The Pantheon representing the fabulous histories of the heathen gods and most illustrious heroes in a short, plain and familiar method by way of dialogue / written Fra. Pomey. — Pantheum mythicum. English

The Pantheon representing the fabulous histories of the heathen gods and most illustrious heroes in a short, plain and familiar method by way of dialogue / written Fra. Pomey. — Pantheum mythicum. English

Table of contents

Title page

§

TO THE READER.

The PARTS of this WORK.

ERRATA.

OF THE GODS OF THE HEATHENS.

CHAP. I. The Approach to the Pantheon. The Origine of Idolatry.

CHAP. II. The Entrance into the Pantheon. A Distribution of the Gods into several Classes.

CHAP. III. A View of the Pantheon. A more Commodious Division of the Gods.

CHAP. IV. Of the Celestial Gods. IUPITER. His Image.

SECT. I. Jupiter's Descent and Education.

SECT. II. Jupiter's Exploits.

SECT. III. Jupiter's Names.

SECT. IV. The Signification of the Fable, and what is understood by the Name Jupiter.

CHAP. V. APOLLO. His Image.

SECT. I. His Descent.

SECT. II. Actions of Apollo.

SECT. III. Names of Apollo.

SECT. III. The Significatiin of the Fable. Apollo, the Sun.

CHAP. VI. The SUN. His Genealogy and Names.

SECT. I. Actions of Sol.

SECT. II. The Seven Wonders of the World.

SECT. III. The Children of the Sun.

CHAP. VII. MERCURY. His Image and Birth.

SECT. I. His Offices and Qualities?

SECT. II. Actions of Mercury.

CHAP. VIII. BACCHUS. His Image.

SECT. I. The Birth of Bacchus.

SECT. II. Names of Bacchus.

SECT. III. Actions of Bacchus.

SECT. IV. The Sacrifices of Bacchus.

SECT. V. The Historical Sense of the Fable. Bacchus an Emblem either of Nimrod or Moses.

SECT. VI. The Moral Sense of the Fable. Bacchus the Symbol of Wine.

CHAP. IX. MARS. His Image.

SECT. I. His Descent.

SECT. II. Names of Mars.

SECT. III. Actions of Mars.

SECT. IV. The Signification of the foregoing Fable.

SECT. V. The Story of Tereus the Son of Mars.

SECT. VI. The Sacrifices of Mars.

CHAP. X. The Celestial Goddesses. JUNO.

SECT. I. The Children of JUNO. Her Disposition.

SECT. II. Names of JUNO.

SECT. III. The Signification of the Fable. JUNO the Air.

CHAP. XI.

SECT. I. MINERVA or PALLAS. Her Image.

SECT. II. The Birth of MINERVA.

SECT. III. Names of Minerva.

SECT. IV. The Signification of the Fable. Pallas, the Symbol of Wisdom and Chastity.

CHAP. XII.

SECT. I. VENUS. Her Image.

SECT. II. The Descent of Venus

SECT. III. Names of Venus.

SECT. IV. Actions of Venus.

SECT. IV. Venus's Companions. Cupid, the Graces, Adonis.

SECT. V. The Explanation of the Fable. VENUS Amorousness.

CHAP. XIII.

SECT. I. LATONA.

CHAP. XIV.

SECT. I. AURORA.

PART II.

CHAP. I.

SECT. I. Of the Terrestrial Deities. SATURN• His Image.

SECT. II. His Family and Actions.

SECT. III. Name of Saturn.

SECT. IV. The Sacrifices and Festivals, Saturnalia.

SECT. V. The Historical Sense of this Fable. Saturn, Noah.

SECT. VI. A Philosophical Sense of the Fable. Saturn, Time.

CHAP. II.

SECT. I. JANUS. His Image.

SECT. II. Names and Actions of Janus.

An Explication of the Fable. Janus, the Emblem of Prudence.

CHAP III.

SECT. I. VULCAN.

SECT. II. The Cyclops, Servants to Vulcan.

SECT. III. Cacus and Caeculus, Sons of Vulcan, Polyphemus.

SECT. IV. The Signification of the Fable. Vulcan, a Symbol of Two Sorts of Fire.

CHAP. IV.

SECT. I. AEOLUS.

CHAP. V.

SECT. I. MOMUS.

CHAP. VI.

SECT. I. The Terrestrial Goddesses. VESTA.

SECT. II. An Explication of the Fable. The Younger Vesta, the Vital Heat in the Body.

CHAP. VII.

SECT. I. CYBELE. Her Image.

SECT. III. Names of Cybele.

SECT. IV. The Sacrifices of Cybele.

SECT. V. The Priests of Cybele.

CHAP. VIII.

SECT. I. CERES. Her Image.

SECT. II. The Explication of the Image.

SECT. III. The Sacrifices of Ceres.

CHAP. IX.

SECT. I. The MUSES. Their Image.

SECT. II. The Name of Muse.

SECT. III. The Proper Names of the Muses.

SECT. IV. The Common Names of the Muses.

SECT. V. The Number of the Muses.

CHAP. X.

SECT. I. Themis, Astraea, Nemesis.

CHAP. XI.

SECT. I. The Gods of the Woods, and the Rural Gods. Pan. His Names.

SECT. II. His Descent.

SECT. III. The Image of Pan.

SECT. IV. Actions of Pan.

CHAP. XII. SYLVANUS.

CHAP. XIII. SILENUS.

CHAP. XIV. The SATYRS.

CHAP. XV. The FAUNS.

CHAP. XVI. PRIAPUS.

CHAP. XVII. ARISTAEUS.

CHAP. XVIII. TERMINUS.

CHAP. XIX. The Goddesses of the Woods. DIANA.

CHAP. XX. PALES.

CHAP. XXI. FLORA.

CHAP. XXII. FERONIA.

CHAP. XXIII. POMONA.

CHAP. XXIV. The NYMPHS.

CHAP. XXV. The inferiour Rural Deities.

PART III. Of the Gods of the Sea.

CHAP. I.

SECT. I. Neptune. His Name and Descent.

SECT. II. Actions of Neptune.

SECT. III. Sons of Neptune.

CHAP. II. Triton, a•d the other Marine Gods.

CHAP. III.

SECT. I. The Monsters of the Sea. The Syrens.

SECT. II. Scylla and Charybdis.

PART V. Of the Infernal Deities.

CHAP. I. A View of Hell.

CHAP. II. Charon. The Rivers of Hell. Cerberus.

CHAP. III.

SECT. I. PLUTO.

CHAP. IV. PLUTUS.

CHAP. V.

SECT. I. PROSERPINE.

SECT. II. An Explication of the Fable.

CHAP. VI. The FATES.

CHAP. VII. The FURIES.

CHAP. VIII. NIGHT, DEATH, SLEEP.

CHAP. IX. The Iudges of Hell, MINOS, AEACUS, RHADAMANTHUS.

CHAP. X.

SECT. I. The most Famous of the Condemned in Hell.

SECT. II. The Giants.

SECT. III. Other Famous Offenders.

CHAP. XI. Monsters of Hell.

CHAP. XII. The Elysium.

CHAP. XIII. The River Lethe.

PART V. Of the Dii Minorum Gentium; or the Subordinate Deities.

CHAP. I. The Penates.

CHAP. II. The Lares.

CHAP. III.

SECT. I. The Genii. Their Name.

SECT. II. Their Images.

SECT. III. Sacrifices.

SECT. IV. Offices.

CHAP. IV. The Nuptial Gods and Goddesses.

CHAP. V. The Gods presiding over Women with Child.

CHAP. VI. The Gods and Goddesses presiding over Women in Labour.

CHAP. VII. The Deities presiding over Infants at the time of their Birth, and after.

CHAP. VIII. The Gods and Goddesses presiding over adult Persons.

CHAP. IX. The Gods assigned to the several Parts of human Bodies.

CHAP. X. The Funeral Gods.

PART VI. Of the Dii Indigetes and Adscriptitii, or the Semidei (Demi-Gods) and Hero's.

CHAP. I.

SECT. I. HERCULES. His Birth.

SECT. II. Names of Hercules.

SECT. III. The Labours of Hercules.

CHAP. II. JASON.

CHAP. III. THESEUS.

CHAP. IV. CASTOR and POLLUX.

CHAP. V. PERSEUS.

CHAP. VI. AESCULAPIUS.

CHAP. VII. PROMETHEUS.

CHAP. VIII. ATLAS.

CHAP. IX. ORPHEUS and AMPHION.

CHAP. X. ACHILLES.

CHAP. XI. ULYSSES.

CHAP. XII. ORION.

CHAP. XIII. Osiris, Apis, and Serapis.

AN APPENDIX Concerning the Goddesses, that make the Gods.

CHAP. I.

SECT. I. The Virtues, which are Goddesses, and good Deities.

SECT. II. Virtue and Honour.

SECT. III. Faith.

SECT. IV. Hope.

SECT. V. Iustice.

SECT. VI. Piety.

SECT. VII. Mercy.

SECT. VIII. Clemency.

SECT. IX. Chastity.

SECT. X. Truth.

SECT. XI. Sense.

SECT. XII. Concord.

SECT. XIII. Peace.

SECT. XIV. Health.

SECT. XV. Felicity.

SECT. XVI. Liberty.

SECT. XVII. Mony.

SECT. XVIII. Mirth.

SECT. XIX. The good Genius.

CHAP. II.

SECT. I. The Vices, and Evil Deities.

SECT. II. Envy.

SECT. III. Contumely and Impudence.

SECT. IV. Calumny.

SECT. V. Fraud.

SECT. VI. Discord.

SECT. VII. Fury.

SECT. VIII. Fame.

SECT. IX. Fortune.

SECT. X. The Fever.

SECT. XI. Silence.

An INDEX.

ERRATA.

§

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THE PANTHEON, Representing the FABULOUS HISTORIES OF THE Heathen GODS And Most Illustrious HEROES, IN A Short, Plain and Familiar Method by Way of DIALOGUE.

WRITTEN By FRA. POMEY, of the Society of Iesus, Author of the French and Latin Dictionary; for the Use of the Dauphin.

The Second EDITION: Wherein the whole Translation is revised, and much amended, and the Work is illustrated and adorned with elegant Copper-Cuts of the several Deities, &c.

For the Use of Sch [...]

London, Printed for Charles Harper, at the Flower-de-luce over-against St. Dunstan's-Church in Fleet street. MDCXCVIII

§

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The PANTHEON was built by MAGRIPPA Son in law to AUGUSTUS CAESAR an [...] according to the signification of its name, dedicated to the Honour of all the Gods [...] every of whose Images were plac'd in several Niches round the same. The Building wth some diminution continues to this day only Pope BONIFACE IV. reconsecrated it to the worship of the Virgin MARY and all the Saints Male and Female. It is now call'd the Church of S. MARIA ROTONDA.

Printed for R. [...] and C. Harper 16 [...].

TO THE READER.

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'TIS confess'd that there are already many Books publisht on the present Subject, two or three of which are in our own Tongue, and those, we doubt not, will by some men be thought enow. But since this can be the Opinion but of a few and those unexperienc'd people, we chose rather to regard the Advice of many grave persons of known skill in the Art of Teaching, who tell us that Godwin in his Antiquities has done very well indeed in the whole, but that in this point he is too short; that Ross also deserves commendation for his Mythology, but is tedious and as much too large; and that Galtruchius, as D'Assigny has translated and dish'd him out to us, is so confused and artless in its Method, as well as unfortunate in its Correction, that 'tis not so useful as may be desir'd: And hereupon this Work was recommended to be translated, being first well approv'd by learned Gentlemen, as is abovemention'd, [Page] for its easie Method and for its agreeable Plainness. Besides it having been written by so learned a person, and so universally receiv'd in our Neighbour Nation as to have sold several Impressions in a short time, we can hardly doubt of its being very well accepted here. As for the Citations out of the Latin Poets, we consider'd a while whether they need be translated, or not, but 'twas thought fit at last to print them in English either from those who had already rendred 'em, or to render 'em our selves, for the benefit of the young Scholar.

The PARTS of this WORK.

[Page]

THE Approach to the Pantheon Pag. 1

PART I. Of the Celestial or Heavenly Gods. 12

The Celestial Goddesses. 97

P. II. Of the Terrestrial or Earthly Gods. 154

The Terrestrial Goddesses. 188

The Gods of the Woods, and the Rural Gods. 221

The Goddesses of the Woods. 235

The Nymphs. 251

The Inferior Deities. 256

P. III. Of the Marine Gods, or Gods of the Sea. 259

The Monsters of the Sea. 268

P. IV. Of the Infernal Deities. 275

[Page]The Fates. 289

The Furies. 290

The Judges of Hell. 294

The most famous of the Condemned in Hell. 295

The Monsters of Hell. 303

The Elysian Fields 309

P. V. Of the subordinate and Miscellaneous Deities. 312

P. VI. Of the Adscriptitious Gods, Demi-Gods and Heroes. 331

An APPENDIX of Virtues and Vices which have been Deified. 390

ERRATA.

PAGE 19, line 27. dele was. p. 20. l. 25. after Trojan add War. p. 22. l. 32. r. Maximum. p. 23. l. 21. after Famous add because. p. 26. l. 30. r. Opis. p. 28. l. ult. r. Feretrius. p. 30. l. 17. r. Iupiter. p. 33. l. 2. r. artus. p. 50. l. 31. after something add after that. p. 52. l. 8. after were add beautified. p. 58. l. pen. after suckled. r. him. p. 69. l. 15. r. insa [...]iendo. p. 103. l. 19. r. Tutela. p. 106. l. 25. for in coelo. r. inced [...]. p. 107. l. 16. dele from. p. 139. l. 23. before cover add neither. p. 159. l. 25. r. down. p. 160. l. 5. r. Saturando. p. 168. l. 2. for he is Lord as. r. as he is Lord. p. 172. l. 25. after place add the Poet. p. 176. l. 5. r. ferrum. p. 213. l. 14. r. Balls. p. 223. l. 20. for his r. this. p. 130. l. 10. after they add are. p. 245. l. 19. dele [...]ain. p. 257. l. 32. after Lactucina add who is next. p. 276. l. 22. r. crinem. p. 284. l. 3. for where r. wherefore. p. 298. l. 18. before also add they. p. 323. l. 8. after Image add was. p. 339. l. 18. before him add with. p. 345. l. 2. after Ram add of.

OF THE GODS OF THE HEATHENS.

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CHAP. I.
The Approach to the Pantheon. The Origine of Idolatry.

Palaeophilus.

WHat sort of Building is that before us, of so unusual a Figure? For I think it is round, unless the distance deceives my sight.

Mystagogus.

You are not deceiv'd. It is a place well deserving to be visited in this, the Queen of Cities. Let us go and view it, before we go to any other place.

P.

What is its Name?

[Page]M.

The Fabulous Pantheon. That is, the Temple of all the Gods, which the Religious Folly of Men hath feign'd, either through a gross Ignorance, or through a grievous Contempt, of the true and only God.

P.

What was the Occasion of the feigning of many Gods?

M.

Four CausesVid. Euseb. Lactant. Clem. A. lex. August. Plat. Cicer. especially, above others, may be assign'd for it, upon which, as on so many Pillars the whole Frame of this Fabrick depends.

1. The folly Sap. 14. and perverseness of the Mind of Man, which hath deny'd to Him, who is the inexhausted Fountain of all Good, the Honors that it hath attributed to muddy streams:Jerem. 9. 13.digging, as the Holy Prophet complains, to themselves broken and dirty Cisterns, and neglecting and forsaking the most pure Fountain of living Waters. It ordinarily happen'd after this manner. Diodor. lib. 17. Plutarch. in Lysand. If any one did excel in Stature of Body, if he was endu'd with Greatness of Mind, or Clearness ofVal. Max. l. 8. c. ult. Cic. de rep. ap. Wit, he first made himself to be admir'd among the ignorant Vulgar: this Admiration was by degrees turn'd into a profound Respect, till at length they paid him greater Honours than Man ought to receive, and ascrib'd the Man into the number of the Gods. Aug. 3. de civ c. 15. Whilst the more Prudent were either carried away with the Torrent of the Vulgar Opinion, or were unable or at least afraid to resist it.

2. The sordid Flattery of Subjects towards their Princes, was another cause of Idolatry. For to gratifie their Vanity, to flatter their Pride, and [Page] sooth them in their Self conceit, they erected Altars and set the Images of their Princes on them; to which they offer'd Incense in like manner as to the Gods;Athen: lib. 6. dipnosoph. cap. 6. de Demetrio Poliorcete. Sueton. in Julio c. 76. & 84. and many times also while they were yet living.

3.Pontan. l. 1. c. de Saturn. An extravagant love of Immortality in many, who studied to attain to it by leaving Effigies of themselves behind them, imagining, that their Names would still be preserv'd from the power of Death and Time, so long as they lived after their Funerals, in Brass, or breath'd in lively Statues of Marble.

4.Thucydid. l. 7. Plutarch. Apopht. Lacon. Cic. 1. de nat. Deor. 1 Sap. 14. A preposterous desire of perpetuating the Memories of extraordinary and useful Men to future Ages. Vid. Annal. Saliana. m. 2000. Hier. in Ezech. & in Oseam. For to perpetuate the Memory of such Men, and to eternize their Names, they made them Gods, or rather call'd them so.

P.

But who was the first Fictor and Assertor of False Gods?

M.

Vid. Annal. Saliana. m. 2000. Hier. in Ezech. & in Oseam. Ninus, the first King of the Assyrians was, as it is reported: who, to immortalize the Name of his Father Belus, or Nimrod, worshipped him with Divine Honours after his Decease.

P.

When, and in what manner do they say that happened?

M.

I will tell you. After Ninus had conquer'd many Nations far and near, and had Built the City call'd after his Name, Ninive, in a publick Assembly of the Babylonians he [Page] extoll'd his Father Belus, the Founder of the City and Empire of Babylon, extravagantly as his manner was, and represented him, not only worthy of perpetual Honour amongst all Posterity, but of Immortality also among the Gods above [...] he exhibited a Statue of him that was curiously and neatly made, to which they should pay the same Reverence that they would give to Belus alive: and if at any time an Offender should fly to this Statue, he should not be forced away thence to be punished, because he appointed it to be a common Sanctuary to the miserable. This thing easily procured an Opinion of a Divinity to the dead Prince; so that he was created a God under the Title of Iove, or as others please, Saturn of Babylon: where a most magnificent Temple was erected to him by his Son, and dedicated with variety of Sacrifices, in the two thousandth Year of the World, which was the last Year but one of the Life of Noah. And from thence as from a pestilential Head the Sacrilegious Plague of Idols, passed by a kind of a Contagion into other Nations, and dispersed it self every where about.

P.

What? Did all other Nations of the World worship Belus?

M.

All indeed did not worship Belus; but after this beginning of Idolatry, several Nations form'd to themselves several Gods; receiving into that number not only mortal and dead Men, but Brutes also, and, which is a greater wonder, inanimate things, even the most mean and pitiful. For it is evident from [Page] the Authority of innumerable Writers, that the Africans made the Heavens a God; the Persians, Fire, Water and the Winds; the Lybians, the Sun and Moon; the Thebans, Sheep and Weesels; the Babylonians of Memphis, a Whale; the Inhabitants of Mendes, a Goat; the Thessalians, Storks; the Syrophenicians, Doves; the Egyptians, Dogs, Cats, C [...]ocodiles and Hawks; nay, which is more ridiculous, Leeks, Onions and Garlick. Of whom Iuvenal facetiously says,

O sanctas Gentes, quibus haec nascuntur in Hortis

Numina!—

Religious Nations sure, and blest Abodes,

Where ev'ry Orchard is o'er-run with Gods.

P.

But certainly, the ancient Inhabitants and most wise Citizens of Rome did not so sottishly entertain these Images of Vain Gods, as those Barbarous Nations did, to whom they were superiour, not in Arms only and Humanity, but in Wit and Judgment.

M.

You are mistaken, Sir; for they exceeded even those Barbarians in this sort of Folly.

P.

Say you so?

M.

Indeed. For they Deified and Adored not only Beasts and things void of all sense, but which is a far greater madness, they worship'd also Murderers, Adulterers, Thieves, Drunkards, Robbers, and such like pests of Mankind.

[Page]P.

How many and what kind of Gods did the Romans worship?

M.

It is scarce possible to recount them: When besides their own Country Gods and Family Gods, all Strange Gods that came to the City were made Free of it. Whence it came to pass in time, that when they saw their Precincts too narrow to contain so many, necessity forc'd them to send their Gods into Colonies, as they did their Men. But you will see these things which I cursorily tell you, more conveniently and pleasantly by and by, with your own Eyes, when you come into this Pantheon with me; where we are now at the Door. Let us enter.

CHAP. II.
The Entrance into the Pantheon. A Distribution of the Gods into several Classes.

P.

GOod God! What a Crowd of dea [...] Deities is here, if all these are Deities, whose Figures I see painted and devised upon the Walls?

M.

This is the smallest part of them. For the very Walls of the City, although it be so large, much less of this Temple, cannot contain even their Titles.

P.

Have these Gods been all of the same Order and Dignity?

[Page]M.

By no means. But as the Roman People was distributed into Three Ranks, viz. into Senatorians, Knights or Gentlemen, and Plebeians (Patricii, Equites & Plebeii;) as also into Noble, New-raised (Novi) and Ignoble; Cic. pro Mur. (The Novi, were those who did not receive their Nobility from their Ancestors; but obtain'd it themselves by their own Virtue) so the Roman Gods were divided into Three, as it were, Classes.

The First is of those called the Superiour Gods, Dii Majorum Gentium, for the People paid to them a higher degree of worship; because they imagin'd that these Gods were more eminently concern'd in the Government of this World. These were call'd also Selecti, because they had always had the Title of Celestial Gods, famous and eminent above others, of extraordinary Authority and Renown. Twelve of these Dii selecti were styled Consentes, quasi Consentientes; Sen [...]. l. 2. quaest. nat. Lucian. Dial. de Deorum concil. Plaut. in Epidico. because in Affairs of great Importance, Iupiter admitted them into his Council. The Images of these were fix'd in the Forum at Rome: six of them were Males and six Females; commonly without other addition called Dii Duodecim; and whose Names Ennius comprises in this Distich:

Iuno, Vesta, Minerva, Ceres, Diana, Venus, Mars,

Mercurius, Iupiter, Neptunus, Vulcanus, Apollo.

[Page]Others read in the latter Verse not Iupiter, Dempster paralip. ad c. 3. but Iovis; and rightly in my Judgment. For anciently they said Iovis in the Nominative, and in Verse they, if occasion required it,Liv. l. 1. cut off the last Letter. These Twelve Gods were believed to preside over the Twelve Months: each of them was allotted a Month; Ianuary to Iuno, February to Neptune, March to Minerva, April to Venus, May to Apollo, Iune to Mercury, Iuly to Iupiter, August to Ceres, September to Vulcan, October to Mars, November to Diana, December to Vesta. They likewise presided over the Twelve Celestial Signs, as Manilius explains it, lib. 2. Astron. And if to these Twelve Dii Consentes, you add the Eight following, Ianus, Saturnus, Genius, Sol, Pluto, Bacchus, Tellus and Luna, you will have all the Dii Selecti, i.e. Twenty.

The Second Class is of those, called inferiour Gods, Dii Minorum Gentium, who shine with a less degree of Glory, and have been placed among the Gods as, says Tully, de nat. Deor. by their own Merits. Whence they are called alsoVar. ap. Aug. Adscriptitii, Minuscularii, Putatitii andLucian. Dial. de Deor. con. Indigetes. Serv. i [...]. 1 [...]. Aen. Indigetes, quod nullius r [...]i indigerent; or because being translated from this Earth into Heaven, in Diis agerent; or being as it were fixed to certain places, committed peculiarly to their Care; they dwelt in them (in iis degerent) to perform the Duty intrusted to them.Liv. l. 1. Thus Aeneas was made a God of the Order of the Indigetes, by his Mother Venus, in the manner described by Ovid: Metam. l. 14.

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Lustratum Genitrix divino corpus odore

Unxit, & Ambrosia cum dulci Nectare mixta

Contigit os, fecitque Deum, quem turba quirini

Nuncupat Indigetem, temploque, arisque recepit.

—His Mother then his Body purifi'd,

Anoints with sacred Odors, and his Lips

In Nectar mingl'd with Ambrosia dips;

So Deifi'd: whom Indiges Rome calls,

Honor'd with Altars, Shrines and Festivals.

The Third and lowest Class among the Gods, is of theHorat. l. 3. carm. Minuti, Vesci or Miscellanei, commonly calledAp. Guther. l. 1. c. 4. de jur. man. Semones, quasi semi-Homines, half-Men. Lips. l. [...]. ant. lect. c. 18.(For the Antients, instead of Hominem, said Hemonem) whose Merits were not sufficient to gain them a place among the Celestial Gods; yet their Vertues were such that the People thought them superiour to mortal Men. Plautus in Cistell. calls them Patellarii, Fulgent. Plac [...]d. ad Chalcid. from the Vessels (Patellae) in which the Ancients offer'd to the Gods their Sacrifices, according to Ovid, in Fast.

Fert missos Vestae pura patella cibos.

To Vesta's Deity with humble Mess,

In cleanest Dish serv'd up they now address.

To these we ought to adjoin the Novensiles, Liv. l. 8 Varr. de ling. lat. the Gods which the Sabines brought to Rome by the Command of King Tatius; and which were so called, as some say, because [Page] they were latest of all (Novissimi omnium) reckoned among the Gods: or because they were (Novitatum Praesides) Presidents over the Changes, by which the things of this World subsist. Cincius believes them to have been the strange Gods of conquered Countries: Ap. Gyrald. synt. 1. whereof the numbers were so vast, that it was thought fit to call them all in general Novensiles, Arnob. 3. adv. Dent. lest they should forget any of them. And lastly, to this Class also we must refer the Gods and Goddesses, for whose sake, says Tully (de Nat. Deor.) Men come to be advanced to the Dignity of Gods; of which sort are the principal Virtues, as we shall particularly shew in its proper place.

CHAP. III.
A View of the Pantheon. A more Commodious Division of the Gods.

P.

I Cast my Eyes very curiously every where about me, and yet I do not see the Three Classes of the Gods, that you have described just now.

M.

Because there is made here another and more convenient Division of them; which we will follow also if you please in our Discourse.

P.

I cannot deny my self that useful Pleasure which I shall reap from your Conversation.

[Page]M.

You see that the Three Classes, which I mentioned to you, are here divided into six, and painted upon the several parts of the Pantheon. 1. You see the Celestial Gods and Goddesses, upon an Arch. 2. The Terrestrial, upon the Wall on the Right Hand. 3. The Marine and River Gods, upon the Wall on the left. 4. The Infernal, in this lower Apartment by the Pavement. 5. The Minuti, or Semones and Miscellanei, before you. 6. The Adscriptitii and Indigetes behind you. These Six parts shall compose our Discourse: each of which parts shall lay before you, whatsoever I have found most remarkable amongst the best Authors upon this Subject: if at least my Talkativeness is tolerable to you.

P.

Sir, you jest when you call it Talkativeness. Can any thing that is more pleasing happen to me?

M.

Then since it pleases you, let us sit down together a while: and since the place is free from all Company, we will take a deliberate View of this whole Army of Gods, and inspect them one after another; beginning, as it is fit, with the Celestial, and so with Iove, according to the direction of the Poet. Virg. Ecl. 3.

CHAP. IV.
Of the Celestial Gods. IUPITER. His Image.

[Page]

M.

THE Gods, commonly called Celestial, are these that follow: Iupiter, Apollo, Mars, Mercury, and Bacchus. The Celestial Goddesses, Iuno, Vesta, Minerva, or Pallas, Venus, Latona and Bellona. We will begin with the King of them all, Iupiter.

P.

Where is Iupiter?

M.

Look up to that Arch.Virg. Aen. 1. Pausan. [...]n Eliac. Lucian. de sacrif. You may easily know him by his Habit. That is, Divum pater atque hominum rex, the Father and King of Gods and Men, whom you see sitting in a Throne of Ivory and Gold, with the Beard, holding Thunder in his Right Hand, and throwing it against the Giants underneath him, which heretofore he conquered. Vpon his Scepter (which they say is made of Cypress, which is a Symbol of the Eternity of his Empire, because that Wood is free from CorruptionApud Laert. l. 8.) sits an Eagle: either because he was brought up by itMaero ap Nat. Com.; or heretofore an Eagle resting upon his Head, portended his Reign; orServ. in Aen. 1. because in his War with the Giants, an Eagle brought him his Thunder, and thence received the Title ofVirg. 5. Aen. Iovis Armiger, Iupiter's Armour- [...]earer. Cic. 3. de nat. He has golden Shooes

[Page]

[Page] [Page] and an embroidered Cloak, diversified with various Flowers and figures of Animals: which Dionysius the Tyrant, as it is said, did take from him in Sicily, and giving him a Woollen Cloak instead of it, said, that that would be more convenient for him in all Seasons, since it was warmer in the Winter and much lighter in the Summer. Yet let it not seem a wonder to you, if by chance you should see him in another place in another Dress. For he uses to be decked in several Fashions, according to the various Names he assumes, and the diversity of the People amongst whom he is worshipped. Particularly you will smile when you see him amongst the Lacedemonians without Ears,Plut. de Osir. & Isid. when the Cretans are so liberal therein to him, that they give him four.Ap. Guther. de Jur. man. So much for the Figure of Iupiter. For if it were my design to speak of his Statue, I should repeat here what Verrius says,Plin. l. 33. c. 7. in Asinar. that his Face upon Holydays ought to be painted with Vermilion: as the Statues of the rest of the Gods also used to be rubbed with Ointments, and [...]adorned with Garlands, according to an Observation of Plautus in Asinar.

P.

Was the power of darting Thunder and Lightning in the hands of Iupiter only?

M.

The learned Hetrurians teach us,Plin. l. 2. c. 51. that this Power was committed to Nine Gods but to which of them does not plainly appear. Some, besides Iupiter, Serv. 1. & 2. Aen. mention Vulcan and Minerva: whence the Phrase, Minervales Manubiae signifies Thunder (as the Books of those antient Hetrusci call Strokes of Thunder Manubias) because the noxious Constellation of [Page] Minerva causes Tempests in the Vernal Equinox. Idem 8. Aen. Others say Thunder was also attributed to Iuno, to Mars, and the South Wind: and they reckon up several kinds of Thunders;Plin. l. 2. c. 43. 51. 52. Fes. Amm. as Peremptalia, Pestifera, Popularia, Perversa, Renovativa, Ostentatoria, Clara, Familiaria, Bruta, Consiliaria. Marc. l. 2. But the Romans commonly took notice of no more than Two.Ex Guth. de jur. man. l. 1. c. 3. The Diurnal Thunder which they attributed to Iupiter; and the Nocturnal, which they attributed to Pluto. Now let us go on to Iupiters Birth.

SECT. I.
Jupiter's Descent and Education.

P.

Who were the Parents that Iupiter was born of?

M.

One Answer will not fully satisfie this one Question, since there is not one Iupiter but many, who are sprang from different Families. Three Jupiters, (says Tully de Nat. Deor. 3.) are recounted by those who are called Theologues. The first and second were born in Arcadia. The Father of the one was Aether; from whom Proserpine and Liber are said to be born. The Father of the other was Coelum. He is said to have begot Minerva. The third was a Cretan,Ap. Aug. de Civ. Euseb. the Son of Saturn; whose Tomb is yet extant in the Isle of Crete. But Varro reckons up Three hundred Iupiters: and others count almost an innumerable Company of them;Caes. l. 3. praep. Evang. for there was hardly any Nation, [Page] which did not worship a Iupiter of their own, and suppose him to be born amongst themselves. But of all these, the famousest Iupiter in general Opinion, is He, whose Mother was Ops and whose Father was Saturn; to whom therefore is usually ascrib'd all that the Poets fabulously write about the other Iupiters.

P.

Where, and by whom was this Iupiter educated?

M.

He was educated where he was born,Vid. Nat. Com. in Jove. that is, upon the Mountain Ida in Crete: but by whom the variety of Opinions is wonderful. For some affirm he was educated by the Curetes and Corybantes. Some say by the Nymphs, and some, by Amalthaea the Daughter of Melissus King of Crete. Others on the contrary have recorded, that the Bees fed him with Hony. Others, that a Goat gave him Milk. Not a few say, that he was nourished by Doves. Some, by an Eagle: many, by a Bear. And further, it is the Opinion of some, concerning the foresaid Amalthaea, that she was not the Daughter of Melissus, as we now mentioned; but the very Goat which suckled Iupiter, Corn [...] Amalthaeae. whose Horn, it is said, he gave afterwards to his Nurses, with this admirable Privilege, that whoever possessed it, should desire nothing which they should not presently obtain. They add besides, that after this Goat was dead, Iupiter took her Skin and made a Shield of it; with which he singly combated the Giants: whence that Shield was called Aegis, [...], which signifies a Goat, which at last he restored to live again, and, [Page] giving her a new Skin, placed her amongst the Celestial Constellations.

SECT. II.
Jupiter's Exploits.

P.

WHen Iupiter was grown to be a Man, what did he perform worthy of Memory?

M.

He overcame in War the Giants and the Titans (of whom more when we speak of Saturn) and also delivered his Father Saturn from Imprisonment; but afterwards deposed him from the Throne and banished him, because he formed a Conspiracy against him; dividing the paternal Inheritance with his two Brothers Neptune and Pluto, as more largely will be shewn in its proper place, when we speak of each of them apart: In fine, he so assisted and obliged all Mankind by the great Favours that he did, that he not only thence obtained the Name of Iupiter, Cic. 2. de nat. Deor. quasi juvans pater; but he was advanced also unto divine Honours, and was esteemed the common Father both of Gods and Men. Amongst some of his more illustrious Actions, we ought to remember the Story of Lycaon. For when Iupiter had heard a Report concerning the Wickedness and great Impiety of Men, he descended, that he might know the real truth of it, it is said, from Heaven to the Earth, and came into the House of Lycaon King of Arcadia; where declaring himself to be a God, [Page] whilst others did prepare Sacrifices for him, Lycaon derided him; nor did he stop here, he added an abominable Wickedness to this Contempt, and being desirous to try whether Iupiter was a God as he pretended, he kills one of his Domestick Servants, and roasts and boils the Flesh of him, and sets it before Iupiter for his Entertainment: who abominating the Barbarity of the Man, fired the Palace with Lightning, and turn'd Lycaon into a Wolf. Ovid. Met. l. 1.

P.

Are there no other Exploits of his?Apollon. 4. Argon.

M.

Yes indeed: but they are very lewd and dishonourable; I am almost ashamed to mention them. For of what sort of Lewdness in the World was he not guilty? Or what Infamy is there not branded upon his Name? I will only mention a few Actions of this sort amongst many.

1. In the Shape of a Crow he debauch'd his Sister Iuno, who was born at the same Birth with him, with pretences that he would marry her:Doroth. 2 Metam. as how many Ladies does that pretence delude even now?

2. He violated the Chastity of Danae, the Daughter of Acrisius King of the Argives, tho her Father had shut her up in a Tower, being admonished by the Oracle, that it should happen that he should be kild by his Grandson. For changing himself into a shower of gold, he slid down through the Roof and Tiles of the place into the Lady's Lap. As what place is there so fortified and guarded,Ovid. 4. Metam. into which Love cannot find a passage? Is there [Page] any Heart so very hard and Iron-like, which Mony cannot soften? What Way, what Passage, what Undertaking is not open and safe (converso in pretium Deo, Horat.) to a God who turns himself into Mony to make the purchase.

3. He corrupted Leda, Arat. in Phaenom. the Wife of Tyndarus King of Laconia, in the similitude of a Swan: Thus a fair Outside oftimes veils the foulest Temper; and is a beautiful Cover to a most deformed Mind.

4. He corrupted Antiope, Ovid. 6. Metam. the Wife of Lycus, King of Thebes, Id. ibid. in the likeness of a Satyr.

5. He defiled Alcmena, the Wife of Amphitryon in her Husband's absence, in the likeness of Amphitryon himself.

6. He inflamed Aegina, Ibid. the Daughter of Aesopus, King of Boeotia, with Love in the similitude of Fire, (a lively representation of his Crime) and so robb'd her of her Virginity.

7. He deflowred Clytoris, Arnob. ap. Gyr. a Virgin of Thessalia, of great Beauty, by metamorphosing himself into what? O ridiculous, into an Ant! And many times indeed it happens, that great Mischiefs arise from very small Beginnings.

8. He corrupted the Daughter of Lycaon, Boocat l. 5. de Gen. Deor. King of Arcadia, (her Name was Calisto) counterfeiting, which is very strange, the Modesty and Countenance of Diana. And yet he did not protect her from the Disgrace that afterwards followed. For as she began to appear big, and washed her self in the Fountain with Diana, and the other Nymphs, her Fault being discovered, she was ignominiously [Page] turn'd out, and chang'd by Iuno into a Bear. But, I mistake. Her Disgrace was indeed [...]aken away by Iupiter, who advanced this Bear into Heaven, and made it a Constella [...]ion; which is commonly called Ursa Major, [...]nd by the Greeks, Helice.

9. By sending an Eagle,Vir. 5. Aen. Ovid. Metam. 10. he snatch'd away [...]he pretty Boy Ganymede, the Son of Tros, as [...]e hunted upon the Mountain Ida. Or he himself being chang'd into an Eagle, took him in his Claws and carried him up to Hea [...]en. And so he did to Asteria, the Daugh [...]er of Coeus, a young Lady of the greatest Modesty,Fulgent. Plac. whom he ravished and carried away in Eagles Claws; for he seem'd to be [...]n Eagle:

10. He corrupted Europa, Ovid. 6. Metam. the Daughter of [...]genor King of Phenicia, in the form of a [...]urious white Bull, and carried her into Crete with him. See how many several Beasts a [...]erson resembles, who hath once put off his Modesty! And by how many various Fables [...]s this one Truth represented, that the very Gods by practices of impure Lust become [...]rutes. The Bull in reality was the Ship up [...]n which a Bull was painted, in which Europa [...]ailed; in like manner was the Horse Pegasus, [...]hat was painted upon Bellerophon's Ship, and the [...]am which was painted upon that of Phryxus [...]nd Helle, created ample matter of Fiction [...]or the Poets. But to return to our Fable. [...]admus, Ovid. 3. Met [...]m. Brother to this Europa, when he had [...]n vain sought her all about, and did not dare [...]o go home to his Father without her, who [Page] had banished him from his sight till he found her,

—Facto pius & sceleratus eodem. (Ov. Met.)

Unnatural and pious both at once.

He built the City Thebes, not far from the Mountain Parnassus: and whereas it happened that his Companions that were with him, were devoured by a certain Serpent, whilst they went abroad to fetch Water, he, to revenge their Deaths, slew that Serpent; whose Teeth he took out, and by the Advice of Minerva sowed them, and suddenly a Harvest of Armed Soldiers sprouted up; who quarrelling amongst themselves, with the same speed that they grew up, mowed one another down again, excepting Five only, by whom that Country was Peopled afterwards. At length Cadmus and his Wife Hermione, or Harmonia when they had experienced the Inconstancy of the Fortune of this World in a great many instances, were changed into Serpents. He is said to have invented Sixteen of the Letters of the Greek Alphabet; [...] (to which Palamede [...] in [...] time of the Trojan added these Four [...]) to have also taught the manner of Writing in Prose,Plin. l. 5. c. 29. Cael. 39. c. 24. and to have first among the Greeks, consecrated Statues to the Honor of the Gods.

Now the Historical meaning of this Fable perhaps is this.Bochart. 2. P Geog. c. 19. Cadmus was in truth King of Sidon, by Nation a Kadmonite, as his Name [Page] intimates;Genes. 15. 19: of the number of those mentioned by Moses. Which Kadmonites were the same with the Hevaei, who possessed the Mountain Hermon, and were thence also called Hermo [...]aei: and so it came to pass, that the Wife of Cadmus had the Name of Harmonia, or Hermione, from the same Mountain. And why is it said that Cadmus's Companions were converted into Serpents, but because the Word Hevaeus in the Syriac signifies a Serpent? The Ambiguity of another Word in that Language occasioned the Fable, that armed Soldiers sprouted forth from the Teeth of the Serpent.Hygin. c. 274. For the same Word signifies both Serpents teeth and brazen spears, with which Cadmus first of all Men armed his Soldiers in Greece, being indeed the Inventor of Brass, insomuch that the Oar of which Brass is made, is from him even now called Cadmia. As to the Five Soldiers, which are said to survive all the rest of their Brethren,Plin. l. 34. c. 1. 10. who sprouted up out of the Teeth of the Serpent, the same Syriac Word signifies Fiv [...], and also a Man ready for Battel, according as it is differently pronounced. Bochartus Geogr.

SECT. III.
Jupiter's Names.

P.

HOW many Names has Iupiter?

M.

They can hardly be numbered; he obtained so many Names, either from the places where he lived and was worshipped, or from the things that he did. The more remarkable I will here set down Alphabetically.

[Page]The Greeks called him Ammon, Plut. in Ofir. V. Cur. l. 4. or Hammon Arenarius, Sandy, from [...], arena. Accordingly he was worshipped in Lybia under the Figure of a Ram, because when Bacchus was athirst in the fabulous Desarts of Arabia, and implored the Assistance of Iupiter, Iupiter appearing in the Form of a Ram, opened a Fountain with his Foot and discovered it to him. Others give this Reason; because Iupiter in War wore a Helmet whose Crest was a Rams head.

The Babylonians and Assyrians, Beros. l. 4. whom he governed called him Belus; Euseb. l. 1. praep. Eu. Hier. 1. in Oseam. he was the impious Author of Idolatry: by reason of the uncertainty of his Descent, they believed that he had neither Father or Mother; and therefore was thought the first of all the Gods: in different Places and Language he was afterwards called Beel, Baal, Beelphegor, Beelzebub, and Belzemen.

Iupiter was called Capitolinus, Ci [...]. 1. de nat. Plin. Liv. Plut. Tacit. 19. from the Capitoline Hill; upon the top whereof he had the first Temple that ever was at Rome; which Tarquinius Priscus design'd first, but Tarquinius Superbus erected, and Horatius the Consul dedicated it. He was besides called Tarpeius, from the Tarpeian Rock, on which this Temple was built. He was also styled Optimus Maximus, because he both can and is willing to profit all Men. Wherefore, says Tully, thou Capitoli [...]e Deity, Quem propter beneficia Populus Romanus Optimum, propter vim Maxium appellavit, &c.

[Page]He is called also Custos. Apul. de mundo Senec. 2. qu. nat. There is in Nero's Coins an Image of him sitting on his Throne, he bears in his Right Hand Thunder, and in his Left a Spear, with this Inscription Iupiter Custos.

Anciently in some Forms of Oaths he was commonly called Diespiter, quasi Diei pater; Varr. de ling. lat. as by and by we shall further remark under the Word Lapis. Macrobius (in Saturnal.) says, that the Cretans call'd him directly Diem. And amongst the Galls also there was heretofore a God, Diespiter; whence some think, that the French Word, Ouy Dea, the same with the Greek, [...], hath been deriv'd down to these Times. Bochartus in Geogr.

The Title Dodonaeus was given from the City Dodona in Chaonia, which was so called from Dodona, a Nymph of the Sea. Near to which City there was a Grove sacred to Iupiter, which was planted with Oaks, and famous in it was the ancientest Oracle of all Greece. Alex. ab Al. 6. c. 2. Two Doves delivered Responses there to those who consulted it. Or as others use to say, the Leaves of the Oaks themselves became vocal, and gave forth Oracles.

He was named Elicius, quod Coelo precibus eliciatur, Because the Prayers of Men may bring him down from Heaven. For so Ovid. in Fast. 3.

Eliciunt coelo, te Iupiter; unde Minores

Nunc quoque te celebrant, Eliciumque vocant.

When from high Heav'n our Prayers bring thee down,

I'th' Name Elicius thy Deity we own.

[Page]The Name Feretrius, is deriv'd either à feriendo hoste, from his smiting of his Enemies; or à ferenda pace, according to Festus (for they fetcht the Scepter by which they swore, and the Flint-stone with which they bargain'd,Plut. in Rom. Dion. 2. from his Temple) or else à ferendis spoliis, because they carried the Grand Spoils (Opima Spolia) to his Temple: Romulus first presented such Spoils to Iupiter, after he had slain Acron, King of Caenina; and Cornelius Gallus offered the same Spoils after he had conquered Tolumnius, King of Hetruria; and thirdly, M. Marcellus, when he had vanquished Viridomarus, King of the Galls, of whom Virgil says,

Tertiaque arma Patri suspendes arma Quirino.

6. Aen. & Serv. ibid.

Their vanquisht Arms thrice to the God shall give.

Those Spoils were called Opima which one General took from the other in Battel.

Fulminator, [...], is Iupiter's Title, from hurling Thunder, which is thought to be his proper Office,Horat. 3. Carm. if we believe the Poet,

—O qui res hominumque Deumque

Et [...]rnis regis Imperiis & fulmine terres.

Vir. Aen.

Who Men and Gods by thy eternal Law

Dost rule, and by thy mighty Thunder aw.

In Lycia they worshipped him under the Name of Gragus, Ap. Lycoph. [...]irg. 1. & 4. Aen. [...], and Genitor, as we find in Lycophron.

In Aegium, about the Sea Coast, he is said to have had a Temple with the Name of Homogyn [...]s.

[Page]At Praeneste, Pausan. & Hesych. Liv. l. 6. he was called Imperator. There was a most famous Statue of him there, afterwards translated to Rome.

Latialis was his Epithet,Cic. pro Mil. 86. Dion. l. 4. because he was worshipped in Latium, a Country of Italy: whence the Latinae feriae are denominated: to which all those Cities of Italy resorted, who desired to be partakers of the Solemnity; and brought to him divers Oblations, particularly, a Bull was sacrificed at that time, in the common Name of them all, whereof every one took a part.

The Name Lapis, or as others write Lapideus, was given him by the Romans, who conceived that juramentum per Iovem Lapidem, an Oath by Iupiter Lapis was the most obligatory Oath.Cic. 7. Epist. 12. And it is derived either from the Stone which was presented to Saturn, by his Wife Ops, who said that it was Iupiter, in which sense Eusebius (in Chronic.) says, that Lapis reign'd in Crete; In Chron. or from Lapide silice, the Flint-stone, which in making Bargains the Swearer held in his hand, and said,Fest. ap. Lil. Si sciens fallo, it a me Diespiter, salva urbe arceque, bonis ejiciat, ut ego hunc lapidem: If knowingly I deceive, so let Diespiter, saving the City and the Capitol, cast me away from all that's good, as I cast away this Stone: whereupon he threw the Stone away. The Romans had another Form, not unlike to this, of making Bargains, it will not be amiss to adjoin it here;Liv l. 1. Si dolo malo aliquando fallam, tu illo die, Iupiter, me sic ferito, ut ego hunc porcum hodie feriam; Tantoque magis ferito, quanto magis potes, pollesque.[Page]If with evil intent I at any time deceive, Thou upon that day Jupiter; so strike me, as I this Swine to day shall strike, and so much the more strike thou, as thou the more able and skilful art to do it, with which he struck down the Swine.

Lucetius, Serv. 9. Aen. derived from Luce in the old Thuscan Language, is the same as Diespiter in Latin. Which Title is given to Iupiter, says Gellius, quod nos die ac luce, quasi vita ipsa afficeret ac juvaret: because he affects and comforts us with the light of the day, as much as with life it self. Or as Festus hath it, because he was believed to be the cause of Light.

The Peoples of Elis used to celebrate him by the Title of Martius, Plut. in Pyrrho. Martial, [...].

Muscularius, Pausan. 5. Eliac. [...], Muscarum abactor, the confounder of Flies: because when Hercules's Religious Exercises were interrupted by a multitude of Flies, he thereupon offered a Sacrifice to Iupiter, which being finished, all the Flies flew away.

Nicephorius, Ael. Spart. in ejus vita. [...], Victory-bearing, by whose Oracle, the Emperour Adrian was told that he should be promoted to the Empire. Livy often mentions him; and many Coins are extant, in which is the Image of Iupiter bearing Victory in his hand.

He was called also Opitulus and Opitulator, quasi Opus lator, Fest. Aug. 7. de civit. helper. And Centipeda from his stability: because those things stand secure and firm which have many feet. He was called Stabilitor and Tigellus, because he supports the World. Almus also and Alumnus, [Page] because he cherisheth all things: and Ruminus from Ruma, the Pap, by which he nourisheth Animals.

His Title of Olympius is either derived from his praeceptor, Paus. Att. & Eliac. Liv. l. 4. dec. 3. Olympus; or from [...], the Heavens in Greek, or from the City Olympia, which stood near the Mountain Olympus, and was ancietly celebrated far and near for a Temple there dedicated to Iupiter, and for Games solemnized every five years. To this Iupiter Olympus the first Cup was sacrificed in their Festivals.Pollux

When the Galls besieged the Capitol,Ovid. 6. Fast. an Altar was erected to Iupiter Pistor from pinsendo: Lact. l. 12. Liv. l. 5. because he put it into the minds of the Romans, to make Loaves of Bread and throw them into the Gall's Tents: whereupon the Siege was raised.

The Athenians erected a Statue to him,Phurnut. in Jovin. and worshipped it upon the Mountain Hymettus: giving him in that place the Title of Pluvius, which is mentioned by Tibullus,

Arida nec Pluvia supplicat herba Iovi.

Nor the parcht grass for Rain from Iove does call.

Praedator was also his Name. Not because he protected Robbers,Serv. 5. Aen. but because out of all the Booty taken from the Enemy, one part was due to him. For when the Romans went to War, they used to devote to the Gods a part of the Spoil that they should get; and for that reason there was a Temple at Rome dedicated to Iupiter Praedator.

Quirinus, as appears by that Verse of Virgil which we cited above in the Word Teretrius.

[Page] Rex and Regnator are his common Titles in Virgil, Homer and Ennius.

Divum atque hominum Rex.

Aen. 1. &. 10.

Summi regnator Olympi.

Aen. 7.

King of Gods and Men.

Ruler of the highest heaven.

Stator comes from stando or sistendo; Lib. 1. for when Romulus's Soldiers fled in the Battel with the Sabines, and Iupiter stopped their flight, Romulus consecrated a Temple to Iupiter Stator. Livy brings in Romulus thus praying to Iupiter on that occasion, lib. 1. At tu pater Deum hominumque hinc saltem arce hostem, de me terrorem Romanis, fugamque foedam siste, Hic ego tibi templum Statori Iovi, quod monumentum sit posteris tua praesenti ope servatam urbem esse, voveo. But thou, O Father of the Gods and Mankind, at this place at least drive back the Enemy, take away the fear of the Romans, and stay their dishonourable flight. And I vow to build a Temple to thee upon the same, that shall bear the name of Jupiter Stator, for a monument to posterity; That it was from thy immed [...] [...]ssistance that the City received its preservati [...]n.

The Greeks called him [...],Strabo l. 9. Arrian. 8. de gest. Alex. Servator, the Saviour, because he delivered them from the Medes. Conservator also was his Title, as appears from divers of Dioelesian's Coins: in which his Effigies stands with Thunder brandished in his right hand, and a Spear in his left; with this Inscription, Conservatori. In others, instead of Thunder, he holds forth a little Image of Victory, with this Inscription, Iovi Conservatori Orbis, to Iupiter the Conservator of the World.

[Page]The Augures called him Tonans and Fulgens. Cic. 1 de nat. And the Emperour Augustus dedicated a Temple to him so called;Dio. l. 50. wherein was a Statue of Iupiter, to which a little Bell was fastned. He is also call'd by Orpheus, [...],Ap. Lyl. Gyr. fine. 2. and by Apuleius, Tonitrualis, the Thunderer: and an Inscription is to be seen upon a Stone at Rome, Iovi Brontonti.

Trioculus, [...],Pausan. ap. eund. was also an Epithet given him by the Grecians, who thought that he had three Eyes, with one one of which he observed the Affairs of Heaven, with another the Affairs of the Earth, and with the the third he viewed those of the Sea. There was a Statue of him of this kind in Priamus's Palace at Troy; which, beside the usual two had a third Eye in the Forehead.

Vejovis, Cic. 5. de nar. or Vejupiter, and Vedius, that is little Iupiter, Gell. l. 5. Ovid. in Fast. was his Title when he was described without his Thunder; viewing angrily short Spears which he held in his hand: The Romans accounted him a fatal and noxious Deity; and therefore they worshipped him only, that he might not hurt them.

Agrippa dedicated a Pantheon to Iupiter Ultor, the Avenger, at Rome, according to Pliny. Lib. 36. 15. Lib. 36. c. 15.

He was likewise called Xenius, Ser. 1. Ae [...] Cic. pro Deir. or Hospitalis, Hospitable; Plu [...]. qu. Rom. because he was thought the Author of the Laws and Customs concerning Hospitality.Demost. or de le [...]gation. Whence the Greeks called Presents given to Strangers Xenia, as the Latins called them Lautia.

[...].Phurnut. de Jov. the proper Name of Iupiter, is derived [...], because he gives life to Animals.

SECT. IV.
The Signification of the Fable, and what is understood by the Name Jupiter.

[Page]

YOU have told us the Dreams of the Poets about Iupiter; now pray Sir let us know what the Historians and Mythologists affirm concerning him.

M.

Very willingly.Apud Salian. [...]n Ann. & Epi [...]ome Tursell [...] Iupiter was King of Crete, and cotemporary, according to Eusebius, with the Patriarch Abraham. This Iupiter deposed his Father, and afterwards divided by lot the Kingdom with his two Brothers, Neptune and Pluto. And because by lot the Eastern part of the Country was given to Iupiter; the Western to Pluto; and the Maritime Parts to Neptune; they took occasion from hence to feign, that upiter was the King and God of the Heavens, Neptune of the Sea, and Pluto of Hell. Nay, Iupiter's Name was so honoured by Posterity, that all Kings and Princes were from him called Ioves, and their Queens Iunones, from Iuno the Wife of Iupiter.

Concerning the Mythologists, or the Interpreters of Fables, I shall only observe this by the by. There is in these kind of things such a vast diversity of Opinions among them; and, which yet is worse, the Accounts that many of them give are so witless and impertinent, so incongruous to the very Fables which they pretend to explain, that I think [Page] it better to write nothing from them, than [...]o trouble the Reader with those things which will not probably satisfie him: which when [...] cannot effect, I shall pass the Business over [...]n silence, and leave it to every ones discretion [...]o devise his own Interpretations. For it is [...]etter that himself should be the Author of [...]is Mistake, than to be led into it by ano [...]her; because a slip is more tolerable and ea [...]ie, when we our selves fall down, than when others violently push us down at unawares. Yet whenever the place requires, that I give my Expositions of these Fables, that I may [...]iscover some Meaning that is not repugnant [...]o common Sense, I shall not be so far want [...]ng to my Duty, as that any one should just [...]y accuse me of Negligence. By the present Fable I may justifie my words; for observe only how various are Mens Opinions concerning the Signification of the Name Iupiter, you may guess at the rest.

The Natural Philosophers many times think that Heaven is meant by the Name Iupiter: Ci [...]. 2 de nat [...] deor [...] whence come those Phrases, Iove tonante, fulgente, &c. signifying Thunder; and that of the Poet, Virg. Aen. 10.

Panditur interea domus omnipotentis Olympi.

Mean while the Palace of th' Omnipotent

Is open'd wide.

Others imagine that the Air,Theor. Eccl. 4 [...] and the things that are therein contained, as Thunder, Lightning, Rain, Meteors and the like, are signified by the same Name. In which sense that Sentence of Horace is understood,

[Page] Iacet sub Iove frigido. Lodges in the cold A [...] Or as we generally say sub Dio, [...] Iupiter. Some on the contrary, call the Ai [...] Iuno, and the Fire Iupiter; by which the Ai [...] being warmed becomes fit for the Generation of things.Lucret. l. 1. Others again call the Sky Iupiter, and the Earth Iuno; because out of the Earth all things spring: which Virgil hath elegantly expressed in these Verses. 2. Georg [...]

Tum pater omnipotens faecundis imbribus aether,

Conjugis in gremium laetae descendit, & omn [...]

Magnus alit, magno commistus corpore foetus.

In fruitful showers th' Almighty from above

Descends i'th' lap of his delighted Iove,

And great He with the mighty body join'd,

Both propagates and fosters ev'ry kind.

Ogilb [...]

Euripides thought so,Ap. Cic. 2. de nat. In Phaedr. Odyss. [...]. In supp. & Troad. 1. de div. when he said that th [...] Sky ought to be called Summus Deus, th [...] Great God. Plato's Opinion was different [...] for he thought that the Sun was Iupiter; an [...] Homer, together with the foresaid Euripid [...] think that he is Fate; which Fate is, according to Tully's Definition, (de Divinat.) aete [...]na causa rerum, cur ea quae praeterierint facta sint & ea quae instant, fiant, & ea quae consequuntur, futura sint. The Cause from all Eternity [...] why such things as already past were done; an [...] why such things as are doing at present, be as the [...] are; and why such things as are to follow hereafter, shall follow accordingly. In short, other [...] by Iupiter, Arat. init. Astron. understand the Soul of the World [...] which is diffused not only through all human Bodies, but likewise through all the parts o [...] the Universe, as Virgil poetically sets forth [...] Aen. 6. [Page]

[Page]

[Page]—Coelum ac terras, camposque liquentes

Spiritus intus alit, totamque infusa per antus

Mens agitat molem, & magno se corpore miscet.

The Heaven and Earth, and the vast watery Main

A Spirit feeds within, which closely join'd,

Acts the vast Mass with an embodied Mind.

I do not regard the moral Signification of the Fables, that would be an endless and an impertinent Labour. It is free, as I said above, for every one, to fancy what he pleases, and to abound in his own Sense, according to the Proverb.

CHAP. V.
APOLLO. His Image.

P.

BUT who is that beardless and unshaven Youth,Horat. l. ad Callimach. holding a Bow and Arrows in his Right Hand, and a Harp in his Left, that is crowned with Laurel, and shining in Garments of Gold?

M.

It is the Image of Apollo: Porphyr. l. de sole. who is sometimes described with a Shield in one Hand, and the Graces in the other. And because he hath a threefold Power, in Heaven where he is called Sol, in Earth where he is named Liber Pater, and in Hell where he is stiled Apollo; he is usually painted with these three things, a Harp, a Shield, and Arrows. The Harp [Page] shews that he bears Rule in Heaven where all things are full of Harmony; the Shield describes his Office in Earth where he gives Health and Safety to terrestrial Creatures; his Arrows shew his Authority in Hell, for whomsoever he strikes with them, he sends them into Hell.

SECT. I.
His Descent.

P.

WHat Family was Apollo born of?

M.

You shall know, after you have first heard how many Apollo's there were?

P.

How many?

M.

Four. The first and ancientest whereof was born of Vulcan: The Second was a Cretan, a Son of the Corybantes: the Third was born of Iupiter and Latona: the Fourth was born in Arcadi, called by the Arcades, Nomius. But tho, as Cicero says de Nat. Deor. lib. 3. there were so many Apollo's, Reliqui omnes silentur, omnesque res aliorum gestae ad unum Apollmem Iovis & Latonae filium referuntur: Yet the rest of them are all unspoken of, and all that they did is referred to the Person of one only, who is he, that was born of Jupiter and Latona.

P.

In what Place was Apollo the Son of Latona born?

M.

I will tell you more than you ask; they say the thing was thus. Latona the Daughter of Coeus the Titan, conceived of two Twins by Iupiter: Iuno incensed at it, sent the Serpent [Page] Python against her: and Latona, to escape the Serpent, betook her self into the Island Delos; where she brought forth Apollo and Diana at the same Birth. Hesiod.

SECT. II.
Actions of Apollo.

P.

BY what Means was Apollo advanced to the highest degree of Honour and Worship?

M.

By these four especially: By the Invention of Physick, Musick, Poetry, and Rhetorick; and therefore he is supposed to preside over the Muses. It is said that he taught the Arts of Divining, and Shooting with Arrows: when therefore he had gratified Mankind infinitely by these Favours, they deified him. Hear how gloriously he himself repeats his Accomplishments of Mind and Nature, where he magnifies himself to the flying Nymph iri Ovid, whom he passionately loved.

—Nescis, temeraria,

Ovid. Metam.

nescis

Quem fugias, ideoque fugis.

Iupiter est genitor. Per me quod erit (que) fuitque,

Estque patet. Per me concordant carmina nervis.

Certa quidem nostra est, nostra tamen una sagitta.

Certior in vacuo quae vulnera pectore fecit.

Inventum Medicina meum est. Opifer (que) per orbem

Dicor, & herbarum est subjecta potentia nobis.

Perhaps thou know'st not my superior State;

And from that Ignorance proceeds thy Hate.

[Page]The King of Gods begot me: What shall be,

Or is, or ever was, in Fate, I see.

Mine is th' Invention of the charming Lyre;

Sweet Notes and heav'nly Numbers I inspire.

Sure is my Bow, unerring is my Dart;

But ah! more deadly his who pierc'd my Heart.

Med'cine is mine; what Herbs and Simples grow

In Fields or Forests, all their Pow'rs I know;

And am the great Physician call'd below.

P.

What memorable things did he perform?

M.

Many; but especially these.

1. He destroyed all the Cyclops, the Forgers of Iupiter's Thunderbolts with his Arrows, to revenge the Death of Aesculapius his Son, whom Iupiter had killed with Thunder, because by the Help of his Physick he revived the Dead.Lucian. Dial. mor. Wherefore for this Fact being cast down from Heaven, and deprived of his Divinity, expos'd to the Calamities of the World, and commanded to live in Banishment upon Earth;Pausan. in Eliac. Apollo was compelled by Want to look after Admetu [...]'s Cattel: where tired with Leisure, to pass away his time, it is said that he first invented and formed a Harp. After this, Mercury got an opportunity to drive away a few of the Cattel of his Herd by stealth; for which whilst Apollo complained and threatned him, unless he brought the same Cattel back again, his Harp was also stoln from him by Mercury: Horat. 1. Carm. so that he could not forbear turning his Anger into Laughter.

2. He raised the Walls of the City of Troy by the Musick of his Harp alone, if we may believe the Poet; Ovid. Epist. Parid.

[Page]Ilion aspicies, firmataque turribus altis

Moenia Apollineae structa canore lyrae.

Troy you shall see, and divine Walls admire,

Built to the Consort of Apollo's Lyre.

Some say, that there was a Stone,Pausan. in Attic. upon which Apollo only laid down his Harp, the Stone by the Touch of it alone became so melodious, that whenever it was struck with another Stone, it sounded like a Harp.

3. By Misfortune he kild Hyacinthus, a pretty and an ingenious Boy that he loved. For whilst Hyacinthus and he did play together at Quoits, Zephyrus being inraged because Apollo was better beloved by Hyacinthus than himself; and having an opportunity of Revenge, he puffed the Quoit that Apollo cast, against Hyacinthus's Head, by which blow he fell down dead; whereupon Apollo caused the Blood of the Youth that was spilt upon the Earth, to produce the Flowers of Violets. Ovid. Metam. lib. 10.

Ecce, cruor qui fusus humi signaverat herbas,

Desinit esse cruor, Tyrioque nitentior ostro,

Flos or itur, formam (que) capit, quam Lilia; si non

Purpureus color his, argenteus esset in illis.

Behold the Blood which late the Grass had dy'd,

Was now no Blood, from whence a Flow'r full-blown,

Far brighter than the Tyrian Scarlet shone,

Which seem'd the same, or did resemble right

A Lily, changing but the Red to White.

Sands

He was besides a great Lover of Cyparissus, another very pretty Boy; who, when he had unfortunately kild a fine Deer which he exceedingly [Page] loved, and had brought up from its birth, was so melancholy for the Loss thereof, that he constantly bewailed the Loss of this Deer, and refused all comfort. Apollo, in pity chang'd him into a Cypress-Tree; as before his death he had begg'd of the Gods. Ovid. Metam. lib. 10.

—Ut tempore lugeat omni

Ingemuit, tristisque Deus, lugebere nobis

Lugebisque alios, aderisque lugentibus, inquit.

Implores, that he might never cease to mourn.

When Phoebus sighing, I for thee will mourn,

Mourn thou for others, Herses still adorn.

Sands.

For they used Cypress in Funerals.

4. He most ardently loved the Virgin Daphne, Ovid. 10. Metam. so famous for her Modesty. When he pursued her, that she might secure her Chastity from the violence of his Passion, she was changed into a Laurel, the most chast of Trees; which is never corrupted with the violence of heat or cold, but remains always flourishing, always pure. There is a Story about this Virgin Tree,Liban. in progym. which better deserves our Admiration than our Belief. A certain Painter was about to draw the Picture of Apollo upon a Table made of Laurel Wood: and it is said, that the Laurel would not suffer the Colours to stick to it: as though the dead Wood was sensible, and did abhor the Picture of the impure Deity, no less than if Daphne her self was alive within it.

5. He courted also a long time the Nymph Bolina; Pau [...]. l. 7. but never could gain her: for she chose rather to throw her self into a River [Page] and be drowned, than yield to his lascivious Flames. Nor did her unconquerable Modesty lose its reward. She gained to her self an Immortality by dying so, and sacrificing her Life in the Defense of her Virginity, not only overcame Apollo, but the very Powers of Death. She became immortal.

6. Leucothoe, the Daughter of Orchamus, King of Babylon, was not so tenacious of her Chastity: for she yielded at last to Apollo's Amour. Her Father could not bear such a Disgrace branded on his Family, and therefore buried her alive. Ovid. Met. lib. 4.

—defodit alta

Crudus humo, tumulum (que) super gravis addit arenae.

Interr'd her living Body in the Earth,

And on it rais'd a Tomb of heavy Sand,

Whose pondrous weight her rising might withstand.

Apollo was indeed much troubled at this; but since he could do nothing else for her,

Nectare odorato sparsit corpusque locumque,

Multa (que) conquestus, Tanges tamen aethera, dixit.

Protinus imbutum caelesti nectare corpus

Delituit, terramque suo madefecit odore

Virgaque per glebas, sensim radicibus actis,

Thurea surrexit, tumulumque cacumine rupit.

He mourn'd her loss, and sprinkled all her Herse

With balmy Nectar and more precious tears.

Then said, since Fate does here our joys defer,

Thou shalt ascend to Heav'n and bless me there:

Her Body straight, embalm'd with heav'nly art,

Did a sweet Odour to the ground impart.

And from the Grave a second Tree arise,

That cheers the God with pleasing Sacrifice.

[Page]These Amours of Leucothoe and Apollo had been discovered to her Father by her Sister Clytie; Ovid. Metam. 4. whom Apollo also loved, but now he deserted; which she seeing pin'd away, with her Eyes continually looking up to the Sun, and at last was changed into a Heliotrope, or the Flower that is thence called the Turn-Sole.

7. Apollo was challenged in Musick by Marsyas a proud Musician,Ovid. Fast. 6. and when he had overcome him, Apollo flay'd him, because he had dared to contend with him, and afterwards converted him into the River of Phrygia, of the same Name: Ovid. Fast. lib. 6.

8. But when Midas King of Phrygia, foolishly gave the Victory to the God Pan, when Apollo and he sang together: Apollo stretched his Ears to the length and shape of those of an Ass. Met. lib. 11.

—partem damnatur in unam,

Induturque aures, lente gradientis aselli.

Punisht in that offending part; who bears

Upon his Skull a slow-pac'd Asses Ears.

Midas endeavoured to hide this Disgrace as well as he could by his hair: but however since it was impossible to conceal it from his Barber, he earnestly begg'd the Man, and prevailed with him by great Promises, not to divulge what he saw to any Person. But the Barber was not able to contain so wonderful a Secret longer, but went and digged a Hole, Met. lib. [...] 1.

—Secedit, humumque

Effodit; & domini quales conspexerit aures

Voce refert parva—

[Page]—The Man withdraws and digs a pit,

And whispers with a low voice into it,

How long his Masters Ears.

and whisper'd into the Ditch these words, Aures asininas habet rex Midas; King Midas hath the Ears of an Ass; then filling up the Ditch with the Earth again, he went away. But O wonderful and strange! The Reeds that grew out of that Ditch, if they were moved by the least blast of wind, did utter the very same Words which the Barber had buried in it; Aures asininas habet rex Midas: King Midas hath the Ears of an Ass.

SECT. III.
Names of Apollo.

SOme derive the Name of Apollo from a & [...],Chrysip. ap. Gyr. Varr. de ling. lat. Plut. ap. Phurnut. as they derive Sol in Latin from Solus, because there is no more than one. It is derived by some also, [...], from Driving away Diseases; or [...], from Darting Rays. Varro. Plutarc.

He is called Cynthius, Festus. from the Mountain Cynthus in the Island of Delos; from whence Diana also is called Cynthia too.

And Delius from the same Island: because he was born there.Macrob & Phurn. Or from [...], because Apollo (who is Sol, the Sun) by his Light makes all things manifest, [...], as he is also called Phanaeus, from [...], to appear.

He is named Delphinius [...] Pausan. in Attic. because he kild the Serpent Python, called Delphis. Or else because [Page] when Castalius a Cretan, Pausan. carried Men to the Plantations, Apollo guided him in the shape of a Dolphin.

