Chapter 16

And in the shades below you'll get for threepenceA crapatallus, and some ψώθια.

And in the shades below you'll get for threepence

A crapatallus, and some ψώθια.

CHEESECAKES.

But Apollodorus the Athenian, and Theodorus, in his treatiseon the Attic Dialect, say that the crumbs which are knocked off from a loaf are called ψώθια, which some people also call ἀττάραγοι.

Then there is the ἴτριον. This is a thin cake, made of sesame and honey; and it is mentioned by Anacreon thus:—

I broke my fast, taking a little sliceOf an ἴτριον; but I drank a cask of wine.

I broke my fast, taking a little slice

Of an ἴτριον; but I drank a cask of wine.

And Aristophanes, in his Acharnians, says—

Cheesecakes, and cakes of sesame, and ἴτρια.

And Sophocles, in his Contention, says—

But I, being hungry, look back at the ἴτρια.

There is mention made also of ἄμοραι. Philetas, in his Miscellanies, says that cakes of honey are called ἄμοραι; and they are made by a regular baker.

There is the ταγηνίτης, too; which is a cheesecake fried in oil. Magnes, or whoever it was that wrote the comedies which are attributed to him, says in the second edition of his Bacchus—

Have you ne'er seen the fresh ταγήνιαι hissing,When you pour honey over them?

Have you ne'er seen the fresh ταγήνιαι hissing,

When you pour honey over them?

And Cratinus, in his Laws, says—

The fresh ταγηνίας, dropping morning dew.

Then there is the ἔλαφος. This is a cheesecake made on the festival of Elaphebolia, of wheat-flour, and honey, and sesame.

The ναστὸς is a kind of cheesecake, having stuffing inside it.

56. Χόρια are cakes made up with honey and milk.

The ἀμορβίτης is a species of cheesecake in fashion among the Sicilians. But some people call it παισά. And among the Coans it is called πλακούντιον, as we are informed by Iatrocles.

Then there are the σησαμίδες, which are cakes made of honey, and roasted sesame, and oil, of a round shape. Eupolis, in his Flatterers, says—

He is all grace, he steps like a callabis-dancer,And breathes sesamides, and smells of apples.

He is all grace, he steps like a callabis-dancer,

And breathes sesamides, and smells of apples.

And Antiphanes, in his Deucalion, says—

Sesamides, or honey-cheesecakes,Or any other dainty of the kind.

Sesamides, or honey-cheesecakes,

Or any other dainty of the kind.

And Ephippus, in his Cydon, also mentions them in a passage which has been already quoted.

Then there are μύλλοι. Heraclides the Syracusan, in his treatise on Laws, says, that in Syracuse, on the principal day of the Thesmophorian festival, cakes of a peculiar shape are made of sesame and honey, which are called μύλλοι throughout all Sicily, and are carried about as offerings to the goddesses. There is also the echinus. Lynceus the Samian, in his epistle to Diagoras, comparing the things which are considered dainties in Attica with those which are in esteem at Rhodes, writes thus: "They have for the second course a rival to the fame of the ἄμης in a new antagonist called the ἐχινος, concerning which I will speak briefly; but when you come and see me, and eat one which shall be prepared for you in the Rhodian manner, then I will endeavour to say more about it."

There are also cheesecakes named κοτυλίσκοι. Heracleon of Ephesus tells us that those cheesecakes have this name which are made of the third part of a chœnix of wheat.

There are others called χοιρίναι, which are mentioned by Iatrocles in his treatise on Cheesecakes; and he speaks also of that which is called πυραμοῦς, which he says differs from the πυραμίς, inasmuch as this latter is made of bruised wheat which has been softened with honey. And these cheesecakes are in nightly festivals given as prizes to the man who has kept awake all night.

57. But Chrysippus of Tyana, in his book called the Art of Making Bread, enumerates the following species and genera of cheesecakes:—"The terentinum, the crassianum, the tutianum, the sabellicum, the clustron, the julianum, the apicianum, the canopicum, the pelucidum, the cappadocium, the hedybium, the maryptum, the plicium, the guttatum, the montianum. This last," he says, "you will soften with sour wine, and if you have a little cheese you may mash the montianum up half with wine and half with cheese, and so it will be more palatable. Then there is the clustrum curianum, the clustrum tuttatum, and the clustrum tabonianum. There are also mustacia made with mead, mustacia made with sesame, crustum purium, gosgloanium, and paulianum.

CHEESECAKES.

