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MAI FEB 08 1991
MAI FEB 1 6 1993
. MAI MAR 021993
THE LOEB CLASSICAL -LIBRARY
FOUNDED BY JAMBS LOKB, IX.D.
EDITED BY
fT. E. PAGE, C.H., LITT.B.
E. CAPPS, PH.D., LL.D. W. H. D. BOUSE, LITT.D.
L. A. POST, H.A. E. H. WARMINGTON, M.A.
PLINY
NATURAL HISTORY
III
LIBRI YIII-XI
PLINY
NATURAL HISTORY
WITH AN ENGLISH TRANSLATION
IN TEN VOLUMES
VOLUME lit
LIBRI VIII-XI
BY
IL RACKHAM, M.A.
MffitJ.OW OF 1 CHIUSr'S COLLKGK, CAMBIUDaK
LONDON
WILLIAM HK1NKMANN LTD
rAMBUlDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS
MOMXL
Printnl in Grtoi Bnt&in
PREFACE
TRANSLATIONS are usually designed either to present
the thought of a foreign writer in the English most
appropriate to it, without regard to the peculiarities
of his style (so far as style and thought can be dis-
tinguished), or, on the contrary, to convey to the
English reader, as far as is possible, the style as well
as the thought of the foreign original.
It would seem, however, that neither of these
objects should be the primary aim of a translator
constructing a version that is to be printed facing the
original text. In these circumstances the purpose
of the version is to assist the reader of the original
to understand its meaning. This modest intention
must guide the choice of a rendering for each phrase
or sentence, and considerations of English style are
of necessity secondary.
A few biographical notes on persons mentioned
by the author will be found in the index.
NOTE ON NOMENCLATURE
In identifying the zoological sptr.ictt described in thw volume
I am indebted for did to mi/ friend* find totfatfrtw Jlr. */* 2\
jftowflfltefrtt, tfl/b ^$# (jrrwtf through the whoh and gir&n m& the
modern equivalents of the Latin wwea ; altfmtgh /te twm ti^f
that in a good wiany ca$eft the %d$ntifiG($tion is d&u&tful.
Thwe are consequemUy some discrepancies belitmn the nmwn-
clature, in the, tran$laian here and tfuti wed in Bnok f, i!Ae
Table of Contents. Pliny jwemm&hly compiled %t afitr rom-
pitting the rest of the uwr& ; but (t$ tditorial exig&mi&s pw&twi&i
the pofitptftiement of Volume I of tM# translation till the (tihtr*
mr& finished 1 1 had to b& content, for Book l t with th& r$nd$ring
given in Lewiti and $hort or in Rostock rtw! jKil^y^ tranrftttinn*
H. B.
CONTENTS
IPREIB'AOE .,.....
PAQK
Y
INTRODUCTION . * . ,
...... is
BOOK VIII
1
BOOK IX .
163
BOOK 3C
291
BOOK XI , 431
INDEX , . . ^ . 613
Vll
INTRODUCTION
THIS volume contains Books VIII-XI of Pliny's
Naturalis Historia\ their subject is Zoology.
The detailed contents will be found in Pliny's
own outline of his work, which, with lists of the
authorities used for each Book, constitutes Book I;
for Books VIII-XI see Volume I, pp. 40-64, of this
edition.
Book VIII deals with various mammals, wild and
domesticated; and among them are introduced
snakes, crocodiles and lizards.
Book IX treats aquatic species, including Nereids,
Tritons and the sea-serpent. There are considerable
passages on their economic aspects the use of fish
as food, pearls, dyes obtained from fish, and on their
physiology, sensory and reproductive.
Book X. Ornithology : hawks trained for fowling ;
birds of evil omen ; domestication of birds for food ;
talking birds; reproduction. Appendix on other
viviparous species, passing on to animals in general
their methods of reproduction, senses, nutrition,
friendship and hostility between different species,
sleep.
Book XL Insects, their physiology and habits
especially bees, silk-worms, spiders. Classification
of animals by varieties of bodily structure animal
and human physiology.
IX
PLINY :
NATURAL HISTORY
BOOK VIII
VOL, III.
PL1NU: NATURALIS HISTORIA
I.I HER VIII
I, AD reliqua Iranseamus anhnalia rt primum
tervostria.
Maximum csi dephans proximumquo humanis
sensibus, quippe intellect us illis sermonis patrii et
hnpcrioruiu obcdientia, oftieiorum (juao didk'civ
inomovia, ainoris et gloviae vuluptas, hnino vero
qviae otiuiu in homine rani, probitas, prudcntia,
aequitfts, roligio quoqut 1 , siclerum solistjiu*. ac lunac
2 voncratio. auctin-cs stint in Mauretaniae saltibus
acl quondam amncrn cui notnon est Anulo niU'so<*nt<*
lima nova grogcs eorum divscondcri^ ibiquo se puri-
ficnntes sollemniter aqua eircimmpergi atqu it a
salutato sidore in silvas rovcrti vitulorum faiigatos
l\ prae so lorenlcs. alienae quoquc vcligioiiis Intel-
lectu creduniuv maria transit uri non ante navcvs con-
Kcenclere qtwm invilati reotoris iuroiurando de reditu*
visique simt fessi aegritudine (quando et illas moles
infestant niorbi) herbas supini in oaelunx iadentes,
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
BOOK VIII
I. LET us pass to the rest of the animals, and first zoology.
those that live on land, 2^
The largest land animal is the elephant, and it is The tie-
the nearest to man in intelligence : it understands '
the language of its country and obeys orders 3 remem- [
bers duties that it has been taught, is pleased by
affection and by marks of honour, nay more it
possesses virtues rare even in man, honesty, wis-
dom, justice, also respect for the stars and reverence
for the sun and moon. Authorities state that in
the forests of Mauretania, when the new moon is
shining, herds of elephants go down to a river named
Amilo and there perform a ritual of purification,
sprinkling themselves with water, and after thus
paying their respects to the moon return to the
woods carrying before them those of their calves
who are tired. They are also believed to understand
the obligations of another's religion in so far as to
refuse to embark on board ships when going overseas
before they are lured on by the mahout's sworn
promise in regard to their return, And they have
been seen when exhausted by suffering (as even
those vast frames are attacked by diseases) to lie
on their backs and throw grass up to the heaven,
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
vcluti iclluro preeilms allegata. nam quod ml
doeiliiutcm at thief regain adorant, genua submit tunU
coronas porrigunt. hulls arant minores, quo** appel-
lant no thus.
4 TI, Romae iunoti priinuin subiere eurrum Pompei
Magni Africano tviumpho, quod prius India victa
triumphant e Libero patre memoratur. Prociliu^
negat potuisse Pompoi triumplio iunotos ogredi
port a. (Jennaniei Cacsaris muncre gladiatono quos-
dam ctiam inconditos meatus 1 edidere saltanthnn
r> modo, vulgare crat per auras anna iaccrc non
aufor<*nlil)iis vcntis atque Inter se gladiatorios con-
gressas edcre aut lascivicnti pyrriche conludere.
postea (it per funes inccssere, lecticis etiaiu fiTcntt\s
quaterni singulos puerperas imitant(s, ploniKquc
homine tricliniis accubiium ierc per lectos it a libra Hs
i> vestigils ne quls potantium nttingeretur. III*
Cerium esfc unum tardioris ingenti in accipicndi^
quae tradebantur saepius castigatum verberibus
eadem ilia meditantcm noct.u rcpcrtum. minwn
et advcrsis quidcm funibus subirc, sed maxime *
regredi, 3 utiquc pronis, Mucianus ni constil auot<ir
csfc aliquem ex his efe litterarum ductu-s Graeearum
didioisse solitutnquc pcrscribere eitis linguae verbis :
1 vj. mottis.
8 maxnno hie Mayhoff: paxt nii
i magis.
BOOK VIII. i. 3-in. 6
as though deputing the earth to support their prayers.
Indeed so far as concerns docility, they do homage
to their king by kneeling before him and proffering
garlands. The Indians employ the smaller breed,
which they call the bastard elephant, for ploughing. /S ? / n
II. At Rome they were first used in harness to y*"% om
draw the chariot of Pompey the Great in his African for shows.
triumph, as they are recorded to have been used
before when Father Liber went in triumph after
his conquest of India. Procilius states that at
Pompey 's triumph the team of elephants were
unable to pass out through the gate. At the gladia-
torial show given by Germanicus Caesar some even
performed clumsy movements in figures, like dancers.
It was a common display for them to hurl weapons
through the air without the wind making them
swerve, and to perform gladiatorial matches with one
another or to play together in a sportive war-dance.
Subsequently they even walked on tight-ropes, four
at a time actually carrying in a litter one that pre-
tended to be a lady lying-in ; and walked among the
couches in dining-rooms full of people to take their
places among the guests, planting their steps care-
fully so as not to touch any of the drinking party.
III. It is known that one elephant which was rather instances o/
slow-witted in understanding instructions given to it p'~
and had been punished with repeated beatings, was
found in the night practising the same. It is sur-
prising that they can even climb up ropes, but especi-
ally that they can come down them again, at all
events when they are stretched at a slope. Mucianus
who was three times consul states that one elephant
actually learnt the shapes of the Greek letters, and
used to write out in words of that language : * I myself
5
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
Ipsc ego haee scvipsi oi spolia Celtica dioa\i,' if cin-
que se vidcnto Puteolis, cum aclvecti c nave egredi
cogerentnr, territos spatio pontis proeul a continence
porrecti, ut sese longinquitatis aesliniationo fallcrcnt,
awrsos i*etrorsus isse.
7 IV. Pniodain ipsi in se cxpott'iiduin soiinit solam
esse in armis suis quae luha cornua nppollat, llrrodo-
tuH tanto atiti(iiiior < k l consuetudo molius dcntcs;
quamobrcin dociduos casu altquo vel sencota drft>di-
\int. hoc soluni cbur cst : cclero ci in his (ju<x|uc
quae corpus intcxit vililas osso.a; (juaniquain nuper
ossa ctiam in laininas seoari coepero pacnuria^ot'onitn
rara amplitude iani dcnt.iutn praiitcrquain ex ladin
repcrihir, cetera in nostro orbc ccssore luxtiriat\
S dcntium candore intellcgitur iuvcnhi. circa hos
bcluis sununa cura: alteiius mucroni parcuni ne sit
proeliis hobes, altcrhis operario usu fodiuut radices,
inpcllunt moles ; circnmventique a vanantibun primes
constiiuunt quibus sint minumi, ne tanti proelium
putctm% postea fcssi inpactos arbori frangunt pracda-
qtio se redimunt,
V. Mirum in plerisque animalium scire quare
in, 07,
BOOK VIII. ni. 6-v. 9
wrote this and dedicated these spoils won from the
Celts ; f and also that he personally had seen elephants
that, when having been brought by sea to Pozzuoli
they were made to walk off the ship, were frightened
by the length of the gangway stretching a long way
out from the land and turned round and went
backwards, so as to cheat themselves in their estima-
tion of the distance,
IV. They themselves know that the only thing in
them that makes desirable plunder is in their weapons
which Juba calls ' horns, 5 but which the author so
greatly his senior, Herodotus, and also common usage
better term ' tusks ; ' consequently when these fall
off owing to some accident or to age they bury them
in the ground. The tusk alone is of ivory : otherwise
even in these animals too the skeleton forming the
framework of the body is common bone; albeit
recently owing to our poverty even the bones have
begun to be cut into layers, inasmuch as an ample
supply of tusks is now rarely obtained except from
India, all the rest in our world having succumbed to
luxury. A young elephant is known by the white-
ness of its tusks, The beasts take the greatest care of
them; they spare the point of one so that it may
not be blunt for fighting and use the other as an
implement for digging roots and thrusting massive
objects forward; and when surrounded by a party
of hunters they post those with the smallest tusks
in front, so that it may be thought not worth while
to fight them, and afterwards when exhausted they
break their tusks by dashing them against a tree
and ransom themselves at the price of the desired
booty.
V. It is remarkable in the case of most animals
7
PLINY; t NATURAL HISTORY
petantur, seel et fere l euneta quid eaveant* elephants
hominc obvio forte in solitudine et shnplieiter
oberrante demons plueidusque etium demonstrate
viam traditur, idem vestigio hominis animadverso
prius qunm homine inlremeseere insidiarum meiu,
subsistere olfaelu, 2 eireumspeetare, Iras proflare,
nee calcare sed erutum proxumo tradere, ilium
scquexati, simili mm Ho usque acl cxtremum, tune
agmen ciroumagi et rcvcrti acioinquc dirigi : adeo
omnium odori clurare virus illud, maiorc ex parle ne
30 nudorum quidem pedum. sic et tigris, etiam fens
eeteris truculenta atque ipsa ele.phanti quoque
spernens vestigia, hominis viso transfcrre dieitur pro-
tinus catulos quonam modo agnito, ubi ante con-
speeto illo quem limet? ctonim tales silvas minime
frequentari certum cst. sane mirentur ipsam vestigii
raritatem; sed unde sennit timcndum esse? ixnmo
vero cur vel ipsius conspectum paveant tanto
viribus, magnitudine, veloeitate praestantiores ? nimi-
runi liaee est natura reruxii, haec potentia eius,
saevissimas feramm maximasque numquam vidlsse
quod debeant timere et statim intellegere cum sit
timondum.
1 &alm. : ot per. * v.L ah olfactu.
BOOK VIII. v. 9-10
that they know why they are hunted, but also that Elephants
almost all know what they must beware of. It is said {^4.
that when an elephant accidentally meets a human
being who is merely wandering across its track in a
solitary place it is good-tempered and peaceful and
will actually show the way ; but that when on the other
hand it notices a man's footprint before it sees the
man himself it begins to tremble in fear of an ambush,
stops to sniff the scent, gazes round, trumpets
angrily, and avoids treading on the footprint but
digs it up and passes it to the next elephant, and
that one to the following, and on to the last of all
with a similar message, and then the column wheels
round and retires and a battle line is formed : since
the smell in question lasts to be scented by them all,
though in the majority of cases it is not even the
smell of bare feet. Similarly a tigress also, it is
said, even though savage to all other animals and
herself scorning the footprints even of an elephant,
when she sees the track of a human being at once
carries her cubs elsewhere though, how has she
recognized or where has she seen before the person
that she fears ? For it is certain that such forests are
very little frequented. Granted that no doubt they
may be surprised by the mere rarity of the print ;
but how do they know that it is something to be
afraid of? Indeed there is a further point, why
should they dread even the sight of a man himself
when they excel him so greatly in strength, size and
speed? Doubtless it is Nature's law and shows her
power, that the fiercest and largest wild beasts may
have never seen a thing that they ought to fear and
yet understand immediately wnen they have to
fear it.
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
11 Klephanti gregatim semper ingredumtur; dueit
agmcn maxhmis natu, oogit aetat e pro\imus. amnem
transituri minhnos praemiltunt, ne maiorum ingressu
atterente alveum ereseat gurgitis altitudo, Antipaier
auctor csi duos Autiocho irgi in bellicis usil)us ot'lehros
ctiam cognonunibus fuisse ; ctonim navrrc ca. c< k rtc
C'ato, cum inpcratoruni nornina annalibus detraxrrit,
ek'phantum l qui fortissini<* proeliatu^ os^ef in Punicn
acie Syrum tradidit vocatum allero <k'itit v mulilaio.
IL* Antiocho vadum fiuniints exponent! reuuit Aia\,
alioqui dux agminis semper; turn pronuntiatuiu eius
fore pricipatum qui transisset, ausumque Patroclum
ob id phaleris argent cis, (juo maxinie gaudeni, el
rcliquo omni primatu donavit. illc qui not abut ur
inedia mortem ignominiae praetulit ; mims namque
pudor estj victusque voeem fugit viotoris, terrain no
13 verbenas porrigit. pudore mini(juani nisi in abdito
cocunt, mas qninquennisj femina deeennis; initur
atitem biennio quinis, ut fenmt,_ euius<jue anni diebus
nee amplius, sexto perfunduntur amne, non ante
reduces ad agmcn. nee adulteria novere, nullavts
propter fominas inter so proelia eeteris animalibtis
<* Tlie term in uned of branches of bay, olive and other
trees used for ritual purpoHoH.
10
BOOK VIII. v, IT-IS
Elephants always travel in a herd; the oldest its mtti*
leads the column and the next oldest brings up the l Smil?nse
rear. When going' to ford a river they put the and affection.
smallest in front, so that the bottom may not be
worn away by the tread of the larger ones, thus
increasing the depth of the water. Antipater states
that two elephants employed for military purposes
by King Antiochus were known to the public even
by name ; indeed they know their own names. It is
a fact that Cato, although he has removed the
names of military commanders from his Annals,
has recorded that the elephant in the Carthaginian
army that was the bravest in battle was called the
Syrian, and that it had one broken tusk. When
Antiochus was trying to ford a river his elephant
Ajax refused, though on other occasions it always
led the line; thereupon Antiochus issued an
announcement that the elephant that crossed should
have the leading place and he rewarded Patroclus,
who made the venture, with the gift of silver harness,
an elephant's greatest delight, and with every other
mark of leadership. The one disgraced preferred
death by starvation to humiliation ; for the elephant
has a remarkable sense of shame, and when defeated
shrinks from the voice of its conqueror, and offers him
earth and foliage . (Z Owing to their modesty, elephants
never mate except in secret, the male at the age of
five and the female at ten ; and mating takes place
for two years, on five days, so it is said, of each year
and not more; and on the sixth day they give
themselves a shower-bath in a river, not returning
to the herd before. Adultery is unknown among
them, or any of the fighting for females that is so
disastrous to the other animals though not because
ii
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
pernieialia, nee quia desit illis amoris vis, namque
traditur unus amasse quandam in Aogypto eorallas
vendentem ac (ne quis volgaritor cleotam putet)
mire gratam Aristophani eeleberrimo in arte gramrna-
14 tioa, alius Menandrum Syracusanuni incipientis
iuventae in excrcitu Ptolomaci, desiderium eius, quo-
tiens non videret, incdia testatiis* et unguentarmm
quandam dilectam luba tradifc. omnium aniorls fuere
argumenta gaudium ad conspoctum blanditiacquc
inconditae, stipesque quas poptilus dcdisset servatae
et in sinum cffusae. nee mirurn esc amorom quibus
15 sitmemoria, idem namque tradit agnitum in senecta
multos post annos qui rector in iuventa fuisset ; idem
divinationem quandam iustitiae, cum Bacchus rex
triginta elephantis totidem in quos saevire instituerat
sttpitibus adligatos obiecisset, procursantibus inter
cos qui lacesserent, nee l potuisse cffici ut crudelitatis
alienae ministcrio fungcrcntur.
i VL Elephantos Italia primum vidit Pyrri regis
bello et boves Lucas appellavit in Lucanis viso anno
urbis ccccLXxiv, 2 Boma autem in triumpho v 3
annis ad superiorem numerum additis, eadem pluri-
mos anno DII victoria L, Metelli pontificis in Sicilia
1 v*L non.
The MS. reading crronwmnly gives tho dato of Pyrrlnis's
invasion as A.tr.c. 472, 282 t*.a. and ao it puts th mumph
of M*Curius Dentatua after defeating Fyrrhus at Jtenoventum
(A*U,C. 479, 275 B.C.) sovon years later.
12
BOOK VIIL v. i 3 -vL 16
they are devoid of strong affection, for it is re-
ported that one elephant in Egypt fell in love with a
girl who was selling flowers, and (that nobody may
think that it was a vulgar choice) who was a remark-
able favourite of the very celebrated scholar Aris-
tophanes ; and another elephant is said to have fallen
in love with a young soldier in Ptolemy's army, a
Syracusan named Menander, and whenever it did
not see him to have shown its longing for him by
refusing food. Also Juba records a girl selling scent
who was loved by an elephant. In all these cases
the animals showed their affection by their delight
at the sight of the object and their clumsy gestures
of endearment, and by keeping the branches given
to them by the public and showering them in the
loved one's lap. Nor is it surprising that animals
possessing memory are also capable of affection.
For the same writer records a case of an elephant's
recognizing many years later in old age a man who
had been its mahout in its youth, and also an instance
of a sort of insight into justice, when King Bocchus
tied to stakes thirty elephants which he intended to
punish and exposed them to a herd of the same
number, men running out among them to provoke
them to the attack, and it proved impossible to make
them perform the service of ministering to another's
cruelty,
VI. Italy saw elephants for the first time in the Mrsta
war with King Pyrrhus, and called them Lucan ^
oxen because they were seen in Lucania, 280 a B.C. ; wi
but Rome first saw them at a date five years later,
in a triumph, and also a very large number that were
captured from the Carthaginians in Sicily by the
victory of the pontiff Lucius Metellus, 252 B.C.
13
PUNY: NATURAL HTSTOKY
do Poenis captos. cxui fuerc aut, ut quidnm, rxL
travecti ratibxis quas doliorum consertis ordinibus
17 inposuernt. Vcrrius cos pugnasse in circo inter-
fectosque iaoulis tradit, paenuria eonsiliu quoniam
neque all placuisset nequc donari rcgibus; L. Piso
indue tos dunxtaxat in exrcutu at quo, ut oontcmptus
eorum inoresceret, ah opcrariis Imstas praopilataH
habentibxis per cirouni totxmi actos. nee qwld dcinde
iis factum sit auctores explicant qui nan putant
interfectos,
IB VII. Clara est unius e Romania dimicatio ad ver-
sus elephanturn, cum Hannibal captivos nostros
dimicarc inter sese coegisset, namque unurn qui
supererat obiecit elephanto, ct ille, dimitti pactus i
interemisset, solus in harena congressus magno
Poenorum dolorc confccit. Hannibal, cum fnmam
eius dimicationis contemptum adlaturam beluis
intdlegeret, equites misit qui abeuntern interficerent*
proboscidem eorum facillime amputari Pyrri proelio-
19 rum experimentis patuit, Romae pugnasse Fenestella
tradit primum omnium in circo Claudi Pulohri
aedilitate curuli M. Antonio A. Postumio coss. anno
xirbis DCLV, item post annos viginti Lucullorum
20 aedilitate curuli adversus tauros* Pompei quoque
4 55 B,O.
14
BOOK VIII. vi. ifr-vn. 20
There were 142 of them, or by some accounts 140,
and they had been brought over on rafts that
Metellus constructed by laying decks on rows of
casks lashed together. Verrius records that they
fought in the Circus and were killed with javelins,
because it was not known what use to make of them,
as it had been decided not to keep them nor to
present them to native kings ; Lucius Piso says that
they were merely led into the Circus, and in order to
increase the contempt felt for them were driven all
round it by attendants carrying spears with a button
on the point. The authorities who do not think that
they were killed do not explain what was done with
them afterwards,
VII. There is a famous story of one of the Romans
fighting single-handed against an elephant, on the j
occasion when Hannibal had compelled his prisoners the circus.
from our army to fight duels with one another. For
he pitted one survivor against an elephant, and this
man, having secured a promise of his freedom if he
killed the animal, met it single-handed in the arena
and much to the chagrin of the Carthaginians dis-
patched it, Hannibal realized that reports of this
encounter would bring the animals into contempt, so
he sent horsemen to kill the man as he was departing.
Experiences in our battles with Pyrrhus made it
clear that it is very easy to lop off an elephant's
trunk. Fenestella states that the first elephant
fought in the circus at Rome in the curule aedileship
of Claudius Pulcher and the consulship of Marcus
Antonius and Aulus Postumius, 99 B.C., and also that
the first fight of an elephant against bulls was twenty
years later in the curule aedileship of the Luculll
Also in Pompey's second consulship,* 1 at the dedica-
PUNY: NATURAL HISTORY
altero consulatu, decllcatione templi Veneris Victricis,
viginti pugnavere in eirco aut, ut quidam tradunt,
xvn, Gaetulis ex advcrsa iaculantibus, mirabili
xmius dimicationc, qui pedibus confossis repsit genibus
in catervas, abrcpta scuta iaciens in sublime, quae
decidentia voluptati speetantibus erant in orboni
circumacta, velut ai'te non furore beluae iacerentur,
magnum et in altero miraeulum fuit uno ictu ocoiso ;
pilum ctcnim l sub oculo adactum in vitalia oapitis
venerat, xmiversi cruptioncm tomptaverc, non sine
vexationc populi, circutndatis claustris ferrci?. qua
de causa Caesar dictator postea simile spectaoulum
editurus euripis harenam oircumdedit, quos Nero
princcps sustulit equiti loca addens, sed Pompeinni
missa ftigae spc misericordiam vulgi incnarrabili
habitu quaerentcs supplicavere quadam sesc lamcn-
tatione conplorantes, tanto populi dolore ut obli-
tus imperatoris ac munificentiaa honori sue exquisitae
fiens uni versus consurgeret dirasque Pompeio quas
ille mox luit 2 inprecaretur. pugnavere et Caesari
dictatori tertio consulatu eius viginti contra pedites
D, iterumque totidem turriti cum sexagenis pro-
1 etenim? MayHoff: an torn.
8 v.L luit poenaa.
49 BO * 40 B,C,
16
BOOK VIII. VII. 20-22
tion of the Temple of Venus Victrix, twenty, or, as
some record, seventeen, fought in the Circus, their
opponents being Gaetulians armed with javelins, one
of the animals putting up a marvellous fight its feet
being disabled by wounds it crawled against the
hordes of the enemy on its knees, snatching their
shields from them and throwing them into the air,
and these as they fell delighted the spectators by
the curves they described, as if they were being
thrown by a skilled juggler and not by an infuriated
wild animal. There was also a marvellous occurrence
in the case of another, which was killed by a single
blow, as the javelin striking it under the eye had
reached the vital parts of the head. The whole
band attempted to burst through the iron palisading
by which they were enclosed and caused considerable
trouble among the public. Owing to this, when
subsequently Caesar in his dictatorship a was going to
exhibit a similar show he surrounded the arena with
channels of water ; these the emperor Nero removed
when adding special places for the Knighthood,
But Pompey's elephants when they had lost all hope
of escape tried to gain the compassion of the crowd
by indescribable gestures of entreaty, deploring
their fate with a sort of wailing, so much to the
distress of the public that they forgot the general and
his munificence carefully devised for their honour,
and bursting into tears rose in a body and invoked
curses on the head of Pompey for which he soon
afterwards paid the penalty. Elephants also fought
for the dictator Caesar in his third consulship, 6 twenty
being matched against 500 foot soldiers, and on a
second occasion an equal number carrying castles
each with a garrison of GO men, who fought a pitched
17
VOL. m. c
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
pugnatoribus eodem quo priore numero peditum et
pari equitum ex adverse dimicante, postea singuli
principibus Claudio et Neroni in consummatione
gladiatorum.
23 Ipsius animalis tanta narratur dementia contra
minus validos ut in grege pecudum occurrentia manu
dimoveat, ne quod obterat inprudens. nee nisi
lacessiti nocent, idque cum gregatim semper ambu-
lent, minime ex omnibus solivagi. equitatu circum-
venti mfirmos aut fessos vulneratosve in medium
agmen recipiunt, aciei 1 velut imperio aut ratione per
vices subeunt.
24 Capti celerrime mitificantur hordei suco. VIII.
capiuntur autem in India unum ex domitis agente
rector e qui deprehensum solitarium abactumve a
grege verberet ferum; quo fatigato transcendit in
eum nee secus ac priorem regit. Africa foveis capit,
in quas deerrante aliquo protinus ceteri congerunt
ramos, moles devolvunt, aggeres construunt, omni-
25 que vi conantur extrahere. ante domitandi gratia
reges equitatu cogebant in convallem manu factam
et longo tractu fallacem, cuius inclusos ripis fossisque
fame domabant: argumentum erat ramus homine
1 JtaMam (acie Mneller] : ac.
18
BOOK VIII. vii. 22-vm. 25
battle against the same number of infantry as on the
former occasion and an equal number of cavalry ; and
subsequently for the emperors Claudius and Nero
elephants versus men single-handed, as the crowning
exploit of the gladiators' careers.
A story is told that the animal's natural gentleness Gentleness of
towards those not so strong as itself is so great that ek P hants
if it gets among a flock of sheep it will remove with
its trunk those that come in its way, so as not
unwittingly to crush one. Also they never do any
harm unless provoked, and that although they go
about in herds, being of all animals the least solitary
in habit. When surrounded by horsemen they with-
draw the weak ones or those that are exhausted or
wounded into the middle of their column, and
advance into the fighting line in relays as if by
command or strategy.
When captured they are very quickly tamed by Elephants
means of barley juice. VIII. The method of cap- ^ r
turing them in India is for a mahout riding one of turn and
the domesticated elephants to find a wild elephant ^^ '
alone or detach it from the herd and to flog it, and
when it is tired out he climbs across on to it and
manages it as he did his previous mount. Africa
captures elephants by means of pit-falls ; when an
elephant straying from the herd falls into one of
these all the rest at once collect branches of trees
and roll down rocks and construct ramps, exerting
every effort in the attempt to get it out. Previously
for the purpose of taming them the kings used to
round them up with horsemen into a trench made
by hand so as to deceive them by its length, and
when they were enclosed within its banks and ditches
they were starved into submission ; the proof of this
19
c2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
porrigente clement or accept us. nune deniium
20 causa podes eorum iaeulantur alioqui mollissimos.
Trogodytae eonlermini Aethiopiae, qui hoc solo
vcnatu aluntur, propinquas it men eorum conseondunt
arborcsj inde totius agminis iwussinwm spt^culati
extrcinas in dunes desiliunl ; larva d])rehenditur
oauda, pedcs stipaniur in sinistro feminc; ita
pcndens alterum poplitcm dexlra caedit ae l praeacut a
bipenni, hoc crure tardato profugienti a alterius
poplitis ncrvos ferit, ctinota praeceleri pernicitate
pcragens* alii tutiore generc sed magis fallaci
ingentos arcus intentos defigunt humi longius ; hos
pra( i cipai viribus iuvenos continent, alii conixi pan
conatu tondunt ac praeteretmtibus sagittarum
vice 3 venabula Infigimt, mox sanguinis vestigk
secuntur.
27 IX. Elophantorum generis feniinae multo pavi-
diores. domnntur nut em rabidi fame et verberibtiR,
elephantls aliis admotis qxii tuxnultuantcm cutenfs
coerceant, ot alias circa coitus maxime ofierantur
et stabula Indorum dentibxis sternunt. quapropter
arcent cos coitu feminarumque pecuaria soparant,
quae haud alio modo quam armentorum habent,
domiti militant et tores armatorum in dorsis ferunt,
1 t? ./. om, ao. B ftatkkcm : profugiens.
3 vioo add*
20
BOOK VIII. viii, 25-ix. 27
would be if when a man held out a branch to them
they gently took it from him. At the present day
hunters for the sake of their tusks shoot them with
javelins in the foot, which in fact is extremely soft.
The Cavemen on the frontier of Ethiopia, whose only
food is elephant meat obtained by hunting, climb
up trees near the elephants' track and there keep a
look out for the last of the whole column and jump
down on to the hind part of its haunches ; the tail is
grasped in the man's left hand and his feet are
planted on the animal's left thigh, and so hanging
suspended, with his right hand and with a very
sharp axe he hamstrings one leg, and as the
elephant runs forward with its leg crippled he strikes
the sinews of the other leg, performing the whole
of these actions with extreme rapidity. Others
employing a safer but less reliable method fix great
bows rather deep in the ground, unbent ; these are
held in position by young men of exceptional strength,
while others striving with a united effort bend them,
and as the elephants pass by they shoot them with
hunting-spears instead of arrows and afterwards
follow the tracks of blood.
IX. The females of the genus elephant are much Training of
more timid than the males, Mad elephants can be
tamed by hunger and blows, other elephants being
'brought up to one that is unmanageable to restrain
it with chains. Besides this they get very wild
when in heat and overthrow the stables of the
Indians with their tusks. Consequently they prevent
them from coupling, and keep the herds of females
separate, in just the same way as droves of cattle
are kept* Male elephants when broken in serve in
battle and <Mry castles manned with airmed warriors
21
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
magnaquo ex pavte orient is holla eonfiehmt : pro-
stermmt ncic, proterunt armatos. iidem minhno
Kilis stridoro terrontur; vulneraUque et ferriti retro
semper cedunt haut minorc pariium sunnnn pernieie,
Indiouin Afrioi pavont noo oontuori audont, naia ef
inaior Indicia magnitudo est.
28 X. Pocem nnnis gesture in utoro vulgus exist hnat,
Avisiotolcshionnio, uoo amplius (\\imn fseincl
plurosque quam] ^ sln^ulos, vivoro duoenis
et quosdam (re* iuv(ntu corum a
inoipit. Gaudont aninihus niaxime et circa iiuxios
vagantur, cunt alio<|uin narc propter rt^agnitudinem
oorporis non possint, iidom frigoris inpatientos;
maximum hoc malum, inflationemque et profluvium
alvi nee alia morborum genera sentiunt. olei
potu tela qnne corpori eorum inhacreant decide re
29 invenio, a sudore autcni facilhis adhaereseere, et
terrain edisse iis tabificum est, nisi saepius inandant ;
devorant autem et lapides, truncos quidem gratiHsimo
in cibatu hahent, palmas excclsiorcs front** proster*
nunt atque itu inccntium absumunt fructum. man*
dunt ore, spirant et blbunt ordoranturque baud
inproprie appellata manu. animalium maxime odere
nuirem, et si pabulum in praesepio post turn attingl
ab eo videre fastidiunt. crucial um in potu maximum
This ie not the <sas.
* S0m$ MSS. give * nevet bear more than once or moro than
on at a time * ; bxit Aristotle^ statement is as above,
1L
mittake, with all the context, is from Aristotle*
22
BOOK VIII. ix. 27-x. 29
on their backs ; they are the most important factor
in eastern warfare, scattering the ranks before them
and trampling armed soldiers underfoot. Neverthe-
less they are scared by the smallest squeal of a pig;
and when wounded and frightened they always give
ground, doing as much damage to their own side as
to the enemy. African elephants are afraid of an
Indian elephant, and do not dare to look at it, as
Indian elephants are indeed of a larger size.*
X. Their period of gestation is commonly supposed Breeding
to be ten years, but Aristotle puts it at two years, ''
and says that they never bear more than one at a
time/' and that they live 200 and in some cases
300 years. Their adult life begins at 60. They take
the greatest pleasure in rivers and roam in the
neighbourhood of streams, although at the same
time they are unable to swim c because of the size
of their bodies, and also as they are incapable of
enduring cold : this is their greatest infirmity ; they
are also liable to flatulence and diarrhoea, but not
to other kinds of disease. I find it stated that
missiles sticking in their body fall out when they
drink oil, but that perspiration makes it easier for
them to keep their hold. It also causes them disease
to eat earth unless they chew it repeatedly; but
they devour even stones, consider trunks of trees a
great delicacy, and bend down the loftier palm trees
by butting against them with their foreheads and
when thus prostrate consume their fruit. They eat
with the mouth, but they breathe and drink and
smell with the organ not unsuitably called their
hand. They hate' the mouse worst, of living creatures,
and if they see one merely touch the fodder placed
in their stall they refuse it with disgust* They are
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
sent hint hausta hirudme (quam sanguisugam vulgo
eoepisse appellari adverto) : haee ubi in ipso nninruu*
eanali se fixit, intolerando adfieit dolore.
30 Duribsixnum dorso tergus, ventri nu>lk% .sat*iarum
nullum tegimentum, nc in cauda quidcm prae&idhim
abigendo taedio muscarum namque id et tanta
vawtitas sentit sed cancellata cutis et invitans id
genus animalium odore; ergo cum extent is 1 rece-
pere examina, artatis in rugas repente caacellls
eonprehensas enecant, hoc iis pro cauda, iuba,
villo est,
31 Dentibus ingens pretium et deovum simulacris
lautissima ex his materia. invenit luxun'a com-
mendationem et aliam expetiti in calk) mantis
saporis haut alia de causa, credo, quam quia ipsuni
abur sibi mandcre videtur. magnitudo clentium
videtur quidem in tcmplis praecipua, seel tamen In
extremis Africae, qua conflnis Acthiopine est,
postium vicem in domiciliis pracberc, saepesqua
in his et pecorum stabulis pro palis elephantorum
dentibus fieri Polybius trudldit auctore Gulusa
regulo.
32 XL Elephantos fert Africa ultra Syrticas solitti-
dines et in Mauretania, ferunt AcAiopes et Trogo-
dytae, ut dictum est, sed maximos India bellantesqtie
1 Mudlw ; xtenti,
* XXXIX* I, I
BOOK VIIL x, 29-xi. 32
liable to extreme torture if in drinking they swallow
a leech (the common name for which I notice has
now begun to be ' blood-sucker ') ; when this attaches
itself in the actual breathing passage it causes
intolerable pain.
