A path home, star men, and the origins of astronomy

Astronomy: "the distribution of the stars." The Babylonians were first to discover it through [the teaching of?] Zoroaster. With them was Ostanes. They established that what occurs at birth is caused by celestial movement. The Egyptians and Greeks came after these men, and they trace those who are born back to movement of the stars.

Also, there is the phrase "to judge by the stars": for those who travel a long and solitary path, and by the stars are led back to the place of their homeland.

And the word, "starry": one who comes from the stars.

Magic and astrology originated from the Magouseans, for the Persians are actually called Magog by the locals, and these are the same as the Magouseans.

Ἀστρονομία: ἡ τῶν ἄστρων διανομή. πρῶτοι Βαβυλώνιοι ταύτην ἐφεῦρον διὰ Ζωροάστρου· μεθ' ὧν καὶ Ὀστάνης· οἳ ἐπέστησαν τῇ οὐρανίᾳ κινήσει τὰ περὶ τοὺς τικτομένους συμβαίνειν· ἀφ' ὧν Αἰγύπτιοι καὶ Ἕλληνες ἐδέξαντο καὶ τοὺς γεννωμένους ἀναφέρουσιν εἰς τὴν τῶν ἀστέρων κίνησιν.

καὶ Ἄστροις τεκμαίρεσθαι, ἐπὶ τῶν μακρὰν καὶ ἔρημον ὁδὸν πορευομένων καὶ ἄστροις σημειουμένων τὰς θέσεις τῶν πατρίδων.

καὶ Ἀστρῷος, ὁ ἐκ τῶν ἄστρων.

ὅτι μαγεία καὶ ἀστρολογία ἀπὸ Μαγουσαίων ἤρξατο. οἱ γάρ τοι Πέρσαι Μαγὼγ ὑπὸ τῶν ἐγχωρίων ὀνομάζονται. καὶ Μαγουσαῖοι, οἱ αὐτοί. 

Suda, s.v. Ἀστρονομία (α-entry 4257)

How to live a long life: learn magic or get some exercise

Pseudo-Lucian talks about the prophecy and piety of the Magi (along with ethnographies of other tribes) as part of a discussion of life-expectancy: why do some groups of people live longer than others? Pseudo-Lucian thinks you could live a long time too if you just exercised and ate properly. Inspired by this article at the BBC: "We learn nothing about nutrition, claim medical students".

---

"Stories have been told of whole races who have a long life expectancy because of their way of life.* There are those called the 'Sacred Scribes' in Egypt, the 'Interpreters of Myths' in Assyria and Arabia, those called 'Brahmans' in India, men completely devoted to the study of philosophy, and those called the 'Magi', a prophetic race who dedicate themselves to the gods, found among the Persians, Parthians, Bactrians, Chorasmians, Arians, Sacae, Medes, and many other Barbarians. They are strong and long-lived because they lead their life in strict observance of magic.

"There are also whole nations who have a long life expectancy, like in the stories they tell about the Seres, who live up to three-hundred years, some attributing the cause of their old age to the climate, others to the land, and still others to their way of life: for, they say, this is a whole nation of water-drinkers. Stories are also told of the people of Athos living up to one- hundred and thirty years, and there is a report that the Chaldeans live over one-hundred years, using bread made from barley because it acts as a drug for preserving good eyesight. They also say that on account of this diet, their other senses are better than those of other people.

"But that's enough about the life expectancy of these races and nations, those which they say survive for a long time either because of the land and climate, or way of life, or both. I, however, want to propose to you that your hopes [of a long life] are easy to achieve, by telling you about men in every land and in every climate who have become long-lived by using the right kind of exercises and a healthy diet."

καὶ γένη δὲ ὅλα μακρόβια ἱστορεῖται διὰ τὴν δίαιταν, ὥσπερ Αἰγυπτίων οἱ καλούμενοι ἱερογραμματεῖς, Ἀσσυρίων δὲ καὶ Ἀράβων οἱ ἐξηγηταὶ τῶν μύθων, Ἰνδῶν δὲ οἱ καλούμενοι Βραχμᾶνες, ἄνδρες ἀκριβῶς φιλοσοφίᾳ σχολάζοντες, καὶ οἱ καλούμενοι δὲ μάγοι, γένος τοῦτο μαντικὸν καὶ θεοῖς ἀνακείμενον παρά τε Πέρσαις καὶ Πάρθοις καὶ Βάκτροις καὶ Χωρασμίοις καὶ Ἀρείοις καὶ Σάκαις καὶ Μήδοις καὶ παρὰ πολλοῖς ἄλλοις βαρβάροις, ἐρρωμένοι τέ εἰσι καὶ πολυχρόνιοι διὰ τὸ μαγεύειν διαιτώμενοι καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀκριβέστερον.

ἤδη δὲ καὶ ἔθνη ὅλα μακροβιώτατα, ὥσπερ Σῆρας μὲν ἱστοροῦσι μέχρι τριακοσίων ζῆν ἐτῶν, οἱ μὲν τῷ ἀέρι, οἱ δὲ τῇ γῇ τὴν αἰτίαν τοῦ μακροῦ γήρως προστιθέντες, οἱ δὲ καὶ τῇ διαίτῃ· ὑδροποτεῖν γάρ φασι τὸ ἔθνος τοῦτο σύμπαν. καὶ Ἀθῴτας δὲ μέχρι τριάκοντα καὶ ἑκατὸν ἐτῶν βιοῦν ἱστορεῖται, καὶ τοὺς Χαλδαίους ὑπὲρ τὰ ἑκατὸν ἔτη βιοῦν λόγος, τούτους μὲν καὶ κριθίνῳ ἄρτῳ χρωμένους, ὡς ὀξυδορκίας τοῦτο φάρμακον· οἷς γέ φασι διὰ τὴν τοιαύτην δίαιταν καὶ τὰς ἄλλας αἰσθήσεις ὑπὲρ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀνθρώπους ἐρρωμένας εἶναι.

Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν περί τε τῶν μακροβίων γενῶν καὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν, ἅτινά φασιν ὡς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον διαγίγνεσθαι χρόνον, οἱ μὲν διὰ τὴν γῆν καὶ τὸν ἀέρα, οἱ δὲ διὰ τὴν δίαιταν, οἱ δὲ καὶ δι' ἄμφω. ἐγὼ δ' ἄν σοι δικαίως τὴν ἐλπίδα ῥᾳδίαν παράσχοιμι ἱστορήσας ὅτι καὶ κατὰ πᾶσαν γῆν καὶ κατὰ πάντα ἀέρα μακρόβιοι γεγόνασιν ἄνδρες οἱ γυμνασίοις τοῖς προσήκουσιν καὶ διαίτῃ τῇ ἐπιτηδειοτάτῃ πρὸς ὑγίειαν χρώμενοι.

Pseudo-Lucian, Long Lives (Marcobii), 4-8

* διὰ τὴν δίαιταν I'm translating as "way of life" or "diet" depending on the context. Keep in mind that it includes more that just what one eats, but also hygiene more generally: one's daily routine of sleep, waking, food, drink, work and sex.

Galen's advice on how to never get sick ("read my books and pay attention")

"After I turned 28, I had convinced myself that there exists an art of hygiene and I followed its precepts the whole rest of my life. The result was that I never got sick except for the occasional ephemeral fever; but, surely it is possible for someone to preserve themselves completely if they have secured a life of freedom.* This already became clear in the previous sections, and it will become even clearer in the sections that follow should you choose to pay attention. For I say no buboes** can be produced in anyone who has rigorously prepared for health, simply if their body is free from of each kind of excess residue, both in quantity and quality."

ἀλλὰ μετά γε τὸ εἰκοστὸν ὄγδοον ἔτος ἀπὸ γενετῆς ἐμαυτὸν πείσας, ὡς ἔστι τις ὑγιεινὴ τέχνη, τοῖς προστάγμασιν αὐτῆς ἠκολούθησα παρ' ὅλον τὸν ἑξῆς βίον, ὡς μηκέτι νοσῆσαι νόσημα μηδέν, ὅτι μὴ σπάνιόν που πυρετὸν ἐφήμερον. ἔστι δὲ δήπου καὶ τοῦτον αὐτὸν φυλάξασθαι τελέως, ἐλεύθερον ἑλόμενον βίον, ὡς ἔν τε τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν ἤδη γέγονε δῆλον ἔτι τε μᾶλλον ἔσται σαφὲς ἐν τοῖς ἐφεξῆς εἰρησομένοις, εἰ θέλοι τις προσέχειν τὸν νοῦν. ἐγὼ γάρ φημι μηδὲ βουβῶνα δύνασθαι γενέσθαι τοῖς ἀκριβῶς παρεσκευασμένοις εἰς ὑγείαν, εἴ γ' ἀπέριττον αὐτοῖς ἐστι τὸ σῶμα τοῦ γένους τῶν περιττωμάτων ἑκατέρου, τοῦ τε κατὰ τὸ ποσὸν καὶ τοῦ κατὰ τὸ ποιόν.

Galen, De sanitate tuenda, 5.1, 6.309-10 Kühn

*Galen is referring to something he said a bit earlier: that he gets an occasional fever because sometimes he works too much. In other words, he is not free, since he is dedicated to his practice. If you are free, all the more reason you should remain healthy if you follow his advice.

**not quite sure why Galen is singling out buboes here.

Julius Caesar's Prescription

“They say that Caesar had an epileptic fit brought on by an unending winter, but that he was later treated by drinking the juice of the Heraclean plant with the rennet from a seal. It’s not surprising if Caesar was able to get his hands on seal rennet. Aretas, however, the phylarch of Arab Scenitae, wrote a letter to Claudius Caesar about a treatment using birds. He says the liver of a vulture roasted along with the blood and taken with honey three times a week gives relief from epilepsy. Likewise, the heart of the vulture, when dried, taken with water in the same manner, is equally effective.”

