h o w o u ld to u ch e s u p o n (Luna, Themis, lo, Atlantis: ib id ., 3 . 6 5 7 - 6 0 ) .
l iv e t o b e a s o l d a s S i b y l l s , b y t h e n u m b e r o f c u p s t h e y
d r i n k . T h e r e t h e y a l s o s i n g a ll t h e s o n g s t h a t t h e y l e a r n e d

(L iv y , 3 . 6 3 .7 ) : it is i m p o s s ib le , h o w e v e r , to s a y w h e t h e r th is
A po llo in R ome " A p o l l o n i a n e n c l o s u r e " i n d i c a t e d a n o f f ic i a l o r a p r i v a t e c u l t .
In th e p r a y e r s o f th e ir lita n y ( Indigitamenta) , t h e v e s t a l
v irg in s re fe rre d to A p o llo as Apollo Medice, Apollo Paean
Apollo is t h e b a re ly L a tin iz e d tr a n s c r ip tio n fo r th e G r e e k g o d ( M a c r o b iu s , S ., 1 .1 7 .1 5 ) . T h e s e c o n d i n v o c a t io n c o r r e s p o n d s
Apollon. H e w as in tro d u c e d to Rom e as a h e a le r. Apollo to th e in v o c a tio n iê Paiêôn, a d d r e s s e d to th e g o d o f h e a lin g o f
Medicus w a s h i s o f f ic i a l t i t l e i n t h e t e m p l e d e d i c a t e d t o h i m i n th e G re e k c u lt (cf. v o n B lu m e n th a l, R.E., s .v . P a ia n , c a . 2 3 4 1 ) .
4 3 3 a n d c o n s e c ra te d i n 4 3 1 b.c . d u r i n g a s e r i o u s e p i d e m i c H e a g a i n a p p e a r s in t h e c a p a c i t y o f h e a l e r , i n t h e f i r s t p l a c e ,
(L iv y , 4 .2 5 .3 ; 4 0 .5 1 .6 ) . The lo c a tio n o f th e te m p le , in th e a c c o m p a n i e d b y h is m o t h e r L a t o n a , in th e firs t le c t is t e r n iu m
F la m e n F ie ld s to th e s o u th w e s t o f th e C a p ito l (a n d th u s o f 3 9 9 b.c . ( L i v y , 5 . 1 3 . 4 ) .
o u ts id e th e p o m e r ia l z o n e ) , w a s a lr e a d y c a lle d th e Apollinare I n 2 1 7 b. c . , d u r i n g t h e c e l e b r a t i o n o f t h e l e c t i s t e r n i u m o f

112
 THE A R V A L B R E T H R E N

th e tw e lv e d iv in itie s , w h ic h w as ord ered , am ong o th e r ous p la ce in th e te m p le o f C a p ito lin e Ju p ite r iS u e to n iu s,

re lig io u s m e a s u r e s , a f t e r th e d i s a s te r o f T r a s i m e n u s , A p o llo Aug.. 3 1 .1 ) — a s y m b o lic g e s t u r e t h r o u g h w h ic h th e e m p e r o r ,
w a s h o n o r e d in th e c o m p a n y o f D ia n a . A t th a t d a t e th e g o d in re s to rin g th e "in sp ire d b o o k s' to th e god, o f fic ia lly
w a s n o l o n g e r c o n f i n e d s o l e ly t o t h e d o m a i n o f m e d i c i n e . In r e c o g n i z e d h is p r o p h e t i c n a t u r e .
2 1 2 B.c., a t t h e i n s t i g a t i o n o f t h e “ d i v i n e r " M a r c i u s , a n d w i t h I n 1 7 b. c . , A p o l l o ( w i t h D i a n a - A r t e m i s i w a s a t t h e c e n t e r o f
th e a p p r o v a l o f th e Sibylline Books (L iv y , 2 5 .1 2 .1 5 ) , t h e g a m e s t h e c e le b r a tio n o f t h e S e c u la r G a m e s ; in a d d itio n t o w r itte n
w e r e c e le b r a te d fo r th e first tim e in h o n o r o f t h e g o d , ludi a c c o u n t s o f th is fe s tiv a l (c f . J. B . P ig h i. De iudis saecularibus.
Apollinares, " t o a t t a i n v i c t o r y " (th e L a tin h is to r ia n s p e c ifie s : 2 d e d . , A m s t e r d a m , 1 9 6 5 , p p . 1 0 7 - 3 0 ) , w e h a v e t h e o f f ic i a l
victoriae, non valetudinis ergo). hym n com p osed b y H o ra c e : th e Carmen saeculare. ( F o r th e
T h e c u lt o f A p o llo w a s m o s t w id e s p r e a d d u r in g th e re ig n romain:
R o m a n A p o l l o i n g e n e r a l , c o n s u l t J . G a g é . A p o llo n
o f A u g u s t u s . I n 2 3 b. c ., O c t a v i a n . w h o w o u l d i n t h e n e x t Essai sur le culte d'Apollon et le développement du ' nius graecus"
y e a r t a k e t h e title A u g u s t u s , h a d a m a g n ific e n t te m p le to à Rome, des origines a Auguste. R a r i s 1 9 5 5 . )
A p o ll o b u ilt o n t h e P a la tin e , n e a r h is o w n p a l a c e : a t t h a t d a t e R .S . d .b .
h e h a d th e Sibylline Books tr a n s f e r r e d th e r e fro m th e ir p re v i­

a d o p te d s o n . A m o r e c o n v in c in g p r o o f o f th e a r c h a is m o f th e
T he A r v a l B r eth ren i n s t it u ti o n lie s in c e r ta i n c u l t ic p r e s c r i p t i o n s a n d a l lu s io n s .
The c o lle g e is p r e s id e d over by a magister, a s siste d by a
p rie s t, a fla m e n ; th e p re s id e n c y , magisterium, o f o n e y e a r 's
The title " F ra tr e s A rv a le s " iarva = fie ld ) d e sig n a te s th e d u r a t io n , d o e s n o t c o i n c i d e w it h t h e c iv il y e a r , b u t e x t e n d s
p rie sts w hose d o m a in is th e fie ld s , or ra th e r th e p rie sts fro m o n e S a t u m a li a n F e s tiv a l i l 7 D e c e m b e r» to a n o t h e r (ex
c h a r g e d w ith a s s u r i n g t h e m y s t ic a l p r o t e c ti o n o f t h e fie ld s . Saturnalibus m m is ad Saturnale; secunda »— a f e s tiv a l t h a t th e
T h e p e c u lia r ity o f th is b r o t h e r h o o d , w h ic h c o n s is ts o f t w e lv e R o m a n s c e le b ra te d a f te r th e h a r v e s t, a c c o r d in g to D io n y s iu s
m e m b e r s , l i e s i n i ts r e t u r n to th e a r c h a ic p e rio d in c e r ta i n o f H a li c a r n a s s u s ( 3 .3 2 .4 * : th is tim e la g c o u ld b e e x p la in e d b y
c h a r a c t e r is t ic s o f its c u l t , a l th o u g h its e f f e c ti v e f u n c t i o n i n g o ld a g r a r ia n t r a d itio n s .
d a te s fro m a re s to r a tio n b y th e e m p e r o r A u g u s tu s . O th e r in d ic a tio n s p o in t m th e sam e d ire c tio n : th e c u lt
T h e c u l t o f t h e A r v a l s is p a r t i c u l a r l y w e l l k n o w n t o u s f r o m e x c lu d e s th e u se of iro n , and any in tro d u c tio n of th is
th e .Acta fratrum Arvalium, o f fic ia l r e c o r d s t h a t w e r e e n g r a v e d m e ta l— fo r e x a m p le th e c h is e l u s e d to e n g r a v e th e r e p o r t—
in s to n e a n d t h a t e x t e n d in l a y e r s f r o m th e A u g u s ta n A ge r e g u l a r l y n e c e s s i t a te d e x p i a to r ." s a c r i f i c e s , or :errum illatum.
(th e first in s c r ip tio n ap p e a rs to d a te fro m 20 s .c . i to th e S im ila rly , in t h e ir c e r e m o n i e s th e B r e t h r e n u s e d e a r t h e n p o t s
m i d d l e o f t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y a . d . ( t h e r e is a n e p i g r a p h i c t e x t m a d e b v a ru d im e n ta rv te ch n iq u e — d isc — s e v e r a l o f w h ic h
fro m a . d . 3 0 4 t h a t m e n t i o n s t h e n a m e o f t h e p r e s i d e n t in h a v e b e e n f o u n d in t h e s a c r e d w o o d s o f t h e A r v a i s . .A ll o f
ch arg e o f th e c o lle g e ). T h e p r e s tig e o f th e b r o th e r h o o d is th e s e c h a r a c te r is tic s , in c o n ju n c tio n w ith th e c h a n t o f th e
m e a su re d by th e q u a lity of its re c ru itm e n t: b e sid e s th e a r c h a ic h y m n , cabmen Arvale s u g g e s t g r e a t a n tiq u ity .
e m p e r o r , w h o w a s a k i n d o f h o n o r a r y m e m b e r , it i n c l u d e d N e v e rth e le s s , th is b ro th e rh o o d c a rrie s th e im p e ria l
m e n o f t h e b e s t s o c ie t y a n d o f s e n a t o r ia l r a n k . It is p a r a d o x ­ s ta m p . C o n f o r m in g to h is g e n e ra l p la n . A u g u s tu s w a n te d io
ica l t h a t t h e s e u r b a n p e o p le s h o u ld h a v e p re se rv e d a c u lt r e s t o r e a c u lt t h a t c o u l d c la im a v e n e r a b l e a n tiq u ity , f o r th is
d e d ic a t e d to t h e p r o s p e riri" o f t h e fie ld s a n d t h e h a r v e s t s : in co rre sp o n d e d to o n e o f h is m a jo r p la n s : to r e s to r e a g r ic u l­
th is w a y , th e rite s o f th e A r v a ls p e r p e t u a t e d th e o ld c u lt o f tu re to a p la c e o f h o n o r a fte r th e g r e a t im p o v e r is h m e n t o f
th e A m b a r v a li a , w h ic h c o n s i s te d in le a d in g a r o u n d t h e fie ld s t h e f i e l d s p r o v o k e d b y t h e c iv il w a r s . O n e o n l y h a s t o b e a r
th o s e a n im a ls th a t w e r e to b e s a crific e d to M a r s . T ra d itio n ­ in m i n d t h e g e n e r a l a m b i a n c e t h a t f a v o r e d t h e p r o d u c ti o n o f
a l ly , th e se a n im a ls fo rm ed in g rou p s of th re e , c a lle d V irg il s Georgies to u n d e rsta n d th e h o n o rs and p r iv ile g e s
suovetaurilia— b o a r , r a m , b u ll — a s w e k n o w f r o m t h e f a m o u s a c c o r d e d to th e A n a l B r e th re n : th e s e h ig h -ra n k in g p o o p le .
p ra y e r a d d re sse d to M a rs b y th e p e a s a n t, w h ic h C a to re­ w h o c o u n te d th e e m p o r o r o n e o f th e ir o w n , b e n e fite d fro m
c o r d e d in c h a p t e r 1 4 o f h is tr e a ti s e De Agricultura. o f fic ia l s u b v e n ti o n s (in th e fo rm of sportulaei and had th e
B u t th e c u lt o f th e A r v a ls d iffe rs f ro m th is a n c ie n t r ite n o t o f fic ia l d o c u m e n t s o f th e ir litu rg y e n g r a v e d in s to n e e a c h
o n ly in th e c h a ra cte r of its c e re m o n ie s but a lso in its year.
o r ie n ta tio n : th e c e n tra l p la c e w a s n o lo n g e r o c c u p ie d b y M a rs Im p ie ria l i n te r v e n ti o n is r e v e a le d firs t in th e o r g a n i z a ti o n o f
b u t b y a d iv in ity in v o k e d u n d e r t h e n a m e o f dea Dia. T h is th e c u lt a r o u n d th e p rin d p ia l g o d d e s s , dea Dia. w h o ap p e a rs
g o d d ess, w hose p re d o m in a n ce am ong o th e r d iv in itie s is th e r e fo r th e first tim e . S h e w a s a d iv in ity o f th e " d e a r s k y "
a tte s te d b y n u m e r o u s o f fic ia l a c t s , d o e s n o t a p p e a r in t h e lD a is a r e f e r e n c e t o t h e r i t u a l p r e s c r i p t i o n t o a n n o u n c e i n
o f fic ia l h y m n , th e carmen Arvale, w h ic h th e B r e th r e n s in g a t Ja n u a ry th e M ay ce re m o n ie s sub drvo culmine, "u n d er th e
th e e n d o f th e p rin cip a l c e r e m o n y . T h is is a n in te r e s tin g c e le s tia l v a u l t " ) , o f th e "g o o d w e a th e r" n ecessary fo r th e
d is c o r d a n c e w h ic h in d ic a te s th a t th e carmen Arvale m e rits rip e n in g o f t h e h a r v e s t s . In tim e , im p e r ia l i n te r v e n ti o n le d to
c lo s e r e x a m in a tio n . th e in tr o d u c tio n o f d iv in itie s o f r e c e n t o r ig in . T h u s , in th e
A lth o u g h th e tw e lv e A rv al B re th re n in c o n te s ta b ly ow e d o c u m e n t s o f a . d. 2 2 4 , M a r s i s i n v o k e d in t h e e x p r e s s i o n
th e ir o r g a n iz a tio n o r th e ir r e s u r r e c tio n to an in itia tiv e of M a rs pater Ultor, in h is asp w et o f a n a v e n g in g g o d — a c u lt
A u g u s tu s , le g e n d c a r r ie s th e ir in s titu tio n b a c k to th e " t im e o f i n s t it u te d b y A u g u s t u s ; s im ila rly , t h e e m p e r o r s d e if ie d a f t e r
R o m u l u s ." A c c o r d in g t o M a s u r iu s S a b in u s (q u o te d in A u lu s th e ir d e a th (th e drei) a r e r e g u la r ly m e n tio n e d a f te r th e o th e r
G e lliu s , N odes Atticae 7 .7 .8 ) , th e y w ere o r ig in a lly tw e lv e g o d s . T h e A r v a ls d e v e lo p e d th e h a b it o f i n s e r t in g o f fic ia l
b ro th e rs b o m o f A c c a L a r e n tia ; s in c e o n e a m o n g th e m w a s p ra y e rs, vota publica, in th e ir J a n u a r y litu r g y t o s a f e g u a r d th e
d e a d , R o m u lu s w a s s u b s titu te d fo r h im in th e r o le o f a n im p ie r i a l h o u s e ; a n d t h e y m a n i f e s t e d th e ir lo y a lty f e rv e n tly

113
ROM E

o n o t h e r o c c a s io n s , s u c h a s b irth s o f p r in c e s o r th e d e p a r ­ o f fe rin g o f i n c e n s e a n d w in e , th e e a r s o f g r a in a r e p r e s e n te d
tu re s a n d re tu rn s o f th e e m p e r o r s . to dea Dia.
T h e f u n d a m e n ta l o b je c t o f th e c u lt w a s c le a rly d e fin e d b y In a g e n e r a l w a y , t h e s y m b o l i s m o f t h e s e c e r e m o n i e s is
V a rro(De Lingua Latina 5 . 8 5 ) : fratres Arvales dicti, qui sacra tr a n s p a r e n t: th e s e " d r y a n d g r e e n " e a r s o f g r a in , w h ic h a r e
publica faciunt propterea ut fruges ferant arva . . . “ T h e A r v a l s u c c e s s iv e ly c o n se c ra te d , p assed fro m hand to h a n d , a n d
B r e t h r e n a r e s o n a m e d b e c a u s e th e y c e le b r a t e p u b lic s a c r i ­ o ffered to dea Dia, ex p re ss th e p r e o c c u p a t i o n s o f th e o ffi­
fice s s o t h a t th e fie ld s b e a r t h e ir h a r v e s t s ." T h is d e fin itio n c i a n t s : t h e e a r o f g r a i n o f t h e p a s t s h o u l d r e s p o n d in s o m e
a l w a y s c o r r e s p o n d s to r e a lity , d e s p i t e i n n o v a t i o n s o f r e c e n t w ay to th e ear o f g r a in of th e fu tu re . To th is end, th e
d a t e . T h e r itu a l n o l o n g e r in v o l v e s , a s d id th e o l d e r A m b a r ­ p r o p i t ia t o r y s a c r if ic e is o f f e r e d to n o n e b u t dea Dia.
v a lia , a c irc u m a m b u la tio n of th e R om an te rrito ry — cger W h a t is t h e r o l e o f dea Dia? S h e c o u ld n o t d o u b le fo r C e r e s ,
Romanus— b y th e s a crificia l a n im a ls . C o n f o r m in g to th e e t y ­ th e g o d d e s s o f g r o w th , o r T e llu s, th e g o d d e s s E a r th . B u t s h e
m o lo g y o f th e te r m , th e A m b a r v a lia a s s u r e d th e lu s tr a tio n o f c o l l a b o r a t e s w i t h t h e m a s " d i v i n i t y o f t h e c l e a r s k y " : is it b y
th e d o m a in (th e lustratio agri r e c o r d e d b y C a to r e p r e s e n ts a c h a n c e t h a t s h e is g i v e n p r a y e r s a n d s a c r i f i c e s in M a y , t h e
k in d o f m i n o r ritu a l o n a p e rs o n a l s ca le ) b y a p e rip h e r a l c r u c i a l s e a s o n f o r f u t u r e h a r v e s t s ? It is c e r t a i n t h a t s h e d o e s
p r o m e n a d e o f r e p r e s e n t a t i v e a n i m a l s — b o a r , r a m , b u ll — w h o n o t f i g u r e in t h e o f f ic i a l h y m n , t h e carmen Arvale. W e have
w o u ld a f te rw a rd s b e s a c rifice d . T h e A rv a ls c e le b ra te th e ir th e e x tr a o r d in a r y g o o d fo rtu n e — b e c a u s e o f a re c o rd fro m
p r i n c i p a l l i t u r g y o n l y a t a s p e c i f i c p l a c e in R o m a n t e r r i t o r y , A.D. 2 1 8 — o f k n o w i n g t h e t e x t o f t h i s h y m n , w h i c h a p p e a r s t o
"at th e f if th m ile s to n e of th e V ia C a m p a n a ," w h e re th e d a te fro m th e e n d o f th e s ix th ce n tu ry b . c . It is t h e o n l y
s a c re d w o o d s a n d th e s a n c tu a r y o f dea Dia a r e lo c a te d . a r c h a i c L a t i n t e x t t h a t h a s c o m e t o u s in a f o r m t h a t is a t a ll
The d a te of th e ce re m o n ie s is fix e d by th e p re s id e n t, i n t e l l i g i b l e , d e s p i t e d i f f i c u l t i e s in t h e t e x t — o r in t h e t r a n s ­
magister, i n J a n u a r y , d u r i n g t h e f i r s t m o n t h o f h i s t e r m : l ik e m i s s i o n . It r u n s a s f o l l o w s :
t h e f e s t i v a l o f s o w i n g ( Sementivae), t h e s e a r e m o v a b l e f e a s t s E n os, L ases, iu v a te , [e jn o s , L ases, iu v a te e nos la se s
(feriae conceptivae) th a t la st fo r th re e d a y s . T h e r e c o rd s s h o w i u v a t e . N e v e l u [ e ) , r u e , M a r m a , s i n s i n c u r r e r e in p l e o r e s ,
th a t s in c e V e s p a s ia n , th e d a t e s c o i n c i d e a l te r n a t i v e l y w ith 1 7 , n e v e l u e , r u e M a r m a r , ( s i j n s i n c u r r e r e in p l e o r i s , n e v e l u e ,
1 9 , a n d 2 0 M a y o r e l s e w i t h 2 7 , 2 9 , a n d 3 0 M a y . ( T h e r e is t h u s r u e , M a r m a r , s e r s i n c u r r e r e in p l e o r i s .
a re g u la r in te rv a l o f o n e d a y b e tw e e n th e first a n d s e c o n d
d a y o f th e fe s tiv a l, c o n f o r m in g to R o m a n u s a g e : th e s e c o n d S a tu r fu , [fje r e M a rs ; lim e n (s a lji, s ta b e rb e r.

d a y is r e s e r v e d f o r t h e o f f ic i a l c e r e m o n y , in t h e lucus of dea S a t u r fu , f e r e M a r s ; lim e n s a li, s ta b e rb e r.

Dia, w h ile th e first b e g in s th e o p e n i n g c e r e m o n i e s a t R o m e , S a t u r fu , f e r e M a r s ; lim e n s a [l]i, s [t ]a b e r b e r

and th e th ird , d e sig n a te d by an even n u m b er, m ark s its [S e m ju n is a lte r n e i a d v o c a p it c o n c t o s , S e m u n is

c o m p l e t i o n a t R o m e . A p a r a l l e l is o f f e r e d b y t h e Feralia o f 21 a lte r n e i a d v o c a p i t c o n c t o s , S i m u n is a lte r n j e i ] a d v o c a p i t
F eb ru ary , th e p u b lic fe s tiv a l o f th e dead, fo llo w e d on 22 [c o n c tjo s .
F e b ru a ry b y th e Caristia, p riv a te fa m ily g a t h e r i n g s .)
Let us re tu rn to th e e s s e n tia l rite s . On th e first day, E n os, M a rm o r, iu v a to , e n os, M arm o r, iu v a to , e nos,

b e g in n in g a t d a w n , th e B r e th r e n o f fe r in c e n s e a n d w in e to M a [r )m o r , iu v a to

dea Dia; th e n th e y c o n s e c r a te b y th e ir to u c h " d r y , g r e e n e a rs T r iu m p e , tr iu m p e , tr iu m p e , tr iu m jp e , trjiu m p e .

o f g ra in " (fruges aridas et virides contingerunt). In t h e a f t e r n o o n
A n a p p r o x i m a t e tra n s la tio n w o u ld b e :
th e y g a th e r fo r a b a n q u e t, fo llo w e d by a d is trib u tio n of
p e rfu m e s a n d c r o w n s . T h e s e c e r e m o n ie s u s u a lly ta k e p la ce H e lp u s, O L a re s , h e lp u s, O L ares, h e lp us O L a res!
in t h e R o m a n h o m e o f th e p re s id e n t. O n th e s e c o n d day M a r s , O M a r s , d o n 't le t D is s o lu tio n , D e s t r u c t i o n p o u n c e
s e v e r a l s a c r i f i c e s a r e m a d e in t h e w o o d s c o n s e c r a t e d dea
to u p o n th e p e o p l e ( ? ) . M a r s , O M a r s , d o n 't le t D is s o lu tio n ,
Dia. F i r s t c o m e e x p i a t o r y s a c r i f i c e s o f y o u n g s o w s (porcilias D e s tru c tio n p o u n c e u p o n th e p e o p le (? ). M a rs , O M ars,
piaculares)— t o b r i n g a b o u t t h e s u c c e s s f u l c o m p l e t i o n o f d i­ d o n 't le t D is s o lu tio n , D e s t r u c t i o n p o u n c e u p o n th e p e o ­
v erse w o rk s, in p a rtic u la r th e p ru n in g of th e w oods— p le (?).
to g e th e r w ith th e h o n o rary o f fe rin g of a cow . Then th e B e s u r f e ite d , s a v a g e M a rs ; le a p to th e fro n tie r, ta k e y o u r
B r e t h r e n , c l o t h e d in t h e toga praetexta, th e ir h e a d s v e ile d a n d p o s itio n ;
g a r la n d e d w ith e a r s o f g r a in , p r o c e e d to th e w o o d s to c a r r y B e s u r f e ite d , s a v a g e M a rs ; le a p to th e fro n tie r, ta k e y o u r
o u t th e s o le m n s a c rific e o f a fa tte n e d e w e (agnam opimam) in p o s itio n ;
h on or of dea Dia. A f t e r w a r d s , tw o o f t h e m g o to lo o k f o r th e B e s u r f e ite d , s a v a g e M a rs ; le a p to th e fro n tie r, ta k e y o u r
e ars of g r a in th a t w ere c o n se cra te d on th e p re c e d in g p o s itio n .
e v e n in g : th e s e e a r s o f g r a in a r e g o in g to b e p a s s e d fro m h a n d
Y o u w ill i n v o k e t h e S e m o n e s o n e b y o n e , a ll t o g e t h e r , y o u
to hand, fro m rig h t to le ft, b e f o r e b e in g handed over to
w ill i n v o k e t h e S e m o n e s , o n e b y o n e , a ll t o g e t h e r , y o u
a t te n d a n t s la v e s . T h e n , th e B r e th r e n e n t e r th e s a n c t u a r y to
w ill i n v o k e t h e S e m o n e s , o n e b y o n e , a ll t o g e t h e r .
fu lfill d iffe re n t h o ly o b lig a tio n s , o c c a s io n a lly m y ste rio u s.
(W h a t is, fo r e x a m p le , th e p r e c is e s ig n ific a n c e o f th e p r a y e r s H e lp u s M a r s , O M a rs , h e lp u s , M a rs , O M a rs , h e lp u s ,
t o p o t s [ ollas precati su n t] a n d o f th e th r o w in g o f th e s e p o ts M ars, O M ars.
th ro u g h t h e d o o r s o f t h e s a n c t u a r y ? ) F i n a l l y t h e t e m p l e is
V icto ry , v ic to ry , v ic to ry , v ic to ry , v ic to ry !
c l o s e d t o a ll e x c e p t t h e B r e t h r e n , w h o , l i t t l e b o o k s in h a n d ,
th e ir toga praetexta tu ck e d up, th en b e g in to e n to n e th e It w o u l d n o t b e p o s s i b l e t o p o i n t o u t h e r e a ll t h e p r o b l e m s
tra d itio n a l h y m n , d a n c in g to a th re e -b e a t rh y th m (carmen w h ic h m e rit d is c u s s io n (se e th e b ib lio g ra p h y ). But it is
descindentes tripodaverunt). T h e r e s t o f t h e d a y is d e v o t e d t o s t r i k i n g t h a t t h e h y m n , a l t h o u g h it i n v o k e s t h e Lares, p ro te c­
th e re a p p o in tm e n t o f th e p r e s id e n t a n d th e fla m e n fo r th e tiv e g o d s o f th e s o il, and th e Semones, gods o f th e seed
f o llo w in g y e a r , th e c e le b r a t io n o f g a m e s , a n d a b a n q u e t o n (semina), is a d d r e s s e d c h i e f l y t o M a r s in h i s r o l e o f d e f e n d e r :
th e re tu rn to R o m e . O n th e th ird day th e c e r e m o n ie s a re t h e g o d is b e g g e d t o t a k e u p a p o s i t i o n a t t h e f r o n t i e r o f t h e
c o m p le te d in R om e, in th e p r e s i d e n t 's hou se. A fte r an R om an d o m a in , to p re se rv e it f r o m v is ib le and in v isib le

114
 A U G U R S AND A U G U R Y

e n e m i e s . T h u s a r e m a r k a b l e c o n t r a s t is r e v e a l e d b e t w e e n t h e imi, publici augures (C ic e ro , Laws, 2 .2 0 ) , o r : " T h e a u g u r s o f th e

a rc h a ic p e rio d and th e im p e ria l age. M ars th e P ro te c to r s ta t e a r e th e in te r p r e t e r s o f a ll-p o w e r f u l J u p i te r ."
h a rd ly a p p e a rs any lo n g e r in th e im p e ria l litu rg y of th e T h e ir w o rk c o n s is te d e s s e n t i a l l y o n l y in i n t e r p r e t i n g t h e
A r v a ls , e x c e p t in a n e p i s o d i c f a s h io n ( M a r s t h e A v e n g e r ) a n d s ig n s th a t w e re s e n t b y J u p ite r ; th e rig h t to con d u ct th e
in th e e x c e p tio n a l sa crifice s o f th e suovetaurilia o ffered to a u s p ic e s w a s r e s e r v e d fo r th e m a g is tr a te . T h is fu n d a m e n ta l
c o n ju r e u p m a rv e ls : h e h a s c e d e d h is p la c e o f h o n o r to dea d i s t i n c t i o n is p a r t i c u l a r l y c l e a r in a t e x t o f C i c e r o , w h o w a s
Dia, d o u b tle s s b e c a u s e m in d s w e r e m o r e p r e o c c u p i e d w ith h im s e lf an a u g u r: "W e (a u g u rs] o n ly have th e rig h t to
p r o s p e r i t y t h a n w i t h d e f e n s e in a t i m e i n w h i c h t h e r e w a s a n n o u n c e t h e a u s p i c e s ( nuntiationem ) , w h i l e t h e c o n s u l s a n d
a p p a r e n tly n o lo n g e r n e e d to f e a r a n in v a s io n o f th e R o m a n o t h e r m a g i s t r a t e s h a v e in a d d i t i o n t h e r i g h t t o c o n d u c t t h e m
arva. (spectionem)" (Second Phillipic, 8 1 ). T h u s, d u rin g th e e n tire
R .S ./d .f . p e rio d o f th e R e p u b lic, th e p u b lic a u s p i c e s (auspicia populi
Romani) w e r e e n tire ly m o n o p o liz e d b y th e m a g is tr a te s : th e
r itu a l f o r m u la auspicium imperiumque s h o w s h o w m u c h th e ir
p o w e r o f c o m m a n d w a s b a s e d o n th e s o -c a lle d g u a r a n te e o f

BIBLIOGRAPHY th e a u s p ic e s .
W h a t a c tu a l r o le h a s fa lle n to th e a u g u r s s in c e th a t t im e ?
c. hen zkn , Acta fratrum Arualium (Berlin 1874). e . pasoli, Acta fratrum " T o c a r r y o u t th e o f f ic e o f a u g u r y " c a n b e s a id in d if f e r e n t
Arualium (Bologna 1950). "Aruales fratres," in c. wissowa , Real- w ays: augurium agere ( V a r r o , Ling. 6 . 4 2 ) , augurare, a n d inau­
Encyclopadie (1895), cols. 1463-87; "Zum Ritual der Arvalbrüder," gurare. B u t w e h a v e o n l y i n c o m p l e t e i n f o r m a t i o n o n t h e
Hermes 52 (1917): 321-47. e . norden . A us altrömischeu Pnesterbüchern disciplina augurum, f i r s t b e c a u s e t h e s c i e n c e o f a u g u r y w a s
(1939): 109-280, on the carmen Aruale. r. schillin g , Dea Dia dans la s u p p o s e d to b e k e p t s e c r e t , k n o w n o n l y t o its in it ia t e s , a n d
liturgie des Frères Arvales: Hommages à Marcel Renard (1969), 2:91-96;
a ls o b e c a u s e m o s t o f th e a n c ie n t w o r k s o n th is s u b je c t h a v e
reprinted in R.C.D.R.
b een lo s t. The fo llo w in g a c tiv itie s can be d is tin g u is h e d ,
h o w e v e r . F irs t, th e a u g u rs w e re ch a rg e d w ith p e rfo rm in g
c e rta in a r c h a ic ritu a ls , th e g o a l o f w h ic h , a t le a s t, can be
auguria vernisera ( F e s t u s , p . 5 2 0 L . ) a n d
d e te rm in e d . T h u s th e
th e augurium canarium ( P l i n y , Natural History, 1 8 . 1 4 ) b o t h
co n cern ed th e o u t c o m e o f th e h a r v e s t . A n o th e r c e r e m o n y ,
A ug u r s an d A ugury
c a lle d th e augurium salutis (D io C a s s iu s , 3 7 .2 4 .1 ) , w a s c e le ­
b ra te d a n n u a lly if t h e R o m a n a r m y w a s n o t o n c a m p a ig n :
Augur is a m a s c u l in e d e r i v a t iv e o f a n o ld n e u t e r r o o t **augus, s h o u ld th is b e c o n n e c t e d w ith a n o t h e r rite m e n tio n e d by
w h ic h a ls o p ro v id e d th e augurium a n d t h e a d j e c t i v e
noun V arro (Ling., 5 .4 7 ) in w h ic h th e a u g u r s , s ta r tin g fro m th e
augustus. T h e m a s c u l i n e t e r m augur, -ris i s o b v i o u s l y c o n ­ C a p it o l i n e c it a d e l, g o d o w n th e V ia S a c r a a n d p e r f o r m th e ir
n e c t e d w i t h t h e n e u t e r n o u n augurium. T h e a u g u r i s t h e o ffic e ?
p r i e s t w h o is p e r m i t t e d t o p e r f o r m auguria. T h e t w o w o r d s T h e r e is m o r e c o m p l e t e i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t t h e i n a u g u r a ­
c a n n o t b e e x p la in e d u n le s s w e g o b a c k to th e o ld n e u te r r o o t tio n o f p e o p l e a n d p l a c e s . L iv y ( 1 . 1 8 . 6 - 1 0 ) h a s s u p p l ie d u s
*augus (o f th e ty p e o f genus or *venus), w h ic h s e e m s to h a v e w ith a n a c c o u n t o f th e i n a u g u r a tio n o f K in g N u m a , w h o m
re fe rre d to w hat w as "fu ll of m y s tic fo rce " (G e o rg e s th e F a t h e r s h a d ju s t p r o c l a im e d k in g . " T h e n h e w a s le d b y
D u m é z i l ) . If t h e augurium r e p r e s e n ts th e s ig n o f s u p e r n a t u r a l th e a u g u r in to th e c it a d e l a n d sat on a s to n e , fa c in g th e
m a n ife s ta tio n , th e a u g u r is th e p rie st w h o c o n firm e d th e s o u t h . T h e a u g u r , w ith h is h e a d v e ile d , to o k a p la c e o n h is
p r e s e n c e o r a b s e n c e o f th is m y s tic fo r c e , a t le a s t d u r i n g th e l e f t , h o l d i n g in h i s r i g h t h a n d a b e n t s tic k w ith o u t k n o ts ,
h isto ric e ra ( i t is n o t p o s s i b l e t o s a y w h e th e r h is fu n c tio n c a lle d a lituus. T h e n a f t e r h e h a d lo o k e d o v e r b o th c ity a n d
o r ig in a lly h a d m o r e to d o w ith o p e r a tio n th a n w ith c o n f ir ­ f ie ld s , h e p r a y e d to th e g o d s a n d p o i n t e d o u t th e d i r e c t io n s
m a tio n ). A s fo r th e a d je c tiy e augustus, it c o u l d b e a p p l i e d t o fro m e a s t to w e s t , d e c l a r i n g th e re g io n o n th e r ig h t to b e th e
a t h i n g o r p e r s o n t h a t is i m b u e d w i t h m y s t i c p l e n i t u d e ( t h e s o u t h , t h e r e g i o n o n t h e l e f t t o b e t h e n o r t h ; in f r o n t o f h i m ,
a d je c tiv e w a s a t first u s e d o n ly fo r o b je c ts : O c t a v i a n , u p o n a s fa r a s h e c o u ld s e e , h e m e n ta lly m a rk e d a s p o t. T h e n h e
b e c o m in g e m p e r o r , w a s th e first p e r s o n to b e a r th e s u r n a m e p a s s e d th e lituus to h is le ft h a n d a n d p l a c e d h is r ig h t h a n d o n
A u g u s t u s , f o l l o w i n g a v o t e o f t h e R o m a n S e n a t e in 2 7 b . c .). N u m a 's h e a d , s a y i n g th e fo ll o w i n g p r a y e r :
T h u s it c a n b e d e m o n s t r a t e d t h a t t h e F r e n c h n o u n augure
O re v e re d Ju p ite r (Juppiter pater), if it is m y s t i c a l l y r i g h t (si
h a s a n e q u i v o c a l m e a n i n g , in t h a t it c a n r e f e r t o e i t h e r t h e
est fas) th a t N u m a P o m p iliu s , w h o s e h e a d I to u c h , b e k in g
p rie s t o r th e s ig n . A n o th e r k in d o f a m b ig u ity s te m s fro m th e
o f R o m e , s e n d u s c le a r a n d c e rta in s ig n s (uti tu signa nobis
re la te d w o r d auspicium, w h i c h is n o t i r r e l e v a n t t o t h e a r t o f
certa adclarassis) w ith in th e b o u n d a r ie s th a t I h a v e m a r k e d .
th e augur, e v e n t h o u g h i ts s e m a n t i c o r i g i n s d i f f e r . Auspicium
refe rs to th e o b s e rv a tio n ( specere ) of b ird s ( aves ) , w h i c h T h e n h e s ta te d d is tin c tly (peregit verbis) th e a u s p ic e s (aus­
a llo w e d th e a u g u r to k n o w t h e w il l o f t h e g o d s . E v e r y o n e picia) th a t h e w a n te d to b e s e n t. W h e n th e y h a d b e e n s e n t,
k n o w s th a t R o m e w a s fo u n d e d a fte r a n auspicium: R o m u lu s, N u m a w a s p ro c la im e d k in g a n d h e d e s c e n d e d fro m th e p la c e
a f te r h a v in g a v is io n o f tw e lv e v u l t u r e s , w a s c h o s e n b y th e of a u g u ry (templum)."
g o d s a s k in g a n d f o u n d e r o f th e c ity . T h u s , h e w a s th e first In t h i s a c c o u n t , t h e a u g u r a p p e a r s i n r i t u a l d r e s s ( h i s h e a d
a u g u r in R o m a n t r a d i t i o n . is v e i l e d a n d h e h o l d s t h e b e n t lituus). F a c in g e a s t, h e d e fin e s
T h e in s titu tio n o f th e C o lle g e o f A u g u r s w a s , h ow ever, th e templum, w h ic h is a q u a d ra n g u la r s p a c e fro m w h ose
a ttrib u te d to h is s u c c e s s o r , K in g N um a (L iv y , 4 .4 .2 ) . The in te rio r h e in te n d s to lo o k o u t. (T h is o r ie n ta tio n o f th e a u g u r
n u m b e r o f i t s m e m b e r s w a s s u c c e s s i v e l y t h r e e , s i x , n i n e ( in t o w a r d t h e e a s t is n o t o b l i g a t o r y , a s w e l e a r n in V a r r o , Ling.,
3 0 0 , d u r i n g th e a d v e n t o f th e p le b ia n s ), fifte e n ( u n d e r S u lla ), 7 .7 ; h e r e th e a u g u r tu r n s to w a r d th e s o u th a n d th e four p a rts
a n d f i n a l l y s i x t e e n ( a f t e r J u l i u s C a e s a r ' s r e f o r m ) . T h e i r o f f ic i a l o f th e templum a r e r e f e r r e d to a s fo llo w s : " t h e r e g io n to th e
d e fin itio n h a s a c le a r m e a n in g : Interpretes Jovis Optimi Max­ l e f t [ s i n /s / r a ] is t h e e a s t ; t h e r e g i o n t o t h e r i g h t [dextra] is t h e

115
ROME
Altar from the second century a . d . from the Sandals Quarter (vicus
sandaliarus) in Rome. Decorated with a victory on one face and two
lares on the other. Shown here is the back face, which depicts a
youthful augur (perhaps the young Lucius Caesar) holding a lituus,
flanked by Augustus and Livia (the only known commemoration of
a dynastic event). Photo Alinari-Giraudon.
west; the region in front [antica] is the south; the region
behind [postica] is the north.") Also note the precautions and
prudence used in this consultation with Jupiter. Not only
does the augur precisely define the field of observation, but
he lists restrictively the auspices that he wants to get (see
Pliny, Natural History, 28.17)— this was a known procedure,
called the legum dictio (the statement of conditions).
The ancients distinguished between signs that were solic­
ited under precise conditions within the templum (auspicia
impetrativa or impetrita) and signs that occurred on their own
(auspicia oblativa). With respect to the origins of these signa or
auspicia, they were divided into five categories (see Festus, p.
316 L.): celestial signs, ex caelo (particularly lightning and
thunder); signs provided by birds, ex avibus (in certain birds,
alites, the flight was observed, in others, oscines, the song);
signs given by the hopping of sacred chickens, ex tripudiis
T he R eligious P olicies of A ugustus
To President Léopold Sédar Senghor
A subject as vast as the religious policies of Augustus
might lend itself to a bibliographic review of the various
judgments made by historians of antiquity; such a review
would be in danger of swelling to indefinite proportions.
Such is not the intention of this discussion. The most I will
116
(this form of consultation degenerated very early because of
abusive practices); signs from the behavior of animals, ex
quadrupedibus; and finally, threatening portents, ex diris.
Another function of the augurs was to inaugurate places.
During the historical era, the Capitoline citadel where Livy
placed the inauguration of Numa bore the name of
auguraculum—this place of augury was itself a templum. The
exact definition of this word is given in Varro {Ling., 7.8):
"O n earth a place is called a templum when it is defined by a
precise formulation for the duties of augury or the taking of
auspices (augurii aut auspicii causa)”—the first activity con­
cerns augurs and the second, magistrates. Through augury
the place would become "exorcized and available"—locus
liberatus et effatus.
These templa included not only most divine sanctuaries
(the round aedes of Vesta was not inaugurated, however), but
also secular structures, such as the Curia and the Comitium.
In a larger sense, the city of Rome itself formed an immense
templum which was reserved for urban auspices (auspicia
urbana). The augurs ranked the territories in five categories
(according to Varro, Ling., 5.33): the territory of Rome, the
territory of Gabii, foreign territory, hostile territory, un­
known territory. These boundaries had great importance in
conducting auspices. As for Rome itself, the urban area was
considered to be separated from the rest of the territory (ager
Romanus) by a boundary called the pomerium. This explains
why each addition to the city had to be sanctioned by the
inauguration of a new pomerium.
The College of Augurs came right after the Pontifical
College. Despite its noble titles, its decadence in the last
century of the Republic was very advanced: this was due
both to the increasing ignorance of the augurs in practice and
to the abuse caused by political interventions. Note, for
example, this reproach by Cicero (Second Phillipic, 81) di­
rected at the augur Antony: "See his insolence. Many
months before, he (Antony) declared in the Senate that he
would use the auspices to block the election of Dolabella . . ."
The college did gain a certain respite through the reforms of
Augustus: the last augurs cited date from the end of the
fourth century a . d.
R.S./d.b.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Histoire de la divination dans l'antiquité, 4 (Paris
a . bouché - le cle r c q ,
1882). G. wissowA, Religion und Kultus der Römer (2d ed., Munich
1912), 523-34. p. c a ta la n o , Contributi allô studio del diritto augurale, 1
(Turin 1960). a . m a g d elain , Auspicia ad patres redeunt (Brussels 1964),
427-73. G. du m ézil , Idées romaines (Paris 1969), 80-102; La religion
romaine archaïque (2d ed., Paris 1974), 98-103, 584-89; = Archaic
Roman Religion (Chicago 1970).
say about this subject is that the pendulum of opinion
appears to be swinging, in that the position of Ronald Syme
(The Roman Revolution, Oxford 1939; 2d ed., 1952), which was
very critical of Augustus, has recently been contested by
Hans Erich Stier (Augustusfriede und römische Klassik, A.N.R.-
W„ 2, 2, pp. 49ff. [1975]).1
Beyond such bibliographic methods, I will base my discus­
sion essentially on ancient sources, in order to isolate the
major lines of the religious work of Augustus and thus to
facilitate a critical and objective consideration of the issue.
What are the principal documents at our disposal? Along with
 THE R E L I G I O U S P O L I C I E S OF A U G U S T U S

th e p re c io u s Index rerum a se gestarum, a t t r i b u t e d to s c a n d a lo u s v a c a n c y — la s tin g s e v e n ty -f iv e years— of th e

S u e t o n i u s 2— o r t h e Res gestae divi Augusti5— w e a l s o h a v e th e flamonium Dialis, a p o s i t i o n l a s t h e l d in 8 7 b . c . b y L . C o r n e l i u s
i n f o r m a t i o n f u r n i s h e d b y h i s t o r i a n s '1 a n d t h e n u m e r o u s a l l u ­ M e r u l a , w h o t o o k r e f u g e in t h e s a n c t u a r y o f J u p i t e r t o e s c a p e
s io n s m a d e b y th e p o e ts o f th e A u g u s t a n e r a , p a r tic u la r ly h is e n e m i e s a n d le ft h is p r i e s t ly in s ig n ia t h e r e b e f o r e c o m ­
V irg il, H o r a c e , a n d P r o p e r tiu s . m i t t i n g s u i c i d e . 12
W e w ill f i r s t t r y to s u m m a r iz e t h e v a r io u s s ta g e s in th e In th e s a m e s p irit, A u g u s t u s to o k c a re to r e e s ta b lis h th e
c a r e e r o f th is h e ir o f J u liu s C a e s a r , th e n to s tu d y h is r e lig io u s n o rm a l fu n c tio n in g o f th e g r e a t c o lle g e s o f p o n tiffs, a u g u r s , th e
w o r k in g e n e r a l , a n d f i n a l l y t o e x a m i n e h i s e s s e n t i a l c h a r a c t e r . quindecimviri sacris faciundis, th e septemviri epulones, and th e
In 4 4 B .c., w h e n O c t a v i a n , t h e a d o p t e d s o n o f C a e s a r — Divi s o d a litie s . W h ile r e s to r i n g t h e m , h e w a s c a re fu l to u p d a te th e
filius— a p p e a r s o n th e p o litic a l s c e n e , h e s h o w s n o s ig n s o f i n s t it u ti o n s in k e e p i n g w it h c h a n g e d c i r c u m s t a n c e s .
h is d e s tin y a s th e fu tu re A u g u s tu s . T h e s tro n g c o n te n d e r A r e c e n t s t u d y 15 h a s r e v e a l e d t h e i n t e n t i o n s o f A u g u s t u s
a p p e a r s to b e A n t o n y : in th is s e n s e , S h a k e s p e a r e w a s n o t in r e s t o r i n g t h e c o l l e g e o f t h e A r v a l B r e t h r e n . H e m a d e t h i s
m i s t a k e n , in h i s p l a y Julius Caesar, in g i v i n g t h e p r i n c i p a l r o l e r e f o r m a t a tim e w h e n p e o p le w a n te d to " g iv e h o n o r to th e
to M a rk A n t o n y ; h is " h i s t o r i c a l a c c u r a c y " a g r e e s w ith th e p l o w ," as V irg il i n d i c a t e s : 14 O fortunatos nimium, sua si
e v e n ts . bona norint, agricolas .l5 The A rv al B re th re n w ere ch arged ,
It i s , h o w e v e r , O c t a v i a n ' s p o l i t i c a l a s c e n s i o n t h a t w il l a l l o w b o t h b y n a m e (arva) a n d b y o f fic e , w ith i n s u r in g th e m y s tic a l
th e r e lig io u s in itia tiv e to p r o g r e s s . T h r e e d iffe re n t p e r io d s p r o t e c ti o n o f th e fie ld s . B u t th e y w e r e a ls o r e s p o n s ib le fo r
c a n b e d is tin g u is h e d : p r a y in g to th e g o d s fo r th e p r o s p e r ity a n d s a lv a tio n o f C a e s a r
{a) F r o m 4 4 t o 3 1 b . c ., O c t a v i a n b e h a v e s a s C a e s a r ' s l o y a l a n d th e R o m a n E m p ire , p a rtic u la rly a t th e b e g in n in g o f e a c h
h e i r . I t is in t h i s r o l e , i n 4 4 b .c ., t h a t h e s p e n d s h i s o w n year, in th e m o n th of Ja n u a ry . A u g u s tu s su cceed ed in
m o n e y to c e le b r a t e t h e f e s tiv a ls in h o n o r o f th e d e d ic a t io n o f m a k in g th is c o lle g e a s r e p r e s e n ta t iv e a s p o s s ib le o f R o m a n
th e te m p le o f V e n u s G e n e tr ix , to m a k e u p fo r th e in s o lv e n c y s o c ie ty , th r o u g h a w is e m e a s u r e o f s o c ia l r e c r u it m e n t : p a tr i­
o f th e m a g is tr a te s n o r m a lly re s p o n s ib le fo r th is d u t y .5 T h e n , c ia n s fro m o ld fa m ilie s , n o b le R e p u b lic a n s , o ld p a r t is a n s o f
a fte r th e w o rld is d i v i d e d b e t w e e n th e th r e e triu m v irs , h e P o m p e y a n d A n to n y , a n d lo y a l s u b je c ts o f A u g u s tu s w e re
s o o n fin d s h im s e lf fa c in g A n t o n y a lo n e : L e p id u s , w h o h a d " f r a t e r n a l l y " p u t in s e r v i c e t o t h e s a m e c a u s e , ad majorem
r e c e i v e d A f r i c a , w a s e l i m i n a t e d in 3 6 ( a f t e r t h e v i c t o r y o v e r gloriam populi Romani. A c c o r d i n g t o A u g u s t u s ' s p l a n , t h e t i t l e
S e x tu s P o m p e y a t N a u lo c u s ). O c t a v i a n , w h o ru le s th e W e s t, o f Brother w o u l d e m p h a s i z e t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p t h a t w o u l d , l ik e
keeps h is d is ta n c e fro m A n to n y , w ho has th e E a s t. As th e tie s o f a fa m ily , h e r e a f t e r u n ite th is n e w n o b ility to th e
A n to n y b e c o m e s m o re a n d m o r e O r ie n ta liz e d , to th e p o in t o f p e rs o n o f th e princeps . 16
m a r r y in g C le o p a tr a (a f te r re p u d ia tin g O c ta v ia , th e s is te r o f T h is e x a m p l e s h o w s h o w w is e ly A u g u s t u s r e c o n c ile d th e
h is r iv a l), O c ta v ia n p r e s e n t s h im s e lf a s th e c h a m p i o n o f th e s p irit o f re fo rm w ith a r e s p e c t fo r t r a d itio n . R o m a n re lig io n
W e s t. W e k n o w th e r e s u lt o f t h e c o n f lic t w h ic h e n d e d in 3 1 a l w a y s h a d t h i s d o u b l e a l l e g i a n c e : a l t h o u g h it w a s a n c h o r e d
b . c ., d u r i n g t h e b a t t l e o f A c t i u m , w h i c h w o u l d b e p l a c e d b y in tra d itio n s th a t c o u ld be tra ce d b ack to In d o -E u ro p e a n
O c t a v i a n 's e u l o g i s t s u n d e r t h e s ig n o f V e n u s a n d C a e s a r .6 o r i g i n s , t h e l o g i c o f p o l y t h e i s m a l l o w e d it t o i n c o r p o r a t e n e w
(b) F r o m 3 1 t o 1 2 b . c ., O c t a v i a n ' s r e l i g i o u s p o l i c i e s b e c o m e c u l t s a s w e ll: t a k e , fo r e x a m p l e , t h e i n tr o d u c t io n o f A p h r o ­
m o r e p e r s o n a l . It i s t h e n t h a t t h e h e a d o f t h e R o m a n s t a t e d ite o f M o u n t E ry x on th e C a p ito lin e in 215 th ro u g h th e
a c c o r d s a n o f fic ia l p l a c e t o A p o ll o , to w h o m h e a t tr i b u te s m o s t a s s im ila tio n o f th is g o d d e s s w ith th e R o m a n V e n u s , o r th e
o f th e c r e d it fo r th e v i c to r y o f A c tiu m : h e b u ild s a s a n c t u a r y e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f C y b e l e o n t h e P a l a t i n e H ill in 2 0 4 t h r o u g h
o f A p o l l o o n t h e P a l a t i n e H il l ( i n 2 8 b . c .). In 2 7 b . c ., h e a c q u i r e s h e r c o n n e c t i o n w i t h t h e T r o j a n l e g e n d . It w a s a ll a m a t t e r o f
u n p r e c e d e n t e d r e l i g i o u s p r e s t i g e w h e n h e is g i v e n t h e n a m e d eg ree, e s p e c ia lly s in c e m o re th an one c o n q u e ro r— fro m
Augustus b y S e n a t e d e c i s i o n . 7 A n d in 1 7 b . c ., h e c e l e b r a t e s , a s S u lla t o A n t o n y — h a d m o re o r le ss s u c c u m b e d to O rie n ta l
magister das decemviri sacris faciundis, t h e s e c u l a r g a m e s , w h i c h s e d u c ti o n s . A t a tim e w h e n R o m e , w h ic h h a d ju s t s u c c e e d e d
a r e e s s e n tia lly u n d e r th e a u s p i c e s o f A p o llo a n d D ia n a . in e x te n d in g th e b o u n d a rie s of its e m p ire , m ig h t have
( c ) I n 1 2 b . c ., A u g u s t u s f i n a l l y b e c o m e s Pontifex maximus, at y ie ld e d to th e e a s y te r m s o f th e interpretatio Romana, A u gus­
th e d e a th o f L e p id u s , w h o m h e d id n o t w is h to s tr ip o f th is tu s s h o w e d a re m a rk a b le c o n c e r n fo r b a la n c e b e tw e e n tra d i­
d i g n i ty d u r i n g h is lif e tim e — o u t o f r e s p e c t n o t fo r t h e m a n t io n a l a n d i n n o v a t i v e t e n d e n c i e s . T h e s a m e i m p r e s s io n c a n
b u t fo r th e s u p r e m e p r i e s t h o o d . A t th is d a t e , A u g u s t u s h a s b e d r a w n fro m a n e x a m i n a ti o n o f m o s t o f h is in itia tiv e s .
Res Gestae:1* Pontifex maximus,
a ll t h e title s t h a t h e l is ts in t h e F o r th is r e a s o n , a n d to a p p e a l to a p e o p le tire d o f w a r s , h e
augur, quindecimvirum sacris faciundis, septemvirum epulonum, r e in s ta te d th e a n c i e n t rite t h a t c lo s e d th e s a n c t u a r y o f J a n u s
frater Arvalis, sodalis Titius, fetialis fui. in t i m e s o f p e a c e . W ith p rid e h e p ro c la im e d in h i s w i l l : 17
" T h e t e m p l e o f J a n u s Q u i r i n u s , w h i c h a c c o r d i n g t o t h e w ill
o f o u r a n c e s t o r s is to b e c lo s e d w h e n v i c to r i o u s p e a c e r e i g n s
I. The Religious Work
o v e r a ll o f t h e R o m a n E m p i r e , b o th o n la n d a n d a t s e a , in th e
L e t u s n o w lo o k a t th e w o r k h e d id . A t first th is c o n s i s te d m e m o r y o f m a n h a s b e e n c lo s e d o n ly tw ic e b e f o r e m y b irth :
o f b a s ic r e c o n s t r u c t i o n , f o llo w in g a ll th e d e v a s t a t i o n o f th e u n d e r m y p r i n c i p a t e , t h e S e n a t e h a s c l o s e d it t h r e e t i m e s . "
c iv il a n d f o r e i g n w a r s . F i r s t , m a t e r i a l r e c o n s t r u c t i o n : A u g u s ­ W h e n i n 1 2 b. c . A u g u s t u s a s s u m e d t h e o f f i c e o f P o n t i f e x
tu s h im s e lf d e c la r e s 9 th a t h e re c o n s tr u c te d e ig h ty -tw o re li­ M a x im u s , he re s o lv e d th e re s u ltin g c o n flic t of in te r e s ts
g io u s b u ild in g s th a t h a d b e e n d a m a g e d o r d e s tr o y e d . R e s to ­ e le g a n tly : s in c e as head o f s ta te he c o u ld n o t liv e in th e
r a tio n of c u ltic p r a c tic e s fo llo w e d , su ch as th e augurium R e g ia , t h e o f fic ia l r e s id e n c e o f th e s u p r e m e p o n tif f , h e h a d a
salutis a n d t h e c e r e m o n y o f t h e L u p e r c a l i a . 10 V a r i o u s i n s t i t u ­ c h a p e l c o n s e c r a t e d t o V e s ta b u ilt in h is p a l a c e o n t h e P a la tin e :
tio n s w e r e r e s to r e d to h o n o r . H e in c r e a s e d th e p r e s ti g e o f th e h e n c e fo rth th e g o d d e s s , re p r e s e n te d b y th e s a c r e d fla m e th a t
v e s ta l v irg in s , a n d n o tin g th a t a v a c a n c y c a u s e d b y th e d e a th w a s n e v e r e x tin g u is h e d , a s y m b o lic to k e n o f th e e te r n ity o f
o f o n e o f th e m e m b e rs w a s n o t b e in g f i ll e d a n d th a t th e R o m e , a p p e a r e d e v e n c lo s e r to th e p r i n c e a n d m o r e c lo s e ly
c itiz e n s w e r e s lo w to suggest th e ir d a u g h te r s as re p la ce ­ i n v o l v e d in t h e fa te o f t h e E m p i r e .
m e n t s , h e s w o r e th a t " i f o n e o f h is g r a n d d a u g h t e r s w e r e o ld A u g u s tu s w a s a ls o c le v e rly a b le to c o m b in e c e rta in H e l­
en ou gh , he w o u ld have p ro p o se d h e r . " 11 H e ended th e le n ic f e a tu r e s w ith R om an tr a d itio n s . In 28 b .c . he had a

117
ROME

temple to Apollo erected on the Palatine Hill; upon becoming

supreme pontiff in 12 b . c . , he transferred there the Sibylline
Books, which had previously been in the care of Jupiter in the
cellars of the temple of Capitoline Jupiter; Augustus had the
prophetic books placed under the statue of Apollo, after
subjecting them to a rigorous selection process.18 Thus he
maintained the old Roman tradition that allowed him, by
order of the Senate, to consult the Sibylline Books; at the same
time he made an innovation by reestablishing the logical
connection between the inspired books and their source of
inspiration.
The same preoccupation with balance appears in the
organization of the secular games in 17 b . c .: the games were
under the exclusive authority of the master of the quindecim­
viri s./. (Augustus was not yet supreme pontiff at that date).
In this way Augustus restored an ancient rite that until then
had been addressed to Dis Pater or Pluto and that had a
funereal quality. Augustus gave it a double meaning. First,
he retained the nocturnal aspect (the invocation of the
Parcae, divinities that presided over fate; of the Eileithyiae,
who presided over births; and of Tellus, who presided over
prosperity); then he added a diurnal aspect: the invocation of
the gods who were the protectors of Rome, Jupiter and Juno,
in particular, but especially Apollo and Diana, who were
called upon to provide Rome with "a new century of still
greater happiness."19
Perhaps the best example of this renovation of ancient
cults is the new light which Augustus wanted to shed on the
association between Mars and Venus. Mars had been wor­
shiped originally as the "fiery god" (fere Mars is one of the
invocations of the carmen Arvale) and as the father of the
founder of the Urbs, Romulus. Venus had been honored for
centuries, in connection with the Trojan legend, as the
Augustus and a Vicomagister. Altar from the Belvedere. Rome,
mother of the nation of the Romans descended from Aeneas.
Vatican Museum. Museum photo.
Certainly the two divinities had already been associated
during the lectisternium of 217 b . c ., graeco ritu, based on the
model of Ares and Aphrodite. Instead of borrowing from the
Hellenic pattern, Augustus proposed a new formula. Mars,
II. The Personality of Augustus and the Spirit of Reform
the father of the founder of the City, became its dynastic
protector as well, Mars Ultor, the god who would be the Perhaps the moment has come to devote some attention to
avenger of the assassination of Caesar and the honor of the personality of the emperor himself. Many anecdotes
Rome. As for Venus, she stopped begging for peace at any about his behavior are reported by his biographers: they
price, as in the preamble to Lucretius's poem, and was reveal, besides goodwill and humor, a certain simplicity and
mobilized into the service of the Romans descended from a sense of moderation. Not only did Augustus disdain all
Aeneas. Thus the two gods appeared in the prophetic vision flattery, he resisted the seductions of a propaganda meant to
that Virgil attributed to Vulcan, when he forged and em­ provide him with a halo of legend. At least three examples
bossed the shield of Aeneas at the request of Venus: both are conclusive.
gods were engaged in the battle of Actium at the sides of One legend reported that his mother Atia conceived the
Octavian "against the monstrous gods of the Nile and the future emperor from Apollo when he had metamorphosed
barking Anubis."20 into a serpent.25 Octavian put so little stake in his reputation
This explains why Mars and Venus often appeared as Apollinis filius that, unlike Julius Caesar, who claimed at an
together in official art. When M. Vipsanius Agrippa built early age to be Veneris nepos, he did not hesitate to compro­
the Pantheon, dedicated to all the gods and goddesses (in 25 mise it during the masquerade of the cena dödekatheos ("the
b . c .) , their statues appeared side by side.21 Later, in 2 b . c ., dinner of the twelve gods"): during this sacrilegious feast, he
when the great temple of Mars Ultor was dedicated in the disguised himself as Apollo, "regaling his friends, also
forum of Augustus, Venus was shown at the side of Mars dressed as gods and goddesses, with new adulteries of the
on the facade: stat Venus Ultori juncta.22 gods."26 Of course this youthful episode was later erased by
After this, it is not surprising that Augustus had the statue his devotion to Apollo at Actium: his devotion then retained
of Venus in the Pantheon decorated with two huge pearls nothing of the old legend.
that had belonged to the queen of Egypt:23 it was a way of Another episode is also significant. On the day of the birth
consecrating the "best spoils" taken from the "enem y" to the of the future Augustus (in 63 b . c .) the Pythagorean P.
Roman Venus. What a contrast, however, to the action of Nigidius Figulus hurried to proclaim: dominum terrarum orbi
Julius Caesar, who had placed a "beautiful statue of Cleopa­ natum ("a master of the universe is born").27 Far from
tra" (Appian) in the temple of Venus Genetrix, an act which exploiting this theme "of public notoriety," Augustus later
represented an incontestable homage to the queen of forbade by special edict the use of the word dominus to refer
Egypt.24 to him—following a public demonstration that reflected this

118
 THE R E L I G I O U S P O L I C I E S OF A U G U S T U S

theme: when an actor cried, during a play: O dominum of the Vestals, of the victims accompanied by the sacrificial
aequum et bonum! the public rose to its feet in an ovation to the priests; there it shows the cortege of the household of
emperor.28 Augustus, the priests, the magistrates, the prince himself,
The last example is cited by Suetonius:29 "During his first capite velato, surrounded by three major flamens; then follow
consulate, Augustus was taking the auguries, when twelve the senators and some of the Roman people.
vultures appeared to him, as had once happened to Romu­ Elsewhere, images of the rising Rome appear: the Lupercal
lus." Again, he refused to take advantage of the omen. In 27 cave, and Aeneas sacrificing to the Penates, the household
B.c., during the famous session of the Senate when some gods. Still elsewhere are the goddess Roma, and Tellus, who
people wished to honor him with the title of Romulus or novus holds two children in her arms and is accompanied by two
conditor, he refused them in favor of the name Augustus.30 Horae. Everything celebrated the majesty of Rome, as inter­
These facts help us to understand the spirit that inspired preted by Romanized Greek art: all of Roman society was
the most personal initiatives of Augustus. As a Roman who present, from the founder Aeneas to the representative of
would not allow his image to be inflated, despite the obvious the Julian dynasty, with Augustus attracting all the attention
opportunities to do so, he must have often remembered the as the auspicious guarantor of prosperity. It was to Peace, the
phrase that the slave repeated to his conqueror during the Augustan Peace won after so many civil and foreign wars,
triumphal procession: " memento te hominem esse.” From this that the Romans owed their happiness. And it was to
came a sort of wisdom of the soil, doubled by an instinctive Augustus that they expressed their gratitude, as did the poet
mistrust of foreign influences, particularly Oriental influ­ who at almost the same time addressed the prince in these
ences. Of course he respected cults that had been sanctified terms: Lucem redde tuae, dux bone, patriae.™
by time: he was initiated into the mysteries of the Athenian
Demeter in Athens, for example.31 On the other hand, he
III. The Beginnings of the Imperial Cult
refused Isis access to Rome (in 28 b . c .) , even though some
years earlier (in 43 b . c .) the triumvirs had authorized the Augustus knew how to direct popular fervor progressively
erection of a temple consecrated to Isis and Serapis in Rome. into an official form without upsetting Roman customs. He
Similarly, when traveling across Egypt he refused to make had undoubtedly reflected on the precedent of Julius Caesar
the slightest "detour to go to see the ox Apis."32 who, when he was still very young, at the funeral oration of
Regarding the Jews, the following facts easily demonstrate his aunt Julia, had claimed "a royal lineage on his mother's
his attitude to them. He congratulated his grandson Gaius side; a divine lineage on his father's sid e."39 The career
for having crossed Judea without offering a sacrifice in savagely broken on the ides of March in 44 b . c ., of the Venere
Jerusalem.33 And when he learned that among the children prognatus, gave food for thought.
under two years old who were massacred in Syria on the With a sure instinct, Augustus was inspired by an old Italic
order of Herod, King of the Jews, was Herod's own son, he custom that honored the Genius of the father of the family in
cried: "I would rather be Herod's pig than his son" (mallem every household. The one whom Horace had just hailed as
Herodis porcus esse quam filius).M 2
the dux bonus, and who several years later (in b . c .) was to
His caution toward accepting honors offered him by for­ receive the official title of Pater Patriae, made it possible for
eigners is also significant. His reaction to the extraordinary the people to venerate their Genius surrounded by Lares
veneration shown by the sailors of Alexandria whom he compitales. A coincidence worthy of note: the poet's dream
happened to meet on the coast of Puteoli is revealing:
Augustus was admodum exhilaratus—"charmed and
amused"—according to his biographer,33 and he had pieces
of gold distributed to his companions so that they could buy Sacrifice offered by Aeneas. Rome, Altar of Peace (ara Pacts). Photo
Alexandrian wares. Anderson-Giraudon.
Of course the cities of Asia Minor conferred divine honors
upon him, in accordance with Hellenistic tradition: he was
called sôtêr in a decree of the confederation of Greek cities of
Asia Minor (in 9 b . c .) , as well as in an inscription from
Halicarnassus (in 2 b . c .) . Augustus, however, "accepted no
temple in the provinces that did not associate the name of
Rome with his own, and obstinately refused this honor in
Rome itself.''36 Thus the altar of Rome and Augustus was
erected in Lyon in 12 b . c ., and an altar of Rome and Augustus
was built in Cologne (civitas Ubiorum), in the first century a . d .
This sense of moderation was linked with an deep under­
standing of the Roman spirit. With a sure instinct, Augustus
gave new life to the cult of deified abstractions like Fides or
Ceres, which were characteristic of ancient Roman religion.
Fortuna Augusta, dem entia Augusta, Justitia Augusta, Pietas
Augusta, Salus Augusta all reappeared, now marked with an
epithet showing their imperial connection.
Pax Augusta stands out in this list of divinities. The ara Pads
Augustae still exists tod^y beside the Tiber, near the Mauso­
leum of Augustus which was once crowned with a statue of
the emperor. Its majestic simplicity is striking, particularly in
contrast with the tortuous art on the altar of Pergamum.37
The Augustan altar offers a faithful image of the art and
religion of the Augustan Age. Here it shows the processions

119
ROME

h a d p r e c e d e d th e in s titu tio n o f th e c u lt, w h ic h d a te s fro m 12

B .c. I n d e e d , i n a n o d e ( w r i t t e n b e t w e e n 16 a n d 13 b . c .),40
H o r a c e h a d e v o k e d th e d e v o ti o n o f th e R o m a n c itiz e n in th e
fo llo w in g t e r m s : " B y o f f e r in g y o u in p r o f u s i o n t h e ir p r a y e r s
a n d t h e ir l ib a tio n s o f w in e s o p u r e , e v e r y o n e v e n e r a t e s y o u r
d i v i n e s p i r i t a t t h e s a m e t i m e a s t h e L a r e s . " A r e f o r m o f 7 b .c .
w o u ld c r e a te 2 6 5 collegia compitalicia w h o w o u ld b e r e s p o n s i­
b le fo r m a in ta in in g th is c u lt. F rom th e n on, th e R om an
p o p u l a c e c o u l d s e e a t a ll c r o s s - r o a d s t h e t w o L a r e s s u r r o u n d ­
in g th e fig u rin e o f th e Genius Augusti and exposed to i ts
f e rv o r. It is t h u s , th r o u g h a s lo w p r o c e s s , t h a t th e c o n c e p t o f
d e if y in g th e im p e r ia l p e r s o n a g e b e c a m e m o r e fa m ilia r.
B ecau se th e s tro k e o f g e n iu s c o n s is te d in i n s t i l l i n g t h i s
c o n c e p t i n t o a w a y o f lif e , r a t h e r t h a n im p o s in g it i n t h e
n a m e o f a r ig h t. B y v ir tu e o f h is Ju lia n l in e a g e , th e Divi filius
c o u l d h a v e d e m a n d e d d e i f i c a t i o n : h e w o u l d n o t w a n t t o f u l ly
a c c e p t it . . . u n t i l t h e h o u r o f a p o t h e o s i s . A u g u stu s h ad
u n d e r s t o o d t h a t if a d i v i n e l a w c o u l d c o n s t i t u t e a p o w e r f u l
Senatorial procession. The senators are preceded by two lictors
b o n d o f d y n a s t i c a l l e g i a n c e , it w a s s till n e c e s s a r y t h a t t h e l a w wearing togas and crowned with laurel wreaths. The figure with his
b e r e c o g n iz e d b y th e m a jo rity o f th e p e o p le . head covered and carrying a small box serves to emphasize the
W e a lso se e a p o litic o -th e o lo g ic a l m y s tiq u e b e in g e s ta b ­ religious element. Rome, Altar of Peace. Photo Anderson-Giraudon.
l is h e d , a c c o r d i n g t o w h ic h t h e r e i g n i n g p r i n c e w a s J u p i t e r 's
r e p r e s e n ta t iv e o n E a r t h . In th is c a p a c i ty h e w a s e x p e c t e d to
s e e th a t ju s tic e r e ig n e d — d if f e r e n t b e h a v io r fro m th a t o f a n
autokratör o r an o m n ip o te n t dominus. F o r if t h e r e is a c o n v i c ­
tio n a n c h o r e d i n t h e R o m a n m e n t a l i t y , it i s t h a t a ll p o w e r
u ltim a te ly d e p e n d s o n th e g o d s : Dis te minorem quod geris
imperas ( " I t is b e c a u s e y o u s u b m i t t o t h e g o d s t h a t y o u r u l e " ) ,
H o r a c e p r o c l a i m e d i n h i s a d d r e s s t o t h e R o m a n . 41
T h e p r i n c e w h o c o n c e n t r a t e d in h i s p e r s o n t h e t r u e p o w e r
and th e a u s p ic e s , s o a s to le a v e to th e g e n e ra ls o n ly th e
t e c h n i c a l c o m m a n d ( ductus ) o f w a r , a p p e a r e d t o a ll t o b e t h e
a p p o in te d in te rm e d ia ry b e tw e e n th e g o d s a n d th e R o m a n
p e o p l e . It i s o f t h i s h i e r a r c h y t h a t H o r a c e i s t h i n k i n g i n h i s
p r a y e r t o J u p i t e r : 42 " F a t h e r a n d p r o t e c t o r o f t h e h u m a n r a c e ,
s o n o f S a tu r n , th e fa te s h a v e e n tr u s te d g r e a t C a e s a r to y o u r
care: m ay y o u re ig n w ith C aesar as y o u r secon d in c o m ­
m a n d !" A n d fu rth e r o n h e r e c o m m e n d s A u g u s tu s to Ju p ite r
in m o r e d e t a i l : 43 " H e w ill s u b m i t t o y o u a n d w ill g o v e r n t h e
Imperial procession. Augustus as high priest (the central figure, with
v a s t w o r ld w ith j u s t ic e ." his head covered) is preceded by lictors and flamines, each wearing
T h i s is h o w th e e s s e n tia l tra its o f th e r e lig io u s w o r k o f the priestly cap (galerus) with apex. Augustus is followed by mem­
A u g u s t u s a p p e a r t o u s . It is c h a r a c t e r i z e d b y a s t r o n g e f f o r t bers of the imperial family—perhaps the young Caius Caesar, Livia
t o f u s e H e l l e n i s m a n d R o m a n i s m m o r e f i r m l y t o g e t h e r : it is (wearing a stola), and Agrippa (crowned with a laurel wreath).
tru e th a t th e f o r m e r w a s o f te n u sed in th e s e r v ic e o f th e Rome, Altar of Peace. Photo Alinari-Giraudon.
l a t t e r . T h e r e l i g i o u s w o r k i s a l s o c h a r a c t e r i z e d — t h i s t i m e in
c o n t r a s t to th e in itia tiv e s o f Ju liu s C a e s a r — b y a m o r e n o tic e ­
a b le r e s e r v e to w a rd O r ie n ta l in flu e n c e s : E g y p tia n g o d s in
p a rtic u la r a r e o s tra c iz e d , w h ic h can be e x p la in e d by th e B a y e t re p ro a c h e s A u g u s tu s fo r h a v in g d isre g a rd e d th e re ­
a f te r m a th o f th e v ic to r y o f A c tiu m . s o u r c e s o f p h ilo s o p h y , th e a p p e a l o f h is tim e to a s p ir a tio n s o f
T h i s p o l i c y r e v e a l s A u g u s t u s t o b e a b o v e a ll a p r o f o u n d g r e a te r u n iv e r s a lis m . B u t a f te r s o m u c h tro u b le a n d c o n f u ­
r e a l i s t . A l t h o u g h o p e n t o p h i l o s o p h y , 44 t h e e m p e r o r w a s a s s io n , c o u ld A u g u s t u s h a v e d o n e a n y b e tte r ? It s e e m s to m e
s u p e r s t i t i o u s a s a n y g o o d R o m a n . 45 H e w a s c e r t a i n l y n o t a th a t s u c h w o rk s h o u ld b e ju d g e d n o t fro m a n " i n te l l e c t u a l"
m y s t i c . B u t h e u n d e r s t o o d t h e R o m a n m e n t a l i t y s o w e ll t h a t h e p o in t o f v ie w b u t b y ta k in g in to a c c o u n t th e w e ig h t o f h is to r y
s u c c e e d e d w h e r e Ju liu s C a e s a r h a d f a i le d : h e k n e w how to a n d th e s o c ia l o r g a n i z a ti o n o f th e tim e .
m a k e th e m in d s o f h is tim e a c c e p t a n im p e ria l m y s tiq u e . B y C e r t a in l y th e im p e r ia l re lig io n c o m p r i s e d r ite s , s u c h a s th e
e n c o u ra g in g th e u p su rg e o f A u g u s ta n d e itie s , th a t is, th e o f fe rin g o f in c e n s e a n d l i b a t i o n s o f w i n e , 47 w h i c h w e r e to
l a u n c h i n g o f d e i f ie d a n c i e n t a b s t r a c t i o n s , h e c r e a t e d a n ew c r e a te a g r e a t o b s ta c le fo r C h ris tia n s . B u t c o u ld A u g u stu s
re lig io u s d y n a m is m . h a v e a n tic ip a te d th e e m e r g e n c e o f a n e x c lu s iv e m o n o th e is m ?
A b o v e a ll, h e fo u n d e d th is t h e o lo g y o n a n e th ic : p la c e d In a n y e v e n t , a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e fi f t h c e n t u r y a . d .,
u n d e r th e d ir e c t a u th o r ity o f Ju p ite r, th e e m p e r o r w a s s u b je c t O ro s iu s in siste d o n te s tif y in g fo r A u g u s t u s a n d p ro p o se d
to th e ru le o f e q u ity a n d w a s d e stin e d fo r a p o th e o s is , b u t tw o a r g u m e n t s in h i s d e f e n s e : 48 ( 1 ) B y a p ro v id e n tia l a r ­
o n l y i n s o f a r a s h e r e s p e c t e d th e d u ti e s o f h is o f fic e ( th e b a d ra n g e m e n t , th e e m p e r o r h a d e s ta b lis h e d a d u r a b le a n d tr u e
e m p e ro r, o n th e o th e r h a n d , w o u ld b e s tru c k d o w n b y th e p e a c e w h ic h s e r v e d th e c o m in g o f C h ris t; (2 ) a lth o u g h he
damnatio memoriae). w a s a t t h e s u m m i t o f p o w e r , A u g u s t u s h a d r e f u s e d t h e t it l e
It i s c e r t a i n l y d i f f i c u l t t o j u d g e t h i s w o r k w i t h o u t r u n n i n g of dominus hominum ju s t a t th e tim e w h e n th e tr u e dominus of
t h e r i s k o f f a l l i n g i n t o a n a c h r o n i s m . I n h i s r e f l e c t i o n s , 46 J e a n m a n k in d w as to be bom . It s h o u l d be s tr e s s e d th a t th e

120
 CE RE S

re fu s a l to b e a n a b s o lu te dominus w a s c o n tr a r y to th e e n tire 24. On this subject see my book R.R.V.. 328, n. 1. See Appian,
H e lle n is tic a n d O r ie n ta l tr a d itio n . Bella Civilia, 2, 102.
The ju d g m e n t o f th e C h ris tia n O r o s iu s d eserves to be
25. See Suetonius, Aug., 94, 4.
26. Ibid., 70, 1. This dinner is dated 39-38 or 38-37 u.c. See
ta k e n in to a c c o u n t b y m o d e r n h is to r ia n s .
J. Gagé, Apollon romain, 487.
R .S ./d .b .
27. See Suetonius, Aug., 94, 6.
28. Ibid., 53, 1.
29. Ibid., 95, 2.
30. Ibid. Of course Octavius knew that the names of Romulus and
NOTES Remus had been disparaged in the polemic of the recent civil wars
(see Horace, Epodi, 7, which deplores the fact that a kind of "original
1. For a partial bibliography for recent years, see also B. Haller, sin" had weighed upon the destiny of Rome since the fratricide of
Augustus und seine Politik, Ausgewählte Bibliographie, A.N.R.W., 2:55- Remus by Romulus).
74 ( = Aufstieg und Niedergang der römischen Welt). 31. See Suetonius, Aug., 93, 1.
2. Suetonius, Divus Augustus, 101, 5. The will was entrusted to 32. Ibid., 93, 2.
the protection of the vestals in a . d . 13, one year before the death of 33. Ibid.
Augustus. 34. Macrobius, Saturnalia, 2, 4, 11.
3. J. Gagé, ed.. Res Gestae divi Augusti (Paris 1935), 9. 35. Suetonius, Aug., 98, 2.
4. In particular, Nicolas of Damascus, who is probably biased (see 36. Ibid., 52, 1.
Jacoby, Fr. Hist. Graec., n. 90); Tacitus, Annales, passim; Pliny, 37. This is the reflection of H. E. Stier (A.N.R.W., 2, 2:49). The
Naturalis Historia, 7, 147-50 (very critical of Augustus); Suetonius, Pergamum altar dates from the second century b.c . On the ara Pads,
Divus Augustus; Appian; Dio Cassius. see the articles of Pietrangeli and Bianchi-Bandinelli, Enciclopedia
5. See Dio Cassius, 45, 6, 4, and Suetonius, Aug., 10, 2. See my dell'arte antica, 523-28, ara Pacis Augustae. The altar was built in 13
book La religion romaine de Vénus (Paris 1954), 313 and 325; = R.R.V. b . c . and dedicated in 9 b .c .

6. See Virgil, Aeneid, 8, 679-81, in particular: patriumque aperitur 38. Horace, Carmina, 4, 5, 5 (the date of the ode is between 16 and
vertice sidus ("the paternal star revealed itself above the head" [of 13 B.C.
Augustus] [at the zenith of heaven)). See Propertius, 4, 6, 59: At pater 39. See Suetonius, Div. lui., 6, 2.
Idalio miratur Caesar ab astro: sum deus: est nostri sanguinis ista fides 40. Horace, C., 4, 5, 33- 34: Te multa prece, te prosequitur mero /defuso
("and his father Caesar contemplated the scene of the height of the pateris et Laribus tuum /miscet numen . . .
Idalian star [i.e.. Venus]: I am God; behold the proof of my [divine) 41. Horace, C., 3, 6, 5.
lineage"). 42. Horaee, C., 1, 12, 49-52: Gentis humanae pater atque custos. ! orte
7. On Augustus, see my article "L'originalité du vocabulaire Saturno, tibi cura magni /Caesaris fatis data; tu secundo /Caesare regnes!
religieux latin," Rev. belge de phil. et d'hist. 49 (1971): 48-49; reprinted 43. Ibid., 1, 12, 57: Te minor latum reget aequus orbem.
in R.C.D R. 44. See Suetonius, Aug.. 89, 2. Augustus had a wide and varied
8. Res Gestae, ed. J. Gagé, § 7. culture thanks to the philosopher Areus and his sons Dionysius and
9. Ibid., § 20, 4. Nicanor.
10. Suetonius, Aug., 31, 4-5. 45. Ibid., 90-92.
11. Ibid. 46. J. Bayet, Histoire politique et psychologique de la religion romaine
12. See Velleius Paterculus, 2, 22, 2. (2d ed., Paris 1969), 191.
13. J. Scheid, Les Frères Arvales: Recrutement et origine sociale sous les 47. Augustus was certainly not indifferent to this type of rite: the
empereurs julio-claudiens (Paris 1975). proof is that he ordered the senators "to burn incense and pour wine
14. See Virgil, Georgies, 2, 458-59. before the altar of the god in the temple at which the meeting of the
15. Ibid., 1, 506. Senate took place," in order to induce them to discharge their duty
16. M. J. Scheid has cleverly remarked that the Greek translation religiosius, "with more religious conscience." See Suetonius, Aug.,
of Frater Arualis that figures in the Testament of Augustus is revealing: 35, 4.
the Latin expression (Res Gestae, 7, 3) is translated by adelphos aroualis 48. Orosius, Adversus paganos, 6, 22, 5 (the author recalls that in the
(which affirms fraternity by blood, while the subsequent tradition course of a demonstration, Augustus had refused the title of dominus
chose the words phratêr aroualis), which in Greek merely designates that an enthusiastic public wanted to give him: see Suetonius, Aug.,
belonging to a single community (the phratry). 53,1 : "Igitur eo tempore, id est eo anno quo firmissimam verissimamque
17. Res Gestae, 13. pacem ordinatione Dei Caesar composuit, natus est Christus, cuius
18. See Suetonius, Aug., 31, 1. adventui pax ista famulata est, in cuius orto audientibus hominibus
19. See Horace, Carmen Saeculare, 66-68. exultantes angeli cecinerunt 'Gloria in excelsis Deo et in terra pax
20. See Virgil, Ae., 8, 698-702. hominibus bonae voluntatis.' Eodemque tempore hic ( = Augustus)
21. See Dio Cassius, 53, 27, 2. ad quem rerum omnium summa concesserat, dominum se hominum
22. Ovid, Tristia, 2, 296. appellari non passus est, immo non ausus, quo verus dominus totius
23. Pliny, N.H., 9. 121. generis humani inter homines natus est."

T h e r e is a m a s c u l in e f o r m , Cerus (cf. D e g ra s s i, Inscr. Latin,

C eres no. 63, Keri pocolom, " c u p o f C e ru s "). T h e e x p re s sio n Cerus
manus, w h ic h is u s e d in t h e s o n g o f t h e S a l ia n s , is i n te r p r e t e d
b y th e a n c ie n ts a s creator bonus ( F e s t u s , p . 1 0 9 L .) . B u t th is
T h e w o rd ceres is f o r m e d fr o m t h e r o o t *ker-, " g r o w t h ." T h e r a r e a n d a r c h a ic m a s c u lin e fo rm w a s n e v e r a " c o m p e t it o r " o f
n o tio n b e c a m e p e r s o n if ie d and d e ifie d ; th e g o d d e s s C e r e s th e g o d d e s s .
" p re s id e s over g r o w th ," e s p e c ia lly th e g ro w th of cereal T h e g o d d e s s is a l s o s a id t o b e w o r s h ip e d b y t h e O s c a n s (c f .
g r a in s . M . V a le riu s P r o b u s , a g r a m m a r i a n o f th e first c e n t u r y V e tte r , H ./ . D . , n o . 1 4 7 ) a n d b y t h e F a l i s c a n s ( ib i d ., n o . 2 4 1 ) .
a .d ., a l r e a d y g i v e s th is d e f i n it io n (ad. V e r g . G . 1 . 7 ) : Cererem a In s p i t e o f t h is Ita lic o c c u r r e n c e a n d th is a n c i e n t o r ig in , C e r e s
creando dictam ("C e re s co m es f r o m to cause to grow”). u n d e r w e n t a n i n t e n s i v e H e l l e n i z a t i o n v e r y e a r l y . It m a y b e

121
ROME
Ceres. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN.
possible to indicate the ancient elements of her cult, but it is
more difficult to detect exactly how they were distorted. The
study of Jean Bayet, "The Cerialia: The Alteration of a Latin
Cult through a Greek Myth" (R.B.Ph.H., 1951, pp. 5-3 2 ,
341-66; reprinted in Croyances et rites dans la Rome antique,
Paris 1971, pp. 89-129), is very suggestive in this connection.
The great age of the goddess is beyond doubt. Her name
enters into the category of deified abstractions, characteristic
of the religious spirit of Rome. She has a flamen, and her
festival, the Cerialia, which falls on 19 April, is included in
the ancient cycle of the liturgical calendar. Another archaic
trait may be that Ceres carries out her functions with the help
of lesser specialists whom her priest invokes when he
sacrifices to Tellus ("the Earth") and to Ceres, according to
Fabius Pictor (cited by Servius Danielis, ad. Georg., 1.21). The
lesser specialists are Veruactor (for plowing fallow land),
Reparator (for the renewal of cultivation), Imporcitor (for
marking the furrows), Insitor (for sowing), Obarator (for
surface plowing), Occator ( for harrowing), Sarritor ( for clear­
ing and weeding), Subruncinator (for hoeing), Messor (for
the harvest), Convector (for hauling the harvest), Conditor
(for bringing in the harvest), Promitor (for taking the harvest
out of storage).
Ceres fulfills her mission throughout the whole vegetative
cycle. She acts sometimes alone and sometimes in conjunc­
tion with Tellus. In January the Feriae Sementivae were
celebrated after sowing, a movable feast (cf. Ovid, Fasti,
1.657ff.) in honor of Ceres and Tellus, respectively. On 19
April was the festival inscribed in the archaic cycle as the
Cerialia (which follows the Fordicidia of 15 April, conse­
crated to Tellus), which were paired with the games, the Ludi
Ceriales (cf. Ovid, Fasti, 4.679- 82). These included a strange rite
with magical significance: the release of foxes with flaming
torches on their backs. Ceres was also present at the Ambarvalia,
the lustration of the fields (cf. Tibullus, 2.1; Virgil, Georgies,
1.338). Before the harvest the porca praecidanea was sacrificed to
Ceres and Tellus (Cato, De Agricultura, 134; Varro, cited by
Nonius, p. 240 L.). It was to Ceres that the first harvested ear of
grain, the praemetium (Festus, p. 423 L.), was offered.
Taking root in the native religion in this way did not save
the goddess from an early contamination by Hellenism. In
the public cult she was associated with two other divinities to
122
Ceres. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN.
form the triad Ceres-Liber-Libera. According to tradition (cf.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus 6.17.2-3), a temple comprising
three cellae was erected in honor of this triad in accordance
with the injunction of the Sibylline Books. Promised in a vow
by the dictator A. Postumius in 496 b . c ., it was dedicated in
493 by the consul Sp. Cassius. Interpretations diverge on the
meaning and the date of this cult (cf. H. LeBonniec, Le culte
de Cérès à Rome des origines à la fin de la république, Paris 1958,
p. 277-311. For an opposing view, see A. Alföldi, Early Rome
and the Latins [1964], p. 92ff.). But there can be no doubt
about the influence of the Hellenic model of Demeter-
Dionysus-Kore, by whatever roads these divinities may have
entered Rome.
From a political point of view, the sanctuary was of great
importance, since it served as a depository for the plebeian
archives and as a center of administration, the cura annonae.
It is from this aedes that the plebian magistrates, the aediles,
took their name.
As for the cult of Ceres itself, which held first rank in the
triad ("temple of Ceres" was sufficient to designate the
triadic temple), its Hellenization only increased with the
passage of time. In 217 b . c ., the goddess was associated with
Mercury-Hermes at the lectisternium of the twelve great
divinities. In 191 b . c ., a "fast in the honor of Ceres," jejunium
Cereris, was decreed by the Sibylline Books in order to conjure
the appearance of marvels (Livy, 36.37.4). In 174 b . c . , "sup­
plications" at the temple of Ceres were prescribed by the
Sibylline Books (Livy, 41.28.2), "at the news that a great
earthquake had occurred in the land of the Sabines."
Other events point to the same tendency: the annual
celebration of a lectisternium in honor of Ceres on 13
December (Arnobius, 7.32); a single sacrifice to both Her­
cules and Ceres on 21 December according to the graecus ritus
(Macrobius, S., 3.11.10).
An even more revealing sign is that Demeter was purely
and simply substituted for Ceres in certain ceremonies.
Thus, the sacrum anniversium Cereris, celebrated by married
women in the month of August, commemorated the kidnap­
ping and return of Persephone (cf. Festus, p. 86 L.). It is
significant that the only "mysteries" into which Cicero
permits the admission of women in his treatise The Laws
(2.21) are the mysteries of Ceres.
 C I C E R O AS T H E O L O G I A N

T hus, a g e n e ra l q u e stio n a r is e s a b o u t in te r f e r e n c e s b e­ d a y s o f th e y e a r (2 4 A u g u s t, 3 O c to b e r, 8 N o v e m b e r: F e s tu s,
tw e e n D e m e te r a n d C e r e s . T h e H e lle n iz a tio n o f C e r e s m ig h t p . 1 2 6 L . ) . W i s s o w a ( Ruk2 p . 1 9 4 ) h a d a l r e a d y r i g h t l y n o t e d
e x p la in w h y a c e r e m o n y t h a t s h o u ld lo g ic a lly c o n c e r n T e llu s t h a t it w a s n o t C e r e s b u t T e l l u s w h o w a s in c o n t a c t w i t h t h e
( " t h e E a r t h " ) w a s c re d ite d to C e r e s , to a C e r e s -D e m e te r . F o r d iv in e M a n e s a n d th e s u b te rra n e a n w o rld (L iv y , 1 0 .2 8 .1 3 :
e x a m p le , th e s a crifice o f th e porca praesentanea (F e s tu s , p p . Telluri ac dis Manibus).
2 9 6 -9 8 L .) , w hen a fa m ily is in m o u rn in g fo r o n e o f its R .S ./d .w .
m e m b e rs ; o r th e o p e n in g o f th e mundus Cereris, o n c e rta in

I n d e e d , t h e a c a d e m ic s c h o o l s a id t h a t t h e w is e m a n s h o u ld
C ic er o as T h eo lo g ia n lim it h im s e lf t o probable o p i n i o n s , s i n c e h e c a n n o t d i s t i n g u i s h
th e tr u e fro m th e fa lse (Nat. D. 1 . 1 2 ) . C i c e r o i n s i s t s , h o w e v e r ,
t h a t t h is d o e s n o t c o n s i s t in d e n y i n g t h e e x i s t e n c e o f t r u t h ,
W ho is n o t i n c lin e d to be s u r p r is e d on s e e in g th e w o rd but o n ly in a v o id in g any p r e c ip ito u s ju d g m e n t. But th e
" th e o l o g ia n " a p p lie d to C ic e r o ? N e v e r th e le s s , th e illu strio u s p r o b l e m o f t h e n a t u r e o f t h e g o d s is e x t r e m e l y a r d u o u s a n d
o r a to r , " w h o w o n th e g r e a te s t la u r e ls fo r e l o q u e n c e ," a c c o r d ­ fu l l o f m y s t e r y (perdifficilis . . . et perobscura quaestio est de
i n g to th e rin g in g p r a is e th a t P lin y th e E ld e r b e s t o w e d o n natura deorum: Nat. D. 1 . 1 ) .
h i m o v e r a c e n t u r y a f t e r h i s d e a t h ( Natural History 7 .1 1 7 ) , is I f o n e r e a d s a t t e n t i v e l y t h e p r e a m b l e o f t h e t r e a t i s e Nat.
p e r h a p s m o s t r e p r e s e n ta t iv e o f th e p e r io d i n s o f a r a s re lig io u s D., i n w h i c h t h e r e i s a d i s c u s s i o n b e t w e e n t h r e e i n t e r l o c u t o r s
t h o u g h t is c o n c e r n e d . (w h o a r e s u p p o s e d to b e h o ld in g th e ir c o n v e r s a tio n b e tw e e n
F ir s t o f a ll, h e h a s le ft u s t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t w o r k s o f t h a t th e y e a rs 7 7 a n d 7 5 b . c .) — a p r e a m b l e t h a t c o n s t i t u t e s t h e
p e r io d o n th is t h e m e , w o r k s t h a t h a v e b e c o m e e v e n m o re o n ly p e r s o n a ] in te r v e n tio n o f C ic e r o , a s id e fro m th e fin a l
im p o rta n t to p r e s e n t-d a y re a d e r s b e c a u s e o f th e lo s s o f s o r e f l e c t i o n s o f t h e l a s t b o o k — t h e a u t h o r is f a r f r o m g i v i n g a n y
m a n y w o r k s o f f a m o u s p h ilo s o p h e r s (to c ite o n ly e x a m p l e s o f i m p r e s s io n o f a n a m i a b le s k e p t i c i s m t h a t is c o n t e n t t o a t te n d
o p p o s in g s c h o o ls , th e tre a tis e o f E p ic u r u s o n Piety is l o s t, a s j o u s ts o f c o n t r a d i c t i o n s . O n t h e c o n t r a r y , h e s h o w s t h a t th is
w e ll a s t h e w o rk in fiv e b o o k s o n The Gods b y th e S to ic is a d e b a te t h a t c a n l e a v e n o o n e i n d i f f e r e n t , a n d a l t h o u g h h e
P o s id o n iu s ). w a n ts th e c o n tro v e rs y to d e v e lo p fre e ly , h e c a n n o t re fra in
T h e s e w o rk s w e re c o m p o s e d d u r in g th e s a m e e x p a n s e o f f ro m w a r n in g o f th e ris k s . T h u s , g r a p p lin g w ith th e E p ic u ­
tim e a n d fo rm a k in d o f trilo g y : De Natura Deorum ( " O n t h e r e a n p o s i t i o n , h e d e c l a r e s : " I f it is t r u e t h a t t h e g o d s e x e r c i s e
N a tu re o f th e G o d s " = Nat. D.) i n t h e y e a r 4 5 b . c ., De n o c o n t r o l w h a t s o e v e r o v e r h u m a n a f f a i r s , w h a t w il l b e c o m e
Divinatione ("O n D i v i n a t i o n " ) i n 4 4 b . c ., a n d De Fato ( " O n o f p ie ty , r e v e r e n c e , a n d r e l ig i o n ? " (Nat. D. 1 .9 ) .
F a t e " ) a l s o i n 4 4 b. c . T h is is a c r y f r o m th e h e a r t th a t b e tr a y s th e a m b ig u ity o f
M o r e o v e r , C ic e r o d id n o t lim it h i m s e l f t o c o m p o s i n g m e r e C i c e r o 's p o s itio n . O n th e o n e hand h e is p a s s i o n a t e ly a t ­
c o m p ila tio n s a s th e p r o d u c t o f h is r e a d in g o f G re e k a u th o r s . ta c h e d to th e p u rs u it o f th e o n e tr u th — ad veri investigandi
P e r h a p s it i s n o t u s e l e s s t o g o i n t o d e t a i l o n t h i s p o i n t , i n t h e cupiditatem — a n d re fe rs to th e fre e d o m o f e x a m in a tio n o f th e
lig h t o f w h a t C ic e r o h im s e lf h a s c o n f id e d h e re an d th e re . S o c ra tic m e th o d (Nat. D. 1 .1 1 : he goes b ack e x p re s sly to
"F ro m m y e a r l ie s t y o u t h ," h e w r it e s in r e s p o n s e t o t h o s e S o c r a t e s i n e n u m e r a t i n g t h e l i n k s o f t h e c h a i n : A r c e s i l a s in
w h o w e r e s u r p r is e d a t " t h e s u d d e n o u tb u r s t o f p h ilo s o p h ic a l th e th ird ce n tu ry , C a rn e a d e s in th e seco nd ; in th e first
re fle ctio n o n m y p a r t, I h a v e b e e n d e v o te d to th e s tu d y o f c e n tu ry , P h ilo of L a riss a w as th e re p re s e n ta tiv e of th is
p h ilo so p h y " (Nat. D. 1 .6 ) , a n d h e c ite s th e te a c h e rs w h o tre n d ). On th e o th e r hand, he is s o in d e b te d to R om an
c o n t r ib u t e d to h is e d u c a t i o n , in t h e f o llo w in g o r d e r : t h e S to ic c a te g o r i e s o f t h o u g h t th a t h e is a la r m e d in a d v a n c e a t t h e
D i o d o t u s ( w h o liv e d in C i c e r o 's o w n h o u s e u n til h i s d e a t h , u pheaval (perturbatio vitae . . . et magna confusio: Nat. D. 1 .3 - 4 )
in 5 9 ) , t h e f o ll o w e r o f t h e n e w A c a d e m y ; P h ilo , t h e p a r t is a n th a t w o u ld b e c a u s e d b y a d is c u s s io n w h ic h w o u ld e n d b y
o f th e o ld A c a d e m y ; A n t io c h u s ; a n d th e S to ic P o s id o n iu s o f e s ta b lis h in g th a t " t h e g o d s c a n n o t o r d o n o t w is h to c o n c e r n
R h o d e s ( w h o m C ic e r o h e a r d in 7 7 d u r i n g h is s o j o u r n o n t h a t th e m s e l v e s w ith m e n ."
is l a n d ). T h is lis t p r o v e s t h a t C ic e r o s o u g h t e v e r y o p p o r tu n i t y T h is is f a r f ro m a g r a tu i to u s a e s th e t ic is m . W h a t th e n a r e
to p e rfe c t h is k n o w le d g e b y p ro f itin g fro m th e irre p la c e a b le th e m o tiv e s th a t c a u s e d th e o r a to r o f o ld to d e v o te h im s e lf to
e x c h a n g e s o f o ra l te a c h in g . an in q u iry th a t th re a te n e d to be so th o m y ? C h ro n o lo g y
C i c e r o ' s l is t o m i t s c e r t a i n o t h e r s , t h e r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s o f t h e o f f e r s a f i r s t a n s w e r . C i c e r o 's e n t i r e " w o r k o f p h i l o s o p h i c a l
E p ic u re a n sch oo l th a t he had a lso fre q u e n te d s in c e h is re fle c tio n " c o m e s b e tw e e n th e y e a r s 4 6 a n d 4 3 : The Paradoxes
a d o le sce n ce : P h a e d ru s, a u th o r o f a tre a tis e on th e g o d s, of the Stoics (Paradoxa Stoicorum) i n 4 6 ; The Academics (Academ­
w h o m h e k n e w firs t in t h e y e a r 9 0 a n d f o u n d a g a i n in 7 9 in ica) i n 4 5 ; Definitions of Good and Evil (De Finibus Bonorum et
A th e n s. At th is tim e he had spent s ix m o n th s in th e Malorum) i n 4 5 ; Tusculan Disputations (Tusculanae Disputa­
A th e n ia n c ity a n d h a d th e f u r th e r o p p o r tu n ity to h e a r Z e n o tiones) i n 4 5 ; Cato the Elder, or On Old Age (Cato Maior, De
o f S i d o n , w h o w a s t h e h e a d o f t h e E p ic u r e a n s c h o o l , a s w e ll Senectute) i n 4 4 ; Laelius, or On Friendship (Laelius, De Amicitia)
a s h is d is c ip le P h il o d e m u s , w h o s tr u c k u p a f r ie n d s h ip w ith i n 4 4 ; On Duties (De Officiis) i n 4 3 . I n t h i s f l o w e r i n g , w h i c h
th e R o m a n g u e s t. d o e s n o t t a k e i n t o a c c o u n t t h e l o s t t r e a t i s e s ( s u c h a s t h e De
B e c a u s e o f th e v a r ie ty o f th e s e p h ilo s o p h ic a l a s s o c ia tio n s , Gloria o r t h e De Virtutibus), i s f o u n d t h e t r i l o g y o f t h e o l o g i c a l
som e s c h o la rs have com e to h a sty c o n c lu s io n s : to th e m , b o o k s c ite d a b o v e .
C ic e r o is a m e r e e c le c ti c s p i r i t, a k in d o f a e s t h e t e o f t h o u g h t . In a fa irly s h o r t e x p a n s e o f tim e , C ic e r o t h u s p r o d u c e d a n
H e i s s u p p o s e d t o h a v e c h o s e n t h e a c a d e m i c t r e n d b e c a u s e it im p r e s s iv e n u m b e r o f b o o k s o f a p h ilo s o p h ic a l c h a r a c te r . T h e
w a s th e o n ly o n e th a t a llo w e d h im to r e s e r v e ju d g m e n t, e v e n d a t in g is e x p l a in e d b y c i r c u m s t a n c e s . C i c e r o w a s k e p t a t a
p e r h a p s to c o n tr a d ic t h im se lf. d i s t a n c e f ro m p o litic a l a ffa irs f ro m t h e tim e o f th e e s ta b lis h -

123
ROM E

ment of the dictatorship of Julius Caesar in 46; he had leisure

time at his disposal, which had not been available until then
to the orator and statesman; at the same time, he wondered
whether his studious retreat would not be interrupted sud­
denly by new events (the ides of March, 44, are near . . . ).
This was an additional reason to hurry and transmit to his
fellow citizens the lessons of Greek wisdom in Latin (Tusc.
1.1) and to give his country a new jewel, philosophy (ibid.

So far we have only discussed general reasons, which can

explain why the "amateur" who is open to ideas (ipse et
magnus quidem sum opinator, non enim sum sapiens, he writes in
Lucullus 20, which constitutes the second book of the first
Academica) has resolved to make his great plan come true. But
there was a more personal reason: in February of 45 a cruel
bereavement struck Cicero: the death of his daughter Tullia
whom he cherished above all else (Tulliola, deliciolae nostrae,
he wrote, in one of the Letters to Atticus [1.8.3]). More than
any other motive, this immense sorrow must have prompted
Cicero to ask questions about final ends and to meditate
about problems of the immortality of the soul and the nature
of the gods (Nat. D. was probably written in August of 45).
We would know more about the state of his soul were it
not for the loss of the treatise On Consolation that he wrote
under the sway of grief. But allusions made to this treatise by
Cicero himself in his other works should be sufficient to
warn us against coming to premature conclusions about the
"skeptical tendencies" which are supposedly systematic in
Cicero.
Perhaps we have failed to take a necessary precaution:
when speaking of Cicero, it is important to separate his Cicero. Florence, Uffizi. Photo Alinari-Giraudon.
critical spirit, so avid for theoretical discussion conducted
with a demand for total liberty, from the personal quest of a
man who is attempting to arrive at the most reasonable form
of belief, in the midst of all the contradictions of the philos­ (ibid. 1.82ff.). In fact, Cicero merely takes up two academic
ophers. exercises in philosophizing which he examines and then
From this perspective, it is indeed possible to resolve comes to the conclusion that in either case death is not to be
several contradictions that are only apparent. feared.
Thus at one level—at which, moreover, only the practice of This objective and methodical approach to the discussion
augury is concerned— some people have thought it possible does not keep him from revealing his own opinion, for there
to oppose "Cicero the augur" to "Cicero the philosopher." In is no uncertainty as far as he is concerned. Conscious of the
the treatise On Laws (2.32), the augur recognizes the solid importance of his own testimony, he cites a passage from his
foundation of divination, which would be justified in a world Consolation which still remains his credo: "The soul has an
governed by gods who are careful to warn men by signs. In essence that is heavenly and divine and consequently eter­
the treatise On Divination (2.70 and 148), by contrast, Cicero nal."
makes an incisive criticism and denies any prophetic value to The question of the destiny of the soul is connected with
the signs of the auspices. A careful reading shows, however, the problem of the gods. Here again there is a contrast that
that in both passages the positions which seem to be contra­ leads to reflection. In the Nature of the Gods, Cicero freely
dictory are accompanied by a commentary of identical mean­ adopted an attitude of discretion, situating the debate in a
ing: in the first passage, the author points to the changes and fairly remote period (between 77 and 75 b . c .) . Since he was
negligence which had distorted the art of augury from the an adulescens at that time, he shows self-effacement before
time of Romulus (On Laws 2.33); in the second, he confines the champions of the two great schools, Velleius for the
himself to disputing the power of prediction which some Epicureans and Balbus for the Stoics; they hold their discus­
people wanted to grant, in his time, to the office of the augur, sion under the critical arbitration of the academician Cotta.
which should not be questioned as an official institution (On But—and what a surprise—at the end of this long debate, in
Divination 2.70; see the article "Roman Divination," above). which Greek philosophy and Roman religion sometimes
Now we come to the crucial questions. Is there really a confront each other directly, Cicero forgets his connections
wavering on the doctrine of the soul? Cicero dealt with the with the academic school and finds the conclusions of the
question especially in the first book of the Tusculan Disputa­ Stoic Balbus "closer to the truth," ad veritatis similitudinem.
tions. The author is confronted with two contradictory posi­ What has happened then? We can already see the begin­
tions and tries to show that in either position death cannot be nings of a solution in the last exchange of arguments. Cotta
considered an evil. If the soul is immortal, it is assured of has just finished a critical examination of Balbus's thesis, and
happiness in the heavenly life (Twsc. 1.74-75). Or if it is has emphasized how "obscure and laborious" the problem
mortal (as is conceded by the Epicureans and even the Stoic of the nature of the gods still remains (Nat. D. 3.93). It is then
Panaetius, who differs in this from Plato), then, deprived of that these words of correction make Balbus leap to the
all sensation, it would not be able to experience suffering defense. This time he reacts more as a Roman pontifex than

124
 DIANA

as a Stoic philosopher and says with some emotion to his
adversary: "You should give me another day to answer. For
this debate involves our altars and our hearths, the temples
and shrines of the gods, and the walls of our city: and do you
pontiffs declare that these are sacred and that their protec­
tion depends more upon their religious character than their
value as enclosing fortifications?" (Nat. D. 3.94: Dabis diem
nobis aliquem, ut contra ista dicamus. Est enim mihi tecum pro aris
et focis certamen et pro deorum templis atque delubris proque urbis
muris, quos vos, pontifices, sanctos esse dicitis diligentiusque
urbem religione quam ipsis moenibus cingitis). Is it surprising
that after this Cicero shares in this profession of faith?
An even more decisive answer is given by Cicero himself.
In the passage from the Tusculan Disputations cited above
(1.66), he follows his profession of faith from the Consolation
with this explicit declaration: "And indeed the divinity itself,
as we conceive it, can be understood in no other way than as
a mind autonomous and free, separated from all perishable
matter, conscious of all and moving all, and having perpetual
motion."
This declaration, delivered in a tone of pure deism, does
not keep Cicero from remaining faithful to Roman traditions
any more than his adherence to Stoicism keeps Balbus from
reacting as a responsible pontifex when the skepticism of his
adversary Cotta risks undermining the foundations of the
Roman patrimony and of sowing a perturbatio vitae et magna
confusio, to quote Cicero's own terms (Nat. D. 1.3). It is true
that Cicero, who maintains a lively curiosity for new ideas,
remains profoundly convinced of the superiority of the
ancestral tradition. In the preamble of the Tusculan Disputa­
tions (1.1), he wrote: ". . . it has always been my conviction
that our ancestors made wiser discoveries than the Greeks,
and although our ancestors borrowed some of their material
from the Greeks, they improved it until they judged it
worthy of their efforts."
Another piece of evidence is given at the end of the
discussion on divination. This time, Cicero assumes the role
of critic in opposition to his brother Quintus in the debate
about the prophetic pretensions of the art of divination. He
has rejected all forms of this art (On Divination 2.148), only to
affirm immediately and forcefully that by suppressing this
superstition, he intends to preserve religion all the better: nec
vero—id enim diligenter intelligi volo—superstitione tollenda reli­
gio tollitur. "And also," he adds, "just as it is a duty to weed
out every root of superstition, so it is a duty to spread the
influence of religion, in harmony with the knowledge of
nature."
R.S./l.r.

became so evanescent that she was ready to be remodeled to

D iana her Greek homologue, Artemis.
Diana was associated with Hercules during the first lectis­
ternium of 399 b .c ., which attempted to ward off an epidemic
The etymology of Diana's name is transparent: it is formed (Livy, 5.13.6). The association may perhaps be explained by
on the adjective dius ("luminous"); the neuter dium desig­ reference to the homologous Greek divinities: Artemis
nates "the luminous sky." Diana means "the luminous one" Locheia was originally not a lunar goddess but essentially the
and therefore comes from the same root diu- as Jupiter: she
dispenses nocturnal light, alternating with Jupiter, the god of
day. Cicero (De Natura Deorum, 2.27.69) gave a precise
Altar of Diana. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
definition of her name: "Diana is associated, it is thought,
Photo BN.
with the moon . . . she is called Diana because at night she
makes the day (diem)."
The identity of the goddess is confirmed by her cult:
throughout Italy (Statius, Silvae, 3.1.59-60), the anniversary
of her cult falls on 13 August, the ides, which formerly
coincided with the day of midsummer. It is therefore no
accident that the ides designated both the anniversary of the
temple of Diana on the Aventine (13 August) and the
anniversary of the temple of Jupiter on the Capitol (13
September). There is also the rite: even in Ovid's time (Fasti,
3.270) women carried torches from Rome to Aricia, "carrying
the light" (Propertius, 2.32.9-10) to the goddess, as if to
stimulate her essential function through sympathetic magic.
Diana was originally worshiped in the sacred woods of this
Latin city situated at the foot of the Alban Hills. After various
changes in fortune (see R. Schilling, Une victime des vicissi­
tudes politiques: La Diana latine, in R.C.D.R.), her cult was
moved to the Aventine in Rome. Tradition dates this transfer
at the time of Servius Tullius, but it is more likely that it took
place during the fifth century b .c ., after the Roman victory
over the Latins near Lake Regillus (496 b .c .).
Diana was exposed to Hellenic influence very early (prob­
ably because of the circumstances of her introduction, she
became especially the protectress of slaves: the anniversary
of her temple on the Aventine is called dies servorum, "the
day of the slaves"; see Festus, p. 460 L.). Her personality

125
ROME
Diana. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN.
protectress of feminine life; Heracles had the evocative
surname of Alexicacus ("he who repels evils"), as the Latins
knew (see Varro, De Lingua Latina, 7.82). At the lectisternium
of 217 B.c., Diana-Artemis returned to her natural mytholog­
ical family and was coupled with "her brother" Apollo.
The influence of Artemis Locheia explains, in our opinion,
certain artifacts that were foreign to the virginal nature of
Diana (ex-votos in the form of vulvas or phalluses, found at
Aricia), as well as the presence, in the Arician woods, of
Virbius, who was nothing but Hippolytus in disguise (Virgil,
Aeneid, 774-77).
During the time of Augustus, Diana's absorption by Ar­
Faunus
The name Faunus is the subject of considerable discussion.
The ancient authors (Cornelius Labeo, cited by Macrobius, in
Saturnalia, 1.12.21; Servius, ad G, 1.10) explain it by the verb
favere ("to favor")—an etymology that appeared "popular"
to modern authors. The attempt by von Blumenthal (Hesychs-
tud., 1930, p. 38) to interpret the name by reference to
thaunon-thërion, thus giving it the meaning "w olf," was taken
up by other scholars (F. Börner, Fasti, Kommentar, p. 100) who
drew upon the meaning of the root *dhau-, "strangle":
Faunus would thus be "the strangler." But this interpretation
ran into other objections (since this meaning of the term is
attested only in the Phrygian domain: cf. K. Latte, R.R.G., p.
83, n. 3)— so the ancient meaning has once again come into
favor, except for the debate as to whether the true meaning
126
Diana Nemorensis (Diana-Hecate-Selene). Paris, Bibliothèque natio-
nale, Cabinet des Médailles. Photo BN.
temis was almost total. But in striking contrast, the old
custom of rex Nemorensis continued in the Arician woods,
where Diana's priest performed this office (most often a
fugitive slave) until a more vigorous claimant came to mur­
der him in order to take his place. Various explanations
attempt to make sense of this barbarous custom (see A.
Alföldi, "Diana Nemorensis,” AJA 64, 1960, pp. 137-44; G.
Dumézil, R .R.A.2, 410). It still existed at the height of the
Imperial Era (see Suetonius, Caligula, 35.6) as evidence of a
prehistory that had ended.
R.S./d.b.
of Faunus is to be taken as a positive qualifier or a euphe­
mistic expression.
Uncertainty also arises from the fact that the association of
Faunus with the cult of the Lupercalia, undoubtedly the
most archaic of Roman cults, is relatively .recent. (It is thus
irrelevant to argue from the meaning of lupercus to explain
the nature of Faunus.) In fact, the name of this festival bears
only a semantic correspondence to Lupercal, which desig­
nates the cave of the she-wolf (Virgil, Aeneid, 8.342), and the
Luperci, the officials of this "truly savage brotherhood" {fera
quaedam sodalitas: Cicero, Pro Caelio, 26) who, on 15 February,
ran around the Palatine as if to trace all around it a circle of
magic protection; this was a purifying rite, which logically
fell during the month of purification (februa), which is the
month of Februarius.
What does Lupercus mean? Undoubtedly "wolf-man" (ac­
cording to a formation analogous to noverca, "new " [mother],
through the connection with nova). Furthermore, these Lu-
 C UNI US

p e rci a r e n e a rly n a k e d (O v id , Fasti, 2 .2 8 7 ) , w e a r in g o n ly a pecuarii ( " o w n e r s o f h e r d s " : c f. L iv y , 3 3 .4 2 .1 0 ) . T h e d a te o f

lo in c lo th (ib i d ., 5 .1 0 1 ) . C le a r ly , t h e s e L u p e r c i , s in c e t h e y a r e th e c e le b r a tio n ( w h ic h d id n o t c o in c id e w ith th e L u p e r c a lia ),
d iv id e d in to tw o g r o u p s , th e Q u in c tia le s ( w h o a r e c o n n e c t e d a s w e ll a s t h e l o c a ti o n o f th e t e m p le o u t s id e th e pomerium,
w ith R o m u lu s) a n d th e F a b ia n i (w h o a re c o n n e cte d w ith p o in t to th e fa c t th a t P a n -F a u n u s h a d o n c e b e e n fo re ig n to
R e m u s ), a r e s itu a te d a t a s ta g e b e fo r e c iv iliz a tio n . th e p rim itiv e c e r e m o n y o f th e L u p e rc a lia .
I n t h i s w h o l e c e r e m o n y t h e r e is n o t h i n g t h a t r e f e r s t o a g o d H o w e v e r , b e c a u s e o f th e la te r s y n c r e ti s m , h e c a m e to b e
L u p e r c u s . It is n o t e w o r t h y t h a t w h e n V i r g i l ( Aeneid , 8 . 3 4 4 ) r e g a r d e d a s th e p a tr o n o f th e L u p e rc i (O v id , F., 5 . 1 0 1 ) . H is
and O v id (F ., 2 .2 7 1 ) w ant to put th e fe s tiv a l u nder th e r e p u t a ti o n a s a l e c h e r o u s g o d ( ib i d ., 2 .3 4 6 ) q u a lif ie d h im to
p a t r o n a g e o f a d iv in ity , t h e y s u g g e s t a G r e e k g o d , P a n o f p a t r o n i z e t h e p r o c e d u r e t h a t h a d b e e n a d v o c a t e d in a d v a n c e
A r c a d ia . F a u n u s B ic o rn is w a s in d e e d r e g a r d e d a s th e L a tin " b y t h e v o i c e o f J u n o " (ib i d ., 2 .4 4 1 ) : Italidas matres sacer hircus
h o m o l o g u e o f P a n in th is p e r i o d . B u t t h e e q u a ti o n d o e s n o t inito ( " L e t a s a c r e d g o a t p e n e t r a t e th e I ta lia n m o t h e r s !" ) . T h e
g o b ack m u ch e a rlie r . In th e th ird c e n tu ry b .c ., t h e L a t i n g o d a ls o b e a rs th e e v o c a tiv e s u r n a m e o f Inuus (L iv y 1 .5 .2 ) ,
in te rp re ta tio n o f Pan w a s n o t F a u n u s , b u t S i l v a n u s ( a s in w h ic h s h o u ld th ro w lig h t o n th e rite o f th e L u p e rc i, w h o
P la u tu s, Aulularia, 6 7 4 , 7 6 6 ; c f . F. B ö r n e r , Ovid, Fasti, Kom­ s trik e th e b a c k s o f p a s s e r s b y (O v id , F., 2 .4 4 5 ) w ith th o n g s
mentar, p. 1 0 1 ) . It w a s n o t u n t i l t h e t i m e o f O v i d th a t th e m ade fro m th e h id e of th e sa crifice d goat (ib i d ., 2 .4 4 6 ) .
s y n c r e t i c t r a n s l a t i o n o f P a n t o o k p r e c e d e n c e o v e r F a u n u s in A c c o r d in g to F e s tu s (p . 7 5 L .) , th e s e th o n g s a re m a d e fro m
th e L a tin a c c o u n t s : o n h is a r r i v a l in A r c a d ia o n t h e s ite o f th e th e h id e o f a s h e - g o a t ; a n d t h e s h e - g o a t is i m m o l a t e d fo r
f u t u r e R o m e , E v a n d e r is s a id to " h a v e ta u g h t a b o u t m a n y Faunus (O v id , F, 2 .3 6 2 ) . Thus th e "re co m m e n d a tio n of
c u lts , th e first b e in g th a t o f th e t w o -h o r n e d F a u n u s " (Fasti, J u n o ," a s e x p lic a te d by an "E tru sc a n a u g u r ," c o u ld be put
5 . 9 9 ) . In t h i s v e i n , O v i d d o e s n o t h e s i t a t e t o e x p l a i n t h e w o r d in to p r a c tic e .
Lupercus th r o u g h th e A r c a d ia n M o u n t L y c a e u s : " in A r c a d ia , F a u n u s a l s o h a s m a g i c a l p o w e r s ( i b i d . , 3 . 3 2 3 ) . In a g e n e r a l
F a u n u s o f M o u n t L y c a e u s h a s h is t e m p l e " (ib i d ., 2 . 4 2 3 - 2 4 ) . s e n s e , h e is t h e agrestis g o d w h o e l u d e s th e " c u l t u r e " o f th e
F u rth e rm o re , th e L a tin n am e s h o u ld d e c e iv e no one. c itie s . F o llo w in g th e m o d e l o f th e P a n e s o f H e lla s , th e F a u n i
F a u n u s is m e r e l y a L a t i n d i s g u i s e f o r P a n . H i s i d e n t i t y a s a m u l t i p l i e d in t h e w o r k s o f t h e L a t i n p o e t s ; t h e y f o r m j o y o u s
f o r e ig n e r w o u l d n o t fo o l a n y o n e . O v i d g i v e s u s p r o o f o f th is c o r t e g e s w ith th e N y m p h s a n d S a ty r s (c f. O v id , Metamorpho­
in th e fo llo w in g te s tim o n y (ib i d ., 2 .1 9 4 ) : "O n th e id e s o f ses, 1 . 1 9 3 ) . B u t h e r e w e a r e n o l o n g e r in t h e t e r r i t o r y o f r i t u a l
F eb ru ary , sm oke rise s fro m th e a lta r of Faunus on th e b u t in t h e d o m a i n o f m y th o lo g i c a l f a n ta s y .
T i b e r i n e i s l a n d . " In f a c t , i n 1 9 4 b . c . a t e m p l e h a d b e e n e r e c t e d R .S ./d .w .
to Faunus on th is isla n d th r o u g h fin e s le v ie d upon th e

g u a r a n t e e s G o o d F a i t h . S im ila rly , G e n iu s m u s t d e s i g n a t e th e
G en ius d e i f ic a ti o n o f t h e p e r s o n a l it y w ith its i n n a t e q u a litie s .
T h ere is a l s o a n o t h e r r e a s o n : a te x t b y S e rv iu s (ad Aen.
3 .6 0 7 ) th a t O tto (R.E., s .v . G e n iu s , c a . 1 1 5 8 ) h a d th e m e r it o f
G e n iu s is a n a u th e n tic a lly R om an n o tio n : it h a s no G reek b rin g in g o u t o f o b s c u rity p o in ts o u t th a t " th e fo reh ead is
e q u i v a l e n t . A n c i e n t s a n d m o d e m s h a v e d i f f e r e d o n i ts e x a c t co n se c ra te d to G e n iu s ; le t u s a lso to u c h our fo reh ead to
m e a n i n g . It c o m e s f r o m t h e v e r b genere, a r a r e r f o r m th a n th e v e n e r a te th e g o d " (l’encrantes deum tangimus frontem). R a th e r
re d u p lic a tin g v e r b gignere. C e n s o r i n u s (De Die Natali 3 .1 ) p r o ­ th a n p e rs o n ify in g sexual a c tiv ity , G e n iu s in c a rn a te s th e
p o s e d t h r e e e x p l a n a t i o n s : G e n i u s is r e s p o n s i b l e f o r o u r b i r t h ( ut p e r s o n a l it y o f e a c h h u m a n b e i n g . G e n iu s is c o m m o n to m e n
genamur curat), o r it is b o m a t t h e s a m e t i m e a s w e a r e (una and w om en (cf. C e n s o rin u s , ib id . 3 .3 ) . The p a r a lle lis m
genitur nobiscum), o r it w e l c o m e s u s a n d p r o t e c t s u s a f t e r o u r G e n iu s -J u n o is m e r e l y a l a te r c o n s t r u c t i o n , f o u n d fo r t h e first
b i r t h (nos genitos suscipit ac tutatur). M o d e m s c h o l a r s h a v e in t i m e in T i b u l l u s ( 3 . 1 2 . 1 ) in t h e f o r m o f a J u n o N a t a l i s t h a t is
g e n e r a l b e e n d r a w n to th e first o r ie n ta tio n ; m o s t ( fo r e x a m p l e , th e m irro r im a g e of th e N a ta lis id e n tifie d w ith G e n iu s
W iss o w a , Religion und Kultus d. Römer, 2 d e d . , p . 1 7 5 ) h a v e ( 3 . 6 . 4 8 ) . In t h e t h e a t e r o f P l a u t u s , n o a l l u s i o n t o G e n i u s is o f
g i v e n a n a c t i v e m e a n i n g to genius a n d h a v e i n t e r p r e t e d it a s t h e a s e x u a l n a t u r e : it is t h e v i t a l p r i n c i p l e t h a t is s t r e n g t h e n e d b y
d e i f i c a t i o n o f g e n e t i c p o w e r . G . D u m é z i l (Religion romaine g o o d l iv in g .
archaïque, p . 3 6 4 ) h a s o b s e r v e d , o n t h e o t h e r h a n d , t h a t " t h e A p u r e ly L a tin n o tio n . G e n iu s w a s n e v e r t h e l e s s s u b je c t to
c o m p o u n d ingenium, w h i c h is o f a m o r e c u r r e n t t y p e b u t w a s G reek in flu e n c e , w h ic h is a lre a d y d is c e r n ib le in L u c iliu s
u n d o u b te d ly a n c ie n t a s w e ll, h a s o n l y a p a s s iv e s e n s e : p r o p ­ ( c ite d b y C e n s o r i n u s , ib id . 3 .3 ) . V a r r o ( c ite d b y A u g u s tin e ,
e r t y , i n n a t e q u a li t y , quod ingenitum est. G e n i u s in t h e a n i m a t e De Civitate Dei 7 . 1 3 ) s e e s in G e n i u s a p r i n c i p l e m o r e r a t i o n a l
g e n r e is e x a c t l y t h a t , p e r s o n a l i z e d a n d d i v i n i z e d . " th a n fu n d a m e n ta l. H o race (Epistulae 2 .2 .1 8 7 f f .) p r o p o s e s a
T w o a r g u m e n t s m ilita te in f a v o r o f th is l a s t i n te r p r e t a t io n . m o r e e th ic a l c o n c e p t i o n , b y d is tin g u is h in g a v a r ia b le Genius
F irs t, th e p a ra lle lis m w ith o t h e r s e m a n tic fo rm a tio n s : th e (mutabilis), s o m e tim e s w h ite (albus, w h i c h i n c l i n e s u s t o w a r d
Venus-venia-venerare (-ri) s e r i e s ( t o w h i c h c a n b e a s s o c i a t e d , g o o d ) , s o m e t i m e s b l a c k (ater, w h i c h i n c i t e s u s t o d o e v i l ) .
Fides-lDiusl Fidius-fidere) is s i m i l a r t o t h e genus-
a n a lo g ic a lly , T h i s G e n i u s i s p r e s e n t e d c h i e f l y a s a c o m p a n i o n (comes) w h o
Genius-generare s e r i e s . I n a ll o f t h e s e s e r i e s , t h e d e r i v a t i v e s in d i r e c t s o u r d e s t i n y (natale astrum).
-ib - c o m e fro m a r e lig io u s v o ca b u la ry , h a v in g to do w ith N e x t to th e p r iv a te G e n iu s th e r e e x is ts a G e n iu s P u b lic u s
d e if ie d n o tio n s (G e n iu s, F id iu s) or w ith a sacred w o rd th a t is first m e n t io n e d in 218 b.c . (L iv y 2 1 .6 2 .9 ) . L a te r a
(venia). V e n i a in d ic a te s th e fa v o r a c q u ire d fro m th e g o d s b y G e n i u s P o p u l i R o m a n i is i n d i c a t e d , a r o u n d w h i c h S u l l a is
t h e venerans. F id iu s d e sig n a te s th e god w ho g u a rd s and s a id to have hoped to re u n ite R om an c itiz e n s d u r in g th e

127
ROME
Household shrine, with a depiction of two lares on either side of the
genius. Pompeii, the Vettii house. Photo Anderson-Giraudon.
Social War. The Genius Publicus is presented as a symbol of
prosperity and success: on 9 October he is honored along
with Fausta Felicitas and Venus Victrix in Capitolio.
The Genius Augusti appears as a double legacy: Augustus
understood the benefit that he could derive from a cult both
deeply rooted in Latin mentality and capable of an official
status. He hoped to associate the cult of his own Genius with
that of the Lares in all the crossroads of Rome (Chid, Fasti
5.145-46).
With an extension of meaning that is at first sight surpris­
ing, the Genius Lod has been borrowed for many special
uses. The notion was also extended to collectivities, for
example. Genius Coloniae or Genius Munidpii. At the time
of the Empire, there was a Genius Senatus that constituted a
kind of mirror image of the Genius Populi Romani.
R.S./d.b.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
G. Dumézil,La religion romaine archaïque. 2d e d ., 362-69. r . schilling .
Genius at Ange. R.C.D.R.
H ercules
The Latin name Hercules is a derivation from the Greek,
hêrakls: *Herkles, then *Hercoles (the dative Hercolei is attested
several times), then Hercules. The name is found in various
forms all over Italy—in the Etruscan domain: Herde (M.
Pallottino, Testimonia linguae etruscae. no. 399); in the Oscan
dialect: herekleis( = Herculis; E. Vetter, H .I.D.. no. 1, B); in the
128
Vestinian dialect herclo (= Herculi, ibid., no. 220); in the
Praenestine dialect: hercle (= Hercules; cf. ibid., no. 367b),
hercles (= Hercules; ibid., no. 367c), and hercele ( = Hercules:
ibid., no. 366d).
The ubiquity of his name is in keeping with the legend of
the Greek voyager. His acclimatization to Rome as a god gave
rise to a thorough study by Jean Bayet (Les origines de
l'Hercule Romain. Paris 1926) that remains the definitive work
on the subject.
The legend that was imposed in Rome in the dassical era
is a version of the victorious battle of a hero benefactor
against maleficent "Evil." This is how Livy (1.6.4ff.), Diony­
sius of Halicarnassus (1.31-40), Virgil (Aeneid 8.193ff.), and
Chid (Fasti 1.541ff.) have presented the arrival of the "hero,
carrier of the dub," on the banks of the Tiber: after coming
from the fabulous island of Erytheia, near Spain, with a herd
of cattle taken from the giant Geryon, he is the \ictim of the
theft of several head of cattle by a certain Cacus, who
appears to be a shepherd (Livy), a bandit (Dionysius of
Halicarnassus), or a "horrible" monster (Virgil and Chid).
Hercules kills Cacus (which popular etymology interprets
as kakos, "the evil one") and wins the general sympathy of
the inhabitants of the region. In particular, Evander, the king
of the Arcadians in Pallantium, the future site of Rome,
show's his gratitude by building an altar to Hercules (Livy;
Dionysius of Halicarnassus)— the Ara Maxima, located at the
Forum Boarium. According to other versions (Virgil, Aen.
8.271; Chid, Fasti 1.581), Hercules himself established the
altar and the cult of the .Ara Maxima.
Such is the general theme of the legend, if one disregards
"aberrant" variants (thus, according to Diodorus [4.21],
Hercules is received by two hospitable characters, Pinarius
and . . . Cadus; he establishes his own cult at the "Great
Altar" bv instituting the practice of offering the "tithe”: there
is no mention of a monstrous Cacus). The legend tells us
nothing about the historical antiquity of the cult.
The cult was made up of two groups in the classical era, in
the north and the south of the Forum Boarium, which was
both a cattle market and a commerdal center. To the north,
more predsely at the northw'est comer of the Circus Maxi­
mus, was the .Ara Maxima, which had been built later from a
round temple devoted to Hercules Victor, whose annual
celebration fell on 12 August. The epithet Victor appears in
the pre-Julian calendar of Antium; in other calendars and
literary sources there is a vacillation between Vidor and
Invictus; cf. A. Degrassi (Ins. Ital.. 13.2, p. 494). Tadtus
(Annales 12.24) thinks that the Ara Maxima was induded
within the pomerium of the Romulan dty.
In the south, between the banks of the Tiber and the
Aventine hill, is another temple of Hercules Vidor or Invic­
tus, situated near the Porta Trigemina (Varro, dted by
Macrobius, Saturnalia 3.6.10). This temple, placed outside the
pomerium, had its annual celebration on 13 August; it had
the status of a foreign cult, sacra peregrina (Festus p. 268 L.).
The essential difference between the two locations of the
cult was as follows: that of the Ara Maxima was from the
beginning private and overseen by two gentes, the Potitii
and, in a subordinate position, the Pinarii; that of the Porta
Trigemina was an establishment of Greek merchants, who
honored one of their gods who was believed to be the
distributor of health and prosperin’.
In 312 b . c . the cult of the Ara Maxima underw ent a radical
change; it became nationalized at the instigation of the
censor Appius Claudius, and the Potitii abandoned their
familiare sacerdotium to the state, at a cost of 50,000 as—a
transaction that must not have pleased the god, if one

Hercules and the Nemean lion. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Cabi­
net des Médailles. Photo BN.
believes the tradition: the twelve Potitii of that period died
within thirty days (Festus, p. 270 L.), and Appius Claudius
became blind and passed to posterity with the cognomen
Caecus (cf. Livy 9.29.9-11).
Before this date Hercules had already participated in an
official ceremony in Rome. In 399 b .c . he had appeared at the
first lectisternium in the company of Diana-Artemis. After
312 b .c . he was a "Romanized" god, after the Roman state
took over the cult of the Great Altar, resorting to public
slaves who were put under the authority of the urban
praetor. Nevertheless, the rite practiced there differed from
the Roman liturgy: the ritus Graecus (cf. my article, " Sacrum et
profanum," Latomus 1971, pp. 963-68; reprinted in R.C.D.R.).
It included a practice which met with great success: the
offering made to the god, the polluctum, was followed by a
J anus
The name Janus has an etymology that is accepted by most
linguists: it comes from the root iä-, which is an enlargement
of the Indo-European root ei- ("to go"), and which appears as
an abstract term corresponding to the notion of "transition."
As for its form, janus is a stem originally in -u- that has
shifted to a stem in -o~: this explains the form of the ancient
derivatives Januarius ("January-"), janu-al ("cake reserved for
Janus"), janua ("door"), as well as the more recent deriva­
tives jani-tor ("doorkeeper"), Jani-culum ("the Janiculum
hill"), Jani-gena ("daughter of Janus").
This etymology corresponds to the thinking of the an­
cients, which was clearly formulated by Cicero (De Natura
JANUS
lavish feast, the polluctura, which was open to all partici­
pants.
Other innovations of the cult attest to the influence of
Hercules: in 218 b . c . (Livy 21.62.9), a supplicatio was ad­
dressed to him (at the same time as a lectisternium to
Juventas—Hebe, who in mythology is believed to be his
wife: Ovid, Fasti 6.65). But the disaster of Trasimenus, which
occurred shortly thereafter, must have provoked a certain
disenchantment: Hercules no longer appears at the big
lectisternium of the twelve gods in 217 b .c .
It was not long before he came back into favor: the epithets
that epigraphy has recorded (Wissowa, Ruk2, p. 282, and J.
Bayet, op. cit., p. 487)— Defensor, Conservator, Salutaris (Alexi-
cacus, "he who drives away evil," is cited by Varro, De Lingua
Latina 7.82) demonstrate the confidence in the god's aid and
protection. Nevertheless, it was the dispenser of success and
prosperity wrho received the greatest devotion. Moreover,
the establishment of the tithe at the Ara Maxima was
preferred by merchants and soldiers: by promising the god a
tenth of their profit or of their spoils of war, they supported
the prestige of Hercules Victor. In this context we may dte
the ostentatious gesture of a former flautist who had become
a merchant, M. Octavius Herrenus, who offered a tithe and
a feast in honor of Hercules (Marius Sabinus of the first
century b .c ., cited by Macrobius, Sat. 3.6.11). There was also
the innovation of a general, M. Fulvius Nobilior, wTho in 189
b .c ., when he returned from a victorious campaign in Aeto­
lia, had the temple of Hercules Musarum constructed near
the Circus Flaminius (the general had brought back from the
capture of Ambracia nine statues of the Muses, which he
wanted to entrust to Hercules Musagetes, "leader of the
M uses"; Pliny, Naturalis Historia 35.66).
The popularity’ of Hercules was eclipsed toward the end of
the first century- b .c ., after the founding of the empire by
Augustus: the god was in disgrace for "supporting" the
unfortunate rival of the conqueror, Anthony (see my article
"L'Hercule Romain en face de la réforme religieuse
d'Auguste," R.Ph., 1942, p. 39; reprinted in R.C.D .R.). But it
was not long before Hercules emerged from the shadows
where political circumstances had put him (ibid., p. 52ff.).
One day, at the time of the dispute between paganism and
Christianity, he even became a rival of Christ (M. Simon,
Hercule et le christianisme, Belles Lettres, Paris, n.d.).
R.S./t.l.f
Deorum 2.27.67): "the name (of Janus) comes from the verb
'to go' (ab eundo); thus is why passages that open to the street
are called jani, and the doors of profane buildings are called
januae."
If this definition sins by the letter, still it faithfully ex­
presses the spirit of the word. It is preceded by an important
specification: the characteristic trait of "transition" that Janus
incarnates is that of being initial. Cicero evokes Janus's
special trait of being "the first" (De Natura Deorum 2.27.67) in
sacrificial ceremonies. But this quality applies generally as
well, as is attested in Varro's formula (cited by Augustine, De
Civitate Dei 7.9): penes Janum sunt prima, penes Joi’etn summa
('7anus presides over all that begins, Jupiter over all that
culminates").
Although the Indo-European origin of Janus "remains the
most likely" (E. Benveniste, personal communication), his
129
ROME
Janus. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN.
Latin origin is no less certain. Greece has no homologous
figure (this was already noticed by Ovid, Fasti 1.90; the
possible influence of the “Double Hermes" on the sculptured
representation of Janus Bifrons does not affect his definition),
and the Etruscan ani portrayed on the liver of Piacenza is a
borrowing (from the Latin word: cf. Skutsch, R.E., s.v.
Etrusker, c. 767; or from another Italic language: cf. G.
Dumézil, A.R .R .,2 p. 338).
The functional definition of the god explains his role in
both legend and liturgy (I repeat here the central points of
my article "Janus le dieu introducteur, le dieu des passages,"
in M.E.F.R., 1960, pp. 89-131; reprinted in RCDR). In his
legend, which in Rome must be fairly late, Janus assumes all
the "initial" roles. This is clear from the first canto of Ovid's
Fasti, where he is said to have been identical to Chaos "in
olden days" (Fasti 1.103ff.). Similarly, he is supposed to have
been the "first ruler" of the banks of the Tiber: the Janicu­
lum, which bears his name and lies on the edge of archaic
J uno
The name Juno "supports only one etymology: it is a deriva­
tion in -on- from jun-, a syncopated form of juven- which is
also found in junix, 'heifer' . . . and in the comparative
junior" (G. Dumézil, R.R.A .,2 p. 299).
Juno is active at the birth of human beings and of the
moon. One of the most important festivals on the calendar,
which takes place on 1 March, the Matronalia, concerns Juno
Lucina, "she who gives birth": the goddess is invoked under
this name by pregnant women (as described in Plautus,
Aulularia 692, and in Terence, Adelphoe 487). In association
130
Rome, perpetuates the memory of his ancient citadel (Fasti
1.245-46). And it is Janus once again who offers generous
hospitality to Saturn so that he can "hide" in Latium after his
expulsion from the heavenly realm (Fasti 1.235ff.).
While these fantasies only have the merit of fitting the
description of the god, the evidence from his cult is of greater
weight. Janus has no flamen of his own, but the rex sacrific­
ulus ("king of sacrifices") offers him a sacrifice in certain
circumstances (at the beginning of each month, for instance:
cf. Macrobius Saturnalia 1.15.10, and Wissowa's commentary,
Ruk,2 p. 103). This royal intervention recalls that Janus is the
initiator of time. It is for him that the public sacrifice first
celebrated in the first month of the year is performed: the
Agonium of 9 January. And it is he who, in association with
Juno (whence his surname Junonius), is the patron of the
calends of all the months of the year.
Under the name of Janus Curiatius, the god also presides
over a rite of passage which, within the curiae, involved
young men of arms-bearing age. But because of its archaism
and the lack of information about it, it is extremely difficult to
define this cult clearly.
Such is not the case for Janus Quirinus, who is cited from
the time of the "royal laws" (Festus, p. 204 L.) and whose
worship Augustus attempted to revitalize. It was at the
temple of Janus, founded, according to tradition, by Numa
(cf. Varro De Lingua Latina 5.165; Livy 1.19.2), that a symbolic
rite was carried out. This temple, which was both a sanctuary
with an altar (ara . . . parvo conjuncta sacello: Ovid Fasti 1.275)
and a door (porta Janualis: Varro Ling. 5.165), was the visible
sign of the state of peace or war, index pacis bellique (Livy
1.19.2), depending on whether the doors were closed or
open. (In the absence of archaeological data, it is impossible
to specify the workings of this sacellum-porta complex.) Here
Janus was called Geminus (his statue is biceps, two-faced) or
Quirinus. It is the latter name, the older one since it goes
back to a "royal law," that was preferred under Augustus.
The emperor boasted (Res Gestae Divi Augusti 13) that he had
closed the temple of Janus Quirinus three times. In this way
the association Janus-Quirinus served to exalt the "peaceful"
values that Quirinus embodied. Here Janus assured the
"transition" from war to peace. At least this is suggested by
two pieces of evidence from Horace. The poet wanted to
stress the "quirinal" side of Janus when he coined the
expressive variant Janum Quirini (Carmina 4.15.9), an idea
that he took up again (Epistulae 2.1.255) in the more prosaic
form custodem pacis . . . Janum ("Janus, guardian of peace").
R.S./j.I.
with Janus, under the name of Juno Covella (see my article
"Ianus, le dieu introducteur, le dieu des passages," in
M.E.F.R., 1960, pp. 102-8; reprinted in R.C.D.R.), she pa­
tronizes the calends of every month: this patronage should
probably be explained as a function of an ancient ritual that
stipulated resorting to the goddess of "youth," of "vital
strength," in order to encourage the "w ork" of the young
moon, from the calends to nones.
Other ancient cults of Juno fall on the first of their
respective months: February (Juno Sospita), June (Juno Mon-
eta), September (Juno Regina, on the Aventine), and October
0uno Sororia). All of these dates correspond to archaic and
autonomous cults of Juno. The only exceptions to this
generalization result from a loss of autonomy in worship:
 J U P I T E R

J u n o C a p r o t i n a is h o n o r e d o n 7 J u l y , o n t h e n o n e s , b e c a u s e
t h i s f e s t i v a l is d e p e n d e n t o n t h e c u l t in h o n o r o f J u p i t e r o n 5
Ju ly , a t th e P o p lifu g ia (o n th is c e r e m o n y , s e e G . D u m é z il,
“ L e s n o n e s C a p r o t i n e s , " in Fêtes romaines d'été et d'automne
P a ris 1 9 7 5 , p . 2 7 1 - 8 3 ) ; J u n o R e g i n a o f t h e C a p i t o l is c e l e ­
b ra te d on 1 3 S e p te m b e r , o n th e id e s, b e c a u s e h ere she is
s u b o r d i n a t e t o J u p i t e r , w h o s e t e m p l e is h o n o r e d a n n u a l l y o n
th is d a y .
Ju n o p la y s a ro le in le g e n d a ry h isto ry : in 390 b .c ., t h e
C a p ito l h a d b e e n s a v e d f ro m a s u r p r is e a tta c k b y th e G a u ls
(L iv y 5 .4 7 .3 - 4 ) b y th e c rie s o f g e e s e , b ird s c o n s e c r a te d to
J u n o . W a s it b e c a u s e o f t h e i n t e r v e n t i o n o f J u n o M o n e t a , “ t h e
W a rn e r"? S h e is m e n t io n e d u n d e r th is title b y C ic e r o (De
divinatione 1 . 1 0 1 ) . A t e m p l e w a s e r e c t e d t o h e r in 3 4 5 b .c . b y
th e d i c t a to r L . F u r iu s C a m illu s o n th e C a p ito lin e c ita d e l (L iv y
7 .2 8 .4 ; la te r, th e in s ta lla tio n n e x t to th is s a n c t u a r y , ad Mone­
tae, of a m o n e ta ry w o rk sh o p , gave moneta th e m e a n in g
"m o n e y ").
D u r in g t h e h is t o r i c a l p e r i o d J u n o is c lo s e l y a s s o c i a te d w ith
J u p i te r : in th e C a p it o l i n e t r ia d , J u n o R e g in a s its a t th e s id e o f
th e ru lin g god in th e cella to th e le ft (L iv y 7 .3 .5 ) ; in th e
le c tis te rn iu m o f 2 1 7 b .c . s h e f o r m s a c o u p l e w i t h J u p i t e r , in
th e m a n n e r o f H e ra a n d Z e u s . R o m e k n e w o f a s e c o n d Ju n o
R e g in a , th e a n c i e n t U n i, p r o t e c tr e s s o f th e E t r u s c a n c ity o f
V e ii: i n 3 9 6 b .c . s h e h a d been tra n sfe rre d to R o m e , to th e
A v e n t i n e h i ll , f o l l o w i n g a n evocatio o f th e d ic ta to r L . F u riu s
Juno Sospita, a crow on her shoulder, crowning Cornuficius. Paris,
C a m illu s , a f t e r th e s ie g e o f th e c ity (L iv y 5 .2 1 .3 a n d 2 2 . 4 - 6 ) .
Bibliothèque nationale. Cabinet des Médailles. Photo BN.
R .S ./t .l .f .

h o n o r (fro m 1 5 to 1 8 S e p te m b e r ), f o llo w th e a n n i v e r s a r y o f
J upiter th e te m p le (o n th e id e s o f S e p te m b e r a n d a f t e r th e in te r v a l o f
th e 1 4 th ). T h e s e g a m e s a r e a c c o m p a n ie d b y a n epulum Jovis,
a s o le m n m e a l o ffe re d to th e g o d .
J u p i t e r is t h e su p re m e god. H is n a m e , w h ic h is o f I n d o - J u p i t e r is g i v e n s e v e r a l q u a l i f i e r s d e p e n d i n g o n w h i c h o f
E u ro p e a n o r ig in , s ig n a ls h is q u a lity a s a c e le s tia l g o d , th e h is a s p e c ts is to be h ig h lig h te d . Thus th e c e le s tia l and
g o d o f lig h t. T h e L a tin Juppiter is r e a l l y a v o c a t i v e f o r m t h a t , m e te o ro lo g ic a l aspect is e x p re sse d by Ju p ite r Tonans or
t h r o u g h i t s f r e q u e n t u s e in t h i s w a y , s e r v e d a s a n o m i n a t i v e . Ju p ite r F u lg u r; th e a s p e c t o f m a g ic a l in te r v e n tio n , by th e
( I n d e e d , t h e r e is a r a r e r f o r m o f t h e n o m i n a t iv e , Diespiter, fo r e p ith e t S ta to r ( " h e w h o im m o b iliz e s " : s e e L iv y 1 .1 2 .4 - 6 ) o r
e x a m p l e , in P l a u t u s , Poenulus 7 3 9 ). T h e n a m e c o m e s fro m
Jou-pater (w ith e x p r e s s i v e g e m in a tio n o f th e first c o n s o n a n t
o f th e s e c o n d e le m e n t a n d a p o p h o n y o f th e in te rio r v o w e l):
Votive relief. Munich, Staatliche Antikensammlungen und Glypto­
Jou c o m e s fro m *dyeu ( t h e s a m e r o o t is a t t h e b a s e o f dies, thek. Photo Koppermann.
"d a y "). Juppiter th u s h a s a s e m a n tic re la tio n s h ip w ith th e
G re e k Z e u s , s in c e th e n o m in a tiv e Zeus is b a s e d o n *dyeus.
T h i s n a m e is a l s o f o u n d i n a l l I t a l i c d i a l e c t s , p a r t i c u l a r l y in
U m b ria n a n d O s c a n .
In R o m e , J u p i te r is th e p r in c ip a l d iv in ity o f th e a r c h a ic
tria d (w h ic h a s s o c i a te s M a r s a n d Q u ir in u s w ith h im ) a n d o f
th e C a p ito lin e tria d (w h ic h a s s i g n s J u n o a n d M in e r v a to h im
as co n so rts). He is a lso nam ed first (w ith Ju n o ) in th e
le c tis te rn iu m o f 2 1 7 b .c . H i s c u l t w a s m a i n t a i n e d fro m i ts
b e g in n in g s b y th e first p r ie s t o f th e s a c e rd o ta l body, th e
ftamen Dialis. O n t h e i d e s o f e a c h m o n t h ( w h i c h fa ll o n t h e
1 3 th o f m o s t m o n t h s , b u t o n th e 1 5 th o f M a r c h , M a y , Ju ly ,
a n d O c t o b e r ) , a l a m b i s s a c r i f i c e d t o h i m ( F e s t u s , p . 9 3 L . ) . In
th e h i s to r ic a l e r a , t h e p r in c ip a l f e s tiv a ls in h is h o n o r w e r e th e
V in a lia , w h ic h w e r e c e le b r a te d o n 1 9 A u g u s t ( th e c o n s e c r a ­
tio n o f g r a p e s ) a n d o n 2 3 A p r il ( t h e o f f e r i n g o f w in e ) . A t th a t
tim e h e w a s h o n o r e d a s th e ru lin g g o d , th e p r o t e c to r o f th e
R o m a n s d e s c e n d e d fro m A e n e a s , a c c o r d in g to th e " T r o j a n "
in te rp re ta tio n th a t c la im e d to e x p la in th e litu r g y (se e my
book R .R .V ., p. 1 3 1 -4 8 ). T h e ludi Romani, c e le b r a t e d in h is

131
ROME

scured by the speculations of ancient and modem scholars

who tended to confuse the Lares with the "infernal spirits"
(Festus, p. 273 L., repeated by Ernout-Meillet, D.E.4, s.v.
Lares). The issue was further obscured by a later mytholog­
ical interpretation that resulted in the invention of a "M other
of the Lares," who was called Mania in Varro (De Lingua
Latina 9.61) and in Macrobius (Saturnalia 1.7.35), Lara in Ovid
(Fasti 2.615), Mater Larum in the liturgy of the imperial
period of the Arval Brethren (Henzen, Acta Fratrum Arvalium,
p. 145). Her antiquity must be challenged, since early Roman
religion does not recognize genealogical ties.
In the archaic Carmen of the Arval Brethren, the Lares are
referred to (in the form Lases, without the rhotacism of the
internal s) as protectors of the ager Romanus (plowed fields of
Rome). In the singular, the Lar Familiaris is the protector of
the family estate, whom the paterfamilias greets first when
he arrives in his country home (see Cato De Agricultura 2.1).
He protects all the familia, freemen and slaves alike. The
master of the house also offers a crown to the Lar Familiaris
so that "this home may be for us a source of wealth, blessing,
happiness, and good fortune" (see Plautus Trinummus 4 0 -
41).
In the country, the cult of the Lares was practiced at
crossroads (compita), special meeting places. These Lares
Compitales were worshiped in particular at the beginning of
the month of January in a movable feast, the Compitalia.
In Rome itself, the Lares were honored on 1 May as Lares
Pjaestites ("tutelary Lares"); Ovid (Fasti 5.129-36) recalls
their office as protectors and defenders of the ramparts. The
popularity of their cult (at crossroads, they were represented
as two young men accompanied by a dog) was so great that
Augustus seized the opportunity to place a statue of his own
Genius among them. Thus, to borrow Ovid's expression
(Fasti 5.146), "each quarter honored three deities."
To this list a new cult should be added, attested by a recent
Capitoline triad (]upiter-Juno-Minerva) represented on an oil lamp.
Rome, City Museum. Photo Oscar Savio.

Lares. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles. Photo

Jupiter Feretrius (Livy 1.24.7-8; the Roman fetial who con­
BN.
cluded a treaty with the Alban people invokes Jupiter Fere­
trius, he who must strike, ferire, the first one who backs
away; see Festus, p. 81 L.). He is qualified as Jupiter Optimus
Maximus on the Capitolium (on the ethical meaning of these
adjectives, see G. Dumézil, Archaic Roman Religion, p. 200).
It is at the temple of the Capitol that his role as the protector
god of the city is exercised fully. It is there, on the calends of
January, that the new consuls go, accompanied by senators,
magistrates, priests, and the populace. It is there that the consul
designated for a military campaign pronounces the vota, the
prayers and solemn promises made for a successful outcome. It
is there that, when he returns, the victorious and triumphant
general pays his debt of gratitude to the ruling god.
R.S./t.l.f.

T he L ares

The name Lar has no clear etymology. In the singular, but

more often in the plural, Lares, it designates the deities who
protect a piece of land. This basic feature was rightly under­
scored by Wissowa (Ruk2, p. 169): “The primary importance
of the Lares is as deities attached to a locality."
This definition, supported by ritual evidence, was ob­

132

Representation of two snakes at the base of a lararium. Photo Boudot-Lamotte.
discovery, an archaic inscription on a cippus (a low column)
of the fourth century b .c . found in the vicinity of Lavinium:
Lare Aenia dlono], "offering to the Lar Aeneas"; see Roma
medio republicana (Rome 1973, p. 321, no. 472). For the first
time the singular word Lar is apparently followed by a proper
noun; and for the first time epigraphy seems to provide proof
T he M anes
The word Manes has given rise to various exegeses. We must
reject the popular etymology manare, cited by Festus (p. 146
L.): "The name Manes (di) may be explained by the fact that
these gods were thought to spread (manare) throughout the
aerial and earthly elements"; we must also reject the arbi­
trary connection with the Phrygian word men made by Kurt
Latte (Römische Religionsgeschichte, p. 99, n. 3). We should
probably accept the explanation based on the euphemism,
manis (or manus), "good," "kindly," as opposed to immanis.
The expression is said to have been applied to the infernal
gods (di inferi) in order to gain their favor. This explanation,
accepted by most modern scholars, was proposed by Aelius
Stilo (cited by Festus, p. 132 L.): "The infernal gods were
called Manes with the meaning "kindly" (boni) by people
who venerated them in a suppliant tone, for fear of death."
The use of the expression is ancient. It appears in the
ritualistic formula of the devotio, which the consul Decius
pronounced in 340 b .c . He consecrated himself, at the same
time as the enemy army, "to the Manes gods and to the Earth
goddess" (Deis Manibus Tellurique: Livy 8.9.8). It was also to
the "M anes gods" that M. Curtius devoted himself in 361
b .c ., when he plunged on horseback into a chasm which had
THE M A N E S
of a cult of Aeneas, specifically in the area of Lavinium where
a heroon was discovered which tradition attributes to Aeneas
(see P. Sommella, "Heroon di Enea a Lavinium, Recenti Scavi
a Pratica di Mare," Rendic. Pontif. Accad. Archeol. 44 [1971 —
72]: 4 7 - 74).
R.S./g.h
opened in the Forum following an earthquake (Livy 7.6.4).
Cicero evokes the "laws of the M anes" in his treatise on laws
(Cicero De legibus 2.22 and 2.45).
But the expression di Manes does not appear to have been
widely used in ancient times to designate the deceased of the
family. These were named di or divi parentum in a passage
from the "royal laws" (Festus, p. 260 L.). Similarly, the
funeral ceremonies around the family tombs that lasted for
nine days (dies parentales), starting on 13 February and ending
on 21 February with a public holiday, the Feralia, were called
Parentalia; the substantive parentatio and the verb parentare
were the specific words for the cult of dead ancestors.
Only toward the end of the first century b .c . was the
custom established of using the inscription D(is) M(anibus)
for the dead of the family. Dedications to the Manes gods
were made on tombstones (see R. Cagnat, Cours d'épigraphie
latine, Paris 1914, pp. 280-81: before this, epitaphs were
"very brief"; "the names of the deceased, first in the
nominative, then in the genitive case, made up the entire
inscription; not a word or a formula could be found that
recalled death, even indirectly"). The dedications were fol­
lowed by the names of the deceased in the nominative,
genitive, or dative case.
Nevertheless, the phrase di Manes took on other meanings
through metonymy. Thus, it can designate the home of the
dead (Virgil Aeneid 4.387), or simply corpses (Livy 31.30.5).
133
ROME
The Virgilian formula, quisque suos patimur Manes (Virg. Aen.
6.743: We each suffer our own Manes), has inspired a
number of interpretations. The ancient commentator on
Virgil, Servius (schol. ad Virg. Aen. 7.643), understood it to
mean "the judgment" that awaits us during the visit of the
Manes, and by way of justification, he advanced the follow­
ing philosophic view: At our birth two genies welcome us;
M ars
The name of the god Mars has no Indo-European etymology.
Mars is the Latin form that comes from Mavors, an ancient
form sometimes used by poets (an intermediate form, Maurs,
is also attested: CIL, I2, 49). In the official Carmen of the Arval
Brethren, Mars is still invoked by the names Marmar (from
Marmart-s) and Marmor (a foreign form). In the Oscan
dialect, the god has a related name, Mamers (see A. G.
Ramat, Studi intorno ai nomi del dio Marte, Arch. Glottol. Ital.,
47, 1962, p. 112ff.).
The antiquity of Mars, the god of war, is attested by the
fact that he belongs to the archaic triad of Jupiter-Mars-
Quirinus, and by the cult office of the flamen Martialis. His
character as a warrior god is apparent in the liturgy. The Salii,
a brotherhood of priests consecrated to him, opened and
closed the military calendar year with martial dances.
Among the ancients, this calendar would begin in the spring
(the festivals of the Equirria of 27 February and 14 March,
consisting of horse races on the Field of Mars; the Agonium
Martiale on 17 March; the lustration of arms during the
Quinquatrus on 19 March; and the lustration of war bugles
Representation of a suovetaurilia sacrifice combining the boar (sus), the ram (ovis), and the bull (taurus). Paris, Musée du Louvre. Photo
Giraudon.
134
one incites us to good, the other to evil; after our death, they
are the witnesses of our fate—of our freedom or our reincar­
nation. It is hard to see how such a Neoplatonic concept
harmonizes with Virgil's thought. It is, in any case, alien to
Roman traditions.
R.S./g.h.
during the Tubilustrium on 23 March) and would finish in
the autumn (the ritual of purification during the Tigillum
Sororium on 1 October; the sacrifice of the war horse, the
October Equus, on 15 October; and the lustration of arms,
Armilustrium, on 19 October). Mars had his places of wor­
ship outside the city's pomerium, which was under the
jurisdiction of the imperium militiae (see Vitruvius 1.7.1).
Accordingly, on the Field of Mars an ancient altar, ara Martis,
was raised, near which D. Junius Brutus Callaicus built a
temple in 138 b.c . South of the city wall near the Appian Way
was the most important sanctuary, the templum Martis extra
portam Capenam, which was dedicated on 1 June 338 b .c . This
was the point of departure for the annual parade known as
the transvectio equitum, a cavalry procession (see Dionysius of
Halicarnassus 6.13.4).
Within the city walls, on the other hand, the talismans of
Mars were kept in a chapel inside the Regia (the sacrarium
Martis). These objects were the twelve shields, the ancilia
(one was reputed to have fallen from heaven, and the
remaining eleven were said to be indistinguishable reproduc­
tions: see Ovid Fasti 3.369ff.), and also the spears, the hastae
Martis (the spears were able by their "spontaneous" move­
ment to provide omens—Mars suum telum concutit, "Mars
shakes his spear": see Livy 22.1.11). Before setting out for
 M E R C U R Y

a c t i v i t i e s o f M a r s o u t s i d e t h e s t r i c t l y m i l i t a r y d o m a i n ; it le d t o
lo n g d i s c u s s i o n s , o f w h ic h G . D u m é z il h a s g iv e n a b a la n c e d
a c c o u n t ( Archaic Roman Religion, p p . 2 2 4 - 4 5 ) . W e s h a ll o n ly
c i t e t w o p a r t i c u l a r l y r e v e a l i n g e x a m p l e s . M a r s is i n v o k e d in
th e carmen Arvale, w h ic h trie s to a s s u r e m y s tic a l p r o te c tio n o f
th e f ie ld s . T h e A r v a l B r e t h r e n , w h o a l s o a d d r e s s t h e m s e l v e s
to th e L a s e s ( = th e L a r e s , g u a r d i a n s o f th e f a rm ) a n d to th e
S e m o n e s ( th e g o d s in c h a r g e o f t h e g r o w t h o f s e e d s , semina),
ask th e "sav ag e M a rs" {fere Mars) o n ly fo r a s e rv ic e th a t
co rresp o n d s to h is d e f in itio n a s a d e f e n d e r (cf. limen sali,
"le a p to th e f r o n tie r !" ): th e se rv ice of p r o t e c t i n g t h e ager
Romanus a g a i n s t a ll e n e m i e s .
S im ila rly , t h e p e a s a n t w h o c o m e s t o th e l u s t r a ti o n o f h is
f i e ld i n C a t o (De Agricultura 1 4 1 ) w a lk s th e a n im a ls o f th e
suovetaurilia (b o a r , r a m , a n d b u ll)— a s a c r i f i c e th a t b e l o n g s to
M a rs — w h ile b e g g in g th e g o d to s to p , re p e l, a n d w a rd o ff
(prohibessis, defendas averruncesque) v i s i b l e a n d i n v i s i b l e a i l ­
m e n t s ( morbos visos invisosque), d e a r t h a n d d e s o l a t i o n ( viduer -
tatem vastitudinemque), c a l a m i t i e s ( t h e d e s t r u c t i o n o f s t a l k s o f
g r a i n , calami t a k e n i n t h e s e n s e o f culmi), a n d i n c l e m e n t
w e a t h e r ( calamitates intemperiasque). H e r e a g a i n M a r s is a s k e d
to a c t in k e e p in g w ith h is f u n c tio n : th is a c tio n w il l m a k e
p o s sib le th e g r o w th o f h a rv e sts a n d th e p r o s p e r ity o f th e
h e rd s a n d p e o p le .
D u rin g th e le c tis te rn iu m o f 2 1 7 b . c ., M a r s w a s a s s o c i a t e d
w ith V e n u s o n t h e G r e e k m o d e l o f A r e s - A p h r o d i t e , a n d th is
H e lle n ic c o u p le p l a y e d a r a t h e r c a ta l y t i c r o le in th e s e r v i c e o f
th e R om an cause (th e re a s o n s can be seen in my a rtic le
"R o m an G o d s ," a b o v e ). T h e re fo re M ars ca m e u n d e r l it t le
in f lu e n c e f ro m th e G r e e k g o d o f w a r.
The re lig io u s p o licie s of A u g u s tu s o n ly c o n firm e d th is
p r o c e s s b y p r o c la im in g M a r s U lto r, " t h e a v e n g e r ." T h e g o d
earn ed th is n a m e fo r tw o reaso n s: as th e a v e n g e r o f th e
a s s a s s in a tio n o f J u liu s C a e s a r ( t h e v i c to r y a t P h ilip p i in 4 2
b . c .) and as th e avenger of th e d is a s te r su ffered by th e
R om ans at C a rrh a e in 53 b .c . (a n e g o tia tio n w ith th e
P a r th ia n s , f o llo w e d b y a s u r r e n d e r o f th e R o m a n fla g , h a d

Mars bearing a lance and a shield. Pompeii fresco. Photo Boudot- been p re se n te d as a v ic to r y ). As a re s u lt, th e em p e ro r
Lamotte. ord ered th a t a ro u n d te m p le be ra ise d on th e C a p ito l in
h o n o r o f M a r s U l t o r ( i n 2 0 b . c .: D i o C a s s i u s 5 4 . 8 . 3 ) a n d t h e n
had th e g reat te m p le in s ta lle d in th e m id d le o f h is o w n
F o ru m ( i n 2 b . c .: D i o C a s s i u s 6 0 . 5 . 3 ) . M a r s e n j o y e d a new
w ar, th e c o m m a n d e r -in -c h ie f w o u ld com e to to u ch th e se g lo ry . T h e " f a t h e r " o f R o m u lu s , th e f o u n d e r o f R o m e , h e w a s
s a c r e d o b je c ts w h ile s h o u tin g : Mars vigila (M a r s b e v ig ila n t!). a s s o c ia te d w ith V en u s, th e "M o th e r" o f th e R om ans de­
If t h e m i l i t a r y c h a r a c t e r o f t h e g o d is w e l l e s t a b l i s h e d , w h y s c e n d e d fro m A e n e a s . H e w a s n o lo n g e r s im p ly a g o d o f w a r,
h a v e c e rta in m o d ern s c h o la rs (se e G . H e rm a n se n , Studien c a m p in g o n th e o u ts k ir ts o f th e c ity ; h e h a d s o le m n ly e n t e r e d
überden italischen und römischen Mars, C o p e n h a g e n 1 9 4 0 ) t rie d th e in te r io r o f h is c ity to re c e iv e th e h o n o r s g iv e n h im o n to p
to e s ta b lis h th e e x i s t e n c e o f a n “ a g r a r ia n M a r s " ? T h e a m b i­ o f th e C a p it o l a n d in th e h e a r t o f th e n e w F o r u m .
g u ity r e s u lte d fro m an in c o rre c t in te rp re ta tio n o f c e rta in R .S ./g .h .

aediles, V e tte r , ib id ., n . 2 6 4 ; th is is a d e d i c a t o r y i n s c r ip t io n o f
M ercury m e r c h a n ts ; th e first n a m e p la c e d b e f o r e th e n a m e o f th e g o d
s e e m s fo re ig n ).
M ercu ry , th e p a tro n of m e rc h a n ts , w as in tr o d u c e d to
T h e n a m e o f th e g o d M e r c u r y c a n n o t b e d is a s s o c ia te d fro m R om e at le a st by th e e a rly fifth c e n tu ry b .c . A te m p le
th e w o rd merx, w h ic h m eans m e rch a n d ise . S u ch w as th e d e d ic a te d to h im w a s b u i l t i n 4 9 5 b .c . ( L i v y 2 . 2 7 . 5 ) o u t s i d e
s e n tim e n t o f th e a n cie n ts (F e s tu s , p. Ill L .: Mercurius a th e p o m e r iu m , n e a r th e C ir c u s M a x im u s o n th e s lo p e o f th e
mercibus est dictus). T h e w o rd Mercurius is b a s e d o n a « s te m . A v e n tin e . H is a n n iv e r s a r y fe ll on th e id e s of M ay (L iv y
In a d d it i o n t o th e c o n s o n a n ta l s te m o f th e L a t in w o r d merx, 2 .2 1 .7 ) .
th e u- s t e m is a t t e s t e d i n a n O s c a n d e d i c a t i o n f r o m C a p u a M e rcu ry e n te re d R o m e in t h e m i d s t o f s o c ia l u p h e a v a l s
(Mirikui = Mercurio, V e t t e r , HA D., n . 1 3 6 ) a n d i n s e v e r a l caused by th e d e b ts in cu rre d by th e p le b e ia n s and by
F a l i s c a n i n s c r i p t i o n s ( e . g . , tito mercui efile = Tito Mercu p ro b le m s o f fo o d s to r a g e (L iv y 2 .2 7 .5 ) . T h e c o n s e c r a tio n o f

135
ROME

the temple was therefore associated with the creation of a

brotherhood of merchants, the mercatorum collegium.
It is likely that the temple was dedicated at the behest of
the Sibylline Books, given its extramural location and the
circumstances. The year before, similar circumstances had, at
the prompting of the Sibylline Books, called upon the dictator
A. Postumius to dedicate a temple to the triad of Ceres-Liber-
Libera. Later Mercury was associated with Neptune in the
first lectisternium of 399. Mercury-Hermes represented
trade, which benefited from the maritime help of Neptune-
Poseidon. This commercial vocation was again affirmed in
the lectisternium of 217, which this time linked Mercury and
Ceres in an even more striking economic association.
When he is presented in the preamble of Plautus's Aulu­
laria, the god stresses his commercial function, even while he
alludes to another aspect of his Greek model, one that is
required by the plot of the play, namely the role of messen-

Right: Mercury. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des

Médailles. Photo BN.
Below: A group consisting of Mercury, Attis, and the Sibyl on an oil
lamp. Rome, City Museum. Photo Oscar Savio.

136
 N E P T U N E

ger: "I preside over messages and profits” (Plautus Aulularia

12). In a scene from Ovid (Fasti 5.681-90), a merchant
addresses a prayer to the god of commerce, who does not
trouble himself with scruples. The prayer ends on the
following casual note: "Grant me only that I can earn a lot;
grant that I may enjoy my gains! Grant me the pleasure of
tricking the buyer with fine words!”
During the Augustan Age Mercury extended his field of
action under the influence of his Greek counterpart, among
the poets. He "became,” following the example of Hermes,
"the son of Zeus and Maia" (Homeric Hymn to Mercury 1); this
same Maia, the daughter of Atlas, is merely a homonym of
Maia, the entity associated with Volcanus (Aulus Gellius
Nodes Atticae 13.23.2). In Virgil (Aeneid 4.239), he puts on his
golden heel-wings to transmit Jupiter's messages; he also
acts as the psychopomp—the conductor of souls into the
netherworld (ibid. 4.242). Horace (Carmena 1.10) celebrates
the god as the inventor of the lyre and the conductor of souls
into the next world. On one occasion he happens to greet
Mercury as an avatar of Augustus (ibid. 2.41). There is a
striking contrast between the poet Ovid (Fasti 5 .665- 70),
sensitive to the civilizing qualities of Hermes, and the
merchant that he so carefully depicts, who asks Mercury
only to assuage his appetite for profit.
Still another role awaited Mercury in the Roman world. He
was to take up again his mission of traveler, no longer as a Minerva. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN.
messenger of Zeus, but as an "interpreter” of deities who
appeared too mysterious to the Romans. For example, Cae­
sar (Gallic War 6.17.1) gave the name of Mercury to the
principal god of the Gauls, as Tacitus (Germania 9.1) did to the with Neptune—an obvious reference to the confrontation
Germanic god ÖÖinn. between Athena and Poseidon.
R.S./g.h. Her principal festival falls on 19 March, the day of the
Quinquatrus (the fifth day after the ides; see Festus, p. 304
L.), which is also the anniversary of her temple. In the
calendar of Praeneste, this day is called artificum dies, "the
day of craftsmen." It is celebrated by artisans, artists, and
schoolmasters (see Ovid Fasti 3.809-34). In this aspect, the
Latin Minerva was akin to Athena Ergane.
Perhaps another aspect of her personality may also be
M inerva explained by a Hellenic influence transmitted by the Etrus­
cans. On a basket from Praeneste, Minerva appears in a
mysterious scene involving Mars (see G. Dumézil, Archaic
The name of the goddess Minerva (Menerva is the oldest Roman Religion, pp. 243-44). In light of this, the coincidence
epigraphical form, and Minerva is the classical Latin form) of the feast of Minerva with the Quinquatrus of March,
can be traced back to an Indo-European root *men-, which which was originally dedicated to the lustration of arms (see
indicates the activities of the mind (see J. L. Girard, "Étude the calendar of Praeneste), cannot be considered fortuitous.
onomastique: Le nom de Minerve en Italie," Annuaire de In any event, the Latin Minerva seems to be strongly marked
l'E.P.H.E., section 5, vols. 8 0 -81, fasc. 2 [1971-73], pp. by Etruscan and Hellenic influence. (Research is in progress:
64 -65). It has no Indo-European parallels outside of the Italic J. L. Girard, R.E.L. 48 [1970], pp. 469 - 72.)
languages. R.S./g.h.
Minerva was originally a native of southern Etruria
(Wissowa, Ruk2, p. 253, thought it might have been Falerii,
a city of Italic origin, conquered very early by the Etruscans).
In fact, one of her most ancient temples, whose anniversary
fell on 19 March (the year is uncertain), is on the Aventine,
which stood outside the pomerium (compare the Fasti Prae­
nestini, on 19 March). Another shrine on the Caelian Hill was
a chapel containing the statue of Minerva of Falerii that was N eptune
captured when the city was taken by the Romans in 241 b . c .
It bore the name sacellum Minervae captae (see Ovid Fasti
3.843ff.). Unlike Juno of Veii, who had been "invited" after Neptune is an ancient god. The Neptunalia were registered
an evocatio to "surrender" to Rome, the Minerva of Falerii on 23 July in the cycle of festivals of the old liturgical
was treated simply as a prisoner. calendar. The etymology of Neptune's name is controversial.
In the Capitoline triad, Minerva, like Juno, is the consort of Certain philologists (P. Kretschmer, Einleitung in die Geschichte
Jupiter and sits at the supreme god's right hand (see Livy der griechischen Sprache, Göttingen 1896, p. 133) have ex­
7.3.5). At the lectisternium of 217 b . c ., she was associated plained the word as a derivative from the stem *neptu-,

137
ROME
Neptune. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN.
"moist substance." But the word *neptu "is not attested in
any other Indo-European language"; "the root *nep-, which
barely survives in Vedic and Avestan, is unknown in Latin"
(Georges Dumézil, Mythe et épopée, vol. 3, p. 41).
The comparative approach would explain it by way of "the
important Indo-Iranian religious figure of the Vedic apäm
napät, Avestan apqm napà, descendant of the waters" (Ernout-
Meillet, D.E.4, s.v. "Neptunus"). By comparing the mythical
depiction of the god common to the Indo-Iranian Apäm
Napät and the Irish god Nechtan with the historicized legend
about Neptune, Dumézil (ibid., p. 87) proposed to derive the
three nouns from the Indo-European root *nepot- (*nept-),
"descendant, sister's son."
The Latin god must have been the patron of all the waters
before he presided essentially over the open seas, under the
influence of the Greek god Poseidon. Though it is not
possible to form a clear notion of his functions, in the
absence of a flamen or of any commentary in Ovid's Fasti,
Dumézil has gathered enough evidence to suggest Nep­
tune's role by constructing a converging series of "lines of
T he P enates
The di Penates are the "gods of the indoors" (penates formed
like Arpinates). This etymology seems the most likely, even
though Cicero (De Natura Deorum 2.68) hesitates between this
explanation (penitus insident, ex quo etiam penetrales a poetis
vocantur: "they dwell inside [houses], from which also comes
their designation of penetrales by the poets") and another
explanation that would derive the word from penus in the
sense of "provisions" (in his time, penus or penum had only
138
fact" (ibid., pp. 21-89). The Neptunalia took place on 23 July,
that is, at the beginning of the summer heat, when the earth,
vegetation, and human beings were most in need of water.
On that day, in order to have protection from the heat of the
sun, it was customary to put up huts made of foliage (casae
frondeae), which were called umbrae (shades: Festus, p. 519
L.). In the exercise of his functions, Neptune is assisted by
two abstract entities (which are in a way his personified
potentialities), Salacia (see Aulus Gellius Noctes Atticae 13.23)
and Venilia (see Varro De Lingua Latina 5.72). Salacia evokes
gushing water (the verb salire); Venilia, still or flowing water.
This supports the idea that Neptune first ruled over fresh
water, an idea that is further buttressed by the fact that the
Neptunalia were preceded and followed by two festivals that
had similar concerns, the Lucaria on 21 July and the Furri-
nalia on 25 July. The first deals with the condition of the luci,
woods subject to drought; the second involves the action of
Furrina, who was probably the goddess of deep waters (for
the elucidation of these two festivals, see Dumézil, Fêtes
romaines d'été et d'automne, pp. 32-37 and 42-52).
Nevertheless, Neptune was exposed to the Greek influ­
ence of Poseidon quite early. He was associated with Mer­
cury, the god of commerce, in the first lectisternium of 399
B.c., an alliance that shows that Mercury, the god of the sea
(mare), was henceforth supposed to extend his dominion to
fresh water, in the manner of Poseidon. Hellenization was
even more marked at the lectisternium of 217 B.c. This time
the couple Neptune-Minerva barely concealed the Hellenic
model of Poseidon-Athena.
All of this explains a noteworthy contrast. While ancient
historiographers seem to have been preoccupied with the
marvel of water primarily with regard to fresh water (the
overflowing of Albanus Lacus [now called the Lago di
Albano] toward the end of the Roman war against the Veii:
see Livy 5.15.12 and G. Dumézil, M.E., vol. 3, pp. 40-62),
Neptune later followed Poseidon in being dragged into the
open sea. Classical authors were therefore accustomed to
consider Neptune essentially as the god of the sea. Varro (De
Lingua Latina 5.72) gives the following explanation of the
names of Neptune: "By virtue of the fact that the sea veils
(obnubit) the land as clouds (nubes) veil the sky, Neptune
derives his name from nuptu, the ancient word for opertio
(veiling)." The only merit of this "explanation" is to reveal
the link between Neptune and the sea that after that ap­
peared natural. Virgil (Georgies 1.29) refers to the god only
with one significant periphrasis: deus immensi maris, "the god
of the boundless sea" (see the commentary of Servius
Danielis, ad loc.).
R.S./g.h.
this meaning). In fact, the older meaning of penus is attested
in a commentary by Festus (p. 296 L.): penus vocatur locus
intimus in aede Vestae tegetibus saeptus ("penus designates the
most secret place in the shrine of Vesta, which is closed off by
curtains").
Precisely because of this semantic shift of the word penus,
these gods were thought to watch over the welfare of the
family. The hearth was considered their altar (Servius Dani­
elis on Aeneid 11.211), and they shared in the family meal:
one part was reserved and thrown into the fire; total silence
would prevail until a slave announced, deos propitios ("the
gods are propitious") (ibid. 1.730).
 PRIAPUS

The Penates gods were also closely associated with Vesta,

the goddess of the hearth (Cicero Nat. D. 2.68; Servius
Danielis on Aen. 2.296), and with the Lars Familiaris. In the
Mercator (834) of Plautus, when Charinus goes into exile, he
bids farewell both to the Penates gods of his parents and to
the family Lar.
Corresponding to this private cult was a cult of public
Penates, who were thought to have been brought by Aeneas
to Lavinium (Ovid Fasti 3.615; Servius Danielis on Aen.
2.296). Varro (De Lingua Latina 5.144) recalls that “Lavinium is
the first city of Roman stock founded in Latium. This is
where our Penates gods are" (m m ibi Penates nostri). There­
fore, “when they leave office, Roman magistrates go to
Lavinium to sacrifice to the Penates and Vesta" (Servius
Danielis 1.1.).
In Rome near the Palatine, on the slopes of the Velia, there
was also a shrine of the Penates gods (Varro Ling. 5.54; Livy
45.16.5). Dionysius of Halicarnassus (1.68.1-2) tells of seeing
"the statues of Trojan gods, which are visible to all and
which an inscription identifies with the Penates: they are two
seated young men holding a lance, the work of ancient
craftsmanship."
We might be tempted to conclude that these statues were
transferred from Lavinium to Rome. But it is more likely that
these were relics, as is implied in the account of Dionysius of
Halicarnassus, who states that he has "seen many other Penates. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
statues of these gods, in the same military attitude, in ancient Photo BN.
temples" (ibid.).
In any event, a relief of the Ara Pads represents a shrine
that fits the description of Dionysius of Halicarnassus: "In­
side a small temple were two sitting gods, half naked, with succumb to the temptation to confuse these two young
lance in hand" (see I. Scott Ryberg, "Rites of the State "soldiers" with the Dioscuri. On the contrary, he proposed a
Religion in Roman Art," American Academy in Rome [1955], series of Greek synonyms to translate for his compatriots
pp. 40-41 and plate 10, fig. 21). Resolutely adopting the "these gods that the Romans call Penates" (ibid. 1.67.3: tous
Roman viewpoint, Dionysius of Halicarnassus called the de theous toutous Römaioi men Penatas kalousin).
official Penates "Trojan gods." As a Greek witness he did not R.S./g.h.

Tychon, all ithyphallic deities of whom we know virtually

P riapus: T he L ast of the G ods
The Romans knew Priapus as the god of gardens where they
could see him in the pose of amsurma ("exposing oneself"),
rolling up his robe filled with fruit in order to expose his
huge phallus. From the time when he first appeared at the
dawn of the Hellenistic era until well into the Christian
Middle Ages, Priapus was able to encompass very different
realities. From the great retinue of Ptolemy II Philadelphus
(Athenaeus 5.201c), in which Priapus held a mythico-
political position, to the epigrams of the Anthologia Palatim,
in which he is the god of fishermen, or even in the kitchen
gardens of Alexandria and Rome, where Priapus was made
into an obscene scarecrow (Anthologia Planudea 236; Horace
Satirae 1.8), this god did not rate a place among the theolog­
ical definitions advanced by the ancients. Apparently they
did not see fit to assign him his own space in their pantheon,
even though Priapus could be part of the Dionysian thiasos,
and tradition often referred to him as the son of Dionysus
and Aphrodite or a nymph. Consequently, when Diodorus
Siculus (4.6.4) and Strabo (13.1.12) attempt to describe Pria­
pus, they can do so only by mentioning his "resemblance" to
such Attic gods as Ithyphallus, Orthanes, Conisalus, and
nothing except for the Priapic "resemblance" that character­
izes them.
Even though the ancients (and the modems) often con­
fused Priapus alternately with Pan, with Dionysus, with a
Satyr, or even with Hermaphroditus, the ancient sources
make it possible to discern a specific figure for this divus
minor (Corpus Priapeorum 53), whose iconography reveals at
the very least a radical difference: unlike his phallic compan­
ions, Pan and Satyr, Priapus is completely human. He does
not have horns, animal feet, or a tail. In fact, his only
anomaly, his only defect, is the outrageous phallus that
defines him, from his birth, as amorphus, or deformed, and
that prompted his mother, Aphrodite, to disown this mon­
strous child who was born to her on the banks of the
Hellespont at Lampsacus (schol. on Apollonius of Rhodes
Argonautica 1.932; schol. on Pseudo-Nonnus 147.29, ed. S.
Brock). Indeed, his huge penis, described in Latin texts as
terribilis (Columella De Re Rustica 10.33), makes it possible to
recognize Priapus in pictures and to identify him in writings
by giving him the physical shape essential to one of his major
functions, namely, that of a god who protects small farms
against thieves or the evil eye by threatening sexual violence
against anyone who came close to the property that he
guarded (Anthologia Planudea 241; Corp. Priap. 11.28, 44, 59,

139
ROME
Priapus. Bronze statuette. Augsburg, Römisches Museum. Museum
photo.
and 71). Thus the stage was set for the cult of a Priapus who
was a guardian of the fields and whose exercise of phallic
authority was a subject of derision in the Priapea (Anth. PI.
86; Corp. Priap. 10). In these Greek and Latin epigrams, the
ithyphallic effigy of the god, often crudely carved out of
cheap fig tree wood and carelessly daubed with red, assumes
a voice to utter obscene threats.
But Priapus is all talk and no action. Unlike other deities
who intervene in agricultural matters by conceiving of an
instrument that mediates between man and his environ­
ment, Priapus himself never makes anything. He partici­
pates in the everyday world of silent practices, in which the
god becomes a functional object for personal use, an amulet.
Thus, when the statue of Priapus was stationed in a small
orchard or a modest kitchen garden, the ancients acknowl­
edged his double function, prophylactic and apotropaic.
First, Priapus must sympathetically infuse the soil with the
hyperfertility conveyed by his excessive sexuality; the ithy­
phallic figure of the god is then required to protect the
140
fenced-in garden against intruders, through a kind of antise­
duction coupled with threats that always remain verbal but
nonetheless constitute a program of graphic sexual violence
and corporal punishment, the instrument of which is always
his aggressive phallus. Priapus is a god whose obscene sign
assures magical efficacy, a god who belongs to that realm of
concrete sexual representations that, although it seldom
aroused the interest of ancient theology and historiography
and was not often registered, even less often changed,
assured for itself in this way a long existence. Thus, we find
this same deity in one of his ancient functions, keeping evil
at bay, in the Chronicle of Lanercost (1268), where a “lay
Cistercian brother" erects a statue of Priapus (simulacrum
Priapi statuere) to put an end to an epidemic that is destroying
cattle.
The reading of ancient texts reveals, alongside this apotro­
paic Priapus, another feature of the god that conveys the
Priapic corpus as a whole. Inside the gardens of Priapus,
nothing, or almost nothing, grows. Whether there are a few
meager vegetables (Anth. PI. 236) or some withered vines
(Anth. PI. 238), this god, as Virgil (Eclogues 7.34) recalls, is the
guardian of a poor garden. Moreover, Priapus, in keeping
with his sorry environment, is usually poorly fashioned in
cheap wood by a clumsy peasant (Anth. Pal. 9.437; Corp.
Priap. 10). The descriptions of this rustic deity that the poets
provide in their Priapea are verified and confirmed by
Columella (De Re Rustica 10.32), when he advises horticul­
turists to revere Priapus in the "trunk of an old tree hacked
down at random" (forte). Finally, it may even happen that
Priapus serves no purpose at all, and if he is still placed in
gardens, it is merely by force of habit and simple convention
(nomou charin: Anth. PI. 238).
The offerings made to Priapus are generally as mediocre as
his effigy or the crops he is supposed to be watching: figs
with shriveled skins (Anth. Pal. 6.102) and an occasional fruit
or two (Corp. Priap. 53); or else the unlucky god is pitied and
receives as a sacrifice, instead of fruits, verses of poets (Corp.
Priap. 60). As for offerings from fishermen, they are no more
abundant than those of the gardeners: old refuse from a
catch (Anth. Pal. 6.192), the shell of a turtle or crayfish, in
exchange for which the god is asked for very little (me polla),
just enough to abate the supplicant's hunger (Anth. Pal.
6.89), enough to warm his weary bones (Anth. Pal. 6.193).
Priapus is also offered fruit made of wax and is asked to be
content with the mere image of fruit (At tu sacrati contentus
imagine pomi: Corp. Priap. 42). Yet the supplicant expects real
fruit in return.
But the troubles of Priapus reached their peak when he
expressed his anxiety about castration and his fear that he,
Priapus, whose essential attribute is the phallus, might end
up as Gallus (Corp. Priap. 55); or worse yet, when Priapus
had to beg the thief to come and steal from his garden, so
that by fulfilling his mission as an aggressive guard, he might
relieve himself (Corp. Priap. 17.77). But would he ever be able
to do it?
The gardens of Priapus are thus located at the opposite
pole from the fertile groves of Aphrodite in which Dionysus
yearned to be the gardener (Nonnus Dionysiaca 42.274ff.).
Whereas Dionysus rightfully claims the title of Eukarpus
("the god of good fruits"; Anth. Pal. 6.31), Priapus, who is
known for his ugliness and small size, is not Eukarpus but
congenitally amorphus, ugly and deformed. We can better
understand this aspect of Priapus, who is said to be the last
of the gods (Corp. Priap. 63), when we appreciate his close
connections with the fig tree and the ass throughout the
stories in which he appears.
 P R IA P U S

D u rin g b o th th e H e lle n is tic a n d th e R o m a n e r a s (Anth. Pal. co n sid e re d a s e co n d -ra te m a te ria l ( inutile lignum: H o ra ce
9 .4 3 7 ; H o race Satirae 1 .8 ) , th e w ood of th e fig tre e w as Satirae 1 . 8 ) , g o o d t o b u r n f o r h e a t f o r t h e p o o r ; a n d i ts f r u i t ,
re s e r v e d fo r c a r v i n g s ta t u e s o f P r ia p u s . W h ile " p r o t e c t i n g " th e fig , w a s th e d a i ly f o o d o f t h e p o o r e s t p e o p l e . S u c h f a c ts
th e f ru its o f th is t r e e , th e g o d m a k e s n u m e r o u s p u n s o n th e show even m o re c le a rly w h at m e a g e r cro p s th is g o d w as
w o r d ficus, " f i g , " w h i c h a l s o m e a n s " h e m o r r h o i d " o r " a n u s " s u p p o s e d to p r o te c t.
(Anth. PI. 2 4 0 - 4 1 ; M a r t i a l Epigrammaton libri 6 . 4 9 ) . T h e s e ­ S i m u l t a n e o u s l y p a r t i c i p a t i n g in t h i s r e a l m o f t h e h y p e r s e x -
m a n t i c fi e ld o f t h e f ig t h r o u g h o u t a ll o f a n t i q u i t y , a n d e v e n u a l a n d r e f l e c t i n g t h e d r u d g e r y o f e v e r y d a y l if e , t h e a s s , t h e
w e ll b e y o n d , c o n v e y e d n u m e ro u s sexu al an d o b s c e n e im ­ p o o r m a n ' s h o r s e , w a s , l ik e P r i a p u s , p a r t o f t h e D i o n y s i a n
a g e s w ith w h ic h P r i a p u s is c l o s e l y a s s o c i a t e d . T h u s , A r i s ­ thiasos a n d a s s u c h p a r a d e d , l ik e P r i a p u s , in t h e g r e a t r e t i n u e
to p h a n e s (The Peace 1 3 4 8 ) u s e s th e v e r b sukologein, " t o p i c k o f P to le m y II P h i l a d e l p h u s . B o th P ria p u s a n d th e a s s a re
f ig s ," to m e a n " c o p u l a t e ," a n d O v id (Fasti 5 . 4 3 3 ) r e c a l l s t h e re p re s e n te d a s ith y p h a llic , a n d th e a s s , c o n s id e r e d lu stfu l
a p o tr o p a ic fu n ctio n o f th e fica, a g e s t u r e to w a r d o f f th e e v il (salax asellus: Corp. Priap. 5 2 ), s o m e tim e s e v e n a s s u m e d th e
eye, w h ic h one m akes by p la cin g th e tip of th e th u m b g o d 's p l a c e a n d h is f u n c tio n s b y p e r f o r m i n g v io le n t s e x u a l
b e tw e e n th e in d e x f in g e r a n d th e m id d le fin g e r. T h e m u ltip le a c t s o n a p o o r t h i e f . In c o n f i r m a t i o n o f t h i s c l o s e r e l a t i o n s h i p ,
s c a to lo g ic a l and ob scen e c o n n o ta tio n s of th e fig fo rm a a m y th te lls h o w th e t w o h a d a c o n t e s t to s e e w h ic h o f t h e m ,
m e a n in g fu l n e tw o r k s u r r o u n d in g P r ia p u s . T h e w o o d o f th e P ria p u s o r th e a s s , h a d th e b ig g e s t p e n is . P ria p u s tu rn e d o u t
f ig tre e (o f w h ic h s ta tu e s of th e god w e re m ade) w as to be a poor lo s e r a n d k i ll e d th e ass (L a c ta n tiu s Divinae
Institutiones 1 .2 1 .2 8 ) . S in c e th e n , a n a s s h a s b e e n s a crifice d to
P r ia p u s a t L a m p s a c u s ( O v id Fasti 1 .4 4 0 ) .

The birth of Priapus and Aphrodite's rejection. Sideview of an altar. B u t th e id e n tific a tio n o f P r ia p u s w ith t h e a s s r e a c h e s i ts
Aquileia, Museum. Photo Vermaseren. z e n ith w h e n a L a tin p o e t o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y b .c ., A f r a ­
n iu s , m a k e s P r i a p u s s a y : " C o n t r a r y to p o p u l a r b e lie f, I w a s
n o t b o rn o f a n a s s " (M a c ro b iu s Saturnalia 6 .5 .6 ) . T h a t P ria p u s
m ig h t have b een th e son of an ass and d e n ie s it o n ly
re in fo rc e s th e know n a ffin itie s b e tw e e n th e god and th e
a n im a l. T h e s e a ffin itie s a r e f u r th e r e m p h a s i z e d w h e n p e o p le
m o c k th e a s s ju s t a s th e y m o c k P r ia p u s ( A e s o p Fables 2 7 4 ),
and w hen th e c lu m s y a n im a l, to ta lly d e v o id o f cu n n in g ,
w a n ts to d o s o m e th in g a n d f a i ls . R e c a l l t h a t it w a s t h e a s s
w h o c a u s e d h u m a n it y to lo s e its e t e r n a l y o u th b y m i s p l a c i n g
th e p re c io u s pharmakon w i t h w h i c h Z e u s h a d e n t r u s t e d h i m
(A e lia n u s De natura animalium 6 . 5 1 ) . In L u c i a n ( Dialogi Mer­
etricii 1 4 .4 ) , " t h e a s s w h o p la y s th e l y r e " b e c o m e s th e s y m b o l
o f a n a g e d , to o th l e s s , a n d in e p t lo v e r. W e r e c o g n i z e th e s a m e
c l u m s i n e s s in P r i a p u s w h e n h e t r i e s t o s e d u c e t h e b e a u t i f u l
L o t i s , o r in a n o t h e r v e r s i o n o f th e s a m e m y th , w h e n V e s ta
e s c a p e s h i s e m b r a c e l ik e a s h a d o w , a n d th e g o d su ffers a
c ru s h in g d is a p p o in tm e n t. H e com es aw ay e m p ty -h a n d e d ,
h is p e n is e x p o s e d , i m p o t e n t, th e o b je c t o f e v e r y o n e 's la u g h ­
t e r (O v id Fasti 1 .3 9 1 - 4 4 0 a n d 6 .3 1 9 - 4 8 ).
T o t h i s f ile o f c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s a m o n g P r i a p u s , t h e f ig t r e e ,
and th e a s s , w e m ust add c e rta in im p o r ta n t fa c ts th a t a r e
s u p p o r te d by e th n o g ra p h y . A ris to tle p o in ts o u t th a t "th e
b o d i e s o f a s s e s a r e a ll b u t s t e r i l e " a n d t h a t t h e i r s e m e n is b y
n a tu r e c o ld (A ris to tle De Generatione Animalium 7 4 8 a -b ). T h e
s a m e a u t h o r , s p e a k in g o f a n im a ls w ith la rg e p e n is e s , s a y s
th a t th e y a r e " l e s s f e rtile th a n t h o s e th a t h a v e a v e r a g e - s i z e d
p e n is e s , b e c a u s e c o ld s p e r m is n o t f e r t i l e a n d it g r o w s c o l d
c o v e r in g to o great a d ista n ce " (ib id . 7 1 8 a ). F u rth e rm o re ,
A ris to tle re a s o n s th a t n a tu r e h a s e n d o w e d th e m a le o r g a n
w ith th e c a p a c ity to b e o r n o t to b e e r e c t a n d th a t " i f th is
o r g a n w e r e a l w a y s i n t h e s a m e s t a t e , it w o u l d c o n s t i t u t e a
real in c o n v e n ie n c e " (A risto tle De Partibus Animalium 6 8 9 a ).
B u t s u c h is p r e c i s e l y t h e c a s e w i t h P r i a p u s , w h o is a l w a y s
ith y p h a l l ic a n d n e v e r e x p e r i e n c e s th e s li g h t e s t s e m in a l d i s ­
c h a r g e , l e t a l o n e a n y s e x u a l r e l i e f ( Corp. Priap. 2 3 ).
T h a t P r i a p u s 's e r e c t i o n w a s c o n s i d e r e d p a t h o l o g i c a l b y th e
a n c i e n t s is c o n f i r m e d b y th e ir w r itin g s a b o u t d i s e a s e . T h e
p h y s ic ia n s o f a n tiq u ity n a m e d a te rrib le d is e a s e a f t e r P r ia ­
p u s: priapismus, w h ic h s ta r t s w ith an in fla m e d , re le n tle s s ,
and p a in fu l e r e c tio n th a t e v e n tu a lly causes s te r i l it y and
d e a th fo r th e p a tie n t, w hose o rg an re m a in s fo rev er erect
( A l e x a n d e r o f T ra lle s 1 1 .8 ) . G a le n ( 7 .7 2 8 , 1 0 .9 6 7 , a n d 1 3 .3 1 8 ,
e d . C . G . K ü h n ) , w h o a l s o d e s c r i b e s t h i s d i s e a s e , c l a s s i f i e s it
a m o n g th e emphysemata a n d c o m p a r e s it to a d is e a s e th a t th e
"a n c ie n ts " c a l l e d saturiasis. B u t G a l e n a lso e s ta b lis h e s an

141
ROME
Ithyphallic Priapus in a small temple. Cameo. Berlin, Staatliche
Museen. Museum photo.
important distinction between the two diseases. While pri­
apism is an incurable ailment precluding even the slightest
relief, satyriasis can produce a seminal discharge accompa­
nied by pleasure (ibid. 19.426). Just as Galen (8.439) points
out that priapismus was named after Priapus, we may surmise
that the term saturiasis comes from Satyr. It would seem then
P syche
There once lived a king and a queen who had three daugh­
ters of great beauty, but Soul, or Psyche, the youngest, was
so beautiful that men were at a loss for words to describe her
perfections. To look at her was like contemplating Venus
herself, a Venus fresh from the sea foam and in the flower of
her virginity; people flocked from far and wide to admire her.
But the real Venus, angered to see her altars abandoned in
favor of a mortal, instructed her son Amor to avenge her by
inspiring in her rival a burning passion for the most miser­
able of men. The very excess of Psyche's beauty daunted all
her suitors; her sisters had already married successfully,
leaving Psyche, the forsaken virgin, weeping in her solitude.
Fearing some curse, the king consulted the oracle of Apollo.
142
that an erection of a satyrian nature, even though it is
excessive, does not preclude desire or pleasure (hëdonë),
whereas priapism, always involuntary, can only end in
death.
The difference between the ithyphallicism of Priapus and
that of the Satyr might also correspond to another division,
which ranks Satyrs among the daemons of nature, hybrid
creatures that mix human and animal elements, whereas
Priapus is always integrally anthropomorphic and is ranked
among humans. We might be tempted to read here a double
lesson that would illuminate many points about the numer­
ous misfortunes that Priapus experiences from his birth: first,
the impossibility of excessive sexuality for a human (Pria­
pus), the impossibility of that single-minded sexuality
which, Aristotle tells us, goes against nature; second, that
unending sex might be viable for animals or semihumans,
but it would only lead men to impotence, to the kind of
painful and joyless erection that is the sign of priapism.
But perhaps Priapus, whom the ancient doctors semanti­
cally struck with priapism, instructs us about one last failure,
that of a god who in the final analysis integrates himself
poorly into the Dionysian space where, next to the Satyrs
and the Pans whose ithyphallicism seems obvious, Priapus
alone suffers from a pathological erection. Similarly, we
might argue that the unbridled sexuality of Priapus, far from
being intentionally subversive, calls rather for a return to the
established norms. Thus the obscenity of this god becomes
almost institutional and generative of the conservative power
that is conveyed by the world of fertility, a world in which
Priapus, in his own way, has long participated.
M.O./g.h.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
h. HERTER, De Priapo (Giessen 1932); by the same author, the article
"Priapos" in Paulys Real-Encyklopädie der klassichen Altertumswissen­
schaft, 22 (1954): col. 1914-42. Corpus Priapeorum (= Corp. Priap.), in
Grattius Faliscus. "Priapeorum" poetae, Scriptorum Romanorum quae
extant omnia 263 (Pisa 1976). m . ölender. Éléments pour une analyse de
Priape chez Justin le Gnostique, in Hommages à A4. /. Vermaseren (Leiden
1978), 2:874-97; Études sur Priape, forthcoming from E. J. Brill of
Leiden in the series Études préliminaires aux religions orientales dans
l'empire romain.
"O n a sheer cliff, O King, abandon your daughter, sumptu­
ously dressed for the wedding with death. Wait not for a
son-in-law born of mortal blood, but a fierce monster that
flies in the air." In tears, they all prepared for the girl's
marriage with death. A funeral procession escorted her to
the cliff and left her there. But as she waited, trembling, for
the approach of the monster, a gentle breeze embraced her,
inflated her robe, carried her to the bottom of the rocky wall,
and gently set her down on the grass, where she fell asleep.
When she awoke, an enchanted palace opened before her; a
disembodied voice invited her in; and tables appeared,
magically filled with wines and delicious foods. Psyche fell
asleep. In the dark of night the mysterious husband came; he
made Psyche his wife but left hastily before dawn. Days and
nights passed in this way. Although she was quite fulfilled,
Psyche yearned for the sight of humans. She persuaded her
husband to let her sisters (who were looking for her) come to
 PSYCHE

what could never be undone. Bringing her lamp close, she

gazed in astonishment and rapture upon the sweetest and
most lovable monster, Cupid himself. Suddenly a drop of
scalding oil fell from the lamp onto the god's shoulder; he
flew away in a rage while Psyche, clinging to him, tried in
vain to accompany him, lost her grip, and fell back to earth
in despair. When she tried to drown herself in a river,
compassionate Pan consoled and calmed her. She thanked
him and worshiped him. Then began Psyche's long wander­
ing in search of Amor.
While Psyche traveled over the surface of the earth, Amor
lay in bed in his mother's room, nursing the painful wound
inflicted by the burning lamp. A gull revealed to Venus the
disobedience of her son, the cause of his ailment, and the
name of his beloved. Full of rage, the goddess heaped
reproaches on her son and set out in search of the fleeing
Psyche to seek her own vengeance.
Meanwhile the wretched girl found refuge in a temple of
Ceres full of tools in disorder, which she tidied up with care.
Ceres appeared and congratulated her but refused to conceal
her despite Psyche's entreaties. Psyche then prayed to Juno
in her temple, but to no avail. In despair, pursued over the
world like a fugitive slave, Psyche decided to hand herself
over voluntarily to the implacable goddess. Venus had her
tortured and whipped by her servants, Worry and Melan­
choly, and then gave her four impossible tasks to carry out.
First, she had to sort out a huge mound of cereal grains, a
task she completed with the help of a colony of ants. Then
she had to approach a herd of sheep with golden fleece and
steal a tuft of their precious wool, even though they were
known to attack humans. As she was about to give up and
throw herself into a river, a talking reed dissuaded her and
advised her to approach the sheep, not at high noon when
they were dangerous, but when the evening had quieted
them. Psyche brought the golden fleece to Venus. Then the
goddess demanded that she fetch water that gushed from
the top of a mountain and emptied into the Styx, water that
talked, uttered threats, and was guarded by dragons. But an
eagle, a friend of Cupid, completed this third task for her.
The last test was the hardest. She had to descend into
Hades and ask Proserpina to put "a bit of beauty" into a
small box for Venus. When Psyche once again attempted to
escape by throwing herself from the top of a tower, the tower
gave her sound advice on how to descend into Hades: hold
a cake in each hand; keep two coins in your mouth; do not
Sixteenth-century stained glass window from the Chateau de Chan­ give or say anything to the lame donkey driver; do not come
tilly (Oise), a very faithful rendering of the story of Psyche according to the aid of the putrified old man swimming in the river; do
to Apuleius. Musée Condée. Photo Monuments historiques. not help the old women weaving linen; sit only on the floor
next to Proserpina; refuse fine foods; eat only coarse bread;
above all, do not open the box— do not yield to curiosity.
Thus counseled, Psyche subdued Cerberus with the cakes on
visit her, but on one condition: she must never try to find out her arrival and departure; similarly, she paid the boatman of
what he looked like. Such curiosity would be sacrilege, a Hades and accomplished all the tasks. But as she reentered
temptation to which she must never yield, even if her sisters the light of day, she succumbed to her reckless curiosity and
gave her wicked advice: "If you see my face even once," he opened the little box. Inside was no beauty but a deadly
said, "you will never see it again." Furthermore, she must sleep which overcame her.
neither listen to nor reply to her sisters' questions. Meanwhile Cupid, who had recovered, rushed to her aid.
The sisters arrived, carried by the same zephyr. First they He put the slumber back in its box and prayed to Jupiter.
marveled and admired, but soon, mad with envy, they Before the assembled gods, the master of the universe
persuaded the naive Psyche to penetrate the mystery of this pronounced Cupid and Psyche united by the bonds of a
strange husband. Perhaps he was a devouring monster or a legitimate matrimony. He appeased Venus and offered am­
horrible snake hiding in the dark. Armed with a lamp and a brosia to Psyche; the mortal woman henceforth became a
sharp razor, she was to cut his throat while he slept. The goddess.
wicked sisters went away, leaving Psyche disturbed and This is a tale of miracles. Its folk motifs are clearly revealed,
irresolute, for she both "hated the monster and loved the and, without major distortion, we can analyze it in the
husband." Nevertheless, in the still of the night, she did manner of Propp (M. Bossard, Les Cahiers de Fontenay [1978],

143
ROME

9 -1 0 ), rig h tly e m p h a siz in g th e c lo s e tie s b e t w e e n c e r ta in e s ta b lis h e s a d e fin ite p a ra lle lis m b e tw e e n t h e m y t h o f I s is

" s e r v i c e s r e n d e r e d " b y P s y c h e a n d th e " h e l p " s h e re c e iv e d a n d t h e t a l e o f P s y c h e . L i k e P s y c h e , I s is c o n f r o n t s a v i o l e n t
in h e r i m p o s s i b l e t a s k s . T h u s , t h e a n t s h e l p e d h e r t o s o r t t h e and a n g r y a d v e r s a r y , T y p h o n ; s h e l e a v e s in s e a r c h o f h e r
g r a i n , a s s h e s e t t h e t e m p l e o f C e r e s in o r d e r . S h e h o n o r e d h u s b a n d ; o ffe rs to b e a s e r v a n t o f th e S y ria n V e n u s, A s ta r te ;
P a n , th e g o d o f h e r d s a n d g o d o f th e r e e d f lu te ; a c c o r d in g ly , o v e r c o m e s o b s ta c le s ; fin d s h e r h u s b a n d a g a in ; a n d s e e s h e r
a re e d h e lp e d h e r to c o lle c t th e w o o l fro m th e s h e e p . A c lo s e r c h i l d l e g i t i m i z e d . P s y c h e t h u s a p p e a r s in b o o k 4 a s a s y m b o l
a n a ly s is w o u ld re v e a l a c o n n e c tio n b e tw e e n th e e a g le a n d or a coded s i g n t h a t i s a p r e c u r s o r o f I s i s , w h o w ill r e v e a l
C u p id , a n d p e rh a p s b e tw e e n th e to w e r a n d Ju n o . h e r s e l f in a ll h e r r a d i a n c e i n b o o k 1 1 .
B u t b e y o n d th is in q u iry i n to th e s t r u c tu r e o f th e n a r r a t iv e , F in a lly , in th e Metamorphoses, th e s to r y o f P s y c h e is a d ­
w e s h o u ld e x a m i n e th e m e a n i n g . T h e t a le o f P s y c h e fo r m s d re sse d to a y o u n g w o m a n , C h a rity , w h o w a s k id n a p p e d
th e c e n t e r p a rt ( 4 . 2 8 - 6 . 2 4 ) o f a n o t h e r " e p i s o d ic " s to ry , th e fro m h e r h u s b a n d b y ro b b e rs o n th e m o rn in g o f h e r w e d d in g
Metamorphoses of A p u le iu s , a P la to n ic p h ilo s o p h e r o f th e d a y ; w h o is r e a d y , l ik e P s y c h e , t o s u r r e n d e r t o d e a t h ; a n d
s e c o n d c e n t u r y a . d . A l t h o u g h n o o t h e r v e r s i o n s a r e e x t a n t , it w h o is s a v e d , l ik e P s y c h e , b y h e r h u s b a n d . It is c l e a r t h a t t h e
s u r e ly m u s t h a v e b e e n a w id e ly p o p u la r s to r y , fo r P lo tin u s Metamorphoses w eave very s u b tle but c lo s e tie s b e tw e e n
knew it t h r o u g h several p ictu re s a n d several t a l e s ( muthois ), p a ra lle l itin e ra rie s : C h a r ity a n d P sy ch e, each first a m o rta l
a n d w e h a v e v a r io u s p icto ria l r e p r e s e n ta t io n s o f th e u n io n o f w o m a n a n d th e n a g o d d e s s ; L u c iu s , m a n th e n a s s , th e n m a n
E ro s and P sy ch e (u s u a lly w ith w in g s ). But a lth o u g h a g a in , a n d f i n a ll y a n i n i t i a t e i n t o t h e m y s t e r i e s o f I s i s ; a n d
A p u le iu s d id n o t a c tu a lly in v e n t th e s to r y o f P s y c h e o u t o f l a s t o f a l l , I s is h e r s e l f . A ll o f t h e m c o m p le te a jo u rn e y th a t
w h o le c lo th , he ch o se to in clu d e it in a m u ch b ro a d e r in v o lv e s lo s s , w a n d e r in g a n d q u e s t, re d is c o v e r ie s , a n d th e
a c c o u n t , a n d w e m u s t b e g in b y in te r p r e tin g th is c h o ic e . a c h ie v e m e n t o f a b e tte r s ta tu s .
The Metamorphoses, a w o r k o f e l e v e n b o o k s , te lls t h e s to r y W e can p u s h o u r in te rp re ta tio n f u rth e r: th e n a m e o f th e
o f L u c iu s , th e v ic tim o f h is o w n c u r io s ity , w h o m a s o r c e r e s s h e r o i n e , " S o u l ," is n o t s im p ly a n a m e w h e n u tte re d by a
tra n s fo rm e d in to an ass. A fte r le n g th y w a n d e r in g s and P l a to n is t, w h o w o u ld c a ll h is in te r p r e t a t io n a lle g o r ic a l. S u c h
n u m e r o u s o r d e a ls , h e w a s re s to r e d to h u m a n fo rm , in itia te d , is t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n a d v a n c e d b y P l o t i n u s ( 6 . 9 ) w h e n (I d o
a n d s a v e d b y t h e g r a c e o f t h e k i n d l y g o d d e s s I s is . n o t g o in to th e d e ta ils o f th e n a r r a tiv e ) h e id e n tifie s P s y c h e
N ow th e iti n e r a r y o f P s y c h e r e c a lls o n s e v e r a l p o i n t s a n d w ith th e hum an s o u l, w h ic h , s e p a r a te d fro m G od, de­
in a w a y r e t r a c e s t h e i t i n e r a r y o f L u c i u s . B o t h o f t h e m s in s c e n d e d to e a r th a n d e x p e r ie n c e d th e " f a l l ," th e " e x i le ," a n d
th ro u g h curiositas, have to s u b m it to te rrib le tria ls , fa c e th e " l o s s o f w in g s ." B u t h a v in g c o m e fro m G o d , th e so u l
d e a t h , w a n d e r in s e a r c h — o n e in s e a r c h o f h i s t r u e f o r m , t h e n e c e s s a r ily lo v e s G o d a n d s e e k s h im , a n d e v e n h e r e o n e a rth
o t h e r in s e a r c h o f h e r h u s b a n d — a n d s e r v e a g o d d e s s . A t th e it c a n f i n d h i m a n d b e u n i t e d w i t h h i m if it p u r i f i e s i t s e l f a n d
e n d o f t h e r o a d , b o t h r i s e t o a h i g h e r s t a t u s : h e is s a v e d , a n d d e t a c h e s i t s e l f f r o m a ll t h a t is e a r t h l y . O n e is t h e n " f i l l e d w i t h
sh e b eco m es a g o d d ess. t h e l i g h t o f k n o w l e d g e , o r r a t h e r o n e is p u r e l i g h t , w e i g h t ­
The Metamorphoses c u l m i n a t e in b o o k 11 w i t h t h e i n i t i a t i o n le ss, b u o y a n t, b eco m e god, or ra th e r s till b e i n g god, a ll
o f L u c i u s i n t o t h e m y s t e r i e s o f I s is . R . M e r k e l b a c h (Amor and a g lo w . . . b u t if o n c e a g a i n o n e g r o w s h e a v y , it i s a s if o n e
Psyche, p . 3 9 2 f f .) h a s r ig h tly p o i n t e d o u t th a t th e r e a r e c lo s e g o e s o u t l ik e a l i g h t . " T h i s is t h e i t i n e r a r y n o t o f a m y s t e r y
tie s b e t w e e n th e s to r y o f P s y c h e a n d th e i n itia to r y r itu a l th a t b u t o f a m y s t i c i s m in w h i c h t h e l a n g u a g e a n d t h e s y m b o l i s m
t a k e s p la c e a t th e e n d o f th e w o r k . T h u s th e w e d d i n g w ith o f t h e m y s t e r i e s is m e r e l y t h e l e a s t i n e f f e c t i v e s y m b o l a v a i l ­
d e a th p ro m is e d to P sych e re fe rs b ack to th e w id e s p re a d a b l e t o s p e a k w h a t is u n s p e a k a b l e a b o u t t h e u n i o n w i t h G o d .
c o n c e p t o f in itia tio n a s d e a t h , r e b i r th , a n d a w h o l e m y s tic a l T h u s th e s to r y o f P s y c h e , t h r o u g h o r b e y o n d its c o n n e c ­
m a rria g e . An o ra cle o rd ers P sych e, and a d ream send s tio n s w ith Is ia c in itia tio n , re m a in s open to o th e r p a st,
L u c i u s t o h i s i n i t i a t i o n , f o r , a s t h e p r i e s t o f I s is a s s e r t s , n o o n e p r e s e n t, o r fu tu re in te rp re ta tio n s , fo re se e n o r u n fo re s e e n b y
c a n b e in itia te d w h o h a s n o t b e e n c a lle d b y th e d e ity . T h e A p u le iu s .
le a p in to th e v o id a lso b e lo n g s to th e r itu a l o f m y s t e r i e s . J .C ./g .h .
T h r i c e h a p p y t h o s e w h o e n t e r C u p i d 's p a l a c e ; t h r ic e h a p p y
h e w h o m I s is h a s c a l l e d ( 1 1 . 6 ) . T h e u n i o n w i t h A m o r r e f e r s
t o a n a t t e s t e d r i t e : t h e i n i t i a t e s o f I s is a r e u n i t e d w i t h H o r u s ,
h e r p r i e s t . T h e s i l e n c e t h a t is r e p e a t e d l y u rg ed on P sy ch e BIBLIOGRAPHY
w h e n h e r s i s t e r s v i s i t h e r in H a d e s , t h e r e f u s a l t o c o m m u n i ­
c a te w ith th e u n g o d ly ( th e d o n k e y d r iv e r , t h e w e a v e r s , a n d c. binder and K. MEKKEi iiACiI, Amor und Psyche (Darmstadt 1968).
t h e o l d m a n ) — e a c h h a s a c o u n t e r p a r t in t h e m y s t e r i e s ; a n d M. BROSSARD, "Conte ou mythe? Apulée, Métamorphoses (4.28-6.24),"
L u c i u s i n s i s t s t h a t h e w ill te ll o n l y w h a t c a n b e r e v e a l e d t o
Des mythes. Les Cahiers de Fontenay, nos. 9 -1 0 (March 1978): 79-134.
th e u n in itia te d w ith o u t s a c r ile g e ( 1 1 .2 3 ). L ik e L u c iu s , P s y c h e
is w a r n e d a g a in s t s a c rile g io u s curiositas. The r e v e la tio n of
E ro s, ra d ia n t w ith lig h t as P sy ch e lo o k s on, has as i ts
c o u n t e r p a r t L u c i u s 's v i s io n o f H o r u s , a b r illia n t s u n s h i n i n g
in t h e d a r k o f n i g h t . W e n e e d n o t m u l t i p l y s u c h c o m p a r i s o n s ;
it h a s b e e n d o n e . T h e b a c k g r o u n d o f m y s t e r y is u n d e n i a b l e , Q uirin us
m a k in g th e s to r y o f P s y c h e , a m o n g o t h e r th in g s , a n in itia ­
t o r y ta le , a s y m b o lic f ig u r e o f in itia tio n i n to th e m y s t e r i e s o f
I s is . T h e fo rm Q u irin u s a p p e a r s a s a n a d je c tiv e u s e d a s a n o u n .
B u t t h e i n i t i a t o r y r i t u a l i t s e l f is o n t h e o n e h a n d a r e p r o ­ Its k in s h ip w ith Q u ir i t e s ( c itiz e n s ) h a d a l r e a d y b e e n r e c o g ­
d u c t i o n , a r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f a m y t h , t h e m y t h o f I s is a s w e n iz e d by th e a n cie n ts (se e V a rro De Lingua Latina 5 .7 3 :
k n o w it f r o m P l u t a r c h (De Iside et Osiride) ; a n d o n th e o th e r Quirinus a Quiritibus). M o d e r n p h ilo lo g y p la u s ib ly e x p la in s
h a n d , in t e r m s o f t h e p r o c e s s , t h e i n i t i a t e is n o t o n l y s a v e d , h o w it w a s f o r m e d : Q u i r i n u s (*Couiri-no-) is t h e a d j e c t i v e t h a t
b u t h a s b e c o m e Is is ; h e id e n tif ie s h im s e lf w ith t h e g o d d e s s . q u a lifie s th e god w ho p a tro n iz e s th e c o m m u n ity of th e
It s h o u ld t h e r e f o r e c o m e a s n o s u r p r is e th a t a c lo s e a n a l y s is c itiz e n s (s e e G . D u m é z il, Archaic Roman Religion, p . 2 4 6 ).

144
 QUI RI N US

Quirinus ranked third in the archaic triad of Jupiter-Mars-

Quirinus, and like his two divine associates, he had his own
priest, the flamen Quirinalis. Significantly, the situation of
Quirinus within the Roman triad recurred in the Umbrian
triad in which Vofionus, his counterpart, holds the same
rank. In fact, the semantic equivalence of the two names has
been convincingly demonstrated (see G. Dumézil, Archaic
Roman Religion, p. 149, no. 2), so well that the two series
(Roman and Iguvine), both of which also include Jupiter and
Mars, are entirely parallel. The god had been honored since
early antiquity on the hill that bears his name, in a sacellum
located near the Porta Quirinalis (Festus, p. 303 L.). This
sacellum gave way to a temple built in 293 b.c. by L. Papirius
Cursor. The Quirinalia, the festival that bears the name of the
god in it, fell on 17 February in the cycle of the oldest festivals
in the liturgical calendar. It coincided with the last day of the
Fornacalia that were devoted to the roasting of the grain (this
day was called dies stultorum because it gave the stulti, or
"scatterbrains," who had missed their curia's scheduled day
of roasting, a chance to recover the loss). This brings into
sharper focus the vocation of a god whose duty was to watch
over supplies and the material well-being of the community.
However, this god, whose functional profile seems fairly
clear as far as very early times are concerned, was open to
many ambiguities in historical times. First of all, he is classed
among the "Sabine" deities whom Titus Tatius is supposed
to have introduced into Rome (see Varro Ling. 5.74). A Quirinus. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Médailles.
"historical" presentation stamped with ethnic coloration has Photo BN.
tended to turn Quirinus into a Sabine symmetrical with
Mars. Thus, ancient historiography attributed the first
twelve Salii, the Salii Palatini, to Mars Gradivus (Livy 1.20.4)
and the other twelve, the Salii Collini, to Quirinus (Diony­ the expression victor Quirinus to Octavius, who was not yet
sius of Halicarnassus, Antiquitates Romanae 2.70.1 and 3.32.4). Augustus; this fact may be connected with the initiative
The outcome was a second ambiguity, of a functional kind. taken around the same time by certain senators who pro­
Once "syncretism had been brought about after the recon­ posed the surname "Rom ulus" for the Divi filius [see Sueto­
ciliation of the Romans and the Sabines," it was necessary to nius Divus Augustus 7.4].) In any event, the assimilation of
define and distribute the respective tasks of each god. Hence Romulus to Quirinus is the result of the same process that
the formulas written down by Servius: "W hen Mars rages earned Aeneas the privilege of being identified with Jupiter
uncontrolled {saevit), he is called Gradivus; when he is calm Indiges after his disappearance from the face of the earth
{tranquillus), he is called Quirinus" (Servius Danielis on (Livy 1.2.6).
Aeneid 1.292). Later in his text, the same commentator These ambiguities of Quirinus blur rather oddly in the
accentuates the contrast even more explicitly: "Quirinus is light of comparative analysis, which assigns to Quirinus the
the Mars who presides over peace and is worshiped inside role of the "third function." If the god is the patron of
the city, for the Mars of war {belli Mars) has his temple prosperity and fertility, we can understand how he may be
outside the city" (Servius Danielis on Aen. 6.859). said to be of "Sabine origin," since the Sabines were regarded
But this distribution was probably too subtle to be under­ as specialists in this area. We can understand how his priest,
stood clearly. The proof is that when the Greeks tried to the ßamen Quirinalis, could intervene in the various cults of
"translate" Quirinus, all they could come up with was a this domain (Larentia: see Aulus Gellius Noctes Atticae 7.7.7;
surname of Ares: Enyalius, "the bellicose," is the Greek Robigo, the deity of the "blight of grain": see Ovid Fasti
name which serves as the interpretatio graeca of Quirinus from 4.910ff.; Consus, the god of "harvesting": see Tertullian De
Polybius (3.25.6) to Dionysius of Halicarnassus (2.48, 9.60). Spectaculis 5). Finally, we may begin to see both the opposi­
One last ambiguity stems from the assimilation of Romu­ tion and the complementarity of Mars and Quirinus, of the
lus to Quirinus. When was the founder-king of the city milites and the Quirites. Following Jean Bayet, G. Dumézil
promoted to god? Historians have disagreed on the date. G. {ARR, p. 260) draws our attention to a telling passage from
Dumézil (ARR, p. 249) argues that it was at the beginning of the Commentarii Consulares, copied by Varro {Ling. 6.88). This
the third century b.c . It may be true that the Romulus- document shows that the contrast between Quirites (citizens)
Quirinus assimilation was still presented by Cicero {De and exercitus (army) must be of long standing and that it has
Natura Deorum 2.62) as a special tradition: Romulum quem legal and political implications (for example, the contrast
quidam eundem esse Quirinum putant ("Romulus who, according between the comitia curiata of a civil nature and the comitia
to some, is identical with Quirinus"). By the time of Augus­ centuriata of a military nature).
tus, however, it was no longer an issue. Thus, Virgil refers to R.S./g.h.
it in the Aeneid (1.292). (In the Georgies 3.27, the poet applied

145
ROME

in to t o r m e n t th e m d u r i n g th e n i g h t " (V a r r o c it e d b y A u g u s ­
S ilvan us tin e , De Civitate Dei 6 .9 .2 ) .
T h e f o r e s t w a s S i l v a n u s ' s d o m a i n . T h a t is w h y t h e c e r e ­
m o n y c e l e b r a t e d i n h i s h o n o r in d a y l i g h t t o o k p l a c e in silva
The n a m e o f S i l v a n u s is d e r i v e d fro m silva, “ f o r e s t ,” a n d
( C a t o lo c . c i t .) . It w a s in th e f o r e s t o f A r s i a , ex silva Arsia, t h a t
a p p e a r s to b e a n o m in a liz e d a d je c tiv e . T h is s e e m in g ly o b v i­
t h e v o i c e o f S i lv a n u s w a s h e a r d b y t h e R o m a n s in 5 0 3 b.c .
o u s fo rm h a s a w a k e n e d d o u b ts a m o n g e x e g e te s . S o m e re je ct
h e r a ld in g th e ir v ic to r y o v e r th e E t r u s c a n s (L iv y 2 .7 .2 ) . P la u ­
it o u t r i g h t , a m o n g t h e m D eeck e (Elrusk. Forsch., v o l. 4 , p .
tu s (Aulularia 6 7 4 ) re fe rs to a " f o r e s t o f S ilv a n u s (Silvani lucus)
5 4 ) , w h o p r o p o s e d t h a t S i l v a n u s is d e r i v e d f r o m t h e E t r u s c a n
o u t s i d e t h e w a l l s a t a d i s t a n c e , a ll o v e r g r o w n b y a w i l l o w
S e lv a n s. O th e r s c o n te n d th a t th is " a d je c tiv e " m u st have
g r o v e . " E v e n if t h e a l l u s i o n in t h e o r i g i n a l G r e e k is t o o n e o f
b e e n th e e p i th e t o f a n o t h e r g o d . T h u s , f o llo w in g U r s i i.u s ,
" P a n 's c a v e s ," th e in f o r m a t i o n g iv e n b y P l a u t u s r e t a in s its
p h i l o l o g i s t s h a v e t a k e n M a r s S i l v a n u s a s it a p p e a r s i n C a t o ' s
v a l u e . I n d e s c r i b i n g t h e g r o v e n e a r C a e r e " g i r d e d l ik e a s m a l l
(De Agricultura 8 3 ) t o b e a u n i t a r y e x p r e s s i o n . W i s s o w a
te x t
v a lle y by a b e lt of b la ck fir t r e e s ," V irg il (Aeneid 8 .6 0 0 )
(Ruk2, p . 2 1 3 ) c o n s i d e r e d S i l v a n u s a q u a l i f i e r o f t h e S i l v i c o l a in d ic a te s th a t " i t w a s c o n s e c r a t e d b y th e o ld P e la s g ia n s to
Fau n u s.
S ilv a n u s , th e g o d o f th e fie ld s a n d th e h e r d ."
W e n e e d n o t a c c e p t a ll o f t h e s e h y p o t h e s e s , n o r n e e d w e
T h is la st d e fin itio n (arvorum pecorisque deus) m ig h t c o m e a s
d isc u s s h ere th e E tru sc a n S e lv a n s, w h ic h m ay w e ll be
s o m e th in g of a s u r p r is e u n le s s we re m e m b e r th a t I t a li c
b o rro w ed fro m th e L a tin (se e G eo rg es D u m é z il, Archaic f o r e s tla n d s in c lu d e d c le a r in g s s u ita b le fo r g r a z in g a n d c u lti­
Roman Religion, p . 6 1 6 ) . A n d H . K eil p r o v e d d e c i s iv e ly th a t
v a tio n . T h is fu rth e r e x p la in s th e a s s o c ia tio n o f M a rs a n d
t h e t w o n a m e s in M a r s S i l v a n u s w e r e g r o u p e d i n a n a s y n ­
S i l v a n u s in C a t o ' s votum (lo c . c it .; o n th e r e s p e c tiv e ro le s o f
d e t o n f o r " M a r s a n d S i l v a n u s " ( Commentarius in Catonis . . . th e tw o g o d s , s e e D u m é z il, ARR, p p . 2 3 5 - 3 6 ) . T o th e e x te n t
librum, L e ip z ig 1 8 9 4 , p . 1 1 0 ). C a to p o in te d o u t th a t o f fe rin g s
t h a t S i l v a n u s i s t h e p a t r o n g o d o f t h e s y l v a n p a s t u r e , h e is
m e a n t fo r b o th g o d s c o u l d b e p l a c e d in th e s a m e r e c e p ta c le , th e p r o t e c to r o f c a ttle ; a s th e g u a r d ia n o f th e fa m ily e s ta t e , h e
in unam vas. S o to m a k e S ilv a n u s a q u a lifie r fo r F a u n u s s e e m s e x t e n d s h is p r o t e c ti o n to th e fie ld s a n d t h e ir o u t e r r e a c h e s
ra th e r g r a tu ito u s . V irg il ( Aeneid 1 0 . 5 5 1 ) s p e c ific a lly w ro te (cf. Silvanus domesticus: e x a m p l e s c i t e d b y W i s s o w a , Ruk2, p .
" S ilv ic o la F a u n u s " a n d n o t " S ilv a n u s F a u n u s ." 214; Silvanus tutor finium: H o r a c e Epodi 2.22). B u t a t t h e
D e s p ite a c o m m o n bond w ith th e fo re st, th e tw o gods h e ig h t o f th e A u g u s ta n A g e , h ealso r e m a i n e d t h e " s h a g g y
d i f f e r in m o r e w a y s t h a n o n e . S i l v a n u s , a n d n o t F a u n u s , w a s g o d o f t h e t h i c k e t s " (horridi dumeta Silvani: H o r a c e Carmina
ch o sen b y P la u tu s (Aulularia 6 7 4 , 6 7 6 , 7 6 6 ) a n d b y A c c i u s 3 .2 9 .2 2 - 2 3 ).
( c i t e d in C i c e r o De natura deorum 2 . 8 9 ) t o s e r v e a s t h e L a t i n T h u s , S ilv a n u s p r e s e n t s a n o r ig in a l p ro f ile . H e e n j o y e d n o
c o u n te r p a r t o f th e G re e k g o d P a n . F a u n u s h a s a re p u ta tio n p u b l i c c u l t . H e h a d n e i t h e r t e m p l e , n o r f e s t i v a l , n o r o f f ic i a l
f o r a c t s o f g a l l a n t r y , w h e r e a s S i l v a n u s is c h a r a c t e r i z e d b y a p r i e s t . H e w a s h o n o r e d o n a s t r i c t l y p r i v a t e b a s i s . It w a s t h e
c le a r a lle rg y to w o m e n . N o w o m e n a r e a llo w e d to b e p r e s e n t s y n c r e tis t w a v e th a t b lu r re d h is o t h e r w is e s tr o n g p e r s o n a l­
a t h is c e r e m o n i e s , th o u g h a f r e e m a n o r a s la v e m a y c e le b r a te ity ; th e p o e t s m u ltip lie d th e S ilv a n i fo llo w in g th e e x a m p l e o f
th e m ( C a t o l o c . c i t . ). S i l v a n u s w a s s o f r i g h t e n i n g t o y o u n g th e Fauni so th a t th e y to o m ig h t tak e p art in th e jo y fu l
w o m e n in c h i l d b i r t h t h a t " t h r e e g u a r d i a n g o d s w e r e p l a c e d p r o c e s s io n o f n y m p h s a n d s a ty r s (O v id Metamorphoses 1 .1 9 3 ) .
o n d u ty , r e p r e s e n te d b y th r e e m e n w h o m a d e th e r o u n d s o f R .S ./g .h .
th e h o u s e a t n ig h t, s o th a t th e g o d S ilv a n u s w o u ld n o t c o m e

venerans u s e s o n th e g o d s c o r r e s p o n d s to th e c o r r e la tiv e venia

V en us th a t h a s th e m e a n in g " g r a c e " o r " f a v o r " (th is w o r d c o m e s
f r o m " t h e t e c h n ic a l v o c a b u l a r y o f th e p o n t i f f s ," a c c o r d in g to
S c h o l. D a n . Aen. 1 . 5 1 9 ) .
V e n u s m a y w e ll b e t h e m o s t o r i g i n a l c r e a t i o n o f t h e R o m a n The n e u te r *venus, w h i c h w a s s e t in th e p re e m in e n t
p a n th e o n . O rig in a lly th e te rm w a s m e re ly a n e u te r n o u n , r e lig io u s v e r b , venerari, w a s p e r s o n i f i e d , in k e e p i n g w i t h t h e
l ik e genus and opus. T h e w o r d is p art of a re m a rk a b le R o m a n g e n iu s fo r d e ify in g a b s tra c tio n s . T h is m e ta m o r p h o ­
s e m a n tic s e rie s venus-venia-venerari (s o m e tim e s venerare in s is , w h ic h m ust h ave ta k e n p la ce in L a v in iu m (se e th e
P la u tu s) w h ic h is c o m p a ra b le to th e s e r ie s genus-genius- a u t h o r 's b o o k La religion romaine de Vénus, p p . 7 5 -8 3 ), cam e
generare ( s e e th e a rtic le " G e n iu s ," a b o v e ). T h e u s e o f th e v e r b about w ith a sh ift fro m n e u te r to fe m in in e . The G reek
d e riv e d fro m th is n e u te r *venus, venerari (<*venes-ari) in A p h ro d ite a n d th e E tru sc a n T u ra n had c e rta in ly n o t b e e n
P l a u t u s a n d t h e a u t h o r s o f t h e R e p u b l i c a n e r a s h o w s t h a t it s tra n g e rs to th is p ro cess of d e ific a tio n . But th e p rocess
is e x c l u s i v e l y r e s e r v e d f o r t h e r e l i g i o u s r e a l m . W h a t d o e s it re m a in s u n iq u e in th a t n o w h ere e lse h as th e ro o t *ven-,
s i g n i f y ? It d o e s n o t l e n d its e lf t o a d i r e c t a n d e x h a u s tiv e w h ic h is a t te s te d in O s c a n , V e n e tia n , a n d H ittite r e f e r e n c e s
tra n s la tio n . T h e w a y P la u tu s u s e s veneror ut ( w h i c h is n o t (se e La famille sémantique des mots apparentés à Vénus in
r e t a i n e d in c l a s s i c a l u s a g e ) s u g g e s t s t h e f o l l o w i n g t r a n s p o s i ­ R.C.D.R.), r e s u l t e d in a d e i t y ( t h e O s c a n c o u n t e r p a r t t o t h e
tio n : " I e x e r t [o n s o m e d e ity ] a s p e ll [ to o b ta in s o m e t h in g ] s o L a t i n Venus i s Herentas, f o r m e d f r o m a d i f f e r e n t r o o t , 'her-,
t h a t . . ." " t o w is h ." ).
In t h i s s e n s e , t h e v e r b c o n v e y s a n a t t i t u d e o f s e d u c t i o n T h e p r o m o t i o n t o d i v i n e s t a t u s ( f r o m t h e n e u t e r * venus t o
to w a rd th e go d s, an a ttitu d e o f u n c o n d itio n a l c o n fid e n c e th e g o d d e s s V e n u s ) w a s e n h a n c e d b y t h e g o d d e s s 's e n c o u n ­
th a t d i s t in g u is h e s th is ty p e o f p r a y e r fr o m th e c o n tra c tu a l te r w ith th e T ro ja n leg en d , w h ic h e x a lte d th e Aeneadum
ty p e , b a s e d o n th e le g a l p o s tu la te dabo cum dederis ( " I s h a ll Genetrix, th e " m o t h e r o f th e d e s c e n d a n t s o f A e n e a s ," in to th e
g iv e w h e n y o u h a v e g i v e n " ). T h e p e r s u a s iv e c h a r m th a t th e ro le o f tu te la r y m o th e r. T h e m y th co rre sp o n d e d fa ith fu lly

146
 VENUS

Venus on the sea shell. Pompeian fresco. Photo Boudot-Lamotte.