His Title Delphicus, Phurnut. Lactant. comes from the City Delphi in Boeotia A City said to be [...], the navel of the Earth: because when Iupiter had sent forth two Eagles together, the one from the East and the other f [...]om the West,Aescul. in sacerd. they met by equal flights exactly at this place. Here, Apollo had the famousest Temple in the World; in which he uttered Oracles to those who consulted him: but he received them first from Iupiter. And they say that this famous Oracle became dumb at the birth of our Saviour; Niceph. hist. l. 1. and, when Augustus, who was a great Votary of Apollo, desired to know the reason of its Silence, the Oracle answered him in these Words;

Me puer Hebraeus, divos Deus ipse gubernans,

Cedere sede jubet, tristemque redire sub orcum,

Aris ergo dehinc nostris abscedito Caesar.

An Hebrew Child, whom the blest Gods adore

Has bid me leave these Shrines and pack to Hell,

So that of Oracles I've now no more;

Away then from our Altar and farewel.

He was called Didymaeus, Macrob. ap. Gyr. from the Greek, [...], twins; as the Sun and Moon are supposed; who enlighten the World betwixt them by day and night.

And Nomius, Macrob. Phurnut. not only from [...], a Shepherd, because he fed the Cattel of Admetus; but because the Sun, quasi pascat omnia, as it were feeds all things that the Earth generates, by his heat and influence. Or perhaps, from [Page] [...],Cic. 3. de nat. Deor. Lex, because he made very severe Laws, when he was King of Arcadia. Macrobius. Cicero de Nat. Deor. lib. [...]

He is called Paean, Fest. either, [...]. from allaying Sorrows; or from [...], ferire; wherefore he is armed with Arrows. And we know that the Sun strikes us and oftentimes hurts us with its Rays, as with so many darts. Hence those Phrases [...], heal us Paean; and [...], jace & immitte Paean, sc. tela in feram, discharge thy Arrows, Paean, against the Beast. For so his Mother and the Spectators cried aloud, whilst Apollo did fight with the Serpent Python. And hence the custom came that not only all Hymns in the praise of Apollo were called Paeanes, but also in all Songs of Triumph, and in the Celebration of all Victories, Men cried out Io Paean. After this manner the airy and wanton Lover in Ovid acteth his Triumph too: de arte amandi lib. 2.Ovid. 2 de arte aman.

Dicite, Io Paean, & Io, bis dicite, Paean;

Decidit in casses praeda petita meos.

Sing Io Paean twice, twice Io say;

My toils are pitcht and I have caught my prey.

From the same Exclamation of Io Paean, Apollo receiveth that Epithet of [...].

Phoebus may be derived [...] quod vi feratur, L. Gyr. because the Sun moves with a great force; or from [...], purgo, since by the help of Physick, which was Apollo's invention, the Bodies of Mankind are purged and cured.

He was named Pythius, Hygin. in fab. c. 50. not only from the Serpent Python which he killed, but likewise [...], from asking and consulting. [Page] For none amongst the Gods was more consulted, or delivered more Responses and spake Oracles than he; especially in the Temple which he had at Delphos; to which all sorts of Nations resorted,Cic. pro Font. Diodor. 1. Stat. Theb. Diod. ib. V. Orig. 7. adv. so that it was called, Orbis terrae Oraculum, the Oracle of all the Earth. The Oracles were given out by a young Virgin, 'till one was debauched; whereupon a Law was made, that a very antient Woman should give the Answers, in the dress of a young Maid: who was therefore called, ab Apolline Pythio,Cels. Epit. 1. De Divin. 114. Ap. Lil. Gyr.Pythia; and from Phoebus, Phoebas. But as to the manner that the Woman understood the God's mind, Mens Opinions differ. Tully supposes that some Vapors exhaled out of the Earth and affected the Brain much, and raised in it a power of Divination. De Divin.

P.

What was the Tripus in which the Pythian Lady sat?

M.

Some say that it was a Table with three feet, on which she rested her self when she design'd to give forth Oracles: and because it was covered with the Skin of the Serpent Python, they call it also by the Name of Cortina. Plutarch. in Solon. But others say that it was a Vessel, in which she was plunged before she prophesied; or rather, that it was a golden Vessel, furnished with Ears, and supported by three Feet, whence it was called Tripus; and on this the Lady sat down. It happened that this Tripus was lost in the Sea, and afterwards taken up in the Nets of Fishermen, who mightily contended amongst themselves, which should have it; the Pythian Priestess being asked, gave [Page] Answer, that it ought to be sent to the wisest Man in all Greece. Whereupon it was carried to Thales of Miletus: who sent it to Bias, as to a wiser Person, Bias referred it to another, and that other referred it to a Fourth; till after it had been sent backwards and forwards to all the wise Men, it return'd again to Thales, who dedicated it to Apollo at Delphos.

P.

Who were those Wise Men of Greece?

M.

These Seven, to whose Names I adjoin the Places of their Nativity. Thales of Miletus, Solon of Athens, Chilo of Lacedaemon, Pittacus of Mitylene, Bias of Priene, Cleobulus of Lindi, and Periander of Corinth. I will add some remarkable things concerning them.

Thales was reckoned among the Wise Men, because he was believed to be the first that brought Geometry into Greece. He first observed the Courses of the Times, the Motion of the Winds, the Nature of Thunder, and the Motions of the Sun and the Stars. Being asked what he thought the difficultest thing in the World, he answered, to know ones self. Which perhaps was the Occasion of the advice written on the Front of Apollo's Temple, to those who were about to enter, [...]. Know thy self. For there are very few that know themselves. Laert.

When Solon visited Croesus, the King of Lydia, the King shew'd his vast Treasures to him; and asked him whether he knew a Man happier than he? Yes, says Solon, I know Tellus, a very poor, but a very virtuous Man at Athens, who lives in a little Tenement that he [Page]hath there; and he is more happy than your Majesty: For neither can those things make us happy, which are subject to the changes of the times, nor is any one to be thought truly happy, till he hath died. It is said, when King Croesus was afterwards taken Prisoner by Cyrus, and laid upon the Pile to be burnt, he remembred this Saying of Solon, and often repeated his Name; so that Cyrus ask'd why he cry'd out Solon, and who the God was whose Assistance he begg'd Croesus said, I now find by Experience that which heretofore he said to me to be true; and so he told Cyrus the Story: who hearing it, was so touch'd with the Sense of the Vicissitude of Human Affairs, that he preserved Croesus from the Fire, and ever after had him in great Honour. Plutarch. Herodotus.

Chilo had this Saying continually in his Mouth, Nequid nimium cupias, desire nothing too much. Yet when his Son had got the Victory at the Olympick Games, the good Man died with Joy; and all Greece honoured his Funeral. Plin. l. 7. c. 32.

Bias, a Man famous for Learning no less than Nobility; preserved his Citizens a long time. And when at last, says Tully, his Country Priene was taken, and the rest of the Inhabitants in their Escape carried away with them as much of their Goods as they could; one advised him to do the same,Val [...]r. 7. c. 2. but he made Answer, Ego verò facio, nam omnia mea mecum porto. It is what I do already, for all the things that are mine I carry about me. He often said, that Friends should remember, it a amare oportere, ut aliquando [Page]essent osuri, To love one another so, as persons who may sometime come to hate one another. Laert. Tull Paradox. De Amicit.

Of the rest nothing extraordinary is reported.

SECT. III.
The Significatiin of the Fable. Apollo, the Sun.

Every body agrees that Apollo signifies the Sun; Cic. 3. de nat. which is the most comfortable Creature in the World, and the most necessary to the Conservation of all others. And those Herbs which are most expos'd to its Heat, are found to have the greater Power. He darts his Rays upon the Earth like so many Arrows; and dispels the Darkness, by which the Truth of Things is concealed, with his Glorious Light. His Motion in the midst of the Planets is harmonious, and the Seven Planets about him may resemble the Seven strings of a Harp to complete the Consort. Thus the Four Properties that are attributed to Apollo, of Healing, Discovering of Secrets, Darting and Musick, agree in some measure to this Noble Star.

And from the things Sacrificed to Apollo, Theocrit. in Herc. it appears that he was the Sun. As first Olives, which Fruit loves the Sun, and cannot be nourished in places distant from it. 2. The Laurel, Ac [...]ius. a Tree of a hot nature, always flourishing, never old, and conducing not a little towards Divination: because Laurel leaves put under the Pillow produce true Dreams; and [Page] therefore the Poets are crown'd with Laurel. 3. Amongst Animals, Cygni non sine causa Apollini dicati sunt, quòd ab eo divinationem habere videantur; quia praevidentes quid in morte bonisit, cum cantu & voluptate moriuntur; says Tully, the Swans are, not without reason, consecrated to Apollo: because from him they are endued with a Faculty of Divination; when foreseeing the Happiness in Death, they sing dying and pleased. Tuscul. 1. 4. Griffons also and Crows were sacred to him for the same reason. And the Hawk, which has Eyes as fierce as the Sun: the Cock, which foretels his Rising; and the Grashopper, a singing Creature. It was a Custom with the Athenians to fasten golden Grashoppers to their Hair, in honour of Apollo. Thucyd. Schol. Aristoph.

And especially if we derive the Name of Latona, the Mother of Apollo and Diana, from the Greek [...],Vid. 1. Gyrald. in Apol. it will signifie, that before the Birth of Apollo and Diana, that is, before the Production of the Sun and the Moon, all things lay involved in darkness: from whence those Two glorious Luminaries afterwards proceeded, as out of the Womb of a Mother.

But notwithstanding all this, several Inventions of the Poets agree with the Sun, but not with Apollo. And of those therefore it is necessary to treat apart.

CHAP. VI.
The SUN. His Genealogy and Names.

[Page]

THis Glorious Sun, which illustrates all things with his Light, is called Sol, says Tully, de Nat. Deor. Vel quia Solus ex omnibus syderibus est tantus, vel quia cum exortus est obscuratis omnibus solus appareat. Either because he is the only Star that is of that Magnitude; or because when he rises, he puts out all the other Stars, and only appears himself. Yet the Poets have said, that there were Five Sols; and Tully reckons them up. But whatever they delivered concerning each of them singly, they commonly applied to one, who was the Son of Hyperion, and Nephew to Aether, begotten of an unknown Mother.

The Persians call the Sun Mithra, Hesych. & Lact. Gramm. ap. Lil. Gyr. and account him the greatest of their Gods, and they worship him in a Cave. His Statue bears the Head of a Lion, drest with a Tiara, dressed with Persian Attire, and holding with both hands a mad Bull by the Horns. Those that desired to become his Priests,Doris. 7. ap. Athen. and understand his Mysteries, did first undergo a great many Hardships, Disgraces, Stripes, Colds, Heats, and other Torments, before they could attain to the Honour of that Employment. And see the Sanctimoniousness of their Religion. It was not lawful for the Kings of Persia to [Page] drink excessively; but upon that Day, in which the Sacrifices were offered to Mithra, Greg. Naz, Orat. 1. in Iul.

The Egyptians called the Sun Horus: whence the parts,Plut. In Is. & Osir. into which the Sun divides the Day, are called Horae Hours. They represented his Power by a Scepter, on the top of which an Eye was placed, by which they signified, that the Sun sees, and that all things are seen by his means.

These Horae were thought to be the Daughters of Sol and Chronis; Homer. Iliad. & Odyss. 4. V. Boccat. l. 4. c. 4. who early in the Morning prepare the Chariot and the Horses for their Father, and open the Gates of the Day. Plutarch. Homer.

SECT. I.
Actions of Sol.

THE Actions of Sol were only Debaucheries, and Intrigues of Love with Mistresses; with which he obscured the Honour of his Name. I will set down the most remarkable of them.

1. He lay with Venus in the Island of Rhodes, Pindar. in Olymp. at which time they said it rained Gold, and the Earth cloathed it self with Roses and Lilies: from whence the Island was called [...], rosa. 2. He begat of Clymene, Phaeton, and Phaeton's Sisters. 3. Of Neaera he begat Pasiphae; and of Perseis, Circe (to omit the rest of his Brood of more obscure Note.) Of each of which according to my Method I shall say something, since I have mentioned Rhodes, I have spoke a little concerning the Colossus [Page] that was there, which was one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

SECT. II.
The Seven Wonders of the World.

P.

WHat were those Seven Wonders of the World?Plin. 34. c. 17.

M.

They were these that follow.

1. The Colossus at Rhodes; a Statue of the Sun, Seventy Cubits high, placed at the Mouth of the Harbour; one Man could not grasp its Thumb with both his Arms. Its Thighs were stretched out to such a Distance, that a large Ship sailing might easily pass into the Port betwixt them. It was Twelve Years a making, and cost Three hundred Talents (a Talent is worth Six thousand Aurei;) stood Fifty Years, and at last was thrown down in an Earthquake. And from this Coloss the People of Rhodes were called Colossenses, and every Statue since of an unusual Magnitude, is called Colossus.

2. The Temple of Diana at Ephesus; Plin. l. 7. c. 38. & l. 16. 40. which was a Work of the greatest Magnificence, and infinitely admired among the Antients. Two hundred and twenty Years were spent in perfecting it tho' all Asia was employed. It was supported by One hundred and twenty seven Pillars, Sixty Foot high, each of them raised by as many Kings. Of these Thirty seven were engraven. The Image of the Goddess was made of Ebony, as they tell us in History.

[Page]3. The Mausoleum, or Sepulchre of Mausolus, King of Caria, Plin. l. 36. c. 5. built by his Queen Artemisia of the purest Marble; and yet the Work of it was much more valuable than the Marble. It lay from North to South Sixty three Feet long, almost Four hundred and eleven Feet in compass, and Twenty five Cubits high, surrounded with Thirty six Columns, that were to Admiration. And from this Mausoleum, all other sumptuous Sepulchres are also called by the same Name.

4. A Statue of Iupiter, Plin. l. 36. c. 5. in the Temple of the City Olympia; made with the greatest Art by Phidias, of Ivory; and of a vast proportion.

5. The Walls of the City Babylon, Idem l. 6. c. 26. (which was the Metropolis of Chaldea) built by the Queen Semiramis: Sixty thousand Paces in circumference, Two hundred Foot high, and Fifty broad: so that Six Chariots might conveniently pass upon them in a row.

6. The Pyramids of Egypt: Plin. l. 36. c. 12. Three of which, remarkable for their height, do still remain. The first has a square Basis,Belo. l. 2. c. 32. sing. observat. the Front consists of an hundred and two Feet. It is One hundred and forty three long, and a Thousand high. Made of so great Stones, that the least of them is Thirty Foot thick. Three hundred and sixty thousand Men were employed in building it, for the space of Twenty Years. The two others which are somewhat smaller, attract the Admiration of all Spectators. And in these Pyramids, it is reported, the Bodies of the Kings of Egypt lie interred.

[Page]7. The Royal Palace of Cyrus, Calepin. V. miraculum. King of the Medes; made by Menon, with no less Prodigality than Art, for he cemented the Stones with Gold. Plin.

SECT. III.
The Children of the Sun.

NOW let us change our Discourse again to Sol's Children. The famousest of which was Phaeton, who gave the Poets an excellent opportunity of exercising their Fancy by the following Action. Epaphus, one of the Sons of Iupiter, fell out with Phaeton, and said that he falsly pretended to be the Sun of Sol, since that was only a device of his adulterous Mother. He was so provoked at the Slander, that with the advice of Clymene he went to the Royal Palace of the Sun, that he might bring from thence some indubitable marks of his Nativity. The Sun received him, when he came, kindly; and owned his Son: and to take away all occasion of doubting hereafter, he gave him liberty to ask any thing, swearing by the Stygian Lake, (which sort of Oath none of the Gods dare violate) that he would not deny him. Hereupon Phaeton desired leave to govern his Fathers Chariot for one day: which was the occasion of great grief to his Father;Ovid. 2. Metam. who foreseeing his Son's ruin thereby.

Temerariae, dixit,

Vox mea facta tua est. Utinam promissa liceret

[Page]Non dare. Confiteor, solum hoc tibi nate negarem.

Dissuadere licet. Non est tua tuta voluntas.

Magna petis, Phaeton, & quae non viribus istis.

Munera conveniunt, nec tam puerilibus annis.

Sors tua mortalis: non est mortale, quod optas.

—dictis tamen ille repugnat,

Propositumque premit, flagratque cupidine currus.

Thou to thy ruin my rash vow dost wrest.

O, would I could break promise! this request

I must confess I only would deny;

And yet dissuade I may. Thy death does lie

Within thy wish. What's so desir'd by thee

Can neither with thy strength nor youth agree,

Thou mortal dost no mortal thing desire.

—In vain dissuaded, he his promise claim'd,

With glory of so great a charge inflam'd. Sandys.

In short the Father was obliged to yield to the rashness of the Son; and instructing him to observe the middle path, he unwillingly granted what he could not deny.

Occupat ille levem juvenili corpore, currum,

Statque super, manibus (que) datas contingere habenas

Gaudet, & invito grates agit inde parenti.

Interea volucres Pyroeis & Eous & Aethon

Solis equi, quartusque Phlegon, hinnitibus auras

Flammiferis implent, pedibusque repagula pulsant.

He youthful vaults into the blazing seat,

Glad of the reins nor doubtful of his skill,

And gives his Father thanks against his will.

Mean while the Suns swift Horses, hot Pyrous,

Light Aethon, fiery Phlegon, bright Eous,

Neighing aloud inflame the Air with heat,

And with their thundring hoofs the barriers beat. S.

[Page] Immediately Phaeton unable to govern the Horses, fired Heaven and Earth; so that Iupiter struck him out of the Chariot with Thunder and cast him headlong into the River Po. His Sisters Phaethusa, Lampetia, and Phoebe, lamenting his death incessantly upon the banks of that River, were turned by the pity of the Gods into Poplar Trees, henceforth weeping Amber instead of Tears. A great Fire that hapned in Italy near the Po, in the time of King Phaeton, was the occasion of this Fable: The Ambitious are taught hereby, what event they ought to expect, when they soar higher than they ought.

Circe, the most skilful of all Sorceresses,Ovid. 14. Metam. poisoned her Husband, a King of the Sarmatae, for which she was banished by her Subjects, and flying into Italy, fixed her Seat upon the Promon [...]ory Circaeum, where she mightily loved Glaucus a Sea God, who at the same time loved Sylla. Circe turned her into a Sea-Monster, by poisoning the water in which she used to wash. She entertained Ulysses, who was driven thither by the violence of storms, with great Civility; and restored his Companions, whom according to her usual Custom she had changed into Hogs, Bears, Wolves and the like Beasts, unto their former shapes again. Ulysses was armed against her Assaults, so that she set upon him in vain. It is said, she drew down the very Stars from Heaven: whence we are plainly informed, that Voluptuousness (whereof Circe is the Emblem) alters Men into ravenous and filthy Beasts; that even [Page] those, who with the lustre of their Wit and Vertue shine in the World as Stars in the Firmament, when once they addict themselves to obscene Pleasures, become obscure and inconsiderable, falling as it were headlong from the glory of Heaven.

Pasiphae was the Wife of Minos King of Crete: Ovid. 1. Metam. she fell in love with a Bull, and obtained her desire by the Assistance of Daedalus, who for that purpose enclos'd her in a wooden Cow: she brought forth a Minotaur, a Monster one part of which was like a Man, the other like a Bull. Now the occasion, they say,Serv. ap. Boccat. l. 4 of the Fable was this. Pasiphae loved a Man whose Name was Taurus, and had two Twins by him in Daedalus's House; one of which was very like her Husband Minos, and the other like the Father. But however that is, the Minotaur was shut up in the Labyrinth, that Daedalus made by the order of King Minos This Labyrinth was a place diversified with abundance of windings and turnings and cross paths running into one another. How this Minotaur was kild, and by whom, I shall shew particularly in its place in the account of Theseus. Daedalus was an excellent Artificer of Athens; Ovid. Metam. & Pausan. in Attic. who first, as it is said, invented the Axe, the Saw, the Plumline, the Auger, and Glue; also he first contrived Masts and Yards for Ships: besides he carved Statues so admirably, that they not only seemed alive, but would never stand still in one place; and would fly away unless they were chained. This Daedalus, together with [Page] Icarus his Son, was by Minos shut up in the Labyrinth which he had made, because he had assisted the Amours of Pasiphae: whereupon he made Wings for himself and his Son, with Wax and the Feathers of Birds; fastening these Wings to his shoulders, he flew out of Crete into Sicily; but Icarus in his flight neglected his Fathers advice, and observed not his due course, but out of a juvenile wantonness flew higher than he ought, whereupon the Wax being melted by the heat of the Sun, and the Wings falling in pieces, he fell into the Sea, which is since, according to Ovid, from him named the Icarian Sea.Ovid. 9. Metam.

Icarus Icariis nomine fecit aquis,

Icarian Seas from Icarus were call'd.

To these Children of the Sun, we must adjoin his Niece and his Nephew Biblis and Caunus. Biblis so far loved Caunus, tho he was her Brother, that she employed all her Charms to entice him to commit Incest; and when nothing would overcome his modesty, she followed him so long, that at last being quite oppressed with sorrow and labour, she sat down under a Tree, and shed such a quantity of Tears, that she was converted into a Fountain.

Sic lachrymis consumpta suis Phoebeia Biblis

Vertitur in fontem, qui nunc quoque vallibus imis

Nomen habet dominae, nigraque sub ilice manat.

Thus the Phoebeian Biblis spent in tears,

Becomes a living Fountain, which yet bears

Her name, and under a black Holm that grows

In those rank Vallies plentifully flows.

Sandys

CHAP. VII.
MERCURY. His Image and Birth.

[Page]

P.

WHO is that young Man,Galen. ap. Nat. Com. l. 5. with a cheerful Countenance, an honest Look, and lively Eyes; who is so fair with-out Paint? having Wings fixed to his Hat and his Shooes, and a Rod in his hand, which is winged and bound about by a couple of Serpents?

M.

It is the Image of Mercury, as the Egyptians paint him; whose Face is partly black and dark, and partly clear and bright; because sometimes he converses with the Celestial, and sometimes with the Infernal Gods. He wears winged Shooes (which are properly called Talaria) Wings also are fastned to his Hat (which is called Petasus) because since he is the Messenger of the Gods, he ought not only to run, but flie.

P.

Of what Parents was he born?

M.

His Parents were Iupiter and Maia the Daughter of Atlas: Hesiod. in Theogon. Horat. 1. Carm. Macrob. & Suidas. and for that reason perhaps they used to offer Sacrifices to him in the Month of May. They say that Iuno suckled awhile in his Infancy; and once while he sucked the Milk very greedily, it ran out of [Page]

[Page]

[Page] his Mouth, being full, upon the Heavens; which made that white stream, which they call Via lactea, the Milky Way; and in Greek, Galaxia; from [...], Milk.

P.

What were,

SECT. I.
His Offices and Qualities?

M.

HE had many Offices.Lucian. dial. Maiae & Mercur. The first and chiefest of them was to carry the Commands of Iupiter, whence he is commonly called Deorum Nuncius, the Messenger of the Gods. 2. He swept the Room where the Gods supped and made the Beds; and did execute other the like mean Employments; hence he was styledStat. Tullian. 2. de vocab. rerum. Camillus or Casmillus, that is, an inferiour Servant of the Gods. For anciently Serv. in 12. Aen. all Boys and Girls under age were called Camilli and,Pac [...]v. in Medea de Dion. Halic. l. 2. Macrob. sat. 3. Camillae: and the same Name was afterwards given to the young Men and Maids, whoBoch. l. 1. c. 12. suae Geog. attended the Priests at their Sacrifices. Tho the People ofSophoc. in Oedip. Boeotia, instead of Camillus, say Cadmilus; perhaps from the Arabick Word [...] Chadam, to serve; or from the Phoenician Word, Chadmel, Gods Servant, or Minister sacer. 3. HeHomer. Odyss. [...]. attended upon dying Persons to unloose their Souls from the Chains of the Body, and carry them to Hell; he also revived and placed into new bodies those Souls which had completed their full time in the Elysian Fields. All which things Virgil does almost comprise in these Verses, Aeneid. l. 4.

[Page]

Dixerat Ille patris magni parere parabat

Imperio, & primum pedibus talaria nectit

Aurea, quae sublimem alis sive aequora supra

Seu terram rapido pariter cum flamine portant.

Tum virgam capit: hac animas ille evocat Orco,

Pallentes, alias sub tristia Tartara mittit:

Dat somnos adimitque & lumina morte resignat.

About his Father's business Hermès goes,

And first he buckles on his golden shooes:

With which being wing'd o'r sea and land he flies,

A swift wind counterpoising through the Skies:

Then takes his charming Wand, whose power pale Ghosts

Calls up, or drives to miserable coasts;

Gives or breaks sleep and seals up dying eyes.

Og,

His remarkable Qualities were likewise many.Tertull. l. decoronis. 1. They say that he was the Inventor of Letters: this is certain, he excelled in Eloquence and the Art of Speaking well; insomuch that the Greeks called him Hermes, [...], from interpreting or explaining: and therefore he is accounted the God of the Rhetoricians and Orators. 2. He is reported to have been the Inventor of Contracts, Weights and Measures; and to have taught the Art of Buying, Selling and Trafficking first;Festus. Fulgen. and to have received the Name of Mercury from Merces, or Mercium cura, his understanding of Merchandize. Hence he is accounted the God of the Merchants, and the God of Gain; Philostr. in soph. 3. Lucian. Dial. Ap. & Vulc. so that all unexpected Gain and Treasure, that comes of a sudden, is from him called [...] or [...]. 3. In the Art of Thieving he certainly excelled all the Sharpers [Page] that ever were or will be; for he is the very Prince and God of Thieves. On that day in which he was born, he stole away some Cattel from King Admetus's Herd, altho Apollo was Keeper of them; who complained much of the Theft, and bent his Bow against him: but in the mean time Mercury stole even his Arrows from him. Whilst he was yet an Infant, and entertain'd by Vulcan, he stole his Tools from him. He took away by stealth Venus's Girdler, whilst she embraced him; and Iupiter's Scepter: he design'd to steal the Thunder too, but he was afraid lest it should burn him. 4. He was mighty skilful in making Peace; and for that reason was sometimes painted with Chains of Gold flowing from his mouth, with which he link'd together the Minds of those that heard him. And he not only pacifi'd Mortal men, but also the immortal Gods of Heaven and Hell: for whenever they quarrell'd amongst themselves, he composed their differences: as Ovid says, lib. 5. Fast.

Pacis & armorum, superis, imisque Deorum

Arbiter, alato qui pede carpit iter.

Thee Wing foot, all the Gods both high and low,

The Arbiter of Peace and War allow.

And Claudian, de raptu Proserp.

Atlantis Tegaee Nepos, commune profundis

Et superis Numen, qui fas per limen utrumque

Solus habes, geminoque facis compendia mundo.

Fair Maias son, whose pow'r alone dos reach (beach

High Heavens bright Towers and Hells dusky

A [...]ommo [...] God to both dost both the Worlds appease.

[Page]And this Pacificatory Faculty of his, is signified by the Rod that he holds in his Hand, which Apollo heretofore gave him; for he had given Apollo an Harp. This Rod had a wonderful faculty of deciding all Controversies.Hom. in. hymn. This Virtue was first discovered by Mercury; who seeing two Serpents fighting as he travelled, he put his Rod between them and reconciled them presently, and they mutually embraced each other, and stuck to the Rod which is called Caduceus; Lexic. lat. hoc v. and from hence all Ambassadors sent to make Peace are called Cadu [...]eatores: for as Wars were denounced by Feciales, so they were ended by Caduceatores.

SECT. II.
Actions of Mercury.

P.

ARE any of his Actions recorded in History?

M.

Yes, several: but such as in my Judgment do not much deserve to be remembred. However the following Account is most remarkable.

He had a Son by his Sister Venus, called Hermaphroditus; i. e. Mercuric-Venus (for [...] signifies Mercury, and [...] Venus) Salmac [...] a Nymph lived in the Woods in which he often hunted: she loved this Youth extravagantly, who was very beautiful, but a great Woman hater. She often tempted the young man, but was as often repulsed; yet she did not despair. She lay in Ambush at a Fountain, [Page] where he usually came to bath, and when he was in the water, she also leapt in to him: but neither so could she overcome his extraordinary Modesty. Whereupon, it is said, she prayed to the Gods above that the Bodies of both might become one, which was granted. Hermaphroditus was amazed when he saw this change of his Body; and desired that, for his comfort, some other Persons might be like him. He obtained his request; for whosoever washed himself in that Fountain (called Salmacis, in the Country Caria) became an Hermaphrodite, and was [...], androgynos, that is, had both Sexes, Ovid. Met. l. 4. I was unwilling to omit the following Story.

A Herdsman whose name was Battus saw Mercury stealing Admetus's Cows from Apollo their Keeper. When Mercury perceived that his Theft was discovered, he went to Battus and desired that he would say nothing, and gave him a delicate Cow. Battus promised; Mercury, that he might try his fidelity, came in another shape to him, and asked him about the Cows; whether he saw them, or knew the place where the Thief carried them. Battus denied it, but the God prest him hard, and promised that he would give him both a Bull and a Cow, if he would discover. With the Promise he was overcome; whereupon Mercury was enraged, and laying aside his Disguise, turn'd him into a Stone, call'd Index; as Ovid relates so prettily in Verse, that I cannot but recite them.

[Page]At Battus, postquam est merces geminata, sub illis [...]

Montibus, inquit, erant: & erant sub montibus illis.

Risit Atlantiades: & me mihi perfide prodis?

Me mihi prodis, ait? perjuraque pectora a vertit

In durum silicem, qui nunc quoque dicitur Index.

Battus, upon the double proffer, tells him, there,

Beneath those hills, beneath those hills they were.

Then Hermes laughing loud; what knave I say,

Me to my self, to my self me betray?

Then to a Touchstone turn'd his perjur'd breast,

Whose Nature now is in that Name exprest.

The Antients used to set up Statues called Indices, where the Roads crossed each other; because with an Arm and a Finger held out, they indicated the way to this or that place [...] The Romans placed Statues in all Publick places and Highways: the Athenians placed them at their Doors for their security, to drive away Thieves; and they called these Statue [...] Hermae, from Mercury, whose Greek Name [...] Hermes. Concerning which Hermae, it is to be observed.

1. These Images had neither Hands no [...] Feet, [...], Herod. l. 1. and from hence Mercury was called Cyllenius, and, b [...] Syncope, Cyllius; for [...] in Greek, signifies a Man without hands or feet: and not from Cyllene, a Mountain in Arcadia, in which h [...] was educated. Vid. Lil. Gyr.

2. A Purse was usually hung to the Statue of Mercury, Macrob. & Suid. ap. Lil. to signifie, that he was the Go [...] of Gain and Profit, and presided over Me [...] chandising; in which because many time [...] things are done by Fraud and Treachery, the [...] gave him the Name of Dolius. [Page]

[Page]

[Page]3. The Romans used to join the Statues of Mercury and Minerva together,Cic. and these Images they called Hermathenae: and sacrificed to both Deities upon one and the same Altar. Those who had escaped any great danger always offered Sacrifices to Mercury; Pausan. in Attio. 4 Metam. Callistrat. Homer. they offered up a Calf, and Milk and Hony, and especially the Tongues of the Sacrifices, which with a great deal of Ceremony they cast into the Fire, and then the Sacrifice was finished; it is said that the Megarenses first used this Ceremony.

CHAP. VIII.
BACCHUS. His Image.

M.

WHY do you laugh, Palaeophilus?

P.

Who can forbear, when he sees that filthy, shameless and immodest God placed next to Mercury; Euripid. in Bacch [...] with a Body naked, red Face, lascivious Looks, in an effeminate Posture, dispirited with Luxury and overcome with Wine. His swoln Cheeks resemble Bottles; his great Belly and fat Breasts, his distended swelling Paunch, make me think that a Hogshead rather than a God is carried in that Chariot.

M.

That is no wonder, for it is Bacchus himself, the God of Wine, and the Captain and Emperour of Drunkards. He is crowned with [Page] Ivy and Vine Leaves.Ovid. l. de arte. He has a Thyrsus instead of a Scepter; that is,Aristoph. Scholiast. in Plurum. Strab. l. 20. a Javelin with an Iron Head, incircled by Ivy or Vine-Leaves in his hand. He is carried in a Chariot, sometimes drawn by Tygers and Lions, and sometimes by Lynxes and Panthers. And like a King he is surrounded with a drunken Band of Satyrs, of Cobali, Ovid. 4. Metam. & 3. or Demons, of Lenae, Nymphs that preside over the Wine-Presses, and of Naiades and Bacchae; And Silenus comes last sitting upon a crooked Ass.

P.

But what's here? This Bacchus has got Horns, and is a young man without a Beard: I have heard, the Elienses paint him like an old man with a Beard.

M.

It is true. He is sometimes painted an old Man, and sometimes a smooth an beardless Boy. For thus Ovid speaks of him. Met.

—Tibi inconsumpta juventa?

Tu puer aeternus, tu formosissimus, alto

Conspiceris coelo; Tibi, cum sine cornibus adstas,

Virgineum caput est.

Still dost thou enjoy

Unwasted Youth; eternally a Boy

Thou'rt seen in Heaven, whom all perfections grace;

And when unhorn'd thou hast a Virgins Face.

And likewise Tibullus,

Solis aeterna est Phaebo Bacchoque juventa.

Phoebus and Bacchus only have eternal Youth. Ovid speaks of his Horns,

Accedant capiti cornua, Bacchus eris.

Clap to thy Head a pair of Horns and Bacchus thou shalt be.

[Page]I will give you the reason of the Horns, and of all the other things about the end of the Fable.

SECT. I.
The Birth of Bacchus.

BAcchus's Birth was both wonderful and ridiculous, if the Poets may be heard; as they must when we treat of Fables.

They tell us that when Iupiter was in love with Semele, it raised Iuno's jealousie higher than ever before. Iuno therefore endeavoured to destroy her; and in the shape of an old Woman, visited Semele, wished her much joy from her acquaintance with Iupiter, and advised her to oblige him, when he came, by an inviolable Oath, to grant her a request; and then, says she to Semele, ask him to come to you as he is wont to come to Juno. And he will come cloathed in all his Glory, and Majesty, and Honour. Semele was enflamed hereby, and when Iupiter came next, she desired,

—sine nomine munus.

Cui Deus,

Ovid. Met. 3.

elige, ait: nullam patiere repulsam.

Quoque magis credas, Stygii quoque conscia sunto

Numina torrentis: Timor, & Deus ille Deorumest.

Laeta malo, nimium (que) petens, peritura (que) amantis

Obsequio, Semele: Qualem Saturnia, dixit,

Te solet amplecti, Veneris cum foedus initis,

Da mihi te talem.

—A Gift unnam'd:

When thus the kind consenting God reply'd,

Speak but thy choice it shall not be deny'd;

And to confirm thy Faith, let Stygian Gods,

[Page]And all the Tenants of Hells dark abodes,

Witness my Promise; these are Oaths that bind,

And Gods that keep even Jove himself confin'd.

Transported with the sad Decree, she feels

Ev'n mighty Satisfaction in her Ills;

And just about to perish by the Grant

And kind compliance of her fond Gallant,

Says, Take Joves Vigor as you use Joves Name;

The same the strength and sinewy force the same,

As when you mount the great Saturnias Bed,

And lock'd in her embrace diffusive Glories shed.

Iupiter was very sorry, for he could not recal his Words nor annul his Vows. So he cloaths himself with the Terrors of his Majesty, and enters into the House of Semele. But

—Corpus mortale, tumultus

Non tulit aethereos, donisque jugalibus arsit.

Nor could her mortal body bear the sight

Of glaring beams and strong Celestial light;

But scorch'd all o'er, with Joves embrace expir'd,

And mourn'd the Gift so eagerly desir'd.

She was struck down and stupified by the Thunder, and burnt to Ashes by the Lightning. Thus we may see what comes from Rashness and Ambition. But when you hear what became of the Child it will make you laugh.

—Gene [...]ricis ab alvo

Eripitur, patrioque tener (si credere dignum est)

Insuitur femori, maternaque tempora complet.

Th'imperfect Babe that in the Womb doth lie

Was ta'n by Jove, and sew'd into his Thigh,

His Mothers time accomplishing.—

[Page]Thus Bacchus was enclos'd within Iupiter's Thigh, and in fulness of time he was born; and then delivered into the hands of Mercury, Nat. com. l. 4. venat. to be carried into Euboea, to Macris the Daughter of Aristaeus; who immediately anointed his Lips with Hony, and brought him up with great care,Apollon. 4. Argon. in a certain Cave which had two Gates.

SECT. II.
Names of Bacchus.

WE will first speak of his proper Name, and then come to his Titles and Surnames.

Bacchus is derived [...],Eustath. ap. Lil. or [...], ab inaniendo, from revelling. For, for the same reason the wild Women, his Companions, be called Bacchae, Virg. Aen. 4. and sometimes Thyades, [...], furore: and Maenades from [...], insanio, desipio, to be mad or foolish. They were also called Mimallones, from [...], to imitate, because they imitated all Bacchus's Actions.

Biformis, [...], because he was reckoned both a young and an old Man;Diodor. ap. Lil. with a Beard and without a Beard: or because Wine, whereof Bacchus is the Emblem, makes People sometimes chearful and pleasant, sometimes peevish and morose.

He was named Brisaeus, either, (as some think) from the Nymph his Nurse;Cornut. in Pers. Sat. 1. or from the use of Grapes and Hony, which he invented; for Brisa signifies a Bunch of prest [Page] Grapes; or else from the Promontory Brisa, in the Island Lesbos, where he was worshipped.

Bromius, Ovid. 4. Metam. [...], from the cracking of Fire, and noise of Thunder that was heard when his Mother was kild with the Embrace of Iupiter.

Bimater or Bimetor, Idem. ib. because he had two Mothers: the first was Semele, who conceiv'd him in the Womb; and the other the Thigh of Iupiter, into which he was received after he was saved from the Fire.

He is called by divers of the Greeks Bugenes, Clem. in strom. Euseb. l. 2. praep. Evang. Diodor. l. 5. [...], è bove genitus, and from thence Tauriformis or Tauriceps, and he is supposed to have Horns, because he first plough'd with Oxen, or because he was the Son of Iupiter Ammon, who had the Head of a Ram.

Daemon bonus, Idem l. 3. Aristop. in Equit. the good Angel: and in Feasts, after the Tables were removed, the last Glass was drank round to his Honour.

Dithyrambus, [...], à bis in januam ingrediendo: Diog. Orig. Euseb. which signifies either that he was born twice, of Semele and of Iove; or the double Gate, which the Cave had in which he was brought up; or perhaps it means that Drunkards cannot keep Secrets: but whatever is in the Heart comes into the Mouth, and then bursts forth, quasi per geminam portam; as it usually said, that Wine makes [...], i. e. sets both the doors of the mouth open.

Dionysius or Dionysus, Phurnut: in fab. Lu [...]an. Dial. [...], (his Father Iupiter) and Nisa the Nymph, by whom he was nursed as they say: or from the word [Page] [...], pungo; because he prick'd his Father's side with his Horns when he was born: or from [...],Nonn. l. 9. morbus, for Iupiter limped when Bacchus was in his Thigh. Or from an Island among the Cyclades called Dia or Naxos, which was dedicated to him when he married Ariadne. Or lastly from the City of Nisa, in which Bacchus reign'd.

Evobus or Evius. Eurip. in Bacch. For in the War of the Giants, when Iupiter did not see Bacchus, he thought that he was kild,Virg. Aen. 7. and cried out, Eheu, [...], Alas, Son. Or because when he found that Bacchus had overcome the Giant,Cornut. in Pers. by changing himself into a Lion,Acron. in Horat. he cried out again, [...], Euge fili.

Evan, Vir. 6. aen. Ovid. 4. from the Acclamations of the Bacchantes, who were therefore called Evantes

Euchius is derived from [...],Metam. Nat Com. l. 5. largiter fundo, because Bacchus loves Brimmers.

Eleleus and Eleus, Ovid. 4. Metam. from the Acclamation [...] used to encourage the Soldiers to fight, and in the Celebration of Bacchus's Sacrifices,Aeschyl. in Prometh. call'd Orgia: it was used also in the fight itself.

Iacchus, from [...], clamo vociferor. And it is used by Claudian de rapt. Proserp. l. 1. where he says,

—laetusque simul procedit Iacchus,

Crinali florens hedera: quem Parthica Tigris

Velat, & auratos, in nodum colligit ungues.

—The jolly God comes in,

His Hair with Ivy twin'd, his Cloaths a Tygers Skin,

Whose golden Claws are clutcht into a Knot.

[Page] For he did not always go naked. He was sometimes cloathed with the Skin of a Tygre.

Donatus derives his Name Lenaeus from hence,Virg. 2. Georg. quòd leniat mentem vinum. Ovid. 4. Metam. in 2. Georg. But Servius does with reason reject that Etymology; because Lenaeus is a Greek Word, and lenire a Latin one; therefore others derive [...], or [...], the Vat or Press in which Wine is made.

Liber and Liber Pater, Vir. 7. Ecl. from liberando, as in Greek they call him [...],Plutar. in probl. the Deliverer: for he is the Symbol of Liberty, Pausan. in Attic. and is worshipped in all Cities that are free.Ovid. 4. Metam.

Lyaeus and Lysius, Vir. aen. 4. signifie the same with Liber: for Wine frees the Mind from Cares; and those who have drank plentifully, speak whatsoever comes into their minds, as Ovid says,

Cura fugit multo, diluiturque mero.

The plenteous bowl all Cares dispels.

The Sacrifices of Bacchus were celebrated in the night;Phurn. in. Bacch. wherefore he is called Nyctileus, from [...],Ovid. 4. Metam. nocte perficio.

Because he was educated upon the Mountain Nisa, I [...]. ibid. he is called Nysaeus.

He taught a certain King of Athens to dilute his Wine with Water; so that Men, who through much drinking staggered before, by mixing Water with their Wine began to go rectà, streight; and from thence Bacchus was called Rectus, [...].

His Mother Semele and his Nurse were sometimes called Thyo: therefore from thence they called him Thyonaeus. Her. l. 1. Carm.

[Page]Lastly, He was called Triumphus, Varr. de ling. lat. [...], because when in Triumph the Conquerours went into the Capitol, the Soldiers cried out Io Triumphe.

SECT. III.
Actions of Bacchus.

BAcchus invented so many things useful to Mankind,Diod [...] l. 5. hist. & Oros. l. 2. either in finishing Controversies, in building Cities,Horat. 2. Epist. in making Laws and obtaining Victories, that he was declared a God by the joint Suffrages of the whole World. And indeed what could not Bacchus himself do, when his Priestesses, by striking the Earth with their Thyrsus's. drew forth Rivers of Milk and Honey, and Wine, and wrought several such Miracles without the least Labour. And yet they received their whole Power from Bacchus: Who

1. Invented the use of Wine;Ovid. 3. Fast. and first taught the Art of planting the Trees from whence it is made; as also the Art of making Honey, and tilling the Earth. This he did amongst the People of Egypt; who therefore honoured him as a God,Dion. de situ orb. and called him Osiris. Vid. Nat. Com. Let Bacchus have honour, because he invented the Art of Planting Vines; but let him not refuse to the Ass of Nauplia its Praises, who by gnawing Vines taught the Art of Pruning them.

2. He invented Commerce and Merchandise,Idem. ib. and found out Navigation when he was King of Phoenicia.

[Page]3. Whereas Men wandred about unsettled like Beasts,Ovid. 3. Fast. he reduced them into Society and Union: he taught them to worship the Gods,Eurip l. in Bacch. Dion. ib. and was excellent in Prophesying.

4. He subdued India, and many other Nations; riding on an Elephant: he victoriously subdued all Egypt, Syria, Phrygia, and all the East;Idem eod. lib. de situ orbis. where he erected Pillars, as Hercules did in the West: he first invented Triumphs and Crowns for Kings.

5. Bacchus was desirous to reward Midas, the King of Phrygia (of whose Asses Ears we spake before) because he had done some Service to him; and bid him ask what he would, and Midas desired that whatsoever he touchd might become Gold; Bacchus consented. Ovid. Met. l. 11.

Annuit optatis, nocituraque munera solvit

Liber, & indoluit, quod non meliora petisset.

To him his harmful wish Lyaeus gives,

And at the weakness of's Request he grieves.

Laetus abit, gaudetque malo,

Glad he departs, and joys in's Misery;

So that whatsoever Midas touches becomes Gold; nay when he touched his Meat or Drink, they also became Gold: when therefore he saw that he could not escape Death by hunger or thirst, he then perceived that he had foolishly begg'd a destructive Gift, and repenting his Bargain, he desired Bacchus to take his Gift to himself again. Bacchus consented, and bid him bath in the River Pactolus: Midas obeyed; and from hence the Sand of that River became golden, and the River was called Chrysorrhoas, or Aurifluus.

[Page]6. When he was yet a Child, some Tyrrhenian Mariners found him asleep and carried him into a Ship: wherefore he first stupified them, stopping the Ship in such a manner, that it was unmoveable; afterwards he caused Vines to spring up in the Ship on a sudden, and Ivy twining about the Oars; and when the Seamen were almost dead with the fright he threw them headlong into the Sea and chang'd them into Dolphins. Ovid. Met. l. 3.

SECT. IV.
The Sacrifices of Bacchus.

IN Sacrifices Three things are to be considered: the Creatures that are offered, the Priests and the Sacrifices themselves, which are celebrated by such and such Ceremonies

1. Amongst Trees and Plants,

Xenoph. in Sacerd. Plutar. in probl. symp. Euripid in Bacch. Herodot. Euterpe.

these were sacred or consecrated to Bacchus, the Fir, the Ivy, Bind weed, the Fig and the Vine. Among Animals, the Dragon and the Pye, signifying the Talkativeness of drunken People. The Goat was slain in his Sacrifices, because he is a Creature destructive to the Vines. And amongst the Egyptians they sacrificed a Swine to his Honour before their doors.

2. The Priests and Priestesses of Bacchus were the Satyrs,

Vid. Nat. Com. l. 5.

the Sileni, the Lenae, the Naiades, but especially the revelling Women called Bacchae, from Bacchus's Name.

3. The Sacrifices themselves were various, and celebrated with different Ceremonies, according [Page] to the variety of Places and Nations. They were celebrated on stated days of the year, with the greatest Religion, or rather with the rankest Prophaneness and Impiety. The Phoenicians Instituted the first Sacrifices and called them.

Oscophoria, in which the Boys,Pausan. in Attic. carrying Vine-leaves in their hands, went in ranks praying, from the Temple of Bacchus to the Chappel of Pallas.

The Trieterica were celebrated in the Winter by night,Ovid. Fast. & 6. Met. by the Bacchae, who went about armed, making a great noise, and foretelling, as it was believed, things to come. These Sacrifices were intituled Trieterica, because Bacchus returned from his Indian Expedition after three years.

The Epilenaea were Games celebrated in the time of Vintage (after that the Press for squeezing Grapes was invented) they disputed with one another,Scholiast. Aristoph. in treading the Grapes, who should soonest press out most Must; and in the mean time they sung the Praises of Bacchus, begging that the Must might be very sweet and good.

The Canephoria, Demarat. in certam. Dionys. amongst the antient Athenians were performed by Marriageable Virgins, who carried golden Baskets filled with the First Fruits of the Year. Nevertheless some think that these Sacrifices were instituted to the Honour of Diana; Doroth. Sydon. ap. Nat. Com. and that they did not carry Fruit in the Baskets, but Presents wrought with their own hands, which they offered to this Goddess; to testifie that [Page] they were desirous to quit their Virginity and Marry.

The Apaturia, Vid, Nat Com. in Bacch. [...], Feasts amongst the Athenians to the Honour of Bacchus: so called from [...], fallo. Idem ib.

The Ambrosia, observed in Ianuary, a Month sacred to Bacchus; for which reason this Month was called Lenaeus or Lenaeo, because the Wine was brought into the City about that time. But the Romans called these Feasts Brumalia, from Bruma, Cael. Rho. l. 18. c. 25. one of the Names of Bacchus amongst them: and they celebrated them twice a year in the Months of February and August.

The Ascolia, Tzetz. in Hesiod. so called from the Greek [...], utris, a Leathern Bottle; several of which were produced filled with Air,Menand. l. de myster. or as others say with Wine. The Athenians were wont to leap upon them with one foot, so that they would sometimes fall down; however they thought they did a great Honour to Bacchus hereby; because they trampled upon the Skin of the Goat, who is the greatest Enemy to the Vines. But amongst the Romans Rewards were distributed to those, who by artificially leaping upon these Leathern Bottles overcame the rest. And then all of them together calling aloud upon Bacchus confusedly, and in Verses unpolished, they carried his Statue about their Vineyards in Masquerade, dawbing their Faces with Barks of Trees and the Dregs of Wine. So returning to his Altar again, from whence they came, they presented their Oblations in Basons to him, and burnt them. And in the [Page] last place they hung upon the highest Trees, little wooden or earthen Images of Bacchus, which they called Oscilla; from the smalness of the Heads, that out of them, as out of Perspectives, the God might look to the Vines that they suffer no injury. Virgil hath elegantly expressed all this, where he says, Georg. l. 2.

—Atque inter pocula laeti,

Mollib [...]s & pratis, unctos saliere per utres.

Versibus incomptis ludunt, nisuque soluto

Oraque corticibus sumunt horrenda cavatis.

Et te, Bacche, vocant per carmina laeta, tibique

Oscilla, ex alta, suspendunt mollia, pinu.

Hinc omnis largo pubescit vinea foetu, &c.

They to soft meads heightned with wine advance,

And joyfully o'er nointed Bottles dance,

And merry, at their slippery sport they play

Some rustick Madrigal or Roundelay,

In vizards of rough Bark conceal their Face,

And with glad numbers thee, great Bacchus, grace,

Hanging soft Pictures on thy lofty Pine,

Then Vineyards swell pregnant with chearful Wine.

Lastly the Bacchanalia, Vir. 4. Georg. 6. & 7. Aen. or Dionysia, or Orgya, were the Feasts of Bacchus among the Romans, which at first were solemnized in February at mid-day by Women only; but afterwards perform'd by Men and Women together, and young Boys and Girls; who, in a word, left no sort of Lewdness and Extravagancy uncommitted. For upon this occasion, Rapes, Whoredoms, Poison, Murder, and such abominable Impieties were promoted, under a sacrilegious pretence of Religion. [Page] Till the Senate by an Edict abrogated this Festival;Liv. l. 9. Aug. 6. de Civit. as Diagondas did at Thebes, says Cicero, because of their Lewdnesses; which also Pentheus King of Thebes attempted,Cic. c. 11. 2. de leg. but with ill success; for the Bacchae barbarously killed him: whence came the Story, that his Mother and Sisters tore him in pieces, fancying that he was a Boar: There is a Story besides that Alcithoe, the Daughter of Mineus, and her Sisters,Idem. 4. Met. because despising the Sacrifices of Bacchus, they did stay at home and spin whilst the Orgya were celebrating, were changed into Bats. There is an idle Story, that Lycurgus, who attempted many times to hinder these Bacchanalia in vain, cut off his own Legs,Ap. Nat. Com. because he had rooted up the Vines, to the dishonour of Bacchus.

SECT. V.
The Historical Sense of the Fable. Bacchus an Emblem either of Nimrod or Moses.

I Find two meanings applyed to this Fable.Bochart. in suo Phaleg. For some say that Bacchus is the same with Nimrod: the reasons of which Opinion are, 1. The similitude of the Words Bacchus and Ba [...]chus; which signifies the Son of Chus, that is Nimrod. 2. They think the Name of Nimrod may allude to the Hebrew word [...], Namur; or the Chaldee, [...] Namer, a Tyger. And accordingly the Charriot of Bacchus was drawn by Tygres,Anthol. 1. c. 38. ep. 1. and himself cloathed with the Skin of a Tygre. 3. Bacchus is sometimes [Page] called [...], which is the very same with Nimrodus. 4. Moses stiles Nimrod a great Hunter, and we find that Bacchus is styled [...], i. e. great Hunter. (this Name of Bacchus is not mentioned above, for I design not a nicely complete account of every thing) 5. Nor is it absurd to say, that Nimrod presided over the Vines, since he was the first King of Babylon, Ex Athenaeo. where was the most excellent Wines, as the Antients often say.

Others think that Bacchus is Moses; because many things in the Fable of the one,Vossius apud Bochart. in suo Canaan. seem derived from the History of the other. For first, some feign that he was born in Egypt, and presently shut up in an Ark, and thrown upon the Waters as Moses was. 2. The Surname of [...], or Bimater, which belongs to Bacchus may be ascribed to Moses: who besides his Mother by Nature, had another by Adoption, King Pharaoh's Daughter. 3. They were both handsom Men, brought up in Arabia, good Soldiers, and had Women in their Armies. 4. Orpheus calls Bacchus directly Móon, and [...], the Legislator; and further attributes to him,Exod. 34. 29. [...], the two Tables of the Law. 5. Besides Bacchus was called Bicornis: and accordingly the Face of Moses appeared double-horned, when he came down from the Mountain, where he had spoken to God; the Rays of Glory that darted from his Brow, resembling the sprouting out of Horns. 6. As Snakes were sacrificed,Eurip. in Bacchis. and a Dog given to Bacchus as a Companion, so Moses had his Caleb, which in Hebrew signifies a Dog. [Page] 7. And as the Bacchae brought Water from a Rock, by striking it with their Thyrsus, and the Country wherever they came flow'd with Milk, Wine, and Honey; so the Land of Can [...]n, into which Moses conducted the Israelites, not only flowed with Milk and Honey, but with Wine also: as appears from that noble Bunch of Grapes, which two Men carried upon a Staff betwixt them, (Numb. 13.) 8. Bacchus dryed up the Rivers Orontes and Hydaspes, Nonn. in Dionysiac l. 23. & 25. & 35. & 45. by striking them with his Thyrsus, and passed through them, as Moses passed thro' the Red Sea. 9. It is said also, that a little Ivy stick,Apud Eund. thrown down by one of the Bacchae upon the Ground, crept like a Dragon, and twisted itself about an Oak. And 10. That the Indians once were all covered with Darkness, whilst those Bacchae enjoyed a perfect Day. Nonnius. Vossius apud Bochart in Chan.

From whence you may collect,Iliad. 48. that the antient Inventors of Fables, have borrowed many things from the Holy Scriptures, to patch up their Conceits. Thus Homer says that Bacchus wrestled with Pallene, to whom he yielded, like the Story of the Angel wrestling with Iacob. In like manner Pausanias reports, that the Greeks at Troy found an Ark which was sacred to Bacchus; which when Euripilus had opened, and viewed the Statue of Bacchus laid therein, he was presently struck with Madriess. For this is taken from the Second Book of Kings, where the Bethshemites were destroyed by God, because they looked with too much curiosity into the Ark of the Covenant. [Page] [...] [Page] [...] [Page] Again,Aristoph. Schol. in Acharn. act 3. sc. 1. Bacchus was angry with the Athenians because they despised his Solemnities, and received them not with due respect when first they were brought by Pegasus [...] of Boeotia into Attica. He afflicted them, [...] says, with a grievous Disease in the Secret Parts, for which there was no Cure, till by the advice of the Oracle they performed the Reverences due to the God, and erected Phallo's that is, Images of the afflicted Parts, to hi [...] Honour: whence the Feasts and Sacrifice [...] called Phallica, were yearly celebrated among the Athenians. 1. Reg. c. 6 Is one Egg more like another than this Fable is like the History of the Philistines? whom God punished with the E [...] rods, for their Irreverence to the Ark; an [...] when they consulted the Diviners thereupon, they were told that they could no ways be cured unless they made Golden Images of Emrods, and consecrated them to God.

SECT. VI.
The Moral Sense of the Fable. Bacchus the Symbol of Wine.

WINE, and its Effects are understood in this Fable of Bacchus. Let us begin with Bacchus's Birth. When I imagine Bacchus in Iupiters Thigh, and Iupiter limping therewith, it brings to my mind the I [...]mage of a Man that is burthened and over [...]come with Drink; who not only halts, b [...]reels and stumbles, and madly rushes where [...]ever the force of the Wine carries him.

[Page]Was Bacchus taken out of the Body of his Mother Semele in the midst of Thunder and Lightning? So is the Wine drawn from the Butt attended with Quarrels, and Fighting, and Noise.

Bacchus was educated by the Naiades, Nymphi of the Rivers and Fountains, which may direct Men to dilute their Wine with Water.

But Bacchus is an eternal Boy. And do not the oldest Men become Children by too much Drink? Does not Excess deprive us of that Reason that distinguishes Men from Boys?

Bacchus is naked, as is he who hath lost his Senses by Drinking.Erasm. in adag. He cannot dissemble, he cannot hide any thing. In vino veritas, the Wine speaks truth; [...]opens all the Secrets of the Mind and Body too; witness Noah.

Bacchus is horned, according to Ovid. Epist. Sapph.

Accedant capits cornua, Bacchus eris.

Cornuted be thy Crest and Bacchus thou shalt be.

And let the Poet decide whether Bacchus makes fewer horned than Venus.

Cura fugit multo, diluiturque mero.

Ovid. de arte

Full bowls or chase or else dissolve our cares.

Tuuc veniunt risus, tunc pauper cornua sumit.

Then enters mirth, and th' Beggar grows a King.

That is, Wine creates a Boldness, a Forwardness,Porphyr. in 2. car. and Fierceness even in poor People. I know very well that [...]ome say,Hora [...]. Lil. Gyr. that Bacchus was horned, because formerly the Cups were Horn; whence [...], poculum, quasi [...], is derived from [...], cornu.

[Page]He is crowned with Ivy, because that Plant (being always green and flourishing, and as it were young) by its natural coolness asswages the heat occasioned by too much Wine.

He is both a young and an old Man, because as a moderate quantity of Wine increases the Strength of the Body, so excess of Wine destroys it.

Women only celebrate the Sacrifices of Bacchus; and of them only those who are enraged, and entoxicated, and abandon themselves to all sorts of Wickedness. Accordingly Wine effeminates the most masculine minds, and disposes them to Luxury. It begets [...] ger, and stirs them up to madness; and therefore Lions and Tyg [...]es draw the Chariot of Bacchus.

The Men and Women both celebrate the Bacchanalia in Masques. It is well that they be ashamed of their Faults. Their Modesty hath not quite left them; some remains of it are yet hid under those Disguises, lest they should be utterly oppressed by the Impudence of ill Words and Actions. And does not VVine mask and disguise us strangely? Does it not make Men Beasts; and turn one into a Lion, another into a Bear, another into a Swine, or an Ass?

I had almost forgot to tell you, that Bacchus is sometimes merry, and sometimes sad and morose. For indeed what cherishes the Heart of Man so much us Wine? What more delightfully refreshes the Spirits of the mind, than that natural Nectar, that divine Medicine, which when we have taken

[Page]

Tunc dolor,

Ovid. de Art.

& curae, rugaque frontis abest.

Then far away are banisht griefs and fears,

No thoughtful wrinkle in the face appears.

The Vine is so beneficial to this Life, that in vite vitam hominis esse diceres; and therefore many say, that the Happiness of one consists in the Enjoyment of the other. But do not consider, that if Wine be the Cradle of Life, yet it is the Grave of the Reason: for if Men do constantly sail in the Red Sea of Claret, their Souls are oftimes drowned therein. It blinds them, and leaves them under Darkness, especially when it begins to draw the Sparkles and little Stars from their Eyes. Then the Body being drowned in Drink, the Mind floats, or else is stranded: thus too great love of the Vine is pernicious to Life; for from it come more Faults than Grapes, and it breeds more Mischiefs than Clusters. Would you see an instance of the truth of what you read, observe a drunken Man: O Beast! See how his Head totters, his Hams sink, his Feet fail, his Hands tremble, his Mouth froths, his Cheeks are flabby, his Eyes sparkle and water, his Words are unintelligible, his Tongue falters and stops, his Throat sends forth a nasty loathsom stench; but what do I do? It is not my Business now to tell Truths, but Fables.

CHAP. IX.
MARS. His Image.

[Page]

P.

AS far as I see, we must tarry in thi [...] place all night.

M.

Do not fear it; for I shall not say so much of the other Gods as I have said of Bacchus. And especially Mars, whose Image is next, I hope will not keep us so long.

P.

Do you call him Mars, that is so fierce and sowr in his look? Terror is every where in his looks as well as in his d [...]ess; and he is drawn by a pair of Horses, in a Chariot guided by I know not what mad Woman. He is covered with Armour, and brandisheth a Spear in his Right Hand, as though he breathed Fire and Death, and threatned every Body with Ruin and Destruction.

M.

It is Mars himself, the God of War [...] whom I have often seen also on Horseback, in a formidable manner, with a Whip and a Spear together. But that you may understand every thing in that Picture; observe, that the Creatures which draw the Chariot are not Horses, but Fear and Terror, Discord goes before them in tatter'd Garments, and Cla [...] and Anger go behind. Yet some say that Fear and Terror are Servants to Mars. Hear how imperiously he commands them. Claud. in Ruf.

[Page]

[Page]

[Page]

Fer galeam Bellona mihi, nexusque rotarum

Tende Pavor; fraena rapidos Formido jugales.

My Helmet let Bellona bring, Terror my traces fit,

And panick Fear do thou the rapid Driver sit.

As soon as they receive his Orders. Virgil. Aen. l. 8.

—Saevit medio in certamine Mavors

Caelatus ferro, tristesque ex aethere Dirae:

Et scissa gaudens vadit Discordia, pallâ,

Quam, cum sanguineo sequitur Bellona flagello.

—Mars through the Battle rav'd,

Sad Furies hover above, himself in steel engrav'd.

Glad of her tatter'd Cloaths next Discord goes,

And fierce Bellona with her bloody Whip pursues.

P.

Where is that Bellona? Bellona Silius l. 4.

M.

It is Bellona who drives the Chariot. The Goddess of War, Stat. 7. Theb. the Companion of Mars; or as others say, his Sister, or Wife, or both. She prepares for him his Chariot and Horses when he goes to fight. It is plain that she is called Bellona, from Bellum. She is otherwise called Duellona from Duellum, or from the Greek word [...], a Needle, whereof she is said to be the Inventress. Her Priests, the Bellona [...]ii, sacrificed to her in their own Blood: Sectisque humeris, says Lactantius, & utraque manu districtos gladios exerentes, L. 1. c. 1 [...]. currunt offeruntur, insaniunt. Cutting their Shoulders, and holding out drawn Swords in both their hands, they run and are transported and mad; Juvenal. Sat. 4. & Lucan. l. 1. x. Eutrop. and People thought, that, after the Sacrifice was ended, they were able to foretel future Events. Claudian [Page] introduces Bellona combing Snakes.Sil. l. 5. Another describes her thus.

Ipsa facem quatiens, & flavam sanguine multo

Sparsa comam, medias acies Bellona pererrat.

Stridit tartareae nigro sub pectore Divae

Lethiferum murmur.

Her torch Bellona waving through the Air,

Sprinkles with clotted gore her flaming Hair,

And through both Armies up and down does fly,

Whilst from her horrid breast Tisiphone

A deadly murmur se [...]ds.

Before the Temple of this Goddess there stood a Pillar called Bellica, Alex. ab Alex. l. 3. c. 12 [...] over which the Herald threw a Spear, when he proclaimed War.

SECT. I.
His Descent.

MARS is said to be the Son of Iupiter and Iuno; Homer. Iliad. 5. tho according to Ovid's Story,Hesiod. in Theog. he is the Child of Iuno only. For says he, when Iuno did admire how it was possible that her Husband Iupiter had conceived Minerva, and begot her himself, without the concurrence of a Mother. (as we shall see in the Account of Minerva) When her amasement ceased; she being desirous of performing the like, went to Oceanus to ask his Advice; whether she could have a Child without her Husbands concurrence: she was tired in her Journey, and sat down at the Door of the Goddess Flora; who understanding the [Page] Occasion of her Journey, desired her to be of good Heart, for she had in her Garden a Flower, and if she did only touch it with the tips of her fingers, the smell of it would make her conceive a Son presently. So Iuno was carried into the Garden, the Flower shown her, she touched it, and conceived Mars; who afterwards took to Wife Ner [...]o, Vid. Cerd. 8. Virg. or Nerione; (which Word in the Sabine Language signifies Virtus and Robur;) and from her the Claudian Family formerly derived the Name of Nero.

SECT. II.
Names of Mars.

HE is called Mars, quod maribus in bello praesit; Varro de l. lat. because he presides over the Men in War: as likewise Mavors by the Poets, quod magna vertat, because he manages great things.

He is called [...], in Greek; Cic. 5. de nat. either from [...], tollere; Or [...], interficere: O says Suidas, from a not, Phurnut. and [...], to speak: [...], because in War deeds not words are necessary. Pausan. in Attic. But from whatsoever words [...] is derived, it is certain those famous Names Areopagus and Areopagita, are derived from it. The Areopagus, [...], (that is, the Hill or Mount of Mars) was a place at Athens, in which, when Mars was accused of Murther and Incest, as tho he had kild Halirothius, Neptunes Son, and debauch'd his Daughter Alcippa: he was forced to defend himself in a Tryal before Twelve Gods, [Page] and was acquitted by Six Voices: from which time that place became a Court wherein were tryed Capital Causes, and the things belonging to Religion. The Areopagitae were the Judges,Budae in pandect. l. ult. de. len. whose Integrity and good Credit was so great, that no Person could be admitted into their Society, unless when he deliver'd in publick an Account of all his Life past, he was found in every part thereof blameless. And that the Lawyers, who pleaded, might not blind the Eyes of the Judges by the Charms of Eloquence, they were obliged to plead their Causes without any Ornament of Speech; if they did otherwise, they were immediately commanded to be silent. And lest they should be moved to Compassion by seeing the miserable Condition of the Prisoners, they gave Sentence in the dark, without Lights; not by Words,Cic. ad Attic. l. 1., but in a Paper: whence arose the Proverb of Areopagita taciturnior, one that speaks little or nothing.

His Name Gradivus comes à gradiendo, from marching; or from brandishing the Spear, which in Greek is [...].

He is called Quirinus, Serv. in 1. Aen. from Curis or Quiris, signifying a Spear: whence comes Securis, quasi Semicuris, a piece of a Spear. And this Name was afterward attributed to Romulus, because he was esteemed the Son of Mars; from whom the Romans were called Quirites. Gravidus is the Name of Mars when he rages;Ser. 1. 27. and Quirinus, when he is quiet. And accordingly there were two Temples at Rome dedicated to him;Serv. ib. one within the City which was [Page] dedicated to Mars Quirinus, the Keeper of the Cities Peace; the other without the City, near the Gate, to Mars Gradivus, the Warriour, and the Defender of the City against all outward Enemies.

The antient Latins applyed to him the Title of Salisubsulus, Pacuv. ap. Nonn. or Dancer, from salio, because his Temper is very inconstant and uncertain, inclining sometimes to this side, and sometimes to that in Wars: whence we say,Cic. l. 6. ep. 4. Martem belli communem esse, that the issue of Battels is uncertain, and the Chance dubious. But we must not think that Mars is the only God of War;Serv. in. 11. Aen. for Bellona, Victoria, Sol, Luna and Pluto, use to be reckoned in the number of Martial Deities. It was usual with the Lacedemonians to shackle the Feet of the Image of Mars, that he should not fly from them: and amongst the Romans, the Priests, Salii, were instituted to look after the Sacrifices of Mars, and go about the City dancing with their Shields.

He was called Enyalius, Vid. Lit. Gyr. from Enyo, id est, Bellona, and by other the like Names; but it is not worth my time to insist upon them longer.

SECT. III.
Actions of Mars.

IT is strange that the Poets relate only one Action of this terrible God, which deserved to be concealed in darkness, if the light [Page] of the Sun had not discovered it; and if a good Kernel was not contained in a bad Shell Every body knows the Story of Mars and Venus's Adultery;In Pelopida. (from whence Hermione, a Tutelar Deity, according to Plutarch, was born) thus Ovid says,

Fabula narratur, toto notissima coelo,

Mulciberis, capti Marsque Venusque dolis.

The Tale is told thro Heav'n far and wide,

How Mars and Venus were by Vulcan ty'd.

When Sol discovered them both, he told it to Vulcan, Venus's Husband: who thereupon made a Net of Iron, whose links were so small and slender, that it was invisible; and spread it over the Bed of Venus. By and by the Lovers return to their Sport; and were caught in the Net. Vulcan calls all the Gods together to the Shew,Vir. 2. Aen. who jeered them extremely. After they had long been exposed to the Jests and the Hisses of the Company, Vulcan, at the request of Neptune, unlooses their Chains, and gives them their Liberty. But Alectryon, Mars's Favourite, suffered the Punishment that his Crime deserved; because when he was appointed to watch he fell asleep, and so gave Sol an opportunity to slip into the Chamber. Therefore Mars changed him into a Cock, a Bird of his own Name, in Greek [...]. Which to this day is so mindful of his old Fault, that he constantly gives notice of the Approach of the Sun by his Crowing.

SECT. IV.
The Signification of the foregoing Fable.

