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[German version] Because in Greek the same name (κίσσα/ kíssa or κίττα/ kítta) is used for the magpie ( Pica candata) and the jay, and because these two corvids can be trained to talk, the respective context, as in Plin. HN 10,78 with the mention of the long tail, must ensure the designation. Plin. HN 10,98 reports on their removal of the eggs as a reaction to disruptive observation by humans. Actually, magpies build several nests to protect themselves. However, his description of how they hang two eggs stuck to a …

[German version] (Ion. ἀπηλιώτης; apēliṓtēs, e.g. Thuc. 3,23 and Aristotle, later ἀφηλιώτης; aphēliṓtēs) was the name given to the wind blowing from the east which the Romans translated as subsolanus (Sen. Q. Nat. 5,16,4; Plin. HN 2,119; Gell. NA 2,22,8) or solanus (Vitr. De arch. 1,6,4 f.). On Ephorus' map of the world it comes from the land of the ‘Indoi’, on the wind-rose of the author of the work on the number seven (end of the 5th cent.) it is positioned between the Βορέης ( Boréēs; north-east point) and the Εὖρος ( Eûros; south-east point) [1]. According to Aristot. Met. 2,6,363b…

[German version] (γύψος; gýpsos, gypsum) is the name both for the mineral anhydrite and for the mass manufactured from it by heating until red-hot and mixable with water. Quarrying was carried out in many places, according to Theophrastus (De lapidibus 64, [1. 82]), who also provides details on the properties of gypsum, among these on Cyprus, in Phoenicia and Syria, in Thurii, Tymphaia and Perrhaebia, and according to Plutarch (Mor. 914c) also on Zacynthus. Theophr. l.c. 69 and Plin. HN 36,182 descr…

(Boρέας; Boréas) [German version] A. Meteorology According to Ps.-Aristot. De mundo 4,394b20, the winds blowing from the north towards Greece were called Βορέαι οἱ ἀπὸ ἄρκτου ( Boréai hoi apò árktou) [1]. When the compass rose was developed in the 5th cent., that term was applied -- instead of to the true north wind ( Aparctias) -- to its eastern neighbours, the north-north-east and the north-east, especially on monuments where the Roman term Aquilo also appears. The Boreas is the stormy ‘king of winds’ (Pind. Pyth. 4,181), bringing darkness, cold and snow. It is o…

[German version] Hippopotamus amphibius L., ὁ or ἡ ἵππος ποτάμιος/ híppos potámios, literally ‘river horse’, Latin hippopotam(i)us or equus fluvialis (Ambr. Hexaemeron 5,1,4), equus Nili (Thomas of Cantimpré, Liber de natura rerum 6,19), known from the  Nile (Plin. HN 8,95 and 28,121), from west African rivers (Plin. HN 5,10) and from Palestine. That the animal was found in the Indus, as alleged by Onesicratus, was rejected by Str. 14,1,45 and Paus. 4,34,3. In Egypt, the hippopotamus was nearly extinct in late antiquit…

[German version] (Greek ἡ στύραξ/ hē stýrax, e.g. Theophr. Hist. pl. 9,7,3: the styrax tree or shrub; τὸ στύραξ/ tò stýrax, Latin styrax or later storax: the balsamic resin extracted from it is called Styrax officinalis). The fragrant resin was much in demand in Rome in the Imperial Period, and because of its high price, it was often adulterated (including with cedar resin, honey or bitter almonds, Plin. HN 12,125). It was imported (at the time of Hdt. 3,107 with the help of the Phoenicians) from Syria and Asia minor ( e.g. Cilicia), rolled in leaves of reeds (hence the earlier name Storax calam…

[German version] Of the conifer genus Lat. cupressus (since Enn. Ann. 262 (223) and 490 (511); late Lat. cyparissus, Isid. Orig. 17,7,34; κυπάρισσος/ kypárissos, probably from the pre-Indogermanic, already in Hom. Od. 5,64) with 14 species, only the wild form C. sempervirens L. with the variant C. horizontalis ( C. mas in Plin. HN 16,141) occurred in south-east Europe. However, the old culture strain [1. 34 ff.] of the variant C. pyramidalis ( C. femina: Plin. HN 16,141; it was already sown by Cato: Cato Agr. 48,1; 151), widespread and well known on Cyprus and Crete…

[German version] (πίτυς/ pítys, Lat. pinus, Pinus pinea L.). This striking broad-crowned conifer, related to the spruce, is common along the coastal fringes of the Mediterranean Sea. Because a wreath of stone pine was awarded to victors in the Isthmian Games (Isthmia), poets from Hom. Il. 13,390 on mention the pinus. Pall. Agric. 12,7,9-12 and, much more briefly, Gp. 11,11 describe its cultivation. In many cases, a cone of pinus crowned Roman funerary monuments (Funerary architecture). Its wood useful for shipbuilding, its bark, needles and cones (κῶνος/ kônos) were used in medici…

[German version] (κηρός/ kērós, Lat. cera ). On melting (Plin. HN 21,83), the honeycombs of bees yielded cheap (Colum. 9,16,1) wax, which was bleached by boiling in sea water, adding bicarbonate of soda and then drying in the air (Plin. HN 21,84; cf. Dioscurides 2,83 Wellmann = 2,105 Berendes). In medicine it was used to make salves, patches (Plin. HN 22,117 and 30,70) and suppositories (Pharmacology). Small moulded items (κηροπλαστική/ kēroplastikḗ: Poll. 7,165) as toys for children (Aristoph. Nub. 878), toy figures (Plin. HN 8,215; Children's games, Dolls), household gods ( Lares: J…

[German version] (ἀνάγυρις, -ρος, ἄκοπον; anágyris, - ros, ákopon in Dioscorides 3,150 [1. 158 f.] = 3,157 [2. 360], Plin. HN 27,30 etc., modern Greek ἀνδράβανα; andrávana) is the common Mediterranean leguminous malodorous bush A. foetida L. with a tangy odour and cabbage-like flower, in antiquity used as a medicinal plant, e.g. the leaves as a laxative and the seed to induce vomiting. The proverb ἀνάγυριν κινεῖς [ anágyrin kineîs; 3.109] means to touch something unpleasant (cf. Zenob. 2,55 and 3,31). Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography 1 M. Wellmann (ed.), Pedanii D…

[German version] (ὁ, ἡ κόρις/ kóris, Lat. cimex; especially Cimex lectularius, the common bedbug, a troublesome bloodsucking parasite). Aristophanes was the first to refer to the bedbug as a typical inhabitant of the bedsteads of poor people in a work of literature (Nub. 634, Ra. 115, and Plut. 541). That is the origin of the expression ‘not even to own a bedbug’ ( nec tritus cimice lectus, Mart. 11,32,1; cf. Catull. 23,2). As a bad parasite, the bedbug was also used synonymously for a matchmaker or literary critic (Plaut. Curc. 500; Anth. Pal. 11,322,6; Hor. …

[German version] (λίβανος; líbanos, λιβανωτός; libanōtós as a Semitic loan-word, Lat. tus). Especially frankincense, the resin from bushes of the Boswellia species (e.g. B. Carteri), burnt for its aromatic smell. The actual appearance of the bushes was unknown in Graeco-Roman antiquity (cf. Plin. HN 12,55-57). These bushes also grew in India and the coast of Somalia, but the Greeks only knew them from Arabia (Theophr. Hist. pl. 9,4,2; Plin. HN 12,51). In the eastern Mediterranean, incense was used for cathartic and apo…