The hide of the back is extremely hard, but that
of the belly is soft ; it has no covering of bristles,
not even on the tail as a guard for driving away the
annoyance of flies for even that huge bulk is
sensitive to this but the skin is creased, and is
inviting to this kind of creature owing to its smell ;
consequently they stretch the creases open and let
the swarms get in, and then crush them to death by
suddenly contracting the creases into wrinkles.
This serves them instead of tail, mane and fleece.
The tusks fetch a vast price, and supply a very /wry.
elegant material for images of the gods. Luxury
has also discovered another thing that recommends
the elephant, the flavour in the hard skin of the
trunk, sought after, I believe, for no other reason
than because the epicure feels that he is munching
actual ivory. Exceptionally large specimens of
tusks can indeed be seen in the temples, but never-
theless Polybius* has recorded on the authority of
the chieftain Gulusa & that in the outlying parts of
the province of Africa where it marches with Ethiopia
elephants' tusks serve instead of doorposts in the
houses, and partitions in these buildings and in
stabling for cattle are made by using elephants'
tusks lor poles,
XL Elephants are produced by Africa beyond the
deserts of Sidra and by the country of the Moors;
also by the land of Ethiopia and the Cave-dwellers,
as has beon said ; but the biggest ones by India, as
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
cum his perpetua discordia dracones tantae magni-
tudinis et ipsos ut circumplexu facili ambiant nexuque
nodi praestringant. conmoriuntur ea dimicatione, 1
victusque conruens conplexum elidit pondere,
33 XII. Mira animalium pro se cuique sollertia est,
ut his. una est scandendi 2 in tantam altitudinem
difficultas draconi; itaque tritum iter ad pabula
speculatus ab excelsa se arbore illicit, scit ille
inparem sibi luctatum contra nexus, itaque arbo-
rum aut rupium attritum quaerit. cavent hoc
dracones, ob idque gressus primum alligant cauda,
resolvunt illi nodos manu. at hi in ipsas nares
caput condunt, pariterque spiritum praecludunt
et mollissimas lancinant partes ; idem obvii depre-
hensi in adversos erigunt se oculosque maxime
petunt : ita fit ut plerumque caeci ac fame et maeroris
tabe confecti reperiantur.
34 Quam quis aliam tantae discordiae causam attulerit
nisi naturam spectaculum sibi ac paria conponentem ?
Est et alia dimicationis huius fama: elephantis
frigidissimum esse sanguinem, ob id aestu torrente
praecipue a draconibus expeti; quamobrem in am-
1 Detlefsen : coniinoritur ea dimicatio.
2 Detlefsen : una exscandendo.
a Viz, pythons,
26
BOOK VIII. xi. 32-xn. 34
well as serpents a that keep up a continual feud and
warfare with them, the serpents also being of so The Indian
large a size that they easily encircle the elephants
in their coils and fetter them with a twisted knot. snake -
In this duel both combatants die together, and the
vanquished elephant in falling crushes with its weight
the snake coiled round it.
XII. Every species of animal is marvellously
cunning for its own interests, as are those which we
are considering. One difficulty that the serpent has
is in climbing to such a height ; consequently it keeps
watch on the track worn by the elephant going to
pasture and drops on him from a lofty tree. The
elephant knows that he is badly handicapped in fight-
ing against the snake's coils, and therefore seeks to
rub it against trees or rocks. The snakes are on
their guard against this, and consequently begin by
shackling the elephants' steps with their tail. The
elephants untie the knots with their trunk. But
the snakes poke their heads right into the elephants'
nostrils, hindering their breathing and at the same
time lacerating their tenderest parts ; also when caught
in the path of the elephants they rear up against
them, going specially for their eyes : this is how it
comes about that elephants are frequently found
blind and exhausted with hunger and wasting
misery.
What other cause could anybody adduce for such
a quarrel save Nature arranging a match between a
pair of combatants to provide herself with a show ?
There is also another account of this contest that
elephants are very cold-blooded, and consequently in
very hot weather are specially sought after by the
snakes; and that for this reason they submerge
27
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
nes mersos insidiari bibentibus, coortosque 1 inligata
manu in aurem morsum defigere, quoniam is tantum
locus defend! non possit manu ; dracones esse tantos
ut totum sanguinem capiant, itaque elephantos ab
his ebibi siccatosque concidere et dracones inebriates
opprimi conmorique.
35 XIII. Generat eos Aethiopia Indicis pares, vice-
num cubitorum; id modo mirum unde cristatos
luba crediderit. Asachaei vocantur Aethiopes apud
quos maxime nascuntur, narrantque in maritimis
eorum quatecaos quinosque inter se cratium modo
inplexos erectis capitibus velificantes ad meliora
pabula Arabiae vehi fluctibus.
36 XIV. Megasthenes scribit in India serpentes in
tantam magmtudinem adolescere ut solidos hauriant
cervos taurosque, Metrodorus circa Rhyndacum
amnem in Ponto supervolantes quamvis alte pernici-
37 terque alites haustu raptas absorbeant. nota est in
Punicis bellis ad flumen Bagradam a Regulo impera-
tore ballistis tormentisque ut oppidum aliquod
expugnata serpens cxx pedum longitudinis ; pellis
eius maxillaeque usque ad bellum Numantinum
duravere Romae in templo. faciunt his fidem in
Italia appellatae boae 2 in tantam amplitudinem
exeuntes ut divo Claudio principe occisae in Vaticano
1 Mayhoff : coartatosque (contortosque Detlefsen).
2 v.L bovae.
In Africa near Utioa, now the Mejerdah ; 256 B.C.
6 142-133 B.C., resulting in the acknowledgement of Roman
supremacy in Spam.
28
BOOK VIII. xii, 34-xiv. 37
themselves in rivers and lie in wait for the elephants
when drinking, and rising up coil round the trunk
and imprint a bite inside the ear, because that place
only cannot be protected by the trunk ; and that the
snakes are so large that they can hold the whole of
an elephant's blood, and so they drink the elephants
dry, and these when drained collapse in a heap and
the serpents being intoxicated are crushed by them
and die with them.
XIII. Ethiopia produces elephants that rival those The African
of India, being 30 ft. high ; the only surprising thing ele ^ hant -
is what led Juba to believe them to be crested. The
Ethiopian tribe in whose country they are chiefly
bred are called the Asachaeans ; it is stated that in
the coast districts belonging to this tribe the elephants
link themselves four or five together into a sort of
raft and holding up their heads to serve as sails are
carried on the waves to the better pastures of
Arabia.
XIV. Megasthenes writes that in India snakes Swfos of
grow so large as to be able to swallow stags and bulls e ^ Uoml
whole ; and Metrodorus that in the neighbourhood
of the river Rhyndacus in Pontus they catch and
gulp down birds passing over them even though they
are flying high and fast. There is the well-known
case of the snake 120 ft. long that was killed during
the Punic Wars on the River Bagradas by General
Regulus, using ordnance and catapults just as if
storming a town; its skin and jaw-bones remained
in a temple at Rome down to the Numantine War. &
Credibility attaches to these stories on account of
the serpents in Italy called boas, which reach such
dimensions that during the principate of Claudius
of blessed memory a whole child was found in the
29
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
solidus in alvo spectatus sit infans. aluntur prime
bubuli lactis suco, unde nomen traxere.
38 XV. Ceterorum animalium quae modo convecta
undique Italiam x contigere 2 saepius formas nihil
attinet scrupulose referre. paucissima Scythia gignit
inopia fruticum ; pauca contermina illi Germania,
insignia tamen bourn ferorum genera, iubatos
bisontes excellentique et vi et velocitate uros,
quibus inperitum volgus bubalorum nomen. inponit,
cum id gignat Africa vituli potius cervique quadam
39 similitudine. XVI. Septentrio fert et equorum gre-
ges ferorum, sicut asinorum Asia et Africa, praeterea
alcen, iuvenco similem ni proceritas aurium et cervicis
distingueret ; 3 item natam in Scadinavia insula nee
umquam visam in hac urbe, 4 multist amen narratam
achlin, haud dissimilem illi, sed nullo suffraginum
flexu ideoque non cubantem sed adclinem arbori
in somno, eaque incisa ad insidias capi, alias velo-
citatis memoratae. labrum ei superius praegrande ;
ob id retrograditur in pascendo, ne in prior a tendens
40 involvatur. tradunt in Paeonia feram quae bonasus
vocetur equina iuba, cetera tauro similem, cornibus
1 Hardouin : Italiae.
2 contigit videre ? Dalecamp.
3 Mayhoff: distinguat, -ant.
4 v.l. hoc orbe.
a Bos primigenius, now extinct.
* Perhaps the moose or the reindeer, though the statement
about its leg is of course untrue. Achlis is presumably a
vernacular name.
e Probably Zealand.
* So far this startling account of the achlis comes from
Caesar, B.G. vi 27, where it is given of the akes of the
30
BOOK VIII. xiv. 37-xvi. 40
belly of one that was killed on the Vatican Hill.
Their primary food is milk sucked from a cow;
from this they derive their name.
XV. It is not our concern to give a meticulous other mu
account of all the other species of animals that recently %^ m
have reached Italy more frequently by importation countries.
from all quarters. Scythia, owing to its lack of
vegetation, produces extremely few ; its neighbour
Germany few, but some remarkable breeds of wild
oxen, the maned bison and the exceptionally power-
ful and swift aurochs , a to which the ignorant masses
give the name of buffalo, though the buffalo is
really a native of Africa and rather bears some
resemblance to the calf and the stag. XVI The
North also produces herds of wild horses, as do Asia
and Africa of wild asses, and also the elk, which
resembles a bullock save that it is distinguished by
the length of its ears and neck ; also the achlis, 6 born
in the island of Scandinavia c and never seen in Rome,
although many have told stories of it an animal
that is not unlike the elk but has no joint at the hock
and consequently is unable to lie down but sleeps
leaning against a tree, and is captured by the tree
being cut through to serve as a trap/ but which
nevertheless has a remarkable turn of speed. Its
upper lip is exceptionally big ; on account of this it
walks backward when grazing, so as to avoid getting
tripped up by it in moving forward. There are
reports of a wild animal in Paeonia called the bonasus,
which has the mane of a horse but in all other
respects resembles a bull ; its horns are curved back
silva Hercynia, wlu'oh included the Black Forest and the
Harz,
* "Probably the aurochs again.
31
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ita in se flexis ut non sint utilia pugnae ; quapropter
fuga sibi auxiliari reddentem in ea nrnum interdum
et trium iugertim longitudine, cuius contactus se-
quentes ut ignis aliquis amburat.
41 XVII. Mirum pardos, pantheras, leones et similia
condito in corporis vaginas unguium mucrone, ne
refringantur hebetenturve, ingredi, aversisque falculis
currere nee nisi in adpetendo protendere.
42 Leoni praecipua generositas turn 1 cum colla ar-
mosque vestiunt iubae; id enim aetate contingit
e leone conceptis, quos vero pardi generavere semper
insigni hoc carent; simili modo feminae. magna
his libido coitus et'ob hoc maribus ira; Africa haec
maxime spectat inopia aquarum ad paucos amnes
congregantibus se feris. ideo multiformes ibi ani-
malium partus varie feminis cuiusque generis mares
aut vi aut voluptate miscente. unde etiam vulgare
Graeciae dictum semper aliquid novi Africam adferre.
43 odore pardi coitum sentit in adultera leo totaque vi
consurgit in poenam ; idcirco ea culpaflumine abluitur,
aut longius comitatur. semel aut em edi partum
lacerato unguium acieutero in enixu volgum credidisse
1 turn ? Mayhoff : tune.
a The species so called is really a large Indian Jeopard.
b 'Act AijSify <e/>a n Kawov, Aristotle, Hist. An., 606& 20.
BOOK VIII. xvi. 40-xvii. 43
in such a manner as to be of no use for fighting, and
it is said that because of this it saves itself by running
away, meanwhile emitting a trail of dung that some-
times covers a distance of as much as three furlongs,
contact with which scorches pursuers like a sort of
fire. 4
XVII, It is remarkable that leopards, panthers,*
lions and similar animals walk with the point of their *!^
claws sheathed inside the body so that they may not
get broken or blunted, and run with their talons
turned back and do not extend them except when
attempting to catch something.
The lion is specially high-spirited at the time when
its neck and shoulders are clothed with a mane for
this occurs at maturity, in the case of those sired by
a lion, though those begotten by leopards always
lack this characteristic; and the females likewise.
Sexual passion is strong in this species, with its
consequence of quarrelsomeness in the males ; this
is most observed in Africa, where the shortage of
water makes the animals flock to the few rivers.
There are consequently many varieties of hybrids in
that country, either violence or lust mating the males
with the females of each species indiscriminately.
This is indeed the origin of the common saying of
Greece that Africa is always producing some
novelty. 6 A lion detects intercourse with a leopard
in the case of an adulterous mate by scent, and
concentrates his entire strength on her chastisement ;
consequently this guilty stain is washed away in a
stream, or else she keeps her distance when accom-
panying him. But I notice that there used to be
a popular belief that the lioness only bears a cub
once, as her wdmb is wounded by the points of
33
VOL. III. D
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
video. Aristoteles diversa tradit, vir queni in his mag-
44 na secuturus ex parte praefandum reor. Alexandro
Magno rege inflammato cupidine animalium naturas
noscendi delegataque hac comment atione Aristoteli,
summo in omni doctrina viro, aliquot milia hominum
In totius Asiae Graeciaeque tractu parere ei 1 iussa,
omnium quos venatus, aucupia piscatusque alebant
quibusque vivaria, armenta, * alvearia, piscinae,
aviaria in cur a erant, ne quid usquam genitum
ignoraretur ab eo. quos percunctando quinquaginta
ferme volumina ilia praeclara de animalibus condidit.
quae a me collecta in artum cum iis quae ignoraverat
quaeso ut legentes boni consulant, in universis
rerum naturae operibus medioque clarissimi regum
omnium desiderio cura nostra breviter perigrinantes,
45 is ergo tradit leaenam primo fetu parere quinque
catulos, ac per annos singulos uno minus, 2 ab uno
sterilescere ; informes minimasque carnes magni-
tudine mustellarum esse initio, semenstres vix ingredi
posse nee nisi bimenstres moveri ; in Europa autem
inter Acheloum tantum Mestumque amnes leones
esse, sed longe viribus praestantiores iis quos Africa
et 3 Syria gignant.
46 XVIII. Leonum duo genera: conpactile et breve
crispioribus iubis hos pavidiores esse quam longos
1 ei add. Harduin. 2 v.L singulis minus.
3 Rackhami aut.
Herodotus III, 108. 6 Tlie Aspropota-nio.
c Or Nestus, now the Mesto, in Thrace.
34
BOOK VIII. xvn. 43-xvm. 46
its claws in delivery. Aristotle, however, whose Aristotle'*
authority I feel bound to cite first as I am going in
great part to follow him on these subjects, gives a
different account. King Alexander the Great being
fired with a desire to know the natures of animals
and having delegated the pursuit of this study to
Aristotle as a man of supreme eminence in every
branch of science, orders were given to some thousands
of persons throughout the whole of Asia and Greece,
all those who made their living by hunting, fowling,
and fishing and those who were in charge of warrens,
herds, apiaries, fishponds and aviaries, to obey his in-
structions, so that he might not fail to be informed
about any creature born anywhere. His enquiries
addressed to those persons resulted in the composition
of his famous works on zoology, in nearly 50 volumes.
To my compendium of these, with the addition of
facts unknown to him, I request my readers to give
a favourable reception, while making a brief excur-
sion under our direction among the whole of the
works of Nature, the central interest of the most
glorious of all sovereigns. Aristotle then states
that a lioness at the first birth produces five cubs,
and each year one fewer, and after bearing a single
cub becomes barren; and that the cubs are mere
lumps of flesh and very small, at the beginning of the
size of weasels, and at six months are scarcely able
to walk, not moving at all until they are two months
old ; also that lions are found in Europe only between
the rivers Achelous 5 and Mestus, c but that these far
exceed in strength those produced by Africa and Syria.
XVIII. He states that there are two kinds of lions, varieties of
one thickset and short, with comparatively curly manes l
these being more timid than the long, straight-
35
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
simplicique villo, eos contemptores vulnerum. uri-
nam mares crure sublato reddere ut canes, gravem
odorem, nee minus halitum. raros in potu, vesci 3
alternisdiebus,asaturitate interim triduo cibis carere ;
quae possint in mandendo solida devorare, nee
capiente aviditatem alvo coniectis in fauces unguibus
extrahere, ut 3 si fugiendum sit, non in satietate 2
47 abeant. vitam iis longam docet argumento
quodplerique dentibus defect! reperiantur. Polybius
Aemiliani comes in senecta hominem ab his adpeti
refert, quoniam ad persequendas feras vires non
suppetant; tune obsidere Africae urbes, eaque
de causa cruci fixos vidisse se cum Scipione, quia
ceteri metu poenae similis absterrerentur eadem
noxa.
48 XIX. Leoni tanlum ex feris dementia in supplices ;
prostratis parcit, et, ubi saevit, in viros potius quam
in feminas fremit, in infantes non nisi magna fame,
credit luba 3 pervenire intellectum ad eos precum :
in 4 captivam certe Gaetuliae reducem audivit
multorum in silvis impetum esse 5 mitigatum adlo-
quio ausam dicere se feminam, profugam, infirmam,
supplicern animalis omnium generosissimi ceterisque
imperitantis, indignam eius gloria praedam. Varia
circa hoc opinio ex ingenio cuiusque vel casu, mulceri
1 v.L nee vesci : neo vesci <nisi> ? Rackham.
2 aut si fugiendiam in satietate codd. plurimi.
8 Pintianus (cf. 56) : Libya.
* in add, Wdzhauer. 5 Mayhoff : a se.
36
BOOK VIII. xvin. 46-xix, 48
haired kind ; the latter despise wounds. The males
lift one leg in making water, like dogs. Their smell is
disagreeable, and not less their breath. They are
infrequent drinkers, and they feed every other
day, after a full meal occasionally abstaining from
food for three days; when chewing they swallow
whole what they can, and when their belly will not
contain the result of their gluttony, they insert their
clenched claws into their throats and drag it out, so
that if they have to run away they may not go in a
state of repletion. From the fact that many speci-
mens are found lacking teeth he infers that they
are long-lived. Aemilianus's companion Polybius
states that in old age their favourite prey is a human
being, because their strength is not adequate to
hunting wild animals; and that at this period of
their lives they beset the cities of Africa, and
consequently when he was with Scipio he saw lions
crucified, because the others might be deterred from
the same mischief by fear of the same penalty.
XIX. The lion alone of wild animals shows mercy Psychology
to suppliants; it spares persons prostrated inf thelwn '
front of it, and when raging it turns its fury on
men rather than women, and only attacks chil-
dren when extremely hungry. Juba believes that
the meaning of entreaties gets through to them:
at all events he was informed that the onset of a
herd of lions in the forests upon a woman of Gaetulia
who was captured and got away again had been
checked by a speech in which she dared to say
that she was a female, a fugitive, a weakling, a
suppliant to the most generous of all the animals,
the lord of all the rest, a booty unworthy of his glory.
Opinion will vary in accordance with each person's
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
alloquiis feras, quippe ubi etiam serpentes extrahi
cantu cogique in poenam verum falsumne sit non
49 vita decreverit. leonum animi index cauda sicut
et equorum aures : namque et has notas generosissi-
mo cuique natura tribuit. inmota ergo placido. cle-
mens {motus) 1 blandienti, quod rarum est, crebrior
enim iracundia, cuius in principio terra verberatur,
incremento terga ceu quodam incitamento flagellantur.
vis summa in pectore. ex omni vulnere sive ungue
inpresso sive dente ater profluit sanguis. idem
50 satiati innoxii sunt. generositas in periculis maxime
deprehenditur, non illo 2 tantum modo quod spernens
tela diu se terrore solo tuetur ac velut cogi testatur
cooriturque non tamquam periculo coactus sed
tamquam amentia iratus : ilia nobilior animi signifi-
catio quamlibet magna canum et venantium urgu-
ente vi contemptim restitansque cedit in campis et
ubi spectari potest; idem ubi virgulta silvasque
penetravit acerrimo cursu fertur velut abscondente
turpitudinem loco, dum sequitur insilit saltu, quo
51 in fuga non utitur. vulneratus observatione mira
percussorem novit et in quantalibet multitudine ad-
1 MayTioff? 2 Mayhoff: in illo.
38
BOOK VIII. xix. 48-51
temperament, or with chance, as to this point that
wild animals are placated by appeals addressed to
them, inasmuch as experience has not decided
whether it be true or false that even serpents can
be enticed out by song and forced to submit to
chastisement. Lions indicate their state of mind by
means of their tail, as horses do by their ears : for
Nature has assigned even these means of expression
to all the noblest animals. Consequently the lion's
tail is motionless when he is calm, and moves gently
when he wishes to cajole which is seldom, since
anger is more usual ; at the onset of which the earth
is lashed, and as the anger grows, his back is lashed
as if for a mode of incitement. A lion's greatest
strength is in the chest. Black blood flows from
every wound, whether made by claw or tooth. Yet
when lions are glutted they are harmless. The lion's
nobility of spirit is detected most in dangers, not
merely in the way that despising weapons he protects
himself for a long time only by intimidation, and
protests as it were that he is acting under compulsion,
and rises to the encounter not as if forced by danger
but as though enraged by madness; but a nobler
indication of this spirit is this, that however large
a force of hounds and hunters besets him, in level
plains and where he can be seen he retires con-
temptuously and constantly halting, but when he
has made his way into brushwood and forest he
proceeds at top speed, as if aware that the lie of the
land conceals his disgrace. When pursuing he advances
by leaps and bounds, but he does not use this gait
when in flight. When he has been wounded he
marks down his assailant in a marvellous way, and
knows him and picks him out in however large a
39
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
petit, eum vero qui telum quidem miserit sed non vul-
neraverit correptum rotatumque sternit nee vulnerat.
cum pro catulis feta dimicat, oculorum aciem traditur
52 defigere in terram ne venabula expavescat. cetero
dolis carent et suspicione, nee limis intuentur oculis
aspicique simili modo nolunt. creditum est a mo-
riente humum morderi lacrimamque leto dari.
atque hoc tale tamque saevum animal rotarum
orbes circumacti currusque inanes et gallinaceorum
cristae cantusque etiam magis terrent, sed maxime
ignes. aegritudinem fastidii tantum sentit, in qua
medetur ei contumelia, in rabiem agent e adnexarum 1
lascivia simiarum ; gustatus deinde sanguis in remedio
est.
53 XX. Leonum simul plurium pugnarn Romae
princeps dedit Q. Scaevola P. f. in curuli aedilitate,
centum autem iubatorum primus omnium L. Sulla,
qui postea dictator fuit, in praetura; post eum
Pompeius Magnus in circo DC, in iis iubatorum
cccxv, Caesar dictator cccc.
54 XXL Capere eos ardui erat quondam operis,
foveisque maxime. principatu Claudii casus ratio-
nem docuit pudendam paene talis ferae nomine
pastorem 2 Gaetuliae, sago contra ingruentis impetum
obiecto, quod spectaculum in harenam protinus
1 adversarum vel adnixarum edd.
2 Detlefsen : pastore a>pastore Maylwff}.
a Consul 95 B.C. b 93 B.C.
' 49, 48, 46, 45 and 44 B.C.
40
BOOK VIII. xix. SJ-XXL 54
crowd, Yet a person who discharges a weapon at
him but fails to wound him he seizes and whirling
him round flings him on the ground, but does not
wound him. It is said that when a mother lion is
fighting in defence of her cubs she fixes the gaze of
her eyes upon the ground so as not to flinch from the
hunting spears. Otherwise lions are devoid of craft
and suspicion, and they do not look at you with eyes
askance and dislike being looked at in a similar way.
The belief has been held that a dying lion bites the
earth and bestows a tear upon death. Yet though
of such a nature and of such ferocity this animal is
frightened by wheels turning round and by empty
chariots, and even more by the crested combs and
the crowing of cocks, but most of all by fires. The
only malady to which it is liable is that of distaste
for food ; in this condition it can be cured by insult-
ing treatment, the pranks of monkeys tied to it
driving it to fury ; and then tasting their blood acts
as a remedy.
XX. A fight with several lions at once was first Lions m the
bestowed on Rome by Quintus Scaevola, a son of
Publius, when consular aedile, but the first of all who
exhibited a combat of 100 maned lions was Lucius
Sulla, later dictator, in his praetorship. 6 After Sulla
Pompey the Great showed in the Circus 600, including
315 with manes, and Caesar when dictator c 4:00.
XXI. Capturing lions was once a difficult task, The capture
chiefly effected by means of pitfalls. In the principate
of Claudius accident taught a Gaetulian shepherd a
method that was almost one to be ashamed of in the
case of a wild animal of this nature : when it charged
he flung a cloak against its onset a feat that was
immediately transferred to the arena as a show, the
41
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
translation est, vix credibili modo torpescente tanta
ilia feritate quamvis levi iniectu operto capita, ita
ut devinciatur non repugnans. videlicet omnis vis
constat in oculis, quo minus mirum fit 1 a Lysimacho
Alexandri iussu simul incluso strangulatum leonem.
55 iugo subdidit eos primus que Romae ad currum
iunxit M. Antonius, et quidem civili bello cum
dimicatum esset in Pharsaliis campis, non sine
ostento quodam temporum, 2 generosos spiritus
iugum subire illo prodigio significant e. nam quod
ita vectus est cum mima Cytheride, super monstra
etiam illarum calamitatum fuit. primus autem
hominum leonem manu tractare ausus et ostendere
mansuefactum Hanno e clarissimis Poenorum traditur
damnatusque illo argumento, quoniam nihil non
persuasurus vir tarn artificis ingenii videbatur, et
male credi libertas ei cui in tantum cessisset etiam
feritas.
56 Sunt vero et fortuitae 3 eorum quoque clementiae
exempla. Mentor Syracusanus in Syria leone
obvio suppliciter volutante attonitus pavore, cum
refugienti undique fera opponeret sese et vestigia
lamberet adulanti similis, animadvertit in pede eius
tumorem vulnusque; extracto surculo liberavit
cruciatu: pictura casum hunc testatur Syracusis.
1 v.l. sit.
2 Gelen : tempore (tempore <eo> ? Mayhoff}.
8 Mayhoff : fortuita.
a The defeat of Pompey by Caesar, 48 B.C.
42
BOOK VIII, xxi, 54-56
creature's great ferocity abating in an almost in-
credible manner when its head is covered with even
a light wrap, with the result that it is vanquished
without showing fight. The fact is that all its strength
is concentrated in its eyes, which makes it less
remarkable that when Lysimachus by order of
Alexander was shut up in a lion's cage he succeeded
in strangling it. Mark Antony broke lions to the
yoke and was the first person at Home to harness
them to a chariot, and this in fact during the civil
war, after the decisive battle a in the plains of Phar-
salia, not without some intention of exhibiting the
position of affairs, the portentous feat signifying that
generous spirits can bow to a yoke. For his riding
in this fashion with the actress Cytheris at his side
was a thing that outdid even the portentous occur-
rences of that disastrous period. It is recorded that
Hanno, one of the most distinguished of the Cartha-
ginians, was the first human being who dared to
handle a lion and exhibit it as tamed, and that this
supplied a reason for his impeachment, because it
was felt that a man of such an artful character
might persuade the public to anything, and that
their liberty was ill entrusted to one to whom even
ferocity had so completely submitted.
But there are also instances of occasional merciful-
ness even in lions. The Syracusan Mentor in Syria
met a lion that rolled on the ground in suppliant fffa^ude.
wise and struck such terror into him that he was
running away, when the lion stood in his way wherever
he turned, and licked his footsteps as if fawning
on him; he noticed a swelling and a wound in its
foot, and by pulling out a thorn set the creature
free from torment ; a picture at Syracuse is evidence
43
PLINY: NATUEAL HISTORY
57 Simili modo Elpis Samius natione in Africam delatus
nave iuxta litus conspecto leone hiatu minaci arbo-
rem fuga petit Libero patre invocato, quoniam turn
praecipuus votorum locus est cum spei nullus est.
neque profugienti, cum potuisset, fera institerat,
et procumbens ad arbor em hiatu quo terruerat
miserationem quaerebat. os morsu avidiore in-
haeserat dentibus cruciabatque media, non tantum l
poena in ipsis eius telis, suspectantem ac velut
mutis precibus orantem, dum 2 fortuitis 3 fides 4
58 non est contra feram, multoque diutius miraculo
quam metu cessatur. set 5 degressus tandem evellit
praebenti et qua maxime opus esset adcommodanti ;
traduntque quamdiu navis ea in litore steterit re-
tulisse gratiam venatus adgerendo. qua de causa
Libero patri templum in Samo Elpis sacravit, quod
ab eo facto Graeci KC^VOTOS AiovuVov appellavere.
ne miremur postea vestigia hominum intellegi a
feris, cum etiam auxilia ab uno animalium sperent:
cur enim non ad alia iere, aut unde medicas manus
hominis sciunt ? nisi forte vis malorum etiam feras
omnia experiri cogit.
59 Aeque memorandum et de panthera tradit De-
1 Mayhoff : ntantum aut tantum.
2 dum cessatur ? supra ante neque prof ugienti transponenda
8 Sillig : fortuita. 4 Mayhoff? : fidens,
5 Mayhoff ? : cessatum est.
Perhaps ' wMe chance . . . alarm ' should be moved up to
come before * The beast had not stood in his way. 5
44
BOOK VIII. xxi. 57-59
of this occurrence. In a similar manner a native of
Samos named Elpis on landing from a ship in Africa,
saw near the coast a lion opening its jaws in a
threatening way, and took refuge up a tree, calling
on Father Liber for help, since the chief occasion
for praying is an emergency where there is no room
for hope. The beast had not stood in his way when
he tried to run away although it might have done,
and lying down by the tree began to beg for com-
passion with the gaping jaws by which it had scared
the man. Owing to its biting its food too greedily a
bone had stuck in its teeth, and was tormenting it
with starvation and not merely with the punishment
contained in the actual prickles, as it gazed up and
looked as if making a silent prayer for aid while
chance events are not to be relied on in face of a
wild animal, and much longer hesitation is caused
by surprise than by alarm. a But finally he came
down and pulled out the bone for the lion, which
held out its foot to him and adjusted it at the most
necessary angle ; and they say that as long as that
vessel remained on the coast the lion displayed its
gratitude by bringing its catches to its benefactor.
This led Elpis to consecrate in Samos a temple to
Father Liber, to which from that occurrence the
Greeks have given the name of Temple of Dionysus
with his Mouth Open. After this do not let us be
surprised that men's tracks are recognized by wild
beasts when they actually hope for assistance from
one of the animal race : for why did they not go to
other animals, or how do they know of man's healing
touch ? Unless perchance violent maladies force even
wild animals to every expedient.
The natural philosopher Demetrius also records an
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
metrius physicus, iacentem in media via hominis
desiderio repente apparuisse patri cuiusdam Philini
adsectatoris sapientiae. ilium pavore coepisse re-
gredi, feram vero circumvolutari non dubie blan-
dientem seseque conflictantem maerore qui etiam
in panthera intellegi possit : feta erat catulis procul
60 in foveam delapsis. primum ergo miserationis fuit
non expavescere, proximum et curam intendere;
secutusque qua trahebat vestem unguium levi
iniectu, ut causam doloris intellexit simulque salutis
suae mercedem, exemit catulos, ea cum his prose-
quente usque extra solitudines deductus laeta atque
gestiente, ut facile appareret gratiam referre et
nihil in vicem inputare, quod etiam in homine rarum
est.
61 XXII. Haec fidem et Democrito adferunt qui
Thoantem in Arcadia servatum a dracone narrat.
nutrierat eum puer dilectum admodum, parensque
serpentis naturam et magnitudmem metuens in
solitudines tulerat, in quibus circumvento latronum
insidiis agnitoque voce subvenit. nam quae de
infantibus ferarum lacte nutritis cum essent expositi
produntur, sicut de conditoribus nostris a lupa,
magnitudini fatorum accepta referri x aequius quam
ferarum naturae arbitror.
1 Rackham : ferri aut fieri.
BOOK VIII. XXL 59-xxn. 61
equally remarkable story about a panther, which out
of desire for human aid lay in the middle of a road,
where the father of a certain student of philosophy
named Philinus suddenly came in sight of it. The
man, so the story goes, began to retreat, but the
animal rolled over on its back, obviously trying to
cajole him, and tormented by sorrow that was intel-
ligible even in a panther : she had a litter of cubs
that had fallen into a pit some distance away. The
first result of his compassion therefore was not to be
frightened, and the next to give her his attention ;
and he followed where she drew him by lightly
touching his clothes with her claws, and when he
understood the cause of her grief and at the same
time the recompense due for his own security, he
got the cubs out of the pit ; and the panther with her
young escorted him right to the edge of the desert,
guiding him with gestures of delight that made it
quite clear that she was expressing gratitude and
not reckoning on any recompense, which is rare even
in a human being.
XXII. These stories give credibility to Demo-
critus also, who tells a tale of Thoas in Arcadia
being saved by a snake. When a boy he had fed it
and made a great pet of it, and his parent being
afraid of the snake's nature and size had taken it
away into an uninhabited region, where it recognized
Thoas 's voice and came to his rescue when he was
entrapped by an ambush of brigands. For as to the
reports about infants when they had been exposed
being fed by the milk of wild animals, as well as
those about our founders being nursed by a she-wolf,
I deem it more reasonable for them to be credited to
the grandeur of their destinies than to the nature
of the wild animals.
47
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
62 XXI II. Panther a et tigris macularum varietate
prope solae bestiarum spectantur, ceteris unus ac
suus cuique generi color est, leonum tantum in
Syria niger. pantheris in candido breves macularum
oculi. ferunt odore earum mire sollicitari quadri-
pedes cunctas, sed capitis torvitate terreri; quamo-
brem occultato eo reliqua dulcedine invitatas corri-
piunt. sunt qui tradant in armo iis similem lunae
esse maculam crescentem in orbem seque 1 cavan-
63 tern 2 pari modo 3 nunc varias, et pardos qui
mares sunt, appellant in eo omni genere, creberrimo
in Africa Syriaque ; quidam ab his pantheras candore
solo discermmt, nee adhuc aliam differentiam inveni.
64 XXIV. Senatus consultum fuit vetus ne liceret
Africanas in Italiam advehere. contra hoc tulit ad
populum Cn. Aufidius tribunus plebis, permisitque
circensium gratia inportare. primus autem Scaurus
in 4 aedilitate sua varias CL universas misit, dein
Pompeius Magnus ccccx, divus Augustus ccccxx.
65 XXV. idem Q. Tuberone Paullo Fabio Maxumo
coss. mi. non. Mai. theatri Marcelli dedications
tigrim primus omnium Romae ostendit in cavea
mansuefactam, divus vero Claudius simul mi.
1 Mayhoff : orbem et. 2 curvantem DetUfsen.
8 v.l. modo cornua. 4 in add. Probeen.
I.e. in the shape of a crescent moon, bounded by a convex
and a concave curve.
6 114 B.C. c 58 B.C. * 11 B,c.
BOOK VIII. xxm. 62-xxv, 65
XXIII. The panther and the tiger almost alone of ? he pcmauir.
beasts are distinguished by a variety of markings,
whereas the rest have a single colour, each kind having
its own black in the case of lions in Syria only.
Panthers have small spots like eyes on a light
ground. It is said that all four-footed animals are
wonderfully attracted by their smell, but frightened
by the savage appearance of their head ; for which
reason they catch them by hiding their head and
enticing them to approach by their other attractions.
Some authorities report that they have a mark on
the shoulder resembling a moon, expanding into a
circle and hollowed out in a similar manner. a As it is,
people use the name ' spotted ladies ', and for the
males * pards ', in the whole of this genus, which
occurs most frequently in Africa and Syria; some
persons distinguish panthers from these by their
light colour only, nor have I hitherto discovered any
other difference.
XXIV. There was an old Resolution of the Senate importation
prohibiting the importation of African elephants into
Italy. Gnaeus Aufidius when Tribune of the Plebs b AOM*.
carried in the Assembly of the People a resolution
repealing this and allowing them to be imported for
shows in the Circus. But Scaurus in his aedileship'
first sent in procession 150 female leopards in one
flock, then Pompey the Great 410, and the late
lamented Augustus 420. XXV. Augustus also, in
the consulship^ of Marcus Tubero and Paullus
Fabius, at the dedication of the Theatre of
Marcellus, on May 7, was the first of all persons at
Rome who exhibited a tamed tiger in a cage, although
his late Majesty Claudius exhibited four at one
time.
i0854.'P 49 -
VOL. III. E
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
66 Tigrim Hyrcani et Indi ferunt, animal velocitatis
tremendae, et maxime cognitae dum capitur totus
eius fetus , qui semper numerosus est. ab insidiante
rapitur equo quam maxime pernici, atque in recentes
subinde transfertur. at ubi vacuum cubile reperit
feta (maribus enim subolis cura non est) fertur
praeceps odore vestigans. raptor adpropinquante
fremitu abicit unum ex catulis. tollit ilia morsu et
pondere etiam ocior acta remeat iterumque conse-
quitur, ac subinde donee in navem regresso inrita
feritas saevit in lit ore.
