Athenaeus, Deipnosophists

ToposText · Athenaeus · 1,421 sections

urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.78
§ 10.78 And Dromeas the Coan used to play at riddles in much the same way as Theodectes, according to the statement of Clearchus: and so did Aristonymus, the player on the harp, without any vocal accompaniment: and so did that Cleon who was sui-named Mimaulus, who was the best actor of Italian mimes that ever appeared on the stage without a mask. For in the style of play which I have mentioned already, he was superior even to Nymphodorus. And Ischomachus the herald was an imitator of his, who used to give his representations in the middle of a crowd, and after he had become celebrated, he altered his style and used to act mimes at the jugglers' shows. And the riddles which these men used to propose were of the following kind: — A clown once had eaten too much, and was very unwell, and when the physician asked him whether he had eaten to vomit, No, said he, but I ate to my stomach. And another was, — A poor woman had a pain in her stomach, and when the physician asked her whether she had anything in her stomach, How should I, said she, when I have eaten nothing for three days? And the writings of Aristonymus were full of pompous expressions: and Sosiphanes the poet said to Cephisocles the actor, reproaching him as a man fond of long words, “I would throw a stone at your loins, if I were not afraid of wetting the bystanders.” But the logical griphus is the oldest kind, and the one most suited to the natural character of such enigmatical language. " What do we all teach when we do not know it ourselves? " and, “What is the same nowhere and everywhere? ” and also, “What is the same in the heavens and on the earth and in the sea?” But this is a riddle arising from an identity of name; for there is a bear, and a serpent, and an eagle, and a dog, both in the heavens and on the earth and in the sea. And the other riddle means Time; for that is the same to all people and everywhere, because it has not its nature depending on one place. And the first riddle means “How to live, for though no one knows this himself' he teaches his neighbour.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.79
§ 10.79 And Callias the Athenian, whom we were discussing just now, and who was a little before Strattis in point of time, wrote a play which he called Grammatical Science; and the plot of it was as follows. The prologue consists of the elements, and the actor should recite it, dividing it into paragraphs, and making the termination in the manner of a dramatic catastrophe, into ”Alpha, beta, gamma, delta, eta, theta. For ei is sacred to the God; iota, kappa, lambda, mu, nu, xi, the diphthong ou, pi, rho, sigma, tau, the present n, phi, chi, which is next to psi, all down to omega." And the chorus consisted of women, in pairs, made of two elements taken together, composed in metre and lyrical odes in this fashion; — " Beta alpha ba, beta ei be, beta eta be, beta iota bi, beta ou bo, beta upsilon bu, beta omega bo." And then, again, in the antistrophe of the ode and of the metre, “Gamma alpha, gamma ei, gamma eta, gamma iota, gamma omieron, gamma upsilon, gamma omega.” And in the same way he dealt with all other syllables — all which have the same melody and the same metre in the antistrophes. So that people not only suspect that Euripides drew all his Medea from this drama, but they think that it is perfectly plain that he drew the system of his choruses from it. And they say that Sophocles, after he had heard this drama, endeavoured to divide his poem in respect of the metre, and did it thus, in the Oidipus, — I shall not grieve myself nor you, Being convicted of this action. On which account, all the rest admitted the system of antistrophes from his example, as it should seem, into their tragedies. Then, after this chorus, Callias introduces another speech of vowels, in this manner: (and this also the reciter must divide into paragraphs in the same way as the previous portions, in order that that delivery may be preserved which the author originally intended) — Alpha alone, O woman; then one should Say Ei alone in the second place: next, Still by itself you will say, thirdly, Eta; Fourth, still alone, Iota; fifthly, Ou. In the sixth place, Upsilon by itself. The last of all the seven vowels is The slow-paced Omega. The seven vowels In seven verses; and when you've recited All these, then go and ponder by yourself.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.80
§ 10.80 Callias was also the first man who taught the elements of learning by iambics, in a licentious sort of language, described in the following manner — For I'm in labour, ladies; but from shame, I will, my dear, in separate lines and letters, Tell you the name of the child. There is a line Upright and long; and from the middle of it There juts forth on each side a little one, With upward look: and next a circle comes, On two short feet supported. And afterwards, following this example, as any one may suspect, Maeandrius the prose writer, turning away a little from the usual pronunciation in his descriptions, wrote those sayings which are found in his Precepts, in a less polished style than the above-mentioned Callias. And Euripides appears to have followed the same model when he composed those verses, in his Theseus, in which the elements of writing are described. But the character is an illiterate shepherd, who is showing that the name of Theseus is inscribed in the place in this way — For I indeed do nothing know of letters, But I will tell you all their shapes, and give Clear indications by which you may judge. There is a circle, round as though it had been Worked in a lathe, and in its centre space It has a visible sign. Then the second Has first of all two lines, and these are parted By one which cuts them both across the middle. The third's a curly figure, wreathed round. The fourth contains one line which mounts right up, And in a transverse course three others hang From its right side. The letter which comes fifth Admits of no such easy explanation; For there are two diverging lines above, Which meet in one united line below. The letter which comes last is like the third. [So as to make ΘΗΣEYΣ.] And Agathon the tragic poet has composed a similar passage, in his Telephus; for there also some illiterate man explains the way of spelling Theseus thus: — The letter which comes first is like a circle, Divided by a navel in the middle; Then come two upright lines well joined together; The third is something like a Scythian bow: Next comes a trident placed upon its side; And two lines branching from one lower stem: The last again the same is as the third. And Theodectes of Phaselus introduces an illiterate clown, who also represents the name of Theseus in his own way — The letter which comes first a circle is, With one soft eye; then come two upright lines Of equal and exact proportions, United by one middle transverse line; The third is like a wreathed curl of hair; The next a trident lying on its side; The fifth two lines of equal length above, Which below join together in one base; The sixth, as I have said before, a curl. And Sophocles has said something like this, in his Amphiaraus, which is a satyric drama, where he introduces an actor dancing in unison with his explanation of the letters.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.81
§ 10.81 But Neoptolemus the Parian, in his treatise on Inscriptions, says that this inscription is engraved on the tomb of Thrasymachus the sophist at Chalcedon — My name is Theta, ro, alpha, and san, Upsilon, mu, alpha, chi, ou, san again: Chalcedon was my home, wisdom my trade. And there is a poem of this kind upon Pan, by Castorion the Solensian, as Clearchus says: every foot consists of one entire word, and so every line has its feet in pairs, so that they may either precede or follow each other; as for instance — σε τον βολοις νιφοκτυποις δυσχειμερον ναιοντθ' εδος, θηρονομε Παν, χθόν Αρκάδων, κλήσω γραφη τηδ' εν σοφη, πάγκλειτ' επη συνθεις, άναξ, δυσγνωστα μη σοφοις κλυειν, Μουσοπόλε θηρ, κηρόχυτον os μείλιγμ' ιεις. [Which may be translated thus — O thou that dwellest on the lofty plain, Stormy with deep loud-sounding falls of snow, Th' Arcadian land, — lord of the forest kinds, Thee, mighty Pan, will I invoke in this Sagacious writing, carefully compounding Words difficult for ignorant men to know, Or rightly understand. Hail, friend o' the Muse, Who pourest forth sweet sounds from waxen flute.] And so on in the same manner. And in whatever order you place each of these pairs of feet it will give the same metre; as you may, for instance, transpose the first line, and instead of — σε, τον βόλοις νιφοκτύποις δυσχείμερον, you may read it — νιφοκτύποις σε τον βόλους δυσχειμερον. You may also remark that each pair of feet consists of ten letters; and you may produce the same effect not in this way, but in a different one, so as to have many ways of putting one line; for instead you may read — μέτρον φράσον μοι, των ποδών μέτρον λαβών' or this way — λάβων μέτρον μοι των ποδών, μέτρον φράσον. [And you may take this line too — ] ου βούλομαι γαρ των ποδων μέτρον λαβειν, [and transpose it thus — ] λαβειν μέτρον γαρ των ποδων ού βούλομαι.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.82
§ 10.82 But Pindar, with reference to the ode which was composed without a σ in it, as the same Clearchus tells us, as if some griphus had been proposed to him to be expressed in a lyric ode, — as many were offended because they considered it impossible to abstain from the σ, and because they did not approve of the way in which the idea was executed, uttered this sentence — Before long series of songs were heard, And the ill-sounding san from out men's mouths. And we may make use of this observation in opposition to those who pronounce the sigma-less ode of Lasus of Hermione to be spurious, which is entitled The Centaurs. And the ode which was composed by Lasus to the Ceres in Hermione, has not a σ in it, as Heraclides of Pontus says, in the third book of his treatise on Music, which begins — I sing of Ceres and her daughter fair, The bride of Clymenus.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.83
§ 10.83 And there are great numbers of other griphi. Here is one — In a conspicuous land I had my birth, The briny ocean girds my country round, My mother is the daughter fair of Number. By the conspicuous land (φανερά) he means Delos (as δηλος is synonymous with φανερός), and that is an island surrounded by the sea. And the mother meant is Leto, who is the daughter of Coius, and the Macedonians use κοιος as synonymous with αριθμός. And the one on barley-water (πτισάνη) — Mix the juice of peeled barley, and then drink it. And the name πτισάνη is derived from the verbs πτίσσω, to pound, and άνω, to bruise.. There is also the one on the snail, which is quoted in the Definitions of Teucer — An animal destitute of feet and spine And bone, whose back is clad with horny shell, “With long, projecting, and retreating eyes. And Antiphanes, in the Man who admires himself, says — Coagulated, tender-bodied milk. Dost understand me not? I mean new cheese. And Anaxandrides, in his Ugly Woman, says — He's lately cut it up; then he confined The long, unbroken portions of the body In earthen vases, wrought in crackling fire, — A phrase, my men, invented by Timotheus, Who meant to say in dishes. And Timocles, in his Heroes, says — A. And when the nurse of life was taken away, Pierce hunger's foe, sweet friendship's guardian, Physician of voracious hunger, which Men call the table.... B. How you tire yourself, When you might say ”the table" in a word. And Plato, in his Adonis, saying that an oracle was given to Cinyras concerning his son Adonis, reports it in these words — O Cinyras, king of hairy Cyprians, Your son is far the fairest of all men, And the most admirable: but two deities Lay hands upon him; one is driven on By secret courses, and the other drives. He means Venus and Dionysos; for both of them loved Adonis. And the enigma of the Sphinx is reported by Asclapiades, in his essay on the Subjects on which Tragedies have been written, to have been such as this — There is upon the earth an animal With two feet, and with four, and eke with three, And with one voice; and it alone, of all The things which move on earth, or in the heavens, Or o'er the boundless sea, doth change its nature; But when its feet are of the greatest number, Then is its speed the slowest, and strength least.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.84
§ 10.84 And there are also some sayings partaking of the character of griphi, composed by Simonides, as is reported by Chamaeleon of Heraclea, in his treatise on the Life and Writings of Simonides — The father of a kid which roves for food, And a sad fish, had their heads near together; And when they had received beneath their eyelids The son of Night, they did not choose to cherish The bull -slaying servant of the sovereign Dionysos. But some say that these verses were inscribed on some one of the ancient offerings which were dedicated at Chalcis; and that on it were represented the figures of a goat and a dolphin; to which animals allusion is made in the above lines. And others say that a dolphin and a goat were embossed in that part of a psaltery where the strings are put in, and that they are what is meant here; and that the bull -slaying servant of Dionysos is the dithyrambic. And others say that the ox which is sacrificed to Dionysos in the town of Iulis is struck with an axe by some one of the young men: and that the festival being near, the axe had been sent to a forge, and Simonides, being then a young man, went to the smith to fetch it; and that when he found the man asleep, and his bellows and his tongs lying loosely about with their fore parts touching one another, he then came back, and told the before mentioned problem to his friends. For the father of a kid he called the bellows, and the sad fish the tongs (which is called καρκίνος, or the crab). The son of Night is sleep, and the bull -slaying servant of Dionysos is the axe. And Simonides composed also another epigram which causes perplexity to those who are ignorant of history — I say that he who does not like to win The grasshopper's prize, will give a mighty feast To the Panopeiadean Epeus. And it is said, that when he was sojourning at Carthea he used to train choruses; and that the place where these exercises took place was in the upper part of the city, near the sanctuary of Apollo, a long way from the sea; so that all the rest of the citizens, and Simonides himself, went down to get water, to a place where there was a fountain; and that an ass, whose name was Epeus, used to carry the water up for them; and they gave him this name, because there was a fable that Epeus himself used to do this; and there was also represented in a picture, in the sanctuary of Apollo, the Trojan fable, in which Epeus is represented as drawing water for the Atridae, as Stesichorus also relates — For the great daughter of Jove pitied him Bearing incessant water for the kings. And as this was the case, they say that it was a burden imposed on every member of the choruses who was not present at the appointed time, that he should give the ass a choenix of barley; and that this is stated by the same poet; and that what is meant by not liking to win the grasshopper's prize, is not liking to sing; and that by Panopeiadean is meant the ass, and the mighty feast is the choenix of barley.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.85
§ 10.85 And of the same kind is the epigram of Theognis the poet, — For a sea-corpse has called me now back home, Which, though dead, speaketh with a living mouth. Where he means the cockle. And we may consider of the same character those sentences in which we use words which resemble men's names, as — λαβων αριστόνικον εν μάχη κράτος' He gained in battle a glorious victory; where αριστόνικος sounds like the name of a man, Aristonicus. And there is also that riddle which is so frequently repeated — Five men came to one place in vessels ten, And fought with stones, but might not lift a stone, And died of thirst while water reached their chins.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.86
§ 10.86 And what punishment had the Athenians who could not solve this riddle when proposed to them, if it was only to drink a bowl of mixed wine, as Clearchus has stated in his Definition? And, in the first book of his treatise on Proverbs, he writes thus — " The investigation of riddles is not unconnected with philosophy; for the ancients used to make a display of their erudition by such things; for they used at their entertainments to ask questions, not such as the men of the present day ask one another, as to what sort of amorous enjoyment is the most delicious, or what kind of fish is nicest, or what is most in season at the moment; or again, what fish is best to eat at the time of Arcturus, or what after the rising of the Pleiades, or of the Dogstar. And then they offer kisses as prizes for those who gain the victory in such questions; such as are hateful to men of liberal sentiments; and as a punishment for those who are defeated they enjoin them to drink sheer wine; which they drink more willingly than the cup of health. For these things are well adapted to any one who has devoted his attention to the writings of Philaenis and Archestratus, or who has studied the books called Gastrologies. They preferred such plays as these; — when the first person had recited a verse, the others were bound to quote the verse following; or if any one had quoted a sentence from some poet, the rest were bound to produce a sentence from some other poet expressing the same sentiments. After that, every one was bound to repeat an iambic. And then, each person was to repeat a line of such and such a number of syllables precisely; and so on with everything that related to any acquaintance with letters and syllables. And in a similar manner they would be bound to repeat the names of all the commanders in the army which attacked Troy, or of all the Trojan leaders: or to tell the name of some city in Asia beginning with a given letter; and then the next person was to tell the name of a city in Europe: and then they were to go through the rest according as they were desired to give the names of Grecian or barbarian cities; so that this sport, not being an inconsiderate one, was a sort of exhibition of the ability and learning of each individual. And the prizes given were a garland and applause, things by which love for one another is especially sweetened."
