Brill’s New Pauly
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Subject: Classical Studies
Edited by: Hubert Cancik and Helmuth Schneider (Antiquity) and Manfred Landfester (Classical Tradition).
English translation edited by Christine F. Salazar (Antiquity) and Francis G. Gentry (Classical Tradition)
Brill´s New Pauly is the English edition of the authoritative Der Neue Pauly, published by Verlag J.B. Metzler since 1996. The encyclopaedic coverage and high academic standard of the work, the interdisciplinary and contemporary approach and clear and accessible presentation have made the New Pauly the unrivalled modern reference work for the ancient world. The section on Antiquity of Brill´s New Pauly are devoted to Greco-Roman antiquity and cover more than two thousand years of history, ranging from the second millennium BC to early medieval Europe. Special emphasis is given to the interaction between Greco-Roman culture on the one hand, and Semitic, Celtic, Germanic, and Slavonic culture, and ancient Judaism, Christianity, and Islam on the other hand. The section on the Classical Tradition is uniquely concerned with the long and influential aftermath of antiquity and the process of continuous reinterpretation and revaluation of the ancient heritage, including the history of classical scholarship. Brill´s New Pauly presents the current state of traditional and new areas of research and brings together specialist knowledge from leading scholars from all over the world. Many entries are elucidated with maps and illustrations and the English edition will include updated bibliographic references.
Subscriptions: see brill.com
English translation edited by Christine F. Salazar (Antiquity) and Francis G. Gentry (Classical Tradition)
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Brill´s New Pauly is the English edition of the authoritative Der Neue Pauly, published by Verlag J.B. Metzler since 1996. The encyclopaedic coverage and high academic standard of the work, the interdisciplinary and contemporary approach and clear and accessible presentation have made the New Pauly the unrivalled modern reference work for the ancient world. The section on Antiquity of Brill´s New Pauly are devoted to Greco-Roman antiquity and cover more than two thousand years of history, ranging from the second millennium BC to early medieval Europe. Special emphasis is given to the interaction between Greco-Roman culture on the one hand, and Semitic, Celtic, Germanic, and Slavonic culture, and ancient Judaism, Christianity, and Islam on the other hand. The section on the Classical Tradition is uniquely concerned with the long and influential aftermath of antiquity and the process of continuous reinterpretation and revaluation of the ancient heritage, including the history of classical scholarship. Brill´s New Pauly presents the current state of traditional and new areas of research and brings together specialist knowledge from leading scholars from all over the world. Many entries are elucidated with maps and illustrations and the English edition will include updated bibliographic references.
Subscriptions: see brill.com
Demotikon
(201 words)
[German version] Modern word formation to describe a name component of a full Greek citizen: apart from the person's name (e.g., Δημοσθένης/
Dēmosthénēs) and the father's name (genitive, e.g., Δημοσθένους/
Dēmosthénous), the
demotikon indicates origin from a
dḗmos [2], a local unit of a
pólis (e.g.,
Paianieús, ‘from the deme Paeania’) and was primarily used in epigraphic contexts, i.e. in texts directed at the public. In Attica the
demotikon became customary after the political elevation of the
dḗmoi by Cleisthenes [2] and obligatory after the reorganization of democr…
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Denarius
(630 words)
[German version] Standard Roman silver coin, worth 10
asses ─ hence the ancient term ‘tenner’ ─, later 16
asses. Named δηνάριον (
dēnárion) in Greek. After the breakdown of the gold system during the Second Punic War, the
denarius was introduced between 214 and 211 BC, together with the fractional pieces
quinarius (1/2
denarius) and
sestertius (1/4
denarius), as the new prime monetary unit (with a value marking of X or ) to replace the
quadrigatus. With a weight of 4
scrupula (
c. 4.55 gm = 1/72 of a Roman pound of 327.45 gm) the
denarius corresponded to 10 sextantal
asses and departed from …
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Dendara
(124 words)
[German version] (Egyptian
Jwnt[-
t-nṯrt], Greek Τεντυρα;
Tentura), city in Upper Egypt, located on the west bank of the Nile opposite today's Qena, capital of the 6th Upper Egyptian
nome. From earliest times, D. was an important centre, and especially significant from the Old Kingdom to the early Middle Kingdom. Details of a large number of the
nome's
strategoi from the Ptolemaic and Roman periods have been preserved on their monuments. The most important deity was the goddess of love, Hathor. Her sanctuary, dating from the Old Kingdom, was extended …
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Dendrophoroi
(240 words)
[German version] (δενδροφόροι;
dendrophóroi).