[Page]

LET us explain this Fable. Indeed when a Venus is married to a Vulcan, that is, a very handsom Lady to a very ugly Man, it is a great occasion of Adultery. But neither can that Dishonesty, nor any other, escape the knowledge of the Sun of Righteousness, although it be done in the obscurest Darkness; though it be with the utmost care guarded by the trustiest Pimps in the World; tho they be committed in the privatest Retirement and concealed with the greatest a [...], they will all at one time be exposed to both the Infernal and Celestial Regions, in the brightest Light: when the Offenders shall be set in the midst, bound by the Chains of their Consciences by that faln Vulcan, who is the Instrument of the Terrors of the true. Iupiter; and then they shall hear and suffer the Sentence that was formerly threatned to David in this Life, Thou didst this thing secretly, but I will raise up evil against thee, in the sight of all Israel, and before the Sun: 2 Sam. 12. 12.

But let us return again to Mars, or rather to the Son of Mars, Tereus; who learnt Wickedness from his Fathers Example, as a bad Father makes a bad Child, says the Proverb.

SECT. V.
The Story of Tereus the Son of Mars.

[Page]

TEreus was the Son of Mars, Ovid. 1. Metam. begotten of the Nymph Bistonis. He married Progne the Daughter of Pandion, King of Athens, when he himself was King of Thrace. This Progne had a Sister called Philomela, a Virgin: in Modesty and Beauty inferior to none. She lived with her Father at Athens. Progne being desirous to see her Sister, asked Tereus to fetch Philomela to her; he comply'd, and went to Athens and brought Philomela with her Fathers leave to Progne. Upon this Occasion, Tereus falls in love with Philomela to distraction; and as they travell'd together, because she refused him, he overpower'd her, and cut out her Tongue, and threw her into a Goal. And returning afterwards to his Wife, pretended with the greatest Assurance, that Philomela died in her Journey; and that his Story might appear true, he shed many Tears, and put on Mourning. But Philomela, though she was dumb, found out a way to tell her Sister the villany of Tereus.

—Grande doloris

Ingenium est, miserisque venit solertia rebus.

Desire of Vengeance makes th' Invention quick,

When miserable, help with craft we seek.

She describes the Story of the Violences which she had received from Tereus, as well as she could, in Embroidery, and sends the Work [Page] folded up to her Sister; who no sooner view'd it but she boiled with rage.

Et (mirum potuisse) silet; dolor ora repressit,

Varbaque quaerenti satis indignantia linguae

Defuerant, nec flere vacat, sed fasque nefasque

Confusura ruit, poenaeque in imagine tota est.

She held her peace, 'twas strange, grief struck her mute.

No language could with such a passion sute:

Nor had she time to weep. Right, wrong were mix'd

In her fell thoughts, her soul on vengeance fix'd.

Then she hastned to her Sister, and brought her home without Tereus's knowledge. Whilst she meditated revenge, her young Son Itys came and embraced his Mother: but she carried him aside into the remote parts of the House,

Et mater, mater, clamantem & colla petentem,

Ense ferit:

—He Mother, Mother, cries,

And on her clings, whilst by her Sword he dyes.

When she had kild him, she cut him into pieces, and dressed the Flesh, and gave it Tereus for Supper.

Vescitur, inque suam sua viscera congerit alvum.

—does eat,

And his own Flesh and Blood does make his meat.

And when Tereus sent for his Son Itys, says Progne,

Intus habes, quod poscis, ait. Circumspicit ill [...]

Atque ubi sit, quaerit: quaerenti, iterumque vocanti,

[Page]Prosiluit, Ityosque caput Philomela cruentum

Misit in ora patris.

Thou hast, said she, within thee thy desire.

He looks about, asks where. And while again

He asks and calls, all bloody with the slain

Forth like a Fury Philomela flew,

And at his Face the Head of Itys threw.

Tereus incensed with rage, rush'd on them both with his drawn Sword; but they flew away, and Fear added Wings to their flight; so that Progne became a Swallow, and Philomela a Nightingale. Fury gave Wings to Tereus himself: he was changed into a Hoopo [...], (Upupa) which is one of the filthiest of all Birds. The Gods out of Pity changed Itys into a Pheasant.

SECT. VI.
The Sacrifices of Mars.

TO Mars were Sacrificed the Wolf for his Fierceness;Virg. Aen. 9. the Horse for his usefulness in VVar; the VVoodpecker and the Vultu [...], for their Ravenousness; the Cock for his Vigilance, which Virtue Soldiers ought chiefly to have. And Grass; because it grows in Towns that the VVar leaves without an Inhabitant; and is thought to come up the thicker in such places as have been irrigated with human Blood.

Amongst the most ancient Rites belonging to Mars, I do not know a more memorable one than the following. Qui Belli alicujus susceperit curam (says Servius) Sacrarium Martis [Page]

[Page]

[Page] ingressus, primò Ancilia commovebat post hastam simulacri ipsius; dicens, Mars, Vigila. Whoever had undertook the Business of any War, he went into the Vestry of the Temple of Mars; and first stirred the Ancilia, (which were a sort of holy Shields) afterwards the Spear of the Image of Mars it self; and said, Mars, Watch.

CHAP. X.
The Celestial Goddesses. JUNO.

M.

YOU have viewed the Five Celestial Gods; now look upon the Celestial Goddesses that follow them there in order. [...]irst observe Iuno carried in a Golden Cha [...]iot,Ovid. 2. Metam. Ap [...]lei. l. 10. which is drawn by Peacocks; She is [...]dorned with a Crown beset with Roses and [...]ilies; nor is her Scepter less beautiful. For [...]he is the Queen of the Gods.

—Iovisque

Et soror & conjux:

Vir. 1. Aen. Apollon. 1 Argon.

[...]he Sister and Wife too of Jupiter, and the Daugh [...]er of Saturn by Ops. She was born in the Island [...]amos; where she lived till she was Married.

P.

Really she seems very august. How [...]right, how majestical, how charming is that [...]ace, how comely are her Shapes? How well [...]oes a Scepter become those Hands, and a Crown that Head? How tempting and ra [...]ishing are the Beauty of her Smile, and the [Page] Gracefulness of her Breasts? Her Presence is generous and fine. Her Dress the same. She is full of Majesty, and worthy of Admiration. But what pretty Damsel is that which stands near her, as if she were her Servant.

M.

It is Iris, IRIS: the Daughter of Thaumas and Electra, and Sister to the Harpyae. She is Iuno's Messenger,Virg. 9. Aen. as Mercury is Iupiter's: tho Iupiter and the other Gods, the Furies, nay sometimes Men have sent her on a Message.Nonn. 20. Because of her swiftness she is painted with Wings,Ibid. 31. riding upon her Rainbow:Homer. as Ovid says.Iliad. 23. 2. Metam.

Effugit, & remeat per quos, modò venerat, arcus.

By the same Bow she went she soon returns.

It is her Office besides to unloose the Souls of Women from the Chains of the Body, as Mercury unlooses the Mens. We have an example of this in Dido, who laid violent Hands on her self; for when she was almost dead.

Tum Iuno omnipotens longum miserata dolorem

Difficilesque obitus,

Vir. 4 Aen.

Irim demisit Olympo,

Quae luctantem animam, nexosque resolveretartus.

Ergo Iris croceis per coelum roscida pennis,

Mille trahens varios adverso sole colores,

Devolat, & supra caput astitit. Hunc ego Diti

Sacrum jussa fero, teque isto corpore solvo:

Sic ait, & dextrâ crinem secat, omnis & unâ

Dilapsus calor, atque in ventos vita recessis.

But Juno, who her Misery bemoan'd,

And lingring Death, sent Iris from the Pole,

To loose Lifes Bonds, and free her strugling Soul [...]

Since neither Death deserv'd, nor Doom of Fates,

But sudden rage her Time anticipates;

[Page]Nor Proserpine her Golden Hair did take,

Dooming her Head down to the Stygian Lake.

From Heaven then dewy Rose wing'd Iris flew,

And with Sun-Beams a thousand Colors drew:

When hovering near, I bear this second Charge

To Pluto's Court, and thee from Flesh inlarge.

With her Right Hand, thus saying she cuts her Hair,

And vital Breath mix'd with Aetherial Air.

But herein Iris differs from Mercury; Hesiod in Theog for whereas he is sent both from Heaven and from Hell, she is sent from Heaven only. He oftentimes was employed in Messages of Peace, whence he was called [...], the Peace-maker: Vid. Cer. in 4. Aen. But Iris always was sent to promote Strife and Dissention: so that Servius says, she was called Iris, quasi [...], i. e. Contention, the Goddess of Discord: tho others rather think that she is called so, from [...], to speak.

SECT. I.
The Children of JUNO. Her Disposition.

P.

WHAT Children had Iuno by Iupiter?

M. Vulcan, Mars, and Hebe.

Altho some write that Hebe was the Child of Iuno alone,HEBE [...] Pausan in Corint. in this manner; Before Iuno had any Children: she eat some wild Lettices, set before her at a Feast in Iupiters House, being on suddain Bigbellyed she brought forth Hebe: who for her extraordinary Beauty was by Iupiter made Goddess of Youth: and had the office of Cupbearer to Iupiter given her. But when by an [Page] unlucky unhappy fall she made all the Guests laugh: Iupiter was enraged, and turned her out from her Office, and put Ganimede in her stead.

P.

Which was Iuno's most notorious fault.

M. Iealousie:

I will give one or two of the many instances of it. Iupiter loved Iö the Daughter of Inachus: and enjoy'd her. When Iuno observed Iupiter to be absent from Heaven, she justly suspected that the pursuit of his Amours was the cause of his absence. Therefore she immediately flew down to the Earth after him, and luckily found the very place where Iupiter and Iö entertain'd themselves in private. As soon as Iupiter perceived her coming, fearing a Chiding: he turned the young Lady into a white Cow. Iuno seeing the Cow, asked, whose she was, and from what Bull she came. Says Iupiter, she was born of a sudden out of the Earth. The cunning Goddess suspecting the Matter, desired the Cow, which Iupiter could not refuse, lest he should encrease her Suspition. So Iuno taking the Cow.

—Servandum tradidit Argo

Centum luminibus cinctum caput Argos habebat,

Ovid. 1. Metam.

Inde suis vicibus, capiebant bina quietem:

Caetera servabat, atque in statione manebant.

Constiterat quocunque laco, spectabat ab Iö,

Ante oculos Iö, quamvis aversus, habebat.

—The Goddess then to Argus streight convey'd

Her gift, and him the watchful Keeper made.

Argus's Head an hundred eyes possest,

And only two at once declined to rest:

[Page]The others watch'd and in a constant round,

Refreshment in alternate courses found.

Where'r he turn'd he always Iö viewd',

Iö he saw tho she behind him stood.

Besides her troublesom confinement; she was forced to eat insipid Leaves and bitter Herbs: Which hardship Iupiter could not endure to see. Wherefore he sent Mercury to Argus, to set Iö free. Mercury under the disguise of a Shepherd came to Argus, and with the Musick of his Pipe lulled him asleep: and then cut off his Head.

—Centumque oculos nox occupat una,

Excipit hos, volucrisque suae Saturnia pennis

Collocat, & gemina caudam stellantibus implet.

There Argus lies; and all that wondrous Light

Which gave his hundred Eyes their useful sight

Lies buried now in one Eternal Night.

But Juno that she might his Eyes retain.

Soon fix'd them in her gaudy Peacocks Train.

For Iuno hereupon turned Argus into a Peacock, and scattered his hundred Eyes about the Tail of that Bird. And she committed Iö to the Furies to be tormented. And being driven into Aegypt she prayed to Iupiter to be restored to her pristin Form, and her Request granted, she thenceforth took the Name of Isis, the Goddess of the Aegyptians, and was worshipped with Divine Honour.

Iuno gave another clear mark of her Jealousie.Doroth. in. 2. nar. fabul. For when her Anger against Iupiter was so violent, that nothing could pacifie her; King Cithaeron advised Iupiter to pretend that he was about to take another Wife.Plutarch. in Arist. The Contrivance [Page] pleased him, wherefore he takes an Oaken Image dressed very fine, and puts it into a Chariot: and declares publickly, that he was about to marry Plataea the Daughter of Aesopus. The Report spread, and came to Iuno's Ears: who immediately running thither, fell furiously upon the Image, and tore all the Cloaths, till she discovered the Jest: and laughing very much, she was reconciled to her Husband: and from the King Cithaeron, the Adviser of the Artifice, she was afterwards called Citheronia. The rest of the most considerable of her Names, follow:

SECT. II.
Names of JUNO.

ANthia, In Corin. i. e. Florida, Flowry, Pausanias mentions her Temple.

Argiva from the People Argivi, amongst whom the Sacrifices, [...] were celebrated to her Honor; in which an Hecatomb, that is, an Hundred Oxen were sacrificed to her; They made her Image of Gold and Ivory; holding a Pomegranate in one Hand,Doroth. lib. 2. Met. & Paus. and a Scepter in the other: upon the top of which stood a Cuckow; because Iupiter changed himself into that Bird, when he loved her.

Bunaea, Paus. in Corinth. from Buno the Son of Mercury, who built a Temple to this Goddess at Corinth.

Calendaris (from the old Word Calo, Macrob in Sat. to call,) for she was called upon by the Priests [Page] upon the first days of every Month: which Days are thence called Calendae.

Caprotina. Plutarch. & Ovid. de arte. Her Festival was observed by Maid-servants, upon the Nones of Iuly, which on the same day with several Free Women,Var. de ling. lat. sacrificed to Iuno under a Wild Fig-tree (Caprificus) in memory of that extraordinary Virtue, which guided the Maid-Servants of Rome to those Counsels, which did preserve the Honour of the Roman Name. For after the City was taken and the Gallick tumults quieted; the Borderers having an oportunity almost to oppress the Romans who had already suffered so much. They sent an Herald to tell the Romans, that if they desired to save the remainder of their City from Ruin, they must send all their Wives and Daughters. The Senate being strangely distracted hereat: a Maid-servant, whose name was Philotis or Iutela, telling her design to the Senate; took with her several other Maid-servants, dressed them like Mistresses of Families and like Virgins, and went with them to the Enemy. Livy the Dictator dispersed them about the Camp; and they incited the Men to Drink much, because they said that was a Festival day: The Wine made the Souldiers Sleep soundly: whereupon a Sign being given from a Wild Fig-Tree; the Romans came and slew all the Souldiers. The Romans were not forgetful of this great Service, for they made all these Maid-servants Free [...] and gave them Portions out of the Publick Treasury: they ordered that the Day should be called Nonae Caprotinae, from that Wild Fig-Tree [Page] from whence they had the sign: and they ordered an anniversary Sacrifice, to Iuno Caprotina, to be celebrated under a Wild Fig-Tree, the Juice of which was mix'd with the Sacrifices in memory of this Action.

Curis or Curitis, Fest. from her Spear, called Curis in the Language of the old Sabines. The Matrons were understood to be under her Guardianship. Whence, says Plutarch, the Spear is sacred to her,In Rom. Arnob. 2. contra Gent. and many of her Statues lean upon Spears, and she her self is called Quiritus and Curitis. Hence springs the custom that the Bride combs her Hair with hasta celibari, a Spear taken out of the body of a dead Gladiator.

Cinxia, Marian. de nupt. from Cingulum the Girdle, which the Bride wore when about to Marry; for this Girdle was unloosed with Iuno's good leave, who was thought the Patroness of Marriages.

Domiduca and Interduca, à ducenda uxore in domum maritis,August. 7. de [...]iv. from bringing home the Bride to her Husband's House.

Egeria,Festus. quòd eam partui egerendo opitulari crederent: because she assisted, as they believed, to the Facility of the Birth.

Februalis, Ex. Sext. Pomp. Februata, Februa, or Februla, because they sacrificed to her in the Month of February. Her Festival was celebrated upon the same Day with the Lupercalia, when the Luperci, Ovid. 2. Fast. the Priests of Pan, the God of Shepherds, running naked through the City, and striking the Hands and Bellies of Breeding Women with Iuno's Cloak,Cic. 2. Phil. that is, the Skin of a Goat, februabant eas, purified them: and they thought that this ceremony caused to the Women Fruitfulness, [Page] and easie Labors. All sorts of purgations in any Sacrifice were called Februa: And the Animals sacrificed to Iuno were a white Cow,Virg. 4. Aen. a Swine, and a Sheep.Idem 8. Idem 4. Ovid. ibi. The Goose also and the Peacock were sacred to her.

Fluonia, quòd fluoribus menstruis adest: because she assisted them in their Courses.

Hoplosmia, that is, armed compleatly, she was Worshipped at Elis: Lil. Gyr. and from hence Iupiter is called Hoplosmius.

Iuga, Serv. 4. Aen. Fest. and in Greek [...], from jugum and conjugium, because she is the Goddess of Marriages. A street in Rome where her Altar stood was called Iugarius from thence. And anciently People used to enter into the Iugum, the Yoke of Marriage at the Altar: she is also by some called Socigena, quod nubentes associet.

Lacinia, Strab. l. 6. Liv. l. 24. from the Temple Lacinium, built and dedicated to her by Lacinius.

Lucina and Lucelia is either à luco, the Grove,Varr. de. ling lat. in which she had a Temple; or from luce, the Light of this World, into which Infants are brought by her. Ovid comprises both these Significations of Lucina in a Distich.In fast.

Gratia Lucinae: dedit haec tibi nomina Lucus,

Vel quia principium, tu Dea, lucis habes.

Lucina, hail, so nam'd from thy own Grove,

Or from the Light thou giv'st us from above.

Moneta, Liv. l. 7. Suid. Ov. ep. Parid. Euseb. 3. praep. [...]vang. Plutar. in Sympos. either because she gives wholesome Counsel (Salutaria monita) to those who consult her, or because she was believed to be the Goddess of Money.

Nuptialis, [...], And when they Sacrificed to her under this Name, they took the [Page] Gall out of the Victims, and cast it behind the Altar: to signifie, that there ought to be no Gall or Anger betwixt those who are married together.Ex Lil. Gy.

Opigena, because she gives help (opem) to Women in labour.

Parthenos; Pindar. in Hymn. Olymp. in Corint. or [...], the Virgin or Virginity. Pausanias tells us that she was called so from hence. There was a Fountain amongst the Argivi, called Canathus; where Iuno washing herself every year, was thought to recover her Virginity anew.

Perfecta, Jul. Pollux, l. 3. or [...], for Marriage is [...] and married people [...], when therefore she married Iupiter, she became [...], that is perfecta and adulta. Aug. 6. de Civ. Macrob. 6. Sat

Populona or Populonia, because people pray to her, or because they are procreated from marriage, of which she is Goddess.

And for the same Reason she was called Pronuba: Senec. in Med. neither indeed were any marriages lawful, unless Iuno was first called upon.

Regina, Queen, thus she calls her self, in Virgil, Aen. 1.

Ast ego, quae Divûm, in coelo Regina, Iovisque

Et Soror, & Conjux.

Whilst I, Heaven's Queen, Sister and Wife to Jove.

Sospita, à sospitando: because all the Women were supposed to be under her Safe-guard: Cic. de nat. every one of which had a Iuno, as every Man had a Genius.

Unxia was another, ah unguendo: for the Posts of the Door were anointed;Lil. Gyr. where a new married Couple lived, whence the Wife was called Uxor, quasi Unxor.

SECT. III.
The Signification of the Fable. JUNO the Air.

[Page]

IF we heed Varro's account, by Iuno was signified the Earth, and by Iupiter the Heavens: by the Marriage of which two, that is, by the Commixtion of the Influences of the Heavens with the Vapours of the Earth, all things almost are generated.

But if we believe the Stoicks, Iuno is the Air: Ap. Cic. 2. de nat. thus the Greek words [...] and [...] have an affinity and likeness. Qui interjectus inter coelum & terram; Iunonis nomine consecratus est, Planciad. says Tully; which lying betwixt the Earth and the Heaven is consecrated by the Name of Juno. Iuno is called Iupiters Wife, because the Air being naturally cold is warmed by Iupiter, Hellanic. in. [...], Homer. Iliad. 5. Phurnut. that is, by Fire, She is called Aeria, because she is from the Air it self or rules in the Air. And hence arises the story that Iuno is bound by Iupiter with Golden Chains, Iron Anvils being hung at her feet. Hereby the Ancients signified, that the Air was naturally more like Fire, yet it was sometimes mingled with Earth and Water the heaviest Elements.Sep. ep. 310.

I must not omit that every Woman had a Iuno. as every Man had a Genius: which were their tutelar or guardian Angels.

CHAP. XI.

[Page]

SECT. I.
MINERVA or PALLAS. Her Image.

P.

THis is a threatning Goddess. She denounces Terror altogether.

M.

It is Minerva, who derives her Name, as some think, from Minae, the Threats of her stern and fierce Look.

P.

But why is she Cloathed with Armour, rather than with Womens Cloaths; What means that Headpiece of Gold, and the Crests that glitter so?Apoll. l. 90. To what purpose has she a Golden Breast-Plate, and a Lance in her Right Hand, and a terrible Shield in her Left Hand: on which Shield I see a Grisly Head beset with Snakes, which she holds? And what means the Cock and the Owl, that are painted there?

M.

I will satisfie all your demands. She ought to be Armed rather than dressed in Womens Cloaths, because she is the President and Inventress of War. Virgil. 11. Aen. Cic. 3. de nat. D. The Cock is sacred to her, because it is a fighting Bird, and is often painted sitting upon her Headpiece; as is the Owl, of which by and by. But as for that Head looking so formidable with Snakes, she not only carries upon the Shield, but sometimes also in the midst of her Breast: it is the Head of Medusa, one of the

[Page]

[Page] [Page] [...]orgones. Virgil writes thus concerning it.

Aegidaque horrificum,

Aen.

turbatae Palladis arma,

Certatim squammis serpentem, auroque polibat;

Connexosque angues, ipsamque in pectore Divi

Gorgona, desecto vertentem lumina collo.

These angry Pallas dreadful Target mold,

And wrought her Arms with Dragons Scales and Gold.

This Gorgon's Head with twisted Serpents plies,

Rolling in Deaths Convulsions dying Eyes.

[...]ut you do not observe, I believe, an Olive Crown upon the Head of this Goddess.

P.

It escaped my notice. Nor do I yet see, [...]hy the Goddess of War should be Crowned [...]ith an Olive, which is an Emblem of Peace. [...]or I remember I have read in Virgil.

Paciferaeque manu ramum praetendit Olivae.

And in her hand a Branch of peaceful Olive bears.

Plutar. in Themist.

M.

Now, for that very reason, because it is [...]he Emblem of Peace, Herod. in Terpsich. it ought to be attributed [...] the Goddess of War. For War is only made, [...]at Peace may follow. Tho there is another [...]eason too why she wears the Olive. For she [...]rst taught Mankind the use of that Plant: [...]hen Cecrops built a new City. Neptune and Minerva contended about the name of that City: it was resolved that whichsoever of the [...]wo Deities found out the most useful Creature [...] Man, should give the name to the City. Neptune brought a Horse, and Minerva caused [...]n Olive to spring out of the Earth, which was [...]dged a more useful Creature for Man than [...]he Horse: therefore Minerva named the City, [...]nd called it Athenae, after her own Name, in Greek [...].

SECT. II.
The Birth of MINERVA.

[Page]

HIstory mentions five Minerva's. Cic. 3. de Nat. We sha [...] speak but of that one which was born [...] Iupiter, and to whom the rest are referre [...] P. But how was she born? M. I will tell yo [...] if you do not know; tho it is ridiculous. Whe [...] Iupiter saw that his Wife Iuno was Barren [...] thro greif struck his Forehead, and after Thre [...] Months brought forth Minerva; Sthena. ap. Gyr. from whence as some say, she was called Tritonia qua [...] [...].Lucian. in Dial. Vulcan was his Midwife, who opening his Brain with the Blow of an Hatche [...] was amazed,Deor. when he saw an armed Virag [...] leaping out of the Brain of her Father, instea [...] of a tender little naked Girl, as Ovid spea [...] of Minerva.

—De capitis fertur sine matre paterni

Vertice, cum clypeo prosiluisse suo:

Out of her Father's Scull, as they report,

Without a Mother, all in Arms, leapt forth.

Some have said, that Iupiter conceived th [...] Daughter, when he had devoured Metis, one o [...] his Wives;Hesiod. in Theog. and with that Me [...]t he presently grew big, and brought forth the armed Palla [...]

They say besides,Strab. l. 14. that it rained Gold in the Island of Rhodes, when Minerva was born [...] Which observation Claudian makes.

Auratos Rhodiis imbres, nascente Minerva,

Induxisse Iovem ferunt.

At Pallas Birth great Jupiter, we're told,

Bestrew'd the Rhodians with a Shower of Gold [...]

SECT. III.
Names of Minerva.

[Page]

LET us first examin whence the Names Minerva and Pallas are derived.

Minerva, 2 de nat. says Cicero, is derived from hence, quòd vel minuit, vel minuatur. And it is very true, being the Goddess of War, she diminishes the Number of Men,Cornific. ap. Gyr. and deprives both Families of their Heads, and Cities of their Members. But it may be derived from Minae, as I said before; because her Looks threaten Violence, and strike the Beholders with Terror. You may derive it too from monere, her good Admonitions, Festus. because she is the Goddess of Wisdom. She is Wisdom it self in the common esteem; whence comes the common Proverb, [...],Cic. 9. Epist. 18. Sus Minervam; which Proverb is spoken of Men who would teach those that are wiser than themselves. And from this Name of Minerva comes Minerval, or Minervale, in Greek [...], signifying the Salary that is given by the Scholars to the Masters.

[...] in Greek, is by some derived from [...] and [...], to suck or suckle by the Breast; for she never sucked the Breast; because she was born out of her Father's Head in full strength, and was therefore call'd [...] and [...] Motherless. Plato thinks she was called [...],Pollux Phurnut. quasi [...] or [...], that is, skilful in Divine Affairs. Others from [...] and [...],In Cratylo to be enslaved, because no Philosopher or Student in Wisdom is [Page] obnoxious to Servitude; according to the Sentence of the Stoicks in Tully, Liberum esse neminem, In Parad. nisi sapientem. The Philosopher, or the wise Man, is the only Free-Man.

Pallas is derived from [...],Serv. in 2. Aen. the Brandishing of her Spear, which Minerva does in War; or from a certain Giant called Pallas, which she slew; or from the Lake Pallas where she was first seen by Men.

Now we pass to her other Names, and because a great many of them are insignificant and useless, I will speak of two or three only; after I have first treated of the Palladium.

The Palladium was an Imge of Pallas, preserved in the Castle of the City of Troy; for while the Castle and Temple of Minerva was building, they say this Image fell from Heaven into the Temple, before it was covered with a Roof. This stirred up every bodies Admiration; and when Apollo was consulted, he answered, That the City should be safe so long as that Image remained within the City. Therefore when the Grecians besieged Troy, Ovid. 5. Fast. they found that it was impossible to take the City, unless the Palladium was taken out of it. The business was left to Ulysses and Diomedes, who undertook to creep into the City through the Common-Shores, and bring away this fatal Image.Herodian. I. 1. Plut. in Paral. When they had performed this, Troy was taken without any difficulty. Some say,Serv. in 2 Aen. it was not lawful for any Person to remove the Palladium, or even to look upon it, Others add,Clem. in Protrep. that it was made of Wood, so that it was a wonder how it could move the [Page] Eyes, and shake the Spear. Others on the contrary, report, that it was made of the Bones of Pelops, and sold to the Trojans by the Scythians: That Aeneas recovered it, after it had been taken by the Greeks, from Diomedes, and carried it with him into Italy, where it was laid up in the Temple of Vesta, Dion. Hal. l. 1. Antiq. as a Pledg of the Stability of the Roman Empire, as it had been before a Token of the Security of Troy. And lastly, others write, that there were two Palladiums; one Diomedes took, and another Aeneas carried away with him.

Parthenos, Homer. in hymn. in Vener. i. e. Virgin, and the Temple at Athens, where she was most religiously worshipped, was called Parthenon. For Minerva, like Vesta and Diana, was a perpetual Virgin, and such a Lover of Chastity, that the deprived Tiresias of the sight of his Eyes, because he saw her bathing in the Fountain Helicon: But Tiresias's Mother,Hom. l. 10. by her humble Petitions, obtained,Odyss. that since her own Son had lost the Eyes of his Body, the Sight of his Mind might be brighter and clearer, by having the Art of Prophesie.L. 3. Met. I know that Ovid assigns another cause of his Blindness; to wit, When Iupiter and Iuno in a merry Dispute made him Judg, because when he killed a She Serpent, he was turned into a Woman, and after seven Years, when he killed a He Serpent, he was again turned into a Man; he pronounced for Iupiter, wherefore Iuno deprived him of his sight.

This is another illustrious Instance of the Chastity of Minerva; Nat. Com [...] l. 7. c. 18. When Neptune had enjoyed the beautiful Medusa, (whose Hair was [Page] Gold) in her Temple, she changed into Snakes that Hair which had tempted him; and caused, that those that looked upon her hereafter, should be turned into Stones.

Her Name of Tritonia is taken from the Lake Triton, Pausan. in Boeot. l. 9. where she was educated, upon which Lake thus Lucan writes:

Hanc & Pallas amat, patrio quod vertice nata

Terrarum primam Lybien (nam proxima coelo est,

Ut probat ipse calor) tetigit, stagnique quietâ

Vult [...]s vidit aquâ, posuitque in margine plantas,

Et se dilectâ Tritonida dixit ab undâ.

This Pallas loves, born of the Brain of Jove,

Who first on Lybia trod: (the heat does prove

This Land next Heaven) she standing by the side,

Her Face within the quiet water spy'd,

And gave her self from the lov'd Pool, a Name,

Tritonia.—

Or from [...], or [...], which word signifies the Head in the old Boeotian and AEolick Language; because she was born there. Yet before we leave the Lake Triton, let me tell you the Ceremonies that were performed upon the Banks of it, in Honour of Minerva. Herodot. in Melp. A great Concourse of People out of all the neighbouring Towns assembled, to see the following Performance: All the Virgins came in several Companies, armed with Clubs and Stones; and a Sign being given, they assaulted each other; she who was first killed, was not esteemed a Virgin, and therefore her Body was disgracefully thrown into the Lake; but she, who received the most and the deepest Wounds, and did not give over, was carried [Page] home in Triumph in a Chariot, attended with the Acclamations and Praises of the whole Company.Ex Hes c.

[...],Isid. I. 10. Operaria, Workwoman; she was thus called by the Samians, Ovid. 6. Metam. her Worshippers; because she invented divers Arts,Virg. 7. Aen. especially the Art of Spinning, as the Poet teaches us;

—No [...] illa colo,

Theocrit. Eccl. 34.

calathisque Minervae

Foemineas assueta manus.

To Pallas Arts her Hands were never train'd.

The Distaff is sometimes called Minerva, because she invented it; as in Virgil. Aen. 8.

Cui tolerare colo vitam tenuique Minerva.

By th' Spinsters Trade she gets her Livelyhood.

Although Minerva so much excelled all others in spinning; yet Arachne, a young Lady of Lydia, very skilful at spinning, challenged Minerva in this Art; but she was ruined by it; for the Goddess tore her Work, and with a Spoke of the Wheel struck her Forehead.Ovid. 6. Metam.

—Frontem percussit Arachnes,

Non tulit infelix, laqueoque animosa ligavit

Guttura, pendentem Pallas miserata levavit,

At (que)ita, Vive quidem, pende tamen improba, dixit.

Arachne thrice upon the Forehead smote;

Whose great Heart brooks it not; about her Throat

A Rope she ties;

Virg Eccl [...]

remorseful Pallas staid

Her falling Weight. Live, wretch, yet hang, she said.

And afterwards turned her into a Spider.

—Et antiqu [...]s exercet Aranea telas.

And now a Spider turn'd, she still spins on.

The Art of Building, especially of Castles, was Minerva's Invention; and therefore she was believed to preside over them.

[Page]She is called Musica; L. 34. c. l. 2. because, says Pliny, Dracones in ejus Gorgone ad ictus citharae tinnitu resonabant. The Dragons about her Gorgon-Head tingled at the noise of a Harp. But more especially because she first found out the Use of the Pipe; but when she plaid with her Pipe by a River side, and saw her Face in the Water, swell'd and deform'd by blowing, she threw it away, saying,

I procul hinc,

Ovid.

duxit, non est mihi tibia tanti,

Ut vidit vultus, Pallas in amne suos.

Away, thou art not so much worth, she cry'd,

Dear Pipe; when she her Face i'th' stream espy'd.

Glaucopis, Pausan in Attic. from [...], an Owl; for her Eyes, like the Eyes of an Owl, were grey or sky-colour'd, that is, of a green colour mixed with white. Others think that she was not call'd so from the Colour of her Eyes, but from the Terror and Formidableness of her Mien; for which reason Lions and Dragons are also called Glauci and Caesii. Phurnut.

Pylotis, AEschyl. in Eumenid. from [...], a Gate; for as Mars his Image was set up in the Suburbs, so her Effigies or Picture was placed on the City Gates or Doors of Houses: whereby they signified, that we ought to use our Weapons abroad to keep the Enemy from entring our Towns; but in the Town we must use the Assistance of Minerva, not of Mars; that is, the State ought to be governed at home by Prudence, Counsel, and Law.

SECT. IV.
The Signification of the Fable. Pallas, the Symbol of Wisdom and Chastity.

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BY this Story of Minerva, Cic. 1. Off. the Poets intended to represent Wisdom; that is, true and skilful Knowledge joyn'd with discreet and prudent Practice. They hereby signifyed also, the understanding of the noblest Arts, and the Accomplishments of the Mind, the Virtues, and especially Chastity. Nor indeed without reason; for

1. Minerva is said to be born out of Iupiter's Brain; because the Wit and Ingenuity of Man did not invent the useful Sciences, which for the Use of Man were derived from the Brain of Iupiter; that is, from the inexhausted Fountain of the Divine Wisdom, from whence, not only the Arts and Sciences, but the Blessings of Wisdom and Virtue also proceed.

2. Pallas was born armed; Cic. in parad. because, a wise Man's Soul being fortified with Wisdom and Virtue is invincible. He is prepar'd and arm'd against Fortune: In Dangers he is intrepid; [...]n Crosses unbroken; in Calamities impregnable. Quemadmodum enim non colliquescit Iupiter, dum simulacrum ejus liquefit, Senec. as Seneca said; Though the Image of Jupiter sweats in ill weather, yet as Jupiter himself is dry and unconcerned with it; so a wise Man's Mind is har [...]ened against all the Assaults that Fortune can make upon his Body.

[Page]3. Minerva is a Virgin, Nyss. de Virg. init. c. 4. & 5. as all the Muses are; and accordingly the sight of God is promised to pure and undefiled Eyes;Serv. in 2. Aen. for even the Heathens thought that chast Eyes could see God; and Wisdom and Modesty has often appear'd in the Visions of Holy Men, in the form and habit of Virgins.

4. Minerva has a stern Look, and a froward Countenance; because, a wise and modest Mind gains not its Reputation and Esteem from outward Beauty and Finery, but from inward Honour and Virtue; for Wisdom and plain Modesty, though clothed with Rags, yet sends forth a glorious shining Lustre; she has as much Beauty in tattered Garments, as when she is clothed with Purple; and has as much Majesty when she sits on a Dunghil, as when she is placed on a Throne; she is as beautiful and charming when joyned to the Infirmities and Decays of old Age, as when she is united to the Vigour and Comeliness of Youth.

5. She invented and exercised the Art of Spinning. From hence other Virgins may learn, if they would preserve their Chastity, to employ themselves continually in some Work, and never to indulge Idleness; after the Example of Lucretia, a noble Roman Lady, who was found late at Night spinning amongst the Maids, working, and sitting in the middle of the House, when the young Gentlemen came thither from the King. Livy.

6. As the Spindle and the Distaff were the Invention of Minerva, so they are the Arms [Page] of every virtuous Woman. Provided with these she will despise the Enemy of her Honour, and drive away Cupid from her with the greatest ease: For which Reason, those Instruments were formerly carryed before the Bride,Bellof. l. ult c. 1 [...]. when she was brought to her Husbands House. And somewhere it is a Custom, at the Funerals of Women, to throw the Distaff and Spindle into the Grave with them.

7. As soon as Tiresias had seen Minerva naked, he lost his sight; was it for a punishment, or for a reward? Surely he never saw things so acutely before; for then he became a Prophet, knew future things, long before they were acted. Which is an excellent Precept to us, That he, who hath once beheld the Beauty of true Wisdom clearly, may without repining, lose his bodily sight, and want the view of corporal things, since he beholds the things that are to come, and enjoys the contemplation of eternal heavenly things, which are not visible to the Eye.

8. An Owl, a Bird seeing in the dark, was sacred to Minerva, and painted upon her Images, which is a representation of a wise Man; who scattering and dispelling the Clouds of Ignorance and Error, is clear-sighted where others are stark blind.

9. What can the Palladium mean, an Image which gave Security to those Cities, in which it was placed, unless that those Kingdoms flourish and prosper where Wisdom Counsels. It is supposed to have fallen down from Heaven, that we may understand, (what we find [Page] confirmed by the Scripture) That every the best and perfect Gift comes from above, Jac. Ep. 1. c. 1. and descends from the Father of Lights.

To this, I add the Inscription, which was heretofore to be seen in the Temples of Minerva, written in Golden Letters, amongst the Egyptians. V. Lil. Gyr. Synt. 11. Ego sum, quae sunt, quae erunt, quae fuerunt. Velum meum revelavit nemo. Quem ego fructum peperi, Sol est natus. I am what is, what shall be, what hath been. My Veil hath been unveiled by none. Whatever Fruit I have brought forth, there is the Sun born. Which are Words, as I think, full of Mysteries, and contain a great deal of Sense. Let every one interpret them according to this own mind.

CHAP. XII.

SECT. I.
VENUS. Her Image.

M.

TUrn your Eyes now to a sweeter Object, and view that Goddess, on whose countenance the most refined Charms of the Graces sit and play. You see a Pleasantness, a Mirth and Joy in every part of her Face: you see a thousand pretty Beauties and Amours, sporting wantonly in her snowy Bosom. Observe with what a becoming pride she holds up her Head and views her self, where she finds nothing but Joys and soft Delights. She is

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[Page] [Page] crown'd with Roses,Philostr. 12. Imag. and cloath'd with a purple Mantle glittering with Diamonds: by her side stand two Cupids, Ovid. Met. 15. and round her are the three Graces:Apul. l. 6. after follows the lovely beautiful Adonis, who holds up the Goddess's Train. Near her stands an empty Ivory Chariot,Horat. 3. curiously wrought in the shape of an Escallop Shell;Od. Ovid. 10. Met. which is drawn by Doves,Sappho poet. or Swans, or Swallows, as Venus orders when she rides in it.

P.

Is that Venus, the Goddess of Love? the Patroness of Strumpets, the vile promoter of Impudence and Lust; infamous for so many Whoredoms, Rapes, and Incests?

M.

Yes, that is Venus: whom in more honourable terms Men stile the Goddess of the Graces, the Author of Finery, Beauty, Neatness, Delight, and Cheerfulness. But in reality, she is, as you say, an impudent, Strumpet, and the Mistress and President of Obscenity.

P.

Why then is she so beautifully painted? Why is her Dress so glorious? Why is not her Chariot rather drawn by Swine, and Dogs, and Goats, than Swans and Doves, the purest and chastest of Birds? Infernal Spirits and black Spirits, are attendants more suitable to her than the Graces.

M.

What do you say? Blind foolish Men used formerly to erect Altars and deifie their Vices, they hallowed the grossest Impurities with Frankincense, and thought to ascend into Heaven by the steps of their Iniquities. But let us not inveigh against the times, but rather proceed in our Story of Venus.

[Page]You will in other places see her painted, sometimes like a young Lady rising from the Sea, and riding in a Shell: again like a Woman holding the Shell in her Hand, her Head being Crowned with Roses: Sometimes her Picture has a Silver Looking-glass in her Hand,Philostr. in Imag. and on her Feet are Golden Sandals and Buckles.Pausan. in Corinth. In the Pictures of the Sicyonian [...] she holds Poppy in one Hand and an Apple in the other: They consecrated to her the Thighs of all Sacrifices except Swine; for Venus, altho' she her self be filthy and unclean, abominates Swine for their uncleanness, or rather because a Boar killed Adonis her Gallant.Plut. in praec. connub. & l. de Isid. & Osir. At Elis she was painted treading on a Tortoise; shewing thereby that Virgins ought not to ramble abroad; and that married Women ought to keep silence and love their own home, and order their Family. She wore a Girdle or Belt called Cestus (from which some derive Incestus, Incest,)Homer. II. [...]. in which all kinds of Pleasures, Delights, and Gratifications were folded up.Eurip in Medea. ex Phurn. Some give her Arrows; and make Python or Suada, the Goddess of Eloquence, her Companion.

SECT. II.
The Descent of Venus

THey write,Cic. 3. de nat. that there were Four Venus's; born of different Parents. But this Venus of whom we speak, was the eminentest of them, and had the Beauties as well as the Disgraces of the other commonly ascribed to her.Hesiod. in Theog. She sprang from the Froth of the Sea, [Page] which Froth was made, when they cut off the Secrets of Coelum, or of his Son Saturn, and threw them into the Sea. Therefore she was called in Greek [...], from [...], Spuma; unless,Ex Eurip. & Phurn. as others say, it comes from [...], to be mad. As soon as she was born, she was laid like a Pearl,Homer. in hym. ad Ven. in a Shell instead of a Cradle; and was driven by Zephyrus upon the Island Cyprus: where the Horae received her, and took her into their Bosoms; educated, accomplished, and adorned her, and when she came to Age, carried her to Heaven, and presented her to the Gods: who being taken with her Beauty, all desired to marry her: but at last she was betrothed to Vulcan, and afterwards married him.

SECT. III.
Names of Venus.

HER Name Venus, says Tully, comes from veniendo,3 de nat. quòd ad omnes res veniat: All things are subject to Love. Or, quòd per eam omnia proveniant, ac progignantur; All things are produced [...] begotten by Love. Or, as others say, she is called Venus, quasi venusta, since she is the Goddess of Beauty:Pausan. in Attic. or Venus, quasi Adventitia. For she was first worshipped by the Egyptians, and from the Egyptians she was translated to the Greeks, and from them to the Romans; who always called all that came from Greece,1 de O [...] Adventitia and Transmarina. Thus Tully calls the Learning of the Greeks Transmarinam and Adventitiam. Let us now proceed to her other Names.

[Page] Amica Venus, [...]. For so the Athenians styled her; quòd amicos & amic [...]s jungeret, because she joyns Lovers together. Festus. This word is used both in a good and a bad sense: thus the Greeks called both Sweethearts and Whores [...],Ex Apol. & Hesych. from which word the Latin Pullus, signifies a Boy whom Men caress.

Armata. Pausan. in Lacon. & in Attic. Because when the Spartan Women [...]allied out of their Town, besieged by the Messenians, and beat them; their Husbands who were ignorant of it, went out to Fight, and met their Wives returning from the pursuit. The Men believing them Enemies, made themselves ready to Fight: but the Women shewed both by Words and by Deeds, that they were their Wives, (Modesty forbids a plainer explanation) and for this reason a Temple was dedicated to Venus Armata.

The Sidonians called her Astarte, Epiph. contr. Haeres. or Dea Syria (which Goddess others think was the Moon) and worshipped her in the Figure of a Star.Euseb. 1. de praep.

Apaturia from [...],Evang. Lucian. de Dea Syr. fallo: for neither is any thing more deceitful than a Lover, nothing more fraudulent than Love. Which flatters the Eyes,Strab. l. 11. and pleases like Roses in their finest Colours; but it leaves a Thorn in the Heart, it torments the Mind, and wounds the Conscience.

She was called by the Romans Barbata, Serv. Macrob. because when the Roman VVomen were so troubled with a violent Itching,Suidas & alii. that all their Hair fell off; they entreated Venus and their Hair grew again: whereupon they made an Image [Page] of Venus with a Comb, and gave it a Beard, that she might have the signs of both Sexes, and be thought to preside over the Generation of both. That this thing might be expressed more plainly; the uppermost part of the Image represented a Man, and the lower part a Woman.

Cypris, Cypria, and Cyprogenia, because she was worshipped in the Island of Cyprus: Cytheris and Cytherea, from the Island Cythera, whither she was first carried in the Shell-Fish. Festus.

There was a Temple at Rome dedicated to Venus Calva, Lactant. I. 1. div. Instit. because when the Galls possessed that City, Ropes for the Engines were made with the Womens Hair.

Cluacina, Veget. l. 4. de re milit. from cluo, to purge: her Image being set up in the place, in which the Peace was concluded betwixt the Romans and Sabines.

Erycina, Plin. l. 15. from the Mountain Eryce, in the Island of Sicily: Polyb. l. 2. upon which Aeneas built a splendid and famous Temple to her Honour,Serv. 1. because she was his Mother.Aen. Horace speaks of her thus. Od. 2. l. 1.Varr. 1. de re rust.

Sive tu mavis, Erycina ridens,

Quam Iocus circumvolat & Cupid [...].

If you, blith Goddess, will our side defend,

Whom Mirth and brisk Desire still attend.

The Epithet Ridens is properly applyed to her thus.Suidas. In Homer she is called [...],Phurnut. amans risus. Iliad. 20. ab Hesiod. For she is said to be born laughing, and from thence was made the Goddess of Mirth.

[...]ortensis. Because she looks after the production of Seed and Plants in Gardens. And [Page] Festus tells us, that the word Venus, is by Naevius put for Herbs, as Ceres is for Bread, and Neptunus is for Fish.

Idalia and Acidalia, Vir. 1. Aen. & Serv. Horat. saepe. from the Mountain Idalus, in the Island Cyprus, and the Fountain Acidalius in Boeotia. Marina, because she was born of the Sea (as we said) and begotten of the Froth of the Waters: which Ausonius hath elegantly signified in that Verse,

Orta salo, suscepta solo, patre edita coelo.

Heaven gave her life, the Sea a Cradle gave,

And Earths wide Regions her with joy receive.

From hence she is called Aphroditis, and Anadyomene; that is,Plin. 15. c. 10. Acuil. emerging out of the Waters, as Apelles painted her. And Pontia from Pontus. Alex. 2. Hence came the Custom that those who had escaped any Danger by Water,Clit. & Leucippe used to Sacrifice to Venus. Hence also the Mariners observed those Solemnities called Aphrodisia, which Plutarch describes in a Treatise against Epicurus.

Melanis or Melaenis;Pausan. in Arcad. nigra, tenebrosa, from [...] because of nocturnal Amours, both lawful and unlawful. Od. 9. [...]yr. ex [...] Hesyc. For omne amoris opus amat tenebras: the Works of Love do all of them seek the dark. Whence the Egyptians worshipped a Venus,Eurip. in Hippol. called [...], tenebrosa, and [...], a Goddess to be admired in the night, that is, in Marriage.

Meretrix, Lact. & Serv. because she first taught the Women in Cyprus to prostitute themselves for Mony.

Migonitis, Pausan. in Lacon. from [...], misceo, signifies her Power in the Affairs of Love. And Paris, [Page] after he had mix'd Embraces with Helena, dedicated the first Temple Veneri Migonitidi. Virgil uses the word misceo, speaking of the Affairs of Love.Aen. 7.

—quem Rhea Sacerdos

Furtivo partu, sub luminis edidit auras,

Mixta Deo mulier.

—Him Priestess Rhea bore

Into the lightsome World, for by stoln Ioy,

Mixt with a Deity she got the Boy.

She is called Murcia in Livy and Pliny, quasi Myrtea, because the Myrtle was sacred to Venus, and her Temple, upon the Aventine Mountain at Rome, was antiently called Murcus.

Paphia, from the City Paphos in the Island Cyprus, where they Sacrificed Flowers and Frankincense to her. Thus Catullus speaks of her, de coma Beren. l. 2.

Ipsa Paphum sublimis adit, sedesque revisit

Laeta suas, ubi templum illi, centumque Sabaeo

Thure calent arae, sertisque recentibus halant.

She with a stately gate to Paphos goes,

Her antient Seat, her Fane and Altars views,

Of which a hundred stand in rising steams

Of Frankincense, and Flowers fragrant smell.

This Image had not an human shape, but as Tacitus says, Erat continuus orbis, latiore initio, tenuem in ambitum, metae modo exurgens; & ratio in obscuro. Lib. 3. It was from the top to the bottom an orbicular Figure; a little broad beneath, the circumference but small, and sharpening as it went up like a Sugar loaf. The reason unknown. Lucan observes, that it was usual [Page]to worship other Gods in con [...]used shapeless Figures.

—simulacraque moesta Deorum

Arte carent, caesisque extant informia truncis.

All artless, plain, mishapen Trunks they are,

Their moss and mouldiness procures a Fear.

For certain the Goddess Pessinuntia (of whom we shall say more, when we speak of Cybele) was nothing but a shapeless Stone, which fell down from Heaven, as we find by Herodian.In Apolog. [...] Et Pallas Attica, says Tertulian, & Ceres farrea sine effigie, rudi palo, & informi ligno prostant. Even [...]allas the Athenian Goddess, and Ceres the God [...]ss of Corn, both of them without any certain Effigies to them, but mere rugged stakes, and shapeless pieces of Wood, are things that are bought and sold.Lib. 6. And Arnobius adds, Val. Max. lib. 8. Arabas informem coluisse lapidem; The Arabians worshipped a Stone without form or shape of a Deity.

Her Name Verticordi [...], quasi corda vertens, signifies the power of Love to change the Hearts, and ease the Minds of Men from the Cares that perplex them. Ovid says thus of her:

Templa jubet fieri Veneri,

[...] Fast.

quibus ordine factis,

l [...]de Venus verso nomina corde tenet.

Temples are rais'd to Venus, whence the Name,

From changing minds, of Verticordia came.

And for the same reason Venus is called in Greek [...].Pausan [...] in Att.

SECT. IV.
Actions of Venus.

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WHat Deeds can you expect from an impudent and powerful Strumpet, but those which are full of Lewdness, and Mischief, and Plagues? It were endless only to repeat the Names of all those whom she hath armed to the Ruin of one another; whom she hath turned into Beasts, by inciting them to commit such monstrous Wickednesses, as Modesty will not let me mention.

For who without blushing can hear of the Story of Nyctimene? Nyctimen who inspired by impure Lust, and raging with cursed Flames, is said

—Patrium temerasse cubile.

—To have defiled her Fathers bed.

And was therefore changed into an Owl, an ugly dismal Bird of the Night, who

—Conscia culpae

Ovid 2. Metam.

Conspectum, lucem (que) fugit, tenebris (que) pudorem

Celat, & à cunctis expellitur aere toto.

Still conscious of her shame avoids the Light,

And strives to shroud her guilty head in Night,

Expell'd the winged Quire.

Who does not abhor the Fact of Myrrha, Ovid. 10. Metam. Myrrha, which was contrived and committed by the encouragement and the assistance of Venus? She committed Incest with her own Father, by the Assistance of Cynaras, her old Nurse (may such Practices of Old Women receive their just reward) but her Sin prov'd her ruin, for she was turned into a Tree.

[Page]Quae quanquam amisit veteres cum corpore sensus

Flet tamen, & tepidae manant ex arbore guttae.

Tho Sense with Shape she lost, still weeping she

Sheds bitter tears which trickle from her Tree.

Why should I mention the Propoetides, Idem ib. Propoetides. the chief of Strumpets, who denied that Venus was a Goddess.

—pro quo, sua, Numinis ira,

Corpora, cum forma, primae vulgasse feruntur;

Utque pudor cessit, sanguisque induruit oris

In rigidum, parvo, silicem, discrimine versae.

The first that ever gave themselves for hire

To Prostitution, urg'd by Venus Ire,

Their Looks emboldned, Modesty now gone,

Convert at length to little differing Stone.

Why should I set before you Pygmalion a Statua [...]y?Idem ibid. who considering the great Inconveniences of Marriage,Pygmalion. resolved to live single. But when he had made a most elegant and artificial Image of Venus, he fell in love with his own Workmanship; so that he begged Venus, that she would turn it into a Woman, and enliven the Ivory: his wishes were granted, and he begot of this Image Paphus.

—de quo tenet insula nomen.

From whom the Island does its Name receive.

Let us a little relate the Stories of Pyramus and Thisbe, Atalanta and Hippomenes, Paris and Helena, three Couples of the most unfortunate Lovers.

Pyramus and Thisbe were both Inhabitants of the City of Babylon; equals in Beauty, Age, Conditions and Fortune. They begin to love from their Cradles. Their Houses were contiguous, [Page] so that their love proceeded from their Neighbourhood, encreased by their mutual Play, and was perfected by their singular Beauty. This love encreased with their years, and when they were Marriageable they begged their Parents consent; which was refused, because of some former Quarrels between the two Families. And that the Children might not attempt any thing against their Parents will, they were not permitted to se [...] each other, or to speak together. VVhat could Pyramus do? or how could Thisbe bea [...] this? There was a Partition VVall between both Houses, in which VVall was a small Crack never discovered by any of the Servants. Ovid. Met. l. 4.

Quid non sentit amor?

—Illam, primi, vidistis, amantes,

Et vocis fecistis iter, tutaeque per illud

Murmure blanditiae minimo transire solebant.

This for so many Ages undescry'd,

(What cannot love find out?) the Lovers spy'd,

By which their whispering voices softly trade,

And Passions amorous Embass [...]es convey'd.

Their Sighs went through; but Kisses could not pass: which, when they parted, they printed on the VVall.

Parti quisque suae non pervenientia contra.

—Their Kisses greet

The senseless Stones with Lips that cannot meet [...]

But what a fatal rupture in their Hearts did this small breach in the VVall produce? For their Love was too great to be confined to such narrow bounds: the next night therefore [Page] they resolved to enjoy that Liberty abroad which they could not receive at home, by escaping into a neighbouring VVood; where they intended to meet under the shade of a large Mulberry-Tree, which stood close to a Fountain. They agree, and Night comes, Thisbe deceives her Keepers, and escapes the first, and flies into the VVood; for Love added wings to her. VVhen she came to the appointed place, a Lioness came fresh from the slaughter of some Cattel, to drink at the Fountain, ‘Depositura sitim vicini fontis in unda.’ Thisbe was so frighted that she ran into a Den, and in her flight her Veil fell from her head; the Lioness returning from the Fountain, found the Veil, and tore it with his Jaws, smeered with the Cattels blood. Afterward comes Pyramus, and sees the Prints of a wild Beast's Foot in the Gravel, and by and by finds the Veil of Thisbe bloody and torn. He immediately concluded that she was kild and devoured by the Beast; he presently grew distracted, and hastned to the appointed Tree, and when he could not find Thisbe, he threw himself upon his Sword and died. Thisbe in the mean time recovered from her Fright, and came to the Mulberry-Tree; where she sees when she came near a dead Body lie.

—tremebunda videt pulsare cruentu [...]

Membra solum.

—Sees his panting Limbs

Strike the stain'd Earth—

She was amazed at the first, and stop'd, and went back frighted.

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Sed postquam remorata suos cognovit amores,

But when sh [...] saw it was her dearest Love.

She ran into the Embraces of her dying Lover, and mingling her Tears with his Blood, and folding her Arms about him,

Pyrame, clamavit, quis te mihi casus ademit?

Pyrame, responde, tua te charissima Thisbe

Nom [...]at; exaudi vultusque at [...]olle jacentes.

Ad nomen Thisbes, oculos in morte gravatos

Pyramus erexit [...] visaque recondidit illa.

—Wo's me, she said,

What cursed Fate hath this division made!

O speak my Pyramus! O look on me!

Thy dear, thy desperate Thisbe calls to thee!

At Thisbe's Name he opens his dim Eyes,

And having seen her shuts them up and dies:

And now Thisbe was almost dead with Grief. She tore her Cheeks, and beat her Breast, and rent her Hair, and shed a deluge of Tears upon his cold Face; nor ceased to mourn, till she perceived her Veil bloody and torn, in Pyramus's Hand. She then understood the occasion of his Death: and with all her Strength, she draws the Sword out of the Body of her Lover, and strikes it deep into her own; and falling accidentally on him, gave him a cold Kiss, and breathed her last Breath into his Bosom. The Tree was warmed with the blood of the slain, so that it became sensible of their Misfortune and mourn'd. Its Berries, which were before white, became red with Grief, and blushed [Page] for the Death of Pyramus: when Thisbe also died, the Berries became black and dark, as if they had put on Mourning.

In the next place hear the Story of Atalanta and Hippomenes. She was the Daughter of King Schoeneus, or Coeneus. It was doubtful whether her Beauty or Swiftness in running were greatest. When she consulted the Oracle, whether she should Marry or no, she received this Answer, that Marriage would be fatal to her. Hereupon the Virgin hid her self in the Woods, and liv'd in places remote from the Conversation of Men. But, the more she avoided them, they courted her the more eagerly. Her Disdain inflam'd their Desires, and her Pride rais'd their Adoration [...] At last, when she saw she could not otherwise deliver her self from the Importunity of her Lovers, she made this Agreement with them. ‘You court me in vain, says she, he who beats me at Running shall be my Husband; but they who [...] are beaten by me shall suffer death: I will be the Victors Prise but the Vanquisheds Punishment. If these Conditions please, come, go with me into the Field.’ They went.

Venit ad hanc legem temeraria turba procorum.

All her mad Wooers take the Terms propos'd.

They all strive, and were all beaten, and put to death according to the Agreement; suffering for the fault of their Feet, the loss of their Heads. Yet the Example of these Gentlemen did not deter Hippomenes from undertaking the Race, He entertain'd Hopes of [Page] winning the Victory, because Venus had given him three golden Apples, gathered in the Gardens of the Hesperides; and did advise him what he should do. Hippomenes briskly set out and began the Race; and when he saw that Atalanta overtook him, he threw down a golden Apple: the beauty of it enticed her, so that,

Declinat cursus, aurumque volubile tollit.

She greedy of the shining Fruit steps back

To catch the rolling Gold.—

Afterwards he threw down another, and she stopp'd again to reach it, and again a third; so that while Atalanta was busied in gathering them up Hippomenes reach'd the Goal, and took the Lady as the Price of his Victory.

But how inconstant is Venus? and how base Ingratitude? Hippomenes being drunk with Love, gave not due thanks to Venus, but was forgetful of her Kindness. The Goddess resented it, and inflam'd them with such strong impatient Desires, that in their Journey they dared to satisfie their Passion in a Temple: for which Sacrilege they were immediately punished, for they were turned into Lyons.

Lastly, let Paris and Helena now come upon the Stage. Paris was the Son of Priamus, King of Troy, by Hecuba: his Mother, when she was big-belly'd, dreamt that she brought forth a burning Torch: and asking the Oracles the Interpretation of it, they answer'd, that it did portend the Burning of Troy, and that the Fire should be kindled by that Boy that she had in her Belly. Therefore, as soon as [Page] the Child was born, by the Command o [...] Priamus, he was expos'd upon the Mountain Ida; where the Shepherds brought him privately up, and nourished him, and call'd him Paris. When he became a Man, many excellent Endowments and good Qualities shined in him; and particularly he gave such great Tokens of singular Prudence and Equity in deciding Controversies, that when a great difference arose amongst the Goddesses, they referr'd it to his Judgment to be determin'd. The Goddess Discordia was the occasion of this Contention: for,Dio. Chrys. or. 20. because all the Gods and Goddesses were invited,Philostr. in Icon. except her self to the Marriage of Peleus, she was angry, and resolv'd to revenge the Disgrace: wherefore when they all met and sat down at the Table, she came in privately, and threw down upon the Table an Apple of Gold, on which was this Inscription, Pulchrior accipiat, or (which is the same) Detur pulchriori; Let the Fairest take it. Hereupon arose a Quarrel amongst the Goddesses; for every one thought herself the handsomest. But at last all the other Goddesses yielded to the three superior Goddesses, Iuno, Pallas and Venus: who disputed so eagerly, that Iupiter himself was not able to bring them to Agreement. He resolved therefore to leave the final determination of it to the Judgment of Paris; so that she should have the Apple, to whom Paris should appoint it. The Goddesses consent, and call for Paris, who did then feed Sheep upon a Mountain. They tell him the Business; they [Page] every one court his Favour with great Promises. Iuno promised to reward him with Power; Pallas with Wisdom; and Venus promis'd him the most Beautiful Woman in the World. In short, he observ'd them all very curiously: but Nature guided him to pronounce Venus the Fairest, and to assign to her the Apple of Gold. Nor did Venus break her Promise to Paris: for in a little time Paris was own'd to be King Priam's Son; and sail'd into Greece with a great Fleet, under colour of an Embassy, to fetch away Helena, the most Beautiful Virgin in the World; who was betroth'd to Menelaus, King of Sparta, and liv'd in his House. When he came Menelaus was absent from home; and in his absense Paris carried Helena to Troy: Menelaus demanded her, but Paris refus'd to send her back; whereupon that fatal War between the Grecians and Trojans brake out, in which Troy, the Metropolis of all Asia, was taken and miserably burnt, in the Year of the World, 2871. There were kild 886000 of the Grecians; amongst whom Achilles their General lost his life by the Treachery of Paris himself. There were slain 676000 of the Trojans; from the beginning of the War, to the Betraying the City. (for it was thought that Aeneas and Antenor betray'd it) amongst whom Paris himself was kild by Pyrrhus or Philoctetes; and his Brother Hector, Patriae Columen, the Pillar of his Country, was kild by Achilles. And when the City was taken and burnt, King Priamus, the Father of Paris and Hector, at once lost all his Children, [Page] Hecuba his Queen, his Kingdom, and his Life. Helena, after Paris was kild, married his Brother Deiphobus. Yet she at last betray'd the Castle to the Grecians, and admitted Menelaus into her Chamber to kill Deiphobus; whereby, it is said, she was reconciled to the Favour of Menelaus again. But these things belong rather to History than to Fable, to which let us return.

SECT. IV.
Venus's Companions. Cupid, the Graces, Adonis.

MAny different Parents are ascribed to the God of Love,Philostr. in Icon. Cupid, because there were many Cupids. In sympos. Vid. Nat. & Lil. Plato says he was born of Penia, the Goddess of Poverty, and Porus, the Son of Counsel and Plenty. Hesiod relates that he was born of Chaos and Terra. Sappho derives him from Venus and Coelum Alcaeus says he was the Son of Lite and Zephyrus. Simonides attributes him to Mars and Venus; and Alcmaeon to Zephyrus and Flora. But whatsoever Parents Cupid had, this is plain, he always accompanies Venus, either as a Son or as a Servant. Cic [...] de Nat. Deor.

The Poets speak of two Cupids. Plat. in Phaedro. One of which is an ingenious Youth, the Son of Venus and Iupiter, a celestial Deity, and often called [...], the other an obscene Debauchee, the Son of Nox and Erebus (Hell and the Night) a vulgar God, whose Companions [Page] are, Drunkenness, Sorrow, Enmity, Contention, and such kind of Plagues: one of these Cupids is called Eros, and the other Anteros. Both of them are Boys, and naked, and winged, and blind; and armed with a Bow and Arrows, and a Torch.Plut. ap. Stobae. Schol. They have two Darts of different Natures; a Golden Dart which procures Love,Theocr. 10 Idyl. and a Leaden Dart which causes Hatred. Anteros is also the God who avenges slighted Love.

Altho this be the youngest of all the Gods in Heaven,Pausan. in Boeot. yet his Power is so great,Plut. in sympos. that he is esteemed the strongest of them; for he subdues them all Without his assistance, his Mistress Venus is weak and can do nothing, as she confesses when she accosts him after this manner. Virg. Aen. 1.

Nate, meae vires, mea magna potentia, solus.

My Son, my strength and power thou art alone.

P.

But wherefore is Cupid naked?

M.

He is naked, because the Lover has nothing his own, but deprives himself of all that he has for his Mistress's sake; he can cover nor conceal any thing from her, of which Sampson is a witness: for he discovered to his beloved Mistress, even the Secret on which his safety did depend; and herein his Understanding was blinded before his Eyes. Another gives the following reason of Cupids Blindness.

Quare nuda Venus? nudi pinguntur amores?

Nuda quibus placeat, nudos dimittat oportet.

Why's Venus naked, and the Loves are so?

Those that like Nakedness should naked go.

[Page] Cupid is a Boy, because he is void of Judgment; for violent Love is extravagant and Madness. And he is blind, because a Lover does not see the Faults of his beloved Object, nor considers in his Mind the Mischiefs proceeding from that Passion. He is winged, because nothing flies swifter than Love; for he that loves to day, will hate to morrow; and the space of one day does oftimes see Love and Aversion in their turns reigning in the same Person: nay Amnon, King David's Son, both loved and hated the same Woman in a shorter space of time; for with the greatest degree of hatred he turned her out of his Chamber, whom he just before enticed in with the highest marks of Love. Lastly, the Boy is armed with Arrows, because he strikes afar off.

The Graces, Gratiae, Charites, [...], from [...], Gaudium, were three Sisters, the Daughters of Iupiter and Eurynome, or Eunomia; as Orpheus says: or, as others rather say, the Daughters of Bacchus and Venus. The first was called Aglaia, [...], Gloria, Hilaritas, venustas; because Kindnesses ought to be performed freely and generously. The second Thalia, [...], (with an Iota, for [...] with the Diphthong is the Name of a Muse) from [...], vireo; because Kindness ought never to die, but to remain fresh always in the Receivers memory. The third Euphrosyne, [...], Laetitia; because we ought to be free and cheerful, as well in doing as in receiving a Kindness. Hesiod. in Theog.

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[Page] [Page]These Sisters were painted naked (or in transparent and loose Garments) young and merry, and all Virgins, with hands joyned. One turned from the Beholder, as if she was going from him; the two other turned their Faces, as if they were coming to him: whereby we may understand, that when one Kindness is done, Thanks are twice due; once when received, and again when it is repaid. The Graces are naked, because Kindnesses ought to be done in Sincerity and Candor, and without Disguise. They are Young, because the memory of Kindnesses received ought never to grow old. They are Virgins, because Kindness ought to be pure, without expectation of requital: or because we ought neither to give or receive a base or immodest Kindness. Their Hands are joined, because [...], one good turn requires another: there ought to be a perpetual intercourse of Kindness and Assistance amongst Friends.

Adonis was the Son of Cynaras, King of Cyprus, and Myrrha. He was mighty handsom, wherefore Venus took great delight in him, and loved his Company. When he Hunted, a Boar struck his Groin with his Tusks and kild him. Venus bewailed his death with much sorrow and concern, and changed his Blood which was shed on the ground into the Flower Anemone, which ever since has retained the colour of Blood. And while she ran to assist him, being led by his dying Voice, she prickt her Foot with a Thorn, and the Blood which came from thence made the Rose red, which was before white.

[Page]Some add another pleasant Conceit. They say that Venus and Proserpina contended before Iupiter which should have Adonis. Iupiter directed them to Calliope, whom he appointed Judge of their Quarrel Calliope gave this Sentence: that Adonis should serve Venus every year six Months, and Proserpina the other six. The meaning of which Fable is this: Venus is the Earth, and her Adonis is the Sea. She reigns with him six months, attired with beauteous Flowers, and enriched with Fruit and Corn; the other six months the Sun leaves us, and goes as it were to live with Proserpina. Lastly, from Adonis comes the Proverb Adonidis Horti, which signifies all those things which are fine and gay, but useless and trifling.

SECT. V.
The Explanation of the Fable. VENUS Amorousness.

THE Graces, Cupid and Adonis, are Venus's Companions, whereby is described, the ungovernable appetite and inclination towards Obscenity.

1. She is called the Goddess of Beauty and Comeliness: for Beauty is the greatest fomenter of impure Desires. She sitting on a frail corporeal Throne, subdues the Soul; she by her Flattery and Enticement steals into the Affections and drives Virtue from thence, and basely enslaves the whole Man. The Cythe [...]ans worshipped Venus armed. Beauty needs [Page] no Weapons: she who possesses that is suffici [...]ntly armed. Anacreon ingeniously tell us, [...]hat Nature gave Women Beauty, that they [...]ight use it instead of Spears and Shields, and Conquer with greater speed and force than [...]ither Iron or Fire can. Helena, Phryne, and [...]nnumerable others, are witnesses of this truth: One Lady, when she was bound to the Stake [...]o be stoned, with the lightning of her Eyes [...]isarmed her Executioners: Another, when [...]er Crime was proved, and tho' she had often offended before, when she tore her Garments [...]nd opened her Breast, stopped the Judges mouth, and when her Beauty pleaded her Cause, every body acquitted her.

2. Beauteous Venus rides in a Chariot, as it were to triumph over her subdued Enemies, whom Love, rather than Force has conquered. She has her Ambushes, but they are composed of Pleasure and Enjoyment; she Skirmishes with Delights, and not with Fire and Bullets; [...]he Wounds she gives are bloodless and gentle; she uses no other Flames than what she kindles with her Eyes, and draws them which she shoots from no other Quiver. And if she [...]ights thus, it is no wonder if she makes the Enemy fly to her rather than from her.