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.87
§ 10.87 This, then, was what Clearchus said; and the things which he says one ought to propose, are, I imagine, such as these. For one person to quote a line in Homer beginning with Alpha, and ending with the same letter, such as —'Αγχου δ' ισταμενη επεα πτερόεντα προσηυδα. Άλλ' αγε νυν μάστιγα καί ήνια σιγαλοεντα. Άσπίδας ευκυκλους λαισήαϊ τε πτεροεντα. And, again, they quoted iambics on a similar principle — Αγαθος ανηρ λεγοιτ' αν, ο φερων τ αγαθά.'Αγαθος αν εϊη καί ό φερων καλώς κακά. Or lines in Homer beginning and ending with ε, as — Ευρε Λυκάονος υιον αμύμονά τε κρατερόν τε.'Εν πόλει υμετερη επει ουκ αρ εμελλον εγωγε. And iambics on the same principle — εὐκαταφρόνητός ἐστι πενία, Δερκύλε ἐπὶ τοῖς παροῦσι τὸν βίον διάπλεκε. And lines of Homer beginning and ending with η. as — ἣ μὲν ἄρ' ὣς εἰποῦσ' ἀπέβη γλαυκῶπις Ἀθήνη ἣ δ' ἐν γούνασι πῖπτε Διώνης δῖ' Ἀφροδίτη. And iambics — ἡ τῶν φίλων σοι πίστις ἔστω κεκριμένη. Lines in Homer beginning and ending with i, as — Ἰλίου ἐξαπολοίατ' ἀκήδεστοι καὶ ἄφαντοι' Ἱππόλοχος δέ μ' ἔτικτε καὶ ἐκ τοῦ φημι γενέσθαι. Beginning and ending with σ, as — Συμπαντων Δαναών, οΰδ' ην Άγαμεμνονα ειπης. And iambics as — Σοφος εστιν ό φερων τάπο της τυχης καλώς. And beginning and ending with ω, as — Ως δ' οτ' άπ' Ούλύμπου νεφος ερχεται ουρανον εισω. And iambics as —'Ώρθωμενην προς απαντα την ψυχήν εχω. Sometimes too, it is well to propound lines without a sigma, as — Πάντ' εθελω δόμεναι, και ετ οϊκοθεν αλλ' έπιθειναι and again, to quote lines of Homer, of which the first syllable when connected with the last, will make some name, such as — ΑΙας δ' εκ Σαλαμΐνος αγεν δύο και δέκα νηΑΣ ΦΥΛειδης ον τίκτε Διι φίλος ϊπποτα ΦυλΕΥΣ. Ιητηρ δ' αγαθος Ποδαλείριοs ηδε ΜάχαΩΝ. There are also other lines in Homer expressing the names of vessels from the first and last syllable, such as — ΌΛλυμενων Δαναών ολοφύρεται εν φρεσι θυΜΟΣ, which makes "Ολμος, a mortar; ΜΥΘεΐται κατά μοίραν άπερ κ οίοιτο καϊ αλΛΟΣ, which makes Μύλος, a millstone; ΛΥγρος εων μη πού τι κακόν καϊ μεΐζον επαίΡΗ, which makes λυρη, a lyre. And other lines, the first and last syllables of which give some eatable, as — ΑΡγυροπεζα Θετις θυγατηρ άλίοιο γέρονΤΟΣ, which makes άρτος, bread; ΜΗτι σύ ταυτα εκαστα διειρεο, μη δέ μετάλΛΑ, which makes μήλα, apples.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:10.88
§ 10.88 And since we have made a pretty long digression about griphi, we must now say what punishment those people underwent who failed to solve the griphus which was proposed to them. They drank brine mingled with their drink, and were bound to drink the whole cup up at one draught; as Antiphanes shows in his Ganymede, where he says — A. Alas me! what perplexing things you say, O master, and what numerous things you ask me. B. But now I will speak plainly: if you know One circumstance about the rape of the child, You must reveal it quick, before you're hanged. A. Are you then asking me a riddle, master, Bidding me tell you all about the rape Of the child? What's the meaning of your words? B. Here, some one, bring me out a halter quickly. A. “What for? B. Perhaps you'll say you do not know. A. Will you then punish me with that? Oh don't! You'd better make me drink a cup of brine. B. Know you then how you ought to drink that up? A. Indeed I do. B. How? A. So as to make you pledge me. B. No, but first put your hands behind your back, Then drink it at a draught, not drawing breath. So when the Deipnosophists had said all this about the griphi, since it has taken us till evening to recollect all they said, we will put off the discussion about cups till tomorrow. For as Metagenes says in his Philothytes — I'll change my speech, by way of episode, So as to treat the theatre with many New dishes rich with various seasonings; taking the discussion about cups next.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.1
§ 11.1 Book XI (tr. Yonge, from Perseus Project): Come now, where shall our conversation rise? as Cephisodorus the comic poet says, my good friend Timocrates; for when we were all met together at a convenient season, and with serious minds, to discuss the goblets, Ulpian, while every one was sitting still, and before any one began to speak at all, said, — At the court of Adrastus, my friends, the chief men of the nation sup while sitting down. But Polyidus, while sacrificing on the road, detained Peteos as he was passing by, and while lying on the grass, strewing some leaves which he had broken off on the ground by way of a table, set before him some part of the victim which he had sacrificed. And when Autolycus had come to the rich people of Ithaca, and while he was sitting down, (for the men of that time ate their meals while sitting down,) the nurse took Ulysses, (as the poet says — His course to Ithaca the hero sped When first the product of Laertes' bed Was new disclosed to birth; the banquet ends When Euryclea from the queen descends, And to his fond embrace the babe commends:) and placed him on his knees, not near his knees. So let us not waste time now, but let us lie down, that Plutarch may lead the way in the lecture which he promised us on the subject of goblets, and that he may pledge us all in bumpers.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.2
§ 11.2 But I imagine that Simonides of Amorgus is the first poet who has spoken of drinking cups (ποτήρια) by name in his iambics, thus — The cups away did lead him from the table. And the author of the poem called the Alcmaeonis says — He placed the corpses lowly on the shore On a broad couch of leaves; and by their side A dainty feast he spread, and brimming cups, And garlands on their noble temples wreathed. And the word ποτήριον comes from πόσις, drink, as the Attic word ἔκπωμα also does; but they form the word with ω, as they also say ὑδροπωτέω, to drink water, and οἰνοπωτέω, to drink wine. Aristophanes, in his Knights, says — A stupid serpent drinking deep of blood (αἱματοπώτης). But he also says in the same play — Much then did Bacis use the cup (ποτήριον). And Pherecrates, in his Tyranny, says — One is better than a thousand cups (ποτήρια). And Anacreon said — I am become a wine-bibber (οἰνοπώτης). And the verb occurs also in the same poet, for he says οἰνοποτάζων. And Sappho, in her second Ode, says — And many countless cups (ποτήρια), O beauteous Iphis. And Alcaeus says — And from the cups (ποτηρία)..... And in Achaia Demeter is honoured under the title of δημήτηρ ποτηριοφόρος, in the territories of the Antheans, as Autocrates informs us in the second book of his History of Achaia.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.3
§ 11.3 And I think it right that you should inquire, before we begin to make a catalogue of the cups of which this sideboard (κυλικεῖον) is full, — (for that name is given to the cupboard where the cups are kept, by Aristophanes, in his Farmers — As a cloth is placed in front of a sideboard (κυλικεῖον); and the same word occurs also in Anaxandrides in his Melilotus; and Eubulus in his Leda says — As if he had been offering a libation, He's broken all the goblets in the sideboard (κυλικεῖον). And in his Female Singer he says — And he found out the use of sideboards (κυλικεῖα) for us. And in his Semele or Dionysos he says — Hermes the son of Maia, polish'd well Upon the sideboard..... And the younger Cratinus, in his Chiron, says — But, after many years, I now have come home from my enemies; finding genos mates and phratry mates and demesmen as soon as I registered in the κυλικεῖον; I have my Zeus Herkeios, my Zeus Phratrios. I perform the rites.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.4
§ 11.4 It is worth while, I say, to inquire whether the ancients drank out of large cups. For Dicaearchus the Messenian, the pupil of Aristotle, in his Essay on Alcaeus, says that they used small cups, and that they drank their wine mixed with a good deal of water. But Chamaeleon of Heraclea, in his essay on Drunkenness, (if I only recollect his words correctly,) says — ”But if those who are in power and who are rich prefer this drunkenness to other pleasures, it is no great wonder, for as they have no other pleasure superior to this, nor more easy to obtain, they naturally fly to wine: on which account it has become customary among the nobles to use large drinking-cups. For this is not at all an ancient custom among the Greeks; but one that has been lately adopted, and imported from the barbarians. For they, being destitute of education, rush eagerly to much wine, and provide themselves with all kinds of superfluous delicacies. But in the various countries of Greece, we neither find in pictures nor in poems any trace of any cups of large size being made, except indeed in the heroic times. For the cup which is called ῥυτὸν they attributed only to the heroes, which fact will appear a perplexing one to some people; unless indeed any one should choose to say that this custom was introduced because of the fierceness of the appearance of these demigods. For they think the heroes irascible and quarrelsome, and more so by night than by day. In order, then, that they may appear to be so, not in consequence of their natural disposition, but because of their propensity for drinking, they represent them as drinking out of large cups. And it appears to me not to have been a bad idea on the part of those people who said that a large cup was a silver well." In all this Chamaeleon appears to be ignorant that it is not a small cup which in Homer is given to the Cyclops by Ulysses; for if it had been a small one, he would not have been so overcome with drunkenness after drinking it three times only, when he was a man of such a monstrous size. There were therefore large cups at that time; unless any one chooses to impute it to the strength of the wine, which Homer himself has mentioned, or to the little practice which the Cyclops had in drinking, since his usual beverage was milk; or perhaps it was a barbaric cup, since it was a big one, forming perhaps a part of the plunder of the Cicones. What then are we to say about Nestor's cup, which a young man would scarcely have had strength enough to carry, but which the aged Nestor lifted without any labour; concerning which identical cup Plutarch shall give us some information. However, it is time now to lie down at table.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.5
§ 11.5 And when they had all laid themselves down;-But, said Plutarch, according to the Phliasian poet Pratinas — Not ploughing ready-furrow'd ground, But, seeking for a goblet, I come to speak about the cups (κυλικηγορήσων). Nor indeed am I one of those κυλίκρανοι whom Hermippus, the comic poet, ridicules in his iambics, where he says — I've come now to the vineyard of the Cylicranes, And seen Heraclea, a beauteous city. But these are Heracleans who live at the foot of Mount Oeta, as Nicander of Thyatira says; saying that they are so named from a certain Cylix, a Lydian by birth, who was one of the comrades of Hercules. And they are mentioned also by Scythinus the Teian, in his work entitled The History, where he says, “ Hercules, having taking Eurytus and his son, put them to death for exacting tribute from the people of Euboea. And he laid waste the territory of the Cylicranes for behaving like robbers; and there he built a city called Heraclea of Trachis.” And Polemo, in the first of his books, addressed to Adaeus and Antigonus, speaks thus — “But the inhabitants of the Heraclea which is at the foot of Mount Oeta, and of Trachis, are partly some Cylicranes who came with Hercules from Lydia, and partly Athamanes, some of whose towns remain to this day. And the people of Heraclea did not admit them to any of the privileges of citizenship, considering them only as foreigners sojourning amongst them; and they were called Cylicranes, because they had the figure of a cup (κύλιξ) branded on their shoulders.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.6
§ 11.6 I am aware, too, that Hellanicus says, in his treatise on the Names of Races, that “Some of the Libyan nomads have no other possessions than a cup, and a sword, and a ewer, and they have small houses made of the stalks of asphodel, merely just to serve as a shade, and they even carry them about with them wherever they go.” There is also a spot amongst the Illyrians, which has been celebrated by many people, which is called κύλικες, near to which is the tomb of Cadmus and Harmonia, as Phylarchus relates in the twenty-second book of his Histories. And Polemo, in his book on Morychus, says that at Syracuse, at the tip of the island near the sanctuary of Olympian Earth (Ge), outside the walls, there is an ash altar from which he says that people when putting to sea carry a kylix with them, keeping it until they get to such a distance that the shield on the temple of Athena cannot be seen; and then they let it fall into the sea, being an earthenware kylix, putting into it flowers and honeycombs, and uncut frankincense, and all sorts of other spices besides.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.7
§ 11.7 And since I now see your banquet, as Xenophanes the Colophonian says, full of all kinds of pleasure — For now the floor and all men's hands are clean, And all the cups, and since the feasters' brows Are wreathed with garlands, while the slaves around Bring fragrant perfume in well-suited dishes; And in the middle stands the joyful bowl. And wine's at hand, which ne'er deserts the guests Who know its worth, in earthen jars well kept, Well flavour'd, fragrant with the sweet fresh flowers; And in the midst the frankincense sends forth Its holy perfume; and the water's cold, And sweet, and pure; and golden bread's at hand, And duly honour'd tables, groaning under Their weight of cheese and honey; — then an altar, Placed in the centre, all with flow'rs is crown'd. And song and feasting occupies the house, And dancing, and all sorts of revelry: — Therefore it does become right-minded men First with well-omen'd words and pious prayers To hymn the praises of the Gods; and so, With pure libations and well-order'd vows, To win from them the power to act with justice- For this comes from the favour of the Gods; And you may drink as much as shall not hinder You from returning home without assistance, Unless, indeed, you're very old: and he Deserves to be above his fellows lauded Who drinks and then says good and witty things, Such as his memory and taste suggests, — Who lays down rules, and tells fine tales of virtue; Not raking up the old Titanic fables, Wars of the Giants, or the Lapithae, Figments of ancient times, mere pleasing trifles, Full of no solid good; but always speaking Things that may lead to right ideas of God.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.8
§ 11.8 And the exquisite Anacreon says — I do not love the man who,'midst his cups, Says nothing but old tales of war and strife, But him who gives its honour due to mirth, Praising the Muses and the bright-faced Venus. And Ion of Chios says — Hail, our great king, our saviour, and our father! And let the cupbearers now mix us wine In silver jugs: and let the golden bowl Pour forth its pure libations on the ground, While duly honouring the mighty Zeus. First of the Gods, and first in all our hearts, We pour libations to Alcmena's son, And to the queen herself, — to Procles too, And the invincible chiefs of Perseus' line. Thus let us drink and sport; and let the song Make the night cheerful; let the glad guests dance; And do thou willingly preside among us: But let the man who has a fair wife at home Drink far more lustily than those less happy. Those also who were called the seven wise men used to make drinking parties; “for wine comforts the natural moroseness of old age,” as Theophrastus says, in his treatise on Drunkenness.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.9
§ 11.9 On which account, when we are met together in these Dionysiac conversaziones, no one, as is said in the Tarentines of Alexis — No one can find a just pretence to grudge us Our harmless pleasure, since we never injure One of our neighbours. Know you not, my friend, That what is called life is but a name, Well soften'd down (to make it palatable), For human fate? And whether any one Thinks that I'm right or wrong in what I say, I cannot change a word; for well I know, And long have I consider'd the whole matter, That all th' affairs of men are full of madness, And we who live are only sojourners, Like men who go to some great festival, Starting from death and darkness to a pastime, And to this light which we behold before us. But he who laughs and drinks most cheerfully, And most enjoys the charming gifts of Venus, And most attends on feasts and festivals, He goes through life, and then departs most happily. And, in the words of the beautiful Sappho, — Come, O Venus, hither come, Bringing us thy goblets fair, Mingled with the merry feast; And pour out sparkling wine, I pray, To your and my companions gay.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.10
§ 11.10 And we may add to all this, that different cities have peculiar fashions of drinking and pledging one another; as Critias mentions, in his Constitution of the Lacedemonians, where he says — “The Chian and the Thasian drink out of large cups, passing them on towards the right hand; and the Athenian also passes the wine round towards the right, but drinks out of small cups. But the Thessalian uses large cups, pledging whoever he pleases, without reference to where he may be; but among the Lacedemonians, ever one drinks out of his own cup, and a slave, acting as cupbearer, fills up again the cup when each has drained it.” And Anaxandrides also mentions the fashion of passing the cup round towards the right hand, in his Countrymen, speaking as follows: — A. In what way are you now prepared to drink? Tell me, I pray. B. In what way are we now Prepared to drink? Why any way you please. A. Shall we then now, my father, tell the guests To push the wine to the right B. What! to the right? That would be just as though this were a funeral.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.11
§ 11.11 But we may decline entering on the subject of goblets of earthenware; for Ctesias says — “Among the Persians, that man only uses an earthenware who is dishonoured by the king.” And Choerilus the epic poet says — Here in my hands I hold a wretched piece Of earthen goblet, broken all around, Sad relic of a band of merry feasters; And often the fierce gale of wanton Dionysos Dashes such wrecks on the shore of Hybris. But I am well aware that earthenware cups are often very pleasant, as those which are imported among us from Coptus; for they are made of earth which is mixed up with spices. And Aristotle, in his treatise on Drunkenness, says — “The cups which are called Rhodiacan are brought into drinking parties, because of the pleasure which they afford, and also because, when they are warmed, they deprive the wine of some of its intoxicating properties; for they are filled with myrrh and rushes, and other things of the same sort, put into water and then boiled; and when this mixture is put into the wine, the drinkers are less apt to become intoxicated.” And in another place he says — “The Rhodiacan cups consist of myrrh, flowery rushes, saffron, balsam, spikenard, and cinnamon, all boiled together; and when some of this compound is added to the wine, it has such effect in preventing intoxication, that it even diminishes the amorous propensities, checking the breath in some degree.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.12
§ 11.12 We ought not, then, to drink madly, looking at the multitude of these beautiful cups, made as they are with every sort of various art, in various countries. “But the common people,” says Chrysippus, in the introduction to his treatise on what is Good and Evil, “apply the term madly to a great number of things; and so they call a desire for women γυναικομανία, a fondness for quails ὀρτυγομανία; and some also call those who are very anxious for fame δοξομανεῖς; just as they call those who are fond of women γυναικομανεῖς, and those who are fond of birds ὀρνιθομανεῖς: all these nouns having the same notion of a propensity to the degree of madness. So that there is nothing inconsistent in other feelings and circumstances having this name applied to them; as a person who is very fond of delicacies, and who is properly called φίλοψος and ὀψοφάγος, may be called ὀψομανής; and a man very fond of wine maybe called οἰνομανής; and so in similar instances. And there is nothing unreasonable in attributing madness to such people, since they carry their errors to a very mad pitch, and wander a great distance from the real truth.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.13
