“Omens like these” – plague and the fall of the Republic

More plagues and social change from Cassius Dio, this time, around 44 BCE …

“In addition to omens like these, a bright light moved across across the sky from east to west and a new star was seen for many days.* And at times the light of the sun seemed to grow dim and even disappear, at other times it appeared in three circles, and one of these was even enclosed in a fiery wreath of sheaves, a thing which, for those people, very evidently came true if ever a prophecy did: for there were three men in power—Caesar, Lepidus and Antony, I mean—and of them Caesar afterwards secured his victory.

“Now, when these things occurred, there were all kinds of oracles predicting the destruction of the Republic. Crows flew into the temple of the Dioscuri and pecked out the names of the consuls Antony and Dolabella, which were somewhere inscribed on a tablet. During the night, many dogs would gather in the city and howl, especially near the house of Lepidus, the high priest. Meanwhile, the Eridanus (i.e., the Po) flooded a large part of the surrounding countryside, and when it receded it left behind a huge number of serpents on the land; and from the sea, untold numbers of fish were thrown onto the shore at the mouth of the Tiber.

“What came next was a virulent plague, which affected practically all of Italy, and because of it, it was voted that the Curia Hostilia would be rebuilt and the place where the naumachia** had taken place would be filled in. But it seemed not even this could put a stop to the horror, since, among other things, when Vibius was performing the sacrificial rite at for New Year’s day, one of his lictors suddenly fell down and died.”

πρὸς δὲ δὴ τούτοις τοιούτοις οὖσι λαμπὰς ἀπ' ἀνίσχοντος ἡλίου πρὸς δυσμὰς διέδραμε, καί τις ἀστὴρ καινὸς ἐπὶ πολλὰς ἡμέρας ὤφθη. τότε φῶς τοῦ ἡλίου ἐλαττοῦσθαί τε καὶ σβέννυσθαι, τοτὲ δὲ ἐν τρισὶ κύκλοις φαντάζεσθαι ἐδόκει, καὶ ἕνα γε αὐτῶν στέφανος σταχύων πυρώδης περιέσχεν, ὥστ' εἴπερ τι ἄλλο, καὶ τοῦτο ἐναργέστατα αὐτοῖς ἐκβῆναι· οἵ τε γὰρ ἄνδρες οἱ τρεῖς ἐδυνάστευον, λέγω δὲ τὸν Καίσαρα καὶ τὸν Λέπιδον καὶ τὸν Ἀντώνιον, καὶ ἐξ αὐτῶν ὁ Καῖσαρ μετὰ τοῦτο τὴν νίκην ἔλαβεν.

τότε δ' οὖν ταῦτά τε ἐγένετο, καὶ λόγια πρὸς κατάλυσιν τῆς δημοκρατίας φέροντα παντοῖα ᾔδετο. κόρακές τε ἐς τὸ Διοσκόρειον ἐσπετόμενοι τὰ τῶν ὑπάτων τοῦ τε Ἀντωνίου καὶ τοῦ Δολοβέλλου ὀνόματα, ἐνταῦθά που ἐν πινακίῳ ἐγγεγραμμένα, ἐξεκόλαψαν. καὶ κύνες πολλοὶ νυκτὸς κατά τε τὴν ἄλλην πόλιν καὶ πρὸς τῇ τοῦ ἀρχιερέως τοῦ Λεπίδου οἰκίᾳ μάλιστα συστρεφόμενοι ὠρύοντο. ὅ τε Ἠριδανὸς ἐπὶ πολὺ τῆς πέριξ γῆς πελαγίσας ἐξαίφνης ἀνεχώρησε, καὶ παμπληθεῖς ἐν τῷ ξηρῷ ὄφεις ἐγκατέλιπε. καὶ ἰχθῦς ἐκ τῆς θαλάσσης ἀμύθητοι κατὰ τὰς τοῦ Τιβέριδος ἐκβολὰς ἐς τὴν ἤπειρον ἐξέπεσον.

ἐπεγένετο μὲν οὖν καὶ [ὁ] λοιμὸς ἐπ' αὐτοῖς πάσῃ ὡς εἰπεῖν τῇ Ἰταλίᾳ ἰσχυρός, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τό τε βουλευτήριον τὸ Ὁστίλιον ἀνοικοδομηθῆναι καὶ τὸ χωρίον ἐν ᾧ ἡ ναυμαχία ἐγεγόνει συγχωσθῆναι ἐψηφίσθη· οὐ μέντοι καὶ ἐνταῦθα στήσεσθαι τὸ δεινὸν ἐδόκει, ἄλλως τε καὶ ἐπειδὴ τοῦ Οὐιβίου τὰ ἐσιτήρια τῇ νουμηνίᾳ θύοντος ῥαβδοῦχός τις αὐτοῦ ἔπεσεν ἐξαίφνης καὶ ἀπέθανεν.

Cassius Dio, Roman History, 45.17.4–9

*a comet is reported to have appeared after Julius Caesar’s assassination.

**ναυμαχία (naumachia): a massive trench, commissioned by Julius Caesar in 46 BCE, was dug near the Tiber and filled with water. He had thousands of prisoners of war fight a staged sea-battle in it. What connection the senate saw between the sea battle and the ensuing plague isn’t clear to me, and my books are at the office.

Antisthenes’ Response to Athenian Racism

A while ago, I posted a racist rant from Galen against Chrysippus. There may be hundreds of years between them, but Galen admires the ancients and tries to embody Athenian self-importance. When he says, ‘as a foreigner, Chrysippus had no business telling the Athenians how to use their language,’ we see the kind of attitude Galen learned from his role-models.