"The following cakes resembling cheesecakes," he says, "are really made with cheese:—the enchytus, the scriblites, the subityllus. There is also another kind of subityllus made of groats. Then there is the spira; this, too, is made with cheese.

There are, too, the lucuntli, the argyrotryphema, the libos, thecercus, the æxaphas, the clustroplacous. There is also," says Chrysippus, "a cheesecake made of rye. The phthois is made thus:—Take some cheese and pound it, then put it into a brazen sieve and strain it; then put in honey and a hemina[95]of flour made from spring wheat, and beat the whole together into one mass.

"There is another cake, which is called by the Romans catillus ornatus, and which is made thus:—Wash some lettuces and scrape them; then put some wine into a mortar and pound the lettuces in it; then, squeezing out the juice, mix up some flour from spring wheat in it, and allowing it to settle, after a little while pound it again, adding a little pig's fat and pepper; then pound it again, draw it out into a cake, smoothe it, and cut it again, and cut it into shape, and boil it in hot oil, putting all the fragments which you have cut off into a strainer.

"Other kinds of cheesecakes are the following:—the ostracites, the attanites, the amylum, the tyrocoscinum. Make this last thus:—Pound some cheese (τῦρον) carefully, and put it into a vessel; then place above it a brazen sieve (κόσκινον) and strain the cheese through it. And when you are going to serve it up, then put in above it a sufficient quantity of honey. The cheesecakes called ὑποτυρίδες are made thus:—Put some honey into some milk, pound them, and put them into a vessel, and let them coagulate; then, if you have some little sieves at hand, put what is in the vessel into them, and let the whey run off; and when it appears to you to have coagulated thoroughly, then take up the vessel in which it is, and transfer it to a silver dish, and the coat, or crust, will be uppermost. But if you have no such sieves, then use some new fans, such as those which are used to blow the fire; for they will serve the same purpose. Then there is the coptoplacous. And also," says he, "in Crete they make a kind of cheesecake which they call gastris. And it is made thus:—Take some Thasian and Pontic nuts and some almonds, and also a poppy. Roast this last with great care, and then take the seed and pound it in a clean mortar; then, adding the fruits which I have mentioned above, beat them up with boiled honey, putting in plenty of pepper, and make the whole into a soft mass, (but it will be of a black colour because of thepoppy;) flatten it and make it into a square shape; then, having pounded some white sesame, soften that too with boiled honey, and draw it out into two cakes, placing one beneath and the other above, so as to have the black surface in the middle, and make it into a neat shape." These are the recipes of that clever writer on confectionary, Chrysippus.

58. But Harpocration the Mendesian, in his treatise on Cheesecakes, speaks of a dish which the Alexandrians call παγκαρπία. Now this dish consists of a number of cakes mashed up together and boiled with honey. And after they are boiled, they are made up into round balls, and fastened round with a thin string of byblus in order to keep them together. There is also a dish called πόλτος, which Alcman mentions in the following terms—

And then we'll give you poltos made of beans (πυάνιος),And snow-white wheaten groats from unripe corn,And fruit of wax.

And then we'll give you poltos made of beans (πυάνιος),

And snow-white wheaten groats from unripe corn,

And fruit of wax.

But the substantive πυάνιον, as Sosibius tells us, means a collection of all kinds of seeds boiled up in sweet wine. And χῖδρος means boiled grains of wheat. And when he speaks here of waxy fruit, he means honey. And Epicharmus, in his Earth and Sea, speaks thus—

To boil some morning πόλτος.

And Pherecrates mentions the cakes called μελικηρίδων in his Deserters, speaking as follows—

As one man smells like goats, but othersBreathe from their mouths unalloy'd μελικήρας.

As one man smells like goats, but others

Breathe from their mouths unalloy'd μελικήρας.

59. And when all this had been said, the wise Ulpian said,—Whence, my most learned grammarians, and out of what library, have these respectable writers, Chrysippus and Harpocration, been extracted, men who bring the names of illustrious philosophers into disrepute by being their namesakes? And what Greek has ever used the word ἡμίνα; or who has ever mentioned the ἄμυλος?" And when Laurentius answered him, and said,—Whoever the authors of the poems attributed to Epicharmus were, they were acquainted with the ἡπίνα. And we find the following expressions in the play entitled Chiron—

And to drink twice the quantity of cool water,—Two full heminas.

And to drink twice the quantity of cool water,—

Two full heminas.

CAKES.