Ὅτι τὸν Καίσαρά φασιν ἐξ ἀπείρου χειμῶνος ἐπιληψίᾳ περιπεσεῖν· θεραπευθῆναι δὲ ὕστερον ἡρακλείου βοτάνης χυλὸν σὺν πυτίᾳ φώκης ἑλκύσαντα. καὶ Καῖσαρ μὲν οὔπω θαυμαστὸν εἰ καὶ φώκης πυτίας ηὐπόρησεν· Ἀρέτας δὲ ὁ τῶν Σκηνιτῶν Ἀράβων φύλαρχος Κλαυδίῳ Καίσαρι γράφων ἐπιστολὴν περὶ τῆς δι' ὀρνέων θεραπείας φησίν, ἧπαρ γυπὸς σὺν τῷ αἵματι ὀπτὸν μετὰ μέλιτος διδόμενον ἐπὶ ἑβδομάδας τρεῖς ἀπαλλάττειν ἐπιληψίας, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τὴν καρδίαν τοῦ γυπός, ὅτε ξηρανθῇ, ἐν ὕδατι διδομένην τῷ ἴσῳ τρόπῳ ἰσχύειν.

Lydus, On the months of the year, 4. 104

“Most historians say that Caesar was a seven-month child, and that’s why he changed the name of the seventh month of the sacred year to his own.”

Ὅτι οἱ πολλοὶ τῶν ἱστορικῶν φασι τὸν Καίσαρα ἑπτάμηνον τεχθῆναι, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τὸν ἕβδομον μῆνα τοῦ ἱερατικοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ εἰς τὴν οἰκείαν μεταβαλεῖν προσηγορίαν.

Lydus, On the months of the year, 4. 105

“An oracle was delivered to the Romans by the Mother, that they are not to engage in sexual activity at all during July, if their bodies are to stay healthy.”

Χρησμὸς ἐδόθη Ῥωμαίοις πρὸς τῆς Μητρός, μηδ' ὅλως ἀφροδισίοις χρῆσθαι ἀνὰ πάντα τὸν Ἰούλιον μῆνα, εἴπερ αὐτοῖς ὑγιαίνειν τὰ σώματα μέλλοι.

Lydus, On the months of the year, 4. 106

“When some people were suspicious of Marc Antony and Dolabella and urged Caesar to keep an eye on them, he said he wasn't worried about plodding and portly people, but thin and pale ones, indicating Brutus and Cassius.”

Ἀντώνιον δὲ καὶ Δολοβέλλαν ὑφορωμένων ἐνίων καὶ φυλάττεσθαι κελευόντων, οὐ τούτους ἔφη δεδιέναι τοὺς βαναύσους καὶ λιπῶντας, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἰσχνοὺς καὶ ὠχροὺς ἐκείνους, δείξας Βροῦτον καὶ Κάσσιον.

[Plutarch], Sayings of Gaius Caesar, 14 (Moralia 206F)

"When the conversation at dinner turned to the best kind of death, Caesar said: 'unexpected.'"

Λόγου δὲ παρὰ δεῖπνον ἐμπεσόντος περὶ θανάτου ποῖος ἄριστος ‘ὁ ἀπροσδόκητος’ εἶπε.

[Plutarch], Sayings of Gaius Caesar, 15 (Moralia 206F)

Pedlars and Peddlers, Hucksters and Trash-talkers

(Ed 22 March 2019: I’ve since found an excellent book on shopping in Ancient Rome by Claire Holleran. Here’s the Google books view of the relevant chapter.)

I’ve been trying to sort out a term from Galen’s pharmacology: a group of people called ‘rhôpopôlai‘ who seem to deal with plants professionally. Not ‘professionally’ like doctor- or florist-professionally, but still in a way that everyone recognizes:

"Once I have added this further point, I will end the discussion of abrotanum. The incredible Pamphilus, although he describes this herb first and even tries to give a description of it from his own experience (so what if he doesn’t do this for any of the herbs that follow), nevertheless makes a terrible error: he thought that this plant is the one the Romans call, 'santonicum'. The fact is, abrotanum differs from santonicum, as Dioscorides very accurately described in book three of De materia medica. Everyone knows this, doctors and rhôpopôlai alike.

τοσόνδε μέντοι προσθεὶς ἔτι περὶ ἀβροτόνου καταπαύσω τὸν λόγον, ὡς ὁ θαυμασιώτατος Πάμφιλος, καίτοι ταύτην πρώτην πόαν γράφων καὶ τάχ' ἂν εἰ μηδενὸς τῶν ἐφεξῆς, ἀλλὰ ταύτης γοῦν ἐθελήσας αὐτόπτης γενέσθαι, ὅμως ἔσφαλται μέγιστα, νομίζων ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων σαντόνικον ὀνομάζεσθαι τὴν βοτάνην.  διαφέρει γὰρ ἀβρότονον σαντονίκου, καθότι καὶ Διοσκουρίδης ἔγραψεν ἐν τῷ τρίτῳ περὶ ὕλης ἀκριβέστατα, καὶ πάντες ἴσασι τοῦτό γε ἰατροὶ καὶ ῥωποπῶλαι.

Galen, Simple Drugs, 6.pr. (11.804 K.)

Galen thinks doctors are expected to know the difference between one kind of artemisia and another (artemisia santonicum and artemisia abrotanum). His expectations for the rhôpopôlai, however, are more relaxed, and he doesn't think he's being controversial in saying this (he mentions this profession five times, he's not too big on them). At the same time he also seems confident that he and his audience are familiar with who these people are. The character of the rhôpopôlês is so well known, so utterly unremarkable, that it can slip in as the punchline of Galen’s trash-talk.

Of course, they aren’t unremarkable anymore. I have no idea what a 'rhôpopôlês' is, what he knows or doesn’t know, where one finds him in town, what he does. The rhôpopôlês is an alien to me. Even after putting together a bunch of texts that talk about him, I’m still not sure I really get the joke. 

A 'rhôpopôlês' is probably something like a huckster, hawker, costermonger, street-vendor. (to be honest, I don't know what these guys are either. I have an irrational fear of markets and my imagination is limited to the pedlars on summer sundays at Parc Mont Royal). Literally, it is someone who sells or deals in ῥῶπος. What this means is not totally clear: sometimes, it means a trinket, or small non-perishable good, i.e., something you don’t need a fixed shop to sell; other times it means something much more specific, namely pigments, oils, dyes, perfumes and drugs.

The specification we see in later sources led to some debate about whether this term (and terms like it) implies there was a profession of druggists or pharmacists in Roman antiquity. It probably doesn't; there were ‘root-cutters’, but that’s another story.

“'Rhôpopôlês': a person who sells 'rhôpos’, that is any dry, miscellaneous goods.”

ῥωποπώλης: ὁ τὸν ῥῶπον πωλῶν, ὅ ἐστι ξηρὸς φόρτος καὶ ποικίλος.

Phrynichus, Sophistic Preparations (epitome) Page 107, line 1

“Rhôpos and gelgê: Miscellaneous and small goods. Thus, 'rhôpopôlês' (‘rôpos-seller) and 'gelgopôlê' (gelge-seller).”

ῥῶπος καὶ γέλγη· ὁ ποικίλος καὶ λεπτὸς φόρτος, ὅθεν ῥωποπώλης καὶ γελγοπώλη

Aelius Dionysius, Attic Names, s.v. ῥῶπος (entry 14)

“The Attics say ‘gelgê ' and ' gelgê-seller'; Greeks say 'rhôpos ' and 'rhôpos-seller'.”

γέλγη καὶ γελγοπώλης Ἀττικοί, ῥῶπος καὶ ῥωποπώλης Ἕλληνες.

Moeris, Attic Lexicon, 194,4

“It is said that the first Phoenicians to sail to Tartessos, having brought oil and other nautical rhôpos, came back loaded with so much silver that there was nowhere to keep or put it, but when sailing away from the place they were forced to make everything else which they used out of silver, and even all the anchors, as well.”

Τοὺς πρώτους τῶν Φοινίκων ἐπὶ Ταρτησσὸν πλεύσαντας λέγεται τοσοῦτον ἀργύριον ἀντιφορτίσασθαι, ἔλαιον καὶ ἄλλον ναυτικὸν ῥῶπον εἰσαγαγόντας, ὥστε μηκέτι ἔχειν δύνασθαι μήτε ἐπιδέξασθαι τὸν ἄργυρον, ἀλλ' ἀναγκασθῆναι ἀποπλέοντας ἐκ τῶν τόπων τά τε ἄλλα πάντα ἀργυρᾶ οἷς ἐχρῶντο κατασκευάσασθαι, καὶ δὴ καὶ τὰς ἀγκύρας πάσας.

Pseudo-Aristotle, On Marvellous Things Heard, 844a17-23

“Nature is everywhere precise, artistic, lacking nothing and without excess – ‘having’, as Erasistratus says, ‘nothing rhôpikon.’” (=trashy? tracky? worthless?? superfluous?)

πανταχοῦ μὲν γὰρ ἡ φύσις ἀκριβὴς καὶ φιλότεχνος καὶ ἀνελλιπὴς καὶ ἀπέριττος, ‘οὐδέν’ ὡς ἔφησεν Ἐρασίστρατος ‘ἔχουσα ῥωπικόν’

Plutarch, Moralia 495C7-9 = Erasistratus Fr. 83

[[then there’s a semantic shift, at some point in the dark ages.]]

“'Rhôpos': compounds, pigments, all those things used by dyers, painters and perfumers. Whence, 'rhôpopôlês', 'perfume dealer' (?). Some people have also called miscellaneous goods, 'rhôpos'.”

Ῥῶπος: μίγμα· χρώματα, ὅσα βαφεῦσι, ζωγράφοις, μυρεψοῖς χρησιμεύει· ὅθεν ῥωποπώλης, ὁ μυροπώλης· τινὲς δὲ καὶ τὸν παντοδαπὸν φόρτον, ῥῶπον εἰρήκασιν.

Photius, Lexicon, s.v. Ῥῶπος (p.494)

“Rhôpos: compounds of colour, those which are used by dyers, painters and perfumers. Whence 'rhôpopôlês'. Some people have also called miscellaneous goods 'rhôpos'.”