Here’s a response to that Athenian attitude, from Antisthenes and Socrates:

“Antisthenes, son of Antisthenes, was an Athenian. It was said, however, that he wasn’t racially pure, which is also why, to the person who cast slurs at him, he said, ‘the mother of the gods, too, is a Phrygian.’ For Antisthenes’ mother was supposed to be a Phrygian. And it is also why, having distinguished himself at the battle of Tanagra, Socrates said that had he come from two Athenians he wouldn’t have been so noble. And Antisthenes himself mocked the Athenians for priding themselves on being ‘born of the soil’, saying ‘then, you are no better born than snails and locusts’.”

Ἀντισθένης Ἀντισθένους Ἀθηναῖος. ἐλέγετο δ᾽ οὐκ εἶναι ἰθαγενής: ὅθεν καὶ πρὸς τὸν ὀνειδίζοντα εἰπεῖν, "καὶ ἡ μήτηρ τῶν θεῶν Φρυγία ἐστίν." ἐδόκει γὰρ εἶναι Θρᾴττης μητρός: ὅθεν καὶ ἐν Τανάγρᾳ κατὰ τὴν μάχην εὐδοκιμήσας ἔδωκε λέγειν Σωκράτει ὡς οὐκ ἂν ἐκ δυοῖν Ἀθηναίων οὕτω γεγόνοι γενναῖος. καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ τοὺς Ἀθηναίους ἐπὶ τῷ γηγενεῖς εἶναι σεμνυνομένους ἐκφαυλίζων ἔλεγε μηδὲν εἶναι κοχλιῶν καὶ ἀττελέβων εὐγενεστέρους.

Diogenes Laertius, Lives of the Philosophers, 6.1

Theophrastus on Art and Nature I – Pigments

Red Ochre

“A kind of red ochre is also produced from burnt yellow ochre, although it is not as good (sc. as natural red ochre). It was Kydios’ discovery. For, so they say, he became aware of it when a market burned down: he saw that the yellow ochre when half-burnt had also become red.”

γίνεται [sc. μίλτος] δὲ καὶ ἐκ τῆς ὤχρας κατακαιομένης ἀλλὰ χείρων, τὸ δ' εὕρημα Κυδίου. συνεῖδε γὰρ ἐκεῖνος, ὥς φασι, κατακαυθέντος τινὸς παντοπωλίου* τὴν ὤχραν ἰδὼν ἡμίκαυστον καὶ πεφοινιγμένην.

Theophrastus, On Stones, 53–54

*τινὸς παντοπωλίου: Caley translates this as ‘inn’. I’m not sure what Greek text he was using, but I think the παντοπώλιον is the place where you find everything (τὰ πάτνα) for sale (πωλεῖν).

Cyan / Lapis Lazuli

“Just as some red ochre is spontaneous and some is artificial, so with cyan, some is native, some prepared (like in Egypt*). Now, there are three kinds of cyan: the Egyptian, the Scythian and third the Cyprian. The Egyptian is best for unmixed pigments, the Scythian for those that are wetter. The Egyptian, however, is prepared. In fact, those who record the deeds of their kings also record this: a king first made liquid cyan by imitating the native kind, as gifts of fired and unfired cyan were sent as tribute from Phoenicia and other places. Meanwhile, those who grind pigments** say that Scythian cyan produces from itself four colours: the first from the finest parts is most pale, the second from the coarsest parts is darkest. These come to be by art, too, as does white lead.”

ἔστι δέ, ὥσπερ καὶ μίλτος ἡ μὲν αὐτόματος ἡ δὲ τεχνική, καὶ κύανος ὁ μὲν αὐτοφυὴς ὁ δὲ σκευαστὸς ὥσπερ ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ. γένη δὲ κυάνου τρία, ὁ Αἰγύπτιος, καὶ ὁ Σκύθης, καὶ τρίτος ὁ Κύπριος. βέλτιστος δ' ὁ Αἰγύπτιος εἰς τὰ ἄκρατα λειώματα, ὁ δὲ Σκύθης εἰς τὰ ὑδαρέστερα. σκευαστὸς δ' ὁ Αἰγύπτιος. καὶ οἱ γράφοντες τὰ περὶ τοὺς βασιλεῖς καὶ τοῦτο γράφουσι, τίς πρῶτος βασιλεὺς ἐποίησε χυτὸν κύανον μιμησάμενος τὸν αὐτοφυῆ, δῶρά τε πέμπεσθαι παρ' ἄλλων τε καὶ ἐκ Φοινίκης φόρον κυάνου, τοῦ μὲν ἀπύρου τοῦ δὲ πεπυρωμένου. φασὶ δ' οἱ τὰ φάρμακα τρίβοντες τὸν Σκύθην κύανον ἐξ ἑαυτοῦ ποιεῖν χρώματα τέτταρα, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἐκ τῶν λεπτοτάτων λευκότατον, τὸ δὲ δεύτερον ἐκ τῶν παχυτάτων μελάντατον. ταῦτά τε δὴ τέχνῃ γίνεται καὶ ἔτι τὸ ψιμύθιον.

Theophrastus, On Stones, 55–56

*κύανος (cyan): a dark blue pigment. The native kind is most likely lapis lazuli. The χυτὸν κύανον is obscure, but might be a liquid form (parallel would be χυτὸς ἄργυρος, quicksilver). I translate it as ‘liquid cyan’.

**οἱ τὰ φάρμακα τρίβοντες : “the drug-grinders.” τὰ φάρμακα has a semantic range that does not map on to either ‘drugs’, ‘medicines’ or ‘poisons’. Closest thing, I guess, would be to say, ‘chemicals,’ but that’s probably a bit too specific.