And these spurious poems, attributed to Epicharmus, were, at all events, written by eminent men. For it was Chrysogonusthe flute-player, as Aristoxenus tells us in the eighth book of his Political Laws, who wrote the poem entitled Polity. And Philochorus, in his treatise on Divination, says that it was a man of the name of Axiopistos, (whether he was a Locrian or a Sicyonian is uncertain,) who was the author of the Canon and the Sentences. And Apollodorus tells us the same thing. And Teleclides mentions the ἄμυλος in his Rigid Men, speaking thus—

Hot cheesecakes now are things I'm fond of,Wild pears I do not care about;I also like rich bits of harePlaced on an ἄμυλος.

Hot cheesecakes now are things I'm fond of,

Wild pears I do not care about;

I also like rich bits of hare

Placed on an ἄμυλος.

60. When Ulpian had heard this, he said—But, since you have also a cake which you call κοπτὴ, and I see that there is one served up for each of you on the table, tell us now, you epicures, what writer of authority ever mentions this word κοπτὴ? And Democritus replied—Dionysius of Utica, in the seventh book of his Georgics, says that the sea leek is called κοπτὴ. And as for the honey-cake which is now served up before each of us, Clearchus the Solensian, in his treatise on Riddles, mentions that, saying—"If any one were to order a number of vessels to be mentioned which resemble one another, he might say,

A tripod, a bowl, a candlestick, a marble mortar,A bench, a sponge, a caldron, a boat, a metal mortar,An oil-cruse, a basket, a knife, a ladle,A goblet, and a needle.

A tripod, a bowl, a candlestick, a marble mortar,

A bench, a sponge, a caldron, a boat, a metal mortar,

An oil-cruse, a basket, a knife, a ladle,

A goblet, and a needle.

And after that he gives a list of the names of different dishes, thus—

Soup, lentils, salted meat, and fish, and turnips,Garlic, fresh meat, and tunny-roe, pickles, onions,Olives, and artichokes, capers, truffles, mushrooms.

Soup, lentils, salted meat, and fish, and turnips,

Garlic, fresh meat, and tunny-roe, pickles, onions,

Olives, and artichokes, capers, truffles, mushrooms.

And in the same way he gives a catalogue of cakes, and sweetmeats, thus—

Ames, placous, entiltos, itrium,[96]Pomegranates, eggs, vetches, and sesame;Coptè and grapes, dried figs, and pears and peaches,Apples and almonds."

Ames, placous, entiltos, itrium,[96]

Pomegranates, eggs, vetches, and sesame;

Coptè and grapes, dried figs, and pears and peaches,

Apples and almonds."

These are the words of Clearchus. But Sopater the farce-writer, in his drama entitled Pylæ, says—

Who was it who invented first black cakes (κοπταὶ)Of the uncounted poppy-seed? who mix'dThe yellow compounds of delicious sweetmeats?

Who was it who invented first black cakes (κοπταὶ)

Of the uncounted poppy-seed? who mix'd

The yellow compounds of delicious sweetmeats?

Here my excellent cross-examiner, Ulpian, you have authorities for κοπτή; and so now I advise you ἀπεσθίειν some. And he, without any delay, took and ate some. And when they all laughed, Democritus said;—But, my fine word-catcher, I did not desire you to eat, but not to eat; for the word ἀπεσθίω is used in the sense of abstaining from eating by Theopompus the comic poet, in his Phineus, where he says—

Cease gambling with the dice, my boy, and nowFeed for the future more on herbs. Your stomachIs hard with indigestion; give up eating (ἀπέσθιε)Those fish that cling to the rocks; the lees of wineWill make your head and senses clear, and thusYou'll find your health, and your estate too, better.

Cease gambling with the dice, my boy, and now

Feed for the future more on herbs. Your stomach

Is hard with indigestion; give up eating (ἀπέσθιε)

Those fish that cling to the rocks; the lees of wine

Will make your head and senses clear, and thus

You'll find your health, and your estate too, better.

Men do, however, use ἀπεσθίω for to eat a portion of anything, as Hermippus does, in his Soldiers—

Alas! alas! he bites me now, he bites,And quite devours (ἀπεσθίει) my ears.

Alas! alas! he bites me now, he bites,

And quite devours (ἀπεσθίει) my ears.