[German version] (Greek στρουθός/ strouthós or στρουθίς/ strouthís, diminutive στρουθίον/ strouthíon, also as a name for hetairai, Elean δειρητής/ deirētḗs: Nic. fr. 123; Latin passer, diminutive passerculus: Plaut. Asin. 666 and 694; Cic. Div. 2,65; Arnob. 7,8). Strouthós is a term for the House Sparrow ( Passer domesticus) and every other kind of small songbird, which in Antiquity were not distinguished. Hom. Il. 2,311-317 ( strouthós) is interpreted to some extent as a 'little bird' [1. 269; 2. 73 f.] and to some extent as a sparrow [3. 27 ff.]. Lesbia's f…

[German version] I. Species The pigeon and dove family, περιστεροειδῆ/ peristeroeidê (Aristot. Hist. an. 5,13,544a 33-b 11 and also 6,4, 562b 3-563a 4), includes several species: 1) Wild pigeons: a) Πέλεια/ péleia (derived from πολιός/ poliós = ‘dark, blueish grey’), the rock dove ( Columba livia L.), the wild progenitor of the domestic pigeon. Homer only speaks of this species, which he labels ‘fearful’ because of its shyness towards people (τρήρων/ trḗrōn; e.g., Hom. Il. 5,778; Hom. Od. 12,62). Its enemies are birds of prey (Hom. Od. 15,525-527 and passim). Aristot. Hist. an. 5,13…

[German version] (βύσσος; býssos). Plant and animal fibres that were made into mainly see-through garments (βύσσινος, βύσσινον πέπλωμα). These are probably especially linum (λίνον, linen, flax), later (obviously already in Hdt. 2,86) seed hairs of  cotton, perhaps of the Asclepiadacea Gomphocarpus fruticosus introduced from Africa, as well as fibres of mushrooms and lichens. Still called byssus today, the adhesive fibers of seashells clinging to the bottom of the sea, such as the large Mediterranean Pinna nobilis, also supplied 3-8 cm long fibres used for making ropes,…

[German version] Thomas of Cantimpré 9,11 [1. 300] clearly described the glow-worm with the name cicendula (= firefly) as a beetle ( scarabeus) the size of a small fly that occurs mainly in Italy and flies 15 days before and after the summer solstice. The glowing, which is only visible at night as sparks ( scintillarum modo), is especially noticeable at the tail but not after the wings have been folded. He adopted the name and etymology ( cicindela ... quod volans vel gradiens lucet) from Isid. Orig. 12,8,6, but the remainder of the context from Plin. HN 11,98 and 18,250. There, cicindela is eq…

[German version] ( Porphyrio porphyrio, πορφυρίων/ porphyríōn, Lat. porphyrio). The particularly splendid, blue-coloured purple swamphen with red bill and long red legs belongs to the rail family. Aristot. Hist. an. 7(8),6,595a 12 knew it for its peculiar snatching of water when drinking (Plin. HN 10,129: “solus morsu bibit”). Its neck is rather long (Aristot. Hist. an. 2,17,509a 10 f.). Pliny intimates that it breaks up its food in water and moves it towards its bill with its feet. A good description, …

[German version] (zoological: Medusa). The swimming reproductive form of polyp from the seanettle subspecies ( Cnidaria) of zoophytes. Aristot. Hist. an. 4,6,531a 32-b 17 describes very well their stinging tentacles, the ἀκαλήφη/ akalḗphē sc. θαλασσία/ thalassía ‘stinging nettle’ (nettle-jellyfish) or, synonymously, κνίδη/ knídē (ibid. 5,16,548a 22-27) (The comic passages quoted by Ath. 3,90a-b mean by akalḗphē not the jellyfish, but the stinging nettle). In Latin the urtica marina corresponds to the knide (Plin. HN 32,146). Aristotle classes jellyfish as molluscs …

[German version] Crab apples ( Malus silvestris, pumila, tomentosa etc., ἀγριομηλέα; agriomēléa, e.g. in Dioscorides 1,115,4 [1.1.108] = 1,163 [2.136]) were collected as early as the Asian and European Stone Age. Cultivated strains with larger fruits reached the Alpine and Baltic area in the Neolithic period [3.94-104]. In imperial Rome about 30 varieties of apples (cf. Plin. HN 15,51 f. and passim) were known and these were achieved, among other ways, through various grafting procedures (cf. Colum. De arb…

[German version] In antiquity (σ)μύραινα/ (s)mýraina, Latin murena mostly meant the Mediterranean moray, Muraena helena L., a long, eel-like (cf. Aeschyl. Choeph. 994f.) edible fish, distinguished from the related σμῦρος ( smŷros, M. christini) by its markings. The latter kind of moray ( smŷros) is admittedly considered to be the male (Aristot. Hist. an. 5,10,543a 24-28; Plin. HN 9,76). Others believed in a mating of morays with snakes (Plin. l.c. and ibid. 32,14; detailed description in Opp. Hal. 1,554-579: Ael. Nat. 1,50), but Andreas …

[German version] (γαλῆ/ galê, also γαλέα/ galéa; Latin mustela, the 'mouse-hunter', in Isid. Orig. 12,3,3 interpreted with a false etymology as a 'long mouse'; usually the weasel ( Mustela nivalis L.), but also other members of the Mustelidae = marten-like family). The galê is sometimes identified with the ἰκτίς/ iktís (schol. Nic. Ther. 196; Plin. HN 29,60; cf. Polecat, Marten); Aristot. Hist. an. 2,1,500b 24 and 8(9),6,612b 10 contradicts this, however. Weasels hunt mice, moles (Pall. Agric. 4,8,4), snakes, lizards and birds. People caught them with live-catch traps (γαλεάγρα/ gal…

[German version] [1] Precious stone According to Theophr. De lapidibus 31 [1.68], a precious stone ( gemma) named after the river of the same name in Sicily (today's Carabi or Canitello), and which, along with 11 others, adorned the official escutcheon of the High Priest Aaron (Ex 39,10-13) [2.204 f.]. According to Plin. HN 37,5, King Pyrrhus of Epirus owned a specimen whose naturally occurring streaks ( maculae) depicted Apollo and the nine Muses. According to Plin. HN 37,139-142, the achates and its many variants, whilst having decreased in value owing to ma…

[German version] The only representative of the Trapaceae (formerly Hydrocaryaceae) family is called, from the shape of the nut, ὁ τρίβολος/ tríbolos sc. ἔνυδρος/ énhydros ('tricorn'), βουκέφαλος/ boképhalos ('ox's head'), ταυροκέρας/ taurokéras ('bull's horn') in Greek, and tribulus sc. aquaticus in Latin. The plant grows primarily in marshy places in soft-water rivers in the climatically favourable zones of Europe and Asia, with all but the leather-like serrated floating leaves under water (good description in  Theophr. Hist. pl. 4…

[German version] (κνέωρον; knéōron). By κνέωρος Theophr. (Hist. pl. 6,1,4) understands, as does Dioscorides (4,172 [1. 2,320ff.] = 4,170 [2. 464f.]) several small shrubs of the Thymelaeaceae with a poisonous sap that causes itching (cf. Plin. HN 21,55), namely Thymelaea tartonraira and hirsuta, Daphne gnidium (Southern daphne) and oleifolia. The red berries used for medicinal purposes (Plin. HN 13,114 grana Cnidia) were still prescribed in the 19th cent., as semina Coccognidii, as a laxative. Poisonous plants Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography 1 Wellmann 2 2 Berendes

[German version] [1] Animal (χελώνη/ chelṓnē, ἐμύς/ emýs: Aristot. Hist. an. 5,33, 558a 7-11, cf. Arr. Ind. 21; Latin testudo, in Plin. HN 9,71 and 166 mus marinus, literally 'sea mouse'). The following are known: 1.) the Hermann's Tortoise, χελώνη (χελών, χελύς, χελύνη) χερσαία/ chelṓnē ( chelṓn, chelýs, chelýnē) chersaía; 2.) the very similar Spur-Thighed Tortoise, χ. ὄρειος ( ch. óreios) in Ael. Nat. 14,17 and Plin. HN 9,38: chersinae; 3.) the Pond Terrapin, ἐμύς ( emýs) or χ. λιμναία ( ch. limnaía); 4.) the Loggerhead Sea-Turtle, Thalassochelys caretta, χ. θαλαττία ( ch. thalattía) …