Cinnabar

“There is also a native and a manufactured kind of cinnabar. The native kind around Iberia is very hard and stony, as is the one in the Kolchian regions. This, they say, is found on cliffs, which they bring down by shooting it with arrows. The manufactured kind comes only from one place in the Kilbian region (?)*, a little bit outside of Ephesus. It is a sandy ore** which they collect when shiny, like Kermes. Once this is ground to a very fine powder in stone vessels, they wash it in copper ones, and again, taking the sediment, they wash and grind it, a task that takes some skill. For from the same amount of ore, some people produce much, some little or nothing; but, they treat the washings from above, coating them one by one. The sediment below is cinnabar, while what remains on top is mostly scum.***

“They say that Kallias, an Athenian, discovered and invented the manufacturing process from the silver mines. He thought the sandy ore had gold in it because it was shiny, and so he worked on it and collected it. When he perceived it did not have any, he marveled at the beauty of the sand because of its colour, and thus he came to the manner of its manufacture. This wasn’t long ago, but about ninety years at most before Praxibolos was archon at Athens.

“It is clear from these things that art imitates nature but produces its own kinds of things. Of these, some exist for the sake of utility, others, like paints, only for the sake of appearance, and some equally for the sake of both, like quicksilver. For this has a use, as well. It is made when cinnabar is ground up with vinegar in a bronze vessel and bronze pestle. Perhaps we might discover more things like these.”

γίνεται δὲ καὶ κιννάβαρι τὸ μὲν αὐτοφυὲς τὸ δὲ κατ' ἐργασίαν. αὐτοφυὲς μὲν τὸ περὶ Ἰβηρίαν σκληρὸν σφόδρα καὶ λιθῶδες, καὶ τὸ ἐν Κόλχοις. τοῦτο δέ φασιν εἶναι ἐπὶ κρημνῶν, ὃ καταβάλλουσι τοξεύοντες. τὸ δὲ κατ' ἐργασίαν ὑπὲρ Ἐφέσου μικρὸν <ἐν Κιλβιανοῖς (?)> ἐξ ἑνὸς τόπου μόνον. ἔστι δ' ἄμμος ἣν συλλέγουσι λαμπυρίζουσαν καθάπερ ὁ κόκκος· ταύτην δὲ τρίψαντες ὅλως ἐν ἀγγείοις λιθίνοις λειοτάτην πλύνουσιν ἐν χαλκοῖς [μικρὸν ἐν καλοῖς], τὸ δ' ὑφιστάμενον πάλιν λαβόντες πλύνουσι καὶ τρίβουσιν, ἐν ᾧπέρ ἐστι τὸ τῆς τέχνης· οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ ἴσου πολὺ περιποιοῦσιν, οἱ δ' ὀλίγον ἢ οὐθέν· ἀλλὰ πλύσματι τῷ ἐπάνω χρῶνται ἓν πρὸς ἓν ἀλείφοντες. γίνεται δὲ τὸ μὲν ὑφιστάμενον κάτω κιννάβαρι, τὸ δ' ἐπάνω καὶ πλεῖον πλύσμα.

καταδεῖξαι δέ φασι καὶ εὑρεῖν τὴν ἐργασίαν Καλλίαν τινὰ Ἀθηναῖον ἐκ τῶν ἀργυρείων, ὃς οἰόμενος ἔχειν τὴν ἄμμον χρυσίον διὰ τὸ λαμπυρίζειν ἐπραγματεύετο καὶ συνέλεγεν. ἐπεὶ δ' ᾔσθετο ὅτι οὐκ ἔχοι τὸ δὲ τῆς ἄμμου κάλλος ἐθαύμαζε διὰ τὴν χρόαν, οὕτως ἐπὶ τὴν ἐργασίαν ἦλθε ταύτην. οὐ παλαιὸν δ' ἐστὶν ἀλλὰ περὶ ἔτη μάλιστ' ἐνενήκοντα εἰς ἄρχοντα Πραξίβουλον Ἀθήνησι.

φανερὸν δ' ἐκ τούτων ὅτι μιμεῖται τὴν φύσιν ἡ τέχνη, τὰ δ' ἴδια ποιεῖ, καὶ τούτων τὰ μὲν χρήσεως χάριν τὰ δὲ μόνον φαντασίας ὥσπερ τὰς ἀλοιφάς. ἔνια δὲ ἴσως ἀμφοῖν ὥσπερ χυτὸν ἄργυρον. ἔστι γάρ τις χρεία καὶ τούτου. ποιεῖται δὲ ὅταν κιννάβαρι τριφθῇ μετ' ὄξους ἐν ἀγγείῳ χαλκῷ καὶ δοίδυκι χαλκῷ. τὰ μὲν οὖν τοιαῦτα τάχ' ἄν τις λάβοι πλείω.

Theophrastus, On Stones, 58–60

*<ἐν Κιλβιανοῖς (?)>: some textual confusion. Schneider seems to have transposed ἐν καλοῖς from a bit below to here and emended it to ἐν Κιλβιανοῖς (‘in the Kilbian region’). Sure, why not…

**ἄμμος = ψάμμος, as in a sandy ore (probably, maybe).

***ἀλλὰ πλύσματι … πλύσμα. Not quite clear on the process here, but probably something similar to sluicing or panning: water goes over the sandy ore, and because of the agitation, solids of different sizes or densities separate into different layers.

“I suppose the same thing happened in foreign countries as well...” Cassius Dio on the Plague at the time of Augustus

Looks like we will pass 1,000,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the next few minutes. So let’s rewind.