Ῥῶπος: μίγμα χρώματος, ὅσα βαφεῦσι, ζωγράφοις, μυρεψοῖς χρησιμεύει. ὅθεν ῥωποπώλης. τινὲς δὲ καὶ τὸν παντοδαπὸν φόρτον ῥῶπον εἰρήκασι.

Suda, s.v. Ῥῶπος

“A rhôpos is a small, cheap, miscellaneous good, as Aelius Dionysius says, while gelgê, he says, is what the ancients called it. Whence, just as there are rhôpos-sellers, so too there are gelgê- sellers. The word, 'rhôpos', occurs in Demosthenes and others, and in Strabo. From this also comes rhopoperperethra, when someone calls out to someone they are mocking with vulgarity and silliness ('trash-talk'?), the inflection of which follows daktylethra ('finger sheath') and similar words. It also occurs in the verb, 'rhôpizein', which refers to making compounds and mixtures.

Ῥῶπος μέντοι λεππὸς καὶ εὐτελὴς φόρτος, ὡς δὲ Αἴλιος Διονύσιος λέγει, καὶ ποικίλος, γέλγην δέ, φησίν, αὐτὸν ἔλεγον οἱ παλαιοί. ὅθεν καθὰ ὁ ῥωποπώλης, οὕτω καὶ ὁ γελγοπώλης. ἡ δὲ λέξις τοῦ ῥώπου παρά τε Δημοσθένει καὶ ἑτέροις, κεῖται δὲ καὶ παρὰ τῷ Στράβωνι. ἐκ τούτου δὲ καὶ ῥωποπερπερήθρα τις προσερρήθη ἐπὶ χυδαιότητι καὶ φλυαρίᾳ σκωπτόμενος, οὗ ἡ παραγωγὴ κατὰ τὸ δακτυλήθρα καὶ τὰ ὅμοια. φέρεται δὲ καὶ ῥῆμα τὸ ῥωπίζειν, ὃ δηλοῖ τὸ σύμμικτα καὶ συμπεφυρμένα ποιεῖν.

Eustathius, Commentarii ad Homeri Iliadem, 3.459-360

Aristotle's Lost Book On Magic

Here are all of V. Rose's testimonia of a work attributed to Aristotle called Magic (ὁ Μαγικός λόγος, or τὸ μαγικόν?). The title either refers to the art practised by the Magi (the Zoroastrian priests from Persia), or it refers to the fact that the discussion is a discussion about the Magi. The latter seems more likely, even though the first passage, from Diogenes Laertius, suggests the discussion mentioned all sorts of wisdom cults.

The attribution is disputed. Diogenes Laertius says it is by Aristotle, but doesn't put it in his list of Aristotle's works (it doesn't show up in any other list I've looked at in either Greek or Arabic). The Suda says it is by Antisthenes, and that some people attributed it to Aristotle or someone named Rhodon. It's not clear where the Suda is getting this from.

While we don't know who wrote it, its contents are hinted at by the testimonies gathered in Rose (+ a few others I've put together). Diogenes reports that Aristotle thought magic wasn't sorcery, but philosophy or wisdom. This is confirmed by the Suda. It has something to do with prognostication. Eudoxus, according to Pliny, believed it was useful and very valuable, and so it was not only practical but connected to more valuable objects of study, probably the heavenly bodies. This is especially supported by the etymology of Zoroaster ('star-diviner') reported by Diogenes, and Porphyry's etymology of 'magus' as 'wise in divine matters'. Philo specifies that it was a kind of 'optics' and a very precise branch of natural science. Finally, Philo, Porphyry and the Suda associate it with both wisdom and with kingship. Philo says not only private citizens practice magic, but that Persian kings themselves had to be educated as Magi to become king.

It seems to me as if all these testimonies could be referring to a discussion of wise philosopher kings who are able to predict the future through their understanding of the heavens and the science of nature.

---

"Some say the work of philosophy originated with the barbarians. For among the Persians are the Magi, among the Babylonians and Assyrians the Chaldeans, among the Indians the Gymnosophists (lit. naked philosophers), and among the Celts and Gauls, those called 'Druids' and holy people, according to what Aristotle says in the book on Magic and Sotion in the twenty-third book of the Succession of Philosophers."

Τὸ τῆς φιλοσοφίας ἔργον ἔνιοί φασιν ἀπὸ βαρβάρων ἄρξαι. γεγενῆσθαι γὰρ παρὰ μὲν Πέρσαις μάγους, παρὰ δὲ Βαβυλωνίοις ἢ Ἀσσυρίοις Χαλδαίους, καὶ γυμνοσοφιστὰς παρ' Ἰνδοῖς, παρά τε Κελτοῖς καὶ Γαλάταις τοὺς καλουμένους δρυίδας καὶ σεμνοθέους, καθά φησιν Ἀριστοτέλης ἐν τῷ μαγικῷ καὶ Σωτίων ἐν εἰκοστῷ τρίτῳ τῆς διαδοχῆς.

Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, 1.1

"The Magi were ignorant of sorcerers' magic, says Aristotle in the book on Magic and Dinon in the fifth book of his Histories. He also says 'Zoroaster' when translated literally means 'star-diviner'; Hermodorus says this as well. In the first book of On Philosophy, Aristotle says they (the Magi) are actually older than the Egyptians. And according to them there are two principles, a good daimon and a bad daimon: to the former, the name is Zeus and 'Oromasdes' [i.e., Ahura Mazda], to the other Hades and 'Arimanius' [i.e., Ahriman]. Hermippus says this too in the first book On Magi, so does Eudoxus in the Survey, and Theopompus in the eighth book of the Philippics."

Τὴν δὲ γοητικὴν μαγείαν [sc. οἱ Μάγοι] οὐδ' ἔγνωσαν, φησὶν Ἀριστοτέλης ἐν τῷ Μαγικῷ καὶ Δείνων ἐν τῇ πέμπτῃ τῶν Ἱστοριῶν· ὃς καὶ μεθερμηνευόμενόν φησι τὸν Ζωροάστρην ἀστροθύτην εἶναι· φησὶ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Ἑρμόδωρος. Ἀριστοτέλης δ' ἐν πρώτῳ Περὶ φιλοσοφίας καὶ πρεσβυτέρους εἶναι τῶν Αἰγυπτίων· καὶ δύο κατ' αὐτοὺς εἶναι ἀρχάς, ἀγαθὸν δαίμονα καὶ κακὸν δαίμονα· καὶ τῷ μὲν ὄνομα εἶναι Ζεὺς καὶ Ὠρομάσδης, τῷ δὲ Ἅιδης καὶ Ἀρειμάνιος. φησὶ δὲ τοῦτο καὶ Ἕρμιππος ἐν τῷ πρώτῳ Περὶ μάγων καὶ Εὔδοξος ἐν τῇ Περιόδῳ καὶ Θεόπομπος ἐν τῇ ὀγδόῃ τῶν Φιλιππικῶν.

Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, 1.7-8

"Aristotle says that a certain magus [magician or priest from Persia] came from Syria to Athens and among the other things he predicted about Socrates, was that he will have a violent end."

φησὶ δ' Ἀριστοτέλης μάγον τινὰ ἐλθόντα ἐκ Συρίας εἰς Ἀθήνας τά τε ἄλλα καταγνῶναι τοῦ Σωκράτους καὶ δὴ καὶ βίαιον ἔσεσθαι τὴν τελευτὴν αὐτῷ.

Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, 2.45

"Eudoxus, who wanted it to be known that among the schools of philosophy, magic is the most illustrious and most useful, relates that this 'Zoroaster' lived six thousand years before Plato's death. Aristotle says this too."

Eudoxus qui inter sapientiae sectas clarissimam utilissimamque eam (magicam) intellegi voluit, Zoroastren hunc sex milibus annorum ante Platonis mortem fuisse prodidit. sic et Aristoteles.

Pliny, Natural History, 30.3

"Antisthenes, an Athenian, Socratic philosopher from among the orators, who first was called a Peripatetic, then 'played the dog' (i.e., acted like someone from what would later be called the 'Cynic' school). He was the son of a father with the same name, and his mother came from the people of Thrace. He wrote these ten volumes: first, Magic: it tells about a certain magus, Zoroaster, who discovered wisdom. Some people attribute this to Aristotle, others to Rhodon."

Ἀντισθένης, Ἀθηναῖος, ἀπὸ ῥητόρων φιλόσοφος Σωκρατικός, ὅστις Περιπατητικὸς ἐκλήθη πρῶτον, εἶτα ἐκύνισεν: υἱὸς δὲ ὢν ὁμωνύμου πατρὸς, μητρὸς δὲ τὸ γένος Θρᾴσσης. οὗτος συνέγραψε τόμους δέκα: πρῶτον μαγικόν: ἀφηγεῖται δὲ περὶ Ζωροάστρου τινὸς μάγου, εὑρόντος τὴν σοφίαν: τοῦτο δέ τινες Ἀριστοτέλει, οἱ δὲ Ῥόδωνι ἀνατιθέασιν.

Suda, s.v. Ἀντισθένης

"Execestus, the Phocian tyrant, used to wear two enchanted rings, and he used to determine the appropriate time to act by the sound they made against one another. But, he still died, murdered by treachery despite being warned by the sound, as Aristotle says in the Phocian Constitution."

Ἐξήκεστός τε ὁ Φωκαιέων τύραννος δύο δακτυλίους φορῶν γεγοητευμένους τῷ ψόφῳ τῷ πρὸς ἀλλήλους διῃσθάνετο τοὺς καιροὺς τῶν πράξεων, ἀπέθανεν δὲ ὅμως δολοφονηθεὶς καίτοι προσημήναντος τοῦ ψόφου, ὥς φησιν Ἀριστοτέλης ἐν τῇ Φωκαιέων πολιτείᾳ.