Collegium, probably founded by the Emperor Claudius in connection with the reorganization of the cult of Mater Magna. The first epigraphical evidence, dating from AD 79, is CIL X 7 (Regium Iulium). The founding date (
natalicium) was 1 August. The association's ritual function involved felling, decorating and carrying the sacred pine in the mourning procession on 22 March in memory of Attis (Lydus, Mens. 4,59; cf. the bas-relief in the Musée d'Aquitanie, Bordeaux [1]). The association's G…
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Dengizich
(96 words)
[German version] (Dintzic, Greek Δεγγιζίχ, Δινζίριχος;
Dengizích,
Dinzírichos). Son of Attila, king of the Huns; after the latter's death D. assembled an army from the elements of the Hun empire that were still under his control, to fight the Goths. He was, however, defeated at Bassianae (Pannonia) by the Goths (probably after AD 456/57, Iord. Get. 272f.). He later conducted several wars against the Romans but was killed in 469 by the
mag. mil. per Thracias Anagestes (Prisc. fr. 36 [FHG 4,107f.]; Chron. pasch. 323d Dindorf). PLRE 354f. Meier, Mischa (Bielefeld) Strothmann, Meret (Boch…
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Denmark
(2,930 words)
Jensen, Minna Skafte (Odense/Dänemark RWG) I. Culture (CT) [German version] A. Middle Ages (CT) Classical Antiquity first arrived in Denmark (D.) in the 10th cent. AD with Christianity, which considered itself the legitimate heir of the Latin language and culture. The first great churches in Romanesque style, which were built during the 11th cent., are manifestations of a tradition of architecture which, like an unbroken chain, links the Middle Ages to Antiquity. Latin learning was international, and those w…
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Dentatus
(14 words)
Cognomen (‘born with teeth’) of M'. Curius [4] D. Bibliography Kajanto, Cognomina 224.
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Denter
(25 words)
[German version] Cognomen (cf. Dentatus) of the Caecilii [I 25] and M. Livius D. (cos. 302 BC). Elvers, Karl-Ludwig (Bochum) Bibliography Kajanto, Cognomina 224.
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Denthalii
(96 words)
[German version] (Δενθάλιοι;
Denthálioi). Laconian border region near Messenia on the western slope of the northern Taygetus around the source of the Nedon, with a sanctuary of Artemis Limnatis, contested by Sparta and Messenia and finally granted to Messenia by Tiberius (Steph. Byz. s.v. D.; Tac. Ann. 4,43; Paus. 4,4,2; 31,3). Inscription: IG V 1 p. 260f. no. 1371-1378. Olshausen, Eckart (Stuttgart) Lienau, Cay (Münster) Bibliography L. Roß, Reisen im Peloponnes, 1841, 1ff. F. Bölte, s.v. D., RE 3A, 1312, 67ff. N. Valmin, Études topographiques sur la Messénie ancienne, 19…
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Dentistry
(659 words)
I. Ancient Orient [German version] A. I. Sources The main source for Mesopotamian dentistry consists in two chapters from the medical manual ‘When the top of a person's head is feverishly hot’ (1st millennium BC; cf. Medicine I) and there are also isolated texts of prescriptions. The oldest textual evidence is a cuneiform tablet from the ancient Babylonian period (
c. 18th to 16th cents. BC). The majority of the texts is accessible only in cuneiform autographs; for partial translations cf. [1]. Böck, Barbara (Madrid) [German version] B. Dental diseases and treatment Various periodont…
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Denuntiatio
(292 words)
[German version] can in a legal context be any communication made to another person, orally or in writing, in pursuit of a legal objective. The person making the declaration and the person receiving it do not have to be private individuals but can also be office-holders or even the curule aediles' edict (Dig. 21,1,37). If such a communication is addressed to someone who is absent, it is termed
detestatio (Dig. 50,39,2). The
denuntiatio can have an informative or communicative character, as for example the requisite (in late antiquity, threefold) notification of a pr…
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Denuntiator
(89 words)
[German version] Someone who has something to announce or proclaim. In a narrower sense the term is applied to those who, whether as a private individual or on behalf of an office, report a criminal offence.
