Tiresias: The Ancient Mediterranean Religions Source Database

9617

Plutarch, Sulla, 27.2

ἐνταῦθά φασι κοιμώμενον ἁλῶναι σάτυρον, οἷον οἱ πλάσται καὶ γραφεῖς εἰκάζουσιν, ἀχθέντα δὲ ὡς Σύλλαν ἐρωτᾶσθαι διʼ ἑρμηνέων πολλῶν ὅστις εἴη· φθεγξαμένου δὲ μόλις οὐδὲν συνετῶς, ἀλλὰ τραχεῖάν τινα καὶ μάλιστα μεμιγμένην ἵππου τε χρεμετισμῷ καὶ τράγου μηκασμῷ φωνὴν ἀφέντος, ἐκπλαγέντα τὸν Σύλλαν ἀποδιοπομπήσασθαι.  Here, they say, a satyr was caught asleep, such an one as sculptors and painters represent, and brought to Sulla, where he was asked through many interpreters who he was. And when at last he uttered nothing intelligible, but with difficulty emitted a hoarse cry that was something between the neighing of a horse and the bleating of a goat, Sulla was horrified, and ordered him out of his sight.

Intertexts (texts cited often on the same page as the searched text):

9 results
1. Herodotus, Histories, 1.93 (5th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE) 1.93. There are not many marvellous things in Lydia to record, in comparison with other countries, except the gold dust that comes down from Tmolus. ,But there is one building to be seen there which is much the greatest of all, except those of Egypt and Babylon . In Lydia is the tomb of Alyattes, the father of Croesus, the base of which is made of great stones and the rest of it of mounded earth. It was built by the men of the market and the craftsmen and the prostitutes. ,There survived until my time five corner-stones set on the top of the tomb, and in these was cut the record of the work done by each group: and measurement showed that the prostitutes' share of the work was the greatest. ,All the daughters of the common people of Lydia ply the trade of prostitutes, to collect dowries, until they can get themselves husbands; and they themselves offer themselves in marriage. ,Now this tomb has a circumference of thirteen hundred and ninety yards, and its breadth is above four hundred and forty yards; and there is a great lake hard by the tomb, which, the Lydians say, is fed by ever-flowing springs; it is called the Gygaean lake. Such then is this tomb.
2. Dionysius of Halycarnassus, Roman Antiquities, 2.63.3 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. BCE) 2.63.3.  He also ordered that Romulus himself, as one who had shown a greatness beyond mortal nature, should be honoured, under the name of Quirinus, by the erection of a temple and by sacrifices throughout the year. For while the Romans were yet in doubt whether divine providence or human treachery had been the cause of his disappearance, a certain man, named Julius, descended from Ascanius, who was a husbandman and of such a blameless life that he would never have told an untruth for his private advantage, arrived in the Forum and said that, as he was coming in from the country, he saw Romulus departing from the city fully armed and that, as he drew near to him, he heard him say these words:
3. Horace, Odes, 1.35.30, 3.5.2-3.5.4 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. BCE)
4. Livy, History, 1.16.5-1.16.8 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. BCE)
5. Ovid, Fasti, 2.499-2.512, 3.291-3.346 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE) 2.499. But Julius Proculus was travelling from Alba Longa 2.500. With the moon shining, and having no need of a torch 2.501. When suddenly the hedge to his left moved and shook: 2.502. So that he drew back a step, his hair bristling. 2.503. It seemed to him that Romulus, handsome, more than human 2.504. And finely dressed, stood there, in the centre of the road 2.505. Saying: ‘Prevent the Quirites from mourning me 2.506. And profaning my divinity by their tears: 2.507. Let the pious crowds bring incense and propitiate 2.508. The new god Quirinus, and cultivate their father’s art of war.’ 2.509. So he commanded and vanished into thin air: 2.510. Proculus gathered the people and reported the command. 2.511. Temples were built for the god, the hill named for him 2.512. And on certain days the ancestral rites are re-enacted. 3.291. Can teach you the rites of expiation. But they won’t 3.292. Teach them unless compelled: so catch and bind them.’ 3.293. And she revealed the arts by which they could be caught. 3.294. There was a grove, dark with holm-oaks, below the Aventine 3.295. At sight of which you would say: ‘There’s a god within.’ 3.296. The centre was grassy, and covered with green moss 3.297. And a perennial stream of water trickled from the rock. 3.298. Faunus and Picus used to drink there alone. 3.299. Numa approached and sacrificed a sheep to the spring 3.300. And set out cups filled with fragrant wine. 3.301. Then he hid with his people inside the cave. 3.302. The woodland spirits came to their usual spring 3.303. And quenched their dry throats with draughts of wine. 3.304. Sleep succeeded wine: Numa emerged from the icy cave 3.305. And clasped the sleepers’ hands in tight shackles. 3.306. When sleep vanished, they fought and tried to burst 3.307. Their bonds, which grew tighter the more they struggled. 3.308. Then Numa spoke: ‘Gods of the sacred groves, if you accept 3.309. My thoughts were free of wickedness, forgive my actions: 3.310. And show me how the lightning may be averted.’ 3.311. So Numa: and, shaking his horns, so Faunus replied: 3.312. ‘You seek great things, that it’s not right for you to know 3.313. Through our admission: our powers have their limits. 