Clement of Alexandria, Stromateus I, chapter 21

"The true art of magic, which is a science of optics by which the works of nature are illuminated with a brighter appearance and is thought to be holy and highly prized, is not only practiced by private citizens, but also by kings and of kings the greatest, and most of all the Persian kings, to the extent that they say no one among them is able to be a successor to the kingship if he does not happen to share in the house of the Magi."

τὴν μὲν οὖν ἀληθῆ μαγικήν, ὀπτικὴν ἐπιστήμην οὖσαν, ᾗ τὰ τῆς φύσεως ἔργα τρανοτέραις φαντασίαις αὐγάζεται, σεμνὴν καὶ περιμάχητον δοκοῦσαν εἶναι, οὐκ ἰδιῶται μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ βασιλεῖς καὶ βασιλέων οἱ μέγιστοι καὶ μάλιστα οἱ Περσῶν διαπονοῦσιν οὕτως, ὥστ' οὐδένα φασὶν ἐπὶ βασιλείαν δύνασθαι παραπεμφθῆναι παρ' αὐτοῖς, εἰ μὴ πρότερον τοῦ μάγων γένους κεκοινωνηκὼς τυγχάνοι.

Philo of Judaea, On Special Laws, 3.100

"Among the Persians, those who are wise in divine matters and worship it are called 'Magi'. This is just what 'Magus' means in the regional language. This house is considered to be so great and so holy by the Persians, that even Darius, son of Hystaspes, had engraved on his tombstone (among other things) that he was a teacher of magic arts."

παρά γε μὴν τοῖς Πέρσαις οἱ περὶ τὸ θεῖον σοφοὶ καὶ τούτου θεράποντες μάγοι μὲν προσαγορεύονται· τοῦτο γὰρ δηλοῖ κατὰ τὴν ἐπιχώριον διάλεκτον ὁ μάγος· οὕτω δὲ μέγα καὶ σεβάσμιον γένος τοῦτο παρὰ Πέρσαις νενόμισται, ὥστε καὶ Δαρεῖον τὸν Ὑστάσπου ἐπιγράψαι τῷ μνήματι πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις ὅτι καὶ μαγικῶν γένοιτο διδάσκαλος.

Porphyry, On Abstinence from Animal Food, 4.16

"Don't make drugs. Stay away from magic books."

Φάρμακα μὴ τεύχειν, μαγικῶν βίβλων ἀπέχεσθαι.

Pseudo-Phocylides, Sententiae, l.149

Illustration of (a somewhat Christian?) Zoroaster riding the back of a dragon. Zoroaster was associated with the arts of magic and astrology already in antiquity. This illustration is from the Clavis Artis, vol. 1, the Biblioteca dell’Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Roma. On the manuscript and its provenance, see the Italian wiki. Image source here.

Animal Magic

Here are some magical animals from Aelian, Pliny and Pseudo Aristotle. I'm trying to track down animals that use magic, rather than animals (or parts) that are used for magic (like the 'hippomane') or animals that people perform magic on (like snake charmers, etc.). The question I'm interested in is whether anyone in antiquity thought we learned any of the magic arts by observing animals, as they thought we learned many of the more mundane ones. Hyena is the closest thing to an animal magician I've found so far.

---

"The salamander is not an animal born from fire, like the animals called 'fire-born'. Still, it is bold and fond of staying close to the flame, and it is eager to defeat it as if it were an adversary."

Ἡ σαλαμάνδρα τὸ ζῷον οὐκ ἔστι μὲν τῶν πυρὸς ἐκγόνων, ὥσπερ οὖν οἱ καλούμενοι πυρίγονοι, θαρρεῖ δὲ αὐτὸ καὶ χωρεῖ τῇ φλογὶ ὁμόσε, καὶ ὡς ἀντίπαλόν τινα σπεύδει καταγωνίσασθαι.

Aelian, On the Nature of Animals, 2.31

"They say that in Arabia there is a kind of hyena which, when it first catches sight of some wild animal, or when it steps on a person's shadow,  renders it speechless and fixed in such a way that it cannot move its body. It also does this to dogs."

Ἐν δὲ τῇ Ἀραβίᾳ ὑαινῶν τι γένος φασὶν εἶναι, ὃ ἐπειδὰν προΐδῃ τι θηρίον ἢ ἀνθρώπου ἐπιβῇ ἐπὶ τὴν σκιάν, ἀφωνίαν ἐργάζεται καὶ πῆξιν τοιαύτην ὥστε μὴ δύνασθαι κινεῖν τὸ σῶμα. τοῦτο δὲ ποιεῖν καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν κυνῶν.

Pseudo-Aristotle, On Marvellous Things Heard, chapter 145

"If a dog makes contact with the hyena's shadow, it will go silent. And by some magic art, any animal it encircles three times becomes fixed at that spot."

praeterea umbrae eius [sc. hyaenae] contactu canes obmutescere, et quibusdam magicis artibus omne animal, quod ter lustraverit, in vestigio haerere.

Pliny, Natural History, 8.44

"When the moon is full, the hyena will keep the light behind it, and cast its shadow onto dogs. Instantly, they are silenced. Having bewitched them like sorceresses do, it then carries off the silent dogs and makes use of them in whatever way it wants."

ὅταν ᾖ πλήρης ὁ τῆς σελήνης κύκλος, κατόπιν λαμβάνει [sc. ἡ ὕαινα] τὴν αὐγήν, καὶ τὴν αὑτῆς σκιὰν ἐπιβάλλει τοῖς κυσί, καὶ παραχρῆμα αὐτοὺς κατεσίγασε, καὶ καταγοητεύσασα ὡς αἱ φαρμακίδες εἶτα ἀπάγει σιωπῶντας, καὶ κέχρηται ὅ τι καὶ βούλεται τὸ ἐντεῦθεν αὐτοῖς.

Aelian, On the Nature of Animals, 6.14

"Dogs, cows, pigs, goats, snakes and other animals are perceptive of future famine. And they are first to be aware when a plague or earthquake is approaching. They can forsee times of healthy weather and fertile crops. And even though they do not have reason, which is able both to save and to destroy, they do not make mistakes in the matters just mentioned."

Λιμοῦ μέλλοντος ἐπιδημεῖν αἰσθητικῶς ἔχουσι κύνες καὶ βόες καὶ ὗς καὶ αἶγες καὶ ὄφεις καὶ ζῷα ἄλλα, καὶ λοιμοῦ δὲ ἀφιξομένου συνίησι πρώτστα καὶ σεισμοῦ. προγινώσκει δὲ καὶ ὑγίειαν ἀέρων καὶ εὐφορίαν καρπῶν. καὶ λόγου μὲν οὐ μετείληχε τοῦ καὶ σώζειν καὶ ἀποκτείνειν δυναμένου, τῶν γε μὴν προειρημένων οὐ διαμαρτάνει.

Aelian, On the Nature of Animals, 6.16

"By name, it is 'Hunter', by nature, a bird, a member of the Thrush family, black in colour, musical in voice. It has been called hunter and for good reason. For it catches the other birds with its song, the small ones that fly to it when enchanted by its music."

Ἀγρεὺς τὸ ὄνομα, τὴν φύσιν πτηνός, τὸ γένος κοσσύφων φράτωρ, μέλας τὴν χρόαν, μουσικὸς τὴν γλῶτταν. κέκληται δὲ ἀγρεύς, καὶ δικαίως· τῷ γάρ τοι μέλει τῶν ἄλλων ὀρνέων αἱρεῖ τὰ ἁπαλὰ προσπετόμενα τῇ τῆς εὐμουσίας θέλξει.

Aelian, On the Nature of Animals, 8.24

Postscript:

"I hear that in India, the elephant and the dragon are each other's worst enemies."

Ἐν Ἰνδοῖς, ὡς ἀκούω, ἐλέφας καὶ δράκων ἐστὶν ἔχθιστα.

Aelian, On the Nature of Animals, 6.21

Plum, crimson, vermilion, scarlet

Theophrastus, History of Plants, 3.6.4

"Some people deny that wild kinds of trees have deep roots because of the fact that they all grow from seed. Their claim is not quite correct, since it is possible for the trees to send down deep roots once they've become established. Even most vegetables do this, although they are weaker and clearly germinate in the ground. The kermes oak seems to be the most deep-rooted of the wild trees, while fir and pine are moderately so, and shallowest are the joint fir, the plum tree, and the bullace (this one is like a wild plum)."

Βαθύρριζα δὲ οὔ φασί τινες εἶναι τὰ ἄγρια διὰ τὸ φύεσθαι πάντα ἀπὸ σπέρματος, οὐκ ἄγαν ὀρθῶς λέγοντες. ἐνδέχεται γὰρ ὅταν ἐμβιώσῃ πόρρω καθιέναι τὰς ῥίζας· ἐπεὶ καὶ τῶν λαχάνων τὰ πολλὰ τοῦτο ποιεῖ, καίπερ ἀσθενέστερα ὄντα καὶ ἐναργῶς φυόμενα <ἐν> τῇ γῇ. Βαθυρριζότατον δ' οὖν δοκεῖ τῶν ἀγρίων εἶναι ἡ πρῖνος· ἐλάτη δὲ καὶ πεύκη μετρίως, ἐπιπολαιότατον δὲ θραύπαλος καὶ κοκκυμηλέα καὶ σποδιάς· αὕτη δ' ἐστὶν ὥσπερ ἀγρία κοκκυμηλέα.*

*κοκκυμηλέα plum tree. κοκκύμηλον plum.  The word κόκκος originally meant grain or seed, but came to pick out the colour we call “scarlet”, “crimson” or “kermes” — all these words are closely related historically. Here’s the story. There is species of scale insect that lives only on the sap of a tree called the kermes or scarlet oak, the deep-rooted πρῖνος Theophrastus mentions above. As these insects feed, they gather in clumps on the oaks and look like red grains or seeds.  In antiquity, these apparent grains were confused with galls (cf. Dioscorides 4.48, Pliny 22.3), another common source of dyes (like oak gall, the major ingredient in medieval inks). The grains (i.e., the insects) were collected, ground up and treated with various solvents (vinegar according to Dioscorides) in order to extract the red dye from their shells. This preparation was used for all sorts of textiles, but it is most notable for dyeing what we call “scarlet”, a name that originally applied to a specific kind of woolen cloth. At some point, the name used for the grain that was used in the dye (κόκκος) came to be used for the colour of the dye itself, hence κόκκος: “a brilliant red hue”. Some of the most common names that we use for vibrant red hues are connected to this dye. The colour vermilion is named for the “little worms” (vermeillons), i.e., the insects, that live on the kermes oak. Scarlet, the colour, gets its name from scarlet, the cloth dyed with the insects. And crimson comes from kermes, a medieval spelling of the Arabic word qirmiz (قِرْمِز ), whose roots reach back to Persian and Sanskrit, krmi-ja, which means “produced by a worm.” The fruit of the plum tree, with its brilliant red skin, might be etymologized as “the scarlet apple”; but, then again, I usually think of plums as purple. I've also seen the name derived from cuckoo (κόκκυξ +  μήλον), cf. Nicander ap. Athenaeus of Naucratis, Deipnosophistae 2.33: “μῆλον ὃ κόκκυγος καλέουσι (a melon which they name after cuckoos)”— maybe because the fruit, like the cuckoo, is related to springtime? Medical note: The kermes dye used to be part of a very popular pre-twentieth century cardiac remedy, or cordial (maybe because of its bright red colour?): the confectio alchermes.