(one time does not establish a pattern) to the rite: it made

explicit in discursive language the toll levied by the venia
deum, “the favor of the gods," that the venerans Roman
imposed and collected. It suggested that the Roman citizen
was privileged in this respect, since the specialist in the
captatio veniae mediated between the Romans descended
from Aeneas and the gods. That is what lies behind the
famous declarations of the Romans in which they claim the
title of “the most religious people in the world" (Cicero De
natura deorum 2.3.8; De haruspicum responsis 9.19). These
professions of pietas and veneratio implied the hope of obtain­
ing pacem veniamcjue deum, “the favor and grace of the gods,"
as Livy frequently put it.
The tutelary role of Venus is verified in the official religion.
She is associated with the cult of Jupiter in the Vinalia, which
are supposed to have been instituted by Aeneas. The first
temple founded in her honor (at the beginning of the third
century b .c .) is dedicated to Venus Obsequens (Venus the
propitious). It had been promised by Q. Fabius Gurges in the
heat of battle in 295 b . c ., in the hope of obtaining victory over
the Samnites.
The role of Venus as an intercessor crystallized dramati­
cally in the third century at the time of the first two Punic
wars. During the first, the Romans lost no time in withdraw­
ing the goddess of Eryx from the control of the Punic
adversary and placing themselves under her protection; to
do this, they capitalized on the Trojan legend that was very
much alive among the Elymians and on their victorious Mars and Venus. Pompeian fresco. Naples, National Museum.
resistance at the summit of Mount Eryx. Photo Giraudon.
Indeed, syncretism served the Roman cause well. It fur­
thered the victorious mystique in Sicily by assimilating
Aphrodite Erycina to Venus. The Romans also had recourse
to the same goddess during the second war against the same
enemy. And in this same context the association between
Venus and Mars took hold during the lectisternium of 217
B.C.

147
ROME

T h e " T r o ja n ” in te rp re ta tio n o f th e g o d d e s s o f M o u n t E ry x a n c ie n t c a le n d a r y e a r (O v id Fasti 3 . 1 4 3 - 4 4 ) . If b y m i s f o r t u n e

e x p la in s th a t th e c u lt o f V e n u s E ry c in a in v o lv e d a d o u b le th e fire e n t r u s t e d to th e c a r e o f th e v e s ta ls w e r e a llo w e d to g o
re lig io u s s ta t u s in R o m e . O n th e C a p it o l , i n s id e th e p o m e r ­ o u t , " t h e v irg in s w e r e w h ip p e d b y th e p o n tif e x , a n d w e r e
iu m , V enus E ry c in a w as v e n e ra te d as a R om an go d d ess; re q u ire d b y c u s to m t o r e k i n d l e it b y t h e f r i c t i o n o f 'f e r t i l e '
o u ts id e th e p o m e r iu m , n e a r th e P o r ta C o llin a , s h e c a lle d to w ood (felicis materiae) u n til o n e o f t h e m w a s a b le to c a r r y th e
m in d h e r fo re ig n o r ig in . r e s u l t i n g f i r e i n t o t h e s a n c t u a r y in a b r o n z e s i e v e " ( F e s t u s , p .
The le sso n w as not l o s t in la te r tim e s . V enus cam e to 9 4 L .) .
f o l l o w L a t i n l i n e s in h e r p r o p i t i a t o r y r o l e , w h i l e y i e l d i n g t o T h is " e te r n a l f la m e " th e re fo re h a d a s y m b o lic v a lu e th a t
e x te n sio n s o f M e d ite rra n e a n s y n c r e tis m . T h u s, S u ll a p re­ w a s re in f o r c e d b y th e p r e s e n c e o f s a c r e d ta lis m a n s (s e e L iv y
t e n d e d to r e c o g n i z e A p h r o d i t e o f A p h r o d i s ia s a s a n a lly o f 2 6 .2 7 .1 4 ; O v id Fasti 6 .4 4 5 ) . A m ong th e ta lis m a n s w a s th e
th e R om an s. He even su cceed ed in h a v in g th e o ra cle of P a lla d iu m , a s ta t u e o f P a lla s th a t w a s t h o u g h t t o h a v e c o m e
D e lp h i v a lid a te th e r e lig io u s c la im s of th e R om ans de­ fro m T ro y (s e e C ic e ro Pro Scauro 4 8 ) . In t h e " e t e r n a l f l a m e s o f
s c e n d e d fro m A e n e a s . V e s t a " (aeternis Vestae ignibus) a n d in t h e P a l l a d i u m t h a t w a s
B y t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b . c ., t h e o n l y n o v e l t y w a s t h a t p o l i t i c a l c o n s i d e r e d t h e p r e e m i n e n t t a l i s m a n a m o n g t h e pignora fatalia
a d v e n t u r e r s r o s e to p o w e r a n d s o u g h t to tu r n th e s itu a tio n to (O v id lo c . c i t .), R o m e s a w t h e p r o o f o f i ts p o w e r ( s e e L i v y
p e r s o n a l a d v a n t a g e . V e n u s F e lix (S u lla ), V e n u s V ic trix ( P o m - 5 .5 2 .7 ) .
p e y ), V e n u s G e n e tr ix ( C a e s a r ) — e a c h a t te m p t e d to r e c o n c ile M a in ta in in g th e "p rim o rd ia l" fire w a s p r im a r ily th e re­
h im se lf w ith th e go d d ess by g iv in g her an e p ith e t th a t s p o n s ib ility o f th e s ix v e s ta l v irg in s , th e p rie ste ss e s w ho
m ark ed h e r w ith a n o r ig in a l la b e l. C a e s a r , w h o c la im e d a w e re sw o rn to a b s o lu te c h a s tity fo r th e e n tire d u ra tio n of
d ire c t d e s c e n t, w as th e b e st p la ce d to e x p lo it th e T ro ja n th e ir s e r v ic e (O v id Fasti 6 . 2 8 3 f f . ) . T h e y a l s o k e p t w a t c h o v e r
m y s tiq u e fo r h is ow n p ro f it. T h ro u g h th e c u lt of V enus th e ta lis m a n s , o r pignora, w h i c h w e r e k e p t i n t h e penus Vestae
G e n e tr ix , h e g a v e d e fin itiv e fo rm to th e n a tio n a l credo th a t ( F e s t u s , p . 2 9 6 L . ) , t h e m o s t s e c r e t p a r t o f t h e s a n c t u a r y . In
p r o c la im e d V e n u s to b e M o th e r o f th e R o m a n s a n d M o th e r o f th e fro n t o f th e s a n c tu a r y , th e penus exterior (F e s tu s , p . 152
th e C aesars. The im p ro v e m e n ts th a t A u g u s tu s , C a e s a r 's L .) , th e v e s ta ls k e p t a r e s e r v e s u p p ly o f th e v a r io u s in g r e d i­
a d o p t i v e s o n , m a d e o n h is f a t h e r 's c a n v a s d o n o t la c k r e s p e c t e n ts th a t th e y p re p a re d fo r th e c e le b r a tio n of sa crifice s :
fo r th e e s s e n tia l d o g m a . B y th e n , th e th e o lo g ic a l w o rk w a s muries ( F e s tu s , p . 1 5 2 L .) , o r b rin e u s e d fo r s a ltin g , a n d mola,
c o m p le te . th e sacred flo u r. We know th a t th e heads of sa crificia l
R .S ./g .h . a n im a ls w e r e s p r in k le d (immolare) w ith mola salsa b e fo r e th e
s a crifice .
In g e n e ra l, V e s ta to o k p a rt in a ll s a c r i f i c e s . C ic e ro (De
natura deorum 2 .2 7 .6 7 ) p o in ts o u t th a t s h e w a s in v o k e d la st o f
a ll in "a ll p ra y e rs and s a c r i f i c e s ," ju s t a s Ja n u s w as, by
c o n t r a s t , f i r s t o n t h e lis t o f d i v i n i t i e s . It is i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e
t h a t t h i s l i t u r g i c a l r u l e is t h e e x a c t o p p o s i t e o f t h e G r e e k
V esta
cu sto m w h ic h c o u n s e le d " s ta r t i n g w ith H e s t ia ," aph Hestias
archesthai. C u r io u s ly , O v id (Fasti 6 . 3 0 3 - 4 ) t r e a t s V e s t a in t h e
T h e n a m e o f th e g o d d e s s a p p e a r s to b e a d e r iv a tiv e o f th e G re e k m a n n e r.
ro ot *3,eu-, " t o b u r n ," w ith th e a r c h a ic s u f fix -ta. It s u p p l i e d T h e f e s tiv a l o f th e g o d d e s s , th e V e s ta lia , to o k p la c e o n 9
tw o s te m s (E . B e n v e n is te , q u o te d by G . D u m é z il, Rituels J u n e a c c o r d in g to th e a n c i e n t c y c le o f th e litu rg ic a l c a le n d a r .
indo-européens à Rome fro m th e c o lle c tio n "É tu d e s et C o m ­ From 7 to 1 5 J u n e , th e s a n c t u a r y o f V e s ta w a s o p e n e x c lu ­
m e n t a i r e s " [ P a ris 1 9 5 4 ] , v o l. 1 9 , p p . 3 3 - 3 4 ) . S te m 1 o f th is s iv e ly to w o m e n , w h o w e r e a l lo w e d to e n t e r b a r e f o o t . O n
r o o t (* 3 ,c n -s ) is f o u n d in th e G re e k euö, th e L a tin uro, " I th e la s t d a y , th e s a n c t u a r y w a s ritu a lly s w e p t . T h e e n d o f th is
b u rn "; s te m 2 , *3tu-es, i s f o u n d in th e L a tin Vesta a n d o p e r a tio n w a s m a r k e d o n th e c a le n d a r b y th e le tte r s Q(uando)
Hestia.
p r o b a b l y in t h e G r e e k ST(ercus) D(clatum) F(as), m e a n i n g " O n c e t h e d u n g is c a r r i e d
C ic e ro (De natura deorum 2 . 2 7 . 6 7 ) a sse rts th e s e m a n tic a w a y th e s a c r e d d a y is o v e r ." T h is a n c i e n t n o t e , w h ic h s e e m s
k in s h ip o f th e t w o g o d d e s s e s , b u t h e b e lie v e d th a t V e s ta h a d o u t o f p l a c e in t h e t h e n u r b a n i z e d s e t t i n g , m u s t r e f l e c t a t i m e
b e e n b o rro w e d fro m th e G r e e k s . In c o n t r a s t w ith t h e " d e ­ " w h e n a n e n c a m p e d p a s to ra l s o c ie ty h a d to c le a n th e stercus
v o u rin g " V o lc a n u s , V e s ta e x e rc is e d a s a lu ta ry a c tio n on o f its h e r d s fr o m th e lo c a tio n o f its s a c r e d f ir e " (G e o rg e s
"a lta r s a n d h e a rth s " (ad aras et focos pertinet: i b id . 2 . 2 7 . 6 7 ) . D u m é z il, Archaic Roman Religion, p . 3 1 8 ).
T h e s h r in e o f V e s ta w as a ro u n d b u ild in g " s im i l a r to a T h is g o d d e s s , w h o w e n t b a ck to th e v e r y o r ig in s o f th e
g lo b e ; th u s th e go d d ess w as id e n tifie d w ith th e e a rth " c ity , h a d lo n g e s c a p e d th e w id e s p r e a d a n t h r o p o m o r p h is m o f
(F e s tu s , p . 321 L .; s e e O v id Fasti 6 .2 6 7 ) . T h is s h a p e d is tin ­ th e E tr u s c a n s a n d th e G re e k s . O v id (Fasti 6 . 2 9 5 - 9 8 ) p o i n t s
g u is h e d it f r o m th e te m p le , w h ic h w a s q u a d ra n g u la r a n d out th a t e v e n in h is tim e th e ignis Vestae ( t h e e x p r e s s i o n
o r ie n te d to th e fo u r c a r d in a l p o in ts . T h e c o m p a r a t iv e m e th o d c o m e s f ro m F e s t u s , 9 4 L .) , b e in g s e lf-s u f f ic ie n t, h a d n o ritu a l
shed s m u ch lig h t o n th is co n tra st. V e d ic r e lig io n d is tin ­ s ta tu e . C ic e ro (Nat. D. 3 . 8 0 ) m e n t i o n s a s t a t u e o f V e s t a in
g u i s h e d th e " f i r e o f th e m a s te r o f th e h o u s e ," w h ic h is " t h i s fro n t o f w h ic h th e P o n tife x M a x im u s Q . M u c iu s S c a e v o la h a d
w o r l d " a n d " a s s u c h is r o u n d " ( G . D u m é z i l , Archaic Roman b e e n m a s s a c r e d , b u t it m u s t h a v e b e e n a n h o n o r a r y s t a t u e
Religion, pp. 3 1 2 -1 3 ), fro m th e " f ir e o f th e o f fe rin g s . . . p l a c e d in t h e v e s t i b u l e o r in f r o n t o f t h e s a n c t u a r y .
w h o s e s m o k e b e a rs th e g ifts o f m e n to th e g o d s . . . it is T h r o u g h s y n c r e t i s m , h o w e v e r , V e s ta w a s c o n s i d e r e d th e
o r i e n t e d t o t h e c a r d i n a l p o i n t s , a n d c o n s e q u e n t l y is q u a d r a n ­ c o u n t e r p a r t o f t h e G r e e k g o d d e s s H e s t i a . In t h i s c a p a c i t y , s h e
g u l a r " ( ib i d . p . 3 1 3 ) . f o r m e d a c o u p le w ith V u l c a n - H e p h a e s tu s d u r i n g th e le c tis ­
V e s ta , w ho b e a rs th e o f f ic i a l nam e Vesta publica populi te rn iu m o f 2 1 7 b . c . In t h i s a s s o c i a t i o n t h e " b e n e f i c e n t f i r e "
Romani, c o n s titu te s quasi focum urbis ( th e h e a r t h o f t h e c ity : a n d th e " d e v o u r i n g fir e " w e r e u n ite d fo r th e g r e a te r g o o d o f
C ic e ro De legibus 2 . 2 9 ) . S h e is t h e e t e r n a l f l a m e r e k i n d l e d
o n ly o n c e a y e a r, o n 1 M a r c h , i .e ., a t th e b e g in n in g o f th e

148

Banquet of the Vestals. Altar of the Pietà. Rome. Palazzio dei
Conservatori. Photo Barbara Malter.
Temple of Vesta. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Cabinet des Mé­
dailles. Photo BN.
V i r g il ' s R e l ig io u s V is io n
Every true reader of Virgil d ream s of forgetting for a m om ent
the vast literature that has been w ritten about the poet over
so m any centuries and of getting at the secret of his fascinat­
ing presence. This need seem s even m ore com pelling when
his religious vision is at issue. This vision paradoxically
seem s to survive the dead gods, as if it had m anaged to
preserve for posterity the essential com p on en t of a spiritu­
V I R G I L ' S R E L I G I O U S V I S I O N
ality that w ent far beyond the structures of the ancient city,
and as if it had m anaged to escape the rather negative
prejudice of m any tow ard Roman religion, which is often
said to be dry and formalistic.
To w hat can w e attribute Virgil's privilege? It cannot be
explained simplistically by resorting to the three-tiered clas­
sification devised by V arro,1 which distinguished the gods of
poets, the gods of philosophers, and the gods of the city. N or
does it dem onstrate any system — far from it— since the poet
developed from the little poem s of the Catalepton to the
overw helm ing fresco of the depiction of the underw orld in
book 4 of the Aeneid: the disciple of the Epicurean Siro
becam e a bard with a Stoic accent.
We will have to distinguish betw een the circum stantial
elem ent, through which Virgil w as m arked by his ow n time
and place, and the eternal elem ent, through which he
transcended the bondage of his historical slot. To that end, it
m ay prove useful to follow the poet on the three different
levels of the religious custom s of his time, his own religious
sensibility, and his philosophical and eschatological specula­
tions.
1. Virgil and Rom an T radition
Virgil ( 7 1 - 1 9 b . c .) lived in an unusual period that wit­
nessed the end of the civil w ars and the establishm ent of the
Roman Em pire, w hen O ctavian, victorious at Actium in 31
b . c . , w as proclaim ed A ugustus by the Senate in 27 b . c .
H enceforth Rome assum ed the entire Greek heritage. Reli­
gion w as dom inated by a syncretism that not only equated
the principal Rom an deities with their Hellenic counterparts,
but w ent on to give the deities of Rom e a dim ension of
mythological storytelling borrow ed from those counterparts.
It is therefore not surprising to find Virgil, true to the
custom of his tim e, indiscrim inately mixing old Italic deities
with Greek gods: Silvanus is flanked by Pan and the nym phs
(Virgil Georgies 2.494), and Pales the goddess of herdsm en
and their flocks is associated with Apollo and Pan (ibid.
3 .1 -2 ) .
G reek m ythology m ade it possible for Virgil to give the
gods profiles and legends that m ade them available for poetic
creation. Thus, N eptune, w ho w as only the governing god of
the w aters within the fram ew ork of the Roman liturgy,2
travels on the high seas in a w heeled chariot in Virgil's epic
(Virgil Aeneid 1 .1 4 7 -5 5 ). W hen he notices that the sea has
been stirred up on the orders of A eolus, "H e gazes forth on
the deep with a pacific m ien" (ibid. 1.127; trans. C. Day
Lew is, The Aeneid of Virgil [G arden City, N ew York, 1952],
throughout this article), and he rebukes the winds, saying,
"D o you really dare, you W inds, w ithout m y divine assent to
confound earth and sky, and raise this riot of w ater?" (ibid.
1 3 3 -3 4 ). The allusion is a discrete recollection of the Hesiodic
legend that m akes the W inds the sons of the Titan A straeus,
w ho rebelled against Zeus. It also invokes the hierarchical
principle by virtue of which the realm of the sea belongs to
N eptune and not to "A eolus, the king of the W inds."
Consequently, while he still used the mythological story­
telling that som ehow assim ilates N eptune to Poseidon, Virgil
w as able to keep a certain distance. N eptune intervenes on
behalf of A eneas, the victim of the storm , w hereas Poseidon
enosichthön, "th e shaker of the d ep th s," displays a constant
hostility tow ard O dysseus in Homer. He intervenes in the
sarcastic tone of a superior officer of the Rom an arm y when
he rem inds Aeolus of the limits of his com petence: "H is
dom ain is the m ountain rock. . . . Let Aeolus be king of that
149
ROME

c a s t l e a n d le t h i m k e e p t h e w i n d s l o c k e d u p i n i t s d u n g e o n " W h a t a b o u t t h e o l o g y ? H o w w a s V irg il t o a d a p t h im s e lf to
( ib i d . 1 4 0 - 4 1 ) . th e in s titu tio n s o f th e s ta t e w h ile a v o id in g th e tr a p s e t b y th e
M y th o lo g y s u p p lie d th e p o e t w ith t h o s e e le m e n ts o f th e T ro ja n le g e n d ? T h e tria d o f Ju p ite r -J u n o -M in e r v a f o r m e d th e
s u p e r n a t u r a l e p ic th a t a r e in d i s p e n s a b le f o r t h e lit e r a r y s to r y c o r e o f R o m a n r e lig io n , ju s t a s th e te m p le o f th e C a p ito lin e
l in e . O f t e n t h i s m y t h o l o g y h a d o n l y a d e c o r a t i v e v a l u e t h a t tria d o c c u p ie d th e p la ce of honor in ev ery R om an city .
th e p o e t u s e s w ith a d a s h o f n o n c h a la n c e . T h u s , V e n u s , w h o B eyond th a t, th e o u tlin e o f th e le g e n d w as b ased on th e
e l s e w h e r e p la y s a n e s s e n t ia l ro le in r e lig io u s id e o lo g y , b e n ­ a b a n d o n m e n t o f th e c ity o f T r o y b y th e g o d s , p a r tic u la r ly b y
e f i t e d f r o m a ll t h e M e d i t e r r a n e a n h e r i t a g e t h a t b e l o n g e d t o th e tu te la r y d iv in ity A th e n a -M in e r v a (th e o m in o u s s ig n w a s
A p h r o d i t e . S h e is t h e s o v e r e i g n r u l e r o f t h e i s l a n d o f C y t h e r a t h e s e r p e n t s w h o m u r d e r e d L a o c o ö n a n d to & k r e f u g e i n h e r
a n d o f th e s h r in e s o f A m a t h u s , I d a lia , a n d P a p h u s o n C y p r u s s h r in e ), a n d th e d e c la r e d h o s tility o f J u n o to w a r d th e T r o ­
( ib i d . 1 0 . 5 1 ) . A c c o r d i n g t o t h e i n t e r l o c u t o r , s h e is r e g a r d e d a s ja n s.
" t h e d a u g h t e r o f t h e d e e p " ( i b i d . 5 . 8 0 0 - 8 8 1 , w h e r e s h e is H e r e t i m e h a s b e e n V i r g i l 's a c c o m p l i c e . O n c e J u p i t e r h a d
s u m m o n e d b y N e p t u n e ) , o r " t h e d a u g h t e r o f J u p i t e r " ( ib i d . d ecreed th e d e s tin y o f th e T ro ja n s — th e fata th a t p r o m is e d
1 .2 5 6 ; 1 0 .3 0 , w h e r e s h e h a s t o d e a l w ith J u p i te r ) . th a t th e y w o u ld fo u n d a n e w T ro y — th e " re c o n c ilia tio n " o f
W e m u s t n o t fo r g e t th a t V irg il w a s u n a b le to fin is h th e th e t w o g o d d e s s e s w ith th e R o m a n d e s c e n d a n t s o f A e n e a s
Aeneid ( i n h i s w ill h e h a d o r d e r e d it d e s t r o y e d b e c a u s e it w a s w as bound t o c o m e a b o u t in t h e c o u r s e o f e v e n t s . S u c h a
i n c o m p l e t e ) . A l t h o u g h it is p o s s i b l e t h a t i n t h e f i n a l a n a l y s i s tu r n a b o u t b y h o s tile d e i ti e s h a d b e e n a n t ic ip a t e d w ith in th e
h e w o u ld h a v e a d o p te d a s in g le g e n e a lo g ic a l lin k a g e , th e re g u la tio n s of th e R om an p o n tiffs: th e p ro ced u re of th e
i n it ia l c h o ice s (th e H e sio d ic or th e H o m e ric leg en d ) are evocatio ( t h e i n v i t a t i o n t o a b a n d o n t h e c i t y in e x c h a n g e f o r a
o b v io u s ly in sp ire d by an a e s th e tic of co rre sp o n d e n ce s te m p le in R om e) h a s te n e d th e fa ll o f t h e enem y c ity by
w h e r e b y th e g o d o f th e s e a fa c e s th e d a u g h t e r o f th e w a v e s , d e p r i v i n g it o f i t s p r o t e c t i n g d e i t y . V i r g i l e x p l i c i t l y r e f e r s t o
a n d th e s o v e r e ig n g o d fa c e s h is " b e l o v e d d a u g h t e r " (Nata, t h i s w h e n T r o y f a l ls ( i b i d . 2 . 3 5 1 - 5 2 ) .
i b id . 1 . 2 5 6 , h i g h l i g h t s t h e n u a n c e o f e m o t i o n ; Tua progenies, A s fo r M i n e r v a , s h e w a s t e d n o tim e in le a v in g th e G r e e k s
1 0 .3 0 , h ig h lig h ts th e n u a n c e o f a c la im ). a f t e r th e ir v ic to ry . W a s s h e a n g r y b e c a u s e o f th e th e ft o f h e r
T h is s e le c tiv e a e s th e tic p r o m o te d th e b le n d in g o f m y th o ­ c u ltic s ta t u e , th e P a lla d iu m (w h ic h la te r b e c a m e o n e o f th e
lo g ic a l e le m e n ts per se w ith p re c is e a llu s io n s to R om an ta lis m a n s o f R o m e ), w h ic h w as s to le n by D io m e d e s a n d
r itu a l. T h e s e a l lu s io n s a b o u n d to th e p o in t w h e r e t h e R o m a n O d y s s e u s (ib id . 2 .1 6 3 ) ? A c c o r d in g t o th e t r a it o r S in o n , th is
r e a d e r c o u ld n o t fe e l c u t o f f fr o m fa m ilia r t e r r i to r y w h e n h e s a c r i le g e w a s p r e c is e ly w h a t le d th e G r e e k s to o f f e r th e h o r s e
c o n f r o n te d th e b e h a v io r o f A e n e a s a n d h is e n t o u r a g e . T h e to th e go d d ess as a re p la c e m e n t (ib id . 2 .1 8 3 - 8 4 ) . T h is
h e r o w a s i d e a l i z e d b y v i r t u e o f t h e b a c k w a r d l e a p in t i m e , v e r s i o n , i n v o l v i n g a t r i c k , l e a v e s t h e i s s u e u n r e s o l v e d . B u t in
a n d h e w a s g iv e n a s o rt o f h a lo b y a g o ld e n le g e n d . B u t h e a n y c a s e , M in e rv a d id n o t f o rg iv e th e G re e k A ja x fo r h a v in g
a c te d a c c o rd in g to th e re fle x e s and r e lig io u s h a b its of a a b d u c te d C a s s a n d ra fro m h e r s a n c tu a ry , w h e re C a ss a n d ra
c o n t e m p o r a r y o f V irg il. O n e e x a m p le : th e a tte n tio n g iv e n to h a d p u t h e r s e lf u n d e r M i n e r v a 's p r o t e c t i o n d u r i n g t h e s a c k
th e a u s p ic e s a n d th e p r o d ig ie s . T h e tr a ito r S in o n e x p la in s to o f T r o y (ib id . 2 . 4 0 3 - 1 5 ) . S o M in e r v a s m a s h e d th e G r e e k fle e t
th e T ro ja n s th a t th e r e a s o n w h y th e G re e k s in te n d to g o b a ck t o p i e c e s a s it w a s r e t u r n i n g h o m e ( i b i d . 1 . 3 9 - 4 1 ) .
to th e ir o w n c o u n tr y o f A r g o s ( i b i d . 2 . 1 7 8 ) is t o tak e th e A f t e r t h i s , it i s n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t s h e s h o u l d t h e n r e s u m e
a u sp ice s in resp o n se to th e w a rn in g s of th e so o th sa y e r h e r f o r m e r r o le o f tu te la r y g o d d e s s o f th e d e s c e n d a n t s o f
C a l c h a s . H e is s u r e o f b e i n g b e l i e v e d b y t h e T r o j a n s ( w h o a r e A e n e a s . W ith N e p tu n e , V e n u s , a n d M a r s , s h e b e lo n g s to th e
s u p p o s e d to h a v e a R o m a n m e n ta lity ), s o c o m m o n w a s th e g r o u p o f R o m a n g o d s w h o b a ttle d a g a in s t th e " g r o t e s q u e
p r a c t i c e in t h e R o m a n l i t u r g y o f t a k i n g t h e a u s p i c e s a g a i n d e i t i e s o f t h e N i l e " in t h e s c e n e t h a t d e p i c t s t h e b a t t l e o f
(auspicia repetere) in c a s e o f f a i l u r e . S i m i l a r l y , V e n u s d i s g u i s e d A c tiu m o n t h e s h ie ld w r o u g h t b y V u lca n (ib id . 8 .6 9 8 - 7 0 0 ) .
as a h u n tre s s p o in ts o u t to A eneas "th o s e tw e lv e sw an s T h u s , th e M in e rv a o f th e le g e n d h a s jo in e d th e C a p ito lin e
f l y i n g in j u b i l a n t f o r m a t i o n , " a n d t e ll s h i m o f t h e g o o d o m e n : g o d d e s s o f R o m a n re lig io n .
it is a s i g n t h a t h i s t w e l v e s h i p s , s a v e d f r o m t h e s t o r m , h a v e T h e c h a n g e o f h e a rt o f th e aspera Juno ( i b i d . 1 . 2 7 9 ) is s t r e w n
r e a c h e d s a f e h a r b o r ( ib i d . 1 . 3 9 3 - 4 0 0 ) . w ith m a n y m o r e o b s ta c le s , e v e n th o u g h J u p ite r a n n o u n c e s
The sam e goes fo r th e p ro d ig ie s . M ore th a n in L i v y 's im m e d ia t e l y ( ib id .) h is in te n t io n to r a lly b e h in d th e c a u s e o f
a cco u n t, th e y s e e m " n a tu ra l" in a n a r r a t i v e in w h i c h th e R o m e i n t h e f u t u r e . O f c o u r s e , l ik e o t h e r d e i t i e s , s h e h a d a
s u p e r n a t u r a l is p a r t o f d a i l y r e a l i t y . T h e T r o j a n s n o l o n g e r s h r i n e in T r o y ( ib i d . 2 . 7 6 1 ) . B u t t h r o u g h o u t t h e a c t i o n o f t h e
h e s i t a te to a llo w th e fa ta l h o r s e in s id e t h e ir c ity w h e n th e y e p i c , s h e is d e p i c t e d a s t h e r e l e n t l e s s e n e m y o f t h e T r o j a n s .
s e e th e ir p rie s t L a o c o ö n ( w h o h a d b e e n o p p o s e d to it) a n d W h y ? B e c a u s e s h e is t h e s p e c i a l p r o t e c t r e s s o f C a r t h a g e ,
h is t w o c h i ld r e n c h o k e d b y t w o s e r p e n t s , w h ic h t h e n g lid e t h e c i t y w h i c h s h e p r e f e r s t o a n y o t h e r d w e l l i n g p l a c e ( ib i d .
a w a y t o w a r d th e s h r in e o f A t h e n a (ib id . 2 . 2 1 9 - 2 7 ) . 1 .1 I f f . ) , a n d s h e k n o w s it w ill b e t h r e a t e n e d b y a f u t u r e r a c e
A p r o d ig y p r e v e n ts A e n e a s fro m th r o w in g h im s e lf in to a o f T ro ja n b lo o d . N e e d le s s to say, V irg il e m b e llis h e s th e
h o p e le s s b a ttle : a fe a th e r y t o n g u e o f fla m e a p p e a r s a b o v e th e le g e n d w ith a h isto rica l a c c o u n t o f th e P u n ic w a r s . Ju n o
head of A s ca n iu s ( in L iv y 1 .3 9 .1 , an an a lo g o u s p ro d ig y k n o w s in a d v a n c e ( ib i d . 1 . 3 9 ) t h a t s h e w ill h a v e t o b o w to
d e s i g n a t e s t h e c h i l d S e r v i u s T u l l iu s a s h e i r t o t h e t h r o n e ) . f a te , b u t s h e m u ltip lie s th e s e tb a c k s fo r th e T r o ja n s , s ta r tin g
A n c h is e s a s k s J u p ite r to c o n firm an om en : "F ro m o u r le ft w ith th e s to rm th a t she "o rd e re d " fro m th e k in g o f th e
h a n d c a m e a s u d d e n c ra s h o f th u n d e r, a n d a s h o o tin g s ta r w in d s , A e o lu s . The te n a c ity o f th e go d d ess re m in d s th e
s li d d o w n t h e s k y ' s d a r k f a c e , d r a w i n g a t r a i l o f l i g h t b e h i n d re a d e r of th e th re e lo n g w ars th a t th e R om ans an d
i t " (V irg il Aen. 6 8 1 - 9 4 ) . T h i s a c c u m u l a t i o n o f p r o d i g i e s ( in C a rth a g in ia n s w a g e d w ith o n e a n o th e r fo r c o n tro l o f th e
a u g u r y , th e le ft s id e o r laevum is f a v o r a b l e ) w a s n e e d e d to M e d ite rra n e a n .
p r e v e n t A e n e a s fro m r u s h in g in to a s e n s e le s s d e a t h a n d to T h e p r i n c i p a l e x a m p l e s o f t h e g o d d e s s 's i n t e r v e n t i o n s s t a r t
c o n v in c e h is fa th e r A n c h is e s to l e a v e T ro y . T h e r e a r e m a n y w i t h A e n e a s ' s i n it ia l c o n t a c t w i t h K i n g L a t i n u s , w h o i s r e a d y
m o r e e x a m p l e s a t t e s t i n g V i r g i l 's k n o w l e d g e o f l i t u r g y , w h i c h to w e lc o m e th e T ro ja n s to Ita lia n s o il. M in e rv a in sp ire s
i n s p ir e d th e a d m i r a ti o n o f th e p a r t ic ip a n t s in th e Saturnalia of T u m u s , th e k in g o f th e R u tu lia n s , to r a is e th e fla g o f w a r
M a c ro b iu s. (ib id . 7 .4 0 6 f f .) and she h e rs e lf opens th e d o o rs of th e

150
 V I R G I L ' S R E L I G I O U S V I S I O N

s a n c t u a r y o f J a n u s (ib id . 7 .6 0 1 f f .) , a r itu a l a c t t h a t o p e n l y e te rn a l re ig n g iv e n to th e R om ans as "su cce sso rs to th e

an n ou n ces th e h o s tilitie s (in h is te s ta m e n t, A u g u s tu s is T ro ja n n a tio n ": imperium sine fino dedi ("I gave th e m an
know n to have re c a lle d w ith p rid e th a t he su cceed ed in e m p ire w ith o u t e n d " ) .4
closing th e d o o r s o f J a n u s o n th re e o c c a s io n s ). Y e t A e n e a s , As fo r th e V irg ilia n V en u s, h e r ch a ra cte r is e v e n m o re
a w a r e o f th is a n im o s ity , trie s to a p p e a s e th e go d d ess. In m ark ed by th is th e o lo g ic a l m e ta m o rp h o sis. She p ro b a b ly
a c c o r d a n c e w ith th e p r o p h e tic a n n o u n c e m e n t , h e s a c rific e s b o r r o w e d h e r s m ile fro m A p h ro d ite w h e n sh e a n n e x e d her
t o h e r t h e w i l d s o w a n d t h e y o u n g w i l d b o a r s t h a t h e f i n d s in M e d ite r r a n e a n s a n c tu a r ie s . B u t h e r e w e h a v e n o s c a n d a lo u s
th e fo re st o f H e s p e ria . a d v e n t u r e s ( i n H o m e r , A p h r o d i t e is c a u g h t in a b l a t a n t a c t o f
But a ll fo r n a u g h t. A fte r th e unhappy ep iso d e of th e a d u lte r y w ith A re s ); nor do we have any co n ce ssio n to
s o j o u r n o f A e n e a s in C a r t h a g e , in th e c o u r s e o f w h ic h th e H e ll e n is t ic a f f e c ta t i o n (in A p o ll o n i u s o f R h o d e s , C y p r i s a d ­
g o d d e s s trie s to c h e a t fa te b y m a k in g A e n e a s m a r r y Q u e e n m ir e s h e r s e lf in a m i r r o r ). V e n u s a p p e a r s w ith th e d ig n ity
D id o ( ib i d . 4 . 9 0 f f . ) , she is m o r e th an e v e r d e te r m in e d to a p p r o p r ia te fo r th e m o th e r o f th e d e s c e n d a n ts o f A e n e a s a n d
p o s tp o n e th e d a y o f re c k o n in g . S h e in te r v e n e s v e h e m e n tly th e f u tu re C a e s a r s .5
in f a v o r o f T u r n u s a t th e a s s e m b l y o f th e g o d s (ib id . 1 0 .6 3 f f .) V e n u s first a s s u m e s a m a te r n a l r o le , w a tc h in g o v e r A e n e a s
and does n o t h e s ita te to s h ie ld h im fro m th e d a n g e rs of and A s c a n iu s : mea maxima cura ("m y d e a re st c a re ": i b id .
c o m b a t (ib id . 1 0 .6 0 6 f f .) . 1 .6 7 7 ) . S h e a ls o a s s u m e s th e r o le o f a g u id e ; fro m th e tim e o f
M i n e r v a m a k e s a fin a l a t t e m p t b y c a ll in g T u r n u s 's s is te r , th e d e p a r tu r e fro m T ro y , th e s ta r o f V e n u s s h o w s A e n e a s th e
Ju tu rn a , to com e to h e r b r o t h e r 's re scu e (ib id . 1 2 .1 3 4 f f .) , w ay: matre dea monstrante viam, A e n e a s s a y s to D id o (ib id .
b e f o r e s h e o b e y s J u p i t e r 's c o m m a n d n o t t o d o a n y t h i n g m o r e 1 .3 8 2 ) .6 S h e a s s u m e s t h e r o le o f i n t e r c e s s o r ; in b o o k s 2 a n d 1 0
(ib id . 1 0 . 8 0 4 - 6 ) . S h e t h e n o b t a i n s J u p i t e r 's p r o m i s e t h a t b y s h e p le a d s th e c a u s e o f th e T ro ja n s b e fo r e Ju p ite r o r b e fo r e
u n itin g w ith th e T ro ja n s , th e A u s o n ia n s w il l keep th e ir t h e a s s e m b l e d g o d s . T h i s r o l e o f i n t e r c e s s o r is m o r e t h a n a
l a n g u a g e a n d c u s t o m s . " A l l w il l b e L a t i n s . . . . N o o th e r l i t e r a r y f i c t i o n , s i n c e it c o r r e s p o n d s t o c e r t a i n c u l t i c i n s t i t u ­
n a t i o n w ill p a y s u c h r e v e r e n c e t o J u n o . T h e g o d d e s s b o w e d tio n s . By th e b e g in n in g of th e th ird c e n tu ry b.c ., F a b iu s
and agreed , g la d now to chan ge her ow n p o licy " ( ib i d . G u rg es h ad sh o w n h is g r a titu d e to V e n u s O b s e q u e n s (th e
1 2 .8 3 4 - 4 1 ) . T h u s th e g o d d e s s re jo in e d th e R o m a n c a u s e a n d p r o p itio u s ), and in th e first ce n tu ry , th e c u lt of V enus
th e p o e t r e c o v e r e d th e o r t h o d o x y o f th e o f fic ia l r e lig io n . G e n e tr i x f o u n d e d b y J u liu s C a e s a r illu s t r a t e d b rillia n tly th e
m a te r n a l r o le o f th e g o d d e s s w h o m e d ia te d b e tw e e n th e g o d s
a n d t h e R o m a n s .7
II. The Originality of Virgil
S o it is n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t V i r g i l g i v e s V e n u s a p r o p e r l y
W e c a n n o t o v e rlo o k th e c o n s t r a i n ts th a t w e ig h e d on th e t h e o l o g i c a l r o l e , f o r d e s p i t e a ll t h e s y n c r e t i s m , s h e a l w a y s
p o e t : V irg il w a s s u b j e c t to t h e c o n v e n t i o n s o f th e e p i c fo r m e m b o d i e d t h e e f f e c t i v e e n c h a n t m e n t t h a t is e x p r e s s e d b y t h e
th a t w e n t b a ck to H o m e r. T h e a n c ie n ts h a d a lr e a d y a c k n o w l­ p r e e m i n e n t re lig io u s v e r b venerari,H It i s s h e w ho o b ta in s
e d g e d th a t o n th e lit e r a r y le v e l, t h e Aeneid c o r r e s p o n d e d to fro m J u p ite r th e rig h t o f th e T r o ja n s to c o m e to th e e n d o f
b o th th e Odyssey ( t h e w a n d e r i n g s o f A e n e a s i n t h e f i r s t s ix t h e ir tria ls in the name of their piety: hic pietatis honos? ( " I s th is
b oo k s) a n d t h e Iliad ( t h e s t r u g g l e s o n I t a l i a n s o i l i n t h e l a s t s ix th e re w a rd fo r b e in g tru e ?" ib id . 1 .2 5 3 ) . She in v o k es th e
b o o k s ) . In p a r t i c u l a r , V i r g i l h a d r e l i e d o n t h e a n t h r o p o m o r ­ p i e ty t h a t is b a s e d o n a n e q u ita b le e x c h a n g e b e t w e e n m e n
p h ic p o ly th e is m t h a t V a r r o h a d r e p u d i a t e d . B u t a l t h o u g h it a n d g o d s , a n e q u ity ric h ly d e s e r v e d b y th e pius Aeneas.'*
m ay not be o b v io u s , he w as a b le to go beyond th e s e It is V enus w ho e x p la in s to A eneas th e su p e rn a tu ra l
c o n t in g e n t f r a m e w o r k s to e x p r e s s h is o w n r e lig io u s s e n s ib il­ r e a s o n s f o r t h e fa ll o f T r o y : in t h e n a m e o f p / e t a s - e q u i t y , T r o y
ity . h a d t o s u c c u m b , f o r t h e c i t y w a s r e m i s s in pietas w h e n K in g
F i r s t o f a l l , V i r g i l 's p o l y t h e i s m is n o t t h e s a m e a s H o m e r ' s . L a o m e d o n d e p r i v e d t h e g o d s ( P o s e i d o n - N e p t u n e , in p a r t i c ­
T w o d e itie s in p a r t ic u la r — J u p i te r a n d V e n u s — b r e a k o u t o f u la r) o f th e ir p r o m is e d r e w a r d s . T h e " r e v e l a t i o n " th a t V e n u s
t h e c o n v e n t i o n a l m o l d , b e c a u s e V i r g i l r e i n t e r p r e t e d t h e m in m a k e s t o A e n e a s is e x p l i c i t : " I t i s n o t t h e b e a u t y o f h a t e d
th e lig h t o f a n e w t h e o lo g y . A l t h o u g h th e s o v e r e ig n g o d , to o , H e l e n , it is n o t P a r i s , t h o u g h you h o ld h im to b la m e — th e
i n h e r i t s t h e f u ll p a n o p l y o f H o m e r i c t i t l e s , 3 h e n o n e t h e l e s s go d s, th e go d s, I te ll you, a re h o s tile ( divum inclementia,
d i f f e r s f r o m h i s G r e e k c o u n t e r p a r t in s e v e r a l w a y s . T h o u g h divum), i t 's t h e y w ho h a v e u n d e rm in e d T r o y 's p o w e r a n d
h e is a f i g u r e o f m a j e s t y , h e i s n o t d e s c r i b e d i n t h e i m a g e o f s e n t it t u m b l i n g " ( i b i d . 2 . 6 0 1 - 3 ) . W h e n V e n u s t a k e s t h e v e i l
Z e u s w ith h is " b la c k b ro w s a n d a m b ro sia l lo c k s " (H o m e r of fo g fro m A e n e a s 's eyes, th e h ero sees a su p e rn a tu ra l
Iliad 1 .5 3 8 ) . H e h a s m o r e m y s t e r y : a m e r e s ig n f ro m h im is v is io n beyond N e p tu n e , Ju n o , and P a lla s : th e v is io n of
en ou gh to cause a ll o f O ly m p u s to tre m b le (V irg il Aen. Ju p ite r h im se lf a r d e n tly p a r t ic ip a t i n g in th e d e s t r u c ti o n of
9 .1 0 6 ) . T r o y . 10
A bove a ll, w h ereas in H om er Zeus is s u b o r d in a te to In th is w a y , V irg il e n t ir e l y t r a n s f o r m e d th e e p i c t h a t u n til
F a te — to th e heimarmenê— J u p ite r e x e r c is e s re a l s o v e r e ig n ty : th a t tim e h a d b e e n p u r e ly n a r r a t iv e (th e t r a v e ls o f O d y s s e u s
th e fata b e c o m e i n t e r m i n g l e d w i t h h i s o w n d e c r e e s . T h e r e is in t h e Odyssey, th e e p is o d e s o f th e T ro ja n W a r in t h e Iliad)
n o th in g m o r e in s tr u c tiv e th a n th e a n s w e r g iv e n b y J u p i te r to in to a s p iritu a l a d v e n tu re . Ju p ite r m ay h ave condem ned
V enus w hen she w o rrie s about th e fa te of her T ro ja n s , a n c ie n t T ro y , b u t h e w a s a ls o th e g u a r a n t o r o f th e r e s u r r e c ­
v ic tim s o f th e te rrib le s to r m : " F e a r n o m o r e , C y t h e r e a . T ak e tio n o f a n e w T r o y . V irg il c r e a t e s a s tr i k in g s y m b o l : w h e r e a s
c o m f o r t , f o r y o u r p e o p l e ' s d e s t i n y is u n a l t e r e d . . . . I h ave A n ch ise s, h is lim b s p a ra ly z e d , re p re s e n ts th e m isfo rtu n e
not chan ged my m in d " (ib id . 1 .2 5 7 - 6 0 ). T h e L a tin t e x t is th a t s tru c k a n c ie n t T r o y ( " F o r y e a r s n o w I h a v e b e e n lin g e r­
e v e n m o r e e x p lic it. T h e e x p r e s s i o n tuorum fata is l a t e r t a k e n i n g , o b n o x i o u s t o h e a v e n , " h e c r i e s o u t ) 11 a n d m u s t d i e in
u p a g a in b y th e v e r b fabor (b y w h ic h J u p i te r is to re v e a l th e S ic ily ra th e r th a n e n te r in g th e p ro m is e d la n d , th e p io u s
s e c r e t o f th is f a t e ), in v is ib le s e m a n ti c c o r r e s p o n d e n c e to th e A e n e a s , i n v e s t e d w i t h t h e f a v o r o f t h e g o d s , is c h a r g e d w i t h
s u b s ta n tiv e fata. These fata c o n s is t o f th e a n n o u n c e m e n t o f th e re s p o n s ib ility o f fo u n d in g th e n e w c ity . A e n e a s is e n ­
t h e r e i g n o f A e n e a s in L a v i n i u m f o r t h r e e y e a r s , t h e r e i g n o f t r u s te d w ith a m is s io n .
A s c a n i u s in A lb a fo r th ir t y y e a r s , t h e re i g n o f t h e k in g s o f T h i s is w h e r e V i r g i l e x p r e s s e d a p r e o c c u p a t i o n c r u c i a l t o
A lb a fo r t h r e e h u n d r e d y e a r s , a n d fin a lly th e p r o m is e o f a n th e R o m a n m e n ta lity : s in c e m e n a r e n e c e s s a r ily d e p e n d e n t

151
ROME

t h e e x t r e m e i n d u l g e n c e o f t h e i m m o r t a l g o d s . " 17 E l s e w h e r e ,
C i c e r o c l a i m e d o n b e h a l f o f t h e R o m a n p e o p l e t h e t it l e o f t h e
" m o s t r e l i g i o u s p e o p l e in t h e w o r l d . " 18
C o n s e q u e n tly w e c a n a p p r e c ia te th e m a g n ific e n t s o n g o f
h o p e w h i c h , w i t h t i m e , w a s e n l a r g e d u p o n i n V i r g i l 's w o r k .
T h e f o u r th Bucolic ( w r i t t e n c a . 4 0 b . c .) h e r a l d e d t h e c o m i n g o f
a new g o ld e n a g e w ith t h e i m m i n e n t b irth o f a m e s s i a n ic
c h i l d . 19 B u t th is hope w as s ti ll fra g ile , fe tte r e d by "th e
p e r s i s t e n t t r a c e s o f t h e c r i m e . " 20 I n b o o k 6 o f t h e Aeneid, th e
g h o s t o f A n c h is e s m a k e s th e fo llo w in g t r iu m p h a n t r e v e la tio n
to A eneas (A u g u s tu s has b een ru lin g fo r m any y e a rs):
" C a e s a r i s t h e r e a n d a ll A s c a n i u s ' s p o s t e r i t y , w h o s h a l l p a s s
b e n e a th th e a rc h of day. A nd h ere, h e r e is t h e m an, th e
p ro m is e d o n e y o u k n o w o f— C a e s a r A u g u s tu s , s o n o f a g o d ,
d e s t i n e d t o r u l e w h e r e S a t u r n r u l e d o f o l d in L a t i u m , a n d
t h e r e b r i n g b a c k t h e a g e o f g o l d . " 21 H e n c e f o r t h , h o p e d i d n o t
rest o n a nascenti puero; r a t h e r it b e c a m e i n c a r n a t e w i t h t h e
c o m in g o f a p rin ce , A u g u s tu s , w h o c o n sid e re d h im s e lf th e
r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f J u p i t e r o n e a r t h . 22 A ll t h e v o w s h a d t h u s
b e e n k e p t a n d A n c h is e s w a s a b le to fo r m u la te th e c e le b r a te d
p r o g r a m : " B u t , R o m a n , n e v e r f o r g e t t h a t g o v e r n m e n t is y o u r
m e d iu m ! B e th is y o u r a r t : to p r a c tic e m e n in th e h a b it o f
p eace, g e n e ro s ity to th e c o n q u e re d , a n d firm n e ss a g a in s t
Rome: relief of the altar of the Pietà representing a scene of sacrifice. a g g r e s s o r s . " 23
The head of the victim is held up by a kneeling assistant. Behind the
victim are two lictors; on the right is a flute player. Photo Alinari-
Ciraudon. III. The Universality of Virgil
A q u e stio n now a r i s e s . V irg il h a s a p p e a r e d to u s to b e
p r o f o u n d l y i m b u e d w i t h " R o m a n n e s s " b o t h in t h e c h o i c e o f
o n h e a v e n , it is p a r a m o u n t t h a t t h e y n o t l o s e t h e b e n e v o ­ h i s t h e m e s a n d i n t h e e x p r e s s i o n o f h i s f e e l i n g . B u t w h e r e is
le n ce and grace of th e go d s, pacem veniamque deum, an th e u n iv e rs a lity w h ic h m ade h im go beyond th e n arro w
e x p r e s s i o n t h a t r e c u r s f r e q u e n t l y in L i v y . E v o k i n g t h e r e l e n t ­ lim its o f th e a n c ie n t f r a m e w o r k ?
l e s s n e s s o f th e b a ttle o f T ro y , A e n e a s c r ie s o u t: " A h w e ll, V i r g i l 's p o l y t h e i s m h a s s h o w n its e lf d i f f e r e n t fro m H om ­
t h e r e 's no tru s tin g th e gods fo r an y th in g , on ce t h e y 'r e e r ' s O l y m p u s . T h e f a c t t h a t J u p i t e r a c q u i r e d h i s f u ll s o v e r ­
a g a i n s t y o u ! " 12 e ig n ty b y d e te rm in in g th e fata in s te a d o f s u b m ittin g to th e m
A n y e r r o r c o m m itte d a g a in s t th e g o d s tr ig g e r s th e ir r e s e n t ­ is n o t i n s i g n i f i c a n t . H i s p r e s t i g e is n o l o n g e r c h a l l e n g e d b y
m e n t, ira, a n d d e m a n d s e x p i a t i o n . T h a t is w h y t h e l e n g t h o f th e o t h e r g o d s (a s Z e u s b a ttle d w ith h is riv a ls ). T h u s , th e
t h e c iv il w a r s o f t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b . c . f i n a ll y b r o u g h t a b o u t a p o ly th e ism is s h i f t i n g , if n o t t o w a r d m o n o th e is m , a t le a st
re lig io u s a n g u is h : c o u ld R o m e h a v e b e e n s tr u c k b y a d iv in e to w a rd th e h e n o th e is m th a t a s s e r t s th e s u p r e m a c y o f o n e
cu rse? O n e had t o w o n d e r w h e t h e r a k i n d o f o r i g i n a l s in g o d a m o n g s e v e ra l.
w e r e n o t w e i g h i n g h e a v i l y o n t h e d e s t i n y o f R o m e . In b o o k T h e p o e t le ts s lip s o m e e x p r e s s i o n s th a t m a y p r o v i d e a n
1 o f th e Georgies (w ritte n a ro u n d 36 b . c .) , a fte r a ferv e n t illu s tra tio n : Dabit deus his quoque finem ( " T h e g o d w ill e n d
p ra y e r— " G o d s o f o u r h o m e la n d , in v o k e d fro m th e b e g in ­ t h e s e s o r r o w s t o o " : V irg il Aen. 1 . 1 9 9 ) , A e n e a s c r i e s o u t a t t h e
n i n g , a n d y o u R o m u l u s a n d v e n e r a b l e V e s t a " 13— V i r g i l i m ­ h e ig h t o f th e s to r m . T h is in v o c a tio n c o u ld be tra n s la te d
p lo re s th e p ro te c tin g d e itie s o f R o m e to a llo w th e y o u n g w i t h o u t r e v i s i o n i n t o t h e f o r m o f a m o d e r n p r a y e r : " G o d w ill
O cta v ia n to d e v o te h im se lf to th e com m on w e lf a r e . He a l s o e n d o u r t r ia l s ."
ju s tifie s h is p r a y e r b y a d d in g : " W e h a v e l o n g a t o n e d f o r th e A lth o u g h th is g o d re m in d s u s o f th e J u p ite r O p tim u s M a x i­
p e r j u r y o f L a o m e d o n ' s T r o y w i t h o u r b l o o d . " 14 m u s o f t h e o f f ic ia l r e l i g i o n , h e e m b o d i e s a b o v e a ll t h e i d e a o f
H o ra ce does n o t re fe r to th e T ro ja n fa u lt w h e n he ex­ p r o v i d e n c e . T h i s is t h e m e a n i n g o f J u p i t e r 's a c t i o n in t h e Geor­
p r e s s e s th e s a m e a n g u is h . H e p la c e s " t h e o r ig in a l s i n " a t th e gies. A p p a r e n t l y t h e g o d w h o m V irg il d e s i g n a t e s h e r e s o l e ly b y
o r i g i n s o f R o m e , in t h e f r a t r i c i d e o f R e m u s b y R o m u l u s : " A t h e n a m e o f P a t e r 24 m a d e t h e h u m a n c o n d i t i o n m o r e p a i n f u l ,
c ru e l fa te h a s b e e n a w a itin g R o m a n s s in c e th e s a c r ile g io u s s in c e , w h e n h e b e c a m e s u c c e s s o r to S a tu r n , h e re p la ce d th e
m u r d e r o f t h e b r o t h e r . " 15 W h a t e v e r r e f e r e n c e is a d o p t e d , t h e G o l d e n A g e w i t h t h e I r o n A g e . B u t h e s o u g h t in t h i s w a y t o
id e a o f th e n e c e s s ity fo r a n e x p ia tio n w e ig h e d o n th e m in d s r e s c u e th e in te llig e n c e o f m o r ta ls fro m a p a s s iv e t o r p o r {gravi
of everyo n e. veterno) , a n d t o i n s p i r e it i n s t e a d w i t h a d e s i r e t o l iv e " s o t h a t
B u t th e re is a c o u n te r b a la n c e : th e a ssu ra n ce th a t p ie ty n e ce s s ity w o u ld g r a d u a lly b rin g a b o u t, th a n k s to e x p e rie n c e ,
g i v e s o f r e c e i v i n g t h e f a v o r o f t h e g o d s . It w a s n o t w i t h o u t v a r i e t y in t h e a r t s a n d c r a f t s . " 25
r e a s o n t h a t f r o m a m o n g a ll t h e p o s s i b l e e p i t h e t s , V i r g i l c h o s e T h is is fa r fro m th e f a ta lity of a h o s tile n a tu re w h ic h
pius to d e s c rib e A e n e a s . T h is v ir tu e o f th e T r o ja n c h ie f w a s l e a v e s m a n h e l p l e s s , a s in L u c r e t i u s . " G o d h e l p s t h o s e w h o
th e k e y to h is s u c c e s s . T h e p o e t a g a i n c a p t u r e d a f u n d a m e n ­ h e l p t h e m s e l v e s " is t h e n e w m e s s a g e . A t t h e s a m e t i m e , it
ta l b e lie f of th e R om an s. R e ca ll th e v erse th a t H o ra ce is f a r f r o m a n o s t a l g i c d r e a m o f t h e G o l d e n A g e , a n a g e in
a d d r e s s e s to th e R o m a n : " B e c a u s e y o u s u b m it to th e g o d s , w h ic h m a n h a s n o th in g to d o , a s " t h e e a r th p r o d u c e s e v e r y ­
you c o m m a n d . " 16 C i c e r o has h is sp ok esm an C o tta p ro ­ t h i n g l i b e r a l l y ," 26 w h i l e " t h e h a r d w o o d o a k t r e e s o o z e w i t h
n o u n c e a n e v e n m o r e e x p lic it s p e e c h : " R o m e w o u ld n e v e r honey d e w . " 27 And a lth o u g h V irg il la te r evokes a n ew
h a v e b e e n a b l e t o r e a c h s u c h g r a n d e u r if it h a d n o t e n j o y e d G o ld e n A g e in t h e Aeneid, th a t G o ld e n A g e d iffe rs fro m th e

152
 V I R G I L ' S R E L I G I O U S V I S I O N

m y th ic a l o n e b y th e d ir e c t c o n n e c tio n o f m a n — a lth o u g h a The n o v e lty is th e id e a of a d is trib u tiv e ju s tic e in th e

" p r o v i d e n ti a l" m a n — w ith th e w o r k o f P r o v id e n c e . k in g d o m o f th e S h ad es. U n til V irg il, th e o n ly d is tin c tio n
From th is p o in t o f v ie w , th e Aeneid c o n s t i tu t e s a h y m n to fa m ilia r to R o m a n s w a s th e s e p a r a tio n o f th e d e a d in to th e Di
th e g lo r y o f P r o v id e n c e th a t le a d s th e c h o s e n p e o p le th r o u g h parentes, w h o fro m th e first c e n t u r y a r e c a lle d th e Di Manes—
a ll s o r t s o f t r i a l s a n d t h e n , a t t h e e n d o f t h e i r w a n d e r i n g s , t o th e s p ir its o f th e a n c e s t o r s c o n s i d e r e d b e n e v o le n t — a n d th e
th e p ro m is e d la n d . F a ith in P ro v id e n ce p re su p p o se s th e L e m u r e s o r L a r v a e , e v il s p ir its . T h is d is tin c tio n is a l i e n to
a c c e p t a n c e o f tria ls o n th e p a r t o f th e f a ith fu l. A r e t h e s e tria ls a n y id e a o f m e rit o r d e m e r it.
n o t th e ra n s o m o f e x p ia tio n fo r th e " T r o ja n e r r o r " ? A en eas, g u id e d by th e S ib y l, first d isco v e rs th e Campi
In t h i s c o n t e x t , t h e e x t r a o r d i n a r y r e s i g n a t i o n o f t h e V i r g i l - lugentes (f ie ld s o f w a ilin g ), th e a b o d e o f th e d e a d w h o h a v e
ia n h e r o e s c a n b e u n d e r s t o o d . W h e n th e b e s t s o n s o f T r o y n o t f u l f il l e d t h e i r d e s t i n y ( V i r g i l Aen. 6 .4 1 8 - 5 4 7 ) . H e th e n
fall a t t h e h a n d s o f t h e G r e e k s , t h e p o e t s o m e t i m e s s e e m s t o m a n a g e s t o a v o i d v i s i t i n g T a r t a r u s , b u t t h e S i b y l d e s c r i b e s it
d e lig h t in em p h a siz in g th e s c a n d a lo u s c h a ra cte r of th e ir to h im a s th e p la c e o f to r tu r e r e s e r v e d fo r th e c rim in a ls o f
d e a th . "T h en R h i p e u s f e l l, h e w h o o f a ll t h e T r o j a n s w a s m y t h o l o g y a n d h i s t o r y ( i b i d . 6 . 5 4 8 - 6 2 5 ) . 33 T h e t w o o f t h e m
m o s t f a ir -m in d e d , th e o n e w h o w a s m o s t re g a r d f u l o f ju s tic e : th e n a r r iv e a t th e p a la c e o f P lu to , w h e r e A en eas sees th e
th e g o d 's w a y s a r e i n s c r u ta b l e . . . . A n d P a n t h u s — n o t a ll h i s g o ld e n bough. A little fu rth e r o n th e y d is c o v e r " a happy
go od n ess, nor th e headband he w o re as A p o ll o 's p rie st p l a c e , th e g r e e n a n d g e n ia l g l a d e s w h e r e th e f o r tu n a t e liv e ,
s a v e d h i m f r o m d e a t h . " 2” th e hom e o f th e b le ss e d s p i r i ts ," th e E ly s ia n fie ld s (ib id .
W h e n K in g P ria m s e e s h is s o n P o lite s s la u g h te r e d b e fo r e 6 .6 3 5 - 6 5 ).
h is v e r y e y e s , h e c a n n o t h e lp b u t a p p e a l to h e a v e n : si qua est T h e r e A e n e a s m e e t s A n c h i s e s , w h o r e v e a ls to h is s o n th e
caelo pietas ( " I f t h e r e is a n y j u s t i c e in h e a v e n " ) . 29 T h i s is a c r y s e c r e t s o f t h e u n iv e r s e . V irg il w a s v is ib ly in s p i r e d h e re by
of h u m an d i s t r e s s , b u t it is i n v a i n , b e c a u s e t h e d e c r e e is v a r io u s in flu e n c e s . T h e w o rld p r e s e n te d a s " s u s t a in e d b y a
r u th le s s : w h a te v e r m a y b e th e ir personal p ie ty , th e T r o ja n s s p ir it w it h i n " (ib id . 6 . 7 2 5 - 2 8 ) c o n f o r m s to t h e t e a c h i n g s o f
can n o t escap e th e collective p u n is h m e n t o f th e c o n d e m n e d th e S to ic s . T h e s o u ls w h o d rin k th e w a te r o f I e th e a n d fo rg e t
c ity . P r i a m 's a p p e a l h a s a t r a g i c a l l y d e r i s o r y t o n e , s i n c e t h e t h e ir p a s t liv e s re c a ll P l a to . T h e s o u l s w h o " f o r a t h o u s a n d
p e n a lt y in flic te d u p o n T r o y b y h e a v e n r e s u lt s p r e c is e ly fr o m years" u n d e rg o su cce ssiv e re in c a r n a tio n s u n til th e ir fin a l
th e v io la tio n o f pietas b y t h e a n c e s t o r . T h e f a l le n k i n g ' s f a t e is p u rific a tio n r e c a ll t h e O r p h ie s a n d th e m e te m p sy ch o sis of
th e re fo re o f l it t le i m p o r t a n c e . H o w e v e r, P ro v id e n ce is a t ­ P y th a g o ra s.
t e n d i n g , s in c e th e e s s e n t ia l is s a v e d : A e n e a s r e c e iv e s p r o m ­ D oes th is m ean th a t V irg il w as c o n te n t to ju x ta p o s e
is e s fo r th e fu tu re . Thus V irg il in v ite s th e re a d e r to a m is c e lla n e o u s e le m e n ts l ik e th e m u ltic o lo re d p ie ce s of a
m e d ita tio n th a t g o e s b e y o n d th e b o u n d s o f a n e r a . Is th e m o s a ic ? A s id e fro m th e fin is h in g t o u c h e s th a t h e m ig h t h a v e
w o r l d g o v e r n e d b y a b e n e v o l e n t P r o v i d e n c e , o r is it s u b j e c t m ade to h is u n fin is h e d poem , th e g en eral im p re s s io n is
t o b l i n d c h a n c e ? T o w h a t e x t e n t is t h e i n d i v i d u a l r e s p o n s i b l e a l t o g e t h e r d i f f e r e n t . V i r g i l s u g g e s t s a n d p r o p o s e s . H i s r o l e is
fo r c o lle c tiv e tr a n s g r e s s io n s ? t o b e a g u i d e f o r t h e r e a d e r , a s t h e S i b y l is f o r A e n e a s . T h e
In h i s i n q u i r y i n t o f a t e , t h e p o e t w a s l e d t o a s k q u e s t i o n s fictio n o f th e k in g d o m o f th e S h a d e s h a s a s y m b o lic v a lu e :
th a t R o m a n re lig io n w a s n o t a c c u s t o m e d t o r a i s e : W h a t is e v e r y t h i n g r e m a i n s w r a p p e d in m y s t e r y .
d e a t h ? W h a t is t h e m e a n i n g o f t h e w o r l d ? It is p re c is e ly b ecau se V irg il knew how to resp ect th e
The litu rg ic a l c a le n d a r d id n o t fo rg e t th e c e r e m o n ie s in m y s te r y o f th in g s th a t h e m a in ta in e d a p o w e r o f in c a n ta tio n .
h o n o r o f t h e d e a d . It e v e n h a d t w o k i n d s o f c e l e b r a t i o n s : o n e H e o w e s t h i s f i r s t o f a ll t o a g i f t o f e x p r e s s i o n c o m m e n s u r a t e
w as th e F e r a lia , h e ld on 21 F eb ru ary , w h ic h c a lle d fo r w ith h i s g e n i u s . It is i m p o s s i b l e t o e x a g g e r a t e t h e a l l u s i v e
o f fe rin g s a n d lib a tio n s o n th e to m b s o f th e d e c e a s e d ; th e pow er of V irg ilia n v erse, w h ic h cann ot be conveyed in
o t h e r w a s th e L e m u r ia , w h ic h w a s r e p e a te d o n th r e e s e p a ­ tra n s la tio n .
ra te d a y s — 9 , 11, a n d 13 M a y — a n d w h ic h w a s in te n d e d to B u t a b o v e a ll h e b e q u e a t h e d t o p o s t e r i t y t h e t h e m e s t h a t
e x p e l d e a d l y g h o s t s ( L e m u r e s ) t h a t c o u l d h a u n t a h o m e . 10 s u r v i v e d th e r u in o f th e a n c i e n t c ity . S o m e o f t h e s e t h e m e s
But w h e th e r it w as a litu rg y of v e n e ra tio n or a r ite of r e a p p e a r e d in C h r i s t i a n t e a c h i n g s : t h e i d e a o f a n o r i g i n a l s in
e x o rcism , none o f th e se c e re m o n ie s p ro v id e d any in sig h t th a t a ffe c ts a c o m m u n ity ; th e id e a o f r e w a r d fo r o n e 's m e rits
in to th e w o rld o f th e b e y o n d . a f te r d e a t h ; th e n o s ta lg ia fo r a lo s t G o ld e n A g e ; th e r e c o n ­
Faced w ith th is s il e n c e , V irg il w as fo rced to s k e tc h an c ilia tio n of h u m a n ity w ith a P ro v id e n c e -G o d ; m a n k i n d 's
e s c h a t o l o g y th a t to o k in to a c c o u n t p h ilo s o p h ic a l id e a s fro m h o p e o f r e a c h in g a n e w G o ld e n A g e o r p a ra d is e .
G r e e c e b u t w a s n o t a l t o g e t h e r a lie n to Ita lic t r a d it i o n s . H e N o n e o f th e s e th e m e s h a d a g r e a te r im p a c t th a n th e o n e
p r o p o s e d t o r e s o r t t o t h e o f f i c e s o f t h e S i b y l in o r d e r t o g u i d e th a t w o u ld be p ro v o k e d d u rin g th e M id d le A ges by th e
A e n e a s t o t h e n e t h e r w o r l d . B y t h i s c h o i c e , h e n o t o n l y le f t m e s s ia n is m o f th e fo u r th Bucolic. T h a n k s to th e m a g ic o f th e
b e h i n d t h e m o d e s t H o m e r i c m o d e l 11 b u t h e a l s o g a v e n e w V irg ilia n w o r d , e x p r e s s i o n s w r o u g h t fo r th e R o m a n c o n t e x t
life a n d s tre n g th to a v e n e r a b l e f ig u r e : th e S ib y l w a s s u p ­ w e r e a g a i n r e a d y f o r u s e , a s if t h e i r t h i n s h e l l h a d b u r s t o p e n
p osed to h a v e in sp ire d th e Sibylline Books w h ic h w e r e c o n ­ u n d e r t h e d e l a y e d e f f e c t o f a t i m e b o m b , lam redit et Virgo
s u lte d ritu a lly b y th e R o m a n a u th o r itie s o n th e o r d e r o f th e ("L o t h e V i r g i n h a s r e t u r n e d " : B. 4 . 6 ) ; 3“1 lam nova progenis
S e n a te . caelo demittitur alto ( " L o a n e x c e p t i o n a l c h i l d c o m e s d o w n
F ir s t, th e S ib y l d e m a n d s th a t A e n e a s m a k e a p r e p a r a t o r y f r o m o n h i g h " : B. 4 . 7 ) ; 35 Si qua manent sceleris vestigia nostri
s a crifice a n d a lso th a t h e a c q u ire a m y s te rio u s o b je c t, th e ( " I f t r a c e s o f o u r c r i m e r e m a i n " : B. 4 . 1 3 ) ; 36 Ille deum vitam
g o l d e n b o u g h . T h e n h e c a n d e s c e n d i n to P l u t o 's k i n g d o m o f accipiet ( " H e s h a l l a t t a i n d i v i n e l i f e " : B. 4 . 1 5 ) . 37 F o r n e w
S h a d e s b y e n te rin g th e c a v e o f A v e rn u s . H e re c o m m e n ta to r s g e n e r a t i o n s , a ll t h e s e e x p r e s s i o n s seem ed ch arg ed w ith a
h a v e s c r u t i n i z e d , a n d w ill c o n t i n u e t o s c r u t i n i z e , t h e p o s s i b l e C h r is tm a s m e s s a g e , to th e g lo ry o f " t h e ch ild to b e b o r n "
i n f l u e n c e s o n t h e p o e t . 32 B u t V i r g i l g u a r d e d h i m s e l f f r o m a ll (nascenti puero: B. 4 . 8 ) . 38
rig id d o g m a t is m . H e d e s c r i b e s a v is io n o f h e ll; h e o f f e r s a Thus V irg il e n jo y e d a new p re s tig e : he to o k h is p la ce
d e s c r i p t i o n t o h i s r e a d e r , w h o w ill b e g r a d u a l l y i n i t i a t e d i n t o a m o n g t h e p r o p h e t s w h o f o r e t o l d t h e c o m i n g o f C h r i s t . In
a n e w te a c h in g . f a c t, th is s tirrin g m ira g e can be e x p la in e d b o th by th e

153
ROME

f a s c i n a t i o n o f t h e w o r d s a n d b y t h e b r e a d t h o f V i r g i l 's v i s i o n , 11. lam pridem invisus divis (Aen. 2.647).

fo r th e a u th e n tic p o e t b e lo n g s to h is tim e e v e n w h ile h e 12. Heu nihil invitis fas quemquam fidere divis! (Aen. 2.402).
t r a n s c e n d s i t. 13. Di patrii, Indigetes, et Romule Vestaque mater (G. 1.498). For
By th e f if th ce n tu ry a . d ., th e A fric a n -b o rn a u th o r Indigetes, which is not to be confused with indigenae, I understand the
F u l g e n t i u s 39 u n d e r t o o k a s t r i c t l y a l l e g o r i c a l r e a d i n g o f V i r g i l
word in connection with Indigitamenta ("litanies" or "lists of invoked
gods").
t h a t n e g l e c t e d t h e s u b j e c t m a t t e r o f t h e n a r r a t i v e in f a v o r o f
14. Satis iampridem sanguine nostro / Laomedonteae luimus perjuria
i ts s y m b o l i c m e a n i n g . T h u s h e g a v e t h r e e w o r d s o f t h e f i r s t Troiae (G. 1.501-2).
v e r s e o f th e Aeneid — arma, virum, and primus— th e m e a n in g 15. Horaee, Epod. 7.17.
" t o h a v e ," " t o g o v e r n ," a n d " t o a d o r n ," th e s e th re e w o rd s 16. Dis te minorem quod geris, imperas (Horaee C., 3.6.5).
re f e r r in g to " n a t u r e ," " s c i e n c e ," a n d " h a p p i n e s s ." T h e f a s h ­ 17. Cicero N.D. 3.2. (The last words of my translation are a
io n w a s s e t. transposition of the idiomatic expression sine summa placatione deorum
T h o u g h w e c a n n o t h e r e fo llo w th e s u c c e s s i v e c o m m e n t a ­ immortalium.)
t o r s o n V i r g i l , it w o u l d b e f i t t i n g t o r e s e r v e a s p e c i a l p l a c e f o r
18. Cicero ibid. 2.3.8. In comparison with other peoples, the
D a n t e , w h o s a l u t e d V i r g i l a s " h i s m a s t e r a n d h i s i n s p i r e r . " 40
Romans are religione, id est cultu deorum, multo superiores.
19. There have been innumerable efforts to identify this child since
T h e p o e t fro m M a n tu a b e c a m e th e g u id e to th e p o e t fro m
the book by |. carcopino, Virgile et la IV' Bucolique (Paris 1930).
F lo re n ce in th e Divine Comedy. W hen he w as p lu n g e d in 20. Virgil B. 4.13: Si qua manent sceleris vestigia nostri . . .
a n g u is h o n G o o d F r id a y o f th e y e a r 1 3 0 0 , D a n te s a w h im s e lf 21. Virgil Aen. 6.789-94. Divi genus, son of a god, recalls that
" i n th e m id d le o f a d a rk w o o d ," w h e r e u p o n B e a tr ic e s e n t to Augustus is the adopted son of Julius Caesar, who was deified after
h is a id t h e g h o s t o f h is b rillia n t p r e d e c e s s o r . V irg il c a r r ie d his death. A mythical Golden Age (in the reign of Satum) was
o u t h is m is s io n b y g u id in g D a n te t h r o u g h th e n e th e r w o r ld succeeded by a real Golden Age (in the reign of Augustus): the joy
a n d p u r g a t o r y ; a n d t h e n , w i t h g r e a t d e l i c a c y , 41 h e e n t r u s t e d of the style is explained by the end of the civil wars which had
th is m is s io n to B e a tric e a t th e g a te s o f p a ra d is e . N o th in g
marked the last century of the Republic.
22. See the article "The Religious Policies of Augustus," above.
p ro v e s th e u n iv e r s a lity o f V i r g i l 's v is io n b e tte r th a n th is
23. Virgil Aen. 6.851-53: Tu regere imperio populos, Romane, memento;
c o n s e c r a tio n , a c r o s s th e a g e s , b y D a n te . W e a r e a m o n g th o s e
/ hae tibi erunt artes: pacisque imponere morem, / parcere subjectis et
w h o b e lie v e th a t in th e l o n g c h a i n o f a d m i r e r s , D a n te w a s debellare superbos.
n o t t h e l a s t . 42 24. Virgil G. 1.121.
R .S ./g .h . 25. Ibid. 1.133: Ut varias usus meditando extunderet artes paulatim . . .
26. Ibid. 1.128.
27. Cf. Virgil B. 4.30: Et durae quercus sudabunt roscida mella.
28. Cf. Virgil Aen. 2.426-30: . . . cadit et Rhipeus, justissimus unus /
qui fuit in Teucris et servantissimus aequi /(dis aliter visum) . . . / . . . nec
NOTES te tua plurima, Panthu, / labentem pietas nec Apollinis infula texit.
29. Ibid. 2.536. Note the use of pietas applied to the gods,
1. Varro, cited by Augustine, C.D., 6, 5. conforming to the idea of reciprocity included in the Latin word. We
2. The festival of the Neptunalia was on 23 July. See the know that Laemedon, father of Priam, hence grandfather of Polites,
convincing exegesis of c. dumezil, Fêles romaines d'été et d'automne had aroused the anger of the gods by neglecting his obligations to
(Paris 1975), 25-31. them.
3. Among the following expressions, some are close to the 30. For the dates in question, see Ovid's commentary. Fasti, on
Homeric model (not to mention regnator Olympi), while others are books 2 and 5, respectively.
more novel: divum pater atque hominum rex ("father of the gods and 31. In the Odyssey 11.206ff., Odysseus calls up the dead in order to
king of men": Aen. 1.65; 2.648; 10.2, etc.); hominum rerumque aeterna consult the prophet Tiresias: he is content to dig a ditch, which
potestas ("eternal power that reigns over men and the world": ibid. makes it possible for him to perform the magic rites.
10.18); pater omnipotens, rerum cui prima potestas ("all-powerful father, 32. The most important commentary on the descent to hell
sovereign power of the world": ibid. 10.100); hominum rerumque remains the work of e. norden, P. Vergilius Maro, Aeneis, Buch VI (3d
repertor ("creator of men and the world": ibid. 12.829). ed., Leipzig 1927).
4. This text is not invalidated by the role of arbiter that Jupiter 33. In Aen. 8.666-70, Catilina appears also in Tartarus, on the
takes in book 10 of the Aeneid. Grappling with the recriminations of representation of the shield forged by Vulcan. Note that to cross the
Juno, he proclaims his neutrality (verse 112) . . . knowing that "the stagnant waters of the Cocytus to the spirits that crowd the shore of
Fates will find an ending"—fata viam invenient (verse 113). Acheron, the boatman Charon required only the burial of their
5. Thence the virginal aspect under which she appears to Aeneas bodies. Unburied, these spirits had to wander "for a hundred years"
(Aen. 1.315); the dignity of her clothing ("the folds of her robe flowed (Aen. 6.325-30): the idea that the lack of burial deprived the dead of
down to her feet": ibid. 1.404): she evokes not a nude Aphrodite of rest conforms to an old Italic tradition.
Praxiteles but the draped Venus of Arcesilaus that Caesar placed in 34. Our translation of these different texts voluntarily shows an
the temple of Venus Genitrix. inflection with a Christian meaning, to emphasize the new interpre­
6. See Aen. 2.801. In the commentary on this passage, Servius tation that one may give them; Virgo—interpreted as the Virgin
Danielis notes that, according to Varro, "the star of Venus was Mary—designates in Virgil's text Astraea, the daughter of Zeus and
always visible to Aeneas until he arrived at the country of the Themis, who rose to heaven at the advent of the Iron Age: her return
Laurentes; after he arrived, it was no longer visible: thus he knew announces the return of the Golden Age (redeunt Saturnia regna).
that he had arrived." 35. In keeping with the set purpose announced in the preceding
7. Regarding these two cults, see my book La religion romaine de note, I have translated nova progenies by "an exceptional child" ( =
Vénus (Paris 1954), passim. Christ)—a possible translation, although the context of the Bucolic
8. On the semantic relationship Venus-venerari, see ibid., 30-42. suggests rather "a new generation"—(by allusion to the generation
9. In different circumstances, Priam (Aen. 2.536) and Dido (Aen. of the Golden Age which was thought to have descended from
4.382) would appeal to this pietas on the basis of equity. heaven with the aid of a rope; Lucretius [2.1153J scoffs at this myth).
10. Cf. Aen. 2.604-18. The presence of Jupiter sanctions the 36. The allusion, interpreted as a reference to the original sin of
legitimacy of the "punishment" of Troy, which is inflicted in Adam and Eve, concerned, in the passage of the Bucolic, the
particular by Neptune (the divinity frustrated by Laomedon), by aftereffects of the civil wars (in 40 b. c ., the fleet of Sextus Pompey,
Juno (the sworn enemy), and by Pallas-Minerva (the divinity that who was only defeated in 36 b. c ., was still capable of starving Italy
was formerly the protectress). by preventing the arrival of grain from Africa).

154
 V U L C A N

37. In the Christian perspective: Christ made human will return to
heaven. A more literal fidelity would require the translation: “he will
attain the life of the gods"—men leading the same life as the gods in
the Golden Age.
38. The nascens puer was applied to the Infant Jesus. Many
attempts have been made to remove the mystery of the 4th Bucolic.
Finally, an intriguing identification— M. Claudius Marcellus, post­
humous son of C. Claudius Marcellus and Octavia— has been
proposed by j. perrht, Virgile (Paris 1965), 45-48.
39. Fulgentius, Expositio Virgilianae continentiae.
40. Dante, Inferno 1.85: "Tu se' lo mio maestro e'l mio autore."
41. Of course, this delicacy belongs to Dante, who found the
elegant solution that avoids denying Virgil access to the Christian
paradise.
42. Virgil has always been appreciated in England, France, and
Italy. In Germany, the renewal of Virgilian studies is more recent;
this is in part due to the work of t h . h a ec k er with the meaningful title
Vergil Vater des Abendlandes (7th ed., Munich 1952).

and the dem and for living beings (see O vid Fasti 3.342:
Vulcan Jupiter dem ands a life; N um a offers a fish)?
Vulcan w as presented in the com pany of Vesta at the
lectisternium of 217 b . c . A lthough the m eaning of this
Vulcan is the god of fire. The etym ology of the nam e is association is transparent, it also proves th at tow ard the end
difficult to determ ine. G. Dumézil (Fêtes romaines d'été et of the third century b . c . , even Rom an deities as ancient as
d'automne [Paris 1925], pp. 7 2 - 7 6 ) review s all the principal Vulcan and Vesta did not escape the Hellenization that
attem pts to elucidate it and show s how p recarious they are. com pared them with H ephaistos and Hestia. This process
They include a com parison with the C retan welchanos; an w as to be confirm ed later: in 64 b . c . , after the great fire of
explanation by w ay of the O ssetic noun (Kurd-alae)-waergon; Rom e, a supplicatio in accordance with the ritus graecus was
and an Etruscan hypothesis based on the abbreviation Vel called for on the orders of the Sibylline Books, on behalf of
from the Piacenza liver, w hich is arbitrarily com pleted to Vulcan, C eres, and Proserpina (Tacitus Annales 15.44.2).
yield Vel(chans), w hereas the Etruscan h om ologue of H ep­ Hellenization had other repercussions of a m ythological
haestus is Sethlans. Dumézil prefers a derivation from the nature. Vulcan w as regarded as the father of Caeculus, the
Vedic vdrcas ("b rig h tn ess," or "flash ," one of the properties of founder of Praeneste (Virgil Aeneid 7 .6 7 8 -7 9 ; schol. Servius
Agni, the god of fire), but as a good comparativis-t, he ad loc.), and according to a version collected by Ovid (Fasti
hastens to point ou t the difficulty: "n o verbal or nominal 6.627), the father of the Rom an king Servius Tullius.
derivative of this version of the root exists in L atin " (ibid., p. For the poets, Vulcan is m erely the Latin nam e for H ep ­
74). h aestus. The epithet M ulciber, the sm elter (which Festus
Vulcan had a flamen and a festival, the Volcanalia, on 23 [p. 219 L.J explained through the act of "m aking iron
A ugust (i.e ., at the end of the dog days of sum m er, which
begin with the N eptunalia of 23 July), that w as inscribed in
the ancient cycle of the liturgical calendar. The site of the
Vulcan. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Cabinet des Médailles.
cult, which consisted of an altar and w as designated by the
Photo BN.
expression Volcanal or area Volcani, w as southeast of the
Capitol and thus outside the pom erium of the old city. Later
a tem ple to Vulcan w as built that predates the reference to
the tem ple by Livy (2 4 .1 0 .9 ) in 214 b . c . It too w as outside the
new pomerial boundaries, near the C ircus Flaminius. Its
anniversary fell on 23 A ugust, the festival of the Volcanalia.
All signs indicate th at Vulcan, the very opposite of Vesta,
embodied the destructive fire, which is w hy his cult was
"outside the w alls" (Vitruvius 1.7 .1 ). H e w as attended by
two entities: Maia (Gellius 13 .2 3 .2 ) and Stata M ater (Festus,
p. 146 L). Maia (probably derived from *mag-ia) suggests
extension, w hereas Stata M ater (cf. the epithet Stator for
Jupiter) suggests immobilization or cessation. These two
notions thus express sym m etrically tw o opposite faculties:
fire m ay spread or go out.
There are specific references to this d evouring nature of
fire: Vulcan helped to d estroy the en em y 's arm s (Livy 1.37.5;
23.46.5; 3 0 .6 .9 ; 4 1 .1 2 .6 ). A n oth er custom is less clear; every
year "o n the oth er side of the Tiber in the m onth of Ju n e"
(according to Festus, p. 274 L .) or "d u rin g the festival of the
Volcanalia" (according to Varro De Lingua Latina 6.20) small
live fish (genus pisciculorum vivorum) w ere tossed into the fire
in honor of Vulcan "in stead of hum an sou ls" (pro animis
humanis: Festus) or "in ord er to redeem th em selves" (pro se:
Varro). W hat could have been the significance of combining
the idea of redem ption (see Ovid Fasti 5.438: the Lem uria)

155
ROME

m a l le a b l e ," a molliendo ferro), re fe rs to th e s m ith , th e p a tr o n o f D e s p ite th is p e r v a s i v e s y n c r e ti s m , th e r itu a l d e fin itio n w a s

t h e C y c l o p s . T h a t is h o w V i r g i l ( Aetieid 8 . 7 2 4 ) d e s i g n a t e s h i m n o t lo s t. T o c o m m e m o r a t e th e b u r n in g o f R o m e u n d e r N e r o
w h e n V u lca n , a t th e r e q u e s t o f h is " w i f e " V e n u s , c o n s e n t s to a t t h e e n d o f t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y a . d ., t h e e m p e r o r D o m i t i a n
f o r g e t h e a r m o r o f A e n e a s . T h e e n t i r e s c e n e is i n s p i r e d b y ord ered a lta rs b u ilt " t o p rev en t fu tu re fire s " ( incendiorum
G re e k m y th o lo g y , w h ic h h a d u n ite d H e p h a e s t u s w ith A p h ­ arcendorum causa). E a c h y e a r , o n th e d a y o f th e V o lc a n a lia , a
ro d ite ( f o r M u lcib e r s e e a g a in C i c e r o 's Tusculanae Dispu ta­ re d d ish -b ro w n c a lf a n d a b oar w ere to b e s a crifice d th e re
liones 2 . 2 3 : th e a d j e c t iv e is a p p lie d t o H e p h a e s t u s in th e L a tin (Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum 6 .8 2 6 ) .
t r a n s l a ti o n o f A e s c h y l u s 's Prometheus Unbound). R .S ./g .h .

156
 P A R T

Western Civilization
in the Christian Era
 h o p e o f g a in in g m ilita ry su ccess (De Abrahamo 3 3 .1 7 8 - 3 4 ,
T he S urvival of M yths in E arly C hristianity 1 8 3 ) ; P h ilo fin a lly p o i n t s to c e r ta i n d e m e n t e d s la n d e r e r s o f
th e S c r ip t u r e s w h o c la im th a t th e s to r y o f t h e v a r io u s a n im a ls
c u t in h a lf b y A b r a h a m ( G e n . 1 5 . 9 - 1 7 ) a c tu a l ly d e s c r i b e s a n
The Old Testament a c t o f d i v in a tio n , w ith a s a c rific ia l v ic tim a n d th e in s p e c tio n
o f its e n t r a il s (Quaestiones in Genesin 3 .3 ) . S u c h in fo rm a tio n
l. Hellenistic Judaism w a s r e c o g n i z e d a s h i s t o r i c a l l y s i g n i f i c a n t b y H . A . W o l f s o n *1
T h e O l d T e s t a m e n t is n o l e s s i m p o r t a n t t o C h r i s t i a n i t y t h a n a n d J. D a n ié l o u .2
it is t o J u d a i s m , a l t h o u g h e a c h d o e s a d i f f e r e n t r e a d i n g o f i t. T h e a d je c tiv e s a n d o t h e r q u a lifie rs th a t P h ilo u s e s s h o w
It fo llo w s t h a t a n y i n q u ir y i n to th e m y th i c a l f o u n d a t i o n th a t th a t h e d o e s n o t s u p p o r t th is t e n d e n c y . B u t h e d o e s a d m it
m ay have p e rs is te d in e a rly C h ris tia n ity m ust ta k e in to th a t a n um ber of p assages fro m th e B ib le a re m y th ic a l,
a c c o u n t e a r l y C h r i s t i a n i t y 's v i e w o f t h e L a w a n d t h e P r o p h ­ p r o v i d e d , h e i n s is ts , t h a t th e y a r e ta k e n lite ra lly — a r e s tr i c ­
e t s . W h e n it c o m e s t o b i b l i c a l h e r m e n e u t i c s , w e k n o w th a t t io n w h ic h , t h o u g h h is a d v e r s a r i e s h a d n o u s e fo r it, g r e a tl y
th e C h u r c h F a t h e r s w e r e o f te n in f lu e n c e d b y th e H e lle n iz e d c h a n g e s th e p e r s p e c t iv e . H e g iv e s e x a m p l e s o f b ib lica l te x ts
J e w s w h o l iv e d j u s t b e f o r e t h e C h r is t ia n e r a . T h is is w h a t o f th is ty p e : th e p la n tin g o f p a ra d ise by G od (G e n . 2 .8 ) ,
m a k e s th e te s tim o n y o f th e m o s t p r o m in e n t o f t h e s e H e lle ­ im a g in e d a s th e w o rk o f a c a re fu l g a r d e n e r a r r a n g in g a p la c e
n iz e d J e w s , P h ilo o f A l e x a n d r ia , s o in te r e s tin g . in w h ic h t o r e l a x , is a " m y t h o p o e i s i s " w h ic h w o u l d n o t o c c u r
P h ilo evokes a c o n te m p o ra ry tre n d w h ic h he h im se lf to a n y o n e (Legum allegoriae 1 .1 4 .4 3 ) ; th e c r e a tio n o f E v e o u t o f
c o n d e m n s — t h a t o f r e d u c i n g c e r ta i n b ib lica l e p i s o d e s to th e a rib ta k e n fro m th e s le e p in g A d a m (G e n . 2 .2 1 - 2 2 ) , ta k e n
le v e l o f G r e e k m y th s th a t w e re deem ed co m p a ra b le . The lite ra lly , " r e s e m b l e s a m y t h " (Legunt allegoriae 2 . 7 . 1 9 - 2 0 ) ; if
i d e n t i t y o f t h e s e c o m p a r a t i v i s t s i s n o t c e r t a i n , b u t it is h a r d t o o n e s to p s to th in k a b o u t th e m , th e a n t h r o p o m o r p h is m s th a t
know w h o th e y c o u ld h a v e , b e e n if n o t t h o s e f r e e - t h i n k i n g M o s e s a p p lie d to G o d in h i s p e d a g o g i c e n d e a v o r ( s u c h as
Je w s, a fe w e x a m p le s of w hom a re know n to u s. A t a ll G en. 6 .7 : G od re g re ts h a v in g c re a te d m an and th in k s o f
e v e n t s , P h ilo h a s th e m s a y to th e p io u s J e w s : " T h e B o o k s d e s t r o y i n g h i m ; D e u t . 8 . 5 : l ik e a m a n , G o d e d u c a t e s h i s s o n )
th a t y o u c la im to b e s a c r e d a l s o c o n ta in t h o s e m y th s th a t y o u b e c o m e a b s u r d i n t h e m s e l v e s a n d in t h e i r c o n s e q u e n c e s , f o r
a r e a c c u s t o m e d t o l a u g h a t w h e n y o u h e a r o t h e r s te ll t h e m . " th e y a r e th e " m y th o p o e s e s " o f im p io u s m e n (Quod deus sit
By w ay of p ro o f, th e y o ffered th e H o m e ric m y th o f th e immutabilis 1 2 .5 9 ) .
A lo a d a e p ilin g up m o u n ta in s to re a ch th e sk y (H o m e r, T h is la st te x t s u g g e s t s th a t t h e r e w e r e lite ra lis ts a m o n g th e
Odyssey 1 1 .3 0 5 - 2 0 ), "in p la c e o f w h ic h M o s e s in tro d u c e s " e x e g e t e s w h o , p r o b a b l y u n i n t e n t i o n a l l y , w e n t s o f a r a s t o c a ll
th e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f th e t o w e r o f B a b e l, a l th o u g h th e b ib lica l c e r ta i n p a g e s o f th e B ib le m y t h s , t h e r e b y o b j e c ti v e l y j o in in g
e p is o d e o f th e c o n fu sio n o f la n g u a g e s (G e n . 1 1 .1 - 9 ) m ay th e cause o f th e a fo re m e n tio n e d c o m p a ra tiv is ts , a lth o u g h
have been "s im ila r to th e [p a g a n ] m y th " of th e o rig in a l th e ir in te n tio n s a n d m e th o d s w e r e q u ite d iffe re n t. T o a v o id
c o m m u n i t y o f l a n g u a g e a m o n g a ll liv in g b e i n g s (De confu­ th e risk o f s e e in g th e B ib le c o n c e d e p a r t o f its te r r i to r y to
sione linguarum 2 . 2 - 4 , 9 ). S h o rtly b e fo r e th e C h ris tia n e r a , m y th , o n e m e r e ly h a d to r e n o u n c e e x t r e m e lite ra lis m : b y th e
th e re fo re , som e e x e g e te s w ere co n v in ce d o f th e m y th ic a l m ir a c le o f a lle g o r y , m y th ic a l a p p e a r a n c e d i s s o l v e s a n d m a k e s
q u a lity o f a t le a s t a fe w p a g e s o f th e O ld T e s ta m e n t. P h ilo w a y f o r a m o r e r e s p e c t a b le th e o r e t ic a l m e a n i n g . S u c h is th e
r e p o r ts co n cu rre n t e x a m p le s th a t p ro b a b ly ill u s t r a t e th e r e j o i n d e r w ith w h ic h P h ilo re s p o n d s to th e th r e a t o f th e
s a m e o r ie n ta tio n : w h e n M o s e s s p e a k s o f g ia n ts (G e n . 6 .4 ) , h e m y th i c i z a t io n o f S c r ip t u r e . T a k e , f o r i n s t a n c e , t h e t w o b ib lica l
is a llu d in g to m y th s by p o e ts on th e sam e s u b je ct (De s e r p e n t s , th e s e r p e n t in p a r a d i s e , w h o s p e a k s a n d s e d u c e s
gigantibus 1 3 .5 8 ) ; s y s te m a t i c d e t r a c t o r s m in im iz e th e s a c rific e th e w om an (G e n . 3 .1 - 5 ), and th e b ro n ze s e rp e n t, w ho
of Isa a c and A b r a h a m 's con sen t to it ( G e n . 2 2 .1 - 1 9 ) by p ro cu re s th e w e lfa r e o f a n y o n e w ho m e re ly lo o k s a t h im
c o m p a r i n g it t o t h e p r a c t i c e a m o n g G r e e k s , p r i v a t e c i t i z e n s ( N u m . 2 1 . 9 ) . O n t h e f a c e o f i t , " T h e y l o o k l ik e w o n d e r s a n d
o r e v e n k in g s (h e re o n e c a n d is c e rn a re f e r e n c e to Ip h ig e n ia m o n s te rs, . . . b u t if o n e e x p la in s th e m b y a lle g o ry , th e
s a c r if ic e d b y A g a m e m n o n ) , o f s a c r i f i c i n g t h e ir c h i l d r e n in t h e r e s e m b la n c e to m y th v a n is h e s , a n d th e tr u th r e v e a ls its e lf

159
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN T H E C H R I S T I A N
The baptism of Christ. Mosaic in the nave of the church of Daphni,
ca. 1100. Photo Hans Hinz—Skira.
with all clarity": the mortal knots of the first serpent are the
knots of pleasure; the bronze of the second serpent is the
strength of the soul that nothing can attack (De agricultura
22.96-97). So the myth that one might on occasion be
tempted to suspect in the Bible is just an illusion that
vanishes in the light of allegory. The De opificio mundi (56.157)
repeats this idea with an example close to the preceding one:
the passage of Genesis that refers to the planting of paradise
with two trees, the enticing serpent, the fall, the
punishment—despite all appearances (Gen. 2 .7 -3 , 24), these
"are not the mythical fictions dear to the race of poets and
Sophists, but rather examples of figures that invite one to
allegory, in accordance with implied meanings." These are
some of the ideas about myth in Philo's hermeneutics that
have been discussed by G. Delling,3 and by me in a previous
work.4I.
II. Patristic Christianity
As P. Heinisch5 has pointed out (along with many other
scholars), Philo had an enormous influence on the exegesis
of the Church Fathers. Among the teachings that were
handed down in this way are his views that although certain
biblical texts appear to be mythical, such an appearance is
shattered by the allegorical interpretation, which virtually
exercises a demythologizing function, as J. Daniélou has
wisely observed. h Another way of formulating this principle
is to say that without allegorical exegesis, one remains
unarmed before all the appearances of myth. That is how
Gregory of Nyssa dealt with the verses from Genesis (2.16-
160
ERA
17) concerning the tree of knowledge; without actually
naming the allegory, he designated it in no uncertain terms:
"If one does not contemplate the truth in the narrative by
means of philosophy, the unsuspecting reader will find the
narrative inconsistent and similar to myth" (Commentary on
the Song of Songs, prologue, ed. Langerbeck, pp. 11, 5 -7 ).
Origen had previously given yet another presentation of
the same concept. He claimed that the Old Testament was
both myth and truth (or, following the classical dichotomy,
mythos and logos) depending on the quality of its readers: it
was myth for the Jews, who perceived only its surface, but it
became truth for Christians who through allegory penetrated
to its deep meaning. The following are two texts taken from
Origen that typify this way of seeing things. First from Contra
Celsum 2.4 and 5.42: Christians "bestow greater honor on the
Books of the Law by showing what depths of wise and
mysterious teachings are enclosed in these texts, whereas
their meaning has escaped the Jews, whose contact with
them is too superficial and mythical." "To Jews, children
with the intelligence of children, the truth was still pro­
claimed in the form of myth; but now, for the Christians who
seek instruction and wish to make progress, what were
formerly myths, to call them by their name, are now meta­
morphosed into those truths that were hidden in the myths."
(The Bible read by Jewish eyes is still described as "m yth"
and "mythology" in 2 .5 -6 , and 52 of the same treatise.) We
can see how these various authors solved the problem of
myth in the Bible by subjectifying it: myth that was nothing
but myth could not be found in the Holy Scriptures, which is
why the comparativists' illusion was false; Scripture merely
contains apparent and provisional myths destined to wither
away under the effect of the allegorical reading. This is
precisely the ideology that was held in common by many
Hellenized Jews and by the Church Fathers. Origen took a
step forward where Philo obviously could not follow him
when he made the appearances of myth the lot of the Jews
and profound truth the privilege of Christians.
III. The History of Religions
The tendency toward comparativism that Philo denounced
nevertheless continued, in a slightly different form. For it is
not Greek myths that today provide us with counterparts to
the Old Testament (although there are plenty of examples of
those); rather, we turn to more ancient cultures, Babylonia
and Phoenicia, where we pick up striking parallels, notably
between biblical narratives of the creation and the flood, and
the Babylonian poem of the Enüma élis and the epic of
Gilgames. It used to be accepted without argument that this
coincidence could be explained by an influence exerted on
Israel; this view was championed by H. Gunkel7 among
others. Since then, scholars have become more circumspect;
see, for example, the works of A. Heidel8 and E. O. James.9
People still resort to analogies that indicate the presence of
considerable mythical segments in the Old Testament. But
these episodes are marked by a particular coloration because
of the monotheism basic to the the Jewish tradition.
We shall not attempt to give an inventory here of all the
episodes with mythical dimensions in the Bible, but rather
limit ourselves to a typical example, myths of water, referring
the reader for more details to the work of P. Reymond.10 He­
brew cosmology rests essentially on the myth (not exclusively
Jewish) of a primordial ocean that surrounds the dry earth
boundlessly, threatens its existence, and gives birth to all the
waters on earth, below (rivers and springs) and above (rain).
The origin of time is marked by Yahweh's struggle with this
hostile element, often personified by the sea monsters Rahab
 THE S U R V I V A L OF M Y T H S IN E A R L Y C H R I S T I A N I T Y

(Jo b 2 6 .1 2 ) a n d L e v ia th a n (Isa . 2 7 .1 ; P s . 7 4 .1 3 - 1 4 , e t c .) . T h e T h e t h e o l o g i a n 's r e f l e c t i o n o n C h r i s t i a n s p e c i f ic it y m o v e s

p rim o rd ia l s tr u g g le o f G o d a g a in s t th e fo rc e s o f th e s e a a ls o in t h e d i r e c t io n o f t h e s e b i a s e s . T h e G r e e k p h il o s o p h e r s w h o
d e v e lo p s a g a in s t t h e N ile a n d its i n c a r n a tio n t h e P h a r a o h , l iv e d d u r i n g t h e p e r i o d o f C h r is t ia n e x p a n s i o n d e f i n e d m y th
h im se lf a s s im ila te d to th e c r o c o d ile o f E g y p t. T h is a m a lg a m b y its a b ility t o g iv e a te m p o r a l a p p e a r a n c e to th e tim e le s s .
is a d m i r a b ly d e p ic te d in E z e k ie l 2 9 .3 - 4 : "T h ese a re th e P l o t in u s t h u s s a id t h a t " m y t h s , in o r d e r t o b e tr u ly m y t h s ,
w o rd s o f th e L o rd G o d : I a m a g a in s t y o u . P h a r a o h k in g o f m u s t p a r c e l o u t th e ir c o n t e n t o v e r tim e a n d s e p a r a te fro m
E g y p t, y o u g r e a t m o n s t e r , lu r k in g in t h e s tr e a m s o f t h e N ile . o n e a n o th e r m a n y b e in g s w h o a re to g e th e r a n d c a n o n ly b e
Y o u h a v e s a i d , 'M y N il e is m y o w n ; it w a s 1 w h o m a d e it. I d i s t i n g u i s h e d b y v i r t u e o f t h e i r r a n k o r t h e i r p o w e r s " ( Enne­
w il l p u t h o o k s i n y o u r j a w s , ' " e t c . ades 3 .5 [5 0 ] 9 . 2 4 - 6 ) . A s im ila r v ie w m ay b e fo u n d in th e
T h e m y th i c a l o c e a n o f th e B ib le is n o t o n l y liq u id ; it is a l s o p h ilo s o p h e r S a llu s t, a frie n d o f th e e m p e r o r Ju lia n , w h e n h e
d a r k . T h is d u a l q u a lity e x c e lle n tly d e s c r ib e s th e f o r m le s s n e s s i n te r p r e t s th e m y th o f C y b e le a n d A ttis . A s tr ik in g ly d if f e r ­
o f o r ig in a l c h a o s . Y a h w e h 's c r e a t i v e a c t i o n c o n s i s ts in h is e n t a p p r o a c h i s t a k e n b y C h r i s t i a n i t y , w h i c h , p a r t i c u l a r l y in
v ic to r y o v e r th e d a r k o c e a n ; th is v i c to r y is m a r k e d a t th e t h e fir s t f e w c e n t u r i e s , p l a c e d a t t h e v e r y h e a r t o f fa ith th e
b e g in n in g o f G e n e s is ( 1 .2 , 6 - 7 ) b y tw o im p o r ta n t f e a tu re s o f r e a lity o f tim e a n d n e w n e s s in h is to r ic a l p r o g r e s s . N o o n e
d o m in a tio n : th e s p irit o f G o d p re v a ils o v e r th e w a te rs b y h a s m o re a c c u ra te ly d e sc rib e d th e c o n tra s t b e tw e e n th e s e
h o v e rin g o v e r th e m ( o r i s it p e r h a p s t h a t h e w a t c h e s a n x ­ tw o m e n ta litie s th a n H .-C h . P u ech (in a l e c t u r e 11 t h a t I
io u s ly over th e n ascen t w o rld w h ic h th e w a te rs s ti ll u n f o r tu n a te ly d id not know about w hen I w ro te m y o w n
th r e a te n ? ), a n d G o d d iv id e s th e w a te r s in t w o b y i n te r p o s in g s t u d y o f t h i s s u b j e c t ) . 12
th e f i r m a m e n t . T h e s e a is h e n c e f o r t h " h e l d b a c k w ith t w o B e c a u s e t h e c o n t e n t o f m y th is in d i f f e r e n t t o t e m p o r a l i ty ,
d o o rs" (Jo b 3 8 .8 ) . The m y th ic a l w a te r is d o m e s t ic a te d by m y th p r e s e n t s its e lf a s a m o d e l c a p a b le o f in d e f in ite r e p e t i ­
G o d , w h o u s e s it to p u n is h m e n ( th e fl o o d , G e n . 6 - 9 ) o r t o tio n . B y c o n tr a s t, th e re d e m p tiv e in c a r n a tio n and p a ss io n
s e rv e th e m (th e w a te r th a t s p r in g s f o rth f ro m t h e c le ft ro c k c o n s titu te a s in g le a n d n o n r e p e a ta b le fa c t. T h e J e w is h h ig h
d u rin g th e e x o d u s fro m E g y p t, P s. 7 8 .1 5 - 1 6 , 1 0 5 .4 0 , e t c .) . p rie s t w h o o n c e a y e a r e n te r e d in to th e m o s t s e c r e t s a n c tu a r y
N u m e r o u s a n a lo g ie s to th is s e q u e n c e o f g r a n d i o s e d e p ic tio n s of th e T e m p le or th e H o ly of H o lie s fo re sh a d o w e d th e
o c c u r o u t s i d e o f I s r a e l: Y a h w e h 's v i c t o r i o u s s t r u g g l e w it h th e s a c r i f i c e d C h r is t . C h r is t in t u r n a c c o m p li s h e d w h a t t h e h ig h
o c e a n e v o k e s M a r d u k 's s t r u g g l e a g a i n s t T i a m a t in t h e Enüma p rie st h a d o n ly b e g u n , o ffe rin g h im se lf u p , n o t o n c e a y e a r,
elié ; t h e s e a m o n s t e r L e v i a t h a n a ls o a p p e a r s in th e C a n a a n it e b u t o n c e a n d f o r a ll in t h e to t a li t y o f h i s t o r y . T h is is th e le s s o n
l e g e n d o f B a 'a l a n d A n a t k n o w n t h r o u g h t e x t s e x c a v a t e d a t o f c h a p t e r 9 o f th e E p is tle to th e H e b r e w s (s e e a ls o 1 P e te r
R a s S h a m r a -U g a r it. B u t, a s b e fo r e , w e s h o u ld n o t h a s te n to 3 .1 8 ) , w h e re th e re is a re cu rre n ce of th e a d v erb s hapax,
in fe r a n in f lu e n c e o n b ib lica l a u t h o r s ; r a th e r , w e s h o u ld th in k ephapax, (L a tin semel), m a rk in g th e a b s o lu te s in g le n e s s o f th e
o f p a ra lle l r o o t s g o in g d o w n in to a c o m m o n m y th ic a l b a c k ­ s a c r i f i c e . It m u s t b e a d d e d t h a t t h i s c o n v i c t i o n s u r e l y r e s t e d
g ro u n d . in la rg e m e a su re on th e e s c h a to lo g ic a l p e rs p e c tiv e of a
n a s c e n t C h r i s t i a n i t y : s i n c e t h e e n d o f t i m e w a s e x p e c t e d in

T h e N e w T e sta m e n t t h e n e a r fu tu r e (P a u l t h o u g h t h e w o u ld b e a w it n e s s to th is
e v e n t ; w e s h a ll r e tu r n to th is b e lo w ), t h e r e w a s n o r o o m fo r
/. Keeping Myth at Bay a n e v e n tu a l re p e titio n o f th e p a s s io n .
O ne m ig h t o b je c t th a t C h ris tia n ity its e lf p ro v id e s th e
F o r w e d id n o t f o llo w c le v e rly d e v is e d m y t h s ( sesophis-
s e ttin g fo r a c e r ta in re p e titio n o f p r e v io u s s itu a tio n s , a n d to
menois muthois) w h e n w e m a d e k n o w n to y o u th e p o w e r
t h i s e x t e n t it i s a l l i e d t o t h e w o r l d o f m y t h . F o r i n s t a n c e , t h e
and co m in g of our L o rd Jesu s C h ris t, but we w e re
l i t u r g i c a l c y c l e a n n u a l l y r e p r o d u c e s t h e p r i n c i p a l e v e n t s in
e y e w i tn e s s e s o f h is m a je s ty .
t h e lif e o f J e s u s ( h i s c o n c e p t i o n , h i s b i r t h , v a r i o u s e p i s o d e s o f
S u c h is t h e p r o f e s s io n o f fa ith b y w h ic h t h e S e c o n d E p is t le o f h is p u b lic life , h is p a s s i o n a n d d e a t h , h is r e s u r r e c t i o n , a n d
P e te r ( 1 .1 6 ) d e f in e s th e a n tim y th ic a l p o s itio n o f th e N ew h is a s ce n sio n ). F u rth e rm o re , th e ritu a l c e le b ra tio n o f th e
C o v e n a n t. N o th in g c o u ld be c le a re r, even if th e w o rd s a c r a m e n ts o f te n re c a lls e ith e r th e e p is o d e s o f s a c r e d h is to ry
" m y t h " d o e s n o t h a v e th e re e x a c tly th e s a m e m e a n in g th a t t h a t p r e f i g u r e t h e m — w h a t S a in t P a u l c a lle d its " t y p e s " ( th u s
we have seen u n til n o w . T h e d e s i g n a t i o n "e y e w itn e s se s " th e flo o d and th e c r o s s in g o f th e R e d S ea a re re c a lle d in
( epoptês) a p p l i e d t o t h e b e n e f i c i a r i e s o f a r e v e l a t i o n i s i n t h e m e m o r y b y th e c e r e m o n y o f b a p tis m )— o r th e s c e n e s fro m
c o n t e x t a ll t h e m o r e p e c u l i a r s i n c e i t c o m e s f r o m t h e t e c h n i c a l th e lif e of Jesu s d u rin g w h ic h th e y w ere in s titu te d (th e
l a n g u a g e o f t h e G r e e k m y s t e r i e s . S a i n t P a u l's h o s t il it y t o ­ c e le b ra tio n o f th e E u c h a r is t s o m e h o w r e a c tu a liz e s th e L a s t
w a r d m y t h i s e q u a l l y w e l l k n o w n : h i s p r e c e p t t o T i m o t h y is S u p p e r ). O n e m a y t h e r e f o r e d i s c e r n , n o t a b l y in t h e c o n c e p ­
t o " h a v e n o t h i n g t o d o w i t h t h o s e g o d l e s s m y t h s , f it o n l y f o r tio n o f s a c r a m e n t a l p r a c tic e a s a r e a c tiv a tio n o f th e fo u n d in g
o l d w o m e n " (1 T i m . 4 . 7 ) , t o w a m t h e E p h e s i a n s " t o g i v e u p e l e m e n t s , a p h e n o m e n o n n o t w it h o u t a n a l o g y in t h e m y s ­
. . . s t u d y i n g t h o s e i n te r m i n a b le m y t h s . . . w h ic h i s s u e in t e r ie s o f t h e H e ll e n is t ic E a s t , in w h ic h t h e r itu a l r e e n a c t m e n t
m e r e s p e c u l a t i o n a n d c a n n o t m a k e k n o w n G o d 's p l a n f o r u s , o f o r ig in a l m y th s a llo w e d th e in itia te to re liv e , th ro u g h
w h i c h w o r k s t h r o u g h f a i t h " (1 T i m . 1 . 3 - 4 ) , f o r t h e t i m e w ill p a r tic ip a tio n , t h e d e s tin y o f th e d e ity . B a p tis m , fo r in s t a n c e ,
u n f o r tu n a te ly c o m e w h e n "th e y w il l s t o p t h e i r e a r s t o t h e is co n ce iv e d by S a in t Paul as a b u ria l w ith C h r is t, an
tru th a n d tu rn to m y th o lo g y " (2 T im . 4 .4 ) . H e a s k s h is o th e r a s s im ila tio n in to h is d e a th a n d r e s u r r e c t i o n , th e p r iv ile g e o f
d is c ip le T i t u s t o i n s is t t h a t th e C h r is t ia n s o f J e w is h o r ig in in p u ttin g on C h ris t as a garm en t (R o m . 6 .3 - 5 ; G a l. 3 .2 7 ) ,
C r e te n o t " le n d th e ir e a r s to Je w is h m y th s a n d c o m m a n d ­ w h e re a s Jo h a n n in e th e o lo g y s e e s a s th e e ffe c t o f th e E u c h a ­
m e n ts o f m e re ly h u m a n o r ig in s , th e w o rk o f m e n w h o tu rn r is t t h e m u t u a l d w e ll in g o f th e f a ith fu l in J e s u s a n d o f J e s u s
th e ir b a c k s u p o n th e t r u t h " (T itu s 1 .1 4 ) . T h e s e a r e th e o n ly in t h e f a ith fu l ( J o h n 6 .5 6 ) . B u t w e s h o u ld n o t l o s e s ig h t o f th e
fiv e p a s s a g e s in w h ic h t h e N e w T e s ta m e n t r e f e r s to m y th b y fa c t th a t, u n lik e m y th s , b ib lica l " t y p e s " a n d s c e n e s o f in s ti­
t h a t n a m e . T h e y c o n s i s te n t ly d e f in e a w h o lly n e g a t i v e a t ti ­ tu tio n a re re g a rd e d by C h ris tia n ity as h isto rica l e v e n ts .
t u d e . In p a r tic u la r , th e la s t t w o P a u lin e t e x ts c ite d p o s e m y th M o r e o v e r, a n y o n e w h o h e s ita te s to a d m it to th e n e c e s s a r ily
a n d t r u th a s o p p o s i t e s , s u c h t h a t a n y b e lie f in o n e c o n s t i tu t e s t e m p o r a l n a t u r e o f th is r e lig io n a n d , h e n c e , its n o n m y th ic a l
a d e n ia l o f th e o th e r . c h a r a c t e r h a s a t h is d is p o s a l s o m e e v i d e n c e to t h e c o n t r a r y .

161
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

w h ic h H .-C h . P u ech h a s b rillia n tly d e m o n s t r a t e d , n a m e ly , Jesu s, flo w s th e l iv in g w a te r th a t re v iv e s th e u n iv e rs e ,

th e c o n fro n ta tio n w ith C h ris tia n G n o s tic is m , w h ic h con ­ a c c o r d in g to th e N a a s s e n e s , th e G n o s tic s d e s c r ib e d b y H ip ­
c e iv e d tim e a s e s s e n tia lly b a d a n d s a lv a tio n a s d e liv e r a n c e p o ly tu s (Refutatio omnium Haeresium 5 .9 , 1 9 ). T h is d o u b le
fro m tim e : b y th u s s e v e r in g C h r is tia n ity fro m a n y te m p o r a l k in s h ip o f th e c h r is to lo g y o f th e N e w T e s ta m e n t w ith a p o c ­
and h is to r ic a l p e r s p e c t iv e , G n o s ti c i s m , u n lik e th e C h u r c h , a ly p tic a n d G n o s is s e e m s to B u ltm a n n to b e th e v e r y s ig n a ­
f u l ly e m b r a c e d m y t h . t u r e o f its m y th o lo g ic a l n a tu r e .
S u c h c o s m o lo g ic a l a n d re lig io u s r e p r e s e n ta t io n s b e lo n g to
II. New Testament M ythology and D em ythologization th e ir o w n tim e ; w e c a n n o t e x p e c t to d a y 's b e lie v e r to h o ld
T h i s is n o t t o say th a t e a rly C h ris tia n ity is fr e e o f a n y th e m t o b e t r u e ; e v e n if h e w i s h e d t o d o s o , h e w o u l d n o t
m y t h i c a l f a c t o r , h o w e v e r s t e e p e d in h i s t o r y it is s u p p o s e d t o w illin g ly c h o o s e a d e f u n c t i m a g e o f th e w o r l d . S im ila rly , th e
b e . T h e r e is c o n v i n c i n g e v i d e n c e t o t h a t e f f e c t in t h e N e w tru th o f C h r is tia n p re a c h in g is to be fo u n d n o t in th e se
T e s t a m e n t its e lf , d e s p i t e th e d e n ia ls w e h a v e m e n t io n e d . F o r m y t h o l o g i e s b u t i n t h e f a c t t h a t it i s f u n d a m e n t a l l y a kerygma,
th e s a k e o f c o n t in u i ty , le t u s r e t u r n to th e e x a m p le g iv e n a p e r s o n a l m e s s a g e to th e h u m a n c o n s c i e n c e , a u n iv e rs a lis t
a b o v e w i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e O l d T e s t a m e n t . T h e r e is l i t t le d o u b t c h a lle n g e w h ic h c a n n o t b e c o m p r o m is e d b y th e n e c e s s a r ily
t h a t m y t h s o f w a t e r lie i n t h e b a c k g r o u n d o f t h e G o s p e l s . c o n tin g e n t a n d now o u t g r o w n c u l t u r a l c o n t e x t i n w h i c h it
T hus, th e scen e d e sc rib e d in th e s y n o p tic G o s p e ls (M a rk w a s h e a r d . T h i s is t h e d e f i n i t i o n o f kerygma th a t B u ltm a n n
4 . 3 5 - 4 1 , e t c .) w h e n J e s u s q u e lls th e s to r m on Lake G en n e- f in d s f o r m u la t e d p r e c is e ly in P a u l's s t a t e m e n t t o t h e C o r i n ­
s a re t m u s t b e v ie w e d a s y e t a n o th e r e p is o d e o f th e s tru g g le th ia n s : " O n ly b y d e c la r in g th e tru th o p e n ly d o w e r e c o m ­
b e tw e e n G od and th e p r im o rd ia l o c e a n , w h ic h p e r s i s t s in m e n d o u r s e l v e s , a n d t h e n it i s t o t h e c o m m o n c o n s c i e n c e o f
r e b e l l i n g d e s p i t e i ts d e f e a t . In t h e f o u r t h G o s p e l , t h e m o s t o u r f e llo w m e n a n d in t h e s ig h t o f G o d " (2 C o r . 4 .2 ) . W e m u s t
l e v e l - h e a d e d e x e g e t e s , s u c h a s A . J a u b e r t , 13 d e t e c t s e v e r a l n o t, h o w e v e r , d e n y th a t m y th o lo g ic a l s ta t e m e n ts h a v e a n y
fa irly w e ll d e v e lo p e d re fe re n c e s to th e o r ig in a l m y th ic a l fu n c tio n , fo r th e y d o c o n ta in a m e a n in g , w h ic h th e y a lso
w a te r. The sam e w o u ld a p p ly to th e w a te r flo w in g fro m h i d e , t h a t is d e e p e r t h a n th e y a r e th e m s e lv e s . T o d is c o v e r
J e s u s ' s id e o n th e C r o s s (Jo h n 1 9 .3 4 ) , a n d e s p e c ia lly to th e th is m e a n in g , we m ust a c c o m p lis h th e w o rk fo r w h ic h
id e a o f “ liv in g w a t e r " m e n tio n e d in t h e d i a l o g u e w i t h t h e B u ltm a n n c o in e d a w o rd th a t has s in c e th e n com e in to
S a m a r i t a n w o m a n ( J o h n 4 . 6 - 1 5 ) a n d in C h r i s t ' s c o m p a r i n g g e n e r a l u s a g e : " d e m y t h o l o g i z a t i o n " ( Entmythologisierung).
th e g ift o f th e H o ly S p ir it to th e s tr e a m s o f liv in g w a te r T h e ap p ro p ria te fu n ctio n o f m y th o lo g y in g e n e r a l i s t o
flo w in g o u t fro m w ith in h im (Jo h n 7 . 3 7 - 3 9 ) . b rin g d iv in e r e a lity d o w n to th e h u m a n le v e l, a n d to e n d o w
In t h e 1 9 5 0 s t h e s u r v i v i n g m y t h i c a l e l e m e n t s i n t h e N e w tr a n s c e n d e n t s u b je c tiv ity w ith " w o r l d l y " o b je c tiv ity . A c c o r d ­
T e s ta m e n t w e re b ro u g h t to lig h t by th e b rillia n t e x e g e t e in g to B u l t m a n n 's f a m o u s d e f in itio n , " t h e m o d e o f r e p r e s e n ­
R u d o lp h B u ltm a n n in a s e rie s of re m a rk a b le sch o la rly ta tio n in w h ic h th e n o n w o r l d l y , th e d i v i n e , a p p e a r s w o r ld ly
w o r k s . 14 B u l t m a n n d i s c o v e r e d m a n y m y t h o l o g i c a l e l e m e n t s and hum an, th e beyond as th e h ere b e lo w , is m y th o ­
( h e p r e f e r r e d “ m y t h o l o g i c a l " t o " m y t h i c a l " ) in t h e t e a c h i n g l o g i c a l . " 13 F u r t h e r m o r e , t h i s m i s c o n s t r u c t i o n t h r o u g h m y t h o l ­
o f C h r i s t . A m o n g t h e m is t h e c o n c e p t i o n o f t h e " K i n g d o m o f o g y is m o r e o r l e s s t h e l o t o f a ll r e l i g i o n , w h i c h , i n i ts a t t e m p t
G o d " a s a n e s c h a to lo g ic a l re a lity a b o u t to c o m e . " T h e r e a r e to e x p r e s s th e d iv in e , c a n o n ly re s o rt to a la n g u a g e a n d c a t­
s o m e o f t h o s e s t a n d i n g h e r e w h o w ill n o t t a s t e d e a t h b e f o r e e g o r i e s t h a t a r e i n c a p a b l e o f e x p r e s s i n g i t. J . S p e r n a W e i l a n d 16
t h e y h a v e s e e n t h e K i n g d o m o f G o d a l r e a d y c o m e in p o w e r , " r i g h t l y b e l i e v e s t h a t B u l t m a n n is r e i t e r a t i n g in h i s o w n w a y
s a id J e s u s ( M a r k 9 .1 ) , a n d S a in t P a u l w a s c o n v i n c e d h e w a s th e ra tio n a lis t c r itic is m w h i c h , in t h e e a r l y s t a g e s o f G r e e k
a m o n g th o se w h o m t h e c o m i n g o f t h e L o r d w o u l d f i n d s till th o u g h t, d e n o u n c e d th e a n th r o p o m o r p h ic th e o lo g y o f th e
liv in g (1 C o r. 1 5 .5 1 - 5 2 ; 1 T h ess. 4 .1 5 - 1 7 ) . O th e r s im ila r p o e ts . T h e ta s k o f d e m y th o lo g iz a tio n m u s t th e r e f o r e b e to
d e p ic tio n s in c lu d e th e s p littin g u p o f th e u n iv e r s e in to th r e e id e n tify b e h in d th e screen of an o u td a te d c o s m o lo g y th e
s to re y s (w h ich e x p l a i n s C h r i s t 's d e s c e n t i n to h e ll a n d h is r e l i g i o u s i n t e n t i o n f r o m w h i c h it e m e r g e d . F o r s c i e n c e , it is
a s ce n sio n in to h e a v e n ; s e e A c ts 1 . 9 - 1 1 , E p h . 4 .9 - 1 0 ), th e a b s u r d t o s p e a k o f a t o p a n d a b o t t o m o f t h e u n i v e r s e ; b u t if
b e l i e f in m ira cle s a n d in th e in te rv e n tio n o f s u p e rn a tu ra l t h e b i b l i c a l a s s e r t i o n t h a t G o d r e s i d e s i n h e a v e n is d e v o i d o f
fo rc e s , th e id e a th a t S a ta n a n d th e d e m o n s ru le th e w o rld im m e d ia te m e a n in g , it d o e s endeavor to tra n s la te d iv in e
and m e n 's s o u ls, a n d so fo rth . A ll t h e s e c o n c e p t i o n s a r e t r a n s c e n d e n c e in d ir e c tly . S im ila rly , to s it u a te h e ll u n d e r th e
th o u g h t to be m y th o lo g ic a l in s o fa r as th e y d iffe r fro m e a r t h is a w a y o f d e p ic t in g th e t e r r if y in g c h a r a c t e r o f e v il, a n d
s c ie n tific c o n c e p t i o n s . s o f o r t h . If t h e i m a g e o f " h e a v e n " t h u s s e r v e s a s t h e s p a t i a l
N o l e s s m y t h o l o g i c a l , in B u l t m a n n ' s e y e s , is t h e p i c t u r e e x p r e s s i o n o f G o d 's t r a n s c e n d e n c e , t h e n t h e i d e a o f t h e " e n d
th a t th e e a rly C h r is tia n c o m m u n i ty had o f its f o u n d e r . A t o f t h e w o r l d " is i t s t e m p o r a l e x p r e s s i o n . B e h i n d t h e a p p a r e n t
i s s u e a r e n o t m i r a c l e s l ik e v i r g i n b i r t h b u t t w o m a j o r i m a g e s c o n te n t o f e s c h a to lo g ic a l p re a c h in g c a n b e h e a rd a n e x h o r ­
a p p l i e d t o J e s u s . F i r s t , h e is p r o c l a i m e d t h e " S o n o f M a n " ta tio n to th e a v a ila b ility by w h ic h hum an b e in g s open
w h o a t th e e n d o f t i m e is s u p p o s e d to c o m e b a ck o n th e th e m s e lv e s u p to th e fu tu re o f G o d . N e w T e s ta m e n t m y th o l­
c l o u d s o f h e a v e n t o j u d g e t h e w o r l d in a t h u n d e r o u s c o s m i c o g y a ls o s p e a k s to h u m a n b e in g s a b o u t th e m s e lv e s . A s w e
b la z e (s e e fo r in s ta n c e M a tt. 2 5 . 3 1 - 3 2 ; T h e s s . 4 . 1 6 - 1 7 ; 2 P e t. h a v e s e e n , t h e f u n c t i o n o f t h e c o s m o l o g i c a l m y t h is n o t t o
3 . 1 0 - 1 2 ) . B u t t h i s is a t i t l e , u s a g e , a n d s e t t i n g t h a t a r e u s u a l d e fin e a n o b je c tiv e i m a g e o f th e u n iv e r s e b u t to s h e d lig h t o n
in l a t e J e w i s h a p o c a l y p t i c , a s is s e e n , f o r e x a m p l e , i n t h e t h e d i v i n e n a t u r e ; i t s f u n c t i o n is a l s o t o r e v e a l t h e w a y in
B o o k o f D a n i e l ( 7 . 1 3 - 1 4 ) . S e c o n d , J e s u s is p r e s e n t e d a s t h e w h ic h p e o p le e x p e rie n c e th e ir c o n d itio n in th e w o r l d — in
p r e e x is tin g S o n o f G o d w h o a b a n d o n s th e d iv in e p le r o m a , o th e r w o r d s , to e x p r e s s a c e rta in u n d e r s ta n d in g o f h u m a n
b eco m es m an, d escen d s on e a rth by b re a k in g dow n th e e x i s t e n c e . T h i s is a n e x i s t e n t i a l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , a n d B u l t m a n n
d iv id in g w a ll, a c c o m p li s h e s h is m is s io n o f r e c o n c il ia t i o n a n d d o e s n o t a t t e m p t t o c o n c e a l t h e f a c t t h a t h e h a s b o r r o w e d it
s a l v a t i o n , a n d f i n a ll y r e a s c e n d s i n t o h e a v e n . T h o s e a r e t h e fro m H e id e g g e r .
c a te g o r i e s o f P a u lin e c h r is to lo g y ( f o r e x a m p l e , E p h . 2 . 1 3 - 1 6 ; T h e s e th e s e s o f B u ltm a n n o n d e m y th o lo g iz a tio n a n d i ts
C o l. 1 .1 3 -2 2 an d 2 .9 - 1 5 ) a n d Jo h a n n in e c h r is to lo g y (Jo h n p re m ise s have aw akened c o n sid e ra b le in te re s t and w on
1 . 1 - 1 8 ) . B u t th e y a r e a ls o th e c a te g o r ie s o f th e G n o s tic m y th m a n y d i s c i p l e s . I t m a t t e r s l i t t le t h a t s o m e o f t h e m , l ik e R . A .
o f t h e p r i m o r d i a l m a n w h o is a s a v i o r ; f r o m h i m t o o , a s f r o m J o h n s o n , 17 h a v e t e m p e r e d t h e o r i g i n a l i t y o f h i s p o s i t i o n s b y

162
 T H E S U R V I V A L
demonstrating the philosophical roots and historical antici­
pations of Entmythologisierung. But Bultmann's arguments
have also met with much resistance. More recently, the
religionsgeschichtliche perspective adopted by Bultmann—that
the preexisting Son of God was a category predating Pauline
christology, which then borrowed it—has been strongly and
cogently criticized by M. Hengel.18 But it was not the
assertion of the presence of mythical elements in the New
Testament that upset exegetical scholars. H. Schlier,19 who is
not a Bultmann exponent, has no difficulty in recognizing
the double influence of Jewish apocalyptic and the Gnostic
primordial man, to which he even adds the influence of
Hellenistic mysteries; but this triple concession is clearly
equivalent to abandoning to myth a considerable portion of
the Gospels and the Epistles. No, what is really disturbing is
that Bultmann does not contain mythology within any limits,
however broad, but rather absorbs into it everything in the
New Testament that is not specifically kerygmatic. Thus O.
Cullmann, in an important book,20 first endorses the way
Bultmann applies demythologization to the entire history of
salvation and not just to its extremities. But later he begins to
fear that this history, in which we can see the essence of early
Christianity, may be totally dissolved in the process.21 We
should add to this major objection our own sense of the
importance of the notion of an irreversible unfolding of time
in the definition of Christian reality. The same challenge is
expressed, sometimes colored by confessional preoccupa­
tions, by L. Malevez22 and R. Marié,23 the latter with the
additional interest of having prompted a response from
Bultmann himself.24 The controversy is probably not over,
but Bultmann's contribution thus far has been to draw
attention, more than anyone else before him, to the reality of
a mythical component in the New Testament. We can and
must discuss the dimensions of this component; we can no
longer deny its existence.
The good shepherd. Rome, catacombs.
OF M Y T H S IN E A R L Y C H R I S T I A N I T Y
L itu r g y
I. M yths o f Water in B aptism
It is widely recognized that the mythical function of
consciousness operates even more freely in liturgical practice
than in literature or in the realm of speculation. G. P.
Zacharias25 has shown that Christian liturgy is an excellent
testing ground for Jung's analyses of the workings of the
psyche. Mythical elements could probably be detected be­
hind many liturgical gestures or formulas of early Christian­
ity. To avoid spreading ourselves too thin, we shall focus on
two fairly representative examples, the first one connected to
the Jewish myth (mentioned earlier) of the primordial ocean
as the enemy of god.
Baptism, as it is practiced in the New Testament (for
example, Matt. 3.13-16: the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan
River; Acts 8.38-39: the baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch),
involves descending into water and rising out of it. Pauline
theology (Rom. 6 .3 -9 ) sees baptism as a double assimilation,
first to the death and burial of Christ, then to his resurrection
and his victory over death. The two pairs of acts can be
perceived as parallel: the baptismal candidate both immerses
himself in, and escapes from, a mythical water, a sea of
death.
Two observations support this contention. First, in the
earliest form of Christianity there is a connection between
baptism and Christ's descent into hell immediately after his
death. According to the Jewish cosmology that was still
powerful at that time, to go underground among the dead
leads to the realm of the original Ocean. Second, the theol­
ogy and liturgy of the first centuries a .d . claimed to discern
figurative interpretations or “types" of baptism in episodes
in the Old Testament. Among these, the three principal ones
were the flood (Gen. 6 -8 ), the crossing of the Red Sea by the
Israelites in the flight from Egypt (Exod. 14.15-31), and the
crossing of the Jordan into the Promised Land (Josh. 3.9-17).
We can see that all three of these accounts illustrate the
confrontation between the primordial ocean and Yahweh,
and the latter's victory over the former. We are led to
conclude that baptism too, in the unfolding of its ritual, is
regarded as the last skirmish in this mythical struggle, which
is as old as history. In the liturgical and doctrinal texts of the
patristic era, numerous indices can be found of this conjunc­
tion of baptism with the descensus ad inferos and the three
episodes in the Old Testament; they have been admirably
collected by P. Lundberg.26 But we must also realize that the
New Testament bears witness to the same phenomenon. The
first Epistle to the Corinthians (10.1-2) is a clear example:
"O ur ancestors were all under the pillar of cloud, and all of
them passed through the Red Sea; and so they all received
baptism into the fellowship of Moses in cloud and sea." The
first Epistle of Peter (3.19-21) is more obscure; but in these
few lines we can recognize the descent into hell, the flood,
and baptism: "In the spirit he [Christ] went and made his
proclamation to the imprisoned spirits. They had refused
obedience long ago, while God waited patiently in the days
of Noah and the building of the ark, and in the ark a few
persons, eight in all, were brought to safety through the
water. It is the 'antitype' of this water, baptism, that now will
save you too."
II. O rientation and S olar M yths
Early Christians prayed facing east, where the sun rises.
This differs from the custom of the Jews, who pray facing
Jerusalem, as Daniel does in the biblical book that bears his
name (6.11); so important is this difference that Elkesai, the
163
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N
Orpheus Christ. Sabbartha alabaster. Tripoli Museum. Photo
Baudot-Lamotte.
founder of a Judeo-Christian sect, dissociated himself from
Christianity bv prescribing that his followers face Jerusalem
and forbidding them to face east. The Scriptures contain
many details confirming each in its own way the special
position of the east: the earthly paradise was planted "to the
east" (Gen. 2.8); it is believed that Christ's ascension took an
eastward course, for the Latin version of Psalm 68 (67), verse
34, applies to the Lord the phrase qui ascendit super caelum
caeli ad orientem ("who ascended above heaven, to the east of
heaven"), and his return is also expected to come from the
east; the angel in the Revelation of John (7.2) rises out of the
east, and so forth.
These coincidences result not from mere chance but from
the early assimilation of Christ to the sun, in particular the
rising sun. The classical work on this subject remains that of
F. J. Dolger.2' Already in the hymn of Zachariah (Luke
1.78-79), Jesus is called "the morning sun from heaven
[who] will rise upon us, to shine on those who live in
darkness, under the cloud of death." This has the ring of a
prophetic naming of Christ as the "sun of righteousness"
referred to in Mala chi (4.2); Tertullian summarizes an entire
past and future tradition when he writes (Adversus Valentin-
ianes 3.1): orientem. Christi figuram ("the east, the figure of
Christ"). The metaphor was already well implanted when, at
164
ERA
the end of the third century', it became even more firmly
rooted and was used to thwart the cult of Sol invictus
imposed by the Emperor Aurelian. Thus, the pagan festival
of the dies natalis Solis invicti ("the day of the birth of the
unvanquished Sun"), celebrated on 25 December when the
exhausted sun is reborn, made way for the nativity of the
solar Christ.
One can understand how such grandiose imagery could
not work its way into early' Christianity without bringing in
with it a fringe of mythical cosmology7. Here again, it may be
in certain details of the liturgy and worship that the contam­
ination can most easily be identified. For example, in the
ritual of baptism, between the renunciation of the devil and
the profession of faith in Christ, the catechumen would
suddenly7 turn around, pivoting from west to east; for the
west was taken to be the realm of darkness ruled by the
Prince of Darkness, and so the baptismal candidate looked in
that direction to repudiate Satan, but he turned to face east at
the moment he joined Christ. This ceremonial detail, com­
mented upon by7 several ancient authors and also studied by'
F. J. Dölger,28 may7 certainly7be regarded as a vehicle of the
mythical mentality'. On the other hand, as J. A. Jungmann29
has demonstrated, the depiction of the solar Christ required
an eastward orientation not only for prayer but, conse­
quently', for church building and even for the layout of
cemeteries; Greek and Roman temples also faced east. It was
finally concluded that this orientation of the church, when
added to that of the Christians inside, made it difficult both
for the congregation and for the celebrant to position them­
selves. As a result, starting in the fourth century', church
builders turned the apse rather than the facade of the church
toward the east, probably without aw'areness of the ancient
images that prompted these architectural concerns from afar.
J.P./g.h.
NOTES
1. h. a . Wolfso n , Philo: Foundations of Religious Philosophy in
Judaism. Christianity and Islam (Cambridge, MA, 1948), 1:82-84 and
124.
2. j. DANŒLOL, Philon d'Alexandrie, Les Temps et les Destins (Paris
1958), 107-10.
3. G. De l lin g , "VVunder-AUegorie-Mythus bei Philon von Alexan-
dreia," Wissenschaftliche Zeitschrift der Martin-Luther—Unir. Halle—
Wittenberg, Gesellschafts- und Sprachwiss. Reihe, 6 (1956-57):
727ff., and 737ff., n. 139ff. The article is reprinted in Gottes ist der
Orient. Festschrift für O. Eissfeldt (Berlin 1959).
4. i. rem, "Remarques sur la théorie de l'exégèse allégorique chez
Philon," in Philon d'Alexandrie. Actes du colloque de Lyon de 1966
(Paris 1967), 143-46.
5. P. HELVBCH, Der Einfluss Philos auf die älteste christliche Exegese
(Barnabas, Justin und Clemens von Alexandriai, Alttestamentl. Abhan­
dlungen, 1 , 1 - 2 (Münster 1908).
6. j. d an œ lo l , "La démythisation dans l'école d'Alexandrie," in
E. Castelli, ed., /2 Problema della demitizzazione. Archivio di Filosofia
(Rome 1961), 45-49.
7. h . Gun kel , Schöpfung und Chaos in Urzeit und Endzeit: Eine
religionsgeschichtliche Untersuchung über Gen 1 und Ap Joh 12 (Göttin­
gen 1895).
8. a . HHDEL, The Babylonian Genesis: The Story of Creation (2d ed.,
Chicago 1951); The Gilgamesh Epic and Old Testament Parallels (2d ed.,
Chicago 1949).
9. E. o. James, Myth and Ritual in the Ancient Near East (London
1958).
10. PH. REYMOND, L'eau, sa vie et sa signification dans l'Ancien
Testament. Supplements to Vetus Testamentum 6 (Leiden 1958), 123-
24, 182-98.
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND P A G A N M Y T H O L O G Y

11. H.-CH. i’u ec h , "Temps, histoire et mythe dans le christianisme
des premiers siècles," in C. J. Bleeker et al., eds.. Proceedings of the 7th
Congress for the History of Religions (Amsterdam 1951), 33-52.
12. |. pépin , "Le temps et le mythe," Les études philosophiques 17
(1962): 55-68, reprinted in Mythe et allégorie: Les origines grecques et les
contestations judéo-chrétiennes (2d ed., Paris 1976), 503-16.
13. a . ia u ber t , Approches de l'Évangile de Jean, Parole de Dieu (Paris
1976), 58-63, 140-46. See also c. h. dodd. The Interpretation of the
Fourth Gospel (2d ed., Cambridge 1970).
14. R. bultm an n , "New Testament and Mythology," in H. W.
Bartsch, ed., Kcrygtna and Myth (London 1953), 1-44; "Zum Problem
der Entmythologisierung," in H. W. Bartsch, ed., Kerygma und
Mythos (Hamburg 1952), 2:177-208; Jesus Christ and Mythology (New
York 1958); "Zum Problem der Entmythologisierung" (bis), in
Glauben und Verstehen (Tiibingen 1965), 4:128-37. These are the
principal works of R. Bultmann on New Testament myth.
15. bultm ann , "New Testament and Mythology."
16. i. spi RNA w eila n d , "La théologie de la démythisation est-elle une
idéologie?" in E. Castelli, ed., Démythisation et idéologie (Paris 1973),
180.
17. r . a . IOHNSON, The Origins of Demythologizing: Philosophy and
Historiography in the Theology of Rudolf Bultmann, Studies in the
History of Religions 28 (Leiden 1974).
18. M. NENCEL, Der Sohn Gottes: Die Entstehung der Christologie und die
jüdisch-hellenistische Religionsgeschichte (2d ed., Tübingen 1977), 32-
93; English translation. The Son of God (Philadelphia, 1st ed. 1975).
19. n. s c h lie r , Essais sur le Nouveau Testament, Lectio divina, 46
(Paris 1968), chap. 5, pp. 97-112: "Le Nouveau Testament et le
mythe."
20. o . c u l i .m ann , Christ and Time: The Primitive Christian Conception
of Time and History (rev. ed., Philadelphia 1964), "The Connections
between History and Prophecy."
21. o. cui.LMANN, "Le mythe dans les écrits du Nouveau Testa­
ment," in K. Barth et al., Comprendre Bultmann: Un dossier (Paris
1970), 15-31.
22. L. m a lev ez , Le message chrétien et le mythe: La théologie de Rudolf
Bultmann. Museum Lessianum, section théol., 51 (Brusselsand Paris
1954).
23. R. m a r lé , Bultmann et l'interprétation du Nouveau Testament,
Théologie, 33 (Paris 1956).
24. r. bultm an n , "In eigener Sache," in Glauben und Verstehen
(Tübingen 1960).
25. g . p. Za c h a r ia s , Psyche und Mysterium: Die Bedeutung der
Psychologie C. G. Jungs für die christliche Theologie und Liturgie. Studien
aus dem C. G. Jung-Institut, Zürich, 5 (Zurich 1954).
26. p. lundberg , La typologie baptismale dans l'ancienne Église, Acta
Seminarii Neotestam, Upsaliensis, 10 (Leipzig and Uppsala 1942);
see also |. d a n ie lo u . Bible et liturgie: La théologie biblique des sacrements
et des fêtes d'après les Pères de l'Église, Lex orandi, 11 (Paris 1951),
97-155.
27. F. |. DOLGER, Sol salutis: Gebet und Gesang im christlichen Altertum,
Liturgiegeschichtliche Forschungen, 4 -5 (Münster 1925).
28. F. i. DOLGER, Die Sonne der Gerechtigkeit und der Schwarze: Eine
religionsgeschichtliche Studie zum Taufgelöbnis. Liturgiegeschichtliche
Forschungen, 2 (Münster 1918).
29. i. a . iu n gm a nn , The Early Liturgy, to the Time of Gregory the Great
(South Bend, IN, 1959).

T h i s c l e a v a g e is n o d o u b t d u e t o s e v e r a l c i r c u m s t a n c e s : t h e
C h ristia n J u d g m en ts on t h e A n a lo g ies d i v e r s i t y o f t e m p e r a m e n t s , w h i c h is t h e f i r s t t h i n g o n e t h i n k s

bet w een C h r ist ia n ity a n d P a g an M yt h o l o g y o f , w a s n o t a l l-d e te r m in in g ; o n e s h o u ld a ls o ta k e in to c o n ­

s id e ra tio n th e h isto rica l s itu a tio n as w e ll as p o litic a l a n d
s o c ia l c o n d itio n s . M in d s te n d e d in d iffe re n t d ir e c tio n s a s
p e r s e c u tio n b e c a m e rife , o r a s t o l e r a n c e r e i g n e d , o r a s th e
I. The Problem
C h ris tia n e m p ire triu m p h e d . For w h a te v e r re a s o n s , th is
1. Insertions and dissimilarities. W hen n a s c e n t C h ris tia n ity d u a l i t y o f a t t i t u d e s is u n d e n i a b l e , t h o u g h s o m e d e f e n d o n e
h a d to d e f i n e its e lf in t h e f a c e o f G r e e k c u l t u r e , e s p e c i a ll y o f o r t h e o t h e r p o s itio n w h ile m a n y h e s ita te b e t w e e n th e t w o o r
pagan th e o lo g y , it h e s ita te d b e tw e e n tw o c o n tra ry re­ t e m p e r th e o n e w ith th e o th e r .
sp o n ses. A s A . J. F e s tu g iè re h a s d e m o n s t r a t e d , *1 b o t h re­ In th e p a g e s w h ic h f o llo w w e s h a ll a p p ly t h is s c h e m a to a
s p o n s e s w e r e o f f e r e d b y th e a p o s t le P a u l. In h is A t h e n ia n p a r tic u la r p ro b le m — th e e x is te n c e a n d im p o rt o f c h a r a c te r is ­
d isco u rse , of w h ic h th e A c ts of th e A p o s tle s ( 1 7 .1 6 -3 4 ) t ic s c o m m o n t o C h r is t ia n i ty a n d to p r e c e d i n g th e o l o g ie s . T h e
d e s c rib e s th e s e ttin g a n d p r e s e r v e s th e o u tlin e , P au l m a n ip ­ in tr a n s ig e n t a ttitu d e w o u ld be to deny, in th e nam e of
u la te d th e lan g u ag e an d id e a s o f th e p h ilo s o p h e r s o f th e C h ris tia n tra n sce n d e n ce , th e very fa c t o f s u c h a n a lo g ie s ;
tim e , w ho w ere h is lis te n e r s , and show ed how th e new T e rtu llia n , fo r e x a m p le , is c o n te n t to c o n tra st th e p u rity
r e l i g i o n h a d c o m e t o fu lfill t h e i r e x p e c t a t i o n s : t h e p l a c e t h a t a s s o c ia te d w ith th e v irg in b irth o f th e Son of G od to th e
p a g a n is m h e ld v a c a n t fo r th e " u n k n o w n g o d " w a s c la im e d s q u a l o r in w h ic h t h e s o n s o f J u p i t e r w e r e b o r n : " T h e S o n o f
fo r th e C h ris tia n s ' G o d , w h o m P au l in tr o d u c e d b y le a n in g G o d w a s n o t b o r n in s u c h a w a y t h a t h e h a d to b lu s h a t th e
h e a v ily o n S to ic s te r e o ty p e s . B u t th is a t te m p t a t h a r m o n i z a ­ n a m e o f s o n o r a t h is p a te r n a l lin e a g e ; h e d id n o t h a v e to
tio n e n d e d in a l m o s t t o ta l f a ilu r e ; s o w h e n P a u l le ft A t h e n s s u b m it to th e a f f r o n t, th ro u g h in c e s t w ith a s is te r o r th e
fo r C o rin th , he ch o se a q u ite d iffe re n t m e th o d , w h ic h is d e b a u c h i n g o f a d a u g h t e r o r o f a n o t h e r m a n 's w if e , o f h a v i n g
echoed in t h e b e g i n n in g o f t h e F i r s t E p is tle t o t h e C o r i n ­ a d iv in e f a th e r c o v e r e d w ith s c a l e s , h o r n e d o r f e a t h e r e d , o r
t h i a n s ( 1 . 1 7 - 2 5 ; 2 . 1 - 5 ) . N o l o n g e r i s t h e r e a n y a t t e m p t t o fit c h a n g e d i n t o a s h o w e r o f g o l d l ik e t h e l o v e r o f D a n a ë . T h e
th e new re lig io n in to a c o n tin u ity w ith pagan th e o lo g y ; h u m a n i n f a m ie s t h a t y o u c o m m i t a r e J u p i t e r 's in f a m ie s ! B u t
in s te a d , p a g a n e a r th ly w is d o m and pagan lo g ic a l a n d rh e ­ th e S o n of G od does not have a m o th e r a s th e re s u lt o f
to ric a l k n o w le d g e a r e b ru ta lly c o n f r o n t e d w ith th e s c a n d a l o f u n c h a s tity ; a n d e v e n th e m o th e r th a t y o u s e e h im to h a v e
th e G o s p e l a n d t h e fo lly o f t h e C r o s s . w as n o t m a rrie d " (Apologeticus 2 1 .7 - 9 ).
It c a n b e c la im e d , w ith o u t e x a g g e r a tio n , th a t th is tw o - C o n t r a r y t o w h a t o n e m i g h t e x p e c t , h o w e v e r , s u c h a fla t
s i d e d a p p r o a c h in P a u l i n e p r e a c h i n g g a v e r i s e t o t w o o p p o s ­ re fu sa l is not th e p re v a ilin g a ttitu d e am ong th e F a th e rs .
in g c u r re n ts w h ic h ru n th ro u g h th e w h o le of C h ris tia n M o r e o f te n , th e y a d m it th a t c e rta in in te r s e c tio n s a r e p o s sib le
h isto ry . T h e s e a r e re c o g n iz a b le fro m th e tim e o f th e C h u r c h b e tw e e n th e g o d s a n d h e ro e s o f p a g a n ism (in c lu d in g th e ir
F a t h e r s ; c e r ta in a u t h o r s s tr iv e to p r e s e n t th e ir b e lie f a s th e m y th s a n d c e re m o n ie s ) o n th e o n e h a n d , a n d th e fig u re s a n d
re a liz a tio n o f w h a t w a s b e s t in p a g a n t h e o lo g y , w h ile o t h e r s , e v e n t s o f b i b l i c a l h i s t o r y ( i n c l u d i n g C h r i s t i a n b e l i e f s a n d l if e )
b y c o n tra st, a c ce n tu a te th e a n ta g o n ism b e tw e e n th e tw o . on th e o th e r. T h e y a re le d to m a k e s u c h a c o n ce s sio n fo r

165
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

v a r ie d r e a s o n s : fo r o n e , th e ir p a g a n a d v e r s a r i e s , a s w e sh a ll s la y in g th e N e m e a n l io n , s in c e th is h a s a h o m o l o g y in th e
s e e m o r e t h a n o n c e in t h i s c o n t e x t , h a d d r a w n t h e i r a t t e n t i o n b io g ra p h y o f S a m s o n (Ju d g es 1 4 .5 - 6 ). M e d ie v a l s c u lp tu re
to m a n y o f th e s e s im ila ritie s , a n d it w a s s a f e r t o a d m i t t o w o u l d s im ila r ly m e t a m o r p h o s e H e r a c l e s i n to S a in t C h r is t o ­
th e m in o r d e r t o d e f u s e t h e m th an to c lo s e o n e 's e y e s to p h e r a n d H e r a c le s s la y in g G e r y o n in to S a in t G e o r g e s la y in g
th e m . In d e e d , th e u s e s to w h ic h th e C h ris tia n s p u t th e s e th e d r a g o n . O n th e m e d ie v a l C h ris tia n iz a tio n o f H e ra c le s ,
i n te r s e c tio n s w ith p a g a n is m , th e e x p la n a tio n s th e y g iv e fo r w h ic h r e m a in s s u p e rf ic ia l t h r o u g h o u t, we m ay re fe r to a
th e m , a n d th e i m p o r ta n c e th e y a c c o r d to th e m v a r y g r e a tly , s tu d y b y M . S i m o n ,2 a n d , w ith r e s p e c t to p ic to r ia l r e p r e s e n ­
r a n g in g fro m a s im p le f ig u re o f s p e e c h to th e C h r is tia n iz a ­ ta tio n s o f H e r a c le s , a b o o k b y J. A d h é m a r .3 T h is c o n c e r n to
tio n of a pagan e le m e n t. W e m u s t a t te m p t to d is tin g u is h p r o v i d e a b ib lica l f ig u r e c o r r e s p o n d i n g to th e G re e k h ero
b e tw e e n th e s e d iffe re n t s ty le s o f c o m p a r a tiv e th o u g h t, s ta r t­ c o n tin u e s d o w n t o D a n t e : D a v i d ' s c o m b a t w i t h G o l i a t h (1
i n g fro m th e m o s t s u p e rf ic ia l, w h ic h a r e o f n o c o n s e q u e n c e , Sam uel 1 7 .4 - 5 1 ) f i n d s i ts r e p l i c a in t h a t o f H e r a c l e s w i t h
a n d p r o g r e s s in g to w a r d t h o s e w h ic h b rin g in to p la y a n e n tir e A n ta e u s (cf. O v id , Metamorphoses 9 . 1 8 3 - 8 4 ; L u can , Pharsalia
v i e w o f h i s t o r y . H e r e , t h e n , is t h e b o t t o m r u n g o f t h e l a d d e r . 4 .5 9 7 - 6 6 0 ) (D a n te , De Monarchia 2 . 9 . 1 1 ; c f . 2 .7 .1 0 , a n d Con­
vivio 3 .3 .7 - 8 ).
2. Comparisons without theological intent. A n e x a m p le o f s u ch
c o m p a r i s o n s is th e o n e th a t th e e a r l ie s t C h r is t ia n a p o l o g i s t s II. Rhetorical Uses
m ade b e tw e e n th e N oah o f G e n e sis (5 .2 9 -9 .2 9 ) and th e
1. The language of the mysteries. T h e p r e c e d in g p a ra lle ls m a y
D e u c a lio n o f c la s s ic a l m y th o lo g y (cf. a m o n g o th e r s O v id ,
b e im p u te d to m e r e r e m in is c e n c e s , n a tu r a l to a u th o r s a t th e
Metamorphoses 1 . 3 1 3 - 4 1 5 ) . It i s , in f a c t , l e s s a c o m p a r i s o n o f
c r o s s r o a d s o f t w o c u ltu ra l tr a d itio n s . O th e r s a r e m o r e p r e ­
th e se tw o fig u re s th a n th e re d u ctio n o f th e la tte r to th e
m e d i ta t e d , r e s p o n d in g to th e n e e d fe lt b y c e r ta i n C h r is t ia n
fo rm e r. T h e o p h ilu s o f A n tio c h re je c ts th e le g e n d o f D e u c a l­
a p o l o g i s t s to a d d r e s s t h e m s e l v e s to p a g a n lis te n e r s in th e
io n and P y rrh a s u rv iv in g th e flo o d and th ro w in g s to n e s
re lig io u s la n g u a g e o f p a g a n s .
b e h in d th e m , w h ic h tu rn in to m e n ; b u t h e r e ta in s th e n a m e
S u c h a d e s i g n is p e r h a p s n o w h e r e b e t t e r e x p r e s s e d t h a n a t
o f D e u c a lio n a s o n e th a t th e p a g a n s , b y m e a n s o f a b iz a rre
th e end of th e Protrepticus (1 2 .1 1 9 .1 ), w hen C le m e n t of
e ty m o lo g y , g a v e to N o a h (Ad Autolycum 3 . 1 8 - 1 9 ; s e e a lso
A le x a n d r ia a n n o u n c e s to h is p a g a n in te r lo c u to r : " C o m e . . .
2 .3 0 , a n d th e e a r lie r J u s tin M a r t y r , Second Apology 7 . 2 ) . T h is
a n d I s h a ll s h o w y o u th e W o r d a n d th e m y s te r ie s o f th e W o r d
a m o u n te d to a n a d m is s io n o f a c e rta in h o m o g e n e ity b e tw e e n
b y tra n s p o s in g y o u r o w n im ag ery (kata tên sën diêgoumenos
t h e t w o c u l t u r e s . It w o u l d b e t w o c e n t u r i e s b e f o r e C h r i s t i a n
eikona)." F o llo w in g th is re s o lu tio n , w h ic h H ugo R ah n er4
s p e c ia lis ts in c h ro n o lo g y , E u se b iu s of C a esarea and h is
r ig h tly c o n s i d e r s a n e x e m p l a r y s ta t e m e n t, C le m e n t p r e s e n ts
t r a n s l a to r J e r o m e , w o u ld d i s t in g u is h b e t w e e n th e l o c a liz e d
t h e e s s e n c e o f C h r i s t i a n i t y in t h e t e c h n i c a l l a n g u a g e o f t h e
flo o d o f D e u c a lio n a n d th e o ld e r, u n iv e r s a l flo o d o f N o a h ,
D io n y s ia n m y s te r ie s : b a p tis m a n d e u c h a r is t th u s le n d t h e m ­
w h ic h w a s c o m p le te ly u n k n o w n to p a g a n h is to ry . T h is n e w
s e l v e s t o a d e s c r i p t i o n in w h i c h t h e dadouchoi (to rc h b e a re rs ),
o u t l o o k is d e s c r i b e d a n d a d o p t e d in A u g u s t i n e 's City of God th e epoptia (su p re m e re v e la tio n ), th e in itia tio n , th e h i­
( 1 8 .8 , 1 0 ).
e r o p h a n t ( in t h i s c o n t e x t t h e L o r d ) , t h e muste (in itia te ), th e
O n o t h e r o c c a s i o n s , in th e c a s e o f C h r is t ia n a u t h o r s r a is e d
s e a l , t h e l i g h t i n g , e t c . , a ll p l a y a p a r t ( 1 2 . 1 2 0 . 1 - 2 ) . C h r i s t i a n
o n G r e e k c u l t u r e , a b ib lica l e p i s o d e s p o n ta n e o u s l y e v o k e s a
a u th o r s , fro m S a in t P au l to P s e u d o -D io n y s iu s th e A re o p a g ite
m y th ic ep iso d e , or v ic e v ersa. In an a tte m p t to s tir th e
and M a x im u s th e C o n f e s s o r (s ix th a n d s e v e n th c e n tu r ie s ),
h a rd e n e d h e a rts of th e id o la te rs , C le m e n t of A le x a n d r ia
i n d u l g e f r e e l y in t h e s e b o r r o w i n g s f r o m t h e v o c a b u l a r y a n d
c o m p a r e s th e m to N io b e ( tu r n e d in to a ro c k , cf. Iliad 2 4 .6 0 2 -
n o tio n s o f th e G re e k m y s te rie s ; th e re a d e r m a y c o n s u lt E .
1 7 ) , t h e n c a t c h e s h i m s e l f a n d , ' ' i n o r d e r t o s p e a k m o r e in t h e
H a t c h 's c la s s ic w o rk and a m o re re ce n t w o rk by A rth u r
l a n g u a g e o f o u r m y s t e r y ,'' r e p l a c e s N io b e b y L o t 's w if e ( w h o
D a rb y N o c k .5
b e c a m e a p i l l a r o f s a l t . G e n e s i s 9 . 2 6 ) ( Protrepticus 1 0 . 1 0 3 - 4 ) .
T h e re is y e t a n o t h e r w a y o f s p e a k i n g to p a g a n s in t h e
T h e p a g a n P la to n is t C e ls u s w a n te d to k e e p o n ly th e b la m e ­
l a n g u a g e o f t h e i r o w n r e l i g i o n . It c o n s i s t s in e x t r a c t i n g s o m e
w o rth y tr a its in th e s to r y of Jo sep h , an d fo rg o t th a t th is
o f th e m o r e p o p u la r e p is o d e s fro m th e m y th ic a l b io g r a p h ie s
p e r s o n p r e f e r r e d p r is o n t o th e b u r n in g p a s s i o n h is m a s te r 's
o f p a g a n g o d s o r h e r o e s , a n d t r a n s p o s i n g t h e i r m e a n i n g in
w ife h a d fo r h im (G e n e s is 3 9 . 7 - 2 0 ) ; th e C h ris tia n O r ig e n
s u c h a w a y a s to r e n d e r m o r e a c c e s s ib le a g iv e n a s p e c t o f th e
re p ro a ch e s C e ls u s fo r h is o m is s io n , w h ile th e v irtu e of
C h ris tia n m y s te ry . T h is p r o c e d u r e a s s u m e s a re c o g n itio n o n
J o s e p h r e m in d s h im o f th e q u ite a n a l o g o u s , y e t to h is e y e s
th e p a r t o f th e C h r is tia n a u t h o r s o f p a ra lle ls b e tw e e n th e ir
in fe rio r, v i r t u e a s c r i b e d t o B e lle r o p h o n ( w h o r e j e c t e d , a t th e
o w n re lig io n a n d c la s s ic a l m y th o lo g y . S u c h p a ra lle ls re m a in
p e r i l o f h i s lif e , t h e a d v a n c e s o f A n t e i a , w i f e o f h i s p r o t e c t o r
q u ite s u p e rf ic ia l, a n d th e ir m a n ip u la tio n d o e s n o t e s s e n tia lly
K in g P r o e tu s , c f. Iliad 6 . 1 5 5 - 7 0 ) ( Contra Celsum 4 .4 6 ) . S u ch
d iffe r fro m th e p o in t-f o r -p o in t c o m p a r is o n s tre a te d a b o v e .
p a ra lle ls , w h ic h to d a y c o n tin u e to s trik e u s w ith th e ir p e rti­
T h e p r o c e d u r e m a y , h o w e v e r , b e e x t e n d e d in to a r h e to ric a l
n e n c e , c a m e a u to m a tic a lly to th e m in d s o f th e C h ris tia n s o f
o r c h e s tr a t i o n , in w h ic h d if f e r e n t e p i s o d e s fr o m th e m y th o ­
A le x a n d ria , th o u g h h a rd ly a b o v e th e le v e l o f fre e a s s o c ia ­
lo g ic a l a c c o u n t t a k e o n a m e a n i n g d e t e r m in e d b y th e p r in c i­
tio n .
pal th e m e . T h is a s s e rtio n m ay be v e r ifie d in a fam o u s
A c o m p a ris o n o f th e s a m e o r d e r , d e s tin e d to e n d u r e fo r a
e x a m p le .
lo n g tim e , w a s e s ta b lis h e d b y E u se b iu s b e tw e e n H e ra cle s
and th e S am son o f th e Book of Ju d g es ( 1 3 .2 4 - 1 6 .3 1 ) ; he 2. The Christian Odysseus. A s A . W if s tr a n d 6 h a s n o t e d , th e
c l a i m e d h e c o l l e c t e d it f r o m t h e J e w i s h t r a d i t i o n . T h e c o m ­ N e w T e s t a m e n t is s ti ll q u i t e r e s t r a i n e d in i t s u s e o f exempla
p a r is o n is n a tu r a lly b a s e d o n th e p h y s ic a l s tr e n g th c o m m o n b o rro w e d fro m G re e k c u ltu re ; se co n d -ce n tu ry C h r is tia n
to b o th in d iv id u a ls , w h o w e r e , E u s e b iu s a d d s , a lm o s t c o n ­ a p o lo g is ts u s e a fe w o f th e s e , b u t m o s t o f te n w ith h o s tile
t e m p o r a r i e s , c l o s e t o t h e t i m e o f t h e fa ll o f T r o y (Chronica, i n te n t io n s . A m u c h m o r e h o s p ita b le a t ti t u d e a p p e a r s in th e
p reface, in th e tra n s la tio n by S a in t Je r o m e ; a n d a g a in in th ird c e n t u r y w ith C le m e n t o f A l e x a n d r ia — p e r h a p s b e c a u s e
Praeparatio Evangelica 1 0 .9 .7 ) . T h e a r t a n d lite r a tu r e o f th e th e G n o s tic s had, in th e m e a n tim e , ta k e n th e C h r is tia n
M id d le A ges and th e R e n a is s a n c e w o u ld p o p u la riz e th e a m a lg a m w ith G re e k m y t h o i o g y a s f a r a s it c o u l d go. W e
a n a lo g y , re ta in in g in p a rtic u la r th e e p iso d e of H e ra cle s c o u ld g o o n c itin g fo r e v e r th e r h e to r ic a l u s e s o f p a g a n is m

166
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND P A G A N M Y T H O L O G Y

m a d e b y C le m e n t a n d h is s u c c e s s o r s in o r d e r to f o r m u la te s y m b o liz e s th e C r o s s , h e n a tu r a lly s ta n d s fo r th e C ru c ifie d ,

C h ris tia n id e a s ; r a th e r, w e sh a ll ta k e a p a rtic u la r c a s e — to b u t a l s o f o r e v e r y C h r is t ia n , a n d e v e n a ll o f h u m a n it y ; h is
w it, th e l e g e n d o f O d y s s e u s a n d th e S ire n s — a n d fo llo w it c o m p a n io n s e v o k e th e m o re d is ta n t a d e p ts w h o n e v e rth e le s s
th r o u g h p a rt o f th e tra d itio n . T h is to o h a s b e e n m a s te rf u lly a r e w ith in th e s h a d o w o f th e C r o s s , s u c h a s th e p e n ite n t
s tu d ie d b y H u g o R a h n e r ,7 a s w e ll a s b y P. C o u r c e ll e * a n d t h ie f : fin a lly , e v e n t h e w a x s tu c k i n to t h e ir e a r s is g i v e n a
J é r ô m e C a r c o p in o .9 m e a n i n g — it i s t h e S c r i p t u r e s . In th is d e ta ile d p a ra lle lin g ,
S h o rtly b efo re th e p assage we ju st e x a m in e d on th e M a x i m u s c a p i t a li z e s o n n e a r l y a ll o f t h e c o n t r ib u t io n s o f h is
re e m p lo y m e n t o f th e l a n g u a g e o f th e m y s te r ie s , C le m e n t o f p r e d e c e s s o r s ; h is p e r s o n a l a p p e tite fo r r h e to r ic m a k e s h im
A le x a n d ria evokes th e fa m o u s e p iso d e o f O d y s s e u s ’s e n ­ th e id e a l r e p r e s e n ta t iv e o f th is m o d e o f u s i n g m y th s . U n lik e
c o u n t e r w i t h t h e S i r e n s a n d w i t h C h a r y b d i s ( Odyssey 1 2 . 3 9 - th e w ritin g o f C le m e n t, H ip p o ly tu s , M e th o d iu s , a n d Am ­
1 2 3 , 1 5 4 - 2 5 9 ) . In h is e y e s , t h e S i r e n s s y m b o l i z e t h e m i s d e e d s b r o s e , h is te x t h a s n e v e r b e e n tr a n s la te d in to Fren ch . For
o f h a b it a n d th e a p p e a ls o f p l e a s u r e , a n d O d y s s e u s , w h e n h e t h e s e v a r ie d r e a s o n s , h e is w o r t h p r e s e n t i n g in t r a n s l a ti o n
t h w a r ts t h e m b y ty in g h im s e lf to h is m a s t, is th e i m a g e o f th e h e r e , in s p ite ( o r b e c a u s e ) o f h is in fla te d a n d p ro lix s ty le . H e
C h ris tia n w ho t r iu m p h s o v e r p e rd itio n by e m b r a c in g th e b e g in s w ith a n a c c o u n t o f th e d a n g e r th r e a te n i n g O d y s s e u s
w o o d o f th e C ro s s (Protrepticus 1 2 . 1 1 8 . 1 - 4 ) . A little l a te r th a n a n d o f t h e h e r o ' s e x p e d i e n t s f o r p r o t e c t i n g h i m s e l f a g a i n s t i t:
C le m e n t, H ip p o ly tu s o f R o m e d r a w s a tte n tio n to a d e ta il,
T h e p a g a n fa b le s r e la te th e s to r y o f th e f a m o u s O d y s s e u s
n e g le c te d by h is p re d e ce sso r, in th e sam e acco u n t and
w h o , te m p e s t-to s s e d u p o n a w a y w a rd c o u rs e o v e r th e se a
e n d o w s it w i t h m e a n i n g : b e f o r e h a v i n g h i m s e l f t i e d u p t o t h e
fo r te n y e a r s , c o u l d n o t r e a c h h is h o m e l a n d ; h is n a v i g a ­
m a s t, O d y s s e u s p lu g s h is c o m p a n i o n s ' e a r s w ith w a x ; h e r e
t i o n h a d b r o u g h t h i m t o a p l a c e i n w h i c h t h e r e a r o s e , i n i ts
w e a r e t o u n d e r s t a n d t h a t f a ith fu l C h r is t ia n s a r e t o r e m a i n
cru el s w e e tn e ss , th e suave son g of th e S ire n s; th e y
d e a f to th e in s id io u s p r o p a g a n d a o f h e r e t ic s , a n d b eco m e
c h a r m e d th o s e w h o c a m e t h e r e w ith a m e l o d y s o s e d u c ­
o n e in b o d y w ith t h e w o o d o f t h e C r o s s s o a s t o c o n q u e r
tiv e t h a t in s te a d o f ta k in g in th is s e n s u a l d e lig h t, t h e y
a g i t a t i o n a n d r e m a i n f i r m ( Refutatio omnium Haeresium 7 .1 3 ) .
th r e w a w a y th e ir liv e s in s h i p w r e c k ; s u c h w a s th e s e d u c ­
T o w a r d th e e n d o f th e th ird c e n t u r y . B is h o p M e th o d iu s o f
tio n o f th is s o n g t h a t h e a r i n g t h e s o u n d o f t h e ir v o i c e s w a s
O ly m p u s w as n o u ris h e d on H o m er, as V. B u c h h e it has
e n o u g h to m a k e a m a n a p r is o n e r to th e ir m a g ic c h a r m : h e
s h o w n ; 10 h i s p r i n c i p a l w o r k . The Symposium, n o t o n ly im i­
w o u ld s to p s te e r i n g t o w a r d h is d e s i r e d p o r t a n d r u s h in to
ta te s th a t o f P la to b u t, s ta r t i n g in th e p r o lo g u e (§ 4 ) , r e f e r s to
u n d e s i r e d r u i n . O d y s s e u s , it i s s a i d , h a v i n g c o m e t o t h e
th e b a n q u e t o f th e O ly m p ia n s in th e Iliad ( 4 . 1 - 4 ) . In a n o t h e r
b rin k o f th is e x q u is ite s h i p w r e c k a n d w is h in g to e s c a p e
w o rk , a Treatise on Free Will ( 1 .1 -3 ) , th e s a m e a u t h o r c o n ­
fro m th e p e r ils o f its s w e e tn e ss , f i ll e d th e e a rs o f h is
t r a s ts th e fa ta l s o n g o f th e S ir e n s to th e s a lu ta r y c h o r u s o f th e
c o m p a n i o n s w ith w a x a n d th e n tie d h im s e lf to th e m a s t o f
P r o p h e t s a n d A p o s tle s , in th e p r e s e n c e o f w h o m on e need
h is s h ip ; t h u s h is m e n w o u ld b e d e a f to th e fa ta l c h a r m ,
n o t p lu g o n e 's c o m p a n io n s ' e a r s w ith w a x n o r g ird o n e s e lf
a n d h e w o u ld d e liv e r h im s e lf fro m th e d a n g e r o f c h a n g in g
w ith r o p e s . M e th o d iu s n e v e r t h e l e s s a b s ta in s , u n lik e h is t w o
h is s h i p 's c o u r s e .
p re d e c e s s o rs , fro m c o m p a r i n g th e m a s t o f O d y s s e u s w ith
th e tre e of th e C ro ss. A c e n tu ry la te r, h ow ever, S a in t
T h e n f o llo w s t h e C h r is tia n a p p lic a tio n :
A m b r o s e r e n e w s t h e s e t i e s w i t h t r a d i t i o n : f o r h i m , t h e s e a is
th e d e ce itfu l w o rld , th e S ire n s th e s e n s u a lity th a t e n th r a lls I f, t h e n , t h i s f a b l e r e l a t e s t h a t f o r t h i s m a n O d y s s e u s t o t ie
th e s o u l, th e ro c k y s h o r e th e b o d y ; fa r fro m b lo c k in g o n e 's h im s e lf to th e m a s t w a s to b e d e liv e re d fro m p e r il, h o w
e a r s , o n e s h o u ld o p e n th e m to th e v o ic e o f th e C h r is t; o n e m u c h m o r e n e c e s s a r y it i s t o p r o c l a i m w h a t t r u l y c a m e t o
s h o u ld a tta c h o n e s e lf, not l ik e O d y s s e u s to a m ast w ith p ass; to w it, th a t to d a y it is th e w h o le o f th e hum an
m a te r ia l b o n d s , b u t to th e w o o d o f th e C r o s s w ith s p iritu a l s p e c ie s th a t h a s b e e n w re s te d fro m th e th re a t o f d e a th b y
b o n d s . A m b r o s e is n o t lo a th t o in n o v a t e o n s e v e r a l p o in ts : th e tr e e o f th e C r o s s ! In d e e d , fro m th e m o m e n t C h r is t th e
a m o n g th e c ir c u m s ta n c e s th a t d e la y th e v o y a g e o f O d y s s e u s L o r d w a s n a ile d to th e C r o s s , f ro m th a t v e r y m o m e n t, w e
h e c ite s , a p a r t f ro m th e S ir e n s , th e s w e e t fru its o f th e L o t u s h a v e b e e n a b le to t r a v e r s e w ith c lo s e d e a r s , s o to s p e a k ,
E a t e r s a n d t h e g a r d e n s o f A k i n o u s ( Odyssey 7 . 1 1 2 - 3 2 ; 9 . 8 2 - t h o s e c r itic a l p o i n t s a t w h ic h t h e w o r l d u n f o l d s its s e d u c ­
1 0 4 ) . A s is n a t u r a l f o r a L a t in a u t h o r , h e m i x e s h is H o m e r i c tio n s ; fo r w e d o n o t s to p to lis te n to t h e fa ta l m e s s a g e s o f
m e m o r ie s t o g e th e r w ith c e r ta in r e c o lle c tio n s o f th e v o y a g e o f th is w o r l d , n o r d o w e d e v i a t e f ro m o u r p a th to w a rd a
A e n e a s a c c o rd in g t o V i r g i l ( Aenead 1 . 5 3 6 ; 2 . 2 3 ) . E s p e c ia lly b e t t e r l if e a n d f a l l a s t r a y u p o n t h e r e e f s o f p l e a s u r e . F o r
i m p o r t a n t f o r t h e v i e w p o i n t u n d e r c o n s i d e r a t io n h e r e is th e n o t o n l y d o e s t h e t r e e o f t h e C r o s s a l l o w t h e m a n w h o is
f a c t t h a t A m b r o s e h im s e lf n o t e s tra ffic b e t w e e n G r e e k m y ­ n a ile d t o it t o s e e h i s h o m e l a n d o n c e a g a i n , b u t it a l s o
t h o l o g y a n d t h e B ib le w h e n h e o b s e r v e s t h a t t h e B ib le s p e a k s p r o t e c ts , b y th e s h a d o w o f its m i g h t, h is c o m p a n i o n s w h o
o f G ia n ts a n d th e V alle y o f th e T ita n s (G e n e s is 6 .4 ; 2 S a m u e l a re g r o u p e d a ro u n d h im . T h a t th e C ro s s re tu rn s u s to o u r
5 .2 2 ; 2 3 .1 3 ) , a n d t h a t th e p r o p h e t I s a ia h ( 1 3 .2 1 ) n a m e s th e h o m e la n d a fte r m u ch w a n d e r in g is p r o c l a im e d by our
S i r e n s . (T h is w h o l e p a s s a g e f r o m S a i n t A m b r o s e is f o u n d in L o rd w hen he says to th e c ru c ifie d th ie f: " T o d a y s h a lt
h is Exposition of the Gospel According to Saint Luke 4 .2 - 3 .) th o u b e w ith m e in p a r a d i s e " (L u k e 2 3 .4 3 ) . T h is th ie f,
T h e la s t im p o r t a n t r e p r e s e n ta t iv e o f th is tr a d itio n w a s th e w h o h a d fo r s o lo n g b e e n w a n d e rin g a n d s h ip w re c k e d ,
f ifth -c e n tu ry b is h o p M a x im u s o f T u rin , w h o p ro b a b ly to o k c e r ta in ly c o u ld not have re tu rn e d to th e h o m e la n d of
h is in s p ir a tio n fro m th e p a s s a g e fro m A m b r o s e ju s t c ite d . p a r a d i s e , w h ic h t h e first m a n h a d le ft, o t h e r th a n tie d to
T h e te m n -fo r-te rm co rre s p o n d e n ce b e tw e e n t h e e p i s o d e in t h e m a s t . F o r t h e m a s t o n th e s h i p is , in a s e n s e , t h e C r o s s
th e Odyssey a n d its C h r is t ia n a p p li c a ti o n is n o w c a r r ie d t o its in t h e C h u r c h , w h ic h a l o n e k e e p s i ts e lf s a f e a n d sou n d
e x t r e m e : th e s e a is a r e p r e s e n ta t io n o f th e h o s tile w o r l d , th e a m id th e s e d u c tiv e a n d m o rta l s h ip w r e c k s w h ic h s h a k e
p l e a s u r e s o f w h i c h a r e r e p r e s e n t e d b y t h e S i r e n s ; I t h a c a is t h e w o r l d f r o m o n e e n d t o t h e o t h e r . T h u s a n y o n e w h o , in
t h e c e l e s t i a l l a n d w h e r e t h e t r u e l if e w il l b e l i v e d ; t h e m e a n s th is s h ip , a tta c h e s h im se lf to th e tre e o f th e C ro ss or
t o e n t e r it is t h e C h u r c h , w h o s e im a g e h a s t r a d it i o n a l ly b e e n w h ose e a rs have been c lo s e d by m eans of th e H o ly
th e b o a t; h e r e , a s in N e o p l a to n is t a lle g o r y , O d y s s e u s i n c a r ­ S c r ip tu r e s d o e s n o t fe a r th e s w e e t t e m p e s t o f lu s t. F o r th e
n a te s th e hum an c o n d itio n ; se cu re d to h is m a s t, w h ic h co m e ly fe a tu re s of th e S ire n s m ay be s a id to be th e

167
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

c o w a r d l y c u p i d i t y o f t h e p l e a s u r e s , a c u p i d i t y w h i c h b y i ts e v e n y o u r m y t h s s e e m t o h a v e a g e d . . . . B u t w h e r e is Z e u s
p e rn ic io u s s e d u c tio n s s o fte n s th e firm n e s s o f th e s p irit h i m s e l f ? H e h a s a g e d , l ik e h i s w i n g s , " a n d l o s t t h e a r d o r a n d
th a t h a s b e c o m e its p r is o n e r . c le v e r n e s s w h ic h m a r k e d h i s a m o r o u s e x p l o i t s ( Protrepticus
2 .3 7 .1 - 3 ). P a g a n i s m , C le m e n t s a y s f u r th e r , h a s fa lle n in to
T h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e n e x t p a r a g r a p h is i m p o r t a n t f r o m a
s u p e rs titio n in i ts o ld age: it m ay fin d y o u th , and even
m e t h o d o l o g i c a l s t a n d p o i n t : in h i s C h r i s t i a n p r e a c h in g , th e
in n o ce n t c h ild h o o d , if it c o m e s to w o rs h ip th e tru e G od
a u th o r d o e s not re fra in fro m d r a w in g on th e im a g e ry of
(Protrepticus 1 0 .1 0 8 .3 ) .
m y th s in th e s a m e w a y th a t h e d r a w s o n th e exempla o f th e
T h is g lo rif ic a tio n o f C h r is tia n n e w n e s s m u s t h a v e g r a te d
O ld T e s ta m e n t; b u t h e ta k e s c a r e to c o n t r a s t th e p u r e fictio n
on m a n y f o llo w e rs o f tr a d itio n a l p a g a n is m . S o m e o f th e m
o f m y th s to th e h is to r ic a l c o n t e x t o f th e b ib lica l a c c o u n t s :
s a id s o t h e m s e l v e s : th e P la to n is t C e ls u s , c it e d b y h is a d v e r ­
" T h u s C h r is t th e L o r d w as h ung on th e C ro s s to fre e th e
s a r y O r i g e n ( Contra Celsum 7 .5 3 ) , le ts s lip , in a n a d d r e s s to
e n tir e hum an ra c e fro m th e s h ip w re ck to w a rd w h ic h th e
th e C h ris tia n s , a " y o u w h o a r e s o ta k e n w ith i n n o v a t i o n " ;
w o rld is h e a d i n g . B u t l e t u s f o r g e t t h e f a b l e o f O d y s s e u s ,
e a rlie r , th e h is to ria n S u e to n iu s h a d id e n tifie d C h r is tia n ity a s
w h i c h is a n i n v e n t i o n w i t h o u t r e a l i t y ; l e t u s s e e if w e c a n f i n d
a superstitio nova (" n e w s u p e rs titio n "; Nero 1 6 .3 ) . J u d g m e n t s
in th e H o ly S c r ip tu re s som e s im ila r e x a m p l e , w h ic h O ur
o f th e s a m e s o r t m a y b e in fe rre d t h r o u g h th e r e to r ts o f th e
L o r d , b e f o r e a c c o m p l i s h i n g it h i m s e l f , f i r s t i n i t i a t e d t h r o u g h
C h ris tia n a p o lo g is ts ; th e la tte r d e fe n d e d th e m s e lv e s a g a in s t
h is p r o p h e t s !" (T h e s e p a s s a g e s fro m M a x im u s o f T u rin m a y
b e in g c o n s id e re d a s " n e w c o m e r s ," hesterni, a s m a y b e s e e n in
b e f o u n d in h i s Sermon 3 7 . 1 - 3 , in v o l . 2 3 , p p . 1 4 5 - 4 6 , o f t h e
A. C a s a m a s s a 's c la s s ic a r t i c l e . 11 T h e unknow n C h r is tia n
M u tz e n b e c h e r e d itio n in th e Corpus Christianorum; a n d in
a u th o r o f th e Letter to Diognetes a s s e r ts th a t p e o p le w o u ld a sk
Homily 4 9 in v o l . 5 7 , c o l . 3 3 9 B - 3 4 0 B o f t h e Latin Patrology of
s u c h q u e s tio n s a s : " W h y d o [th e C h r is tia n s ] n o t a c c e p t th e
M i g n e .) T h e la s t s e n t e n c e c it e d o f f e r s a r e m a r k a b l e d e f in itio n
gods re c o g n iz e d by th e G reek s, nor k eep th e re lig io u s
of th e re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n th e p erso n o f Jesu s and th e
o b s e r v a n c e s o f th e J e w s ? . . . A n d w h y h a s th is n e w r a c e o f
f i g u r e s w h o a n n o u n c e h i m in t h e O l d T e s t a m e n t : t h i s is t h e
m e n ( kainon genos), t h i s n e w w a y o f lif e , c o m e i n t o t h e w o r l d
t y p o l o g i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e , w h i c h is c l e a r l y d i s t i n g u i s h e d f r o m
o n ly n o w a n d n o t e a r l ie r ? " ( 1 .1 ). T h e a r g u m e n t s e x c h a n g e d
t h e a l l e g o r i c a l e x e g e s i s o f m y t h . W h e n it c o m e s t o s u b s t i t u t ­
b e t w e e n C h r is t ia n s a n d p a g a n s o n th is t h e m e h a v e r e c e n tl y
in g a b ib lica l "ty p e " fo r th e fa b le of O d ysseu s, w h ose
been s tu d ie d on ce a g a in in N. Z e e g e rs-V a n d e r V o r s t 's
r h e to ric a l u s e h e h a s e x h a u s t e d , M a x im u s c ite s th e b r o n z e
w o r k . 12
s e r p e n t: a ffix e d by M oses on th e to p o f a p o le (N u m b e rs
P e r h a p s it w a s t o s i l e n c e t h i s o b j e c t i o n t h a t t h e C h r i s t i a n s ,
2 1 .6 - 9 ), th is a p o t r o p a i c o b je c t w a s s e e n , fr o m N ew T e s ta ­
w ith o u t t e m p e r in g th e ir c la im s to n e w n e s s , a ls o a tte m p te d
m e n t tim e s o n w a r d (Jo h n 3 .1 4 ) , a s a n im a g e o f th e s a lv a tio n
to c o n n e c t t h e m s e lv e s w ith a n c e s t o r s o f in d is p u ta b le a n tiq ­
p r o c u r e d b y t h e C r u c i f i e d . H e r e it is c o n t r a s t e d , in a n e q u a l l y
u ity , w h o w e r e n o n e o t h e r th a n th e J e w s . T h is c o n n e c tio n
tr a d itio n a l w a y , to a n o t h e r b ib lica l s e r p e n t — th a t o f P a r a d i s e ,
w as d iffic u lt to m ake, not o n ly b ecau se th e C h r is tia n s
w h o is a l s o w o u n d a r o u n d a t r e e .
p rofessed th e m s e lv e s to be th e "n ew p e o p l e ," but a lso
b ecau se th e G o s p e ls and e s p e c ia lly th e P a u lin e w ritin g s
s tr o v e to d is s o c ia te th e m fro m a Ju d a is m th a t w a s ju d g e d to
III. The Chronological Quarrel
b e o u t d a t e d . A p a s s a g e fro m T e rtu llia n , h im s e lf s o m e w h a t o f
1. Newness and oldness. It is a c c o r d i n g t o t h e s e c a t e g o r i e s , a n a n t i- S e m it e , c o n v e y s th is a m b i g u i ty : " B u t s in c e w e h a v e
n e e d it b e s a i d , t h a t t h e N e w T e s t a m e n t d e f i n e s i t s e l f w i t h s ta te d th a t o u r re lig io n is f o u n d e d u p o n th e d o c u m e n ts o f
reg ard to th e O ld . T h is a n tith e s is is n o t a b s e n t fro m th e t h e J e w s , w h i c h a r e s o o l d , t h o u g h it is g e n e r a l l y k n o w n ( a n d
G o s p e ls (th e o ld s k in s a n d th e n e w w in e o f M a tth e w 9 .1 7 , w e o u r s e l v e s a g r e e ) t h a t o u r r e l i g i o n is i t s e l f c o m p a r a t i v e l y
e t c . ) ; b u t it is w i t h P a u l t h a t it t a k e s o n i t s t r u e d i m e n s i o n : t h e n e w , b e l o n g i n g a s it d o e s t o t h e t i m e o f T i b e r i u s , p e r h a p s
C h r i s t i a n is i n v i t e d t o t a k e o f f t h e " o l d m a n " t o p u t o n t h e o n e m ig h t o n th is g r o u n d d i s c u s s its n a t u r e a n d s a y th a t,
" n e w m a n " ( C o lo s s ia n s 3 . 9 - 1 0 ; E p h e s ia n s 4 . 2 2 - 2 4 ) ; h e sh a ll u n d e r th e cover of a re lig io n th a t is v e r y illu s tr io u s a n d
serv e in th e n ew ness of th e sp irit and no l o n g e r in th e c e r ta i n ly a u t h o r i z e d b y la w , o u r r e lig io n c o n c e a l s c e r ta i n n e w
o ld n e s s o f th e le tte r (R o m a n s 7 .6 ) ; h e s h a ll b e a n e w c r e a tu r e id e a s t h a t a r e its o w n , f o r a s id e fr o m th e q u e s t i o n o f a g e w e
in C h r i s t , f o r w h o m vetera transierunt, ecce facta sunt omnia do n ot ag ree w ith th e Je w s a b o u t a b s ta in in g fro m c e rta in
nova ( " t h e o l d t h i n g s a r e p a s s e d a w a y ; b e h o l d , a ll t h i n g s a r e f o o d s , o r a b o u t th e s a n c t it y o f f e s tiv a l d a y s , o r a b o u t t h e ir
b e c o m e n e w " ; 2 C o r i n t h i a n s 5 .1 7 . T a k in g its c u e fr o m th is d is tin c tiv e b o d ily m a r k , o r s h a r in g th e ir n a m e , w h ic h w o u ld
P a u lin e t h e m e , o n e o f th e e a r l ie s t d o c u m e n t s o f n o n c a n o n i - o f c o u r s e b e o u r d u t y if w e w e r e t h e s e r v a n t s o f t h e s a m e
c a l C h r is t ia n lit e r a t u r e , t h e Epistle of Barnalms ( 5 . 7 ; 7 . 5 ) , tw ice G od" ( Apologeticus 2 1 . 1 - 2 ) . N o r d id th e fa lse s itu a tio n in
c a lls C h r is t ia n s " t h e n e w p e o p l e " (ho laos ho kainos). w h ic h th e C h r is tia n s fo u n d t h e m s e lv e s e s c a p e th e ir a d v e r ­
S a in t P au l d e fin e d C h r is tia n n e w n e s s w ith re g a r d to J u d a ­ s a r i e s ; t h i s is t h e r e p r o a c h p u t in t h e m o u t h o f t h e J e w in
is m . N e x t c a m e th e t e n d e n c y to c a s t H e lle n is m t o g e t h e r w ith C e l s u s 's True Discourse: " H o w c a n y o u tr a c e y o u r b e g in n in g s
J u d a i s m a s t w o p a r a l l e l e x p r e s s i o n s o f o l d n e s s . T h i s is w h a t b a ck to o u r s a c re d t e x t s a n d y e t , in d o i n g s o , s c o r n th e m ,
w e f i n d in a s e c o n d c e n tu r y a p o c r y p h a l te x t, th e Kerygma w h ile y o u h a v e n o o t h e r o r ig in to c la im fo r y o u r d o c trin e
Petri: " I t is in a n e w w a y t h a t y o u w o r s h i p G o d t h r o u g h t h e th a n o u r L a w ? " (in O r ig e n , Contra Celsum 2 .4 ) .
C h r i s t . . . . T h e L o r d h a s l a id d o w n a n e w c o v e n a n t f o r u s ;
fo r th e w ays of th e G re e k s and Je w s are o ld , but we 2. Antiquity and truth. G iv e n th a t th e C h ris tia n s co u ld
C h r i s t i a n s w o r s h i p h i m in a n e w w a y in a t h i r d g e n e r a t i o n . " v a lid ly c la im t h e ir a n tiq u ity th r o u g h J u d a i s m , j u s t a s a y o u n g
C le m e n t of A le x a n d ria , c itin g th is te x t, a c ce n tu a te s th is g r a f t e d b r a n c h a c q u i r e s t h e a g e o f t h e o l d s t o c k o f t h e w il d
t e r n a r y a s p e c t i m m e d i a t e l y a f t e r w a r d : " ( P e t e r ) , it s e e m s t o o liv e (a m e t a p h o r t h a t T e rtu llia n , in De Testimonio Animae 5 . 6 ,
m e , c l e a r l y s h o w e d t h a t t h e o n e a n d o n l y G o d is k n o w n b y t a k e s u p , n o t w i t h o u t a l t e r a t i o n s , f r o m S a i n t P a u l in R o m a n s
t h e G r e e k s in p a g a n f a s h i o n , b y t h e J e w s i n J e w i s h f a s h i o n , 1 1 .1 7 - 2 4 ) , th e C h u rch F a th e rs in cre a s e d th e ir e ffo rts to
b u t b y u s in a n e w a n d s p i r i t u a l f a s h i o n " (Stromateis 6 . 5 . 4 1 . 4 - p r o v e th a t J e w is h p r o p h e c y w a s o ld e r th a n G re e k c u ltu r e .
7 ). In th e Protrepticus, w h ic h is a d d r e s s e d to th e G re e k s, They co n ce n tra te d on th e p erso n of M oses, w ho w as re­
C le m e n t re ta in s o n ly th e G r e e k s a n d o m its th e J e w s : " T o d a y , g a r d e d a s th e m o s t o u ts ta n d in g fig u re o f e a rly J u d a is m : th e y

168
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND P A G A N M Y T H O L O G Y

had to s h o w th a t h e , m o re th a n a ll o t h e r s , p re ce d e d th e B y c la im in g , to th e ir a d v a n t a g e , th e c h r o n o lo g ic a l p rio rity

e a rlie s t r e p r e s e n ta t iv e s o f p a g a n tr a d itio n . A s fo r th e p a g a n s , of th e Jew s over th e G re e k s, th e C h ris tia n a u th o rs a lso
th e d o m in a n t t e n d e n c y w a s to ta k e H o m e r a s e x e m p la r y , s o c o n f o r m e d t o t h e s p i r i t o f t h e t i m e in a n o t h e r r e s p e c t . T h e r e
th a t th e ch ro n o lo g ica l d e b a te o f te n to o k th e fo rm of a w a s a b e lie f, m a i n ta i n e d b y P l a to a n d A r i s to tl e , th a t b e c a m e
m a n -to -m a n c o m b a t b e tw e e n t h e s e tw o in d iv id u a ls ; I h a v e m o re and m o re d e e p ly e n g ra in e d in th e H e lle n is tic an d
a tte m p te d to s h o w t h i s in a n o t h e r w o r k . 13 I t w a s f o r t h i s R o m a n p e r i o d s , a s m a n y w o r k s h a v e s h o w n : 1'’ t h a t b a r b a r i a n
reaso n , am ong o th e rs, th a t C h ris tia n a u th o rs b ecam e so w is d o m p r e c e d e d a n d in s p ire d G r e e k c u l t u r e . T a tia n (Oratio
c l o s e l y i n t e r e s t e d in t h e G r e e k p o e t , a s m a y b e v e r i f i e d in t h e ad Graecos 35) and C le m e n t of A le x a n d ria (Stromateis
w o r k s o f J e a n D a n i é l o u 14 a n d G . G l o c k m a n n . 15 1 .1 5 .7 1 .3 ; 1 .2 9 .1 8 0 .5 ) s h a r e d th is o u tlo o k o f th e p e r io d ; b u t
In f a c t , t h e w a y h a d b e e n o p e n e d b y l a t e J u d a i s m i t s e l f , a t t h e y p u t it t o a u s e t h a t w a s q u i t e u n c o m m o n (o u ts id e o f
le a s t a m o n g t h o s e o f its r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s w h o w e r e th e m o s t C h r is tia n a n d , n a tu r a lly , Je w is h c ir c le s ): t h e y h e ld th a t th e
in flu e n c e d by H e lle n is m — fo r e x a m p l e , th e h isto ria n Jo s e ­ p ro p h e ts o f Isra e l th e m s e lv e s w e re to b e c o u n te d am ong
p h u s a t t h e e n d o f t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y ( Contra Apionem 2 .2 .1 4 ) . th o s e b a rb a ria n s a g e s , o f w h o m th e y w e r e th e e a rlie s t a n d
A m o n g C h r i s t i a n s t h e m s e l v e s , t h i s t h e m e a p p e a r s b r i e f l y in m o s t e m i n e n t. T a tia n t h u s c a lls M o s e s " t h e in itia to r o f th e
J u s t i n ( First Apology 5 9 . 1 ) . E v e n m o r e c o n c e r n e d w i t h it w a s w h o l e o f b a r b a r i a n w i s d o m " ( ib i d ., 3 1 ) , w h ile C le m e n t , a f t e r
h is d is c ip le T a tia n , w h o in a u g u r a t e d a d e m o n s t r a ti v e s c h e m a e n u m e r a tin g th e p r o p h e ts o f E g y p t, th e A s s y ria n C h a ld e a n s ,
th a t w a s to b e c o m e c la s s i c : in th e o p i n i o n e v e n o f h i s t o r i a n s t h e G a llic D r u id s , th e P e rs ia n M a g i, th e In d ia n G ym n oso-
w h o a d h e r e d n e ith e r to Ju d a is m n o r to C h ris tia n ity , M o s e s p h is ts , a n d v a r io u s o th e r s , n o te s th a t th e J e w is h p e o p le a r e
w as th e c o n te m p o ra ry of th e A rg iv e k in g In ach u s, w ho b y f a r t h e o l d e s t o f a ll ( i b i d . , 1 . 1 5 . 7 1 . 4 - 7 2 . 4 ) . F u r t h e r m o r e ,
p r e c e d e d t h e T r o j a n W a r b y f o u r c e n t u r i e s ( Oratio ad Graecos th e tw o a u th o rs a re not a fra id to tre a t C h ris tia n ity as a
3 1 . 3 5 - 3 6 , 3 8 - 4 1 ) . T h e s a m e a r g u m e n t a t i o n m a y b e f o u n d in " b a r b a r i a n p h il o s o p h y ," n o r to s p e a k o f t h e m s e l v e s a s " w e
th e lo n g c h a p te r (Stromateis 1 . 2 1 , e s p e c i a l l y § § 1 0 1 —2 ) w h i c h B a r b a r i a n s " ( T a t i a n , i b id . 4 2 ; C l e m e n t , i b id . 1 . 2 9 . 1 8 0 . 3 , e t c . ) .
C le m e n t o f A l e x a n d r ia , in a c k n o w l e d g i n g h is d e b t to T a tia n T h e f a m o u s a r tic le b y J. H . W a s z in k s h o u ld b e c o n s u l t e d o n
on th e p o in t, d e v o te s to a c o m p a r a tiv e c h r o n o lo g y o f th e t h e s e v a r i o u s p o i n t s . 17
H e b re w p e o p l e a n d t h e n e i g h b o r i n g c iv il i z a ti o n s . H is c o n ­
c lu s io n is p e re m p to ry : "M o ses w as at th e h e ig h t of h is
p o w e r s e v e n b e fo r e th e d a t e a t w h ic h th e G r e e k s p la c e th e IV . T h e E x p la n a tio n b y " T h e f t"
c r e a ti o n o f m a n " ; o r , " I t is t h u s p r o v e d th a t M o s e s p r e c e d e d
1. Borroiving, theft, adulteration. W e h a v e d w e lle d on th e
n o t o n ly th e G re e k s a g e s a n d p o e ts , b u t a ls o th e m a jo rity o f
c o n f r o n ta tio n o f c o m p a r a t i v e c h r o n o l o g y s i n c e it s e e m s t o
th e ir g o d s " (ib id . § § 1 0 6 .2 a n d 1 0 7 .6 ) . A t a b o u t th e s a m e
h a v e w e ig h e d h e a v ily o n th e C h r is tia n s ' e v a lu a tio n o f th e
tim e , T a t i a n 's sch em a m akes its a p p earan ce in th e L a tin
fe a tu re s th e y sh ared w ith c la s s ic a l p a g a n is m . From th e
w o r l d w i t h T e r t u l l i a n ( Apologeticus 1 9 . 1 * - 2 * a n d 3 ; t h e w h o l e
m o m e n t th e y th o u g h t t h a t, b y v i r t u e o f th e ir c o n n e c t i o n to
o f c h a p t e r 1 9 w r e s t l e s w ith th e p r o b l e m ) . In th e firs t h a lf o f
th e Je w is h p e o p le , th e y p r e c e d e d G re e k h isto ry , th e y w e re
th e f o u r th ce n tu ry th e h isto ria n E u se b iu s, a s p e c ia lis t in
a b le to c o n s id e r re s e m b la n c e s to th e ir a d v e r s a r i e s o n ly a s
c h r o n o l o g y , p l a c e s s o m u c h v a l u e in th e d e b a te th a t h e p u ts
c a s e s o f p la g ia r is m c o m m i t te d a g a in s t th e m b y th e la tte r. T h e
t o g e t h e r a n e n t i r e d o s s i e r w i t h t h e t e x t s w e h a v e j u s t s e e n in
d ire c tio n o f in f lu e n c e seem ed beyond a ll d o u b t ; a s J u s t i n
T a tia n , C le m e n t, J o s e p h u s , a n d o th e r s (Praeparatio Evangelica
u n a m b ig u o u s ly p u ts i t, "It is n o t w e w ho th in k l ik e th e
1 0 .9 .1 2 - 1 3 .1 3 ) . E u s e b iu s a d o p ts th e n o w c la s s ic d e m o n s t r a ­
o t h e r s , b u t a ll o f t h e m w h o i m i t a t e u s in w h a t t h e y s a y " (First
tio n o f T a tia n a n d i n s e r t s c o m p l e m e n t a r y e l e m e n ts d e r i v e d
Apology 6 0 .1 0 ) . T e r tu llia n w o u l d r e c a ll th e d e t e r m in i n g r o le
fro m o th e r s o u r c e s : M o s e s w a s e a rlie r th a n th e P h o e n ic ia n
p l a y e d b y c h r o n o l o g y : " T h a t w h i c h f i r s t e x i s t e d is n e c e s s a r i l y
h isto ria n S a n c h u n ia th o n o f B e iru t, w h o w a s h im s e lf a c o n ­
th e o r ig in o f w h a t f o ll o w e d . A n d th is is w h y y o u h a v e t h in g s
t e m p o r a r y o f Q u e e n S e m i r a m i s a n d , l ik e h e r , m u c h e a r l i e r
in c o m m o n w i t h u s o r t h i n g s t h a t r e s e m b l e o u r s " ; s o it i s , h e
t h a n t h e T r o ja n w a r (ib i d ., 1 0 . 9 . 1 3 - 1 7 ) .
c o n tin u e s , th a t o u r W isd o m (sophia) g a v e y o u y o u r p h ilo s o ­
W h a t w a s it t h a t m o t i v a t e d th e C h r is tia n s to fo rg e t te m ­
p h y , a n d o u r p r o p h e c y y o u r p o e tic d iv in a tio n (Apologeticus
p o r a r i l y t h e p r e r o g a t i v e s o f t h e i r n e w n e s s a n d t o l in k t h e m ­
1 9 .1 .5 * - 6 * ) . T h is s lid e fro m p o s te rio rity t o d e p e n d e n c e , in
s e lv e s , a t w h a te v e r c o s t, to th e e a rly a g e o f Ju d a is m ? W h a t
Ju d a is m a s w e l l a s in C h r i s t i a n i t y , h a s b e e n s tu d ie d b y K .
m ade th e ir a d v e r s a r ie s d e te r m in e d to deny Ju d a ism th is
T h r a e d e . 18
a n t e r i o r i t y w i t h r e g a r d t o t h e i r o w n h i s t o r y ? S u r e l y it w a s t h e
S u c h a n o v e r v i e w is s u s c e p t i b l e t o s u b t l e v a r i a t i o n s , a c c o r d i n g
c o n v i c ti o n , w h ic h r e ig n e d e v e r y w h e r e a t th e tim e , th a t th e
to th e p o le m ic a l t e m p e r a m e n t. W h e n th is b e c o m e s h e a t e d , th e
a n t i q u i t y o f a d o c t r i n e g u a r a n t e e d i t s t r u t h . It i s s t r i k i n g t h a t ,
p e n is m o v e d t o w r i t e t h e w o r d " t h e f t " (klopë). T h u s T h e o p h ilu s
in th e s p a c e o f a fe w p a g e s , T h e o p h i l u s o f A n t io c h a s s o c i a te s
o f A n tio c h : 'T h e s e to r tu r e s w e r e p re d ic te d b y th e p r o p h e ts , b u t
t h e s e t w o n o t i o n s f o u r t im e s in th e s a m e t e r m s : o u r S c r ip ­
la te r p o e t s a n d p h ilo s o p h e r s s to le t h e m fro m th e H o ly S c r ip tu r e s
tu res and our b e lie fs , he re p e a ts, a re "o ld e r and tru e r"
in o r d e r t o m a k e t h e i r o w n t e a c h i n g s e e m tru s tw o rth y " (Ad
(archaiotera kai alêthestera) t h a n t h o s e o f e v e r y o th e r p e o p le
Autolycum 1 .1 4 ; 2 .3 7 , tr a n s . R o b e rt M . G r a n t, O x fo rd 1 9 7 0 ). B u t
(Ad Autolycum 2 . 3 0 ; 3 . 1 6 , 2 6 , 2 9 ) . T h e L a tin F a t h e r s h a d th e ir
t h e t r u e t h e o r e t i c i a n o f t h i s s o r t o f e x p l a n a t i o n - - a s A . M é h a t 19
ow n fo rm u la to le n d a u t h o r i ty to th a t w h ic h is c o n n e c t e d
a n d R . M o r t l e y 21’ h a v e s u g g e s t e d — w a s C l e m e n t o f A l e x a n d r i a .
w ith a n tiq u ity : auctoritas vetustatis ( M i n u c i u s F e l i x , Octavius
H e r e is o n e o f h i s p r o g r a m m a t i c t e x t s o n t h i s p o i n t , in w h i c h h e
2 0 .2 ; L a c ta n tiu s , Divinae Institutiones 2 . 6 . 7 ; A m b r o s e , Exam-
a t t e m p t s ( in r a t h e r u n c o n v i n c i n g f a s h i o n ) t o f o u n d t h e a c c u s a ­
eron 1 .1 .3 ; e t c .) — a fo rm u la th a t T e rtu llia n , b e tte r th a n a n y ­
t io n o f " t h e f t " u p o n a v e r s e f r o m J o h n ( 1 0 . 8 ) a n d a s s e r t s t h a t t h e
one e ls e , d e v e lo p e d w hen s p e a k in g of th e Je w is h and
p la g ia ris m c o m m i t te d b y p a g a n is m e x t e n d e d b e y o n d th e m ir ­
C h r i s t i a n S c r i p t u r e s : " T h e a u t h o r i t y o f t h e s e d o c u m e n t s is
a c le a c c o u n ts to a la rg e p a rt o f th e ir th e o lo g y a n d e th ic s :
a s s u re d th e m f i r s t o f a ll b y t h e i r e x t r e m e a n t i q u i t y . A m o n g
y o u a l s o t h e c r e d i b i l i t y o f s o m e t h i n g is p r o v e d b y i t s a n t i q ­ Let us now s e e , s in c e th e S c r ip tu r e s tre a t th e G re e k s a s
u i t y , w h i c h is a s r e s p e c t a b l e a s r e l i g i o n . A u t h o r i t y i s g i v e n t o " t h ie v e s " w h o s to le b a rb a ria n p h ilo s o p h y , h o w w e m ay
th e S c r ip tu r e s b y th e ir e x t r e m e a n t iq u i ty " (Apologeticus 1 9 .1 b rie fly p r o v e t h a t t h e y w e r e i n d e e d t h ie v e s . N o t o n l y s h a ll
a n d 1*. w e e s ta b lis h t h a t it w a s b y c o p y i n g th e m ira c le s o f o u r

169
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

h is to ry th a t th e y d e s c r ib e d th e ir o w n , b u t w e s h a ll a ls o to J u s tin . In th is unknow n a u th o r, we a g a in e n c o u n te r
c o n v i c t th e m o f d i g g i n g u p a n d f a ls ify in g th e m o s t i m p o r ­ s e v e r a l e x a m p l e s o f th e s o r t w e h a v e s e e n in C le m e n t a n d
ta n t o f o u r d o g m a s — o u r S c r ip tu r e s a r e o ld e r th a n th e irs O r i g e n a n d in o t h e r s a s w e l l — t h u s t h e w o n d e r f u l g a r d e n o f
and we h ave sh ow n th is — c o n c e r n i n g f a ith , w is d o m , A lcin o u s (Odyssey 7 . 1 1 4 - 2 6 ) m a n ife s tly im ita te s th e P a ra d is e
g n o sis , a n d k n o w le d g e , hope and c h a r ity , re p e n ta n ce , o f G e n e s i s ( 2 . 8 - 9 ) , w h i l e t h e fa ll o f L u c i f e r i n I s a i a h 1 4 . 1 2
c o n t i n e n c e , a n d i n p a r t i c u l a r t h e f e a r o f G o d . ( Stromateis g a v e rise to th e p u n is h m e n t o f A te , w h o w a s th ro w n d o w n
2. 1. 1. 1) f r o m O l y m p u s in Iliad 1 9 .1 2 6 - 3 1 (§ 2 8 ).
F u r t h e r r e m o v e d fro m G re e k c u l t u r e , L a tin p a tr is tic s ta k e s
T h is p a g e i n tr o d u c e s , w ith o n e w o r d , a n o t h e r i m p o r ta n t
le s s p l e a s u r e in a c c u m u l a ti n g illu s tra tio n s o f th is s o r t; y e t
n o t i o n : t h a t t h e s u p p o s e d t h e f t p e r p e t r a t e d b y t h e G r e e k s is
th e se are not rare. S e ra p is, th e H e lle n iz e d E g y p tia n god
a t th e s a m e tim e a fa ls ific a tio n . C le m e n t h a d alreadv ob­
w h ose head is c r o w n e d w ith a m o d iu s , is r e a l l y th e Je w
serv ed th a t th e y had not u n d e rsto o d a ll of th e H e b ra ic
J o s e p h , th e ju d ic io u s c o u n s e l o r to th e P h a r a o h o n m a tte r s
d o c tr in e s w h ic h th e y h a d p u rlo in e d a n d c o o p te d a s b e in g
c o n c e r n i n g w h e a t (G e n e s is 4 1 . 2 5 - 5 7 ) a n d th e o b je c t o f a c u lt
th e ir o w n : s o m e o f th e s e th e y a l te r e d , w h ile th e y a p p lie d a n
in s p ire d b y g r a titu d e fo r th is a d v ic e ; b u t J o s e p h w a s th e g r e a t
in d is c re e t a n d in c o m p e te n t s o p h is try to o th e r s (Stromateis
g r a n d s o n o f S a r a h , A b r a h a m 's w if e , f r o m w h ic h h is n a m e o f
1 .1 7 .8 7 .2 ) . In th e sam e p e rio d , th e sam e accu sa tio n s of
" c h ild o f S a r a h ," Sanas pais in G r e e k , b e c a m e S e r a p i s . T h e
u n w a r ra n te d a p p r o p r ia tio n , o f c u r io s ity , of in co m p reh en ­
r e d u c t i o n o f a G r e c o -E g y p t ia n d iv in ity to a b ib lica l p e r s o n ­
s io n , a n d o f a d u lte r a tio n a r e le v e le d a g a in s t th e s a m e " m e n
age, w ith th e a id o f e ty m o lo g y in th e fin e st tra d itio n , is
o f g l o r y " b y T e rtu llia n (Apologeticus 1 9 .1 .6 * ; 4 7 .3 ) . T h e r e s e m ­
fo u n d in t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y in t h e w o r k s o f t h e C h r i s t i a n
b la n c e b e tw e e n th e tw o a u t h o r s u n d o u b te d ly d e r iv e s fro m
a p o lo g is t F irm ic u s M a te rn u s (De errore profanarum religionum
th e fa ct th a t b o th w e r e d e p e n d e n t u p o n T a tia n , w h o e x p la in s
1 3 .2 ) . It h a d b e g u n e a r l i e r w i t h T e r t u l l i a n , w h o u n d o u b t e d l y
th e f o r m a tio n o f G r e e k m y th o lo g y a s fo llo w s :
d r e w o n a Je w is h s o u r c e (Ad nationes 2 .8 . 9 - 1 9 ) . W e s a w a t th e
W ith m u ch in d is c r e tio n , th e s o p h is ts o f G r e e c e a p p lie d b e g i n n in g o f th is a r tic le th a t S a m s o n , th e h e r o o f th e B o o k o f
t h e m s e l v e s t o a l t e r i n g a ll t h a t t h e y b o r r o w e d f r o m M o s e s J u d g e s , e v o k e d , in t h e e y e s o f c e r t a i n F a t h e r s , t h e f i g u r e o f
. . . , f i r s t in o r d e r t o a p p e a r a s if t h e y w e r e m a k i n g a H e r a c le s ; a t th a t tim e H e r a c le s w a s c e r ta in ly n o t s e e n a s a
p e r s o n a l s t a t e m e n t , a n d , s e c o n d , in o r d e r t h a t , in c a m o u ­ tru e copy o f S a m s o n . B y th e e n d o f th e f o u r th c e n t u r y , w ith
f l a g i n g b y I k n o w n o t w h a t f a l s e r h e t o r i c a ll t h a t t h e y h a d t h e h e r e s i o l o g i s t F i l a s t e r o f B r e s c i a , it w a s a f o r e g o n e c o n ­
n o t u n d e r s t o o d , th e y m ig h t b r in g t r u th d o w n to th e le v e l c lu s io n th a t b y d r a w in g o n th e fig u re o f S a m s o n th e p a g a n s
o f m y t h o l o g y . ( Oratio ad Graecos 40) h a d c o m e t o c a ll v a l i a n t m e n " H e r a c l e s " (Liber de Haeresibus
8.2) .
J u s tin h a d a l s o e x p r e s s e d th e s a m e id e a in a m o r e s u m m a r y
fa s h io n , a n d s a w th e fa c t th a t th e p a g a n s c o n t r a d ic te d e a c h
3. A widespread accusation. T h e th e s is o f th e ft a p p e a r s le ss
o t h e r a s p r o o f t h a t e a c h h a d , in h i s o w n w a y , m i s u n d e r s t o o d
e x t r a o r d i n a r y if it is r e c a l l e d t h a t l a t e J u d a i s m h a d p o in te d
M oses (First Apology 4 4 .1 0 ) .2
e a r l y C h r i s t i a n i t y in t h i s d i r e c t i o n . In t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y b . c .
2. Greek and Latin examples. The F a th e r s fu rn ish e d th e se th e J e w is h h is to ria n A r t a p a n o s m a k e s M o s e s th e in s p ira tio n
g e n e r a l v ie w s w ith a p l e th o r a o f ill u s t r a t io n s , o f te n t a k e n b y fo r O rp h e u s (E u s e b iu s , Praeparatio Evangelica 9 .2 7 .4 ) ; h is
one a u th o r fro m a n o th e r, so th a t it is d iffic u lt to s e le c t co n te m p o ra ry and c o re lig io n is t A r is to b u lu s h ad p reced ed
s a m p le s . A c c o r d in g to J u s tin (First Apology 6 9 .3 ,6 ) , th e d a rk ­ C l e m e n t o f A l e x a n d r i a in p o s t u l a t i n g t h a t t h e c e l e b r a t i o n o f
n e s s o f G e n e s i s ( 1 . 1 ) is t h e s o u r c e o f t h e E r e b u s o f t h e p o e t s t h e s e v e n t h d a y in H o m e r a n d H e s i o d h a d b e e n t a k e n f r o m
(H e s io d , Tlteogony 1 2 3 ). T h e c re a tio n a c co u n t re co rd e d by th e S c r ip tu re s (E u s e b iu s , ibid. 1 3 .1 2 .1 3 ) . N. W a lte r a r g u e s
M o s e s i s , in t h e e y e s o f t h e C h r i s t i a n s , o n e o f t h e J e w i s h t e x t s s t r o n g l y f o r t h i s v i e w . 21 A n i n f l u e n c e s o s t u b b o r n l y a s s e r t e d
m o st im p u d e n tly p ira te d b y th e G r e e k s : th e n o tio n o f th e w a s b o u n d in th e e n d to c o n v i n c e a fe w G r e e k p h il o s o p h e r s ;
s e v e n t h d a y ; th e fa llin g o u t b e t w e e n O c e a n a n d T e t h y s ; th e s u c h a c o n v ic tio n w a s u n d o u b te d ly b e h in d th e w e ll-k n o w n
G reek s re d u ce d b y M e n e la u s to th e w a te r a n d e a rth fro m s ta te m e n t b y th e N e o p h y th a g o r e a n N u m e n iu s o f A p a m e a ,
w h ic h th e y w ere m ade; th e c o s m ic o r n a m e n ta tio n o f th e w ho re g a rd e d P la to a s n o n e o th e r th a n "a M oses sp eak ­
s h i e l d o f A c h i l l e s — a ll t h a t t h e s e s c a t t e r e d d i s p a r a t e t r a i t s o f in g G re e k " (c ite d by C le m e n t of A le x a n d ria , Stromateis
e p ic p o e try h ave in com m on , a c c o r d in g to C le m e n t of 1 .2 2 .1 5 0 .4 ) .
A le x a n d ria (Stromateis 5 .1 4 .9 9 .4 - 1 0 7 .4 ), is th a t th e y cam e O n t h e o t h e r h a n d , it m u s t b e r e a l i z e d t h a t t h e C h r i s t i a n
fro m a d isto rte d r e a d in g o f th e b e g in n in g o f G e n e s is . W e a p o l o g i s t s , in a l l e g i n g s u c h s e e m i n g l y i n c o n g r u o u s e x a m p l e s
h ave seen th e s a m e a u t h o r c h a lle n g e th e o r ig in a lity o f th e o f " t h e f t ," w e r e o f te n ju s t re p ly in g to th e ir a d v e r s a r ie s , w h o
G reek s not o n ly on p o in ts of d o c trin e , but a lso in th e p ro ffered t h e s a m e e x a m p l e s — n a t u r a l l y in s u p p o r t o f t h e
a c c o u n ts o f m ira cle s : C le m e n t h o ld s th a t th e fa m o u s p r a y e r r e v e r s e lin e a g e . T h u s , th e p a g a n C e ls u s s a w th e T o w e r o f
o f th e p io u s A ja x , w h ic h b r o u g h t ra in d u r in g a c a ta s tr o p h ic B abel a n d th e b u rn in g o f S o d o m and G o m o rrah as m e re
d ro u g h t (A p o llo d o ru s M y th o g ra p h u s , Bibliotheca 3 .1 2 .6 , 9 - c a r ic a tu r e s o f th e G re e k le g e n d s o f th e s o n s o f A lo e u s a n d o f
1 0 ), m e re ly p la g ia riz e s a p r a y e r (o f v e r y d iffe re n t in s p ir a tio n , P h a e th o n , a n d O rig e n (Contra Celsum 4 .2 1 ) m e re ly re v e r s e s
it m u s t b e s a i d ) o f S a m u e l (1 S a m u e l 1 2 . 1 7 - 1 8 ) (Stromateis th e a r g u m e n t. A s I h a v e a tte m p te d to s h o w e l s e w h e r e , 22
6 .3 .2 8 .1 - 2 9 .3 ). C e ls u s s im ila r ly h e ld th a t C h r is t ia n v i e w s r e g a r d in g th e d e v il
In t h e s a m e l in e o f t h o u g h t . O r i g e n s a w t h e e p i s o d e o f t h e a r e n o th in g b u t c o u n te r f e its o f v a r io u s G re e k m y th s . B u t w e
T o w e r o f B a b e l ( G e n e s i s 1 1 .1 - 9 ) a s t h e s o u r c e o f t h e H o m e r i c know fro m t h e w o r k s o f C . A n d r e s e n 23 t h a t t h e p o s i t i o n s
n a r r a tiv e of th e s c a lin g of heaven by th e A lo id a e , w ho ta k e n by C e ls u s had th e o p p o rtu n ity to re p ly t o J u s t i n 's
th r e a te n e d th e g o d s (Iliad 5 .3 8 5 - 9 1 a n d Odyssey 1 1 .3 0 5 - 2 0 ) , Apology; s o a g r e a t p o le m ic a r o s e b e tw e e n s u c c e s s iv e g e n e r ­
a n d th e b u r n in g o f S o d o m a n d G o m o r r a h (G e n e s is 1 9 . 1 - 2 9 ) a tio n s , w h o d id n o t d is p u te th e p r o p o s e d a n a lo g ie s b u t d r e w
a s th e s ta r tin g p o in t o f th e le g e n d o f P h a e th o n ( E u r ip id e s , t h e ir a r g u m e n t s f r o m t h e m in o p p o s i n g f a s h io n s .
Hippolytus 7 3 5 - 4 1 , e t c .) (Contra Celsum 4 .2 1 ) . It is u n d o u b t ­ F u rth e rm o re , w h o lly a n a lo g o u s co n tro v e rsie s are to be
e d ly th e s a m e A l e x a n d r ia n m ilie u t h a t p r o d u c e d , a b o u t th e f o u n d e v e n w ith in G r e e k c u l t u r e . F o r e x a m p l e , H e r o d o tu s
s a m e tim e , a n Exhortation to the Pagans, s p u r io u s ly a ttrib u te d (History 2 .5 3 ) e c h o e s a d e b a te o n th e q u e s tio n o f w h e th e r o r