[German version] (Greek ὁ/ἡ στρύχνος/ strýchnos, Latin solanum and strumus). Various species of the nightshade family ( Solanaceae). They comprise (1) the edible vegetable plants (=ἐδώδιμος/ edṓdimos; ἥμερος/ hḗmeros = 'tame, cultivated', κηπαῖος/ kēpaîos = 'belonging to the garden') and those used as medicinal herbs (e.g. externally for itching, Plin. HN 26,120), such as Black Nightshade ( Solanum nigrum; Theophr. Hist. pl. 3,18,11; 7,7,2 and 7,15,4; Dioscorides 4,70 Wellmann = 4,71 Berendes; Plin. HN 27,132) and its varieties (including the tomato, w…

[German version] (κανθαρίδες; kantharídes) are slim, metallic-green oil beetles, such as the so-called Spanish fly ( Lytta vesicatoria), that were used for medicines; when taken orally, their active ingredient -- cantharidin -- leads to poisoning, as Plin. HN 29,93-96 (cf. [1. 70f.]) shows with reference to one case. Externally applied to wounds together with e.g. mutton suet, the cantharidae were said to be useful because of their blistening, caustic effect which the Middle Ages learnt about through Isid. Orig. 12,5,5. The beetles -- that lived on pl…

[German version] (ἄγχουσα; ánchousa). Identified as the Mediterranean boraginaceae Alkanna tinctoria (L.) Tausch used for red dye (because of the alizarine content of the root) and as an astringent medicinal plant; in Aristophanes, Theophr. Hist. pl. 7,9,3 (with red rhizome), Dioscorides 4,23 [1.2.187 f. = 2.378] (cf. 4,24-26), Plin. HN among others [3.158]. Among other plants, the ox tongues, on the other hand, belong to the current genus Anchusa L. (βούγλωσσον; boúglōsson). The olive tree-like leaves of the bushy officinal (cf. Dioscorides 1,95 [1.1.86] = 1,124 …

[German version] (ἴον/ íon, ἰωνία/ iōnía; Latin viola). The ancient names referred not only to the various types of Violaceae, but also to certain cruciferous plants with yellow and white blossoms (wallflower: Cheiranthus cheiri L., gillyflower: Mathiola incana R. Br., dame's rocket: Hesperis matronalis L.) that are not the focus of interest here. The word íon in Hom. Od. 5,72 may refer not to a violet, but more generally to a ‘flower with a dark blossom’ [1]. Theophrastus (H. plant. 6,6,7) describes the fragrant violet with blue-violet blossoms called Viola odorata (ἴον μέλαν/ íon méla…

[German version] In the macchia shrubland of Mediterranean countries the genus Arbutus L. of the Ericaceae family is represented by two of its total of 20 evergreen species, namely a) the ST Arbutus unedo L. (κόμαρος; kómaros) with its strawberry-like sour-tasting drupes ( arbuta Verg.  G. 3,301 and 4,181), which ripen in a year, and b) the andrachle, Arbutus andrachle L. (ἀνδράχνη; andráchn ē), spread from Greece to the east as far as the coast of the Black Sea, with small orange-yellow inedible fruits. The fruits of the arbutus, which grows as far west as the Atlantic coast of Ir…

[German version] (θεῖον/ theîon, Epic θέειον/ théeion or θήιον/ thḗion, Latin sulphur). Because of its alleged power to ward off evil, derived from theîos ('divine'), mentioned as early as in Homer (Od. 14,307; 22,481 f. and 493 f.: as a means of purification after the killing of the suitors by Odysseus). Aristotle (Mete. 3,6, 378a 23) mentions it as an example of fossil substances burnt by dry exhalation (ξηρὰ ἀναθυμίασις/ xērá anathymíasis) [1. 42 f.]. Sulphur was mined, primarily in Sicily, and was used to combat vermin and to preserve wine ('sulphuration' of …

[German version] Employing a term originally used for large marine animals in general, the whale, he largest marine mammal and related to dolphins [1], was called τὸ κῆτος/ kêtos (first in Hom. Od. 12,97; Latin loanword cetus, plural cete(a): Ambrosius, Exameron 5,10,28 and 5,11,32; Isid. Orig. 12,6,8); there also is the term φάλαινα/ phálaina (Aristot. Hist. an. 1,5,489b 4 f.), Latin ballaena (Plaut. Rud. 545; Ov. Met. 2,9; Plin.  HN 9,4; 9,8 and 9,16) for the supposedly female animal, and for the male the ironic term musculus ('little mouse', Isid. Orig. 12,6,6). Furthermore, …

[German version] Plin. HN 8,132 refers to the Marmota marmota as ‘Alpine mouse’ ( mus Alpinus) and stresses its size (like a badger, meles) and its hibernation ( conduntur hieme) thought to be based on its collection of food [1. 175]. The fact that its pelt is scrubbed off on the back he explains by saying that both sexes, lying on their back and holding food with their front legs, pulled themselves by their tails backwards into their den. The story of their supposed locomotion on two legs (ibid. 10,186) is, of course, not …

[German version] Because of its appearance in the evening it was called νυκτερίς ( nykterís) or vespertilio. From the Orient, the flying fox ( Pteropus medius Tem.) apparently was also known under the name of ἀλώπηξ ( alṓpēx, Aristot. Hist. an. 1,5,490a 7) or νυκταλώπηξ ( nyktalṓpēx, Ps.-Callisthenes 3,17,21; Str. 16,1,7 = p.739; cf. Hdt. 3,110, accordingly Plin. HN 12,85). The order of Chiropterais described as ‘skin-winged’ (δερμόπτερα, cf. Plin. HN 11,228: siccis membranis volat) by Aristot. Hist. an. 1.1.487b 22f. and 490a 7f., and thus seen as being close to that…

[German version] This superior species of crab ( Homarus vulgaris) belonged, according to Aristotle (Hist. an. 1,6,490b 12), under the name ἀστακός/ astakós (according to Frisk ‘provided with bones’) to the soft-shelled species (μαλακόστρακα/ malakóstraka), but according to Aelianus (NA 9,6) it was one of the crustaceans (ὀστρακόδερμα/ ostrakóderma). Its precise description (black speckles on a white background, eight feet, large claws with teeth on them, a tail composed of various parts) in Aristot. Hist. an. 4,2,526a 11-b 18 facilitates ide…

[German version] (φλόμος/ phlómos, Latin verbascum), a member, according to a good description in Dioscorides 4,103 Wellmann = 4,102 Berendes (cf. Plin. HN 25,120f.; Isid. orig. 17,9,94), of the Scrophulariaceae family, occurring in two kinds, one with white and one with black leaves ( Verbascum sinuatum L.). Of the white one Dioscurides distinguishes a male form ( V. thapsus L., Common Mullein) from a female one ( V. plicatum Sibthorp). Their roots are said to be effective e.g. as an astringent for diarrhoea. According to Plin. HN 26,23, drunk with water it help…

[German version] (καμάρα; kamára), the correct version for camera, related to camurus (‘curved’), describing the curvature of a room or a barque or indeed the barque itself. This type of small round-bottomed sailing vessel with inward-curving side walls, which could travel in a circle and in both directions, was used on the north-eastern coast of the Black Sea, particularly by pirates (Str. 11,2,12, 495f.; Tac. Hist. 3,47,3). The side walls could be raised in such a way that they formed a closed canopy in …