67 XXVI. Camelos inter armenta pascit oriens,
quarum duo genera, Bactriae et Arabiae, diiFerunt,
quod illae bina habent tubera in dorso, hae singula et
sub pectore alterum cui incumbant : dentium superi-
ore ordine ut boves carent in utroque genere. omnes
autem iumentorum ministeriis dorso funguntur atque
etiam equitatus in proeliis ; velocitas infra equos. 1
68 sed cuique mensura sicuti vires ; nee ultra adsuetum
procedit spatium, nee plus instituto onere recipit.
odium adversus equos gerunt naturale. sitim et
quadriduo tolerant, implenturque cum bibendi
occasio est et in praeteritum et in futurum, obturbata
proculcatione prius aqua: aliter potu non gaudent.
vivunt quinquagenis annis, quaedam et centenis;
1 Detlefsen : inter equos (ut equos Mayhoff).
50
BOOK VIII. xxv. 66-xxvi. 68
Hyrcania and India produce the tiger, an animal Tiger
of terrific speed, which is most noticeable when the hunUn ^
whole of its litter, which is always numerous, is
being captured. The litter is taken by a man lying
in wait with the swiftest horse obtainable, and is
transferred successively to fresh horses. But when
the mother tiger finds the lair empty (for the males
do not look after their young) she rushes off at head-
long speed, tracking them by scent. The captor
when her roar approaches throws away one of the
cubs. She snatches it up in her mouth, and returns
and resumes the pursuit at even a faster pace owing
to her burden, and so on in succession until the hunter
has regained the ship and her ferocity rages vainly
on the shore.
XXVI. The East pastures camels among its flocks The camel
of cattle ; of these there are two kinds, the Bactrian frvmedanj.
and the Arabian, which differ in that the former have
two humps on the back and the latter one, with a
second hump beneath the chest on which they can
rest their weight; but both kinds resemble oxen
in having no teeth in the upper jaw. All however
perform the services of beasts of burden, and also of
cavalry in battles; their speed is below that of
horses. But the two kinds differ in dimensions, as
also in strength ; and a camel will not travel beyond
its customary march, nor carry more than the regula-
tion load. They possess an innate hatred for horses.
They can endure thirst for as much as four days, and
when they have an opportunity they replenish them-
selves both for the past interval and for the future,
stirring up the water by trampling with their fore
feet before they drink otherwise they do not enjoy
the draught. They live for fifty years, some even
5*
E2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
utcumque rabiem ct ipsae sentiunt. castrandi genus
etiam feminas quae bello praeparantui* inventum est :
fortiores ita fiunt coitu negate.
69 XXVII. Harum aliqua similitude in duo transfer-
tur animalia. nabun Aethiopes vocant collo siniilem
equo, pedibus et cruribus bovi, camelo capite, albis
maculis, rutilum colorem distinguentibus, unde
appellata camelopardalis, dictatoris Caesaris circensi-
bus ludis primum visa Romae. ex eo subinde
cernitur aspectu magis quam feritate conspicua, quare
etiam ovis ferae nomen invenit.
70 XXVIII. Pompei Magni primum ludi ostenderunt
chama, quem Galli rufium vocabant, effigie lupi,
pardorum maculis, iidem ex Aethiopia quas vocant
cephoSj 1 quarum pedes posteriores pedibus humanis
et cruribus, prior es manibus fuere similes, hoc
animal postea Roma non vidit.
71 XXIX. Isdem ludis et rhinoceros unius in nare
cornus, qualis saepe visus. alter hie genitus hostis
elephanto cornu ad saxa limato praeparat se pugnae,
in dimicatione alvum maxime petens, quam scit
esse molliorem. longitudo ei par, crura multo
breviora, color buxeus.
72 XXX. Lyncas vulgo frequentes et sphingas fusco
pilo, mammis in pectore geminis, Aethiopia generat,
multaque alia monstris similia, pinnatos equos et
cornibus armatos quos pegasos vocant, crocotas
1 Krjrrovs Hardouin e Diodoro.
a The giraffe.
b 55 B.C.
c Possibly baboons.
d The Indian species. The African has two horns.
6 Unidentified.
52
BOOK VIII. xxvi. 68-xxx. 72
for a hundred; although even camels are liable to
rabies. A method has been discovered of gelding
even the females intended for war ; this by denying
them intercourse increases their strength.
XXVII. Some resemblance to these is passed on to ne giraffe.
two animals. The Ethiopians give the name of
nabun to one that has a neck like a horse, feet and
legs like an ox, and a head like a camel, and is of a
ruddy colour picked out with white spots, owing to
which it is called a camelopard a ; it was first seen at
Rome at the games in the Circus given by Caesar
when dictator. From this it has subsequently been
recognized to be more remarkable for appearance
than for ferocity, and consequently it has also got
the name of wild sheep.'
XXVIII. The games 6 of Pompey the Great first TUiynx.
displayed the chama, which the Gauls used to call
the lynx, with the shape of a wolf and leopard's
spots; the same show exhibited what they call
cephi c from Ethiopia, which have hind feet resembling
the feet of a man and legs and fore feet like hands.
Rome has not seen this animal subsequently.
XXIX. At the same games there was also a rhino- The
ceros with one horn * on the nose such as has often been r7imoce
seen. Another bred here to fight matches with an
elephant gets ready for battle by filing its horns on
rocks, and in the encounter goes specially for the
belly, which it knows to be softer. It equals an
elephant in length, but its legs are much shorter,
and it is the colour of box-wood.
XXX. Ethiopia produces lynxes in great numbers, Fauna of
and sphinxes e with brown hair and a pair of udders
on the breast, and many other monstrositieswinged
horses armed with horns, called pegasi, hyenas like a
53
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
velut ex cane lupoque conceptos, omnia dentibus
frangentes protinusque devorata confidantes ventre,
cercopithecos nigris capitibus, pilo asini et dissimiles
ceteris voce ; Indices boves unicornes tricornesque,
leucrocotam pernicissimam feram asini fere magni-
tudine, clunibus cervinis, collo, cauda, pectore leonis,
capite melium, bisulca ungula, ore ad aures usque
73 rescisso, dentium locis osse perpetuo hanc feram
humanas voces tradunt imitari. apud eosdem et
quae vocatur eale, magnitudine equi fluviatilis,
cauda elephanti, colore nigra vel fulva, maxillis apri,
maiora cubitalibus cornua habens mobilia quae
alterna in pugna se 1 sistunt varieque 2 infesta aut
7-1 obliqua, utcumque ratio monstravit. sed atrocissi-
mos habet 3 tauros silvestres maiores agrestibus,
velocitate ante omnis, colore falvos, oculis caeruleis,
pilo in contrarium verso, rictu ad aures dehiscente,
iuxta cornua mobilia; tergori duritia silicis omne
I'espuens vulnus. feras omnis venantur, ipsi non
aliter quam foveis capti feritate semper intereunt.
75 apud eosdem 4 nasci Ctesias scribit quam manticho-
ran appellat, triplici dentium ordine pectinatim
coeuntium, facie et auriculis hominis, oculis glaucis,
colore sanguineo, corpore leonis, cauda scorpionis
modo spicula infigentem, vocis ut si misceatur fistulae
1 se ? add. MayTioff.
2 Sillig : variaque aut variatque.
3 habet add. edd.
* apud Indos dein ? Mayhoff.
a The rhinoceros again. b Another sort of hyena.
This mythical animal is used in heraldry, e.g. as the
supporters of the shield of Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother
of King Henry VII.
d Or possibly * with horns equally mobile as the yale's '.
54
BOOK VIII. xxx. 72-75
cross between a dog and a wolf, that break every-
thing with their teeth, swallow it at a gulp and
masticate it in the belly ; tailed monkeys with black
heads, ass's hair and a voice unlike that of any other
species of ape ; Indian oxen a with one and with three
horns ; the leucrocotaf swiftest of wild beasts, about
the size of an ass, with a stag's haunches, a lion's
neck, tail and breast, badger's head, cloven hoof,
mouth opening right back to the ears, and ridges of
bone in place of rows of teeth this animal is
reported to imitate the voices of human beings.
Among the same people is also found the animal
called the yale, c the size of a hippopotamus, with an
elephant's tail, of a black or tawny colour, with the
jaws of a boar and movable horns more than a cubit
in length which in a fight are erected alternately,
and presented to the attack or sloped backward in
turn as policy directs. But its fiercest animals are
forest bulls, larger than the bulls of the field, sur-
passing all in speed, of a tawny colour, with blue
eyes, hair turned backward, mouth gaping open to
the ears, along with mobile horns d ; the hide has the
hardness of flint, rejecting every wound. They
hunt all wild animals, but themselves can only be
caught in pits, and when caught always die game.
Ctesias writes that in the same country * is born the
creature that he calls the mantickora/ which has a
triple row of teeth meeting like the teeth of a comb,
the face and ears of a human being, grey eyes, a
blood-red colour, a lion's body, inflicting stings with
its tail in the manner of a scorpion, with a voice like
e Perhaps the text should be altered to give * next in the
Indians' country,'
* Fabulous,
55
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
et tubae concentus, velocitatis magnae, humani
76 corporis vel praecipue adpetentem. XXXI. in India
et boves solidis ungulis unicornes, et feram nomine
axin hinnuleipelle,pluribus candidioribusque maculis,
sacrorum 1 Liberi patris (Orsaei Indi simias candentes
toto corpore venantur), asperrimam autem feram
monocerotem, reliquo corpore equo similem, capite
cervo, pedibus elephanto, cauda apro, mugitu gravi,
uno cornu nigro media fronte cubitorum duum
eminente. hanc feram vivam negant capi,
77 XXXII. Apud Hesperios Aethiopas fons est Nigris,
ut plerique existimavere, Nili caput,, ut argumenta
quae diximus persuadent. iuxta hunc fera appella-
tur catoblepas, modica alioqui ceterisque membris
iners, caput tantum praegrave aegre ferens, id 2
deiectum semper in terram, alias internicio humani
generis, omnibus qui oculos eius videre confestim
expirantibus.
78 XXXIII. Eadem et basilisci serpentis est vis.
Cyrenaica hunc generat provincia, duodecim non
amplius digitorum magnitudine, Candida in capite
macula ut quodam diademate insignem. sibilo
omnis fugat serpentes, nee flexu multiplici ut reliquae
corpus inpellit sed celsus et erectus in medio incedens.
1 sacram edd.
2 ideo ? Mayhoff.
a Again an echo of the rhinoceros, confused with the ante-
lope; and the same hybrid in a more lurid shape recurs below
in the unicorn.
* Possibly a spotted deer of India.
Mayhoff notes that this sentence looks as if wrongly
inserted here.
* N.W. Africa (nowhere near the Nile).
* ' The downwarcl-lQQker,' perhaps the gnu,
56
BOOK VIII. xxx. 75-xxxm. 78
the sound of a pan-pipe blended with a trumpet, of
great speed, with a special appetite for human
flesh. XXXI. He says that in India there are also Fauna of
oxen with solid hoofs and one horn, a and a wild animal India -
named axis, 13 with the hide of a fawn but with more
spots and whiter ones, belonging to the ritual of
Father Liber (the Orsaean Indians hunt monkeys
that are a bright white all over the body) c ; but that
the fiercest animal is the unicorn, which in the rest
of the body resembles a horse, but in the head a
stag, in the feet an elephant, and in the tail a boar,
and has a deep bellow, and a single black horn three
feet long projecting from the middle of the forehead.
They say that it is impossible to capture this animal
alive.
XXXII. In Western Ethiopia' 2 there is a spring, iaum of
the Nigris, which most people have supposed to be ^ c * a
the source of the Nile, as they try to prove by the
arguments that we have stated. In its neighbour-
hood there is an animal called the catoblepas, 6 in other
respects of moderate size and inactive with the rest
of its limbs, only with a very heavy head which it
carries with difficulty it is always hanging down to
the ground ; otherwise it is deadly to the human race,
as all who see its eyes expire immediately.
XXXIII. The basilisk/ serpent also has the same ne
power. It is a native of the province of Cyrenaica, basihsk -
not more than 12 inches long, and adorned with
a bright white marking on the head like a sort of
diadem. It routs all snakes with its hiss, and does
not move its body forward in manifold coils like the
other snakes but advancing with its middle raised
high, It kills bushes not only by its touch but also
An imaginary monster.
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
necat frutices non contactos modo verum et adflatos,
exurit herbas, rumpit saxa. aliis * vis malo est :
creditur quondam ex equo occisum hasta et per earn
subeunte vi non equitem modo sed equum quoque
79 absumptum. atqui 2 huic tali monstro saepe enim
enectum concupivere reges videre mustellarum
virus exitio est : adeo naturae nihil placuit esse sine
pare, iniciunt 3 hos 4 cavernis facile cognitis soli tabe ;
necant illae simul odore moriunturque, et naturae
pugna conficitur.
80 XXXIV. Sed in Italia quoque creditur luporum
visus esse noxius, vocemque homini quern priores
contemplentur adimere ad praesens. inertes hos
parvosque Africa et Aegytus gignunt, asperos
trucesque frigidior plaga. homines in. lupos vertl
rursusque restitui sibi falsum esse confldenter existi-
mare debemus aut credere omnia quae fabulosa tot
saeculis conperimus; unde tamen ista volgo infixa
sit fama intantum ut in maledictis versipelles habeat
81 indicabitur. Euanthes inter auctores Graeciae non
spretus scribit Arcadas tradere 5 ex gente Anthi
cuiusdam sorte familiae lectum ad stagnum quod-
dam regionis eius duci vestituque in quercu suspense
tranare atque abire in deserta transfigurarique in
lupum et cum ceteris eiusdem generis congregari per
1 v.l. talis.
2 Rackham: atque.
3 Gelen (cf. 35. 169) : interficiunt (inferciunt Sol).
* SackJiam : has aut eos.
5 Mayhoff : tradit Arcadas scribere.
Imaginary.
58
BOOK VIIL xxxin. 78-xxxiv. 81
by its breath, scorches up grass and bursts rocks.
Its effect on other animals is disastrous : it is believed
that once one was killed with a spear by a man on
horseback and the infection rising through the spear
killed not only the rider but also the horse. Yet to
a creature so marvellous as this indeed kings have
often wished to see a specimen when safely dead
the venom of weasels is fatal : so fixed is the decree
of nature that nothing shall be without its match.
They throw the basilisks into weasels' holes, which are
easily known by the foulness of the ground, and the
weasels kill them by their stench and die themselves
at the same time, and nature's battle is accomplished.
XXXIV. But in Italy also it is believed that the :
sight of wolves is harmful, and that if they look at a ^/-T^
man before he sees them, it temporarily deprives lywt.
him of utterance. The wolves produced in Africa
and Egypt are feeble and small, but those of colder
regions are cruel and fierce. We are bound to
pronounce with confidence that the story of men
being turned into wolves and restored to themselves
again is falseor else we must believe all the tales
that the experience of so many centuries has taught
us to be fabulous ; nevertheless we will indicate the
origin of the popular belief, which is so firmly rooted
that it classes werewolves a among persons under a
curse. Evanthes, who holds no contemptible position
among the authors of Greece, writes that the Ar-
cadians have 1 a tradition that someone chosen out of
the clan of a certain Anthus by casting lots among
the family is taken to a certain marsh in that region,
and hanging his clothes on an oak-tree swims across
the water and goes away into a desolate place and is
transformed into a wolf and herds with the others
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
annos ix; quo in tempore si homine se abstinuerit,
reverti ad idem stagnum et, cum tranaverit, effigiem
recipere, ad pristinum habitum addito novem annorum
senio, addit 1 quoque fabulosius 2 eandem reciperare
82 vestem ! mirum est quo procedat Graeca cre-
dulitas : nullum tam inpudens mendacium est ut
teste careat. item Apollas 3 qui Olympionicas
scripsit narrat Demaenetum Parrhasium in sacrificio
quod Arcades lovi Lycaeo humana etiamtum hostia
faciebant, immolati pueri exta degustasse et in lu-
pum se convertisse, eundem x anno restitution ath-
letice se exercuisse in pugilatu victoremque Olympia
83 reversum. quin et caudae huius animalis creditur
vulgo inesse amatorium virus exiguo in villo eumque
cum capiatur abici nee idem pollere nisi viventi
direptum ; dies quibus coeat toto anno non amplius
duodecim ; eundem in fame vesci terra inter auguria :
ad dexteram commeantium praeciso itinere si pleno
84 id ore fecerit, nullum omnium ominum 4 praestantius.
sunt in eo genere qui cervarii vocantur, qualem e
Gallia in Pompei Magni harena spectatum diximus.
huic quamvis in fame mandenti, si respexerit,
oblivionem cibi subrepere aiunt digressumque
quaerere aliud.
1 Edd, : id. 2 Pellicerius : Pabius.
3 Kalkmann : Acopsia (Soopas Jan}.
4 Rctckham : jiullunx Jjomiiiiuii (n. ominum. ant oimtiiuiix aut
omnino edd.).
The lynx. b See 70.
BOOK VIII. xxxiv. 81-84
of the same kind for nine years ; and that if in that
period he has refrained from touching a human
being, he returns to the same marsh, swims across
it and recovers his shape, with nine years' age added
to his former appearance; Evanthes also adds the
more fabulous detail that he gets back the same
clothes ! It is astounding to what lengths Greek
credulity will go ; there is no lie so shameless as to
lack a supporter. Similarly Apollas the author of
Olympic Victors relates that at the sacrifice which
even at that date the Arcadians used to perform in
honour of Lycaean Jove with a human victim,
Daemenetus of Parrhasia tasted the vitals of a boy
who had been offered as a victim and turned himself
into a wolf, and furthermore that he was restored ten
years later and trained himself in athletics for boxing
and returned a winner from Olympia. Moreover it
is popularly believed that even the tail of this animal
contains a love-poison in a small tuft of hair, and when
it is caught it sheds the tuft, which has not the same
potency unless plucked from the animal while it is
alive; that the days on which it breeds are not
more than twelve in a whole year; also that for it
to feed on earth when it is hungry counts as an
augury : if it does this in large mouthfuls when
barring the path of travellers who come upon it on
their right hand side, this is the finest of all omens.
Some members of the genus are called stag-wolves a ;
a specimen from Gaul was seen in the arena of
Pompey the Great, as we have stated. & They
say that if this animal while devouring its food
looks behind it, however hungry it is, forgetfulness
of what it is eating creeps over it and it goes off to
look for something else.
Si
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
85 XXXV. Quod ad serpentis attinct, vulgaturn est
colorem eius plerasque terrae habere in qua occul-
tentur ; innumera esse genera ; cerastis corpora
eminere cornicula saepe quadrigemina, quorum
motu reliquo corpore occulto sollicitent ad se aves ;
geminum caput amphisbaenae, hoc est et a cauda,
tamquam parum esset uno ore fundi venenum ; aliis
squamas esse, aliis picturas, omnibus exitiale virus ;
iaculum ex arborum ramis vibrari, nee pedibus tan-
tum pavendas serpentes sed ut missile x volare tor-
mento ; colla aspidum intumescere nullo ictus re-
medio praeterquam si confestim partes contactae
86 amputentur. unus huic tarn pestifero animali
sensus vel potius affectus est : coniugia ferme vagan-
tur, nee nisi cum pari vita est. itaque alterutra in-
terempta incredibilis ultionis alteri cura: perse-
quitur interfectorem unumque eum in quantolibet
populi agmine notitia quadam infest at, perrumpit
omnes difficultates, permeat spatia omnia, 2 nee nisi
amnibus arcetur aut praeceleri fuga.
87 Non est fateri rerum natura largius mala an reme-
dia genuerit. iam primum hebetes oculos huic malo
dedit, eosque non in fronte ut ex adverse cerneret, 3
sed in temporibus, itaque excitatur celerius 4
auditu quam visu, deinde internecivum bellum
1 Mayhoff : et missili.
2 omnia add. ? Mayhoff.
3 v.L aut adversa cernere et alia.
4 Mayhoff: saepius.
HytMcal; but the name is now used of an American
snake.
b The name is now given to the mongoose.
62
BOOK VIII. xxxv. 85-87
XXXV. As concerning serpents, it is generally The snake.
stated that most of them have the colour of the earth
that they usually lurk in ; that there are innumerable
kinds of them ; that horned snakes have little horns,
often a cluster of four, projecting from the body, by
moving which so as to hide the rest of the body they
lure birds to them ; that the amphisbaena a has a twin
head, that is one at the tail-end as well, as though
it were not enough for poison to be poured out of one
mouth; that some have scales, others coloured
markings, and all a deadly venom; that the javelin-
snake hurls itself from the branches of trees, and
that serpents are not only formidable to the feet but
fly like a missile from a catapult ; that when asps'
necks swell up there is no remedy for their sting
except the immediate amputation of the parts
stung. Although so pestilential, this animal has one
emotion or rather affection: they usually roam in
couples, male and female, and only live with their
consort. Accordingly when either of the pair has
been destroyed the other is incredibly anxious for
revenge: it pursues the murderer and by means
of some mark of recognition attacks him and him
only in however large a throng of people, bursting
through all obstacles and traversing all distances, and
it is only debarred by rivers or by very rapid flight.
It is impossible to declare whether Nature has
engendered evils or remedies more bountifully. In
the first place she has bestowed on this accursed
creature dim eyes, and those not in the forehead for
it to look straight in front of it, but in the temples
and consequently it is more quickly excited by
hearing than by sight ; and in the next place she has
given it war to the death with the ichneumon 6 .
63
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
88 cum ichneumone. XXXVI. notum est animal hac
gloria maxime in eadem natum Aegypto. mergit se
limo saepius siccatque sole, mox ubi pluribus eodem
modo se coriis loricavit, in dimicationem pergit.
in ea caudam attollens ictus inritos aversus excipit,
donee obliquo capite speculatus invadat in fauces,
nee hoc contentus aliud baud mitius debellat animal.
89 XXXVII, Crocodilum habet Nilus, quadripes ma-
lum et terra pariter ac flumine infestum. unum hoc
animal terrestre linguae usu caret, unum superiore
mobili maxilla inprimit morsum, alias terribile
pectinatim stipante se dentium serie. magnitudme
excedit plerumque duodeviginti cubita. parit ova
quanta anseres, eaque extra eum locum semper
incubat praedivinatione quadam ad quern summo
auctu eo anno egressurus est Nilus. nee aliud
animal ex minore origine in maiorem crescit magnitu-
dinem; et unguibus autem armatus est, contra
omnes ictus cute invicta. dies in terra agit, noctes
90 in aqua, teporis utrumque ratione. hunc saturum
cibo piscium et semper esculento ore in litore
somno datum parva avis, quae trochilos ibi vocatur,
rex avium in Italia, invitat ad hiandum pabuli sui
gratia, os primum eius adsultim repurgans, mox
dentes et intus fauces quoque ad hanc scabendi
a Probably the Huvianus Aegyptius. The story is a fable.
64
BOOK VIIL xxxvi, 87-xxxvn. 90
XXXVI. That animal, which is also a native of TJ t* MlimMt
T -i-i -i T ft i icnn&wnon.
Ji-gypt, is specially known because of this exploit.
The asp repeatedly plunges into mud and dries itself
in the sun, and then when it has equipped itself with
a cuirass of several coatings by the same method, it
proceeds to the encounter. In this it raises its tail
and renders the blows it receives ineffectual by
turning away from them, till after watching for its
opportunity, with head held sideways it attacks its
adversary's throat. And not content with this
victim it vanquishes another animal no less ferocious,
the crocodile.
XXXVII. This belongs to the Nile ; it is a curse The
on four legs, and equally pernicious on land and in crocodlle '
the river. It is the only land animal not furnished
with a tongue and the only one that bites by press-
ing down the mobile upper jaw, and it is also
formidable because of its row of teeth set close
together like a comb. In size it usually exceeds
18 ells. It lays as many eggs as a goose, and by a
kind of prophetic instinct incubates them always
outside the line to which the Nile in that year is
going to rise at full flood. Nor does any other animal
grow to greater dimensions from a smaller original
size; however, it is armed with talons as well,
and its hide is invincible against all blows. It passes
its days on land and its nights in the water, in both
cases for reasons of warmth. This creature when
sated with a meal of fish and sunk in sleep on the
shore with its mouth always full of food, is tempted
by a small bird (called there the trochilus, a but in
Italy the king-bird) to open its mouth wide to enable
the bird to feed ; and first it hops in and cleans out
the mouth, and then the teeth and inner throat also,
6s
VOL. III. F
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
dulcedinem quam maxime hiantes, in qua voluptate
somno pressum conspicatus ichneumon per easdem
fauces ut telum aliquod inmissus erodit alvom.
91 XXXVIIL Similis crocodile, sed minor etiam
ichneumone, est in Nilo natus scincos, contra venena
praecipuus antidotis, item ad inflammandam virorum
venerem.
Verum in crocodilo maior erat pestis quam ut uno
esset eius hoste natura contenta. itaque et delphini
inmeantes Nilo, quorum dorso tamquam ad hunc
usum cultellata inest pinna, abjgentes eos praeda ac
velut in suo tantum amne regnantes, alioquin inpares
viribus ipsi astu interimunt. callent enim in hoc cuncta
animaliaj sciuntque non sua modo commoda verum et
hostium adversa, norunt sua tela, norunt occasiones
partesque dissidentium inbellis. in ventre mollis
est tenuisque cutis crocodilo; ideo se ut territi
mergunt delphini subeuntesque alvum ilia secant
92 spina. quin et gens hominum est huic beluae
adversa in ipso Nilo a Tentyri insula in qua habi-
tat appellata. mensura eorum parva, sed praesentia
animi in hoc tantum usu mira. terribilis haec contra
93 fugaces belua est, fugax contra sequentes. 1 sed
adversum ire soli hi audent, qui et flumini innatant,
1 Dalecampius : serpentes (resistentes Solinus}.
a The name is now given to a very small South European
lizard; but Pliny probably refers to some large species of
lizard,
b 8c. Tentyritae. c Now Denderah.
66
BOOK VIII. xxxvu. 90-xxxvra. 93
which yawns open as wide as possible for the pleasure
of this scratching ; and the ichneumon watches for
it to be overcome by sleep in the middle of this
gratification and darts like a javelin through the
throat so opened and gnaws out the belly.
XXXVIII. A native of the Nile resembling the
crocodile but smaller even than the ichneumon is the
skink, fl which is an outstanding antidote against
poisons, and also an aphrodisiac for males.
But the crocodile constituted too great a plague Enemies of
for Nature to be content with a single enemy for it. nl'ddphin''
Accordingly dolphins also, which have on their backs a ^ he us
a sharp fin shaped like a knife as if for this purpose, islanders.
enter the mouth of the Nile, and when the crocodiles
drive them away from their prey and lord it in the
river as merely their own domain, kill them by craft,
as they are otherwise in themselves no match for
them in strength. For all animals are skilful in this,
and know not only the things advantageous for them-
selves but also those detrimental for their enemies,
and are acquainted with their own weapons and
recognize their opportunities and the unwarlike parts
of their adversaries. The crocodile's hide is soft and
thin over the belly ; consequently the dolphins pre-
tending to be frightened dive and going under them
rip the belly with the spine described. Moreover
there is also a tribe of human beings right on the Nile,
named & after the Island of Tentyrus c on which it
dwells, that is hostile to this monster. They are of
small stature but have a readiness of mind in this
employment only that is remarkable. The creature
in question is terrible against those who run away but
runs away from those who pursue it. But these men
alone dare to go against them; they actually dive
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
dorsoque equitantium modo inpositi hiantibus resu-
pino capite ad morsum addita in os clava, dextra
ac laeva tenentes extrema eius utrimque, ut frenis
in terram agunt captives, ac voce etiam sola territos
cogunt evomere recentia corpora ad sepulturam*
itaque uni ei insulae crocodili non adnatant, olfactu-
que eius generis hominum, ut Psyllorum serpent es,
94 fugantur. hebetes oculos hoc animal dicitur habere
in aqua, extra acerrimi visus, quattuorque menses
hiemis semper inedia transmittere in specu. quidam
hoc unum quamdiu vivat crescere arbitrantur ; vivit
autem longo tempore.
95 XXXIX. Maior altitudine in eodem Nilo belua
hippopotamus editur, ungulis binis quales bubus,
dorso equi et iuba et hinnitu, rostro resimo, cauda et
dentibus aprorum aduncis sed minus noxiis, tergoris
ad scuta galeasque inpenetrabilis, praeterquam si
umore madeant. depascitur segetes destinatione
ante, ut ferunt, determinatas in diem et ex agro
ferentibus vestigiis, ne quae revert enti insidiae
comparentur.
96 XL. Primus eum et quinque crocodiles Romae
aedilitatis suae ludis M. Scaurus temporario euripo
ostendit. hippopotamus in quadam medendi parte
etiam magister existit; adsidua namque satietate
<* See VII 14.
* Apparently by entering the field walking backward.
e 58 B.C.
68
BOOK VIII. xxxvin. 93-xL. 96
into the river and mounting on their back as if riding
a horse, when they yawn with the head thrown back-
ward to bite, insert a staff into the mouth, and holding
the staff at both ends with their right and left hands,
drive their prisoners to the land as if with bridles,
and by terrifying them even merely with their shouts
compel them to disgorge the recently swallowed bodies
for burial. Consequently this island only is not visited
by crocodiles, and the scent of this race of men
drives them away, as that of the Psylli a does snakes.
This animal is said to have dim sight in the water,
but to be very keen-sighted when out of it ; and to
pass four months of the winter in a cave continuously
without food. Some persons think that this alone
of animals goes on growing in size as long as it lives ;
but it lives a long time.
XXXIX. A monster of still greater height is also The hippo-
produced in the Nile, the hippopotamus, which has P tamus:
cloven hoofs like those of oxen, a horse's back, mane
and neigh, a snub snout, a boar's tail and curved
tusks, though these are less formidable, and with a
hide that supplies an impenetrable material for
shields and helmets, except if they are soaked in
moisture. It feeds on the crops, marking out a
definite portion beforehand for each day, so it is said,
and making its footprints lead out of the field/ so
that no traps may be laid for it when it returns.
XL. A hippopotamus was exhibited at Borne for
the first time, together with five crocodiles, by
Marcus Scaurus at the games which he gave when
aedile c ; a temporary channel was made to hold
them. The hippopotamus stands out as an actual its mod-
master in one department of medicine ; for when its letttn9 '
unceasing voracity has caused it to overeat itself it
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
obesus exit in litus recentis harundinum caesuras
speculatum atque ubi acutissimam vidit stirpem
inprimens corpus venam quandam in crure vulnerat
atque it a profluvio sanguinis morbidum alias corpus
exonerat et plagam limo rursus obducit.
97 XLI. Simile quiddam et volucris in eadem Aegypto
monstravit quae vocatur ibis, rostri aduncitate per
earn partem se perluens qua reddi ciborum onera
maxime salubre est. nee haec sola : a 1 multis
animalibus reperta sunt usui futura et homini.
dictamnum herbam extrahendis sagittis cervi mon-
stravere percussi eo telo pastuque herbae eius eiecto ;
iidem percussi a phalangio, quod est aranei genus,
aut aliquo simili cancros edendo sibi medentur.
est et ad serpentium ictus praecipua herba, 2 qua se
lacerti quotiens cum his conseruere pugnam vulnerati
98 refovent. chelidoniamvisuisaluberrimamhirundines
monstravere vexatis pullorum oculis ilia medentes.
testudo cunilae quam bubulam vocant pastu vires
contra serpentes refovet, mustella ruta in murium
venatu cum iis dimicatione conserta. ciconia ori-
gano, hedera apri in morbis sibi medentur et cancros
99 vescendo maxime mari eiectos. anguis, hiberno situ
membrana corpori 3 obducta feniculi suco inpedi-
1 a om. v.L 2 herba add. ? Mayhoff.
3 Rackham : corporis.
Perhaps pennyroyal.
70
BOOK VIII. XL. 9 6-XLi. 99
comes ashore to reconnoitre places where rushes
have recently been cut, and where it sees an extremely
sharp stalk it squeezes its body down on to it and
makes a wound in a certain vein in its leg, and by thus
letting blood unburdens its body, which would
otherwise be liable to disease, and plasters up the
wound again with mud.
XLI. A somewhat similar display has also been other species
made in the same country of Egypt by the bird called ^f^
the ibis, which makes use of the curve of its beak to
purge itself through the part by which it is most
conducive to health for the heavy residue of foodstuffs
to be excreted. Nor is the ibis alone, but many
animals have made discoveries destined to be useful
for man as well. The value of the herb dittany for
extracting arrows was shown by stags when wounded
by that weapon and ejecting it by grazing on that
herb ; likewise stags when bitten by the phalangium,
a kind of spider, or any similar animal cure themselves
by eating crabs. There is also a herb that is par-
ticularly good for snake-bites, with which lizards
heal themselves whenever they fight a battle with
snakes and are wounded. Celandine was shown
to be very healthy for the sight by swallows using it
as a medicine for their chicks' sore eyes. The
tortoise eats cunila a , called ox-grass, to restore its
strength against the effect of snake-bites ; the weasel
cures itself with rue when it has had a fight with
mice in hunting them. The stork drugs itself with
marjoram in sickness, and goats use ivy and a
diet consisting mostly of crabs thrown up from the
sea. When a snake's body gets covered with a skin
owing to its winter inactivity it sloughs this hindrance
to its movement by means of fennel-sap and comes
7 1
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
mentum illud exuit rtitidusque vernat ; exuit autem
a capite primum, nee celerius quam uno die et nocte,
replicans ut extra fiat membranae quod fuerit intus.
idem hiberna latebra visu obscurato marathro
herbae se adfricans oculos inunguit ac refovet, si
vero squamae obtorpuere spinis iuniperi se scabit.
" draco vernam nausiam silvestris lactucae suco res-
100 tinguit. pantheras perfricata carne 1 aconito [vene-
num id est] 2 barbari venantur ; occupat ilico fauces
earum angor (quare pardalianches id venenum
appellavere quidam), at fera contra hoc excrementis
hominis sibi medetur, et alias tarn avida eorum ut a
pastoribus ex industria in aliquo vase suspensa altius
quam ut queat saltu attingere iaculando se ap-
petendoque 3 deficiat et postremo expiret, alioqui
vivacitatis adeo lentae ut eiectis interaneis diu pu-
101 gnet. elephans chamaeleone concolori 4 frondi 5
devorato occurrit oleastro huic veneno suo. ursi
cum mandragorae malum gustavere formicas lamb-
unt. cervus herba cinare venenatis pabulis
resistit. palumbes, graculi, merulae, perdices lauri
folio annuum fastidium purgant, columbae, turtures
et gallinacei herba quae vocatur helxine, anates,
anseres ceteraeque aquaticae herba siderite, grues
et similes iunco palustri. corvus occiso chamae-
1 v.l. per fricatas carnes.
2 om. Urlichs.
3 v.l. iaculando ea petendoque : iaculando se appetens
I'd appetat ideoque ? Mayhoff.
* cum concolori ? Mayhoff.
5 edd. : fronde.
The wall-pellitory.
72
BOOK VIII. XLI. 99-101
out all glossy for spring ; but it begins the process at
its head, and takes at least 24: hours to do it, folding
the skin backward so that what was the inner side
of it becomes the outside. Moreover as its sight is
obscured by its hibernation it anoints and revives its
eyes by rubbing itself against a fennel plant, but if
its scales have become numbed it scratches itself on
the spiny le aves of a j unip er . A large snake quenches
its spring nausea with the juice of wild lettuce.
Barbarian hunters catch leopards by means of meat
rubbed over with wolf's-bane; their throats are at
once attacked by violent pain (in consequence of
which some people have given this poison a Greek
name meaning choke-leopard), but to cure this the
creature doses itself with human excrement, and in
general it is so greedy for this that shepherds have
a plan of hanging up some of it in a vessel too high
for the leopard to be able to reach it by jumping up,
and the animal keeps springing up and trying to get
it till it is exhausted and finally dies, although other-
wise its vitality is so persistent that it will go on
fighting for a long time after its entrails have been
torn out. When an elephant swallows a chameleon
(which is poisonous to it) because it is of the same
colour as a leaf, it uses the wild olive as a remedy.
When bears have swallowed the fruit of the mandrake
they lick up ants. A stag uses wild artichoke as an
antidote to poisoned fodder. Pigeons, jays, black-
birds and partridges cure their yearly distaste
for food with bay-leaves; doves, turtle-doves and
domestic fowls use the plant called helxine a , ducks,
geese and other water-fowl water-starwort, cranes
and the like marsh-rushes. When a raven has
killed a chameleon lizard, which is noxious even to
73
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
leone, qui etiam victor-suo nocet, lauro infectum virus
extinguit.