3.314. We are rural gods who rule in the high mountains: 3.315. Jupiter has control of his own weapons. 3.316. You could never draw him from heaven by yourself 3.317. But you may be able, by making use of our aid.’ 3.318. Faunus spoke these words: Picus too agreed 3.319. ‘But remove our shackles,’ Picus added: 3.320. ‘Jupiter will arrive here, drawn by powerful art. 3.321. Cloudy Styx will be witness to my promise.’ 3.322. It’s wrong for men to know what the gods enacted when loosed 3.323. From the snare, or what spells they spoke, or by what art 3.324. They drew Jupiter from his realm above. My song will sing 3.325. of lawful things, such as a poet may speak with pious lips. 3.326. The drew you (eliciunt) from the sky, Jupiter, and later 3.327. Generations now worship you, by the name of Elicius. 3.328. It’s true that the crowns of the Aventine woods trembled 3.329. And the earth sank under the weight of Jove. 3.330. The king’s heart shook, the blood fled from his body 3.331. And the bristling hair stood up stiffly on his head. 3.332. When he regained his senses, he said: ‘King and father 3.333. To the high gods, if I have touched your offering 3.334. With pure hands, and if a pious tongue, too, asks for 3.335. What I seek, grant expiation from your lightning,’ 3.336. The god accepted his prayer, but hid the truth with deep 3.337. Ambiguities, and terrified him with confusing words. 3.338. ‘Sever a head,’ said the god: the king replied; ‘I will 3.339. We’ll sever an onion’s, dug from my garden.’ 3.340. The god added: ‘of a man’: ‘You’ll have the hair,’ 3.341. Said the king. He demanded a life, Numa replied: ‘A fish’s’. 3.342. The god laughed and said: ‘Expiate my lightning like this 3.343. O man who cannot be stopped from speaking with gods. 3.344. And when Apollo’s disc is full tomorrow 3.345. I’ll give you sure pledges of empire.’ 3.346. He spoke, and was carried above the quaking sky
6. Vergil, Aeneis, 6.794-6.795 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. BCE) 6.794. Lashed to the whirling spokes; in his sad seat 6.795. Theseus is sitting, nevermore to rise;
7. Pliny The Elder, Natural History, 7.6, 7.21 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
8. Plutarch, Romulus, 28.1-28.3 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE) 28.1. At this pass, then, it is said that one of the patricians, a man of noblest birth, and of the most reputable character, a trusted and intimate friend also of Romulus himself, and one of the colonists from Alba, Julius Proculus by name, Cf. Livy, i. 16, 5-8. went into the forum and solemnly swore by the most sacred emblems before all the people that, as he was travelling on the road, he had seen Romulus coming to meet him, fair and stately to the eye as never before, and arrayed in bright and shining armour. 28.2. He himself, then, affrighted at the sight, had said: O King, what possessed thee, or what purpose hadst thou, that thou hast left us patricians a prey to unjust and wicked accusations, and the whole city sorrowing without end at the loss of its father? Whereupon Romulus had replied: It was the pleasure of the gods, 0 Proculus, from whom I came, that I should be with mankind only a short time, and that after founding a city destined to be the greatest on earth for empire and glory, I should dwell again in heaven. So farewell, and tell the Romans that if they practise self-restraint, and add to it valour, they will reach the utmost heights of human power. And I will be your propitious deity, Quirinus. 28.3. These things seemed to the Romans worthy of belief, from the character of the man who related them, and from the oath which he had taken; moreover, some influence from heaven also, akin to inspiration, laid hold upon their emotions, for no man contradicted Proculus, but all put aside suspicion and calumny and prayed to Quirinus, and honoured him as a god.
9. Tacitus, Annals, 2.24 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE) 2.24.  Precisely as Ocean is more tempestuous than the remaining sea, and Germany unequalled in the asperity of its climate, so did that calamity transcend others in extent and novelty — around them lying hostile shores or a tract so vast and profound that it is believed the last and landless deep. Some of the ships went down; more were stranded on remote islands; where, in the absence of human life, the troops died of starvation, except for a few who supported themselves on the dead horses washed up on the same beach. Germanicus' galley put in to the Chaucian coast alone. Throughout all those days and nights, posted on some cliff or projection of the shore, he continued to exclaim that he was guilty of the great disaster; and his friends with difficulty prevented him from finding a grave in the same waters. At length, with the turning tide and a following wind, the crippled vessels began to come in, some with a few oars left, others with clothing hoisted for canvas, and a few of the weaker in tow. They were instantly refitted and sent out to examine the islands. By that act of forethought a large number of men were gathered in, while many were restored by our new subjects, the Angrivarians, who had ransomed them from the interior. A few had been swept over to Britain, and were sent back by the petty kings. Not a man returned from the distance without his tale of marvels — furious whirlwinds, unheard-of birds, enigmatic shapes half-human and half-bestial: things seen, or things believed in a moment of terror.