[German version] (γόγγρος; góngros, sometimes, e.g., Ath. 8,356a: γρύλλος; grýllos), a marine eel, a sea fish that was popular like the  eel and, therefore, expensive (Plaut. Mil. 760; Persa 110; cf. information in Ath. 7,288c). Aristotle mentions two species that differ in colour (Hist. an. 8,13, 598a13), their unusual length, thickness and smoothness, the large stomach and the tallow-like fat. The conger feeds on fish including its own species and octopuses but, in turn, is the prey of moray eels and c…

[German version] This name (πεύκη/ peúkē, picea, derived from pix = pitch) encompasses three genera of conifer, namely (a) the Common or Norway Spruce Picea abies [L.] Karst. = excelsa Link, which is found hardly anywhere in the Mediterranean, (b) the Fir ( abies, ἐλάτη, in some species on Mediterranean uplands) and (c) the Pine ( pinus, πίτυς/ pítys, πεύκη/ peúkē). Spruce and fir wood, felled on a large scale in the southern Alps and mountains of the Balkans, was used from Antiquity  for wood for building - including ships and masts [1. 38] - and for fi…

[German version] Greek κράταιγος/ krátaigos or κραταιγῶν/ krataigôn, Lat. spina alba are names for various thorny plants (cf. Plin. HN 24,108; Columella 3,11,5; 7,7,2 and 7,9,6); in Plin. HN 21,68 spina alba, for instance, obviously means the edible Carline thistle ( Carlina). This also includes ὄα/ óa or ὄη/ óē, Lat. sorbus, the mountain ash. An exact identification of what is meant in ancient texts with crataegus and sorbus is not possible. In Theophr. Hist. pl. 3,15,6, the Azarole/Crete hawthorn ( Crataegus azarolus) is probably being described, which Plin. HN 27,63 incorr…

[German version] Named after Umbria, their place of origin, this breed of dog was highly favoured, primarily as a  tracking hound (Grattius, Cynegetica 171 ff.; Sen. Thy. 497 ff.; Verg. Aen. 12,753-55: hound baits deer; Sil. Pun. 3,295 ff.). We do not know its appearance. The Umbrian sheepdogs, mentioned in Varro Rust. 2,9,6, that returned of their own accord to their flocks were certainly not of this breed. An illustration on an aes grave coin from Hatria in Picenum could represent an umber [1. 124, fig. 49; 2. 95]. Dog Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography 1 Keller 2 Toynbee…

[German version] (μεσπίλη/ mespílē, μέσπιλον/ méspilon, ἀρωνία/ arōnía: Dioscorides; Lat. mespilus or -a, the fruit mespilum). Mespilus germanica L. (family Rosaceae), a bush or tree probably native to southern Europe, was cultivated in Greece as a wild apple tree at least since about 370 BC on account of its small, three-cored, sweet fruits (Middle Comedy, Eubulus [2] in Ath. 14,640c). Theophrastus (Hist. pl. 3,12,5f. = Plin. HN. 15,84) describes three thorn-bushes under this name, of which only μεσπίλη ἡ σατάνειος/ mespílē hē satáneios is recognized as medlar. Dioscorides (…

[German version] (πλάτανος/ plátanos, poet. πλατάνιστος/ platánistos, Lat. platanus) is the tree Platanus orientalis L., found in southern Europe at least since the time of Homer (Il. 2,307-13). According to Plin. HN 12,6, the plane tree crossed the Ionian Sea to Sicily, and thence to Italy. It was later naturalized in northern Europe. The broad (πλατύς/ platýs, 'broad, wide') leaves, after which it is named, provided goodly shade for rest, as in Plato's Phaedrus (Plat. Phdr. 229a-230b). In antiquity, the tree was favoured as a graft stock for slips of e.g. pear (Pal…

[German version] (Greek ἀκιπήσιος; akipḗsios = (h)elops). Rare delicacy saltwater fish (Plin. HN 9,60 and 32,145; Macrob. Sat. 3,16,1-9; Ath. 7,294f), only very highly valued until the time of the caesars (Plautus in Macrobius; Lucil. 1240 M; Mart. 13,91; cf. Plinius and Hor. Sat. 2,2,46 f.). As early as antiquity the zoological classification was contentious (Plin. HN 32,153 according to Ovid Hal. 96 and Ath. loc. cit.); now it is sometimes regarded as a sturgeon [1. 7; 2. 2,375 and passim] and sometimes as a sterlet ( elops [1; 3]).  Fishes Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliograp…

[German version] This wild dog ( Canis aureus), principally found in Africa, still occurs today in Eurasia from the Balkans eastwards. It hunts at night, often in packs, preying mainly on small mammals and birds, but it also eats carrion. An earlier theory that it, together with the wolf, was a progenitor of the domestic dog ([1]; cf. [2. 70-72]), has now been abandoned. The θώς/ thṓs, as distinct from the  wolf, was well known to Aristotle (Hist. an. 2,17,507b 17: internal organs resemble those of the wolf; 6,35,580a 26-31: gives birth to two to four blind w…

[German version] In the Greek world, archaeological excavations have yielded jewellery but not PS, detectable only from the 5th cent. on. Mineralogical knowledge was almost absent in Antiquity. Plato (Plt. 303e) considers diamonds, for example, as a constituent of gold. The names of PS, such as ἀδάμας ( adámas, 'the invincible'), ἀμέθυστος ( améthystos, 'that which does not make one drunk') and ὀφίτης ( ophítēs, 'that which wards off snakes') reveal the magical effect ascribed to them. Theophrastus is the author of the first scholarly treatment, Περὶ λίθων ( Perì líthōn, 'On Stones' …

[German version] (ἄνισον; ánison), Pimpinella anisum L. was, like other herbs of the family of the umbelliferous plants (e.g. ἄνηθον; ánēthon, Anethum, dill, and ἄμμι; ámmi, Ammi), introduced to Greece via Egypt. Dioscorides 3,56 (ἄνησσον; ánēsson) [1.2.69 f.] = 3,58 [2.301 f.] considered Cretan aniseed to be the best. According to Plin. HN 20,185-195, Pythagoras in particular and also several Greek doctors praised anesum as a herb and remedy, e.g. for epilepsy. Later it was also a component of theriaca. Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography 1 M. Wellmann (ed.), Pedani…

(Ἀρτεμισία; Artemisía) [German version] [1] Female ruler of Halicarnassus (around 480 BC) Daughter of Lygdamis; prior to 480 BC, took over the rulership of her city of birth,  Halicarnassus, and of a few islands; in 480 joined her ships to the fleet of Xerxes (Hdt. 7.99). Herodotus was related to her. He praised her courage in the battle of Salamis and emphasized her influence on Xerxes (Hdt. 8,68-69). Högemann, Peter (Tübingen) [German version] [2] Queen of Greater Caria (353-351 BC) Sister and wife of  Maussollus and after his death, queen of the satrapal kingdom of Great…

[German version] (καικίας; kaikías, Latin caecias). This local wind name is supposedly derived from the river  Caecus [2] in Mysia (Ach. Tat. Introductio in Aratum 33, p. 68 Maas). As one of the ánemoi katholikoí (the common winds [1. 2305]), the C., also called Hellēspontías (Ἑλλησποντίας) by some, was a joint wind of  Boreas and  Eurus; it was said to blow from the north-east and to form large clouds because of its coldness and dampness (Aristot. Mete. 2,6,364b 18f. and 24-29). Originally, the name referred to the wind squall blowing t…

