The Deipnosophists; or, Banquet of the Learned of Athenæus, Vol. 2 (of 3)

1.

both to you and me, O Timocrates. For when some hams were brought round, and some one asked whether they were tender, using the word τακερὸς,— In what author does τακερὸς occur? said Ulpian: and is there any authority, too, for calling mustard σίναπι instead of νᾶπυ̣ For I see that that condiment is being brought round in the dishes with the hams. And I see that the word κωλεὸς, a ham, a ham, is now used in the masculine gender, and not in the feminine only, as our Attic writers use it. At all events, Epicharmus, in his Megarian Woman, says—

and in his Cyclops he says—

And learn this now from me, O you wise man, that Epicharmus, uses χορδὴ for what, in every other place, he calls ὀρύα, tripe. And I see, too, that salt is used in seasoning in other dishes; but of salt which is not seasoned the Cynics are full, among whom we find, in the Corycus of Antiphanes, another Cynic saying—

I see, too, that brine is mingled with vinegar; and I know, too, that now some of the inhabitants of Pontus prepare the pickle which they call oxygarum, or vinegar pickle, by itself.

2. Zoilus replied to this, and said—Aristophanes, my good friend, in his Lemnian Woman, has used the word τακερὸς for delicate, saying—

and Pherecrates, in his Crapatalli, says—

and Nicander the Colophonian has used the word σιόνηπυ in his Theriacans, where he said—

and in his Georgics he writes—

and again he says—

And Crates, in his treatise on the Attic Dialect, introduces Aristophanes as saying—

as Seleucus quotes it, in his books on Hellenism. But it is a line out of the Knights, and it ought to be read thus—

for no Attic writer ever used the form σίναπυ, although there is a reason for each form. For νάπυ may be said, as if it were νάφυ, because it has no φύσις, or growth. For it is ἀφυὲς and little, like the anchovy, which is called ἀφύη, and is called σίναπυ, because it injures the eyes (σίνεται τοὺς ὦπας) by its smell, as the onion has the name of κρόμμυον, because it makes us wink our eyes (ὅτι τὰς κόρας μύομεν). And Xenarchus the comic writer says, in his Scythians—

And that exquisite writer, Aristophanes, mentions salt and vinegar, saying, in the place where he speaks of Sthenelus the tragedian,—

3. We then, my good friend, have gone along with you in these inquiries. But we have a right to expect an answer from you, in what author the word παροψὶς is used for a vessel. For when speaking of some victuals of various sorts, which were carefully dressed, and of some other things of this sort, I am aware that Plato, in his Festivals, has used the following expressions—

And again, in his Europa, speaking at considerable length of some exquisite dish, he has used the following expressions among others—

And in the passage immediately following, he uses the word παροψὶς, as if it were equivalent to παροψώνημα, a delicacy; and in his Phaon he says—

And Aristophanes, in his Dædalus, says—

4. So when Ulpian made no reply,—But I, said Leonidas, have a right to speak, since I have been silent a long time. But as Evenus the Parian says—

5. And my excellent friend Myrtilus,—for I have taken the words out of your mouth, Antiphanes,—in his Bœotian, has used this word παροψὶς for a vessel, where he says—

And Alexis, in his Hesione, says—

And the man who was the author of the plays which are attributed to Magnes, says in his first Bacchus—

And Achæus, in his Æthnon, a satyric drama, says—

And Sotades the comic writer says, in his Man wrongly Ransomed—

But the word is used in an ambiguous sense by Xenophon, in the first book of his Cyropædia. For the philosopher says, "They brought him παροψίδας, and condiments of all sorts, and food of all kinds." And in the works of the author of Chiron, which is usually attributed to Pherecrates, the word παροψὶς is used for seasoning; and not, as Didymus, in his treatise on Words used in a Corrupted Sense, asserts, for a vessel. For he says—

And Nicophon, in his Sirens, says—

And Aristophanes says, in his Dædalus,—

And Plato says, in his Festivals,—

But he is speaking here of cooking and seasoning onions. But the Attic writers, O my Syri-Attic friend Ulpian, use ἔμβαμμα also in this sense; as Theopompus says, in his Peace:—

6. When speaking of hams, they use the two forms κωλῆ and κωλήν. Eupolis, in his Autolycus, says—

And Euripides, in his Sciron, says—

But the word κωλῆ is contracted from κωλέα, as συκῆ from συκέα, λεοντῆ from λεοντέα; so κωλῆ from κωλέα. Aristophanes, in his second Plutus, says—