170
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND P A G A N M Y T H O L O G Y

not H om er and H e sio d had p re c e d e d , i.e ., in fo rm e d , th e b e r e p r e s e n t e d b y a fe m a l e f o r m . H e s e e m s to i g n o r e th e fa ct

a n cie n t p o e t-th e o lo g ia n s . E lse w h e re , c e rta in p h ilo s o p h e r s t h a t, s ta r t i n g w ith th e P r e s o c r a ti c s , A t h e n a h a d n e v e r c e a s e d
w e re a c c u s e d o f p la g ia riz in g p o e ts w h o w e r e th e ir c o m p a tr i­ to b e r e g a r d e d a s a n im a g e o f th o u g h t, a n d e v e n o f d iv in e
o ts, as th e b ib lica l a u t h o r s w o u ld be accu sed by C e ls u s ; th o u g h t, as F. B u ffiè re has d e m o n s t r a t e d . 2'1 In any case,
" E p i c u r u s i s c a u g h t r e d - h a n d e d in t h e a c t o f s t e a l i n g ; h e h a s Ju s tin has no d if fic u lty in s h o w in g th a t th e b e h a v io r of
ta k e n h is m o s t s o lid th e o rie s fro m th e p o e t s " ; s u c h is t h e Z e u s ' s o t h e r c h i l d r e n c a n b e e x p l a i n e d in t h e s a m e w a y (First
g r ie v a n c e f o rm u la te d b y S e x t u s E m p i r i c u s ( Adversus Gram­ Apology 6 4 .1 - 6 ).
maticos 2 7 3 ). J u s tin had u sed such an e x p la n a tio n n o t lo n g b e fo r e fo r
s o m e o f t h e s e g o d s . In h is e y e s , d e m o n s fin d a c h o i c e g r o u n d
fo r t h e ir m a n i p u l a t io n s in p a r t ic u la r p a g e s o f th e S c r ip t u r e s :
V. The Thesis of Demonic Imitation in th e m e s s ia n ic p ro p h e c ie s , in sp ire d v is io n a rie s m y ste ri­
o u s ly d e sc rib e d th e S a v io r lo n g b e f o r e h is c o m i n g . S o th e
1. The intercession of demons. C le m e n t o f A le x a n d ria p re ­
d e m o n s , in o r d e r to d e c e i v e a n d m isle a d th e h u m a n ra ce ,
s e n ts a n im p o r ta n t v a r ia n t o f th e th e o r y o f th e f t: th e th e ft
to o k th e o ffe n siv e a n d s u g g e s te d to th e p o e ts w h o c re a te d
w a s c o m m itte d n o t d ire c tly b y th e G re e k s b u t b y a d is o b e ­
m y th s th a t th e y g iv e Z e u s m any son s and a ttrib u te m on­
d ie n t angel fo r th e ir b e n e f it. H ere is a very c le a r te x t:
s t r o u s a d v e n t u r e s t o t h e m , in t h e h o p e t h a t t h i s w o u l d m a k e
" P h i l o s o p h y . . . c o m e s t o u s s to le n o r g i v e n t o u s b y a th ie f.
th e s to r y o f C h r is t a p p e a r to b e a fa b le o f th e s a m e s o r t , w h e n
S o m e P o w e r, s o m e A n g e l, le a rn e d a s h r e d o f tr u th , w ith o u t
it c a m e . W e r e c o g n i z e i n t h i s s t r a t e g y i m p u t e d t o t h e d e m o n s
h im s e lf r e m a i n in g f a ith fu l t o t h e t r u th , a n d h e b r e a t h e d th is
th e v e r y s tr a t e g y T e rtu llia n h a d i m p u te d to t h e m , n o d o u b t
k n o w le d g e to m en, te a c h in g th e m th e fru it o f h is th e ft"
in f o l l o w i n g J u s t i n ' s a n a l y s e s . T h e o n l y p r o b l e m , c o n t i n u e s
(Stromateis 1 .1 7 .8 1 .4 ) .
J u s ti n , is t h a t t h e d e m o n s d id n o t e x a c tl y u n d e r s t a n d t h e s e
T e r t u l l i a n a l s o i m p l i c a t e s d e m o n s in t h i s t h e f t , c a l l i n g t h e m
p ro p h e c ie s , w h ic h th e y w is h e d to re a liz e in th e ir ow n
" s p ir i t s o f e r r o r ," b u t h e a t tr i b u te s m u c h s u b tle r in te n tio n s to
w a y — a n d th e im ita tio n s th e y m a d e o f th e m a r e f i ll e d w i t h
th e m : b y f a ls if y in g th e tru e d o c trin e , dem ons e s ta b lis h e d
e rro rs, as Ju s tin u n d e r ta k e s to show w ith som e h ig h ly
f a b l e s s i m i l a r t o it a n d o f f e r e d th e se to p o e ts a n d p h ilo s o ­
in te r e s tin g e x a m p le s (First Apology 5 4 .1 - 4 ).
p h e r s ; s in c e th e y w o u ld n o t b e b e lie v e d b y th e p u b lic , th e s e
M o s e s (G e n e s is 4 9 .1 0 - 1 1 ) re la te s a p r o p h e c y o f J a c o b th a t
fa b le s w o u ld d is c r e d it th e C h r is tia n fa ith , w h ic h w a s s im ila r
th e M e s sia h w o u ld b in d h is fo a l to a v in e and w ash h is
to th e m — b u t w h e n d o u b t w o u ld th u s h a v e d e stro y e d th e
g a r m e n t s in w in e . T h e d e m o n s m a d e t w o im it a t io n s o f th is :
f a ith , t h e r e w o u l d b e a r e t u r n to th e p o e t s ' a n d p h il o s o p h e r s '
o n th e o n e h a n d , D io n y s u s , th e s o n o f Z e u s a n d S e m e le , th e
f a b le s , w h ic h a r e th e a l te r n a t i v e to f a ith . T h is t r u ly d ia b o lic a l
in v e n t o r o f th e v in e , w h o w a s c u t in to p ie c e s a n d re s u sc i­
c a lc u la tio n is m ade c le a re r th ro u g h th e e x a m p le s w h ic h
ta te d a n d th e n a s c e n d e d in to th e s k y , a n d w h o s e m y s te r ie s
f o l l o w : if t h e r e is g e n e r a l m i r t h w h e n C h r i s t i a n s p r e d i c t t h e
in v o lv e a n a s s ; o n th e o th e r , B e lle ro p h o n , th e s o n o f a m a n ,
ju d g m e n t o f G o d , G e h e n n a fo r th e p u n is h m e n t o f s o u ls a n d
w ho ascen d ed in to th e sky on th e h o rse P eg asu s. T h is
p a ra d ise fo r th e ir re co m p e n se , it is b ecau se p e o p le are
d u a lity a lo n e d e m o n s tr a te s fo r Ju s tin th a t th e d e m o n s h a d
l a u g h in g a b o u t th e p a g a n re p lic a s — th e trib u n a l o f h e ll, th e
n o t e n tire ly u n d e r s to o d th e p ro p h e c y , w h ic h d id n o t s p e c ify
P y r i p h l e g e t h o n , a n d t h e E l y s ia n F ie ld s . B u t T e r tu llia n is a b le
w h e th e r th e M e s s ia h w o u ld b e th e s o n o f G o d o r o f a m a n ,
to th ro w b ack th e se a rg u m e n ts and d efu se th e ir m a lic e :
n o r w h e th e r h e w o u ld a s c e n d o n th e fo al o f a n a s s o r o f a
" W h e r e , I p r a y y o u , d id th e p o e ts a n d p h ilo s o p h e r s g e t th e s e
h o r s e . T h e y d id k n o w fro m Is a ia h ( 7 .1 4 ; 5 2 .1 3 ) th a t h e w o u ld
t h i n g s t h a t a r e s o l ik e o u r s ? O n l y f r o m o u r m y s t e r i e s . N o w ,
b e b o r n o f a v irg in a n d w o u ld a s c e n d in to h e a v e n b y h is o w n
if t h e y g o t t h e m f r o m o u r m y s t e r i e s b e c a u s e t h e s e a r e m o r e
p o w e r ; th e y th e n in sp ire d th e s to r y o f P e rs e u s , b o rn o f th e
a n c i e n t , t h e n o u r m y s t e r i e s a r e m o r e r e lia b le a n d m o r e to b e
v irg in D anaë, and of Z eu s, w ho h ad tra n s fo rm e d h im se lf
b e l ie v e d , fo r e v e n w h a t is n o t h i n g b u t a c o p y o f t h e m fin d s
i n t o a r a i n o f g o l d . W h e n it i s s a i d t h a t H e r a c l e s , t h e s o n o f
c r e d e n c e ." A s fo r s u p p o s i n g th a t t h e y m ig h t h a v e b e e n ta k e n
Z e u s a n d o f A l c m e n e , v a lia n tly tr a v e le d o v e r th e w o r ld a n d
fro m th e ir o w n s o il, h o w t h e n c o u ld o u r m y s t e r i e s , w h ic h
a s c e n d e d i n t o t h e s k y a f t e r h i s d e a t h , h o w i s it n o t p o s s i b l e
p r e c e d e d t h e m , b e a c o p y o f t h e m ( Apologeticus 4 7 . 1 1 - 1 4 ) ?
to s e e th is a s a n im ita tio n o f th e C h r is tia n p r o p h e c y o f P s a lm
2. The counterfeiting of Christian prophecies. D e m o n s h e ld a n 19, (v e rs e 5 ): "re jo ic e th as a s tro n g m an to ru n a ra ce "?
i m p o r t a n t p l a c e i n t h e t h e o l o g y o f t h e a p o l o g i s t J u s t i n . In F in a lly , h a v i n g l e a r n e d fr o m t h e s a m e s o u r c e (I s a i a h 3 5 . 5 - 6 )
a g r e e m e n t w ith a t h e s i s t h a t w a s c u r r e n t in th e firs t c e n t u r i e s t h a t th e M e s s i a h w o u l d h e a l t h e s ic k a n d r a i s e th e d e a d , th e
o f th e c o m m o n e r a , h e h o ld s th e fa lse g o d s o f p a g a n i s m to b e d e m o n s s ta g e d th e s to r y o f A s c le p iu s (First Apology 5 4 .5 - 1 0 ;
d e m o n s : it w a s t h e s e d e m o n s w h o c o m m i t t e d th e h o r r o r s a p a ra lle l a n d s o m e t im e s m o r e c o m p l e te d e v e l o p m e n t o f th is
w h ic h p o e ts a n d m y th o lo g is ts ig n o r a n tly a s s ig n to th e k in g is f o u n d in J u s t i n 's o th e r w o rk , th e Dialogue with Trypho
o f t h e g o d s a n d t o h i s b r o t h e r s P l u t o a n d P o s e i d o n ( Second 6 7 . 1 - 2 ; 6 9 . 1 - 5 ; 7 0 .5 , in w h ic h t h e d e m o n s g i v e w a y t o th e
Apology 5 .3 - 5 ). d e v il, c a lle d th e "se rp e n t of erro r"; on H e ra cle s, see M.
A n o th e r m is d e e d o n th e p a rt o f th e d e m o n s w a s , a c c o r d ­ S i m o n ' s 25 e x c e l l e n t c o m m e n t a r y ) .
in g to Ju s tin , to tra v e s ty th e S c r ip tu r e s so as to s u p p ly T h e r e is n e v e r t h e l e s s in th e p r o p h e c ie s , J u s ti n c o n t i n u e s ,
m y th o lo g y w ith tr a its th a t h a v e p e r c e p tib le p a r a lle ls w ith th e an e p iso d e th a t th e dem on im ita to rs n e v e r c re d ite d to a
C h r is tia n a n d J e w is h fa ith s . F o r e x a m p l e , th e re a s o n p e o p le s in g le s o n o f Z e u s b e c a u s e it w a s a n n o u n c e d in a p u re ly
p la ce th e im a g e o f K o re , th e d a u g h te r o f Z e u s , o v e r s p r in g s s y m b o l i c f a s h i o n , w h i c h m a d e it u n t h i n k a b l e f o r t h e m : it is
is t h a t d e m o n s i m i t a t e d t h e v e r s e f r o m M o s e s ( G e n e s i s 1 . 2 ) th e c ru c if ix io n (First Apology 5 5 .1 ) . A ll t h e sam e, th e ev il-
a b o u t th e sp irit o f G o d m o v in g u p o n th e fa ce o f th e w a te r s . d o in g o f th e d e m o n s w a s n o t lim ite d to in v e n tin g s o n s o f
T h e d e m o n s , f u r t h e r m o r e , k n e w t h a t G o d h a d c o n c e i v e d in Z e u s b e fo r e th e c o m in g o f th e C h r is t; w h e n he had com e,
h is th o u g h t th e w o rld th a t w as to be c re a te d ; fro m th is th e y re c o g n iz e d h im as th e p r o p h e s ie d M e s sia h , a n d set
p r im o rd ia l th o u g h t , w ith e q u a l p e r v e r s ity , t h e y h a d A t h e n a , m a g ic ia n s a g a i n s t h im (ib id . 5 6 .1 ) .
a n o th e r d a u g h te r o f Z e u s , b o m w ith o u t s e x u a l i n te r c o u r s e . N o o t h e r C h r is t ia n a u t h o r w o u l d t a k e u p in s u c h b r e a d t h
Ju s tin f o r m u la te s a n u n e x p e c t e d g r ie v a n c e a g a in s t th is s u p ­ th is s o r t o f e x p l a n a t i o n fo r th e r e s e m b la n c e s w h ic h c o m e to
p o s e d p e r v e r s i o n : h e h o l d s t h a t it i s r i d i c u l o u s f o r t h o u g h t t o lig h t b e t w e e n th e p e r s o n o f C h r is t a n d c e r ta in m y th o lo g ic a l

171
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

fig u re s . B u t th e re a re v a r io u s r e s u r g e n c e s o f s u c h a r g u m e n ­ t h e l a t t e r . T h e A f r i c a n p r i e s t s k i l lf u l l y d e f u s e d t h i s c a l c u l a ­
t a t i o n . In t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y , F i r m i c u s M a t e r n u s a n n o u n c e d t i o n w i t h o u t r e l i n q u i s h i n g t h e p r e s u p p o s i t i o n : if t h e p a g a n
h is in te n tio n to "re v ie w s u c c e s s iv e ly a ll th e f o r m u la s of m y th s i n s p ir e d b e lie f, h o w m u c h m o r e s h o u ld o u r m y s t e r i e s ,
p a g a n re lig io n , to p r o v e th a t th e w o r s t e n e m y o f th e h u m a n o f w h ic h th e ir s a r e c o p ie s, do so! T h ese tw o arg u m e n ts,
r a c e b o rr o w e d th e m fro m th e h o ly a n d v e n e ra b le p re d ic tio n s w h i c h r u n in o p p o s i t e d i r e c t i o n s , b o t h r e l y o n c e r t a i n a n a l ­
o f th e p r o p h e t s to s e r v e h is filth y c r i m e s " (De errore profa­ o g ie s b e tw e e n th e t w o b e lie fs . M o r e t h a n o n c e , C h ris tia n
narum religionum 2 1 .1 ) . These " f o r m u l a s ," w h ic h F irm ic u s a p o lo g ists u se d th e s a m e a s s u m p tio n fo r th e s a m e a d v a n ­
symbola, a r e
c a lls t h o s e o f th e m y s te r ie s , o f w h ic h h e g iv e s a t a g e , in v a r i o u s w a y s . T e r t u l l i a n h i m s e l f , i n t r e a t i n g o f t h e
fe w e x a m p le s . H e a ls o c o n s id e r s s o m e p a g a n rite s , w h ic h h e i n c a r n a t io n a n d th e v irg in b ir th , re q u ir e s th a t th e p a g a n s first
d e n o u n c e s a s m is le a d in g im ita tio n s o f p r o p h e c ie s ; c o n t r a r y accep t th e m s im p ly b ecau se of th e ir r e s e m b la n c e to th e
to J u s tin , a c c o r d in g to w h o m th e d e m o n s h a d in n o w a y m y th s w h ic h th e y th e m s e l v e s h a d fo rg e d o u t o f th e c o r r e ­
p e n e tr a te d th e p r o p h e t s ' a llu s io n s to th e C ro ss, F irm ic u s s p o n d i n g p r o p h e c i e s : " F o r t h e t i m e b e i n g a c c e p t t h i s 'f a b l e ,'
h o l d s t h a t it w a s in o r d e r t o c o u n t e r f e i t t h e m a t e r i a l o f t h e w h i c h is l ik e y o u r o w n , u n t i l I s h o w y o u h o w h e is p r o v e d t o
C ro s s th a t th e d e v il h a d w is h e d to m a k e w o o d th e in s tru ­ b e C h ris t a n d w h o th e y a r e a m o n g y o u w h o h a v e p re v io u s ly
m e n t o f r ite s o f re n e w a l (c i ti n g th e p in e in th e c u lt o f C y b e le c ir c u la t e d fa b le s o f th is g e n r e , to d e s t r o y th is t r u t h " (Apolo-
a n d O s i r i s , t h e t r e e t r u n k i n t h a t o f P r o s e r p i n e , e t c . ) ( ib i d . geticus 2 1 .1 4 ) ; s h o rtly th e re a fte r (ib i d ., 2 1 .2 3 ) , th e sam e
2 7 .1 - 2 ). a u th o r w o u ld h a v e th e m a d m it th a t th e C h ris tia n a s c e n s io n
is " m u c h t r u e r " t h a n ( w h i c h i m p l i e s " c o m p a r a b l e t o " ) t h o s e
3. Mithra and Jesus. A m o n g th e f o r m u la s o f p r o f a n e w o r ­
o f R o m u lu s a n d o th e r R o m a n s .
s h ip , F ir m ic u s M a te r n u s c ite s th e fo llo w in g : " t h e g o d b o rn o f
B u t th is s o r t o f a r g u m e n t g o e s b a c k f a r t h e r t h a n T e rtu llia n ,
s to n e ," w h ic h , a s w e k n o w fro m o th e r s o u r c e s , d e s ig n a te s
fo r T a tia n , w is h in g to s u b s ta n tia te th e in c a rn a tio n , e v o k e s
M i t h r a . In h i s e y e s , t h i s s t o n e e v o k e s a n o t h e r s t o n e — t h a t b y
c e rta in m y th ic m e ta m o rp h o se s (o f A th e n a as D e ip h o b u s
w h ic h G o d p ro m is e s to s tr e n g th e n th e fo u n d a tio n s o f th e
[Iliad 2 2 . 2 2 6 - 2 7 ] , o f A p o llo a s th e c o w h e r d o f A d m e tu s , o f
fu tu re J e ru s a le m (a c c o rd in g to Is a ia h 2 8 .1 6 ) , and w h ic h
H e ra as an o ld w om an in th e p resen ce o f S e m e le ), and
p r o p h e t i c a l l y d e s i g n a t e s t h e C h r i s t . In t h e p e r s p e c t i v e t h a t
a u t h o r i z e s h im s e lf , o n th e b a s is o f th is p a r a lle l, t o ta k e th e
w e h a v e ju s t s e e n , th e first o f th e s e e le m e n ts c o u ld o n ly h a v e
G r e e k s to ta s k : " Y o u w h o in s u lt u s , c o m p a r e y o u r m y th s to
c o m e fro m th e s e c o n d b y th e f t, f r a u d u le n t tra n s f e r , a d u lt e r ­
o u r a c c o u n ts . . . . C o n s id e rin g y o u r o w n le g e n d s , a c c e p t o u r
a tio n o f th e fa ith — a n d th is is , i n d e e d , th e a u t h o r 's j u d g m e n t
t e a c h i n g s , if o n l y o n t h e b a s i s o f t h e i r b e i n g m y t h s s i m i l a r t o
(De errore profanarum religionum 2 0 .1 ) .
your ow n" (Oratorio ad Graecos 2 1 ). F u rth e rm o re , th e la st
J u s tin h a d p r e c e d e d h im o n th is p r e c is e p o i n t : th e in itia ­
p a s s a g e c ite d fro m T a tia n tu r n s o u t to b e b a s e d , a lm o s t w o rd
to r s in to th e m y s te r ie s o f M ith ra s p e a k o f th e g o d " b o r n o f a
fo r w o r d , o n J u s tin . J u s tin h a s ju s t c ite d a m a s s o f p r a c tic e s ,
s to n e " and c a ll th e p la ce of in itia tio n a "ca v e " b ecau se,
e v e n ts, a u th o rs, an d t e x t s , a ll b o r r o w e d fro m G reek tra d i­
u n d e r th e in flu e n c e o f d e v ils , th e y a r e im ita tin g th e p r o p h ­
tio n , w h ic h im p ly a b e lie f th a t s o u ls r e m a i n se n tie n t a fte r
e c ie s o f D a n ie l ( 2 .3 4 : th e s to n e th a t w a s hew n fro m th e
d e a th . H e re fe rs , fo r e x a m p le , to n e c r o m a n c y , th e c o n ju r in g
m o u n ta in in t h e d r e a m of N eb u ch ad n ezzar) an d o f Is a ia h
o f th e d e a d , p o s s e s s io n , th e g r e a t o r a c le s o f D o d o n a a n d o f
( 3 3 .1 6 : th e rig h te o u s one in a cave o f s o lid ro ck ). Ju s tin
D e lp h i, p h ilo s o p h e r s f a v o ra b le to w a r d th e id e a o f r e in c a r n a ­
c o u n t e r s t h is S a ta n ic c o u n t e r f e i t i n g o f I s a i a h 's p r o p h e c y b y
tio n , H o m e r 's tr e n c h a n d O d y s s e u s 's d e s c e n t to th e u n d e r ­
p o in tin g o u t th e tru e s y m b o lic im p o r t o f th e v e r s e , w h ic h , h e
w o rld (Odyssey 1 1 .2 4 f f .) , and so fo rth . A fte r e n u m e ra tin g
co n te n d s , re fe rs to th e c a v e o f th e N a tiv ity a t B e th le h e m
t h e s e p a g a n t e s t im o n i e s to a b e lie f a l s o h e ld b y C h r is t ia n s ,
(Dialogue with Trypho 7 0 .1 - 3 ; 7 8 .5 - 6 ).
J u s tin d e m a n d s a n a t le a s t e q u a l a d h e r e n c e to th e C h r is tia n
A c c o r d in g to th e s a m e v e r s e fro m Is a ia h , th e r i g h te o u s o n e
v e rsio n : "If o n ly on th e b a sis o f its r e s e m b la n c e to th is
w ill r e c e i v e a n i n e x h a u s t i b l e s u p p l y o f b r e a d a n d w a t e r i n h i s
te a ch in g , a c c e p t o u r s " (First Apology 1 8 .3 - 6 ).
cave, w h ic h is, J u s tin c o n tin u e s , a c le a r p r o p h e c y o f th e
A c o m p a r a b l e a t t i t u d e a p p e a r s in O r i g e n , a l t h o u g h w i t h a
e u c h a r i s t in i ts t w o f o r m s ( i b i d . 7 0 . 4 ) ; b u t i n i t i a t i o n i n t o t h e
s lig h tly d i f f e r e n t a p p li c a ti o n . H is a d v e r s a r y C e ls u s r e f u s e d
m y s te r ie s o f M ith ra a ls o e n ta ils th e p r e s e n ta tio n o f b re a d a n d
to a cco rd any m e a n in g o th e r th a n th e lite ra l o n e to th e
a cu p of w a te r , a c co m p a n ie d by c e rta in fo r m u la s . T h is
b ib lica l p a g e s o n th e c r e a ti o n o f w o m a n fr o m th e rib o f th e
c o in c id e n c e to o c o m e s fro m a n im ita tio n im p u ta b le to p e r ­
s le e p in g A dam (G e n e s is 2 .2 1 - 2 2 ) and on th e gard en of
v e r s e d e m o n s (w ith th e d iffe re n c e th a t h e re th e o b je c t o f
d i f f e r e n t t r e e s p l a n t e d b y G o d , w ith its s e r p e n t w h o re b e ls
th e ir c o u n te r f e itin g is no lo n g e r p ro p h e c y but th e a c tu a l
a g a i n s t t h e d i v i n e c o m m a n d s ( i b i d . , 2 . 8 - 9 ; 3 . 1 - 5 ) . In b o t h
G osp el a cco u n ts of th e in s titu tio n o f th e e u c h a r is t) (First a c c o u n t s , O r ig e n o p p o r tu n e ly c ite s a s p a ra lle ls th e H e s io d ic
Apology 6 6 . 4 ) . T h e s a m e r e s e m b la n c e w o u ld b e r e c o r d e d , a n d
m y th o f P a n d o ra (Works and Days 5 3 - 9 8 , m o s t o f w h ic h h e
e x p l a i n e d in i d e n t i c a l f a s h i o n , b y T e r t u l l i a n : t h e o f f i c e o f t h e
c ite s ); th e first w o m a n , g iv e n b y Z e u s to m e n a s " a n ev il
d e v i l is t o p e r v e r t t h e t r u t h a n d i m i t a t e t h e d i v i n e s a c r a m e n t s
th in g a n d th e p ric e p a id fo r f ir e " (th e c o m p a r is o n w ith E v e ,
in th e m y s te rie s o f id o ls. T h e d e v il to o has h is b a p tis m ,
w h o a l o n e h a s a h is to r ic a l r e a lity , h a d a l r e a d y b e e n i n s titu te d
t h r o u g h w h ic h h e p r o m is e s th e e x p ia tio n o f m is d e e d s , a n d
b y T e rtu llia n , De corona militum 7 .3 ) ; a n d th e P la to n ic m y th
M ith ra m a r k s th e fo r e h e a d s o f h is s o ld ie r s , c e le b r a te s th e
(Symposium 2 0 3 b - 2 0 4 c , a l s o c ite d in g r e a t p a r t ) o f th e b ir th o f
o b la tio n o f b r e a d , g iv e s a n id e a o f th e r e s u r r e c t i o n , c r o w n s
E r o s , w h o w a s c o n c e i v e d in th e g a r d e n o f Z e u s ( th e i m p o r ­
h is m a r ty r s , e t c . (De praescriptione haereticorum 4 0 .2 - 4 ).
t a n c e o f th is la s t t e x t to th e P l a to n is t tr a d it i o n , b o th p a g a n
a n d C h r i s t i a n , w a s r e v e a l e d b y J . M . R i s t ) . 26 C o n f i d e n t o f
th is c o n v e r g e n c e , O r ig e n fe e ls ju s tifie d in d e m a n d i n g t h a t
VI. An Apologetic Starting Point t h e t w o b i b l i c a l a c c o u n t s a n d t h e t w o G r e e k m y t h s b e r e a d in
1. Homogeneity constituted as an argument. In t h e w r i t i n g s o f t h e s a m e l i g h t . I f , a s o n e w o u l d b e c o r r e c t in d o i n g , o n e
T e r t u l l i a n (Apologeticus 4 7 . 1 1 - 1 4 ) , w e h a v e e n c o u n t e r e d t h e r e c o g n i z e d a d o c t r i n a l i m p o r t h i d d e n in t h e d e p t h s o f t h e
id e a th a t p a g a n ism had m a n u fa c tu re d m y th s s im ila r to G re e k m y th s , it w o u l d b e u n re a s o n a b le to deny su ch an
C h r i s t i a n d o c t r i n e s in o r d e r t h a t t h e o b v i o u s f a l s i t y o f t h e im p o rt to t h e b ib l i c a l a c c o u n t s a n d m e re ly to r e ta in th e ir
f o r m e r s h o u ld c a s t d o u b t, b y r e a s o n o f th e ir s im ilitu d e , o n s u rfa ce m e a n in g (Contra Celsum 4 .3 8 - 3 9 ). W e re c o g n iz e h e re

172
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND P A G A N M Y T H O L O G Y

th e p ro ced u re of u sin g a n a lo g ie s w ith p a g a n ism as an c o n c l u s i o n o f C y r i l o f A l e x a n d r i a : " I t is o u t o f t h e q u e s t i o n

a u th o riz a tio n to dem and at le a st th e sam e tre a tm e n t fo r fo r u s to g iv e c r e d e n c e to d iv in e p r o d ig ie s o n th e b a s is o f th e
C h ris tia n b e lie fs . T h e r e a lity o f th is a r g u m e n t s ta n d s o u t G re e k fa b le s, b u t w e re ta in th e m to o u r b e n e f it, to c o n v i n c e
e v e n m o r e in t h e t w o e x a m p l e s t h a t w e a r e a b o u t t o l o o k a t . th e in c r e d u lo u s th a t th e s c o p e o f th e ir o w n le g e n d s d o e s n o t
a llo w th e m t o r e j e c t s u c h e l e m e n t s in o u r a c c o u n t s " (Com­
2. The Christ and the sons of Zeus. W e h a v e re c a lle d h o w th e
mentary on Jonah 11; Patrologia Graeca 7 1 . 6 1 6 C - 6 1 7 A ) . In o t h e r
C h ris tia n s o f th e first g e n e r a t i o n s in siste d th a t th e "n ew ­
w o rd s, co in cid e n ce s such as th o s e b e tw e e n H e ra cle s and
n e s s " o f th e ir re lig io n b e r e c o g n i z e d . A p a s s a g e fro m Ju s tin
J o n a h , w h ic h are u n i m p o r t a n t f o r C h r i s t i a n s in t h e i r o w n
th a t s p e a k s o f th e m o s t m ira c u lo u s a s p e c ts o f th e p e rs o n a n d
p r a c tic e , a r e u se f u l fo r m a k in g a n im p re s s io n o n th e in c r e ­
lif e o f J e s u s i s t h e r e f o r e s u r p r i s i n g : " W e o f f e r n o t h i n g n e w
d u lity of th e G re e k s. In th e e le v e n th c e n tu ry th e sam e
w ith r e s p e c t to th o s e a m o n g y o u w h o a re c o n s id e re d th e
c o n c l u s i o n is r e a c h e d th ro u g h th e s a m e c o m p a r i s o n b y th e
s o n s o f Z e u s . " W h a t f o l l o w s s h o w s t h a t t h i s d e c l a r a t i o n is t o
B y z a n tin e e x e g e t e T h e o p h y l a c t , a r c h b i s h o p o f A c h r id a : th e
b e ta k e n l i t e r a l l y : if J e s u s i s t h e W o r d o f G o d , it m u s t b e
s to ry o f Jo n a h is a p p a r e n t l y i n c r e d i b l e , e s p e c i a l l y t o m i n d s
know n th a t th is is s o m e t h i n g he h o ld s in com m on w ith
s te e p e d in G reek e rro rs, but th e p a ra lle l fro m H e ra cle s
H e r m e s , t h e W o r d o f Z e u s ; if h e w a s b o r n o f a v i r g i n , s o w a s
c r e a t e s a d i l e m m a f o r t h e m : " E i t h e r t h e y w ill a l s o a c c e p t o u r
P e r s e u s ; if h e h e a l e d t h e s i c k a n d r a i s e d t h e d e a d , it m u s t b e
m i r a c l e s , o r t h e y w ill a l s o r e j e c t t h e i r o w n . B u t w e m u s t n o t
a d m i t t e d t h a t A s c l e p i u s d i d t h e s a m e ; if h e w a s c r u c i f i e d , t h e
u s e th e d e c a y o f th e ir m y th s to r e in f o r c e th e s o lid ity o f o u r
son s of Z eu s to o had th e ir p a s s io n s (A s c le p iu s s tru c k by
ow n tru th " (Exposition on the Prophet Jonas 2 .1 ; Patrologia
lig h tn in g , D io n y s u s d i s m e m b e r e d , H e r a c le s t h r o w in g h im ­
Graeca 1 2 6 .9 3 2 B C ).
s e l f i n t o f i r e ) ; a n d f i n a l l y , if h e a s c e n d e d i n t o h e a v e n , s u c h
w as a lso th e case w ith A s c le p iu s , th e D io s c u r i, P e rse u s,
B e lle ro p h o n o n th e b a ck o f P e g a s u s , a n d A r ia d n e w h o w a s VII. A Propaedeutic to Christianity
p la ce d am ong th e s ta rs — to say n o th in g of th e d eceased
1. Providential Greek culture. A t th e b e g in n in g o f th is s tu d y ,
e m p e r o r s ( First Apology 2 1 .1 - 3 ; 2 2 .2 - 6 ).
w e s a w v a r io u s C h u r c h F a th e r s re fe r to c e rta in m y th o lo g ic a l
F u r t h e r p a g e s in t h e Apology a s w e ll a s t h e Dialogue with
s itu a tio n s w h ic h w e r e m o r e o r le s s c o m p a r a b l e to C h r is tia n
Trypho a g a in ta k e u p m a n y o f th e s e e p is o d e s p e r ta in in g to
tr u th s , in o rd er, th e y th o u g h t, to speak to th e ir pagan
t h e s o n s o f Z e u s , a s w e h a v e s e e n ; b u t in t h e s e i n s t a n c e s
i n t e r l o c u t o r s in t h e i r o w n l a n g u a g e ; t h e y w e r e t a k i n g a d v a n ­
th e ir p u r p o s e is t o i l l u s t r a t e t h e fra u d p e rp e tra te d by th e
t a g e o f t h e s e p a ra lle ls o n a m e r e ly r h e to r ic a l le v e l, w ith o u t
dem ons w ho tra v e s tie d th e m e s s ia n ic p r o p h e c ie s b e c a u s e
d e a lin g w ith u n d e r ly i n g q u e s t i o n s . B u t to b a s e a n a p o l o g e t ic
th e y m is u n d e r s to o d th e m . J u s t i n 's p u rp o se h ere is q u ite
p r o c e d u r e o n s u c h p a ra lle ls , e v e n a t th e le v e l w e h a v e ju st
d iffe re n t a n d e v e n m o re s u r p r is in g : h e a p p e a r s to b e o v e r ­
d e s c r i b e d , w a s to im p ly re c o g n itio n o f a c e rta in r e a lity in
com e by a c o m p a r a tiv is t fren zy at w h ic h even th e m o st
th e m . T h ere is, h ow ever, a th ird C h ris tia n v ie w of th e
re d u ctio n ist h isto ria n s of re lig io n s w o u ld b a lk . He s e ts
a n a lo g ie s w ith p a g a n i s m , w h ic h i n v e s ts th e m w ith e m i n e n t
h im s e lf to ta k in g th e edge o ff th e m o s t s a lie n t p o in ts of
v a l u e s i n c e it g i v e s t h e m a fo u n d a tio n t h a t is n o t h i n g l e s s
C h r is t o l o g y in o r d e r to d i s s o l v e t h e m in t h e ir a s s i m il a t io n to
th a n a d e s ig n o f P r o v id e n c e . T h is p e r s p e c tiv e m u s t a t le a st
th e m y th o lo g ic a l b io g r a p h ie s . N o d o u b t h is s tr a t e g y is a n
b e n o t e d i n c o n c l u s i o n ; it is p a r t o f a f a r b r o a d e r v i e w , t h a t o f
a p o l o g e t ic o n e : b y m a x im iz in g th e p a ra lle ls b e tw e e n C h r is t
th e f u n c t i o n o f G r e e k c u l t u r e in th e e c o n o m i c s o f C h r is t ia n
and th e G re e k g o d s, he m ay le g itim a te ly c la im th e sam e
s a lv a tio n .
w e lc o m e a m o n g th e p a g a n s fo r C h r is t a s fo r th e G re e k g o d s .
T h is f u n c tio n m ig h t b e s a id to b e p r o p a e d e u t ic — th e w o r d
A little la te r , J u s ti n c le a r l y d e c l a r e s h is a s p i r a t io n s — a n d h is
u s e d b y C le m e n t o f A le x a n d r ia , th e p rin cip a l r e p r e s e n ta tiv e
c h a g rin at fa ilin g to see th e m re a liz e d — w h e n he says:
o f th is th e o lo g y o f h isto ry . S a in t P a u l, he says, g iv e s th e
" W h ile w e s a y th e s a m e th in g s a s th e G re e k s , w e a lo n e a re
" r u d i m e n ts o f th e w o r ld " (E p is tle to th e C o lo s s ia n s 2 .8 ) a s a
h a t e d ! " (ib i d ., 2 4 .1 ) . N a tu r a l l y , th is d e s i r e to g a i n a f o o t h o l d ,
s y m b o l o f G r e e k p h ilo s o p h y b e c a u s e th a t p h ilo s o p h y is, s o
even at little c o s t, am ong th e pagan m asses, can o n ly
t o s p e a k , " e l e m e n t a r y , " a n d b e c a u s e it is a " p r o p a e d e u t i c "
re p re se n t a n i n it ia l and m in im a l p h ase in th e a p o lo g e tic
(propaideia) o f th e tru th (Stromateis 6 .8 .6 2 .1 ) . B u t th e fu n ctio n
e n te r p r is e . A s Ju s tin h im se lf n o te s , C h ris t h a s a r g u m e n ts
t h a t fe ll t o G r e e k p h i l o s o p h y is t o b e u n d e r s t o o d in t w o v e r y
o th e r th a n th is in h is f a v o r : " A ll o f o u r t e a c h i n g s r e c e iv e d
d i f f e r e n t w a y s , n e a t l y d i s t i n g u i s h e d b y C l e m e n t in a n e a r l i e r
f r o m C h r i s t . . . a r e a l o n e t r u e . . . , a n d if w e j u d g e t h e m
p assage: in a m o re b anal sense, p h ilo s o p h y is to d a y a
w o r t h y o f b e i n g w e l c o m e d b y y o u , it i s n o t b e c a u s e o f t h e s e
" p r o p a e d e u t i c " ( propaideia ) in t h e d i r e c t i o n o f t h e t r u e p i e t y
re s e m b la n c e s but b ecau se we speak th e t r u th ." As fo r
fo r m i n d s d e s i r o u s o f r e a c h i n g fa ith t h r o u g h d e m o n s t r a t i o n ;
e x p l a in i n g t h e a n a l o g i e s in q u e s t i o n , th e c h a p t e r e n d s w ith
i n a m o r e p r o f o u n d a n d f u n d a m e n t a l s e n s e , it w a s g i v e n t o
th e th e s is d e a r to th is a u t h o r : " B e f o r e th e W o r d b e c a m e m a n
th e G r e e k s in th e b e g i n n in g , b e f o r e th e L o r d e x t e n d e d h is
a m o n g m e n , s o m e to o k th e in itia tiv e u n d e r th e in f lu e n c e o f
c a l l t o t h e m , " b e c a u s e it w a s , i t s e l f , t h e e d u c a t o r o f H e l l e ­
e v il d e m o n s and, th r o u g h th e in te r m e d ia r y o f th e p o e ts,
n ism , ju s t a s th e Law w as th a t o f th e Je w s, fo r m o v in g
p re se n te d a s re a lity th e m y th s th e y had in v e n te d " (ib i d .,
to w a rd th e C h r is t " (Stromateis 1 . 5 . 2 8 . 1 , 3 ).
2 3 .1 , 3 ).
S ev eral p a g e s o f th e Sixth Stromatis a re d e v o te d to th is
3. Heracles and Jonah. A sh o rt b ran ch of th e tr a d itio n v is io n o f h is to r y . In d i s c u s s i n g th e c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f C h r is t ia n
c o n c e r n i n g H e r a c le s , first r e p r e s e n te d in t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y n e w n e s s w e c ite d a s e n te n ce o n th e th re e m o d e s — G re e k ,
B .c. b y t h e A l e x a n d r i a n poet L y co p h ro n (a s n o te d by M. J e w is h , a n d C h r is tia n — o f th e k n o w le d g e o f G o d . C le m e n t
S i m o n ) , 27 c r e d i t s t h e h e r o w i t h h a v i n g s p e n t t h r e e d a y s in a c c e n t u a t e s th e s tr ic t p a ra lle lis m b e tw e e n th e tw o k in d s o f
th e b e lly o f a fish w ith n o h a r m d o n e e x c e p t f o r th e lo s s o f h is " e v a n g e lic a l p r e p a r a t io n " : o n th e o n e h a n d , th e L a w a n d th e
h a ir. A p a rt fro m th is la s t d e ta il, th e p a r a lle lis m w ith th e P r o p h e t s w e r e g i v e n in t h e i r t i m e t o t h e b a r b a r i a n s ( i . e . , t h e
p r o p h e t J o n a h is s t r i k i n g ; s e v e r a l C h r i s t i a n c o m m e n t a t o r s o n Je w s); and, on th e o th e r, p h ilo s o p h y w as g iv e n to th e
t h e B o o k o f J o n a h ( 2 . 1 - 1 1 ) r e f e r r e d t o i t , a n d u s e d it in t h e G r e e k s , in o r d e r t o h a b it u a t e t h e e a r s o f b o th to t h e G o o d
s e r v ic e o f a n a r g u m e n t w h ic h c lo s e ly fo llo w s th o s e w e h a v e N ew s (6 .6 .4 4 .1 ). H ere, "p h ilo s o p h y " ta k e s on a b ro ad er
j u s t s e e n . H e r e , i n t h e f i r s t h a l f o f t h e f i f t h c e n t u r y , is t h e m e a n i n g t h a n it h a s t o d a y , e x t e n d i n g t o t h e w h o l e o f c u l t u r e .

173
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

C l e m e n t is b o l d e n o u g h t o c o n c e i v e o f a G r e e k p r o p h e t i s m b e in g c o n d u c te d to th e M ead o f A s p h o d e l b y th e g o ld e n
c o r r e s p o n d i n g to th e J e w is h : " J u s t a s G o d , w a n tin g to s a v e w a n d o f C y lle n ia n H e r m e s . N o w , th e N a a s s e n e s n o t o n ly
th e J e w s , g a v e th e m p r o p h e t s , h e a ls o in s p ire d a m o n g th e i d e n t i f y t h i s g o d w i t h t h e L o g o s , w h i c h is u n r e m a r k a b l e , b u t
G re e k s th e m o st p ro m in e n t p e rs o n a litie s to b e th e ir o w n th e y id e n tify h im p re c is e ly w ith th e C h r is tia n W o r d ; h is
p r o p h e t s in t h e i r l a n g u a g e , a c c o r d i n g a s t h e y w e r e c a p a b l e o f g o ld e n w and is n o n e o t h e r t h a n th e iro n ro d o f P sa lm 2
r e c e iv in g th e g ift o f G o d , a n d h e d i s tin g u is h e d th e m fro m ( v e r s e 9 ) ; it a w a k e n s t h e d r o w s i n g s o u l s , c o n f o r m i n g t o t h e
o rd in a ry p e o p le " ( 6 .5 .4 2 .3 ). C o n c u r r e n t te x ts b y th e s a m e r o l e r e s e r v e d f o r t h e C h r i s t in t h e E p i s t l e t o t h e E p h e s i a n s
a u th o r have been c ite d by J. D a n i é l o u . 28 It is easy to ( 5 .1 4 ); a s fo r th e s u ito r s , th e y a r e re a lly m e n w h o , a w a k e n e d
u n d e r s t a n d , w ith in th is v e r y p a r t ic u la r p e r s p e c t iv e , h o w a n y fr o m s le e p , r e c a ll th e b lis s fr o m w h ic h th e y h a v e fa lle n a n d
in te rs e c tio n , h o w e v e r a p p r o x im a te o r s u p e rf ic ia l, b e tw e e n h o p e fo r th e ir r e d e m p tio n , a c c o r d in g to th e C h r is tia n p e r ­
th e G re e k r e lig io u s c o r p u s o n th e o n e h a n d a n d J e w G h o r sp e c tiv e (H ip p o ly tu s , Refutatio omnium haeresium 5 .7 .2 9 - 3 3 ) .
C h r is t ia n b e lie fs o n th e o t h e r w o u ld s ta n d o u t a n d a s s u m e
3. The Sibyl and Virgil. The Sibylline Oracles, to w h ic h o u r
m e a n in g in a w a y q u i t e u n l i k e th o se w e have p re v io u s ly
a tte n tio n h a s b e e n d ra w n a n e w b y V . N i k i p r o w e t z k y , 34 a r e
seen.
t o d a y r e g a r d e d a s a h ig h ly c o m p o s i te w o r k , in w h ic h e l e ­
2. Heiliger Homer ( " h o l y H o m e r " ) . T h e p r o o f t h a t C l e m e n t m e n t s t h a t a r e v e r y d i v e r s e in b o t h d a t e a n d s o u r c e a r e f o u n d
i n c l u d e s b o t h p o e t r y a n d m y t h o l o g y in h i s u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f s id e b y s id e . A b a s ic c o r p u s o f p a g a n o r a c le s w a s a u g m e n t e d
" G r e e k p h i l o s o p h y " is t o b e f o u n d f i r s t o f a ll in t h e f a c t t h a t b e tw e e n th e seco n d ce n tu ry b .c . and th e secon d c e n tu ry
he c o n s id e rs H om er p rim a rily a G re e k p ro p h e t. In h is a . d .— in i m i t a t i o n o f p r i m i t i v e l i t e r a r y p a t t e r n s , f o r p u r p o s e s
Paedagogus, in w h i c h h e g i v e s a c o m m e n t a r y o n t h e n u m e r ­ o f p r o p a g a n d a to p a g a n is m — b y a J e w is h c o n tr ib u tio n (n o t
o u s s c r i p t u r a l t e x t s in w h i c h m i lk is i n t r o d u c e d a s a s y m b o l w it h o u t C h r is t ia n i n te r p o la t i o n s ) a n d th e n b y a fu lly C h r is ­
o f s p ir itu a l n o u r i s h m e n t , C le m e n t first th in k s o f th e b e g i n ­ tia n c o n t r ib u t io n . B u t th e F a t h e r s o f th e s e c o n d and t h ird
n in g o f b o o k 1 3 o f th e Iliad (lin e s 5 - 6 ) in w h ic h th e r i g h t e o u s c e n t u r i e s , w h o o f te n c ite th is c o lle c tio n (s o m e tim e s a s s o c i a t ­
(in f a c t, th e n o b le S c y th ia n trib e s ) a r e c a lle d "m ilk e a te r s " in g th e S ib y l w ith th e nam e of H y s ta s p is , th e Ira n ia n
(galaclophagoi) , a n d h e in f e r s fr o m th is th a t H o m e r " p r o p h e ­ p s e u d o -m a g u s , a s d o , fo r e x a m p le , Ju s tin , First Apology 2 0 . 1 ,
s i e s i n v o l u n t a r i l y " ( ib i d . 1 . 6 . 3 6 . 1 ) . T h e r e a l s o a p p e a r s t o b e a 4 4 .1 2 , a n d C le m e n t o f A le x a n d ria , Stromateis 6 . 5 . 4 3 . 1 ) , c o n ­
d i s t i n c t i o n , in t h e Odyssey ( 9 .2 7 5 , 4 1 0 - 1 1 ) , b e tw e e n a " Z e u s c e i v e d o f it q u i t e d i f f e r e n t l y . F o r t h e m it w a s a n e x c l u s i v e l y
w ith th e a e g i s ," about w hom th e C y c lo p s h a rd ly c o n c e r n p a g a n w o r k in w h ic h th e y a d m i r in g ly d i s c o v e r e d a m a s s o f
th e m s e lv e s , a n d a " g r e a t Z e u s ," w h o m th e y d r e a d . In th is J e w is h a n d e v e n C h r is tia n p a ra lle ls , w h e n c e th e ir c o n v ic tio n
god, of w hom th e re a r e a p p a r e n tly tw o p e r s o n s , C le m e n t th a t h e r e o n c e a g a in t h e y w e r e d e a lin g w ith a m a n ife s ta tio n
s e e s a n a llu s io n to th e C h r is tia n d u a lity o f th e F a t h e r a n d th e o f t h e R e v e l a t i o n , a n d t h e i r h a b i t o f p a r a l l e l i n g i ts t e s t i m o n y
S o n , a n d h e a g a i n c o n c l u d e s th a t H o m e r " w a s f a v o r e d w ith w ith J e w is h p r o p h e c y . O n th is lin e o f t h o u g h t , w h ic h c o n ­
an a u th e n tic g ift o f p r o p h e c y " ( Stromateis 5 . 1 4 . 1 1 6 . 1 ; th is tin u e d to p e r p e t u a t e its e lf in th e M id d le A g e s in th e first
f e a t u r e w a s p o i n t e d o u t b y F. B u f f i è r e ) . 29 s tr o p h e o f Dies irae: Teste David cum Sibylla, s e e th e w o rk s o f
It s e e m s a s if, p a r a l l e l t o t h e H e b r a i c t r a d i t i o n , w h i c h o f K . P r ü m m . 35
c o u r s e r e m a in s th e p r iv ile g e d c h a n n e l, p a r t o f th e R e v e la tio n T h e i r v e r y title s u g g e s t s th a t th e Sibylline Oracles s h o u ld
had flo w e d in to G reek c u l t u r e ; it is t o th e re a lity o f th is n o t b e c o n s i d e r e d w it h o u t r e c a llin g th e c e le b r a t e d V irg ilia n
d o u b le c u r r e n t a ris in g fro m a s in g le s o u r c e th a t w e m u st Fourth Eclogue, fo r V irg il t h e r e m a k e s r e f e r e n c e t o a p r o p h e c y
r e l a t e — b o t h in t h e i r i n d i c e s a n d in t h e i r c o n s e q u e n c e s — t h e b y t h e S i b y l o f C u m a e , a n d t h e t w o t e x t s a r e , in t h e e y e s o f
c o in cid e n c e s th a t le a v e th e p re se n t-d a y re a d e r s k e p tica l, m a n y o t h e r C h r is t ia n s , to b e p l a c e d in a s o m e w h a t c o m p a ­
th o u g h th e y im p re s s e d C le m e n t. H o m e r, th e p rin cip a l p ro p r a b l e s i t u a t i o n . T h e c o n t e n t o f t h i s s h o r t p o e m is w e ll k n o w n ;
f o r t h i s d e m o n s t r a t i o n , e m e r g e s f r o m it a s s a c r a l i z e d a s t h e th e s a lie n t p o i n t s a r e a s f o llo w s : th e V irg in r e t u r n s , a n e w
J e w i s h p r o p h e t s — a c a n o n i z a t i o n t h a t H . R a h n e r 30 c h a r a c t e r ­ g e n e r a t i o n d e s c e n d s f r o m h e a v e n , a c h i l d is b o r n w h o w ill
iz e d so w e ll w i t h th e f o rm u la h e b o rro w e d fro m G o e th e : r e c e i v e t h e d i v i n e lif e a n d w ill g o v e r n t h e g l o b e p a c i f i e d b y
Heiliger Homer! It s h o u l d a l s o b e n o t e d h o w , u n d e r d i f f e r e n t h i s f a t h e r , t h e g o l d e n a g e b e g i n s in s p i t e o f t h e f a c t t h a t t h e r e
g u is e s, c o m p a rin g H o m e r w ith th e H o ly S c r ip tu re s w a s a re m a in s in th e h e a rts of m en s o m e th in g of th e a n cie n t
fa v o rite p a stim e o f c e rta in h u m a n is ts a n d s c h o la r s o f th e m a lic e , e t c . A s J. C a r c o p i n o 36 h a s s h o w n , th is is a w o rk
m o d e r n e r a ; t h e w o r k s o f N . H e p p 31 a r e p e r s u a s i v e o n t h i s a d a p t e d t o c i r c u m s t a n c e s , in w h i c h a ll o f t h e s e t r a i t s a r e f u l ly
p o in t. e x p lic a b le t h r o u g h r e f e r e n c e to th e h is to ric a l s itu a tio n ; th a t
T o r e t u r n t o t h e f i r s t c e n t u r i e s a . d ., it w o u l d a p p e a r t h a t is, to lo c a l h is to ry .
th is C h r is t ia n H o m e r w a s m o r e a t tr a c t iv e to m a rg in a l c u r ­ B u t , e s p e c i a l l y if o n e b e l i e v e s t h a t t h e s e v e r s e s d a t e f r o m
re n ts o f t h o u g h t th a n to th e o r th o d o x tra d itio n . T h e G n o s tic 4 0 b . c ., s u c h a c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f d e t a i l s c h a r g e d w i t h e v o c a ­
N a a s s e n e s e c t is s a i d t o h a v e f o u n d e d i t s e l f u p o n a h a r m o ­ tio n fo r th e C h ris tia n c o n scio u sn e ss c o u ld o n ly le a d to
n iz a tio n b e tw e e n th e H o m e r ic p o e m s a n d th e J e w is h S c r ip ­ r e a d i n g it a s a n o n - C h r i s t i a n b u t t r u e p r o p h e c y . In f a c t , a s
t u r e s , a h a r m o n i z a t i o n m a d e p o s s i b l e in b o t h c a s e s t h r o u g h h a s b e e n s h o w n b y P . C o u r c e l l e ' s s c h o l a r l y i n v e s t i g a t i o n , 37 a
th e a p p lic a tio n o f a h ig h ly in v e n tiv e a lle g o ric a l e x e g e s i s . T h is n u m b e r o f a u t h o r s — o f t e n , it m u s t b e a d m i t t e d , s e c o n d - r a t e
is w h a t H i p p o l y t u s h a d t o s a y in t h e i r r e g a r d : " F o l l o w i n g t h e o n e s — id e n tif ie d th e V irg ilia n c h ild w ith th e In f a n t J e s u s , th e
n ew m e t h o d o f in te r p r e t a t io n o f lit e r a r y w o r k s w h ic h t h e y n e w g e n e r a tio n w ith th e C h ris tia n p e o p le o r w ith th e i n c a r ­
h a v e in v e n te d , th e y a ttr ib u te to H o m e r , th e ir p r o p h e t , th e n a te d W o r d , a n d s o fo rth . S o m e n e v e r th e le s s h e s ita te d to
g l o r y o f h a v i n g f i r s t , in a m y s t e r i o u s w a y , r e v e a l e d th e se b e s t o w t h e t i t l e o f p r o p h e t u p o n V i r g i l b e c a u s e it w a s t o t a l l y
tr u th s , a t th e s a m e tim e a s th e y m o c k th o s e w h o h a v e n o t w i t h o u t u n d e r s t a n d i n g it t h a t h e c o n v e y e d t h e a n n u n c i a t i o n
b een in itia te d in to th e H o ly S c r ip tu re s , in p re s sin g such o f th e C h r is t, w h ic h h e re c e iv e d fro m th e S ib y l, h e r s e lf a tr u e
i d e a s u p o n t h e m " ( Refutatio omnium haeresium 5 .8 .1 ) . A m o n g p r o p h e t e s s . V i r g i l , t h e u n c o n s c i o u s p r o p h e t : t h i s , r o u g h l y , is
th e m a n y e x a m p l e s o f th is a m a l g a m a t i o n , h e r e is a n o t h e r , how S a in t A u g u s tin e and th e g ra m m a ria n P h ila rg y riu s
w h i c h l o n g h e l d t h e a t t e n t i o n o f H . L e i s e g a n g 32 a n d , l a t e r , J . th o u g h t o f th e a u th o r o f th e e c lo g u e , ju st a s C le m e n t o f
C a r c o p i n o : 33 a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e l a s t b o o k o f t h e Odyssey A le x a n d r ia s a w H o m e r a s a n " i n v o lu n t a r y p r o p h e t ."
( 2 4 .I f f .) , w e s e e th e s o u ls o f th e d e a d s u ito r s o f P e n e lo p e In s p i t e o f t h e ir a p p e a l, t h e s e h a r m o n i z i n g i n te r p r e t a t io n s

174
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND P A C A N M Y T II O L O C Y

m e t w ith r e s is ta n c e a m o n g t h e C h r is t ia n s t h e m s e l v e s . T h e Gnostic Copt writings discovered at Nag Hammadi, L'Exégèse de

m o s t fa m o u s , a n d m o s t s e v e r e , w a s th a t o f J e r o m e : " T h e s e l'âme, also exploits the legend of Odysseus, in concurrence with
a r e p u e r i l i t i e s , l ik e c h a r l a t a n s ' t r i c k s , t e a c h i n g w h a t o n e d o e s
biblical texts; cf. m . scopei.lo , "Les citations d'Homère dans le traité
de L'Exégèse de l'âme,” in M. Krause, ed.. Gnosis and Gnosticism
n o t k n o w ; e v e n w o r s e — to u s e a n u n p le a s a n t e x p r e s s io n —
(Leiden 1977), 3-12.
th a n n o t e v e n to k n o w w h a t o n e d o e s n o t k n o w " (Letter 53,
10. v. BUCHHi iT, "Homer bei Methodios von Olympos," Rheinisches
to P a u lin u s , 7 ). T h e p a r t is a n s n e v e r t h e l e s s re m a in e d m o re Museum 99 (1956): 19 - 36.
n u m e r o u s th a n th e a d v e r s a r ie s , a n d w o u ld c o n tin u e to b e s o 11. a . casamassa , "L'accusa di 'Hesterni' e gli scrittori cristiani del
dow n to th e M id d le A g e s , w h e n A b e la rd a n d th e n D a n te 11 secolo," Angelicum 20 (1943): 184 -94.
w e re th e m o s t c e le b ra te d d e f e n d e r s o f th e m e s s ia n is m o f th e 12. N. zeegers -vander Vorst , Les citations des poètes grecs chez les
e c lo g u e . B o th of th e se w r ite r s , in lin e w ith A u g u s t i n e 's apologistes chrétiens du IT siècle (Louvain 1972), 184 - 86 and 272. For
t h o u g h t , a l s o s e e V irg il a s h a v i n g a n n o u n c e d t h e in c a r n a t io n Christian attitudes in the first three centuries toward the part of
w i t h o u t r e a l i z i n g i t , a n d t h e r e f o r e w i t h o u t b e l i e v i n g it h i m ­
pagan authors, see more generally w. krause. Die Stellung der
früîichristlichen Autoren zur heidnischen Literatur (Vienna 1958).
s e lf. A b e la rd co m p a re s h im in th is reg ard to C a ia p h a s ;
13. |. pépin , "Le 'challenge' Homère-Moïse aux premiers siècles
D a n t e , a s I s h o w e d i n a n o t h e r s t u d y , 38 e x p r e s s e s t h e s a m e
chrétiens," Revue des sciences religieuses 29 (1955): 105-22.
c o n v ic tio n b y th e c o m p e llin g im a g e o f a m a n w a lk in g w h ile 14. |. dan iélou . Histoire des doctrines chrétiennes avant Nicée, 2:
h o ld in g b e h in d h is b a c k a t o r c h th a t s h e d s lig h t u p o n th o s e Message évangélique et culture hellénistique aux IT et UT siècles (Tournai
w ho f o llo w h im b u t le a v e s th e m an h i m s e lf in d ark n ess 1961), book 1, pp. 73-101, "Homère chez les Pères de l'Église."
(Purgatorio 2 2 . 6 7 - 6 9 ) . It m a t t e r s l i t t l e w h e t h e r t h e s e a u t h o r s 15. g . CLOCKMANN, "Das Homerbild der altchristlichen Literatur in
m a d e V irg il a c o n s c i o u s o r m e r e l y a n "o b je c tiv e " p ro p h e t, der Forschung der Gegenwart," Klio 43-45 (1965): 270-81; by the
s in c e , in th e l a tt e r c a s e , t h e p r o p h e t i c fu n c t i o n i n t h e f u ll same author, Homer in der frühchristlichen Literatur bis Justinus (Berlin
s e n s e o f th e w o r d b e l o n g e d to th e S ib y l. W h a t is s ig n if ic a n t
1968).
16. For example, a . |. festugiére, La révélation d'Hermès Trismégiste,
is t h a t th e e x is te n c e o f a n a lo g ie s su ch as th o s e we h ave
1: L'astrologie et les sciences occultes (Paris 1944), 19-44; h . dorrie, "Die
d is c u s s e d — s o m e o f th e m re a l, b u t m o s t o f th e m s u p e rf ic ia l
Wertung der Barbaren im Urteil der Griechen: Knechtsnaturen?
o r e v e n illu s o ry — fu e le d th e c o n v ic tio n th a t c la s s ic a l p a g a n ­ Oder Bewahrer und Künder heilbringender Weisheit?" in Antike und
ism , fro m H om er to V irg il, n ever ceased to le a d to w a rd Universalgeschichte, Festschrift H. E. Stier (Munster 1972), 146-75.
C h r is tia n ity . 17. |. h . WASZiNK, "Some Observations on the Appreciation of 'The
J .P ./d .w . Philosophy of the Barbarians' in Early Christian Literature," in
Mélanges C. Mohrmann (Utrecht and Anvers 1963), 41-56.
18. K. THRAEDE, "Erfinder," part 2, in Reallexikon für Antike und
Christentum (1962), cols. 1242-61.
NOTES 19. a . MEHAT, Étude sur les "Stromales" de Clément d'Alexandrie (Paris
1966), 356-61.
1. A.-i. festugiEr e , "Saint Paul à Athènes et la I,e Épitre aux 20. R. MORTLEY, Connaissance religieuse et herméneutique chez Clément
Corinthiens," L'enfant d'Agrigente (Paris 1941), 88-101; on the Athens d'Alexandrie (Leiden 1973), 162-66.
discourse, see the classic thesis by b . gartner , The Areopagus Speech 21. N. Walter , Der Thoraausleger Aristobulos: Untersuchungen zu
and Natural Revelation (Uppsala 1955). seinen Fragmenten und zu pseudepigraphischen Resten der jüdisch-
2. M. simon . Hercule et le christianisme (Paris 1955), 170-73. hellenistischen Literatur (Berlin 1964), 44 - 51 and 150-71.
3. |. ADHEMAR, Influences antiques dans l'art du Moyen Age français: 22. |. pepin , Mythe et allégorie: Les origines grecques et les contestations
Recherches sur les sources et les thèmes d'inspiration (diss., Paris; London judéo-chrétiennes (2d ed., Paris 1976), 448-52.
1937; 2d ed., 1975), notably 221-22 and pi. XXIII 72. For pagan 23. c. ANDRESEN, Logos uitd Nomos: Die Polemik des Kelsos wider das
survivals in primitive Christian art, see also w. rothes , "Heidnisches Christentum (Berlin 1955), 352-55.
in altchristlicher Kunst und Symbolik," in Festgabe A. Ehrhard (Bonn 24. F. BUFFiERE, Les mythes d'Homère et la pensée grecque (Paris 1956),
and Leipzig 1922), 381-406. 279-89.
4. h . Ra einer, Griechische Mythen in christlicher Deutung (Zurich 25. simon . Hercule et le christianisme, 111.
1945; 2d ed., 1957), p. 21, etc. 26. |. m. Rist, Eros and Psyche: Studies in Plato, Plotinus and Origen,
5. E. EiATCH, The Influence of Greek Ideas on Christianity; 2d ed. by "Phoenix," supplement vol. 6 (Toronto 1964).
F. C. Grant (New York and Evanston 1957), 283-309; a . d . nock . Early 27. simon . Hercule et le christianisme, 174 - 75.
Gentile Christianity and Its Hellenistic Background (New York 1964), 28. daniélou , Histoire des doctrines chrétiennes aivinl Nicée, 2: Message
116-45. évangélique et culture hellénistique aux IF et IIF siècles, book 1, pp.
6. a . wiFSTRAND, L'église ancienne et la culture grecque, trans, from 53-55.
Swedish (Paris 1962), 107-34. 29. buffiere, Les mythes d'Homère et la pensée grecque. 361 and note
7. rahner , Griechische Mythen in christlicher Deutung, 414-86. See 86 .
also the well-documented articles that the same author published in 30. rahner , Griechische Mythen in christlicher Deutung, 357.
the Zeitschrift für Katholische Theologie from 1941 through 1964 under 31. N. HEPP, "Les interprétations religieuses d'Homère au XVII1’
the general title of "Antenna crucis"; these studies have been siècle," Revue des sciences religieuses 31 (1957): 34 - 50; Homère en France
conveniently reassembled in h . rahner , Symbole der Kirche: Die au XVIF siècle (Paris 1968).
Ekklesiologie der Väter (Salzburg 1964), 237-564; titles include: "Od­ 32. h . leisegang , La gnose, trans, from German (Paris 1951), 89-90.
ysseus am Mastbaum," "Das Meer der Welt," "Das Schiff aus Holz," 33. CARCOPINO, De Pythagore aux Apôtres. 180-81.
"Das Kreuz als Mastbaum und Antenne," "Das Mystische Tau," 34. v. NiKiPRowETZKY, La troisième Sibylle (Paris and The Hague
"Der Schiffbruch und die Planke des Heils," "Das Schifflein des 1970).
Petrus: Zur Symbolgeschichte des römischen Primats," "Die Arche 35. K. PRUMM, "Das Prophetenamt der Sibyllen in kirchlicher
Noe als Schiff des Heils," and "Die Ankunft im Hafen." Literatur mit besonderer Rücksicht auf die Deutung der VI. Ekloge
8. p. Co urcelle , "Quelques symboles funéraires du néo­ Virgils," Scholastik 4 (1929): 54- 77, 221-46, and 498-533.
platonisme latin: Le vol de Dédale; Ulysse et les Sirènes," Revue des 36. i. CARCOPINO, Virgile et le mystère de la VF Églogue (2d ed., Paris
études anciennes 46 (1944): 65-93; "L'interprétation evhémériste des 1943).
Sirènes-courtisanes jusqu'au XII1’ siècle," in Mélanges L. Wallach 37. p. Co u rcelle , "Les exégèses chrétiennes de la quatrième
(Stuttgart 1975), 33-48. Églogue," Revue des études anciennes 59 (1957): 294-319.
9. j. CARCopiNO, De Pythagore aux Apôtres: Études sur la conversion du 38. |. pépin , Dante et la tradition de l’allégorie (Montreal and Paris
monde romain (Paris 1956), 192-221. It is now known that one of the 1970), 103-5.

175
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

o rd ers, w is h in g to re c e iv e m o re a d m ira tio n and re s p e ct,

T he E uh em erism o f th e C h rist ia n A uth o r s fa lse ly a ttrib u te d to th e m s e lv e s a s u p e r h u m a n and d iv in e
p o w e r, w h ic h c a u s e d th e m a s s e s to re g a rd th e m a s g o d s .'"
In re d u c in g th e s h im m e rin g o f m y th o lo g y to th e m o re
p r o s a ic re a litie s o f h is to ry , E u h e m e r u s jo in e d th e c u r r e n t o f
I. E u h e m e r u s a n d H is D o c tr i n e
r a tio n a lis t c r itic is m a p p lie d to p o p u l a r r e lig io n , a c u r r e n t th a t
W e h a v e v e r y l it t le p r e c i s e i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t E u h e m e r u s , a h a s b e e n s tu d i e d b y P. D e c h a r m e 4 a n d A . B . D r a c h m a n n ;5
G re e k k n o w n o n ly fro m a s m a ll n u m b e r o f te s tim o n ie s w h ic h th is is w h y he w as know n as "th e A t h e is t ." He w as an
o f t e n d i s a g r e e w i t h o n e a n o t h e r ( t h e s e m a y b e f o u n d in t h e i n n o v a to r ; th e S o p h is ts , e s p e c ia lly P r o d ic u s , a r e s o m e tim e s
c o lle c tio n s o f G . N é m e th y 1 a n d G. V a l l a u r i 2 ). He is m o s t c o n sid e re d h is p re d e ce sso rs. But P ro d ic u s , a lth o u g h he
o f te n s a id to b e a n a t i v e o f M e s s e n e in P e lo p o n n e s o » , o r e x p la in e d d iv in iz a tio n in te rm s of u tility , w as th in k in g
M e s s i n a in S i c i ly , b u t h e i s a l s o s a i d t o c o m e f r o m A g r i g e n t o , m a in ly o f th e b e n e fits o f fe re d b y th e g r e a t n a tu r a l re a litie s —
o r T e g e a , o r C h i o s . A c c o r d i n g t o D i o d o r u s t h e h i s t o r i a n , it t h e s u n , r i v e r s , s p r in g s , fr u its o f t h e e a r t h , e t c .— w h ic h m e n
w a s K in g C a s s a n d r a o f M a c e d o n ia ( 3 1 6 - 2 9 7 ) w h o s e n t E u ­ t u r n e d i n t o g o d s ; it w a s o n l y a t a l a t e r p o i n t t h a t h e e x t e n d e d
h e m e r u s o n a n e x p e d itio n to th e R ed S e a ; o n th e o th e r h a n d , th is p rin c ip le to th e in v e n to r s o f b e n e ficia l c r a f ts th e m s e lv e s ,
E u h em eru s seem s to b e c ite d by th e p o e t C a l l i m a c h u s in a n d th is th e s i s w a s n o t a s w e ll d o c u m e n te d a s th e firs t. O n
w o r k s t h a t m u s t d a t e f r o m 2 7 5 - 2 7 0 . It c a n t h u s r o u g h l y b e th e o t h e r h a n d , a s G . V a lla u ri h a s s h o w n ,6 E u h e m e r u s w a s
e s tim a te d th a t E u h e m e r u s w e n t o n h is tr a v e ls a s e a r ly a s n o t a s n ip e r . H is g r e a t id e a i n c o n t e s ta b l y c o r r e s p o n d s t o th e
3 0 0 - 2 9 8 , a n d w ro te a b o u t th e m a ro u n d 2 8 0 . O n th e s e d a ta , s p i r i t o f h i s a g e ; it is c l e a r l y r e l a t e d ( a n d w e s h a l l s e e t h a t t h e
s e e J a c o b y ' s 1 9 0 7 a r t i c l e , w h i c h is s ti ll v a l u a b l e . 3 C h ris tia n s w ere not m ista k e n about th is ) to th e c u lt of
In E u h em eru s, t h e a u t h o r is a l w a y s i d e n t i f i e d w ith th e s o v e r e ig n s w h ic h w a s in s titu te d in th e H e lle n is tic p e r i o d .
v o y a g e r. R e tu rn e d fro m h i s e x p l o r a t i o n , h e d r a w s f r o m it a S e v e ra l a u t h o r s o r c u r r e n ts m o r e o r le s s c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s
g e o g r a p h i c a l n o v e l in w h i c h real m e m o rie s ru b s h o u ld e rs w ith E u h e m e r u s (th e u n c e r ta in ty o f o u r c h r o n o lo g y d o e s n o t
w i t h a f f a b u l a t i o n ; t h i s c o m b i n a t i o n is g i v e n f r e e r e i g n in t h e p e rm it u s to say w h e th e r h e in flu e n c e d th e m o r w a s in ­
d e s c r ip tio n o f P a n c h a ia , a n i m a g in a r y isla n d o f f th e c o a s t o f d e b te d to th e m ) o ffe re d , a s h e d id , a th e o ry o f th e g o d s a s
A ra b ia . E u h e m e r u s w o u ld have it t h a t h e f o u n d th e re “a f o r m e r g r e a t s e r v a n t s o f h u m a n ity . W e d o n o t k n o w th e e x a c t
t e m p l e o f Z e u s T r i p h y l i a n , in w h i c h a g o l d e n c o l u m n s t o o d m o m e n t a t w h ic h a n c i e n t S to ic is m a d o p t e d th is e x p l a n a t i o n
w h o s e i n s c r i p t i o n i n d i c a t e d t h a t it h a d b e e n e r e c t e d b y Z e u s fo r c e rta in g o d s — o r, m o re a c c u ra te ly , fo r c e rta in h e ro e s,
h im s e lf; o n th is c o lu m n , th e g o d h a d in s c rib e d th e d e ta ils o f s u c h a s H e r a c l e s , C a s t o r a n d P o l l u x , A s c l e p i u s , D i o n y s u s . It
h is g r e a te s t d e e d s , in o r d e r t h a t p o s t e r i t y b e i n f o r m e d of is i n a n y case a fo re g o n e c o n clu sio n w ith Z e n o 's s tu d e n t
th e m ” (f g t 2 3 N e m e th y = testim 4 V a lla u ri = L a c ta n tiu s , P e r s a e u s o f C itiu m (c e rta in ly p o s te rio r to E u h e m e r u s b y a
Divinae Institutiones 1 . 1 1 . 3 3 ) . It is t h i s t e s t i m o n y b y t h e g o d s fe w y e a r s ) , w h o s e th e s is w a s f o r m u la te d b y C ic e r o (De natura
a b o u t th e ir o w n e x p l o i ts t h a t E u h e m e r u s c o m m e n t s o n in a deorum 1 .1 5 .3 8 ) a s f o llo w s : " T h o s e w h o h a d d e v i s e d s o m e ­
Sacred Record (Hiera Anagraphè), a c le v e r title th a t r e m i n d s o n e th in g o f g r e a t u s e f u ln e s s w e re h o n o re d a s g o d s ." T h e re w a s
t h a t w h a t is b e i n g t r e a t e d is m a i n l y a n " i n s c r i p t i o n . ” N o t h i n g a n o th e r a u th o r, H e c a ta e u s o f A b d e ra (o r o f T e o s), p ro b a b ly
r e m a i n s o f th is w o r k , b u t s o m e G r e e k a u t h o r s m e n t io n i t, s lig h tly e a r lie r th a n E u h em eru s, w ho p ro p o se d a lto g e th e r
e s p e c i a l l y D i o d o r u s o f S i c i ly . T h e R o m a n p o e t E n n i u s t r a n s ­ a n a l o g o u s v i e w s o n t h e o r i g i n s o f t h e E g y p t i a n g o d s , if in
l a t e d ( o r a d a p t e d ) it i n t o L a t i n , a n d t h e C h r i s t i a n L a c t a n t i u s f a c t h e w a s , a s is g e n e r a l l y a s s e r t e d ( b u t s e e t h e c o u n t e r a r ­
p reserv ed fra g m e n ts of th a t tra n s la tio n , w h ose title w as g u m e n t o f W . S p o e r r i ) , 7 t h e s o u r c e , in t h e E g y p t i a n d o m a i n ,
p ro b a b ly Sacra Historia. o f t h e h i s t o r i a n D i o d o r u s o f S i c i ly .
T h i s is e n o u g h to y ie ld a ro u g h id e a o f th e th e o lo g y of E u h e m e r u s , th e re fo re , w a s c e rta in ly n o t th e o n ly p e rs o n o f
E u h e m e r u s . T h e c e n t r a l i d e a is c o n n e c t e d t o t h e i n s c r i p t i o n h i s t i m e t o d e f e n d t h e t h e s i s w e h a v e j u s t d e s c r i b e d . B u t it
in t h e t e m p l e o f Z e u s : it is t h a t t h e g o d s o f m y t h o l o g y w e r e w as h is nam e th a t re m a in e d c o u p le d to it fo r p o s te rity ,
a t first m e n , w h o w e r e d iv in iz e d post mortem in r e c o g n i t io n o f n o ta b ly fo r th e C h r is tia n w r ite r s o f th e first c e n tu r ie s . F o r
e m in e n t s e rv ic e s th a t th e y had ren d e re d to h u m a n ity . A s th e s e w r ite r s b r o a d ly e x p lo r e d th e p o s sib ilitie s E u h e m e r is m
L a c ta n tiu s a ls o s a y s (De ira dei 2 .7 .8 = testim 15N = testim o f f e r e d , a n d w e s h a ll s e e w h y a n d h o w th e y d id s o . W o r k s
5 m V ) , " I t is b e y o n d d o u b t t h a t a ll t h o s e w h o r e c e i v e w o r s h i p o n th is s u b je c t a r e r a r e , b u t w e s h o u ld a t le a s t p o in t o u t th e
a s g o d s w e r e m e n , a n d th a t th e first a n d th e g r e a te s t a m o n g a r t ic l e s b y F. Z u c k e r 8 a n d K . T h r a e d e ,9 a n d t h e d i s s e r t a t i o n
th e m w ere k in g s; b u t th a t b y v irtu e o f th e c o u ra g e w ith b y J . W . S c h i p p e r s , 10 t o w h i c h w e m i g h t a d d m y o w n e a r l i e r
w h ic h th e y h a d s e r v e d th e h u m a n r a c e , th e y w e r e g r a tifie d s t u d i e s ; 11 w e s h o u l d a l s o a d d t h a t t h e w o r k s o f J . D . C o o k e 12
w ith d i v in e h o n o r s a f t e r t h e ir d e a t h ; o r e l s e f o llo w in g th e and o f P. A l p h a n d é r y 13 o n th e m e d ie v a l d e v e lo p m e n ts o f
g o o d d e e d s a n d in v e n tio n s w ith w h ic h th e y h a d e m b e llis h e d E u h e m e rism , and by J. S e z n e c 14 o n s u rv iv a ls o f a n cie n t
th e lif e of h u m a n k in d , th e y en su red fo r th e m se lv e s an th e o lo g ie s d o w n to th e R e n a is s a n c e , c o n ta in m u c h d a ta o n
im p e ris h a b le m e m o r ia l. W h o d o e s n o t k n o w th is ? . . . T h o s e t h e i r u s e in t h e p a t r i s t i c a g e .
w h o h o ld to th is te a c h i n g a r e p r i m a r i ly E u h e m e r u s a n d o u r
E n n iu s .” B u t th e p o p u la r p a n th e o n a ls o in c lu d e d g o d s of
II. Christian Formulations
le s s e r m o ra lity w h o w e r e , a c c o r d in g to th e p r e c e d i n g p r in ­
c ip le , d iffic u lt to i d e n tif y w ith p u b lic b e n e f a c t o r s ; th e y t o o , 1. Defense and illustration of Euhemerus. T h e p ag an g o d s are
h o w e v e r , c o u ld b e e x p la in e d b y th e s a m e p r in c ip le , p r o v id e d fa lse g o d s ; b u t w h a t a r e th e y re a lly ? C h r is tia n th e o lo g ia n s
th a t v io le n c e a n d d e c e it w e r e s u b s titu te d fo r g o o d d e e d s a n d c o u l d n o t e v a d e a r e s p o n s e t o th is q u e s t i o n . T h is r e s p o n s e
g r a titu d e . O n th is s u b je c t, S e x tu s E m p ir ic u s (Adversus Math­ o f te n ta k e s th e f o r m , a s w ith S a in t A u g u s t in e , o f d e s c r i b in g
ematicos 9 .1 7 = fg t IN = testim 5 c 5 ) s e e m s to h a v e p re s e rv e d th e g o d s o f th e n a tio n s a s " f o u l d e m o n s w h o w is h to p a s s a s
th e e x p r e s s fo r m u la tio n s o f th e Sacred Record: "E u h e m e ru s, g o d s " : deos gentium esse inmundissimos daemones . . . deos se
know n as 't h e A t h e is t ,' says th is : 'W h e n m en liv e d in putari cupientes (City of God 7 . 3 3 ) . E u h e m e r i s m , h o w e v e r ,
d iso rd e r, th o s e w hose s u p e rio rity in s tr e n g th and in te lli­ o f fe re d a n a lte r n a tiv e , w h ic h C h r is tia n s h u r r ie d to a d o p t . In
gen ce p e rm itte d th e m to m ake everyon e carry out th e ir s p i t e o f t h e a t h e i s m a t t a c h e d in c l a s s i c a l t r a d i t i o n t o t h e n a m e

176
 THE E U H E M E R I S M OF T HE C H R I S T I A N A U T H O R S

o f E u h e m e r u s , T h e o p h ilu s o f A n tio c h (Ad Autolycum 3 .7 = h a v i n g p u t y o u r t r u s t in c o r p s e s , " is t h e w a r n i n g g i v e n t o t h e

testim 1 9 -2 0 N = testim 51V ) w a s p e r h a p s th e o n ly C h r is tia n p a g a n s b y C le m e n t o f A le x a n d ria (Protrepticus 3 .4 5 .5 ) ; " T h e y
w h o n o te d h is im p ie ty . M a n y C h u r c h F a t h e r s , o n th e o t h e r n e v e r m a n u fa c tu re gods except fro m c o r p s e s ," w rite s th e
h a n d , a b so lv e h im a lo n g w ith o th e r su p p o sed " a t h e is ts ,” h isto ria n E u se b iu s (Praeparatio Evangelica 3 .3 .1 7 ) , e c h o in g th e
a n d c o m p lim e n t h im o n h is c la i r v o y a n c e . T h e A fr ic a n A r n o ­ s a m e id e a . T h e y fe a r b e in g s th a t a re tw ice d e a d , " m o r e d e a d
b iu s o f S ic c a (la t e th ir d t o e a r l y f o u r th c e n t u r y ) ill u s t r a t e s th is t h a n t h e d e a d " : s u c h is a l r e a d y t h e s t a t e m e n t a t t r i b u t e d to
o u tlo o k : " W e s u r e ly c a n n o t s h o w h e r e t h a t a ll t h o s e w h o m th e A p o s t le P e t e r in t h e Clementine Homilies (1 0 .9 ).
y o u i n tr o d u c e u n d e r th e n a m e o f g o d s w e r e m e n : it s u f f ic e s In e x p l a in i n g b y w h a t e r r o r m e n c a m e to w o r s h ip th o se
to open E u h em eru s of A g rig e n to — w h o s e books E n n iu s w h o h a d p re v io u s ly b e e n th e ir p e e r s , C le m e n t s tr e s s e s th e
tra n s la te d in to an I ta lic la n g u a g e th a t everyo n e au ra o f p r e s tig e w ith w h ic h th e d ista n t p ast is s o e a s ily
u n d e r s t a n d s — o r e l s e N ic a g o r a s o f C y p r u s , o r L e o o f P e lla , o r e n d o w e d , w h ile t h e p r e s e n t r e m a i n s ig n o r e d f o r its b a n a lity .
T h e o d o r e o f C y r e n e , o r H ip p o a n d D ia g o ra s , b o th o f M e lo s , The h isto ria n T h u c y d id e s (Peloponnesian Wars 1 .2 1 .1 ) had
o r a th o u sa n d o th e r a u th o rs w h o , a tte n tiv e to s c r u p u lo u s e a rlie r o b s e r v e d th a t " w it h th e p a s s in g o f tim e , m o s t h isto ric
a c c u r a c y a n d a s th e fre e m e n th a t th e y w e r e , b r o u g h t to th e fa c ts p a s s in to t h e r e g io n o f m y th s th a t n o o n e c a n b e l ie v e ."
lig h t o f d a y fa c ts th a t h a d been l e f t in s h a d o w " (Adversus C le m e n t a g a in ta k e s u p th is id e a o f th e c o m p lic ity o f tim e
nationes 4 .2 9 = testim 1 4 N = testim 5 iV ). E ls e w h e r e , C le m e n t a n d m y th : " T h o s e w h o m y o u w o r s h ip w e r e o n c e m e n , w h o
o f A le x a n d ria (Protrepticus 2 .2 4 .2 = testim 13N = testim 5hV ) a f t e r w a r d s d ie d . B u t m y th a n d tim e h a v e lo a d e d th e m w ith
m akes a very s im ila r c o m m e n t, w h ic h m ay have been h o n o r s . . . F o r th e p a s t, b e in g c u t o ff fro m im m e d ia te c o n tro l
A r n o b i u s 's m o d e l . A t th e b e g in n in g o f th e th ird c e n tu ry , by th e o b scu rity w h ic h tim e b rin g s , is in v e s te d w ith a
M in u c iu s F e lix (Octavius 2 1 .1 = testim 9N = testim 5 fV ) f i c t i t i o u s h o n o r . . . T h a t is h o w th e d e a d m e n o f o ld , m a d e
c o u n ts E u h e m e ru s a m o n g h isto ria n s a n d s a g e s ; S a in t A u g u s ­ v e n e r a b le b y th e a u t h o r i ty th a t tim e c o n c e d e s to e r r o r , a r e
tin e (City of God 7.27 = fg t 2 0 N = testim 5 n 2 V ), c a llin g b e lie v e d to b e g o d s b y th o s e w h o c o m e a f t e r " (Protrepticus
h is to r y to th e a id o f p o e tr y , a s s o c i a te s h is n a m e w ith th a t o f 4 .5 5 .2 - 3 ). It w a s , m o r e o v e r , a J e w is h e x p l a n a t i o n b e f o r e it
V i r g i l , w h o is a l s o t a k e n a s a w i t n e s s t o t h e f a c t t h a t S a t u r n b e c a m e C h r i s t i a n ; w e f i n d it o n t h e l i p s o f a n o t h e r C l e m e n t ,
w as a m e re d e th ro n e d k in g (Aeneid 8 .3 1 9 f f .) . T h is la s t te x t a c u ltiv a te d G re e k c o n v e r te d to J u d a is m a n d th e p ro ta g o n is t
s h o w s th a t th e C h ris tia n a u th o r w a s a t p a in s to fin d Eu- o f th e Clementine Homilies ( 6 .2 2 ) ; th e s e h o m ilie s th e m s e l v e s
h e m e r i s m i n t e x t s o t h e r t h a n t h o s e o f i ts f o u n d e r ; h e w o u l d b e lo n g to a J e w is h a p o l o g e t ic tra d itio n w h ic h m a y g o b a c k a s
s e e a n o t h e r o f h i s p a r t i s a n s in t h e p e r s o n o f t h e E g y p t i a n f a r a s t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y . It t a k e s t i m e t o
H e r m e s T ris m e g is tu s , w h o , h e s a y s , " te s tif ie s th a t th e g o d s fo rg et th a t th e gods w ere on ce m en; but to o m u ch tim e
o f th e E g y p tia n s a re m e n w h o h a v e d i e d " (City of God 8 .2 6 , r e s u lt s in a w e a k e n i n g o f th e l e g e n d . A s C le m e n t o f A l e x a n ­
u s in g a s a n illu s tra tio n th e H e r m e tic Asclepius § 2 4 ) . d ria says (Protrepticus 2 .3 7 .1 - 3 ), th e m y th s and gods of
T h e h a s te w ith w h ic h C h r is tia n a u t h o r s a d o p t e d th e th e s e s p a g a n i s m " h a v e a g e d " t o d a y , a n d Z e u s h i m s e l f is n o l o n g e r
o f E u h e m e r u s m a y b e e x p l a in e d in p a r t b y t h e f a c t th a t t h e y th e in tr e p id l o v e r h e o n c e w a s (T a tia n , Oratio ad Graecos 21,
f o u n d s i m i l a r t h e s e s i n s o m e o f t h e i r s c r i p t u r e s . S u c h is t h e a l r e a d y s p o k e in a l ik e f a s h i o n : " W h y d o e s H e r a n o l o n g e r
c a s e w ith th e W is d o m o f S o lo m o n , to w h ic h a tte n tio n has b e a r c h ild r e n ? H a s s h e g r o w n o ld , o r d o e s s h e la ck s o m e o n e
b e e n d ra w n b y J. D . C o o k e (s e e n o te 1 2 ); h e r e a r e th e te rm s w h o m i g h t a n n o u n c e it t o y o u ? " ) . B u t it is t h e d i s c o v e r y o f
in w h i c h t h e g e n e s i s o f i d o l a t r y is t r a c e d i n it: " F o r a f a t h e r , E u h e m e r u s t h a t c o n s u m m a te s th is d e c a d e n c e , d e s c r ib e d b y
c o n s u m e d w ith g r ie f a t a n u n tim e ly b e r e a v e m e n t , m a d e a n C le m e n t b y m e a n s o f a m e t a p h o r fa m ilia r to a n c ie n t th e o r ie s
im a g e o f h is c h ild , w h o h a d s u d d e n l y b e e n ta k e n fro m h im ; o f m y th , th a t o f " la y in g b a r e " (th e v e r b gumnoun)— th e tru th
an d n o w he h o n o red as a g o d w h at w as o n ce a d ead h u m an " l a y s b a r e " th e m a s s o f g o d s b y te a r in g a w a y th e ir m a s k s
b e in g , a n d handed on to h is d e p e n d e n ts s e c r e t rite s a n d (Protrepticus 2 . 2 7 . 5 ) ; t h e m y t h o f Z e u s is " l a i d b a re " b efo re
in itia tio n s . Then th e u n g o d ly c u s to m , g row n s tro n g w ith t h e e y e s o f t h e p a g a n s ( 2 . 3 7 . 3 ) — w h i c h is a ll a n o t h e r w a y o f
tim e , w a s k e p t a s a la w . . . a n d th e m u ltitu d e , a t tr a c t e d b y sa y in g th a t th e E u h e m e rist e x p la n a tio n s trip s th e G reek
th e c h a r m o f h is w o r k , n o w r e g a r d e d a s a n o b je c t o f w o r s h ip p a n th e o n o f its fin e ry and re d u ce s it t o its m ere hum an
th e o n e w h o m s h o rtly b e fo r e th e y h a d h o n o re d a s a m a n " e x p re ssio n .
(New Oxford Annotated Bible, W isd o m o f S o lo m o n 1 4 .1 5 - 2 0 ). Thus C h ris tia n th o u g h t trie d to a ccre d it E u h e m e r u s 's
T h is d e v e lo p m e n t (u n d o u b te d ly fro m t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b.c .) h y p o th e s is b y a n a ly z in g th e p r o c e s s o f d iv in iz a tio n . O th e r
o n t h e o r i g i n o f t h e g o d s is i n c o n t e s t a b l y l i n k e d t o E u h e m e r - a u t h o r s o f fe r e q u a lly e n l ig h te n i n g e x a m p l e s . L a c t a n t iu s , th e
ism , fro m w h ic h it p ro b a b ly ta k e s its in s p ira tio n . E ig h t p rin cip a l w itn e s s to th e L a tin a d a p ta tio n of E u h e m e ru s,
c e n t u r i e s l a t e r , I s i d o r e o f S e v i l l e w o u l d r e c a l l i t , p e r h a p s in re d u ce s th e c la s s ic a l p ra n k s o f Ju p ite r to p u re ly hum an
o r d e r to d e s c r ib e th e s a m e k in d o f r e t r o g r e s s i o n : a f t e r th e d im e n s io n s : th e g o ld e n ra in w ith w h ic h th e g o d s h o w e r e d
d e a th o f c e r ta in g r e a t m e n , th e ir frie n d s r e p r e s e n te d th e m b y D a n a ë ' s b r e a s t w a s n o t h i n g m o r e , in a c o n c r e t e s e n s e — if o n e
m ean s of an e ffig y s im p ly a s a m e a n s o f c o n s o l in g t h e m ­ s u b t r a c t s f r o m it a ll t h e p o e t i c a m p l i f i c a t i o n — t h a n t h e w a g e s
s e l v e s a n d h o n o r i n g t h e i r m e m o r y ; it w a s o n l y t h e f o l l o w i n g o f a c o m m o n c o u r t e s a n , j u s t a s " r a i n o f i r o n " is u s e d fo r a
g e n e r a t i o n s w h i c h , w i t h t h e h e l p o f d e m o n i c i n f l u e n c e s , fe ll v o lle y of a rro w s; th e e a g le of G anym ede w as o r ig in a lly
in to th e e rro r o f m a k in g gods of th e s e m en (Etymologiae s im p ly th e in sig n ia o f th e le g io n sent ou t to k id n a p th e
8 .1 1 .4 ) . y o u n g s h e p h e r d ; a s f o r t h e b u ll o f E u r o p a a n d t h e h e i f e r i n t o
In t h e i r p o r t r a y a l o f E u h e m e r i s m , t h e C h r i s t i a n s a c c e n t u ­ w h ic h Io m e ta m o rp h o se d h e rs e lf, we a re to u n d e rsta n d
a te d p a r t i c u l a r a s p e c t s o f i t. T h e o r i g i n a l h u m a n i t y o f t h e t h e s e r u m i n a n t s , in a m o r e p r o s a i c w a y , a s f i g u r e h e a d s o n
g o d s is l e s s s tr ik in g t o t h e m t h a n th e d e a t h th r o u g h w h ic h th e p ro w s o f th e s h ip s u se d to tr a n s p o r t th e tw o m a id e n s
th e y h a v e p a s s e d , w h ic h c o n t in u e s to c lin g to th e m ; m o r e (Divinae Institutiones 1 . 1 1 . 1 7 - 2 2 ; i n t h e s a m e v e in , Epitome
th a n d iv in iz e d m e n , t h e y a r e " c o r p s e s " : " w e , w h o a r e a liv e , divin, instil. 1 1 ; c e r t a i n o f t h e s e e x p l a n a t i o n s a re ta k e n up
do n o t s a crifice to c o r p s e s w h o a r e go d s, and we do not a g a i n b y A u g u s t i n e , City of God 1 8 . 1 3 ) .
w o r s h ip t h e m ," is w h a t w e r e a d in th e S e c o n d E p is t le ( 3 .1 ) ,
a ttr ib u te d (w r o n g ly ) t o S a in t C le m e n t , o n e o f th e first b is h ­ 2. The divinization of emperors and pharaohs. W e h ave seen
o p s o f R o m e ; "Y o u h a v e e n d e d u p a s c o rp s e s y o u rse lv e s, fo r th a t th e a p p e a ra n c e o f E u h e m e ris m w a s p ro b a b ly n o t u n c o n ­

177
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

n e c t e d w ith th e c u lt o f th e H e lle n is tic s o v e r e ig n s . T h is Sitz im a s s o c ia te s th e M a c e d o n ia n k in g w ith th e h isto ria n H ero ­

Leben c o u ld n o t e s c a p e th e C h r is tia n a u t h o r s , w h o a s s o c ia te d d o tu s, w ho p reced es h im by a ce n tu ry : "H e ro d o tu s and
th e th e se s of E u h em eru s w ith th e a p o th e o s e s o f p rin ce s A l e x a n d e r , th e s o n o f P h ilip , in h is l e tt e r t o h is m o th e r , s a y
w h ic h w e r e ta k in g p la c e b e fo r e th e ir e y e s o r h a d o c c u r r e d th a t th e y h a v e le a rn e d fro m th e p rie s ts th a t th e s e g o d s w e re
re c e n tly . T h i s is w h a t A th a n a s iu s o f A le x a n d ria d oes, fo r o n c e m e n . E a ch o f th e m is s a id to h a v e h a d c o n v e r s a t io n s
e x a m p l e , in a Discourse against the Pagans. H is E u h e m e r i s t w ith th e p r i e s t s in H e lio p o lis , M e m p h i s , a n d T h e b e s " ( A t h ­
c o n v i c t i o n s a r e w e ll e s t a b l i s h e d : t h e g o d s a r e v e r y a n c i e n t e n a g o ra s, Supplication to Marcus Aurelius 2 8 ).
l e a d e r s , u p o n th e lo s s o f w h o m (a lo n g w ith th e ir re la tiv e s ) O th e r F a th e rs of th e C h u rch ( T a tia n , T e rtu llia n a g a in ,
t h e r e w a s la m e n ta t i o n — s u c h w a s th e c a s e w ith Z e u s , H e r ­ C le m e n t o f A le x a n d ria , E u se b iu s, A rn o b iu s ), c o m m e n tin g
m e s , O s iris, e tc . (Contra Gentes 10, Patrologia Graeca 2 5 .2 4 A ). o n t h e s a m e s u b j e c t , e v o k e a c e r t a i n L e o . T h a t a ll o f t h e s e
Thus w as c o n s titu te d th e a n tiq u e p a n th e o n , i ts p rin cip a l w r i t e r s h a d t h e s a m e t e x t in m i n d is d e m o n s t r a t e d b y t h e f a c t
a u th o r b e in g T h eseu s, th e le g e n d a ry k in g of A ttic a th a t A u g u s tin e (City of God 8 .5 , 2 7 ; De consensu evangelist.
(1 0 .2 1 B C ). A th a n a s iu s c le a rly r e f u s e s to ta k e s u c h d iv in itie s 1 .2 3 .3 3 ) m a k e s L e o th e E g y p tia n p rie st fro m w hom A le x ­
s e r i o u s l y ; a s h e s a y s in a w e l l - t u r n e d p h r a s e , “ T h e i r m y t h o l ­ a n d e r r e c e iv e d th e re v e la tio n o f th e o r ig in a l h u m a n ity o f th e
ogy is n o t a th e o lo g y " ( 1 9 .4 0 C ) . F o r h im , th e p ro ce ss of g o d s . S u c h d iv e r g e n c ie s le a d o n e to b e lie v e th a t th is w a s a
d iv in iz a tio n u n v e ile d b y E u h e m e r u s e v o k e s th e a p o th e o s is d o c u m e n t o f w h ic h th e C h r is t ia n s h a d o n l y h e a r d te ll, a n d
b e s to w e d u p o n e m p e r o r s a n d c la im e d b y s o m e o f th e m fo r th a t its a u th o r w as n e ith e r A le x a n d e r nor Leo but an
th ird p a rtie s (a s by H a d r ia n fo r h is fa v o rite A n tin o u s ) u n k n o w n in d iv id u a l w h o s e i d e a s a n d life tim e w e r e c lo s e to
(9 .2 0 C D ) . A g a in s t s u c h p r e t e n s i o n s , A th a n a s iu s s im p ly o b ­ th o se o f H e ca ta e u s o f A b d era a n d of E u h em eru s; h e w as
s e r v e s th a t, s in c e th e w o r k e r s h o u ld b e s u p e r i o r to h is w o r k , p r o b a b l y l a t e r t h a n t h e y a n d i n f l u e n c e d b y t h e m . O f a ll o f t h e
m o r ta l m e n a r e i n c a p a b le o f m a k i n g g o d s ( 9 .2 1 A ; a n a n a l o ­ C h r i s t i a n w r i t e r s , o n l y A r n o b i u s , in a p a s s a g e c i t e d a b o v e ,
g o u s a rg u m e n t h a d p re v io u s ly b e e n m o re a m p ly d e v e lo p e d speaks of L eo of Pella; th is g e o g r a p h i c a l d e ta il m i g h t le a d o n e
b y T e rtu llia n , Apologeticus 1 1 .1 - 3 ). to b e lie v e th a t h e w a s a re a l in d iv id u a l; b u t th is d o e s n o t
T h e p a s s a g e s fro m A th a n a s iu s a r e u n d o u b te d ly th e m o s t a c c o r d w ith th e te s tim o n y o f A u g u s tin e , w h o s e e s L e o a s a
s y n th e tic , b u t th e y a r e n o t th e o n ly ones to b e fo u n d in sacerdos Aegyptius. The s itu a tio n b e in g so con fu sed , espe­
p a tris tic lite r a tu r e o n th e s u b je c t. T h e a u t h o r o f th e Clemen­ c ia lly if o n e re m e m b e rs th a t P e l la w as th e c a p ita l o f th e
tine Homilies ( 6 .2 3 ) b ases h is a rg u m e n ts on E u h e m e ris m , k in g d o m o f M a c e d o n ia a n d th e b ir th p la c e o f A le x a n d e r , o n e
r e c a llin g th a t d o w n t h r o u g h th e P to le m a ic p e rio d th e E g y p ­ is t e m p t e d t o s u b s c r i b e t o F . P f i s t e r 's h y p o t h e s i s , t h a t A m o -
tia n s h a d m a d e g o d s o f th e ir p h a r a o h s e v e n w h ile th e y w e r e b i u s 's " P e l l a e u s L e o n " w a s m e r e l y a m e t a p h o r d e s i g n a t i n g
s till a liv e . As fo r S a in t A u g u s tin e , he w o u ld n o te th a t A l e x a n d e r , th e " l io n o f P e lla !"
E u h e m e r u s ' s e x p l a n a t i o n is r e n d e r e d p r o b a b l e b y t h e s p e c ­
t a c l e o f d i f f e r e n t e p i s o d e s in R o m a n h i s t o r y : “ W h a t t h e n is III. The Arguments Set Forth
s u r p r i s i n g in t h e f a c t t h a t t h e e a r l i e s t m e n d i d fo r Ju p ite r,
1. The "synonymy” of the gods. A c c e p tin g E u h e m e r is m , th e
S a tu r n , a n d th e re s t th e v e r y th in g th a t th e R o m a n s d id fo r
C h r is t ia n a u t h o r s m u s t e r v a r io u s a r g u m e n t s in f a v o r o f th is
R o m u l u s a n d w a n t e d t o d o , in a m o r e r e c e n t t i m e , f o r C a e s a r
d o c tr in e ; s o m e w e r e th e ir o w n , b u t m o s t h a d b e e n fo r m u ­
h i m s e l f ?”(De c o n s e n s u evangelist. 1 .2 3 .3 2 ) .
l a te d b efo re t h e m . S o it is t h a t C l e m e n t o f A l e x a n d r i a , in
T h is p re te n s io n to le g a l a p o t h e o s i s o n th e p a rt o f g r e a t
o r d e r to " r e f u t e th e im a g in a tio n s " th a t p re s id e d o v e r th e
in d iv id u a ls n a tu r a lly r a n k le s th e C h r is tia n s , w h o a r e s o m e ­
c o n s t i tu t io n o f th e p a g a n p a n t h e o n , in v o k e s w h a t h e c a lls
tim e s p r e s e n te d a s a d v e r s a r i e s o f E u h e m e r is m ; w e h a v e s e e n
th e " s y n o n y m i e s " (Protrepticus 2 .2 7 .5 ) , a n d w h a t to d a y w e
t h a t s u c h is n o t t h e c a s e , e x c e p t t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t E u h e m e r u s
w o u l d c a ll h o m o n y m y : t h e f a c t t h a t t h e n a m e s o f t h e g r e a t e s t
m ig h t h a v e a p p e a r e d to th e m a s b e in g p a rtia l to a s p ir a tio n s
g o d s re f e r to s e v e r a l d is tin c t d iv in itie s . B y w a y o f illu s tra tio n ,
to d iv in iz a tio n o n th e p a r t o f s o v e r e ig n s . W h a t e v e r th e c a s e ,
he re c a lls th a t t h e r e w e r e th re e Z e u s e s , fiv e A t h e n a s , s ix
it m u s t b e s a id th a t, in th e ir r e je c tio n o f a p o th e o sis, th e
A p o llo s , a n d m a n y a n A s c le p iu s , H e r m e s , H e p h a e s tu s , a n d
C h r is t ia n a u t h o r s , a s o f te n h a p p e n e d , fo llo w e d in th e f o o t­
A r e s ( 2 .2 8 . 1 - 2 9 . 2 ) . M a n y o t h e r C h r is tia n a u t h o r s m a d e s p o r t
s te p s o f c e r ta in G re e k p h ilo s o p h e r s . W e s a w a b o v e th a t th e
o f th e fa c t th a t s e v e r a l w o u ld -b e g o d s c o u ld b e a r th e s a m e
S to ic P ersaeu s of C itiu m , re g a r d in g th e p henom enon of
n a m e , e s p e c ia lly th a t o f Z e u s ( T h e o p h ilu s o f A n tio c h , Ad
h e r o iz a tio n , h e ld a d o c tr in e re la te d to , a n d p ro b a b ly d e p e n ­
Autolycum 1 2 . 1 0 ; M in u c iu s F e lix , Octavius 2 2 .6 ; A r n o b iu s ,
d e n t u p o n , th a t o f E u h e m e r u s . A n d C ic e r o , d e s c r ib in g th e
Adversus nationes 4 .1 4 , e t c .) ; b u t n o n e c o u ld e x p lo it th e se
t h e s i s o f P e r s a e u s in h i s d i a l o g u e De natura deorum (1 .1 5 .3 8 ),
c ir c u m s t a n c e s to th e a d v a n t a g e o f th e E u h e m e r is t th e s is a s
p u t s h i s a c c o u n t in t h e m o u t h o f a n E p i c u r i a n p h i l o s o p h e r
w e ll a s C le m e n t d i d . T h e w a y h a d n e v e r t h e l e s s b e e n o p e n e d
n a m e d V e lle iu s , w h o n o s o o n e r f o r m u la t e s th e d o c t r in e th a n
b y th e p a g a n p h ilo s o p h e rs th e m s e lv e s ; C ic e ro , fo r e x a m p le ,
he condem ns it w ith great verve: "W h a t c o u ld be m o re
in t h e t h i r d b o o k o f h i s d i a l o g u e De natura deorum, b o rro w s
a b su rd th a n . . . to ra ise m en to gods on ce d e a th has
fro m C o tta , th e sp o k esm an fo r s k e p ticism in th e N ew
d e stro y e d th e m ? "
A c a d e m y , a lo n g e la b o r a tio n on th e p lu r a lity , n o t o n l y o f
J u p ite r s , b u t a ls o o f V u lca n s , M e r c u r ie s , A p o llo s , e t c . (Nat.
3. The "letter of Alexander to Olympias." Even th o u g h Eu­
D. 3 .2 1 .5 3 - 2 3 .6 0 ). T h is fa ct h a d a lre a d y been in te rp re te d
h e m e ru s n ev er, p ro p e rly s p e a k in g , fo u n d e d a s ch o o l, h is
t h e r e a s a n a r g u m e n t in f a v o r o f th e h u m a n o r ig in o f th e s e
t h e s e s w e r e e x h ib ite d in w o r k s o t h e r th a n h is o w n . A m o n g
g o d s , a s th e first s e n t e n c e o f h is d e c l a m a t o r y p a s s a g e s h o w s :
t h e l a t t e r , a t e x t s h o u l d b e n o t e d h e r e f o r t h e e c h o it f i n d s
" W e o u g h t a ls o to fig h t th o s e w h o a r g u e th a t th e s e b e in g s
am ong C h r is tia n lis te n e r s ; th a t is, a s o -c a lle d le tte r fro m
w h o c a m e fro m th e h u m a n race an d w ere tr a n s p o r te d to
A le x a n d e r o f M a c e d o n ia to h is m o th e r O ly m p ia s , d is c u s s e d
heaven a re not re a lly , b u t o n ly b y co n v e n tio n , th e gods
in an a rtic le by F. P f i s t e r . 15 V a r i o u s C h ris tia n a p o lo g ists
w hom we a ll honor w ith our m o st devout v e n e ra tio n "
(T e rtu llia n , M i n u c iu s F e lix , C y p r i a n , A u g u s t in e ) b e lie v e th a t
(3 .2 1 .5 3 ).
th e a u t h o r r e a lly w a s A l e x a n d e r , to w h o m th e E u h e m e ris t
t h e o r y w a s t h o u g h t t o h a v e b e e n r e v e a l e d in E g y p t . H e r e , f o r 2. The traces left by the gods. It c o u l d h a v e b e e n p r e d i c t e d
e x a m p le , is how A th e n a g o ra s, th e e a rlie s t am ong th e m , th a t th e b o d ily p e c u lia ritie s o f th e g o d s w o u ld b e s e e n a s

178
 TH E E U H E M E R I S M OF T H E C H R I S T I A N A U T H O R S

i n d i c e s o f t h e i r h u m a n o r i g i n . In h i s t r e a t i s e On Isis and Osiris G o d ; a n d h e k n e w ( u n f o r t u n a t e l y w i t h o u t m a k i n g it k n o w n )

(c h a p . 2 3 ), P lu ta r c h s h o w s h im s e lf to b e p e r s o n a lly h o s tile to an a lle g o ric a l ju s tif ic a tio n o f th e m y th o f th e s e p u lc h e r o f
E u h e m e ris m ; h e n e v e r th e le s s n o te s (c h a p . 2 2 ) th a t, a c c o r d ­ Z e u s . W h a te v e r th e c a s e , O rig e n m a in ta in s th e h isto ric ity o f
in g to th e E g y p tia n s , H e r m e s h a d sh o rt a rm s, T y p h o w as th e to m b o f Z e u s w h ile a lle g in g th a t th e le a r n e d C a llim a c h u s
r e d -h e a d e d , H o r u s b lo n d , O siris b r u n e tte ; a n d h e g iv e s v o ic e w a s i g n o r a n t o f a n y a l le g o r y o f th is k in d .
t o t h e f o l l o w i n g c o n c l u s i o n : " T h i s is b e c a u s e , b y n a t u r e , t h e y A s id e fro m t h e r e f e r e n c e t o C a l l i m a c h u s 's Hymn to Zeus,
w e r e m e n ." T h e C h r is tia n E u s e b i u s m a k e s n o m i s t a k e ; in w h ic h s e e m s to b e lim ite d to th e f o u r a u t h o r s w e h a v e ju st
s e a r c h i n g in h is Praeparatio Evangelica ( 3 .3 .1 5 - 1 6 ) fo r c o n fir­ s e e n , t h e r e i s n o e n d t o t h e lis t o f C h r i s t i a n s w h o a d v a n c e t h e
m a tio n s fo r h is E u h e m e r is t c o n v ic tio n s , h e s e e s h o w h e c a n a r g u m e n t o f th e to m b . T h e Clementine Homilies n e v e rth e le ss
m a k e g o o d u s e o f P l u t a r c h 's t e x t o n t h e b o d i l y c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s a re w o rth s in g lin g o u t fo r th e fa c t th a t th e y d o n o t m e r e ly
o f th e g o d s . H e c ite s th a t te x t a s " w it n e s s to th e fa ct th a t th e y t u r n t h e t o m b o f Z e u s in C r e t e t o t h e i r a c c o u n t , b u t f e e l t h a t
w e r e m o r ta l m e n ." T h e d e ta ils o f th e ir p h y s ic a l a p p e a r a n c e t h e i r E u h e m e r i s t c o n v i c t i o n s w il l b e m o r e w i d e l y s h a r e d if
are ju st p a rt of th e p ictu re , and C le m e n t of A le x a n d ria th e y add th e to m b s of K ro n o s in th e C au casu s, A res in
i n v o k e s o t h e r c o n c r e t e d a t a t h a t p o i n t in t h e s a m e d i r e c t i o n : T h r a c e , H e r m e s in E g y p t , A p h r o d i t e in C y p r u s , D io n y s u s a t
" M a y th e la n d s th e y d w e lle d in , th e a r t s th e y p r a c tic e d , th e T hebes, A s c le p iu s in E p id a u r u s , e tc. ( 5 .2 3 and 6 .2 1 ; th e
r e c o r d o f th e ir liv e s , y e s , a n d e v e n th e ir to m b s , c o n v i n c e y o u th e s e s a r e p r o p o s e d b y th e J e w is h o r J u d e o -C h r is tia n C le m ­
t h a t t h e y w e r e o n l y m e n " ( Protrepliais 2 . 2 9 . 1 ) . e n t ) . A p a s s a g e t a k e n f r o m T e r t u l l i a n i s o f i n t e r e s t b e c a u s e it
In d r a w in g out th is a rg u m e n t, C le m e n t and E u se b iu s a d d s to th e s e s e p u lc h e r s th e c o n s id e r a tio n o f o t h e r " m o n u ­
f o ll o w e d E u h e m e r u s 's l e a d d i r e c t ly , a s s e v e r a l s o u r c e s s h o w : m e n t s o f a n t iq u i ty " fro m w h ic h w e le a rn a b o u t th e g o d s , th e
"E u h e m e ru s and our E n n iu s show th e b irth , m a rria g e , c i t i e s i n w h i c h t h e y w e r e b o r n , t h e l a n d s in w h i c h t h e y l e f t
p r o g e n itu r e , p o w e r, e x p lo its , d e a th , and to m b o f a ll th e t r a c e s o f t h e i r a c t i v i t i e s : T e r t u l l i a n h o p e s t h a t t h e p a g a n s w ill
go d s" (testim. 15N = testim. 5m V = L a c ta n tiu s , De ira dei su ccu m b in th e fa c e o f s u c h p ro o fs a n d re co g n iz e t h a t a ll
2 .7 .8 ; c f. o n th e s a m e testim. 9N = testim. 5 fV = M in u c iu s th e ir g o d s w ere fo rm e rly m en (Apologcticus 1 0 .3 - 4 ). T h is
F e lix , Octavius 2 1 ). T h e la st e le m e n t m e n tio n e d , th e to m b a s c o n clu sio n l e a d s t o E u h e m e r i s m , w h ic h T e r tu llia n n e x t d e ­
a n a t t e s t a t i o n o f d e a t h , is t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t o f a l l ; it is t h e v e l o p s ( 1 0 . 6 - 1 1 ) b y u s i n g S a t u r n a n d J u p i te r a s illu s tra H o n .
o n l y o n e r e t a i n e d b y C i c e r o (Nat. D. 1 . 4 2 . 1 1 9 = testim. 2 N = A f te r m u c h h e s ita tio n o v e r w h ic h o n e o f th e t w o c o n t e m p o ­
testim. 5 d V ) : ab Euhemero autem et mortes et sepulturae demon­ r a n e o u s a u t h o r s i n f l u e n c e d t h e o t h e r , it i s g e n e r a l l y t h o u g h t
strantur deorum ( " M o r e o v e r , b o t h t h e d e a t h s a n d t h e t o m b s o f to d a y th a t it w as T e rtu llia n w ho serv ed as m odel fo r
th e g o d s a r e d e m o n s tr a te d b y E u h e m e r u s " ) . E u h e m e r u s w a s M in u c iu s F e lix . In fa c t, th e la tte r o f fe rs a n e la b o ra tio n on
e s p e c i a l l y c o n c e r n e d w i t h Z e u s , n a r r a t i n g h i s d e a t h in C r e t e , S a tu r n a n d J u p i te r v e r y s im ila r to th e o n e w e h a v e ju s t s e e n
th e f u n e r a r y r ite s p e r f o r m e d b y h is s o n s th e C u r e te s , a n d th e (Octavius 2 3 .9 - 1 3 ). W ith a d m ira b le c la r ity he m o b iliz e s
p l a c i n g o f t h e b o d y in t h e s e p u l c h e r i n C n o s s o s ( f g t 2 9 N = Ju p ite r — to w h o s e to m b h e a d d s , a s w e h a v e s e e n A th e n a g ­
fg t 2 4 V = L a c ta n tiu s , Divinae Institutiones 1 .1 1 .4 6 ) . T h u s th e o r a s d o , th e c a v e o f Id a — to th e c a u s e o f E u h e m e ris m : " E v e n
p o e t C a llim a c h u s , w is h in g to d is m a n tle n a s c e n t E u h e m e r ­ t o d a y p e o p le v is it th e g r o t to o f J u p i te r a n d s h o w h is to m b ,
i s m , w o u l d c h o o s e t o r e f u t e it o n t h i s g r o u n d (Hymn to Zeus and th e v ery s ite s th a t he co n se c ra te d p ro v e h is hum an
8 -9 = testim. l b V ): " T h e C r e t a n s a r e a l w a y s lia r s ; fo r th e n a t u r e ( ipsis sacris suis humanitatis arguitur)" ( 2 3 .1 3 ; M . P e lle ­
C r e t a n s e v e n b u ilt y o u r t o m b , O k in g , b u t y o u d id n o t d ie , g r i n o 's e d i t i o n o f Octavius is v a l u a b l e f o r i t s co p io u s a n n o ta -
f o r y o u e x i s t f o r e v e r ." H o n , e s p e c i a l l y o n t h e c h a p t e r in q u e s t i o n ) . 17
T h e C h r is tia n a u t h o r s ta k e c a r e n o t to s id e w ith C a llim a ­
c h u s ; s e v e ra l o f th e m e x p r e s s ly re b u k e h im a n d s a y th a t th e 3. The existence of rites. M a n y h is to r ia n s o f re lig io n s t o d a y
C re ta n s are rig h t ra th e r th an he, as show n in th e te x ts c o n c e i v e o f t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n m y t h a n d r i t u a l in s u c h
b r o u g h t t o g e t h e r b y N . Z e e g e r s - V a n d e r V o r s t . 16 T a t i a n ( Ora­ a w ay th a t m y th a p p e a rs to ju stify ritu a l a p o s te rio ri. A n
tio ad Graecos 27) and C le m e n t o f A le x a n d ria ( Protrepticus e x a m p l e o f t h e s e e h o l o g i c a l m y t h s is p r o v i d e d b y M . E l i a d e :
2 .3 7 .4 ) to o k th is lin e . The in te r p e lla tio n of A th a n a g o ra s, " P r e c o n ju g a l c e re m o n ia l u n io n s p r e c e d e d th e a p p e a r a n c e o f
w h ic h com es at th e end o f th re e c h a p te rs o n th e hum an th e m y th o f th e p re c o n ju g a l r e la tio n s b e tw e e n H era and
o r ig in of th e go d s, m e rits a c ita tio n ; it p o in ts out th e Z eu s, th e m y th w h ic h serv ed t o ju s H f y t h e m . " 1* T h i s i s a
c o n t r a d i c t i o n o f t h e p o e t , w h o d e n i e s t h a t t h e g o d is d e a d p o in t o n w h ic h th e F a th e r s o f th e C h u r c h w ere n ot v ery
b u t r e c o g n iz e s th a t h e w a s b o r n , w ith o u t re a liz in g th a t h e " m o d e r n ." F o r t h e y b e lie v e d in g e n e r a l t h a t t h e c u l t ic a c t i v ­
w h o is b o r n m u s t d i e : " Y o u b e l i e v e , C a l l i m a c h u s , in t h e b i r t h itie s o f p a g a n i s m b o re w itn e s s to th e h is to rica l r e a lity of
o f Z e u s b u t y o u d o n o t b e lie v e in h is to m b . A n d th in k i n g to m y th s , in o t h e r w o r d s , to th e h u m a n o r ig in o f t h e g o d s .
c o n c e a l th e t r u th , y o u p r o c la im h is d e a t h , e v e n to m e n w h o T h e a r g u m e n t b e g in s w ith T e r tu llia n , w h o p a ra lle ls th e
a r e u n a w a r e o f i t; if y o u s e e t h e c a v e y o u r e c a l l R h e a ' s g i v i n g n a m e s o f t h e g o d s , w h i c h a r e a n e l e m e n t o f t h e i r c iv il s t a t u s
b i r t h , b u t if y o u s e e t h e f u n e r a r y u r n y o u th ro w d ark n ess a s m o r ta ls , w ith th e ir h i s to r ie s , w h ic h a r e c o n f ir m e d b y rite s :
o v e r th e d e a th o f th e g o d , n o t k n o w in g th a t th e o n ly e te r n a l " W ith re g a rd th e n to y o u r g o d s , I s e e o n ly th e n a m e s o f
b e in g is th e G od w ith o u t a b e g in n in g " ( Supplication 3 0 ) . c e rta in d e a d m e n o f th e p a s t, a b o u t w h o m I h e a r ta le s , a n d
O r ig e n to o k u p th e s a m e a r g u m e n t — th a t d e a t h n e c e s s a r ily I id e n tify th e ir s a c r e d rite s fro m th e ta le s (sacra de fabulis
f o l l o w s b i r t h — b u t h i s t e x t i s n o t a b l e in t h a t h e g i v e s t h e f l o o r recognosco) " (Apologeticus 1 2 . 1 ; w e h a v e ju s t e n c o u n te r e d th e
to h is a d v e r s a r y , th e p a g a n C e ls u s , w h o s a y s to th e C h r is - w o rd sacra, " s a c r e d r i t e s , " in th e w o r k o f M in u c iu s F e lix —
H an s: "Y o u m o ck th o s e w ho w o r s h ip Z eu s, g iv in g as a ipsis sacris suis— w h o i n v o k e s th e c a v e a n d to m b o f J u p ite r
r e a s o n t h e f a c t t h a t h i s t o m b is d i s p l a y e d i n C r e t e , a n d y e t w h ile th in k in g o f th e rite s th a t w e r e p e r f o r m e d th e r e ). T h e
you honor H im w ho cam e out fro m th e to m b , w ith o u t sam e re a so n in g w o u ld soon b eco m e m o re e x p lic it w ith
k n o w i n g h o w a n d u n d e r w h a t a u t h o r i t y t h e C r e t a n s a c t in A rn o b iu s , a s we see in th is p assage: "H ow th e n , do we
t h i s w a y " ( Contra Celsum 3 . 4 3 ) . I t is a s e n t e n c e e x c e p t i o n a l l y p r o v e t h a t a ll t h e s e s t o r i e s a r e r e c o r d s o f a c t u a l e v e n t s ? F r o m
r i c h in i n f o r m a H o n : t h i s P l a t o n i s t o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y k n e w th e s o le m n rite s , o f c o u r s e , a n d th e m y s t e r i e s o f in itia tio n ,
th e C h ris H a n a r g u m e n t d e r i v e d fro m th e to m b o f Z e u s ; h e e ith e r th o s e w h ic h ta k e p la c e a t s ta te d tim e s a n d days or
f o u n d l i t t le c o h e r e n c e b e t w e e n it a n d f a i t h i n a r e s u r r e c t e d t h o s e w h i c h t h e p e o p l e h a n d d o w n in s e c r e t , p r e s e r v i n g t h e

179
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

p e rp e tu ity of th e ir sp e c ia l cu sto m s. For it m u st not be t h e s p o k e s m a n f o r E p i c u r e a n i s m , V e l l e i u s , w h o a d d r e s s e s it

b e lie v e d th a t th e s e p r a c tic e s a r e w ith o u t th e ir o r ig in s , th a t t o th e S t o i c P e r s a e u s , h a v i n g ju s t d e s c r i b e d t h e l a t t e r 's t h e o r y
th e y ta k e p la c e w ith o u t r h y m e o r r e a s o n , th a t th e y d o n o t on d iv in iz a tio n , w h ic h is c lo s e to E u h e m e rism : by th u s
s u b m i t t o m o t i v e s t h a t l in k t h e m w i t h p r i m i t i v e i n s t i t u t i o n s . " in tro d u c in g d e c e a s e d m e n a m o n g th e g o d s , " t h e w h o le c u lt
H e r e A r n o b iu s o f f e r s e x a m p l e s o f th e w a y in w h ic h t o d a y 's o f th e g o d s b e c o m e s a n e x p r e s s io n o f m o u rn in g " (quorum
sacred litu r g ie s a r e r o o t e d in y e s t e r d a y ' s h u m a n e p i s o d e s , omnis cultus esset futurus in luctu, 1 .1 5 .3 8 ; h e r e , a s e ls e w h e r e ,
th u s re n d e rin g th e m in c o n te s ta b le : th e p in e i n tr o d u c e d in w e m a y r e a d th is C ic e r o n i a n d i a lo g u e , a f u n d a m e n ta l d o c u ­
p r o c e s s i o n in t h e s a n c t u a r y o f C y b e l e is t h e i m a g e o f t h e o n e m e n t in t h e r e l i g i o u s p h i l o s o p h y o f a n t i q u i t y , in A . S . P e a s e ' s
u n d e r w h ic h A ttis e m a s c u l a te d h im s e lf; th e a n n u a l p h a llo - e d i t i o n , 22 w h i c h i s i r r e p l a c e a b l e , e s p e c i a l l y f o r i ts f a b u l o u s
p h o ria re fle ct th e c a s tr a tin g m is s io n of L ib e r; th e secret w e a lth o f n o te s ).
c e r e m o n ie s o f E le u s is c o n ta in th e m e m o r y o f th e w a n d e r in g s T h is in co m p a tib ility , s tre n g th e n e d by th e s im ila rity in
o f C e r e s in s e a r c h o f P r o s e r p i n a a n d s o m e o f h e r s to p p i n g sound o f th e L a tin w o rd s cultus and luctus, le d C h r is tia n
p la c e s . W h e th e r o r n o t th e y a r e c o r r e c t, A rn o b iu s c o n tin u e s , a u t h o r s t o a r g u e in t h e f o r m o f a d i l e m m a . O n c e a g a i n , t h e y
th e s e e x a m p le s le a v e n o lo o p h o le s : " I f th e s e m y s te rie s h a v e d o n o t r e j e c t E u h e m e r i s m ; t h e y c o n t i n u e t o b e i n d e b t e d t o it
a n o th e r ca u se , t h a t is n o t h i n g to u s, so lo n g a s th e y are fo r h a v in g s h o w n th e m th e h u m a n o r ig in o f th e p a g a n g o d s ;
p ro d u ced by som e cause. For it d e fie s b e lie f th a t th e se b u t , l ik e V e l l e i u s , t h e y c l e a r l y s p u r n th e id ea th a t g o d s so
p r a c t i c e s w e r e a ll u n d e r t a k e n w i t h o u t a n t e c e d e n t c a u s e s ; o r c o n c e i v e d c o u l d b e a n y t h i n g b u t f a l s e g o d s . It is in t h i s s e n s e
w e m u s t j u d g e th e p e o p le o f A ttic a to b e c r a z y fo r h a v in g th a t th e y e x p lo it th e p r in c ip le w h e re b y an a u th e n tic c u lt
fo rg ed a re lig io u s r ite th a t has no m o tiv e . And if our c o u l d n o t b e e x c l u s i v e l y f u n e r a r y : if y o u r g o d s a r e g o d s , d o
c o n c l u s i o n is c l e a r l y e s t a b l i s h e d , if t h e c a u s e s a n d o r i g i n s o f n o t m o u r n f o r t h e m ; if y o u m o u r n f o r t h e m , a d m i t t h a t t h e y
th e m y s te r ie s d e r iv e fro m a c tu a l e v e n t s (e rebis actis mysteri­ a re m en .
orum causae atque origines effluunt) . . ." (Adversus Nationes T h i s s c h e m a is f i r s t e s t a b l i s h e d b y A t h e n a g o r a s , w h e n h e
5 .3 9 ; cf. 5 .5 - 7 fo r th e d e v e lo p m e n t of h is ex a m p le s; on w rite s o f th e gods of E g y p t: "If th e y a re go d s, th e y a re
t h i s p a s s a g e , a s w e ll a s f o r t h e w h o l e o f A r n o b i u s ' s a p o l o ­ i m m o r t a l ; b u t if t h e y a re w o u n d e d and if t h e i r s u f f e r i n g s
g e t i c tr e a ti s e in g e n e r a l , s e e th e c o m m e n t a r y b y G e o r g e E . c o n s t i tu t e th e ir m y s te r ie s , th e y a r e m e n " (Supplication 2 8 ; th e
M c C r a c k e n ) . 19 d i le m m a is v e ile d b y th e f a c t th a t th e a u t h o r p a s s e s fr o m th e
n o tio n o f m o r ta lity to th a t o f s u f fe rin g , w h ic h th e m y s te r ie s
4. The dilemma of Xenophanes. W h ile t h e y a r e th e p r in c ip a l p e r p e t u a t e ) . E a r lie r ( 1 4 ), A t h e n a g o r a s h a d s im ila r ly r e f e r r e d
i n d e x o f th e o r ig in a l h u m a n it y o f th e g o d s , th e to m b s a l s o t o t h e i n c o h e r e n c e o f t h e c u l t s c e l e b r a t e d in E g y p t i a n t e m ­
b eco m e th e fa v o red p la ce fo r th e ir w o r s h ip . In a te x t o f p l e s , in w h i c h e v e r y o n e b e a t s h i s b r e a s t in u n i s o n a s if a t a
J e w is h a p o lo g e tic s fro m th e e n d o f th e s e c o n d c e n t u r y o r th e f u n e ra l, a n d e v e r y o n e o f fe rs s a c rific e s s u c h a s a r e m a d e to
b e g i n n i n g o f t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b . c ., i n t r o d u c e d i n t o t h e G r e e k go d s. T h e s a m e r e a s o n i n g a t t a i n s i ts g r e a t e s t l i m p i d i t y in
B i b l e u n d e r t h e t it l e o f t h e Letter of Jeremiah, w e r e a d th a t th e C le m e n t o f A le x a n d r ia : " I f y o u b e lie v e th e y a r e g o d s , d o n o t
o f fe rin g s p re s e n te d to th e pagan gods are a s s im ila te d to la m e n t th e m , n o r b e a t y o u r b r e a s t ; b u t if y o u m o u rn fo r
th o s e p la ce d o n to m b s (v e r s e 2 6 ). th e m , s to p th in k in g th a t th e y a r e g o d s " (Protrepticus 2 .2 4 .3 ) .
A s a y i n g t h a t g a i n e d g r e a t c u r r e n c y in t h e f i r s t C h r i s t i a n A m o n g L a tin a u t h o r s , th e m e m o r y o f th e C ic e r o n ia n a n t it h ­
c e n tu rie s w a s th a t th e te m p le s o f fa lse g o d s w e re to m b s , e s is b e tw e e n cultus and luctus p e rs is ts . A f te r re c a llin g th e
th e ir o w n to m b s . A t h e n a g o r a s (Supplication 2 8 ) a t tr i b u te s th is d e m o n s t r a t i o n o f g r i e f w h i c h c o l o r s t h e l e g e n d o f I s is a n d
s a y in g to th e E u h e m e ris t th e o lo g ia n s o f E g y p t, a n d a ls o to a g o v e r n s h e r a n n u a l m y s t e r i e s , M i n u c i u s F e l i x a s k s : " I s it n o t
G r e e k g r a m m a r i a n o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y b . c ., A p o l l o d o r u s , rid ic u lo u s to m o u r n w h a t o n e w o r s h ip s o r to w o r s h ip w h a t
th e a u th o r o f th e tre a tis e On the Gods, w h ic h w as know n, one m o u rn s?" (vel lugere quod colas vel colore quod lugeas)
p e r h a p s d i r e c t l y b u t m o r e l ik e l y i n d i r e c t l y , t o s e v e r a l C h r i s ­ (Octavius 2 2 .1 ) . In th e fo u r th c e n tu ry , th is d i le m m a ta k e s
tia n a u t h o r s (o n t h i s l a s t p o i n t , s e e t h e w o r k s o f Z u c k e r 20 a p la in ly s c h o la s tic tu rn w ith F irm ic u s M a te rn u s : " I f th e y
a n d G e f f c k e n 2 1 ). " T h e y d e s p i s e t h e t e m p l e s a s if t h e y w e r e a re g o d s w h o m you w o rs h ip (colitis), w hy do you m o u rn
to m b s" (templa ut busta despiciunt), s a y s C e c iliu s , th e p a g a n th e m ( lugitis)? W h y d o y o u c e l e b r a t e a n n u a l c e r e m o n i e s o f
i n t e r l o c u t o r in M i n u c i u s F e l i x 's d i a l o g u e (Octavius 8 .4 ) , o f th e m o u r n i n g f o r t h e m ? If t h e y d e s e r v e t e a r s , w h y d o y o u h e a p
C h r i s t i a n s ; in t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y , F i r m i c u s M a t e r n u s , a n o t h e r d iv in e h o n o r s o n th e ir h e a d s ? D o e ith e r o n e th in g o r th e
a p o l o g i s t , f o u n d t h e s e w o r d s to h is t a s t e a n d p u t t h e m to h is o th e r : e ith e r d o n o t w e e p fo r th e m if t h e y a r e g o d s , o r , if
ow n u se: Busta sunt haec, sacratissimi imperatores, appellanda, y o u t h i n k t h e y d e s e r v e g r i e f a n d t e a r s , d o n o t c a ll t h e m g o d s
non templa ( " T h e s e s h o u l d b e c a l l e d t o m b s , m o s t s a c r e d a n y lo n g e r , le st y o u r la m e n ta tio n s a n d t e a r s s h o u ld d e file
e m p e r o r s , n o t t e m p l e s " ; De errore profanarum religionum 1 6 . 3 ) . th e m a je sty of th e d iv in e n a m e ." (De errore profanarum
It w a s p r i m a r i l y C l e m e n t o f A l e x a n d r i a w h o g a v e c r e d e n c e t o religionum 8 .4 ; o n th is a p o lo g e tic tr e a tis e , th e a u t h o r o f w h ic h
th is t h e m e : " T h e s e t e m p le s . . . a r e e u p h e m is t ic a ll y c a lle d is a c o n v e r t e d p a g a n , s e e t h e c o m m e n t a r i e s o f t h e e d i t o r A .
t e m p le s , b u t th e y a r e re a lly to m b s . . . B e a s h a m e d to h o n o r P a s t o r i n o , 23 a s w e ll as th a t of th e F ren ch tra n s la to r G.
th e se to m b s " (Protrepticus 3 .4 4 .4 ) ; a n d la te r, w ith r e g a r d to H e u t e n 2 4 .)
th e te m p le of A n tin o u s , w h ic h w as co n se c ra te d by th e T h is c o n s e n s u s o f th e C h r is tia n a p o lo g is ts o n th e in c o m ­
e m p e r o r H a d r i a n : " J u s t l ik e t e m p l e s , s o a l s o t o m b s , p y r a ­ p a tib ility of w o rs h ip and m o u rn in g m ay be s u r p r is in g ,
m id s, m a u s o le u m s , a n d la b y rin th s seem to be o b je c ts o f c o m i n g a s it d o e s f r o m t h e f o l l o w e r s o f a r e l i g i o n in w h i c h
r e v e r e n c e ; th e y a r e te m p le s o f th e d e a d , ju s t a s te m p le s a r e t h e c e n t r a l f i g u r e o f t h e c u l t is p r e c i s e l y t h a t o f a m a n - G o d
to m b s o f th e g o d s " ( 4 .4 9 .3 ). w h o h a s b e e n p u t to d e a th . T h e e x p la n a tio n m a y d e riv e fro m
T h is p a ra lle l w a s n o t p u s h e d any f a r t h e r . B u t it h a s a n th e fa ct th a t th e s e a u th o r s c o u ld n o t th e m s e lv e s d e fin e th e
i m p o r t a n t c o r o l l a r y : if it is t r u e t h a t t h e t e m p l e s a r e n o t h i n g d i l e m m a in q u e s t i o n , b u t h a d m e r e l y b o r r o w e d it u n s u s p e c t ­
b u t t o m b s , t h e n it f o l l o w s t h a t t h e m o u r n i n g c o n n e c t e d w i t h in g ly fro m a G re e k p h ilo s o p h ic a l tra d itio n . C le m e n t o f A le x ­
to m b s s h o u ld i n v a d e a n d a l te r th e w o r s h ip o f f e r e d in t e m ­ a n d r i a m a k e s n o m y s t e r y o f th is s o u r c e ; fo r h e d o e s n o t o f f e r
p le s . T h is c ritiq u e h a d b e e n f o r m u la te d b y G re e k p h ilo s o p h y t h e f o r m u l a w e h a v e j u s t s e e n a s h i s o w n , b u t c i t e s it a s a
i t s e l f ; w e f i n d it in C i c e r o ' s De natura deorum in t h e m o u t h o f w a r n in g a d d r e s s e d to th e E g y p tia n s b y s o m e o n e h e d o e s n o t

180
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND M Y T H O L O G Y IN THE G R E E K C H U R C H

n a m e . H e d o e s im p ly t h a t it i s o n e o f t h o s e p h i l o s o p h e r s 7. w. spoERRi, Spdthellenistisclw Berichte über Welt, Kultur und Götter:

r e p u te d to b e " a t h e i s t s " b e c a u s e o f th e in s ig h t w ith w h ic h
Untersuchungen zu Diodor von Sizilien (Basel 1959).
8. F. Zucker , "Euhemeros und seine hiera anagraphi bei den
th e y b r o u g h t to lig h t th e e r r o r s c o n c e r n i n g th e g o d s ; to th is
christlichen Schriftstellern," Philologus 64 (1905): 465 - 72.
end he c ite s som e nam es, in clu d in g th a t of E u h em eru s
9. K. niKAKDE, "Euhemerismus," in Reallexikon für Antike und
(Protrepticus 2 .2 4 .2 , as in d ic a te d at th e b e g in n in g of th is Christentum (1966), 6:877-90.
s tu d y ). 10. |. w. Schippers , De Ontwikkeling der Euhemeristische Godencriliek in
In fa c t, th e a u th o r of th is d ile m m a is th e p re -S o c ra tic de Chrislelijke Lalijnse Literatuur (diss., Utrecht; Groningen 1952). For
X e n o p h a n e s o f C o l o p h o n , w e ll k n o w n f o r h is b itin g c r itiq u e the euhemerism of the Latin Fathers, essentially Arnobius and
of th e th e o lo g y of H o m e r, a c ritiq u e th a t th e C h ris tia n s Lactantius, see G. L. Ellspermann, The Attitude of the Early Christian
w o u l d a l s o u s e t o t h e i r a d v a n t a g e . It w a s a n a p o t h e g m to Latin Writers toward Pagan Literature and Learning (Washington 1949),
w h ic h th e e a r lie s t w it n e s s w a s A r is to tle , w h o s a w it a s a n 58- 59 and 72 - 74.
11. |. pépin . Mythe et allégorie: Les origines grecques et les contestations
illu s tra tio n o f a c e r ta in rh e to r ic a l p r o c e d u r e ; " T o th e p e o p le
judéo-chrétiennes (2d ed., Paris 1976), index I, see "Evhémère."
o f E le u s w ho asked w h e th e r o r not th e y s h o u ld o ffe r a
12. |. D. Co o k e , "Euhemerism: A Mediaeval Interpretation of
s a crifice to L e u c o th e a and m o u rn h e r d e a th , X enophanes
Classical Paganism," Speculum 2 (1927): 396-410.
c o u n s e l e d t h a t if t h e y t h o u g h t h e r a g o d d e s s , t h e y s h o u l d 13. p . alphandéry , "L'evhémérisme et les débuts de l'histoire des
not m o u rn h er, b u t, if t h e y th o u g h t her a w om an, th e y religions au moyen âge," Revue de l'histoire des religions 109 (1934):
s h o u ld n o t s a c r if ic e to h e r ." W e a r e c e r ta i n ly in t h e p r e s e n c e 5-27.
o f th e a n tith e s is b e tw e e n d iv in ity and h u m a n ity and, in 14. |. SEZNEC, The Survival of the Pagan Gods: An Essay on the Role of
p a ra lle l fa s h io n , b e tw e e n a r e lig io u s c u lt and m o u rn in g ; the Mythological Tradition in the Humanism and Art of the Renaissance,
la c k in g , h o w e v e r , a r e t w o e le m e n ts w h ic h a r e c h a r a c t e r is t ic
Studies of the Warburg Institute, 11 (London 1940; Paris 1980),
o f t h e t e x t c i t e d b y C l e m e n t — i . e . , t h a t t h e r e t h e r e m a r k is
especially 13-18.
15. f . Pfister , "Ein apokrypher Alexanderbrief: Der sogenannte
a d d r e s s e d to th e E g y p tia n s , a n d t h a t t h e r e t h e d i l e m m a is
Leon von Pella und die Kirchenväter," in Mullus, Festschrift Th.
a lte re d b y a fo rm o f c h ia s m u s . B u t th e s e d iffe re n c e s d is a p ­
Klauser (Münster 1964), 291 -97.
pear in a n o th e r tra d itio n of th e s a y in g s of X en op han es, 16. N. zeegers -vander vorst . Les citations des poètes grecs chez les
a t te s te d by P lu ta rc h : "X e n o p h a n e s o f C o lo p h o n w as th u s apologistes chrétiens du IT siècle (Louvain 1972), 103-4.
r i g h t t o j u d g e t h a t t h e E g y p t i a n s , if t h e y b e l i e v e d in t h e g o d s , 17. M. Minucii felic is , Octavius, con introd. e commento di M.
s h o u ld not m o u rn t h e i r d e a t h , b u t t h a t if t h e y d i d m o u r n Pellegrino (Turin 1947).
th e m , th e y s h o u ld n o t b e lie v e th e m to b e g o d s " ( th e t e x ts o f 18. m. Eliade , The Myth of the Eternal Return, or Cosmos and History
A ris to tle a n d P lu ta rc h — a n d tw o o th e r a n a lo g o u s t e x ts , a ls o (Princeton 1954), 27.
b y P l u t a r c h — m a y b e f o u n d in H . D i e l s a n d W . K r a n z , Die 19. Arnobius of sicca . The Case against the Pagans, translated and
annotated by G. E. McCracken, 2 vols. (Westminster, MD, 1949),
Fragmente der Vorsokratiker, 6 th e d . [B e rlin , 1 9 5 1 ], v o l. 1, p .
2:583-84.
1 1 5 ; s e e a l s o p . 1 8 0 , in w h i c h t h e s a m e a p o t h e g m is a t t r i b ­
20. E. Zucker , Spuren von Apollodoros fieri theôn, bei christlichen
u t e d b y a n a n c i e n t a u t h o r , a b e r r a n t l y , t o H e r a c l i t u s ) . S o it Schriftstellern der ersten fünf Jahrhunderte (diss., Munich; Nurem­
w a s in th e v e r s i o n k n o w n to P l u t a r c h t h a t th e s a y i n g o f th e berg 1904).
p re -S o c ra tic r e a c h e d C le m e n t o f A le x a n d ria a n d h is s u c c e s ­ 21. GEFFCKEN, Zwei griechische Afiologeten (Leipzig and Berlin
s o r s . T h i s e p i s o d e i l l u s t r a t e s t h e s k ill w i t h w h i c h t h e C h r i s ­ 1907), pp. XVII and 225-26; on the dilemma of Xenophanes in
tia n a p o l o g i s t s o f te n u s e th e G r e e k p h il o s o p h e r s t h e m s e l v e s Athenagoras, p. 225.
to re fu te th e th e o lo g y of p a g a n ism ; th e y h a ste n to Eu­ 22. m . TULLUS Cicero , De natura deorum, A. S. Pease, ed., 2 vols.
h e m e r u s fo r d e m o n s tr a tio n th a t th e g o d s a r e d e c e a s e d m e n ,
(Cambridge, MA, 1955; 2d ed., Darmstadt 1968), 1:263 -64.
23. Julius F irmicus M aternus De errore profanarum religionum, a cura
i n o t h e r w o r d s , t h e y t h i n k , f a l s e g o d s . A n d if a n y o n e s h o u l d
di A. Pastorino (Florence 1956), 116.
b e t e m p te d to ta k e th is k in d o f d iv in iz a tio n s e r io u s ly a n d to
24. lULius Firmicus maternus. De errore profanarum religionum, G.
b e l i e v e t h a t t h o s e l a m e n t e d d e a d h a v e b e c o m e r e a l g o d s ( i t is Heuten, trans. (Brussels 1938), 64 and 161-62.
im p ro b a b le b u t n o t im p o s s ib le th a t s u c h w a s th e p e rs o n a l
o p in io n of E u h e m e ru s), th e n th e a p o lo g ists c a ll on Xe­
n o p h a n e s to s u p p o r t th e ir a s s e r tio n th a t o n e c a n n o t m o u r n a
d e a d m a n a n d w o r s h ip a g o d in th e s a m e p e r s o n .
J .P ./ d .w .
C hristianity and M ythology in the G reek
C hurch

NOTES B y t h e y e a r 3 1 3 , w h e n t h e E d ic t o f M ila n m a r k e d a d e c i s iv e
r a p p r o c h e m e n t b e tw e e n th e R o m a n E m p ire a n d th e C h u r c h ,
1. g . n ém eth y , Euhemeri reliquiae (Budapest 1889).
t h e C h u r c h a l r e a d y h a d b e h i n d it t w o c e n t u r i e s o f e x i s t e n c e
2. g . VALLAURj, Evemero di Messene (Turin 1956).
3. F. IACOBY, "Euemeros," 3, in Pauly-Wissowa, Real-Encyclopädie, a t th e h e a r t o f a H e ll e n is m w h ic h h a d its e lf b e e n d r a w n i n to
vol. 11 (1907); 952-72. Jacoby also compiled a collection of testimonia th e flo w o f h is to ry d u r in g th a t tim e . T o b e s u r e , th a t a n c ie n t
concerning, and fragments of, Euhemerus (in which, unfortunately, re lig io u s s y s te m w as s ti ll in p la ce , u n d e r th e b e n e v o le n t
many of the texts are mentioned instead of being cited in full) in his a e g i s o f th e r e i g n i n g p o w e r a n d e l it e s a n d in t h e c o l le c ti v e
monumental work Die Fragmente der griechischen Historiker (Berlin c o n s e r v a tio n o f tra d itio n . T h e p la c e a n d tim e s o f rite s p e r ­
1923), under no. 63, vol. 1:300-313. s is te d , w ith th e ir d e v e l o p m e n t s , th e ir m y th ic ju s tif ic a tio n s
4. p. DECHARME, La critique des traditions religieuses chez les Grecs, des p u n c tu a te d by m a jo r or m in o r nam es fro m th e c la s s ic a l
origines au temps de Plutarque (Paris 1904); on Euhemerus and Eu-
p a n th e o n . T h is p ic tu re , h ow ever, needs som e im p o rta n t
hemerism, 371-93.
r e t o u c h i n g s . T h e f i r s t is t h e i n c r e a s i n g a t t r a c t i o n o f s o u r c e s
5. a . b . DRACHMANN, Atheism in Pagan Antiquity (London, Copen­
hagen, and Christiania 1922), 111-13. o f w is d o m a ttr ib u te d to th e E a st. T h ese in itia te one in to
6. g . vALLAURi, Origine e diffusione dell'evemerismo nel pensiero p a th s to a h a p p y p e rs o n a l a n d s te lla r im m o r ta lity , fo u n d e d
classico (Turin 1960). o n te rre s tria l a s c e tic is m , a n d a r e p la c e d u n d e r th e p a tr o n a g e

181
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
Saint George killing the dragon. Sculpture on two panels of pine.
Nicosia, Cyprus Folk Art Museum. Museum photo.
of long adopted exotic gods and goddesses Such as Isis, or, at
least, gods renewed by exoticism such as the Egyptian
Thoth-Hermes. Next, there is the flowering, on various
levels, of symbolic speculations fueled by the Greek myths,
portrayals of episodes invested with new hope (such as the
labors of Hercules on sarcophagi, or the flight of the Dioscuri
on the subterranean vault of the Porta Maggiore in Rome), as
well as the extensive philosophical constructions of a Ploti­
nus in the third century. In such a perspective, one is
confronted less by the continuity of ancient mythology than
by the fabrication of a contemporary mythology in the
second and third centuries, produced by imperial Hellenism
in response to the questions of the time. The ancient tradi­
tions and their symbolic interpretations are combined with
borrowings of varying antiquity from cultures bearing little
or none of the stamp of Hellenism from the Roman or Persian
East. Among these cultures is Judaism in its diverse currents,
which at that time was elaborating its theory of angels and
defining the figure of Satan, itself undergoing influences
from Persia. This wa_ also the time when an obsession with
demons, invisible and omnipresent assailants, was develop­
ing, an obsession that Christianity would claim for its own
from the very start. Finally, the myths taught in the Gnostic
sects, of which some existed within Christianity itself, are
perhaps the most striking monument to the powers of
182
C H R I S T I A N ERA
invention that were manifesting themselves at the time.
These would have a medieval posterity of their own.
It was in this cultural context that the young Christian
Church had to find its place. An Origen or a Clement of
Alexandria were deeply imbued, on a philosophical level,
with the very culture they found so easy to combat on a
literally narrative or naively ritual level. This leads to an
essential, secular ambiguity. The Byzantine elite, whether or
not it was of the Church, would not abandon the philosoph­
ical approach, the rhetorical discipline, and the literary
baggage of ancient Hellenism: the teaching it received as­
sured its cultural preservation, with greater or lesser success
from one period to another, and its distinctive social value
remained intact as a result. On the other hand, Hellenic
Christianity as a whole integrated into its new faith those
traditions whose function remained necessary, such as the
annual cycle of festivals. As a result, the encounter of the
Eastern Church with the complex mythology that existed
around the year 313 is not an encounter between a scholarly
culture and a popular culture, but rather the beginning of a
thousand-year coexistence of cultural practices at different
levels of society and different levels of consciousness, levels
whose respective scope and depth would vary according to
the efficacy of the official repression imposed upon the
ancient religion.
We may thus pass quite quickly over the well-known dates
and facts that serve as landmarks in the battle against the old
gods carried out publicly in the fourth century by the
Church, which was associated with the ruling power except
during the short restoration under Julian (361-363). The
repression that had begun with Constantine reached its
official end with the general prohibition against the ancient
religion proclaimed by Theodosius I in 392. Nevertheless, the
reign of Justinian I (527-565) was still marked by the confis­
cation of sanctuary properties and the prohibition of teaching
by pagans. And although Bishop Porphyry tore down the
sanctuary of Marneion of Gaza at the end of the fourth
century, the last internal missions, notably those in the
mountains of Asia Minor, were established around 542, and
the last matters involving personalities of the capital, includ­
ing the patriarch himself, occurred around 570. The whole of
the sixth century is still marked by skirmishes that erupt in
the cities on the days on which the old festivals, the Vota and
Bromalia, provoke excitement. The seventh century marks
the real threshold, for in Byzantium this was the period of
invasions perpetrated by peoples who were in every way
non-Christian—Arabs, Avars, and Slavs. The result is a de­
finitive identification between the Christian cause and that of
the political Roman-ness of Hellenic culture. In 626, the Virgin
appears on the walls of the capital under siege by the Avars
and their troops, and saves it. The historical data of Christian
Hellenism are complete thenceforth and for all time.
The realm of Christian Hellenism would be immense if it
were defined as that of churches born, directly or indirectly,
of the Eastern Roman Empire, from Alexandria to Kiev and
Moscow, from the Caucasus to the Balkans. We thus focus on
lands which remained, for all intents and purposes, Hellenic
in language and, at least predominantly, Hellenic in
culture— for to venture further, especially into Slavic lands,
would be to pursue the identical Christianization of too
different a substratum. Delimited in this way, the history of
Christian Hellenism presents three great continuities on
three cultural levels: the elite, the Church, and the Christian
people.
Most manifest is the great secular culture of an elite in
which service to the State is closely associated with service to
 C H R I S T I A N I T Y AND M Y T H O L O G Y IN THE G R E E K C H U R C H

th e C h u r c h : b o th a re ta u g h t a t th e sam e d esk s, an d in a p o r a r y G r e e k c u l t u r e . T h e first o f th e s e s c h o l a r s w e r e m o b i­

la n g u ag e w h ose m y th o lo g ic a l a llu s io n re m a in s a s ig n of liz e d b y t h e f u n d a m e n ta l d e b a te p r o v o k e d b y t h e a s s e r t io n s
re c o g n itio n a ll t h e m o re a p p re cia b le fo r th e f a c t t h a t it is o f F a l l m e r a y e r ( 1 8 4 2 ) o n t h e h is t o r i c a l r u p t u r e in flic te d u p o n
s c h o la rly . T o b e s u r e , th e fo rm a lis m o f a n A g a th i a s , in th e t h e p o p u l a ti o n s o f G r e e c e b y t h e m e d i e v a l in flu x o f S la v s .
c e n t u r y o f J u s t i n i a n , is n o t t h e s c h o l a r s h i p o f a P h o t i u s i n t h e T h e n e x t g r o u p le ft t h e ir lib r a r ie s a n d u n iv e r s it ie s to s e a r c h
n in th c e n tu r y , n o r th e c la s s ic a l m a s te r y o f P s e llu s a n d h is in t h e f i e ld f o r s ti ll l i v i n g t r a c e s o f a n c i e n t H e l l e n i s m . A ll o f
f r ie n d s in th e f o llo w in g p e rio d . B u t lite ra ry re fe re n ce s to t h e s e e n t e r p r i s e s p u t t o g e t h e r a m a s s o f d a t a in w h i c h th e
m y th o lo g y ad o rn even sacred sp eech es, even e p isc o p a l s u r v iv a l o f a n c i e n t H e lle n is m n a tu r a lly o c c u p ie s a n im p o r­
c o r r e s p o n d e n c e , a n d e v e n a L ife o f a s a in t o f th e e l e v e n th o r t a n t p o s itio n . A lth o u g h m a r r e d b y a n o v e r ly v e r tic a l p e n e ­
tw e lfth c e n tu r y t h a t lik e n s th e s tr u g g le o f th e m is s io n a ry tra tio n d o w n w a r d th r o u g h h isto rica l s tr a ta , th e d a ta n e v e r ­
s a in t N ik o n in th e r e g io n o f S p a r t a to t h e la b o r s o f H e r c u l e s . th e le s s m ake p o s sib le a b e tte r m e th o d fo r a n a ly z in g th e
In t h e s a m e w a y , t h o u g h t o a l e s s e r d e g r e e , t h e i c o n o g r a p h i e r e lig io u s s y s te m in to w h ic h C h ris tia n ity a n d th e v e s tig e s o f
s e t t i n g o f s e c u l a r l if e d r a w s o n th e a n c ie n t re p e rto ry . T h e th e a n cie n t cu lts w ere in te g ra te d . We th u s re m a in in th e
N e o p la to n is t c u r r e n t flo w s w ith o u t in te rru p tio n fro m P lo ti­ d ire c t lin e of ou r m e d ie v a l so u rce s, and can v e r ify th e ir
n u s , fro m P ro c lu s a n d th e A th e n ia n A c a d e m y o f t h e fif th c o rre c tn e s s .
c e n tu r y , to th e p h il o s o p h e r s o f th e c a p ita l o f th e e le v e n th T h ere is c e r ta in ly a c o n tin u ity b e tw e e n th e m e d ie v a l
c e n tu ry , a n d fin a lly t o M is tr a a n d th e p e r s o n o f G e o rg iu s s o u r c e s a n d c o n t e m p o r a r y o b s e r v a t i o n s , a n d its c o u r s e m a y
G e m is t u s P l e th o n a s t h e e m p i r e d r a g g e d to its c lo s e a n d th e be tra ce d b ack to a n tiq u ity . Yet th e tru e e x te n t of th is
R e n a is s a n c e daw ned. T h e re w a s a lw a y s a very fin e lin e , c o n tin u ity m u st be a p p re cia te d . The m o st im m u ta b le
rig h t dow n to id e a s w h ic h w ere su sp ect and s u b je ct to g r o u n d in g , a n d u n d o u b te d l y th e o ld e s t e v e n w ith r e g a r d to
p r o s e c u t i o n , a s in th e c a s e o f J o h n " T h e G r a m m a r i a n " a n d o f t h e a n c i e n t r e l ig i o n , is t h a t o f th e c a le n d a r , t h e a n n u a l c y c le
Leo th e P h il o s o p h e r in th e n in th c e n tu ry , th e d iffic u ltie s o f f e s t i v a l s . T h e c o u n c i l h e l d in 6 9 2 in t h e c a p i t a l t o e x t i r p a t e
e x p e r ie n c e d b y M ich a e l P s e llu s , th e a c c u s a tio n s h e h im se lf t h e h e r e t i c a l c o n t a g i o n , w h e t h e r J u d a i z i n g o r H e l l e n i c , s till
m a d e a g a i n s t th e p a t r ia r c h M ic h a e l C e r u la r iu s , a n d th e tria ls fu lly r e c o g n i z e s th e a n c i e n t ri tu a l s in t h e t r a d it i o n a l f e s tiv i­
o f J o h n I t a l o s i n t h e e l e v e n t h c e n t u r y . It is d i f f i c u l t t o p l u m b tie s th a t m a r k th e y e a r : th e C a le n d s o f J a n u a r y 1 s t, th e Vola
t h e d e p t h o f t h e t e m p t a t i o n s t h u s d e n o u n c e d . B u t it m u s t o f th e 6 th , th e Bromalia o f N o v e m b e r -D e c e m b e r , a n d M a rc h
n o t b e f o r g o t t e n t h a t p e o p l e l ik e P s e l l u s a n d , it w o u l d s e e m , 1 s t. The c o u n cil condem ns th e w ild d a n cin g th a t d riv e s
C e ru la r iu s d r e w fro m a n c ie n t H e lle n is m m o re th a n m e re ly w o m e n o u t in to th e s tr e e t s , e n c o u r a g e s c o s tu m e s a n d m a s ­
th e fo rm s a n d id e a s o f th a t g re a t cu ltu ra l tra d itio n . T h e y q u es, and is p e r f o r m e d , a c c o rd in g to th e F a th e rs , in th e
w e r e a l s o n o u r i s h e d w ith its o b s c u r e a n d d a n g e r o u s c u r i o s ­ n a m e o f th e fa lse g o d s o f th e G re e k s ( i .e ., th e p a g a n s ). T h e
itie s , a n d r e c o v e r e d fro m it t h e m a g i c a l o r d i v i n a t o r y p r a c ­ F a t h e r s r e fra in f ro m n a m i n g th e s e g o d s , w ith o n e e x c e p t i o n :
tic e s w h ic h th e end of a n tiq u ity had d e v e lo p e d a g a in s t th e ir e x p lic it p ro h ib itio n a g a in s t p r o c la im in g th e n a m e o f th e
d e m o n s — fo r d e m o n s c o n tin u e d to o f fe r th e sam e face to " i n f a m o u s D i o n y s u s " w h i l e t r a m p l i n g g r a p e s in t h e p r e s s .
p e o p l e o f t h e e l e v e n t h c e n t u r y , a r o u s i n g in t h e m th e s a m e T h e h a g i o g r a p h y o f S t e v e n th e Y o u n g e r , m a r t y r e d in 7 6 4 fo r
o b s e ss io n . h is d e f e n s e o f i c o n s , g iv e s h is d a t e o f d e a t h as N ovem ber
T h e g r e a te s t s o u r c e o f in fo rm a tio n o n th e r e la tio n s o f th e 2 8 th — th e d a y o n w h ic h th e ic o n o c la s tic e m p e r o r , b y h is o w n
G r e e k C h u r c h a n d its p e o p l e w ith H e lle n ic m y th o lo g y is to t e s t im o n y h a r d e n e d in h is H e ll e n is m ( i . e . , p a g a n i s m ) , c e l e ­
b e f o u n d n o t h e r e b u t in th e d o c u m e n t s w r it t e n b y c le r ic a l o r b ra te s th e Bromalia, p ro c la im in g th e n a m e s o f D io n y s u s a n d
m o n a s tic s c rib e s . S u c h in fo rm a tio n th u s h a s a tw o fo ld a p p li­ B ro m iu s , th e fa th e rs o f s e e d g r a in s a n d w in e . C o m m e n tin g
c a tio n , to th e p r a c tic e s o f th e C h r is tia n p e o p le b u t first a n d o n t h e s e c a n o n s in t h e t w e lf th c e n t u r y , T h e o d o r u s B a l s a m o n
f o r e m o s t t o t h e c l e r i c s t h e m s e l v e s . W e f i n d it i n a c c o u n t s o f a s s e r ts th a t th e p r a c tic e s th e y c o n d e m n h a v e n o t y e t d is a p ­
m a r t y r s ( i n c r e a s i n g l y f l a m b o y a n t i n m o r e r e c e n t p e r i o d s ) , in p e a r e d . D e m e tr iu s C h o m a tia n u s , a r c h b is h o p o f A c h r id a a t
th e L iv e s of th e s a in ts (w h ich ran g e fro m q u ite fictio n a l th e b e g in n in g o f th e th ir te e n th c e n tu ry , m e n tio n s th e s a m e
w o r k s o f s p ir itu a l e d i f ic a ti o n t o b i o g r a p h y ), in th e o b s e r v a ­ f e s tiv itie s w h ile a ls o g iv in g d e ta ils a b o u t th e Rousalia c a rn i­
tio n s a n d in te r d ic tio n s o f C h u r c h c o u n c ils (o f w h ic h th e m o s t v a l, w h ic h B a ls a m o n in d ic a te d a s a p r a c tic e f o u n d on th e
s ig n if ic a n t t a k e s p l a c e in 6 9 2 ) , a n d in th e c o m m e n t a r i e s o f b o r d e r s o f th e E m p i r e . T h is i m m e m o r ia l c y c l e , in w h ic h th e
la te r c a n o n is ts . F in a lly , litu r g ic a l b oo k s, n o ta b ly th o se of d e a d a n d l i v i n g t a k e p a r t in t h e s u c c e s s i o n o f t h e a g r a r i a n
so u th e rn I t a l y , l ik e t h e c o lle c tio n s o f m a g ic fo rm u la s th a t s e a s o n s , p e r s is ts in t h e G r e e k is l a n d s t o d a y . Its c u l m i n a ti n g
c o n tin u e a n e a rlie r tra d itio n , th ro w lig h t o n th e m a r g in a l p e rio d s a r e th e T w e lv e D a y s th a t s e p a r a te C h r is tm a s fro m
a r e a s in w h i c h t h e C h u r c h a c c e p t s a n d a b s o r b s t h e p r a c t i c e s th e E p ip h a n y , th e th r e e w e e k s o f C a rn iv a l (d u r in g w h ic h th e
o f its p e o p l e , a n d in w h ic h C h ris tia n ity im p rin ts its o w n p a n to m im e s o f th e K a lo g h e ro i r e p r o d u c e a n a r c h a ic D io n y ­
fo rm s o n a n c ie n t re s p o n s e s . W ith th e e n d o f th e M id d le s i a n r i t u a l o f d e a t h a n d r e s u r r e c t i o n ) , S a i n t G e o r g e ' s D a y in
A g e s, o rd in a ry e c cle s ia s tic a l c u ltu r e c e a s e s to c o n s titu te a A p ril (a fe s tiv a l of sh ep h erd s, l ik e th e a n cie n t P a rilia ),
d is tin c t a n d s ig n ific a n t s tr a t u m , a n d th e d is ta n c e b e tw e e n P e n t e c o s t in i t s c o n n e c t i o n w i t h t h e d e a d , a n d t h e n i g h t o f
t h e o b s e r v e r a n d t h e o b s e r v e d c o l le c ti v it y r e a c h e s its p r e s e n t S a in t J o h n in Ju n e . The s ite s bear w itn e s s to th e sam e
d i m e n s i o n . S u c h is th e c a s e w ith L e o A lla tiu s ( 1 5 8 6 - 1 6 6 9 ) ; a p e r m a n e n c e , e s p e c ia lly th e s a n c tu a r ie s d e d ic a te d to C h r is ­
U n i a te G r e e k b o m o n C h io s w h o s e tt le d in R o m e , h e le ft a n t ia n s a in t s t o w h ic h p e o p l e s ti ll c o m e in s e a r c h o f h e a l i n g ,
i m p o r ta n t t e s tim o n y w ith in t h e f r a m e w o r k o f h i s w o r k in m o s t o f te n th r o u g h th e a n c i e n t ritu a l o f s p e n d i n g th e n ig h t
f a v o r o f a u n i o n o f t h e c h u r c h e s . In t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , t h e r e ( i n c u b a t i o n ) : t h e p r a c t i c e is a t t e s t e d t o w i t h o u t a b r e a k
w ith th e n a tio n a l s e lf -r e a s s e r tio n o f G r e e c e a n d th e g e n e r a l th r o u g h th e m e d ie v a l a n d m o d e r n p e rio d s .
r e n e w a l o f th e s tu d y o f a n c ie n t H e lle n is m , C h ris tia n G re e k T h is v ic to rio u s p e re n n ia lity w a s b o u g h t a t th e p ric e o f th e
c u l t u r e w a s s c r u t in i z e d in a s e a r c h fo r c o n tin u ity . In fo rm a ­ a lm o s t to ta l o b lite r a tio n o f th e n a m e s o f th e g o d s t h e m s e l v e s .
t io n c o l le c te d a t th e e n d o f t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y a n d th e A t th e b e g in n in g o f th e G re e k M id d le A g e s , a le s s e r p o w e r,
b e g in n in g o f th e tw e n tie th c e n tu ry is t h u s a t t r i b u t a b l e to o f te n m a le v o le n t, d o o m e d to d e f e a t in t h e e n d b u t u n c o n ­
G r e e k o r f o re ig n s c h o l a r s , w h o c a m e fo r d if f e r e n t r e a s o n s to t e s t e d in t h e p r e s e n t , w a s t h e l i n g e r i n g s i g n o f t h e o l d g o d s
a s in g le p a th , th e q u e s t fo r th e a n c i e n t s tr a t u m o f co n te m ­ in t h e H e lle n ic C h r is t ia n c o n s c i o u s n e s s ( s t a r t in g w ith th a t o f

183
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
the clergy itself). But the names of those gods were quickly
repudiated, which is equally significant; the council of 692
passed over their names in silence in reference to their
festivals, but also in the important and oft-renewed prohibi­
tion against ancient forms of oath-taking and especially of
divination. In the stories of martyrs composed after the
triumph of the Church, the gods are named wrongly, or
driven into anonymity. These tales recount the victory of
their hero over the Hellenic gods his persecutor has ordered
him to worship, gods whose statues crumble to dust at the
invocation of a Christian. The designation of the gods snows
to what extent their memory had become blurred in the mind
of the ordinary cleric. Sometimes a single god, such as
Apollo, is designated as superior to all the others. Sometimes
they are degraded collectively as anonymous "demons.” In
the same vein, the Lives of the saints up to the sixth century
relate militant episodes of destruction of local sanctuaries.
But in the same period, and even later, they also evoke
victories over demons of the countryside, phantoms without
name or any semblance of a condemned past (as pagan
gods), who perch in trees or lurk in isolated tombs or ancient
Elijah in his chariot of fire. 1655. Amberg-Herzog collection. Geneva,
Musée d'Art et d'Histoire de Genève. Museum photo.
184
C H R I S T I A N ERA
ruins. The action taken by the Church thus represented the
other side of a general belief that it shared, and with which
it was imbued, at both a popular and a local level, even in its
own ritual: an example is the late repertory of Italo-Greek
prayers preserved in a sixteenth-century manuscript, which
continues to place demons that are to be avoided in trees and
ancient tombs, as well as at crossroads—while references to
names drawn from the ancient repertory remain insignifi­
cant, especially in proportion to those of a Judaizing tinge,
such as are found especially in amulet texts. Dionysus
constituted a lasting exception. One should not, however,
succumb to the nineteenth-century authors' obsession with
explicit ancient lineages, such as the story of Saint Diony­
s i u s who brought the first vine stock to Naxos, or the story
of Saint Demetra, honored at Eleusis, and of her daughter
ravished by a Turkish magician, and of the young man who
would go to her rescue. Whatever interest these tales may
hold, they are perhaps less significant than the survival of
Charon, of the bogey-woman Gyllu, or of the troop of
Nereids. It should be noted that the aquatic and sylvan
seductresses recur in Slavic folklore, and that the Slavic
presence or influence in Hellenic territory is hardly taken
into account by Fallmerayer's adversaries.
Christian Hellenism, then, did not forget the ancient
religious strand but eclipsed the names of the gods under
whose patronage the old rituals were performed and, by that
act, dissolved the mythic accounts that explained those
rituals. Does this mean that Christian Hellenism was bereft
of a mythology? The question primarily involves a portion of
the ancient heritage which is not that of classical or Roman­
ized Hellenism, but that of Gnosticism. Its medieval poster­
ity in Byzantium—the Paulicians and Bogomils—preserve or
enrich the myths about Creation, the first man, and the role
of Satan in the created world. The cults of the saints and of
the Virgin are more difficult to analyze.
The first answers, formulated at the turn of the twentieth
century, proposed direct and simple identifications, of the
"Mithra = Saint George" type. But such identifications do
not stand up to examination. First of all, they can never be
justified by an exhaustive and point-for-point coincidence;
their authors tied them hastily to various partial similarities,
places of worship, attributes, and festival dates. Next, and
more important, this collection of facts, however interesting
it may be, has never accounted for the initial and major
innovation developed by Christianity, which is the cult
devoted to the saints, to their living person, to their tomb, to
their images, and, in a comparable fashion, to the Virgin.
Hence, the temple of Athena Parthenos became a church of
the Virgin; shepherds celebrated Saint George's Day on a
date which was more or less that of the Parilia; Saint Elijah,
whose festival day falls in July, exercises from the heights of
the hills an atmospheric power that justifies his biblical
assumption but also recalls that of Zeus and of Helios; Saint
Michael took Hermes' role as conductor of souls to the
afterworld. But all of this is secondary. What must first be
analyzed is the constitution of a network of supernatural
mediators— nearly all, reputedly, of human birth, but of
whom the most widely honored nevertheless have no his­
tory, nor even any legend, apart from the collection of their
miracles; it is a repertory of rites of supplication, of the motifs
and mechanics of these miracles. Research needs to be
undertaken starting from local data. It will thus be found that
the saints offer no myths, new or old—if the term "m yth" is
taken to mean an account which is at once explanatory and
reversible—but merely fragments of earlier myths, as well as
 T H E N A A S S E N E S ' USE OF P A G A N M Y T H O L O G I E S

f r a g m e n ts o f r itu a ls , s o m e m o r e c o h e r e n t th a n o t h e r s . T o g o d) Myths of Heresy

beyond th is w o u ld m e a n q u e s tio n in g th e w h o le h is to r y o f
th e C h r is tia n re lig io n .
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. General History
K. s. latourette, A History of the Expansion of Christianity (London altkirchlichen
1947), vols. 1-2. g . OSTROCORSKY, A History of the Byzantine Empire
(Oxford 1968). a . piganiol , L'Empire chrétien, new ed. by a . chastag -
nol (Paris 1972). e . stein . Histoire du Bas Empire, vol. 1: a . d . 284-476
(Paris 1959); vol. 2; a . d . 476-585 (Paris 1949). a . e . vacalopoulos . The DEMETRios ciiOMATiANOs, J. Pitra, ed., Analecta 6 (1891): 509-10ff.
Greek Nation, 1453-1669: The Cultural and Economic Background of
Modern Greek Society (New Brunswick, NJ, 1976).
2. History of Culture
a) General Studies
h . g . beck , Kirche und theologische Literatur im byzantinischen Reich
(Munich 1959). |. g ouillard . Le Synodikon de l'Orthodoxie, Centre de
rech, d'hist. et civil, byzant., Travaux et mémoires 2 (1967): 1-316.
l. M. MussEY, Church and Learning in the Byzantine Empire, 867-1185
(Oxford and London 1937). p. lem erle . Le premier humanisme byzantin:
Notes et remarques sur enseignement et culture à Byzance des origines au Xr
siècle (Paris 1971).
b) The End of Antiquity
). carcopi.no , La basilique pythagoricienne de la Porte Majeure (Paris
1927). F. cuMONT, Recherches sur le symbolisme funéraire des Romains
(Paris 1942). a .-|. festugière, La révélation d'Hermès Trismégiste. 4 vols.
(Paris 1944-54). |. ceffcken , Der Ausgang des griechisch-römischen
Heidentums (Heidelberg 1920). h . ionas . The Gnostic Religion (2d ed.,
Boston 1963; reissued 1970). w. e . kaegi, "The Fifth-Century Twilight
of Byzantine Paganism," Classica Medievalia 27 (1966): 243- 75.
m . MESLiN, La fête des Ratendes de janvier dans l'Empire romain: Étude d’un
rituel de Nouvel An (Brussels 1970). a . momicliano , ed.. The Conflict
between Paganism and Christianity in the Fourth Century (Oxford 1963).
a . MOMiGLiANO, "Popular Religious Beliefs and the Late Roman
Historians," Studies in Church History 8 (1971): 1-18. r. reitzenstein ,
Poimandres: Studien zur griechisch-ägyptischen und frühchristlichen Liter­
atur (Leipzig 1904).
c) Aspects of Byzantine Neoplatonism
a . h . Armstrong , ed., Cambridge History of Later Greek and Early
Medieval Philosophy (Cambridge 1967). a . cameron , "The Last Days of
the Academy at Athens," Proceeds. Cambridge Philol. Society 145
(1969): 7-29. |. g ouillard . La religion des philosophes. Centre de rech,
d'hist. et civil, byzant., Travaux et mémoires 6 (Recherches sur le XT
siècle) (1976): 305-24. F. masai, Pléthon et le platonisme de Mistra (Paris
1956).
g . Ficker , Die Phundagiagilen (Leipzig 1908). m . loos , "Certains
aspects du bogomilisme byzantin des XI*' et XII1' siècles," Byzantino-
E .P ./d .w . slavica 28 (1967): 39- 53; "Satan als erstgeborener Gottes: Ein Beitrag
zur Analyse des bogomilischen Mythus," Byzantino-Bulgarica 3
(1969): 23-35.
3. Beliefs and Rituals
a) Sources Mentioned
Council of 692: text in f . lauchert . Die Kanones der wichtigsten
Concilien nebst den apostolischen Kanones (Freiburg and
Leipzig 18%), 97-139; comm, of Theodore Baisamon, Patrol. Graeca,
vol. 137 passim.
Life of Stephen the Younger, in Patrol. Graeca, vol. 100, 1069-1186.
michel psellos , "Accusation du patriarche Michel Cérulaire devant le
synode," l . brêhier , ed., Rev. Et. Grecques 16 (1903): 375-416; 17
(1904): 35-76.
Prayers, amulets, exorcisms: F. pradel . Griechische und süditalieni­
sche Gebete. Beschwörungen und Rezepte des Mittelalters (Giessen 1907).
a . a . vasiliev , Anecdota graeco-byzantina, vol. 1 (Moscow 1893).
b) Studies
s. p. kyriakides , Two Studies on Modern Greek Folklore (Salonika
1968). i. c. Lawson , Modem Greek Folklore and Ancient Greek Religion: A
Study in Sumivals (1910), reprint with foreword by a . n . oikonomides
(New York 1964). c . mecas , Greek Calendar Customs (Athens 1958).
n. g . politis , Meletë epi tou biou tön neôterôn Hellètiôn (Essay on the life
of the modern Greeks) (Athens 1871-74). b. Schmidt , Das Volksleben
der Neugriechen und das hellenische Altertum (Leipzig 1871).
K. svoBODA, "La démonologie de Michel Psellos" (diss., Brno 1927).
4. Cult of the Saints
a) General Studies
р. brown , "The Rise and Function of the Holy Man in Late
Antiquity," Journ. Rom. Studies 61 (1971): 80-101. p. e . lu ciu s and g .
a n ric i i . Die Anfänge des Heilgenkults in der Christlichen Kirche (Tübingen
1904); also in French.
b) Particular Studies
с. ANRiCH, Haghios Nikolaos, 2 vols. (Berlin 1913). |. b. aufhauser ,
"Das Drachenwunder des Hl. Georg in der griechischen und latei­
nischen Überlieferung," Byzant. Archiv. 5 (1911). a . d . de croo t , Saint
Nicholas: A Psychoanalytic Study of His History and Myth (The Hague
1%5). s. CEORGOUDI, "Sant'Elia in Grecia," Studi e Materiali di Storia
delle Religioni 39 (1968): 293- 319. k . krumbacher , Der heilige Georg in
der griechischen Überlieferung (Munich 1911). Millénaire monastique du
Mont Saint-Michel, 3: Culte de Saint Michel et pèlerinage au Mont,
M. Baudot, ed. (Paris 1971). w. von rintelen . Kultgeographische Studien
in der Italia Byzantina: Untersuchungen über die Kulte des Erzengels
Michael und der Madonna di Costantinopoli in Süditalien (Meisenheim
1968).

Gospel according to the Egyptians ( V , 7 , 9 ) a n d

w e r e th e th e
T he N aassenes' U se of P agan M ythologies Gospel according to Thomas ( V , 7 , 2 0 ) , t h e f i r s t b e l o n g i n g t o th e
pagan b ra n ch of G n o s tic is m , th e seco n d to a p rim itiv e
lite ra ry fo rm o f C h ris tia n G n o s is . T h a t th e y w e r e c o n n e c te d ,
K n o w n o n l y f r o m th e a c c o u n t in th e Elenchos (V , 6 , 1 - 1 0 , 2 ), a s h a s a ls o b e e n p o in te d o u t (V , 7 , 2 0 ) , w ith th e a p o s to lic
th e N a a s s e n e s n e v e r w e n t b y th a t n a m e , w h ic h w a s in v e n te d tra d itio n o f Jam es, "b r o th e r o f th e L o r d ," tra n s m itte d to
b y s o m e p o le m ic is t w h o w a n te d p e o p le t o b e lie v e th a t th e y M a r ia m m e (M a r y M a g d a l e n e ) , is a c o n v e n t i o n a l a r g u m e n t
w e re w o rs h ip e rs o f th e s n a k e (nahaS i n H e b r e w ) , l ik e t h o s e a d d e d b y th e C h ris tia n e d ito r o f th e p a m p h le t u s e d b y th e
w h o w e r e c a lle d O p h i t e s in G r e e k a n d Hêwê in S y r ia c . T h e y p o l e m i c i s t in c o m p o s i n g h is a c c o u n t o f t h e N a a s s e n e s . T h e
re fe rr e d to th e m s e lv e s a s G n o s tic s , a s w e le a rn fro m s e v e ra l d o c u m e n t o f p a g a n G n o s i s t h a t u n d e r l i e s it m a y g o a s f a r
p a s s a g e s (V , 2 , p . 7 7 , 4 - 5 W e n d la n d ; V , 6 , 4 , p . 7 7 , 3 0 - 7 8 , 1; b a c k a s t h e w a n i n g o f t h e f i r s t c e n t u r y b.c . T h e t i t l e o f t h i s
V , 1 1 , p . 1 0 4 , 4 - 5 ) . T w o o f th e s a c re d w ritin g s th e y u s e d e a r lie r d o c u m e n t a s w e ll a s th a t o f its r e i n te r p r e t a t io n , w h ic h

185
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

h a s c o m e d o w n to u s , r e m a in u n k n o w n . In th e e y e s o f th e th e c o u n tr y o f d e a t h — E g y p t o r th e O c e a n — to th e m o th e r
E a s te rn a u th o r o f th e Elenchos c o m p ila tio n , th e a b s u rd ity o f e a r t h o f th e liv in g — J e r u s a le m o r J o r d a n — th a t is, f ro m th e
th is p a r t ic u la r f o rm o f G n o s is c o m e s fr o m th e s y s te m a t i c u s e m ix e d w o r l d , w h ic h is i n f e r io r a n d m a t e r i a l, to th e u n if ie d
o f "G r e e k a n d b a rb a ria n " p a g a n m y th o lo g y (V , 7 , 1, p . 7 9 , w o r l d , w h i c h is s u p e r i o r a n d s p i r i t u a l .
3 -5 ), th e se tw o d e n o m in a tio n s d e s ig n a tin g a G n o s tic T h i s p a s s a g e m a r k s t h e e n d o f t h e s o u l 's w a n d e r i n g , t h e
in te rp re ta tio n — th ro u g h th e la n g u a g e of m y ste rie s — of m o m e n t w h e n " t h e u n fo rtu n a te o n e [th e s o u l] w h o s e w a n ­
m y th s th a t G re e k e s o te ric is m a ttrib u te d to th e A s sy ria n s , d e r i n g s h a v e l e d it i n t o a l a b y r i n t h o f i l l s " ( V , 1 0 , 2 , p . 1 0 3 ,
E g y p tia n s , a n d P h ry g ia n s . 1 0 - 1 1 ) h a s r e a c h e d its c e le s tia l h o m e l a n d . Its p r im itiv e u n ity
In t h i s t y p e o f p a g a n G n o s i s , r e i n t e r p r e t e d in t h e C h r i s t i a n r e s to r e d , th e s o u l b e lo n g s h e n c e fo rth to th e " k in g le s s r a c e "
m a n n e r , th e p r im o rd ia l m a n . A d a m a s , d e fin e d th e p rin c ip le o f th o s e w ho have d e fin itiv e ly b ro k en w ith th e w o rld of
o f th e u n iv e r s e a s o n e b e c a u s e it w a s m a l e , a n d a s trip le fo rm s a n d a p p e a r a n c e s . T h is s ta te o f b e a titu d e , c h a r a c te ris tic
b e c a u s e it w a s c o m p o s e d o f b r e a t h ( s p i r i t ) , s o u l , a n d e a r t h . o f t h e p e r f e c t p o s s e s s o r o f G n o s i s , is d e s c r i b e d i n a s e r i e s o f
B re a th a n d e a rth h a v e a p r e c is e s ta tu s , a b o v e a n d b e lo w , i m a g e s b o r r o w e d f r o m th e h i é r o g a m ie ritu a l o f th e m y s t e r i e s
m a l e a n d f e m a l e . B u t w h a t is t h i s s o u l , w h i c h o c c u p i e s t h e o f C y b e le : th e d r u n k e n n e s s fro m th e c u p o f A n a c r e o n , a c u p
i n te r m e d ia r y p o s itio n ? T h e e s s e n c e o f G n o s is w a s to a n s w e r fi ll e d w i t h w i n e f r o m t h e w e d d i n g a t C a n a ; s t a t u e s f r o m t h e
th is q u e s t i o n . T h e m e d i a n p o s itio n o f th e s o u l, th e p a s s a g e te m p le o f S a m o t h r a c e , w ith h a n d s r a is e d a n d s e x u a l o r g a n
th a t e a c h b e in g h a d to m a k e , d e s c e n d in g to w a rd e x is te n c e s e r e c t, s y m b o liz in g th e p le n itu d e o f th e in n e r k in g d o m w h e r e
a n d r is in g a g a in to w a r d b e in g , m a k e s th e s o u l th e p r in c ip le a ll a n d r o g y n y d i s a p p e a r s in t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w i t h t h e p r i ­
o f b e c o m i n g ; it is P h u s i s , t h e u n i v e r s a l c o s m i c n a t u r e , t h e m o r d i a l b e i n g ; a n a l l e g o r i c a l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , in t h e h o m i l e t i c
G n o s tic re p lic a o f th e P la to n ic S o u l o f th e w o rld . s ty le , of a hym n in w h ic h a ll th e nam es of A ttis are
T h e N a a s s e n e s ' i n te r p r e ta tio n o f th e th r e e m y th s o f A d o ­ p ro c la im e d : A d o n is , O s iris, M e n e -S e le n e , A d am n a, C o ry ­
n i s , E n d y m i o n , a n d A t t is a l lo w s u s t o d e t e r m i n e t h e s o u l 's b as, P ap as, th e co rp se (nekus), th e god, th e fru itle s s one
s ta tu s p re c is e ly . B e c a u s e A d o n is m e a n s b o th th e d e s ir e o f th e ( akarpos ) , t h e g o a t h e r d , t h e h a r v e s t e d ear of co rn , an d th e
s o u l to te n d to w a rd g e n e ra tio n a n d its w it h d r a w a l t o w a r d flu te p la y e r b o rn of an a lm o n d . E ach of th e s e te rm s is
d e a t h t h r o u g h i t s i n a b i l i t y t o p r o c r e a t e , t h e s o u l is a t o n c e e x p l a i n e d i n d e t a i l a n d is a p p l i e d t o t h e G n o s t i c , w h o h a s in
fe rtile a n d i n fe rtile . A p h r o d i t e a n d P e r s e p h o n e ( K o r e ) . E n d y ­ a s e n s e b e c o m e in itia te d i n to th e m y s t e r i e s a n d is th e s e e r o f
m io n , th e b e lo v e d o f S e le n e (th e m o o n ), e x p r e s s e s th e d e s ire h is o w n essen ce. In th is E le u s is o f th e w o rld above, th e
o f th e b e in g s fro m a b o v e to u n ite w ith th e m a le b e a u ty o f th e G n o s tic re g a rd s h im se lf as an in itia te and as D e m e t e r 's
s o u l. R h e a , th e m o th e r o f th e g o d s , c a s t r a ti n g h e r lo v e r A ttis , h u s b a n d , s trip p e d o f a ll h i s c l o t h e s a n d th e n r e c lo th e d , a t
s h o w s sy m b o lica lly th a t th e s p iritu a l p a r t o f th e s o u l, th e o n c e v irg in a l, b e c a u s e th e h e m lo c k m a d e h im in to a e u n u c h ,
o b j e c t o f S e l e n e ' s d e s i r e , is t h e o r i g i n a l a n d h e a v e n l y e l e m e n t and f e rtile , b e c a u s e h e w e a r s th e y e llo w , h a r v e s t e d ear of
th a t c o m e s fro m A d a m a s a n d is t h u s i n t e l l e c t u a l a n d m a l e c o m , in o t h e r w o r d s b e c a u s e h e h a s a s s i m il a t e d th e i m m e a ­
b e c a u s e it r e j e c t s t h e p e r c e p t i b l e , w h i c h is b o t h i n f e r i o r a n d s u r a b l e f e r t i l i t y t h a t c o m e s f r o m t h e c a s t r a t i o n o f A t t i s : " I w ill
fe m a le . T h e th re e m y th s c o m p le m e n t e a c h o th e r a n d m u s t b e s i n g o f A t t i s , t h e s o n o f R h e a , n o t t o t h e t h i n s o u n d o f l it t le
re a d to g e th e r. The s te rility of th e s o u l — its P erse p h o n e b e lls , n o r to th e l a n g u i s h i n g f lu te o f th e C u r e te s o f M o u n t
s i d e — i s w h a t r e l a t e s it t o t h e m a t e r i a l o f t h e b o d i e s i n w h i c h I d a , b u t w i t h t h e s o n g o f P h o e b u s ' s l y r e s I w ill m i n g l e m y
it is h e l d p ris o n e r; th e f e rtility o f th e s o u l — i ts A p h r o d i t e c r i e s o f E v o e E v a n ! F o r h e is P a n , h e is B a c c h u s , h e i s t h e
s i d e — is w h a t a l l o w s it t o i n i t i a t e t h e c h a i n o f lif e o f t h o s e s h e p h e r d o f th e s h in in g s ta r s ."
w h o e x i s t a n d , a f t e r t h a t , t o r e j o i n a n d c o n j o i n i ts o r i g i n . S u ch la n g u a g e h a rk s b ack to a litu rg ic a l p r a c ti c e in t h e
A ll t h a t is r e t a i n e d f r o m t h e m y t h o f I s is a n d O s i r i s , t h e tra d itio n o f G re e k m y ste rie s t h a t w a s in a c t i v e u se in a n
" E g y p t i a n " v e r s i o n o f th e " A s s y r i a n " m y th o f A t t is , is th e a n cie n t p a g a n fo rm o f G n o s is , a n d w a s la te r re u s e d in a
s e q u e n c e d e a l i n g w i t h I s i s 's s e a r c h fo r th e s e x u a l o r g a n o f p u re ly fic titio u s w a y b y th e C h r is tia n a u t h o r o f th e G n o s tic
O s i r i s . I s is is d r e s s e d in s e v e n b l a c k r o b e s , f o r w h i c h t h e r e is p a m p h le t a ttrib u te d to s u p p o s e d N a a s s e n e s .
a trip le in te rp re ta tio n . The f i r s t is a s t r o l o g i c a l : th e seven M .T ./ g .h .
r o b e s o f I s is d e s i g n a t e t h e r e a l m o f n a t u r e ( phusis) a n d of
g e n e ra tio n {genesis) , g o v e r n e d b y t h e w o r l d o f p l a n e t s in a
s ta te o f p e rp e tu a l m ovem ent and change. The seco n d is
c o s m o l o g i c a l : O s i r i s is t h e s y m b o l o f w a t e r o r " t h e s e m i n a l
s u b s t a n c e , " t h e f i r s t e l e m e n t o f lif e a n d o f b e c o m i n g . A n d t h e
BIBLIOGRAPHY
t h i r d is l i t u r g i c a l : t h e s e x u a l o r g a n o f O s i r i s , l o s t a n d f o u n d
a g a in , h e n ce fo rth n a k e d , e re c t, a n d cro w n ed w ith f r u i t in R. reftzenstein ,Zwei religionsgeschichtliche Fragen (Strasbourg 1901), 95-
t e m p le s a n d o n s tr e e t s a n d p a t h s , e v o k e s t h e in itia tio n ritu a l 96; Poitnandres (Leipzig 1904), 81-102. w. bousset , Hauptprobleme der
o f t h e s o u l , w h i c h is f i r s t a b a n d o n e d a n d t h e n r e t u r n e d u n t o Gnosis (Gottingen 1907), 183-86. r. reitzenstein and h .- h . schaeder ,
its e lf , m ade fe rtile th ro u g h id e n tific a tio n w ith its o r ig in a l Studien zum antiken Synkretismus aus Iran und Griechenland (Leipzig and
m a le p rin c ip le .
Berlin 1926), 104-73. r. r. ca sey , "Naassenes and Ophites," Journal of
H e rm e s w ith h is e re ct sexual org an , in te r p r e te r o f th e
Theological Studies 27 (1926): 374-87. a . d . nock , "Iranian Influences in
Greek Thought," Journal of Hellenic Studies 49 (1929) = Essays on Religion
g o d s , p s y c h o p o m p , h o l d i n g s w a y o v e r tim e , in o p p o s i t io n to
and the Ancient World, Z. Stewart, ed. (Oxford 1972), 200-201.
th e d iv id in g and s e p a r a tin g w o rd o f th e d e m iu rg e Ia ld a - M. siMONETTi, "Qualche osservazione sulle presunte interpolazioni della
b a o t h , r e p r e s e n t s t h e f u n c t i o n o f a L o g o s t h a t s u c c e e d s in Predica del Naasseni," Vetera Christianorum 7 (1970): 115-24. t h . w ol-
a c h i e v i n g c o m m u n i c a t i o n , a L o g o s o f r e v e l a t i o n b e c a u s e it bercs . Griechische religiose Gedichte der ersten nachchristlichen Jahrhunderte
a llo w s a d e s c e n t fro m a b o v e to th e re a lm b e lo w , a L o g o s o f (Meisenheim 1971), 1:37-82; to be completed by A. Kehl, Jahrbuch für
r e d e m p t i o n b e c a u s e it a c h i e v e s t h e p a s s a g e o f t h e s o u l s f r o m Antike und Christentum 15 (1972): 95-101.

186
 THE G N O S T I C S AND THE M Y T H O L O G I E S OF P A G A N I S M

c o m p r e s s m y th to th e u tm o s t. T h e G n o s tic r e a d in g o f th e
T he G n o st ic s a n d th e m y th o f th e p h o e n i x r e m a in s a g o o d e x a m p l e o f th is m e th o d

M yt h o l o g ie s o f P a g an ism (se e Revue de l'Histoire des Religions 1 8 3 [1 9 7 3 ]: 1 1 7 - 4 2 ).

A n o t h e r e x a m p l e is t h e G n o s t i c h a b i t o f a t t r i b u t i n g t o t h e
p la n e ta ry e n titie s o f p a g a n ism th e s ta tu s and ro le o f th e
A t first s ig h t, th e p a g a n h e r i ta g e o f th e G n o s ti c s a p p e a r s le s s a n g e ls in th e J e w is h d e m o n o lo g y o f th e a p o c a ly p se s . A l­
m o n o lith ic th a n th e ir C h r is tia n a d v e rs a rie s w o u ld h a v e i t. read y red u ced to a n a s tra l fu n c tio n b y th e M a th e m a tic ia n s ,
The co n sta n t a ccu sa tio n b ro u g h t a g a in s t th e m of h a v in g th e G re e k g o d a s r e u s e d b y th e G n o s tic s g a in s a re n e w a l o f
s y s te m a tic a lly tr a n s p o s e d th e g o d s a n d m y th s o f th e G re e k s p e rs o n a lity as th e a rch o n of i n te r m e d ia te space. In th e
w i t h t h e h e l p o f " b a r b a r i a n n a m e s " is a n a l l - p u r p o s e a r g u ­ d e s c r ip tio n of th e sp h ere of d e stin y th a t en d s th e Pistis
m ent th a t p ro v e s n o th in g . To show , fo r e x a m p le , th a t Sophia, th e fiv e g o d s— K ro n o s, A res, H e rm e s, A p h ro d ite ,
V a l e n t i n u s is n o t h i n g b u t a v u l g a r i m i t a t o r o f H e s i o d , E p i p h - a n d Z e u s — a r e a p p o i n t e d b y le u t o o v e r s e e a ll t h e a r c h o n s o f
a n iu s p o in ts out th e p a ra lle ls b e tw e e n th e o rd e rin g in to t h e c o s m i c s y s t e m . E a c h o f t h e m b e a r s a d o u b l e n a m e a n d is
s y z y g ie s o f th e s e t o f th irty a e o n s o f th e V a le n tin ia n p l e r o m a , c o n n e c te d to a c o n s o r t p o w e r ; th e o n e th a t b e lo n g s to Z e u s ,
w h ic h a r e b o rn o f th e A b y s s (B y t h o s ) , a n d a s e r ie s o f e n titie s w h o is g o o d , h a s t h e d u t y o f h o l d i n g t h e t i l l e r o f t h e w o r l d
o f th e Theogony b o rn of C h aos, w h ic h a re a lso set up in (p . 3 5 6 , 2 - 3 5 7 , 1 7 o f th e C o p tic te x t, e d . S c h m id t, C o p e n ­
o p p o s i n g p a i r s a n d r e d u c e d f o r p r a c t i c a l p u r p o s e s t o t h i r t y in h a g e n 1 9 2 5 ). T h is p r i m a r y fu n c tio n o f th e g u a r d i a n s o f th e
n u m b e r (se e Pamrion 3 1 .2 .4 - 4 .9 ). In f a c t , o n l y t h e p a r a l l e l c ir c u la r c e le s tia l m o ti o n s e n a b le s th e fiv e p l a n e t a r y g o d s to
b e tw e e n t h e V a le n tin ia n B y th o s a n d t h e H e s i o d i c C h a o s is b e g u id e s to s o u ls a f te r th e ir d e a th . U n d e r th e g u id a n c e o f
o p e r a t i v e ; a ll t h e r e s t is a r t i f i c i a l . H erm es a s p sy ch o p o m p , th e y c a u s e th e s o u l to c irc le th e
F rom th e ir s e lf-p ro c la im e d p ro o fs th a t G n o s tic is m w as e a rth th r e e tim e s , s o t h a t it c a n r e j o i c e in th e s p e c ta c le o f
m e re ly c a m o u fla g e d p a g a n is m , s e a r c h in g , a c c o r d in g to th e c r e a t i o n ; n e x t t h e y m a k e it d e s c e n d in to th e A m e n t o s ( H a ­
f o rm u la o f I r e n a e u s , to " a d a p t to m y th s th e s a y in g s (logia) of d e s ) , s o t h a t it c a n b e a f f l i c t e d b y t h e s i g h t o f t h e i n f e r n a l f i r e ;
G od" (Adversus Haer. 1 .8 .1 = E p ip h a n u s , Pamrion 3 1 .2 4 .6 ) , th en th e y cause it t o rise a g a in to th e "m id d le w a y ," th e
th e h e re s io lo g is ts d r e w th e c o n c lu s io n th a t th e p r a c tic e s o f s p h e r e o f d e s t i n y , in w h ic h th e fla m e o f p u n is h m e n t a ls o
th e G n o s tic s w e r e a s c o n tr a r y to th e e th o s o f C h ris tia n ity a s b u rn s; a n d f i n a l l y it is l e d u p to th e V irg in o f L ig h t to b e
th e ir th o u g h t w a s to th e " o r t h o d o x y ." A n d n o w th e G n o s tic s j u d g e d . Z e u s a n d A p h r o d i t e s t a n d in f r o n t , K r o n o s a n d A r e s
a r e a c c u s e d p e ll-m e ll o f e a tin g m e a t c o n s e c r a t e d to id o ls , o f b e h i n d . If t h e s o u l i s n e e d f u l o f s u p p l e m e n t a r y p u r i f i c a t i o n ,
p a rtic ip a tin g in th e f e s tiv a ls a n d g a m e s o f th e p agan s, of it i s t h e n t h r o w n i n t o t h e w a t e r b e l o w t h e s p h e r e , w h i c h is a
p ra c tic in g a d u lte r y a n d in c e s t ( I r e n a e u s , Adversus Haer. 1 .6 .3 b o i l i n g f i r e . O n l y a f t e r t h i s o r d e a l m a y it d r i n k o f t h e c u p o f
= E p ip h a n iu s , Pamrion 3 1 . 2 1 . 1 - 6 ) , o f o r g a n i z in g , u n d e r th e f o r g e t f u l n e s s a n d t h e c u p o f s o b r i e t y , w h i c h c a u s e it t o e n t e r
c o v e r o f s a c r e d ritu a ls , c a r o u s in g s , d r in k in g p a r tie s , o r g ie s , a n e w a n d l u m i n o u s b o d y ( p . 3 8 1 , 2 4 - 3 8 3 , 11 o f t h e C o p t i c
a b o rtio n s , and m a n d u ca tio n s of sp erm , m e n s tru a l b lo o d , te x t). A m o n g th e M a n ic h a e a n s , to o , th e lu m in a rie s b e c o m e
and fe tu s e s (E p ip h a n iu s , Pamrion 2 6 .4 .3 - 5 .8 )! T hese f a c ts v e h ic le s fo r s o u ls , a n d H e r m o g e n e s m a k e s th e s u n a re fu g e
w e re m a n ife stly e v o k e d to p r o v e th a t d e liq u e s c e n t th o u g h t fo r re s u rre c te d b o d ie s.
a n d d i s s o l u t e p r a c t i c e g o h a n d in h a n d . P a g a n i s m , w h i l e p r o v i d i n g t h e s o u l w i t h i ts e s c o r t s i n t h e
In f a c t , t h e p a g a n i s m o f t h e G n o s t i c s is n o t t o b e f o u n d p a rtic u la r o th e r w o r ld ly zone in w h i c h th e y e x e r t th e ir a u ­
w h e re th e C h u rch F a th e rs p la ce d i t. It does e x ist, but t h o r ity , a l s o p r o v i d e s it, m o r e g e n e r a l l y , w ith t h e im a g e s o f
e l s e w h e r e . D o c u m e n ts o n th e s u b je c t, w h ic h c a m e to E u r o p e i t s c o n d i t i o n a s a t r a v e l e r w h o h a s l e f t a f a r d i s t a n t l a n d t o fa ll
in t h e e i g h t e e n t h a n d n in e te e n th c e n tu rie s o r w e re d is c o v ­ to th is w o rld b e lo w . In ord er to d e s c rib e th e fa te o f th e
e r e d a f t e r th e S e c o n d W o r ld W a r n e a r N a g H a m m a d i, s h o w w a n d e r i n g s o u l in s e a r c h o f i t s t r u e h o m e l a n d a n d d e l i v e r e d
it t o b e s u b t l e r t h a n w h a t w a s p r e s e n t e d b y t h e a u t h o r s o f in t h i s e x i s t e n c e i n t o t h e s e d u c t i o n s a n d tr ib u la tio n s o f th e
h eresy c a ta lo g s , w ho w ere eager to d riv e out th o s e w ho w o rld , th e G n o s tic s to o k u p s o m e o f th e a lle g o rie s u s e d b y
co n te ste d fro m w i t h i n , a n d m o r e c o m p a c t t h a n is a d m i t t e d t h e P l a t o n i s t s in t h e i r o w n t i m e . T w o c h a r a c t e r s f r o m H o m e r ,
by m o d ern c r i t i c s , w h o s e k n o w l e d g e is c l o u d e d b y J e w is h H e le n and O d ysseu s, w ere u sed as m o tifs fo r a lle g o ric a l
so u rce s a lo n e , f o llo w in g a lo n g , f ru itle s s search in th e tr a n s p o s itio n s .
d ir e c tio n o f B a b y lo n o r Ira n fo r a n e x p l a n a t o r y f r a m e -m y th . H e l d p r i s o n e r i n I l io n ( = m a tte r ), w h e re s h e a p p e a rs a s a
A s it a p p e a r s t o t h o s e w h o r e a d t h e G n o s t i c s ' t e x t s t o d a y a n d re fle ctio n (eidolon) o f th e b e a u ty o f H e lla s , h e r h o m e la n d ,
are fa m ilia r w ith w hat th e G n o s tic s th e m se lv e s re a d , th e w h ic h is t h e i n t e l l i g i b l e w o r l d (se e H e rm ia s, In Plat. Phae­
p a g a n is m o f th e G n o s tic s , w h o w e r e m o r e o r le s s C h r is t ia n ­ drum, p . 7 7 , 1 3 - 7 8 , 1 C o u v r e u r ) , H e l e n i n c a r n a t e s , in a t y p e
i z e d , is l i n k e d to th e p o w erfu l in f lu e n c e e x e r t e d on th e ir o f C h ris tia n G n o s is a ttrib u te d to S im o n M a g u s , th e s p le n d o r
th in k in g b y th e lite ra ry , id e o lo g ic a l, a n d p ra c tic a l m o d e ls o f o f th e first th o u g h t (Ennoia-Epinoia) o f th e in te lle c t (Nous) of
th e m a g ic a l p a p y r u s e s , o f H e r m e tic is m , o f M id d le P la to n ­ t h e F a t h e r . B u t s h e is a l s o t h e l o s t l a m b o f t h e G o s p e l ( L u k e
is m , a n d o f t h e M y s t e r y r e lig io n s . 1 5 :4 ) , w a n d e r i n g a m o n g th e a n g e l s a n d t h e lu m in a r i e s — h e r
A s fo r th e g o d s o f p a g a n is m th e m s e lv e s , th o s e w h o w e re o w n c r e a t u r e s , w h o h a v e f o r c e d h e r t o l i v e s u c c e s s i v e l i v e s in
ta k e n b a c k a n d in te g ra te d b y th e G n o s tic s in to th e ir o w n t h e b o d i e s o f w o m e n . It is s h e w h o c a u s e d th e T r o ja n W a r.
p a n t h e o n w e r e a d o p t e d in o r d e r t o f e e d t h e G n o s t i c a s t r o ­ The p o e t S te sich o ru s, w ho a tta c k s h e r in h is v e r s e , goes
lo g ic a l d e m o n o lo g y and P la to n iz in g p a n a lle g o ris m . T hey b lin d ; h e r e c o v e r s h is s ig h t w h ile w r it i n g h is Palinodia. H e le n
w e r e t r a n s f o r m e d in b o t h c a s e s , e i t h e r i n t o p l a n e t a r y c a t e ­ e n d s h e r lo n g t r a n s m i g r a ti o n in a b r o t h e l in t h e c it y o f T y r e
g o r ie s o f fa te a s a m o n g th e A s tr o l o g e r s , o r in to fig u r e s o f th e in P h o e n e c i a . It i s t h e r e th a t S im o n d isc o v e rs h er, a n d by
w a n d e r in g and sav ed soul as am ong th e P la to n is ts . The m e a n s o f a ra n s o m h e fre e s h e r fro m h e r b o n d s a n d m a rrie s
G n o s t i c i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e g o d s a n d m y t h s o f p a g a n i s m is h e r. T h e y th u s fo rm , a s a c o u p le , "th e p e r f e c t l o v e ," "th e
t h u s f o u n d e d u p o n t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n t h a t w a s o p e r a t i v e in H o ly o f H o l ie s ," p r o c u r i n g s a lv a tio n fo r h u m a n s th r o u g h th e
th e p o p u la r a n d s c h o la r ly p h ilo s o p h y o f th e ir tim e . B u t o n ly r e v e la tio n o f G n o s is . T h e m y th , to ld b y I r e n a e u s (Adv. Haer.
r a r e l y d i d t h e y r e p r o d u c e it a s s u c h ; m o s t o f t e n t h e y b r o u g h t 1 .2 3 .2 - 3 , p p . 1 9 1 - 9 3 H a r v e y ) a n d h is c o n tin u a to r s (a m o n g
to it an in crease of s ig n if i c a t i o n , even as th e y t rie d to o th e rs . Elenchos V I, 1 9 , 1 - 7 ) , r e s ts u p o n a tra d itio n a l m y s tic

187
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

interpretation, from the late period, of the Iliad and the

Trojan War: the kidnapping of Helen (= the divine part of
the soul), torn from her own people and nostalgic for them,
provokes a combat of powers, as a result of which this soul
will be restored to its original homeland.
In a non-Gnostic work read by the Gnostics, which was
discovered at Nag Hammadi (II, 6) and entitled Exegesis on the
Soul, the tears of Odysseus, whom Aphrodite has deceived
and brought to Calypso, express this same nostalgia for one's
lost homeland: "No one is worthy of salvation if he still lo 'es
the place of his wanderings. This is why it is written by the
poet, 'Odysseus sat on the island, prey to his tears and his
sorrow; he turned his face from the words of Calypso and
from her impostures; he wished to see his homeland and the
smoke of its hearths and, above all, wished for the assistance
of heaven to return to his homeland.' The soul, in turn, says,
'My man has turned away from me; I want to return once
more to my homeland.' For the soul groaned, saying, 'It is
Aphrodite who deceived me; she made me leave my home­
land; I left my firstborn behind me, along with my husband
who is good, wise, and handsome' " (p. 136, 25-137, 5). As
a prisoner in a world subjected to the heavenly bodies and to
fate ( = Calypso, the daughter of Atlas) and trapped inside a
body enslaved by sex (= Aphrodite), the soul will seek to
"flee” and to free itself from the double bond of microcosm
and macrocosm to reach its "true place," which is Gnosis, as
quickly as possible. The zodiac. Rome, Biblioteca apostolica vaticana, MS gr. 1087, folio
In the Apophasis Megalê, a treatise placed under the author­ 310v. Library photo.
ity of Simon Magus and related in the Elenchos, the molu plant
with the black root and the milk white flower (Odyssey
10.304-6), the magical herb given by Hermes to Odysseus to
protect him from the enchantments of Circe, is an allegory on
the transformation made by Moses ( = the Logos) when he (Right) Gnostic papyrus from Nag Hammadi (Codex II, no. 10544,
turned the bitter water of the desert into fresh water (Exodus p. 136). Cairo, Coptic Museum, Museum photo.
15:22-24). It is thus the image of the metamorphosis of the
wandering soul, restored to itself by Gnosis, which has been
brought to it by the Logos and brings it to the knowledge of
life in its movement (exodus) through the desert of the
difficulties and bitter things of this world (VI, 15, 3 -4 ). The
molu procures the knowledge of all things and restores the (Far right) Hermaphrodite. Rome, Capitoline Museum. Photo Oscar
soul to its primal "character," which properly belongs to it Savio.
(VI, 16, 1). The Stoic philosopher Cleanthes associated the
molu of Odysseus with the logos, that is, with reason, whose
role is to calm the ecstatic leaps and passions of the soul (SVT
1.526 Arnim). For Porphyry, the molu represents the virtue of Plotinus the fate of the double soul divided between the
prudence and wisdom (sôphrosunê), which allows the soul darkness of Hades ( = the body and the world) and the light
that is thrown into the " kukeön of generation," the mixture of the gods ( = the intelligibles), a reflection (eidolon) that is
that is this world, to escape from its "miserable and bestial separated yet remembers its true being, which is "above"
form of life" (Stobaeus, Anthologion 1.49.60 Wachsmuth). (Enneads L I . 12.31-39; 4.3.27.7-23). In the mythology of
The allegorical interpretation of the tale of Eros and Justin's Boole of Baruch, he appears as a link in a chain of
Psyche, transmitted by Apuleius, is connected with the prophets sent by Elohim to try to recuperate the divine
mystic exegesis of the Iliad and the Odyssey. Eros draws element—breath (pneuma)—that dwells in men (see Elenchos
Psyche into the machinations of existence: sensuality, mar­ V, 26, 27-28). Following the messengers Baruch and Moses,
riage, procreation, and death (Nag Hammadi Coptic II/5, p. the one sent to Adam and the angels of heaven and the other
109, 19-25). For Justin the Gnostic, Psyche is under the to the circumcized (the Jews), Heracles is portrayed as the
power of Naas the serpent; incited by him, she sows corrup­ "prophet coming from the uncircumcized peoples" (p.
tion among the beings (Elenchos V, 26, 26). But the blood that 131.5); the pagans will be the object of his mission. His
flows from Psyche after her intercourse with Eros, which twelve labors are allegories of the battles he fought against
then spreads over the earth, gives birth to roses "for the joy the twelve planetary angels of the Earth called Edem. Se­
of the light" (Nag Hammadi Coptic II/5, p. I l l , 8-14). This duced by Omphale, however, whom Justin assimilates to
twofold aspect of the dark and light soul is connected, in the Babel and to Aphrodite, he puts on the robe of Edem, which
same work, with the ambivalence of an Eros established in shuts him into the universe of lesser powers. "It is in this
the middle of paradise, at the origin of all life and all death. way," the myth concludes, "that the prophecy and works of
Heracles also becomes a Gnostic hero as the traditional Heracles had no effect." The Heracles of Justin the Gnostic,
figure of the Stoic sage before he comes to symbolize in as savior and then prisoner, and the divided Heracles of

188
 T H E G N O S T I C S A N D
Plotinus, the reader of Homer, belong very much to the same
period in the history of ideas.
The Egyptian myth in its Greek reinterpretation of the
wanderings and tears of Isis, who is searching for her twin
brother and lover Osiris (Plutarch, Moralia 356a-358b),
served as the starting point for the Valentinian myth of the
wanderings and tears of Sophia, abandoned to the sorrows
and passions of this world, "a supplicant to the Father,"
because she has lost the unity of her origin and suffers from
love of her twin (Irenaeus, Adv. Haer. 1.2.2 = Epiphanius,
Panarion 31.11.4). Similarly, in the version of the myth
presented in the Elenchos, the offspring of the Sophia above,
himself called the "external" or "lower Sophia," overcome by
sorrow and anxiety, looks for his twin everywhere and begs
that he who has abandoned him return to him; it is then that
the "common fruit of the pleroma," Jesus, who makes the
sadness of Sophia into the "material substance" of the
universe (Elenchos VI, 32, 3 -6 ), is sent to him. Transformed
by the creative Logos of Osiris and rendered capable of
"receiving all bodily and spiritual forms," Isis incarnates, by
her nature, the female principle of the universe; it is she who
T H E M Y T H O L O G I E S OF P A G A N I S M
contains the whole (pandechês) and who presides over all of
generation (see Plutarch, Moralia 372e). Hence she is assim­
ilated to Platonic matter, as the support and recipient of all
things (Timaeus 49a; 51a). In the same way, among the
Gnostics, the Valentinian Sophia, having surrendered to
passion, becomes the principle of the constitution and es­
sence of matter, out of which the world is born (Irenaeus,
Adv. Haer. 1.4.2 = Epiphanius, Panarion 31.16.7). The child of
Isis, Horus (= Harpocrates), "debased by matter through
the bodily element" (Moralia 373b3-4), corresponds to the
deformed offspring of the Valentinian Sophia, and is de­
scribed as a "substance disorganized and without form,"
analogous to the primordial earth of Genesis and called "the
runt" (Elenchos VI, 30, 8 -3 1 , 2). But just as the Isis of the
Platonic tradition has an innate love for the first principle,
which is the Good (Plutarch, Moralia 372e), so the Valentinian
Sophia feels passion and desire for the Father (Irenaeus, Adv.
Haer. 1.2.2 = Epiphanius, Panarion 31.11.4). Just as Isis is
called "the seeking of Osiris," zëtêsis Osiridos (Moralia
372c20), Sophia is "the seeking of the Father," zêtêsin tou
Patros (GCS 25, p. 403, 13). The joy of Isis, who carries in her
189
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

th e s e e d s o f th e w o rld (P lu ta rc h , Moralia 3 7 2 e l3 -1 4 ), co rre ­ p l a n e t a r y g o d is a n s w e r e d b y t h e c o m i n g t o g e t h e r ( sullexis)

s p o n d s to th e l a u g h o f S o p h i a , w h o g iv e s b irth to lig h t (G C S o f th e Is ia n a n d s o v e r e ig n s o u l.
2 5 , p . 4 1 0 , 2 2 ) . T h e p r o s t r a te a n d w e e p in g Is is , w h o s e te a r s T h e g o d s o f p a g a n is m th u s s e rv e d th e G n o s tic s m e re ly a s
fe c u n d a te th e s o il o f E g y p t w ith flo o d w a te rs (P a u s a n ia s , a m e a n s t o i l l u s t r a t e t h i s d i a l e c t i c . In t h e s a m e w a y t h a t t h e y
Periegèsis 1 0 .3 2 .1 8 ) , co rresp o n d s to th e so rro w o f S o p h ia , a r e u s e d b y th e ir c o n t e m p o r a r i e s w h o a r e m a g ic ia n s , p h ilo s ­
w h o s e te a rs a r e th e s o u r c e o f th e s e a , s p r in g s , a n d riv e r s , o p h e r s , a n d a s tr o lo g e r s , s o th e G n o s tic s u s e th e s e h e n c e ­
fro m w h i c h a ll t h e e l e m e n t s o f t h e w o r l d c o m e ( I r e n a e u s , fo r th s u p e r n u m e r a r y e n t it ie s o f a d r a m a , w h e th e r c la s s if y in g
Adv. Haer. 1 .4 .2 - 4 = E p ip h a n iu s , Panarion 3 1 .1 6 .7 - 1 7 .8 ) . t h e m in c a ta l o g s o f d e m o n s o r d i s s o l v i n g th e m in a lle g o r is m .
L a s t , t h e s e q u e n c e o f t h e m y t h a b o u t I s i s 's s e a r c h fo r th e W ith th e e x c e p tio n o f E r o s , n o n e o f th e p a g a n g o d s th a t p a s s
p h a llu s of O siris ( Moralia 358b) b eco m es th e o b je c t, in in to G n o s is p r o v id e s a n e w m y th . M y th o s a n d lo g o s a r e n o
N a a s s e n e G n o s i s , o f a t r i p l e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , w h i c h is a s t r o ­ lo n g e r b a la n c e d . O n th e o th e r h a n d , th e fa c t th a t c e rta in
l o g ic a l, c o s m o l o g ic a l , a n d in itia to ry . G n o s tic s , s u c h a s th e P e ra te s , th e N a a s s e n e s , a n d , to a le s s e r
The p o rtra it of I s is "o f m a n ifo ld n a m e s ," muriönumos e x t e n t , J u s t i n , c h o s e t h i s v e r y f i e ld o f H e l l e n i s m to s a tis fy
(P lu ta rc h , Moralia 3 5 2 e ), w h o is h e r m a p h r o d i t i c b y n a t u r e th e ir a p p e tite fo r a lle g o r y m a d e p o s s ib le th e e f f lo r e s c e n c e o f
b e c a u s e o f h e r id e n tific a tio n w ith th e m o o n ( 3 6 8 c ), u n d e rlie s s u r p r is in g s y s te m s o f th o u g h t— th e tru ly o rig in a l a n d m o s t
th e p o r t r a i t o f th is u n iv e r s a l M o t h e r o f l iv in g c r e a t u r e s , w h o s u c c e s s f u l fo rm s o f th e G n o s tic i n te r p r e ta tio n o f th e g o d s o f
a m o n g t h e G n o s t i c s is c a l l e d S o p h i a , E v e , o r B a r b e l o . F o l ­ p a g a n ism .
l o w in g th e p a t te r n o f a r e t a lo g i e s w h ic h e n u m e r a t e th e title s M .T ./d .w .
a n d v ir t u e s o f Is is , th e G n o s ti c s c o m p o s e d h y m n s , o f w h ic h
c e r t a i n f r a g m e n t s h a v e b e e n f o u n d a t N a g H a m m a d i (1174, p .
8 9 , 1 6 - 1 7 ; 1 1/5, p . 114, 8 -1 5 ); an e n tir e tr e a tis e w a s e v e n
c o n s tr u c te d u p o n th is lite ra ry g e n r e (Nag Hammadi Coptic 6 / 2 ;
s e e , f o r e x a m p l e , p . 1 3 , 2 7 - 1 4 , 1 4 ). A f t e r th e fa s h io n o f Is is , BIBLIOGRAPHY
th e m o th e r g o d d e s s o f th e G n o s tic s e n c o m p a s s e s w h a t fo r
h u m a n it y a r e o p p o s i t e s ; s h e is a t o n c e v ir g in a n d m o th e r, Abraxas: Studien zur Religionsgeschichte des späteren Alter­
a . dieterich ,
fa th e r a n d m o th e r , p r o s titu te a n d v irg in , m a le a n d fe m a le , tums (Leipzig 1891). h . usener , Götternamen: Versuch einer Lehre von der
w h o le a n d p a r t , s e lf a n d o th e r: " M y h u sb an d is h e w h o religiösen Begriffsbildung (Bonn 1895; 3d ed., Frankfurt 1948).
e n g e n d e r e d m e , a n d I a m h i s m o t h e r a n d h e is m y f a t h e r a n d
w. BoussET, "Die Himmelsreise der Seele," Archiv für Religionswissen­
m y l o r d . " T h e s o u l o f e a c h is h e n c e f o r t h e n g u l f e d in t h i s s o u l
schaft 4 (1901): 136-69, 229-73. R. reitzenstein , Poimandres: Studien zur
griechisch-ägyptischen und frühchristlichen Literatur (Leipzig 1904).
o f th e w o r ld . W ith th e G n o s tic s a s w ith th e ir c o n te m p o r a r ie s ,
E. norden . Die Geburt des Kindes (Warburg 1924). r. p . casey , "T wo
th e m y th o f th e s o u l th a t w a n d e r s a c r o s s th e m u ltip lic ity o f Notes on Valentinian Theology," 1: "Valentinian Myths," Harvard
th is w o r ld h a s fo r its c o r o ll a r y th e m y th o f th e r e p o s e o f th is Theological Review 23 (1930): 275-90. a . torhoudt, Een onbekend
s o u l in th e f u lln e s s o f th e tr a n s c e n d e d d iv is io n . T h e d i s p e r ­ gnostisch systeem in Plutarchus' De Iside et Osiride (Louvain 1942).
s io n ( diaspora) of th e soul th a t is in s u b m is sio n to th e M. Tardieu , Trois mythes gnostiques (Paris 1974).

in s tig a to r of th e ir u n g o d ly d o c t r in e s ." As th is com m en t

T he P erates an d T h eir G n o stic c o m e s rig h t a f te r th e re f u ta tio n o f th e a s tro lo g ic a l c h a r t th a t

I n ter pretatio n o f P ag an ism C e ls u s a ttrib u te d to s o m e C h ris tia n s , w e m a y s u r m is e th a t

E u p h r a te s and C e lb e s re p re s e n te d th e p rim itiv e la y e r o f
w h a t th e h e r e s io lo g i s t s c a lle d " O p h i t i s m ." In f a c t, " O p h it -
In t h e f i r s t h a l f o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y a . d ., s o m e C h r i s t i a n i s m " w a s n o th in g m o r e th a n a fo rm o f th e o lo g ic a l re fle ctio n
G n o s tic s w e r e c o n n e c te d w ith th e O p h ite b r a n c h o f G n o s ti­ w i t h i n C h r i s t i a n i t y i t s e l f ; it u s e d a s t r o l o g i c a l t e r m i n o l o g y j u s t
c is m b y v ir tu e o f th e im p o r ta n t ro le o f th e s e r p e n t (G re e k a s B a r-D a is a n d id , a n d th e P e ra tic s y s te m w a s to b e c o m e o n e
ophis) in th e ir s y s te m o f s y m b o ls . Know n o n ly fro m th e o f its l a te r v a r ia n t s , m a r k e d b y a s p e c if ic a lly G n o s ti c c h a r a c ­
a c c o u n t o f th e m in th e Elenchos (V , 1 2 - 1 8 ) , th e P e ra te s a r e ter.
p re s e n te d a s a d e p ts o f th e C h a ld e a n s c ie n c e , d e v o tin g th e m ­ T h e b o o k s th a t th e P e ra te s re a d w e re th e " B o o k o f M o s e s "
se lv e s to " a lle g o r iz in g th e o r d e r o f th e a s tr o lo g e r s " (V , 1 5 , 4 , (V , 16, 8, p. 112, 1 4 )— th a t is. G e n e sis, Exodus, an d
p p . 1 1 0 , 2 9 - 3 0 W e n d la n d ) a n d to " t r a n s f o r m i n g th e n a m e s " N u m b e r s — in th e O ld T e s t a m e n t, a n d th e G o s p e l a c c o r d in g
(V , 1 3 , 9 , p . 1 0 7 , 9 - 1 0 ; V , 1 5 , 2 , p . 1 1 0 , 2 2 ) o f C h a ld e a n to J o h n in th e N e w T e s t a m e n t. A m o n g t h e b o o k s t h e y d r e w
c a te g o r ie s o f s ta r s in to e n titie s fo r th e ir o w n p a n th e o n s . W e fro m " i g n o r a n c e " (a G n o s tic te rm fo r H e lle n is m ) to s u p p o r t
a r e a ls o to ld th a t th e y c a lle d th e m s e l v e s P e r a te s b e c a u s e th e y th e ir th e s e s , th e P e r a te s u s e d H o m e r , H e r a c litu s , A r a t u s , a n d
a lo n e , b e in g a w a r e o f th e la w s t h a t fix t h e "n e c e s s ity of th e S ib y llin e o r a c l e s a m o n g o t h e r " p o e t s " a n d " s a g e s ." T h e y
b e co m in g " and th e "w a y s by w h ic h m an cam e in to th e a lso u sed s h o rt a s tr o lo g ic a l tre a tis e s a n a lo g o u s to th o s e
w o r l d ," w ere "a b le to c r o s s o v e r a n d go beyond (perasai) reco rd ed on m a g ic a l p a p y ru se s. By w ay o f e x a m p le , th e
c o r r u p t i o n " (V , 1 6 , 1 ), in o t h e r w o r d s th e p la n e t a r y s p h e r e s a u th o r o f th e Elenchos c ite s a lo n g e x c e r p t (V , 1 4 ), p u r p o s e ly
th a t d e t e r m in e th e f a te o f a n y in d iv id u a l t h a t is s u b j e c t t o ch o sen fo r its p a r t ic u la r o b s c u r ity , fr o m o n e o f th e b o o k s
g e n e r a tio n . O n ly th e n a m e s o f th e ir f o u n d e r s a r e k n o w n : " h e l d in h ig h e s te e m a m o n g t h e m ," w h ic h w a s e n t it le d Hoi
E u p h r a te s th e P e ra tic (a s u r n a m e a d d e d b y th e h e r e s io lo g i s t ) Proasteioi beds Aitheros (" T h e S u b u r b a n ite s u p to th e E t h e r " )
a n d C e lb e s o f C a r y s ta , a ls o k n o w n a s A c e m b e s o r A d e m e s (IV , 1 4 , 10, p . 110, 1 2 -1 3 ). A s th e c o n t e n t o f th e tre a tis e
( V , 1 3 , 9 ; I V , 2 , 1 ; X , 1 0 , 1 ) . In t h e Contra Celsum (V I, 2 8 , re v e a ls , such a title d e s i g n a t e s th e g o d s a n d dem on s as­
3 1 -2 ), O rig e n p o in ts o u t th a t " t h o s e w h o c a ll t h e m s e l v e s s ig n e d t o e a c h o f t h e p la n e t a r y s p h e r e s t h a t in s o m e w a y
O p h i t e s ( Ophianoi) b o a s t o f h a v i n g a c e r t a i n E u p h r a t e s a s t h e c o n s t i t u t e t h e p e r i p h e r y ( proasteion) o f t h e e t h e r e a l r e a l m i n

190
 T H E P E R A T E S A N D
which the first principle resides. Each god is introduced with
his various names, consorts, functions, and signs. The first
among them, Kronos, "tied in ropes after having locked up
the dense, nebulous, obscure, and dark network of Tar­
tarus," is assimilated to the power of the sea, Thalassa, who
came from chaos and the slime of the abyss and is the mother
of the Titans. Chorzar, the androgynous daughter of the sea,
guardian of the waters, which she soothes by playing twelve
small flutes, corresponds to Poseidon. The Curetes are
associated with the rising of the sun; Ariel is chief of the
winds; Osiris and Isis, the latter identified with the constel­
lation of the Dog, designate the keepers (Archons) of the
hours of night and day. Rhea, Demeter, Men, and Hephaes­
tus, presiding over food, fruit, and fire, represent the dual
movement, upward and downward, right and left, of the
signs of the Zodiac on the ecliptic. The Moirai, cause of
generation, are three powers of the middle air. Finally, at the
lower extremity of the circles, and therefore the closest to us,
is Eros, "forever a child" and androgynous, the "principle of
beauty, pleasure, freshness, youth, concupiscence, and de­
sire"; he brings to a close the catalog of the gods who are
rulers (toparchai) of the planets.
The content of such a document has nothing Gnostic about
it and can in no way be considered the source of the whole
account of the Perates in the Elenchos, as the critics unani­
mously claim. The Christian polemicist in fact used two
separate books. The first was the Proasteioi of the fragment
summarized above, which was read by the Perates and
belonged to the pagan literature of magic and astrology. The
second, the title of which is not given (citations being always
introduced by "said he"), was a document of genuinely
Peratic revelation, an apocryphon placed under the name of
an Old Testament revelatory figure, perhaps Moses, by
virtue of the place it occupies in the excerpts cited in the
Elenchos as well as in late Greek esotericism in general.
The world according to the Perates, like that of the
Valentinians, is a triadic emanative system but, unlike the
Valentinian world, does not fit into any syzygies. The triad
forming the unity of the whole includes the first principle,
The serpent Ouroboros (ms. gr. 2327, fol. 196). Paris, Bibliothèque
nationale. Photo BN/S.R.D.
T H E I R I N T E R P R E T A T I O N OF P A G A N I S M
the Perfect (teleion), which is the Good or the Unbegotten,
followed by the Unlimited (apeiron), constituting the self-
begotten world (autogenes) of the powers of the intermediary
space, and finally, in third place, the Particular (idikon), that
is, our own world, begotten by flow (kata aporroian) originat­
ing in the stars, the causes of generation.
Unlike the third, the first two worlds are essentially
incorruptible and imperishable. Furthermore, each part of
the triad defines a class of gods, of logos, of intellect, of man,
of nature, of the body, of power, and therefore of Christ,
who, "starting with the three parts of the world, possesses
within him all compounds and all powers" (V, 12, 4). His
function will be to "cause to go back upward what had come
down from on high" (V, 12, 6), that is, to restore to its
fullness the original unity of being.
For the Perates, this basic outline corresponded to the
triadic models used by the Astrologers (center or monad, a
universe of powers subject to declination and ascension,
generation), by Physicians (brain, cerebellum, spinal cord),
and by Platonists (Father, Son, matter).
Matter (hulë), defined as having no quality (apoios) and no
shape (aschëmatistos), is the work of the homicidal demiurge,
the Archon of this world, "an aborted being who was born in
the night and will perish in the night" (V, 17, 6). Because
water is the fundamental constituent of matter, matter is
identified with the Kronos of astrology, the consort of
Thalassa. Thalassa is the power of disorder and mud that has
come from the eternal humid element, always in motion and
in convulsions, mistress of becoming and of death, analo­
gous to Thalatth-Omorka (Homoroka) in the cosmogony of
Berossos (FGrH III C no. 680 F 1(6] Jacoby) or to the Gühra'
of Qüq, the gaping cavern of the waters of death swallowing
the seven virgins who are the companions of the Mother of
living creatures (cf. Theodore bar Konai, p. 334, 2 0-25
Scher).
Precisely by virtue of the position that he occupies in the
triad, the Autogenes, identified with the Johannine Son and
Logos, is declared to be in "perpetual movement," attracted
simultaneously upward by the immobile Father and down­
ward by moving matter (V, 17, 2), like Hermes ferrying
"downward all that belongs to the Father" (p. 114, 34) and
"from here below to points beyond" (p. 115, 17). From the
Father he receives powers, impressions, and ideas, which he
transmits to matter, somehow channeling their flow, like a
painter mixing on his tablet ( = matter) forms and colors, that
is, that which comes from the Father (V, 17, 5). This same
function is described with the help of another "p roo f"
(apodeixis, p. 116,1) drawn from the nature of the cerebellum,
the intermediary between the encephalon and the spinal
cord; the cerebellum "attracts through the pineal gland the
spiritual and life-giving substance that flows from the brain"
(V, 17, 12), and from there directs it into the spinal cord,
where it is changed into semen and at the end of its flow is
expelled through the phallus.
The character of this second principle, defined as "always
in motion" and analogous to the serpentine cerebellum
(drakontoeidës), connects it with the bronze serpent in Num­
bers 2 1 .6 -9 , trained by Moses in the desert, that is, on the
other side of the Red Sea ( = Thalassa), which stands for the
water of corruption and death (= Kronos) of this world, in
which "little Egypt" ( = the body) swims. The soteriological
function of this serpent, which is called "universal" (p. 112,
18), "true and perfect" (p. 112, 7 -8 ), is described with a
remarkable profusion of allegories. It is the rod of Moses, the
vanquisher of the rods of the magicians of Egypt, and it
stands for the power within the very person of Moses. It is
191
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N
Brass serpent. Milan, Basilica of Saint Ambrose. Photo Segre.
Eve, universal distributor of Logos, w isdom , and life, the
"com m on n a tu re " {koine phusis, p. 113, 6) of the world above,
as opposed to the particularity {idikon) of o u r w orld. It is the
very m ystery of Eden, w hose river carries the w aters of life.
It is the emblem of the victim s of the God of the Old
Testament: Cain, the just slayer of a brother sullied by a
bloody sacrifice; Esau of the blessed robe, w h o saw the face
of God; N em rod the builder of the Tow er of Babel, "giant
E ros among the G nostics
The sole writing that speaks of the m ythic itinerary traveled
by Eros (Nag Hammadi Coptic II 5, p. 109, 1 - 1 1 1 , 28) concen­
trates, as do m ost descriptions of the period, on the geneal­
ogy and function of the god. Eros is the son of Pronoia, the
paredros (consort) of the dem iurge laldabaoth. Upon seeing
the beauty of the angel of light, still called the primordial
Adam or Light-A dam , that creature arisen out of the splen­
dor of the ogdoad— i.e ., from the Father, w ho is the principle
of all things— Pronoia ardently wishes to unite with him. But
the angel refuses, and she herself is too w eighed dow n by
her tenebrous elem ent to be able to m ount up to him. So she
192
ERA
and hunter before the Lord” ; and finally Jesus, "betrayed by
his brothers" and "raised u p " on the w ooden cross. It is the
constellation of the serpent-bearer (O phiuchus, Serpentar-
ius), which "shines eternally in the sky" and was described
by A ratus as holding east and w est, m erged together, near its
head (V, 16, 15). Finally, it is identified with the m otionless
ouroboros, closed upon itself, holding its tail in its m outh and
thus symbolizing the com pleteness of the Father, the con­
junction of the beginning and the end. It is thus the suprem e
anti-Kronos, countering the bond of death, which holds the
w orld in its grip, with the bond of know ledge {gnosis) and of
the vision of the first unity: "B y gazing up at the sky,
som eone with blessed eyes will see the splendid image of the
serpent coiled up at the great beginning {arche) of the sky,
becom ing the principle {arche) of all m o vem ent for all who are
born " (V, 16, 14). Thus there are three serpents correspond­
ing to the three elem ents that make up the triad: the ouroboros
for the Father; the bronze serpent for the Son; and the
burning and venom ous serpents of the desert for m atter. The
first tw o evoke life and Gnosis; the third evokes the ruin that
is bound up with this world.
Peratic m ythology drew from the thought of Egyptian
astrologers and m agicians. It took the possibility of multiple
allegorical com binations, which the Jewish Platonistic cur­
rent of Alexandria offered it, and m ade that possibility its
ow n. But unlike other G noses, which chose one side or the
other, proceeding by w ay of selective elimination or retrieval,
Peratic m ythology sim ultaneously had recourse to Judaism
by w ay of anti-Judaism , to astrology by w ay of anti-
Chaldaism , to Greece by w ay of anti-Hellenism, and to the
Gospel by w ay of anti-Christianity. In this, it is Gnostic. It is
highly unlikely that it was the expression of a school or a
church. Between Valentinus and Bar-Daisan, H eracleon and
Qüq, its inventor occupies a profoundly original position in
the history of thought.
M .T./g.h.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
a. Hilgenfeld, Die Ketzergeschichte des Urchristentums (Leipzig 1884),
263-67. fr. boll. Sphaera: Neue griechische Texte und Untersuchungen zur
Geschichte der Sternbilder (Leipzig 1903), 309-10. w. bousset, Haupt­
probleme der Gnosis (Göttingen 1907), 124-25. h . leisegang. Die Gnosis
(4th ed., Stuttgart 1955); K. preisendanz, "Ostanes," in pauly-wissowa,
Real-Encyclopädie, vol. 18 (Stuttgart 1942), cols. 1625-26.
tears the luminous particles aw ay from the angel, mixes
them with her blood, and spreads them over the earth. By
this act Pronoia responds, in kind, to that of her husband,
w ho had flung his sperm "into the center of the earth's
navel,” w hence the terrestrial Adam of the G arden of Eden
had arisen. It is in the very middle of paradise that Eros is
bom as the fruit of the m oist desire of his m other and the
astral fire of the angel: he is thus androgynous by nature.
"H is m asculine nature is Himeros, because he is a fire that
com es from the light. The femininity within him is a soul of
blood and com es from the substance of P ronoia" (p. 109,
3 -6 ).
Because he unites in himself the tw o antagonistic forces of
the primal Adam and of Pronoia, and because he is the place
in which the union of love-desire (H im eros) and the beloved
 E RO S A M O N G T H E G N O S T I C S

s o u l ( P s y c h e ) is r e a liz e d , E ro s p ro d u ce s sen su al p le a su re fire , a n d th e a c tiv ity o f th e G o d o f G e n e s is , w h o s e p a r a te s