3. She wears a Crown because she is always Victorious. Beauty never wants success: because she fights leasurely and Conquers in time of Peace, and Triumphs with her Eyes: Thunder is contained in her Silence, and Lightning in her Looks. She seizes the Breast, storms the Mind, and takes it captive with [Page] one Assault, nay with one Look. Beauty speaks without a Voice, forces us without Violence; tyes us down without Fetters, enchants us without Witchcraft, and in her to see is to Overcome, and to be seen is to Triumph. Augustus refused to see her in Cleopatra, lest himself should be taken, and the Conqueror of the World submit to a Woman. When therefore she pleaded and made her defence, he opened his Ears but shut his Eyes.

4. She carries a Looking glass, that the brittleness of the Glass may remind her of the frailty of her Beauty. She is crowned with flowery Garlands, because nothing is more fading than Beauty, which like a Flower is blasted by the least breath, and broken by the least accident, and dies in the smallest moment.

5. She is born from the Sea, because more Storms and Tempests afflict the Lover, than disturb the Sea: Nothing but bitterness is his portion, so that we may say that amare to Love, is derived from amarus bitter. This is certainly true, that the bitterness of the Sea is sweet, if compared with the bitterness of Love. But suppose Love has some sweetness, yet like the Sea from whence Venus sprung, it is full of tempestuous desires and stormy disappointments; how many Vessels have beed shipwreck'd there, how many Goods lost? What destructions not only of Mens Estates, but of the Understandings also, have happened here? Instances of which, every body who is not blind has observed.

[Page]6. Consider the Adulteries, Rapes, Incests, of which Venus is accused, and you will find whitherward her Beauty tends. Those are the Precipices, into which that Ignis fatu [...]s in her Eyes betrays its Admirers. Tho her Face appears pure, and cool as the Ice, it creates a Passion both impure, and hot as Fire. From that stream of sparkling Fire which comes from her Eyes, are engendred Clouds of dark and hellish Impurity, and black mists of Lust. Thus by a strange contradiction, many are blinded by others Eyes, and find Tumults raised in their breasts from the calm serenity of anothers looks, grow pale at the redness in their Cheeks; loose their own Beauty in admiring the Beauty of others, and grow immodest by loving their Modesty.

P.

How far I prithee will the Fervour and the flowing Tide of your Wit and Fancy carry you? The Beauty of this Goddess, I see, hath raised your Admiration.

M.

My Choler rather. But however you do well in stopping me. She hath detained us longer than I expected. Tho' not without Reason; because she is one of the greatest of all the Goddesses. The rest are less illustrious, and will by no means detain us so long.

CHAP. XIII.

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SECT. I.
LATONA.

LAtona, Apollod. l. 1. whom you see standing next to Venus, was the Daughter of Phoebe, and Coeus the Titan. Ovid. 6. Metam. She was so beautiful a Lady, that Iupiter fell in love with her, and deflowred her: when Iuno perceived, that she was big with Child by him, she cast her out of Heaven to the Earth; and obliged Terra by an Oath, not to give her any where a habitation to bring forth in: and besides, she set the Serpent Python upon her,Orph. in hymn. to persecute her all over the World. Iuno however was disappointed in every thing: for the Island Delos received Latona; where under a Palm, or an Olive-Tree, she brought forth Diana: who as soon as she was born, performed the Office of a Midwife to her Mother, and brought Apollo into the world.

P.

But if Terra swore,Lucian. in dial. that she would allow no place to Latona, how could she bring forth in Delos? Iridis. & Neptuni.

M

Very well. For they say, that that Island heretofore floated in the Sea, and was then hid under the Waters, when Terra took her Oath; but emerged afterwards by the Order of Neptune, and became fix'd and [Page] immoveable for Latona's use: from which time it was called [...], conspicua, because it was now visible like other places

P.

But why did the Island Delos emerge for Latona's use?

M.

That is not strange. For this Island was Sister to Latona: some say that her name formerly was Asteria, whom Iupiter loved and courted, but she was converted into an Island; but others report, that she was converted into a Quail, and flew into this Island; which was therefore, amongst other Names, called Ortygia from [...], a Quail. Ovid. 15. Metam. Niobe's Pride and the Barbarity of the Country-men of Lycia, encrease the Fame of this Goddess.

Niobe was the Daughter of Tantalus, Ovid. 6. Metam. and the Wife of Amphion, King of Thebes. She was so blessed with all the gifts of Nature and Fortune, her happiness was so great that she could not bear it: wherefore puffed up with Pride and full of Self-conceit, she began to despise Latona, and to esteem her self greater than her, saying;

Major sum, quam cui possit fortuna nocere.

Multaque ut eripiat, multò mihi plura relinquet.

In quancunque domus adverti lumina partem,

Immensae spectantur opes. Accedit eodem

Digna Deo facies. Huc natas adjice septem,

Et totidem Iuvenes: & mox Generos (que) Nurusq,

Quaerite nunc habeat quam nostra superbia causam?

My state too great for fortune to bereave:

Tho much she ravish, she much more must leave.

[Page]Throughout my Court, behold in every place

Infinite Riches! add to this, a Face

Worthy a Goddess. Then, to crown my Ioys,

Seven beauteous Daughters, and as many Boys:

All these by marriage, to be multiply'd.

Behold, have we not reason for our Pride?

For she had brought to her Husband seven Sons, and as many Daughters, who were all very ingenious and very handsom. But her mad Pride deprived her of all the Blessings which she possessed in a short time, and reduced her from the Heighth of good Fortune to the lowest degree of Misery. For when Latona saw her self so despised, and her Sacrifices disturbed by Niobe, she left it to Apollo and Diana to punish the Injury that was offered to their Mother. Immediately they two go with their Quivers well filled with Arrows, to Niobe's House; where first they kill the Sons, then the Daughters, and next the Father, in the sight of Niobe: who by that means

—Orba resedit

Exanimes inter natos, natasque virumque,

Diriguitque malis.

She, by her Husband, Sons, and Daughters, sits

A childless Widow; waxing stiff with woes.

Till at length she was turned into Marble: which because of this misfortune sheds many Tears to this day.Id. ibid.

The Rusticks of the Country Lycia, in Asia, did also experience the Anger of Latona, with their Ruine: for when she wandered in the Fields, very big with Twins, the heat of the Weather and the toil of her Journey, brought [Page] such a Drought upon her, that she almost fainted for Thirst. At last she discovered a Spring in the Bottom of the Valley, she ran to it with great Joy, and fell on her Knees; ‘—gelidos potura liquores.’ The neighbouring Country-men seeing her, forbade her, tho she begged of them leave to; drink in this manner:

Quid prohibetis aquas? usus communis aquarum est

Quas tamen ut detis, supplex peto. Non ego nostros

Abluere hic artus lassataque membra parabam,

Sed relevare sitim. Caret os humore loquentis.

Et fauces arent, vixque est via vocis in illis.

Haustus aquae mihi Nectar erit, vitamque fatebor

Accepisse.

Quem non blanda Deae potuissent verba movere?

Hi tamen orantem perstant prohibere; minasque

Ni procul abscedat, convitiaque insuper addunt;

Nec satis est; ipsos etiam pedibusque manuque

Turbavere lacus: imoque è gurgite mollem

Huc illuc limum, saltu movere maligno.

—Why hinder you, said she,

The use of Water, that to all is free?

The Sun, Air, Water, Nature did not frame

Peculiar; a publick Gift I claim.

Yet humbly I intreat it: not to drench

My weary limbs, but killing thirst to quench.

My tongue wants moisture, and my jaws are dry:

Scarce is there way for speech. For drink I die.

Water to me were Nectar. If I live,

'Tis by your favour:—

With whom would not such gentle words prevail?

But they, persisting to prohibit, rail;

[Page]The place with threats command her to forsake.

Then with their hands and feet disturb the Lake:

And leaping with malicious motions, move

The troubled mud; which rising, flotes above.

Latona could no longer bear such barbarous Treatment, wherefore cursing them,

AEternum stagno, dixit, vivatis in isto:

Eveniunt optata Deae.

Ever, said she, may y' in this water dwell.

And as the Goddess wish'd it hap'd.

Immediately they were turn'd into Frogs, and leapt into the muddy waters.

CHAP. XIV.

SECT. I.
AURORA.

M.

DO you see a stately Goddess drawn in a Chariot of GoldVirg. 6. Aen. by White Horses,Theocrit. in Hyla. who do you think she is?

P.

Is it not Aur [...]ra, Apollod. l. 1. ibid. the Daughter of Terra and Titan, Hymn. in Vener. the Sister of the Sun and the Moon, and the Mother of the Stars and the Winds? I fancy so, because her Countenance shines like Gold, and her Fingers are red like Roses: and Homer describes Aurora after that manner.

M.

Your Observation is very right. It is, as you say, Aurora: who in Greek is called [...] or [...], whence come the words Eous and Heous: Orph. in Hymn. And Aurora, quasi Aurea, because sh [...] [Page] is [...], the golden Messenger of the Sun. You have named her Parents right, yet some say that she was the Daughter of Hyperion and Thia, or else Pallas: Hesiod. in Theog. from whom, amongst the Poets, frequently she is called Pallantias.

P.

Does History relate nothing done by her?

M.

She carried by force two beautiful young Men, Cephalus and Tithonus, Ovid. 7. Metam. into Heaven.

Cephalus married Procris the Daughter of the King of Athens: Pausan. in Lacon. when Aurora could by no perswasion move him to violate his Marriage Vow, she carried him into Heaven, but even there she could not shake his Constancy. Therefore she sent him again to his Wife Procris, disguised in the habit of a Merchan [...]; who being desirous to try her Fidelity to her absent Husband, tempted her with much Courtship and many Presents, to yield to his desires. And when she almost consented, he cast off his Disguise and chid his Wife for her Inconstancy. She was greatly ashamed and hid her self in the Woods: but afterwards was reconciled to her Husband, and gave him a Dart [...] which never mis [...]ed the Mark, which she had receiv'd from Minoe. When Cephalus had this Dart, he spent his whole time in Hunting, and pursuing Wild Beasts. Procris, suspecting that her Husband loved some Nymphs, went before and lay hid in a Bush, to discover the Truth. But when she moved carelesly in the Bush, her Husband heard the rustling, and thinking that some Wild Beast was there, he drew his Bow and shot his Wife with his unerring Dart. Ovid. Metam. l. 7.

[Page] Tithonus was the Son of Laomedon, Horat. l. 2. Carm. and Brother of Priamus: Aurora for his singular Beauty, carried him to Heaven and married him, and instead of a Portion, obtained from the Fates immortality for him; she had Memnon by him. But she forgot to ask the Fates to grant him perpetual Youth, so that he became so old and decrepid, that like an Infant he was rocked to sleep in a Cradle. Wherefore he began to be weary of Life, and wish for Death; and therefore asked Aurora to grant him power to die. She said that it was not in her power to grant it; but that she would do what she could; and therefore turned her Husband into a Grashopper: which they say moults when it is old, and grows young again. Ovid. Met. l. 9.

P.

And what became of Memnon?

M.

Memon, Ovid. 13. Metam. their Son, went to Troy to assist King Priam, where, in a Duel, with Achilles, he was killed; and in the place where he fell, a Fountain arose, which every year on the same day on which he died, sends forth Blood instead of Water. But as his Body lay upon the Funeral Pile to be burnt, by his Mother Aurora's intercession it was changed into a Bird; and many other Birds of the same kind flew out of the Pile with him: which were called Memnoniae from his name; these Birds divided themselves into two Troops: and furiously fighting with their Beaks and Claws, with their own Blood appeased the Ghost of Memnon, from whom they sprang.

What they report concerning a Statue of this Memnon, Lucian. in Philopseu. which was made of black Marble, [Page] and set up in the Temple of Serapis at Thebes in Egypt, is almost incredible.Tzetzes. Chil. 6. They say, that the Mouth of this Statue, when first touched by the Rays of the rising Sun, did send forth a sweet and harmonious sound, as tho' it rejoyced when its Mother Aurora came. But when the Sun did set, it used a low melancholy Tune, as tho' it lamented his Mothers departure.

And thus I have told you, Paleophilus, all things which I thought useful, concerning the Celestial Gods and Goddesses.

P.

How much am I indebted to you for this, my most kind Friend. But what now? I think you are going away. Will you not keep your word? Did you not promise to explain all the Images in the fabulous Pantheon?

M.

Never trouble your self: what I undertake, I will be sure to perform. But would you have us stay here all day without our Dinner? Let us dine, and we will soon return again to our Business. Come, you shall dine with me at my House.

P.

Excuse me, Sir, I will not give you that trouble, I had rather dine in my own Inn.

M.

What do you talk of Trouble? I know no person, whose Company is more obliging and grateful. Let us go, I say: you are not your own Master to day. Obey then.

P.

I do so, I wait upon you.

PART II.

[Page]

CHAP. I.

SECT. I.
Of the Terrestrial Deities. SATURN [...] His Image.

P.

NOW certainly, since we have dined so well, you will speak and I shall mind better. Come on. Whereabouts would you have me look?

M.

Look upon the Wall on the right Hand; because it would be ill luck to begin from the left. Upon that Wall, which is the second part of the Pantheon, and of our Discourse, you see the Terrestrial Deities, divided into two sorts. For some of them inhabit both the Cities and the Fields indifferently; and are called in general Dii Terrestres. But the others live only in the Countries and the Woods; and are properly called Dii Sylvestres. We will begin with the first.

Of the Terrestrial Gods (which are so called, because their Habitation is in the Earth) the most celebrated are, Saturn, Ianus, Vulcan,

[Page]

[Page] [Page] AEolus and Momus. The Terrestrial Goddesses are Vesta, Cybele, Ceres, the Muses, and Themis; equal in number to the Celestial Gods and Goddesses. We will begin with the eldest, Saturn, whose Image you see there.

P.

Is that decrepid wrinkled old Man Saturn? Virg. 7. Aen. with a long Beard, a hoary Head, his Shoulders are bowed like an Arch, and his Jaws are hollow and thin; his Eyes full of Corruption, and his Cheeks sunk; his Nose flat, his Forehead full of Furrows,Ex Martian. ap. Lil. his Chin turning up, his Lips black and blue, his little Ears flagging, and his Hands crooked; his right Hand holds a rusty Sickle, and his left a Serpent biting its own Tail?

SECT. II.
His Family and Actions.

M.

IT is indeed Saturn: Nonn. l. 21. Dionysiac. the Son of Terra (or Vesta) and Coelum, Caelus, or Coelius, [...]in Greek [...];Lact. Placid. in l. 8. Theb. who was the Son of AEther and Dies, and the Antientest of all the Gods. This Coelum (according to the Story) married his own Daughter Vesta, and begat many Children of her: the most eminent of whose was Saturn; whose Brothers were the Cyclopes, Oceanus, Titan, the Centimani, and divers others: and Sisters, Ceres, Tethys, and Ops or Rhea; (which he afterwards married.) The Sisters perswaded their Mother Vesta to exclude Titan or Titanus the eldest Son, and to appoint Saturn Heir of his Father's Kingdom. When [Page] Titan saw the fixed Resolution of his Mother and Sisters, he would not strive against the Stream, but voluntarily quitted his Right, and transferr'd it upon Saturn, under Condition, that he should not bring up any Male Children, that so, after Saturn's Death, the Kingdom should return to the Children of Titan.

P.

Did Saturn accept that Condition?

M.

He not only accepted, but very sincerely kept it, whilst he could; for at last his Design was prevented. For when his Wife Ops perceived that her Husband devoured all her Male Children, when she brought forth the Twins Iupiter and Iuno, she sent only Iuno to him, but sent Iupiter to be nursed in Mount Ida by the Curetes, and Corybantes (Priestesses of Cybele) who by the noise of the Cymbals and Drums (which they used in the Sacrifices) might hinder Saturn from hearing the crys of Iupiter. By the same Trick she also saved Neptune and Pluto from her devouring Husband.

P.

Was this Artifice ever discovered to Saturn?

M.

Yes, and he demanded the Boy of Ops. But Ops lapp'd up a Stone in Swadling Cloaths, and delivered that to her Husband to be devoured instead of Iupiter, who swallowed it down in a moment?

P.

What did Titan do, when he saw himself cheated, and the Agreement between him and Saturn broken.

M.

To revenge the Injury done to him, he raised Forces, and brought them against Saturn, [Page] and made both him and Rhea Prisoners, and bound them, and shut them up together in Hell (Tartarus) where they lay, till Iupiter after a few years overcame the Titans, and set his Father and Mother again at Liberty.

P.

I suppose that Saturn remembred this Kindness, and favoured Iupiter afterwards.

M.

On the contrary,Enn. in Euemero. he strove to take away his Life, because he heard by an Oracle, that he should be driven out of his Kingdom by a Son. As in reality he was afterwards. For Iupiter deposed him from the Throne, and expelled him the Kingdom, because he formed Conspiracies against him:Stat. 8. Theb. Besides this, when he found Saturn almost Drunk with Mead,Claud. 1. de rapt. he bound him and gelded him, as Saturn had gelt his Father Coelum before with his Sickle.

P.

And whither did Saturn go after he had lost his Kingdom?Virg. 8. Aen.

M.

Into Italy; which was heretofore called Saturnia from him.Cyprian. de Idol. vanit. He lived there with King Ianus, and that part of Italy, in which he lay hid, was afterwards called Latium; and the People Latinus, à latendo; as Ovid observes. Fast. l. 1.

Inde diu Genti mansit Saturnia nomen:

Dicta fuit Latium terra, latente Deo.

That Country long Saturnia became,

While Latium from his lying hid had Name.

King Ianus made Saturn Partner of his Kingdom,Diod. l. 5. Biblioth. whereby Saturn reduced the wild People (who wandered up and down before like [Page] Beasts) to civil Society, and joined them to each other as it were in Chains of Brass, that is, by the Brass Money which he invented; and therefore on one side of the Money was stamped a Ship, because Saturn came thither in a Ship, and on the other side was stamped a Ianus Bifrons, says Ovid in Fast. l. 1.

At bona posteritas puppim signavit in aere;

Hospitis adventum testificata Dei.

A Ship by th' following Age was stampt on Coin,

To shew they once a God did entertain.

But altho' the Money was Brass,Virg. 1. Georg. Vid. Tibul. yet this was the Golden Age in which Saturn lived, when (as the Poets, who magnify the happiness of that Age,Hesiod. Pherecrat. Trog. ap. Justin. l. 43. would persuade us) the Earth without the Labour of Plowing and Sowing brought forth its Fruits, and all things were common to all; there were no Differences nor Contentions amongst any, for every thing happened according to every Body's mind.Martial. l. 12. ep. 73. This Virgil hath elegantly described, Aen. l. 8.

Primum ab aethereo venit Saturnus Olympo,

Arma Iovis fugiens, & regnis exul ademptis.

Is genus indocile, ac dispersum montibus abtis

Composuit, legesque dedit, Latiumque vocari

Maluit, his quoniam latuisset tu [...]us in oris.

Aureaque ut perhibent illo sub rege fruere

Saecula, sic placida populos in pace regebat.

Flying Jove's Anger, Saturn to this Coast

From Heav'n first came, Coelestial Kingdoms lost

He from high Mountains the rude People draws

And taught them both Civility and Laws;

Then Latium stil'd the Country, since it held

H [...]m safe from all his Enemies conceal'd.

[Page]That was the Golden Age in which he reign'd,

Because in Peace his Kingdoms were maintain'd.

Ovid says of the same Age (Amor. l. 3.)

Signabat nullo limite fossor humum.

The Delver made nor mound nor balk.

Which Virgil hath expressed almost in the same words: 1. Georg.

Nec signare quidem aut partiri limite campum

Fas erat.

Around the Earth the Land-marks then to fix

Was held a Crime.

SECT. III.
Name of Saturn.

MAny derive the Name Saturn Festus Lil. Serv. 7. Aen. Lips. 3. Saturn. or Saturnus (as they pronounced it antiently.)

1. From Satu, Sowing; as Portunus is derived from Portu; and Neptunus, from Nuptu; because he first taught the Art of Sowing and Tilling the Ground in Italy; and therefore he was esteemed the God of Husbandry, and called by the Romans, Stercutius, because he first fatned the Earth with Dung. He is therefore painted with a Sickle, with which the Meadows are mowed, and the Corn is cut dow. This Sickle, called in Greek Drepanon, [...] was thrown into a City of Sicily thence called Drepanum (now Trapano. Apollod 4.) But some say that this City was named from that Sickle which Ceres had from Vulcan, Argon. Ovid. 3. Fast. and gave the Titans when she taught them to mow. But others say, the Town had its Name, because [Page] it was crooked and hollow like a Sickle. In deed Sicily is so fruitful in Corn and Pasture that the Poets justly imagined that the Sickle was kept there.

2. Again Saturnus is derived à Saturnand [...] quasi saturet populos annona, as tho' he fills the Bellies of the People with Provision; as hi [...] Wife was called Ops, quod esurientibus opem ferat, because she helps the hungry. Or, quòd ips [...] saturetur annis,Cic. 2. de Nat.quos devorat, that he is satisfied with the years that he devours; for Saturn and Time are the same.

3. Or thirdly,Apollophan. ap. Fulgent. Saturnus quasi Sator [...], mentis sator, because he creates Sense and Understanding in the Minds of Men, and perfect [...] them with Precepts and Prudence.

SECT. IV.
The Sacrifices and Festivals, Saturnalia.

MEN only were sacrificed to Saturn, because he delighted, as they thought, with human Blood: Wherefore the Gladiators were placed under his Protection, and fought at his Feasts.Macrob. 1. Stat. c. 10. The Romans esteemed him an infernal God, as Plutarch says, because the Planet Saturn is malignant and hurtful;Tertul. de testim. a. nim. & de pallio. Macrob. yet he is commonly reckoned a Terrestrial God [...] Those who sacrificed to him had their Heads bare; and his Priests wore Scarlet Garments. On his Altar were placed Wax Tapers lighted, because by Saturn Men were reduced from the Darkness of Error into the Light of Truth.

[Page]The Feasts Saturnalia, Dion. Halie. in the Greek Language [...], were instituted either by Tullus King of the Romans; Lib. 2. or, if we believe Livy, by Sempronius and Minutius, the Consuls.Lips. 1. Sat. Dio. l. 59. & 60. Till the time of Iulius Caesar they were dispatched [...]n one Day, on the fourteenth of the Ka [...]ends of Ianuary. Suet. in Calig. Cic. ad Art. 13. Ep. 50. But then they began to be celebrated in three Days, and afterwards in [...]our and five, by the Order of Caligula; and [...]ome write, that they have lasted seven Days. Whence the Expression, primis, secundis, tertiis Saturnalibus comes. And when these Days were added to the Feast, the first was [...]eckoned from the Sixteenth of the Ka [...]ends.

Upon these Festival Days,Martial. 7. first the Senate did not sit.Epigr. 27. 2. The Schools kept Holy-day. 3. Presents were sent to and fro,Plin. 8. amongst Friends.Epist. 7. 4. It was unlawful to proclaim War,Martial. passim. Dio. 1. 58. Ath. 14. or execute any Offenders. 5. Servants were allowed to be [...]lco [...]e and merry towards their Masters; whence Ausonius says,

Aurea nunc revocet Saturni Festa December,

Senec. Ep. 47.

Nunc tibi cum Domino ludere,

Eclog. de mensibus.

verna, licet.

Now let December bring Saturn's brave Feast,

When Slaves may freely with their Masters jest.

6. Nay, the Masters waited upon the Servants who sat at Table, in memory of that Liberty which all enjoyed in antient Times in Saturn's reign, when there was no Servitude. Tertull ap. Lips. Petron. Arbit. 7. Con [...]rary to the Custom, they washed them as soon as they arose, as if they were about sitting down to Table. 8. And lastly, they put on a certain Festival Garment, called Synthesis, [Page] like a Cloak of Purple or Scarlet Colour, and this Gentlemen only wore.

SECT. V.
The Historical Sense of this Fable. Saturn, Noah.

ALtho' it is generally said that Saturn was Nimrod, Beros. l. 3. the Founder of the Empire of Babylon; yet I am more inclined to believe the Opinion of Bochartus, Bochartus in suo Phaleg. l. 1. c. 1. who maintains that Saturn and Noah were the same. These reasons which he brings seem persuasive.

1. In the time of Noah, the whole Earth spoke one Language, as we find in Gen. xi. and the antient Mythologists say, that the Beasts understood this Language. And it is said, that in Saturn's Age, there was but one Language which was common to Men and Brutes. Plato in Polit.

2. Noah is called in the Hebrew (in Gen. ix. 20.) Vir terrae, a Man of the Earth, that is, a Husbandman; according to an usual Phrase of Scripture, which calls a Soldier, a Man of War; a strong Man,Jos. 5. 4. 2 Sam. 16 7. a Man of the Arms, Vir brachii, (Iob. xxii. 8.) a Murderer, a Man of Blood; an Orator,Exod. 10. a Man of Words; and a Shepherd, a Man of Cattel. Gen. 46. Now Saturn is justly called Vir terrae, Aur. Vict. de Orig. Gen. Ro. Macrob. because he married Tellus; whose other Names were Rhea and Ops.

3. As Noah was the first Planter of Vineyards, Sat. [...]. C 6 [...] so the Art of cultivating Vines and Fields,Lucian. in ep. Sat. is attributed to Saturn's Invention. [Page]

[Page]

[Page]4. As Noah was once overcome with Wine, because perhaps he never experienced the Strength of it before; so the Saturnals did frequently drink extreamly, because Saturn protected Drunken Men.

5. As Noah cursed his Son Ham, Callimac. in hymn. because he saw his Father's Nakedness with delight. So Saturn made a Law, that whosoever saw the Gods naked should be punished.

6. [...] (says Plato in Timaeo) Saturn and Rhea his Wife, and those with them, were born of Oceanus and Thetis. Thus Noah and all that were with him, were as it were new born out of the Waters of the Deluge, by the help of the Ark. And if a Ship was stamp'd upon the antient Coins, because he came into Italy in a Ship.Plut. in [...]. Surely this Honour belonged rather to Noah, who in a Ship preserved the Race of Mankind from utter Destruction.

7. Did Noah foretel the coming of the Flood? So [...], & fabricandam esse arcam, & in ea cum volucribus reptilibus atque jumentis esse navigandum. Alex. Polyst. ap. Cyril. con. Julian. l. 1. So did Saturn foretel, That there should be great quantities of Rain, and an Ark built, in which Men and Birds and creeping things should all [...]ail together.

8. Saturn is said to have devoured all his Sons, but these three, Iupiter, Neptune and Pluto. So Noah, the Pastor and Prophet, and as it were the Father of all Mortals may be said to have condemned and destroyed all [Page] Men, because he foretold that they would be destroyed in the Flood.Hebr. 11. 7. For in the Scripture Phrase the Prophets are said to do the things that they foretel shall be done hereafter. Thus in Ezek. xliii. 2. When I came to destroy the City; that is, when I came to foretel, that the City shall be destroyed. But as Saturn had three Sons left to him not devoured, so had Noah three, Sem, Cham and Iaphet, who were not destroyed in the Flood.

These reasons persuade us that Cham is Iupiter: 1. His Hebrew Name Ham is by many called Cham, from whence it is plain, the Egyptians derived [...], and the Africans Ammon or Hammon. 2. Cham was the youngest Son of Noah, Callimach. hymn. ad Jov. as Iupiter was of Saturn. 3. Iupiter is feigned to be the Lord of the Heavens; thus Cham had Africa, Lucan. 2. 9. which Country is esteemed nearer the Heavens than other Countries, because it has the Planets vertical. 4. Iupiter gelded his Father, which Story seems to be taken from Gen. ix. 22. And Ham saw the nakeness of his Father, and told: for whereas vaiagged in the Hebrew Language signifies & nunciavit, they might easily read vaiaggod, which signifies & abscidit, especially before the Vowels were placed under the Consonants.

Iaphet is the same with Neptune, Lactant. de fals. Relig. l. 1. c. 11. for as Neptune had the command of the Sea, so the Islands and Peninsula [...] fell chiefly to Iaphet' [...] lot.

But how shall we prove that Sem was Pluto [...] What carried him into Hell? Not his Piety [Page] and Holiness, by which he excell'd his Brothers and glorified his own Name. Perhaps, because he was so holy, and so great an Enemy to Idolatry, the Idolaters hated him whilst he lived, and endeavoured to blacken his Memory when he dyed, by sending him to the Stygian darkness, and [...]etting in his hand the Scepter of Hell.

SECT. VI.
A Philosophical Sense of the Fable. Saturn, Time.

THat by Saturn is meant Time, Cic. 2. de nat. is plain from his Greek Name [...], which by one Letter only is different from [...], time. Orph. hymn. ad Sat. Aeschyl. in Eumen. Thus Saturn is painted devouring his Children and vomiting them up again; as indeed Time devours and consumes all things which it hath produced, which in process of time do revive again, and are, as it were renew'd.

Or else Days, Months and Years are the Children of Time, which he constantly devours and produces anew.

Sometimes he is drawn in the midst, betwixt two young Boys and two Girls: as Time is surrounded by the different Seasons of the Year, as Parents are by their Children.

Lastly, as Saturn hath his Sithe, so hath Time too, with which he moweth down all things: neither can the hardest Adamant withstand the Edge thereof.

CHAP. II.

[Page]

SECT. I.
JANUS. His Image.

P.

O Strange! What is this? An Image with two Faces, and one Head only.

M.

It is so; and by those Faces he sees the things placed both before and behind him. It is Ianus the Bifrons Deus; holding a Key in his Right Hand, and a Rod in the Left. Beneath his Feet you see Twelve Altars. If he could lay aside that Rod and Key, perhaps according to his custom, he would express to you the number Three Hundred with one hand, and the number Sixty Five by the other; by the different motion, bending and weaving his Fingers.

P.

I do not throughly understand your meaning.

M.

You will presently clearly and perfectly understand both what I say, and what you see with your Eyes. Stay a little, till I explain the Four most remarkable Names of this God: for in so doing, I shall not only explain this Picture, but also tell you whatever things are necessary concerning Ianus in this place.

SECT. II.
Names and Actions of Janus.

[Page]

JAnus (some say) was begotten of Coelum and Hecate. Arnob. cont. Gen. Cic. 2. de nat. He is so called quasi eanus ab eundo: Unde fit, says Tully, ut transitiones perviae Iani (plurali numero) foresque in liminibus profanarum aedium januae dicerentur. From whence it is, that Thorough passages are called in the plural number, Jani; and the Gates before the Door of secular Houses, Januae. A place at Rome was called Iani, Acron. in Hor. l. 2. Sat. [...] de 2. off. where were three Images of Ianus, where Usurers and Creditors always met to pay and receive Money. Tully means this place when he speaks of some great Men,Dcmpst. in Paralip. l. 1. ep. 1. Virg. Aen. 12. ad medium Ianum sedentibus: as also Horace, when he mentions imum & summum Ianum.

As he is drawn Bifrons, with two Faces, so Ovid calls him Deus Biceps, the God with two heads.

Iane Biceps, Anni tacite labentis imago,

Solus de superis qui tua terga vides [...]

Thou double pate the sliding year dost shew,

The only God that his own back can view.

Because so great was his Prudence, that he saw both the things past, and those which were future. Or else, because Ianus was thought to represent the World, that he may view the two chief Quarters of the World, the East and the West. He is also described, quadrifrons, with four Faces, from the Four Quarters of the World; because he governs [Page] them by his Counsel and Authority. Or because he is Lord as of the Day, with his two Faces he observes both the Morning and the Evening: for thus Horace says,

Matutine pater, seu Iane, libentius audis,

Unde homines operum primos vitaeque labores

Institu [...]nt.

Old Janus, if you please, grave two fac'd Father,

Or else bright God o'th' morning, chuse you whether,

Who dates the Lives and Toils of mortal Men.

When Romulus and Tatius, Se [...]v. in 12. Aen. Kings of the Romans and Sabines made a League, the first made an Image of Ianus Bifrons, quasi ad duorum populorum imaginem; to be as it were an Image of their two Nations. Numa afterwards dedicated a Temple to Ianus Bifrons, which had double Doors. In 7. Aen. When Falisci, a City of Hetruria was taken; inventum est (says Servius) simulacrum Iani quadrifrontis: there was an Image of Janus found with four Faces; whereupon the Temple of Ianus had four Gates. But of that Temple, by and by.

Claviger, Vid. Lil. Gyr. or Turnkey, and Club-bearer, from the Rod and the Key in his hands. He held the Rod, because Rector viarum, the Guardian of the ways: and the Key for these Reasons.

1. He was the Inventor of Locks, Doors, and Gates; which are called Ianuae after his Name: and himself is called [...], Ianitor, because Doors were under his Protection.

2. He is the Ianitor of the Year, and of all the Months: the first of which takes the Name of Ianuary from him. To Iuno belong [Page] the Calends of the Months, and she committed them to his care; wherefore he is called by some Iunonius. Martial speaks ingeniously of him thus.

Annorum, nitidique sator pulcherrime mundi,

Mart. l. 10. ep. 28.

Gay Founder of the World and of our Years.

For this Reason he had twelve AltarsVarr. l. dedicated to him,Human. according to the Number of the Months:Sidon. Apoll. carm. 2. 1. Sat. c. 12. Sidon. ibid. and there were twelve small Chappels in his Temple. The Consuls were amongst the Romans, inaugurated in the Temple of Ianus, who were from thence said, aperire annum, to open the year. Upon the Calends of Ianuary (and, as Macrobius says, on the Calends of March) a new Laurel was hung upon the Statue of Ianus, and the old Laurel taken away; according to Ovid.

Laurea flaminibus, quae toto perstitit anno,

3 Fast.

Tollitur, & frondes sunt in honore, novae.

The Laurel that the former Year did grace

T' a fresh and verdant garland yields his place.

Was this done because he was the Inventor of Laurel Garlands? Pliny thought that this custom was occasioned, because Ianus rules over the Year:Drach. quod Ianus Geminus [...] Numa rege dicatus, Corcyr. apud [...]th. l. 34. c. 7. digitis ita figuratis, ut trecentorum quinquaginta quinque (some read sex [...]ginta quinque) dierum nota per significationem [...]nni, temporis & aevi, se Deum indicaret: the Statue of Janus with two Faces of the Dedication of King Numa, had its Fingers so composed, as [...]o signifie the number of Three hundred sixty five Days: to shew that Janus was a God, V. Gyral. by his knowlege in the year, and Times, and Ages. [Page] He had not these Figures described on his Hand,Tiraq. Lil. but had a peculiar way of numbring them,Gyr. Apulei 2. by bending,Apolog. &c. stretching or mixing his Fingers; of which Numeration many are the Opinions of Authors.

3. He holds a Key in his Hand,Arnob. 3. cont. Gen. because he is as it were the Door, through which the Prayers of Mankind have access to the Gods. For in all the Sacrifices, Prayers were first offered up to Ianus. Accordingly Ianus himself in Ovid (Fast. lib. 1.) gives this Answer to one that asks him the Question,

Cur quamvis aliorum numina placem,

Iane, tibi primum, thura merumque fero?

Ut possis aditum per me, qui limina tendo,

Ad quoscunque voles, inquit, habere deo [...].

Why is't that tho I other Gods adore,

I first must Janus Deity implore?

Because I hold the Door by which access

Is had to any God you would address.

Fest us gives the following reason,L. 3. v. Chaos. why Prayers were first offered up to him;Virg Aen. 8. Juven. Sat. 6. quod fuerit omnium primus, à quo rerum omnium factum putabant initium: ideo ei supplicabant velut parenti: because they thought,Serv. in 2. Georg. 2. Fab.that all things took their beginning from him; and so they supplicated him in the quality of a common Father. For tho the Name Father is given to all the Gods,Pict. l. 1. de ant. l [...]c. yet Ianus was more especially called Pater. He first instituted Altars, Temples, and other Religious Rites: Proptereaque in omni sacrificio perpetua ei praefatio praemittitur farque illi & vinum primo praelibatur: And for that Reason amongst the rest (says one) in every Sacrifice there was a Preface[Page]premised, and Wine and Bread Corn offer'd to him before any other Deity. Frankincense was not offered him, tho Ovid mentions it in the Verse related above: which either he says per licentiam poeticam, or else he speaks of the times then present:L. 13. c. 1. Dempst. in paral. for, as Pliny writes, Iliacis temporibus, thure non supplicatum: They did not sacrifice with Frankincense in the times of the Trojans. Neither does Homer in the least mention Frankincense, in any place where he speaks concerning Sacrifices, which so exact an Author would never have omitted, if it had been in use. Neither do I find a Greek word that properly signifies Thus; for [...] or [...], signifies not only Thus, but any odoriferous Smell. Patulcius and Clausius, Serv. 1. Aen. Claud. de 6. Hon. Cons. or Patulacius and Clusius; from patendo or patefaciendo, and claudendo: for in time of War Ianus's Temple was open, but was shut in time of Peace; this Temple was founded by Romulus and Tatius as I said before. Numa ordained that it should be opened when the Romans waged War, but shut when they enjoyed Peace. It is opened in time of War, because a Spring of warm Water arose out of the place where this Temple stands, when Romulus fought with the Sabines, and forced the Enemy to march away: therefore in War they opened that Temple, hoping for the same or the like assistance: or it may be rather,Serv. in 7. Aen. because they that go to War ought to think of Peace, and wish for a quick return into their native Country.

[Page]Both these Names of Patulcius and Clusius are expressed by Ovid in this Distich (in Fast.)

Nomina ridebis, modo namque Patulcius idem,

Et modo sacrifico Clusius ore vocor.

You'll smile, I'm now Patulc or Open call'd

By th' Priest, and then I'm Clusius or Close.

The Ceremony of the Opening of this Temple, and the Form of the Temple it self, is thus described by Virgil. Aen. 7. lib.

Sunt geminae belli portae, (sic nomine dicunt)

Religione sacrae, & saevi formidine Martis.

Centum aerei claudunt vectes, aeternaque ferri

Robora; nec custos absistit limine Ianus.

Has ubi certa sedet patribus sententia pugnae,

Ipse Quirinali trabea cinctuque Gabino

Insignis reserat stridentia limina Consul.

Two Gates there be stil'd the two Ports of War,

Sacred to Mars with reverential fear,

Shut with a hundred Iron and Brazen Bands,

There in the Porch bifronted Janus stands;

Here, when the Senate have a War decreed,

The Consul, glorious in his Regal Weed,

And Gabine Robe, doth groaning Gates unbar,

In his own person then proclaims the War. Og.

In another place introduces Iupiter unfolding the Secrets of the Fates to Venus, and writes thus concerning the Shutting of the Temple.

Aspera tum posit is mitescent saecula bellis:

Aen. 1.

Cana fides & Vesta, Remo cum fratre Quirinus

Iura dabunt: dirae ferro & compagibus arctis

Claudentur Belli portae, furor impius intus

Saeva sedens super arma, & centum vinctus ahenis

Post tergum nodis fremet horridus ore cruento.

[Page]Then Nations milder grow, and Wars surcease;

Old Faith and Vesta, Romulus in Peace

Shall with his Brother reign, when Steel shall bar

Dire Janus Gates; within sits impious War

On cursed Arms, bound with a thousand Chains,

And horrid, with a bloody Mouth complains. Og.

But it is to be admired,Liv. l. 2. that this Temple of Ianus in the space of Seven hundred Years was only shut thrice:Oros. l. 5. cap. 12. the first time by King Numa; Dio. l. 5. then by the Consuls M. Attilius and T. Manlius, after the Peace with the Carthaginians; and lastly by the Emperor Augustus after the Battel at Actium.

An Explication of the Fable. Janus, the Emblem of Prudence.

WE may see in this Story of Ianus (whom some call Noah, Munst. 2. some Ogyges, Cosm. 9. Fab. Pict. some a Priest, a Philosopher and a Divine; and some an ancient King of Italy, who was the Founder of the Town Ianiculum,) in this Fable of Ianus, we may behold, I say, the representation of a very prudent person: which Virtue consists, says Tully, (de Senect.) in praeteritorum memoriâ & providentiâ futurorum: In the remembrance of things past, and a foresight of things to come. The prudent Man ought therefore to have, as it were, two Faces: that according to his natural sagacity of Mind, and ripeness of Judgment, observing both things past and things future, he may be able to discern the Causes and the Beginnings, the Progress, and as it were the forerunning Accidents of all things; [Page] that he may be able to draw Likenesses, to make Comparisons, to observe Consequences, and perceive Futurities, and by a wise connection of Causes and Events, be able to joyn things present with things to come, and things future with things past.

The Prudent Person hath the Key of all things: Nothing is so obscure, that his understanding cannot comprehend, nothing is so secret and private, that his consideration and care can't detect and lay open; nothing is so hard and intricate, that his quickness and dexterity cannot explain and unfold. With this Key he examines all the ways of Business, and finds which are the most proper; he sees the Disposition of Times, and the Exigences of Occasions: he removes the Difficulties, and the Barrs that lie in his way; he publishes as much as is useful: and conceals closely whatsoever will [...] hurtful to him. With this Key he lays open for himself a passage into the Friendship of others: he insinuates himself into the inward Recesses of their Breasts; he learns their most secret Counsels, their most reserved Thoughts: he solves Mysteries, and penetrates things unknown, and seeks and finds and views Objects the most remote from the common sense of the World.

Ianus first instituted Altars, Temples, and Sacrifices. Thus it is a sign of the highest Prudence and Understanding, to pay due Honour to the Almighty, to reverence his Power, to propagate his Worship, and magnifie his Glory. And as Men sacrificed first to Ianus [Page] [...] all Sacrifices because of his exemplary Holiness and Piety; so by how much the [...]ore Worship Men pay to God, by so much [...]e more Honour shall they receive both from God and Men, as the Precepts and Example [...] the holy Scripture do abundantly testifie.

CHAP III.

SECT. I.
VULCAN.

P.

O Heavens! I think that I see a Blacksmith amongst the Gods.

M.

Very true; He is both a Smith, and a God, by [...]me Vulcan. He hath a Shop in [...]he Islan [...] Lemnos, where he exercises his Trade; and where, tho he is a God himself, [...]e made Iupiter's Thunder, and the Arms of [...]he other Gods.

P.

If he was a God, what Misfortune drove him to the Forge, and tyed him to such a [...]asty Employment?

M.

His Deformity,Phurnut. de nat. Deor. Hesiod. & Lucian. de sacrif. Virg. 8. Aen. I believe. He was [...]orn of Iupiter and Iuno; some say, of Iuno only; and being contemptible for his Deformity, he was cast down from Heaven into the [...]sland Lemnos (whence he is called Lemnius) [...]e broke his Leg with the Fall, and if the Lemnians had not caught him when he fell, [...]e had certainly broke his Neck; ever since [Page] he hath been Lame. In requital for their kindness, he fix'd his Seat amongst them, and set up the Craft of a Smith; teaching them the manifold Uses of Fire and Iron:Lucan. l. 1. and a mulcendo ferum, from softening and polishing Iron, he receiv'd the Name Mulciber or Mulcifer.

But you will wonder when I tell you that this deformed nasty Smith has married the beautifulest Goddess Venus [...] whom he caught in Adultery with Mars, and linked them together with Chains, and exposed them to the laughter of all the Gods. He desired mightily to marry Minerva, and Iupiter consented; yielding up the Virgin to the Will of this nasty Creature. But she resisted his attempts, and in the struggle his Nature fell from him upon the Earth, and produced the Monster Erichthomiu [...], Erichthomius. Erichtheus or Erichthonicus, so called [...], contentione & terra; which was a Boy,Virg. 3. Georg. with the Feet of a Dragon, who first invented Coaches, that he might hide the deformity of his Feet. Iupiter, (as I said) consented, that Vulcan should marry Minerva if he could overcome her Modesty. For when Vulcan made Arms for the Gods, Iupiter gave him leave to choose out of the Goddesses a Wife, and he chose Minerva. But he admonished Minerva at the same time to refuse him, and preserve her Virginity; as she did admirably well.

At Rome were celebrated the Vulcania, a Feast in Honour of Vulcan; Var. ap. Lil. in which they threw Animals into the Fire to be burnt to death. The Athenians instituted Feasts called Chalce [...]. [Page] A Temple besides was dedicated to him upon the Mountain Aetna, Pollux. l. 7. ap. Lil. Gyr. from which he is sometimes named Aethnaeus. This Temple was guarded by Dogs, whose sense of Smelling was so exquisite, that they could discern, whether the persons that came thither were Chaste and Religious, or whether they were Wicked: They used to meet, and flatter, and follow the good, esteeming them the Acquaintants and Friends of Vulcan, their Master. But they bark'd, and flew at the bad, and never left off tearing them, till they had driven them away.

P.

I have heard, unless I am mistaken, that this Vulcan, by Iupiter's command, made a living Woman. Is it true?

M.

It is a Comical thing to expect Truth in Fables. It is indeed feigned, that the first Woman was fashioned by the Hammer of Vulcan; and that every God gave her some Present, whence she was called Pandora.Pandora.Pallas gave her Wisdom, Apollo the Art of Musick, Mercury the Art of Eloquence, Venus gave her Beauty, and the rest of the Gods gave her other Accomplishments. They say also, that when Promotheus stole Fire from Heaven, to animate the Man which he had made; Iupiter was incensed, and sent Pandora to Prometheus with a sealed Box. But Prometheus would not receive it. He sent her with the same Box again to the Wife of Epimetheus, the Brother of Prometheus; and she, out of the Curiosity natural to her Sex, open'd it, which as soon as she had done, all sorts of Diseases [Page] and Evils, with which it was filled, flew out amongst Mankind, and have infested them ever since. And nothing was left in the bottom of the Box, but Hope. Pausan. in Attic.

SECT. II.
The Cyclops, Servants to Vulcan.

P.

WHAT black nasty one eyed Fellows are those.

M.

They are the Cyclops, that serve Vulcan in his Craft: so called from [...], a Circle; because they had but one Eye, which was in the middle of their Foreheads, of a circular Figure, Neptune and Amphitrite were their Parents. Virgil (in Aen. 8.) mentions the names of three of them.

Ferrum exercebant vasto Cyclopes in antro,

Brontesque, Steropesque, & Nudus membra Pyracmon.

The following Verses shew these three were not the only Cyclops, there were many more.

—Alii ventosis follibus auras

Accipiunt redduntque: alii stridentia tingunt

Aera lacu: gemit impositis incudibus antrum,

Illi inter sese multa vi brachia tollunt

In numerum, versantque tenaci forcipe ferrum [...]

—Others receive

In Bellows breath, as oft them breathless leave;

Those in cold Water dip the hissing Ore:

The hollow Vaults with thundring Anvils rore.

They with huge strength their Arms in order raise,

And turn with Tongs the Mass a thousand ways.

SECT. III.
Cacus and Caeculus, Sons of Vulcan, Polyphemus.

[Page]

CAcus was the vilest of Miscreants, his name was given him from his wickedness (for Cacos, [...] signifies Malus evil.) He tormented all Latium with his Fires and Robberies; living like a Beast, in a dismal Cave. He stole Hercules's Oxen, and dragged them backwards by their Tails into this Cave, that so the track of their Feet might not discover this Repository of his Thefts. But Hercules passing by heard the lowing of the Oxen in the Cave, and there broke into it, (Virg. Aen. 8)

—Cacum in tenebris incendia vana vomentem

Corripit, in nodum complexus; & angit inhaerens

Elisos oculos, & siccum sanguine guttur.

—He Cacus got,

Belching vain Flames, and wreath'd him in a knot,

Then whirls him round, next down upon him lies,

Grasping his Throat, and squeezing out his Eyes.

Take the Description of the Cave it self from the same Poet.

Hic spelunca fuit vasto submota recessu

Semihominis Caci; facies quam dira tegebat

Solis inaccessam radiis; semperque recenti

Caede [...]epebat humus; foribusque affixa superbis

Ora virum tristi pendebant pallida tabo.

Huic monstro Vulcanus erat pater: illius atros

Ore vomens ignes magna se mole ferebat.

[Page]Upon yon Hill, and Breaches wide as Hell:

There did that horrid Monster Cacus dwell [...]

He in these vast Recesses his dire Face

Did always hide; the Sun ne'er pierc'd that place,

Steeming with recent Slaughter; on his Door

Pale Heads of Men hung, lothsome in their Gore.

Of the huge Monster, Vulcan was the Sire,

A mighty Giant, breathing Smoke and Fire.

Caeculus also, lived by Pl [...]nder and Robbery. He was so called from the smallness of his Eyes, (it is thought, the noble Family of the Caecilii at Rome derived their Original from him.) Whilst his Mother sat by the Fire, a Spark flew into her Lap: upon which [...]he grew big with Child, and when her Reckoning was compleated she brought forth this Son; who was afterwards the Founder of the City Praeneste. Others say, that the Shepherds found Caeculus unhurt in the midst of the fire, as soon as he was born; from whence he was thought the Son of Vulcan: Virg. Aen. 7.

To these Servants and Sons of Vulcan, add the Shepherd Polyphemus, a Monster not unlike them; born of Neptune. For he had but one Eye in his Forehead like the Cyclops; he got his living by Murders and Robberies like Cacu [...] and Caeculus. This Monster drew Four of Ulysse's Companions into his Den, in Sicily; and devoured them. He thought too that he was certain of the rest. But Ulysses made him drunk with Wine, and then with a Firebrand quite put out his sight. Virgil Aen. 3.

Visceribus miserorum, & sanguine vescitur atro.

Vidi egomet, duo de numero cum corpora nostro

[Page]Prensa manu magna, medio resupinus in antro.

Frangeret ad saxum: sanieque aspersa natarent

Limina: vidi atro cùm membra fluentia tabo

Manderet, & tepidi tremerent sub dentibus artus.

Haud impunè quidem; nec talia passus Ulysses,

Oblitusve sui est Ithacus discrimine tanto.

Nam simul expletus dapibus, vinoque supultus,

Cervicem inflexam posuit, jacuitque per antrum

Immensum, saniem eructans, ac frustra cruento

Per somnum commixta mero: nos magn [...] precati

Numina sortitique vices, una undique circum

Fundimur, & telo lumen terebramus acuto

I [...]gens; quòd torvd solum sub fronte latebat;

Argolici Clypei, aut Phoebeae lampadis instar.

Cruel his Looks, uncivil are his Words;

Bowels of Men supply his wonted Boards.

I saw when he two of our stoutest Men

Seiz'd in his mighty Hand, and 'midst his Den,

Laid on his Back, against a Pillar brain'd,

And with foul gore the sprinkled Pavement stain'd.

He would devour Mens bloody Quarters raw:

I in his Teeth the warm Flesh trembling saw.

But thus Ulysses took it not, nor yet

His own, nor his Friends Dangers did forget:

For, as he, gorg'd with Wine and Meat, did lie

In his huge Cave asleep, his Neck awry,

Vomiting Gobbets, mix'd with bloody Wine,

We take our Chance, imploring Powers Divine,

And round about beset him every where;

Then pierc'd his Eye with a sharp-pointed Spear.

'Midst his stern Brow the Luminary lay,

Like a Greek Shield, or the great Lamp of Day.

SECT. IV.
The Signification of the Fable. Vulcan, a Symbol of Two Sorts of Fire.

[Page]

THat by Vulcan is understood Fire,Ap. Lil. the Name it self discovers, if we follow Varro, (who derives Vulcanus from vi ac violentia ignis, and Vulcanus, quasi Volicanus, quòd ignis per aerem volitet, because Fire is a violent Element, and flies about the Air. Ser. 8. Aen.) And therefore he is painted with a blew Hat,Euseb. de praep. Evang. which is a Symbol of the Celestial or Elementary Fire, which is by Nature clear, and immix'd; whereas the Common Fire, that is used in Earth is weak, and wants continual fuel to support it, and therefore Vulcan is said to be lame. He is said to have been cast down from Heaven; because the Lightning comes from the Clouds; and to have fallen into Lemnos, because Lightning oft falls in that Island.Serv. ib.

But let us a little consider the flames of Love, for Vulcan married Venus. If you admire, wherefore so fair, so delicate, so beautiful a Goddess should be a Wife to so deformed and black a God, you must suppose, that Vulcan is the Fire, and Venus the Flame: and is not the union between Fire and Flame very proper? But this Fire is kindled in Hell and blowed by Cyclops. And those who are addicted to Venery are set on fire with these flames: For when a flame kindled by the Eyes of a beauteous Woman sets the Breast on fire, [Page] how violent is the Combustion, how great the Havock, how certain the Destruction? Hence comes the Lovers Anguish, Deadness and Faintness overspread his Face, his Eyes are dull and heavy, his Cheeks meager and wan, his Countenance puts on the paleness of Ashes; which are fatal Arguments of a spreading Fire within, that consumes and preys upon the interior parts. But when Impudence has blown the Coals, so that Modesty can put no farther stop to the Rage and Violence of this Flame: When this hellish Offspring breaks forth, and by degrees gathers strength: good God! How does it spread, rage, and encrease? With what fury and violence does it bear down and destroy every thing? By this Flame Semele was consumed. Hercule's strength was an easie pray to it; and hereby the strongest Towers, and stateliest Palaces of Troy were consumed and reduced to Ashes.

Have you given your self up to Venus? She will make you a Vulcan: she will make you filthy, nasty, and black as Hell, she will darken your Understanding, though you are in the midst of Fire. For the fire of Venus gives no light, but brings the greatest darkness; it freezes and stupifies the Soul, while the Body is thawed and melted in pleasures. How sad is the fate of an effeminate Man? His toil and labour is like the work of Vulcan; for he who desperately loves a Woman, takes a burning Iron into his Breast, his House is a Forge, he labours and toils to soften her Temper, more than Vulcan sweats to fashion [Page] the hardest Steel; he neglects the care of himself to make her fine and handsome: Again how many Estates are melted in lust's Furnace? How many Possessions reduced to Ashes? Till nothing but Dross is left, and the Nobility and Honour of their Families disappear and vanish in smoak.

No Fuel can satisfie this Fire; the heat of it never decreases, it never cools: for Venus blows it with Sighs, kindles it with Tears, and foments it with proud Disdain and Coldness. Her Kindness is Cruelty, her Pride is ensnaring. What wonder is it then, that so many Vulcans, not only in Lemnos but every where, make Thunder at this Forge, which will fall on their own Heads; by which they are cast headlong from Heaven to Earth, that is from the highest degree of Happiness to the lowest vale of Misery: from which fall comes a lameness never to be cured. These are the effects of the love of Venus. If you will not believe me, believe the Poet, who in a witty Epigram says;

[...],

[...].

Having Cupid for thy Son, and Venus for thy Wife,

Vulcan, thou well mayst be lame, all thy life.

CHAP. IV.

[Page]

SECT. I.
AEOLUS.

LET us now Blow out the fire with the wind, Ovid. 11. Metam. and bring up Aeolus after Vulcan. For Aeolus is next to him; the God of the Winds; begotten by Iupiter of Acesta or Segesta, the Daughter of Hippota; from whom he is named Hippotades. He dwelt in one of those seven Islands, which from him are called Aeoliae; and sometimes Vulcaniae. Palephat. l. incred. Varr. & Strab. ap. Serv. He was a skilful Astronomer, and an excellent natural Philosopher, he understood more particularly the nature of the Winds: And because, from the Clouds and Smoke of the Aeolian Islands, he foretold Winds and Tempests a great while before they arose, it was generally believed that they were under his power; and that he could raise the Winds or still them as he pleased. And from hence he was stiled Emperor and King of the Winds (the Children of Astraeus and Aurora.)

Virgil describes Iuno coming to him, and represents his Palace thus.

Nimborum in patriam, loca foeta furentibus Austris,

Aeoliam venit: Hic vasto Rex Aeolus antro

[Page]Luctantes ventos, tempestatesque sonoras

Imperio premit, ac vinclis & carcere fraenat.

Illi indignantes, magno cum murmure montis

Circum claustra a fremunt: celsa sedet Aeolus arce,

Sceptra tenens, mollitque animos, & temper at iras.

Ni faciat, maria ac terras, coelumque profundum

Quippe ferant rapidi secum, verrantque per auras.

Sed Pater omnipotens speluncis abdidit atris,

Hoc metuens, molemque, & montes in super altos

Imposuit, Regemque dedit, qui foederc certo

Et premere, & laxas sciret dare jussus habenas.

She to the Land of Storms (Aeolia) went,

Coasts big with Tempests, where King Aeolus reigns,

And the rebellious Winds in Prison chains:

But they, disdaining their so close restraint,

Round the dark Dungeon roar with loud complaint,

In a high Tow'r, here Sceptred Aeolus stands,

Calming their fierceness by severe Commands;

Else in their rapid Course they would not spare

Sea, Land, high Heaven, but sweep them through the Air.

Jove fearing this, them in a Cave immures,

And under weight of mighty Hills secures;

And gave a King, who knows when to restrain,

And when commanded, how to loose the Rein;

CHAP. V.

[Page]

SECT. I.
MOMUS.

P.

WHAT is this man, and what is his name?

M.

Do you expect a Man among the Gods? The name of this God is in Greek, [...] which signifies a Iester, a Mocker, a Mimick, for that is his business. He follows no Employment; but lives an idle life; but nicely observes the actions and sayings of the other Gods, and when he finds them doing amiss, or neglecting their Duty, he censures, mocks, and derides them with the greatest liberty.

Neptune, Vulcan, and Minerva, may witness the truth of this, when they contended which of them was the most skilful Artificer; whereupon Neptune made a Bull, Minerva a House, and Vulcan a Man; they made Momus judge between them, but he chid them all three. He accused Neptune of imprudence, because he placed not the Bull's Horn in his Forehead before his Eyes, for then the Bull might give a stronger and a surer blow. He blamed Minerva because her House was immoveable, so that it could not be carried away if by chance it was placed among ill Neighbours. But he said that Vulcan was the most imprudent of [Page] them, because he did not make a Window in the Man's Breast, that we might see what his thoughts were, whether he designed some trick, whether he intended what he spoke.

P.

Who were the Parents of Momus?

M.

Nox and Somnus begat him.Hesiod. in Theog. And indeed it is the sign of a dull drowsie sottish disposition, when we see a Man censuring and disliking the Actions of all other Men, when nothing but God is wholly perfect, something is wanting to every thing, so that every thing is defective and liable to censure.

CHAP. VI.

SECT. I.
The Terrestrial Goddesses. VESTA.

SHE, whom you see sitting and holding a Drum, is the Wife of Coelum, and the Mother of Saturn. Vir Aen. 9. She is the eldest of the Goddesses.

P.

If she is the Wife of Coelum, why is she placed amongst this Terrestrial Goddesses, and not amongst the Coelestial rather?

M.

Because this Goddess Vesta is the same with Terra, and has her name à Vestiendo; quod plantis frugibusque terra vestiatur; because Plants and Fruit are the cloathing of the Earth. Plut. l. 1. Prim. frige. Or according to Ovid the Earth is [Page] called Vesta, à vi stando, from supporting it self. Fast. lib. 6.

Stat vi, Terra, sua, vi stando, Vesta vocatur.

Th' Earth by 'ts own power stands and therefore Vesta's call'd.

She sits,Varr. ap. Aug 7. de Civ. Cic. de somn. because the Earth is immoveable, and is placed in the center of the World. Vesta has a Drum, because the Earth contains the boisterous Winds in its Bosom.Hecatae. Miles. in general. And divers Flowers weave themselves into a Crown, with which Vesta's Head is crowned. Several kinds of Animals creep about and fawn upon her. Because the Earth is round,Phurnut. Vesta's Temple at Rome was also round; and some say that the Image of Vesta her self, was Orbicular in some places, and Ovid says that her Image was rude and shapeless. Fast. l. 6.

Effigiem nullam, Vesta, nec Ignis habet.

Vesta and Fire bear no shape at all.

And from hence round Tables were anciently called Vestae, Plut. In sympos. because, like the Earth, they supply all necessaries of Life for us. It is no wonder that the first Oblations in all Sacrifices were offered to her,Homer. in hymn. since whatsoever is sacrificed springs from the Earth. And the Greeks both began and concluded all their Sacrifices with Vesta; because they esteemed her the Mother of all the Gods. Ap. Lil. 1. Gy. Strab. l. 10.

P.

I wish that you would resolve one Doubt which I still have concerning this Goddess. How can Vesta be the same with Terra, when nothing is more frequent amongst Mythologists, than to signifie Fire by Vesta.

[Page]M.

I perceive that I do not deal with a Novice: I will satisfie your doubt. There was two Vesta's, the elder and the younger. The first, of whom I have spoken, was the Wife of Coelum and the Mother of Saturn. The second was the Daughter of Saturn by his Wife Rhea. And as the first is the same with Terra, as I have already described, so the other is the same with Ignis. Hujus enim, says Tully (de Natur. Deor. lib. 2.) vis omnis ad aras & focos pertinet: For the power of this Vesta is altogether concerned about Altars and Houses. The word Vesta is often put for Fire, and is derived from [...] in the Greek, Hom. in hymn. which signifies a Chimny, Virg. 1. Georg. & 2. Aeneid Eugraph. in And. Terent. Act. 4. S. 3. a House, or Houshold Gods. She is esteemed the President and Guardian of Houses, and one of the Houshold Deities, not without reason: since she invented the Art of building of Houses; and therefore before the Doors of the Houses at Rome, (called in Latin Vestibula from Vesta) was placed an Image of Vesta, to which they sacrificed every day.

This Goddess was a Virgin; and so great an admirer of Virginity,Aristocr. l. 2. Aristoph. in Vespis. that when Iupiter, her Brother, gave her liberty of asking what she would, she asked, that she might always be a Virgin, and have the first Oblations in all Sacrifices.Val. Max. l. 5. c. 4. Wherein she not only obtained her desire, but received this further Honour amongst the Romans; Liv. l. 5. dec. 1. that a perpetual Fire was kept in her Temple, amongst the sacred Pledges of the Empire; not upon an Altar, or in the Chimneys, but in earthen Vessels,Val. Max. l. 4. c. 4. Papin. l. 4. [...]yl. 3. hanging [Page] in the Air; which the Vestal Virgins tended with so much care, that if by chance this Fire was extinguished, all publick and private Business was intermitted, and a Vacation proclaimed, till they had expiated the unhappy prodigy with incredible pains. And if it appeared that the Virgins were the occasion of its going out by carelesness,Idem l. [...] c. 1. they were severely punished,Ovid. 3 [...] Fast. and sometimes with Rods. Upon the Kalends of March, every Year, though it was not extinguished, they used to renew it, not with other Fire, but by the Rays of the Sun.

Ovid mentions both the Younger and the Elder Vesta, in lib. 6. Fast.

Vesta eadem est, & Terra: subest vigil Ignis utri (que)

Significant sedem, Terra, Focusque suam.

Vesta and Earth are one, one Fire share,

Which does the Centre of 'em both declare.

SECT. II.
An Explication of the Fable. The Younger Vesta, the Vital Heat in the Body.

FRom hence we may conjecture, that when the Poets say that Vesta is the same with Fire, the terrible, scorching, lightning Fire of Vulcan's Forge, is not understood; nor yet the impure and dangerous Flames of Venus, of which we spake above; but a pure, unmixt, benign Flame; so necessary for us, that Humane Life cannot possibly want it: whose heat being diffused through all the parts of the [Page] Body, quickens, cherishes, refreshes and nourishes us. A Flame really sacred, heavenly and divine; repaired daily by the Food which we eat; on which the safety and welfare of our Bodies depend. This Flame moves and actuates the whole Body; and cannot be extinguished, but when Life it self dies together with it. And then comes a lasting Vacation, and a certain end is put to all our business in this World. But if by our own fault, it is extinguished, we are guilty of our own death and deserve that our Memory should rot with our Bodies in the Grave, and that our Name should be entombed with our Carcasses, which would be an Affliction no less severe, than was the Punishment of the guilty Vestal Virgins, who were buried alive.

CHAP. VII.

SECT. I.
CYBELE. Her Image.

P.

STrange! Here is a Goddess whose Head is crowned with Towers,Lucret. l. 2. de reg nat. what mean [...] this? Is she the Goddess of Cities and Garrisons?

M.

She is the Goddess not of the Cities only, but of all things which the Earth sustains. She is the Earth it self: On the Earth are built many Towers and Castles,Serv. in 3. & 10. Aen. so on her Head is [Page] placed a Crown of Towers. In her Hand she carries a Key, which perhaps you did not observe,Isidor. l. [...]. because in Winter the Earth locks those treasures up, which she brings forth, and dispenses with so much plenty in the Summer. She rides in a Chariot, because the Earth hangs suspended in the Air, balanced and poised by its own weight. But that Chariot is supported by Wheels, because the Earth is a Voluble Body, and turns round: and it is drawn by Lions,Ovid. 4. Fast. because nothing is so savage and ungovernable, but a motherly piety and tenderness is able to tame it, and make it submit to the Yoak.Martia [...]. Lil. I need not explain why her Garments are painted with diverr colours, and figured with the Images of several Creatures, since every body sees that such a dress is suitable to the Earth.

SECT. III.
Names of Cybele.

P.

IS then this Goddess called Terra?

M.

No, she is called Cybele, Propert. 3. Eleg. 16. and Ops, and Rhea and Dindymene, and Berecynthia, and Bona Dea (the good Goddess) and Idaea, and Pessinuntia, and Magn [...] Deorum Mater (the Great Mother of the Gods) and sometimes also Vesta. All these are the names of the same Goddess, given her for different reasons, who was the Daughter of Coelum, and the Elder Vesta; and Saturns Wife.

[Page]She is called Cybele from the Mountain Cybalus in Phrygia, Steph. Strab. Suid. Serv. in Aen. 3. where her Sacrifices were Institutèd first. Or, [...], in Caput saltare: because her Priests danced upon their Heads; and tossed about their Hair, like mad men, foretelling things to come, and making a horrible noise, as Luc [...]n speaks of them, l. 1.

—crinemque rotantes

Sanguineum, populis ulularunt tristia Galli.

Shaking their bloody tresses some sad spell

The Priests of Cybel to the people yell.

For these Priests, 2 Fest. as I shall shew presently, were called Galli. Or, Lastly, you may derive Cybele from [...], a Cube: because that figure was by the Antients dedicated to her.

Ops, quòd opem ferat, she is a help to all things, that are contained in this World.

Rhea, comes from [...], fluo: because she abounds with Blessings.

Dindymene, Hor. l. 1. and Dindyme, from the Mountain Dindymus,Carm.in Phrygia.

Berecynthia, from the Castle Berecynthus, in the same Country. She is described by this name in Virgil, Aen. 6.

Qualis Berecynthia mater

Invehitur curru, Phrygiae turrita per urbes,

Laeta Deum partu.

As Berecynthia crown'd with turrets rides

In state through Ph [...]ygian Cities, by her sides

A hundred Nephews, off-springs of the Gods.

As the Romans called her,Lucret. l. 2. the Mother of the Gods, so the Greeks named her Pasithea, i. e. [...], omnibus Diis mater, her Sacrifices [Page] were likewise entitled,Cael. Rhod. l. 18. c. 17. [...], and [...], signifies to Celebrate them.

She was called Bona Dea, Labeo ap. Lil. Sint. 4. Bona Dea. because all our goods things in this life proceed from her. Fauna, because she is said to favour all Creatures animantibus favere. Fatua from fando, because they thought that new-born Children never cryed till they touched the Ground. It is said,Sex Clod. ap Lact. that this Bona Dea was the Wife of Faunus; who beat her with Myrtle Rods till she died, because (which did not become a Queen) she drank up a Vessel of Wine, and was drunk. The King repented of his severity, wherefore he Deified his dead Wife, and paid her divine Honours. And for this reason it was forbid that any one should bring Myrtle into her Temple.Plut. in probl. And in her Sacrifices the Vessels of Wine were covered; and when the Women drank out of them they called it Milk, not Wine: so extraordinary was the Modesty of this Goddess,Juven. Sat. 9. that no Man ever saw her, except her Husband; or scarce heard her name: wherefore her Sacrifices were performed in private, and all Men were excluded from the Temple; as Tibullus intimates, l. 1. El. 6.

Sacra Bonae, maribus non adeunda, Deae.

Good Goddess's Rites not to be seen by men.

Insomuch that the place,Ex Cic. 1. ad Att. [...] in Parad. l. 10. c. 56. l. 13. in which her Sacrifices were performed, was called Opertum, and the Sacrifices themselves, Opertanea in Pliny; secret-Sacrifices. So Silius calls Pluto Opertum regem; and Lucan, in his lib. 6.

[Page]

Nosse domos Stygias, areanaque Ditis Operti.

To hear Hell's silent Counsels, and to know

The Stygian Cells and Mysteries below.

It is true, that silence was observed in all Sacrifices, but more especially in those of Bona Dea, according to Virgil. Aen. 3.

—Fidaque silentia Sacris.

A faithful Silence paid to sacred Rites.

The Pythagoreans and Egyptians indeed taught,Ap. Cer. in 3. Aen. that God was to be worshipped in silence, because from it all things at first took their beginning.De loquacit. Loquendi, homines magistros habemu [...], tacendi Deos. Ab illis silentium accipientes, i [...] initiationibus & mysteriis. Men, [...]says Pliny were our Masters, to teach us to speak; but w [...] learn silence from the Gods. From these w [...] learn to hold our peace, in their Rites and Initiations.