[German version] ἄμωμον ( ámōmon) and καρδάμωμον ( kardámōmon; in Theophr. H. plant. 9,7,2 = amomum and cardamomum in Plin. HN 12,48-50), ἄμωμον ( ámōmon; in Dioscorides 1,15 [1. 1,20 f.] = 1,14 [2. 39-41]) was the name for the aromatic capsules and seeds of several zingiberaceae from India ( Amomum cardamomum etc., Elettaria cardamomum) and tropical Africa ( Aframomum melagueta = semen Paradisi) which came to Europe through the campaigns of Alexander. Their wealth of essential and fatty oil made them much sought-after up till the 16th cent. as a remedy (…

[German version] (ὁ μύρτος/ mýrtos, ἡ μυρσίνη/ myrsínē, μυρρίνη/ myrrhínē and ὁ μύρρινος/ ho mýrrhinos, the berry τὸ μύρτον/ tò mýrton or ἡ μυρτίς/ hē myrtís, probably of Semitic origin, but unlikely to be related to μύρρα/ mýrrha (Myrrh); Latin murtus, myrtus, myrta, murta (all feminine), the berry murtum) is the thermophile evergreen tree with white blossoms that is common throughout the Mediterranean region, particularly in the maquis as well as in the Middle East. It was cultivated in gardens from the Hellenistic period. The plant itself …

I. Mesopotamia [German version] A. Concept and sources The is no accurate or systematic, zoological or botanical classification of the animal and plant kingdoms from the Ancient Orient. The main source is one of the most voluminous Mesopotamian lexical texts with 24 chapters, known from its initial line as ḪAR-ra =  ḫubullu ('(rate of) interest'). It is a catalogue of objects and living creatures, ordered acrographically (i.e. by the first cuneiform sign) according to semantic aspects (Science). This principle represented a mnemotechnic aid; th…

[German version] κότυφος (κόψιχος; kótyphos, kópsichos, Aristophanes etc., cf. Ath. 2,65d), merula ( -us Anth. Lat. 762,13), today Turdus merula, relatively well known: Aristot. Hist. an. 5,13,544a 27-29, cf. Plin. HN 10,147 (two clutches of eggs); Aristot. Hist. an. 7(8),16,600a 20 (hibernation! but see Plin. HN 10,72); Aristot. Hist. an. 8(9),1,609b 9-11 (hostility with χλωρίων), 610a 13 (friendship with turtledove); 8(9),9,614b 8 f. (compared in its size with woodpeckers); 8(9),13,616a 3 (nest building); 8(9),1…

[German version] (ἔγχελυς; éngchelus, anguilla), hardly distinguished from the sea eel (γόγγρος; góngros, conger/congrus). In the Iliad (21,203; 353) contrasted with fish as an amphibian. Its way of life and behaviour were well known to Aristotle (Hist. an. 8,2,591 b 30-592 a 24; 1,5,489 b 26 f.; 2,13,504 b 30 f.; Part. an. 4,13,696 a 3 f.: only two fins). Theophr. fr. 171,4 explains the ability to live on land by its small gills and low requirement of water and believes (fr. 171.9), like Plin. HN 9.160, that i…

[German version] Classical antiquity distinguished (unlike [1]) by name only a few kinds of this order of arachnids: 1.) the tick (κρότων/ krótōn, κυνοραιστής/ kynoraistḗs, Latin ricinus) as a parasite of dogs (Hom. Od. 17,300; Aristot. Hist. an. 5,19,552a 15 and 5,31,557a 16; Zenob. 6,27; first good description by Thomas of Cantimpré 9,20 [2. 303] as engulas, pediculus silvestris or theca = caeca, from which English ‘tick’, German ‘Zecke ’etc.), hedgehogs and foxes (Aisop. 36; Aristot. rhet. 2,20,1393b 24-27: κυνοραιστής), cattle (κρότων βοῶν, Aristot. …

[German version] (κίτρος, cedar). This genus of Rutaceae consists of about 20, or rather a narrower spectrum of seven to eight species of evergreen trees and shrubs from subtropical and tropical Asia. The name citrus (κίτρος, κίτριον; kítros, kítrion) originally referred to conifers with aromatic wood, such as Callitris articulata. However, after Alexander's campaigns it was transferred to the species Citrus medica, which had been cultivated in Media and Persia for some time (μῆλον μηδικόν; mêlon mēdikón, κίτριον in Theophr. Hist. pl. 4,4,2; κεδρόμηλα ( kedrómēla) in Dioscurides…

( Struthio camelus L.). [German version] I. Names In Greek this giant flightless bird was originally called ὁ (ἡ) στρουθός/ strouthós, but to avoid confusion with the sparrow (other than in unambiguous contexts such as Aristoph. Ach. 1106) descriptive adjectives ( mégas, katágeios, chersaîos, chamaipetḗs, áptēnos or Libykós, Arábios or Mauroúsios) were added. It was not until Diod. 2,50,4 that the hybrid term ὁ (ἡ) στρουθοκάμηλος/ strouthokámēlos (derived from the size, form and even-toedness of the ostrich - Aristot. Part. an. 4,14,697b 21-24; cf. 4,12,695a 1…

[German version] Amongst the herbs ( herbae, ποιώδη; poiṓdē), Gramineae or Poaceae represent the grass family (Glumiflorae, πόαι; póai, in Theophr. Hist. pl. 7,8,3); in antiquity, however, the reeds (Cyperaceae) and rushes (Juncaceae) were not differentiated ( Bulrush;  Byblus). Besides the meadow grass (ἄγρωστις; ágrōstis, e.g. Theophr. Hist. pl. 1,6,7 et passim) and the grass proper ( grain; frumenta), other members of the Graminea family are, 1. the cat's tail Arundo (δόναξ, κάλαμος; dónax, kálamos, i.a. in Theophr. Hist. pl. 4,11,11 and elsewhere), esp. Arundo d…

(νότος; nótos) [German version] I. Meteorology Three winds blowing from the south were distinguished in antiquity: (1.) the nótos (νότος, Latin auster) proper blew from various directions in winter (from November) and is described as rain-bringing, stormy and bringing obscured visibility (evidence in [1]); (2.) the mild, changeable and sky-clearing λευκόνοτος/ leukónotos was encountered after the December solstice and on the dog-days (νότος λαμπρός: Theophr. Hist. plant. 6,3,4). Ps.-Aristot. Probl. 26,20 derives the difference between the visibi…

[German version] (λωτός/ lōtós, τρίφυλλον/ tríphyllon, Lat. lotus, trifolium). Sometimes growing wild, sometimes cultivated, this important forage crop (in Columella 8,14,2 used also as food for tame geese) from the Leguminosae family is mentioned as early as Hom. Il. 2,776; 14,348; 21,351 and Hom. Od. 4,603. References to this lōtós in Theophr. Hist. pl. 7,8,3 and 7,13,5 (or lotus Verg. G. 2,84; Columella 2,2,20, as an indicator of good soil for growing cereals) as also Dioscorides 4,110 Wellmann = 4,109 Berendes are not sufficiently precise for a cla…

[German version] Of the genus of arthropods, only the two orders of web-spiders ( Araneae; spiders) and scorpions were commonly known in Antiquity. The third order, that of the very poisonous barrel spiders ( Solifugae/ Solpugida), a scourge in Arabia and tropical Africa (Agatharchides mare Eythraeum 59 = GGM 151), was apparently found only in Greece (φαλάγγια/ phalángia) and Spain ( salpugae, Plin. HN 29,92). Plin. HN 29,87 [1. 36 f.] makes a clear distinction between two types. Of the fourth order, mites ( Acari), only the castor-bean tick ( ricinus = tick, Ixodes ricinus L.) is signi…