(hèdoné), w h i c h w il l l e a d t o m a r r i a g e , p r o c r e a t i o n , a n d d e a t h lig h t f ro m d a rk n e ss a n d n ig h t fro m d a y . L ik e a la m p th a t
(p . 109, 2 0 -2 5 ). A p a rt fro m th e d is c r e te a llu s io n to th e m a k e s v is ib le w h a t is in d i s ti n c t in d a r k n e s s , E r o s i llu m in e s
p o p u la r ta le o f A m o r a n d P s y c h e , t h e G n o s tic m y th o f th e b e in g s s u b m e r g e d in t h e c o n f u s io n o f c h a o s . B y a llo w in g th e
o r ig in o f E r o s r e f e r s e s p e c ia lly t o th e h e r m a p h r o d i t ic c o n c e p ­ e l e m e n ts to b e d i s t in g u is h e d , h e is a r e f e r e n c e m a r k a n d a
tio n o f th e O r p h ic E r o s , w h o m th e Pseudoclementine Homilies ce n te r (mesotês). A s a s ig n o f r e c o g n i t io n a n d a p rin c ip le o f
a s s e r t to h a v e b e e n fo rm e d " b y P ro n o ia o f th e d iv in e b re a th o r d e r , h e is a l s o t h a t b e i n g w h o t r a n s m i t s t h e fire a n d b lo o d
( pneuma ) " : " T h i s l i v i n g b e i n g O r p h e u s c a l l s P h a n e s , b e c a u s e , fro m w h ic h h e c o m e s , a n d fro m w h ic h th e d is o r d e r s o f th e
w h e n h e a p p e a r e d , th e w h o le u n iv e r s e w a s illu m in a te d b y w o rld a re b o m . B o m o f th e n ig h t, h e re m a in s a ch ild o f th e
h is s p le n d o r , P h a n e s h a v i n g b e e n b r o u g h t t o p e r f e c tio n in n ig h t, c o m m u n ic a tin g to b e in g s a n d th in g s th e irra tio n a lity
t h e w o m b o f t h e liq u id e l e m e n t b y t h e b r illia n c e o f f ir e , t h e o f h is m o th e r .
m o st m a g n ifice n t of th e e le m e n ts ; and th e re is n o th in g T h e lu m in a r y f u n c tio n o f E r o s w a s lin k e d to h is d e p e n ­
in c re d ib le a b o u t th is , f o r in g l o w - w o r m s , fo r e x a m p l e , n a t u r e d en ce on lig h t and fire , and h is sexu al fu n ctio n to h is
h a s g iv e n a w a te r y lig h t fo r u s t o s e e " ( 6 .1 2 .4 ) . B o m o f th e c o n n e c tio n w ith th e " b lo o d o f th e v ir g in " (p . 1 0 9 , 1 - 2 ) , b y
m in g lin g o f th e d r y a n d th e w e t, o f m a le fire a n d fe m a le v i r t u e o f w h ic h E r o s w o u l d g o v e r n a ll o f t h e w a t e r y s p h e r e ,
b lo o d , u n d e r th e a e g is o f a P ro n o ia w h o w a s th e b e a r e r o f in th e fe cu n d a te d w om an as m u ch as in th e f e rtiliz e d
lig h t a n d o f th e d iv in e b r e a t h , th e G n o s tic E r o s g o v e r n s th e g r o u n d : " T h u s t h e i n t e r c o u r s e ( sunousia ) o f E r o s w a s a c c o m ­
fu s io n o f th e p rim o r d ia l e le m e n ts . A c c o r d in g to a n e x p r e s ­ p lis h e d . The first s e n s u a l p le a su re sp ro u te d upon e a rth ,
s io n in th e Oracles, h e is t h e ir b o n d a n d t h e ir u n if ie r , h e w h o w o m a n f o llo w e d e a r t h a n d m a r r i a g e fo llo w e d w o m a n , p r o ­
b y p r o j e c ti n g a ll t h in g s u n if ie s t h e m ( p p . 2 5 - 2 6 K r o ll). B u t , c r e a ti o n f o llo w e d m a r r i a g e a n d d e a t h fo llo w e d p r o c r e a t io n .
at th e sam e tim e , th is r o le o f th e co n jo in e r o f o p p o site s A f te r th a t p a r tic u la r m a n ife s ta tio n of E ro s, th e g ra p e v in e
p la y e d b y E r o s d o e s n o t g iv e h im in t h e G n o s tic p a n th e o n s p ro u te d up fro m th e b lo o d w h ic h w as p o u re d upon th e
th e e m in e n t s ta tu s w h ic h h e e n jo y e d a m o n g th e O rp h ie s . H e e a r t h . T h e r e f o r e t h o s e w h o d r i n k i t ( t h e v i n e ) e n g e n d e r in
r e m a in s a t th e v e r y s o u r c e o f th e d e a t h t h a t is t r a n s m i t te d b y th e m s e lv e s th e d e s ire fo r in te rc o u rs e . A fte r th e g r a p e v in e , a
h is d a u g h t e r , s e n s u a l p l e a s u r e . L ik e t h e E r o s o f th e P la to n ic fig tre e and a p o m e g ra n a te tre e s p ro u te d up on e a rth ,
m y th s o f th e Symposium, w h o is s h a r e d b e t w e e n h e a v e n a n d t o g e th e r w ith th e re s t o f th e t r e e s , a c c o r d in g to th e ir k in d ,
e a r t h , P o r o s a n d P e n ia , a n d g o d s a n d m e n , th e G n o s tic E r o s h a v in g th e ir o w n s e e d w ith in th e m d e r iv e d fro m th e s e e d o f
is h a l f w a y b e t w e e n t h e l ig h t o f t h e F a t h e r a n d t h e d a r k n e s s th e p o w e rs a n d th e ir a n g e ls " (p . 1 0 9 , 1 9 - 1 1 0 , 1 ). A s p rin ci­
o f c h a o s , a d a e m o n ic in te r m e d ia r y b e in g , s itu a te d n e ith e r p le s o f fe rtility a n d d e s t r u c ti o n , e a r t h a n d w o m a n r e p r e s e n t
above in th e ogdoad n o r b e lo w on e a r t h , b u t in a space t h e t w o a s p e c t s o f t h e a m b i v a l e n c e o f E r o s . T h is is n o t h i n g
d e sc rib e d b y P la to a s th e g a r d e n o f th e g o d s (2 0 3 b 6 ); th e n e w to t h e G r e e k w o r l d . Y e t t h e w a y in w h ic h o u r G n o s ti c
G n o s ti c a u t h o r s p e c i f ie s t h a t th is p l a c e is " i n t h e c e n t e r o f th e d ra w s a c o rre s p o n d e n c e b e tw e e n th e th re e c o n s e q u e n c e s o f
n a v e l o f t h e e a r t h , " i n E d e n , w h i c h i s t h e g a r d e n ( paradeisos ) th e s e n s u a l p le a s u re s o f w o m a n (m a rria g e , p ro c re a tio n , a n d
o f t h e b ib lica l g o d , b e y o n d t h e s u n a n d t h e m o o n . d e a t h ) a n d t h e t h r e e tr e e s ( v i n e , fig , p o m e g r a n a t e ) — a ll t h r e e
I n s ta lle d in p a ra d ise , E ro s in a u g u ra te s h is fu n ctio n as c o n n e cte d w ith E ro s and p ossessed of a p r e c is e sexu al
i n te r m e d i a r y b y s ti m u la t i n g a ll b e i n g s b y th e s ig h t o f h is s y m b o lis m — is e n t ir e l y o r ig in a l. W i n e , th e d rin k o f A p h r o ­
s p l e n d o r : " H e is v e r y h a n d s o m e in h is b e a u ty , h a v i n g m o r e d ite a n d D io n y s u s , c o m p o s e d l ik e E r o s o f f i r e a n d b o ilin g
l o v e li n e s s t h a n a ll t h e c r e a t u r e s o f c h a o s . W h e n a ll t h e g o d s b lo o d , le a d s m a n to th e " d e s ire fo r c o itu s " (p . 1 0 9 , 2 9 ). T h e
and th e ir a n g e ls s a w E ro s , th e y b e c a m e e n a m o r e d o f h im . fig tre e , a tre e th a t is a l w a y s green b ecau se it p r o v i d e s ,
B u t w h e n h e a p p e a r e d t o t h e m a ll, h e s e t t h e m o n f ire . J u s t a c c o rd in g to P lin y , fo u r h a rv e s ts each year, is t h e p h a llic
a s m a n y l a m p s a r e k in d le d f r o m a s in g le l a m p , a n d t h e lig h t s y m b o l p a r e x c e ll e n c e ; D io n y s u s u s e s a b r a n c h o f th e fig tr e e
is o n e lig h t, a n d t h e l a m p is n o t d i m i n i s h e d , s o E r o s w a s a s a s u b s ti t u te f o r a p h a ll u s in a m y th to ld b y C le m e n t o f
s c a tte re d in a ll th e c re a tu re s of C h aos, and he w as not A le x a n d ria ( Protrepticus 2 .3 4 .3 - 4 ). L a te r Ju d a ic w ritin g s
d im in is h e d . In th e sam e, w ay th a t he ap p e a re d in th e w o u l d d e s i g n a t e t h e fig t r e e a s th e t r e e o f t h e f o r b id d e n fr u it.
m id p o in t ( mesotês ) b e tw e e n lig h t and d a rk n e ss, so E ro s Its le a v e s w o u ld s e r v e t o c o v e r th e n a k e d n e s s o f A d a m a n d
a p p e a re d b e tw e e n a n g e ls a n d m e n " (p . 1 0 9 , 6 - 1 9 ) . H e re w e E v e . T h e p o m e g r a n a t e , w h i c h i s f i ll e d w i t h a m u l t i t u d e o f
fin d a s e r ie s o f t h e m e s c o m m o n t o t h e w h o le p e r i o d . In t h e g r a p e s e e d s th a t fe r m e n t b e n e a th its s k i n , c o n t a i n s a w in e
Poimandres, p e rs o n ifie d N a tu re "s m ile s w ith lo v e " upon t h a t is p a r t ic u la r l y r e c o m m e n d e d f o r t h e p l e a s u r e s o f lo v e .
s e e in g th e " in e x h a u s tib le b e a u ty " o f th e p rim o rd ia l m an L ik e h is m o t h e r A p h r o d i t e , E r o s is p o r t r a y e d h o l d i n g p o m e ­
r e f l e c t e d in t h e w a t e r ( § 1 4 ) . A s a m e a n s t o e x p r e s s t h e i d e a g r a n a t e s in h is h a n d s . B u t t h is f r u it is a l s o a s s o c i a t e d in t h e
o f th e n o n d e p le tio n o f th e p rim a l e n e r g y o f a G o d w h o g iv e s G reek w o rld w ith H e ra , th e g o d d ess o f m a rria g e and of
h is k n o w le d g e , N u m e n iu s w o u ld e m p lo y th e s a m e te r m s a s p r o c r e a tio n . T h u s, th e a n cie n t m y th s s ti ll have th e ir s a y
t h e G n o s ti c a u t h o r : " I t is in t h is w a y t h a t o n e c a n s e e a l a m p w hen th e G n o s tic a u th o r w is h e s to n am e th re e p la n ts
lit f r o m a n o t h e r l a m p , b e a r i n g a l i g h t w h i c h d i d n o t d e p r i v e a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e s e x u a l f u n c t i o n o f E r o s . A n d it i s n o t b y
i t s s o u r c e o f l i g h t : o n l y i t s w i c k w a s lit b y t h a t f i r e " ( f r . 2 3 m e r e c h a n c e t h a t t h e m y th i c h o r t i c u l tu r e o f E r o s is b u ilt u p o n
Leem ans = 1 4 D e s P la c e s ). Ju s tin to o u s e s th e s a m e im a g e to t h e s e t h r e e tr e e s a l o n e , fo r e a c h o n e , w ith in a s in g le s e m a n ti c
d e sc rib e th e in e x h a u s tib le ch a ra cte r of th e L ogos, w h ic h f ie ld , p o r t r a y s a p a r t ic u la r a s p e c t o f t h e s e x u a l f u n c t i o n (fig
c o m m u n i c a t e s its e lf : " J u s t a s w e se e th a t fro m a fir s t fire tre e -p h a llu s -D io n y s u s ; w in e - s e n s u a l p le a s u re -A p h ro d ite ;
a n o t h e r fire is p r o d u c e d , w it h o u t d im in is h in g th e fire f ro m p o m e g r a n a t e -f e c u n d it y - H e r a ) a n d r e c a p itu la te s t h r o u g h th e
w h i c h t h e o t h e r w a s l it , t h e f i r s t f i r e i n f a c t r e m a i n i n g t h e p e r s p e c tiv e o f th e v e g e ta l c o d e th e s e m a n tic to ta lity o f th e
s a m e , e v e n s o t h e n e w f i r e t o o w h i c h i s lit h e r e i s s e e n t o b e c o s m o g o n i c a n d a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l m a n i f e s t a t i o n o f E r o s . I t is
e n tir e ly r e a l w ith o u t h a v in g d im in is h e d th e o n e f ro m w h ic h th u s in a very co h e re n t fa s h io n th a t th e G n o s tic a u th o r
it w as lit" ( Dialogue with Trypho 6 1 .2 ) . F u rth e rm o re , by c o n s tr u c te d , b y r e u s in g tra d itio n a l s c h e m a ta , th e p ic tu r e o f
p la c in g E r o s b e tw e e n lig h t a n d d a r k n e s s , t h e G n o s ti c a u t h o r a n E ro s w h o ru le s o v e r b o th w o m a n a n d e a rth .
b rin g s to g e th e r , in a n e r u d i te s y n c r e ti s m , th e G r e e k g e n e a l ­ W h ile th e c o s m o g o n ic e p ip h a n y o f E r o s , w h ic h s e p a r a te s
o g y o f E r o s , w h o is b o m o f th e n ig h t a n d is a t r a n s m i t te r o f lig h t f ro m d a r k n e s s , r e m a i n s p o s i ti v e , t h a t o f th e E r o s w h o

193
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN T H E C H R I S T I A N
Androgynous winged Eros. Vienna, Kunsthistorisches Museum.
Museum photo.
Gnostic papyrus from Nag Hammadi (Codex II no. 10544, p. 109).
Cairo, Coptic Museum. Museum photo.
appeared “between angels and men" would, through re­
course to woman, cause a principle of death to enter the
world. The Coptic Gnostic text calls this death a dissolution
of beings, a böl ebol (p. 109, 24; the term is also found in The
Dialogue of the Savior, Nag Hammadi Coptic III, 5, p. 122, 3).
One consequence of this manifestation was the expulsion of
Adam and Eve from paradise. But if, by reason of his
fundamental duplicity, Eros is the most dreaded of the gods,
he is also the most beautiful and most desirable, since his
ambivalence, composed of fire and blood, expresses the
totality of the primordial elements, the dry and the wet, from
which the world was born. At once a principle of the
dissolution of things and a principle of their reintegration, he
both originates the sensual pleasure of copulation and, at the
same time, according to the elegant formula of the
Pseudoclementine Homily, “realizes the culmination of the
beauty of the world" (p. I l l , 16-17 Rehm). After the
description of Eros's function as source of the madness that
carries away the world, there is a description of this same
function organizing what is beautiful in the world: paradise.
The Eden of Eros was created by Justice, an entity belong­
ing to the ogdoad of the Father, “outside the circuit of the
194
ERA
moon and the circuit of the sun in the luxuriant earth, which
is in the east in the midst of the stones. And desire (epithu-
mia) is in the midst of the trees that are beautiful and tall" (p.
110, 2 -7 ). Paradise is situated beyond the time determined
by the luminaries of day and night, in a mythic east of the
Age of Gold in which precious stones abound. Because they
are made up of the antagonistic elements of the wet and the
dry, solar fire and river waters, precious stones belong to the
biological and sexualized world, as do animals and plants,
and consequently, just like trees, enter the semantic field of
Eros. The plants of paradise, named by the Gnostic author,
conform to the data of Jewish and apocalyptic tradition: to
the north is planted the tree of life and immortality, which
has a solar brilliance and is identified with the cypress-olive
pair; near it is the tree of knowledge, which has a lunar
brilliance and is identified with the fig-palm pair (p. 110,
6 -1 1 , 8). The relationship between Eros and paradise is also
illuminated by the threefold reference to Eden as the land of
beauty, of delights, and of desire—three titles that are
eminently related to the god of Love. The description of
paradise ends with an interpretation of the myth of Amor
and Psyche. Just as Pronoia had spread her blood over the
 H E C A T E IN G R E E K E S O T E R I C I S M

e a r th , fro m w h ic h E r o s w a s b o r n , s o P s y c h e u n ite s w ith E r o s R o m a n c e s, o ra cle s, and e p ig ra m s ta k e p o sse ssio n o f h im ;

in p a r a d i s e a n d s p r e a d s h e r b l o o d o v e r t h e e a r t h , f r o m w h i c h d e p i c t i o n s o f h i m a b o u n d in s a r c o p h a g i a s w e l l a s in p r i v a t e
r o s e s a n d lil i e s w ill b e b o r n ( p . I l l , 8 - 1 2 ) . A n d t h e n e a c h o f h o m e s a s a c o m p a n i o n a t e v e r y m o m e n t i n t h i s lif e a n d t h e
t h e d a u g h t e r s o f P r o n o i a , o n e a t a t i m e , c o m e s t o u n i t e W i th lif e b e y o n d . P l o t i n u s c o m m e n t e d on h im in h i s l e c t u r e s a s
E r o s , t o g i v e b i r t h t o a ll o f t h e p l a n t s ( p . I l l , 1 4 -2 4 ). By a te n d in g to w a rd th e b e a u ty of th e O ne, and th e Chaldean
s k i l lf u l , h a r m o n i o u s s y n c r e t i s m , th e e d ito r o f th e G n o s tic Oracles p ro c la im h im to b e th e s o n o f th e p a te r n a l in te lle c t
te x t s e e k s to p r e s e n t s y m m e tr ic a lly th e tw o u n iv e r s e s — o r a n d t h e u n i f i e r o f t h e t o t a l i t y o f b e i n g . S o it is n o t s u r p r i s i n g
ra th e r th e tw o g a r d e n s (paradeisoi)— in w h i c h t h e b e a u t y a n d th a t th is g o d , f a m ilia r in t h e p o p u l a r a n d s c h o l a r l y m y th o l ­
th e d e s i r e o f E r o s d w e ll e d : first th e b ib lica l E d e n , f r o m w h ic h o g y o f R o m a n E g y p t, s h o u ld h a v e fu rn is h e d G n o s tic th o u g h t
e v il p o w e r s a r e e x c lu d e d and w h e r e , c o n s e q u e n t l y , a ll t h e w ith o n e o f its l e a s t o b s c u r e a n d m o s t b rillia n t p a g e s . F r o m
t r e e s a n d fr u its a r e b e a u tif u l a n d d e s i r a b l e ; t h e n th e G r e e k th e E ro s o f th e a n c ie n t th é o g o n ie s , w ho a ro se o u t o f th e
p a r a d i s e o f E r o s , in w h ic h th e p o w e r s c o n n e c t e d w ith s e x u a l e a r t h , f ro m c h a o s , o r fro m a n e g g , to th e b e a u tifie d E r o s o f
d e f ile m e n t a p p e a r . T h e s e t w o p a r a d i s e s , th e J u d a ic a n d th e G n o s tic is m , p la c e d in t h e m i d s t o f t h e s t o n e s a n d tre e s o f
G re e k , c o n s titu te th e tw o fa c e s o f a n a m b iv a le n t E r o s , w h o s e p a r a d i s e , w e c a n t r a c e t h e h i s t o r y o f a s in g le id e a : t h a t th is
a n d r o g y n y , m a d e o f b l o o d a n d f i r e , i m p l i e s t h a t h i s w o r k w ill w o r l d b e a r s w i t h i n i t s e l f t h e f o r c e t h a t m a k e s it s u r v i v e .
its e lf b e a m b i g u o u s , b e i n g m a le a n d g o o d o n th e o n e h a n d M .T ./d .w .
(fir e = b ib lica l E d e n ) a n d f e m a le a n d e v il o n th e o t h e r (b lo o d
= G re e k g a rd e n ).
E r o s is t h e o n l y G r e e k g o d t o h a v e e s c a p e d a n a s t r o l o g i c a l
a n d d a e m o n o lo g ic a l re d u c tio n a m o n g th e G n o s tic s b e c a u s e BIBLIOGRAPHY
he re m a in e d o m n ip re se n t and in f a s h io n d u rin g th is
p e r i o d — t h e e n d o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y b . c .— w h e n t h e s y s ­ M. TARDIEU, Trois mythes gnostiques: Adam. Éros et les animaux d'Égypte
te m o f w h ic h th is tre a tis e speaks w a s b e in g c o n s tru c te d . dans un écrit de Nag Hamntadt 2, 5 (Paris 1974).

on a le a d ta b le t (IV , 2956) w il l have th e effe ct of a fire

H ec a te in G reek E so ter ic ism "b u rn in g " a n d " c o n s u m in g " th e b e lo v e d w om an (X X X V I,
1 9 5 , 2 0 0 ) , s o t h a t s h e is d e p r i v e d o f s l e e p f o r e v e r ( I V , 2 9 6 0 ,
2 9 6 5 -2 9 6 6 ). F u rth e rm o re , th e fire t h a t in h a b its H e c a t e , a s
T o th e C h r is tia n G n o s tic s , w h o b e lie v e d th a t m a g ic h a d b e e n th e m o s t s u b tle o f th e f o u r e le m e n ts , c h a r a c te r iz e s h e r k e e n
b r o u g h t t o t h e e a r t h b y fa lle n a n g e l s , H e c a t e r e p r e s e n t s o n e in te llig e n c e and th e e x tre m e sh arp n ess of her p e rc e p tio n
o f th e fiv e A r c h o n s a p p o i n te d to ru le o v e r th e 3 6 0 d e m o n s (puriboulos, IV , 2 7 5 1 ). H er w h o le b e in g r a d ia te s w ith th e
(o r d a e m o n s ) o f th e “ M i d d l e ,” th e a e ria l p la c e b e lo w th e b rillia n c e o f th e fire fro m th e s ta rs a n d fro m th e e th e r. T h e
z o d ia c a l sp h ere or th e c irc le of th e sun , w h ic h fix e s th e Chaldaean Oracles m ade th is H e ca te "o f th e b r e a s ts th a t
H e im a r m e n e . S h e h a s th re e fa c e s a n d t w e n ty -s e v e n d e m o n s w e lc o m e s to rm s , o f r e s p le n d e n t b rillia n c e " in to an e n tity
u n d er her com m an d . She o ccu p ie s th e th ird le v e l in th e " d e s c e n d e d f ro m th e F a t h e r ," a s s o c i a te d w ith th e " i m p la c a ­
h ie ra rch y o f th e " M i d d le ," b e tw e e n tw o fe m a le dem on s, b le t h u n d e r b o l t s " o f th e g o d s , w ith th e " f l o w e r o f f i r e ," a n d
lo n g -h a ire d P a ra p le x and A rio u th th e E th io p ia n , a n d tw o w ith th e " p o w e r f u l b r e a t h " o f th e p a te r n a l I n te lle c t (p . 2 0
m a l e d e m o n s , T y p h o n a n d I a c h t a n a b a s ( Pistis Sophia, chap. K ro ll). B e c a u s e s h e c a r r ie s a n d t r a n s m i t s fire f r o m a b o v e , s h e
1 4 0 ; C o p tic te x t: p . 3 6 3 , 8 - 3 6 4 , 6 S c h m id t). is t h e s u p r e m e g o d d e s s o f v i v i f i c a t i o n . T h e r e a s o n H e c a t e ' s
D u rin g th e s a m e p e r io d , th is s e c o n d a r y f ig u re o f G n o s tic w o m b is s o r e m a r k a b l y " f e r t i l e " (zôogonon, p . 1 9 K r o l l ) is t h a t
d a e m o n o l o g y is a l s o a n o m n i p r e s e n t p e r s o n a g e i n t h e p a n ­ s h e is f i ll e d w i t h t h e f i r e o f p a t e r n a l I n t e l l e c t , t h e s o u r c e o f
t h e o n o f m a g ic a l p a p y r u s e s , b e c a u s e o f th e r a n g e o f m e a n ­ l if e or th e s tr e n g th of th o u g h t, w h ic h it is her d u ty to
in g s a ttr ib u te d to h e r e m b le m s a n d b e c a u s e o f th e s y s te m o f c o m m u n ic a te a n d to d is s e m in a te .
a s s o c i a t i o n s w h i c h l in k h e r t o , a n d e v e n id e n tify h e r w ith , T h r o u g h h e r e m b l e m s a n d h e r tria d ic c o n c e p t i o n , H e c a te
o th e r g o d s a n d g o d d e ss e s. is a s s o c i a t e d w i t h a n o t h e r g o d d e s s o f t i m e a n d d e s t i n y , M e n e
H e r th re e fo rm s ( trimorphos P G M X X X V I, 190) an d her o r S e le n e , th e g o d d e s s o f th e m o o n . T h e p r a y e r to th e m o o n
th re e faces ( triprosôpos, IV , 2119, 2880) m ake h er, as in of P IV , 2785 in v o k es th e m as one and th e sam e e n tity ;
c l a s s i c a l G r e e k t r a d i t i o n , t h e g o d d e s s o f c r o s s r o a d s ( triodites, e p ith e ts a n d a ttrib u te s o f th e tw o g o d d e s s e s a r e in te r c h a n g e ­
IV , 2 7 , 2 9 6 2 ) a n d th e p r o t e c tr e s s o f r o a d s ; b u t t h e y e x p r e s s a b le . H e c a te /S e le n e a lso has th re e h ead s, c a r r ie s to rch e s,
above a ll th e "ab u n d an ce of a ll m a g ic a l s ig n s" (X X X V I, p r e s id e s o v e r c r o s s r o a d s : " Y o u w h o in t h e t h r e e f o r m s o f th e
1 9 0 - 1 9 1 ) , p o s s e s s e d b y th e " s o v e r e ig n " g o d d e s s (kuria, IV , th re e C h a r ité s d a n c e a n d fly a b o u t w ith th e s ta r s . . . Y o u
1432) "o f m an y n am es" (poliwmimos, IV , 7 4 5 ) . T h e th re e ­ w ho w ie ld te rrib le b la ck t o r c h e s in y o u r h a n d s , you w ho
faced H e c a te o f th e lo v e c h a r m o f P ity s , c o n ta in e d in th e sh ak e y o u r h ead w ith h a ir m a d e o f fe a rs o m e s n a k e s , y o u
m a g ic a l G re e k c o d e x o f P a ris, h a s th e h e a d o f a c o w o n th e w h o cause th e b e llo w in g o f th e b u lls , y o u w h o s e b e lly is
r i g h t , th e h e a d o f a f e m a le d o g o n t h e le ft, a n d t h e h e a d o f a co v ered w ith r e p tilia n s ca le s and w ho ca rry over your
g i r l in t h e c e n t e r ( I V , 2 1 2 0 - 2 1 2 3 ) . T h e H e c a t e e n g r a v e d in a s h o u ld e r a w o v e n b a g o f v e n o m o u s s n a k e s " (IV , 2 7 9 3 - 2 8 0 6 ) .
m a g n e tiz e d r o c k (IV , 2 8 8 1 - 2 8 8 4 ) a l s o s h o w s t h r e e f a c e s : a S h e h a s th e e y e o f a b u ll, t h e v o i c e o f a p a c k o f d o g s , th e
g o a t o n t h e r i g h t , a f e m a l e d o g o n t h e l e f t , a n d in t h e m i d d l e c a lv e s o f a l io n , t h e a n k le s o f a w o lf , a n d s h e lo v e s fie rce
a g irl w ith h o r n s . b i t c h e s : " T h i s is w h y y o u a r e c a l l e d H e c a t e o f m a n y n a m e s ,
H e r m o u t h e x h a l e s f i r e ( puripnoa, I V , 2 7 2 7 ) ; h e r s i x h a n d s M e n e , y o u w h o s p l i t t h e a i r l ik e A r t e m i s , s h o o t e r o f a r r o w s "
b r a n d is h to rc h e s (IV , 2 1 1 9 -2 1 2 0 ). H en ce, e n g ra v in g her (IV , 2 8 1 4 - 2 8 1 7 ) . S h e is t h e m o t h e r (geneteira) o f g o d s a n d
n a m e w ith a b r o n z e s ty le tto o n a n o s t r a c o n ( X X X V I , 1 8 9 ) o r m e n . N a tu re th e u n i v e r s a l m o t h e r ( Phusis panmetör): " Y o u

195
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
Hecate. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Cabinet des Médailles.
Photo BN
come and go on Olympus and visit the vast and immense
Abyss: you are beginning and end, you alone rule over all
things; it is in you that all originates, and in you, eternal, that
all ends" (IV, 2832-2839). Another hymn in the Paris codex
used as a love charm shows the same joy in piling up titles of
J ustin the G nostic : A S yncretistic M ythology
Justin the Gnostic is artificially linked by heresiology to the
Christian Gnostics through a triadic system superficially
analogous to that of the Sethians or the Perates, and through
the very secondary role that Jesus plays in the final phase of
the soteriology. In the single account by the Christian polem­
icist who speaks of him (Elenchos, V, 23-28), he is described
as the author of a treatise on revelation entitled The Book of
Baruch, written in the second half of the second century a . d .
Nothing is said of the individuality of the author, but the
passages cited from his book lead one to believe that his was
196
C H R I S T I A N ERA
the goddess, who has this time become Aphrodite, the
universal procreator (pangennêleira) and mother of Eros (IV,
2556-2557), at once below and above, "in the Hells, the
Abyss, and the Aeon" (IV, 2563 - 2564), chthonic (IV, 1443),
holding her feasts in tombs (IV, 2544) and associated with
Ereskigal, the Babylonian queen of Hells (LXX, 4), but also
the "celestial traveler among the stars" (IV, 2559), nocturnal,
but also the bearer of light (IV, 2549-2550).
Her ring, scepter, and crown represent the power of the
one who, possessing the triad, embraces all. Above and
below, to the right and to the left, at night as during the day,
she is the one "around whom the nature of the world turns"
(IV, 2551-2552), the very Soul of the world, according to
Chaldaean Oracle "the center in the middle of the Fathers" (p.
27 Kroll), occupying, according to Psellus, an intermediary
position and playing the role of the center in relation to all
the other powers: to her left the source of virtues (p. 28
Kroll), to her right the source of souls, inside, because she
remains within her own substance, but also directed to the
outside with a view to procreation.
Whether invoked in love charms to bring to oneself the
woman one desires (the agögai of the magic papyruses) or
evoked by the "constraints that subdue the gods" (the
theiodainoi anankai of the Chaldaen philosophers, p. 156, v.
190 Wolff), Hecate is henceforth inscribed in a table of
correspondences and combinations which go far beyond her
proper function as a goddess of enchantment and magic. It is
from this Hecate, the product of the syncretism of the
papyruses, that the tradition of the Hecate of the Neopla­
tonic commentators on the Oracles takes shape.
M.T./t.I.f.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
K. (, a\s o iiNiri/, Hippolytos' Gipitcl gegen die Magier, TU 39/2 (1913):
64 - 70. tu . MOi'FMR, Griechisch-ägyptischer Offenlnrungszauber, SPP 21
(1921): 259 d; "Hekate-Selene-Àrtemis," in Pisciculi . Franz loseph
Dolger dargeboten, T. Klauser and A. Rücker, eds. (Münster in Westf
1939), 125-45. M.-r. nilsson , Die Religion in den griechischen Zauherpa-
pyri (1947), reprinted in Opuscula selecta, 3 (1960): 143-45. ii . i.i-wv,
Chaldaean Oracles and Theurgy Mysticism, Magic and Platonism in the
Later Roman Empire (Cairo 1956), 47-56, 83-98, 269-73, 292-93,
353-55, 361 -66. m. kraus, Hekate: Studien zu Wesen und Bild der Gdttm
in Kleinasien und Griechenland (Heidelberg 1960); "Alexandrinische
Triaden der römischen Kaiserzeit," Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archäo­
logischen Instituts, 19 (1963): 97-105.
a personality that remained profoundly Oriental, closer to
Qüq, to Monoime, or even to Elchasai than to the represen­
tatives of the schools of Platonizing Gnosticism.
Three principles (archai), roots (rhizai), or sources (pi’gai)
dominate the universe, all three of them uncreated
(agennëtoi ). Above is the innately good being, male, endowed
with foresight (prognosiikos) and identified with Priapus. His
ithyphallic symbol, in charge of guarding the ripe autumn
fruit (opôrai), represents all of creation, which he protects.
From then on, according to one of those etymologies of
which the Gnostics were very fond, he becomes "the one
before (prin) whom there was nothing," "the one who
created whereas nothing existed before" (priofioein), the
source of the inexhaustible fertility of the universe (V, 26,
 J U S T IN THE G N O S T I C

3 3 ) . In t h e m i d d l e o f t h e t r i a d is t h e F a t h e r , i d e n t i f i e d w i t h c o n c e p tio n , w h o s e m a te ria lis m h e ra d ic a liz e s b y tra n s fe rr in g

th e J e w is h E lo h im , endow ed w ith w ill ( thelesis ) a n d s p lit it t o o n t o l o g y : e v i l i s n o t h i n g b u t t h e p r o d u c t o f a m o v e m e n t
b e t w e e n th e e x t r e m e lim its o f th e tr ia d . A s in t h e V a le n tin ia n in t h e v e r y c e n t e r o f t h e t r i a d . T h e e v i l b e i n g , e n g e n d e r e d b y
m y th o f th e ig n o r a n c e o f th e d e m i u r g e , h e a t first h a s n o id e a n a t u r e a n d m a te r ia liz e d b y th e a s tr a l s p h e r e , c o m e s d ir e c tly
o f th e e x i s t e n c e o f th e first p r in c ip le a n d b e lie v e s h im s e lf to fro m th e u n b e g o tte n th e m s e lv e s , E lo h im a n d Edem , under
b e t h e o n l y G o d ( V , 2 6 , 1 5 ) . In t h e t h i r d p l a c e is a y o u n g g i r l th e in d iffe re n t e y e o f P ria p u s .
w h o is a g o d d e s s , h a l f e a r t h , h a l f s n a k e , t o w h o m is g iv e n T h e e m e r g e n c e o f t h e s p h e r e o f p l a n e t a r y a n g e l s w ill s e t
th e H e b r e w n a m e o f p a r a d i s e , E d e m , la n d o f o r ig in s w h e r e t h e e n t i r e a n t h r o p o g o n i c p r o c e s s in m o t i o n . T h e a n g e l s o f
th e s n a k e liv e s , a ls o c a lle d Is r a e l, e n d o w e d w ith a n g e r (orge), E lo h im p u ll a n a n i m a l b o d y , h e a v y a n d lif e le s s , o u t o f th e
d e ce itfu l and p e rv e rse , je a lo u s and e v il. W ith a d o u b le e a r t h ly p a r t o f E d e m — a v a r ia n t o f th e V a le n tin ia n m y th o f
in te llig e n c e a n d a d o u b le b o d y (dignômos and disômos), she S o p h i a 's a b o r t i o n . E l o h i m a n d E d e m t h e n u n d e r t a k e t o m a k e
i n c a r n a t e s t h e d u p l i c i t y o f a ll w o m e n , s i m u l t a n e o u s l y d r a w n it t h e " s e a l a n d m e m o r i a l o f t h e i r l o v e , t h e e t e r n a l s y m b o l o f
to w a rd m e n , w h o m s h e p o llu te s , a n d a ttr a c te d b y E lo h im , th e ir u n io n " (p . 128, 4 ). Edem g i v e s it a s o u l (psuchê), t h e
w hom she m akes her lo v e r. B u t, u n lik e th e V a le n tin ia n p r in c ip le o f e x i s t e n c e (bios)-, E l o h i m g i v e s it b r e a t h (pneuma),
S o p h ia a t th e b o u n d a r ie s o f th e t w o w o r l d s , th e o r ig in o f ev il t h e p r i n c i p l e o f lif e (zôê). T h u s a r i s e s t h e p rim o rd ia l c o u p le .
b u t a l s o o f s a l v a t i o n , t h e u n i q u e f u n c t i o n o f J u s t i n 's s ly a n d Eve and A d am , each "in th e im a g e " o f th e ir m o d e l. T h e
lu b r ic io u s E d e m i s t o b e f o r e v e r r e s p o n s i b l e f o r a ll m i s f o r ­ c e n tr ip e ta l m o b ility o f th e a s tr a l a n g e l s , c ir c lin g a r o u n d th e
t u n e s t h a t b e f a l l m e n ; t h i s p e r f i d i o u s g o d d e s s o f t h e e a r t h is w o rld , c o rre s p o n d s to th e c e n trifu g a l fo rc e o f th e hum an
th e “ p r o s titu te ” (V , 2 7 , 4 , p . 1 3 3 , 1 3 ) w h o c h a in s e v e r y o n e m ic ro c o s m t r y i n g t o e s c a p e t h e c i r c l e o f d e s t i n y in o r d e r t o
s h e a p p r o a c h e s , b o th G o d a n d m e n , to h is d e s tin y o f d e a t h . re jo in th e p o in t o f o r ig in .
T h e t h r e e p r in c ip le s b e in g o u ts id e o f tim e a n d w ith o u t a n y T h e m y t h o f t h e f a l l, w h i c h o p e n s w i t h t h e u n i o n o f E d e m
d e s c e n d a n ts , th e s o le o b je c t o f th e m y th is t h u s to e x p la in a n d E lo h im , e n d s w ith th e s to r y o f th e ir s e p a r a ti o n . C u r io u s
how one of th e d iv in e e le m e n ts — th e b re a th ( pneuma ) o f to k n o w th e s e c r e ts o f th e u n iv e r s e , a n d b y n a tu re d ra w n
E l o h i m — e s c a p e d f r o m t h e c o n t r o l o f i ts o w n e r ( t h e fa l l) a n d to w a r d th e h e ig h ts (anôphercs, p . 1 2 9 , 5 ) , E io h im c lim b s w ith
w a s th e n r e s to r e d to h im (s a lv a tio n ). h is a n g e ls in to th e upper re a ch e s of th e sky, w h e re he
In J u s t i n 's m y th o lo g y , th e s to r y of th e fa ll does not d i s c o v e r s t h e p e r f e c t lig h t o f G o o d . W i th o u t h is a n g e l s , s in c e
d e s c r ib e , a s d o e s th e V a le n tin ia n s ' v e r s i o n , a s e c o n d tim e th e y a re E d e m 's son s, he th e n e n te rs in to th e lu m in o u s
fram e fo r th e p r o c e s s o f o r g a n iz in g th e u n i v e r s e ; it t a k e s d e p t h s o f t h e s u p r e m e p r i n c i p l e , a n d s i t s d o w n o n i ts r i g h t .
p la ce n o t o u ts id e th e tria d o f th e p r in c ip le s b u t in s id e i t, B u t fro m t h a t m o m e n t it is n o lo n g e r p o s s ib le fo r h im to
co e x te n siv e w ith th e p rim o rd ia l ord er i ts e lf . In d e e d , th e r e g a in h is b r e a th (pneuma), w h i c h is t r a p p e d in h u m a n s . S a d
d e m iu rg ic s c e n a rio ta k e s p la ce a t th e b e g in n in g o f th in g s to h a v e b e e n aban d on ed , Edem a tte m p ts o n e la st tim e to
th ro u g h th e d e s ire th a t in s ta n ta n e o u s ly c a r r ie s th e s e c o n d sedu ce E lo h im , a n d su rro u n d s h e r s e lf w ith a ll t h e c o s m i c
p rin c ip le ( = th e F a th e r, o r E lo h im ) to w a rd t h e y o u n g g irl b e a u ty o f h e r a n g e ls. A l l is in v a i n . F u rio u s, sh e a v e n g e s
E d e m , a u n io n t h a t is a l l e g o r i c a l l y r e p r e s e n t e d b y th e tw o h e r s e l f b y s t r i k i n g a t w h a t r e m a i n s o f E l o h i m in h u m a n s , t h e
l o v e s o f Z e u s , in t h e f o r m o f a s w a n f o r L e d a a n d o f g o l d e n b r e a t h - s p i r i t . I n o r d e r t o m a k e E l o h i m e x p e r i e n c e in h i s t u r n
ra in fo r D a n a ë (V , 2 6 , 3 4 - 3 5 ) . It is t h u s a m e t a m o r p h o s e d th e to rtu re of s e p a r a tio n and sad n ess, she e n jo in s
E lo h im w ho u n ite s w ith Edem . But th e acco u n t of th e A p h r o d ite -B a b e l, th e first of her d em on s, to in s p ire in
C h ris tia n p o le m ic is t d o e s n o t in d ic a te th e p a r tic u la r fo rm o f h u m a n s th e d r a m a s o f lo v e — b ro k e n h e a r ts , a d u lte ry , a n d
m e t a m o r p h o s i s u n d e r g o n e b y v i r t u e o f t h e w il l t o d i s s i m u ­ d i v o r c e . S h e th e n c o m m a n d s N a a s ( th e s n a k e ) , th e th ird o f
la te , s in c e d e s ir e (epithumia) a n d w ill ( thelesis) a r e t h e G n o s t i c h e r a n g e ls , to u n ite w ith E v e a n d th e n w ith A d a m , a s a re s u lt
c o n s t a n t a t t h e o r i g i n o f a ll f a u l t s . T h u s s m i t t e n w ith e a c h o f w h i c h t h e s p i r i t o f E l o h i m in m a n is b r o u g h t t o l e w d n e s s
o th e r, E lo h im and Edem u n ite and g iv e b irth to tw e lv e a n d p e d e ra sty .
a n g e ls , w h o fo rm th e a s tra l s tr u c tu r e o f th e u n iv e r s e , o r th e A s i n a ll t h e s y s t e m s o f t h e t i m e , a c o r o l l o r y o f t h e m y t h o f
p a r a d i s i a c l a n d o f o r i g i n s . T h u s t h e p a r a d i s e o f G e n e s i s is t h e fa ll s t a t e s t h a t s a l v a t i o n w ill c o n s i s t in s e e i n g t o it t h a t t h e
m e re ly a n a lle g o ric a l in te rp re ta tio n p ro p o s e d b y M o s e s fo r b re a th -s p irit of E lo h im , w h ic h re s id e s in h u m an s, is d e ­
t h o s e a n g e l i c s e e d s p l a n t e d in E d e m b y E l o h i m (Genesis 2 .8 ) . t a c h e d first fro m th e m u ltip le d e g r a d a t i o n s , m u tila tio n s , a n d
The tw o tre e s in p a ra d is e a lle g o ric a lly d e sig n a te th e tw o h u m ilia tio n s th a t it u n d e r w e n t th ro u g h th e p o w e r o f th e
a n g e ls w h ic h a p p e a re d in th e th ird ran k o f th e z o d ia c a l in v e n t o r o f s e x u a lity , E d e m -I s r a e l o f th e d o u b le a n d e a r t h ly
e n t i t i e s : B a r u c h , t h e t r e e o f l if e , o n th e s id e o f th e f a th e r ; body, so t h a t it c a n th e n re a s ce n d , p u re a n d lig h t, to i ts
N aas ( = th e s n a k e ), th e tre e o f th e k n o w le d g e o f g o o d a n d o r ig in a tin g p r in c ip le . T o th is e v il a c tio n o f E d e m — s tr ik in g ,
e v i l , o n t h e s i d e o f t h e m o t h e r . S i m i l a r l y , t h e f o u r r i v e r s in th r o u g h h e r i n te r v e n in g a n g e ls (A p h ro d ite -B a b e l a n d N a a s ),
p a ra d ise are an a lle g o ry u sed by M oses to d e sc rib e th e th e b re a th o f E lo h im i n h e r e n t in t h e h u m a n s p i r i t — E l o h i m
te tra d ic o r g a n iz a tio n o f th e a n g e ls : " T h e s e tw e lv e a n g e ls , w ill s e t u p a c o u n t e r o f f e n s i v e o f s a l v a t i o n in f o u r s t a g e s , e a c h
w h ic h a r e in te r tw in e d w ith th e fo u r p a rts o f th e u n iv e rs e , m a rk e d b y th e d is p a tc h o f a p r o p h e t a n d d o m in a te d b y th e
s u r r o u n d a n d r u l e t h e w o r l d , h o l d i n g it in a k i n d o f s a t r a p i e a n ta g o n ism of P sy ch e (o n E d e m 's s id e ) a n d Pneum a (o n
p o w e r w h ic h th e y d e riv e fro m E d e m ; th e y d o n o t a lw a y s E l o h i m 's s id e ) — t h e a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l v e r s i o n o f th e a n ta g o ­
s ta y in th e sam e p la ce s , but su rro u n d th e w o rld as in a n ism i n h e r e n t in th e m a cro co sm (th e a n g e ls o f th e fa th e r
d a n c in g c irc le , m o v in g fro m p la ce to p la c e , a n d g ra d u a lly a g a in s t th e a n g e ls o f th e m o th e r ).
le a v in g to o t h e r s th e p la c e s th a t w e r e e s ta b lis h e d fo r t h e m " E lo h im first s e n d s B a r u c h , th e th ird o f h is a n g e ls ( = th e
( V , 2 6 , 1 1 - 1 2 ) . T h e f ir s t c o n s e q u e n c e o f E l o h i m 's r e c ip r o c a l a n ti-N a a s ), to th e c h ild re n o f E d em -Isra e l, th e J e w s . The
lo v e fo r Edem is th e in s ta lla tio n o f th e H e im a rm e n e , an v o ice o f B aru ch , c a llin g th e p e o p le o f th e c irc u m c is e d to
u n in t e r r u p t e d t o r r e n t th a t ro lls its s tr e a m o f d i s t r e s s a n d v ic e c o n v e r s i o n , is s tifle d b y t h e h i s s in g o f N a a s . E l o h im sends
a ro u n d t h e w o r l d , c h a i n i n g a ll b e i n g s t o " t h e n e c e s s ity o f B aru ch off a se co n d tim e , b u t th is tim e o n ly to th e J e w is h
e v il" (p . 129, 1 ). The V a le n tin ia n s had resp o n d ed to th e p r o p h e t s . T h e y a r e s e d u c e d b y P s y c h e , w h o is m a n i p u l a t e d
p ro b le m of th e o r ig in of e v il by a d o p tin g th e P la to n ic by N aas, and m ake a m o ck ery of B a r u c h 's w o rd s. Two
s o lu tio n ; Ju s tin a d o p t s th e d e te r m in is m o f th e a s tro lo g ic a l d isp a tch e s, tw o f a ilu re s . For th e th ird m is s io n , E lo h im

197
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

c h o o s e s H e ra c le s , w h o m h e s e n d s a m o n g th e u n c irc u m c is e d th e g o d d e s s o f th e e a r t h , d e s c r i b e d b y J u s ti n a s a y o u n g g irl
( = th e p a g a n s ) to fig h t th e t w e l v e a n g e l s o f E d e m . In tw e l v e o r a y o u n g v i r g i n ( korê , p . 1 2 7 , 4 ) , t h e w i f e ( suzugos , p . 1 2 9 ,
g i g a n t i c b a t tl e s , H e r a c l e s t r iu m p h s o v e r th e lio n , th e h y d r a , 6 ) o f a n a s tra l g o d , c o m e s fro m th e e s o te r ic tr a d itio n o f th e
th e b o a r, a n d so f o r th , a lle g o ric a l n a m e s o f th e m o t h e r 's " H e ll e n i z e d M a g i ," a c c o r d in g to w h o m t h e e a r t h is a y o u n g
a n g e l s . S e d u c e d b y O m p h a l e , h o w e v e r , w h o is n o n e o t h e r v irg in b e tr o th e d to P a r n s a g ( T h e o d o r e b a r K o n a i, Liber scho-
t h a n A p h r o d i t e - B a b e l , H e r a c l e s is s t r i p p e d o f h i s s t r e n g t h , liorum, 11, p. 297, 1 2 -1 4 S c h e r). M o reo v er, th e ch a in -o f-
th a t is, o f th e o r d e r s tr a n s m itte d to B a ru c h b y E lo h im , a n d p r o p h e t s t h e o r y r e c a l l s t h e t h e o r y t h a t is f o u n d in p s e u d o -
p u t s o n E d e m 's o w n r o b e . U n s a ti s f ie d b y th is p a r t ia l v i c to r y , C le m e n tin e w ritin g s o r a m o n g th e E lch a sa ite s. U n lik e th e
E lo h im s e n d s B a r u c h o f f o n c e a g a i n , “ in t h e d a y s o f K i n g la tte r, Ju s tin la ck s th e e s s e n tia lly C h r is tia n e le m e n t a lm o s t
H e r o d ," to a b o y o f tw e lv e , J e s u s o f N a z a r e th , th e s o n of e n tir e ly ; a t th e s a m e tim e , th e u n c r e a t e d a n d e te r n a l c h a r a c ­
J o s e p h a n d M a r y , w h o is b u s y t e n d i n g s h e e p . H e r e v e a l s t o te r o f th e e l e m e n ts o f th e t ria d a p p e a r s in c o m p a ti b le w ith th e
h im th e G n o s is — th e k n o w le d g e o f th e p a s t (th e lo v e s o f " J u d e o - C h r i s t i a n " t h e s e s in t h e s t r i c t s e n s e . H o w e v e r , th e
Edem and E lo h im , and th e r e p e n ta n c e o f th e la tte r ), th e im p o rta n c e g iv e n to w a te r sy m b o lism (s ta g n a tin g w a te rs
p r e s e n t ( N a a s 's fig h t a g a in s t B a r u c h ), a n d th e fu tu r e (th e b e l o w t h e f i r m a m e n t ; l i v i n g w a t e r s a b o v e ) is c o n n e c t e d w i t h
r e t u r n o f P n e u m a to th e G o o d ) . F u r i o u s a t s e e in g J e s u s re s is t E a ste rn b a p tis t tre n d s. F in a lly , J u s t i n 's C h r is to lo g ic a l D o-
a ll h i s a t t e m p t s a t s e d u c t i o n a n d r e m a i n f a i t h f u l t o B a r u c h , c e tis m r e c a lls th a t o f th e Apocalypse of Peter, in w h i c h J e s u s
N a a s h a s h im c ru c ifie d . B u t J e s u s , " a b a n d o n i n g o n th e w o o d " t h e c a r n a l " is n a i l e d t o t h e c r o s s w h i l e J e s u s " t h e l i v i n g " is
th e b o d y o f E d e m " (p . 131, 3 1 -3 2 ), " g iv e s b a c k th e s p irit j o y f u l a n d l a u g h s ( Nag Hammadi Coptic V II, 3 , p . 8 1 , 1 0 - 2 2 ) ,
(pneuma) in to th e h a n d s o f th e F a t h e r ( = E lo h im ) a n d rise s j u s t a s h i s d i a t r i b e a g a i n s t t h e J e w i s h p r o p h e t s is r e l a t e d t o
u p to th e G o o d " (p . 1 3 2 , 2 3 ). T h e d e a th o f Je s u s th u s m a rk s th a t o f th e Second Logos of the Creat Seth (Nag Hammadi Coptic
th e e n d o f th e a n ta g o n is m of P sy ch e a n d P n eu m a a n d th e V II, 2 , p . 6 2 , 2 7 - 6 4 , 1 2 ). T h is p a g a n -d o m in a te d E lc h a s a is m ,
d e fin itiv e v ic to ry of E lo h im over Edem . J u s t i n 's tr ith e is t w h ic h is J u s t i n ' s s y s te m , is th e re sp o n se to a d e sire fo r
s y s t e m is t h e r e f o r e a c a m o u f l a g e d d u a l i s m : a b o v e , t h e m a l e s y n th e s is b e tw e e n a s y n c r e tis t m y th o lo g y s te m m in g fro m
u n iv e rs e o f g o o d , th e d o m a in o f P ria p u s -E lo h im ; a n d b e lo w , th e C h a ld e a n a s tr o lo g e r s a n d a b a p tis t p r a c tic e im p r e g n a te d
th e fe m a le u n iv e r s e o f e v il, th e d o m a in o f E d e m . T o c la s s ify b y G n o s tic iz in g D o c e tis m .
s u c h a G n o s tic s y s te m a m o n g th e C h r is tia n G n o s tic s , a s th e M .T ./t .l.f .
a u th o r o f th e Elenchos f o l l o w e d b y l a t e r c r i t i c i s m h a s d o n e , is
n o t a c ce p ta b le .
T h e a n ti-J u d a ic b ia s o f a J u s tin s o ta k e n b y J e w is h S c r ip ­
t u r e s is o b v i o u s . O n t h e o t h e r h a n d , w h e n C h r i s t i a n h e r e s i - BIBLIOGRAPHY
o lo g y a c c u s e s J u s tin o f " f o llo w in g w o r d fo r w o r d th e m y th s
o f th e G r e e k s " (p . 1 2 5 , 8 ) b y s im p ly a p p ly in g th e m y th o f th e w. Vo lk e r , Quellen zur Geschichte der chrislichen Gnosis (Tübingen 1932),
u n io n o f H e r a c le s w ith th e y o u n g g ir l/s n a k e " t o th e g e n e r a ­ 27-33. e . h a en c h en , "Das Buch Baruch: Ein Beitrag zum Problem der
tio n o f th e u n i v e r s e " (V , 2 5 , 1 - 4 ) , th is c o n s t i tu t e s a p o le m ic a l
christlichen Gnosis," Zeitschrift für Theologie und Kirche 50 (1953):
123-58; reprinted in Gott und Mensch: Gesammelte Aufsätze (Tübingen
a r g u m e n t in v e n te d fo r th e s a k e o f th e c a u s e . T h e m y th o f th e
1965), 299- 334. m . sim o n etti, "Note sul Libro di Baruch dello gnostico
h a lf -e a r th /h a lf -s n a k e w om an a s s o c ia te d w ith th e b ib lica l
Giustino," in Vetera Christianorum 6 (1969): 71-89. a . o r be , "La
Edem w as n o t b o rro w ed fro m H e r o d o t u s , a s is s a i d in t h e cristologia de justino gnöstico," Estudios Eclesiâsticos 47 (1972): 437-
Elenchos; a c c o r d in g to V an den B ro ek , it e m erg ed fro m 57. R. van den bro ek , "The Shape of Edem according to Justin the
s p e c u la tio n s th a t are co n n e cte d w ith th e c u lt of I s is - Gnostic," Vigiliae Christianae 27 (1973): 35-45. w. speyf.r , "Das gnostis-
T h e r m o u t h i s in H e l l e n i s t i c E g y p t . B u t it is m o r e l ik e l y t h a t che Baruch-Buch," /ahrhuch für Antike und Christentum 17 (1974): 190.

A p rim a ry p ro ce d u re , w h ic h is g e n e r a l l y re c o g n iz e d as
T he M ed ieval W est an d ''M yt h ic T hough t" o u tm o d e d to d a y , w a s th e s e a rc h fo r th e origins o f " m y t h s "
sp read b y m e d i e v a l C h r is tia n ity . In h is Essays on Christian
Mythology (1 9 0 7 ), P a u l S a in ty v e s w a s e s p e c ia lly c o n c e r n e d
T h e c o n ju n c tio n o f th e te r m s " C h r i s t ia n i t y " a n d "m y th o l­ w ith th e G r e c o -R o m a n o r ig in s o f th e " C h r i s t ia n m y th o lo g y "
ogy" w as not at a ll s h o ck in g to th e philosophes of th e o f th e M id d le A g e s . M o r e re c e n tly , H e n ri D o n te n v ille h a s
e ig h te e n th c e n tu ry : on th e c o n tra ry , a n a lo g o u s to th e ir c o n n e cte d "F re n ch m y th o lo g y " w ith an a n ce s tra l C e ltic
u n f a v o r a b le ju d g m e n ts o n th e m y th s o f o t h e r c iv iliz a tio n s , m y th o lo g y , w h ic h he c la im s to h ave re co v ered fro m
t h e " g r e a t m i n d s " s a w in C a t h o l i c i s m a t i s s u e o f e r r o r s a n d e le v e n th - to s ix te e n th -c e n tu r y d o c u m e n ts a n d fro m m o re
a ffa b u la tio n s th a t s tr a in e d th e lim its o f R e a s o n , a " C h r i s t ia n r e c e n t f o lk lo re .
m y th o lo g y " re le g a te d by th e E n lig h te n m e n t to th e d ark C o m m e n tin g on th e title o f h is g r e a t w o r k The Saints as
c e n tu rie s o f th e M id d le A g e s . Successors to the Gods, S a in ty v e s s tro n g ly a s s e r ts th a t " t h e c u lt
In th e n in e te e n th c e n tu ry , th is "C h ris tia n m y th o lo g y " o f m a r t y r s a n d s a i n t s is o f p a g a n o r i g i n , " t h o u g h h e d o e s g o
e n t e r e d t h e f i e ld s o f s t u d y o f h i s t o r i a n s a n d f o l k l o r i s t s . B u t , o n to s a y m o re p re c is e ly th a t " th is d o e s n o t m e a n th a t th e y
t h o u g h it p a r t i a l l y a v o i d e d p o l e m i c in o r d e r t o b e c o m e a n a r e n o t C h r i s t i a n ." C h u r c h e s h a v e b e e n b u ilt o n n u m e r o u s
o b j e c t o f k n o w l e d g e , it w a s s till n o t a p p r e h e n d e d t h r o u g h a s ite s o f p a g a n c u lts , a n d th e p a g a n fe s tiv a ls y ie ld e d to th e
u n if ie d v o ca b u la ry and p re c is e ly d e fin e d co n ce p ts: each g reat C h u rch f e s t i v a l s ( C h r i s t m a s , A ll S a i n t s ' , e t c . ) o n th e
a u t h o r , it s e e m s , c o u l d f u r n i s h h i s o w n d e f i n i t i o n o f m y t h . s a m e d a y s . S im ila rly , th e g o d s o r h e r o e s o f a n t iq u i ty w e r e
A g r e e m e n t w a s r e a c h e d o n o n e p o in t: n o o n e q u e s tio n e d th e tr a n s f o r m e d in to s a in ts o f th e C h u r c h , a n d a n c ie n t m y th s a r e
u se o f th e w o rd " m y t h s " a n d " m y th o lo g i e s " w h e n tre a tin g f o u n d t o lie a t t h e o r i g i n o f c e r t a i n h a g i o g r a p h i e l e g e n d s . F o r
o f th e M id d le A g e s . e x a m p l e , th e le g e n d o f S a in t Ju lia n th e H o s p ita b le s e e m s to

198
 THE M E D I E V A L WE S T AND " MY T HI C T H O U G H T"

r e p r o d u c e t h e m y t h o f O e d i p u s ( p a g e 2 6 9 ) . It i s t r u e t h a t t h e
s a m e m ig h t b e s a id o f th e a p o c r y p h a l le g e n d o f J u d a s , w h o
w a s n e v e r — f a r f r o m it— a s s i m i l a t e d t o a s a i n t ; b u t S a i n t y v e s
n e v e r e x p l a i n s t h i s c o n t r a d i c t i o n in h i s t h e s i s . H i s h y p o t h e ­
se s n e v e rth e le ss have th e m e rit o f b e in g a p p lie d to lo n g
p e rio d s o f tim e , n e c e s s a r y in th e s tu d y o f n a rra tiv e tra d i­
tio n s , a n d o f ta k in g acco u n t of an im p o rta n t p a rt o f th e
c u ltu ra l h e rita g e fro m w h ic h C h ris tia n ity p ro g re s s iv e ly
a r o s e . B u t th e s e m e rits s h o u ld n o t o b s c u r e th e fa ct th a t th e
fu n c tio n o f th e s a in ts w h o i n te r c e d e d w ith G o d w a s , s im p ly
b e c a u s e o f th e c e n tr a l p r e s e n c e o f G o d , ra d ic a lly d iffe re n t
fro m th a t o f th e p a g a n g o d s .
On th e o th e r hand, D o n t e n v i l l e 's r e c o n s titu tio n of a
" F r e n c h m y th o lo g y " b e a rs th e s ta m p o f th e " C e ltic s c h o o l " :
th is is o r g a n i z e d a r o u n d th e " m y t h i c " g ia n t G a r g a n t u a , to
w hom a re c o n n e cte d th e g r e a t le g e n d a r y c h a r a c te r s o f th e
M id d le A g e s — M e rlin , M o rg an Le Fay, K in g A rth u r, th e
serp en t w o m an M é lu sin e , th e h o rse B a y a rd , T arasca, etc.
O n e m a y w o n d e r a b o u t th e v a lid ity o f a m e th o d w h ic h r e s ts
m o re on p h o n e tic a n a lo g ie s th a n on a g e n u in e s c ie n tific
e t y m o l o g y . E l s e w h e r e , t h o u g h it is t r u e t h a t t h e s e n a r r a t i v e
tra d itio n s w e r e q u ite w id e s p re a d , it i s d o u b t f u l th a t th e y
o p e r a t e d o n a " n a t i o n a l " o r e v e n a p a n - E u r o p e a n s c a l e : it is
l ik e l y t h a t n o n a r r a t o r , l e t a l o n e a n y l i s t e n e r , w a s e v e r a w a r e
th a t G a r g a n tu a c o u ld h a v e b een co n n e cte d b o th to M o u n t
G a r g a n in I t a l y a n d t o M o n t S a i n t - M i c h e l in N o r m a n d y . T h e
p e r s p e c tiv e th a t tim e a n d th e s c h o la r ly w o r k o f R a b e la is o f fe r
to th e m o d e r n C e ltic is t s h o u ld n o t m a k e h im f o rg e t th a t th e
s o c ia l c o n t e x t in w h ic h t h e s e f o lk lo ric t r a d it i o n s f u n c t i o n e d
w as c e rta in ly m uch n a rro w e r. O ur o p in io n is th a t th is
fr a m e w o r k s h o u ld b e b r o u g h t b a c k to th e s c a le o f v illa g e o r
u rb a n c o m m u n itie s , o r e v e n to lin e a g e s s u c h a s th a t o f th e
L u sig n a n s , w ho e x p la in th e ir o r ig in s by re fe re n ce to th e
le g e n d o f M é lu sin e .
A seco n d m e th o d o lo g y te n d s to re s e rv e th e e x p r e s s io n
" C h r is tia n m y th o lo g y " s o le ly fo r th o s e m e d ie v a l n a rra tiv e
tr a d itio n s th a t w e r e c o n c e r n e d w ith th e w o rld b e y o n d . T h is
is t h e i m p l i c i t p r o c e d u r e f o l l o w e d b y S a b i n e B a r i n g - G o u l d in
h is Curious Myths of the Middle Ages ( 1 8 6 6 - 8 8 ) , a n d e s p e c i a l l y
Myths, Legends and Supersti­
b y A r t u r o G r a f in h i s g r e a t b o o k
tions of the Middle Ages (1 8 9 2 ): m y th s , a n d n o t m e re le g e n d s ,
w e r e t h o s e a c c o u n t s w h i c h , in t h e t w e l f t h c e n t u r y , p l a c e d in Paris, Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal. Photo Giraiidon.
th e E a s t th e e a r t h ly P a r a d is e to w h ic h S e th , th e s o n o f A d a m ,
w e n t to a s k in v a in fo r h is f a t h e r 's p ard o n . In th e sam e
p e r io d , o t h e r " m y t h s " r e la te th a t M o r g a n L e F a y c a r r ie d th e th re e great fo rm s o f th e m e d ie v a l u to p ia . A n o th e r is t h e
w o u n d e d A r t h u r t o t h e I s le o f F o r t u n e ( a c c o r d i n g t o G e o f f r e y p u r s u it o f th e a n c ie n t u to p ia n t r a d itio n s , w h ic h c o n t in u e to
o f M o n m o u t h ) ; if w e a r e t o b e l i e v e G e r v a s e o f T i l b u r y , t h i s b e k n o w n in l i t e r a t e c i r c l e s ; t h e t h i r d , b y c o n t r a s t , is " p o p ­
A r t h u r i a n c o u r t w a s in S i c i l y in t h e d e p t h s o f M o u n t E t n a , u l a r ," and re p re s e n ts th e m e d ie v a l v e rsio n o f th e G o ld e n
w h e re p u r g a to r y w a s lo c a te d . A g e . T h i s is p u s h e d b a c k i n t o a p a s t t h a t is n e v e r a s d i s t a n t
G raf s e e s a co n n e ctio n b e tw e e n th e s e r e p r e s e n ta tio n s o f a s t h a t o f t h e e a r t h l y P a r a d i s e b e f o r e t h e f a l l, a n d is g e n e r a l l y
th e w o r ld b e y o n d , w h ic h is n e v e r t h e l e s s lo c a te d o n e a rth , c o n n e cte d w ith th e n am e of a m o re or le s s le g e n d a ry
a n d th e " m y t h " o f th e la n d o f C o c k a ig n e . C o c k a ig n e is a l s o s a in t-k in g w h ose re ig n re m a in s th e sym b ol of p eace and
s itu a te d o n e a r t h , b u t it is m a d e f o r t h e l i v i n g , f o r p e o p l e o p u le n ce . C o c k a i g n e is t h u s t h e e x p r e s s i o n n e i th e r o f th e
w h o e n j o y g o o d l i v i n g , in f a c t , s i n c e it s p a r e s i t s i n h a b i t a n t s m o s t s c h o l a r l y c u l t u r e n o r o f f o l k l o r i c c u l t u r e ; it is a s s o c i a t e d
f r o m e a t i n g t h e o v e r l y d e l i c a t e f o o d o f p a r a d i s e , " w h e r e it is w ith th e i n te r m e d i a t e m ilie u o f G o l ia r d s a n d s t u d e n t s , w h o
p ro h ib ite d to eat a n y th in g o th e r th an fr u its or to d rin k w e r e a w a r e o f b o th v illa g e t r a d itio n s a n d th e L a tin c u l t u r e o f
a n y th in g o th e r th an w a te r ," a c c o rd in g to a fo u r te e n th - t h e c l e r g y . It e x p r e s s e s t h e u t o p i a o f a w o r l d i n w h i c h , t h a n k s
ce n tu ry G e rm a n poem . C o c k a ig n e — w h o s e nam e evokes to th e fo u n ta in o f y o u th t h a t is a t t h e c e n t e r o f t h i s l a n d ,
c a k e s (th e G e rm a n Kuchen o r th e E n g lish cake h a v e th e s a m e s e n s u a l p le a s u re a n d y o u th a r e p e rp e tu a lly r e n e w e d .
r o o t ) — is t h e w o r l d o f t h e c a r n i v a l i n v e r s i o n o f r u l e s a b o u t W e m u s t d i s p u t e G r a f 's u s e o f t h e w o r d " m y th ," b u t w e
e a tin g a n d o f th e C h u r c h c a le n d a r , s ig n ify in g th e d e fin itiv e s h o u ld r e c o g n iz e th a t th e a u t h o r d id n o t d e v o te h im s e lf to
triu m p h of "C a rn a g e " over " L e n t ." Thus Lent is o n ly th e tra d itio n a l q u est fo r " o r ig i n s ." On th e co n tra ry , he
o b se rv e d on ce ev ery tw e n ty y ears, w h ile th e f e s tiv a l of grou n d ed h is r e s e a r c h in h i s t o r y , d e m o n s t r a t i n g — w i t h re ­
E a s t e r is r e p e a t e d f o u r t im e s e a c h y e a r ! A s F r a n tiS e k G r a u s gard to th e im a g e of th e d e v il, fo r e x a m p le — h o w th e se
(1 9 6 7 ) h a s s h o w n s o w e ll, C o c k a ig n e , e s s e n tia lly c o n c e iv e d re p re s e n ta tio n s a re th e p ro d u ct of a c o n s ta n tly e v o lv in g
a s a v i l l a g e r e g i o n o r , l e s s o f t e n , a s a m a n o r , is o n e o f t h e s o c i e t y , a n d a r e n o t r e d u c i b l e t o " o r i g i n s " c o n t a i n i n g a ll o f

199
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

their future developments in advance. If, however, he seems of myths has constituted one of the most dynamic branches
to have sensed the need for a typology of narrative genres, of research in the human sciences for at least thirty years.
he was never explicit about it; if he distinguished “myths" Myth defines itself at the heart of a structured narrative
from "legends," he never really gave his reasons for doing system according to its own logic, constituting the sole form
so. He assimilated utopia into myth, which, as we shall see, of articulation and reception for the essential truths of a
is unjustifiable. given society: myth tells what is known about the world, the
The word "m yth" is also employed by historians of cosmos, human society, animals, and gods. The logic of
medieval heresy when they speak of a "Cathar myth." Here myth is that of "savage thought," which keeps reorganizing
the observer is presented with a body of structured and the same elements ("m ythemes") according to symbolic
apparently autonomous beliefs (some have even spoken of codes of affinities, in the same way, according to Lévi-
"another religion" rather than a heresy, which is merely a Strauss, that a bricoleur (a kind of professional scrap collector
deviation from Christianity) which express essential truths and fix-it man) assembles given materials already at hand.
about the origin of the world, of evil, of man, and about the Furthermore, myth, as opposed to legend, does not claim to
fate of the soul after death. The principal theme of this be the account of a historical tradition; nor does it express, as
"Cathar myth," such as it appeared in the south of France opposed to a utopia, an aspiration for a different society: on
and in northern Italy from the twelfth to the fourteenth this subject, the reader may refer to Pierre Vidal-Naquet's
centuries, is the rivalry between the two principles of Good pertinent remarks. We should also note, along with Jean-
(God) and Evil (Satan). This opposition underlies the story of Pierre Vernant, that mythic thought, which is the totality of
the origin of souls: by means of the charms of his creature, the thinking of a society at a given moment of its historical
Woman, Satan succeeds in seducing the majority of the development, may yield its place to another kind of thinking,
spirits of God, who leave Paradise through a hole. When the as occurred in ancient Greece, when political reason and
Father notices what is happening, he puts his foot over the philosophy came to birth at the same time as the polis.
hole, but in vain; it is too late and nearly all of the spirits have These definitions seem to exclude from the outset any
gone away. These spirits, however, in the presence of Satan, evocation of a medieval "Christian mythology." In fact, the
remain nostalgic for the celestial glory they once knew. To essential verities of medieval Christianity were uttered not
make them forget it, Satan gives them a carnal envelope, the by the voice of myth but by the Book, which reproduces the
body, which is thus a creation of Evil; upon the death of the revealed and immutable Word of a unique God and is
body, the soul leaves it and goes to dwell within another interpreted by the clergy. Far from engaging in a discussion
body, that of an animal or a man. This transmigration of that was closed on itself and founded on combinations of
souls is the only hell that exists, and here too it is situated on ever-repeated images, the clergy found, in the very distance
earth. When a soul eventually enters the body of a Cathar they placed between their reason and the Word of God, the
Perfectus, it is assured its salvation, for the death of this man possibility of a continuous transcendence of their thought.
will allow it to return to the Father. And when all of the souls As faith in quest of understanding (fides quaerens intellectum),
have returned to God, it will be the end of the world. and as a refusal to take pleasure in the play of oppositions or
Legends were grafted upon this basic narrative, and those in the opposing will to reduce all contradictions (the meaning
concerned with the migration of souls play an important of Abelard's Sic et Non), theological reason excludes myth.
role. One of these relates that a Perfectus found in a ravine a
horseshoe that he had lost in that very spot when he was
previously a horse. All of these accounts have multiple
functions: they offer an explanation for the history of the Paris, Bibliothèque des Beaux-Arts. Photo Giraudon.
world, from its beginning to the end of time, and a unified
representation of this world and the world beyond. At the
same time, they justify the internal divisions between the
heretical groups, between Perfecti and Believers, and the
alimentary and sexual taboos of the Cathars, for whom all
that concerns the flesh is diabolical. This group of narratives,
organized into a coherent whole, does resemble what might
be understood as a "mythology." But first the illusion of its
autonomy must be dissipated: Like orthodoxy, this body of
narratives was constituted out of an interpretation of the
Scriptures. Furthermore, it would be a mistake not to see it as
a complete theology, seeking, through the same rational
avenues as does the theology of the Church, arguments it
might use to counter the Church. Under these conditions, is
it legitimate to speak of "m yths"?
Although historians of medieval Christianity have not
hesitated to use the words "m yths" and "mythologies," they
have given them widely varying contents. Beyond these
divergences there is the basic question of whether it is
legitimate to speak of "m yths" with reference to medieval
Christianity, regardless of the particular meanings one might
give the word. This question demands that the word be
given as clear a definition as possible, to ensure its applica­
bility to the Middle Ages. The clarification demanded of the
medievalist is all the more urgent for the fact that the analysis

200
 T H E M E D I E V A L W E S T A N D " M Y T H I C T H O U G H T"

O f c o u r s e , m e d ie v a l C h r is tia n ity d id in h e r it m y th s , s ta r t ­ th ir te e n th to th e f ifte e n th c e n t u r i e s th a t e a s ily s lip p e d in to

in g w ith th e S e m itic m y th s o f G e n e s is , th e F lo o d , e t c ., w h ic h h e r e s y (S p ir itu a ls a n d B e g u in e s , H u s s it e s , e t c .) . T h e r e w a s a
t h e B i b l e h a d b e q u e a t h e d t o i t. D e p o s i t e d a s t h e y w e r e in t h e con seq u en t p re ssu re f o r f o lk lo ric d e p i c t i o n s , soon a ssim i­
B ib le , h o w e v e r , a n d sp read and e x p la in e d b y th e C h u rc h , la te d by th e c le rg y , w h ic h A . G r a f c a lls " m y t h s ." Ja c q u e s
th e s e m y th s w ere n o t l iv e d as such : th e y c o n s titu te d th e L eG o ff h as sh o w n th a t fro m th e tw e lfth c e n tu ry o n w a rd ,
historia p a r e x c e lle n c e , sacred H is to ry , and M oses, as th e under p re ssu re fro m f o lk c u ltu re , th e C h ris tia n a fte rlife
D o m in ic a n V in ce n t de B e a u v a is s ta te d in th e th irte e n th b e c a m e d e f i n i t i v e l y o r g a n i z e d , a n d p u r g a t o r y t o o k i ts p l a c e
c e n tu r y , " w a s th e first a m o n g u s to w r ite th e h is to r y o f th e b e tw e e n h e ll a n d p a r a d is e . A n a n a lo g o u s d e fic ie n c y c o u ld
b e g in n in g o f th e w o r ld " ( Speculum Doctrinale 3 .1 2 7 ) . W h a t a l s o b e f o u n d in t h e c a s e o f t h e f i g u r e o f t h e d e v i l ; t o b e s u r e ,
h a s e l s e w h e r e b e e n s ta t e d b y m y th is n o w a t t e s t e d t o b y th e S a t a n is p r e s e n t in t h e N e w T e s ta m e n t, w h e r e h e c o m e s to
h isto ria n . te m p t C h r is t h im s e lf; a n d a n tiq u ity a ls o h a d its d e m o n s . B u t
Historia, w h ic h e n u m e ra te s in c h r o n o l o g i c a l o r d e r t h o s e it i s o n l y w i t h t h e h i g h M i d d l e A g e s t h a t t h e d e v i l b e c o m e s
e v e n t s w h ic h in f a c t to o k p l a c e (res factae, res gestae), is s e t e v e r -p re s e n t, o b se ssiv e , and ty ra n n ic a l, w h ic h h ad never
a g a in s t fabulae, th e a r tif ic e s o f l a n g u a g e — th a t is, a c c o r d in g to p r e v i o u s l y b e e n t h e c a s e . It s h o u l d b e f u r t h e r n o t e d t h a t o n e
S a in t A u g u s tin e , a g a in s t th e m y th s of pagan a n tiq u ity o f t h e r e a s o n s f o r t h i s m e d i e v a l d i a b o l i c a l p r o l i f e r a t i o n is t h e
(k n o w n to th e a u th o rs of th e M id d le A ges th ro u g h th e a t tr ib u tio n , f ro m th e tim e o f C h r is tia n a n tiq u ity , o f a d e m o n ic
m y t h o g r a p h e r s o f l a te a n tiq u ity , e s p e c i a ll y th r o u g h t h e M y - ch a ra cte r to c e r ta in pagan d iv in itie s . It m ust be c le a rly
thologiae o f F u lg e n tiu s ), a g a in s t e n t e r ta i n in g fa b le s ( th o s e o f r e c o g n iz e d , S a in ty v e s to th e c o n tr a r y , th a t th e d e v il to o , a n d
A e s o p a b o v e a ll), a n d a g a i n s t th e f a ls e b e lie fs o f t h e M a n - n o t o n ly th e s a in ts , s u c c e e d e d th e g o d s .
i c h e a n s ( Contra Faustum Manichaeum, ed. M ig n e , Patrologia I n v e r s e l y , w h a t w a s t h e e f f e c t o f C h r i s t i a n i z a t i o n o n f o lk
Latina, v o l. 4 2 , c o l. 3 7 4 ). H e r e w e c a n s e e ju s t h o w m u c h th e c u l t u r e ? C l e r i c a l c u l t u r e w a s n o t c o n t e n t w i t h v u l g a r i z i n g i ts
" C a t h a r m y t h s " o f t h e m o d e r n h i s t o r i a n s a r e in f a c t i n h e r i t e d t o p i c s , b a p t i z i n g l e g e n d s , a n d i n f o r m i n g t r a d i t i o n a l r i t e s . It
fro m th e c le ric a l tr a d itio n o f th e M id d le A g e s . T h u s , n o t o n ly h ad e s p e c ia lly d isp o s se s se d f o lk c u l t u r e o f i t s p r e e m i n e n t
is it im p o s s ib le to a s s im ila te m e d ie v a l C h ris tia n ity to a k n o w le d g e : k n o w le d g e o f th e o t h e r w o rld , a n e a r fo r s u p e r ­
" C h r i s t i a n m y th o lo g y ," b u t m e d i e v a l C h r is t ia n i ty its e lf to o k n a tu r a l b e in g s , a n d th e in te r p r e t a t io n o f v is io n s , th e c o n tr o l
i t s d i s t a n c e f r o m a ll t h e a c c o u n t s t h a t it p e r c e i v e d a s m y t h s o f w h ic h th e c le r g y m e a n t to re se rv e fo r its e lf a lo n e . T h e
(fabulae ) in o r d e r t o p a s s j u d g m e n t o n t h e m . c o n s titu tio n o f a " w h it e m a g ic " d o m e s tic a te d b y th e C h u r c h
M e d ie v a l C h ris tia n ity is not to be id e n tif ie d , h ow ever, and th e in c r e a s in g re p re s s io n o f a ll f o lk d e m o n o l o g y fo l­
w ith th e r e lig io n o f t h e c le r g y a l o n e . T h e c le r g y d e s i g n a t e d a s lo w e d th e s a m e p a tte r n .
fabulae th e o ra l tra d itio n s o f th e illiterali, t h a t i s , a ll p e r s o n s — U n d e r t h e s e c o n d i t i o n s , it is d i f f i c u l t t o s e e h o w m e d i e v a l
lo n g in c lu d in g th e la y m e m b e r s o f th e a r is to c r a c y — w h o h a d fo lk lo re c o u ld have spoken th ro u g h m y th s , fo r it is th e
n o a c c e s s t o w r i t i n g , t o t h e L a t i n l a n g u a g e , in a w o r d , t o t h e fu n ctio n o f m y th s to c o n s titu te and tra n s m it s u c h k n o w l­
c u l t u r e o f t h e c l e r g y . Is it a p p r o p r i a t e , a t l e a s t a t t h i s l e v e l , e d g e . S in c e th is fu n c tio n w a s m o n o p o liz e d b y th e C h u r c h ,
w h i c h b y c o n v e n t i o n w e c a ll f o l k l o r i c , t o s p e a k o f " m y t h o l ­ th e c le r g y c o u ld n o lo n g e r s p e a k o f m y th s , fo r th e ir e ffo rts
o g y " an d "m y th s "? t e n d e d in t h e o p p o s i t e d i r e c t i o n , t o w a r d a r a t i o n a l e x p l a n a ­
H i s t o r i c a l l y , it i s t r u e , t h e r o o t s o f m e d i e v a l f o l k l o r e a r e t o tio n o f th e W o r d o f G o d .
b e f o u n d in a p r e - C h r i s ti a n p a s t , w h ic h a t t h a t tim e h a d u n til F o lk lo r e , t h e n , w a s le ft w ith th e o t h e r n a r r a tiv e g e n r e s ,
q u ite re c e n tly been on th e frin g e s o f C h ris tia n ity fo r th e w h ic h , th o u g h fa r fro m n e g l i g i b l e in i m p o r t a n c e a n d fu n c­
S la v ic, S c a n d in a v ia n , C e ltic , a n d G e rm a n ic p o p u la tio n s w h o tio n , d o not go to th e h e a rt o f th e m a tte r a s m y th does.
had ju st b e e n C h ris tia n iz e d or w ere b e in g C h ris tia n iz e d . S p e c i a l i s t s in t h e s t u d y o f p o p u l a r n a r r a t i v e g e n r e s s t r o v e t o
T h is pagan p ast w as m o re c o m p le x in th e case o f G a u l, g iv e th e m d e fin itio n s , w h ic h w ere s o m e tim e s to o rig id :
w h ere R o m a n iz a tio n had p reced ed C h ris tia n iz a tio n . But f o lk ta le , w hose fu n ctio n is to o ffe r a "n a iv e e th ic s " (A .
h e r e th e c o lla p s e o f th e s o c ia l s tr u c tu r e s o f th e L a te E m p ir e Jo lie s ); le g e n d , w h ic h has a fa m ilia l th e m a tiz a tio n and is
m a y h a v e f a v o r e d a C e ltic " r e v i v a l " w ith w h ic h C h r is tia n ity , a n ch o re d to a p a r tic u la r t o p o g r a p h y a n d h is to ry (H . B a u s -
s till n o t f i r m l y e s t a b l i s h e d , w o u l d h a v e f o u n d i t s e l f i n b r u t a l in g e r ), e tc . T h e s e n a r r a tiv e g e n r e s w e r e a llo w e d to d e v e lo p
c o n f r o n ta tio n . W h a te v e r th e case, f o lk lo ric cu ltu re is not f r e e l y , a n d it is t h e y r a t h e r t h a n m y t h s t h a t a r e r e v e a l e d t o u s
r e d u c i b l e t o t h e s e " o r i g i n s " : it w a s p e r p e t u a l l y t a k i n g s h a p e in t h e w r i t t e n d o c u m e n t s o f t h e M i d d l e A g e s .
a n d t r a n s f o r m i n g i t s e l f in s y m b i o s i s w i t h t h e s c h o l a r l y c u l ­ At th e sam e tim e , a lth o u g h we s h o u ld not speak of
t u r e o f t h e c l e r g y ; it b e c a m e C h r i s t i a n i z e d e v e n a s it f o l k l o r - " m y th o lo g y " or of " m y th s " in th is c o n n e ctio n , we m ay
i z e d o f f ic i a l C h r i s t i a n i t y . p e r h a p s fin d "m y th ic th o u g h t" in t h e s e fo lk ta le s a n d le g ­
T h e s e re c ip r o c a l b o r r o w in g s w e r e n o t, h o w e v e r , th e p r o d ­ en d s. The o r ig in a lity o f m e d ie v a l f o lk c u l t u r e re s id e s not
u c t s o f c h a n c e ; n o r w e r e t h e y a t a ll s y m m e t r i c a l . W e k n o w o n l y in i t s c o n t e n t s b u t a l s o i n t h e w a y it h a s o r g a n i z e d t h o s e
t h a t h a g i o g r a p h y b o r r o w e d h e a v i l y f r o m f o l k l o r i c l e g e n d s . In co n te n ts . C u rre n t s tu d ie s on th e n a r r a tiv e tra d itio n s of
t h e s a m e w a y , e v e n if t h e C h u r c h h a d a d e f i n i t e v i e w o f t h e m e d i e v a l f o l k l o r e a ll s h o w t h a t t h i s f o l k l o r e o p e r a t e d a c c o r d ­
C re a tio n a n d o f t h e o r i g i n o f t i m e , it w a s l e s s c o m f o r t a b l e in g to a lo g ic t h a t w a s d if f e r e n t fro m th e th e o lo g ic a l r e a s o n ­
a b o u t c o n c r e te d e s c r ip tio n s o f th e la st th in g s : h e re th e r e w a s in g o f th e c le r g y , a t le a s t o f th e m o s t s c h o la r ly f ra c tio n o f th e
a c e r ta i n d e f i c i e n c y o r a t l e a s t a p e r c e p t i b le rift b e t w e e n th e c le rg y . T h e s tr u c tu r a l t r a n s f o r m a t io n s re v e a le d b y th e v a r i ­
a c c o u n t o f G e n e s i s , w h i c h w a s r e a l i s t i c b u t s e t in t h e p a s t , a n t s o f a s i n g l e a c c o u n t a l s o a l l o w u s t o s p e a k h e r e , l ik e t h e
a n d th e e s c h a to lo g ic a l s y m b o lis m o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e , s e t in e t h n o l o g i s t s , o f " s a v a g e t h o u g h t " a n d , l ik e t h e h i s t o r i a n s o f
t h e f u t u r e . T h u s it w a s p a r t i c u l a r l y w i t h reg ard to th e la st a n c i e n t G r e e c e , o f " m y t h i c t h o u g h t . " It is i n t h i s s e n s e , w e
th in g s th a t a need w as fe lt to c o m p l e t e and re n d e r m o re b e lie v e , th a t m e d ie v a l s tu d ie s c a n a n d s h o u ld ta k e th e ir p la c e
c o n c r e te th e b e lie fs a n d even th e dogm a of th e C h u rch : in th e now open f i e ld o f th e a n a ly s is o f m y th s a n d oral
w h ence th e s u c c e s s o f th e re s u ltin g c o m m e n ta r ie s o n th e tra d itio n s .
A p o ca ly p se , e lu c id a tio n s th a t w ere s ch o la rly but w h ic h , T h e p r u d e n t p o s i t i o n w e a r e a d o p t i n g is a l s o d i c t a t e d b y
q u ic k ly v u l g a r iz e d , fu e le d a p o p u l a r m i lle n n ia lis m fro m th e th e s ta t e o f th e d o c u m e n ts w ith w h ic h w e a r e c o n s t r a i n e d to

201
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

w o r k : it is o n th e lo c a l s c a le , a s w e h a v e s h o w n , th a t o n e 4. Ancient mythology in the scholarly culture of the Middle Ages:

m ust re c o n s titu te th e n a rra tiv e s y s te m of a th irte e n th - ). SEZNEC, La survivance des dieux antiques: Essai sur le rôle de la tradition
ce n tu ry v illa g e c o m m u n ity , fo r e x a m p le . B u t th ro u g h th e mythologique dans l'hymanisme et dans l’art de la Renaissance (Paris
w r itte n te x ts of th e s ch o la rly c u ltu re we can grasp o n ly
1939). a . RENAUDET, Dante humaniste (Paris 1952). f . saxl and
e. PANOFSKY, Classical Mythology in Medieval Art (New York 1933).
d is p e rs e d s h r e d s o f o ra l tra d itio n s , re s c u e d fro m o b liv io n b y
5. Mythology and folklore: n . belmont. Mythes et croyances dans
th e z e a l o f a n in q u isito r o r th e c u r io s ity o f a n " in te lle c tu a l" o f
l'Ancienne France (Paris 1973), which is justly critical of h . dontenville ,
th e M id d le A g e s . W e a re a lso u n a b le to r e s to re n a rra tiv e La mythologie française (Paris 1948). The opposite is true in the case of
s y s t e m s , a n d w i t h o u t t h e m it is d i f f i c u l t t o s p e a k o f " m y t h o l ­ the Tarasque: l . dumont, La Tarasque: Essai de description d'un fait local
o g y " a n d " m y t h s " ; D o n t e n v i l l e ' s a t t e m p t i s t o o a m b i t i o u s in d'un point de vue ethnographique (Paris 1951).
its g e o g r a p h i c a l s c o p e to b e c o n v in cin g . H o w e v e r, s o i .ie - 6. Hagiography and "mythology": p . saintyves . Les saints success­
tim e s th e d o c u m e n ta tio n s e e m s m o r e f a v o ra b le : u s in g th e eurs des dieux: Essais de mythologie chrétienne, 1 (Paris 1907); En marge
in q u is itio n r e g is te r o f J a c q u e s F o u r n ie r , b i s h o p o f P a m ie r s , de la Légende Dorée. Songes, miracles et survivances. Essai sur la formation
de quelques thèmes hagiographiques (Paris 1931). Suggestive in a differ­
E m m a n u e l L e R o y L a d u r i e r e c e n t l y b r o u g h t b a c k t o lif e a n
ent way: b. de gaiffier , "Mentalité de l'hagiographe médiéval d'après
e n t i r e v i l l a g e c o m m u n i t y o f t h e u p p e r A r i è g e in t h e e a r l y
quelques travaux récents," Analecta Bollandiana 86 (1968): 391 -99. See
fo u r te e n th c e n tu ry . T h is case is a p e cu lia r one in m any
especially: F. craus , Volk, Herrscher und Heiliger im Reich der Merow­
r e g a r d s : a t M o n ta illo u , th e C a th a r h e r e s y h a d , s o to s p e a k , inger (Prague 1965). |. le co ff , "Culture cléricale et traditions folklor­
r e s to re d to th e la ity th e k n o w l e d g e o f th e e s s e n t ia l t r u th s , iques dans la civilisation mérovingienne," Niveaux de culture et
and th e " C a t h a r m y th ," u n lik e th e in te r p r e ta tio n s o f th e groupes sociaux (Paris 1968), 21-32; "Culture ecclésiastique et culture
P e r f e c t i in t h e t w e l f t h c e n t u r y , w h o w e r e s o w e l l v e r s e d in folklorique au Moyen Age: Saint Marcel de Paris et le dragon,"
th e o lo g ic a l d e b a te s , h a d been r e in te rp re te d in t h e l i g h t o f Ricerche storiche ed economiche in memoria di Corrado Barbagallo (Naples
lo c a l fo lk lo re a n d in s e r t e d i n to t h e n a r r a t iv e t r a d it i o n s o f th e
1970), 2:53-90.
v i l l a g e . In t h i s w a y , t h e r e s p e c t t h a t t h e P e r f e c t u s o f t h e t i m e
7. The world beyond and utopias: a . graf. Miti, Leggende et
superstizioni nel Medio Evo (Turin 1892); II diavolo (Milan 1889).
i n s p i r e s in t h e s i m p l e B e l i e v e r is c o m p o u n d e d b y t h e a t t r a c ­
s. BARJNG-GOULD, Curious Myths of the Middle Ages (New Hyde Park and
t i v e n e s s o f h i s e t e r n a l w o r d , f o r h e k n o w s a ll a b o u t G o o d New York 1866-88). a . maury . Croyances et légendes du Moyen Age
a n d E v il, th e C r e a tio n a n d th e e n d o f th e w o r ld , a n d th e fa te s (Paris 1896). c. g . loomis. White Magic: An Introduction to the Folklore of
o f th e s o u l s o f d e c e a s e d f a m ily m e m b e r s w h o , in t h e r a v in e s Christian Legends (Cambridge, MA, 1948). f . craus , "Social Utopias in
c l o s e t o t h e v i l l a g e s , s e a r c h f o r a b o d y t o e n t e r . H e k n o w s a ll the Middle Ages," Past and Present 38 (1967). |. le co ff , The Birth of
about th e s o c ia l o r d e r , to o . In th e b e g in n in g w as in c e s t: Purgatory, trans. Arthur Goldhammer (Chicago 1984). Finally, on the
b r o th e r s a n d s is te r s m a r r ie d fre e ly . T o d a y , o n th e c o n tr a r y , millenarian movements of the low Middle Ages: n . conn . The Pursuit
th e v illa g e is a c o lle c tio n o f n e i g h b o r i n g “domus," f a m i l ia l
of the Millennium (London 1957). And especially: b. topfer . Das
kommende Reich des Friedens: Zur Entwicklung chiliastischer Zukunftsho­
grou p s w h ic h are at once riv a ls and re la tiv e s s in c e th e y
ffnungen im Hoch mittelalter (Berlin 1964).
p ra c tic e th e e x c h a n g e o f w o m e n b e tw e e n th e m . T h e m a r­
8. On the "Cathar myth": a . borst. Die Katharer (Stuttgart 1963),
ria g e o f d o w r ie d g irls t h r e a te n s th e m a te ria l e q u ilib riu m o f also in French. Cathares en Languedoc, Les Cahiers de Fanjeaux 3
each "domus." It c r e a t e s a p e r m a n e n t d a n g e r a n d in sp ire s (Toulouse 1968). e . le roy ladurie , Montaillou, village occitan de 1294 à
n o s ta lg ia fo r a b y g o n e d a y w h e n g irls w e r e n o t e x p e c t e d to 1324 (Paris 1975).
le a v e th e ir h o m e s , a n d g a v e th e m s e l v e s to th e ir b r o t h e r s . B u t 9. Folklore and oral traditions in historical studies today: besides
th a t p rim o rd ia l in c e s t s e t b r o th e r a g a in s t b ro th e r, a n d h a d to the above cited studies by J. Le Goff, see: |. le goff and e . le roy
b e p u t to a n e n d : b y im p o s in g e x o g a m y a n d m a r r ia g e , th e ladurie , "Mélusine maternelle et défricheuse," Annales E.S.C., 1971,
C h u rch in s titu te d th e p r e s e n t s o c ia l o r d e r , w h ic h , fo r th e
587-622. |. le goff and p. vidal -naquet , "Lévi-Strauss en Brocél-
iande," Critique 326 (June 1974): 541-71. |. c. schmitt, "Religion
sake of p eace, s a c rifice s th e s e p e a sa n ts' id e a l of s e lf-
populaire et culture folklorique. A propos d'une réédition: La piété
s u f fic ie n c y . O n e w o u ld l ik e t o f i n d o t h e r v e r s i o n s o f t h i s
populaire au Moyen Age d'Etienne Delaruelle," Annales E.S.C.,
a c c o u n t , s o a s t o c o m p a r e it w i t h a l l o f t h e p a r a l l e l a c c o u n t s 1976, 5. On the particular relations between folklore and learned
th a t m u s t h a v e b e e n c ir c u la tin g a t th a t tim e . O n e m a y a t le a s t literature in the vernacular: e . kohler . L'aventure chevaleresque: Idéal et
a sk a q u e stio n : o n th e in n e r f rin g e s o f C h r is tia n ity , w h e r e réalité dans le roman courtois, French trans. (Paris 1974). Outside the
fo lk lo re a n d h e r e s y w e r e in te r m i n g l e d a n d t h e a s c e n d a n c y o f period and in a different context see also: c. ginzburg , II formaggio e i
th e C h u rch w as le s s s tro n g , is it not p o s sib le th a t th e vermi (Turin 1976). m . bakhtin , Rabelais and His World (Cambridge,
m e d ie v a l W e st a ls o k n e w m y th ? MA, 1968), trans, from Russian.
J .- C .S ./ d .w .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. For a general introduction to the history of medieval Christian­

ity: |. le c.oFF, La civilisation de l'Occident médiéval (Paris 1964). K. T h e S u r v iv a l o f th e A n cien t G o d s in th e
Thomas , Religion and the Decline of Magic: Studies in Popular Beließ in M id d le A g es a n d th e R en aissan c e
Sixteenth and Seventeenth Century England (London 1971); all of part 1
concerns the Middle Ages.
2. On the theoretical problems posed by the analysis of myths: c l .
lévi-strauss , The Savage Mind (Chicago 1966). j.-r. vernant . Mythe et
I. The Middle Ages
société en Grèce ancienne (Paris 1974), especially 195-250, "Raisons du B efo re in q u irin g how m y th o lo g y w as in te rp re te d in th e
mythe"; Les origines de la pensée grecque (Paris 1969). p. vidal -naquet , M i d d l e A g e s , w e s h o u l d r e m e m b e r t h a t it h a d s u r v i v e d o n
"Esclavage et gynécocratie dans la tradition, le mythe, l'utopie," d if f e r e n t l e v e ls , m a in ly in f o lk lo re . It w a s a m o n g th e pagani,
Recherches sur les structures sociales dans l'Antiquité classique (Paris
in ru ral a re a s , th a t p o ly th e ism had m o s t te n a c io u s ly p er­
1970), 63-80.
s is te d . W ith th e a d v e n t o f C h ris tia n ity , th e c u lt o f s y lv a n s
3. On narrative genres: a . io lles . Einfache Formen: Legende, Sage,
Mythe, Rätsel, Spruch, Kasus, Memorabile, Märchen, Witz (Tübingen and n y m p h s w a s n o t a n n ih ila te d a lo n g w ith th e te m p le s
1930). h . BAUSINCER, Formen der Volkspoesie (Berlin 1968). k n o c k e d d o w n b y t h e f i r s t a p o s t l e s in G a u l . " I m m u t a b l e a t

202
 THE S U R V I V A L OF THE A N C I E N T G OD S

the depths of rivers, in the eternal twilight of forests, the

spirit of the old days lived on.” Regarding this tenacity we
have the testimony of the capitularies and the councils who
up to the Carolingian period denounced superstitious prac­
tices and condemned as sacrilegious those who continued to
light flares and fires near trees, rocks, and fountains. Their
anathemas remained powerless. Gregory the Great had
already recognized the impossibility of extirpating the layers
of beliefs rooted "in such stubborn minds"; the only way to
fight superstition was to assign the pagan vestiges to the new
cult, to put pious images on trees, to carve crosses on
menhirs, to place fountains under the invocation of the
Virgin—in a word, to cover the ancient venerations with a
cloak of orthodoxy. Indeed, strange assimilations had made
the saints the successors of the gods. Saint Christopher, for
example, had become the heir of Mercury, Hercules, and
even Anubis. Having lent him their attributes and practices,
they continued to be honored under the saint's name. These
amalgams and avatars were further means of survival. But
demons, too, took over guard duty from the gods, so to
speak. "It was foolishly said: the great Pan is dead; then,
seeing that he lived, he was made into a god of evil." The
pagan origins of the sabbath were denounced by the Council
of Aix-la-Chapelle, which found Diana, pamgorum dea ("god­
dess of the pagans"), among the wicked women straddling
animals, along with Satan. Michelet describes sorcery, a pact
with the powers of instinct, as a rebellion, a revenge of
nature oppressed by Christian asceticism.
But it was the Christians who, paradoxically, preserved
mythology and even taught it. For it remained well above
rustic superstitions; it was an integral part of classical cul­
ture, a culture adopted by the Church in the first centuries.
The Church Fathers, who were imbued with it, were aware
of the difficulty and the danger of preserving in education a
literature and an art indissolubly linked to polytheism; but
they accepted the necessity of permitting their youth to be
instructed in schools of the Greco-Roman type. Tertullian
himself recognized this necessity. In the fourth century,
Christian children and adolescents were raised as pagans;
despite the immorality of fable, they entered with Virgil into
a familiarity with the gods, for the essence of the grammar­
ian's schooling remained the explication of the poets; it was,
moreover, from the list of the gods' names that one learned
to read. The last generation to receive this instruction was
the one raised by Ausonius. With the invasions that de­
stroyed the ancient school, an eclipse began which lasted
until the eighth century. In the middle of the sixth century,
scholastic life was perpetuated in Rome and in Africa, and
then came the collapse of culture and the decadence of
letters. However, the ancient sources had not dried up;
beyond the barbarian rupture, seeds of renewal survived.
The Carolingian "renaissance," to which the name of Alcuin
is linked, flourished in the twelfth century, when Chartres
and Orleans became the great seats of classical studies. But
each renewal was accompanied by a rise in neopaganism—
witness the popularity of Ovid in the twelfth century (the
preeminent aetas Ovidiam). The correspondence of monks is
full of mythological allusions, and the goliards, who resus­
citated paganism even in their mores, dedicated poems to
Narcissus, to Philomela, and to Pyramus and Thisbe. At the
end of the century, Alexander of Villedieu complained that
old gods were being worshiped in Orleans, that Venus,

Deianira being abducted by Nessus. Fragment from a small column

in Chartres Cathedral. Photo Giraudon

203
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

B acch u s, and Faunus had th e ir a lta rs and th e ir fe s tiv a ls a p o t h e o s i s b e c a u s e t h e y h a d d e s t r o y e d m o n s t e r s , b u ilt c it ie s ,

th e r e : th e p a t h to P a r a d is e w a s lo s t. in v e n te d a rts. P ro m e th e u s , A tla s, H e rc u le s , T h e s e u s , I s is
M e d ie v a l a r t s h o w s s ig n s o f th e s e “ r e n a i s s a n c e s ." H e r e , w h o ta u g h t w ritin g , a n d M in e rv a w h o ta u g h t w o m e n w e a v ­
to o , a n tiq u ity o n c e a g a in b ecam e in sp ir a tio n a l. W hen th e in g w e r e th e v e n e r a b le p r e c u r s o r s o f c iv iliz a tio n .
first c h u r c h e s r o s e fr o m th e r u in s o f p a g a n s a n c t u a r ie s , a n d In th e tw e lfth c e n tu ry , th e Historia Scholastica o f P e tru s
o r a to rie s re p la ce d s h r in e s to th e L ares, th e v e s tig e s w e re C o m e s t o r c o d ifie d th e p a ra lle lis m b e tw e e n p ro fa n e h isto ry
in c o r p o r a te d in to n e w c o n s t r u c ti o n s a n d w e r e p u t to u s e fo r and t h e h i s t o r y o f t h e p e o p l e o f G o d . In i t s t r a n s l a t i o n b y
th e n e w re lig io n . S a r c o p h a g i w e r e t r a n s f o r m e d in to a lta r s , G u y a r t d e s M o u l i n s it b e c a m e a s o r t o f s c h o l a s t i c m a n u a l o f
th e ir f r a g m e n ts in to s to u p s o r b a p tis m a l fo n ts ; d ip ty c h e s a n d m y th o lo g y , p r o v id in g V in c e n t d e B e a u v a is w ith th e e s s e n c e
iv o ry c a s e s s e r v e d a s r e liq u a rie s ; i m a g e s o f th e O ly m p ia n s o f w h a t h e w r o t e a b o u t th e g o d s in h is Speculum Historiale.
w e r e e n c r u s t e d in t h e a m b o o f A i x - l a - C h a p e l l e . T h e s c u l p t o r s I c o n o g r a p h y illu s t r a t e s th is d i f f u s io n , a n d t h is d i r e c t io n , o f
w ho c o p ie d th e s e pagan r e lic s lo o k e d to th e m first fo r E u h e m e r i s m . I n F l o r e n c e , G i o t t o ' s b e ll t o w e r , o n w h i c h t h e
d e c o r a t iv e f o r m s a n d f o r m u la s , fo r l e s s o n s in t e c h n i q u e a n d p r o p h e t s a r e r e p r e s e n te d , d e p ic ts o n th e first s e c tio n o f th e
s ty le — b u t a ls o fo r p r o f a n e t h e m e s , w h ic h th e y w o u ld c o m ­ b a s -re lie f s , n e a r D a e d a lu s th e first a e r o n a u t, O r p h e u s th e
b in e w ith sacred re p r e s e n ta tio n s . In d e c o r a tin g C h r is tia n fa th e r o f P o e try , a n d H e rc u le s th e c o n q u e r o r o f C a c u s .
to m b s , th e s c u lp to rs o f A rle s h a d a lre a d y in tro d u c e d m y th ­ O n th e o th e r h a n d , p rid e o f ra c e p r o m p te d s c h o la rs o f th e
o lo g ic a l m o tifs o n th e c o v e r s o f th e ir s a r c o p h a g i: C a s t o r a n d M id d le A g e s to s e e k a n c e s to r s a n d fo re b e a rs fo r th e ir p e o p le
P o l l u x , E r o s a n d P s y c h e , a n d s o f o r t h . In R o m a n a r t , a n c i e n t in th e fa b u lo u s p a st. Thus th e F r a n k s c la im e d to be de­
a lle g o rie s o f th e E a rth a n d th e O c e a n , a n d o f th e M o o n a n d s c e n d e d fro m th e T ro ja n F r a n c u s , a s e a rlie r th e R o m a n s h a d
th e S u n o n th e ir c h a r io ts , a c c o m p a n i e d th e c r u c ifix io n a n d c la im e d to h a v e b e e n fro m th e T r o j a n A e n e a s ; th e I ta lia n s
th e a p p a ritio n o f C h r i s t in h is g lo ry . S ire n s a n d ce n ta u rs h a d J a n u s a n d th e n S a tu r n a n d h is s o n s fo r th e ir first k in g s.
r e a p p e a r e d o n t y m p a n a , lin t e ls , a n d c a p i t a l s . C h i r o n 's e d u ­ T h e p ro d ig io u s s u c c e s s o f th e Romance of the Rose is e x p l a in e d
c a t i o n o f A c h i l l e s is d e p i c t e d a t V e z e l a y . T h e s a m e s c e n e w a s in p a r t b y its e t h n o g e n i c c h a r a c t e r . M y th o l o g i c a l c h a r a c t e r s
f o rm e rly d e p ic te d a t C h a r tr e s , to g e th e r w ith th e a b d u c tio n o f b e c a m e th e p a tr o n s o f s u c h a n d s u c h a p e o p le , th e s to c k
H ip p o d a m ia . A n d on a c o lu m n o f th e w e s te r n p o rta l o n e f r o m w h i c h it w a s b o r n . T h e y w e r e a l s o f o u n d e r s o f d y n a s ­
e v e n s e e s D e ia n ira c a r r ie d a w a y b y N e s s u s . T h e e n d o f th e tie s ; p rin ce s d is c o v e re d a n ce s to rs fo r th e m s e lv e s am ong
tw e lfth c e n t u r y o f fe rs o n e o f th e m o s t u n e x p e c t e d e x a m p le s th e m , and b o a s te d of h a v in g at le a s t a d e m ig o d as th e
of a pagan m onum ent in th e in te rio r of a c lo is te r— th e o r ig in a to r o f th e ir hou se. Thus B ru tu s, th e T ro ja n h e ro ,
fa m o u s f o u n ta in th a t w a s c o n s t r u c te d to s e r v e a s a w a s h b o w l b e c a m e th e a n c e s t o r o f th e k in g s o f E n g l a n d ; a n d t h a t is w h y
fo r th e m onks o f S a in t-D e n is . Its m u tila te d b a sin s ta n d s th e a b d u c t io n o f H e le n is p o r t r a y e d in a t h ir t e e n th - c e n t u r y
t o d a y in t h e c o u r t y a r d o f t h e É c o l e d e s B e a u x - A r t s in P a r i s ; g e n e a l o g i c a l s c r o ll ill u s t r a t in g t h a t r o y a l lin e a g e . T h e c h r o n ­
t h e r i m is d e c o r a t e d w i t h m e d a l l i o n s , p e r h a p s c o p i e d f r o m icle s a n d w o r ld h is to r ie s t h u s b e c a m e v e h ic le s o f a m y th o -
c a m e o s , o n w h ic h a b o u t t h ir ty h e a d s a r e s c u l p t e d in re lie f . g r a p h i c tr a d it i o n th a t w o u l d flo u r is h in t h e R e n a is s a n c e .
A m o n g th e h e r o e s a n d a lle g o rie s o n e c a n d is tin g u is h Ju p ite r, T h e p h y s ic a l i n te r p r e ta tio n , a c c o r d in g to w h ic h th e g o d s
N e p tu n e , T h e tis, C e re s, B acch u s, and p a sto ra l d iv in itie s . w e r e h e a v e n ly b o d ie s , p e r p e tu a te d a n o th e r tra d itio n . A n y ­
G o th ic a r t , w h ic h a b a n d o n e d a n c ie n t f o r m s , s e e m e d to re ta in o n e d is c e rn in g a g o v e r n in g in te llig e n c e b e h in d th e m o v e ­
f r o m a n t i q u i t y o n l y i t s p r o p h e t i c p r é f i g u r a t i o n s : a n t i q u i t y is m e n t o f t h e s p h e r e s i s i n c l i n e d t o p l a c e d i v i n i t y in t h e s k y ;
s c a r c e l y r e p r e s e n t e d in c a t h e d r a l s e x c e p t b y t h e S i b y l . H o w ­ b u t a s tr o n o m ic a l n o m e n c l a tu r e , w h ic h a t ta c h e d e a c h p la n e t,
e v e r , a t t h e b a s e o f t h e p o r t a l o f A u x e r r e t h e r e is a s l e e p i n g e a c h c o n s te lla tio n , e a c h s ig n o f th e z o d ia c to a c h a r a c t e r fro m
E ro s. fa b le , h a d e n c o u r a g e d th e G r e e k s a n d th e R o m a n s to id e n tify
In t h e l a s t a n a l y s i s , t h e s u r v i v a l o f t h e g o d s t h r o u g h t h e c e le s tia l b o d ie s w ith g o d s . T h is “ m y th o lo g i z a t io n " o f th e s k y
M id d le A g e s , up to th e d a w n o f th e Rimscimento, can be w as th e re s u lt of a lo n g e v o lu tio n , c o m p lic a te d by th e
e x p la in e d by an im p o rta n t a n d g e n e ra l re a s o n : th e y w e re i n tr u s io n o f e x o tic “ s ig n s " f ro m E g y p t o r C h a ld e a : th e sphaera
p r o t e c te d b y th e i n t e r p r e t a t io n s t h a t a n tiq u ity its e lf p r o p o s e d graecanica w a s riv a le d , o r fed upon, by a sphaera barbarica,
fo r th e ir o r ig in a n d n a tu re . T h e s e v a r io u s in te rp re ta tio n s , w h o s e e le m e n ts b e c a m e m ix e d u p w ith c la s s ic a l e le m e n ts .
c o r r e s p o n d in g to v a r io u s r e p r e s e n ta tio n s , c a n e s s e n tia lly b e The d e fin itiv e fu s io n of a s tro n o m y and m y th o g r a p h y
re d u c e d to th r e e . s h o w s th e in f lu e n c e o f t h e S to ic s , w h o w e r e s a tis f ie d w ith a
T h e f i r s t is E u h e m e r i s m , p o p u l a r i z e d b y E n n i u s : t h e g o d s ra tio n a lis t in te r p r e ta tio n th a t s e e m e d to le g itim iz e a n d p u rify
w e re o n ly h u m a n s , ra ise d fro m th e e a rth to h e a v e n b y th e th e g o d s b y r e d u c in g t h e m to c o s m ic s y m b o ls ; b u t th e m a jo r
id o la try o f th e ir c o n t e m p o r a r i e s . C h r is tia n a p o lo g is ts a n d th e in flu e n c e w a s th a t o f O r ie n ta l c u lts (p a r tic u la r ly th e c u lt o f
C h u rch F a th e rs w illin g ly ad o p te d th is in te rp re ta tio n an d th e S u n , in P e r s ia , a n d f h e B a b y lo n ia n c u lt o f th e p l a n e t s ),
u s e d it a s a w e a p o n a g a i n s t p a g a n i s m — a t w o - e d g e d s w o r d , w h ic h w e r e p r e v a l e n t in th e G r e c o -R o m a n w o r ld . N o t o n ly
fo r th o u g h it r e l e g a t e d t h e g o d s t o t h e l e v e l o f m o r t a l s , it w as th e b e lie f in s id e re a l g o d s c o n firm e d ; it t o o k on an
c o n firm e d th e ir e x is te n c e and a llo w e d th e m a p la ce in e x tra o rd in a ry r e lig io u s in te n s ity . In d eed , th e s ta r s w e re
h is to ry . P a u lu s O r o s iu s , I s id o r e o f S e v ille , a n d t h e ir s u c c e s ­ a liv e ; th e y h ad a face, a g en d er, a p e rs o n a lity , a n d th e ir
so rs w o u ld la te r a t te m p t to a s sig n th e m a p la ce in tim e . p o w e r w a s a w e s o m e , fo r th e y w e r e th e a rb ite rs o f d e s tin y :
G o i n g b a c k t o t h e p r i m i t i v e a g e s in E g y p t , A s s y r i a , G r e e c e , th e y d e te r m in e d th e fa te of m en and o f e m p ire s . T h u s,
a n d R o m e , Is id o re d is c o v e r e d m y th o lo g ic a l d y n a s ti e s ; e v e r y to w a rd th e end of th e p agan era, th e gods w ho w ere
s in g le c h r o n ic le r a f te r ra n k e d th e g o d s a m o n g a n c ie n t k in g s d e t h r o n e d o n e a r th b e c a m e a ll-p o w e rfu l o n c e a g a in , th a n k s
a n d h e r o e s , a n d a t th e s a m e tim e s o u g h t to c o n n e c t th e m to a s tr o lo g y , in t h e s k y . B u t h e r e , t o o , C h r is t ia n s p r e s e r v e d
w ith th e g reat fig u re s of th e sa cre d H is to ry in lin e a g e s w h a t t h e y w is h e d to a b o lis h . A s tr o lo g y , w h ic h th e y o u g h t to
p a ra lle l to t h o s e o f th e p a t r ia r c h s , j u d g e s , a n d p r o p h e t s . A s have ab h o rred , m a in ta in e d i ts p a rtis a n s and s u p p o r te r s
a r e s u lt o f th e s e s y n c h r o n is m s , th e p r e s tig e o f th e g o d s w a s a m o n g th e m ; e v e n i ts a d v e r s a r i e s m a d e i m p o r t a n t c o n c e s ­
r e s t o r e d . M o r e o v e r , t o m a k e a p l a c e f o r c h a r a c t e r s o f f a b l e in s io n s to i t. N e ith e r L a c ta n tiu s n o r S a in t A u g u s tin e q u e s ­
th e a n n a ls o f h u m a n ity w a s to re c o g n iz e th a t th e y h a d b e e n tio n e d th e in flu e n c e o f th e s ta r s ; b u t t h e y m a in ta in e d th a t th e
i ts b e n e fa cto rs. T hey had e a r lie r o b ta in e d th e h o n o rs of w ill of m an and th e g race of G od c o u ld con q u er th is

204
 T H E S U R V I V A L OF T H E A N C I E N T G O D S

Monks' wash basin in the Abbey of Saint-Denis. Thirteenth century.

École des Beaux Arts. Photo Giraudon.
Caelus and his descendants (Ms. Egerton, 1500, fol. 6). London,
British Library. Library photo.

influence. Others saw the coercion of the stars as merely an

expression of the doctrine of predestination, or at least as the
intermediary through which God manifested his immutable
decrees. Indeed, even when they condemned astrology, the
apologists and the Church Fathers kept its deep root intact;
the fear of demons and their evildoing haunted the popular
imagination, but the astrological conception of causality
dominated the greatest minds.
After the twelfth century, the influx of Arabic science into
the West gave astrology a renewed virulence. The Ghâya, a
manual of practical magic composed of Oriental and Helle­
nistic materials, was translated into Spanish at the court of
Alfonso X; about twenty Latin manuscripts of it are known
under the title of Picatrix— “the Reverend Father Picatrix,
rector of the Diabological Faculty," as Rabelais would call
him. This manual taught how to conjure up celestial powers
and render them favorable; it taught formulas of prayer and
invocation and prescribed instruments for the purpose: im­
ages of Jupiter, Venus, Mars, and Saturn, engraved on rocks,
gained the influence of the corresponding divinities. As we
have seen, gemstones bearing effigies of the gods had never
ceased to be used; now they served as amulets and talis­
mans; this time it was in the lapidaries that the gods found
refuge.
The third system of interpretation consisted of discovering
a spiritual meaning in the figure of the gods, and a moral
lesson in their adventures. This sort of allegory had been
applied by the first critics of Homer, such as Heraclitus, and,
at the end of the pagan era, by Stoics such as Cornutus, to
justify the apparent impiety of the myths by distinguishing

205
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
Juno-Memory (Vat. ms. Palat, lat. 1066, fol. 223v). Vatican, Biblioteca
apostolica vaticana. Library photo.
their literal meaning from their deep or secret meaning. Since
that time, the old legends had gradually been elevated: in the
Aeneid the Olympians regained their dignity; with his genius
for deifying moral ideas, Virgil moralized the gods. But in the
hands of the Neoplatonists, allegory became a means of
sanctifying them. They studied fable in depth as if it were a
sacred text. In his treatise, On the Gods and the World, "a
veritable pagan catechism," Sallust, a friend of the emperor
Julian, chose the most shocking myths in order to reveal a
philosophic content in them—accessible, it is true, to initiates
alone. Julian himself applied the method in his hymns to
Helios and to the Great Mother, with the intention of
contrasting the mythology thus regenerated to the Christian
cult.
The Church, for that reason alone, should have been
hostile to allegory. But the apologists and the Church Fathers
themselves applied the method to holy books; and they
employed it in education. Having conserved profane poetry
in their own education, they were inevitably led to moralize
mythology in their turn. In the sixth century, the Moralia of
Gregory the Great, biblical allegories, had their counterpart
in the Mythologiae of Fulgentius, profane allegories. In the
Middle Ages, the fable as a whole became a philosophia
moralis. Thus the three goddesses between whom Paris had
to choose were, according to Fulgentius, symbols of the
active life, the contemplative life, and the amorous life. In the
Carolingian period a poem by Theodulf, bishop of Orleans,
206
C H R I S T I A N ERA
explained how wise men could turn the lies of poets,
beginning with Ovid, into truths.
Beginning in the twelfth century, this type of exegesis
reached stunning proportions. It was then that Bernard de
Chartres and John of Salisbury meditated on pagan religion,
"not out of respect for false divinities, but because they
disguised sacred teachings, incomprehensible to the com­
mon man." It was above all the time when the rehabilitation
of Ovid— who was proclaimed Ethicus and even Theologus—
was affirmed. Arnolphe d'Orleans and John Garland rigor­
ously demonstrated the edifying nature of the Metamorpho­
ses. In the first years of the fourteenth century the immense
Moralized Ovid appeared, whose author distinctly declared
that if one knew how to read the poems, "everything is for
our edification." The eyes of Argus on the tail of Juno's
peacock are the vanities of the century; Phaethon is Lucifer;
Ceres searching for Proserpina is the Church beckoning the
souls of sinners. To the same century belonged (among other
commentaries) Robert Holkot's Moralia super Ovidii metamor­
phoses and Thomas Waleys's Metamorphosis Ovidiana moraliter
explanata. Rabelais would mock the allegorizers who claimed
to discover "the Sacraments of the Gospel" in Ovid; Luther,
who denounced allegory as a seductive courtesan, would
thunder against those who "turned Apollo into Christ, and
Daphne into the Virgin Mary." But they would not halt the
popularity of these aberrations.
Allegories and conventional moralizations are again found
in the works of Dante, where mythology holds a place that is
at first sight surprising. With Dante, too, fable, a repertory of
passions, is full of edifying meanings. In the Purgatorio, the
stories of Aglaurus, Progne, Midas, Meleager, and Pasiphae
become so many examples of human deviation. But Dante's
attitude toward pagan divinities is profoundly original. He
treats them seriously, even with reverence. Not only does he
accept the reality of these supernatural beings, but he
suggests that between the Fall and the Redemption they
played a premonitory role, so that they sometimes elucidated
the lessons of the Old Testament. In the "Bible of the
Gentiles," the great gods, the superi, veiled intelligences,
were instructed to make the world aware, in a disguised
form, of the authority of the true God. Through the sanctions
that Jupiter or Apollo inflicted on sinful mortals they gave
human creatures a presentiment of the absolute submission
owed to the Creator. Hence the importance, in the Commedia,
of the "titanic" theme of insubordination, revolt, and the
punishments for these transgressions. Dante confirms the
judgment by condemning to hell the rebels struck down by
the gods. As for the demons that torment them, the most
notorious— Charon, Pluto, Minos— are taken from among
the inferni. Whereas the superi, the heavenly spirits, acted for
a yet hidden God, these fallen spirits were invested with
infernal functions; they passed into the service of Satan.
In the following century, the most extravagant and system­
atic monument of Christian allegory applied to mythology is
a revised version of a treatise by Fulgentius— the Fulgentius
Metaforalis by the Franciscan John Ridewall. The order of the
chapters is governed by the identification of the gods with
virtues, an identification stretched by analysis to the most
minute subtleties. Thus Saturn is Prudence; the elements
that compose this virtue are Memory, Intelligence, and
Foresight. Ridewall examines these children of Saturn one by
one: Juno ("Memoria"), Neptune ("Intelligentia"), and Pluto
("Providentia"). The respective attributes of these gods are
explained precisely by the ideas they represent. Juno's veil is
meant to hide the shame of sin, fostered by Memory; the
rainbow that crowns her is the sign of her reconciliation with
 T H E
God, obtained through remembrance and repentance; the
scepter she holds indicates that the pardoned soul has
regained control of itself, another benefit of Memory.
It was through these three systems of interpretation that
the gods ultimately survived. The three systems, however,
were not mutually exclusive. At the risk of proposing con­
tradictory explanations, scholars of the Middle Ages fre­
quently applied all three of them to the same character or to
the same fable. Pierre d'Ailly, who affirmed the concord
between astronomy and history, maintained that the gods
were both stars and rulers. On the other hand, there wrere
points of contact as well as of interference between the three
cycles. When mythological heroes were taken as examples,
morality came to the aid of history. Each planet had its
temperament; it determined not only the destiny but the
character and the abilities of those born under its influence,
who, through this transmission from the physical to the
moral, truly became its "children." The ambition of medieval
culture, its concern with embracing the totality of knowl­
edge, confined within the Summaries the naturale, the morale,
and the historiale. In this reduction to unity, numerals played
a primordial role: by reason of their number, the planets, the
signs of the zodiac, and the elements were placed in concord
with the virtues, the months, and the humors, in order to
Venus, Juno, Pallas (ms. fr. 143, fol. 198v). Paris, Bibliothèque
nationale. Photo BN.
S U R V I V A L OF T H E A N C I E N T G O D S
establish the interdependence of all parts of the cosmos and
all forms of knowledge. Scholasticism further develops these
tables of concord. In his De natura rerum, Alexander Neck-
ham codified the relationship, established in the ninth cen­
tury, between the planets and the virtues. In the Convivio,
Dante compares these same planets "by reason of their
properties" to the liberal arts: the Sphere of the Moon
corresponds to Grammar; that of Mercury, to Dialectic; that
of Venus, to Rhetoric; that of Jupiter, to Geometry, etc. As for
the sphere of fixed stars, it showed "m anifest" resemblances
to Physics, Metaphysics, Morals, and Theology.
Diagrams graphically express these relationships, by cir­
cles containing smaller circles that form a tracery of symmet­
rical compartments. At the center of these microcosms is
written the name of Man, himself an abridgment of the
Universe. But the gods have their role in these correspon­
dences, which is why they are first found in the miniatures in
encyclopedias, before reappearing in Italian monumental art.
In Florence they are seated on Giotto's bell tower with the
Sibyls and the prophets, in the same row as the virtues, the
sciences, and the sacraments; they dominate the entire cycle
of figures that recount the creation of man and the invention
of the arts. At the Trinci palace in Foligno, frescoes painted
around 1420 also developed the great encyclopedic theme;
the gods are once again in evidence, and once again historic
and cosmic traditions intersect; mythical characters and
stellar powers make an essential contribution to this decora­
tive whole.
The Renaissance gathered together and developed these
various interpretations; when the gods reappeared in full
daylight, it was first in one of these frameworks. In this
matter the Renaissance is greatly indebted to the Middle
Ages. The reason the continuity long remained unsuspected
is that the classical form of the gods was lost in the mean­
time; they had become unrecognizable. The history of their
metamorphoses can nevertheless be followed from the Car-
olingian period up until the fifteenth century, mainly because
of the extremely rich documentation furnished by miniatures
in astrologic-mythological manuscripts. These illustrations
can be divided into two groups, according to whether they
had a visual model as a prototype or were derived from a
simple descriptive text.
The "visual" tradition may be further broken down into
several families. The first had a purely Western origin and
character and flourished until the thirteenth century or
thereabouts. Essentially it included the Aratea, that is, the
manuscripts of that poem (translated by Cicero), the
Phaenomena, in which Aratus describes the constellations as a
mythographer rather than as an astronomer. The Carolingian
copies of the Aratea restored the ancient model with striking
fidelity. But new and strange versions appeared at the end of
the Middle Ages, which came from the Orient. They are
found in two contexts— first, in Arabic astrological manu­
scripts, where Hellenistic figures had been profoundly al­
tered by the transcribers who were ignorant of mythology.
Hercules, for example, is dressed as a Turk, with a scimitar
and a turban; Medusa, decapitated by Perseus, becomes a
bearded demon. Second, they are encountered in illustra­
tions in Michael Scot's treatise, composed in Sicily around
1250. This treatise, of which we have more than thirty
manuscripts, shows the strangest constellations, borrowed
from the "barbaric sphere." The drawings of the planets are
even more bizarre: Jupiter is represented as a scholar, Saturn
as a warrior, and Mercury as a bishop. This last series of
figures goes back, by way of the Ghäya, to a Babylonian
tradition. It, too, played a role in fourteenth-century Italian
207
W E ST E RN C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

monumental art: in the Spanish Chapel in Florence, in the Nonetheless, these composite figures in the Libellus, which
Eremitani of Padua, on the capitals of the Doges' Palace— it is "codify" the gods' traits and fix them in an immutable
in this extraordinary iconography that the Olympians were attitude, were to establish a lineage in art. The Libellus was to
disguised. become a repertory, as is attested not only by a rich series of
Apart from astronomical manuscripts, examples of the Italian, Flemish, and French miniatures but by representa­
"visual" tradition are rarely found outside of Byzantine art, tions of all sorts: tapistries, enamels, and sculptures. On a
though miniatures of profane manuscripts and ivory caskets capital at Autun on which Luxuria is depicted, Vulcan,
with mythological motifs still remain very close to Hellenistic Venus, and Eros appear as they are described in the Liber.
models. There is, however, a surprising Western illustration The illustrated book, as we shall see, helped propagate the
of Raban Maur's De rerum naturis in the copy by Mrnte- Libellus, which, while it continued to serve as a source for
cassino. However crude the divinities represented may be, mythographers and as a reference for humanists, was to
an ancient model can still be detected behind each one of furnish artists with guiding examples during the entire
them. Quattrocento, and even after.
The types derived from a descriptive text, a "literary" In sum, by the end of the Middle Ages the "visual" and
source, constitute a distinct group. Here the Byzantines were "literary" traditions had profoundly altered the classical
privileged; they had the "Library" of Apollodorus, and forms of the gods. Unfaithful copies, substitutions, dis­
perhaps even an illustrated manuscript of the work that guises, or naive reconstructions—it is hard to tell from which
served as a mythographical manual from the ninth to the procedure they suffered most, not to mention the mistakes,
fourteenth century. In the West, this family of gods is found blunders, and misconceptions that further aggravated this
in allegoric treatises. These treatises contained two parts, the corruption and that can be explained by their peregrinations
first descriptive and the second moral. The descriptive ele­ from east to west, and from north to south.
ments were generally taken from early mythographers and The gods were gradually to regain their shape. By exam­
scholiasts such as Macrobius, Servius, Lactantius Placidus, ining certain series it is possible to follow the stages of this
Martianus Capella, and Fulgentius: it was their erudition that restoration. Some factors delayed it, however, of which the
served as a basis for the medieval compilers. After 1100, most important were the influence of the printing press and
illustrations appeared in the margins of treatises of this kind. the illustrated book. The printing press first published only
A manuscript of Remi d'Auxerre's Commentaries on Mar­ the mythographers that the Middle Ages had drawn from
tianus Capella shows a series of gods: Cybele, Apollo, (aside from the De natura deorum), and medieval compilations
Saturn, Mercury, and others; but they are difficult to identify,
for the miniaturist had only one text to guide him, and this
text, slavishly followed, engendered only barbaric images.
This also applies to Ridewall's Fulgentius metaforalis, whose Microcosm (ms. lat. 13002, fol. 7v). Munich, Bayerische Staatsbib­
illustrations are grossly anachronistic caricatures. liothek. Library photo.
The Liber imaginum deorum of Albricus deserves special
attention, for it was to have a lasting influence on iconogra­
phy. Albricus, who has been identified with the Mythogra-
phus Tertius, may have been Alexander Neckham, who died
in 1217. His work, called the Poetarius or the Scintillarium
poetarum, enjoyed great popularity as an aid to reading the
profane poets; but it is encumbered by a heavy allegorical
critical apparatus, and there is no illustrated manuscript of it
available. Two centuries later an abridgment, the Libellus de
imaginibus deorum, would become a useful aid to artists.
Between the Liber and the Libellus came an eminent interme­
diary, Petrarch himself, who in describing the images of the
gods decorating the palace of Syphax, in his Africa, followed
Albricus step by step, though retaining only his pictorial
elements. In this pared-down form, the Libellus was taken up
again in 1340 by a friend of Petrarch's, Pierre Bersuire, who
put it in the Fifteenth Book of his Redictorium morale. This
Fifteenth Book, in which Bersuire "moralizes" Ovid, in­
cludes a series of "portraits" of the gods, borrowed, says the
author, from Petrarch, "for I was unable to find images of the
gods themselves anywhere else." It was Bersuire's "por­
traits," collected and rid once again of their commentaries,
that finally, around 1400, constituted the Libellus. This time
the result was pure iconography, and the same formula kept
recurring: pingebatur ("it is painted"). The Codex Reginensis
1290 of the Vatican, which contained the text of the Liber, also
contained that of the Libellus, illustrated with ink drawings
executed around 1420. The images were lively and charming,
but they showed only a distant kinship with the ancient
forms, for they were only "reconstructions" of the gods
following a text, or rather a mosaic of texts; indeed, as we
have seen, all the descriptions come from disparate sources.

208
 T H E S U R V I V A L OF T H E A N C I E N T G O D S

themselves, beginning with the Liber of Albricus. Boccaccio's

Genealogia deorum, heir to this tradition, would be the great
repertory during the first half of the Cinquecento. It under­
went eight printings between 1473 and 1532, whereas Apol-
lodorus's Library (used, as we have seen, by the Byzantines)
was not published—in Greek and Latin— until 1555. Above
all, the illustrated book served to disseminate an icono­
graphie tradition that was still completely medieval. The
great mythological incunabula were Boccaccio's De Casis
(Ulm 1473) and his De la ruyne des nobles hommes et femmes
(Bruges 1476). During the same period there appeared, in
Anvers and Paris, the Recueil des Histoires de Troie, the Faits et
Prouesses de Jason, and the Destruction de Troie la Grant, which
had nine printings from 1484 to 1526. The tradition that was
perpetuated through these books was that of the Libellus—a
Norse tradition, not a classical one—and the woodcuts could
just as well have illustrated romances of chivalry. It was these
woodcuts, however, that first assured the graphic diffusion
of the favorite themes of the Renaissance: the abductions of
Europa and Proserpina, and so forth. Toward the end of the
fifteenth century these models, still Gothic in appearance,
could be found everywhere, whereas the archaeological
discovery of antiquity had begun long before. The unique
role of the Renaissance would be to restore to ancient
subjects their ancient forms.

II. The Renaissance

Collectors, among whom the prototype was Cyriacus of
Ancona, brought together copies of medals, inscriptions,
and fragments of sculpture and architecture. And two camps
were formed in elegant society and among patrons: admirers
of courtly romances, and antiquarians. The Hypnerotomachia
Poliphili, published by Aldo Mannucci in 1499, is a compro­
mise combining a love story—a story which also conceals an
initiation into the most serious mysteries— with a repertory
of classical archaeology. This strange book, magnificently
illustrated, was to have a deep and lasting influence not only
on the appearance and the decoration of books to come, but
also on architecture and painting. It can be compared to
Petrarch's Triumphs, another great book, which underwent
several printings before 1500 and whose illustrations were
inspired by classical sculpture, such as Mantegna's "Tri­
umph of Caesar."
Another category of illustrated books, the Emblemata, en­
gendered a long tradition. Their principal sources were old
medals—especially the reverse sides (from whose figures
Pisanello drew his inspiration)— as well as hieroglyphics
engraved on obelisks. Scholars had believed that they could
decipher them ever since Cristoforo de Buondelmonti had
returned from Andros, in 1419, with the manuscript of the
Hieroglyphica by Horus Apollo. Their influence exploded in
the Hypnerotomachia. Aldo printed them in 1505, and Piero
Valeriano provided them with a monumental commentary in
1556. The humanists, who believed them to be the key to a
sacred language, fabricated cryptograms in turn. The first
collection of Emblemata was the one by Alciat, in 1531, which
underwent more than fifty printings in all languages. And
mythology had an important place in works of this genre; the
countenances and attributes of the gods in them were
interpreted as signs concealing truths or moral maxims. In
turn, these alleged hieroglyphics (which drew from several
sources in addition to Horus) introduced a curious deviation
into figurative mythology, a deviation with major conse­
quences. For the time would come, toward the end of the
Hercules (ms. arab. 5036). Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Photo BN.
sixteenth century, when it would once again be necessary to
reconcile the pagan fable with Christian teachings, and the
Emblemata were to become the ideal instrument for this
compromise.
Around 1500 in Italy the gods seemed omnipresent: they
were on the ceilings of palaces, sometimes on the cupolas of
churches, on marriage chests, almanacs, and suits of armor;
they participated in the ceremonial entrances of rulers and in
carnival processions; they presided over fountains in public
squares and haunted garden grottos. But their role was not
always purely decorative. They often reappeared, as we have
said, in particular frameworks, systems of ideas elaborated in
the Middle Ages, whose encyclopedic spirit still breathed in
works such as the Malatesta temple and the Stanza della
Segnatura. Raphael's "Parnassus" can be fully understood
only as an element of a design in which all parts are
connected even in their details: Poetry combines with Phi­
losophy, Theology, and Justice to compose the four human
understandings; on the ceiling the four elements are repre­
sented by episodes arranged in pairs: in each, a mythological
scene is combined with a historic scene, and these diverse
cycles are intertwined. The elements are attached to the
sciences by way of the virtues, according to a diagram which
at the same time makes apparent the relationship between
the sciences: Theology and Philosophy have the same rela­
tionship as fire and water; Jurisprudence and Poetry have the
same relationship as the earth and the sky.
But fable also played a part in real life: certain programs
allied politics with morality. Aside from their edifying
intentions— the triumph of Reason over the passions, of
mind over matter—they contained (and always under a

209
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN T H E
venus ana tne tra ces, m e larots or Mantegna.
mythological cloak) allusions to contemporary events. In the
decoration of the Palazzo del Te, Jupiter whipping the Giants
illustrated the punishment of those who rebel against divine
authority; at the same time it was a tribute to the efforts of
Charles V for having reestablished imperial power in Italy.
Likewise, in the Doges' Palace, Mercury and the Graces,
Bacchus and the Ariadne of Tintoretto sing the praises of the
Most Serene Republic, of its prosperity, and of the wisdom of
its government. In the ballets given at the French court for
Catherine de Medicis, Circe represented the horror of civil
wars, and Minerva the return of order and peace. The
Renaissance assigned a pagan demeanor even to Christian
themes. On a candelabra in the basilica of Saint Anthony of
Padua, Riccio portrays the pascal sacrifice of the lamb in front
of an altar on which an Olympian Christ is standing; con­
versely, the Sacrifice to Priapus by Jacopo de' Barbari utilizes
the elements of a Presentation to the Temple. These overlap­
pings are not blasphemous; rather they express a sense of
210
C H R I S T I A N ERA
harmony and continuity. While Bellini's Redeemer pours his
blood into a chalice, behind him, on a bas-relief, a drinking
scene is taking place. The famous example of the Maenad
transformed into a holy woman at the foot of the Cross
reminds us that the Renaissance employed ancient models
not only in a different context but also with a meaning totally
different from the original.
Nor should the omnipresence of the gods be regarded as
the boasting expression of liberated instinct and joy of life.
With their beauty, certainly, they recovered their power of
heroic or sensuous contagion. But at the same time they
regained a singular dignity. This restitution of form is also a
reconsecration, for fable is theology as much as it is poetry. It
is no longer bound by a lying religion; for the pagans it was
true. Such is Boccaccio's argument; and it followed that the
poetry of the ancients, like their philosophy, maintained its
legitimacy even in a Christian century. Hence the attitude of
the humanists toward pagan beliefs. The fervor of their
mythological erudition, like the archaeological and philolog­
ical fever that consumed them, was a form of piety, docta
pietas. They pursued the dream of a syncretism or a universal
theism, with Platonism for a gospel; and they elaborated a
religion of initiates.
Nothing is more expressive of this ambition than the great
mythological creations of the Renaissance, many of which
are enigmatic—such as Botticelli's "Primavera" and "The
Birth of Venus," Piero di Cosimo's "Mars and Venus,"
Michelangelo's "Leda" and "Bacchus," and Titian's "Sacred
and Profane Love." To clarify these works completely it is not
enough to indicate their immediate sources; one must find a
spirit, a climate— that of the humanists among whom they
were born. The iconological studies by Panofsky and Chas-
tel, and Wind's Pagan Mysteries of the Renaissance, have
proved the worth of this method. The Neoplatonists of the
Quattrocento, Pico della Mirandola, and Marsilio Ficino,
who saw Plato through the eyes of the final representatives
of paganism— Iamblichus, Proclus, Porphyry, and Plotinus—
borrowed their notions about the mysteries and the rites of
initiation; and they elaborated a theory of cryptic expression,
which was applied to the visual arts. The artists whom they
counseled, or who came under their influence, deliberately
clouded the profound meaning of their works: the works
only become fully intelligible when one is aware of the
intentions and secret "doctrines" that they contained in
abundance.
The principal key is to be found in the "Orphic theology,"
to which Plato, according to Proclus, was the heir. It was a
Trinitarian system, a philosophy of transmutation. The de­
velopment of the unity into a triad; the coincidence of
opposites in the unity; discordia concors— these maxims were
the clue to the mythological compositions that were the most
hermetic in appearance; they formed their hidden structure.
For mythology, too, has its triads of the Parcae and the
Charités, illustrating procession, conversion and return; and
Paris sees perfection divide into three goddesses. Every god
was ambiguous, encompassing two extremes: the eloquent
Mercury was the god of silence; Apollo inspired both mad­
ness and moderation; Minerva was peaceful and warlike;
and Pan was hidden in Proteus. Their duplicity engendered
infinite combinations, for they were alternately divided and
united by a dialectical movement. As for Marsyas and
Psyche, their stories, illustrated by Raphael, hide essentially
the same lesson: purification through trial. The terrestrial
Marsyas is tormented so that the celestial Apollo may be
crowned; the misfortunes of Psyche are merely stages of a
mystical initiation and redemption.

Raphael. Apollo and Marsyas. Rome, Vatican. Photo Anderson-
Giraudon.
Other nuances remain inexplicable as long as one fails to
appreciate the role of paradox and irony in the intentions of
the artist and his advisers. The Neoplatonists learned from
Plato himself how to speak of sacred subjects playfully;
Apuleius and Lucian taught them the art of serio ludere. The
facetious note is evident in Bellini's "The Feast of the Gods";
and Mantegna himself, serious as he was, created his "Par­
nassus" in a spirit less heroic than mocking. The unique
accent of the great mythologies of the Renaissance, their
singular splendor, may reside in what radiates through the
veils, the soothsaying, and the smiles.
J.Se./t.l.f.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
For the essential bibliography on the subject, see j. seznec, The
Survival of the Pagan Gods (New York 1953). The present list, which
follows the order of the questions treated in the article, includes the
most important among recent publications.
H. MARRou, Histoire de l'éducation dans l'Antiquité (Paris 1948).
E. mâle, La fin du paganisme en Gaule et les plus anciennes basiliques
chrétiennes (Paris 1950). p. francastel, L'humanisme roman (2d ed.,
Paris 1970). r. pfeiffer. History of Classical Scholarship from 1300 to 1850
(Oxford 1976). H. waddell, The Wandering Scholars (new ed., New
York 1961). j. Hubert, j. porcher, and w. f. volbach , Carolingian Art,
chap. 3 (London 1970). w. oakeshott, Classical Tradition in Medieval
Art (London 1959). r. renucct, Dante, disciple et juge du monde
grégo-latin (Clermont-Ferrand 1954). K. weitzmann, Greek Mythology in
Byzantine Art (Princeton 1951). c. boas, The Hieroglyphics of Horus
A L C H E M Y A N D M Y T H O L O G Y
Apollo (New York 1950). d . c . a ll e n , Mysteriously Meant: The Discovery
of Pagan Symbolism and Allegorical Interpretation of the Renaissance
(Baltimore 1970). e . pan o fskv , Renaissance and Renascences in Western
Art, chap. 4 (Stockholm 1960). e . c o m brich , Botticelli's Mythologies,
Warburg Institute Studies 26 (London 1945). e . w in d , Bellini's Feast of
the Gods (Cambridge, MA, 1948); Pagan Mysteries in the Renaissance
(London 1958; new ed., 1968).
A lchemy and M ythology
"It is easy to be a poet among the gods."
All other things being equal, it might be said of history,
especially the history of the Renaissance, what the Cabalists,
uncovered by the Phoenix of that period, said of the book of
Revelation, that each of its letters presents seventy faces,
meaning by that number the inexhaustible totality of the
words of God.' One after the other, various modes of
thought of that time, rejected by a history that based itself on
a science rendered still darker in the occultist night,2 have
been studied by historians of science,3 of art, of religions:
magic, astrology, hermetism, lapidary, the science of num­
bers, physiognomy, in a word, the cabala. And although the
history of these strange researches has not always escaped
the frowns of the historian for such an episode of "menschli­
chen Narrheit,"4 people have nonetheless discovered in it
the poetry that makes all things new.
Though alchemy scarcely appears in works on the
Renaissance,5 historians of alchemy6 have long made room
for it in the Mytho-Hermetic Dictionary in which One Finds the
Fabulous Allegories of the Poets, the Metaphors, the Enigmas and
the Barbarous Terms of the Hermetic Philosophies Explained, the
complement and table to the Egyptian and Greek Fables of
Antoine Joseph Pernety (1716-1801), and in several other
works of his predecessors. The most famous, because of the
beauty of Matthäus Merian's engravings, is Michael Maier
(1568-1622), physician to Rudolph II and friend of the
Rosicrucian Robert Fludd, whose entire program is displayed
on the title page of the Arcana arcanissima, hoc est Hieroglyphica
Aegyptio-Graeca vulgo necdum cognita, ad demonstrandam falso­
rum apud Antiquos Deorum, dearum heroum, animantium et
institutorum pro sacris receptorum originem, ex uno Aegyptiorum
artificio, quod aureum animi et corporis medicamentum peregit,
deductam, unde tot poetarum allegoriae, scriptorum narrationes
fabulosae et per totam encyclopaediam, errores sparsi clarissima
veritatis luce manifestantur, quaeque tribui singula restituuntur,
sex libris exposita (The most secret secrets, i.e. the Greco-
Egyptian hieroglyphics not yet widely known, are here set
forth in six books, in order to show the origin among the
ancients of the false gods, goddesses, heroes, and living
beings, and the received institutions for sacred matters,
deduced from the art of the Egyptians, which produced the
golden remedy of the body and the soul, whence come so
many allegories of the poets, the fabulous narratives of the
ancient writers, and the errors that are scattered through the
entire encyclopedia, and which are here shown in the
clearest light of truth and are individually restored in order to
be assigned). There is also the fabulous Salomon Trismosin,
author of the Vellus aureum (the Golden Fleece); Jacob Tollius,
author of the Fortuita, in quibus praeter critica nonnulla, tota
fabularis historia graeca, aegyptiaca ad chemiam pertinere asseritur
(Chance occurrences: in which, in addition to several critical
211
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
Treatise on alchemy, La clef de la grande science (MS Ars. 6577, fol. 8V).
Paris, Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal. Photo BN.
matters, the entire Greek, Egyptian history of fable is as­
serted to pertain to alchemy); and, in the sixteenth century,
Giovanni Bracesco, Cesare della Riviera. It is nevertheless
important to know the history of the interconnections be­
tween alchemy and mythology.
The first witnesses to alchemical mythology cited in the
Renaissance7 are medieval authors: Suidas, whose Lexicon
mentions alchemy, notably the Golden Fleece, three times;
Eustathius, the commentator on Homer; Albert the Great,
whose De mineralibus alchemicizes the myth of Pyrrha and
Deucalion and the myth of the Gorgon; and the Pretiosa
novella margarita, written around 1330 a . d . by Petrus Bonus
Lombardus,8 which allegorizes the Bucolics, the Georgies, and
the Aeneid, as well as the Metamorphoses. It is the same fire
that hardens clay and melts wax; it is Proteus, the golden
bough, Phaethon, the Labyrinth, Medea, the Dragon whose
teeth Jason sows, Pyramus and Thisbe. Nicolas Flamel
evokes9 "those serpents and dragons that the ancient Egyp­
tians painted in a circle . . . they are those dragons that the
ancient poets set to guard, never sleeping, the golden apples
in the gardens of the Hesperidean nymphs. They are those
upon whom Jason, in the adventure of the Golden Fleece,
poured the potion prepared by the beautiful Medea . . . they
are the two serpents sent by Juno, who is metallic by nature,
which the mighty Hercules, that is, the sage, must strangle
in his cradle." O r:10
. . . These of Mythology
In whom the ancient knowledge shines,
As seen in Jason, Cadmus,
Hercules, Aesacus, Achilles,
Then in the two monsters of Perseus.
Giovanni Aurelio Augurelli (ca. 1454-ca. 1537) was the
first Renaissance poet to extol alchemy under the veil of
fables. He is supposed to have been imitated by Gian-
francesco Pico della Mirandola (1469-1533), if we may judge
by the poems included in the De auro libri tres, long suspect
212
C H R I S T I A N ERA
because of the late date of its publication. With the testimony
of Lilio Gregorio Giraldi (1479-1552), who took refuge in the
castle of Mirandola after the sack of Rome, we can no longer
neglect valuable information about the readings: Giraldi,
who had brought with him a manuscript of Psellus on the
royal art, read the Argonautics with his friend, who had an
alchemical eye.
About the same time in France, a Norman alchemist,
Vicot, who worked in Fiers like Nicolas de Grosparmy and
Nicolas Valois, composed in verse, unfortunately rather
prosaic, The Great Olympus, or Poetic Philosophy Attributed to
the Much Renowned Ovid. The "initiated," who claim that this
work dates from the time of Flamel, have not read, among
other things, a precise reference to the French translation of
Alciat's Emblemata, of which it constitutes, moreover, the first
alchemical interpretation. Moreover, one of the numerous
copyists of these works by the Fiers alchemists, another
Norman, Jean Vauquelin des Yveteaux (1651-1716),
proposed—well before Pernety—a mytho-hermetic dictio­
nary that remains in manuscript: Fabulous Truths, a Curious
Treatise on the origin of the Sciences and on the Progress of their
Communication, with the Exposition and Explanation of the Fic­
tions of the First Savants. The Whole for the Comprehension of
Ancient and Modern Authors Who Treat of Theology, Morality,
Philosophy, Physics, Alchemy, History, Fables, Romances, Stories
and Poetic Fictions, Magic and the Early Sciences, Divine Cults.u
Meanwhile, in the realm of dictionaries more properly
alchemical, Giovanni Bracesco da Iorci Novi in La espositione
di Geber of 1544 supplied the alchemical meaning of several
important fables. Another Norman, Robert Duval, recopied
the whole, sanctioning these interpretations with the exam­
ples of Pico della Mirandela and Flamel, whose enigmas he
had seen at the cemetery of the Innocents. Most of the
symbols of the period are found in two folios published in
1591 by Antonio Ricciardi (ca. 1520-1610), a friend of P.
Bongo, the author of Mysticae numerorum significationis liber:
Commentaria symbolica in duos tomos distincta, in quibus expli­
cantur arcana pene infinita ad mysticam, naturalem et occultam
rerum significationem attinentia, quae nempe de abstrusiore om­
nium prima adamica lingua: tum de antiquissima Aegyptiorum
coeterarumque gentium orphica philosophia, tum ex sacrosancta
veteri mosaica et prophetica, nec non coelesti nova Christiana,
apostolica et sanctorum patrum evangelica theologia depromta sunt.
Praeterea quae etiam celeberrimorum vatum fragmentis et denique
in chymistarum secretissimis involucris continguntur (The book
of the mystical meaning of numbers: symbolic commentaries
separated into two volumes, in which are explained almost
infinite secrets pertaining to the mystical, natural, and secret
meaning of things, which are derived from the more ab­
struse, first Adamic language of all peoples; both with
relation to the most ancient Orphic philosophy of the Egyp­
tians and other peoples; then from the time of ancient Mosaic
and prophetic theology; and especially from the heavenly
new Christian Apostolic and evangelical theology of the holy
fathers. Besides which, these matters are also touched upon
in fragments of the most celebrated prophets and finally in
the encased and most secret beliefs of the chemists).12
Jacques Gohory Parisien (ca. 1520-76) added to these
interpretations those from the romances of the Middle Ages.
In dedicating the translation of the thirteenth book of Amadis
of Gaul to the duchess of Nevers, Gohory, who published a
translation of the Poliphilus, wrote: "But it is not to be
forgotten in connection with Poliphilus (whose lover Polia is
said to have been born in the Trevisane border region), and
with the goldsmith Augurel, who also throws light on the
matter, and with Count Bernard Trevisan, that Merlin tells

among his prophecies how at Tarvis a person is to be bom
who will make gold and silver.” And Gohorv, who also
published The Perilous Fountain Containing the Cryptogra­
phy of the Secret Mysteries o f Mineral Science, added: "It is not
a ridiculous absurdity that princesses are carried away by
Magicians, Giants, and Giantesses, at the beginning of this
book, in an azure chariot conducted by four harpies, and the
fortunate virgin in the chariot of swans, nor that Medea of
Colchis is mounted on her chariot that is yoked to two
dragons, nor that Juno the goddess of wealth goes in her
chariot drawn by two peacocks. For the preceding wonders
«ure set forth by the Englishman Bacon in the book On the
Admirable Power of Art and Mature." Gohorv was well-read,
because in the preface he states: "Here you see the infernal
Rock on which Jason's rich weapons are found, and the
terrible serpent like the dragon of Columna and his dark
cavem, things also treated by our authors François Guil­
laume de Lorris and Jean de Meun, the poet of the Amorous
and Perilous Fountain, and Nicholas Flamel, who has left
notable signs of them in his pictures in Paris at various
temples in the form of dragons and angels of certain colors.
Two gilt leaves from that work have lately been carried off by
curious people, from the two ossuaries of the town's public
cemetery."
Blaise de Vigenère (1523-% ), who was in the service of the
Gonzagues de Nevers (who were kindly disposed toward
alchemy) and who praised the romances of the Middle Ages,
has added many digressions on alchemy in a work of a
Tide page of Arcana Arcanissima by Michael Maier. Paris, Bibliothèque
nationale. Photo BN.
A L C H E M Y A ND M Y T H O L O G Y
translator likened at that time to Amyot. And w*e must set in
its proper place The Images or Pictures from the Flat Painting of
Philostratus, which Michael Maier knew, Goethe appreciated,
and Tollius cited. Clovis Hesteau de Nuysement (ca. 1560-
ca. 1624) is our greatest alchemical poet, but we will have to
make room at his side for Nicolas Bamaud (ca. 1538-ca.
1607), who gave an alchemical interpretation to the famous
inscription from Bologna of Aelia Laelia Crispis, as well as to
the Enigmas o f C. Symposius, which François Bérolade de
Verville included in The Voyage o f the Fortunate Princes, a
Cryptographic Work, but which he criticized in his Palace of the
Curious. Let us not forget Claude Barthélémy Morisot (1592-
1661), a friend of Rubens, who dedicated his alchemical
romance Peruviana to Gaston d'Orléans. It was about the
same time that Pierre Jean Fabre de Castelnaudary (1588-
1658), whose Hercules Piochymicus became part of Pemety's
Dictionary, dedicated to the same prince and his adepts his
Summary of Alchemical Secrets.13
Another figure in this history was one Angelo Ingegneri,14
who published at Naples, in 1606, Contra VAlchimia e gli
Alchimisti, paliodia dell'Argonautica, con la stessa Argonautica
dichiarata da copiose postille del proprio autore. A friend of Cesare
della Riviera, the author of the Mondo magico degli Heroi, and
of an ambassador for Charles V, Giacom' Antonio Gromo
sumamed Ethereo, who had composed a Medea ricamata, an
alchemical work illustrated with drawings, Ingegneri had at
first extolled alchemy in the myth of Jason and Medea,
through which a symbolism often difficult to grasp could be
assessed. Giving an account of the Fortuita of Tollius, one of
the collaborators of the Nrws from the Republic o f Letters
noted:15 'T o tell the truth, I might never have believed that
an idea of alchemy could be extracted from the speeches of
Sophocles, . . . but everything changes in the hands of a
clever man," w-hile one of the admirers of Tollius in our
tim e,16 w’ho presents himself as an "adept," could wnite:
"The mythologies of the gods and heroes, like the religion of
Christ, the Apostles, and the evangelical annals, have solid
meaning and real value only in the undeniable and numer­
ous connections that they show with alchemy, its materials
and its operations."
F.S./b.f.
NOTES
1. g . g . SCHOLEM, "La signification de la Loi dans la mystique
juive," G. Vajda, trans., Diogène 15 (1956): 14.
2. ï. secret, "Du T>e occulta philosophia' à l'occultisme du XIXe
siècle," Revue de l'histoire des religions, 1975.
3. It suffices to mention the Warburg Institute studies: l. thorndke ' s
History of Magic and Experimental Science, published in 8 vols, beginning
in 1923; Ambix, the Journal for the Study of Alchemy and Early Chemistry,
founded by F. Sherwood Taylor; Isis, founded by George Sarton; etc.
4. Cf. review bv j. de baltrusattis, "La quête d'Isis," L'oeil 161
(1968): 38.
5. One need only consult the bibliography in the English trans­
lation of i- sezn'ec*s classic work. The Survival of the Pagan Gods: The
Mythological Tradition and Its Place in Renaissance Humanism and Art
(New York 1953); m . tlrker, Bibliographie zur Symbolik, Ikonographie
und Mythologie (Baden-Baden 1960); and Bibliographie zur Symbolkunde
from 1964.
6. See, among others, the bibliography in j. van lennep' s Art et
alchimie (Paris and Brussels 1966) and the preface to the Italian
edition of pernet/ s Dictionary (Milan 1971) (this dictionary was
reissued in the Bibliotheca hermetica. under the direction of R. Alleau,
who WTOte the article "Alchim ie" in the Encyclopaedia universalis).
7. F. secret, "Notes sur quelques alchimistes italiens de la Renais­
sance," Rinascimento 23 (1973); "Gianfrancesco Pico della Mirandola,
213
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

Lilio Gregorio Giraldi et l'alchimie," Bibliothèque d'humanisme et Re­ 12. Annuaire 79 (1971-72).
naissance 38 (1976). 13. F. secret, "Claude Barthélemy Morisot, chantre de Rubens et
8. L. Thorndike, A History of Magic and Experimental Science (New romancier chymique," Studi francesi 40 (1970).
York 1934), 3:155. 14. "Littérature et alchimie au XVIIe siècle: L'écusson harmonique
9. Bibliotheca Hermetica (Paris 1970), 104; cf. 110. de Jacques Sanlecque," Studi francesi 47 (1972).
10. Ibid., 144. 15. Nouvelles de la République (April 1687), 400.
11. F. secret. Annuaire de l'École pratique des Hautes Études (Sciences 16. E. cansei.iet. Les douze clefs de la philosophie (Paris 1971), 18, and
religieuses) 83 (1974-75). Mutus Liber, 79.

E l y s i a n f i e l d s , t h e f a b u l o u s r e t r e a t o f t h e l ik e s o f L i n u s a n d
C abala and M ythology O r p h e u s , b u t b y g i v in g y o u b le s s e d e v e r la s ti n g l if e ." 6
It is s ti ll u n c l e a r h o w E g i d i o d a V i t e r b o , p e r f e c t H e l l e n i s t
th a t h e w a s , b e c a m e th e m o s t e ru d ite C h ris tia n s c h o la r o f
It is w e l l k n o w n t h a t t h e C a b a l a w a s m u c h i n v o g u e 1 a f t e r t h e H e b ra ic lite r a tu r e . Y e t fro m De Ecclesiae incremento, w r i t t e n in
s c a n d a l o f G io v a n n i P i c o d e l la M i r a n d o l a 's Conclusiones and 1 5 0 7 o n th e o c c a s io n o f th e d is c o v e r ie s m a d e b y P o r tu g a l, to
a f te r th e p u b lic a tio n o f De arte cabalislica, w h e n s e c r e tiv e m e n h is la st w o rk , th e Scechina, in w h ic h th e la s t o f th e S e p h ir o t
w e r e in o p e n d i s p u t e . E q u a l l y w e l l k n o w n a r e t h e r e l a t i o n ­ r e v e a l s t o C l e m e n t V II a n d C h a r l e s V t h e m y s t e r i e s o f t h e
s h ip s th a t w e re e s ta b lis h e d b e tw e e n th is c u r r e n t o f n ew A r a m a e a n s (w h o s e la n g u a g e w a s th a t o f th e Zohar), E g id io
i d e a s a n d a s t r o l o g y , a l c h e m y , e t c . C o n s e q u e n t l y , it is h a r d l y da V ite rb o s e e m s to h a v e fo llo w e d a p a th opened by h is
s u r p r i s i n g t h a t m y t h o l o g y w a s " C a b a l i z e d , " in o t h e r w o r d s , c o m p a t r io t , th e D o m in ic a n G io v a n n i N a n n i, k n o w n a s A n ­
th a t fa b le s b o r n a m o n g t h e G e n ti le s w e r e i n t e r p r e t e d w ith n iu s o f V ite rb o ( 1 4 3 2 - 1 5 0 2 ) . T h is E tr u s c a n b a rd m a in ta in e d
t h e h e l p o f a t r a d i t i o n p e c u l i a r t o t h e C h o s e n P e o p l e . N o r is th a t th e G r e e k s h a d c o r r u p t e d n o t o n ly th e tr u e o r ig in s o f th e
it s u r p r is in g th a t th e C h u rch F a th e rs had been a b le to L a tin s , b u t a ls o th e tru th s th a t h a d b e e n tra n s m itte d b y th e
in te r p r e t p a g a n i s m , a n d th a t P e te r t h e V e n e r a b l e ,2 a l e r te d b y o f f s p r i n g o f N o a h o r J a n u s , w h i c h i n A r a m a i c m e a n s w i n e . It
th e d e n u n c ia tio n s o f th e K a r a ite s , h a d ju d g e d th e T a lm u d ­ seem s th a t one of th e p a rtie s re sp o n sib le fo r A n n i u s 's
is t s , w h o r e a d t h e i r f a b l e s l i t e r a l l y , t o b e m o r e f o o l i s h t h a n e ty m o lo g ic a l d e liriu m w a s a p h y s ic ia n to A le x a n d e r V I b y th e
th e E th n ics . A fte r th e Apologia and th e Conclusiones, th e n a m e o f S a m u e l Z a rp h a ti. A n n iu s h a d Historia p ro je c te d a
O r p h i c H y m n s , " f a b l e s a n d p u r e n o n s e n s e " in a p p e a r a n c e , hetrusca pontificia a Pontifice Noa qui est Janus in Vaticano coepta
to o k on m e a n in g , th a n k s to th e m y s te rie s o f th e C a b a la , ( T h e P o n tific a l E tr u s c a n h i s t o r y fro m th e P o n tife x N o a , w h o
w h ic h w e r e n o t " i m a g i n a r y n o n s e n s e o r ta le s o f c h a r la t a n s " is J a n u s , begun in th e V a tic a n ). T h is is th e th e m e o f th e
b u t m o re d e e p ly r o o te d m e a n in g s h id d e n u n d e r th e o u te r Historia XX saeculorum (H isto ry o f T w e n ty C e n tu rie s ) th a t
c r u s t o f th e L a w .1 T h e s a m e c a n b e s a id fo r th e C u r e t e s in th e E g id io d e d ic a t e d to L e o X , in w h ic h k n o w l e d g e o f th e C a b a la
se rv ice of O rp h e u s, fo r th e P o w e rs in th e s e rv ice o f D i­ in f o r m e d a n E tr u s c a n s u b je c t m a tte r . W e d o n o t p o s s e s s th e
o n y s u s , fo r O r p h e u s a n d N ig h t, a n d fo r Ensof i n t h e C a b a l a . 4 p ro m is e d tr e a tis e s — De symbolis (O n S y m b o ls ) a n d De Etrus­
The Theologia poetica, w h i c h w a s s u p p o s e d t o i n t e r p r e t t h e corum arcanis (O n th e S e c r e ts o f th e E tr u s c a n s )— b u t w e d o
Graecia mendax ( G r e e k lie ) a c c o r d i n g t o t h e p u r e s t veritas h a v e a ric h c o r p u s o f t h e m e s b a r e ly s k e t c h e d in c o m p l e te d
Hebraica ( H e b r e w t r u t h ) a n d t h e p r i n c i p l e o f c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s w o r k s p r e s e r v e d in th e s e r ie s o f g l o s s a r ie s Glossarium Chalda­
h a i l e d b y t h e Heptaplus, w a s n e v e r w r i t t e n . C i r c u m s t a n c e s icae linguae et Cabalae vocabula (T h e G lo s s a ry o f th e C h a ld e a n
w e r e s u c h th a t th e w o r k o f E g id io d a V ite rb o ( 1 4 6 9 - 1 5 3 2 ) ,5 L a n g u a g e a n d th e W o r d s o f th e C a b a la ), o r Caldea Babylonica
w h o trie d to b r in g th e Theologia poetica to f r u itio n in h is o w n et Aramaea fratris Aegidii (T h e B a b y lo n ia n C h a ld e a n and
w a y , r e m a i n e d in m a n u s c r i p t f o r m . A r a m a e a n o f B r o th e r A e g id i u s ) .7 E v e n A e g id iu s V ite rb ie n -
In d e e d , th is h e r m i t fr o m S a in t-A u g u s tin , g e n e r a l o f th e s is , w h o s o m e t im e s s ig n e d h is n a m e A e g id iu s P a la e o lo g u s ,
o r d e r a t th e t im e o f L u t h e r 's r e v o l t, le ft a w o r k t h a t s h o u ld fo llo w e d in th e fo o tste p s of A n n iu s , w ho c la im e d th a t
not be to o h a s tily ju d g e d as c la s h in g w ith th e re lig io u s P a la e o lo g u s w as th e G re e k tr a n s la tio n of V ite rb ie n s is or
refo rm b ro u g h t about by L u th e r, but s h o u ld be c lo s e ly L u cu m o . T h ese arcana (a lw a y s c a lle d cana f o ll o w i n g S o l o n 's
s t u d i e d in o r d e r t o b e u n d e r s t o o d . E g i d i o d a V i t e r b o b e c a m e a p o s tro p h e to th e G reek s, w ho re m a in e d c h ild re n ) are
a c a rd in a l a n d p re a ch e d th e u rg e n t n e e d fo r re fo rm a t th e w o rth y o f s tu d y .8 A m o n g th e m a re th e S ib y l; semita Dei
L a t e r a n C o u n c i l ; a c c o r d i n g t o h i m , it w a s u p t o homines per (th e fo o tp a th o f G o d ) 9; C y b e l e , w if e o f th e E t r u s c a n k in g
sacra immutari, non sacra per homines ("m e n to b e c h a n g e d J a s i u s , w h o s e n u p t i a l s I s i s 10 a t t e n d e d a n d w h o w a s n a m e d
th ro u g h sa cre d th in g s , n o t sa cre d th in g s th r o u g h m e n "). f o r t h e H e b r e w w o r d t h a t m e a n s C a b a l a ; C a m i l l a , 11 w h o in
A fte r th e s a ck o f R o m e , h e w ro te th a t G o d h a d n o t p e rm itte d V i r g i l 's Aeneid ( 7 .8 0 3 ) m o v e s a h e a d o f th e a d v a n c in g w in d s
sacred th in g s to b e p r o f a n e d , b u t th e p r o f a n in g o f s a c r e d and is s o nam ed fo r th e C h asm o f E z e k ie l, w h ere h o ly
t h i n g s w a s t o b e a v e n g e d . R e c a l l i n g t h a t it w a s o n h e a r i n g a n i m a l s m o v e d w i t h t h e v e l o c i t y o f t h u n d e r ; a n d P a r i s , 12 s o
th e c a rd in a l p re a ch on th e V irg in th a t J a c o p o S an n azaro c a lle d b y P ria m , th e d e s c e n d a n t o f D a r d a n u s , b e c a u s e h e
c o n ce iv e d th e id e a fo r h is De partu Virginis, a h is to ria n w o u ld b re a k th e r e ig n , s in c e h is n a m e m e a n s " t o b u r s t in ,"
i n s is te d w ith E r a s m u s th a t S a n n a z a r o s h o u ld h a v e s a c r if ic e d a c c o r d in g to H e b r a ic e t y m o lo g y . T h e r e a r e a ls o in te r p r e t a ­
le s s to p a g a n ism w hen tre a tin g an a lto g e th e r C h r is tia n t io n s o f fa b le s a c c o r d in g t o t h e ir b ib lica l m o d e l s o r th e g r e a t
s u b je ct. The h is to ria n , h o w ev er, q u o te d th e c a rd in a l as t h e m e s o f P l a t o , H o m e r , a n d V ir g i l . F a t h e r d e L u b a c , a f t e r d e ­
s a y in g to th e p o e t, " W h e n I re c e iv e d y o u r d iv in e p o e m , I s c rib in g a s " a s tr a n g e p o l y p h o n y " a s e r m o n in w h ic h E g id io
w a n te d to b e c o m e b e t te r a c q u a i n te d i m m e d ia t e l y w ith th is " c a l l s o n M i n e r v a , O d y s s e u s , V e n u s , J u n o , P a r i s , H e l e n , P ä l la s ,
m a rv e lo u s c re a tio n . G od a lo n e , w ho in sp ire d it w i t h h is A ja x fo r h e l p ," w e n t s o f a r a s to a s s e r t th a t th e fifth b o o k o f th e
b r e a t h o f l if e , c a n r e w a r d y o u w o r t h i l y , n o t b y g i v i n g y o u t h e Scechina "e n d s on a few lin e s th a t a r e p e r h a p s o n e o f th e

214
 PAN A M O N G T H E C A B A L I S T S AND A L C H E M I S T S

m o s t b e a u t i f u l p o e m s o f r e n a s c e n t C h r i s t i a n h u m a n i s m . " 13 P o s te l m u ltip lie d th e se e m ith o lo g ie s in h is De Etruriae

D ra w in g o n c o m m o n s o u r c e s b u t p r o c e e d in g a lo n g d iffe r­ originibus, i n c l u d e d t h e m in t h e Galliade, a n d s p r in k le d th e m
e n t p a th s a n d in a n a l to g e t h e r d if f e r e n t s e ttin g , G u illa u m e t h r o u g h o u t h i s w o r k s , w h i c h h e s i g n e d a t t h e e n d o f h i s life
P o s te l ( 1 5 1 0 - 8 1 ) s y s te m a tiz e d a c r a z e o f w h ic h th e Cratylus is w ith th e n a m e o f P o s -te l o r R o r is p e r g e , w h ic h in t h e h o l y
th e m a s te r w o r k a n d in v e n te d th e w o rd emithology to c h a ra c ­ to n g u e m e a n s d is tr ib u to r o f d e w .
te r iz e it. T h e u s u a l t e r m etymology is in fa c t a m e t a t h e s i s o f P o s te l w a s n o t th e la s t to p la y w ith th e w a y s o f C a b a lis tic
th e w o rd emithology,14 c r a f tily e f f e c te d b y th e G r e e k s . In th e a r t s e t f o r th in De arte cabalistica. C e s a r e d e lla R iv ie ra , w h o
la n g u a g e o f c r e a tio n and r e v e la tio n , its r o o t emeth m eans m i x e d t h e C a b a l a w i t h h i s a l c h e m y , f o u n d in D i a n a 20 Diem,
tru th (veritas), w h i c h P o s te l, a c c o r d in g to h is m e th o d , w r o te cioe lucem afferens naturae ("B rin g in g th e day, n a m e ly , th e
as Berritas, m e a n i n g " a w e ll ." lig h t o f n a t u r e " ) . A t th e v e r y l e a s t a n e w w o rld , e n d o w e d
B e in g a n a d m ir e r o f th e e ty m o lo g ie s o f A n n iu s o f V ite rb o w ith th e g e n iu s of th e H e b re w la n g u a g e and w ith th e
a n d , l ik e h i m , d e a d s e t a g a i n s t t h e Graecia mendax ( G r e e k lie ) a m a z i n g p a r a b le s o f th e R a b b is , h a d b e e n o p e n e d up, and
a n d in f a v o r o f E t r u r ia , P o s t e l u n d e r to o k t o e l im i n a t e fa b le s p o e try flo w e d fro m it. O ne need o n ly open De harmonia
fro m c a le n d a rs , g eo g rap h y , and a s tro n o m y . He m ade h is mundi by F ra n c isa is G e o r g iu s V e n e tu s (1 4 6 0 -1 5 4 0 ), la te r
p u r p o s e d e a r i n t h e t i t l e : Signorum caelestium vera configuratio tr a n s la te d by th e poet G uy Le F è v re de la B o d e rie ; th e
aut Asterismus, stellarumve per suas imagines aut configurationes Scechina b y E g id io d a V ite rb o ; th e w o n d e rfu l d ig re s s io n s o f
dispositio, et in eum ordinem quem illis Deus praefixerat restitutio B la ise d e V ig e n è r e , w h o w a s a n a s tr o lo g e r , a n a lc h e m is t, a n d
et significationum expositio, sive Caelum repurgatum ( T h e t r u e a C h ris tia n C a b a lis t; a n d , la s t b u t n o t le a s t, th e r e v e r ie s o f
c o n fig u ra tio n of th e c e le s tia l s ig n s , or A s te ris m , or th e A t h a n a s i u s K ir c h e r a s f o u n d in th e Iter extaticum, w h ic h is a t
d is p o s itio n o f th e s ta r s th r o u g h th e ir im a g e s a n d c o n f ig u r a ­ t h e h e a r t o f J . B a l t r u s a i t i s 's f in e b o o k o n t h e q u e s t o f I s is .
t io n s , b o t h r e s t o r e d in t h e v e r y o r d e r in w h ic h G o d p r e v i ­ F .S ./ g .h .
o u s ly e s ta b lis h e d t h e m a n d e x p la in e d in th e ir m e a n i n g s , o r,
f i n a ll y , H e a v e n R e c l e a n s e d ) . C l e a n s i n g t h i s h e a v e n o f G r e e k
fa b le s a n d re s to rin g th e ord er w ille d by G od, P o s te l ex­
p r e s s e d id e a s h e d is c o v e r e d b y tr a n s la tin g th e Sefer Bahir,15
w h ic h rid ic u le d th e th e m e o f th e th irty -s ix d e c a n s . W hen
NOTES
P o s te l w a s n o t m e a s u r in g h is s k y , h e w a s b u s y re d is c o v e r in g
1. F. secret. Les kabbalistes chrétiens de la Renaissance (Paris 1965).
in C a p r ic o r n th e s c a p e g o a t s e n t t o A z a z e l a n d in T a u r u s th e
2. h . de LUBAC, Exégèse médiévale, IV, II (Paris 1964), 187. This fine
b u ll t h a t A d a m s a c r i f i c e d ( a c c o r d i n g t o t h e C a b a l i s t s ) o r t h e book has a whole chapter on symbolism; cf., by the same author. Pic
b u ll t h a t i s t h e f o u r t h l e g o f t h e M e r k a b a h . 16 I n 1 5 7 2 , w h e n a de la Mirandole (Paris 1974).
n e w s t a r a p p e a r e d in t h e c o n s t e l la t i o n o f C a s s i o p e i a , P o s te l 3. Conclusiones (Paris 1532), 12.
in fla te d a n c i e n t m y th o lo g y w ith t h e e m i th o lo g y o f C a s s io ­ 4. Conclusiones, ed. B. Kieszkowski (Geneva 1973), 81, 82.
p e ia t h a t c o m e s b o th fro m C u s h , t h e f ir s tb o r n c o n c e i v e d b y 5. i. w. o 'm alley , Giles of Viterbo on Church and Reform: A Study in
H am in t h e a r k in v io la tio n o f th e la w o f a b s t i n e n c e , 17 f o r Renaissance Thought (Leiden 1968). Cf. Annuaire de l'Ecole pratique des
w h ic h h e s to le th e b o o k s o f m a g ic c o m p o s e d b y A d a m ; a n d
Hautes Études 83 (1974- 75).
fro m A p h , th e fa c e . T h e n e w s ta r h e ra ld e d th e c o m in g o f
6. M. AUDiN, Histoire de Léon X (Paris 1846), 513.
7. Ms B.N.F. lat. 596 et 597.
C h ris t " i n u s ," and th e e n d o f th e b la ck fa ce s o f ty ra n ts.
8. Historia, fol. 198 v.
D e te rm in e d to r e f e r to A fric a a s C h a m e s i a , A s ia a s S e m ia , 9. Ibid., fol. 229.
a n d E u r o p e a s J a p e t ia , in o r d e r t o a b o lis h t h e fa b le o f t h e c o w 10. Ibid., fol. 223.
and th e "a b o m in a b le n e ' e r - d o - w e l l , " 18 P o s t e l o c c a s io n a lly 11. Scechina (Rome 1959), 2:229.
i n d u lg e d in a lte r in g th e s p e llin g o f th e w o r d A s i a 19 i n t h e 12. Historia, fol. 42 v.
h o l y t o n g u e , in o r d e r to r e c a p it u la t e h is s e r m o n . W i th a l e p h 13. h . de LUBAC, Pic de la Mirandole, 102 and 306.
a n d s a m e k h , A s ia m e a n s r e m e d y , f o r G o d i n s t it u te d in A s ia 14. f . secret, L’émithologie de G. Postel, Umanesimo e Esoterismo
th e m y s t e r i e s o f s a lv a tio n . W ith a le p h a n d s h in , A s ia m e a n s
(Padua 1960).
fo u n d in g , fo r th e w o rld w a s p e o p le d b y co lo n ie s th a t h a d c o m e
15. Notes sur G. Postel. B.H.R., 1977.
16. Signorum . . . (Paris 1552).
f ro m A s ia . W ith a y in a n d s h in , A s ia f u r th e r m e a n s r e a liz a tio n ,
17. F. secret. De quelques courants prophétiques et religieux sous Henri
f o r e v e r y t h i n g w ill b e b r o u g h t a b o u t t h r o u g h t h e m y s t e r y o f III, R.H.R., 172 (1967).
C h r is t c o n ta in e d in A s ia , s p e lle d w ith a s a m e c a n d a h a in , 18. De universitate (ed. 1635), 31.
m e a n in g th e b re a d o f th e E u c h a r is t, w h ic h th e firstb o rn o f th e 19. m . s. BRrr, Sloane 1409, Commentarius in Apocalypsim, fol. 238.
R e s titu tio n c o n s e c r a t e d a t V e n ice fo r th e w h o le w o r ld . 20. Il mondo magico, ed. J. Evola (Bari 1932), 47.

T o s h o w a W h o l e t h a t b o u n d s a ll th in g s .
P an among the C abalists and A lchemists H e d e p ic ts a P a n w h o h a s tw o h o r n s
of the R enaissance O n h is h e a d , d e s i g n a t i n g b y th is o b v io u s s ig n
B o th th e c h a n n e l o f th e e a s t a n d th e c h a n n e l o f th e w e s t .
A la r g e d e e r s k in b e s p e c k le d w ith s ta r s
T h ere have been m any re p ro d u c tio n s o f th e h ie ro g ly p h ic H e w e a r s o n h is b a c k ; it is t h e v a u l t e d t e n t
re p r e s e n ta tio n o f Ju p ite r o r o f P a n a s p u t fo rw a r d b y A th a ­ O f th e g litte r in g f ir m a m e n t w h e r e in s h i n e b rig h tly
n a siu s K i r c h e r in h is Oedipus Aegyptiacus H e -1 m ay have M o r e e y e s th a n e v e r -w a tc h fu l A r g o s h a d .
ta k e n th e id e a fro m t h e De harmonia mundi, a w o n d e rfu l F ro m h is c h in h is b e a r d h a n g s d o w n to h is b e lt.
w o r k , w h i c h G u y L e F è v r e d e la B o d e r i e t r a n s l a t e d . W e s h a l l W h ic h r a d ia te s in flu e n c e u p o n th e h e a r t o f n a tu r e :
c ite th e p a s s a g e fro m h is g r e a t p o e m La Galliade in w h ic h th e H e p la y s a fla g e o le t w ith s e v e n p ip e s ,
t h e m e o f P a n is C a b a li z e d :2 W h ic h a r e th e s e v e n p itc h e s o f th e s e v e n g lo w in g lig h ts

215
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

T h a t m a k e th e w o rld d a n c e r o u n d a n d r o u n d ,
A ll t h e d i f f e r e n t f e e t f a l l i n g i n t o s t e p .
H e d e l i g h t s in h e a r i n g , f r o m t h e c a v e s a n d t h e w o o d s ,
T h e a n s w e rin g v o ice o f E c h o r e p e a tin g h is o w n seven
v o ice s ,
B e c a u s e th e in flu e n c e o f e a c h p a rt
H a r m o n i z e s w i t h t h e W h o l e o f w h i c h it is a p a r t .
F r o m h is w a is t to h is c lo v e n -h o o f e d fe e t
H e is a ll c o v e r e d w i t h t h i c k - l a y e r e d h a i r
T o s h o w th a t th e b o tto m o f th e ro u n d m a c h in e
U n d e r h i s c l o v e n h o o v e s is m a d e o f e a r t h a n d w a t e r
A n d th a t th e e l e m e n ts , m in g lin g in to o n e a n o th e r ,
S eem to b e u n e q u a l , h a ir y a n d b ristly ,
A n d S y rin x w h o fe ig n e d to b e h is frie n d
W a s N a t u r e o r g a n i z e d in s w e e t a l c h e m y .
B e c a u s e h e h a d re a d o n C h a ld e a n m o n u m e n ts 3
T h a t w in e s w e r e k e p t w ith in g r a p e s
E v e r s in c e th e s e v e n d a y s w h e n th e w o rld w a s c r e a te d ,
A n d th a t w e a r e in to x ic a te d b y th e w in e a b o u n d in g
In t h e h o u s e o f G o d w h o p o u r s h i s l i q u o r s
In to th e v e s s e ls o f h e a rts th ro u g h n in e p u re p ip e s ,
T h e re fo re h e in v e n te d n in e B a c c h u s e s a n d n in e M u s e s
W h o w ith t h e ir s w e e t i n f u s io n s g o a b o u t i n to x ic a ti n g
T h e d iv in e p o e ts w h o h a v e d ru n k o f th e m .
A n d C l o v i s H e s t e a u d e N u y s e m e n t , w h o , l ik e L a B o d e r i e ,
w a s in t h e s e r v i c e o f F r a n ç o i s d ' A l e n q n , w a s a b l e t o a l c h e m ­
iz e th is t h e m e b y c itin g O r p h e u s . A f t e r h e h a d p r e s e n t e d h is
D e m o g o r g o n ,4
V irg il, p e rfe c tly w e ll v e r s e d in a ll t h e s e m y s tic s e c r e ts ,
g a v e to th is S p ir it o r s o u l o f th e w o r ld th e n a m e o f J u p i te r ,
w h o m h e h a s h is s h e p h e r d D a m e te in v o k e fo r th e s a k e o f
h i s s o n g s s i n c e , h e c l a i m s , a ll t h i n g s a r e fi ll e d w i t h h i m .
T h is g o d o f th e f o re s ts , P a n , w o rs h ip e d by sh ep h erd s,
m a y b e ta k e n to b e th e s a m e th in g . F o r, a s id e fro m h is
n a m e , w h ic h m e a n s " a l l ," h e is a l s o m a d e i n to th e lo r d o f
th e f o r e s ts b e c a u s e th e G r e e k s c o n s id e r e d h im th e p rie s t
o f C h a o s , w h ic h th e y o t h e r w is e c a lle d H ile , m e a n in g a
f o r e s t . In h i s h y m n , O r p h e u s c a l l s o n h i m a s f o l l o w s :
P a n th e s tr o n g , th e s u b tle , th e w h o le , th e u n iv e r s a l;
A ll a i r , a ll w a t e r , a ll e a r t h , a n d a ll i m m o r t a l f i r e .
T h o u w h o s it te s t u p o n th e s a m e t h r o n e w ith tim e ,
In t h e l o w e r , m i d d l e , a n d u p p e r k i n g d o m ,
C o n c e i v i n g , b e g e t t i n g , p r o d u c i n g , g u a r d i n g a l l;
F i r s t in a ll a n d o f a l l , t h o u w h o c o m e s t t o t h e e n d o f a l l,
S e e d o f fire , o f air, o f e a r t h , a n d o f th e w a v e s ,
G r e a t s p i r i t e n l i v e n i n g a ll t h e l i m b s o f t h e w o r l d ,
W h o g o e s t a b o u t f r o m a ll t o a ll c h a n g i n g n a t u r e s .
L o d g i n g a s t h e u n i v e r s a l s o u l w i t h i n a ll b o d i e s .
T o w h i c h y o u g i v e e x i s t e n c e a n d m o v e m e n t a n d lif e ,
P r o v i n g b y a t h o u s a n d e f f e c ts th y in fin ite p o w e r .
F .S ./g .h .
NOTES
1. Oedipus, tomus secundus, pars prima (Rome 1653), 204.
2. La Galliade ou de la révolution des arts et des sciences (Antwerp
1578), 115. Cf. F. sfxrft . L'ésotérisme de Guy Le Fèi're de la Boderie
(Geneva 1969), 136.
3. The wine kept in its grapes since the six days of creation
(Talmud, Berakot 34 b) symbolizes the delights of the world to come;
cf. c. VAIDA, Le commentaire d'Ezra de Gérone sur le Cantique des cantiques
(Paris 1969), 262, n. 40.
4. Ed. Matton, p. 279.

our q u in te s s e n c e and d rin k a b le g o ld . W ith th e G o rg o n

F ables an d S ym b o ls fro m S ixt een t h - an d tu r n in g th o s e w h o lo o k a t h e r to s to n e th e y h a v e c o v e r e d th e

S ev en teen t h - C en tu r y H er m etic ism f i x a t i o n o f t h e E l ix i r , a n d h a v e h i d d e n p h i l o s o p h a l s u b l i m a ­

t io n under J u p ite r co n v e rte d in to an e a g le , c a rry in g
G anym ede off to th e h eaven s. U nder th e fictio n of th e
g o l d e n t r e e t h a t g r o w s a n e w b r a n c h w h e n a b r a n c h is c u t o f f
I. T h e M y th o -H e r m e tic D ic tio n a r y
th e y h ave h id d e n th e d istilla tio n of p h ilo s o p h e rs ' g o ld ,
H e n r i d e L i n t h a u t ' s Commentari/ on the Treasure of Treasures w h ic h th e y h a v e a lso c o v e re d w ith J u p i te r c u t t in g o f f h is
of Christophe de Canton g l o s s e s t h i s b r i e f o u t l i n e o f t h e m a i n f a t h e r 's g e n i t a l s . T h e y c a ll e d M e r c u r ia l w a t e r t h e c h a r i o t o f
H e r m e t i c f a b l e s , f o l l o w i n g G . B r a c e s c o : *1 P h a e th o n . B y M i n e r v a a r m e d th e y m e a n t th is d is tille d w a te r ,
w h ic h h a s in its e lf v e r y s u b tle p o r t i o n s o f S u lp h u r . B y V u lca n
"I k n o w (a ) th a t w e m u s t c o v e r u p , a s o u r P o e m s ,
w hom M in e rv a fo llo w s , th e y have h id d e n th e S u lp h u r
T h is h e a v e n ly s e c r e t w ith a h e a p o f a lle g o r ie s .
f o llo w in g th is s a m e w a te r , a n d its s a lt in p u tr e f a c t io n . B y th e
I k n o w th a t th is s c h o l a r l y k n o w l e d g e o f N a tu r e
c lo u d y c o v e r w ith w h ic h J u p ite r s u r r o u n d e d Io , th e y m e a n t
W a n ts s o u n d le s s ly to e n c irc le h e r s a c re d fo reh ead w ith
th e little s k in th a t a p p e a r s a t t h e b e g i n n in g o f th e c o n g e a l i n g
l a u re l.
o f t h e E l i x i r : a n d it i s s a i d t h a t t h e b l a c k p a r t i c l e s t h a t f o l l o w
T o m a in ta in h e r g r e a tn e s s in s e c r e t s ile n c e
a r e th e b la ck s a ils w ith w h ic h T h e s e u s re tu r n e d to A th e n s .
A n d to a d m ir e th e e x c e lle n c e s o f h e r h ig h s e c r e t s .
B y th e flo o d a n d th e g e n e r a tio n o f a n im a ls , th e y m e a n t th e
"(a ) The a n cie n t p h ilo s o p h e rs w e r e a d m ira b le fo r th e ir g e n e ra tio n and d istilla tio n o f S u lp h u r s . B y M a rs o u r S u l­
a b i l i t y s o d e x t e r o u s l y t o c o v e r o v e r a ll t h e i r s c i e n c e w i t h t h e p h u r , b y J u n o th e air, a n d s o m e tim e s th e e le m e n t o f e a r th .
p l e a s a n t v e i l o f p o e t i c a l f a b l e s . F o r if w e b e l i e v e E m p e d o c l e s , U n d e r V u lca n h u rle d d o w n to L e m n o s fo r h is d e f o r m ity th e y
t h e e n t i r e p r a c t i c e a n d m a t t e r o f t h i s a r t is h i d d e n u n d e r t h e d e p ic te d th e p re p a ra tio n o f o u r first b la ck S u lp h u r. W ith
fa b le of P y rrh u s and D e u c a lio n , and, in p a rtic u la r, th e A t a l a n t a t h e y c o v e r e d o u r M e r c u r ia l w a te r , q u ic k a n d f u g i­
p r e p a r a t i o n o f S u l p h u r is h i d d e n u n d e r t h e s t o r y o f H e r c u l e s t iv e , w h o s e r a c e is a r r e s te d b y th e g o l d e n a p p le s t h r o w n b y
a n d A n th e a . T h e c o n v e r s io n o f J u p ite r in to a s h o w e r o f g o ld H ip p o m e n e s , w h ic h a re our fix in g and c o a g u la tin g S u l­
h id e s th e d is tilla tio n o f p h ilo s o p h ic a l g o l d ; t h e e y e s o f A r g u s p h u r s . A n d th a t w ith w h ic h T h e s e u s a n o in te d th e m o u th o f
c o n v e rte d in to a p e a c o c k 's ta il h i d e s u lp h u r c h a n g in g i ts th e M in o ta u r a r e th e d iffe re n t k in d s o f L a b y r in th in e S u lp h u r s ,
c o lo r . U n d e r t h e fa b le o f O r p h e u s is h i d d e n t h e s w e e t n e s s o f t h a t is t h e M e r c u r i a l w a t e r o f o u r l i m e d v e s s e l , w h i c h i s t h e

216
 S I X T E E N T H - AND
true Minotaur, being both mineral and animal and thus
sharing two natures.
"Here is a part of the fictions of poets that hide the main
points of our science. If you desire a fuller interpretation of
them, consult Bracesco in his Dialogue of Demogorgon and
Geber. . . ."2
One can in any case consult the little "Dictionary" that we
have put together here; Hercules, Orpheus, and Pan, how­
ever, are treated in other parts of this work.
II. The Chariot
Giovanni Piero Valeriano Bolzani (1477-1558), who dedi­
cated to Cardinal Egidio da Viterbo, his protector, the hiero­
glyph of the stork, the symbol of piety chosen by the
Cabalist,3 echoes, in the Hieroglyphica sen de sacris Aegyptio­
rum aliarumque gentium literis commentarius (Hieroglyphics, or
commentary on the sacred writings of the Egyptians and
other peoples), one of the main themes of the successor of
Annius of Viterbo:4 "The sovereign Majesty (so majestic and
great that it is seen in the celestial regions) is borne in a
chariot, not a Platonic chariot in which the great Jupiter,
constructor and sovereign governor of heaven, rides lightly
about, but a chariot that we can see in the venerable old
monuments of the Tuscans, a chariot of which Giles of
Viterbo, a figure strong in doctrine, has drawn out the
deepest secrets or mysteries of the Aramaeans and made us
see it in our day in a public form. The Aramaeans said that
one and the same book had two ordinances or laws: one
written, the other delivered from God to Moses: the former is
for the people, the latter for the wise: the former represents
human things in common shapes, while the latter repre­
sents the luminous forms of divine things: and the former
reveals the history of the creation of the world and the way
to rule it, the latter the instrument, even the image of divinity
drawn from life. Plato seems to mention the two kingdoms of
Jupiter and Saturn as the happiest and most perfect, in that by
Jupiter he means human life and action, but by the kingdom of
Saturn he means the contemplation of divine things. . . ."
Then, after citing the Georgies (1.125) on Jupiter and
Metamorphoses (1.89) on the Golden Age, he continues: "To
return to our theme, Hebrew has two different names for
these two: the first is Bresit, that is, the work of creation: the
latter is called chariot, that is, secret knowledge. So this
secret second law, which must be unveiled by the Messiah
and by his own, is hieroglyphically described by them in the
figure of the chariot. This is Ezekiel's chariot in his vision of
the four images by which, like precious pearls and seals, the
Lord created four leading angels and princes of all the
heavenly intelligences. The first pearl is on the right hand,
whence come beautiful, pleasant things, and is called
Michael. On the left hand is another pearl from which things
of strong, austere complexion come, and which is called
Gabriel. Raphael is like a medicine mixed and tempered by
these first two. In the fourth place is Uriel, the closest to the
earth as dispenser of the three above-mentioned. Thus
Michael and Gabriel are taken for the two wheels, Raphael
for the seat, which is in the middle, and Uriel for the axle.
The Greek theologians call the power of Michael in God
Venus, Gabriel Mars, Raphael Jupiter, to whom the seat is
dedicated. The fourth, the sun, which has the power of the
male and the female, source of all generation, in Hebrew is
called Uriel and Adonim. Orpheus cites all four of these in a
verse calling him male/female, geniture and Adonis; it is thus
not so fabulous that Plutarch should have remarked on the
honor and service the Jews pay to Bacchus . . . for he holds
S E VE N T EE N T H - C E N T U R Y H E R M E T I C I S M
that they solemnize their feast of the Tabernacles in honor
and praise of Bacchus, and that Adonis and Bacchus are the
same. . . ."
The chariot is one of the themes most often evoked by
Egidio da Viterbo. In the Golden Age, the Tyrrhenians, the
Etruscans, who were not fixed to one place like trees or
mollusks, had chariots for houses, acorns for food, springs
and brooks for drink, and the sky for a roof. The patriarchs
of Etruria devoted themselves to contemplation, despising
wealth, and it was to those who practiced contemplation that
the sella currilis5 was reserved, which the Romans, who for a
long time sent their children to learn among the Etruscans,
borrowed from them. The chariot, which symbolizes the
contemplation of divine realities, is contrasted to the horse,
which symbolizes the arrogant philosophy of the Greeks,6 as
is witnessed in one of the last lines of the first Géorgie,
echoing the considerations of the Pheadrus: "Fertur equis
auriga, neque audit currus habenas" ("The driver is carried away
by the horses, and the chariot does not heed the reins").
The chariot theme is linked to the four mysterious letters F
A V L, which were earlier deciphered by Annius of Viterbo
and designate the sacred wood where the Lucumons taught
the doctrine proclaimed by Ezekiel for the fourth age, when
he saw a human Face (Facies), an Eagle (Aquila), a Calf
(Vitulus), and a Lion (Leo); and he saw these initials, which
designated—with the names of the tribes of Faluceres,
Arbanos, Vetulonios, and Longolanos— the Fountain (Fons)
of sovereign good, whose Dawn (Aurora) it announced,
which heroic Virtue (Virtus) loved in order to receive Light
(Lux) from it.7 And because of the arcane nature of its
transmission, they gave it the name of "Faulas" or fables.6
Two centuries later, a French Jesuit, Joachim Bouvet (1656—
1730), rediscovered the Mercava in the Chinese tradition.4
This missionary, who presented Louis XV with the portrait of
the Emperor Kangxi, whose envoy he was, and who corre­
sponded with Leibniz, was called the father of the symbolic
system, who discovered in Chinese traditions— particularly
in the Yi Jing, "the Book of Changes,"—the mysteries of
Christianity. In a magnificently illustrated text of 1724, Pro
expositione figurae sephiroticae Kabalae Hebraeorum, et generatim
Page from a manuscript by the Jesuit priest Joachim Bouvet in which
he shows concordances between Cabala and the Yi Jing. Chantilly,
Archives of the Society of Jesus, MS Fonds Brotier.
217
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

demonstranda mira conformitate primaevae Sinarum sapientiae d id not fa il to p ro d u ce an a lc h e m ic a l e x e g e s is of h im .

hieroglypicae cum antiquiore et sincera Hebraeorum Kabala ab ipso M i n d e r e r , w h o is n e g l e c t e d in F e r g u s o n 's Bibliotheca chemica
mundi primordio, per sanctos Patriarchas et Prophetas successive b u t w h o d i s c o v e r e d a m m o n ia c a c e t a t e , d id n o t c la im th a t th e
propagata ( T h r o u g h t h e e x p o s i t i o n o f t h e f i g u r e o f t h e s e p h i - a n c ie n ts in te n d e d to te a c h a lc h e m y u n d e r a v e il. In th e De
ro t in th e c a b a la of th e H eb rew s w o n d ro u s th in g s are calcantho sett vitriolo . . . disputatio iatrochymica (in w h ic h h e
d e m o n s t r a t e d , in g e n e r a l , b y t h e c o n f o r m i t y o f t h e a n c i e n t s tu d ie s , in tu rn , P ro te u s, H e rcu le s, and M e m n o n ), th e
h ie r o g ly p h y ic w is d o m o f th e C h in e s e w ith th e a n c i e n t a n d M e m n o n o f th e Theogony, o f t h e Aeneid, o f t h e Metamorphoses,
tru e ca b a la o f th e H e b re w s fro m th e v e r y b e g in n in g o f th e and o f T z e tz e s ' Chiliades, i s c o n n e c t e d w i t h v i t r i o l . 18 T h i s
w o r ld , p r o p a g a te d s u c c e s s iv e ly b y th e h o ly fa th e r s a n d th e b la ck k in g o f th e E t h io p ia n s s h o w s th e p o w e r o f v itrio l o v e r
p ro p h e ts), h e u n co v e re d , m ask ed u n d e r th e fig u re o f th e t h e b l a c k f u m e s o f a t r a b i l e , a s d o e s t h e f a c t t h a t h e is t h e s o n
m o n arch H uang Di on h is c h a r io t d ra w n by s ix w in g e d of D aw n. M e m n o n 's e x p e d it i o n to T ro y a n d th e s tr u g g le
s p ir its o r s ix d r a g o n s , th e L o r d o f th e M e r c a v a o f E z e k ie l a n d a g a in s t A c h ille s a llo w us to g lim p se th e b a ttle o f v itrio l
t h e C a b a l a . 10 a g a i n s t t h e w o r s t e n e m i e s o f t h e h u m a n r a c e , a n d A c h i l l e s is
t h e H e r m e t i c a r t i s a n w h o b y f i r e a n d h i s a l c h e m i c a l a r t k ills
th e c a lc a n th u m . T h e fig h t a ls o d e m o n s t r a te s th e w e a p o n s o f
III. Demogorgon
M em non, w ho l ik e H e rcu le s v a n q u ish e s m o n ste rs. H is
The w o rd D e m o g o rg o n ap p e a rs in th e Mytho-Hermetic s w o r d , h a n g i n g in t h e t e m p l e o f A s c l e p i u s , c o m p l e t e s t h e
Dictionary, b u t P e r n e t y a t t r i b u t e s t o R a y m o n d L u ll a t r e a t i s e p r o o f . H is m e t a m o r p h o s i s i n to a b ird o n th e p y r e p e r f e c tly
o n o p e r a tio n s o n s to n e , e n title d Demogorgon, in t h e f o r m o f a illu stra te s th e tra n s fo rm a tio n o f v itrio l in to v o la tile s p irit.
d i a l o g u e in w h i c h D e m o g o r g o n is o n e o f t h e i n t e r l o c u t o r s . In A nd th e fu n e ra l c o lu m n th a t m a d e s o u n d s a t th e b re a k o f
f a c t , it w a s G i o v a n n i B r a c e s c o d e g l i O r s i n o v i w h o in 1 5 4 4 d ay evok es, fo r th o s e fa m ilia r w ith a lc h e m ic a l o p e r a t i o n s ,
p u b lis h e d La Espositione di Geber filosofo, in w h i c h G e b e r , in a th e d r o p le ts tin k lin g a t th e b e a k s o f r e to r ts , w h ic h re q u ire th e
d ia lo g u e w ith D em o g o rg o n , re c o u n ts th e m e a n i n g o f th is o p e r a t o r to k e e p w a tc h le st th e r e b e a n e x p lo s io n .
a n c e s t o r o f t h e g o d s a c c o r d i n g t o t h e “ g e n e a l o g i a d e l li D e i d e
G e n t i l i . " 11 And Je a n S e z n e c , 12 fo llo w in g C a rlo L a n d i 's
V. The Phoenix
b o o k , 11 w h i c h is e x t r e m e l y r a r e in F r a n c e , h a s s u m m a r i z e d
t h e f o r t u n e s o f t h i s i n v e n t e d g o d . A l s o t o b e n o t e d is s o m e T h e p h o e n i x h a s i t s p l a c e in t h e H e r m e t i c b e s t i a r y , 19 b u t i ts
l a t e r r e s e a r c h , s i n c e L a n d i f o r g o t L e o E b r e o M in h i s lis t o f p l a c e in t h e i l l u m i n a t i o n o f G u i l l a u m e P o s t e l s e e m s a ll t h e
v u lg a r iz e r s o f D e m o g o r g o n , a n d s in c e c ita tio n o f D e m o g o r ­ m o r e w o r t h y o f n o t e in t h a t it a p p e a r s o n l y in m a n u s c r i p t
gon can upon o c c a sio n h e lp us to d a te a w o rk w h ic h w o r k s , w h ic h i llu m in a te , a l o n g w ith th e p r o f o u n d m y th o f
“ i n i t i a t e s " s i t u a t e a c e n t u r y e a r l i e r . 11 I a m re fe rr in g to th e th e firs tb o r n s o n o f M o th e r J e a n n e , a to ta lly G n o s tic w a y o f
Five Books, or the Key to the Secret of Secrets 16 o f N ic o la s V a lo is , th in k in g , b a s e d p a r tic u la r ly o n c e rta in m o n u m e n ts o f H e ­
w ho speaks of th e c a lc in a tio n of th e body, "w h ic h th e b r a ic lit e r a t u r e .
A n c i e n t s s y m b o l i z e d b y a D r a g o n a s l e e p in t h e f i r e , g u a r d e d It is i n t h e f o r m o f a p r o p h e c y o f t h e V e n e t i a n V i r g i n t h a t
b y a n o l d m a n w h o is t h e v i r t u e o f s u l p h u r r e t a i n e d in t h e P o s t e l p r e s e n t s t h e P a l m a o r T h a m a r , e x p l a i n i n g o n l y t h a t 20
s o u l, w h ic h D e m o g o rg o n aw akens fro m th e e a r th by our " s i n c e a m o n g t h e e l e m e n t a r y t h i n g s t h e r e is n o t h i n g l i v i n g
M a r s ." A nd am ong th o s e w ho fo llo w e d B ra ce sco w e m ay th a t la s ts lo n g e r th a n th e P a lm a w h ile p r o d u c in g s u c h fru its ,
n o te C lo v is H e s te a u d e N u y s e m e n t, w h o , r e p e a te d ly c itin g p e r f e c t in s w e e t n e s s a n d n u t r i t i v e v a l u e , t h e L o r d d e s i r e d t o
B r a c e s c o , w a s n o t s h y a b o u t r e t u r n in g to th is n e w c h a r a c t e r be re c o g n iz e d h e r e in th is w o rld in t h e s u b s ta n c e o f th is
s e v e r a l t i m e s . 17 P a lm a n o t o n ly a s th e s u p r e m e e x a m p le o f s w e e t n e s s a n d
" B u t in o r d e r f o r m e t o te ll m y p o rtio n o f th e m e a n in g n u t r i t i o n , t e m p e r a m e n t a n d l o n g lif e , b u t a l s o f o r t h e s a k e o f
h id d e n u n d e r th e s e M y th o lo g ie s , d o w e n o t s e e c le a rly th a t p e r f e c t lo v e . F o r n o th in g b e tte r s h o w s th e d is p o s itio n o f th e
t h e a n c i e n t D e m o g o r g o n , f a t h e r o f a ll t h e g o d s , o r r a t h e r o f u p p e r w o rld to w a r d th e lo w e r th a n th e n a tu r e o f th e p a lm
a ll t h e m e m b e r s o f t h e w o r l d , w h o is s a i d t o l iv e a t t h e c e n t e r t r e e , w h i c h is m a d e i n s u c h a w a y t h a t it is i m p o s s i b l e t h a t it
o f th e e a r th , c o v e r e d w ith a g r e e n a n d i r o n -b e a r in g c lo a k , b e f o u n d o r s u r v i v e in a n y p l a c e u n l e s s b o t h m a l e a n d f e m a l e
f e e d i n g a n i m a l s o f a ll s o r t s , is n o n e o t h e r t h a n t h e u n i v e r s a l are fo u n d th e re . . ." N o w , a t th e tim e w h e n P o s te l m e t
S p ir it w h o f ro m th e w o m b o f C h a o s , o b e y in g th e v o i c e o f th e M o t h e r J e a n n e a t h e r h o s p i c e in V e n i c e , h e w a s t r a n s l a t i n g a
L o r d , l i g h t s u p t h e h e a v e n s , t h e e l e m e n t s , a n d a ll t h a t is in c e r t a i n n u m b e r o f t e x t s f r o m H e b r e w l i t e r a t u r e . T h i s is w h e r e
th e m , w h ic h he has s in c e th e n a lw a y s m a in ta in e d an d he f o u n d , a f te r th e c u r r e n t e t y m o lo g y o f J e h o c h a n n a , th e
q u i c k e n e d ; f o r h e t r u l y d o e s l iv e in t h e m i d d l e o f t h e e a r t h , g r a c e o f th e L o r d , th e t h e m e o f th e " g o d w ith a h u m a n f a c e ,"
a s I h a v e a m p l y d e c l a r e d a t th e b e g i n n in g o f th is b o o k , th a t in te rp re te d a s T ip h e re t, th e M e s sia h w h o h a s a d u a l c h a r a c ­
is , a t t h e c e n t e r o f t h e w o r l d , w h e r e h e is p l a c e d a s o n h i s te r a s b o th m a le d iv in ity and fe m a le h u m a n ity . Then he
t h r o n e , a n d w h e n c e l ik e t h e h e a r t o f t h i s g r e a t b o d y a n d s e a t d i s c o v e r e d t h e s t o r y o f t h e b i r d 21 a s i m m e n s e a s i ts e g g , t h e
o f u n i v e r s a l l if e , h e p r o d u c e s , a n i m a t e s , a n d n o u r i s h e s a l l. B a r Y u k n e , w h i c h w i t h L e v i a t h a n a n d t h e O x w ill b e s e r v e d
B u t t h i s g r e e n a n d f e r r u g i n o u s c o a t in w h i c h h e is d r e s s e d a t t h e f e a s t o f t h e j u s t . P o s t e l , w h o h i m s e l f w a s t h e e g g l a id
can h a rd ly b e a n y th in g b u t th e s u r fa c e o f th e e a rth w h ic h b y th is " a d v i c e ," r e je c te d th e r e a d in g B a r I u c n e h , a n d , s u r e
e n v e lo p e s h im , b la ck ish and ir o n -c o lo re d , e n a m e le d and th a t it w as re a lly h is ow n Jeh o ch a n n a , he im m e d ia te ly
p a i n t e d w i t h g r a s s e s a n d f l o w e r s o f a ll s o r t s . " i n t e r p r e t e d it a s t h e G a n E d e n , t h e g a r d e n t h a t G o d p l a n t e d ,
A n d N u y s e m e n t e n d s u p b y a s s im ila tin g h im to P a n . w h i c h h e r e d i s c o v e r e d in t h e w o r d " W e c a n a h " in P s a l m 8 0 ,
verse 1 5 : " t h a t w h ic h y o u r r ig h t h a n d h a s p l a n t e d ." F r o m
h e r e o n w e m u s t fo llo w P o s t e l 's g l o s s e d tra n s la tio n o f th e
IV. Memnon p a s s a g e fro m th e Commentary on Genesis: " R a b b i S im la i s a id :
M e m n o n , w h o m a d e h a rm o n io u s s o u n d s a t th e b re a k o f C h a v a h (E v e ) (a f te r s h e h a d e a te n th e fru it o f th e tr e e ) c a m e
day, d oes n o t f i g u r e in th e Mytho-Hermetic Dictionary, but to A d a m and s a id : D o y o u th in k t h a t I a m d e a d ? B e h o ld ,
R a y m u n d M in d e r e r (c a . 1 5 7 0 - 1 6 2 1 ) , a d o c to r fro m A u g s b u rg a n o th e r C h a v a h h a s b e e n c r e a te d fo r th e e (s h e w a s p re d ic t­
a s u n k n o w n a s h i s c o n t e m p o r a r y M i c h a e l M a i e r is f a m o u s , i n g t h e M o t h e r o f t h e W o r l d f o r t h e n e w A d a m ) f o r t h e r e is

218
 S I X T E E N T H - A N D S E V E N T E E N T H - C E N T U R Y H E R M E T I C I S M

n o th in g n e w u n d e r th e s u n (e v e r y th in g r e tu r n s ) (a n d P o s te l b y t h e e a g l e 's b o d y . T h i s n a t u r e t h e a l c h e m i s t s c a ll e a g l e ,
u s e s th e w o r d 'r e v o l v u n t u r / w h ic h t r a n s l a t e s 'G i l g u l , ' t h e w h i c h is o f t h e n a t u r e o f a i r , f o r in a i r is h i d d e n t h e g r e a t e s t
r e c irc u la tio n o f s o u ls ]. If I w e r e d e a d , you w o u ld re m a in a b u n d a n c e o f th e v ita l s p ir it. T h e m in e ra l n a t u r e o r s a lt o f th e
a l o n e . B u t a s I s a i a h w r i t e s ( b u t P o s t e l r e p l a c e s ' t h e e a r t h ' in p h i l o s o p h e r s is r e p r e s e n t e d b y t h e l o w e r p a r t o f t h e m o n s t e r ,
t h e t e x t w i t h ' w o m a n ' ] : It is n o t in v a i n t h a t I h a v e c r e a t e d w h ic h is th a t o f t h e v e n o m o u s a n d m u r d e r o u s d r a g o n . J u s t
e v e n w o m a n , I fo rm e d h e r s o th a t s h e m ig h t e n d u r e (s o th a t, a s th e d r a g o n d w e l l s in t h e b o w e l s o f t h e e a r t h , w h e r e it
r e s to r e d , s h e m ig h t r e m a in i n s e p a r a b ly w ith A d a m a n d h e r f e e d s a n d g r o w s , s o d o e s t h e m i n e r a l n a t u r e o r s a lt o f th e
s o n s ). The m a s te rs s a id : She began to say, 'T h e r e is an p h i l o s o p h e r s o c c u p y t h e b o w e l s o f t h e e a r t h , w h e r e it f e e d s
a b u n d a n c e o f f o o d . ' D o m e s t i c a n d w i l d a n i m a l s a n d a ll t h e and grow s, and l ik e th e d ra g o n d e v o u rs e v e r y th in g an d
fly in g th in g s h e a r d h e r, w ith th e e x c e p t i o n o f o n e b ird (avem r e n e w s i t s e l f . T h i s is t h e s e c r e t o f t h e c h e m i c a l a r t : c h e m i c a l
unam) c a l l e d C h u l , a s it is w r i t t e n in j o b : I w il l h a v e d a y s a s c h a o s o r th e m e ta llic n a t u r e m u s t b e d e s t r o y e d , p u t to d e a t h ,
m a n y a s C h u l.” P o s te l, w h o t r a n s la te d th is te x t t w ic e , p o in ts and p u tr e fie d b y th e d e a d ly p o is o n e d a r r o w s o f m e rc u ria l
o u t t h a t l i t e r a l l y t h e w o r d m e a n s s a n d , a n d t h a t it m a y t h u s w a te r , s o th a t e v e r y t h in g m a y c o n v e r t its e lf in to a n e a g le a n d
b e re a d a s th e C a n a h fro m w h ic h a ll I s r a e l c a m e , w i t h o u t f in is h a s a d r a g o n , t h a t is , b e c o m p l e t e d in e a r t h y m a tte r ,
n o tin g th a t th e V u lg a te tra n s la te d it "sicut palma" ( " a s if it f i x e d a n d p e r m a n e n t , w h i c h is t h e f i x e d s a l t o f t h e p h i l o s o ­
w e r e a p a l m ” ). In t h e o t h e r t r a n s l a ti o n h e c la i m s th a t th is p h e r s , w h i c h c o n v e r t s e v e r y t h i n g i n t o i t s e l f , a s i s s a i d in t h e
C h u l is t h e P h o e n ix , a b ird im a g in e d on th e b a sis o f th e T a b l e o f E m e r a l d : it i s t h e s t r e n g t h o f a ll s t r e n g t h , t h e s t r o n g
g e n iu s of th e p ro v in c e of P h o e n icia , w h ence e v e ry th in g s tre n g th , w h e n it h a s b e e n c o n v e r t e d in to e a r t h . T h is c a n
com es and to w h ic h e v e r y th in g r e tu r n s , b u t th a t h e r e th e a ls o b e m y s tic a lly u n d e r s to o d o f C h r is t a n d h is C h u r c h , w h o
P h o e n ix re a lly s e e m s to b e , n o t a " c h im e r i c g o a t - s t a g ” b ird , s h o u l d c o n s t i t u t e o n e b o d y , s t r o n g t o r e s i s t t e m p e s t s , a s is
b u t a u n iq u e in te llig e n c e w h ic h r i s e s a b o v e a ll o t h e r c r e a ­ s a i d in t h e t w o v e r s e s c a r v e d in m a r b l e :
tu re s, a n d P o s te l fin is h e s th e t r a n s la tio n : "R a b b i In a i s a id :
Juncta simul faciunt unum duo corpora corpus,
T h is b ird liv e d fo r a t h o u s a n d y e a r s . A n d a t th e e n d o f th e
Sic est in toto fortius orbe nihil,
t h o u s a n d y e a r s , a f i r e c a m e o u t o f i t s n e s t a n d b u r n e d it u p .
A n e g g r e m a i n e d in t h is fire , a n d t h e b ird c a m e b a c k , g r e w th e tw o b o d ie s jo in e d to g e th e r m a k e a s in g le b o d y a n d th e re
up, and liv e d (th u s u n d e r th e im a g e o f th e p h o e n ix th e y i s n o t h i n g s t r o n g e r in t h e w o r l d . "
r e p r e s e n t w h a t I h a v e c a l l e d J o c h a n a , w h o c o m e s b a c k t o life
f r o m t h e d u s t a n d g i v e s lif e t o t h e w h o l e h u m a n r a c e ) . R a b b i
VII. The Scarab
I o d a n , s o n o f R a b b i S i m e o n , s a i d : It h a s l i v e d f o r a t h o u s a n d
y e a r s ; a t t h e e n d o f t h e t h o u s a n d y e a r s i t s b o d y is c o n s u m e d A th a n a siu s K irc h e r ( 1 6 0 2 -8 2 ) , th e h ero o f th e q u est of
a n d i t s w i n g s c o m e o f f i t s b o d y ; w h a t r e m a i n s o f it i s t ik e a n I s i s , 23 e v e n w h ile a tta c k in g a lch e m y m a g n ifie d its p u re ly
e g g , w h ic h p r o d u c e s n e w l im b s ." s p i r i t u a l d o c t r i n e , f i n d i n g it i n c o n c o r d w i t h t h e t r u e C a b a l a ,
A n d P o s te l c o n c l u d e s : "A ll t h in g s , b u t m e n a b o v e a ll, a r e w h ic h h e d id n ot con d em n alo n g w ith th e C a b a la o f th e
r e s t o r e d b y t h i s b i r d i n e v e r y a g e , f o r it is s i m i l a r t o t h e C h u l ra b b is . D a z z le d b y J o h n D e e 's d i s c o v e r y , c o p i e d by C e sa re
o r P h o e n ix , w ho fo r th is reaso n is c a l l e d C h a lia h , w h ic h d e lla R iv ie ra , o f th e h ie ro g ly p h o f M e rcu ry , K irc h e r p e r­
m e a n s 'r e v o l u t i o n .'" c e iv e d th e h ie ro g ly p h o f th e s c a r a b a s th e k e y to th e c h e m ic a l
a rt, in p e rfe ct co n co rd a n ce w ith th e fam o u s e x e g e s is of
bereshit, t h e f i r s t w o rd o f th e H e b re w G e n e s is , at th e e n d o f
VI. Sagittarius
t h e Heptaplus.
F u l c a n e l l i 's Mystery of the Cathedrals d o e s n o t m e n tio n th e T h e s c a r a b s ig n ifie s th e raw m a te ria l o f th e m e ta llic a r t:
re p r e s e n ta tio n th a t P ie rre Je a n F ab re de C a ste ln a u d a ry r o l l i n g u p t h e b o d i e s o f t h e w h o l e w o r l d , it p r o d u c e s a n e g g ,
( 1 5 8 8 - 1 6 5 8 ) w a s s ti ll a b l e t o s e e a t S a i n t - S e r n i n in T o u l o u s e , v is ib le a b o v e its ta il. T h e s e e d s o f a ll t h e m e t a ls t h a t h id e
fo r w h ic h he o ffered an a lch e m ica l in te rp re ta tio n in th e th e r e e v e n tu a lly rise u p to th e s e v e n s p h e r e s o f th e p la n e ts :
Alchymista christianus:22 "A c e n ta u r , o r a S a g itta riu s , a rm e d b e s id e s th e fiv e s p h e r e s o f th e m i n o r p l a n e t s , th e h e a d o f
w i t h h i s b o w , f i r e s a n a r r o w a g a i n s t a m o n s t e r w h o s e f a c e is H o r u s d e s ig n a te s th e s u n , a n d th e s e g m e n t o f a c irc le a b o v e
t h a t o f a w o m a n , t h e b o d y t h a t o f a n e a g l e , t h e f e e t a n d ta il it d e s i g n a t e s th e m oon, and in s id e it is t h e c r o s s , n a tu ra l
th o s e o f a d r a g o n . A n e n ig m a w h ic h c o u ld re c e iv e a C h r is ­ s y m b o l o f th e e l e m e n t s . B e t w e e n its f o r e le g s t h e s c a r a b h o ld s
t ia n i n te r p r e t a t io n , b u t w h ic h s h o u ld b e i n te r p r e t e d c h e m i ­ a ta b le t b e a rin g (in G reek s c rip t) th e w o rd phulo w h ic h
c a lly and a lch e m ica lly b ecau se it is s u c h , a llo w in g us to s i g n i f i e s l o v e . If l ik e d o c t o r s w e d i s s e c t t h i s h i e r o g r a m m a -
c o n te m p la te under th e su rfa ce th e a d m ira b le co rre sp o n ­ tis m i n to its p a r t s , w e o b t a i n th is p h r a s e : T h e s o u l o f th e
d en ce of th e n a tu ra l and d iv in e a rca n a . C h e m ic a lly th e w o r l d o r t h e l if e o f t h i n g s is h i d d e n i n t h e m a c h i n e o f t h i s
S a g i t ta r i u s r e p r e s e n t s m e r c u r ia l w a te r . A s in t h e S a g i t ta r i u s , l o w e r w o r l d , w h e r e r e s t s t h e e g g f e r t i l e in s e m i n a l r e a s o n s ,
in th is v o la tile p i e c e o f r o c k o n e c a n d is t in g u is h t w o n a t u r e s : w h ic h , e x e r c is in g its p o w e r o v e r th e s p h e r e s o f th e m e ta llic
o n e ig n e o u s a n d s u lp h u r o u s , o v e r c o m in g o t h e r n a tu r e s a n d p l a n e t s , a n i m a t e s t h e m w ith its h e a t a n d m a k e s t h e m a c t , s o
e s s e n c e s b y i t s p o w e r , j u s t a s h u m a n n a t u r e o v e r c o m e s a ll th a t H o r u s , th a t is, th e s u n a n d th e m o o n , e m e r g e s th r o u g h
o t h e r s ; a n d t h e M e r c u r y o f t h e p h i l o s o p h e r s , w h i c h l ik e t h e th e d is s o lu tio n o f th e e le m e n ts a n d th e s e p a r a tio n o f p u re
e q u in e n a t u r e o f th e c e n t a u r is c h a r a c t e r i z e d b y th e r a p i d it y f r o m i m p u r e t h i n g s . W h e n t h i s is d o n e , e a c h t h i n g is l i n k e d
o f its m o v e m e n t . A n d j u s t a s t h e h o r s e is c o n s e c r a t e d t o th e to e v e r y o t h e r th in g b y a n a tu r a l a n d s y m p a th e tic lo v e , a n d
c e le s tia l s u n , m e r c u r ia l w a t e r is c o n s e c r a t e d to th e te r r e s t r i a l th is is th e c o m p l e ti o n o f t h e w o r k .
s u n . A s fo r th e b o w a n d a r r o w s , th e y r e p r e s e n t th e e ffe c ts o f K irch e r, b efo re e x p la in in g a d isc o u rs e to o o b scu re fo r
m e rc u ria l w a te r , w h ic h th ro u g h p u tr e fa c tio n p o is o n s and n o v ic e s , referred to h is Prodomus Coptus, in w h ic h , a fte r
k ills t h e m e t a l l i c s u b s t a n c e o r c h e m i c a l c h a o s r e p r e s e n t e d b y a n a l y z i n g t h e h i e r o g l y p h o f t h e s c a r a b , h e c o n n e c t e d it w i t h
th e m o n s te r , w h o c o n t a in s t h r e e n a t u r e s : s u lp h u r , m e r c u r y , P i c o d e l l a M i r a n d o l a ' s a n a l y s i s o f t h e f i r s t w o r d o f G e n e s i s : 24
and s a lt, o r a n im a l, v e g e ta b le , a n d m in e ra l n a tu re s. The " T h e f a th e r to th e S o n o r b y th e S o n , b e g in n in g a n d e n d o r
a n im a l n a t u r e , w h ic h h a s t h e c o l o r o f fire , is in d i c a te d b y th e r e s t, c r e a te d th e h e a d , th e fire , a n d th e fo u n d a tio n o f th e
h u m a n f a c e . T h e v e g e t a b l e o r m e r c u r ia l n a t u r e is i n d i c a te d g r e a t m a n b y g o o d a c c o r d o r a l li a n c e ." " W h a t c a n th e w in g e d

219
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
Scarab. In Kircher, Oedipus Aegyptiacus. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale.
Photo BN.
globe in the hieroglyph signify other than the famous circle
whose center is everywhere and whose circumference is
nowhere, to speak with Trismegistus, which is the super­
mundane abstract Intellect, first Intelligence, celestial Father.
What could the body of the scarab signify other than the Son
whom his Father has constituted principle, rest, and end of
all things, by whom all was made and without whom
nothing is made. Lest someone be angered at seeing God
himself, who surpasses all admiration, being compared to
the most vile, the most horrible, the most stinking of all
beings, let us hear what Saint Augustine, the great light of
the Church, has said of the admirable humanity of Christ in
his Soliloquies: 'He is my good scarab, not so much because he
is the only son of God, author of himself who took on our
mortal form, but because he rolled in our filth, whence he
sought to be born a man.' By this son, then, eternal Wisdom
and true Osiris, the world was created, this great man,
whose head is the angelic world, source of knowledge,
whose heart is the sun, source of movement, life, and
warmth, and whose foundation is the sublunary world.
What could the character signifying love designate but this
Spirit, who, 'meharephel peney ha-maym, floating on the wa­
ters,' gives life to all things by the fire of his most fertile love,
and ties all together in a good alliance."25
V III. T h e S ire n s
Egidio da Viterbo dealt with this theme a number of times,
in the Sententiae ad mentem Platonis (Opinions According to
the Mind of Plato), the Historia XX saeculorum (History of
Twenty Centuries), and in the Scechina. In the Sententiae,26
the Sirens represented the three powers of the soul—
memory, intelligence, and will— since, according to Cicero,
they are teachers of knowledge. Indeed, in the De ßnibus (On
the Ends), Cicero, after translating the passage from the
Odyssey about the Sirens, adds: "Homer could see that his
fable would be without value if the Sirens sang nothing but
little songs to catch a man like Ulysses in their net: it is, then,
knowledge that the Sirens promise." In the Historia XX
saeculorum,27 speaking of Naples, "ornament of the Tyrrhenian
sea, which breathes the sweetness of the sky and the winds,
which blossoms with the wealth of the sea and the land, born
for leisure, the fine arts and the pursuit of wisdom," Egidio
220
C H R I S T I A N ERA
da Viterbo evokes Virgil who, though from Mantua, sang of
Parthenope, one of the Sirens, whose body, when cast up on
the shore, marked the birth of Naples. And he repeats
Cicero's judgment, but in order to specify that the true
knowledge is arcane wisdom, which was cultivated by the
ancient Tyrrhenians. At that time it was forbidden to divulge
this knowledge to the people, who, by hearing talk about
several degrees of the divine realities, would have been
separated from the Unity. This is what was taught by the
Hebrews in their Cabala, by Pythagoras in his Symbols, Plato
in his Epistles, Virgil in the fourth book of the Aeneid, and the
Romans when they forbade disclosure of the Books of Numa.
But if divine wisdom is salutary, why were Ulysses' sailors
drowned? What is good for the wise harms those who are
not. It is like the sun, pleasant to our eyes, unbearable for the
sick. The same is true of the Sirens' song, heard only by
Ulysses and not by his troop of companions, like a warning
given by the son of God not to cast holy things before dogs.
He wanted to be the rock of foundation for some, but for
others, according to the word of the Apostle, a rock of
scandal. Or, as Paul says (2 Corinthians 2.16): "To the one we
are the savor of death unto death; and to the other the savor
of life unto life." A signification that Egidio picks up again in
the Scechina28 concerning the Talmud's interdiction, in the
treatise Haghiga, against revealing this divine wisdom to the
vulgar, "neither to several nor to two, but only to the single
pious, wise, and full-grown man," and he sees as a parallel to
the Sirens' reefs the mysterious stones, lapides Bohu, mephu-
lot, plunged into the abyss,29 which represent the desires of
the body.
IX . V e s ta
In the Treatise on Fire and Salt, published after his death,
Blaise de Vigenère evokes Vesta, along with Pallas, as
follows:30
"These two deities, Pallas and Vesta, both virginal and
chaste, as is fire, represent to us the two fires of the sensible
world: Pallas, that is, is the celestial, and Vesta the elemental
fire of this lower world: which, although cruder and more
material than that of the upper world, nevertheless always
tends contrariwise, as if it sought to separate itself from the
corruptible substance to which it remains attached, to return
free and exempt from all these hindrances to its first origin
whence it came, like a soul imprisoned in the body:
Igneus est ollis vigor, et caelestis origo
Seminibus, quantum non noxia corpora tardant,
Terrenique herbetant artus, moribundaque membra.
(Fiery energy is in these seeds, their source is heavenly;
but they are dulled by harmful bodies, blunted by their
own earthly limbs, their mortal members).31
"The other, on the contrary, while more subtle and essen­
tial, throws itself toward the earth here below, as if these two
ceaselessly aspired to meet and come before each other, like
two pyramids, the upper one with its base firmly in the
Zodiac, where the sun completes its annual journey through
the twelve signs. From the peak of this pyramid, all that is
born and has its being drops down here below, according to
the doctrine of the ancient Astrologers of Egypt; therefore
nothing appears on earth or in the water that is not sown
there from heaven, which is like a laborer who cultivates it.
And marking this world below with its warmth, with the
efficacy of its influences, it leads the whole to its complete
perfection and maturity: which is also confirmed by Aristotle
 H E R C U L E S IN A L C H E M Y

in h i s b o o k s De ortu et interitu.32 B u t th e fire o f th is lo w e r spirituum (quales spectantur in ipsa figura sephirotica) seu sex
w o rld , on th e o th e r hand, has th e b ase of its p y ra m id
draconum, qui sunt spirituum seu angelorum typi."
a t ta c h e d t o t h e e a r t h , m a k i n g o n e o f t h e s ix f a c e s o f t h e c u b e ,
11. La espositione, p. 71 v.
12. The Survival (Harper, ed. 1961), 221.
to w h ic h th e P y th a g o ria n s a ttr ib u te its fo rm and fig u re
13. Demogorgone, con saggio di nuova edizione delle Genealogie deorum
b e c a u s e o f its f o r m and in v a ria b le s ta b ility : a n d fro m th e
gentilium del Boccacio e silloge dei frammenti di Teodonzio (Palermo 1930)
p o in t o f th is p y r a m id a ris e c o n tr a r iw is e th e s u b tle v a p o r s (an. VIII).
th a t s e r v e to n o u ris h th e sun , and a ll th e o t h e r c e le s tia l 14. Dialoghi d'amore, S. Caramella, ed. (Bari 1929), 106ff.
b o d i e s ; a c c o r d i n g t o w h a t P h u r n u t u s , f o l l o w i n g o t h e r s , 33 h a s 15. N. valois , Les cinq livres, Bernard Roger, ed. (Paris 1975).
w ritte n : a n in e x tin g u is h a b le fire , he says, is a t tr i b u te d to 16. Ibid., p. 265.
V e s ta , b e c a u s e th e fie r y p o w e r t h a t is o n e a r t h t a k e s f r o m its 17. Traictez du vray sel secret. Matton, ed. (Paris 1974), 278.
n o u r i s h m e n t f r o m V e s ta ; a n d o n th is th e s u n s u s t a in s its e lf 18. De calcantho (Augsburg 1617), 44.
a n d c o n s i s t s . T h i s is a l s o w h a t H e r m e s i m p l i e d in h i s T a b l e o f
19. PERNETY, Dictionnaire, s.v.; |. van i.ennep, Art et alchimie, p. III;
bibliography in m. tardieu. Trois mythes gnostiques, Adam, Êros et les ani­
E m e r a l d : 'Quod est inferius, est sicut quod est superius; et e
maux d'Égypte dans un écrit de Nag Hammadi, II, 5 (Paris 1974).
converso, ad perpetranda miracula rei unius' ( ' W h a t i s b e l o w is 20. Le prime nove del altro tnondo . . . inititulata La Vergüte Venetiana
j u s t l ik e w hat is a b o v e ; and th e re v e rse , fo r th e sake of (Padua 1555), French trans. (Paris 1928), 42.
a c c o m p l i s h i n g t h e m i r a c l e s o f t h e o n e w o r l d ') . A n d R abbi 21. Sloane 1411, fol. 388 v: "Quare in psalmo 80 scripta est faeminea
J o s e p h , s o n o f C a r n it o l, in h is Gates of justice:34 ' T h e fo u n d a ­ vox Canah et hortum"; Sloane 1409 (translation of the Beresith Rabba),
tio n o f a ll l o w e r e d i f ic e s is p l a c e d o n h i g h ; a n d t h e ir p e a k o r fol. 133, 135 v; Sloane 1411 (Commentaire du Recanati, fol. 84, 98 v; cf.
t h e i r s u m m i t h e r e b e l o w , l ik e a t r e e i n v e r t e d . A s if m a n w e r e on the sources, |. buxtorf . Lexicon Chaldaicum talmudicum et rabbinicum
n o t h i n g b u t a s p i r i t u a l t r e e p l a n t e d in t h e p a r a d i s e o f d e l i g h t s , (Basel 1639), fol. 720 Hwl, and 952; cf. c . scholem . Les origines de la
w h ic h is t h e e a r t h o f th e liv in g , b y th e r o o ts o f h is h a ir,
kabbale (Paris 1966), s.v. Palmier and M. Tardieu.
22. Cf. Alchymista (Toulouse 1632), 232; cf. Littérature et alchimie,
Canticles 7: Comae capitis tui
a c c o r d i n g t o w h a t i s w r i t t e n in t h e
B.H.R., 35 (1973): 520.
sicut purpura Regis juncta canalibus.’ 23. |. baltrusaitis, La quête d'Isis.
" T h e s e t w o f ir e s , t h e h ig h a n d t h e l o w , w h ic h in th is w a y 24. F. secret, "Beresithias ou l'interprétation du premier mot de la
re c o g n iz e e a c h th e o th e r , w e r e n o t ig n o r e d b y th e P o e ts , fo r Genèse chez les kabbalistes chrétiens," in In principio: Interprétation
H o m e r in b o o k 1 8 o f th e Iliad35 p u t V u l c a n 's f o r g e in th e des premiers versets de la Genèse (Paris 1973).
e ig h th s ta r r y h eaven, w h e re he is a c co m p a n ie d by h is 25. Œdipus Aegyptiacus (Rome 1654), 3:405. Prodromus coptus (Rome
a r t i s a n s , e n d o w e d w i t h a s i n g u l a r p r u d e n c e , w h o k n o w a ll 1636), 263.
s o r ts o f w o r k s , w h ic h h a v e b e e n t a u g h t th e m b y th e im m o r ­ 26. Cf. text in e . massa, f fondantenli ntetafisici della Dignitas hominis
ta l G o d s in w h ose p re se n ce th e y la b o r. In book 8 o f th e
(Turin 1954), 86.
27. Historia, ms. Naples, IX.B.14, fol. 148 v; see also fol. 53 v.
Aeneid, h o w e v e r , V irg il p u t th is w o r k s h o p h e re b e lo w on
28. Scechina (Rome 1959), 2:83.
e a r th , o n a n is la n d c a lle d V u lc a n ia n ,
29. Ibid., 1:178; on these stones see g . scholem . Les origines, s.v.
Vulcani domus, et Vulcania nomine tellus30 30. Traicté (Paris 1617), 69.
31. Aeneid 6, c. 730, trans. Allen Mandelbaum (New York 1961).
to s h o w t h a t fire is in b o t h o f t h e s e r e g io n s , t h e c e le s tia l a n d 32. This is the title of the translation by i. perion (Paris 1552).
th e e l e m e n ta r y , b u t in d i v e r s e w a y s ." 33. Cf. cornutus (L. Annaeus) in C. lulii, Augusti liberti fabularum
F .S ./j .l. liber (Paris 1578), 164 v (in Teubner, ed., 1881, p. 53).
34. Cant. VII, 5; cf. ioseph ibn ciqatilia, Sha'arey Tsedeq (Riva 1561),
f. 18 v; cf. on th e th em e g . vaida . Le commentaire d'Ezra de Gérotte sur
le Cantique des cantiques (Paris 1969), 301.
35. Iliad 18.370.
NOTES 36. Aeneid 8.423.