§ 11.13 Let us, then, as was the custom among the Athenians, drink our wine while listening to these jesters and buffoons, and to other artists of the same kind. And Philochorus speaks of this kind of people in these terms — ”The Athenians, in the festivals of Dionysos, originally used to go to the spectacle after they had dined and drunk their wine; and they used to witness the games with garlands on their heads. But during the whole time that the games were going on, wine was continually being offered to them, and sweetmeats were constantly being brought round; and when the choruses entered, they were offered wine; and also when the exhibition was over, and they were departing, wine was offered to them again. And Pherecrates the comic poet bears witness to all these things, and to the fact that down to his own time the spectators were never left without refreshment." And Phanodemus says — “At the sanctuary of Dionysos, which is in Limnai [the Marshes -ἐν λίμναις], the Athenians bring wine, and mix it out of the cask for the god, and then drink of it themselves; on which account Dionysos is also called λιμναῖος, because the wine was first drunk at that festival mixed with water. On which account the fountains were called Nymphs and the Nurses of Dionysos, because the water being mingled with the wine increases the quantity of the wine. Accordingly, men being delighted with this mixture, celebrated Dionysos in their songs, dancing and invoking him under the names of Euanthes, and Dithyrambus, and Baccheutes, and Bromius.” And Theophrastus, in his treatise on Drunkenness, says — “The nymphs are really the nurses of Dionysos; for the vines, when cut, pour forth a great deal of moisture, and after their own nature weep.” On which account Euripides says that one of the Horses of the Sun is Aethops, who with his fervent heat doth ripen Th' autumnal vines of sweetly flow'ring Dionysos, From which men also call wine Aethops (αἴθοπα οἶνον). And Ulysses gave Twelve large vessels of unmix'd red wine, Mellifluous, undecaying, and divine, Which now (some ages from his race conceal'd) The hoary sire in gratitude reveal'd. Such was the wine, to quench whose fervent steam Scarce twenty measures from the living stream To cool one cup sufficed; the goblet crown'd, Breathed aromatic fragrancies around. And Timotheus, in his Cyclops, says — He fill'd one cup, of well-turn'd ivory made, With dark ambrosial drops of foaming wine; And twenty measures of the sober stream He poured in, and with the blood of Dionysos Mingled fresh tears, shed by the weeping nymphs.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.14
§ 11.14 And I know, my messmates, of some men who were proud, not so much of their wealth in money as of the possession of many cups of silver and gold; one of whom is Pytheas the Arcadian, of the town of Phigalea, who, even when dying, did not hesitate to enjoin his servants to inscribe the following verses on his tomb: — This is the tomb of Pytheas, a man Both wise and good, the fortunate possessor Of a most countless number of fine cups, Of silver made, and gold, and brilliant amber. These were his treasures, and of them he had A store, surpassing all who lived before him. And Harmodius the Lepreatian mentions this fact in his treatise on the Laws and Customs subsisting in Phigalea. And Xenophon, in the eighth book of his Cyropaedia, speaking of the Persians, writes as follows — “And also they pride themselves exceedingly on the possession of as many goblets as possible; and even if they have acquired them by notorious malpractices, they are not at all ashamed of so doing; for injustice and covetousness are carried on to a great degree among them.” But Oedipus cursed his sons on account of some drinking-cups (as the author of the Cyclic poem called the Thebais says), because they set before him a goblet which he had forbidden; speaking as follows: — But the divine, the golden-hair'd hero, Great Polyneices, set before his father first A silver table, beautifully wrought, Whilome the property of th' immortal Cadmus; And then he fill'd a beauteous golden cup Up to the brim with sweet and fragrant wine; But Oedipus, when with angry eyes he saw The ornaments belonging to his sire Now set before him, felt a mighty rage, Which glow'd within his breast, and straightway pour'd The bitterest curses forth on both his sons, (Nor were they by the Fury all unheard,) Praying that they might never share in peace The treasures of their father, but for ever With one another strive in arms and war.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.15
§ 11.15 And Caecilius the orator who came from Kale Acte, in his treatise on History, says that Agathocles the Great, when displaying his golden drinking-cups to his companions, said that he had got all these from the earthenware cups which he had previously made. And in Sophocles, in the Larissaeans, Acrisius had a great many drinking-cups; where the tragedian speaks as follows: — And he proclaims to strangers from all quarters A mighty contest, promising among them Goblets well wrought in brass, and beauteous vases Inlaid with gold, and silver drinking-cups, Full twice threescore in number, fair to see. And Posidonius, in the twenty-sixth book of his Histories, says that Lysimachus the Babylonian, having invited Himerus to a banquet (who was tyrant not only over the people of Babylon, but also over the citizens of Seleucia ), with three hundred of his companions, after the tables were removed, gave every one of the three hundred a silver cup, weighing four minas; and when he had made a libation, he pledged them all at once, and gave them the cups to carry away with them. And Anticlides the Athenian, in the sixteenth book of his Returns, speaking of Gras, who, with other kings, first led a colony into the island of Lesbos, and saying that those colonists had received an answer from the oracle, bidding them, while sailing, throw a virgin into the sea, as an offering to Poseidon, proceeds as follows: — “And some people, who treat of the history and affairs of Methymna, relate a fable about the virgin who was thrown into the sea; and say that one of the leaders was in love with her, whose name was Enalus, and that he dived down, wishing to save the damsel; and that then both of them, being hidden by the waves, disappeared. But that in the course of time, when Methymna had now become populous, Enalus appeared again, and related what had happened, and how it had happened; and said that the damsel was still abiding among the Nereids, and that he himself had become the superintendent of Poseidon's horses; but that a great wave having been cast on the shore, he had swam with it, and so come to land: and he had in his hand a goblet made of gold, of such wondrous workmanship that the golden goblets which they had, when compared with his, looked no better than brass.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.16
§ 11.16 And in former times the possession of drinking-cups was reckoned a very honourable thing. Accordingly, Achilles had a very superb cup as a sort of heirloom: — But, mindful of the gods, Achilles went To the rich coffer in his shady tent, (There lay the presents of the royal dame;) From thence he took a bowl of antique frame, Which never man had stain'd with ruddy wine, Nor raised in offerings to the pow'rs divine, But Peleus' son; and Peleus' son to none Had raised in offerings but to Zeus alone. And Priam, when offering ransom for his son, amid all his most beautiful treasures especially offers a very exquisitely wrought cup. And Zeus himself, on the occasion of the birth of Hercules, thinks a drinking-cup a gift worthy to be given to Alcmena; which he, having likened himself to Amphitryon, presents to her: — And she received the gift, and on the bowl Admiring gazed with much delighted soul. And Stesichorus says that the sun sails over the whole ocean in a bowl; in which also Hercules passed over the sea, on the occasion of his going to fetch the cows of Geryon. We are acquainted, too, with the cup of Bathycles the Arcadian, which Bathycles left behind him as a prize of wisdom to him who should be pronounced the best of those who were called the wise men. And a great many people have handled the cup of Nestor; for many have written books about it. And drinking-cups were favourites even among the Gods; at all events — They pledged each other in their golden cups. But it is a mark of a gentleman to be moderate in his use of wine, not drinking too greedily, nor drinking large draughts without drawing one's breath, after the fashion of the Thracians; but to mingle conversation with his cups, as a sort of wholesome medicine.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.17
§ 11.17 And the ancients affixed a great value to such goblets as had any story engraved upon them; and in the art of engraving cups in this manner, a high reputation was enjoyed by Cimon and Athenocles. They used also drinking-cups inlaid with precious stones. And Menander, somewhere or other, speaks of drinking-cups turned by the turning-lathe, and chased; and Antiphanes says — And others drain with eager lips the cup, Full of the juice of ancient wine, o'ershadow'd With sparkling foam, — the golden-wrought rich cup, Which circled round they raised: one long, deep draught They drain, and raise the bottom to the skies. And Nicomachus says to some one — O you, who..... and vomit golden... And Philippides says — Could you but see the well-prepared cups, All made of gold, my Trophimus; by Heaven, They are magnificent! I stood amazed When I beheld them first. Then there were also Large silver cups, and jugs larger than I. And Parmenion, in his letter to Alexander, summing up the spoils of the Persians, says, “The weight of goblets of gold is seventy-three Babylonian talents, and fifty-two minae. The weight of goblets inlaid with precious stones, is fifty-six Babylonian talents, and thirty-four minae.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.18
§ 11.18 And the custom was, to put the water into the cup first, and the wine afterwards. Accordingly, Xenophanes says — And never let a man a goblet take, And first pour in the wine; but let the water Come first, and after that, then add the wine. And Anacreon says — Bring me water, bring me wine, Quick, O boy; and bring, besides, Garlands, rich with varied flowers; And fill the cup, that I may not Engage in hopeless strife with love. And before either of them Hesiod had said — Pour in three measures of the limpid stream, Pure from an everflowing spring; and then Add a fourth cup of sacred rosy wine. And Theophrastus says — “The ancient fashion of the mixture of wine was quite opposite to the way in which it is managed at the present day; for they were not accustomed to pour the water on the wine, but the wine on the water, in order, when drinking, not to have their liquor too strong, and in order also, when they had drunk to satiety, to have less desire for more. And they also consumed a good deal of this liquor, mixed as it was, in the game of the cottabus.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.19
§ 11.19 Now of carvers of goblets the following men had a high reputation, — Athenocles, Crates, Stratonicus, Myrmecides the Milesian, Callicrates the Lacedemonian, and Mys; by which last artist we have seen a Heraclean cup, having most beautifully wrought on it the capture of Troy, and bearing also this inscription — The sketch was by Parrhasius, — by Mys The workmanship; and now I represent The lofty Troy, which great Achilles took.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.20
§ 11.20 Now among the Cretans, the epithet κλεινὸς, illustrious, is often given to the objects of one's affection. And it is a matter of great desire among them to carry off beautiful boys; and among them it is considered discreditable to a beautiful boy not to have a lover. And the name given to the boys who are carried off in that manner is παρασταθέντες. And they give to the boy who has been carried off a robe, and an ox, and a drinking-cup. And the robe they wear even when they are become old, in order to show that they have been κλεινοί.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.21
§ 11.21 You see that when men drink, they then are rich; They do whate'er they please, — they gain their actions, They're happy themselves, and they assist their friends. For amusing oneself with wine exalts, and cherishes, and elevates the mind, since it inflames and arouses the soul, and fills it with lofty thoughts, as Pindar says — When the sad, laborious cares Flee from the weary hearts of men, And in the wide, expansive ocean Of golden wealth we all set sail, Floating towards the treacherous shore. E'en he who is poor, is rich when he Has fill'd his soul with rosy wine; And he who's rich.... And then he goes on — becomes elated Beneath the glad dominion of the vine.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.22
§ 11.22 There is a kind of drinking-cup also called ancyla, or curved; a kind especially useful for the play of the cottabus. Cratinus says —'Tis death to drink of wine when water's mix'd: But she took equal shares, two choes full Of unmix'd wine, in a large ancyla: And calling on her dear Corinthian lover By name, threw in his honour a cottabus. And Bacchylides says — When she does throw to the youths a cottabus From her ancyla, stretching her white arm forth. And it is with reference to this ancyla that we understand the expression of Aeschylus — The cottabus of th' ancyla (ἀγκυλήτους κοττάβους). Spears are also called ἀγκύλητα, or curved; and also μεσάγκυλα, held by a string in the middle. There is also the expression ἀπ᾽ ἀγκύλης, which means, from the right hand. And the cup is called ἀγκύλη, from the fact that the right hand is curved, in throwing the cottabus from it. For it was a matter to which great attention was paid by the ancients — namely, that of throwing the cottabus dexterously and gracefully. And men in general prided themselves more on their dexterity in this than in throwing the javelin skilfully. And this got its name from the manner in which the hand was brandished in throwing the cottabus, when they threw it elegantly and dexterously into the cottabium. And they also built rooms especially designed for this sport.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.23
§ 11.23 In Timachides there is also a kind of drinking-cup mentioned, called the aeacis. There is another kind also, called the ἄκατος, or boat, being shaped like a boat. Epicrates says — Throw down th' acatia, (using here the diminutive form,) and take instead The larger goblets; and the old woman lead Straight to the cup;... the younger maiden........... fill it; have your oar All ready, loose the cables, bend the sails. Among the Cyprians there is also a kind of cup called the aotus, as Pamphilus tells us: and Philetas says, this is a cup which has no ears (ὤτους). There is also a kind of cup called aroclum, which is mentioned by Nicander the Colophonian.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.24
§ 11.24 The cup called ἄλεισον, is the same as that called δέπας. Homer, in his Odyssey, speaking of Peisistratus, says — In a rich golden cup he pour'd the wine; and proceeding, he says, in the same manner — To each a portion of the feast he bore, And held the golden goblet (ἄλεισον) foaming o'er; and presently afterwards he says — And gave the goblet (δέπας) to Ulysses' son. And, accordingly, Asclepiades the Myrlean says — “The δέπας appears to me to have been much of the same shape as the φιάλη. For men make libations with it. Accordingly, Homer says, — The cup which Peleus' son Had raised in offerings to Zeus alone. And it is called δέπας, either because it is given to all (δίδοται πᾶσι) who wish to make libations, or who wish to drink; or because it has two ears (δύο ὦπας), for ὦπες must be the same as ὦτα. And it has the name of ἄλεισον, either from being very smooth (ἄγαν λεῖον), or because the liquor is collected (ἁλίζεται) in it. And that it had two ears is plain — High in his hands he rear'd the golden bowl By both its ears. But when he applies the word ἀμφικύπελλον to it, he means nothing more than ἀμφίκυρτον curved on both sides.” But Silenus interprets the word ἀμφικύπελλον to mean devoid of ears, while others say that ἀμφὶ here is equivalent to περὶ, and that it means a cup which you may put to your mouth all round, at any part of it. But Parthenius says that it means that the ears are curved (περικεκυρτῶσθαι), for that is synonymous with κυρτός. But Anicetus says that the κύπελλον is a kind of cup (φίαλη), and that the word ἀμφικύπελλον is equivalent to ὑπερφίαλον, that is to say, superb and magnificent; unless, indeed, any one chooses to interpret the word ἄλεισον as something very highly ornamented, and therefore not at all smooth (α,λεῖον). And Pisander says, Hercules gave Telamon a cup (ἄλεισον) as the prize of his preeminent valour in the expedition against Troy.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.25
§ 11.25 There is also a kind of cup called the horn of Amalthea, and another called ἐνιαυτὸς, or the year. There is also a kind of cup made of wood, called ἄμφωτις, which Philetas says that the countrymen use, who milk their cattle into it, and then drink the milk. There is also a kind of drinking called ἄμυστις, when any one drinks a long draught without taking breath and without winking (μὴ μύσαντα). And they give the same name to the goblets from which it is easy to drink in this manner. And they also use a verb (ἐκμυστίζω) for drinking without taking breath, as Plato the comic poet says — And opening a fair cask of fragrant wine, He pours it straight into the hollow cup; And then he drank it sheer and not disturb'd, And drain'd it at one draught (ἐξεμύστισε). And they also drank the ἄμυστις draught to an accompaniment of music; the melody being measured out according to the quickness of the time; as Ameipsias says — Gentle musician, let that dulcet strain Proceed; and, while I drink this luscious draught, Play you a tune; then you shall drink yourself. For mortal man has no great wants on earth, Except to love and eat;-and you're too stingy.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.26
§ 11.26 There is also a kind of cup called Antigonis, from the name of king Antigonus: like the Seleucis from king Seleucus; and the Prusis, from king Prusias. There is also a kind of cup known in Crete, and called anaphaea, which they use for hot drinks. There is also a kind of cup called aryballus. This kind of cup is wider at the bottom, and contracted at to like a purse when it is drawn together; and, indeed, some people call purses ἀρύβαλλοι, from their resemblance to this kind of cup. Aristophanes says, in his Knights — He pour'd upon his head Ambrosia from a holy cup (ἀρύβαλλος). And the aryballus is not very different from the arystichus, being derived from the verbs ἀρύτω and βάλλω; they also call a jug ἄρυστις. Sophocles says — You are most accursed of all women, Who come to supper with your ἀρύστεις. There is also a city of the Ionians called Arystis. There is another kind of cup called argyris, which is not necessarily made of silver. Anaxilas says — And drinking out of golden argyrides.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.27
§ 11.27 Then batiacium, labronius, tragelaphus, pristis, are all names of different kinds of cups. The batiaca is a Persian goblet. And among the letters of the great Alexander to the Satraps of Asia there is inserted one letter in which the following passage occurs: — “There are three batiacae of silver gilt, and a hundred and seventy-six silver condya; and of these last thirty-three are gilt. There is also one silver tigisites, and thirty-two silver-gilt mystri. There is one silver vegetable dish, and one highly wrought wine-stand of silver ornamented in a barbaric style. There are other small cups from every country, and of every kind of fashion, to the number of twenty-nine: and other small-sized cups called rhyta, adbatia, and Lycurgi, all gilt, and incense-burners and spoons.” There is a cup used by the Alexandrians named bessa, wider in the lower parts, and narrow above.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.28