[German version] (τὸ πέπερι/ tò péperi, Latin piper) in Hippoc. Gynaikia 1,81 (cf. Hippocr. Epidemiai 4,40; 5,67; 6,6,13; 7,64) is the name of the costly spice Piper with two species ( P. album and P. nigrum) which is imported from India. The inadequate descriptions in Theophr. H. plant. 9,20,1, (cited in Athen. 2,66e), Dioscorides (2,159 Wellmann = 2,188 Berendes) and Plin. HN 12,26f. divulge that the seed grains of what is called P. longum grow in small pods, and this has been connected with African pepper ( Xylopia aethiopica A. Rich.), which is common in Africa. Theophrastus deri…

[German version] (ἀνεμώνη; anemṓnē). In Theophr. Hist. pl. 6,8,1 and passim, Dioscorides 2,176 [1.1.244 f.] = 2,207 [2.252 f.] with medicinal significance e.g. for cleaning ulcers. Plin. HN 21,164-166 names the early blossoming ranunculaceae Anemone coronaria L. [3.76 and fig. 121] and hortensis L. cultivated in many types of garden forms as well as their wild varieties. According to Plin. HN 21,165, the name is derived, like the German Windröschen (wind rose), from the flowers opening in the spring wind. The genuses pasque flowers ( Pulsatilla) and liverworts ( Hepatica) are rela…

[German version] ( Prunus persica Batsch from Persica sc. malus, Greek Περσικὸν μῆλον/ Persikòn mȇlon or Latin Persicum malum, i.e. literally 'Persian apple-tree', for the fruit), introduced to Italy from Persia or Armenia only in the 1st cent. AD (Plin. HN 12,14 and 15,44f.). Plin. HN 15,39f. distinguishes several kinds according to origin, including the supernatia, i.e. the one from the Adriatic Sea. It is likely that early peaches ( praecocia) meant apricots, which were initially very expensive. Peaches, which were rated particularly innocuous (cf. Dioscorides …

[German version] An uncommon subshrub growing in Crete, properly called Dittany in English (δίκταμνος; díktamnos or δίκταμνον; díktamnon in Aristot. Hist. an. 8(9),6,612a 3-5 and Mir. ausc. 4,830b 20-22, Theophr. Hist. pl. 9,16,1, Dioscorides 3,32 [1. 41f.] = 3,34 [2. 284ff.] and dictamnus in Verg. Aen. 12,412 and Pliny HN 25,92). It is considered to be not our native Rutacea the aromatic Burning Bush, Dictamnus albus L., the diptam or diptamnus of the Middle Ages, whose leaves have a lemon-like fragrance when rubbed, but rather the Mediterranean labiate Amaracus (Amarakos) dict…

[German version] (ἀργεμώνη; argemṓnē), in Dioscorides 2,177 [1. 1.245 f.] = 2,208 [2.253], which is supposed to be named after the use of its milky sap (ὀπός; opós) against leucoma (ἀργεμα; árgema) etc. Just as with μήκων ῥοιάς ( mḗkōn rhoiás) in Dioscorides 4,63 [1.2.217 f.] = 4,64 [2.397] and argemonia in Plin. HN 25,102 (medical use e.g. for angina in Plin. HN 26,23) there is identification with the club-like poppy Papaver argemone L., by others with the similarly flowering pheasant's eye ( Adonis autumnalis L.; cf. adonium Plin. HN 21,60).  Poppy Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bib…

[German version] The true rose of Jericho, Rosa hierochontea, Rosa de Hiericho, Rosa Sanctae Mariae, the year-old crucifer Anastatica hierochuntica L. of the deserts of the Near East and north Africa and the small or false rose of Jericho, the composite Odontospermum pygmaeum (= Asteriscus aquaticus), found as far as southern Europe, have been considered since the Crusades to be a symbol of the Resurrection because of the infructescences unrolling in the presence of moisture [1. 38 f.]. The plants spread their seeds by rolling in the wind. Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliograph…

[German version] Trigonella foenum-graecum L. (βούκερας, αἰγόκερας, τῆλις; boúkeras, aigókeras, têlis) is an annual cultivar of the Mesopotamian species Tr. Haussknechtii (not the Mediterranean Trigonella gladiata), with a tangy fragrance that was used medicinally and as fodder. As seed finds of c. 3000 BC near Cairo show, fenugreek was cultivated in ancient Babylonia and Egypt, (Egyptian šbt, Arabic ḥulba) from where it was exported. Dioscurides 2,102 ([1. 176f.] = 2,124 [2. 206f.]) recommends the meal produced from the seed as a tonic and for cleansi…

[German version] (τέτραξ, tétrax). Plin. HN 10,56 distinguishes between a smaller black variety (i.e. the black grouse) and one living in the north and in the Alps, similar in colour to but much bigger than a vulture, which because of its weight could be caught on the ground [1. 234f.]. When kept in a cage, their meat supposedly lost its taste, and the birds stopped breathing and died. Whether the bird from Mysia in Ath. 9,398e-f refers to the capercaillie remains uncertain. Other mentions of its n…

(Ξενοκράτης/ Xenokrátēs). [German version] [1] X. of Acragas, mentioned by Pindar, c. 500 BC Brother of the tyrant Theron of Acragas. Pind. Pyth. 6 refers to X.' victory in chariot-racing at the Pythian Games (Pythia [2]) in 490 BC, and Pind. Isthm. 2 to his charioteering victory at the Isthmian Games (Isthmia) in c. 470 BC. The latter ode was written after X.' death. Meister, Klaus (Berlin) Bibliography H. Berve, Die Tyrannis bei den Griechen, 1967, 133; 135. [German version] [2] X. of Chalcedon Academic philosopher, 4th cent. BC Academic philosopher (Academy), 4th cent. BC. Stanzel, Ka…

[German version] The apricot ( Armeniaca vulgaris Lam. = Prunus armeniaca L.) comes from a stone fruit genus represented in eastern and central Asia by eight to nine species that are often regarded, like the peach and the almond, as just (like Plin. HN 15,41-43) a subgenus of Prunus. In its Chinese homeland it has been cultivated since at least the 3rd cent. BC. The early flowering tree (Plin. HN 16,103) reached Greece and Italy via Armenia through the campaign in AD 63 and so was called μῆλον ἀρμενιακόν ( mêlon armeniakón), malum Armeniacum (Isid. Orig. 17,7,7), Armenia(ca). Dioscorides 1,…

[German version] (βάλσαμον; bálsamon), also balsam sap or inferior wood balsam (ὀποβάλσαμον or ξυλοβάλσαμον), the aromatic resin of the Burseracea Commiphora (= balsamodendron) opobalsamum (including gileadensis), which is tapped in the summer. Balsam was only known since Theophr. Hist. pl. 9,6 only as a product of two gardens from Palestine (Judea near Jericho) and from Arabia (Str. 16,2,763). Dioscorides (1,19,1-5 [1. 1.24ff.] = 1,18 [2. 45ff.]; following Theophrastus) describes the small bush, which resembles the vin…

[German version] (Χῶρος; Chôros, Plin. HN 2,119). The turbulent north-west wind that blows from 30° from west to north. It is sometimes (as in Vitr. De arch. 1,6,10) distinguished from the Corus.  Winds Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography R. Böker, s.v. Winde, RE 8 A, 2294,45ff., 2352 (fig. 14), 2356,16 ( corus!), 2373 (fig. 26: wind star of Vitruvius) and 2375 (fig. 27: wind-rose of Pliny).