And in his Daitaleis he says—

And in his Storks he says—

And Plato, in his Griffins, says—

And Ameipsias, in his Connus, says—

And Xenophon, in his book on Hunting, says—"The ham (κωλῆ) is fleshy, and the loins moist." And Xenophanes the Colophonian, in his Elegies, says—

7. And as immediately after this a great quantity of food of all sorts was brought in, we will just mention those dishes which seem most worthy of being remembered; for there was a great quantity of birds, and of geese, and also of young birds (which some people call πίποι), and of pigs, and of those highly-esteemed birds the pheasants. And after I have told you about the vegetables, I will then enumerate to you the other dishes also.

8. First of all, there were turnips; and Apellas, in his treatise on the Cities in Peloponnesus, says that turnips are called γαστέρες by the Lacedæmonians: and Nicander the Colophonian, in his Dialects, says that among the Bœotians it is cabbages which are called γαστέρες, and that turnips are called in Boeotia ζεκελτίδες. But Amerias and Timachidas affirm that it is gourds which are called ζακελτίδες. And Speusippus, in the second book of his treatise on Things resembling one another, says—"The radish, the turnip, the rape, and the nasturtium all resemble each other." But Glaucus, in his Cookery Book, spells the word ῥάφυς (rape) with the lene π,—ῥάπυς. But these vegetables have nothing else like them, unless, indeed, it be the plant which we call bounias: but Theophrastus does not use the name of bounias, but calls it a sort of male turnip; and perhaps the plant which he means is the bounias. And Nicander, in his Georgics, mentions the bounias—

And the turnips which grow on the banks of the Cephisus are mentioned by Cratis, in his Orators, thus—

But Theophrastus says that there are two kinds of turnips, the male and the female, and that they both come from the same seed; but Posidonius the Stoic philosopher, in the twenty-seventh book of his Histories, concerning Dalmatia, says that there are some turnips which grow without any cultivation, and also some carrots that grow wild. But Diphilus the physician, of Siphnos, says—"The turnip has attenuating properties, and is harsh and indigestible, and moreover is apt to cause flatulence: but the vegetable called bounias is superior to that; for it is sweeter in taste and more digestible, in addition to being wholesome for the stomach and nutritious. But the turnip," he says, "when roasted, is more easily digested, but in this state it attenuates the blood still more." This vegetable is mentioned by Eubulus, in his Ancylion, where he says—

And Alexis, in his Enthusiast, says—

But the turnip, when pickled, is more attenuating in its effects than when boiled, especially when it is pickled with mustard, as Diphilus says.

9. Then there was the cabbage. Eudemus the Athenian, in his treatise on Vegetables, says that there are three kinds of cabbage—the kind called the salt-cabbage, and the smooth-leaved-cabbage, and the parsley-cabbage: and that the salt-cabbage is reckoned the finest of all in respect of its delicacy of taste; and it grows in Eretria, and Cyme, and Rhodes, and also in Cnidos and Ephesus: but the smooth-leaved kind is found in every country; and the parsley-cabbage has its name from the curly nature of its leaves, for it is like parsley, both in that respect and in its general thickness. But Theophrastus writes thus—"But of the ῥάφανος,—I mean the cabbage,—there is one kind with curly leaves, and another with smooth leaves, and a third which is wild." And Diphilus the Siphnian says—"The finest and most delicious cabbage grows in Cyme: in Alexandria it is bitter; and the seed which is brought from Rhodes to Alexandria produces sweet cabbage for one year, after which time it degenerates again, from the nature of the soil." And Nicander, in his Georgics, says—

But perhaps Nicander calls the cabbage Prophet, as being sacred; since in Hipponax, in his Iambics, we find some such lines as these,—

And Ananius says—

And Teleclides, in his Prytanes, uses the oath, "Yes, by the cabbages!" and Epicharmus has the same exclamation in his Earth and Sea; and so has Eupolis, in his Dyers; and it appears to have been an Ionian oath: and there is nothing very strange in the fact of some people having sworn by the cabbage, since Zeno the Cittiæan, the founder of the sect of the Stoics, imitating the oath of Socrates, "by the bitch," was used himself to swear "by the caper," as Empodus relates in his Memorabilia.