1. Commentaire de H. de Liirthault de Mont-Lion sur le Trésor des

trésors (Lyon 1610), 97.
2. La espositione di Geber (Venice 1544); Latin translation in 1548; cf.
"Notes sur quelques alchimistes italiens de la Renaissance," Rinas-
cimento 23 (1973): 203.
3. F. secret , "Le symbolisme de la kabbale chrétienne dans la
Scechina d'Egidio da Viterbo," Archivio di fHosofia (Rome 1958),
p. 150. H er c u l es in A l c h e m y
4. Trans. J. de Montlyard (Lyon 1615), 579.
5. Historia XX xaeculorum (ms. Naples IX.B. 14), fol. 208 v: "Domos
O n e o f th e la st h is to ria n s o f th e th e m e o f H e r c u l e s ,1 M a rc
urbesque aspernente curru contenti vitam traducerent ut currum
R e n é J u n g , o f f e r e d a n o t e o n H e r c u l e s in a l c h e m y . H e c i t e d 2
semper ad decus currulis contemplationis allicerentur. Quare Cha-
bala quae de divinis agit a Talmudistis doctoribus: et veterum M i c h a e l M a i e r a n d P i e r r e J e a n F a b r e , w h o s e Hercules piochy-
sapientibus Maase Mercava: opus currule assidue nuncupatur. Stat­ micus w a s s u m m a r i z e d b y P e r n e t y . I t i s e n o u g h t o o b s e r v e
uas vero tam equestres: quam currules ab Ethruscis accepisse th a t H e rc u le s a p p e a rs to b e e v e r y w h e re fo r a lc h e m is ts w h o
Romanos." a r e e a g e r to fin d D ia n a u n d e r v e ils . B la is e d e V i g e n è r e , q u ite
6. Ibid., fol. 244 v: "Graecus philosophus superbiam philoso­ u n j u s t l y n e g l e c t e d , s p o k e a l o t a b o u t it i n h i s Philostrate: " I f
phiam indicat equo: italicam Tyrreni plaustro curruque significat." w e w a n t to a p p ly th is f a n ta s y o r p o e tic fictio n to n a tu r a l
7. Ibid., fol. 55 v, 181, etc.: De Ecclesiae incremento. Traditio, 25 p h il o s o p h y , w e h a v e a l r e a d y s a id in t h e p r e c e d i n g p o r t r a y a l
(1969).
t h a t H e r c u l e s is n o n e o t h e r t h a n t h e S u n , w h i c h b y i t s h e a t
8. Historia, fol. 231 v "illis occultis narrationibus: quas a Faul
a n d its r a y s , a c ti n g a s a r r o w s , e x t e r m i n a t e s t h e H y d r a w ith
faulas vocabant."
9. Cf. Annuaire École pratique des hautes études (sei. religieuses), 86 a ll o f i t s r e b o r n h e a d s , t h a t i s , t h e c o l d , t h e q u a l i t y p r o p e r t o
(1977-78). w a t e r , o f w h i c h t h i s s e r p e n t i s b o r n a n d w h o s e n a m e it
10. Ms. Fonds Brotier of the archives of the Society of Jesus b e a r s . " 3 B u t it w a s N u y s e m e n t w h o d e a l t w i t h a ll o f t h e
(Chantilly), fol. 183 "de mystico ipsius curru, super nubes et alas sex la b o rs :

221
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

T h e la b o rs o f H e r c u le s th a t a r e r e g a r d e d a s v a in fa b le s
A r e b y th is s e c r e t a r t tr u e s y m b o ls .
G e r y o n w ith h is th r e e b o d ie s , te r rify in g a n d p o w e r f u l.
Is th e trip le q u ic k s ilv e r e m b r a c in g th e g r o u n d and
m oon.
T h e g ia n t b o m o f th e e a r t h , th e in d e s tr u c tib le A n t a e u s ,
W h o s e p o w e r n o o n e c o u ld s u p p la n t
A s lo n g a s h e t o u c h e d h is m o th e r th e E a r th ,
Is th e s p ir it, l iv in g a n d h o t .
O f o u r g o ld , w h ic h o u r w a te r d r a w s o u t a n d ra ise s o n
h ig h .
T h e H y d r a th a t is c o n s t a n t ly r e b o r n , w ith s e v e n h o r r ib le
h ead s.
Is w a t e r , m o t h e r o f g o l d a n d o f a l l f u s i b l e b o d i e s .
T h e w a te r th a t n e v e r d a m p e n s , n o r e x tin g u is h e s th e fire ,
T h e s e r p e n t t h a t t h e s u n m u s t k ill l i t t l e b y l i t t l e .
T h e m o n s t r o u s s p e c ie s o f th e lig h t C e n ta u r s
A re th e h id e o u s m a tte r o f th e tw o jo in e d s e e d s .
T h e tr e a c h e r o u s D io m e d e s w ith h is c r u e l h o r s e s
Is t h e A r t i s t h i d i n g h i s c a c h e o f m e t a l s
I n t h e s e c r e t r o o m w h e r e h i s w a t e r d e v o u r s i t.
T h e s h i e l d o f t h e A m a z o n H i p p o l i t e is I r i s w h o d e c o r a t e s
T h is w a te r w ith a h u n d r e d c o lo r s . T h e s ic k e n in g d u n g
O f t h e A u g e a n s ta b le is th e s ti n k in g b l a c k n e s s
T h a t c o v e r s c o r p s e s a f te r th e ir p u tr e f a c tio n .
T h e b ird s o f S ty m p h a lu s th a t r a v a g e th e p a s tu r e
O f t h e ill-fa te d P h in e u s , c o m i n g t o d e f ile h i m .
A re th e s tro n g v a p o rs th a t c o m e o u t o f b o d ie s.
T h e p u r s u i t a n d c a p t u r e o f t h e w ild b o a r
th e Is w h e n m a t t e r e n t e r s t h e c o l o r g r e y
A n d le a v in g its d a r k n e s s in o r d e r t o b e c o m e w h ite
G iv e s a s ig n fo r th e w o r k e r o f its g o o d f o r tu n e .
T h e s k in o f t h e g r e a t lio n t h a t th is d e m i g o d w e a r s
Is th e r e d c o l o r th a t p u ts o n th e w h ite n e s s .
T h e b u ll h e s u b d u e s is t h e b o d y t h a t is fix e d .
T h e s t a g w i t h g o l d e n h o r n s is t h e y e l l o w i n g f i x e d b o d y .
C e r b e r u s w i t h t h e t h r e e t h r o a t s is t h e n e w b o r n c h i l d , w h o
asks
T h a t s o m e o n e f e e d it w i t h n e w m e a t .
F .S ./ d .w .
NOTES
1. Cf. h . de LUBAC, Exégèse médiévale 4, 2, p. 228, on Hercules and
the theses of M. Simon, R. Trousson, and Pierre Sage.
2. Hercule dans la littérature française du XVIe siècle (Geneva 1966),
p. 202.
3. Poeme philosophie de la vérité de la phisique minerale, Matton, ed.,
p. 95, v. 1600.

Som e b e lie v e d th a t th is fle e ce w as a book m ade of a

O r ph eus in th e R en a issa n c e s h e e p s k in , s o n a m e d f o r t h a t r e a s o n , a b o o k in w h ic h th is
n o b le secret w as in s c rib e d . O th e r s a lle g o r i z i n g m o re
s u b tly b e lie v e d t h a t th e re f e r e n c e w a s to th e first lo rd o f
O r p h e u s w a s s o m u c h in v o g u e d u r i n g t h e R e n a i s s a n c e t h a t
t h i s w o r k , n a m e l y , A r i e s . S t il l o t h e r s s p e a k a b o u t a p o t e n t
a n u m b e r o f c h a p t e r s c o u ld e a s ily b e a d d e d to th e s tu d i e s 1
m e d ic in e c o n s is tin g o f fin e w o o l g a th e re d and fle e ce d
a lre a d y d e v o te d to th e s u b je ct. O n e J o a n n e s G o ro p iu s B e c a -
fro m th e b a c k o f a s h e e p . B u t w h a te v e r th e c a s e , a t le a s t
n u s (v a n G o r p , 1 5 1 8 - 7 2 ) , w h o w a s a frie n d o f C h r is t o p h e
w e k n o w t h a t s o m e tim e a g o a b r a v e y o u n g p e r s o n , w h o
P la n tin a n d B e n ito A ria s M o n ta n o , b o th a r tis a n s o f th e R o y a l
b y m e a n s o f th is d iv i n e p o w d e r h a d f a ith fu lly s e r v e d o n e
P o l y g l o t o f P h i l i p II, a n d w h o is g e n e r a l l y d e r i d e d f o r h a v i n g
o f o u r n e ig h b o rin g s ta te s , w a s re w a rd e d b y h a v in g a n
fo u n d th a t F le m ish w a s m o re a n c ie n t th a n H eb rew in h is
O r d e r e s t a b l i s h e d i n m e m o r y o f h i m in t h i s p r e s e n t s t a t e ,
b iz a rre Origines Antwerpianae sive Cimmeroriorum Becceselana w h i c h i s s ti ll t o d a y c a l l e d t h e O r d e r o f t h e G o l d e n F l e e c e .
in-folios t h e s u b s t a n c e o f a n O r p h i c
( 1 5 6 8 ), a c c u m u l a te d in h is
th e o lo g y , w h ic h re v e a le d th e m e a n in g of p o e try to th e It is t o a k n ig h t o f t h e G o l d e n F l e e c e t h a t th e D o c to r f ro m
B is h o p o f A n t w e r p , L a e v in iu s T o r r e n t iu s .2 W e s h o u ld a t le a s t A n t w e r p , G u i l l a u m e M e n n e n s , d e d i c a t e d h i s Aurei velleris
r e c a ll t h a t th e s ix t e e n th c e n t u r y o p e n s w ith a Vellus aureum sive sacrae philosophiae vatum selectae ac unicae mysteriorumque
by G. A. A u g u r e lli, w ho in h is Chrysopoeia evoked th e Dei, naturae et artis admirabilium libri tres ( T h r e e b o o k s , o f t h e
Argonautica3 w h ic h L i li o G r e g o r i o G i r a l d i l a t e r r e a d b y t h e g o ld e n fle e c e o r th e s a c r e d p h ilo s o p h y , u n iq u e a n d c h o s e n
f i r e s i d e in t h e c o m p a n y o f G i a n f r a n c e s c o P i c o d e l l a M i r a n - b y th e p r o p h e t s , a n d o f th e m y s te r ie s o f G o d , a n d o f th e
d o la : n a t u r e a n d a r t o f w o n d r o u s t h i n g s ) , in w h i c h t h e r e a r e m a n y
re fe re n c e s to th e De harmonia mundi (O n th e h a r m o n y o f th e
A n d in t h i s p l a c e t h e m o s t h a p p y N y m p h s
w o r l d ) o f F r a n d s c u s G e o r g i u s V e n e t u s , w h o l ik e m a n y o f h i s
T h r o u g h th e s e t r e a s u r e s lu s h a n d rich
co n te m p o ra rie s w as as m u ch in te re s te d in a s tro lo g y and
U n t a n g l e w ith a b e a u tif u l i v o r y c o m b
a l c h e m y a s h e w a s in th e C a b a la . N o r s h o u ld w e o v e r lo o k
T h e G o ld e n F le e c e . T h e re ,
th e Aureum Vellus, oder Güldin Schatz und Kunstkammer b y th e
T o a c q u ire g lo ry .
g r e a t S a lo m o n T r is m o s in , tr a n s la te d b y P ie r r e V ic to r P a lm a
P rin c e J a s o n c a m e first, b y b o a t.
C a y e t ( 1 5 2 5 - 1 6 1 0 ) , k n o w n a s P e tru s M a g n u s b e c a u s e h e w a s
W ith h is m e n , to c a r r y o ff th is fle e c e .
in te re s te d in a lch e m y and th e C a b a la , and b ecau se he
T h e n o b le y o u th s d id n o t fe a r,
in tr o d u c e d D o c to r F a u s tu s to F r a n c e .5
U n d e r H e rcu le s a n d Ja s o n ,
O r p h e u s , i n w h o m G u y L e F è v r e d e la B o d e r i e f o u n d t h e
S k il l f u ll y t o w e n d t h e i r c o u r s e
" M o u t h o f L i g h t " a c c o r d i n g t o h i s t e a c h e r ' s e m i t h o l o g y , is
T h ro u g h so m a n y o ce a n w a v e s
e n t h r o n e d r i g h t in t h e m id d le o f t h e t e m p le o f I n t e llig e n c e
T o r e a c h th e w e a lt h y isle o f C o l c h i s .
e n g r a v e d b y B a r to lo m e o d e l B e n e in h is Civitas veri, w h ic h
A c c o rd in g to th e R e v e re n d V ico t, c h a p la in to th e lo rd w a s p u b lis h e d b y h is n e p h e w A lp h o n s e d e l B e n e , b is h o p o f
a l c h e m i s t s o f F i e r s , in th e c o m m e n t a r y t o h is Grand Olimpe,4 A lb y ( 1 5 3 8 - 1 6 0 8 ) . 6 D e l B e n e a t ta c k e d th e a l c h e m i s t s in th is

222
 K I NG A R T H U R

Orpheus. From Bartolomeo del Bene. Civitas veri (1609). Paris, Orpheus. From Bartolomeo del Bene, Civitas veri (1609). Paris,
Bibliothèque nationale. Photo BN. Bibliothèque nationale. Photo BN.

work and wrote a poem in Italian in which he showed that it 7. Le Mans, ms. 7, fol. 94 v; cf. M. e . couderc, "L es poésies d'un
was because of their longing tor the divine poets David and Florentin," Giomale storico deU. Let. ital.. 1891.
Orpheus, the bards of immortality, that the Furies invented "Poi che dal del la bella donna et pia
the alchemists, who boast of making men immortal during Quai manna o mele hvbleo
their own lifetimes. Di Liban piow e infra gran cedri pria
It is, moreover, for the same reason that Jean de Sponde Et detto il carme al pastorello Hebreo
(1557-95) praised Paracelsus, actually "Aureolus.” tor having
resumed the conquest of the Golden Fleece in his own time. Et con Ia Trada posda, et dolce lyra
Jean de Sponde mentions this in Homeri quae extant omnia, Mosse Ie piante, e sassi . . ."
dedicated to Henri HI in 1573, in which he expounds on
alchemy, having come to study this science at Basel, notably 8. f . secret , "Notes pour une histoire de l'alchimie en France,"
with one Theodor Zwinger.8 Australian Journal o f French Studies 9 (1972): 222.
F.S./g.h.

NOTES

1. Ct. D. F. walker , "Orpheus the Theologian and Renaissance

Platorusts." Journal of the Warburg Institute 16 (1953), reprinted in The
.Ancient Theology (London 1972); f . roucovsia, Orphée et ses disciples dans
la poésie française et néo-latme du XVT siècle (Geneva 1970).
2. F. secret . Annuaire de l'École pratique des hautes études (sciences
religieuses I, 82 (1973-74); 257ff.
3. f . Habert d e berry, trans.. Les trois livres de la Chrysopée (Paris
1550), 69.
4. Ms. f . franc , 12299, fol. 115, cf. Notes sur quelques alchimistes
italiens, p. 209.
5. Alchimie et littérature, in Bibl. d'Hum. et Ren. 35 (1973): 516.
6. Civrtas, p. 249, "In medio intelligentiae templo suo . . Statua est
Orphei vatis theologi"; the attack on the alchemists is on p. 153.
K ing A rthur , the R omances of the R ound
T able, and the L egend of the G railI.
I. T h e A rth u ria n L e g e n d
The term "Arthurian legend" has existed in scholarly
French usage only since the publication of Edmond Faral's
famous work by this title dealing with the genesis of certain
Latin texts from the Middle Ages. The title is somewhat
paradoxical, for according to Faral these texts, rather than

223
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

recording a legend, fabricate one from bits and pieces, and

stem from no particular folk tradition. Such is the case of the
Historia Regum Britanniae composed by Geoffrey of Mon­
mouth in 1137, the earliest date for the imaginary chronicles
of the reign of King Arthur, from his great conquests to his
heroic death on the battlefield in 542. This chronicle and its
adaptation in French verse by Wace (1155) were already part
of the Arthurian stories that had as their protagonist the
fabulous king surrounded by his knights, who owed him,
according to feudal custom, their homage and faith. In order
to explain the appearance of these texts and their many
derivatives, need we hypothesize the existence of a true
legend transmitted orally from generation to generation? The
theory of folk origins has never been anything more than a
succession of postulations which are often contradictory and
almost always unverifiable, since no positive proof can be
summoned in favor of the existence of a preliterary Arthu­
rian myth. This does not mean that Celtic or Scandinavian
folklore lacks parallels and analogies to certain narratives
which are connected with the legendary figures of King
Arthur and his knights. The point is, however, that none of
these parallels is recorded within the Arthurian framework,
none is linked to the characters or themes as the literary texts
of the Middle Ages present them, and so none can be
properly called "Arthurian." Literary scholarship has per­
sisted in cultivating this type of speculation because it has
been unable to propose an alternative explanation which
would even begin to do justice to the texts. Such an expla­
nation was not possible until the day that the narrative
literature of the Middle Ages gained the right to be treated as
a body of work subject to the laws of literary creation. Before
King Arthur. Vision of the holy grail. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale,
giving up the search for the myth, however, we must be
MS fr. 112. Photo Bibliothèque nationale.
convinced that the blossoming of stories grouped around the
character of King Arthur and his Round Table can explain
one another, as so many other analogous traditions do,
through the autonomous and spontaneous effort of the
authors of our texts, and notably through the use of two Thomas Malory. We move from a single episode in a chron­
distinct and yet complementary procedures. One consists of icle to the tragic drama of Morte Arthur saunz guerdon, just as,
gathering together all the elements already in existence, in a work of romantic fiction, we move from a single fact to
which until now have appeared only in isolation. Like a a structured work. Insofar as the main Arthurian themes
magnetic field, the work thus becomes the locus where, once have undergone this evolution, it may be said that Arthurian
reunited, these elements form a new structure, acquiring an mythology as a whole springs from the dual movement that
original significance. This procedure underlay the formation forms wholes and continuously renews their meaning. This
of epic and fictional cycles that dominated all French narra­ mythology is found in English-speaking countries at all
tive literature in the thirteenth century. The other procedure, levels of oral and written culture, from stories still told aloud
a term used here in no pejorative sense, is a timeless one. It today in Wales and Cornwall to the works of poets and prose
consists of rethinking a given body of work to give it a new writers of our times.
meaning, more profound, more subtle, or simply more in At what precise moment was the idea of the great king's
keeping with the tastes of the public to whom it is addressed. survival and eventual return to the country he had once
The pseudo-chronicle of Geoffrey of Monmouth was only the made the most beautiful kingdom on earth added to this
beginning of the myth of the greatness and the fall of the already rich and fertile collection of romantic themes? Here
Arthurian monarchy, a myth that was elaborated over the again we encounter a very general belief, which appears in
course of the last three centuries of the Middle Ages through the folklore of many other countries: the refusal to accept as
the successive contributions of French and English writers. final the disappearance of a savior, a liberating hero, who
According to Geoffrey, as in all the chronicles derived from must return to ensure the salvation of his people. It is in the
his Historia (Wace's Brut, Layamon's Brut, and the logic of things that tales of the glorious exploits of a great
fourteenth-century English poem Morte Arthure), Arthur dies king lead to the hope for his return, and there is nothing to
a victim of the treachery of Mordred. This is a fortuitous contradict the view that, in the British tradition, this hope
incident which is unexpected and unjustified. French prose itself was also of literary origin. Its first expression is found in
writers of the thirteenth century, authors of the great Arthu­ the chronicles based on the work of Geoffrey of Monmouth
rian cycle (1220-25), applied themselves to creating a motive and those of Wace and Layamon, and the Latin formula Rex
for this major event, making it the culmination of a whole quondam rexque futurus ("the Once and Future King") contin­
series of intelligently developed themes. This process con­ ued to appear even in the fourteenth-century Morte Arthure.
tinued until the third quarter of the fifteenth century, in the In the fifteenth century, Malory described this belief, while at
hands of the greatest of the Arthurian prose writers, Sir the same time indicating that he did not share it: "This," he

224
 KI NG A R T H U R

s a i d , " i s w h a t s o m e t h i n k ; a ll w e r e a l l y k n o w is t h a t in t h i s as we do not know w h e th e r a G ra il leg en d e v e r e x iste d

w o r ld th e g r e a t k in g c h a n g e d h is lif e ." b efo re C h r é tie n de T ro y e s. The e v id e n ce su g g e s ts th a t if
T w o o t h e r t h e m e s d e v e l o p e d in a n a n a l o g o u s m a n n e r : t h e t h e r e w a s a l e g e n d , it w a s o f s t r i c t l y l i t e r a r y o r i g i n l ik e t h e
th e m e o f th e G ra il a n d t h a t o f th e r o m a n c e o f L a n c e l o t a n d A r th u r ia n le g e n d , c r e a te d a n d p r o p a g a te d b y w r ite r s . C h r é ­
G u i n e v e r e . C l e a r l y , it is w i t h i n a n A r t h u r i a n f r a m e w o r k — in tie n d e T r o y e s w a s f o llo w e d a t th e e n d o f th e tw e lf th c e n t u r y
th e s to r ie s o f C h r é tie n d e T r o y e s — th a t th e y a p p e a r fo r th e b y R o b e rt d e B o r o n , th e a u t h o r o f a p o e m c a lle d Estoire du
f i r s t t i m e , o n e in t h e Conte de Graal (Story of the Grail, c a . Graal (The Story of the Grail) or Joseph of Ariinathie. A c c o r d in g
1 1 8 1 ), a n d th e o th e r in t h e Conte de la Charrette (Story of the t o R o b e r t d e B o r o n , t h e G r a i l w a s t h e v e s s e l in w h i c h J o s e p h
Cart, c a . 1 1 7 2 ). B u t t h e s e s to r ie s a r e a c tu a lly f o re ig n to th e h a d c o l le c te d a fe w d r o p s o f C h r i s t 's b lo o d a f t e r th e c r u c i ­
A rth u ria n " l e g e n d " p ro p e r. T h e K in g A r th u r to w h o m th e y f ix io n , a n d w h ic h J o s e p h 's b r o t h e r - in - l a w B r o n , a n d h is s o n
r e f e r is n o l o n g e r th e fa b u lo u s w a r r i o r o f G e o f f r e y o f M o n ­ A l a n , w e r e t o c a r r y to E n g l a n d — a s y m b o l o f th e fa ith w h ic h
m o u th a n d W a c e . T h e K in g A r th u r o f C h r é tie n d e T ro y e s w o u ld sp read th ro u g h th e W e s te rn w o rld . D id R o b ert d e
does not even rem em b er th e e x p lo its a ttrib u te d to th a t B o ro n c o m p o s e a Percival a s w e ll? N o r e c o r d r e m a in s o f s u c h
w a r r i o r . H i s r o l e c o n s i s t s s o l e l y in e n c o u r a g i n g t h e a d v e n ­ a w o r k , b u t it i s p o s s i b l e t h a t t h e Perlesvaus, a p ro s e te x t fro m
tu re s th a t ta k e p la ce aro u n d h im ; h e has no th o u g h ts of th e b e g in n in g o f th e th ir te e n th c e n tu r y , w a s a n a d a p ta tio n o f
b e c o m in g in v o lv e d h i m s e l f . It w a s n o t u n t i l t h e t h i r t e e n t h a lo s t p o e m o f R o b e rt d e B o ro n .
c e n t u r y , in t h e g r e a t A r t h u r i a n c y c l e in p r o s e a t t r i b u t e d to T h e m a in e v e n t in th e e v o l u t i o n o f th e G ra il t h e m e in th e
W a lte r M a p , t h a t t h e e p i c o f A r t h u r 's k i n g d o m , th e G r a il, t h i r t e e n t h c e n t u r y is t h e s u b s t i t u t i o n o f G a l a h a d f o r P e r c i v a l
a n d t h e p a s s i o n a t e l o v e a f f a i r o f L a n c e l o t a n d t h e q u e e n a ll in th e r o le o f th e h e r o o f th e G r a il. G a la h a d , th e p u r e k n ig h t
c a m e t o g e t h e r . In t h i s c o n t e x t , t h e l a t t e r t w o t h e m e s a c q u i r e d a n d n a t u r a l s o n o f L a u n c e l o t , a p p e a r s f o r t h e f i r s t t i m e in t h e
n ew m e a n in g a n d d e p th . F ro m th a t m o m e n t o n , th e ir tru e great A rth u ria n c y c le com p osed b e tw e e n 1220 and 1225,
v a lu e a p p e a r s a s a c h a n c e p h e n o m e n o n b o rn o f th e im a g i­ w h e r e h e s e e m s to p l a y th e r o le o f a l ib e r a t o r c h a r g e d w ith
n a tio n o f r e m o d e le r s a n d a d a p te r s r a t h e r th a n d e r iv in g fro m d e liv e rin g th e A r th u r ia n k in g d o m fro m t h e s in o f lu s t. H e
th e m y s te rio u s d e p th s of p o p u la r tra d itio n s . Sequences a l o n e w o u l d b e a b le to s e e t h e G ra il c le a r l y a n d o p e n l y a n d
c re a te d in th is m a n n e r s o m e tim e s seem to be p re lite ra ry to a c h i e v e h is q u e s t. H e a l o n e , b e c a u s e o f h is c h a r a c t e r a n d
m y th s , s u c h a s th e th e m e o f th e k in g d o m t r a n s f o r m e d in to a h is b e h a v io r , w o u ld b e a b le to g iv e h u m a n i n c a r n a tio n to th e
w a s te la n d (terre gaste). R e c e n t r e s e a r c h h a s s h o w n t h a t th is m a g ic lig h t w h ic h e m a n a t e d f r o m it. F u r t h e r m o r e , th e G ra il
s to ry w a s fo rm e d th r o u g h th e a g g lu tin a tio n o f d iv e rs e e le ­ h ere has a very s p e c if ic m e a n in g , as E tie n n e G ils o n has
m e n ts o r ig in a lly i n d e p e n d e n t o f o n e a n o t h e r ; s o w e c a n n o t d e m o n s t r a t e d in a f a m o u s s t u d y (Romania, 1 9 2 5 ). B e fo re th is
re g ard th e m a s p a r ts o f a s in g le o r ig in a l m y th . S im p ly b y sym b ol of d iv in e grace, th e k n ig h ts of K in g A rth u r are
r e s p e c tin g th e c h r o n o lo g y o f o u r te x ts fro m th e tw e lfth a n d som eh ow ra n k e d a c c o r d in g to th e ir d e g r e e o f p e r f e c tio n o r
th ir te e n th c e n t u r i e s , w e s e e h o w th e tr u e a r c h it e c t s o f th e im p e rfe c tio n . G a la h a d a tta in s th e h ig h e s t k n o w le d g e o f th e
le g e n d o f th e terre gaste w o r k e d th e ir m a te r ia l. A n d th is w o rk d iv in e m y s te r y , w h ic h c a n b e o b ta in e d th r o u g h a p u r e m in d
d i d n o t c e a s e w i t h t h e v o g u e o f F r e n c h A r t h u r i a n n o v e l s ; it (pura mens). A t a l o w e r le v e l a r e P e rc iv a l a n d B o h o rt, w h o
c o n tin u e d th ro u g h th e w o rk of T hom as M a lo ry in th e a r r iv e a t th is k n o w le d g e th r o u g h th e ir s e n s e s , w h ile L a u n c e ­
fifte e n th c e n t u r y rig h t u p to o n e o f th e g r e a te s t p o e m s o f th e lo t reach es it o n ly th ro u g h d re a m s: th re e m y s tic s ta te s
t w e n t i e t h : E l i o t 's The Waste Land. If C h r é t i e n d e T r o y e s h a d a d m i r a b l y d e s c r i b e d in t h e p r e c e d i n g c e n t u r y b y S a i n t B e r ­
l iv e d t o s e e t h e e x t r a o r d i n a r y d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e G r a i l m o t i f , n a r d o f C l a i r v a u x . T h e c y c l e in w h i c h G a l a h a d ' s q u e s t f i r s t
h e m i g h t h a v e a s k e d h i m s e l f , l ik e B o a z : H o w c o u l d t h i s h a v e a p p e a r e d w a s fo llo w e d b y a c o m p o s i ti o n a lm o s t a s e x t e n s i v e
c o m e f r o m m e ? S u c h a q u e s t i o n w o u l d r e m a i n u n a n s w e r e d if a s w h a t is n o w c a lle d t h e Roman du Graal (1 2 3 5 ). W h ile th e
w e fo rg o t to ta k e in to a c c o u n t th e c r e a ti v e im a g in a tio n o f th e q u e s t fo r th e G ra il w a s o n l y a n e p i s o d e o f r e l a ti v e ly lim ite d
w rite rs o f th e th ir t e e n th - c e n t u r y p r o s e c y c le , w h o u s e d th e s c o p e in t h e g r e a t A r t h u r i a n c y c l e , in t h e Roman du Graal,
G r a il a s a s y m b o l o f d iv in e g ra c e w ith o u t a s k in g w hat it A r t h u r ' s k i n g d o m , " t h e a d v e n t u r o u s k i n g d o m , " is d e s t i n e d
m e a n t. fro m t h e b e g i n n in g to f a c e th is m a g ic a l o b j e c t, w h o s e m e r e
p re se n ce s e e m s to c o n d e m n th e k in g d o m as m u ch a s th e
i d e o l o g y o f c h i v a l r y it e m b o d i e s . In t h e s a m e p e r i o d , W o l ­
f r a m v o n E s c h e n b a c h in h i s Parzival re e s ta b lis h e d th e e p o n ­
II. T h e G ra il
y m o u s h e r o in t h e r o l e o f k n i g h t o f t h e G r a i l a n d t r a n s f o r m e d
W e d o n o t e v e n k n o w t h e m e a n i n g o f t h e G r a i l in t h e p o e m th e G ra il its e lf i n to a m a g ic a l s t o n e w ith a p r o f o u n d ly m o r a l
b y C h ré tie n d e T r o y e s th a t b e a r s its n a m e ( c a . 1 1 8 1 ). T h e s ig n if i c a n c e . W a g n e r w a s v is ib ly in s p i r e d b y W o l f r a m , w h o s e
p a g e a n t o f t h e G r a i l a s h e d e s c r i b e d it h a s c a u s e d r i v e r s o f s o u r c e s e e m s to b e n o n e o t h e r th a n C h r é ti e n d e T r o y e s . T h is
i n k t o f l o w in o u r t i m e . F o r t h e y o u n g k n i g h t P e r c i v a l w h o h ad a c u r io u s c o n s e q u e n c e : fo r m o s t m o d e r n re a d e rs , th e
s a w i t , a s w e ll a s f o r a ll r e a d e r s o f t h i s p a s s a g e , it p r o v i d e s a n G r a i l l e g e n d is a l e g e n d o f P e r c i v a l , w h i l e f o r r e a d e r s i n t h e
o p p o r t u n i t y t o l o o k in w o n d e r a t t w o m y s t e r i o u s o b j e c t s : t h e la s t t h r e e c e n t u r i e s o f th e M id d le A g e s th e G ra il le g e n d w a s
G ra il its e lf , t h a t is, th e s a c r e d v e s s e l c a r r ie d b y a m a i d e n , a n d e s s e n t ia l ly t h a t o f G a la h a d , i n s e p a r a b l y lin k e d to th e p r o s e
t h e b l e e d i n g l a n c e in t h e h a n d s o f a y o u n g m a n w h o l e a d s p oem a b o u t L a n c e l o t . B e c a u s e th is s t o r y s u r v i v e d to m o d ­
t h e p r o c e s s i o n . If, w h e n t h a t p r o c e s s i o n p a s s e d b e f o r e h i m , ern tim e s o n ly th r o u g h S ir Thom as M a l o r y 's a d a p ta tio n
P e rc iv a l h a d o n ly a s k e d its s ig n if i c a n c e , th e méhaigné k in g , (p u b lish e d in 1485 by W illia m C a x to n ), o n ly E n g lish -
t h e w o u n d e d k i n g w h o l i v e d in t h e c a s t l e , w o u l d h a v e b e e n s p e a k in g c o u n trie s r e ta in th e m e m o ry o f th e p u re k n ig h t
c u r e d o f h is w o u n d s . B u t P e r c iv a l, i n te r p r e t i n g t o o l ite ra lly G a la h a d . As w ith th e A rth u ria n le g e n d or th e leg en d of
th e a d v ic e g iv e n h im b y a w is e m a n n a m e d G o r n e m a n t , w a s T r is ta n and Is o ld e , th e G ra il leg en d b ecam e d iv e rs ifie d
c a re fu l n o t to a sk th a t q u e s tio n . If h e had asked i t, w ho a c c o r d i n g t o t h e v a r i o u s f o r m s a n d i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s g i v e n t o it
k n o w s w h a t th e p e o p le o f th e c a s tle w o u ld h a v e to ld h im ? b y th e p o e ts a n d p r o s e w r ite r s o f th e la te M id d le A g e s . A s a
D id C h r é t i e n d e T r o y e s h i m s e l f k n o w th e e x a c t m e a n in g o f p o e t i c t h e m e , o r a s a r e lig io u s o r m o r a l s y m b o l , th e G ra il h a s
th e o b je c t h e in tr o d u c e d in to h is p o e m ? W e d o n o t k n o w , ju st n e v e r b e e n a n y t h i n g b u t th e p r o d u c t o f th e ir im a g in a tio n .

225
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

W e h a v e n o r e a s o n t o s e a r c h e l s e w h e r e f o r t h e s e c r e t o f i ts Der Prosaroman von Joseph Arimathia, G. Weidner, ed. (Oppeln

e m o tio n a l p o w e r a n d its p r o d i g i o u s a n d w id e s p r e a d in flu ­ 1881); The Modena Text of the Prose Joseph d’Arimathie, W. Roach, ed.
en ce. Romance Philology 9 (1955-56): 313-42.
The Didot Perceval, According to the Manuscripts of Modena and Paris,
W. Roach, ed. (Philadelphia 1941).
III. Terre Geste (W a s te la n d ) Perlesvaus: Le haut livre du Graal, W. A. Nitze and T. Atkinson
Jenkins, eds., 2 vols. (Chicago 1932-37).
In its m o s t c o m p l e te a n d la te s t f o r m , th is t h e m e in c l u d e s La queste del Saint Graal postérieure à la Vulgate, Critical Ed.,
fo u r e le m e n ts : a m ira c u lo u s w e a p o n , a s e rio u s w o u n d s u f­ F. Bogdanow, ed., forthcoming.
fe re d b y a g r e a t m a n (k in g o r k n ig h t), th e d e v a s t a ti o n o f a wolfram von Eschenbach , Pürzival, text (after Lachmannschen's 5th
k in g d o m , a n d th e h e a lin g o f th e w o u n d e d m an. The H ow ed., 1891; narrative and glossary by Werner Hoffman), Gottfried
th a t in flic ts th e w o u n d — th e “ d o l o r o u s s t r o k e " — is a l m o s t Weber, ed. (Darmstadt 1967).
a lw a y s g iv e n b y th e m ira cu lo u s w e a p o n , w h ile th e o th e r The Vulgate Version of the Arthurian Romances, H. O. Sommer, ed.,
e le m e n ts of th e n a rra tiv e a re o f te n s e p a r a te d fro m one
from Manuscripts in the British Museum, vol. 1: L'estoiredel Saint Graal;
vol. 2: L'estoire de Merlin; vols. 3-5: Le livre de Lancelot del Lac; vol. 6:
a n o t h e r . T h e y a r e f o u n d t o g e th e r fo r t h e firs t t im e in o n e o f
Les aventures ou la Queste del Saint Graal: La mort le Roi Artus; vol. 7:
th e b ra n c h e s o f th e Roman du Graal, s o m e t im e s c a lle d th e
Supplement: Le livre d'Artus, with Glossary (Washington 1908-16).
Suite du Merlin a n d d a tin g a p p r o x im a te ly fro m 1 2 3 0 -3 5 . Partial editions: La Queste del Saint Graal, A. Pauphilet, ed. (1924); La
T h e f o u r e l e m e n ts o f th e t h e m e o f t h e w a s t e la n d in th is mort de Roi Artu, J. Frappier, ed. (1936; 4th ed., 1968).
w o rk fo rm a c o n tin u o u s n a r r a tiv e w hose p ro ta g o n ist is c. paris and |. Ulrich , Merlin, roman en prose du XIIT siècle publié avec
B a la in , a n u n f o r tu n a te k n ig h t w h o s e e m s d e s tin e d to b rin g la mise en prose du poème de Merlin de Robert de Boron d'après le manuscrit
s o r r o w t o a ll h e m e e t s . T h e “ d o l o r o u s s t r o k e " w h i c h c a u s e s appartenant à M. Alfred H. Huth, 2 vols. (Paris 1886).
th e d e v a s ta tio n o f t h e c o u n t r y is d e a l t b y h im w h i l e h e is La folie Lancelot, F. Bogdanow, ed. (Tübingen 1965).
sir Thomas Malory , The Works, Eugène Vinaver, ed., 3 vols. (2d ed.,
d e f e n d in g h im s e lf a g a i n s t th e p o w e r f u l k in g P e lle s , a k in g
Oxford 1967).
m y s t e r i o u s l y l i n k e d t o t h e t h e m e o f t h e G r a i l , s i n c e it i s t h e
La demanda dei Sancto Grial, Primera Parte: El Baladro del sabio Merlin
G r a i l i n t h e h a n d s o f t h e p u r e k n i g h t G a l a h a d t h a t w il l h e a l
con sus profecias; Segunda Parte: La demanda dei Sancto Grial con los
h im . T h e a rc h ite c ts o f th e le g e n d o f th e terre gaste n o t o n ly maravillosos fechos de Lanzarote y de Galaz su hijo. Libros de Caballerias,
c o n s t r u c te d a p e r f e c tly c o h e r e n t a n d w e ll-b a la n c e d s c e n a r io ; part 1 of Ciclo arturico, by adolfo bonilla y san marun (Madrid 1907).
th e y k n e w h o w to e n h a n c e in a n e w w a y th e th e m e o f th e El Baladro del sabio Merlin segun el texto de la edicion de Burgis de 1498,
G ra il w ith in th e A r t h u r i a n c y c le s , a s th e h a p le s s k n ig h t w a s Pedro Bohigas, ed., 3 vols. (Barcelona 1957-62). A Demanda do Santo
c o n t r a s t e d to th e f o r tu n a te k n ig h t G a la h a d . T h e o n e p lu n g e s Graal, Augusto Magne, ed., 3 vols. (Rio de Janeiro 1944).
A r t h u r 's k in g d o m in to g lo o m and m isfo rtu n e , w h ile th e 2 . C r i ti c a l S t u d i e s
o t h e r f l o o d s t h e k i n g d o m w i t h a n e w l i g h t a n d s h o w s it t h e
l. d . bruce , The Evolution of Arthurian Romance from the Beginnings
w a y to s a lv a tio n .
Down to the Year 1300, 2 vols. (Göttingen and Baltimore 1923); 2d ed.
E .V ./d .b . (1928, 1958), with a bibliographic supplement by A. Hilka.
e . K. chambers , Arthur of Britain (London 1927); reprinted with
bibliographic supplement (Cambridge 1964). e . faral , La légende
arthurienne. Études et documents, 3 vols. (Paris 1929). i. frappier .
Chrétien de Troyes (Paris 1957; 2d revised ed., 1971); Étude sur la mort
BIBLIOGRAPHY le Roi Artu, roman du XIIT siècle, dernière partie du Lancelot en prou
(Paris 1936; 2d ed. revised and augmented, 1961). R. s. loomis, ed.
1. T e x ts Arthurian Literature in the Middle Ages: A Collaborative History (Oxford
geoffroi de monmouth . Historia Regunt Britanniae, Acton Griscom, 1959).
ed. (New York 1929); Historia Regum Britanniae: A Variant Version, F. lot . Étude sur le Lancelot en prou (Paris 1918); reprinted with a
J. Hammer, ed. (Cambridge, MA, 1951). supplement (1954). |. s. p. tatlock , Legendary History of Britain
WACE, Le roman de Brut, Ivor Arnold, ed., 2 vols. (Paris 1938-40). (Berkeley and Los Angeles 1950). e . vinaver , A la recherche d'une
Layamon , Brut, G. L. Brook and R. F. Leslie, eds. (London 1963). poétique médiévale (Paris 1970); The Riu of Romance (Oxford 1971).
chrétien de Troyes : two editions: (1) W. Foerster, Sämtliche erhaltene p. zumthor, Merlin le Prophète: Un thème de la littérature polémique de
Werke nach allen bekannten Handschriften, 4 vols. (Halle 1884-99); l'historiographie et des romans (Lausanne 1943).
Wörterbuch (1914). (2) An edition based on Guiot's copy (Bibl. Nat. f . bogdanow , The Romance of the Grail (Manchester and New York
franç. 794): Erec et Enide, Mario Roques, ed. (1955); Cligés, A. Micha, 1966). a . c. L. brown, 'The Bleeding Lance," Publications of the Modem
ed. (1957); Le Chevalier de la Charrette, M. Roques, ed. (1958); Le Language Association 25 (1910): 1-59. k . burdach. Der Graal (Stuttgart
Chewlier au lion (Yvain), M. Roques, ed. (1960); Le conte du Graal 1938); reprinted (Darmstadt 1974). r. s . loomis, Arthurian Tradition and
(Perceval), F. Lecoy, ed., 2 vols. (1975); Le conte du Graal et les Chrétien de Troyes (New York 1949); Celtic Myth and Arthurian Romance
continuations: Der Percemlroman, Alfons Hilka, ed. (Halle 1932); Le (New York 1927); The Grail, from Celtic Myth to Christian Symbol
Roman de Perceval ou le Conte du Graal, W. Roach, ed. (2d ed. revised (Cardiff and New York 1963). Lumière du Graal: Etudes et textes
and augmented, 1959); The Continuations of the Old French Perceval of préuntés sous la direction de René Nelli (Paris 1951). w. golther , Pürzival
Chrétien de Troyes, W. Roach, ed., 4 vols. (Philadelphia 1949-71); und der Gral in der Dichtung des Mittelalters und der Neuzeit (Stuttgart
gerbert de montreuil , La continuation de Perceval, Mary Williams, ed., 1925). ). Marx , La légende arthurienne et le Graal (Paris 1952); Nouvelles
vol. 1 (1922), vol. 2 (1925); vol. 3, Marguerite Oswald, ed. (1975); The recherches sur la littérature arthurienne (Paris 1965). a . pauphilet . Études
Elucidation: A Prologue to the Conte du Graal, A. W. Thompson, ed. sur la queste del Saint Graal attribuée à Gautier Map (Paris 1921). Les
(New York 1931); Bibliocadran, L. D. Wolfgang, ed., Beihefte zur romans de Graal dans la littérature des XIV et XUV siècles (Paris 1956).
Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie, 150 (1976). e . vettermann . Die Balen-Dichtungen und ihre Quellen, supplement to
Robert de boron , Le roman de Testoire dou Graal, W. A. Nitze, ed. Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie, 60 (1918). |. weston , From Ritual to
(Paris 1927). Romance (Cambridge 1920).

226
 T R I S T A N AND I S O L D E

T ristan and I solde

We have many texts pertaining to the legend of Tristan and

Isolde, among them fragments of two great French poems of
the twelfth century, one attributed to Béroul, the other to
Thomas; a German poem of the same period composed by
Eilhart von Oberg; a Norwegian saga; a German poem of the
thirteenth century by Gottfried von Strassburg; an English
poem entitled Sir Tristrem; a prose version in Italian; and
finally a prose romance in French preserved in a very large
number of manuscripts as well as in a few printed editions of
the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. In an attempt
to explain both the origin and the vast diffusion of this
legend, scholars first applied to the legend of Tristan the
general theory of the mechanical formation of epic, just as
they had done for other literary traditions including the
Homeric poems and the French chansons de geste. This theory,
conceived and developed by the great German romantic
thinkers, was tinged by the mystique of the spontaneous and
the primitive, which saw poetry as an impersonal product of
popular genius created by virtue of an immediate intuition,
presumably the manifestation of the divine in man. Accord­
ing to the theory, all narrative poetry was originally a
tradition of short songs, each devoted to an isolated event.
These songs were not frozen by writing. Rather, expert
singers peddled their wares, so to speak, on street corners,
and the songs thus passed on from generation to generation
Le roman de Tristan et Yseult (ms. fr. 103, fol. 1). Paris, Bibliothèque
by simple word of mouth. Finally, collectors gathered them,
nationale. Photo BN.
set them down in writing, and developed them with the
view toward putting together vast collections of narratives.
According to this hypothesis, what was preserved of the
legend of Tristan may well be just such a series of assem­
blages. Behind it all was a theme of singular strength and medievalist of our century, Joseph Bédier, put forward his
vitality, namely, the illegitimate and guilty love of Tristan for findings with all the strength of his talent and erudition. He
Isolde, a love whose fatal and indestructible nature was claimed that the basis of the whole poetic tradition has
symbolized by the love potion that Tristan and Isolde drink always been a single poem, the common archetype of all the
by mistake during their voyage from Ireland to Cornwall. known romances that speak of Tristan and Isolde. This
According to Gaston Paris, to this basic theme were added archetype is not an aggregate of collected pieces, but a
progressively the various components of what we now call spontaneous work of art resplendent in the unity of its
the romance of Tristan: the dangers met by the lovers, the creation. Few people seriously challenge this hypothesis
attempts by their enemies to destroy them, the episode of today. There are of course divergent views regarding the
their joint exile and their life in the forest, then their content of the common archetype. Again it was Bédier who
summons by the king to return, their renewed indiscretions, first attempted to reconstruct the archetype by adopting a
their forced separation, Tristan's exile in Brittany, his futile very simple method that he explained in the following terms.
effort to forget Isolde the Fair by marrying Isolde of the First, one compares the four "primary" versions derived
White Hands, the poisoned wound that he suffers in combat from the original romance, i.e., the poems of Béroul, Eilhart,
and that Queen Isolde alone can cure, her own departure for and Thomas, and the prose romance. When these versions
the distant land where Tristan is dying, her arrival at the yield differing accounts, one must ask by what criteria the
moment after his death, and finally her own sudden death antiquity of a particular feature may be determined: its
on the dead body of her lover. According to the romantic archaic "turn," its intrinsic value, its conformity to the overall
canon, this theme did not take shape in its overpowering work? We are aware of how precarious such determinations
simplicity inside the soul of a single poet. Separate poems may be. Nonetheless, Bédier's work led him to make the
joining together and breaking up into various groups may following statement:
have made up the first phase of the life of the legend. During
Every time the comparison could apply to at least three of
the next phase, an attempt may have been made to group
the texts, the features which, for reasons of taste, feeling,
into one coherent story the adventures of Tristan and Isolde
and logic, we deemed original were features attested by
until their deaths. A late nineteenth-century German scholar
three versions or by at least two of them. Conversely, the
by the name of Golther described the poem of Eilhart von
features which for reasons of taste, feeling, and logic we
Oberg as a "conglomerate of disparate scenes and episodes
deemed to have been revised and of more recent date,
artificially linked together." In the same period, Novati, an
appeared to be isolated in a single version of the ones
Italian scholar, was writing: "Béroul's poem, although it can
be said that it is rather solidly constructed, at every moment compared.
reveals the solderings between the pieces from which it was Bédier was able to make the important claim that the
made." Against the background of this doctrine, the great compared versions were independent from one another for

227
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

th e fo llo w in g re a s o n : s in c e e a c h tim e tw o o r t h r e e o f th e m 2. Critical Studies

w ere in a g re e m e n t, th e y w ere f a ith fu l to th e ir so u rce, Arthurian Literature in the Middle Ages, R. S. Loomis, ed. (Oxford
w h e re a s ea ch t im e t h a t t h e y w e r e n o t in a g r e e m e n t , th e y 1959), chaps. 12-14, 26. emmanuéle Baum gartner , Le Tristan en prose:
w e r e a t v a r ia n c e w ith th e s o u r c e . H e n c e , o u r t e x ts a llo w u s Essai d'interprétation d’un roman médiéval (Geneva 1975). danielle
s im u lta n e o u s ly to e s ta b lis h th e e x is te n c e o f a n a r c h e ty p e a n d buschinger , Le Tristan d'Eilhart von Oberg (Paris 1975). m . delbouille ,
denis de rougemont , and e . viNAVER, Tristan et Iseut à travers le temps
t o r e c o n s t r u c t it i n i t s b r o a d o u tlin e s . B é ro u l a n d E ilh a rt,
a c c o r d in g to r e c e n t in v e s tig a tio n s , w e r e p ro b a b ly th e m o s t
(Brussels 1961). a . fourrier . Le courant réaliste dans le roman courtois en
France au Moyen Age, 1: Les débuts (12th century) (Paris 1960).
fa ith fu l to th e a rc h e ty p e . T h e ir a d a p ta tio n s m o st c le a rly
w. GOLTHER, Tristan und Isolde in den Dichtungen des Mittelalters und der
a s s e r t th e e s s e n tia l th e m e o f th e o r ig in a l r o m a n c e , n a m e ly ,
neuen Zeit (Leipzig 1907). r. ionin . Les personnages féminins dans les
th e ju x ta p o s itio n , fo re v e r u n r e s o lv e d , o f th e tw o irre c o n c il­ romans français de Tristan au XIT siècle, Publ. de la Faculté des Lettres
a b le p o w e r s , th a t o f th e lo v e p o tio n a n d th a t o f th e s o c ia l la w (Aix-en-Provence 1958). |. kelem ina , Untersuchungen zur Tristansage
w h ic h th e lo v e r s n e v e r r e p u d ia te . T h is d o e s n o t a l te r th e fa c t (Leipzig 1910); Geschichte der Tristansage nach den Dichtungen des
t h a t if w e a r e t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e e v o l u t i o n o f t h e l e g e n d i n t o Mittelalters (Vienna 1923). e . loeseth , Le roman en prose de Tristan, le
th e m o d e m p e rio d , w e m u s t c o n s u lt T h o m a s 's v e r s io n a n d roman de Palamède et la compilation de Rusticien de Pise, analyse critique
th e F ren ch p ro se v e rsio n , w h ic h im p lic itly or e x p lic itly d'après les manuscrits de Paris (Paris 1891); reprinted by B. Franklin
p ro c la im th e s o v e r e ig n rig h ts of lo v e . T hom as in sp ire d ,
(New York 1970). w. rottiger , Der heutige Stand der Tristanforschung
(Hamburg 1897). c. schoepperle, Tristan and Isolt: A Study of the Sources
a m o n g o th e r s , th e G e rm a n p o e t G o ttf r ie d v o n S tr a s s b u r g ,
of the Romance! Frankfurt and London 1913); reprinted by B. Franklin
fro m w h o s e w o r k , in tu rn , W a g n e r learn ed th e le g e n d of
(New York 1958). a . vavaro , II roman di Tristan di Béroul (Turin 1963).
T ris ta n . The p ro se ro m an ce (1 2 3 0 ), its e lf w id e s p r e a d in E. viNAVER, Études sur le Tristan en prose, les sources, les manuscrits,
m e d ie v a l E u r o p e , m a d e th e le g e n d o f T ris ta n in to o n e o f th e bibliographie critique (Paris 1925).
r o m a n c e s o f th e R o u n d T a b le . In a c o lle c tio n o f E n g lis h p r o s e
r o m a n c e s p u b lis h e d in 1 4 8 5 b y W illia m C a x to n u n d e r th e
title o f Le morte d'Arthur, S ir T h o m a s M a lo ry gave u s an
a b rid g e d v e rs io n o f th e ro m a n c e th a t s e rv e s a s th e s o u rc e fo r
m o st m o d e m E n g lish v e r s io n s .
G y psy M yt h s a n d R itu als
S h o u ld w e a s s u m e th a t a p o p u la r le g e n d , p r e d a tin g th e
first T ris ta n ro m a n c e , w a s d is s e m in a te d b y th e C e lts fro m
a c r o s s th e C h a n n e l a n d p a s s e d o n b y B re to n b a r d s , a s c e rta in O f a ll t h e e t h n i c m i n o r i t ie s s c a t t e r e d t h r o u g h o u t th e w o r l d ,
Fren ch p o e ts c la im ? The e x iste n ce of a le g e n d fe a tu rin g G y p s ie s a r e p e r h a p s o n e o f th e m o s t o r ig in a l b y v ir tu e o f
M a r k , h is w if e , a n d h is s w i n e h e r d T r i s ta n in l o v e w it h th e th e ir life -s ty le a n d th e ir a d h e r e n c e to tr a d itio n . In th e h e a r t
w ife is a tte s te d in a very a n c ie n t W e lsh tr ia d , a p la in , o f o u r d e v e lo p e d a n d u r b a n iz e d c o u n tr ie s , th is w a n d e r in g
u n p o lis h e d s to ry in w h ic h th e re is t a l k n e ith e r o f a lo v e p e o p le m a n ife sts a p ro fo u n d w il l to s u rv iv e d e sp ite a ll
p o tio n n o r o f th e s o c ia l o r d e r th a t th e lo v e r s a r e d e s tin e d a t t e m p t s t o a s s i m il a t e it a n d d e s p ite th e c o u n tle s s h a ra s s -
s im u l ta n e o u s l y t o v io la t e a n d t o r e s p e c t . It is n o t o f t h is s to r y m e n t s a n d p e r s e c u t io n s o f w h ic h it h a v e b e e n th e t a r g e t . T h e
th a t o n e th in k s w h e n p o s tu la tin g a n o r ig in a l C e ltic T r is ta n , l a s t s u c h a t t e m p t r e s u lt e d in t h e e x t e r m i n a t i o n o f n e a r l y fiv e
b u t o f s o m e th in g a s c o m p le te a n d a s p ro f o u n d ly p o e tic a s th e h u n d r e d t h o u s a n d G y p s ie s in N a z i c o n c e n t r a t io n c a m p s .
F r e n c h a r c h e ty p e o f o u r e a rlie s t ro m a n c e s . B u t w e h a v e n o O n e o f t h e b a s ic f a c to r s o f th is r e s is ta n c e is th e G y p s ie s '
p r o o f th a t s u c h a w o r k e v e r e x i s t e d . A r o m a n c e o f T r is ta n re lig io u s s e n s e . W e s a y r e lig io u s s e n s e r a t h e r th a n re lig io n ,
c o m p o s e d in F r a n c e t o w a r d t h e m i d d le o f t h e t w e lf th c e n t u r y b e c a u s e it i s a b o v e a l l a g e n e r a l s t a t e o f m i n d a n d a s p e c i f i c
is , o u t s id e o f o u r t e x ts , t h e s o le t a n g ib le r e a lity . G iv e n th e e th ic a l a n d r e lig io u s b e h a v io r r a t h e r th a n a s y s te m of dog­
c u r r e n t s ta te o f o u r k n o w le d g e , w e c a n n o t d e n y th e m o s t m a tiz e d b e lie fs a n d in stitu tio n a liz e d r itu a l p r a c ti c e s . T h is
c o m p e llin g p o e m o f th e F re n c h M id d le A g e s its p r o f o u n d k in d o f r e l i g i o u s l if e i s c l o s e l y t ie d to th e h is to ry o f th e
a n d s ta r t l in g o r ig in a lity . G y p s i e s a n d t o t h e i r c u l t u r e , w h i c h it n u r t u r e s a n d e n d o w s
E .V ./g .h . w ith m e a n in g . W e th e r e f o r e b e g in w ith a b rie f o v e r v ie w o f
th e o r ig in s o f th e G y p s ie s a n d th e o r ig in a lity o f th e ir n o m a d ­
ism .

BIBLIOGRAPHY
I. N o m a d is m a n d G y p s y L ife
1. Texts
In o r d e r to u n d e r s t a n d th e G y p s y s o u l, w e m u s t n e v e r lo s e
Béroul's Tristan: E. Muret, ed., 4th ed., revised by L.-M. De- s i g h t o f t h e c l o s e l in k b e t w e e n t h e h i s t o r y o f t h i s p e o p l e a n d
fourques (Paris 1970); A. Ewert, ed.. The Romance of Tristan by Béroul
th e ty p e o f n o m a d is m w ith in w h ic h it h a s p re se rv e d i ts
(Oxford 1939), introduction and commentary, vol. 2 (1970).
id e n tity to th is d a y . G y p s y m y th s a n d r ite s m a y th en be
Thomas's Tristan: J. Bédier, ed.. Le roman de Tristan par Thomas, 2
vols. (Paris 1902-5); B. H. Wind, ed.. Les fragments du Tristan de p e rc e iv e d in t h e c o n t e x t o f th e ir tr u e n a tu r e a n d o f th e ir
Thomas (Paris 1960). fu n ctio n in g .
Folies Tristan: J. Bédier, ed.. Les deux poèmes de la Folie Tristan (Paris O r ig in a lly fro m In d ia , G y p s ie s re a ch e d E u ro p e at th e
1907); E. Hoepffner, ed., La Folie Tristan de Berne, 2d ed., revised and b e g in n in g o f th e m o d e m e r a (fif te e n th a n d s ix te e n th c e n t u ­
corrected (Strasbourg 1949); La Folie Tristan d'Oxford. 2d ed., revised r ie s ), a f te r lo n g w a n d e r in g s th ro u g h th e N e a r E a s t. M a n y
and corrected (Strasbourg 1943). in v a s io n s h a v e s w e p t o v e r E u r o p e a n d s h a p e d its p o p u l a ­
eilhart VON OBERC, Tristrant, ed. fr. Lichtenstein (Strasbourg 1877).
tio n . T h e G y p s ie s c o n s titu te th e la st s u c h in v a s io n , th e m o s t
GOTTFRIED von STRASSBURC, Tristan und Isolt, F. Ranke, ed. (Berlin
p e a c e f u l a n d b y fa r th e le a s t n u m e r ic a lly s ig n ific a n t. T h e y
1930); idem, G. Weber, ed., with G. Utzmann and Wemer Hoffmann
c a m e t o o l a te i n to a w o r l d a l r e a d y o r g a n i z e d p o litic a lly , s o
(Darmstadt 1967).
th a t th e re w as no p la ce le ft fo r th e m , and no hope of
The Romance in Prose (partial editions): R. L. Curtis (Munich 1963);
J. Blanchard, Les deux captivités de Tristan (Paris 1976). o c c u p y in g s o m e v a c a n t te rrito ry . T h e y w e re c o m p e lle d to
Tristram saga, E. Kolbing, ed. (Heilbronn 1878). s c a t t e r t h r o u g h o u t a ll c i v i l i z e d c o u n t r i e s , c o r n e r e d a s t h e y

228
 G Y P S Y M Y T H S AND R I T U A L S

w e re b y tw o n e c e s s itie s : first, th e y had to b e a c c e p te d by s u p e r f i c i a l a c t . T h o u g h i n i t i a l l y a n a c t o f s e l f - i n t e r e s t , it w a s

n a tiv e p o p u la tio n s d e s p ite th e s u s p ic io n th e y a r o u s e d b y th e m o s t o f te n in c o r p o r a t e d in to th e G y p s y re lig io u s m e n ta lity ,
a lie n c h a r a c t e r o f t h e ir e t h n i c t y p e , l a n g u a g e , a n d c u s t o m s , w h ic h , a s w e sh a ll s h o w b e lo w , w a s o f a n a n im is tic ty p e .
m a rk in g th e m a s in tr u d e r s o r u n d e s ira b le s ; s e c o n d , th e y h a d G y p s ie s r e in te r p r e te d C h ris tia n b e lie fs a n d r ite s fro m a
to liv e . T hey d id so by p re se rv in g th e ir o r ig in a lity and m o re p r im itiv e and f u n d a m e n ta l re lig io u s s tr u c tu r e . T h is
c o n t i n u i n g in t h e p a t h o f n o m a d i s m t h a t h a d a l w a y s w o r k e d a n im is tic b a s e in d ic a te s a n o v e r a r c h in g re lig io u s m e n ta lity
fo r th e m , w h ic h w e h a v e e l s e w h e r e c a lle d " p a r a s it i c n o m a d ­ t h a t p e r v a d e s a ll o f G y p s y l if e , e v e n w h i l e l e a v i n g it o p e n t o
ism " (w ith o u t any p e jo ra tiv e o v e rto n e s ). W h e re a s m o st o t h e r re lig io u s b e lie fs e x p e r i e n c e d in a n o r ig in a l s ty le . T o
n o m a d i c p e o p l e a r e la r g e l y s e lf - s u f f ic ie n t , h u n ti n g o r r a i s i n g s u m m a r iz e th is b a s ic re lig io u s s e n s e , w e c o u ld s a y th a t fo r
c a ttle o n la n d s th a t th e y k n o w , s u c h c o u ld n o t b e th e c a s e fo r th e G y p s ie s th e re a re not tw o re a lm s — th a t of ev ery d ay ,
th e G y p s ie s . To su rv iv e , th e y had to e s ta b lis h a tra d in g s e c u l a r l if e , a n d t h a t o f f a r - o f f , e x t r a t e r r e s t r i a l d e i t i e s . R a t h e r ,
p a tte rn w ith s e ttle d p o p u la tio n s , o f te n by lim itin g th e ir t h e w o r l d i n w h i c h t h e G y p s i e s l e a d t h e i r d a i l y e x i s t e n c e is
n o m a d is m to a s in g le c o u n tr y . To m ake such co m m e rce p e o p le d w ith m y th ic a l a n d s u p e r n a t u r a l b e in g s — k in d ly a n d
p o s s ib le , G y p s ie s l e a r n e d m a n y s m a ll tr a d e s c o m p a tib le w ith e v il s p ir its , d e m o n s , fa irie s — w h o b e a r v a r io u s n a m e s a n d
t h e i r w a n d e r i n g l if e a n d i n c o r p o r a t e d t h e m i n t o t h e o l d r u r a l a s s u m e a ll s o r t s o f b o d i l y f e a t u r e s a n d a p p e a r a n c e s .
w o r ld : tin -p la tin g o f k itc h e n u te n s ils , b a s k e t w e a v in g , p o t A t e v e r y m o m e n t o f t h e i r l if e , G y p s i e s f e e l t h a t t h e y a r e in
a n d p a n m a k in g , s a d d le r y , h a n d ic r a f ts , d o o r - to -d o o r re ta il­ c o n t a c t w ith th o s e b e in g s o n w h o m th e ir p e r s o n a l fa te r e s ts ,
in g , h o r s e tr a d in g , m e ta l s c r a p p in g , c ir c u s e s , b e a r tra in in g , b e in g s w ho a re h id d e n b e h in d th e m o st fa m ilia r e v e n t s ,
p o p u la r a n d v e t e r i n a r y m e d ic in e , m u s ic a l e n t e r ta i n m e n t fo r p e rso n s, an d t h i n g s . T h i s a t t i t u d e is a f o r m o f th e " l a w of
fe s tiv a ls a n d c o u n tr y w e d d i n g s , fo r tu n e -te llin g , e t c . p a rtic ip a tio n " th a t c h a r a c te riz e s p e o p le w ho liv e c lo s e to
N e e d le s s to s a y , s u c h tr a d e s h a v e b e c o m e le s s a n d le ss n a tu re , w ho fe e l th a t th e y have a s p e c ia l bond w ith th e
p ro f ita b le . T h e a d v e n t o f in d u s tr ia l a n d u rb an s o c ie ty h as cosm os and a re s u b je ct to th e in flu e n c e of th e m y th ic a l
b r o u g h t a b o u t c o n s i d e r a b l e c h a n g e in t h e r u r a l w o r l d w i t h b e in g s th a t c o n tro l th e g e n e ra lly m e n a c in g c o s m ic fo rce s.
w h ic h th e G y p s ie s l iv e d in a s y m b io tic re la tio n s h ip . The K n o w i n g t h a t t h e y a r e in c o m m u n i c a t i o n w i t h t h i s s u p e r n a t ­
ru ra l w o rld h a s s h r u n k q u a n tita tiv e ly ; in d u s tr ia liz a tio n h a s u r a l u n i v e r s e , t h e G y p s i e s t r y t o m a k e it w o r k o n t h e i r b e h a l f
r e a c h e d th e f a r m e r ; t h e s t a n d a r d o f liv in g h a s i n c r e a s e d ; a n d by p e rfo rm in g s p e c ia liz e d rite s (o f p u rific a tio n , e x o rcism ,
w id e s p re a d ed u ca tio n and th e p e rv a d in g in flu e n c e o f th e p r o p h y la x i s , h e a lin g , d iv in a tio n , e t c .) . T h is r e lig io u s e le m e n t
m a s s m e d ia h a v e tra n s f o r m e d n e e d s a n d m a d e o b s o le te th e h a s p l a y e d a m a j o r r o l e in t h e G y p s i e s ' r e s i s t a n c e t o a h o s t i l e
s m a ll-s c a le tr a d in g (e x c e p t fo r m e ta l scra p p in g and th e e n v i r o n m e n t , a s it is t h e s o u l o f t h e i r v e r y o w n n o m a d i s m .
s e c o n d h a n d m a r k e t) w h ic h a llo w e d G y p s ie s to s u r v iv e w h ile O p e n ly d e s p is e d b y s e d e n ta r y p o p u la tio n s , u n d e r c o n s ta n t
c o n t i n u i n g t o p r a c t i c e t h e i r a n c e s t r a l n o m a d i s m . T h i s h a s le d th re a t o f p e r s e c u tio n , th e G y p s ie s c o u ld re a c h d e e p in sid e
to th e c ris is o f a c c u l tu r a t io n th a t n o w th re a te n s th e very t h e m s e l v e s fo r th e s tr e n g th o f th e ir c o n v ic tio n th a t t h e y a r e
s u r v i v a l o f th is p e o p l e 's c u l t u r a l i d e n t i t y ( s e e m y a r t i c l e , " L e s p a rt o f a s u p e r io r w o rld d o m in a tin g th e re a l w o rld . M o r e ­
T s i g a n e s f a c e a u p r o b l è m e d e l 'a c c u l t u r a t i o n ," Diogène, 1976, o v e r , th e p r id e th e y e x p e r i e n c e in t h e ir d e s t i tu t io n a n d th e
n o . 4 ). m y s t e r y w ith w h ic h t h e y s h r o u d th e ir m a g ic rite s m a k e th e m
re sp e cte d a n d fe a re d , a n d th u s e n c o u r a g e o th e r s to a c c e p t
th e ir m e a g e r s e r v ic e s .
II. C h ris tia n ity a n d A n im is m

W h e n s p e a k in g o f th e re lig io n o f th e G y p s ie s , w e s h o u ld
III. T h e G y p s y R e lig io u s S e n s e
d is tin g u is h c le a r ly b e tw e e n tw o th in g s . O n th e o n e h a n d ,
G y p s ie s o f fic ia lly p r o f e s s a p a r tic u la r re lig io n , u s u a lly th e I t is d i f f i c u l t t o i s o l a t e t h e o r i g i n a l r e l i g i o u s e l e m e n t s o f t h e
C h r is tia n fa ith . O n th e o t h e r h a n d , a b a c k d r o p o f a n im is tic G y p s y w o rld fro m th e s u c c e s s i v e c o n tr ib u tio n s o f re lig io n s
re lig io n s u rv iv e s te n a c io u s ly in an abu n dan ce of a n cie n t a d o p te d at a la te r tim e . C e rta in ly , w ith th e p ro g re ss of
m y th s and in th e p r a c tic e of m a g ic rite s , m o re or le ss e v a n g e liz a tio n th e e a r lie r e le m e n ts h a v e g r a d u a lly b eco m e
i n te g r a te d i n to th e o f fic ia l r e lig io n . b lu r re d o r, a t b e s t, h a v e s u r v iv e d w ith in a k in d o f r e i n te r ­
G y p s i e s h a v e u s u a l l y a d o p t e d t h e f a i t h o f t h e c o u n t r y in p re ta tio n o f C h ris ta in dogm as th a t th e y th e m s e lv e s have
w h ic h th e y w a n d e r e d , b e it I s l a m o r C h ris tia n ity (E a s te rn in flu e n c e d . E th n o lo g is ts of th e p re v io u s ce n tu ry , H. von
O rth o d o x y , R om an C a th o lic is m , P ro te s ta n tis m , a n d to d ay W l i s l o c k i a m o n g t h e m , w h o m a n a g e d t o l i v e in c l o s e t o u c h
P e n t e c o s t a l i s m i n m a n y i n s t a n c e s ) . H e r e a g a i n , it h a s b e e n a w i t h G y p s y g r o u p s in c e n t r a l E u r o p e , c o l l e c t e d a n u m b e r o f
q u e s t i o n o f s u r v i v a l . O n a r r i v i n g a s a l i e n s in t h e C h r i s t i a n m y th ic a l n a r r a t iv e s , e s p e c ia lly c o s m o g o n i e s . W ith r e s p e c t to
W e s t, to ta k e o n e e x a m p l e , w h e r e b e in g a p agan w a s th e th e c r e a tio n o f th e w o rld , w e c a n o b s e r v e a b a sic d u a lis m ,
w o r s t o f a ll d i s g r a c e s ( t h e s a m e m a y b e s a i d o f t h e M u s l i m c o n c e iv a b ly o f Ira n ia n o r ig in (a f te r le a v in g In d ia , th e G y p s ie s
a reas in th e B a lk a n s, w h e re th e G y p s ie s a d o p te d I s la m ), s t a y e d in P e r s i a f o r a l o n g t i m e ) , w h e r e b y G o d o p p o s e s t h e
G y p s i e s s a w t h a t a d o p t i n g t h e l o c a l r e l i g i o n w a s in t h e i r b e s t d e v i l in a k i n d o f c o n t e s t , b u t w i t h a c l e a r l y C h r i s t i a n t o n e ,
i n te r e s t, e s p e c i a ll y in v i e w o f th e fa c t th a t b a p tis m c o n sti­ fo r th e d e v il u ltim a te ly s u b m its to G od. T h is c o s m o g o n y
tu te d th e o n ly re a l fo rm o f id e n tity . I n s e c u r e a s G y p s ie s w e r e c o n ta in s m any e le m e n ts com m on to m o st su ch a cco u n ts,
a n d u n c e rta in o f th e w e lc o m e th e y m ig h t re c e iv e , th e y w e re i n c l u d i n g p r i m e v a l w a t e r s , t h e t r e e a s t h e s o u r c e o f l if e , a n d
a fra id of b e in g e x p e lle d or p e rse cu te d (e v e n to d a y th e th e s e p a r a tio n o f h e a v e n a n d e a r th .
p r e c a r io u s n e s s o f c a m p in g z o n e s r e s e r v e d fo r n o m a d s p e r ­ U n d e rly in g th e G y p s y re lig io u s m e n ta lity , o n e th in g w e
p e t u a t e s th is f o rm o f r a c is m ), a n d o f b e in g u n a b le to p r a c tic e know fo r c e r ta in : G y p s ie s b e lie v e in th e e x iste n ce of a
th e ir i n d is p e n s a b le tr a d e s . B e lo n g in g to th e lo c a l r e lig io n b e n e v o le n t G o d (D e l, D e v e l) w h o is a c r e a t o r - g o d . F a r fr o m
t h u s b e c a m e a b a s i c g u a r a n t e e f o r t h e G y p s i e s . It a l o n e c o u l d a n y p a n t h e i s t i c c o n c e p t , h e is v e r y m u c h a p e r s o n a l g o d , t h e
c o n f e r o n th e m th e m in im u m o f c r e d ib ility th a t t h e y n e e d e d a lm ig h ty w hom G y p s ie s o f te n in v o k e fo r h is k in d n e s s in
to b e a c c e p te d b y th e s e ttle d p o p u l a ti o n s . W e s h o u ld n o t, co n n e ctio n w ith every e v e n t, even in th e m id st o f m a g ic
h o w e v e r , th in k th a t jo i n in g th e o f fic ia l re lig io n w a s m e r e l y a rite s .

229
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

S p e c ific a lly C h r is tia n e le m e n ts seem to c o e x ist h a p p ily fro m s e e in g th e s e s p irits a s " g o d s ” in t h e c l a s s i c a l s e n s e .

w i t h t h e o l d e r , a n i m i s t i c c o r e . In p a r t i c u l a r , b e l i e f in J e s u s T h ese b e in g s, h ow ever, p a rtic ip a te no le s s in th e d iv in e
C h r i s t ( B a r o D e v e l ) is h a r d l y d i s t i n g u i s h a b l e f r o m b e l i e f in a b s o lu te , fo r t h e y in flu e n c e th e e x i s t e n c e o f m o r ta ls . T h e ir
G o d t h e c r e a t o r a n d p r o t e c t o r o f m a n k i n d . In t h e i r q u e s t f o r f u n c tio n a l c h a r a c t e r f u r t h e r e x p l a in s t h e ir m u ltip lic ity . T h e
a h a p p y e x is te n c e , G y p s ie s h a v e a g r e a t c u lt o f th e s a in ts a n d g e n e r a l a c c u l t u r a t i o n o f G y p s i e s t o d a y m a k e s it d i f f i c u l t t o
p a rtic u la rly of th e V irg in M a ry (se e § V b e lo w , on th e p in p o in t th e o r ig in s o f th e s e m y th ic a l b e lie fs , s tra ta of a
m e d ia tin g im p o r ta n c e o f f e m in in ity ). A c c u s to m e d a s th e y la y e re d r e lig io u s co n scio u sn e ss th a t b ears th e tra ce s of
a r e t o b e l i e v i n g in a m y r i a d o f s u p e r i o r b e i n g s , b e n e v o l e n t o r in flu e n c e s of v a r io u s p o p u la tio n s am ong w hom G y p s ie s
m a le v o le n t, th e y a r e c o m f o r ta b le w ith d e v o tio n o f th e s a in ts o n c e liv e d .
(h e n c e th e su ccess of p ilg r im a g e s , such as th a t of th e A m o n g t h e s e c o u n t l e s s s p i r i t s , a ll o f w h o m h av e m o re o r
S a in t e s -M a r i e s in P r o v e n c e ) . T h e y a r e lik e w is e s e r io u s a b o u t le ss p h y s ic a l f e a tu r e s , w e c a n d is tin g u is h s e v e r a l g r o u p s th a t
e x o rcisin g th e d e v il; h en ce th e im p o rta n c e a ttrib u te d to a r e o f te n c o n f u s e d e v e n b y m o d e r n G y p s ie s th e m s e lv e s . T h e
C h ris tia n b a p tis m , u n d e rsto o d to fa ll under th e g en eral m a i n g r o u p is m a d e u p o f t h e f a m o u s g o d d e s s e s o f f a t e , t h e
ru b ric o f e x o r c is m . O u r s ito r i (o r U rs ito ry , c a lle d O u r m e s b y c e rta in t rib e s ) o r
T w o fe a tu r e s o f G y p s y re lig io s ity s e e m to b e c a r r y o v e r s o f " w h ite w o m e n ," b ecau se th e y w ear w h ite d re sse s. T h e ir
a p re -C h ris tia n s ta g e : th e p ro b le m o f d e a th and s a lv a tio n , d e s c r i p t i o n s a n d l i f e - s t y l e s v a r y g r e a t l y f r o m t r i b e t o t r i b e . In
and th e e x i s t e n c e o f n u m e r o u s s p ir its th a t in f lu e n c e d a ily g e n e ra l, th e y a re c o n n e cte d w ith th e p la n t k in g d o m and
l ife . re g a rd e d a s k i n d s o f s o u l s o f t r e e s . T h e y g o in g r o u p s o f
T h e g o d o f th e G y p s ie s m a y b e G o d th e C r e a to r, P ro v i­ th re e a n d i n te r v e n e m a in ly a t th e b irth o f a G y p s y , d e t e r ­
d e n c e , w h o l o v e s m a n k i n d , b u t h e is b y n o m e a n s t h e G o d m i n i n g t h e c h i l d ' s f a t e . O n e o f t h e s e f a i r i e s is g o o d , a n o t h e r
w ho red eem s fro m s in ( li t t l e im p o rta n c e is g i v e n to th is is b ad, and th e th ird p la y s an in te rm e d ia ry ro le . Som e
r e d e m p tiv e a s p e c t o f th e m is s io n o f C h r is t), n o r is h e t h e h isto ria n s see a l in k b e tw e e n th is b e lie f a n d th a t of th e
G o d w h o re w a rd s o r p u n is h e s a fte r d e a th . T h e a b s e n c e o f a n c i e n t P a r c a e . M o s t m a g ic r ite s p r e s c r i b e d b y th is b e lie f a im
t h e i d e a o f r e p a y m e n t in t h e a f t e r l i f e is c o n n e c t e d w ith a to i n f lu e n c e t h e s e g o d d e s s e s o f fa te o n th e o c c a s i o n o f a b irth
f a t a l i s m c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f G y p s y p s y c h o l o g y . It is u n d e n i a b l e b y o f f e r in g th e m th e a p p r o p r i a t e fo o d a n d b y in v o k in g th e m
t h a t t h e G y p s i e s b e l i e v e in t h e i m m o r t a l i t y o f t h e s o u l , t h e w ith n u m ero u s p ra y e rs w h is p e re d by a m a g ic ia n at th e
sou l b e in g c o n ce iv e d of in a ra th e r m a te ria l w ay. T h is e n t r a n c e t o t h e h o u s e in w h i c h t h e d e l i v e r y h a s t a k e n p l a c e .
a f t e r l i f e , h o w e v e r , is n o t t h e s a l v a t i o n t h a t c o n c l u d e s e x i s t ­ A c o n te m p o ra ry G yp sy h a s w r itte n a n o v e l ( M a te o M a x i-
e n c e in t h e C h r i s t i a n s e n s e . It is n o t a n i m m o r t a l i t y c a p a b l e m o ff. Les Ursitory, P a ris 1 9 4 6 ), la te r p r o d u c e d a s a m o v ie ,
o f b r i n g i n g a b o u t t o t a l h a p p i n e s s ( o r t h e m i s e r y o f h e l l ) . It is , w h i c h p o p u l a r i z e d t h i s b e l ie f .
ra th e r, a k in d of p a in fu l p e re g r in a tio n of th e soul in a B e s id e th e s e g o d d e s s e s , th e G y p s y w o rld o f th e s u p e r n a t­
m y s t e r i o u s w o r l d f u ll o f t e r r o r a n d f r i g h t . T h i s b o d i l y s o u l o r u ral is p e o p l e d by m any o th e r s p irits w h ose a c tio n s a re
v i t a l p r i n c i p l e r e m a i n s in d e a t h u n t i l it r e a c h e s p u t r e f a c t i o n . re v e a le d m a in ly a t th e t im e o f illn e s s o r d e a t h . C o n v in c e d
A c c o rd in g ly , n u m e ro u s fu n e ra ry c u s to m s a s su m e th a t th e t h a t t h e y l iv e s y m b i o t i c a l l y w i t h a ll o f t h e s e s p i r i t s , G y p s i e s
d e a d p e r s o n s lu m b e r s a n d th a t th e liv in g h a v e th e o b lig a tio n s e e th e m in a ll n a t u r a l p h e n o m e n a . A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e y e x ­
t o h e l p h i m in h i s l a b o r i o u s p e r e g r i n a t i o n s in t h e K i n g d o m o f p la in illn e s s a s th e in v a s io n o f a p a t h o g e n i c s p ir it s tr u g g l in g
th e D e a d , p a r tic u la r ly t h r o u g h lib a tio n , m e a l s , a n d fe s tiv a ls . a g a i n s t th e v ita l s p ir it th a t e v e r y m a n b e a r s w ith in h im .
The b est k n o w n fu n erary f e s t i v a l is t h e fa m o u s Pom ana, G y p s ie s g e n e r a l l y b e lie v e in th e e x i s t e n c e o f a n i n d iv id u a l
c e le b r a t e d a y e a r a n d s ix w e e k s a f t e r th e b u r ia l. W h e r e a s th e p r o te c tiv e s p irit, a s o rt o f g u a rd ia n a n g e l, w h ic h is o f t e n
m e a l t h a t is e a t e n in t h e p r e s e n c e o f t h e d e c e a s e d b e f o r e h i s d i f f i c u l t t o d i s t i n g u i s h f r o m t h e b r e a t h o f l if e ( w h a t w e m i g h t
b u r i a l t a k e s p l a c e in a n a t m o s p h e r e o f j u b i l a t i o n , o f l i c e n ­ c a ll t h e s o u l ) , a n d w h i c h t h e G y p s i e s o f s o u t h e a s t e r n E u r o p e
t io u s n e s s e v e n , th e m e a l o f th e P o m a n a a s s u m e s a c e r ta in c a ll B u t y a k e n g o ( e t y m o l o g i c a l l y , " h e w h o h a s m a n y e y e s , " t o
d i g n i t y a n d t a k e s p l a c e in a c c o r d a n c e w i t h a p r e c i s e r i t u a l . b e b e tte r a b le to s p o t d a n g e r s th r e a te n in g h is p r o té g é ). T h is
T h e d eceased w h o is b e i n g c e l e b r a t e d is r e p r e s e n t e d by a p r o te c tiv e s p irit h e lp s to u n ite th e g e n e r a t i o n s . E v e r y p e r s o n
l i v i n g b e i n g , o f a p p r o x i m a t e l y t h e s a m e a g e , w h o is w a s h e d w h o d ie s le a v e s o n e a r th p a r t o f h is v ita l o r p r o te c tiv e s p irit,
and d ressed in new c lo th e s a n d assu m es th e r o le o f th e w h ic h g o e s o n to liv e in th e b o d y o f a d e s c e n d a n t (g e n e r a lly
d e c e a s e d b y im ita tin g h is o r h e r ta s te s a n d m a n n e r is m s . T h e th e o ld e s t). T h e o th e r d e s c e n d a n ts a r e n o t s h o rtc h a n g e d ,
o b j e c t i v e o f t h e P o m a n a is t w o f o l d . O n t h e o n e h a n d , it is a n h o w e v e r , b e c a u s e th e p ro te c tiv e sp irit o f th e d e p a rte d re­
a c t o f s o l i d a r i t y t o w a r d t h e d e c e a s e d , w h o is t h o u g h t t o b e m a i n s o n e a r t h a n d c o n t i n u e s t o p r o t e c t t h e d e s c e n d a n t s . In
s till l i v i n g e l s e w h e r e a n d w h o n e e d s h e l p a n d c o n s o l a t i o n in so d o in g , th is sp irit a c ts a s a p o rtio n o f th e s o u l o f th e
h is p a in fu l n e w r o a m in g . B u t th e P o m a n a a ls o h a s a p r o p h y ­ d e p a rte d w h ic h g e n e r a tio n s p a s s o n to o n e a n o th e r. E a ch
la c tic p u rp o se (a n d h ere we are in tro d u c e d in to th e real in d iv id u a l, w h o s e b o d y is e n l iv e n e d b y h is o w n s p irit o r
m y th o lo g ic a l u n iv e r s e o f th e G y p s ie s ), n a m e ly , to p r o te c t th e s o u l , is a l s o v i s i t e d b y a p o r t i o n o f t h e s p i r i t o f h i s d e s c e n ­
liv in g f ro m th e h a rm fu l in flu e n c e s th a t e v e r y d e a d p erso n d a n t s . H e r e i n l ie s a f i n e p o i n t : t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t t h i s p o r t i o n
r e l e a s e s in t h e f o r m o f e v i l s p i r i t s . is d i s t i n c t f r o m th e sp irit th a t b e lo n g s s tric tly to a g iv e n
p e r s o n , it c o n s t i t u t e s w i t h i n h i m a p r o t e c t i v e s p i r i t , w h i c h
IV . G y p sy M y th o lo g y
c a n le a v e h im fo r a w h ile .
G y p s ie s in d e e d b e lie v e in a m u ltitu d e of s u p e rn a tu ra l The p ro te c tiv e s p irit a c tu a lly w a tc h e s o v e r th e m an in
b e in g s, g o o d a n d ev il s p ir its , w h o e x e r c is e th e ir in flu e n c e w hom it d w e l l s , e v e n th o u g h it l e a v e s h i s b o d y w h ile h e
t h r o u g h o u t t h e c o u r s e o f l if e . T h i s b e l i e f c o m e s a c r o s s in s le e p s in ord er to p ro te c t h im fro m im p e n d in g d an g er.
n u m e r o u s ta le s a n d m a g ic r ite s . W h e r e a s a d y in g m a n g iv e s u p h is s o u l (h is in d iv id u a l v ita l
T h e im p o r ta n c e o f th e s e n u m e r o u s s p irits w o u ld le a d u s to s p irit) t h r o u g h th e m o u t h , it is t h r o u g h th e e a r s th a t th e
b e l i e v e in a k i n d o f p o l y t h e i s m a m o n g t h e G y p s i e s , o n e t h a t p r o te c tiv e s p irit in h e r ite d fro m t h e a n c e s t o r s m o v e s i n . It
s ta n d s o u t a g a in s t th e b a c k g r o u n d o f m o n o th e is m re fe rr e d to w a r n s i t s p r o t é g é b y a r i n g i n g in t h e e a r . If it s h o u l d l e a v e t h e
above, w h ic h it d o e s n o t c o n tr a d ic t. A d o p tin g an o f f ic i a l b o d y m o m e n t a r i l y , it d o e s s o o u t o f t h e r i g h t e a r , t h e l e f t e a r
m o n o t h e i s ti c re lig io n (C h r is tia n ity o r Is la m ) k e p t G y p s ie s b e in g th e p o rt o f en try ; h en ce th e ca re G y p s ie s ta k e in

230
 G Y P S Y M Y T H S AND R I T U A L S

c le a n i n g t h e ir le ft e a r w ith t h e ir little f in g e r , a l s o k n o w n a s fe s tiv a l of th e w itc h e s d u rin g th e n ig h t of W h its u n d a y .

t h e a u r i c u l a r f i n g e r b e c a u s e it is s m a l l e n o u g h to b e in tr o ­ S im ila rly , th e c o n n e c t i o n b e t w e e n m a n y d i e ta r y t a b o o s a n d
d u c e d i n t o t h e e a r . F o r t h a t p u r p o s e , G y p s i e s c a r e f u l l y file t h e b e l i e f in w i t c h e s is p r o b a b l y a t t r i b u t a b l e t o a r e i n t e r p r e ­
th e fin g e rn a il of th e ir au ricu la r fin g e r. It is e s s e n tia l to ta tio n o f a n c i e n t t a b o o s , th e m e a n i n g o f w h ic h h a s b e e n lo s t.
f a c ilita te th e r e t u r n o f t h e p r o t e c ti v e s p ir it a n d its w a r n in g I n c o r p o r a tin g th e se ta b o o s in to th e m y th o lo g y o f w itc h e s
m e s s a g e s o n w h i c h t h e p r o t é g é ' s lif e m a y d e p e n d . S i n c e t h e g a v e th e m a new v i t a l i t y . T h i s c a r r y o v e r w a s in f a c t m a d e
d eceased has no m o re need of a p r o te c tiv e s p irit (b e in g w ith in a c o n t e x t d o m i n a t e d b y s e x u a lity . F o r e x a m p l e , th e
d e s t i n e d t o r o a m in a p a r a l l e l a n d m y s t e r i o u s w o r l d ) , c e r t a i n b r o a d b e a n i s a f o r b i d d e n f o o d b e c a u s e it l o o k s l ik e a t e s t i c l e .
G y p s y tr ib e s b r e a k th e little f in g e r o f th e c o r p s e a n d tie a c o in B e s id e s th e s e x u a l o r ig in o f th e w i t c h 's p o w e rs (re la tio n s
t o it w i t h a r e d t h r e a d . w ith d e m o n i c s p ir its ), th e r e n e w in g o f s u c h p o w e rs ta k e s
M any su ch b e lie fs a n d rite s m ust have been b o rro w e d p l a c e i n a s i m i l a r c o n t e x t , n a m e l y , t h e b l o o d v o w . In c l a s s i c a l
fro m th e p r e v a i l in g fo lk lo r e in a m o r e o r le s s d i s t a n t tim e . C h r is tia n d e m o n o lo g y , th is v o w c a n b e m a d e b y a m a n o r a
T r a c e s o f s o m e h a v e c o m e d o w n to u s in p o p u l a r l a n g u a g e , w om an , and in v o lv e s g iv in g th e d e v il a little b lo o d ta k e n
fo r e x a m p l e , in th e F r e n c h e x p r e s s i o n Mon petit doigt me Va dit fro m o n e 's a r m a f t e r in flic tin g a w o u n d o n o n e s e lf. In t h e
( " M y little f i n g e r to ld m e ," e q u iv a l e n t t o " A little b ird to ld c a s e o f th e w itc h , s h e re v iv e s h e r p o w e r b y g iv in g th e d e v il
m e" in t h e E n g l i s h - s p e a k in g w o rld ). S u c h b o r r o w in g s a r e h e r m e n s tr u a l b lo o d to d r in k . O b v io u s ly , th e C h r is t ia n i z a ­
u n d e n i a b l e e v e n if t h e d e m a n d s o f G y p s y l if e h a v e r e s u l t e d tio n o f m a n y G y p s ie s o f te n e l im i n a t e d t h e s e o l d e r m y th i c a l
in t h e i n t e g r a t i o n o r r e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e s e a l i e n e l e m e n t s . e l e m e n t s . B u t b e l i e f i n t h e p o w e r o f w i t c h e s , in t h e i r c a p a c i t y
W e c o u l d f i n d m a n y o t h e r e x a m p l e s i n b e l i e f s in e v i l s p i r i t s a s to c a s t s p e l l s , t o c a u s e m i s f o r t u n e b y g i v in g s o m e o n e t h e e v il
c a u s e s o f illn e s s a n d m i s f o r t u n e . A m o n g t h e m , w e c a n c it e e y e o r b y b r e a th in g o n s o m e o n e , w a s b o u n d to c r e a te a n a u ra
th o s e s p irits w h o a r e f re e d b y d e a t h a n d w h o e x p la in w h y , o f m y s te r y s u r r o u n d in g th e G y p s ie s , e s p e c ia lly a m o n g g u ll­
f o r G y p s i e s , d e a t h is l a d e n w i t h c u r s e s a n d t a b o o s t h a t a f f e c t i b le p e o p l e , s u s ce p tib le to s u p e r s titio n and th e re b y m o re
th o s e w h o re m a in . T h o u g h o f te n m ix e d to g e th e r , t h e s e e v il l ik e l y t o r e s p e c t t h e s e s t r a n g e n o m a d s a n d fo s u p p l y t h e m
s p irits a r e o f t w o s o r t s , th e M o u lo a n d th e v a m p i r e s . w ith a fe w r e s o u r c e s .
The M o u lo , syn on ym ou s w ith " g h o s t" or th e "m o v in g
d e a d ," d e s i g n a t e s th e s p irit o f a d e a d p e r s o n th a t c a n m a k e
V. Magic Rites and Femininity
its e lf m a n i f e s t a n d rein ca rn a te i t s e l f in a n o t h e r p e r s o n or
a n i m a l . It i s o f t e n t r a n s l a t e d a s t h e " l i v i n g d e a d . " T h e o r i g i n M y th s c o n d itio n rite s . T h e m u ltip lic ity o f m y th s a n d th e ir
o f t h e M o u l o is r e v e a l i n g . N o t e v e r y d e a d p e r s o n b e c o m e s a h ig h l y v a r ie d o r ig in s e x p l a in t h e v a r ie t y o f r itu a l p r a c ti c e s ,
M o u lo , o n ly a s tillb o r n c h ild . For som e G ypsy trib e s , th e s o m e e x a m p l e s o f w h ic h w e h a v e a l r e a d y s e e n . W e s h o u ld
M o u lo h a s n o b o n e s , a n d b o th h a n d s la ck th e m id d le fin g e r, now lo o k a t th e m a j o r p l a c e o c c u p i e d b y w o m e n in G y p s y
w h ic h h e l e f t in t h e t o m b . H e liv e s in th e m o u n ta in s a n d m y th o lo g y . O n th e o n e hand, w e have th e in te rm e d ia rie s
o f te n v is its h o u s e s to s te a l w h a t h e n e e d s . H e c a n b e c o m e b e tw e e n e v il s p ir its a n d m e n , n a m e ly , w itc h e s . O n th e o t h e r
v i s ib l e t o t h e e y e , w h i c h is a l w a y s a b a d s i g n . h a n d , th e b e n e v o le n t O u r s ito r i a r e g o d d e s s e s . T h e in te r m e ­
In o th e r trib e s w h e re b e lie f in th e M o u lo is le s s p ro ­ d ia r ie s b e tw e e n th e su p e rn a tu ra l w o rld and th e hum an
n o u n c e d , it is m o r e o r l e s s s u b s u m e d i n t o t h e b e l i e f t h a t t h e w o r l d a r e m o s t l y w o m e n p e r f o r m i n g a m a g i c f u n c t i o n , b e it
s o u ls o f th e d e a d t r a n s m ig r a te to a n im a ls — a d o g , a c a t, a d iv in a tio n , h e a lin g , or p ro p itia tio n . A lth o u g h th e G ypsy
f r o g — in t h e f o r m o f e v i l s p i r i t s . w o r l d k n o w s n o p r i e s t l y f u n c t i o n ( n o t e v e n in t h e p e r s o n o f
T h is b rin g s u s to th e o t h e r k in d o f s p ir its f re e d b y d e a t h , th e trib a l c h i e f ) , s o r c e r e s s e s p e r f o r m th e fu n ctio n s th a t a re
th e v a m p ir e s . T h e m y th w e a re e n c o u n te rin g h ere is n o t o r d in a rily re le g a te d t o t h e p r i e s t l y c a s t e s in m o s t r e l i g i o n s
e n d e m i c t o G y p s ie s b u t is f o u n d in th e fo lk lo re o f m a n y (te llin g fo r tu n e s , e x o rcisin g , in v o k in g th e go d s, h e a lin g ,
In d o -E u r o p e a n b r a n c h e s (e s p e c ia lly S la v s a n d a n c ie n t G e r ­ e t c .) .
m a n s ). H is to r i a n s h a v e e s ta b l is h e d a c le a r lin k b e t w e e n th e A G y p s y w o m a n u su a lly b e c o m e s a s o r c e r e s s b y in h e r itin g
lukanthropos o f th e G re e k s , th e versipellis o f th e R o m a n s , th e s u c h p o w e r s a n d th e k n o w le d g e o f th e rite s fro m a n a n c e s ­
w e re w o lf o f th e a n c ie n t G e r m a n s , a n d th e G y p s y v a m p ir e , to r. Som e G y p s ie s c o m p a re so rceresses w ith w itc h e s (fo r
an e v il s p irit th a t p o s s e s s e s th e b o d y o f a d e c e a s e d m an. e x a m p l e , w h e n th e s o r c e r e s s h a s s e x u a l r e la tio n s w ith w a te r
H e n c e th e p r e c a u t i o n s ta k e n b y G y p s ie s w h e n o n e o f th e ir s p irits ), b u t th e c o n n o ta tio n of s o rce re ss is l e s s p e j o r a t i v e
ow n d ie s, le st su ch a h a rm fu l sp irit escap e and b rin g a n d d o e s n o t in v o lv e th e b lo o d v o w .
m i s f o r t u n e . T h is f u r t h e r e x p l a in s c e r ta i n lib a tio n s d u r i n g th e L i v i n g in a s y m b o l i c u n i v e r s e p e o p l e d b y e v i l f o r c e s a n d
fu n e ra ry m e a l, p a rtic u la rly th e P o m a n a (s e e a b o v e ): to w a rd ta b o o s , G y p s ie s know th a t th e ir fa te is c o n t r o l l e d by th e
o f f e v i l s p i r i t s f r o m t h e t o m b , w i n e o r a q u a v i t a is p o u r e d o v e r ran d o m a lte rn a tio n of good lu ck ( Bacht) a n d bad lu ck (Bi-
i t. bacht). T h e y t h e r e f o r e e n g a g e in m o r e a n d m o r e r i t e s in a n
A lso w id e s p r e a d am ong th e G y p s ie s is th e b e lie f in e f f o r t t o k n o w w h a t t h e i r f a t e m a y b e a n d t o r e d i r e c t it t o t h e
w itc h e s , c o n c e iv e d o f a s w o m e n e n d o w e d w ith e v il p o w e r s e x te n t th a t th e y can. H en ce th e rite s o f p u r if ic a tio n p e r­
r a t h e r t h a n a s s u p e r n a t u r a l b e i n g s , f a i r i e s o r g o d d e s s e s , l ik e f o r m e d a g a in s t th e im p u r itie s c a r r ie d b y a w o m a n a t th e tim e
th e O u rs ito ri. A w om an tu r n s in to a w itc h a fte r h a v in g o f h e r p e r io d o r b y a c h ild a t b ir th , o r a t th e m o m e n t o f d e a t h
s e x u a l re la tio n s w ith a d e m o n th a t c a u s e s d is e a s e . (E ty m o ­ w hen n u m e r o u s i m p u r e s p ir its a r e f r e e d . T h i s i m p u r i t y is
lo g ic a lly , t h e G y p s y w o rd fo r w itc h m eans a w om an w ho n o t e t h i c a l . It is m o s t l y i n v o l u n t a r y a n d c o n n e c t e d w i t h a n
b eco m es ir rita te d by th e d e lig h t o f h e r hum an b r o t h e r s .) e x is te n tia l s itu a tio n . T h e rite s o f d iv in a tio n th a t h a v e p o p u ­
T h e i r s p e c i a l f e a t u r e is t h a t t h e y c a n t r a n s m i t t h i s d e m o n i a c a l l a riz e d f o r tu n e -te lle r s r e fle c t th e n e e d to s c r u tin iz e in e x o r a ­
sp irit to a m a n o r a n a n im a l, fo r in s ta n c e , to a w o r m or a b l e f a t e . B e s t k n o w n is t h e u s e o f T a r o t c a r d s , b u t o t h e r m o r e
s m a ll s n a k e , w h ic h in tu r n m a y t r a n s m i t th e s p ir it to a m a n e s o t e r ic t e c h n iq u e s a ls o a p p ly , fo r in s ta n c e , th e u s e o f a n
s le e p in g w ith h is m o u th o p e n . a n i m a l 's s c a p u la . For h e a lin g rite s , v a r io u s d ia le c tic s a re
In t h e i r g r e a t v a r i e t y , t h e s e b e l i e f s h a v e a l s o o f t e n been u s e d , t h e b e s t k n o w n b e i n g " s i g n s , " in w h i c h t h e a p p a r e n t
b o rro w e d fro m th e p r e v a ilin g , e v e n C h r is tia n iz e d f o lk lo r e . p ro p e rtie s o f a n a n im a l o r p la n t d e s ig n a te th a t a n im a l o r
A c c o r d in g ly , m a n y G y p s y trib e s s c h e d u le th e ir g r e a t a n n u a l p l a n t a s a r e m e d y f o r a g i v e n s ic k n e s s . F o r i n s t a n c e , a stiff

231
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

jo in t is w r a p p e d in th e s u p p l e s k in o f a n e e l. O t h e r r i te s r e f e r There are many monographs, most of which are to be found in two

to C h ris tia n s y m b o lis m s : th e a s s th a t h a d th e p riv ile g e o f specialized journals: lournal of the Gypsy Lore Society (Edinburgh)
c a r r y in g C h ris t m a y show up in c e r ta i n th e ra p e u tic te c h ­ and Études tsiganes (Paris).
n iq u e s .
See also the analyses in the following general works: j. bloch ,
"Que sais-je?" Les tsiganes (3d ed., Paris 1969). m . bloch , Mæurs et
A ll t h e s e m y th s a n d r ite s c e r ta i n ly s u g g e s t a s y n c r e ti s i n g
coutumes des tsiganes (Paris 1936), originally in German, f . botey, El
of re lig io u s e le m e n ts th a t o r ig in a te d in very d iffe re n t Gitano (Barcelona 1970). |.-i*. clebert . Les tsiganes (Paris 1961).
s o u r c e s . B u t fro m a m o re p h e n o m e n o lo g ic a l p o in t o f v ie w , a . co lo cci , GU Zingari (Turin 1889). c. duff , A Mysterious People: An
w e s h o u ld r a t h e r b e ta lk in g o f s y m b io s is . F o r th e s e b o r r o w ­ Introduction to the Gypsies of All Countries (London 1965). e . falque,
i n g s a r e n o t p u r e l y a r tif ic ia l, n o r h a v e t h e y b e e n a rtif ic ia lly Voyage et tradition: Les Manouches (Paris 1971). r. liebich , Die Zigeuner
p r e s e r v e d . O n c e i n c o r p o r a te d in to th e m y th ic a l u n iv e r s e o f in ihrem Wesen und in ihrer Sprache (Leipzig 1883). i.-r. liégeois , Les
t h e G y p s i e s , t h e y t o o k o n n e w l if e , a l l o w i n g t h i s m a r g i n a l ­ tsiganes (Paris 1971); Mutation tsigane (Brussels 1976). w. in der maur,
iz e d p e o p l e t o p r e s e r v e its id e n t i ty t o t h is d a y .
Die Zigeuner, Wanderer zwischen den Welten (Vienna 1969). p. serboianu ,
Les tsiganes: Histoire, ethnographie, linguistique, trans, from Romanian
F .C ./ g .h .
(Paris 1930). w. simson, A History of the Gypsies (London 1961). F. vaux
de FOLETiER, Les tsiganes dans l'ancienne France (Paris 1961); Mille ans
d’histoire des tsiganes (Paris 1971). g . e . c . webb, Gypsies, the Secret People
BIBLIOGRAPHY (London 1961).
The following vocabularies are also very useful: m . colin on . Les
In general, see F. cozannet . Mythes et coutumes religieuses des Tsiganes Gitans, vocabulaire, tradition et images (Manosque 1975). s. a . wolf,
(Paris 1973), which contains all the desired references. Grosses Wörterbuch der Zigeunersprache (Mannheim 1960).

T h e r e is h a r d l y a s u b j e c t in t h e s t u d y o f b e lle s l e tt r e s t h a t
F a b le an d M y t h o l o g y in S e v e n teen t h - an d is e i t h e r o f a g r e a t e r u t i l i t y t h a n t h a t o f w h i c h I s p e a k h e r e ,

E ig h t een t h - C en tu r y L iter a t u r e an d o r th a t l e n d s its e lf b e t te r to p r o f o u n d s c h o la r s h ip . . . .

T h eo r etic a l R e flec tio n *I. W ith o u t k n o w le d g e o f fa b le , t h e r e c a n b e n o k n o w le d g e o f

lite r a tu r e :

F o r a n y o n e w h o h o p e s to d e fin e th e s ta tu s o f a n c ie n t m y th s I t is (a n a d v a n ta g e ) of great a p p lic a tio n . . . fo r th e

in t h e s e v e n t e e n t h a n d e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r i e s , t h e r e a r e t w o u n d e r s ta n d in g o f a u th o r s , b e th e y G re e k , L a tin , o r e v e n
e x tr e m e ly d is s im ila r d o m a in s fo r c o n s i d e r a t io n . O n e d o m a in F r e n c h , in th e r e a d i n g o f w h o m o n e is s t o p p e d s h o r t if
in c lu d e s a ll th e e v e n ts o f c u ltu re (p o e try , th e a te r, b a lle t, o n e d o e s n o t h a v e s o m e tin c tu r e o f fa b le . I a m n o t o n ly
p a i n t i n g , s c u l p t u r e , d e c o r a t iv e a r t s ) in w h ic h m y th o lo g i c a l s p e a k in g o f p o e t s , o f w h o m w e k n o w th is to b e a lm o s t th e
m o tifs a r e r e c o g n iz a b le ; th e o t h e r c o m p r i s e s th e h is to r ic a l, n a tu r a l l a n g u a g e : it is a l s o o f te n e m p l o y e d b y o r a to r s ; a n d
c ritic a l, and s p e c u la tiv e te x ts th a t a tte m p t to e la b o ra te a it s o m e t im e s f u r n i s h e s , th r o u g h f a v o r a b le a p p li c a ti o n , th e
k n o w l e d g e o f m y th s , a s c i e n c e o f m y th s . In t h e p e r i o d in l iv e lie s t a n d m o s t e l o q u e n t t o u c h e s . . . . T h e r e a r e o t h e r
q u e s t i o n , th is d i s t in c ti o n w a s c le a r l y e x p r e s s e d b y t e r m s th a t k in d s o f b o o k s to w h ic h e v e r y o n e is e x p o s e d : p a i n t i n g s ,
d e m a r c a te d to t h e f u lle s t e x t e n t t h e d i f f e r e n c e e s ta b l is h e d b y e n g r a v in g s , ta p e s tr ie s , a n d s ta tu e s . T h e s e a re s o m a n y
c o n t e m p o r a r i e s b e tw e e n th e fre e u s e o f m y th o lo g ic a l m o tifs e n i g m a s to t h o s e w h o a r e i g n o r a n t o f fa b le , w h ic h o f te n
a n d th e s tu d ie d k n o w le d g e o f m y th s : fo r th e fo rm e r, fable, s e r v e s a s t h e ir e x p l a n a t i o n a n d t h e ir k e y . It is n o t r a r e fo r
a n d fo r th e la tte r, mythology. p e o p l e to s p e a k o f s u c h m a t te r s in c o n v e r s a t io n . It s e e m s
t o m e n o t a t a ll a g r e e a b l e t o r e m a i n s ile n t a n d t o a p p e a r
s tu p i d in a g r o u p f o r la c k o f in s t r u c t io n in a m a t t e r th a t
I. The Function of Fable in Classical Culture
m a y b e l e a r n e d in y o u th a t little e x p e n s e .
F a b le is th e body o f re c e iv e d id e a s about th e gods of
K n o w l e d g e o f f a b l e i s t h e v e r y c o n d i t i o n f o r t h e l e g i b il i ty
p a g a n is m . L a rg e ly fo u n d e d o n H e s io d , O v id , A p o llo d o ru s ,
o f th e e n t ir e c u l t u r a l w o r l d . It is o n e o f t h e p r e r e q u i s i te s fo r
a n d m o r e r e c e n t p o p u l a r i z e r s ( s u c h a s N a t a l e C o n t i ) , it i s a
p a r t ic ip a t i o n in t h e " c o n v e r s a t i o n s " in w h ic h a n e d u c a t e d
re p e rto ry o f g e n e a lo g ie s , a d v e n tu re s , m e ta m o r p h o s e s , a n d
m a n i s c a l l e d o n t o p l a y a p a r t . F a b l e , f o r R o l l i n , is i n d i s ­
a lle g o ric a l c o rre la tio n s . And as th e m o tifs of fa b le s a re
p e n sa b le to a n y o n e w ho w o u ld u n d e rsta n d th e a e s th e tic
o m n ip re s e n t— a m o n g th e a n cie n ts re a d in se co n d a ry
m ilie u in its e n t ir e t y , a n d w ho w o u ld b e a c c e p te d in to a
s c h o o l s , in th e tra g e d ie s s e e n a t th e th e a te r , in h isto rica l
cho sen " g r o u p ." I t t h u s s e r v e s a d o u b l e f u n c t i o n ; it i s a n
p re s e n ta tio n s , in d e c o r a tio n s and d w e llin g s — fa b le is an
im a g in a i l a n g u a g e o f fe rin g a c c e s s to a c e rta in ty p e o f o r g a ­
o b l i g a t o r y d is c ip lin e in th e e d u c a t i o n o f a r e s p e c t a b le m a n .
n iz e d s p e e c h , a n d th is la n g u a g e fu n c tio n s a s a s o c ia l s ig n o f
T h u s a c i r c l e is f o r m e d : it is n e c e s s a r y t o k n o w f a b l e s i n o r d e r
re c o g n itio n b e tw e e n in d iv id u a ls w h o c a n d e c i p h e r in th e
to u n d e rs ta n d th e w o rk s o ffe re d by recen t and a n cie n t
s a m e f a s h io n th e u n iv e r s e o f m y th ic fictio n s.
c u l t u r e ; a n d , b e c a u s e fa b le is l e a r n e d , a n d t h e a n c i e n t m o d e l
J a u c o u r t , in h is Encyclopedia a r t i c l e o n " F a b l e , " is i n e m ­
r e m a i n s a liv e , n e w w o r k s t h a t a r e c o m p o s e d g o b a c k t o fa b le
p h a tic a g r e e m e n t:
e ith e r to b o rro w its s u b je ct m a tte r or to u se its
o r n a m e n t a t io n — in d e p ic t io n s , e m b l e m s , a n d p h r a s e s . T h is is w h y k n o w le d g e , a t le a s t s u p e rf ic ia l k n o w le d g e , o f
R o llin , in t h e s ix th b o o k ( p a r t f o u r ) o f h is Treatise o f Studies fa b le is s o c o m m o n . O u r p l a y s , b o t h ly r ic a n d d r a m a t ic ,
(1 7 2 6 ), w h ic h r e m a in e d a u t h o r ita tiv e fo r m o r e th a n a c e n ­ a n d e v e r y g e n r e o f o u r p o e t r y a l lu d e to it p e r p e t u a l l y ; th e
tu r y , m e n t io n s fa b le a n d ju s tif ie s its s t u d y in a s u b tle w a y : e n g ra v in g s , p a in tin g s , a n d s ta tu e s th a t a d o rn o u r c h a m -

232

Oedipus. From Mme. de Geniis, Arabesques mythologiques (1810-11),
vol. 2, pi. 4. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Photo BN.
bers, our galleries, our ceilings, and our gardens are
nearly always drawn from fable: finally, it is so widely
used in all of our writings, our novels, our pamphlets,
and even in our ordinary conversations that it is impos­
sible to be unaware of it at least to a degree without
having to blush at one's lack of education.
. . . Fable is the heritage of the arts; it is a source of
ingenious ideas, of humorous images, of interesting sub­
jects, of allegories and emblems whose use— whether
more or less favorable-responds to genius and taste.
Everything is active and endowed with breath in that
enchanted world where intellectual beings have bodies,
where countrysides, forests, and rivers have their partic­
ular divinities: I know that these are chimerical characters,
but the role they play in the writings of the ancient poets,
and the frequent allusions made to them by modern
poets, have almost made them real for us. Our eyes are so
accustomed to them that it is difficult for us to see them as
imaginary beings.
The author of an Elementary Encyclopedia, which appeared
in 1775, betrays irritation with fable but nevertheless main­
tains its necessity. His way of recommending Chompré's
Dictionary of Fable (which Rollin had already hailed) clearly
shows that this work, being at once an allegorical iconology
and a repertory of fabulous heroes, aims not so much to
examine the substance of myths as to decipher the attributes
F A B L E A N D M Y T H O L O G Y
Perseus. From Mme. De Geniis, Arabesques mythologiques (1810-11),
vol. 2, pi. 2. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Photo BN.
used by artists: at most, it is a semiological code that serves
to express an "intention” in a consecrated language:
It is an assemblage of puerile tales bereft of verisimilitude,
which would be worthy of scorn were these chimeras not
absolutely necessary in order to understand the ancient
authors, to be moved by the beauties of poetry, of pictures
and allegories, and even to make use of an infinity of
conventional expressions, such as "She's a Megara, a
Fury, a Muse." . . . 1 invite my readers to equip themselves
with the small portable Dictionary by M. Chompré. It is
very useful to young people and, indeed, to everyone.
Whether one is looking, for example, for the subject of a
tapestry, a picture, or an allegorical piece, with this book
one is certain of finding it.
If there is an eagle, look up this word, and it will refer
you to Jupiter, to Periphas, and to Ganymede. If it is a scythe,
you will find Saturn or Time. If a figure is holding a
trumpet, the word trumpet will refer you to Fame. . . .
Through the attributes you will come to know the sub­
jects: and with a little judgment you will come to guess
the artist's intention.1
This dictionary enables one to slip from one language into
another; it is a translation tool, permitting artists and poets to
find the appropriated "figures" and, furthermore, ensuring
that readers will be able to go back from the figure to the
233
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

o r ig in a l id e a . R e c o u r s e to th e d ic tio n a r y p o s tu la te s a d is ju n c ­ c le a r l y t h a n w e h a v e d o n e t h u s fa r, t h e fu n c t i o n o f fa b le in
tio n b e t w e e n a p p e a ra n ce an d m e a n in g , w h ic h is i m m e d i ­ th e " c la s s i c a l " E u r o p e a n — e s p e c ia lly F r e n c h — c u ltu r e o f th e
a t e ly n u llifie d b y a s y s te m o f f ix e d c o r r e l a t io n s , a s y s te m th a t s e v e n te e n th a n d e ig h te e n th c e n tu rie s .
m a k e s a ll p o s s i b l e s t r a n g e n e s s v a n i s h f r o m a l l e g o r y . F o r t h i s In a c u l t u r e t h a t t o l e r a t e s t h e c o e x i s t e n c e o f t h e d o m a i n s o f
reaso n , th e u se of m y th o lo g ic a l fig u re s is re d u ce d to a th e sacred and o f th e p ro fan e, fa b le c le a r ly o c c u p ie s th e
s ty lis tic p r o c e d u r e : t h e r e a d e r o r s p e c t a t o r is to t r a n s l a te th e p r o f a n e a r e a : it i n h a b i t s t h e w o r l d o f m u n d a n e d i v e r s i o n s .
i m a g e o f t r u m p e t b y t h e c o n c e p t o f F a m e ; a n d if a p a r t i c u l a r W e m a y e v e n g o s o fa r a s to s a y th a t, b y its a v o w e d a b s e n c e
im a g e o f th e tr u m p e t h o ld s o u r a tte n tio n b y th e e le g a n c e o f of tru th v a lu e , fa b le is th e very in d ex of th e f u tility of
i t s f o r m o r t h e s h i n e o f i t s b r a s s , a n i n f o r m e d r e a d i n g w ill m u n d a n e e x is te n c e . F a b le d e s ire s to b e n o th in g m o re th a n
a v o i d t a r r y i n g o v e r t h i s l i t e r a l n e s s w h o s e o n l y f u n c t i o n is t o fictio n o r o r n a m e n t , o r , a t m o s t, s c h o la r ly r e m e m b r a n c e . Its
b e t e m p o r a r y , to in d ic a te th e " e l e v a t e d ” o r " n o b l e " r e g is te r a u th o rity is d e c l a r e d to b e n il v i s - à - v i s r e l i g i o u s a u t h o r i t y
o f th e e x p re s s io n . f r o m th e v e r y s ta r t . A s a e s th e t ic iz e d p a g a n i s m , c la i m i n g n o
R e d u c e d t o t h i s s o r t o f l e x i c o n , f a b l e — e v e n a s it r e f e r s b a c k m o r e t h a n b e a u t y o r g r a c e , it i s n o t a d a n g e r o u s r i v a l t o t h e
to a fic tiv e p a s t l o c a te d in G r e c o -L a t i n s p a c e — ta k e s o n a n C h r is tia n o r th o d o x i e s — u n le s s s o u ls a llo w t h e m s e lv e s to b e
a h is t o r i c a l a p p e a r a n c e : in it, e v e r y t h i n g b ecom es s im u lta ­ u n d u ly c o n tro lle d by it a n d to b eco m e in fla m e d by th e
n e o u s , e v e n g e n e a l o g i e s . F a b le d e v e l o p s its n e t w o r k s s y n - im p u re e x a m p le s o f th e p a g a n p a n th e o n .
c h r o n i c a l l y , a s if it w e r e t h e v o c a b u l a r y o f a s i n g l e s t a t e o f Let us re tu rn to R o llin , th e p erfect s p o k e sm a n fo r th e
l a n g u a g e . T h e i n t e r n a l c h r o n o l o g y o f f a b l e i s n o t i n s c r i b e d in r e lig io u s in s titu tio n a t th e b e g in n in g o f th e e ig h te e n th c e n ­
th e h is to ric a l p a s s a g e o f tim e . F r o m th e m o m e n t th a t th e t u r y . W h e n h e i n c l u d e s f a b l e in h i s e d u c a t i o n a l p r o g r a m , it is
g o d s , th e ir n a m e s , th e ir c u lts , th e ir c o n n e c t i o n s w ith p e o p le n o t o n l y in o r d e r t o e n h a n c e t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f l i t e r a r y o r
and p la c e s , e t c ., b e c o m e th e o b je c t o f h isto rica l re s e a r c h , p icto ria l w o rk s. It s h o u l d a lso serv e as a w a rn in g , as a
fa b le b e c o m e s a n o b je c t o f s c h o l a r s h ip , a n d is n o l o n g e r th e c o u n te r p r o o f to C h r is tia n tr u th :
c lo s e d a n d s e lf-s u ff ic ie n t s y s te m w e h a v e d e s c r i b e d . It t h e n
T h is s tu d y , w h e n fo llo w e d w ith th e c a u tio n a n d w is d o m
b eco m es a m a tte r fo r " a n tiq u a r ie s " (if t h e y re s tric t th e m ­
t h a t re lig io n d e m a n d s a n d i n s p i r e s , m a y b e o f g r e a t u tility
s e lv e s to in v e n to r ie s o f e x h u m e d d o c u m e n ts : s ta t u e s , a lta r s ,
to th e y o u n g .
m e d a ls , s id e b y s id e w ith w r itte n s o u r c e s s u c h a s in s c r ip ­
F i r s t , it t e a c h e s t h e m w h a t th e y ow e to Je s u s C h ris t
t i o n s , l i t e r a r y t e x t s , e t c . ) o r f o r m y t h o l o g i s t s ( if t h e y d e v e l o p
t h e ir lib e r a to r , w h o f r e e d t h e m fr o m th e p o w e r s o f d a r k ­
h y p o th e s e s o n th e o r ig in o f fa b le s, a n d o n th e d if f e r e n c e s o r
n e s s a n d a l lo w e d t h e m to m o v e i n to th e a d m i r a b le lig h t o f
re s e m b la n c e s b e tw e e n th e r e lig io u s b e lie fs o f v a r io u s p e o ­
th e G o s p e l. W h a t w e r e m e n b e fo r e h im . . . ? F a b le g iv e s
p le s , e t c .) . T h is is a d iffic u lt a n d d a n g e ro u s d o m a in , an d
u s th e a n s w e r . T h e y w e r e b lin d w o r s h ip e r s o f t h e d e v il
R o l l in a d v i s e s e d u c a t o r s t o h a l t a t i t s t h r e s h o l d : " I t w o u l d b e
w h o k n e lt b e fo r e g o ld , s ilv e r, a n d m a rb le ; w h o o ffe re d
b e st, it seem s to m e, to a v o id w hat is re la te d o n ly to
s i l v e r t o d e a f a n d d u m b s t a t u e s ; w h o r e c o g n i z e d g o d s in
s c h o la rs h ip and w o u ld re n d e r th e s tu d y of fa b le m o re
a n i m a l s , r e p t i l e s , a n d e v e n p l a n t s . . . . E v e r y s t o r y t o l d in
d iffic u lt a n d le s s a g r e e a b l e ; o r , a t le a s t , t o r e l e g a t e r e f le c tio n s
f a b l e , e v e r y c i r c u m s t a n c e i n t h e lif e o f t h e g o d s , s h o u l d a t
o f th is k in d to b rie f n o t e s .”
o n c e fill u s w i t h c o n f u s i o n , a d m i r a t i o n , a n d r e c o g n i t i o n .
J a u c o u r t e n d s h is Encyclopedia a rtic le o n " F a b l e " b y d r a w ­
. . . A s e c o n d a d v a n t a g e o f f a b l e l ie s i n t h e f a c t t h a t , in
in g up a p ro g ra m of m y th o lo g ic a l k n o w le d g e th a t goes
d is c lo s in g th e a b s u r d c e r e m o n ie s a n d im p io u s m a x im s o f
b e y o n d a m e r e fa m ilia r ity w ith th e f ig u r e s o f fa b le s :
p a g a n i s m , it i n s p i r e s in u s a n e w r e s p e c t fo r th e a u g u s t
B u t to c a r r y o n e 's c u r io s ity to th e p o in t o f a t te m p t i n g to m a j e s t y o f t h e C h r i s t i a n r e l i g i o n , a n d f o r t h e s a n c t i t y o f its
p ie r c e th e d iv e r s e m e a n in g s o r th e m y s te r ie s o f fa b le , to m o ra lity .
u n d e rs ta n d th e d iffe re n t th e o lo g ic a l s y s te m s , and to
B e l i e f is t h u s t o b e r e s e r v e d f o r t h e s o l e l e g i t i m a t e a u t h o r ­
k n o w th e c u l t s o f t h e p a g a n g o d s is a b r a n c h o f le a r n in g
i ty , r e v e a l e d d o g m a ; w h e r e a s t h e s e p a g a n f i g u r e s a r e t o b e
r e s e r v e d f o r a s m a ll n u m b e r o f s c h o l a r s ; a n d th e b r a n c h o f
ce n su re d , even th o u g h in everyd ay l if e — a s R o l l in
le a rn in g th a t c o n s t i tu t e s a v e r y la r g e p a r t o f b e lle s le ttr e s ,
re c o g n iz e s — th e ir v is u a l im a g e s , e v e r -r e n e w e d , s u r ro u n d u s.
and is a b s o l u t e l y n e c e s s a r y i n o r d e r t o h a v e a n u n d e r­
A t th e v e r y le a s t, a n d in s p i t e o f i t s p o w e r t o s e d u c e , t h e
s t a n d i n g o f t h e m o n u m e n t s o f a n t i q u i t y , is w h a t is c a l l e d
u n r e a lity o f fa b le le a v e s n o d o u b t a b o u t th e v a n ity o f w o rld ly
Mythology.
e x is te n c e . The p resen ce o f fa b le is a su re in d ic a tio n th a t
I t is th u s a m a tte r of in te rp re tin g th e fig u re s of fa b le w o r ld ly d e s ir e s le a d o n e a s tr a y in to " f a l s e " o b je c ts . T h u s th e
a c c o rd in g to th e e x ig e n c ie s of a h is to ric a l, g e n e tic , and n e c e s s ity o f d ir e c tin g o n e 's lo v e to w a r d its tr u e o b je c t— G o d ,
s y s te m a t i c u n d e r s t a n d in g . W h e r e a s fa b le its e lf , in a v u l g a r ­ C h r is t — b e c o m e s a ll t h e m o r e u r g e n t .
iz e d a n d f a c il e f o r m , i s a u n i v e r s a l m e a n s f o r " p o e t i z i n g " B u t th e d e m a r c a tio n b e tw e e n th e s a c re d a n d th e p ro fa n e
e v e r y t h i n g , " m y t h o l o g y " q u e s t i o n s it a b o u t i t s o r i g i n s , i ts has its ow n le g itim a c y , fo r it is p o s tu la te d by re lig io u s
in te lle c tu a l im p o rt, its r e v e la t o r y v a lu e , and its tie s w ith a u t h o r i ty its e lf . B y w a y o f d e t e r m in i n g th e e x a c t d o m a i n o f
in s titu tio n s a n d c u s t o m s . In s h o r t , th e s e m a n tic o p p o s itio n its o w n ju r is d ic tio n , r e lig io u s a u th o r ity to le ra te s th e e x i s t ­
b e tw e e n fa b le and m y th o lo g y m ay be e n u n c ia te d as th e e n c e o f a n e x t e r n a l d o m a i n , w h i c h it w a t c h e s o v e r w i t h o u t
d i f f e r e n c e b e t w e e n a g e n e r a l i z e d a n d s ta b iliz e d in te r p r e t i v e f o r c i n g it t o c o m p l y w i t h i t s s t r i c t e s t r u l e s . I n o r d e r n o t t o
s y s te m , and a ra tio n a l ty p e o f re fle ctio n th a t m a k e s th is b r e a k t h e t i e s w i t h t h e s a c r e d o r d e r , h u m a n lif e is p e r m i t t e d
in te rp re tiv e s y s te m a n o b je c t to b e in te rp re te d a c c o r d in g to to u n fo ld , in p a rt, in a p ro fan e tim e a n d space; and th e
o t h e r c rite r ia o f v a lid ity . fig u re s in h e r ite d fro m a s a c re d o r d e r th a t h a s c o m e to a n
T h e re n e w a l o f m y th a t th e e n d o f th e s e v e n te e n th c e n tu r y e n d — th e o r d e r o f p a g a n ism — m a y in n o ce n tly s e rv e a s o r n a ­
a r o s e fro m th is t y p e o f s c h o l a r l y r e f l e c t i o n , w h ic h a p p lie d m e n t s to a p a r t o f e x i s t e n c e t h a t is n o t d i r e c t ly g o v e r n e d b y
i ts e lf to u n d e r s t a n d in g m y th i c i n v e n t iv e n e s s in a n e w w a y t h e t r u t h s o f t h e fa ith . C e r ta in ly , th e i m a g i n a r y is d a n g e r o u s ,
s in c e s te r e o ty p e d r e c o u r s e to fa b le h a d re v e a le d its e lf to b e a n d th e i m a g e s o f d e s ir e c o n s titu te a g r a v e p e ril to C h r is tia n
s te rile a n d t e d io u s . N e v e r t h e le s s , b e fo r e re v ie w in g th e d e ­ s o u l s : b u t in o n e w a y — in t h e f o r m o f a p a n th e o n t o w h ic h n o
v e lo p m e n t o f m y th o lo g ic a l th e o r ie s , w e m u s t d e f in e , m o r e o n e c o u l d tr y to a t t a c h a n y s e r io u s b e lie f— o r t h o d o x y p e r m i ts

234
 F A B L E A N D M Y T H O L O G Y

a superficial s u r v i v a l o f w h a t is , in a n o t h e r w a y , c e n s u r e d a n d im a g i n a ti o n , th e o n e in w h ic h p la y s e e k s to a lly its e lf w ith

re p u lse d by C h ris tia n e th ic s . H en ce, in a m o re or le ss t h e c o n q u e s t o f i n n o c e n t le v ity . W h e n p la y , o n th e o th e r
b a la n c e d c o m p r o m is e , C h r is tia n ity (a n d e s p e c ia lly th e C a ­ h a n d , b e c o m e s c h a r g e d w i t h g l o r i f y i n g i n t e n t i o n s , it m a g n i ­
th o lic is m of th e C o u n te rre fo rm a tio n ) a llo w e d th e e n tire fie s w it h o u t a llo w in g its e lf to b e r e s tr a i n e d b y t h e r e g u la tio n s
u n i v e r s e o f p o l y t h e i s t i c d r i v e s a n d u n d e r c u r r e n t s — w h i c h it o f t h e r e a l w -o r l d . T h e m y t h o l o g i c a l f i c t i o n m a k e s p o s s i b l e
h a d h is to r ic a lly s u p p l a n te d a n d w h ic h its t r u e b e lie v e r s w e r e t h e l a u d a t o r y h y p e r b o l e , w h i c h w -o u ld o t h e r w i s e b e u n p r o ­
in v ite d to d e n y a n d s u r p a s s — to c o e x i s t b y its s id e , t h o u g h in n o u n ce a b le w ith in th e bounds of C h ris tia n ord er. For a
th e fo rm o f a g r a tu ito u s im a g e a n d a d e f u s e d fictio n . T h is v ic to ry in b a ttle , th e C h ris tia n f e s tiv a l c u lm in a te s in th e
c o m p r o m is e a u th o r iz e s a c e r ta in d u p lic ity : “ w o r ld ly " p e o p le a d o ra tio n o f th e G o d o f a rm ie s: Te Deum laudamus. B u t th e
(in c lu d in g th e k in g h im s e lf) c o u ld ta ste o f p ro fa n e d iv e r­ C h r is tia n f e s tiv a l has as its d o u b le a p ro fa n e and th u s
s io n s , s u r r o u n d th e m s e lv e s w ith pagan scen es, an d even m y t h o l o g i c a l f e s t i v a l , w h i c h e x a l t s t h e p r i n c e h i m s e l f : h e is
b e c o m e a c to r s in m y th o lo g ic a l b a lle ts , b u t th e y h a d to lis te n co m p a re d w ith M ars or H e rcu le s, he is th e fa v o rite of
to th e p r e a c h e r s a n d r e c e iv e th e s a c r a m e n ts . B e llo n a , a n d s o f o rth . F o r a p rin c e ly b irth , C h r is tia n b a p tis m
Love and a m b itio n — th e tw o g reat p ro v in ce s in w h ic h h a s its d o u b le in c e r e m o n i e s o r p o e m s o f f a b u lo u s i n s p ir a ­
w o rld ly co n cu p isc e n ce o p e ra te s (libido sentiendi, libido tio n , in w h ic h a n n o u n c e m e n t s a r e m a d e o f n o t h i n g le s s t h a n
dominandi)— c e le b r a t e t h e ir t r iu m p h s in t h e d i s g u i s e o f fa b le . th e im m in e n t re tu rn o f A s tr a e u s a n d th e G o ld e n A g e . T h e
In l o v e p o e t r y , r e c o u r s e t o t h e c o d e o f fa b le is a p a r t o f a a p o th e o s is o f th e p rin c e m ay se t th e s ta g e fo r h is la w fu l
s y s te m of d is ta n c in g w -h i c h , in tra n sp o sin g f e e lin g in to r e p r e s e n ta t ia n w ith in a s y s te m o f d iv in e f ig u r e s , t h e v a lid ity
h e ro ic o r p a s to r a l fictio n , a llo w s d e s ir e to b e m a d e m a n ife s t, of w h ic h is e s ta b lis h e d , fro m th e s ta rt of th e gam e, as
w h ile g iv in g it a g lo r io u s , p u rifie d e x p re s sio n w h ic h is b e lo n g in g to th e p a s t a n d w h ic h is n o w p u re a p p e a ra n ce .
d e ta ch e d fro m triv ia l c o n t i n g e n c y . In t h is s e n s e , fa b le e n ­ T h is " w h i t e " d iv in iz a tio n a llo w s th e e n e r g ie s o f c e le b ra tio n
s u r e s a d i s p l a c e m e n t o f a ll o f t h e e l e m e n t s o f d i s c o u r s e in t h e to b lo s s o m ; a n d w h ile t h e s e p o w e r s r e m a in c a p t i v e s o f th e
d i r e c t io n o f a r e g i s t e r t h a t is e n t ir e l y lu d ic a n d “ p o lite "— G r e c o -R o m a n m o d e l , t h e y a llo w fo r every- s o rt o f e x tr a v a ­
w h ic h is e x a c tl y w h a t d e f i n e s t h e “ g a l l a n t " a t t i t u d e . W h e n g a n c e , fo r th e y p re te n d to b e n o th in g b u t p u re s h o w . T h e
we re c a ll th a t th e p rin cip a l co rp u s of m y t h s — O v i d 's Sun K in g is a l lo w e d to d an ce in th e c o s tu m e o f A p o llo .
Metamorphoses— a l r e a d y h a s a s t r o n g l u d i c c o m p o n e n t , it is Ju p ite r c a n d escen d fro m th e s k y , in a s ta g e m a c h in e , to
o b v io u s t h a t in o r d e r t o s a ti s f y t h e t a s t e f o r n o v e lt y , f o r t h e a n n o u n c e t o f u t u r e c e n t u r i e s a n ill u s t r i o u s l in e a g e o f s o v e r ­
" p i q u a n t ," w h ic h h e ld s w a y in c u l t iv a te d c ir c le s , a r t is t s a n d e ig n s .
p o e ts s tr o v e t o o u t d o o n e a n o t h e r in p la y in g th is g a m e . T h is A lth o u g h th e c o n v e n tio n a l s y s te m o f G r e c o -R o m a n m y­
c o m p e t it i v e b i d d i n g is p a r t ic u la r l y p e r c e p t i b le in t h e a r t o f t h o l o g y f a v o r s a p u r i f y i n g o r g l o r i f y i n g t r a n s m u t a t i o n , it is
th e E u r o p e a n r o c o c o , w ith its p r o lif e r a tio n o f t h e d e c o r a t iv e , n o l e s s v u l n e r a b l e f o r t h i s , s i n c e t h e a u t h o r i t y u p o n w h i c h it
its s u p p l e s in u o u s it v , a n d its o r n a m e n t a l u s e o f m i n ia t u r e s . is f o u n d e d is n o t h i n g m o r e t h a n a n a e s t h e t i c h a b i t . T h e r e is
B u t th is e l e m e n t o f t h e in te lle c tu a l g a m e , a t t im e s c o m b in e d n o t h i n g t o p r o t e c t it a g a i n s t p a r o d y , o r a g a i n s t t h e e b b o f
w i t h m o r e a u t h e n t i c a l l y e x p e r i e n c e d c o m p o n e n t s , is a l r e a d y ta s te s , w h ic h w o u ld a b a n d o n m y th ic e m b e llis h m e n t to re ­
a p p a r e n t in m a n n e r i s m a n d in t h e v o g u e fo r lit e r a r y c o n c e i t s tu r n to th e o r d i n a r y re a lity o f d e s ir e .
(a s , fo r i n s t a n c e , in th e Adonis o f M a r i n i ) ; w e f i n d i t a g a i n in T h e d ire c tio n ta k e n b y s a tir e a n d com ed y in t h e s e v e n ­
th e a ffe c ta tio n o f th e se v e n te e n th ce n tu ry , and it i s s ti ll te e n th c e n tu ry w as to rem o v e th e m ask s, to re v e rse th e
p resen t in th e b a d in a g e s of th e end of th e e ig h te e n th tr a je c t o r y o f th e m y th o lo g ic a l e n t e r p r is e w ith its p u r i f y i n g
c e n tu ry . B e n se ra d e and h is Metamorphoses of Ovid Set in tre n d s (a ffe c ta tio n ) or g lo r if y in g tre n d s (th e id e a l of th e
Rondeaux a r e a n e x c e lle n t e x a m p le o f th is e x c e s s o f a ffe c ta ­ n o b ility ), a n d to r e t u r n t o l it e r a l n e s s a ll t h a t t h e m y th o lo g i c a l
tio n : th e w o rk w as seen as "p iq u a n t" b ecau se it w a s a code had p re v io u s ly tran sferred in to th e m e ta p h o ric a l d i­
w e ll-te m p e re d p a r a p h r a s e th a t m a d e u s e o f a s m a ll, r e g u la r m e n s io n . In c o n tra st to th e ta b le a u x in w h ic h d e sire is
fo rm to a b rid g e and rew o rk a L a tin te x t w hose m y th ic e x a l te d a n d d i v i n iz e d , s a ti r e b r i n g s u s d o w -n a g a i n i n to th e
c o n t e n t h a d its e lf a lr e a d y b e e n m a d e th e o b je c t o f p la y fu l w o r l d o f e v e r y d a y lif e a n d i n t o t h e r e a l i t y o f i n s t i n c t i n i ts
l e v i t } '. T h e g a m e i s t h u s d o u b l e d . T h e r o n d e a u i s a m i n i a t u r e b r u t a l s t a t e . T h e f o l l o w i n g e p i s o d e f r o m t h e Discourse on the
i n c o m p a r i s o n t o t h e m o d e l it i m i t a t e s : a l l i s m a d e t o t u r n in journey of Saint-Germain in Laue, w h i c h f i g u r e s i n t h e Satirical
a tig h t c ir c le o f tw e lv e v e r s e s , o f w h ic h th e first f o u r s y lla b le s Cabinet ( 1 6 1 8 ) , i s e x e m p l a r y - i n t h i s r e g a r d : t h e m y t h i c d e c o r
r e a p p e a r tw o m o r e t i m e s — c o n c l u d i n g t h e p o e m i n t h e i r f i n a l is r e a d a s a n e r o t i c s t i m u l a n t :
a p p earan ce. At th e end of th e a n cie n r é g im e , in C. A.
M a isfaisons, je vous pry. pour saouler nostre veue.
D e m o u s t i e r 's Letters to Emilie about Mythology, th e m y th ic
Dans la chambre du Roy encore une reveuë.
n a r r a t iv e is r e d u c e d to b a n te r i n te r s p e r s e d w ith v e r s e : th e
Voyez, en cest endroit, comme Mars et Venus
v e r sifie d e le m e n ts a r e s o m e tim e s e p is o d e s o r c o m m e n ta r ie s
Se tiennent embrassez, languissons et tous nuds;
fro m th e n a r r a tiv e , s o m e tim e s g a lla n t c o m p lim e n ts to th e
Voyez les à ce coing, en une autre posture:
p e r s o n a d d r e s s e d . T h is f o rm , in h e r ite d fro m th e s e v e n te e n th
Avez-voux jamais r eu si lascive peinture?
c e n tu r y , b e c o m e s s o lig h t a s to b e m e a n in g le s s . H e r e a g a in ,
Haussez un peu les yeux, et voyez les encore
th e m y th o lo g y , w h ic h is to ld le tte r b y le tte r, u n d e r g o e s a
En une autre façon, dessus ce plancher d'or;
p a rin g d o w n , a n a tte n u a tio n , tu r n in g it i n to th e m in im a l
Voyez les ici près, tous deux encore aus prises.
s u b s ta n c e o f a n a d v e n t u r e s t o r y a n d d i e e x c u s e f o r a fa c ile
Quoyl tout est plain d'Amours et de flames éprises.
p e d a g o g y w h o s e a im is m e r e l y t o p l e a s e . It is o n l y o n e s te p
Dans ceste belle chambre! Allons, fuyons ces lieux:
a w a y fro m t h a t w o r k p a t r o n i z e d b y M a d a m e d e G e n ii s , in
Sortons-en. je vous prie, ou bien faisons comme eux!
w h ic h a ll t h a t r e m a i n s o f t h e g o d s is t h e ir n a m e s , r e p r e ­
s e n t e d b y c a ll ig r a p h y in t h e f o r m o f a n e m b l e m . B u t I p r a y y o u , to p ro c la im o u r v o w s .
Y e t th e m y th ic r e p e r to r y th a t is c a p a b le o f tr a n s c r ib in g L e t u s m e e t a g a i n in t h e b e d r o o m o f t h e K in g .
c u r r e n t e v e n t s o r fe e lin g s in a fic tiv e r e g is te r m a y a l s o s e r v e L o o k o v e r th e re , a s M ars a n d V en u s
to m a g n ify and c e le b ra te th e m in a triu m p h a n t m ode. E m b r a c e , la n g u is h in g a n d e n tire ly n u d e ;
M in ia tu r iz a tio n is ju s t o n e o f th e p r o p e n s it i e s o f th e j o y o u s L o o k a t t h e m o v e r h e r e , in a d i f f e r e n t p o s i ti o n :

235
W E ST E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R IS T IA N ERA

Have you ever seen such a sexy painting?

Raise your eyes a bit, and look at them again
In a different form, above this golden floor-board;
Look at them close by here, the two of them still locked
together.
0 my! Everything is full of love-making and heated
passion,
In this beautiful bedroom! Come on, let's get out of here:
Let's leave, I beg you, or else do what they are doing!
One may be sacrilegious with impunity when dealing with
the pseudo-sacred. Burlesque plays freely upon such license.
The great mythic images that are used to ennoble the
circumstances of public and private life are the means of
transmutation and travesty. By disfiguring and caricaturing
them, one realizes a return to their trivial reality: to travesty
what was a means of travesty is to nullify its depicted purity
and glory, and to return to the grit and smell of the world as
it exists for those who have lost their illusions. Dassoucy's
Ovid in a Good Mood, Scarron's Virgil Travestied, the young
Marivaux's Homer Travestied, and Blumauer's late Virgil’s
Aeneas Travestied (Vienna 1732-94) constitute more than
attacks on the most highly respected literary models.
Through those models, they assault the very virtues that
were exalted by the epico-mythic tradition: warlike exploits,
the sacrifice of one's life for country and glory. Their mock­
ery, which took aim at the heroes and gods of antiquity, was
more generally directed against the heroic ideal. The simple
pleasure of living is of far greater value. What is denounced,
then, is fictive immortality, a deal offered to fools, counterfeit
money whose mythic celebration pays those who shed their
blood on the field of battle. Following the wars of Louis XIV,
parody, as employed by Marivaux, attacked not only the
ancients and their partisans but, even more, the illusions of
military glory. Verses such as these (addressed by Androma­
che to Hector) are demobilizing. They “demystify" the
common ground of the undying memory:
Oh! great gods! when I contemplate
The afflicted state of widowhood,
1 find a bed to be quite fearsome,
When in that bed we are no longer two!
Once the bloody Achilles
Killed my father in a town . . . Louis XIV as the Sun God in the ballet La nuit, 1653. Anonymous
Well then! What was its name? watercolor. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Photo Giraudon.
I do not remember its name.
He buried him himself, it is said,
With great sumptuousness:
But when a body is buried,
without any true sacred content, there can be no blasphemy
What is the good of honoring it? or lèse-majesté in disfiguring it. The critique leveled by
No matter what glory one is buried with, libertinism against religion or against the centralizing mon­
One has nothing but the earth for cover. archy can thus be effected obliquely by attacking (in appear­
This resolutely worldly confession of faith (which reduces ance) only those powers which the least suspect Christian
death to mere interment), in challenging a "pagan" image of tradition had never ceased to condemn. As may be seen, the
immortality,2 implies disbelief in Christian immortality. We duality of the (Christian) sacred and the profane (placed in its
might even say that parody is a burlesque of mythic narra­ "mythological" setting) is arranged in such a way as to make
tives and pastoral or warlike fables which does not limit its it possible to play sometimes upon their separation and their
destructive effect to the aesthetic dimension alone, or even to mutual exclusion and sometimes upon their parallelism and
the hierarchy of "official" values: indirectly it directs itself their isomorphism. If pagan and Christian sovereignty are
against the highest authority. For, even though fictive, the considered in their formal similarity (an identical structure in
world of fable nonetheless offers images of a sovereignty that which all is dependent upon a supreme divinity; an identical
is homologous to the ruling sovereignty but is, so to speak, presence of the miraculous), then a polemic against Christi­
legal tender. To attack Jupiter and the gods of fable is, anity (or against the superstitious aspects of Christianity)
according to one's insinuations, to attack in effigy, and with may be developed in total safety by directing its darts only
impunity, the king and the powerful, the holiness of God, of against what at first sight appears to be the gods of paganism
the Pope, and so forth. Since the world of fable is, by the (for example, the article "Jupiter" in Bayle's Dictionary). If
decree of the spiritual powers that be, a profane world Christianity and paganism are viewed as incompatible, hos­

236
 F A B L E AND M Y T H O L O G Y

t il i ty t o C h r i s t i a n i t y m a y b e m a n i f e s t e d b y t h e m o r e d a n g e r ­ He l i e s , b u t l ik e a m a n ; h e l ie s , b u t h e know s how to
o u s m e a n s o f re s o lu te ly f a v o r in g th e w o rld o f fa b le . U n d e r p le a se ;
th e c o v e r o f a n a e s th e tic tr a d itio n th a t h a d b e c o m e a c cli­ Y o u h a v e l ie d s t u p i d l y :
m a te d to m y th o lo g ic a l fictio n and had g iv e n it i t s n o b le W i t h h i m , t h e h u m a n m i n d is e n l i g h t e n e d :
p e d i g r e e , t h e r e b e l l i o u s m i n d w o u l d p r o c l a i m i ts p r e f e r e n c e B u t if a n y o n e b e l i e v e d y o u , h e w o u l d b e m a d e s t u p i d a s
fo r th e p a g a n fa b le o v e r th e d o c t r in e i m p o s e d b y th e C h u r c h , a b ru te .
w h ic h w a s n o le s s fa b u lo u s a n d ly in g b u t w a s a th o u s a n d P e o p l e w ill a l w a y s c h e r i s h t h e e r r o r s o f G r e e c e ;
tim e s le s s a g r e e a b le . T h is w a s th e tim e w h e n a n ti-C h r is tia n O v i d w il l a l w a y s c h a r m .
fe e lin g first s h o w e d its f a c e u n v e i l e d : th a t o p e n a n tip a th y
V o lta ire a p p e a r s le s s in c lin e d a c tu a l ly to e n t e r th e w o r ld o f
r e c u r r e d s e v e r a l t i m e s a f t e r t h e R e n a i s s a n c e , b u t e s p e c i a l l y in
f a b l e t h a n t o m a k e a n a l l y o f it in h i s b a t t l e f o r t h e E n l i g h t ­
t h e s e v e n t e e n t h c e n t u r y . In t h e c a s e o f a V o l t a i r e , t h e o p t i o n
en m en t and fo r a c iv iliz a tio n of e a rth ly h a p p in e s s . H is
o f p a g a n i s m — in h is Apology for Fable— does n ot so m u ch
Apology for Fable, fa r f ro m ta k in g h im o u t o f h is o w n e l e m e n t,
a t t e s t a n a u t h e n t i c s e n t i m e n t in f a v o r o f t h e w o r l d o f m y t h a s
o n l y c o n f i r m s h i s c h o i c e — in f a v o r o f a n u r b a n c iv iliz a tio n
it a t t e s t s t h e o p p o r t u n i s m o f a m e t h o d o f p r o p a g a n d a t h a t is
and th e p le a su re s to be had th ro u g h th e a r ts — w h ic h is
c a p a b le o f p u ttin g b a rb s o n a n y th in g :
p ro c la im e d in h is fa m o u s poem The Man of the World.
Savante antiquité, beauté toujours nouvelle. V o l t a i r e 's H o m e r , t h r o u g h w hom "th e h u m an m in d is e n ­
Monument du génie, heureuses fictions, lig h te n e d ," has n o th in g "p rim itiv e " a b o u t h im . F a b le , as
Environnez-moi des rayons s u n g b y V o lta ire , c o m e s d o w n to a m o d e r n , p ro f a n e d iv e r ­
De votre lumière immortelle: s io n , in c le a r c o n t r a s t to r e lig io u s p r a c ti c e . T h e d i c h o t o m y o f
Vous savez animer l'air, la terre, et les mers; th e s a c r e d a n d th e p r o f a n e , to w h ic h w e h a v e a llu d e d fro m
Vous embellisez l'univers. th e s t a r t , is n o w h e r e m o r e n o t i c e a b l e t h a n in th e fin a l v e r s e s
Cet arbre â tête longue, aux rameaux toujours verts, o f th e p o e m :
C'est Atys, aié de Cybèle;
La précoce hyacinthe est le tendre mignon Si nos peuples nouveaux sont chrétiens à la messe,
Que sur ces prés fleuris caressait Apollon. . . . Ils sont païens à l’Opéra.
L'almanach est païen, nous comptons nos journées
W is e a n tiq u ity , b e a u ty a l w a y s n e w , Par le seul nom des dieux que Rome avait connus;
M o n u m e n t o f g e n iu s , h a p p y fictio n s, C'est Mars et Jupiter, c'est Saturne et Vénus,
S u r r o u n d m e w ith th e r a y s Qui président au temps, qui font nos destinées.
O f y o u r im m o r ta l l ig h t: Ce mélange est impur, on a tort; mais enfin
Y o u k n o w h o w to a n i m a te th e a ir, th e e a r t h , a n d th e s e a s ; Nous ressemblons assez à l'abbé Pellegrin,
Y o u e m b e llis h th e u n iv e r s e . "Le matin catholique, et le soir idolâtre.
T h is tr e e w ith th e h ig h h e a d , w ith b r a n c h e s a lw a y s g r e e n , Déjeunant de l’autel, et soupant du théâtre."
It i s A t y s , l o v e d b y C y b e l e ;
If o u r n e w p e o p l e s a r e C h r i s t i a n s a t M a s s ,
T h e p r e c o c i o u s h y a c i n t h is t h e t e n d e r d a r l i n g
T h e y a r e p a g a n s a t th e O p e r a .
W h o m A p o ll o c a r e s s e d in t h e s e f lo w e r in g m e a d o w s . . . .
T h e a l m a n a c is p a g a n , in w h i c h w e m e a s u r e o u r d a y s
A n o th e r s e r ie s o f e x a m p l e s f o llo w s , a n d V o lta ire c o n t in ­ O n ly w ith th e n a m e o f th e g o d s th a t R o m e k n e w ;
u es: I t is M a r s a n d J u p i t e r , it is S a t u r n a n d V e n u s ,
T h a t p re s id e o v e r tim e , th a t m a k e o u r d e s tin ie s .
Tout l'Olympe est peuplé de héros amoureux.
T h i s m i x t u r e i s i m p u r e , it is w r o n g ; b u t in t h e e n d
Admirables tableaux! séduisante magie!
W e r e s e m b le r a t h e r c lo s e ly th e A b b é P e lle g rin :
Qu’Hésiode me plaît dans sa théologie
" C a t h o l i c in t h e m o r n i n g , a n d i d o l a t r o u s in t h e e v e n i n g ,
Quand il me peint l'Amour débrouillant le chaos,
L u n c h i n g a t th e a lta r, a n d d in in g a t th e th e a te r ."
S'élançant dans les airs, et planant sur les flots!
Vantex-nous maintenant, bienheureux légendaires,
Up to th is p o in t we have co n sid e re d m y th o n ly in its
Le porc de saint Antoine, et le chien de saint Roch
fo rm al a n d m o s t g e n e ra l a s p e c t; th a t is, a s th e a g e n t o f a n
Vos reliques, vos scapulaires,
a e s th e tic tr a n s fo rm a tio n on th e p ro fan e le v e l, under th e
El la guimpe d'Ursule, et la crasse du froc;
a s s u m p tio n th a t th e s ta r tin g p o in t o f m y th w as re g u la rly
Mettez la Fleur des saints à côté d ’un Homère:
p re se n te d in a c irc u m s ta n c e of lif e th a t one w is h e d to
Il ment, mais en grand homme; il ment, mais il sait plaire;
c e le b r a t e , to p u rify , o r to m a g n ify . B u t th e m y th o lo g ic a l c o d e ,
Sottement vous avez menti:
w ith its v a r ia n ts a n d its m u l ti p le b r a n c h e s , a l s o e x i s t s fo r
Pour lui l'esprit humain s'éclaire:
its e lf , in d e p e n d e n t of th o s e e m b e llis h m e n ts to w h ic h it
Et, si l'on vous croyait, il serait abruti.
m i g h t s e r v e a s a v e h i c l e . It p r e s e n t s a b r o a d c a n v a s a b o u n d ­
On chérira toujours les erreurs de la Grèce;
in g in p a s s i o n a t e c o n n e c t i o n s , e x t r e m e s it u a ti o n s , a n d m o n ­
Toujours Ovide charmera.
s tr o u s a c ts . U p o n th is p r e e x is tin g m a te r ia l, im a g in a tio n a n d
A ll o f O l y m p u s i s p e o p l e d w i t h a m o r o u s h e r o e s . d e s ire m a y fre e ly p r o je c t th e ir m o s t a u t h e n t i c e n e r g i e s b y
A d m ir a b le s c e n e s ! S e d u c tiv e m a g ic ! m a k in g u s e o f its c h o i c e s a n d s c e n a r i o s . C e r ta in s e v e n t e e n t h -
H o w H e s io d p le a s e s m e w ith h is t h e o lo g y a n d e ig h te e n th -c e n tu r y w o rk s m a y b e r e g a r d e d a s re in te r ­
W h e n h e d e p ic ts L o v e d is e n ta n g lin g c h a o s , p r e t a ti o n s o f g r e a t m y th ic a l th e m e s — w ith th e p r o v is o th a t
B o u n d i n g in t h e a i r a n d s o a r i n g o n t h e w a v e s ! t h e s e a r t i s t s w e r e l e s s i n t e r e s t e d in m o d i f y i n g t h e m e a n i n g o f
P ra is e u s n o w , y o u fo r tu n a te c r e a tu r e s o f le g e n d , m y t h s t h a n in u s i n g t h e m a s a f i e ld f o r t h e f r e e p l a y o f t h e i r
T h e p ig o f S a in t A n th o n y , a n d th e d o g o f S a in t R o c h , fa c u ltie s . In i ts r e c e i v e d fo rm , o f c o u rs e , m y th re m a in s a
Y o u r re lic s , y o u r s c a p u la r s , " s u b j e c t " t h a t d e m a n d s r e s p e c t . B u t in a n a e s t h e t i c s w h i c h ,
A n d th e w im p le o f U r s u la , a n d th e s q u a l o r o f t h e m o n k 's c o n t r a r y to o u r o w n , d id n o t p la c e a p r e m iu m o n th e k in d o f
ro b e ; " o r ig i n a l i ty " th a t c o u ld p r o d u c e c o n t e n t , s u b je c t, a n d s ty le
P u t th e F lo w e r o f th e s a in ts n e x t to a H o m e r: ( i . e . , t h e e n t i r e t y o f a w o r k 's c o n s t i t u e n t p a r t s ) e x n i h i l o , t h e

237
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

f r e e d o m o f e x p r e s s i o n l e f t t o t h e a r t i s t in t r e a t i n g a k n o w n c o n c e iv e d a s a n o w in o p e r a tiv e e x p r e s s io n o f a n a n c ie n t la w
f a b l e i n w h i c h e v e r w a y h e d e s i r e d w a s e n o u g h t o l i b e r a t e , in o f th e w o rld .
c e rta in c a s e s , s o m e v e r y d e e p -s e a t e d fo rc e s . E v e n th e m o s t B u t t h i s t e n d e n c y , f a r f r o m b e i n g t h e o n l y o n e , is m i r r o r e d —
a p p a re n tly friv o lo u s n a rra tiv e o r tra g e d y can b e in te n s e ly a s w e s h a ll s e e — b y a n e x a c tly o p p o s ite t e n d e n c y .
s e d u c ti v e in its h i d d e n m e a n i n g s . A s to ld b y L a F o n ta i n e , th e
s to ry o f P sy ch e, in its p la y fu l and fre e fo rm , is c h a r g e d
t h r o u g h o u t w ith s y m b o l s th a t a r e p ile d u p o n th e p rim a ry
d a ta and re v o lv e a ro u n d th e th e m e s o f th e s e c r e t a n d of
II. The Growth of Mythological Theories
in sta n t r e c o g n itio n . Andromache, Iphigenia, and Phaedra are F a b l e , s t a b i l i z e d in t h e f o r m o f a b o d y o f fix e d a c c o u n t s
p l a y s in w h i c h t h e m y t h i c e l e m e n t is p s y c h o l o g i z e d , t ! i u s a n d s y m b o l s w h i c h a r e i n d e f i n i t e l y r e p e a t a b l e , c a n t h u s , in
a llo w in g fo r th e fre e p la y o f th e d a rk fo r c e s o f p a s s io n . T h e th e m o s t f a v o ra b le c a s e s , b e re liv e d , r e a n im a te d , a n d g iv e n
a b a n d o n e d A r i a d n e o r D i d o p r e s e n t l y r i c i s m a s w e ll a s m u s i c p resen ce by a fie ry im a g in a tio n c a p a b le of p ro je c tin g i ts
w ith a n o c c a sio n fo r th e m e lo d io u s lamento, th e m o u r n f u l d ream upon a p re e x iste n t im ag e. A m u s ic ia n or p a in te r
la m e n t. U n d e r th e s a fe g u a rd and th e c o v e r o f a n e x is tin g ( m o r e o f te n t h a n a p o e t ) c o u l d a t t i m e s , in t h e e i g h t e e n t h
m y t h , w h i c h o f f e r s it a f o r m o f r e c e p t i o n , d e s i r e i s a l l o w e d t o c e n tu ry , b re a th e n e w l if e , a p a s s i o n a t e s h i v e r , a s e e m i n g l y
l iv e o u t its i m a g i n a r y s a t i s f a c t i o n im p e rs o n a lly . T h e tra d i­ in v e n te d s tr a n g e n e s s , in to th e th e m e o f a fa b le .
tio n a l m y th i c s tr u c tu r e s a r e p e r c e iv e d a s o b s t a c l e s o n l y f ro m B u t th e r e n a is s a n c e o f m y th ic m a te ria l to o k p la c e v ia a
th e tim e w h e n th e e x ig e n c ie s o f p e r s o n a l e x p r e s s io n a r e to m o re c irc u ito u s p a th w h ic h , p a r a d o x ic a lly , at first s ig h t
p r e v a il. T h e ro le p la y e d b y th e m y th ic u n iv e r s e a s f o u n d a ­ seem ed to b e le a d in g to th e d e a th and fin a l e x p u ls i o n of
t i o n f o r a n d r e c e i v e r o f p r o j e c t i o n s o f d e s i r e is c o m p l e m e n t e d f a b l e . It w a s m y t h o l o g y — t h a t i s , s c h o l a r l y d i s c o u r s e a p p l i e d
b y a m o r e in te lle c tu a l f u n c t i o n , w h ic h m a y b u ild p e d a g o g i ­ t o m y t h s — t h a t p u t t h e w o r l d o f f a b l e t o d e a t h , b u t e v e n in
c a l, p o litic a l, o r e th ic a l c o n s t r u c ts u p o n th e e p ic o -m y th ic a l d o i n g s o it g a v e it t h e g r o u n d s , i n a n u n e x p e c t e d w a y , f o r a
s c h e m a t a . T h e m y th ic f r a m e w o r k a llo w s fo r th e e m b e llis h ­ n e w , e n la rg e d , a n d re ju v e n a te d e fflo re sc e n c e .
m e n t, e n la rg e m e n t, a n d " d e t e m p o r a l i z a ti o n " o f m o ra l le s ­ It w a s a c a s e o f a p r o g r e s s i v e e v o l u t i o n , w h o s e s t a g e s a r e
s o n s fo r th e e d if ic a tio n o f y o u n g p r i n c e s . F é n e l o n 's Telema­ n o t d iffic u lt to t r a c e .
chus is a t o n c e a p ro se poem , a “ B ild u n g s r o m a n ," and a T h e m y th o lo g y o f th e e i g h t e e n th c e n t u r y f u s e s , in v a r ia b le
p o litic a l u t o p i a . T h e O d y s s e a n s e tt in g , w ith its f o a m -c a p p e d p r o p o r t io n s , th e le a r n in g o f th e a n tiq u a r ia n s ( c o n c e r n in g th e
sea, i ts a p p a ritio n s of A m p h itr ite , and i ts nym phs ly in g a ttrib u te s o f th e g o d s , p la c e s o f w o rs h ip , w ritte n so u rce s,
u n d e r v e r d a n t a r b o r s , e n s u r e s a h a r m o n i o u s f u s io n o f t h e s e c o in s, e t c .) and th e co n je ctu re s of th e th e o lo g ia n s : th e
c o m p o s i t e e l e m e n t s . M e n t o r , w h o is M i n e r v a , in t h e g u i s e o f co n v e n ie n t h y p o th e s is , w h ic h goes b ack to C le m e n t of
a p ro fan e fa b le la v is h ly d i s t r ib u t e s a le ss o n o f w is d o m in A l e x a n d r i a , is t h a t t h e p a g a n g o d s are th e p lu r a liz e d and
w h ic h th e m o s t r ig o r o u s p r e c e p t s o f C h r is tia n d o c tr in e a r e d e g e n e ra te re fle ctio n s of th e tru e G od o f w h ic h G e n e sis
p r o te c te d , d e c a n te d , u n iv e rs a liz e d , a n d re n d e r e d a g r e e a b le . s p e a k s , o r o f th e k in g s o f th e s a c r e d s c r i p tu r e s . F o r in fid e ls
F u rth e rm o re , in e x a m in in g th e c h o ice s m ade by and s in n e r s , p r im o rd ia l R e v e la tio n h as been p ro g re s siv e ly
se v e n te e n th - and e ig h te e n th -c e n tu ry w rite rs and a rtis ts o b s c u r e d . A fte r th e d is p e rs io n o f B a b e l, w h e n p e o p le h a d
w o rk in g w ith in th is m y th i c c o m p l e x , o n e c a n n o t h e lp b u t fo rg o tte n th e first a n d o n ly G o d , n o th in g h e ld th e m b ack
o b s e rv e th e e m p h a s is o n c e rta in th e m e s , a c c o r d in g to th e fro m d iv in iz in g th e ir p r in c e s , th e ir r iv e r s , th e ir a n im a ls . B u t,
p e rio d in q u e s t i o n , t h a t p o i n t t o a c o m m o n a n x ie ty o f te n in t h e s a m e w a y t h a t t h e p a g a n s ' l a n g u a g e s , i n t h e e y e s o f
re la te d to th e p r e o c c u p a tio n s to w h ic h th a t p a r tic u la r tim e th e e ty m o lo g is ts , a r e c o r r u p t d e riv a tiv e s o f th e H e b re w , so
w a s s e n s i t i v e . It is f a i r t o s a y t h a t t h e b a r o q u e , h a u n t e d b y o n e c a n d i v i n e in t h e i r d e i t i e s , t h o u g h f a l l i n g s h o r t , t h e h o l y
th e c h a n g e a b le n e s s o f a p p e a r a n c e s , e n jo y e d fa b le s o f m e t a ­ re lig io n o f w h ic h th e y a r e th e d is to r te d r e f le c tio n . T h e A b b é
m o rp h o sis ( B e r n i n i 's Daphne is one case am ong m a n y ). B a n ie r p e r f e c tly s u m m a r iz e s th is c o m m o n v ie w :
Pygmalions abounded in th e e ig h te e n th c e n tu ry , n o t o n ly
In th e e a rlie s t tim e s , m en w o rs h ip e d one G od. N oah
b e c a u s e th a t c e n tu r y p o s e d th e q u e s tio n o f th e a n im a tio n o f
p reserv ed in h is fa m ily th e d e v o tio n h is fa th e rs had
m a tte r , b u t a l s o b e c a u s e its a r t is t s d r e a m e d o f a n i m ita tiv e
o f f e r e d t o t h e c r e a t o r ; b u t it d i d n o t t a k e h i s d e s c e n d a n t s
p e rfe c tio n fo r w h ic h th e y m ig h t b e re w a rd e d b y a lo v in g
lo n g to co rru p t i ts p u rity . The c rim e s to w h ic h th e y
e m b ra c e fro m t h e i r o w n w o r k c o m e t o l if e . It i s n o c o i n c i ­
abandoned th e m s e lv e s s o o n w eakened th e id e a o f th e
d e n c e th a t th e s o le w ritin g o f Je a n -Ja c q u e s R o u s s e a u o n a
D i v i n e , a n d p e o p l e b e g a n t o a s s o c i a t e it w i t h p e r c e p t i b l e
m y t h i c a l s u b j e c t is a Pygmalion, in w h ic h t h e w r i t e r 's f u n d a ­
o b je c ts . W h a t a p p e a r e d to th e m to b e th e b rig h te s t a n d
m e n t a l n a r c i s s i s m is g i v e n f r e e p l a y : t h e a r t i s t ' s d e s i r e is p a i d
m o s t p e r f e c t in n a t u r e m o v e d t h e m to h o m a g e ; a n d fo r
b a ck b y th e b e in g fo r m e d b y h im a s th e im a g e o f h is id e a l. A
th is r e a s o n th e s u n w a s th e firs t o b je c t o f t h e ir s u p e r s t i ­
l im i t h a s b e e n r e a c h e d h e r e . T h e f a b l e o f P y g m a l i o n r e p r e ­
tio n . F r o m s u n w o rs h ip , th e y m o v e d to th e w o r s h ip o f
s e n t e d , in a l a n g u a g e t h a t w a s s till m y t h i c , a d e m a n d fo r
o t h e r c e le s tia l b o d ie s a n d p la n e ts , a n d th e e n tir e h e a v e n ly
s e lf - e x p r e s s i o n w h o s e n e x t m a n i f e s t a t io n w o u ld c o n s i s t o f a
tro o p . . . a ttr a c te d a r e lig io u s c u lt t o its e lf , a s d id th e
re je c tio n o f a n y m y th ic m e d ia tio n , a n y r e c o u r s e to p r e e x is t­
e l e m e n ts , th e r iv e r s , a n d m o u n ta in s . T h in g s d id n o t s to p
in g fa b le . S im ila rly , in a l a te r p e r i o d ( a r o u n d 1 8 0 0 ), c e rta in
t h e r e ; n a t u r e its e lf w a s r e g a r d e d a s a d iv in ity , a n d u n d e r
h e ro ic m y th s (P r o m e th e u s , H e ra c le s , G a n y m e d e ) w o u ld b e
d iffe re n t n a m e s she b ecam e th e o b je c t o f w o rs h ip fo r
c a lle d u p o n to e x p r e s s h o p e a n d r e v o l t: th e a p o t h e o s i s o f th e
d i f f e r e n t n a t i o n s . F i n a l ly , g r e a t m e n w e r e s e e n a s m e r i t ­
h u m a n h e r o m a k e s it p o s s i b l e t o g l i m p s e a f u t u r e i n w h i c h
in g , e ith e r b y th e ir c o n q u e s ts o r b y th e ir in v e n tio n o f th e
t h e r u l e o f t h e a n c i e n t g o d s w ill h a v e c o l l a p s e d , g i v i n g w a y
a r ts , h o n o r s d u e o n ly to th e C r e a to r o f th e U n iv e rs e : a n d
to m a n . H e r e a g a i n , m y th i c l a n g u a g e t e n d s t o w a r d its o w n
t h i s w a s t h e o r i g i n o f a ll t h e g o d s a d o r e d b y p a g a n i s m .
a b o litio n , to th e e x te n t th a t th e d i s a p p e a r a n c e o f th e a u t h o r ­
i ty o f t h e g o d s c a r r i e s w i t h it t h e fa ll o f t r a d i t i o n a l i m a g i c S u c h a m y th o lo g ic a l s y s te m p la c e s th e v a r io u s tra d itio n a l
d i s c o u r s e a s th is w a s o r g a n i z e d a r o u n d th e m . T h is w o u ld th e o r ie s o f th e o r ig in s o f m y th s ( E u h e m e r is m , a s tr a l s y m b o l­
l e a d , u l t i m a t e l y in W a g n e r ' s Twilight of the Gods, to re c o u rs e is m , e t c .) o n a n e q u a l f o o tin g in o r d e r t o e x p la in th e fa lse
t o a t o t a l m y t h c u l m i n a t i n g in t h e fa ll o f t h e m y t h i c u n i v e r s e , r e l i g i o n s e v e n a s it i n d i c t s t h e m , a ll t h e w h i l e m a i n t a i n i n g ,

238
 F A B L E AND M Y T H O L O G Y

in ta c t, th e a u t h o r i ty o f a p r im a r y R e v e la tio n , o f w h ic h th e b ra n d e d w ith any m o ral re p ro b a tio n : th e y a re p e r f e c tly

C h u r c h h a s r e m a in e d th e d e p o s ito ry . le g itim a te s o l o n g a s th e y d o n o t u s u r p th e p r e r o g a t iv e s o f
B u t t h i s o r t h o d o x m y t h o l o g y , in d e v e l o p i n g a p s y c h o l o g i ­ r e a s o n . Illu s io n h a s th e rig h t to e n c h a n t u s a s lo n g a s w e
cal e x p la n a tio n fo r th e c a u s e o f th e c r im e s a n d th e im p ie ty o f know th a t w e a r e in th e re a lm o f p o e try a n d n o t s cie n ce :
th e in fid e l n a tio n s , e n g e n d e re d an even b o ld e r lin e df w h e n w e g i v e in t o t h e s e d u c t i o n s o f m y t h , b y p l a y i n g its
t h o u g h t d i r e c t e d a t th e v e r y m o ti v e s o f e v e r y fa ith a n d e v e r y g a m e w e t a r r y in a w o r l d th a t w e w e r e c a p a b le o f le a v in g
f o r m o f d e v o t i o n : t h e s k e p t i c s w o u l d u s e it t o u n d e r c u t t h e b e h in d fo r e v e r . T h e p o e ts o f th e c h ild h o o d o f th e w o r ld —
a u th o rity th a t o r th o d o x y th o u g h t to p r e s e r v e a n d r e in fo rc e . H o m e r a n d H e s io d — a r e c e r ta in ly a d m ir a b le , b u t th e ir g r e a t
T h e w e a p o n s u s e d b y th e C h u r c h a g a in s t s u p e rs titio n c o u ld i m a g e s a r e n o t h i n g b u t t h e r e v e r s e s i d e o f t h e i r i g n o r a n c e . In
e a s ily b e tu r n e d a g a in s t th e F a ith , a n d th e m o s t c o m m o n th e p e r s p e c t i v e o f a p r o g r e s s i v e b e c o m i n g in w h ic h r e a s o n
ru se w as to a tta c k C h u rch dogm a i ts e lf , in th e g u is e of p e rfe c ts its e lf f r o m one c e n tu ry to th e n e x t, m y th is th e
c a r r y in g o n th e fig h t le d b y th e d e f e n d e r s o f th e F a ith a g a in s t i n n o c e n t w it n e s s to th e first b a b b lin g s o f th e m in d , s ta r tin g
i d o la tr y . F r o m th is p o i n t o n , th e G o d o f th e H e b r e w s w a s to f r o m t h e t i m e w h e n t h e s o u l c o u l d s p e a k o n l y in m e t a p h o r t o
b e s u b m itte d to a c a u s a l in te rp re ta tio n a n a lo g o u s to th e o n e v o i c e its t e r r o r s a n d its w o n d e r s . T h is g e n e r a l t h e o r y o f m y th
th a t th e th e o lo g ia n s reserv ed fo r th e pagan go d s. The p l a c e s a l l f a i t h s o n a n e q u a l f o o t i n g : it m a k e s a n e x c e p t i o n f o r
e x p la n a tio n g iv e n b y L u c r e tiu s , “ in b o rn d r e a d " (insitus hor­ th e " t r u e r e lig io n " o n ly a s a p r e c a u tio n a n d fo r th e s a k e o f
ror, 5 .1 1 6 0 - 1 2 3 9 ) , w o u ld h o ld fo r e v e r y c u lt w ith o u t e x c e p ­ s ty le . T h e in te lle c tu a l e d u c a t i o n o f m e n s h o u ld le a d th e m to
tio n . (T h e " l ib e r t i n e " c u r r e n t o f th e s e v e n t e e n t h c e n t u r y h a d s h e d a ll p r e j u d i c e s , a ll e r r o r s , a l l c u l t s . ( S u c h d i s i l l u s i o n m e n t
w id e ly c u ltiv a te d th is re tu rn to th e E p ic u re a n d o c t r in e .) le a d s to p o e t r y th a t m a k e s u s e o f fa b le w it h o u t a d m i tt i n g to
F a b le , in s te a d of b e in g s e co n d a ry and d e r iv a tiv e , w o u ld i t, i n a c o l d , s p i r i t u a l , a n d m o c k i n g t o n e : t h e e n t i r e a n t i p o e t i c
appear as th e p rim a ry re s p o n se of m en to th e te rro rs o f e i g h t e e n th c e n t u r y d e f i n e s its e lf in th is w a y .)
d r e a m s , t o g r e a t n a t u r a l e v e n t s , t o a ll t h a t a m a z e d t h e m . B u t n o t e v e r y o n e b o r e w i t n e s s t o t h e s a m e c o n f i d e n c e in
F o n t e n e l l e 's sh o rt d is s e rta tio n Origin of Fables c o n n e cts th e p o w e r s o f c u ltiv a te d r e a s o n . H u m e , w h o in te r p r e ts th e
m y th s a n d p o ly th e is m w ith s im p le c a u s e s : i g n o r a n c e , w o n ­ b i r t h o f f a b l e s m o r e o r l e s s in t h e w a y o f F o n t e n e l l e , b e t r a y s
d e r , t e r r o r in th e f a c e o f th e p o w e r s e x p e r i e n c e d e v e r y w h e r e d o u b t a b o u t t h e c o n s t r u c t s o f r e a s o n . It is p o s s i b l e t h a t t h e s e
in n a t u r e , a n d t h e p r o p e n s i t y t o e x p l a i n t h e u n k n o w n b y t h e c o n s tru c ts are no m o re s o lid th a n th e p o ly th e is tic
know n. F a b le s o ffe r us "th e h isto ry of th e e rro rs of th e c o s m o g o n i e s — in w h ic h case o u r "p ro g re s s " b e co m e s p re ­
h u m a n m i n d . " It f o l l o w s t h a t o n e s h o u l d n o t h e s i t a t e t o l e a r n c a r io u s , a n d th e p le a s u r e th a t w e d e r iv e fro m a n c ie n t m y th s
e v e r y a s p e c t o f f a b l e ; m y t h o l o g y is t o b e p r a c t i c e d a s F o n - is le ss c h ild is h th an it m ig h t a p p ear. In our u n c e r ta in ty
t e n e l l e d o e s it i n o r d e r t h a t w e m a y b e s e t r i g h t : " T o fill o n e ' s r e g a r d in g th e tr u e , m y th c a n a t le a s t c la im th e p r iv ile g e o f
h e a d w i t h a ll t h e e x c e s s e s o f t h e P h o e n i c i a n s a n d t h e G r e e k s b e a u t y , w i t h o u t b e i n g a n y m o r e o f a lie t h a n t h e t h i n g s w e
is n o t a s c i e n c e , b u t t o k n o w w h a t l e d t h e P h o e n i c i a n s a n d ta k e to b e r e a s o n a b le . R easo n t h a t is d i v e s t e d o f illu s io n s
t h e G r e e k s t o t h e s e e x c e s s e s is i n d e e d a s c i e n c e . A l l m a n k i n d a b o u t i t s o w n p o w e r s c a n s ti ll s h o w i n d u lg e n c e fo r th e first
is s o a l i k e t h a t t h e r e i s n o p e o p l e w h o s e i d i o c i e s s h o u l d n o t c r e a tu r e s p r o d u c e d b y th e im a g in a tio n .
m a k e u s tr e m b le ." T h e c o m p l e t e r e h a b i l i t a t i o n o f m y t h w o u l d s o o n f o l l o w in
H e r e w e s e e th e m e e tin g b e tw e e n s c o r n fo r fa b le a n d th e th is v e i n . B u t in o r d e r f o r t h is to o c c u r , th e p r i m a r y e x p e r i ­
a f firm a tio n o f th e g r e a t e p is te m o lo g ic a l v a lu e o f re fle c tin g o n en ce o f th e m in d , in s te a d o f b e in g a s s ig n e d th e m ark of
th e b e g in n in g s o f o u r r e la tio n s h ip to th e w o r ld a n d o n th e i m p e r f e c tio n , h a d to b e c o m e e n d o w e d w ith th e c h a r a c t e r o f
e r r o r s c o m m i t t e d b y t h e m i n d w h e n it w a s f i r s t l e f t t o i t s o w n p l e n i t u d e , t h e p r e r o g a t i v e o f u n i t y . In t h i s r é é v a l u a t i o n of
d e v i c e s . E v e r y t h i n g b e g a n , f o r t h e s a v a g e a s w e ll a s f o r th e m y t h it is e a s y t o s e e a r e t u r n o f t h e o l o g i c a l t h o u g h t , w h i c h
in fa n t, w ith a d e p lo r a b le p r o p e n s it y fo r fa lse e x p la n a tio n s , w o u ld c o m e to b e c o m b in e d w ith th e p s y c h o lo g ic a l e x p l a n a ­
u p t o t h e t i m e w h e n o u r i n t e l l i g e n c e , a s it w a s s l o w l y a n d tio n o f th e p r o d u c ti o n o f p r i m a r y i d e a s a n d p r i m a r y f e e lin g s .
p r o g r e s s i v e l y d i s a b u s e d , b e c a m e c a p a b l e o f l a u g h i n g a t i ts Genesis r e a p p e a r s b e h in d (o r in ) th e s im p le im p u ls e s o f th e
c h i l d i s h b e l i e f s , a n d e v e n o f k n o w i n g w h y it a l l o w e d i t s e l f t o m in d , w h ic h c o n s t i tu t e th e first s ta g e o f th e g e n e tic r e c o n ­
b e d r a w n in to th e w o r ld o f fa b le . T h e c u ltiv a te d m in d s e e s a s tr u c tio n of th e in te lle c tu a l f a c u ltie s of th e hum an race.
w a r n in g h e r e to o : th e " p r i m i ti v e " e r r o r s in to w h ic h e v e r y H o w e v e r " s t u p i d " w e m a y c a ll t h e c h i l d , t h e s a v a g e , o r e a r ly
p e o p l e h a s fa lle n a r e a l s o e r r o r s o f e v e r y p e r i o d , a n d n o t h i n g m a n , t h e y n e v e r t h e l e s s l i v e d in i m m e d i a t e c o n t a c t w i t h t h e
is e a s i e r t h a n f a l l i n g b a c k i n t o e r r o r . O n e m u s t a l w a y s b e o n w o r l d : t h e y w e r e l ik e A d a m in p a r a d i s e . R e v e l a t i o n w a s n o t
o n e 's g u a r d a g a i n s t y i e l d in g to th e e v e r - r e n e w e d t e m p ta t i o n g iv e n to th e m f r o m t h e o u t s i d e l ik e a d o c t r i n e ; it r u l e d f r o m
o f m y th . O u r im a g in a tio n e v e r re m a in s r e c e p tiv e to m y th w ith in . T h e ir k n o w le d g e c o n s i s te d n o t in r e f l e c t i o n b u t in
e v e n w h e n o u r r e a s o n d e n i e s i t: " W h i l e w e m a y b e i n c o m ­ p a r t i c i p a t i o n : t h e y l i v e d in f a m i l i a r i t y w i t h t h e w o r l d a n d i ts
p a ra b ly m o r e e n lig h te n e d th a n th o s e w hose cru d e m in d s f o r c e s . In t h i s i m a g e o f p r i m o r d i a l c o m m u n i t y ( w h i c h is i t s e l f
i n v e n t e d t h e F a b l e s in g o o d f a i t h , w e a l l t o o e a s i l y r e t u r n t o b a s e d in m y t h ) , a p r i m a r y r o l e f a l ls t o t h o s e p o w e r s a t t r i b ­
th a t s a m e w a y o f th in k in g th a t m a d e F a b le s s o a g r e e a b le to u te d to p rim itiv e l a n g u a g e : it i s a t o n c e speech and son g
th e m . T h e y p a s s e d th e m o n b e c a u s e th e y b e lie v e d th e m , a n d (S tr a b o s a y s th is ; V o s s iu s a n d V ic o r e p e a t i t;1 R o u s s e a u a n d
w e p a s s th e m o n w ith ju s t a s m u c h p le a s u re e v e n th o u g h H e rd e r d e v e lo p its t h e o r e t ic a l c o n s e q u e n c e s ) . It c a r r i e s in
w ith o u t b e l i e f ; a ll o f w h ic h p ro v e s th a t im a g in a tio n and its e lf th e " a l m o s t i n e v ita b le i m p r e s s io n o f p a s s i o n s e e k i n g to
re a so n can have little to do w ith one an o th e r, and th a t c o m m u n i c a t e i ts e lf " (R o u s s e a u ). S p e e c h a n d fe e lin g a r e n o t
m a t te r s o f w h ic h re a s o n h a s b e e n d i s a b u s e d fro m th e s ta r t d i s s o c i a t e d ; e x p r e s s i v e f i d e l i t y is a b s o l u t e ; t h e r e is n o l o n g e r
lo s e n o th in g o f th e ir a t tr a c t iv e n e s s a s r e g a r d s th e i m a g in a ­ a n y p la c e fo r ly in g o r a b s tr a c tio n . T h e h e a rt a n d s p e e c h o f
t io n ." T h e d i c h o t o m y o f th e s a c r e d a n d th e p r o f a n e , w h ic h h u m a n s n o lo n g e r m a k e tw o . A s fo r th e g o d s th a t h u m a n s
a l l o w e d f a b l e t o s u b s i s t o n t h e p e r i p h e r y o f s a c r e d h i s t o r y , is i m a g i n e , in t h e g r i p o f t e r r o r o r i n a p l a y f u l s p i r i t , t h e y a r e
th u s r e p la c e d b y th e d ic h o to m y o f r e a s o n a n d im a g in a tio n . b u t th e f a c e o f a liv in g n a t u r e th a t tu r n s to w a rd th e m — a
O n c e a g a in , f a b l e is r e g a r d e d as s trip p e d o f a ll t r u t h , a ll n a t u r e to w h ic h th e y a r e n o t s tr a n g e r s . I m m e d ia te to t h e m ­
a u t h o r i t y ; it i s r e a s o n ( a n d n o t r e v e l a t i o n ) t h a t is m a s t e r . B u t s e lv e s , im m e d ia te to n a tu re , hum ans m a n ife st, in e a rly
th e im a g in a ry a n d th e p le a s u re t h a t a t t a c h e s t o it a r e n o t l y r i c i s m a n d in t h e f i r s t g r e a t e p i c s , t h e i m p u l s e in w h i c h t h e

239
W E ST E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R IS T IA N
Bernini, Apollo and Daphne. Rome, Villa Borghese Museum. Photo
Alinari-Giraudon.
greatness and the limits of their mortal condition are in­
scribed. Such is the new conviction which restores to myths
a legitimacy at once ontological and poetic, and which lends
equal attention to the testimonies of every primitive litera­
ture. As if in response to this new attention, entire mythol­
ogies come to light or are partially invented: the Edda,
Ossian, the sacred books of the East, the songs of the
American Indians. These works reveal an art that preceded
art, a poetry anterior to any rule of composition. And people
took delight in recognizing, in this "barbarism," a grandeur
and an energy no longer possessed by the civilized lan­
guages.
The result was not only a broadening of the field of
mythological knowledge, nor a mere increase in the reper­
tory of epic or naive texts made available to people of good
240
ERA
taste who were weary of the frivolities of their own century.
For those who experienced the power of these texts, the idea
of a regenerated poetry, a language restored to its primitive
vigor, inevitably prompted the desire for a new way of living
and feeling which would recover the fullness of primitive
times. In its nostalgia for the high language that has been
lost, the mind turns toward the beginnings of societies in the
hope of drawing out an enthusiasm that will give birth to
songs capable of restoring to peoples, in the immediate
future, the boiling impetus and the unanimous soul that
have deserted them. The resurrected notion of genius is an
invitation to listen to the voice which speaks out of the
depths of nature and the collective consciousness. In a
project of this sort, the poet, having recognized that all of the
peoples of the world, at the time of their first self-affirmation,
glorified themselves in their gods and heroes, felt himself
drawn toward a past which he could offer to his fellow
citizens in order to unite them in the state of mind of the
reinvented community. Thus, it is once again toward the
Greek and Roman (and, subordinately, Celtic or "Gallic")
models that the French poets turned: but the traditional
models themselves—after the revelation of the Nordic and
Oriental antiquities—now offered a new face. Now it was no
longer bad taste that was to be found in Homer, Aeschylus,
Pindar, or even Virgil, but a gigantic, savage sublimity,
contact with which could only be revivifying. Marked by an
idealistic conviction of Neoplatonist inspiration, the Neoclas­
sical system aspired not only to bring together the atemporal
forms of the Beautiful, but also, following Winckelmann, to
affirm that the archetypes of "beautiful nature" could only
manifest themselves by virtue of the flowering of political
liberty in the Greek city-states. At the cost of certain displace­
ments and condensations, the deities presented in Greek
statuary appear as the incarnation of this ideal, as it was
fashioned by free citizens. To be sure, this perspective causes
the primitive world to lose much of its harshness and
ferocious savagery: the all too smooth serenity celebrated by
Winckelmann as the reflection of an intelligible heaven
cannot be the vehicle for energies that are meant to erupt
from the mysterious depths of living nature. But for an
André Chénier there is no contradiction in seeking the
juxtaposition, in the Hellenic past as a whole, of a formal
harmony, the heat of young desire, and, especially, the great
breath of freedom. This to the extent that the imitation of the
ancients amounted to more than a mere repetition of names
or images: it was to be a second conquest of fire, a transfu­
sion of energy. "Let us light our torches at their poetic fires."
Herder, about the same time, hoped that the poetry of the
ancients, without being made the object of a servile imita­
tion, could become the source for a modem "heuristic
poetry" which would allow for the invention of "an entirely
new mythology." But he quickly recognized the difficulty
there would be in reconciling "the spirit of reduction with
the spirit of fiction," the "dismembering of the philosopher"
with the "ordered reassembling of the poet."
The appeal is thus addressed to the poet, who is expected
to awaken the collective impulse by exalting the hearts of
men and restoring the presence of forgotten divine forces. At
stake is society itself, people's search for renewed awareness
of the bond that unites them. The figure of the ancient gods
becomes charged with a political significance here. They are
witnesses to what the popular soul needs in order to recog­
nize itself; they must again become what they were: respon­
dents and guarantors whom the social group imagined in its
own image, and in whom it discovered its truth, its own
nature. The privileged theater for the return of the gods as
 F A B L E AND M Y T H O L O G Y

evoked by th e p o e ts is hum an c e le b ra tio n (n a tio n a l or G r e e k g o d s a r e b u t fla t i m a g e s fo r u s , t h e e m p t y c lo th e s o f

u n iv e rs a l c e le b r a tio n , a c c o r d in g to w h e th e r o n e g e n e r a liz e s o u r fe e lin g s , a n d n o t liv in g b e in g s . A n d w h ile t h e r e w e r e n o
o r p a r t ic u la r i z e s its s c o p e ) . fa lse g o d s o n e a r th a t th a t tim e — a n d e v e r y p e o p le c o u ld b e
W e s e e h e r e th e fo rm a tio n o f a " m y th o f m y th o lo g y " (H . re c e iv e d a s a g u e s t a t th e T e m p le o f a n o t h e r p e o p le — to d a y
B l u m e n b e r g ), w h ic h m a k e s th e u n c e rta in o r ig in s o f m y th s w e h a rd ly k n o w a n y th in g b u t fa lse g o d s . . . . A n d w h e r e a s
c o in c id e w ith th e o r ig in o f th e n a tio n ( o r o f h u m a n it y ), a n d in t h e o ld d a y s p o e t r y w a s a n o b j e c t o f t h e p e o p l e , j u s t a s th e
s h o w s th e p e o p l e in a w o r l d in c r is is t h e ir d u t y t o r e u n i te p e o p le w e r e th e o b je c t o f p o e tr y , to d a y w e s in g o n ly w h ile
t h e m s e lv e s w ith th e ir lo s t o r ig in s (w ith lo s t n a t u r e ) le s t th e y g o i n g f ro m o n e o f fic e to a n o t h e r . . . ."
lo s e th e ir s o u ls a n d p e rish . No s o o n e r is t h is new m y th T h e im p o s s ib ility o f b r in g in g a n c i e n t m y th o lo g y b a c k to
fo r m u la te d and th is d u ty e n u n c ia te d th a n q u e s tio n s a re l if e ( n o t b e c a u s e w e no lo n g e r a d m ire it, b u t b e c a u s e we
r a i s e d . Is it p o s s i b l e f o r t h e p e o p l e o f a n a g e o f s c i e n c e a n d o f a d m i r e it t o o m u c h a n d b e c a u s e t h e p r e s e n t t i m e h a s b e c o m e
re a so n e d re fle ctio n to re c o v e r th e n a iv e w o n d e rm e n t o f a in c a p a b le o f a c c e p t i n g it) m e r e l y a c c e n t u a t e s t h e d e s i r e to s e e
y o u n g h u m a n it y t h a t p e o p le d n a t u r e w ith d e itie s th a t w e r e th e b irth o f a n e w m y th o lo g y . W e fin d th is id e a a t th e e n d o f
c h a n g e a b le a n d n o t s la v e s to th e p r in c ip le o f id e n tity (K . P h . a t e x t ( c o p i e d in H e g e l 's h a n d in 1 7 9 6 , b u t p e r h a p s t h e w o r k
M o r itz )? In t h e o d e e n t it le d The Gods of Greece, S c h ille r e v o k e s o f S c h e llin g , a n d c e r ta in ly in s p ire d b y H ö ld e rlin ) k n o w n a s
a t le n g th th e a n c i e n t h o s t o f g o d s : b u t t h e y w e r e b a n is h e d " th e o ld e s t s y s te m a tic p ro g ra m o f G erm an id e a lis m " : "W e
a n d w il l n e v e r r e t u r n ; n a t u r e i s t h e n c e f o r t h entgöttert, b e reft n e e d a n e w m y th o lo g y , b u t th is m y th o lo g y s h o u ld b e p la c e d
o f g o d s . O u r p o e t r y c a n o n l y liv e b y c o m i n g to g r ip s w it h th is in th e se rv ice o f id e a s, it s h o u l d b eco m e a m y th o lo g y of
ab sen ce, by s a y in g th a t we m iss th e m : "W h at m u s t liv e reason. T h o s e i d e a s w h ic h d o n o t p r e s e n t t h e m s e l v e s in a n
i m m o r ta l ly in s o n g m u s t p e r i s h in lif e ." I n c a p a b l e o f r e c o v ­ a e s th e tic fo rm — th a t is, a m y th o lo g ic a l fo rm — a re w ith o u t
e r i n g n a i v e s im p lic ity , m o d e r n p o e t r y d e v o t e s its e lf to s e n t i ­ i n t e r e s t f o r t h e p e o p l e ; a n d c o n v e r s e l y , a m y t h o l o g y t h a t is
m e n t a l n o s t a l g i a . J e a n - P a u l w o u l d r e s t a t e it i n h i s o w n w a y : n o t r e a s o n a b l e is a n o b je c t o f s h a m e fo r th e p h ilo s o p h e r.
" T h e b e a u tif u l, r ic h s im p l ic i ty o f t h e c h ild is e n c h a n t i n g n o t T h u s t h e e n l i g h t e n e d a n d t h o s e w h o a r e n o t e n l i g h t e n e d w ill
to a n o t h e r c h ild b u t t o s o m e o n e w h o h a s lo s t it. . . . The e n d u p jo in in g h a n d s : m y th o lo g y m u s t b e c o m e p h ilo s o p h i­
c a l in o r d e r t o m a k e t h e p e o p l e r e a s o n a b l e , a n d p h il o s o p h y
m y th o lo g ic a l, in o r d e r to m a k e th e p h il o s o p h e r s s e n s itiv e .
Then w il l w e c o m e t o s e e t h e e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f a n e t e r n a l

Falconet, Pygmalion and Galatea. Baltimore, Walters Art Gallery. u n i t y b e t w e e n u s . " In m a n y o f h i s w r i t i n g s (Bread and Wine,
Museum photo. Archipelagus, e t c .) , H ö ld e rlin c h o s e to s p e a k o f th e in te r m e ­
d ia te m o m e n t, th e tim e o f a n x io u s w a itin g , b e tw e e n th e
irre v e r s ib le d is a p p e a r a n c e o f th e a n c ie n t g o d s a n d th e ris e o f
a n e w g o d , a D i o n y s u s o r a C h r i s t o f t h e f i n a l h o u r . In 1 8 0 0 ,
F r ie d r i c h S c h l e g e l in t u r n c a lle d f o r a n e w m y th o lo g y , a r i s i n g
n o t, as had th e o ld , fro m a c o n ta ct w ith th e p e r c e p tib le
u n iv e r s e , b u t " f r o m th e m o s t p r o f o u n d d e p th s o f th e s p i r i t,"
j u s t a s h a r m o n i o u s o r d e r u n f o l d s " w h e n c h a o s is t o u c h e d b y
l o v e ."
T h o u g h it m a y h a v e b e e n d i s a p p o i n t e d , t h i s e x p e c t a t i o n o f
a new f lo w e r in g o f m y th (a m y th w h ic h w o u ld o n c e a g a in
b e c o m e th e k in g d o m o f u n if y in g im a g in a tio n , b u t a ls o th e
triu m p h o f se n s ib le re a so n , and w h ic h w o u ld no lo n g e r
b o rr o w th e fa c e o f th e a n c ie n t g o d s ) a ttr ib u te s to th e fu tu re ,
t o h i s t o r y t h a t is to c o m e , a fu n c t i o n w h o s e e q u iv a l e n t m a y
b e f o u n d o n l y in r e lig io u s o r g n o s t i c e s c h a t o l o g ie s . A n d e v e n
w h e n m y t h s e e m s s ti ll t o b e l a c k i n g , b o t h h u m a n t i m e a n d
h is to r y a s m a d e b y h u m a n s a r e p r o f o u n d ly m y th ic iz e d by
t h i s h o p e . I n a w a i t i n g t h e c o m i n g o f a n e w m y t h o l o g y a s if it
w ere to b e a v e r ita b le P a ro u s ia , th is th o u g h t w a s a lr e a d y
m y th ic a lly d e fin in g th e p r e s e n t a s th e d e a f g e s ta tio n o f a n e w
A d a m , a s th e n o c t u r n a l e x a m in a tio n o f th e p o in t f ro m w h ic h
th e u n iv e r s a l d a w n w o u ld s h in e f o r th : th e p r e s e n t w a s a tim e
o f w o rk in g a n d te s tin g , m o v in g fo rw a rd , fo rce d h a lts , a t ­
t e m p ts a t n e w b e g in n in g s . H u m a n h is to ry , th e o b je c t o f th e
new m y t h o p o e s i s , r e v e a l s a n i n t e l l i g i b l e m e a n i n g ; it i s t h e
r e c o n q u e r i n g , u n d e r a s ti ll u n k n o w n a p p e a r a n c e , o f t h e l o s t
w h o le n e ss , th e c o lle c tiv e r e in te g ra tio n in to a u n ity , th e
re tu r n to th e o ld e s t tr u th , a t th e c o s t o f b rin g in g a n e n tire ly
n e w w o r l d i n t o b e i n g . C o n c e i v e d in t h i s w a y , m y t h , w h i c h a t
th e b e g in n in g o f th e e ig h te e n th c e n tu ry had b een p u re ly
p r o f a n e o r n a m e n ta tio n , b e c o m e s th e s a c r e d p a r e x c e lle n c e ,
th e u ltim a te a u th o rity — a sacred th a t im p o s e s its la w s in
a d v a n c e a n d j u d g e s h u m a n v a l u e s in a fin a l tr ib u n a l. H a v i n g
n e v e r c o m e t o p a s s , it i s n e v e r t h e l e s s t h e j u d g e o f a l l t h a t
c o m e s t o p a s s . S u c h a c h a n g e is b u t t h e c o r o l l a r y o f a n o t h e r
ch an g e: w h at h ad b e e n th e s a c re d a t th e b e g in n in g o f th e
e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y — w r i t t e n r e v e l a t i o n , t r a d i t i o n , d o g m a — is

241
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

s u b m i t te d t o a " d e m y s t i f y i n g " c r itiq u e w h ic h r e d u c e s it t o a r. juRiEU, Histoire critique des dogmes et des cultes, depuis Adam à
m e r e h u m a n w o rk , a fa b u lo u s w o rk o f th e im a g in a tio n . T h e Jésus-Christ (Amsterdam 1704). w. king , A Discourse concerning the
s a c r e d is r e d u c e d t o a p s y c h o l o g i c a l f u n c t i o n , w h i l e c e r t a i n Inventions of Men in the Worship of God (5th ed., London 1704).
hum an f a c u ltie s (f e e li n g s , co n scio u sn e ss, im a g in a tio n ) or
j. TOLAND, Letters to Serena (London 1704). j. trenchard, The Natural
History of Superstition (London 1709). b. le bovier de fontenelle . De
c e r ta in c o lle c tiv e a c ts (th e c o m m o n w il l ) b e c o m e e n d o w e d
l'origine des fables (Paris 1724). c. rolun , Traité des études, 4 vols. (Paris
w ith a sa cre d fu n ctio n . In th e in te lle c tu a l h is to r y o f th is
1726); Histoire ancienne, 13 vols. (Paris 1730-38). s. shuckford, The
c e n t u r y , th e s a c r a l iz a t i o n o f m y th is c lo s e l y a s s o c i a te d w ith Sacred and the Profane History of the World Connected . . . , 2 vols.
th e h u m a n iz a tio n o f th e s a c r e d . It is n o lo n g e r s u f fic ie n t, a s (London 1728). a . ramsay, The Travels of Cyrus, to Which Is Annexed a
has so o f te n been done, to see th e p h ilo s o p h y of th e Discourse upon Mythology of the Ancients (London 1728). t . blackw ell .
E n lig h te n m e n t a s a p r o c e s s o f " s e c u l a r iz a t i o n ," in w h ic h An Enquiry into the Life and Writings of Homer (London 1735).
h u m a n r e a s o n l a id c l a i m to p r e r o g a tiv e s w h ic h h a d p r e v i­ T. Broughton , Bibliotheca historico-sacra, or an Historical Library of the
o u s ly b e lo n g e d to th e d iv in e logos. A r e v e r s e m o v e m e n t is Principal Matters Relating to Religion Ancient and Modem, Pagan, Jewish,
a ls o a p p a r e n t, w h e re b y m y th , a t first c a s t a s id e a n d h e ld to
Christian and Mohammedan, 2 vols. (London 1737-39). a . banier . La
mythologie et les fables expliquées par l'histoire, 3 vols. (Paris 1738).
b e a b s u r d , w a s n o w s e e n a s h a v i n g a d e e p a n d f u ll m e a n i n g ,
N. PLUCHE, Histoire du ciel. . . ,2 vols. (Paris 1739). G. vico, La scienza
a n d v a lu e d a s r e v e a le d t r o t h (S c h e llin g ). T h is d o u b le t r a n s ­
nuova (3d ed., Naples 1744). R. lowth . De sacra poesi Hebraeorum
fo r m a tio n e ffe c ts a r e d is trib u tio n o f th e c o n t r a s t in g e le m e n ts praelectiones (London 1753). P. h . mallet . Introduction à l'histoire de
o f th e p r o f a n e a n d th e s a c r e d . T h e o ld s a c r e d s h e d s its s k in Dannemarc . . . (Copenhagen 1755); Edda . . . (3d ed., Geneva 1787).
a n d th e p r o f a n e o r d e r b e c o m e s c h a r g e d w ith a m y th ic h o p e 0. hume. The Natural History of Religion (London 1757). a . pernety, Les
f o r a l ib e r a tin g p r o g r e s s . In th e e x p e c t a t io n o f a r u l in g m y th fables égyptiennes et grecques dévoilées (Paris 1758). P. chompré. Dic­
w h i c h w il l i n v e n t t h e h u m a n i t y o f t h e f u t u r e , t h e o l d m y t h s tionnaire abrégé de la fable (Paris 1759). c. de brosses. Du culte des dieux
a r e ta k e n u p a g a in a s p ré fig u ra tio n s — m y th s o f P r o m e th e u s ,
fétiches . . . (1760). a . court de gébeun . Le monde primitif. . . ,9 vols.
H e ra c le s , P s y c h e , a n d th e T ita n s — b u t n o w th e y a r e u s e d to
(Paris 1773-83). R. wood. An Essay on the Original Genius and Writings
of Homer (London 1775). |. bryant , A New System or an Analysis of
d e sig n a te re b e llio n , d e sire , and th e hopes o f th o se w ho
Ancient Mythology (London 1775-76). j.-s. bailly . Lettres sur l’origine
a s p i r e t o b e c o m e m a s te r s o f t h e ir d e s t i n y . T h e m y th t h a t is t o des sciences (Paris 1777); Lettres sur l'Atlantide de Platon (Paris 1779).
c o m e , a s s k e t c h e d i n a d v a n c e b y a d i f f u s e e x p e c t a t i o n , w ill 1. c. UNDEMANN, Geschichte der Meinungen älterer und neuerer Völker im
n o t o n ly be im a g in e d by m an (b y th e p o e t-p ro p h e t, th e Stande der Roheit und Kultur, von Gott, Religion und Priesterthum
p e o p l e - p o e t , o r h u m a n i t y a t w o r k ) , b u t w il l a l s o h a v e m a n (Stendal 1784-85). c. c. heyne. Opuscula academica (Göttingen 1785-
h im s e lf a s its h e r o . T h e a w a ite d M y th — b o m n e ith e r o f th e 1812). c. a . DEMOusnER, Lettres à Emilie sur la mythologie (Paris
t r o t h o f h i s t o r y n o r o f t h e t r o t h o f p o e t r y — is n o l o n g e r a 1786-98). R. p. knight , A Discouru on the Worship of Priapus . . .
t h e o g o n y b u t a n a n t h r o p o g o n y . I t i s o n e t h a t w il l c e l e b r a t e i n
(London 1786). |.-p . rabaut de saint-Etienne, Lettres à M. Bailly sur
s o n g , in o r d e r to a s s e m b le th e p e o p le s , th e M a n -G o d w h o
l'histoire primitive de la Grèce (Paris 1787). p. c. Reinhard, Abriss einer
Gexhichte der Entstehung und Ausbildung der religiösen Ideen (Jena
p r o d u c e s h im s e lf f ro m h is o w n s o n g o r b y th e w o r k o f h is
1794). c. F. dupuis. Origine de tous les cultes, 12 vols. (Paris 17%).
h a n d s . A ll th e m y th o lo g i e s o f t h e m o d e m w o r l d a r e b u t th e w. jones , Works, 6 vols. (London 1799). F. n oel . Dictionnaire de la fable,
s u b s titu te s a n d s m a ll c h a n g e o f th is u n fin is h e d M y th . 2 vols. (Paris 1801). K. p. Moritz , Götterlehre . . . (3d ed., Berlin 1804).
J .S t ./d .w . j. a . DULAURE, Des divinités génératrices, ou des cultes du phallus chez les
anciens et les modernes (Paris 1805). F. cruezer , Symbolik und Mythologie
der alten Völker, besonders der Griechen (Leipzig and Darmstadt 1810-
12). F. c. BAUR, Symbolik und Mythologie, oder die Naturreligion des
Altertums, 3 vols. (Stuttgart 1824-25). j. c. herder . Sämtliche Werke, 33
NOTES vols. (Berlin 1877-1913). w. blake. Complete Poetry and Prou (London
1948). jean-Paul , Voruhule der Aesthetik (Munich 1963). f . Hölderlin ,
1. Revised, amplified, transformed, Chompré's Dictionnaire be­ Sämtliche Werke, 6 vols. (Stuttgart 1943-61), Œuvres, edited by
came F. Noël's Dictionnaire de la fable (1801), which was used by artists P. Jaccottet (Paris 1967). f . schlegel , Kritiuhe Schriften (Munich 1970).
and poets of the nineteenth century. Noël's Dictionnaire de la fable
includes the mythologies of the Norse, Asia, etc.; the Greco-Roman Modem Studies on the History of Mythology
world, while remaining predominant, ceased then to be the sole (in Chronological Order)
purveyor of imagery. F. STRICH, Die Mythologie in der deutuhen Literatur von Klopstock bis
2. Of course, it is not a matter of the afterlife as the Homeric poems Wagner (Halle 1910). o. gruppe, Geuhichte der klassischen Mythologie und
present it, but rather as it is promised by the mythological conven­ Religionsgexhichte (Leipzig 1921), important, r. Schwab, La renaissance
tion current in the seventeenth century. orientale (Paris 1950). w. rehm, Götterstille und Göttertrauer (Berlin
3. Vico proposes a false etymology according to which muthos is 1951); Griechentum und Goethezeit (Bern 1952). f . e . manuel, The
related to mutus (mute), indicating that fable appeared in silent times Eighteenth Century Confronts the Gods (Cambridge, MA, 1959), impor­
and was the earliest form of speech, which came to be joined with an tant. j. de Vries, Foruhungsgeuhichte der Mythologie (Freiburg and
earlier language consisting of gestures and mute signs. Munich 1%1). R. trousson . Le thème de Prométhée dans la littérature
européenne (Geneva 1964). j. baltruSaitis, La quête d'Isis (Paris 1967).
y. F.-A. Giraud , La fable de Daphné (Geneva 1968). p. albouy . Mythes et
mythologies dans la littérature françaiu. m . fuhrmann , ed., Terror und
BIBLIOGRAPHY Spiel: Probleme der Mythenrezeption (Munich 1971), important.
B. feldman and R. D. Richardson , The Riu of Modem Mythology
Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-Century Authors (Bloomington and London 1972), an important anthology of docu­
(in Chronological Order) ments, commentaries, and bibliographies, k . kerenyi. Die Eröffnung
G.-|. vossius. De gentili theologia . . . (Amsterdam 1668). a . van dale , des Zugangs zum Mythos: Ein Leubuch (Darmstadt 1976), a collection
Dissertationes de progressu idolatriae et superstitionum et de prophetia of texts on myth, from Vico to W. F. Otto.
(Amsterdam 1696); De oraculis veterum ethnicorum (Amsterdam 1700).

242
 T H E M Y T H O L O G Y
T he M ythology of A ncient S witzerland
Despite occasional hypercriticism, archeological discoveries
made in Switzerland lead us to conclude that there was a
ritual life in the area even in Paleolithic tim es.1 But it is not
until the Bronze Age that we find evidence of a mythology,
of which certain vestiges are reflected even in contemporary
Switzerland.
With the Roman presence on Helvetian soil, documents
bearing on native beliefs or on great Celtic deities multiplied:
Lugh, Sucellus, and Epona all had their devotees, as did local
deities such as Artio, Mars Caturix, Genava (protectress of
Geneva), and Aventia (patron goddess of Avenches). An
inscription from this last locality mentions the "Lugavi"; this
inscription is analogous to the one at Uxama (Osma) in the
Spanish province of Soria and supports the view that Lugh
was a “multiple" god, perhaps triple. An Irish story alludes
to triplicity. Like Danaë, Ethnë— Lugh's mother—is locked
up in a tower. McKineely, the owner of a blue cow, disguises
himself and manages to rescue the young woman. From that
union triplets are born; two die by drowning, and Lugh is the
sole survivor.2
The great Celtic myths have not left clear traces on Swiss
folklore; yet a curious coincidence should be mentioned. The
city of Bern, founded in 1191 by the Zaehringen family
following a successful bear hunt, is adjacent to a site called
Muri, where in 1832 a votive statuette dedicated to the
goddess Artio was discovered: she is depicted sitting, facing
a large bear, which seems to be climbing down from a tree.
To this day, the city of Bern raises bears in pits, but the
present inhabitants' affection for their ursine heraldry cannot
be connected with the goddess Artio or with any kind of
totemism. Yet various popular traditions, of which some are
still alive and others disappeared during the past few centu­
ries, must have connections with myths of ancient Switzer­
land, though it is not possible to establish whether these
myths are Celtic or Germanic. There are carnival customs
common to youth groups that existed among both the Celts
(for example, the Irish feinid) and the Norse (for example, the
Scandinavian berserkir). The "Punchiadurs" of Grisons in­
dulged in ritual combats analogous to those that took place
on the occasion of the Roman Caprotine Nones. The
Roitschegetten of Lötschental (Valais) or the Klausen of
Appenzell still indulge in a kind of wild hunt in carnival
season.
A custom still observed in Sursee (Lucerne) on Saint
Martin's Day, 11 November, consists of decapitating, blind­
fold, a goose hanging from a string; this custom cannot
merely be connected with a memory of the days of the tithe.3
Each competitor must wear a blindfold in the shape of the
sun and a loose-fitting red cape. In other places, "w ild men"
appear, whether at carnival time, in tales and legends, or on
inn signs. Sometimes they wear bear costumes. This ancient
heritage was formerly neglected because of its popular
character, and the related mythical stories were treated with
contempt like old wives' tales.4 In central Switzerland and in
Valais, legends have been recorded that correspond to the
story of the death of the great Pan told by Plutarch in his
treatise on the disappearance of the oracles. Since Switzer­
land is hardly an isolated case, Plutarch may have recorded
the Greek version of an ancient popular European theme.5
Stories about giants and dragons also show how arbitrary
it often is to speak of French or German mythology. Gargan-
OF A N C I E N T S W I T Z E R L A N D
The bear goddess Artio. Votive statuette. Bern, Historisches Mu­
seum. Museum photo.
tua has left his traces in French-speaking areas, whereas in
German-speaking Switzerland the giants have a rather Norse
look about them. All these giants really look alike. Similarly,
the legendary dragons of Switzerland remind us of Tarasques
or Mélusines as much as monsters from the Germanic epic
stories. Celtic and Norse sources, similar in background,
interpenetrate and cannot be told apart.
One Swiss theme, however, the best known by far, has
origins that must be sought in northern Europe— the theme
of William Tell.
Several historians of religions have recently demonstrated
that certain Indo-European heroes, formerly considered his­
torical characters, in fact belong to mythology. A striking
case, and probably the most recent, is that of William
(Wilhelm) Tell. It had long been noted that the stories about
Tell, Toko, Puncker, William of Cloudesly, and others were
very much alike, and it was agreed that the theme of the
remarkable archer came from a Scandinavian source. But this
case study had generally been limited to the episode of the
apple placed on the head of a child and hit with a shot from
a crossbow.6
Skill in archery was thought to have a supernatural quality.
The Malleus maleficarum devotes several pages to this subject,
and if he had actually lived, the skillful crossbowman would
certainly have brought down upon himself the thunderbolts
of the Inquisition.7 Fairies and witches were credited with
the power of unleashing magic, harmful arrows. The esoteric
symbolism of the bow and arrow may also be at play here.
Shadows also obscure the episode of Tell's escape as a
prisoner navigating a lake. Norse heroes comparable to Tell
have also escaped, but on skis. Such is the case of Toko,
Heming, and Geyti Aslaksson. Toko ends up at sea, but the
two Scandinavian deities famous for their bowmanship, the
god Ullr (Ollerus) and the goddess Skadi, move about on
skis. Furthermore, Ullr navigates on bones as well as he does
in a boat; a picture in the Historia de gentibus septentrionalibus
by Olaus Magnus illustrates the practice of supernatural
waterskiing.
243
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N
Sucellus. Viège bronze. Geneva, Musée d'Art et d'Histoire. Museum
photo.
The very name Wilhelm (helm means helmet) and the
episode of the hat shows that the headdress plays a signifi­
cant role—its magic value in several myths is well known—
and also that Tell (or Toll, i.e., crazy) by his very name
belongs to a troublesome category, that of madmen. Tell's
refusal to take off his own hat to a piece of headgear hooked
onto the end of a pole is interpreted as the political gesture of
a madman, that is, of an individual quasi-ritualistically
authorized to express popular sentiment and unpleasant
truths. This interpretation takes no account of ethnographic
or religious facts such as the worship of the symbol of a deity
placed on top of a pole (a fact mentioned by Olaus Magnus,
book 3, chapter 2), or belief in magic arrows. In this realm of
ideas, we should also mention the rock engravings of north­
ern Europe that depict horned or masked skiers and a
244
ERA
remarkable sorcerer shooting numerous arrows at another
figure.8 Nor should we forget that the fool and the archer
have played a prominent role in the British Morris dances
and mystery plays.
The story of Tell is a composite of several stories, one of
which, the skier-archer, might be of Paleo-Finnish origin. In
the nineteenth century, the historian Jean de Müller wrote
that Tell's male line of descent ended in 1684 with Jean
Martin's death, and his female line ended in 1720 with
Vérena's death. Today, this Swiss national hero has left the
bounds of history and entered, full-grown, the realm of
myth.
R.C./g.h.
NOTES
1. For the cult of the bear, see chrisunger and borgeaud. Mythologie
de la Suisse ancienne (Geneva 1963), 29ff. The excavations of the Petit
Chasseur at Sion (Valais) and those of the Carschenna (Grisons), for
example, have brought to light important documents on cultural life
prior to the Roman occupation or the arrival of the Celts, but these
documents cannot be linked to particular myths.
2. Ibid., p. 88.
3. Another game played in Switzerland, marelle (hopscotch), is
probably connected to ancient initiatory rites and to the myth of the
labyrinth (ibid., 2:107ff.).
4. This is, for example, the attitude of Apuleius with regard to the
tale of Psyche and Cupid (Metamorphoses, 4.27).
5. plutarch, De defectu oraculorum, j. muller, Sagen aus Uri (Basel
1969), 3:207-10. l . courthion , Les veillées des moyens (Geneva),
197-201.
6. Quellenwerk zur Entstehung der schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft III
Chroniken, Band 1 (Aarau 1948). H. de boor, Die nordischen, englischen
und deutschen Darstellungen des Apfelschussmotivs, m . delcourt, "The
Legend of Sarpedon and the Saga of the Archer," History of Religions
2, 1 (1962).
7. h . institoris and j. sprenger, Le marteau des sorcières (Malleus
maleficarum) (Paris 1973).
8. h . kühn , Die Felsbilder Europas (Stuttgart 1952). w. j. ravdonikas ,
Les gravures rupestres des bords du lac Onega et de la mer Blanche
(Moscow 1938), vol. 2.
M ythic E lements in F rench F olklore
It may appear surprising, if not paradoxical, that France is
covered in this book. France does not have, and probably
never has had, its own mythology in the sense of an
organized system of narratives about origins and supernat­
ural beings. The mythology of France is not really French, for
it is an emanation and complement of the Christian religion.
First, therefore, we must demonstrate the historical absence
of a "French mythology" while at the same time justifying its
presence in this work.
I. The Absence and Presence of a French Mythology
Historians caution us against any temptation to make
Celtic or, later, Roman Gaul the préfiguration of modern
France, which would thus be ihe end of a linear evolution. It
took many centuries for the political, linguistic, cultural, and
religious differences between the diverse ethnic strata to be
 M Y T H I C
effaced and for a certain national cohesion to develop.
Popular French consciousness nevertheless tends to place
the Gauls in a special position as the ancestors of the French,
but this Gallic "m yth” is of scholarly origin and does not
appear before the sixteenth century. Gallic religion, mythol­
ogy, and culture left very few material traces, and we know
that the political structures of Gaul were replaced by those of
the Romans after the conquest, and then by those of the
Franks. Latin was quickly imposed over all of the Gallic
territory, both because it was the language of the conquerors
and because it could be written. The invasions and implan­
tations of the barbarians finally drove out all that may have
remained Celtic in Gaul. It is not our purpose here to explain
the Celtic vestiges: that subject is treated in other articles in
the present work.
The instrument that turned out to be most effective in
concealing a potential and precocious French mythology was
incontestably Christianization. Its action was twofold, posi­
tive on the one hand and negative on the other. It was
negative when, over several centuries, it strove to condemn,
combat, and extirpate those beliefs and practices which the
Church held to be pagan. This struggle changed the two
known forms of such belief, through the organic processes of
rejection and assimilation. In 452 the Council of Arles con­
demns worshipers of rocks; in 538 the Synod of Auxerre
stigmatizes those who worship fountains, forests, and rocks.
In 567 the Council of Tours recommends that all those who,
before rocks, do things unrelated to the ceremonies of the
Church be driven from the Church. In the seventh century,
Saint Eligius, in the homilies related in his Vita, written by
Saint Owen, stigmatizes the practices denounced as pagan.
The continuing struggle was apparently quite ineffective,
since the Church was obliged to pursue it until well after the
Council of Trent. The assimilative method met with much
greater success, but it was a success that sometimes turned
against the victor. It consisted in Christianizing practices that
were— or were considered to be—of pagan origin. "It is the
same with sacred forests as with the Gentiles," declared Saint
Augustine; "one does not exterminate the Gentiles but one
converts them, changes them; in the same way one does not
cut down sacred groves; it is better to consecrate them to
Jesus Christ." In the same way, local deities that watch over
springs and fountains are replaced by the names of mission­
aries and local saints (Sébillot, 1904-7). From the texts of the
councils and synods that have come down to us, the essen­
tial objects of persistent paganism appear to have been
water, rocks, and forests. We may thus speak of survivals,
even though the forms of the beliefs and practices may have
changed considerably over the centuries.
Christianity acted much more positively, however, when it
offered the Gallo-Roman peoples a self-sufficient mythic and
religious system. Here we find the main reason for the
absence of a French mythology, since the needs of the
majority of the people were satisfied by the Christian system.
But because not all of the people were completely satisfied, a
number of beliefs, stories, and practices managed to slip
through the cracks of the Christian religion, while others
thrived independently, parallel to Christianity. Whether
grasped in its state of syncretism with Christianity or in an
independent state, this ensemble belongs to the domain
known as folklore. In comparison with "authorized" mythol­
ogies which are learned as relatively well organized systems,
folklore, by its very nature, often appears in pieces. To
anyone first encountering it, folklore presents itself in the
form of crumbs, debris, and fragments, in which it conceals
its mythic nature. Folklore thus carries forward those mythic
E L E M E N T S IN F R E N C H F O L K L O R E
Festival of the Tarasca at Tarascon (1946), a good example of a
popular festival inserted into the Christian liturgical calendar. Paris,
Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires. Museum photo.
materials to which Christianity and later scholarly culture
refused to give a noble expression, so that they had to appear
in seemingly harmless forms— tales, legends, beliefs, and
"popular" practices—although the inoffensive appearance of
such forms did not always shelter them from the condemna­
tion of the Church or the dominant culture.
This is, in all likelihood, the only mythology France has
known— although it does not belong to France alone in all of
its expressions, since European folklore is divided not ac­
cording to strict national boundaries but into broader areas.
An attempt has nevertheless been made to bring to light a
French mythology, by attributing Celtic origins to it: we are
referring to Henri Dontenville's work (1948). The central
character of this recovered mythology is Gargantua— not so
much Rabelais's hero as the Gargantua of a great number of
stories and beliefs which are essentially topographical. To
Gargantua is attributed the creation of numerous mountains,
hills, buttes, menhirs, lakes, swamps, etc. (Sébillot, 1883).
According to Dontenville, Gargantua is the son of the Celtic
god Belen (Bélénos), but this divine origin is demonstrated
by an etymological elaboration that lacks rigor. Other super­
natural personages, such as the fairies Morgana and Mé-
lusine, also gravitate around this mythology. It is incontest­
able that Gargantua was a popular character before becoming
a literary figure thanks to Rabelais. On the other hand, it is
quite difficult to make him the hero of a French mythic
system postulated through beliefs and accounts called sur­
vivals and vestiges. Mythology has not reached the scientific
level of linguistics, which is able to reconstruct with some
accuracy the earlier state of a language. According to Émile
Benveniste's formulation, linguistics has succeeded "in re­
storing the wholes that evolution has broken up, in bringing
buried structures to light" (Benveniste, 1969, 1:9). The sci­
ence of mythology, unlike the science of etymology, is not
ready to produce reconstructions of an earlier stage on the
basis of present-day elements: it does not have laws that
direct the evolution of mythic systems, for the evolution is
the function of too many variables for all to be studied at the
same time.
The theory that folklore consists of the vestiges of van­
ished mythologies is not a new one. Set forth more or less
explicitly earlier, the theory did not spread until the begin­
245
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN T H E C H R I S T I A N ERA

ning of the nineteenth century, when it became the founda­
tion of the vast undertaking of the brothers Grimm. The
folktales that they collected and published under the title of
Kinder- und Hausmärchen (1812-15) were thought to have
preserved the beliefs and customs of the ancient Germanic
peoples, after they had given them a poetical form which
was the product not of scholarly poetry but of "natural"
poetry which, through the intermediary of creative people,
was of divine origin. In Jacob Grimm's Deutsche Mythologie
(1835), the theory becomes more explicit. It surmises thr t a
mythology and a pantheon which were highly developed in
the pre-Roman era were destroyed by the medieval Church
and survive only in the form of the fragments found in
folklore.
While the brothers Grimm gave this theory the fame and
influence that are so well known to us, they did nothing but
express—albeit in a work of great importance—a current of
European ideas which was to be found in France from the
first quarter of the nineteenth century. The first systematic
collection of what was not yet called folklore was undertaken
by members of the Celtic Academy— transformed after 1815
into the Society of the Antiquarians of France— whose ex­
pressed goal was to collect dialects, patois, and jargons,
place names, monuments, usages, and traditions, in order to
"explicate ancient times by modern times." It was the same
doctrine—which we will call the ideology of survivals— that
governed both the French venture (which declined after
1825 -30) and that of the brothers Grimm, which was more
abundant and prolonged.
It should be noted that this current of ideas in the Europe
of the first half of the nineteenth century was characterized
by strong nationalism, as it was in France in the second half
of the century, after the research was temporarily eclipsed
between 1830 and 1860- 70. This nationalism would seek its
foundation in the camp of the Gauls and the Celts, so it was
natural that the historians and archaeologists should deter­
mine its theoretical foundation. The foundation is accepted
without discussion by folklorists such as Paul Sébillot and all
those who worked on the Review of Popular Traditions, while
the Celticists, archaeologists and historians such as Henri
Gaidoz, Alexandre Bertrand, and Alfred Maury, turn into
folklorists the better to affirm their thesis. As far as Henri
Gaidoz is concerned, refer to the article "Popular Customs
and Rituals in France,” in which one of his studies is
presented and discussed. As for Alexandre Bertrand, in his
book The Religion of the Gauls (1897) he writes the following
lines, which the brothers Grimm themselves could not have
disavowed:
the founding principle of folklore studies until recent times,
for in France it was only with the works of Arnold van
Gennep that the notion was abandoned, even though his
contemporary Pierre Saintyves continued to use it. Note that
van Gennep was a man of the soil and Saintyves was not.
Ethnology has taught us that a belief or custom can never be
a pure survival. It may sometimes be an archaism with
respect to the dominant culture, but it is never an anachro­
nism. In order to be maintained, traditions must have a
function in the culture of which they are a part. Claude
Lévi-Strauss expresses this very clearly concerning the be­
liefs and customs of Christmas:
Explanations by survivals are always incomplete; for
customs neither disappear nor survive without reason.
When they persist, the cause is to be found less in the
viscosity of history than in the permanence of a function
which modern analysis should be able to disclose. . . . We
are, with the rites of Christmas, in the presence not only
of historical vestiges, but also of forms of thinking and of
behavior which reveal more general conditions of life in
society. The Saturnalias and the medieval celebration of
Christmas do not contain the final ground for a ritual
otherwise inexplicable and devoid of meaning; but they
do offer comparative material which is useful for drawing
out the deep meaning of recurrent institutions. (Lévi-
Strauss, 1952)
Even assuming that a practice might have been preserved
without much change from Gallo-Roman antiquity to the
nineteenth century, its meaning could not be exactly the
same, since its cultural context is fundamentally dissimilar,
and the greatest differences are found in the diversity of the
religion and the economy.
Although it is inadmissible that popular beliefs, practices,
and narratives are pure vestiges or survivals of an earlier
state, they should not be divested of all reference to the past.
The past is essential not as an explanatory principle but as a
given in the material. It is a constant in folklore, at whatever
historical time one observes and collects, to be at once caught
in the present moment and reflected into a more or less
distant past. The term "popular traditions," which is some­
times used for folklore, is a good indication of the nostalgic
component of these materials. A reality observed hic et nunc
always refers to a tradition; that is, to a past. But this past is
Steps of the ages. Gangel, Metz. Paris, Musée des Arts et Traditions
populaires. Museum photo.