Denuntiator is then very often synonymous with
delator . The excesses of the latter had a lasting effect on the public opinion on denunciation.
Denuntiatores crop up in Rome even as junior officials in the role of heralds. For similar functions in Greek law
menysis ,
sykophantes . Schiemann, Gottfried (Tübingen)
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Depas
(225 words)
[German version] (δέπας;
dépas). Wine bowl, mentioned several times in Homer and probably also attested in Hittite, for drinking, libations, mixing and ladling, made from precious metal and decorated (‘Nestor's cup’, Hom. Il. 11,632ff.). As synonyms Homer uses ἄλεισον (
áleison), ἀμφικύπελλον (
amphikýpellon), κύπελλον (
kýpellon); from which the
depas has been understood to be a two-handled cup, similar to the cantharus ( Pottery, shape and types of). Archaeological finds and interpretation of Linear-B tablets from Pylos and Knossos (where it appears as
di-pa) seem to have br…
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Deportatio
(214 words)
[German version] Banishment to an island or a desert oasis was a capital punishment in Roman law; in the Principate (at the latest from Trajan's time, soon after AD 100), it replaced the
aqua et igni interdictio , which had replaced the death penalty for upper-class citizens towards the end of the Republic. The
aqua et igni interdictio and
deportatio involved lifelong loss of citizenship rights and property. As the offender had not escaped penalty by voluntary flight into exile, banishment ─ generally to a quite specific location (Dig. 48,22,6,1) ─ bec…
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Deportation
(1,262 words)
[German version] I. Ancient Orient and Egypt Forcible deportations of combatants and civilians during wars were common practice (though on varying scales) in many periods of the history of the Ancient Orient and Egypt. Deportations had a dual purpose: they made possible the creation of an unfree and, therefore, easily exploited labour force, and they were a convenient means of lastingly weakening the military and economic potential of defeated tribes, cities and states. In Mesopotamia deportations appear to have been a source of unfree labour as early as the late 4th…
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Depositum
(460 words)
[German version] The Roman safekeeping agreement materialized as a real contract when the depositor entrusted an object to the custodian (bailee) for cost-free safekeeping. Paid safekeeping comes under
locatio conductio . The bailee became neither the owner nor possessor of the object but merely its
detentor (
posessio ): he was not permitted to use the object, use of the object qualified as
furtum . At the depositor's request the custodian was expected to return the object intact. In cases of intentional unauthorized appropriation, even the XII Tables provided for a p…
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Derbe
(140 words)
[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Christianity (Δέρβη;
Dérbē). City in the south of Lycaonia, now Devri Şehri, north-east of Laranda. Known first as the residence of Antipater of D. (Cic. Fam. 13,73; Str. 12,1,4; 6,3). The Apostle Paul visited the city on his first and second missionary journeys (Acts 14,6; 16,1). Assigned by Ptolemy to the ‘Cappadocian’
stratēgía Antiochiánē (Ptol. 5,6,16); from the middle of the 2nd cent. AD member of the
koinòn Lykaonı́as which was limited to south Lycaonia [1. 38-40, 67]. A Lycaonian diocese from no later …
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Dercylidas
(305 words)
[German version] (Δερκυλίδας;
Derkylídas). Spartan; regarded as a talented and cunning military commander. He won Abydus and Lampsacus in 411 BC without a battle (Thuc. 8,61f.), was harmost in Abydus in 407/6 (Xen. Hell. 3,1,9) and in 399 in Sparta's war against the Persian satrap Tissaphernes in Asia Minor he relieved the unpopular Thibron, who was unable to keep discipline in the army, including the former mercenaries (including Xenophon) of Cyrus the Younger (Xen. Hell. 3,1,8-10). In 399 in a ‘l…