She was called Idaea Mater from the Mountain Ida in Phrygia,Lucret. l. 2. or Creete; for she was at both places highly honoured. As also at Rome, whither they brought her from the City Pesinus in Galatia, by a remarkable Miracle. For when the Ship, in which she was carried, stop'd in the mouth of the Tiber, the Vestal Claudia (whose fine Dress and free Behaviour, made her Modesty suspected) easily drew the Ship to the shore with her Girdle, where the Goddess was received by the hands of Virgins, and the City assembled to meet her, placing Censors with Frankincense before their Doors, and when they had lighted the Frankincense, they prayed that she would enter freely into Rome, and be favourable to it. And because [Page]the Sybils had prophefied that Idaea Mater should be introduced by the best Man amongst the Romans; Haud parvae rei judicium, says Livy, l. 9. D. 3. Senatum tenebat, qui vir optimus in civitate esset: veram certe victoriam ejus rei, sibi quisque mallet, quàm ulla imperia, honoresve suffragio seu Patrum, seu Plebis delatos. Patres Conscripti, P. Scipionem Cnei filium, ejus qui in Hispania occiderat, adolescentem nondum Quaestorium, judicaverunt, in tota civitate virum optimum esse. The Senate was not a little busied to pass a judgment in the case, and resolve, who was the best Man in the City. For every one was ambitious to get the Victory in a Dispute of that nature; and more than if they stood to be elected to any Commands or Honours by the Voices either of the Senators or People. At last, the Senate resolved, that P. Scipio, the Son of that Cneus who was killed in Spain, a young Gentleman who had never been yet Quaestor, was the best Man, take all the City round.

She was called Pesinuntia, Herod. l. 1. from a certain Field in Phrygia, into which an Image of her fell from Heaven; from which fall, in Greek [...] Pesein, the place was called Pesinus, and the Goddess Pesinuntia. And in this place, first the Phrygians began to celebrate the Sacrifices Orgia to this Goddess, near the River Gallus, from whence her Priests were called Galli; Fest. as I shall tell you, after I have observed, that when these Priests desired that a great Respect and Adoration should be paid to any thing, they pretend that it fell from Heaven; and they called those Images [...], that is sent [Page]from Jupiter. Of which sort were the Ancile, the Palladium, and the Effigies of this Goddess, concerning which we now speak. Herod. l. 1.

SECT. IV.
The Sacrifices of Cybele.

HER Sacrifices like the Sacrifices of Bacchus, were celebrated with a confused Noise of Timbrels,Apul [...]i. [...] Metam. Pipes, and Cymbals;Claud. 2. de rapt. and the Sacrificants bowled, as if they were mad; they profaned both the Temple of their Goddess, and the Ears of their hearers, with their filthy Words and Actions. But the following Rites were peculiarly observed in her Sacrifices. Her Temple was opened,Serv. in 6. Aen. not by Hands, but Prayers; none entred who had tasted Garlick: The Priests sacrificed to her sitting and touching the Earth,Athen. ap. Lil. and offered the Hearts of the Victims.Lil. Gysynt. 4. And lastly, amongst Trees the Box and the Pine were sacred to her.Lact. P. in [...]. Theb. The Box, because the Pipes used in her Sacrifices were made of it. The Pine, Virg. 9. for the sake of Atys, Attes, or Attines, Ser. 9. Aen. a Boy that Cybele much loved, and made him President of her Rites, upon Condition, that he always preserved his Chastity inviolate. But he forgot his Vow, and lost that Virtue.Aug. 7. de civ. Wherefore the offended Goddess drave him into such a madness, that he emasculated himself;De Dea Syria. (tho' Lucian says that Cybele did it) and when he was about to lay violent Hands upon his Life, in pity she turn'd him into a Pine.

[Page]But take notice that there was a true Atys, the Son of Croesus King of Lydia. He was born dumb, but when he saw in the Fight a Souldier at his Father's back with his Sword lift up to kill him, the Strings of his Tongue which hindered his Speech, burst, and by speaking clearly, he prevented his Father's Destruction.

SECT. V.
The Priests of Cybele.

I Just now told you that her Priests were called Galli, Lil. Gyr [...] from a River of Phrygia of that Name: whatsoever Persons drank of this Water, were enflamed to that degree of madness, that they gelt themselves. It is certain that the Galli were castrated, and from thence called Semiviri; as oft as they sacrificed, they furiously cut and slashed their Arms with Knives, and thence all furious and mad People were called Gallantes. Var. ap. Nonn. v. Castum. Besides the Name of Galli, they were also called Curetae, Corybantes, Telchines, Cabiri, and Idaei Dactyli Some say that these Priests were different from the Galli, but because most People think them to be the same, and say that they all were Priests of Cybele, therefore I will speak something of each of them.

The Curetes were either Cretans, or Aetolians, or Euboei; who were so called [...], tonsura; so that Curetes and Detonsi signify almost the same thing. For they shaved the [Page] Hair of their Heads before, but wore Hair behind, that they might not be taken (as it hath often happened) by the Fore locks by the Enemy; or perhaps their Name may come from [...], puellae; because the [...] wore a long Gown like a Woman's; or [...], ab educatione juvenum; because they educated Iupiter. Strabo.

The Corybantes are so called from [...], cornibus ferire, and [...] incedere, because in the Sacrifices of their Goddess, they tossed their Heads, and danced, and butted with their Foreheads like Rams, after a mad fashion. Thus when they initiated any one in their Sacrifices, they placed him in a Chair, and danced about him, like fools. Plat. in Euthyd.

The Telchines were famous Magicians and Inchanters: they came from Crete into Cyprus, and thence into Rhodes, which latter Island was called Telchinis from them. Or if we believe others, they were deserving Men, and invented many Arts for the good of the Publick. For they first set up the Statues and Images of the Gods. Strabo.

The Cabiri or Caberi, so called from Cabiri Mountains of Phrygia, were either the Servants of the Gods, or Gods themselves, or rather Demons, or the same with the Coribantes, for Peoples Opinions concerning them are different. Ibid.

The Idaei Dactyli were the Servants and Assistants of the Magna Mater; Sophocl. ap. Lil. called Idaei from the Mountain Ida, where they lived; and Dactyli, from [...] the Fingers, for these [Page]

[Page]

[Page] Priests were ten, like the Fingers; [...]ul. Pol. l. 1. they served Rhea every where and in every thing; as if they were Fingers to her. Stra. Diodor. ap. Cyr. Yet many affirm, that there was more than Ten.

CHAP. VIII.

SECT. I.
CERES. Her Image.

P.

YOU have said enough, dear Sir, of Cybele; Ovid. Fast. 4. pray tell me, who this tall, majestick Lady is, who stands here; beautified with yellow Hair, and crowned with a Turbant, composed of the Ears of Corn;Arnob. l. 5. contr. Martian. 2. de nupt. her Bosom swells with round snowy Breasts, her right hand holds a lighted Torch, and her left a handful of Poppies and Ears of Corn.

SECT. II.
The Explication of the Image.

M.

IT is Ceres, Hesiod. in Theog. my Palaeophilus, the Daughter of Saturn and Ops; whose singular Beauty made the Gods themselves her Lovers and Admirers. Her Brothers Iupiter and Neptune loved and debauched her.Idem ibid. She had Proserpina by Iupiter; and by Neptune it is uncertain whether she had a Daughter or an Horse. For, [Page] as some say, when she avoided the pursuits of Neptune, Proel. in Georg. Virg. who followed her, she cast herself amongst a drove of Mares, and immediately put on the shape of a Mare. Which Neptune perceiving, he made himself a Horse, and from her begat the Horse Arion. Ovid consents to this Opinion, saying (in Met. l. 6.)

Et te, flava comas, frugum mitissima Mater,

Sensit Equus.

The Gold hair'd kindly Goddess of our Barns

Found thee a Stallion.

Hence I suppose comes the Story that is reported by Pausanias. In Arcad. Upon the Mountain Elaeus in Arcadia, an Altar was dedicated to Ceres; her Image had the Body of a Woman, but the Head of a Horse; it remained entire and unhurt in the midst of Fire. Yet others have told us, that Ceres did not bring forth a Horse,Paus. ibid. but a Daughter: the Arcadians thought it a wicked thing to call this Daughter by any other Name than [...], Lady; and Magna Dea, as they called the Mother Ceres herself.

However the Goddess exceedingly lamented the loss of her Honour, and testified her Sorrow by the mourning Cloaths, which afterwards she wore (whence she was named Melaena, [...], nigra) and retiring into the dark recesses of a Cave, where she lay so private, that none of the Gods knew where she was. Till Pan the God of the Woods discovered her by chance, and told Iupiter; who sending the Fates to her, persuaded her at last to lay aside her Grief, and arise out of that [Page] Hole, which was an happy and joyful thing for all the World. For in her absence a great Infection reigned throughout all sorts of living Creatures, which sprang from the Corruption of the Fruits of the Earth, and the Granaries every where.

P.

But Why were the Fruits of the Earth corrupted in her absence?

M.

Why? Do you not know that she is the Goddess of the Fruits, and that her very Name is derived à gerendis frugibus? Cic. 2. de nat. Matern. de prof. Rel. c. 18. Scalig. & Serv. in 1. Georg. Callimac. hymn. in Cerer. Plin. 7. cap. 56. so Ceres is quasi Geres, or quasi Serens; or perhaps from the old word Cereo, which is the same with Creo, because she is the Creatrix and Nurse of all Fruits? Or have not you heard that she first invented and taught the Art of Tilling the Earth, and Sowing Corn and all Pulse (except Beans) and of making Bread therewith; whereas before they eat only Acorns? Remember what the Poet says (Ovid Met. l. 5.

Prima Ceres unco glebam dimovit aratro,

Prima dedit fruges, alimentaque mitia terris,

Prima dedit leges. Cereris sunt omnia, Munus.

The Turf with crooked plough first Ceres rent,

First gave us Corn, a better nourishment;

First Laws prescrib'd, all from her bounty sprung.

Whereas before the Earth lay rough and unmannred, over run with Briars, and unprofitable Plants; when there were no Proprietors of Land, they neglected it; No body had any Ground of his own; they did not care,

Signare quidem, aut partiri limite campum.

Or to make Land-marks or to balk their Fields.

[Page] But all things were common to all, till by the kindness of Ceres, Husbandry was followed, and then they began to dispute about the limits of their Fields; and from hence came the Origin of Law and Right, and she was named Legifica, Virg. 3. the Founder of Laws, [...], and their Sacrifices,Aen. Serv. ibid. [...]. As likewise they called her [...], quasi [...], Terra Mater.

P.

I understand now the meaning of her Crown made of Corn; but yet I do not see what that handful of Poppies signifies.

M.

I will explain the signification of that also, in its place; but first let me speak of some other things.

As 1. She is beautiful and well shaped, because the Earth, which she resembles, appears beautiful and delightful to the beholders; especially, when it is arrayed with Plants, diversified with Trees, adorned with Flowers, enriched with Fruits, and covered with Greens, when it displays the honours of the Spring, and poureth forth the gifts of the Autumn with a bountiful Hand.

2. Her Hair is yellow, and when the Ears of Corn are ripe, they are adorned with that golden Colour.

3. Her Breasts swell with Milk,

Lyl. Gyr. Synt. 14. Cic. 2. & 3. de nat. Idem 2. de leg. Virg. 1. Georg.

(whence she is stiled Mammosa sometimes) because after the Earth is impregnated with Seed, and big with the Fruits thereof, it brings forth all things out of itself in abundance; and as a Mother feeds, and nourishes us, whence she is called Alma, and Altrix Nostra.

[Page]4. She holds a lighted Torch, because Proserpina was stoln away by Pluto.

Cic. 5. in Ver.

For Ceres was desirous to find Proserpine again, and kindled her Torches (they say) with the Flames which burst from the top of the Mountain Aetna; and with them sought her Daughter through the whole World.

5. She carries Poppy, because, when thro Grief she could not obtain the least rest or sleep,

Serv. 1, Georg.

Iupiter gave her Poppy to eat: for they say that this Plant is endued with a power to create sleep and forgetfulness. Her Grief was a little allay'd by sleep, but she forgot not her loss; and after many Voyages and Journies, she at last heard where Proserpina was; as you will see in its proper place.

P.

But who is that young Man, that sits in a Chariot drawn by flying Serpents?

M.

It is Triptolemus, Triptolemus. in the Chariot which Ceres gave him. He was the Son of Eleusis, or Cereus, a Nobleman. Ceres brought him up from his Infancy upon this occasion. Whilst she sought Proserpine by Sea and Land,Callim. hymn. in Cer. upon the way she came into the City Eleusis; where the Father of Triptolemus entertain'd her: whose kindness she required, by nourishing his young Son, which in the day time she fed with celestial and divine Milk, Serv. Geo. 1. but in the night covered him all over with Fire. By this sort of uncommon Education, the Child became a fine Youth in a few days. His Father was mighty desirous to know how Ceres managed him; and when looking thro a dark hole, he saw his Son Triptolemus covered [Page] over by Ceres with Coals of Fire; immediately he exclaims that his Son was kill'd, and flies into the Room to save him. Ceres punished his unadvised curiosity with death: then putting Triptolemus into the Chariot that you see, she sent him throughout the World, to shew Mankind the use of Corn. Triptolemus executed his message so well,Hygin. tab 147. that that name was given to him, quasi, [...], hordeum terens. Ovid describes the thing thus, Metam. l. 5.

—Geminos Dea fertilis angues

Curribus admovit, fraenisque coercuit ora,

Et medium coeli, terraeque per aera vecta est

Atque levem currum, Tritonida misit in urhem

Triptolemo; partimque rudi data semina jussit

Spargere humo, partim post tempora long a recultae

The fertile Goddess to her Chariot chains

Her yoked Dragons, checkt with stubborn rains:

Her course, 'twixt Heaven and Earth, to Athens bends;

And to Triptolemus her Chariot sends.

Part of the Seed she gave, she bad him throw

On untill'd Earth; part on the till'd to sow.

P.

But what Evet is that by Ceres Feet? for I fancy I see an Evet there.

M.

That Creature was once a Boy,Stellio. whom Ceres for his malapertness changed into a little Beast like a Lizard. For when Ceres was very weary and thirsty by travelling, she came to a Cottage and begg'd a little Water to wash her mouth, of an old Woman that liv'd there; the old Woman gave her also Barley broth; which when the Goddess supped up greedily [Page] the Womans Son Stellio, a saucy Boy, mocked her, This raised Ceres's anger so far, that in a rage she flung some of the Broth into the Boys face, who thereby was changed into an Evet or Newt. (Ovid. Met. l. 5.) and

Fugit anum, latebramque petit; aptum (que) colori

Nomen habet, variis stellatus corpora guttis.

Flies the old Wife and creeps into a hole,

And from his speckled back a Name he gets.

But do you see the Man rowling himself upon the ground, and tearing and eating his own flesh?

P.

I observe him: what is his Name, and why is he so cruel to himself?

M.

They call him Erisichthon. Erisichthon. In contempt of the Sacrifices of Ceres, he violated her Grove, and cut down one of her Oaks: for which he was punished with perpetual Hunger: so that when he has devoured all the Meat and Food which he can by any ways procure, he is forced to eat his own flesh to support his Body; and to bring upon himself an horrible Death, the better to sustain his Life.

SECT. III.
The Sacrifices of Ceres.

AMongst all the Cerealia, or Sacrifices instituted to the Honour of Ceres, these are the chief.

The Eleusinia, Paus. in Attie. (by which Name the Goddess her self was also known) had their name [Page] because they were first celebrated in the City Eleusis. Plut. in Demetr. Of these were two sorts; the Majora, Aristop. in Plnto. consecrated to Ceres; and the Minora, to Proserpine. It was a custom, that those who were initiated in the Majora, never pull'd off the Cloaths which they then wore,Senec. l. 7. nat. q. cap. 31. till they fell off in Rags. In both the Majora and Minora, a perpetual and wonderful silence was kept: to publish any thing concerning them was a Crime; whence the Proverb concerning silent persons, [...], and the word Mysterium, signifies a religious Rite, from [...], os claudo. Lighted Torches were used in these Sacrifices, because Ceres with them sought Proserpine: and up and down the Streets and the High-ways, they cryed out Proserpine; till they fill'd all places with their dismal Howlings, as Servius tells us, Aen. 4.

Nocturnisque Hecate triviis ululata per urbes. Games were celebrated in these Sacrifices;Pindar. in Isthm. in which the Victors were honoured with a Barley Crown.

The Thesmophoria, Plin. l. 24. so called from Ceres's Name [...], legum latrix, were instituted by Triptolemus: and those Women who vow'd perpetual Chastity, were initiated in them. For some days a Fast was kept;Serv. in 3. Aen. and Wine was altogether banished from her Altars: whence this Expression came, Cereri nuptias facere, which signifies a Feast (amongst the Antients) where there was no Wine. The Swine was sacrificed to this Goddess, because he hurts the Fruits of the Earth; as we find it in Ovid (in Fast. lib. 2.)

[Page]

Prima Ceres, avidae gavisa est sanguine porcae:

Ultra suas merito, caede nocentis, opes.

Ceres with Blood of Swine we best atone,

Which thus requite the mischief they have done.

And Garlands, composed of Ears of Corn, were offered to her, as we find by Tibullus:

Flava Ceres, tibi sit nostro de rure corona

Spicea, quae templi pendeat ante fores.

To thee, fair Goddess, we'll a Garland plat

Of Ears of Corn t'adorn thy Temple Gate.

Ambarvalia, Serv. in 1. Georg. were instituted to purge the Fields, and to beg Fruitfulness and Plenty; they were so called quod victima ambiret arva, because the Sacrifice was lead about the fields; as the Suburbs, amburbium, was esteemed sacred, because the Sacrifice was carried round the City. These Sacrifices were performed by Husbandmen,Virg. 3. Ecl. who carried a Sow big with young, or a Cow-Calf, through the Corn and the Hay, in the beginning of Harvest thrice: the Country-men following him with Dancing, and Leaping, and Acclamations of Joy, till all the fields rung again with the Noise. In the mean time, one of them adorn'd with a Crown, sung the Praises of Ceres; and after an Oblation of Wine, mix'd with Honey and Milk, before they began to Reap, they sacrificed the Sow to her. The Rites of these Ambarvalia are thus described by Virgil, Georg. l. 1.

Cuncta tibi Cererem pubes agrestis adoret:

Cui tu lacte favos, & miti dilue Baccho;

Terque novas circum felix eat hostia fruges;

Omnis quam chorus, & socii comitentur ovantes,

[Page]Et Cererem clamore vocent in tecta, neque ante

Falcem maturis quisquam supponat aristis,

Quàm Cereri, torta redimitus tempora quercu,

Det motus incompositos, & carminâ dicat.

Let Ceres all the youthful Swains adore,

And her with Honey, Milk, and Wine implore;

Let the blest Offering thrice new Corn surround,

Thy Roof with Guests and joyful Friends resound,

Calling on Ceres; nor the meanest Clown,

Unless his Temples Oken Garlands crown,

To Ceres rudely Dance, and Verses sing,

Shall Sickle to the Golden Harvest bring.

CHAP. IX.

SECT. I.
The MUSES. Their Image.

P.

O What Beauty, what Sweetness, what Elegancy is here!

M.

You mean in these Nine Virgins, that are crowned with Palms, Cornut. ap. Lil. do you not?

P.

Certainly. How pleasantly, and kindly they smile? How decent, and becoming is their Dress? How handsomely do they sit together in the Shade of that Laurel Arbour? How skilfully some of them play upon the Harp, some upon the Cittern, some upon the Pipe, some upon the Cymbal, and some harmoniously sing and play at once? Methinks

[Page]

[Page] [Page] I hear them with united Minds, Voices and Hands, make an agreeable Concord arise from their different Instruments, commanding their several Voices in such a manner, that they make the most noble Harmony, whose pleasing Charms entring into my Ears, ravishes my mind with pleasure.

M.

They are the Muses: Orph. hym. Mus. Id. ibid. Hesiod. in Theog. Tzetz. Chil. 6. hist. 90. Mus. ap. Lil. the Mistresses of all the Sciences, the Presidents of the Musicians and Poets, and Governors of the Feasts and Solemnities of the Gods. Iupiter begat them of the Nymph Mnemosyne, who afterwards brought them forth upon the Mountain Pierius: Some say they were born of other Parents, the Ancients say that they are ancienter than Iupiter, and that they are the Daughters of Coelum: They are called the Daughters of Iupiter, and Mnemosyne (which in Greek signifies memory) because all Students and Scholars ought to have great ingenuity and ready memories.

SECT. II.
The Name of Muse.

M.

THE Musae were fomerly called Mosae, Plat. in Cratylo [...] and derived from [...], inquirere: because Men learn of them the things of which they were ignorant. Or from [...], to teach. Or as others derive it,Cassiod. Musae quasi [...], Similes: because there is a Similitude, and an Affinity and Relation betwixt all the Sciences; in which they agree, and are connex'd [Page] with one another. Wherefore the Muses are often painted with their hands joyned, dancing round, in the middle of them sits Apollo their Commander and Prince. The Pencil of Nature, described them in that manner upon the Agate, which Pyrrbus, who made War against the Romans, wore in a Ring. For, says Pliny, (lib. 37. c. 1.) the Nine Muses, and Apollo holding a Harp were described in it; not done by Art, but by the spontaneous Handiwork of Nature; and the veins of the Stone were formed so regular [...], that every Muse had her particular Distinctions.

SECT. III.
The Proper Names of the Muses.

P.

WHAT were the Proper Names of each of them?

M.

They had each of them a Name, derived from some particular Accomplishment of their Minds or Bodies.

The first, Calliope, was so called [...], from the Goodness of her Voice, she presides over Rhetorick; and is esteemed the most excellent of all the Nine.

The Second,Schol. Apollon. Clio, is derived from [...], gloria. For she is the Historical Muse, and takes her Name from the famousness of the things that she records.

The Third,Ovid. 2. de Art. Erato, from [...], Amor, because she sings of Amours: because Learned Men are beloved and praised by others. She is also [Page] called Saltatrix for she first invented the Art of Dancing, over which she presided: she also found out Poetry.

The Fourth,Procl. in in Plesiod. Thalia, from [...], to flourish, because she sings pleasantly and wantonly; some ascribe to her the invention of Comedy, others of Geometry.

The Fifth, Melpomene, from [...], Canto, or [...], concentum facere, is supposed to preside over Tragedy, and to have invented Sonnets.

The Sixth, Terpsichore, hath her Name from [...], quod choreis delectet because she delights in Bulls: some call her Citharistria.

The Seventh, Euterpe, or Euterpia, from [...], jucundus, the sweetness of her singing too. Some call her Tibicina, because, according to some, she presides over the Pipes: and some say, Logick was invented by her.

The Eight, Polyhymnia, or Polymnia, or Polymneia from [...] and [...] memoria, was excellent for her memory: and therefore the Invention of writing of History is attributed to her;Plut. in Sympos.which requires a good memory. It was her invention, quòd carminibus additae sini Orchestrarum loquacissimae manus, linguosi digiti, silentium clamosum, expositio tacita, uno verbo, gestus & actio. That the Musicians, says Cassiodorus (in Virgil. l. 4) add to the Verses, that they sing, Hands and Fingers, which speak more than the Tongue; an expressive silence; a Language without words; in short, Gesture and Action.

[Page]The Ninth, Urania, from [...], coelum, was either so called either because she sings of divine things; or because, through her assistance Homines ad coelos evehantur laudibus: or because by the Sciences, they become conversant in the Contemplation of things celestial.

A modern Poet (Bahusius) hath comprised these Nine Muses in a Distich:Bahus. 4. Epig. 1. That is, he hath made the Nine Muses to stand, which is something strange, but upon Eleven Feet. Perhaps you will remember their names better, when they are thus joyned together in two Verses.

Calliope, Polymneia, Erato, Clio, atque Thalia,

Melpomene, Euterpe, Terpsichore, Urania.

SECT. IV.
The Common Names of the Muses.

P.

WHAT Names had the Muses, common to them all?

M.

The most remarkable are, Heliconides, or Heliconiades, from the Mountain Helicon in Boeotia.

Parnasides, from the Mountain Parnassus in Phocis; Pers. in prooem. which has two Heads: where if any person slept, he presently became a Poet. It was anciently called Larnassus from Larnace, the Ark of Deucalion, which rested here; and was named Parnassus, after the Flood, from an Inhabitant of this Mountain so called.

[Page] Citherides, or Cithaeriades, from the Mountain Cithaeron, where they dwelt.

Aonides, from the Country Aonia.

Pierides and Pieriae, Pers. in prooem. from the Mountain Pierus or Pieria in Thrace: or from the Daughters of Pierius and Anippe; who [...]aring to contend with the Muses, were changed into Pyes.

Pegasides and Hippocrenides from the famous Fountain Helicon; which by the Greeks is called Hippocrene, from [...] and [...] and the Latines, Caballinus, from Caballus a Horse;Ovid. 5. Metam. and Pegaseius from Pegasus, the Winged Horse, who striking a Stone in this place with his Hoof, opened the Fountain,Sidon. Apollin. and the Waters of it became vocal.

Aganippides and Aganippiae, from the Fountain Aganippe.

Castalide's, from the Fountain Castalius at the Foot of Parnassus.

SECT. V.
The Number of the Muses.

P.

WHat was the Number of the Muses? M, Some write, that they were but three, in the begining; because Sound, Var. ap. Aug. out of which all Singing is form'd, is naturally Threefold; either made by the Voice alone, or by blowing as in Pipes, or by striking as in Citterns and Drums. Or it may be, because there are three tones of the Voice or other Instruments, the Base, the Tenor and the Treble. Or because three is the most perfect [Page] of Numbers;Censorin. de die nat. for it agrees to the Persons of the Godhead:Phurn. de Deor. nat. Or lastly, because all the Sciences are distributed into three general Parts, Philosophy, Rhetorick, and Mathematicks: and each three Parts are subdivided into three other Parts. Philosophy into Logick, Ethicks, and Physick. Rhetorick into the Genus Demonstrativum, Deliberativum, and Iudiciale. Mathematicks into Musick, Geometry, and Arithmetick: whence it came to pass, that they reckoned not only three Muses but Nine.

Others gave us a different reason why they are Nine.Varro ib. ex Lil. Gyr. When the Citizens of Sycion appointed three skilful Artificers to make the Statues of the three Muses, promising to chuse those three Statues out of the Nine which they liked best; they all were so well made that they could not tell which to chuse so that they bought them all and placed them in the Temples: and Hesiod afterwards, assigned to them the Names mentioned above.

P.

Were they Virgins;

M.

Some affirm,Plat. ap. [...]und. vid. Nat. com. and others deny it; who reckon up their Children. But however, let, no person despise the Muses; unless he designs to bring destruction on himself by the Example of Thamyra or Thamyris: Thamyris. Homer. l. 2. Iliad. Plu. de Musi [...]. who being conceited of his beauty and skill in singing, presumed to challenge the Muses to sing; upon condition, that if he was overcome, they they should punish him as they pleased. And after he was overcome, he was deprived at once both of his Harp and his Eyes.

CHAP. X.

[Page]

SECT. I.
Themis, Astraea, Nemesis.

P.

THese Three Goddesses, I see contrive and consult together of great Matters.

M.

I suppose so. For the Business of them all is almost the same. The same Function is incumbent upon each of them: but however let us inspect them all singly.

Themis, Hesiod. in Theog. the First of them is the Daughter of Coelum and Terra. Her Office is to instruct Mankind to do things honest, just and right, according to the signification of her Name in Greek, [...], Fas. Wherefore, her Images were brought and placed before those,Ex Lil. Gyr. who were about to speak to the People, that they might be admonished thereby to say nothing in publick, but what was just and righteous. Some say, she spoke Oracles at Delphi, Ex Ov. 1. Metam. Hymn. Apollon. Hesiod. in Th. Idem. before Apollo; tho Homer says that she served Apollo, with Nectar and Ambrosia. There was another Themis, of whom Iustice, Law and Peace are said to be born. Hesiod attributes to this latter the noble Epithet [...], pudibundam; for she was ashamed to see any thing that is done against Right and Equity. Eusebius calls her Carmenta; because, carminibus [Page]edictisque suis,Q. l. 3. praep. Eu.by her Verses and Precepts she directs every one to that which is just. Where he means a different Carmenta from

Carmenta Romana, Carmenta. the Mother of Evander, otherwise called Themis and Nicostrata, 1. Solin. in deser. Rom. a Prophetical Lady; she was worshipped by the Romans, because she Prophesied; and called Carmenta, either from carmen, or quasi carens mente. To this Lady an Altar was dedicated near the Gate Carmentalis, by the Capitol; and a Temple was built to her Honour also upon this occasion. The Senate forbid the married Women the use of Litters or Sedans, they combined together, and resolved, that they would never bring Children, unless their Husbands rescinded that Edict; which they executed so long, that the Senate was obliged to change their Sentence, and yield to the Womens Will, and allow them Sedans and Chariots again. And when their Wives conceived and brought forth fine Children, they erected a Temple to the Honour of Carmenta.

Astraea, the Daughter of Aurora and Astraeus, the Titan, Hesiod. in Theog. (or as others rather say, the Daughter of Iupiter and Themis) was esteemed Iustitiae Antistita, the Princess of Iustice. The Poets feign, that in the Golden Age she descended from Heaven to the Earth; and being offended at last by the Wickedness of Mankind, she returned to Heaven again, after all the other Gods had went before her.Ovid. 1. Metam.

Victa jacet pietas, & virgo caede madentes

Ultima coelestûm, terras Astraea reliquit.

[Page] Astraea last of all the Heavenly Birth

Affrighted leaves the blood-defiled Earth.

She is many times directly called by the Name of Iustitia; as particularly: (Virgil Georg. l. 2.)

—extrema per illos

Iustitia excedens terris, vestigia fecit.

—Through these old Iustice took

Her parting steps, when she the Earth forsook.

And when she had returned to Heaven again,Boccat. l. 4. Geneal. Deor. c. 53 she was placed where we now see the Constellation Virgo.

The Parents of Nemesis were Iupiter and Necessity; or according to others,Pausan. in Arcad. Nox and Oceanus: she was the Goddess that rewarded Virtue, and punished Vice, and she taught Men their Duty; says Plato de leg. Dial. 2. So that she received her Name [...], à distributione quae unicuique fit, from the Distribution that she made to every Body. Iupiter enjoyed her, as the Story says, in the Shape of a Goose; after which she brought forth an Egg; which she gave to a Shepherd whom she met,Apollodor. l. 3. Biblioth. to be carried to Leda. Leda laid up the Egg in a Box, and Helena was soon after produced of that Egg. But others give us quite different Accounts of the Matter. The Romans certainly sacrificed to this Goddess, when they went to War; whereby they signified that they never took up Arms unless in a just Cause. She is called by another Name Adrastaea, from Adrastus, a King of the Argivi, who first built an Altar to her: or perhaps from [...], fugere; Strab. Pausan. because no [Page] guilty person can escape the punishment due to his Crimes, tho sometimes Iustice overtakes him late: Indeed she has Wings, but does not always use them in pursuing Offenders.Idem in Att. For

Ad scelerum poenas ultrix venit ira tonantis

Hoc graviore manu, quo graviore pede.

The Wrath Divine to punish sin comes slow,

But th' heavier its pace, the heavier its Blow.

Rhamnusia is another Name of this Goddess, from Rhamnus, a Town in Attica, where she had a Temple; in which there was a Statue of her made of one Stone,Strab. l. 9. ten Cubits high, holding the Bough of an Apple-Tree in her Hand;Paus. in Att. and a Crown was upon her Head, in which many Images of Deer were engraven. She had also a Wheel, which denoted her Swiftness when she avenges. Hence Claudian says,

Sed Dea, quae nimis obstat Rhamnusia votis,

Ingemuit flexitque rotam.

Th' avenging Goddess t' our desires unbent

First groan'd, then turn'd her Wheel.

CHAP. XI.

[Page]

SECT. I.
The Gods of the Woods, and the Rural Gods. Pan. His Names.

WE are now come to the second part of the right-hand Wall;Samius. which exhibits the Images of the Gods and Goddesses of the Woods. Here you may see the Gods Pan, Sylvanus, the Fauni, Satyri, Sileni, Priapus, Aristaeus, and Terminus: Hom. in hymn. and there you see the Goddesses Diana, Pales, Flora, Feronia, Pomona, and an innumerable company of Nymphs.

P.

What Gods, do you shew me? Do you call those Cornuted Monsters Gods, who are half Men, and half Beasts, hairy and shaggy, with Goats Feet,Phurn. and Horses Tails?

M.

Why not? Since they have attained to that honour. First, let us examine the Prince of them all, PAN.

Pan, [...], Omne, is called by that name, either as some tell us, because he was the Son of Penelope by all her Wooers; or, because he exhilarated the minds of all the Gods with the musick of the Pipe, which he invented; and by the Harmony of his Cittern, upon which he played skilfully as soon as he was born. Or perhaps, he is called Pan, because he governs [Page] the Affairs of the Universal World,Serv. in Aen. 6. by his Mind, as he represents it by his Body, as we shall see by and by.

The Latines called him Inuus, and Incubus; the Night-Mare,Justin. l. 43. ab ineundo passim cum omnibus animalibus; because he uses Carnality with all Creatures.

And at Rome he was worshipped and called Lupercus, and Lyceus: a Temple was built to his honour, at the foot of the Palatine Hill; the Festivals Lupercalia were instituted, in which his Priests, the Luperci, ran about the City naked.

SECT. II.
His Descent.

HIS descent is uncertain: but the common opinion is, that he was born of Mercury and Penelope. For when Mercury loved her excessively,Herod. in Euterpe. and tryed in vain to move her, but changing himself into a very white Goat, he obtains his desires from her, and begat Pan of her when she kept the Sheep of her Father Icarius in the Mountain Taygetus. Pan after he was born,Hom. in hymn. was lapt up in the Skin of a Hare, and carried to Heaven. But why do I here detain you with words? Look upon the Image of him.

SECT. III.
The Image of Pan.

P.

IS that Pan? that horned half Goat, crowned with a Pine? with a smiling red Face; and the Feet and Tail of a Goat, cloathed [Page] with a spotted Skin?Lucian. in Bacch. Holding a crooked Staff in one Hand, and a Pipe made of an uneven number of Reeds in the other. O Ridiculous Deity! fit only to fright the Boys.

M.

Believe me, he hath frighted the Men too. For when the Galls under Brennus, their Leader made an irruption into Greece, and were just about to plunder the City Delphos, Pan in the night frightned them so much, that they all betook themselves to flight, when no body pursued them. Whence the Proverb came Terrores Panici, when we speak of those who are frighted without Cause. Pausan. Plut.

Now hear, what that Image of Pan signifies. Pan, they say, is a symbol of the Universal World, as I intimated before: In his upper part he resembles a Man, in his lower part a Beast; because the superiour and Celestial part of the World is beautiful, radiant, and glorious; as is the Face of his God: whose Horns resemble the Rays of the Sun and the Horns of the Moon: the redness of his Face is like the splendour of the Sky; and the spotted Skin that he wears, is an Image of the starry Firmament. In his lower parts he is shagged and deformed, which represents the Shrubs, and wild Beasts, and Trees of the Earth below. His Goats Feet signifie the solidity of the Earth; and his Pipe of seven Reeds, that Celestial harmony which is made by the seven Planets. He hath [...] [...]eep-hook, crooked at the top, in his Hand, which signifies the turning of the Year into itself. This is Servius's Explication of him, in [...]rg. Eclog. 2.

SECT. IV.
Actions of Pan.

[Page]

P.

BUT what mean those Young Ladies that dance about him?

M.

They are the Nymphs, which dance to the Musick of his Pipe. Which Instrument Pan first invented, Virgil. Eclog. 2.

Pan primus calamos cera conjungere plures Instituit.

Pan with [...]oft wax unequal reeds first joyn'd,

And others taught the knack.

You will wonder when you hear the relations which the Poets tell of this Pipe: to wit, as oft as Pan blows it,Orph. hymn. the Dugs of the Sheep are filled with Milk. For he is the God of the Shepherds and Hunters; Iibicus Poet. Gr. the Captain of the Nymphs, the President of the Mountains and of a Country life; and the Guardian of the Flocks, that graze upon the Mountains. (Virg. Ecl. 2.)

Pan curat oves, oviumque magistroi.

Pan does the Sheep as well as Shepherds guard. Although his Aspect is so deformed, yet when he changed himself into a white Ram, he pleased and gratified the Moon, as it is reported. (Virg. Georg. lib. 3.)

Munere sic niveo lanae, si credere dignum est.

Pan, Deus, Arcadiae, captam te, Luna, fefellit.

With a white Fleece, if we may Credit give,

God Pan did Goddess Luna thus deceive.

Besides he pleased the Nymph Echo: of whom he begot his Daughter Iringes, who gave Medea the Medicines, (they say) with which she charm'd Iason. Theaetet. Poet. Gr. He could not but please Dryope; [Page] to gain whom he laid aside,Hom. in hymn. as it were, his Divinity, and became a Shepherd: But he did not Court the Nymph Syrinx Syrinx. with so much success: For she ran away to avoid so filthy a Lover; till coming to a River (where her flight was stopt) she prayed the Naiades, the Nymphs of the Waters, because she could not escape her pursuer, to change her into another form, which was granted. Ovid. Met. l. 1.

Panaque cum prensam sibi jam Syring a putaret,

Corpore pro Nymphae, calamos trivisse palustres.

Pan, when he thought he had his Syrinx claspt

Between his Arms, Reeds for her Body graspt.

For she was changed into a Reed.

Dumque ibi suspirat, motos in arundine ventos

Effecisse sonum tenuem, similemque quaerenti,

Arte novâ, vocisque Deum dulcedine captum,

Hoc mihi consilium tecum, dixisse, manebit.

He sighs: they, stir'd therewith, report again

A mournful sound, like one that did complain [...]

Rapt with the musick; Yet, O sweet (said he)

Together ever thus converse will we.

Pan made of this Reed a Pipe, which he called Syrinx from the Nymphs name. Yet Lucretiue relates a different occasion of the invention of the Pipe: where he says, lib. 5.

—Zephyri cava per calamorum sibila primûm

Agrestes docuere, cavas inflare cicutas:

Inde minutatim dulces didicisse querelas

Tibia, quas fundit digitis pulsata canentum.

While the soft Western gales blew [...]er the Plains,

And shook the sounding reeds, they taught the Swains

To frame a most melodious Pipe from thence,

Whose sounds with artful Fingers they dispense.

[Page] In the Sacrifices of this God,Theocrit. in viator. they offered to him Milk and Honey,Virg. 3. in a Shepherds Bottle. He was more especially worshipped in Arcadia, Georg. 4. for which reason he is so often called Pan Deus Arcadiae. Ecl. Some derive from him,Ap. Lil. Gyr. Hispania, Spain, formerly called Iberia, for he lived there, when he returned from the Indian War, to which he went with Bacchus and the Satyrs.

CHAP. XII.
SYLVANUS.

ALtho' many Writers confound the Sylvani, Fauni, Satyri, and Sileni, with Pan; yet many distingish them; wherefore we will treat of them separately, and begin with Sylvanus.

That old Man is Sylvanus whom you see placed next to Pan, Aelian. var. hist. with the Feet of a Goat, and the Face of a Man,Mart. 5. de nupt. Serv. in Aen. & Georg. Virg. of little Stature, he holds Cypress in his Hand stretched out, he is so called from Sylvae, the Woods; for he presides over them. He mightily loved the Boy, Cyparissus; who had a tame Deer, which pleased him greatly; Sylvanus by chance killed it, whereupon the Youth died for grief. Therefore Sylvanus changed him into the Tree of his own Name, and carried a Branch of it always in his Hand, in memory of his Loss. (Georg. 1.)

[Page]Et teneram à radice ferens, Sylvane, Cupressum.

A tender Cypress plant Sylvanus bears.

There were many other Sylvani, who endeavoured as much as they could to violate the Chastity of Women. St Austin says, Eos cum Faunis (quos vulgo incubos vocant) improbos saepe extitisse mulieribus, & [...]orum appetisse, & peregisse concubitum; that they and the Fauni (commonly called Incubi) were oftentimes wicked to the Women, desiring and enjoying their Embraces. And Varro says that they were very mischievous to big-bellied Women. S. Aug. de Civ. D. l. 15. c. 23.

CHAP. XIII.
SILENUS.

THat old Fellow, who follows next, with a flat Nose and a bald Head, with large Ears, and a small, fat, gorbellied Body, is Silenus, so called from [...],Aelian. 3. Var. hist. c. 40. dicteriae in aliquam dicere; to jest upon any one. He sits up on a crooked Ass, but when he walks, he leans upon a Staff. He was Bacchus's Foster-Father, his Master, and his perpetual Companion, and consequently almost always drunk. For Virgil describes him in such a Condition. (Eclog. 6.)

[Page]

Silenum pueri somno videre jacentem,

Inflatum hesterno venas, ut semper, Iaccho.

Serta procul tantum capiti delapsa jacebant,

Et gravis attrita pendebat Cantharus ansa.

The Boys in's Cave Silenus sleeping found,

With last night's Bacchus swell'd (his usual guise)

Far from his Head his faln off Garland lies;

By a worn Handle hung his heavy Can.

Cantharus is a sort of a Cup, that Bacchus used. When Silenus was drunk, he carried a Staff, by which he governed his stumbling steps, as Ovid remarks, Met. l. 4.

Quique senex ferula titubantes ebrius artus

Sustinet, & pando non fortiter haeret asello.

His Staff does hardly keep him on his legs,

When mounted on his Ass, see how he swags.

In another place Ovid hath this Distich, (l. 2. de Arte Am.)

Ebrius ecce senex, pando delapsus asello,

Clamarunt Satyri, surge, age, surge pater.

Th' old Soker's drunk, from's Ass h'as got a fall,

Rowze, Daddy, rowze again, the Satyrs bawl.

You must know the Satyrs esteemed Silenus, as their Father; and when they became old, they were call'd Sileni too.Paus. in Attic. And concerning Silenus's Ass, they say, that he was translated into Heaven, and placed among the Stars, because in the Gyants War, Silenus rode on him, and helped Iupiter very much. Arat.

But when Silenus once was taken, and asked, Quidnam esset hominibus optimum? What was the best thing that could befal men? He was silent a long time, and then answered, Omnibus esse optimum, non nasci; & natos, [Page]quam citissimè interire. It is best for all never to be born; but being born, to die very quickly. Plut. in Consol. Apoll. Which Expression Pliny repeats almost in the same words, Multi extitere, qui non nasci optimum censerent, aut quam citissime aboleri. In Praef. l. 7.

CHAP. XIV.
The SATYRS.

BEhold! look! Those are Satyrs, who dance in lascivious Motions and Postures,Pausan. in Attic. under the shade of that tall spreading Oak; they have Heads armed with Horns, and Goats Feet and Legs, crooked Hands, rough hairy Bodies, and Tails not much shorter than Horses Tails.Aeuseb. in praep. Eu. Ibid. There is no Animal in Nature, more salacious and libidinous than these Gods. Their Name itself is derived from [...], veretrum. Pausanias proves it by an Instance of some Mariners, who were drove upon a Desart Island by a Storm, and saw themselves surrounded with a flock of Satyrs; the Seamen were frighted, and betook themselves again to their Ships, and the Satyrs left the Men, but they seized the Women, and committed all manner of wickedness with them.

CHAP. XV.
The FAUNS.

[Page]

THE Fauni which you see joyned with the Satyri, differ from them in Name only; at least they are not unlike them in their looks.Ovid. Fast. 2. For they have Hoofs and Horns, and are crowned with the Branches of the Pine. When they meet drunken Persons,Idem in OEnone. they stupifie them (they say) with their looks alone.Idem in Phaedra. The Boors of the Country call them, Dii Agrestes, Virgil. Georg. 1. the Rural Gods; and pay them the more Respect, because they armed with Horns, and Nails, and painted in terrible Shapes.

Faunus, Serv. in Aen. 7. or Fatuellus (as he is otherwise called) was the Son of Picus, King of the Latins. His Wife and Sister both,Nat. Com. lib. 5. was Fauna or Fatua, a prophetical Lady, whom himself first Consecrated. And the Story says, that this Faunus was the Father and Prince of the other Fauni and the Satyrs. Serv. in Aen. 7. The Name is derived from fando, or vaticinando; Isid. Hispal. Ep. whence Fatui signifies both Persons that speak rashly and inconsiderately, and Enthusiasts. Because they who prophesie, deliver the Mind and Will of another, and speak things, which themselves many times do not understand.

CHAP. XVI.
PRIAPUS.

[Page]

P.

HA! What means that Naked God, with his Sickle, behind the Trunk of that Tree? What makes him hide the half of his Body so?

M.

The Painter was modest, and therefore painted but half of him; because he is an unhandsome and obscene Deity. His Name is Priapus. I am ashamed to tell the Story of him, he is so very filthy. And therefore I shall say only, that he was the Son of Venus and Bacchus, born at Lampsacus; where his Mother, hating his deformity, and the disproportion of his Members, rejected him. Yet he pleased the Women of Lampsacus, insomuch that their Husbands banished him from the City, till by the Oracles command he was recalled and made God of the Gardens, and crowned with Garden Herbs. He carries a Sickle in his Hand, to cut off from the Trees all superfluous Boughs, and to drive away Thieves and Beasts, and mischievous Birds; from whence he is called Avistupor. Therefore his Image is usually placed in Gardens, as Tibullus intimates in these Verses.

Pomosisque ruber custos ponatur in hortis,

Arceat ut salva falce Priapus aves.

[Page]With th' swarthy guardian God your Orchards grace,

With his stiff Sickle he the Birds will chase.

And Virgil. Georg. lib. 4.

Et custos furum atque avium cum falce saligna

Hellespontiaci servet tutela Priapi.

where the Poet gives him the Epithet Hellespontiacus, because the City Lampsacus was situated upon the Hellespont. But Horace relates this Office of Priapus ingeniously, where he brings in Priapus speaking thus of himself. Sat. 8.

Olim truncus eram ficulnus, inutile lignum,

Cum faber incertus scamnum faceretne Priapum,

Malu [...]t esse Deum. Deus inde ego furum avium (que)

Maxima formido.

Long time I lay a useless piece of Wood,

Till Artists doubtful for what the Log was good,

A Stool or God; resolv'd to make a God:

So I was made, my Form the Log receives;

A mighty Terror I to Birds and Thieves.

They say that this was the occasion of the Deformity of this God: when Iuno saw Venus big with Child, she was jealous, and therefore under pretence of assisting her in her Labour, she spitefully misus'd her, so that the young Child was spoil'd and deform'd, and from his deformity was call'd Pria [...]us, Vid. Phurnut. and Phallus, and Fascinum; all which three names savour of Obscenity: tho by some he is call'd Bonus Daemon, or Genius.

Indeed Iuno's touch was not necessary to make the Child monstrous: for what Off-spring can we expect from a Sot and a Whore.

CHAP. XVII.
ARISTAEUS.

[Page]

HE is called Aristaeus, whom you see busied in that Nursery of Olives, supporting and improving the Trees. He is employed in drawing Oil from the Olive, which Art he first invented. He also found out the use of Honey, and therefore you see some rows of Bee-hives near him.Paus. in Arcad. For which two profitable Inventions, the Antients paid him Divine Honours.

He was otherwise called Nomius and Agraeus, and was the Son of Apollo by Cyrene; or as Cicero says, the Son of Liber Pater; educated by the Nymphs,Apol. l. 2. In Ver. 6. and taught by them the Art of making Oil, Honey, and Cheese. He fell in love with Eurydice, the Wife of Orpheus, and pursued her into a Wood, where a Serpent stung her so that she died: the Nymphs hated him so much for this, that they destroyed all his Bees, to revenge the death of Eurydice. This loss was exceedingly deplored by him. And asking his Mother's Advice, he was told by an Oracle, that he ought by Sacrifices to appease Eurydice. Wherefore he sacrificed to her four Bulls and four Heifers; and his loss was supply'd: for suddenly a swarm of Bees burst forth from the Carcasses of the Bulls.

CHAP. XVIII.
TERMINUS.

[Page]

BUT pray why is that Stone or Log placed there (the distance will not let me distinguish which of the two it is)?

M.

It has place amongst the Rural Gods, because it is a God itself.

P.

A God do you say? Surely now you jest, Sir.

M.

No, it is not only a God, but a God greatly honour'd in this City of Rome: which they call Terminus; and suppose the limits of the Fields to be under his Protection. Let the Poet witness this, who thus addresses him. Ovid. Fast. l. 2.

Termine, sive lapis, sive es desertus in agro

Stipes, ab antiquis tu quoque numen habes.

Old Termin, whether stump or stone thou be,

The Antients give a Godhead too to thee.

The Statue of this God was either a square Stone,Ar [...]ob. 1. contra Gent. or a Log of Wood plained:Clem. Alex. 7. strom. which they usually persum'd with Ointments and crown'd with Garlands, according to Tibull [...] lib. 1. Eleg. 1.

Nam veneror, seu stipes habet desertus in agris [...]

Seu vetus in triviis florida serta lapis.

[Page]

[Page]

[Page]For I my Adoration freely give,

Whether a Stump forlorn my vows receive,

Or a beflower'd Stone my worship bave.

Seneca mentions this Deity also:In Hip. Act. 2. Sc. 1.

—Nullus in campo sacer

Divisit agros Arbiter populis lapis.

The sacred Landmark then was quite unknown.

Dion. Halic. l. 2.

And indeed these lapides Terminales (that is Landmarks) were esteemed sacred; so that whoever dared to move them, or Plow up, or transfer to another place, his Head became devoted to the Diis Terminalibus, and it was lawful for any body to kill him.

And further, though they did not Sacrifice the Lives of Animals to these Stones, because they thought that it was not lawful to Stain them with blood; yet they offer'd Wafers of Bread to them, and the first fruits of Corn, and the like: and upon the last day of the year, they always observed Festivals to their Honour called Terminalia.

Now we pass to the Goddesses of the Woods.

CHAP. XIX.
The Goddesses of the Woods. DIANA.

P.

IT is very well. Here comes a Goddess taller than the other Goddesses,Vir. Aen. 1. in whose Virgin looks we may ease our Eyes, which have [Page] been tired with the horrid sight of those monstrous Deities.Idem ibid. Welcom Diana: your Hunting Habit, the Bow in your Hand, and the Quiver full of Arrows which hangs down from your Shoulders, and the Skin of a Deer fastned to your Breast,Paus. in Arcad. discover you. Your Behaviour, which is free and easie, but modest and decent; your Garments, which are handsom and yet careless; shew that you are a Virgin.Strab. l. 14. Your Name [...], shews your Modesty and Honour. [...] I wish that you who are tallest of the Goddesses,integer. to whom Women owe their Stature,Homer. would implant in them also a love of your Chastity.Od. 20. For I know you hate, you abhor the Conversation of the Men; and fly from the very sight of them. You reject the Temptations of Delight, and abhor the charming Witchcraft of Pleasure with all your Heart.Ovid. Met. 4.

Actaeon, the Son of Aristaeus, that famous Huntsman, fatally learned this; when he impudently looked upon you, when you were naked in the Fountain: you deferr'd not the Punishment of his Impurity for a moment; for sprinkling him with the Water, you changed him into a Deer, which was afterwards torn to pieces by Dogs.

Farther Honour is due to you, because you are the Moon, Astrorum decus (Virg. Aen. 9.) the glory of the Stars, and the only Goddess, who, (Aen. 11.)

AEternum telorum & virginitatis amorem,

Intemerata colis.

Thy self untainted still,

Hunting and Chastity thou alway lov'd.

[Page]Nor am I ignorant of that famous and deserving Action that you did to avoid the flames of Alphaeus: when you hastily fled to your Nymphs,Paus. in poster. who were all together in one place; and besmear'd both your self and them with dirt so,Eliac. that when he came he did not know you: Whereby your honest Deceit succeeded according to your Intentions; and the Dirt, which fouls every thing else, added a new Lustre to your Virtue. Welcome once again. Horat. Carm. l. 3.

Montium custos, nemorumque virgo,

Quae laborantes utero puellas

Ter vocata audis, adimisque letho,

Diva Triformis.

Kind Guardian of my Hills and Grove

Who thrice implor'd dost hear and save

The teeming Women from the grave,

Great here on Earth, in Hell, and great above.

M.

So, Palaeophilus: Have you thus long cheated me?

P,

I?

M.

Yes you; who have counterfeited the person of an ordinary and ignorant Man, till now, so dexterously?

P.

I am as ignorant as I pretended. You may believe me when I swear, that I am altogether ignorant of these things that you teach me. Nor can you suppose otherwise from those things which I now repeated about Diana. For from a Boy I have loved this Goddess for her Modesty; and out of respect to [Page] her, I learn these few things which you heard me speak. I am wholly blind, and beg, that by your Assistance you would guide me. I speak sincerely I am a meer Freshman.

M.

You can scarce make me believe so. But however, I will verifie the Proverb, S [...]s Minervam; and begin from that word that you last mentioned.

Diana is called Triformis and Tergemina, Cic. 3. de nat. 1. because though she is one, yet she has a threefold Office, for she is Luna in the Heavens, Diana upon Earth,Ex Demp. in Paralip. and Hecate in Hell. All these three Names and Offices are ingeniously expressed in this Distich.

Terret, lustrat, agit, Proserpina, Luna, Diana,

Ima, suprema, feras, sceptro, fulgore, sagittâ.

Yet Hesiod esteems them three different Goddesses.In Theogon. 2. Because the Poets say that she has Three Heads: Orph. in Argon. the Head of a Horse on the Right side,Cornut. & Artemid. of a Dog on the Left, and of a Man in the midst:2 Onirocrit. whence some call her [...]. And others ascribe to her the likeness of a Bull,Porph. ap. G [...]rm. a Dog, and a Lion. Virgil mentions her thus, (Aen. 4.)

Tergeminamque Hecaten, tria Virginis or a Dianae.

—Hecate in her treble Form,

Three Faces of the Virgin-Goddess see.

And Claudian de rapt. Pros. lib. 2.

Ecce procul ternis, Hecate, variata figuris.

Behold far off the Goddess Hecate

In threefold Shape advances.

Thirdly,Ap. Lil. Gyr. According to the Opinion of some, she is called Triformis, because the Moon hath three several Faces, or Shapes. The New Moon [Page] casts a Circle of Light like an Arch. The Half Moon fills a Semicircle with Light, and the Full Moon fills a whole Circle or Orb with its Light. But let us examine these Names more nicely.

Luna is derived à lucendo, shining; either because una sit, quae noctu lucet; she alone shines so gloriously in the Night; vel quòd luce alienâ splendeat, or because she shines by the light of another. In Greek her Name is [...] from [...], novum lumen; because she shines always with New Light. Her Chariot is drawn with a white and a black Horse, or with two Oxen, because she has got two Horns, sometimes a Mule is added, says Festus, because she is barren and shines by the Light of the Sun. Some say that a Luna of both Sexes hath been worshipped, especially among the AEgyptians: and indeed they give this property to all the other Gods. Thus both Lunus and Luna were worshipped. But with this difference, that those who worshipped Luna, were thought subject to the Women, and those who worshipped Lunus, were superiour to them. We must also observe, that the Men sacrificed to Venus, Spart. de Imp. Carac. under the name of Luna, in Womens Cloaths, and the Women in Mens Cloaths Cic. de Deor. Nat. lib. 2. Serv. in 2. Aen. Philocor. Endymion Endymion. was the Moons Gallant, and was mightily favoured by her: insomuch that to kiss him, she descended out of Heaven, and came to the Mountain Latmus or Lathynius in Caria; Apollon. 4. Argonaut. Plin. l. 2. c. 9. where he lay condemned to an eternal sleep by Iupiter, because when he was taken into Heaven, he [Page] impudently attempted to violate the Modesty of Iuno. In reality, Endymion was a famous Astrologer, who first described the Course of the Moon, and he is represented sleeping, because he contemplated nothing but the Stars.

Hecate may be derived from [...],Hesiod. in Theog. eminus, because the Moon darts her Rays or Arrows afar off. She is said to be the Daughter of Ceres by Iupiter; and being cast out by her Mother, and exposed in the Street, the Shepherds took her up, and nourished her. For which reason, her Statue was usually set before the Doors of Houses, whence she took the Name Propylae [...], and Virgil says of her,Paus. in Attic. Aen. 4.

Nocturnisque Hecate triviis, ululata per urbes. Others derive her Name from [...] [...] because they sacrificed a Hundred Victims to her: or because, by her Edict, those who die and are not buried, wander an Hundred years up and down Hell. However, it is certain, she is called Trivia, à Triviis; for she was believed to preside over the Streets and the Ways: so that they sacrificed to her in the Streets,Aristop. Pluto. and the Athenians every New Moon made a sumptuous Supper for her there, which was eaten in the Night by the poor People of the City.Lucian. in Pseudoph. They say that she was excessively tall, her Head was covered with frightful Serpents instead of Hair, and her Feet were like Serpents. She was represented encompassed with Dogs, because that Animal was sacred to her,ApudGyr. Apollon. 3. Argon. Ovid. 9. Met. and Hesychius says, that she was sometimes represented by a Dog, She presided also over Enchantments they tell us; and when she was called seven times she [Page] came to the Sacrifices,Apoll. 3. Argon. as soon as they were finished, several Apparitions appeared, called from her Hecataea.

She was called by the Egyptians Bubastis; her Feasts were named Bubastea; and the City, where they were yearly celebrated, was called Bubastis.

Brimo is another of the Names of Hecate and Diana: which is derived from fremitus, the Cry, which she gave when Apollo or Mars offered her Violence when she was Hunting.

She is called Lucina and Opis, because Infantibus in lucem venientibus open ferat; she helps to bring Children into the world; Aug. de Civ. 4. c. 11. which good Office (it is said) she first perform'd to her Brother Apollo; when as soon as her self was born,Callimach [...] hymn. in Dian. she assisted her Mother Latona, and did the Office of a Midwife. But was so affrighted with her Mothers pains, that she resolved never to have Children, but to live a Virgin perpetually.

She is called Chitone and Chitonia,Plut. 3. Sympos. c. ult.quasi tunicata, from [...], tunica; because Women after Child-birth used to sacrifice to Iuno, and to offer to Diana their own and their Childrens Cloaths.

She was named Dictynna, Ovid. 2. Metam. Lact. plae. 4. not only from the Nets, [...], which she used: (for she was a Huntress, and the Princess of Hunters, for which reason all Woods were dedicated to her) but also because Britomartis Theb. Britomar [...] tis. Schol. Aristoph. the Virgin when she Hunted fell into the Nets, and vowed, if she escaped, a Temple to Diana. She did escape, and then consecrated a Temple Dianae Dictynnae, Others relate the Story thus; When [Page] Britomartis, whom Diana loved because she was an Huntress, fled from Minos her Lover, and cast her self into the Sea, she fell into the Fishermen's Nets, and Diana made her a Goddess. And since we are talking of Hunting, give me leave to add, that the Ancients thought that Diana left off Hunting on the Ides of August: Brodae. in auth. ex schol. Pindari. therefore at that time it was not lawful for any to Hunt, but they Crowned the Dogs with Garlands, and lighted Torches made of the Stubble, and hung up the hunting Instruments near them.

We shall only adjoin, to what hath been said, the Two Stories of Chione and Meleager.

Chione, the Daughter of Daedalion, was deflour'd by Apollo and Mercury; she brought forth Twins; (Philamon a skilful Lutinist, and Autolycus, a famous Jugler.) Ovid. Met. l. 11.

—Furtum ingeniosus ad omne,

Autolycus.

Qui facere assuerat, patriae non degener artis,

Candida de nigris & de candentibus atra.

Cunning in theft, and wily in all slights,

Who could with subtilty deceive the sight;

Converting white to black, and black to white.

Chione was mighty proud, and boasted,

Se peperisse duos, & Diis placuisse duobus,

That she two Sons had brought by having pleas'd two Gods;

And dared to value her self above Diana.

—Se praeferre Dianae

Sustinuit, faciemque Deae culpavit. At illi

Ira ferox mota est, factisque placahimus, inquit:

Nec mora, curvavit cornu, nervusque sagittam

Impulit, & meritam trajecit arundine, linguam.

[Page]She to Dianas durst her face confer,

And blame her Beauty. With a cruel look,

She said: Our deeds shall right us. Forthwith took

Her bow, and bent it; which she strongly drew;

And through her guilty tongue the arrow flew.

Meleager was punished for his Father Oeneus's fault,Ovid. 8. Metam. who, when he offered his first Fruits to the Gods, wilfully forgot Diana, wherefore she was angry and sent a Wild Boar into the Fields of his Kingdom of Caledonia, to destroy them Meleager accompanied with many chosen Youths immediately undertook either to kill this Boar, or to drive him out of the Country. The Virgin Atalanta was among the Hunters, and gave the Boar the first wound; and soon after Meleager killed him. He esteemed Atalanta more who first wounded the Boar, than himself who killed him, and therefore offered her the Boars skin.

—Exuvias, rigidis horrentia setis

Terga dat, & magnis insignia dentibus ora.

Invidere alii totoque er at agmine murmur,

Then gave the bristled spoil, and gastly head

With monstrous tushes arm'd, which terror bred.

She in the Gift and giver pleasure took.

All murmur with preposterous envy strook.

The Relations of Meleager were enraged that the Hide was given to a Stranger, and violently took it from her: whereupon Meleager killed them. As soon as his Mother Althaea, understood that Meleager had killed his own Brothers, she sought revenge like a mad Woman. In Althaea's Chamber was a Billet; [Page] which, when Meleager was born, the Fates took and threw into the Fire; saying

Tempora dixerunt, eadem lignoque tibique,

O modo nate, damus: quo postquam carmine dicto,

Excessere Deae; flagrantem mater, ab igne

Eripuit ramum sparsitque liquentibus undis.

Servatusque diu, Iuvenis servaverat annos.

O lately born, one period we assign

To thee, and to this brand. The charm they weave

Into his fate; and then the Chamber leave.

His Mother snatcht it with an hasty hand

Out of the fire; and quencht the flagrant brand.

This in an inward Closet closely lays:

And by preserving it, preserves his days.

She therefore, moved with rage, goes to her Chamber,

—Dextraque aversa trementi,

Funereum torrem medios conjecit in ignes.

—With Eyes turn'd back, her quaking hand

To trembling flames expos'd the funeral brand.

And as the Log burnt, Meleager, tho absent, felt Fire in his Bowels: which consumed him in the same manner, that the other was consumed: and when at last the Log was quite turn'd to Ashes, and the Fire out, Meleager at the same time expired, and turn'd to Dust.

CHAP. XX.
PALES.

[Page]

THAT old Lady which you see surrounded with Shepherds, Virg. Ecl. 5. is Pales, the Goddess of Shepherds and Pasture. Some call her Magna Mater, and Vesta. To this Goddess, they sacrificed Milk, and Wafers made of Millet, that she might make the Pastures fruitful. They instituted the Feasts called Palilia or Parilia, to her Honor; which were observed upon the Eleventh or Twelfth day of the Kalends of May, by the Shepherds, in the Fields: on the same day, in which Romulus laid the Foundation of the City. These Feasts were celebrated, to appease this Goddess, that she might drive away the Wolves, and prevent the Diseases incident to Cattle. The Solemnities observed in the Palilia were many. The Shepherds placed little heaps of Straw in a particular order and at a certain tain distance, then they danced and leaped over them; then they purged the Sheep and the rest of the Cattle with the fumes of Rosemary, Laurel, Sulphur, and the like: Ovid gives us a Description of these Rites in Fast, lib. 4.

Alm [...] Pales, faveas pastoria sacra [...]anenti,

Prosequar officio si tua facta meo,

[Page]Certe ego de vitulo cinerem, stipulamque fabalem

Saepe tuli, laeva, februa tosta, manu.

Certe ego transilui positas ter in ordine flammas,

Virgaque rorales laurea misit aquas.

Favour, G Pales, now my Past'ral Song,

Whilst of thy Deeds I pious mention make,

Thy Rites with Bean straw Ashes I have done,

And with my Left Hand tost the sacred Cake.

Thrice o'r the flames in order rang'd I've leapt,

And holy Dew my Laurel Twig has dript.

CHAP. XXI.
FLORA.

P.

YOU need not tell me who that Goddess is, which I see so adorned, and fine, and flourishing, so dressed and beautified with Flowers. It is Flora the Goddess and President of the Flowers: is it not?

M.

It is true,Lact. l. 1. c. 24. the Romans give her the Honor of a Goddess: but in reality, she was a famous Miss, who by her nasty Trade heaped up a great deal of Money, and made the People of Rome the Heir to it. Particularly she left a certain Sum, the yearly interest of which was paid, that the Games called Florales or Floralia might be Celebrated annually on her birth day. But because this appeared scandalous, impious, and prophane to the Senate, as it really was. They covered their design, and worshipped Flora under the Title of [Page] Goddess of Flowers: and pretended that they offered Sacrifice to her, that the Plants and Trees might flourish.

Ovid follows the same Fiction in his Fasti: In Fast. Chloris. where he marries Chloris, an infamous Nymph to Zephyrus, and says that her Husband gave her the Power over all the Flowers. But let us return to Flora and her Games. Her Image, as we find in Plutarch, was exposed in the Temple of Castor and Pollux; Val. Max. l. 2. c. 5. dressed in a Coat, and holding in her Right Hand the Flowers of Beans and Pease. For while these sports were Celebrated the Officers or AEdiles, sprinkled Beans and Pease and other Pulse amongst the People. These Games were proclaimed and begun by sound of Trumpet, as Iuvenal intimates in saying, (Sat. 6.)

—Dignissima certè

Florali matrona tuba.

—A Matron worthy sure

Of Flora's Festal Trumpet—

Then the lewd Women came forth in publick, and shewed Tricks naked. Strange! that such Filthiness should be called Flores, and the Games Floralia!

CHAP. XXII.
FERONIA.

[Page]

FEronia the Goddess of the Woods, is justly placed near Flora the Goddess of the Flowers: Virg. 7. Aen. her name is derived à ferendis arboribus. The higher place is due to her because Fruits are more valuable than Flowers, and Trees than small and ignoble Plants. It is said, she had a Grove sacred to her, under the Mountain Soracte: which was set on fire, the Neighbours were resolve to remove the Image of Feronia from thence. When on a sudden the Grove became green again. Strabo reports that those, who were inspired by this Goddess, used to walk barefoot upon burning Coals without hurt. (lib. 5.) Tho many have believed, that by the Goddess Feronia that Virtue only is meant, by which Trees, bring forth Fruits and Flowers.

CHAP. XXIII.
POMONA.

POmona is Pomorum Dea, that is, the Goddess, the Guardian, the President not of the Apples only, but of all the Fruit and Product of [Page] Trees and Plants. As you see, she follows after Flora and Feronia in order; but in the greatness of her merit, she far surpasses them. And hath a Priest who only serves her, called Flamen Pomonalis.

P.

What old toothless Hag is that which flatters Pomona?

M.

It is not an old Woman, but a God. I do not wonder that you are deceived, since in this Disguise he deceived Pomona her self: when she was very busie in looking after her Gardens and Orchards with great care, and was wholly employed in watering and securing the roots, and in lopping the overgrown Branches, Vertumnus, Vertumnus. a principal God amongst the Romans, (called so à vertendo se, because he had a power to turn himself into what shape he pleased) was in love with Pomona, and counterfeited the Shape of an old Woman; (Ovid. Met. l. 4.)

Innitens baculo, positis per tempora canis.

With grey hair'd Noddle, leaning on a Staff.

He came into the Gardens, admired the Fruit and beauty of them, and commending her care about them, he saluted her. He viewed the Gardens, and from the observations which he had made, he began to discourse of Marriage, telling her that it would add to the happiness even of a God, to have her to Wife. Observe, says he, the Trees which creep up this Wall, How do the Apples and Plums strive which shall excel the other in Beauty and Colour; whereas if they had not Pegs [Page] or Supports, which like Husbands prop them up; they would perish and decay.

At si staret, ait, coel [...]bs sine palmite truncus,

Nil praeter frondes, quare peteretur, [...]aberet.

Haec quoque quae juncta vitis requiescit in ulmo,

Si non juncta foret, terrae acclinata jaceret:

Tu tamen exemplo non tangeris arboris hujus.

Yet, saith he, if this Elm should grow alone,

Except for shade, it would be priz'd by none:

And so this Vine in amorous foldings wound,

If but disjoin'd, would creep upon the ground.

Yet art not thou by such Examples led:

But shun'st the pleasures of a happy bed.

All this did not move her, till Vertumnu [...] changed himself into a young Man.

—In juvenem rediit, & anilia demit

Instrumenta sibi; talisque apparuit illi,

Qualis ubi oppositas nitidissima solis imago

Evicit nubes nullaque obstante reluxit.

Vimquè parat: sed vi non est opus: inque figura

Capta Dei Nympha est, & mutua vulnera sensit.

—Again himself he grew.

Th' infirmities of heatless Age depos'd

And such himself unto the Nymph disclos'd.

As when the Sun, subduing with his rays

The muffling cloud his golden brow displays.