§ 11.28 There is also a kind of cup called baucalis: and this, too, is chiefly used in Alexandria, as Sopater the parodist says — A baucalis, with four rings mark'd on it. And in another passage he says —'Tis sweet for men to drink (καταβαυκαλίσαι) Cups of the juice by bees afforded, At early dawn, when parch'd by thirst, Caused by too much wine overnight. And the men in Alexandria, it is said, have a way of working crystal, forming it often into various shapes of goblets, and imitating in this material every sort of earthenware cup which is imported from any possible country. And they say that Lysippus the statuary, wishing to gratify Cassander, when he was founding the colony of Cassandria, and when he conceived the ambition of inventing some peculiar kind of utensil in earthenware, on account of the extraordinary quantity of Mendean wine which was exported from the city, took a great deal of pains with that study, and brought Cassander a great number of cups of every imaginable fashion, all made of earthenware, and taking a part of the pattern of each, thus made one goblet of a design of his own.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.29
§ 11.29 There is also a kind of cup called bicus. Xenophon, in the first book of his Anabasis, says: — “And Cyrus sent him a number of goblets (βίκους) of wine half full; and it is a cup of a flat shallow shape, like a φιάλη, according to the description given of it by Pollux the Parian. There is another kind of cup called the bombylius; a sort of Rhodian Thericlean cup; concerning the shape of which Socrates says, — ”Those who drink out of the phiale as much as they please will very soon give over; but those who drink out of a bombylius drink by small drops." There is also an animal of the same name. There is also a kind of drinking-cup called the bromias, in form like the larger kind of scyphus.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.30
§ 11.30 There is another kind called the lettered cup, having writing engraved round it. Alexis says — A. Shall I describe to you the appearance first O' the cup you speak of? Know, then, it was round; Exceeding small; old, sadly broken too About the ears; and all around the brim Were carved letters. B. Were there those nineteen Engraved in gold, — To Zeus the Saviour? A. Those, and no others. And we have seen a lettered cup of this kind lying at Capua in Campania, to Artemis; covered with writing taken from the poems of Homer, and beautifully engraved; having the verses inlaid in golden characters, like the drinking-cup of Nestor. And Achaeus the tragic poet, in his Omphale, himself also represents the Satyrs speaking in the following manner about a lettered drinking-cup — And the god's cup long since has call'd me, Showing this writing, — delta, then iota, The third letter was omega, then nu, Then u came next, and after that a sigma And omicron were not deficient. But in this passage we want the final v which ought to have ended the word. Since all the ancients used the omicron not only with the power which it has now, but also when they meant to indicate the diphthong ει they wrote it by o only. And they did the same when they wished to write the vowel ε, whether it is sounded by itself, or when they wish to indicate the diphthong ει by the addition of iota. And accordingly, in the above-cited verses, the Satyrs wrote the final syllable of the genitive case διονύσου with ο only; as being short to engrave: so that we are in these lines to understand the final upsilon, so as to make the whole word διονύσου. And the Dorians called sigma san; for the musicians, as Aristoxenus often tells us, used to avoid saying sigma whenever they could, because it was a hard-sounding letter, and unsuited to the flute; but they were fond of using the letter rho, because of the ease of pronouncing it. And the horses which have the letter ς branded on them, they call samphoras. Aristophanes, in his Clouds, says — Neither you, nor the carriage-horse, nor samphoras. And Pindar says — Before long series of songs were heard, And the ill-sounding san from out men's mouths. And Eubulus also, in his Neottis, speaks of a lettered cup as being called by that identical name, saying — A. Above all things I hate a letter'd cup, Since he, my son, the time he went away, Had such a cup with him. B. There are many like it.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.31
§ 11.31 There is a kind of cup also called gyala. Philetas, in his Miscellanies, says that the Megarians call their cups gyalae. And Parthenius, the pupil of Dionysius, in the first book of his Discussions upon Words found in the Historians, says — “The gyala is a kind of drinking-cup, as Marsyas the priest of Hercules writes, where he says,'Whenever the king comes into the city, a man meets him having a cup (γυάλην) full of wine; and the king takes it, and pours a libation from it.'”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.32
§ 11.32 There is another sort of cup called the deinus. And that this is the name of a cup we are assured by Dionysius of Sinope, in his Female Saviour, where he gives a catalogue of the names of cups, and mentions this among them, speaking as follows — And as for all the kinds of drinking-cups, Lady, all fair to see, — dicotyli, Tricotyli besides, the mighty deinus, Which holds an entire measure, and the cymbion The scyphus and the rhytum; on all these The old woman keeps her eyes, and minds nought else. And Cleanthes the philosopher, in his book on Interpretation, says, that the cups called the Thericlean, and that called the Deinias, are both named from the original makers of them. And Seleucus, saying that the deinus is a kind of cup, quotes some lines of Stratis, from his Medea — Dost know, O Creon, what the upper part Of your head doth resemble? I can tell you:'Tis like a deinus turned upside down. And Archedicus, in his Man in Error, introducing a servant speaking of some courtesans, says — A. I lately introduced a hook-nosed woman, Her name Nicostrata; but surnamed also Scotodeina, since (at least that is the story) She stole a silver deinus in the dark. B. A terrible thing (δεινὸν), by Zeus; a terrible thing! The deinus is also the name of a kind of dance, as Apollophanes tells us in his Dalis, where he says — A strange thing (δεινὸν) is this deinus and calathiscus. And Telesilla the Argive calls a threshing-floor also δεῖνος. And the Cyrenaeans give the same name to a foot-tub, as Philetas tells us in his Attic Miscellanies.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.33
§ 11.33 There is also a kind of drinking-cup called δέπαστρον. Silenus and Clitarchus, in their Dialects, say that this is a name given to drinking-cups among the Clitorians; but Antimachus the Colophonian, in the fifth book of his Thebais, says — And carefully they all commands obey'd Which wise Adrastus laid on them. They took A silver goblet, and they pour'd therein Water, and honey pure, compounding deftly; And quickly then they all distributed The cups (δέπαστπα) among the princes of the Greeks, Who there were feasting; and from a golden jug They pour'd them wine for due libations. And in another place he says — Let others bring the bowl of solid silver, Or golden cups (δέπαστρα), which in my halls are stored. And immediately afterwards he says — And golden cups (δέπαστρα), and a pure untouch'd vessel Of honey sweet, which will be beat for him.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.34
§ 11.34 There is also a kind of cup called δακτυλωτὸν, with finger-like handles; and it is called so by Ion, in the Agamemnon — And you shall have a gift worth running for, A finger handled cup, not touch'd by fire, The mighty prize once given by Pelias, And by swift Castor won. But by this expression Epigenes understands merely having two ears, into which a person could put his fingers on each side. Others, again, explain it as meaning, having figures like fingers engraved all round it; or having small projections like the Sidonian cups; — or, again, some interpret the word as meaning merely smooth. But when he says, untouched by fire, that has the same meaning as Homer's phrase — ἄπυρον κατέθηκε λέβητα, meaning a caldron fit for the reception of cold water, or suitable for drinking cold drinks out of. But by this expression some understand a horn; and about the Molossian district the oxen are said to have enormous horns; and the way in which they are made into cups is explained by Theopompus: and it is very likely that Pelias may have had cups made of these horns; and Iolcos is near the Molossian district, and it was at Iolcos that these contests spoken of were exhibited by Pelias. — “But,” says Didymus, in his Explanation of the play here spoken of, “it is better to say that Ion misunderstood Homer's words, where he says — And for the fifth he gave a double bowl, Which fire had never touch'd; for he fancied that this meant a drinking-cup, while it was in reality a large flat vessel made of brass in the form of a caldron, suitable to receive cold water. And he has spoken of the dactylotus cup, as if it were a goblet that had a hollow place all round the inside of it, so as to be taken hold of inside by the fingers of the drinkers. And some say that the cup which has never been touched by fire means a cup of horn; for that that is not worked by the agency of fire. And perhaps a man might call a φιάλη a drinking-cup by a metaphorical use of the word.” But Philemon, in his treatise on Attic Nouns and Attic Dialects, under the word καλπὶς says, “The dactylotus cup is the same as the two-headed cup into which a person can insert his fingers on both sides. But some say that it is one which has figures in the shape of fingers carved all round it.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.35
§ 11.35 There is also the elephant; and this was the name of a kind of cup, as we are told by Damoxenus, in the Man who laments himself — A. If that is not enough, here is the boy Bringing the elephant. B. In God's name tell me, What beast is that? A.'Tis a mighty cup, Pregnant with double springs of rosy wine, And able to contain three ample measures; The work of Alcon. When I was at Cypsela, Adaeus pledged me in this selfsame cup. And Epinicus also mentions this cup, in his Suppostitious Damsels; and I will quote his testimony when I come to speak of the rhytum.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.36
§ 11.36 There is another kind of cup called the Ephebus. And Philemon the Athenian, in his treatise on Attic Nouns and Attic Dialects, says that this cup is also called the embasicoitas; but Stephanus the comic poet, in his Friend of the Lacedemonians, says — Sos. The king then pledged him in a certain village. B. A wondrous thing. What can you mean? Is this a kind of goblet? Sos. No; I mean a village near Thouria. B. Why, my whole thoughts were borne Off to the Rhodian cups, O Sosia, And to those heavy bowls they call ephebi.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.37
§ 11.37 There are also some cups which are called ἡδυποτίδες. “These,” says Lynceus the Samian, “were made by the Rhodians in emulation of the Thericlean goblets which were in use at Athens. But as the Athenians, on account of the great weight of metal employed in them, only made this shape for the use of the richer classes, the Rhodians made theirs so light that they were able to put these ornaments within the reach even of the poor. And Epigenes mentions them, in his Heroine, in these words — A psycter, and a cyathus, and cymbia, Four rhyta, and three hedypotides, A silver strainer, too. And Semus, in the fifth book of his Delias, says that there is among the offerings at Delos a golden hedypotis, the gift of Echenica, a woman of the country, whom he mentions also, in his eighth book. And Cratinus the younger says, using the diminutive form, — And Archephon had twelve ἡδυπότια.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.38
§ 11.38 There was another kind of cup called the Herculeum. Pisander, in the second book of his Herculead, says that the cup in which Hercules sailed across the ocean belonged to the Sun; and that Hercules received it from Oceanus for that purpose. But, perhaps, as the hero was fond of large cups, the poets and historians jesting because of the great size of this one, invented the fable of his having gone to sea in a cup. But Panyasis, in the first book of his Herculead, says that Hercules obtained the cup of the Sun from Nereus, and sailed even to Erythea in it. And we have said before that Hercules was one of the inordinate drinkers. And that the sun was borne on towards his setting in a cup, Stesichorus tells us, where he says — And then the Sun, great Hyperion's offspring, Embarked in his golden cup, that he Might cross the ocean's wide expanse, and come To the deep foundations of immortal Night; To his fond mother, and his virgin bride, And his dear children. And the son of Jove Came to the grove Shaded with laurels and with bays. And Antimachus speaks thus — And then the most illustrious Erythea Sent the Sun forth in a convenient cup. And Aeschylus, in his Daughters of the Sun, says — There in the west is found the golden cup, Great Vulcan's work, your father's property, In which he's borne along his rapid course O'er the dark waters of the boundless sea. When, his work done, he flies before dark Night, Borne on her black-horsed chariot.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.39
§ 11.39 And Mimnermus, in his Nannus, says that the Sun when asleep is borne round to the east, lying on a golden bed which was made for this express purpose by Vulcan; by which enigmatical statement he indicates the hollow form of the cup; and he speaks thus — For the Sun labours every day, nor ever Do he or his fleet steeds know pleasing rest From that bright hour when the rosy Morn, Leaving her ocean-bed, mounts up to heaven. For all across the sea, a lovely bed Of precious gold, the work of Vulcan's hands, Conveys the god; passing on rapid wings Along the water, while he sleeps therein, From the bright region of th' Hesperides, To th' Ethiopian shore, where his swift car And fiery horses wait within their stalls Till bright Aurora comes again and opes Her rosy portals. Then Hyperion's son Ascends again his swift untiring car. But Theolytus, in the second book of his Annals, says that the Sun crosses the sea in a cup, and that the first person who invented this statement was the author of the poem called the Battle of the Titans. And Pherecydes, in the third book of his Histories, having previously spoken about the ocean, adds — ”But Hercules drew his bow against him, as if he meant to shoot him: and the Sun bade him desist, and so he, being afraid, did desist. And in return for his forbearance, the Sun gave him the golden cup in which he himself used to travel with his horses when he has set, going all night across the ocean to the east, where he again rises. And so then Hercules went in this cup to Erythea. And when he was at sea, Oceanus, to tempt him, appeared to him in visible form, tossing his cup about in the waves; and he then was on the point of shooting Oceanus; but Oceanus being frightened desired him to forbear."
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.40
§ 11.40 There is also a cup of the name of ethanion. Hellanicus, in his account of the History and Manners of the Egyptians, writes thus — “In the houses of the Egyptians are found a brazen φιάλη, and a brazen κύαθος, and a brazen ἠθάνιον.” There is another kind called hemitomus; a sort of cup in use among the Athenians, so called from its shape and it is mentioned by Pamphilus, in his Dialects.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.41
§ 11.41 Then there is the cup called the thericlean cup; this kind is depressed at the sides, sufficiently deep, having short ears, as being of the class of cup called κύλιξ. And, perhaps, it is out of a thericlean cup that Alexis, in his Hesione, represents Hercules to be drinking, when he speaks thus — And when he had, though scarcely, come t' himself, He begg'd a cup of wine (κύλικα), and when he'd got it, He drank down frequent draughts, and drain'd it well; And, as the proverb says, the man sometimes Is quite a bladder, and sometimes a sack. And that the thericlean cup belongs to the class κύλιξ is plainly stated by Theophrastus, in his History of Plants. For speaking of the turpentine-tree, be says — “And thericlean cups (κύλικες θηρίκλειοι) are turned of this wood, in such a manner that no one can distinguish them from earthenware ones.” And Thericles the Corinthian is said to have been the first maker of this kind of cup, and he was a potter originally, and it is after him that they have their name; and he lived about the same time as Aristophanes the comic poet. And Theopompus speaks of this cup, in his Nemea, where he says — A. Come hither you, you faithful child of Thericles, You noble shape, and what name shall we give you Are you a looking-glass of nature? If You were but full, then I could wish for nothing Beyond your presence. Come then — B. How I hate you, You old Theolyta. A. Old dost thou call me, friend? B. What can I call you else? but hither come, Let me embrace you; come to your fellow-servant: Is it not so? A.............. you try me. B. See here I pledge you in fair friendship's cup. A. And when you've drunk your fill, then hand the cup Over to me the first. But Cleanthes, in his treatise on Interpretation, says — “And as for all these inventions, and whatever others there are of the same kind, such as the thericlean cup, the deinias, the iphicratis, it is quite plain that these, by their very names, indicate their inventors. And the same appears to be the case even now. And if they fail to do so, the name must have changed its meaning a little. But, as has been said before, one cannot in every case trust to a name.” But others state that the thericlean cup has its name from the skins of wild beasts (θηρίων) being carved on it. And Pamphilus of Alexandria says that it is so called from the fact of Dionysos disturbing the beasts (τοὺς θῆρας) by pouring libations out of these cups over them.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.42
§ 11.42 And Antiphanes mentions this kind of cup, in his Similitudes, saying — And when they had done supper, (for I wish To put all things that happen'd in the interval Together,) then the thericlean cup Of Zeus the Saviour was introduced, Full of the luscious drops which o'er the sea Came from the isle of the delicious drinks, The sea-girt Lesbos, full, and foaming up, And each one in his right hand gladly seized it. And Eubulus, in his Dolon, says — I never drain'd a cup more carefully, For I did make the earthen cask more clean Than Thericles did make his well-turn'd cups E'en in his youth. And, in his Dice -players, he says — And then they drain'd the valiant cup yclept The thericlean; foaming o'er the brim, With Lacedemonian lip, loud sounding As if'twere full of pebbles, dark in colour, A beauteous circle, with a narrow bottom, Sparkling and brilliant, beautifully wash'd, All crown'd with ivy; and the while they call'd On the great name of Zeus the Saviour. And Ararus, or Eubulus, whichever it was who was the author of the Campylion, says — O potter's earth, you whom great Thericles Once fashion'd, widening out the circling depth Of your large hollow sides; right well must you Have known the natures and the hearts of women, That they are not well pleased with scanty cups. And Alexis, in his Horseman, says — There is, besides, a thericlean cup, Having a golden wreath of ivy round it, Carved on it, not appended. And in his Little Horse he says — He drank a thericlean cup of unmix'd wine, Right full, and foaming o'er the brim.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.43