Dioscorides, De materia medica 1.121

"The plum is a well-known tree, whose fruit is edible, bad for the stomach, and able to relax the belly. When the fruit of Syrian plums is dried, especially those grown in Damascus, it is good for the stomach and compacts the belly. A decoction of the leaves prepared in wine and then gargled restrains secretions from the uvula, gums and tonsils. When dried, the ripened fruit of the wild plum brings about the same thing, and when boiled with must, it becomes better for the stomach and able to restrain the belly more. The gum from the plum tree is glutinous, able to break apart kidney stones when drunk with wine, and used as an ointment with vinegar it heals lichen that appears on children."

κοκκυμηλέα δένδρον ἐστὶ γνώριμον, οὗ ὁ καρπὸς ἐδώδιμος, κακοστόμαχος, κοιλίας μαλακτικός· τῶν δὲ Συριακῶν καὶ μάλιστα τῶν ἐν Δαμασκῷ γεννωμένων ὁ καρπὸς ξηρανθεὶς εὐστόμαχος καὶ κοιλίας σταλτικός. τὸ δὲ ἀφέψημα τῶν φύλλων ἐν οἴνῳ σκευαζόμενον καὶ ἀναγαργαριζόμενον κιονίδα καὶ οὖλα καὶ παρίσθμια ῥευματιζόμενα στέλλει. τὰ δὲ αὐτὰ παρέχει καὶ ὁ τῶν ἀγρίων κοκκυμηλέων καρπὸς πέπειρος ξηρανθείς, ἑψηθεὶς δὲ μετὰ ἑψήματος εὐστομαχώτερος καὶ σταλτικώτερος κοιλίας γίνεται. τὸ δὲ κόμμι τῆς κοκκυμηλέας ἐστὶ κολλητικόν, λίθων θρυπτικὸν πινόμενον σὺν οἴνῳ, σὺν ὄξει δὲ ἐπιχριόμενον λειχῆνας τοὺς ἐπὶ παιδίων θεραπεύει.

p. 111,14-112,6 Wellmann

Pliny the Elder, Natural History, 23.66-69

"The boiled leaves of the plum are good for the tonsils, gums and uvula, washing the mouth with it now and then. The plum itself relaxes the belly, and is not very good for the stomach, but it only lasts a short time. Peaches and their juice are better, also when squeezed into wine or vinegar. No other food is less harmful than this fruit. In nothing is there less of an odour and more juice (which nevertheless stimulates thirst). Its leaves stop haemorrhage when ground and applied. Peach pits with olive oil and vinegar are applied for headache. As for wild plums, however, the fruit or skin of the root, if decocted in dry wine to a third of a hemina, restrains the belly and intestinal pain. One cyathos of the decoction at a time is enough. And growing upon this tree and the cultivated plum tree, there is a tree resin*, which the Greeks call lichen, wonderfully useful for fistulae and hemorrhoids."

*This is wonderful. Pliny or his source has misread Dioscorides, thinking the gum of the plum itself is called lichen, rather than the disease which affects children.

/66 Pruni folia in vino decocta tonsillis, gingivis, uvae prosunt, subinde colluto ore. ipsa pruna alvum molliunt, stomacho non utilissima, sed brevi momento. /67 Utiliora persica sucusque eorum, etiam in vino aut in aceto expressus. neque alius eis pomis innocentior cibis; nusquam minus odoris, suci plus, qui tamen sitim stimulet . . . . . folia eius trita inlita haemorrhagian sistunt. nuclei persicorum cum oleo et aceto capitis doloribus inlinuntur. /68 Silvestrium quidem prunorum bacae, vel e radice cortex, in vino austero si decoquantur ita, ut triens ex hemina supersit, alvum sistunt et tormina. satis est singulos cyathos decocti sumi.  /69 Et in his et sativis prunis est limus arborum, quem Graeci lichena appellant, rhagadis et condylomatis mire utilis.

Galen, On Simple Drugs, 7.35, XII 32-3 Kühn

"The fruit of the plum tree has a laxative effect, and more so when it is fresh, less when dry. For some reason, Dioscorides says dried plums from Damascus support the belly. Clearly, they are laxative, but less than those from Iberia. The ones from Damascus are more astringent, while those from Iberia are sweeter, and the trees as well are like the fruits. Those in Iberia are less astringent, those in Damascus more. To speak generally about them, there is some clear astringency present in the leaves and buds, when these are boiled down in water, they make a mouthwash for inflammation of the uvula and tonsils. The fruit of wild plum trees is obviously astringent and compacts the belly. This plant is called proumnon in Asia. Some say the gum of the tree is able to break up kidney stones when drunk with wine, but with vinegar cures children's lichen. If it does this, then it is clear that it has a capacity to be dissolving an diffusive."

Κοκκυμηλέας ὁ καρπὸς ὑπάγει γαστέρα, καὶ πρόσφατος μὲν ὑπάρχων μᾶλλον, ξηρανθεὶς δ' ἧττον. Διοσκουρίδης δ' οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως τὰ Δαμασκηνὰ κοκκύμηλα ξηρανθέντα φησὶν ὑπέχειν γαστέρα. ὑπάγει μὲν γὰρ καὶ ταῦτα σαφῶς, ἀλλ' ἧττον τῶν ἐκ τῆς Ἰβηρίας. ἔστι δὲ τὰ μὲν Δαμασκηνὰ στυπτικώτερα, τὰ δ' ἐκ τῆς Ἰβηρίας γλυκύτερα, καὶ δὴ καὶ τὰ δένδρα τοῖς καρποῖς ἀνάλογον. ἧττον μὲν στυπτικὰ τὰ κατὰ τὴν Ἰβηρίαν, μᾶλλον δὲ τὰ κατὰ τὴν Δαμασκόν. ἁπλῶς δ' εἰπεῖν ὧν ἐν τοῖς φύλλοις ἢ τοῖς βλαστοῖς ἐμφαίνεταί τις στύψις σαφὴς, ταῦτα ἀφεψόμενα διάκλυσμα γίγνεται τῶν περὶ γαργαρεῶνα καὶ παρίσθμια φλεγμονῶν. ὁ δὲ τῶν ἀγρίων καρπὸς στυπτικὸς ἐναργῶς ἐστι καὶ σταλτικὸς γαστρός. ὀνομάζεται δὲ τὸ φυτὸν τοῦτο κατὰ τὴν Ἀσίαν προῦμνον. τὸ δὲ κόμμι τοῦ δένδρου φασὶν ἔνιοι μετ' οἴνου πινόμενον λίθων εἶναι θρυπτικὸν, σὺν ὄξει δὲ λειχῆνας ἰᾶσθαι παίδων, καὶ εἴπερ αὐτὸ ποιεῖ, δῆλον ὡς τμητικῆς τε καὶ λεπτομεροῦς μετέχει δυνάμεως.

Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae, 2.33

"Clearchus the Peripatetic and Theocritus from Syracuse say that people from Rhodes and Sicily call the plum, 'brabyla.' "

Κλέαρχος δ' ὁ περιπατητικός φησι  Ῥοδίους καὶ Σικελιώτας βράβυλα καλεῖν τὰ κοκκύμηλα, ὡς καὶ Θεόκριτος ὁ Συρακούσιος.

Aetius of Amida, Medical Books I 209

"The fruit of the plum tree. It has more of a laxative effect when fresh, less when dry. Plums from Damascus are more astringent. Those from Iberia are sweeter, and for this reason, more laxative.  There is some clear astringency present in the leaves, which is why when they are boiled in water they make a mouthwash for inflammations of the uvula and tonsils."

Κοκκυμηλέας ὁ καρπός. Ὑπάγει τὴν γαστέρα πρόσφατος μὲν ὑπάρχων μᾶλλον, ξηρανθεὶς δὲ ἧττον· ἐστὶ δὲ τὰ μὲν δαμασκηνὰ κοκκύμηλα στυπτικώτερα. τὰ δὲ ἐκ τῆς Ἰβηρίας γλυκύτερα, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὑπακτικώτερα, ἐν δὲ τοῖς φύλλοις ἐμφαίνεταί τις στύψις σαφής, ὅθεν ἑψόμενα διάκλυσμα γίνεται τῶν περὶ γαργαρεῶνα καὶ παρίσθμια φλεγμονῶν.

p. 91,3-8 Olivieri

Paul of Aegina, Epitome of Medicine, 7.3.10

"The fruit of the plum tree opens the belly more when fresh, less when dried. A decoction of it cures inflammation of the uvula when used as a mouthwash. The gum of the tree has a dissolving and diffusive power, which some say is able to break-up kidney stones when drunk with wine, while with vinegar cures children's lichen. The fruit of wild plums are clearly astringent and able to compact the belly. The plant is called 'proumnon' in Asia. Dioscorides seems to say that the domesticated plum, when dried, is what is now called the Damascene."