102 XLII. Milia * praeterea, utpote cum plurimis ani-
malibus eadem natura rerum caeli quoque observa-
tionem et ventorum, imbrium, tempestatum praesa-
gia alia alio modo dederit, quod persequi inmensum
est, aeque scilicet quam reliquam cum singulis
hominum societatem. siquidem et pericula prae-
monent non fibris modo extisque, circa quod magna
mortalium portio haeret, sed et 2 alia quadam signi-
103 ficatione. ruinis inminentibus musculi praemigrant,
aranei cum telis primi cadunt. auguria quidem
artem fecere apud Romanos et sacerdotum collegium
vel maxime sollemne. est inter ea 3 locis rigentibus
et volpes, animal alioqui sollertia dirum 4 ; amnes
gelatos lacusque nonnisi ad eius itum reditumque
transeunt : observatum earn aure ad glaciem adposita
104 coniectare crassitudinem gelus. XLIII. Nee minus
clara exitii documenta sunt etiam in 5 contemnendis
animalibus. M. Varro auctor est a cuniculis suf-
fossum in Hispania oppidum, a talpis in Thessalia,
ab ranis civitatem in Gallia pulsam, ab locustis in
Africa, ex Gyara Cycladum insula incolas a muribus
fugatos, in Italia Amynclas a serpentibus deletas.
1 Multa ? (cf. 106) Mayfioff. * et add. ? Mayhoff.
3 est in Thracia edd. 4 v,l. sollerti auditu,
74
BOOK VIIL XLI. IOI-XLIII. 104
its conqueror, it stanches the poisonous infection
with bay-leaves.
XLII. There are thousands of points besides,
inasmuch as Nature has likewise also bestowed upon SC
very many animals the faculty of observing the sky, dan ^ er '
and a variety of different modes of prognosticating
winds, rain and storms, a subject which it would be
an immense task to pursue, just as much so no doubt
as the. other points of alliance between particular
animals and human beings. For in fact animals even
give warning of dangers in advance, not only by
means of their entrails and internal organs, a thing
that much intrigues a great part of mankind, but also
by another mode of indication. When the collapse
of a building is imminent, the mice migrate in ad-
vance, and spiders with their webs are the first things
to fall. Indeed auguries have constituted a science
at Rome and have given rise to a priestly college of
the greatest dignity. In frostbound countries the
fox also is among the creatures believed to give
omens, being an animal of formidable sagacity in
other respects ; people only cross frozen rivers and
lakes at points where it goes or returns : it has been
observed to put its ear to the frozen surface and to
guess the thickness of the ice. XLIII. Nor are destructive
there less remarkable instances of destructiveness species -
even in the case of contemptible animals. Marcus
Varro states that a town in Spain was undermined
by rabbits and one in Thessaly by moles, and that
a tribe in Gaul was put to flight by frogs and one in
Africa by locusts, and the inhabitants were banished
from the island of Gyara in the Cyclades by mice,
and Amynclae in Italy was completely destroyed
75
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
citra Cynamolgos Aethiopas late deserta regio est a
scorpionibus et solipugis gente sublata, et a scolo-
pendris abactos Rhoetienses auctor est Theophrastus.
Sed ad reliqua ferarum genera redeamus.
105 XLIV. Hyaenis utramque esse naturam et alternis
annis maris alternis feminas fieri, parere sine mare
vulgus credit, Aristoteles negat. collum ut 1 iuba
in continuitatem 2 spinae porrigitur flectique nisi cir-
106 cumactu totius corporis nequit. multa praeterea mira
traduntur, sed maxime sermonem humanum inter
pastorum stabula adsimulare nomenque alicuius addis-
cere quern evocatum foris laceret, item vomitionem
hominis irmtari ad sollicitandos canes quos invadat ;
ab uno animali sepulchra erui inquisitione corporum ;
feminam raro capi; oculis mille esse varietates
colorumque mutationes; praeterea umbrae eius
contactu canes obmutescere ; et quibusdam magicis
artibus omne animal quod ter lustraverit in vestigio
107 haerere. XLV. Huius generis coitu leaena Aethio-
pica parit corocottam, similiter voces imitantem
hominum pecorumque ; acies ei perpetua in utraque
parte oris nullis gingivis, dente continue, ne contrario
occursu hebetetur capsarum modo includitur. ho-
1 Mayhoff: et.
2 MayTwff : iuba et imitate.
An unknown animal.
BOOK VIII. XLIII. I04-XLV. 107
by snakes. North of the Ethiopic tribe of the
Bitch-milkers there is a wide belt of desert where
a tribe was wiped out by scorpions and poisonous
spiders, and Theophrastus states that the Rhoetienses
were driven away by a kind of centipede.
But let us return to the remaining kinds of wild
animals.
XLIV. The hyena is popularly believed to be
bi-sexual and to become male and female in alternate
years, the female bearing offspring without a male ;
but this is denied by Aristotle. Its neck stretches
right along the backbone like a mane, and cannot
bend without the whole body turning round. A
number of other remarkable facts about it are
reported, but the most remarkable are that among
the shepherds' homesteads it simulates human
speech, and picks up the name of one of them
so as to call him to come out of doors and tear him
in pieces, and also that it imitates a person being
sick, to attract the dogs so that it may attack them ;
that this animal alone digs up graves in search of
corpses; that a female is seldom caught; that its
eyes have a thousand variations and alterations of
colour; moreover that when its shadow falls on
dogs they are struck dumb ; and that it has certain
magic arts by which it causes every animal at which
it gazes three times to stand rooted to the spot.
XLV. When crossed with this race of animals the Hyena
Ethiopian lioness gives birth to the corocotta, a that hybrid *-
mimics the voices of men and cattle in a similar way.
It has an unbroken ridge of bone in each jaw, forming
a continuous tooth without any gum, which to
prevent its being blunted by contact with the
opposite jaw is shut up in a sort of case. Juba states
77
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
minum sermones imitari et mantichoran in Aethiopia
auctor est luba.
108 XLVI. Hyaenae plurimae gignuntur in Africa,
quae et asinorum silvestrium multitudinem fundit.
mares in eo genere singuli feminarum gregibus
imperitant. timent libidinis aemulos et ideo gravidas
custodiunt morsuque natos mares castrant; contra
gravidae latebras petunt et parere furto cupiunt.
gaudentque copia libidinis*
109 XLVII. Easdem partes sibi ipsi Pontici amputant
fibri periculo urguente, ob hoc se peti gnari:
castoreum id vocant medici. alias animal horrendi
morsus arbores iuxta flumina ut ferro caedit ; ho-
minis parte conprehensa non ante quam fracta
concrepuerint ossa morsus resolvit. cauda piscium
his, cetera species lutrae: utrumque aquaticum,
utrique mollior pluma pilus.
110 XLVIII. Ranae quoque rubetae, quarum et in
terra et in umore vita, plurimis refertae medica-
minibus deponere ea cotidie 1 ac resumere pastu
dicuntur, venena tantum semper sibi reservantes.
111 XLIX. Similis et vitulo marino victus in mari ac
terra, simile fibris et ingenium. evomit fel suum ad
maulta medicamenta utile, item coagulum ad comi-
1 v.L assidue.
B See 75.
b The Latin name has been transferred to a vegetable oil.
, I.e. the toad.
7 8
BOOK VIII. XLV. 107-xnx. in
that in Ethiopia the mantichora a also mimics human
speech.
XLVI. Hyenas occur most numerously in Africa,
which also produces a multitude of wild asses. In
that species each male is lord of a separate herd of
females. They are afraid of rivals in their affections,
and consequently they keep a watch on their females
when in foal, and geld their male offspring with a
bite ; to guard against this the females when in foal
seek hiding-places and are anxious to give birth by
stealth. Also they are fond of a great deal of sexual
indulgence.
XLVII. The beavers of the Black Sea region prac-
tise self-amputation of the same organ when beset by
danger, as they know that they are hunted for the
sake of its secretion, the medical name for which is
beaver-oil. 6 Apart from this the beaver is an animal
with a formidable bite, cutting down trees on the
river banks as if with steel ; if it gets hold of part of
a man's body it does not relax its bite before the
fractured bones are heard grinding together. The
beaver has a fish's tail, while the rest of its con-
formation resembles an otter's; both species are
aquatic, and both have fur that is softer than
down.
XLVIII. Also the bramble-frog, which is amphi-
bious in its habit, is replete with a great number of rog '
drugs, which it is said to evacuate daily and to re-
place by the food that it eats, always keeping back
only the poisons for itself.
XLIX. The seal also resembles the beaver both ****#
in its amphibious habits and in its nature. It gets
rid of its gall, which is useful for many drugs, by
vomiting it up, and also its rennet, a cure for epileptic
79
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
tiales morbos, ob ea se peti prudens. Theophrastus
auctor est anguis x modo et stelliones senectutem
exuere itaque protinus devorare praeripientis comi-
tiali morbo remedium. 2 eosdem innocui ferunt 3 in
Graecia morsus, noxios 4 esse in Sicilia.
112 L. Cervis quoque est sua malignitas, quamquam
placidissimo animalium. urguente vi canum ultro
confugiunt ad hominem, et in pariendo semitas
minus cavent humanis vestigiis tritas quam seer eta
ac feris opportuna. conceptus earum post arcturi
sidus. octonis mensibus ferunt partus, interim et
geminos. a conceptu separant se, at mares relicti
rabie libidinis saeviunt, fodiunt scrobes ; tune rostra
eorum nigrescunt donee aliqui abluant imbres.
feminae autem ante partum purgantur herba
quadam quae seselis dicitur, faciliore ita utentes
utero. a partu duas herbas quae tamnus et seselis
appellantur pastae redeunt ad fetum: illis imbui
lactis primos volunt sucos quacumque de causa.
113 editos partus exercent cursu et fugam meditari
docent, ad praerupta ducunt saltumque demonstrant.
iam mares soluti desiderio libidinis avide petunt
pabula; ubi se praepingues sensere, latebras quae-
runt fatentes incommodum pondus. et alias semper
in fuga adquiescunt stantesque respiciunt, cum prope
1 Gelen (cf. xxx. 89) : angues.
2 Rackham : remedii aut remedia.
3 Mayhoff : ponti ferunt aut mortiferi.
4 Mayhoff : Graecia mortuos.
As well as the animals in 111 : they grudge mankind
their horns, 115.
80
BOOK VIII. XLIX. m-L. 113
attacks; it does this because it knows that it is
hunted for the sake of these products. Theo-
phrastus states that geckoes also slough off their old
skin as a snake does, and similarly swallow the slough
at once, it being a cure for epilepsy if one snatches it
from them. It is also said that their bite is harmless
in Greece but that they are noxious in Sicily.
L. Deer also a have their own form of stinginess,
although the stag is the gentlest of animals. When
beset by a pack of hounds they fly for refuge of their
own accord to a human being, and when giving birth
to young are less careful to avoid paths worn by
human footprints than secluded places that are
advantageous for wild beasts. The mating season
is after the rising of Arcturus. Pregnancy lasts
eight months, and occasionally they bear twins.
After mating the hinds withdraw, but the deserted
males rage in a fury of desire, and score the ground
with their horns ; afterwards their snouts are black
till a considerable rainfall washes off the dirt. The
females before giving birth use a certain plant called
hartwort as a purge, so having an easier delivery.
After giving birth they browse on the two plants
named dittany and seseli before they return to
the young: for some reason or other they desire
the sucklings' first draughts of milk to be flavoured
with those herbs. When the fawns are born they
exercise them in running and teach them to practise
escaping, and take them to cliffs and show them how
to jump. The males when at last freed from lustful
desire greedily seek pasture; when they feel they
are too fat, they look for lairs to hide in, showing
that they are conscious of inconvenient weight. And
on other occasions when running away from pursuit
they always stop and stand gazing backward, when
8r
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ventum est rursus fugae praesidia repetentes: hoc
fit intestini dolore tarn infirmi ut ictu levi rumpatur
114 intus. fugiunt autem latratu canum audito secunda
semper aura, ut vestigia cum ipsis abeant. mul-
centur fistula pastoral! et cantu. cum erexere aures,
acerrimi sunt auditus, cum remisere, surdi. cetero
animal simplex et omnium rerum miraculo stupens
in tantum ut equo aut bucula accedente propius
hominem iuxta venantem non cernant aut, si cernant,
arcum ipsum sagittasque mirentur. maria trameant
gregatim nantes porrecto ordine et capita inponentes
praecedentium clunibus vicibusque ad terga re-
deuntes: hoc maxime notatur a Cilicia Cyprum
traicientibus ; nee vident terras, sed in odorem 1
115 earum natant. cornua mares habent, solique
animalium omnibus annis stato veris tempore amit-
tunt ; ideo sub ista die quam maxime invia petunt.
latent amissis velut inermes, sed et hi bono suo
invidentes : dextrum cornu negant inveniri ceu
medicamento aliquo praeditum; idque mirabilius
fatendum est cum et in vivariis mutent omnibus
annis; defodi ab iis putant. accensi autem utrius
libeat odore comitiales morbi deprehenduntur.
116 indicia quoque aetatis in illis gerunt, singulos annis
adicientibus ramos usque ad sexennes; ab eo
1 Gelen: odore.
82
BOOK VIII. L. 113-116
the hunters draw near again seeking refuge in
flight : this is done owing to pain in the gut, which
is so weak that a light blow causes internal rupture.
But when they hear the baying of hounds they always
run away down wind, so that their scent may go away
with them. They can be charmed by a shepherd's
pipe and by song. Their hearing is very keen when
they raise their ears, but dull when they drop them.
In other respects the deer is a simple animal and
stupefied by surprise at everything so much so that
when a horse or a heifer is approaching they do not
notice a huntsman close to them, or if they see him
merely gaze in wonder at his bow and arrows.
They cross seas swimming in a herd strung out in
line with their heads resting on the haunches of the
ones in front of them, and taking turns to drop to
the rear : this is most noticed when they are crossing
from Cilicia to Cyprus ; and they do not keep land
in sight but swim towards its scent. The males have
horns, and alone of animals shed them every year at a
fixed time in spring ; consequently when the day in
question approaches they resort as much as possible
to unfrequented places. When they have lost
their horns they keep in hiding as if disarmed
although these animals also are grudging of their
special good: people say that a stag's right horn,
which is endowed with some sort of healing drug,
is never found ; and this must be confessed to be the
more surprising in view of the fact that even stags
kept in warrens change their horns every year:
it is thought that they bury them. The smell of
either horn when burnt arrests attacks of epilepsy.
They also bear marks of their age in their horns,
each yar till they are six years old adding one tine ;
83
G2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
tempore similia revivescunt nee potest aetas discerni,
sed dentibus senecta declaratur; aut enim paucos
aut nullos habent, nee in cornibus imis ramos alioqui
117 ante front em prominere solitos iunioribus. non
decidunt castratis cornua nee nascuntur, erumpunt
autem renascentibus tuberibus primo aridae cuti
similia, dein x teneris increscunt ferulis harundineas
in paniculas molli plumatas 2 lanugine. quamdiu
carent iis, noctibus procedunt ad pabula. incres-
centia solis vapore durant ad arbores subinde ex-
perientes: ubi placuit robur, in aperta prodeunt;
captique iam sunt hedera in cornibus viridante, ex
attritu arborum ut in aliquo ligno teneris dum
experiuntur innata. sunt 3 aliquando et candido
colore, qualem fuisse tradunt Q. Sertorii cervam
quam esse fatidicam Hispaniae gentibus persuaserat
118 et his cum serpente pugna: vestigant cavernas
nariumque spirit u extrahunfc renitentes. ideo singu-
lare abigendis serpentibus odor adusto cervino cornu,
contra morsus vero praecipuum remedium ex
119 coagulo hinnulei matris in utero occisi. vita cervis
in confesso longa, post c annos aliquibus denuo 4
captis cum torquibus aureis quos Alexander Magnus
addiderat adopertis iam cute in magna obesitate.
febrium morbos non sentit hoc animal, quin et
1 MayTioff: eadem.
2 Rackham : plumata.
3 Pintianug : fuit.
* Mayhojf:, annos a quibusdam aut annos aliquibus.
84
BOOK VIII. L. 116-119
though, thenceforward the horns grow again like the
old ones and the age cannot be told by them. But
old age is indicated by the teeth, for the old have
either few or none, nor have they tines at the bottom
of the horns, though otherwise these usually jut out
in front of the brow when they are younger. When
stags have been gelt the horns do not fall off nor grow
again, but burst out with excrescences that keep
springing again, at first resembling dry skin, and
then grow up with tender shoots into reedy tufts
feathered with soft down. As long as the stags are
without them, they go out to graze in the nights.
When they are growing again they harden them with
the heat of the sun, subsequently testing them on
trees, and only go out into the open when satisfied
with their strength; and before now they have
been caught with green ivy on their antlers, that has
been grafted on the tender horns as on a log of wood
as a result of rubbing them against trees while testing
them. Stags are sometimes even of a white colour,
as Quintus Sertorius's hind is said to have been,
which he had persuaded the tribes of Spain to believe
prophetic. Even stags are at war with a snake;
they track out their holes and draw them out by
means of the breath of their nostrils in spite of their
resistance. Consequently the smell made by burn-
ing stag's horn is an outstanding thing for driving
away serpents, while a sovereign cure against bites
is obtained from the rennet of a fawn killed in its
mother's womb. Stags admittedly have a long life,
some having been caught a hundred years later with
the gold necklaces that Alexander the Great had
put on them already covered up by the hide in great
folds of fat. This animal is not liable to feverish dis-
85
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
medetur huic timori: quasdam modo principes
feminas scimus omnibus diebus matutinis carnem
earn degustare solitas et longo aevo caruisse febribus ;
quod ita demum existimant ratum si vulnere uno
interierit.
120 Est eadem specie, barba tantum et armorum villo
distans, quern tragelaphon vocant, non alibi quam
iuxta Phasim amnem nascens.
LI. Cervos Africa propemodum sola non gignit,
at chamaeleonem et ipsa, quamquam frequentiorem
India. 1 figura et magnitudo erant 2 lacerti, nisi
crura essent recta et excelsiora. latera ventri
iunguntur ut piscibus, et spina simili modo emmet.
121 rostrum, ut in parvo, haut absimile suillo, cauda
praelonga in tenuitatem desinens et implicans se
viperinis orbibus, ungues adunci, motus tardior ut
testudini, corpus asperum ceu crocodilo, oculi in
recessu cavo, tenui discrimine praegrandes et cor-
pori concolores. numquam eos operit, nee pupillae
122 motu sed totius oculi versatione circumaspicit. ipse
celsus hianti semper ore solus animalium nee cibo nee
potu alitur nee alio quam aeris alimento, rictu
terrifico 3 fere, innoxius alioqui. et coloris natura
mirabilior ; mutat namque eum subinde et oculis et
cauda et toto corpore, redditque semper quemcumque
proxime attingit praeter rubrum candidumque.
1 Mayhoffi Indiae (frequentior est in India? Rackham).
2 Rackham : erat.
3 Mayhoff : circa caprificos.
The Rion, running into tae ^lack Sea.
b In point of fact it lives on insects, which, it catches by
shooting out the tongue and drawing it back so quickly that
the ancients did not notice it:
c The MSS. give ' it is usually about wild fig-trees.'
86
BOOK VIII. L. II9-LI. 122
eases indeed it even supplies a prophylactic against
their attack; we know that recently certain ladies
of the imperial house have made a practice of eating
venison every day in the morning 1 and have been
free from fevers throughout a long lifetime ; though
it is thought that this only holds good if the stag has
been killed by a single wound.
The animal called the goat-stag, occurring only The
near the river Phasis," is of the same appearance, 9 at " sta 4-
differing only in having a beard, and a fleece on the
shoulders.
LI. Africa almost alone does not produce stags, The
but Africa also has the chamaeleon, although India c ' haremlem -
produces it in greater numbers. Its shape and size
were those of a lizard, were not the legs straight
and longer. The flanks are joined on to the belly
as in fishes, and the spine projects in a similar manner.
It has a snout not unlike a pig's, considering its
small size, a very long tail that papers towards
the end and curls in coils like a viper, and crooked
talons ; it moves rather slowly like a tortoise and has
a rough body like a crocodile's, and eyes in a hollow
recess, close together and very large and of the same
colours as its body. It never shuts its eyes, and
looks round not by moving the pupil but by turning
the whole eye. It holds itself erect with its mouth
always wide open, and it is the only animal that does
not live on food or drink or anything else but the
nutriment that it derives from the air, & with a gape
that is almost terrifying, but otherwise it is harmless.
And it is more remarkable for the nature of its colour-
ing, since it constantly changes the hue of its eyes
and tail and whole body and always makes it the
colour with which it is in closest contact, except
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
defuncto pallor est. caro in capita et maxillis et
ad commissuram caudae admodum exigua, nee
aliubi toto corpore ; sanguis in corde et circa oculos
tantum; viscera sine splene. hibernis mensibus
latet ut lacerta.
123 LII. Mutat colores et Scytharum tarandrus, nee
aliud ex iis quae pilo vestiuntur nisi in Indis lycaon,
cui iubata traditur cervix, nam thoes, 'luporum
id genus est procerius longitudine, brevitate crurum
dissimile, velox saltu, venatu vivens, innocuum
hominij habitum, non colorem, mutant, per hiemes
124 hirti, aestate nudi. tarandro magnitudo quae
bovi est, caput mains cervino nee absimile,
cornua ramosa, ungulae bifidae, villus magnitudine
ursorum sed, cum libuit sui coloris esse, asini similis.
tergori tanta duritia ut thoraces ex eo faciant.
colorem omnium arborum, fruticum, florum locor-
umque reddit metuens in quibus latet, ideoque raro
capitur. mirum esset habitum corpori tarn multi-
plicem dari, mirabilius est et villo.
125 LIII. Hystrices generat India et Africa spinea 1
contectas cute 2 irenaceorum genere, sed hystrici
longiores aculei et, cum intendit cutem, missiles:
ora urguentium figit canum et paulo longius iaculatur.
hibernis autem se mensibus condit, quae natura
multis et ante omiiia ursis.
1 v,l, spina. 2 Mayhoff : contecta acu.
This is not true.
BOOK VIII. LI. 122-Liii. 125
red and white. When dead it is of a pallid colour.
It has flesh on the head and jaws and at the junction
of the tail in a rather scanty amount, and nowhere
else in the whole body; blood in the heart and
around the eyes only; its vital parts contain no
spleen. It hibernates like a lizard in the winter
months.
LIL The reindeer of Scythia also changes its The reindeer:
colours, but none other of the fur-clad animals does dwyesoj
so except the Indian wolf, which is reported to have colour '
a mane on the neck. For the j ackal which is a kind
of wolf, longer in the body and differing in the
shortness of the legs, quick in its spring, living by
hunting, harmless to man changes its raiment
though not its colour, being shaggy through the
winter but naked in summer. The reindeer is the
size of an ox ; its head is larger than that of a stag
but not unlike it; it has branching horns, cloven
hooves, and a fleece as shaggy as a bear's but, when
it happens to be self-coloured, resembling an ass's
coat. The hide is so hard that they use it for making
cuirasses. When alarmed it imitates the colours of
all the trees, bushes and flowers and places where it
lurks , a and consequently is rarely caught. It would
be surprising that its body has such variety of charac-
ter, but it is more surprising that even its fleece has.
LI II. The porcupine is a native of India and Africa. The
It is covered with a prickly skin of the hedgehogs'
kind, but the spines of the porcupine are longer and
they dart out when it draws the skin tight : it pierces
the mouths of hounds when they close with it, and
shoots out at them when further off. In the winter
months it hibernates, as is the nature of many animals
and before all of bears.
89
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
126 LIV. Eorum coitus hiemis initio, nee vulgar!
quad rip edum more sed ambobus cubantibus con-
plexisque; deinde secessus in specus separating in
quibus pariunt xxx die plurimum quinos. hi sunt
Candida informisque caro, paulo muribus maior, sine
oculis, sine pilo; ungues tantum prominent, hanc
lambendo paulatim figurant, nee quicquam rarius
quam parientem videre ursam. ideo mares quadra-
genis diebus latent, feminae quaternis mensibus.
127 specus si non habuere, ramorum fruticumque con-
gerie aedificant impenetrabiles imbribus mollique
fronde constratos. primis diebus bis septenis tarn
gravi somno premuntur ut ne vulneribus quidem
excitari queant ; tune mirum in modum veterno
pinguescunt (illi sunt adipes medicaminibus apti
contraque defluvium capilli tenaces). ab his diebus
residunt ac priorum pedum suctu vivunt. fetus
rigentes adprimendo pectori fovent non alio incubitu
128 quam ad ova volucres. mirum dictu, credit Theo-
phrastus per id tempus coctas quoque ursorum
carnes, si adserventur, increscere, cibi nulla tune
1 argumenta nee nisi umoris minimum in alvo inveniri,
sanguinis exiguas circa corda tantum guttas, reliquo
129 corpori nihil inesse, procedunt vere, sed mares
praepingues, cuius rei causa non prompta est, quippe
ne somno quidem saginatis, praeter quattuordecim
dies ut diximus. exeuntes herbam quandam arum
90
BOOK VIII. LIV. 126-129
LIV. Bears couple at the beginning of winter, The bear.
and not in the usual manner of quadrupeds but both
lying down and hugging each other; afterwards
they retire apart into caves, in which they give birth
on the thirtieth day to a litter of five cubs at most.
These are a white and shapeless lump of flesh,
little larger than mice, without eyes or hair and only
the claws projecting. This lump the mother bears
slowly lick into shape. Nor is anything more unusual
than to see a she-bear giving birth to cubs. Con-
sequently the males lie in hiding for periods of forty
days, and the females four months. If they have
not got caves, they build rainproof %ns by heaping
up branches and brushwood, with a carpet of soft
foliage on the floor. For the first fortnight they sleep
so soundly that they cannot be aroused even by
wounds ; at this period they get fat with sloth to a
remarkable degree (the bear's grease is useful for
medicines and a, prophylactic against baldness).
As a result of these days of sleep they shrink in bulk
and they live by sucking their fore paws. They
cherish their freezing offspring by pressing them to
their breast, lying on them just like birds hatching
eggs. Strange to say, Theophrastus believes that
even boiled bear's flesh, if kept, goes on growing
in size for that period ; that no evidence of food and
only the smallest amount of water is found in the
belly at this stage, and that there are only a few
drops of blood in the neighbourhood of the heart
and none in the rest of the body. In the spring
they come out, but the males are very fat, a fact
the cause of which is not evident, as they have not
been fattened up even by sleep, except for a fortnight
as we have said. On coming out they devour a plant
91
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
nomine laxandis intestinis alioquin concretis de-
vorant friantque l surculos dentibus 2 praedomantes
ora. oculi eorum hebetantur, qua maxima causa
favos expetuntj ut convulneratum ab apibus os levet
130 sanguine gravedinem illam. invalidissimum urso
caput, quod leoni firmissimum; ideo urguente vi
praecipitaturi se ex aliqua rupe manibus cooperto
iaciuntur, ac saepe in harena colapho infracto
exanimantur. cerebro veneficium inesse Hispaniae
credunt, occisorumque in spectaculis capita cremant
testato, quoniam potum in ursinam rabiem agat.
131 ingrediuntur et bipedes ; arbor em aversi derepunt.
tauros ex ore cornibusque eorum omnibus pedibus
suspensi pondere fatigant; nee alteri animalium in
maleficio stultitia sollertior. annalibus notatum est
M. Pisone M. Messala coss. a. d. xiv kal. Oct.
Domitium Ahenobarbum aedilem curulem ursos
Numidicos centum et totidem venatores Aethiopas
in circo dedisse. miror adiectum Numidicos fuisse,
cum in Africa ursum non gigni constet.
132 LV. Conduntur hieme et Pontici mures, dumtaxat
albi, quorum palatum in gustu sagacissimum auctores
quonam modo intellexerint miror. conduntur et
Alpini, quibus magnitudo melium est, sed hi pabulo
1 Mayhoffi circaque. a Mayhoff : dentium.
61 B.C. * Marmots.
92
BOOK VIII. LIV, 129-Lv. 132
called wake-robin to loosen the bowels, which are
otherwise constipated, and they rub their teeth on
tree-stumps to get their mouths into training. Their
eyes have got dim, which is the chief reason why
they seek for hives, so that their face may be stung
by the bees to relieve that trouble with blood. A
bear's weakest part is the head, which is the lion's
strongest ; consequently if when hard pressed by an
attack they are going to fling themselves down from
a rock they make the jump with their head covered
with their fore paws, and in the arena are often
killed by their head being broken by a buffet. The
Spanish provinces believe that a bear's brain contains
poison, and when bears are killed in shows their heads
are burnt in the presence of a witness, on the ground
that to drink the poison drives a man bear-mad. Bears
even walk on two feet, and they crawl down trees
backward. They tire out bulls with their weight by
hanging by all four feet from their mouth and horns ;
and no other animal's stupidity is more cunning in
doing harm. It is noted in the Annals that on 19 Sep-
tember in the consulship a of Marcus Piso and Marcus
Messala, Domitius Ahenobarbus as curule aedile
provided in the circus a hundred Numidian bears
and the same number of Ethiopian huntsmen. I
am surprised at the description of the bears as
Numidian, since it is known that the bear does not
occur in Africa.
LV. The mice of the Black Sea region also hibernate,
at all events the white ones, which are stated to have
a very discriminating palate, though I am curious to
know how the authorities detected this. Alpine
mice, & which are the size of badgers, also hibernate,
but these carry a supply of fodder into their caves
93
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ante in specus convecto. 1 quidam narrant alternos
marem ac feminam subrosae conplexos fascem herbae
supinos cauda mordicus adprehensa invicem detrain
ad specum, ideoque illo tempore detrito esse dorso.
sunt his pares et in Aegypto, similiterque resident
in clunes et in binis pedibus gradiuntur prioribusque
ut manibus utuntur.
133 LVI. Praeparant hiemi et irenacei cibos ac
volutati supra iacentia poma adfixa spinis, unum
amplius tenentes ore, portant in cavas arbores.
iidem mutationem aquilonis in austrum condentes
se in cubile praesagiunt. ubi vero sensere venantem,
contracto ore pedibusque ac parte omni inferiore,
qua raram et innocuam habent lanuginem, convol-
vuntur in formam pilae, ne quid conprehendi possit
134 praeter aculeos. in desperatione vero urinam in se
reddunt tabificam tergori suo spinisque noxiam,
propter hoc se capi gnari. quamobrem exinanita
prius urina venari ars est. et turn praecipua dos
tergori, alias corrupto, fragili, putribus spinis atque
deciduis, etiam si vivat subtractus fuga. ob id non
nisi in novissima spe maleficio eo perfunditur,
quippe et ipsi odere suum veneficium, ita parcentes
sibi terminumque supremum opperientes ut ferme
ante captivitas occupet. calidae postea aquae
1 Detlefsen : cum quidara <m,cum quidem.
5
Possibly jerboas.
94
BOOK VIII. LV. 132-LVi. 134
beforehand. Some people say that they let them-
selves down into their cave in a string, male and female
alternately holding the next one's tail in their teeth,
and lying on their backs, embracing a bundle of
grass that they have bitten off at the roots, and that
consequently at this season their backs show marks
of rubbing. There are also mice a resembling these
in Egypt, and they sit back on their haunches in a
similar way, and walk on two feet and use their fore-
paws as hands.
LVI. Hedgehogs also prepare food for winter,
and fixing fallen apples on their spines by rolling protection
on them and holding one more in their mouth carry
them to hollow trees. The same animals foretell a
change of wind from North to South by retiring to
their lair. But when they perceive someone hunting
them they draw together their mouth and feet and
all their lower part, which has thin and harmless
down on it, and roll up into the shape of a ball,
so that it may not be possible to take hold of any
part of them except the prickles. But when desperate
they make water over themselves, which corrodes
their hide and damages their spines, for the sake of
which they know that people catch them. Hence
the scientific way is to hunt them just after they
have discharged their water. And then the hide is of
particular value, whereas otherwise it is spoiled and
fragile, with the spines rotting and falling out, even
if the animal escapes by flight and lives. On this
account it does not drench itself with this damaging
stuff except as a last resort, since even the creatures
themselves hate this self-poisoning, sparing them-
selves and waiting for the final limit so long that
usually capture overtakes them beforehand. After-
95
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
adspersu resolvitur pila, adprehensusque pes alter e
posterioribus suspendiosa fame necat: aliter non
135 est occidere et tergori parcere. ipsum animal non,
tit remur plerique, vitae hominum supervacuum est,
si non sint l illi aculei, frustra vellerum mollitia in
pecude mortalibus data : hac cute expoliuntur vestes.
magnum fraus et ibi lucrum monopolio invenit, de
nulla re crebrioribus senatus consultis nulloque non
principe adito querimoniis provincialibus.
136 LVIL Urinae et duobus aliis animalibus ratio
mira. leontophonon accipimus vocari parvom nee
aliubi nascens quam ubi leo gignitur, quo gustato
tanta ilia vis et 2 ceteris quadripedum imperitans
ilico expiret. ergo corpus eius exustum aspergunt
aliis carnibus polentae modo insidiantes ferae,
necantque etiam cinere: tarn contraria est pestis.
haut inmerito igitur odit leo visumque frangit et
citra morsum exanimat; ille contra urinam spargit,
prudens hanc quoque leoni exitialem.
137 Lyncum umor it a redditus 3 ubi gignuntur glaciatur
arescitve in gemmas carbunculis similes et igneo
colore fulgentes, lyncurium vocatas atque ob id
sucino a plerisque ita generari prodito. novere hoc
1 essent ? JtackTiam. 2 Mayhoff (cf. 48) : ut.
3 Lyncum urina reddita ? Mayhoff.
a fabulous.
BOOK VIII. LVI. 134-Lvn. 137
wards the ball into which they roll up can be made to
unroll by a sprinkle of hot water, and to fasten them
up by one of the hind feet kills them through starva-
tion when hanging : it is not possible to kill them in
any other way and avoid damaging the hide. The
animal itself is not, as most of us think, superfluous
for the life of mankind, since, if it had not spines,
the softness of the hides in cattle would have been
bestowed on mortals to no purpose : hedgehog skin
is used in dressing cloth for garments. Even here
fraud has discovered a great source of profit by
monopoly, nothing having been the subject of more
frequent legislation by the senate, and every emperor
without exception having been approached by com-
plaints from the provinces.
LVII. The urine of two other animals also has
remarkable properties. We are told that there is a 1)ane '
small animal called * lion's-bane ' a that only occurs
in regions where the lion is found, to taste of which
causes that mighty creature, the lord of all the other
four-footed animals, to expire immediately. Con-
sequently men burn this creature's body and sprinkle
it like pearl barley on the flesh of other animals as a
bait for a lion, and even kill their prey with its
ashes : so noisome a bane it is. Therefore the lion
naturally hates it, and when he sees it crushes it
and does all he can short of biting it to kill it ; while
it meets the attack by spraying urine, knowing already
that this also is deadly to a lion.
The water of lynxes, voided in this way when lfJ*
they are born, solidifies or dries up into drops like "protection-
carbuncles and of a brilliant flame-colour, called lynx-
water which is the origin of the common story that
this is the way in wfich amber is formed. The
97
VOL. III. H
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
sciuntque lynces, et invidentes urinam terra operiunt
eoque celerius solidatur ilia.
138 Alia sollertia in metu melibus: sufflatae cutis
distentu ictus hominum et morsus canum arcent.
LVIIL Provident tempestatem et sciuri obtu-
ratisque qua spiraturus est ventus cavernis ex alia
parte aperiunt fores ; de cetero ipsis villosior cauda
pro tegumento est. ergo in hiemes aliis provisurn
pabulum, aliis pro cibo somnus.
139 LIX. Serpentium vipera sola terra dicitur condi,
ceterae arborum aut saxorum cavis. et alias vel
annua fame durant algore modo dempto. omnia
secessus tempore veneno orba dormiunt. simili
modo et cocleae, illae quidem iterum et aestatibus,
adhaerentes maxime saxis, aut etiam iniuria resu-
140 pinatae avolsaeque non tamen exeuntes. in Ba-
liaribus vero insulis cavaticae appellatae non pro-
repunt e cavis terrae neque herba vivunt, sed uvae
modo inter se cohaerent. est et aliud genus minus
vulgare adhaerente operculo eiusdem testae se
operiens. obrutae terra semper hae et circa mari-
timas tantum Alpes quondam effossae coepere iam
erui et in Veliterno; omnium tamen laudatissimae
in Astypalaea insula.
141 LX. Lacertae, inimicissimum genus cocleis, ne-
Velletri in Latium.
b One of the Sporades near Crete.
BOOK VIIL LVII. 137-1*. 141
lynxes have learnt this and know it, and they
jealously cover up their urine with earth, thereby
causing it to solidify more quickly.