22 BCE or so. Plague in Italy. No one left to work the land. The people want Augustus named dictator.

“The year after that, when Marcus Macellus and Lucius Arruntius were consuls, the city was flooded again when the river overflowed, and many things were struck by lightning, even the statues in the Pantheon, so that the spear fell from Augustus’ hand as well. And then, as the Romans suffered from disease and from famine—for the plague had come to all of Italy and no one worked the land; I suppose the same thing happened in foreign countries as well—they, thinking that these things had happened to them for no other reason but that they didn’t have Augustus as a consul, wished him to be appointed dictator. They locked the senate in their chamber and, threatening to burn them to ashes, they forced them to take a vote. And after this, taking the twenty-four rods, they came to Augustus, bidding him to be named dictator and to become commissioner of the grain supply, just as Pompey once had been.”

τῷ δ' ἐπιγιγνομένῳ ἔτει, ἐν ᾧ Μᾶρκος τε Μάρκελλος καὶ Λούκιος Ἀρρούντιος ὑπάτευσαν, ἥ τε πόλις πελαγίσαντος αὖθις τοῦ ποταμοῦ ἐπλεύσθη, καὶ κεραυνοῖς ἄλλα τε πολλὰ ἐβλήθη καὶ οἱ ἀνδριάντες οἱ ἐν τῷ Πανθείῳ, ὥστε καὶ τὸ δόρυ ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Αὐγούστου χειρὸς ἐκπεσεῖν. πονούμενοι οὖν ὑπό τε τῆς νόσου καὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ λιμοῦ (ἔν τε γὰρ τῇ Ἰταλίᾳ πάσῃ ὁ λοιμὸς ἐγένετο καὶ τὴν χώραν οὐδεὶς εἰργάσατο· δοκῶ δ' ὅτι καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἔξω χωρίοις τὸ αὐτὸ τοῦτο συνηνέχθη) νομίσαντες οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι οὐκ ἄλλως σφίσι ταῦτα συμβεβηκέναι, ἀλλ' ὅτι μὴ καὶ τότε ὑπατεύοντα τὸν Αὔγουστον ἔσχον, δικτάτορα αὐτὸν ἠθέλησαν προχειρίσασθαι, καὶ τήν τε βουλὴν κατακλείσαντες ἐς τὸ συνέδριον ἐπηνάγκασαν τοῦτο ψηφίσασθαι, ἀπειλοῦντές σφας καταπρήσειν, καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα τὰς ῥάβδους τὰς τέσσαρας καὶ εἴκοσι λαβόντες προσῆλθον αὐτῷ, δικτάτορά τε ἅμα δεόμενοι λεχθῆναι καὶ ἐπιμελητὴν τοῦ σίτου, καθάπερ ποτὲ τὸν Πομπήιον, γενέσθαι.

Cassius Dio, Historiae Romanae 54.1.1–3

“Whoever wants to become a good person” – some advice from Galen

I get frustrated with people when I go outside these days (especially when I go looking for flour). I think anxiety has ways of making its presence felt even if (or maybe especially if) I’m not attending to it. Now, normally I find reading Galen pretty frustrating as well, but these bits are helpful reminders of the necessity of empathy.

“Whoever wants to become a good person, let them keep this in mind: that they are, necessarily, very much unaware of their own errors.”

ὅστις οὖν βούλεται καλὸς κἀγαθὸς γενέσθαι, τοῦτο ἐννοησάτω, ὡς ἀναγκαῖόν ἐστιν αὐτὸν ἀγνοεῖν πολλὰ τῶν ἰδίων ἁμαρτημάτων.

Galen, On the Affections and Errors of the Soul, 1.2, 5.5 K.

“We have, as Aesop used to say, two bags hanging from our necks, one, in front, full of the wrongs of others, one, behind, full of our own, and for this reason we always see the wrongs of others, while we are incapable of seeing our own.”

δύο γάρ, ὡς Αἴσωπος ἔλεγε, πήρας ἐξήμμεθα τοῦ τραχήλου τῶν μὲν ἀλλοτρίων τὴν πρόσω, τῶν ἰδίων δὲ τὴν ὀπίσω, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο τὰ μὲν ἀλλότρια βλέπομεν ἀεί, τῶν δ' οἰκείων ἀθέατοι καθεστήκαμεν.

Galen, On the Affections and Errors of the Soul, 1.2, 5.6 K.

“It’s normal for pretty much everyone to hate those who speak the truth.”

ἅπασιν ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν ἀνθρώποις ἔθος εἶναι μισεῖν τοὺς τἀληθῆ λέγοντας.

Galen, On the Affections and Errors of the Soul, 1.3, 5.10 K.

“And indeed, we should consider the one who reveals each of our offenses our deliverer and our greatest friend. Even if it appears to you that they criticize you falsely, still, the right thing to do is to show yourself to be free from anger. For, in the first place, it’s possible that they can see your mistakes better than you can, just as you, too, can see theirs; and in the second case, because, even if they should criticize you falsely, they will have awoken you to a more accurate examination of what you are doing.”

καὶ μέντοι καὶ [τὸν] σωτῆρα ἐκεῖνον | καὶ φίλον μέγιστον ἡγεῖσθαι τὸν μηνύσαντα τῶν πλημμελουμένων ἕκαστα· εἶθ' ὅτι, κἂν ψευδῶς σοι φαίνηταί ποτ' ἐγκαλέσας, ἀόργητον προσήκει φαίνεσθαι, πρῶτον μὲν ὅτι δύνατόν ἐστιν ἐκεῖνον σοῦ βέλτιον ὁρᾶν ἕκαστον ὧν ἁμαρτάνων τυγχάνεις, ὥσπερ καί σε τῶν ἐκείνου τι, δεύτερον ὅτι κἂν ἐπηρεάσῃ ποτὲ ψευδῶς, ἀλλ' οὖν ἐπήγειρέ σε πρὸς ἀκριβεστέραν ἐπίσκεψιν, ὧν πράττεις.