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Dercylides
(180 words)
[German version] (Δερκυλίδης;
Derkylídēs) Philosopher from the 1st cent. BC [3. 180] or AD [4. 64]. Although nowhere described as a Platonist, he seems to have studied Plato's philosophy intensively, especially the mathematical and astronomical sections of his dialogues. Significant was his work of at least eleven volumes ‘On Plato's philosophy’, which was still being quoted by Porphyrius [1. 82ff., 296; 3. 60, 236]. The treatise ‘On the spindle and the whorl, treated in Plato's
Politeia’, is perhaps part of that work [3. 44, 202f., 236]. Proclus transmits two comm…
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Dercylus
(73 words)
[German version] (Δερκύλος;
Derkýlos). Son of Autocles of Hagnous, Athenian emissary to Philippus II for the Peace of Philocrates in 346 BC (Aeschin. Leg. 47; 140; Dem. Or. 19,60,125. 175). D. was guarantor for Athenian ships in 341/40 (IG II2 1623, 179-180) and was
strategos in 319/8 (Plut. Phocion 32,5; Nep. Phocion 2,4; IG II2 1187: honour conferred by the
demos of the Eleusinians). (PA and APF 3249). Athens Engels, Johannes (Cologne)
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Derdas
(184 words)
(Δέρδας;
Dérdas). A common name in the royal family of Elimea. [German version] [1] Son of a princess of Elimea, 5th cent. BC Son of Arrhidaeus [1] and a princess of Elimea, who in alliance with Philippus, son of Alexander [2], and with Athenian support, attacked Athens' confederate Perdiccas (Thuc. 1,57). In a later Athenian treaty with Perdiccas (IG I3 no. 89), he, along with other Macedonian princes, swore the oath (l. 69). Badian, Ernst (Cambridge, MA) Bibliography E. Badian, From Plataea to Potidaea, 1993, 172-4 S. Hornblower, Greek Historiography, 1994, 127-30 HM 2, 18, 122f. …
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Derieis
(48 words)
[German version] (Δεριεῖς;
Derieîs). Tribe and district in the east of Acarnania, destination of the Peloponnesian ceremonial emissaries (IG IV2 96, l. 61ff.; SEG 36,331, l. 41ff.). In 314 BC
synoikismós in Agrinium (Diod. Sic. 19,67,4). Capital not located. Strauch, Daniel (Berlin) Bibliography Pritchett, vol. 8, 81-85.
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Derris
(28 words)
[German version] (Δέρρις;
Dérris). Cape at the southern end of Sithonia opposite Cape Canastraeum on Pallene. Zahrnt, Michael (Kiel) Bibliography M. Zahrnt, Olynth und die Chalkidier, 1971, 180.
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Dertona
(147 words)
[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: | Coloniae | Regio, regiones
Oppidum of the Ligurian Dectunini or Irienses, now Tortona. Founded as a
colonia between 122 and 118 BC, possibly re-established before 27 BC,
tribus Pomptina (Vell. Pat. 1,15,5),
regio IX, intersection of the
via Fulvia (from 159 BC), the
via Postumia (from 148 BC and the
via Aemilia Scauri (from 109 BC; Str. 5,1,11; Ptol. 3,1,35; Plin. HN 3,49; Tab. Peut. 3,5). In the late Imperial period centre of the
annona (Cassiod. Var. 10,27,2), bishopric (Agatho Papa, Ep. 3, 1239) and probably
praesidium of th…
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Dertosa
(295 words)
[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: | Coloniae | Punic Wars In the 6th cent. BC the rich trading city of Tyrichae lay on the mouth of the Ebro (Avien. Ora maritima 498-503). A ‘very rich’ city is again mentioned there for 215 BC:
Hibera (Liv. 23,28,10). It is doubtless identical with the later
Hibera Iulia Ilercavonia (for the tribe Ilercavones see [4. 1092]) D. (according to [1. 1269], Iberian, according to [2. 63; 3. 4, 233f.], Ligurian). According to Livy, Hibera lay on the southern bank and this is consistent with the favour…
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Desert
(215 words)
[German version] (ἡ ἔρημος/
érēmos, ἡ ἐρημία/
erēmía, τὰ ἔρημα/
érēma; Lat.