Another case of ingenuity in alarm is that of the
badgers : they ward off men's blows and the bites
of dogs by inflating and distending their skin.
LVIII. Squirrels also foresee a storm, and stop The
up their holes to windward in advance, opening s ^ uirrel -
doorways on the other side; moreover their own
exceptionally bushy tail serves them as a covering.
Consequently some have a store of food ready for the
winter and others use sleep as a substitute for food.
LIX. It is said that the viper is the only snake
that hides in the ground, all the others using holes
in trees or rocks. And for the rest they can last
out a year's starvation if only they are protected
against cold. All kinds sleep at the period of
retirement and are not poisonous. Snails also
hibernate in the same way, these indeed retiring
again in the summers also, mostly clinging to rocks,
or even when violently bent back and torn away,
nevertheless not going out. But those in the
Balearic Islands called cave-snails do not crawl out
of their holes in the ground and do not live on grass,
but cling together in a cluster like a bunch of grapes.
There is also another kind, which is not so common,
that shuts itself in with a tightly fitting lid formed
of the same material as its shell. These are always
buried in the earth, and formerly were only dug
up in the neighbourhood of the Maritime Alps,
but they have now begun to be pulled up in the
Velitrae a district also; however the most highly
commended kind of all is on the island of Astypalaea. 6
LX. The greatest enemy of the snail is the lizard ;
99
H2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
gantur semenstrem vitam excedere. lacertae l
Arabiae cubitales, in Indiae vero Nyso monte xxiv
in longitudinem pedum, coloris 2 fulvi aut punicei
aut caerulei.
142 LXI. Ex his quoque animalibus quae nobiscum
degunt multa sunt cognitu digna, fidelissimumque
ante omnia homini canis atque equus. pugnasse
adversus latrones canem pro domino accepimus
confectumque plagis a corpore non recessisse, volucres
ac feras abigentem; ab alio in Epiro agnitum in
conventu percussorem domini laniatuque et latratu
coactum fateri scelus. Garamantum regem canes
CC ab exilio reduxere proeliati contra resistentes.
143 propter bella Colophonii itemque Castabalenses
cohortes canum habuere ; hae primae dimicabant in
acie numquam detrect antes, haec erant fidissima
auxilia nee stipendiorum indiga. canes defendere
Cimbris caesis domus eorum plaustris inpositas.
canis lasone Lycio interfecto cibum capere noluit
inediaque consumptus est. is vero cui nomen
Hyrcani reddit Duris accenso regis Lysimachi rogo
iniecit se flammae, similiterque Hieronis regis.
144memorat et Pyrrhum Gelonis tyranni canem
Philistus ; memoratur et Nicomedis Bithyniae regis
uxore eius Consingi lacerata propter lasciviorem cum
marito iocum. apud nos Vulcatium nobilem qui
Cascellium ius civile docuit asturcone e suburbano
redeuntem, cum advesperavisset, canis a grassatore
1 lacertae ? Mayhoff : lacesti.
2 coloris? Mayhoff i oolore.
a An African tribe.
6 Cf. 166.
loo
BOOK VIII. LX. i4i-LXi. 144
this genus is said not to live more than six months.
The lizard of Arabia is 18 inches long, but those on
Mount Nysus in India reach a length of 24: feet,
and are coloured yellow or scarlet or blue.
LXI. Many also of the domestic animals are Domestic
worth studying, and before all the one most faithful
to man, the dog, and the horse. We are told of %*
a dog that fought against brigands in defence of
his - master and although covered with wounds
would not leave his corpse, driving away birds
and beasts of prey; and of another dog in
Epirus which recognized his master's murderer in a
gathering and by snapping and barking made him
confess the crime. The King of the Garamantes a
was escorted back from exile by 200 dogs who did
battle with those that offered resistance. The people
of Colophon and also those of Castabulum had troops
of dogs for their wars ; these fought fiercely in the
front rank, never refusing battle, and were their most
loyal supporters, never requiring pay. When some
Cimbrians were killed their hounds defended their
houses placed on waggons. When Jason of Lycia
had been murdered his dog refused to take food
and starved to death. But a dog the name of which
Duris gives as Hyrcanus when king Lysimachus's
pyre was set alight threw itself into the flame, and
similarly at the funeral of King Hiero, Philistus
also records the tyrant Gelo's dog Pyrrhus; also
the dog of Nicomedes king of Bithynia is recorded
to have bitten the King's wife Consingis because she
played a rather loose j oke with her husband. Among
ourselves the famous Vulcatius, Cascellius's tutor in
civil law, when returning on his cob & from his place
near Rome after nightfall was defended by his dog
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
defendit, item Caelium senatorem aegrum Placentiae
ab armatis oppression, nee prius ille vulneratus est
145 quam cane interempto. sed super omnia in nostro
aevo actis p. R. testatum Appio lunio et P, Silio
coss., cum animadvert eretur ex causa Neronis
Germanici fili in Titium Sabinum et servitia eius,
unius ex his canem nee in carcere abigi potuisse nee
a corpore recessisse abiecti in gradibus gemitoriis
maestos edentem ululatus magnae p. R. coronae, 1
ex qua cum quidam ei cibum obiecisset, ad os de-
functi tulisse ; innatavit idem cadaver 2 in Tiberim
abiecti 3 sustentare conatus 3 effusa multitudine ad
spectandam animalis fidem.
146 Soli dominum novere, et ignotum quoque si
repente veniat intellegunt; soli nomina sua, soli
vocem domesticam agnoscunt; itinera quamvis
longa meminere, nee ulli praeter hominem memoria
maior. impetus eorum et saevitia mitigatur ab
147 homine considente humi. plurima alia in his cotidie
vita invenit, sed in venatu sollertia et sagacitas
praecipua est. scrutatur vestigia atque persequitur,
comitantem ad feram inquisitorem loro trahens, qua
visa quam silens etocculta set quam significans demon-
stratio est cauda primum, deinde rostro. ergo etiam
senecta fessos caecosque ac debiles sinu ferunt
1 Rodham : magna p. R. corona.
2 v.l, cadavere : cadaveri ? Mayhoff.
3 Brotier: abiecto.
a A.D. 28.
102
BOOK VIII. LXI. 144-147
from a highwayman ; and so was the senator Caelius,
an invalid, when set upon by armed men at Piacenza,
and he did not receive a wound till the dog had been
despatched. But above all cases, in our own genera-
tion it is attested by the National Records that in the
consulship a of Appius Julius and Publius Silius when
as a result of the case of Germanicus's son Nero
punishment was visited on Titius Sabinus and his
slaves, a dog belonging to one of them could not be
driven away from him in prison and when he had been
flung out on the Steps of Lamentation would not
leave his body, uttering sorrowful howls to the vast
concourse of the Roman public around, and when
one of them threw it food it carried it to the mouth
of its dead master ; also when his corpse had been
thrown into the Tiber it swam to it and tried to keep
it afloat, a great crowd streaming out to view the
animal's loyalty.
Dogs alone know their master, and also recognize intelli
11.1 11 . ofdog
a sudden arrival as a stranger ; they alone recognize
their own names, and the voice of a member of the
household; they remember the way to places how-
ever distant, and no creature save man has a longer
memory. Their onset and rage can be mollified
by a person sitting down on the ground. Experience
daily discovers very many other qualities in these
animals, but it is in hunting that their skill and
sagacity is most outstanding. A hound traces and
follows footprints, dragging by its leash the tracker
that accompanies it towards his quarry ; and , on
sighting it how silent and secret but how significant
an indication is given first by the tail and then by
the muzzle! Consequently even when they are
exhausted with old age and blind and weak, men
103
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ventos et odorem captantes protendentesque rostra
ad cubilia.
148 E tigribus eos Indi volunt concipi, et ob id in silvis
coitus tempore alligant feminas. primo et secundo
fetu nimis feroces putant gigni, tertio demum edu-
cant. hoc idem e lupis Galli, quorum greges suum
quisque ductorem e canibus 1 et ducem habent :
ilium in venatu comitantur, illi parent ; namque inter
se exercent etiam magisteria. certum est iuxta
Nilum amnem currentes lamb ere, ne crocodilorum
149 aviditati occasionem praebeant. Indiam petenti
Alexandro Magno rex Albaniae dono dederat
inusitatae magnitudinis unum, cuius specie delec-
tatus iussit ursos, mox apros et deinde damas emitti,
contemptu inmobili iacente eo; qua segnitia tanti
corporis offensus imperator generosi spiritus interimi
eum iussit. nuntiavit hoc fama regi ; itaque alterum
mittens addidit mandata ne in parvis experiri vellet
sed in leone elephantove; duos sibi fuisse, hoc
150 interempto praeterea nullum fore, nee distulit
Alexander, leonemque fractum protinus vidit. postea
elephantum iussit induci, haud alio magis spectaculo
laetatus : horrentibus quippe villis per totum corpus
ingenti primum latratu intonuit, mox ingruit 2
1 [e canibus] ? JRackham.
2 Oronovius : inorevit aut in cervicem.
104
BOOK VIII. LXI. 147-150
carry them in their arms sniffing at the breezes
and scents and pointing their muzzles towards
cover.
The Indians want hounds to be sired by tigers, Dogs crossed
and at the breeding season they tie up bitches in the
woods for this purpose. They think that the first
and second litters are too fierce and they only rear
the third one. Similarly the Gauls breed hounds
from wolves ; each of their packs has one of the
dogs as leader and guide; the pack accompanies
this leader in the hunt and pays it obedience ; for
dogs actually exercise authority among themselves.
It is known that the dogs by the Nile lap up water
from the river as they run, so as not to give the
greed of the crocodiles its chance. When Alexander A famous
the Great was on his way to India, the king of Albania Jwmd '
had presented him with one dog of unusually large
size; Alexander was delighted by its appearance,
and gave orders for bears and then boars and finally
hinds to be let slip the hound lying contemptuously
motionless. This slackness on the part of so vast an
animal annoyed the generous spirit of the Emperor,
who ordered it to be destroyed. Report carried
news of this to the king ; and accordingly sending
a second hound he added a message that Alexander
should not desire to test it on small game but on a
lion or an elephant; he had only possessed two of
the breed and if this one was destroyed there would
be none left. Alexander did not put off the trial,
and forthwith saw a lion crushed. Afterwards he
ordered an elephant to be brought in, and no other
show ever gave him more delight: for the dog's
hair bristled all over his body and it first gave a
vast thunderous bark, then kept leaping up and
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
adsultans contraque membra x exurgens hinc et illinc
artifici dimicatione, qua maxume opus esset infestans
atque evitans, donee adsidua rotatum vertigine
adflixit ad casum eius tellure concussa.
151 LXII. Canum generi bis anno partus. iusta ad
pariendum annua aetas. gerunt uterum sexagenis
diebus. gignunt caecos, et quo largiore aluntur
lacte eo tardiorem visum accipiunt, non tamen
umquam ultra xxi diem nee ante septimum.
quidam tradunt, si unus gignatur, nono die cernere,
si geminij decumo, itemque in singulos adici totidem
tarditatis ad lucem dies, et ab ea quae sit femina ex
primipara genita citius 2 cerni. optumus in fetu qui
novissimus cernere incipitj aut quern primum fert in
cubile feta.
152 LXIIL Rabies canum sirio ardente homini pesti-
fera, ut diximus, ita morsis letali aquae metu.
quapropter obviam itur per xxx eos dies gallinaceo
niaxime fimo inmixto canum cibis aut, si praevenerit
morbus, veratro. a morsu vero unicum remedium
oraculo quodam nuper repertum radix silvestris
153 rosae quae cynorrhoda appellatur. Columella auctor
est, si XL die quam sit natus castretur morsu cauda
summusque eius articulus auferatur, spinae 3 nervo
exempto nee caudam crescere nee canes rabidos
fieri, canem locutum in prodigiis, quod equidem
1 v.l. contraque beluam. 2 Edd. : clunos aut faunos.
3 Mayhoff e Columella : sequi.
Cf. II 107.
106
BOOK VIII. LXI. 150-Lxm. 153
rearing against the creature's limbs on this side and
that, in scientific combat, attacking and retiring at
the most necessary points, until the elephant turning
round and round in an unceasing whirl was brought
to the ground with an earth-shaking crash.
LXII. The genus dog breeds twice a year. Ma- Dog
turity for reproduction begins at the age of one. lreedi
They carry their young for sixty days. Puppies
are born blind, and acquire sight the more slowly
the more copious the milk with which they are
suckled; though the blind period never lasts more
than three weeks or less than one. Some people
report that a puppy born singly sees on the 9th day,
twins on the 10th, and so on, a corresponding number
of days' delay in seeing light being added for each
extra puppy ; and that a bitch of a first litter begins
to see sooner. The best in a litter is the one that
begins to see last, or else the one that the mother
carries into the kennel first after delivery.
LXII I. Rabies in dogs, as we have said, is dangerous Precautions
to human beings in periods when the dog-star is
shining/* as it causes fatal hydrophobia to those bitten
in those circumstances. Consequently a precaution-
ary measure during the 30 days in question is
to mix dung mostly chicken's droppings, in the dog's
food, or, if the disease has come already, hellebore.
But after a bite the only cure is one which was lately
discovered from an oracle, the root of the wild-rose
called in Greek dog-rose. Columella states that if a
dog's tail is docked by being bitten off and the end
joint amputated 40 days after birth, the spinal marrow
having been removed the tail does not grow again
and the dog is not liable to rabies. The only cases
that have come down to us among portents, so far
107
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
adnotaverim, accepimus et serpentem latrasse cum
pulsus est regno Tarquinius.
154 LXIV. Eidem Alexandro et equi magna raritas
contigit. Bucephalan eum vocarunt sive ab aspectu
torvo sive ab insigni taurini capitis armo inpressi.
xvi talentis ferunt ex Philonici Pharsalii grege
emptum etiam turn puero capto ems decore. ne-
minem hie alium quam Alexandrum regio instratu
ornatus recepit in sedem, alias passim recipiens.
idem in proeliis memoratae cuiusdam perhibetur
operae, Thebarum oppugnatione vulneratus in
alium transire Alexandrum non passus; multa
praeterea eiusdem modi, propter quae rex defuncto
ei duxit exequias urbemque tumulo circumdedit
155 nomine eius. nee Caesaris dictatoris quemquam
alium recepisse dorso equus traditur, idemque similis
humanis pedes priores habuisse, hac effigie locatus
ante Veneris Genetricis aedem. fecit et divus
Augustus equo tumulum, de quo Germanici Caesaris
carmen est. Agrigenti conplurium equorum tumuli
pyramides habent. equum adamatum a Samiramide
156 usque in coitum l luba auctor est. Scythici quidem
equitatus equorum gloria strepunt : occiso regulo ex
provocatione dimicantem hostem, cum ad spoliandum
1 usque ad rogum ? JBrotier.
a Say nearly 4000 gold.
6 Bucephala, see VI 77.
I.e. with toes not united into a hoof : if true, a throw-
bach to the prehistoric horse.
d Hyginus Fab. 243 : equo amisso in pyram se coniecit.
108
BOOK VIII. LXIII, i53-Lxiv. 156
as I have noted, of a dog talking and a snake barking
were when Tarquin was driven from his kingdom.
LXIV. Alexander also had the good fortune to Famous
own a great rarity in horseflesh. They called the
animal Bucephalus, either because of its fierce appear-
ance or from the mark of a bull's head branded on
its shoulder. It is said that it was bought for
sixteen talents a from the herd of Philonicus of Phar-
salus while Alexander was still a boy, as he was taken
by its beauty. This horse when adorned with the
royal saddle would not allow itself to be mounted
by anybody except Alexander, though on other
occasions it allowed anybody to mount. It is also
celebrated for a memorable feat in battle, not having
allowed Alexander during the attack on Thebes
to change to another mount when it had been
wounded ; and a number of occurrences of the same
kind are also reported, on account of which when
it died the king headed its funeral procession, and
built a city round its tomb which he named after it. &
Also the horse that belonged to Caesar the Dictator
is said to have refused to let anyone else mount it ;
and it is also recorded that its fore feet were like those
of a man, c as it is represented in the statue that stands
in front of the Temple of Venus Genetrix. The late
lamented Augustus also made a funeral mound for a
horse, which is the subject of a poem by Germanicus
Caesar. At Girgenti a great number of horses'
tombs have pyramids over them. Juba attests
that Semiramis fell so deeply in love with a horse
that she married it.<* The Scythian cavalry regiments
indeed resound with famous stories of horses: a
chieftain was challenged to a duel by an enemy
and killed, and when his adversary came to strip
109
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
venisset, ab equo eius ictibus morsuque confectum,
alium detracto oculorum operimento et cognito cum
matre coitu petisse praerupta atque exanimatum.
eadem 1 ex causa in Reatino agro laceratum prorigam
invenimus. namque et cognationum intellectus his
est, atque in grege prioris anni sororem libentius
157 etiam quam matrem equa comitatur. docilitas
tanta est ut universus Sybaritani exercitus equitatus
ad symphoniae cantum saltatione quadam moveri
solitus inveniatur. idem praesagiunt pugnam, et
amissos lugent dominos : lacrimas 2 interdum de-
siderio fundunt. interfecto Nicomede rege equos
158 eius inedia vitam finivit. Phylarchus refert Cen-
taretum e Galatis in proelio occiso Antiocho potitum
equo eius conscendisse ovantem, at ilium indignation e
accensum domitis frenis ne regi posset praecipitem
in abrupta isse exanimatumque una; Philistus a
Dionysio relictum in caeno haerentem, ut se evellisset ,
secutum vestigia domini examine apium iubae
inhaerente, eoque ostento tyrannidem a Dionysio
occupatam.
159 LXV. Ingenia eorum inenarrabilia. iaculantes
obsequia experiuntur difficiles conatus corpore ipso
nisuque iuvantium 3 ; item 4 tela humi collecta equiti
porrigunt. nam in circo ad currus iuncti non dubie
1 v.tt, aequa eadem, equa eadem.
2 v.l. lacrimasque.
3 Hardouin : invitantium.
4 Mayhoff: iam*
IIO
BOOK VIII. LXIV. I56-LXV. 159
his body of its armour, his horse kicked him and bit
him till he died; another horse, when its blinkers
were removed and it found out that a mare it had
covered was its dam, made for a precipice and com-
mitted suicide, We read that an ostler in the Reate
district was savaged by a horse for the same reason.
For horses actually understand the ties of relation-
ship, and a filly in a herd is even fonder of going
with a sister a year older than with their dam.
Their docility is so great that we learn that the entire
cavalry of the army of Sybaris used to perform a sort
of ballet to the music of a band. The Sybarite
horses also know beforehand when there is going to
be a battle, and when they lose their masters mourn
for them : sometimes they shed tears at the bereave-
ment. When King Nicomedes was killed his horse
ended its life by refusing food. Phylarchus records
that when Antiochus fell in battle one of the Galatians
Centaretus caught his horse and mounted it in
triumph, but it was fired with indignation and taking
the bit between its teeth so as to become unmanage-
able, galloped headlong to a precipice where it
perished with its rider. Philistus records that
Dionysius left his horse stuck in a bog, and when
it extricated itself it followed its master's tracks
with a swarm of bees clinging to its mane ; and that
in consequence of this portent Dionysius seized the
tyranny.
LXV. The cleverness of horses is beyond descrip- other proofs
TV, i i* . ,1.1 v7 ohntelhgence
tion. Mounted javelmmen experience their docility m horses.
in assisting difficult attempts with the actual swaying
of their body; also they gather up the weapons
lying on the ground and pass them to their rider.
Horses harnessed to chariots in the circus un-
iii
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
160 intellectum adhortationis et gloriae fatentur. Claudi
Caesaris saecularium ludorum circensibus excusso
in carceribus auriga albati Corace occupavere
primatum, optinuere, opponentes effundentes om-
niaque contra aemulos quae debuissent peritissimo
auriga insist ente facientes, et 1 cum puderet hominum
artem ab equis vinci, peracto legitimo cursu ad
161 cretam stetere. maius augurium apud priscos plebeis
circensibus excusso auriga ita ut si staret in Capitol-
ium cucurrisse equos aedemque ter lustrasse ; maxi-
mum vero eodem pervenisse a Veis cum palma et
corona effuso Ratumenna qui ibi vicerat: unde
162 postea nomen portae est. Sarmatae longinquo
itineri 2 inedia pridie praeparant eos, potum tantum
exiguum inpertientes, atque ita per centena* milia et
quinquaginta continue cursu euntibus insident.
Vivunt annis quidam quinquagenis, feminae
minor e spatio ; eaedem quinquennio finem crescendi
capiunt, mares anno addito. forma equorum qualis
maxime elegi 3 oporteat pulcherrime quidem Ver-
gilio vate absoluta est, sed et nos diximus in libro
de iaculatione equestri condito, et fere inter
omnes constare video, diversa autem circo ratio
1 et add. ? Mayhoff. 2 Mayhoff : acturi.
3 JRackham : legi.
A.D. 47,
6 The Porta Batumenna at Borne.
c About 138 English miles.
d Georgics III 72.
112
BOOK VIII. LXV. 159-162
questionably show that they understand the shouts
of encouragement and applause. At the races in
the circus forming part of the Secular Games a of
Claudius Caesar a charioteer of the Whites named
Baven was thrown at the start, and his team took the
lead and kept it by getting in the way of their rivals
and jostling them aside and doing everything against
them that they would have had to do with a most
skilful charioteer in control, and as they were
ashamed for human science to be beaten by horses,
when they had completed the proper course they
stopped dead at the chalk line. A greater portent
was when in early days a charioteer was thrown
at the plebeian circus races and the horses galloped
on to the Capitol and raced round the temple three
times just the same as if he still stood at the reins ;
but the greatest was when a chariot-team reached
the same place from Veii with the palm-branch and
wreath after Batumenna who had won at Veii
had been thrown: an event which subsequently
gave its name to the gate. 6 The Sarmatians get
their horses into training for a long journey by giving
them no fodder the day before and only allowing
them a small amount of water, and by these means
they ride them on a journey of 150 miles c without
drawing rein.
Some horses live fifty years, but mares live a shorter 4j tf
time ; mares stop growing when five years old, the ranges of
males a year later. The appearance of the horse build '
that ought to be most preferred has been very
beautifully described in the poetry of Virgil, d but we
also have dealt with it in our book on the Use of
the Javelin by Cavalry, and I observe that there is
almost universal agreement about it. But a different
"3
VOL. III. I
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
quaeritur ; itaque cum bimi 1 alio subiungantur
imperio, non ante quinquennes ibi certamen accipit,
163 LXVI. Partum in eo genere undenis mensibus
ferunt, duodecimo gignunt. coitus verno aequinoctio
bimo utrimque vulgaris, sed a trimatu firmior partus.
generat mas ad annos xxxni, utpote cum a circo
post vicesimum annum mittantur ad subolem.
Opunte et ad quadraginta durasse tradunt adiutum
164 modo in attollenda priore parte corporis. sed ad
generandum paucis animalium minor fertilitas;
qua de causa intervalla admissurae dantur, nee
tamen quindecim initus eiusdem anni valet
tolerare. equarum libido extinguitur iuba tonsa;
gignunt annis omnibus ad quadragesimum. vixisse
equam 2 LXXV annos proditur.
165 In hoc genere gravida stans parit; praeterque
ceteras fetum diligit. et sane equis amoris innasci-
tur 3 veneficium hippomanes appellatum in fronte,
caricae magnitudine, colore nigro, quod statim edito
partu devorat feta aut partum ad ubera non admittit.
si quis praereptum habeat, olfactu in rabiem id
genus agitur. amissa parente in grege armenti
reliquae fetae educant orbum. terram attingere
ore triduo proximo quam sit genitus negant posse.
1 Rackham : bimi in.
2 Rodham : equum.
3 Rackham : innasci.
114
BOOK VIII. LXV. i62-LXvi. 165
build is required for the Circus; and consequently
though horses may be broken as two-year-olds to
other service, racing in the Circus does not claim
them before five.
LXVI. Gestation in this genus lasts eleven months
and the foal is born in the twelfth month. Breeding
takes place as a rule in the spring equinox when
both animals are two-year-olds, but the progeny
is stronger if breeding begins at three. A stallion
goes on serving to the age of 33, as they are sent from
the race-course to the stud at 20. It is recorded
that a stallion at Opus even continued to 40, only he
needed assistance in lifting his fore-quarters. But
few animals are such unfertile sires as the horse;
consequently intervals are allowed in breeding,
and nevertheless a stallion cannot stand serving
fifteen times in the same year. Mares in heat
are cooled down by having their manes shorn;
they foal yearly up to 40. It is stated that a mare
has lived to 75.
In the equine genus the pregnant female is
delivered standing up ; and she loves her offspring
more than all other female animals. And in fact a
love-poison called horse-frenzy is found in the fore-
head of horses at birth, the size of a dried fig, black
in colour, which a brood mare as soon as she has
dropped her foal eats up, or else she refuses to suckle
the foal. If anybody takes it before she gets it,
and keeps it, the scent drives him into madness
of the kind specified. If a foal loses its dam the
other brood mares in the same herd rear the
orphan. It is said that a foal is unable to reach the
ground with its mouth within the first three days
after birth. The greedier it is in drinking the deeper
i2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
quo quis acrior in bibendo profundius nares mergit.
Scythae per bella feminis uti malunt, quoniam
urinam cursu non inpedito reddant.
166 LXVII. Constat in Lusitania circa Olisiponem
oppidum et Tagum amnem equas favonio flante
obversas animalem concipere spiritum, idque partum
fieri et gigni pernicissimum ita, sed triennium vitae
non excedere. in eadem Hispania Gallaica gens
et Asturica equini generis, 1 quos theldones vocamus,
minore forma appellatos asturcones, gignunt quibus
non vulgaris in cursu gradus sed mollis alterno
crurum explicatu glomeratio, unde equis tolutim
capere incursum traditur arte.
Equo fere qui homini morbi, praeterque vesicae
conversio, sicut omnibus in genere veterino.
167 LXVIII. Asinum cccc nummum emptum Q.
Axio senatori auctor est M. Varro, haut scio an
omnium pretio animalium victo. opera sine dubio
generi munifica arando quoque, sed mularum
maxime progeneratione. patria etiam spectatur
in his, Arcadicis in Achaia, in Italia Reatinis. ipsum
animal frigoris maxime impatiens : ideo non genera-
tur in Ponto, nee aequinoctio verno ut cetera pecua
168 admittitur sed solstitio. mares in remissione operis
deteriores. partus a tricensimo mense ocissimus
1 Barbarus : generis hi sunt.
a Aristotle, H.A. VI 572a 13, places this occurrence in
Crete.
About 3200 gold,
116
BOOK VIII. LXVI. i65-Lxvm. 168
it dips its nostrils into the water. The Scythians
prefer mares as chargers, because they can make
water without checking their gallop.
LXVI I. It is known that in Lusitania a in the Horse-
neighbourhood of the town of Lisbon and the river
Tagus mares when a west wind is blowing stand
facing towards it and conceive the breath of life and
that this produces a foal, and this is the way to
breed a very swift colt, but it does not live more than
three years. Also in Spain the Gallaic and Asturian
tribes breed those of the horse kind that we call
1 theldones,' though when more of a pony type
they are designated * cobs ', which have not the
usual paces in running but a smooth trot, straightening
the near and off-side legs alternately, from which the
horses are taught by training to adopt an ambling
pace.
The horse has nearly the same diseases as mankind, Diseases of
and is also liable to shifting of the bladder, as are thehorse '
all beasts of the draft class.
LXVIII. Marcus Varro states that an ass was 4-
bought for the senator Quintus Axius at 400,000 * reeding '
sesterces, & which perhaps beats the price paid for any
other animal. The services of the ass kind are un-
doubtedly bountiful in ploughing as well, but
especially in breeding mules. In mules also regard
is paid to locality of origin in Greece the Arcadian
breed is esteemed and in Italy the Reatine. The
ass itself is very bad at enduring cold, and con-
sequently is not bred in the Black Sea district;
and it is not allowed to breed at the spring equinox
tike all other cattle, but at midsummer. The males
make worse sires when not in work. The females
breed at two and a half years old at earliest, but
n)
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
sed a trimatu legitimus: totidem quot equae et
isdem mensibus et simili modo. sed incontinens
uterus urinam genitalem reddit ni cogatur in cursum
verberibus a coitu. raro geminos parit. paritura
lucem fugit et tenebras quaerit, ne conspiciatur ab
homine. gignit tota vita, quae est ei ad tricensimum
169 annum, partus caritas summa, sed aquarum tae-
dium maius : per ignes ad fetus tendunt, eaedem
si rivus minimus intersit horrent imos 1 pedes
omnino tinguere. nee nisi adsuetos potant fontes
quae sunt in pecuariis atque ita ut sicco tramite ad
potum eant; nee pontes transeunt pro raritate
eorum tralucentibus fluviis; mirumque dictu,
sitiunt et, si mutentur aquae, ut bibant cogendae
exorandaeve sunt, nee nisi spatiosa in cubitu
laxitas tuta; varia namque somno visa concipiunt
ictu pedum crebro, qui nisi per inane emicuit, re-
pulsu durioris materiae clauditatem ilico adfert.
170 quaestus ex his opima praedia exuperat : notum
est in Celtiberia singulas quadringentena milia
nummum enixas s mularum maxume partu. aurium
referre in his et palpebrarum piles aiunt; quamvis
enim unicolor reliquo corpore, totidem tamen
colores quot ibi fuere reddit. pullos earum epulari
Maecenas instituit multum eo tempore praelatos
1 Detlefsen : horrentia ut (horrent etiam) Mayhoff.
a See note on 167.
118
BOOK VIII. LXVZII. 168-170
regularly from three; they can breed as many
times as mares, and in the same months and in a
similar way. But the womb cannot retain the
genital fluid but discharges it, unless the animal is
whipped into a gallop after coupling. It seldom
bears twins. When about to bear a foal it shuns^
the sunlight and seeks the shadow, so as not to be
seen by a human being. It breeds through all its
lifetime, which is thirty years. It has a very great
affection for its young, but a greater dislike for water :
she-asses will go through fire to their foals , but yet
if the smallest stream intervenes they are afraid of
merely wetting their hooves. Those kept in pastures
will only drink at springs they are used to, and where
they can get to drink by a dry track ; and they will
not go across bridges with interstices in their structure
allowing the gleam of the river to be seen through
them; and, surprising to say, they may be thirsty
and have to be forced or coaxed to drink, if the stream
is not the one they are used to. Only a wide allow-
ance of stall-room is safe for them to lie down in,
for when asleep they have a variety of dreams and
frequently let out with their hooves, which at once
causes lameness by hitting timber that is too hard
unless they have plenty of room to kick in. The
profit made out of she-asses surpasses the richest
spoils of war. It is known that in Celtiberia their
foals have made 400,000 sesterces per dam, especially
when mules are bred. They say that in she-asses
the hair of the ears and the eye-feds is an important
point, for although the rest of the dam's body is all
one colour, the foal reproduces all the colours that
were in those places. Maecenas set the fashion
of eating donkey foals at banquets, and they were
119
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
onagris ; post eum interiit auctoritas saporis asino.
moriente visu l celerrime id genus deficit.
171 LXIX. Ex asino et equa mula gignitur mense
xiii, animal viribus in labores eximium. ad tales
partus equas neque quadrimis minores neque de-
cennibus maiores legunt. arcerique utrumque genus
ab altero narrant nisi in infantia eius generis quod
ineat lacte hausto; quapropter subreptos pullos in
tenebris equarum uberi asinarumve eculeos admo-
vent. gignitur autem mula et 2 ex equo et asina,
sed effrenis et tarditatis indomitae.lenta omnia et 3 e
172 vetulis. conceptum ex equo secutus asini coitus
abortu perimit, non item ex asino equi. feminas a
partu optime septimo die impleri observatum, mares
fatigatos melius implere. quae non prius quam
dentes quos pullinos appellant iaciat conceperit
sterilis esse 4 intellegitur, et quae non primo initu
generare coeperit. equo et asina genitos mares
hinnulos antiqui vocabant, contraque mulos quos
173 asini et equae generarent. observatum ex duobus
diversis generibus nata tertii generis fieri et neutri
parentium esse similia, eaque ipsa quae sunt ita
nata non gignere in omni animalium genere ; idcirco
mulas non parere. est in annalibus nostris peperisse
1 v.l. viso. 2 et add- Detlefsen.
3 Mayhoff : omnia esse, . * esse add. RacJcham.
a A variant text gives ' but after his time this delicacy went
out of favour. Animals of this genus very quickly flag when
they have seen a dying donkey.'
120
BOOK VIII. LXVIII. lyo-LXix. 173
much preferred to wild asses at that period; but
after his time the ass lost favour as a delicacy.
Animals of this genus very quickly flag when their
sight begins to go. a
LXIX. A mare coupled with an ass after twelve
months bears a mule, an animal of exceptional
strength for agricultural operations. To breed
mules they choose mares not less than four or more
than ten years old. Also breeders say that females
of either genus refuse stallions of the other one unless
as foals they were suckled by females of the same
genus as the stallions ; for this reason they stealthily
remove the foals in the dark and put them to mares'
or she-asses' udders respectively. But a mule is
also got by a horse out of an ass, though it is
unmanageable, slow and obstinate. Also all the
foals from old mares are sluggish. It causes mis-
carriage for a mare in foal by a horse to be put
to an ass, but not vice versa. It has been observed
that female asses are best coupled six days after they
have borne a foal, and that males couple better when
tired. It is noticed that a female that does not
conceive before she casts what are called her milk-
teeth is barren, as is one that does not begin to
produce foals from the first coupling. Male foals
of an ass by a horse were in old days called ninnies,
while the term mules was used for the foals of a mare
by an ass. It has been noticed that the offspring of
two different races of animals belong to a third kind
and resemble neither parent ; and that such hybrids
are not themselves fertile : this is the case with all
kinds of animals, and is the reason why mules are
barren. A number of cases of reproduction by cases of
mules are recorded in our Annals, but these
121
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
saepe, verum prodigii loco habitum. Theophrastus
vulgo parere in Cappadocia tradit, sed esse id animal
ibi sui generis, mulae calcitratus inhibetur vini
174 crebriore potu. in plurium Graecorum est monu-
mentis cum equa muli coitu natum quod vocaverint
ginnum, id est parvum mulum. generantur ex
equa et onagris mansuefactis mulae veloces in cursu,
duritia eximia pedum, verum strigoso corpore,
indomito animo. sed generator onagro et asina
genitus omnes antecellit. onagri in Phrygia et
Lycaonia praecipui. pullis eorum ceu praestantibus
sapore Africa gloriatur, quos lalisiones appellat.
175 mulum LXXX annis vixisse Atheniensium moni-
mentis apparet; gavisi namque, cum templum in
arce facerent, quod derelictus senecta scandentia
iumenta comitatu nisuque exhortaretur, decretum
fecere ne frumentarii negotiatores ab incerniculis
eum arcerent.
176 LXX. Bubus Indicis camelorum altitudo traditur,
cornua in latitudinem quaternorum pedum. in
nostro orbe Epiroticis laus maxima a Pyrrhi, ut
feruntj iam inde regis cura. id consecutus est non
ante quadrimatum ad partus vocando ; praegrandes
itaque fuere et hodieque reliquiae stirpium durant.
at nunc anniculae fecunditatemposcuntur, tolerantius
tamen bimae, tauri generationem quadrimi. inplent
The Axni-buffalo,
122
BOOK VIII. LXIX. 173-LXx. 176
considered portentous. Theophrastus states that
mules breed commonly in Cappadocia, but that the
Cappadocian mule is a peculiar species. A mule
can be checked from kicking by rather frequent
drinks of wine. It is stated in the records of a good
many Greeks that a foal has been got from a mare
coupled with a mule, called a ginnus, which means
a small mule. She-mules bred from a mare and
tamed wild-asses are swift in pace and have ex-
tremely hard hooves, but a lean body and an indomit-
able spirit. But as a sire the foal of a wild-ass and a
domestic she-ass excels all others. The wild-asses
in Phrygia and Lycaonia are pre-eminent. Africa
boasts of their foals as an outstanding table delicacy ;
the vernacular word for them is lalisio. Records at
Athens attest a mule's having lived 80 years; for
the citizens were so delighted because after it had
been put aside owing to old age it encouraged the
teams by its company and assistance in their uphill
work during the construction of a temple on the
citadel, that they made a decree that the corn-dealers
were not to keep it away from their stands.