Galen, On the Affections and Errors of the Soul, 1.5, 5.24–5 K.

Partying: a neglected branch of moral philosophy

I’m drinking whisky. A bit from Philo of Alexandria’s work, On Being Drunk, since I’ve been thinking these days about the morality of partying.

“They say that Pheidias, that great sculptor, made statues from bronze, ivory, gold and all sorts of other materials, and that in all of them he expressed one and the same art, so that not only the critics, but even totally normal people might recognize the artist from his works. For, like in the case of twins, where nature will often use the same form and cast things similar that differ very little, in the same way, too, the perfect art, since it is an imitation and representation of nature, will take different materials and shape and stamp the same form on all of them, so that its works are related like siblings and twins.

“The same thing is exhibited in the power of the wise person. For when it is turned to questions about being, it is called piety and holiness. When it is concerned with questions about the heavens and the things in them, it is called physics. It is called meteorology when it is concerned with the atmosphere and its natural turnings and its changes throughout the seasons of the whole year and partially in each monthly and daily cycle. And it is called ethics when it is concerned with questions about correcting human character: one of its branches, the one concerned with the city, is called politics; another, the one concerned with household management, is called economics; and another, the one concerned with drinking parties and festivals, is called the science of partying.”

τὸν ἀνδριαντοποιὸν Φειδίαν ἐκεῖνον καὶ χαλκὸν λαβόντα φασὶ καὶ ἐλέφαντα καὶ χρυσὸν καὶ ἄλλας διαφόρους ὕλας ἀνδριάντας ἀπεργάσασθαι καὶ ἐν ἅπασι τούτοις μίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν ἐνσημήνασθαι τέχνην, ὡς μὴ μόνον ἐπιστήμονας, ἀλλὰ καὶ λίαν ἰδιώτας τὸν δημιουργὸν ἀπὸ τῶν δημιουργηθέντων γνωρίσαι· καθάπερ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν διδύμων ἡ φύσις χρησαμένη τῷ αὐτῷ πολλάκις χαρακτῆρι παρὰ μικρὸν ἀπαραλλάκτους ὁμοιότητας ἐτύπωσε, τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον καὶ ἡ τελεία τέχνη, μίμημα καὶ ἀπεικόνισμα φύσεως οὖσα, ὅταν διαφόρους ὕλας παραλάβῃ, σχηματίζει καὶ ἐνσφραγίζεται τὴν αὐτὴν ἁπάσαις ἰδέαν, ὡς ταύτῃ μάλιστα συγγενῆ καὶ ἀδελφὰ καὶ δίδυμα τὰ δημιουργηθέντα γενέσθαι.

ταὐτὸν οὖν καὶ ἡ ἐν τῷ σοφῷ δύναμις ἐπιδείξεται· πραγματευομένη γὰρ τὰ περὶ τοῦ ὄντος εὐσέβεια καὶ ὁσιότης ὀνομάζεται, τὰ δὲ περὶ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῶν κατ' αὐτὸν φυσιολογία, μετεωρολογικὴ δὲ τὰ περὶ τὸν ἀέρα καὶ ὅσα κατὰ τὰς τροπὰς αὐτοῦ καὶ μεταβολὰς ἔν τε ταῖς ὁλοσχερέσιν ἐτησίοις ὥραις καὶ ταῖς ἐν μέρει κατά τε μηνῶν καὶ ἡμερῶν περιόδους πέφυκε συνίστασθαι, ἠθικὴ δὲ τὰ πρὸς ἀνθρωπίνων ἐπανόρθωσιν ἠθῶν, ἧς ἰδέαι πολιτική τε ἡ περὶ πόλιν καὶ ἡ περὶ οἰκίας ἐπιμέλειαν οἰκονομική, συμποτική τε ἡ περὶ τὰ συμπόσια καὶ τὰς εὐωχίας.

Philo of Alexandria, De ebrietate, 88–91

“Those who couldn't be cured” – Galen on the Armenian Bolus and the Great Plague

Galen exercises some troubling reasoning about cures…

“During the Great Plague, another kind of earth was given to me, rather desiccating, ochre in colour, from Armenia’s border with Cappadocia. The supplier called it a stone, not earth, and it can easily be pulverized, like lime (I’m referring to slaked lime, obviously). But also, like lime, there is no sandy quality in Armenian earth. For after being ground up in a mortar and pestle, it becomes as fine and free of gravel as lime and Samian star, although it is not as light as the star. Thus, it’s denser and less airy than it, and that’s why to more careless observers it has the appearance of being a stone.

“But it makes no difference for the present whether we use the term stone or earth, as long as you know it is very desiccating. It is especially suitable in cases of dysentery, fluxes of the belly, spitting of blood, catarrh, and moreover for putrefying ulcers in the mouth. And indeed, it is a great help for those experiencing fluxes from the head into the chest; thus, it also is of great benefit to those who have chronic breathing difficulties caused by this kind of thing.

“And, of course, it also helps all those who suffer from consumption. For it dries their ulcer so that they no longer cough, unless they seriously neglect their regimen or if the environment undergoes a sudden change towards a bad mixture. It even seems to me, just as we have often seen in the case of fistulas, not only in other parts of the body, but near the anus as well, that they are protected and closed up by using the desiccating drug itself alone, without the insertion of a suppository that clears the filth or the callous of the fistula, so, too, it would also happen in the case of an ulcer that occurs in the lungs. For this condition, when it is moderate and not too great, is evidently benefited through desiccating drugs, so that some of those who had these fistulas seemed completely cured. Actually, of those people who traveled from Rome to Libya for the same sort of reason, some believed they were completely healthy and in fact lived without any problems for some years, then later on, because they did not take sufficient precautions to keep a preventative routine, the disease came back. Well, as I was saying, these people the bolus of Armenia evidently cured, as, in fact, it also cured those who stayed in Rome, and, even more those with chronic breathing difficulties.