He force prepares: of force there was no need;

Struck with his Beauty, mutually they bleed.

CHAP. XXIV.
The NYMPHS.

[Page]

NOW observe that great Company of neat, pretty, handsome, beautiful, charming Virgins, who are very near the Gardens of Pomona. Some run about the Woods, and hide themselves in the Trunks of the aged Oaks; some plunge themselves into the Fountains, and some swim in the River.Phurn. They are called by one common Name Nymphs, [...], because they always look young; or from the Verb [...], splendere: because they are handsome. Yet all have their proper Names besides, which they derive either from the places where they live, or the Offices that they perform; they are especially distributed into three Classes, the Celestial, the Terrestrial, and the Marine Nymphs.

The Celestial Nymph were those Genii, Ex Plut. Macrob. Procl. those Souls and Intellects, who guided the Spheres of the Heavens, and dispensed the Influences of the Stars to the things of the Earth.

Of the Terrestrial Nymphs,Virg. 4. Georg. some presided over the Woods, and were called Dryades from [...], quercus, an Oak, which Word principally signifies an Oak, but generally all Trees. These Dryades had their Habitations in the Oaks. Other Nymphs were called Hamadryades from [...] together and [...] an Oak [...] [Page] for they were born when the Oak was first planted, and when it perishes they die also. The Antients held strange Opinions concerning Oaks, they imagined that even the smallest Oak was sent from Heaven.Gyr. Synt. 1. The Druidae, Priests of the Gauls, esteemed nothing more Divine and Sacred than the excrescence which sticks to Oaks. Others of the Terrestrial Nymphs were called Oreades or Orestiades, from [...], mons; for they presided over the Mountains. Others Napaeae, from [...], saltus, vallis, for their Province was in the Groves and the Vallies. Others Lemoniades, from [...], pratum, for they look after the Meadows and Fields; and others Meliae, from [...], fraxinus, an Ash: And these were supposed to be the Mothers of those Children, who were accidentally born under a Tree, or exposed there.

The Marine Nymphs, either presided over the Seas,Orph. in hymn. and were called Nereides and Nerinae, from the Sea-God Nereus, and the Sea-Nymph Doris their Parents; (which Nereus and Doris, were born of Tethys and Oceanus; from whom they were called Oceanitides and Oceanae:) or those Nymphs who presided over the Fountains, and were called Naiades and Naides, from [...] fluo; others inhabited the Rivers, and were called Fluviales or Potamides, from [...] Fluvius; again, others preside over the Lakes and the Ponds, and these were named Limnades, from [...], a Lake.

All the Gods had Nymphs attending them, Iupiter speaks of his, in Ovid Met. l. 1.

[Page]

Sunt mihi Semidei, sunt rustica numina Fauni,

Et Nymphae; Satyrique & Monticolae Sylvani.

Half Gods and Rustic Fauns attend my will,

Nymphs, Satyrs, Sylvans that on mountains dwell.

Neptune had several Nymphs; in so much that Hesiod and Pindar call him [...], Nympharum ducem, the Captain of the Nymphs; the Poets generally allow him fifty. Phoebus had the Aganippidae and the Muses. Bacchus, an innumerable Company of the Bacchae, Bassarides, Eloides and Thyades. Diana had her hunting Nymphs, and Tethys the Nereides. To Iuno belonged.

—bis septem praestanti corpore Nymphae.

—Twice seven Nymphs of noble Shapes.

I will give you the History of two of them.

Arethusa, was one of Diana's Nymphs, her Virtue was as great as her Beauty. The pleasantness of the place invited her, to cool herself in the Waters of a fine clear River: Alpheus (the God of that River) assumed the Shape of a Man, and arose out of the Water. He first saluted her with kind Words, and then approached near to her, but away she flies, and he follows her; and when he had almost overtaken her, she dissolved with fear by the assistance of Diana whom she implored, into a Fountain.

—sed enim cognoscit amatas

Amnis aquas;

Ovid. 5. Metam.

positoq, viri, quod sumpserat ore,

Vertitur in proprias, ut se illi misceat undas.

The River his beloved Waters knew;

And putting off th' assumed shape of man,

Resumes his own; and in my Current ran.

[Page]To this day,Virg. 3. Aen. Arethusa continues her flight and by a passage through a Cavity of the Earth she goes under ground into Sicily. Alphe [...] also follows by the like subterraneous Pas [...]sages, till at last he unites, and marries hi [...] own Streams to those of Arethusa in that Island.

Echo, who is only a Voice now, was formerly a Nymph, who for her talkativeness received this punishment: Ovid. Met. l. 3.

Reddere de multis, ut verba novissima posset.

Fecerat hoc Iuno: quia cum deprendere posset

Sub Iove saepe suo Nymphas in monte jacentes [...]

Illa Deam, longo prudens sermone tenebat,

Dum fugerent Nymphae.

She only could reiterate the close

Of every speech. This Juno did impose.

For, often when she might have taken Jove,

Compressing there the Nymphs, who weakly strove [...]

Her long discourses made the Goddess stay.

Until the Nymphs had time to run away.

Echo by chance met Narcissus rambling in the Woods; and she so admired his handsomness, that she fell in love with him; she discovered her love to him, courted him, followed him, and embraced the proud Youth in her Arms; but he broke from her Embraces, and hastily fled from her sight; whereupon the despised Nymph hid her self in the Woods, and pined away with Grief.

—Vox tantum, atque ossa supersunt:

Vox manet: ossa ferunt lapidis traxisse figuram.

Inde latet sylvis, nulloque in monte videtur.

Omnibus auditur; sonus est, qui vivit in illa.

[Page]Nothing was left her now but voice and bones:

The voice remains; the other turn to stones;

Conceal'd in Woods, in Mountains never found,

Yet heard in all: and all is but a Sound.

Narcissus, who would neither love others, nor admit of their love, began to admire his own Beauty so, that the love of himself ruined him. Ovid, ib.

Fons erat illimis, nitidis argenteus undis

A Spring there was, whose silver Waters were

As smooth as any mirror, nor less clear.

When he stooped down to drink at this Fountain, he saw his own Image, he staid, liked, admired, and at last passionately loved it.

Spectat inexpleto mendacem lumine formam,

Perque oculos, perit ipse suos.

Looking on his false Form could not suffice,

He ruinates himself with his own Eyes.

The water hindered him from enjoying what he wished.

—Minimum est, quod amantibus obstat.

At length, unhappy Creature, he perceived, that he consumed for Love of himself.

—Flammas, inquit, moveoque feroque

Quod cupio, mecum est; inopem me copia fe [...]it.

Outinam, à nostro seced [...]re corpore possem.

Votum in amante novum est; vellem quod amamus abesset.

I suffer in those flames which I procure.

Shall I be woo'd, or wooe? What shall I crave?

Since what I covet, I already have.

Too much hath made me poor! O you divine

And favouring Powers, me from my self disjoin!

Of what I love, I would de dispossest:

This, in a Lover, is a strange request!

[Page] In a Word,

—Attenuatus amore

Liquitur & caeco paulatim carpitur igne.

And at last by the favour of the Gods he was turned into the Flower Narcissus: (a Daffodil.)

CHAP. XXV.
The inferiour Rural Deities.

THE Images of these Gods are so small that we can't discern their Figures: wherefore I will only re-count their Names. And first,

Rusina, to whose Care all the parts of the Country are committed. Then

Co [...]ina, who reigns over the Hills.

Vallenia, who holds her Empire in the Valleys.

Hippona, who presides over the Horses and Stables, from [...]. This was the Name also of a beautiful Woman begotten by one Fulvius with a Mare. Tertul. Apolog.

Bubona, who hath the Care of the Oxen, Boves.

Seia, who takes Care of the Seed, whilst it lies buried in the Earth. Her Name derived from Serendo.

Segetia, is the same, under another Name; from Seges. Because she takes Care of the Blade, as soon as it appears green above the Ground. Plin. lib. 18.

[Page]Ryncina, is the Goddess of weeding. Her Office begins cum runcantur agri, when the Fields are to be weeded.

Occator, is the God of Harrowing. His Office begins, cum occantur agri, when the Fields are to be harrowed. Serv. Georg. 1. Idem ib. c. 29.

Sator and Sarritor, from Sero and Sarrio, are the Gods of Sowing and Raking.

To the God R [...]bigus was celebrated a Festival, called Robigalia; which was usually observed upon the 7. of the Kalends of May, to avert Rubiginem à satis, the blasting of the Corn.

Stercutius, or Stercutus, or Sterculius, who is called likewise Sterquilinus and Picumnus, is the Rural God, who first invented the Art Stercorandi of Dunging of the Ground.

Proserpina, is the Goddess which presides over the Corn, when it is sprouted pretty high above the Earth, cum super terram proserpserit. We shall speak more of her, when we discourse concerning the Infernal Deities.

Nodosus or Nodutus, is the God that takes Care of the Nodes and the Joynts of the Stalks.

Volusia, the Goddess who looks after the in [...]olucra folliculorum, the lapping up of the Cods; which are, as it were, the Sheaths of the Corn.

Patelina, takes Care of the Ear of the Corn, after it is broken out of the Cod.

The Goddess Flora presides over the Ear, when it blossoms; (Florescit.)

And Lactura or Lactucina to Flora, presides over the Ear when it begins to have Milk; (Lactescere.)

[Page]And Matua takes Care that the Ear comes to a just maturity.

Hostilina from Hostio, aequare (an old word:) when the Ears of the Corn are even. Aug. de Civ. jam laudatus.

Tutelina or Tutulina; hath the Tutelage of the Corn, when it is reaped.

Pilumnus, who invented the Art of Baking the Corn. Serv. Aen. 9.

Mellona, who invented the Art of making of Honey. (Mellificii.)

And Fornax is esteemed a Goddess, because before the Invention of grinding the Wheat, the Bread-Corn was parched in a Furnace. Ovid speaks of this Goddess in lib. 6. Fast. thus,

Facta Dea est Fornax, laeti fornare coloni

Orant, ut vires temperet illa suas.

A Goddess Fornax is, her th' Clowns adore,

That they may've kindly batches by her pow'r.

These Minute Powers are but the Refuse of the Gods. Let us leave them, and turn our Eyes to the left-hand Wall in this Pantheon, where we shall see the Gods of the Sea. [Page]

[Page]

PART III.
Of the Gods of the Sea.

[Page]

CHAP. I.

SECT. I.
Neptune. His Name and Descent.

P.

THIS is a glorious and beautiful Scene. Are those the Gods of the Waters? Are these the Marine Gods, whose numerous Companies are carried all over the liquid Plains of the Sea in Shells.

M.

Those are the Gods, the Presidents, the Princes of the vast Finny Regions, and the Moderators of the flowing Waves.

P.

And who is that King with black Hair,Lucian. in sacrif. and blue Eyes, who holds a Scepter in his Hand like a Fork with three Trines, Cic. 1. de nat. Phurn. and is so beautifully arrayed in Garments of Azure? He appears handsomely in his Chariot, and is surrounded [Page] with a great Guard of Fishes or Men, I cannot tell which; for their upper Part has the shape of a Man, but their lower part the shape of a Fish.

M.

It is Neptune; whose Name is derived by the change of a few Letters from Nubendo, says Varro; quod mare terras obnubat; because the Sea encompasses, embraces, and as it were, covers the Land. Or, as others believe, he is so called from the AEgyptian Word (Nephthen) which signifies the Coasts and Promontories, and other Parts of the Earth which are washed by the Waters. So that Tully (in lib. 2. de Nat. Deor.) who derives Neptune à Nando, is either mistaken, or the place (as Lipsius thinks) is corrupt. Bochart.

It is Neptune, I say, the Governour of the Sea, the Father of the Rivers and the Fountains, and the Son of Saturn by Ops. His Mother preserved him from the devouring Jaws of Saturn (who, as we remarked above, Eat up all the Male Children that were born to him) by by giving Saturn a young Foal to eat, in his stead. In Greek he is called [...]; quia [...], vinculum pedibus injicit; he binds our feet from walking upon the Waters. Plut. in Cra [...].

When he came to Age, Saturn's Kingdom was divided by Lot, and the Maritim parts fell to him. He and Apollo, by Iupiter's Command, served Laomedon, in building the Walls of Troy; because he and some other Gods had plotted against Iupiter. Then he took Amphitrite to Wife (so called [...], quòd mare terram circumterat, because [Page] the Sea beats upon the Land all about;) He was repulsed by her a great while, but at last by the assistance of a Dolphin, and by the power of Flattery, he gained her. To recompense which kindness, the Dolphin was exalted to the Stars and made a Constellation. Neptune had two other Wives besides, Salacia, so named from Salum, the Sea, or the salt water towards the lower part and bottom of the Sea, as S. Austin explains the word. (De Civit D.) And Venilia, from veniendo; because the Sea goes and comes with the Tide; it ebbs and flows by turns.

SECT. II.
Actions of Neptune.

IT is said that he produced a Horse in Attica, Soph. in Oedip. out of the ground, by striking it with his Trident.

—magno percussa tellure tridenti Vir. Georg. 1.

With his huge Trident having thumpt the Ground.

whence he is called Hippius; and [...]; and is esteemed the President over the Horse-Races: At his Altar in the Cirque of Rome, Pind. Od. 1 Isthm. Var. apud Lil. Dion. Halic. l. 2. Serv. Aen. 8. Games were instituted, in which they represented the ancient Romans, by violence carrying away the Sabine Virgins. His Altar was under ground, and he was sacrifice I unto by the name of Consus, à Consilio dando, the God of Counsel: which for the most part ought to be given privately;Plut. in Romul. Dion. Hal. 1. and therefore the God Consus was worshipped in an obscure and private place. The solemn Games Consualia, which were Celebrated in the month of March, [Page] were in the honour of this God, or Neptune, who was called by this name. At the same time the Horses left working, and the Mules were adorned with Garlands of Flowers.

Hence also it comes that the Chariot (as you see) of Neptune is drawn by Hippocampi, or Sea-Horses, as well as sometimes by Dolphins. Those Sea-Horses had the Tails of Fishes, and only two Feet; which were like the two forefeet of a Horse; as Statius describes them, (Theb. l. 2.)

Illic AEgeo Neptunus gurgite fessos

In portum deducit equ [...]s: prior haurit habenas

Ungula, postremi solvuntur in aequora pisces.

God Neptune's Steeds to rest are set up here,

In the AEgean Gulf, whose fore parts harness bear,

Their hinder parts Fish shap'd.

Therefore Virgil calls them, two-footed Horses, (Bipedes) in Georg. lib. 4.

—magnum qui piscibus aequor,

Et juncto bipedum curru metitur equorum.

—Through vast Seas he glides,

Drawn by a Team half Fish half Horse he rides.

Statius hath this description of the motion of them, in Achill. 1.

—triplici telo jubet ire jugales.

Illi spumiferos glomerant à pectore fluctus,

Ponè natant, delentque pedum vestigia, caudâ.

Shaking his Trident urges on his Steeds,

Who with two Feet beat from their brawny breasts

The foaming billows; but their hinder parts

Swim,

Homer. in hymn.

and so smooth again the curling Surge.

Therefore it is Neptunes Office, to govern the Horses by Land,Sil. l. 1. and the Ships by Sea: and [Page] without doubt, whenever he rides upon the waters, he makes the weather fair. Virg. Aen. 1.

—Tumida aequora placat,

Collectasque fugat nubes, solemque reducit.

—aequora postquam

Prospiciens Genitor, coeloque invectus aperto,

Flectit equos, curruque volans dat lora secundo.

Subsidunt undae, tumidumque sub axe tonanti

Sternitur aequor aquis, fugiunt vasto aethere nimbi.

—He calms the Sea, then clears

The Sky from Clouds, the Sun again appears.

So did his presence calm the troubled Main.

Then through clear Skies Neptune with gentle Rein

Wheels his swift Chariot, and well-manag'd Horse.

Under his thundring Ax swoln Billows ly,

And stormy Clouds forsake the clearing Sky.

SECT. III.
Sons of Neptune.

THE most remarkable of his Children, were Phorcus or Phorcys, and Proteus.

Phorcus was his Son by the Nymph Thesea: Var. ap. Nat. Co. He was vanquished by Atlas, and drowned in in the Sea; his surviving Friends said that he was made a Sea God, and therefore they worshipped him. We read of another Phorcus, who had three Daughters, who had but one Eye between them all, which they all could use. When any one of them desired to see any thing, she fixed the Eye in her Forehead, in the same manner as you fix a Diamond in a Ring; when she had used it, she pulled the Eye out again that her Sisters might have it: thus they all used it as there was occasion. Palaeph in Fab.

[Page] Proteus, his other Son, was the Keeper of the Phocae, Tzetzchil. 2. hist. 44. or Sea-Calves; his Mother was the Nymph Phoenice. Ovid. Met. 8. He could Convert himself into all sorts of shapes: sometimes he could flow like the Water, and sometimes burn like Fire; sometimes he was a Fish, a Bird, a Lion, or whatsoever he pleased: Nor was this wonderful power enjoyed by Proteus alone. For Vertumnus, one of the Gods of the Romans, had it: his name from Vertendo shews it, as we observed before in the Story of Pomona. And from this God Vertumnus comes that common Latin Expression, Bene or Male Vertat; may it succeed well or ill: because it is the business of the God Vertumnus, rebus ad opinata revertentibus praeesse, says Donatus upon Terence, to preside over the turn of things, which happen according to expectation [...] tho oftentimes what we think good, is really bad in the Conclusion; as that Sword was, which Dido received from Aeneas, with which she afterwards killed her self. This is, male vertisse. Upon which says Virgil Aen. 4.

—ensemque recludit

Dardanium non hos quaesitum munus in usus.

—The Trojan Sword unsheath'd,

A gift by him not to this use bequeath'd.

Neptune endued Periclimenus Nestor's Brother, with the same power, who was afterwards killed by Hercules in the shape of a Fly; for when he fought against Neleus, a Fly tormented him and stung him violently; when Pallas discovered to Hercules that this Fly was Periclimenus, he killed him. Hom. Od. l. 11.

[Page] Neptune gave the same power to Metra, Mestra or Mestre, the Daughter of Erisichthon; she obtained this reward from him, because he had debauched her: by which power she was enabled to succour her Father's insatiable Hunger. (Ovid. Met. l. 8.)

Nuno equa, nunc ales, modo bos, modo cervus abibat,

Praebebatque avido non just a alimenta parenti.

Now Hart-like, now a Cow, a Bird, a Mare:

And fed his hunger with ill-pu [...]chas'd Fare.

For the same cause Caenis, a Virgin of Thessaly, obtained the same, or rather a greater power from Neptune. For he gave her power to change her Sex, and made her invulnerable; she therefore turned her self into a Man, and was called Caeneus: She fought against the Cen [...]aurs, till they overwhelmed her with a vast load of Trees, and buried her alive. After which, she was turned into a Bird of her own name. Ovid. Met. l. 12.

CHAP. II.
Triton, a [...]d the other Marine Gods.

TRiton was the Son of Neptune by Amphitrite. Hesiod. i [...] Theog. He was his Father's Companion, and Trumpeter. Stat. 6. Theb. Down to his Navel he resembles a Man; but his other part is like a Fish.Virg. 6. Aen. 1. His two Feet are like the fore-Feet of a Horse: his Tail is cleft,Apol. 4. Argon. and crooked, like a half Moon, and his Hair resembles Wild Parsly. [Page] Two Princes of Parnassus (Virgil and Ovid) give these descriptions of him. Vir. Aen. 10.

Hunc vehit immanis Triton, & caerula concha

Exterrens freta: cui laterum tenus hispida nanti,

Frons hominem praefert, in pristim desinit alv [...].

Spurnea semifero sub pectore murmurat unda.

This mighty Triton bore, frighting the Tides

With his shrill Trump, his Face and hairy Sides

Above presents a Man, a Whale the rest,

And foamy Waves resound beneath his Breast.

The other in Metam. lib. 1.

Caeruleum Tritona vocat, conchaque sonanti

Inspirare jubet, fluctusque & flumina signo

Iam revocare dato. Cava buccina sumitur illi

Tortilis in latum, qua turbine crescit ab imo

Buccina, quae medio concepit ubi aëra ponto,

Littora voce replet sub utroque jacentia Phoebo.

Old Triton rising from the deep, he spies

Whose shoulders rob'd with native purple rise,

And bids him his loud sounding shell inspire,

And give the Floods a signal to retire.

He his wreath'd Trumpet takes (as giv'n in charge)

That from the turning bottom grows more large:

This when the Namen o'er the Ocean sounds,

The East and West from shore to shore abounds.

Oc [...]anus, Hesiod. in Theog. another of the Sea-Gods, was the Son of Coelum and Vesta; who by the Antients was called the Father not only of all the Rivers,Orph. in hymn. but of the Animals,Hesiod. ibid. and of the very Gods themselves; for they imagined, that all the things in Nature took their beginning from him. It is said, he begot of his Wife Tethys three thousand Sons. The most eminent whereof were

[Page] Nereus, Horat. 1. Carm. who was nursed and educated by the Waves, and afterwards dwelt in the Aegean Sea,Eurip. in Iphig. and became a famous Prophesier. He begot 50 Daughters by his Wife Doris, A [...]ol. 4. Doris. which Nymphs were called after their Fathers name, Nereides.

Palaemon, and his Mother Ino, for this reason were made Sea-Deities. Ino's Husband Athamas was distracted, and tore his Son Learchus into pieces, and dashed him against the Wall; Ino saw this, and feared lest the same fate should come upon her self, and her other Son Melicerta; wherefore she took her Son, and with him threw her self into the Sea; where they were made Sea-Deities, nothing perished in the Waters but their Names, for their former Names were lost in the Waves, and they found new ones: She was called Leucothea and he Palaemon by the Greeks, and Portumnus by the Latins.

Glaucus, the Fisherman, became a Sea God by a more pleasant way. For when he pulled the Fish which he had caught, out of his Nets, and laid them on the shore, he observed, that by touching a certain Herb, the Fish recovered their strength and leapt again in the Water. He wondred at so strange an Effect, and had a desire to tast this Herb; when he had tasted it, he followed his Fish, and leaping into the Water, became a God of the Sea. Ovid. Metam. l. 13. Strabo.

To these we may add the Story of Canopus, a God of the Aegyptians; who by the help of Water gained a memorable Victory over the God of the Chaldeans, when these two [Page] Nations contended about the Power and Superiority of their Gods, the Priests consented to bring the two Gods together, that they might decide their Controversie, the Chaldaeans brought the God Ignis (Fire) and the Aegyptians brought Canopus; they set the two Gods near one another to Fight: Canopus's Belly was a great Pitcher, filled with water, and full of holes, but so stopped with Wax, that no body could discern them. When the Fight began, Fire the God of the Chaldaeans melted the Wax which stopped the holes; so that Canopus with rage and violence assaulted him with streams of water, and totally extinguished, vanquished and overcame him. Ruffin. l. 11. c. 26.

CHAP. III.

SECT. I.
The Monsters of the Sea. The Syrens.

THERE were three Syrens, whose Parentage is uncertain,Nica [...]d. Met. 3. (tho' some say that they were the Off-spring of Achelous the River, Ovid. Met. 3. and Melpomene the Muse) they had the Faces of Women, but the Bodies of flying Fish; they dwelt near the Promontory Peloris in Sicily (now called Capo di Faro) or in the Islands called Sirenussae, Strab. l. 5. which are situated in the extream parts of Italy, according to Strabo. Where, with the sweetness of their Singing, they drew all the Men to them, that sailed by those Coasts: and when by their Charms [Page] they brought upon them a deep sleep, they drown'd them in the Sea,Strab. l. 1. and afterwards took them out, and devoured them. Their names were Parthenope (who died at Naples, for which reason that City was formerly called Parthenope) Ligea and Leu [...]osia.

That their Charms might be easilier received, and make the greater impression on the minds of the hearers; they used musical Instruments with their Voices: and adapted the Matter of their Songs to the temper and inclinations of the hearers.Homer. Odyss. With some Songs they inticed the Ambitious, with others the Voluptuous, and with other Songs they drew on the Covetous to their destruction. Ovid says of these Syrens, De Arte Amand. lib. 3.

Monstra Maris Syrenes erant, quae voce canora

Quaslibet admissas detinure rates.

Syrens were once Sea Monsters, mere decoys

Trapanning Seamen with their tuneful voice.

P.

What then? Could no Passengers ever escape this Plague?

M.

History mentions two only who escaped, Ulysses and Orpheus [...] Hom. Od. 1. The first was forewarned of the danger of their Charming Voices by Circe: wherefore he stopped the Ears of his Companions with Wax, and was fast bound himself to the Mast of the Ship: by which means he safely passed the fatal Coasts. But Orpheus overcame them in their own Art,Apol. 4. Argon. and evaded the temptations of their murdering Musick by playing upon his Harp, and singing the praises of the Gods so well, that he outdid the Syrens. The Fates had ordained, that the [Page] Syrens should live till some body who passed by heard them sing, and yet escaped alive: when therefore they saw themselves overcome, they grew desperate, and precipitated themselves into the Sea [...] and were turned into Stones. Some write, that they were formerly Virgins, Proserpina's Companions; they sought every where for her when she was stoln away by Pluto, and when they could not find her, they were so grieved, that they cast themselves into the Sea, and from that time were changed into Sea-Monsters.Paus. in Boeot. Others add, that by Iuno's persuasion they contended in Musick with the Muses, who overcame them, and to punish their rashness, cut off their Wings; with which they afterwads made for themselves Garlands.

P.

What did the Poets signifie by this Fiction?

M.

That the minds of Men, Parad. 1. de senect. &c. as Cicero says, are deposed from their proper Seats and States, by the allurements of pleasure. It corrupts them. There is not a more deadly plague in nature to mankind than it. Whoever addicts himself altogether to pleasure, loses his Reason, and is ruined; and he that desires to decline its Charms, must stop his Ears, and not hearken to them; but must hearken to the Musick of Orpheus, and observe the Precepts and Instructions of the Wise.

Now turn your Eyes to those other two Monsters, who are called

SECT. II.
Scylla and Charybdis.

[Page]

THE description of Scylla is very various, for some say that she was a most beautiful Woman from the Breasts downward,Homer. Odyss. but she had six Dog's heads. Again, others say that in her upper parts she resembled a Woman, in her lower a Serpent and a Wolf. But whatever her Picture was,Apoll. 4. Argon. every body says that she was the Daughter of Phorcus, and Glaucus's Mistress; Circe passionately loved Glaucus, and could not bear that Scylla was preferred before her by Glaucus: Myro Prian. l. 3. rer. Messen. wherefore she poisoned with venemous Herbs those Waters, in which Scylla used to wash her self: Scylla was ignorant of it, and according to her custom, went into the Fountain, and when she saw that the lower part of her Body was turned into the head of a Dog: being extremely grieved that she had lost her beauty, she cast her self head long into the Sea, where she was turned into a Rock, infamous for the many Shipwrecks which happen there: which Rock is still seen in the Sea which divides Italy from Sicily between Messina a City of Sicily, and Rhegiam (now called Reggio) in Calabria. This Rock is said to be surrounded with Dogs and Wolves; who devour the persons who are cast away there. But by this is meant only, that when the Waves by a violent Storm are dashed against this great Rock, the noise a little resembles the barking of Dogs and the howling of Wolves.

[Page]P.

You said, that Scylla was the Daughter of Phorcus. But, was not she rather the Daughter of Nisus King of Megara?

M.

No, that Scylla Scylla Nisi filia. Paus. in Attic. was another Woman: for Scylla the Daughter of King Nisus, was in love with Minos who besieged her Father in the City Megara: She betrayed both her Father and her Country to him, by cutting off the Fatal lock of purple Hair, in which were contained her Father's and her Country's safety, and sent it to the besieger. Minos gained the City by it, but detested Scyllas's perfidiousness, and hated her: She could not bear this misfortune, but was changed into a Lark. Nisus her Father was likewise changed into a Spar-hawk, which is called after his name Nisus: which, as if he still sought to punish his Daughters great baseness, still pursues the Lark with fury to devour her, Virg. Georg. 5.

Charybdis, is a vast Whirlpool, in the same Sicilian Sea, over against Scylla, which absorps whatever comes within its Vortex, and Vomits it up again. Both these Monsters, Scylla and Charybdis, are described in Virgil, thus. Aen. lib. 3.

Dextrum Scylla latus: laevum implacata Charybdis

Obsidet, atque imo barathri ter gurgite vastos

Sorbet in abruptum fluctus, rursusque sub auras

Erigit alternos, & sydera verberat undâ.

At Scyllam caecis cohibet speluncae latebris

Ora exertantem, & naves in saxa trahentem.

Prima hominis facies, & pulchro pectore Virgo

Pube tenus: postrema immani corpore pistrix,

Delphinum caudas uter commissa luporum.

[Page] Scylla the right, Charybdis the left side

Inexorable guards: the swelling Tide

She at three soops doth from Hells bottom drain.

Disgorging it against the Sky again,

That Heavens bright Flames are storm'd with briny Waves.

But Scylla lurks, hid in obscuring Caves,

And sinks in rocky Mouths up Ships distrest;

A Female, with a comely Virgins Breast,

Down to the middle; but beneath, a Whales

Body, with Wolvish Wombs, and Dolphins Tails.

They say that this Charybdis was formerly a very ravenous Woman; who was thunderstrook by Iupiter, and turned into this Gulph, because she stole Hercules's Oxen.

P.

What do these Fables of Scylla and Charybdis represent to us?

M.

They represent to us Lust and Gluttony, monstrous Vices, which render our Voyage through this World extremely hazardous and perilous. Lust, like Scylla, engages unwary Passengers by the beauty and pomp of her outside, and when they are entangled in her snares she tortures, vexes, torments and disquiets them with a rage and fury which exceeds the madness of Dogs or the rapacity of Wolves. Gluttony is a Charybdis, a Gulph, a Whirlpool, that is insatiable. It buries Families alive, and devou [...]s Estates, and consumes Lands and Treasures, and sucks up all things. They are Neighbouring Vices, and like Scylla and Charybdis, are but little distant from each other; nay they are seldom separate, but act with united Forces. For you will not easily [Page] find a Man, who is greatly addicted to the luxury of eating and drinking; who is not also a slave to the luxury of Concupiscence: and besmeared with the sordid filth of base Pleasures, and wholly given up to the most vile and impudent Lusts.

But it is now time to consider the place in which the wicked are tormented eternally; or rather to cast down our Eyes, upon it, in the lower Apartment of this Pantheon: where the Infernal Gods, are painted. We will take only a transitory view of this Scene, since it will be very unpleasant to stay long in so doleful, so sad a place.

PART V.
Of the Infernal Deities.

[Page]

CHAP. I.
A View of Hell.

P.

O Wondrous! What a horrid and dismal spectacle is here!

M.

You must imagin that we are now in the confines of Hell. Prethee, Come along with me. I will be the same friend to you, which the Sibyl was to Aeneas in Virgil. (Aen. 6.) Nor shall you need a golden bough to present to Proserpine. You see here painted those Regions of Hell which [...]he Poet describes thus (Virg. Aen. 6.)

Spelunca alta fuit, vastoque immanis hiatu,

Scrupea; tuta lacu nigro, nemorumque tenebris:

Quam super haud ullae poterant impune volantes

Tendere iter pennis: talis sese halitus atris

Faucibus effundeus supera ad convexa ferebat:

Inde locum Graii dixerunt, nomine, Avernum.

[Page]There was a deep Cave with a wondr'ous breach,

Which a foul Lake, and horrid Groves immure,

O're which not swiftest Fowl could fly secure,

Such noisom Vapours from foul Iaws exhale;

From whence the Greeks the place Avernus call.

So that Avernus is the name which the Greeks give to Hell, quasi [...], sine avibus: because no Birds can fly over it: for in their flight they are certainly choaked with the poisonous stench of it.

P.

What Monsters do I see, Virg. Aen. 6.)

Vest ibulum ante ipsum, primis (que) in faucibus Orci?

M.

Let the Poet answer your Question thus;

Luctus, & ultrices posuere cubilia Curae:

Pallentesque habitant morbi, tristisque senectus,

Et metus, & malesuada fames, & turpis egestas,

Terribiles visu formae, lethumque laborque.

Tum consanguineus lethi sopor, and mala mentis

Gaudia, mortiferum (que) adverso in limine Bellum.

Ferreique Eumenidum thalami, & Discordia demens

Vipereum crimen vittis innexa cruentis.

Iust in the Gates and horrid Iaws of Hell.

Sorrow, and Fear, and pale Diseases dwell,

Revenging Cares, and discontented Age,

Invincible Necessity, and Rage,

Labor, and Death, and Sleep, to Death akin,

Then all the false delights of deadly sin,

Terrible Forms, Discord, and bloody Wars

On th' other side lay, broaching still new Iars,

The Furies there their Iron Couches found,

Their Viperous Hair with bloody Ribbands bound.

CHAP. II.
Charon. The Rivers of Hell. Cerberus.

[Page]

P.

WHO is that nasty, old, battered, bearded, Fellow? Or what is his name?

M.

He is the Ferry-man of Hell, his name is Charon, quasi Acharon, by an Antiphrasis, sine gratia. Or in the Greek [...], portitor, a Ferry-man. You see his Image painted by the Pencil; but see a more beautiful and elegant Picture of him drawn by the Pen of Virgil. Aen. 6.

Portitor has horrendus aquas, & flumina servat,

Terribilis, squalore Charon: cui plurima mento

Canities inculta jacet: stant lumina, flammae:

Sordidus ex humeris nodo dependet amictus.

Ipse ratem conto subigit, velisque ministrat,

Et ferruginca subvectat corpora cymba,

Iam senior, sed cruda Deo viridisque senectus.

The Ferry-man of Hell, foul Charon, keeps

Those horrid Waters, and Infernal Deeps;

His untrimm'd Cheeks are rough with hoary Hair,

Elf-lock'd his Beard, his fiery Eyes do stare;

Ti'd o'er hir Shoulders, hangs a sordid Coat;

Whose Pole; and Sails, drive in his crazy Boat,

Laden with Passengers; though old, the God

Is youthful still, his Veins still full of Blood.

[Page]P.

Why does he tarry with his Boat here?

M.

To take, and carry over to the other side of the Lake, the souls of the dead: which you see flocking to the Shores in Troops. Yet he takes not all promiscuously, who come; but such only whose Bodies are buried when they die. For the Unburied.

Centum errant annos, volitant haec littora circum;

Tum demum admissi, stagna exoptata revisunt,

A hundred years they on these Shores remain,

At last their long expected Passage gain.

But first they pay Charon his fare; which is at least an half penny. Lucian.

P.

Those three (or four Rivers, if my Eyes do not deceive me) must be passed over by the dead, must they not?

M.

Yes. The first of them is Acheron, Plat. In Phaedone. which receives them when they come first. This Acheron was the Son of Terra or Ceres, born in a Cave, and conceived without a Father. And because he could not endure light he ran down to Hell, and was changed into a River, whose waters are extreme bitter.

The second, Pausan. in Att. is Styx, which is a Lake rather than a River, was formerly the Daughter of Oceanus, Hesiod. in Th. and the Mother of the Goddess Victoria by Acheron. When Victoria was on Iupiter's side in his War against the Giants, she obtained this prerogative for her Mother, that no Oath that was sworn amongst the Gods by her name, should ever be violated; For if any of the Gods broke an Oath sworn by Styx, they were banished from the Nectar and the Table of the Gods, a year and nine days. This is then the Stygian Lake,

[Page]

Dii cujus jurare timent & fallere numen.

Serv. in Aen. 6.

By which the Gods themselves dare n't falsly swear.

The third River, Cocytus, flows out of Styx, with a lamentable groaning noise; and imitates, and irritates the exclamation of the Damned.

Next comes Phlegethon or Periphlegethon, so called from [...], ardeo: because it swells with waves of fire, and all its streams are flames.

When the Souls of the Dead have passed over these four Rivers,Hes. in Th. they are afterwards carried to the Palace of Pluto: where the Gate is guarded by a Dog with three Heads, whose body is covered in a terrible manner with Snakes, instead of Hair. This Dog is the Porter of Hell, begotten of Echidna and the Giant Typhon. Virgil gives this description of him. Aen. 6.

Cerbetus, haec ingens latratu regna trifauci

Personat, adverso recubans immanis in antro.

Stretch'd in his Kennel, monstrous Cerberus, round

From triple Iaws makes all these Realms resound.

And Horace, thus, lib. 3. Od.

Cessit immanis tibi blandienti

Ianitor aulae

Cerberus: quamvis furiale centum

Muniant angues caput ejus atque

Spiritus teter, saniesque manet

Ore trilingui.

E'en Cerberus thy force confest

Well pleas'd he lay and luli'd in rest,

[Page]Tho' hundred hissing Serpents spread

And guard around his horrid head,

And Gore foam'd round his triple tongue,

He gently listned to thy Song.

Now let us approach the Prince and Princess of Hell, Pluto and Proserpine.

CHAP. III.

SECT. I.
PLUTO.

THIS is Pluto, the King of Hell; begotten of Saturn and Ops; and the Brother of Iupiter and Neptune. Diod. Sic. 4. Bibl. He hath these infernal Dominions attributed to him, not only because in that division of his Fathers Kingdom, mentioned before,Idem ap. Lil. the Western Parts fell to his Lot; but also as some say, because the Invention of burying, and of honoring the Dead with Funeral Obsequies proceeded from him.Eurip. in Phoen. For the same reason he is thought to exercise a Soveraignty over the Dead. Look upon him. He sits on a Throne covered with Darkness: and discover, if you can his habit, and the Ensigns of his Majesty more narrowly.

P.

I see him, tho in the midst of so much Darkness;Paus. in p [...]. Iliac. Martian. and can distinguish him easily. He holds a Key in his Hand instead of a Scepter, and is crowned with Ebony. [Page]

[Page]

[Page]M.

Sometimes I have seen him crowned also with a Diadem;Lil. Gyr. Varr. ap. eund. sometimes with the Flowers of Narcissus (or White Daffadils) and sometimes with Cypress Leaves: because those Plants, greatly please him; and especially the Narcissus, because he stole away Proserpina when she gathered that Flower, as I shall shew presently. Very often a Rod is put into his Hand in the place of a Scepter,Ovid. 5. Met. with which he guides the Dead to Hell.Pind. in Od. And sometimes he wears a Head-piece which makes him invisible. His Chariot and Horses are of a black Colour,Hom. 5 Il. Hygin. in Astr. Poët. and when he carried away Proserpine, he rode in it. But if you would know what those Keys signifie, which he hath in his Hand, The answer is plain, that they signifie, that when once the Dead are received into his Kingdom, the Gates are locked against them, and there is no Regress thence into this life again. Virg. Aen. 6.

—Facilis descensus Averni,

Sed revocare gradum, superasque evadere ad aura [...]

Hoc opus, bic labor est.

To th' Shades you go a down hill easie way,

But to return and re enjoy the Day,

That is a Work, a Labour,—

P.

Why is he called Pluto?

M.

I will tell you that, and also the meaning of the rest of his Names.

Pluto, in Greek [...] comes from [...] [...]Divitiae, Riches: and in Latin he is called Dis; which signifies wealth. The Reason whereof is because all our Wealth comes ab inferis, hoc est, ex intimis terrae visceribus, from the lowest [Page]and most inward Bowels of the Earth: And because as Tully writes: all the natural powers and faculties of the Earth are under his direction, for all things go to the Earth and proceed from thence. De Nat. Deor. lib. [...].

His Name [...], in Greek,Soc. ap. Plut. signifies, quasi [...], or quasi [...], tristis, tenebrosus, inspectabilis: because he sits in darkness so that he,Phurn. cannot be openly seen.Gax. ap. Lil. Or you may derive it from [...], priv. and [...], videre.

He is likewise called Agesilaus, Ap. Lil. Gyr. [...], à ducendis ad inferos populis, from bringing of People to Hell. Or, as others read the Word, Agelastus: which comes from [...], non, and [...], rideo, because Pluto never laughs.

Februus, Ovid. in Fast. from the old Word Februo, to purge by Sacrifice: because purgations and lustrations, were used at Funerals. Whence the Month of February receives also its Appellation: at which time especially the Sacrifices called Februa, were offered by the Romans to this God.

Orcus,Cic. in Varr. 6. l. Guth. l. 1. c. 4. de jur. man. quasi Urgus and Uragus, from urgendo: quòd homines urgeat in interitum: he urges people to their deaths. Some reject this interpretation, because, [...], is a Greek word, and signifies, extremi agminis dux, the Commander that brings up the rere; and in this sense, the name is agreeable to Pluto, who succeeds the last action of our lives.

In Festus we find him called Quietatis: quòd morte quietem cunctis afferat. Because by death he brings rest to all things.

[Page] He is called Summanus, quasi summus. Deorum Manium, the Chief of the Dii Manes,Aug. 4. de Civ. or the Gods, the Ghosts [...]f the dead. The Thunder that happens in the Night is attributed to him: whence he is commonly styled also, the infernal Iupiter; the Stygian Iupiter, the third Iupiter, as Neptune is, Iupiter secundus, the Second Iupiter.

P.

What was the Office and Power of Pluto?

M.

If you do not fully understand that from what hath been said already, the Fates will tell you, who thus bespeak him; Claud. de Ratp. Proserp.

—O, maxime noctis

Arbiter, umbrarum (que) potens, cui nostra laborant

Stamina, qui finem cunctis, & semina praebes.

Nascendique vices alterna morte rependis,

Qui vitam, lethumque regis.

Great Prince o'th' gloomy regions of the dead,

For whom we hourly move our Wheel and Thread,

Of Natures growth and end thou hast the sway,

All Mortals Birth with Death thou dost repay;

Who dost command 'em both.—

CHAP. IV.
PLUTUS.

[Page]

I joyn Plutus to Pluto (altho Plutus be not an Infernal God) because their Names and Offices were very like and agreeable; where I will take this occasion to say something of him. For they are both of them Gods of Riches; which are the Root of all Evil, and which, Nature our common Parent, had placed near Hell, and indeed there is not a nearer way to Hell than to hunt mightily after Riches.

This Plutus was the Son of Iason or Iasius by Ceres: Hes. in Th. He was blind and lame, injudicious, and mighty timorous, and indeed these infirmities are justly ascribed to him; for if he was not blind and injudicious, he would never pass by good Men, and heap his Treasures on the bad. He is lame, for great Estates come slowly. He is fearful and timorous; because rich Men watch their Treasures with a great deal of Fear and Care.

CHAP. V.

[Page]

SECT. I.
PROSERPINE.

M.

SHE, who sits next to Pluto, is the Queen of Hell, the Infernal Iuno, the Lady (as the Greeks commonly call her,Virg. 6. Paus. in Arcad. [...], Domina,) and dearest Wife of Pluto; the Daughter of Ceres and Iupiter, Hesiod. in Th. she is called both Proserpine and Libera. Iupiter, her Father, begat her when he was disguised in the Shape of a Bull;Arnob. l. 5. and after she was born and grown up, he debauched her himself in the shape of a Dragon. Whence it came to pass, that in the Mysteries of the Sabazia, Euseb. praep. Ev. a Golden Snake folded in a Circle was produced, which, when any were initiated, were usually put into their Bosoms, and received again when it slid down from them below.

P.

But by what Fate became Proserpine the Wife of this Black God?

M.

Thus: When all the Goddesses refused to marry Pluto because he was so deformed. Vexed at this contempt and scorn, and troubled that he was forced to live a single life always: in a rage he seated himself in his Chariot, and arose on a sudden from a Den in Sicily; he saw a company of very beautiful Virgins,Cic. 6. [...] Verr. gathering Flowers in the Fields of Enna (a beautiful [Page] place, situated about the middle of the Island, and therefore called umbilicus Siciliae) one of them, Proserpina, pleased him above the rest, for she surpassed them all in beauty. He came raging with love, and carried her with him from that place; and on a sudden he sank into the Earth near Syracuse; in the place where he descended a Lake arose.Ibid. And Cicero says that the People of Syracuse keep yearly Festivals, to which great multitudes of both Sexes flock.

O poor Lady! I am troubled at her misfortune, her unhappiness moves my Compassion. But what followed?

M.

The Nymphs her Companions were grievously affrighted, and fled away to any place where they could expect safety. In the mean time, Ceres, the Mother of Proserpine, comes; who by chance was absent when her Daughter was stoln; she seeks her Daughter amongst her Acquaintance, a long time, but in vain. Therefore in the next place she kindles Torches, by the Flame burst forth from the top of the Mountain Aetna, and goes with them to seek her Daughter throughout the World: neither did she give over her vain Labour, till the Nymph Arethusa fully assured her that Proserpine was stoln by Pluto, and carried down into his Kingdoms. And then in great anger she hastned and expostulated with Iupiter, Serv. [...] Georg. concerning the Violence that was offered to her Daughter. In short Iupiter promised to restore Proserpine again, if she had not yet tasted any thing in Hell. Ceres [Page] went joyfully down, and Proserpine full of triumph and gladness, prepar'd to return again into this World; when one Ascalaphus Ascalaphus discovers, that he saw Proserpine, while she walked in Pluto's Orchard, pluck a Pomegranate and eat some Grains of it; whereupon Proserpine's Journey was immediately stopp'd. Ceres, the Mother, amaz'd at this new mischance, and incens'd at the fatal Discovery of Ascalaphus, turned him into an Owl, a Bird of an ill Omen, and unlucky to all who see it. And at last by the importunity of her Prayers to Iupiter, she extorted this Favour from him, that he should give leave to Proserpine to live half the year, at least, with her in the Heavens; and the other half she might be below in Hell with her Husband. Ovid. Met. l. 5.

Et Dea regnorum Numen commune duorum,

Cum matre est totidem, totidem cum conjuge menses.

The Goddess now in either Empire sways,

Six Months with Ceres, six with Pluto stays.

Proserpine afterwards lov'd this disagreeable Husband so much, that she was jealous; and changed Mentha, Menth [...]. who was his Mistress, into a Herb of her own Name. (Mint.)

SECT. II.
An Explication of the Fable.

P.

YOU have told a very pretty Story. Pray what is the signification of it?

M.

The signification of it is this. Ceres is [Page] the Earth, Var. ap. and her Daughter Proserpine the Fertility of the Earth;Aug. 7. de Civ. or rather the Seed by which it is fertile. Which Seed lies buried in the Ground in the Winter,Euseb. 1. praep. Ev. and in the Summer it breaks forth and becomes Fruit. Thus Proserpine (the Emblem of this Seed) lives half of the year in Hell, and the other half in Heaven. Others refer this to the Moon which is hid from us in the Hemisphere of the Countries beneath us, as long as it shines to [...]s in our own.

Some believe that Hecate is the same with Proserpine. And if you are willing to follow their Opinion, you must call to mind what I said before, where I treated of Diana.

Let us now turn our Eyes towards the Tribunal of Pluto; where you see in that dismal Picture, continual Trials, and all Persons, as well the Accusers as Offenders, that have been formerly wicked in their Lives, receive their Deaths impartially from the Three Fates; after Death they receive their Condemnation impartially from Three Iudges, and after Condemnation their Punishment impartially from Three tormenting Furies.

CHAP. VI.
The FATES.

[Page]

P.

WHere are those Fates? Shew me Sir.

M.

Those three Old Ladies are the Fates: Catull. in Epit. their Garments are made of Ermine white as Snow,Thet. which is bordered with Purple.Hesiod. They were born either of Nox and Erebus, or of Necessity,Plat. l. 10. de rep. or the Sea, or of that rude and indigested Mass, Lycophr. which the Antients called Chaos. In Latin their Name is Parcae, from Partus, as Varro thinks; because they distribute good and bad things to Persons at their Births.Serv. in Ae [...]. 1. Or from parcendo, by an Antiphrasis, as others generally say, because they spare no body: Euseb 6. praep. they are likewise called Fatum, Fate; and are Three in number, because they order the past, present and future time. Fate says Tully, is all that,De fat. & 1. de Divin. quod à Deo constitutum & designatum est, ut eveniat, quod Graeci [...] appellant: Boet. n. Top. Which God hath decreed and resolved shall come to pass; and which the Grecians call [...]. It is, says Chrysippus, a perpetual certain and unavoidable series and chain of things: Sempiterna quaedam & indeclinabilis rerum series & catena sese volvens & implicans per dexteros consequentiae ordines, è quibus connexa est; Wrapping up and enfolding up itself in an order of consequences, which compose the several links, and[Page]follow one another to all eternity. Var. ap. Lil. Fatum is derived from fando: because when any one is born these three Sisters pronounce what Fate will befal him; as we saw above in the Story of Meleager.

P.

What are their Names and Offices?

M.

The Name of one is Clotho, from the Verb [...], to spin. The Second is call'd Lachesis, from [...], sortior. The Third Atropos, from [...] priv. and [...], verto; because she is unalterable, unchangeable. These Names the Grecians give them; the Romans call them Nona, Decima, and Morta.

To them is entrusted the management of the fatal Thread of Life.C [...]sen. For Clotho draws the Thread betwixt her Fingers.Viod. ap. Gyr. Lachesis turns about the Wheel: and Atropos cuts the Thread spun, with a pair of Scissors. That is, Clotho gives us Life, and brings us into the World. Lachesis determines the Fortune that shall befal us here: and Atropos concludes our Lives. One, says Servius, speaks, the other writes, and the third spins. (Aen. 1.)

CHAP. VII.
The FURIES.

P.

AND what are those Monsters called, that have the Faces of Women. Their looks are full of Terror; they hold lighted [Page] Torches in their hands: Snakes and Serpents lash their Necks and Shoulders?

M.

They are the Furies, Furiae; Virg. 3. who are so called,Aen. 8. 4. 6. 12. quòd homines sceleratos in furorem agant; because they make Men mad with the stings of Conscience. They are otherwise call'd Dirae, Eumenides and Canes; but their proper Names are Alecto, Tisiphone and Megaera, three Sisters born of Nox and Acheron, Suid. & Orph. in hymn. and they are esteemed Virgins; because, since they are the Avengers of all Wickedness, nothing can pervert them from inflicting the punishment that is due to the Offender.

P.

Why are there only three Furies?

M.

Because there are three predominant Passions of the Mind,Isid. ap. Gyr. Anger, Covetousness and Lust, by which Mankind is chiefly hurried into all sorts of Wickedness. For Anger begets Revenge. Covetousness provokes us to get immoderate Wealth by right or wrong: and Lust persuades us to pursue our Pleasures at any rate.Eurip. in Herc. fur. Indeed some add a fourth Fury, called Lisse, Madness; but she is easily reduced to the other three. As also Erinnys, a Name common to them all.

P.

What is the Office of these Furies?

M.

They are appointed to observe and punish the Crimes of ill Men; and to torment the Consciences of secret Offenders. Whence they are commonly also entitled. Deae Speculatrices & vindices facinorum; The Goddesses, the Discoverers and Revengers of evil Actions. They punish and torment the Wicked, by frightning and following them with burning [Page]Torches. You see the Picture of them there; now hear their Description in Virgil. Aen. l 2.

Dicuntur geminae pestes, cognomine Dirae,

Quas & Tartaream, Nox intempesta Megaeram,

Uno eodemque tulit partu, paribusque revinxit,

Serpentum spiris, ventosasque addidit alas.

There are two Hags, the Dirae stil'd, brought forth

By everlasting Night, at one sad Birth,

To Hell's Megaera, who with Sergents join'd,

Girded their wasts, and wings with tempest lin'd.

P.

What did the Poets intend by these Furies?

M.

Only, says Cicero, that they who have done any wicked and unlawful thing are tormented and affrighted, not with the Blows, and the Burning Torches of the Furies, as it is in the Fable, but with the Stings of their own evil Consciences. Sua enim quemque fraus (says he, Or. pro Rosc. Am.) & suus terror maxime vexat: suum quemque scelus exagitat, amentiaque afficit; suae malae cogitationes, conscientiaeque animi terrent. Hae sunt impiis ass [...]duae domesticae Furiae, quae dies noctesque poenas à sceleribus repetunt. Every ones own Fraud, and his own Terror vexes him most. Every ones own Wickedness torments and enrages him: his own evil Thoughts, and the Lashes of his Conscience affright [...]m. These are constant and domestick Furies to the wicked; that night and day exact the punishment of them that their Crimes deserve

CHAP. VIII.
NIGHT, DEATH, SLEEP.

[Page]

P.

YOU have made mention of Nox and Erebus. Are they (I pray you) of the number of the Gods?

M.

Yes, Nox, is of all the Gods the most Antient; she was the Brother of Erebus, and the Daughter of the first Chaos. And of those two Nox and Erebus, Mors, Death, Hor. 2. serm. was born; who is dress'd usually with a speckled Garment and black Wings.Orph. in hymn. II. [...]. But there are no Temples, nor Sacrifices, nor Priests consecrated to Mors: because she is a Goddess whom no Prayers can move,Virg. 5. nor Sacrifices pacifie.Aen. Somnus, Sleep, Ovid. hath Wings too;Met. 11. and is thus saluted by Iris in the Name of Iuno, when she came to his Palace.

Somne, quies rerum, placidissime Somne Deorum,

Pax animi, quem cura fugit, qui corpora duris

Fessa ministeriis mulces, reparasque labori.

Thou rest o' th' World, Sleep, the most peaceful God,

Who driv'st care from the mind, and dost unload

The tir'd Limbs of all their weariness,

And for new Toil the Body dost refresh.

Virgil says, that there are in this Palace of Somnus two Gates, by which Dreams pass and repass.

[Page]

Sunt geminae Somni porte,

Aen. 6.

quarum altera fertur

Cornea, qua veris facilis datur exitus umbris:

Altera candenti perfecta nitens Elephanto:

Sed falsa ad coelum mittunt insomnia manes.

There are two Gates of Sleep, one made of Horn,

Through which true Visions to the Skies are born:

The other Ivory, polish'd purely bright,

Whence false Dreams sally to Ethereal Light.

Morpheus the Servant of Somnus, Ovid. 11. Met. Virg. 6. Aen. who can put on any shape or figure, presents these Dreams to those who sleep; and these Dreams are brought from a great spreading Elm in Hell, under whose shade they usually sit.

CHAP. IX.
The Iudges of Hell, MINOS, AEACUS, RHADAMANTHUS.

NEAR the three Furies, Hom. 2. Odyss. and the three Fates, you see the three Iudges of Hell, Minos, Rhadamanthus and Aeacus; who are believed to be the Judges of the Souls of the Dead; because they exercised the Offices of Judges in Crete with the greatest Prudence, Discretion and Justice. The two first were the Sons of Iupiter by Europa; the last was the Son of Iupiter by Aegina; and when all the Subjects of Queen Aegina were swept away in a Plague,Ovid. 7. Met. besides himself, he begged of his Father, that he would repair the Race of Mankind, (which [Page] was almost extinct) and Iupiter heard his Prayer. And turned a great multitude of Ants which crept about an hollow old Oak, into Men; who afterwards were called Myrmidones from [...], an Ant.

These Three had their particular Province assigned by Pluto in this manner,Plat. in Gorgia. that Rhadamanthus should judge the Asiaticks, and Aeacus the Europeans; each holding a Staff in his Hand. But Minos should have a Golden Sceptre, and sit alone, and over-see the Judgments of Rhadamanthus and Aeacus. And if in their Courts there arose a Case that was ambiguous and difficult, then Minos should [...]ake the Cognizance thereof, and decide it. Tully (in Tusc. lib. 1.) adds to these a fourth Judge, Triptolemus. But we have already discoursed of him in his place.

CHAP. X.

SECT. I.
The most Famous of the Condemned in Hell.

FRom the Iudges, let us proceed to the Criminals, whom you see represented there in horrid Colours. It will be enough if we remark the most celebrated of them, and shew their Crimes, and the Punishments which accrued to them from thence.

SECT. II.
The Giants.

[Page]

THese Giants were the Sons of Terra (the Earth) when it was impregnated by the Blood of Coelum, which flowed from that dishonourable Wound which his Son Saturn gave him.Hesiod in Theog. They are all very high in Stature, with horrible Dragons Feet, their Looks and their Bodies are altogether full of Terror. Their Impudence was so great,Homer. that they strove to depose Iupiter from the possession of Heaven.Odyss. 12. And when they engaged with the Celestial Gods, they heaped up Mountains upon Mountains,Ovid. 1. and from thence darted Trees,Met. set on fire, against the Gods and Heaven. They hurled likewise prodigious massy Stones,Duris Samius. and solid Rocks, some of which falling upon the Earth again, became Mountains; others fell into the Sea, and became Islands. This Battel was fought upon the Phlegraean Plains near the Borders of Campania, Nat. Com. l. 6. which Country is called Phlegra from Phlego, [...], uro, for it abounds with subterraneous Fires, and hot Baths, which flow continually. The Giants were beaten, and all cut off either by the Thunder of Iupiter, the Arrows of Apollo, or by the Arms of the rest of the Gods. And some say, that out of the Blood of the slain, which was spilt upon the Earth, Serpents, and such envenomed and pernicious Animals were produced. The most eminent of these Giants were,

[Page] Typhaeus or Typhon, the Son of Iuno; Homer. hymn. in Apollon. conceived by her without a Father: so vast was his Magnitude, that, he touched the East with one Hand, and the West with the other, and the Heavens with the Crown of his Head. A hundred Dragons Heads grew from his Shoulders; his Body was covered with Wings, and rugged Hair; his Eyes sparkled with Fire, and his Mouth belch'd out Flames. Yet he was overcome, and the Island Sicily was thrown upon him, the whole Island was scarcely big enough to cover him. Ovid. (Met. lib. 5.)

Nititur ille quidem, pugnatque resurgere saepe:

Dextra sed Ausonio manus est subjecta Peloro,

Laeva, Pachyne, tibi; Lilybaeo curra premuntur;

Praegravat Aetna caput.

Ausonian Pelorus his right hand

Down weighs; Pachyne on the left doth stand;

His legs are under Lilybaeus spred;

And Aetna's bases charge his horrid head.

Pelorus, Pachynus and Lilybaeus, are the three Promontories, which are the the three Corners of Sicily; the Island bears the shape of a Triangle, and is from thence called Trinacria.

Aegaeon, was another prodigious and fierce Giant who had an hundred Hands, and fifty Heads, according to Virgil. (Aen. 10.)

Aegaeon qualis, centum cui brachia dicunt,

Centenasque manus, quinquaginta oribus ignem

Pectoribusque arsisse: Iovis cum fulmina con [...]ra

Tot paribus streperet clypeis, tot stringeret enses.

Such they the hundred handed Giant fame,

Who belch'd from fifty mouths devouring Flame,

[Page]When arm'd against Jove's Thunder-bolts, he wields

As many Swords, as many ratling Shields.

Wherefore he was called Centumgeminus; Hom. Il. 1. and by the Graecians Briareus. He hurled a hundred Rocks against Iupiter at one throw. Yet Iupiter dashed him down and bound him in a hundred Chains; and thrust him under the Mountain Aetna: Callimach. in lavacr. Del. where as often as he moves his sides, the Mountain casts forth great Flames of Fire.

Aloeus, Virg. 6. because of his Age could not in this War take up Arms against the Gods.Aen. But he sent Othus and Ephialtes (which his Wife had by Neptune, who from him were called Aloïdae) they went in their Father Aloeus's stead, and assisted the Giants. But the same Fate attended them, and also suffered the punishment of their rashness in Hell.

Tityus was the Son of Iupiter and Elara; Apoll. 1. born in a subterraneous Cave, in which Iupiter hid his Mother, fearing the Anger of Iuno. She brought forth a Child of so prodigious a bulk, that the Earth was rent that he might have a passage out of the Cave; and from thence he was believed to be the Son of the Earth. Iuno afterwards persuaded this Giant to accuse Latona of Adultery; whereupon Iupiter struck him with Thunder down into Hell. And there he lies stretched out and covers nine Acres of Ground with his Body; a Vulture continually gnaws his Liver, which grows again every Month. Virgil describes him in the same manner. Aen. 6.

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Necnon & Tityum Terrae omniparentis alumnum

Cernere erat; cui tota novem per jugera corpus

Porrigitur, rostroque immanis vultur adunco,

Immortale jecur tundens, foecundaque poenis

Viscera, rimaturque epulis, habitatque sub alto

Pectore, nec fibris requies datur ulla renatis.

Th' All-parent Earth's huge Off-spring I beheld,

Tityus, whose Body nine whole Acres fill'd;

Where a huge Vulture, with a crooked Bill,

Li [...]s tearing his immortal Liver still,

And, Dainties searching, dwells upon his Breast,

Nor grants to his renewing Bowels rest.

To these we may add the Titans, the Sons of Terra and Coelum. Aeschyl [...] Prometh. The Chief of whom was Titanus Saturn's elder Brother, who made War against Iupiter, because Iupiter usurp'd that Kingdom which was due to him by hereditary right. In this War Titan and his Party were beaten, and afterwards cast down into Hell.

SECT. III.
Other Famous Offenders.

PHlegyas, King of the Lapithae in Thessalia, was the Father of the Nymph Coronis; and when he heard that Apollo had debauch'd his Daughter, he went in anger, and fired the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. For which the God shot him through the Body with an Arrow, and ordained him this punishment; a great Stone hangs over his Head, which he imagines every moment will fall down and crush him in pieces. Thus he sits perpetually fearing what will never come to pass; which [Page] make him frequently cry out, (Virg. Aen. 6.)

Discite justitiam montii, & non temnere Divos.

Learn Iustice hence, and don't despise the Gods.

Ixion was the Son of this Phlegyas. He killed his own Sister, and obtained his Pardon from the Gods, who advanced him to Heaven; his Prosperity made him wanton, so that he attempted to violate Iuno. It was told to Iupiter who sent a Cloud in the shape of Iuno; which the deceived Lover embraced, and from thence those Monsters the Centaurs were born. Whereupon he was thrown down to the Earth again; where because he boasted every where that he knew the Queen of the Gods, he was struck with Thunder down into Hell, and tied fast to a Wheel, which turns about [...]ontinually.

Salmoneus, King of Elis; whose ambition was not satisfied with an earthly Crown, for he desired Divine Honours, and that the People might esteem him a God; he built a brazen Bridge over the City, and drove his Chariot over it, imitating, by this noise, Iupiter's Thunder; he threw down lighted Torches, and those who were struck by them, were taken and killed. Iupiter would not suffer so great insolence, wherefore he threw the proud Man head-long out of his Stage into Hell, where I saw him, says he in Virgil Aen. 6.

Vidi crudeles dantem Salmonea poenas;

Dum flammas Iovis & sonitus imitatur Olympi.

I saw Salmoneus as he tortur'd sate,

Who Lightning could, and Thunder imitate;

Sisyphus was a famous Robber, killed by Theseus. He is condemned in Hell to roll a [Page] great, & non exsuperabile saxum, and an insuperable stone, to the top of a high Hill; and as oft as the Stone almost touches the top of the Mountain, it slides down again.

The Belides, Herod. in Argon. fifty Virgins Sisters, so called from their Grandfather Belus, named also Danaïdes, from their Father Danaus, who married them to the fifty Sons of his Brother. The Oracle foretold, that Danaus should be slain by his Son-in-Law, wherefore he commanded his Daughters to provide Daggers, and on their Wedding Nights, to kill all their Husbands. All the Daughters performed their Promises and killed their Husbands; but Hypermnestra spared Lynceus her Husband, who afterwards killed Danaus, and took his Kingdom. This great Impiety was thus punished, they are condemned to draw water out of a deep Well, and fill a Tub, that like a Sieve, is full of holes. The water runs out of the Tub, as fast as it is put in, so that they are tormented with an unprofitable labour, without end. Thus Ovid says of them. (Met. l. 4.)

Assiduas repetunt, quas perdunt Belides undas.

They hourly fetch the Water that they spill.

Tantalus is another remarkable Criminal,Euseb. he was the Son of Iupiter by the Nymph Plota. Praep. Eu. He invited all the Gods to a Feast, to get a plain and clear proof of their Divinity; when they came, he killed and quartered his own Son Pelops, Pelop [...]. and boiled him, and set the joynt [...] before them to eat. All the Gods abstained from such horrid Diet, except Ceres, who eat one of the Child's Shoulders. Afterwards the [Page] Gods sent Mercury to re-cal him to Life, and gave him an Ivory Shoulder, instead of the Shoulder which Ceres had eaten.Pindar. in Olymp. This Pelops was the Husband of Hippodamia, of whom Atreus and Thyestes were born.Attreus Thyestes. The latter whereof was banished, because he corrupted his Brother Atreus's Wife; and when he was re-called from thence, he eat up those Children that he had by her. For Atreus killed them, and brought them in Dishes to the Table, where he and Thyestes Dined together. It is said that the Sun was not able to endure so horrible a sight, but turned his Course back again to the East. But as Tantalus's Crime was greater so was his Punishment. For he is tormented with eternal Hunger and Thirst, in the midst of Plenty both of Meat and Drink.Homer. Odyss. [...]. [...]. For he stands in water up to the Lips, but cannot drink it; and Meat is placed just by his Mouth, which he cannot take hold on. Besides (Virg. Aen. 6.)

Hunc super atra silex jamjam lapsura, cadenti (que)

Imminet assimilis.

—A huge Stone

Ready to drop hangs o'er his cursed head

The former part of his punishment is thus expressed by Ovid.

Quaerit aquas in aquis, & poma fugacia captas

Tantalus; hoc illi garrula lingua dedit.

Half drown'd he thirsts, the dangling apples swing

From's gaping chops. This comes of pratling.

For they say he divulged the secrets of the Gods unto Men.

[Page]Now this Fable of Tantalus represents to us the condition of a Miser; who in the midst of plenty suffers want; and wants as much the things which he hath as those which he has not. As Horace rightly says, where he ridicules the covetous man thus. (Serm. lib. 1.)

Tantalus à labris sitiens fugientia captat

Flumina. Quid rides? mutato nomine, de te

Fabula narratur.

Tho' Tantalus, you've heard, do stand chin-deep

In water, yet he cannot get a sip.

At which you smile: now all on't would be true,

Were the name chang'd, and the tale told of you.

CHAP. XI.
Monsters of Hell.

THere are many strange Pictures of these infernal Monsters, but the most deformed are the

Centaurs, who were the antient Inhabitants of Thessalia; and the first who tamed Horses, and used them in War. Their Neighbours, who first saw them on Horse-back, thought that they had partly the Members of a Man, and partly the Limbs of an Horse. But the Poets tell us another Story, for they say that Ixion begot them of a Cloud, which he believed to be Iuno; from whence they are called Nubigenae in Virgil Aen. 6 [...] and Bacchus is said to have overcome them.

[Page] Geryon, because he was the King of the three Islands which are called Balearides, is feigned tricorporem esse & tergeminum, to have three bodies. Or it may be, because there were three Brothers of the same Name; whose Minds and Affections were so united, that they seemed to be governed, and to live by one Soul. They add, that Geryon kept Oxen, which devoured the Strangers that came to him; they were guarded by a Dog with two Heads, and a Dragon with seven. Hercules killed the Guard, and drove the Oxen afterwards away.

The Harpyes, Serv. Aen. 1. (Harpyiae) are so called from [...], rapio. They were born of Oc [...]anus and Terra, with the Faces of Virgins, the Bodies of Birds; thei [...] Hands were armed with Claws, and their Habitation was in the Islands. Their Names were Aello, Ocypete and Celeno; which last brought forth Zephyrus (the West-Wind) and Balius, and Xanthus, the Horses of Achilles. Virgil gives us a description of these three Sisters (Aen. 3) thus.

At subito horrisico lapsu de montibus adsunt

Harpyiae; & magno quatiunt clangoribus alas:

Sivae D [...]ae, seu sint Dirae, obscaenaeque volucres:

Tristius haud illis monstrum est, nec saevior ulla

Pestis, & ira Deum, Stygiis sese extulit undis.

Virginei volucrum vultus, foedissima ventris

Proluvies, uncaeque manus, & pallida semper

Ora fame.

But from the Mountains, with a speedy flight,

On thundring Wings Harpies themselves invite;

Be they foul Birds, Furies, or Goddesses.

[Page]No Monster like to these, no Plague more fell,

Nor sharper Vengeance Heaven e'er call'd from Hell.

These Fowl have Virgins Faces, and hook'd Claws,

Still purging Bellies, always greedy Maws,

With Hunger pale.

To the three Harpyes, Vir. Aen. 6. add the three Gorgons, Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale; who were the Daughters of Phorcus and Cete. Instead of Hair, their Heads were covered with Vipers: which so terrified the beholder, that they turned him presently into a Stone. Perhaps they intended to represent by this part of the Fable, the extraordinary Beauty of these Sisters; so that whosoever saw them were amazed, and stood fixed like Stones. There were other Gorgones besides, born of the same Parents: who were called

Lamiae, Aesch. in. Prom. or Empusae. They had only one Eye, and one Tooth, common to them all: They kept this Tooth and Eye at home in a little Vessel, and which soever of them went abroad, she used them.Dion. Hist. Lib. They had the Faces of Women, and also the Necks and Breasts. But below they were covered with Scales, and they had the Tails of Serpents. They used to entice Men and then devour them. Their Breasts were naked, and their Bosom was open: they looked on the ground out of modesty; thus they tempted Men to discourse with them, and when they came near, these Lamiae used to fly in their Faces, and strangle them, and tear [Page] them to pieces barbarously. And what more plainly expresses the devilish Arts of wicked Women? Against whom the Scriptures caution us in these words, Lamiae nudaverunt mammam (Lam. 4. 3.) The Lamiae have made naked their Breasts. Others only mention one Lamia, who was a most beautiful Woman: Iupiter debauch'd her,Duris. 2. rer. Libyc. and Iuno through jealousie, deprived her of the Children that she bore; she became distracted with grief, and devoured other peoples Children in their Cradles.