§ 11.43 But Timaeus, in the twenty-eighth book of his History, calls the cup thericlea, writing thus: — “There was man of the name of Polyxenus who was appointed one of the ambassadors from Tauromenium, and he returned having received several other presents from Nicodemus, and also a cup of the kind called thericlea.” And Adaeus, in his treatise on Descriptions, considers that the thericleum and the carchesium are the same. But that they are different is plainly shown by Callixenus, who, in his Account of Alexandria and its customs, says — “And some people marched in the procession, bearing thericlea (and he uses the masculine form θηρικλείους), and others bearing carchesia.” And what kind of cup the carchesium was, shall be explained in due time. There is also another kind called the thericlean bowl (θηρίκλειος κρατὴρ), which is mentioned by Alexis, in his Cycnus — And in the midst a thericlean bowl Resplendent stood; full of old clear white wine, And foaming to the brim. I took it empty, And wiped it round, and made it shine, and placed it Firm on its base, and crown'd it round with branches Of Dionysos' favourite ivy. Menander also has used the form θηρίκλειος as feminine, in his Fanatic Woman, when he says — And being moderately drunk, he took And drain'd the thericleum (τὴν θηρίκλειον). And in his Begging Priest he says — Drinking a thericleum of three pints. And Deoxippus, in his Miser, says — A. I want now the large thericlean cup (τῆς θηρικλείου τῆς μεγάλης). B. I know it well. A. Likewise the Rhodian cups; For when I've pour'd the liquor into them, I always seem to drink it with most pleasure. And Polemo, in the first book of his treatise on the Acropolis at Athens, has used the word in the neuter gender, saying — “ Neoptolemus offered up some golden thericlean cups (τὰ θηρίκλεια) wrought on foundations of wood.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.44
§ 11.44 And Apollodorus of Gela, in his Philadelphi, or the Man who killed himself by Starvation, says — Then there were robes of fine embroidery, And silver plate, and very skilful chasers Who ornament the thericlean cups, And many other noble bowls besides. And Aristophon, in his Philonides, says — Therefore my master very lately took The well-turn'd orb of a thericlean cup, Full foaming to the brim with luscious wine, Mix'd half-and-half, a most luxurious draught, And gave it me as a reward for virtue; I think because of my tried honesty; And then, by steeping me completely in it, He set me free. And Theophilus, in his Boeotia, says — He mixes beautifully a large cup Of earthenware, of thericlean fashion, Holding four pints, and foaming o'er the brim; Not Autocles himself, by earth I swear, Could in his hand more gracefully have borne it. And, in his Proetides, he says — And bring a thericlean cup, which holds More than four pints, and's sacred to good fortune. There is also a cup called the Isthmian cup: and Pamphilus, in his treatise on Names, says that this is a name given to a certain kind of cup by the inhabitants of Cyprus.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.45
§ 11.45 There is also a kind of vessel called cadus; which Simmias states to be a kind of cup, quoting this verse of Anacreon — I breakfasted on one small piece of cheesecake, And drank a cadus full of wine. And Epigenes, in his Little Monument, says — A. Craters, and cadi, olkia, and crunea. B. Are these crunea? A. To be sure these are, Luteria, too. But why need I name each For you yourself shall see them. B. Do you say That the great monarch's son, Pixodarus, Has come to this our land? And Hedylus, in his Epigrams, says — Let us then drink; perhaps among our cups We may on some new wise and merry plan With all good fortune light. Come, soak me well In cups (κάδοις) of Chian wine, and say to me, “Come, sport and drink, good Hedylus;” I hate To live an empty life, debarr'd from wine. And in another place he says — From morn till night, and then from night till morn, The thirsty Pasisocles sits and drinks, In monstrous goblets (κάδοις), holding quite four quarts, And then departs whatever way he pleases. But midst his cups he sports more mirthfully, And is much stronger than Sicelides. How his wit sparkles I Follow his example, And ever as you write, my friend, drink too. But Clitarchus, in his treatise on Dialects, says that the Ionians call an earthenware cask κάδος. And Herodotus, in his third book, speaks of a cask (κάδος) of palm wine.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.46
§ 11.46 There is also the καδίσκος Philemon, in his treatise before mentioned, says that this too is a species of cup. And it is a vessel in which they place the Ctesian Zeuses, as Anticlides says, in his Book on Omens, where he writes, — “The statuettes of Zeus Ctesius ought to be erected in this manner. One ought to place a new cadiscus with two ears... — and crown the ears with white wool; and on the right shoulder, and on the forehead.... and put on it what you find there, and pour ambrosia over it. But ambrosia is compounded of pure water, and oil, and all kinds of fruits; and these you must pour over.” Stratis the comic poet also mentions the cadiscus, in his Lemnomeda, where he says — The wine of Hermes, which some draw forth From a large jug, and some from a cadiscus, Mix'd with pure water, half-and-half.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.47
§ 11.47 There is also the cantharus. Now, that this is the name of a kind of boat is well known. And that there is a kind of cup also called by this name we find from Ameipsias, in his Men Playing at the Cottabus, or Madness, where he says — Bring here the vinegar cruets, and canthari. And Alexis, in his Creation (the sentence refers to some one drinking in a wine-shop), says — And then I saw Hermaiscus turning over One of these mighty canthari, and near him There lay a blanket, and his well-fill'd wallet. And Eubulus, who often mentions this cup by name, in his Pamphilus, says — But I (for opposite the house there was A wine-shop recently establish'd) There watch'd the damsel's nurse; and bade the vintner Mix me a measure of wine worth an obol, And set before me a full-sized cantharus. And in another place he says — How dry and empty is this cantharus! And again, in another place- Soon as she took it, she did drink it up, — How much d'ye think? a most enormous draught; And drain'd the cantharus completely dry. And Xenarchus, in his Priapus, says this — Pour, boy, no longer in the silver tankard, But let us have again recourse to the deep. Pour, boy, I bid you, in the cantharus, Pour quick, by Zeus, aye, by the Cantharus, pour. And Epigenes, in his Heroine, says — But now they do no longer canthari make, At least not large ones; but small shallow cups Are come in fashion, and they call them neater, As if they drank the cups, and not the wine.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.48
§ 11.48 And Sosicrates, in his Philadelphi, says — A gentle breeze mocking the curling waves, Sciron's fair daughter, gently on its course Brought with a noiseless foot the cantharus; here cantharus evidently means a boat. And Phrynichus, in his Revellers, says — And then Chaerestratus, in his own abode, Working with modest zeal, did weep each day A hundred canthari well fill'd with wine. And Nicostratus, in his Calumniator, says — A. Is it a ship of twenty banks of oars, Or a swan, or a cantharus? For when I have learnt that, I then shall be prepared Myself t' encounter everything. B. It is A cycnocantharus, an animal Compounded carefully of each. And Menander, in his Captain of a Ship, says — A. Leaving the salt depths of the Aegean sea, Theophilus has come to us, O Strato. How seasonably now do I say your son Is in a prosperous and good condition, And so's that golden cantharus. B. What cantharus? A. Your vessel. And a few lines afterwards he says — B. You say my ship is safe? A. Indeed I do, That gallant ship which Callicles did build, And which the Thurian Euphranor steer'd. And Polemo, in his treatise on Painters, addressed to Antigonus, says — “At Athens, at the marriage of Pirithous, Hippys made a wine jug and goblet of stone, inlaying its edges with gold. And he provided also couches of pinewood placed on the ground, adorned with coverlets of every sort, and for drinking cups there were canthari made of earthenware. And moreover, the lamp which was suspended from the roof, had a number of lights all kept distinct from one another. And that this kind of cup got its name originally from Cantharus a potter, who invented it, Philetaerus tells us in his Achilles — Peleus — but Peleus is a potter's name, The name of some dry withered lamp-maker, Known too as Cantharus, exceeding poor, Far other than a king, by Zeus. And that cantharus is also the name of a piece of female ornament, we may gather from Antiphanes in his Boeotia.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.49
§ 11.49 There is also a kind of cup called carchesium. Callixenus the Rhodian, in' his History of the Affairs and Customs of Alexandria, says that it is a cup of an oblong shape, slightly contracted in the middle, having ears which reach down to the bottom. And indeed, the carchesium is a tolerably oblong cup, and perhaps it has its name from its being stretched upwards. But the carchesium is an extremely old description of cup; if at least it is true that Zeus, when he had gained the affections of Alcmena, gave her one as a love gift, as Pherecydes relates in his second book, and Herodorus of Heraclea tells the same story. But Asclepiades the Myrlean says that this cup derives its name from some one of the parts of the equipment of a ship. For the lower part of the mast is called the pterna, which goes down into the socket; and the middle of the mast is called the neck; and towards the upper part it is called carchesium. And the carchesium has yards running out on each side, and in it there is placed what is called the breastplate, being four-cornered on all sides, except just at the bottom and at the top. Both of which extend a little outwards in a straight line. And above the breastplate is a part which is called the distaff, running up to a great height, and being sharp-pointed. And Sappho also speaks of the carchesia, where she says — And they all had well-fill'd carchesia, And out of them they pour'd libations, wishing All manner of good fortune to the bridegroom. And Sophocles, in his Tyro, says — And they were at the table in the middle, Between the dishes and carchesia; saying that the dragons came up to the table, and took up a position between the meats and the carchesia, or cups of wine. For it was the fashion among the ancients to place upon the table goblets containing mixed wine; as Homer also represents the tables in his time. And the carchesium was named so from having on it rough masses like millet (κεγχροειδὴς), and the α is by enallage instead of ε, καρχήσιον for κερχήσιον. On which account Homer calls those who are overcome by thirst καρχαλέους. And Charon of Lampsacus, in his Annals, says that among the Lacedemonians there is still shown the very same cup which was given by Zeus to Alcmena, when he took upon himself the likeness of Amphitryon. There is another kind of cup called calpium, a sort of Erythraean Sea goblet, as Pamphilus says; and I imagine it is the same as the one called scaphium.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.50
§ 11.50 There is another kind of cup called celebe. And this description of drinking-cup is mentioned by Anacreon, where he says — Come, O boy, and bring me now A celebe, that I may drink A long deep draught, and draw no breath. It will ten measures of water hold, And five of mighty Chian wine. But it is uncertain what description of cup it is, or whether every cup is not called celebe, because one pours libations into it (ἀπὸ τοῦ χέειν λοιβὴν), or from one's pouring libations (λείβειν). And the verb λείβω is applied habitually to every sort of liquid, from which also the word λέβης is derived. But Silenus and Clitarchus say that celebe is a name given to drinking-cups by the Aeolians. But Pamphilus says that the celebe is the same cup which is also called thermopotis, a cup to drink warm water from. And Nicander the Colophonian, in his Dialects, says that the celebe is a vessel used by the shepherds in which they preserve honey. For Antimachus the Colophonian, in the fifth book of his Thebais, says — He bade the heralds bear to them a bladder Fill'd with dark wine, and the most choice of all, The celebea in his house which lay, Fill'd with pure honey. And in a subsequent passage he says — But taking up a mighty celebeum In both his hands, well filled with richest honey, Which in great store he had most excellent. And again he says — And golden cups of wine, and then besides, A celebeum yet untouch'd by man, Full of pure honey, his most choice of treasures. And in this passage he very evidently speaks of the celebeum as some kind of vessel distinct from a drinking-cup, since he has already mentioned drinking-cups under the title of δέπαστρα. And Theocritus the Syracusan, in his Female Witches, says — And crown this celebeum with the wool, Well dyed in scarlet, of the fleecy sheep. And Euphorion says — Or whether you from any other stream Have fill'd your celebe with limpid water. And Anacreon says — And the attendant pour'd forth luscious wile, Holding a celebe of goodly size. But Dionysius, surnamed the Slender, explaining the poem of Theodoridas, which is addressed to Love, says that celebe is a name given to a kind of upstanding cup, something like the prusias and the thericleum.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.51
§ 11.51 There is also the horn. It is said that the first men drank out of the horns of oxen; from which circumstance Dionysos often figured with horns on his head, and is moreover called a bull by many of the poets. And at Cyzicus there is a statue of him with a bull's head. But that men drank out of horns (κέρατα) is plain from the fact that to this very day, when men mix water with wine, they say that they κερᾶσαι (mix it). And the vessel in which the wine is mixed is called κρατὴρ, from the fact of the water being mingled (συγκιρνᾶσθαι) in it, as if the word were κερατὴρ, from the drink being poured εἰς τὸ κέρας (into the horn); and even to this day the fashion of making horns into cups continues: but some people call these cups rhyta. And many of the poets represent the ancients as drinking out of horns. Pindar, speaking of the Centaurs, says — After those monsters fierce Learnt the invincible strength of luscious wine; Then with a sudden fury, With mighty hands they threw the snow-white milk Down from the board, And of their own accord Drank away their senses in the silver-mounted horns. And Xenophon, in the seventh book of his Anabasis, giving an account of the banquet which was given by the Thracian Seuthes, writes thus: ”But when Xenophon, with his companions, arrived at Seuthes's palace, first of all they embraced one another, and then, according to the Thracian fashion, they were presented with horns of wine." And in his sixth book he says, when he is speaking of the Paphlagonians, “And they supped lying on couches made of leaves, and they drank out of cups made of horn.” And Aeschylus, in his Perrhaebi, represents the Perrhaebi as using horns for cups, in the following lines: — With silver-mounted horns, Fitted with mouthpieces of rich-wrought gold. And Sophocles, in his Pandora, says — And when a man has drain'd the golden cup, She, pressing it beneath her tender arm, Returns it to him full. And Hermippus, in his Fates, says — Do you now know the thing you ought to do? Give not that cup to me; but from this horn Give me but once more now to drink a draught. And Lycurgus the orator, in his Oration against Demades, says that Philip the king pledged those men whom he loved in a horn. And Theopompus, in the second book of his history of the Affairs and Actions of Philip, says that the kings of the Paeonians, as the oxen in their countries have enormous horns, so large as to contain three or four choes of wine, make drinking-cups of them, covering over the brims with silver or with gold. And Philoxenus of Cythera, in his poem entitled The Supper, says — He then the sacred drink of nectar quaff'd From the gold-mounted brims of th' ample horns, And then they all did drink awhile. And the Athenians made also silver goblets in the shape of horns, and drank out of them. And one may ascertain that by seeing the articles mentioned in writing among the list of confiscated goods on the pillar which lies in the Acropolis, which contains the sacred offerings — “There is also a silver horn drinking-cup, very solid.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.52
§ 11.52 There is also the cernus. This is a vessel made of earthenware, having many little cup-like figures fastened to it, in which are white poppies, wheat-ears, grains of barley, peas, pulse, vetches, and lentils. And he who carries it, like the man who carries the mystic fan, eats of these things, as Ammonius relates in the third book of his treatise on Altars and Sacrifices.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.53
§ 11.53 There is also the cup called the cissybium. This is a cup with but one handle, as Philemon says. And Neoptolemus the Parian, in the third book of his Dialects, says that this word is used by Euripides in the Andromache, to signify a cup made of ivy (κίσσινον) — And all the crowd of shepherds flock'd together, One bearing a huge ivy bowl of milk, Refreshing medicine of weary toil; Another brought the juice o' the purple vine. For, says he, the cissybium is mentioned in a rustic assembly, where it is most natural that the cups should be made of wood. But Clitarchus says that the Aeolians called the cup which is elsewhere called scyphus, cissybium. And Marsyas says that it is a wooden cup, the same as the κύπελλον. But Eumolpus says that it is a species of cup which perhaps (says he) was originally made of the wood of the ivy. But Nicander the Colophonian, in the first book of his History of Aetolia, writes thus: — “In the sacred festival of Zeus Didymaeus they pour libations from leaves of ivy (κισσοῦ), from which circumstance the ancient cups are called cissybia. Homer says — Holding a cup (κισσύβιον) of dark rich-colour'd wine. And Asclepiades the Myrlean, in his essay on the cup called Nestoris, says, ”No one of the men in the city or of the men of moderate fortune used to use the σκύφος or the κισσύβιον, but only the swineherds and the shepherds, and the men in the fields. Polyphemus used the cissybium, and Eumaeus the other kind." But Callimachus seems to make a blunder in the use of these names, speaking of an intimate friend of his who was entertained with him at a banquet by Pollis the Athenian, for he says — For he abhorr'd to drink at one long draught Th' amystis loved in Thrace, not drawing breath: And soberly preferr'd a small cissybium: And when for the third time the cup (ἄλεισον) went round, I thus addressed him...... For, as he here calls the same cup both κισσύβιον and ἄλεισον, he does not preserve the accurate distinction between the names. And any one may conjecture that the κισσύβιον was originally made by the shepherds out of the wood of the ivy (κισσός). But some derive it from the verb χεύμαι, used in the same sense as χωρέω, to contain; as it occurs in the following line: — This threshold shall contain (χείσεται) them both. And the hole of the serpent is also called χείη, as containing the animal; and they also give the name of κήθιον, that is,χήτιον, to the box which holds the dice. And Dionysius of Samos, in his treatise on the Cyclic Poets, calls the cup which Homer calls κισσύβιον, κύμβιον, writing thus — “And Ulysses, when he saw him acting thus, having filled a κύμβιον with wine, gave it to him to drink.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.54
§ 11.54 There is also the ciborium. Hegesander the Delphian says that Euphorion the poet, when supping with the Prytanis, when the Prytanis exhibited to him some ciboria, which appeared to be made in a most exquisite and costly manner,........ And when the cup had gone round pretty often, he, having drunk very hard and being intoxicated, took one of the ciboria and defiled it. And Didymus says that it is a kind of drinking-cup; and perhaps it may be the same as that which is called scyphium, which derives its name from being contracted to a narrow space at the bottom, like the Egyptian ciboria.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.55
§ 11.55 There is also the condu, an Asiatic cup. ( Menander, in his play entitled the Flatterer, says — Then, too, there is in Cappadocia, O Struthion, a noble golden cup, Called condu, holding ten full cotyle. And Hipparchus says, in his Men Saved, — A. Why do you so attend to this one soldier? He has no silver anywhere, I know well; But at the most one small embroider'd carpet, (And that is quite enough for him,) on which Some Persian figures and preposterous shapes Of Persian griffins, and such beasts, are work'd. Away with you, you wretch. A. And then he has a condu, a wine-cooler, and a cymbium. And Nicomachus, in the first book of his treatise on the Egyptian Festivals, says — “But the condu is a Persian cup; and it was first introduced by Hermippus the astrologer............. on which account libations are poured out of it.” But Pancrates, in the first book of his Conchoreis, says — But he first pour'd libations to the gods From a large silver condu; then he rose, And straight departed by another road. There is also the cononius. Ister, the pupil of Callimachus, in the first book of his History of Ptolemais, the city in Egypt, writes thus: — “A pair of cups, called cononii, and a pair of thericlean cups with golden covers.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.56