Κοκκυμηλέας ὁ καρπὸς ὑπάγει γαστέρα πρόσφατος μὲν μᾶλλον, ξηρανθεὶς δὲ ἧττον. τὸ δὲ ἀφέψημα αὐτοῦ τὰς κατὰ γαργαρεῶνα φλεγμονὰς ἰᾶται διακλυζόμενον. τὸ δὲ κόμμι τοῦ δένδρου τμητικῆς τε καὶ λεπτομεροῦς δυνάμεως, ὅ φασιν ἔνιοι μετ' οἴνου πινόμενον λίθων εἶναι θρυπτικόν, σὺν ὄξει δὲ λειχῆνας ἰᾶσθαι παίδων. ὁ δὲ τῶν ἀγρίων κοκκυμήλων καρπὸς στυπτικὸς ἐναργῶς ἐστι καὶ σταλτικὸς γαστρός· ὀνομάζεται δὲ τὸ φυτὸν τοῦτο κατὰ τὴν Ἀσίαν προῦμνον. ἔοικε δὲ τὰ ἥμερα ξηρανθέντα κοκκύμηλα τὰ νῦν Δαμασκηνὰ προσαγορευόμενα λέγειν ὁ Διοσκουρίδης.

p. 227,5-13 Heiberg

Alexis ap. Athenaeus of Naucratis, Deipnosophistae, 2.33

A: I think I had a dream that showed me I would win!

B: Tell it to me.

A: Pay close attention, now. I was in the rivals' stadium, when someone appeared to place a garland on me, someone who came at me naked … with a braided wreath of plums.

B: By Heracles!

A: καὶ μὴν ἐνύπνιον οἴομαί γ' ἑορακέναι νικητικόν.

B: λέγ' αὐτό.

A: τὸν νοῦν πρόσεχε δή. ἐν τῷ σταδίῳ τῶν ἀνταγωνιστῶν μέ τις ἐδόκει στεφανοῦν γυμνὸς προσελθὼν … στεφάνῳ κυλιστῷ κοκκυμήλων.

B:  Ἡράκλεις.

Michael of Ephesus on providence and good behaviour

I'm writing a paper on Michael of Ephesus on providence. I've looked at his views on providence before, but I've started to take it a bit more seriously. Michael uses providence in a few places in his commentaries on Aristotle's biology, and he uses it, as you might expect, as a deus (natura?) ex machina to explain things Aristotle does not (maybe it's more precise to say that he uses providence to complete explanations which Aristotle had left incomplete). On the one hand, I'm interested in in figuring out what Michael thinks providence is - is it a version of the Christian God, or nature, or νοῦς? - but I'm also trying to figure out what his rules are for using it in his commentaries. The way he uses it doesn't seem to be arbitrary (there are times he doesn't use it when he could) and this makes me wonder if he's drawing on an earlier tradition, or following his own philosophical or cultural intuitions. Here is one of these appeals, about why some animals have testes and some do not. NB: I think the fact that Michael refers to providence in this passage should not distract us from what he is actually trying to do, and that is to explain animal mating behaviour in terms of the contribution the behaviour makes to the survival of the species. Also: contrary to what Aristotle and Michael say, fish and snakes do in fact have testes.

Aristotle: "Nature does everything because of necessity of because of the better..."

"If nature does everything either because of necessity or because of the better, then this part [i.e., the testicles] would also exist for one of these reasons. Now, that testicles are not necessary for generation is obvious, since then all animals that generate would have them; but in fact, snakes, birds, and fish do not have testicles, for they are observed when they are mating and they have ducts filled with milt. It remains, then, that they are present for something better. It is a fact that, for most animals, there is just about no other function than [producing] seed and fruit, as is the case for plants. And just as in matters of nutrition animals with straight intestines are more ravenous* in their desire for food, so too those that do not have testicles but only ducts, or which have testicles but have them internally, they are all quicker with respect to the activity of mating. Those animals which need to be more moderate**, just as before the intestines are not straight, also here the ducts have coils so that their desire is not either ravenous or sudden.*** Testicles have been designed for this reason, for they make the movement of the spermatic residue slower."****

εἰ δὴ πᾶν ἡ φύσις ἢ διὰ τὸ ἀναγκαῖον ποιεῖ ἢ διὰ τὸ βέλτιον, κἂν τοῦτο τὸ μόριον εἴη διὰ τούτων θάτερον. ὅτι μὲν τοίνυν οὐκ ἀναγκαῖον πρὸς τὴν γένεσιν φανερόν· πᾶσι γὰρ ἂν ὑπῆρχε τοῖς γεννῶσι, νῦν δ' οὔθ' οἱ ὄφεις ἔχουσιν ὄρχεις οὔθ' οἱ ἰχθύες· ὠμμένοι γάρ εἰσι συνδυαζόμενοι καὶ πλήρεις ἔχοντες θοροῦ τοὺς πόρους. λείπεται τοίνυν βελτίονός τινος χάριν. ἔστι δὲ τῶν μὲν πλείστων ζῴων ἔργον σχεδὸν οὐθὲν ἄλλο πλὴν ὥσπερ τῶν φυτῶν σπέρμα καὶ καρπός. ὥσπερ δ' ἐν τοῖς περὶ τὴν τροφὴν τὰ εὐθυέντερα λαβρότερα πρὸς τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν τὴν τῆς τροφῆς, οὕτω καὶ τὰ μὴ ἔχοντα ὄρχεις πόρους δὲ μόνον ἢ ἔχοντα μὲν ἐντὸς δ' ἔχοντα, πάντα ταχύτερα πρὸς τὴν ἐνέργειαν τῶν συνδυασμῶν. ἃ δὲ δεῖ σωφρονέστερα εἶναι, ὥσπερ ἐκεῖ οὐκ εὐθυέντερα, καὶ ἐνταῦθ' ἕλικας ἔχουσιν οἱ πόροι πρὸς τὸ μὴ λάβρον μηδὲ ταχεῖαν εἶναι τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν. οἱ δ' ὄρχεις εἰσὶ πρὸς τοῦτο μεμηχανημένοι· τοῦ γὰρ σπερματικοῦ περιττώματος στασιμωτέραν ποιοῦσι τὴν κίνησιν.

Aristotle, Generation of Animals 1.4, 717a12-32 (Peck's Loeb edition here)

* λαβρότερα | 'more ravenous' The word λάβρος can describe violent surges of water and wind, also people and animals. LSJ suggest 'furious' or 'violent', or 'impetuous'; Peck translates it as 'violent'. The sense, however, is clearly that the animals have strong appetites: their intestines are shorter, and without twists and turns to slow down the food and residues, they are never full for long. I like 'ravenous' here: we use it in English (although it is a bit affected) to describe strong appetites + 'ravenous' comes from the archaic ravin ('an act of rapine or robbery'), which is a direct borrowing from French ravine ('impetuosity', violence', 'force'), from which we get ravine, i.e., 'a violent rush of water' and by extension the gorge it travels through. From the Latin rapina, 'to rob', 'plunder', etc. In the Michael passage, I translate it as "(more) impulsive".

** δεῖ σωφρονέστερα | 'need to be more moderate' More of a moral term than λάβρος. Peck translates 'have to be more sober'. But it's the δεῖ that's caused people to pause: why do some animals need to be more moderate in their appetites? Why couldn't all animals be ravenous and impetuous? Aristotle does not tell us why; he just mentions that testicles cause the seminal ducts to double back, 'like stone weights on a loom (a35-6: καθάπερ τὰς λαιὰς προσάπτουσιν αἱ ὑφαίνουσαι τοῖς ἱστοῖς)'.

*** πρὸς τὸ μὴ λάβρον μηδὲ ταχεῖαν εἶναι τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν This is a statement of the final cause - testicles cause the ducts to coil in order to steady the animal's desire. The relationship between desire and lack or excess might be in the background: desire for food is an impulse to fill something that has been emptied beyond what is natural; and the desire for sex is an impulse to empty something that has been filled to excess. However, if this were the case, it's not clear to me why slower moving semen would cause an animal to have less desire. Aristotle is vague about the details of the analogy, and Michael will focus mostly on trying to make sense of it.

**** στασιμωτέραν ποιοῦσι τὴν κίνησιν Peck translates 'makes the motion steadier'. στάσιμος is an absence of κίνσις, i.e., movement as flow (e.g. Plato, Sophist 256b6-7; Hippocrates, Nature of Women 1.10). Potter translates it as 'constipated' in his Loeb translation of Nature of Women. The idea again is that the residues don't flow out as quickly as they would if the ducts were straight.

Michael on Aristotle on pudic providence

"What comes to be by nature, comes to be by necessity or the better. "Necessity" means that which is found in every kind, and without which it is not possible for something to come to be. "Better" [means] that which is not like this. Since testicles are not found in every [kind] of male, and generation also occurs without them, they do not exist because of necessity, but because of the better.

Just as, in matters of nutrition, [animals] with straight intestines are more ravenous…

"In what follows he sets out the reasons because of which, among [animals] that have testicles and do not have testicles, (i) some have them, (ii) others do not have them; and of those that have them, (i.b) some have them internally, like birds, but (i.a) others externally. He says, then, that just as "animals with straight intestines" are "more impulsive with respect to desire for food", because the residue comes out more quickly because of their straight intestines, while those that do not have straight intestines are more self-controlled and take less nourishment, "the same applies to (ii) [animals] that do not have testicles but only passages", like fish, "or (i.b) [animals] that have [testicles] but internally",  like birds. Hence, (ii) [animals] that do not have testicles at all are quicker than all other [animals] with respect to the task of mating; (i.b) while [animals] that have [testicles] internally are slower and more self-controlled with respect to this kind of task than those that do not have testicles, but they are more impulsive and faster than (i.a) the ones that have them externally.