61. The Syrian being convicted by these arguments, and being a good deal annoyed, said—But I see here on the table some pistachio nuts (ψιττάκια); and if you can tell me what author has ever spoken of them, I will give you, not ten golden staters, as that Pontic trifler has it, but this goblet. And as Democritus made no reply, he said, But since you cannot answer me, I will tell you; Nicander of Colophon, in his Theriacans, mentions them, and says—

Pistachio nuts (ψιττάκια) upon the highest branches,Like almonds to the sight.

Pistachio nuts (ψιττάκια) upon the highest branches,

Like almonds to the sight.

The word is also written βιστάκια, in the line—

And almond-looking βιστάκια were there.

And Posidonius the Stoic, in the third book of his History, writes thus: "But both Arabia and Syria produce the peach, and the nut which is called βιστάκιον; which bears a fruit in bunches like bunches of grapes, of a sort of tawny white, long shaped, like tears, and the nuts lie on one another like berries. But the kernel is of a light green, and it is less juicy than the pine-cone, but it has a more pleasant smell. And the brothers who together composed the Georgics, write thus, in the third book—"There is also the ash, and the turpentine tree, which the Syrians call πιστάκια." And these people spell the word πιστάκια with a π, but Nicander writes it φιττάκια, and Posidonius βιστάκια.

VEGETABLES.

62. And when he had said this, looking round on all those who were present, and being praised by them, he said,—But I mean also to discuss every other dish that there is on the table, in order to make you admire my varied learning. And first of all I will speak of those which the Alexandrians call κόνναρα and παλίουροι. And they are mentioned also by Agathocles of Cyzicus, in the third book of his History of his Country; where, he says: "But after the thunderbolt had struck the tomb, there sprung up from the monument a tree which they call κόνναρον. And this tree is not at all inferior in size to the elm or the fir. And it has great numbers of branches, of great length and rather thorny; but its leaf is tender and green, and of a round shape. And it bears fruit twice a-year, in spring and autumn. And the fruit is very sweet, and of the size of a phaulian olive, which it resembles both in its flesh and in its stone; but it is superior in the good flavour of its juice. And the fruit is eaten while still green; and when it has become dry they make it into paste, and eat it without either bruising it or softening it with water, but taking it in very nearly its natural state. And Euripides, in the Cyclops, speaks of—

A branch of paliurus.[97]

But Theopompus, in the twenty-first book of his History of Philip, mentions them, and Diphilus, the physician of Siphnus, also speaks of them, in his treatise on What may be eaten by People in Health, and by Invalids. But I have mentioned these things first, my good friends, not because they are before us at this moment, but because in the beautiful city of Alexandria, I have often eaten them as part of the second course, and as I have often heard the question as to their names raised there, I happened to fall in with a book here in which I read what I have now recounted to you.

63. And I will now take the pears (ἄπιον), which I see before me, and speak of them, since it is from them that the Peloponnesus was called Ἀπία,[98]because plants of the peartree were abundant in the country, as Ister tells us, in his treatise on the History of Greece. And that it was customary to bring up pears in water at entertainments, we learn from the Breutias of Alexis, where we read these lines—

A.Have you ne'er seen pears floating in deep waterServed up before some hungry men at dinner?B.Indeed I have, and often; what of that?A.Does not each guest choose for himself, and eatThe ripest of the fruit that swims before him?B.No doubt he does.

A.Have you ne'er seen pears floating in deep water

Served up before some hungry men at dinner?

B.Indeed I have, and often; what of that?

A.Does not each guest choose for himself, and eat

The ripest of the fruit that swims before him?

B.No doubt he does.

But the fruit called ἁμαμηλίδες are not the same as pears, as some people have fancied, but they are a different thing, sweeter, and they have no kernel. Aristomenes, in his Bacchus, says—

Know you not how the Chian garden growsFine medlars?

Know you not how the Chian garden grows

Fine medlars?

And Æschylides too, in the third book of his Georgics, shows us that it is a different fruit from the pear, and sweeter. For he is speaking of the island Ceos, and he expresses himself thus,—"The island produces the very finest pears, equal to that fruit which in Ionia is called hamamelis; for they are free from kernels, and sweet, and delicious." But Aethlius, in the fifth book of his Samian Annals, if the book be genuine, calls them homomelides. And Pamphilus, in his treatise on Dialects and Names, says, "The epimelis is a species of pear." Antipho, in his treatise on Agriculture, says that the phocides are also a kind of pear.

64. Then there are pomegranates. And of pomegranates some kinds are said to be destitute of kernels, and some to have hard ones. And those without kernels are mentioned by Aristophanes in his Farmers; and in his Anagyrus he says—

Except wheat-flour and pomegranates.