There exist, or there existed in human memory, in our

country, as in Ireland, Germany, and the Scandinavian
countries, old customs, old traditions, and old supersti­
tions, which are faint but still recognizable echoes of
primitive times. "Driven from their temples," H. Gaidoz
could write, "the Gallic gods took refuge in our country­
side"; we shall go in search of them. The very care taken
by the Church very early to stigmatize the old beliefs, to
anathematize them, or to Christianize them by changing
their spirit—most often without visibly modifying their
form—in its inability to uproot them, strongly attests to
the important role that they played in the country before
Christianity and to the people's lively attachment to them.
(Bertrand, 18-19)
In order to elucidate the problems arising from the con­
nections between mythology and folklore, we must criticize
the notion of survivals. Despite its fragility, it has constituted

246
 M Y T H I C
The twelve months of the year. Calendar from Epinal, Pellerin. Paris, Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires. Museum photo.
not truly historical: it is reflected from generation to genera­
tion back to distant origins which are difficult to inscribe in
history. But the quest for origins is by definition not historical
but mythic. In this sense folklore, by its very nature, includes
mythic fragments whose importance varies according to the
form and technique by which it is expressed. Clearly, popu­
lar beliefs, practices, and stories are likely to serve as vehicles
for mythic fragments. These are the three forms we have
chosen to study.
It is thus evident what separates us from the early folklor­
ists of France and Europe, but also what we hold in common.
They regarded folklore as the vestiges of ancient mytholog­
ical systems altered, mutilated, and even corrupted by the
wear of time, as archaeological monuments may be. As with
such monuments, it became necessary to submit them to
reconstruction, a mental reconstruction that would invest
them with meaning. Failing this reconstruction, "survivals"
were regarded as freaks, curiosities, if not aberrations.
Throwing them back into the past provides them with a
meaning, a meaning that cannot always be restored to them,
but which exists because it did exist: this kind of meaning
may be called retrospective.
On the other hand, we believe— without denying the
phenomena of transmission— that folkloric acts are bearers of
a present mythic component, even if this component is
viewed as ancient and archaic both by observers of the acts
and by those who practice them. It is not possible for
depictions and practices bereft of a current meaning, and
thus of a function, to continue to exist: in the case of folklore
the current sense and function are constituted by a throw­
back into the past. Curiously, this throwback is accompanied
by a feeling of extreme precariousness. All folklorists, re­
gardless of the age for which they gather folklore, insist on
the urgency of their work and on the inevitability of the
E L E M E N T S IN F R E N C H F O L K L O R E
disappearance of what they collect. The same fragility is
attributed to the collected folklore as is attributed to archae­
ological fragments which are freed from their earthly gangue
and thus likely to crumble because of their great age.
II. Popular Beliefs, Rituals, and Narratives
The forms of folklore from which we will attempt to extract
the underlying mythic forms are popular beliefs, rituals, and
narratives. It is not that folklore is manifested only in these
three forms, but they are easier to decipher than popular art,
dress, or dance, whose apparently greater technical material
and social function mask their mythic component even more.
In their techniques, popular narratives are obviously clos­
est to myths, yet are not myths, since this "fluid oral
literature" involves only folktales and legends. The folkloric
taxonomy which distinguishes them is useful from a formal
point of view inasmuch as it introduces terms of reference.
This taxonomy is certainly less clear-cut on the level of
meaning. The legend is an account which appears to be
inserted into time or space, and usually into time and space.
It presents real places and a cast of characters which are
supposed to have existed. This historico-topographical inser­
tion essentially occurs through the presence of proper
names: personal names and place names. An example is the
Charlemagne of epic legends, who is imagined to be the king
of the Franks who was crowned emperor of the West at
Aix-la-Chapelle in 800. The folktale, by contrast, appears as a
purely fictional account; people and places are impersonal,
and its temporality is not historical but narrative, i.e., inter­
nal to the account. Although popular legends and folktales
are narratives, as opposed to beliefs, rituals, and practices,
we will not examine them all together. Legends have a more
fundamental relationship with beliefs than with folktales, in
247
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

th e s e n s e th a t th e r e la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n th e m is g e n e r a t i v e : La Tarasque: Essai de description d'un fair local d’un point de vue
b e lie fs g e n e r a t e le g e n d s in f o r m s o f v a r y i n g c o m p l e x it y . A s ethnographique (Paris 1951). c .-m . edsman. Ignis divinus. Le feu comme
fo r p o p u la r fo lk ta le s , we w il l t r e a t o n l y th o s e w h ic h are moyen de rajeunissement et d’immortalité. Contes, légendes, mythes, rites
e le g a n tly , a n d rig h tly , c a lle d contes merveilleux ("s u p e rn a tu ra l
(Lund 1949). p. fortier -beaulieu , Mariages et noces campagnardes dans le
département de la Loire (Paris 1937). h . gaidoz , Études de mythologie
s to rie s " o r "fa iry ta le s "), i .e ., n u m b e rs 3 0 0 to 7 4 9 in th e
gauloise: Le dieu gaulois du soleil et le symbolisme de la roue (Paris 1886),
A a r n e a n d T h o m p s o n c la s s ific a tio n ( 1 9 6 1 ).
published first in the Revue archéologique (1884-85). c. gaignebet . Le
O f a ll o f t h e f o lk lo ric e x p r e s s i o n s , th e m o s t d iffic u lt to carnaval: Essais de mythologie populaire (Paris and Payot 1974). |. grimm
c o m p r e h e n d a r e u n d o u b t e d l y f o lk b e l i e f s , s i n c e t h e s e o f f e r and w. grimm, Kinder- und Hausmärchen, 2 vols. (Berlin 1812-15); the
th e le a s t m a te ria l s u p p o r t. T h e y a r e a ls o o f te n a p p r e h e n d e d 3d ed. (1856) includes a third volume of commentaries; often
u n d e r a fo rm o t h e r t h a n th e ir o w n : i .e ., th a t o f th e le g e n d s translated into English, e.g., m . hunt and i. stern , trans., Grimm's
th e y e n g e n d e r , o r o f th e p r a c tic e s a n d ritu a ls t h e y u n d e r lie . Fairy Tales (New York 1944). |. grimm, Deutsche Mythologie (Berlin 1835);
These p ra c tic e s a re c h a r a c te r iz e d by th e fa ct th a t th e y in English as Teutonic Mythology (London 1882-88). h . Hubert , "Étude
e x c lu d e — o r tr y to e x c lu d e — la n g u a g e , a n d o n ly u s e o b je c ts
sommaire de la représentation du temps dans la religion et la magie,"
in H. Hubert and M. Mauss, Mélanges d’histoire des religions (Paris 1909).
a n d a c ti o n s . O f c o u r s e , n o p r a c ti c e o r r itu a l h a s e v e r to ta lly
a . le BRAZ, La légende de la mort chez les Bretons armoricains, 2 vols. (Paris
e lim i n a t e d l a n g u a g e , b u t t h e w o r d s o r f o r m u la s u s e d in t h e m
1923). c. Lévi-Strauss, "Le Père Noël supplicié," Les temps modernes, no.
a r e t o b e a s s i g n e d t o w h a t C la u d e L é v i - S tr a u s s c a lls im p lic it 77 (1952); "L'analyse morphologique des contes russes," Cahiers de
m y th o lo g y . l’Institut de science économique appliquée 9 (March 1960): 3-36; reprinted in
F o rm a lly , th e s e d iv e rs e e x p r e s s io n s a r e d is tin c t fro m o n e Anthropologie structurale (Paris 1973), 2:140-73, under the title "La
a n o t h e r . F r o m th e p o in t o f v i e w o f t h e ir c o n t e n t s , th is is n o t structure et la forme." a . maury. Croyances et légendes du Moyen Age (Paris
c o m p le te ly th e c a s e . T h e re a r e s lip p a g e s fro m o n e fo rm to 18%). e . mélétinsky, "Marriage: Its Function and Position in the Struc­
a n o t h e r . A m o ti f f r o m a p o p u l a r f o lk ta le m a y b e f o u n d in a ture of Folktales," in P. Maranda, ed., Soviet Structural Folkloristics (The
l e g e n d . A p r a c ti c e r e f e r s to a b e lie f. A n o t h e r b e lie f m a y h a v e
Hague and Paris 1974), 61-72. m . monnier, "Vestiges d'antiquité ob­
servés dans le Jurassien," Mémoires de la Société des Antiquaires de France,
b e e n c o lle c te d a s a le g e n d in a n o t h e r tim e o r p la c e o r fro m
4 (1823). v. propp. Morphology of the Folk-Tale (Bloomington, IN, 1958),
a n o th e r in fo rm a n t. But th e m o st d e v e lo p e d fo rm of th e original in Russian, p. saintyves , Essais de mythologie chrétienne: Les saints
l e g e n d a llo w s fo r th e id e n tific a tio n o f a g e n e r a t i v e o r c o n ­ successeurs des dieux (Paris 1907); Les contes de Perrault et les récits parallèles
t r a c t e d c o r e , r e d u c e d t o its m o s t b a s i c e x p r e s s i o n b y a r e v e r s e (Paris 1923); En marge de la Légende dorée (Paris 1931); Corpusdu folklore des
m o v e m e n t . In th e s c h e m a o f a r itu a l, o n e m a y r e c o g n iz e th e eaux en France et dans les colonies françaises (Paris 1934); Corpus du folklore
th e m e o f a p o p u la r fo lk ta le , to w h ic h th is fo rm c le a r ly g iv e s préhistorique en France et dans les colonies françaises, 3 vols. (Paris 1934-36);
a m u c h g r e a te r fre e d o m . L'astrologie populaire (Paris 1937). p. sebii.lot . Le paganisme contemporain
T h e s e m o v e m e n ts , th e s e sh ifts, th e s e c o m in g s a n d g o in g s
chez les peuples celto-latins (Paris 1908); Gargantua dans les traditions
h ave at le a st tw o cau ses. We know fro m th e w o rk s of
populaires (Paris 1883); Le folklore de France. 4 vols. (Paris 1904-7;
reprinted Paris 1968). m . tejssier, "Recherches sur la fête annuelle de la
L é v i - S t r a u s s t h a t " m y t h i c t h o u g h t is e s s e n t i a l l y t r a n s f o r m a ­
roue flamboyante de la Saint-Jean, à Basse-Kontz, arrondissement de
t io n a l," a s te s tif ie d b y th e m y th i c f r a g m e n ts t h a t a r e c a r r ie d Thionville," Mémoires de la Société des Antiquaires de France 5 (1823):
in t h i s w a y . T h e o t h e r c a u s e i s t h e p a r t i c u l a r n a t u r e o f t h i s 379-93. a . VAN GENNEP, The Rites of Passage (Chicago 1960; originally Paris
m y th o lo g y " i n c r u m b s ," w h ic h c o u l d n o t b e e x p r e s s e d in th e 1909); Le folklore (Paris 1924); Le folklore de la Bourgogne: Côte d'Or,
fo rm o f a c o h e r e n t w h o le b e c a u s e C h ris tia n ity o c c u p ie d , a n d Contributions au folklore des provinces de France (Paris 1934); Manuel
n o t w ith o u t a c e rta in a g g r e s s io n , a lm o s t th e e n tir e a u th o ­ de folklore français contemporain (Paris 1937-58); in books 3 and 4 there is
r i z e d fi e ld o f e x p r e s s i o n . F o r c e d t o b e f r a g m e n t e d in o r d e r t o a systematic and critical bibliography on the folklore of France, a .
varagnac . Civilisation traditionnelle et genres de vie (Paris 1948).
be e x p re sse d , th is "im p lic it" m y th o lo g y b ecam e p erh ap s
e v e n m o r e f l u id t h a n t h e o t h e r s . Journals
In s p ite o f its f u n d a m e n ta l flu id ity , we w ill a t t e m p t t o
Mélusine: Recueil de mythologie. Littérature populaire, traditions et
g r a s p its m o s t i m p o r t a n t a s p e c t s u n d e r t h e f o llo w in g r u b r ic s : usages. Founded by H. Gaidoz and E. Rolland in 1877 (10 vols,
" F r e n c h F a ir y T a le s , F o lk ta le s , a n d M y t h s " ; " F o lk B e lie fs a n d between 1877 and 1912).
L e g e n d s a b o u t F a ir ie s in F ran ce"; and "P o p u la r C u sto m s Revue des traditions populaires. Founded by P. Sébillot in 1886 (32
a n d R itu a ls in F r a n c e ." vols, through 1918).
N .B ./ d .w . Revue d’ethnographie et des traditions populaires. Founded by
M. Delafosse in 1920 (10 vols, through 1929).
Revue de folklore français et de folklore colonial. Edited by P. Saintyves
(13 vols., 1930-42).
Arts et traditions populaires. Journal of the Société d'ethnographie
française (1953-70).
BIBLIOGRAPHY Ethnologie française. Journal of the Société d'ethnologie française.
Founded in 1971.
a . aarne and s. Thompson, The Types of the Folk-Tale: A Classification and
Bibliography (Helsinki 1961). a . audin , "Les rites solsticiaux et la
légende de S. Pothin," Revue de l'histoire de religions 96 (1927): 147-74.
N. Belmont , Mythes et croyances dans l'ancienne France (Paris 1973).
E. benveniste, Le vocabulaire des institutions indo-européennes. 2 vols.
(Paris 1969). a . Bertrand, La religion des Gaulois: Les druides et le F r en c h F a ir y T a les, F o lk ta l e s , and M yths
druidisme (Paris 1897). |. f . bladé, Contes populaires de la Gascogne. 3
vols. (Paris 1886). r. delarue , "Les caractères propres du conte
populaire français," La pensée, no. 72 (March-April 1957), 39-62. p. V l a d im ir P r o p p 's c o n t r ib u t io n t o t h e s t u d y o f t h e f o lk t a le ,
deiaru e and M. L. TENEZE, Le conte populaire français, 2 vols. (Paris
e s p e c i a l l y t o t h e s t u d y o f t h e t a l e a s m y t h , is b o t h i m p o r t a n t
1957-64). D. DERCNY, Usages, coutumes et croyances, 2 vols. (Abbeville
a n d u n s a t i s f y in g . H is w e ll - k n o w n a n a l y s is o f t h e f u n c t i o n s
1885-88; 2d ed., Brionne 1971). h . dontenville, La mythologie française
o f th e f o lk ta le p ro v id e d th e fu n d a m e n ta l sch em a fo r th e
(Paris 1948). c. dubois. Celtes et Gaulois au XVT siècle: Le développement
littéraire d’un mythe nationaliste (Paris 1972). c. Dum ézil , Légendes sur les f o lk ta le but at th e sam e tim e c o n s titu te d a re d u ctio n ist
Nartes (Paris 1930); Mythe et épopée, 3 vols. (Paris 1968-73). l . dumont. a p p r o a c h . A n d w h ile P r o p p is c o n v i n c e d t h a t th e fa ir y ta le

248
 F R E N C H F A I R Y T A L E S , F O L K T A L E S , A N D M Y T H S

derives from myth, he sees this process as what could be

called devolutionist. Propp's works on this problem are not
sufficiently known in France, but what he says here and
there in his Morphology of the Folktale is explicit enough. “If we
define these tales from a historical point of view, they
deserve the old, now abandoned, name of mythical tales" (p.
122, alluding to Wilhelm Wundt's terms Mythusmärchen and
Märchenmythus). The tale derives from the myth through the
intermediary of an historical evolution: “It is quite possible
that there is a relationship, governed by laws, between the
archaic forms of culture and religion on the one hand, and
between religion and folktales on the other hand. A culture
dies, a religion dies, and their content is transformed into a
folktale. The traces of archaic religious representations that
are preserved in folktales are so obvious that they can be
isolated before any historical study" (pp. 131-32).
Once more we find the historical problematic as the
theoretical foundation of folklore. Unfortunately, there is
Wedding party leaving a church. Lithograph, Laruns. Paris, Musée
nothing to indicate that French fairy tales are derived from des Arts et Traditions populaires. Museum photo.
ancient religion and mythology, either Celtic or Gallo-
Roman. We know, on the other hand, that they are variants
of tales found throughout the Indo-European domain, so
their origin goes back much earlier, perhaps to the beginning
of the Neolithic—in which case we cannot say anything
about them at all. On the other hand, if one is willing to
admit that fairy tales include still-meaningful mythical frag­
ments within a structure that has lost its coherence, then an
attempt at decoding becomes possible.
Another Russian formalist, E. Meletinsky, sees the oppo­
sition between myth and folktale as based on an opposition
between the collective and the individual: the myth is con­
cerned with the collective fate of the universe, of human­
ity, of the local community, while the folktale is concerned
with the fate of individuals. This remark is very helpful and
does not contradict Claude Lévi-Strauss's proposition that
the difference between myth and folktale is a difference of
degree. On the one hand, “folktales are built on weaker
oppositions than those of myths: not cosmological, meta­
physical, or natural, but more often local, social, or moral "Mardi Gras is dead; Shrovetide follows without regret." Paris,
ones"; on the other hand the folktale “is less subject than the Musée des Arts et Traditions popularies. Museum photo.
myth to the triple exigencies of logical coherence, religious
orthodoxy, and collective pressure. . . . The folktale's per­
mutations become relatively freer and progressively acquire
a certain arbitrariness" (1960). Folktales may be considered motif makes it possible to divide them into two groups. The
myths that are weakened in their structure and expression, young hero's journey is provoked either by an unknown
but this does not make the meaning of their content any less person who asks him to bear a message to the other world or
mythic. It is only harder to grasp. by his decision to visit his sister, who is married to a foreigner
In this analysis of the contents of French fairy tales, which who took her to a distant land. We will summarize what
represents only a preliminary outline, we will make use of a seem to be the richest versions from the second group.
remark of Propp's. In the Morphology of the Folktale he says A girl who does not want to get married finally marries a
"The voyage, one of the main structural foundations of the foreigner, who appears in different guises depending on the
folktale, is the reflection of certain representations of the version: a young man dressed all in white and as handsome
voyages of the soul into the other world" (p. 132). The motif as an angel; a beggar, when she is the king's daughter; the
of the voyage, particularly the voyage into the other world— Ankou, death personified, in a Breton version; a magnifi­
but is it just one motif among others, or is it rather the very cently dressed lord who turns out to be a dead man; a young
essence of the fairy tale?— sometimes appears quite explic­ man as bright as the sun; a man with red teeth, or simply the
itly, sometimes more obscurely, and sometimes in an insig­ Sun in person. After the wedding he takes her far away to his
nificant guise. It certainly reflects an eschatology which, in kingdom. Her brother decides to visit her, but his journey
spite of sometimes having a Christian appearance, has little turns out to be long, difficult, and full of challenges and
to do with Christianity. strange spectacles. When he arrives at the castle where his
One tale type (T471, The Bridge to the Other World in the sister lives, she tells him that her husband is gone all day
Aarne-Thompson classification) has the French name of the long, leaving early in the morning and only coming back in
Voyage dans l'autre monde (journey into the other world). Its the evening. The husband agrees to let his brother-in-law go
distribution in France is uneven: sixteen of the twenty-six with him on this daily trip, on condition that he remain
known versions are from Brittany, seven others are from completely silent while they travel. In some versions it is
Gascony, and the others from Alsace and Nevers. The initial during this journey that he sees strange spectacles whose

249
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

Mardi Gras procession. Woodcut (Second Empire). Paris, Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires. Museum photo.

meaning is revealed to him only when he comes back in the

evening: these are always Christian allegories, the main one
being that he visits Heaven and sees Purgatory and Hell as
he goes by them. He returns to his village; certain versions
indicate that his voyage seemed short to him but really lasted
several hundred years. He dies soon after his return.
The archaic appearance of this tale is especially striking in
the least-Christianized versions. It readily evokes cosmog­
onic myths, since we understand that the husband of the
hero's sister is the Sun, even in the most Christianized
versions in which he is not designated as such: his daily trip
is sufficiently explicit in this respect. The Christianization of
the story has caused a shift in the axis of the narrative: it is no
longer centered on the marriage with the Sun, which now
serves as a subsidiary motif to the Christian journey of the
hero.
This fairy tale, perhaps better than any other, gives the
impression of being the result of a complex labor of stratifi­
cation. Around its archaic kernel (the motif of the Sun, his
wife, and his daily journey) Christian allegorical motifs have
been assembled, most of which were probably created in the
Middle Ages, at the time of the formation and fixing of the
representations and images concerning the triple localization
of the world beyond, in Heaven, Purgatory, and Hell. The
form proper to the fairy tale has included all of these motifs
within a single narrative.
Among the other archaicizing traits of the story, note the
motif of the journey itself, which is used to express a
temporal problematic. The voyage to the other world, that is,
a spatial displacement, has the function of translating a
temporal category, that of eternity. We have said that in
certain versions the time the hero spent in the other world
seemed very short to him, but in fact he had spent several
centuries there. No one recognizes him when he comes back
Handing on the distaff to the new bride. Sketch by Jules Lecoeur in
to his village: "They looked in the old record books and Le Monde illustré of 1865. Paris, Musée des Arts et Traditions
found that about three hundred years earlier there had been populaires. Museum photo.
a family of that name which had since completely died out."
This way of expressing time by space and the unfolding of
time by displacement in space are used a second time in the
tale. For the husband, the Sun (whether he is named as such and which is revealed only in written documents (inscrip­
or not), goes on a daily journey which requires him to leave tions in record books or on tombstones), the image of
early in the morning and return only in the evening. The eternity. The time of a human life lies in between these two
story rarely justifies these regular absences; if it does so, it times, one of which is periodic and the other, by definition,
says that he goes around the world, or that he goes to not periodic. It shares something of the qualities of both: it is
Heaven. The daily displacement thus expresses a daily periodic in the sense that generations follow one another but
periodicity, while the hero's long and laborious journey is of a longer periodicity than the succession of days and
conveys, by contrast, a long duration, covering several nights, though its prolongation never lasts until its abolition,
generations, which is too much for human memory to master that is, for eternity. In most of the versions, the end of the

250
 F R E N C H F A I R Y T A L E S , F O L K T A L E S , AND M Y TH S

h e r o 's jo u r n e y a n d ( s o m e ti m e s ) h is r e tu r n h o m e a r e fo llo w e d d u r i n g th e ir life tim e s , o r t w o q u a r r e lin g s p o u s e s . T h e m o tif

b y h is d e a th , w h ic h is t h e p ro m is e o f th e e te rn a l jo y s o f o f tw o o b je c ts th a t c ra s h to g e th e r v io le n tly , and th ro u g h
H e a v e n fo r h im — s in c e a t th is p o in t C h r is tia n ity ta k e s o v e r w h i c h t h e h e r o m u s t p a s s — t h e r o c k s o f t h e S y m p l e g a d e s — is
th e n a rra tiv e a g a in . f o u n d in a g r e a t n u m b e r o f m y t h o l o g i e s a n d d e s i g n a t e s t h e
T h e m y t h i c c h a r a c t e r o f t h e p r i n c i p a l m o t i f s o f t h e t a l e is p e r i l o u s e n t r a n c e t o t h e o t h e r w o r l d . In w h a t is c e r t a i n l y a
b e y o n d d o u b t . If n e c e s s a r y , w e c a n c o n f i r m t h i s b y c o m p a r ­ w e a k e n e d f o r m , w e f i n d it b o t h i n t h e F r e n c h f o l k t a l e a n d in
in g th e ta le w ith a s to r y c o lle c te d am ong th e O s s e ts , a th e C a u c a s ia n le g e n d .
p o p u la tio n o f th e n o r t h e r n C a u c a s u s , a m o n g w h o m a p ie c e B o th o f t h e s e n a r r a t iv e s , th e n , b r in g t o g e th e r c o m p a r a b l e
o f a n c ie n t In d o -E u ro p e a n m y th o lo g y has s u rv iv e d in th e o r s i m i l a r m o t i f s t o t e ll t h e s t o r y o f a v o y a g e t o t h e o t h e r
fo rm o f le g e n d s a b o u t p e o p le c a lle d th e N a r ts (D u m é z il 1 9 3 0 w o r l d , w h ile e a c h o r d e r s t h e m o tif s in a s o m e w h a t d if f e r e n t
a n d 1 9 6 8 - 7 3 , a n d " P o p u l a r C u s t o m s a n d R i t u a l s in F r a n c e " ) . w a y . W h ile th e C a u c a s ia n l e g e n d s h a v e p r o b a b ly u n d e r g o n e
S o z r y k o , t h e h e r o o f t h e s t o r y , is e q u a l l y w e l l k n o w n a m o n g l e s s r e m o d e l i n g t h a n t h e f o l k t a l e s in r e l a t i o n t o t h e a n c i e n t
th e p o p u la tio n s n e ig h b o rin g th e O s s e ts , th e C h e c h e n s a n d s to c k o f In d o -E u ro p e a n m y th o lo g y , th e y p ro b a b ly do not
K a b a r d i n ia n s . T h e ta le p o s s e s s e s o b v io u s s o l a r tr a its . r e p r e s e n t a n a r c h a i c , o r ig in a l , a n d p r i m it i v e s t a t e in c o m p a r ­
O ne day w h ile h u n tin g , S o z ry k o p u rsu e s a h are and is o n w ith th e f o lk ta le s : th e C a u c a s ia n s to r ie s h a v e a t le a st
s h o o t s a ll h i s a r r o w s a t i t, b u t it v a n i s h e s b e f o r e h is v e r y u n d e r g o n e a c o n s i d e r a b l e c h a n g e in f o r m , s in c e th e y h a v e
e y e s . T h e h u n t le a d s h im in to th e B la ck M o u n ta in s , to a b la ck p a s s e d fro m m y th to le g e n d . B u t th e c o m p a r is o n s h o w s th a t
c a s tle o f iro n , w h e r e th e d a u g h te r o f th e S u n d w e lls , g u a r d e d th e c o m m o n th e m e a n d m o tifs o f th e t w o s to r ie s a r e in d e e d
b y h e r s e v e n b r o th e r s . H e im m e d ia te ly a s k s fo r h e r h a n d , m y t h i c , e v e n if t h e i r f o r m i s n o t .
w h ic h is g r a n t e d to h im o n t w o c o n d it i o n s : h e m u s t b r in g a T h e th e m e o f th e v o y a g e to th e o th e r w o rld o c c u p ie s th e
h u n d r e d d e e r , a h u n d r e d w ild s h e e p , a n d a h u n d r e d h e a d o f w h o le n a r r a tiv e space o f th is p a r t ic u la r s to r y . B u t it a l s o
v a r i o u s k i n d s o f g a m e ; a n d h e m u s t fill t h e f o u r q u a r t e r s o f a p p e a r s f r e q u e n t l y i n o t h e r F r e n c h f a i r y t a l e s , w h e r e it d o e s
th e c a s t le w ith l e a v e s f r o m t h e A z a t r e e , a tr e e o f h e a v e n . H is not p resen t th e sam e irre v e r s ib le ch a ra cte r and is o f te n
m o th e r a d v i s e s S o z r y k o to g o first to th e M a s te r o f G a m e a n d lin k e d i n s t e a d t o t h e q u e s t fo r, o r a r e c o n q u e s t o f , a h u s b a n d
t h e n t o h i s o w n f i r s t w i f e , n o w d e a d , w h o w ill a s k t h e M a s t e r o r w ife .
o f th e D e a d fo r th e le a v e s . H e s e ts o u t fo r th e la n d o f th e In The Love of Three Oranges ( T 4 0 8 ) , th e in itia l e x p lic it m o tif
d e a d ; o n h is w a y h e s e e s s tr a n g e s p e c t a c l e s w h o s e m e a n in g is t h e q u e s t f o r a w i f e .
h e d o e s n o t u n d e r s t a n d : a m a n a n d a w o m a n ly in g u n d e r th e A y o u n g p r in c e b r e a k s a c o n t a in e r th a t b e lo n g s to a n o ld
s k i n o f a b u ll w h i c h , a l t h o u g h it is e n o r m o u s , c a n n o t c o v e r w o m a n ; s h e p u ts a c u r s e o n h i m : h e w il l n e v e r b e h a p p y
th e o n e w it h o u t u n c o v e r i n g th e o th e r , w h ile f a r th e r a l o n g h e u n til h e f in d s a n d m a r r i e s th e L o v e o f T h r e e O r a n g e s ; o r e l s e
s e e s a n o t h e r c o u p l e w h o fit c o m f o r t a b l y u n d e r t h e s k i n o f a h e d e s i r e s t o m a r r y a g i r l w h o is " r o s y , b l a c k , a n d w h i t e " ; o r
h a re ; he sees tw o sh o es, one of g o a ts k in , th e o th e r of e lse he s im p ly w a n ts to get m a rrie d . He goes off o n h is
p ig s k in , fig h tin g and ju m p in g on one a n o th e r. W hen he s e a r c h ; h e w a lk s fo r m o n t h s o r y e a r s a n d fin a lly m e e t s o n e o r
fin a lly r e a c h e s h is l a te w ife s h e e x p l a in s th e m e a n i n g o f th e m o re su p e rn a tu ra l b e in g s (th e M o th e r of th e W in d s, fo r
s tr a n g e v is io n s : th e y a r e th e p u n is h m e n ts a n d re w a rd s fo r e x a m p l e ) w h o a d v is e h im to a r m h im s e lf w ith c e r ta in o b je c ts :
a c tio n s o n e a r t h . B u t o t h e r e n c o u n te r s a r e a lle g o r ie s fo r th e t h e i r u s e f u l n e s s w il l b e r e v e a l e d a t t h e c a s t l e w h e r e t h e o l d
fu tu re : th e p u p p ie s ly in g o n a h e a p o f ra g s w h o b a rk e d a t w o m a n w ith th e t h r e e o r a n g e s liv e s . H e a r r i v e s t h e r e a f t e r a n
h i m w e r e a n n o u n c i n g t h e c o m i n g i n s o l e n c e o f t h e y o u n g . In e x h a u stin g voyage, and th a n k s to th e o b je c ts , w h ic h a re
a d d itio n , h is w ife g iv e s h im th e le a v e s fro m th e tre e of e x a c tl y ri g h t fo r th e jo b , m a n a g e s to g e t to th e o ld w o m a n 's
h e a v e n . T o s h a k e o f f th e d e a d w h o try to fo llo w h im b a c k , ro o m ; h e s te a ls th e th re e o r a n g e s fro m h e r a n d ru n s aw ay .
S o z r y k o s h o e s h is h o r s e b a c k w a r d a n d b u rsts th ro u g h th e O n th e w a y b a c k h e c u t s o n e o f th e t h r e e o r a n g e s in t w o , a n d
g a te s o f th e in fe rn a l k in g d o m . W ith h is g a m e a n d h is l e a v e s a m a r v e lo u s ly b e a u t i f u l g i r l c o m e s o u t o f i t, a s k s h i m fo r
h e r e t u r n s to th e c a s tle o f th e s e v e n b r o t h e r s , w h o g iv e h im s o m e th in g to d rin k , a n d d ie s , s in c e h e h a s n o w a te r to g iv e
t h e i r s i s t e r , t h e d a u g h t e r o f t h e S u n , in m a r r i a g e ( D u m é z i l , h e r. T h e s a m e th in g h a p p e n s w ith th e s e c o n d o r a n g e , s o h e
1 9 3 0 , n o . 2 8 ). w a it s u n til h e f in d s a f o u n t a i n to o p e n th e t h ir d . T h is t im e
D e s p i t e a g r e a t d e a l o f r e m o d e l i n g , t h i s n a r r a t i v e is h i g h l y th e g irl q u e n c h e s h e r th ir s t a n d s u r v i v e s . B u t h e le a v e s h e r
e v o c a t i v e o f t h e F r e n c h f o lk ta le v e r s i o n o f th e " j o u r n e y i n to b y t h e f o u n t a i n in o r d e r t o g o a n d f i n d c l o t h i n g a n d o r n a ­
th e o t h e r w o r l d ." T h e s a m e c h a r a c t e r s a p p e a r , a l th o u g h th e ir m e n t s f o r h e r w o r t h y o f t h e r a n k s h e is g o i n g t o h a v e . D u r i n g
d is t r ib u t io n is d i f f e r e n t: a g ir l, s is te r , w if e o r f u t u r e w if e , a h is a b s e n c e a w itc h , b la ck w o m a n , o r M o o r is h w o m a n ta k e s
b r o t h e r o r b r o t h e r s , a h e r o w h o i s c l e a r l y s o l a r in t h e F r e n c h h e r p la c e a f te r tu rn in g th e g irl in to a d o v e o r a fish . T h e
s t o r y , w h o h a s s o l a r t r a i t s if w e c o n s i d e r t h e w h o l e s e t o f p r in c e , s u r p r is e d to fin d h e r s o u g ly , m a r r i e s h e r a n y w a y , o r
C a u c a s ia n s to rie s about h im . A ll of th e se c h a ra cte rs a re g e ts r e a d y to m a r r y h e r, s in c e s h e b la m e s h e r tra n s f o r m a tio n
i n v o l v e d in a v o y a g e t o t h e w o r l d b e y o n d . In b o t h c a s e s t h e o n h e r l o n g w a i t . B u t t h e d o v e a t t r a c t s t h e p r i n c e 's a t t e n t i o n ,
j o u r n e y is c r o w d e d w i t h s t r a n g e s p e c t a c l e s w h i c h a r e o n l y a n d h e b re a k s h e r e n c h a n tm e n t.
e x p la in e d a f te r w a r d in th e f o rm o f a lle g o r ie s . T h e a lle g o r ie s T h i s l o v e l y t a l e i s t y p i c a l o f t h e s t o r i e s o f t h e q u e s t . T h a t it
are not at a ll th e sam e in th e Fren ch f o lk ta le and th e is a j o u r n e y i n t o t h e o t h e r w o r l d is h a r d l y in d o u b t : t h e g r e a t
C a u c a s ia n le g e n d , a lth o u g h th e r e a r e e l e m e n ts c o m m o n to l e n g t h o f th e j o u r n e y , its d if f ic u ltie s , a n d th e m e e t in g s w ith
b o th , s u c h a s th e c o u p le u n ite d o r d iv id e d o n th e g r o u n d , o r s u p e r n a t u r a l c h a r a c t e r s m a r k it c l e a r l y , a s d o e s t h e m a r v e l ­
th e b a ttle o f th e t w o s h o e s , w h ic h is w o r t h c o m p a r i n g w ith o u s o r ig in o f th e g irl w hom h e d e sire s. In d eed , th e very
o n e o f t h e e n c o u n t e r s in th e F r e n c h ta le . M o s t v e r s i o n s o f m o t i v e o f t h e j o u r n e y is d e s i r e , d e s i r e f o r a w o m a n w i t h o u t
th a t ta le s a y th a t th e h e r o fin d s h is w a y b lo c k e d b y tw o g o a t s even k n o w in g w h e th e r s h e e x ists, d e s ire in flicte d on th e
v io le n tly b u ttin g th e ir h e a d s t o g e th e r , r a v e n s fie rc e ly f ig h t­ h ero by an o ld w om an. In th is s e n s e w e can speak of a
in g , t w o tr e e s b a n g in g t o g e th e r w ith s u c h fu ry th a t p ie c e s o f j o u r n e y o f i n i t i a t i o n , if i n i t i a t i o n c o n s i s t s o f t h e a d o l e s c e n t ' s
w ood sh o o t o u t o f th e m , and tw o s to n e s sm a sh in g each te a rin g h im s e lf a w a y fro m th e in flu e n c e o f h is m o th e r to
o t h e r b ru ta lly . A c c o r d in g to th e e x p la n a tio n a t th e e n d o f th e b e c o m e in te g ra te d i n to th e s o c ie t y o f m e n . S u c c e s s in th is
s to r y , t h e s e a r e g e n e r a lly tw o b r o t h e r s w h o w e r e e n e m i e s tra n s itio n a l p assage is re w a rd e d w ith th e p o s s ib ility of

251
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN T H E C H R I S T I A N ERA

marriage. In so-called primitive societies, this passage takes promises to help her in the day of her greatest need. Seven
place by means of rituals that are often demanding, long, years, less one day, pass, and that night the girl decides to
and complex. European societies, on the other hand, in see what her husband looks like. He is as beautiful as the
which initiation rites as such have never existed or have not day. She brings the candle closer, and a drop of wax falls onto
existed for a very long rime, nevertheless maintain the idea him; he wakes up and sadly tells her that since she has
of an initiation, a purely imaginary one, since it appears violated the prohibition, he has fallen back into the power of
more or less clearly in folktales. The initiation essentially the sorceror. The sorceror chains him to the peak of a high
consists of a journey, beginning with a departure from home mountain on an island and sets two wolves to guard him:
in which can be seen the symbolic rupture of the Oedipal one is white and keeps watch during the day; the other is
ties. The voyage leads to another world which is not neces­ black and keeps watch at night. The young wife leaves the
sarily conceived of as a world of the dead: strictly speaking, castle and goes back to the old washerwoman's cottage. The
it is a world that lies beyond the human world. A young washerwoman tells her where her husband is being held
Ojibwa Indian leaves his family and village to retire to a prisoner and gives her magical objects: an inexhaustible sack
deserted place where he fasts and meditates until a super­ and an inexhaustible gourd, iron slippers, and a golden knife
natural being appears to him and becomes his guardian for cutting "the blue grass, the grass that sings night and
spirit. In fact, all initiation rituals have a phase in which the day, the grass that breaks iron." When her slippers break, it
initiate is supposed to be dead, that is, they always include a will be almost time for her to rescue her husband. She w'alks
passage to the world beyond. for one year through the land "where there is neither night
The theme of the voyage in fairy tales thus represents, on
the one hand, the adolescent's flight from and break with his
Oedipal feelings and, on the other hand, the winning of
"Fairy tales." Cover of a chapbook. Woodcut. Épinal, Pellerin. Paris,
magical objects and a beautiful bride who brings gifts; she is Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires. Museum photo.
often the daughter of a king. The journey is thus charged
with the possibility for him to become a hero, often by
triumphing over his own brothers: thus in the version of The
Love of Three Oranges from Guyenne, only the youngest of the
three brothers receives from an old woman the fm its (here
they are apples) containing the marvelous young women,
since only he was kind to her; his two older brothers, who set
off with him “to seek their fortune as if it were something
you could pick up along the side of the road," come back
empty-handed, since they refused to help the old woman in
distress.
In all these tales the hero is male. Are there any in which
he is replaced by a heroine, and do they show the same
narrative pattern? There are, of course, stories in which the
main character is a girl or a young woman, but while they too
contain the motif of the voyage to the world beyond, their
lesson is quite different. The most important of these tales in
terms of the number of versions and the beauty, variety, and
richness of the story is entitled The Search for the Lost Husband
(T425). The ancient story of Psyche as told by Apuleius in The
Golden Ass is one of its European forms, although it is not the
prototype. Beauty and the Beast is another of its forms. Here is
the version from Gascony collected by J. F. Blade (1886).
A Green Man with one eye has three daughters, each more
beautiful than the next. One evening the King of the Ravens
comes to ask for one of the daughters in marriage, and to
force him to agree he puts out the Green Man's one eye. The
youngest daughter accepts him in order to restore her
father's sight; the marriage is celebrated and the bridegroom
carries her off to his castle, which lies three thousand leagues
away, "in the land of cold, in the land of ice, where there are
no trees or greenery." At midnight, in the darkness, the King
of the Ravens reveals that he and his people were changed
into ravens by a sorceror. His penance must last for seven
more years, and until then his bride must not try to see him
at night when he takes off his feather clothing and lies down
next to her, separated by a sword. In the morning before
daybreak he gets up and goes out. Ouring the day the poor
bride wanders around, always alone, in the ice and snow;
but one day she comes to a poor hut; next to it a wrinkled old
woman is washing linens as black as soot and singing a
refrain that says she is waiting for the "married virgin" to
come. The girl helps her wash her clothes, which become as
white as milk. The old woman foretells trials for her, but
 F O L K B E L I E F S AND L E G E N D S A B O U T F A I R I E S IN F R A N C E

nor m o o n lig h t, w h e re th e sun a lw a y s s h in e s ” ; th e n fo r r i a g e r e p l a c e s i n i t i a t i o n . H e r z e a l t o s e r v e h e r h u s b a n d is f o r

a n o t h e r y e a r in th e la n d "w h ere th e re is n e i th e r d a y nor h e r w h a t s tu d y a n d d is c ip lin e u n d e r th e B r a h m a n a r e fo r a
n ig h t, w h e r e th e m o o n a l w a y s s h i n e s " ; fin a lly f o r a t h ird m a n , h e r c a r e in k e e p i n g h o u s e is e q u i v a l e n t t o h i s m a i n t e ­
y e a r in t h e l a n d " w h e r e t h e r e is n e i t h e r s u n n o r m o o n , a n d n a n c e o f th e s a c r e d f i r e ." F o r th e w o m a n m u s t tr a n s f o r m th e
it is a l w a y s n i g h t . " T h e r e s h e f i n d s t h e g r a s s t h a t c u t s i r o n : a tta c h m e n t she has to her fa th e r in to a ffe c tio n fo r and
h e r iro n s lip p e r s a r e b r o k e n . S h e g a t h e r s th e g r a s s a n d s e ts d e v o ti o n to h e r h u s b a n d , w h o a p p e a r s t o h e r , in a p a t r ia r c h a l
o f f a g a i n , w a lk in g u n til s h e fin d s t h e s u n . A t th e e d g e o f th e s o c ie ty l ik e th a t of th e a n cie n t In d o -E u ro p e a n s and th e
se a s h e ta k e s a b o a t, d ise m b a rk s o n th e isla n d w h e re h er c u l t u r e s t h a t d e v e l o p e d f r o m it, a s a h o r r if y i n g m o n s t e r . O n e
h u s b a n d is b e i n g h e ld p r i s o n e r , p u ts th e w o l v e s t o s le e p w ith o f th e f o r m s o f t h e p ro h ib itio n l a id d o w n by h e r h u sb an d
t h e s i n g i n g g r a s s , k i ll s t h e m w ith th e g o ld e n k n if e , b r e a k s c o n s i s t s , in a f a irly l a r g e n u m b e r o f v e r s i o n s , o f n o t s ta y in g
th e c h a in o f s e v e n h u n d r e d w e i g h t w ith th e g r a s s th a t b r e a k s t o o l o n g w ith h e r fa m ily w h e n s h e g o e s to v is it t h e m , a s s h e
i r o n , a n d f r e e s h e r h u s b a n d a n d a ll h i s p e o p l e , w h o h a d b e e n is p e r m i tt e d to d o a f t e r h e r m a r r i a g e . S h e o b e y s th is ru le
t u r n e d in to r a v e n s . o n c e , t w ic e , b u t th e th ird tim e s h e g o e s s h e f o r g e ts th e tim e .
In t h i s s t o r y , t h e n , it is t h e y o u n g g i r l w h o m u s t u n d e r t a k e T h a t is, th e tab o o th e h e ro in e tra n sg re sse s is t h a t a g a i n s t
th e jo u rn e y to th e w o rld beyond, c h a ra c te riz e d in th is r e m a in in g to o a t ta c h e d to h e r n a ta l fa m ily . A s p u n is h m e n t
v e rsio n by c o ld , ice , d a rk n e ss, e m p tin e s s , and g r e a t d is ­ s h e m u s t s u f f e r a lo n g tria l to w in h e r h u s b a n d b a c k a n d s o
ta n ce . But u n lik e w hat we see w hen th e h ero is m a le , t o p r o v e h e r d e v o t i o n t o h i m . In p a t r i l i n e a l s o c i e t i e s , s u c h a s
m a r r i a g e is n o t t h e r e s u l t o f t h e a d v e n t u r e , i t s c r o w n a n d In d o -E u r o p e a n s o c ie tie s p a s t a n d p r e s e n t, b rid e s a r e u s u a lly
re w a rd : m a rria g e re p re s e n ts , ra th e r, s o m e th in g a lre a d y fo re ig n e rs : th e y com e fro m a d iffe re n t fa m ily , a d iffe re n t
g iv e n a t th e b e g in n in g o f th e n a r r a tiv e . F o r th e h e r o in e th e lin e a g e . T h e y a r e in tr o d u c e d i n to a fa m ily t h a t is n o t t h e ir
m a r r i a g e is a c q u i r e d a l m o s t f r o m t h e s t a r t , b u t it a p p e a r s t o ow n t o fu lf ill a d u t y t h a t is e s s e n t ia l t o t h e f u t u r e o f th is
b e a n u n h a p p y u n io n w ith a re p u ls iv e c r e a tu r e , a m o n s t r o u s f a m i l y , i . e . , t o b e a r c h i l d r e n . It i s t h u s n e c e s s a r y t o t e s t t h e i r
a n i m a l , w h o m s h e a g r e e s t o m a r r y t h r o u g h f ilia l p i e t y t o f r e e l o y a l t y , d e v o t i o n , a n d z e a l t o w a r d t h e i r h u s b a n d s ; t h i s t r ia l
h e r f a th e r f ro m a te rrib le e v il o r e v e n to s a v e h im fro m d e a t h . c o n s t i tu t e s th e ir in itia tio n w h ic h , u n lik e th a t o f th e b o y , ta k e s
B y o v e r c o m i n g a t e r r i b l e t r ia l s h e s u c c e e d s i n t r a n s f o r m i n g p la ce at th e tim e of m arria g e . T h is in itia tio n , w h ic h has
th e m o n s t r o u s m a r r ia g e in to a h a p p y u n io n w ith a p r in c e " a s d isa p p e a re d fro m th e ritu a ls o f th e I n d o - E u r o p e a n p e o p le s
b e a u tifu l a s th e d a y ." B u t first s h e v io la te s a p r o h ib itio n , a n d ( a s s u m i n g t h a t it e v e r e x i s t e d ) , i s n o l o n g e r p r e s e n t e x c e p t in
th is g r e a tl y d e l a y s h e r fin a l h a p p in e s s . th e p o p u l a r r e a lm o f th e i m a g i n a r y , in th e m y th s u n d e r ly i n g
W e s e e t h e n t h a t th e le s s o n o f th is s t o r y is d i f f e r e n t fr o m th e ir fa iry ta le s . The m o tif of th e voyage to th e w o rld
t h o s e in w h i c h t h e h e r o i s m a l e . T h e a d o l e s c e n t b o y m u s t beyond, w h ic h th u s g o e s b ack to th e in itia tio n of you n g
u n d e r g o a n in itia tio n b e f o r e h e c a n fin d a b rid e a n d a c c e d e to p e o p le , g irls o r b o y s , is n o t , o f c o u r s e , th e o n ly m y th ic a l
th e m a rrie d s ta te ; th e g irl u n d e rg o e s th e sam e k in d of m o t i f t h a t a p p e a r s in t h e s e s t o r i e s , b u t it is c e r t a i n l y t h e m o s t
in itia tio n d u r i n g m a rria g e a n d th r o u g h her ow n fa u lt, b e ­ im p o r ta n t, th e r ic h e s t, a n d th e m o s t p e r s is te n tly fa s c in a tin g .
cause she v io la te s th e tab o o l a id dow n by her h u sb an d . N .B ./ j.l .
W h ile th e n a tu re of th e in itia tio n m ay be th e sam e fo r
b o th — a voyage f u ll o f d i f f i c u l t i e s to th e o t h e r w o r l d — its
m e a n i n g i s d i f f e r e n t i n t h e s e c o n d c a s e : it s e e m s t h a t f o r g i r l s
it i s m a r r i a g e i t s e l f t h a t c o n s t i t u t e s t h e i n i t i a t i o n . T h e Laws of BIBLIOGRAPHY
Manu, th e e a r l y c o lle c tio n o f t e x ts fro m a n c ie n t In d ia c o m ­
p ile d b e tw e e n th e seco n d c e n tu ry b.c . and th e secon d See "Mythic Elements in French Folklore," above.
c e n t u r y a . d ., c o n f i r m s t h i s h y p o t h e s i s : " F o r a w o m a n , m a r ­

y o u r n e ig h b o rs , th e y a r e y o u y o u r s e lv e s . . . . T h e s e ttin g
F o lk B eliefs a n d L eg en d s about i s a l s o r e a l : it l i e s b e f o r e y o u r v e r y e y e s , a t y o u r d o o r . I t is

F a ir ies in F r an ce th e s u n k e n r o a d y o u h a v e p a s s e d o v e r a h u n d r e d tim e s ,
th e m o o r th a t y o u see h ere m ade fu zzy by g o rse , th e
c e m e t e r y e n c l o s e d in th e d a r k g r e e n e r y o f g r e a t y e w t r e e s ;
A l t h o u g h t h e y a r e d i f f e r e n t in f o r m , b e lie fs a n d l e g e n d s a r e
it i s t h e s e a .
c o m p a r a b l e in t h e ir m o d e s o f p r o d u c ti o n a n d t h e ir f u n c t i o n s .
It h a s o f te n been o b serv ed t h a t b e lie fs e n g e n d e r le g e n d s In h is book, one can see c le a rly how th e m e c h a n is m
th r o u g h a p r o c e s s o f n a r r a t iv e d e v e l o p m e n t : a b e lie f m a y b e f u n c tio n s b y w h ic h b e lie f e n g e n d e r s l e g e n d . F o r e x a m p l e , L e
e x p r e s s e d in a s e n t e n c e o r u n f o l d e d in a n a c c o u n t . S u c h a n B raz r e la te s th e f o llo w in g b e lie f ( w h i c h is n o t p e c u l i a r to
a c c o u n t a lw a y s in c lu d e s s p e c ific i n f o r m a tio n a b o u t tim e a n d B r i t t a n y , s i n c e it is c e r t a i n l y f o u n d t h r o u g h o u t a l l o f F r a n c e ) :
p la c e , w h ic h a r e o f te n n e a rb y . A n a to le L e B ra z , w h o h ad "A s lo n g as a dead p erso n is ly in g out on th e fu n eral
n o t e d t h i s p h e n o m e n o n i n h i s i n v e s t i g a t i o n s , s t a t e s it v e r y p l a t f o r m , it i s a n o f f e n s e t o h i m to s e n d th e p e o p le o f th e
c le a r l y in th e in tr o d u c t io n to h is b o o k , The Legend of Death h o u s e o u t t o w o r k i n t h e f i e l d s , a s if n o t h i n g h a d h a p p e n e d "
among the Armoricain Bretons (1 9 2 3 ): (1 , p . 2 2 0 ) . A f te r s e ttin g f o rth th is p r o h ib itio n , h e g o e s o n to
c ite th e a c c o u n t o f o n e o f h is fe m a le in f o r m a n t s , a n a c c o u n t
T h e l e g e n d i s a l o c a l p r o d u c t : w e h a v e s e e n it t a k e r o o t ,
w h ic h s h e h a d r e la te d a s a p e r s o n a l r e m in is c e n c e :
grow , and flo w e r. It is p e rp e tu a lly in th e co u rse of
f o r m a t i o n a n d t r a n s f o r m a t i o n : it i s a l i v e . T h e a c t o r s t h a t it W h ile s h e w a s a s e r v a n t g irl a t K e r s a lio u , th e m a s te r o f
b r in g s in to p la y a r e k n o w n or have been know n t o a l l. th e h ou se d ie d . It w a s th e b e g in n in g o f Ju ly , a n d th e
T h e y a re th e p e o p le o f th e c a n t o n , o f th e p a ris h ; th e y a r e e ld e s t s o n w a s o u t h a y in g w ith th e h o u s e h o ld s ta ff. T h e y

253
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N
Farmhouse mill and raised stone. Saint-Pierre, Morbihan. Photo
Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires.
heard the news at the three o'clock collation. When this
was over, the eldest son sent the servants back to work, in
spite of being told that such was not the custom. Return­
ing to the field, they perceived a man trampling down the
hay, whom they recognized to be their deceased master.
The vision disappeared. They finished their work and
brought in the hay. The time came a few months later to
begin using that hay as forage for the animals. But within
a few days all the animals in the stable died, and the
veterinarian was unable to do anything for them. The
ruined son began drinking, and hanged himself on
Christmas night: his failure to respect his dead father had
brought about his misfortune.
We can see very clearly in this account the narrative
development which has the initial belief for its object. This
belief, far from being fixed like a dogma, plays a part in
everyday experience and produces its events, which only
take on their meaning when they are reconstituted in a
narrative form. Here we encounter once again what Henri
Hubert affirmed in his study “The Representation of Time in
Religion and Magic" (1909): "Myths are rejuvenated in
history. They draw out from it elements of reality which
serve to consolidate the belief of which they are the object as
254
ERA
myths. . . . The rejuvenation of myths is not a phenomenon
that is different from the general phenomenon of their
localization in the past, but a particular form of the same
phenomenon."
"Myths rejuvenated in history" are nothing but legends. It
is precisely by virtue of this phenomenon of renewal in and
through history that legends are diverse, unstable, and
abundant. As the collection of Anatole Le Braz so clearly
shows, the same belief may give rise to a great number of
different accounts. But one nevertheless always finds in
them the generative mythic core that is the belief.
The same phenomenon of the engendering of legends
from beliefs is also found in what may be called the topo­
graphic mythology of France, in which the principal protag­
onists are fairies, supernatural beings characterized by their
small or Gargantuan size.
Beliefs about fairies are an excellent example of the inter­
pretation of folkloric facts in terms of survivals. A. Maury
forcefully declares that "fairies appear to us to be the last and
most persistent of all of the vestiges that paganism left
imprinted on peoples' minds" (1896). For him, fairies are the
inheritors of the characteristics and functions of the Parcae
and of the name of Fatum or the Fata, these being no more
than the Roman designation for the Parcae. The etymology
from fatum, fata is certain. As for the attributes of fairies, it
cannot be denied that they greatly overlap those of the
Parcae.
Like the Parcae, fairies preside over childbirth and decide
the fate of the newborn child. They are, as was once said,
"wombmates." In Brittany, they were served a meal in a
room next to that of the mother who had given birth, as a
means of conciliating them. They are also spinners. Van
Gennep reports in his Folklore of Burgundy (1934, p. 175) that
at Clamerey, a fairy named La Beuffenie formerly came to
thread her distaff at midnight in a secluded place, on a crag
that dominated Armançon. It is sometimes said that menhirs
or rocks are distaffs planted in the ground by fairies. The
association made about the Parcae between their function as
dispensers of fate and their character as spinners is not found
explicitly for fairies, although such an association may be
postulated on the basis of the great importance of the symbol
of the thread of destiny in Europe. But fairies have charac­
teristics that the ancient Parcae do not have. Fairies are
connected with the megaliths. The relationship is sometimes
only toponymie, resulting in the appellations of the Rock of
the Fairies, the Stone of the Fairies, the Cabin of the Fairies,
the Cave of the Fairies, etc., to describe menhirs, dolmens,
and shady walks throughout France. At times the designa­
tions are accompanied by legends:
Long ago, a fairy traveling through Sainte-Colombe
(Landes) carrying the Peyre-Lounque (a rock located in
the region) attached to her distaff, met an unknown old
man who said to her: "Where are you going?" "To Dax."
"You will, if you say, 'And may it please God.'" "Whether
or not it pleases Him, the Peyre-Lounque is going to Dax."
The old man, who was none other than God himself,
ordered her to abandon her rock at that very place, which
she had to do, and he added, "Until it pleases God, it will
not leave this place." (Sébillot, 1904-7, vol. 4, p. 6)
Sometimes they carry these enormous rocks in their
aprons: a rockslide near Ailly in the Vosges is called the
Burden or the Fairies' Load— it fell from their aprons. But
they are not content merely to spread megaliths around: they
are also builders. Near Remiremont, a causeway built with
Cyclopean masonry which joins Saint-Mont to the mountain
 F O L K B E L I E F S AND
of M orthom e bears the n am e of the Bridge of the Fairies. The
am phitheater of Cim iez is called the "Tub of the Fairies." In
Poitou, the fairy M elusine con stru cted the old roads of the
region, as well as the aren as and aqueducts of Poitiers'and a
great num ber of chateaux: one night w as sufficient for her to
build the castle of Lusignan.
This role of builder is totally unknow n am on g the Parcae.
It is thus incorrect to see fairies as the heirs of the Parcae
merely on the basis of tw o shared characteristics. The other
characteristics of fairies should con n ect them on the one
hand with the popular figure of G argan tu a, and on the other
with the supernatural and innum erable populations of gob­
lins, elves, sprites, im ps, etc.
In French topographical beliefs and legends, G argantua
shapes the countryside, particularly irregularities in terrain.
In the canton of C hâtillon-sur-Indre, people give the
nam e of "fo o t scrapings of G arg an tu a" to large m ounds,
of which the largest is the Footstep of B ourges, located
near Clion. It is m aintained th at once, w hen G argantua
had one foot in B ourges and the o th er in this place, he
shook one of his shoes, and thus flung his foot-scraping
(the m ass of clayey soil that sticks to the bottom of the
shoes of people w ho walk in the rainy season ) n ext to the
church of M urs, tw o leagues from Clion, while the other
shoe dropped an oth er scraping in the vineyards of C hâ­
teau, close to Bourges, w hich has been called M ottepelous
from time im m em orial. (Sébillot, 1883, p. 1 9 7 -9 8 )
Gargantua is the sou rce of the elevation upon w hich the
city of Laon is built: finding his basket to be too full, he
em ptied p art of it on to the plain, w hich becam e a m ountain.
But it w as not only by unloading that h e shaped the
irregularities in the terrain; it w as also, as Rabelais himself
said, "e n fyantant et com pissant (in shitting and pissing)."
"In the C h artreu se range, the Aiguille de Q uaix is known in
Mélusine returning to suckle her child. Couldrette, Bibliothèque
nationale MS fr. 12575, folio 89. Photo BN.
L E G E N D S A B O U T F A I R I E S IN F R A N C E
the area by the nam e of l'Etron de G argantua (G argantua's
Turd). The giant, needing to stop to satisfy a bodily need,
placed one foot on the helm et of N ero and the other on
M ount Rachais. The needle (Aiguille) does seem to resem ble
this object from a certain angle. G argantua pissed at the sam e
time, which is w hat produced the cascade of Vence." His
appetite is not described as any less formidable in popular
tradition than it is in Rabelais. He is a glutton w ho sw allow s,
w ithout noticing them , enorm ous boats, which he takes to be
small flies. But he is som etim es nauseated and vom its them ,
thus forming the rock of Bé near Saint-Cast, for exam ple.
All of these beliefs and the accounts that develop them are
to be found in nearly identical form throughout France, in
w hich G argantua mythically modeled not so m uch the
landscape in its totality as the m ost rem arkable accidental
landform s. The m eans he uses for this are of an oral and anal
nature, so that a m ythic ch aracter m ay be seen in him that
com es from those tw o stages of infantile developm ent. His
gigantic size has its source in the inverted projection of the
disproportionate view that children have of adults and the
world.
Tradition often stresses, on the other hand, fairies' dim in­
utive size. They m anipulate— it is said— materials w hich, if
they are not alw ays construction m aterials, are nevertheless
hard and resistant. They som etim es carry them in the form
or m anner of distaffs, or else in their aprons: G argantua
carries malleable m aterials in his basket or in his stom ach
(earth, excrem ent). These characteristics of fairies are clari­
fied if, in opposition to the ch aracter of G argantua, one sees
in them phallic figures which would thus belong to the
following stage of infantile sexual developm ent.
In their contacts with hum ans, fairies m anifest a certain
am bivalence, just like the num erous populations of various
goblins, w ho resem ble them in their dim inutive size. They
render services to hum ans, but it is difficult to have social ties
with them because of their sensitive and skittish character. In
the Alps and Pyrenees, those supernatural beings of small
stature w ho help the herders are called servants; in ex­
change, they are left small offerings in kind, such as the first
skim m ing of the best cream . If one neglects to leave them
their share, they m ay take cruel vengeance, for exam ple, by
leading the herd over a cliff and leaving the region forever.
Som etim es the relations betw een fairies and hum ans ex­
tend to m arriage: the legend of M élusine is the best know n of
these, but there are a great num ber of others which alw ays
include a prohibition which the husband m ust scrupulously
respect. The nature of the prohibition is quite varied: not to
see his fairy-wife while she is bathing, not to see her on
Saturday, not to look at her naked shoulder, not to call her a
"b ad fairy," etc. The union brings prosperity, but one day the
husband violates the prohibition and the fairy disappears
forever. It is striking to note the frequency of this denoue­
m ent in accounts w hich relate the variety of relationships
betw een hum ans and the small supernatural beings. They
disappear, leave the country, and never ap p ear again. The
pattern is so m arked that one cannot help but w onder
w hether the etiology of these accounts does not reside
precisely in this m atter: they exist to explain the disappear­
ance of fairies, goblins, and other sprites, w hich is due to a
fault of m en w ho are unable to maintain good relations with
them over long periods of tim e, in spite of the advantages of
such associations. W hat w e see here is a schem a similar to
that of the great origin m yths of primitive peoples, which
place at the beginnings of hum anity a golden age in which all
things w ere realizable and death did not exist. A s the result
of a sin, the violation of a taboo, all of the advantages
255
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

e n jo y e d b y h u m a n ity a r e w it h d r a w n , a n d re la tio n s w ith th e le g e n d s a b o u t fa irie s a n d th e ir re la tio n s w ith h u m an s are

s u p e r n a t u r a l b e i n g s a r e i n t e r r u p t e d o r g r o w d i f f i c u l t . T h i s is v e r y m u c h o f t h e p r e s e n t , b u t t h e y te ll o f a p a s t r e g a r d e d a s
a p a rtic u la rly good e x a m p le o f th e p ro c e s s o f w e a k e n in g f in is h e d . T h e p a s t n e v e r t h e l e s s r e m a i n s in s c r ib e d in v a r io u s
f r o m m y t h o l o g y t o f o l k l o r e : it is n o l o n g e r a q u e s t i o n o f t h e p l a c e s w h i c h t h u s s e r v e a s t h e b a s i s f o r r e m e m b e r i n g i t.
fa te o f h u m a n ity o r th e s o c ia l c o m m u n ity , b u t o f th e fa te o f N .B ./d .w .
an i n d iv id u a l a n d th e o u t c o m e o f h is c o n ju g a l u n io n a n d
p ro s p e rity .
These le g e n d s a lso m a n ife st, m o re or le ss e x p lic itly , a
s y m b o lic te a c h in g : th e w o rld o f fa irie s a n d s p r ite s d isa p ­ BIBLIOGRAPHY
p e a r e d in t h e f a c e o f C h r i s t i a n i t y b e c a u s e t h e y b e l o n g e d fo
p a g a n i s m . O n c e a g a i n t h e i d e o l o g y o f s u r v i v a l s is a t w o r k : See "Mythic Elements in French Folklore."

d o o r a n d a s k a b o u t a e w e th e y h a v e lo s t. T h e y a r e to ld
P o pu la r C u sto m s and R itu als in F r a n ce t h a t t h e r e is n o e w e t h e r e t h a t b e l o n g s t o t h e m , b u t t h e y
a r e p e rs is te n t a n d fin a lly g a in e n t r y i n to th e h o u s e a n d
s e a rc h e v e r y r o o m . W h e n th e y g e t to th e d o o r to th e ro o m
In t h e p r e f a c e t o h i s b o o k Les Saints successeurs des dieux (T h e
w i t h t h e g i r l s i n i t, t h e y k n o c k , a s k a g a i n , a n d r e c e i v e t h e
s a i n t s : s u c c e s s o r s o f t h e g o d s ) ( 1 9 0 7 ) , P. S a i n t y v e s l e t it b e s a m e a n s w e r a s b e fo re . F in a lly , o n e p e rso n com es out
k n o w n th a t h is w o r k w o u ld b e fo llo w e d b y a n o t h e r v o lu m e
a n d , a fte r a s s e r tin g th a t h e h a s ju s t c h e c k e d to s e e th a t
e n title d La Mythologie des rites ( T h e m y t h o l o g y o f r i t u a l s ) , in t h e r e w a s n o s t r a n g e e w e in h i s f l o c k , m a k e s a ll t h e y o u n g
w h ic h h e in te n d e d to e x a m in e th e p a g a n r ite s th a t p e r s is te d
m a i d e n s f ile o u t o n e b y o n e . T h e h u s b a n d - t o - b e m a k e s
in t h e c u l t o f t h e s a i n t s a n d l e d t o t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f c e r t a i n
th e m d a n c e s u c c e s s i v e l y , a n d if h e f a i ls t o r e c o g n i z e h i s
h a g i o g r a p h ie le g e n d s . T h is w o r k n e v e r s a w th e lig h t o f d a y ,
b rid e -to -b e , h e b e c o m e s th e o b je c t o f b a n te r fo r th e re s t o f
b u t i ts s u g g e s t i v e t it l e r a i s e s t h e q u e s t i o n o f w h e t h e r it is th e e v e n in g .
p r o p e r to s p e a k o f a m y th o lo g y o f ritu a ls .
F o r S a i n t y v e s , th e tr a n s i ti o n fr o m m y th t o r itu a l w a s n e v e r T h e re a re m any p a ra lle ls to th is a m u s in g d e s c rip tio n ,
in q u e s t i o n . R e f e r r i n g t o t h e t a l e s o f P e r r a u l t , h e m a i n t a i n s a m o n g t h e m o n e t h a t G e o r g e S a n d r e c o u n t s in t h e a p p e n d i x
t h a t " a m y t h is b u t t h e e x e g e s i s o f o r t h e c o m m e n t a r y o n a to La Mare au Diable, and a n o th e r, m o re re ce n t o n e th a t
r i tu a l ," w h ic h a l lo w s h im to re g a rd th e s to rie s a s th e n a r r a ­ o r i g i n a t e d in t h e p r o v i n c e o f t h e L o i r e a n d w a s in p r a c t i c e
tiv e r e lic s o f a n c i e n t s e a s o n a l o r in itia tio n ritu a ls th a t h a v e u n til a b o u t 1 9 2 0 (F o r ti e r - B e a u l ie u ) .

f a l le n i n t o d i s u s e . C i n d e r e l l a is t h u s t h e B r i d e o f t h e C i n d e r s , T h e y o u n g m e n o n th e g r o o m 's s id e s h o w u p a t t h e d o o r

p a ra d e d aro u n d on S h ro v e T u esd ay a n d p ro m is e d to th e o f t h e b r i d e 's h o u s e o n t h e m o r n i n g o f t h e w e d d i n g . E v e r y ­

y o u n g s u n , w h i l e h e r s t e p m o t h e r is t h e o l d y e a r , a n d th e t h i n g is l o c k e d . T h e y c l i m b o v e r t h e w a ll a n d s in g in th e

s t e p m o t h e r 's d a u g h t e r s a r e th e m o n th s p re ce d in g s p r in g . c o u rty a rd s o th a t th e d o o r m a y b e o p e n e d fo r th e m . T h e y

T o m T h u m b is t h e y o u n g b o y w h o m u s t u n d e r g o i n i t i a t i o n f i n a l l y g e t i n , b u t t h e b r i d e - t o - b e h i d e s in t h e h a y l o f t , b e h i n d

r i t e s ; h e is l e d b y h i s f a t h e r i n t o t h e i n i t i a t i o n e n c l o s u r e , t h e h e r g r a n d m o t h e r ' s b e d , i n t h e k n e a d i n g t r o u g h , o r in t h e

f o r e s t, w h e r e h e m u s t u n d e r g o a n u m b e r o f tria ls . covered t i p c a r t , o r e l s e s h e is d i s g u i s e d a s a p i p e - s m o k i n g
b e g g a r s i t t i n g b y t h e f i r e p l a c e o r a s a n o l d w o m a n . In s o m e
v illa g e s , th e y u sed to th ro w dow n a dum m y c a lle d "th e
I. The Popular Rituals of Marriage g h o s t , " o r " t h e f i r s t b r i d e , " t o t h e y o u n g m e n a s s e m b l e d in
f r o n t o f t h e h o u s e a n d t h e n b u r n it i n t h e f a r m y a r d .
T h is th e o ry a s s u m e s a h isto rica l p r o c e s s o f d e g e n e r a tio n
T h e s e s c e n e s s u r e ly h a v e a p la y fu l e le m e n t, b u t th e y c o u ld
a n d a r g u e s th a t th e e v o l u t i o n p r o c e e d s f r o m r itu a l to m y th .
n o t h a v e b e e n e n a c te d fo r th e s o le p u r p o s e o f e n te rta in in g
If w e m a k e a n e f f o r t t o a v o i d t h i s h i s t o r i c i z i n g p o i n t o f v i e w ,
th e w e d d in g g u e s t s , e s p e c ia lly th e y o u n g m e n . A n a p p a r ­
an d if w e c o n s i d e r t h e m a t e r i a l s o f r i t u a l a n d m y th to b e
e n tly in s ig n ific a n t c lu e su g g e sts th a t th is r itu a l w as so
c o u p l e d in a n o n g o i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p , w e m a y t h e n a r g u e t h a t
i m p o r t a n t t h a t j u s t a s it w a s d i s a p p e a r i n g a n e w e le m e n t
m y t h s a n d r i t u a l s a r e , in t h e w o r d s o f C l a u d e L é v i - S t r a u s s ,
c a m e to p ick u p a p a r t o f th e m e a n in g o f th e f o r m e r p ra c tic e .
" d if f e r e n t t r a n s f o r m a tio n s o f id e n tic a l e l e m e n ts ." W e s h a ll
A t t h e t i m e w h e n t h e c u s t o m w a s w a n i n g in t h e c o u n t r y in
a t te m p t to s h o w th is b y ta k in g a s a n e x a m p l e a p o p u l a r ritu a l
F r a n c e , i .e ., b e tw e e n 1 8 7 0 a n d 1 8 8 0 , th e b rid a l g o w n a s w e
o f m a r r i a g e t h a t w a s q u i t e w i d e s p r e a d in F r a n c e a t l e a s t u n t i l
k n o w it t o d a y c a m e i n t o f a s h i o n : t h e w h i t e d r e s s a n d v e i l .
t h e e n d o f t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , a r i t u a l t h a t is c a l l e d t h e
T h e fu n c tio n o f th e ve il m a y h a v e b e e n to c o n c e a l th e b rid e
" h i d d e n b r i d e ," th e " f a l s e b r i d e ," o r t h e " s u b s t i t u t e b r i d e ."
te m p o ra rily , w hen th e r itu a l o f th e h id d e n b rid e w a s no
The f o llo w in g d e s c rip tio n w as p u b lis h e d in 1823, b u t i ts
lo n g e r p e rfo rm e d ; fo r th e ve il h ark en s b ack th ro u g h th e
au th o r o b serv ed th e r itu a l in B r e s s e b e f o r e th e R e v o lu tio n
c e n t u r i e s t o t h e c u s t o m in a n c i e n t R o m e , w h e r e nubere m e a n t
(M o n n ie r, p p . 3 5 5 - 5 6 ) .
b o th to v e il a n d to m a rry .
T h e d a y s e t fo r s ig n in g th e c o n t r a c t is c o m m o n ly t h e e v e T h e s y m b o lis m o f th is r itu a l m a y first b e d e c i p h e r e d o n th e
of th e m a rria g e c e le b ra tio n . B e fo re su p p e r, a p e cu lia r s o c ia l le v e l. It is m eant to exp ress and p la y upon th e
s c e n e u n fo ld s a m o n g th e B re s s a n s : th e b r id e -to -b e in v ite s r e s e r v a t i o n s fe lt b y th e " w if e g i v e r s ," w h ic h is w h a t a t th a t
s e v e ra l o f h e r g irlfrie n d s to h e r h o u s e w h e r e th e y p u t o n m o m e n t th e p a re n ts a n d frie n d s o f th e b rid e h a p p e n to b e ,
o n e a n o t h e r 's c lo th e s a n d m o v e i n to a s e p a r a te r o o m . T h e t o w a r d t h e " w i f e t a k e r s / ' t h e g r o o m 's p a r t y . T h i s c a n o n l y b e
g r o o m -to -b e th e n show s up w ith h is frie n d s and h is a g a m e , s i n c e it t a k e s p l a c e a t a m o m e n t i n t h e l o n g p r o c e s s
b r o th e r s a n d fin d s th e h o u s e lo c k e d u p . T h e y k n o c k a t th e o f b e tro th a l a n d m a rria g e w h e n th e m a rria g e a g r e e m e n t h a s

256
 P O P U L A R
Peasants carrying firebrands in the fields on Christmas Eve. Ton-
neins (Lot-et-Garonne). Drawing by Gustave Janet. Photo Musée des
Arts et Traditions populaires, Paris.
The lamb cart at Christmas. Les Baux. Photo Musée des Arts et
Traditions populaires, Paris.
long since been concluded and w ould be very difficult to
undo.
But the ritual has a deep er sym bolic level that reaches
dow n to the underlying m yth. To bring it to light, we m ust
call on a set of supernatural stories know n in the interna­
tional typology as the substitute bride (T403). O ne of the
finest versions in French was collected by J. F. Blade in 1886
and is entitled Le Drac.
By his first wife, a man has tw o stron g, brave sons and a
daughter as beautiful as the m orning. His wife dies, and he
marries a w icked, ugly w idow w ho has a d aughter w ho
resembles her in every way. She persecutes h er stepchildren
until the tw o exasperated brothers leave for the w ar in order
C U S T O M S AND R I T U A L S IN F R A N C E
to distinguish them selves; they prom ise to find a husband
for their sister, and they take a little statue with them m ade
in her likeness (in other versions, it is a portrait). They
dem onstrate such courage in w ar that the son of the king of
France sum m ons them . He sees the statuette, falls in love
with their sister, and orders them to fetch her so that he may
m arry her. The jealous stepm other, with her daughter,
escorts the tw o brothers and the bride-to-be, w ho is dressed
in her w edding gow n. On the way, the stepm other intercepts
the com m unication betw een the brothers and the sister and
forces the sister to take off her w edding clothes. She puts
them on h er ow n dau gh ter and throw s the bride-to-be into a
m ud pit. The king's son, furious to see such an ugly girl
arrive, sends the tw o brothers, the stepm other, and her
daughter to their deaths. (In other French versions the prince
m arries the hom ely girl because he falls victim to the step­
m oth er's m agic spell.) The true bride-to-be is first rescued by
a gard en er's wife and then carried off by the Drac into his
underw ater kingdom . H e ties her to a long gold chain that
allows her to reach the shore. For three days she sings a
riddling song that intrigues the prince's servants. The prince
is alerted, breaks the chain, and recognizes the girl as his
prom ised bride. (In the versions in which the prince kept the
false bride and the stepm other, he expels the intruder and
punishes her m oth er severely.)
In this story as in the ritual, a bride is tem porarily hidden
from her groom and replaced by a false bride. This them atic
core is enriched in the tale with im portant im aginary devel­
opm ents that the ritual cannot afford. The them e, how ever,
is the sam e. W hat is its m eaning?
If w e accept Claude L évi-Strauss's contention that men
exchange w om en in the sam e w ay that they exchange w ords,
it is easy to recognize in the tale of the substitute bride the
transfer of a w om an to a m an, the prince, her future
husband, a transfer brought about by another m an, her
brother; the transfer is interrupted by the stepm other and
then reestablished. The interruption of the transfer is
achieved by the interruption of com m unication betw een the
brother and sister. Com ing as an interm ediary between
them , the stepm other alters the brother's w ords and is thus
able to elim inate the sister and to substitute her own d au gh ­
ter, the false bride-to-be. But if w om en stopped circulating
am ong m en, m arriages could only be incestuous. The false
bride-to-be of the ritual and the tale is a representation of the
im aginary incestuous bride-to-be and is substituted in play
for a brief m om ent in place of the true bride-to-be, the one
w hom it is socially permissible to marry.
This interpretation of the tale, and later of the ritual, is
confirm ed by a story that is not French but m ost certainly
belongs to the Indo-European mythical heritage. We are
referring to a story that is part of the N art epic that w as m ade
known to us by G. Dumézil (1930, 1968 - 7 3 ) . This collection
of popular epic legends is characteristic of som e populations
of the northern C aucasus, from the Black Sea to the Caspian
Sea, and m ost particularly of the O ssets, the probable
d escendants of the ancient Scythians, am ong w hom the
narrative tradition has proved to be the m ost long-lived,
though their neighbors, the C hechen-Ingush, C herkess, and
Abkhaz have sizable fragm ents in the form of variants. The
saga of the N arts, fabulous heroes w ho lived in very ancient
tim es, is of considerable interest: in a "folklorized" form , it
has preserved to this day features of ancient Indo-European
m ythology, particularly the trifunctional organization of so­
ciety identified by G eorges Dumézil.
This epic presents an extrem ely popular female character,
remarkable for her birth, beauty, and intelligence: the Prin-
257
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

The new fire of Holy Saturday. Copperplate. Paris, Picard, 1724. The
rekindling of the fires is prescribed by the Roman rite, but it is also
a ritual found in a large number of religious systems and carries a
cosmological meaning and function. Paris, Musée des Arts et Tradi­
tions populaires. Museum photo.

cess Satana. The story of her wedding may be viewed as a

parallel to the ritual and tale of the substitute bride. This
reading of the story is much more direct, much cruder, but all
the more interesting in that we are dealing with a tradition
that originates in Indo-European mythology and is better
preserved, less worked over and altered, than the French
tradition.
Satana is the sister of the two high-ranking heroes from
one of the three principal families of the Nart epic, the
Äxsärtägkats, characterized by valor and strength; one of the
other two families is distinguished by abundant cattle and
the other by intelligence. When she is old enough to marry,
Satana asks herself who is the man most worthy of her and
concludes that only her own brother, Uryzmäg, is bold and
intelligent enough for her. She sees only one obstacle to this
project: he is already married. Nevertheless, she shares her
project with him: “No one gives away his finest possession
as a gift. Would it not be a pity for me to go over to another
family? So I can marry only you." He repels her indignantly;
she must therefore practice deceit. Some time later, Uryzmäg
sets out on an expedition for a year and orders his wife to
prepare food and drink for his return. When the year has
nearly elapsed, she dutifully proceeds to prepare the intox­
icating beverage of the Narts. Try as she may, she cannot
make the liquid, because Satana has prevented this by a
magic spell. The desperate wife asks her sister-in-law to
come to her aid. Satana consents on condition that her
brother's wife will lend her her wedding gown and veil for
one night. The wife agrees and soon the drink is ready.
Uryzmäg comes home; a great feast takes place and at night
Satana dressed as the wife takes the wife's place in the
conjugal bedroom. Through magic she prolongs the wed­
ding night beyond its normal duration. When the legitimate
wife dies of a broken heart, Satana reveals her true identity to
her brother, who is at first horrified and then resigned.
Carnival in Paris. Woodcut by Gangel in Metz. Photo Musée des Arts
et Traditions populaires, Paris.
It would be hard not to see in this account one of the
primitive forms of the French tale and ritual despite the
alterations they have undergone, alterations that change the
reading but not the meaning. The tale and the ritual show
that in all marriages there is the risk and temptation of incest,
which is conjured up and played out in this manner to make
it easier to avoid it. The Ossetic account shows this incest as
having been realized, but it is realized by supernatural
heroes and not by human beings, since the narrative form is
that of a legend: this is another way to avoid incest.
This example of the deciphering of a ritual through a story
need not imply that the myth predates the ritual and serves
as its basis. These are two different forms of expression, one
of which, myth, enjoys greater freedom in the realm of the
imaginary and thus allows us to register a greater number of
elements that may lead to an interpretation. On the other
hand, what ritual loses in the imaginary realm, it gets back in
the form of the considerable affective impact of enactment. In
this light, the old debate about the priority of one of the
forms or the other is no longer at issue.
This popular ritual of marriage, which seems to stem from

258
 P O P U L A R C U S T O M S AND R I T U A L S IN F R A N C E

a com m on In d o -E u ro p e a n s o u r c e , m a y b e c la s s if ie d in th e th e to w n at fu ll g a llo p to th e a c c la im o f a ll th e p e o p le .
v e r y im p o r ta n t c a te g o r y o f rite s o f p a s s a g e . T h e in v e n t o r o f B u c k e ts of w a te r a re p o u red at ev ery m om ent over th e
th is h e u r i s t ic c o n c e p t , A rn o ld van G ennep (1 9 0 9 ), p la ce d f i r e b o x s o a s t o p r e v e n t t h e f l a m e f r o m r e a c h i n g t h e d r i v e r . If
u n d e r th is r u b ric n o t o n ly th e ritu a ls th a t m a r k th e c o u r s e o f t h e f i r e f l a r e s u p , it is a s u r e s i g n o f a g o o d c r o p . . . . B u t if
a h u m a n lif e f r o m t h e c r a d l e t o t h e g r a v e b u t a l s o t h o s e t h a t t h e f i r e g o e s o u t o r d o e s n o t r i s e in a s p i r a l , t h e c r o p w ill b e
m ark th e p assage o f tim e , th a t is, p e rio d ica l a n d c y c lic a l, p o o r, a n d e v e r y o n e g o e s h o m e u n h a p p y . A fte r th e rid e , th e
s e a s o n a l a n d c a le n d r ic a l c e r e m o n i e s . A m o n g th e first k in d , c a r t is u n l o a d e d in t h e t o w n s q u a r e a n d w h o e v e r g e t s h o l d o f
m a rria g e w as c e rta in ly th e m o st im p o rta n t a n d th e m o st a b u r n i n g f i r e b r a n d f i r s t a n d c a r r i e s it h o m e t o h i s h e a r t h w ill
d e v e lo p e d . B a p tism , w h ic h m ark ed th e n e w b o rn c h i l d 's b rin g g o o d fo r tu n e t h e r e " (v a n G e n n e p , 1 9 3 7 - 5 8 , p . 3 0 4 3 ).
e n t r a n c e in to th e s o c ia l a n d re lig io u s c o m m u n ity , lo n g r e ­ T h is c u r io u s m o v in g b o n fire , w h ic h re p re s e n ts th e s ta r
m a in e d a ce re m o n y re s tric te d to a v ery s m a ll num ber of f o l l o w e d b y t h e M a g i , t h u s d e t e r m i n e s w h e t h e r c r o p s w ill b e
in d iv id u a ls . A n d a l th o u g h f u n e ra ls s o m e tim e s b r o u g h t th e g o o d o r b a d , w h ile its f i r e b r a n d s p r o t e c t th e h o u s e .
e n tire lo ca l c o m m u n ity to g e th e r , th e a u th o r ity o f th e C h u r c h I n s o m e f e s t i v i t i e s in t h e C h r i s t m a s c y c l e , f i r e b r a n d s a r e
a c te d as an o b s ta cle to any s ig n ific a n t d e v e lo p m e n t of c a r r i e d a s i n d i v i d u a l t o r c h l i g h t s . In a n d a r o u n d D re u x , th e
p o p u la r r itu a ls o n t h e s e o c c a s i o n s . p r o c e s s io n s o f th e F la m in g C o a ls to o k p la ce o n C h ris tm a s
E v e . T h e t o r c h e s w e r e p i e c e s o f w o o d d r i e d in a n o v e n a n d
sp lit le n g th w is e dow n th e m id d le . The c h i l d r e n 's to rc h e s
w e r e m u l l e i n s t e m s d i p p e d in o i l . A l l t h e t o w n s p e o p l e w o u l d
II. Bonfires, Stakes, Firebrands, Fire Wheels, Christmas,
g a th e r b y n e ig h b o rh o o d s a ro u n d f i v e in t h e a f t e r n o o n a n d
Lent, and Midsummer Day
a s s e m b l e a t th e T o w n H a ll, w h e r e th e c le r g y a n d th e m a g i s ­
A m o n g th e n u m e r o u s p e rio d ic ritu a ls , th o s e th a t in v o lv e t r a t e s w o u l d j o i n t h e m . F r o m t h e r e t h e y w o u l d a ll w a l k t h r e e
th e u s e o f fire , w h e th e r b o n f ir e s o r f ir e b r a n d s , a r e p a r t ic u ­ tim e s a r o u n d th e c o v e r e d m a rk e t a n d th e C h u r c h o f S a in t-
la rly n o te w o rth y b ecau se of th e m y th ic a l c o n te n t one is P ie r r e , s h o u ti n g " N o ë l , n o le t, n o l e t ." U p o n r e t u r n in g to th e ir
te m p te d to see in th e m . In Fran ce, as in m o st E u ro p ean n e i g h b o r h o o d s , th e p e o p le w o u ld la y d o w n th e ir t o r c h e s to
c o u n tr ie s , r itu a ls o f fire w e r e p e r f o r m e d d u r i n g th e c y c le s o f fo rm a b o n fire w ith th e n o n b u r n in g e n d s fa c in g o u t w a r d .
C h r is tm a s , L e n t, a n d M id s u m m e r D a y (2 4 J u n e ). T h e d a te s T h e y w o u ld th e n b rin g th e r e m a in d e r o f th a t e n d p ie c e b a ck
o f C h r i s t m a s a n d o f M i d s u m m e r D a y fa ll c l o s e t o t h o s e o f t h e h o m e w ith th e m to w a rd off m is fo rtu n e . "T h is p ro c e s s io n
w i n t e r a n d s u m m e r s o l s t i c e s (2 1 D e c e m b e r a n d 2 1 J u n e ) . A s w o u l d t a k e p l a c e in s u r p r is in g o r d e r a n d w ith g r e a t r e s p e c t ,
a re s u lt, a u th o r s h a v e v ie w e d th e s e h o lid a y s a s C h ris tia n iz e d c o n s i d e r i n g t h e s i z e o f t h e c r o w d . " It w a s a l s o s a i d t h a t t h e
fo rm s of pagan s o la r c u lts. D e s p ite th e d e n ia ls by van fire fr o m th e to r c h e s d id n o t s c o r c h o r h u r t. T h e c ir c u m a m ­
G e n n e p , w h o in s is te d th a t th e s e w e r e not s o ls titia l c e r e m o ­ b u la tio n o f th e m a r k e t a n d th e p r e s e n c e o f s h e p h e r d s w h o
n i e s , t h e n e a r c o i n c i d e n c e o f t h e d a t e s is s t r i k i n g , t h o u g h it h ad b r o u g h t l a m b s w ith th e m fro m n earb y fa rm s s u g g e s t
d o e s n o t fu lly e x p la in th e c o n t e n t o f th e r itu a ls a s t h e y w e r e th a t th e ritu a l w a s m e a n t to a t tr a c t p r o s p e r ity .
p e rfo rm e d . T h e c u s to m o f th e Y u le lo g , t h o u g h n o t p ra c tic e d every­
The b o n fire s of th e c y c le of S h ro v e T u e s d a y -L e n t are, w h e re , w as n e v e rth e le ss m u ch m o r e w id e s p r e a d th a n th e
w ith in th e g e n e r a l s c h e m a , re la te d to th o s e o f M id s u m m e r cu sto m of th e fire b ra n d s. The e a rlie s t d e s c r ip tio n of th is
D a y . In f a c t , in m o s t i n s t a n c e s t h e y a r e m u t u a l l y e x c l u s i v e : r itu a l c o m e s f r o m a s tu d e n t f r o m B a s e l w h o w a s w o r k i n g o n
w h e r e v e r fire s a r e m a d e d u r i n g L e n t, t h e y a r e n o t m a d e o n a d o c t o r a t e in m e d i c i n e a t M o n t p e l l i e r . It d a t e s b a c k t o 1 5 9 7 .
M i d s u m m e r D a y , a n d v i c e v e r s a . T h e r u l e is n o t a b s o l u t e l y
O n 2 4 D e ce m b e r, C h ris tm a s E v e . . . a l a r g e l o g is p l a c e d
g e n e ra l, s in c e th ere a re som e f o lk lo ric zones w h e re th e
on t h e a n d i r o n s in t h e f i r e p l a c e , o v e r t h e f i r e . W h e n it
p ra c tic e ta k e s p la c e a t b o th tim e s o f th e y e a r . S u c h p la c e s ,
s ta r ts b u rn in g , th e e n tir e h o u s e h o ld a sse m b le s a ro u n d
h o w e v e r , a re ra re a n d a r e s itu a te d m o s tly a t p o in ts o f c o n ta c t
th e fire a n d th e y o u n g e s t . . . is s u p p o s e d t o h o l d a g l a s s
b e tw e e n a re a s o f M id s u m m e r D ay b o n fire s (n o rth w e s te r n ,
f u ll o f w i n e , a p i e c e o f b r e a d , a n d a l i t t l e s a l t in h i s r i g h t
w e s te rn , s o u th w e s te rn , s o u th e a s te rn F ran ce) an d a re a s of
h a n d a n d a l i g h t e d c a n d l e in h i s l e f t h a n d . T h e n a ll t h e
S h r o v e T u e s d a y - L e n t fire s ( e a s t e r n , c e n t r a l -e a s t e r n F r a n c e ) .
b o y s a n d th e m e n r e m o v e th e ir h a ts a n d th e y o u n g e s t (o r
T h e g e n e ra l s c h e m a o f c e r e m o n ie s o f b o n fire s a n d fire b ra n d s
h i s f a t h e r in h is p la c e ) s p e a k s th u s : " W h e r e s o e v e r th e
c a lls fo r a c e le b ra tio n at each s o ls tic e except w hen th e
m a s te r o f th e h o u s e c o m e s a n d g o e s / m a y G o d g r a n t h im
s u m m e r c e le b ra tio n is r e p l a c e d b y a n o t h e r o n e s c h e d u le d
m u c h g o o d / A n d n o e v il a t a ll / A n d m a y G o d g r a n t h im
h a lf w a y th r o u g h th e c y c le , a t a r o u n d th e tim e o f th e e q u in o x .
c h ild b e a r in g w o m e n / k id d in g g o a t s / la m b in g ew es-
T h is v e r y g e n e ra l a r r a n g e m e n t s h o w s th a t th e p a r t o f th e
/ f o a lin g m a r e s / k itte n in g c a ts / r a t-b e a r in g ra ts / A n d
y e a r t h a t is c e r e m o n i a l i n t h i s r e s p e c t b e g i n s a t t h e m o m e n t
n o e v i l a t a l l , b u t p l e n t y o f g o o d . " It i s s a i d t h a t t h e l iv e
w h e n t h e d a y b e g i n s t o g r o w l o n g e r a n d e n d s w h e n it s t o p s
c o a ls c a n n o t b u rn th r o u g h a ta b le c lo th o n w h ic h th e y a r e
g r o w i n g l o n g e r ; t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e p e r i o d is m a r k e d b y a
p la ce d . The p e o p le c a re fu lly keep th e c o a ls th e year
b o n f ir e r itu a l a t h o m e a n d th e e n d — o r th e m id p o in t— b y a
r o u n d . . . . W h e n th is h a s b e e n d o n e , t h e y s it d o w n to a n
c o m m u n a l b o n f ir e r itu a l.
a m p le m e a l, w ith o u t fish or m e a t, but w ith e x c e lle n t
D u r in g th e T w e lv e D a y s o f C h r is t m a s , th a t is, th e p e rio d
w in e , p re se rv e s, and fru it. The ta b le is set and le ft
fro m C h r is t m a s to E p ip h a n y , t h e r e w e r e fe w lo c a litie s w h e r e
o v e r n i g h t , a n d o n it a r e p l a c e d h a l f a g l a s s o f w i n e , b r e a d ,
b o n fire s o r fire b ra n d s w e r e l ig h te d . T h e c u s t o m p ra c tic e d a t
s a lt , a n d a k n if e , ( v a n G e n n e p 1 9 3 7 - 5 8 , p p . 3 1 0 1 - 5 )
P e r t u i s i n t h e V a u c l u s e i s t h e r e f o r e n o t e w o r t h y b e c a u s e o f i ts
r a r i t y . T h e f e a s t o f t h e B e a u t i f u l S t a r , f u l ly d e s c r i b e d in t h e T h is p r e c is e d e s c r i p ti o n r e q u i r e s o n l y a fe w a d d it i o n a l b its
e ig h te e n th c e n tu r y b y th e A b b é A c h a r d , w a s c e le b ra te d o n o f in fo rm a tio n th a t a r e e a s ily fu r n is h e d b y th e a c c o u n t s o f
th e e v e o f E p ip h a n y . T h is is h o w a n o b s e r v e r a t th e b e g in ­ c o u n t l e s s r e g i o n a l w i t n e s s e s . It is s o m e t i m e s s a i d t h a t t h e l o g
n in g of th e tw e n tie th c e n tu ry d e sc rib e d i t: "T h e s ta r is m u s t b e b i g e n o u g h t o b u r n f o r t h r e e d a y s ( i n w h i c h c a s e it
n o th in g b u t a c a r t w ith i ts r e a r c a r r i a g e l o a d e d w ith fla m ­ is c a l l e d Tréfouc), or even f o r a ll t w e l v e d a y s o f t h e c y c l e .
m a b le m a t e r i a l. In f r o n t s its a m a n w h o s e e m s to d r i v e th e U s u a l l y it is s u p p o s e d to c o m e fro m a f r u i t - b e a r i n g t r e e ; in
t e a m . T h e c a r t is d r a w n b y t e n o r t w e l v e a n i m a l s a n d c r o s s e s t h i s c o n n e c t i o n , it is n o t h a r d t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e c h o i c e o f a

259
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

lo g fro m a n o a k t r e e , s in c e a c o r n s o n c e w e r e h u m a n and even th e p o o re st, c o n trib u te s a p ie ce o f fire w o o d . S o m e ­

a n im a l f o o d , a n d o a k is a h a r d a n d s lo w - b u r n in g w o o d . t i m e s , b u t m o r e r a r e l y , a ll t h e y o u n g p e o p l e a r e c h a r g e d w i t h
The h a lf-b u rn e d lo g s a r e kept an d u sed in o f te n w e ll- c o l l e c t i n g t h e w o o d . S e c o n d , t h e l i g h t i n g is p e r f o r m e d b y t h e
d e fin e d m a g ic a l w a y s : th e y p r o t e c t p e o p le a n d a n im a ls fro m c le r g y s o t h a t th e C h u r c h m a y a p p e a r to b e in c o n t r o l o f w h a t
illn e ss ; th e y k e e p h a rm fu l a n im a ls a w a y fro m th e h o u s e a n d it c o u l d n o t p r e v e n t . T h i r d , t h e r e is a p r o c e s s i o n a r o u n d t h e
th e fie ld s ; th e y f o r e w a r n a g a i n s t th e e v il s p e lls o f s o r c e r e r s . fire , s o m e t im e s o n c e , s o m e tim e s r e p e a te d ly , e i th e r b e f o r e , o r
L ik e th e fire o f M i d s u m m e r D a y , th e fire o f th e Y u le l o g d o e s m o re o f te n a fte r, th e lig h tin g . The p ro c e s sio n m ay m ake
n o t c a u s e b u r n s , n o r d o its s p a r k s . S o m e t i m e s p e o p l e w o u ld th re e , n in e , or, ra re ly , fo u r te e n (a s in B resse) f u ll c i r c l e s
h i t it w i t h a f i r e b r a n d i n o r d e r t o m a k e a s m a n y s p a r k s f ly a s a r o u n d t h e f i r e , o r it m a y l a s t u n t i l t h e f i r e d i e s o u t . R o u n d s
p o s s ib le , w h ile u tte r in g th e fo llo w in g f o rm u la o f p r o s p e r ity : a r e d a n c e d b y " y o u n g p e o p le o f b o th s e x e s " a c c o r d in g to th e
"S o m a n y b u s h e ls o f w h e a t, s o m a n y ju g s o f w in e " (A u ­ r e p o r t s o f a l m o s t a ll o b s e r v e r s . In s o m e l o c a l i t i e s , t h e d a n c e s
v e r g n e ) ; " A s m a n y s p a r k s a s l i t t le c h i c k s " ( P o i t o u ) ; " A s m a n y p r e d ic te d a n d a s s u r e d a p r o m p t m a r r ia g e . F o u r th , th e p e o p le
s h e a v e s a n d s h e a f le t s a s s p a r k s a n d s p a r k l e t s " ( C ô t e d 'O r ) . m a d e th e fire g i v e o f f a s m u c h s m o k e a s p o s s ib le b y t h r o w in g
T h e ch ild re n w o u ld a lso h i t it w i t h a s tic k to g e t o u t th e h e rb s a n d g r e e n b r a n c h e s (s o m e tim e s b o n e s ) o n th e fire , a n d
p reserv es an d d rie d fru its th a t h a d been h id d e n in it f o r p e o p l e a n d a n i m a ls w o u l d b e e x p o s e d to th e s m o k e . F in a lly ,
t h e m . P e o p l e w o u l d t h e n s a y in B u r g u n d y a n d in F r a n c h e - w h e n t h e f i r e b e g a n t o d i e d o w n , t h e r e w e r e s till t w o r i t u a l
C o m t é th a t th e lo g w a s " v o m i t in g ," " p i s s in g ," " s h i t t i n g ," o r a c ts to b e p e r f o r m e d . T h e p a r tic ip a n ts , e s p e c ia lly th e y o u n g
" g i v i n g b i r th ." m en and w om en, w o u ld ju m p over th e b o n fire on ce or
T h e ritu a l o f th e Y u le l o g is d e s i g n e d t o p r o m o t e p r o s p e r ­ sev eral tim e s , in ord er to get c e rta in b e n e fits : to p ro te c t
ity , h u m a n , a n i m a l , a n d a g r i c u l t u r a l . T h e r i t u a l is i n m o s t th e m s e lv e s fro m illn e s s , to g e t m a r r ie d w ith in th e y e a r , to
c a s e s c e le b r a te d in s id e th e h o m e a n d w ith in th e fa m ily c irc le . e n jo y g e n e ra l p r o s p e r ity . Then th e h a lf-b u rn e d p ie ce s of
F u r t h e r m o r e , it d o e s n o t a p p e a r a s if t h e C h u r c h trie d to f i r e w o o d w o u l d b e r e t r i e v e d a n d k e p t in t h e h o u s e t h r o u g h ­
e r a d i c a t e it a s b e i n g s u p e r s t i t i o u s , n o r d i d it t r y t o C h r i s t i a n ­ o u t t h e y e a r s o t h e y w o u l d p r o t e c t a ll t h o s e w h o l i v e d in t h e
i z e i t. T h e f e w o b s e r v a b l e C h r i s t i a n e m b e l l i s h m e n t s s e e m t o house, hum an and a n im a l a lik e , a g a in s t lig h tn in g , fire ,
have been added s p o n ta n e o u s ly and ra th e r la te in th e t h ie v e s , a n d s ic k n e s s . T h e r e m a i n s o f th e Y u le l o g h a d th e
p r o c e s s w i t h o u t a l t e r i n g t h e e s s e n c e o f t h e r i t u a l . In a ll o f sa m e p o w er, a n d t h e f i r e o f M i d s u m m e r D a y , l ik e t h a t o f
t h e s e m a t te r s , th e fire s o f M i d s u m m e r D a y d if f e r f r o m th e C h r i s t m a s , is n o t s u p p o s e d t o s c o r c h .
Y u le lo g . The C h u rch fo u g h t lo n g and h ard a g a in s t th e The o th e r fo rm s of th e r itu a l fire s of M id s u m m e r a re
M i d s u m m e r fire s a n d , u n a b le to e r a d i c a t e t h e m , t rie d to g iv e r e la tiv e ly r a r e b u t a ll th e m o r e n o t e w o r t h y . T h e m o s t b e a u ­
th e m a C h r is tia n v e n e e r th r o u g h th e p r e s e n c e o f th e c le r g y tif u l d e s c r i p t i o n , p u b l i s h e d in 1 8 2 2 , r e c o u n t s t h e f e s t i v a l o f
a n d t h r o u g h a p r o c e s s o f ra tio n a liz in g th e ritu a l b y a s s im i­ t h e f i r e w h e e l o f B a s s e - K o n t z , in t h e d i s t r i c t o f T h i o n v i l l e
l a t i n g it t o t h e f e a s t o f S a i n t J o h n t h e B a p t i s t . M o r e o v e r , t h e ( T e i s s i e r ) . T h i s v i l l a g e is b u i l t h a l f w a y u p t h e s l o p e o n t h e l e f t
fire s a r e lig h te d b y th e w h o l e lo c a l c o m m u n i ty a n d o u t o f bank o f th e M o s e lle R iv e r. T h e to p o f th e s lo p e fo rm s a
d o o rs, in th e m o st p u b lic w ay p o s sib le : th e s ite is o f t e n p la te a u c a lle d th e S tro m b e rg . The m en and boys of th e
ch o sen s o th a t th e fire c a n be seen fro m a g re a t d is ta n c e . v illa g e g o to th e to p a t n ig h tfa ll, w h ile th e w o m e n a n d th e
T h u s , n o t o n ly d o th e M id s u m m e r D a y b o n fire s d iffe r fro m g i r l s r e m a i n h a l f w a y u p b y t h e f o u n t a i n . T h e w h e e l is o n t o p ;
t h e Y u l e l o g s in a n u m b e r o f c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , b u t t h e y a l s o it is a s t r a w c y l i n d e r " w e i g h i n g f o u r t o f i v e h u n d r e d p o u n d s
h a v e a m u c h m o r e h ig h ly d e v e lo p e d a n d m u c h r ic h e r ritu a l. w ith a p o le g o i n g t h r o u g h its c e n t e r a n d s tic k in g o u t t h r e e
A g r e a t n u m b e r o f d e s c r ip tio n s o f th e M id s u m m e r fire s a r e f e e t o n e i t h e r s i d e . T h e p o l e is t h e r u d d e r w h i c h th e tw o
lis te d in a b ib lio g ra p h y in th e Manuel by van G ennep d riv e rs of th e w heel h o ld on t o ." E v ery in h a b ita n t h as
( 1 9 3 7 - 5 8 ) . T h e fo llo w in g o n e c o m e s fro m th e m a r s h la n d s o f w illin g ly p r o v i d e d a b a le o f s tr a w : r e fu s a l to d o s o w o u ld
P o i t o u ; it w a s p u b l i s h e d a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e n i n e t e e n t h b rin g c e rta in m isfo rtu n e in th e co u rse of th e year. The
c e n tu ry . s u r p lu s s tr a w is u s e d to m a k e fire b ra n d s . A s s o o n a s th e
w h e e l is s e t o n fire , t w o y o u n g m e n g r a b th e e n d s o f th e p o le
T h e e v e o f M i d s u m m e r D a y is a g r e a t f e s t i v a l t h r o u g h o u t
a n d s e n d it r o l l i n g d o w n t h e s l o p e . T h e g o a l is t o d i v e i n t o
th e c o u n tr y s id e . A fte r s u n s e t, e a c h b r in g s h is p ie c e o f
t h e M o s e l l e r i v e r a n d e x t i n g u i s h w h a t is l e f t o f t h e f l a m i n g
fire w o o d to th e sq u are; th e fire w o o d is s h a p e d in to a
w h e e l . B u t t h e y r a r e l y m a n a g e t o d o i t. S u c c e s s m e a n s t h a t
p y ra m id ; th e p rie st th e n com es fo rw ard in a s o le m n
t h e r e w ill b e a g o o d c r o p . D u r i n g t h i s t i m e , t h e m e n l ig h t
p ro c e s sio n and lig h ts th e fire . T h e c r a c k l in g fire th rills
s tr a w f ir e b r a n d s , h u rl th e m in to th e air, a n d re lig h t th e m a s
every h e a rt; ev ery o n e lo o k s j o y f u l. Young m en and
l o n g a s t h e w h e e l c o n t i n u e s t o r o ll . S o m e r u n a l o n g s i d e t h e
w o m e n h o ld h a n d s a n d a re e a g e r to s ta rt d a n c in g a ro u n d
w h e e l. W h e n it p a s s e s b y th e w o m e n a s se m b le d h a lfw a y
th e n e w fire . B u t th e h e a d s o f th e f a m ilie s a r e t h e r e , a n d
d o w n , t h e y g r e e t it w i t h s h o u t s .
b e fo re th e y g iv e w ay to th e im p a tie n t young p e o p le ,
T h is r itu a l c le a r ly r e v e a ls a n a g r a r ia n m a g ic . T h e p r o p e r
e v e r y o n e m u s t p a s s th r o u g h th e s a lu t a r y fla m e t h e th ic k
g u i d a n c e o f t h e w h e e l a n d i t s i m m e r s i o n in t h e r i v e r a r e t h e
c lu m p o f m u lle in p l a n t s a n d w a ln u t t r e e b r a n c h e s w h ic h ,
g u a r a n t o r s a n d o m e n s o f a p le n tifu l h a r v e s t in th e v i n e y a r d .
b e fo r e th e fo llo w in g d a w n , m u s t b e p la c e d a b o v e th e d o o r
T h i s f e a t u r e is a l s o p r e s e n t i n t h e b o n f i r e s o f M i d s u m m e r
o f th e m a in c a tt le s h e d . F in a lly t h e c e r e m o n y is o v e r , th e
D a y , b u t o f te n m o r e d if f u s e ly a n d le s s e x p lic itly .
young p e o p le re m a in in p o s se s sio n of th e a re n a , th e
A u t h o r s h a v e id e n tifie d th e s e fe s tiv a ls a s th e r e m n a n t s o f
s i l e n c e is b r o k e n , t h e g r o u p s s p r i n g f o r w a r d , s h o u t s o f j o y
a p a g a n c u l t o f t h e s u n . In t h i s r e g a r d , t h e m o s t i n t e r e s t i n g
are h eard , and th ere is d a n c in g and s in g in g . In th e
s t u d y w a s H e n r i G a i d o z 's w o r k o n t h e G a llic s u n g o d ( 1 8 8 6 ) .
m e a n tim e , th e o ld p e o p le w a rm th e m s e lv e s a n d p la ce
Som e G a llic s ta t u e s re p re s e n t a n in d iv id u a l o f te n naked,
c i n d e r s i n t h e i r c l o g s t o w a r d o f f a m u l t i t u d e o f i lls .
b e a r d e d , w i t h a f u ll h e a d o f h a i r , a n d c a r r y i n g a s i x - s p o k e d
F rom th e se d e s c rip tio n s , a c e rta in num ber of gen eral w h e e l i n h i s h a n d . M o r e h i g h l y R o m a n i z e d in s o u t h e a s t e r n
f e a t u r e s o f r i tu a ls c a n b e id e n tif ie d th a t a r e p e r t in e n t to th is G a u l, he seem s to have been a s s im ila te d to J u p ite r. For
p a r tic u la r c e r e m o n y . F irs t, th e e n tir e lo c a l c o m m u n i ty p a r tic ­ G a id o z , th e w h e e l is th e im a g e of th e sun . T h e re is n o
i p a t e s in t h e p r e p a r a t i o n o f t h e b o n f i r e , a n d each p erso n . s h o r t a g e o f e v i d e n c e in I n d o - E u r o p e a n ( p a r t i c u l a r l y I n d i a n )

260
 P O P U L A R C U S T O M S A ND R I T U A L S IN F R A N C E

mythologies to convince one of this. Furtherm ore, "th e

principal Christian festivals w ere substituted," he claims,
"for festivals predating Christianity by quite som e time, and
for dates that for m any centuries had already been devoted
to popular cults.” Since the tw o solstices w ere the m ost
striking dates in popular im agination, the tw o great festivals
of the year m ust have been scheduled at these times. In fact,
we know of only one, the great feast of M ithra, the Sol
invictus, which w as celebrated on D ecem ber 25. We m ust not
forget, how ever, that M ithraism , w hich cam e from the East,
was adopted by the R om an legions at the beginning of the
Christian era and w as not firmly established am ong the
populations am on g w hom they w ere cam ping. A s far as the
feast of M idsum m er Day is con cern ed , G aidoz is content to
assert that it is "th e continuation, under a Christian label, of
the feast of the su m m er solstice, that the w heel, the symbol
of our Gallic god, played a m ajor role in these rites, and that
our m em ories of it are not yet lost, though they are becom ing
fainter every day." This course of develop m en t is difficult to
prove, for there is no know n ancient cerem on y celebrated on
the sum m er solstice. M oreover, the first reference to the feast
of M idsum m er Day d ates from the seven th century and
appears in a hom ily of Saint Eloy, w ho says: "L e t no one on
M idsum m er D ay or on certain solem n occasions honoring
the Saints practice the observance of the solstices, dances,
carols, and diabolical so n g s." A survival of G erm anic pagan­
ism is excluded from this, since the oldest reference to the
fires of M idsum m er Day in G erm any dates from 1181. W hat
rem ains is the problem atic Celtic origin. N o d ocum ent indi­
cates that solstitial fires existed in Gaul. N othing proves that Mask. Aubrac. Photo Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires, Paris.
the god of the wheel, m ost likely a solar deity, w as indeed
associated w ith rituals of this kind. To accou n t both for the
Gallo-Roman deity and for the popular rites of M idsum m er
Day, it is enough to see in the wheel and particularly in the
flaming w heel an In do-European symbol of the sun.
It is, how ever, difficult to exclude totally from the data
concerning the popular festivals of M idsum m er Day the fact
that at this time in the solar y ear the sun is at its apogee and
that it is about to w ane. In certain com m unities of the Midsummer Day bouquet above a cowshed door (Doubs). Photo
A uvergne, Bourbonnais, Lan gu ed oc, the V osges, and the Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires, Paris.
Bouches-du-R hône, people w ould climb to the top of a hill
during the night of June 2 3 - 2 4 to w atch the sun rise and to
greet it, often with shouts of joy. In this way, they would
topographically m ark the m ost extrem e point of the sun's
sum m er rising. Curiously, the C hurch in its efforts to Chris­
tianize these m om ents of rejoicing rationalized their connec­
tion with the sum m er solstice through the hallowed ch arac­
ter of John the Baptist. In John 3:30, Saint John the Baptist,
speaking of Jesus and introducing him self as his precursor,
says, "H e m u st increase and I m ust d ecrease," while Saint
A ugustine, m aking an error of a few days, says, "ln Johannis
nativitate dies decrescit" (on Joh n 's nativity the day decreases).
We can see in this an exam ple of the com plex process by
which French folklore w as form ed, probably m ostly during
the high Middle A ges according to the repeated claims of van
Gennep. This form ation, this invention, is by and large the
result of the encounter, som etim es even the collision, be­
tween the Christian tradition, well established by that time,
and popular m ythical creativity.
Symbolically, the fires of M idsum m er Day thus represent
the sun at the height of its stren gth , just before it starts
decreasing. The symbolism is quite clear in the case of the
flaming w heels, since m any m ythologies represent the sun
in this form. But the French rituals of the su m m er solstice are
neither the reflection nor the relic of an im probable solar
mythology. They can only really be explained if we consider

261
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

th e g e n e r a l a n n u a l s y s te m o f fire s a n d b o n fire s : a t C h r is tm a s , and ritu a ls w ith an a g r a ria n fu n ctio n . W ith in th is g e n e r a l

S h r o v e T u e s d a y - L e n t , a n d M i d s u m m e r D a y . It h a s b e e n s a i d fra m e o f re f e r e n c e , th e ritu a ls o f S h r o v e T u e s d a y - L e n t a r e
th a t t h e s e ritu a ls d e f i n e d , in a w a y , o n e - h a l f o f th e c e r e m o ­ p a rtly th e d o u b le ts o f th o s e o f M id s u m m e r D a y . O f c o u r s e ,
n ia l year. N ot th a t th e seco n d p art of th e year h as no t h e y a l s o i n v o l v e o t h e r e l e m e n t s , w h i c h t h e r e a d e r w ill f i n d
c a le n d ric a l fe s tiv a ls , b u t th e y a r e m u c h ra r e r a n d o f le ss e r d e s c r i b e d in G a i g n e b e t ' s b o o k o n t h e s u b j e c t , a b o o k f u ll o f
im p o r t a n c e . A s a r e s u lt , th e ritu a l o r g a n i z a ti o n o f th e y e a r e r u d itio n , b u t s o m e tim e s q u e s tio n a b le fro m th e th e o re tic a l
d o e s n o t fo llo w th e C e ltic c a le n d a r th a t d iv id e d th e y e a r in to p o in t o f v ie w .
t w o p a r t s in t e r m s o f t w o g r e a t f e s t i v a l s : S a m a i n ( N o v e m b e r In t h e u n d e r l y i n g m y t h o l o g y o f t h e c a l e n d a r r i t u a l s y s t e m ,
1) a n d B e lta in e (M a y 1 ), to w h ic h w ere added tw o o th e r b o n fire s a n d fire b ra n d s r e p re s e n t th e s u n in c re a s in g fro m
d iv is io n s d e t e r m in e d b y th e fe s tiv a ls c a lle d Im b o lc (F e b r u u r y th e w in te r s o ls tic e to th e s u m m e r s o ls tic e , n o t a s th e s y m b o ls
1, F e a s t o f S a in t B rid g e t) a n d Lugnasad (A u g u st 1 ). T h is of a f o rg o tte n pagan d e ity bu t b ecau se th e n a t u r e o f fire
c a le n d a r d id n o t fo llo w th e m o v e m e n t o f th e s u n l ik e t h e e n a b l e s it t o m a t e r i a l i z e t h e i d e a o f g r o w t h a n d t h e i r r e s i s t ­
F r e n c h p o p u la r c a le n d a r , th e k e y to w h ic h r e s ts n o t s o m u c h i b le b u rg e o n in g of p la n ts . L ik e th e p la n t k in g d o m , fire
in s o l a r s y m b o l i s m a s in t h e a c c o m p a n y i n g a g r a r i a n m a g i c . m o v e s u p w a r d a n d d e fie s g r a v ity . T h e C h u r c h a c c o r d e d o n ly
The in c re a s in g sun, r e p re s e n te d and s u p p o r te d by fire a lim ite d p la c e to a g r a r ia n ritu a ls (e m b e r d a y s a n d R o g a tio n
r i t u a l s , is t h e s y m b o l , t h e g u a r a n t o r , a n d th e o m e n o f th e D a y s ), b u t p o p u la r m y th ic a l th in k in g s p o n ta n e o u s l y c r e a te d
g r o w th o f p la n ts , th e p ro p a g a tio n o f d o m e s tic a n im a ls , a n d t h o s e f o r m s o f r i t u a l f o r w h i c h it f e lt t h e n e e d .
th e p ro s p e rity of hum an b e in g s. As th e you n gest in th e N .B ./ g .h .
f a m i l y in M o n t p e l l i e r w o u l d s a y a f t e r t h e l i g h t i n g o f t h e Y u l e
lo g : “ A n d m a y G o d g r a n t h im c h ild b e a r in g w o m e n / k id d in g
g o a ts / la m b in g e w e s / f o a lin g m a r e s / k itte n in g c a ts / ra t­
b e a r i n g r a t s / A n d n o e v i l a t a l l , b u t p l e n t y o f g o o d . ” A ll t h e BIBLIOGRAPHY
fire s th a t w e r e lig h te d b e t w e e n C h r is t m a s a n d M i d s u m m e r
D a y , in c lu d in g S h r o v e T u e s d a y a n d L e n t, in v o lv e d fo rm u la s See the article "Mythic Elements in French Folklore."

c a lle d u p o n th e O ly m p ia n Z e u s , a l s o k n o w n a s th e c e le s tia l
R o m a n tic ism an d M yt h o l o g y : T he U se of J u p i te r , to m a k e w a y fo r Ö Ö in n . S h e p r o p o s e d t o r e p l a c e th e

M yth s in L iter a r y W o rk s fa b le s o f th e G r e e k s a n d R o m a n s w ith fa b le s b y S c o ttis h ,

I c e la n d ic , and S c a n d in a v ia n b a rd s, w h ic h she m ix e d to ­
g e th e r, d e s ig n a tin g th e m u n d e r th e g e n e ra l ru b ric o f N o rs e
M y t h o l o g y . In f a c t , a s e a r l y a s 1 7 5 6 , P a u l - H e n r i M a l l e t h a d
I. In F r a n c e
p u b l i s h e d h i s Monuments of the Mythology and the Poetry of the
A c c o rd in g to S c h e llin g , th e p r o d u c ts of m y th o lo g y "b y Celts, particularly of the Ancient Scandinavians / s i c / . In t h i s w o r k
th e ir d e p th , th e ir en d u ra n ce , and th e ir u n iv e r s a lity a re h e b r o u g h t t o F r e n c h r e a d e r s t h e p o e m s o f t h e Edda, w h i c h
c o m p a r a b l e o n l y to n a t u r e i ts e lf ." N i n e t e e n th - c e n t u r y F r e n c h h e i n t r o d u c e d a s t h e " B i b l e o f t h e N o r s e G o d O d i n . " In 1 7 6 0 ,
lite ra tu re s o u g h t a g r a n d e p ic s y n t h e s i s , p h ilo s o p h ic a l a n d Ja m e s M a c P h e r s o n p u b lis h e d h is Fragments of Ancient Poetry,
s o c i a l ; t h i s is e v i d e n t in B a l z a c 's Human Comedy, th e w o rk s o f w h ic h in sp ire d th e p s e u d o -O s s ia n fa s h io n . A c c o rd in g to
Visions, V i c t o r H u g o ' s Legend of the
B a l l a n c h e , L a m a r t i n e 's M a d a m e d e S t a ë l , a g a i n in On Literature, " t h e s h o c k to th e
Centuries a n d God, M i c h e l e t ' s History of France, a n d A u g u s t e im a g in a tio n th a t th e O s s ia n ic poem s cause in c lin e s o n e 's
C o m t e ' s Course of Positive Philosophy. t h o u g h t to w a r d th e d e e p e s t m e d i ta t i o n s ." S h e t h o u g h t th a t
M o r e o v e r , m y th s , a s M irc e a E lia d e h a s p o in te d o u t , " r e ­ th is m y th o lo g y p re p a re d th e w ay fo r th e a cce p ta n ce of
v e a l th e s tr u c tu r e s o f th e re a l a n d th e m u ltip le m o d e s o f C h r is tia n ity a m o n g th e N o r s e p e o p le s , b e c a u s e s h e d id n o t
b e i n g in t h e w o r l d . " A r c h a i c m y t h s a r e g e n e r a l l y s i m p l i f i c a ­ u n d e r s t a n d th e v io le n t a n d b lo o d y c h a r a c t e r o f m o s t o f th e
tio n s , d e s ig n e d to f a c ilita te th e u n d e r s t a n d in g o f th e r e a l, g o d s in t h e Edda. It w a s n o t b y c h a n c e t h a t O s s i a n w a s o n e
w h e re a s la te r m y th s , by c o n tra st, c o m p lic a te fo rm s an d of N a p o l e o n 's fa v o rite re a d in g s and re m a in e d in vogue
r e la tio n s . T h e m y th s e la b o r a te d b y n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y w r it­ th r o u g h o u t h is re ig n .
e rs g e n e ra lly fa ll i n t o th e secon d c a te g o ry , w h e th e r th e y In E n g l a n d , p e o p l e n e v e r s t o p p e d r e a d i n g t h e B i b l e . In
c o n s c i o u s l y m o d i f i e d a n o l d m y t h t o g i v e it a n e w m e a n i n g Fran ce, C h a te a u b ria n d in th e Genius of Christianity (1 8 0 2 )
o r c r e a te d a w h o lly o r p a rtia lly n e w m y th . to o k up th e d e fe n se of th e C h ris tia n s u p e rn a tu ra l an d
A t th e b e g in n in g o f th e n in e te e n th c e n tu r y , a d e b a te w a s recom m en d ed th a t p o e ts seek in s p ira tio n in th e B ib le , in
la u n c h e d b e tw e e n s u p p o r te r s o f G re e k a n d R o m a n m y th o l­ M i l t o n , a n d in T a s s o . It w a s p a r t l y t h r o u g h h i s i n f l u e n c e t h a t
o g y a n d p a r t i s a n s o f t h e C h r i s t i a n s u p e r n a t u r a l . In G e r m a n y th e O ld T e s ta m e n t w a s r e d is c o v e r e d a n d b e c a m e o n e o f th e
(se e referen ces to H e rd e r b e lo w ) and in Fran ce, m any b e d s id e b o o k s o f th e F r e n c h ro m a n tic s .
p o n d ered over th e o r ig in s of m y th o lo g ie s and over th e G e r m a n ic in flu e n c e s h e lp e d to g iv e th e C h r is tia n s u p e r ­
m e a n in g th a t th e y s h o u ld b e g iv e n . n a t u r a l i t s f u ll v i g o r . A m o n g t h e s e i n f l u e n c e s w e r e G e s s n e r ' s
For o u r p u rp o ses, th e c e n t u r y b e g in s w ith G o e th e a n d Idylls and F r ie d rich K l o p s t o c k 's Messiah (1 7 5 8 -7 3 ). V ig n y
S c h i l l e r in G e r m a n y , w i t h W i l l i a m B l a k e in E n g l a n d , a n d in o w e d h is " J e w i s h p o e m s " to th e m , a n d b y 1 8 2 3 h e w a s re a d y
France w ith C h a t e a u b r i a n d 's p u b lic a tio n of The Genius of to in s t it u te in F r a n c e a " C h r i s t ia n th e o g o n y " m o d e le d , h e
Christianity in 1 8 0 2 . T h i s d a t e , a m i l e s t o n e , a l s o h a p p e n s t o c la im e d , on th a t o f H e s io d . D u rin g th e E m p ire , E d w ard
b e th e y e a r o f V ic to r H u g o 's b ir th . F r o m th e n u n til 1 8 2 5 th e r e Y o u n g 's Night Thoughts ( 1 7 4 2 - 4 5 ) m a d e th e L a s t Ju d g m e n t a
w a s a v e r ita b le w a r o f m y th o lo g ie s . In a w o rk e n title d On f a s h i o n a b l e s u b j e c t . M i l t o n 's Paradise Lost w a s tr a n s la te d in to
Literature, w h ic h ap p eared b e fo re 1800, M adam e de S ta ë l v e r s e b y D e li l le i n 1 8 0 4 , a n d i n t o p r o s e b y C h a t e a u b r i a n d in

262
 R O M A N T I C I S M AND M Y T H O L O G Y

1 8 3 6 . B u t C h a t e a u b r i a n d 's t h e o r i e s le d p o e t s o n a f a l s e tr a il. h o w th e fre n z ie d s u p e r n a tu r a l a n d th e fa n ta s tic w e r e b o rn o f

C h a te a u b ria n d c ritic iz e d th e e p ics of D a n te , M ilto n , and th e d e c a d e n c e o f fa ith . S e v e r a l w o r k s p r e s e n t th e c o n f r o n t a ­
K lo p s to c k , c o n d e m n in g a n y p o e m in w h i c h r e l i g i o n c o n s t i ­ t i o n o f m y t h o l o g i e s . In The War of the Gods (1 7 9 7 ), E v a ris te
tu te d th e c e n tra l su b je ct a n d not th e s u b o r d in a te fh em e, P arn y b u rle sq u e d th e c o n f r o n ta tio n of god s fro m v a r io u s
" w h e r e t h e s u p e r n a t u r a l is t h e basis o f r a t h e r t h a n i n c i d e n t a l r e g io n s . C u r io u s ly , th is m y th o lo g ic a l h o d g e p o d g e f o r e s h a d ­
to th e i m a g e ." In h is p a m p h l e t The Literary Scruples of the ow ed t h e p a r a d e s o f d i v i n e c h a r a c t e r s in F l a u b e r t ' s Tempta­
Baroness Mme de Staël ( 1 8 1 4 ) , A l e x a n d r e S o u m e t o p p o s e d th is tion of Saint Anthony. C h a te a u b r i a n d , lo o k in g b a c k w ith iro n y
th e o ry ; h e w ro te : "C o u ld it b e t h a t s u b j e c t s a l m o s t e n t i r e l y on h is e a r ly w o rk , The Natchez, la te r s a id , "It show s th e
b a se d o n th e s u p e r n a tu r a l s u c h a s The Messiah and Paradise s u p e r n a t u r a l in a ll i ts f o r m s — t h e C h r i s t i a n s u p e r n a t u r a l , t h e
Lost a r e th e o n ly o n e s th a t c a n h e n c e fo rth b e a p p r e h e n d e d b y m y th o lo g ic a l s u p e r n a tu r a l, th e In d ia n s u p e r n a tu r a l: m u s e s ,
th e s te rn im a g in a tio n o f th e m o d ern s? O u r e p ic c o n c e p ts a n g e l s , d e m o n s , s p i r i t s . " In The Martyrs (1 8 0 9 ), to o , e p is o d e s
m u st to u c h th ro u g h o u t upon th e m y s te rie s of a n o th e r a s s o c i a te d w ith th e r e lig io n s o f th e G a u ls a n d th e N o r s e a r e
w o r l d ." W h e n in 1 8 4 0 h e p u b li s h e d The Divine Epic, h e s ta te d a d d e d to th e c e n tra l s tr u g g le b e tw e e n G r e c o -R o m a n m y th o l­
in h i s p r e f a c e t h a t h e h a d t u r n e d t h e M u s e i n t o a " m y s t i c a l o g y o n th e o n e s id e a n d C h ris tia n ity o n th e o th e r.
i n i t i a t e , " a d d i n g : " T h e s u p e r n a t u r a l , w h i c h is o n l y i n c i d e n t a l M a r c h a n g y s u g g e s te d a s a s u b je c t fo r a n e p ic th e r e e s ta b ­
in a n c i e n t e p i c s , a l m o s t a l w a y s b e c o m e s t h e v e r y s u b j e c t o f l i s h m e n t o f t h e e m p i r e b y C h a r l e m a g n e , p r e c i s e l y b e c a u s e it
th e son gs of a m o d ern e p ic p o e t. A w h o lly s p iritu a lis t o ffe re d an o p p o rtu n ity to d e p ic t th e g o d s o f v a r io u s re li­
r e lig io n c o m m a n d s h i m ." g i o n s . T h i s i s w h a t t h e V i c o m t e o f A r l i n c o u r t r e f e r r e d t o in
In ord er to a v o id th e su b lim e m o n o to n y th a t su ch a th e seco n d c a n to of h is e p ic Charlemagne, or the Caroleid
c o n ce p tio n of an e p ic m ig h t e n g e n d e r, w rite rs r e s o r te d to (1 8 1 8 ), in w h ic h th e gods T e u ta te s, Ô ô in n , and Irm in su l
n a tio n a l t r a d itio n s , fa irie s, m a g ic ia n s , a n d w itc h e s fo r th e f o m e n t a r e b e l l i o n a g a i n s t C h a r l e m a g n e f o r h i s r o l e in t h e
s a k e o f v a r ie ty . F r o m 1 8 1 3 to 1 8 1 7 , M a r c h a n g y p u b lis h e d h is s p r e a d in g o f C h ris tia n ity . T h r o u g h o u t th e e p ic (w h ic h h a s n o
e ig h t-v o lu m e Poetic Gaul, d e v o tin g a la rg e p art of it to le s s th a n tw e n t y - f o u r c a n t o s ) , m a n y m y th o lo g ie s a r e b r o u g h t
S c a n d in a v ia n m y th o lo g y a n d to a n e n c h a n tin g s u p e r n a tu r a l t o g e t h e r . O n e s t e p f a r t h e r a n d it w o u l d b e s y n c r e t i s m . T h i s
d e r iv e d fro m T a s s o . H e c la im e d th a t th e F r e n c h n a tio n a l e p ic ca n a lre a d y be fo u n d in F a b r e d ' O l i v e t , th e a u th o r o f The
w a s o rg a n iz e d a ro u n d th e fig u re o f C h a r le m a g n e a n d th a t Loves of Rose and Ponce de Meyrueis ( 1 8 0 3 ) , w h o w ro te a p o em
F r a n c e 's n a t io n a l e p i c s m i g h t w e ll r iv a l H o m e r i c l i t e r a t u r e . The Troubadour, m a d e u p o f f i v e c a n t o s
e n title d a n d w r i t t e n in
C h a r le s N o d ie r e m e r g e d a s th e p r o m o t e r o f th is " n a t i o n a l " t h e a r c h a i c F r e n c h o f t h e l a n g u e d ' o c . In t h i s l a s t w o r k , t h e
s u p e r n a t u r a l . In t h e journal of Delates o f 2 7 N o v e m b e r 1 8 1 7 a n g e l G a b r i e l is a s s i m i l a t e d to C u p id , and M ary to Ju n o ;
( a n a r t i c l e c o l l e c t e d in b o o k 2 o f t h e Mélanges de littérature, p p . M a r y M a g d a l e n e b e c o m e s a f i g u r e o f M y l i t a - A s t a r t e a s w e ll
3 1 7 —2 4 ) , he e n th u s ia s tic a lly h a ile d th e c o m p le tio n of th e as A p h ro d ite -V e n u s , and th e d e a d ly s in s bear H eb rew
p u b lic a tio n o f Poetic Gaul, a n d h e w ro te : nam es.
V i c o 's New Science a p p e a r e d in 1 7 2 5 , a l t h o u g h i t s i n f l u e n c e
L o o k a t y o u r fa b le s , y o u r m y th o lo g y , y o u r o ld c u s t o m s ,
in F r a n c e w a s n o t f e lt u n t i l M i c h e l e t ' s t r a n s l a t i o n in 1827.
p o e m s , a n d t r a g e d ie s : s u b lim e s u b je c ts a m o n g w h ic h w e
A c c o r d in g to V ico , m y th s c o u ld be v ie w e d as a k in d of
m e r e ly h a v e to m a k e a c h o i c e , to g iv e th e s e a l o f g e n iu s ,
s u m m a r y o f p r i m it i v e h is to r y . H e s a w in H o m e r a c o l le c ti v e
s o t h a t in t h e e m p i r e o f d r a m a a n d e p i c t h e y c a n t a k e t h e
b e in g , a s y m b o l o f th e G r e e k p e o p le c h a n t i n g th e ir o w n s to r y
p la c e o f th e la m e n ta b le a n d e te rn a l s to rie s o f T ro y , A r g o s ,
in n a t i o n a l e p i c s . I n e i g h t e e n t h - c e n t u r y F r a n c e , V i c o h a d a
Thebes, and M ycenae.
h e t e r o d o x d i s c i p l e in N i c o l a s B o u l a n g e r , w h o in h i s Antiquity
N o d i e r h im s e l f l a te r illu s t r a t e d th e m y th o lo g y o f s u p e r s ti­ Unveiled by Customs ( 1 7 6 6 ) c la im e d to h a v e fo u n d th e s o u r c e
tio n s w ith Trilby and The Crumb Fairy. o f a ll m y t h o l o g i e s i n t h e r e v o l u t i o n s in n a t u r e , e s p e c i a l l y in
T h e c o e x i s t e n c e o f C h r is t ia n i ty w ith p o p u l a r b e lie fs , s o m e th e m e m o r y o f th e g r e a t g e o lo g ic a l c a ta s tr o p h e s .
o f w h ic h g o b a c k to p r e h is to ric tim e s , c a n b e a s to n is h in g . The n in e -v o lu m e Primitive World of C o u rt de G é b e lin
N o n e t h e l e s s , M a d a m e d e S t a ë l p o i n t e d o u t in De l'Allemagne ( 1 7 7 3 - 8 4 ) e x e r t e d a c o n s i d e r a b l e i n f l u e n c e . In t h i s w o r k , a ll
(1 8 1 0 ) th a t p o p u la r s u p e r s titio n s a re a lw a y s a n a lo g o u s to th e m y th s w e re endow ed w ith a h isto rica l m e a n in g , o f te n
d o m in a n t r e lig io n , a n d sh e a d d e d : "A h o s t o f b e lie fs o r d i ­ c lo s e ly r e la te d to th e h is to r y o f a g r ic u lt u r e . B u t th e e t y m o ­
n a r ily a t ta c h t h e m s e l v e s to r e lig io n a n d h i s t o r y a l ik e ." J o s e p h lo g ic a l d i c t io n a r ie s i n c l u d e d in t h i s w o r k a l s o e n g a g e in a
de M a istre w ent even fu rth e r: " M a n 's w o rth can o n ly be deep m e d ita tio n o n la n g u a g e , a n e x te n s io n o f s o m e o f th e
m e a s u r e d b y w h a t h e b e lie v e s . T h a t d o e s n o t m e a n th a t o n e s p e c u la tio n s o f F a th e r A th a n a s iu s K irc h e r.
s h o u l d b e l i e v e i n n o n s e n s e , b u t it is a l w a y s b e t t e r t o b e l i e v e In year III of th e F irs t R e p u b lic (a .d . 1 7 9 4 ), C h a r le s -
to o m u c h t h a n t o b e l i e v e n o t h i n g . " M o r e o v e r , in t h e t e n t h F r a n ç o is D u p u is p u b lis h e d h is Origin of All Cults, w h ic h s e t
h o m ily in th e Soirées in Saint Petersburg th e sam e a u th o r f o rth th e th e s is th a t th e a d v e n t u r e s o f th e g o d s d e s c r ib e th e
d e c l a r e s th a t s u p e r s t it io n , a s th e te r m im p li e s , is s o m e t h in g p h e n o m e n a o f n a t u r e , p rim a rily c e le s tia l p h e n o m e n a , s u c h
beyond le g itim a te b e lie f, and th a t, as such , it is " a n ad­ a s th e r e v o lu tio n s o f th e s u n a n d th e m o o n , th e ir m o v e m e n ts
v a n c e d w o r k o f r e l i g i o n t h a t m u s t n o t b e d e s t r o y e d . " T h i s is w ith r e s p e c t to t h e c o n s t e l la t i o n s , e t c . A l t h o u g h t h e s e t h e o ­
a k in d o f p a r a p h r a s e o f th e G o s p e l p a r a b le o f th e g o o d a n d rie s h a v e a m e a s u r e o f tr u th , th e y c a n n o t a c c o u n t fo r th e
b a d s e e d . N o te s p u b lis h e d b y E . D e r m e n g h e m a rg u e : "S u ­ t o t a l i t y o f a ll m y t h s .
p e r s t i t i o n is t h e e x c e s s o f r e l i g i o n . . . W e m u s t n o t b e lie v e T h e id e a o f a u n iv e r s a l r e v e la tio n , w h ic h a l r e a d y a p p e a r s
t h a t r e l i g i o n is o n e t h i n g a n d s u p e r s t i t i o n a n o t h e r , r a t h e r w e in L a f i t a u 's w o rk in th e e ig h te e n th ce n tu ry , w as q u ite
s h o u l d s e r i o u s l y a s k o u r s e l v e s if s u p e r s t i t i o n m i g h t n o t b e a w id e s p r e a d in th e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y . W i th th e d e v e l o p m e n t
n ecessary advance p o s t o f re lig io n " (Joseph de Maistre the o f s e c r e t s o c ie tie s a n d Illu m in is m , s o m e a u t h o r s c la im e d to
Mystic, p . 2 8 ). r e c o g n i z e a p r é f i g u r a t i o n o f M a s o n i c r i t u a l s in t h e m y s t e r i e s
N o d ie r a lw a y s c la im e d th a t th e s u p e r n a tu r a l a n s w e r e d a o f E g y p t a n d E le u s is . T h e y tra c e d th e u n iv e rs a l tra d itio n s te p
f u n d a m e n ta l h u m a n n e e d , th e n e e d to b e lie v e . H e w a s la te r by s te p , and in th e ir v ie w m y th s h ad m u ltip le a n d deep
s a d d e n e d to s e e p o p u l a r b e lie fs o n t h e w a n e , a n d w o u l d t a k e m e a n i n g s . O n e w o r k w a s p a r t i c u l a r l y r e p r e s e n t a t i v e : Freema­
g re a t p a in s to p reserv e th e ir m e m o r y . He show ed c le a rly sonry Traced to Its True Origin, or the Antiquity of Freemasonry

263
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

Proved by the Explication of the Ancient and Modern Mysteries, by T h is le d to th e flo w e rin g o f e p ic s , m e n tio n e d e a rlie r , w h ic h
A le x a n d re L e n o ir (1 8 1 4 ). o w e d a s m u c h to V ic o a s to K r e u z e r in t h e ir c o n c e p t i o n .
J o s e p h d e M a is tr e s h a r e d w ith t h e s e a u t h o r s th e b e lie f in a T h e p r o p o n e n ts o f s y n c r e tis m — T h a lè s B e rn a rd , G é ra rd d e
p rim itiv e re v e la tio n id e n tic a l w ith H eb rew and C h r is tia n N e r v a l, a n d L o u is M é n a r d — m u s t a ls o b e c o u n te d a m o n g th e
m o n o th e is m . In h is Essay on Indifference in the Matter of d is c ip le s o f K r e u z e r . T h e y co u ld c la im to b e lo n g s im u lta ­
Religion (4 v o lu m e s , 1 8 1 7 - 2 3 ) , L a m m e n a is la te r c la im e d to n e o u s ly t o a ll r e l i g i o n s (N e rv a l is s a id to h ave esp ou sed
h a v e r e d is c o v e r e d th e o r ig in a l m o n o th e is m h id d e n b e h in d se v e n te e n ) b e ca u se th e y in te rp re te d th e m s y m b o l i c a l l y . In
th e gods of p o ly th e ism . B aro n E c k s te in la te r in tro d u c e d th e ir e y e s , th e s y m b o l r e d e e m e d b o th r e lig io n a n d p o e try .
H in d u m y th o lo g y i n to F r a n c e in h is n e w s p a p e r The Catholic, B e g in n in g in 1828, V icto r C o u s in d e v e lo p e d h is b r a n d of
a n d L a m a r t i n e t h e n u s e d h i s t r a n s l a t i o n s f r o m t h e S a n s k r i t .n s y n c r e ti s m , w h ic h w a s t h o r o u g h ly im b u e d w ith N e o p la to n ­
h is Plain Course in Literature. A c c o r d in g to E c k s te in , p a g a n ­ i s m a n d w o u l d l a t e r i n f l u e n c e Q u i n e t , V i g n y , a n d N e r v a l . In
ism w a s n o th in g b u t a c o rru p te d and d e g e n e r a te C a th o li­ The House of the Shepherd, The Death of the Wolf, a n d The Bottle
c is m , a n d h e search ed ev e ry w h e re fo r th e o ld so u rces of in the Sea, V i g n y a p p e a r e d a s t h e c r e a t o r o f m o d e r n m y t h s . In
b e lie fs , d o c tr in e s , and s y m b o ls th a t c o u ld m ake up w hat Daphne, h e r e p r o a c h e d C h r i s t i a n i t y f o r h a v i n g a d u l t e r a t e d
m i g h t b e c a l l e d " t h e C a t h o l i c i s m b e f o r e C a t h o l i c i s m . " H e l a id p u r e i d e a s , b u t a f t e r h e h a d d r e a m e d o f a r e lig io n w it h o u t
th e g r o u n d w o r k fo r th e c o m p a r a t iv e h is to r y o f r e lig io n s b y im a g e s , h e c a m e to r e a liz e th a t h e w a s d r e a m i n g a n im p o s ­
c o m p a rin g th e m y th s o f In d ia , Ira n , G r e e c e , S c a n d in a v ia , s ib le d r e a m .
and a n cie n t G e rm a n y . Som e o f th e se s tu d ie s fo re sh a d o w Fren ch ro m a n tic is m e s s e n tia lly fe d on m y th s . T h is is
a s to u n d in g ly th e w o r k s o f G e o r g e D u m é z il. e s p e c ia lly t r u e o f th e w o r k o f V ic to r H u g o , w h o d o m in a te d
E c k s t e i n 's ro le w as c o n sid e ra b le . He in tro d u c e d in to th is p e r io d .
F r a n c e th e id e a s o f h is m a s te r , F r e d e r ic k K r e u z e r , th e a u t h o r
o f th e c e le b r a te d Symbolism and Mythology of Ancient Peoples
II. In Germany
p u b l i s h e d in 1 8 1 0 - 1 2 . In 1 8 2 4 , B e n j a m i n C o n s t a n t , w h o h a d
r e a d t h e w o r k in G e r m a n , p r e d i c t e d i n t h e f i r s t v o l u m e o f h i s G o e th e d e s e r v e s s p e c ia l a tte n tio n h e r e b e c a u s e h is w o rk
book On Religion th e t r iu m p h o f K r e u z e r 's b o o k o v e r " t h e serv ed in m any re s p e c ts as a p re lu d e to ro m a n tic is m in
n a r r o w a n d a rid s y s te m o f D u p u i s ," a n d C o n s ta n t a d d e d , " I t G e rm a n y . A la rg e n u m b e r o f g r e a t m y th ic th e m e s g ra v ita te
w ill b e a t r i u m p h f o r t h e i m a g i n a t i o n a n d in c e r t a i n w a y s a a ro u n d Wilhelm Meister and Faust. In h is d r a m a tic w o r k s ,
g a i n f o r s c i e n c e . " In f a c t , K r e u z e r ' s w o r k m a r k e d t h e d a w n o f G o e th e tre a te d such su b je cts as P a n d o ra and Ip h ig e n ia ,
th e s c ie n c e o f m y th s ; Jo s e p h -D a n ie l G u ig n ia u t w o u ld la te r w h ic h g o b a ck to c la s s ic a l a n tiq u ity . The Green Serpent is a n
d e v o t e h i s lif e t o t r a n s l a t i n g h i m , t o c o m p l e t i n g a n d r e c t i f y ­ a l l e g o r y o f h u m a n lif e i n s p i r e d b y The Alchemical Wedding of
i n g h im , a n d t h u s h e b e c a m e in F r a n c e th e t r u e f o u n d e r o f Christian Rosencreutz b y J o h a n n V a l e n t i n A n d r e a e .
re lig io u s s tu d ie s , a s M ic h e le t p o in te d o u t . T h e F r e n c h e d i­ W i t h The Robbers ( 1 7 8 1 ) , S c h i l l e r m a d e c u r r e n t a m o d ern
tio n o f G u i g n i a u t 's w o r k , th u s e n ric h e d , a p p e a re d in te n m y th w ith a n e x tr a o r d in a r ily p r o m is in g f u tu r e , th e m y th o f
v o lu m e s b e tw e e n 1 8 2 5 a n d 1 8 5 1 , w ith a n e x t r e m e l y s u g g e s ­ th e "n o b le b a n d it ." W ork s l ik e Maria Stuart (1800) and
t i v e v o l u m e o f p l a t e s . E n t i t l e d Religions of Antiquity Considered Wilhelm Tell (1 8 0 4 ) g iv e a m y th ic a l d im e n sio n to h isto ric
Principally in Their Symbolic and Mythological Forms, it f a s c i ­ c h a r a c t e r s . F in a lly , h is Letters on the Aesthetic Education of Man
n a te d th e p o e ts b ecau se it s u p p lie d th e m w ith a w h o le (1 7 9 3 ) r e fle c t o n th e p r o p e r u s e o f m y th o lo g y .
re p e r to r y o f s y m b o ls a n d a n a lo g ie s . D ra w in g u p o n S ch e ll- A lth o u g h B o n a ld , F ab re d 'O l i v e t , Jo sep h de M a istre ,
i n g 's p h i l o s o p h y o f n a t u r e , K r e u z e r c la i m e d t h a t t h e s y m b o l S a in t-M a r tin , a n d B a lla n c h e e x e r te d a g r e a t d e a l o f in flu e n c e
is " t h e p r im itiv e fo rm of hum an in te llig e n c e " and t h a t it on l it e r a t u r e in F r a n c e , G e r m a n R o m a n ticism w a s im b u ed
m a k e s it p o s s i b l e t o g i v e f i n i t e i n t e l l i g e n c e s a n i m a g e o f t h e w ith o c c u lt d o c tr in e s to an even g r e a te r e x te n t th a n w as
in fin ite . By th is m eans th e p r ie s tly c a ste in th e O rie n t F r e n c h ro m a n tic is m . T h e lo ftie st id e a s o f N e o p la to n is m h a d
r e c e iv e d th e p r im itiv e r e v e la tio n a n d tr a n s m itte d it t o s till b e e n r e i n t r o d u c e d in G e r m a n y b y M e i s t e r E c k h a r t , P a r a c e l ­
u n c u l ti v a te d p e o p l e s . T h e s y m b o l , w h ic h is " t h e id e a m a d e sus, A g rip p a von N e tte s h e im , and fin a lly Ja k o b Böhm e.
p a lp a b le a n d p e r s o n i f ie d ," g i v e s b ir th to th e m y th , w h ic h S u ch p o e ts a s L u d w ig T ie ck a n d N o v a lis , a n d a fte r th e m th e
e x p la in s a n d illu s tra te s th e id e a th r o u g h a n a r r a tiv e . P rim i­ s to r y te lle r E . T . A . H o f f m a n n , w e r e d e e p ly m a r k e d b y th e ir
tiv e r e v e la t i o n is p r e s e r v e d in m y s t e r i e s . T h e N e o p l a to n is ts re a d in g o f B ö h m e .
a lo n e w e r e a b le to p e n e tr a te th e re a l s p irit o f p a g a n is m a n d F o r J o h a n n G e o r g H a m a n n , t h e " m a g u s o f t h e n o r t h , " a ll
th e m e a n i n g o f its s e c r e t r ite s . o f c re a tio n is "a d isco u rse ad d ressed to th e c r e a tu r e by
T h e n o tio n o f a la n g u a g e o f n a t u r e , o f th e p r im itiv e s p o k e n m e a n s o f th e c r e a t u r e ." A n o th e r g r e a t s tim u lu s w a s J o h a n n
w o r d , f o r m u l a t e d b y K r e u z e r , is r e l a t e d t o c e r t a i n s p e c u l a ­ G o ttf r ie d von H erd er, w ho to o k an in te re s t in p o p u la r
tio n s o f C o u r t d e G é b e lin , C la u d e d e S a i n t - M a r ti n , a n d F a b r e tra d itio n s a n d w ho in h is q u e s t fo r s y n c r e tis m a rriv e d at
d 'O l i v e t . im m a n e n tis m ( th e p e r c e p t i o n o f G o d in th e u n iv e r s e ). T h e
In t h e D e c e m b e r 1 8 2 3 i s s u e o f The French Muse (th u s b e fo re G e rm a n r o m a n tic s c o n c e iv e d o f n a tu r e a s a n a n im a te b e in g .
G u i g n i a u t 's p u b lic a tio n ), A le x a n d re Sou m et echoed th e se O n e o f t h e i r f u n d a m e n t a l m y t h s is t h e q u e s t f o r t h e p r i m i t i v e
d o c tr in e s . H e c la im e d th a t p o e tr y " e x p l a in s a n d c o m p l e te s l a n g u a g e f r o m w h i c h a ll l a n g u a g e s w e r e d i f f e r e n t i a t e d a n d
th e w o r k o f th e C r e a t o r ." E v e r y t h i n g is s y m b o l i c in t h e e y e s fo r th e o r ig in a l re lig io n w h ic h w a s a t th e o r ig in o f m u ltip le
o f th e p o e t. T h ro u g h a c o n tin u o u s e x c h a n g e o f a n a lo g ie s a n d b e lie fs .
co m p a riso n s, he seek s to re d isco v e r som e tra c e s of th e H e r d e r b e g a n h is e s s a y On the Germano-Oriental Poets by
p rim itiv e la n g u a g e , re v e a le d to m an by G od, of w h ic h c o n d e m n i n g a ll i m i t a t i o n o f O r i e n t a l p o e t r y , b y w h i c h he
m o d e r n l a n g u a g e s a r e b u t a f l i m s y s h a d o w . T h u s t h e f a i t h in m e a n t im ita tio n o f th e O ld T e s ta m e n t. C o n v e r te d fo r a tim e
th e tr u th o f th e im a g in a tio n a r o s e . P ie r r e L e r o u x , a n d la te r to E a s te rn a e s th e tic s b e tw e e n 1 7 6 9 a n d 1 7 7 4 , w h ile h e w a s
C h a r l e s B a u d e l a i r e , t o o k t h i s d o c t r i n e a s f a r a s it c o u l d g o ; p r e p a r in g h is Oldest Document of the Human Race, h e re tu rn e d
B a u d e la ir e w e n t o n to s p e a k o f th e in e x h a u s tib le d e p th s o f to th e id e a o f th e s u p r e m a c y o f th e l a n g u a g e , m y th o lo g y , a n d
th e u n iv e r s a l a n a lo g y . p o e tr y o f G r e e c e . L a te r b o th F r ie d ric h v o n S c h le g e l a n d h is

264
 R O M A N T I C I S M AND M Y T H O L O G Y

b r o th e r A u g u s t W ilh e lm S c h le g e l h e lp e d to a c q u a in t E u r o p e In B y r o n 's s iz a b le o eu v re, Manfred and Cain w ere con ­

w ith H in d u l it e r a t u r e . N u m e r o u s G e r m a n s c h o l a r s , a m o n g c e iv e d a c c o rd in g to th e s y s te m o f p h ilo s o p h ic s y m b o lis m .
t h e m J . A . K a n n e , F. M a j e r , G ö r r e s , K a r l R i t t e r , a n d G o t t f r i e d S h e lle y tra n sm u te d h is id e a s in to p o e try and tra v e rs e d a
M ü lle r, to o k m y th s s e r io u s l y a n d e n c o u r a g e d o th e r s to d o b rie f t r a je c to r y th a t a llo w e d h im to p ass fro m a n a rc h is tic
so. in d iv id u a lis m to th e m e a n i n g o f h u m a n b r o t h e r h o o d a n d th e
B u t fro m th e s ta n d p o i n t o f o u r c o n c e r n , th e m o s t i m p o r ­ m e a n i n g o f th e a u t h o r i ty o f s a g e s . H e d i s a v o w e d ra tio n a lis m
ta n t s ta te m e n t c o m e s fro m F r ie d r i c h S c h e l l i n g 's On the Phi­ a n d a f f i r m e d i n tu i ti v e t r u t h s , fin a lly e s p o u s i n g a n id e a lis tic
losophy of Art ( 1 8 0 2 - 3 ) , in w h i c h h e a s s e r t s t h a t " t h e g o d s a r e p a n t h e i s m . L i k e V i g n y 's M o s e s , h is p o e m Alastor is d e v o t e d
th e a b s o l u t e its e lf s e e n t h r o u g h th e p a r t ic u la r a n d c o n s i d e r e d to th e t h e m e o f th e s o litu d e o f th e s u p e r i o r in d iv id u a l. J o h n
a s r e a l ," th a t m y th o lo g y " i s th e n e c e s s a r y c o n d itio n a n d ra w K e a t s , in h is m a j e s t i c t h o u g h u n f i n i s h e d m a s t e r p i e c e Hyper­
m a t e r i a l o f a ll a r t , " a n d , f u r t h e r , t h a t ion, s o u g h t to riv a l M ilto n b y d e s c r ib in g th e h e a v e n ly r e v o ­
lu tio n s o f p a g a n m y th o lo g y , as M ilto n h ad d e sc rib e d th e
m y t h o l o g y is t h e u n i v e r s e in h o l i d a y d r e s s , i n i t s a b s o l u t e C h ris tia n c y c le of p a ra d ise lo s t and r e g a in e d . Even th e
s ta te , th e tru e u n iv e r s e per se, th e im a g e o f lif e and im a g in a tio n of Thom as C a rly le , e lo q u e n t p ro se w rite r
s u p e r n a t u r a l c h a o s in d i v i n e i m a g i n a t i o n , a l r e a d y p o e t r y th o u g h h e w a s , w a s o f a m y th ic iz in g n a tu re , a n d he w as
b y i t s e l f a n d i n t u r n p o e t i c m a t t e r a n d p o e t i c e l e m e n t s . It im b u e d w ith G e r m a n id e a lis m . H is Sartor Resartus (T h e ta ilo r
is t h e w o r l d a n d in a s e n s e t h e e a r t h , t h e o n l y p l a c e w h e r e re ta ilo re d ) (1 8 3 3 -3 4 ), b ased on a p h ilo s o p h y of c lo th e s
w o r k s o f a r t c a n flo u r is h a n d liv e . O n ly in a w o r l d o f th is r e m in is c e n t of B a lz a c , is a tra n sp o se d a u to b io g ra p h y in
k in d a r e i m m u ta b le a n d d e t e r m in e d fo rm s p o s s ib le , th e w h ic h he ex p re sse s h is c o n te m p t fo r h is tim e by s e ttin g
o n ly fo rm s th r o u g h w h ic h e te rn a l id e a s m ay be ex­ a p p e a r a n c e s in o p p o s i t i o n t o e s s e n c e s .
p re sse d .

H e r d e r 's id e a s cam e to be know n in Fran ce p rim a r ily IV. A New Renaissance?

t h r o u g h E d g a r Q u in e t . S in c e w o r k s b y G o e t h e , S c h ille r , a n d
The re tu rn to m y th th a t c h a r a c te riz e s ro m a n tic is m in
E . T. A . H o f f m a n n w e r e a ls o tr a n s la te d a n d d i s c u s s e d , th e ir
Fran ce, G e rm a n y , and G re a t B rita in ap p e a re d in a ll th e
in flu e n c e b e c a m e , o d d ly e n o u g h , m o r e s ig n ific a n t t h a n th a t
c o u n tr ie s o f W e s te rn E u ro p e in th e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y . In
o f S ir W a lte r S c o tt a n d J a m e s F e n n im o r e C o o p e r . N o v a lis ,
S p a in , Jo sé Z o rilla y M oral gave th e D on Ju a n m y th i ts
T ie c k , A rn im , a n d K le ist w e r e a ls o t r a n s la te d a n d a p p r e c i ­
d e fin itiv e f o rm Don juan Tenorio ( 1 8 4 4 ) ; L e o p a r d i , w h o
w ith
a t e d , b u t o n l y la te r.
The Wager of Prometheus, a l s o
t r e a ts P r o m e t h e u s w ith i r o n y in
w ro te Sappho's Last Song. T h i s p o e m m a y e x p l a i n t h e m e n t a l
le a p th a t p o e ts a lw a y s m a k e , th e s te p th a t b in d s th e m to
III. In Great Britain
m y th s : " T h e h a p p ie s t d a y s o f o u r liv e s a r e th e firs t to w it h e r
W ith re g a rd to th e g r a d u a l s w in g in to r o m a n tic is m th a t a w a y ."
to o k p la ce in E n g l a n d — a w r i t e r l ik e W i l l i a m B la k e ( 1 7 5 7 - T h e g la n c e b a c k w a rd c o n s titu te d b y th e r e c o u r s e to m y th s
1827) m ay a lre a d y be id e n tifie d w ith ro m a n tic is m — L o u is m a y w e ll b e a t th e s a m e t im e th e q u e s t fo r a lo s t h a p p in e s s ,
C a z a m ia n s p o k e o f th e p h e n o m e n o n o f c o lle c tiv e p a r a m n e ­ fo r a g o ld e n a g e w h e n th e y o u n g g o d s re v e a le d th e m s e lv e s
s ia . In d e e d , th e E n g lish m e re ly d isco v e re d w ith in th e m ­ to h u m an s. M a ie r la te r d e fin e d S a n sk rit poem s as "th e
s e lv e s la te n t t e n d e n c ie s th a t h a d a lr e a d y p re v a ile d in t h e ir d re a m s o f c h ild re n of ou r ow n s p e c i e s ." The n in e te e n th
lite ra tu re d u rin g th e E liz a b e th a n era. T h is e x p la in s w hy c e n tu ry w as fo r E u ro p e th e p e rio d of a tru e "O rie n ta l
s e n s a tio n a l s ta te m e n ts o r m a n ife s to s w e r e a lm o s t e n tire ly R e n a i s s a n c e ." In 1 8 4 1 , E d g a r Q u in e t e n t it le d a c h a p t e r o f h is
a b se n t. T h e p re fa c e th a t W o rd s w o rth a n d C o le rid g e w ro te Genius of Religions " T h e O r ie n ta l R e n a is s a n c e ." T h e f o llo w in g
fo r th e a n o n y m o u s Lyrical Ballads ( 1 7 9 8 ) , o r S h e l l e y 's Defense y e a r , L . D u s s ie u x , th e a u t h o r o f th e re m a rk a b le Essay on the
of Poetry ( 1 8 2 1 ) , c a n n o t r e a l l y b e c o m p a r e d w i t h S t e n d h a l ' s History of Oriental Erudition, p u b l i s h e d in The New Encyclope­
Racine and Shakespeare l e t a l o n e w i t h H u g o ' s Preface to Crom- dia, e m p h a s i z e d t h e f a c t t h a t t h i s r e n a i s s a n c e h a d i ts r o o t s in
well. th e p re v io u s c e n tu ry and w a s c o m p le m e n ta ry to th e first
E n d o w e d w ith a n e x c e p t i o n a l i m a g i n a ti o n , W illia m B la k e R e n a is s a n c e .
w as a p ro p h e t an d v is io n a ry w h o e la b o ra te d a w h o le m y ­ I n 1 8 0 0 , F r i e d r i c h S c h l e g e l w r o t e , " I t i s in t h e O r i e n t t h a t
t h o l o g y in w h i c h h e o b j e c t i f i e d t h e p o w e r s o f h i s m i n d . H e w e s h o u ld lo o k fo r t h e s u p r e m e r o m a n t i c i s m ," a n d b e fo re
a s s o c ia te d th e im a g in a tio n w ith t h e s u n in th e a i r a n d th e th e e n d o f th e c e n t u r y , th e in q u iry o f th e e lite ta k e s o n a
ego, and c a lle d it Los-Urthona; s e n tim e n t, c o n n e cte d w ith p l a n e t a r y c h a r a c t e r . T h e g o a l o f a ll t h e g r e a t W e s t e r n p o e t s
fire , w a s Luvah-Orc; s e n s a tio n a n d w a te r w e r e Tharmas; c o l d w as to riv a l th e H in d u e p ics, th e Rämäyana and th e
r e a s o n i n g , c o n n e c t e d w ith th e e a r t h , w a s Urizen. A t h r o n g o f Mahäbhärata, w h ic h e x p la in s in p a rt th e im m e n s e th o u g h
s e c o n d a r y fig u re s , n o s o o n e r n o tic e d th a n n a m e d , c a m e to o n ly p a rtia lly c o m p l e te p r o je c ts to w h ic h w e a llu d e d a t th e
m a k e u p a p e r s o n a l m y th o lo g y p a ra lle l to th e O ld T e s ta m e n t b e g in n in g o f th is a rtic le .
a n d G re e k m y th o lo g y . B la k e w a s c o n v i n c e d th a t h e w a s th e A n o n e iric te x t b y th e E n g lish w r ite r D e Q u in c e y ( tr a n s ­
r e i n c a r n a t io n o f M ilto n . H is G n o s ti c i s m p e r s u a d e d h im th a t la te d i n to F r e n c h s u c c e s s i v e ly b y M u s s e t in 1 8 2 8 a n d B a u d e ­
S a t a n w a s m a n 's t r u e f r i e n d , a n d h e i d e n t i f ie d C h r i s t w it h l a i r e i n 1 8 6 0 ) g i v e s a p r o b i n g a c c o u n t o f t h e w a y in w h i c h
th e h u m a n Im a g in a tio n . O rie n ta l m y th o lo g ie s , la rg e ly c o n fla te d a n d m ix e d to g e th e r ,
T h e m o s t v ig o r o u s m in d o f th e first g e n e r a tio n o f r o m a n ­ W e s t e r n c o n s c i o u s n e s s . I n h i s b o o k The Oriental
in v a d e d
tic s w a s S a m u e l T a y lo r C o l e r i d g e , b u t s in c e h e w a s a d d ic t e d Renaissance ( p . 2 1 5 ) , R a y m o n d S c h w a b c i t e s a p a s s a g e f r o m
to o p iu m , h e c o m p le te d v irtu a lly n o th in g o f w h a t h e b e g a n . The Confessions of an English Opium Eater ( c h a p t e r 4 , " P a i n s o f
In b o t h o f h i s m o s t s u c c e s s f u l p o e m s , Kubla Khan ( 1 7 9 1 ) a n d O p i u m , " o r i g i n a l l y p u b l i s h e d in 1 8 2 2 ) : " I r a n i n t o p a g o d a s ,
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ( 1 7 9 8 ) , h e a s s u m e d t h e r o l e o f a n d w a s f i x e d f o r c e n t u r i e s a t t h e s u m m i t o r in s e c r e t r o o m s ;
a m a k e r o f m y th s . P o e 's Adventures of Arthur Gordon Pym l a t e r I w a s th e id o l; I w a s th e p rie st; I w a s w o rs h ip p e d ; I w a s
d e r i v e d p a r t l y f r o m The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. s a c r i f i c e d . I fle d f r o m t h e w r a t h e o f B r a h m a t h r o u g h a ll th e

265
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

fo r e s ts o f A s ia ; V is h n u h a te d m e ; S e v a la y in w a it o f m e . I gëbelin . Monde primitif analysé et comparé avec le monde moderne, etc., 9

c a m e s u d d e n l y u p o n I s is a n d O s i r i s : I h a d d o n e a d e e d , t h e y vols. (Paris 1773-84; repr. Paris 1787). f . creuzer , Religions de
s a id , w h ic h th e i b is a n d th e c r o c o d ile tre m b le d a t" (The l’Antiquité, considérées principalement dans leurs formes symboliques et
Collected Writings of Thomas de Quincey, v o l. 3 , L o n d o n : A & C
mythologiques, trans., partly recast, completed, and developed by
DANIEL GUIGNIAUT, 10 Vols. (Paris 1825-51). E. DERMENCHEM, Joseph de
B la c k , 1 8 9 7 , p . 4 1 2 ).
Maistre mystique (repr. Paris 1946). m .-|. durry , Gérard de Nerval et le
F o r a ll t h e p o e t s o f t h i s t i m e , t h e k n o w l e d g e o f E g y p t i a n
mythe (Paris 1956; reissued 1976). e . eggli. Schiller et le romantisme
re lig io n , Z o r o a s tr ia n is m , H in d u m y th o lo g y , th e V e d a n ta a s français, 2 vols. (Paris 1927; index 1928). e . estéve, Byron et le
exp ressed in th e Upanisads, and B u d d h is m in fo rm e d th e ir romantisme français, essai sur la fortune et l'influence de l’œuvre de Byron
w o rk and s u p p lie d p o in ts o f re fe re n c e and co m p a riso n s. en France de 1812 à 1850 (Paris 1907). a . fabre d'olivet . Histoire
S u c h r e f e r e n c e s , e v e n w h e n th e y r e m a in im p lic it, h e lp u s to philosophique du genre humain, 2 vols. (Paris 1824). e . frenzel , Stoffe der
u n d e rs ta n d n o t o n ly L a m a r tin e , V ig n y , H u g o , N e rv a l, a n d Weltliteratur (2d ed., Stuttgart 1963). R. Gérard, L’Orient et la pensée
M ic h e le t, b u t a ls o W o r d s w o r t h , C o le r id g e , S h e lle y , G o e th e , romantique allemande (Paris 1963). f . germain . L’imagination d'A. de
a n d N o v a lis .
Vigny (Paris 1962). b. d'herbelot de molainville. Bibliothèque orientale
(Paris 1697). a . koyré, La philosophie de Jacob Boehme (Paris 1929).
J .R i ./g .h .
a . h . Krappe , La genèse des mythes (Paris 1938). j. larat , La tradition et
l'exotisme dans l’œuvre de Charles Nodier (Paris 1928). m . marache, Le
symbole dans la pensée et l’œuvre de Goethe (Paris 1960). a . monchoux ,
L'Allemagne devant les lettres françaises de 1814 à 1835 (Paris 1953).
BIBLIOGRAPHY h . Peyre , Bibliographie critique de l’hellénisme en France de 1843 à 1870
(New Haven 1932). m . praz. The Romantic Agony (New York 1956).
r. albouy , La Création mythologique chez Victor Hugo (Paris 1963). I. f . Ricci, £. T. A. Hoffmann, l’homme et l'œuvre (Paris 1941). |. richer ,
R. Ayrault , Heinrich von Kleist (Paris 1966); Genèse du romantisme Gérard de Nerval et les doctrines ésotériques (Paris 1947); Nerval, expér­
allemand, 4 vols. (Paris 1961-76). a . béguin , L'ame romantique et le rêve ience et création (2d ed., Paris 1970). |. roos, Aspects littéraires du
(Paris, repr. 1946). j. buche. L’école mystique de Lyon (Paris 1935). mysticisme philosophique (W. Blake, Novalis, Ballanche) (Strasbourg
N. BURTiN, Un semeur d’idées au temps de la Restauration: Le baron and Paris 1951). R. schwab, La renaissance orientale (Paris 1950). van
d'Eckstein (Paris 1931). R. canat , L’Hellénisme des romantiques, 3 tieghem . Le Romantisme dans la littérature européenne (Paris 1948).
vols.(Paris 1951-55). p.-g . castex . Le conte fantastique en France, de a . viATTE, Les sources occultes du romantisme, 1770-1820 (Paris 1928).
Nodier à Maupassant (Paris 1951). l . cellier , Fabre d'Olivet, contribution N.B.: This bibliography is complemented by those of the individ­
à l’étude des aspects religieux du romantisme (Paris 1953). |.-a .-s . collin ual articles listed and by references to a number of works in the text.
de PLANCY, Dictionnaire infernal, 4 vols. (Paris 1825-26). a . court de

in s c rib e d w ith in e v e r y o n e 's v is io n . T h e g r e a t C h r is tia n s c h e ­

R omanticism and M yth in B lake, m a t a t h a t u n til n o w c o n s t i tu t e d a p l a c e fo r b id d e n t o m y th ic a l
N erval, and B alzac e la b o r a tio n a r e fr e e d th r o u g h th e p o w e r o f re lig io u s c ritic is m
a n d c o m e t o m e r g e w ith t h e s c h e m a t a o f a ll o t h e r m y th o lo ­
g ie s ; th e C h ris tia n r e lig io n len d s a ll of its u n d erg ro u n d
For th e seco n d tim e , th e gods have d e s e rte d th e e a rth . s tr e n g th to th e r e a c tiv a tio n o f th e o ld m y th s . A n d th e g r e a t
A lm o s t tw o th o u s a n d y e a rs a g o , a c ry w e n t o u t, "T h e g re a t fig u re s o f th e d e n y in g p r o p h e ts w h o a ris e a r e th e fig u re s o f
P a n is d e a d ." A s e c o n d c r y th a t p r o c l a im s t h a t G o d is d e a d g ia n ts, w ho, w o rn out fro m f ig h tin g th e gods in th e ir
n o w a n s w e r s th a t first c r y . H o w a r e w e to t h in k a b o u t th e a t t e m p t s t o r e p l a c e t h e m , c a n o n l y b e r e c o g n i z e d in th e d a r k
w o rld , to g iv e m e a n in g to o u r in d iv id u a l h is to r ie s , to th e fo rm s o f S a ta n , P ro m e th e u s , or D io n y s u s . A m ong th e se
h is to ry o f m a n k in d , to th e h is to ry o f th e u n iv e rs e ? W e m u s t fig u re s a r e n o t o n ly B y ro n , B la k e , a n d H u g o , b u t a ls o M a rx
som eh ow a tte m p t to r e c o v e r fro m th e s h o c k c a u s e d b y th e a n d N ie tz s c h e .
b ru ta l c h a lle n g e to a c o n c e p tio n o f th e w o rld t h a t m a d e it S till o t h e r s c h o o s e t o h e a r N e r v a l w h e n h e a s k s , " W i l l I s e e
p o s sib le fo r e v e r y th in g to h a v e m e a n in g , fro m s u f f e r in g to m y s e lf c o m p e lle d to b e lie v e e v e r y t h in g ju s t a s o u r fa th e r s th e
w ar, fro m b irth to d e a t h , fro m in d iv id u a l fa te to c o lle c tiv e p h ilo s o p h e rs fe lt c o m p e lle d to deny e v e r y th in g ? " But
d e s t i n y . S u d d e n l y it a ll c o l l a p s e s . W h a t a r e w e t o d o i n s u c h w h e t h e r t h e y r e f u s e m y t h o r w a n t t o b e l i e v e i n it a t a n y c o s t ,
t i m e s o f a n g u i s h ? It is n o t a m a t t e r j u s t o f b e l i e v i n g , b u t o f t h e y a ll c o n f r o n t t h e s a m e p r o b l e m : w e m u s t , b y w h a t e v e r
t h i n k i n g , o f l i v i n g . B u t it is n o l o n g e r p o s s i b l e t o b e l i e v e o r m ean s, resp o n d t o t h e t h r e a t o f s e e i n g a ll m e a n i n g d i s a p ­
th in k f o r o t h e r s : " I m u s t c r e a t e a s y s t e m , o r b e e n s l a v e d b y p e a r. A n d th e p o e t r e s p o n d s b y a s s e r tin g th e o m n ip o te n c e
a n o th e r m an" (B la k e ). And a ll of th e se s y s te m s can be a n d o m n ip r e s e n c e o f m e a n in g . T o w a rd o ff th e a d v e n t o f a
c o n s t r u c te d o n l y w ith th e d e b r i s o f th e lo s t g o d s . d ise n ch a n te d and e m p ty w o rld , he c o n s tr u c ts a w h o lly
S o m e p e o p l e lim it t h e m s e l v e s to a c k n o w l e d g i n g th e a b ­ m e a n in g fu l n a tu r e , a n d tw o th o u s a n d y e a r s la te r h e re n e w s
s e n c e o f th e g o d s a n d t r y to liv e in r e m e m b r a n c e o f t h e t im e s th e bonds w ith th e p re -S o c ra tic w o rld in w h ic h m y th is
w h e n th e g o d s w e r e h e r e . O t h e r s s ta n d s till, w a it i n g f o r a p o s sib le . For m y th cannot d e v e lo p fro m a d e s a c ra liz e d
n e w e p ip h a n y o n th e e d g e o f th e p ro m is e d la n d w h ic h th e y n a t u r e ; it d e m a n d s a n e w w a y o f c o n c e iv in g w h a t e x is ts .
h e r a l d b u t w ill n o t s e e . S till o t h e r s b e c o m e h a r d e n e d in a N a t u r e is n o t i n a n i m a t e m a tte r . It is e n e r g y : " A t t r a c t i o n a n d
r e f u s a l t h a t r e j e c t s a ll p o s s i b l e f o r m s o f m y t h ; b u t t h e r e f u s a l R e p u ls io n , R e a s o n a n d E n e r g y , L o v e a n d H a te , a r e n e c e s s a r y
is c o u p le d w ith a p a t h o s th a t o w e s e v e r y t h i n g to s tr u g g l e to H u m a n e x i s t e n c e " (B la k e ). T h u s in v e s te d w ith p r o d u c tiv e
and to th e m in e ra lity o f a b s e n c e . N i e t z s c h e s ti ll s t r u g g l e s p o w e r , n a t u r e i s a ll a c t i v i t y a n d m o v e m e n t . T h e m a t e r i a l i s t
w ith t h e g o d s a n d is u n a b le to g e t b e y o n d t h e p o i n t w h e r e E n g e ls seeks to re d is c o v e r in m a tte r th e d y n a m is m th a t
t h e s t r u g g l e a g a i n s t t h e g o d s is a l s o a s t r u g g l e a m o n g t h e p r o d u c e s h i s t o r y a n d g i v e s it m e a n i n g . W e m u s t g o b e y o n d
g o d s , D io n y s u s a g a in s t C h r is t o n th e C r o s s . T h e d e n ie r s a r e th e d u a lis m th a t s e p a r a te s b o d y a n d s o u l: " M a n h a s n o B o d y
n o t s o fa r fro m th e p r o p h e ts . T h e d o w n fa ll o f m y th o lo g y a n d d is tin c t fro m h is S o u l " (B la k e ). T h e b o d y is n o t h i n g b u t a
r e l i g i o n a s s u r e s t h a t t h e y w il l b e d i f f u s e d e v e r y w h e r e a n d d e g e n e ra te , h eavy fo rm o f e n e rg y , w h ic h is, in co n tra st.

266
 B L A K E , N E R V A L , AND B A L ZA C

wholly spiritual. The body is only an envelope, below which

acts the dynamic essence that informs it. If Balzac believes in
phrenology, it is because he sees at work everywhere the
traces left by energy in its incessant activity, in man's brain as
well as in social organization. Energy is present everywhere,
in the inanimate world as in the human world: "A pure spirit
grows larger under the outer crust of stones" (Nerval).
There are two worlds, a corporeal world and a spiritual
world, that correspond point for point and make up the
outer and inner components of whatever exists. Between the
two worlds gates are erected that open to all who have the
courage to cross the threshold: the gates of dreams, the gates
of revelation, the gates of madness, the gates of artistic
creation. These are the gates crossed by Milton and Blake,
Louis Lambert and Balzac, Nerval and Aurélia. On this now
animated world supernatural beings can multiply, beings
who are nothing but the various shapes taken by various
aspects of nature and history. There is no longer any break
between the history of the earth and the history of humanity:
once again, the universe is full of gods. In reading Buffon like
a theogony, Blake and Nerval unfold the mythical stages in
the life of the earth, and Balzac sees the gods and heroes in
the street, in the office, in the store, and in jail. He does not
enlarge the stature of his characters to make them closer to
the gods; he makes them great only because he sees myths
and gods in them. Balzac does not proceed from the fantastic
to realism; he embodies myths progressively in the raw
material offered to him by history and society. Esther Gob­
seck is an incarnation of Seraphita, and together with Lucien
de Rubempré they reconstitute the couple Seraphitus-
Seraphita; Vautrin is the devil, he is Cain, he is part of an
infernal family whose demons are named Attila, Charle­
magne, Robespierre, and Napoleon. The big city— Blake's
London or Balzac's Paris— is a myth only because one
projects upon it the vision of infernal cities that make it bear William Blake, The Ltenuil. Etching. Manchester, Whitworth Art
witness to the Apocalypse. Gallery. Photo Manor, Kay, and Foley.
Nor is there a break between the history of humanity and
individual history. Since the explanatory model is that of the
organism, of the Great Animal, there is a direct relationship
between ontogenesis and phylogenesis: simultaneous lives, by a Double who takes his place: "Am I the good one? Am I
successive lives, reincarnations, parallelisms of existences the bad one?" Balzac, also threatened by his own Double,
weave the fabric of historical and social events. If Vautrin is gets rid of him and has all the characters into whom he put
Cain, if Lucien de Rubempré is Abel, why should Nerval not much of himself die: Louis Lambert, Valentin, Savarus, Z.
be Lusignan or Napoleon? Once again, everything has Marcas. An obsession with the Double, but also a writing
meaning, right down to the slightest incidents, or perhaps technique to overcome it.
the most fortuitous encounters in the life of an individual. In this world animated by mythical forces, in this figura­
The soldier who comes into Blake's garden and makes him tive history, the poet and the artist—double beings—occupy
stand trial is also a character of universal history, like the a central place. The poet is the seer, one who, like Blake,
soldier of Africa whom Nerval meets and who becomes the perceives the soul of beauty in the forms of matter; one who,
sublime interpreter, the predestined confessor, the mediator like Balzac, penetrates deep into the soul of a stroller, to
between man and the supernatural. Each encounter has a recover his share of the gift of life; one who, like Nerval, sees
meaning just as, for Balzac, each facial feature, each idiosyn­ once again the unknown relatives that make up his geneal­
crasy, each habit of the body and the mind carries a deter­ ogy. Knowledge through sensation is deceptive; it is the
mined meaning. And these are the same mythical schemata result of the contraction of a human being reduced to the
that regulate the rhythm of individual existence and social state of opaqueness (Blake) and made insensitive to super­
life: masculine and feminine poles, grandeur and decadence, natural realities. Beyond the realm of knowledge through
the descent into hell and the ascent back into the light, sensation, knowledge of another order flashes like lightning;
condensation and diffusion, separation and reconciliation; this is the knowledge that Blake awaited for twenty years
dualist schemata in which two opposite terms introduce the before he recovered the intellectual vision which intoxicated
contradiction in being while awaiting the synthesis that is to him. Within the scope of this exceptional experience, "o b­
reconcile them. This explains the importance of the Double, jects and bodies are luminous in themselves" (Nerval). Then
which haunts all creators: for Blake, all personalities are contact is established between the two parts of the universe,
divided into Emanation and Specter, the feminine and mas­ the material part and the supernatural part. The artist knows
culine parts of the soul, which one day will rediscover their how to read and understand the signs of the language that is
fruitful unity, in opposition with the hermaphroditic horror spoken by nature and that guarantees the existence of
of Satan. Nerval sees himself threatened with dispossession correspondences between microcosm and macrocosm. The

267
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

p o e t is t h e i n t e r m e d i a r y b e t w e e n t h e s e t w o w o r l d s , a n d h i s "m e m o ra b ilia " ("A M e m o r a b le Fan cy") in th e Marriage of

d w e l l i n g p l a c e is “ t h e h o u s e o f t h e I n t e r p r e t e r , " t h e n a m e Heaven and Hell, a n d " m e m o r a b i l i a " w o u l d b e a fittin g w o r d
th a t B l a k e 's frie n d s gave to h is house. The p a th s o f th e fo r th e S ib y llin e p h r a s e s r e c o r d e d fr o m th e m o u th o f L o u is
c o m m u n ic a tio n m a y v a r y : B la k e e n t e r s d ir e c tly in to c o n t a c t L a m b e rt, w h o h a d gon e m ad in th e e y e s o f th e w o r l d . A
w ith s u p e rn a tu ra l b e in g s: “ I am under th e d ire c tio n of s p e c ia l in te rm e d ia ry w ith th e w o rld Beyond, th e poet is
h e a v e n ly M e s se n g e rs d a y a n d n i g h t ." N e r v a l c a n o n ly s e e h im s e lf a m a k e r o f m y th s . T h u s h e s h a r e s r e s p o n s ib ility fo r
th e g a te s o f th e G re a t B e y o n d o p e n th r o u g h th e c o n v e r g in g c r e a ti o n , b e fo r e w h ic h h e e x p e rie n ce s th e a n x ie tie s o f th e
e x p e rie n c e s o f d re a m a n d m a d n e s s . B a lz a c c re a te s in te r m e ­ d e m iu rg e , a n x ie tie s a n d a g o n ie s th a t a re r e c a p itu la te d in
d i a r i e s w h o e n s u r e p a s s a g e t o t h e t w o r e a l m s o r w h o , lik e B l a k e 's Milton, Aurélia, or Unknown Masterpiece.
S e r a p h i t a , t h e m s e l v e s p a r t i c i p a t e in b o t h r e a l m s . I t i s e s s e n ­ B la k e , B a lz a c , a n d N erv al fa c e d a com m on s p iritu a l d i­
tia l t h a t t h e s e m o m e n t s o f c o n t a c t l e a v e e n d u r i n g t r a c e s , f o r le m m a , a n d m a n y o th e r s c o u ld h a v e a p p e a r e d b e sid e th e m :
w h a t is t r a n s m i t t e d m u s t b e s e t d o w n . T h e r e v e l a t i o n m u s t H ö ld e rlin a n d la te r N ie tz s c h e , to m e n tio n o n ly tw o . C le a r ly
b e in sc rib e d o n th e p a g e — b y d r a w in g o r w ritin g — b o th to it w o u l d b e i l l u s o r y t o e x p e c t t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e m s o l e l y o n
a llo w th e p o e t to e n s u r e th e v is io n fo r h im s e lf a n d to b e a r th e b a sis o f th e p a r tic u la r c o n d itio n s o f th e ir v is io n s , o n th e
w itn e s s b e fo re m e n o f th e p r e s e n c e o f th e g o d s . " I w a n te d to b a sis of th e ir p e c u lia r itie s , excesses, or m ad n ess. W hat
h a v e a m a te ria l s ig n o f th e v is io n th a t h a d c o n so le d m e" m a t t e r s i s n o t e x c e s s i v e n e s s o r m a d n e s s in i t s e l f , b u t t h i s
(N e r v a l). B la k e , N e r v a l, a n d B a lz a c r e d i s c o v e r w h a t S w e d e n ­ e x c e s s iv e n e s s o r th a t m a d n e s s . B o th d a t e f ro m a tim e o f c ris is
b o r g d id w h e n h e g a v e th e n a m e o f Memorabilia to th e s to ry w hen m y th a lo n e , b o th in r e a s o n and in m a d n e s s , c o u l d
o f h is m y s tic a l in s p ir a tio n s . N e r v a l e d ite d th e Memorabilia, r e s p o n d to th e a n x ie tie s o f s o m e o n e w h o s o u g h t a n d a s k e d .
w h ic h h e p la c e d a t th e c u lm in a tio n o f Aurélia; B la k e in s e r te d J .M ./g .h .

u n iv e rs a lity o f m y th . A lth o u g h th e G re c o -R o m a n p a n th e o n
T he M y t h o lo g y o f E u r o pea n D e c a d en t an d and its a p p e n d a g e s have th e l i o n 's sh are, p o e ts d id not

S ym b o l is t L iter a t u r e h e s ita te to m a k e th e ir c o n tr ib u tio n s w ith H e b re w m y th o lo g y

( H e r o d , S a l o m e ) a n d n a t i o n a l m y t h o l o g i e s ( C e l t i c m y t h s in
Y e a t s , M a e te r lin c k , a n d A p o llin a ire ; le g e n d s o f th e Kalemla
N o th in g c o u ld b e m o r e b a fflin g t h a n th e h isto ry of d eca­ in L e in o ; th e C id in M anuel M achado; In d ia n m y th s in
d e n c e a n d s y m b o l i s m . O f s y m b o l i s m , V a l é r y s a i d t h a t it w a s R u b é n D a r io ), w h e n th e y w e r e n o t f o rg in g p e r s o n a l m y th s ,
" a c e r ta i n r e g io n o f t h e lit e r a r y u n iv e r s e , t h a t is , in F r a n c e s u c h a s S t e f a n G e o r g e ' s M a x i m i n o r B l o k ' s B e a u t i f u l L a d y . It
b e tw e e n 1860 and 1 9 0 0 ." T h is s a y s t o o m u c h if w e d e f i n e w a s n o l o n g e r a m a t t e r o f c o l l e c t i n g m y t h s in t h e m a n n e r o f
s y m b o lism s trictly ; to o l it t le if we m ean d ecad en ce and L e c o n te d e L isle o r g a t h e r i n g u p " a ll th e g o d s th e w o rld h a s
s y m b o lism t a k e n a s a w h o l e t h a t e x t e n d s in s p a c e b e y o n d know n" in th e m anner of L o u is M é n a rd , but ra th e r of
F r a n c e a n d in tim e b e y o n d 1 9 0 0 . V a lé ry fin a lly b e c a m e a w a r e m o ld in g th e m in to b o ld ly s y n th e tic fig u re s . B a u d e la ir e h a d
o f th is a n d s ta t e d t h a t " n o t h i n g in w h a t h a s b e e n w r i t t e n , a l r e a d y n o t e d th a t W a g n e r 's E ls a w a s n o n e o t h e r t h a n " t h e
n o th in g w ith in th e m e m o r y o f th o s e w h o e x p e r i e n c e d th is a n c ie n t P s y c h e , w h o w a s a ls o th e v ic tim o f d e m o n ic c u r io s ­
p e rio d e v e r w e n t b y th a t n a m e a t a n y g iv e n d a t e ." S y m b o l­ i ty , and w ho w as a lso u n w illin g to resp ect her d iv in e
is m is t h e r e f o r e j u s t " a m y t h ." s p o u s e 's a n o n y m ity ; she to o l o s t a ll h e r h a p p in e s s upon
In tro d u c in g th e n e w te rm " m y t h " o n ly a d d s to th e g e n e ra l p e n e tr a tin g th e m y s t e r y ." For G a b rie le d 'A n n u n z i o th e
s t a t e o f c o n f u s i o n . It c a n b e i n v o k e d o n l y if i t s fu ll m e a n i n g " r o y a l H e r o d i a s " w a s a t th e s a m e tim e " t h e a n c ie n t G o r g o n
is r e s t o r e d and if a s t u d y o f th e m y th s in s y m b o l i s t a n d w i t h h e r f u ll h e a d o f h a i r . . . C i r c e , H e l e n , O m p h a l e , a n d
d ecad en t lite ra tu re re p la ce s th e v a in a tta c k on som e ill- D e lila h , th e c o u r t e s a n w ith a h o r r ib le l a u g h " (p r e lu d e to th e
d e fin e d "m y th o f s y m b o l i s m ." T h is n e w a llia n c e o f d e c a ­ Intermezzo di rime, 1 8 8 4 ).
d e n c e a n d s y m b o lis m u n d e r th e s ig n o f m y th s h o u ld b e m o r e T h e s a m p lin g m ig h t b e d e e m e d s u p e rf ic ia l a n d th e m ix
e n lig h te n in g th an th e q u a rre ls a n d r e c o n c il ia t i o n s o f tin y o r n a m e n t a l . T h e y a r e , h o w e v e r , in d ic a tiv e o f a q u e s t th a t c a n
g r o u p s w ith in th e lite ra ry a r e n a . be s a id to be s p iritu a l. The M o n s ie u r d e P h ocas o f Jean
L o r r a in le ft s o c ie ty and abandoned th e s a lo n s and th e
b o u d o ir s o f y o u n g w o m e n in o r d e r to fin d in th e s o litu d e o f
I. The Glamour of a Word h is t o w n h o u s e o n th e r u e d e V a r e n n e , in th e c o n t e m p la t io n
A n c ie n t, vague, in e v ita b ly th e b e a re r of a p o te n tia lly o f t h e j e w e l s o f B a r r u c h i n i , o r in O r i e n t a l s e l f - a n n i h i l a t i o n ,
n e g a tiv e n u a n c e a n d y e t o f fe rin g a c c e s s to th e fu lln e s s o f th e th e gaze th a t he s o u g h t: it w as "th e gaze of D a h g u t,
s a c re d , th e w o rd " m y th " co u ld n o t h e lp b u t f a s c in a te th e d a u g h te r o f th e k in g of Y s, th e g a z e o f S a lo m e to o ; b u t
m e n o f t h a t t i m e . It s w e p t t h e i r i m a g i n a t i o n i n t o a d r e a m o f e s p e c i a ll y th e lim p id a n d g r e e n c la r ity o f th e g a z e o f A s ta r te ,
u n i v e r s a l i t y . " M y t h is a t r e e t h a t g r o w s e v e r y w h e r e , in a n y o f A s ta r te w h o is th e d e m o n o f lu s t a n d a ls o th e d e m o n o f
c lim a te , u n d e r a n y s u n , s p o n ta n e o u s l y a n d w it h o u t c u t t in g ," t h e s e a . " S im ila r ly , J . K . H u y s m a n s 's d e s E s s e i n t e s t h in k s h e
w ro te B a u d e la ir e in h is a rtic le "R ich a rd W agner and Tan- h a s d isc o v e re d in S a l o m e , a s G u s t a v e M o r e a u r e p r e s e n t e d
nhaiiser i n P a r is ." " R e l ig io n s a n d p o e t r y f r o m th e f o u r c o m e r s h e r , " t h e a n c i e n t H e l e n , " " S a l a m m b ô , " I s i s , K a l i , in o t h e r
o f th e w o rld p r o v id e u s w ith o v e r w h e lm i n g p r o o f o n th is w o r d s , a lw a y s " t h e d e ity s y m b o lic o f in d e s tr u c tib le lu s t, th e
s u b j e c t . " B u t p r e c i s e l y b e c a u s e m y t h is i n e s s e n c e r e l i g i o u s , g o d d e s s o f im m o r ta l H y s te r ia , th e c u r s e d B e a u t y ," th e o n e
it a l s o c o n t r i b u t e d t o t h i s " v a g u e s o r t o f a e s t h e t i c s p i r i t u a l ­ th a t S w in b u r n e h a d c e le b r a te d u n d e r th e n a m e o f D o lo re s .
i s m ," w h ic h is, a c c o r d in g to V a lé ry , th e m a in c h a r a c t e r is t ic o f S y m b o lic ? A lle g o r ic a l ra th e r — a lle g o ry b e in g o n ly a
s y m b o lism . "c h ille d s y m b o l ," a s H e g e l p o in te d o u t. T h e m y th o lo g ic a l
T h e g r e a t v a r ie ty o f m y th o lo g ic a l flo ra b e a r s w itn e s s to th e s y n c r e tis m o f Je a n L o r r a in o r H u y s m a n s s e e m s to h a v e b u t

268
 D E C A D E N T AND S Y M B O L I S T L I T E R A T U R E

m e n t o f m y t h i s n o t n e w . It r e c a l l s V i g n y ' s M o s e s , S h e l l e y ' s
P ro m e th e u s , L e c o n te de L i s l e 's N io b e , a n d V ic to r H u g o 's
S a t y r , a ll o f w h o m a l s o e m b o d y a n id e a . A n d fo r B a lla n c h e
th e u ltim a te m e a n in g o f a ll m y t h s c o u ld be red u ced to a
s in g le id e a . B a u d e la ir e t r e a te d th e is s u e n o d if f e r e n tly w h e n
h e d i s c o v e r e d t h e u n iv e r s a l m e a n i n g o f s in in t h e W a g n e r i a n
m y t h s a n d , m o r e g e n e r a l l y , in th e " a l l e g o r y c r e a t e d b y th e
p e o p l e ," w h ic h is m y t h .
To w a rd o f f th is d a n g e r , th e "o v e rly p re c is e m e a n in g "
c o n d e m n e d b y V e r la in e in h is f a m o u s Art poétique h a d to b e
e r a s e d . T h e u s e o f m y th b e c o m e s tru ly s y m b o lic w h e n th e
w r it e r a t t e m p t s t o a p p r e h e n d a m y s t e r y t h a t is n e v e r c o m ­
p le te ly d is c o v e r e d a n d m u s t n e v e r b e s o lv e d . " T h e p e rfe c t
u s e o f t h e m y s t e r y c o n s t i t u t e s t h e s y m b o l " w a s M a l l a r m é 's
a n s w e r t o J u l e s H u r e t 's q u e s t i o n . A n d in t h e M a n i f e s t o o f 1 8
S e p te m b e r 1 8 8 6 , J e a n M o r é a s to o k c a r e to p o in t o u t th a t " t h e
e s s e n t ia l c h a r a c t e r o f s y m b o l i s t a r t c o n s i s t s in n e v e r g o i n g a s
f a r a s c o n c e i v i n g o f t h e id e a in a n d o f i t s e l f ." M a l l a r m é 's f a u n
a n d M a lla r m é h im s e lf h e s i t a te a m o n g d i v e r s e in te r p r e t a t io n s
o f th e n y m p h s th a t a p p e a r to t h e m . E v e r y t h i n g b e g in s w ith
q u e s t i o n s a b o u t a m y t h . D o u b t , " h e a p o f a n c i e n t n i g h t , " is
t h e v e r y r e a s o n f o r t h e l e n g t h o f t h e d i s c o u r s e w h i c h w il l t r y
in v a in to e x h a u s t t h e b u lk o f t h e m y s t e r y : " I , p r o u d o f m y
r e p u t e , I w il l l o n g s p e a k o f g o d d e s s e s . "
The re s u lt is a fo n d n ess fo r a m b ig u o u s m y th o lo g ic a l
fig u re s — m o n s te r s , s p h in x e s , c h im e r a s ; a fo n d n e s s a ls o fo r
th e ce n tra l and e v e r -d is s o lv in g fig u re s of m y ste ry cu lts
( O r p h e u s , I s is , D io n y s u s ) o r o f t h e c e le b r a t io n o f m y ste ry
(th e G ra il); a fo n d n e ss fo r m y th to th e e x te n t th a t, m o re
m y s t e r i o u s t h a n d i s c o u r s e , m y th g r o p e s its w a y te n ta t iv e l y
c lo s e r a n d c lo s e r in to th e z o n e o f th e u n k n o w a b le .
T h e d a n g e r t h i s t i m e i s t h a t m y t h w il l e x p r e s s n o t h i n g b u t
th e q u est i ts e lf . For C a v a fy , fo r in s ta n c e , th e tria ls and
tr ib u la tio n s o f O d y s s e u s a re no lo n g e r , a s th e y w e re fo r
H e n ri d e R é g n ie r, m e r e ly th e s u f fe rin g s o f th e m a r ty r -p o e t.
Gustave Moreau, L'Apparition. Paris, Musée Gustave Moreau. Photo T h e y a r e th e s ta g e s o f a n O r p h ic in itia tio n th r o u g h w h ic h th e
Giraudon. p o et m u st p ass:

Y o u w il l n e v e r m e e t t h e L e s t r y g o n i a n s ,
th e C y c lo p e s a n d th e fie rce P o s e id o n ,
o n e a im , th e triu m p h o f a s in g le d e ity , o r b e t te r s till, th e
if y o u d o n o t c a r r y t h e m w i t h i n y o u r s o u l ,
t r iu m p h o f a p r in c ip le id e n tifie d w ith th e o b s e s s io n o f th e
if y o u r s o u l d o e s n o t r a i s e t h e m u p b efo re y o u .
d e c a d e n t in d iv id u a l. W h e n T é d o r d e W y z e w a s t r e s s e d in La
(T r a n s . R ae D a lv e n , The Complete Poems of Cavafy, N ew
Revue wagnérienne o f 8 Ju n e 1 8 8 6 th a t fo r m o d e r n s , le g e n d s
Y o rk : H a rco u rt B ra ce Jo v a n o v ich , 1 9 7 6 , p . 3 6 )
and m y th s a r e “ n o t h i n g b u t s y m b o l s ," he m e a n t “ a lle g o ­
r i e s ." And w hen B a u d e la ir e d e fin e d h is w r e tc h e d sw an F o r M a lla rm é , m y th s o f th e v o y a g e to th e w o rld b e y o n d
w h ic h e s c a p e d fr o m its c a g e a s a " s t r a n g e a n d fa ta l m y t h ," h e p la y a n e s s e n tia l r o le th a t c a n o n ly b e e x p la in e d b y s u c h a n
m a d e it a n a l l e g o r y o f f a t e t h a t c o m p e l l e d m a n t o e x i l e . T h e im a g in g o f th e p o e tic q u e s t. A lth o u g h in Le Guignon ( B a d
e x ile of a m y th o lo g ic a l ch a ra cte r (A n d ro m a c h e ) and of a l u c k ) , t h e Mendieur d'azur ( T h e a z u r e b e g g a r ) , t h e Martyrs de
p a r a d i g m a t ic f ig u re ( th e c o n s u m p t i v e N e g r e s s ) c o n f ir m s th is hasards tortueux ( M a r t y r s o f t o r t u o u s p e r i l s ) , a n d t h e v u l t u r e ­
a ll t h e m o r e , a n d c o n f i r m s a s w e l l t h e c o m p u l s i o n t h a t a c t s l e s s Prométhée ( P r o m e t h e u s ) , t h e r e a r e s ti ll t h e r o m a n t i c
u p o n t h e p o e t h i m s e l f , e x i l e d f r o m t h e i d e a l a n d i m m e r s e d in m a n n e r is m s o f O d y s s e u s , w e a r e o n th e o t h e r h a n d d e a lin g
t h e w o r l d o f t h e s p l e e n . T h e m y th o f th e s w a n is i n d e e d h is w ith an O d ysseu s w ho fa ce s th e m y ste ry of d e a th and
m y t h — a n d t h e m y t h o f h i m s e l f — s i n c e h e t a k e s f r o m it o n l y n o th in g n e s s , th e O d y s s e u s o f th e Nekuia (T h e jo u r n e y to th e
o n e m e a n i n g , h i s o w n , i d e n t i f y i n g it w i t h h im se lf. B a u d e ­ d e a d ), w h e n w e d e a l w ith th e p o e t o f th e Tombeaux (T h e
l a i r e w a s t e s n o t i m e i n r e c o g n i z i n g it: " e v e r y t h i n g f o r [ h i m ] to m b s ) o r " t h e o n e w h o w e n t to d r a w te a rs fro m th e riv e r
b e c o m e s a l le g o r y ." S t y x ." A fla sh o f u n io n b e t w e e n d e c a d e n c e a n d s y m b o lis m ,
S u c h is t h e j e o p a r d y i n t o w h i c h d e c a d e n t a n d sy m b o list th e " P r o s e p o u r d e s E s s e i n t e s " e m e r g e s a s th e a n n ih ila tin g
lit e r a t u r e c a s t s m y t h , r e d u c i n g it, a s H e n r i d e R é g n i e r s a id , e v o c a tio n o f a n o t h e r v o y a g e , s e e m in g ly m o r e P la to n ic th a n
to " t h e c o n c h s h e ll th a t r e s o u n d s w ith one I d e a ." F o r Y e a t s , H o m e ric, to w a rd th e isle o f Id e a s . B u t th e in q u iry a b o u t
H e l e n r e p r e s e n t s t h e f a t a l p o w e r o f a ll b e a u t y . I n t h i s r e s p e c t , m y th m a k e s r o o m th is tim e fo r th e n e g a tio n o f a U to p ia (th e
no e x a m p le is m o re c h a r a c te r is tic th a n H en ri d e R é g n ie r la n d o f P u lc h e r i a ) w h e r e m y th its e lf s e lf - d e s t r u c t s .
h im se lf. He m ade th e b ird s of Lake S ty m p h a lis in to an
a l l e g o r y o f p a s s i n g t i m e ( Epigram i n Les jeux rustiques et divins
II. The Rebirth of Myth
[R u s tic a n d d iv i n e g a m e s ] ) , a n d h e m a d e t h e tr ia ls o f U l y s s e s
i n to th e p o e t 's m a r t y r d o m (L'Homme et la Sirène [T h e m a n In J u l y 1 8 8 5 , a f t e r B a u d e l a i r e a n d b e f o r e C l a u d e l , M a l l a r m é
and th e s ir e n ]). S y m b o lic r a t h e r th a n s y m b o lis t, th is t r e a t ­ d e d ic a te d to R ic h a r d W a g n e r h is Rêverie d’un poète français

269
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
and thereby found himself led by his very subject to return to
myth. To avail himself of another mythological motif dear to
him, namely, the Phoenix, he established for his own time
and in his country a death and resurrection of myth. In fact,
"the French mind, strictly imaginative and abstract, there­
fore poetic . . . , loathes legend, and as such is at one with
art, the inventor, in its integrity." And yet "this century or
our nation which extols it have dissolved myths through
conceptions only to make new ones."
The model which the French mind was supposed to spurn
was Wagnerian drama. In giving preference to myth over
history, Wagner fulfilled the vow of the first German roman­
tics, Schlegel, Amim, and Brentano. "Myth is the primitive
and anonymous poem of the people," he wrote. "In myth,
human relations shed their conventional form almost com­
pletely . . . and reveal what makes life truly, eternally,
understandable." At issue, therefore, is not an ascent into
the increasingly thick mists of the unknowable, but the
revelation of what could be termed the essence of life.
Baudelaire, who thoroughly understood that Wagner's po­
ems "borrowed in large measure from the romantic spirit,"
also saw clearly that the ambition of the German master was
to discover "the universal heart of man," and all this through
myth.
The rebirth of myth did not happen without major modi­
fications, which significantly transformed mythological fig­
ures, as in the case of Tannhäuser. "Radiant ancient Venus,
Aphrodite born of white foam, has not crossed the horrifying
shadows of the Middle Ages with impunity. She no longer
dwells on Olympus nor on the shores of a fragrant island.
Odilon Redon, Brunehilde, "Twilight of the Gods," final scene.
Lithograph. Illustration for La Reime wagnérienne, 8 August 1885.
Photo Martine Pont.
270
C H R I S T I A N ERA
She has withdrawn deep inside a magnificent cave, to be
sure, but one illuminated by fires that are not those of kindly
Phoebus. By going underground, Venus draws close to Hell,
and with certain loathsome ceremonies is undoubtedly about
to pay steady homage to the archfiend, prince of the flesh,
and lord of sin." It is as if, after the death of Venus (her
disappearance from Cythera in Les Fleurs du mal [The flowers
of evil], her corpselike stillness in Swinburne's Laus Veneris),
one could witness the weird spectacle of her resurrection (the
Venus in furs of Sacher-Masoch), the birth of an ambiguous
deity, simultaneously statue and woman, hetaera and god­
dess, Greek and barbarian.
The use of mythology in theater also changed. Wagnerian
drama sought to reinstate the mythic force of Greek tragedy.
Nietzsche wrote his famous book The Birth of Tragedy in order
to hail the rebirth of tragedy thanks to Wagner, tragedy in the
post-Euripidean and post-Socratic sense of the term. For
Nietzsche, myth remained a temporary and necessary con­
cession to the Apollonian, since society would not tolerate
the eruption of the purely Dionysian. Between music and
our musical feelings carried to their utmost, "myth and the
tragic hero arise, both being fundamentally nothing but
symbols of universal realities of which music alone can speak
directly. If we could feel as purely Dionysian beings, myth as
symbol would have no effect on us; we would pay it no heed
and would not stop lending an ear to the echo of the
universals ante rem. But it is at this point that the Apollonian
force erupts and, restoring our almost annihilated individu­
ality, brings to it the balm of a delightful illusion." Jean
Lorrain felt free to create a pretty vignette from the love of
Tristan and Isolde (Yseut, in Le Sang des dieux [The blood of
the gods]). Gabriele d'Annunzio felt free to turn the cup of
tea, which had become as ritualistic in Rome as in London,
into the modem avatar of Tristan's love potion. According to
Nietzsche, Wagner introduced the mythical couple only to
bring us to the moment when the image fades out, when the
phenomenal world reaches its limit, and when Isolde's song
of the love-death rises like a "metaphysical swan song."
Myth proceeds on its course of self-destruction. Yet, curi­
ously enough, this self-destruction cannot be articulated
without recourse to mythological language. The paradox of
Wagner's Tristan is renewed with Nietzsche's commentary, a
vast fresco of Apollo and Dionysus which must nonetheless
suggest that what exists beyond these images is as illusory as
the others.
One would like to believe that Mallarmé understood the
difficulty. Instead of indulging in philological erudition, as
Nietzsche did, instead of bantering heavy-handedly, as Clau­
del did over that gros édredon d'lsolde ("stout eiderdown of
Isolde"), he favored an abstract concept of myth, as if it had
become disembodied, a mental myth stripped even of the
prop of a name. At the very most, one will see "awaken" in
this setting "the Figure which is None," and art admiring
itself in the empty space it has opened up for itself.
III. The Myth of Decadence
People often compare the Néant (Nothingness) of Mallarmé
to Stefan George in Algabal (1892), particularly where the
Roman emperor Heliogabalus represents the despotic and
inhuman soul which in its omnipotence can find only lone­
liness and sterility. This figure is very characteristic of what
can be called the myth of Latin decadence or simply the myth
of decadence.
Since for quite some time Edward Gibbon, Montesquieu,
and others had applied the word "decadence" to the degra-
 D E C A D E N T AND S Y M B O L I S T L I T E R A T U R E

d a tio n o f th e R om an E m p ire , th e s w itc h to th e e m p ir e o f In Le Crépuscule des dieux (T h e tw ilig h t o f th e g o d s ) ( 1 8 8 4 ) o f

B a d i n g u e t a n d to th e y e a r s w h ic h fo llo w e d its c o l la p s e w a s E lé m ir B o u r g e s , th e d u k e , a tte n d in g a p e r f o r m a n c e o f Göt­
easy. W h en th e S â r P é la d a n (Jo s é p h in P é la d a n , 1 8 5 9 -1 9 1 8 ) terdämmerung in B a y r e u t h , s e e s in it t h e s y m b o l o f t h e e n d o f
e n title d h is v a s t e p ic n o v e l, h is " é t h o p é e ," Latin Decadence, t h e w o r l d a s h e k n o w s i t: " A l l t h e s i g n s o f d e s t r u c t i o n w e r e
h e m e a n t to r e p r e s e n t a n d c o n d e m n m o d e r n c u s to m s th a t v is ib le on th e o ld w o rld , l ik e a n g e ls of w r a th , above a
h a d b e e n c o r r u p t e d b y m a t e r i a l i s m . W e a ll k n o w V e r l a i n e 's con d em n ed G o m o r r a h ." A c r itic p ra isin g M arcel S ch w o b
fa m o u s s ta te m e n t, so c h a r a c te r is tic — c o n s id e r in g its d a te w r ite s , " M a g ic a ll y y o u e v o k e a n tiq u ity , th is H e lio g a b a le s q u e
(1 8 8 3 )— o f a g e n e r a l s ta te o f m in d : a n tiq u ity to w a rd w h ic h flo w th e i m a g in a tio n s o f th in k e rs
and th e b ru sh e s o f p a in te rs, th e se d ecad en ces and th e se
Je suis L’Empire à la fin de la Décadence d o o m s d a y s , m y s t e r i o u s l y p e r v e r s e a n d m a c a b r e ."
Qui regarde passer les grands Barbares blancs B u t th e m o d e r n a g e is j u s t a s H e li o g a b a le s q u e . M u s t w e
En composant des acrostiches indolents c o n d e m n it, o r m u s t w e , o n t h e c o n t r a r y , d e l ig h t in it? T h e
D'un style d ’or où la langueur du soleil danse. s a m e h e s i t a t i o n r e c u r s . D e s p i t e t h e " p a g a n s c h o o l , " m y t h , in
a n y c a s e , is n o t a n o p p o r t u n i t y f o r a r e t u r n t o " n a k e d e r a s , "
I a m th e E m p ire a t th e e n d o f D e c a d e n c e
fo r a "re n e w a l of reso u rces"; it p ro c la im s a fo r th c o m in g
lo o k in g a t th e g r e a t w h ite B a rb a ria n s p a s s in g th r o u g h
A ll th e w h ile c o m p o s i n g i n d o l e n t a c r o s ti c s
eschaton fo r w h ic h s e ttin g s u n s a re t h e d e c o r . In "a w o rld
w o rn t h r e a d b a r e w h e r e th e m o s t b e a u tifu l th in g s o n e a r th
In a g o l d e n s t y l e in w h i c h t h e l a n g u i s h i n g s u n d a n c e s .
s e e m t o fa ll i n t o p i e c e s b y t h e m s e l v e s , " a s W a l t e r P a t e r w r i t e s
(Langueur in Jadis et naguère)
in Marius the Epicurean ( 1 8 8 4 ) , is t h e r e a n y p o s s i b l e h o p e o f
O f te n e x p l ic it , a s in th is s o n n e t b y V e r la in e , th e c o m p a r i ­ s ta rtin g o v e r b e y o n d c h a o s o r m e re e x h a u s tio n ?
s o n w i t h t h e d e c a d e n c e o f t h e R o m a n E m p i r e is a c o n s t a n t .
B a u d e l a i r e , in h i s s t u d y o f t h e p a i n t e r C o n s t a n t i n G u y s , h a d
IV. Back to Basics
a lr e a d y s p o k e n o f “ d e c a d e n c e s ,” i .e ., tr o u b le d , tra n s itio n a l
tim e s " w h e n d e m o cra cy is n o t y e t a l l - p o w e r f u l , w h e n th e T o a n s w e r t h i s q u e s t i o n a f t e r t h e f a c t , w e w il l d e l i b e r a t e l y
a risto cra cy is o n l y p a rtia lly to tte r in g o n th e e d g e a n d de­ set a s id e th e r e v iv a l of C h ris tia n lite ra tu re and a e s th e tic
g r a d e d .” T h e d e c a d e n c e h e liv e d w a s o f j u s t s u c h a k in d , a n d c o n s o l a t i o n a n d f o r t h e m o m e n t c o n c e n t r a t e o n t h e w a y in
h e r e c o g n i z e d h i m s e l f j u s t a s e a s i l y in t h e A p u l e a n e r a , t h e w h ic h th e d e c a d e n t a n d s y m b o list p e rio d c o n c e iv e d m y th .
seco n d c e n tu ry a .d . T o w ard th is c e n tu ry and th o se th a t M a l l a r m é 's Les Dieux antiques (T h e a n c i e n t g o d s ) h a p p e n s to
f o l l o w e d , w h i c h w e r e e v e n g a m i e r , w e r e d r a w n m e n l ik e d e s b e a n e x t r e m e l y lo o s e a d a p ta t i o n o f a m a n u a l a t tr ib u te d to
E s s e i n t e s in H u y s m a n s 's A Rebours (A g a in s t th e g r a in ) (1 8 8 4 ): t h e R e v e r e n d G e o r g e W i l l i a m C o x a n d p u b l i s h e d in 1 8 6 7 : A
" S t o r m y tim e s , jo lte d b y h o r r e n d o u s t r o u b le s , . . . w h ile th e Manual of Mythology in the Form of Question and Answer. But
R o m a n E m p i r e s h o o k a t its f o u n d a t i o n s , w h ile th e lu n a c i e s th e m a n u a l a n d its F r e n c h a d a p t a t i o n a r e in s e p a r a b l e fr o m
o f A s i a , t h e f i lt h o f p a g a n i s m , o v e r f l o w e d i t s b o u n d s . " th e s c h o o l o f c o m p a r a t iv e m y th o lo g y , w h ic h e v e r s in c e th e
M any w rite rs of th e d ecad en t and s y m b o list e ra f e lt m id -n in e te e n th c e n t u r y p o s its a s o -c a lle d n a tu r a lis t c o n c e p ­
s u r r o u n d e d b y b a r b a r i a n s . F o r H u y s m a n s , it w a s " t h e n e w tio n o f m y th o lo g y . T h e a s s u m p t i o n m a d e b y L u d w i g P r e l le r
g e n e ra tio n s, th o s e h o tb e d s o f h id e o u s b o o rs w h o fe e l th e is t h a t " n a t u r e w a s t h e m a t e r n a l f o u n d a t i o n a n d t h e s t a r t i n g
n e e d t o s p e a k a n d l a u g h l o u d l y in r e s t a u r a n t s a n d c a f é s ; w h o p o in t fo r th e re p re s e n ta tio n o f g o d s ." The n am es of th e
w ith o u t a p o lo g iz in g p u s h y o u a r o u n d o n th e s id e w a lk ; w h o p rin c ip a l e x p o n e n t s o f th is s c h o o l— P re lle r, B ré a l, A d a lb e rt
w ith o u t e v e n e x c u s in g th e m s e lv e s o r e v e n a d d r e s s in g y o u , K u h n — fig u re p r o m in e n tly in th e fo re w o rd to Les Dieux
s tic k a s e t o f b a b y c a r r ia g e w h e e ls b e t w e e n y o u r l e g s ." F o r antiques. T h e o n l y n a m e m i s s i n g is t h a t o f M a x M ü l l e r , t h e
M a u rice B a r r é s , it w a s o t h e r p e o p l e , th o s e w h o su rro u n d m o s t i m p o r t a n t o f a l l.
P h ilip p e (h is d o u b le in Le Culte du moi [T h e c u lt o f m e ]), T h e g r e a t m e r i t o f t h e n a t u r a li s t i c c o n c e p t i o n o f m y th is to
p e o p l e w h o h a v e a c o n c e p t i o n o f lif e d i a m e t r i c a l l y o p p o s e d p u l l it a w a y f r o m a n a l l e g o r i c a l s y s t e m a n d g i v e it b a c k t o a n
t o h i s ( Sous l’oeil des Barbares, [ U n d e r t h e e y e o f t h e b a r b a r i ­ a r c h e ty p a l s y s te m . F o r th e a f o r e m e n tio n e d s c h o la r s a n d fo r
Tête d’Or ( T h e h e a d o f g o l d ) ( 1 8 8 9 ) ,
a n s ] ) ( 1 8 8 8 ) . In a c t 2 o f th e p o p u la r iz e r s w h o c a m e la te r, m y th o lo g y re e n a c te d th e
C l a u d e l 's f ir s t m a s t e r p i e c e , S i m o n A g n e l t r i u m p h s o v e r t h e s p e c ta c le o f th e p rim o rd ia l e le m e n ts . T h e s e a r e th e e le m e n ta l
red h ead ed b a rb a ria n s. The h e lp le s s w a tc h m e n w ho w e re f o r c e s o f n a t u r e a n d its d a z z l in g m a n i f e s t a t io n s — s u n , r a in ,
s u p p o s e d to g u a r d th e p a la c e s h o w u p a g a in , te n y e a r s la te r, lig h tn in g , th e flo w of riv e rs , th e g r o w th of p la n ts , a ll
in Le Poème des décadences (T h e poem of d ecad en ces) by " re p re s e n te d a s th e v a r ie d a c tio n s , th e c h a n g in g s ta te s o f
M ilo s z , in w h ic h c o u r t e s a n s d i s c u s s p r e c io u s s t o n e s t o th e l i v i n g b e i n g s " a n d e x p r e s s e d " i n n a r r a t i v e s f u ll o f i m a g e r y "
ro ar of "th e ocean o f b a rb a ria n h o rd e s fro m a f a r ." Som e in t h e g r e a t d i v i n e m y t h s . T h e f o r e w o r d t o Les Dieux antiques
p e o p le r e s is t, w ith d ra w in to th e ir s p le n d id s o litu d e , or fu rth e r s ta te s : "W h at p le a s u re is ad d ed to our sense of
d e c la re th e m se lv e s read y fo r th e su p re m e fig h t. O th e rs , s u r p r i s e a t t h e s i g h t o f f a m i l i a r m y t h s s l o w l y e v a p o r a t i n g in
h o w e v e r , a c c e p t , o r e v e n w ith lo u d c r ie s c a ll th e b a r b a r i a n s w a te r , lig h t, a n d e le m e n ta l w in d , th r o u g h th e v e r y m a g ic
lib e r a to r s . T h e r e is th e new a risto c ra c y o f N ie tz s c h e , th e th a t a n a ly s is o f th e a n c ie n t w o rd im p lie s !" H e n c e a n e w ta sk
P le ia d e s o f G o b in e a u ; t h e r e a r e a ls o th e p a tr ic ia n d a n d ie s o f t h a t m i g h t w e ll b e a s s i g n e d t o t h e p o e t : t o r e e n a c t t h e g r e a t
M ilo sz a n d th e d 'A n n u n z i o o f t h e Intermezzo di rime, w ho sp e cta cle s a n d p e r m a n e n t c o n d i t i o n s o f lif e t h a t s t a n d b e­
does not an sw er th e c a ll o f c o h o rts f ig h tin g a g a in st th e h in d m y th o lo g ic a l fig u re s a n d to re v e a l in t h e m e le m e n ta l
b a rb a ria n s a n d w h o w o u ld ra th e r fo rg e t h is h a p p y f a t e in s y m b o ls .
i d le n e s s , " a m i d s t m a d o r t r e a c h e r o u s p l e a s u r e s ." A d a lb e rt K u h n p re f e r r e d th e a r c h e ty p e o f th e s to r m . M a x
S i m p l e i m a g e r y o f t h e t i m e , o n e m i g h t c l a i m ; b u t it is m o r e M u lle r, G . W . C o x , a n d a f t e r h im M a lla r m é in c lin e d r a t h e r
th a n th a t. T h e m y th o f d e c a d e n c e , th e m y th o f th e b a rb a ri­ to w a rd th e s u n . F o r C o x , " t h e e p ic p o e m s o f th e A r y a n s a r e
a n s , b e tr a y s th e h a u n tin g o b s e s s io n th a t th e d o o m s d a y m y th m e re ly v e rs io n s o f o n e a n d th e s a m e s to ry , a n d th is s to r y
(o r a t le a s t d o o m s d a y fo r a c e r ta in k in d o f w o r ld ) im p o s e d o n o r i g i n a t e s i n t h e p h e n o m e n a o f t h e n a t u r a l w o r l d a n d in t h e
th e im a g in a tio n o f tu r n -o f -th e -c e n tu r y w r ite r s . A s e a rly a s c o u r s e o f e a c h p a s s i n g d a y a n d y e a r ." In a m o r e c o n c i s e a n d
1 8 6 6 , th e G o n c o u r t b r o th e r s s p o k e o f " t h e e n d o f s o c ie t ie s ." s tr ik in g fo r m , M a lla r m é p r e s e n t s th e s a m e id e a . T h e p o e m s

271
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

"are never anything but one of the numerous narrations of

the great solar drama performed under our eyes each day
and each year." Zeus is the pure sky; Athena, dawn; Her­
mes, the wind accompanying daybreak; Paris, the dark
power of night that robs the western sky of the beautiful
twilight. The desertion of Ariadne, and of Brunhild, means
nothing but the fact that the sun cannot be delayed in the
east by dawn. And if "Oedipus proves to be overcome by a
power he cannot resist," it means that "the sun cannot rest in
its course: the heavenly body does not act freely; in the
evening, it must join the dawn from whom it was separated
in the morning."
In Claudel's first drama, the parallel between the fate of
Tête d'Or (Head of gold) and the course of the sun is too clear
to conceal a new paraphrase of what Mallarmé would call
"the solar act." (Claudel was one of Mallarmé's audience on
the rue de Rome.) The victorious hero attempts in vain to
forget that sun "whose first rays would in olden times make
him sing /like a stone cast against bronze," and he attempts
instead to see in it nothing but a "cow's lung floating at a
butcher shop door." He comes back to fetch it, however, to
take it with him finally on his expedition toward the gates of
Asia, toward the land of the dawn. The death of Tête d'Or
takes place at the end of a long death struggle, which is also
the dying of the sun in the sky. Alexandre Séon, Le sar Mérodack Joséphin Peladan, Catalogue of the
Salon de la Rose-Croix, 1892. Photo Martine Pont.
ô soleil! Toi, mon
Seul amour! ô gouffre et feu! ô sang! ô Frontispiece for the Androgyne, from the cycle "la décadence latine"
("Ethopée"), 1891, by Alexandre Séon. Catalogue of the Salon de la
Porte! Or, or! Colère sacrée!
Rose-Croix, 1892. Photo Martine Pont.
Je meurs. Qui racontera
Que, mourant, les bras écartés, j'ai tenu le soleil sur ma
poitrine comme une roue?
0 sun, Thou, my
Only love! O abyss and fire! O blood! O
Gate! Gold, gold! Holy wrath!

1 die. Who shall tell

That, dying, arms outstretched, I held the sun on my
chest like a wheel?

