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Name of a patrician gens which had already died out in the 5th cent. BC. Later bearers of the name owe it to the provenance from the eponymous tribus. [German version] [1] Horatii Member of the Horatius gens (Royal period). According to legend (Liv. 1,24-26; Dion. Hal. Ant. Rom. 3,13,4-22,10), under King Tullus  Hostilius [I 4], the conflict between Rome and  Alba Longa was decided by a fight between the Horatii triplets and the Curiatii triplets rather than a battle. After two brothers had fallen, the last H. overcame his opponent…

[German version] I. Introduction The healing of illness is, in principle, within the province of any deity or hero in possession of superhuman powers of assistance. But in the reality of cult practice, the healing function came to be concentrated in certain deities and heroes whose powers were particularly strong [1]. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) Bibliography 1 W. A. Jayne, The Healing Gods of Ancient Civilizations, 1925. [German version] II. Mesopotamia and Syria In Mesopotamia, a series of deities were associated with healing powers through names, epithets, and ref…

Old Latin family name, whose origin is unexplained; in inscriptions also Hostillius and Hostilus [1. 30; 175]. The great age of the name is shown by the third Roman king Tullus H. [4] and names such as Curia Hostilia, Lares Hostilii and the goddess Hostilina. In historical times, the family was Plebeian and, from the 2nd cent. BC, politically active, particularly in the Tubuli and Mancini branches; it died out at the end of the 1st cent. BC. [German version] [1] H. Praetor and people's tribune in the 2nd cent. BC Praetor or people's tribune in the 2nd cent. BC (?), had a lex Hostilia passed, w…

(Ἀπελλῆς; Apellês). [German version] [1] Macedonian Politician, died 218 BC Macedonian, influential confidant of  Antigonus [3] Doson, from 222 BC guardian of  Philippus V. In 219/8, as ‘ traditionalist’, he criticized the Adriatic policy of the king and his pro-Achaean leanings under the influence of  Aratus, against whom he intrigued together with  Leontius and  Megaleas (Pol. 4,76; 82-87). In 218 their plot against Philip V was discovered and A. was executed in Corinth (Pol. 5,2,8; 16; 26-28; Plut. Arat. 48) [1. 167-170]. Günther, Linda-Marie (Munich) [German version] [2] Mace…

(Λάδων; Ládōn). [German version] [1] Dragon The dragon referred to in Apoll. Rhod. 4,1396, elsewhere referred to only as a ‘serpent’ ( óphis, drákōn), who guards the apples of the Hesperides (as also mentioned on Probus in Verg. G. 1,244); he has a hundred heads and many voices. Mythographers have him either be descended directly (as a chthonic beast) from Gaia (as is Typhon) or from related monsters (Phorcys and Ceto, the parents of Echidna and grandparents of the Lernean Hydra in Hes. Theog. 333-335; Echidna and…

[German version] I. Ancient Orient, Egypt, Old Testament In the ancient Orient, the curse is considered to be a magically effective utterance by which the speaker destroys enemies or objects of their sphere, excludes them from the community or at the very least reduces their vitality. How effective this is depends upon the status of the speaker, the social context and the use of set phrases. There is no evidence of colloquial curses in the Near East and hardly any from Egypt. In the Near East set curse phrases are preserved from the mid 3rd millennium onward i…

(Ἀντίμαχος; Antímachos). [German version] [1] Trojan, opponent of Antenor Trojan, opponent of  Antenor. When, before the war, Menelaus and Odysseus demanded the return of Helen in Troy, he advised, contrary to custom and tradition, killing the envoys (Hom. Il. 3,205; 11,138). Later, bribed by Paris, he prevented the handing over of Helen, then under consideration by the Trojans (Hom. Il. 11,123 ff.). His three sons were killed by the Greeks (Hom. Il. 12,188). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Two Indo-Greek kings in the 2nd cent. BC Two Indo-Greek kings in the 2nd c…

(Ἀλκαῖος; Alkaîos). The suggestive mythological name ( alkḗ, ‘strength’) is connected with Hercules. [German version] [1] Grandfather of Hercules Grandfather of Hercules, son of Perseus and Andromeda, husband of Astydameia, the daughter of Pelops, father of Amphitryon and Anaxo (Hes. Sc. 26; Schol. Eur. Hec. 886). Also the form of the name Alceus appears to be attested, which is more compatible with the patronymic Alcides. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Original name of Hercules Original name of Hercules, altered at the command of the Delphic Oracle (Di…

[German version] [1] Military see  Ensigns Ego, Beate (Osnabrück) [German version] [2] Science See  Eagle; see  Constellations Ego, Beate (Osnabrück) [German version] [3] Proselyte from Sinope, Bible translator Proselyte from  Sinope, translated the Hebrew Bible into Greek ( c. AD 130). The source language orientation of the work stands in the foreground to the extent that many passages remain incomprehensible without knowledge of the Hebrew original. Specifically Hebraic syntactical structures are imitated, Hebrew concepts are repr…

(Ἰόλαος; Iólaos). [German version] [1] Nephew of Heracles Nephew of  Heracles, son of the latter's half-brother  Iphicles and the (shadowy) Automedusa. He accompanies Heracles on practically all his adventures (mainly as chariot driver), becomes the first Olympic champion (image in Olympia, Paus. 5,17,11), receives  Megara as wife from Heracles and finally kills  Eurystheus in Attica (Paus. 1,44,10, grave), for which he was specially rejuvenated for one day (Eur. Heracl. 843-863, perhaps following Aesch…