§ 11.56 There is also the cotylus. The cotylus is a cup with one handle, which is also mentioned by Alcaeus. But Diodorus, in his book addressed to Lycophron, says that this cup is greatly used by the Sicyonians and Tarentines, and that it is like a deep luterium, and sometimes it has an ear. And Ion the Chian also mentions it, speaking of ”a cotylus full of wine."! And Hermippus, in his Gods, says — He brought a cotylus first, a pledge for his neighbours. And Plato, in his Zeus Afflicted, says — He brings a cotylus. Aristophanes also, in his Babylonians, mentions the cotylus; and Eubulus, in his Ulysses, or the Panoptae, says — And then the priest utt'ring well-omen'd prayers, Stood in the midst, and in a gorgeous dress, Pour'd a libation from the cotylus. And Pamphilus says that it is a kind of cup, and peculiar to Dionysos. But Polemo, in his treatise on the Fleece of the Sheep sacrificed to Zeus, says — “And after this he celebrates a sacrifice, and takes the sacred fleece out of its shrine, and distributes it among all those who have borne the cernus in the procession: and this is a vessel made of earthenware, having a number of little cups glued to it; and in these little cups there is put sage, and white poppies, and ears of wheat, and grains of barley, and peas, and pulse, and rye, and lentils, and beans, and vetches, and bruised figs, and chaff and oil, and honey, and milk, and wine, and pieces of unwashed sheep's-wool. And he who has carried this cernus eats of all these things, like the man who has carried the mystic fan.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.57
§ 11.57 There is also the cotyle. Aristophanes, in his Cocalus, says — And other women, more advanced in age, Into their stomachs pour'd, without restraint, From good-sized cotylae, dark Thasian wine, The whole contents of a large earthen jar, Urged by their mighty love for the dark wine. And Silenus, and Clitarchus, and also Zenodotus; say that it is a kind of κύλιξ, and say — And all around the corpse the black blood flow'd, As if pour'd out from some full cotyle. And again — There is many a slip'Twixt the cup (κοτύλης) and the lip. And Simaristus says that it is a very small-sized cup which is called by this name; and Diodorus says that the poet has here called the cup by the name of cotyle, which is by others called cotylus, as where we find- πύρνον (bread) καὶκοτύλην; and that it is not of the class κύλιξ, for that it has no handles, but that it is very like a deep luterium, and a kind of drinking cup (ποτηρίου); and that it is the same as that which by the Aetolians, and by some tribes of the Ionians, is called cotylus, which is like those which have been already described, except that it has only one ear: and Crates mentions it in his Sports, and Hermippus in his Gods. But the Athenians give the name of κοτύλη to a certain measure. Thucydides says — “They gave to each of them provisions for eight months, at the rate of a cotyla of water and two cotylae of corn a-day.” Aristophanes, in his Proagon, says — And having bought three choenixes of meal, All but one cotyla, he accounts for twenty. But Apollodorus says that it is a kind of cup, deep and hollow; and he says — “The ancients used to call everything that was hollow κοτύλη, as, for instance, the hollow of the hand; on which account we find the expression κοτολήρυτον αἷμα — meaning, blood in such quantities that it could be taken up in the hand. And there was a game called ἐγκοτύλη, in which those who are defeated make their hands hollow, and then take hold of the knees of those who have won the game and carry them.” And Diodorus, in his Italian Dialects, and Heraclitus (as Pamphilus says), relate that the cotyla is also called hemina, quoting the following passage of Epicharmus: — And then to drink a double measure, Two heminae of tepid water full, And Sophron says — Turn up the hemina, O boy. But Pherecrates calls it a cotylisca, in his Corianno, saying — The cotylisca? By no means. And Aristophanes, in his Acharnians, uses a still more diminutive form, and says — A cotyliscium (κοτυλίσκιον) with a broken lip. And even the hollow of the hip is called κοτύλη; and the excrescences on the feelers of the polypus are, by a slight extension of the word, called κοτυληδών. And Aeschylus, in his Edonians, has called cymbals also κότυλαι, saying — And he makes music with his brazen κότυλαι. But Marsyas says that the bone of the hip is also called ἄλεισον and κύλιξ. And the sacred bowl of Dionysos is called κοτυλίσκος; and so are those goblets which the initiated use for their libations; as Nicander of Thyatira says, adducing the following passage from the Clouds of Aristophanes: — Nor will I crown the cotyliscus. And Simmias interprets the word κοτύλη by ἄλεισον.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.58
§ 11.58 There is also the cottabis. Harmodius of Lepreum, in his treatise on the Laws and Customs of Phigalea, going through the entertainments peculiar to different countries, writes as follows: — “When they have performed all these purificatory ceremonies, a small draught is offered to each person to drink in a cottabis of earthenware; and he who offers it says,'May you sup well.'” But Hegesander the Delphian, in his Commentaries (the beginning of which is “In the best Form of Government”), says — “That which is called the cottabus has been introduced into entertainments, the Sicilians (as Dicaearchus relates) having been the first people to introduce it. And such great fondness was ex hibited for this amusement, that men even introduced into entertainments contests, which were called cottabia games; and then cups of the form which appeared to be most suitable for such an exercise were made, called cottabide. And besides all this, rooms were built of a round figure, in order that all, the cottabus being placed in the middle might contest the victory, all being at an equal distance, and in similar situations. For they vied with one another, not only in throwing their liquor at the mark, but also in doing everything with elegance; for a man was bound to lean on his left elbow, and, making a circuit with his right hand, to throw his drops (τὴν λάταγα) over gently — for that was the name which they gave to the liquor which fell from the cup: so that some prided themselves more on playing elegantly at the cottabus than others did on their skill with the javelin.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.59
§ 11.59 There is also the cratanium. But perhaps this is the same cup, under an ancient name, as that which is now called the craneum: accordingly, Polemo (or whoever it is who wrote the treatise on the Manners and Customs of the Greeks), speaking of the temple of the Metapontines which is at Olympia, writes as follows: — “The temple of the Metapontines, in which there are a hundred and thirty-two silver phialae, and two silver wine-jars, and a silver apothystanium, and three gilt phialae. The temple of the Byzantians, in which there is a figure of Triton, made of cypress-wood, holding a silver cratanium, a silver siren, two silver carchesia, a silver culix, a golden wine-jar, and two horns. But in the old temple of Hera, there are thirty silver phialae, two silver cratania, a silver dish, a golden apothystanium, a golden crater (the offering of the Cyrenaeans ), and a silver batiacium.” There is also the crounea. Epigenes, in his Monument, says — A. Crateres, cadi, holcia, crounea, B. Are these crounea? A. Yes, indeed these are. There is the cyathis also. This is a vessel with a great resemblance to the cotyla. Sophron, in his play entitled the Buffoon, represents the women who profess to exhibit the goddess as present, as saying — Three sovereign antidotes for poison Are buried in a single cyathis.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.60
§ 11.60 Then there is the kylix κύλιξ. Pherecrates, in his Slave Tutor, says — Now wash the κύλιξ out; I'll give you then Some wine to drink: put o'er the cup a strainer, And then pour in some wine. But the κύλιξ is a drinking-cup made of earthenware, and it is so called from being made circular (ἀπὸ τοῦκυλίεσθαι) by the potter's wheel; from which also the κυλικεῖον, the place in which the cups are stored up, gets its name, even when the cups put away in it are made of silver. There is also the verb κυλικηγορέω, derived from the same source, when any one makes an harangue over his cups But the Athenians also call a medicine chest κυλικὶς, because it is made round in a turning-lathe. And the κύλικες, both at Argos and at Athens, were in great repute; and Pindar mentions the Attic κύλικες in the following lines — O Thrasybulus, now I send This pair of pleasantly-meant odes As an after-supper entertainment for you. May it, I pray, be pleasing To all the guests, and may it be a spur To draw on cups of wine, And richly-fill'd Athenian κύλικες.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.61
§ 11.61 But the Argive κύλικες appear to have been of a different shape from the Athenian ones. At all events, they tapered towards a point at the brims, as Simonides of Amorgos says — But this is taper-brimmed (φοξίχειλος), that is to say, drawn up to a point towards the top; such as those which are called ἄμβικες. For they use the word φοξὸς in this sense, as Homer does when speaking of Thersites — His head was sharp at top. And the word is equivalent to φαοξὸς, — it being perceived to be sharp (ὀξὺς) in the part where the eyes (τὰ φάη) are. And very exquisitely wrought κύλικες are made at Naucratis, the native place of our companion Athenaeus. For some are in the form of phialae, not made in a lathe, but formed by hand, and having four handles, and being widened considerably towards the bottom: (and there are a great many potters at Naucratis, from whom the gate nearest to the potteries (κεραμείων) is called the Ceramic gate:) and they are dyed in such a manner as to appear like silver. The Chian κύλικες also are highly extolled, which Hermippus mentions in his Soldiers — And a Chian κύλιξ hung on a peg aloft. But Glaucon, in his Dialects, says that the inhabitants of Cyprus call the cotyle culix. And Hipponax, in his Synonymes, writes thus — “The aleisum, the poterium, the cupellum, the amphotis, the scyphus, the culix, the cothon, the carchesium, the phiale.” And Achaeus of Eretria, in his Alcmaeon, instead of κύλικες, has lengthened the word, and written κυλιχνίδες, in these lines — But it is best to bring, as soon as possible, Dark wine, and one large common bowl for all, And some κυλιχνίδες besides And Alcaeus says — Let us at once sit down and drink our wine, Why do we wait for lights? Our day is but A finger's span. Bring forth large goblets (κύλιχναι) now Of various sorts. For the kind liberal son Of Zeus and Semele gave rosy wine, Which bids us all forget our griefs and cares; So pour it forth, and mix in due proportion. And in his tenth Ode he says — Drops of wine (λάταγες) fly from Teian culichnae, showing, by this expression, that the κύλικες of Teos were exceedingly beautiful.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.62
§ 11.62 Pherecrates also says, in his Corianno — A. For I am coming almost boil'd away From the hot bath; my throat is parch'd and dry; Give me some wine. I vow my mouth and all My jaws are sticky with the heat. B. Shall I Then take the κυλίσκη, O damsel, now? A. By no means,'tis so small; and all my bile Has been stirr'd up since I did drink from it, Not long ago, some medicine. Take this cup Of mine,'tis larger, and fill that for me. And that the women were in the habit of using large cups, Pherecrates himself expressly tells us in his Tyranny, where he says — And then they bade the potter to prepare Some goblets for the men, of broader shape, Having no walls, but only a foundation, And scarcely holding more than a mere shell. More like to tasting cups; but for themselves They order good deep κύλικες, good-sized, Downright wine-carrying transports, wide and round, Of delicate substance, swelling in the middle. A crafty order: for with prudent foresight They were providing how, without much notice, They might procure the largest quantity Of wine to drink themselves; and then when we Reproach them that'tis they who've drunk up everything, They heap abuse on us, and swear that they, Poor injured dears, have only drunk one cup, Though their one's larger than a thousand common cups.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.63
§ 11.63 Then there are cymbia. These are a small hollow kind of cup, according to Simaristus. But Dorotheus says, “The cymbium is a kind of deep cup, upright, having no pedestal and no handles.” But Ptolemy the father of Aristonicus calls them “curved goblets.” And Nicander of Thyatira says that Theopompus, in his Mede, called a cup without handles cymbium. Philemon, in his Vision, says — But when fair Rhode came and shook above you A cymbium full of mighty unmix'd wine. But Dionysius of Samos, in the sixth book of his treatise on the Cyclic Poets, thinks that the κισσύβιον and the κύμβιον are the same. For he says that Ulysses, having filled a cymbium with unmixed wine, gave it to the Cyclops. But the cup mentioned in Homer, as having been given to him by Ulysses, is a good-sized cissybium; for if it had been a small cup, he, who was so enormous a monster, would not have been so quickly overcome by drunkenness, when he had only drunk it three times. And Demosthenes mentions the cymbium in his oration against Midias, saying that he was accompanied by rhyta and cymbia: and in his orations against Euergus and Mnesibulus. But Didymus the grammarian says that is a cup of an oblong shape, and narrow in figure, very like the shape of a boat. And Anaxandrides, in his Clowns, says — Perhaps large cups (ποτήρια) immoderately drain'd, And cymbia full of strong unmixed wine, Have bow'd your heads, and check'd your usual spirit. And Alexis, in his Knight, says — A. Had then those cymbia the faces of damsels Carved on them in pure gold? B. Indeed they had. A. Wretched am I, and wholly lost....
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.64
§ 11.64 But Eratosthenes, in his letter addressed to Agetor the Lacedemonian, says, that the cymbium is a vessel of the shape of the cyathus, writing thus — “But these men marvel how a man who had not got a cyathus, but only a cymbium, had, besides that, also a phiale. Now it seems to me, that he had one for the use of men, but the other for the purpose of doing honour to the Gods. And at that time they never used the cyathus nor the cotyla. For they used to employ, in the sacrifices of the Gods, a crater, not made of silver nor inlaid with precious stones, but made of Coliad clay. And as often as they replenished this, pouring a libation to the Gods out of the phiale, they then poured out wine to all the company in order, bailing out the newly-mixed wine in a cymbium, as they do now among us at the phiditia. And if ever they wished to drink more, they also placed on the table beside them the cups called cotyli, which are the most beautiful of all cups, and the most convenient to drink out of. And these, too, were all made of the same earthenware.” But when Ephippus says, in his Ephebi — Chaeremon brings no cylices to supper, Nor did Euripides with cymbia fight, he does not mean the tragic poet, but some namesake of his, who was either very fond of wine, or who had an evil reputation on some other account, as Antiochus of Alexandria says, in his treatise on the Poets, who are ridiculed by the comic writers of the Middle Comedy. For the circumstance of cymbia being introduced into entertainments, and being used to fight with in drunken quarrels, bears on each point. And Anaxandrides mentions him in his Nereids — Give him a choeus then of wine, O messmate, And let him bring his cymbium, and be A second Euripides today. And Ephippus, in his Similitudes, or Obeliaphori, says — But it were well to learn the plays of Dionysius, And all the verses which Demophon Made upon Cotys; and, at supper-time, May Theodorus recite his sayings; May we live next door to Laches. And let Euripides, that banquet-hunter, Bring me his cymbia. And that the κύμβη is the name of a boat too we are shown by Sophocles, who, in his Andromeda, says — Come you on horseback hither, or in a boat (κύμβαισι)? And Apollodorus, in his Paphians, says there is a kind of drinking-cup called κύμβα.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.65
§ 11.65 Then there is the κύπελλον. Now, is this the same as the ἄλεισον and the δέπας, and different from them only in name Then rising, all with goblets (κυπέλλοις) in their hands, The peers and leaders of the Achaian bands Hail'd their return. Or was their form different also? For this kind has not the character of the amphicupellum, as the depas and aleison have, but is only of a curved form. For the κύπελλον is so called from its curved shape, as also is the ἀμφικύπελλον.Or is it so called as being in shape like a milk-pail (πέλλα), only contracted a little, so as to have an additional curve? And the word ἀμφικύπελλα is equivalent to ἀμφίκυρτα, being so called from its handles, because they are of a curved shape. For the poet calls this cup — Golden, two-handled. But Antimachus, in the fifth book of his Thebais, says — And heralds, going round among the chiefs, Gave each a golden cup (κύπελλον) with labour wrought. And Silenus says, the κύπελλα are a kind of cup resembling the σκύφα, as Nicander the Colophonian says — The swineherd gave a goblet (κύπελλον) full to each. And Eumolpus says that it is a kind of cup, so called from its being of a curved shape (κυφόν.) But Simaristus says that this is a name given by the Cyprians to a cup with two handles, and by the Cretans to a kind of cup with two handles, and to another with four. And Philetas says that the Syracusans give the name of κύπελλον to the fragments of barley-cakes and loaves which are left on the tables. There is also the κύμβη. Philemon, in his Attic Dialect, calls it “a species of κύλιξ.” And Apollodorus, in his treatise on Etymologies, says, that the Paphians call a drinking-cup κύμβα.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.66
§ 11.66 Then there is the κώθων, which is mentioned by Xenophon, in the first book of his Cyropaedia. But Critias, in his Constitution of the Lacedemonians, writes as follows — “And other small things besides which belong to human life; such as the Lacedemonian shoes, which are the best, and the Lacedemonian garments, which are the most pleasant to wear, and the most useful. There is also the Lacedemonian κώθων, which is a kind of drinking-cup most convenient when one is on an expedition, and the most easily carried in a knapsack. And the reason why it is so peculiarly well-suited to a soldier is, because a soldier often is forced to drink water which is not very clean; and, in the first place, this cup is not one in which it can be very easily seen what one is drinking; and, secondly, as its brim is rather curved inwards, it is likely to retain what is not quite clean in it.” And Polemo, in his work addressed to Adaeus and Antigonus, says that the Lacedemonians used to use vessels made of earthenware; and proceeds to say further — “And this was a very common practice among the ancients, such as is now adopted in some of the Greek tribes. At Argos, for instance, in the public banquets, and in Lacedemon, they drink out of cups made of earthenware at the festivals, and in the feasts in honour of victory, and at the marriage-feasts of their maidens. But at other banquets and at their Phiditia they use small casks.” And Archilochus also mentions the cothon as a kind of cup, in his Elegies, where he says — But come now, with your cothon in your hand, Move o'er the benches of the speedy ship, And lift the covers from the hollow casks, And drain the rosy wine down to the dregs; For while we're keeping such a guard as this, We shan't be able to forego our wine; as if the κύλιξ were here called κώθων. Aristophanes, in his Knights, says — They leapt into th' horse-transports gallantly, Buying cothones; but some bought instead Garlic and onions. And Heniochus, in his Gorgons, says — Let a man give me wine to drink at once, Taking that capital servant of the throat, The ample cothon — fire-wrought, and round, Broad-ear'd, wide-mouth'd. And Theopompus, in his Female Soldiers, says — Shall I, then, drink from out a wryneck'd cothon, Breaking my own neck in the hard attempt? And Alexis, in his Spinners, says — And then he hurl'd a four-pint cothon at me, An ancient piece of plate, an heirloom too. And it is from this cup that they call those who drink a great deal of unmixed wine (ἀκράτον) as Hyperides does in his oration against Demosthenes. But Callixenus, in the fourth book of his History of Alexandria, giving an account of the procession of Ptolemy Philadelphus, and giving a catalogue of a number of drinking-cups, adds these words: “And two cothons, each holding two measures of wine.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.67