“And during that Great Plague, which was similar in form to the one that happened during the time of Thucydides, all those who drank this drug were cured very quickly, while, all those whom it did not help died. They weren’t helped by anything else, either, which makes it clear that it only failed to help those who couldn’t be cured.

“It is taken as a drink with a light-bodied wine: moderately mixed, if the person doesn’t have a fever at all or was only briefly feverish; very watery, if he is more feverish. The fevers that accompany plague are not very hot. As for ulcers that need drying, why bother mentioning how powerful the Armenian bolus itself is? As I said, you can call it a stone, like my supplier called it, or a type of earth, as I do, since it is moistened by moisture.”*

ἐδόθη δ' ἡμῖν ἐν τῷ μεγάλῳ τούτῳ λοιμῷ, καὶ ἄλλη τις ἐξ Ἀρμενίας τῆς ὁμόρου Καππαδοκίας γῆ ξηραντικωτέρα, τὴν χρόαν ὠχρά· λίθον δ' αὐτὴν ὠνόμαζεν, οὐ γῆν, ὁ δοὺς, καὶ ἔστιν εὐλειοτάτη, καθάπερ καὶ ἡ τίτανος. ὀνομάζω δ' οὕτω δηλονότι τὴν κεκαυμένην πέτραν. ἀλλὰ καὶ ὥσπερ ἐκείνης οὐδὲν ἐμφέρεται ψαμμῶδες, οὕτως οὐδὲ τῆς Ἀρμενίας. μετὰ γὰρ τὸ θραυσθῆναι τῷ δοίδυκι κατὰ τὴν θυίαν, οὕτως ἐστὶ λεία καὶ ἄλιθος ὥσπερ ἡ τίτανος καὶ ὁ Σάμιος ἀστὴρ, οὐ μὴν ὁμοίως γε κούφη τῷ ἀστέρι. διὸ καὶ πεπύκνωται μᾶλλον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἧττον ἀερώδης ἐστὶν, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο φαντασίαν ἀποφαίνει τοῖς ἀμελέστερον ὁρῶσι λίθος εἶναι.

διαφέρει δ' οὐδὲν ὡς πρὸς τὰ παρόντα λίθον ἢ γῆν αὐτὴν ὀνομάζειν, εἰδότας ἄκρως ξηραίνουσαν. ἐπί τε γὰρ δυσεντεριῶν καὶ τῶν κατὰ γαστέρα ῥευμάτων, αἵματός τε πτύσεως καὶ κατάῤῥου καὶ προσέτι τῶν κατὰ τὸ στόμα σηπεδονωδῶν ἑλκῶν ἁρμόττει μάλιστα. καὶ μέντοι καὶ τοὺς ἀπὸ κεφαλῆς εἰς θώρακα ῥευματιζομένους ὀνίνησι μεγάλως, ὥστε καὶ τοὺς διὰ τὴν τοιαύτην αἰτίαν συνεχῶς δυσπνοοῦντας ἰσχυρῶς ὠφελεῖ.

καὶ μέντοι καὶ ὅσοι φθόῃ κάμνουσιν, καὶ τούτους ὀνίνησιν. ξηραίνει γὰρ αὐτῶν τὸ ἕλκος, ὡς μηδὲ βήττειν ἔτι, πλὴν εἰ κατὰ τὴν δίαιταν ἁμαρτάνοιεν ἀξιολόγως ἢ τὸ περιέχον ἐξαιφνίδιον εἰς δυσκρασίαν μεταπέσοι. καί μοι δοκεῖ, καθάπερ ἐπὶ τῶν συρίγγων ἐθεασάμεθα πολλάκις, οὐ μόνον ἐν ἄλλοις μορίοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἕδραν ἄνευ τοῦ κολλύριον καθεῖναι τὸν ῥύπον ἢ τὸν τύλον ἐξαιροῦν τῆς σύριγγος, αὐτῷ μόνῳ τῷ ξηραίνοντι φαρμάκῳ προστελλομένας τε καὶ κλειομένας αὐτὰς, οὕτω κᾀπὶ τοῦ κατὰ τὸν πνεύμονα συμβαίνειν ἕλκους. φαίνεται γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο διὰ τῶν ξηραινόντων φαρμάκων ὁμοίως ὀνινάμενον, ὅταν τε μέτριον ᾖ καὶ μὴ μέγα λίαν, ὥστ' ἔδοξαν ἔνιοι τῶν ἐχόντων αὐτὰ τελείως ἀπηλλάχθαι, καὶ τῶν γ' εἰς τὴν Λιβύην ἀπὸ Ῥώμης διὰ τοιαύτην αἰτίαν πορευθέντων ἔνιοι τελείως ἐπείσθησαν ὑγιεῖς εἶναι, καὶ μέχρι γέ τινων ἐτῶν ἀμέμπτως διήγαγον, εἶθ' ὕστερόν ποτε πάλιν ἀφυλακτότερον αὐτοῖς διαιτηθεῖσιν ὑποστροφὴ τοῦ νοσήματος ἐγένετο. τούτους οὖν, ὡς ἔφην, ἡ ἐκ τῆς Ἀρμενίας βῶλος ἐναργῶς ὠφέλησε καίτοι γ' ἐν Ῥώμῃ διατρίβοντας, ἔτι τε μᾶλλον τοὺς δυσπνοοῦντας συνεχῶς.