10. And at Athens the cabbage used to be given to women who had just been delivered, as a sort of medicine, having a tendency to add to their nourishment. Accordingly, Ephippus, in his Geryones, says—

And Antiphanes, in his Parasite, speaks of the cabbage as an economical food, in the following lines, where he says—

And Diphilus says, in his Insatiable Man,—

And Alcæeus, in his Palæstra, says—

And Polyzelus, in his Birth of the Muses, names cabbages; and says—

11. The next thing to be mentioned is beet-root. Of beet-root (according to the opinion of Theophrastus), the white is more juicy than the black, and it contains less seed, and it is the kind which is called the Sicilian beet. But, says he, the beet called σευτλὶς is a different kind from the τεῦτλον. On which account, Diphilus the comic poet, in his drama called the Hero, reproaches some one for speaking incorrectly, and for calling τεῦτλα, τευτλίδας. And Eudemus, in his treatise on Vegetables, says that there are four kinds of τεὖτλα: there is the kind which may be pulled, the kind with a stalk, the white kind, and the common kind; and this last is of a brown colour. But Diphilus the Siphnian says that the beet which he calls σεύτλιον is more juicy than the cabbage, and is also, in a moderate degree, more nutritious; and it ought to be boiled and eaten with mustard, and that then it has a tendency to attenuate the blood, and to destroy worms; but the white kind is better for the stomach, while the black is more diuretic. He says, also, that their roots are more pleasing to the palate, and more nutritious.

12. Then there is the carrot. "This vegetable," says Diphilus, "is harsh, but tolerably nutritious, and moderately good for the stomach; but it passes quickly through the bowels, and causes flatulence: it is indigestible, diuretic, and not without some influence in prompting men to amatory feelings; on which account it is called a philtre by some people." And Numenius, in his Man fond of Fishing, says—

And Nicander, in the second book of his Georgics, says—

Theophrastus also mentions the carrot; and Phænias, in the fifth book of his treatise on Plants, speaks as follows:—"But as to the nature of the seed, the plant which is called σὴψ and the seed of the carrot are much alike." And in his first book he says—"The following plants have seed in pods of umbellated form: the anise, fennel, the carrot, the bur-parsley, hemlock, coriander, and aconite (which some call mousekiller)." But, since Nicander has mentioned the arum, I must also add that Phænias, in the book which I have just mentioned, writes thus:—"The dracontium, which some call arum or aronia." But Diocles, in the first book of his treatise on the Wholesomes, calls the carrot, not σταφυλῖνος, but ἀσταφύλινος. There is also another kind which is called καρωτὸν, which is a large and well-grown carrot, more juicy than the σταφυλῖνος, and more heating,—more diuretic, very good for the stomach, and very easily digested, as Diphilus assures us.

13. Then there is the κεφαλωτὸν, or leek, which the same Diphilus says is also called πράσιον; and he says that it is superior to the kind called the sliced-leek, and that it has some effect in attenuating the blood, and is nutritious, and apt to cause flatulence. But Epænetus, in his Cookery Book, says that the leeks are also called γηθυλλίδες; and I find this name occurring in Eubulus, in his Pornoboscus, where he says—

But some say that the γηθυλλὶς is the same as the peculiar kind of leek called γήθυον, which Phrynichus mentions in his Saturn. And Didymus, interpreting that play, says that the γήθυον resembles the leek called the vine-leek, or ἀμπελόπρασον; and he says that they are also called ἐπιθυλλίδες. And Epicharmus also mentions the gethyllides in his Philoctetes, where he says—

And Aristophanes, in his second Æolosicon, says—

And Polemo the geographer, in his book on Samothrace, says that Latona had a longing for the gethyllis, writing as follows:—"Among the Delphians, at the festival which they call the Theoxenia, there is a rule that whoever brings the largest gethyllis to Latona shall receive a portion of food from off her table; and I myself have seen a gethyllis as big as a turnip or as the round rape. And men say that Latona, when she was pregnant with Apollo, longed for the gethyllis; on which account it is treated with this respect."