He also speaks of them in the Gerytades; and Hermippus, in his Cercopes, says—

Have you e'er seen the pomegranate's kernel in snow?

And we find the diminutive form ῥοίδιον, like βοίδιον.

Antiphanes also mentions the pomegranates with the hard kernels in his Bœotia—

I bade him bring me from the farm pomegranatesOf the hard-kernell'd sort.

I bade him bring me from the farm pomegranates

Of the hard-kernell'd sort.

And Epilycus, in his Phoraliscus, says—

You are speaking of apples and pomegranates.

POMEGRANATES.

Alexis also, in his Suitors, has the line—

He took the rich pomegranates from their hands.

But Agatharchides, in the nineteenth book of his History of Europe, tells us that the Bœotians call pomegranates not ῥοιαὶ but σίδαι, speaking thus:—"As the Athenians were disputing with the Bœotians about a district which they called Sidæ, Epaminondas, while engaged in upholding the claims of the Bœotians, suddenly lifted up in his left hand a pomegranate which he had concealed, and showed it to the Athenians, asking them what they called it, and when they said ῥοιὰ, 'But we,' said he, 'call it σίδη.' And the district bears the pomegranate-tree in great abundance, from which it originally derived its name. And Epaminondas prevailed." And Menander, in his Heauton-Timorumenos, called them ῥοίδια, in the following lines—

And after dinner I did set before themAlmonds, and after that we ate pomegranates.

And after dinner I did set before them

Almonds, and after that we ate pomegranates.

There is, however, another plant called sida, which is something like the pomegranate, and which grows in the lake Orchomenus, in the water itself; and the sheep eat its leaves, and the pigs feed on the young shoots, as Theophrastus tells us, in the fourth book of his treatise on Plants; where he says that there is another plant like it in the Nile, which grows without any roots.

65. The next thing to be mentioned are dates. Xenophon, in the second book of his Anabasis, says—"And there was in the district a great deal of corn, and wine made of the dates, and also vinegar, which was extracted from them; but the berries themselves of the date when like what we see in Greece, were set apart for the slaves. But those which were destined for the masters were all carefully selected, being of a wonderful size and beauty, and their colour was like amber. And some they dry and serve up as sweetmeats; and the wine made from the date is sweet, but it produces headache." And Herodotus, in his first book, speaking of Babylon, says,—"There are palm-trees there growing over the whole plain, most of them being very fruitful; and they make bread, and wine, and honey of them. And they manage the tree in the same way as the fig-tree. For those palm-trees which they call the males they take, and bind their fruit to the other palm-trees which bear dates, in order that the insect which lives in the fruit of the male palm may get into the date and ripen it,and so prevent the fruit of the date-bearing palm from being spoilt. For the male palm has an insect in each of its fruits, as the wild fig has." And Polybius of Megalopolis, who speaks with the authority of an eye-witness, gives very nearly the same account of the lotus, as it is called, in Libya, that Herodotus here gives of the palm-tree; for he speaks thus of it: "And the lotus is a tree of no great size, but rough and thorny, and its leaf is green like that of the rhamnus, but a little thicker and broader. And the fruit at first resembles both in colour and size the berries of the white myrtle when full grown; but as it increases in size it becomes of a scarlet colour, and in size about equal to the round olives; and it has an exceedingly small stone. But when it is ripe they gather it. And some they store for the use of the servants, bruising it and mixing it with groats, and packing it into vessels. And that which is preserved for freemen is treated in the same way, only that the stones are taken out, and then they pack that fruit also in jars, and eat it when they please. And it is a food very like the fig, and also like the palm-date, but superior in fragrance. And when it is moistened and pounded with water, a wine is made of it, very sweet and enjoyable to the taste, and like fine mead; and they drink it without water; but it will not keep more than ten days, on which account they only make it in small quantities as they want it. They also make vinegar of the same fruit."

66. And Melanippides the Melian, in his Danaides, calls the fruit of the palm-tree by the name of φοίνιξ, mentioning them in this manner:—"They had the appearance of inhabitants of the shades below, not of human beings; nor had they voices like women; but they drove about in chariots with seats, through the woods and groves, just as wild beasts do, holding in their hands the sacred frankincense, and the fragrant dates (φοίνικας), and cassia, and the delicate perfumes of Syria."[99]

FIGS.