deserta,
regio deserta). In geographical terms the arid desert zones were part of the marginal areas of the Ancient World (North Africa, the Middle East with Syria, Palestine, Arabia). Politically and to a greater extent economically they, had close relationships to the Graeco-Roman cultural sphere. A large part of the east-west trade devolved over long-distance routes across the Arabian deserts. Desert towns such as Ḥatra [1], Palmyr…
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Deserti agri
(482 words)
[German version] Reclamation of wasteland was a concern of imperial lawmaking as early as the height of the Imperial period. On the imperial estates in North Africa leaseholders who had cultivated fallow land enjoyed particularly favourable lease conditions under the
lex Manciana (CIL VIII 25943). Jurists from the Classical period commented on a case in which agricultural land that had been neglected by its owner was cultivated by a third party (Gaius, Inst. 2, 51). Pertinax is supposed to have tried to allocate uncultivated land in AD…
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Desertor
(279 words)
[German version] The Roman army regarded as a
desertor anyone who did not appear at roll-call (Liv. 3,69,7) or who during a battle was beyond the range of the trumpet or who left his unit in time of peace without permission, without
commeatus (Suet. Oth. 11,1; SHA Sept. Sev. 51,5; Dig. 49,16,14) (‘distanced himself from the
signa’). The punishments were merciless: depending on the case a person was at risk of slavery (Frontin. 4,1,20), mutilation (SHA Avid. Cass. 4, 5) or death (the condemned person was beaten with canes and then thrown down from the
Tarpeium saxum or crucified). The
decimatio…
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Desire
(1,210 words)
(ἐπιθυμία;
epithymía). [German version] A. Definition In Homer ἔρος (
éros) is used as a very general expression for desire; later the word also had, above and beyond its sexual core meaning, a usage that was so wide that it was often merely a synonym for ἐπιθυμία (
epithymía) (B.) [1]. Prodicus differentiated between desire in general and ἔρως (
érōs) by means of a difference in intensity as he defined
érōs as double desire (84 B 7 DK; similar to Xen. Mem. 3,9,7); from the point of view of the object, the intention was that ἔρως be distinguished from desire in ge…
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Desmoterion
(438 words)
[German version] (δεσμωτήριον;
desmōtḗrion). In Athens at the market (on location [1]) there was a prison (Dem. Or. 24,208f.) that owed its name to the fetters, δεσμά (
desmá) that were put on the prisoners usually in the form of chains and shackles. The places of detention were not safe from breakouts in other cities either. The supervisory authority, in Athens the Eleven, decided the nature of custody (in chains, permission for visits). Prisoners were always held with others and imprisonment was not imposed as punishment but to secure the accused, condemned and state debtors. The
desmote…
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De Sodoma
(103 words)
[German version] (167 hexameters, attributed to Tertullianus or Cyprianus [2] in the MSS) belongs to a group of pseudonymous biblical poems normally dated to the 5th cent. The poem comes from the same pen as
De Iona , the content of which it extends; it tells the story of Lot and Sodom's destruction following Gen. 19,1-29. The poet uses mythological and geographical motifs (particularly a comparison with the Phaeton myth and curiosities about the Dead Sea). Biblical poetry; De Iona Roberts, Michael (Middletown, CT) Bibliography Edition: R. Peiper, CSEL 23, 212-220. Bibliography:…
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Despeñaperros
(127 words)
[German version] Ravine in the Sierra Morena, linking New Castilia (Oretania) with Andalusia (Baetica). On the ancient road above the gorge in the Collado de los Jardines there is a grotto sanctuary above which is a fortified Iberian settlement. Stratigraphically the shrine goes back to the 4th cent. BC, and the earliest types of statuettes even to the 6th cent. BC. A total of 3,000 bronze figurines were found in front of it,
c. a quarter of all Iberian statuettes (among these anatomical
ex votos). Blech, Michael (Madrid) Bibliography G. Nicolini, Les bronzes figurés des sanctuaires…
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Despoteia
(167 words)
[German version] (Δεσποτεία;
Despoteía). In Greek ‘rule’ (from δεσπότης,
despótēs, lord) did not initially have a specific legal meaning. The expression referred to the relationship in which the lord ruled over his slaves based on tradition (Aristot. Pol. 1253b) or in the political sense to despotism (Pl. Leg. 698a).