ἐν δὲ τῷ μεγάλῳ τούτῳ λοιμῷ παραπλησίῳ τὴν ἰδέαν ὄντι τῷ κατὰ Θουκυδίδην γενομένῳ πάντες οἱ πιόντες τούτου τοῦ φαρμάκου διὰ ταχέων ἐθεραπεύθησαν, ὅσους δ' οὐδὲν ὤνησεν ἀπέθανον πάντες, οὐδ' ὑπ' ἄλλου τινὸς ὠφελήθησαν, ᾧ καὶ δῆλον ὅτι μόνους τοὺς ἀνιάτως ἔχοντας οὐκ ὠφέλησε.

πίνεται δὲ μετ' οἴνου λεπτοῦ τὴν σύστασιν, κεραμένου μετρίως μὲν, εἰ ἀπύρετος εἴη παντάπασιν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἢ βραχὺ πυρεταίνοι, πάνυ δ' ὑδαροῦς, εἰ πυρέττοι μειζόνως. οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ σφοδροὶ κατὰ τὴν θερμασίαν εἰσὶν οἱ λοιμώδεις πυρετοί. περὶ δὲ τῶν ξηρανθῆναι δεομένων ἑλκῶν τί δεῖ καὶ λέγειν ὁπηλίκην ἔχει δύναμιν ἡ Ἀρμενικὴ βῶλος αὕτη; καλεῖν δ' ἔξεστί σοι, καθάπερ ἔφην, καὶ λίθον αὐτὴν, ὡς ὁ δοὺς ὠνόμαζεν, καὶ γῆν, ὡς ἂν ἐγὼ φαίην, ἐπειδὴ καὶ τέγγεται τοῖς ὑγροῖς.

Galen, Simple Drugs, 9.1 (XII.189–192 K.)

*Thanks to PN Singer for help with this one.

This mineral has quite a story. It is still sold as a drug today. No links, but here’s an entry on it from the 18th century. It is also used as a pigment and as a medium in gilding and bookbinding.

Aristotle on the Difficulty of Keeping Friends Close

As Berlin likely heads into lock-down, a note from Aristotle on friendship. I had buried this passage in a note some time ago, and felt like giving it a bit more room.

“We seek and pray for many friends, and at the same time we say that ‘there is no friend for the one who has many friends.’ Both are right. It is within the realm of possibilities for many people to live together in community and share in each other’s experience. This would be the most choiceworthy thing of all. It is also, however, the most difficult, and for this reason, it is necessary that the activity of sharing our experiences be kept among only a few people. And so not only is it difficult to make many friends (since you need to get to know one other), but also to enjoy the friends one has.”

καὶ τὸ ζητεῖν ἡμῖν καὶ εὔχεσθαι πολλοὺς φίλους, ἅμα δὲ λέγειν ὡς οὐθεὶς φίλος ᾧ πολλοὶ φίλοι, ἄμφω λέγεται ὀρθῶς. ἐνδεχομένου γὰρ πολλοῖς συζῆν ἅμα καὶ συναισθάνεσθαι ὡς πλείστοις αἱρετώτατον: ἐπεὶ δὲ χαλεπώτατον, ἐν ἐλάττοσιν ἀνάγκη τὴν ἐνέργειαν τῆς συναισθήσεως εἶναι, ὥστ᾽ οὐ μόνον χαλεπὸν τὸ πολλοὺς κτήσασθαι (πείρας γὰρ δεῖ), ἀλλὰ καὶ οὖσι χρήσασθαι.

Eudemian Ethics 7, 1245b20-25

Sacrifices – Plato on Diotima and the Plague of Athens

A reminder for the equinox.

“Alright, then, I'll let you go, and I'll try to describe to you the speech about Eros, which I once heard from a Mantinean woman, Diotima. She was wise about these and many other things. In fact, ten years before the plague, she held off that sickness by telling the Athenians what they needed to sacrifice. And she even taught me the art of love.”

καὶ σὲ μέν γε ἤδη ἐάσω: τὸν δὲ λόγον τὸν περὶ τοῦ Ἔρωτος, ὅν ποτ᾽ ἤκουσα γυναικὸς Μαντινικῆς Διοτίμας, ἣ ταῦτά τε σοφὴ ἦν καὶ ἄλλα πολλά—καὶ Ἀθηναίοις ποτὲ θυσαμένοις πρὸ τοῦ λοιμοῦ δέκα ἔτη ἀναβολὴν ἐποίησε τῆς νόσου, ἣ δὴ καὶ ἐμὲ τὰ ἐρωτικὰ ἐδίδαξεν—ὃν οὖν ἐκείνη ἔλεγε λόγον, πειράσομαι ὑμῖν διελθεῖν...

Plato, Symposium 201D

More on Providential Ecology from Herodotus and Plato

Yes, more providential ecology. Herodotus and Plato explain why some animals have many babies, others do not. Also, flying snakes.

Wise Gods

“And, it’s reasonable to suppose that divine providence, since it is wise, set things up so that all the timid and edible animals produce many offspring in order that they would not go extinct by all being eaten up; while all the savage and violent animals are able to produce only a few offspring.”

καί κως τοῦ θείου ἡ προνοίη, ὥσπερ καὶ οἰκός ἐστι, ἐοῦσα σοφή, ὅσα μὲν ψυχήν τε δειλὰ καὶ ἐδώδιμα, ταῦτα μὲν πάντα πολύγονα πεποίηκε, ἵνα μὴ ἐπιλίπῃ κατεσθιόμενα, ὅσα δὲ σχέτλια καὶ ἀνιηρά, ὀλιγόγονα.