LXX, Indian oxen a are reported to be as tall as oxen,
camels and to have horns with a span of four feet. mrielies f :
In our part of the world the most famous are those
of Epirus, having been so, it is said, ever since the
attention given to them by King Pyrrhus. Pyrrhus
achieved this result by not requisitioning them for
breeding before the age of four ; consequently his
oxen were very large, and the remains of his breeds
continue even to-day. But now yearling heifers Deeding and
are called upon for breeding, though they can &******? of.
stand it better at two years, while bulls are made
to serve at four. Each bull serves ten cows in the
123
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
singuli denas eodem anno, tradunt, si a coitu in
dexteram partem abeant tauri, generates mares
177 esse, si in laevam, feminas. conceptio uno initu
peragitur, quae si forte pererravit, xx post diem
mar em femina repetit. pariunt mense x ; quicquid
ante genitum inutile est. sunt auctores ipso com-
plente decumum mensem die parere. gignunt
raro geminos. coitus a delphini exortu a. d. pr.
non. lanuarias diebus triginta, aliquis et autumno,
gentibus quidem quae lacte vivunt it a dispensatus
ut omni tempore anni supersit id alimentum.
178 tauri non saepius quam bis die ineunt. boves
animalium soli et retro ambulantes pascuntur, apud
Garamantas quidem haut aliter. vita feminis xv
annis longissima, maribus xx; robur in quinquen-
natu. lavatione calidae aquae traduntur pinguescere,
et si quis incisa cute spiritum harundine in viscera
179 adigat. non degeneres existimandi etiam minus
laudato aspectu: plurimum lactis Alpinis quibus
minimum corporis, plurimum laboris capite non
cervice iunctis. Syriacis non sunt palearia sed
gibber in dorso. Carici quoque in parte Asiae foedi
visu tub ere super armos a cervicibus eminent e,
luxatis cornibus, excellentes in opere narrantur,
cetero nigri coloris candidive ad laborem damnantur ;
tauris minor a quam bubus cornua tenuioraque.
180 domitura bourn in trimatu, postea sera, ante prae-
124
BOOK VIII. LXX. 176-180
same year. It is said that if the bulls after coupling
go away towards the right hand side the offspring
will be males, and if towards the left, females.
Conception is effected by one coupling, and if this
happens to miss, the female goes to a male again
twenty days after. They bear the calf in the tenth
month; one produced before is of no use. Some
authorities say that they bear on the actual last day
of the tenth month. They rarely produce twins.
Coupling takes place in the thirty days following
the rise of the Dolphin on January 4, and occasionally
in the autumn also, though nations that live on milk
spread it out so that there may be a supply of this
nutriment at every season of the year. Bulls do
not couple more than twice in one day. Oxen are
the only animals that graze even while walking
backward; indeed among the Garamantes that is
their only way of grazing. The longest life of a cow
is 15 years and of a bull 20 ; they grow to full strength
at 5. Washing in hot water is said to fatten them,
and also cutting a hole in the hide and blowing air
into the flesh with a reed. Even the breeds less
praised for their appearance are not to be deemed
inferior : the Alpine cows which are the smallest in
size give most milk, and do most work, although they
are yoked by the head and not the neck. Syrian
oxen have no dewlaps, but a hump on the back.
Also the Carian breed in a district of Asia is said to
be ugly in appearance, with a swelling that projects
from the neck over the shoulders and with the horns
displaced, but excellent in work although when black
and white in colour they are said to be no good for
ploughing ; the bulls have smaller and thinner horns
than the cows. Oxen should be broken when three
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
matura; optume cum domito iuvencus inbuitur.
socium enim laboris agrique culturae habemus hoc
animal, tantae apud priores curae ut sit inter exempla
damnatus a p. R. die dicta qui concubino procaci
rure omassum edisse se negante occiderat bovem,
actusque in exilium tamquam colono suo interempto.
181 Tauris in aspectu generositas, torva fronte, auribus
saetosis, cornibus in procinctu dimicationem po-
scentibus ; sed tota comminatio prioribus in pedibus :
stat ira gliscente alternos replicans spargensque
in alvum harenam, et solus animalium eo stimulo
182 ardescens. vidimus ex imperio dimicantes et ideo
monstratos l rotari, cornibus cadentes excipi iterum-
que resurgere, 2 modo iacentes ex humo tolli, bigarum-
que etiam cursu 3 citato velut aurigas insist ere.
Thessalorum gentis inventum est equo iuxta quad-
ripedante cornu intorta cervice tauros necare;
primus id spectaculum dedit Romae Caesar dictator.
183 hinc victimae opimae et lautissima deorum placatio.
huic tantum animali omnium quibus procerior cauda
non statim nato consummatae ut ceteris mensurae ;
crescit uni donee ad vestigia ima perveniat. quam-
obrem victimarum probatio in vitulo ut articulum
1 v.L demonstrates (et iocose demonstrates Mayhoff).
2 Vidg. regere.
3 Gronovius ; curru.
a 45 B.C.
126
BOOK VIII. LXX, 180-183
years old ; ^fter that is too late and before too early ;
the best way to train a young bullock is to yoke it
with one already broken in. For we possess in
this animal a partner in labour and in husbandry,
held in such esteem with our predecessors that
among our records of punishments there is a case of
a man who was indicted for having killed an ox
because a wanton young companion said he had
never eaten bullock's tripe, and was convicted by
the public court and sent into exile just as though
he had murdered his farm-labourer.
Bulls have a noble appearance, a grim brow, bristly
ears, and horns bared for action and asking for a
figfyt ; but their chief threat is in their fore feet : a
bull stands glowing with wrath, bending back either
fore foot in turn and splashing up the sand against
his belly it is the only animal that goads itself into
a passion by these means. We have seen bulls,
when fighting a duel under orders and on show for
the purpose, being whirled round and caught on
the horns as they fall and afterwards rise again,
and then when lying down be lifted off the ground,
and even stand in a car like charioteers with a pair
of horses racing at full speed. It is a device of
the Thessalian race to kill bulls by galloping a horse
beside them and twisting back the neck by the horn ;
the dictator Caesar first gave a this show at Rome.
The bull supplies costly victims and the most sump- Bulls for
tuous appeasement of the gods. In this animal sacn ^ M -
only of all that have a comparatively long tail, the
tail is not of the proper size from birth, as it is in
the others ; and with it alone the tail grows till it
reaches right down to the feet. Consequently the
test of victims for sacrifice in the case of a calf is
127
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
suffraginis contingat: breviore non litant. hoc
quoque notatum, vitulos ad aras umeris hominis
adlatos non fere litari, 1 sicut nee claudicante nee
aliena hostia deos placari nee trahente se ab aris.
est frequens in prodigiis priscorum bovem locutum,
quo nuntiato senatum sub diu haberi solitum.
184 LXXI. Bos in Aegypto etiam numinis vice colitur ;
Apin vocant. insigne ei in dextro latere candicans
macula cornibus lunae crescere incipientis, nodus
sub lingua quern cantharum appellant, non est fas
eum certos vitae excedere annos, mersumque in
sacerdotum fonte necant quaesituri luctu alium quern
substituant, et donee invenerint maerent derasis
etiam capitibus. nee tamen umquam diu quaeritur.
185 inventus deducitur Memphim a sacerdotibus c.
delubra ei gemma, quae vocant thalamos, auguria
populorum: alterum intrasse laetum est, in altero
dira portendit. responsa privatis dat e manu
consulentium cibum capiendo; Germanici Caesaris
manum aversatus est haut multo postea extincti.
cetero secretus, cum se proripuit in coetus, incedit
submotu lictorum, gregesque puerorum comitantur
cannen honori eius canentium; intellegere videtur
i litari ? Brotier : litare.
A.D. 49, in Egypt. His murder was attributed to Piso,
legate of Syria.
128
BOOK VIII. LXX. i83-LXxi. 185
that the tail must reach the joint of the hock; if
it is shorter the offering is not acceptable. It has
also been noted that calves are not usually acceptable
if carried to the altars on a man's shoulders, and also
that the gods are not propitiated if the victim is
lame or is not of the appropriate sort, or if it drags
itself away from the altar. It frequently occurs
among the prodigies of old times that an ox spoke,
and when this was reported it was customary for a
meeting of the senate to be held in the open air.
LXXI. In Egypt an ox is even worshipped in
place of a god; its name is Apis. Its distinguishing
mark is a bright white spot in the shape of a crescent
on the right flank, and it has a knob under the tongue
which they call a beetle. It is not lawful for it to
exceed a certain number of years of life, and they
kill it by drowning it in the fountain of the priests,
proceeding with lamentation to look for another to
put in its place, and they go on mourning till they have
found one, actually shaving the hair off their heads.
Nevertheless the search never continues long.
When the successor is found it is led by 100 priests
to Memphis. It has a pair of shrines, which they
call its bedchambers, that supply the nations
with auguries ; when it enters one this is a joyful
sign, but in the other one it portends terrible events.
It gives answers to private individuals by taking
food out of the hand of those who consult it; it
turned away from the hand of Germanicus Caesar,
who was made away with not long after.* Usually
living in retirement, when it sallies forth into
assemblies it proceeds with lictors to clear the way,
and companies of boys escort it singing a song in its
honour ; it seems to understand, and to desire to be
129
VOL. m. K
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
et adorari velle. hi greges repente lymphati futura
186 praecinunt. femina bos ei semel anno ostenditur,
suis et ipsa insignibus, quamquam aliis; semperque
eodem die et inveniri earn et extingui tradunt.
Memphi est locus in Nilo quern a figura vocant
Phialam ; omnibus annis ibi auream pateram argen-
teamque mergunt iis 1 diebus quos habent natales
Apis, septem hi sunt; mirumque neminem per
eos a crocodilis attingi, octavo post horam diei
sextam redire beluae feritatem.
187 LXXII. Magna et pecori gratia vel in placamentis
deorum vel in usu velleram. ut boves victiun ho-
minum excolunt ita corporum tutela pecori debetur.
generatio bimis utrimque ad novenos annos, qui-
busdam et ad x. primiparis minores fetus, coitus
omnibus ab arcturi occasu, id est a. d. in idus Maias
ad aquilae occasum x kal. Aug. ; gerunt partum
diebus CL. postea concept! invalidi; cordos voca-
bant antiqui post id tempus natos. multi hibernos
agnos praeferunt vernis, quoniam magis intersit
ante solstitium quam ante brumam firmos esse
188 solumque toe animal utiliter bruma nasci. arieti
naturale agnas fastidire, senectam ovium consectari ;
et jpse melior senecta, rnutilus quoque utilior.
,130
BOOK VIII. LXXI. iSs-Lxxn. 188
worshipped. These companies are suddenly seized
with frenzy and chant prophecies of future events.
Once a year a cow is displayed to it, she too with her
decorations, although they are not the same as his ;
and it is traditional for her always to be found and
put to death on the same day. At Memphis there
is a place in the Nile which from its shape they call
the Goblet; every year they throw into the river
there a gold and a silver cup on the days which they
keep as the birthdays of Apis. These are seven;
and it is a remarkable fact that during these days
nobody is attacked by crocodiles, but that after
midday on the eighth day the creature's savagery
returns.
LXXII. Sheep are also of great service either skeep r
in respect of propitiatory offerings to the gods or ree wg '
in the use of their fleeces. As oxen improve men's
diet, so the protection of their bodies is owed
to sheep. They breed when two years old on both
sides, till the age of nine, and in some cases even till
ten. The lambs at the first birth are smaller. They
all couple from the setting of Arcturus, that is May
13th, to the setting of Aquila, July 23rd; they
carry their lambs 150 days. Lambs conceived
after the date mentioned are weak ; in old days those
born later were called cordi. Many people prefer
winter lambs to spring ones, holding that it is more
important for them to be well-established before
midsummer than before midwinter, and that this
animal alone is advantageously born in winter. It
is inbred in the ram to despise lambs as mates and
to desire maturity in sheep ;, and the ram himself is
better in old age, and also *aore serviceable when
polled. His wildness is restrained by boring a hole
131
K2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ferocia eius cohibetur cornu iuxta aurem terebrata.
dextro teste praeligato feminas generat, laevo
mares, tonitrua solitariis ovibus abortus inferunt;
remedium est congregare eas, ut coetu iuventur.
189 aquilonis flatu mares concipi dicunt, austri feminas ;
atque in eo genere arietum maxime spectantur ora,
quia cuius coloris sub lingua habuere venas eius et
lanicium in fetu est, variumque, si plures fuere. et
mutatio aquarum potusque variat.
Ovium summa genera duo, tectum et colonicum,
illud mollius, hoc in pascuo delicatius, quippe cum
tectum 1 rubis vescatur. 2 operimenta eis ex Arabicis
praecipue.
190 LXXIIL Lana autem laudatissima Apula et
quae in Italia Graeci pecoris appellatur, alibi Italica.
tertium locum Milesiae oves optinent. Apulae
breves villo nee nisi paenulis celebres ; circa Tarentum
Canusiumque summam nobilitatem habent, in
Asia vero eodem genere Laudiceae. alba Circum-
padanis nulla praefertur, nee libra centenos nummos
] 91 ad hoc aevi excessit ulla. oves non ubique tondentur,
durat quibusdam in locis vellendi mos. colorum
plura genera, quippe cum desint etiam nomina
eis quas nativas appellant aliquot modis : Hispania
1 JSrotier : quippe contectum.
2 quippe non tectum rubis vexatur MayJioff.
* A conjectural reading gives c in fact not being jacketed
they are troubled by brambles.'
* Say 12 shillings.
'132
BOOK VIIL LXXII. i88-Lxxm. 191
in the horn close to the ear. If a ligature is put
on the right testicle he gets females and if on the
left males. Claps of thunder cause sheep to miscarry
when solitary ; the remedy is to herd them in flocks,
so as to be cheered by company. They say that male
lambs are got when a north wind is blowing and female
when a south; and in this breed the greatest
attention is given to the mouths of the rams, as the
wool in the case of the progeny is of the colour of
the veins under the tongue of the parent ram, and
if these were of several colours the lamb is vari-
coloured. Also changing the water they drink varies
their colour.
There are two principal breeds of sheep, jacketed
sheep and farm sheep ; the former are softer and
the latter more delicate in their pasture, inasmuch as
the jacketed sheep feeds on brambles. The best
jackets for them are made of Arabian sheep's wool.
LXXII I. The most highly esteemed wool is the varieties
Apulian and the kind that is called in Italy wool of^Two
the Greek breed and elsewhere Italian wool. The
third place is held by the sheep of Miletus. The
Apulian fleeces are short in the hair, and not of great
repute except for cloaks; they have a very high
reputation in the districts of Taranto and Canossa,
as have the Laodicean fleeces of the same breed in
Asia. No white fleece is valued above that from
the district of the Po, and none has hitherto gone
beyond the price of 100 sesterces 6 a pound. Sheep
are not shorn everywhere in some places the
practice survives of plucking off the wool. There
are several sorts of colour, in fact even names are
lacking for the wools which are variously designated
after their places of origin : Spain has the principal
133
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
nigri velleris praecipuas habet, Pollentia iuxta
Alpes card, Asia rutili quas Erythraeas vocant,
item Baetica, Canusium fulvi, Tarentum et suae
pulliginis. sucidis omnibus medicata vis. Histriae
Liburniaque pilo propior quam lanae, pexis aliena
vestibus, et quam Salacia scutulato textu commendat
in Lusitania. similis circa Piscinas provinciae Nar-
bonensis, similis et in Aegypto, ex qua vestis de-
trita usu pingitur rursusque aevo durat. est et
hirtae pilo crasso in tapetis antiquissima gratia:
iam certe priscos 1 iis usos Homer us auctor est.
aliter haec Galli pingunt, aliter Parthorum gentes.
192 lanae et per se coactae vestem faciunt et, si addatur
acetum, etiam ferro resistunt, immo vero etiam
ignibus novissimo sui purgamento. quippe aenis
polientium extract a in tomenti usum veniunt,
Galliarum, ut arbitror, invento: certe Gallicis
193 hodie nominibus discernitur. nee facile dixerim
qua id aetate coeperit ; antiquis enim torus e stra-
mento erat, qualiter etiam nunc in castris, gau-
sapae patris mei memoria coepere, amphimallia
nostra, sicut villosa etiam ventralia; nam tunica
lati clavi in modum gausapae texi nunc primum
incipit. lanarum nigrae nullum colorem bibunt;
de reliquarum infectu suis locis dicemus in conchyliis
maris aut herbarum natura.
1 priscos om, v.l.
Odyssey 4. 298 'AA/aWi? 8e Tcwn?ra fepev uaAa/<ro0 ept
et passim.
b IX c. 62. XXI c. 12.
134
BOOK VIII. Lxxm. 191-193
black wool fleeces, Pollentia near the Alps white,
Asia the red fleeces that they call Erythrean,
Baetica the same, Canossa tawny, Taranto also a dark
colour of its own. All fresh fleeces have a medicinal
property. Istrian and Liburnian fleece is nearer to hair
than wool, and not suitable for garments with a soft
nap ; and the same applies to the fleece that Salacia
in Lusitania advertises by its check pattern. There
is a similar wool in the district of the Fishponds in the
province of Narbonne, and also in Egypt, which is
used for darning clothes worn by use and making
them last again for a long period. Also the coarse
hair of a shaggy fleece has a very ancient popularity
in carpets : Homer a is evidence that they were un-
doubtedly in use even in very early times. Different
methods of dyeing these fleeces are practised by the
Gauls and by the Parthian races. Self-felted fleeces
make clothing, and also if vinegar is added withstand
even steel, nay more even fire, the latest method
of cleaning them. In fact fleeces drawn from, the
coppers of the polishers serve as stuffing for cushions,
I believe by a French invention : at all events at the
present day it is classified under Gallic names. And
I could not easily say at what period this began ; for
people in old times had bedding of straw, in the same
way as in camp now. Frieze cloaks began within my
father's memory and cloaks with hair on both sides
within my own, as also shaggy body-belts ; moreover
weaving a broad-striped tunic after the manner of a
frieze cloak is coming in for the first time now.
Black fleeces will not take dye of any colour; we
will discuss the dyeing of the other sorts in their
proper places under the head of marine shellfish &
or the nature Jof various plants. c
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
194 LXXIV. Lanam in colo et fuso Tanaquilis, quae
eadem Gala Caecilia vocata est, in templo Sanci
durasse prodente se auctor est M. Varro, factamque
ab ea togam regiam undulatam in aede Fortunae,
qua Ser. Tullius fuerat usus. inde factum ut
nubentes virgines comitaretur colus compta et fusus
cum stamine. ea prima texuit rectam tunicam,
qualis cum toga pura tirones induuntur novaeque
195 nuptae. undulata vestis prima e laudatissimis
fuit ; inde sororiculata defluxit. togas rasas Phryxia-
nasque divi Augusti novissimis temporibus coepisse
scribit Fenestella. crebrae papaveratae antiquiorem
habent originem iam ab Lucilio poeta in Torquato
notatae. praetextae apud Etruscos originem inve-
nere. trabeis usos accipio reges ; pictae vestes iam
apud Homerum sunt iis, et inde I triumphales natae.
196 acu facere id Phryges invenerunt, ideoque Phrygio-
niae appellatae sunt. aurum intexere in eadem
Asia invenit Attalus rex, unde nomen Attalicis.
colores diversos picturae intexere Babylon maxume
celebravit et nomen inposuit. plurimis vero liciis
texere quae polymita appellant Alexandria instituit,
scutulis dividere Gallia. Metellus Scipio tricliniaria
Babylonica sestertium octingentis milibus venisse
iam tune ponit in Capitonis 2 criminibus, quae
1 Mayhoff : Homerum fuisse unde.
2 Caesareus : Catonis.
a For the use of poppy-stem fibre mixed with flax in weav-
ing, to give gloss, see XIX 21.
6 Helen embroiders one with battle scenes, Od. 3. 125.
136
BOOK VIII. LXXIV. 194-196
LXXIV. Marcus Varro informs us, on his own
authority, that the wool on the distaff and spindle o
Tanaquil (who was also called Gaia Caecilia) was still <&
preserved in the temple of Sancus ; and also in the
shrine of Fortune a pleated royal robe made by her,
which had been worn by Servius Tullius. Hence
arose the practice that maidens at their marriage were
accompanied by a decorated distaff and a spindle with
thread. Tanaquil first wove a straight tunic of the
kind that novices wear with the plain white toga,
and newly married brides. The pleated robe was
the first among those most in favour ; consequently
the spotted robe went out of fashion. Fenestella
writes that togas of smooth cloth and of Phryxian
wool began in the latest times of the late lamented
Augustus . Togas of closely woven poppy-cloth have a
an older source, being noticed as far back as the poet
Lucilius in the case of Torquatus. Bordered robes
found their origin with the Etruscans. I find it
recorded that striped robes were worn by the kings,
and they had embroidered robes as far back as
Homer, 6 these being the origin of those worn in
triumphs. Embroidering with the needle was dis-
covered by the Phrygians, and consequently em-
broidered robes are called Phrygian. Gold em-
broidery was also invented in Asia, by King Attalus,
from whom Attalic robes got their name. Weaving
different colours into a pattern was chiefly brought
into vogue by Babylon, which gave its name to this
process. But the fabric called damask woven with
a number of threads was introduced by Alexandria,
and check patterns by Gaul. Metellus Scipio
counts it among the charges against Capito that
Babylonian coverlets were already then sold for
137
PLINY: NATURAL HISTQBY
Neroni principi quadragiens sestertio nuper stetere.
197 Servi Tulli praetextae quibus signum Fortunae ab
eo dicatae coopertum erat, duravere ad Seiani
exitum, mirumque fuit neque diffluxisse eas neque
teredinum ininrias sensisse annis quingentis sexa-
ginta. vidimus iam et viventium l vellera purpura,
cocco, conchylio, sesquipedalibus libris 2 infect a, velut
ilia sic nasci cogente luxuria.
198 LXXV. In ipsa ove satis generositatis ostenditur
brevitate crurum, ventris vestitu. 3 quibus nudus
esset apicas vocabant damnabantque. Syriae cu-
bitales ovium caudae, plurimumque in ea parte
lanicii. castrari agnos nisi quinquemenstres prae-
maturum existimatur.
199 Est in Hispania, sed maxime Corsica, non absimile
pecori genus musmonum caprino villo quam pecoris
velleri propius, quorum e genere et ovibus natos
prisci Umbros vocaverunt, innrmissimum pecori
caput, quamobrem aversum a sole pasci cogendum.
quam stultissima animalium lanata: qua timuere
ingredi, unum cornu raptum sequuntur. vita longis-
sima anni x 9 in Aethiopia xin ; capris eodem loco xi,
in reliquo orbe plurimum octoni. utrumque genus
intra quartum coitum impletur.
200 LXXVL Caprae pariunt et quaternos, sed raro
admodum; ferunt v mensibus, ut oves. capri
1 v.l. bidentum,
2 v.L s. labris (sesquilibris Gronovius).
3 vJ. vestitus.
* Over 7000 gold. 6 A.D. 31.
A variant gives " even of sheep.*
d The word.s omitted, * with eighteen inch scales ' or
' pounds,' have not been satisfactorily explained or emended.
138
BOOK VIII. LXXIV. 196-Lxxvi, 200
800,000 sesterces/ 2 which lately cost the Emperor
Nero 4,000,000. The state robes of Servius Tullius,
with which the statue of Fortune dedicated by
him was draped, lasted till the death 6 of Sejamis, and
it was remarkable that they had not rotted away
or suffered damage from moths in 560 years. We
have before now seen the fleeces even of living
animals c dyed with purple, scarlet, crimson . . ./
as though luxury forced them to be born like that.
LXXV. In the sheep itself breed is sufficiently
shown by shortness of the legs and a well-clothed
belly. Sheep with the belly bare used to be called
' misfits ' e and turned down. The sheep of Syria have
tails 18 inches long, and a great deal of wool on that
part. It is considered too soon for lambs to be gelt
unless five months old.
In Spain, but particularly in Corsica, there is an
animal not unlike the sheep, the moufflon, with hair
nearer the goat's than the sheep's; these when
crossed with sheep produce what in old days were
called Umbrians. Sheep are very weak in the
head, and consequently must be made to graze with
their backs to the sun. The fleecy sheep is the
stupidest of animals ; if afraid to go into a place they
will follow one of the flock that is taken by the horn.
Their longest term of life is 10 years, in Ethiopia 13;
goats in Ethiopia live 11 years, but in other parts of
the world at most eight. In breeding with either
kind to couple three times at most is sufficient.
LXXVI. Goats bear as many as four kids at once,
but rather seldom; they carry their young for
5 months, like sheep. He-goats are made sterile by soots.
6 From aTrciKtus, Lewis and Short ; or perhaps more prob-
ably * apicas ' (ITOKOS, weKta) without fleece.'
139
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
pinguitudine sterilescunt. ante trimos 1 minus uti-
liter generant et in senecta, nee ultra quadriennium.
incipiunt septimo mense et adhuc lact antes, mu-
tilum in utroque sexu utilius. primus in die coitus
non implet, sequens efficacior ac deinde. conci-
piunt Novembri mense ut Martio pariant turgescen-
tibus virgultis, aliquando anniculae, semper bimae,
nisi trimae vix utiles. 2 pariunt octonis annis.
201 abortus frigori obnoxius. oculos suffusos capra
iunci punctu sanguine exorierat, caper rubi. soller-
tiam eius animalis Mucianus vis am sibi prodidit,
in ponte praetenui duabus obviis e diverso cum
circumactum angustiae non caperent nee reciproca-
tionem longitudo in exilitate caeca, 3 torrente rapido
minaciter subterfluente, alteram decubuisse atque
202 ita alteram proculcatae supergressam. mares quam
maxime simos, longis auribus infractisque, armis
quam villosissimis probant. feminarum generositatis
insigne laciniae corporibus e cervice binae depend-
entes ; non omnibus cornua, sed quibus sunt, in his
et indicia annorum per incrementa nodorum;
mutilis lactis maior ubertas; auribus eas spirare,
non naribus, nee umquam febri carere Archelaus
auctor est; ideo fortassis anima his quam ovibus
203 ardentior calidioresque concubitus. tradunt et
noctu non minus cernere quam interdiu, et ideo,
1 ante trinos annos ? Mayhoff.
55 Maylioff? : bimae, in trimatu inutiles.
3 caecam ? Rackham.
140
BOOK VIII. LXXVI. 200-203
over-fattening. They are not very useful as sires till
three years old, nor in old age, and they do not serve
for more than four years. They begin when six
months old and before they are weaned. Both
sexes breed better with the horns removed. The
first coupling in the day has no result, but the
following and subsequent ones are more effectual.
She-goats conceive in November so as to bear kids
in March when the bushes are budding yearlings
sometimes and two-year-olds always, but they are
not of much use for breeding unless three years old.
They go on bearing for eight years. They are liable
to miscarriage from cold. A she-goat cures its eyes
when bloodshot by pricking them on a rush, he-goats
on a bramble. Mucianus has described a case of
this animal's cleverness seen by himself two goats
coming in opposite directions met on a very narrow
bridge, and as the narrow space did not permit them
to turn round and the length did not allow of backing
blindly on the scanty passageway with a rushing
torrent flowing threateningly below, one of them lay
down and so the other one passed over, treading on top
of it. People admire he-goats that are as snub-nosed
as possible, with long drooping ears and extremely
shaggy flanks. It is a mark of good breeding in she-
goats to have two dewlaps hanging down from the
neck ; not all have horns, but in those that have there
are also indications of their years furnished by the
growths of the knobs ; they give more milk when
without horns ; according to Archelaus they breathe
through the ears, not the nostrils, and are never free
from fever : this is perhaps the reason why they are
more high-spirited than sheep and hotter in coupling.
It is said that goats can see by night as well as they
141
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
si caprinum iecur vescantur, restitui vespertinam
aciem iis quos nyctalopas vocant. in Cilicia circaque
Syrtes villo tonsili vestiuntur. capras in occasum
declini sole in pascuis negant contueri inter sese sed
aversas iacere, reliquis autem horis adversas et inter
se cognationes. dependet omnium mento villus
204 quern aruncum vocant. hoc si quis adprehensam ex
grege unam trahat, ceterae stupentes spectant;
id etiam evenit et l cum quandam herbam aliqua
ex eis momorderit. morsus earum arbori est
exitialis ; olivam lambendo quoque sterilem faciunt,
eaque ex causa Minervae non immolantur.
205 LXXVII. Suilli pecoris admissura a favonio ad
aequinoctium vernum, aetas octavo mense, quibus-
dam in locis etiam quarto, usque ad octavum annum,
partus bis in anno, tempus utero quattuor mensum,'
numerus fecunditati ad vicenos, sed educare neque-
unt tarn multos. diebus x circa brumam statim
dentatos nasci Nigidius tradit. implentur uno coitu,
qui et geminatur propter facilitatem aboriendi;
remedium ne prima subatione neque ante flaccidas
206 aures coitus fiat:, mares non ultra trimatum gene-
rant. feminae senectute fessae cubantes coeunt;
comesse fetus in 2 his non est prodigium. suis fetus
sacrificio die quinto purus est, pecoris die vu,
bovis xxx. Coruncanius ruminalis hostias donee
1 Mayhoff: evenire.
2 in add.
142
BOOK VIII. LXXVI. 203-LXxvn. 206
can in the daytime, and that consequently a diet of
goat's liver restores twilight sight to persons suffering
from what is called night-blindness. In Cilicia and
the Syrtes region people wear clothes made of hair
shorn from goats. They say that she-goats in the
pastures when the sun is setting do not look at one
another but lie down with their backs to each other,
though at other times of the day they lie facing each
other and take notice of one another. From the
chin of all goats hangs a tuft of hair called their
beard. If you grasp a she-goat by this and drag her
out of the herd the others look on in amazement ;
this also happens as well when one of them nibbles a
particular plant. Their bite kills a tree ; they make
an olive tree barren even by licking it, and for this
reason they are not offered in sacrifice to Minerva.
LXXVII. Swine are allowed to breed from the
beginning of spring to the vernal equinox, beginning
at seven months old and in some places even at three
months, and continuing to their eighth year. Sows
bear twice a year, carrying their pigs four months :
litters number up to 20, but sows cannot rear so
many. Nigidius states that for ten days at mid-
winter pigs are born with the teeth already grown.
Sows are impregnated by one coupling, which is also
repeated because they are so liable to abortion;
the remedy is not to allow coupling at the first heat
or before the ears are pendulous. Hogs cannot
serve when over three years old. Sows exhausted
by age couple lying down ; it is nothing out of the
way for them to eat their litter. A pig is suitable for
sacrifice four days after birth, a lamb in a week and a
calf in ai month. Coruncamus asserted that ruminant
animals are not acceptable as victims, before they gs&w
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
bidentes fierent pur as negavit. suem oculo amisso
putant cito extingui, alioqui vita ad xv annos, qui-
busdam et vicenos ; verum efferantur, et alias obno-
xium genus morbis, anginae maxime et strumae.
207 index suis invalidae cruor in radice saetae dorso
evolsae, caput obliquom in incessu. paenuriam lac-
tis praepingues sentiunt ; et primo fetu minus sunt
numerosae. in luto volutatio generi grata, intorta
cauda ; id etiam notatum, facilius litare in dexterum
quam in laevum detorta. pinguescunt LX diebus,
sed magis tridui media saginatione orsa. animalium
hoc maxime brutum, animamque ei pro sale datam
208 non inlepide existimabatur. conpertum agnitam
vocem suarii furto abactis, mersoque navigio inclina-
tione lateris unius renasse. 1 quin et duces in urbe
forum nundinarium domosque petere discunt; et
feri sapiunt vestigia palude confundere, urina fugam
209 levare. castranturfeminae|sic quoque uti et cameli
post bidui inediam suspensae pernis prioribus vulva
recisa; celerius ita pinguescunt, adhibetur et ars
iecori feminarum sicut anserum, invent um M.
Apici, fico arida saginatis, a satie necatis repente
1 Hackham: remeasse.
The two projecting teeth in the lower jaw which give their
name to the species.
6 To keep it from putrefaction : Cicero N.D. II 160 attri-
butes this to Chrysippus.
144
BOOK VIIL LXXVII. 206-209
their front teeth . a It is thought that a sow that loses
an eye soon dies, but that otherwise sows live to
fifteen and in some cases even twenty years ; but
they become savage, and in any case the breed is
liable to diseases, especially quinsy and scrofula.
Symptoms of bad health in a sow are when blood
is found on the root of a bristle pulled out of its
back and when it holds its head on one side in
walking. If too fat they experience lack of milk;
and they have a smaller number of pigs in their
first litter. The breed likes wallowing in mud.
The tail is curly ; also it has been noticed that it
is easier to kill them for sacrifice when the tail
curls to the right than when to the left. They take
60 days to fatten, but fatten better if feeding up
is preceded by three days' fast. The pig is the
most brutish of animals, and there used to be a
not unattractive idea that its soul was given it to
serve as salt. & It is a known fact that some pigs
carried off by thieves recognized the voice of their
swineherd, crowded to one side of the ship till it
capsized and sank, and swam back to shore. More-
over the leaders of a herd in the city learn to go
to the market place and to find their way home;
and wild hogs know how to obliterate their tracks
by crossing marshy ground, and to r eh* eve them-
selves when running away by making water. Sows
are spayed in the same way as also camels are, by
being hung up by the fore legs after two days
without food and having the matrix cut out; this
makes them fatten quicker. There is also a method
of treating the liver of sows as of geese, a discovery
of Marcus Apicius they are stuffed with dried fig,
and when full killed directly after having been
T45
VOL. III. I-
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
mulsi potu dato. neque alio ex animali numerosior
materia ganeae: quinquaginta prope sapores, cum
ceteris singuli. hinc censoriarum legum paginae,
interdictaque cenis abdomina, glandia, testiculi,
vulvae, sincipita verrina, ut tamen Publi mimorum
poetae cena postquam servitutem exuerat nulla
memoretur sine abdomine, etiam vocabulo suminis
ab eo inposito.
210 LXXVIII. Placuere autem et feri sues, iam
Catonis censoris orationes aprunum exprobrant
callum. in tres tamen partes diviso media pone-
batur, lumbus aprunus appellata. solidum aprum
Romanorum primus in epulis adposuit P. Servilius
Rullus, pater eius Rulli qui Ciceronis in consulatu
legem agrariam promulgavit : tarn propinqua origo
nunc cotidianae rei est; et hoc annales notarunt,
horum scilicet ad emendationem morum, quibus
non tota quidem cena sed in principle bini ternique
pariter manduntur apri.
211 Vivaria eorum ceterarumque silvestrium primus
togati generis invenit Fulvius Lippinus : is x in
Tarquiniensi feras pascere instituit; nee diu imi-
tatores defuere L. Lucullus et Q. Hortensius.
212 Sues ferae semel anno gignunt. maribus in coitu
plurima asperitas ; tune inter se dimicant indurantes
1 is add. ? Mayhoff.
a 184 B.C. & 63 B.C.
146
BOOK VIII. LXXVII, 209-LXxvm. 212
given a drink of mead. Nor does any animal supply
a larger number of materials for an eating-house :
they have almost fifty flavours, whereas all other
meats have one each. Hence pages of sumptuary
laws, and the prohibition of hog's paunches, sweet-
breads, testicles, matrix and cheeks for banquets,
although nevertheless no dinner of the pantomime
writer Publius after he had obtained his freedom is
recorded that did not include paunch he actually
got from this the nickname of Pig's Paunch.
LXXVIII. But also wild boar has been a popular Boar's meat.
luxury. As far back as Cato the Censor a we find his
speeches denouncing boar's meat bacon. Neverthe-
less a boar used to be cut up into three parts and the
middle part served at table, under the name of boar's
loin. Publius Servilius Rullus, father of the Bullus
who brought in the land settlement act during
Cicero's consulship, 6 first served a boar whole at his
banquets so recent is the origin of what is now an
everyday affair ; and this occurrence has been noted
by historians, presumably for the improvement of
the manners of the present day, when it is the
fashion for two or three boars to be devoured at
one time not even as a whole dinner but as the
first course.
Fulvius Lippinus was the first person of Roman Game-
nationality who invented preserves for wild pigs and P reservcs '
the other kinds of game : he introduced keeping wild
animals in the district of Tarquinii ; and he did not
long lack imitators, Lucius Lucullus and Quintus
Hortensius.
Wild pigs breed once a year. The boars are very
rough when mating; at this period they fight each
other, hardening their flanks by rubbing against
147
L2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
adtritu arborum costas lutoque se a tergo stercor-
antes. 1 feminae in partu asperiores, et fere similiter
in omni genere bestiarum. apris maribus nonnisi
anniculis generatio. in India cubit ales dentium
flexus ; gemini ita 2 ex rostro, totidem a fronte ceu
vituli cornua exeunt, pilus aereo similis agrestibus,
ceteris niger. at in Arabia suillum genus non vivit.
213 LXXIX. In nullo alio 3 genere aeque facilis
mixtura cum fero, qualiter natos antiqui hybridas
vocabant ceu semiferos, ad homines quoque ut C.