[German version] Aristotle (Hist. an. 1,1,487b 15 f.) defines molluscs (μαλάκια/ malákia; Lat. mollia sc. animalia, e.g. Plin. HN 9,73; 11,133 and 11,267) as bloodless (marine) animals that are capable of floating and have a rigid internal structure (στερεόν/ stereón = σήπιον/ sḗpion or ξίφος/ xíphos, ‘sword’, here the mostly calcareous shell, well described in ibid. 4,1,524b 22-27), having eight tentacles, each with two rows of suckers (δικότυλοι/ dikótyloi), a head and a body (κύτος/kýtos; ibid. 4,1,523b 1-5 and 21-29) enclosed by a fin (πτερύγια/ pterýgia). Today we refer to…

[German version] (ἀνθυλλίς, ἀνθύλλιον, ἄνθυλλος; anthyllís, anthýllion, ánthyllos) was, according to Dioscorides 3,136 [1.2.144 f.] = 3,143 [2.351 f.] and Plin. HN 21,175, the name given to two medicinal herbs used i.a. in gynaecology that are hard to classify, namely the Cretan cress ( Cressa cretica L., Convolvulaceae) and perhaps the labiate Ajuga Iva Schreb. Since the 16th cent. anthyllis has been used for the kidney vetch. Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography 1 M. Wellmann (ed.), Pedanii Dioscuridis de materia medica vol. 2, 1906, repr. 1958 2 J. Berendes (ed.),…

[German version] (κάρπασος, καρπήσιον; kárpasos, karpḗsion). Phoenician or previously Indian term for  cotton, such as that from Tarraco (modern Tarragona) in Spain (Plin. HN 19,10). Plants used as antidotes ( Alexipharmaka) such as species of Helleborus and Valeriana were also thus described (cf. Colum. 10,17). Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg)

[German version] The name ἀλόη ( alóē) of the liliaceae genus with succulent leaves precisely described by Dioscorides 3,22 [cf. 1. 276 ff.] and Plin. HN 27,14-20 along with the healing powers (as a laxative, among other effects) of its wood sap is said to be derived from Syrian alwa, elawa (meaning: colastrum). The main species A. vera L. was introduced from Egypt and southern Asia (especially India). Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography 1 J. Berendes, Des Pedanios Dioskurides Arzneimittellehre translation and with a commentary, 1902, repr. 1970.

[German version] (πολύγωνον/ polýgōnon), literally 'multi-fruit', knot-grass ( Polygonaceae family), according to Plin. HN 27,113 Lat. sanguinaria, in four species (cf. Plin. HN 27,113-117); provides a blood-staunching sap because of this plant's astringent and cooling power (Plin. HN 27,114, similarly  Dioscorides 4,4-5 Wellmann and Berendes). The seeds allegedly have i.a. purgative and diuretic effects. According to Columella 6,12,5 polýgōnon also heals cuts; sheep that consume it become seriously ill (ibidem 7,5,19). Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography H. G…

[German version] The domestic chicken, that was originally bred in southern Asia from several wild species of chicken, particularly the Bankiva chicken of the Sunda Islands and India, was introduced to China around 1400 BC and to Bactria and Iran before 1200 (hence Cratinus' name ‘Persian bird’ in Ath. 9,374d and Aristoph. Av. 485; 707; also ‘Median bird’ Aristoph. Av. 276), and from there to Mesopotamia and Asia Minor. There the Greeks encountered it and brought it to their motherland, also to Si…

[German version] I. Science Σπόγγος/ spóngos, σπογγία/ spongía (Attic σπογγιά/ spongiá), Latin spongia (with the special names peniculus in comedies of such as Plautus and Terence, penicillus in Colum. 12,18,5 and Pliny) is the Bath Sponge ( Euspongia officinalis Bronn.), which grows in the Mediterranean. Four geographical subspecies, three black and one white (ἀπλυσία/ aplysía of the genus Sarcotragus Schmidt), are distinguished by Aristotle in his accurate description (Hist. an. 5,16,548a 30-549a 13; cf. Plin. HN 9,148-150) and a further one by Diosco…

[German version] (ὁ πελαργός/ ho pelargós, according to EM 659,8 derived form πελιός/ peliós 'black' and ἀργός/ argós 'white', diminutive πελαργιδεύς/ pelargideús in Aristoph. Av. 1356 et passim, Latin ciconia, conea in Plaut. Truc. 691), the White Stork (Ciconia ciconia L.; see Verg. G. 2,319: candida avis, cf. Ov. Met. 6,96). The Black Stork (Ciconia nigra L.), which comes into contact with the Mediterranean area only during migration, was evidently unknown in Antiquity. In terms of size storks were compared to cormorants (Aristot. Hist. …

[German version] (χρυσόφρυς or χρυσωπός; chrysóphrys, chrysōpós in Plut. Soll. anim. 26,977f), aurata, sea bream, the genuine dorado. The popular edible fish that is up to 60 cm in size is often mentioned in comedies (Ath. 7,328a-b) and frequently portrayed (Keller II, fig. 120,124 and 147). According to Aristotle, it lives in the sea close to land (hist. an. 8,13,598a10), spawns in rivers, maintains a prolonged sleep throughout the summer (Plin. HN 9,58: 60 days), eats flesh and is harpooned with a trident…

[German version] (χόνδρος; chóndros, alica). Groats of grain or spelt. The exact species cannot be established. Galen (Facult. nat. 1,6) relates it to wheat and describes the production of gruel (ῥόφημα) for people with stomach and gall bladder diseases (cf. Dioscorides 2,96 [1. I.73] = 2,118 [2.203f.] and Plin. HN. 18,112-113). Ps.-Hippoc. περὶ παθῶν ( perì pathôn, 6,250 Littré) mentions it together with πτισάνη ( ptisánē), κέγχρος ( kénchros) and ἄλητον ( álēton).  Special diet Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg) Bibliography 1 M. Wellmann (ed.), Pedanii Dioscuridis de mater…

(Ἶρις; Îris, ‘Rainbow’) [German version] [1] Messenger of the gods, personification of rainbow The deified rainbow. In Hesiod's genealogy (Hes. Theog. 266) she is the daughter of  Thaumas (cf. θαῦμα/ thaûma, ‘marvel’) and  Electra [1] (cf. the shining metal electrum) and sister of the  Harpies, who flew as fast the wind. Her genealogy characterizes her: she herself is thought to be fast, and in Greek physics, the rainbow can produce winds. In mythological accounts, she is to a very great extent detached from her element, and…

[German version] In the Ixodides family of  eyeless parasitic mites, chiefly the sheep tick, Ixodes ricinus, ὁ κροτών/ krotṓn (or κρότων; krótōn) in Hom. Od. 17,300, in Aristot. Hist. an. 5,31,557a 17 f. κυνορραιστής/ kynorrhaistḗs, Latin ricinus, according to Plin. HN 30,82 the ' the most hideous of animals' ( foedissimum animalium). The female buries itself into the skin of infested mammals such as dogs, sheep and goats (Cato Agr. 96,2; Gp. 18,16), oxen (Colum. 6,2,6) and pigs (Plin. HN 30,84), as well as humans (cf. Hom. Od. 17,300; Columel…

[German version] This class of animals was first named by Aristotle (Hist. an. 1,1,487a 32-34; 4,1,523b 13-15) for the notches (ἐντομαί/ entomaí) on their ventral side or on both the ventral and dorsal sides ἔντομα/ éntoma (sc. ζῷα; zôa), from which the modern term ‘entomology’ and the German word ‘ Kerbtier’ (notched animal) are derived. The other most important characteristics listed by Aristotle are: insects do not breathe in air (Hist. an. 1,1,487a 30-32; 4,9,535b 5; obviously he was not familiar with the tracheal system, which differs from…

[German version] (λιθικά/ lithiká, Lat. lapidaria from líthos or lapis, ‘stone’). Books composed of mineralogical information as well as of special magical-medical effects attributed to precious stones. They are part of the physiká-literature that began its expansion in the 2nd cent. BC, and were influenced by Oriental ideas, describing the magical powers of organic and inorganic nature affecting man in terms of sympathy and antipathy. The generally apocryphal collected works appeared under the names of legendary magicians suc…