And Aristotle, in his treatise on Plants, speaks thus:—"The dates (φοίνικες) without stones, which some call eunuchs and others ἀπύρηνοι." Hellanicus has also called the fruit φοίνιξ, in his Journey to the Temple of Ammon, if at least the book be a genuine one; and so has Phormus the comic poet, in his Atalantæ.

But concerning those that are called the Nicolaan dates, which are imported from Syria, I can give you this information; that they received this name from Augustus the emperor, because he was exceedingly fond of the fruit, and because Nicolaus of Damascus, who was his friend, was constantly sending him presents of it. And this Nicolaus was a philosopher of the Peripatetic School, and wrote a very voluminous history.

67. Now with respect to dried figs. Those which came from Attica were always considered a great deal the best. Accordingly Dinon, in his History of Persia, says—"And they used to serve up at the royal table all the fruits which the earth produces as far as the king's dominions extend, being brought to him from every district as a sort of first-fruits. And the first king did not think it becoming for the kings either to eat or drink anything which came from any foreign country; and this idea gradually acquired the force of a law. For once, when one of the eunuchs brought the king, among the rest of the dishes at dessert, some Athenian dried figs, the king asked where they came from. And when he heard that they came from Athens, he forbade those who had bought them to buy them for him any more, until it should be in his power to take them whenever he chose, and not to buy them. And it is said that the eunuch did this on purpose, with a view to remind him of the expedition against Attica." And Alexis, in his Pilot, says—

Then came in figs, the emblem of fair Athens,And bunches of sweet thyme.

Then came in figs, the emblem of fair Athens,

And bunches of sweet thyme.

And Lynceus, in his epistle to the comic poet, Posidippus, says—"In the delineation of the tragic passions, I do not think that Euripides is at all superior to Sophocles, but in dried figs, I do think that Attica is superior to every other country on earth." And in his letter to Diagoras, he writes thus:—"But this country opposes to the Chelidonian dried figs those which are called Brigindaridæ, which in their name indeed are barbarous, but which in delicious flavour are not at all less Attic than the others. And Phœnicides, in his Hated Woman, says—

They celebrate the praise of myrtle-berries,Of honey, of the Propylæa, and of figs;Now these I tasted when I first arrived,And saw the Propylæa; yet have I found nothingWhich to a woodcock can for taste compare.

They celebrate the praise of myrtle-berries,

Of honey, of the Propylæa, and of figs;

Now these I tasted when I first arrived,

And saw the Propylæa; yet have I found nothing

Which to a woodcock can for taste compare.

In which lines we must take notice of the mention of the woodcock.But Philemon, in his treatise on Attic Names, says that "the most excellent dried figs are those called Ægilides; and that Ægila is the name of a borough in Attica, which derives its name from a hero called Ægilus; but that the dried figs of a reddish black colour are called Chelidonians." Theopompus also, in the Peace, praising the Tithrasian figs, speaks thus—

Barley-cakes, cheesecakes, and Tithrasian figs.

But dried figs were so very much sought after by all men, (for really, as Aristophanes says—

There's really nothing nicer than dried figs;)

that even Amitrochates, the king of the Indians, wrote to Antiochus, entreating him (it is Hegesander who tells this story) to buy and send him some sweet wine, and some dried figs, and a sophist; and that Antiochus wrote to him in answer, "The dried figs and the sweet wine we will send you; but it is not lawful for a sophist to be sold in Greece. The Greeks were also in the habit of eating dried figs roasted, as Pherecrates proves by what he says in the Corianno, where we find—

But pick me out some of those roasted figs.

And a few lines later he says—

Will you not bring me here some black dried figs?Dost understand? Among the Mariandyni,That barbarous tribe, they call these black dried figsTheir dishes.

Will you not bring me here some black dried figs?

Dost understand? Among the Mariandyni,

That barbarous tribe, they call these black dried figs

Their dishes.

I am aware, too, that Pamphilus has mentioned a kind of dried figs, which he calls προκνίδες.

68. That the word βότρυς is common for a bunch of grapes is known to every one; and Crates, in the second book of his Attic Dialect, uses the word σταφυλὴ, although it appears to be a word of Asiatic origin; saying that in some of the ancient hymns the word σταφυλὴ is used for βότρυς, as in the following line:—

Thick hanging with the dusky grapes (σταφυλῆσι) themselves.

GRAPES.