Reappearing quite explicitly this time is the myth of

Memnon, the famous black statue that sings under the
influence of the sun's first rays.
Many other examples could be cited: Odysseus appearing
as the "avenging sun" in Anciennetés (Antiquities) by Saint-
Pol Roux ("Le Palai d'Itaque au retour d'Odysseus métamor­
phosé en mendiant" [The palace of Ithaca on the return of
Odysseus disguised as a beggar]) (1885); the inspiring sun in
The Seventh Ring (1907) by Stefan George; the murderous sun
in Bély's "A mes amis" (To my friends) (1907); the Herculean
sun in Rubén Dario's "The Optimist's Greeting" in Cantos of
Life and Hope (1905); the menstrual sun in Apollinaire ("M er­
lin et la vieille femme" [Merlin and the old woman] in Alcools
[Alcoholic spirits]) (1913); the sun of "light and life" which
the Jewish poet Chernichovsky in his indefatigable hope
sought in an extraordinary collection of the most diverse
myths leading up to a "face-to-face encounter with the statue
of Apollo."
The end point of this solar quest through myths might well
be the astonishing Cantique de la connaissance (Hymn of
knowledge) by Milosz, in La confession de Lémuel (The confes­
sion of Lémuel) (1922), fruit of "the teaching of the sun-
bright hour of the nights of the Divine." Here again the sun
is the primal element; from it "gold draws its substance and
its color; man draws the light of his knowledge." The sun

272
 D E C A D E N T AND S Y M B O L I S T L I T E R A T U R E

m a k e s it p o s s i b l e f o r t h e n e w p o e t t o r e a c h t h e k n o w l e d g e o f o f t h e e a r t h . In a f a m o u s m y th o lo g i c a l p o e m , Les Muses (T h e
a rc h e ty p e s : " b e in g o f th e n a t u r e o f o u r m i n d ," th e y "a re M u se s ) (th e first o f th e Cinq Grandes Odes (T h e fiv e g r e a t
s it u a te d , a s h e is , in t h e c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f th e s o l a r e g g ." T h is o d e s ], 1 9 0 0 - 1 9 0 5 ) , C la u d e l a s s ig n e d to th e s e c o n d c r e a to r ,
i m m e d ia te k n o w le d g e m u s t le a d to th e a b o litio n o f s y m b o ls , n a m e l y , h i m s e l f , t h e t a s k o f d i s c o v e r i n g t h e g o l d b u r i e d in
in s tr u m e n ts o f a m e d ia tin g k n o w le d g e : th e h e a r t o f e a c h e le m e n t, th e g o ld o f d iv in e p r e s e n c e h id d e n
b y t h e W a g n e r i a n m y t h s . A s if i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h t h e w i s h o f
The p o e ts of G od saw th e w o rld of a r c h e ty p e s and
S a in t-P o l R o u x , th e re n e w a l o f th e W o rd co rresp o n d ed to
d e sc rib e d it p i o u s l y th ro u g h th e p r e c is e a n d lu m in o u s
" l ' A g e d u S o l e i l " ( T h e a g e o f t h e s u n ) , " t h e s t a r b u r s t i n g l ik e
te rm s o f th e la n g u a g e o f k n o w le d g e .
a rip e fru it w h o s e s e e d s o f s e n s itiv e a n d m o ra l c la rity m u s t
T h e d e c l i n e o f f a i t h i s m a n i f e s t in t h e w o r l d o f s c i e n c e
b e w e lc o m e d ."
a n d a rt b y a g ro w in g d im n e s s o f la n g u a g e .
A d e c a d e n t a r t c o u l d e a s ily b e a c c u s e d o f b e in g e p ig o n a l,
T h e p o e ts o f n a tu re s in g th e im p e rfe c t b e a u ty o f th e
o f g iv in g to o m u c h a tte n tio n to w o rk s a n d tra d itio n s o f th e
w o rld o f th e s e n s e s a c c o rd in g to th e a n c ie n t s a c re d m o d e .
p a s t. T h u s , a t th e e n d o f th e n in e te e n th c e n tu r y a m y th o lo g y
H o w e v e r , s tru c k b y th e s e c r e t d is c o r d a n c e b e tw e e n th e
of th e tim e s , m y th o lo g ic a l b r ic -a -b ra c , em erg ed . It w ent
m o d e o f e x p r e s s io n a n d th e s u b je c t.
a g a in s t th e g r a in o f a m o d e r n ity d e e m e d v u lg a r; b u t c u ri­
And p o w e rle s s to rise u p to th e o n ly s p e c ia l p la c e , I
o u s l y e n o u g h , it a l s o w e n t h a n d in h a n d w ith it. N ie t z s c h e
m e a n P a tm o s , t h e a r c h e ty p e s ' la n d o f v is io n ,
h a d a b rillia n t e x p l a n a t i o n f o r th is p h e n o m e n o n : d e p r i v e d o f
In t h e n i g h t o f t h e ir i g n o r a n c e , t h e y i m a g i n e a n i n te r ­
m y th s , m odem m an is s t a r v i n g fo r m y th s , a n d he "ru m ­
m e d ia ry w o rld , flo a tin g a n d s te rile , th e w o rld o f s y m b o ls .
m a g e s i n a ll p a s t e r a s to fin d h is r o o ts , e v e n if h e h a s to

W e p a s s fro m w h a t G ilb e rt D u r a n d c a lls th e " n u m i n o s i t y " r u m m a g e b a c k t o t h e f a r t h e s t r e a c h e s o f a n t iq u i ty ." A c c u m u ­

o f m y th s to th e lu m in o s ity o f a r c h e ty p e s . T h e " I d e a " s o u g h t l a t i o n is n o t t h e o n l y c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f t h e t u r n - o f - t h e - c e n t u r y

b y th e s y m b o lis t m y s tiq u e d e s c e n d s fro m h e a v e n to r e t u r n to u s e o f m y t h . O r n a m e n t a l , a l l e g o r i c a l , s y m b o l i c , it t e n d s t o

e a r t h , le s s id e a l th a n " s u r r e a l ," o r p e r h a p s e v e n ju s t s im p ly c u t its e lf o f f f r o m its a r c h e t y p a l r o o t s , a t l e a s t a m o n g s e c o n d -

re a l. F o r d e e p d o w n , M ilo s z s e e m s to b e d r e a m i n g o f th e ra te w r ite r s . The R im b a u d of Illuminations c o n s titu te s a

a b o litio n o f t h e d u a lis m p h e n o m e n o n /n o u m e n o n , a n d w ith re m a rk a b le e x c e p tio n . A n d N ie tz s c h e p r o p o s e d fo r th e m y th

h i m a ll t h o s e p o e t s w h o a r e r e f e r r e d to a s "n a tu ris tic " a n d o f P r o m e th e u s s im u lta n e o u s ly a n a lle g o r ic a l i n te r p r e ta tio n

w ho w e re o f te n n o th in g but re p e n ta n t s y m b o lists. T h is ( th e n e e d f o r c r im e t h a t is i m p o s e d o n t h e t it a n ic i n d iv id u a l)

m ile s to n e in lite r a r y h is to r y , fo r w h ic h th e tu r n o f th e c e n t u r y and an a rc h e ty p a l in te r p r e ta tio n : "th e h y p e rb o lic v a lu e

c o u l d e a s ily b e m a d e r e s p o n s i b l e , is m o r e lik e ly e x p l a in e d b y w h i c h a n a i v e h u m a n i t y a t t r i b u t e s t o f i r e a s it d o e s t o t h e t r u e

th e a m b i g u i ti e s o f s y m b o l i s m . T h e r e is n o b e t te r e x a m p l e o f p a lla d iu m of a n a s c e n t c i v i l i z a t i o n . " T h e p o e t s o f l if e , t h e

th is th a n a p o e m f ro m Chants de pluie et de soleil (S o n g s o f ra in " n a t u r is ts ," w h o m lite ra tu re te x tb o o k s p r e s e n t a s th e g r a v e ­

a n d s u n ) ( 1 8 9 4 ) b y H u g u e s R e b e ll, in w h ic h t h e p o e t p e r s is ts d ig g e r s o f s y m b o lis m , b e n e fite d n e v e r th e le s s fro m a c u r r e n t

in s p e a k i n g o f t h e " I d e a " w h e n h e r e a lly m e a n s " t h i n g s " : th a t w as not i n te r r u p te d d u rin g th e seco n d h a lf of th e

n i n e te e n th c e n tu r y , n a m e ly , c o m p a r a t iv e m y th o lo g y , w ith a n
Je ne m’occuperai point de ces petites agitations o r ig in a l a tte m p t to re tu rn to th e e le m e n ta l m e a n in g of
qui commencent sur un vagissement. m y t h s . W a s th is t h e f in is h o r th e r e b ir th o f m y th s ? T h e e n d
Et se terminent par un râle, h a s a ll t h e m a k i n g s o f a r e n e w a l . T h e p o e t i c q u e s t , s e e m i n g l y
Mais de l'Idée qu’elles révèlent. re a c h in g o u t to a " b e y o n d ," re v e rts to a "h ere b e l o w ." It
Je regarde les larmes, je regarde les sourires, re m a in s, l ik e th e m y th in w hat is a liv e , th e lo c u s of a
Ainsi que la pluie et le soleil; c o n tr a d ic tio n .
Et les rugissements, les cris, les clameurs joyeuses, P .B r ./ g .h .
les appels désespérés,
Passent en moi comme le veut dans les branches
d’un grand chêne.
Je n’étudierai point une passion, une âme, un visage,
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Mais je monterai sur la Tour qui domine l’horizon.
Pour découvrir les peuples en marche, General Works on Decadence and Symbolism
Voir la forêt, la plaine et la mer Symbolism: A Bibliography of Symbolism as an International and
Et entendre des milliers de voix célébrer l’harmonie. Multi-Disciplinary Movement, ed. D. L. Anderson (New York 1975).
a . balakian , The Symbolist Movement: A Critical Appraisal (New York
I w il l n o l o n g e r b u s y m y s e l f w i t h t h e s e t r i f l i n g a g i t a t i o n s 1967). c. Michaud , Message poétique du symbolisme (Paris 1954).
t h a t b e g in w it h a w a il
a n d e n d w ith a d e a t h r a ttle , General Works on Mythology in the Period
b u t w ith th e I d e a t h a t t h e y r e v e a l. р. ALBOUY, Mythes et mythologies dans la littérature française (Paris
I r e g a rd te a r s , I re g a r d s m ile s , 1969). M. praz , La carne, la morte e il diavolo nella letterat ura romantica
l ik e r a i n a n d s u n s h i n e ; (Milan 1930; new ed., Florence 1976). p. Br u n ei , "L'au-delà' et
and th e b e llo w in g s , th e c r ie s , th e jo y o u s o u tc rie s , th e
l"en-deçà': Place et fonction des mythes dans la littérature 'symbol­
iste'," Neohelicon 3-4 (1974).
d e s p e r a t e c a lls ,
a r e t o m e l ik e w i n d i n t h e b r a n c h e s o f a g r e a t o a k t r e e . Works on Mythology
I w il l n o l o n g e r s t u d y a p a s s i o n , a s o u l , a f a c e , L. preller . Griechische Mythologie (Leipzig 1854). g . w. cox , The
b u t I w il l c l i m b t h e T o w e r t h a t d o m i n a t e s t h e h o r i z o n Mythology of the Aryan Nations (1870). s. mallarmë. Les dieux antiques
in o r d e r t o d i s c o v e r th e p e o p l e s o n th e m a r c h , (Paris 1880); reprinted in Mallarmé's Œuvres complètes, ed. H. Mon-
to s e e th e fo re s t, th e p la in , a n d th e s e a , dor and G. Jean-Aubry (Paris 1945).
a n d to h e a r th e th o u s a n d s o f v o ic e s c e le b ra te h a rm o n y .
Texts
A fte r W h itm a n , w r ite r s l ik e A n d ré G id e and V ic e n te с. Baudelaire , "Richard Wagner et Tannhaüser à Paris," in La revue
H u i d o b r o c a m e t o a n a g r e e m e n t in t h e i r a p p e a l t o t h e t h i n g s européenne, 1 April 1861. c. p. cavafy , Poiemata (Ikaros 1952); English

273
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

trans., K. P. Kabaphes, Poems (New York 1952). r. Cla u d e l , Tête d'or.
Librairie de l'art indépendant (1890); reprinted in Théâtre, ed.
J. Madaule and J. Petit, vol. 1 (Paris 1967). c . d ' an nunzio , Intermezzo
ih rime (1883), in Tutte le Ofvre di Gabriele D'Annunzio, ed. E. Bianchetti
(1950-64). i. K. iiuvsMANS, A Rebours, neived., U.G.E., coll. 10/18, no. 975.
/. LORRAisi, Monsieur de Phocas, new ed.. Le Livre Club du Libraire (1966);
Le sang des dieux (1882), new ed., Édouard-Joseph (1920). o. v. de l ..
MH.OSZ, Poésies, new ed., A. Silvaire (1960), 2 vols. h . rebell, Chants de
pluie et de soleil. Librairie Charles (1894). i.. von sacher -masoch, Venus im
Pelz (Stuttgart 1870); English trans.. Venus in Furs (Boston 1925). r.
vai éry , "Existence du symbolisme" (Maestricht 1939), reprinted in vol.
1 of Œuvres, ed. J. Hytier (Paris 1962). w. b. yeats . The Collected Poems
(London 1933).

T h e a n d r o g y n e a l s o a p p e a r s in t h e f o r m o f g o d s , d o u b l e
T he A ndrogyne d e itie s w ho have b o th m a s c u lin e and fe m in in e p o w ers.
T h e s e g o d s m a y b e th e o r ig in o f c o s m o lo g ie s , re p r e s e n tin g
th e p rim o rd ia l c o n fu sio n b efo re b e in g s s e p a ra te , d iv id e d
T h e r e is n o o n e m y t h o f t h e a n d r o g y n e , b u t r a t h e r a f a m i l y o f a c c o r d in g to th e c a te g o rie s o f th e o rg a n iz e d w o rld as w e
m y th s . S h o u ld th e s e b e c o n s id e re d d iffe re n t v a r ia n ts o f th e k n o w i t, b u t a l s o i n c a r n a t i n g t h e d o u b l e a s p e c t o f p o w e r a n d
s a m e o r i g i n a l o r f u n d a m e n t a l m y t h ? P r o b a b l y n o t . It is b e t t e r f e r t i li ty , Z e u s L a b r a u n d o s , b e a r d e d a n d w i t h s i x b r e a s t s o n
to s p e a k o f a m y th ic t h e m e , w h o s e a c tu a l u n ity w e c a n n o t h is c h e s t , o r D io n y s u s th e m a n -w o m a n . B e s id e s th e g o d s
affirm b u t w h ic h fu n ctio n s a s a n e x e m p la ry case. A ll t h e t h e r e a r e a n d r o g y n o u s h e r o e s , s u c h a s T ir e s ia s , w h o p a s s e s
c o n s t i t u t i v e e l e m e n t s o f m y t h a r e e n c o u n t e r e d in t h i s t h e m e , s u c c e s s iv e ly th ro u g h th e tw o sexes; and s o m e th in g of a
a s in a m i c r o c o s m , a n d a ll t h e e x p l a n a t i o n s , a ll t h e p a t t e r n s m y t h i c f a s c i n a t i o n e n d u r e s in t h e i n t e r e s t t a k e n in a n A e o -
o f a n a l y s i s o f m y t h , f i n d t h e i r j u s t i f i c a t i o n in it. n ia n k n ig h t. The p rie sts th e m se lv e s m ay be an d ro g y n es:
T h e a n d r o g y n e t h e m e is e x t r e m e l y w id e s p r e a d , o n e m ig h t d e v o t e e s w h o c a s t r a t e th e m s e l v e s in o r d e r to r e c o n s ti tu t e th e
a lm o s t say u n iv e r s a l; it is re c o g n iz e d e v e ry w h e re , fro m b is e x u a lity of th e ir g o d , sham ans w ho d ress and l iv e as
G reece to C h in a , fro m Egypt to p re -C o lu m b ia n A m e ric a , w o m e n in o r d e r t o i n c a r n a t e t h e c o s m i c t o t a l i t y . T h e r i t e s a n d
f r o m A f r i c a t o O c e a n i a . It d o e s n o t o c c u p y t h e s a m e p o s i t i o n g o d s a r e a s s o c ia te d w ith m y th ic a l a c c o u n t s , in w h i c h th e
ev e ry w h e re and a lm o s t never ta k e s th e sam e shap e; but a n d r o g y n e s e r v e s to e x p la in t h e b i r t h o f t h e w o r l d a n d i ts
t h e r e is h a r d l y a m y t h i c a l c o n s t r u c t i o n in w h i c h a t r a c e o f t h e d e v e l o p m e n t . M o r e o r le s s e l a b o r a te , th e a c c o u n t s a r e g r a d ­
a n d r o g y n e is n o t f o u n d . T h e t h e m e is e x t r e m e l y p o l y m o r ­ u a lly tra n sfo rm e d in to m y th ic a l a lle g o rie s or e x p lic it
p h o u s a n d a p p e a r s n o t o n l y in t h e f o r m o f m y th ic a l n a r r a ­ p h i l o s o p h i c o - r e l i g i o u s s y s t e m s ( t h e m y th o f P l a t o 's Sympo­
t i v e s : it is a c o m p l e x in w h i c h th e o b s e rv a tio n o f n a tu re , sium, O r p h is m ).
ritu a ls , p e r s o n a l fa n ta s ie s , th e f ig u re s o f g o d s , a n d n a r r a tiv e s C an th e m y th o lo g ic a l c o m p le x o f th e a n d r o g y n e be ex­
a r e b l e n d e d . T h e p o i n t o f d e p a r t u r e is s u r e l y t h e c o n s i d e r ­ p la in e d b y a s in g le s c h e m a ? P e o p le h a v e c la im e d to a c c o u n t
a tio n of an e s s e n tia l g iv e n of h u m an e x is te n c e : th e re a re fo r it by r itu a l, by th e p s y c h o lo g y of a rc h e ty p e s , by a
d is tin c t s e x e s w ith c o r r e s p o n d i n g p h y s ic a l a n d p s y c h o lo g i c a l fu n ctio n o f m e d ia tio n : b e tw e e n th e tw o p o le s o f m a s c u lin e
c h a r a c te r is tic s . B u t n a tu r e e v e r y w h e r e o f fe rs to o b s e r v a tio n a n d f e m in in e t h e r e is a m e d i a ti n g c a te g o r y , a n d r o g y n y , th a t
th e p r e s e n c e o f b e in g s o f u n c e r ta in s e x , b is e x u a l b e in g s , th e m a k e s it p o s s i b l e t o p a s s f r o m o n e p o l e t o t h e o t h e r a n d t o
w h o le g a m u t o f in te r s e x u a l s ta t e s . T h e r e c o g n i z e d lim its a n d re fle ct a t th e s a m e tim e o n b o th te rm s o f th e o p p o s itio n ;
fo rm s o f th e s ta te s m a y v a r y fro m c u ltu r e to c u ltu r e , a s th e m ig h t not th e s e rp e n t o f G e n e sis be th e h e rm a p h ro d itic
c h a r a c te ris tic s of each sex v ary: th e ir p resen ce p oses a in te rm e d ia ry b e tw e e n A d a m and E v e , a s th e a n d r o g y n o u s
p ro b le m and re q u ire s a n e x p la n a tio n , s in c e th e irre d u c ib le s h a m a n is t h e i n t e r m e d i a r y b e t w e e n e a r t h a n d h e a v e n ? It is
p r e s e n c e o f t h e t w o s e x e s d e m a n d s i t. c e rta in ly im p r u d e n t to re d u ce a m y th ic a l c o m p le x to i ts
T h u s a c o m b i n a t i o n o f t h r e e t e r m s is f o r m e d — m a s c u l i n e , fo rm a l s u r f a c e s tr u c tu r e : th e s e m a n tic s o f a m y th is r i c h e r
fe m in in e , a n d r o g y n o u s — w h ic h a p p e a rs in th e fo rm of a t h a n i ts b a s i c c o m b i n a t o r y o r g a n i z a t i o n , a s is d e m o n s t r a t e d
m y th th a t is l i v e d and r e p r e s e n te d , a m y th in a c tio n . A b y t h e d i v e r s e f o r m s o f i ts p r e s e r v a t i o n a n d i ts r e v i v a l s in
w h o l e s e r i e s o f r i t u a l s , in p a r t i c u l a r t h o s e t h a t a r e c a l l e d r i t e s o c c id e n ta l tra d itio n .
of p assag e, g iv e a m p le p la ce to b is e x u a lity : d isg u is e s in A lth o u g h p o ly th e is tic re lig io n s e v e r y w h e r e g r a n t a n d r o g ­
w h ic h o n e s e x a s s u m e s th e d r e s s a n d a ttr ib u te s o f th e o th e r , y n y a n i m p o r t a n t p l a c e , t h e s i t u a t i o n is c o m p l e t e l y d i f f e r e n t
an d o p e ra tio n s such as s u b in cisio n by w h ic h a m an is w ith th e m o n o th e is tic re lig io n s o f s a lv a tio n : a n d r o g y n y is
s y m b o lic a lly e n d o w e d w ith th e s e x u a l o r g a n s o f b o th s e x e s . n o t o n l y p u t a s i d e , it is s y s t e m a t i c a l l y c o n c e a l e d . A n d w e c a n
C e r e m o n ie s o f in itia tio n , m a r r ia g e rite s , m o u r n in g c e r e m o ­ u n d e r s t a n d w h y : th e o n e g o d , re f u s in g th e e m p iric a l d e t e r ­
n ie s , fe rtility f e s tiv a ls , a g r a r ia n r ite s , a n d c a r n iv a ls p la y u p o n m i n a t i o n s o f t h e g o d s o f p o l y t h e i s m , c a n n o t p a r t i c i p a t e in
th e in v e rs io n o f th e s e x e s , m in g lin g th e m in o r d e r t o i n s t i ­ o n e s e x o r th e o th e r w ith o u t c o n tra d ic tio n . A s th e o b je c t o f a
t u t e , if o n l y f o r a n i n s t a n t , a s y m b o l i c a n d r o g y n y . M u l t i p l y ­ n e g a tiv e th e o lo g y , h e c a n b e n e ith e r m a s c u lin e , n o r fe m i­
in g a n d p e r h a p s e x p l a in i n g th e e ff e c t o f t h e s e r ite s , a l m o s t n in e , n o r a n d r o g y n o u s . B u t, c o n c e a le d b y th e o r th o d o x ie s ,
e v e r y w h e r e th e r e a r e fa n ta s ie s o f b is e x u a lity , w h ic h b e lo n g a n d r o g y n y c o n t i n u e d t o l i v e o n t h e i r m a r g i n s , in t h e e s o t e r -
to th e m o s t a r c h a ic fo u n d a tio n o f o u r r e p r e s e n ta t io n s . F o r icism s of th e Je w is h , C h ris tia n , and M u slim tra d itio n s .
e a c h s e x , th e p re s e n c e o f th e o t h e r c o n s t i tu t e s a s o u r c e o f R ecu rren t th e m e s c irc u la te d in th e se tra d itio n s , in w h ic h
a n x ie ty , a th re a t, a n d a co m p le m e n t at o n ce d e sire d and G n o s tic is m , N e o p la to n is m , c a b a la , a lc h e m y , a n d m y s tic is m
f e a r e d . A c c o r d i n g l y , h a v i n g b o t h s e x e s is a r e c u r r e n t f a n t a s y , cam e to m e e t: a n a n d r o g y n o u s g o d , a g o d o f o r ig in s , th e
p re se n t in d ream s, s to rie s , w o rk s of a rt, and a lch e m y : p ro d u ct of an u n b e g o tte n fo re fa th e r, th e p r i m a r y c e le s tia l
s im u l ta n e o u s l y animus and anima, a h u m a n b e in g is d o u b le pow er th a t g iv e s b irth to a s e r ie s of aeons s y m m e tic a lly
and o s c illa te s b e tw e e n th e tw o p o le s o f a to ta lity th a t h e d is tr ib u te d in m a le a n d f e m a le p a ir s ; th e firs t a n d r o g y n o u s
s e e k s to r e c o n s titu te . h u m a n , w h o p o s s e s s e s b o th s e x u a l p o w e r s a n d is t h u s tr u ly

274
 THE A N D R O G Y N E ,
Khnopff. The Sphinx. Brussels, Musées royaux des Beaux-Arts de Belgique. Muséum photo.
m ade in the im age of god; the fall of m an, w ho finds him self
separated from the universal life and for w hom the division
of the sexes m arks the origin of evil, which is separation;
finally the ascension tow ard the light that at the end of time
m ust reconstitute th e an d rogyn y of the origins. A ndrogyny
thus marks the beginning and the end of history, to which it
gives a m eaning.
At the end of the eighteenth century, esoteric traditions
em erged from the sh ad ow s and converged w ith tw o other
m ovem ents to reactivate the them e of androgyny. On the
one hand, with W inckelm ann artistic neoclassicism accorded
a central place to the herm aphrodite, regarded as the incar­
nation of ideal beauty, in which the partial beauties of the
tw o sexes are harm oniously m erged; and, after the heroic
nudity of David and his school, plastic arts from the turn of
the century offered a new type of nude: the clear-cut op p o­
sition betw een the male and female canons of beauty is
succeeded by a beauty in which sexual con trasts are sub­
dued, in which the body assu m es the u ncertain form s of the
androgyne (Girodet, J. Broc, G ranger, Dubufe). From an­
other quarter, n ascen t biology lent a new force to the
m asculine-fem inine pair, which becam e one of the funda­
mental categories of the rom antic Naturphilosophie: the pair of
term s, separated and tending to reconstitute an original
unity, constitutes a polarity, a model particularly able to
account for the physical and social w orld. A t the sam e time,
scientific observation multiplies the cases of intersexuality
that exist now with all the force of scientific affirmation,
while literature takes an interest in hom osexuality or am big­
uous sexuality. In this way, physical herm aphroditism and
psychological an d rogyn y reconstitute the double effect pro­
duced by m ythical androgyny— h orror and the holy, repul­
sion and adoration— reactivated by scientific u nderstanding
of living forms.
T hroughout the nineteenth century, the th em e of an d rog­
yny assum ed greater prom inence. Tw o types of androgyny
succeeded one an oth er and interm ingled. In the first half of
the century, the an d rogyn y of synthesis and totality was
theorized by F. von Baader and appeared in the works of
Michelet, Balzac, and Wagner. In the second half of the
century, the an d rogyn e becam e a central figure of literature
and the arts, from Sw inburne and Peladan to G. M oreau and
Stefan George: this w as a m ore am biguous an drogyne, who
T H E D O U B L E , A N D T H E R E F L E C T I O N
lives only on the hesitation and indecision betw een the two
poles, while adorning him self in the glam ours of erotic or
even satanic provocation. Does this revival of androgyny
involve a real m yth or only a fantasy reserved for a few
creators? But the diffusion of the fantasy is itself a sign, the
sign of a reflection on identity and sexual roles, thus p ro­
claiming that m utation which leads us to question the
m asculine-fem inine duality in our culture. A nd rogyn y be­
cam e again a m yth; after Fliess, Freud affirmed the existence
of a primal bisexuality: the hum an being is, at at least one
m om ent in his developm ent, w om an-m an and m an-w om an
(G roddeck). A nd if, as Freud has said, the theory of instinct
is our m ythology, it w as reserved to psychoanalysis to
restore to the androgyn e his function as m yth, that is, as the
paradigm atic narrative that makes sense of the world for a
w hole culture.
J.M ./b.f.
T he A ndrogyne , the D ouble , and the
R eflection : A F ew M yths of R omanticism
I. T he A ndrogyne
N ineteenth-century w riters generally accepted the dogm a
that the original A dam or "K ad m on A dam ” of the Hebraic
tradition w as androgynous— the Platonic m yth of the first
androgyne furnishing, m oreover, confirm ation from a differ­
ent tradition.
Fabre d'O livet m ade Isha, the wife of A dam , a represen­
tation of hum an will, a notion that Ballanche w as to take up
again. Ballanche saw the descendants of Seth as the O rien­
tals, representing the male, active, and initiating principle, in
opposition with the Cainites or O ccidentals, associated with
the female, passive, and initiated principle. From another
point of view, in w hich he followed Vico, he held that the
patrician principle m ust regenerate the female and plebeian
principle through initiation.
275
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

F a t h e r E n fa n tin s a w h im se lf a s re p r e s e n tin g o n ly h a lf o f h is d o u b l e th a t h e h a d a f t e r h e h a d le ft F r e d e r ic a B r io n . In
th e re v e la to r y c o u p le , w h ile h is im ita to r G anneau ( “ th e Wilhelm Meister, h e m u ltip lie d th e fa m ily re s e m b la n c e s a n d
o n e - w h o - w a s -G a n n e a u " ) c la im e d to b e M a p a h (fa th e r a n d th e d o u b le s . H e a p p r o v e d th e a n a ly s is o f J. J. A m p è r e , w h o
m o th e r), th e p erfect a n d ro g y n e . In 1829, H. de L a to u c h e saw in Faust and M e p h is to p h e le s th e c o m p le m e n ta r y as­
p u b lis h e d Fragoletta, a c le v e r and ra th e r v u lg a r ro m a n tic p e c t s o f h is s e lf.
t r e a tm e n t o f th e t h e m e o f a c r e a t u r e w h o is b o th m a n a n d In Isabelle of Egypt (1 8 1 2 ) A c h im v o n A rm in in tro d u c e d a n
w om an. The h e ro in e of Mademoiselle de Maupin (1 8 3 6 ) of o r ig in a l v a r ia n t o f t h e D o u b le : B e lla G o l e m , a m a g ic a l d o u b le
T h é o p h i l e G a u ti e r is a n a m b i g u o u s b e in g , a w o m a n n e v e r ­ o f t h e p r o t a g o n i s t . In Peter Schlemihl (1 8 1 4 ) C h a m is s o to ld th e
t h e l e s s , w h o s e a n d r o g y n y is c h i e f l y m e n t a l . A l a t e s t o r y f r o m s to ry o f th e m a n w h o so ld h is s h a d o w . T h e th e m e o f th e
th e s a m e a u th o r , Spiritist (1 8 6 5 ), d e s c rib e s a s e a r c h fo r L ie d o u b l e , in a ll i t s a s p e c t s , i s a f u n d a m e n t a l i d e a i n t h e w o r k o f
u n i o n o f s o u l s t h a t r e s u l t s in t h e c r e a t i o n o f a n e w b e in g , E . T . A . H o f f m a n n , w h o s e s t o r i e s a b o u n d in s p l i t p e r s o n a l ­
a c c o r d in g to th e d o c trin e o f S w e d e n b o rg , w ho h ad a lso itie s , t r a n s f e r s o f p e r s o n a lity , a n d m a l e v o l e n t d o u b l e s , in
i n s p i r e d B a l z a c 's Seraphita (1 8 3 5 ). k e e p i n g w i t h t h e i n t e r e s t o f t h e t i m e s in " m a g n e t i s m " a n d
N o v a lis , w ho a lw a y s d ream ed o f to ta l fu s io n w ith th e s o m n a m b u l is m . E s p e c ia lly c h a r a c t e r is t ic is The Devil's Elixirs
lo v e d o n e , f o u n d th e im a g e o f th e h e r m a p h r o d i t e p r o m in e n t (1 8 1 4 ), w h ic h w as in flu e n c e d by th e th e o rie s of G. H.
in t h e w o r k s o f J . B o e h m e . B u t in b o t h B a l z a c a n d N o v a l i s , S c h u b e rt; th e re th e s to ry te lle r p r o d u c e d c o u n te r p a r ts w h o
th e p ro c e s s o f a n g e liz a tio n ta k e s p la ce th r o u g h carn al e c­ a l s o s e r v e a s d o u b l e s . T h e h e r o is a y o u n g C a p u c h i n fria r,
s ta s y , w h ic h a s s u m e s a b s o lu te m o n is m , th e id e n tity o f b o d y M é d a r d , w h o s e d o u b l e is h i s h a l f b r o t h e r V i c t o r i n . B e s i d e
a n d s p irit. t h e s a t a n i c w o m a n , E u p h e m i a , i s A u r e l i a , w h o is e v e n t u a l l y
T h o u g h B a l z a c c l e a r l y d e s c r i b e s " t w o c r e a t u r e s r e u n i t e d in i d e n t i f i e d w i t h S a i n t R o s a l i e . In Princess Brambilla (1 8 2 0 ), th e
a n a n g e l , lifte d b y t h e w in g s o f p l e a s u r e ," t h e w r i t e r 's d e g r e e p ro ta g o n is ts su ffer fro m "c h ro n ic d u a li s m ." F in a lly , it is
o f s i n c e r i t y in Seraphita p o s e s a p r o b le m . H e b a d ly w a n te d to s tr ik in g to s e e H o f f m a n n , in The Adventure of the Night o f Saint
s e d u c e M m e H a n s k a , a n d it is s o m e w h a t d i s t u r b i n g t o n o t e Sylvester, i n tr o d u c e S c h le m ih l, w h o n o lo n g e r h a s a s h a d o w ,
t h a t in t h e s a m e p e r i o d h e d e s c r i b e d a c a s e o f l e s b i a n i s m in b rin g in g h im to g e th e r w ith S p ik h e r, w ho abandons h is
The Girl with the Golden Eyes. T h e in v e n tio n o f th e c h a r a c t e r o f re fle ctio n .
S e ra p h itu s -S e ra p h ita s u g g e s ts a m is u n d e r s ta n d in g o f S w e ­ T h e u n d e r ly i n g id e a t h r o u g h o u t is th a t m a d n e s s is a fo rm
d e n b o rg . F o r S w e d e n b o rg had not im a g in e d th a t su ch a o f w is d o m , th a t d r e a m a n d fa n ta s y a lo n e m a y p e rm it u s to
h y p o s ta s is c o u ld a s s u m e h u m a n fo rm a n d b e c o m e in c a rn a te . c o n n e c t th e e x te rn a l a s p e c ts a n d th e m y s te rio u s a s p e c ts o f
o u r e x i s t e n c e . In m a n y r e s p e c t s , t h e c h a r a c t e r o f K r e i s l e r , t h e
g e n ia l m u s ic ia n and fo o l, th e h ero of Kater Murr, is th e
d o u b le o f H o ffm a n n h im se lf.
II. T h e T h e m e o f th e D o u b le
H o f f m a n n 's w o rk (e s p e c ia lly The Devil's Elixirs and The
The th e m e of th e D o u b le , in its v a r io u s a s p e c ts — th e Night of Saint Sylvester) e x e rte d a p ro fo u n d in flu e n c e on
D io s c u ri, th e M e n e c h m e s , N a r c is s u s , a n d A m p h i tr y o n — h a s G é ra rd d e N e rv a l. T h e m e m o r y o f th e Elixirs r e a p p e a r s in The
c lo s e c o n n e c tio n s w ith th e th e m e of th e A n d ro g y n e , but Chimeras, e s p e c i a ll y in Aurelia (1 8 5 5 ). M o r e o v e r, th e th e m e o f
n e v e r t h e l e s s g a v e r i s e , in t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , t o a w h o l e t h e d o u b l e a l s o i n tr u d e s r e p e a t e d ly in th is s to r y ; N e v a l g iv e s
s e rie s o f w o r k s w h ic h m u s t b e m e n tio n e d s e p a r a te l y . In a it t h e O r i e n t a l n a m e o f ferouer {farvâsis) . P r e v i o u s l y , in " T h e
sen se, t h e l in k b e t w e e n th e th e m e o f th e D o u b le a n d th e S t o r y o f R a o u l S p if a m e ," f r o m t h e Illuminati, a n d i n " T h e
r e c o lle c tio n of a p rim o rd ia l A n d ro g y n e , or th e m y th of S to r y o f C a lip h H a k e m ," fro m th e Voyage to the Orient, N e r v a l
N a rciss u s, is e s ta b lis h e d th r o u g h th e G n o s tic b e lie f th a t h a d tre a te d s e v e ra l a s p e c ts o f th e th e m e o f th e d o u b le . F o r
A d a m lo s t h is c e le s tia l n a t u r e b e c a u s e h e b e c a m e e n a m o r e d h im , t h e o b s e s s i o n w ith r e s e m b la n c e s is lin k e d to p a r a m n e ­
o f h i s o w n i m a g e . B u t in t h e O c c i d e n t a l c o n s c i e n c e , a t l e a s t , sia and th e q u est fo r p erso n al id e n tity ; Corilla and th e
every w o rk is b o r n at first fro m th e a u t h o r 's in te re s t in s c e n a rio o f Polygamy Is a Hanging Matter a r e e q u a lly c h a r a c ­
h i m s e l f , a n d it is w i t h g o o d r e a s o n t h a t A . W . S c h l e g e l s a w te ris tic . F o r b o th H o f f m a n n a n d N e r v a l, th e p ro b le m o f th e
N a rc is s u s a s a n im a g e o f th e p o e t. d o u b l e is a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e p r o b l e m o f l i t e r a r y c r e a t i o n . It
In th e fo re g ro u n d of r o m a n tic w o rk s p erv ad ed by th e is b y l o o k i n g a t h i s s e l f in a c r y s t a l w i t h m u l t i p l e f a c e t s t h a t
th e m e o f th e D o u b le m u s t b e p la ce d th e w o rk o f Je a n -P a u l th e c re a to r b rin g s fo rth h is c h a ra cte rs, w ho th e m se lv e s
Siebenkäs
R ic h te r . In he had d e fin e d th e Doppelgänger (o r n e a r l y a l w a y s a p p e a r in p a i r s , th e la w s o f th e h u m a n s p irit
Doppeltgänger): " I t is w h a t p e o p l e c a ll t h o s e w h o s e e t h e m ­ b e i n g in t h is r e s p e c t c o n s i s te n t w ith t h o s e o f b io lo g y : B a lz a c
s e lv e s ." O f co u rse, a p sy ch ic p h e n o m e n o n s o e x c e p tio n a l and D o s to y e v s k i, fo r e x a m p le , c o n ce iv e d th e ir c h a r a c te r s
(a n d o n e to w h ic h a lc o h o lic s s e e m e s p e c ia lly in c lin e d ) h a s b o t h i n t w o s a n d i n f o u r s . D o s t o y e v s k i t r e a t e d t h e t h e m e in
g iv e n b irth to a m o d e r n m y t h , i llu s tr a te d b y n u m e r o u s a n d h is e a r ly n o v e l The Double ( 1 8 4 6 ), a n d in The Brothers Karam­
i m p o r t a n t w o r k s . In J e a n - P a u l ' s n o v e l Siebenkäs, th e p r o ta g ­ azov (1 8 8 0 ) h e d e p ic ts Iv a n c o n v e r s in g w ith th e D e v il, a n
o n is ts L e ib g e b e r a n d S ie b e n k ä s a re "a s i n g l e s o u l in tw o o b je c tific a tio n o f th e o b s c u r e p a r t o f h is b e in g , b e fo r e c o m in g
b o d i e s ," w h ic h is th e v e r y d e f in itio n o f th e m y s t ic a n d r o g ­ to g r ie f in m a d n e s s . T h e c o u n t e r p a r t , t h e re a l p e r s o n , s h o u ld
y n e . T h e s a m e c o n c e p tio n is f o u n d in Titan (1 8 0 0 ), b y th e n o t b e c o n f u s e d w ith th e d o u b le , a p ro je c tio n o r re fle c tio n
s a m e a u t h o r ; h o w e v e r , in th is w o r k A l b a n o c o m m i t s th e fa ta l th a t h a s o n ly a p o te n tia l e x is te n c e ; o n th e lite ra ry p la n e ,
e r r o r o f b e lie v in g th a t th e d e m o n ic R o q u a i r o l is h i s s o u l h o w e v e r , th e tw o th e m e s a r e c lo s e ly c o n n e c t e d . It is t h e
b ro th e r. In th is s to r y , th e re a re n o le s s th a n fiv e p a irs o f d o u b l e t h a t is t r e a t e d i n H e i n r i c h H e i n e ' s p o e m The Double
d o u b le s, s e v e ra l w o m e n h a v e th e s a m e a p p e a r a n c e a n d a r e ( " I a m t h e f r u it o f y o u r t h o u g h t s " ) , C o l e r i d g e 's p o e m Trans­
s u b s ti t u te d fo r o n e a n o t h e r , a n d , in th is g r a tu i to u s l y c o m p l i ­ formation, M u s s e t ' s The Night of May ( 1 8 3 5 ) ; i n E d g a r A lle n
c a te d p lo t, J e a n -P a u l fin a lly a l s o in tr o d u c e s t h e M e n e c h m e s P o e ' s William Wilson ( 1 8 3 9 ) , s o m e w h a t a s i n th e w o rk of
o f h is Siebenkäs. Flegeljahre (T h e m a d y e a r s , 1 8 0 4 ) d e p ic ts th e H o f f m a n n , t h e t h e m e o f th e d o u b le is c o m b i n e d w ith th e
tw in s W a lt a n d V u l t, w h o s e p e r s o n a l i t i e s a r e p o r t r a y e d as th e m e o f th e c o u n te r p a r t.
c o m p le m e n ta ry . H e in ric h v o n K le ist w r o te o f " t r a g i c s o m n a m b u l is m " ; h is
G o e t h e , in b o o k 11 o f Poetry and Truth, r e la te s th e v is io n o f c h a r a c t e r s a r e s u b je c t to th e a b s e n c e o f th e ir s e lv e s (a s w a s

276
 R O M A N T I C M Y T H S OF T H E R E B E L AND T H E V I C T I M

th e ir c r e a to r ) . H is Amphitryon (1 8 0 7 ) d e p ic ts J u p ite r e n d e a v ­ th e se m y th s e x p re s s th e s a m e tru th , c o n v e y e d in p a ra lle l

o r in g to m ake A lcm e n e u n d e rsta n d th a t th e re are tw o te r m s b y n o v e ls a n d s to r ie s : th a t th e r e s o lu tio n o f a n t a g o ­
d i s t i n c t s e l v e s in h e r h u s b a n d 's p e r s o n a l i t y . T h e p r i n c i p a l n i s m s is n e c e s s a r y f o r s u r v i v a l .
c h a r a c te r s o f h is g r e a t p la y s Penthesilea ( 1 8 0 8 ) , Catherine of B u t, in a n o th e r f o r m u la tio n , th e im a g e of th e soul is
Heilbronn (1 8 1 0 ), a n d The Prince of Homburg ( 1 8 2 1 , p o s t h . ) c o n c e i v e d a s a d o u b l e ( o n t h e s a m e s c a l e o r s m a l l e r ) . T h u s , in
c o n ta in tw o a n ta g o n is tic p e r s o n a litie s , a n d th e c o n flic t b e ­ s e v e ra l w a y s , th e m y th o f th e D o u b le a p p e a r s to b e q u ite
tw e e n th e c o n s c io u s p e r s o n a lity a n d th e s u p p r e s s e d te n d e n ­ f u n d a m e n t a l , a n d t h e r e is n o r e a s o n t o b e s u r p r is e d t h a t th is
c ie s p lu n g e s th e m a t t im e s in to a s o r t o f h y p n o s i s , a t w h ic h m y th a s s u m e d s u c h i m p o r t a n c e in t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n tu r y .
p o in t th e y lo s e c o n s c io u s n e s s o f th e ir a c tio n s . J .R i ./b .f .
R a lp h T y m m s h a s p o in te d o u t t h a t Z a c h a r i a s W e r n e r , a t
a b o u t th e s a m e tim e , c r e a te d c h a r a c t e r s s u b je c t t o s im ila r
Attila, King o f the Huns ( 1 8 0 8 )
d iv is io n s o f c o n s c i o u s n e s s in
BIBLIOGRAPHY
and Wanda, Queen of the Sarmatians ( 1 8 1 0 ) , a n d G r i l l p a r z e r
s a w in Z a c h a r i a s W e r n e r a n im a g e o f N a r c i s s u s . In a d if f e r e n t I. The Androgyne
v e i n , C h a r le s N o d i e r to ld th e Legend o f Sister Beatrice: th is is a p. albouy, "Le mythe de l'androgyne (à propos de Mademoiselle de
p io u s s to r y fro m th e w o r k o f A b r a h a m B z o v iu s , a c c o r d in g to Maupin)," Mythologiques, 1976, 324-33. a . |. l . busst , "The Image of
w h ic h th e V irg in w a s s u p p o s e d to h a v e a s s u m e d , fo r s o m e the Androgyne in the Nineteenth Century," in Jan Fletcher, ed.,
y e a r s , th e a p p e a ra n c e a n d t h e p la c e o f a n u n u n fa ith fu l to Romantic Mythologies (London 1967), 1-95. m . eliade, Méphistophélès et
her vo w s, w h ile a w a itin g th e re tu rn of th e nun to th e l'androgyne (Paris 1962). h . evans, Louis Lambert et la philosophie de
c o n v e n t f r o m w h ic h s h e h a d fle d . Balzac (Paris 1951). T. Gautier, Mademoiselle de Maupin, Marcel
In t h e b a c k g r o u n d o f a ll t h e s e l it e r a r y w o r k s l u r k s , t r a n s ­
Crouzet, ed. (Paris 1973). m . praz. The Romantic Agony.
p o s e d o n t o th e p la n e o f in d iv id u a l c o n s c i o u s n e s s , t h e lo n g II. The Double
I n d o - E u r o p e a n a n d b ib lica l tr a d itio n o f le g e n d a r y t w in s , o n e
j. LHERMiTTE, "Clinique et physiopathologie," Les hallucinations
of w hom is u s u a l l y i n f e r io r t o t h e o t h e r : P o l l u x m u s t a s s i g n (Paris 1951), chap. 4. j. perrot. Mythe et littérature sous le signe des
h a lf o f h is im m o r ta lity to C a sto r, Z e th u s d o m in a te s Am ­ jum eaux (Paris 1976). o. rank. Don Juan: Une étude sur le double (Paris
p h i o n , R o m u l u s k i ll s R e m u s , C a i n s l a y s A b e l . A l w a y s o n e is 1932). a . stocker. Le double: L'homme à la rencontre de soi-même (Geneva
sa crifice d and th e o th e r b e co m e s a fo u n d in g h e ro . A ll o f 1946). R. tymms. Doubles in Literary Psychology (Cambridge 1949).

h i g h c a l i b e r s u c h a s M o n t o n i i n A n n R a d c l i f f e 's Mysteries of
R o m a n tic M y t h s o f t h e R ebe l a n d t h e V ic t im : Udolpho ( 1 7 9 4 ) , S c h e d o n i i n The Italian, or the Confessional of the
S a t a n , P r o m e t h e u s , C a in , J o b , F a u s t , Black Penitents ( 1 7 9 7 ) b y t h e s a m e a u t h o r , A m b r o s i o in
L e w i s ' s The Monk ( 1 7 9 6 ) . I n G e r m a n y , t h e f i g u r e o f t h e
A h a suerus, D on J u a n , and E m pedo cles
m y s t e r i o u s b a n d i t i n s p i r e d H e i n r i c h Z c h o k k e ' s Abellio ( 1 7 9 4 ) ,
w h i c h i n t u r n i n s p i r e d C h a r l e s N o d i e r ' s Le Voleur ( 1 8 0 5 ) a n d
In h is Introduction to Universal History ( 1 8 3 0 ) , M i c h e l e t in a Jean Sbogar ( 1 8 1 8 ) . T h e s e a r e a ll d u a l c h a r a c t e r s , s o t h a t t h e
s tr a n g e m i x tu r e o f i d e a s p l a c e d P r o m e th e u s a t t h e o r ig in o f a t h e m e o f th e n o b le b a n d it is tie d t o t h a t o f t h e d u a l p e r s o n ­
w h o lly r o m a n tic lin e a g e : " L ib e rty w ith o u t G od, im p io u s a lity , o f w h ic h w e s h a ll s p e a k la te r .
h e r o i s m , in l it e r a t u r e , t h e s a ta n i c s c h o o l t h a t w a s h e r a l d e d in B u t it w a s p r o b a b l y B y r o n w h o c a r r i e d t h e t y p e o f t h e r e b e l
G r e e c e in A e s c h y l u s 's Prometheus Bound, a n d w a s re v iv e d b y to its peak o f p e rfe c tio n by c o n c e iv in g a w h o le s e rie s of
H a m l e t 's b i t t e r d o u b t s , is id e a li z e d in M i l t o n ' s S a t a n and g l o o m y h e r o e s , a ll p r e y t o a m y s t e r i o u s f a t e , in w o r k s t h a t
w ith B y r o n fa lte r s in to d e s p a i r " (O E C , v o l. 3 5 , p p . 4 5 7 - 5 8 ) . b e a r th e ir n a m e s : Lara, The Corsair, The Giaour. B y ro n w a n te d
A " t i t a n i c " tr a d itio n flo u r is h e d in n i n e t e e n t h - c e n t u r y E u r o p e t o b e l ik e h i s h e r o e s , w h i c h l e d h i m t o p l a y a c t h i s l if e a n d t o
in n u m e r o u s w o r k s : n e x t t o t h e T ita n P r o m e th e u s , S a t a n , a s w a ste it a w a y s e d u l o u s ly . W e m a y re co g n iz e th e d e b a s e d
r e m o d e le d b y M ilto n , p a r tic ip a te s a s c h i e f o f t h e r e b e ls a n d , f o r m s o f t h e B y r o n i c h e r o in t h e p r o t a g o n i s t o f A l e x a n d r e
c u r io u s l y e n o u g h , is i d e n tif ie d w it h P a n . D u m a s 's Antony a n d in c e r ta i n c h a r a c t e r s c r e a t e d b y E u g è n e
W e h a v e lo n g k n o w n th a t th e ro m a n tic s n e v e r c e a s e d to S u e o r P a u l F é v a l, la te i n c a r n a t io n s o f t h e n o b le b a n d it w h o ,
d ra w fro m th e a n cie n t w e ll, w h ic h e x p la in s th e p a ra lle l in S a t a n i c d i s g u i s e , r e p r e s e n t th e G o o d a n d a i m to s a v e th e
d e v e lo p m e n t o f m y th s b o r r o w e d fro m J u d e o -C h r is tia n b o o k s s ta te . B u t M é d a rd , th e h ero of E. T. A. H o f f m a n n 's The
(th e B ib le , t h e Book of Enoch) a n d o f G re e k a n d L a tin m y th s . Devil's Elixirs ( 1 8 1 6 ), h a d g r e a t tr o u b le in d i s tin g u is h in g g o o d
In a n a t te m p t to a s s e s s th e c o n t e m p o r a r y , a p p a r e n tl y fa lle n , fro m e v il. M o r e o v e r , P a u l F é v a l p u ts B y ro n h im s e lf o n s ta g e
c o n d i t i o n o f m a n , m y t h s o f t h e f a ll d e v e l o p a l o n g s e v e r a l in The Mysteries of London ( 1 8 4 4 ), w h e r e h e a p p e a r s u n d e r th e
p a ra lle l tra c k s , w ith th e o p p re sso r god s o m e tim e s c a lle d n a m e o f th e M a r q u i s d e R io S a n to .
Je h o v a h a n d s o m e tim e s Z e u s -J u p ite r. H u g o 's S a ta n h a s a n in te n s e d r a m a tic p r e s e n c e , a n d y e t h e
is b y d e f in itio n th e o n e -w h o -d o e s -n o t-e x is t, s in c e th e p o e t
does n o t re a lly b e lie v e in th e e x iste n ce of th e D e v il a n d
id e n t i f ie s e v il w it h m a t te r . A ll th e i n c a r n a t io n s o f E v il in t h e
I. S a ta n
w o rk o f H u g o , a s P ie rre A lb o u y h a s s h o w n , a re e n v io u s o r
In t h e a f t e r m a t h o f M i l t o n 's Paradise Lost ( b o o k 1 ), S a t a n 's je a lo u s b e fo r e th e y a r e w ic k e d .
s u c c e s s o r s g o in s e v e r a l d ir e c t io n s . O n e o f h is d e s c e n d a n t s ,
K a rl M o o r in S c h i l l e r 's The Robbers (1 7 8 1 ), w as to be th e
II. P ro m e th e u s
o r ig in a l m o d e l fo r th e " n o b l e b a n d it ," w h o s e e x t r a o r d i n a r y
lite ra ry p o s te r ity in c lu d e d V a u trin a n d J e a n V a lje a n . A n o th e r ( Prophecy of Dante)
R e s o r tin g to a n a n c ie n t im a g e , B y ro n
tra c k c o n s is ts o f m y s te r io u s a n d d o m in e e r in g m e n , re b e ls o f and H ugo (The Genius, Odes and Ballads, I V , 6 ) t u r n

in
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

P r o m e th e u s in to th e im a g e o f th e m is u n d e rs to o d g e n iu s, he have th is h is to r ic a l c h a r a c t e r , h e a l s o e n c o m p a s s e s th e
b rin g in g m en th e fire fro m h eaven, th a t is, in s p ira tio n . i n n e r d r a m a o f G o d a n d m a n , o f fa ith a n d d o u b t , o f c r e a to r
A c c o r d i n g t o P. S . B a H a n c h e ( Orpheus , b o o k 8 ) , m a n , t h a n k s a n d c r e a ti o n ; b e c a u s e o f t h a t, th is tr a d it i o n c a n b e a p p lie d to
to P r o m e th e u s , "h as a c q u ire d th e c a p a c ity fo r g o o d and a ll r i m e s a n d t h i s d i v i n e d r a m a s h a l l t h e r e b y n e v e r e n d . " In
e v i l . " T h e r o m a n t i c P r o m e t h e u s is t h e f o r e m o s t e x a m p l e o f a cco rd a n ce w ith H e r d e r 's p h ilo s o p h y o f h isto ry , w h ereb y
T ita n is m ; h e p r o te s ts a n d re b e ls a g a in s t th e s ta t e o f th in g s each fo rm is b o r n o f th e o n e p re c e d in g it, E d g a r Q u in e t
im p o s e d o n e a r t h b y th e D e ity , w h ic h s tr ik e s h im a s n e i th e r m a k e s P r o m e th e u s th e p a g a n fo r e r u n n e r o f C h ris t. S u ch a
ra tio n a l n o r m o r a l. T h is re b e llio u s p o s t u r e d ir e c te d a g a in s t c o n c e p tio n o f th e re lig io u s e v o lu tio n o f h u m a n ity c le a rly
t h e a p p a r e n t r e i g n o f e v i l o n e a r t h o f t e n i n v o l v e s w r i t e r s in a i m p l i e s t h a t r e l i g i o n s a r e m o r t a l , a s a r e a ll t h i n g s h u m a n ( " a s
k in d of N e o g n o sticism th a t le a d s to th e r e h a b ilita tio n of t h e e a g l e g r o w s o l d , s o w ill t h e d o v e " ) . Q u i n e t n e v e r l a c k e d
b e in g s h e r e t o f o r e c o n s i d e r e d g u ilty , s u c h a s C a in a n d , m o r e in s p ira tio n , b u t h is p o w e r o f e x p r e s s io n w as n e v e r q u ite
p a r t ic u la r l y , S a t a n , w h o a r e t h e n d e p i c t e d a s m a n 's h e l p e r s c o m m e n s u ra te w ith h is id e a s, w h ic h e x p la in s w hy he is
(B y ro n , Cain; V ig n y , Eloa). s e ld o m re a d .
W ith L a m a rtin e , th e p e n d u lu m s w in g s c o n s ta n tly fro m In God (4 , The Vulture), H u g o c o n te m p la te s th e c h a r a c te r o f
r e v o lt to r e s ig n a tio n a n d b a c k . R e s ig n a tio n s e e m s to b e a n P r o m e th e u s at le n g th , and sees h im as th e aw ak en er of
id e a f o r m u la te d in The Desert to m e a n a G o d c o n c e iv e d a s c o n s c io u s n e s s a n d r e a s o n , th e m a n o f p r o g r e s s , w h o p u s h e d
u n k n o w a b l e . In t h e p i e c e e n t i t l e d Man, th e s e c o n d o f th e b ack s u p e rs titio n s and ig n o r a n c e . In a s h o rt e a rly poem
Poetic Meditations (1 8 2 0 ), d e d ic a te d to B y ro n , he ta k e s a e n title d Prometheus (1 8 1 6 ), B y r o n h a d a lr e a d y h a ile d th e T ita n
p o s itio n w ith reg ard to th e E n g lish p o e t, sa y in g to h im : w ho re b e lle d a g a in s t th e d e ity , th e T ita n w hose "d iv in e
" L e a v e d o u b t a n d b la s p h e m y to th e s o n o f n i g h t ." B u t th e c rim e w as to be g o o d ." L o u is M é n a r d 's e a rly w o rk
s ig n if ic a n t in v e rs io n of th e r o le s of G od and S a ta n had Prometheus Unbound ( 1 8 4 3 ) is a l s o t h e a p o t h e o s i s o f p r o g r e s ­
a lre a d y ap p eared in W illia m B la k e , w ho fin a lly id e n tifie d s iv e fa ith : "T h e Id e a l is w ith in y o u : B e h o ld th e su p rem e
h im s e lf w ith M ilto n , p o i n t in g o u t th a t M ilto n " w a s o n th e G o d ." A s M . R . T r o u s s o n p o in te d o u t, w h a t a ttr a c te d th e
d e v i l 's s i d e w i t h o u t r e a l i z i n g i t , " a n d w h o s a w J e s u s C h r i s t r o m a n t i c s t o t h e c h a r a c t e r o f P r o m e t h e u s is t h e f a c t t h a t h e
a s r e p r e s e n tin g th e h u m a n im a g in a tio n . w a s n o t c o n t e n t t o l im i t h i m s e l f t o a n e g o c e n t r i c r e v o l t , b u t
The r o m a n tic s ' m is in te r p r e ta tio n , in p art d e lib e ra te , of m a n a g e d to b e r e g a r d e d a s a p h ila n th r o p is t, b u ild in g a n e w
A e s c h y l u s 's Prometheus w a s fu r th e r e n c o u r a g e d b y th e fa ct w o rld w ith th e h e lp of re a so n and k n o w le d g e . W ith th e
th a t o n ly th e first p art ( Prometheus Bound) o f t h e G r e e k e x c e p tio n o f N e r v a l, th e th e m e o f P a n d o ra d is a p p e a r s a lm o s t
p l a y w r ig h t's tr ilo g y h a s s u rv iv e d . O f Prometheus Unbound, e n tire ly , s in c e P r o m e t h e u s is n o lo n g e r c o n s id e re d g u ilty .
w h ic h s h o w e d t h e T i t a n 's r e c o n c il ia t i o n w it h Z e u s , w e h a v e T h e r o m a n tic Christ b e c o m e s a P r o m e t h e a n f i g u r e . B u t it w a s
o n ly fra g m e n ts , a n d on Prometheus the Fire Bringer w e can M a d a m e d e S ta ë l w h o p r o v id e d a n in c o m p le te tr a n s la tio n o f
m e re ly c o n je ctu re . J e a n - P a u l R i c h t e r 's The Dream in h e r On Germany (1 8 1 0 ), a n d
In h i s p r e f a c e t o Prometheus Unbound, S h e lle y e x p la in s th a t w h o m u s t s u r e ly b e h e ld c h ie fly re s p o n s ib le fo r th e fa c t th a t
r e c o n c ilia tio n w a s in c o n c e iv a b le : th e s u f f e r in g s a n d e n d u r ­ (The Mount of Olives,
V ig n y 1 8 4 3 ) a n d N e r v a l ( Christ among the
a n c e o f P r o m e th e u s , a n d h is o p p o s itio n to a ty r a n n ic a l g o d , Olive Trees, 1 8 4 4 ) a l m o s t s im u lta n e o u s ly m ade C h ris t a
s e e m e d to S h e lle y to c o n s t i tu t e th e v e r y e s s e n c e o f th e m y th . p u r e ly h u m a n f ig u re , re b e llin g a g a in s t th e ru th le s s J e h o v a h .
S h e l l e y 's Prometheus Unbound is a l y r i c m a s t e r p i e c e ; in i t, t h e
T ita n s im u lta n e o u s ly r e p r e s e n ts th e hum an sp irit a n d , in
III. C a in
c e r ta in r e s p e c t s , C h r is t. J u p ite r a p p e a r s a s th e o b je c tific a tio n
o f m a n 's b a s e d e s i r e s , a n i n c a r n a t i o n o f e v i l . T o f r e e h i m s e l f T h e r o m a n tic s p la c e C a in a m o n g th e g r e a t re b e ls o r g r e a t
fro m o p p re s s io n , it is e n o u g h to w ill it b y d e p e n d i n g on v i c t i m s , a n d in 1 8 2 1 , B y r o n d e v o t e d to h im th e " m y s t e r y "
r e a s o n a n d s c i e n c e ; t h i s is w h a t m a k e s t h e w o r k a h y m n t o th a t w e h a v e a lr e a d y m e n tio n e d . T h is c h a r a c te r , in te r p r e te d
h u m a n f r e e d o m . D e m o g o r g o n , a c o m p l e x c h a r a c t e r d iffic u lt w ith in a m o r e tr a d itio n a l f r a m e w o r k , in s p ire d H u g o to w rite
to a n a ly z e , s e e m s to r e p r e s e n t N e c e s s ity s e e n a s a c h a in o f h is c e le b r a te d Conscience in The Legend of the Centuries. Con­
e v e n t s . T h e f o u r th a n d fin a l a c t r e a c h e s th e c o s m ic d i m e n ­ science w as first in te n d e d Chastisements, b e c a u s e H u g o
fo r
s i o n ; i ts l a s t v e r s e s e x p r e s s r e c u r r i n g o p t i m i s m in t h e f a c e o f w a s id e n tify in g th e a c c u r s e d C a in w ith N a p o l e o n III, a s is
s u f fe rin g s a n d e v ils: e v id e n t fro m th e p ie c e e n title d Sacer esto ( L e t it b e h o l y ) in
Chastisements a n d fro m n u m e r o u s f ra g m e n ts th a t h a v e b e e n
T o s u f f e r w o e s w h ic h H o p e t h in k s in fin ite ;
p re se rv e d .
T o fo rg iv e w ro n g s d a rk e r th a n d e a th o r n ig h t;
T o d e fy P o w e r w h ic h s e e m s o m n ip o te n t;
T o l o v e a n d b e a r ; t o h o p e till H o p e c r e a t e s IV. Job
F r o m its o w n w r e c k t h e t h i n g it c o n t e m p l a t e s ;
In t h e B i b l e , t h e B o o k o f J o b r a i s e s t h e p r o b l e m o f d i v i n e
N e it h e r to c h a n g e , n o r fa lte r , n o r r e p e n t ;
ju s tic e a n d th e r e la tio n o f m a n to th e d iv in e (w h o ta k e s th e
T h i s , l ik e t h y g l o r y , T i t a n , is t o b e
fo rm of a h u rric a n e ). It in s p ire d E d w ard Y o u n g 's Night
G o o d , g r e a t a n d jo y o u s , b e a u tifu l a n d fre e ;
Thoughts on Life, Death, and Immortality, and w as w id e ly
T h i s is a l o n e L i f e , J o y , E m p i r e , a n d V i c t o r y .
c o m m e n te d upon d u rin g th e n in e te e n th c e n tu ry . C ha­
In t h u s e x p r e s s i n g h i s h o p e i n m a n , S h e l l e y , a s M . R a y m o n d t e a u b r ia n d s p o k e o f J o b in h is Genius of Christianity, P i e r r e
T ro u sso n h a s s h o w n , e s ta b lis h e d th e p r o to ty p e o f th e r o ­ B a o u r - L o r m i a n i n c l u d e s in h i s Poetic Evenings a Job, a Lyrical
m a n t i c P r o m e t h e u s . In The Bible of Humanity, M ich e le t m a k e s Poem. In 1842, P. C h r is tia n p refaced a new e d itio n of a
P r o m e th e u s th e first d e m o c r a t a n d e x t e n d s th e i n s p ir a tio n o f t r a n s l a ti o n o f Y o u n g 's Night Thoughts and H e r v e y 's Graves
th e E n g lis h p o e t. E d g a r Q u in e t s u m m a r iz e d h is o w n c o n c e p ­ w i t h a n " E s s a y o n J o b i s m . " In 1 8 5 1 , I s i d o r e C a h e n s t a t e s in
t i o n o f P r o m e t h e u s in t h e p r e f a c e t o h i s t r i l o g y Prometheus, h is Sketch on the Philosophy of the Poem of fob: "Jo b is m o r e
a f t e r i n d i c a t i n g t h a t in h i s o p i n i o n t h i s h e r o " i s t h e i m a g e o f m o d ern and tim e ly th a n P r o m e th e u s h im se lf b e c a u s e he
r e lig io u s h u m a n it y ." H e g o e s o n to s a y : " B u t n o t o n l y d o e s b e t t e r e x p r e s s e s t h e b i t t e r d i s e n c h a n t m e n t t h a t is t h e f r u i t o f

278
 R O M A N T I C M Y T H S OF T H E R E B E L AND T H E V I C T I M

a m o re advanced c i v il i z a ti o n ." In h is Book of fob (1 8 2 6 ), a p p e a r in P. A l b o u y 's s e c o n d v o lu m e o f Poetic Works (B ib ­

W illia m B la k e h a d e x p l a in e d t h e s u f f e r in g s o f J o b t h r o u g h a n lio th è q u e de la P lé ia d e , 8 5 9 -6 3 ), m any lin e s tr a n s la te or
e x h a u stin g lite r a l in te r p r e t a t io n of th e te x t. O n ly upon p a r a p h r a s e p a s s a g e s fro m th e B o o k o f Jo b . T h e s e f r a g m e n ts
a c c e p t in g h is m is f o r tu n e s a n d u n d e r s t a n d in g th a t th e s p irit a re s k e tc h e s fo r Contemplations.
a lo n e b rin g s lif e w il l J o b a g a in fin d grace in th e eyes of'
Jeh o v ah .
V. Fau st
In B a l l a n c h e 's Orpheus, th e s to r y o f J o b r u n s p a ra lle l to th a t
o f P r o m e th e u s . W h e r e a s P r o m e th e u s in a u g u r a te d th e m o d e F a u s t is o n e o f t h e r a r e m o d e r n m y t h s . F o r m a n y F r e n c h
o f r e v o lt, J o b w a s th e first to ra is e th e m o r a l p r o b le m o f e v il. r o m a n t i c s , t h e firs t r e a d i n g o f G o e t h e 's Faust in G e r a r d de
B a lla n ch e s e e s th e d o c tr in e o f th e im m o r ta lity o f th e s o u l a s N e r v a l 's t r a n s l a t i o n s o f 1 8 2 8 a n d 1 8 3 5 w a s a k in d o f in itia ­
e m e r g in g f ro m th e v e r y d e s p a i r o f J o b . Q u in e t in tu r n s a y s t io n . A n d w h e n in 1 8 4 0 t h e s e c o n d p a r t o f Faust b e g a n to b e
t h a t J o b h e r a l d s C h r i s t i a n i t y ( The Genius of Religions, V , 4 ); h e k n o w n in F r a n c e , it b e c a m e a p p a r e n t t o w h a t e x t e n t w r it e r s
d oes, h ow ever, c o n sid e r th a t Jo b "s to p s at d o u b t" and w e r e p r o je c tin g th e ir h o p e s a n d d r e a m s o n th is o n e w o rk .
c o n tra sts h im w ith P r o m e th e u s , "w h o goes so fa r a s to F a u s t a s a c h a r a c t e r to o k h is p la c e b e s id e H a m le t a m o n g th e
c u r s e . " A c c o r d i n g t o P. L e r o u x (Job, 1 8 6 6 ; p r o l o g u e p u b lis h e d h e ro e s o f k n o w le d g e a n d u n d e rs ta n d in g a n d w a s c o n s id e re d
in 1 8 6 0 ) , G o d a n s w e r s t h e p le a o f h is c r e a t u r e w it h t h e t h e o r y to b e a ty p ica l re p r e s e n ta tiv e o f th e c o n s c ie n c e o f th e W e s te rn
o f p r o g r e s s . L a m a r tin e p u t Jo b a m o n g h is " fa ith f u l b o o k s " — w o rld a s it h a d been a ffirm e d s in c e th e R e n a is s a n c e . T h e
w h e n e v e r h e fe e ls s a d a n d e v o k e s th e p ro b le m s o f s u f fe rin g p ro fo u n d re m a rk s f o r m u la te d in 1840 by N e rv a l in h is
and d e a th , an ir r e s is tib le p ro p e n s ity lead s h is in s p ir a tio n p r e f a c e to th e n e w e d itio n o f Faust, p a r t s I a n d II, h a d e n d le s s
b a c k t o t h e B o o k o f J o b , a s w e s e e in s o m e o f t h e m o s t f a m o u s r e p e r c u s s i o n s : o f p a r t i c u l a r s i g n i f i c a n c e w e r e N e r v a l 's c o m ­
p o e m s i n Poetic Meditations ( T h e V a l e , Despair, Providence for m e n ts o n th e H e le n e p is o d e , w h ic h h e s a w a s a n a t te m p t to
Man, a n d Autumn ) . I n Harmonies, t h e p o e m Why Is My Soul re c o n c ile th e a n c ie n t a n d m o d e r n w o r ld s .
Sad? is i n t h e s a m e v e i n ; o t h e r e x a m p l e s c a n e a s i l y b e f o u n d . P a ra lle l to G o e t h e 's v e r s i o n o f t h e s t o r y o f F a u s t , a p o p u l a r
A ll o f th is c u l m i n a te s in t h e m a g n i f i c e n t p a g e s o n J o b in th e v e rs io n o f th e le g e n d w a s e v o lv in g . T h is v e rsio n w as p re ­
Familiar Course of Literature in 1 8 6 8 . s e r v e d b y F r ie d ric h v o n K lin g e r, w h o w r o te a n o v e l b a s e d o n
H u g o 's J o b is s o m e t im e s s e e n a s a n a c tu a l c h a r a c t e r a n d it, in w h ic h t h e p r o t a g o n i s t tr a v e l s in m a n y c o u n t r i e s a n d
s o m e t i m e s p e r c e i v e d f r o m w i t h i n . A c c o r d i n g t o H u g o , J o b is m e e ts w ith one d is a s te r a fte r a n o th e r, try in g to u se th e
s u p e r i o r to P r o m e t h e u s ; w e r e a d in The Unfortunates (fro m p o w e r o f M e p h is to p h e le s to g o o d en d s. W i n g e r 's a c c o u n t
Contemplations) : "E v en w hen P r o m e t h e u s is t h e r e , it ta k e s in s p ire d B y r o n 's u n fin is h e d w o rk The Deformed Transformed
o n ly y o u , Jo b , / T o m a k e th e m a n u re h e a p h ig h e r th a n th e ( 1 8 2 2 ) a s w e ll a s M é r y a n d N e r v a l ' s j o i n t w o r k The Image-
C a u c a s u s ." E v e ry w h e re one lo o k s one fin d s th is g ig a n tic Maker of Harlem ( 1 8 5 1 ), w h ic h th e y c o m p lic a te d w ith id e a s
m a n u r e h e a p o r " h o m o h u m u s ." In William Shakespeare, in a b o u t re in c a r n a tio n . M a n y o t h e r w o r k s a n d c h a r a c t e r s o w e
w h ic h H ugo a r tic u la te d h is ars poetica m o s t e x p l i c i t l y , he m o re th a n one e le m e n t to G o e t h e 's Faust. They in c lu d e
s tre s s e s th e fact th a t " J o b 's r e s ig n a tio n c o m p le te s W illia m B e c k f o r d 's Calif Vathek (1 7 8 6 ) a n d n u m e ro u s re b e l­
P r o m e t h e u s 's r e v o l t ," b u t h e a l s o e m p h a s i z e s J o b 's t it a n ic lio u s c h a r a c t e r s : B y r o n 's G ia o u r m e n t io n e d a b o v e , th e h e r o
c h a ra cte r and p o w e r: "F a lle n , he b eco m es g ig a n tic . He in Manfred ( 1 8 1 7 ) , a n d A m b r o s i o in M . G . L e w i s ' s The Monk.
c r u s h e s th e v e r m in o n h is o p e n w o u n d s , w h ile c a llin g o u t to N e x t t o Q u i n e t ' s Ahasvérus b e l o n g s G e o r g e S a n d ' s The
t h e s t a r s . " A n d , l ik e Q u i n e t , H u g o c o n c l u d e s , " J o b ' s m a n u r e Seven Strings of the Lyre ( 1 8 3 9 ) , a s y m b o l i c d r a m a i n w h i c h
heap, on ce tra n sfo rm e d , w il l b e c o m e C h r i s t 's h i ll o f C a l ­ A lb e rtu s , M e p h is to , and H e le n e n co u n te r one a n o th e r
v a r y ." a r o u n d a ly r e , w h o s e s tr i n g s e m b o d y m a n 's n o b l e s t i n s p i r a ­
A s P. A l b o u y h a s r i g h t l y a s s e r t e d , o n e m i g h t e x p e c t H u g o tio n s . H o n o r é d e B a lz a c p a r o d ie d th e t h e m e o f th e p a c t w ith
to c o m e u p w ith a w r e tc h e d b u t p u g n a c io u s c h a r a c t e r w h o th e d e v il in Melmoth Reconciled, w h ic h s u p e rim p o se d th e
w o u l d e m b o d y b o t h J o b a n d P r o m e t h e u s — a n d t h i s h e d i d in m e m o ry of M a tu rin on th a t o f G o e th e ; but he tr e a te d it
The Laborers of the Sea ( 1 8 6 6 ) , w ith G illia tt: " A s tr u g g l in g J o b , s e r io u s l y in Lost Illusions ( 1 8 4 2 ) , in w h i c h V a u t r i n p r o p o s e s
a fig h tin g J o b , w h o fa c e s s c o u r g e s s q u a re ly , a c o n q u e r in g th e d ia b o lic p act to L u cie n de R u b e m p ré . A nd N ik o la u s
Jo b , and if such w o rd s w e re not to o lo fty fo r a poor Lenau w r o t e a ly ric a n d p e s s im is tic Faust ( 1 8 3 5 , d e fin itiv e
fish e rm a n o f crab s and cra w fish , a P ro m e th e a n J o b ." As e d i t i o n 1 8 4 0 ) in w h i c h t h e h e r o , l ik e L u c i e n , c o m m i t s s u i c i d e .
H u g o i n t e n d e d , G w y n p l a i n e in The Laughing Man is a t h u n ­ T h is la s t e x a m p l e r e p r e s e n t s w h a t o n e m i g h t c a ll a c o n t a m ­
d e r s tr u c k T ita n , p a r t Jo b a n d p a rt P ro m e th e u s . He re p re ­ in a tio n o f th e c h a r a c t e r o f F a u s t b y th a t o f W e r th e r . T h e F a u s t
s e n t s th e m is s h a p e n p e o p le rip e fo r lib e ra tio n a n d r e b e llio n . t h e m e w a s a l s o ta k e n u p b y c o m p o s e r s : B e rlio z p r o d u c e d h is
A f t e r V ille q u ie r, m o reo v er, H ugo r e liv e d J o b 's d ram a fo r Eight Scenes from Faust in 1 8 2 8 a n d The Damnation of Faust in
h im se lf, a n d a n e n tire p a r t o f h is p o e t r y m ay be d eem ed 1 8 4 6 . G o u n o d ' s Faust is d a t e d 1859. To h is c r e d it, R o b ert
" J o b ia n ." T h is h o ld s tru e p a rtic u la rly fo r Contemplations, B ro w n in g ch o se a c h a r a c t e r c lo s e r to th e le g e n d a ry Fau st
b o o k 4 ( Pauca mea). t h a n t o th e h is t o r i c a l F a u s t (if w e a r e to b e lie v e T r i t h e m iu s
The sam e in s p ira tio n can a lso be fo u n d in n u m e ro u s and M e l a n c h t h o n 's c o n t e n t i o n th a t F a u s t w a s a n i m p o s te r
p o e m s . It w a s a l r e a d y e v i d e n t in Interior Voices (1 8 3 6 ) w ith a n d a s o d o m i t e ) in h is Paracelsus (1 8 3 5 ).
th e poem Sunt lacrymae rerum (T h in g s H ave T e a rs ), fo r
e x a m p l e , a n d it c a n s ti ll b e s e e n i n Lux ( i n Chastisements), in
V I. A h a s u e r u s , th e W a n d e rin g Je w
All of the Past and All of the Future ( i n The Legend of the
Centuries), i n The Donkey, a n d , i n f a c t , e v e r y t i m e H u g o t a k e s In h is y o u t h , G o e t h e h a d s k e t c h e d t h e o u t l in e o f a n e p i c
up th e th e m e o f th e A lm ig h ty o v e rw h e lm in g h is hum an p o e m o n A h a s u e r u s , b u t th e e x ta n t f r a g m e n ts h a v e n o d ire c t
c r e a t u r e . T h e J o b i a n t h e m e o f G o d 's u n f a t h o m a b l e g r a n d e u r b e a rin g o n th e c h a r a c t e r h im se lf. In th e se v e n th ca n to of
a l s o a p p e a r s in At the Window through the Night (in Contem­ S h e l l e y 's Queen Mab (1 8 1 3 ), A h a s u e r u s s p e a k s o u t: h e c u r s e s
plations). A m o n g th e f r a g m e n ts p u b lis h e d b y R e n é J o u r n e t J e h o v a h a n d t h e p r i e s t s a n d d e r i d e s J e s u s . S h e l l e y 's W a n d e r ­
and G uy R o b e rt u n d e r th e title Things of the Bible, w h ic h in g Jew p refers "th e lib e rty of H e ll to th e s e rv itu d e of

279
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
William Blake, Job. London, British Museum. Photo Fotomas.
H eaven "— a good dem onstration of juvenile illusions.
Friedrich Schubert also chose this ch aracter to express his
own pessim ism .
Perhaps because it w as w ritten in his youth, Edgar Qui-
n et's Ahasvérus (1833) rem ains one of this w riter's m ost
readable w orks, characterized by a kind of fresh, youthful
inspiration not alw ays evident in his later writings. The
principal character is the W andering Jew, and in the first part
there are num erous literary echoes and im itations of the first
part of G oethe's Faust. M any of Q uinet's ch aracters speak
with voices unfamiliar to us: L eviathan, the great serpent,
the Vinateya bird, the O cean, the rivers, the Valley of
Josaphat, the desert, the stars, sphinxes, and griffins, but
also mules, chariots, and birds, not to m ention angels and
dem ons. The interw eaving som etim es becom es forced when
not only Strasbourg Cathedral but even the characters on its
stained glass w indow (including the sym bols of the Evange­
lists) are endow ed with the ability to speak! This m ay well be
a poetic idea applied too system atically, although som e of the
curious dialogues show real strokes of inspiration.
As for doctrine, Quinet begins with H erd er's philosophy
of history; he then places at the cen ter of his concerns the
phenom enon of religion and ends by refuting God and
deifying m an. A hasvérus is saved by the love of Rachel, a
fallen angel, because she took pity on him and becam e a
servant of Mob (death). In the scene of the Last Judgm ent,
which precedes the conclusion, A hasvérus is forgiven and
becom es the im age of m ankind to com e, w hereupon the
Eternal Father says to Christ the Judge: "A hasvérus is the
280
C H R I S T I A N ERA
eternal m an. All the others are like unto him. Your judgm ent
of him will serve us as the judgm ent of them all. O ur work is
now ended, as is the mystery. O ur city is closed. Tomorrow
we shall create other w orlds." The last w ord is given to
Annihilation and Nothingness. The conclusion as a whole
must be interpreted within the framework of a pessimism for
which, on a cosm ic scale, the sum total of all hum an lives
constitutes but a brief m om ent in time before m an makes
w ay for a better-endow ed or different species or else N oth­
ingness. In this regard, Quinet never w avered, for he wrote
at the end of his Genius of Religions: "In the rapid course of
our lives, w e are barely g ranted a m om ent to get to know this
universe, and then we m ust die. L et us then take a hurried
glimpse at the spectacle of w hat people have thought,
invented, believed, hoped, and w orshiped before our time.
By tying all this past to our brief existence, it will seem that
we ourselves grow in scope and that, starting from an
im perceptible point, we too are making an infinite line."
These w ords help us to understand w hy w riters, particu­
larly eighteenth-century writers, have so often chosen to
express them selves through m yths. For m yths give the
individual a feeling of belonging to a long tradition and thus
of overcom ing solitude.
VII. Don Juan
Faust is in search of both love and knowledge. The
rom antic interpretation of the character of Don Juan, form u­
lated in a tale by E. T. A. H offmann (1813), tended to turn
Don Juan, the m ythical hero, into a hero in quest of love and
thirsting for the infinite, which w ent beyond the explicit
intentions of M ozart and his librettist Da Ponte. Henceforth,
parallels and com parisons between the tw o heroes recur
everyw here, notably in H ugo's Preface to Cromwell (1827), in
M usset's Rolla (1833), and in Théophile Gautier's Comedy of
Death (1838). It was Christian Dietrich Grabbe w ho w rote a
Don Juan and Faust (1829), which superposed two plots and
tied together, without actually mixing them , Da Ponte's
libretto and G oethe's Faust. The main idea was to contrast
two heroes w ho aspired to be superhum ans, one typical of
the Latin tem peram ent, and the other representing the
G erm anic m ind and soul ("I would not be Faust if I were not
G erm an ").
M eanwhile the figure of Don Juan, born in Spain, contin­
ued his career in the various literatures. Byron used him as a
transparent mask for his ironic, som etim es burlesque, and
largely autobiographical epic Don Juan (1819/1824), which he
said he wrote "w ithout any plan but with m aterials." It is
often regarded as his m asterpiece; in any case, it is the only
work in which Byron succeeded in casting an almost lucid
gaze upon himself. In the sam e year, 1830, Don Juan was the
subject of Pushkin's The Stone Guest and of Balzac's The Elixir
of Longevity. In Namouna (1832), M usset m ade him an artist in
search of beauty, and in the following year, in The Morning of
Don Juan, he focused on the confrontation between reality
and life. In 1834, Blaze de Bury in The Commandant's Dinner
Party created a single character combining Don Juan Tenorio
and Don Juan M anara, and absolved the sinner.
In 1834, Prosper M érimée published his narrative Souls in
Purgatory; in 1836 Alexandre Dumas staged Don Juan de
Manara or the Fall of an Angel. In L enau's play of 1844, Don
Juan, grow n old, is killed by the C om m ander's son; it is
really a suicide in disguise. We should also mention Leva-
vasseur's Don Juan theGraybeard (1848); J. Viard's The Old Age
of Don Juan (1853); and Baudelaire's 1846 poem , Don Juan in
Hell (1846, in The Flowers of Evil, 15).
 S P I R I T S OF T H E E L E M E N T S

As m ig h t be e x p e cte d , S p a in is w h e re th e p la y th a t In H u g o 's God (The Ocean from Above), a s p irit c h a lle n g e s

e s ta b lis h e d th e th e m e w a s w r itte n , Don Juan Tenorio by Jo sé h im in t h e s e a d m i r a b le t e r m s : " . . . c u r io u s a b o u t t h e a b y s s .
Z o r i ll a y M o r a l ( 1 8 4 4 ) , a c t e d c o m m u n a l l y o n A ll S o u l 's D a y . E m p e d o c le s fro m G o d ."
I t i s a l a r g e - s c a l e p l a y i n t w o p a r t s , in w h i c h D o n J u a n is J .R i ./g .h .
s a v e d th r o u g h th e in te r c e s s io n o f D o n a In è s .

V III. E m p e d o c le s
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A m ong th e p r e -S o c r a tic p h ilo s o p h e r s , E m p e d o c le s w as
p ro b a b ly th e one w h ose lif e le n t its e lf m o s t re a d ily to a
1. Satan
ro m a n tic in te r p r e t a t io n . That e x p la in s w hy sev eral M. milner, Le diable dans la littérature française de Cazolle à Baudelaire,
n in e te e n th -c e n tu r y a u th o r s c o u n te d h im a m o n g th e h e r o e s 2 vols. (Paris 1960).
o f k n o w le d g e . L ik e H a m le t, a b o u t w h o m H u g o w ro te su b ­ 2. Prometheus
s ta n tia lly in William Shakespeare, h e is a v ic tim o f t h e c o n s t a n t
a. PY, Les mythes grecs dans la poésie de Victor Hugo, p. b . shelley,
r e p la y o f m e la n c h o ly t h o u g h t s . U n lik e F a u s t , h e d o e s n o t
Prometheus Unbound (London 1820). R. trousson , Le thème de Prométhée
s u c c e e d in f r e e i n g h i m s e l f t h r o u g h p l e a s u r e a n d a c ti o n a n d dans la littérature européenne, 2 vols. (Geneva 1964). See also the works
A n a lly t h r o w s h i m s e l f i n to t h e c r a t e r o f M o u n t E t n a . H ö l d ­ by p. ALBOUY and m . praz cited in the text.
e rlin p e rs is te n tly len d s th is ch a ra cte r som e of h is ow n
fu n d a m e n ta l q u e s tio n s . T h e s u c c e s s iv e v e r s io n s o f h is Empe­ 3. Cain
docles, u n f o r tu n a te ly n e v e r f in is h e d , a r e s tr ik in g ly b e a u tifu l. c. grillet. La Bible dans Victor Hugo (Lyon 1910).
The ch a ra cte r is d e p ic te d as u n a b le to re s ig n h im se lf to
4. Job
h a v in g lo s t t h e d ir e c t c o n t a c t w ith th e d iv in e w h ic h h e o n c e
p o s s e s s e d a n d w h ic h d e ifie d h im . " H e th r o u g h w h o m th e
p. ALBOUY, La création mythologique chez Victor Hugo (Paris 1963).
c . grillet, La Bible dans Victor Hugo (Lyon 1910). a. wricht , Blake's fob:
s p ir it h a s s p o k e n , m u s t d e p a r t o n t i m e ," w e r e a d in t h e first
A Commentary (Oxford 1972).
v e r s i o n in 1 7 9 8 . T h e t h ir d v e r s i o n ( 1 7 9 9 ) f e a t u r e s a m o v i n g
d ia lo g u e w ith h is d is c ip le P a u s a n ia s . T h e o d e th a t th e p o e t 5. Faust
d e d ic a te s to th e d e a th of E m p e d o c le s s ta r ts as fo llo w s : e . M. butler, The Fortunes of Faust (Cambridge 1952). a . dabezies . Le
" S e a rc h in g a n d s e a rch in g fo r life , you see / A d iv in e fire mythe de Faust (Paris 1972). c. dédéyan, Le thème de Faust dans la
s h o o t i n g fo rth in b rillia n c e d e e p b e y o n d th e e a r t h ." littérature européenne, 6 vols. (Paris 1954-67).
In 1829, C o u n t Je a n L ab en sk y (w h o s e pen nam e w as
6. Ahasvérus
P o lo n iu s ) p u b lis h e d in F r e n c h a p o e m o f a t h o u s a n d lin e s ,
PRADA, La dimension historique de l’homme ou le Mythe du Juif
g . vabre
e n title d Empedocles, in w h ic h h e s t a t e s : " B u t m a n c h o s e e r r o r
errant dans la pensée d ’Edgar Quinet (Paris 1960-61).
o v e r ig n o r a n c e . / H e w a s m e a n t o n ly to lo v e , b u t h e w a n te d
t o k n o w ." L o u i s M é n a r d , in a p o e m b e a r i n g t h e s a m e title 7. Don Juan
p u b lis h e d in 1851, endow s E m p e d o c le s w ith a b e lie f in m . berveiller. L'éternel Don Juan (Paris 1961). g . gendarme de bevotte ,
m e te m p sy ch o sis. La légende de Don Juan. 2 vols. (Paris 1911). l . Weinstein, The Metamor­
If o n l y b ecau se of its r o m a n tic is m , M a tth e w A r n o l d 's phoses of Don Juan (Stanford 1959).
" E m p e d o c l e s o n E t n a " ( 1 8 5 2 ) m a y w e ll b e h is m a s te r p i e c e ;
8. Empedocles
a f t e r its c o m p le tio n h e r e v e r te d to a k in d o f n e o c la s s ic is m .
m . arnold , Empedocles on Etna (London 1852). f . holderlin , Empe-
A r n o l d 's c h a r a c t e r h a s r e a d Hamlet, Faust, and Manfred, as
dokles (Zurich 1949), in many editions and translations, v. hugo, Dieu,
w e ll a s O b e r m a n n a n d A m i e l . H e is a l o n e ly m a n b e c a u s e o f
R. Journet and G. Robert, eds., 2 vols. (Paris 1960), with a valuable
h is v e r y s u p e r i o r it y . H is p h il o s o p h y is b o r r o w e d fro m Lu­
index of proper names. The line cited, in the volume L’Océan d'en
c r e tiu s and E p ic te tu s . He is n o th in g but k n o w le d g e ; a
haut, is no. 3426.
p a r tic u la r ly b e a u tifu l lin e c a p t u r e s th e s e n s e o f th e p o e m :
" N o t h i n g b u t a d e v o u r in g fla m e o f t h o u g h t ."

n y m p h s , s y lp h s , p y g m ie s , a n d s a la m a n d e r s , a n d o f v a r io u s
S pir its o f t h e E le m e n t s in t h e R o m a n t ic s p irits ); v a r io u s C h r is tia n c a b a lis ts o f th e R e n a is s a n c e , s u c h

P è r io d : S yl p h s , W a t er S p r it e s , S a l a m a n d e r s , a s P ic o d e lla M ir a n d o la , R . F l u d d , G . P o s te l, a n d T hom as
H eyw ood in E n g la n d , a ls o s p o k e o f th e s p irits o f th e e le ­
G n o m e s , a n d E lves
m e n ts.
I n 1 6 7 0 , t h e A b b é o f V i l l a r s , i n a h u m o r o u s t o n e , s e t o u t in
A t th e c o n f lu e n c e o f p o p u l a r t r a d itio n s w ith N e o p l a to n is m th e Comte de Gabalis th e th e o r y o f e le m e n ta r y s p irits , th u s
a n d t h e c a b a l a is s it u a te d t h e b e lie f , a t l e a s t a p o e t i c a l b e lie f, c o n s t i tu t in g w h a t w o u ld c o m e to b e c a lle d th e " p h i lo s o p h y
in th e s p i r i ts o f t h e e l e m e n t s , w h ic h a p p e a r e d in t h e w r it i n g s o f th e R o s a c r u c ia n s " : th is d i s tin g u is h e d th e o n d i n e s , w a te r
o f n u m e r o u s n in e te e n th -c e n tu r y a u th o r s . T h e r e le v a n t te x ts s p r it e s ; s a l a m a n d e r s , s p i r i ts o f f ire ; s y l p h s , a s s o c i a t e d w ith
in c lu d e th e w ritin g s o f c e rta in F a th e r s o f th e C h u r c h (L a c ­ th e a ir ; a n d g n o m e s o r e lv e s , c o n n e c t e d w ith th e e a r t h . B u t
ta n tiu s , C y p ria n , C le m e n t of A le x a n d r ia ), N e o p la to n is ts , in n a r r a t i v e s , t h e s e i n v e n t io n s b e c o m e s u p e r i m p o s e d u p o n
a n d c a b a lis ts s u c h a s M a c r o b iu s a n d P h ilo , a n d t h e B y z a n tin e t h e f a ir y w o n d e r l a n d s o f fo lk ta le s o r u p o n t h e b e lie f in o t h e r
M ich a e l P se llu s (e le v e n th c e n tu r y ), th e r e s to r e r o f N e o p la ­ b e in g s o f th e i n te r m e d ia te w o r ld , g h o s ts , s p irits , a n d de­
t o n i s m . I n 1 5 6 6 , P a r a c e l s u s p u b l i s h e d a Liber de nymphis, m ons.
sylphis, pygmaeis et salamandris et de caeteris spiritibus ( B o o k o f S u p e r im p o s e d u p o n th e in flu e n c e o f th e v a r io u s a u th o r s

281
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN T HE C H R I S T I A N ERA

a lre a d y m e n tio n e d w as th e i n f lu e n c e o f J a c q u e s C a z o t t e 's c o m b in e s th e th e m e o f th e m in e s, evoked by N o v a l i s in

n o v e l, The Amorous Devil ( 1 7 7 2 ), in w h ic h th e in c a r n a t io n o f a Henry of Ofterdingen, a n d th e in flu e n c e o f th e Runenburg of
d e m o n , B i o n d e t t a , in o r d e r to s e d u c e a n d t e m p t A l v a r e , p r e ­ T ie c k ; th e g r e a t V e n u s o f T ie c k c o r r e s p o n d s to th e Q u e e n o f
t e n d s t o b e a s y l p h w h o n e e d e d t o b e l o v e d b y a m a n in o r d e r M e ta ls in H o f f m a n .
to a tta in i m m o r ta lity . S c h ille r le ft a n u n fin is h e d w o rk , The F i n a l l y , it i s a p p r o p r i a t e t o c o n n e c t t h e s p i r i t s o f t h e e l e ­
Visionary ( 1 7 8 6 - 8 9 ) , w h ic h w a s in s p ir e d b y th is th e m e . L a m e n t s w it h th e f ig u r e o f th e q u e e n o f S h e b a . In The Crumb
M o tte -F o u q u é p u b lis h e d The Mandragore in 1 8 1 0 a n d Ondine Fairy (1 8 3 2 ), b y C h a r le s N o d ie r, th e h ero , M ic h e l, is p r o ­
in th e fo llo w in g y e a r . In o r d e r to b e re u n ite d w ith E ro s, te cte d in h is w a k in g s ta t e b y th e F a iry , w h o h a s s in g u la r
P sy ch e m u st b eco m e im m o r ta l; th e lo v e o f H u ld b r a n d of p o w e r s . B u t h e a l s o liv e s a k in d o f d r e a m f r o m o n e n ig h t to
R in g s te tte n c a n im m o r ta liz e O n d in e . th e n e x t , in w h ic h th e C r u m b F a ir y , s o w is e in th e d a y t i m e ,
B u t H u l d b r a n d f a l ls i n l o v e w i t h B e r t e l d a , w i t h d i s a s t r o u s a t n ig h t b e c o m e s th e w ife o f S o lo m o n , th e r a d ia n t M a k e d a .
r e s u lts . A s e a rly a s 1 8 1 2 , A c h im von A r n i m , in Isabella of T h is c a n b e t r a c e d b a c k to th e P l a to n ic c o n c e p t th a t id e n tif ie s
Egypt, d e v e l o p s t h e t h e m e o f t h e M a n d r a k e , a w i c k e d l i t t le W i s d o m a n d t h e G o o d w i t h B e a u t y . A n d it is s a i d t h a t M i c h e l
m a g ic ia n b o rn f ro m th e te a rs (o r th e s p e r m ) o f a n in n o c e n t b e c o m e s " t h e e m p e r o r o f t h e s e v e n p l a n e t s . " N e r v a l 's q u e e n
m a n w h o is h a n g e d . F r o m L a M o t t e - F o u q u é ' s O n d i n e is d i ­ o f S h e b a in h is Voyage to the Orient ( 1 8 5 1 ) is a n a u th e n tic
r e c tl y d e r i v e d th e W h i te L a d y o f A v e n a l in The Monastery, by " d a u g h t e r o f f i r e ," w h o a ls o c o m m a n d s th e s p ir its o f th e a ir
S ir W a lte r S c o tt ( 1 8 2 0 ); th e v e r y id e a o f a " w h it e w o m a n " th r o u g h th e m e d ia tio n o f th e H u d h u d h o o p o e b ird .
m a y h a v e c o m e fro m o n e o f th e b e d s id e b o o k s o f th e r o m a n ­ O n e w o n d e r s a b o u t t h e d e e p m o t i v a t i o n s o f a ll t h e s e a u ­
tic s , C o llin d e P la n c y 's Infernal Dictionary, w h ic h s a y s th a t th o rs , w ho d e p ic te d th e s p irits o f th e e le m e n ts a s re p re ­
t h i s is a n a m e g i v e n t o c e r t a i n s y l p h s o r n y m p h s . I n S c o t t 's s e n ta tio n s o f a c r u d e r c r e a tio n r e la tiv e to h u m a n b e in g s , b u t
Peveril of the Peak ( 1 8 2 2 ) , t h e r e is a F e n e l l a w h o s e e m s t o b e w i t h a n e l e m e n t o f p u r i t y t h a t is a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e i r v e r y
a c a r i c a t u r e o f G o e t h e 's M i g n o n . F i n a l l y , Anne of Geierstein n a tu r e . A d e ta ile d s tu d y o f e a c h a u t h o r w o u ld m a k e p o s s ib le
( 1 8 2 9 ) t e ll s t h e s t o r y o f a c o m p l e x b e i n g , H e r m i o n e , w h o p a r ­ an e x p o s itio n o f th e c o m p e n s a to r y m e c h a n is m s o r p ro je c ­
t a k e s s im u lta n e o u s ly o f th e n a tu r e o f th e s y lp h s a n d th a t o f tio n s th a t c a m e in to p la y . A s tu d y o f th e g r o u p a s a w h o le
th e s a la m a n d e rs . r e m a in s to b e d o n e .
In 1 8 2 1 , A l e x i s - V i n c e n t- C h a r le s B e r b ig u ie r d e T e r r e N e u v e J .R i ./d .w .
d u T h y m p u b lis h e d h is a s to n is h in g w o rk The Elves, or All the
Demons are not in the Other World. C h a r le s N o d i e r , inTrilby
( 1 8 2 2 ), s e t in th e S c o t la n d o f S ir W a l te r S c o t t, c r e a t e s a n e n i g ­
BIBLIOGRAPHY
m a t i c b e i n g w h o is s o m e t h i n g o f a s y n t h e s i s o f t h e s p i r i t s o f
t h e e l e m e n t s s i n c e , d e p e n d i n g o n t h e e p i s o d e t h a t h e is i n , Achim von Arn im . Isabelle d'Égypte, introduction, translation and notes
h e is c o n n e c t e d w ith a ir, fire , o r w a te r . E . T. A . H o ffm an , by Reneza Guignard (Paris), translation reprinted in book 2 of Roman­
w h o h ad re a d The Amorous Devil and Gabalis, b o th o f w h ic h tiques allemands (Paris 1973). a . ch astel , "La légende de la Reine de
w e re tra n s la te d in to G e r m a n , i n tr o d u c e d r e f e r e n c e s to th e Saba," R .H .R .. 1939, r. constans , "Deux enfants du feu, la Reine de
s p irits o f th e e le m e n ts in to h is n a r r a tiv e s , w h ic h a r e d ir e c tly Saba et Nerval," Mercure de France (April-May 1948). F. de la motte -
in flu e n c e d b v L a M o tte -F o u q u é a n d a ls o b y L o u is T ie c k , th e fouqué , Ondine, appears in a translation by jean Thorel in book 1 of
Romantiques allemands (Paris 1963), Maxime Alexandre, ed. In the same
a u t h o r o f th e Runenberg and The Elves ( 1 8 1 1 ) . In t h i s w a y th e
volume are: tieck , Le Runenberg et Les Elfes; Le vase d'or by hoffmann ;
a r c h i v i s t L i n d h o r s t in H o f f m a n 'sThe Golden Pot is t h e in ­
la motte - fouqué , La mandragore. E. t . a . Hoffmann , Le vase d'or, Paul
c a r n a tio n o f O ro m a s is , th e p rin ce of ig n eo u s s u b s ta n c e s
Sucher, ed. (Paris 1942). Gérard de nerval . Œuvres, vol. 2 (contains Le
( w h o d u ly a d d e d to th e r e p e r t o r y o f C o llin d e P l a n c y ) . The voyage en Orient and Les illuminés), c. nodier . Contes, P. G. Castex, ed.
Mines at Falun ( 1 8 1 9 ), th e s u b j e c t o f w h ic h w a s h i n t e d a t in a (includes Trilby and La fée aux miettes), o. parsons coleman . Witchcraft
s to ry b y J o h a n n P e te r H e b e i (The Unhoped-for Meeting, 1 8 0 8 ), and Demonology in Scott's Fiction (Edinburgh and London 1964).

E u r i d i c e , O r p h e u s d i s m e m b e r e d b y t h e M a e n a d s — is a p t t o
re c e iv e d iv e rs e in te r p r e ta tio n s , a n d a s a w h o le th e s e e x e m ­
O rpheus an d th e P o e t ic a n d S p ir it u a l p la ry s itu a tio n s fo rm s o m e th in g l ik e th e b re v ia ry of th e
Q uest o f R o m a n t ic is m e x i s t e n ti a l c o n d it i o n o f th e p o e t in t h e w o r ld . In o t h e r r e ­
s p e c t s it w a s u n d e r s t o o d , f r o m t h e t i m e o f K i r c h e r , D u p u i s ,
In t h e r o m a n t i c p e r i o d , t h e f i g u r e o f O r p h e u s s h o n e w i t h and K re u z e r (tra n s la te d b y J. D . G u ig n ia u t), th a t th e O r­
p a r t ic u la r in te n s ity . A ll th e g r e a t p o e t s r e f e r r e d t o th e s in g e r phean L y r e r e p r e s e n te d n o t o n ly th e c o n s te lla tio n o f th a t
a n d m a g u s o f T h r a c e , a n d B ria n J u d e n c o u ld w ith g o o d r e a ­ n a m e , b u t p la n e ta ry h a rm o n y , a n d e v e n th e e n tire u n iv e rs e ,
son p la ce m u ch o f th e lite r a t u r e p r o d u c e d in F r a n c e f r o m w h ile th e a n im a ls c h a r m e d b y O r p h e u s r e p r e s e n te d th e c o n ­
1 8 0 0 t o 1 8 5 5 u n d e r t h e p a t r o n a g e o f O r p h e u s . B u t i n f a c t , a ll s te l la t i o n s ( a s L u c i a n o f S a m o s a t a h a d a l r e a d y s ta t e d in h is
o f E u ro p e a n ro m a n tic is m co rre sp o n d s to a re b irth o f O r- tre a tis e , O h Astrology).
p h i s m , u n d e r s t o o d in a b r o a d s e n s e , i n s o f a r a s r e l i g i o u s a s p i ­ S a in t-M a r tin and F ab re d 'O l i v e t m a d e O r p h e u s a g reat
ra tio n s w e re e x p r e s s e d in t e r m s o f ly r i c i s m . A n d in m a n y th e o s o p h is t. A c c o rd in g to F a b r e d 'O l i v e t , th e lo v e o f O r ­
r e s p e c ts th e ro m a n tic s jo in e d th e s p irit o f th e R e n a is s a n c e p h e u s fo r E u r id ic e r e p r e s e n te d th e lo v e o f t r u e s c ie n c e , a n d
w h e n , fo r th e m , th e fig u re o f O r p h e u s s e r v e d to s u p p o r t th e th e lo s s o f E u r id ic e w a s a s s o c ia te d w ith a c o lla p s e in p e r s o n a l
e x p r e s s io n o f a s p iritu a lis t p h ilo s o p h y th a t a llo w e d th e p o e t a n d d e s c r ip tiv e ly ric is m w h e n th e first i n s p ir a tio n , p r o p h e tic
to b e a ffirm e d a s b o th a m agus and a le a d e r o f p e o p le s. a n d p h ilo s o p h ic a l, h a d b e c o m e in a c c e s s ib le . In h is Orpheus
I n d e e d , e a c h e p is o d e o f th e m y th o f O r p h e u s — th e lo s s o f (1 8 2 9 ), R S . B a lla n ch e tu r n s th e c h a r a c te r in to a p o n tiff a n d
E u rid ic e , th e d escen t in to th e u n d e rw o rld , th e d e a th of a th e o lo g ia n , w h ose te a ch in g p re fig u re s C h ris tia n ity . O r­

282
 O R P H E U S A N D R O M A N T I C I S M

pheus is a n orth ern er and a plebeian by choice. In his

m isfortunes Ballanche sees above all the pain of a failure in
love (which results in giving the m yth a personal m eaning),
and the descent into the underw orld seem s to him to
represent an initiation. Generally, O rpheus exp resses "u n i:
versai lam entation.” N evertheless, through suffering, the
m agus reaches the tran scen d en t vision, the fullness of
knowledge, and his gaze acquires the pow er to transfigure
Nature.
Victor H ugo, in the prelim inary passage of the Odes (The
Poet in the Revolutions), saw a m odern O rpheus in A ndré
C hénier ("W h o know s how to love, know s how to d ie"), and
he regrouped all the asp ects of the m yth— the social role of
the poet, prophecy, purity, sublime love, the m artyr— all the
abysses. In The Satyr he put the great cosm ic lyre into the
hands of the main character, turning him into a com plete
Titan, sim ultaneously Pan and O rpheus. And in the Idyll of
The Legend of the Centuries dedicated to Orpheus one reads: "I
am the hum an soul that sings / A nd I love." In poem 50 of
the third book of the Four Winds of the Spirit, Sacred Horror,
Hugo has this phrase: "T h e serene p oet contains the obscure
prophet / O rpheus is black." A nd in Cod, he depicts O r­
pheus releasing Prom eth eu s, w hereas according to the tra­
ditional story H eracles w as the au th or of this deed. This
m eans that the poet rep resen ts the spirit trium phing over
m atter and tyranny. The character of O rpheus is often, for
H ugo, the pretext for fruitful com parisons w ith Job, Jacob,
M oses, and Dante.
Indeed, one could establish a long list of ch aracters w ho, in
the works of this period, rep resen t the p oet. We should add
at least A m phion, A rion, H om er, P yth agoras, and Faust.
In the Voyage to the Orient N erval took too seriously the
episodes of the Sethos by the Abbé Jean Terrasson ( followed
also by A. Lenoir) w ho, claim ing to tell of the initiation that
O rpheus received in Egypt, described the trials by the
elem ents, also present in the libretto of M ozart's Magic Flute
by Em m anuel Schickaneder. But exh u m in g, in The Illumi­
nated, the Thrace of Q uintus Aucler, a title that refers to the
Threicius vates ("T h racian p ro p h et," the n am e given to O r­
pheus, not by Virgil, but by Ovid, Metamorphoses 11.2), he
cited num erou s pages from it, w hich sum m ed up the com ­
plete doctrine of the Orphica. In El Desdichado, identifying in
turn with the p oet-m agu s, he w ould use the expression
"constellated lu te" for the hum an elem ent subject to celestial
influences (a m eaning that he had found in the Three Books on
Life by Marsilio Ficino, and in G uy L e Fèvre de La Boderie, the
translator of the Florentine N eoplatonist). O rphism and
neo-Pythagoreanism nurtured the best of the inspiration of
the author of the Chimeras. Finally, Aurelia describes a m od­
ern "d esce n t into H ell"; the second part has the epigraph:
"Euridice! E u ryd ice!"
In G erm any the theories of J. G. H am ann and J. G. H erder
laid the foundations for a new O rphism . The them e of the
hero's descent into hell w as taken up and developed in
Heinrich von Ofterdingen by Novalis (Friedrich von H arden­
berg) and in G oeth e's Faust, p art 2. Hölderlin w as truly
spellbound by ancient and m odern G reece, and m ost of his
work is essentially O rphic. The titles of som e of his poem s

Delacroix, Eurydice Picking Flow ers. Säo Paulo, Museu de Arte. Photo
Giraudon.
Gustave Moreau, Dead Poet B eing Carried by a Centaur. Paris, Musée
Gustave Moreau. Photo Musées nationaux.

283
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
Gustave Moreau, O rpheus on E u ry d ices G rave. Paris, Musée Gustave
Moreau. Photo Musées nationaux.
are revealing (To the Heavens; To the Parcae; To the Morning; The
Poet's Vocation; To Mother Earth). Recall the surprising begin­
ning of Patmos: "S o near. And difficult to grasp, the g od !"
Shelley, au th or of Hymn to Apollo and Hymn to Pan, also, in
1820, dedicated a poem to Orpheus. In it he depicted plants
forming a natural sanctuary around the singer w ho m ourns
Eurydice and w hose lam ent im poses silence even on the
nightingale. Finally, John Keats w as the au th or of Ode to
Apollo, Hymn to Apollo, and Endymion. His m ost ambitious
work, Hyperion, rem ained unfinished. In ord er to celebrate
the Greek gods it w as truly som ething of O rphic inspiration
that the poet, in his Miltonic lines, w as trying to recapture.
The O rphic vision of the universe should be connected
with certain prose poem s by A lphonse Rabbe and Maurice
de Guérin. The former, in The Centaur, describes the loves of
the C entaur and of C ym othoe. Visits to the antiquities in the
Louvre, in the com pany of Trébutien, are the source of
Maurice de G uérin's prose poem The Centaur (1836), upon
which his posthum ous glory long rested. The Maenad cam e
shortly afterw ard. Guérin relived som ething of the pagan
intuition of the ancient poets; he juxtaposed in himself two
irreconcilable traditions, and at the last m om ent he chose
Christianity. But in his journal he had noted on 10 D ecem ber
1834: "1 live with the interior elem ents of th in gs." And in a
text of the sam e year he evoked the fable in w hich the forests
departed in O rpheus's footsteps, seeing in it the m em ory of
a time w hen nature understood the language of man and
284
C H R I S T I A N ERA
obeyed him. His prose poem s, inspired by statues, have a
Dionysian rather than a truly O rphic character. One may say
the sam e of K eats's Endymion and of Kleist's striking Penthe-
silia.
J.R i./t.l.f.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
QUiNTUS-NANTius AUCLER ( for: gabriel-andre auclerc): La Thréicie, ou la
seu le voie des sciences divines et hum aines, du culte vrai et de la morale
(Paris, year 7). m besset, N ovalis et la pensée mystique (Paris 1947). l .
cazamian , H istoire d e la littérature a nglaise (Paris 1929), part 2; part 1 is
by Émile Legouis. l . cellier, "Le romantisme et le mythe d'Orphée,"
Cahiers de l ’association in ternationale des études françaises, no. 10 (1958).
b. IUDEN, Traditions orphiques et tendances m ystiques dans le rom antism e
français, 1800-1855 (Paris 1971).
T he I sis of R omanticism : T he M yth of the
W ife-M other — H elen , S ophia , M ary
In the works of m any w riters, especially poets, of the
nineteenth century, a great female character, m other or wife
or both, appears. Many, even if they are detached from
Christianity, retain an attachm ent to the Virgin Mary. Goethe
introduces into the Faust of 1824 the descent to the M others,
w ho have preserved the essence of Helen, w ho represents
the archetype of Beauty. Helen contributes to Fau st's recon­
ciliation with fate. In Fau st's dream , the feminine ideal
m oves from M argarethe to Helen and then to the Virgin
Mary. The final chant of the celestial choir says: "T he eternal
feminine leads us upw ard." G eorge Sand, in her anti-
Faustian novel The Seven Strings of the Lute (1840), gives the
nam e Helen to the character who represents human love.
At the root of the im portance of Isis to the rom antics is the
rom antic interpretation of the Egyptian mysteries proposed
by various scholars and writers of the eighteenth century, as
well as the M asonic rituals (often derived from the works in
question), which gave im portance to the figure of the god­
dess, making her a representation of N ature. The libretto of
M ozart's Magic Flute by Schikaneder was derived from the
Sethos of the Abbé Jean Terrasson (1731) and from Liebe-
skind's Hindu story, Lulu, or the Magic Flute; the tests by the
elem ents which are described there represent what was
believed at the time to have constituted the Isiac mysteries.
Goethe w as so interested in them that in 1798 he wrote a
Second Part of the Magic Flute. It was in 1798 as well that
Novalis began his Disciples of Sais, in which we read: "To
understand N ature, one must recreate Nature within oneself
in her com plete cycle."
In the philosophy of Jakob Böhme, Sophia represented
not only W isdom , the mystical spouse, half of the androgy­
nous Adam , but also the Virgin of Light, identified with
Logos. Poets such as Novalis explored both the Masonic
tradition and Boehm e, combining Isis and Sophia. After the
death of his young financée, Sophie von Kühn, Novalis
recorded in his journal the phrase "C hrist and Sophia." His
Hymns to the Night (1800), with their stunning sensuality,
represent the triumph of the nocturnal and feminine side of
being, m uch like the famous sonnet Artemis in Nerval's
 J U L I A N T HE A P O S T A T E IN R O M A N T I C L I T E R A T U R E

Chimeras. In b o th c a s e s , t h e l o v e o b je c t is id e n tif ie d n o t o n l y b e so in d e c a r e s s e e t d 'a m o u r / S a m è re l 'e n a b re u v e a lo rs

w i t h N a t u r e b u t a l s o w i t h N i g h t a n d D e a t h ( " C ' e s t la M o r t q u 'i l v i e n t a u j o u r [ M a n a l w a y s n e e d s c a r e s s e s a n d l o v e ; h i s
o u la M o r t e . . . [ I t is d e a t h o r th e d e a d w o m a n ] /' w ro te m o th e r d ren ch es h im in th e m w hen he com es in to th e
N e r v a l ) . In N o v a li s 's Henri d'Oflerdingen (1 8 0 0 ), th e c e n tra l w o r l d ] ." In t h e p o e m Helen ( 1 8 2 1 ) , a s w e l l a s in t h e n a r r a t i v e
m o m e n t o f t h e n o v e l is m a r k e d b y th e lo v e o f H e n ri a n d Daphne ( 1 8 3 7 ), V ig n y a p p la u d s th e f e m in in e i n c a r n a t io n s o f
M a th ild e , a n d M a th ild e c a n b e id e n tifie d w ith b o th S o p h ia th e d i v i n e : t h e V ir g in , V e n u s , t h e h o u r i s in t h e c a s e o f H e le n
a n d th e V irg in o f S a is . and T hea in th e case of D aphne, C e re s-D e o , M in e rv a -
An im p o rta n t e p is o d e in B a l l a n c h e 's Orpheus (1 8 2 9 ) re ­ P r o n o ë , a n d V e n u s -O u r a n ia , w h o c o r r e s p o n d to th e r e lig io u s
tr a c e s th e in itia tio n o f T h a m y r is — a d is c ip le o f O r p h e u s — o r ie n ta tio n s o f th e p o e t e v e n m o r e th a n to th o s e o f h is h e r o ,
in to th e m y ste rie s of Is is . A lfre d de V i g n y 's e x tre m e ly Ju lie n .
m a t e r n a l c o n c e p t i o n o f t h e c h a r a c t e r o f K itty B e ll in Chatter­ It w o u l d b e p o s sib le to in clu d e m a n y e x c e rp ts fro m A l­
ton (1 8 3 5 ) c o r r e s p o n d s to th is s a m e s e a r c h fo r th e f e m in in e phonse de L a m a r tin e h e re to o , s in c e h is e n tire lif e w as
id e a l. H is g r e a t p o e m The House of the Shepherd (1 8 4 4 ) d e a ls c o lo re d b y th e m e m o r y o f h is m o th e r . O n e e x c e lle n t e x a m p le
w ith th e w h o le p r o b le m o f m a n 's r e l a ti o n s h ip w ith N a tu r e is The Tomb of a Mother (c i r c a 1 8 2 9 - 3 0 ) in Harmonies. A n d th e
( " O n m e d it u n e m è r e e t je s u is u n e t o m b e [T h e y c a ll m e a f o r c e o f t h e m a t e r n a l i m a g e in L a m a r t i n e 's w o r k is r e s p o n ­
w om b, and I am a t o m b ] " ) , w h i c h is w e l l d e s c r i b e d b y t h e sib le f o r t h e g r a n d e u r o f h is a d m i r a b le p o e m The Vine and the
tw o f u n d a m e n ta l a s p e c ts o f th e E a rth (D e m e te r a n d P erse­ House (1 8 5 7 ).
p h o n e ), w h il e .E v a , th e co m p a n io n of m an, is s e e n as a J .R i ./d .b .
m e d i a to r b e t w e e n h im a n d n a t u r e . E v e n in t h e p o s t h u m o u s
p oem The Anger of Samson, w e r e a d : " L 'h o m m e a t o u j o u r s

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Isis. From Kircher, Oedipus Aegyptiacus, 1652. Photo X. See the bibliography of the article "Orpheus and the Poetic and
Spiritual Quest of Romanticism" and also: |. baltruSaitis, Essai sur la
légende d'un mythe. La Quête d'Isis: Introduction à /'Egyptiomanie (Paris
1967) . |. cuAiLLtY, La flûte enchantée, opéra maçonnique (Paris 1968).
r. Newman-cordon, Hélène de Sftarte, la fortune du mythe en France (Paris
1968) . novalis ( f . de hardenberg). Petits écrits, trans. Geneviève
Bianquis (contains Les Disciples à Sais), Paris 1947; Hymnes à la nuit.
Paris 1943. a . roi land de renévili.e . L’expérience poétique (Paris 1938;
reprinted 1965), chap. 4: "Le sens de la nuit."

J ulian the A postate in R omantic L iterature

The m y th ic tra n sfig u ra tio n of th e e m p e r o r J u lia n I I, a l s o

c a lle d J u lia n t h e A p o s t a t e , is a r e m a r k a b l e c a s e in t h e h i s t o r y
of id eas. For afte r he had been, fo r a dozen ce n tu rie s,
a s s o c i a te d w ith S a ta n a n d th e A n tic h r is t, h e w a s to b e c o m e
fro m th e s ix te e n th c e n tu r y o n w a r d a m o d e l o f to le r a n c e a n d
g o o d g o v e r n m e n t , m a in ly b e c a u s e o f th e in f lu e n c e o f E r a s ­
m u s , B o d in , a n d M o n ta ig n e . T w o h is to r ic t r a d itio n s , p a ra lle l
a n d c o n tr a d ic to r y , e x p la in th e s e d iffe rin g v ie w p o in ts — th a t
o f th e F a th e r s o f th e C h u r c h (w ith S a in t G r e g o r y o f N a z ia n z e
a n d S a in t J o h n C h r y s o s t o m ) , w h o a c c u s e d h im o f a ll p o s s ib le
c r im e s , a n d th a t o f th e w itn e s s e s a n d p a n e g y r is ts A m m ia n u s
M a rc e llin u s a n d L ib a n iu s. B y g iv in g c r e d e n c e to th e te sti­
m o n y o f o n e g r o .u p o f w i t n e s s e s o r t o t h e o t h e r , it is p o s s i b l e
to a rriv e a t d ia m e tric a lly op p o sed c o n clu sio n s , w h ic h ex­
p la in s h o w J u lia n , o v e r th e c e n t u r i e s , c o u ld s e r v e a s a p r e t e x t
a n d s u p p o rt fo r th e e x p re s s io n o f th e m o st d iv e rs e id e o lo ­
g ie s .
In 1 8 1 7 C h a r le s N o d i e r , in a n a c c o u n t p u b lis h e d in th e
Journal of Debates, m ade J u lia n an im a g e of B o n a p a r te , a
ty r a n t w ith o u t re lig io n , a n d h im s e lf th e im a g e o f th e A n ti­
c h r is t. B u t t w e n t y y e a r s la te r , in th e Dictionary of Conversa­
tion, h e u s e d a p o rtio n o f th e s a m e te x t to m a k e h im in to a
k in d o f V o lta ire : " T h e r e w a s a c e r ta in a ffin ity o f c h a r a c t e r
and in te n tio n b e tw e e n th e s e tw o m en, th e m o st v io le n t
e n e m ie s th a t h e ll c o u ld ra ise a g a i n s t C h r is t ." T h u s, by a

285
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

c le v e r s h iftin g o f th e s c a le s , N o d ie r r e tu r n e d to th e im a g e o f Night of Julian; in h i s p o e m th e g e n ie o f th e e m p ire e x h o r ts

Ju lia n w h ic h h a d p r e v a ile d fo r s o lo n g . J u lia n to r e s ig n h i m s e lf to th e in e v ita b le .
In 1822, A u b re y D e V e re H unt w ro te a d r a m a tic p o e m H e n rik Ib s e n first p la n n e d a trilo g y o n Ju lia n , b u t th e n
w h o s e m a in c h a r a c t e r w a s M a x im u s o f E p h e s u s , th e m a g i­ re p la ce d th e w h o le s e c tio n a b o u t th e b a ttle o f S t r a s b o u r g
c i a n a n d t h e u r g i s t , w h o a p p e a r s t h r o u g h o u t t h e w o r k a n d is w ith a n a r r a t iv e a n d d iv id e d h is w o r k , p u b lis h e d in 1 8 7 3 ,
p re s e n te d a s th e " e m p e r o r 's e v il g e n i u s ." J u lia n , b e r e f t o f i n t o j u s t t w o p a r t s . T h e g e n e r a l t it l e w a s Emperor and Galilean:
p e r s o n a l i t y , is b u t a p u p p e t in h i s h a n d s : h i s o n l y f r e e a c t , in A Drama of World History. E a c h p a r t h a d fiv e a c ts ; th e first p a r t
th e en d , is to k ill M a x im u s. M a x im u s, s e e in g lu ck tu rn w a s Caesar's Apostasy a n d t h e secon d Emperor Julian. A m ong
a g a in s t h im , p asses over to th e P e r s ia n cam p . The b est th e p r im a r y s o u r c e s , Ib s e n h a d re a d o n ly A m m ia n u s M a r ­
s c e n e s o f th e p la y a r e ly rica l, a s w h e n th e g e n ie o f th e e m p ir e c e llin u s a n d th e Life of Maximus b y E u n a p iu s o f S a rd is. F o r
a p p e a r s t o J u l i a n . V i c t o r - J o s e p h É t i e n n e d e J o u y ( e n - J o s a s ) in th e re s t h e tu r n e d to m o d e r n h is to r ia n s — first, th e G e r m a n s
182 7 w ro te Julian among the Cauls, a c l a s s i c a l t r a g e d y in f i v e N e a n d e r, J. E . A u e r, a n d D a v id S tr a u s s , th e n to A lb e rt d e
a c ts in verse; th is p la y re c a lls o n e o f V o l t a i r e 's tra g e d ie s B ro g lie , a u th o r o f The Church and the Roman Empire in the
b e c a u s e it h a s a ll t h e q u a l i t i e s o f a p a s t i c h e b y C o r n e i l l e , t o Fourth Century (1 8 5 6 ). Ib sen p u t w h o le p a g e s c o p ie d fro m
th e p o in t o f te x tu a l b o r r o w in g . J u lia n a n d th e G a llic p r in c e th e s e s o u r c e s in to th e m o u t h s o f h is c h a r a c t e r s , b u t a t th e
B e llo v e se a r e b o th in lo v e w ith th e b e a u tifu l G re e k s la v e s a m e t im e h e i n v e n t e d th e c h a r a c t e r o f H e le n a , th e w ife o f
T h e o ra . She d ie s by p o is o n at th e end of th e p la y . The Ju lia n , a c ru e l a n d s e n s u a l w o m a n w h o r e v e a ls to Ju lia n a t
c h a u v i n i s m o f t h e a u t h o r is g i v e n f r e e r e i g n in h i s c o n c e p t i o n th e m o m e n t o f h e r d e a th b y p o is o n th a t s h e h a s b e e n th e
o f t h e c h a r a c t e r o f B e l l o v e s e , w h o h a s a ll t h e n o b l e v i r t u e s o f m is tr e s s o f h is b r o t h e r G a llu s .
h is r a c e . Ib sen w a s u n a w a r e o f th e fa c t th a t Ju lia n w a s r a is e d in
In t h e f i r s t t w o d i s c o u r s e s o f h i s Historical Studies, a la te A r ia n is m , n o r d id h e s e e m t o k n o w , a l t h o u g h it w a s i n d i ­
w o rk ( 1 8 3 1 ), C h a te a u b r ia n d d i s c u s s e s Ju lia n a t le n g th , a n d c a te d by a ll h is so u rce s, th a t Ju lia n q u ic k ly re tu rn e d to
t h e s e c o n d d i s c o u r s e is e n t i r e l y d e v o t e d to h im . D o c u m e n ­ p a g a n ism and h ad h id d e n th e fa ct fo r te n y ears, n ot p ro ­
t a t i o n is p l e n t i f u l a n d th e a u th o r s e e m s to fo rce h im se lf to c la im in g it p u b l i c l y u n til he b ecam e em p e ro r. A p assag e
ju d g e e q u ita b ly th is e m p e r o r w h o "b ro u g h t h is e r u d itio n w ritte n by N ean der on th e C a in ite s p ro b a b ly in s p ire d th e
i n t o h i s l i f e ." B u t in f a c t , C h a t e a u b r i a n d p r o c e e d s w ith o u t m a jo r scen e of ev o ca tio n , in act 3 of Caesar's Apostasy:
m u c h c ritic a l s p ir it, b y a n a c c u m u l a ti o n o f e v i d e n c e o f v e r y M a x im u s o f E p h e s u s c a u s e s C a in a n d J u d a s to a p p e a r a n d
uneven w o rth , and c o lle c ts , w ith o u t o b je c tio n o r re se rv a ­ i n d i c a t e s t h a t J u l i a n is t h e r e i n c a r n a t i o n o f t h e s a m e p r i n c i ­
t io n , th e c o m m e n ta r ie s o f C h ris tia n h isto ria n s — d e tra c to rs p le . A n o th e r p o s s ib le s o u r c e fo r th is s c e n e w a s th e m e m o r y
of th e em p e ro r— an d th e t a le s of p e rs e c u tio n th a t th e y o f c a n t o 3 4 o f D a n t e 's Inferno, in w h i c h J u d a s , B r u t u s , a n d
in v e n te d . C a s s iu s a re cru sh e d by th e th re e m o u th s o f L u cife r. T h e
In h i s y o u t h A l f r e d d e V i g n y ( 1 8 1 6 ) w r o t e a t r a g e d y a b o u t M a n ic h a e a n s c h e m a w h ic h I b s e n i m p l i c i t l y p r o p o s e s is t h e
Ju lia n w h ic h he la te r d e stro y e d . B e g in n in g in 1832 he f o llo w in g :
d r e a m e d o f w ritin g a Second Opinion of Dr Black, w h i c h , l ik e
C a in — A b e l ( a n d h is " s u b s t it u te " S e th )
th e first p la y , w o u ld c o n sis t of th re e n a rra tiv e s , d e a lin g ,
J u d a s — C h ris t
r e s p e c tiv e ly , w ith J u lia n , M e l a n c h t h o n , a n d R o u s s e a u , e a c h
T h e p a g a n J u lia n — th e C h r is tia n J o v ia n u s
e n d in g w ith a " s u ic id e ." T h e g e n e ra l p ro b le m e n v is io n e d
w a s to h a v e b e e n th e in f lu e n c e o f re lig io n o n e t h ic s . T h e p la n M a x i m u s is p r e s e n t e d a s t h e a p o s t l e o f t h e " t h i r d r e i g n " ;
w a s re w o r k e d s e v e ra l tim e s , b u t th e d e fin itiv e w o r k n e v e r h e r e s p e c t s C h r i s t b e c a u s e h e is a p r o p h e t , b u t h e a n n o u n c e s
to o k fo r m . T h e p a r t o f th e w o r k t h a t w a s w r itte n w a s e n title d th e a r r iv a l o f a re lig io n s u p e r i o r to C h r is tia n ity . T h is is w h e r e
Daphne, fro m th e n a m e o f th e r e g io n n e a r A n tio c h , a n d d a te s w e m u s t lo o k fo r th e p h il o s o p h y o f h i s t o r y w h ic h u n d e r lie s
e s s e n tia lly fro m 1837. th e w o r k . Ib s e n h a d b e e n v e r y m u c h a f f e c te d b y th e F r a n c o -
V i g n y i n t r o d u c e s J u l i a n in t h i s w o r k , a l t h o u g h th e m a in P r u s s i a n w a r a n d b y th e C o m m u n e . H e a d o p t e d th e b e lie f
c h a r a c t e r is L i b a n i u s , th e O ld S a g e o f A n tio c h (k n o w n in th a t e v e n t s a n d m e n a r e d ir e c te d b y a " w il l ," th e a g e n t o f a
h isto ry fo r h a v i n g b e e n J u l i a n 's f r i e n d a n d p a n e g y ris t). In r ig o r o u s d e te r m in is m . A c c o r d in g to h im , th e a d v e n t o f th e
Daphne, J u l i a n c o m e s t o a s k L i b a n i u s 's a d v i c e a n d , s u r p r i s ­ " t h ir d r e i g n " w o u ld b e th e r e c o n c ilia tio n o f th e s p irit a n d th e
in g ly , th e p h ilo s o p h e r d is c o u ra g e s h is e ffo rts to r e s to re fle sh , o f p a g a n is m a n d C h r is tia n ity .
p a g a n ism : o n e cannot go b ack in h i s t o r y . J u l i a n 's lo n g e s t T h e s e c o n d p a rt o f th e w o rk , Emperor Julian, w as p erh ap s
s p e e c h is a s u m m a r y o f h i s t r e a t i s e On Helios the King. W hen w r i t t e n t o o r a p i d l y . It c o v e r s t h e e i g h t e e n m o n t h s o f J u l i a n 's
h e h a s c o m e to u n d e r s t a n d th e fu tility o f h is e f f o r t s , J u lia n , re i g n , w h ile th e first p a r t d e a l t w ith a p e r io d o f te n y e a r s .
d e sp a irin g , le a v e s fo r h is P e rs ia n c a m p a ig n . H is d e a t h is O n ly th e n e g a tiv e s id e o f Ju lia n is d e v e l o p e d h e r e ; h e is
p r e s e n t e d a s a d i s g u i s e d s u i c i d e ( w h i c h , in f a c t , it m a y h a v e s h o w n a s a p e r s o n a l e n e m y o f th e G a lile a n ; h e p u r s u e s th e
b e e n ). F o r y e a r s V ig n y m e d ita te d o n th e c h a r a c t e r o f Ju lia n , G a li l e a n 's d is c ip le s in h is h a tre d and c r u e lly p e rs e c u te s
a n d a g r e a t d e a l o f m a te ria l fo r h is u n fin is h e d w o rk c a n b e th e m , a ll th e w h ile re m a in in g u n a b le to d e ta ch h im s e lf
f o u n d in h i s Journal. In 1 8 3 3 h e c o n f e s s e d t o t h e p r o c e s s o f c o m p l e t e l y f r o m C h r i s t i a n i t y . H e is r e d u c e d t o b a d t e m p e r ,
i d e n tif ic a tio n in t h e s e w o r d s : " I f m e t e m p s y c h o s i s e x i s t s , I h y p o c r i s y , a n d v a n i t y , t o t h e p o i n t w h e r e o n e w o n d e r s if h e
w a s th is m a n . H e is t h e m a n w h o s e r o l e , w h o s e l if e , a n d is r e a l l y th e sam e c h a r a c t e r a s in Caesar's Apostasy. Ib sen
w h ose c h a ra cte r w o u ld have s u ite d me b est of any in m o d ifie s th e h is to ric a l o rd e r o f e v e n ts in ord er to m ake
h is to r y ." J u l i a n 's o r d e r t o b u r n h is fle e t o n t h e T i g r is a p p e a r a n a c t o f
In 1 8 5 3 , t h e G e r m a n p o e t E i c h e n d o r f f w r o t e a n e p i c p o e m m a d n e s s . T h e p la y e n d s w ith a n in q u ir y a b o u t p r e d e s t i n a ­
o n J u l i a n , f o c u s i n g o n h i s w a r s a g a i n s t t h e G e r m a n s . In h i s tio n and th e fa ct th a t som e p e o p le can be "d am n ed by
p o s th u m o u s p o e m The Dove (Last Songs, 1 8 7 2 ), L . B o u ilh e t o b e d i e n c e , " a n i d e a t h a t is a l r e a d y p r e s e n t in t h e p o e m Judas
d e p ic te d J u lia n m o u rn in g th e d e a th o f p a g a n ism , a n d he ( " A n d if J u d a s h a d b e e n r e f u s e d ? " ) .
h im se lf a n n o u n c e d th e i m p e n d in g e n d o f C h ris tia n ity . L o u is W h a te v e r p o in t o f v ie w is a d o p t e d a n d u n le s s o n ly o n e
M é n a r d 's Dreams of a Mystic Pagan (1 8 7 6 ) c o n ta in e d The Last s p e c i f i c e p i s o d e i n t h e lif e o f t h e e m p e r o r is t r e a t e d ( a s w a s

286

done by de Jouy), every romantic writer who told the history
of the emperor was forced to end in a stalemate: Julian was
out of step with history.
J . Ri./d.b.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
e. FRENZEL, Stoffe der Weltliterature (2d ed., Stuttgart 1963), article
“Julian Apostata." h . ib sen , Œuvres complètes, P. G. La Chesnais,
trans., vols. 9 and 10 (Paris 1937). a . de v ig n y , Stello, Daphné (Paris
1970).
N apoleon as M yth
Napoleon, who had a keen sense of propaganda, was the
architect of his own legend. During his reign, the press,
literature, and painting were systematically placed under his
control and gave a glorious and embellished image of him
that tended to present him as a pacifist and the restorer of
Catholicism and, outside France, as the liberator of op­
pressed peoples. As soon as Napoleon fell, there was a
change. Caricatures of the emperor dominated for a while,
making him the Corsican Ogre; they were circulated far and
wide by his opponents. Satirical drawings thus joined the
anti-Bonapartist propaganda that was already present
among German nationalist poets such as Arndt, Theodor
Körner, and Rückert. The condemnation is blatant in Cha­
teaubriand's De Buonaparte et des Bourbons (1814) and also in
Byron's Ode to Napoleon (1814). The same year Senancour
protested openly in his "Letter from an inhabitant of the
Vosges," and was one of the first to depict Napoleon as the
man who, after conquering fate, was in the end overcome by
it. This eventually became the essential idea behind the
romantic myth.
The transition to the level of myth finally came with his
death on Saint Helena on 5 May 1821, making the emperor a
victim, which accounts for his frequent identification with
Prometheus. His death occasioned Manzoni's poem II cinque
maggio (The fifth of May) and Grillparzer's Ode to Napoleon.
Lamartine's Bonaparte, in his Nouvelles Méditations (New
meditations) of 1822, is a poem that coldly questions Bon­
aparte and his fate and that echoes Manzoni. There is also
Béranger's poem Le Cinq mai, in his Souvenirs du peuple
A day in the reign of Napoleon, or the sun personified. Paris, Bibliothèque nationale. Photo D.R.
N A P O L E O N AS MY TH
(Memories of the people) (1828), and his famous Parlez-nous
de lui, Grand-mère (Tell us about him, Grandmother). The
Mémorial de Sainte Hélène (Memorial of Saint Helena), pub­
lished in 1823, went on to enrich the legend. In it, Bonaparte
poses as the liberator and unifier of the people, whereas in
reality he had fought against liberalism and nationalism in all
their forms.
There was then a progressive turnabout by certain writers.
Hugo's mother may have taught her son to hate Napoleon
and his crimes; but with his poem Les Deux lies (The two
islands) (1826), resentment gave way to pity, and the life of
Napoleon was compared to the sun in its passage from east
to west. The Ode à la Colonne (Ode to the pillar) (1827) was
Hugo's response to an affront directed at four marshals of
the empire during a reception at the Austrian Embassy.
Nerval, the son of a military doctor of the Grand Army,
thought of himself as (or wished he had been) a "Napoleo-
nite." He was sixteen years old when he wrote his own
"Cinq mai" (The fifth of May, 1824), and in 1827 he published
Napoleon et la France guerrière, Elégies nationales (Napoleon and
France at war, national elegies), dedicated to Napoleon and
for the most part written before 1825. The memory of the
emperor haunted numerous texts by Nerval, particularly the
six sonnets known by the title of Autres Chimères (Other
fancies). Stendhal is known to have "fallen with Napoleon";
the heroes of his novels refer constantly to the emperor.
Julien Sorel in The Red and the Black (1831) reads the Mémorial,
and Fabrice in The Charterhouse of Parma (1839) is present at
the battle of Waterloo. Balzac helped reinforce Napoleonic
legend by the place he gave the emperor in The Human
Comedy. Moreover, he conceived his opus as an imitation of
Napoleon in which he intended "to achieve with the pen
what he began with the sword." Already in The Country
Doctor (1833), he presented an unforgettable "Napoleon seen
by the people."
After the Return of the Ashes to Paris on 15 December
1840, the infatuation became widespread. Napoleon ap­
peared in Balzac's work again: The Vendetta (1830), A Shadowy
Affair (1841), The Thirty-Year-Old Woman (1844). Balzac ad­
mired Napoleon as a remarkable example of energy and of
the sublime. In 1835, Vigny published Military Servitude and
Greatness, in which a hovering presence of the emperor
appeared. In Memories from beyond the Grave (1818), Bonaparte
became "the colossal man," and Chateaubriand described his
epoch as though it had consisted of a long dialogue between
Napoleon and him. In 1844, Carlyle devoted a chapter of his
Cult of Heroes to Napoleon. In 1845, Thiers began to publish
his History of the Consulship and the Empire, completed in 1862.
287
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1827. See the reprint

j.-B. pérès , Comme quoi Napoléon n'a jamais existé,
in La Tour Saint-Jacques (July-August 1956), with a study by Robert
Amadou, j. tulard . Le mythe de Napoléon (Paris 1971). r. whately ,
Historic Doubts Relating to Napoleon (1st ed. anonymous, 1819),
presents Bonaparte as a collective being representing the “better
part" of the people and the army of France and insists on the
improbable character of his life.

M o d e r n it y ' s C h allen g e to M y t h , in th e
P o e tr y o f H ö l d e r l in , H e in e , B a u d e l a ir e ,
M a l l a r m é , T. S. E lio t , an d R ilke

Hölderlin
Franque, La France dans l'attente du Retour d'Egypte. Paris, Musée du T w o -th ird s o f th e w ay th ro u g h Patmos (1 8 0 3 ), one o f h is
Louvre. Photo Musées nationaux.
la st g r e a t h y m n s , H ö ld e rlin , w h o h a s ju s t e v o k e d th e d i s a p ­
p e a r a n c e o f th e e v i d e n c e fro m th e m y th ic tim e o f C h r is t, th e
d e s tr u c tio n o f th e te m p le s , a n d th e in v is ib ility o f th e g o d s
T h e f i r s t h i s t o r y o f w h a t w a s t h e n a r e c e n t p e r i o d , it w a s t o b o t h in h e a v e n a n d o n e a r t h , a b r u p t l y i n t e r r u p t s h i s e v o c a ­
h a v e g r e a t s u c c e s s . H u g o s a n g th e p r a is e s o f th e R e tu r n o f t io n to a s k a b o u t th e m e a n i n g o f t h e s e d e f ic ie n c ie s th a t h e
th e A sh es; in The Chastisements he in c lu d e d th e Expiation h a s id e n tif ie d w ith h is o w n tim e . T h e q u e s t i o n , " W h a t is i t? ,"
( 1 8 5 2 ) , in w h i c h h e e x a l t e d N a p o l e o n i n o r d e r t o h u m i l i a t e w ith w h ic h th e te n th s ta n z a o f th e p o e m e n d s , is a n s w e r e d
h i s n e p h e w . In h i s n o v e l Les Misérables (1 8 6 2 ), h e c h o s e to b y s o m e l i n e s a s s i m p l e a s t h e y a r e e s s e n t i a l in t h e i r a t t e m p t
r e e n a c t W a t e r l o o . A l t h o u g h T o l s t o y in War and Peace (1864) to r e p o s s e s s th e tr u th o f a h is to r ic b e c o m in g :
m ade th e em p e ro r in to a k in d o f s o u lle s s m a rio n e tte , i ts
I t is t h e c a s t
s tr i n g s p u lle d b y fa te , a n d a l th o u g h P r o u d h o n , L i tt r é , E rc k -
M a d e b y th e s o w e r w h e n h e s c o o p s
m a n n , a n d C h a tria n (The Conscript of 1813, 1864) saw N ap o­
W h e a t i n t o t h e s h o v e l a n d s w e e p s it
l e o n a s a condottiere w i t h o u t s c r u p l e s , G o g u e l a t ' s a c c o u n t in
In a n a r c
The Country Doctor a l r e a d y s u g g e s t e d th e d e ific a tio n o f N a ­
T o w a r d th e c le a r
p o le o n , w h o w a s id e n tifie d w ith th e m e s s ia h . A s e a rly a s
V o id o v e r th e th r e s h i n g f l o o r .
1 8 1 6 , W e n d e l W u rtz h a d g iv e n th e b la ck le g e n d a m y th ic a l
T h e h u s k f a l ls a t h i s f e e t , b u t
e x te n s io n b y id e n tify in g N a p o le o n w ith A p p o ly o n , th e d e ­
T h e g r a in d o e s r e a c h its g o a l ,
s tr u c ti v e g e n i e o f th e a p o c a l y p s e . M ic k ie w ic z , in Pan Tadeusz
A n d n o b a d t h i n g it i s , if
( 1 8 3 4 ) , p a id P o l a n d 's r e s p e c t s t o N a p o l e o n ; l a te r , u n d e r t h e
S o m e d i s a p p e a r s , th e liv e s o u n d
in flu e n c e o f T o w ia n s k i, h e w o u ld m a k e h im th e n e w m es­
O f speech
s i a h . N e r v a l t o o k J . B . P é r è s ' s h o a x s e r i o u s l y : P é r è s , in How
F a d e s , f o r d i v i n e w o r k t o o is a k i n
Napoleon Neivr Existed (1 8 2 7 ), s a tiriz e d th e th e o r ie s o f D u p u is
T o o u r s , th e H ig h e s t d o e s n o t w a n t
a n d tu r n e d N a p o le o n in to th e n e w A p o llo .
AH th in g s a t o n c e . . . .
O n e p ro b le m re m a in s th a t h a s n e v e r re c e iv e d a s a tis fa c ­
(T ra n s la te d by C h ris to p h e r M id d le to n fro m F r ie d ric h
t o r y s o l u ti o n . T h e o b je c tiv e ly v e r ifia b le e l e m e n ts o f N a p o ­
H ö ld e rlin and E d u a rd M ö r ik e , Selected Poems, C h ic a g o :
l e o n 's c a r e e r — t h e n a m e s o f i n d i v id u a l s , th e g e n e r a l c o u r s e
U n iv e rs ity o f C h ic a g o P re s s , 1 9 7 2 , p p . 8 3 - 8 5 .)
o f e v e n ts — s p o n ta n e o u s ly o rg a n iz e d th e m s e lv e s a c c o r d in g
to th e s tr u c tu r e o f th e s o l a r m y th . A l t h o u g h N a p o l e o n is n o t The re a d e r w il l have re c o g n iz e d in th is resp o n se th e
e n t i r e l y i d e n t i f i e d w i t h t h e s u n , it is n e v e r t h e l e s s t r u e t h a t c o n d e n s a t io n o f a t l e a s t t h r e e b ib lica l p a s s a g e s : th e i m a g e o f
th e m y th b u ilt a ro u n d h is h is to ric a l p e rs o n a lity is of a th e p r e a c h in g o f Jo h n th e B a p tist (M a tth e w 3 :1 2 ) : " W h o s e
c o m p le x ity s e e m in g ly b o rn o f th e r e s o lu tio n o f c e r ta in o p p o ­ f a n i s in h i s h a n d , a n d h e w ill t h o r o u g h l y p u r g e h i s f l o o r , a n d
s ite s . H e r e p r e s e n ts b o th lib e rty a n d a u t h o r i ty ; th e m e s s i a h g a t h e r h i s w h e a t i n t o t h e g a m e r ; b u t h e w il l b u r n up th e
and, at th e sam e tim e , th e a n tic h ris t; w a rrio r and a lso c h a f f w ith u n q u e n c h a b le f i r e " ; th e s to r y o f R u th a n d Boaz
le g isla to r. A nd if o n e trie s to u n d e rsta n d how , afte r h is (R u th 2 : 2 - 1 7 ) ; a n d , p e r h a p s e s p e c ia lly , th e p a s s a g e fro m th e
d e a th , m a n y o f h is c o n t e m p o r a r i e s c h a n g e d th e ir a ttitu d e s G o s p e l (J o h n 1 2 :2 4 ) : " V e r ily , v e r ily , I s a y u n to y o u , E x c e p t a
to w a r d h im fro m h o s tility o r r e s e n tm e n t to a d m ir a tio n , o n e c o r n o f w h e a t f a ll i n t o t h e g r o u n d a n d d i e , it a b i d e t h a l o n e :
re a c h e s th e c o n c lu s io n th a t th e y s u b c o n s c io u s ly m a d e N a ­ b u t i f it d i e , it b r i n g e t h f o r t h m u c h f r u i t . "
p o l e o n i n t o a n i m a g e o f t h e f a t h e r b i g g e r t h a n lif e — a t t h e W h a t s h o u ld n e v e rth e le s s a r r e s t u s e v e n m o r e t h a n th is
sam e tim e s im p le and m y s te rio u s , k in d ly and te rrify in g . s y n c r e tis m is th e u se th a t is m ade h ere of a p a ra b o lic
S i n c e m a n y o f t h e i r f a t h e r s o r p a t e r n a l u n c l e s h a d f o u g h t in la n g u a g e o n th e le v e l o f p o e try . T h e q u e s tio n p o s e d a t th e
N a p o l e o n ' s a r m i e s , t h i s i m a g e is n o t h a r d t o e x p l a i n . e n d o f th e p r e c e d in g s ta n z a b e a rs fu n d a m e n ta lly u p o n th e
T h e e x te n s io n o f th e m y th o v e r th e w h o le w o r ld c a m e la te r m e a n in g o f a h is to r y w h o s e u p h e a v a l H ö ld e rlin c o u ld in d i­
a n d g o e s b e y o n d th e lim its o f th is e s s a y . c a te a s fe w o th e r s c o u ld . T h e n ig h t o f th e a b s e n c e o f th e
J .R i ./g .h . g o d s , in t h e w r itin g o f th is p o e t , is fa r m o r e t h a n a s im p le

288
 M O D E R N I T Y ' S C H A L L E N G E TO MYTH

m e t a p h o r : it is t h e d e c l a r a t i o n , t h e s h a r p a c t o f p e r c e p t i o n , o f i m p l a c a b l e a n d s e r e n e , / s w a d d l e s a s c h i l d r e n in t h e i r b r o n z e
a h is to r ic a l a n d m e t a p h y s ic a l r e a lity , w h ic h s e e m s a t firs t to d i a p e r s , " in o t h e r w o r d s , w e u n d e r s t a n d , in t h e a l l e g o r i c a l
la ck th e s u p p o r t o f a tra n sc e n d e n c e th a t m ig h t a s s u re i ts v is io n o f a r e a l it y d i s p o s s e s s e d o f its m y th i c f u lln e s s .
r e d e m p tio n . N o th in g c o u ld be m o re s e r io u s , le s s “ m e ta ­ In The Swan, fo r e x a m p le , B a u d e la ir e e v o k e s th e " s tr a n g e
p h o r i c ," fo r H ö ld e r lin , th a n th is d e c la r a tio n . and fa ta l m y t h " o f th e a n im a l "th a t h as escap ed fro m its
It i s p r e c i s e l y t h i s s e r i o u s n e s s t h a t m a k e s t h e l i n e s w e h a v e c a g e , " in w h i c h h e s e e s t h e i m a g e o f t h e h u m a n c o n d i t i o n o f
c i t e d s o i n t e r e s t i n g . W h a t t h e p o e t r y a c h i e v e s h e r e is n o t h i n g e x ile . B u t, e x c e p t fo r th e fa c t th a t th is p o e t d o e s n o t d i s t in ­
le s s th a n a m y th ic a l r e p o s s e s s io n o f th e re a l. J u s t a s th e g r a in g u is h th e te rm "m y th " fro m th e te rm " s y m b o l," or "em ­
d i e s i n o r d e r t o b e r e b o r n a s w h e a t , a f t e r f a i l i n g t o r e a c h i ts b l e m ," o r e v e n " a l le g o r y ," h is u s e o f th e s w a n d o e s n o t s o
g o a l , s o t o o w e a r e t o u n d e r s t a n d t h a t t h i s n i g h t o f h i s t o r y is m u ch r e a c tu a liz e a s p h e r e o f m e a n in g o r a m o d e o f b e in g
c a lle d u p o n t o c u t a c r o s s t h e p r o o f o f its n e g a t i v i ty s o t h a t , in t h a t b e l o n g s t o m y t h a s it t r a n s f o r m s t h e c r e a t u r e — j u s t l ik e
t h e e n d , t h e d a y w il l d a w n t h a t w il l m a r k t h e r e t u r n o f t h e A n d r o m a c h e , t o w h o m it is c o m p a r e d — i n t o a s i g n o f t h e l o s s
g o d s . T h e c o n c r e te i m a g e , i n v e s te d w ith th e a u t h o r i ty o f th e o f o r s e p a r a tio n fro m m y th . B a u d e l a i r e 's sw an is n ot an
s a c r e d t e x t , m a k e s it p o s s i b l e t o s i g n i f y t h e h i s t o r i c a l p r o c e s s i d e n t i t y w h o s e p r e s e n c e i s s u f f i c i e n t l y s o l i d t o s u g g e s t , if n o t
by a n ch o rin g it in a n a tu ra l rh y th m . E x iste n ce and its to fo u n d , a p o e tic ord er in w h ic h s ig n s a re o rg a n iz e d
m e a n i n g a r e o n e : w e a r e in th e p o e t i c u n iv e r s e o f m y th . a c c o r d in g to th e ir o w n e s s e n c e — w h ic h w o u ld b e th e v e ry
W h a t H ö l d e r l i n s u c c e e d e d in a f f i r m i n g o n c e m o r e in 1 8 0 3 , d e fin itio n o f a p o e t r y o f m y th ; o n t h e c o n t r a r y , it m a r k s a
a t th e p ric e o f g r e a t te n s io n a n d a n u n e q u a le d d ia le c tic fo rc e , d iv isio n th a t a llo w s o n ly d iv id e d r e a litie s a n d th e im a g e o f
c o n s titu te s th e m o d e l— a t on ce d re a m e d of and in a cce s­ t h a t d i v i s i o n t o b e c o m e l i n k e d t o it. A n d it is p r e c i s e l y i n t h i s
s ib l e — o f w h a t h a s s i n c e b e e n c a l l e d m o d ern p o e try . W h o ­ d iv isio n th a t B a u d e la ir e d e cip h e rs th e m o d e rn ity w ith
e v e r in c lin e s to th e h is to r y o f th e p o e tic t e x ts o f th e la st 1 7 0 w h ic h , in o p p o s i t io n to r o m a n tic is m , to p a n th e is m , o r to
y e a r s o r s o c a n n o t h e lp b u t b e s tr u c k by th e p ro g re ssiv e m e ta p h y s ic a l M a n ic h e a n is m in th e s ty le o f H u g o , he w ill
m o v e m e n t b y w h i c h t h e g e s t u r e o f c o n f i d e n c e in t h e u s e o f id e n tify h is p o e try .
a m y t h i c m o d e l l o s e s if n o t i t s v a l i d i t y a t l e a s t i t s f o r c e o f O ne c o u ld a rg u e th a t s o m e o f h is poem s, som e o f h is
c re d ib ility . T h e fe w r e m a r k s t h a t fo llo w c e r ta i n ly d o n o t a im e s s a y s (o n P o e , o n H u g o , o n G a u ti e r ) , e x p r e s s th e id e a o f a
to e x h a u s t th e s u b je c t, b u t p r o p o s e to illu s tr a te th is m o v e ­ " s h a d o w y a n d p r o f o u n d u n i t y " t h a t is a b l e t o b r i n g t o g e t h e r
m e n t. and to in te g r a te th e w h o le of r e a lity in to a n e tw o rk of
" c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s " w h i c h a s s u r e it o f m e a n i n g in t h e m a n ­
n e r o f a m y th . T h e im p o r ta n c e a c c o r d e d to th e im a g in a tio n ,
Heine
t o t h e d r e a m , is a s i g n o f th is m e a n i n g . B u t th o u g h th e s e
In h i s p o e m , The Gods of Greece, com p osed in 1 8 2 5 -2 6 , te n d e n c ie s are in c o n te s ta b le , th e y do not go beyond th e
H e in ric h H e in e r e v e r s e s th e o r d e r o f th e c e r ta i n ti e s th a t w e s ta g e o f in te n tio n . T h e o n ly g e n u in e fig u re th a t c a n re a lly
s a w a t w o r k i n H ö l d e r l i n . In H e i n e , m y t h n o l o n g e r s e r v e s a s c la im t h e s t a t u s o f a u n i f y i n g l o c u s o f t h e r e a l in B a u d e l a i r e
a fo u n d a tio n fo r h isto ry , b u t r a th e r s u b m its to h isto ry . T h e i s , p a r a d o x i c a l l y , d e a t h . T h e B a u d e l a i r e a n O n e is t h e u n i t y o f
g o d s o f G r e e c e , w h ic h t h e im a g i n a ti o n i d e n tif ie s in c lo u d s a t w h a t p e r i s h e s ; d e a t h , m o r e o v e r , is t h e o n l y a b s o l u t e t h a t c a n
n ig h t, in th is poem a re m ade "su p p re sse d and d e fu n ct" m e a s u r e its e lf a g a i n s t th e a b s o l u t e o f th e e x i g e n c y o f in fin ity .
f i g u r e s ; Z e u s a p p e a r s h e r e w i t h " e x t i n g u i s h e d l i g h t n i n g " in And if c e r t a i n p o e m s in t h e Flowers of Evil seem to re a c h a
h is h a n d and w ith h is fa c e m a rk e d by "u n h a p p in e s s an d m y th ic d im e n sio n , d e s p ite e v e r y th in g — n o ta b ly th e great
s o r r o w " ; A p h r o d i t e , " o n c e g o l d e n , n o w s il v e r ," h e r e h a s n o p assages in th e Parisian Pictures— th e y do so p re c is e ly b e­
m o re th an an "a p p a llin g " b e a u ty and is s a id to be th e c a u s e t h e ir r e p o s s e s s io n o f f i n itu d e r a i s e s d e a t h to t h e le v e l
" g o d d e s s o f c o r p s e s ," " V e n u s L i b i t in a ." T h e f o u n d i n g n a t u r e o f a n e c e s s i t y t h a t is v i s i b l y c o n s t i t u t i v e o f w h a t i s r e a l .
o f th e g o d s in H ö ld e rlin is s u c c e e d e d h ere b y a s e rie s o f T h is re c o g n itio n o f d e a th as a p re se n ce t h a t is s i m u l t a ­
fig u re s b o m o f h i s t o r y a n d s u b j e c t t o its f in itu d e : " F o r e v e n n e o u s l y i n t i m a t e a n d u n i v e r s a l is a l s o w h a t l e a d s B a u d e l a i r e
th e g o d s d o n o t re ig n f o r e v e r ; th e y o u n g o n e s ta k e th e p la c e to a tte m p t to m a k e th e w o rk o f a rt th e o n ly p la c e th e o th e r
o f th e o ld o n e s ." T h e re la tiv iz a tio n o f m y th ic b e in g s le a d s s id e o f d e a t h . B e y o n d h is m a c a b r e P e tr a r c h is m , th is v ie w o f
th e m to b e c o m e n o m o re th a n th e s u p p o r ts fo r a n e n tire ly d e a th u n d e rlie s a p oem su ch as A Piece of Carrion — even
i m m a n e n t v is io n o f h is to r y , in w h ic h t h e s tr u g g l e o f a n t a g ­ t h o u g h , a g a i n s t t h e a v o w e d i n t e n t i o n o f t h e a u t h o r , it c o u l d
o n is tic f o r c e s , fa r fro m r e p r e s e n ti n g a m e ta p h y s ic a l c o n f r o n ­ a lso b e re a d a s th e e x p r e s s io n o f th e triu m p h o f a p o e tic s
t a t i o n , h a s t a k e n a c l e a r l y p o l i t i c a l t u r n : m a n , in t h i s p o e m , d e s ig n e d to s p e a k o f th e p e r is h a b le p a r t o f e x i s t e n c e (c f. th e
b e c o m e s m o r a lly s u p e r i o r to th e g o d s b e c a u s e , u n lik e th e m , le tte r fro m R il k e t o C l a r a o f O c t o b e r 7 , 1 9 0 7 ) . T h e a r c h i t e c ­
h e d o e s n o t s i d e w i t h t h o s e w h o a r e s t r o n g e s t , b u t j o i n s in t u r a l w ill o f t h e p o e t o f Flowers of Evil, h is in s is te n c e o n th e
s o lid a rity w ith t h o s e w h o a r e c o n q u e r e d . in d e p e n d e n ce and im m a n e n t lo g ic of fo rm , c o n s titu te an
e x te n s io n o f a n d a r e s p o n s e to th e c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f a re a lity
th a t c o u ld fo rm u la te no o th e r m y th th a n f in itu d e . W hat
Baudelaire
u ltim a te ly c h a r a c t e r iz e s th e p o e tic s o f th e Flowers of Evil is a
T h is fe e lin g of a lo s t m y th ic in te g rity is fo u n d a g a in , t e n s i o n — t h e t e n s i o n b e t w e e n a p a l p a b l e r e a l i t y a c c e p t e d in
th o u g h in a r a t h e r d i f f e r e n t s e n s e , a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e i ts o p a c i t y , i t s i r r e d u c i b i l i t y t o a n y i d e a l i z a t i o n , a n d a (fo r­
w o r k o f t h e o n e w h o , t o g e t h e r w ith G e o r g B ü c h n e r in th e m a l) d r e a m in w h i c h t h e i m a g i n a r y is a b l e t o r e c o m p o s e t h e
m e d iu m o f t h e a te r , c o u ld b e s a id to b e th e fo u n d in g p o e t o f n e tw o rk o f id e n titie s th a t a r e a s m u c h m a te ria l a s th e y a re
m o d e rn ity : C h a r le s B a u d e la ir e . From h is e a rlie s t p oem s, s p iritu a l.
B a u d e la ir e seem s to lo n g fo r th e "n ak ed ep och s / W hen
Phoebus am u sed h im s e lf g ild in g s ta t u e s ," a n d w hen "C y ­
M a lla r m é
b e l e , f e r t i l e i n g e n e r o u s f r u i t s , / D id n o t fin d h e r s o n s to o
h e a v y a w e i g h t " ; y e t h e d o e s n o t h e s ita te to p o in t o u t th e It m i g h t b e su p p o sed th a t th e th in k in g o f th e g re a te s t
c o n t e m p o r a r y t r u t h o f m y t h in t h o s e " p o o r t w i s t e d b o d i e s , F ren ch d is c ip le of B a u d e la ir e , S té p h a n e M a lla rm é , d e v e l­
th in , p o t-b e llie d , or f l a c c id ," w h ic h "th e god of U tility , oped fro m a te n s io n o f th e sam e k in d . A t le a s t h is e a r ly

289
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

p o e m s , a s w e ll a s c e r ta i n d o c u m e n t s d a t in g f r o m h is f o r m a ­ T h e g e s t u r e b y w h ic h fictio n w a s id e n tifie d w ith th e v e r y

tiv e p e rio d , suggest such a co n n e ctio n . B u t, u n lik e h is s ite o f r e a lity , th is a b s o l u t e p o e t i c i d e a lis m — w h ic h M a lla r m é
m a s t e r , M a l l a r m é w a s t o s i t u a t e h i s p l a c e o f c h o i c e in t h e h im se lf la te r w ent beyond by tra n sfo rm in g h is n e g a tiv e
r e a l m o f d r e a m : " Y e s , I k n o w , " h e w r o t e t o H e n r i C a z a l i s in t h e o lo g y in to a k in d o f th e o lo g y o f th e tw e n ty -s ix le tte rs o f
A p ril o f 1 8 6 6 , th e a l p h a b e t — s e t o f f o n e o f th e t w o c u r r e n ts w h ic h , f o llo w ­
in g th e t u r n -o f -t h e - c e n t u r y s y m b o l i s m , w e r e to fe rtiliz e th e
w e a r e n o th in g b u t v a in fo rm s o f m a tte r , b u t q u ite s u b lim e
p o e t r y o f t h e t w e n t ie t h c e n t u r y a n d n o ta b ly its u s e o f m y th :
fo r h a v in g in v e n te d G o d a n d o u r s o u l. S o s u b lim e , m y
a V a l é r y , a S a i n t - J o h n P e r s e , in F r a n c e , a S t e f a n G e o r g e , a
frie n d , th a t I w a n t to g iv e m y s e lf th is s p e c ta c le o f m a tte r ,
R il k e , i n G e r m a n y , w o u l d t a p i n t o t h a t c u r r e n t , e a c h in h i s
b e i n g c o n s c i o u s o f it a n d n e v e rth e le s s ru s h in g p a ss io n ­
ow n w ay.
a te ly in to th e D r e a m th a t m a t te r c a n n o t b e , s in g in g o f th e
Soul and a ll th e p a ra lle l d iv i n e im p re s s io n s th a t h ave
a c c u m u l a t e d in u s s i n c e t h e e a r l i e s t t i m e s , a n d p r o c l a i m ­ Eliot
i n g b e f o r e t h e N o t h i n g , w h i c h is t r u t h , t h e s e g l o r i o u s l ie s !
But th is w o u ld not happen w ith o u t th e c lo s e p a ra lle l
S u c h is t h e p l a n o f m y l y r i c v o l u m e , a n d s u c h p e r h a p s w ill
d e v e l o p m e n t o f a n o t h e r c u r r e n t , w h ic h s h o u ld b e id e n tifie d
b e i ts t i t l e , t h e G l o r y o f t h e L i e o r t h e G l o r i o u s L i e .
h e re . T h e e n d o f th e n in e te e n th c e n tu r y s e t th e s ta g e fo r a n
A s o n e c a n s e e in t h e s e l i n e s , t h e d e g e n e r a t i n g s t r u c t u r e o f e x a c e r b a te d a n d m y th ic iz in g id e a lis m in t h e r e a l m o f l i t e r a ­
M a l l a r m é 's v is io n , w h ic h a ffirm s in th e sam e s tro k e th e tu re ; yet it a lso saw th e d e v e lo p m e n t of w o rk s w h ic h ,
id e a listic o r ie n ta tio n of m a tte r and th e u n r e a lity of th a t fo llo w in g th e upheaval s tirre d up by S ch o p en h au er an d
o r ie n t a ti o n , h a r d l y le n d s its e lf to a m y th ic a l a p p r e h e n s i o n . N ie tz s c h e , m a n if e s te d a k in d o f r e n a is s a n c e o f m a te ria lis m .
M o r e o v e r , e v e n w h e n M a lla rm é d id r e s o r t to m y th ic m o tifs S ta rtin g in 1896, F reu d w ro te h is Interpretation of Dreams
in h i s p o e m s , h i s u s e o f m y t h r e m a i n e d m a r k e d b y h i s v i s i o n ( p u b l i s h e d i n 1 8 9 9 ) , w h i c h is p r a c t i c a l l y c o n t e m p o r a r y w i t h
o f t h e r e a l a s a f i c t i o n . T h i s is c e r t a i n l y t r u e o f t h e t w o g r e a t th e first v o lu m e s o f S ir J a m e s G e o r g e F r a z e r 's The Golden
p o e m s s k e tc h e d d u rin g th o s e y e a r s , th e " H e r o d i a d e " a n d Bough, t h e p i o n e e r i n g w o r k in t h e fi e ld o f m y t h i c e t h n o l o g y .
" T h e A f te r n o o n o f a F a u n ." S ig n if ic a n tly , o n c e F r e u d 's f u n d a m e n ta l c o n c e p t s h a d b e e n
M a l l a r m é ' s H e r i o d i a d e is n o t t h e t e m p t r e s s t h a t F l a u b e r t d e v e l o p e d , th e i n te r e s t o f p s y c h o a n a ly s is w a s to s h ift in to
w o u l d d e s c r i b e t e n y e a r s l a t e r , in a d a z z l i n g p a g e o f h i s Three t h e f i e ld o f m y t h ( Totem and Taboo d a t e s f r o m 1 9 1 3 , o n e y e a r
Tales, in t h e a c t o f s e d u c i n g H e r o d A n t i p a s . S h e is t h e f i g u r e a f t e r O t t o R a n k 's g r e a t b o o k The Incest Motif in Literature and
o f a p o e t r y d e d i c a t e d t o r e f l e x i v i t y , a p o e t r y i n c a r n a t e in h i s Folktale), th a t v e r y m y th w h o s e h is to ric a l o r ig in a n d n a tu r e
im a g e of a w om an lo o k in g at h e r s e lf in a m irro r. H er F r a z e r , a f te r o t h e r s , h a d d e m o n s t r a te d . D e s p ite th e g e n e r a l
n a r c i s s i s m , h e r f i e r c e r e f u s a l o f a n y n u b i l i t y ( c f . " Y e s , it is f o r c r i s i s o f v a l u e s in E u r o p e a n s o c i e t y a n d c i v i l i z a t i o n t h a t l e d t o
m e , fo r m e , th a t I h a v e b lo s s o m e d , a l o n e !" ) , a r e th e im a g e o f t h e f i r s t W o r l d W a r — a c r i s i s t h a t w a s e x p r e s s e d in a r t b y a n
M a l l a r m é 's (m y th ic ) d e sire fo r a la n g u a g e re s to re d to i ts im p re s s iv e s p a te o f in v e n tiv e n e s s (cu b ism and f u tu ris m in
p u r i t y o f a m u s i c a l e s s e n c e . A " d y a d , " in t h a t h e r c o n c e r n f o r p a i n t i n g , t h e V i e n n a s c h o o l , S t r a v i n s k y in m u s i c ) — w r i t e r s
h e rs e lf d e te r m in e s h e r b o th a s th e d e s ir in g s u b je c t a n d a s th e w e r e s tr o n g l y s ti m u la t e d b y th is c h a l l e n g e to t h e ir r a n g e o f
im a g e of her ow n d e sire , th is " h e ro in e " — ev e n in her c h o ic e . T h is h e lp s to e x p la in h o w th e g r e a t p o e m th a t w o u ld
n am e— su g g e sts th e r e c o ilin g in w a rd in w h ic h M a lla rm é a tte m p t to d ra w u p th e d o u b le b a l a n c e s h e e t o f c iv iliz a tio n
s o u g h t th e s a lv a tio n o f la n g u a g e t h r o u g h p o e try . and lite ra tu re , on ce th e w ar w as o v er, at th e sam e tim e
T h e m y th ic s u b ju g a tio n o f th e F a u n is s till m o r e s u b t l e . p r e s e n t s its e lf a s a p r o f o u n d q u e s t i o n i n g o f m y th i c s p e e c h .
S in c e fo r M a lla rm é th e s o la r and m u s ic a l fig u re of th is W e r e f e r t o T . S . E l i o t 's The Waste Land, p u b l i s h e d in 1 9 2 2 .
f a b u l o u s c r e a t u r e is m a n i f e s t l y n o t h i n g b u t t h e i m a g e o f t h e The Waste Land s ig n ifie s a n y b a r r e n l a n d , r a v a g e d l a n d , b u t
p o e t, o r o f p o e tic p o w e r , th is p o e m to o re v e a ls th e d e s ir e fo r t h e t it l e is a l s o a d i r e c t r e f e r e n c e t o t h e l a n d s t r i c k e n w i t h
r e f l e x i v i t y t h a t w a s a l r e a d y a t w o r k in t h e " H e r o d i a d e . " A t s t e r i l i t y in t h e l e g e n d o f t h e G r a i l , i n w h i c h E l i o t , i n f l u e n c e d
th e sam e tim e , h o w ever, th e a rtif ic e by w h ic h th e Faun b y a b o o k b y a n E n g lis h m e d ie v a lis t w h o w a s a d isc ip le o f
fe ig n s p o s s e s s io n o f th e n y m p h s , w h o m h e re a lly h a s o n ly F r a z e r , le a r n e d to re c o g n iz e a m e d ie v a l, C h r is tia n iz e d tr a n s ­
d e s ir e d , e n d s w ith th e e v o c a tio n o f a re a lity w h ic h , fo r b e in g p o s itio n o f c e r ta i n m y th s o f f e rtility b o r r o w e d m a in ly fro m
f i c t i v e , is n o l e s s e n d o w e d w i t h a c h a r g e o f c o n c r e t i o n a n d E g y p t i a n a n d M e s o p o t a m i a n a n t i q u i t y . A t i ts s i m p l e s t l e v e l ,
e v e n o f a s e n s u a l i t y o f w h i c h t h e r e a r e f e w o t h e r e x a m p l e s in u se of th e G ra il m y th te n d s to e s ta b lis h an e q u iv a le n c e
F re n c h p o e try : b e t w e e n t h e m e d i e v a l s y m b o l o f a l a n d a w a i t i n g i ts d e l i v e r ­
a n c e a n d th e ru in e d c o n d itio n o f p o s tw a r E u ro p e . S u ch w a s ,
A s f o r m e , p r o u d o f m y v o i c e , I'll s p e a k a t l e n g t h
o n e m i g h t s a y , th e m y th i c a n a l o g y o f th is te x t.
O f t h o s e d iv in itie s a n d b y id o la tr o u s
But th is a n a lo g y c o n s titu te s o n ly one of th e le v e ls of
D e p ic tio n s s trip y e t m o r e v e ils fro m th e ir s h a d e .
m e a n i n g in t h i s p o e m — t h e m o s t a p p a r e n t , p e r h a p s , b u t n o t
T h u s , w h e n I 'v e s u c k e d t h e b r i g h t n e s s o u t o f g r a p e s ,
th e m o st p ro fo u n d . A s id e fro m th e fact th a t th e m y th ic
T o c h a s e r e g r e t d e f le c te d b y m y f e in t,
n a r r a t i v e is b o r r o w e d o n l y in a m o s t d i s c o n t i n u o u s m a n n e r
I lift t h e e m p t y c l u s t e r t o t h e s k y ,
(a n d is u s e d m u c h le s s c lo s e ly , fo r e x a m p l e , th a n th e m y th o f
L a u g h i n g , a n d , w il d t o b e d r u n k , i n f l a t e
th e Odyssey Ulysses, w h i c h h a d a p p e a r e d in
in J o y c e ' s th e
T h e s h in in g sk in s a n d lo o k th ro u g h th e m till n i g h t .
p re v io u s y e a r ), The Waste Land is c o n c e r n e d l e s s w i t h th e
( T r a n s l a t e d b y P a t r i c i a T e r r y a n d M a u r i c e Z . S h r o d e r , in
t h e m e o f m y th i c d e s o l a ti o n th a n w ith q u e s t i o n i n g a n e n t ir e
Stéphane Mallarmé, Selected Poetry and Prose, e d . M a ry A n n
s e r ie s o f p r e v io u s p o e tic d is c o u r s e s , w h ic h a r e t h e m s e lv e s
C a w s , N e w Y o rk : N e w D ir e c tio n s , p . 3 7 .)
q u ite o f te n c o n n e c te d w ith a m y th , fo r w h ic h th is poem
T h e u s e o f a m y t h i c a l f i g u r e ( a F a u n ) m a k e s it p o s s i b l e t o c o n s t i tu t e s a k in d o f m u s e u m .
q u e s t i o n w h a t is i m m e d i a t e l y r e a l ( " D i d I d r e a m t h a t l o v e ? " ) A s E lio t h im s e lf in d ic a te d in th e n o t e s th a t a c c o m p a n y h is
b u t l e a d s h e r e t o t h e e m e r g e n c e o f a p o e t i c r e a l i t y a ll t h e p o e m , a n d a s h a s o f te n b e e n r e m a r k e d s in c e , The Waste Land
m o r e a b s o lu te fo r b e in g m a n ife s tly m o r e fictiv e . is l a r g e l y m ade up o f q u o ta tio n s . These q u o ta tio n s , b o r­

290
 HÖ L D E R L I N ' S D I O N Y S U S

r o w e d f r o m s o u r c e s a s d i v e r s e a s D a n t e 's Inferno, th e Satyr- F o r tw o re a s o n s , b e y o n d a ll t h e s k e p t i c i s m s a n d a ll t h e

icon o f P e t r o n i u s , E l i z a b e t h a n d r a m a , t h e B i b l e , t h e r a t i o n a l i z a t i o n s , it m a y b e t o o e a r l y t o d o s o . F i r s t , d e s p i t e
Upanisads, t h e Confessions o f S a i n t A u g u s t i n e , a n d t h e Flowers th e im m e n s e d e p lo y m e n t o f e ffo rts to o b je c tiv iz e , fo rm a liz e ,
of Evil, a c t u a l l y h a v e l e s s t o d o w i t h a u n i f i e d w a y o f a n d g r a s p th e o r ig in a n d th e n a tu r e o f la n g u a g e , la n g u a g e
t h in k in g — in th is c a s e a w a y o f t h in k i n g a b o u t d e s o l a ti o n — c o n t i n u e s , in t h e fin a l a n a l y s is , t o r e f u s e to r e v e a l its e s s e n c e
t h a n th e y s ig n ify , t h r o u g h th e o f te n i r o n ic o r p a r o d y in g u s e o t h e r t h a n in a m o v e m e n t o f t h e i n v e n t io n a n d c r e a ti o n o f
th a t is m a d e o f t h e m , t h e d e c r e p i t u d e o f th e m y th i c d e s i g n o f im a g e s w h ic h , w h ile i n te g r a ti n g e v e r m o r e e x t e n d e d le v e ls
th e ir o r ig in a l c o n t e x t. " I h a d n o t th o u g h t d e a t h h a d u n d o n e o f re fle x iv ity , k e e p th e ir m e t a p h o r i c e s s e n c e . N o r m u s t w e
s o m a n y ," s a y s o n e o f th e s p e a k e r s o f th is p o e m (q u o tin g f o r g e t t h a t th is g r o w in g re f le x iv ity h a s c o m e to b e j o in e d , b y
D a n te ), a s h e w a tc h e s a c r o w d o f re s ig n e d p e d e s t r i a n s file a k in d o f n e c e s s a r y c o u n te r p o i n t o r c o m p e n s a t i o n , w ith a
over London B rid g e — p e o p le w h o a r e s o m a n y m e ta p h o rs s im u lta n e o u s lib e ra tio n of th e u n c o n s c io u s w h ic h , w h ile
f o r s p e e c h . A s m u c h a s it i s t h e e n a c t m e n t o f a m y t h , The r u in in g c e rta in c o n v e n tio n a l p o e tic fo r m s , h a s n o t s to p p e d
Waste Land is th e p ro p e rly B a b e lia n a c tu a liz a tio n of th e a n d s ti ll d o e s n o t s t o p f o r m u l a t i n g i t s t r u t h b y t h e c r e a t i o n o f
im p o s s ib ility of a fo u n d in g speech . The "d e a th " of th e n e w s tr u c tu r e s t h a t fin d in m y th o n e o f th e ir m o s t p r o f o u n d
in h a b ita n ts o f th e w a s te la n d , a s y n o n y m fo r th e s p iritu a l r e s o u r c e s . T h e a v e r r e d im p o s s ib ility o f a m e t a la n g u a g e th a t
c o lla p s e o f E u r o p e o f 1 9 2 0 , h e r e a ls o p re fig u re s th e e n d o f th e c o u l d f o r m a l iz e t h e e s s e n c e , in t h e la s t a n a l y s is a m e t a p h o r i c
d e m iu rg ic p e rio d o f p o e try . O r, to put it d i f f e r e n t l y , th e e s s e n c e , o f la n g u a g e r e t u r n s d ia le c tic a lly to a c o n s c i o u s n e s s
f ig u r e s w h o s p e a k in t h e p o e m a r e n o t th e o n l y o n e s s tr i c k e n o f t h e m y th i c f o u n d i n g o f t h a t m e t a p h o r . A s a r e s u lt , in th e
b y d e a th , b u t th r o u g h th e m th e in te g rity o f th e p o e tic s o u r c e c o n n e c tio n s th a t u n ite (a n d d is u n ite ) m a n w ith h is h u m a n
o r r e a l m o f w h ic h t h e y h a v e b e e n m a d e th e s y m b o l s is a l s o e n v iro n m e n t, e a rth ly or c o s m ic , th e need fo r th e fictio n
s tric k e n . th ro u g h w h ic h th e first c o n n e ctio n s w ith th e w o rld a re
a v o w e d a n d f o rm u la te d re m a in s p e rc e p tib le .
D e s p i te a ll t h e i m p a s s e s o f l it e r a t u r e t o d a y , a t le a s t th e
Rilke
h o p e o f g iv in g v o ic e , th r o u g h th e la n g u a g e o f m y th , to th e
T h e f a c t t h a t d e a t h is n e c e s s a r i l y c o n n e c t e d w i t h t h e v e r y a l w a y s d iffic u lt h a r m o n y o f a n e n c h a n t e d f lu te b e y o n d a ll
p o s s ib ility o f m y th is s o m e t h i n g f e w p o e t s , a f t e r E lio t, h a v e d i s e n c h a n t m e n t s m a y t h u s c o n t i n u e t o a f f ir m its e lf .
fa ile d to re a liz e . R ilk e , fo r e x a m p le , th o u g h he re je cte d J .E .J ./g .h .
E l i o t 's m e t h o d o f c o lla g e a n d f r a g m e n ta t i o n , in th a t s a m e
y e a r 1 9 2 2 c o u l d l e t h i s O r p h e u s e m e r g e o n l y b y s p e c i f y i n g in
c h a r a c te r is tic fa s h io n th a t "O n ly one w ho has lifte d th e
ly r e / a m o n g s h a d o w s t o o , / M a y d i v i n in g r e n d e r / th e in fi­
n i t e p r a i s e " ( Sonnets to Orpheus, tr a n s la te d b y M . D . H e r te r
BIBLIOGRAPHY
N o rto n , N e w Y o rk : W . W . N o rto n a n d C o m p a n y , 1 9 4 2 , p .
B. Hederich , Gründliches mythologisches Lexicon, 1770. i. frazer , The
3 3 ) . W h e n o n e tu r n s t o t h e p o e t s o f F r a n c e , Ita ly , th e U n i te d
Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion, 12 vols. (London 1890-.
S t a te s , o r L a tin A m e rica , it s e e m s t h a t t h i s is a u n iv e rs a l I. Weston , From Ritual to Romance (Cambridge 1920).
e x p e r i e n c e , o n e t h a t W o r l d W a r II m a d e e v e n m o r e o p p r e s s ­ F. scHELLiNG, Philosophie der Mythologie (Stuttgart 1856). F. Nietzsche ,
in g. The Birth of Tragedy (New York 1967). s. freud , The Interpretation of
T h e h is to r ic re la tiv iz a tio n o f s p iritu a l h o r i z o n s a n d s o c ia l Dreams (New York 1927); Totem and Tattoo (New York 1927), trans,
id e a ls , th e a ffirm e d w ill o f a c r i t i c a l a t t i t u d e o f t h e m i n d , from German, n. von Hofmannsthal , "Ein Brief," 1901-2, in Gesam­
c o m b in e d w ith th e c o lla p s e o f th e s a c r e d r h e t o r i c s a n d o r d e r s melte Werke, Prosa 1 (Frankfurt 1959). s. Mallarm é , La musique et les
o f s p e e c h , c o n t r ib u t e d m o r e t h a n a little to t a k e a p a r t w h a t
lettres (Paris 1894). o. rank . Das Inzest-Motiv in Dichtung und Sage
W e s te rn p o e try s in c e H om er had n ever ceased to p u t to ­
(Leipzig 1912). p. valery , "Sur Phèdre femme," in Variétés IV (Paris
1944). T. s. Elio t , "Tradition and the Individual Talent," Selected Essays
g e t h e r . B e lie f in m y t h s , a s P a u l R ic o e u r h a s r e m a r k e d , h a s fo r
(London 1932). m. blanchot . L'espace littéraire (Paris 1955).
m a n y p e o p le c e d e d its p la c e to th e in te r p r e t a t io n o f m y th s E. Cassirer , The Philosophy of Symbolic Forms, 3 vols. (New Haven
a n d o f m o d e s o f b e l i e f t h a t c o n n e c t u s w i t h m y t h . I s it n o t 1953-57). w. Beniamin , Ursprung des deutschen Trauerspiels (Berlin
tim e to c lo s e th is ch a p te r of ou r h isto ry , even if it i s a 1928). p. ricoeur , The Symbolism of Evil (Boston 1969). Terror und Spiel:
p rin cip a l c h a p te r ? Probleme der Mythenrezeption, H. R. Jauss, ed. (Munich 1971).

T h e b a n k s o f G a n g e s h e a rd h o w th e g o d o f jo y
H ö l d e r l in ' s D io n y su s W a s h a ile d w h e n c o n q u e r in g a ll f r o m f a r I n d u s c a m e
T h e y o u th f u l B a c c h u s , a n d w ith h o ly
W in e fro m th e ir d r o w s in e s s w o k e th e p e o p le s .
D io n y s u s b e c a m e th e god o f p o e try a t th e v ery m om ent
A n d y o u , o u r o w n d a y 's a n g e l, d o n o t a w a k e
w h e n p o e t r y its e lf a n a l y z e d its o w n s t a t u s w ith th e g r e a t e s t
T h o s e d r o w s i n g s till?
p re c is io n , n a m e ly , in G e rm a n y in th e w o rk of F r ie d ric h
( " T h e P o e t 's V o c a t i o n ," 1 8 0 0 , t r a n s l a te d b y M ic h a e l H a m ­
H ö ld e rlin (1 7 7 0 -1 8 4 3 ). In a n s w e r to K lo p s to c k , w ho w as
b u rg e r, frö m Friedrich Hölderlin: Poems and Fragments,
c o n t e n t w ith r a t h e r s u p e rf ic ia l id e n tif ic a tio n s , H ö ld e r lin p r o ­
C a m b r id g e : C a m b r id g e U n iv e r s ity P r e s s , 1 9 8 0 , p . 1 7 3 )
p o s e d a m u c h m o r e fin e ly tu n e d c o n n e c t i o n b e t w e e n p o e t r y
a n d t h e g o d o f w in e , w h o in h is e y e s w a s a l s o th e g o d o f jo y , " D a y 's a n g e l " is th e m e d i a t o r b e t w e e n t h e g o d s a n d m e n
as a tte s te d by h is tra n s la tio n of th e la s t g r e a t ch o ru s of in t h e s p h e r e o f t e m p o r a l a c ti o n w h e r e c o n t e m p o r a r y h i s t o r y
S o p h o cle s' Antigone. H e w rite s : i s m a d e . H e i s t h e p o e t w h o , l ik e D i o n y s u s , s t i r s t h e s o u l o f

291
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

p e o p le b y r e in te rp re tin g th e m o m e n ts w h e n , a c c o r d in g to c ie n t a n d m o d e r n , n o r th a n d s o u t h , e a s t a n d w e s t , a n c ie n t
tra d itio n , G o d h a s r e v e a le d h im s e lf, s e e in g th e s e m o m e n ts c o m m u n ity a n d f u t u r e c o m m u n i ty . A ll to ld , H ö ld e r lin b e ­
in th e lig h t o f g r e a t m o v e m e n t s o f th e p r e s e n t , s u c h a s th e s to w e d o n D io n y s u s th e s a m e s ta t u s a s t h a t o f h is p o e m . H e
F r e n c h R e v o lu tio n . B u t w h ile h e r e n e w e d th e s a c r e d c h a n t o f is a d e m i g o d a l w a y s m o v i n g b e t w e e n H e l l a s a n d H e s p e r i a ,
th e O ld T e s t a m e n t p r o p h e t s a n d o f th e G re e k p o e ts, a n d w h o s w e e p s h is d i s c ip le s a l o n g in h is v o y a g e " f r o m la n d to
m ade h is ow n p o e try th e e q u iv a le n t of th e R e v o lu tio n , l a n d in t h e h o l y n i g h t . "
H ö ld e rlin m u s t in d e e d h a v e fe a re d th a t h e w a s n o t o n th e In th e e l e g y " B r e a d a n d W i n e " ( 1 8 0 0 ), D io n y s u s a p p e a r s
l e v e l o f h i s g o d , s i n c e in t h e s a m e o d e h e r e m i n d s u s o f t h e a s s o m e o n e w h o a t tr a c t s c r e a t u r e s t h a t h a v e fa lle n p r e y to
h u m i l i a t i n g s c e n e in E u r i p i d e s ' Bacchae w h e n D i o n y s u s , in h o ly d e liriu m , le a d in g th e m beyond a ll b o u n d s . He a lso
b o n d s , is d r a g g e d a b o u t b y t h e s e r v a n t s o f P e n t h e u s " l ik - 1 a a p p e a r s a s th e c o n c ilia to r o f n ig h t a n d d a y , g u id in g th e s ta rs
c a p tu re d w il d a n i m a l , ” a " t a m e b e a s t . ” T h e p o e t is a l m o s t u p w a r d , d o w n w a r d , e te r n a lly jo y fu l, " lik e u n d y in g v e r d u r e
te m p te d to ta k e a d v a n ta g e of th e g o d 's d o c ility to g a in . . . b ecau se he r e m a i n s ." T h is g o d o f a w a k e n in g is th e
c o n tro l o v e r h im , th u s u s u r p in g th e a u th o r ity o f th e d iv in e d y n a m i c p r i n c i p l e t h a t p u s h e s i t s d e v o t e e s b e y o n d a ll f in i-
m e s s a g e . H e w o u ld th e n h a v e u s e d th e in n o c e n c e a n d p u r ity t u d e , b u t it i s a l s o t h e p r i n c i p l e o f s t a b i l i t y t h a t r e s i s t s t h e
of th e god fo r th e b e n e fit o f h is o w n a rb itra r y and i d le n ig h t o f f o r g e t f u l n e s s th r o u g h th e f i r m n e s s o f its a t ta c h m e n t
h u m o r s , a n d w o u l d n o t h a v e l i s t e n e d t o h i m . H ö l d e r l i n is t o t h e f u l l n e s s o f l if e p a s t o r t o c o m e .
th u s c o m p e lle d to c r e a te a n e q u iv a le n t o f th e a n c ie n t s o n g , In th is p e r i o d , H ö ld e r lin c h a r g e s th e p o e t w ith t h e m is s io n
b u t o n e t h a t is r e n e w e d b y m o d e rn -d a y e v e n ts so t h a t it o f d e l i v e r i n g t h e G e r m a n s p i r i t f r o m t h e t o r p o r o f i ts w i n t e r y
m ig h t k e e p a liv e th e fire t h a t g l o w s in th e c o u n t e n a n c e a n d s l u m b e r , w h i c h m a k e s D i o n y s u s a b o v e a ll t h e i n c a r n a t i o n o f
a c tio n s o f D io n y s u s . t h e h e a v e n l y f i r e . L a t e r , s t a r t i n g in 1 8 0 3 w h e n h e b e g a n t o b e
H ö ld e rlin is th e o n ly m o d ern poet w ho a t te m p te d to d e b ilita te d b y illn e s s , H ö ld e rlin th o u g h t th a t h e c o u ld see
co n fo rm s c ru p u lo u s ly to th e P in d a ric and S o p h o cle a n h o v e rin g o v e r th e w o rld th e th r e a t o f to ta l c o lla p s e , a n a rc h y ,
m o d e s , n o t b y im ita tio n , w h ic h w o u ld b e a r e d u c t i o n , b u t a a new re ig n o f th e T ita n s ; h e th e n s a w D i o n y s u s in a v e r y
fundamento. S in c e D io n y s u s w a s n o lo n g e r th e g o d o f a la rg e d iffe re n t a s p e c t, a s a g u id e c a p a b le o f re s tra in in g n a tio n s
c o m m u n ity , h is r e -c r e a tio n c o u ld b e a c h ie v e d o n ly b y s o n g , in to x ic a te d w ith d e a t h , o f k e e p in g th e m in s h a p e , h e lp in g
o r , t o p u t it m o r e p r e c is e ly , h e w o u ld b e th e fru it o f th e th e m cu rb th e ir e le m e n ta l fo rces. H is fear of im m in e n t
c o m p o n e n t s o f s o n g , t h a t is, a m e t a p h o r o f s o n g its e lf . In th e u n iv e r s a l d is s o lu tio n in s p ire d a D io n y s u s o f s ta b ility a n d
q u a si-P in d a ric h y m n "A s on a h o lid a y " (1 8 0 0 ), th e p o e t 's b o u n d s , h e n c e fo rth b r o th e r to tw o o th e r d e m ig o d s , H e ra c le s
a t te n t io n w a s c a lle d to " t h e s ig n s a n d d e e d s o f th e w o r l d " — and C h ris t. T h e ir th re e la b o rs fo rg e , in h e ro is m , a new
t h e R e v o l u t i o n a n d t h e c o a l i t i o n w a r s t h a t r e s u l t e d f r o m i t. p e rm a n e n ce in th e r e la tio n b e tw e e n m an and th e e a rth ,
H e is s t r u c k b y t h e t h u n d e r b o l t o f Z e u s a s if , in H ö l d e r l i n ' s w h ic h b e c o m e s h a b ita b le a g a in b y v ir tu e o f th e in s titu tio n o f
l a n g u a g e o f m y th ic a l m e t a p h o r s , h e w e r e h im s e lf S e m e le , an ord er an d o f its la w (" U n i q u e ," 1 8 0 3 ). T h is D io n y s u s ,
th e m o th e r of D io n y s u s . The th u n d e rb o lt e n g e n d e rs h is g u a r a n t o r o f t h e p e o p l e 's s ta b i li t y t h r o u g h t h e g r a c e o f th e
p o e m , w h ic h is t h e r e f o r e i d e n tic a l w ith D io n y s u s , th e s y n ­ r i t e s a n d w o r d s b o r n o f h i s f i r e — t r a g e d i e s , f o r i n s t a n c e — is
t h e s i s o f h e a v e n l y f i r e a n d m a t e r n a l e a r t h . In t h i s f r a m e o f f i n a ll y m e r g e d in to C h r is t, th e f o u n d e r o f re lig io u s o r d e r s
r e f e r e n c e , th e g o d a p p e a r s b o th a s th e s ig n r e v e r tin g to th e a n d c o m m u n itie s .
p u re e le m e n ts of fa th e r and m o th e r, and as th e s h e lte r H e r e is a d u a l d i m e n s i o n , a l r e a d y h i n t e d a t i n t h e h y m n
o f f e r e d b y t h e e a r t h a g a i n s t t h e d a n g e r o f p a t e r n a l f i r e . H e is " T h e R h i n e " ( 1 8 0 1 ) , i n w h i c h R o u s s e a u is f i r s t i n t e r p r e t e d in
th e g o d o f e n c o u n te r, e x c h a n g e , o f th e m u tu a l a p p e a s e m e n t th e lig h t o f th e " d i v i n e d e l ir i u m " o f t h e g o d w i t h o u t la w b u t
o f tw o p o w e r s th a t m e n c a n n o t r e c e iv e w ith o u t s o m e t h in g to l a t e r a p p e a r s a s t h e m a n i n t h e b a c k g r o u n d , l ik e t h e r e c l u s e
m e d ia te b e tw e e n th e m ; and th is m e d ia tio n com es about w h o p r e f e r s o b s c u r i t y t o p r o f u s i o n s o f j o y , in o r d e r t o r e l e a r n
t h r o u g h l a n g u a g e , w h i c h h a s a d u a l c h a r a c t e r : it r e v e a l s t h e a w e a k s o n g . T h is s e c o n d d im e n s io n , th e a s p e c t o f m o d e r a ­
b u rn in g im m e d ia c y of th e s p irit, but it a l s o re v e a ls th e tio n , a s p ir e s to th e s e c u r i ty o f a r e f u g e a n d g o e s h a n d in
s tr u c tu r in g a n d le g is la tin g fo rm p r o d u c e d b y w o r d o r d e r a n d h a n d w it h H ö l d e r l i n 's b e l a te d i m a g e o f th e g o d w h o r e c o v e r s
th e la w s o f s y n ta x a n d r h y t h m . f r o m h i s p e r i l o u s b i r t h in t h e s h a d e o f G e r m a n f o r e s t s a m o n g
D io n y s u s m a y th u s b e th e m o d e l fo r th e u n io n o f o p p o ­ th e flo w e r s , b u t w h o a t th e s a m e tim e b rin g s to th e N o r th ­
s ite s . B u t h e is a l s o th e m e d i a to r b e t w e e n th e o r ig in a n d th e m e n th e v irtu e s o f th e c h ild re n o f th e s u n .
d e v e lo p m e n ts w h ic h a r e in d ic a te d th r o u g h o u t th e tra d itio n B .B ./g .h .
rig h t u p to th e t h r e s h o ld o f a f u tu r e n o t y e t re a liz e d . W in e ,
th e s ig n o f h is d o u b le b ir th , is a p r o m is e . F r ie n d s a r e s e e n
fe a s tin g to g e th e r — s o m e t h in g H ö ld e rlin fre q u e n tly e v o k e s ,
BIBLIOGRAPHY
a s in th e Stuttgart e le g y , w h ic h is t h o r o u g h ly i m b u e d w ith 1. Ancient Mythology in German Literature
th e s p irit o f D io n y s u s ; th e f r ie n d s n o t o n l y r e c a ll w ith r a p t u r e F. strich , Die Mythologie in der deutschen Literatur von Klopstock bis
th e p re se n ce of Z eus b u t a lso e x p re ss a rd e n t h o p e fo r a Wagner (Halle a.S. 1910). i. c. robertson , The Gods of Greece in German
r e t u r n o f h i s p r e s e n c e in a n e w f o r m . T h e F r e n c h R e v o l u t i o n Poetry (Oxford 1924). a . beck . Griechisch-deutsche Begegnung: Das
in itia te s a m o v e m e n t th a t c o u ld r e n e w t h e tim e s to th e p o in t deutsche Griechenerlebnis im Sturm und Drang (Stuttgart 1947). r. benz ,
a t w h ic h c o m m u n i ty s p irit w o u ld a g a in b e p o s s ib le , th e sp irit Wandel des Bildes der Antike in Deutschland (Munich 1948). w. rehm,
o f b ro th e rh o o d o f a n e n tire p e o p le . T h is fu tu re h e ra ld e d b y Götterstille und Göttertrauer (Bern 1951); Griechentum und Goethezeit (3d
w in e , b y D i o n y s u s , i s in k e e p i n g w i t h th e fe s tiv itie s th a t
ed., Bern 1952). w. f . otto . Die Gestalt und das Sein (Darmstadt 1955).
K. Reinhardt , Tradition und Geist (Göttingen 1960). w. schadewaldt ,
D i o n y s u s i n s p i r e d in a n c i e n t t i m e s . " B a c c h u s i s t h e s p i r i t o f
Hellas und Hesperien (Zurich and Stuttgart 1960). k . ziegler , "Mythos
c o m m u n ity "; h e re w e h a v e a re n e w a l o f w h a t th e G re e k s
und Dichtung," in Reallexikon der deutschen Literaturgeschichte (2d ed.,
k n e w . H e n c e th e p o e m , D io n y s u s , a n d th e w in e w h ic h is h is Berlin 1962), 2:569-84. k . hamburger . Von Sophokles zu Sartre: Griechis­
s i g n , a r e a ll t h r e e a t t h e p i v o t w h e r e t h e p a s t i s c a l l e d u p o n che Dramenfiguren antik und modern (Stuttgart 1962). w. emrich , Protest
t o t r a n s m u t e its e lf i n to th e f u t u r e . A ll t h r e e b o t h r e c a ll a n d und Verheissung (2d ed., Frankfurt am Main and Bonn 1963), 67-94.
a n n o u n c e th e m e d ia tio n th a t th e y e n s u r e b e tw e e n s p irit a n d H. Hatfield , Aesthetic Paganism in German Literature: From Winckelmann
la n g u a g e , h e a v e n a n d e a r th , m a s c u lin e a n d fe m in in e , a n ­ to the Death of Goethe (Cambridge, MA, 1964). w. kohlschmidt , "Die

292
 MY TH IN T W E N T I E T H - C E N T U R Y E N G L I S H L I T E R A T U R E

Antike in der modernen Dichtung," in Dichter, Tradition und Zeitgeist
(Bern 1965), 112-27. h. i . mai il. Die Idee des goldenen Zeitalters im Werk
des Novalis (Heidelberg 1965). m. puhrmann, Terror und Spiel: Probleme
der Mythenrezeption (Munich 1971).
2. Dionysus in Germany
m. mommsen, "Dionysos in der Dichtung Hölderlins," Germanisch-
Romanische Monatsschrift, n.s., 13, 4 (1963): 345-79. m. dierks, Studien
zu Mythos und Psychologie bei Thomas Mann (Bern and Munich 1972).
I. Schmidt, Heinrich von Kleist: Studien zu seiner poetischen Verfahrens­
weise (Tübingen 1974). b. boschenstein, "Die Bakchen des Euripides in
der Umgestaltung Hölderlins und Kleists," in Aspekte der Goethezeit
(Göttingen 1977), 240- 54; Leuchttürme (Frankfurt am Main 1977),
44-63.

