178	THESLAVES	VII
been occasional parallels to the many mythical stones in which
a conquering hero takes an enslaved captive girl as his mistress.
Quite another matter, though usually also slaves, were the
professional hetaerae, 'mercenary women', 'common women' *
They were of very different origin, and included Greeks as
well as barbarians.   Besides Corinth and Megara, which are
often mentioned, Lesbos seems to have been especially the
home also of this kind of love.2   The comedians in general
exhibit a very low type of hetaera, and we may assume that the
girl who was able to meet men on a high intellectual level, such
as we hear of more frequently in the following centuries, as for
instance Isokrates' friend Lagiska, was an exception m the days
of Aspasia 3   Flute-players, however, and dancers formed a
large number of the hetaerae (see Plates IX, XV) 4    They
might belong to a master who hired them out, lived on their
earnings and often cruelly exploited them.5   Other hetaerae
had no special accomplishment > fond of dresses and perfumes,
they lived on love and for love, protected by 'master, friend and
lover' 6  Some of them lived with their lovers, or even with two
lovers.7 It is not surprising that these girls, partly free women,
but the great majority of them slaves, sometimes had sexual
relations also with slaves.8  Lysias tells us that many hetaerae
gave up their profession when still very young; they were prob-
ably free women or manumitted slaves who had induced their
lovers to marry them 9  Many of the hetaerae lived alone, and
were dependent on the business efficiency of procurers and,
even more frequently, procuresses.10 Some of them were very
well known all over the town, and one man would ask another.
'Have  you   been   spending  the   night   at  that   impertinent
strumpet's?'11 Another could be admired for her beauty which
1	Andokides IV, 14 — Phryn 74 — ire^ai, Eupolis 169, Plat 155. Another
expression is inexplicable KacroApaSss, frg 478
2	Stratfcs 26 — Pherekr  149
3	Lagiska Strattis 3
4	W 1353, 1368, Plat  155, Arckipp 27, Metag 4, Anstagoras 2 — C 996^
F 5i4ff,Krates 27, Eupolis 77.
5	Mymlos 4, cf Xen. symp , passim
6	£721, 1117 —Lysias, frg  18
7	P 439f — Lysias IV, 8.
8	W.soo,E-72i.
9	Lysias, frg 44, Isaios III, 17
*o L 957f, Th 3355; 1177$ adesp  8
11 K 765, W 1032, Tli 98, 805, Fi328 —Eupolis 344