"First, we should say why [nature] has designed some [animals] to be naturally self-controlled and has made the testicles of these kinds external, some [naturally] more impulsive and [made their testicles] internal, but others it has utterly neglected and did not assign testicles, and for this reason they are also most impulsive of all. But on this point we should say briefly that [nature] did not neglect them, but that it has regarded them by an even greater magnitude. For since (as he will say going on) they are not able to engage in contact for a long time because they live in water, [nature] has not given [them] testicles in addition to the other things (which he is going to speak about later). For in the case of animals that have testicles, the emission of semen comes about slowly because of the reasons which we will learn. But let this much have been said as an introduction. We must discuss what was mentioned, and then the cause according to which (i.a) firstly, those that have external testicles are especially self-controlled, (i.b) second those [that have] internal [testicles] are even less so, and (ii) most undisciplined of all are those that do not have any [testicles]. And so, we must move on to Aristotle's answer.

"One should note that since nature desires that animals and all other things exist eternally and aims at this, whatever things were not able to be preserved eternally as the same thing numerically, for them [nature] decreed eternity by means of always generating others from others. But since continuous mating causes dissolution of the body* for reasons he will mention in the present book when he talks about what the nature of semen is—since then [continuous mating] imparts weakness, and it is normal for death to follow dissolution in the majority of cases, all those animals that naturally bear few offspring (he will also talk about the reasons for their bearing few young in the present book and in those that follow this one)—all those, then, that naturally bear few offspring have come to be more self-controlled than the others by nature's forethought, so that the animals are not dissolved and destroyed by mating many times each day, and this kind of animal is not suddenly eradicated. Those animals that bear offspring, but [bear] more than those that bear few and a fewer number than those that bear very many, are less moderately self-controlled than those that bear few offspring. For even though they [i.e., the individual animals] should happen to be destroyed from frequent mating, still, because of the fact that they bear more than two or three offspring (it is sometimes possible [for them to bear] even more than seventeen**), such a kind will not be left out of the whole. For this reason, then, [nature] designed these to be less self-controlled. But those that bear altogether many offspring, what necessity is there to regard them? For it is clear that they will not be lacking, since heaps of them are produced. This, then, is the reason that some are more self-controlled, others less, and others not at all."

τὰ δὲ ὑπὸ τῆς φύσεως γινόμενα τὰ μὲν γίνεται διὰ τὸ ἀναγκαῖον, τὰ δὲ διὰ τὸ βέλτιον. ἀναγκαῖον δὲ λέγεται τὸ ἐν ἅπαντι τῷ γένει εὑρισκόμενον, καὶ οὗ ἄνευ οὐκ ἐνδέχεται γενέσθαι τι, βέλτιον δὲ τὸ μὴ τοιοῦτον. ἐπεὶ δὲ οἱ ὄρχεις οὔτε ἐν ἅπαντι τῷ τῶν ἀρρένων εὑρίσκονται γένει, γίνεται δὲ γένεσις καὶ χωρὶς αὐτῶν, οὔκ εἰσι διὰ τὸ ἀναγκαῖον, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ βέλτιον.

[35] 717a23 «Ὥσπερ δὲ ἐν τοῖς περὶ τροφὴν τὰ εὐθυέντερα λαβρότερα.»

Ἐντεῦθεν τὰς αἰτίας ἐκτίθεται, δι' ἃς τὰ ἔχοντα ὄρχεις καὶ τὰ μὴ [6.1] ἔχοντα τὰ μὲν ἔχει, τὰ δ' οὐκ ἔχει, καὶ τῶν ἐχόντων τὰ μὲν ἐντὸς ἔχει, ὥσπερ οἱ ὄρνιθες, τὰ δ' ἐκτός. φησὶν οὖν ὅτι, ὥσπερ «τὰ εὐθυέντερα λαβρότερά» ἐστι «πρὸς τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν τῆς τροφῆς» διὰ τὸ θᾶττον ἐξέρχεσθαι τὸ περίττωμα διὰ τὴν εὐθυεντερίαν, τὰ δὲ μὴ εὐθυέντερα σωφρονέστερα καὶ [5] ὀλιγοτροφώτερα, «οὕτω καὶ τὰ μὴ ἔχοντα ὄρχεις, πόρους δὲ μόνον», ὡς οἱ ἰχθύες, «ἢ ἔχοντα μὲν ἐντὸς δέ» [717a23-25], ὡς οἱ ὄρνιθες· τὰ μὲν οὖν μηδ' ὅλως ἔχοντα ὄρχεις εἰσὶ πρὸς τὴν ἐργασίαν τοῦ συνδυασμοῦ ταχύτερα πάντων, τὰ δ' ἔχοντα μὲν ἐντὸς δὲ βραδύτερα πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην ἐργασίαν τῶν μὴ ἐχόντων ὄρχεις καὶ σωφρονέστερα, λαβρότερα δὲ καὶ ταχύτερα τῶν αὐτοὺς [10] ἐχόντων ἐκτός.

ῥητέον δ' οὖν ἡμῖν πρῶτον μέν, τίνος ἕνεκεν τῇ φύσει πεφρόντισται τοῦ τὰ μὲν εἶναι σώφρονα καὶ πεποίηκε τῶν τοιούτων τοὺς ὄρχεις ἐκτός, τὰ δὲ λαβρότερα καὶ ἐντός, τῶν δὲ καὶ παντελῶς κατωλιγώρηκε καὶ οὐκ ἀπέδωκεν ὄρχεις, καὶ διὰ τοῦτό εἰσι καὶ πάντων λαβρότατα. ῥητέον δὲ πρὸς τοῦτο συντόμως ὅτι οὐδὲ τούτων κατωλιγώρησεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ [15] μᾶλλον κατὰ πολὺ πεφρόντικεν· ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐν ὕδατι ὄντα οὐ δύνανται ἐπὶ πολὺ ἐνδιατρίβειν, ὡς καὶ αὐτὸς προϊὼν ἐρεῖ, τῇ ἁφῇ, οὐ δέδωκε πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις οἷς μέλλει λέγειν λόγοις περὶ τούτων ὄρχεις· ἐν γὰρ τοῖς ἔχουσιν ὄρχεις βραδεῖα δι' ἃς μαθησόμεθα αἰτίας ἡ πρόεσις τοῦ σπέρματος γίνεται. ἀλλὰ τοῦτο μὲν οὕτως προλελέχθω· ἡμῖν δὲ τὰ εἰρημένα ῥητέον καὶ ἔτι [20] τὴν αἰτίαν καθ' ἣν συμβαίνει πρώτως καὶ μάλιστα σώφρονα εἶναι τὰ ἐκτὸς ἔχοντα τοὺς ὄρχεις, δευτέρως δὲ καὶ ἧττον τὰ ἐντός, πάντων δὲ ἀκολαστότατα τὰ μηδ' ὅλως τούτους ἔχοντα· καὶ οὕτως τὴν Ἀριστοτέλους ῥῆσιν μετιτέον.

ἰστέον οὖν ὡς ἐπειδὴ ἡ φύσις τοῦ ἀεὶ εἶναι ζῷα καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα ἐφίεται καὶ τούτου στοχάζεται, ὅσα οὐκ ἠδυνήθη φυλάξαι ἀεὶ τὰ [25] αὐτὰ τῷ ἀριθμῷ, τούτοις ἐπρυτάνευσε τὴν ἀιδιότητα διὰ τοῦ ἀεὶ ἄλλα ἐξ ἄλλων γίνεσθαι. ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ ὁ συνδυασμὸς ὁ συνεχὴς ἔκλυσιν τοῦ σώματος ἐμποιεῖ δι' ἃς ἐρεῖ αἰτίας ἐν τῷ παρόντι βιβλίῳ, ὅταν περὶ τῆς φύσεως τοῦ σπέρματος λέγῃ τίς ἐστιν, ἐπεὶ οὖν ἔκλυσιν ἐμποιεῖ, τῇ ἐκλύσει δὲ φιλεῖ ὡς τὰ πολλὰ παρέπεσθαι θάνατον, ὅσα τῶν ζῴων ὀλιγοτόκα πέφυκεν [30] (ἐρεῖ δὲ καὶ τῆς τούτων ὀλιγοτοκίας τὰς αἰτίας ἐν τῷ παρόντι βιβλίῳ καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἐφεξῆς τούτου) ὅσα οὖν πέφυκεν ὀλιγοτόκα, γέγονε σωφρονέστερα τῶν ἄλλων προνοίᾳ φύσεως, ὅπως μὴ πολλάκις τῆς ἡμέρας συνδυαζόμενα ἐκλύηται καὶ φθείρηται καὶ τάχιον ἐκποδὼν γένηται τὸ τοιοῦτον γένος. ὅσα δὲ τίκτει μέν, ἀλλὰ πλείω μὲν τῶν ὀλιγοτόκων, ἐλάττω δὲ κατὰ πολὺ [35] τῶν πάνυ πολλὰ τικτόντων, ἧττόν ἐστι σωφρονέστερα τῶν ὀλιγοτόκων· εἰ γὰρ καὶ συμβαίη αὐτοῖς φθορὰ ἐκ τοῦ πολλάκις συνδυάζεσθαι, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ [7.1] πλείω τοῖν δυοῖν καὶ τριῶν τίκτειν, ἔστι δ' ὅτε καὶ τῶν ἑπτὰ καὶ δέκα, οὐκ ἐπιλείψει τὸ τοιοῦτον γένος ἐκ τοῦ παντός. διὰ τοῦτο οὖν ἧττον ἐφρόντισε τοῦ σώφρονα εἶναι ταῦτα. τῶν δὲ πάμπαν πολλὰ τικτόντων τίς ἡ ἀνάγκη τούτων φροντίσαι; δῆλον γὰρ ὡς οὐκ ἐπιλείψουσι σωρηδὸν γινό[5]μενα. ἡ μὲν οὖν αἰτία τοῦ τὰ μὲν εἶναι σώφρονα μᾶλλον τὰ δ' ἧττον τὰ δ' οὐδ' ὅλως αὕτη.