Despoteia first appeared in Ptolemaic papyrus documents as the power of disposal possessed by the owner (BGU 1187,32, 1st cent. BC), together with the term
kyrieía already used in the Greek city states. It was only in Roman Egypt that
despoteia became a permanent compon…
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Despotes
(162 words)
[German version] (δεσπότης;
despótēs, Classical: ‘lord, master’). Byzantine term initially for God, Christ, the emperor and high clerics and nobles,
despotes was from the 12th cent. onwards the highest title bestowed by the emperor in the Byzantine ranking system. In the late Byzantine period
despótai ─ the sons-in-law, afterwards also the brothers and younger sons of the emperors ─ who did not have a right to the imperial title. Often they administered semi-autonomous parts of the empire (e.g. the Peloponnese or Morea); their insignia, c…
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Destinatio
(197 words)
[German version] (from reconstr.
de-stanare, ‘determine’) generally means the determination of a purpose or a decision, legally also a legally-binding unilateral declaration of will (Cod. Iust. 6,30,6; Dig. 50,17,76). In political life
destinatio means the delegation of a subordinate or the installation in an office of a person envisaged for the task by a person authorized to do so. The imperial recommendation of a
candidatus to the Senate was also called
destinatio as was the direct appointment of an office bearer by the emperor (Dig. 4,4,18,4; Cod. Iust. 11,74,2…
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Detestatio sacrorum
(163 words)
[German version] We are not well informed about the
detestatio sacrorum (DS) (Gell. NA 15,27,3: cf. also
alienatio sacrorum: Cic. Or. 144; Leg. 3,48), which had to precede the adoption of a
persona sui iuris in the place of the son ( Adoption) through a legal decision of the
comitia curiata or the establishment of a
testamentum calatis comitiis. Nothing is preserved of the work
De sacris detestandis (Gell. NA 7,12,1) written by Servius Sulpicius Rufus. The DS is a solemn declaration (Dig. 50,16,40, pr.;
ibid. 238,1) with which the man who is to assume a right frees himself in f…
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Deucalion
(593 words)
[German version] (Δευκαλίων;
Deukalíōn). Attested as a proper name since the discovery of the Linear B Tables (PY An 654,12:
de- u-ka-ri-jo), for Hes. cat. 234 M-W and for Deinolochus (Austin 78 fr. 1) also in the form
Leukaríōn (Λευκαρίων). This either involves differently dissimilated derivations of
leukós (λευκός, ‘white’) (cf. Ov. Epist. 15,165ff.) [1], or D. represents a pre-Greek word [2. 96-7]. In the post-Mycenaean period the name referred, apart from some epigraphical evidence (CIL III 2211; VI 6396) to mythical persons: the father …
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Deultum
(300 words)
[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: Christianity | Coloniae | Moesi, Moesia (Δεβελτός;
Debeltós). Settlement
c. 25 km west of Burgas, modern Debelt/Bulgaria. Traces from the late Bronze Age, and afterwards Thracian Hallstatt settlement that later flourished because of its trade with the Greek colonies of the Black Sea. D. was connected with the sea via Lake Mandra which in antiquity stretched further south than it does today. Attic goods of the 1st half of the 4th cent. BC, Hellenistic c…
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Deunx
(106 words)
[German version] In the Roman system of measures and weights,
deunx refers to11/12 of the whole (as) and the term is derived from
deesse and
uncia, i.e. 1 as (12
unciae) less 1
uncia.