The Chimaera, is a Monster which vomiteth forth fire.Hom. II [...]. He hath the Head and Breast of a Lion,Hes. in Theog. the Belly of a Goat, and the Tail of a Dragon. ‘Prima Leo, postrema Draco, media inde Capella.’ And so Ovid himself describes him:

Quoque Chimaera jugo, mediis in partibus hircum,

Pectus & ora Leae, caudam Draconis habebat.

—And on the craggy top

Chimaera dwells, with Lions face and mane,

A Goats rough body and a Dragons train.

A Volcano in Lycia occasioned this Fable: for in the top of that Mountain were Lions, in the middle (where was Pasture) Goats lived, and the bottom of it abounded with Serpents. Bellerophon made this Mountain habitable, and is therefore said to have killed the Chimaera. Pausan [...] in Corinth.

[Page]The Monster Sphinx was begotten of Typhon and Echidna. Vid. Nat. Com. She had the Head and Face of a young Woman, the Wings of a Bird, and the Body and Feet of a Dog. She lived in the Mountain Sphincius; assaulted all Passengers, and infested the Country about Thebes; insomuch that Apollo was consulted concerning her; who returned answer; that, unless some body did resolve the Riddle of Sphinx, there would be no end of that great evil. Many endeavoured to explain it, but were overcome and torn in pieces by the Monster. Creon at that time was King of Thebes; who published an Edict throughout all Greece; in which, if any one could explain the Riddle of Sphinx, he promised, that he would give him to Wife his own Sister Iocasta. The Riddle was this; Quodnam anima [...] mane quadrupes, meridie bipes, vesperi tripes esset? What Animal is that, which goes upon four Feet in the morning, upon two at noon, and upon three at night? Oedipus encouraged with the hopes of the Reward, undertook it, and happily explain'd it; so that the Sphinx was enraged, and cast her self headlong from a Rock and died. He said that that Animal was a Man: who in his Infancy creeps upon his Hands and Feet, and is quadrupes: but afterwards, he becomes bipes, for he is then supported by nothing but by his two feet. When he is Old, his Staff like a third foot, supports him in walking, so that he is then Tripes.

[Page]This Oedipus was the Son of Laius, King of Thebes, Stat. Theb. 1. Plutar. Aelian. & alii. who commanded a Soldier to destroy him in a Wood, because the Oracle foretold that he would be killed by his own Son. But the Soldier being moved with pity towards the Child, and afraid to imbrue his Hands in Royal Blood, wherefore he pierced his Feet with a Hook, and hanged him upon a Tree, to be kill'd with Hunger. One of the Shepherds of Polybus, King of Corinth, found him, and brought him to the Queen, who, because she had no Children, educated him as her own Son. Oedipus (for that name they gave him from his swollen feet, from [...], tumeo, and [...], pes,) when he came to Age, knew that King Polybus was not his Father, and resolved to find out his Parents; consulting the Oracle, he was told that he should meet his Father in Phocis. In his Journey a quarrel arose amongst some Passengers, and he killed his Father, whom he did not know: and then going to Thebes, he overcame Sphinx, and for his reward, he married Iocasta, who was his Mother, of which he was ignorant: he had by her two Sons, Eteocles and Polynices, and two Daughters, Antigone and Ismena. When afterwards he found by clear proof, that he had killed his Father, and married his Mother, he was seized with so great madness, that he pulled out his own Eyes; and had killed himself, if his Daughter Antigone (who led him about after he was blind) had not hindred him.Senec. Oedip.

[Page] Eteocles and Polynices, Stat. in Theb. the Sons of Oedipus and Iocasta, succeeded their Father in the Government, they reigned a Year apiece in their turns. Eteocles reigned the first Year, and then refused to admit his Brother Polynices to the Throne. Whereupon a War arose, and the two Brothers in a Duel killed each other, Their Enmity survived their Bodies; for when their two Bodies were placed on the same Pile to be burnt by the same Fire, the Flames refused to unite, but divided themselves into two parts.

CHAP. XII.
The Elysium.

THere is a place in the Kingdom below, abounding with pleasure, and delights, which is called the Elysium, from [...], solutione; because thither the souls of the good come, corporeis solutae vinculis, after they are loosed from the Chains of the Body; when they have been purged from the light offences, that they have contracted in this World. Aeneas received this description from one of the Inhabitants of this place. Virg. Aen. 6.

Quisque suos patimur manes; exinde per amplum

Mittimur Elysium, & pauci laeta arva tenemus.

All suffer for themselves; few to the vast

And gladsome fields of fair Elysium hast.

[Page] Those Fields afterwards are describ'd thus by the same Poet. Ibid.

Devenere locos laetos, & amoena vireta

Fortunatorum nemorum, sedesque beatas.

Largior hic campos aether & lumine vestit

Purpureo, solemque suum, sua sydera norunt.

This done, they came to Seats of joy and rest,

Groves, happy Ma [...]sions of the ever blest,

Which larger Skies cloath with a Purple Grey,

New Stars attending their own God of day.

CHAP. XIII.
The River Lethe.

THere is a River in Hell called Lethe, from the Greek [...], Forgetfulness. For if any body drinks this water he immediately forgets all things past. So that when the Souls of the Pious have spent many Ages in the Elysian Fields, they drink the Water of Lethe, and are believed to pass into new Bodies, and return into the World again. And it is necessary, that they forget both the pleasures that they have received in Elysium, and the miseries that they did heretofore endure in this life, that they may willingly return into this miserable life again. (Virg. Aen. 6.)

[Page]

—Animae quibus altera fato

Corpora debentur, Lethaei ad fluminis undam

Securos latices, & longa oblivia potant.

—Souls that by Fate

Are doom'd to take new shapes, at Lethe's Brink,

Quaff secure Draughts, and long Oblivion drink:

These Souls went out from Elysium by that Ivory Gate, which you see painted in the lower part of this Wall: And if you please, we will go out thro' this Gate, and leave these infernal Regions, to view more beautiful, tho' not less ridiculous Images of the other Gods.

PART V.
Of the Dii Minorum Gentium; or the Subordinate Deities.

[Page]

CHAP. I.
The Penates.

NOW Palaeophilus, let us view the fifth division of this Fabulous Pantheon, in which are contained the Dii Minorum Gentium, or the Subordinate Deities; which are otherwise called Semones, Minuti, Plebeii, and Patellarii: They are painted without confusion in very good order, and very distinctly; if we consider how infinite the number of them was. It is plain, that the Romans had almost as many Gods as there are things. And indeed, how great is the number of Gods who [Page] preside over inconsiderable things, since there are three Gods to keep one Door; first, the God Forculus looks after the Door, the Goddess Cardua after the Hinges, and Limentinus after the Threshold. I shall consider only those lightly, who assist or any ways preserve Mankind from their Birth to their Death.

The Penates derive their name from Penus, De Nat. 2. Provision: est enim omne, quo vescuntur homines, penus, says Tully: for all that, that men eat is included in the name of Penus. Or perhaps, quod penitus insident, because they are placed in the most inward and secret parts of Heaven, where they reign, says Varro; and thence are called by the Poets penetrales, Ap Arnob. l. 3. and the place where their Images were kept was called Penetrale. Yet we neither know their number, nor the names of them: tho' both our Lives and our Understandings are owing to them; for they entirely govern us by their reason, their heat, and their spirit. The antient Hertrusci called them Consentes and Complices: supposing that they be Iupiter's Counsellors, and the chief of the Gods. And many reckon Iupiter himself, together with Iuno and Minerva, among the Penates. But I shall speak something more clearly in this matter.

There were three orders of the Dii Penates. Virg. Aen. 1. & 5. 1: Those who governed Kingdoms and Provinces, and were absolutely and solely called Penates. 2. Those who presided over Cities only, and these were called Patrii Penates, [...], the Gods of the Country; of whom Aeneas speaks in Virgil,

[Page]

Tu genitor cape sacra manu,

Macr. 3.

Patriosque Penates.

You Father of our holy things take care,

Sat. 14.

And of our Country-Godlings.

Virg. Aen. 2. & 4.

These were also called [...],Plut. 4. Symp. q. 1. the Great Gods. Vir. Aen. 8. 3. Those who presided over particular Houses,Cic. pro domo. and were called Penates parvi: of whom the Poets make frequent mention, and particularly Virgil, where he speaks of the fifty servant-Maids, whose business it was to look after the Victuals, & flammis adolere Penates, (Aen. 1.) And in another place he says, & sparsos fraterna caede Penates. Again it is observable, that by the word Penates, is oftentimes signified the Houses themselves, in which these Gods were worshipped. As when it is said in Virgil (Aen. 8.) Nostris succede Penatibus hospes; Pro. Sext. Fab. decl. 260. and when Tully says, exterminare aliquem à suis penatibus Diis, or liberos pellere domo, ac prohibere Penatibus: In which Sentences Penates has the same signification with Domus.

Timaeus, Lib [...] 1. and from him Dionysius says, that these Penates had no proper Shape or Figure; but were Wooden or Brazen Rods, shaped somewhat like Trumpets. But it is also thought by others, that they had the shape of Young men with Spears, which they held apart from one another.

CHAP. II.
The Lares.

[Page]

THE Lares were the issue of the stoln Embraces of Mercury with the Nymph Lara: for when by her prating she had discovered some of Iupiter's Amours: He was enraged [...]nd cut out her Tongue and banished her to [...]he Stygian Lake: It was Mercury's Office to convey her thither, in the Journey he ravished her. (Ovid. Fast. l. 2.)

Fitque gravis, Geminosque parit, qui compita servant:

Et vigilant nostra semper in aede Lares.

Grows big, and brings forth Twins, the Lares call'd,

That guard the ways, and Houshold Gods are held.

So they became Domestick Gods, and presided over the Ways and the Streets,Mart. 3. 1. Epigr. and were worshipped there.Arno. 32. Varr. de [...]re rust. & 5. de ling. Lat. Fest. ap. Lil. The Games, Celebrated in their honour, were called Compitalitii, and Compitalitia, or Compitalia: in which the Effigies of Men and Women, made of Wooll, were hung in the Streets; and so many Balls, made of Wooll, as there are servants in the Family; and so many compleat Images, as there were Children. The meaning [Page] of which custom was this; These Feasts were dedicated to the Lares, who were esteemed Infernal Gods; the People desiring hereby that these Gods would be contented with these woollen Images, and spare the persons represented by them. When the Roman Youths laid aside their Childrens Gowns (Bullas) they Consecrated and hung them up to the Dii Lares, as says Persius.

Bullaque succinctis Laribus donata pependit.

These Lares were cloathed with the Skins of Dogs, according to Plutarch in Probl. Nay, if you will believe Plautus, themselves were fashioned in the shape of Dogs. Whence that Animal was sacred to them: And the place, which was Consecrated to them was called Lararium.

In their Sacrifices,Tibul. l. 1. they offered the first of the Fruits of the year;Juven. Sat. 9. & 12. and supplicated them with Wine and Incense;Arnob. 5. ex Var. and adorned them with Chaplets and Garlands. The beginning of which Worship came from hence; that antiently the dead, who were buried at home, were worshipped as Gods, and called Lares. And besides we find in Pliny (Epist. l. 10.) That they sacrificed with Wine and Incense, to the Images of the Emperours, whilst they yet lived.

CHAP. III.

[Page]

SECT. I.
The Genii. Their Name.

GEnius is derived from Geno (a word heretofore used for Gigno;)Aug. 7. de Civ. for they thought that this Genius or spirit of Nature could produce and beget all things.Cic. 2. deor. & 2. de invent. or because it assisted in our Generation, Censor. de die nat. 3. or because it is generated with us [...] or lastly because it protects and defends us when we are begotten. Isidor. 8. Etym. [...]. ult. Whence the marriage Bed, called Genialis Lectus, was adorned to the honur of this Genius; and the day of our Births, which is usually spent in extraordinary mirth, was also called Genialis dies. And in like manner those who live merrily, and pass their time in ease and softness, according to the inclinations of their minds are said to favour their Genlus, and to live a genial life.

These Genii were by the Grecians called Daemones, Plat. in Cratylo. Isidor. 8. Etym. from [...], exterreo, pavefacio, as Eusebius thinks: or quasi [...], prudentes, scientes, periti, rerumque praescii; because they gave oracular answers to those who consulted them.Ex Hes. ap. Plat. ibid. Lid. de orac. def. Whence some think, that famous and very deserving Men become Daemons after their Deaths: who are says Plutarch, a middle sort betwixt Men and Gods.

SECT. II.
Their Images.

[Page]

THE Images,Stat. 5. Theb. of the Genii, resembled for the most part the form of a Serpent; according to Persius and his Commentators, Sat. 1.

Pinge duos angues, pueri, sacer est locus; extra Meiite.

Paint here two Snakes, my Lads, sacred's the place,

Pray piss without.

Sometimes also they were like a Boy,V. Cerd. Corn. in Aen. or a Girl, or an old Man; and crowned with the Leaves of the Plane [...]Tree, which was genialis Arbor, a Tree sacred to the Genii.

SECT. III.
Sacrifices.

TO the Genii were sacrificed Wine and Flowers; especially upon every ones birth-day, whence says Persius (Sat. 6.)

Funde merum Genio.

To our good Genius the brisk liquor fill.

And Horace (2. Epist. 1.)

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Floribus & vino genium memorem brevis horae.

Mindful how soon our flitting breath is gone,

Our Genius we with Wine and Flowers atone.

To those,Plut. in Aul. Calph. Ecl. 5. Hor. 3. Carm. they added Incense and parched bread Corn strewed with Salt. Sometimes also a Swine was sacrificed: tho Censorinus writes, that it was not usual to Sacrifice to the Genii with the blood and slaughter of any thing, since we ought not to take life from other Creatures on that day in which we received it.

SECT. IV.
Offices.

THE Genii were appointed the continual Guardians,Polit. Miscell. c. 89. Overseers, and safe Keepers of the Men (as the Women's Guardians and Protectors were Iuno's) from their Cradles, to their Graves.Arrian. in Epict. They likewise carried the Prayers of Men to the Gods, and interceded for them. Whence some call them Proestites, 2. De nupt. says Martianus, quòd praesunt gerundis omnibus, because they are set over the management of all things.

To every Person were assigned two Genii, Plut. de II. & o [...]ir. a Bonus Genius, and a Malus Genius: Horace calls them Album and Nigrum Genium, (2. Ep. 2.) a white and a black one. And History tells us, that there did appear to Cassius a black and evil Genius, in the figure of a Man of a vast Stature: [Page] they asked him who he was; and he answered, se esse [...], that he was his evil Genius (Val. Max. lib. 1.) These two Genii are understood, says Servius, in those words of the Poet: Quisque suos patimur Manes. (Virg. Aen. 6.) For the Good Genius which is given to us at our births, impels us to Virtue, and the evil Genius on the contrary provokes us to Vice.

Nor were these Genii assigned to Men only; for several Countries had their Genius, who therefore was called Numen loci, Id. Aen. 7. Prud. in Symn. the Deity of the place. Nay Genii were allotted to all Houses, and Doors, and Stables, and Hearths. And because the Hearths were usually covered with Slates (laterculis,) therefore the God of the Hearths was called Lateranus. Lib. Syn. 1. But of these, enough. Let us now proceed to the other inferior Deities.

CHAP. IV.
The Nuptial Gods and Goddesses.

FIve Deities were so absolutely necessary to all Marriages that none could lawfully be solemnized without them. They were, Iupiter perfectus seu adultus, Iuno perfecta seu adulta, Venus, Suada, and Diana. Besides which were worshipped at all Marriages several Inferiour Gods and Goddesses (minores & quasi Plebii Dii.)

[Page] Iugatinus, Ang. de Civ. 4. cii. who joyned the Man and the Woman together in jugo Matrimonii, the Yoak of Matrimony.

Domiducus, Id. ibid. & l. 9. c. 9. who guided the Bride into the Bridegrooms House, (domi duceret.)

Domitius, who should keep the Bride there, (domi teneret.)

Manturna, whose Office was to see that the Wife continued with her Husband.

Then the Goddess Virginensis, and also the Goddess Cinxia Iuno, was invoked when the Virgins Girdle was unloosed.

Priapus or Mutinus, Aug. [...] in whose filthy Lap the Bride was commanded to sit, according to a very religious and modest custom, forsooth!

Pertunda, or Partunda, was also worshipped; concerning her St. Augustin thus advises us, parcatur humanae verecundiae. Spare the modesty of humane Nature.

Viriplaca, reconciles Husbands to their Wives.Val. Max. l. 2. c. [...]. A Temple at Rome was Dedicated to her; whither the married Couple usually repaired when any quarrel arose between them; and speaking to one another there, the things which were fit, they laid aside all their anger, and returned home together friendly.

The Goddess Matuta, Ovid. Met. 3. according to the opinion of some, was the Daughter of Cadmus, whom the Greeks call Leucothea or Ino. Plut. in Camillo. & quaest. Rom. 1. The Maid Servants were not suffered to come with in her Temple: but the married Women admitted one of them, and afterwards buffeted her. Of this Goddess no Mother desired blessings to her own, but to her Sisters Children: [Page] and therefore while they were present at her Sacrifices, they carried not their own, but their Sisters Children in their Arms.

The Goddess Mena presided over the Womens monthly Courses; Aug. l. 7. and was the same with the Moon. As [...] in Greek is Luna.

And Februa was employed in the same affair, she was so called from Februo, to purge.

CHAP. V.
The Gods presiding over Women with Child.

THree Gods assisted big-bellied Women, when their assistance was asked.

Pilumnus from Pilum, a Roling-Pin which we use in making of Bread.

Intercidona, the Goddess, ab intercisione securis, the cutting of the Hatchet in felling of Wood.

Deverra, from the Brooms quibus verritur; with which things are brush'd clean.

And by the means of these three Duties, the Dii Sylvani (the wild Gods of the Woods) who were pernicious to breeding Women, were driven away. For as neither the Trees, says S. Austin, are cut down without an Ax, nor Bread made without a Roller, nor things preserved clean without a Brush; so since those Instruments are thought signs of good Housewifery, it was supposed, that these wild uncleanly Gods would never dare to enter into the [Page] Chamber of a breeding Woman. S. August. de Civit. Dei. lib. 7.

CHAP. VI.
The Gods and Goddesses presiding over Women in Labour.

THese Goddesses assisted Women in Travel, and promoted the happy Birth of the Child.

Iuno Lucina; whose Image thus formed. One hand was empty,Nat. Co. and ready as it were to receive the newborn Babe, the other hand held a lighted Torch, by which was signified, that light of life, which all who are born enjoy.

Diana. Catull. carm. ad Dian. 12. de Nat. 1. (tho some make no difference between her and Lucina) Tymaeus speaks very handsomely, when he relates that Diana's Temple was burnt the same night in which Alexander was born; says he, it is no wonder that she was absent from her House, when her assistance was necessary at the Labour of Olympias, Alexander's Mother. She is called Solvizona, Theocr. Phyll. 17. for when Women lay in the first time they loosed their Zona or Girdle and dedicated it to Diana.

Egeria is so called à partu egerendo, from casting forth the Birth.

Prosa or Prorsa, Gell. l. &c. 19. Plut. or Parima (who was called also Postverta and Anteverta) looked after the [Page] Birth of the Child;Ro. q. 25 Aelian. Val. hist. it was in her power to make the Birth easie and regular, or difficult and preposterous.

Managaneta, presided also over the Infant, both before and after its Birth.

Lastly, the Goddess Latona of whom we have spoken in her place. It was thought that she very much loved a Dunghil Cock: because a Cock was present when she brought forth Diana and Apollo, some imagine, that the presence of a Cock renders the Womens Labours easie.Auson. Idyll. 11.

Nixii Dii, so called ab enitendo from striving. Quòd niteretur tum mater, tum foetus, both the Mother and the Child struggle at that time. The Mother struggles thro' pain, and the Child, that he may come into the World.

CHAP. VII.
The Deities presiding over Infants at the time of their Birth, and after.

THese Deities presided over Children in the time of their Birth and afterwards.Aug. 4. de Civ. c. 11.

Ianus, who should open Ianuam vitae, the Door of Life, to them.

Opis, who opem ferret, should assist them when they come into the World.

Nascio or Natio, Aug. 4. c. 8. a Goddess so call'd from the Latin Word Nasci to be born.

[Page] Cunia, quae cunis praeest, who attends the Cradle, and watches the Infants while they lie and sleep.

Carmenta, who sings their Destinies.

Vagitanus or Vaticanus, who takes care of them, when they cry.

Levana,Varr. 2. de vita Pop. Rom.à levando, from lifting them up from the Ground, For when a Child was born, the Midwife constantly laid the Child on the ground, and the Father, or somebody appointed by him, lifted it from the ground, and from thence, tollere liberos, signifies to educate Children.

Rumina, Aug. 4. cap. 8. who milks the Breast for the Child. Ruma is an old word signifying a Breast.

Potina, quae potionem praeberet, who should give it Drink.

Educa or Edusa, Aug. ib. who should give it meat.

Ossilago, who should fasten the Bones, and harden the Body.

Carna or Carnea, Macrob. 1. Sat. c. 2. who should keep the inward parts safe. To this Goddess they sacrificed upon the Kalends of Iune with Bacon, and Cake made of Beans. Whence those Kalends were called Fabariae.

The Goddess Nundina was so called from nono die, Fest. v. Lustrici. the ninth day of the Child's Age: which was Dies lustricus, the Day of the Purification: in which the Name was given it, if it was a Boy: if it was a Girl, this Ceremony was performed on the eighth day.

Statilinus or Statanus, who should teach the Children to stand and walk; and preserve them falling.

[Page] Fabulinus, who look'd after them when they began to speak; à fando.

Paventia, quae illis pavorem averteret, the Goddess, who should preserve them from Frights.

CHAP. VIII.
The Gods and Goddesses presiding over adult Persons.

OUR several actions are supposed to be under the protection of divers Gods.Aug. 4. c. 11.

Iuventus or Iuventas, protects us in the beginning of our vouth, when we have thrown off the Childs Coat.

Agenoria, Aug. 4. de Civ. c. 16. excites to Action.

Strenua, encourages us to behave our selves strenuously and bravely in all occasions.Var. 4. de L. 1.

Stimula, who eggs us on to do extraordinary actions.

Horta, Plut. Qu. Rom. 1 [...] is the Goddess, who exhorts us to undertake noble Enterprizes. Her Temple at Rome stood always open: and some call her, Hora.

Quies had her Temple without the City,Aug. 4. cap. 16. and was supposed to be the Donor of Peace and Quietness.

Murcia renders Men to be lazy, idle, and dull,Id. ibid. (Murcides.)

Adeona and Abeona by whose protection we have power to go out and come in.

[Page] Vibilia, who brings wanderers into the way again.

Vacuna, Id. c. 2. protects the idle and lazy.

Fessonia, quae fessos recrearet, who should recreate and refresh the weary.

The Goddess Meditrina hath her Name from medendo, Varr. & Fest. and her Sacrifices were called Meditrinalia, in which they drank both new and old Wine instead of Physick.

The Goddess Vitula is so called from vitulando, exulting: for she is the Goddess of Mirth, which mitigates the Inconveniences of Life.

The Goddess Volupia, from pleasure (voluptas) for from her we receive it.

Orbona was worshipped, that she should not leave Parents orbos liberis, destitute of Children.

Pellonia was thought to have great power in pellendis hostibus, driving away the Enemy,

Numeria, who should teach us (numerare) to cast Account.

Camoena, who should incline us to Sing.

Sentia, from Sententia, Fest. Jul. Modest. from whom we learn our Opinions.

Angerona, who should remove, angores animi; the anguishes of the Mind. Or from Angina the Squinancy. For when the Cattle of the Romans was almost wholly destroyed by this Disease; they offered Vows to her, and she removed the Plague.

Haeres Martia, Fest. id. ibid. she was one of the Companions of Mars, and was worshipped by those who obtained any Inheritance.

Stata or Statua Mater, was worshipped in the Forum; that it should not be burnt, or [Page] suffer damage from the frequent Fires which happened there in the Night.

The Goddess Laverna was the protector of Thieves, who from her were named Laverniones: they worshipped her, that their Designs and Intrigues might be successful: Her Image was a Head without a Body. Scaliger in Fest.

The God Averruncus was thought (averruncare) to repell and prevent Misfortunes.

Consus, suggested good Counsel in the management of Affairs.

Catius made Men circumspect, (catos) acute and wise.

Volumnus and Volumna, à Volendo, because thro' their means Men were willing to have good things.

Honorius; the God, from whom they begged Honour.

Aius Locutius; Aug. 2. c. 21. A certain common Soldier said that in the night he heard a voice say: the Gauls are coming;Ap. Val. Max. no body minded what he said because he was a poor Fellow: After the Gallick War Camillus advised the Romans to expiate their offence in neglecting this nocturnal Voice, which forewarned them of the Gallick War and the ensuing destruction: whereupon a Temple was dedicated in Via nova to Aius Locutius.

Amongst the Ethiopians. or the Assyrians and Persians, Poena and Beneficium (Punishment and Favour) were reckoned in the number of the Gods. For the former was esteemed the Distributer of Evil; the other, the Dispenser of Good Things.

CHAP. IX.
The Gods assigned to the several Parts of human Bodies.

[Page]

TO every part of Man's Body was assigned and ascribed a particular God.Serv. in Georg.

The Head was sacred to Iupiter, Firm [...]c. & Mail. ap. the Breast to Neptune, the Waste to Mars, Gyr. synt. 1. the Forehead to Genius, the Eye-brows to Iuno, the Eyes to Cupid, the Ears to Memoria, the Right Hand to Fides, the Back and the Hinder Parts to Pluto, the Reins to Venus, the Feet to Mercury, the Knees to Misericordia, the Ankles and Soles of the Feet to Thetis, and the Fingers to Minerva.

The Astrologers assign the parts of the Body to the Celestial Constellations in another manner, thus. The Head they assign to Aries. The Shoulders to Gemini, the Heart to Cancer, th [...] Breast to Leo, the Belly to Virgo, the Reins to Libra, the Secrets to Scorpio, the Thighs to Sagittarius, the Knees to Capricorn, the Legs to Aquarius, and the Feet to Pisces.

CHAP. X.
The Funeral Gods.

[Page]

THE Chief of the Funeral Deities is Libitina, so called from Libitus or Libido: same say that she was Venus, others that she was Proserpine, in her Temple all things necessary for Funerals, were sold or let. Libitina sometimes signifies the Grave: and Libitinarii those Men who were employed in burying the dead. Porta Libitina at Rome, was that Gate thro' which dead Bodies were carried to be burned.

PART VI.
Of the Dii Indigetes and Adscriptitii, or the Semidei (Demi-Gods) and Hero's.

[Page]

THIS now is the last Division of the Fabulous Pantheon, in which you see exactly described the Images of the Dii Indigetes, or Semidei, and the Heroes. I told you at first who the Dii Adscriptitii and Indigetes were, and from whence they were so called.

The Semidei, [...], were those who had Human Bodies, but Sacred Minds and Celestial Souls: they were born into this World for the good and safety of Mankind. Labeo, L. 10. c. 21. in S. Austin distinguishes them from the Heroes. He thinks that Heros was one of Iuno's Sons, and that from [...], Iuno, the Name Heros is derived. Others derive this Name from [...],Interp. Hom. ap. Gyr. synt. 1. the Earth; because Mankind is born from thence. Or from [...], Love, of which Heroes are the Offspring: indeed as Hierocles observes,Plat. in Cratyl. Heroes are full of Love. Others think that [Page] they have their Name from [...], dicere; because Heroes are eloquent, and are very powerful and skilful in Rhetorick. Or lastly, from [...], virtus, for they are endow'd with many. Now let us speak particularly concerning some of these Heroes, of whom the famousest was Hercules.

CHAP. I.

SECT. I.
HERCULES. His Birth.

THere were many Hercules's, but (as Tully says, de Nat. Deor. lib. 3.) the famous Actions of them all are ascrib'd to him who was the Son of Iupiter, by Alcmena, the Wife of Amphitryo King of Thebes.

When Amphitryo was absent,Vid. Nat. Com. Lil. Gyr. Iupiter put on his Shape and Dress, and came to Alcmena; who thinking that her Husband was return'd, entertain'd the Deceitful God both at Table and at Bed: and had by him a Son, endued with [...] much Strength and Vigor, whose Limbs were so excessive large, that [Page] Iupiter joined three nights together, and spent them all in generating him. Before this Alcmena conceiv'd a Son by Amphitryo: he and Hercules were Twins, he was called Iphiclus; Iphicles he was wonderful swift in Running. (Orph. in hymn.)

Nam super extremas segetum currebat aristas,

Nec siccos fructus laedebat pondere plantae.

He over standing Corn wou'd run, and ne'er

In his swift motion bruise the tender Ear.

When Iuno knew Iupiters Adultery, she began to hate Hercules so violently, that she endeavoured with might and main to ruine him. First she obtain'd an Edict from Iupiter, by which she endeavoured the ruin of Hercules: for the Wife of Sthenelus, King of Mycene, was big with Euristheus, at that time when Alcmena was big with Hercules. Iupiter ordain'd, that whichsoever of the two Children was born first, he should be superior to the other: Iuno accelerated Euristheus's Birth, so that he was born after seven Months, and came into the World before Hercules. Again, she sent two Vipers to destroy him when he lay crying in his Cradle: but it was in vain; for the valiant Infant grip'd them in his hands till they dy'd: as the Poet says:

Tene ferunt geminos pressisse tenaciter angues,

Cum tener in cunis jam Iove dignus erat?

You kild two Serpents with your Infant [...]and,

Which then deserv'd Jove's Scepter to command.

[Page] At length by the Mediation of Pallas, Eumolp. l. de myster. Iuno was reconciled to the Noble Youth, and let him suck her Breasts: but he suck'd with such violence, that he hurt her Breast; wherefore she put him away, and some of her Milk was split; but it was not lost, for it fell upon the Sky, and made the Milky Way; which is in Greek call'd [...]. Some of it pass'd through the Clouds and fell on the Earth, and where it fell Lilies sprang up; from whence some call those Flowers Iunoniae Rosae (the Roses of Iuno.)Lil. Gyr.

SECT. II.
Names of Hercules.

HE had two proper Names, Hercules and Alcides: but his Surnames are innumerable. His Parents called him Alcides, from [...], robur; because he greatly excell'd all Mankind in Strength. He was afterward called Hercules, from [...], Iuno, and [...], gloria; because the hatred and unkindness of Iuno towards him, was the great means of the encrease of his Glory: for when she exposed him to the greatest Dangers, she made his Glory and Honour most illustrious, and by enjoining him so many Labours, she only exercised his Patience and Courage.

[Page]The Surnames I chuse rather to omit, because it is plain that he derived them, either from the places where his mighty Feats were done; or from the Actions that he performed with Applause and Honor. I will carefully and distinctly recount them; they are called Hercules Labors, so great was the Pains and so infinite the Toil of them.

SECT. III.
The Labours of Hercules.

HErcules was subjected to Euristheus, by the Edict of Iupiter and Unkindness of Iuno. But besides, the Oracle of Apollo at Delphos, advised and persuadeed him to submit himself, and obey Eurystheus's Commands; and especially to undergo willingly the Twelve Labours, which his Master should lay upon him. Hercules obey'd the Fates, and served Euristheus twelve Years: and perform'd the most dangerous and difficult Commands with an answerable Courage and Success. Some say that Hercules served him voluntarily, and perform'd these difficult Tasks, to shew how great love he bore Euristheus. Tho Hercules perform'd an infinite number of memorable Actions, Twelve are especially celebrated. And those Twelve are comprised in as many Latin Verses,Quint. Smyrn [...] translated out of the Greek.

[Page]

Prima Cleonei tolerata aerumna Leonis,

Proxima Lernaeum, ferro & face contudit Hydram.

Mox Erymantheum vis tertia perculit Aprum.

AEripedis quartò tulit aurea cornua cervi.

Stymph [...]lidas pepulis volucres discrimine quinto.

Threiciam sexto spoliavit Amazon [...] Baltheo.

Septima in Augeae stabulis impensa laboris.

Octava expulso numeratur adorea Tauro.

In Diomedeis victor jam nona quadrigis.

Geryone extincto decimam dat Iberia palmam.

Undecimum Mala Hesperidum distracta triumphum.

Cerberus extremi suprema est meta laboris.

The Cleonean Lion first he kills,

With fire and sword then Lerna's pest he quells;

Of the wild Boar he clears th' Er'manthean fields.

The brass foot Stag with golden Antlers yields:

He Stymphal clears of man devouring Birds,

And next the bouncing Amazon ungirds:

The Stables of King Augeas he cleans,

The Cretan Bull he vanquishes and chains:

Diomedes Horses him their Conq'ror own,

Then he brings low three headed Geryon:

Hesperian Apples next his Name advance [...],

And his last Labour Cerberus enchains.

The particular account of these Twelve is this [...]

I. He tore in pieces, with his Nails, the Lion in the Wood of Nemaea;

Eurip. in Herc. ins. Leo.

which some say, fell from the Circle of the Moon, and was [Page] invulnerable by any Weapon. This Place was also named Cleone, from whence the Lion was called Cleoneus. This was the first Labor of Hercules. He skinn'd this Lion, and with the Skin he made him a Shield and Breast-Plate.

II. There was a Hydra,

Hydra.

a Serpent in the Lake Lerna, in the Fields of Argos; that had seven Heads, some say nine, others fifty. When any of these Heads were cut off, another presently sprang up in the place of it; unless the Blood which issued from the Wound, was stopt by Fire. Iolaus,

Jolaus.

the Son of Iphicles procured for him lighted Brands from the Neighbouring Woods: wherefore when Iolaus was grown to a decrepid Age, Hercules by his Prayers restor'd to him his Youth again. Ovid. Met. l. 9.

III. He bound the wild Boar,

Aper.

whose fierceness and bigness was equally admirable, in the Mountain Erymanthus of Arcadia, and brought it to Euristheus.

IV. He was order'd to bring to Mycenae an Hind,

Cerv [...]

whose Feet were Brass and Horns Gold. No body dar'd to wound her, because she was Consecrated to Diana; nor could any body out-run her: yet Hercules hunted her a year on foot, and catch'd her and brought her away on his shoulders.

[Page]V. He partly kild, and partly drove away the Birds call'd Stymphalides

Stymphalides.

from the Lake Stymphalus, which used to feed upon Man's Flesh.

VI. He defeated the Army of the Amazons,

Amazones

and took from Hippolyta, their Queen, the finest Belt in the World.

VII. He in one day cleansed the Stable of Augeas,

Augias.

by turning the course of a River into it. This Stable had never been cleaned, altho three thousand Oxen stabled in it thirty years. Whence the Proverb Augeae stabulum, that is, a thing of the greatest labour and difficulty.

VIII. He tamed a great Bull,

Taurus.

that did innumerable Mischiefs to the Island, and brought him bound to Euristheus.

IX. He overcame Diomedes,

Diomedes.

the most cruel Tyrant of Thrace; who fed his Horses with the flesh of his Guests. Hercules bound him, and threw him to be eaten by those Horses, to which the Tyrant exposed others.

X. He overcame in War Geryon,

Geryon.

King of Spain, who had three Bodies: we saw him before in Hell. He took likewise his bay Oxen who eat Mens Flesh, and brought them into Italy; when he had kild the Dragon with seven Heads, and the Dog with two, who guarded them.

[Page]XI. He kill'd the Dragon who watch'd,

Aurea mala.

and then carried away the Golden Apples in the Gardens of the Hesperides; from whence perhaps he is call'd Melius: (for [...], melon, signifies an Apple) and Apples were offered up in his Sacrifices. When in Boeotia no Bull (or Sheep) could be procur'd, when the time of Sacrifice came, they took an Apple and stuck into it four Straws, which represented four Legs, and two others instead of Horns, and again another for a Tail, and offer'd Hercules this Apple instead of a Victim.

XII. Lastly, he was commanded by Euristheus to go down into Hell, and bring away from thence the Dog Cerberus. Cerberua. This he perform'd without delay, and bound the three-headed Monster in a triple Chain, and brought him up to the Earth by force: the Dog, who strove and resisted in vain. When Cerberus saw the light, he vomited, from whence sprang the poisonous Herb Aconitum (Wolfsbane) These are the twelve Labours of Hercules.

P.

Pray, Sir, let me a little interrupt you now, since I have been silent so long. Pray satisfie these two Scruples. First, why could not Iuno his Enemy hinder his Birth. Secondly, I know that many mention more than twelve Labours of Hercules.

[Page]M.

What you call an interruption, Palaeophilus, is both seasonable and acceptable to me; because it recals a thing into my memory that I had forgot, and gives me an occasion of mentioning something which ought not to be omitted. Know therefore, that Iuno design'd to kill him in his Mothers Womb, or else destroy him immediately after his Birth; and to perform it laid her Plot: but Alcmena's Woman Galanthis prevented it; for she cheated Iuno, and told her that Alcmena had brought forth a Son. Iuno believed her, and thinking that her Contrivances were ineffectual, she desisted; and then Alcmena brought forth Hercules without trouble. But the Deceit of Galanthis was punished, for she was turned into a Weasel (in Greek called [...],) and because Galanthis offended by her Mouth therefore the Weasel brings forth her Young at her Mouth, with great pain and anguish.

As for the Labours of Hercules, I must confess that they were more than twelve (tho those especially are called Hercules's Labours) if you please we will continue our account of him thus.

XIII. The enormous Giant Antaeus,

Antae [...]s.

who was above sixty four Cubits high. He was barbarous to all Strangers; for he forced them to wrestle with him and then choaked them. Hercules threw this Giant down thrice, and perceived that he recovered new strength as oft as he touched the ground; wherefore [Page] he lifted him in his Arms from the ground, and pinched and squeezed him till he burst and died.

XIV. Busiris

Busiris.

the Tyrant used to sacrifice all the Strangers which he caught to his Father Neptune, till Hercules sacrificed both him and his Son upon the same Altars.

XV. He killed the Giants Albion and Bergion,

Albion & Bergion.

who intended to stop his Journey. And when in the fight his Arrows were consumed,

Cato in Orig.

so that he wanted Arms, he prayed to Iupiter,

Mela l. 26. Geogr.

and obtained from him a shower of Stones, with which he defeated and put to flight his Adversaries. This they say happened in that part of France, which was antiently called Gallia Narbonensis, which place is still called Campus Lapideus, the Stony Plain. Mela.

XVI. When Atlas was weary and sunk under his burden,

Coelum.

Hercules took the Heavens upon his own Shoulders.

XVII. He overcame the Robber Cacus

Cacus.

(who spit Fire,) and strangled him.

XVIII. He shot the Eagle with an Arrow,

Aquila.

that devoured the Liver of Prometheus, while he lay chained to the Rock.

XIX. He slew Theodamas,

Theodamas.

the Father of Hylas, because he denied to give him Victuals: [Page] but he took Hylas with him, and was very kind to him.

XX. He delivered Hesione,

Hesione.

the Daughter of Laomedon King of Troy,

Ovid. Met. 11.

from the Whale, to which Sea-Monster she was exposed, in this manner:

Andraetas Tenedi, in Navig. Propont.

He raised on a sudden a Bank, in the place where Hesione was to be devoured by the Whale; and stood himself armed before it: And when the Whale came gaping and seeking his prey, Hercules leapt into his Mouth, and sliding down into his Belly, he spent three days in tearing the Monsters Belly; but at length he burst through safe, and lost his Hair. Laomedon after this, broke his word, and refused to give Hercules the reward which he had promised; wherefore he took by force and pillaged the City Troy; giving to Telamon, who first mounted the Walls, the Lady Hesione as a part of the Booty.

XXI. He overcame Achelous,

Achelous.

the Son of Oceanus and Terra in a Duel, (they fought for Deianira, who was betrothed to them both) altho Achelous first turned himself into a Serpent, and afterwards into a Bull. For Hercules plucked one of the Bulls Horns off, which obliged him to yield. He purchased his Horn again, giving Hercules Amalthaea's Horn. This is the meaning of the Story. Achelous is a River of Greece, whose course turns and winds like a Serpent; its Stream is so rapid, that it makes Furrows wheresoe'er it [Page] flows, and the noise of its waters resembles the roaring of a Bull, (and indeed it is a common thing among the Poets, to compare a rapid River to a Bull) This River divided itself into two Streams, but Hercules with Banks forced it into one Channel, that is, he broke off one of the Horns or Streams: The Lands being thus drained became mighty fertile; so that Hercules is said to have received the Horn of Plenty.

Deianira was the Daughter of Oeneus King of AEtolia: Deianira. Hercules carried h [...]r to be Married, and they came to a River which stopped their Journey: but the Centaur Nessus Nessus. freely proffered to carry Deianira over upon his Back.Centaurus. In the mean time Hercules swam over the River. When she came on the farther side of the River, Nessus endeavoured to ravish her: which Hercules observing while he swam, and being enraged at the impudence of the Monster, shot him with an Arrow, and killed him: when Nessus was dying he gave Deianira his bloody Coat, and told her, that if any Husband wore that Coat, he would never follow unlawful Amours. The credulous Lady accepted the Present, and not long after experimented the virtue of it, far otherwise than she expected. For the unconquerable Hercules, who had hitherto surmounted so many and so great Labours, was at length broken by the Charms and overcome by the Pleasures of Omphale, Omphale. the Queen of Lydia: He served her, and changed the Club which [Page] he always carried with him, into a Distaff, and his Arrows into a Spindle. He fell also in love with Iole, the Daughter of Eurytus King of Oechalia, to that degree, that he was miserably ruined. These things made his Wife Deianira mighty uneasie, so that she desiring to turn him from the love of his Mistresses, sent him Nessus's Coat, which he put on when he went to Sacrifice: but it drove him into such a Distraction, that he burnt himself upon the Pile that he had raised, and after his death was accounted among the number of the Gods.

CHAP. II.
JASON.

JASON the Son of AEson King of Thessalia, and Alcimede was an Infant when his Father died, so that his Uncle Pelias administred the Government; when he came to Age, he demanded possession of the Crown, as being next Heir: But Pelias advised and incouraged him to go to Colchis, under a pretence of gaining the Golden Fleece from thence, but in reality, to kill him with the labour and danger of the Journey.

[Page]P.

What Golden Fleece was that?

M.

It was the Hide of a Ram, a white or purple Colour. This Ram was given to Phryxus, Phryxus. the Son of Athamas and Nephele, by his Mother: Phryxus and his Sister Helle Helle. fearing the design of their Step-Mother Ino, got upon the back of this Ram, intending to save themselves by flight. But while they were swimming over the narrowest part of Pontus, an Arm of the Sea, Helle was so affrighted at the tossing of the Waves, that she fell down; from whence that Sea hath been called the Hellespont, ever since from her Name. Phryxus was carried over safe, and betook himself to AEta, AEta. the King of Colchis, a Country of Asia, near the Pontus; where he was kindly received, and sacrificed the Ram to Iupiter, or to Mars; who afterwards placed it among the Constellations. Only his Hide or Fleece, Vellus [...] was hung up in a Grove that was Sacred to Mars; Aureum. it was called the Golden Fleece because it was of a Golden Colour. It was guarded by Bulls, who breathed forth Fire from their Nostrils, and a vast and watchful Dragon, since it was a Sacred and Divine Pledge, and a Relique of the greatest Importance.

P.

Did Iason carry away that Fleece?

M.

Yes. He went on board a Ship called Argus, for it was built by a Work-man of that Name. And being inflamed with the desire of honour, he chuses forty nine Noble Companions,Argonautae. who from the Ship were called the Argonautae (the most eminent of them were [Page] Hercules, Orpheus, Castor and Pollux) in his Voyage he visited Hypsiphile the Queen of Lemnos; who entertained him so kindly, that she had Twins by him. Then when he had made a long Voyage, and had underwent many Dangers, he arrived at Colchis, and demands the Golden Fleece of King AEta, who consented to his Request, upon condition that he first tamed the Bulls that guarded it; whose Feet were of Brass, and breathed Fire. Again, if he killed the Dragon, and sowed his Teeth in the Ground, and destroyed the Soldiers which would spring from the Ground, where these Teeth were sowed, then he might carry away the Fleece. Iason was forced to undertake these Conditions, and was delivered from manifest Destruction, by the Advice and assistance of Medea, Medea. the Kings Daughter, who was in love with him. For by observing her directions, he overcome the Bulls, laid the Dragon asleep, carried away the Fleece, and fled by night, carrying Medea with him, and married her.

P.

What did King AEta do then?

M.

He pursued them.Absyrtus. But Medea to stop his pursuit, tore her Brother Absyrtus (whom she took with her for that purpose) into pieces, and scattered them upon the road; when her Father saw the torn Members of his Son, he desisted from his pursuit to gather them. So Iason and the Argonautae returned unto their own Country:AEson. Where Medea, who was very skilful in Sorcery, restored old de [...]repid AEson, [Page]Iason's Father, to Youth again, by her Charms. (But some relate that AEson died before their return.) The Daughters of Pelias were affected so by this miraculous Cure, that (desiring that their Father might receive the like benefit) they were easily induced, thro' mistaken duty and unskilful kindness, to tear their Father in pieces, entertaining a fond and foolish hope, that he like AEson would become Young again. Iason after this, hated Medea, and divorcing himself from her, he married Creusa, the Daughter of Creon, King of Corinth. Whereupon Medea, to revenge his perfidiousness, murdered the two Children that she had by him, in his own sight; and in the next place inclosing Fire in a little Box, she sent it to Creusa; who opened the Box, and by the fire which burst out of it, was burnt, together with the whole Court. And when she had done this, the admirable Sorceress flew by the Art of Magick to Athens. Some write, that she was reconciled afterward to Iason again. But what hath been said, is enough for this Hero. Let us proceed to another.

CHAP. III.
THESEUS.

[Page]

P.

WHO were the Parents of Theseus?

M.

AEthra was his Mother,AEgeus. and AEgeus King of Athens his Father.Minos. Minos King of Crete, made War against AEgeus, because the Athenians had dishonourably and barbarously killed his Son, who carried the Prize in the Games from them all. When he had vanquished the Athenians, he imposed this severe condition upon them, that every Year they should send seven of the most Noble Youths of their Country into Crete to be devoured by the Monster, the Minotaur. The Youths were sent into Crete by Lot every Year: the fourth Year the Lot fell upon Theseus, which mightily grieved and troubled his Father AEgeus. Theseus went on board a Ship whose Sails and Tackle were black, and received this Command of his Father; If by the propitious Providence of Heaven, he escaped the dangers, and did return unto his own Country again, that then he should change his black Sails into white ones, that his Father being assured of his safety by that signal, might be sensible of his happiness as soon as might be.

[Page]P.

And what was the event of the Voyage?

M.

The event was fortunate to Theseus; but very unfortunate to his Father AEgeus. For when Theseus came to Crete, he was shut up in the Labyrinth, but he slew the Minotaur and escaped out of that inextricable Prison by the help of Ariadne. After this he set Sail for Athens in the same mournful Ship, in which he came to Crete; but forgot to change his Sails according to the instruction which his Father had given him. So that when his Father beheld from a Watch Tower the Ship returning with black Sails, he imagined that his Son was dead, and cast himself headlong into the Sea, which was afterwards called AEgaeum Mare, the AEgaean Sea, from his Name and Destiny.

P.

Who was that Ariadne? Ariadne.

M.

She was the Daughter of Minos, King of Crete. She was violently in love with Theseus, Prop. l. 3. and delivered him out of the Labyrinth by the means of a Thread.Eleg. 17. She followed him in his return to the Island Naxus, and there Theseus perfidiously and ingratefully left her. But Bacebus pitied her miserable condition and married her; and gave her a Crown, that was illuminated with seven Stars, which he had before received from Venus. This Crown was called Gnossia Corona, and Ariadne her self was surnamed Gnossis, from the City of that name in Crete: and after the death of Ariadne, the same was carried among the Stars and made a Constellation in the Heavens. It was thought, [Page] that Diana caused the death of Ariadne, because she preserved not her Virginity.

P.

What great Actions did Theseus perform?

M.

His Actions are so famous, that they accounted him one of the Hercules's. For 1. He killed the Minotaur. 2. He overcame the Centaurs. 3. He vanquished the Thebanes. 4. He defeated the Amazons. 5. He went down into Hell, and returned back into the World again.

P.

Why did he go down into Hell?

M.

He and Pirithous his intimate Friend, agreed never to marry any Women except Iupiter's Daughters. Theseus married Helena the Daughter of Iupiter and Leda: And none of Iupiter's Daughters remained on Earth for Pirithous, wherefore they both descended into Hell to steal Proserpine away from her Husband Pluto. As soon as they entred Hell, Pirithous was unfortunately torn in pieces by the Dog Cerberus. But Theseus came alive into the Palace of Pluto; who fettered him and kept him, till Hercules was sent into Hell by Eurystheus to rescue him. This Pirithous was Ixion's Son by his Wife.

P.

And who were those Amazons, Amazones. that you mentioned just now?

M.

They were Women animated with the Souls and Bravery of Men. A military Race, inhabiting that part of Scythia, which is washed by the River Tanais. Their name is derived from [...] not, and [...], mamma, a Breast, because they cut off one of their Breasts: or from [...], simul, and [...], vivere, because they [Page] lived together without Men. They were a Nation of Women; who, that the Country might have Inhabitants, and not be depopulated, when the present race of Women died, admitted the Embraces of the Neighbouring Men, and had Children by them; they killed the Boys at their birth, but brought up the Girls: They cut off their right Breasts, that they might more conveniently use their Hands in shooting their Arrows and brandishing their Weapons against the Enemy. These Female Warriours by their frequent excursions, became possessors of a great part of Asia, when Hercules accompanied with Theseus, made War upon them, and defeated them; and taking Hippolyte their Queen Prisoner, gave her to Wife to Theseus.

Theseus had by Hippolyte, Hippolytus. his Son Hippolytus; who was very beautiful, and mightily addicted to Hunting, and a remarkable lover of Chastity. For when Phaedra his Stepmother (the Daughter of King Minos, Phaedra. whom Theseus had preferred to her Sister Ariadne) solicited him to commit wickedness when he was grown a Man;Ovid. in Epist. he refused to comply:Phaedr. which repulse provoked her so much, that when her Husband returned, she accused him wrongfully, as if he had offered to ravish her. Theseus gives Ear to the wicked Woman, and believes her untruth against his Son Hippolytus: who perceiving it, fled away in his Chariot: In his flight he met several monstrous Sea-Calfs, which frighted his Horses, so that they threw him out of the Seat, his Feet [Page] were entangled in the Harness, and he was dragged through the Thickets of a Wood, and torn to pieces miserably. AEsculapius afterwards at the request of Diana, restored him to life again. But he however left Greece and came into Italy: where changing his name, he called himself Virbius, quod vir bis fuisset, because he had been a Man twice. Phaedra was gnawn with the stings of her Conscience, and hanged her self. And not long after Theseus being banished from his Country, ended an illustrious life, with an obscure death.

CHAP. IV.
CASTOR and POLLUX.

[Page]

P.

WHO are those two handsom, beautiful young Men that ride upon white Horses?

M.

They are two Twin-brothers, the Sons of Iupiter and Leda: Pindar. in Pyth. their Names Castor and Pollux.

P.

What Leda was that?

M.

The Wife of Tyndarus King of Laconia; Leda. whom Iupiter lov'd, and could not succeed in his Amour, till he changed himself into a Swan; which Swan was afterwards made a Constellation.M [...]nil. 1. In this form he gained the mutual love of Leda, Astron. by the sweetness of his singing; and flying into her Bosom, as it were, that he might secure himself from the violence of an Eagle which pursued him: He enjoyed her, tho' she was then big with Child by her Husband. Leda brought forth two Eggs; which were hatched, and produced the two Twin-Brothers, which you see.

P.

You mean, that one came out of one Egg, and the other out of the other Egg.

M.

Out of the Egg, which Leda had conceived by Iupiter, came Castor and Pollux: who sprang from Divine Seed, and were [Page] therefore immortal. But out of the other, which she conceived by Tyndarus, Horat. her Husband,Sat. 1. came Helena and Clytemnestra, who were mortal, because they were begotten by a mortal Father. Yet Castor and Pollux are frequently called Tyndaridae by the Poets; as Helena is also called Tyndaris, from that King Tyndarus.

P.

What memorable Actions did Castor and Pollux do?

M.

They both accompanied Iason when he failed to Colchis; and when they returned from thence, recovered their Sister Helena from Theseus (who had stol'n her) by overcoming the Athenians that fought for him; to whom their Clemency and Humanity was so great, after the defeat, that the Athenians called them [...] the Sons of Iupiter; from whence white Lambs were offered upon their Altars.Homer. in hymn. But although they were both born at the same birth; and, as some think, out of the same Egg, yet their Dispositions were different: For says Horace. (Serm. 2. 1.)

Castor gaudet equis: Ovo prognatus eodem

Pugnis: quot capitum vivunt, totidem studiorum Millia.

Pollux on foot, on Horseback Castor fights

As many men, so many their delights.

P.

What end had they?

M.

Castor being (as some say) a mortal Person, was killed by Lynceus: Whereupon his Brother Pollux prayed Iupiter, to restore him to Life again, and confer an Immortality upon him. But this could not be granted. [Page] However he obtained leave to divide his Immortality betwixt himself and his Brother Castor. And thence it came to pass, that they lived afterwards by turns every other day, or, as others say, every other fortnight; according to that of the Poet. Vir. Aen. 6.

Sic fratrem Pollux alterna morte redemit.

Itque reditque viam.

Thus Pollux fetch'd his Brother from the dead,

And the same dolorous way to' and fro did tread.

After the death of Castor, a kind of a Pyrrhice, or a Dance in Armour, was instituted to his honour; which was performed by young Men Armed;Plin. l. 7 c. 5. 7. ap. and called Castoreum Tripudium, Nat. Com. Castor's dance.

At length they both were translated into the Heavens, and made a Constellation, which is still called Gemini: And when one of them rises,Horat. 1. the other sets.Carm. Sailors esteem these Stars lucky and prosperous to them; because when the Argonauts were driven by a violent Tempest, two lambent Flames setled upon the Heads of Castor and Pollux, and a Calm immediately ensued; and from thence a Vertue more than humane was thought to be lodged in these Youths. Whensoever these Fires appeared afterwards, they were called Castor and Pollux: If but one Fire appeared, they called it Helena, and it was esteemed fatal and destructive to Mariners.

There was a famous Temple dedicated to Castor and Pollux in the Forum at Rome; for it was believed, that in the dangerous Battle of the Romans with the Latins they assisted the [Page] Romans, riding upon white Horses. From hence comes that Adverb of Swearing, which Women only use, AEcastor; whereas the Men Swore only by Hercules, after these manners, quasi per aedem Castoris, Rom. l. 6. by the Temple of Castor,Passim. ap. Te. Hercule,Cic.Hercle,P [...]aut. &c.Hercules, Mehercules, and Mehercule; but the Oath AEdepol, per aedem Poll [...]cis, by the Temple of Pollux, was used by both Men and Women.

P.

But what became of Clytemnestra?

M.

Clytemnestra was married to Agamemnon; Clytemnest [...]. whom, after his return from the Siege of Tr [...]y, she killed, by the help of AEgisthus (with whom in the interim she had lived in Adultery.) She attempted also to kill his Son Orestes, Ores [...]es Soph. in Elect. Eurip. [...]n Orest. which she had done, if his Sister Electra had not delivered him at the very point of destruction; sending him privately to Strophius, King of Ph [...]cis; where after he had lived twelve years, he returned to his own Country, and slew Clytemnestra and AEgisthus both. He killed also Pyrrhus in the Temple of Apollo; because he had taken to himself Hermione, the Daughter of Menclaus, who was first betrothed to Orestes. wherefore the Furies tormented him; n [...]ither could he obtain deliverance from them, till he had exp [...]ated his wickedness at the Altar of Diana Taurica; whither he was conducted by [...]y [...]ades, his Friend, perpetual Companion and Partner in all his dangers: Whose Friendships was so close and sacred, that either of them would die for the other.

[Page]P.

Who was that Diana Taurica? Cic. de amic.

M.

The Goddess Diana, that was worshipped in Taurica Chersonesus or Cherronesus, a Peninsula so called from the Tauri, Eurip. in Iphig. in Taur. an antient People of Scythia Europaea. This Goddess was worshipped with humane Victims, the lives and the blood of Men were sacrificed to her: when Orestes came thither Iphigenia his Sister the Daughter of Agamemnon was Priestess to Diana Taurica; she was made Priestess upon the following occasion.

Agamemnon King of the Argivi, Agamemnon. who was by the common consent of the Grecians appointed General in their expedition against Troy, Iphigenia. and who, as I said before, after the War was ended and Troy taken, was killed when he returned home by his own Wife Clytemnestra; this Agamemnon killed a Deer by chance in the Country of Aulis, which belonged to Diana; the Goddess was angry and caused such a calm, that for want of Wind, the Grecian Ships, bound for Troy, were fixed and unmovable: Hereupon they consulted the Soothsayers, who answered that they must satisfie the Winds and Diana with some of the blood of Agamemnon. Wherefore Vlysses was forthwith sent to bring away Iphigenia, the Daughter of Agamemnon, from her Mother, by a trick, under pretence of marrying her to Achilles. And whilst the young Lady stood at the Altar to be sacrificed, the Goddess pitied her, and substituted a Hind in her stead, and sent her into the Taurica Chersonesus: where by the order of [Page] King Thyas, she was set over those Sacrifices of the Goddess, which were solemnized with human Blood. And when Orestes was brought hither by the Inhabitants to be sacrificed, he was known and preserved by his Sister. After which Thyas was killed, and the Image of Diana carried away, which lay hid amongst a Bundle of Sticks: from whence she was called Fascelis, from Fascis, a Bundle.

CHAP. V.
PERSEUS.

PErseus was the Son of Iupiter by Danae, Danae. the Daughter of Acrisius, Paus. in Corinth. who was shut up by her Father in a very strong Tower, where no Man could come to her; because her Father had been told by an Oracle, that he should be killed by his own Grandchild. But nothing is impregnable to Love: For Iupiter by changing himself into a Shower of Gold, descended through the Tyles into the Ladies Bosom, (and who would refuse to open it to a Shower of that Value?) and when he had enjoyed her, he left her with a full purse and a big belly.Lib. 3. Horace tells the Story ingeniously thus.Carm. Carm. l. 3. 16.

Inclusam Danaen turris ahenea,

Robustaeque fores, & vigilum canum

Tristes excubiae munierant satis,

Nocturnis ab adulteris.

[Page]Si non Acrisium, virginis abditae

Custodem pavidum, Iupiter & Venus

Risissent: fore enim tutum iter & patens,

Converso in pretium Deo.

A brazen Tower, vast Doors, and wakeful Curs

One would have thought enough to be

To have secur'd from sly Adulterers

The fair imprison'd Maiden Danae.

But th' Project Jove and Venus smile to see,

And laugh the jealous Dad to scorn:

What can resist a lustful Deity,

That for a bout to Gold will turn?

As soon as Acrisius had heard, that his Daughter had brought a Son, he ordered that she and the infant should be shut up in a Chest, and thrown into the Sea: where a Fisherman found them, and took them out, and presented them to King Pilumnus: who married Danae, and brought up her Son whom he called Perseus.

Perseus, when he was grown a Man, received from Mercury a Sithe of Adamant, and wings which he fixed to his feet, Pluto gave him a Helmet, and Minerva a Shield of Brass, that was so bright, that it reflected the Images of things, like a Looking-glass. First he delivered Andromeda, Andromeda. the Daughter of Cepheus, King of AEthiopia, when she was bound by the Nymphs to a Rock to be devoured by a Sea-monster, because her Mother proudly preferred her Beauty to theirs; and when he had delivered her, he took her to Wife. After which both the Mother, Cassiope Cassiope. or Cassiopeia and the Daughter, and the Son-in-law [Page] were placed amongst the Celestial Constellations. Propert. l. 2. His next Expedition was against the Gorgons, Hygin. de sign. coel. l. 2. of whom we have spoken before: he encountred with Medusa, Medusa. their Princess, Snakes supplied the place of hair on her head, he saw the Image of her head by the brightness of his shield, and by the favourable assistance of Pallas he struck it off; and afterwards fixed it upon his shield, and by shewing it, he afterwards turned many Persons into Stone. Atlas was turned by the sight of it, into the Mountain in Mauritania of that name; because he rudely refused to entertain Perseus. When Medusa's Head was cut off, the Horse Pegasus Pegasus. sprang from the Blood which was shed on the ground; he is so called from [...] a fountain, because he was born near the fountains of the Sea. This Horse had Wings: and flying over the Mountain Helicon, he struck it with his Hoof, and opened a Fountain, which they called in Greek, Hippocrene, and in Latin Caballinus, that is, the Horses Fountain. But afterwards while he drank at the Fountain Pyrene in Corinth, when Bellerophon prepared for his expedition against the Chimaera, he was by him taken and kept.

Bellerophon or Bellerophontes was first called Hipponomus, Bellerophon. ab equis fraeno regendis; because he first taught the Art of governing Horses with a Bridle. But when he had killed Bellerus, a King of Corinth, he was afterwards called Bellerophontes. This Bellerophon, the Son of Glaucus, King of Ephyra, was equally beautiful [Page] and virtuous, he resisted all the temptations whereby Sthenoboea, the Wife of Praetus, enticed him to commit adultery; his denyal provoked her so, that in revenge she accused the innocent Stranger to her Husband. Praetus however, would not violate the Laws of Hospitality with the Blood of Bellerophon: but sent him into Lycia, to his Father-in-law Iobates, with Letters, which desired him to punish Bellerophon as his crime deserved. Iobates read the Letters, and sent him to fight against the Solymi, that he might be killed in the battle: But he easily vanquished them, and in many other Dangers to which he was exposed, he always came off Conqueror. At last he was sent to kill the Chimaera; which he honourably undertook and performed, when he had procured the Horse Pegasus, by the Help of Neptune. Homer. Wherefore Iobates admired the Bravery of the Youth,Iliad. 6. and gave him one of his Daughters to Wife, allotting him also a part of his Kingdom. Sthenobaea killed her self, when she heard this. This happy success so transported Bellerophon, that he endeavoured to flie upon Pegasus to Heaven: for which Iupiter striking him with madness, he fell from the Horse, into a Field, called Alcius campus from [...], erro, fugio: because in that place Bellerophon wandred up and down, blind, to the end of his life. But Pegasus was reposed amongst the Stars. Some say that this was the occasion of the Fable of the Chimaera. There was a famous Pyrat, who used to sail in a Ship in whose Prow was [Page] painted a Lyon, in the Stern a Dragon, and in the body of the Ship a Goat was described: and this Pyrate was killed by Bellerophon in a Long-Boat, that was called Pegasus. From the Letters which Bellerophon carried to Iobates comes the Proverb [...], Bellerophontis literae, when any one carries Letters, which he imagines are wrote in his Favour, when they are sent to procure his Ruin. And such Letters are generally called Literae Vriae, the Letters of Vriah.

CHAP. VI.
AESCULAPIUS.

M.

WHY are you so silent Palaeophilus? What employs your thoughts so long?

P.

I am viewing that bearded old Man,Lucian in JoveTrag. that leans upon his joynted Cane, and is adorned with a Crown of Laurel, and encompassed about with Dogs. Pray, Sir, tell me his Name, who he is, and what are his Excellencies.

M.

It is AEsculapius, the God of the Physicians and Physick, Cic 2. de leg. Cornel. Cels. and the Son of Apollo by the Nymph Coronis. He improved the Art of Physick, which was before little understood, and for that reason they accounted him a God.Hom. in hymn. 2. Apollo shot the Nymph his Mother when she [Page] was with Child of him, because she admitted the Embraces of another young Man, after he had enjoy'd her. But he repented after he had killed her, and opened her Body, and took out the Child alive,Ovid. 1. and delivered him to be Educated by a Physician,Met. Chiron; who taught him his own Art; the Youth made so great progress in it, that, because he restored Health to the Sick, and Safety to those whose Condition was desperate, he was thought to have a Power of recalling the dead to life again.Virg. 7. Aen. Whence Pluto, the King of Hell, complained to Iupiter very much, that his Revenue was diminished, and his Subjects taken from him by the means of AEsculapius; and at length by his perswasion Iupiter killed him with a stroke of his Thunder.

He wears a Crown of Lawrel,Ex Fest. because that Tree is Powerful in Curing many Diseases: by the Knots in his Staff, is signified the difficulty of the Study of Physick He hath Dogs painted about him, and Dogs in his Temple, because many believed that he was born of uncertain Parents, and exposed, and afterwards nourished by a Bitch.Lact. de fals. rel. Others say,Paus. in Corinth. that a Goat, which was pursued by a Dog, gave suck to the forsaken Infant: and that the Shepherds saw a lambent Flame playing about his Head, which was the Prognostication of his future Divinity. So that the Cyrenians used to offer a Goat to him in their Sacrifices; either because he was nourished by a Goat, as was said; or because a Goat is always in a Fever; and therefore a Goats Constitution [Page] is very contrary to Health.Didym. l. 3. ap. Nat. Plato says, that they used to Sacrifice Dunghil-cocks to him, which is the most vigilant of all Birds; for of the Virtues,1 [...] Phaedone. principally wakefulness is necessary to a Physician.

P.

Where was he particularly worshipt?

M.

At Epidaurus first, where he was born: afterwards at Rome, Liv. l. 45. & l. 10. because when he was sent for thither,Flor. epit. l. 11. he delivered the City from a dreadful Pestilence.Suet. in Claud. c. 25. For which reason a Temple was dedicated to him in an Island in the Mouth of the Tiber; where he was Worshipped under the Form of a great Serpent; for when the Romans came to Epidaurus to transport the God from thence, a great Serpent entred into their Ship; they believed it was Aesculapius, and brought it to Rome with them. Others tell the Story thus. When the Romans were received by the People of Epidaurus with all kindness, and were carried into the Temple of Aesculapius, the Serpent, under whose Image they Worshipped that God, went voluntarily into the Ship of the Romans.

I can tell you nothing of the Children of Aesculapius, except their Names. He had two Sons called Machaon and Podalirius, Machaon. both famous Physicians,Podalirius. who followed Agamemnon, the General of the Grecians to the Trojan War, and were very serviceable amongst the Soldiers.Hygiaea. And two Daughters Hygeia, Jaso. or Sanitas, Orph. in hymn. (tho' some think this was not his Daughter, but his Wife;) and Iaso, from [...] sanare.

P.

Is there nothing remarkable concerning? his Master Chiron?

[Page]M.

Since you ask,Chiron. I will tell you, that he was a Centaur, and the Son of Saturn and Phillyra; for when Saturn embraced that Nymph, he suddenly changed himself into a Horse, because his Wife Ops came in. Phillyra was with Child by him,Virg. 3. and brought forth a Creature,Georg. in its upper parts like a Man,Phyllyra. in his lower parts like a Horse, and called it Chiron: who, when he grew up, betook himself into the Woods; and there learning the Virtues of Herbs, he became a most excellent Physician: For his Skill in Physick, and for his other Virtues, which were many; he was appointed Tutor to Achilles, And taught Aesculapius Physick. At last when he was looking upon Hercules's Arrows, one of them dipped in the poysonous blood of the Lernaean Hydra fell upon his Foot; and gave him a wound that was incurable, and pains that were intolerable: insomuch that he desired to die, but could not: because he was born of two immortal Parents. Therefore at length the Gods translated him into the Firmament, where he now remains the Sign of Sagittarius in the Zodiac.

CHAP. VII.
PROMETHEUS.

PRometheus the Son of Iapetus, Vid. Clau. 4. Paneg. de cons. Hon. and the Father of Deucalion, was the first, (as we find in History) that formed a Man, out of [Page] Clay: which he did with such Art and Skill, that Minerva was amazed; and profered to procure any thing from Heaven, which would any ways compleat his Works. Prometheus answered, that he did not know what in Heaven would be useful to him, since he had never seen Heaven. Therefore Minerva carried him up to Heaven, and shewed him all that there was to be seen. He observed that the heat of the Sun would be very useful in animating the Men which he had formed, wherefore he lighted the Stick by the Wheel of the Sun's Chariot, and carried it lighted with him to the Earth. This Theft displeased Iupiter so much, that he sent Pandora into the World to Prometheus with a Box which was filled with all sorts of Evils. But Prometheus fearing and suspecting the Matter, refused to accept it: but his brother Epimetheus was not cautious: For he took it, and opened it, and all the Evils that were in it, flew abroad amongst Mankind. When he perceived what he had done, he immediately shut the Box again, and by good fortune hindred Hope from flying away, which stuck to the bottom of the Box. You may remember how sweetly Horace speaks of this Theft of Prometheus. (Carm. l. 1.)