(Ἀλκιμένης, Alkiménēs). [German version] [1] Figure of Greek myth: brother of Bellerophontes Brother of Bellerophontes, also Peiren or Deliades, was killed by his brother, providing the reason for the flight to Argus (Apollod. 2,30; Tzetz. Lycophr. 17). Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) [German version] [2] Figure of Greek myth: son of Jason and Medea Son of Jason and Medea, brother of Teisander, both of whom were killed in Corinth by Medea; only Thettalus, A.'s twin brother, escaped. Both of these are buried in the Temenus of Hera and were venerated as heroes (Diod. Sic. 4,54,1; 4,55,1 f.). Gra…

(Ἡρακλῆς; Hēraklês). [German version] [1] Greek hero The most prominent Greek hero ( Hero cult) in myth and cult. In his myths, which have not resulted in any outstanding work of poetry that is focussed on him, he is connected especially to Thebes, Argos and the countryside around Trachis; in the cult he is honoured almost panhellenically, without any place being able to display a hero's grave. Graf, Fritz (Columbus, OH) I. Cult and Myth [German version] A. Name His name was connected with  Hera's already in antiquity: it follows the customary formation of Greek anthropo…

(Ἀριστόδημος; Aristódēmos). [German version] [1] Great-grandson of Heracles Great-grandson of Hercules, one of the three Heraclids who led the Dorians into the Peloponnese. According to the widely known version of the myth (Pl. Leg. 3,692 bk.; Apollod. 2,173; Paus. 3,1,6), A. died before reaching the Peloponnese, leaving twin sons, Eurysthenes and Procles, who then received Laconia and became the founding fathers of both the royal houses of Sparta. According to Spartan tradition, A. himself led the Spar…

I. Geography and history [German version] A. Name Since the 1st cent. AD, H. has referred more and more to the entire Iberian Peninsula. Although the name Hispania is only attested since the time of the 2nd Punic War (218-201 BC; Liv. 21,2; Enn. Ann. 503), it is the oldest of all, because it is derived from Phoenician í-shephanním, ‘rabbit coast’ (according to a new interpretation ‘land of metal plates’). A further name was Ophioussa (‘land of the snakes’; Avien. 148; 152; 172; 196), which was probably coined by the Phocaeans when they came into contact with some reg…

(Ἀρέθουσα; Aréthousa). Frequent name for springs. [German version] [1] Spring on Homer's Ithaca Spring on Homer's  Ithaca, where the swine of  Eumaeus graze (Hom. Od. 13,408; Plut. Mor. 776 E; Steph. Byz. s. v. A.). To identify A. with the spring of Perapigadi on the modern Ithaka, 5 km south-east of Vathy, is speculative. Strauch, Daniel (Berlin) Bibliography A. Heubeck, A commentary on Homer's Odyssey, 1992, 189 f. A. J. Wace, F. H. Stubbings, A companion to Homer, 1963, 414-416. [German version] [2] Name for the main spring of Chalkis on Euboia The name handed down by numerou…

I. Ancient Orient [German version] A. General The magic of the ancient Orient and of Egypt is based on a view of the world that runs counter to that of religion. In the world-view of magic, men, gods and demons are tied to each other and to the cosmos by sympathies and antipathies, whereas in the religious world view everything is created by the gods for their own purposes; the relations between men and the cosmos are the result of deliberate actions of the gods. In the practice of religion, however, b…

(Ἀρσινόη; Arsinóē). I. Myth [German version] [I 1] Daughter of Leukippos Daughter of Leucippus, sister of the Leucippids, who were abducted by the Dioscuri, she was the mother by Apollo of the Messenian Asclepius (Hes. fr. 50; Apollod. 3,117f.; Paus. 2,26,7; 4,3,2). In Sparta A. had a shrine (Paus. 3,12,8); on the agora of Messene there was an A. spring (Paus. 4,31,6), in the Messenian Asclepieum there was, amongst other things, a painting of A. (Paus. 4,31,11f.). The relationship of the Messenian to the …

(Ἀμώνιος; Ammónios). [German version] [1] Favourite of  Alexander [II 13] I (Balas), middle of the 2nd cent. BC Favourite of  Alexander [II 13] I (Balas); ruled in his place in Syria, executed relatives and followers of (the deceased) Demetrius I and oppressed the Antiochenes. When he attempted an attack on Ptolemy VI, certainly Alexander's most important supporter, and Ptolemy demanded that A. be handed over, Alexander actually declined to do this, so Ptolemy broke with Alexander: despite dressing as a woman, A…

[German version] I. Name Strabo was the first to refer to the peninsula of Asia Minor (AM) west of the  Taurus (Str. 2,5,24; 12,1,3; cf. Plin. HN 5,27f.; Ptol. 5,2) as a single unit by the name of Asia in the narrower sense, as opposed to the continent of Asia. The term of Asia minor in this sense is first used in Oros. 1,2,26 (early 5th cent. AD). Olshausen, Eckart (Stuttgart) [German version] II. Geography AM is the westernmost part of the Asian continent between 36° and 42° northern latitude, and 26° and 44° eastern longitude, stretching from the Aegean to the Euphrates ( c. 1,200 km), and fro…