Subjects of this text:

subject	book bibliographic info
aetiology	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
alexander iii (the great) of macedon, and dionysus	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
alexander iii (the great) of macedon, and the agen (satyrplay)	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
amazons	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
apollonia	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123; Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
arabia	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
attalus i soter of pergamum	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
augustus, conquests of	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
aventine hill, rome	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
britain	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
cult	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
daimons	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
dionysodorus of sicyon	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
dionysus	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
dyrrhachium	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
egypt	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
ethiopia	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
ethnography	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
faunus	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
foundation, of cults	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
harpalus (treasurer of alexander)	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
hieron ii of syracuse, and architecture	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
inspiration	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
italy	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
jupiter, elicius	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
jupiter	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
lydia	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
mesopotamia	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
midas (phrygian king)	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
mime	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
mithridates v	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
mouseia (festival)	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
numa	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
numinousness, in foreign lands	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
numinousness, in temples'	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
nymph	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
pergamum	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
persia	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
picus	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
pompey (the great), at war	Jenkyns, God, Space, and City in the Roman Imagination (2013) 123
proculus	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
python (tragic poet), agen (satyrplay)	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
romulus	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
satyr	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
satyrplay/satyr drama, at pergamum	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
satyrplay/satyr drama, roman	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
silens	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83
sulla, lucius cornelius	Lipka, Epiphanies and Dreams in Greek Polytheism: Textual Genres and 'Reality' from Homer to Heliodorus (2021) 158
sulla (general)	Csapo et al., Theatre and Autocracy in the Ancient World (2022) 83