Wednesday, October 23, 2013

M. E. XXXIV

Furina An early Latin goddess, whose name in the time of Varro, was known to very few ( Varr. L. L. v. 3 ). There was a sacred grove of this goddess beyond the Tiber ( in which Gaius Gracchus was slain ), and this, with the similitude of the name, led Cicero and others to identify Furina with the Furies ( Cic. N. D. iii. 18 ). The Furinalia were celebrated on the 25th of July.

Acoetes A sailor saved by Bacchus for having espoused the cause of the god when the rest of the crew desired to sell him as a slave. The legend will be found narrated under the title DIONYSUS.

Myrtilus [L., fr. Gr. Myrtilos.] Gr. Myth. The charioteer of Oenomaus ( See HIPPODAMIA ). He was slain by Pelops, laying a curse upon the latter's house.

Protogonos [Gr. prōtogonos firstborn.] Gr. Relig. A form assumed by Eros in Orphism, conceived as generator of the universe.

Aestas [L. See ESTIVAL.] Rom. Relig. A goddess, personification of summer.

Arges [Gr. Argēs, lit., bright.] Gr. Myth. One of the Cyclops.

Chrysippus 2. Class. Myth. a youth who was abducted by King Laius.

Melaenis Class. Myth. an epithet of Aphrodite, meaning "black."

Eudorus ( in the Iliad ) a son of Polymela and Hermes who ledthe Myrmidons in battle against the Trojans.

Celeuthea Class. Myth. an epithet of Athena, meaning "she of the road."

Zagreus In Greek mythology, a son of Zeus and Persephone slain by the Titans and revived as Dionysus. See ORPHIC MYSTERIES.

Auxo Class. Myth. one of the Graces.

Cyllenian adj. [L. Cyllenius, fr. Gr. Kyllēnios.] Of or pertaining to Mount Cyllene, in Arcadia, the fabled birthplace of Hermes, who was hence called Cyllenius; also, of or pertaining to Hermes, th god of commerce, thieving, lying, etc.,; as, Cyllenian art, thievery.

Pasithea Class. Myth. one of the Graces.

Keres In Greek mythology, malignant spirits and bringers of evil.  [ < Gk. Kēres ]

Aeolus  [L., fr. Gr. Aiolos.Class. Myth. In the Odyssey, the ruler of "the Aeolian isle," Having dominion over the winds; later, as in the Aeneid, the god of the winds, which he kept confined in caves or released at the bidding of Jove. A king of Thessaly, founder of the Aeolians branch of the Greeks.

Cabiri a group of gods, probably of Eastern origin, worshiped in mysteries in various parts of ancient Greece, the cult centers being at Samothrace and Thebes. Also, Cabeiri, Kabeiri. ― Cabirean, Cabirian, Cabiric, Cabiritic adj.

Achelous Greek Mythology. the river god, represented as a bull with a human head.

Mygdon The son of Acmon, who fought against the Amazons, and from whom some of the Phrygians are said to have been called Mygdonides ( Pausan. x. 27 ).

Achaemenides A companion of Odysseus, who left him behind in Sicily when he fled from the Cyclops ( Verg. Aen. iii. 614 ).

Acmonides A name given by Ovid to one of the three Cyclops ( q. v. ), called by Vergil Pyracmon, and by other writers Arges.

Curetis (1) A name given to Crete, as being the residence of the Curetes ( Ovid, Met. viii. 136 ). See CURETES. (2) The earlier name of Aetolia.

Aeolides Class. Myth. an epithet applied to descendants of Aeolus.

Talthybius Class. Myth. a herald of Agamemnon who related much tragic news, always with compassion.

Phthia Class. Myth. 1. the mother, by Apollo, of Dorus, Laodocus, and Polypoetes. 2. ( in the Iliad ) the concubine of Amyntor who was seduced by Phoenix, Amyntor's son, at his mother's request.

Lityerses [Gr. Lityērses.] Gr. Myth. A son of Midas accustomed to challenge wayfarers to a reaping-song contest and to bind their heads in the sheaves; also, a reaper's song. Cf. LINUS.

Criophorus [NL. See CRIOPHORE.] Gr. Relig. An epithet of Hermes as protector of flocks.

veritas [L.] Truth; also [cap.], the personification of truth.

Dorium A town of Messenia, where Thamyris the musician challenged the Muses to a trial of skill. Pausanias ( iv. 33 ) notices this ancient town, of which he saw the ruins near a fountain named Achaia.

Anticlea [L., fr. Gr. Antikleia.] 1. Gr. Myth. The mother of Odysseus.

Hippotades A son of Hippotes, and hence = Aeolus. From him the Aeoliae Insulae are called Hippotadae Regnum ( Ovid, Met. xiv. 86 ).

Leucé An island in the Euxine Sea, near the mouth of the Borysthenes. It derived its name from its white, sandy shores. According to the poets, the souls of the ancient heroes were placed here as in the Elysian Fields, and enjoyed perpetual felicity. Here, too, the shade of Achilles is fabled to have been united to that of Helen.

Virginia [L. Virginia, Verginia, fem. of Verginius, Vriginius.] 1. Feminine proper name. 2. In Roman legend, the innocent daughter of the centurion Lucius Virginius. Her beauty having excited the lustful of the decemvir Appius Claudius, he instigated one of his clients to seize her and claim her as his slave. When, however, Appius was about to give judgement in his client's favor, Virginius, seizing a butcher's knife, slew his daughter. This so aroused the city and camp that the decemvirs were deprived of their power. Virginius, being made Tribune, put Appius in prison, where he took his own life.

Hippona A goddess who presided over horses. Her statues were placed in horses' stables ( Juv. viii. 157 ).

Diomedeae Insulae Five small islands in the Adriatic Sea, north of the promontory Garganum in Apulia, named after Diomedes. ( See DIOMEDES. ) The largest of these, called Diomeda Insula or Trimerus ( Tremiti ), was the place whither Iulia, the daughter of Augustus, was exiled ( Tac. Ann. iv. 71 ).

Lips The southwest wind ( Herod. ii. 25 ), corresponding to the Latin Africus.

Polyxena [L., fr. Gr. Polyxenē.] A daughter of Priam and Hecuba, betrothed to Achilles. At their wedding Paris treacherously slew Achilles, and after the fall of Troy Polyxena was sacrificed to his shade. Another story relates that she fell in love with Achilles, fled to the Greeks, and after Achilles's death killed herself on his tomb. See HECUBA.

Inachidae A name given to the first eight successors of Inachus ( q. v. ) on the throne of Argos.

Echion Class. Myth. one of the Sparti, the husband of Agave and father of Pentheus.

Agraulos the Younger Class. Myth. a daughter of Cecrops and Agraulos who was changed into stone for inciting the wrath of Hermes.

Licymnius (1) A son of Electryon and the Phrygian slave Midea, and consequently half-brother of Alcmené. He was married to Perimedé, by whom he became the father of Oeonus, Argeus, and Melas. He was a friend of Heracles, whose son Tlepolemus slew him, according to some unintentionally, and according to others in a fit of anger.

Labdacides A name given to Oedipus as descended from Labdacus. See OEDIPUS.

Pandean adj. Of or pertaining to the god Pan.

Acholoë [NL., fr. Gr. Acholoē, name of a harpy.]

a-1898 Harper's Dict. of Class. Literature & Antiquities