Antonium Ciceronis in consulatu collegam appella-
tione tralata. non in suibus autem tantum sed in
omnibus quoque animalibus cuiuscumque generis
ullum est placidum eiusdem invenitur et ferum,
utpote cum hominum etiam silvestrium tot genera
214 praedicfca sint. caprae tamen in j>lurimas simili-
tudines transfigurantur : sunt caprae, sunt rupi-
caprae, sunt ibices pernicitatis mirandae, quamquam
onerato capite vastis cornibus gladiorum ceu vaginis ;
in haec se Hbrat ut tormento aliquo rotatus, in
petris 4 potissimum e monte alio 5 in alium transilire
quaerens, atque recusu e pernicius quo libuerit
exult at. sunt et oryges, soli a 7 quibusdam dicti
contrario pilo vestiri et ad caput verso, sunt et
dammae et pygargi et strepsicerotes multaque alia
1 MayJioff : se tergorantes. 2 Mayhoff : gemina.
3 alio add. JRackham. 4 Rackham : petras.
6 Raclckam : aliquo. 6 v.l. recussu.
7 a add. Rackkam.
63 B.C.
6 The allusion of his surname Hybrida is uncertain; per-
haps his mother was of foreign descent.
c I.e. the goat, chamois and ibex above.
148
BOOK VIII. LXXVIII. 2i2-LXxix. 214
trees and plastering their behinds with mud. The
females are fiercer when with young, and this is more
or less the same in every kind of wild animal. Male
boars do not mate till one year old. In India they
have curved tusks 18 in. long : two project from the
jaw, and two from the forehead like a calf's horns.
The wild boar's hair is a sort of copper colour ; that
of the other species is black. But the hog genus does
not occur in Arabia.
LXXIX. In the case of no other kind of animal is wm
it so easy to cross with the wild variety ; the offspring
of such unions in old days were called ' hybrids/ species.
meaning half-wild, a term also applied as a nickname
to human beings, for instance, to Cicero's colleague in
the consulship, Gaius Antonius. & But not only in pigs
but in all animals as well whenever there is any tame
variety of a genus there is also found a wild one of the
same genus, inasmuch as even in the case of man an
equal number of savage races have been predicted
to exist. Nevertheless the formation of the goat is
transferred to a very large number of similar species :
there are the goat, the chamois and the ibex an
animal of marvellous speed, although its head is
burdened with enormous horns resembling the
sheaths of swords, towards which it sways itself as
though whirled with a sort of catapult, chiefly when
on rocks and seeking to leap from one crag to another,
and by means of the recoil leaps out more nimbly
to the point to which it wants to get. There are
also the oryx, the only species according to certain
authorities clothed with hair lying the wrong way,
towards the head, and the antelope, the white-rumped
antelope, the twisted-horn antelope and a great
many other not dissimilar species. fiut the former
149
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
haut dissimilia. sed ilia Alpes, haec transmarini
situs mittunt.
215 LXXX. Simiarum quoque genera 1 hominis figu-
rae proxima caudis inter se distinguntur. mira
sollertia : visco inungui, laqueisque calciari imita-
tione venantium tradunt, Mucianus et latrunculis
lusisse, fictas cera nuces visu distinguere, lima cava
tristes esse quibus in eo genere cauda sit, novain,
exultatione adorari: nam defectum siderum et
216 ceterae pavent quadripedes. simiarum generi prae-
cipua erga fetum adfectio. gestant catulos quae
mansuefactae intra domes peperere. omnibus demon-
strant tractarique gaudent, gratulationem intelle-
gentibus similes; itaque magna ex parte conplec-
tendo necant. efFeratior cynocephalis natura sicut
mitissima 2 satyris. callitriches toto paene aspectu
diiFerunt : barba est in facie, cauda late fusa primori
parte. hoc animal negatur vivere in alio quam
Aethiopiae quo gignitur caelo.
217 LXXXL Et leporum plura sunt genera, in Alpi-
bus candidi quos 3 hibernis mensibus pro cibatu
nivem credunt esse certe liquescente ea rutilescunt
annis omnibus et est alioqui animal intolerandi
rigoris alumnum. leporum generis sunt et quos
1 genera <plura> Mayhoff.
2 Edd. : miarsima (v.L om.).
3 Rackham : quibus.
Perhaps the cmrang-outang, which comes from Borneo.
J The semnopiihecus, or perhaps the -cercopithecus.
150
BOOK VIII. LXXIX. 214-LXXxi. 217
we receive from the Alps, the latter from places
across the sea.
LXXX. The kinds of apes also which are closest to Varieties of
the human shape are distinguished from each other &uafe "
by the tails. They are marvellously cunning:
people say that they use bird-lime as ointment,
and that they put on the nooses set to snare them as
if they were shoes, in imitation of the hunters;
according to Mucianus the tailed species have even
been known to play at draughts, are able to dis-
tinguish at a glance sham nuts made of wax, and
are depressed by the moon waning and worship the
new moon with delight : and it is a fact that the other
four-footed animals also are frightened by eclipses.
The genus ape has a remarkable affection for its
young. Tame monkeys kept in the house who bear
young ones carry them about and show them to
everybody, and delight in having them stroked,
looking as if they understood that they are being
congratulated; and as a consequence in a consider-
able number of cases they kill their babies by hugging
them. The baboon is of a fiercer nature, just as
the satyrus a is extremely gentle. The pretty-
haired ape 6 is almost entirely different in appear-
ance : it has a bearded face and a tail flattened out
wide at the base. This animal is said to be unable
to live in any other climate but that of its native
country, Ethiopia.
LXXXI. There are also several kinds of hare. The hare and
In the Alps there are white hares, which are believed theram -
to eat snow for their fodder in the winter months
at all events they turn a reddish colour every year
when the snow melts and in other ways the animal
is a nurseling of the intolerable cold. The animals in
151
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
Hispania cuniculos appellat, fecunditatis innumerae
famemque Baliarum insulis populatis messibus
adferentes. fetus ventri exectos vel uberibus abla-
tos non repurgatis interaneis gratissimo in cibatu
218 habent : laurices vocant. certum est Baliaricos
adversus proventum eorum auxilium militare a divo
Augusto petisse. magna propter venatum eum
viverris gratia est: iniciunt eas in specus qui sunt
multifores in terra (unde et nomen animali) atque
ita eiectos superne capiunt. Archelaus auctor est
quot sint corporis cavernae ad excrementa lepori
totidem annos esse aetatis: varius certe numerus
reperitur. idem utramque vim singulis inesse ac sine
219 mare aeque gignere. benigna circa hoc natura
innocua et esculenta animalia fecunda generavit.
lepus omnium praedae nascens solus praeter dasypo-
dem superfetat, aliud educans, aliud in utero pilis
vestitum, aliud inplume, aliud inchoatum gerens
pariter. nee non et vestes leporino pilo facere
temptatum est, tactu non perinde molli ut in cute,
220 propter brevitatem pili dilabidas. 1
LXXXII. Hi mansuescunt raro, cum feri dici
iure non possint : conplura namque sunt nee placida
1 v.l. dilabidam.
a Beally the etymology is the other way round : cuniculus
is from a Spanish word for ' rabbit,' and from it was formed
cuniculum meaning * burrow,' * tunnel,' or ' mine/
* A variant reading gives * as it is when on the animal's
skin owing to the yielding nature of the short-haired fur,*
BOOK VIII. LXXXI. 217-Lxxxii. 220
Spain called rabbits also belong to the genus hare;
their fertility is beyond counting, and they bring
famine to the Balearic Islands by ravaging the crops.
Their young cut out from the mother before birth or
taken from the teat are considered a very great
delicacy, served without being gutted ; the name for
them is laurex. It is an established fact that the
peoples of the Balearics petitioned the late lamented
Augustus for military assistance against the spread
of these animals. The ferret is extremely popular
for rabbit-hunting; they throw ferrets into the
burrows with a number of exits that the rabbits
tunnel in the ground (this is the derivation of their
name ' cony ' a ) and so catch the rabbits when they
are driven out to the surface. Archelaus states that
a hare is as many years old as it has folds in the bowel :
these are certainly found to vary in number. The
same authority says that the hare is a hermaphrodite
and reproduces equally well without a male. Nature
has shown her benevolence in making harmless and
edible breeds of animals prolific. The hare which is
born to be all creatures' prey is the only animal
beside the shaggy-footed rabbit that practises super-
fetation, rearing one leveret while at the same time
carrying in the womb another clothed with hair and
another bald and another still an embryo. Also the
experiment has been made of using the fur of the
hare for making clothes, although it is not so soft to
the touch as it is when on the animal's skin, and the
garments soon come to pieces because of the short-
ness of the hair?
LXXXII. Hares rarely grow tame, although they Haif-
cannot properly be termed wild animals for in
fact there are a good many creatures that are
153
PUNY: NATURAL HISTORY
nee fera, sed mediae inter utrumque naturae, ut
in volucribus hirundines, apes, 1 in mari delphini.
221 quo in genere multi et hos incolas domuum
posuere mures, haut spernenduni in ostentis etiam
publicis animal: adrosis Lanuvi clipeis argenteis
Marsicum portendere bellum, Carboni imperatori
apud Clusium fasceis quibus in calciatu utebatur exi-
tium. plura eorum genera in Cyrenaica regione,
alii lata fronte, alii acuta, alii irenaceorum genere
222 pungentibus pilis. Theophrastus auctor est in
Gyara insula cum incolas fugassent, 2 ferrum quoque
rosisse eos, id quod natura quadam et ad Chalybas
facere in ferrariis officinis ; aurariis quidem in metallis
ob hoc alvos eorum excidi semperque furtum id
deprehendi, tantam esse dulcedinem furandi. ve-
nisse murem cc denariis 3 Casilmum obsidente
Hannibale, eumque qui vendidisset 4 fame interisse,
223 emptorem vixisse, annales tradunt, cum candidi
provenere, laetum faciunt ostentum. nam sauricum
occentu dirimi auspicia annales refertos habemus.
saurices et ipsos hi erne condi auctor est Nigidius,
sicut glires, quos censoriae leges princepsque M.
Scaurus in consulatu non alio modo cenis ademere
1 v.l. aper (apri ? RackJiam) in campo.
2 incolae fugissent ? Rackham.
3 denariis add. Budaeus e Val. Max.
4 Ratfcham : vendiderat.
A variant gives * swallows, on the plain the boar.*
6 The Social War, 91-88 B.C.
c Carbo was defeated by Sulla at Clusium in Etruria, 82 B.C.
Later in the same year he had to fly to Africa, and was killed
there.
d One of the Cyclades.
* Perhaps to be emended * when the inhabitants had fled, 1
J t On the Black Sea.
BOOK VIII. LXXXII. 220-223
neither wild nor tame but of a character inter-
mediate between each, for instance among winged
things swallows and bees, a in the sea dolphins.
Many people have also placed in this class these
denizens of our homes the mice, a creature not to be
ignored among portents even in regard to public
affairs ; they foretold the war & with the Marsians by
gnawing the silver shields at Lanuvium, and the death
of General Carbo by gnawing at Chiusi c the puttees
that he wore inside his sandals. There are more
varieties of mice in the district of Gyrene, some with
broad and others with pointed heads, and others
like hedgehogs with prickly bristles. Theophrastus
states that on the island of Chiura d when they had
banished the inhabitants e they even gnawed iron,
and that they also do this by a sort of instinct in the
iron foundries in the country of the Chalybes/:
indeed, he says, in gold mines because of this their
bellies get cut away and their theft of gold is always
detected, ff so fond are they of thieving. The Public
Records relate that during the siege h of Casilinum by
Hannibal a mouse was sold for 200 francs, and that
the man who sold it died of hunger while the buyer
lived. The appearance of white mice constitutes a
joyful omen. For we have our Records full of
instances of the auspices being interrupted i by the
squeaking of shrews. Nigidius states that shrews
themselves also hibernate as do dormice, which
sumptuary legislation and Marcus Scaurus the
Head of the State during his consulship fc ruled out
ff Or perhaps 6 their bellies are cut open and some stolen
gold is always found.*
h 216 B.C., after the battle of Cannae.
* I.e. the squeaking during the taking of auspices was a
bad omen. * 115 B.C.
155
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
224 ac 1 conchy lia aut ex alio orbe convectas aves. semi-
ferum et ipsum animal, cui vivaria in doliis idem qui
apris instituit. qua in re notatum non congregare
nisi populares eiusdem silvae et, si misceantur alie-
nigenae amne vel monte discreti, interire dimicando.
genitores suos fessos senecta alunt insigni pietate.
senium finitur hiberna quiete: conditi enim et hi
cubant, rursus aestate iuvenescunt. similis et nitelis
quies est hieme. 2
225 LXXXIII. Hie mirum rerum naturam non solum
alia aliis dedisse terris animalia sed in eodem quoque
situ quaedam aliquis locis negasse. in Maesia silva
Italiae non nisi in parte reperiuntur hi glires. in
Lycia dorcades non transeunt montes Sexis vicinos,
onagri limit em qui Cappadociam a Cilicia dividit.
in Hellespont in alienos fines non commeant cervi,
et circa Arginusam Elaphum montem non excedunt,
auribus etiam in monte fissis. in Pordoselene insula
226 viam mustelae non transeunt. item 3 Boeotiae
Lebadeae inlatae solum ipsum fugiunt quae iuxta in
Orchomeno tota arva subruunt talpae. quarum e
pellibus cubicularia vidimus stragula : adeo ne religio
quidem a portentis submovet delicias. in Ithaca
lepores inlati moriuntur extremis quidem in litori-
1 ac add. Detlefsen.
2 Mayhoff : simili (aut similis) et nitelis quiete.
3 Mayhoff: in.
See 211.
b Z.e. the old mice die off during hibernation.
e InBtruria.
d Aristotle Hist. An. 2786 26 cV S TO> opet r> J EAa<a><
aXov^vo) . . . lAa^ot Traaai TO ovs ecr^tcrju/vat elaiv,
* Between Lesbos and the Asiatic coast.
156
BOOK VIII. LXXXII. 223-LXXXIII. 226
from banquets just as they did shell-fish or birds
imported from other parts of the world. The shrew-
mouse itself also is a half-wild animal, and keeping it
alive in jars was originated by the same person as
started keeping wild pigs. a In this connexion it has
been noticed that shrew-mice do not associate unless
they are natives of the same forest, and if foreigners
separated by a river or mountain are introduced they
die fighting one another. They feed their parents
when exhausted by old age with remarkable affection.
Their old age comes to its end during the winter
repose & for these creatures also hibernate, and
renew their youth at the coming of summer. Dormice
hibernate similarly.
LXXXIII. In this connexion it is surprising that Local disiri-
Nature has not only assigned different animals to
different countries, but has also denied certain
animals to some places in the same region. In the
Mesian forest c in Italy dormice of which we are now
speaking are only found in one part. In Lycia the
gazelles do not cross the mountains near the Sexi,
nor the wild asses the boundary dividing Cappadocia
from Cilicia. The stags on the Hellespont do not
migrate into unfamiliar districts, and those in the
neighbourhood of Arginusa do not go beyond Mount
Elaphus, even those on the mountain having cleft
ears.^ In the island of Pordoselene * weasels do not
cross a road. Similarly in Boeotia moles that under-
mine the whole of the fields in Orchomenus near by,
when imported into Lebadea are shy of the very soil.
We have seen counterpanes for beds made out of
their skins: so powerless is even superstition to
protect the miraculous against luxury. In Ithaca
imported hares die on the very edge of the shore, as
157
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
bus, in Ebuso cuniculi, scatentibus 1 iuxta Hispania
227 Baliaribusque. Cyrenis mutae fuere ranae, inlatis e
continente vocalibus durat genus earum. mutae
sunt etiamnum in Seripho insula, eaedem alio tra-
latae canunt, quod accidere et in lacu Thessaliae
Siccaneo 2 tradunt. in Italia muribus araneis vene-
natus est niorsus ; eosdem ulterior Apennino regio non
habet. iidem ubicumque sunt, orbitam si transiere,
moriuntur. in Olympo Macedoniae monte non sunt
228 lupi nee in Greta insula. ibi quidem nee vulpes ursive
atque omnino nullum maleficum animal praeter
phalangium : in 3 araneis id genus dicemus suo loco,
mirabilius in eadem insula cervos praeterquam in
Cydoneatarum regione non esse, item apros, 4 atta-
genas, irenaceos, in Africa autem nee apros nee
cervos nee capreas nee ursos.
229 LXXXIV. lam quaedam animalia indigenis in-
noxia advenas interimunt, sicut serpentes parvi in
Tirynthe quos terra nasci proditur. item in Syria
angues circa Euphratis maxime ripas dormientes
Syros non adtingunt aut, etiamsi calcati momordere,
non sentiuntur malefici, 5 aliis cuiuscumque gentis
infesti, avide et cum cruciatu exanimantes, quamo-
1 Mayhoff : scatent.
2 Mayhoff (Adian OVK aevaos) ? : Sicandro.
8 in add. Mayhoff.
4 Rackham : apros et.
158
BOOK VIII. LXXXIII. 226-LXxxiv. 229
do rabbits in Iviza, although Spain and the Balearic
Islands close by are teeming with them, At Cyrene
the frogs were silent, and though croaking frogs have
been imported from the mainland the silent breed
goes on. Frogs are also silent in the island of
Seriphus, but the same frogs croak when removed
to some other place, which is also said to happen in
the Siccanean Lake in Thessaly. The bite of the
shrew-mouse in Italy is venomous, but the venomous
species is not found in the district beyond the
Apennines. Also wherever it occurs it dies if it
crosses the track of a wheel. There are no wolves on
Mount Olympus in Macedon, nor in the island of
Crete. In fact in Crete there are no wolves or bears
cither, and no noxious animal at all except a poisonous
spider : we shall speak of this species in its place, a
under the head of spiders. It is more remarkable
that in the same island there are no stags except in
the district of Cydonea, and the same is the case with
wild boars and francolins and hedgehogs, while in
Africa there are neither wild boars nor stags nor wild
goats nor bears.
LXXXIV. Again, some animals harmless to natives Sped
of the country are deadly to foreigners, for instance
some small snakes at Tiryns that are said to be bom
from the earth. Similarly serpents in Syria specially
found about the banks of the Euphrates do not touch
Syrians when asleep, or even if they bite them when
trodden on are not felt to cause any evil effect, but
they are maleficent to other people of whatever race,
killing them voraciously and with torturing pain, on
a XI 79, XVIII 156.
5 Mayhoff: maleficia.
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
brem et Syri non nee ant eos. contra in Latmo
Cariae monte Aristoteles tradit a scorpionibus hos-
pites non laedi, indigenas interim!.
Sed reliquorum quoque animalium [et praeterea x ]
terrestrium dicemus genera.
1 Sed. Jan.
160
BOOK VIII. LXXXIV. 229
account of which the Syrians also do not kill them.
On the other hand Aristotle a relates that the
scorpions on Mount Latmos in Caria do not wound
strangers but kill natives.
But we will also speak of the remaining kinds of
land animals.
a Fr. 605 Rose.
161
VOL. III. M
BOOK IX
LIBER IX
1 I. ANIMALIUM quae terrestria appellavimus ho-
minum quadam consortione degentia indicata
natura est. ex reliquis minimas esse volucres con-
venit. quamobrem prius aequorum amnium stag-
norumque dicentur.
2 Sunt autem complura in his maiora etiam terrestri-
bus. causa evidens umoris luxuria. alia sors alitum
quibus vita pendentibus. in mari autem tarn late
supino mollique ac fertili nutrimento, accipiente
causas genitales e sublimi semperque pariente natura,
pleraque etiam monstrifica reperiuntur perplexis et
in semet aliter atque aliter nunc flatu nunc fluctu
convolutis seminibus atque principiis, vera ut fiat
vulgi opinio quicquid nascatur in parte naturae ulla
et in mari esse, praeterque multa quae nusquam
3 alibi, rerum quidem, non solum animalium, simu-
lacra inesse licet intellegere intuentibus uvam,
gladium, serram, 1 cucumin vero et colore et odore
similem; quo minus miremur equorum capita in
tarn parvis eminere cocleis.
1 Ractiham i serras.
164
BOOK IX
I. WE have indicated the nature of the species that zoology
we have designated land animals, as living in some J!J^ ~~
kind of association with men. Of the remaining kinds animals.
it is agreed that birds are the smallest. We will
therefore first speak of the creatures of the seas,
rivers and ponds.
There are however a considerable number of these Remarkable
that are larger even than land animals. The
obvious cause of this is the lavish nature of liquid,
Birds, which live hovering in the air, are in a different
condition: But in the sea, lying so widely outspread
and so yielding and productive of nutriment, because
the element receives generative causes from above
and is always producing offspring, a great many
actual monstrosities are found, the seeds and first
principles intertwining and interfolding with each
other now in one way and now in another, now by the
action of the wind and now by that of the waves, so
ratifying the common opinion that everything born
in any department of nature exists also in the sea,
as well as a number of things never found elsewhere.
Indeed we may realize that it contains likenesses of
things and not of animals only, when we examine the
grape, the sword-fish, the saw-fish, and the cucumber-
fish, the last resembling a real cucumber both in
colour and scent ; which makes it le$s surprising that
in cockle-shells that are so tiny there are horses'
heads projecting.
3=65
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
4 II. Plurima autem et maxima animalia in Indico
mari, ex quibus ballaenae quaternum iugerum, pristes
ducenum cubitorum, quippe ubi locustae quaterna
cubita impleant, anguillae quoque in Gange amne
5 tricenos pedes. sed in mari beluae circa solstitia
maxime visuntur. tune illic ruunt turbines, tune
imbres, tune deiectae montium iugis procellae ab
imo vertunt maria pulsatasque ex profundo beluas
cum fluctibus volvunt tanta, ut x alias thynnorum,
multitudine, ut Magni Alexandri classis haut alio
modo quam hostium acie obvia contrarium agmen
adversa front e direxerit : aliter [sparsis] 2 non erat
evadere. non voce, non sonitu non fragore sed
6 ictu 3 terrentur, nee nisi ruina turbantur. Cadara
appellatur Rubri Maris paeninsula ingens; huius
obiectu vastus efficitur sinus xn dierum et noctium
remigio enavigatus Ptolomaeo regi, quando nullius
aurae recipit afflatum. huius loci quiete praecipue 4
ad immobilem magnitudinem beluae adolescunt.
7 Gedrosos qui Arabim amnem accolunt Alexandri
Magni classium praefecti prodiderunt in domibus
fores maxillis beluarum facere, ossibus tecta contig-
nare 3 ex quibus multa quadragenum cubitorum
longitudinis reperta. exeunt et pecori similes
1 Mueller : volvunt et alias tanta.
2 sparsis an delendum^ ? Mueller.
3 sic ? Mueller : non ictu sed fragore.
* v.l. praecipua.
The iuger was about two-thirds of an English acre, the
cukitus or ell about 1 ft.
b This sailed from, the Indus to the Euphrates, as recorded,
with all the details given above, by Arrian, Indica 21-42.
The MS. text inserts an explanatory gloss ' by dispersing.'
166
BOOK IX. ii. 4-7
II. But the largest number of animals and those whales,
of the largest size are in the Indian sea, among them St^f
whales covering three acres each, and sharks 100 ells lar ^ e ^* c .
long a : in fact in those regions lobsters grow to 6 ft.
long, and also eels in the river Ganges to 300 ft. The
monsters in the sea are mostly to be seen about
the solstices. At those periods in that part of the
world there are rushing whirlwinds and rain-storms
and tempests hurtling down from the mountain
ridges that upturn the seas from their bottom, and
roll with their waves monsters forced up from the
depths in such a multitude, like the shoals of tunnies
in other places, that the fleet 6 of Alexander the Great
deployed its column in line of battle to encounter
them, in the same way as if an enemy force were
meeting it: it was not possible to escape them in
any other manner . c They are not scared by shouts or
noises or uproar, but only by impact, and they are
only routed by a violent collision. There is an
enormous peninsula in the Red Sea called Cadara,
the projection of which forms a vast bay which took
King Ptolemy twelve days and nights of rowing to
cross, as it does not admit a breath of wind from any
quarter. In this tranquil retreat particularly the
creatures grow to a huge motionless bulk. The
admirals d of the fleets of Alexander the Great have
stated that the Gedrosi e who live by the river Arabis/
make the doorways in their houses out of the
monsters' jaws and use their bones for roof-beams,
many of them having been found that were 60 ft.
long. Also great creatures resembling sheep come
* Nearchus and Onesicritus.
' The inhabitants of the modern Mafcran.
* Either the Purali or the Habh.
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
beluae ibi in terram pastaeque radices fruticum
remeant ; et quaedam equorum, asinorum, taurorum
capitibus quae depascuntur sata.
8 III. Maximum animal in Indico mari pristis et
ballaena est, in Gallico oceano physeter ingentis
columnae modo se attollens altiorque navium velis
diluviem quandam eructans, in Gaditano oceano arbor
in tantum vastis dispansa ramis ut ex ea causa fre-
tum numquam intrasse credatur. apparent et rotae
appellatae a similitudine, quaternis distinctae hae
radiis, modiolos earum oculis duobus utrimque
claudentibus.
9 IV. Tiberio principi nuntiavit Olisiponensium
legatio ob id missa visum auditumque in quodam
specu concha canentem Tritonem qua noscitur
forma, et Nereidum falsa non est, squamis modo
hispido corpore etiam qua humanam effigiem ha-
bent; namque haec in eodem spectata litore est,
cuius morientis etiam cantum tristem accolae
audivere longe; et divo Augusto legatus Galliae
complures in litore apparere exanimes Nereidas
10 scripsit. Auctores habeo in equestri ordine splend-
entes visum ab his in Gaditano oceano marinum hom-
inem toto corpore absoluta similitudine ; ascendere
eum navigia nocturnis temporibus statimque degra-
168
BOOK IX. XL 7-rv, 10
out on to the land in that country and after grazing
on the roots of bushes return ; and there are some with
the heads of horses, asses and bulls that eat up the
crops.
III. The largest animals in the Indian Ocean are
the shark and the whale ; the largest in the Bay of
Biscay is the sperm-whale, which rears up like a
vast pillar higher than a ship's rigging and belches
out a sort of deluge ; the largest in the Gulf of Cadiz
is the tree-polypus, which spreads out such vast
branches that it is believed never to have entered the
Straits of Gibraltar because of this. The creatures
called Wheels from their resemblance to a wheel
also put in an appearance, these radiating in four
spokes, with their nave terminating in two eyes, one
on each side.
IV. An embassy from Lisbon sent for the purpose Tntons,
reported to the Emperor Tiberius that a Triton had ^
been seen and heard playing on a shell in a certain monsters.
cave, and that he had the well-known shape. The
description of the Nereids also is not incorrect, except
that their body is bristling with hair even in the
parts where they have human shape ; for a Nereid
has been seen on the same coast, whose mournful
song moreover when dying has been heard a long
way off by the coast-dwellers ; also the Governor of
Gaul wrote to the late lamented Augustus that a large
number of dead Nereids were to be seen on the shore.
I have distinguished members of the Order of Knight-
hood as authorities for the statement that a man of the
sea has been seen by them in the Gulf of Cadiz, with
complete resemblance to a human being in every
part of his body, and that he climbs on board ships
during the hours of the night and the side of the
169
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
vari quas insederit partes et, si diutius permaneat>
etiam mergi. Tiberio principe contra Lugdunensis
provinciae litus in insula simul trecentas amplius
beluas reciprocans destituit oceanus mirae varietatis
et magnitudinis, nee pauciores in Santonum litore
interque reliquas elephantos et arietes candore 1
tantum cornibus adsimulatis, Nereidas vero multas.
11 Turranius prodidit expulsam beluam in Gaditano
litore cuius inter duas pinnas ultimae caudae cubita
sedecim fuissent, dentes eiusdem cxx, maximi
dodrantium mensura, minimi semipedum. beluae
cui dicebatur exposita fuisse Andromeda ossa
Romae apportata ex oppido ludaeae loppe ostendit
inter reliqua miracula in aedilitate sua M. Scaur us
longitudine pedum XL, altitudine costarum Indicos
elephantos excedente, spinae crassitudine sesqui-
pedali.
12 V. Balaenae et in nostra maria^ penetrant. in
Gaditano oceano non ante brumarrx conspici eas
tradunt, condi autem aestatis temporibus in quodam
sinu placido et capaci, mire gaudentes ibi parere;
hoc scire orcas, infestam iis beluam et cuius imago
nulla repraesentatione exprimi possit alia quam
13 carnis immensae dentibus truculentae. inrumpunt
ergo in secreta ac vitulos earum aut fetas vel etiam-
num gravidas lancinant morsu, incursuque ceu
Liburnicarum rostris fodiunt. illae ad flexum im-
mobiles, ad repugnandum inertes et pondere suo
oneratae, tune quidem et utero graves pariendive
1 v.l. tumore.
Emperor A.D. 14-37.
6 Aedile 58 B.C., son of M. Scaurus mentioned VIII 223.
170
BOOK IX. iv. io-v. 13
vessel that he sits on is at once weighed down, and
if he stays there longer actually goes below the
water. During the rule of Tiberius , a in an island off
the coast of the province of Lyons the receding ocean
tide left more than 300 monsters at the same time, of
marvellous variety and size, and an equal number on
the coast of Saintes, and among the rest elephants,
and rams with only a white streak to resemble horns,
and also many Nereids. Turranius has stated that a
monster was cast ashore on the coast at Cadiz that
had 24 feet of tail-end between its two fins, and also
120 teeth, the biggest 9 inches and the smallest
6 inches long. The skeleton of the monster to which
Andromeda in the story was exposed was brought by
Marcus Scaurus b from the town of Jaffa in Judaea
and shown at Rome among the rest of the marvels
during his aedileship ; it was 40 ft. long, the height of
the ribs exceeding the elephants of India, and the
spine being 1 ft. 6 inches thick.
V. Whales even penetrate into our seas. It is
said that they are not seen in the Gulf of Cadiz before
midwinter, but during the summer periods hide in a
certain calm and spacious inlet, and take marvellous
delight in breeding there ; and that this is known to
the killer whale, a creature that is the enemy of the
other species and the appearance of which can be
represented by no other description except that of an
enormous mass of flesh with savage teeth. The killer
whales therefore burst into their retreats and bite and
mangle their calves or the females that have calved
or are still in calf, and charge and pierce them like
warships ramming. The whales being sluggish in
bending and slow in retaliating, and burdened by
their weight, and at this season also heavy with young
171
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
poenis invalidae, solum auxilium novere in altum
profugere et se tuto 1 defendere oceano. contra
occurrere laborant seseque opponere et caveatas
angustiis trucidare, in vada urguere, saxis inlidere.
spectantur ea proelia ceu mari ipsi sibi irato, nullis in
sinu ventis, fluctibus vero ad anhelitus ictusque
14 quantos nulli turbines volvant. orca et in portu
Ostiensi visa est oppugnata a Claudio principe;
venerat turn exaedificante eo portum invitata nau-
fragiis tergorum advectorum e Gallia, satiansque se
per coniplures dies alveum in vado sulcaverat attumu-
lata fluctibus in tantum ut circumagi nullo modo
posset et, dum saginam persequitur in litus fluctibus
propulsam, emineret dorso multum supra aquas
15 carinae vice inversae. praetendi iussit Caesar plagas
multiplices inter ora portus, profectusque ipse cum
praetorianis cohortibus populo Romano spectaculum
praebuit lanceas congerente milite e navigiis adsul-
tantibus, quorum unum mergi vidimus reflatu beluae
oppletum unda.
16 VI. Ora ballaenae habent in frontibus, ideoque
summa aqua natantes in sublime nimbos efflant.
spirant autem confessione omnium et paucissima alia
1 MayJioff : tute aut toto.
a This is unlikely j it was probably a cachalot.
6 Emperor A.B. 41-54.
172
BOOK IX. v. i 3 -vi. 16
or weakened by travail in giving birth, know only
one refuge, to retreat to the deep sea and defend
their safety by means of the ocean. Against this the
killer whales use every effort to confront them and get
in their way, and to slaughter them when cooped up
in narrow straits or drive them into shallows and
make them dash themselves upon rocks. To
spectators these battles look as if the sea were
raging against itself, as no winds are blowing in the
gulf, but there are waves caused by the whales blow-
ing and thrashing that are larger than those aroused
by any whirlwinds. A killer whale was actually seen Gram? m
in the harbour of Ostia * in battle with the Emperor Jjjjjj
Claudius l \ it had come at the time when he was en-
gaged in completing the structure of the harbour,
being tempted by the wreck of a cargo of hides im-
ported from Gaul, and in glutting itself for a number
of days had furrowed a hollow in the shallow bottom
and had been banked up with sand by the waves so
high that it was quite unable to turn round } and
while it was pursuing its food which was driven
forward to the shore by the waves its back pro-
jected far above the water like a capsized boat.
Caesar gave orders for a barrier of nets to be stretched
between the mouths of the harbour and setting out in
person with the praetorian cohorts afforded a show to
the Roman public, the soldiery hurling lances from
the vessels against the creatures when they leapt up
alongside, and we saw one of the boats sunk from being
filled with water owing to a beast's snorting.
VI. Whales have their mouths in their foreheads, IT*
and consequently when swimming on the surface of
the water they blow -clouds of spray into the air.
It is universally admitted that a very few other
173
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
in mari quae internorum viscerum pulmonem
habent, quoniam sine eo spirare animal nullum
putatur. nee piscium branchias habentes anhelitum
reddere ac per vices recipere existimant quorum haec
opinio est, nee multa alia genera etiam branchiis
carentia, in qua sententia fuisse Aristotelem video et
17 multis persuasisse doctrinae indaginibus. 1 nee me
protinus huic opinioni eorum accedere haut dissimuloj
quoniam et pulmonum vice alia possint spirabilia
inesse viscera ita volente natura, sicut et pro san-
guine est multis alius umor. in aquas quidem pene-
trare vitalem hunc halitum quis miretur qui etiam
reddi ab his eurn cernat et is terras quoque tanto
spissiorem naturae partem penetrare argumento
animalium quae semper defossa vivunt, ceu talpae ?
18 accedunt apud me certe efficacia ut credam etiam
omnia in aquis spirare naturae suae sorte, primum
adnotata piscium aestivo calore quaedam anhelatio
et alia tranquillo velut oscitatio, ipsorum quoque qui
sunt in adversa opinione de somno piscium confessio,
quis enim sine respiratione somno locus ?
praeterea bullantium aquarum sufflatio lunaeque
effectu concharum quoque corpora augescentia.
super omnia est quod esse auditum et odoratum
piscibus non erit dubium, ex aeris utrumque materia :
1 doctrina insignibus Urlichs*
a Hist, An. VIII 2 init.
fi A conjectural variant gives * and caused to be accepted by
many distinguished savants. 9
Pliny's judgement is confirmed by modern science.
174
BOOK IX. vi. 16-18
creatures in the sea also breathe, those whose
internal organs include a lung, since it is thought that
no animal is able to breathe without one. Those
who hold this opinion believe that the fishes possess-
ing gills do not alternately expire and inspire air,
and that many other classes even lacking gills do not
an opinion which I notice that Aristotle a held and
supported by many learned researches. 6 Nor do I
pretend that I do not myself immediately accept this
view of theirs , c since it is possible that animals may
also possess other respiratory organs in place of
lungs, if nature so wills, just as also many possess
another fluid instead of blood. At all events who
can be surprised that this life-giving breath pene-
trates into water if he observes that it is also given
back again from the water, and that it also pene-
trates into the earth, that much denser element, as is
proved by animals that live always in underground
burrows, like moles? Undoubtedly to my mind
there are additional facts that make me believe
that in fact all creatures in the water breathe, owing
to the condition of their own nature in the first
place a sort of panting that has often been noticed in
fishes during the summer heat, and another form of
gasping, so to speak, in calm weather, and also the
admission in regard to fishes sleeping made even by
those persons who are of the opposite opinion for
how can sleep occur without breathing ? and more-
over the bubbles caused on the surface of the water
by air rising from below, and the effect of the moon
in causing the bodies even of shellfish to increase in
size. Above all there is the fact that it will not be
doubted that fish have the sense of hearing and smell,
both of which are derived from the substance of air :
175
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
odorem quidem non aliud quam infectum aera
intellegi possit. quamobrem de his opinetur ut
19 cuique libitum erit. branchiae non sunt ballaenis,
nee delphinis. haec duo genera fistula spirant quae
ad pulmonem pertineat 1 9 ballaenis a front e, delphinis
a dorso. et vituli marini, quos vocant phocas,
spirant ac dormiunt in terra, item testudines, de
quibus mox plura.