Deunx is used in the measurement of length (
pes), the measurement of area (
iugerum) and the measurement of capacity (
cyathus,
sextarius) as well as in the calculation of interest (
fenus) and in the law of succession. Based on the Roman pound (
libra: 327,45 g), the
deunx weighs 300.16 g. Coins of this weight were not minted. As; Cyathus; Iugerum; Libra; Pes; Sextarius; Uncia Mlasowsky, Alexander (Hanno…
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Deus ex machina
(407 words)
[German version] (Θεὸς ἀπὸ μηχανῆς;
theòs apò mēchanês). Crane-like stage machinery (μηχανή, γέρανος, κράδη;
mēchanḗ,
géranos,
krádē) that became proverbial as early as the 4th cent. BC, by which a deity could suddenly appear hovering and traversing the air, and imbue the plot with fresh momentum or bring it to an end (cf. Pl. Cleit. 407a; Crat. 425d; Antiphanes 189,13-16 PCG; Alexis 131,9 PCG; Men. Theophorumene fr. 5 Sandbach = 227 Körte; Cic. Nat. D. 1,53). Its use in the parodies of Aristophanes (Pax 174ff.…
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Deuteragonistes
(154 words)
[German version] (δευτεραγωνιστής;
deuteragōnistḗs). ‘Second actor’, introduced by Aeschylus, but the designation
deuteragonistes is more recent. Whilst the ‘first actor’ (
prōtagōnistḗs) traditionally took on the main role (
Átossa, Oidípous, Mḗdeia) and could identify with this, the
deuteragonistes ─ or even the ‘third actor’ (
tritagōnistḗs) ─ had to cope with a large number of different roles. The amount of text that had to be mastered by the
deuteragonistes was considerable and rapid mask changes required great declamatory skill but brought less fame than th…
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Deutsche Orient-Gesellschaft
(995 words)
[English version] A scholarly society, founded Jan. 1, 1898, with the task "of promoting the study of Oriental Antiquity ... to support ... the efforts of the Royal Berlin Museum toward the acquisition of Oriental antiquities and monuments of art and general culture and to disseminate ... the knowledge of the results of research on Oriental Antiquity" (session of 1902). The moving force behind the society was the textile wholesaler, patron of the arts and philanthropist James Simon (1851-1932). Th…
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Deutsches Archäologisches Institut
(4,915 words)
Kyrieleis, Helmut (Berlin RWG) [German version] A. General (CT) The Deutsches Archäologisches Institut (DAI) is one of the oldest German research institutions and is currently the most important establishment in Germany in the field of international archaeological research. Its origins go back to 1829. The DAI is a scholarly corporation with its own charter; it is under the authority of the Foreign Office, and has its head office in Berlin. The focus of its activity lies on the Mediterranean region and the Near East. Kyrieleis, Helmut (Berlin RWG) [German version] B. Structure and Or…
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Deva
(180 words)
[German version] This item can be found on the following maps: | Legio | Limes | Limes | Britannia Modern Chester. Legionary camp, originally set up for the
legio II Adiutrix in
c. AD 75 [1] as a wooden/earthen fort, with baths (stone); water pipes of lead date the completion to AD 79. The
legio XX Valeria Victrix took over the camp in
c. AD 86/7. The rebuilding in stone began in
c. AD 102. A large amphitheatre situated outside the walls was constructed in the 2nd cent. [2]. West of the camp on the bank of the Dee is a mooring place. The fortress wall was renovated …
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Devaluation of money
(832 words)
[German version] Ancient monetary systems were in principle based on the value of their substance: the value of coins related to the metal quota of the material from which they were made ─ gold, silver or bronze ─ and this was determined by weight and fineness. Based on these prerequisites the devaluation of money in antiquity could primarily be traced back to manipulations in the weight or fineness of the coins. As the quantity of money issued essentially depended on the level of public expenses,…
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Devehöyük
(99 words)
[German version] Iron Age cemeteries south-west of Karkemish, Syria. Most of the graves which are mainly urn graves (phase I) date to the 8th cent. BC. Worth stressing in particular are imported Cypriot, eastern and island Greek, Phrygian (?), Egyptian-Phoenician and locally imitated wares, also pottery decorated with figures as well as terracotta figurines and plaques. Phase II (to the 4th cent. BC) with inhumations, partly in constructed tombs, yielded not just metal objects and small sculptures but also imported Greek pottery. Wittke, Anne-Maria (Tübingen) Bibliography P. R. …
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Devil
(437 words)
[German version] Early Christianity's view of the Devil (Gr. διάβολος/
diábolos, 'vilifier', 'deranger', Lat.