14. Next comes the gourd. But as gourds were served round to us in the winter season, every one marvelled, thinking that they were fresh gourds; and we recollected what the beautiful Aristophanes said in his Seasons, praising the glorious Athens in these lines:—

At all events, we were astonished eating cucumbers in the month of January; for they were green, and full of their own peculiar flavour, and they happened to have been dressed by cooks who above all men knew how to dress and season such things. Laurentius, therefore, asked whether the ancients were acquainted with this vegetable, or with this way of dressing it. And Ulpian said—Nicander the Colophonian, in the second book of his Georgics, mentions this way of dressing the vegetable, calling the gourds not κολόκυνται, but σίκυαι; for, indeed, that was one of their names, as we have said before. And his words are:—

15. The next thing to be mentioned is poultry. And since poultry was placed on the gourds and on other scraped (κνιστὰ) vegetables, (and this is what Aristophanes in his Delian Woman says of chopped up vegetables, “κνιστὰ, or pressed grapes,”) Myrtilus said,—But now, in our time, we have got into a habit of calling nothing ὄρνιθας or ὀρνίθια but pullets, of which I see a quantity now being brought round. (And Chrysippus the philosopher, in the fifth book of his Treatise on what is Honourable and Pleasant, writes thus—"As some people insist upon it that white pullets are nicer than black ones.") And the names given to the male fowl are ἀλεκτρυόνες and ἀλεκτορίδες. But anciently, men were accustomed to use the word ὄρνις, both in the masculine and feminine gender, and to apply it to other birds, and not to this species in particular to the exclusion of others, as is now done when we speak of buying birds, and mean only poultry. Accordingly, Homer says,

And in another place he uses the word in the feminine gender, and says—

And in another place he says—

again using ὄρνις in the feminine gender. But Menander in his first edition of the Heiress, uses the word plainly in the sense in which it is used at the present day; saying—

And again, he writes—

But Cratinus, in his Nemesis, has used the form ὀρνίθιον, saying—

And they use not only the form ὄρνιν, but also that of ὄρνιθα, in the masculine gender. The same Cratinus says in the same play—

And again, he says—

And Sophocles, in his Antenoridæ, says—

And Æschylus, in his Cabiri, says—

And Xenophon, in the second book of his Cyropædia, says—"Going in pursuit of birds (τοὺς ὄρνιθας) in the severest winter." And Menander, in his Twin Sisters, says—

And immediately afterwards he has

And that they often used ὄρνεις as the plural form we have the evidence of Menander to prove to us: and also Alcman says somewhere or other—

And Eupolis, in his Peoples, says—

16. But, on the other hand, the ancients sometimes also used the word ἀλεκτρυὼν in the feminine gender for a hen. Cratinus, in his Nemesis, says—

And Strattis, in his Men Fond of Cold, says—

And Anaxandrides says, in his Tereus—

And since I have mentioned this comic poet, and as I know, too, that this play of his, namely Tereus, is not reckoned one of his best, I will also bring forward, my friends, for your judgment, what Chamæleon of Heraclea has said about him in the sixth book of his treatise on Comedy; where he uses the following language:—"Anaxandrides once, publishing a dithyrambic poem at Athens, entered the city on a horse, and recited some lines of his Ode. And he was a very fine, handsome man to look at; and he let his hair grow, and wore a purple robe with golden fringes, but being a man of a bitter disposition he was in the habit of behaving in some such manner as this with respect to his comedies. Whenever he did not get the victory he took his play and sent it to the frankincense market to be torn up to pack bunches of frankincense in, and did not revise it as most people did. And in this way he destroyed many clever and elegant plays; being, by reason of his old age, very sulky with the spectators. And he is said to have been a Rhodian by birth, of the city of Camirus: and I wonder therefore how it was that his Tereus got preserved, since it did not obtain the victory; and I feel the same wonder in the case of others by the same author. And Theopompus, in his Peace, also uses the word ἀλεκτρύων for hens, speaking thus—

And Aristophanes, in his Dædalus, says—

And in another place he says—

And in the Clouds, where he is explaining to the old man the difference between the names, he says—

And we find the cock called ἀλεκτορὶς and ἀλέκτωρ. And Simonides writes—

And Cratinus, in his Seasons, says—

And he has this name from rousing us from our beds (λέκτρον). But the Dorians, who write ὄρνις with a ξ, ὄρνιξ, make the genitive with a χ, ὄρνιχος. But Alcman writes the nominative with a ς, saying—

Though I am aware that he too makes the genitive with a χ, saying—

17. The next thing to be mentioned is the pig, under the name of δέλφαξ. Epicharmus calls the male pig δέλφαξ in his Ulysses the Deserter, saying—

And Anaxilus also, in his Circe, has used the word δέλφαξ in the masculine gender; and moreover has used it of a full-grown pig, saying—

But Aristophanes, in his Fryers, applies the word to female pigs, and says—

And in his Acharnians he says—

And Eupolis, in his Golden Age, uses it as feminine; and Hipponax wrote—