M y th o lo g y , h e b e lie v e d , b e sto w s on a ra c e its fir s t u n ity ,

M yth in T w e n t ie t h - C e n tu r y " m a r r y i n g " it " t o ro ck a n d h i ll ," a n d s o g iv in g b ir th , o n e

E n g lish L iter a t u r e m ig h t s a y , to a m e a n in g fu l g e o g r a p h y a n d to a g e o g r a p h y o f
m e a n in g . Even C h ris tia n ity w as not to be e x c lu d e d . A l­
th o u g h in "T h e W a n d e rin g s of O is in " he op p o sed th e
T h e p ro b le m o f m y th , o f h o w w e s h o u ld d e a l w ith it a n d d ru id ic Ire la n d of O s s ia n to th e C a th o lic Ire la n d of S t.
how it m i g h t d e a l w i t h u s , h a s tro u b le d E n g lis h -la n g u a g e P a tric k , h e r e c o g n i z e d e l s e w h e r e t h a t th e " p l a c e s o f b e a u ty
w r i t e r s i n t h i s c e n t u r y , a s it h a s t r o u b l e d w r i t e r s e v e r y w h e r e . or le g e n d a ry a s s o c ia tio n " h ad a lso been im p re g n a te d fo r
It i s n o t a p r o b l e m t h a t w il l g o a w a y ; it h a s a t l e a s t b e e n g i v e n c e n t u r i e s w ith th e C h r is t ia n f a ith .
se v e ra l new tw ists . It w o u ld seem a p p ro p ria te to b e g in M y th o lo g y a lso p ro v id e d a p la ce fo r h is ow n p o e try ,
c o n s i d e r i n g it b y l o o k i n g a t Y e a t s , t h e w r i t e r w h o a p p e a r e d , p re se rv in g it f r o m w hat he saw as a fa lse s u b je c tiv ity , a
a t t im e s , th e m o s t w illin g to a l lo w m y th to p e r s u a d e h im . fra g m e n ta r y in d iv id u a lis m in h e r ite d fro m th e R e n a is s a n c e .
Y e a t s tu r n e d first to th e m y th o lo g y o f I r e la n d , p a r tic ip a t­ O n e o f t h e d e e p a s p i r a t io n s o f m o d e r n p o e t r y e x p r e s s e s its e lf
in g in th e C e lt i c R e v iv a l o f t h e e n d o f th e la s t c e n t u r y , w h ic h i n a p a s s a g e l ik e t h e f o l l o w i n g : " I f i ll e d m y m i n d w ith th e
fo llo w e d fro m sev eral d ecad es of w o rk on th e o ld Irish p o p u la r b e lie fs of Ire la n d . . . I sou gh t som e sy m b o lic
le g e n d s by s c h o la rs and tra n s la to rs and w h ic h c o in cid e d lan g u ag e re a c h in g far in to th e p ast and a s s o c ia te d w ith
w ith a g e n e r a l r e n e w a l o f i n te r e s t in m y th a n d fo lk lo r e . H e fa m ilia r n a m e s and c o n sp icu o u s h ills th a t I m ig h t n o t b e
w a s t w e n ty -f iv e y e a r s o ld w h e n F r a z e r 's The Golden Bough a lo n e a m id th e o b s c u r e im p r e s s io n s o f th e s e n s e s ." N e v e r ­
a p p eared in 1890. M y th re p re s e n te d fo r h im a k in d of t h e l e s s , d e s p i t e t h i s b e l i e f in l o c a l i t y , Y e a t s c o m b i n e d C e l t i c
h y g ie n e of th e s p irit. It w as a m eans of s e e in g , u tte r ly m y t h s w ith o t h e r s in t h e g r a d u a l e l a b o r a t io n o f a c o s m o l o g y
op p o sed to s cie n ce , to m a te ria lis m , and to A n g lo -S a x o n t h a t in th e e n d w a s h e t e r o g e n e o u s a n d p e r s o n a l . A m e m b e r
a b s tr a c tio n . T h e illu m in is t tr a d itio n o f th e e ig h te e n th and o f th e T h e o s o p h ic a l S o c ie ty a n d a n in itia te o f th e O r d e r o f th e
n in e te e n th c e n tu rie s re liv e s in h is w o rk , o ffe rin g to th e G o ld e n D a w n , h e s tu d ie d O rie n ta l re lig io n s , o c c u lt s y s te m s ,
im a g in a tio n a u n iv e r s e s a tu r a te d w ith d re a m and s y m b o l, m a g ic , a s tro lo g y , a lch e m y , th e c a b a la . N e o p la to n is m , th e
a n d a llo w in g a r e tu rn to o r ig in s , " t o th e r o o ts o f th e T r e e s o f " c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s " o f S w e d e n b o r g a n d B la k e , a n d o u t o f th is
K n o w l e d g e a n d o f L i f e ." Y e a t s e v e n e n t e r ta i n e d t h e h o p e a t e c le c tic b rew p ro d u ced A Vision. T h is p re p o s te ro u s and
o n e p o in t th a t C e ltic m y th o lo g y w o u ld s p r e a d w ith th e s a m e u n fo rg e tta b le b o o k , w h o se co n ce p ts an d im a g e s fe e d in to
fo rce as th e G e rm a n ic m y th o lo g y of W agner and o th e rs , m a n y o f h is g r e a te s t p o e m s a n d p la y s , e m e r g e d , a c c o r d in g to
b e in g c o n v in c e d th a t "e v e r y new fo u n ta in o f l e g e n d s is a Y e a ts , fro m r e v e la tio n s co m m u n ica te d to h im by c e rta in
n e w in to x ic a ti o n fo r th e im a g i n a ti o n o f t h e w o r l d ." It is tr u e s p iritu a l m a s te r s th r o u g h th e a u t o m a t ic w r itin g o f h is w ife .
t h a t, a t firs t, h e d i s to r te d Irish le g e n d s b y a s s im ila tin g th e m T hey ta u g h t h im th a t e v e r y th in g w as govern ed by th e
to a f i n -d e - s i è c l e r e v e r y a n d tô t h e m e l a n c h o ly o f a n in fin ite tw e n ty -e ig h t p h ases o f th e m oon, w h ic h c o u ld be re p re ­
l o n g in g , r e liv in g in a w a y th a t e a r lie r C e ltic r e v iv a l th a t h a d s e n te d b y a g e o m e tr ic a l c o n s tr u c tio n o f w h e e ls a n d " g y r e s ."
p e n e tr a te d E u ro p ean r o m a n tic is m v ia th e w r itin g s o f C h a ­ E a c h p e r i o d - o f h i s t o r y h a d its p h a s e , a s d id e a c h i n d i v id u a l ,
t e a u b r ia n d a n d G o e th e , h a v in g b e e n la u n c h e d b y M a c p h e r- a n d a s th e w h o le o f h is to r y p a s s e d a g a in a n d a g a in th r o u g h
s o n 's s o - c a l le d t r a n s l a ti o n s f r o m O s s ia n . a ll t h e p h ases, so each in d iv id u a l f o llo w e d th e sam e se­
M y th w a s a ls o th e p o s s ib ility o f r e c r e a ti n g th e Irish n a tio n . q u e n c e in a s e r ie s o f r e i n c a r n a t i o n s . H e n c e t h e e x i s t e n c e o f
Y e a t s d e s ir e d to n o u r is h th e m e m o r y o f h is c o m p a t r io t s w ith an anima mundi, a g r e a t g e n e ra l m e m o ry o f th e ra c e , a n o tio n
th e ta le s o f C u c h u la in , O s s ia n , D e ird re , and a lso of th e t h a t is c le a r l y r e l a te d t o t h e c o l le c ti v e u n c o n s c i o u s o f J u n g .
fa irie s, w itc h e s , a n d g h o s t s o f p o p u l a r b e lie f t h a t h e c e le ­ R a th e r th a n d e lv in g f u r th e r in to th is in tr ig u in g " p h a n t a s ­
b r a t e d in The Celtic Twilight. H e c la im e d th a t th e Irish h a d a m a g o ria " (th e w o rd i s Y e a t s ' s o w n ) , it is w o r t h n o tin g th e
p a r tic u la r a p t it u d e fo r m y th : th a t s to r ie s o f m e e t in g s w ith a ttr a c tio n o f a c y c lic a l, lu n a r s y s te m fo r o t h e r w r ite r s o f th e
s u p e r n a t u r a l c r e a t u r e s w e r e m o r e n u m e r o u s in I r e la n d th a n p e r i o d — it is t o b e f o u n d , in o n e f o r m o r a n o t h e r , in J o y c e ' s
in t h e w h o l e o f th e r e s t o f E u r o p e , th a t p e a s a n t a n d n o b l e ­ Finnegans Wake, P o u n d ' s "P isa n C a n to s ," a n d G r a v e s 's The
m a n a lik e , to th e e n d o f th e s e v e n t e e n t h c e n tu ry a t le a st, White Goddess — a n d a l s o th e a p o c a ly p tic n a tu re o f Y e a t s 's
re s p e c te d th o se le g e n d s , and th a t even in h is ow n day v e r s i o n , s in c e h e w o r k e d o u t th e c y c l e s o f h i s t o r y in s u c h a
c o u n tr y p e o p le s p o k e w ith th e d e a d "an d w ith s o m e w h o w a y t h a t t h e m o m e n t o f h i s o w n l if e w o u l d c o r r e s p o n d t o a
p e r h a p s h a v e n e v e r d ie d a s w e u n d e r s ta n d d e a t h ." T h e a im c a ta c ly s m . A ro u n d 1 9 2 7 o u r p e r io d o f c iv iliz a tio n , fo u n d e d
w a s in p a r t p o litic a l: in its m y t h s , l e g e n d s , a n d fo lk lo r e c o u ld b y C h r i s t , w a s t o e n c o u n t e r , in w a r a n d t e r r o r , i t s a n t i t h e s i s ,
b e d is c o v e re d a n Ire la n d u tte rly fre e o f E n g lis h c o n ta m in a ­ th e A n tic h r is t, th e " r o u g h b e a s t " s lo u c h in g to w a r d B e th le ­
tio n , a t a m o m e n t w h e n th e re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n th e tw o h e m to b e b o r n . Y e a t s 's t h in k i n g h e r e c o r r e s p o n d s to t h a t o f
c o u n tr ie s w a s i n te n s e ly a t i s s u e . B u t t h e a im a b o v e a ll w a s to h is age. From M a lla rm é ("th e tre m b lin g of th e v e il") to
d is c o v e r p la c e . B y s p e a k in g " o u t o f a p e o p le to a p e o p l e ," S p e n g l e r 's Decline of the West, E l i o t ' s The Waste Land, a n d D.
Y e a t s e n d e a v o r e d to re u n ite th e Irish n a tio n to th e Irish la n d . H . L a w r e n c e 's Apocalypse, a p o c a l y p s e b e c a m e t h e m y t h o f an

293
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

The Golden Bough a n d J e s s i e W e s t o n ' s From Ritual to

F r a z e r 's
Romance. The Golden Bough, w h i c h e x e r t e d a p r o f o u n d i n f l u ­
e n c e o n E l i o t 's g e n e r a t i o n , d e r i v e s r e l i g i o n f r o m s y m p a t h e t i c
m a g ic , s tu d y in g th e p e r s is te n c e , in th e M id d le A ges and
even in m o d ern fo lk lo re , o f a n cie n t fe rtility rite s , w h ose
p u r p o s e w a s to e n s u r e th e re b irth o f s p r in g a f te r th e d e a th o f
n a tu re in w in te r, and w h ose fo cu s w as th e d e a th and
r e s u rre c tio n o f a v e g e ta tio n god s u c h a s A d o n is , A ttis , o r
O s i r i s . E l i o t 's p o e m s m a y b e r e a d in t h i s p e r s p e c t i v e . A t t h e
b e g i n n i n g t h e v e g e t a t i o n g o d is b u r i e d , a n d t h e r e is t a l k o f
h i s d o g , t h a t is t o s a y , A n u b i s , t h e j a c k a l - h e a d e d g o d w h o
a i d s O s i r i s 's r e s t o r a t i o n , a n d o f t h e h y a c i n t h t h a t is a s s o c i ­
a te d w ith h i m . In t h e f o u r t h p a r t A d o n i s is s u b m e r g e d in
w a t e r in a c c o r d a n c e w i t h a p a r a l l e l r i t e , in t h e p e r s o n o f a
s a ilo r w h o s h a r e s h is P h o e n ic ia n n a tio n a lity , w h ile a t th e e n d
t h e r a i n f a l l s , a n d it d o e s s o b y t h e G a n g e s , t h e s o u r c e o f t h e
m o s t a n c i e n t o f a ll v e g e t a t i o n m y th s . The p oem is a l s o a
d e s c e n t i n t o H a d e s , l ik e t h a t w h i c h t h e g o l d e n b o u g h m a d e
p o s sib le fo r A e n e a s .
J e s s i e W e s t o n s e e s i n t h i s f e r t i l i t y c u l t t h e o r i g i n o f t h e G r a il
s to ry , w ith even th e m ira cu lo u s c u p its e lf r e p r e s e n ti n g a
c u ltic o b je c t. She a lso a s s o c ia te s th e fo u r sy m b o ls o f th e
G ra il: c u p , l a n c e , s w o r d , s to n e o r d is h , w ith th e fo u r s u its o f
t h e T a r o t p a c k ( h a v i n g , a s it h a p p e n s , c o n s u l t e d Y e a t s ) . In
The Waste Land, a c c o r d in g ly , th e q u e s t o f th e G ra il a n d th e
la y in g d o w n o f T a ro t c a rd s b e c o m e fu rth e r s p e c tra l p a ra ­
d i g m s o f t h e n a r r a t i v e . T h e p l a c e o f t h e p o e m is a l a n d l a id
w a ste a n d i n fe rtile p a r tly b y th e sexu al in ad eq u acy o f i ts
in h a b ita n ts , l ik e th e F is h e r K i n g 's te rrito ry in th e G ra il
s t o r i e s , w h e r e t h e v e g e t a t i o n fa i ls b e c a u s e o f h i s m y s t e r i o u s
w ound. At th e end of th e voyage, E l i o t 's read er fin d s
h i m s e l f , l ik e t h e G r a i l k n i g h t , in t h e P e r i l o u s C h a p e l a n d t h e
P e r ilo u s C e m e t e r y , s o a s t o b e in itia te d i n to th e m y s t e r i e s o f
p h y s i c a l l if e ( t h e r a i n f a l ls ) a n d s p i r i t u a l life ( t h e th u n d e r

W. B. Yeats. Photo BBC/British Council. s p e a k s ). It is t h e T a r o t w h i c h p re d icts th e e n tr a n c e s o f a

h a n g e d g o d , o f A d o n is , a n d o f th e F is h e r K in g .
These re a d in g s , h o w ev er, a re in e x a ct, b ecau se of th e
d y s fu n c tio n in g o f th e v a r io u s n a rra tiv e s . T h e T a ro t p a c k , fo r
e p o c h . In t h e i m a g i n a t i o n o f m a n y , o f c o u r s e , t h e m y t h w a s e x a m p l e , is i n te r p r e t e d b y a c h a r la t a n w h o h a s " a b a d c o l d ."
a c tu a l ly liv e d t h r o u g h . T h e r e f e r e n c e t o P a r s i f a l 's r i t u a l p u r i f i c a t i o n o c c u r s in a l in e
So m y th a lso re p r e s e n te d a p o s s ib lity of o rd er, w hen q u o te d fro m th e " P a r s if a l " o f V e rla in e , a p o e m w h ic h d u ly
" T h i n g s fa ll a p a r t ; t h e c e n t e r c a n n o t h o l d . " H e n c e Y e a t s 's c e l e b r a t e s a m a n w h o h a s " o v e r c o m e W o m e n " b u t w h i c h is
p re o c c u p a tio n w ith th e "u n ity of b e in g " and "u n ity of d e d ic a te d to a n o t o r io u s h o m o s e x u a l . T h e r e f e r e n c e is fo l­
c u l t u r e . " Y e t t o m e d i t a t e o n t h e u n i t y o f c u l t u r e is a r g u a b l y t o lo w e d in E l i o t 's p oem b y a n o th e r h o m o s e x u a l e n c o u n te r.
re c o g n iz e th a t s u c h u n ity n o lo n g e r e x is ts ; a n d to m e d ita te T h is d e ris io n o f n a r r a tiv e c a n b e p a r tly e x p la in e d b y th e fa ct
o n m y t h is s u r e l y t o r e d u c e it t o a n o b j e c t o f c u l t u r e , t o a th a t th e m o d ern v ic tim s o f s te rility , a n d th e "h y p o c r itic a l
s e rie s o f o b je c ts e x h ib ite d in t h e i m a g i n a r y m u seum . The r e a d e r " w h o o b s e r v e s th e m , d o n o t d e s ire th e re g e n e r a tio n
i r o n y is t h a t Y e a t s , w h o c o u l d n o t e n d u r e " a n i n t e r n a t i o n a l p ro m is e d by th e m y th . But th e d e risio n is a l s o in te rn a l:
a r t , p i c k i n g s t o r i e s a n d s y m b o l s w h e r e it p l e a s e d , " e x p l o i t e d n a r r a t i v e i t s e l f , a s w e l l a s i t s " c o n t e n t , " is in q u e s t i o n . T h e
m y th o lo g ie s fo r h is p o e m s a n d o t h e r w o r k s w ith th e s a m e n a r r a t io n b r e a k s d o w n . T h e ra in fa lls , y e t th e p la in r e m a in s
c o s m o p o lita n and sk e p tica l e ru d itio n as Jo y ce , E lio t, or a r i d ; t h e q u e s t e r ' s v o y a g e is a c c o m p l i s h e d , y e t h e s e e m s t o
P o u n d (o r T h o m a s M a n n , fo r i n s ta n c e , s in c e th e p h e n o m e ­ l o s e h i s r e a s o n . T h e q u e s t i s e v e n r e n d e r e d n u ll in t h e v e r y
n o n w a s n o t e x c l u s i v e t o w r i t e r s in E n g l i s h ) . I t is t r u e t h a t first l in e of th e poem , s in c e A p ril, th e m o n th w h ic h in
Y e a ts b e lie v e d th a t th e p a ra lle lis m b e tw e e n C e ltic a n d , s a y , C h a u c e r 's Canterbury Tales e n c o u r a g e s p e o p le b y its s w e e t
In d ia n m y th o lo g y w a s n o t fo rtu ito u s , a n d th a t e v e r y s y m ­ sh o w ers to go on p ilg r im a g e s , h as b eco m e "th e c r u e lle s t
b o lic s y s te m d e r i v e d f r o m a s in g le o r ig in a l b e lie f. T h e r e s u lt m o n t h ."
is n o n e th e le s s a m y th o lo g y b la ta n tly s y n th e tic . As E l io t T h e d e r is io n is c l e a r e s t in th e f a m o u s a s s e m b l in g in th e
w r o t e , in After Strange Gods: " M r . Y e a t s w a s in s e a r c h o f a te x t o f ju x ta p o s e d a n d c o n tr a d ic to r y fra g m e n ts . T h e q u e s te r
t r a d i t i o n , a l it t le t o o c o n s c i o u s l y p e r h a p s — l ik e a ll o f u s . " is t h e r e a d e r h i m s e l f w h o , c o n f r o n t e d b y t h e s e i m p e n e t r a b l e
W ith E lio t t o o th e e x p l o i ta t i o n o f m y th is a l a t e - c u l t u r a l o b j e c t s , m u s t a s k t h e i r m e a n i n g . In a n o t h e r m y t h i c a l p e r ­
p h e n o m e n o n , a n d o u r d is ta n c e fro m m y th is s u g g e s t e d in s p e c tiv e , th e f r a g m e n ts a r e a ls o th e le a v e s o f th e S ib y l, w h o
h is w o r k e v e n m o r e d e c is iv e ly . T h e th e m e o f The Waste Land a p p e a r s in th e e p i g r a p h a n d e l s e w h e r e — s h a r d s o f a n o r a c l e
c o u ld b e s e e n a s th e s te rile m u ltip lic ity o f m y th o lo g ie s th a t b lo w n a b o u t b y th e w in d . O n e m ig h t a r g u e th a t tra d itio n a l
we fin d at our d isp o s a l, fra g m e n ts of an e x c e s s iv e and n a r r a t i v e i s a k i n d o f G r a i l q u e s t , s i n c e it s e e k s i t s a c c o m ­
s h a tte re d p a s t th a t w e n o lo n g e r k n o w w h a t to d o w ith . T h e p l is h m e n t in its e n d in g . The Waste Land, on th e c o n tra ry ,
n o te s a d d e d to th e p o e m r e f e r to tw o w o r k s o f a n th r o p o lo g y , m o c k s lin e a r a n d te le o lo g ic a l n a r r a t iv e in a t e x t d e lib e r a te ly

294
 MY TH IN T W E N T I E T H - C E N T U R Y E N G L I S H L I T E R A T U R E

in c o h e re n t, a k in d o f w a ste la n d of w ritin g . And at th e m a k e s th e Irish c a p ita l a k in d o f omphalos; a s th e a u th o r o f

d e e p e s t p o in t o f th e p o e m a n o th e r m y th , o f d isp e rs a l a n d n o v e ls a t o n c e in te n s e ly re a lis t a n d d e n se ly s y m b o lic, he
c o n f u s i o n , is b e i n g r e c r e a te d : th e m y th o f B a b e l. B a b e l is f u r n is h e s u n iv e r s a l m y th s w ith a q u o tid ia n s ite . T h is c o n c e n ­
p r e s e n t in th e p o e m th r o u g h a n u m b e r o f a llu s io n s — a b o v e t r a t i o n o n D u b l i n d i s t a n c e s h i m a g a i n f r o m Y e a t s , a n d l in k s
a ll, its t o w e r is " a b o l i s h e d " in t h e e n d in g , p r e c is e ly a t th e h im w ith t h a t w id e r l it e r a r y o p e n i n g o f t h e m o d e r n C it y to
m om ent w hen th e te x t c r u m b le s in to fiv e d iffe re n t th e in s in u a tio n o f m y th , o t h e r m a j o r e x p r e s s i o n s o f w h ic h
la n g u a g e s — a n d its e f f e c t is e v e r y w h e r e . A v a r ie ty o f la n ­ a r e t h e P a ris o f B a u d e l a ir e a n d t h e L o n d o n o f E lio t.
g u a g e s s e e th e s d is q u ie tin g ly t h r o u g h o u t th e t e x t; th e n o te s Jo y c e w a s fa r fro m c o n sid e rin g m y th as an in itia tio n to
e m p lo y a s m a n y , a n d n o t a lw a y s th e s a m e o n e s ; th e s h o rt k n o w le d g e , or a fo rm of b e in g . A c c o rd in g to E lio t, th e
e p ig ra p h a n d d e d ic a tio n c o n tr iv e to u s e L a tin , G re e k , E n ­ p re se n ce of m y th in Ulysses is "a w ay o f c o n tr o llin g , of
g lis h , a n d Ita lia n ; a n d th e tr a n s la tio n o f th e Upanisads th a t a o r d e r in g , o f g iv in g a s h a p e a n d a s ig n ific a n c e to th e im m e n s e
n o te re c o m m e n d s is in G erm an . Even w ith in in d iv id u a l p a n o ra m a of f u tility and an arch y w h ic h is c o n t e m p o r a r y
l a n g u a g e s , s y n t a x d i s l o c a t e s a n d w o r d s fa ll a p a r t . h is to r y ." (T h is c o m m e n t d a t e s fro m th e y e a r fo llo w in g th e
If t h e r e is a d e risio n o f n a r r a tiv e , in f a c t, th e re is a l s o p u b lic a tio n of The Waste Land.) "It is a m e th o d a lre a d y
d e r i s i o n o f l a n g u a g e . L a n g u a g e is o n e o f t h e t h e m e s o f t h e a d u m b ra te d b y M r. Y e a ts . . . It i s , I s e r i o u s l y b e l i e v e , a s t e p
p o e m (th e m o s t superficial) s o th a t c u ltu ra l a n d p s y c h o lo g ic a l t o w a r d m a k i n g th e m o d e r n w o r l d p o s s i b l e in a r t ." C e r t a in l y ,
a l i e n a t i o n a r e a c c o m p a n i e d b y a l i n g u i s t i c a l i e n a t i o n , a fa ll o f Ulysses o f f e r s its e lf a s a k in d of cosm os, w h e re Jo y ce has
la n g u a g e th a t r e fle c ts th e fa ll o f m a n . In th e B ab el o f th e e n d e a v o r e d to t r a n s p o s e m y th sub specie temporis nostri (u n ­
p o e m e v e r y t h i n g is d i s p e r s e d : m y t h o l o g i e s , p l a c e s , h i s t o r i c a l d e r th e v is io n o f o u r tim e ), a n d w h e r e h e h a s a r tic u la te d a
m o m e n t s , lit e r a r y w o r k s q u o t e d in f r a g m e n ts . A c c o r d i n g to s in g le s to r y th ro u g h se v e ra l "s to rie s " in p a ra lle l s e rie s :
th is t e x t b u ilt f r o m th e r u i n s o f o t h e r t e x ts , t h e G r e a t M e m o r y e p is o d e s o f th e Odyssey, o r g a n s o f th e b o d y , Je w is h rite s ,
is a p l e th o r ic ju m b le , a n d h is t o r i c a l c o n s c i o u s n e s s a " h e a p o f co lo rs, etc. In th e sam e w ay, th e abundant m a te ria l of
b r o k e n i m a g e s . " T h e l a s t p a r t o f t h e p o e m , it i s t r u e , s e e k s a Finnegans Wake is o r g a n i z e d in a h ig h l y c o n c e n t r a t e d c y c li c
re m e d y fo r B a b e l. The th u n d e r p ro n o u n ce s a r e s to r a tiv e o r d e r ( w h i c h re c a ll s Y e a t s 's A Vision, a b o u t w h ic h J o y c e s a id ,
s y lla b le , " D a ," a n d th e th r e e w o r d s o f s a lv a tio n w h ic h d e r iv e m o r e o v e r : " W h a t a p i t y h e d i d n o t p u t a ll t h i s i n t o a c r e a t i v e
fro m it a r e t a k e n fro m S a n s k rit, th e o ld e s t In d o -E u r o p e a n w o r k " ) . N e v e r th e le s s , th e o r d e r th a t m y th im p o s e s u p o n a
la n g u a g e and th e one w h ic h m ig h t se rv e to g a th e r th e re fra c to ry w o rld is fa r f r o m Ulysses e v e n s e e m s a s
se cu re .
s c a t t e r e d t o n g u e s . Y e t t h e l a s t l i n e s a r e f i x e d in a d e f i n i t i v e p r o b l e m a t i c in t h i s r e s p e c t a s The Waste Land, a n d i t s s y m ­
a m b ig u ity , a j u x ta p o s itio n o f th e ra in o f S a n sk rit a n d th e b o lism o f lo s t k e y s s u g g e s ts o u r d is ta n c e a t o n c e fro m th e
a rid ity o f th e n u m e r o u s d ia le c ts . n ovel an d fro m a com m on m y th o lo g y th a t re a d e r, a u th o r,
T h e m y t h o f B a b e l is a t t h e c e n t e r o f The Waste Land, as of a n d c h a r a c t e r s m i g h t s h a r e . Its r e l a ti o n s w ith th e Odyssey are
t h e w h o l e o f E l i o t 's w o r k . A n d i s n 't B a b e l , a l a n g u a g e m y t h , in any case in p art b u rle sq u e , and th e e n ta n g le m e n t of
th e f u n d a m e n ta l m y th in m o d e r n lit e r a t u r e ? P o l y g l o t w r it i n g m y th ic and lit e r a r y re m in is c e n c e s — B lo o m is a re ru n of
is o n e o f i t s s i g n s , i n The Waste Land b u t a l s o in t h e Cantos of U l y s s e s , M o s e s , t h e W a n d e r i n g J e w , S i n b a d t h e S a i l o r , R ip
P o u n d a n d , a m o n g m o r e r e c e n t w o r k s , in Renga, a q u a d r i- V a n W i n k l e , a n d G o d t h e F a t h e r , a m o n g o t h e r s — is a s m u c h
lin g u a l poem p re o ccu p ie d w ith la n g u a g e s , te x ts , m y th s , a m a r v e lo u s h o tc h -p o tc h as an e n c y c lo p e d ic o r d e r . A s fo r
c o m p o s e d b y th r e e E u r o p e a n s o f d iffe re n t n a tio n a litie s a n d a Finnegans Wake, it d e s c r i b e s i t s e l f e x p l i c i t l y a s " C h a o s m o s "
M e x ica n . A bove a ll, w rite rs s in c e M a lla r m é ("la n g u a g e s a n d " M i c r o c h a s m e ."
im p e r f e c t th r o u g h b e in g s e v e r a l, t h e r e la c k s a s u p r e m e o n e " ) P a ro d y a n d s e lf -p a r o d y w o u ld s e e m to b e a s u r e s ig n o f a
r e c o g n i z e in o n e w a y o r a n o t h e r th e f a ilu re o f l a n g u a g e , a n d tro u b le d r e la tio n to m y th . A p o s s ib le r e s o lu tio n , fo r a m o d ­
a s p i r e t o i t s r e n e w a l . H e n c e , in s o m a n y p o e t s , n o v e l i s t s , a n d e r n m in d a s s a i le d b y k n o w l e d g e , is t h e c o m e d y w h ic h , a t th e
d ra m a tis ts , a v o lu n ta ry d ila p id a tio n of w ritin g and th e d e e p e s t le v e l o f th e w o r k s , m a y b e a b s o r b s th a t i r o n y ; a n d
e la b o r a tio n o f n e w id io m s . a n o t h e r , in t e r m s o f t h e m y t h i t s e l f , is in t h e h e r o i n e s o f t h e
T h i s e f f o r t t o r e c r e a t e l a n g u a g e is e v e n m o r e s t r i k i n g in tw o n o v e ls , M o lly B lo o m a n d A n n a L iv ia P lu r a b e lle . T h e s e
Jo y ce, w h ose u se of a m u ltiv a r ie ty of m y th s seem s an w o m e n a r e a ls o , w ith d u e a l lo w a n c e fo r m ir th , g o d d e s s e s ,
a tte m p t a t a n e n c y c lo p e d ic c o m p le x ity . Ulysses, a r e w ritin g o f fe m in in e p r in c ip le s , w h o a b s o r b e v e r y t h in g in to t h e m s e l v e s .
th e Odyssey, h a s i ts m a i n c h a r a c t e r s — S t e p h e n - T e l e m a c h u s , M o lly " i s " Cea Tellus o r C y b e le , th e E a r th a n d th e u n iv e r s a l
B lo o m -U ly s s e s a n d M o lly -P e n e lo p e — tra v e l th r o u g h a s to r y - m o th e r ; A n n a L iv ia , th e riv e r, th e s e a , th e m a te rn a l w a te r s .
w o r l d a b o u n d i n g in o t h e r r e m i n is c e n c e s o f t h e H o m e r i c ta le , L ik e E lio t, J o y c e a l s o u s e s m y th s o f l a n g u a g e , a s o f a r t , a n d
w h ile a ls o in v o lv in g th e m in n u m e ro u s fu rth e r m y th s of h is u se is e q u a lly iro n ic. S te p h e n , th e fu tu re w r ite r , is
G re e k , Je w is h , C h ris tia n , a n d o th e r o r ig in s . Finnegans Wake, a s s o c i a t e d in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man w ith th e
a summa p a tie n t o f a p lu r a lity o f r e a d i n g s , e n a c t s th e m y th o f E g y p tia n g o d T h o th , w h o w a s a c c u s e d o f th e ft a n d im p ie ty
u n i v e r s a l fa ll a n d r e s u r r e c t i o n , c e n t e r i n g it o n th e o r ig in a l f o r h a v i n g i n v e n t e d w r i t i n g . In b o t h A Portrait and Ulysses he
fa u lt o f th e h e r o , H .C .E ., o n h is d r e a m a n d h is a w a k e n i n g . a l s o r e p r e s e n t s I c a r u s , s o n o f D a e d a lu s . H is f a t h e r is n o t o n l y
T h e b o o k a l s o u s e s t h e t h e o r y in V i c o 's The New Science o f th e th e a r c h ite c t o f th e la b y r in th — th e la b y rin th o f D u b lin , o f
t h r e e p h a s e s o f h i s t o r y a n d t h e i r e t e r n a l r e c u r r e n c e . It r e l i v e s I r e la n d , o f h is o w n p a st, and p e rh a p s o f th e book its e lf ,
th e d r e a m o f th e w h o le o f h u m a n ity , w h ic h a t th e e n d b e g in s w h e r e S t e p h e n w a n d e r s in s e a r c h o f a w a y o u t — b u t a f o r g e r ,
a n e w , a n d m o re p a rtic u la rly th e d r e a m o f F in n M a c C o o l, a and th e re b y , a c c o r d in g to th e p a r o n o m a s ia w h ic h p re s id e s
m y th ic a l I r i s h .h e r o a s le e p on th e banks of th e L iffe y in o v e r J o y c e 's w r it i n g , a m a k e r o f fa lse c o in , a f a b ric a to r o f
D u b l i n , w h o s e a w a k e n i n g o r r e t u r n is t h e a w a k e n i n g o f a ll t e x t s a n d o f s t o r i e s . O n e f i n d s in J o y c e , a s in E l i o t , t h e s a m e
th e h e r o e s o f th e p a s t . O n e f in d s in Finnegans Wake a u se of p e r s is te n t a n d u n e a s y m o c k e ry o f o n e 's c ra ft.
Irish m y th o lo g y q u ite d iffe re n t fro m th a t o f Y e a ts , a n d o n e T h is i r o n y t o o , h o w e v e r , s e e m s r e s o l v e d in Ulysses, b y th e
sees above a ll th e o n e iric n a tu re o f th e n a r r a tiv e , d ream f a c t t h a t a ll th e c h a r a c t e r s , e v e n t s , s y m b o l s , a n d s o o n , a r e
b e in g th e n a tu r a l d o m a in o f m y th , fo r J u n g a s fo r o th e r s . u n i t e d b y m e t e m p s y c h o s i s in l a n g u a g e , " m e t e m p s y c h o s i s "
O n e a lso sees th a t th e m y th o lo g y is a c c o m p a n i e d by a b e in g a w o rd th a t a c tu a lly c irc u la te s in th e book; w h ile
to p o g ra p h y . M y th o g ra p h e r of th e c ity of D u b lin , Jo y ce Finnegans Wake, w h i c h is s e t " b y t h e w a t e r s o f b a b a l o n g " a n d

295
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN T H E
Khnopff, The Silver Headdress. Pencil sketch. Private collection. Photo
Dulière-Skira.
which, to return to another myth, is a kind of apocalypse of
language, nevertheless finds its beginning, like Proust's In
Search of Lost Time, in its end: the last word of the book is a
definite article which seems to introduce the sentence­
ending that opens the book. The Egyptian serpent bites its
own tail, Vico's eternal recurrence is enacted by the story
itself, and the whole book becomes a noun.
Other writers have explored various strata of the land's
mythology. David Jones in particular, a poet and painter of
both English and Welsh extraction, was preoccupied with
"the Island of Britain" and with King Arthur, "the central
figure of our island myth." Like Yeats, and like the Joyce of
Finnegans Wake, he explored "the Celtic cycle that Ues, a
subterranean influence as deep as water troubling, under
every tump in this Island, like Merlin complaining under his
big rock." Also like them he founded his myths on a
topography. The body of the hero in The Sleeping Lord, who is
in part Arthur, is also the landscape, as are the bodies of
Finn, and of the giant Albion in Blake.
In The White Goddess, Robert Graves excavated the prehis­
toric mythologies of Britain, examining the conflicts that
existed among them and speculating on the cults that existed
at Avebury and Stonehenge, in quest of the White Goddess,
who gave to the island, he surmised, its early names of
Samothea and Albion. In her capacity of goddess of the
moon and the universal mother, he claimed to trace her
worship from the Mediterranean to northern Europe, before
her displacement by male gods and by the logic of Socrates.
To rediscover the White Goddess, with whom Molly Bloom
and Anna Livia Plurabelle are not unconnected, would be,
for Graves, to recover the possibility of myth and also of
poetry. For the goddess is equally the Muse (she was ousted
in this role too by the male Apollo), and the center of the
most widespread myth to do with literature. In Graves's
296
C H R I S T I A N E R A
version, however, she is creative and yet destructive, the
goddess of death as of inspiration, demanding from her
adept total sacrifice, and what she recalls most in modem
times is the "belle dame sans merci" of the romantic agony.
Lawrence too was concerned with pre-Olympian mythol­
ogies, in his search for the openness to the cosmos, the
veneration of the body of the universe, which he saw as
chronologically prior to the cult of gods. It is true that, before
Graves, he referred to the White Goddess, "the great cosmic
Mother crowned with all the signs of the zodiac," and to "the
great dark God, the ithyphallic, of the first dark religions";
and that The Plumed Serpent envisaged the return of a
pre-Columbian Mexican god. Yet this further attempt to
recover a mythic consciousness in a way bypassed the gods,
whom, at the deepest level of his conviction, he "refused to
name." He studied rather a kind of cosmic sensitivity, among
the Etruscans, among the American Indians, and in what he
considered the primitive and pagan substratum of the Apoc­
alypse of Saint John. Inspired by a cyclic conception of time,
he even foresaw a return to the living cosmos, via the
apocalyptic crisis through which our civilization was pass­
ing, by means of certain ancient rites that mime a descent
into the underworld followed by rebirth. It may be that Lady
Chatterley’s Lover enacts the seven phases of a rite of initiation
in the domain essential to Lawrence, that of sexuality.
During a period covering about two generations, writers
questioned mythology with something like fear and trem­
bling. Their readers are bound to ask, as they asked, whether
it is still possible, and vitally useful, for a modem European
to place himself in contact with mythic sensibility, and it is
not surprising to find among certain contemporary writers
an impatient hostility to myth. Myth continues, however, in
the work of a writer like Ted Hughes, who turns to mythol­
ogy and folklore to make contact with "the bigger energy, the
elemental power circuit of the Universe," and who also refers
to "the great goddess of the primeval world." In Crow he
creates a mythology, yet without overtly deploying myths
drawn from a diversity of times and places: his poem does
more or less without history and anthropology. He has
declared that he wanted to produce "something autochtho­
nous and complete in itself . . . with the minimal cultural
accretions of the museum sort . . . hoarded as preserved
harvests from the past." The words could be aimed at many
of the texts we have considered, especially The Waste Land
and Ulysses. A whole period of literature seems to be
concluded when he demands that his myth should be the
springing of "essential things . . . from their seeds in nature
. . . after the holocaust and demolition of all libraries."
M.Ed.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
I. Texts
T. s. EUOT, Collected Plays (London 1962); Collected Poems, 1909-1962
(London 1963). Robert craves, The White Goddess (London 1961). ted
hughes. Crow (London 1972). david jones, In Parenthesis (London 1937);
The Anathemata (London 1952); The Sleeping Lord (London 1974). iames
Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (London 1916); Ulysses (Raris
1922); Finnegans Wake (London 1939). d. h . Lawrence, The Plumed Serpent
(London 1926); Mornings in Mexico (London 1927); Lady Chatterley's
Lover (London 1928); Apocalypse (London 1931); Etruscan Places (London
1932). EZRA POUND, The Cantos of Ezra Pound (London 1964). w. b. yeats.
Collected Poems (London 1950); Collected Plays (London 1952); A Vision
(New York 1956); Mythologies (London 1959).
 M O D E R N G R E E K P O E T I C C O N S C I O U S N E S S

II. Critical Studies

michel butor . Répertoire (Paris I960), chapters on Joyce and Pound.
Edmund Wilson , Axel's Castle (New York 1931), chapters on Eliot,
Joyce, Yeats. Michael edwards, Eliot/Language (Skye 1975). hugh
kenner . The Invisible Poet: T. S. Eliot (New York 1959). f . o . matthiesen ,
The Achievement of T. S. Eliot (New York 1935). d . e . s . maxwell . The
Poetry of T. S. Eliot (London 1952). michael kirkham . The Poetry of
Robert Graves (London 1969). iohn press, Rule and Energy (london
1963), chapter on Hughes, keith sacar . The Art of Ted Hughes
(Cambridge 1975). bernard berconzi, Heroes' Twilight (London 1965),
chapter on Jones, harry blamires , David Jones (Manchester 1971).
Umberto Eco, L'œuvre ouverte (Paris 1965), chapters on Joyce, stuart
gilbert , fames Joyce's Ulysses (London 1930). clive hart . Structure and
Motif in Finnegans Wake (Evanston 1962). harry levin , James Joyce (Paris
1950). |EAN paris, James Joyce par lui-même (Paris 1957). graham hough ,
The Dark Sun: A Study of D. H. Lawrence (London 1956). frank
kermode , Modern Essays (London 1971), chapter on Lawrence, donald
davie , Ezra Pound: Poet as Sculptor (London 1965). george dekker ,
Sailing After Knowledge: The Cantos of Ezra Pound (London 1963). denis
donoghue and |. R. MULRYNE, An Honoured Guest: New Essays on
IV. B. Yeats (London 1965). richard ellmann . The Identity of Yeats (New
York 1954). t . r. henn . The Lonely Toiver: Studies in the Poetry of
IV. B. Yeats (London 1950). Kathleen rain e, Yeats, the Tarot and the
Golden Dawn (Dublin 1972). peter ure, Toivards a Mythology: Studies in
the Poetry of IV. B. Yeats (London (1946).

in g a fte r a lo n g ab sen ce and bent on te s tin g h is w if e 's

T h e S u r v iv a l o f A n c ien t M yt h s in M o d er n fa ith fu ln e s s b efo re he is re co g n iz e d is a lso w id e s p r e a d

G r eek P o e t ic C o n s c io u s n e s s t h r o u g h o u t G r e e c e , o n t h e i s l a n d s a s w e ll a s o n t h e m a i n ­
la n d . In v e rsio n s fro m th e A egean isla n d s o f Z a n te and
T h e s s a l y , t h e m e e t i n g o c c u r s a t a f o u n t a i n w h e r e t h e w i f e is
Though m o d ern lite ra tu re fre q u e n tly re fe rs to and u ses w a s h i n g c lo th e s . H e r e t h e s o n g a l lu d e s t o t w o e p i s o d e s in
a n c ie n t m y th s , in m o d e r n G r e e c e s u c h p r a c ti c e s a r e , u n d e r ­ th e Odyssey: O d y s s e u s c o m in g b a ck to Ith a ca a n d O d y s s e u s
s ta n d a b ly , m a tte rs of s p e c ia l con cern . The G reek s p irit, d isco v e re d b y N a u sica a o n th e b e a c h . In a p o p u l a r s o n g ,
n a tu r a lly d is p o s e d to c r e a te m y th s , c o n t in u e s to u s e , m a in ­ m o st lik e ly fro m m a in la n d G reece but w id e s p r e a d fro m
ta in , and ill u s t r a t e le g e n d s th a t b e lo n g to th e n a tio n a l C o rfu to th e P o n tu s , a m u r d e r o u s m o th e r s e r v e s h e r h u s ­
h e r i t a g e , a n d it s o m e t i m e s d o e s s o i n t h e s i m p l e s t a s p e c t s o f b a n d t h e l iv e r o f t h e ir s o n , w h o h a d d i s c o v e r e d t h e m o t h e r 's
everyd ay life . F r e q u e n t v is its to s ite s w h e re m y th o lo g ic a l in fid e lity . T h is r e c a ll s t h e f e a s ts o f A t r e u s a n d T a n t a l u s . Y e t ,
e v e n t s o c c u r r e d a n d h a b itu a l c o n t e m p la t io n o f th e h e ig h ts tr u e to th e v e r y n a tu r e o f p o p u la r s o n g s , th e a n c ie n t in s p i­
o n w h ic h a p a r t ic u la r h e r o p e r f o r m e d h is e x p lo its h e lp m a k e r a t io n is n e v e r o b v io u s b u t a l w a y s im p lic it.
l e g e n d s fa m ilia r. W h e n a G r e e k n a m e s h is c h ild A t h e n a o r M o d e m G r e e k p o e tr y , w h ic h w a s b o r n w ith th e in d e p e n ­
D io n y s u s , w h e n a v in e g r o w e r fro m N em ea re fe rs to h is d e n t G re e k s ta te , r e s e r v e s a r a th e r la rg e p la c e fo r a n c ie n t
w i n e s a s t h e " b l o o d o f t h e l i o n , " h e d o e s n o t f e e l t h a t h e is m y th s , e l e m e n ts o f a n a tio n a l w e a lth th a t th e n e w ly fre e d
a d o p t i n g e l e m e n t s o f c u l t u r e . T h e r e is n o in te l le c t u a l s e a r c h , G re e k s h a d th e ir h e a r ts s e t o n illu s tra tin g a n d d e v e lo p in g .
n o a rtif ic e , n o a ffe c ta tio n in t h o s e c h o i c e s . T h e i r liv e s a r e T h e w a y l e g e n d s a r e tr e a te d v a r ie s b o th w ith th e in d iv id u a l
s im p l y i m b u e d w it h a n i d e a t h a t is n o t a c q u i r e d b u t p a s s e d te m p e r a m e n t a n d s itu a tio n o f e a c h a u t h o r a n d a s a fu n c tio n
d o w n f ro m a n c e s t o r s , w ith s u b c o n s c i o u s m e m o r i e s a n d w ith o f th e e v o lv in g n e w H e lle n is m .
a tr a d it i o n a s o ld a s t h e m e m o r y o f t h e ir c o u n tr y . T h a t is w h y A n d r e a s K a l v o s ( b o r n 1 7 9 2 o n Z a n t e , d ie d 1 8 6 7 in L o n d o n ;
m y th , ra th e r th a n b e in g an o b je c t of m e ta p h o r, is th e a u th o r o f tw e n ty Odes t h a t a p p e a r e d in 1 8 2 4 a n d 1 8 2 6 ) w r o t e
e s s e n tia l e le m e n t and b u ild in g b lo ck of G reek lite r a r y a w o rk , o f te n co m p a re d to th a t of P in d a r, in w h ic h he
th o u g h t. c e le b ra te s th e h ig h p o in ts o f th e W a r o f In d e p e n d e n c e b y
P r i o r t o t h e r e b i r th o f t h e G r e e k s ta t e in t h e e a r l y n i n e ­ s im u la tin g a w a r o f a n tiq u ity th ro u g h th e u se o f a n c ie n t
te e n th c e n tu ry , p o p u la r G re e k s o n g , th e c o n s ta n t e x p r e s s io n t e r m s a n d f o r m s , a n d t h r o u g h c o n s t a n t r e c o u r s e to a llu s io n s
o f th e t h o u g h t o f th e H e lle n ic p e o p l e , i n c lu d e d le g e n d a ry and c o m p a ris o n s th a t c re a te a n in te n s e ly m y th o lo g ic a l c li­
s u b je c ts , a lth o u g h its c o n t e n t w a s o f te n b ased on cu rre n t m a t e . In t h e Odes, h e o f te n u s e s a lle g o r y a n d in v o k e s th e
r e a lity , th a t is, on th e m is fo rtu n e of th e e n s la v e d G reek M u ses, G ra ce s, F r ie n d s h ip , W e a lth , W i s d o m , V irtu e , V ic ­
p e o p le . In m any d iffe re n t v e rsio n s, one can d is c e rn th e to ry , a n d L ib e r ty , " b r illia n t d a u g h t e r s o f Z e u s ." B y p e r s o n i ­
r e c o lle c tio n o f a m i n o r m y th o lo g ic a l a c t o r r e f e r e n c e s to g r e a t f y in g t h e m , th e p o e t c o m m e m o r a t e s th e s ite s o f m a r t y r d o m :
l e g e n d s . In a s o n g p o r t r a y in g th e r a p e o f a w o m a n b y th e C h io s , P s a r a , S a m o s , S o u li. H e e v o k e s m y th o lo g ic a l tra d i­
S a r a c e n s (Isle o f S y m i v e r s i o n ) , th e s u n g o e s to w a m th e t i o n s : t h e f e a s t s o f t h e g o d s (T o the Muses), th e n o u r is h m e n t
h u s b a n d , Y a n n a k is , o f h is m is f o r t u n e , t h u s p la y in g th e ro le o f im m o r ta ls w h o s e m o u th s h a v e th e f r a g r a n c e o f a m b ro s ia
o f th e " g u a r d ia n o f g o d s a n d m e n " w h o w a r n e d D e m e te r o f (T o Parga), a n d t h e d w e l l i n g s o f O l y m p u s (T o LiJxrty). D e itie s
th e a b d u c t io n o f P e r s e p h o n e (in t h e Homeric Hymn to Deme­ and h e r o e s a p p e a r : K y p r i s , w h o s e t o u c h w a s s o s w e e t (T o
ter). The e x p lo its of th e h e ro ic f ro n tie r g u a r d ia n D ig e n is Psara)- Ica ru s, w h ose w in g s fre e d h im (T o Samos); th e
A c r i t a s a r e s u n g a l l o v e r G r e e c e . W h e n D i g e n i s k i ll s a s n a k e M a e n a d s a n d B ro s, w h o m a d e w a y fo r A re s o n th e d e v a s ­
o r, b y th e c o m m a n d o f h is k in g , s ta n d s u p to a m o n s t r o u s ta te d isla n d (T o Psard); b u t a l s o t h e E r i n y e s s u m m o n e d t o
and ra v a g in g c ra b , th e s o n g re fe rs to th e leg en d o f S a in t p u n is h th e T u rk ( T o Chios). T h e c o n s t a n t i n t e n t i o n o f K a l v o s
G e o rg e a n d , f u r th e r b a c k , to a n a d a p ta tio n o f th e L a b o rs o f w a s to e n n o b le th e a c t o f w a r b y a p p ly in g to th e m o d e r n
H e ra c le s o r a n e x p lo it o f A p o llo . T h e th e m e o f th e s a c rific e o f e v e n t th e m e a n in g a n d th e s y m b o lic v a lu e o f th e a n c ie n t
a w o m a n , n e c e s s a ry fo r th e s u c c e s s o f a h u m a n e n te rp ris e , m y th a n d t o r e s to r e to th e n e w ly fr e e d la n d th e p o e tic b e a u ty
in s p ir e d b y th e l e g e n d o f I p h i g e n i a , is d e v e l o p e d in n u m e r ­ t h a t l e g e n d s h a d c o n f e r r e d u p o n i t.
o u s v e r s io n s o f th e P a n h e lle n ic s o n g o f th e " B r id g e o f A r t a ." K o n s t a n ti n o s K a b a p h ë s ( C a v a f y ) ( b o r n 1 8 6 3 , d i e d 1 9 3 3 in
T h e b r i d g e c a n b e b u ilt o n l y if t h e m a s t e r m a s o n im m u r e s h is A le x a n d ria ; a u th o r of n e a rly 150 sh o rt p u b lis h e d p ie ce s ,
w ife in its f o u n d a tio n . T h e a d v e n t u r e o f th e h u s b a n d r e t u r n ­ Poems) w ro te a s ch o la rly w o rk , o f te n d iffic u lt, in w h ic h

297
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

a n c ie n t h isto ry a n d m y th o lo g y o c c u p y a m a jo r p la c e . A lle ­ m y th s a s d id th e r o m a n tic s w h o in flu e n c e d h im , b u t h e a ls o

g o ry is t o o . In Dionysus and His Creiv ( t r a n s . R a e
th e re o f te n e x p r e s s e s th e s tric tly H e lle n ic a t titu d e th a t ta k e s p o s ­
D a lv e n , The Complete Poems of Cavafy, N e w Y o r k : H a r c o u r t s e s s io n of th e in d iv is ib le e le m e n ts of th e w h o le G reek
B ra ce Jo v a n o v ich , 1 9 7 6 , p . 2 3 ), s e a te d n e x t to th e g o d a re d o m a i n . In t h e p o e m My Fatherlands fro m th e c o lle c tio n Life
L i c e n s e , D r u n k e n n e s s , S o n g , F e a s t , a s w e ll a s T e le te , g o d ­ Immovable, P a la m a s p r o je c ts a lle g o ric a l fo rm s o f b e a u ty o n to
d e s s o f ritu a ls ; S le e p a n d D e a th ta k e p a r t in The Funeral of th e la n d s c a p e o f M is s o lo n g h i, w h e r e h e g r e w u p , a n d la te r
Sarpedon ( ib i d . p. 2 1 ). S o m e tim e s th e p o e t 's in te n tio n is o n t o th e s ite o f A ttic a . H e p r e s e n t s a p e r s o n ifie d P e n te lic u s
e s s e n t i a l l y a e s t h e t i c , in s p e c i f i c s c e n e s s u c h a s t h e d e s c r i p ­ and O ly m p u s , a n d h e s in g s o f th e s ite s " w h e r e H o m e r 's
t i o n o f t h e h a n d s o m e y o u n g m a n , t h e s o n o f Z e u s , k i ll e d b y P h a e a c i a n s s ti ll liv e " and o f th e b l is s th a t th e sp e c te r of
P a tro c lu s (se e H om er Iliad 1 6 .6 6 5 - 8 3 ) in The Funeral of S o l o m o s f i n d s in t h e E l y s i a n f i e l d s . I n a s i n g l e b u r s t a n d in
Sarpedon. F r o m a n o t h e r p e r s p e c tiv e , s ta r tin g w ith th e e x p e ­ th e s a m e p o e m , h e a i m s to c e le b r a t e th e w o r k s o f D ig e n is
r i e n c e o f lif e , o f t h e e t e r n a l h u m a n p r o b l e m s t h a t a r o u s e h i s a n d th e e x p lo its o f th e h e r o e s o f th e In d e p e n d e n c e , a n d th e n
p e s s im is m , th e a u t h o r c o n c e iv e s h is p o e m a s a r e c o lle c tio n to e v o k e th e m a id e n s w ith b a s k e ts o n th e A c r o p o lis , c a r r y in g
and tra n s p o s itio n of a m o ral p re m ise or a p h ilo s o p h ic a l A t h e n a 's c lo a k t o t h e t e m p le ; t h u s h e g a t h e r s t o g e t h e r t h e
u n i v e r s a l i n t o t h e w o r l d o f m y t h o l o g y . In Ithaca (ib id . p . 3 6 ) , im m o r ta l b e a u tie s fro m th e h is to r y o f H e lle n is m . H e d r a w s
th e poet in v ite s m an, th e new O d ysseu s, to face co u ra­ a n o t h e r p a ra lle l, ra th e r u n u su al in th e e y e s o f a W e s te rn
g e o u s ly th e a s s a u lts o f th e L a e s tr y g o n e s , th e C y c lo p s , a n d r e a d e r b u t n a tu r a l to th e m in d o f a G re e k a r tis t, w h ic h g o e s
P o s e id o n . S o m e tim e s h e d e v e lo p s th e th e m e o f m a n a b a n ­ beyond a p p a re n t d is tin c tio n s to l in k n o tio n s com m on to
d o n e d b y t h e g o d s : in Infidelity (ib id . p . 2 0 ) , T h e t i s , w h o h a s p a g a n i s m a n d C h r i s t i a n i t y , e s p e c i a l l y E a s t e r n O r t h o d o x y . In
b e e n a s s u r e d o f A p o ll o 's p r o t e c ti o n fo r h e r c h ild , A c h ille s , Sibyl, Aeneid 6 . 6 5 , h e c o m p a r e s t h e
a f t e r a r e f e r e n c e t o V i r g i l 's
l e a r n s t h a t it w a s t h i s g o d h i m s e l f w h o k i ll e d h e r s o n ; t h e p r o p h e te s s to th e Panagia Odigitria o r " G u i d i n g V i r g i n , " a
o r ig in a l v e r s i o n o f th e p oem b o re in e p i g r a p h an excerp t ty p e o f B y z a n tin e v irg in f r e q u e n tly fo u n d in r e l i g i o u s i c o ­
f r o m P l a t o 's Republic t h a t r e f e r s t o t h i s i n c i d e n t a s r e c o r d e d in n o g rap h y .
A e s c h y l u s 's Tragic Iliad. W h e n th e h o u r h a s c o m e , A n to n y A s s im ila tio n s o n th e s a m e o r d e r w e r e to b e w id e ly d e v e l­
l o s e s th e p r o t e c ti o n o f th e g o d s , a n d th e p o e t i n v ite s h im to o p e d b y A n g e l o s S i k e l i a n o s ( b o r n 1 8 8 4 in L e n e a d e , d i e d 1 9 5 1
r e s i g n h i m s e l f t o h i s f a t e in The Cods Forsake Antony (ib id . p . in A t h e n s ; a u t h o r o f a m a s s i v e p o e t i c w o r k , Lyrical Life [ t r a n s .
3 0 ) . In Footsteps ( ib i d . p . 1 5 ), w h e n t h e F u r i e s e n t e r N e r o 's E d m u n d K e e le y a n d P h ilip S h e r r a r d , Selected Poems, P r i n c e ­
h o m e , t h e " w r e t c h e d " L a r e s h i d e . T h e s a d n e s s o f d e a t h is to n : P r in c e to n U n iv e r s ity P r e s s , 1 9 7 9 ], a n d o f tr a g e d ie s ). H e
illu s tra te d b y th e g r ie f o f th e im m o r ta l h o r s e s p u llin g th e w a s a n in te lle c tu a l, a n a u t h o r e x c e p tio n a lly s e n s itiv e to th e
b o d y o f P a t r o c l u s in The Horses of Achilles (ib id . p . 2 4 : s e e Iliad s p irit a n d m e a n in g o f m y th s , a m a n fo r w h o m th e g o d s h a d
1 7 .4 2 3 - 5 5 ) . T h e im p o te n c e a n d ig n o r a n c e o f m o rta ls a re v e r y n e v e r le ft G r e e c e . H e to ld th e s to r y t h a t, a s a y o u n g c h ild ,
b r i e f l y a n d l a c o n i c a l l y i l l u s t r a t e d in Interruption (ib id . p . 1 2 ), d u r i n g a n e a r t h q u a k e h e w a s fi ll e d w i t h j o y a t t h e t h o u g h t
a poem th a t show s M e ta n ira p re v e n tin g D e m e te r fro m th a t th e e a rth w a s s p e a k i n g t o h i m . S i k e l i a n o s 's e a g l e e y e
m a k in g h e r c h ild im m o r ta l a n d P e le u s t e rrifie d by th e e x ­ saw th ro u g h m a te ria l a p p e a r a n c e s a n d w a s a b le to reach
p l o i t s o f T h e t i s w h e n s h e is t r y i n g t o m a k e A c h i l l e s i n v u l ­ d o w n to th e d e e p m e a n in g a n d e te r n a l v a lu e o f e a c h s c e n e .
n e r a b le (c f. A p o ll o n i u s o f R h o d e s Argonautica 4 .8 6 5 - 7 9 a n d T h e s p e c t a c l e — s o c o m m o n — o f a h e - g o a t in t h e m i d s t o f a
A p o llo d o r u s On the Cods 3 .1 3 ) . T h e n o tio n o f o p p o s itio n c a n h e r d o f s h e - g o a t s g r a z i n g b y t h e s h o r e o f t h e A e g e a n S e a is
b e e x p r e s s e d a t a n o t h e r le v e l, n a m e ly , th a t o f th e re la tio n ­ fo r th e p o e t th e p u r e a n d s im p le m a te r ia liz a tio n o f a m y th , s o
s h ip b e tw e e n a d y in g p a g a n ism and a ris in g C h ris tia n ity , o b v io u s th a t o n l y th e title . Pan, m a k e s a n e x p l i c i t re f e r e n c e to
illu s tra te d by th e sev en poem s d e v o te d to th e E m p e ro r th e le g e n d . H e m a k e s The Creek Funeral Banquet, in sp ire d b y
Ju lia n , b u t a ls o b y is o la te d w o r k s s u c h a s Supplication ( ib i d . p . a c e r e m o n y to w h ic h h e w a s in v ite d , a n o c c a s io n to e v o k e
5) o r Kleitos' Illness ( i b i d . 1 3 3 ) , in w h i c h t h e m e a n i n g a n d t h e th e lib a tio n s a n d b a n q u e ts o f in itia tio n ; w ith th e " b lo o d o f
im a g e of th e m y th s m o re or le s s d isa p p e a r b e h in d th e D io n y s u s " h e c a lls f o rth th e s o u ls o f th e d e a d a n d i n v o k e s
h isto rica l a n ta g o n is m o f t h e t w o r e l i g i o n s . W h e t h e r it is a t h e p r o t e c t i o n o f D i o n y s u s - H a d e s . S i k e l i a n o s 's i m a g i n a t i o n
p h ilo s o p h ic a l t h o u g h t, a n in v ita tio n to S to ic is m , o r th e m e r e e x a l t s o r d i n a r y m o m e n t s o f lif e , f i n d i n g a h i d d e n m e a n i n g
d e s c r ip tio n of an a e s th e te , th e u se of th e m y th o lo g ic a l fo r th e m th a t lin k s t h e m t o t h e m o s t a n c i e n t t r a d i t i o n s . In
e l e m e n t in C a v a f y ' s w o r k , s o m e tim e s a llu s iv e , s o m e tim e s Sacred Way ( i b i d . p . 9 9 ) , t h e s h o w m a n 's s h e - b e a r w h o s t a n d s
e x p lic it, s o m e t im e s in ti m a t e ly tie d to h is to r ic a l r e c o l le c t io n , e r e c t o n t h e S a c r e d W a y a t E l e u s i s in f r o n t o f h e r c u b s u f f e r s
is n e v e r b a s e d o n a n o v e r a r c h i n g v i e w , b u t o n t h e a n a l y s i s o f a t th e s ig h t o f h is y o u n g n o s trils w o u n d e d b y th e iro n rin g ,
a p a r tic u la r fa c t o r o f a n e x a c t d e ta il. a n d b e c o m e s t h e s y m b o l o f t h e w e e p i n g m o t h e r in t h e p o e t ' s
T h e o f te n s c h o la r ly a s p e c t o f th e e x p r e s s io n o f m y th a n d co n scio u sn e ss:
its o c c a s i o n a l l y a r t i f i c i a l a p p l i c a t i o n a r e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s c o m ­
m o n to K a lv o s a n d C a v a fy , p e r h a p s d u e to th e s a m e c a u s e : O n e o f th e m ,
th e ir la ck o f c o n t a c t w ith G r e e k s o il. W h e n h e p u b lis h e d h is th e la rg e r— c le a rly s h e w a s th e m o th e r —
Odes, K a lv o s h a d liv e d m o s t ly a b r o a d (in I ta ly a n d E n g l a n d ). h e r h e a d a d o r n e d w ith ta s s e ls o f b lu e b e a d s
C a v a f y s p e n t h i s lif e in A l e x a n d r i a . c r o w n e d b y a w h ite a m u le t, t o w e r e d u p
W h o l l y d i f f e r e n t is t h e i n s p i r a t i o n o f K ô s t é s P a l a m a s ( b o r n s u d d e n l y e n o r m o u s , a s if s h e w e r e
1 8 5 9 in P a tra s, d ie d 1943 in A th e n s ; a u th o r o f n u m e ro u s th e p rim o rd ia l im a g e o f th e G re a t G o d d e s s ,
c o lle c tio n s o f p o e m s , tw o e p ic s , a d r a m a , e t c .) , w h o a lw a y s t h e E t e r n a l M o t h e r , s a c r e d in h e r a f f l i c t i o n ,
l iv e d in G reece and to o k p a rt in th e p o litic a l a n d s o c ia l w h o , in h u m a n f o r m , w a s c a lle d D e m e te r
e v o lu tio n o f th e y o u n g s ta te . T h is w a s a tim e w h e n e v e n ts h e r e a t E le u s is, w h e re s h e m o u r n e d h e r d a u g h te r,
a n d in te lle c tu a l m o v e m e n t s w e r e c a u s i n g a g lo b a l d r e a d o f a n d e ls e w h e re , w h e re s h e m o u rn e d h e r s o n ,
H e lle n is m a n d o f th e tr a d it i o n s o f H e ll e n is m , w h ic h fo llo w w a s c a lle d A l c m e n e o r th e H o ly V irg in . (Ib id . p . 1 0 1 )
o n e a n o t h e r w i t h o u t c o n f l i c t . In t h e Hymn to Athena, a lo n g
p o e m , t h e a u t h o r e v o k e s t h e b o n d t h a t in h i s m i n d t i e s t h e T h e k in s h ip o f fa ith s a n d r e lig io n s a n d th e h i d d e n u n it y o f
a n c ie n t w o rld to th e m o d e r n w o rld . I n d e e d , P a la m a s tr e a ts sy m b o ls — m a rk e d by a n u m b e r o f title s : Conscience of My

298
 M O D E R N G R E E K P O E T I C C O N S C I O U S N E S S

Fresco from the facade of the refectory of the Great Laura, Mount Athos. Upper righthand corner: Artemis withdraws at the moment of the
Annunciation. Photo Paul Huber, Bern.

Land, Conscience of My Race, Conscience of Faith—such were the Adonis, Orestes, the Symplegades. The collection ends with
convictions that animated Sikelianos when in 1926 he estab­ a wish borrowed from Homer's nekuia (journey to the dead):
lished the Delphic Feasts and attempted to create a center, a
Those who one day shall live here where we end,
spiritual "omphalos,” at Delphi, where he also had the
If ever the dark blood should rise to overflow their
tragedies staged in interpretations that allowed room for the
memory,
neo-Hellenistic tradition.
Let them not forget us, the strengthless souls among the
George Seferis (born 1900 in Smyrna, died 1971 in Athens;
asphodels.
author of Poems and Essays) lived through the painful expe­
Let them turn towards Erebus the heads of the victims.
rience of the catastrophe of Asia Minor. Endowed with a
We who had nothing shall teach them peace. (Ibid. p. 31)
nature easily inclined toward melancholy, he was twenty-
two when the Greeks were expelled from Ionia, and he lost In a long mythological poem from Log Book 3, Helen
his native land forever. Like all the Greeks born at the turn of (bearing inscriptions of verses from Euripides' Helen), the
the century in Turkey, he was to remain deeply marked by heroine reveals that only her shadow went to Troy and that
this misfortune; a significant part of his work is colored by the war was a snare:
melancholy, nostalgia, and the sentiment of parting, loss,
Great pain had fallen on Greece.
frustration, shipwreck, and death. In this framework, he
So many bodies thrown
uses many mythological themes to illustrate the permanence
To jaws of the sea, to jaws of the earth:
of their symbolic value and the endurance of the Greek spirit.
In Mythistorema (trans. Rex Warner, Poems, London: Bodley
That so much suffering, so much life
Head, 1960), allusions to myths are numerous, sometimes
Fell into the abyss. (Ibid. pp. 115-16)
expressed in subtitles such as Argonauts (ibid. p. 13), Asty­
anax (ibid. p. 27), and Andromeda (ibid. p. 29), sometimes Through these lines, it is easy to see the memory of
very discreetly indicated by a single proper name: Odysseus, another Ionic war, the massacres at Smyrna in September

299
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

1 9 2 2 . N u m e r o u s r e f e re n c e s to th e tra g e d ie s a n d to H o m e r c h a r a c te r o f A u n t R o u s sa k i, a d e e p ly C h ris tia n C r e ta n p e a s ­

c o u l d a l s o c o m e f r o m a m o r e p u r e l y i n te lle c tu a l a t ti t u d e . In an t w om an w h o s e re n e ly a d o p ts a n d e m b e llis h e s le g e n d s
The Thrush ( ib i d . p . 1 5 ), a m a n — s im u lta n e o u s ly O d y s s e u s s u c h a s th a t o f D e m e te r a n d P e r s e p h o n e , a n d th e e x p lo its o f
and S e fe ris — s e iz e d by th e d iz z in e s s of im a g in a tio n and a n d e n t h e r o e s (b y a d e v ic e s im ila r to th a t o f S ik e lia n o s ), a n d
d r e a m s , re c a lls " t h e lu stfu l E lp e n o r ." In The Light, S e fe ris w h o s e d a i l y lif e i s i l l u m i n a t e d b y a f a m i l i a r , i n t i m a t e , a n d
e v o k e s th e fa te o f O e d ip u s d e p r iv e d o f t h e s ig h t o f th e s u n in tu itiv e k n o w le d g e o f t h e m e a n in g a n d v a lu e o f e a c h p la n t,
b e fo r e th e N e r e id s a n d th e G r a ia e w h o " c o m e r u n n in g a t th e a n i m a l , a n d h e a v e n l y p h e n o m e n o n . I n h e r w o r l d w h e r e a ll is
s ig h t o f s c in tilla tin g A n a d y o m e n e " A p h r o d ite . A p o e m w r it­ s p i r i t, R o u s s a k i liv e s o u t in u t t e r c a lm b o t h t h e p a g a n m y th
te n in th e T ran sv aal in 1942, Stratis the Sailor among the and th e o r th o d o x C h ris tia n m y th . She c re a te s th e m and
Agapanthi, fro m Log Book 2, is in a m o s t s ig n ific a n t w a y m a in ta in s th e m a n d d e s e r v e s to b e r e g a r d e d a s a fe m in in e
th o ro u g h ly p e r m e a te d w ith m y th o lo g ic a l m e m o rie s a n d tr a ­ i m a g e o f H e lle n is m .
d itio n s : th e A g a p a n th i; "a s p h o d e ls o f th e N e g r o e s ," w ho In th e ir a tte m p ts to b eco m e p a rt of w o rld lite r a tu r e ,
d e m a n d s ile n ce a n d p r e v e n t th e a u th o r fro m s p e a k in g to th e m o d e m G r e e k a u t h o r s s i n c e W o r l d W a r II h a v e h a d a s l i g h t
d e a d ; a n d th e g o a ts k in b o ttle o f th e w in d s , w h ic h d e f la te s te n d e n cy to w ith d ra w g ra d u a lly fro m tra d itio n a l G reek
i t s e l f ( t h e a u t h o r t r i e s i n v a i n t o fill i t ) ; t h e m e m o r y o f t h e fie ld s , a n d th u s fro m th e w o r ld o f m y th o lo g y , in o r d e r to
h o u s e a n d o f th e o ld d o g w h o w a its u n til th e v o y a g e r r e tu r n s d e v o te th e m s e lv e s in ste a d to th e u n iv e rs a l p ro b le m s of
t o d i e — a ll t h e s e a r e s o m a n y s e p a r a t e e l e m e n t s t h a t i l l u s t r a t e tw e n tie th -c e n tu r y m a n .
a n id e a e x p r e s s e d b y S e f e r is in In the Manner ofG .S ., in c lu d e d R .R ./g .h .
in An Exercise Book: "W h e re v e r I tra v e l, G re e c e k e e p s w o u n d ­
in g m e " (ib id . p . 5 1 ) .
B u t in m o d e m G r e e k l it e r a t u r e , a ll th e g e n r e s u s e m y th s .
N ik o s K a z a n tz a k is (b o m 1883 in H e ra d io n , d ie d 1957 in
F r ib o u r g -e n -B ris g a u ; a u th o r o f n o v e ls , e s s a y s , d r a m a s , a n d BIBLIOGRAPHY
p o e m s ) w r o t e a d r a m a in t h r e e p a r t s , Prometheus, i n w h i c h In French
th e g o d s a p p e a r o n s ta g e ; a ls o a t r a g e d y , Theseus, o r Kouros,
s. BAUD-BOVY, La chanson populaire grecque du Dodécanèse (Päris 1936).
d ir e c tly in s p ire d b y th e le g e n d ; a n d a v e r y lo n g e p ic o f 3 3 ,3 3 3
c . Cavafy, Poèmes (Paris 1958). And on Cavafy: m. yourcenar. Prése­
lin e s , The Odyssey, w h ic h b e g in s a t th e m o m e n t w h e n th e
ntation critique de Constantin Cavafy (Paris 1958, 2d ed.). c. dimaras.
h e r o r e tu r n s to I th a c a , a n e p ic th a t c a n b e in te rp re te d a s th e Histoire de la littérature néo-hellénique (Athens 1965). d. hesseling.
a d v e n tu re o f m o d e m m an. Histoire de la littérature grecque moderne (Paris 1924). n. kazantzakis,
G e o r g e T h e o to k a s ( b o m 1 9 0 5 in C o n s ta n t in o p le , d ie d 1 9 6 6 L'Odyssée (Paris 1968); Théâtre I (Paris 1974). And on Kazantzakis:
in A t h e n s ; a u t h o r o f e s s a y s , n o v e ls , a n d p l a y s ) n a r r a t e d th e c . janiaud-lust, Nikos Kazantzaki (Paris 1970). p . prevelakis, Le soleil de
v e n t u r e o f a m b itio u s y o u n g id e a lis ts in h is n o v e l Argo. In h is la mort (Paris 1966). And on Prevelakis: a . chamson, "Prévélakis et la
d ram a The Bridge of Arta, he ta k e s up th e th e m e o f th e Crète," Mercure de France 1148 (April 1959): 579-88. c . seferis. Poèmes
p o p u l a r s o n g . In a b r ie f tr a g e d y . The Last o f the W a rs, h e d e a l s
(Paris 1963); Trois poèmes secrets (Paris 1970).
w ith th e d e p a r t u r e o f th e c a p t i v e w o m e n a f te r th e T ro ja n In Greek
W a r. H e a ls o w a n te d to c r e a te a " m y t h o f A l d b ia d e s " in h is
c. theotokas , Argô (Athens, 2 vols.); Theatrika Erga (Athens 1965-
lo n g p la y Alcibiades. 67, 2 vols.), a . KALVOS, Odai (Athens 1970). K. palamas, Hapanta
P a n d e lis P re v e la k is ( b o m 1 9 0 9 in R e th y m n u s ; a u th o r o f (Athens, 16 vols.), a . pouth , Historia tés Neas Hellênikés Logotechnias
e s s a y s , n o v e ls , p l a y s , p o e m s ) , w i t h o u t b o r r o w in g h is title (Thessalonika 1972). a . sikelianos , Lyrikos Bios (Athens 1946-47, 3
fro m tra d itio n , c r e a te d in h is n o v e l The Sun of Death th e vols.).

F ic tio n a l n a r r a tiv e s a r e o n e o f th e fo r m s o f c o m p r o m is e
I m a g in a tio n a n d M yt h o l o g y in ( s e x u a l l if e i s a n o t h e r , a n d th e m o s t b a s ic ) w h ic h s e e k to
red u ce th is p a ra d o x . T hey p o rtra y a th o u s a n d fig u re s o f
C o n t em po r a r y L iter a t u r e (T o l k ie n ,
fu lf illm e n t, f ig u r e s w h ic h e x t e r n a l r e a lity w o u l d fin d it h a r d
L o VECRAFT) AND SCIEN CE FlC TIO N
t o p r o v i d e ; b u t t h e n a r r a t i v e s o f f e r t h e p o s s e s s i o n a n d f u ll
e n jo y m e n t of th e fig u re s o n ly on c o n d itio n o f ra isin g a
E v e r y h u m a n b e i n g h a s t w o u m b ilic a l c o r d s : o n e , m a d e o f s y m b o l i c b a r r i e r , w h ic h t h e y a n n o u n c e : 'T h i s is a s to r y , i t 's
fle sh , is c u t a t b irth ; th e o th e r, even b efo re co n ce p tio n , n o t t r u e ."
w e a v e s a p e r s o n in to la n g u a g e . B u t n o t o n ly c a n th is s e c o n d F i c t i o n a l n a r r a t i v e s , l ik e m y t h s a n d r e l i g i o n s , a r e r e s p o n ­
c o r d n e v e r m a k e u p fo r t h e c u t t in g o f t h e f ir s t, it is its e lf a n s ib le fo r p r o d u c in g a lin k w ith f u lfillm e n t fo r m an: an
a m b i g u o u s , o r p a r a d o x i c a l , u m b i l i c u s : it c o n n e c t s o n l y b y u m b ilic u s o f r e p l a c e m e n t . T h e r e is, h o w e v e r , a w id e g a p
k e e p in g a p a rt; it p l u n g e s each p erso n in to th e im m e n s e b e tw e e n a d isco u rse , p re s e n te d as fictio n , th a t a im s to
u n iv e rs e o f m e a n in g o n ly a t th e p ric e o f a n irre v o c a b le b re a k p ro d u ce w onder and a sen se of p le a su re , and a n o th e r,
(m a r k e d p a r tic u la r ly b y th e p r o p e r n a m e ) , a g u lf th a t fo r e v e r p re se n te d a s t r u e , t h a t r e g u l a t e s t h e i n d i v i d u a l 's r e l a ti o n s
s e p a r a t e s e v e r y s u b j e c t f r o m w h a t w o u l d f u lf ill h i m . M o r e ­ w ith th e s o c ia l b o d y a n d w r ite s h is d e s tin y o n a re g is te r
o v e r , t h e o b je c t o f fu lfillm e n t, o f c o m p l e ti o n , is c o n s t i tu t e d w hose a b so lu te p o in ts of re fe re n ce a re e s ta b lis h e d and
o n l y w i t h i n t h e u n i v e r s e o f m e a n i n g ( a l t h o u g h t h e b o d y is e x p r e s s e d b y m y th s o r re lig io n s .
a lw a y s d e te r m in a tiv e fo r its e la b o r a tio n ). A n d l a n g u a g e th u s T h e s y m b o lic b a r r ie r in th is s e c o n d ty p e o f m y th ic d is ­
c o m e s b e t w e e n t h e o b j e c t t h a t it h a s i t s e l f h e l p e d t o c r e a t e c o u r s e is m a r k e d a b o v e a ll b y t h e f a c t t h a t n o t h i n g c a n b e
a n d th e s u b je c t w h o d e s ir e s th is o b je c t. c h a n g e d b y a n i n d i v i d u a l : t h e t r u t h is b e l i e v e d t o e s c a p e t h e

300
 C O N T E M P O R A R Y L I T E R A T U R E AND S C I E N C E F I C T I O N

grasp of any p a rtic u la r p erso n . F u rth e rm o re , one can n o t w h ite b e a r d ), a d r a g o n ( w h o , o f c o u r s e , b r e a th e s fire ), ra v e n

p o s s e s s a n d u s e th e tr u th a s o n e lik e s , b u t o n ly a c c o r d in g to m e s se n g e rs, etc.
th e o r d e r o f p a r tic u la r r itu a ls a n d in s titu tio n s , w ith in th e W i t h a c a s t l ik e t h i s , a s e t t i n g m a d e u p o f v a s t r e g i o n s w i t h
lim its w h ic h t h e d o c t r in e a s s i g n s to h u m a n b e i n g s . In th e v a r ie d la n d s c a p e s , th e w o n d ro u s p o s s ib ilitie s p r o v id e d by
fic tio n a l n a r r a t iv e , b y c o n t r a s t , e v e r y t h i n g is p e r m i tt e d , s in c e s p e l l s , e n c h a n t m e n t s , a r i n g o f in v is ib ility , a n d a n a t tr a c t iv e
" i t's n o t t r u e ." S om eone w ho re n o u n c e s te llin g th e tru th g o a l (a w e ll - g u a r d e d t r e a s u r e ) , T o lk ie n h a s th e m a k i n g s o f a
g a i n s in r e t u r n t h e ri g h t to m a k e w o r l d s o u t o f th e m a t e r i a ls s to ry w ith in n u m e ra b le ups and dow ns— but a s to r y th a t
th a t la n g u a g e a n d s y m b o lic r e p r e s e n ta tio n s p r o v id e fo r h im . o f f e r s p l e a s u r e o f w h a t k i n d ? In o t h e r w o r d s , w h e r e in th is
S u b je c tio n t o v e r i s i m i l i t u d e is n o t m u c h o f a c o n s tr a in t: ta le a r e th e f ig u r e s o f f u lfillm e n t? A c c o r d in g to w h a t m o d a l ­
q u ite s im p ly , th e fictio n a l n a r r a tiv e m ust not m a in ta in a i t i e s d o n a r r a t i v e s l ik e T o l k i e n ' s p u t t h e i r r e a d e r s i n t o s o m e
d i s c o u r s e t h a t is m o r e u n lik e ly t h a n r e l ig i o u s d i s c o u r s e . T h is s o r t o f r e la tio n s h ip w ith fu lfillm e n t?
i s t h e l i m i t w i t h i n w h i c h it m u s t r e m a i n ( e v e n if it s o m e t i m e s F o r t h e b e g i n n i n g s o f a n a n s w e r t o t h i s q u e s t i o n , I w ill f i r s t
n a r r o w s t h is lim it t o a lig n its e lf w ith a p o s i ti v e d i s c o u r s e — n o te t h e f o ll o w i n g : th e w r it i n g in The Hobbit s u p p o r ts th e
p s y c h o lo g ic a l o b s e r v a tio n , h is to ry , th e s c ie n c e s , e t c .— a s , fo r c o n s i s te n c y o f c h a r a c t e r s a n d p lo t b y b a s in g its e lf e s s e n tia lly
e x a m p l e , i n t h e c l a s s i c a l n o v e l ) . T h e l i t e r a t u r e t h a t is c a l l e d u p o n th e re c o lle c tio n o f a c o n v e n tio n , a n d th e e s ta b lis h m e n t
im a g in a tiv e a lw a y s s ta y s th e c lo s e s t to its fu n ctio n as a o f a c o n n iv a n c e , b e tw e e n read er an d a u th o r. T o re a d The
p s e u d o -u m b i li c u s , a n d t h u s t o th e b r o a d e s t o f its c o n d it i o n s Hobbit is t o e n t e r i n to a g a m e in w h ic h y o u e n j o y a k in d o f
o f v e r i s i m i l i t u d e : it i n v e n t s m y t h s . g u a r a n t e e : t h a t h o w e v e r h o r r i b l e c e r t a i n e p i s o d e s m a y b e in
B u t th is t y p e o f lite r a tu r e d o e s n o t , a n y m o re th a n any t h e m s e l v e s , t h e y w il l n o t i m p o s e , t h e y w il l n e v e r a b s o r b t h e
o th e r, escap e th e n e ce ssity to g iv e som e d e n sity to th e r e a d e r c o m p l e te l y . F o r t h e a u t h o r is c o n s t a n t l y r e m i n d in g u s
r e p r e s e n ta t io n s e v o k e d b y th e w o r d s o f t h e n a r r a t iv e . T o th is th a t h e is t h e r e , in t h e w in g s o f th e s t o r y t h a t h e is te llin g ;
e n d , o n e c o n v e n i e n t p r o c e d u r e c o n s i s t s in d i p p i n g i n t o t h e a lth o u g h h is c o m m e n ta rie s to th e read er can be c a lle d
v a s t s to r e h o u s e o f a l r e a d y e x i s t in g re lig io u s d i s c o u r s e s , w ith h u m o ro u s, it i s p r e c i s e l y in th is s e n s e : a l th o u g h th e y are
th e r e s e r v a tio n th a t th e s e d i s c o u r s e s m u s t c e a s e to b e ta k e n p re s e n te d a s s e r io u s a n d u se f u l e x p la n a tio n s o f p a rtic u la r
a s tr u e , o r r a t h e r a s tr u e fo r e v e r y o n e ; re lig io n s th a t h a v e p o i n t s in t h e n a r r a t i v e , t h e y r e a l l y h a v e t h e e f f e c t o f p l a c i n g
c o m e to b e c o n s i d e r e d b e lie f s , r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s la b e le d fo lk ­ in t h e f o r e g r o u n d th e a u t h o r 's c o n n i v a n c e w ith t h e r e a d e r ,
lo re o r s u p e r s t it io n s , m y th s r e d u c e d to th e le v e l o f fa b le s o r in d i c a ti n g t h a t " a t b o t t o m , n o n e o f t h is is r e a lly t r u e ," a n d
f a i r y t a l e s , a ll t h e s e m a t e r i a l s a r e a b l e t o p r o v i d e g r i s t f o r t h a t t h e o n l y g r o u n d o n w h i c h t h e c h a r a c t e r s a r e s t a n d i n g is
im a g in a tiv e n a r r a tiv e s . T h e n a r r a tiv e s d o n o t ta k e u p th e s e p re c is e ly th a t o f th e c o m p lic ity b e tw e e n th e a u t h o r a n d th e
m a te ria ls a s s u c h : th e y a c c lim a tiz e th e m to th e ir n e w fu n c­ read er.
tio n ; t h e y u s e th e p ie c e s to m a k e s o m e t h in g d if f e r e n t; th e y In t h i s n a r r a t i v e m o d e , t h e f a c t t h a t t h e n a m e s o f m a n y
p a ro d y th e m , b e tra y th e m , d is o w n th e m (in b r ie f , t h e y u s e c h a r a c t e r s , a l o n g w ith s o m e o f th e ir s e m io lo g ic a l tr a its , h a v e
th e m ), a n d th is b o th to m a k e th e m f u n c t i o n in c o n f o r m i t y b e e n t a k e n f r o m a t r a d i t i o n e x t e r n a l t o t h e n a r r a t i v e i t s e l f is
w ith th e r e p r e s e n ta tio n s in fo rce am ong th e c a te g o ry of im p o rta n t and e ffe c tiv e . For d w a rfs, e lv e s, and g o b lin s
r e a d e r s to w h ic h t h e y a r e a d d r e s s e d a n d to g iv e th e t e x ts th e c o n s titu te a s e t o f r e p r e s e n ta tio n s s h a r e d b y th e a u th o r a n d
c h a ra cte r o f a c r e a tio n , to m ake th e re a d e r sh are in th e h is r e a d e r s (s in c e t h e y k n o w th a t th e s e r e p r e s e n ta t io n s e x is t
p le a s u re o f m a s te r y : th e r e a d e r m u s t a lw a y s b e a b le to s e e o u ts id e th e m ). To in tr o d u c e th e m by n am e is t o a s k th e
th a t he is d e a lin g w ith a c re a te d w o rk , even w hen its re a d e r m o re or le s s e x p lic itly to p la ce h im s e lf w ith in th e
a rtif ic ia lity is e la b o r a t e d b y th e a u t h o r s o a s to b e " t r u e to f r a m e o f a c o n v e n t i o n . T h i s p r o c e d u r e is t h e i n v e r s e o f t h e
lif e ." one th a t c o n s is ts of in tr o d u c in g a ch a ra cte r th ro u g h th e
T h u s , w h i l e a ll n a r r a t i v e s c a n b e c o n s i d e r e d , in o n e w a y o r w e ig h t o f h is ( p s e u d o - ) re a lity , i .e ., th r o u g h th e m u ltip lic ity
a n o th e r , to b e b e a re rs o r c r e a to r s o f m y th s , o n ly s o m e , b y th e o f s e m io lo g ic a l tr a its w h ic h engage h im in a d isco u rse of
e x p e d ie n t o f b o r r o w in g o r p a r o d y , a r e l in k e d w ith a l r e a d y v e r i s i m i l i t u d e . It is a s if a t t h e m o m e n t o f b r i n g i n g a n e w
e x is tin g b e lie fs , re lig io n s , or m y th s . But even a c a te g o ry c h a ra cte r in to p la y , T o lk ie n an n ou n ces: "W h at about an
l i m i t e d i n t h i s w a y r e m a i n s f a r t o o v a s t t o c o v e r h e r e . I w ill e lf— t h a t - s u g g e s t s s o m e t h i n g to y o u , d o e s n 't it? H e r e is m y
th e re fo re to u c h o n o n ly a fe w p o in ts to m a rk c e rta in o f th e v a r ia tio n on th e th e m e of an e l f 's tra d itio n a l d e s c r ip tiv e
m o s t r e p r e s e n ta t iv e d i r e c t io n s o f th is u s e o f m y th o lo g y ; w ith tra its . N o w h e r e a r e th e m o d i f i c a t i o n s e n t a il e d in th is n e w
J . R . R . T o l k i e n f i r s t o f a ll ( a B r i t i s h a u t h o r w h o d i e d in 1 9 7 3 ) , e l e m e n t 's e n t r y i n to t h e c u r r e n t c o n j e c t u r e o f t h e s t o r y ."
w h o s e w o r k is a d d r e s s e d b o t h t o c h i l d r e n (The Hobbit) a n d to A lo n g sid e th e se sh ared r e p r e s e n ta t io n s , e x p lic itly in tr o ­
a d u lts (The Lord of the Rings, a lo n g n a r r a t iv e in a n a r c h a ic d u c e d a s s u c h , t h e a u t h o r c a l l s u p o n o t h e r s , w h i c h a c t a s if
s t y l e , r e m i n i s c e n t o f a m e d i e v a l s a g a ) . W e w ill t h e n l o o k a t th e re w e re n o th in g o u t o f th e o rd in a ry a b o u t th e m and so
H . P. L o v e c r a f t , t h e A m e r i c a n a u t h o r o f h o r r o r s t o r i e s w h o c o m e to p o r t r a y r e a lity . F o r e x a m p l e , w h ile B ilb o th e H o b b it
w r o t e b e t w e e n t h e t w o w o r l d w a r s . I w o u l d l ik e , f i n a l l y , t o is a b e i n g o f p u r e f a n t a s y ( th a t is , t h e fru it o f a n a c c e p t e d
s k e tc h th e p o s itio n o f th e g o d s in th e p ro b le m a tic o f th e co n v e n tio n ), he n e v e rth e le ss p re s e n ts th e "re a lity " of a
n a r r a tiv e s o f s c ie n c e fictio n ( o r f u tu r is tic fic tio n ). ch ild . N ot th a t he o b je c tiv e ly d isp la y s th e sam e ty p e s of
m o tiv a tio n s a n d f e e lin g s a s c h ild r e n ; r a th e r , h e e v i n c e s th e
s a m e r e a c ti o n s o f p l e a s u r e a n d f e a r a s t h o s e w h ic h th e c h ild
I. T h e H o b b it by J. R. R. Tolkien r e a d e r c a n s u p p o s e a r e c h a r a c t e r is t ic o f h is o w n n a t u r e . T h is ,
W ith The Hobbit, T o lk ie n j o in s t h e t r a d it i o n o f J . M . B a r r ie , t h e n , is a b r i d g e w h ic h c o n n e c t s n o t th e r e a d e r to th e a u t h o r
w hose h ero P e te r P an i s s ti ll fam o u s; b u t T o lk ie n d iffe rs b u t th e s u b je c t o f th e e n u n c ia tio n ( t h e r e a d e r in t h e a c t o f
n o ta b ly in th a t h is fa n ta sie s a re s y s te m a tic a lly b ased on c o n su m in g th e n a r r a tiv e ) to th e s u b je c t o f th e e n u n c ia te d
b e in g s w h o s e n a m e s , a t l e a s t, c o m e fro m fo lk lo re ( a lth o u g h ( B i l b o , f o r e x a m p l e ) . T h i s l in k i s n o t t h e r e g i s t e r o f c o n n i v ­
h e a d d s c h a r a c t e r s o f h is o w n in v e n tio n , s u c h a s " h o b b i t s " ) : a n c e , b u t o f a n a l o g y , i d e n t i f i c a t i o n . I t i s r e i n f o r c e d b y a ll t h e
d w a rfs (w ith b e a rd s a n d h o o d s , n a tu r a lly ), g ia n ts (f e r o c io u s in d ic a tio n s th a t s u r r o u n d t h e d a i l y lif e o f t h e h e r o : B i l b o 's
o n e s ) , e lv e s , g o b lin s , a s o r c e r e r (o ld a n d w is e , w ith a lo n g lo d g in g s , fo r in sta n ce , w ith a ll th a t a c o m fo rta b le lif e r e -

301
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE
Elric the Necromancer. Drawing by Philippe Druillet. © Dar-
gaud éditeur, Paris, 1975.
Dead Gods. Drawing by Philippe Druillet. Photo D.R.
quires, like the house of the three bears in the fairy tale, and
especially with all the fixings for breakfasts and teas that
leave nothing to be desired. The indications of comfort (or,
by contrast, of insecurity) used in the narration function as
an echo and amplification of the comfort felt by the child in
the very act of consuming the narrative (especially when the
story is read to him by an adult).
The connection with fulfillment which narratives like The
Hobbit establish is thus nothing but the deployment, in the
imaginary space of the enunciated, of the connection that is
302
C H R I S T I A N ERA
the basis of the very possibility of their enunciation. The
voice of the storyteller, or the very pages of the book, are the
concentrated site of a possibility of comfort; they establish
the reader or listener in a position where all reality calls a
truce; it lets him suck the milk of a story (a story of hidden
treasure, for instance) at the breast of the storyteller. Elves
and dwarfs, goblins and dragons— precisely because every­
one knows that they have no existence other than their
names— help to maintain this truce by reminding us that
here (in the enclosed space of the enunciation of the narra­
tive), the linguistic convention is law and has the power to
suspend the dangers and privations that a confrontation
with reality involves.
II. H. P. Lovecraft
Of all the authors classed in the genre of fantastic fiction or
science fiction, Lovecraft is the one who has had the most
systematic recourse to a pantheon. A pantheon purely as a
parody: Lovecraft speaks of his gods as if they were generally
recognized as gods. He carefully respects his own conven­
tions, the same pantheon being common to all of his fiction
(here too, as with Tolkien, we find that dimension of play by
which the author simultaneously creates a universe and
explicitly marks its conventional character, based on lan­
guage).
At the apex, at the deepest level of the hierarchy,
Azathoth, the unbounded, the sultan of demons, dwells in
Primal Chaos. Among the mute gods who surround him are
Nyarlathotep, the Crawling Chaos; in Outer Chaos, Yog-
Sothoth, the Protoplasmic, also from the stars; Cthulhu,
emprisoned inside a submerged city. Less horrific than
Cthulhu is Dagon, another marine divinity. Minor gods
include Umr-Attawil, Tsathoggua, Ghatanothoa, Hastur, and
the Shub-Niggurath mentioned in an undiscoverable book of
black magic, the Necronomicon: for along with these deities
there are secret books that perpetuate their worship, as well
as worshipers, dark and deviant personalities or degenerate
human groups.
Maurice Lévy has called this effort at consistency the
"myth of Cthulhu." But any kinship of Lovecraft's work with
a myth or a religious system is entirely external. Defined as
they are by their names and descriptions, the gods of the
Lovecraftian pantheon are not differentiated like those of a
genuine religious mythology: they repeat one another in a
redundant way; all are representatives of more or less
unfathomable regions of Chaos.
Lovecraft's knowledge of mythology may have helped him
to enrich the description of his deities: Cthulhu, for instance,
has many traits in common with Typhon, who is, like him,
akin to the powers of Chaos, to "those who came before"
(Hesiod's formula, but it could have been Lovecraft's), those
cut off from the orderly world by a gate forever sealed
(although for Lovecraft this gate opens often enough).
These imaginary deities are of a type with whom human
beings cannot connect themselves by any symbolic and
institutional mediation. Contact with them is a transgres­
sion, a short-circuit, an encounter which "normally" should
not take place (Lovecraft's narrative is always the story of an
exception). They are sacred pollution, the omnipotence of a
glutinous and eternal matter; in brief, Lovecraft evokes a
sense of the religious that overflows any symbolic inscrip­
tion, and tongue-ties the universe of signs. Phrases such as
"daemon activity," "shocking rituals," "outlaw sect," and
"devilish exchange" are frequent and are used to amplify the
word "blasphemous" (one of the author's favorite adjec­
 MY T H AND P O L I T I C A L T H E O R Y

t iv e s ). In t h e ir c o n s t a n t r e p e t it i o n , t h e s e s t e r e o t y p e d p h r a s e s T h e t h e m e o f a d i s p r o p o r t i o n t o b e s u r m o u n t e d is e v e r y ­
th e m s e lv e s b e c o m e e le m e n ts in a lita n y o f in c a n t a ti o n th a t w h e re p r e s e n t in s c i e n c e fictio n , s o m e tim e s d e p ic te d in a
re a c tiv a te s a h o ly te rro r fo r e a c h s to ry , th e e v o ca tio n of p r o b le m a tic c lo s e to th a t o f L o v e c r a f t: th e a w e s o m e o m n ip ­
p o w e r s w h i c h , l ik e t h e p a g a n d e i t i e s a t t a c k e d b y C h r i s t i a n - - o t e n c e o f t h e a l ie n s , m a s t e r s o f v a s t d i s t a n c e s in s p a c e a n d
ity , c o m e f r o m t h e r e g i s t e r o f t h e d i a b o l i c a l . tim e , a d ia b o lic a l in v a s io n b y c r e a tu r e s o f fle sh d o m i n a t e d b y
L o v e c r a f t 's m y t h o l o g i c a l b a s e t h u s p r e s e n t s a v e r y d i f f e r ­ e y e s o r te n ta c le s , th r e a te n in g th e m e a s u r e d u n iv e r s e o f m e n .
e n t s e n s e f r o m t h a t o f a n a u t h o r l ik e T o l k i e n . T h e r e p r e s e n ­ B u t , m o r e s p e c if ic a lly , t h e g o d s in s c i e n c e fic tio n a r e l a r g e -
ta tio n s th a t L o v e c r a f t g a t h e r s a r o u n d h is n o n h u m a n e n titie s s c a l e h u m a n b e i n g s , f r e e d f r o m t h e lim its o f d e a t h , p o s s e s s ­
a re s u p p o rte d m o re b y a p a ra d o x ic a l u s e o f la n g u a g e th a n b y in g s c ie n c e a n d p o w e r o n a u n iv e rs a l s c a le ; a n d y e t n e v e r
th e s im p le c o n v e n t i o n s o f p la y : h e r e la n g u a g e s e e k s to p o in t q u ite c e r ta in o f h a v in g th e la s t w o r d in t h e s tr u g g l e s a n d
o u t its o w n in s u ffic ie n c y in th e fa c e o f th e in e ffa b le , th e riv a lrie s th a t o p p o s e th e m to o t h e r g o d s . M e n b e c o m e g o d s
u n n a m e a b le . L o v e c r a f t p o r t r a y s (b y m e a n s o f l a n g u a g e , o f (in t h e w o r k o f R o g e r Z e l a z n y , f o r e x a m p l e ) , o r g o d s w it h a
co u rse) v a r io u s fig u re s of th e pow er th a t o v e rflo w s and h u m a n fa c e (in t h e w o r k o f A . E . V a n V o g t ), m u s t k e e p u p a
s i l e n c e s a ll l a n g u a g e a n d a l l c o n v e n t i o n . F a r f r o m e x t e n d i n g c o n s ta n t o u tb id d in g fo r s y m b o lic m a s te ry : th e y m u st con ­
a n d ill u s t r a t in g t h e c o z y fu lf illm e n t c r e a t e d b y t h e r e a d e r 's s ta n tly be fo ilin g p lo ts, in v e n tin g m a c h in e s th a t o u tc la s s
p o s itio n in t h e e n u n c i a ti o n (th e r e a d e r , r e a d i n g , liv e s o n ly th o s e o f th e e n e m y , d e f e a tin g th e to ta lita ria n r a tio n a lity o f a
e v e n t s o f l a n g u a g e ) , t h e s it e s o f fu lf illm e n t in L o v e c r a f t a r e p o w e r ( r e li g io u s , p o l i ti c a l , t e c h n o l o g i c a l ) t h a t b e a r s a ll th e
th o s e w h e re , e lu d in g th e g r a s p o f la n g u a g e , th e re a l b u rs ts e a rm a rk s of a f u lfillm e n t a g a in s t w h ic h th e h e ro m ust
fo rth . m e a s u r e h im s e lf . T h u s th e fig u r e s o f fu lfillm e n t p r e s e n t e d to
F o r th o s e w h o r e a c h th e m , t h e s e f o r b id d e n p la c e s o f f e r a th e r e a d e r a r e b a s e d o n th e d is p r o p o r tio n b e tw e e n th e r e a d e r
r e s t o r a t i o n o f t h e u m b i l i c u s o f f l e s h ; b u t t h i s t i m e it i s a n h i m s e l f a n d t h e m a t e r i a l u n i v e r s e o f w h ic h h e is p a r t , a n d
u m b ilic u s w h ose c irc u la tio n , to be re s to re d , m u st be re­ inseparably, on d i s c o u r s e s th a t, in th e ir to ta liz in g v o c a t i o n ,
v e r s e d : n o l o n g e r n o u r i s h i n g a n d c o n s t r u c t i v e , it i s n o w a o f fe r s im u l ta n e o u s l y th e m e a n s o f p o r t r a y in g th is d i s p r o p o r ­
d e s tru c tiv e s u c tio n , g o in g to w a rd th e m o th e r , to w a r d th e t i o n a n d t h e m e a n s o f m e a s u r i n g u p t o i t.
h e r o 's a b s o r p tio n in to fle s h a n d in to a lin e a g e o f th e d e a d F .F l ./j .l .
(f r o m w h ic h h e h a s o n ly te m p o ra rily e m e r g e d ). T h e p o w e r
o f L o v e c r a f t 's g o d s t h u s lie s n o t in t h e i r s c i e n c e , l a w s , o r
w is d o m (s in c e fo r th is th e y w o u ld h a v e to r e c o g n i z e th e ir
s u b j e c t i o n t o s o m e s y m b o l i c i n s t a n c e ) : it l i e s i n t h e i r m o n ­ BIBLIOGRAPHY
s tro u s fle sh , th e ir pow er of c o n ta g io n , a re s u lt of th e ir
c r u s h in g d is p r o p o r tio n to a n y h u m a n o r d e r . The Hobbit (Boston and New York 1938); The Lord of the
). R. R. tolkien .
If L o v e cra ft a b u n d a n tly , re p e titio u s ly , p o rtra y s s ite s of Rings, 3 vols. (Boston 1954-56). h . r. lovecraft , Dagon; The Shadow
fu lfillm e n t, th e s u b je c t o f t h o s e th a t h e h a s e n u n c i a te d , th e out of Time; The Outsider; The Color out of Space; Beyond the Wall of Sleep.
n a rra to r, is p l u n g e d in to th e se s ite s , to b e n e fit fro m th e
Science Fiction
e x p e r i e n c e . In t h e s e ta le s th e a u t h o r n e v e r m a r k s h im s e lf a s
Gods and god-men are frequently employed by authors such as
th e s u b je c t o f th e e n u n c i a te d : th e r e a d e r m u s t b e a lo n e in h is
o. STAPLEDON (the first one to tackle this theme), r. |. farmer,
c o n f r o n ta tio n w ith t h e s ite o f fu lfillm e n t, fo r th e g o a l o f th e
M. MOORCOCK, A. E. VAN VOGT, D. F. GALOUYE, and R. ZELAZNY.
n a r r a t iv e is t o p r o d u c e d r e a d , n o t c o m f o r t . H e r e , l a n g u a g e Among the numerous works on science fiction, I suggest 63
w a n ts to re s to re c o n d itio n s in w h ic h it w o u l d not have auteurs, bibliographie de science-fiction, by a . vili.emur (Paris 1976); and
e x is te d , b u t d o e s s o , a n d c a n d o s o , o n ly fro m th e m o m e n t the work of d . wolheim . Les faiseurs d'univers (Paris 1974), who
t h a t it e x i s t s . T h e e n t e r p r i s e i s t h u s s i m u l t a n e o u s l y s e r i o u s stresses more than others the theme of gods in science fiction.
(fa s c in a tin g , e x tr e m e ) a n d n o t s e r i o u s , s i n c e it p l a y s t r i c k s
General
a n d k n o w s t h a t it is p l a y i n g t h e m . A l t h o u g h in th e e n u n c i ­
a te d no b a rrie r now s e p a r a te s th e h e ro fro m th e d iv in e
The most general work on fantasy literature is no doubt that of
p. VERSINS, Encyclopédie de l'Utopie, des voyages extraordinaires et de la
(w h ic h , by this fact, is t r a n s f o r m e d in to th e d ia b o lic ), th e
science-fiction (Lausanne 1972).
r e a d e r is n e v e r t h e l e s s in c o n t a c t w ith t h e a b y s s o f fu lf illm e n t On ghost stories, see the book by m . levy , Le roman "gothique”
o n ly th r o u g h th e m e d ia tio n a n d th e s c r e e n o f th e n a r r a tiv e . anglais, 1764-1824 (Toulouse 1972). On fantasy literature in general
see Introduction à la littérature fantastique, by t . todorov (Paris 1970).

III. On Mythologies in Science Fiction

In s c i e n c e fic tio n , fu lf illm e n t is s ig n if ie d p r i m a r i ly in t h e
fo rm o f th e m a s te r y o f th e im m e a s u r a b le , th e d o m in a tio n
and sp a n n in g of e n o rm o u s d ista n ce s of space and tim e . M yth a n d P o l it ic a l T h e o r y : N a t io n a l is m s
S c ie n tif ic d i s c o u r s e c o m e s in , o n th e o n e h a n d , to c o n n e c t a n d S o c ia l is m s
r e a l i t y ( a s w e l l a s it c a n ) w i t h t h e e l a b o r a t i o n s w h i c h o t h e r ­
w is e w o u ld r e m a in s im p ly p h a n ta s m i c . O n th e o t h e r h a n d ,
th e p r e s e n c e o f s c ie n tific d i s c o u r s e a l s o s e r v e s to a ffirm th e A l t h o u g h th e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y is t h e c e n t u r y o f t h e r e b ir th
p o w e r o f s y m b o l i c a c t i v i t y o v e r w h a t t e n d s t o g o b e y o n d i t. o f m y th a n d o f m y th o lo g y , t h is is a r e n a i s s a n c e o n l y o f t h e
T h e i n tr o d u c tio n o f f r a g m e n ts o f d i s c o u r s e th a t p a r o d y th e m y th s o f p a g a n a n tiq u ity a n d th e m y th o lo g ie s r e v e a le d b y
d is c o u rs e o f th e e x a c t scie n ce s is th u s never a s u f fic ie n t th e c u r io s ity of tra v e le rs and th e d is c o v e r ie s o f sch o la rs.
re a s o n to d is c o u n t th e p re s e n c e o f th e d iv in e . O n e n e e d o n ly P o e ts a n d a r tis ts u se th e se m y th o lo g ie s to c o n s tr u c t th e ir
p e r u s e th e title s o f w o r k s o f s c i e n c e fictio n t o b e c o n v i n c e d o f o w n s y m b o lic u n iv e r s e a n d to r e s to r e m e a n in g to a w o rld
th is : th e s tr u g g le fo r o m n i p o t e n c e , f a c e d w ith th e o b s ta c le s fro m w h ic h th e g o d s s e e m to h a v e r e tir e d . B u t m a n y d o n o t
o f im m e n s ity a n d d e a t h , c a lls fo r t h e u s e o f t h e v o c a b u la r y o f s t o p a t a p u r e l y in d iv id u a l p e r s p e c t i v e , a n d a t t e m p t t o b u ild
r e lig io n a n d t h e c o s m ic . c o lle c tiv e m y th s . S in c e th e b e g in n in g of th e n in e te e n th

303
W E S T E R N C I V I L I Z A T I O N IN THE C H R I S T I A N ERA

c e n tu ry , th e p o e t, a n d m o r e g e n e r a lly th e in te lle c tu a l, h a s s tr u c tu r e . T o b e g in w ith , m y th in c lu d e s a c to r s : o n o n e s id e ,

fe lt t h a t h e w a s in v e s te d w ith a m i s s io n t h a t is s it u a te d a t th e th e p e o p le (a s d e s c rib e d b y M ich e le t o r H u g o ), a n d , o n th e
c r o s s r o a d s o f t w o tr a d itio n s : th e tr a d itio n o f th e philosophes o f o th e r , th e s o c ia l c la s s — w h e th e r th e c a p ta in s o f i n d u s tr y o f
th e e ig h te e n th c e n tu r y , w h o a s s e r t th a t t h e y a r e f ig h tin g fo r S a in t-S im o n o r th e p r o le ta r ia t o f M a r x . T h is m y th ic a l a c to r,
e n l ig h te n m e n t a n d p r o g r e s s , a n d th e tr a d itio n o f u n k n o w n w h o is n o t i n d iv id u a l b u t c o l le c ti v e , b e c o m e s i n c a r n a t e in a
p r o p h e ts , th o s e o b s c u re in te r p r e te r s o f h is to ry w h o re a d th e s e rie s o f m y th ic a l h e ro e s : th e G ra n d F e r ré , Jo a n o f A r c , o r
c h a r a c t e r s o f t h e d iv in e t o n g u e in t h e s y m b o l s o f t h e w o r ld G a v r o c h e a s s e e n b y M ich e le t a n d H u g o , o r S p a r ta c u s a n d
and com m en t on its r e v e la tio n (H a m a n n , S a in t-M a r tin , T h o m a s M ü n z e r re g a rd e d a s th e m a rty rs o f th e o p p re s s e d
C o u r t d e G é b e li n , F a b r e d 'O I i v e t ) . T h e i n t e l le c t u a l p i c k s u p c la s s e s . W h a t m a t te r s is t h a t th e a c to r s a r e a w a r e o f th e ir
w h e r e t h e d i s q u a lifie d c le r g y le ft o f f a n d c la i m s a c a p a c i ty to liv e s a n d t h e ir r o le s : o n t h e o n e h a n d , Volksgeist, th e s p irit o f
c r e a te m y th s a n d re lig io n s . W h e n w a itin g fo r th e g o d s — o ld t h e p e o p l e , in w h ic h t h e p r o f o u n d v o c a t i o n o f a c u l t u r e is
o r n e w — e n d s in d i s a p p o i n tm e n t , a n e r s a tz m y th o lo g y a p ­ c ry s ta lliz e d (H e rd e r, H u m b o ld t, H e g e l); o n th e o th e r h a n d ,
p e a r s : th e m y th o f r e lig io n a s a r t a n d r e v e la tio n a s a r t . T h u s , c la s s c o n s c i o u s n e s s , a s a r e s u lt o f w h ic h th e p r o le ta r ia t c a n
f o r th e firs t t im e , t h e g r e a t lit e r a r y a n d a r t is t ic w o r k s o f th e s e e i t s e l f a s t h e b e a r e r o f a n e x e m p l a r y f a t e . T h e f a c t is t h a t
tra d itio n a r e r e g a r d e d a s m y th s : F a u s t , D o n J u a n , a n d D o n th e a c to r s , p e o p le a n d c la s s a lik e , h a v e a m is s io n to a c c o m ­
Q u ix o te b e c o m e th e b e a r e r s o f a u n iv e rs a l a n d s a c r e d m e a n ­ p lis h , w h ic h th e y c a r r y w ith in t h e m s e l v e s a n d w h ic h h is to r ­
in g o f w h ic h th e ir c r e a to r s w e r e u n a w a r e . T h is r e lig io n o f a r t ica l d e v e lo p m e n t m ust le t th e m b rin g to f ru itio n . T h is
m ay t a k e a ll f o r m s , f r o m th e a r tis tic s o c ia lis m o f W illia m re a liz a tio n is r e v e a le d in a n a m b ig u o u s a n d c o n tr a d ic to r y
M o r ris to th e lo fty a n d h o p e le s s re lig io n o f M a lla r m é . B u t f o r m . It is t h e r e s u l t o f a s t r u g g l e ( t h e p e o p l e 's w a r , t h e c la s s
m o r e o f te n th e w r ite r s e e k s to ta k e o n a s o c ia l r e s p o n s ib ility s tr u g g le ) a n d a t th e s a m e tim e a im s fo r a u n iv e r s a l r e c o n c il­
a n d p e r c e iv e s h i m s e l f a s b e i n g in v e s te d w ith a u t h o r i ty ; th is ia tio n . E ach c o u n tr y b e lie v e s th a t it is in v e s te d w ith a
in v o lv e s i n te r v e n in g in s o c ia l s tr u g g l e s , b rin g in g th e ju d g ­ p ro v id e n tia l m is s io n , ju s t a s e a c h c la s s b e lie v e s t h a t i t is
m e n t o f h is to ry to b e a r o n e v e n ts , a n d p o in tin g o u t th e ju s t d e stin e d to t r iu m p h o v e r t h e o t h e r s in t h e e n d ; b u t in th e
c o u r s e o f a c tio n . T h e in te lle c tu a l h a s ju s t d i s c o v e r e d a n e w u n i v e r s a l f a t h e r l a n d , i n d i v i d u a l c o u n t r i e s w il l f i n d a " m e l t ­
te r r ito r y o v e r w h ic h h e s e e k s to b e c o m e a n e x p e r t , n a m e ly , i n g p o t , " j u s t a s t h e c l a s s e s w il l a l l d i s a p p e a r i n t h e c l a s s l e s s
p o litic a l t e r r i to r y : " P o li ti c a l S c i e n c e , w h ic h is t h e S c i e n c e o f s o c ie t y . It is t h u s a m a t t e r o f b r i n g i n g a b o u t p e a c e , b u t p e a c e
S c i e n c e s ," w r ite s B la k e . T h e n e w g o d s w il l b e t h e g o d s o f c a n b e a c h i e v e d o n l y a t g u n p o in t . T h e tr a n s i ti o n t o t h e fin a l
p o litic a l s tr u g g l e . s ta t e m u s t t a k e p l a c e in a s u d d e n m u ta tio n , c o n q u e s t, o r
It i s o n t h e p o l i t i c a l t e r r a i n t h a t t r u l y c o l l e c t i v e m y t h s a r i s e ; r e v o l u ti o n b y w h ic h a ll v a l u e s a r e t r a n s m u t e d . T h u s a n e w
n o t th e p e rs o n a l m y th s o f p o e ts a n d w r ite r s , b u t th e m y th s o f fo rm o f g o v e r n m e n t is s e t u p , a n u n p re ce d e n te d era th a t
s o c ia l p ro p h e ts, w h ic h a re bom of a cro ss b e tw e e n th e in a u g u r a t e s th e e n d o f h is to r y , th e e n d o f s e p a r a te n a tio n s
a m b itio n s o f th e in te lle c tu a ls a n d th e n e w s o c ia l e n titie s th a t a n d c la s s e s . T h e l in e a r t im e o f h u m a n h i s t o r y is b r o k e n ; th e
a p p e a r e d a t th e b e g in n in g o f th e n in e te e n th c e n tu ry . T h e s e r u p t u r e p u ts a n e n d t o it a n d a t t h e s a m e t im e g o e s b e y o n d
e n t it ie s i n c l u d e o n th e o n e h a n d t h e n a t io n , in th e m o d e r n it w i t h o u t r e c o u r s e t o t r a n s c e n d e n c e .
s e n s e o f t h e t e r m , o f w h i c h a ll t h e i n h a b i t a n t s a r e a t l e a s t b y In o r d e r to r e c o g n i z e th e m o v e m e n t o f h is to r y a n d h a s te n
rig h t e q u a l c itiz e n s , a n d o n th e o t h e r h a n d , th e s o c ia l c la s s e s , its d e v e l o p m e n t , a m a n o f k n o w l e d g e a n d a c ti o n is n e e d e d ,
th e d is ta n t le g a c y o f th e E s ta te s o f th e a n c ie n r é g im e . T h e a p ro p h e t-th e o r e tic ia n , h e ra ld in g th e c h a n g e to c o m e . T h e
s it u a ti o n o f b o t h p r o t a g o n i s t s is q u it e c o m p a r a b l e . J u s t a s th e m o m e n t h e a p p e a r s , h e f o u n d s a s c h o o l a r o u n d h im , w ith
c la s s e s s tr u g g le fo r p o w e r w ith in th e n a tio n , s o th e n a tio n s d is c ip le s a n d in s titu tio n s th a t g u a r a n te e th e s p r e a d o f th e
fig h t fo r th e con q u est o f th e u n iv e rs a l e m p ire . The tw o d o c t r in e (S a in t-S im o n is ts , F o u r ie r is ts , p o s itiv is ts , M a r x is ts ).
e n titie s a r e t h u s i n s e p a r a b le , b y v ir tu e o f th e ir b irth a n d th e ir T h e p a r t y is o n l y t h e o r g a n i z e d a n d c o n s c i o u s f o r m o f th is
m e a n in g . H is to ry e x p la in s th e d e v e lo p m e n t o f n a tio n s b y th e m ilitia o f d is c ip le s .
s tru g g le a n d th e o p p re s s io n o f p e o p le s (A . T h ie rry ), ju s t a s T h is m y th r e s ts o n a s c ie n tific c o m p o n e n t (la r g e ly p s e u d o ­
K a rl M a r x e x p l a in s it b y t h e s tr u g g l e a n d t h e o p p r e s s i o n o f s c ie n tif ic a t t h a t) w h e r e b y th e p r o p h e t - th e o r e ti c i a n is a m a n
c la s s e s . B u t th e t w o n e w a c t o r s a r e t h e o n e s in w h o s e h a n d s o f s c ie n c e , a h is to ria n , a g e o g r a p h e r , a s o c io lo g is t, a n a n th r o ­
th e fa te o f a ll is p l a y e d o u t : t h e s e n e w fig h te rs n e e d n ew p o lo g ist, a n e c o n o m i s t, o r a p o litic ia n , a n d h is th e o re tic a l
c o n c e p tio n s o f th e w o rld . M o re o v e r, th e v e ry a p p e a ra n c e o f c o n s tr u c tio n is seen as s c ie n tific , s c ie n c e b e in g th e o n ly
th e s e a c to r s a n d th e ir a w a r e n e s s o f th e ir r o le s a r e s y m b o lic o r th o d o x m o d e l o f k n o w le d g e . T o th e s c ie n tific c o m p o n e n t a
f a c ts , t h e r e s u lt o f a m y th o lo g i c a l c o n s t r u c t i o n a s w e ll a s o f t e c h n i c a l c o m p o n e n t i s a d d e d , t h e o n e a l r e a d y i n s c r i b e d in
th e m a te ria l e v o lu tio n o f s o c ie tie s . H e r o e s o f n e w s tr u g g le s , th e m y th o f F a u s t: s c ie n c e c a n m a k e u s th e a b s o lu te o w n e r s
th e p e o p le a n d th e s o c ia l c la s s n e e d n a r r a tiv e p a r a d ig m s to a n d m a s te r s o f n a tu r e . T h is te c h n iq u e o f d o m in a tio n m u s t
d e f in e t h e ir f u n c tio n a n d r e m i n d e v e r y o n e o f t h e ir s ig n ifi­ a ls o b e e x e rc is e d o n s o c ie ty a n d h is to ry : th e m y th o f th e re a l
c a n c e . N a tu ra lly th e y n e e d m y th s . A n e n o r m o u s e ffe rv e s ­ U to p ia , a c c o r d in g to w h ic h a c o m p l e te a n d c o h e r e n t o r g a n i­
c e n c e o f i d e a s is t h u s p r o d u c e d , th e c r e a t o r s o f w h ic h a r e th e z a t io n o f t h e s o c ia l w o r l d is p o s s ib le . T h e r e is, h o w e v e r , a
in te lle c tu a ls , b u t a ls o th e m a r g in a l in te lle c tu a ls , th e s e m ili­ d if f e r e n c e b e t w e e n th e t w o m y th ic a l c o m p le x e s . O r ig in a lly
t e r a te a n d t h e s e lf - t a u g h t, a s w e ll a s e s ta b l is h e d w r it e r s a n d th e s o c ia lis t c o m p le x fav o red th e te c h n ica l and s c ie n tific
i d e o l o g u e s . W e a r e d e a l i n g w i t h s o m e t h i n g l ik e a " p r i m i t i v e m o d e ls , a n d th e n a tio n a lis t c o m p le x fa v o re d o r g a n ic m o d e ls ;
s o u p " o f m o d e m id e o lo g ie s , c o m p a r a b le to th e flo w e rin g o f b u t in b o th c a s e s , th e c o n c e r n fo r o r g a n iz a tio n a n d c o h e r e n t
p h ilo s o p h ic a l a n d re lig io u s se cts at th e b e g in n in g o f th e d o m i n a t io n is t h e s a m e . G r a d u a ll y th e t w o t y p e s o f m o d e l s
C h r is tia n e r a , o u t o f w h ic h a s e le c tio n o f id e a s u n fo ld e d , t e n d t o c o m b in e , a s c a n b e s e e n in to d a y 's n a tio n a lis m s a n d
s im ila r to t h e n a t u r a l s e le c ti o n o f s p e c i e s : t h e fitte s t s u r v i v e d s o c ia l is m s . In t h e s a m e w a y , t h e t w o c o m p l e x e s a n d t h e t w o
in th e e n d . g r e a t m y th ic a l a c to r s te n d to o v e r la p th a n k s to n o tio n s s u c h
O u t o f th e p e rio d o f id e o lo g ic a l c r e a ti o n th a t s p a n s th e a s im p e r ia lis m ( L e n in ) a n d p r o le ta r ia n n a tio n s (M u s s o lin i):
y e a r s b e tw e e n 1 8 0 0 a n d 1 8 5 0 , tw o g r e a t m y th ic a l c o m p le x e s th e re la tio n s b e tw e e n n a tio n s a re th e e x a c t e q u iv a le n ts o f th e
e m e r g e d , th e c o m p le x o f th e p e o p le a n d n a tio n a lis m a n d th e r e la tio n s b e tw e e n c la s s e s .
c o m p le x o f th e c la s s a n d s o c ia lis m , w ith a la rg e ly id e n tic a l Thus a new k i n d o f m y t h a r o s e , w h i c h c a m e t o t a k e i ts

304
 M Y T H A ND P O L I T I C A L T H E O R Y

p l a c e n e x t t o t h e t r a d it i o n a l m y t h s in t h e r e p e r t o r y o f th e a n d s a lv a ti o n . F in a l ly t h e r e is t h e m y th of m od em id e o lo ­
h is to ria n o f re lig io n s a n d w h ic h le d to a n e w c o n c e p t i o n o f g i e s , n o t w h a t is i n c o r r e c t l y c a ll e d m o d e m m y t h s , b u t m y th i c
m y th o lo g y . F o r th e c o r r e c t u n d e r s ta n d in g o f m y th h a d b e e n h i s t o r y i n w h i c h it i s n o l o n g e r g o d s b u t i d e a s t h a t g u i d e t h e
b lo c k e d b y tw o o b s ta c le s : th e re fu s a l to c o n s id e r re v e a le d m o v e m e n t o f th e re a l a n d g u a ra n te e th e seco n d co m in g .
r e lig io n s a s m y th s a n d th e a f f ir m a tio n o f m o d e m ra tio n a lity , H e re a g a in th e e s s e n tia l d im e n s io n is t h e o r g a n i z a ti o n of
w h ic h w o u ld e m p t y h e a v e n o f its g o d s . In f a c t, t h e r e a r e h u m a n , in d i v id u a l , a n d c o l le c ti v e t im e ; th is is w h y it is b e t te r
t h r e e k in d s o f m y t h s . F i r s t t h e r e is t h e t r a d it i o n a l m y th o f to speak of id e o lo g ic a l m y th th a n i d e o l o g y '— w h i c h is a
p o ly th e is tic re lig io n s , sa cre d h isto ry th a t to o k p la ce in a c o n f u s in g a n d m is le a d in g n o tio n — w h e n o n e w is h e s to d e s ­
p r i m o r d i a l t im e a n d s p a c e a n d t h a t r itu a l i s t ic a l ly g u a r a n t e e s i g n a t e t h e t h ir d f o r m o f m y t h . In a n y c a s e , m y t h is d e f i n e d a s
th e c r e a tio n a n d p r e s e r v a tio n o f m a n a n d th e w o rld . N e x t a s p e c ific o r g a n iz a tio n o f tim e .
th e r e is a m y th c h a r a c t e r is t ic o f re lig io n s o f s a lv a tio n w ith a At th e end of each m y th ic a l c y c le , som e p e o p le have
u n iv e r s a li s t v o c a t i o n . T h is is a h i s t o r i c a l m y t h , a n c h o r e d in b e l ie v e d t h a t a ll m y th i c a l t h o u g h t h a d t o b e e f f a c e d b e f o r e
th e h is to r y o f m e n b y th e p r e s e n c e o f a p r o p h e t o r a f o u n d e r th e s p l e n d o r o f w h a t is t r u e : e a c h tim e th e m y th h a s b e g u n
w ho has p e r f o r a te d hum an tim e w ith tr a n s c e n d e n c e ; th e a n e w , b u t in a g u i s e in w h ic h n o o n e c o u l d r e c o g n i z e it a n y
re la tio n s h ip s b e t w e e n tim e a n d m y th a r e t h u s t r a n s f o r m e d . m o r e . If w e a r e a t t h e e n d o f t h e a g e o f i d e o l o g i c a l m y t h —
T h e h is to r ic a l tim e o f t h e f o u n d e r p a r t a k e s o f th e s a c r e d tim e a n d n o th in g c o u ld b e le ss c e rta in — th e n s u r e ly s o m e w h e r e ,
t h a t h e e x e m p l i f i e s , b u t it s i m u l t a n e o u s l y in tro d u c e s in to u n b e k n o w n s t to a n y o n e , th e m y th o f to m o r r o w is a l r e a d y
sacred tim e th e lin e a r d im e n s io n of a tim e d iv id e d up c ry s ta lliz in g .
b e tw e e n b e fo re a n d a fte r, b e tw e e n c re a tio n , a n n u n c ia tio n , J .M . g .h

305
 m e t a m o r p h o s e s . T h a t i s , f u r t h e r m o r e , w h a t p l a n t lif e s h o w s
E p il o g u e : T h e C o n t e m po r a r y N eed fo r u s : f r o m t h e t in y fru it r o tt i n g in th e m u d is b o r n th e lu x u r ia n t

M yt h s — a T es tim o n ia l b o u g h , w h o s e s e e d w il l r e t u r n i n t o t h e d e p t h s o f t h e e a r t h
w h e n th e s e a s o n c o m e s .
T h is m y th ic a l im a g in a tio n a p p e a r s a s a re v o lt a g a in s t th e
On a w o o d c u t fro m D i i r e r 's s t u d i o , th e cosm os is r e p r e ­ b a s i c p e r v e r s i ty o f m a t te r , a g a i n s t c r e a t i o n 's p r o f o u n d in d if ­
s e n t e d b y t h r e e c ir c u la r s p a c e s : in t h e c e n t e r is t h e e a r t h t h a t f e r e n c e t o w a r d u s . It i s a w a y t o f o r c e n a t u r e t o r e c o g n i z e o u r
is o u r p l a c e a n d its s k y s t u d d e d w ith s t a r s ; o n th e e d g e is th e n e c e s s ity , fo r th e o n ly ju s tific a tio n fo r o u r lo n g a n d p a in fu l
l u m in o u s s p a c e in w h ic h G o d r e i g n s a l o n e ; a n d s e p a r a ti n g h i s t o r y is t h a t w e a r e n o t in a n y s e n s e a u s e l e s s s u f f e r in g n o r
th e m b o th , a c irc le o f d a r k fire . B e tw e e n th e d iv in e k in g d o m th e l a s t lin k of an itin e ra ry d e s tin e d fo r d e s tru c tio n ; we
and th e hum an w o rld t h e r e is n o p a s s a g e . S u c h w as u n ­ m o rta ls a r e w h a t m a k e s n a t u r e i m m o r t a l . If m a t t e r i s p e r ­
d o u b t e d ly t h e in itia l s t a t e o f c r e a t i o n . T h e t r a g i c a b a n d o n ­ v e r s e , if n a t u r e is i n d i f f e r e n t , a n d a s i n d i f f e r e n t t o i t s e l f a s it
m e n t o f th e h u m a n s p e c i e s is b a l a n c e d b y th e s o l it u d e o f th e i s t o o u r h u m a n d e s t i n y , it is b e c a u s e t h e y a r e u n a w a r e o f t h e
d e i t y . B u t it w a s m a n ' s t a s k t o b o r e a h o l e t h r o u g h t h e c i r c l e h eart th a t u n d e rlie s th e m and g iv e s th e m l if e . In th e ir
o f d a r k fire . It is a lo n g a d v e n t u r e , t h e la s t p h a s e o f w h ic h th e b lin d n e s s , t h e y a r e u n a w a r e o f w h a t m a k e s th e m a c t w ith in
G n o s tic C le m e n t o f A le x a n d ria h a s c le a rly d e p ic te d fo r u s: th e v a s t u n f u r lin g o f tim e .
"T h e k n o w le d g e of w hat we a re and of w hat we have
b e c o m e , o f th e p la c e f ro m w h ic h w e c a m e a n d t h e p la c e in to
w h ic h we have fa lle n , o f th e o b je c tiv e to w a rd w h ic h we
I . T h e H id d e n C r e a tio n
h a ste n a n d o f w h a t w e a re re d e e m e d fro m , o f th e n a tu re o f
o u r b irth a n d o u r r e b i r th ." O n th is p a th o f k n o w l e d g e , m e n It is i n c u m b e n t u ^ o n hum an in v e n tiv e n e s s to re v e a l th e
s e p a r a te d f ro m th e d iv in e h a v e u n d e r ta k e n first to m a k e th e h e a r t t h a t h id e s w h a t m y th ic d r e a m i n g c a lls th e W o r d , th e
d iv in e d e s c e n d a m o n g th e m . L ogos, th e b re a th o f l if e . T h is re v e la tio n is th e o b je c t o f
T h u s th e g o d s w e r e b o rn fro m th e t e a r s o f m a n k in d ; m e n m y th s . T h r o u g h th e m , m en re v e a l to c r e a tio n w h a t , in its
i n v e n t e d m y t h s t o c o n s o l e t h e m s e l v e s , f o r t h e g o d s w e r e a ll d e p t h s , m a k e s it l i v e . T h e p ro je c tio n o f th e hum an s p irit
s ile n c e a n d o p a c ity . T h e y h a d n o r e g a r d fo r th e s tr a n g e n e s s to w a rd n a tu re is n o t a gam e: it is b o r n o f th e c e rta in ty ,
o f o u r c o n d itio n , a n d a n y c o m p a s s io n fo r o u r s u f fe rin g s w a s in h e re n t in our c o n d itio n , th a t th e W ord h id d e n w ith in
a lie n t o t h e m . A ll c r e a t u r e s th e r e f o r e h a d to fo rc e th e m to m a t t e r is a l s o th e w o r d h id d e n w ith in o u r b e i n g . A n d a ll
e x i s t fu lly a n d to m a n ife st th e m s e lv e s ; a s in g le p a th p re ­ r e v e la t i o n c o n c e r n i n g t h e s e c r e t e n e r g y o f n a t u r e is a r e v e ­
s e n te d its e lf to th e h u m a n im a g in a tio n : to f o r g e a h i s t o r y fo r la tio n c o n c e r n i n g o u r o w n e s s e n c e .
t h e m s o t h a t t h e y m i g h t b e e n g u l f e d i n t i m e a n d s p a c e l ik e T h u s , far fro m b e in g a n e x p la n a tio n o f th e o r g a n iz a tio n
l i v i n g c r e a t u r e s a n d , l ik e u s , b e b o t h a c t o r s a n d s p e c t a t o r s in a n d th e m o v e m e n t o f th e u n iv e r s e , m y th o lo g y a p p e a r s a s a
th e savage th e a te r o f l if e and d e a th . T h is fo u n d a tio n of v o y a g e to w a rd k n o w le d g e , a s a n e v e r fresh a p p ro a c h to a
m y th i c a d v e n t u r e s w a s n o t a c h i e v e d h a p h a z a r d ly . W e ll b e ­ k n o w le d g e o f w h ic h th e e p h e m e r a l c h a r a c t e r o f o u r e x is te n c e
fo re th e first rig o rs o f re a s o n d e fin e d o u r e a r th ly e x is te n c e a s w il l a l l o w u s t o d i s c o v e r o n l y f r a g m e n t s . F a r f r o m s h e d d i n g
a lin e s ta k e d o u t b y o u r b ir th a n d o u r d e m i s e , m e n had a lig h t o n th is m y s te r y , m y th s a r e , o n th e c o n t r a r y , d e s i g n e d to
p re m o n itio n o f th o s e d is a s tr o u s a b y s s e s w h ic h a r e th e u p ­ d e e p e n i t. A n i m a g e c o m m o n t o a l l m y t h i c a l r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s
s tre a m a n d d o w n s tr e a m flo w o f o u r b e lo n g in g to th e e a r th . i n tr o d u c e s u s t o th is n o c t u r n a l e x p e d it i o n : th e im a g e o f th e
S in c e th e s e fo r e v e r im p e n e tra b le a r e a s o f n o th in g n e s s n u r ­ cave.
tu re a n x ie ty a n d m a d n e s s , th e r e r e m a in s o n ly o n e w a y o u t, T h e first h a b ita t o f th e h u m a n b e i n g , w h o a l o n e in t h e
w h ic h is t o r e s t o r e t im e 's c ir c u la r d e p l o y m e n t , t o e n c l o s e fa te e n tir e re a lm o f th e liv in g fin d s h im s e lf a t b irth b ereft of
w ith in a s e q u e n c e o f e v e n t s e i th e r liv e d o r d r e a m e d , c lo s e l y e v e r y th in g a n d c o n s tra in e d to s e e k h e lp fro m h is e n v ir o n ­
in te rtw in e d and e te rn a lly tie d to g e th e r b y th e m ira cle of m e n t , th e c a v e is a ls o th e im a g e o f th e m a te r n a l d w e llin g

307
E P I L O G U E

fro m w h ic h w e a r e to rn to b e th r o w n in to th e h a r s h lig h t o f b l o o d t h a t is s h e d i s a t r i b u t e p a i d t o t h e f e r t i l i t y o f t h e e a r t h ;
d a y . B u t t h e c a v e is a p l a c e o f m i x e d a s s o c i a t i o n s i n w h i c h a ll it i s t h e p r o m i s e o f t h i n g s t o c o m e . T h e v a l u e s a t t a c h e d t o
th e o p p o s in g fig u re s o f o u r c o n d itio n c o e x is t: th e w h ite o f p a rtic u la r k in d s o f b lo o d , fe m a le b lo o d , a n im a l b lo o d , th e
th e s k y a n d th e b la ck o f th e e a r t h , th e d r y n e s s o f th e -r o c k b lo o d o f c e rta in s p e c ia l p la n ts , a re in s c rib e d w ith in th is
w a l l a n d t h e w e t n e s s o f t h e s p r i n g . It i s o p e n l ik e a s h e l t e r , g e n e r a l c o n c e r n w ith a p a c t b e tw e e n m e n a n d th e p o w e r s o f
y e t c lo s e d l ik e a t o m b . T h e c a v e i s t h e v e r y i m a g e o f o u r th e E lse w h e re . The gods m ust a lso ta k e th is p act very
e n d u r a n c e ; it i s t h e f o r t r e s s w i t h i n w h i c h b o t h lif e a n d d e a t h s e rio u s ly s in c e , if t h e y fa il t o keep th e ir w o r d , m en can
a r e e n c l o s e d . It is in a c a v e t h a t A p h r o d i t e r e v e a l s t o h u m a n e x c lu d e th e m fro m th e ir k in g d o m s a n d m a k e d e a d g o d s o f
b e i n g s t h e m y s t e r y o f l o v e , b u t it i s a l s o i n a c a v e t h a t t h e t h e m , n e v e r a g a i n t o b e c e le b r a t e d in r itu a l.
B u d d h a m e d i ta t e s f o r m i lle n n ia to g i v e r is e t o a s y e t u n im a g ­ M y th ica l re p r e s e n ta tio n h a s a b a n d o n e d th e w id e s ta g e o f
in e d w o r l d s . th e t rib e to be d e v o te d e n tire ly to each b e in g in a ll h is
W e a r e in s id e th e c a v e , a s P la to s a y s . A ll w e c a n k n o w o f in tim a c y . T h e g o d s a re n o lo n g e r s h a re d by a m u ltitu d e .
t h e w o r l d is t h a t t h e r e i s f i r e b e l o w u s a n d a b o v e u s , th a t T hey h a v e b e c o m e th e e x c lu s iv e p r o p e r ty o f a n y o n e w h o
th e re is a l s o a i r o u t s i d e , w a t e r i n s i d e , a n d th e e a r th . But i n v e n t s t h e m . W h a t o n c e f u n c t i o n e d o n t h e c o l l e c t i v e l e v e l is
e x i s t e n c e in t h e c a v e is t o l e r a b l e o n l y if w e s e e it a s t h e c e n t e r n o w a c h ie v e d o n th e p e rs o n a l le v e l. A lth o u g h to d a y th e o n ly
o f th e u n iv e r s e ; th u s th e b lin d , u n k n o w a b l e f o r c e s th a t w h irl n a m e a b l e p r o g r e s s is o n e t h a t f r e e s t h e i n d i v i d u a l f r o m t h e
a b o u t fa r fro m th e c a v e a r e d i r e c t e d a r o u n d it, a n d f o r u s . c o n s t r a i n ts o f th e s o c ia l b o d y a n d h a n d s h im o v e r to ta lly to
S u c h is t h e m e a n i n g o f m y t h o l o g i e s : t o g i v e t h e h o u s e o f m e n h is tr u e id e n tity , im a g in a tio n a llo w s e a c h p e r s o n to e x p lo r e
i ts t r u e d i m e n s i o n , t o m a k e o u r d w e l l i n g t h e T e m p l e . In t h i s th e d e p th o f h is h id d e n so u rce and to n u rtu re h is ow n
w a y , d e p e n d in g o n its tim e a n d p la ce , e v e ry t rib e i n v e n t s m y th o lo g y . B u t s in c e w e a r e n o t b o m o f n o th in g , s in c e w e
w h a t is n e c e s s a r y f o r i ts o w n c o h e r e n c e . E v e r y e l e m e n t o f a r e b u t o n e p a r c e l o f t h e i m m e n s e e x p e r i e n c e a c c u m u l a t e d in
c re a tio n is a sound or a w o rd , an d o u t o f th e to ta lity o f tim e a n d s p a c e b y o u r f e llo w c re a tu re s , th e m y th o lo g ic a l
e le m e n ts a la n g u a g e m u st be m ade w h ic h is a u d ib le to c o r p u s is r e v e a le d t o b e a tr e a s u r e c a v e in w h ic h w e m in e
e v e r y o n e , f o r if w o r d s g o o f f o n t h e i r o w n w a n d e r i n g p a t h s , ric h e s m e a n t e s p e c ia lly fo r u s.
c r e a tio n h a s n o a im a n d s lip s to w a r d a b s u r d ity a n d s u ic id e . F o r th e d iv in e a d v e n t u r e s r e p o r te d b y m y th s a r e n o t th e
T h ese m y th o lo g ic a l d ra m a s cann ot be e n c lo s e d in th e e rra n t or ab erran t fru its of a p rim o rd ia l im a g in a tio n le d
s tr i c t u r e s o f r a tio n a l a n a l y s is . A ll a t t e m p t s o f c o n t e m p o r a r y a s tra y by e n th u s ia s m or th e a n x ie ty o f s o litu d e . On th e
s c h o la rs h ip to a c c o u n t fo r th e e n o r m o u s lo a d o f m y th ic a l c o n t r a r y , th e y m i r r o r t h e a d v e n t u r e s e x p e r i e n c e d b y m e n in
m a te ria ls c a rrie d a lo n g by th e hum an p ast m ay lo c k up a u n iv e r s e l a d e n w ith m e a n i n g , a u n iv e r s e in w h ic h h u m a n
h e r o i c a d v e n t u r e s in t h e f r o z e n c o m p a r t m e n t s o f l e a r n i n g . d e s tin ie s ta k e th e ir p o s itio n s o n a m o re g e n e ra l s ta g e o n
The vast in v e n to rie s a re l ik e g r e e n h o u s e s in w h ic h w ild w h ic h a ll th e f ig u r e s o f c r e a ti o n , t h o s e o f th e p l a n t , m in e r a l,
p la n ts have been im p ris o n e d : th e ir liv e ly sh o o ts b reak and a n im a l k in g d o m s a lik e , p la y th e ir r o le s . The s to rie s
th ro u g h th e g la s s and p ro life ra te sk y w ard far fro m th e p r e s e n t th e d ia lo g u e b e tw e e n l iv in g b e in g s a n d th e b a sic
g u a r d ia n s ' w a tc h fu l e y e s , o r th e ir r o o ts s in k c u n n in g ly in to m y s t e r y o f l if e t h a t n o r a t i o n a l k n o w l e d g e c o u l d e v e r h o p e t o
th e d a r k n e s s o f th e v ir g in s o il. It is b e t te r to r e g a r d m y t h s a s b rin g to lig h t a n d o f w h ic h th e f u n d a m e n ta l i n c a r n a tio n s a r e
t h e a t e r t h a t is m e a n t t o c a r r y a d i f f e r e n t m e s s a g e a t e a c h b irth , d r e a m s , lo v e , a n d d e a t h .
p e rf o r m a n c e . T h e te x t o f th e p la y c a n re m a in th e s a m e , b u t T h is d ia lo g u e , h ow ever, s in c e th e e a rlie s t d a y s of our
e a c h p e r f o r m a n c e c o n s titu te s a d iffe re n t e v e n t b e c a u s e th e s p e c i e s , h a s b e e n a b le to c h a n g e its o u t e r f a c e a s t h e m a te r ia l
a c tin g c o n d itio n s , th e a c to r s , th e s p e c ta to rs , a n d a lso th e f i e ld o f o u r h isto ry h as u n d e rg o n e its o w n ch an g es. T h e
im m e d ia te s to ry of w h ic h th e y a re th e w itn e s s e s have d ia lo g u e h a s n o t c h a n g e d its n a t u r e . It h a s n o o b je c t o t h e r
chan ged . th a n to o p e n o u r e y e s to th e b a ck c o u n tr y th a t is b e y o n d
w o r d s , b e y o n d e x p lic it c o m m u n i c a t io n , b u t w h e r e tr u e fu ­
s io n is a c h i e v e d b e tw e e n th e b e in g s th a t we are in our
II. T h e M a sk s o f M y ste ry
tu r b u le n t in d iv id u a lity a n d th e b e in g o f th e w o r ld .
If w e l o o k a t t h e s e c o s m o g o n i e s a s i n t e g r a l p a r t s o f l if e a s I m a g e s o f fire p r o v i d e t h e c la s s ic i llu s tr a tio n . A ll m y th o l ­
it w a s e x p e r i e n c e d in i t s i n t e n s i t y o r e n d u r e d in its d a ily o g i e s g i v e t h e m a k e y p l a c e in t h e ir a c c o u n t s o f th e o r ig in .
ro u n d by th e p e o p le s of lo n g ago, if we r e s to r e th e ir T w o c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s a r e c o m m o n t o a ll t h e s e m y t h i c a l n a r r a ­
m o v e m e n t a n d t h e p a s s i o n a t e c h a r g e t h a t w a s o n c e t h e i r s in tiv e s . O n t h e o n e h a n d , t h e s t o r i e s d r a m a t i z e a n a r t i s a n 's
th e c ity , w e c a n s e e th a t t h e y w e r e fe lt t o b e " r e v e l a t i o n s o f i m a g i n a ti o n , w h ic h is t h e v e r y c o n d it i o n o f th e s u r v iv a l o f
b e i n g ," th a t th e y a l lo w e d e a c h p a r t ic ip a n t in th e c o m m u n i ty th e s p e c ie s . O n th e o t h e r h a n d , th e y p u t fle sh o n th e h e ro ic
to b e c o m e a n a c tiv e w itn e s s o f t h o s e e n e r g ie s w h ic h b y th e ir e n e r g i e s t h a t m a d e t h e m y s t e r y o f f i r e f a m i l i a r a n d g a v e it its
c o n fro n ta tio n s and co n n e ctio n s d e te r m in e d th e m e ta m o r­ p l a c e in t h e c o m m u n i t y . T h e a r t i s a n 's i m a g i n a ti o n , f o r w h ic h
p h o s e s o f c r e a ti o n . T h e im a g e a t th e c e n t e r o f a r c h a ic r itu a l m e n h a v e o f te n s o u g h t a m o d e l in a n im a l s o c ie t y o r in th e
c e l e b r a t i o n s i s a n i m a g e w h o s e e m o t i o n a l f o r c e w e c a n s till s e c r e t l i v e s o f p l a n t s a n d s t o n e s , f u n c t i o n s t h e s a m e w a y in
e n tir e ly g rasp , b ecau se, w h e th e r p ro v o k e d or re fu te d , it m o d ern t i m e s a s it d i d i n a n t i q u i t y . O n l y t h e i n s t r u m e n t s
re m a in s at th e co re of ou r e x is te n c e . It is th e im ag e of w ith w h ic h we in v est r e a lity have ch an g ed . I n s te a d of
s a c r if ic e . T h e s a c rific ia l t h e m e is d i r e c t ly in v o lv e d in t h e m o s t h a v in g a d ir e c t r e la tio n s h ip w ith fire , w e u s u a lly e x p e r i e n c e
i n n o c e n t c o n t e m p l a t i o n o f n a t u r a l l if e , i n w h i c h m o r t a l a n d it i n th e se co n d a ry fo rm tra n s m itte d to us a b s tra c tly by
n ascen t fo rm s, d e s tr u c tio n and ch an g e, p u tr e fa c tio n and m a c h in e s .
d e s ic c a tio n are e n d le s s ly exchan ged . At th e c o m m u n ity T h e f ig u re s t h a t s e r v e a s m a s k s fo r th e m y s t e r y h a v e lo s t,
le v e l, a n y fo rm o f s a c r if ic e is a n a l lia n c e w ith th e m o v in g p erh ap s p r o v is io n a lly , th e ca rn a l reso n an ce th a t p e o p le
la n d s c a p e s of n a tu re , a h u m b le p a r tic ip a tio n in th e vast b e s to w e d o n th e m in e a r lie r tim e s a n d h a v e in s te a d d o n n e d
h o lo c a u st w h ic h is th e v ery c o n d itio n of th e su rv iv a l of c o n c e p t u a l g a r m e n ts . B u t th e g a r m e n ts o f m o d e m r a tio n a lity
c r e a t i o n . In p r i m i t i v e c o m m u n i t i e s , h u m a n b l o o d i s a n o b j e c t d o n o t d e lv e in to th e d e p th o f th e e n i g m a , a n d th e lo s s o f
of exch an g e w ith th e g o d s, ju st as g o ld is a n o b je c t of d i v i n e f l e s h m a k e s u s e x p e r i e n c e it a s a n i m p o v e r i s h m e n t ,
e x c h a n g e a m o n g th e p o w e r f u l in m e r c a n ti l e s o c ie t ie s . A n y c o n d u c i v e to s o litu d e .

308

Rubens, The Festival o f the Gods. Prague, Narodni Galeri. Photo Prokop Paul.
The permanence of our intimate tie with fire has been
underscored by Gaston Bachelard in the single evocation of
the flame of a candle. Before a candle or the brightly burning
log in the fireplace, the daydreams of a child of today are just
like those of the Neolithic, just like those of Mary
Magdalene, whom Georges de la Tour painted in the humble
smock of a peasant girl of seventeenth-century Lorraine. The
universe experienced and the universe represented are con­
fused in the uncertain territory of our inalienable intimacy. In
the depths of our being, inaccessible to social constraint,
sheltered from the curse that reduces us to being merely
another person among others, the amalgam of forces un­
folds, and the confrontation or the connection of these forces
writes the history of life. We must turn for a moment to the
imagery of Paracelsus when he describes each human crea­
ture as a microcosm that reflects the totality of the macro­
cosm, that is, all that the cosmos bears within itself as a
creative spark, as a passion to exist, as anguish, as contra­
diction, as uncertainty.
To return to the realm of fire, this macrocosm, whose imag­
ination has no bounds, figures in all the accounts that have
nurtured the dreams of human tribes since the beginning. Its
memory retains others, those that history has buried under its
ruins, those that the eyes that we have now do not yet know
how to excavate, and beyond memory are all the narratives
yet to come. Although we are microcosms, we have the po­
tential to recreate the totality of these accounts in ourselves,
but our nature is fragmented and immature. As Michelet
pointed out, we are far from being complete; we are, as the
Greeks said, “not sufficiently cooked." We can therefore ex­
plore only a very small part of the timber yards of the imag­
ination during our personal itineraries.
But however partial our course, our elementary connection
with the flame of a log fire introduces us to the sum total of
E P I L O G U E
the values in which daily existence is invested. Through
fire, time is manifested. The evening fireplace stands
against the heat of the sun; the winter hearth protects
against the harshness of the cold. Beyond this temporal
relationship, fire defines our dietary mode, that is, our
feelings about our own bodies. Within the secret of the
unconscious, the presence of Eros is also experienced as a
secret permanence of fire, while Thanatos is perceived as
the absence of all igneous elements.
In archaic societies where cosmogony is directly implicated
in the essential moments in the life of the tribe, the various
representations of fire govern a certain number of daily
rituals and practices and roughly define the boundaries that
separate the forbidden from the permitted. These rituals and
practices make ancient societies into communities invested
with the sacred. Into this fabric of the sacred is woven a
series of ties between man and the universe. It is through
these ties that men are protected from anguish and solitude.
When the boundaries of the sacred collapse, when the ties
that bind creatures to the sky and the earth are annihilated,
men are reduced to their own company, and the foundations
of the community are based merely on ethics. The primordial
image of life, the only one that can be the point of conver­
gence of all ancient mythologies, is replaced by images of
good and evil, underground figures that leave a living
creature helpless before the opacity of his development.
By nature, ethics reduce the mental field of individuals to
the measure of city life or throw individuals into what
Ronald Laing calls "ontological insecurity,“ an insecurity that
arises as soon as the being feels or anticipates that a part of
him is moving far from the play of social requirements.
Anyone who wishes to recuperate his being in its fullness
must found his own sacredness, create his own myths and
rituals. He must experience a new birth, he must be reborn to
309
E P I L O G U E

h im s e lf a n d th e w o r ld , a s th e h e r m e tic p h ilo s o p h e r s w h is ­ b lin d ly o n th e v a s t s h i p s o f f o o ls t h a t c o n t e m p o r a r y s o c ie t y

p e r . B u t t h i s n e w s p i r i t u a l b i r t h is p r e c i s e l y c o m p a r a b l e t o a b u i l d s w i t h t h e s a m e b l i n d p e r s e v e r a n c e w i t h w h i c h it b u i l d s
c a r n a l b ir th . It is in s c r ib e d w ith in a lo n g h e re d ity , w h o s e th e m o n s t r o u s f a c to r ie s o f h u m a n la b o r.
d i f f e r e n t e l e m e n ts c o n s t i tu t e t r a d itio n a l k n o w l e d g e . O f th is B u t little b y little , in a n g u i s h and in c o n t r a d ic ti o n , th e
k n o w le d g e , m y th s a r e th e u n d e rp in n in g s . im a g e o f th is i m a g in a tiv e g e n iu s w ith in e a c h c r e a tu r e , d e ­
p icte d fo r m ille n n ia by th e O r ie n ta l tr a d itio n , is a ffirm e d
w ith in e a c h c r e a tu r e . B r a h m a c a n b e s e e n f o u n d in g h is o w n
III. T h e S e e d s o f th e S u n
b e in g a n d th e b e in g o f th e w o r ld , n o t b y a d e lib e ra te a c t o f
T h e r e is o p a q u e m a tte r . Beyond D a r k n e s s is t h e W o r d . th e w il l b u t b y a m e d ita tiv e fa th o m in g o f h is v e r y fle sh ,
B e t w e e n m a t t e r a n d t h e W o r d t h a t is e n c l o s e d i n it a r e I h e w h o s e h i d d e n r i c h n e s s h e w il l s l o w l y p e n e t r a t e i n t h e c o u r s e
g o d s , a n d t h e g o d s l i v e in o u r f l e s h . T h e y a r e o u r f l e s h . " W e o f m ille n n ia , a r i c h n e s s t h a t is i n e x h a u s t i b l e b e c a u s e it is
d r e a m o f v o y a g e s t h r o u g h th e u n i v e r s e ," N o v a lis te lls u s . " I s m u ltip lie d in a s e rie s o f u n p re d ic ta b le c h ild b irth s. In th e
n o t th e u n iv e r s e w ith in u s t h e n ? T h e d e p t h s o f o u r s p ir it a r e p r o g r e s s t h a t e a c h b e i n g , m a g n i f i e d in h i s s o l i t u d e , m a k e s
unknow n to u s. The m y s te rio u s ro ad le a d s w ith in . I t is t o w a r d t h e e x p l o r a t io n o f h is o w n la b y r in th , in th e f a s c in a ­
w i t h i n u s , if a n y w h e r e , t h a t w e f i n d e t e r n i t y w i t h i t s w o r l d s , t io n th a t le a d s e a c h to h is o w n M in o ta u r o r A ria d n e , th e
t h e p a s t a n d t h e f u t u r e . " I n t h i s w a y , a l l h u m a n e x p e r i e n c e is g r e a t m y th ic a l i m a g e r ie s a r e fa m ilia r l a n d s c a p e s . T h e y h e lp
a m e ta p h y s ic a l e x p e rie n c e . It e n g a g e s th e to ta lity of th e us not to lo s e o u r w a y ; th an k s to th e m , as V icto r H u g o
h u m a n b e i n g w i t h i n t h e h i s t o r i c a l t o t a l i t y o f t h e w o r l d ; it is s u g g e s t s , " t h e e x t e n t o f th e p o s s ib le is , in a w a y , in f r o n t o f
th e c o n f r o n ta tio n b e tw e e n a n e p h e m e r a l a n d u n iq u e d e s tin y o u r e y e s . T h e d r e a m y o u h a v e w ith in y o u r s e l f c a n b e fo u n d
a n d th e m u ltip le e t e r n it y th a t is th e o b l i g a t o r y s c e n e o f o u r o u t s i d e y o u r s e l f . . . Y o u h o l d y o u r h e a d in y o u r h a n d s , y o u
e a r t h ly e x i s t e n c e . A n d in th is w a y , th e e x p e r i e n c e o f e a c h o f try to s e e a n d u n d e r s ta n d ; y o u a re th e w in d o w lo o k in g o u t
u s is s im ila r to t h e e x p e r i e n c e o f th e g r e a t m y th i c a l f ig u r e s o n t h e u n k n o w n . . . T h e m a n w h o d o e s n o t m e d i t a t e l i v e s in
w h o s e tria ls p r e f i g u r e d o u r o w n tr ia ls , w h o s e g l o r y p r e f i g ­ b l in d n e s s ; t h e m a n w h o m e d i ta t e s liv e s in o b s c u r ity . W e o n ly
u re d o u r o w n g lo ry . O e d ip u s th e o r p h a n , O e d ip u s th e la m e , h a v e th e c h o ic e o f d a r k n e s s ."
O e d ip u s th e a s sa s sin and th e in c e s tu o u s — th e s e v a r io u s T h is d iv in g in to o u r o w n s h a d o w s , fa r f ro m p u sh in g u s
f o r m s o f th e s a m e liv in g c r e a t u r e h e r a l d o u r o w n d i ffic u ltie s in to d a r k n e s s , v iv id ly illu m in a te s th e b a n a lity o f o u r w o r r y -
w ith o u r b irth , o u r fe e t, o u r d e s ir e s fo r lo v e a n d fo r m u r d e r . b o u n d e x i s t e n c e s . F i r s t o f a l l , it f o r c e s u s t o m a k e o u r l i v e s a
J a s o n 's q u e s t f o r t h e f l e e c e is a l s o o u r s , in t h e f a c e o f t h e n e e d d r a m a th a t r e t r a c e s , a c c o r d in g to o u r lim its a n d n e e d s , th e
f o r p o s s e s s i o n a n d p o w e r , in t h e f a c e o f t h e e v i l o r b e n e v o ­ g r e a t tr a g e d ie s th a t m y th s a r e a b le to s ta g e . T h e p a s s io n a te
l e n t f o r c e s o f t h e f e m i n i n e , in t h e f a c e o f t h e d i f f i c u l t i e s o f a t t a c h m e n t t h a t t i e s M e r l i n a n d V i v i a n t o g e t h e r in t h e d e n s e
b ro th e rh o o d , co n ju g a l lo v e , a n d fa th e rh o o d . f o r e s t o f B r i t t a n y is t h e m e d i e v a l s t a g e o f t h e m i s f o r t u n e s
T h e s e d i s t a n t i m a g e s a r e n o t a l i e n t o u s b e c a u s e w e a r e in th a t t e m p o r a r ily s e p a r a te d E u r y d ic e fro m O r p h e u s , a n d th e
t h e s a m e s i t u a t i o n a s t h e m e n o f a n t i q u i t y , in w h o s e m i d s t lo v e s to w h ic h w e a r e c o n d e m n e d a r e th e m s e lv e s th e s ta g e
th e first c o s m o g o n i e s w ere e la b o ra te d . We need a w o rld o f th e e n c h a n t m e n ts o f w h ic h V iv ia n a n d h e r co m p a n io n
w h ic h s p e a k s to u s , a n d th e o n ly r o a d th a t e n d s w h e r e th e w e r e v ic tim s . L ik e a c to r s , fa c in g th e tu rm o il a n d d is a s te r s o f
w o r ld c a n b e g in t o s p e a k to u s is t h a t o f p o e tr y . th e ir tim e , we ta k e on a ro le th a t h u m a n ity has never
P o e t r y o f t h i s k i n d is G n o s t i c ; in t h e e x t r e m e , i t i s g n o s i s s to p p e d i n te r p r e t i n g s in c e its b e g i n n in g s . B u t t h e te x t o f th e
i t s e l f , t h e u l t i m a t e h e a r t o f t h e k n o w l e d g e t h a t is t h e s h a p e o f r o le , th is u n w r itte n w o r d m o r e i m p e r a tiv e th a n a n y w ritin g ,
o u r d e s tin y . G n o s is is n o t a s lo w a n d d iffic u lt d i s c o v e r y o f is m e r e l y a p r o p , c o m p a r a b l e t o t h e m a s k a n d th e s e t in a
t h e r e a l i t y o f b e i n g s a n d e l e m e n t s ; it i s t h e c r e a t i o n o f r e a l i t y . t h e a t r i c a l p e r f o r m a n c e . I t is t h e w a r m t h o f a m e m o r y t h a t
It is t h e b r e a t h o f lif e t h a t f o u n d s a n d u n v e ils in a s in g le h e l p s t o w a r m u p t h e p r e s e n t . B u t t h e e s s e n c e o f t h e p l a y is
m o v e m e n t th e v a r io u s g e o lo g ie s o f th e re a l. G e o lo g y m o v e s fo u n d w ith in o u r s e l v e s , a n d th e p a r tic u la r v ir tu e o f th e a tric a l
l ik e lif e i t s e l f : t h e g o d s c u r l e d u p in f r o n t o f t h e c e n t r a l h e a r t h p e r f o r m a n c e lie s in th e f a c t t h a t w ith in th e d a ily a c c o m p li s h ­
o f th in g s a r e b o r n , g r o w , d ie , a n d c h a n g e , b u t th e i m m e d ia te m e n t o f in d iv id u a l p a s s io n , th e in d iv id u a l b u r s ts o u t b e y o n d
ap p e a ra n ce of re a lity is never tr a n s f o r m e d . The tw ilig h t h is lim its and tra n sfo rm s in to e te rn ity th e irre m e d ia b ly
fo re sts and h ills id e s th a t th e C e lts p e o p le d w ith d e itie s i n s t a n ta n e o u s e le m e n t th a t h e b e a r s w ith in h im se lf.
a s s o c i a te d w ith th e s u n th a t k e p t t h e m w a r m , t h e w a t e r th a t W h a t is t h e a t r i c a l in th is m y th ic a l c r o s s i n g w ith in o u r­
m a d e t h e m f r u itf u l, th e w in d s t h a t d i s t u r b e d t h e m , a n d th e s e lv e s , a n d w ith in a ll t h o s e w h o , b e f o r e u s , i n v e n t e d th e
tu rf th a t s u s ta in e d th e m , a d d r e s s u s w ith a n u r g e n c y a s c le a r h i d d e n h i s t o r y o r m a n i f e s t o o f t h e s p e c i e s , is t h e i n h e r e n t
a s th e u r g e n c y w ith w h ic h t h e y a d d r e s s e d th e firs t tille rs o f c a p a c i ty fo r d o u b lin g o r s p littin g in to tw o . O n th e o n e h a n d ,
t h e s o i l . It i s w r o n g t o s a y t h a t t h e s e d e i t i e s a r e d e a d b e c a u s e w e a r e a b o d y e n c l o s e d in i t s s u f f e r i n g s a n d i t s d e s i r e s , a n d
th e y h a v e b e e n c o v e r e d o v e r b y th r e e m ille n n ia o f h is to ry . w e w ill f o r e v e r c o l l i d e w i t h t h e s u f f e r i n g a n d t h e d e s i r e s . O n
T h e y a re d e a d o n ly a s w in te r le a v e s a re d e a d , to rn fro m th e th e o t h e r h a n d , w e a r e a s ig n o f th e g e n e r a l b r e a th o f th e
im m u ta b le t r e e , m ix e d w ith m u d , d e c a y i n g in t h e h u m u s th e u n iv e r s e . W e c a r r y w ith in u s th e d r e a m s a n d a c c o m p lis h ­
b e t te r to n o u r i s h t h e r o o t s a n d t o b e r e b o r n in t h e m a d jo y o f m e n t s o f t h o s e w h o h a v e b e g o t t e n u s ; a n d w e a r e h e a v y , l ik e
s p r in g o n b r a n c h e s t h r o u g h w h ic h n e w b lo o d f lo w s . A ll th a t a p re g n a n t w o m an , w ith th e d re a m s a n d w o rk s o f th o s e
s e p a r a t e s o u r e x c u r s i o n f r o m t h a t o f t h e C e l t s o f t h e p a s t is w hom we s h a ll b e g e t. M y th s show us th e p a th of th is
th a t th e v e r y n a t u r e o f t h e ir c o m m u n i ty le d t h e m a ll t o lo o k c o n n iv a n c e w ith th e p ast and th e fu tu re — a c o n n iv a n c e
w i t h t h e s a m e g a z e o n t h e f a c e o f t h e s e d e i t i e s . O u r g a z e is w h ic h is k n o w le d g e .
m o r e s o lita ry , a n d th is s o l it u d e is la r g e l y i n to le r a b le . M e n
h a v e n o t y e t le a rn e d to k n o w g o d s o th e r th a n th o s e o f th e
IV . T h e W o rd o f th e S ta rs
c ity , to re c o g n iz e te m p le s o th e r th a n th o s e in w h ic h th e
fa ith fu l c o n f u s e t h e ir o w n p ie ty w ith t h a t o f t h e ir fe llo w m e n . A s t r o l o g y a s a f i e ld b e a r s w i t n e s s t o t h a t c o n n i v a n c e . F o r
O u r l o n g s e r i e s o f t r i a l s is t h e s t o r y o f t h i s s l o w c o n q u e s t o f a s tr o lo g y has been th ro u g h o u t th e m ille n n ia th e b u r n in g
our d iffe re n ce s , and th e in a b ility of so m any p e o p le to c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f t h e tie t h a t b in d s h u m a n t im e a n d s p a c e to
re c o g n iz e th e ir in n e r s o v e r e ig n ty im p e ls th e m to e m b a rk e t e r n it y a n d in fin ity . S in c e th e tr a g ic a g o n y o f t h e R e n a is ­

310
 E P I L O G U E

s a n c e , a s tro lo g y h a s b e e n s w e p t a w a y b y th e u n d e rto w of d i s c o v e r in t h e i n n e r m o s t d e p t h o f t h e i r b e i n g t h e h a r m o n y
th e R e fo r m a tio n a n d th e C o u n te rre fo rm a tio n a n d d u m p e d a n d o r d e r t h a t e x i s t e d in t h e c o s m o s . T h e i n n e r is t h e m i r r o r
i n t o t h e d u b i o u s t r a p s o f o c c u l t i s m , f r o m w h i c h it r e e m e r g e s o f t h e o u t e r , a n d t h e o u t e r is th e m i r r o r o f th e i n n e r . B e t w e e n
tim id ly o n ly in th e m is ts o f p e r s o n a l d iv in a tio n . O th e r v is ta s t h e o u t e r a n d t h e i n n e r , i n t h e c o n t i n e n t t h a t is t h e l o c u s o f
g r a d u a lly b e c o m e a p p a r e n t. T h e m a j o r m y th ic a l fig u r e s b o th o u r c o n d itio n , th e f a c e s th a t c r o s s o u r d a y s a n d o u r n ig h ts
in t h e E a s t a n d W e s t jo in in a s tr o lo g y , a s c a n b e s e e n in th e fin d th e ir p la c e : th e la n d s c a p e s , th e h o u s e s , th e h u m b le s t o f
a d m ira b le m a n u s c r ip ts or im a g e rie s th a t a re g ra d u a lly o b je c ts th a t acco m p an y our g e s tu re s and our a tte n tio n .
e m e r g in g fro m th e s h a d o w s to w h ic h th e y h a v e b e e n c o n ­ T h e se b ack d ro p s a re n o t n ak ed , tra n sp a re n t su rfa ce s. T h ey
fin e d fo r f o u r c e n tu r ie s . r e f e r u s c o n s t a n t l y t o t h e i r i n t e r i o r i t y . A n d it i s t h i s i n t e r i o r i t y
T h e c irc le o f th e z o d i a c d e s c r ib e s th e u n io n o f th e u n d y in g t h a t a ll t h e a n c i e n t r i tu a l s r e v e a l to u s . In a c o m m u n i t y w h e r e
fo rm s o f c r e a tio n (th e e a r th and th e sk y ) an d th e d iv in e m y th s a re e x p e rie n ce d as in c a rn a tio n s , th e s lig h te s t fra g ­
a d v e n t u r e s . In th e r a d ia n t m e a d o w o f th e s ta r s , th e w r e n c h ­ m e n t s o f r e a lity a r e c h a r g e d w ith m e a n in g .
in g u p h e a v a ls a n d f r e n z ie s o f th e g o d s fin d th e ir c o h e r e n c e . T h e s e m e a n in g f u l f r a g m e n ts d o n o t d rift a im le s s ly . T h e y
H u m a n f a t e s , w h ic h d u p li c a t e d i v i n e f a t e s , a r e d i s p l a y e d in a r e c a r r ie r s o f t h e la n g u a g e a d d r e s s e d t o u s b y th e m u ltip lic ­
th e s a m e w a y a s s o m a n y s ig n s o f th e im a g in a tiv e fre e d o m o f ity o f c r e a te d t h in g s . F r o m o n e c iv il i z a ti o n to a n o t h e r , t h e y
th e b e in g . T h e re a d in g o f th e s ta r s h a d n o p u rp o s e o th e r b e a r w itn e s s to c e r ta in c o m m o n c h a r a c te r is tic s , w h o s e p e r ­
th a n to a llo w e v e r y c r e a tu r e , e x is tin g in o n e w e ll-d e f in e d m a n e n c e h a s m a d e it p o s s i b l e t o c o n s t i t u t e a v a s t s y m b o l i c
p la ce a n d c e n tu ry , to d is c o v e r th e s p e c ia l te r r ito r y o f h is “ c o r p u s .” T h is f o r e s t o f s y m b o ls t r a n s l a te s th e f u n d a m e n ta l
jo u rn e y . o b s e s s i o n s o f t h e s p e c i e s i n a r a t h e r s i m i l a r m a n n e r , a n d it is
T h e a s tr o lo g i c a l q u e s t is th e n o s t a lg ic q u e s t f o r o u r o r ig in s . o n t h i s s i m i l a r i t y t h a t c o n t e m p o r a r y p s y c h o l o g y h a s r e l i e d in
T h e r e is n o g r e a te r m is e r y th a n th a t o f b e in g o r p h a n e d , a n d o r d e r to s h o w h o w th e i m a g e s th a t flo w th r o u g h o u r d r e a m s
w e m u s t k n o w t h o s e w h o h a v e b e g o t t e n u s in s p i r i t s o t h a t re v e a l th e c o n flic ts a n d o b sta cle s th a t tro u b le o u r w a k in g
we m ay be a b le to beget o u rs e lv e s , th a t is, to su rv iv e , h o u r s . W h a t a p p lie s to s y m b o lis m a ls o a p p lie s to a s tro lo g y .
a c c o r d in g to th e s p ir it. To fa th o m th e u n to ld n ig h t of I n n o w a y d o e s i t c o n s t i t u t e a r i g o r o u s c o n f i g u r a t i o n . It o f f e r s
k n o w l e d g e i s t o d r a f t t h e m a p o f t h e s k y ; it i s t h e n e e d t o th e h u m a n im a g in a tio n a n e tw o r k o f p a th s u p o n w h ic h e a c h
re v e a l th is h id d e n g e o g r a p h y th a t h a s le d u s to th e s h o r e s o n o f u s c a n v e n tu r e a t o u r o w n p a c e a n d a c c o r d in g to o u r o w n
w h ic h w e n o w s ta n d . T h r o u g h f a s c in a tio n w ith th e s ta r s , w e th irs t.
g a in a c c e s s to th e k in g d o m o f th e M o th e r s ; a n d o n th e fa c e s F o r t h e s y m b o l i c f i g u r e s t h a t a r e , a s it w e r e , th e s h a d o w s ,
o f a ll t h o s e n o c t u r n a l q u e e n s , w e m u s t r e c o g n i z e t h o s e w h o th e m a te ria l p r o je c tio n s o f th e d iv in e o r h e ro ic a v a ta r s th a t
gave u s b ir th , su rro u n d e d by th e d iv in e lo v ers in w h ose w e a r e to ld a b o u t in m y t h s d o n o t r e p r e s e n t fix e d f o r m s , s e t
e m b race th e y b ecam e fru itf u l. The z o d ia c a l sky w ith i ts in t h e ir o r ig in a l m e a n i n g , a n y m o r e t h a n t h o s e o r ig in a l a v a ­
c o m p l e x c a r t o g r a p h y o f s ig n s , p l a n e t s , a n d d i v i s i o n s is t h e r e t a r s d i d . L i k e m y t h s , t h e y b e l o n g t o lif e a n d t o m e t a m o r p h o ­
o n ly to in fo rm u s o f o u r n a tiv e la n d , o f w h ic h th e g o d s a r e s is . They have an o r ig in a l tie w ith c re a tio n , a t ie th a t is
t h e e m b l e m a t i c s y m b o l . T h e m e t a p h y s i c a l l a n d s c a p e t h a t it r e f le c te d in o u r s p ir it, b u t th a t o u r o w n i n v e n tiv e g e n i u s c a n
s e ts fo rth f o r o u r fu lf illm e n t is r e p l e te w ith d w e l l i n g s : in c o n s ta n tly e n ric h a n d tra n s fo rm . E ach s y m b o l n e e d s to b e
s o m e w e s h a ll b e w e lc o m e d a s h o n o r e d g u e s t s a n d w e s h a ll e x p e rie n ce d a t th e le v e l o f th e m o s t triv ia l a n d th e m o st
e x p e r i e n c e jo y ; in o t h e r s , w e s h a ll b e r e c e iv e d a s u n d e s ir a b le p e r s o n a l e x i s t e n c e in o r d e r t o b e c o m e p r e c is e ly t h e k in d o f
s tr a n g e r s , a n d w e s h a ll h a v e o n ly h e a r t a c h e a n d n i g h t m a r e s bud th a t each of us causes to flo w e r a c c o rd in g to th e
as o u r sh are. i n c l i n a t i o n o f h i s i n a l i e n a b l e n e e d . F o r i n s t a n c e , if w e r e f e r t o
For such is th e p itile s s p r ic e th a t w e m u st p ay fo r o u r t h e c o l o r r e d a n d t o t h e m e a n i n g t h a t it m a y h a v e t a k e n o n in
p re se n ce o n th is c lo d o f e a r t h : h e w h o h a s n o t fo u n d h is v a r io u s c o s m o lo g ic a l re p r e s e n ta tio n s a n d a n c ie n t ritu a ls , w e
n a t iv e l a n d , h is o r ig in a l f a t h e r la n d , in t h e p e r p l e x in g f ire s o f c a n s e e t h a t it i s b o t h t h e s a m e r e d a n d a d i f f e r e n t r e d , h e r e
th e s ta r s m a y n e v e r d is c o v e r , h e r e b e lo w , th e la n d t h a t w a s b e n e fice n t, th e re m a le fice n t, h e r e a s s o c ia te d w ith fe rtility ,
d e stin e d fo r h im . A m ong th e H e lle n e s , A p o llo b ro u g h t t h e r e w it h d e c a y . W e c a r r y w it h in u s a ll th e c o n t r a d i c t i o n s o f
fo rtu n e to s o m e a n d m is fo rtu n e to o th e r s ; A p h r o d ite o p e n e d a s y m b o l t h a t h a s b e e n e x p e r i e n c e d d i f f e r e n t l y i n t i m e a n d in
th e d o o r s o f th e p a r a d is e s o f lo v e to s o m e , b u t fo r o th e r s , s p a c e . A n d a m o n g t h e v a r i o u s s c e n a r i o s t h a t it o f f e r s u s , w e
u n d e r th e m a s k o f d e s ir e , s h e flu n g o p e n th e g a te s to th e a r e g i v e n t h e c h o i c e a n d t h e c h a n c e t o f i n d t h e o n e w h i c h is
s tro n g h o ld of m u rd er. The C h ris tia n p a n th e o n w ith i ts irr e d u c ib ly a t ta c h e d to o u r o w n n a t u r e .
c o m p le x in te rp la y o f v irg in s , s a in ts , a n d b la ck a n g e ls s p o k e
t h e s a m e l a n g u a g e t o t h e p e o p l e o f t h e M i d d l e A g e s . T h a t is
V. T h e In n e r G o ld
w h y t h e s e g o d s w h o s e i n d e lib le im p r in t is v is ib le in t h e s k y
a c c o m p a n y u s o n a ll o u r j o u r n e y s . T h e d e c i p h e r m e n t o f t h e ir The su b tle a rtis a n s w ho b u ilt th e b rid g e s p a n n in g th e
a d v e n tu r e s g u id e s u s o n o u r w a y a n d k e e p s u s fro m b e in g c o lle c tiv e m y th s o f th e a n c ie n t c iv iliz a tio n s a n d th e p e rs o n a l
fo re v e r a im le s s vagab on d s. M any m en s ta n d in g b e fo re m y t h o l o g i e s t h a t f i n d t h e i r f u l f i l l m e n t in p o e t i c e x p l o r a t i o n
Is o ld e h a v e ta k e n th e m s e lv e s to b e T ris ta n a n d h a v e e n d e d a r e o b v io u s t o u s . T h e y a r e th e a l c h e m i s t s . In t h e r u i n s o f th e
u p i n s h a m e , w h e n it w a s t h e r o l e o f K i n g M a r k o r o f t h e g r e a t a n c ie n t re lig io n s , h a u n te d b y th e tr a g e d y o f th e r u p tu r e
tra ito r th a t w a s m e a n t to b e th e irs . b e tw e e n ra tio n a lity a n d s y m b o lis m , b e tw e e n th e id e a a n d
B u t th is m e t a p h y s ic a l l a n d s c a p e d o e s n o t c r o s s th e f r a g ­ t h e i m a g e , w h ic h t o o k p l a c e in th e c la s s i c a l M e d i te r r a n e a n
m e n t e d c o u r s e o f o u r j o u r n e y e p i s o d i c a l l y ; it i s o u r d a y a n d w o rld , a lch e m y fo ste rs in co n sc io u sn e s s its e lf th e happy
o u r n ig h t, o u r d a w n a n d o u r tw ilig h t. A n d th e e x p lo r a tio n o f c o n ju n c tio n o f th e s p irit a n d th e fle sh . S olved coagula. M a tte r
th e s h a d o w s o f b e in g , to w h ic h e v e r y re a d in g o f m y th s re fe rs is p e n e t r a t e d by s p irit, and sp irit c a n n o t c re a te a n y th in g
u s , o p e n s o u r e y e s t o a n o t h e r r e a l m , t h a t o f d a i l y l if e . P e o p l e w i t h o u t m a t t e r . B u t t h e d i s s o l u t i o n o f m a t t e r is n o t a w o r k o f
o f th e e a r lie s t tim e s a t te m p t e d to p u t o r d e r a n d h a r m o n y in to d e s t r u c t i o n ; it is t h e f r u i t o f a n i n t i m a t e s y m p a t h y , a n d t h i s
th e m o v e m e n ts o f th e u n iv e r s e , d re a m e d up su m p tu o u s e n c o u n t e r , a s d e s t r u c t i v e in its o w n w a y a s t h e e n c o u n t e r o f
e p ic s th a t re v e a l th e g r a d u a l ta k in g s h a p e o f w h a t w o u ld l o v e , p a r c e ls o u t a ll t h e s u f f e r in g s , a n x i e ti e s , a n d n i g h t m a r e s
e v e n t u a l ly b e c o m e c iv il i z a ti o n , b e c a u s e t h e y w a n te d to re ­ o f m a t t e r its e lf . E a c h o n e o f u s h u m a n b e i n g s in t h e f u lln e s s

311
E P I L O G U E

o f o u r d e v e l o p m e n t is th is s u p r e m e a l c h e m i s t c a p a b l e o f
ta k in g c h a r g e o f th e m is f o r tu n e s a n d jo y s o f m a t te r a n d th o s e
o f s p i r i t, s o th a t in t h e ir a l w a y s e p h e m e r a l c o n c ilia tio n th e
c r e a t i v e b r e a t h o f l if e m a y c o n t i n u e t o i n s p i r e t h e m .
A t th e in a c c e s s ib le e n d o f th e a l c h e m i c r o a d , in th e la s t
a c t i o n o f t h e G r e a t W o r k , l ie s g o l d , t h e g o l d o f t i m e a n d a l s o
th e g o ld o f s p a c e . C a lle d t o g e th e r in th e g a r d e n o f E d e n a r e
a ll t h e p e o p l e o f w h o m h i s t o r y s p o k e , a s w e l l a s a ll t h o s e
w h o m s i l e n c e h a s e n t o m b e d f o r e v e r , b u t a l s o a ll t h o s e w h o
w ill c o m e a f t e r u s , l o s t l ik e u s w i t h i n t h e n a r r o w b o u n d a r i e s
o f th e fle sh , w ith in th e d e n s ity o f th e ir h o p e s a n d d e s p a ir s .
T h is g a r d e n , s o d a z z l in g ly p r e s e n t in th e m y th o lo g i e s th a t
h a v e n o w d i s a p p e a r e d , is a l s o p r e s e n t in th e o p a c i ty o f o u r
m o d e r n e x i s t e n c e s . T h e v o i c e t h a t c a l l s u s t o it h a s r e m a i n e d
t h e s a m e s i n c e t h e b e g i n n i n g , a n d t h i s v o i c e t e ll s u s t h a t t h e
f i e ld o f k n o w l e d g e is i n e x h a u s ti b l e , fo r in o u r h e a rts th e
p e a c e f u l g o ld o f th e M y s te r y a b id e s , h id d e n o n ly u n d e r th e
d is q u ie tin g p a s s io n o f th e b lo o d .
C .M e ./g .h .
BIBLIOGRAPHY
R. ALLEAU, La science des symboles (Paris 1976). j. evola, La tradition
hermétique (Paris 1973). t . burckhardt. Alchimie (Basel 1974). n . o.
brown. Life against Death (Middletown, CT, 1959); Love's Body (New
York 1966). c. caicnebet. Le carnaval (Paris 1974). h . leisecanc. Die
Gnosis (Leipzig 1924; 4th ed., Stuttgart 1955). r. lewjnter, Groddeck et
le royaume millénaire de Jérôme Bosch (Paris 1975). ). c. powys, spécial
issue of the journal Granit (Paris 1973). j. van lennep, Art et alchimie
(Brussels 1966).

Two-headed Hermes. Third to second century b.c . Marseille, Musée Borély. Museum photo.

312
 Index
Italicized numbers denote pages containing illustrations

A Amphion, 277, 283 Argei, 88 Augustine, Saint, 110, 127,

Amphitryon, 276 Argives, 61 129, 146, 166, 174, 177, 178,
Abel, 277 Anacreon, 186 Argonauts, 56 201, 204, 220, 245, 291
Abelard, Peter, 175, 200 Anadyomene, 300 Argus, 206, 216 Augustus, 65, 101, 102, 103,
Abraham, 159 Ancestors, cult of, among Ariadne, 209, 272 104, 113, 115, 116-21, 116,
Acembes, 190 Etruscans, 36, 39 Ariel, 191 118, 120
Achilles, 50, 170, 204, 208, 218, Anchises, 153 Arion, 283 Aurelian, 66
298 Andreae, Johann Valentin, 264 Ariouth the Ethiopian, 195 Auson, 56
Adam, 192, 193, 194, 197, 215, Androgyne, 274 -7 6 Aristaeus, 75 Ausonius, 203
218, 275 Animals, symbolism of: among Aristotle, 141 Aventia, 243
Adamas, 186 prehistoric people, 13-18; in Aritimi, 30 Äxsartägkats, 258
Ademes, 190 pre-Roman Italy, 42, 47; in Armin, Ludwig Joachim Azazel, 215
Adonis, 186, 217, 294, 299 Rome, 95, 103 (Achim von), 265, 270, 276,
Aegidius Paleologus, 214 Ankou, 249 282 B
Aegidius Viterbiensis, 214 Anna Perenna, 75, 112 Arndt, 287
Aeneas, 47, 56, 57, 65, 73, 79, Annius of Viterbo, 214, 215, Arne, 56 Baader, Franz Xavier von, 275
82, 118, 119, 131, 135, 147, 217 Arnold, Matthew, 28! Babel, 188, 197, 198, 295
150-51, 152, 156, 204, 294 Anteia, 166 Amolphe d'Orleans, 206 Bacchus, 30, 44, 62, 204, 209,
Aeolus, 56 Antenor, 56 Arruns Veltymnus, 29, 44 217
Aeschylus, 240, 277, 278, 298 Anthea, 216 Art, among prehistoric people, Bacon, Francis, 213
Aesop, 141, 201 Anthropomorphism: in Rome, 11-20, 13-18 Badinguet, 271
Afterlife: among Etruscans, 39; 72; among the Sabellians and Artemis, 30, 51, 57, 71, 126, Baibus, 109
among Gnostics, 187; among Umbrians, 47 195 Ballanche, Pierre Simon, 262,
Gypsies, 230; in pre-Roman Antiochus, 57, 123 Arthur, King, 199, 223-26, 224 264, 275, 278, 279, 282, 283
Italy, 34-3 6 Antony, 103, 298 Artio, 243, 243 Baisamon, Theodorus, 183
Agapanthi, 300 Anubis, 203, 294 Artums, 30 Balzac, Honoré de, 262,
Agathias, 183 Aph, 215 Arunta, 4 266-68, 275, 276, 279, 280,
Agrippa, 120 Aphrodite, 30, 32, 50, 73, 117, Arval Brethren, 88, 113-14, 117 287
Agrius, 56 118, 139, 146, 186, 187, 188, Assegais, 19-20 Baour-Lormain, Pierre, 278
Ahasuerus, 279-80 196, 197, 198, 300 Astarte, 26 Baptism, 161
Air, sybmolism and divinities Apis, 119 Astrology, 310-11; among Barbari, Jacopo de', 209
of, 181-82 Apollo, 29, 30, 52, 53, 57, 64, Gnostics, 189, 190-92 Barbelo, 190
Aita, 30, 35, 42 65, 70, 72, 74, 75, 75, 78, 97, Atalanta, 216 Baring-Gould, Sabine, 199
Aius Locutius, 69 102, 104, 112-13, 118, 142, Athena, 184, 272, 298 Bamaud, Nicolas, 213
Ajax, 150, 214 193, 206, 208, 209, 210, 222, Atia, 102, 118 Barrés, Maurice, 271
Albert the Great, 211 235, 240, 270, 288, 296, 297 Atlas, 204 Baruch, 197
Albion, 296 Apollodorus, 208, 209, 298 Atreus, 297 Basseri, 21
Albricus, 208 Apollonius of Rhodes, 298 Attalus, 73 Baudelaire, Charles, 265, 269,
Alciat, 209, 212 Aponus, 51 Attis, 136, 186, 294 271, 280, 289, 295
Alcmene, 277 Appolyon, 288 Attus Navius, 95 Bayard, 199
Alectryon, 132 Apuleius, 110, 111, 144, 210, Aucler, Quintus, 283 Bayol, cave of, 18
Alexander of Villedieu, 203 252 Auer, J. E., 286 Beauvais, Vincent de, 204
Allatius, Leo, 183 Apulians, 50-51 Augurelli, Giovanni Aurelio, Becanus, Joannes Goropius,
Aloadae, 159 Aratus, 192, 207 211, 222 222
Alpan, 41 Arcadians, 56 Augurs and augury, 42-43, Beckford, William, 279
Amirani, 15, 21 Area, 118 94-97, 103-4, 115-16; in Bédier, Joseph, 227
Amor, 142, 143 Ares, 27, 30, 145, 187, 297 pre-Roman Italy, 33, 49 Begoe, 45

313
I N D E X
B e le n , 2 4 5
B e lisa riu s, 1 1 0
B e lle r o p h o n , 1 6 6
B e llin i, G io v a n n i, 2 1 0 , 2 11
B e lta in e , 2 6 2
B e n s e r a d e , Is a a c d e , 2 3 5
B e n v e n is te , É m ile , 2 4 5
B é r a n g e r , P ie rre Je a n d e , 2 8 7
B e rb ig u ie r d e T e rr e N e u v e d u
T h y m ( A le x is -V in c e n t-
C h a r le s ) , 2 8 2
B e rlio z , H e c t o r , 2 7 9
B e r n a r d , T h a ïe s , 2 6 4
B e rn a rd d e C h a r tr e s , 2 0 6
B e rn a rd o f C la ir v a u x , S a in t,
225
B e rn ifa l, c a v e o f, 18
B é ro la d e d e V e rv ille , F r a n ç o is ,
213
B é ro u l, 2 2 7
B e r s u ir e , P i e rre , 2 0 8
B e rtra n d , A le x a n d re , 2 4 6
B ib le: N e w T e s ta m e n t, 1 6 1 - 6 3 ;
O ld T e s ta m e n t, 1 5 9 - 6 1
B la c k s m ith , in R o m e , 1 5 6
B la d é , J. F ., 2 5 7
B la k e , W illia m , 2 6 5 , 2 6 6 - 6 8 ,
267, 279, 293, 296
B la z e d e B u ry , H e n r i, 2 8 0
B lo k , A l e k s a n d r A le k -
sa n d ro v itch , 26 8
B lo o d , s y m b o lis m o f, fo r G y p ­
s ie s , 231
B lu m a u e r, 2 3 6
B o c c a c c io , 2 0 9
B o d in , 2 8 5
B ö h m e , Ja k o b , 2 6 4 , 2 7 6 , 2 8 4
B o h o r t, 2 2 5
B o lz a n i, G io v a n n i P ie ro V al­
e ria n o , 2 1 7
Bona D ea, 70
B o n a ld , 2 6 4
B o ro n , R o b e rt d e , 2 2 5
B o u ilh e t, L o u is , 2 8 6
B o u la n g e r, N ic o la s , 2 6 3
B o u v e t, J o a c h im , 2 1 7 - 1 8
B r a c e s c o d a Io rci N o v i,
G io v a n n i, 2 1 1 , 2 1 6 , 2 1 8
B re a l, 27 1
B ren tan o , 2 7 0
B ré s il, 2 1 7
B rid g e t, S a in t, 2 6 2
B ro w n in g , R o b e rt, 2 7 9
B ru n h ild , 2 7 2
B r u tu s , 2 0 4
B u o n d e lm o n tiu , C r i s t o f o r o d e ,
209
B u ty a k e n g o , 2 3 0
B y r o n , G e o r g e G o r d o n N o e l,
L o rd , 2 65, 2 7 7 , 27 9 , 2 8 0 , 28 7
B y th o s , 1 8 7
c C ic e r o , 8 5 , 9 4 , 9 6 , 9 7 , 9 8 , 9 9 ,
C a b a la , 2 1 4 - 1 5
C acu s, 29, 40, 41, 128, 204
C a e lu s , 1 0 9 , 2 0 5
Caesar, 7 5
C a e s a r , C a iu s , 120
C a e s a r , J u liu s , 7 3 , 9 2 , 1 0 1 , 1 0 2 ,
103
C a e s a r , L u c iu s , 116
314
C a h e n , Is id o re , 2 7 8 C o c k a ig n e , 1 9 9 1 9 5 - 9 6 , 1 9 7 - 9 8 ; o f G y p s ie s ,
C a in , 1 9 2 , 2 7 7 , 2 7 8 , 2 8 6 C o d e s , 86 2 2 9 -3 2
C a le n d a r , 8 5 , 8 6 , 9 2 ; in C h r is ti­ C o l e r i d g e , S a m u e l T a y lo r, 2 6 5 D eo, 285
a n ity , 1 8 3 ; in R o m e , 8 3 , C o m b a r e lle s , c a v e o f , 15, 18 D e Q u in c e y , T h o m a s , 2 6 5
9 2 - 9 3 , 1 12 C o m te , A u g u ste , 262 D e r m e n g h e m , E ., 2 6 3
C a lig u la , 1 04 C o n d i to r , 1 22 D e u c a lio n , 1 6 6 , 2 1 1 , 2 1 6
C a lp u r n ia , 101 C o n s ta n t in e , 1 1 0 D e V e re H u n t , A u b re y , 2 8 6
C a lu , 3 0 , 3 6 C o n v e c t o r , 1 22 D ia n a , 3 1 , 6 4 , 7 0 , 7 1 , 7 4 , 7 5 ,
C a ly p s o , 1 88 C o o p e r , J a m e s F e n im o r e , 2 6 5 113, 118, 1 2 5 - 2 6 , 125, 126,
C a p r ic o r n , 2 1 5 C o rn u tu s, 2 0 5 2 0 3 , 2 1 5 , 22 1
C a p y s , 101 C o t t a , 1 08 D ig e n is , 2 9 7 , 2 9 8
C a r ly le , T h o m a s , 2 6 5 , 2 8 7 C o u g n a c ( L o t ), 18 D io g e n e s , 1 0 7
C a rn e a d e s, 107 C o u r t d e G é b e lin , 2 6 3 , 2 6 4 D io m e d e s , 2 7 , 5 0 , 5 1 , 5 6
C assan d ra, 150 C o u s in , V ic to r, 2 6 4 D io n , 7 5
C a s t o r , 7 1 , 7 1 , 7 2 , 8 3 , 8 4 , 10 9 , C o x , G . W „ 271 D io n y s iu s o f H a lic a r n a s s u s , 5 7 ,
2 77 C r e a t io n , c r e a to r : a m o n g G y p ­ 5 8 , 7 2 , 7 5 , 113, 139
C a th a , 4 4 s ie s , 2 3 0 - 3 1 . See also O rig in , D io n y s u s , 3 0 , 1 8 3 , 1 8 4 , 1 9 3 ,
C a th a r m y th , 2 0 0 , 2 0 2 m y th s o f 214, 266, 270, 274, 292, 298
C a th e r i n e d e M e d icis, 2 0 9 C r ito la u s , 1 0 7 D io n y s u s , S a in t, 1 8 4
C a to th e E ld e r , 1 0 7 , 1 08 C u ls a n , 3 6 D io s c u ri, 5 7 , 8 4 , 2 7 6
C a tu l u s , 1 02 C u ls u , 3 3 , 3 6 , 4 2 , 4 4 D io v e , 4 8
C a u th a , 3 0 C u ltu ra l h e r o e s : o f a n c ie n t Disciplina Etrusca, 3 8 - 3 9 ,
C a v a fy , C o n s ta n t in e , 2 9 7 , 2 9 8 S w itz e r la n d , 2 4 3 - 4 4 ; o f p re - 4 3 -4 5
C a v e r n , g r o t to , s y m b o lis m of: R o m a n Italy , 5 1 , 5 6 D iv a A n g e r o n a , 6 2
in P la to , 3 0 8 ; p r e h is to r ic , C u p id , 1 4 3 , 1 44 D iv in a tio n : a m o n g G y p s ie s ,
12-20 C u p ra, 3 2 , 48 2 3 1 ; E t r u s c a n , 4 2 - 4 3 ; in p re -
C a x to n , W illia m , 2 2 5 , 2 2 8 C u r e te s , 1 9 1 , 2 1 4 R o m a n Ita ly , 4 2 - 4 3 ; R o m a n ,
C a y e t , P ie r r e V ic to r P a lm a , 2 2 2 C u sh , 215 9 4 - 1 0 4 . See also A u g u r s a n d
C a z a lis , H e n r i, 2 9 0 C y b e le , 6 4 , 7 3 , 1 1 7 , 1 8 6 , 2 0 8 , a u g u r y ; M a g ic
C a z o tte , Jacq u es, 282 214, 295 D iv in iz a tio n o f s o v e r e ig n s ,
C e l, 4 4 C y c lo p s , 2 9 8 1 7 7 - 7 8 ; in R o m e , 6 4 - 6 6 , 6 9 ,
C e lb e s o f C a r y s t a , 1 9 0 C y m o th o e , 2 8 4 119
C e li, 3 6 C y n ics, 6 5 D ogon, 7
C e ls u s , 1 6 6 , 1 6 8 , 1 7 0 - 7 1 , 1 7 9 , 1 9 0 C y p r i a n , 2 81 D ö lg e r, F. J ., 1 6 4
C e n ta u r , 283, 2 8 4 C y ria cu s o f A n c o n a , 2 0 9 D on J u a n ,2 8 0 -8 1
C erb eru s, 40, 42 C y ril o f A l e x a n d r ia , 17 3 D o s to y e v s k i, F io d o r
C e re s, 31, 32, 48, 49, 6 9 , 71, 72, M ik h a ilo v itch , 2 7 6
73, 74, 75, 77, 114, 1 2 1 -2 3 , D D o u b le , in l it e ra tu re , 2 7 6 - 7 7
122, 143, 204, 206, 285 D u m a s, A le x a n d re , 2 7 7
C erfo , 4 8 , 5 3 8 - 3 9 D a e d a lu s , 5 6 , 2 0 4 , 2 9 5 D u m é z il, G ., 2 5 7
C e r u la r iu s , M ic h a e l, 1 8 3 D a m ia , 7 0 D u p u is , C h a r le s - F r a n ç o i s , 2 6 3 ,
C h a o s , 187 D a m o p h ile s , 7 2 282
C h a r le m a g n e , 2 4 7 D an aë, 197, 243 D u s s ie u x , L ., 2 6 5
C h a ro n , 184, 206 D a n te , 1 5 4 , 2 0 6 , 2 8 3 , 291 D u v a l, R o b e rt, 2 1 1
C h aru n , 35, 42 D a p h n e , 240
C h a te a u b r i a n d , F r a n ç o i s R e n é , D ard an u s, 214 E
262, 278, 286, 287 D a r k n e s s , fo r G n o s tic s , 1 9 3
C h a tr i a n , 2 8 8 D assou cy, 23 6 E a r t h , s y m b o lism a n d d i­
C h a u c e r , G e o ffr e y , 2 9 4 D au nu s, 50 v in itie s o f: fo r G n o s tic s ,
C h é n ie r , A n d r é , 2 4 0 D ea D ia , 8 3 , 1 1 3 , 114 1 9 7 - 9 8 ; in R o m e , 1 2 3
C h im e r a , 4 0 D e a th : fo r G y p s ie s , 2 3 0 ; fo r E c k h a r t, M e is te r, 2 6 4
C h ir o n , 2 0 4 N e a n d e r th a l M a n , 12; in p re - E c k s te in , B a ro n , 2 6 4
C h o m p r é , P ie r r e , 2 3 3 R o m a n Italy , 3 5 - 3 6 ; in E d em , 188, 197
C h o r z a r , 191 R o m e , 1 3 3 - 3 4 . See also A n ­ E d ic t o f M ila n , 1 1 0
C h r é ti e n d e T r o y e s , 2 2 5 c e s t o r s , c u lt o f; F u n e r a r y E g e r iu s L a e v iu s , 71
C h r is t. See Je s u s r ite s ; U n d e rw o rld E g id io d a V ite rb o , 2 1 4 , 2 1 5 ,
C h r is t ia n , P , 2 7 8 D e ia n ira , 203, 2 0 4 217, 220
C h r is t ia n i ty : in F r a n c e , 2 4 5 - 4 6 ; D el B e n e ( B a r to lo m e o a n d A l­ E ic h e n d o rff , J o s e p h v o n , 2 8 6
a m o n g G y p s ie s , 2 2 9 - 3 0 ; in p h o n s e ), 2 2 2 E ile ith y ia e , 1 1 8
R om e, 6 6 - 6 7 , 1 1 0 -1 1 , 129 D elille, 2 6 2 E ita , 3 0
C h r is t m a s , 2 4 6 D ella R iv ie ra , C e s a r e , 2 1 1 , 2 1 5 , E lija h , S a in t, 1 8 4 , 184
C h r is t o p h e r , S a in t, 1 6 6 , 2 0 3 219 E lio t, T. S ., 2 2 5 , 2 9 0 , 2 9 3 , 2 9 4 ,
101, 102, 104, 108, 115,
d e L u b a c ( F a t h e r ), 2 1 4
D e m e te r , 3 2 , 5 0 , 7 2 , 1 1 9 , 1 2 2 ,
295
E lk e s a i, 1 6 3
1 2 3 - 2 5 , 124, 1 4 8 , 2 2 0 186, 191, 2 8 5 , 2 9 7 , 29 8 E lo h im , 1 8 8 , 1 9 7 , 1 9 8
C ile n s , 3 0 D e m e tr a , S a in t, 1 84 E lo y , S a in t, 2 6 1
C ir c e , 5 6 , 1 8 8 , 2 0 9 D e m e tr iu s C h o m a t i a n u s , 18 3 E lv e s , 2 8 1 - 8 2
C la u d e l, P a u l, 2 7 1 , 2 7 2 , 2 7 3 D e m o g o rg o n , 21 8 E m p e d o c le s , 2 1 6 , 2 8 1
C la u d iu s , 1 04 D e m o u s tie r , C . A ., 2 3 5 E n d y m io n , 186
C le a n t h e s , 1 88 D e m o n s , d a e m o n s , d a im o n s , E n f a n tin , F a th e r , 2 7 6
C le m e n t o f A l e x a n d r ia , 1 6 6 , d e m o n o lo g y : E t r u s c a n , E n n iu s , 9 5 , 1 0 7 , 1 0 8 , 2 0 4
1 9 3 , 281 4 0 - 4 2 ; o f G n o s tic s , 18 7 , Enûrna Elié 3 , 4
 I N D E X

E n y a liu s , 1 4 5 S w it z e r l a n d , 2 4 3 . See also G o e t h e , J o h a n n W o lfg a n g v o n , H e sio d , 6 9 , 187, 2 3 9

E p eu s, 56 R ite s a n d ritu a ls 2 6 4 , 27 6 , 279, 283 H e s te a u d e N u y s e m e n t,
E p ic h a r m u s , 1 0 7 F é v a l, P a u l, 2 7 7 G o h o r y P a r is ie n , J a c q u e s , 2 1 3 C lo v is , 2 1 3 , 2 1 8 , 2 21
E p ic u r u s , 1 0 8 F id e s , 6 2 G o l th e r , 2 2 7 H e y w o o d , T h o m a s , 28 1
E p ip h a n iu s , 1 8 7 , 1 8 9 F ire , s y m b o lis m a n d d iv in itie s G o n z a g u e s d e N e v e rs, 21 3 H im e r o s , 1 9 2
E p iu r, 2 9 , 4 1 , 4 2 o f , 3 0 9 - 1 0 ; a m o n g G n o s ti c s , G o rg asu s, 72 H ip p y s , 5 7
Epona, 243 1 9 5 ; in F r a n c e , 2 5 9 - 6 2 ; in G o rg o n , 4 0, 21 1 , 216 H o f f m a n n , E . T. A ., 2 6 4 , 2 7 6 ,
E r a s m u s , D e s id e r iu s , 2 1 4 , 2 8 5 p r e - R o m a n Italy , 3 4 ; in G ö rre, 265 277, 280, 282
E rck m an n , 28 8 R om e, 148, 1 5 5 -5 6 G o u n o d , C h a r le s , 2 7 9 H ö ld e r lin , F r ie d r i c h , 2 4 1 , 2 8 1 ,
E re s k ig a l, 1 9 6 F la m e l, N ic o la s , 2 1 1 , 2 1 3 G o u r d a n , H a u te - G a r o n n e , 17 2 8 8 -8 9 , 2 9 1 -9 2
E rin y e s ( F u r i e s ) , 3 5 , 4 2 , 2 9 7 , F la m in iu s , 1 0 0 G r a b b e , C h r is t ia n D ie tr ic h , 2 8 0 H o m er, 6 9 , 2 0 5 , 2 1 4 , 2 2 1 , 2 3 9 ,
298 F lau b ert, G u sta v e , 2 6 3 , 29 0 G r a b o v io , 5 9 240, 283, 300
E ros, 144, 188, 191, 1 9 2 - 9 5 , F lie s s , 2 7 5 G raf, A rtu ro , 199 H o m o r o k a , 191
194, 204, 282, 297 F lo r a , 4 9 , 7 5 G r a ia e , 3 0 0 H o n o r iu s , 1 1 0
E r y x , M o u n t (S ic ily ), 1 4 7 - 4 8 F l u d d , R o b e r t, 2 1 0 , 2 81 G ra il, 2 2 3 - 2 6 H o ra ce , 8 5 , 120
E sa u , 192 F o n te n e l l e , B e r n a r d L e B o v ie r, G r a ti a n , 1 1 0 H o ra e , 119
E s c h a to lo g y , 1 6 2 239 G r a v e s , R o b e r t, 2 9 3 , 2 9 6 H o ra tiu s C o d e s , 59
E s c h e n b a c h , W o lfra m v o n , 2 2 5 F o rn ax, 78 G r e a t B rita in , 2 6 5 H oru s, 189, 209
E th a u s v a , 4 1 F o rtu n a , 4 4 , 6 2 , 100 G r e g o r y o f N a z ia n z e , S a in t, H u g h es, Ted, 296
E th n è , 2 4 3 F r a n c i s c u s G e o r g iu s V e n e tu s , 285 H u g o , V ic to r, 2 6 2 , 2 6 5 , 2 7 7 ,
E tru scan s, 2 8 - 2 9 , 3 6 - 3 9 215, 222 G r e g o r y o f N y s s a , 160 278, 279, 280, 283, 287, 288
E u h e m e ru s, E u h e m e rism , 107, F ran cu s, 204 G r im m , Ja k o b a n d W ilh e lm , H u m e , D a v id , 2 3 9
204 F r a z e r , S ir J a m e s G e o r g e , 2 9 0 , 246 H u y s m a n s , Jo ris K a rl, 2 7 1
E u k arp u s, 140 293, 294 G r o m o , G ia c o m ' A n t o n i o , 2 1 3 H y d r a , 22 1
E u p h r a te s t h e P e r a tic , 1 9 0 F r e u d , S ig m u n d , 2 7 5 , 2 9 0 G u é r in , M a u r ic e d e , 2 8 4
E u r ip e d e s , 2 9 2 , 2 9 9 F rey r, 87 G u ig n ia u t, Jo s e p h - D a n i e l, 2 6 4
E u ro p a, 20 9 F u f lu n s , 3 0 , 4 4 G u illa u m e d e L o r r is , F r a n ç o i s ,
E u r y d ic e , 2 8 2 , 283, 310 F u lg e n tiu s, 2 0 1 , 2 0 6 , 20 8 213 la ch ta n a b a s , 195
E u ryn o m os, 42 F u n e r a r y rite s : a m o n g G u y a r t d e s M o u lin s , 2 0 4 l a ld a b a o th , 1 8 6 , 1 9 2
E u s e b iu s o f C a e s a r e a , 1 6 6 E tru sca n s, 39; a m o n g p re­ G u y s , C o n s ta n t in , 2 71 Iap y x, 50, 56
E u stath iu s, 211 h is t o r i c p e o p l e s , 1 2 , 2 0 ; in G y llu , 1 8 4 Ib s e n , H e n r ik , 2 8 6
Eva, 285 p r e - R o m a n Italy , 3 4 - 3 5 , 4 9 , G y p s ie s , 2 2 8 - 3 2 Icaru s, 29 7
E v a n , 41 5 2 ; in R o m e , 1 3 3 ; a m o n g th e Id om en eu s, 56
E v an d er, 128 S a b e llia n s a n d U m b r i a n s , 4 9 ; H le u , 1 8 7
E ve, 190, 193, 194, 197, 21 8 F u r i e s . See E rin y e s Ily th ia , 5 6
E v il, fo r G n o s ti c s , 1 9 7 F u r r in a l ia , 9 3 , 1 3 8 H ad es, 3 0, 35, 39, 298 Im p o rcito r, 122
E z e k ie l, 2 1 7 H a d r ia n , 6 5 In d r a , 8 7
G H am , 215 I n g e g n e r i, A n g e lo , 2 1 3
F H a m a n n , Jo h a n G e o rg , 26 4 , In itia tio n , rite s o f , in R o m e ,
G a b rie l, 2 1 7 283 1 3 0 , 1 44
F a b r e , Je a n d 'O li v e t , 2 6 3 , 2 6 4 , G a id o z , H e n r i, 2 4 6 H a n n ib a l, 6 9 , 7 4 In o, 62
275, 282 G a la h a d , 2 2 5 , 2 2 6 H a r d e n b e r g , F r ie d r ic h v o n In s ito r, 1 22
F a b re d e C a s t e l n a u d a r y , P ie rre G a la te a , 241 ( N o v a lis ), 2 8 3 I p h ig e n ia , 6 0 , 2 6 4
Je a n , 2 1 9 , 221 G a lli, 7 3 Harentas, 32 Iren aeu s, 187, 190
F a b ric e , 2 8 7 G a llu s , 1 4 0 H e b e i, J o h a n n P e te r, 2 8 2 I rm in s u l, 2 6 3
F a ir ie s , 2 5 3 - 5 6 G a m e s , s e c u la r , 7 9 , 8 9 , 1 1 3 , H e c a t e , 1 9 5 - % , 196 Is a a c o f A n t io c h , 15 9
F a la c e r , 8 3 1 1 7 , 1 18 H e in e , H e in r ic h , 2 8 9 Is h a , 2 7 5
F a ta , 2 5 4 G an neau , 276 H e le n , 1 8 7 , 1 8 8 , 2 0 4 , 2 1 4 , 2 8 4 , I s id o r o f S e v ille , 2 0 4
F a tu a , 7 0 G an ym ed e, 216 285 Is is , 6 6 , 1 1 9 , 1 8 6 , 1 8 9 , 1 9 0 , 1 9 1 ,
F a tu m , 254 G a rg a n tu a , 199, 2 4 3 , 2 4 5 , 255 H e lio g a b a lu s , 2 7 0 1 9 8 , 2 0 4 , 2 1 5 , 285; a m o n g
Fauni-Dryads, 75 G a r g a s (c a v e ), 1 6 , 18 H e lio s , 1 84 G n o s ti c s , 1 8 6 , 1 8 9 , 1 9 0 , 1 9 1 ;
F au n u s, 70, 126, 146, 204 G a r la n d , J o h n , 2 0 6 H e lla n ic u s , 5 7 in lite r a tu r e , 2 8 4 - 8 5 ; in
F a u s t, 2 7 9 , 2 8 3 G a s t o n d 'O r lé a n s , 2 1 3 H e m in g , 2 4 3 R o m e , 6 6 , 1 1 9 , 1 44
F e m a le , fe m in in e ( p r in c ip le ): G a u tie r , T h é o p h ile , 2 7 6 , 2 8 0 H e p h a e s t u s , 3 0 , 1 5 5 , 191 I s o ld e , 2 2 5 , 2 7 0
a m o n g G n o s ti c s , 1 8 8 - 9 0 ; G en ava, 243 H e ra , 2 7 , 3 0 , 51, 56, 193 I s ra e l, 1 9 7
a m o n g G y p s ie s , 2 3 1 ; a m o n g G e n e sis, 197 H e ra cle s, 2 7 , 2 8 , 2 9 , 3 0 , 3 2 , 4 1 , I ta lo s , J o h n , 1 8 3
p r e h is to r ic p e o p l e s , 1 2 - 1 3 , G e n ii, 1 1 0 5 6 , 126, 166, 188, 198, 292,
16, 18, 1 9 - 2 0
F én elo n , 2 3 8
G e n iu s , 4 3 , 7 5 , 1 2 7 - 2 8
G e o f f r e y o f M o n m o u th , 2 2 4 ,
297
H e r a c l i tu s , 2 0 5
J
F e r tility , f e c u n d ity (d iv in itie s 225 H e r d e , 2 9 , 3 0 , 41 Jacob , 283
o f ): a m o n g E t r u s c a n s , 4 1 ; G e o r g e , S a in t, 1 6 6 , 2 7 0 - 7 1 , 2 9 7 H e rcu le s, 2 7 , 2 8 , 28. 29, 64, 65, Ja n u s, 6 2 , 7 5 , 7 7 , 8 7 , 117,
a m o n g G n o s ti c s , 1 8 9 - 9 0 ; G e o r g e , S te f a n , 2 7 5 6 6 , 7 4 , 7 9 , 8 4 , 125, 1 2 8 - 2 9 , 1 2 9 -3 0 , 130, 204
a m o n g p re h i s t o r i c p e o p l e s , G erm an y , 2 6 4 - 65 129, 2 0 3 , 2 0 4 , 2 0 7 , 209, 2 1 6 , Ja s o n , 211
1 4 ; in lite r a tu r e , 2 9 4 ; in p re - G e ry o n , 166 218, 2 2 1 -2 2 J a u c o r t , L o u is d e , 2 3 2 - 3 4
R o m a n Ita ly , 4 9 ; in R o m e , G e y ti A s la k s s o n , 2 4 3 H e r d e r , J o h a n n G o ttf r ie d , 2 3 9 , Jean d e M e u n , 21 3
122, 145 G ib b o n , E d w a r d , 2 7 0 240, 264, 278, 280, 283 Jean d e S p o n d e , 223
F e s tiv a ls , 6 9 - 7 1 , 9 2 , 1 3 0 : G ile s o f V ite rb o , 2 1 7 H e r e k le , 4 8 J e r o m e , S a in t, 1 1 0
a m o n g G y p s ie s , 2 3 0 , 2 3 1 ; in G ilg a m e S , 3 H e r m a p h r o d i te , 189, 1 9 0 J e s u s , 160, 1 6 1 - 6 3 , 1 9 2 , 1 9 8 ,
C h r is tia n ity , 1 8 3 - 8 4 , G ira ld i, L ilio G r e g o r i o , 2 1 1 , 2 2 2 H e r m e s , 3 0 , 1 8 4 , 1 8 6 , 1 8 7 , 18 8 , 201, 266, 292
1 9 8 - 9 9 ; in F r a n c e , 2 4 5 , G n om es, 2 8 1 -8 2 2 7 2 , 312 Je w e lr y , in p r e h is to r y , 12
2 6 0 - 6 2 ; in R o m e , 6 1 - 6 2 , G n o s ti c s , 1 6 2 , 1 8 2 , 1 8 5 - 9 8 H erod , 119 Jo b , 2 7 8 - 7 9 , 280, 2 8 3
9 2 - 9 3 , 1 1 2 , 1 3 8 ; in G o b in e a u , 2 71 H e r o d o tu s , 1 9 8 J o h n , S a in t, 2 9 6

315
I N D E X
J o h n o f S a lis b u ry , 2 0 6
J o h n th e B a p tis t, S a in t, 2 6 0 ,
288
J o h n " T h e G r a m m a r i a n ," 183
J o n e s , D a v id , 2 9 6
Jo s e p h , 1 6 6
Jo u y , V i c to r -J o s e p h -É tie n n e d e ,
286
Jo y ce, Jam es, 290, 2 93, 2 9 4 , 295
J u d a s , 19 9
J u d e n , B ria n , 2 8 2
Ju lia n ( E m p e r o r ) , 2 0 6
Ju lia n th e A p o s t a te , 2 8 5 - 8 7
Ju lia n th e H o s p ita b le , S a in t,
198
Ju lu s A s c a n iu s , 6 5 , 7 3
J u n g , M a rc R e n é , 2 21
Ju n o, 29, 30, 51, 56, 62, 63, 70,
7 2 , 7 4 , 74, 7 5 , 7 7 , 1 1 8 ,
130- 3 1 , 1 3 2 , 1 4 3 , 2 0 6 , 206,
207, 213, 214, 216
J u n o o f V eii, 7 2
Ju p ite r , 3 0 , 3 1 , 3 2 , 3 3 , 3 6 , 4 1 ,
43, 44, 50, 59, 62, 63, 64, 71,
72, 73, 74, 74, 75, 78, 86, 87,
9 4 , 1 0 2 , 1 0 9 , 1 1 5 , 1 1 6 , 11 8 ,
131- 32, 143, 147, 150, 151,
204, 205, 206, 207, 209, 216,
217, 235, 277
Ju s ti c e , 1 94
J u s tin th e G n o s ti c , 1 8 8 , 1 9 6 —9 8
Ju v e n a l, 1 0 4
K L ev a sse u r, 2 80
K a b a p h è s , K o n s t a n ti n o s , 2 9 7 ,
298
K a i, 4
K a lv o s, A n d r e a s , 2 9 7 , 2 9 8
K a n n e , J. A ., 2 6 5
K a z a n tz a k is , N ik o s, 3 0 0
K e a ts , J o h n , 2 6 5 , 2 8 4
K ere, 48
K in g u , 3
K irc h e r , A t h a n a s i u s , 2 1 5 , 2 1 9 ,
282
K le ist, H e in ric h v o n , 2 6 5 , 2 7 6
K lin g e r, F r ie d r ic h M a x im ilia n
vo n , 279
K lo p s to c k , F r ie d r ic h G o ttlie b ,
262
K o re , 1 8 6
K ö rn e r, T h e o d o r , 2 8 7
K r e u z e r , F r e d e r ic k , 2 6 4 , 2 8 2
K r o n o s , K r o n id e s , 1 8 7 , 191
K u h n , A d a lb e rt, 2 7 1
K y p ris , 2 9 7
L L u gn asad , 262
L a b e n s k y , Je a n ( C o u n t) , 2 81
L a c t a n t iu s , 2 0 8 , 2 8 1 - 8 2
L a e stry g o n e s, 29 8
L a F o n ta i n e , Je a n d e , 2 3 8
L a M a d e le in e , D o r d o g n e , 19
L a m a r t in e , A lp h o n s e d e , 2 6 2 ,
279, 285, 287
L am ash tu , 3
L a m m e n a is , F é licité R o b e rt d e ,
264
L a M o tte -F o u q u é , F r ie d ric h d e ,
282
316
L a n d i, C a r lo , 2 1 8 fo r G y p s ie s , 2 3 0 , 2 3 1 - 3 2 ; fo r
L aran , 36 p r e h is to r ic p e o p le s , 1 2 - 1 3 ;
L a r e s , 3 0 , 7 5 , 84, 1 1 0 , 1 1 4 , 11 6 , in R o m e , 8 8 - 8 9
128. 1 3 2 , 132 M a g n a M a te r, 6 4 , 7 3
L a ris P u le n a s , 4 3 M a ie r, M ich a e l, 2 1 0 , 221
L aru n , 36 M a is tr e , Jo s e p h d e , 2 6 3 , 2 6 4
L a s a , 41 M a je r, F ., 2 6 5
L a s c a u x , D o r d o g n e , 1 3 - 1 6 , 17, M a la v is (c h ), 41
19 M a lla rm é , S té p h a n e , 2 6 9 , 2 7 0 ,
L a s C h im e n e a s , S p a in , 15 271, 272, 289, 293
L a s e s , 8 5 , 1 14 M a lo ry , S ir T h o m a s , 2 2 4 , 2 2 8
L a tin s , 5 4 - 5 5 M am ers, 4 7 , 52
L a tin u s , 5 6 M an es, 30, 36, 44, 1 3 3 -3 4
L a t o n a , 6 4 , 7 4 , 75 M a n ia , 3 0 , 3 6 , 4 2
L a t o u c h e , H e n ri d e , 2 7 6 M an n , T h o m as, 294
L a u g e r i e - B a s s e , D o r d o g n e , 19 M a n n u c c i, A ld o , 2 0 9
L a u n c e lo t, 2 2 5 M a n te g n a , A n d re a , 21 0
L a w re n ce , D . H „ 29 3 , 29 6 M a n tu s, 3 0 , 3 6 , 42
L ayam o n , 224 M a n z o n i, A l e s s a n d r o , 2 8 7
L e B ra z , A n a to le , 2 5 3 - 5 6 M a r c h a n g y , L o u is d e , 2 6 3
L ed a, 197 M a r c iu s , 9 8
L e F è v r e d e L a B o d e rie , G u y , M a r c u s A u re liu s , 78, 79
222, 283 M a rd i G r a s , 250
L e in th , 3 6 M ard u k , 3
L e n a u , N ik o la u s , 2 7 9 , 2 8 0 M ares, 29
L e n o ir , A l e x a n d r e , 2 8 3 M a ria n , M a tth ä u s , 2 1 0
L e o p a r d i, G ia c o m o , 2 6 5 M a ris ( M a r s ), 2 9 , 3 0
L e o th e P h ilo s o p h e r , 1 8 3 M a r iu s , 6 4
L e p id u s , 1 0 3 M a r iv a u x , 2 3 6
L e r o u x , P ie r r e , 2 7 9 M a r r ia g e , in F r a n c e , 2 5 6 - 5 9
L e s p u g u e , H a u te - G a r o n n e , 19 M a rs , 2 7 , 2 8 , 2 9 , 3 0 , 3 2 , 4 4 , 4 7 ,
L e th a m , 3 0 , 3 6 , 44 4 8 , 5 2 , 5 3 , 54, 6 2 , 6 3 , 7 4 , 7 5 ,
L e u c o th e a , 5 6 7 8 , 8 5 , 8 7 , 1 1 8 , 1 3 4 - 3 5 , 135.
1 3 7 , 147, 2 0 5 , 2 1 0 , 2 1 6 , 2 1 7 ,
L e v i a t h a n , 161 243
L é v i-S tr a u s s , C la u d e , 2 4 6 , 2 4 8 , M a rs ilio F ic in o , 2 1 0 , 2 8 3
257 M a r s y a s , 2 9 , 2 0 9 , 210
L e w is , M a tth e w G r e g o r y , 2 7 9 M a r tia n u s C a p e lla , 2 0 8
L ib a n iu s , 2 8 6 M a r y M a g d a le n e , 1 85
L ib e r , 7 5 M a s c u lin e p rin c ip le : fo r
L ie b e s k in d , 2 8 4 G n o s tic s , 1 8 6 , 1 9 2 - 9 5 ,
L in th a u t, H e n ri d e , 2 1 6 1 9 6 - 9 7 ; fo r p re h is to r ic
L ip aru s, 56 p e o p le s , 1 2 - 1 4 , 1 6 , 1 9 - 2 0
L ittr é , 2 8 8 M a te r M a tu ta , 6 1 , 6 2 , 8 7
L iv ia , 1 1 6 , 120 M a u ry , A lfre d , 2 4 6
L iv y , 7 5 , 8 5 , 9 8 , 1 0 0 , 1 0 1 , 1 09 M a x im u s th e C o n f e s s o r , 1 66
L o r r a in , J e a n , 2 7 0 M b u ti, 21
L o u is X IV , K in g , 2 3 6 M e a n , 41
L o v e c r a f t, H . P , 3 0 2 - 3 M ed ea, 211, 212, 213
L u b a c , d e ( F a t h e r ), 2 1 4 M ed u sa, 20 7
L u c a r ia , 1 38 M e fitis , 3 2 , 4 8 , 4 9
L u ceres, 62 M e la n c h th o n , 2 8 6
L u c ia n o f S a m o s a t a , 2 8 2 M e la n ip p u s , 5 6
L u c ife r, 2 0 6 M é lu s in e , 1 9 9 , 2 4 3 , 2 4 5 , 2 5 5 ,
L u c iu s , 1 44 255
L u cretiu s, 108, 239 M em n on , 218, 272
L u cu m o n , 99 M e m o ry , 206
L u g h ,243 M è n , 191
M é n a r d , L o u is , 2 6 4 , 2 7 8 , 2 8 1 ,
L u n a, 75 286
L u p e r c a lia , 6 1 , 8 8 , 1 2 6 M en e, 195
L u th r e , 2 1 4 M en ech m es, 276
L y c u s o f R h e g iu m , 5 7 M en erv a, 30
L ym p h a, 75 M e n e sth e u s, 56
M e n n e n s , G u illa u m e , 2 2 2
M M en s, 97
M e n to r , 2 3 8
M a, 64 M en zan a, 32, 50
M c K in e e ly , 2 4 3 M ercu ry, 3 0 , 70, 74, 75,
M a c ro b iu s , 6 7 , 9 2 , 2 0 8 1 3 5 - 3 7 , 136, 2 0 3 , 2 0 7 , 2 0 8 ,
M aen ad s, 282, 297 209, 219
M a g ic : fo r G n o s tic s , 1 9 5 - 9 6 ; M é r im é e , P r o s p e r , 2 8 0
M e rlin , 1 9 9 , 2 1 1 , 3 1 0
M é ry , Jo s e p h , 2 7 9
M essap u s, 50
M e sso r, 122
M e ta b u s , 5 6
M e ta n ir a , 2 9 8
M eta p o n tu m , 4 4 , 5 6 , 57
M e ta p o n tu s, 56
M e th o d iu s o f O ly m p u s , 1 6 7
M ich a e l, 2 1 7
M ich a e l, S a in t, 1 8 4
M ic h e la n g e lo , 2 0 9
M ic h e le t, Ju le s , 2 6 2 , 2 7 5 , 2 7 7 ,
278
M ick ie w icz , 2 8 8
M ilo sz , 2 7 1 , 2 7 2
M ilto n , J o h n , 2 7 7
M i n d e r e r, R a y m u n d , 2 1 8
M in e rv a , 2 9 , 3 0 , 4 4 , 6 3 , 7 4 , 7 5 ,
1 3 2 , 1 3 7 , 137, 1 5 0 , 2 0 4 , 2 0 9 ,
214, 216, 238, 285
M in o s , 5 6 , 2 0 6
M in o ta u r, 2 1 6
M ith ra , M ith ra ism , 6 6 , 6 7 , 2 61
M itra , 8 7
M la c u c h , 2 7 , 41
M o ira i, 191
M o n ic a , 1 1 0
M o n ta ig n e , 2 8 5
M o n t a n o , B e n ito A ria s , 2 2 2
M o n te s q u ie u , 2 7 0
M o o n , sy m b o lism a n d d i­
v in itie s o f: in a rt a n d lite ra ­
tu r e , 2 0 4 , 2 9 3 ; fo r th e
G n o s tic s , 1 9 5 - 9 6 ; in p re -
R o m a n Ita ly , 3 0 , 1 3 0
M o r e a u , G u s ta v e , 2 6 9 , 2 7 5
M organ a, 245
M o r g a n L e F a y (M o r g a n a ), 1 9 9
M o r is o t, C la u d e B a rth é lé m y ,
213
M o se s, 159, 188, 191, 197, 2 0 1 ,
283
M o th e r G o d d e s s e s : o f
G n o s tic s , 1 9 0 ; o f p re - R o m a n
Italy , 5 6 ; o f R o m e , 6 1 - 6 2
M o u lo , 2 31
M o z a r t, W o lfg a n g A m a d e u s ,
283, 284
M u c iu s S c a e v o la , 5 9
M ü lle r, G o ttf r ie d , 2 6 5
M ü lle r, M a x , 2 7 1
M u n th u c h , 41
M u s s e t, A lfre d d e , 2 6 5
N
N aas, 188, 197
N a a ss e n e s, 162, 1 8 5 - 8 6
N a g H a m m a d i, E g y p t, 1 8 7 ,
189, 1 9 0 , 194
N a n n i, G io v a n n i, 2 1 4
N a p o le o n , m y th o f, 2 8 7 - 8 8
N a r c is s u s , 2 0 3 , 2 7 6
N a rts , 2 5 1 , 2 5 7
N ä s a ty a , 8 7
N a th u m , 3 6
N a tin u s n a , 3 6
N a tio n a lis m , 3 0 3 - 5
N a tu r e , c u lts o f, 2 7 1 - 7 3 , 2 9 4
N a u s ic a a , 2 9 7
N ean der, 286
 I N D E X

N e a n d e r th a l M a n , 11 P a lla s , 70, 207, 214, 220 P le ia d e s , 2 71

N e c k h a m , A le x a n d e r , 2 0 7 , 2 0 8 P an , 126, 143, 203, 209, 243, P lin y t h e E ld e r , 6 9 , 9 6 - 1 0 1 R
N e lid e s, 5 7 283 p a ssim , 10 7 , 108
N em ro d , 192 P a n d o ra , 264 P l o tin u s , 1 6 1 - 6 3 , 1 8 8 , 1 8 9 , 1 9 5 R ab b e, A lp h o n se , 28 4
N em u, 4 Pan-Minerva, 75 P lu t a r c h , 1 8 9 , 1 9 0 , 2 1 7 , 2 4 3 R a b e la is , F r a n ç o i s , 1 9 9 , 2 4 5
N e o p to le m u s, 108 P apa, 41, 43 P lu to , 7 9 , 2 0 6 R am n es, 62
N e p tu n a lia , 1 3 8 P a r a c e ls u s , 2 6 4 , 2 81 P n eu m a, 197, 198 R a n k , O tt o , 2 9 0
N e p tu n e , 3 0 , 3 3 , 4 4 , 7 4 , 7 5 , 7 8 , P arap lex, 195 P o e , E d g a r A lle n , 2 6 5 , 2 7 6 R a p h a e l, 2 0 9 , 2 1 7
1 3 7 - 3 8 , 138, 1 4 9 , 2 0 4 , 2 0 6 P arcae, 118, 254 P o e tr y , 2 8 8 - 9 3 R e b e ll, H u g u e s , 2 7 3
N e r e id s , 1 8 4 P a r is , 1 9 5 , 2 1 4 , 2 7 2 P o lip h ilu s, 2 1 1 R e d ic u lu s , 6 9
N ero , 29 8 P a r is , G a s t o n , 2 2 7 P o lite s , 1 5 3 R é g n ie r , H e n r i d e , 2 6 9
N e rv a l, G é r a r d d e , 2 6 4 , P a r is ie n , Ja c q iu e s G o h o r y , 2 1 1 P o llu x , 71, 7 2 , 8 4 , 1 0 9 , 2 7 7 R e itia , 3 2 , 51
2 6 6 -6 8 , 278, 279, 283, 284, P a rn sa g , 198 P o lo n iu s , 2 81 R e lig io n , p r e h i s t o r i c , 1 1 - 2 0
285, 287, 288 P a rn y , E v a r i s te , 2 6 3 P o ly b iu s, 1 0 7 , 1 0 8 R e m i d 'A u x e r r e , 2 0 8
N essu s, 20 3 , 204 P a rs ifa l, 2 9 4 Pom pey, 64 R em u s, 9 5 , 277
N e s to r , 5 6 P a te r, W a lte r, 27 1 P o ro s, 193 R e p a r a to r , 1 2 2
N e th u n s , 3 0 , 4 4 P a t r o c lu s , 2 9 8 P o rp h y ry , 188 R e s c ia i, 41
N e tt e s h e i m , A g r ip p a v o n , 2 6 4 P a u l, S a in t, 1 6 1 - 6 3 , 1 6 5 , 2 2 0 P o rsen n a, 29 R h e a , 1 8 6 , 191
N e v a l, 2 7 6 P a u lu s O r o s iu s , 2 0 4 P o s e id o n , 3 0 , 1 9 1 , 2 9 8 R ic c ia rd i, A n t o n i o , 2 1 1
N ia u x , A r i è g e , 1 3 , 1 4 - 1 8 , 17 P a v a , 41 P o s te l, G u illa u m e , 2 1 5 , 2 1 8 , R ic cio , 2 0 9
N ie t z s c h e , F r ie d r i c h , 2 7 0 , 2 7 1 , P e c h -M e r le , 1 3 , 1 5 , 1 6 - 1 7 , 17, 28 1 R ic h te r , J e a n - P a u l , 2 7 6
273, 290 18 P o s t u m iu s , 7 2 R id e w a ll, J o h n , 2 0 6 , 2 0 8
N ik o n , S a in t, 1 8 3 P é la d a n , Jo s é p h i n , 2 7 1 , 2 7 5 P o titii, 8 4 R ilk e, R a in e r M a r ia , 2 9 1
N io b e , 1 6 6 P e la s g i, 5 6 P ou n d , E zra, 293, 294, 295 R im b a u d , A r t h u r , 2 7 3
N o ah , 166 P e le u s , 2 9 8 P re h isto ric a rt, 1 1 - 2 0 R ite s a n d r itu a ls : a m o n g G y p ­
N o d ie r , C h a r le s , 2 6 3 , 2 7 7 , 2 8 5 P e n a te s , 3 0 - 3 1 , 7 5 , 1 1 0 , 1 3 8 , P re h i s t o r i c re lig io n , 1 1 - 1 2 s ie s , 2 3 0 - 3 2 ; in a n c i e n t
N o m a d s, n o m a d ism , 2 1 - 2 2 139 P r e h is to r y , 1 1 - 2 0 S w it z e r l a n d , 2 4 3 - 4 4 ; in
N o v a lis ( F r ie d r ic h v o n H a r d e n ­ P e n e lo p e , 2 9 5 P r e lle r, 2 71 F r a n c e , 2 4 7 - 4 8 , 2 5 6 - 6 2 ; in
b erg ), 2 6 4 , 2 6 5 , 2 7 6 , 2 8 3 , 2 8 5 P e n ia , 1 9 3 P r e s to ta S e rfia , 4 9 p r e - R o m a n Ita ly , 3 2 - 3 4 ,
N u m a , 9 2 , 9 5 , 115 P e n te lic u s , 2 9 8 P r e v e la k is , P a n d e lis , 3 0 0 3 5 -3 6 , 38, 44, 4 6 -4 8 , 51,
N u m e n iu s , 1 9 3 P e n th e u s , 2 9 2 P ria m , 15 3 , 2 1 4 52 - 5 4 ; in R o m e , 5 4 , 6 1 - 6 3 ,
P e ra te s, 1 9 0 - 9 2 P ria p u s, 1 3 9 - 4 2 , 140, 142, 197, 7 8 -8 0 , 9 2 -9 3 , 1 1 3 -1 5 ,
o P e rc iv a l, 2 2 5
P é r è s , J. B ., 2 8 8
198
P ro clu s, 2 0 9
1 2 2 -2 3 , 1 2 5 -2 6 , 1 2 8 -2 9 ,
1 3 0 -3 1 , 134, 1 3 7 -3 8 , 139,
O b a r a to r , 1 2 2 P ern ety , A n to in e Jo se p h , 2 1 1 , P r o m e th e u s , 2 0 4 , 2 6 5 , 2 7 3 , 145, 148, 1 5 5 -5 6
O b e r t, E ilh a rt v o n , 2 2 7 212, 218 2 7 7 -7 8 , 279, 283, 287 R itte r, K a rl, 2 6 5
O c c a to r , 1 2 2 P ersep h o n e, 30, 35, 186, 285 P r o m it o r , 1 2 2 R o b ig u s , 6 2 , 7 5
O cta v ia n , 6 5 , 10 2 , 10 3 , 11 3 , 115 P e rse u s, 100, 2 0 7 , 233 P ron o ë, 285 R o llin , C h a r le s , 2 3 2 - 3 4
O ctav iu s, 102 P e te r th e V e n e ra b le , 2 1 4 P r o n o ia , 1 9 2 , 1 93 R o m a, 119
Ö d in n , 5 9 , 8 6 , 8 7 , 2 6 3 P e tra rch , 2 0 8 , 20 9 P ro se rp in a , 3 0 , 143, 2 0 6 , 2 0 9 R o m u lu s, 9 5 , 10 3 , 113, 115,
O d y s se u s, 2 7 , 5 6 , 187, 188, P e tr iu s M a g n u s , 2 2 2 P r o t e u s , 211 118, 145, 277
214, 297, 298, 299 P e t r o n i u s , 2 91 P ro u d h o n , 288 R o s a c r u c ia n s , 2 8 1
O e d ip u s , 1 9 9 , 2 3 3 , 2 7 2 , 3 0 0 , 3 1 0 P e tru s B o n u s L o m b a rd u s, 211 P r o u s t , M a r c e l, 2 9 6 R o s a lie , S a in t, 2 7 6
O la u s M a g n u s , 2 4 3 P e tr u s C o m e s t o r , 2 0 4 P ru d en ce, 206 R o u s s e a u , Je a n - J a c q u e s , 2 3 8 ,
O ly m p u s , 2 9 8 P eu cetiu s, 5 0 , 56 P s e llu s , M ic h a e l, 1 8 3 , 2 81 23 9 , 2 8 6 , 292
O m o r k a , 19 1 P h a e th o n , 2 0 6 , 2 1 1 , 2 1 6 P s e u d o -D i o n y s i u s th e R o y a lty , in R o m e , 6 1 - 6 3
O m p h a le , 1 9 8 P h a n e s, 193 A r e o p a g i te , 1 6 6 R ü c k e r t, 2 8 7
O n d in e, 28 2 P h e r s i p n a i, 3 0 , 3 5 P s y c h e , 1 4 2 - 4 4 , 143, 1 8 8 , 1 9 4 ,
O p h iu ch u s, 192
O rcu s, 75
P h ilistu s o f S y r a c u s e , 5 8
P h ilo , 160
197, 198, 209, 25 2 , 282
P u n ck er, 24 3
s
O re ste s, 29 9 P h il o c t e te s , 5 6 P u r e /I m p u r e , a m o n g t h e G y p ­ S a b e llia n -U m b r ia n s , 2 7 , 4 6 - 4 9 , 5 2
O r ig e n , 160, 166 P h ilo m e la , 2 0 3 s ie s , 2 31 S a b in e s , 5 2
O r ig in , m y th s o f : o f C h r is t ia n ­ P h ilo o f A le x a n d r ia , 1 5 9 P u r i c h , 41 S a c r if ic e , 5 3 ; in C h r is tia n ity ,
ity , 1 6 0 ; in p r e - R o m a n Italy , P h ilo o f L a r i s s a , 1 23 P u s h k in , A l e x a n d e r S e r- 1 5 9 , 1 6 1 ; in p r e - R o m a n Ita ly ,
6 2 -6 4 . See also C r e a t io n , P h ilo s o p h y , in R o m e , 1 0 7 - 1 0 g e i v it c h , 2 8 0 3 2 - 3 4 ; in R o m e , 7 7 - 8 0
c r e a to r P h o e n ix , 2 1 8 - 1 9 P y g m a l io n , 241 S a g i t ta r i u s , 2 1 9
O rp h eu s, 193, 204, 21 4 , 216, P h o t i u s , 1 83 P y r a m u s , 2 0 3 , 21 1 S a i n t - M a r ti n , L o u is C la u d e d e ,
217, 2 2 2 -2 3 , 223, 2 8 2 -8 4 , P h u r n u t u s , 221 P y r g i, 2 6 , 8 4 264, 282
284, 2 8 5 , 3 1 0 P h u sis, 186 P y rrh a, 166 S a i n t y v e s , P ie r r e , 1 9 9 , 2 4 6
O s ir is , 1 8 6 , 1 8 9 , 1 9 0 , 1 9 1 , 2 2 0 , 2 9 4 P ia c e n z a , Italy , 3 0 , 4 4 , 4 5 P y rrh u s, 216 S a la m a n d e rs, 2 8 1 - 8 2
O s s ia n , 2 4 0 P ic o d e lla M ir a n d o la , G ia n f r a n - P y th a g o ra s, 2 2 0 , 2 8 3 S a llu s t, 1 6 1 - 6 3 , 2 0 6
O u r a n ia , 2 8 5 c e s c o , 2 0 9 , 2 1 1 , 2 1 4 , 2 1 9 , 2 81 P y th ia , 9 7 S a m a in , 2 6 2
O u ra n o s , 3 0 , 109 P i e r o d i C o s im o , 2 0 9 S a m so n , 166
O u r o b o r o s , 191 P ie r r e d 'A illy , 2 0 7 S an d , G eorg e, 25 6 , 27 9 , 284
O u r s i to r i , 2 3 0
O v id , 6 2 , 8 5 , 8 6 , 8 8 , 9 3 , 1 1 0 ,
P in d a r , 2 4 0 , 2 9 7
P ity s , 1 9 5
Q S a n n a z a ro , Ja c o p o , 2 14
S a r r ito r , 1 2 2
20 3 , 206, 235, 283 P l a c id u s , 2 0 8 Q u in e t , E d g a r , 2 6 5 , 2 7 8 , 2 7 9 , S a ta n , 2 0 1 , 2 7 7
P la n c y , C o llin d e , 2 8 2 280 S a ta n a , 2 5 8
P P l a n tin , C h r is t o p e , 2 2 2 Q u in t u s , 9 5 S a tre s, 3 0
P la to , 2 0 9 , 2 1 0 , 2 1 4 , 2 1 7 , 2 7 4 , Q u ir i n u s , 3 1 , 6 2 , 6 3 , 7 5 , 8 5 , 8 7 , S a tu rn , 7 5 , 2 0 4 , 2 0 5 , 2 0 6 , 2 0 7 ,
P a la m a s , K ô s t é s , 2 9 8 298 1 4 4 - 4 5 , 145 208, 217
P a le s , 7 0 , 7 8 P la u tu s , 8 5 Q u ir i t e s , 6 2 S a tu m u s, 30

317
I N D E X

S a ty r , 14 2 S p e n g le r , O s w a ld , 2 9 3 T h e o d o s iu s , 1 1 0 , 111
S c a e v o la , 8 6 , 9 2 Sphinx, 275 T h e o d u lf , 2 0 6 V
S c a r a b , 2 1 9 - 2 0 , 220 S p ir its a n d g e n i e s , 2 8 1 - 8 2 ; T h e o g e n e s , 1 0 2 , 10 4
S ca rro n , 23 6 G ypsy, 229, 2 3 0 -3 1 T h e o p h ilu s o f A n tio c h , 1 6 6 V a le n tiu s, 1 8 7
S ch e llin g , F r ie d r ic h , 2 4 1 , 2 6 5 S p r ite s , 2 8 1 - 8 2 T h e o to k a s , G e o r g e , 3 0 0 V a le ria n o , P ie r o , 2 0 9
S c h ik a n e d e r , E m m a n u e l, 2 8 3 , S ta ë l, M a d a m e d e , 2 6 3 , 2 7 8 T h e r m o u th i s , 1 98 V alo is, N ic o la s , 2 1 8
284 S te n d h a l, 2 6 5 , 2 8 7 T h esan , 30 V a m p ire s , 2 3 1
S ch ille r, F r ie d r ic h v o n , 2 4 1 , S te s i c h o r u s , 1 8 7 T h eseu s, 204, 216 V a n th , 3 0 , 3 5 , 4 2
264, 282 S te v e n th e Y o u n g e r, 1 83 T h e tis , 2 0 4 , 2 9 8 V an V o g t, A . E ., 3 0 3
S c h le g e l, A u g u s t W ilh e lm , 2 6 5 , S tilic h o , 1 10 T h ie rs , 2 8 7 V a rro , 6 9 , 7 1 , 7 5 , 1 0 9 , 1 1 4
276 S to ic s , 6 5 T h is b e , 2 0 3 , 211 V a ru n a , 8 7
S c h le g e l, F r ie d r ic h , 2 4 1 , 2 6 4 , S tr a b o , 2 3 9 T h o m as, 227 V a u q u e lin d e s Y v e te a u x , J e a n ,
265, 270 S t r a s s b u r g , G o ttf rie d v o n , 2 2 7 , T h o r, 87 211
S ch o p e n h a u e r, A rth u r, 2 9 0 228 T h o th , 2 9 5 V e g o ia , 2 9 , 4 0 , 4 1 , 4 5
S c h u b e r t, G . H ., 2 7 6 S tr a u s s , D a v id , 2 8 6 T h r a s y llu s , 1 04 V eii, Ita ly , 7 3
S chw ab, R aym o n d , 265 S u b r u n c in a to r , 1 22 T h u n d e r , s y m b o lism a n d d i­ V e io v is , 3 0 , 3 6
S c h w ö b , M a r c e l, 27 1 S u c e llu s , 2 4 3 , 244 v in itie s o f , in R o m e , 1 0 2 , V e iv e , 3 0 , 3 3 , 3 6
S c ie n c e fic tio n , 3 0 0 , 3 0 3 Sue, E u gen e, 277 1 0 3 - 4 , 131 V e lth a , 3 0
S c o t, M ic h a e l, 2 0 7 S u e to n iu s , 1 0 1 , 1 0 2 , 1 1 9 T ia m a t, 3 V e ltu n e , 2 9
S c o tt, S ir W a lte r, 2 6 5 , 2 8 2 S u id a s , 2 11 T ib e riu s , 1 04 V e lty m n u s , 4 5
S cy lla , 4 2 S u lla , 6 4 , 1 04 T ib u llu s, 1 04 V e n e ti, 5 1 - 5 2
S e fe ris , G e o r g e , 2 9 9 , 3 0 0 S u n , s y m b o lis m a n d d iv in itie s T ie c k , L o u is , 2 6 4 , 2 6 5 , 2 8 2 V en u s, 3 0 , 32, 4 9 , 6 4 , 6 4 , 65,
S e le n e , 1 8 6 , 1 9 5 o f , 3 1 0 ; in C h ris tia n ity , T im a e u s o f T a u r o m e n iu m , 5 8 7 4 , 7 5 , 9 7 , 117, 118, 135, 142,
S e lv a n s , 3 0 , 4 4 1 6 3 - 6 5 ; in F r a n c e , 2 6 0 - 6 2 ; in T in , 3 0 143, 1 4 6 - 4 8 , 147, 150, 151,
S e n a n c o u r , É tie n n e P iv e rt d e , p r e -R o m a n Italy , 3 0 ; in T in ia , 2 7 , 3 0 , 4 1 , 42, 4 4 , 6 3 1 5 6 , 2 0 3 , 2 0 5 , 2 0 7 , 209, 2 1 4 ,
287 R om e, 6 6 - 6 7 T i n t o r e t to , 2 0 9 217, 285, 565
S e p ti m o n ti u m , 61 S u ri, 3 6 T ire s ia s , 3 5 V e rla in e , P a u l, 2 6 9 , 2 7 1 , 2 9 4
S e r a p is , 1 1 9 , 1 7 0 S w ed en b o rg , 293 T ita n s , 2 7 9 , 2 8 3 , 2 9 2 Ver sacrum, 5 2 - 5 4
S e rfe M a rtie , 4 9 S w in b u r n e , A lg e r n o n C h a r le s , T itia n , 2 0 9 V e r u a c to r , 1 2 2
S e r p e n t, s y m b o lis m o f, 2 1 2 ; in 275 T i tie n s e s , 6 2 V eson a, 29
C h r is tia n ity , 1 5 9 - 6 0 , 1 6 8 ; fo r S w itz e r la n d , 2 4 3 - 4 4 T itu s , 9 7 V e s p a s ia n , 6 9
G n o s tic s , 1 8 5 , 1 8 8 ; in p re - S y lp h s , 2 8 1 - 8 2 T iv r , 3 0 V e s ta , 6 3 , 7 0 , 7 4 , 7 5 , 8 6 , 1 1 7 ,
R o m a n Ita ly , 4 2 S y lv a n u s , 3 0 Toko, 243 1 4 1 , 1 4 8 - 4 9 , 149, 220
S e r p e n ta r iu s , 1 9 2 S y m p leg ad es, 29 9 T o lk ie n , J o h n R o n a ld R e u e l, V e tis, 3 0 , 3 6 , 4 4
S e r v iu s , 2 0 8 S y n c r e t is m , 6 3 3 0 1 -2 V ia rd , J ., 2 8 0
S e rv iu s T u lliu s , 4 1 , 6 3 T o ls to y , L e v N ik o la y e v ich , 2 8 8 V ico , G ia m b a ttis ta , 2 1 1 , 2 3 9 ,
S e th , 2 7 5 , 2 8 6 T T o r r e n tiu s , L a e v in iu s , 2 2 2 2 6 3 , 2 9 5 , 296
S eth lan s, 30 T o w ia n s k i, 2 8 8 V icto ry , 1 1 0
S e x , s e x u a lity , fo r G n o s tic s , T a c itu s , 9 7 T r e e , s y m b o lis m o f: fo r V ig e n è r e , B la ise d e , 2 1 3 , 2 1 5 ,
1 9 2 - 9 5 . See also A n d r o g y n e T ag es, 2 9 , 4 0 , 4 1 , 4 3 , 45 G n o s tic s , 1 9 3 , 1 9 4 , 1 9 7 ; fo r 221
S ezn ec, Jean , 218 T a lith a , 41 G y p s ie s , 2 2 9 , 2 3 0 V ig n y , A lfre d d e , 2 7 8 , 2 8 5 , 2 8 6 ,
S h a k e s p e a r e , W illia m , 2 7 7 T a n a q u il, 41 T r e v is a n , B e rn a rd ( C o u n t) , 211 287
S h e lle y , P e rc y B y s s h e , 2 6 5 , T a n a q u ila o f T a rq u in ia , 9 9 T r is m o s in , S a lo m o n , 2 1 0 , 2 2 2 V irg il, 5 8 , 7 0 , 7 5 , 8 5 , 1 1 8 ,
278, 279, 284 T a n ta lu s , 2 9 7 T ris ta n a n d Is o ld e , 2 2 5 , 1 4 9 -5 4 , 203, 206, 214, 220,
S ib y l, Sibylline Books, 9 7 , 1 0 1 , T arasca, 199 2 2 7 -2 8 , 270 221, 240, 283
118, 136, 136, 153, 2 0 4 , 207; T arasq u es, 2 43 T r o ja n , 6 4 V iv ia n , 3 1 0
H a ru s p ic y , 9 7 T a r c h ie s , 4 1 , 4 3 T r o u s s o n , M . R ., 2 7 8 V o fio n o , 3 0
S ib y l o f C u m a e , 4 5 T arch o n , 2 9 , 45 T ro y , 7 3 V o lsin ii, 3 0
S ik e lia n o s , A n g e lo s , 2 9 8 , 2 9 9 T a ro t, 2 9 4 T u c h u lc h a , 3 5 , 4 2 V o lta , 28, 2 9 , 4 0
S ile n u s, 41 T a rq u in iu s S u p e r b u s , 4 5 , 6 3 T u r a n , 3 0 , 4 1 , 14 6 V o lta ire , 2 3 7
S ilv a n u s , 4 4 , 7 5 , 1 2 6 , 1 4 6 T a rq u in iu s th e E ld e r , 6 3 , 9 5 , 9 9 T u rm s, 30 V o ltu m n a , 3 0
S im o n M a g u s , 1 8 7 , 1 8 8 T a r ta r u s , 191 T y p h e u s (T y p h o n ), 1 4 4 , 1 9 5 , V o ss iu s , 2 3 9
S in o n , 1 5 0 T a tiu s, 9 7 3 0 2 ; a m o n g G n o s tic s , 1 9 5 V u lc a n , 3 0 , 7 4 , 7 5 , 1 1 8 ,
S i re n s , 4 0 , 2 2 0 T au ru s, 21 5 T y r, 5 9 , 86 1 5 5 - 5 6 , 155, 21 6
S k a d i, 2 4 3 T e fr e Jo v ie , 4 9 T y rrh e n u s, 56 V u lca o f V eii, 6 3 , 7 2
S k y , s y m b o lis m a n d d iv in itie s T e le m a c h u s , 2 9 5
o f , 2 0 9 ; in p r e -R o m a n Italy , T e le p h u s , 5 6 w
30 T e le te , 2 9 8 U
S o c ia lis m , 3 0 3 - 5 T ell, W illia m , 2 4 3 - 4 4 W ace, 224
S o l, 7 5 T e llu s, 7 5 , 1 1 4 , 1 1 8 , 1 1 9 , 12 2 U llr, 2 4 3 W a g n e r , R ic h a rd , 2 2 8 , 2 3 8 ,
S ol I n v ic tu s , 6 6 T e r r a s s o n , Je a n (A b b é ), 2 8 3 , U ly s s e s , 2 9 5 269, 270, 275, 293
S o lo m o s , 2 9 8 284 U m b ro -S a b e llia n s , 3 1 - 3 2 W a r, s y m b o lism a n d d e itie s of,
S o p h ia , 1 8 9 , 1 9 0 , 1 9 7 Terre Geste, 2 2 6 U n d e r w o r l d , in p re -R o m a n in R o m e , 1 3 4 - 3 5
S o p h o cles, 291 T e rtu llia n , 2 0 3 Italy , 3 0 , 3 5 - 3 6 . See also W a te r, s y m b o lism a n d d i­
S o re l, Ju lia n , 2 8 7 T e u ta te s , 2 6 3 A fte rlif e v in itie s o f: in a r t a n d lite ra ­
S o u l: to E t r u s c a n s , 3 5 - 3 6 ; to T h a la s s a , 191 U n i, 2 6 , 2 7 , 28, 29, 30, 33, 44, tu r e , 2 0 9 , 2 8 1 - 8 2 ; in
G y p s ie s , 2 3 0 - 3 1 . See also T h a la tth , 191 56 C h ris tia n ity , 1 6 0 - 6 3 ; fo r
G n o s tic s T h a ln a , 41 U rie l, 2 1 7 G n o s tic s , 1 9 8 ; fo r G y p s ie s ,
S o u m e t, A le x a n d re , 26 3 T h a m y ris, 285 U rs ito ry , 2 3 0 2 2 9 ; in p r e -R o m a n Ita ly , 4 9 ;
S o z ry k o , 251 T h a n a , 41 U ry z m ä g , 25 8 in R o m e , 1 3 7 - 3 8
S p a rta cu s, 64 T h ea, 285 U s il, 3 0 W e rn e r, Z a ch a ria s, 2 7 7

318
 I N D E X

W e s to n J e s s ie , 2 9 4 272, 274, 278, 292

W h ite G o d d e s s , in lite r a tu r e ,
2%
Y z Z i n t h r e p u s , 41
Z i p n a , 41
W illia m o f C lo u d e s ly , 2 4 3 Y ah w eh , 161, 163 Z a r p h a t i , S a m u e l, 2 1 4 Z i r n a , 41
W itc h e s , 23 1 Y a n n a k is , 2 9 7 Z c h o k k e , H e in r i c h , 2 7 7 Z o d ia c , 188
W o r d s w o r t h , W illia m , 2 6 5 , 2 6 6 Y e a ts , W illia m B u tle r, 2 6 9 , 2 9 3 , Z e la z n y , R o g e r, 3 0 3 Z o rilla y M o r a l, J o s é , 2 6 5 , 2 81
W u r t z , W e n d e l, 2 8 8 2 9 4 , 294, 2 9 5 Z e th u s, 2 77
W yzew a, Tédor d e, 269 Y oung, E d w ard, 262 Z eu s, 109, 131, 151, 184, 187,

319
 Mythologies / Literature

Praise for M ythologies

"The almost 100 contributors combine, with characteristic precision and élan, the arts of
science and poetry, of analysis and translation. The result is a treasury of information,
brilliant guesswork, witty asides, and revealing digressions. This is a work of genuine and
enduring excitement."
—Thomas D'Evelyn, Christian Science Monitor

"In a world that remains governed by powerful myths, we must deepen our understanding
of ourselves and others by considering more carefully the ways in which the mythological
systems to which we cling and social institutions and movements to which we are com­
mitted nourish each other. Yves Bonnefoy's Mythologies not only summarizes the progress
that has already been made toward this end, but also lays the foundation for the difficult
work that lies ahead."
— Mark C. Taylor, New York Times Book Review

Roman and European Mythologies features ninety-five articles, reproduced in full with illus­
trations, from the acclaimed two-volume Mythologies. Written by distinguished scholars, the
articles offer new perspectives on a wide range of topics—from rites and cults in pre-Roman
and Roman Italy to the survival of pagan mythologies in early Christianity and the en­
during legacy of mythologies in European literature from romanticism to modern science
fiction.
The articles offer illuminating examples of the working of myth in cultures past and
present—how we create, use, and are guided by systems of myth to answer fundamental
questions about ourselves and our world: Where do we come from? Who are we? How
shall we live? What happens when we die?
Building on perspectives developed by such scholars as Claude Lévi-Strauss and
Georges Dumézil, and drawing on such diverse sources as the history of religions, anthro­
pology, archaeology, literature, and linguistics, the contributors define a new approach to
the study of myth in society. Rather than simply cataloging gods and symbols, the articles
in Mythologies explore the complex workings of myth in past societies and in our lives
today.

Yves Bonnefoy, a scholar and poet of world renown, is professor of comparative poetics at
the College de France. Among his many works that have appeared in English, two have
been published by the University of Chicago Press—a bilingual volume of poetry, In the
Shadow's Light, and a work of criticism, The Act and the Place o f Poetry.

Wendy Doniger is the Mircea Eliade Professor in the Divinity School and professor in the
Department of South Asian languages, the Committee on Social Thought, and the College, at
the University of Chicago. Her books include Women, Androgynes, and Other Mythical Beasts;
Dreams, Illusion, and Other Realities; and Tales o f Sex and Violence: Folklore, Sacrifice, and Danger
in the laiminïya Brâhmana.

Also available: Greek and Egyptian Mythologies

Forthcoming: Asian Mythologies
African and American Mythologies
Cover illustration: Abraham Janssens, Flemish. Jupiter Rebuked by Venus, c. 1612-13, oil on canvas. Old Masters
Society Account restricted gift; Alexander A. McKay Fund. © 1992 The Art Institute of Chicago. All rights reserved.

The University of Chicago Press