diabolus; many other names, too) was derived from the Bible, early Judaism and the apocrypha, but also connected with other cultures' and religions' views of harmful and evil powers (Satan; Demons). The Devil was generally regarded as an angel or angel prince, originally good, created by God, who then through pride or envy fell from God and took some of the angels with him to be the demons. "And the demon, i.e. the devil, is also called 'dragon' [
drákōn] on account of his fleeing [
ap…
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De viris illustribus
(162 words)
[German version] Latin collection of biographies of important authors with the exclusion of statesmen and commanders (exception: Aurelius Victor), initially as an introduction to a work. Its origins can be found in the peripatetic and Alexandrian literature business (e.g. Neanthes; important: Callimachus'
Pínakes). It is this tradition that influenced the biographical collections of Varro, of Hyginus, and especially of Suetonius'
De viris illustribus. The genre experiences a new zenith with Jerome ( Hieronymus), who in AD 392/3, following Suetonius …
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Devotio
(578 words)
[German version] Ritual in which a person dedicates either the enemy, himself or both to the gods of the Underworld and to death [1]. Macr. (Sat. 3,9,9ff.) reports that in earlier times enemy towns were, according to the
evocatio (the ‘calling out’) of the gods, dedicated to the gods of the Underworld (Dis pater, Veiovis, Manes) (
devoveri). The prayer (
carmen devotionis) that Macr. cites on the occasion of the
devotio of Carthage, calls the enemies a ‘substitute’ (
vicarios) for the Roman commander and his army who in this way could remain alive. A known variation of this genuine
votum (‘vow’…
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Dexamenus
(359 words)
(Δεξαμενός;
Dexamenós). [German version] [1] Mythical king of Olenus in Achaea Mythical king of Olenus in Achaea, host of Hercules; his name indicates that hospitality is his main function in the narrative. Hercules repaid his hospitality by saving D.'s daughter who was being pursued by the centaur Eurytion. There are various versions of the story: either D. was forced to betroth his daughter Mnesimache to Eurytion who was, however, killed by Hercules (Apollod. 2,91); or Eurytion tried to rape D.'s daugh…
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Dexicrates
(100 words)
[German version] (Δεξικράτης;
Dexikrátēs). Comedy writer of the 3rd cent. BC and hence belonging to the New Comedy if his name is correctly supplied on the epigraphical list of Lenaean victors [1. test. *2]. Ath. 3,124b cites two verses from the play Ὑφ' ἑαυτῶν πλανώμενοι (fr. 1); the Suda article is based on this passage, and the addition that D. was an Athenian was probably a conclusion drawn from this [1. test. 1]. A brief mention is also to be found in the work of the grammarian Herodian (fr. 2). Hidber, Thomas (Berne) Bibliography
1 PCG V, 1986, 16.
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Dexippus
(719 words)
(Δέξιππος;
Déxippos). [German version] [1] Spartan, mercenary leader c. 400 BC Lacedaemonian, 406 BC mercenary leader of Acragas in the war against Carthage in which he played an obscure role. The Syracusans appointed him as the commander in Gela where he refused to support Dionysius I and was then sent back to his homeland (Diod. Sic. 13,85,3f.; 87,4f.; 88,7f.; 93; 96,1). D. is perhaps identical with a perioecus who drew attention to himself in the army of Cyrus the Younger through his wicked machinations and was finally executed by Nicander (Xen. An. 5,1,15; 6,1,32; 6,5ff.). Meier, Misc…
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Dexius
(35 words)
[German version] C.D. Staberianus.
Cos. suff. together with L. Venuleius Montanus in an unknown year (AE 1958, 262; [1. 111]; for possible identifications see [2. 338ff.]). Eck, Werner (Cologne) Bibliography
1 W. Eck, RE Suppl. 14
2 Scheid, Collège.
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Dextans
(139 words)
[German version] In the Roman system of weights and measures,
dextans describes 10/12 of the whole and is derived from
deesse and
sextans, i.e. 1
as (12
unciae) less 1
sextans. The
dextans was used in the measurement of length (
pes), the measurement of area (
iugerum), in the law of succession and in the calculation of hours. Based on the Roman pound (
libra: 327.45 g), the
dextans weighs 272.88 g [1. 296]. Bronze mintings of 10
unciae in the sextantal or somewhat lighter standard were issued in Luceria as a compensatory coin for the Roman as shortly after 211 BC for a…
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Dexter
(25 words)
[German version] Widespread Roman
cognomen in the families Afranius, Calpurnius, Cassius, Cestius, Claudius, Cornelius, Domitius, Egnatius, Nummius, Pomponius, Subrius, Turpilius. Elvers, Karl-Ludwig (Bochum)
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