And that the word σταφυλὴ is used by Homer is known to every one. But Plato, in the eighth book of his Laws, uses both βότρυς and σταφυλὴ, where he says—"Whoever tastes wild fruit, whether it be grapes (βοτρύων) or figs, before the time of the vintage arrives, which falls at the time of the rising of Arcturus, whether it be on his own farm, or on any one else's land, shall be fined fifty sacred drachmas to be paid to Bacchus, if he plucked them off his own land; but a minaif he gather them on a neighbour's estate; but if he take them from any other place, two-thirds of a mina. But whoever chooses to gather the grapes (τὴν σταφυλὴν), which are now called the noble grapes, or the figs called the noble figs, if he gather them from his own trees, let him gather them as he pleases, and when he pleases; but if he gathers them from the trees of any one else without having obtained the leave of the owner, then, in accordance with the law which forbids any one to move what he has not placed, he shall be invariably punished." These are the words of the divine Plato; but I ask now what is this noble grape (γενναῖα), and this noble fig that he speaks of? And you may all consider this point while I am discussing the other dishes which are on the table. And Masurius said—

But let us not postpone this till to-morrow,Still less till the day after.

But let us not postpone this till to-morrow,

Still less till the day after.

When the philosopher says γενναῖα, he means εἰγενῆ,generous, as Archilochus also uses the word—

Come hither, you are generous (γενναῖος);

or, perhaps, he means ἐπιγεγενημένα; that is to say, grafted. For Aristotle speaks of grafted pears, and calls them ἑπεμβολάδες. And Demosthenes, in his speech in defence of Ctesiphon, has the sentence, "gathering figs, and grapes (βότρυς), and olives." And Xenophon, in his Œconomics, says, "that grapes (τὰς σταφυλὰς) are ripened by the sun." And our ancestors also have been acquainted with the practice of steeping grapes in wine. Accordingly Eubulus, in his Catacollomenos, says—

But take these grapes (βότρυς), and in neat wine pound them,And pour upon them many cups of water.Then make him eat them when well steep'd in wine.

But take these grapes (βότρυς), and in neat wine pound them,

And pour upon them many cups of water.

Then make him eat them when well steep'd in wine.

And the poet, who is the author of the Chiron, which is generally attributed to Pherecrates, says—

Almonds and apples, and the arbutus first,And myrtle-berries, pastry, too, and grapesWell steep'd in wine; and marrow.

Almonds and apples, and the arbutus first,

And myrtle-berries, pastry, too, and grapes

Well steep'd in wine; and marrow.

And that every sort of autumn fruit was always plentiful at Athens, Aristophanes testifies in his Horæ. Why, then, should that appear strange which Aethlius the Samian asserts in the fifth book of his Samian Annals, where he says, "The fig, and the grape, and the medlar, and the apple, and the rose grow twice a-year?" And Lynceus, in hisletter to Diagoras, praising the Nicostratian grape, which grows in Attica, and comparing it to the Rhodiacan, says, "As rivals of the Nicostratian grapes they grow the Hipponian grape; which after the month Hecatombæon (like a good servant) has constantly the same good disposition towards its masters."

69. But as you have had frequent discussions about meats, and birds, and pigeons, I also will tell you all that I, after a great deal of reading, have been able to find out in addition to what has been previously stated. Now the word περιστέριον (pigeon), may be found used by Menander in his Concubine, where he says—

He waits a little while, and then runs upAnd says—"I've bought some pigeons (περιστέρια) for you."

He waits a little while, and then runs up

And says—"I've bought some pigeons (περιστέρια) for you."

And so Nicostratus, in his Delicate Woman, says—

These are the things I want,—a little bird,And then a pigeon (περιστέριον) and a paunch.

These are the things I want,—a little bird,

And then a pigeon (περιστέριον) and a paunch.

And Anaxandrides, in his Reciprocal Lover, has the line—

For bringing in some pigeons (περιστέρια) and some sparrows.

And Phrynichus, in his Tragedians, says—

Bring him a pigeon (περιστέριον) for a threepenny piece.

Now with respect to the pheasant, Ptolemy the king, in the twelfth book of his Memorabilia, speaking of the palace which there is at Alexandria, and of the animals which are kept in it, says, "They have also pheasants, which they call τέταροι, which they not only used to send for from Media, but they also used to put the eggs under broody hens, by which means they raised a number, so as to have enough for food; for they call it very excellent eating." Now this is the expression of a most magnificent monarch, who confesses that he himself has never tasted a pheasant, but who used to keep these birds as a sort of treasure. But if he had ever seen such a sight as this, when, in addition to all those which have been already eaten, a pheasant is also placed before each individual, he would have added another book to the existing twenty-four of that celebrated history, which he calls his Memorabilia. And Aristotle or Theophrastus, in his Commentaries, says, "In pheasants, the male is not only as much superior to the female as is usually the case, but he is so in an infinitely greater degree."