§ 11.67 But with respect to drinking, (which from the name of this kind of cup is sometimes called in the verb κωθωνίζομαι, and in the substantive κωθωνισμὸς, that occasional drinking is good for the health is stated by Mnesitheus the Athenian physician, in his letter on the subject of Drinking (κωθωνισμὸς), where he speaks as follows: “It happens that those who drink a great quantity of unmixed wine at banquets often receive great injury from so doing, both in their bodies and minds; but still occasional hard drinking (κωθωνιζεσθαι) for some days appears to me to produce a certain purging of the body and a certain relaxation of the mind. For there are some little roughnesses on the surface, arising from daily banquets; now for getting rid of these there is no easier channel than the wine. But of all modes of purging, that which' is caused by hard drinking is the most advantageous; for then the body is as it were washed out by the wine; for the wine is both liquid and heating: but the wine which we secrete is harsh; accordingly, fullers use it as a cleanser when they are cleaning garments. But when you are drinking hard, you should guard against three things, — against drinking bad wine, against drinking unmixed wine, and against eating sweetmeats while you are drinking. And when you have had enough, then do not go to sleep, until you have had a vomit, moderate or copious as the case may be; and when you have vomited, then go to sleep after having taken a slight bath. And if you are not able to empty yourself sufficiently, then you must take a more copious bath, and lie down in the bath in exceedingly warm water.” But Polemo, in the fifth book of his treatise addressed to Antigonus and Adaeus, says — “ Dionysos being full grown, sitting on a rock, and on his left hand a satyr, bald, holding in his right hand a cothon of striped colours, with one handle.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.68
§ 11.68 There is also the labronia. This is a species of Persian drinking-cup, so named from the eagerness (λαβρότης) with which people drink: and its shape is wide, and its size large, and it has large handles. Menander, in his Fisherman, says — We are abundantly well off at this time For golden cylinders; and all those robes From Persia, all those quaintly carved works, Are now within, and richly-chased goblets, Figures and faces variously carved, Tragelaphi and labronia. And in his Philadelphi he says — And now the drinking of healths began, and now Labroniae, inlaid with precious stones, Were set upon the board; and slaves stood round With Persian fly-flappers. And Hipparchus, in his Thais, says — But this labronius is an omen now. O Hercules! it is a cup which weighs Of standard gold more than two hundred pieces. Just think, my friend, of this superb labronius. And Diphilus, in his Pithraustes, giving a catalogue of other kinds of cups, says — A. The tragelaphus, and likewise the pristis, The batiace, and labronius too. B. These seem to me to be the names of slaves. A. By no means; they are all the names of cups; And this labronius is worth twenty pieces. And Didymus says that it resembles the bombylium and the batiacium.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.69
§ 11.69 There is also the lacaena. And this is a kind of cup so called either from the potter, as the Attic vessels, usually are, or from the form which is usual in that district, on the same principle as the thericlean cups derive their name. Aristophanes, in his Daitaleis, says — He gladly shared the Sybaritic feasts, And drank the Chian wine from out the cups Called the lacecnae, with a cheerful look.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.70
§ 11.70 Then there is the lepaste. Some mark this word λεπαστη with an acute accent on the last syllable, like καλή; but some mark the penultima with an acute, as μεγάλη. And this kind of cup derived its name from those who spend a great deal of money on their drinking and intemperance, whom men call λάφυκται. Aristophanes, in his Peace, says — What will you do, then, when you've drunk One single lepaste full of new wine? And it is from this word λεπαστὴ that the verb λάπτω comes, which means to swallow all at once, having a meaning just opposite to the bombylium; for the same author says, somewhere or other, — You've drunk up all my blood, O king, my master! which is as much as to say, you have utterly drained me. And in his Gerytades he says — But there was then a festival: a slave Went round, and brought us all a lepaste, And pour'd in wine dark as the deep-blue sea; but the poet means here to indicate the depth of the cup. And Antiphanes, in his Asclepius, says — He took an aged woman, who had been A long time ill, sick of a ling'ring fever, And bruising some small root, and putting it Into a noble-sized lepaste there, He made her drink it all, to cure her sickness. Philyllius, in his Auge, says — For she was always in the company Of young men, who did nothing else but drink; And with a lot of aged women too, Who always do delight in good-sized cups. And Theopompus says in his Pamphila — A sponge, a dish, a feather; and, besides, A stout lepaste, which, when full, they drain To the Good Deity, raising loud his praises, As chirps a grasshopper upon a tree. And in his Mede he says — Callimachus,'tis stated, once did charm The Grecian heroes by some promised gain, When he was seeking for their aid and friendship. The only thing he fail'd in was th' attempt To gain the poor, thin-bodied Rhadamanthus Lysander with a cothon, ere he gave him A full lepaste. But Amerias says that the ladle with which the wine is poured into the cups is called lepaste; but Aristophanes and Apollodorus say that it is a sort of cup of the class κύλιξ. Pherecrates, in his Crapatalli, says — If there was one of the spectators thirsty, He would a full lepaste seize, and drain The whole contents. But Nicander the Colophonian says that “the Dolopans give the name of λεπαστὴ to the κύλιξ; but Lycophron, in the ninth book of his treatise on Comedy, quoting this passage of Pherecrates, himself also asserts the lepaste to be kind of κύλιξ; but Moschus, in his Interpretation of Rhodiat Words, says that it is an earthenware vessel resembling those which are called ptomatides, but flatter and wider: but Artemidorus, the pupil of Aristophanes, says that it is some sort of drinking-cup. And Apollophanes, in his Cretans, says — And the lepasta, fill'd with fragrant wine, Shall fill me with delight the livelong day. And Theopompus says in his Pamphila — A stout lepaste, which, well-fill'd with wine, They drain in honour of the Happy Deity, Rousing the village with their noise and clamour. But Nicander of Thyatira says it is a larger kind of κύλιξ, quoting the expressions of Teleclides out of his Prytanes — To drink sweet wine from a sweet-smelling lepaste. And Hermippus, in his Fates, says — If anything should happen to me when I've drain'd this promising lepaste, then I give my whole possessions unto Dionysos.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.71
§ 11.71 There is also the loibasium. This, too, is a κύλιξ, as Cleitarchus and Nicander of Thyatira say; with which they pour libations of oil over the sacred offerings and victims. Spondeum is the name given to the cup out of which they pour libations of wine. And he says that the spondea are also called loibides, by Antimachus of Colophon. Then we have the lesbium. This also is a kind of cup, as Hedylus proves in his Epigrams, where he says — Callistion, contending against men In drinking, ('tis a marvellous thing, but true,) When fasting, drank three whole choeis of wine; And now her cup, fashion'd of purple glass, Adorn'd with bands fragrant of luscious wine, She offers here to you, O Paphian queen. Preserve this first, that so your walls may bear The spoils of all the love excited so. There is also the luterium. Epigenes, in his Tomb, where he gives a catalogue of cups of different kinds, says — Craters, cadi, holcia, cruneia — Are they cruneia? aye, and luteria. But why need I each separate article Enumerate? for you yourself shall see them.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.72
§ 11.72 There is also the Lyciurges. The things which are so called are some kinds of phialae, which derive their name from Lycon who made them, just as the Cononii are the cups made by Conon. Now, Demosthenes, in his Oration for the Crown, mentions Lycon; and he does so again, in his oration against Timotheus for an assault, where he says — ”Two lyciurgeis Phialae." And in his speech against Timotheus he also says — “He gives Phormion, with the money, also two lyciurgeis Phialae to put away.” And Didymus the grammarian says that these are cups made by Lycius. And this Lycius was a Boeotian by birth, of the town of Eleutherae, a son of Myron the sculptor, as Polemo relates in the first book of his treatise on the Acropolis of Athens; but the grammarian is ignorant that one could never find such a formation of a word as that derived from proper names, but only from cities or nations. For Aristophanes, in his Peace, says — The vessel is a ναξιονργὴς cantharus; that is to say, made at Naxos. And Critias, in his Constitution of the Lacedemonians, has the expressions, κλίνη μιλησιουργὴς, and again, δίφροςλησιουργής: and κλινὴ χιουργὴς, and τράπεξα ρηνιοεργής: made at Miletus, or Chios, or Rhenea. And Herodotus, in his seventh book, speaks of “two spears, λυκοεργέες.” But perhaps we ought to read λυκιοεργέες in Herodotus as we do in Demosthenes, so as to understand by the word things made in Lycia.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.73
§ 11.73 There is also the mele. This is a name given to some cups which are mentioned by Anaxippus in his Well, where he says — And you, Syriscus, now this mele take, And bring it to her tomb — do you understand Then pour a due libation. There is also the metaniptrum. This is the kind of cup which is offered after dinner, when men have washed their hands. Autiphanes, in his Lamp, says — The metaniptrum of the Fortunate God; Feasting, libations, and applause... And Diphilus, in his Sappho, says — Archilochus, receive this metaniptris, The brimming cup of Zeus the Saviour. But some people say that this is rather the name of the draught itself which was given to the guests after they had washed their hands; as, for instance, Seleucus says in his Dialects. But Callias, in his Cyclops, says — Receive this metaniptris of Hygeia. And Philetaerus, in his Asclepius, says — He raised aloft a mighty metaniptris, Brimfull of wine, in equal portions mix'd, Repeating all the tine Hygeia's name. And Philoxenus the Dithyrambic poet, in his ode entitled the Supper, pledging some one after they have washed their hands, says — Do you, my friend, receive This metaniptris full of wine, The sweetly dewy gift of Dionysos. Bromius gives this placid joy, To lead all men to happiness. And Antiphanes, in his Torch, says — Our table shall now be this barley cake, And then this metaniptrum of Good Fortune..... Nicostratus, in his Woman returning Love, says — Pour over him the metaniptrum of health.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.74
§ 11.74 Then there is the mastus. Apollodorus the Cyrenaean, as Pamphilus says, states that this is a name given to drinking-cups by the Paphians. There are also the mathalides. Blaesus, in his Saturn, says — Pour out for us now seven mathalides Full of sweet wine. And Pamphilus says, “Perhaps this is a kind of cup, or is it only a measure like the cyathus” But Diodorus calls it a cup of the κύλιξ class.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.75
§ 11.75 There is also the manes, which is a species of cup. Nicon, in his Harp-player, says — And some seasonably then exclaim'd, My fellow-countryman, I drink to you; And in his hand he held an earthenware manes, Of ample size, well able to contain Five cotylae of wine; and I received it. And both Didymus and Pamphilus have quoted these iambics. But that is also called manes which stands upon the cottabus, on which they throw the drops of wine in that game, which Sophocles, in his Salmoneus, called the brazen head, saying — This is a contest, and a noise of kisses; I give a prize to him who gains the victory In elegantly throwing the cottabus, And striking with just aim the brazen head. And Antiphanes, in his Birthday of Venus, says — A. I then will show you how: whoever throws The cottabus direct against the scale (πλώστιγξ,) So as to make it fall — B. What scale? Do you Mean this small dish which here is placed above? A. That is the scale-he is the conqueror. B. How shall a man know this? A. Why, if he throw So as to reach it barely, it will fall Upon the manes, and there'll be great noise. B. Does manes, then, watch o'er the cottabus, As if he were a slave? And Hermippus says in his Fates — You'll see, says he, a cottabus rod. Wallowing round among the chaff; But the manes hears no drops, — And you the wretched scale may see Lying by the garden gate, And thrown away among the rubbish.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.76
§ 11.76 There is the Nestoris also. Now concerning the shape of the cup of Nestor, the poet speaks thus — Next her white hand a spacious goblet brings, A goblet sacred to the Pylian kings From eldest times; the massy, sculptured vase, Glittering with golden studs, four handles grace, And curling vines, around each handle roll'd, Support two turtle-doves emboss'd in gold. On two firm bases stood the mighty bowl, Lest the top weight should make it loosely roll: A massy weight, yet heaved with ease by him, Though all too great for men of lesser limb. Now with reference to this passage a question is raised, what is the meaning of “glittering with golden studs:” — and again, what is meant by “the massy, sculptured vase four handles grace.” For Asclepiades the Myrlean, in his treatise on the Nestoris, says that the other cups have two handles. And again, how could any one give a representation of turtle- doves feeding around each of the handles? How also can he say, “On two firm bases stood the mighty bowl?” And this also is a very peculiar statement that he makes, that he could heave it with ease, “though all too great for men of lesser limb.” Now Asclepiades proposes all these difficulties, and especially raises the question about the studs, as to how we are to understand that they were fastened on. Now some say that golden studs must be fastened on a silver goblet from the outside, on the principles of embossing, as is mentioned in the case of the sceptre of Achilles — He spoke, — and, furious, hurl'd against the ground His sceptre, starr'd with golden studs around; for it is plain here that the studs were let into the sceptre, as clubs are strengthened with iron nails. He also says of the sword of Agamemnon — A radiant baldric, o'er his shoulder tied, Sustain'd the sword that glittered at his side: Gold were the studs — a silver sheath encased The shining blade. But Apelles the engraver, he says, showed us on some articles of Corinthian workmanship the way in which studs were put on. For there was a small projection raised up by the chisel, to form, as it were, the heads of the nails. And these studs are said by the poet to be fixed in, not because they are on the outside and are fixed by nails, but because they resemble nails driven through, and project a little on the outside, being above the rest of the surface.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.77
§ 11.77 And with respect to the handles, they tell us that this cup had indeed two handles above, like other cups; but that it had also two more on the middle of its convex surface, one on each side, of small size, resembling the Corinthia water- ewers. But Apelles explained the system of the four handles very artistically in the following manner. He said, tat from one root, as it were, which is attached to the bottom of the cup, there are diverging lines extending along each handle, at no great distance from each other: and these reach up to the brim of the cup, and even rise a little above it, and are at the greatest distance from each other at the point where they are furthest from the vessel itself; but at the lower extremity, where they join the rim, they are again united. And in this way there are four handles; but this kind of ornament is not seen in every cup, but only on some, and especially on those which are called seleucides. But with respect to the question raised about the two bases, how it can be said, “On two firm bases stood the mighty bowl,” some people explain that line thus: — that some cups have one bottom, the natural one, being wrought at the same time as, and of one piece with, the whole cup; as for instance, those which are called cymbia, and the phialae, and others of the same shape as the phialae. But some have two bottoms; as for instance, the egg-shaped cups called ooscyphia, and those called cantharia, and the seleucides, and the carchesia, and others of this kind. For they say that one of these bottoms is wrought of the same piece as the entire cup, and the other is attached to it, being sharp at the upper part, and broader towards the lower end, as a support for the cup; and this cup of Nestor's, they say, was of this fashion. But the poet may have represented this cup as having two bottoms; the one, that is to say, bearing the whole weight of the cup, and having an elevation proportionate to the height, in accordance, with its greater circumference; and the other bottom might be smaller in circumference, so as to be contained within the circumference of the larger circle, where the natural bottom of the cup becomes sharper; so that the whole cup should be supported on two bases. But Dionysius the Thracian is said to have made the cup called Nestor's, at Rhodes, all his pupils contributing silver for the work; of which Promethidas of Heraclea, explaining the way in which it was made on the system of Dionysius, says that it is a cup having its handles made side by side, as the ships with two prows have their prows made; and that turtle-doves are represented sitting on the handles; and that two small sticks, as it were, are placed under the cup as a support to it, running transversely across in a longitudinal direction, and that these are the two bottoms meant by Homer. And we may to this day see a cup of that fashion at Capua, a city of Campania, consecrated to Artemis; and the Capuans assert that that is the identical cup which belonged to Nestor. And it is a silver cup, having on it the lines of Homer engraved in golden characters.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.78
§ 11.78 “But I,” said the Myrlean, “have this to say about the cup: — the ancients, who first brought men over to a more civilized system of life, believing that the world was spherical, and taking their ideas of form from the visible forms of the sun and moon which they beheld, and adapting these figures to their own use in the daily concerns of life, thought it right to make all their vessels and other articles of furniture resemble, in shape at least, the heaven which surrounds everything: on which account they made tables round; and so also they made the tripods which they dedicated to the Gods, and they also made their cakes round and marked with stars, which they also call moons. And this is the origin of their giving bread the name of ἄρτος, because of all figures the circle is the one which is the most complete (ἀπήρτισται), and it is a perfect figure. And accordingly they made a drinking-cup, being that which receives moist nourishment, circular, in imitation of the shape of the world. But the cup of Nestor has something peculiar about it, for it has stars on it, which the poet compares to studs, because the stars are as round as the studs, and are, as it were, fixed in the heaven; as also Aratus says of them — There do they shine in heaven, — ornaments Fix'd there for ever as the night comes round. But the poet has expressed this very beautifully, attaching the golden studs to the main body of the silver cup, and so indicating the nature of the stars and of the heaven by the colour of the ornaments. For the heaven is like silver, and the stars resemble gold from their fiery colour.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.79