(νάρθηξ; nárth ēx). [German version] [1] Yellow-flowering giant fennel (Latin ferula with uncertain etymology). The umbelliferous plant Ferula communis, the yellow-flowering giant fennel, which Theophrastus (H. plant. 6,2,8f., cf. Plin. HN 13,123) describes [1. 61f. and fig. 95-97]. On the coasts of Greece, on the islands and in Lower Italy this plant grows up to 5 m high. The dried stems were used like a cane for punishment, as the ‘sceptre of paedagogues’ ( sceptrum paedagogorum, Mart. 10,62,10 et passim), but also as a cattle goad and the staff of the Bacchants (Thyrs…

[German version] ( Polygonum aviculare) For Theophr. Hist. pl. 1,6,11 the numerous thick roots were typical of the so-called rock partridge plant (περδίκιον/ perdíkion). Its name has supposedly been derived from the fact that rock partridges allegedly roll around in them and dig them up. This is an allusion to Polygonum maritimum. In Theophr. Hist. pl. 9,18,5 (reference not in Hort!) Κραταιγόνος/ krataigónos is called the κραταιόγονον/ krataiógonon of Dioscorides (3,124 Wellmann = 3,129 Berendes). It has been defined as Polygonum Persicaria. Its name is derived from the fact…

[German version] The cool, strong winds blowing from the north to the north-east each year from the middle of July (rising of Sirius) for about 40 days (different duration [1. 714]) were called ἐτησίαι (or βορέαι, boréai). These winds blowing from the  Propontis were then a considerable obstacle to navigation on the Black Sea. Isidorus (Orig. 13,11,15) mentions them as north winds that return each year, though without giving any specific timeframe. They were characterized as lashing the waves of the sea, making the sea dark, heal…

[German version] Unlike barley (Grain), wild and cultivated oats ( Avena sativa L., / brómos, avena) were used only occasionally in human diet in antiquity, for example as flour for pearl barley and dietary porridge (Hippoc. De victu 2,7(= 43) and Plin. HN 22,137); oats were used most frequently as animal fodder (green or as hay: Columella 2,10,32). Dioscorides (with a good description in 2,94 p. 1, 172f. Wellmann = 2,116 p. 203 Berendes) recommends the porridge against diarrhoea and the gruel obtained from it…

[German version] (μύκης, -ητος or -ου/ mýkēs, Latin mucus, mucor, -oris or σφόγγος/ sphóngos, σπόγγος/ spóngos, Latin fungus) are rarer in Greece than in Italy, where they were used as food despite the possibility of poisoning (Plin. HN 22,97: cibus anceps, ‘doubtful food’, and 22,92: temere manduntur, ‘they were eaten rashly’). They were considered to be produced by fermentation of the earth after heavy rainfall (cf. Plin. HN 22,94 and 100) or generated by tree roots (from their sticky sap, ex pituita: Plin. HN 22,96). Some trees, such as oaks, allegedly produce edible mush…

[German version] Since the 11th cent. in Constantinus Africanus, de gradibus simplicium 4,4 [1. 381 f., cf. 2.138], the name given to this metallic element, said to be warm and dry at four degrees, that was the same as the ancient στίβι ( stíbi) or στίμμι ( stímmi; stibium, from orig. Eg. ṣtim [2.138]), supposedly a type of lead extracted from the silver mines.Use of black antimony trisulphate as eye make-up as well as for an astringent and cooling remedy, the extraction of which was described precisely (Dioscorides 5,85 [3.55 f.] = 5,99 [4.516…

[German version] (Lat. ros marinus or rosmarinum, derived from ῥὼψ μύριος/ rhṑps mýrios; ῥουσμαρῖνος/ rhousmarînos; also λιβανωτίς/ libanōtís, Dioscorides 3,75 Wellmann = 3,(89) Berendes, Lat. libanotis, eg. Plin. HN 19,187). An evergreen labiate with bluish flowers ( Rosmarinus officinalis), popular with the Greeks and Romans. It grows in the maquis and represented an important remedy with its roots, juice, leaves and seeds. Especially for funerary ceremonies, wreaths were made of its branches (cf. Dioscorides loc. cit.). The incen…

[German version] As a loan-word from Egyptian, κόμμι ( kómmi) first appears in Hdt. 2,86 as an adhesive for the linen bandages of embalmed corpses. It was extracted from the so-called Egyptian thorn Acacia arabica = nilotica ( Acacia) that is already described by Theophr. Hist. pl. 4,2,8 (cf. spina nigra, Plin. HN 13,63). Plin. HN 13,66 mentions further suppliers of gum. Dioscorides 1,133 p. 1, 205 Wellmann = 1,160 p. 225 Berendes knows gum from the skeletonweed, Chondrilla iuncea L. ( Compositae). The medical importance of various cummi, for eyes and wounds among other things, is…

[German version] (πάρδαλις/ párdalis or πόρδαλις/ pórdalis; Lat. panthera). This large cat is found not only in Africa, but also in Asia. Thirty leopards ( pardáleis) and cheetahs ( pánthēroi) were led in the procession of Ptolemy II (3rd cent. BC; Ath. 5,201c). Plin. HN 8,62f. describes the eye-like spots of the panthera and claims that they lure other quadrupeds as prey with their pleasant odour. He claimed the second name for the male animals was pardus (cf. Luc. 6,183). Out of zoological ignorance, Isid. Orig. 12,2,11 has the leopardus spring from the crossing of a lioness and a pardus. T…

[German version] (ἑλένιον; helénion, helenium). According to Plin. HN 21,59 and 159, the name is derived from the tears of Helena (rather differently Ael. NA. 9,21). Roman authors meant by the (h)enula or inula in general the elecampane ( Inula helenium L.), a large Composita growing in western Asia and eastern Europe. Since late antiquity it had been grown in gardens as a medicinal plant (cf. Columella 11,3,17 and 35). In particular the bitter root (description of how to preserve it with sweet additives: Columella 12,48,1-5; Plin. HN 19,…

[German version] This northern and central European tree genus, of which there are also dwarf varieties ( betulla or betulus, late Latin betula) is represented by only three species in Italy, among these the betula aetnensis that is native to Etna. Only the weeping birch ( betula pendula = verrucosa) colonized the mountains of Greece and the Crimea. In Gaul (Plin. HN 16,75) the flexible twigs were used as weaving materials (cf. Plin. HN 16,176). Hünemörder, Christian (Hamburg)

[German version] (ῥυτή/ rhytḗ in Nic. Alex. 306, πήγανον/ pḗganon e.g. in Aristoph. Vesp. 480; Latin ruta). A Mediterranean genus of the Rutaceae family comprising some 60 species of aromatic, evergreen (Theophr. Hist. pl. 1,9,4) subshrubs. The leaves, fruits and roots of Ruta graveolens were a favourite condiment, generally in combination with menta (mint) [1. 62] (and sometimes pickled in a solution of vinegar and salt, cf. Columella 12,7,1 f.), and were prescribed internally and externally (esp. in Plin. HN 20,134-143) against gynaecological c…

[German version] (εὐπατόριος; eupatórios, Dioscorides 4,41; [1. 198f.] and [2. 386]; eupatoria, Plin. HN 25,65). This plant of the Rosaceae species Agrimonia eupatoria L., the agrimony with yellow inflorescence (cf. [3. fig. 222]), was considered by Dioscorides to be a valuable medicine for dysentery, liver complaints and snake bites. Pliny does not support the name variant hepatoria being derived from liver complaints [4] (nor the synonymous description ἡπατῖτις ( hēpatîtis) in the recensio Vindobonensis of Dioscorides); allocating the regia auctoritas to the plant is …