Audax Iapeti genus,

Ignem fraude malâ gentibus intulit.

Post ignem aethereâ domo

Subductum, macies & nova febrium,

Terris incubuit cohors.

First Heav'nly Fire by Japhet's daring Son

By stealth from the bright Axis was brought down.

[Page]Hence unknown Fevers and new Plagues took Rise,

With which the Gods the frighted Earth chastise.

Iupiter punished Prometheus, Hesiod. in Theog. in this manner. He commanded Mercury to bind him to the Mountain Caucasus. And then he sent an Eagle to him there, which continually gnawed his Liver.Menander Poet. Yet some say, that he was not punished because he stole Fire from Heaven, but because he had made a Woman, which is the most pernicious Creature in the World.In Theriacis.

To this, Nicander adds another Fable, when Mankind had received the Fire of Prometheus, they ungratefully discovered this Theft to Iupiter, who gave them the Gift of perpetual Youth; they put this Gift upon an Asses back, that it might be brought to the Earth. The Ass in his Journey was a dry, and came to a Spring to drink, but a Waterserpent would not suffer him, unless the Ass would give him the Burden which he carried, the Ass gave it him; and hence it came to pass, that when the Serpent is old, he casts his Skin, and seems to grow young again.

Prometheus had been serviceable to Iupiter (for he discovered to Iupiter his Father Saturn's Conspiracy, and prevented the Marriage of Iupiter and Thetis, which he foresaw would be Fatal) wherefore, Iupiter suffered Hercules to shoot the Eagle, and set Frometheus at Liberty.

This perhaps is the meaning of this Fable; Prometheus (whose Name is derived, [Page] [...],Paus. in pr. Eliac. providentia) was a very prudent Person: And because he reduced the Men, that were before rude and savage, to the Precepts of Humanity, he was feigned from thence to have made Men out of the dirt: And because he was diligent in observing the motions of the Stars from the Mountain Caucasus, therefore they said that he was chained there. To which they added, that he stole Fire from the Gods, because he invented the way of striking Fire out of the Flint; or was the first that discovered the Nature of Lightning. Aud lastly, because he applyed his Mind to this Study with great Care and Solicitude, therefore they imagined an Eagle preying upon his Liver continually.

P.

You said just now that he was the Son of Deucalion; Apoll. l. 3. do you mean him who repaired the Race of Mankind,Deucalion. which was almost extinct?

M.

Yes, I mean the same Deucalion. When he Reigned in Thessaly, there was so great a Deluge, that the whole Earth was overflown by it,Pyr [...]ha. and all Mankind entirely destroyed, excepting only Deucalion and Pyrrha his Wife; these two were carried in a Ship upon the Mountain Parnassus; and when the Waters were abated, they consulted the Oracle of Themis, to know by what means Mankind should again be restored. The Oracle answered, that Mankind would be restored, if they cast the Bones of their Magna Mater behnid them. By Magna Mater, the Oracle meant the Earth; and by her Bones the Stones. Wherefore [Page] casting the Stones behind their Backs, a prodigious Miracle ensued, for those that were thrown by Deucalion became Men; and those that were thrown by Pyrrha, became Women. (Ovid. Met. l. 1.

Saxa

Missa viri manibus faciem traxere virorum;

Et de foemineis reparata est foemina jactu,

Inde genus durum sumus,

Et documentam, damus quâsimus origine nati.

—And of the stones.

Those thrown by man, the form of men indue:

And those were women, which the women threw.

Hence we, a hardy Race, inur'd to pain:

Our Actions, our Original explain.

The occasion of this Fable was this; Deucalion and his Wife were very pious, and by the example of their Lives, and the urbanity of their Conversations, they softned the Men, who before were fierce and hard like Stones, into such softness and mildness, that they observed the Rules of civil Society, and good Behaviour.

CHAP. VIII.
ATLAS.

P.

WHO is he, that sustains the Heavens upon his Shoulders?

[Page]M.

It is Atlas, King of Mauritania, the Son of Iapetus, and Brother of Prometho [...]s; who was forewarned by an Oracle, that he should be almost ruined by one of the Sons of Iupiter, resolved to give entertainment to no Stranger at all. At last Perseus, (who was begotten by Iupiter) travelled by chance thro' Atlas's Dominions; and designed, in civility, to visit him. But the King excluded him the Court; which Inhumanity provoked him so much, that putting his Shield, which he carried with him, before the Eyes of Atlas, and shewing him the Head of Medusa, he turned him into the Mountain of his own Name; which is of so great heigth,Herod. in Melp. that it is believed to touch the Heavens. Virgil hath these Verses concerning it. (Aen. 4.)

Iamque volans apicem, & later a ardua cernit

Atlantis duri, coelum qui vertice fulcit;

Atlantis, cinctum assiduè, cui nubibus atris

Piniferum caput, & vento pulsatur & imbri,

Nix humeros infusa tegit; cum flumina mento

Praecipitant senis, & glacie riget horrida barba.

And now the craggy tops and lofty side

Of Atlas, which supported Heaven, he spy'd.

A Shash of sable Clouds the Temples binds

Of Pine-Crown'd Atlas, beat with rain and winds;

Snow cloaths his shoulders, his rough Beard is froze,

And from the old Man's Chin a River flows.

Thus Atlas is feigned to bear the Heavens upon his Shoulders; and all his Daughters be Stars, only because he was a famous Astrologer, and the first who disputed about the Spheres.

[Page]P.

Who were his Daughters? What are their Names?

M.

Seven of them are called Hyades, which he had by his Wife Aethra; he had seven other Daughters called Pieiades, by his Wife Pleione; and their Names were Ambrosia, Endora, Ovid. 5. Fast. Pasithoe, Coronis,Ara. in Astron.Plexauris, Pytho, and Tyche. Electra, Halcyone, Celaeno, Maia, Asterope, Taygete, and Merope.

P.

Whence came the Name, Hyades?

M.

From [...],Hyades. to rain:

Navita quas Hyades Graius ab imbre vocat.

From Rain so call'd by the Greek Mariner.

So says Ovid (Fast 5.) because when they rise and set,Gell. l. 13. c. 9. they cause great Rains. In Latin, they are called Suculae: In Greek [...], sues, Swine. Because the continual Rain that they cause,Eurip. in Jove. makes the Roads so muddy that they seem to delight in dirt, like Swine. Others derive their Name from Hyas, their Brother; who was devoured by a Lion; his Sisters were so immoderately Afflicted and Grieved at his Death, that Iupiter, in compassion, changed them into seven Stars, which appear in the Head of Taurus. Hesio [...]. in Theog. And they are justly called Hyades, because showers of Tears flow from their Eyes to this day.

P.

And why were the Pleiades so calld?Pleiades.

M.

From [...], to sail: For when these Stars rise, they portend good Weather for Navigations. The Romans called them V [...]rgiliae, because they rise in verno tempore, the Spring. Or perhaps they be called Pleiades from [...], plures, because they never appear single, but [Page] all together; except Merope, who is scarce ever seen; for she is ashamed that she married to S [...]syphus, a mortal Man, when all the rest of the Sisters married to Gods. Others call this obscure Star Electra because she held her Hands before her Eyes, and would not look upon the Destruction of Troy. Ovid. 4. Fast. As the Hyades were placed among the Stars, because they bewailed immoderately the Death of their Brother Hyas, so the Pleiades were translated into Heaven, because they uncessantly lamented the hard Fate of their Father Atlas, who was converted into a Mountain. And now let us speak a little about their Uncle Hesperus.

Hesperus Hesperus. was the Brother of Atlas; and because he lived some time in Italy, the Country was called anciently Hesperia from him. He frequently went up to the top of Mount Atlas, to view the Stars: At last he went up and never came down again; wherefore the People imagined that he was taken into Heaven, and therefore worsh [...]pped him; and not, after a certain time that he went last up, appearing any more, the common People ascribed the Honours of a God to him; and called a very bright Star from his Name, Hesperus, Hesper, He [...]perugo, Vesper, and Vesperugo, when it sets after the Sun; but when it rises before the Sun, it is called the [...], or Lucifer; that is, the Morning and the Evening Star. Further,Hesperides. this Hesperus had three Daughters, Aegle, Arethusa, and Hesperethusa; who in general were called the Hesperides. And it is said, their Gardens were enriched with Trees [Page]of Gold, and guarded by a watchful Dragon, which Hercules killed, and carried away the Golden Apples. Hence the Phrase, [...], Hesperidum mala largiri, to give a great and splendid Gift.

CHAP. IX.
ORPHEUS and AMPHION.

YOU see these are drawn in the same Frame, and almost in the same Colours; because they both excelled in the same Art, the Harp, with the Musick whereof they moved not only Men, but Beasts, and the very Stones themselves.

Orpheus, the Son of Apollo, by Calliope the Muse, with the Harp that he received from his Father, did play and sing so sweetly, that he tamed wild Beasts, stayed the course of Rivers, and made whole Woods follow him. He descended with the same Harp into H [...]ll, Apoll. l. 1. Argo. to recover, from Pluto and Proserpine, his Wife Eurydice, Eurydice. who had been killed by a Serpent, when she fled from the violence of Aristaeus. And here he so charmed both the King and Queen with the sweetness of his Musick, that they permitted his Wife to return to life again, upon this condition, that he should not look upon her, till they were both arrived upon the Earth: But so impatient and eager was the Love of O [...]pheus, that he could not [Page] perform the condition, wherefore she was taken back into Hell again. Hereupon Orpheus resolved for the future to live a Widower; and with his example alienated the minds of many others from the Love of Women; this so provoked the Maenades and Bacchae that they tore him in pieces; though others give us another Reason of his death: which is this; the Women, by the instigation of Venus, were so inflamed with the Love of him, that striving to run into his Embraces, and quarrelling with one another which should have him, they tore him in pieces. His Bones were afterwards gathered by the Muses, and reposed in a Sepulchre, not without Tears. And his Harp was made the Constellation Lyra.

Amphion was the Son of Iupiter by Antiope. He received his Harp or Lute, from Mercury: and with the sound thereof moved the Stones so regularly,Paus. in Boeti [...]. that they composed the Walls of the City Thebes. So Horace says,De Art. Poet.

Dictus & Amphion Thebanae conditor urbis.

Saxa movere sono testudinis, & prece blandâ

Ducere quo vellet.

Amphion too, as Story goes, could call

Obedient Stones to make the Theban Wall;

He led' em as he pleas'd, the Rocks obey'd.

And danc'd in order to the Tunes he play'd.

The Occasion of which Fable was this: Orpheus and Amphion were both Men so eloquent that they persuaded those, who lived a wild and savage Life before, to embrace the Rules and Manners of Civil Society.

[Page] Arion is a proper Companion for these two Musicians; and I admire that his Image is not here in this place. For he was a Lyrick Poet of Methymna in the Island of Lesbos; he gained immense Riches by his Art; when he was travelling from Lesbos into Italy, Herod. in Clio. his Companions assaulted him to rob him of his Wealth; he intreated the Seamen to suffer him to play on his Harp before they cast him into the Sea: He play'd sweetly, and then threw himself into the Sea, where a Dolphin, drawn thither by the sweetness of his Musick, received him on his back, and carried him to Tenedos. Ov. Fast. 2.

Ille sedet cithar am (que) tenet, pretium (que) vehendi

Cantat, & aequoreas carmine mulcet aquas.

He on his crouching back sits all at ease

With Harp in hand, by which he calms the Seas,

And for his passage with a Song he pays.

The Dolphin for this Kindness was carried into Heaven, and made a Constellation.

CHAP. X.
ACHILLES.

AChilles was the Son of Peleus by Thetis. His Mother plunged him in the Stygian Waters, when he was an Infant: which made his whole Body ever after invulnerable, excepting that part of his Foot by which he was held, when he was washed. Others say, that [Page] Thetis hid him in the Night under a Fire,Apol. 4. Argon. after she had anointed him in the Day with Ambrosia: whence at first he was called Pyrisous, because he escaped safe from the fire; and afterward Achilles from a non & [...], labrum, quasi sine labro, for he licked the Ambrosia from his lip, so that the fire had power to burn it off: Others again report that he was brought up by Chiron, Apol. l. 3. Eurip. in Iphig the Centaur, and fed instead of Milk with the Entrails of Lions and the Marrow of Boars and Bears; so that by these means he received an immense Greatness of Soul,Gell. l. 2. c. 11. and Strength of Body: And from him, those who greatly excelled in Strength were called Achilles; and an Argument is called Achilleum, when no Objection can weaken or disprove it.

Thetis his Mother, had heard from an Oracle, that he should be killed in the Expedition against Troy. On the other hand, Calchas the Diviner had declared, that Troy could not be taken without him. By the Cunning of Vlysses he was forced to go: For when his Mother Thetis hid him in a Boarding-School (Gynaecaeo) in the Island Scyros (one of the Cyclades) in the habit of a Virgin among the Daughters of King Lycomedes. Vlysses discovered the trick, for he went thither in the disguise of a Merchant, and brought with him several Goods to sell: The Kings Daughters, as is the temper of Women, began to view and handle curiously the Bracelets, the Glasses, the Necklaces, and such like Womens Ornaments. But Achilles on the contrary [Page] laid hold of the Targets and fitted the Helmets to his Head, and brandished the Swords and placed them to his side: Thus Vlysses plainly discovered Achilles from the Virgins, and compelled him to go to the War, after Vulcan by Thetis's entreaty had given him impenetrable Armour. Achilles at Troy killed Hector the Son of Priamus; And was killed himself by Paris by a trick of Polyxen [...]. And all the Nymphs and the Muses are said to have lamented his death.Ly [...]oph. in Alexand.

Polyxena was the Daughter of Priamus, King of Troy; a Virgin of extraordinary Beauty. Achilles by chance saw her upon the Walls of the City, and fell in love with her, and desired to marry her. Priamus consented; they met in the Temple of Apollo to solemnize the Marriage: where Paris, the Brother of Hector, coming in privately, and lurking behind Apollo [...]s Image, shot Achilles suddenly, with an Arrow, in that part of his Foot, in which only he was vulnerable. After this Troy was taken, and the Ghost of Achilles demanded satisfaction for the Murther, and the Grecians appeased him with the Blood of Polyxena.

CHAP. XI.
ULYSSES.

[Page]

ULysses, Vide Nat. Com. in Greek [...] from [...], via, (because his Mother in a Journey, in the Island Ithaca, or as others say, in Boeotia fell down,Homerus in Odyss. and brought him into the World) was the Son of Laertes and Anticlea. His Wife was Penelope, a Lady highly famed for her Prudence and her Virtue: He was unwilling that the Trojan War should part him from his dear Wife; wherefore to avoid the Expedition, he pretended to be Mad: joyning different Beasts to the same Plough, and sowing the Furrows with Salt. But this pretence was detected by Palamedes: who threw his infant Son, into the furrow, which Vlysses was ploughing; to see whither Vlysses would suffer the Plough-share to wound him or no. When he came to his Son he turned the Plough another way, least he should hurt him: And from hence they discovered that he was not a Mad-man; and he was compelled to go to the War; where he was mighty serviceable to the Grecians; for he was almost the sole occasion of taking the Town; since he removed the fatal pledges by which it was secured. For he brought Achilles (as I said) to the War out of his retreat. He obtained the Arrows of Hercules from Philoctetes, [Page] and brought them also against Troy. He brought away the Ashes of Laomedon, which were preserved upon the Gate Scaea in Troy. He stole the Palladium from the same City. He killed Rhesus King of Thrace, and took his Horses, before they had tasted the Water of the River Xanthus. In which things the destiny of Troy was wrapped up: For if the Trojans had preserved them; the Town would have remained impregnable.

Afterwards, he contended with Ajax Ajax. the stoutest of the Grecians except Achilles (the Son of Telamon and Hesione) before Judges, for the Arms of Achilles. The Judges were persuaded by the Eloquence of Vlysses, and gave Sentence in his favour, and assign'd the Arms to him: This disappointment made Ajax mad, whereupon he killed himself, and his blood was turned into the Violet.

Vlysses sailed Twenty years, for contrary winds and ill weather hindered him from coming home. In which time 1. He put out the Eye of Polyphemus with a firebrand. And sailing from thence to Aeolia, he obtained from Aeolus all the winds, which were contrary to him, and put them into leathern bags. His Companions believed that the bags were filled with mony, instead of Wind; they intended to rob him, wherefore when they came almost to Ithaca they untied the bags, and the Wind gushed out, and blew him back to Aeolia again. 2. When Circe had turned his Companions into Beasts, he first fortified himself against her Charms, with the Antidote [Page] [...] [Page] [...] [Page] that Mercury had given him, and then ran into her Cave with his Sword drawn, and forced her to restore to his Companions their former Shapes again. After which Circe and he were reconciled, and he had by her Telegonus. 3. He went down into Hell to know his future fortune from the Prophet Tiresias. 4. When he sailed to the Islands of the Syrens, he stopped the Ears of his Companions, and bound himself with strong rop [...]s to the Ships Mast; whereby he avoided the dangerous snares into which by their charming voices they lead men. And lastly, after his Ship was broken and wrecked by the Waves, he escaped by swimming, and came naked and alone, to the Port of Phaeacia where Nausicaa the Daughter of King Alcinous, found him hid amongst the young Trees, and entertained him civilly; and when his Companions were found, and his Ship refitted, he was sent asleep into Ithaca: Where Pallas awaked him, and advised him to put on the habit of a Beggar. Then he went to his Neat-herds where he found his Son Telemachus; and from thence he went home in disguise. Where after he had received several affronts from the wooers of Penelope, by the assistance of the two Neetherds and his Son, to whom he discovered himself, he set upon them and killed them every one: And then he received his Penelope.

Penelope, Penelope. the Daughter of Icarus, was a rare and perfect example of Chastity. For [Page] though it was generally thought that Vlysses her Husband was dead, since he had been absent from her Twenty Years; nevertheless, neither the desires of her Parents, nor the sollicitations of her Lovers could prevail with her, to marry another Man; and violate those promises of constancy which she gave to her Husband when he departed. For when many Noblemen courted her, and even threatned her with ruin, unless she declared which of them should marry her: She desired that the choice might be deferred, 'till she had finished that needle-work, about which she was then employed. But undoing by night what she worked by day, she delayed them until Vlysses returned, and killed them all.Cic. 4. Acad. Hence the Proverb, Penelopes telam texere, Erasm. in Adag [...] to Labour in vain, When one hand destroys, what the other does.

CHAP. XII.
ORION.

[Page]

P.

WHAT was the Birth of Orion?

M.

Modesty will hardly let me tell you. However I will conceal nothing from you. They say that he was born from the Urine of Iupiter, Neptune, and Mercury. For when they travelled together, they were benighted, and forced to lodge in a poor Man's Cottage, whose Name was Hircus. He entertained them as handsomely, as the Meanness of his Condition would suffer: Their Entertainment pleased them so, that they promised to grant whatever he asked. He said that he had promised his Wife when she dyed, never to marry again, and yet that he extreamly desired to have a Son. This pious Desire pleased the Gods, and they consented to his Request; and moistned the Hide of the Ox (with which they were entertained) with their Urine, commanding him to bury it; Ten Months after he digged it up, and found in it a New-born-child, which from this occasion, he called Urion or Orion.

Orion, when young, was a constant Companion to Diana. But because his Love to the Goddess exceeded the bounds of Modesty, or because, as some say, he extolled the strength of his own Body very undecently, and boasted, that he could conquer and take even [Page] the wildest and fiercest Beasts. This Arrogance grievously displeased the Earth; wherefore she sent a Scorpion which killed him. He was afterwards carried to the Heavens, and made a Constellation: which is thought to predict foul Weather, when it does not appear, and fair when it is visible: Whence Virgil, calls him, Nimbosus Orion; and the Word [...], in Greek, signifies turbo, concito, moveo. and some think that Orion is derived from thence.

CHAP. XIII.
Osiris, Apis, and Serapis.

THese are three different Names of one and the same God: therefore they are not to be separated in our discourse.

Osiris was the Son of Iupiter, by Niobe, the Daughter of Phoroneus. He Reigned King of the Argives many years. But he was stirred up by the desire of Glory, to leave his Kingdom to his Brother Aegialus, wherefore he sailed into Egypt to seek a new Name, and new Kingdoms there. The Egyptians were not so much overcome by his Arms, as obliged to him by his Courtesies and great Kindnesses towards them. After which he married Io, the Daughter of Inachus whom Iupiter Io. [...] I [...]is. formerly turned into a Cow, as we said above: but when by her Distractions she was driven into [Page] Egypt, her former shape was again restored, and she married Osiris, and taught the Egyptians Letters. Wherefore both she and Osiris her Husband attained to divine Honours, and were thought immortal by that People. But Osiris shewed that he was mortal; for he was killed by his Brother Triphon: Io (afterwards called Isis) sought him a great while, and when she had found him at last in a Chest, she laid him in a Monument in an Island near to Memphis, which Island is encompassed by that sad and fatal Lake, the Styx. And because when she sought him, she had used Dogs; who by their excellent virtue of smelling,Ex Gyr. Sy [...]. 9. might discover where he was hid, thence the ancient Custom came;An [...]bis. Virg. Aen. 8. that Dogs went first in an anniversary Procession in honour of Isis. And the People Carefully and Religiously Worshipped a God with Dogs Head,Ovid. M [...]t. 9. called Anubis; L [...]can. Sed [...]li. Plu [...]. in Isid. which God the Poets commonly call, latratorem, semicanem Deum, semihominemque canem: Barker, a God half a Dog, a Dog half a Man. He is also called Hermanubis: Serv. in Aen. 8. because his Sagacity is so great that some think him to be the same with Mercury. But let us return to Osiris and Isis.

After the Body of Osiris was interred, there appeared to the Egyptians a stately beautiful Ox: The Egyptians thought that it was Osiris, wherefore they worshipped it and called it Apis, which in the Egyptian Language signifies an Ox. But because his Body after his death was found shut up in a Chest, which in Greek is [...], loculus; he was afterwards from thence [Page] called Sorapis, and by the change of a Letter Serapis; as we shall see more clearly and particularly by and by, when I have observed that Plutarch says, that Osiris was thought to be the Sun; his Name comes from Os, which in the Egyptian Language signifies much, and iris an Eye, and his Image was a Scepter, in the top of which was plac'd an Eye. So that Osiris signifies the same as [...], many eyed: which agrees very well to the Sun, who seems to have so many Eyes, as he hath Rays, by which he sees, and makes all things visible.

Some say that Isis is Pallas, others Terra, others Ceres, and many the Moon; for she [...] painted sometimes [...], cornigera, with horns, as the Moon is in the increase: [...], nigris vestibus induta, in black Garments; because the Moon shines in the night.Serv. Aen. 8. In her right Hand she held a Cymbal, in her left a Bucket.Aelian. l. de anim. Her Head was Crowned with the Feathers of a Vultur; Herod. l. 2. for among the Egyptians that Bird is sacred to Iuno. Plut. symp. 5. c. 10. And therefore they adorned the tops of their Porches with the Feathers of a Vultur. The Priests of Isis, Rhodig 5. c. 12. called after her own Name Isiaci, abstained from the flesh of Swine and Sheep:H [...]rod. l. 1. they used no Salt to their Meat,Clov. 4. least they should violate their Chastity.Hon. cons. They shaved their Heads:Ovid. 1. de Pont. El. 1. they wore paper Shooes, and a linen Vest; because Isis first taught the use of Flax; Propert. l. 1. & 2. from whence she is called Linigera, and also Inachis from Inachus her Father. By the Name of Isis is usually understood Wisdom, Sapientia. [Page] Aud accordingly upon the Pavement of her Temple, there was this Inscription. (Plut. de Isid.) [...], Ego sum quicquid fuit, est, & erit: nec meum peplum mortalium quisquam retexit. I am every thing that hath been, and is, and shall be: nor hath any mortal opened my Veil.

By the means of this Isis, Iphis Iphis. a young Lady of Crete, the Daughter of Lygdus and Telethusa, was changed into a Man, if we may believe Ovid (in Met. l. 9.) that ingenious contriver of Fables. For when Lygdus went a Journey, he commanded his Wife, who was then big with Child, that if she brought a Daughter, she should expose her. Telethusa brought indeed a Daughter, but was very unwilling to lose her Child: Therefore she drest it in a Boys Habit, and called it Iphis, which is a common name to Boys and Girls. The Father returned from his Journey, and believed both his Wife and his Daughter, who Personated a Son: and as soon as she was marriageable, her Father who still thought that she was a Man, Married her to the Beautiful Ianthe. They go to the Temple to Celebrate the Marriage. The Mother was mightily concerned, and when they went, she begged the favourable Assistance of Isis, who heard her Prayers, and changed the Virgin Iphis into a most beautiful young Man. Now let us come to Serapis and Apis again.

Tho' Serapis, of whose Name we gave the Etymology before, was the God of the Egyptians; [Page] yet he was worshipped at Greece, and especially at Athens, and also at Rome. Paus. in Attic. Amongst different Nations he had different Names;P [...]bl. Victor. for he was called sometimes Iupiter Ammon, Tacit. l. 20. Plut. de Osir. sometimes Pluto, Bacchus, Aesculapius, and sometimes Osiris. His Name was reckoned abominable by the Grecians; Porph. l. Resp. for all Names of seven Letters [...] are by them esteemed infamous. Some say that Ptolomy, Tacit. l. 20. the Son of Lagus, procured the Effigies of him at Pontus, from the King of Sinope, and dedicated a magnificent Temple to him at Alexandri [...] Eusebius (in Prap. Evang. l. 4.) calls him the Prince of the evil Demons: A Flasket was placed upon his Head;Macro. in Sat. and near him lay a Creature with three Heads; a Dog's, a Wolfs, and a Lyon's between them. A Snake with his fold encompassed them, whose Head hung down unto the God's right Hand, which bridled the terrible Monster. There was besides, almost in all the Temples, where Serapis and Isis were worshipped, an Image which pressed its Lip with its Finger. Varro says that the meaning of this was, that no one should dare to say that these Gods had been Men formerly: And the Laws inflicted death upon him who said that Serapis was once a mortal Man.

Apis, of whom we spake something above, was King of the Argivi (says S. Augustine de Civit, Dei lib. 18.) And being transported from thence into Egypt, he became Serapis, or the greatest of all the Gods of Egypt. After the death of Serapis, the Ox, that we [Page] mentioned a little before, succeeded to his place. Pliny describes the form and quality of this Ox thus: (l. 8. c. 40.) An Ox (says he) in Egypt is Worshipped as a God. They call him Apis. He is thus marked; there is a white shining spot upon his right side, Horns like the Moon in its increase, and a Node under his Tongue which they call Cantharus. His Body says Herodotus. l. 3. was all black: In his Forehead he had a white square shining Figure: The Effigies of an Eagle in his Back: And besides that Cantharus in his Palace, he had Hair of two sorts in his Tale. But Pliny goes on: If he lives beyond an appointed period of time, they drown him in the Priest's Fountain; then the Priests shave their Heads, and mourn and lament, and seek another to substitute in his room. When they have found one, he is brought, by the Priests to Memphis. He hath two Chappels, which they call Chambers, which are the Oracles of the People. In one of which he foretells Good, in the other Ill. He gives answers in private, and takes Meat from them that consult him. He refused the Hand of Germanicus Cesar, who died not long after. He acts for the most part in secret. But when he pleases to appear publickly, the Officers go before and clear the way; and a flock of Boys attend him, singing Verses to his Honour. He seems to understand things, and to expect Worship. Once a Year a Cow is shown to him; who hath her marks (tho' different from his;) and this Cow is always both found and killed the same day. So far Pliny. To [Page] which Aelian adds, that the Cow that conceives Apis, conceives him not by a Bull, but by Lightning.Epiph. ap Syr. Cambyses, King of Assyria, gave no credit to these Trifles, and struck Apis in the Thigh with his Sword, to shew, by the Wound's bleeding, that he was no God. But his Sacrilege did not pass (as they pretend) unpunished.

AN APPENDIX
Concerning the Goddesses, that make the Gods.

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THOSE Goddesses, (whose Image are small, and all painted in one Picture) are the Virtues; by whose favour, not only the Dii Adscriptitii, but all the other Gods besides were advanced to Heaven, and honoured with utmost Veneration. You see some Vices amongst them, (for they had Altars dedicated to them too;) which like shadows encrease the lustre of the Virtues; whose brightness is doubled by the reflection of the Colours. To both of them there are adjoyned some Gods, either favouring or opposing them. I shall say something briefly, according to my Design of them.

CHAP. I.

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SECT. I.
The Virtues, which are Goddesses, and good Deities.

THE Antients not only worshipped the several Species of Virtues, but also Virtue her self as a Goddess. Therefore first of her, and then of the other.

SECT. II.
Virtue and Honour.

VIrtue derives her Name from Vir, because Virtue is the most manly Ornament. Cic [...]r. Tu [...]c. [...]. She was esteemed a Goddess, and Worshipped in the Habit of an Elderly Matron, sitting upon a square Stone.Aug. 4. de Civ. c. 20, Liv. l. 2. M. Marcellus dedicated a Temple to her; and hard by placed another that was dedicated to Honour: The Temple of Virtue was the passage to the Temple of Honour; by which was signified, that by Virtue alone true Honour was attained. The Priests Sacrificed to Honour with bare Heads, and we usually now uncover our Heads when we see Honourable and Worthy Men; and since Honour it self is valuable and estimable, it is no wonder if such respect is shewn in celebrating his Sacrifices.

SECT. III.
Faith.

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FIdes, Cic. de off. had a Temple at Rome, near the Capitol which Numa Pompilius (it is said) first Consecrated to her. Her Sacrifices were performed without Slaughter or Blood spilt. The Heads and Hands of the Priests were covered with a white Cloth when they Sacrificed,Serv. in Aen. 1. & 8. because Faith ought to be close and secret. Virgil calls her Cana Fides; either from the Candour of the mind, from whence Fidelity proceeds; or because Faith is chiefly observed by aged Persons. The Symbol of this Goddess was a white Dog, which is a faithful Creature. Another Symbol of her was two Hands joyned; or two young Ladies shaking Hands. For,Stat. 1. Theb. dextrâ datâ fidem futurae amicitiae sanciebant: By giving the right Hand (says Livy) they engaged their Faith for their future Friendship.

SECT. IV.
Hope.

HOPE had a Temple at Rome, in the Herb Market, Liv. l. 21. which was unfortunately burnt down with Lightning. Gyraidus says (in Synt. lib. 1.) that he hath seen her Effigies in a golden Coin of the Emperor Adrian. She was described in the form of a Woman standing; her left hand lightly held up the skirts of her Garments: she leand on her Elbow, and in her right hand held a Cup. [Page] in which there lay a Ciborium (a sort of a Basin) fashioned to the likeness of a Flower, with this inscription, SPES. P. R. The Hope of the People of Rome. We have already related, after what manner Hope was left, and preserved in the bottom of Pandora's Box.

SECT. V.
Iustice.

JVstice was described like a Virgin, with a piercing stedfast Eye, a severe Brow; her mein was Awful, Noble, and Venerable. Amongst the Egyptians, Alexander says that she had no Head; and that her left Hand was stretched forth and opened. The Greeks call her Astraea, as was before said.

SECT. VI.
Piety.

ATtilius, the Duumvir, dedicated a Chappel to this Goddess at Rome, in the place where that Woman lived, who fed her Mother in the Prison with the Milk of her Breasts. The story is this in Pliny. (l. 7. c. 36.) The Mother was punished with Imprisonment; her Daughter, who was an ordinary Woman, then gave suck; she came to the Prison frequently, and the Goaler always searched her, to see that she carried no Food to her Mother: At last she was found giving suck to her Mother with her Breasts. This extraordinary Piety of the Daughter gained the Mothers freedom; [Page] and they both were afterwards maintained at the publick Charge while they lived, and the place was Conse [...]rated to the Goddess Piety. There is an example in the Grecian History of a certain Woman, who by her Breasts nourished Cymon, her Aged Father, who was Imprisoned; and supported him with the Milk that came from her. Val. Max. lib. 3.

SECT. VII.
Mercy.

THE Athenians erected an Altar to Misericordia, Paus. in. A [...]t. Mercy where was first Established an Asylum, (a place of common refuge to the miserable and unfortunate:) It was not lawful to force any from thence. When Hercules dyed, his Kindred fear'd some mischief from those whom Hercules had afflicted;Serv. in Aen. 8. wherefore they erected an Asylum, or Temple of Mercy, at Athens.

SECT. VIII.
Clemency.

NOthing memorable occurs concerning this Goddess, unless that their was a Temple erected to Clementia Caesaris, the Clemency of Cesar, as we read in Plutarch (in Caesare.)

SECT. IX.
Chastity.

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TWO Temples at Rome were Dedicated to Chastity, the one to Pudicitia Patritia, which stood in the Ox-market; the other to Pudicitia Plebeia, built by Virginia, the Daughter of Aulus: For when she, who was born of a Patrician Family, had married a Plebeian; Liv. l. 10. the Noble Ladies were mightily incensed, and banished her from their Sacrifices, and forbad her to enter into the Temple of Pudicitia, into which Senatorian Families were only permitted entrance. A Quarrel arose hereupon amongst the Women, and a great breach was made between them. Hereupon Virginia strove by some extraordinary Action, to blot out the Disgrace which she had received; and therefore she built a Chappel in the long Street where she lived, and adorned it with an Altar: to which she invited the Plebeian Matrons, and complaining to them that the Ladyes of Quality had used her barbarously; I Dedicate, says she, this Altar to Pudicitia Plebeia; and desire of you that you will as much adore Chastity as the men d [...] honour; that this Altar may be followed by purer and more chast Votaryes, than the Altar of Pudicitia Patricia, if it be possible. Both these Altars were Worshipt almost with the fame Rites, and no Matron but of an approved Chastity, and who had been married but once, had leave to Sacrifice here. It is besides said in History, [Page] that the Women,Val. Max. l. 2. d Institutis who were contented with one marriage, were usually rewarded with a Corona pudicitiae, a Crown of Chastity.

SECT. X.
Truth.

TRuth, the Mother of Virtue, is painted in Garments,Philost. in Heroic. & in Amphiarao. as white as Snow; her looks, are Serene, Pleasant, Courteous, Chearful, and yet Modest; she is the pledge of all honesty, the Bulwark of Honour, the Light and Joy of humane Society. She is commonly accounted the Daughter of Time, Plut. in quaest. and Saturn: because Truth is discovered in the course of Time. But Democritus feigns, that she lies hid in the bottom of a Well.

SECT. XI.
Sense.

MEns (Sense, Understanding) was made a Goddess by the Romans, Aug. l. 4. cap. 21. that they might obtain a sound mind. Cic. 2. de Nat. An Altar was built to her in the Capitol by M. Aemilius. The Pretor,Liv. 22. & 23. Attilius, vowed to build a Chappel to her; which he performed when he was upon that account created Duumvir.

SECT. XII.
Concord.

WE find by the concurrent Testimony of many,Liv. l. 9. that the Goddess,Plut. in C. Gracch. Concordia, had many Altars at several times dedicated to her;Suet. in Tib. and especially she was worshipped by the ancient Romans. Her Image held a [Page] Bowl in her right hand, and a Horn of Plenty, or a Scepter, from which Fruit seemed to sprout forth in her left. The Symbol of her was,Gyr. Synt. 1. two right Hands joyned together, and a Pomegranate.

SECT. XIII.
Peace.

PAX was honoured heretofore at Athens with an Altar;Plot. in Cimon. as Plutarch tells us. At Rome, she had a most magnificent Temple in the Forum: begun by Claudius and finished by Vespasian: which was afterwards consumed in a fire under the Emperour Commodus. Herod. l. 2. She was described in the form of a Matron, holding forth Ears of Corn in her Hands, and Crowned with Olives or Laurel, or sometimes Roses. Her particular mark was a Caduceus, a white Staff born by Embassadors going to Treat of Peace.

SECT. XIV.
Health.

THE Goddess Salus was so much honoured by the Romans, that anciently several Holy days were appointed; in which they Worshipped her. There was a Gate at Rome, called Porta salutaris, Marc. Sat. 1. c. 16. because it was near to the Temple of Salus. Her Image was the Figure of a Woman, sitting in a Throne, and holding a Bowl in her right Hand. Hard by stood her Altar, a Snake twined round it, and lifted up his Head towards it.D [...]on. l. 27. Ang. Pol. Misc. c. 12. The Augurium salutis was heretofore celebrated in the same [Page] place: which was intermitted for some time, and renewed again by Augustus. It was a kind of divination, by which they begged leave of the Gods, that the people might pray for Peace: as though it was unlawful to pray for it, before they had leave. A Day in every Year was set apart for that purpose: upon which none of the Roman Armies might either march, or engage.

SECT. XV.
Felicity.

THis Goddess also, says S. Austin, hath her Temple and her Altar, and suitable Sacrifices were performed to her. (De Civit. D. l. 4. c. 18.) They represented her by a venerable Matron, sitting upon a Throne, and holding a white Rod in her right Hand, (Caduceus,) and a great Horn of Plenty in her left.

SECT. XVI.
Liberty.

AS the Romans were above all things careful of their Liberty, Gyr. Synt. 1. especially from the Expulsion of Kings, when they set themselves at liberty: so they built a Temple to Liberty amongst the number of their other Goddesses. And Cicero tells us, that Clodius Consecrated his House to her.

SECT. XVII.
Mony.

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THey invocated Pecunia, as a Goddess, that they might be rich. And so they Worshipped God Aesculanus and his Son Argentinus, that they might have plenty of Brass and Silver. They esteemed Aesculanus the Father of Argentinus; because Brass Money was used before Silver. And I wonder says St. Augustine (de Civ. D. l. 4. c. 21.) Quod Argentinus non tenuit Aurinum, quia & Aurea subsecuta est. That Aurinus was not made a God after Argentinus, because the Silver Money was followed by Gold. To this Goddess, Money, oh! How many apply their Devotions to this day? What Vows do they make, and Altars do they importune, that they may fill their Coffers? If you have these Gods, says Menander (apud Stob.) Hos Deos Aurum & Argentum si domi habeas, quicquid voles, roga: tibi omnia aderunt: ipsos habebis vel ministrantes Deos. If you have Silver and Gold at home, ask whatever you please, you shall have it: the very Gods themselves will be at your service.

SECT. XVIII.
Mirth.

LYcurgus ridiculously erected an Image amongst the Lace [...]emonians to the God Risus. Plut. in Lyc. The Thessalians of the City Hypata every year sacrificed to this God with great jollity.

SECT. XIX.
The good Genius.

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THis God, in Greek [...], had a Temple in the way, that leads to the Mountain Maenalus, as says Pausanias. And at the end of Supper, they offered a Cup to him, filled with Wine and Water; some say that the Cup had more Water than Wine, others say the contrary: this Cup was called the Cup [...], poculum boni Dei or Genii. A Grace Cup.

CHAP. II.

SECT. I.
The Vices, and Evil Deities.

I Call those Evil Deities, which oppose our Happiness, and many times do us mischief. And first of the Vices, to which Temples have been consecrated.

SECT. II.
Envy.

THat Envy is a Goddess, appears by the Confession of Pallas; who owned, that she was assisted by her, when she went to her House, to desire her to infect a young Lady called Aglauros, with her Poison. Ovid describes her House, Thus. (Met. l. 2)

—Domus est, imis in vallibus antri

Abdita sole carens, nec ulli pervia vento.

Tristis, & ignavi plenissima frigoris, & quae

[Page]Igne vacet semper, caligine semper abundet.

Between two Hills; where Phoebus ever shows

His cheerful face; where no wind ever blows:

Replete with sadness, and unactive cold;

Devoid of fire, yet still in smoak enroll'd.

The same Poet gives us another Description of Envy her self.

Pallor in ore sedet, macies in corpore toto,

Nusquam recta acies, livent rubigine dentes;

Pectora felle virent, lingua est suffusa veneno,

Risus abest, nisi quem visi movere dolores.

Nec fruitur somno vigilantibus excita curis,

Sed videt ingratos, intabescitque videndo

Successus hominum; carpitque & carpitur una.

Suppliciumque suum est.

Her body more than meager; pale her hew;

Her teeth all rusty; still she looks askew:

Her breast with gall, her tongue with poison swell'd:

She only laugh'd when she sad sights beheld.

Her ever-waking eares exil'd soft sleep:

Who looks on good success with eyes that weep:

Repining, pines: who, wounding others, bleeds:

And on her self revengeth her misdeeds.

SECT. III.
Contumely and Impudence.

THese two Vices were both adorn'd by the Athenians; Paus. in Att. Cic. 2. de leg. and particularly, it is said, they were represented by a Partridge; Theoph. l. de leg. which is esteemed a very impudent Bird.

SECT. IV.
Calumny.

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THE same People erected an Altar to Calumny. Id. ap. Diogen. Lucia. l. [...]e non tem. cred. cal. Apelles painted her thus. There sits a Man with great and open Ears, inviting Calumny with his Hand held out to come to him. And two Women, Ignorance and Suspicion stand about him. Calumny breaks out in a Fury; her [...]ountenance is Comely and Beautiful, her Eyes sparkle like Fire, and her Face is enslamed with Anger [...] she holds a lighted Torch in her left Hand, and with her right twists a young Man's Neck, who holds up his Hands in Prayer to the Gods. Before her goes Envy, pale and nasty. About her, is Fraud and Conspiracy. Behind her follows Repentance, clad in Mourning with her Cloaths torn: who turns her Head backward, as if she looked for Truth, who comes slowly after.

SECT. V.
Fraud.

THis Deity was described with an human Face, but a Serpents Body; in the end of her Tail was a Scorpions Sting. She swims through the River C [...]cytus; and nothing appears above Water but her Head.Boccat. in Gen. Deor.

SECT. VI.
Discord.

PEtronius Arbit [...]r, where he treats of the Civil War betwixt Pompey and Caesar, hath this Description of the Goddess Discordia. [...]n Sat.

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Intremuere tubae, scisso Discordia crine

Extulit ad superos Stygium caput. Hujus in ore

Concretus sanguis, contusaque lumina flebant;

Stabant irati scabrâ rubigine dentes;

Tabo lingua fluens, obsessa draconibus ora;

Atque inter toto laceratam pectore vestem,

Sanguinea tremulam quatiebat lampada dextrâ.

The trumpets sound, when from the Stygian shade

Wild Discord raises her disorder'd head;

From whose swoln Eyes there ran a briny flood

And blood congeal'd o're all her Visage stood;

Her hideous rows of brazenteeth were furr'd,

A filthy Gore there issu'd from her tongue.

With snaky Locks her guarded head was hung;

Rent and divided did her Garb betray

The Image of the Breast on which it lay;

And brandisht Flames her trembling hand obey

SECT. VII.
Fury.

FVry is described sometimes Chained, sometimes Raging and Revelling with her Chains broke, Virgil represents her in Chains thus. Aen. 1.

—Furor impius intùs.

Saeva [...]edens super arma, & centum vinctus ahenis

Post tergum nodis, fremit horridus ore cruento.

—Within sits impious War

On cursed Arms, bound with a thousand Chains,

And horrid, with a bloody Mouth complains.

Petronius describes her at her Liberty, thus.

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—Furor abruptis ceu liber habenis

Sanguineum latè tollit caput; oraque mille

Vulneribus confossa, cruentâ casside velat.

Haeret detritus laevae Mavortius umbo

Innumerabilibus telis gravis, atque flagranti

Stipite dextra minax terris incendia portat.

Disorder'd Rage from all her Fetters freed,

Proudly 'midst these lifts her distracted head,

And her hackt face with bloody Helmet hid.

On her left arm a Target old and worn,

Pierc'd with innumerable Darts was born,

And brands of fire supported in her right

The impious World with flames and ruin threat.

SECT. VIII.
Fame.

PAusanias says (in A [...]ticis) and Plutarch (in Camillo) that there were Temples also dedicated to Fame. She is finely and delicately described by Virgil. I will repeat the description, to save you the trouble of consulting the Book, tho' it is common. And it deserves not only to be remembred, but transcribed into all Books, as there is occasion. (Aen. 4.)

Fama malum,

See the same also elegantly done by Ov. Met. [...]2.

quo non aliud velocius ullum,

Mobilitate viget, viresque acquirit eundo.

Parva metu, primò; moxsese attollit in auras,

Ingrediturque solo, & caput inter nubila condit.

Illam terra parens, ira irritata Deorum

Extremam, ut porhibent, Caelo Enceladoque sororem,

Progenuit, pedibus celerem, & pernicibus alis;

Monstrum horrendum ingens, cui quot sunt corpore pluma,

[Page]Tot vigiles oculi, subter, mirabile âictu!

Tot linguae, totidem ora sonant, tot subrigit aures.

Nocte volat coeli medio, terraeque per umbram.

Stridet, nec dulci declinat lumina somno.

Luce sedet custos, aut summi culmine tecti,

Turribus aut altis, & magnas territat urbes,

Tam ficti pravique tenax, quàm nuncia veri.

Fame far out-strips all mischiefs in her Course,

Which grows by motion, gains, by flying, Force,

Kept under first by Fear, soon after shrouds,

Stalking or Earth, her Head amongst the Clouds.

Vex'd by the Gods, th' all apparent Earth brought forth

This sister last of the Gygantick birth;

The huge foul Monster, swiftly goes and flies;

So many Plumes, as many watching Eyes

Lurk underneath, and what more strange appears,

So many tongues, loud mouths, and liftning Ears.

Through dark mid regions of the Air she flies

Sounding by Night; soft sleep ne'er seals her eyes;

By day, a spy, on Princes Towers she lights,

Or noble Roofs, and mighty Cities frights;

Busying the People still with something new,

Relating what is false as well as true.

Fancies, and Truths, alike by her are sung.

SECT. IX.
Fortune.

WHY was Fortune made a Goddess, says S. Augustine (de Civit. l. 4. c. 18.)L. 4. de Civ. c. 18. since she comes to the good and the b [...]d without any judgment? She is so blind, that without distinction she runs to any body, and many times she passes [...] by those that admire her, [Page] and sticks to those that despise her. So that Iuvenal had reason to speak thus to her.Juven. Sat. 1.

Nullum Numen adest, si sit Prudentia: sed te

Nos facimus Fortuna Deam, coeloque locamus.

Fortune is never worshipt by the Wise,

But she, by Fools set up, usurps the Skies.

Yet the Temples that have been consecrated to her, and the names which she hath had are innumerable. The chief of them I will point out to you.

Aurea, Spart. in Severo. or Regia, Fortuna, an Image of her so stiled was usually kept in the Emperor's Chamber;Gyr. Synt. 15. and when one died, it was removed to the Palace of his Successor.

She was worshipp'd in the Capitol, Plin. & Cic. under the Title of Bona; and in the Esquilia under the Title of Mala.

Servius Tullus had in his Court a Chappel dedicated to Fortuna Barbata, Plut. in qu. she was called Brevis or Parva in the same place.

She is also called Caeca, Blind. Neither is she only, says Cicero, blind her self, but she many times makes those blind, that enjoy her. (De Amicit.)

In some Inscriptions she is called Conservatrix. Ap. Gyr. Synt. 15.

The Pretor, Q. Fulvius Flaccus, in Spain, when the last Battel was fought with the Celtiberi, vowed a Chappel to Fortuna Equestris. Because he in the Battel commanded the Bridles to be taken off from the Horses, that they might run upon the Enemy with the greater Force and Violence. Whereby he got the Victory (Livy.)

[Page] Fors Fortuna, Liv. l. 27. or Fortis Fortuna was her Name, and she was worshipped by those who lived without any Art or Care at all. (Livy.)

She had a Chappel near the Temple of Venus, Plut. de fort. Rom. where she was called Mascula and Vir [...]lis, Ovid. 4. F [...]st. Masculine.

She was called Muliebris, Dio. l. 8. because the Mother and the Wife of Coriolanus, saved the City of Rome. And when her Image was consecrated in their presence, it spoke these Words in Latin twice, Rite me, Matronae dedicastis. Ladies, you have dedicated me as you should do. Yet it was not lawful for all Matrons,Aug. l. 4. c. 18. Val. M. l. 2. c. 8. to touch this Image, but for those only who had not been married twice.Serv. in. 4. Aen.

Mammosa, either from her shape, or because she supplies us with plenty.

Servius Tullus dedicated a Temple to Fortu [...]a Obsequens, because she obeys the Wishes of Men. Livy. The same Prince worshipped her, and built her Chappels where she was called by these following.

Primigenia, Plut. in qu. because both the City and the Empire received its Origine from her.

Privata or Propria; Idem. she had a Chappel in the Court; which that Prince used so familiarly, that he was thought to go down through a little Window into it. Plut.

Her Temple at Praeneste, Liv. l. 52. from whence she was called Praenestina, Suet. in Domit. c. 15. was famouser, and more notable than all the rest; because very true Oracles were uttered there.

Domitian consecrated a Chappel to Fortuna Redux. Mart. l. 8.

[Page]In ancient Inscriptions she is named Stata. Ap. Gyr. Arnob. 2. ad Gent. To Virgo Fortuna the little Coats of the young Girls were presented.

Lastly, she was called Viscata, or Viscosa, (Viscous) because we are taken by her:Plut in qu. in which Sense Seneca says, Viscosa esse beneficia, Kindnesses are Birdlime.

SECT. X.
The Fever.

FEbris (the Fever) had her Altars and Temple,Cic. 3. de nat. & 2. de leg. in the Palace. She was worshipped, that she should not do hurt. And for the same reason they worshipped all the other Gods and Goddesses of this kind.

Fear and Paleness, Aug. l. 4. c. 18. were feigned to be Gods, and worshipped, by Tullus Hostilius; when in the Battel betwixt the Romans and the Vejentes, it was told him,Liv. l. 1. that the Albani had revolted, and the Romans grew afraid and pale. For in this doubtful Conjuncture, he vowed a Temple to Pallor and Pavor.

The People of Gadara made Poverty and Art Goddesses.Arrian. ap. Gyr. synt. 1. Because the first whets the Wit for the Discovery of the other.

Necessity and Violence had their Chappel upon the Acro-corinthus: but it was a Crime to enter into it.

M.

Marcellus dedicated a Chappel to Tempestas, without the Gate of Capena, after he had escaped a severe Tempest in a Voyage into the Island of Sicily.

SECT. XI.
Silence.

[Page]

BOth the Romans and the Egyptians, worship'd the Gods and Goddesses of Silence. The Latins particularly worshipped Angeronia and Tacita; whose Image (they say) stood upon the Altar of the Goddess Volupia, Macrob. Sat. Plut. in Num. Plin. 3. with its Mouth tied up and sealed; because they who endure their Cares and Angores Animi (from whence the Name Angeronia comes) with Silence and Patience; do by that means procure to themselves the greatest Pleasure.

The Egyptians, worshipped Harpocrates as the God of Silence, after the Death of Osiris. Epiph. 3. cont. Har. He was the Son of Isis. They offered the first Fruits of the Lentils and Pulse to him. They consecrated the Tree, Pers [...]a, to him: because the Leaves of it were fashioned like a Tongue, and Fruit like an Heart. He was painted naked, in the Figure of a Boy; crowned with an Egyptian Mitre, which ended at the points in two as it were Birds; he held in his Left Hand a Horn of Plenty, whilst a Finger of his Right Hand was upon his Lip, thereby commanding Silence.

And therefore I say no more. Neither can I better be silent, than when a God commands me to be so. Notwithstanding I am not so careful of the Directions, or the vain Commands of this mute God, this piceus puer, pitchy Youth (as Martianus calls him, because the complexion of the Egyptians is black) but as there is a time to speak, so there is a time to hold ones [Page]peace; as we are assured by the Mouth of the Wise Man, from that One and True God, who speaks once for an Eternity, and in one word expresses all things. Whereas how little have I expressed all this time in a multitude of Words? How vain have I been, and troublesome to you, Palaeophilus? My long idle and unskilful discourses have been very tedious and troublesome to you. I acknowledge my Fault, and shall say no more for shame.

P. But I, must not be silent. For, dearest Sir, your extraordinary Civility to me, as well as your great Merit, commands me at all times and places to speak and write of you with Honor, to express my Gratitude, as much as I can, that way, if I am not so able to do it in another.

FINIS.

An INDEX.

[Page]

Referring to all the Necessary Matters contained in this Book.

ABeona, the Goddess 326

Absyrtus 346

Achelous 342

Acheron 278

Achilles 375

Acidalia, Venus 126

Actaeon 236

Adeona 326

Adonis 141

Adrastaea, Nemesis 219

Adscriptitii 8

Aeacus 294

Aegeus 348

Aegina 18

Aegis 1 [...]8

Aeolus 185

Aeson 346

Aesculapius 362

Agamemnon 356

Aganippides 215

Agenoria 326

Agesilaus, Pluto 282

Ajax 379

Aius, Locutius 328

Alcides, Hercules 334

Alcithoe 79

Alcmena 18 333

Alecto 291

Alectryon 92

Alma Ceres 204

Aloius 298

Almathaea's Horn 15

Amazons 338 350

Ambarvalian Sacrifices 209

Ambrosia 77

Ammon, Iupiter 22

Amphion 374

Amphitrite 260

Andromeda 359

Angerom [...] 327

Antaeus 340

Anthia Iuno 102

Antiope 18

Aonides 215

Apaturia 77

Apaturia, Venus 124

Apis 384

Apollo 33 &c.

Arachne 115

Areopagus, Areopagitae 89

Arethusa 253

Argiva, Iuno 102

Argonautae 345

Ariadne 348

Arion 375

Aristeus 233

Armata, Venus 124

Ascalaphus 287

Ascolian, Sacrifices 77

Astarte Venus 124

Asteria 147

Astraea 218

Atalanta 134

Athena, Minerva 111

Atlas 369

Atreus 302

Atropos 289

Atys 198

Averruneus 328

B.

BAcchus 65

Bacchanalia 78

Barbata, Venus 124

Battus 63

Belides 301

Bellerophon 360

Bellona 87

Belus, Iupiter 22

Belus 3

Beneficium 328

Berecynthia 194

Bias 46

Biblis 57

Biformis, Bacchus 69

Bimetor, Bacchus 70

Bolina 38

Bona the Goddess 195

Bonus the God 400

Briareus 298

Brimo, Diana 241

Briseas, Bacchus 69

Bromius, Bacchus 70

Bubastis, Diana 241

Bubona 256

Bugenes, Bacchus 70

Bunea, Iuno 102

Busiris 341

C.

CAbin 200

Cacus 179

Cadmus 20

Cadmeus 62

Caeculus 179

Caenis 265

Calliope 212

Calendaris Iuno 102

Calva, Venus 125

Calisto 18

Calumnia 401

Camaena 327

Camillus, Mercury 59

[Page]Canephoria 76

Canopus 267

Caunus 57

Capitolinus, Iupiter 22

Caprotina, Iuno 103

Cardua 313

Carmenta 218 325

Carna 325

Castalides 215

Cassiope 350

Castor and Pollux 353

Catius 328

Centaurs 303

Cephalus 151

Cerberus 279

Ceres 201

Cham, Iupiter 164

Charon 277

Chary [...]is 272

Chilo 46

Chimaera 306

Chione 242

Chiron 365

Chitone Diana 241

Chloris 247

Chrysorrhoa 74

Cinxia Iuno 104

Circe 55

Claviger, Ianūs 168

Clausius, Ianus 171

Clemency 394

Clio 212

Clotho 289

Cluacina Venus 125

Clymene 53

Clyt [...]mnestra 356

Clytie 40

Cly [...]oris 18

Cotus 279

Colina 256

Colossus 51

Compitalitian, Games 315

Concord 396

Consentes 7 313

Consus Neptune 216

Consualian Games 216

Contumely 401

Corybantes 200

Craesus 46

Cunia 225

Cupid 140

Curetes 199

Cunis, Iuno 104

Custos Iupiter 23

Cybele 192, &c.

Cyclops 36 178

Cyllenius, Mercurius 64

Cyparissus 37

Cynthius, Apollo 41

Cypria Venus 125

Cytherea Venus ib.

Cytheronia Iuno 102

D.

DAedalus 56

Daemones 317

Danae 17

Daphne 38

Deianira 343

Delius Apollo 41

Delphicus Apollo 42

Delphinius Apollo 42

Delos 146

Deucalion 368

Deverra 322

Diana 235

Dictynna Diana 241

Diespiter Iupiter 23

Dii m [...]jorum gentium 7

Dii minorum gentium 8

Dii minuti 9

Dii Selecti 8

Dii Semones 9

Dindymene Cybele 194

Dionysius Bacchus 70

Diomedes 338

Discordia 401

Dithyrambus Bacch. 70

Do [...]naeus Iupiter 23

Do [...]du [...]a Iuno 104

D [...]miducus 321

Do [...]itiu [...] ib.

Dryades 251

Dueliona Bellona 87

Dydimaeus Apollo 42

E.

EAcus 294

Eccho 254

Educa 325

Egaeon 297

Egeria Iuno 104

Eleus Bacchus 71

Eleusinian Sacrif. 207

Elicius Iupiter 23

Elysium 309

Empusae Lamiae 305

Endymion 239

Enna Fields 285

Epilenean Games. 76

Erato 212

Erebus 293

Eresichthon 207

Erichthonius 176

Ericyna Venus 125

Eteocles 309

Evan, &c. Bacchus 71

Euriale 305

Europa 19

Eurydice 233 373

Eurystheus 333

Euterpe 213

F.

FAbulinus 326

Fame

Fascelis Diana 358

Fatua Cybele 195

Fate 289

Fauni 203

Febris 408

[Page]Februa 322

Februalis Iuno 104

Februus Pluto 282

Felicitas 398

Feretrius Iupiter 24

Feronia 248

Fessonia 327

Fides 392

Flora 242 257

Flora's Games 242

Florida Iuno 102

Fluonia Iuno 105

Forculus 313

Fornax 258

Fortuna 405

Fraus 402

Fulminator Iupiter 24

Furies 90

Fury 403

G.

GAlanthis 340

Galaxia Milkyway 334

Ganymede 19

Gemini the Star 355

Genii 317

Geryon 304 338

Giants 296

Glaucopis Minerva 116

Glaucus 267

Gnossia corona 349

Gorgons 305

Gradivus Mars 90

Gragus Iupiter 24

Gratiae 140

H.

Hamadryades 251

Hammon Iupiter 22

Harmonia 21

Harpies 304

Harpocrates 409

Hebe 99

Hecate Diana 240

Helena 135 354

Heliconiaes 214

Helice 19

Helle 345

Hermae 64

Hermaphroditus 63

Hermathenae 65

Hermes Mercury 59

Hermione 21 356

Hercules 332

Heroes 331

Hesione 342

Hesperides 372

Hesperus ib.

Hippomenes 134

Hippona 256

Homogynas Iupiter 24

Honor 390

Honorius 328

Hoplosmia Iuno 105

Horta 326

Hortensis Venus 125

Horus 50

Hospitialis Iupiter 29

Hostilina 258

Hyacinthus 37

Hyac [...] 371

Hydra 337

Hygaeia 364

Hypsiphile 346

Hyppolitus 351

I.

JAcchus Bacchus 71

Ianus 324

Iaphet 164

Iason 344

Ica [...]us 57

Idea mater Cy [...]le 196

Idalia Venus 126

Impud [...]ntia 401

Index the Stone 64

Indigetes 8

Ino 267

Intercidona 322

Invidia 400

Inuus Pan. 222

Io. 100

Iolaus 337

Iole 344

Iphiclus 343

Iphigenia 357

Iphis 386

Iris 98

Isis 385

Isiaci ib.

Italy Saturnia 157

Itys 95

Iugatinus 321

Iuga Iun 105

Iuno 97

Iupiter 12

Iustitia 393

Iuventus 326

Ixion 300

L.

LAbyrinth 56

Lachesis 289

Lacinia, Iuno 105

Lactura 257

Lamiae 305

Lampetia 55

Lapis, Iupiter 25

Larac [...]um 316

Lares 315

Lateranus 320

Latialis, Iupiter 25

Latium 157

Latona 324

Laverna 328

Leda 18 353

Legifera, Ceres 204

Lemnius, Vulcanus 175

Lemoniades 252

Lenaeus, Bacchus 72

Lethe 310

Levana 325

Leucosia, Syr [...]n 269

Leucothoe 40

Liber, Bacchus 72

[Page]Libert as 398

Ligea, Syren 269

Limentinus 313

Limnades 252

Lucina, Diana 241

Lucina Iuno 105

Luna 239

Lupercus, Pan 222

Lyaeus. Bacchus 72

Lycaeus, Pan 122

Lycaon 16

Lycurgus 79

Lysius, Bacchus 72

Lysse 291

M.

MAchaon 365

Maia 58

Mammosa, Ceres 304

Manageneta, 324

Manturna 321

Manubiae 13

Marina, Venus 126

Mars 86

Martius, Iupiter 26

Marsyas 40

Mater, Cyb [...]le 193

Matuta 258

Mausoleum 52

Medea 346

Meditrina 327

Medusa 305

Megara, [...]ury 191

Melana, Ccres 202

Melanis, or Nigra, Venus 126

Meleager 243

Meliae 252

Mellona 258

Melpomene 213

Memnon 152

Mena 322

Mens 396

Mentha 287

Mercury 58

Mestra 265

Metis 110

Midas 40

Migenitis, Venus 126

Minerva 108

Minos 294

Minotaur 56

Misericordia 394

Mitra, Sol 49

Momus 187

Moneta, Iun [...] 105

Morpheus 294

Mors 293

Moses 80

Mulciber. Vulcan 175

Murcia, Venus 127

Murcia 326

Musae 210

Musearius, Iupiter 26

Musica, Minerva 116

Mutinus 321

Myrmidons 295

Myrrha 129

N.

NAiades 252

Napeae 525

Narcissus 254

Nascio 324

Nemesis 219

Neptune 259

Nereus 267

Nereides 252

Nerio 89

Nessus, Centaur 343

Nicephorius, Iupiter 26

Nimrod 79

Niobe 147

Nisus 272

Nixii 324

Noctua 108 116

Nodosus 257

Noe. Saturn 162

Nomius, Apollo 42

Nox 293

Numeria 327

Nundina 325

Nuptial Gods 320

Nuptialis, Iuno 105

Nyctimene 129

Nyctelius, Bacchus 72

Nymphae 251

Nyseus, Bacchus 72

O.

OCcator 257

Oceanus 266

Oceanitides 252

Oedipus 307

Olympius, Iupiter 26

Omphale 343

Operar [...]a, Minerva 115

Opigena, Iuno 106

Opis or Ops, Diana 241

Opis 324

Opitulus, Iupiter. 26

Ops, Cybele 194

Orbona 327

Orcus, Pluto 382

Oreades, and Orestiades 252

Orestes 356

Orion 382

Orpheus 373

Oscilla. 78

Oscophorian, Sacrifices 76

Osiris 383

Ossilago 325

P.

PAean, Apollo 43

Palaemon 267

Pales 245

Palilian, Feasts ib.

[Page]Palladium 112

Pallas, or Minerva 108

Pan 221

Pandora 177

Paphia, Venus 127

Parcae 289

Paris 135

Parnassides 214

Parthenope, Syren 269

Parthenos, Pallas 113

Patelina 257

Patulcius, Ianus 171

Pallor 401

Paventia 326

Pavor 408

Paupertas ib.

Pax 397

Pecunia 399

Pegasus 215 360

Pelops 301

Pellonia 327

Penates 312

Penelope 380

Perfecta, Iuno 106

Periclymenus 264

Perseus 358

Pertunda 321

Pesinuntia, Cybele 197

Petasus 58

Phaedra 351

Phaeton 53

Phaetusa 55

Phallus, Priapus 132

Phyllira 365

Philomeda, Venus 125

Philomela 94

Phlegeton 279

Phlegyas 299

Phoebe 55

Phoebus, Apollo 43 [...]

Phorcus, or Phorcys 263

Pierides 215

Pietas 393

Pilumnus 258

Pirithous 351

Pistor, Iupiter 27

Pleiades 371

Pluto 28

Plutus 284

Pluvius, Iupiter 27

Podalytius 365

Pana 382

Pollux 353

Polymicia 213

Polynices 309

Polyphemus 180

Polyxena 377

Pomona 248

Populona, Iuno 106

Postverta 323

Potamides 252

Potina 325

Praeda [...]or, Iupiter 27

Prestites 319

Pri [...]pus 131

Progne 94

Prometheus 364

Pronuba, Iuno 106

Propaetide [...] 103

Prosa, or Prorsa 323

Proserpine 285

Protheus 264

Pudicitia 395

Pygm [...]lion 130

Pylades 356

Pylotis, Minerva 116

Pyramus 130

Pyramids 52

Pyrysous, Ac [...]illes 376

Pyrrha 368

Pythius, Apollo 43

Python 43

Q.

QUies 326

Quietatis, Pluto 282

Quirinus, Iupiter 27

Quirinus, Mars 90

Quiris, his Spear ib.

R.

REctus, Bacchus 72

Regina, Iuno 106

Regnator, Iupiter 28

Rhadamanthus 294

Rhamnusia Nemesis 220

Rhea, Cybele 194

Rhodos 51

Risus 399

Robigus 257

Rumina 325

Rumina 257

S.

SAgittary 365

Salacia 261

Salmacis 63

Salmoneus 300

Salus 397

Saturn 154

Saturn, of Babylon 4

Satyrs 228

S [...]ylla 55 271

Seia and Segetia 256

Selecti 7

Semele 67

Semidei 332

Semones 9

Sem, Pluto 164

Sentia 327

Serapis 385

Servator, Iupiter 28

Selenus 127

Sirens 268

Sisyphus 300

Sol, Apollo 47

Sol. 49

Solon 45

Solvizona, Diana 323

Somnus 293

[Page]Sospita, Iuno 106

Spes 392

Sphinx 307

Stata 327

Statilinus 325

Stator, Iupiter 28

Stheno 305

Stellio 206

Stercutius 257

Stimula 326

Strenua, ib.

Stymphalides 338

Styx 278

Summanus, Pluto 283

Sylvanus 226

Sylvestres, the Gods 221

Syrinx 225

T.

TAcita 409

Tantalus

Taurica 357

Talchines, Priests 200

Telegonus 380

Tempus, Saturnus 165

Tereus 96

Terminalis 235

Terminus 234

Terpsichore 213

Terra, Mater 204

Thales 45

Thalia 213

Thamyris 216

Th [...]mis 217

Theseus 348

Thesmophorian. Sacrifices 208

Thetis 375

Thyestes 302

Thyoneus, B [...]cchus 72

Thyrsus 66

T [...]phaeus 297

Tiresias 113

Tisiphone, Fury 291

Titan 155

Titans 299

T [...]t [...]onus 152

Tityus 298

T [...]n [...]ns, Iupiter 29

Trieterican, Sacrifices 76

Triformis, Diana 238

Triocul [...], Iupiter 29

Triptolemus 205

Tripos, of Apollo 44

Triton 265

Tritonia, Pallas 110

Triumphus, Bacchus 73

Tutelina 258

Tyndaridae 354

V.

VA [...]una 327

Vagitanus 325

Vallonia 256

Vejovis & Vedius Iupiter 29

Venilia 261

Venus 120

Veri [...]as 396

Verticordia, Venus 128

Vertumnus 249, 264

Vesta 188

Vestal Virgins 190

Vibilia 327

Vinum, Bacchus 82

Virbius Hypolitus 352

Viriplaca 321

Virtus 391

Vitula 327

Ultor, Iupiter 29

Ulysses 378

Unxia, Iuno 106

Volumnus 328

Volupia 327

Volusia 257

Urania 214

Ursa, Star 19

Vulcan 175

Vulcan's Sacrifices 176

X.

XEnius, Iupiter 29

Z.

Z [...], Iupiter 29

ERRATA.

P. 8. l. 7. for each r. to each, p. 15. l. last. for live. r. life.

FINIS.

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Title statement

The Pantheon representing the fabulous histories of the heathen gods and most illustrious heroes in a short, plain and familiar method by way of dialogue / written Fra. Pomey.Pantheum mythicum. English

Pomey, François, 1618-1673.

Edition statement

1698

Publication

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Text Creation Partnership,

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Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) :

Date

2003-01 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1).

ID [DLPS]

A55340

ID [STC]

Wing P2793

ID [STC]

ESTC R35374

ID [EEBO-CITATION]

15265755

ID [OCLC]

ocm 15265755

ID [VID]

103325

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(EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A55340)

Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 103325)

Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 1192:4)

Source

— The Pantheon representing the fabulous histories of the heathen gods and most illustrious heroes in a short, plain and familiar method by way of dialogue / written Fra. Pomey., Pantheum mythicum. English, Pomey, François, 1618-1673., Tooke, Andrew, 1673-1732.. The second edition wherein the whole translation is revised and much amended ....

Extent

[6], 410, [7] p., [17] leaves of plates : ill.

Printed for Charles Harper ...,. London :: MDCXCVIII [1698]. ("Based on the translation by Andrew Tooke"--NUC pre-1956 imprints.) (Includes index.) (Errata: p. [6] (1st grouping) and p. [7] (2nd grouping)) (Reproduction of original in the Cambridge University Library.)

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