Herodotus, Histories, 3.108.2

“[Epimetheus] devised these things, taking care that no animal species goes extinct: when he had provided them a way to avoid destroying each other, he devised protection from the seasonal weather sent by Zeus, by clothing them in thick hair and solid hides, which are enough to keep off the winter cold, and also able to ward off burning heat; and, when they go home to their lairs, these same clothes serve as a proper and natural bed-cushion for them all. And to some he gave hooves, to others claws and thick, bloodless hides. Then, he provided them with various foods: to some, grass from the earth; others, fruits from trees; others, roots. There are also those to whom he gave other animals to eat as food, and to them he bestowed few offspring, while to those consumed by them, many offspring, ensuring the survival of the species.”

ταῦτα δὲ ἐμηχανᾶτο εὐλάβειαν ἔχων μή τι γένος ἀϊστωθείη· ἐπειδὴ δὲ αὐτοῖς ἀλληλοφθοριῶν διαφυγὰς ἐπήρκεσε, πρὸς τὰς ἐκ Διὸς ὥρας εὐμάρειαν ἐμηχανᾶτο ἀμφιεννὺς αὐτὰ πυκναῖς τε θριξὶν καὶ στερεοῖς δέρμασιν, ἱκανοῖς μὲν ἀμῦναι χειμῶνα, δυνατοῖς δὲ καὶ καύματα, καὶ εἰς εὐνὰς ἰοῦσιν ὅπως ὑπάρχοι τὰ αὐτὰ ταῦτα στρωμνὴ οἰκεία τε καὶ αὐτοφυὴς ἑκάστῳ· καὶ ὑποδῶν τὰ μὲν ὁπλαῖς, τὰ δὲ <ὄνυξι> καὶ δέρμασιν στερεοῖς καὶ ἀναίμοις. τοὐντεῦθεν τροφὰς ἄλλοις ἄλλας ἐξεπόριζεν, τοῖς μὲν ἐκ γῆς βοτάνην, ἄλλοις δὲ δένδρων καρπούς, τοῖς δὲ ῥίζας· ἔστι δ᾽ οἷς ἔδωκεν εἶναι τροφὴν ζῴων ἄλλων βοράν· καὶ τοῖς μὲν ὀλιγογονίαν προσῆψε, τοῖς δ᾽ ἀναλισκομένοις ὑπὸ τούτων πολυγονίαν, σωτηρίαν τῷ γένει πορίζων.

Plato, Protagoras, 321A–B

The Mating Habits of Vipers and the Winged Snakes of Arabia*

“As for vipers and the winged snakes of Arabia, if they came about as their nature would have it, living would be impossible for human beings; in fact, however, when the vipers mate, at the very moment when the male ejaculates, once he emits the seed, the female grabs his throat, bites down, and does not let go until she has eaten through. And while the male dies in the way we just described, the female gets paid back for it by the male. Seeking revenge for their father, the offspring, while they are still in the belly, chew through their mother and eat through her womb, thus making their escape. The other snakes, however, since they are not harmful to people, lay eggs and hatch a great clutch of offspring.”

ὣς δὲ καὶ οἱ ἔχιδναί τε καὶ οἱ ἐν Ἀραβίοισι ὑπόπτεροι ὄφιες εἰ ἐγίνοντο ὡς ἡ φύσις αὐτοῖσι ὑπάρχει, οὐκ ἂν ἦν βιώσιμα ἀνθρώποισι: νῦν δ᾽ ἐπεὰν θορνύωνται κατὰ ζεύγεα καὶ ἐν αὐτῇ ᾖ ὁ ἔρσην τῇ ἐκποιήσι, ἀπιεμένου αὐτοῦ τὴν γονὴν ἡ θήλεα ἅπτεται τῆς δειρῆς, καὶ ἐμφῦσα οὐκ ἀνιεῖ πρὶν ἂν διαφάγῃ. ὁ μὲν δὴ ἔρσην ἀποθνήσκει τρόπῳ τῷ εἰρημένῳ, ἡ δὲ θήλεα τίσιν τοιήνδε ἀποτίνει τῷ ἔρσενι: τῷ γονέι τιμωρέοντα ἔτι ἐν τῇ γαστρὶ ἐόντα τὰ τέκνα διεσθίει τὴν μητέρα, διαφαγόντα δὲ τὴν νηδὺν αὐτῆς οὕτω τὴν ἔκδυσιν ποιέεται. οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι ὄφιες ἐόντες ἀνθρώπων οὐ δηλήμονες τίκτουσί τε ᾠὰ καὶ ἐκλέπουσι πολλόν τι χρῆμα τῶν τέκνων.

Herodotus, Histories, 3.108.2–3

“Megasthenes says that in India there are winged scorpions of immense size, and that their sting is similar to that of European ones. And that in the same place, there are also snakes with wings, and that they come around not during the day but at night, and they emit from themselves a urine, which, immediately produces decay when it falls on someone’s body.”

Μεγασθένης φησὶ κατὰ τὴν Ἰνδικὴν σκορπίους γίνεσθαι πτερωτοὺς μεγέθει μεγίστους, τὸ κέντρον δὲ ἐγχρίμπτειν τοῖς Εὐρωπαίοις παραπλησίως. γίνεσθαι δὲ καὶ ὄφεις αὐτόθι καὶ τούτους πτηνούς· ἐπιφοιτᾶν δὲ οὐ μεθ' ἡμέραν ἀλλὰ νύκτωρ, καὶ ἀφιέναι ἐξ αὑτῶν οὖρον, ὅπερ οὖν ἐὰν κατά τινος ἐπιστάξῃ σώματος, σῆψιν ἐργάζεται παραχρῆμα.

Aelian, Nature of Animals, 16.41

*So, I guess winged serpents are more like cobras, less like flying snakes? More curious is the contrast Herodotus implies between what an animal does by its own nature, and what it does because of divine providence. Is the idea that the divine intervenes in how animals act and interact, but doesn’t make them what they are?

Via getty images