Michael of Ephesus, In de generatione animalium commentaria 1.4 (CAG 14.3, 5,35-7,6 Hayduck)

*ἔκλυσιν τοῦ σώματος | dissolution of the body.  The idea is not articulated in Aristotle in quite the way Michael thinks it is, but it's a common belief that too much sex will weaken and destroy the body.

**ἔστι δ' ὅτε καὶ τῶν ἑπτὰ καὶ δέκα.   This is rather specific.

Soda and onions

Continuing with Aetius of Amida's pharmacy and its parallels: onions.

Philumenus on onions as a cure for bites of all kinds.

"For dog bites or people bites, apply a poultice of fine salt mixed with honey until the bite is filled. Some also add onion and vinegar and then use it."

πρὸς οὖν κυνόδηκτα καὶ ἀνθρωπόδηκτα ἅλας λεῖον σὺν μέλιτι κατάπλασσε, ἄχρις οὗ πλήρη ᾖ. τινὲς δὲ καὶ κρόμμυον προσμίσγουσιν καὶ ὄξους καὶ οὕτως χρῶνται.

Philumenus, On poisonous animals and their remedies [De venenatis animalibus eorumque remediis], 5.6 (10,7-9 Wellman)

Galen on onions.

"The onion belongs to the fourth degree of things that heat. Its substance is composed of rather large particles, which is why it also opens up hemorrhoids when it is applied; when used full strength with vinegar in the sun, it washes away skin lesions; and when rubbed on bald spots, it stimulates the hair faster than alcuonium. If one separates off its juice, whatever remains is a considerably earthy, hot substance, but the juice itself is a watery and airy hot substance. Thus, when it is used as a salve against thick humours, it benefits cataract sufferers and those who are short-sighted. Due to its mixture, the onion generally causes flatulence when eaten, and for this reason, those which are drier in their mixture cause less flatulence."

Κρόμμυον ἐκ τῆς τετάρτης ἐστὶ τάξεως τῶν θερμαινόντων. ἡ δ' οὐσία παχυμερής ἐστιν αὐτοῦ μᾶλλον, ὅθεν καὶ τὰς αἱμοῤῥοΐδας ἀναστομοῖ προστιθέμενον καὶ σὺν ὄξει καταχριόμενον ἐν ἡλίῳ τοὺς ἀλφοὺς ἀποῤῥύπτει καὶ παρατριβόμενον ἀλωπεκίαις θᾶττον ἀλκυονίου παρορμᾷ τὰς τρίχας. εἰ δ' ἀποχωρίσειεν αὐτοῦ τις τὸν χυλὸν, ὅσον μὲν ὑπόλοιπον ἱκανῶς ἐστι γεώδους οὐσίας θερμῆς, αὐτὸς δ' ὁ χυλὸς ὑδατώδους τε καὶ ἀερώδους θερμότητος. οὕτω οὖν καὶ τοὺς ὑποχεομένους καὶ ἀμβλυώττοντας ἐπὶ πάχει χυμῶν ὀνίνησιν ὑπαλειφόμενος. ἐκ δὲ τῆς τούτου κράσεως ὅλον τὸ κρόμμυον φυσῶδές ἐστιν ἐσθιόμενον, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὅσα ξηρότερα τὴν κρᾶσιν ἀφυσότερα.

Galen, On the mixtures and capacities of simple drugs, 7.58 (XII 48-49 Kühn)

Oribasius' concise summary.

"Onion belongs to the fourth rank of things that heat. Its substance is composed of thick particles."

Κρόμμυον ἐκ τῆς τετάρτης ἐστὶ τάξεως τῶν θερμαινόντων· ἡ δὲ οὐσία παχυμερής ἐστιν.

Oribasius, Collectiones medicae, 15.1.10.79 (260,26-28 Raeder)

Aetius' entry based on Galen.

"Onion belongs to the fourth degree of things that heat. Its substance is composed of very large particles, whence it also opens up hemorrhoids when it is applied; when used full strength with vinegar in the sun, it washes away skin lesions; and when rubbed on bald spots, it stimulates the hair faster than alcuonium. When eaten, it heats the body with its acridity and thins thick and sticky humours in it. It fills the abdomen with air because its substance is composed of very thick particles."

Κρόμυον ἐκ τῆς τετάρτης ἐστὶ τάξεως τῶν θερμαινόντων· ἡ δὲ οὐσία αὐτοῦ παχυμερὴς μᾶλλον, ὅθεν καὶ τὰς αἱμορροίδας ἀναστομοῖ προστιθέμενον καὶ σὺν ὄξει καταχριόμενον ἐν ἡλίῳ τοὺς ἀλφοὺς ἀπορρύπτει καὶ παρατριβόμενον ἀλωπεκίαις θᾶττον ἀλκυονίου παρορμᾷ τὰς τρίχας. ἐσθιόμενον δὲ θερμαίνει μὲν τὸ σῶμα τῇ δριμύτητι καὶ λεπτύνει τοὺς ἐν αὐτῷ παχεῖς καὶ γλίσχρους χυμούς· ἐμπνευματοῖ δὲ τὴν γαστέρα διὰ τὸ παχυμερὲς τῆς οὐσίας.

Aetius of Amida, Libri medicinales, I 232 (97,14-20 Olivieri)

Cf. Dioscorides, De materia medica, 2.151 (p.155 in Beck), which mentions many of the other uses of onions as well, adding to what is said above that it's useful for blisters on the feet (when it is mixed with chicken fat, hardness of hearing, sore throats, and stuffy noses, but that it causes headaches. He leaves out the part about people bites. Oddly, none of these passages mention the fact that onions make your cry, a fact that Aristotle's school was rather interested in:

(pseudo-)Aristotle on why onions cause tears, while garlic does not.

"Why is it that only onions cause the eyes to sting so excessively? People even say it got its name because of this, since [κρόμμυον] makes the pupil close [τὴν κόρην συμμύειν]. Marjoram doesn't, nor do other things which are acrid. Thus, watercress [lit. "up the nose"], because it is hotter, causes more drying than the colliquescence that it produces, since it produces tears in those who eat it; it does not, however, [produce tears] when it is brought close by, because it does not give off any thin vapour, for it is too dry and hot. Marjoram and similar hot things are dry and mild, but what is going to produce tears needs to be stinging, moist and sticky. For this reason, olive oil produces tears, although its stinging is weak. For because of its stickiness and fineness, it produces pain when it penetrates [the flesh], and produces liquefaction because of the pain. The onion has a similar capacity, hence the moisture and vapour from it is hot, fine and sticky. Thus, when it is brought close by, because of the kind of vapour that it is and because it carries with it a fine moisture, it produces tears; when it is eaten, the exhalation passes through […there is a lacuna here…]. Garlic is hot and acrid and has moisture, but it is not sticky, so it does not produce tears.

Διὰ τί τὸ κρόμμυον μόνον οὕτως περιττῶς δάκνει τὼ ὀφθαλμώ (διὸ καὶ τοὔνομά φασι τοῦτ' ἔχειν αὐτό, ὡς τὴν κόρην ποιεῖν συμμύειν), ἡ δὲ ὀρίγανος οὔ, οὐδ' ἄλλα δριμέα ὄντα; καὶ γὰρ τὸ ἀνάρρινον μᾶλλον δάκνον οὐ ποιεῖ ὁμοίως δακρύειν προσφερόμενον, τὸ δὲ προσφερόμενον καὶ κατατρωγόμενον. ἢ ὅτι διαφοραὶ πολλαὶ ἀκολουθοῦσιν ἑκάστοις τῶν δριμέων, ἃ ποιεῖ τὴν ἰδίαν ἑκάστου δύναμιν; τὸ μὲν οὖν ἀνάρρινον διὰ τὸ θερμότερον εἶναι ξηραντικώτερόν ἐστι τῆς γινομένης ὑπ' αὐτοῦ συντήξεως, ἐπεὶ ποιεῖ γε δάκρυον ἐσθίοντι· προσφερόμενον δὲ οὔ, ὅτι οὐκ ἀπατμίζει ἀπ' αὐτοῦ λεπτόν τι· ξηρότερον γάρ ἐστι καὶ θερμότερον. ἡ δὲ ὀρίγανος καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα θερμὰ ξηρά ἐστιν ἠρέμα. δεῖ δὲ τὸ μέλλον δάκρυον ποιήσειν δηκτικὸν καὶ ὑγρὸν εἶναι καὶ γλίσχρον. διὸ καὶ τὸ ἔλαιον ποιεῖ δακρύειν, ἀσθενῆ ἔχον δῆξιν· διὰ γλισχρότητα γὰρ καὶ λεπτότητα παραδῦνον ποιεῖ τὸν πόνον, καὶ τὴν σύντηξιν διὰ τὸν πόνον. τὸ δὲ κρόμμυον τοιαύτην ἔχει τὴν δύναμιν ὥστε καὶ τὸ ὑγρὸν καὶ τὴν ἀτμίδα αὐτοῦ θερμὴν καὶ λεπτὴν καὶ γλίσχραν εἶναι. ὥστε προσφερόμενον μέν, διὰ τὸ τὴν ἀτμίδα τοιαύτην εἶναι καὶ συναφιέναι ὑγρότητα λεπτήν, ποιεῖ δακρύειν, ἐσθιομένου δὲ ἡ ἀναθυμίασις διιοῦσα ... τὸ δὲ σκόροδον θερμὸν μὲν καὶ δριμύ ἐστι καὶ ὑγρότητα ἔχει, ἀλλ' οὐ γλίσχρον· διὸ οὐ ποιεῖ δακρύειν.

Pseudo-Aristotle, Problemata, 21.22, 925a27-925b12

Alexis on knowing frivolous things.

"You don’t know what you're talking about. Run over and have a conversation with Plato and become enlightened about soda and onions."

λέγεις περὶ ὧν οὐκ οἶσθα· συγγενοῦ τρέχων
Πλάτωνι καὶ γνώσῃ λίτρον καὶ κρόμμυον.

Alexis, Ancylion ap. Diogenes Laertius, Vita philosophorum, 3.37