§ 11.79 ”So after the poet had represented the cup of Nestor as studded with stars, he then proceeds on to the most brilliant of the fixed stars, by contemplating which men form their conjectures of what is to happen to them in their lives. I mean the Pleiades. For when he says δύο δὲ πελειάδες were placed in gold around each handle, he does not mean the birds called πελειάδες, that is to say, turtle-doves; and those who think that he does use πελειάδες here as synonymous with περιστεραὶ are wrong. For Aristotle says expressly that the πελειὰς is one bird, and the περιστερὰan other. But the poet calls that constellation πελειάδες which at present we call πλειάδες; by the rising of which men regulate their sowing and their reaping, and the beginning of their raising their crops, and their collection of them; as Hesiod says: — When the seven daughters of the Libyan king Rise in the heavens, then begin to mow; And when they hide their heads, then plough the ground. And Aratus says — Their size is small, their light but moderate, Yet are they famous over all the world; At early dawn and late at eve they roll, Zeus regulating all their tranquil motions; He has ordain'd them to give signs to men, When winter, and when summer too begins, — What is the time for ploughing, what for sowing. And accordingly it is with great appropriateness that the poet has represented the Pleiades, who indicate the time of the generation and approach to perfection of the fruits of the earth, as forming parts of the ornaments of the cup of that wise prince Nestor. For this vessel was intended to contain any kind of food, whether solid or liquid; on which account he also says that the turtle-doves bring ambrosia to Zeus: — No bird of air, nor dove of trembling wing, That bears ambrosia to th' ethereal king, But shuns these rocks. For we must not think here that it is really the birds called turtle-doves which bring ambrosia to Zeus, which is the opinion of many; for that were inconsistent with the majesty of Zeus; but the daughters of Atlas, turned into the constellation of Pleiades or doves. For it is natural enough that they who indicate the appropriate seasons to the human race should also bring ambrosia to Zeus, on which account also he distinguishes between them and other birds, saying — No bird of air, nor dove of trembling wing; and that he considers the Pleiades as the most famous of all fixed stars is plain, from his having placed them in the first rank when giving a list of other constellations: — There earth, there heaven, there ocean he design'd, — Th' unwearied sun, the moon completely round, — The starry lights, that heaven's high convex crown'd, — The Pleiads, Hyads, with the Northern Team, And great Orion's more refulgent beam; To which, around the axle of the sky, The Bear, revolving, points his golden eye; Still shines exalted on th' ethereal plain, Nor bathes his blazing forehead in the main, — The Bear, whom trusting rustics call the Wain. “But people in general have been deceived by fancying the πελειάδες here spoken of to be birds, first of all from the poetical form of the word, because of the insertion of the letter ε; and secondly, because they have taken the word τρήρωνες,'trembling,' as an epithet only of doves; since, owing to its weakness, that is a very cautious bird; and when he calls it τρήρων, this word is derived from τρέω, and τρέω is the same as εὐλαβέομαι, to be cautious. But still there is a good deal of reason in attributing the same characteristic also to the Pleiades: for the fable is, that they are always fleeing from Orion, since their mother Pleione is constantly pursued by Orion.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.80
§ 11.80 ”And the variation of the name, so that the Pleiades are called both πέλειαι and πελειάδες, occurs in many poets. First of all, Moero the Byzantian admirably caught the feeling of the Homeric poems, saying in her poem entitled Memory, that the Pleiades convey ambrosia to Zeus. But Crates the critic, endeavouring to appropriate to himself the credit due to her, produces that assertion as his own. Simonides also has called the Pleiades πελειάδες, in the following lines: — And may great Hermes, whose protecting pow'r Watches o'er contests, Maia's mighty son, Grant you success. But Atlas was the sire Of seven dark-hair'd daughters, beautiful, Surpassing all the maidens upon earth, And now in heaven they're call'd Peleiades. Here he distinctly calls the Pleiades πελειάδες, for they it was who were the daughters of Atlas; as Pindar says — And it is natural That great Orion should advance Not far from the seven Pleiades, at the tail (ὀρίας). For, in the arrangement of the stars, Orion is not far from the Pleiades; from which circumstance has arise the fable about them, that they, with their mother Pleione, are always fleeing from Orion. But when he calls the Pleiades ὄριαι here, he means οὔριαι, only he has left out the v, because the Pleiades are close to the tail of the Bull. And Aeschylus has spoken still more plainly, playing on their name on account of the resemblance of its sound, where he says — The seven celebrated daughters of The mighty Atlas, much bewail'd with tears Their father's heaven-supporting toil; where they Now take the form of night-appearing visions, The wingless Peleiades. For he calls them here wingless on account of the similarity of the sound of their name to that of the birds πελειάδες And' Moero herself also speaks in the same manner — The mighty Zeus was nourished long in Crete, Nor yet had any of the heav'nly beings E'er recognised their king; meanwhile he grew In all his limbs; and him the trembling doves Cherish'd, while hidden in the holy cave, Bringing him, from the distant streams of ocean, Divine ambrosia: and a mighty eagle, Incessant drawing with his curved beak Nectar from out the rock, triumphant brought The son of Saturn's necessary drink. Him, when the God of mighty voice had cast His father Saturn from his unjust throne, He made immortal, and in heaven placed. And so, too, did he give the trembling doves (πελειάσιν) Deserved honour; they who are to men Winter's and summer's surest harbingers. And Simmias, in his Gorge, says — The swiftest ministers of air came near, The quivering peleiades. And Posidippus, in his Asopia, says — Nor do the evening cool πέλειαι set. But Lamprocles the Dithyrambic poet has also expressly and poetically said that the word πελειάδες is in every sense synonymous with περιστεραὶ, in the following lines — And now you have your home in heaven, Showing your title with the winged doves. And the author of the poem called Astronomy, which is attributed to Hesiod, always calls the Pleiades πελειάδες, saying — Which mortals call Peleiades. And in another place he says — And now the Peleiades of winter set. And in another passage we find — Then the Peleiades do hide their heads; so that there is nothing at all improbable in the idea of Homer having lengthened the name πλειάδες by poetic licence into πελειάδες.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.81
§ 11.81 “Since, then, it is demonstrated that it is the Pleiades who were embossed on the goblet, we must understand that two were affixed to each handle, whether we choose to fancy that the damsels were represented under the form of birds or under human form; — at all events they were studded with stars: and as for the expression, ”Around each there were golden peleiades," we are not to understand that as meaning around each separate one; for that would make eight in number: but as each of the handles was divided into two sections, and as these again were united towards the bottom, the poet has used the word ἕκαστος, speaking as if there were four sections of handles; but if he had said ἑκάτερον, that would have applied to the fact of their again becoming united at the highest point which they respectively reach. And accordingly, when he says — And curling vines, around each handle roll'd, Bear two Peleiades emboss'd in gold; On two firm bases stood the mighty bowl; we are by that to understand one Peleias to. each section of the handles. And he has called them δοιὰς, as being united to one another and grown together as it were. For the word δοιαὶ, signifies simply the number two, as in the passage — Two tripods (δοιοὺς δὲ τρίποδας), and ten golden talents; and again — Two attendants (δοιοὶ θεράπογτες): and it also at times intimates a natural connexion subsisting between the two things spoken of, as well as that they are two in number; as in these lines: — There grew two (δοιοὶ) olives, closest of the grove, With roots entwined and branches interwove, Alike their leaves, but not alike they smiled With sister fruits, — one fertile, one was wild: — and accordingly this calculation will give altogether four Peleiades upon the handles.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.82
§ 11.82 “And, then, when he adds this — And curling vines, around each handle roll'd, Bear two Peleiades emboss'd in gold: On two firm bases stood the mighty bowl; we are to understand not two actual separate bases, nor indeed ought we to read ὑποπυθμένες as two words, like Dionysius the Thracian, but we ought to read it as one word, υποπυθμενες, in order to understand it with reference to the Peleiades, that there were four Peleiades on the handles, and two more ὑποπυθμένες, which is equivalent to ὑπὸ τῷ πυθμένι, that is to say, under the pedestal, as if the word were ὑποπυθμένιοι. So that the goblet is supported by two Peleiades which lie under the bottom, and in that way there are altogether six Pleiades in all, since that is the number which are seen, though they are said to be seven in number, as Aratus says — They are indeed declared by mortal man To be in number seven; yet no more Than six have e'er been seen by mortal eyes. Not that a star can e'er have disappear'd Unnoticed from the pure expanse of heaven Since we have heard of its existence; but The number has been stated carelessly, And therefore they are usually call'd seven. Accordingly, what is seen in the stars the poet has very suitably described among the ornaments made on the occasion. And many fancy that the poet is here referring to Zeus, when he says — No bird of air, nor dove of trembling wing, That bears ambrosia to th' ethereal king, But shuns these rocks. In vain she cuts the skies, They fearful meet, and crush her as she flies. Meaning in reality, that one of the Pleiades was destroyed by the sharpness of the rocks and their smooth edge, and that another is substituted in her place by Zeus for the sake of keeping the number undiminished. Expressing by the enigmatical figures of speech common to poets, that, though there are only six Pleiades seen, still their real number is not actually diminished; but there are said to be seven in number, and also the names of the seven are distinctly given.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.83
§ 11.83 But as for those people who contend that there is no appropriateness in embossing the Pleiades on this cup, as they are rather indicative of dry food, we must state that this kind of cup is calculated to receive both solid and liquid food; for κυκεὼν is made in it; and this is a kind of potion, having mixed in it cheese and meal; and the poet tells us that both these ingredients are stirred up (κυκωμένα) together and so drunk: — The draught prescribed fair Hecamede prepares, Arsinous' daughter, graced with golden hairs (Whom to his aged arms a royal slave Greece, as the prize of Nestor's wisdom, gave): A table first with azure feet she placed, Whose ample orb a brazen charger graced; Honey, new press'd, the sacred flour of wheat, And wholesome garlic crown'd the savoury treat Next her white hand a spacious goblet brings, A goblet sacred to the Pylian kings; Temper'd in this, the nymph of form divine Pours a large portion of the Pramnian wine; With goats'-milk cheese a flavorous taste bestows, And last with flour the smiling surface strows. This for the wounded prince the dame prepares; The cordial beverage reverend Nestor shares.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.84
§ 11.84 And as for the lines — A massy weight, yet heav'd with ease by him, Though all too great for men of smaller limb; we are not to understand this as referring only to Machaon and Nestor, as some people think, who refer ὃς to Machaon, taking it as if it were ὁ, and say, ᾿αλλ᾽ δ̓ς μὲν μογέων ἀποκινήσασκε τραπέζης, — thinking that ”heaved with ease by him" is said of Machaon, as he was the person for whom the cup has been mixed as he had been wounded; but we shall show hereafter that Machaon is never represented in Homer as wounded. But these men do not perceive, that when Homer says ἄλλος, he is not speaking of Machaon and Nestor alone (for these two are drinking of the cup), for in that case he would have said ἕτερος. For ἕτερος is the proper word for the other of two, as in this line — οἴσετε δ᾽ ἄρν᾽ ἕτερον λευκὸν, ἑτέρην δὲ μέλαιναν, — And bring two lambs, one male, with snow-white fleece, The other black, who shall the breed increase. Besides, Homer never uses ὃς for the demonstrative pronoun ὁ; but, on the contrary, he sometimes uses the demonatrative ὃ for the relative ὃς, as in the line — ἒνθα δὲ σὶσυφος ἒσκεν ὃ κέρδιστος γὲνετ᾽ ἀνδρῶν, — There Sisyphus, who of all men that lived Was the most crafty, held his safe abode. “But still, in this line, τις is wanting, for the sentence, when complete, should run — ᾶλλος μέν τις μογέων ἀποκινήσασκε τραπέζης πλεῖον ἐὸν, νέστωρ δ᾽ ὁ γέρων ἀμογητὶ ἄειρεν: so that the meaning would be, that there is no man who could lift the cup up from the table without an effort, but that Nestor raised it easily, without any labour or distress. For the cup is described as having been large in size, and very heavy in weight; which however Nestor, being very fond of drinking, was easily able to lift, from his constant practice.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.85
§ 11.85 ”But Sosibius, the solver of questions, quoting the lines — ἄλλος μὲν μογέων ἀποκινήσασκε τραπέζης πλεῖον ἐόν: νέστωρ δ᾽ ζ γέρων ἀμογητὶᾶειρεν, writes on this expression-'Now, the poet has been often reproached for making that the rest of the men could only lift this cup by a great effort, but that Nestor alone could do so without any extraordinary exertion. For it appeared unreasonable, that when Diomede and Ajax, and even Achilles too were present, Nestor should be represented as more vigorous than they, when he was so far advanced in years. But though these accusations are brought against him, we may release the poet from them by transposing the order. For in that hexameter — πλεῖον ἐὸν, νέστωρ δ᾽ ὁ γέρων ἀμογητὶ ἄειρεν, if we take γέρων out of the middle, we shall unite that to the beginning of the preceding line, after ἄλλος μὲν, and then we shall connect the words as before — ἄλλος μὲν γέρων μογέων ἀποκινήσασκε τραπέζης: πλεῖον ἐὸν, ο ῾δὲ νέστωρ ἀπονητὶ ἄειρεν. Now then, when the words are arranged in this way, Nestor only appears to be represented as the only one of the old men who could lift the cup without an extraordinary effort.' “These are the observations of that admirable solver of difficulties, Sosibius. But Ptolemy Philadelphus the king jested upon him with some wit, on account of this and other much talked-of solutions. For as Sosibius received a royal stipend, Ptolemy, sending for his treasurers, desired them, when Sosibius came to demand his stipend, to tell him that he had received it already. And when, not long after, he did come and ask for his money, they said they had given it to him already, and said no more. But he, going to the king, accused the treasurers. And Ptolemy sent for them, and ordered them to come with their books, in which were the lists of those who received those stipends. And when they had arrived, the king took the books into his hands and looking into them himself, also asserted that Sosibius had received his money; making it out in this way: — These names were set down, — Soter, Sosigenes, Bion, Apollon, Dion; and the king, looking on these names, said — My excellent solver of difficulties, if you take σω from σωτὴρ, and σι from σωσιγένης, and the first syllable βι from βίων and the last syllable from'απόλλωνος, you will find, on your own principles, that you have received your stipend. And you are caught in this way, not owing to the actions of others, but by your own feathers, as the incomparable Aeschylus says, since you yourself are always occupied about solutions of difficulties which are foreign to the subject in hand.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.86
§ 11.86 There is the holmus also. This, too, is a drinking-cup, made in the fashion of a horn. Menesthenes, in the fourth book of his Politics, writes thus — “A twisted albatanes and a golden holmus. But the holmus is a cup wrought after the fashion of a horn, about a cubit in height.”
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.87
§ 11.87 There is also the oxybaphum. Now common usage gives this name to the cruet that holds the vinegar; but it is also the name of a cup; and it is mentioned by Cratinus, in his Putina, in this way: — How can a man now make him leave off this Excessive drinking? I can tell a way; For I will break his jugs and measures all, And crush his casks as with a thunderbolt, And all his other vessels which serve to drink: Nor shall he have a single oxybaphum left, Fit to hold wine. But that the oxybaphum is a kind of small κύλιξ, made of earthenware, Antiphanes proves plainly enough, in his Mystis, in the following words. There is a wine-bibbing old woman praising a large cup, and disparaging the oxybaphum as small. So when some one says to her — Do you, then, drink; she answers — There I will obey you. And, by the gods, the figure of the cup Is quite inviting, worthy of the fame Of this high festival; for have we not — Have we not, and not long ago, I say, Drunk out of earthenware oxybapha? But may the gods, my son, give many blessings To him who made this cup-a noble cup, As to its beauty and its good capacity. And also in the Babylonians of Aristophanes we hear of the oxybaphum as a drinking-cup, when Dionysos speaks of the demagogues at Athens, saying that they demanded of him two oxybapha when he was going away to trial. For we cannot think that they asked him for anything but cups. And the oxybaphum, which is put before the people who play at the cottabus, into which they pour their drops of wine, can be nothing else but a flat cup. Eubulus also, in his Mylothris, mentions the oxybaphum as a cup — And besides, I measure out for drinking An oxybaphum all round; and then he swore The wine was nothing but pure vinegar, And that the vinegar was wine, at least Superior to the other.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.88
§ 11.88 There is the oinisteria too. The young men, when they are going to cut their hair, says Pamphilus, fill a large cup with wine, and bring it to Hercules; and they call this cup an oinisteria. And when they have poured a libation, they give it to the assembled people to drink. There is the ollix also. Pamphilus, in his Attic Words, describes this as a wooden cup.
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0008.tlg001:11.89
§ 11.89 There is also the panathenaicum. Posidonius the philosopher, in the thirty-sixth book of his History, mentions some cups called by this name, speaking thus — “There were also cups made of an onyx, and also of several precious stones joined together, holding about two cotylae. And very large cups, called panathenaica, some holding two choes, and some even larger.” There is the proaron too. This was a wooden cup, into which the Athenians used to pour mixed wine. “In hollow proara,” says Pamphilus.

Via ToposText (topostext.org), a project of the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation created by Brady Kiesling. Translated by Charles Burton Gulick (1868-1962). Composed ca. 228 CE. Licence: public domain. Source.