PEACOCKS.

70. But if the before-mentioned king had seen the number of peacocks also which exists at Rome, he would have fled to his sacred Senate, as though he had a second time beendriven out of his kingdom by his brother. For the multitude of these birds is so great at Rome, that Antiphanes the comic poet, in his Soldier or Tychon, may seem to have been inspired by the spirit of prophecy, when he said—

When the first man imported to this cityA pair of peacocks, they were thought a rarity,But now they are more numerous than quails;So, if by searching you find one good man,He will be sure to have five worthless sons.

When the first man imported to this city

A pair of peacocks, they were thought a rarity,

But now they are more numerous than quails;

So, if by searching you find one good man,

He will be sure to have five worthless sons.

And Alexis, in his Lamp, says—

That he should have devour'd so vast a sum!Why if (by earth I swear) I fed on hares' milkAnd peacocks, I could never spend so much.

That he should have devour'd so vast a sum!

Why if (by earth I swear) I fed on hares' milk

And peacocks, I could never spend so much.

And that they used to keep them tame in their houses, we learn from Strattis, in his Pausanias, where he says—

Of equal value with your many trifles,And peacocks, which you breed up for their feathers.

Of equal value with your many trifles,

And peacocks, which you breed up for their feathers.

And Anaxandrides, in his Melilotus, says—

Is't not a mad idea to breed up peacocks,When every one can buy his private ornaments?

Is't not a mad idea to breed up peacocks,

When every one can buy his private ornaments?

And Anaxilaus, in his Bird Feeders, says—

Besides all this, tame peacocks, loudly croaking.

Menodotus the Samian also, in his treatise on the Treasures in the Temple of the Samian Juno, says: "The peacocks are sacred to Juno; and perhaps Samos may be the place where they were first produced and reared, and from thence it was that they were scattered abroad over foreign countries, in the same way as cocks were originally produced in Persia, and the birds called guinea-fowl (μελεαγρίδες) in Ætolia." On which account Antiphanes, in his Brothers by the same Father, says—

They say that in the city of the SunThe phœnix is produced; the owl in Athens;Cyprus breeds doves of admirable beauty:But Juno, queen of Samos, does, they say,Rear there a golden race of wondrous birds,The brilliant, beautiful, conspicuous peacock.

They say that in the city of the Sun

The phœnix is produced; the owl in Athens;

Cyprus breeds doves of admirable beauty:

But Juno, queen of Samos, does, they say,

Rear there a golden race of wondrous birds,

The brilliant, beautiful, conspicuous peacock.

On which account the peacock occurs on the coins of the Samians.

71. But since Menodotus has mentioned the guinea-fowl, we ourselves also will say something on that subject. Clytus the Milesian, a pupil of Aristotle, in the first book of his History of Miletus, writesthus concerning them—"All around the temple of the Virgin Goddess at Leros, there are birds called guinea-fowls. And the ground where they are bred is marshy. And this bird is very devoid of affection towards its young, and wholly disregards its offspring, so that the priests are forced to take care of them. And it is about the size of a very fine fowl of the common poultry, its head is small in proportion to its body, having but few feathers, but on the top it has a fleshy crest, hard and round, sticking up above the head like a peg, and of a wooden colour. And over the jaws, instead of a beard, they have a long piece of flesh, beginning at the mouth, redder than that of the common poultry; but of that which exists in the common poultry on the top of the beak, which some people call the beard, they are wholly destitute; so that their beak is mutilated in this respect. But its beak is sharper and larger than that of the common fowl; its neck is black, thicker and shorter than that of common poultry. And its whole body is spotted all over, the general colour being black, studded in every part with thick white spots something larger than lentil seeds. And these spots are ring-shaped, in the middle of patches of a darker hue than the rest of the plumage: so that these patches present a variegated kind of appearance, the black part having a sort of white tinge, and the white seeming a good deal darkened. And their wings are all over variegated with white, in serrated,[100]wavy lines, parallel to each other. And their legs are destitute of spurs like those of the common hen. And the females are very like the males, on which account the sex of the guinea-fowls is hard to distinguish." Now this is the account given of guinea-fowls by the Peripatetic philosopher.

72. Roasted sucking-pigs are a dish mentioned by Epicrates in his Merchant—

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