20 VII. Velocissimum omnium animalium, non solum
marinorum, est delphinus ocior volucre, acrior telo,
ac nisi multum infra rostrum os illi foret medio
paene in ventre, nullus piscium celeritatem eius
evaderet. sed adfert moram providentia naturae,
quia nisi resupini atque conversi non corripiunt.
quae causa praecipue velocitatem eorum ostendit:
nam cum fame conciti fugientem in vada ima perse-
cuti piscem diutius spiritum continuere ut arcu
missi ad respirandum emicant, tantaque vi exsiliunt
21 ut plerumque vela navium transvolent. vagantur
fere coniugia, pariunt catulos decimo mense aestivo
tempore, interim et binos. nutriunt uberibus, sicut
ballaena, atque etiam gestant fetus infantia infirmos ;
quin et adultos diu comitantur magna erga partum
22 caritate. adolescunt celeriter, x annis putantur
ad summam magnitudinem pervenire. vivunt et
tricenis, quod cognitum praecisa cauda in experi-
mentum. abduntur tricenis diebus circa canis
1 MayJioff: fistulae (-is edd.) . . . spirant.
Of. VIII 86.
I 7 6
BOOK IX. vi. i8-vn. 22
scent indeed could not possibly be interpreted as
anything else than an infection of the air. Con-
sequently it is open to every person to form what-
ever opinion about these matters he pleases. Whales
do not possess gills, nor do dolphins. These two
genera breathe with a tube that passes to the lung,
in the case of whales from the forehead and in the
case of dolphins from the back. Also sea-calves,
called seals, breathe and sleep on land, as also do
tortoises, about whom more shortly.
VII. The swiftest of all animals, not only those of ne dolphin.
the sea, is the dolphin ; it is swifter than a bird and
darts faster than a javelin, and were not its mouth
much below its snout, almost in the middle of its belly,
not a single fish would escape its speed. But nature's
foresight contributes delay, because they cannot
seize their prey except by turning over on their backs.
This fact especially shows their speed; for when
spurred by hunger they have chased a fleeing fish into
the lowest depths and have held their breath too
long, they shoot up like arrows from a bow in order
to breathe again, and leap out of the water with
such force that they often fly over a ship's sails.
They usually roam about in couples, husband and
wife ; a they bear cubs after nine months, in the
summer season, occasionally even twins. They
suckle their young, as do whales, and even carry
them about while weak from infancy ; indeed they
accompany them for a long time even when grown
up, so great is their affection for their offspring.
They grow up quickly, and are believed to reach their
full stee in 10 years. They live as much as 30 years,
as has been ascertained by amputating the tail of a
specimen for an experiment. They are in retirement
177
VOL. III. N
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ortum occultanturque incognito niodo, quod eo
magis mirum est si spirare in aqua non queunt.
solent in terram erumpere incerta de causa, nee
statim tellure tacta moriuntur, multoque ocius
23 fistula clausa. lingua est is contra naturam aqua-
tilium mobilis, brevis atque lata, haut difFerens
suillae. pro voce gemitus humano similis, dorsum
repandum, rostrum simum: qua de causa nomen
sirnonis omnes miro modo agnoscunt maluntque ita
appellari.
24 VIII. Delphinus non homini tantum amicum
animal verum et musicae arti, mulcetur symphoniae
cantu set praecipue hydrauli sono. hominem non
expavescit ut alienum, obviam navigiis venit, adludit
exultans, certat etiam et quamvis plena praeterit
25 vela, divo Augusto principe Lucrinum lacum
invectus pauperis cuiusdam puerum ex Baiano
Puteolos in luduna litter arium itantem, cum meridiano
immorans appellatum eum simonis nomine saepius
fragmentis panis quern ob iter ferebat adlexisset,
miro amore dilexit pigeret referre ni res Maecenatis
et Fabiani et Flavi Alfii multorumque esset litteris
mandata, ^quocumque diei tempore inclamatus a
puero quamvis occultus atque abditus ex imo advola-
BOOK IX. vii. 22-vin. 25
for 30 days about the rising of the dog-star and hide
themselves in an unknown manner, which is the more
surprising in view of the fact that they cannot breathe
under water. They have a habit of sallying out on
to the land for an unascertained reason, and they do
not die at once after touching earth in fact they die
much more quickly if the gullet is closed up. The
dolphin's tongue, unlike the usual structure of
aquatic animals, is mobile, and is short and broad,
not unlike a pig's tongue. For a voice they have a
moan like that of a human being; their back is
arched, and their snout turned up, owing to which all
of them in a surprising manner answer to the name of
' Snubnose ' and like it better than any other.
VIII. The dolphin is an animal that is not only The dolphin
friendly to mankind but is also a lover of music,
and it can be charmed by singing in harmony, but
particularly by the sound of the water-organ. It is
not afraid of a human being as something strange to
it, but comes to meet vessels at sea and sports and
gambols round them, actually trying to race them and
passing them even when under full sail. In the reign casesoftame
of the late lamented Augustus a dolphin that had been
brought into the Lucrine Lake fell marvellously in love
with a certain boy, a poor man's son, who used to go
from the Baiae district to school at Pozzuoli, because
fairly often the lad when loitering about the place at
noon called him to him by the name of Snubnose and
coaxed him with bits of the bread he had with him
for the journey, I should be ashamed to tell the
story were it not that it has been written about by
Maecenas and Fabianus and Flavius Alfius and
many others, and when the boy called to it at what-
ever time of day, although it was concealed in hiding
179
N2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
bat pastusque e manu praebebat ascensuro dorsum,
pinnae aculeos velut vagina con(fens, receptumque
Puteolos per magnum aequor in ludum ferebat simili
modo revehens pluribus annis, donee morbo extincto
puero subinde ad consuetum locum ventitans tristis
et maerenti similis ipse quoque, quod nemo dubitaret,
26 desiderio expiravit. alius intra hos annos Africo litore
Hipponis Diarruti simili modo ex hominum manu
vescens praebensque se tractandum et adludens
nantibus impositosque portans unguento perunctus
a Flaviano proconsule Africae et sopitus, ut apparuit,
odoris novitate fluctuatusque similis exanimi caruit
hominum conversatione ut iniuria fugatus per aliquot
menses ; mox reversus in eodem miraculo fuit.
iniuriae potestatum in hospitales ad visendum venie-
tium Hipponenses in necem eius compulerunt,
27 ante haec similia de puero in laso urbe memorantur,
cuius amore spectatus longo tempore, dum abeuntem
in litus avide sequitur, in harenam invectus expiravit ;
puerum Alexander Magnus Babylone Neptunio
sacerdotio praefecit, amorem ilium numinis propitii
fuisse interpretatus. in eadem urbe laso Hegeside-
mus scribit et alium puerum Hermian nomine similiter
maria perequitantem, cum repentinae procellae
fluctibus exanimatus esset, relatum, delphinumque
180
BOOK IX. vin. 25-27
it used to fly to him out of the depth, eat out of his
hand, and let him mount on its back, sheathing as it
were the prickles of its fin, and used to carry him when
mounted right across the bay to Pozzuoli to school,
bringing him back in similar manner, for several years,
until the boy died of disease, and then it used to keep
coming sorrowfully and like a mourner to the
customary place, and itself also expired, quite un-
doubtedly from longing. Another dolphin in recent
years at Hippo Diarrhytus on the coast of Africa
similarly used to feed out of people's hands and allow
itself to be stroked, and play with swimmers and
carry them on its back. The Governor of Africa,
Flavianus, smeared it all over with perfume, and
the novelty of the scent apparently put it to
sleep : it floated lifelessly^ about, holding aloof from
human intercourse for some months as if it had
been driven away by the insult ; but afterwards it
returned and was an object of wonder as before.
The expense caused to their hosts by persons of
official position who came to see it forced the people
of Hippo to destroy it. Before these occurrences a
similar story is told about a boy in the city of
lasus, with whom a dolphin was observed for a long
time to be in love, and while eagerly following him
to the shore when he was going away it grounded on
the sand and expired ; Alexander the Great made the
boy head of the priesthood of Poseidon at Babylon,
interpreting the dolphin's affection as a sign of the
deity's favour. Hegesidemus writes that in the same
city of lasus another boy also, named Hermias, while
riding across the sea in the sam<$ manner lost his life
in the waves of a sudden storm, but was brought back
to the shore, and the dolphin confessing itself the
181
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
causam se 1 leti fatentem non reversum in maria
atque in sicco expirasse. hoc idem et Naupacti
28 accidisse Theophrastus tradit. nee modus exem-
plorum: eadem Amphilochi et Tarentini de pueris
delphinisque narrant ; quae faciunt ut credatur
Arionem quoque citharoedicae artis, interficere
nautis in mari parantibus ad intercipiendos eius
quaestus, eblanditum uti prius caneret cithara,
congregatis cantu delphinis, cum se iecisset in mare
exceptum ab uno Taenarum in litus pervectum.
29 IX. Est provinciae Narbonensis et in Nemausiensi
agro stagnum Later a appellatum ubi cum homine
delphini societate piscantur. innumera vis mugilum
stato temp ore angustis faucibus stagni in mare
erumpit observata aestus reciprocatione, qua de
causa praetendi non queunt retia, aeque molem
ponderis nullo modo toleratura 2 etiamsi non sollertia
insidiaretur 3 tempori. simili ratione in altum
protinus tendunt quod vicino gurgite efficitur,
locumque solum pandendis retibus habilem ejfFugere
30 festinant. quod ubi animadvertere piscantes,
concurrit autem multitudo temporis gnara et magis
etiam voluptatis huius avida, totusque populus e
litore quanto potest clamore conciet simonem in
spectaculi eventum, celeriter delphini exaudiunt
desideria aquilonum flatu vocem prosequente, austro
182
1 causam se ? Mayhoff : causa.
2 v.ll tolleretur, tplletur.
a JZackham : insidietur.
BOOK IX. vm. 27-ix. 30
cause of his death did not return out to sea and
expired on dry land. Theophrastus records that
exactly the same thing occurred at Naupactus too.
Indeed there are unlimited instances : the people of
Amphilochus and Taranto tell the same stories about
boys and dolphins ; and these make it credible that
also the skilled harper Arion, when at sea the sailors
were getting ready to kill him with the intention of
stealing the money he had made, succeeded in
coaxing them to let him first play a tune on his harp,
and the music attracted a school of dolphins, where-
upon he dived into the sea and was taken up by one of
them and carried ashore at Cape Matapan.
IX. In the region of Nismes in the Province
Narbonne there is a marsh named Latera where fishermen.
dolphins catch fish in partnership with a human
fisherman. At a regular season a countless shoal of
mullet rushes out of the narrow mouth of the marsh
into the sea, after watching for the turn of the tide,
which makes it impossible for nets to be spread across
the channel indeed the nets would be equally
incapable of standing the mass of the weight even if
the craft of the fish did not watch for the opportunity.
For a similar reason they make straight out into the
deep water produced by the neighbouring eddies,
and hasten to escape from the only place suitable for
setting nets. When this is observed by the fisher-
men and a crowd collects at the place, as they know
the time, and even more because of their keenness
for this sport and when the entire population from
the shore shouts as loud as it can, calling for ' Snub-
nose ' for the denouement of the show, the dolphins
quickly hear their wishes if a northerly breeze carries
the shout out to sea, though if the wind is in the
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
vero tardius ex adverse referente ; sed turn quoque
31 inproviso in auxilium advolare properant. 1 apparet
acies quae protinus disponitur in loco ubi coniectus
est pugnae ; opponunt sese ab alto trepidosque in
vada urguent. turn piscatores circumdant retia
furcisque sublevant. mugilum nihilominus velocitas
transilit; at illos excipiunt delphini et occidisse ad
32 praesens content! cibos in victoriam differunt. op ere
proelium fervet includique retibus se fortissime
urguentes gaudent ac, ne id ipsum fugam hostium
stimulet, inter navigia et retia nantesve homines ita
sensim elabuntur ut exitus non aperiant; saltu,
quod est alias blandissimumi is, nullus conatur
evadere, ni summittantur sibi retia. egressus
protinus ante vallum proeliatur. ita peracta captura
quos interemere diripiunt. sed enixioris operae
quam in unius diei praemium conscii sibi opperiuntur
in posterum, nee piscibus tantum sed et intrita panis
e vino satiantur.
33 X. Quae de eodem genere piscandi in lasio sinu
Mucianus tradit hoc differunt, quod ultro neque
inclamati praesto sint partesque e manibus accipiant
et suum quaeque cumba e delphinis socium habeat
1 Mueller : aduolajilj properare aut aduolant propere.
184
BOOK IX. ix, 3o-x. 33
south, against the sound, it carries it more slowly ;
but then too they suddenly hasten to the spot, in
order to give their aid. Their line of battle comes
into view, and at once deploys in the place where
they are to join battle ; they bar the passage on the
side of the sea and drive the scared mullet into the
shallows. Then the fishermen put their nets round
them and lift them out of the water with forks.
None the less the pace of some mullets leaps
over the obstacles ; but these are caught by the
dolphins, which are satisfied for the time being with
merely having killed them, postponing a meal till
victory is won. The action is hotly contested, and
the dolphins pressing on with the greatest bravery are
delighted to be caught in the nets, and for fear that
this itself may hasten the enemy's flight, they glide
out between the boats and the nets or the swimming
fishermen so gradually as not to open ways of escape ;
none of them try to get away by leaping out of
the water, which otherwise they are very fond of
doing, unless the nets are put below them. One that
gets out thereupon carries on the battle in front
of the rampart. When in this way the catch has
been completed they tear in pieces the fish that
they have killed. But as they are aware that they
have had too strenuous a task for only a single day's
pay they wait there till the following day, and are
given a feed of bread mash dipped in wine, in addition
to the fish.
X. Mucianus's account of the same kind of fishing ofer w f
in the lasian Gulf differs in this the dolphins stand
by of their own accord and without being summoned
by a shout, and receive their share from the fisher-
men's hands, and each boat has one of the dolphins
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
quamvis noctu et ad faces, ipsis quoque inter se
publica est societas : capto a rege Cariae alligatoque
in portu ingens reliquorum convenit multitude
maestitia quadam quae posset intellegi miserationem
petens, donee dimitti rex eum iussit. quin et parvos
semper aliquis grandior comitatur ut custos; con-
spectique iam sunt defunctum portantes, ne lacerare-
tur a beluis.
34 XI. Delphinorum similitudinem habent qui vocan-
tur thursiones (distant et tristitia quadam aspectus,
abest enim ilia lascivia), maxime tamen rostris
canicularum maleficentiae adsimulati.
35 XII. Testudines tantae magnitudinis Indicum
mare emittit uti singularum superficie habit abiles
casas integant atque inter insulas Rubri praecipue
maris his navigent cumbis. capiuntur multis quidem
modis, sed maxime evectae in summapelagi anteme-
ridiano tempore blandito, eminente toto dorso per
tranquilla fluit antes, quae voluptas lib ere spirandi in
tantum fallit oblitas sui ut solis vapore siccato
cortice non queant mergi invitaeque fluitent oppor-
36 tunae venantium praedae. ferunt et pastum egressas
noctu avideque saturatas lassari atque, ut remea-
verint matutino, summa in aqua obdormiscere ; id
The Indian sea-tortoise (Chelonia cephalo) and the real
tortoiseshell-turtle (G. imbricata).
186
BOOK IX. x. 33-xn. 36
as its ally although it is in the night and by torchlight.
The dolphins also have a form of public alliance of
their own: when one was caught by the King of
Caria and kept tied up in the harbour a great multi-
tude of the remainder assembled, suing for com-
passion with an unmistakable display of grief, until
the king ordered it to be released. Moreover small
dolphins are always accompanied by a larger one
as escort ; and before now dolphins have been seen
carrying a dead comrade, to prevent its body being
torn in pieces by sea-monsters.
XL The creatures called porpoises have a resem- The
blance to dolphins (at the same time they are dis- porpois -
tinguished from them by a certain gloomy air, as
they lack the sportive nature of the dolphin), but
in their snouts they have a close resemblance to the
maleficence of dogfish.
XII. The Indian Ocean produces turtles a of Turtle-
such size that the natives roof dwelling-houses^^'
with the expanse of a single shell, and use them as
boats in sailing, especially among the islands of the
Red Sea. They are caught in a number of ways, but
chiefly as they rise to the surface of the sea when
the weather in the morning attracts them, and float
across the calm waters with the whole of their backs
projecting, and this pleasure of breathing freely
cheats them into self-forgetfulness so much that their
hide gets dried up by the heat and they are unable
to dive, and go on floating against their will, an
opportune prey for their hunters. They also say that
turtles come ashore at night to graze and after
gorging greedily grow languid and when they have
gone back in the morning doze off to sleep on the
surface of the water ; that this is disclosed by the
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
prodi stertentium sonitu; turn adnatare leniter
singulis ternos, a duobus in dorsum verti, a tertio
laqueum inici supinae atque ita e terra a pluribus
trahi, in Phoenicio mari haud ulla difficultate
capiuntur; ultroque veniunt stato tempore anni in
amnem Eleutherum efFusa multitudine.
37 Dentes non sunt testudini, set rostri margines
acuti superna parte, interior em claudente pyxidum
modo tanta oris duritia ut lapides comminuant. in
mari conchyliis vivunt, in terrain egressae herbis.
pariunt ova avium ovis similia ad centena numero,
eaque defossa extra aquas et cooperta terra ac
pavita 1 pectore et complanata incubant noctibus.
educunt fetus annuo spatio. quidam oculis spectan-
doque ova foveri ab iis putant, feminas coitum fugere
donee mas festucam aliquam inponat aversae.
38 Trogodytae comigeras habent ut in lyra adnexis
cornibus latis sed mobilibus, quorum in natando
remigio se adiuvant ; chelium 2 id vocatur, eximiae
testudinis sed rarae ; namque scopuli praeacuti
Chelonophagos terrent, Trogodytae autem, ad quos
adnatant, ut sacras adorant. sunt et terrestres,
quae ob id in operibus chersinae vocantur, in Africae
desertis qua parte maxime sitientibus harems
1 terra pavita hac MayJioff.
2 C. Mtiller : celtium.
a Testudo marginata, the land-tortoise.
188
BOOK IX. xn. 36-38
noise of their snoring ; and that then the natives
swim quietly up to them, three men to one turtle,
and two turn it over on its back while the third throws
a noose over it as it lies, and so it is dragged ashore by
more men hauling from the beach. Turtles are
caught without any difficulty in the Phoenician Sea;
and at a regular period of the year they come of
their own accord into the river Eleutherus in a
straggling multitude.
The turtle has no teeth, but the edges of the beak structure and
are sharp on the upper side, and the mouth closing
the lower jaw like a box is so hard that they can crush
stones. They live on shell-fish in the sea and on
plants when they come ashore. They bear eggs like
birds' eggs numbering up to 100 at a time; these
they bury in the ground somewhere ashore, cover
them with earth rammed down and levelled with their
chests, and sleep on them at night. They hatch the
young in the space of a year. Some people think
that they cherish their eggs by gazing at them with
their eyes ; and that the females refuse to couple
till the male places a wisp of straw on one as she
turns away from him. The Cavemen have horned
turtles with broad horns twisted inward like those
of a lyre but movable, which they use as oars to aid
themselves in swimming ; the name for this horn is
chelium ; it is of tortoise shell of exceptional quality,
but it is seldom seen, as the very sharp rocks
frighten the Turtle-eater tribe, while the Cavemen,
on whose coasts the turtles swim, worship them as
sacred. There are also turtles living on land," and
consequently called in works on the subject t
Terrestrial species ; these are found in the deserts of
Africa in the region of the dryest and m6st arid
1851
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
squalent, roscido, ut creditor, umore viventes.
39 neque aliud ibi animal provenit. XIII, testudinum
putamina secare in laminas lectosque et repositoria
his vestire Carvilius Pollio instituit, prodigi et sagacis
ad luxuriae instrumenta ingenii.
40 XIV. Aquatilium tegumenta plura sunt. alia
corio et pilo integuntur ut vituli et hippopotami, alia
corio tantum ut delphmi, cortice ut testudines, silicum
duritia ut ostreae et conchae, crustis ut locustae,
crustis et spinis ut echini, squamis ut pisces, aspera
cute ut squatina, qua lignum et ebora poliuntur,
molli ut murenae, alia nulla ut polypi.
41 XV. Quae pilo vestiuntur animal pariunt ut
pristis, ballaena, vitulus. hie parit in terra, pecudum
more secundas partus reddit, in coitu canum modo
cohaeret, parit nonnumquam geminis plures, educat
mammis fetum, non ante duodecimum diem deducit
in mare, ex eo subinde assuefaciens. inter ficiuntur
difficulter nisi capite eliso. ipsis in sono mugitus,
unde nomen vituli; accipiunt tamen disciplinam,
voceque 1 pariter et nisu 2 populum salutant, incon-
42 dito fremitu nomine vocati respondent, nullum
animal graviore somno premitur. " pinnis quibus in
mari utuntur humi quoque vice pedum serpunt.
pelles eorum etiam detractas corpori sensum aequor-
1 v.l, vocemque. 2 Mueller : visu aut iussu.
190
BOOK IX. xii. 3 8-xv. 42
sands, and it is believed that they live on the moisture
of dew. No other animal occurs there. XIII. The Tortoise-
practice of cutting tortoiseshell into plates and using sML
it to decorate bedsteads and cabinets was introduced
by Carvilius Pollio, a man of lavish talent and skill in
producing the utensils of luxury.
XIV. The aquatic animals have a variety of cover- Various
ings. Some are covered with hide and hair, for^ST
instance seals and hippopotamuses ; others with hide species.
only, as dolphins, or with shell, as turtles, or a hard
flinty exterior, as oysters and mussels, with rind,
as lobsters, with rind and spines, as sea-urchins,
with scales, as fishes, with rough skin which can be
used for polishing wood and ivory, as skates, with soft
skin, as lampreys; others with no skin at all, as
polyps.
XV. The aquatic animals clad with hair are Vmparovs
viviparous for instance the saw-fish, the whale and
the seal. The last bears its young on land ; it pro-
duces after-birth like cattle; in coupling it clings
together as dogs do ; it sometimes gives birth to more
than two in a litter ; it rears its young at the breast ;
it does not lead them down into the sea before
the twelfth day, thereafter continually accustoming
them to it. Seals are with difficulty killed unless the
head is shattered. Of themselves they make a noise
like lowing, whence their name ' sea-calves ' ; yet
they are capable of training, and can be taught to
salute the public with their voice and at the same
time with bowing, and when called by name to
reply with a harsh roar. No animal sleeps more
heavily. The fins that they use in the sea also serve
them on land as feet to crawl with. Their hides even
when flayed from the body are said to retain a sense
191
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
um retinere tradunt semperque aestu maris recedente
inhorrescere ; praeterea dextrae pennae vim sopori-
feram inesse somnosque allicere subditam capiti.
43 Pilo carentium duo omnino animal pariunt, del-
phinus ac vipera.
XVI. Piscium species sunt LXXIV praeter crustis
intectas l quae sunt xxx de singulis alias dicemus,
nunc enim naturae tractantur insignium.
44 XVII. Praecipua magnitudine thynni ; invenimus
talenta xv pependisse, eiusdem caudae latitudinem
duo cubita et palmum. fiunt et in quibusdam
amnibus haut minores, silurus in Nilo, isox in Rheno,
attilus in Pado inertia pinguescens ad mille aliquando
libras, catenate captus hamo nee nisi boum iugis
extractus. atque hunc minimus appellatus clupea
venam quandam eius in faucibus mira cupidine appe-
45 tens morsu exanimat. silurus grassatur ubicumque
est omne animal appetens, equos innatantes saepe
demergens. praecipue in Moeno Germaniae amne
protelis boum et in Danuvio marris extrahitur
porculo marino simillimus ; et in Borysthene mem-
oratur praecipua magnitude nullis ossibus spinisve
46 intersitis, carne praedulci. in Gange Indiae platan-
istas vocant rostro delphini et cauda, magnitudine
autem xvi cubitorum. in eodem esse Statius
Sebosus haut modico miraculo affert vermes branchiis
1 Rackham : intecta.
a The catfish also occurs in Europe, where it is the largest
freshwater fish, in the Danube running to 400 Ib. in weight
and 10 ft. or more in length.
192
BOOK IX. xv. 42-xvn. 46
of the tides j and always to bristle when the tide is
going out; and it is also said that the right fin
possesses a soporific influence, and when placed
under the head attracts sleep.
Two only of the hairless animals are viviparous, the
dolphin and the viper.
XVI. There are 74 species of fishes, not including Varieties of
those that have a hard covering, of which there are ^ h '
thirty. We will speak of them severally in another
place, for now we are dealing with the natures of
specially remarkable species.
XVII. The tunny is of exceptional size ; we are Exception-
told of a specimen weighing a third of a ton and
having a tail 3 ft. 4 in. broad. Fish of no less size
also occur in certain rivers, the catfish in the Nile, a
the pike in the Rhine, the sturgeon in the Po, a fish
that grows so fat from sloth that it sometimes reaches
a thousand pounds; it is caught with a hook on a
chain and only drawn out of the water by teams of
oxen. And this monster is killed by the bite of a
very small fish called the anchovy which goes for a
particular vein in its throat with remarkable voracity.
The catfish ranges about and goes for every living
creature wherever it is, often dragging down horses
when swimming. A fish very like a sea-pig is drawn
out with teams of oxen, especially in the river Main
in Germany, and in the Danube with weeding-hooks ;
an exceptionally large species with no internal frame-
work of bones or vertebrae and very sweet flesh is
recorded in the Dnieper. In the Ganges in India
there is a fish called the platanista 6 with a dolphin's
beak and tail, but 24 ft. long. Statius Sebosus gives
an extremely marvellous account of worms in the
b So called to-day; a variety of dolphin.
193
VOL. III. O
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
birds sexaginta cubitorum, caeruleos, qui nomen a
facie traxerunt; his tantas esse vires ut elephantos
ad potus venientis mordicus comprehensa manu
eorum abstrahant.
47 XVIII. Thynni mares sub ventre non habent
pinnam. intrant e magno mari Pontum verno tern-
pore gregatim,nec alibi fetincant. cordyla appellatur
partuSj qui fetas redeuntes in mare autumno cornita-
tur, limosae vere l aut e luto pelamydes incipiunt
vocari et, cum annuum excessere tempus, thynni.
48 hi membratim caesi cervice et abdomine commend-
antur atque clidio, recenti dumtaxat, et turn quoque
gravi ructu; cetera parte plenis pulpamentis sale
adservantur: melandrya vocantur, quercus assulis
similia. vilissima ex his quae caudae proxima, quia
pingui carent, probatissima quae faucibus ; at in
alio pisce circa 'caudam exercitatissima. 2 pelamydes
in apolectos particulatimque consectae in genera
cybiorum dispertiuntur.
49 XIX. Piscium genus omne praecipua celeritate
adolescit, maxime in Ponto ; causa multitude amnium
dulces infer entium aquas, amiam vocant cuius
incrementum singulus diebus intellegitur. cum
thynnis haec et pelamydes in Pontum ad dulciora
pabula intrant gregatim suis quaeque ducibus, et
1 Hardonin : vero. 2 exqizisitissima Gronovius.
194
a I.e. caeruleus, ' blue-worm.'
Or, emending the text, * most in demand.'
BOOK IX. xvn. 46-xix. 49
same river that have a pair of gills measuring 90 ft. ;
they are deep blue in colour, and named a from their
appearance; he says that they are so strong that
they carry off elephants coming to drink by gripping
the trunk in their teeth.
XVIII. Male tunnies have no fin under the belly. The tunny.
In spring time they enter the Black Sea from the
Mediterranean in shoals, and they do not spawn
anywhere else. The name of cordyla is given to the
fry, which accompany the fish when they return to
the sea in autumn after spawning; in the spring*
they begin to be called mudfish or pelamydes (from the
Greek* for ' mud '), and when they have exceeded the
period of one year they are called tunny. These fish
are cut up into parts, and the neck and belly are
counted a delicacy, and also the throat provided it
is fresh, and even then it causes severe flatulence ;
all the rest of the tunny, with the flesh entire,
is preserved in salt: these pieces are called
melandrya, as resembling splinters of oak-wood.
The cheapest of them are the parts next the tail,
because they lack fat, and the parts most favoured
are those next the throat ; whereas in other fish the
parts round the tail are most in use. c At the
pdamys stage they are divided into choice slices and
cut up small into a sort of little cube.
XIX. Fishes of all kinds grow up exceptionally
fast, especially in the Black Sea; this is due to the
fresh water carried into it by a large number of rivers.
The name of scomber is given to a fish whose growth in
size can be noticed daily. This fish and the pelamys
in company with the tunny enter the Black Sea in
shoals in search of less brackish feeding-grounds, each
kind with its own leaders, and first of all the mackerel,
195
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
primi omnium scombri, quibus est in aqua sulpureus
color, extra qm ceteris. Hispaniae cetarias hi replent
thynnis non commeantibus.
50 XX. Sed in Pontum nulla intrat bestia piscibus
malefica praeter vitulos et parvos delphinos, thynni
dextera ripa intrant, exeunt laeva ; id accidere exist-
imatur quia dextro oculo plus cernant, utroque natura
hebeti. est in euripo Thracii Bospori quo Propontis
Euxino iungitur in ipsis Europam Asiamque sepa-
rantis freti angustiis saxum miri candoris a vado
ad summa perlucens, iuxta Chalcedonem in latere
51 Asiae. huius aspectu repente territi semper adver-
sum Byzantii promunturium ex ea causa appellatum
Aurei Cornus praecipiti petunt agmine. itaque
omnis captura Byzantii est magna Chalcedonis
paenuria, M passibus medii interfluentis euripi.
opperiuntur autem aquilonis flatum, ut secundo fluctu
exeant e Ponto, nee nisi x intrantes portum Byzan-
tium capiuntur. bruma non vagantur : ubicumque
deprehensi, usque ad aequinoctium ibi hibern-
ant. idem saepe navigia veils euntia comitantes
mira quadam dulcedine per aliquot horarum
spatia et passuum milia a gubernaculis spectantur
ne tridente quidem in eos saepius iacto territi.
quidam eos qui hoc e thynnis faciant pompilos
52 vocant. multi in Propontide aestivant, Pontum non
1 Edd. nisi <infantes> vel <parvi> vel <pusilli>.
a Probably the text is to be altered to give ' only the young
fry are taken/ to conform with Arist. Hist. An. VIII 13, p.
598a 26.
196
BOOK IX. xix. 49-xx. 52
which when in the water is sulphur-coloured, though
out of water it is the same colour as the other kinds.
These fill the fish-ponds of Spain, the tunny not going
with them.
XX. But no creature harmful to fish enters the Habits of
Black Sea besides seals and small dolphins. The
tunny enter it by the right bank and go out of it
by the left ; this is believed to occur because they
can see better with the right eye, being by nature
dim of sight in both eyes. In the channel of the
Thracian Bosphorus joining the Sea of Marmora with
the Black Sea, in the actual narrows of the channel
separating Europe and Asia, there is a rock of
marvellous whiteness that shines through the water
from the bottom to the surface, near Chalcedon on
the Asiatic side. The sudden sight of this always
frightens them, and they make for the opposite
promontory of Istambul in a headlong shoal; this
is the reason why that promontory has the name of
the Golden Horn. Consequently all the catch is at
Istambul, and there is a great shortage at Chalcedon,
owing to the 1000 yards of channel flowing in be-
tween. But they wait for a north wind to blow so
as to go out of the Black Sea with the current, and
are only taken a when entering the harbour of
Istambul. In winter they do not wander ; wherever
winter catches them, there they hibernate till the
equinox. They are also frequently seen from the
stern of vessels proceeding under sail, accompanying
them in a remarkably charming manner for periods
of several hours and for a distance of some miles,
not being scared even by having a harpoon repeatedly
thrown at them. Some people give the name of
pilot-fish to the tunny that do this. Many pass the
summer in the Sea of Marmora without entering the
197
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
intrant; item soleae, cum rhombi intrent. nee
sepia adest, 1 cum lolligo reperiatur. saxatilium
turdus et merula desunt, sicut conchylia, cum
ostreae abundent ; omnia autem hibernant in Aegaeo.
intrantium Pontum soli non remeant trichiae
Graecis enim in plerisque nominibus uti par erit,
quando aliis atque aliis eosdem diversi appellavere
53 tractus , sed hi soli in Histrum 2 subeunt et ex
eo subterraneis eius venis in Hadriaticum mare
defluunt, itaque et illic descendentes nee umquam
subeuntes e mari visuntur. thynnorum captura est
a vergiliarum exortu ad arcturi occasum; reliquo
tempore hiberno latent in gurgitibus imis nisi tepore
aliquo evocati aut pleniluniis. pinguescunt et in
tantum ut dehiscant. vita longissima his bienni.
54 XXI. Animal est parvum scorpionis effigie, aranei
magnitudine. hoc se et thynno et ei qui gladius
vocatur, crebro delphini magnitudinem excedenti,
sub pinna adfigit aculeo, tantoque infestat dolore
ut in naves saepenumero exiliant. quod et alias
faciunt aliorum vim timentes mugiles maxime, tarn
praecipuae velocitatis ut transversa navigia interim
superiaciant. 3
55 XXII. Sunt et in hac parte naturae auguria, sunt et
piscibus praescita. Siculo bello ambulante in litore
1 Haclcham : est.
2 Mayhoff : Histrum mare aut H. amnem.
3 Mayhojf (cf. vii. 81) : superiactant, -ent.
a The beginning of summer, the 48th day after the vernal
equinox.
6 The evening setting, early in November.
Probably a parasitic copepod.
d 38-36 B.O.
198
BOOK IX. xx. 52-xxn. 55
Black Sea; the same is the case with the sole,
though the turbot does enter it. Nor does the sepia
occur there, though the cuttle-fish is found. Of rock-
fish the sea-bream and whiting are lacking, as are some
shell-fish, though oysters are plentiful ; but they all
winter in the Aegean. Of those entering the Black
Sea the only kind that never returns is the trichia or
sardine it will be convenient to use the Greek names
in most cases, as different districts have called the
same species by a great variety of names , but these
alone enter the Danube and float down from it by its
underground channels into the Adriatic, and con-
sequently there also they are regularly seen going
down stream and never coming up from the sea.
The season for catching tunny is from the rise a
of the Pleiads to the setting b of Arcturus ; during
the rest of the winter time they lurk at the
bottom of the water unless tempted out by a mild
spell or at full moon. They get fat even to the
point of bursting. The tunny's longest life is two
years.
XXL There is a small animal c shaped like a, Parasite of
scorpion, of the size of a spider. This attaches itself the tmny '
with a spike under the fin of both the tunny and the
fish called sword-fish, which often exceeds the size of
a dolphin, and torments them so painfully that they
frequently jump out of the water into ships. This
is also done on other occasions from fear of the
violence of other fish, especially by mullet, which
are so exceptionally swift that they sometimes leap
right over ships that lie across their path.
XXII. In this department of nature also there are Portents
cases of augury; even fish have fore-knowledge O f^
events. During the Sicilian War d when Augustus
199
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
Augusto piscis e mari ad pedes eius exilivit, quo
argumento vates respondere Neptunum patrem
adoptante turn sibi Sexto Pompeio tanta erat
navalis rei gloria sub pedibus Caesaris futures qui
maria tempore illo tenerent.
56 XXIII. Piscium feminae maiores quam mares, in
quodam genere omnino non sunt mares, sicut eryth-
inis et channis, omnes enim ovis gravidae capiuntur.
vagantur gregatim fere cuiusque generis squamosi.
capiuntur ante solis ortum: turn maxime piscium
fallitur visus. noctibus quies, set inlustribus aeque
quam die cernunt. aiunt et si teratur gurges
interesse capturae, itaque plures secundo tractu
capi quam primo. gustu olei maxime, dein modicis
imbribus gaudent alunturque : quippe et har undines
quamvis in palude prognatae non tamen sine imbre
adolescunt; et alias ubicumque pisces in eadem
aqua adsiduij si non affluat, exanimantur.
57 XXIV. Praegelidam hiemem omnes sentiunt, sed
maxime qui lapidem in capite habere existimantur,
ut lupij chromes, sciaenae, phagri. cum asperae
hi ernes fuere, multi caeci capiuntur. itaque his
mensibus iacent speluncis conditi (sicut in genere
terrestrium retulimus), maxime hippurus et coracini,
hieme non capti praeterquam statis diebus Baucis
et isdem semper, item murena et orphus, conger,
percae et saxatiles omnes. terra quidem, hoc est
VIII 126 ff.
& Coryphaeus hippuris, Portuguese * dorado.*
200
BOOK IX. xxii. 55-xxiv. 57
was walking on the shore a fish leapt out of the sea
at his feetj a sign which the priests interpreted as
meaning that although Sextus Pompeius was then
adopting Neptune as his father so glorious were his
naval exploits, yet those who at that time held the
seas would later be beneath the feet of Caesar.
XXIII. Female fish are larger than the males. In
one kind there are no males at all, as is the case with
red mullet and sea-perch, for all those caught are
heavy with eggs. Almost every kind with scales is
gregarious. Fish are caught before sunrise ; at that Modes of
hour their sight is most fallible. In the night they c
repose, but on bright nights they can see as well as by
day. People also say that scraping the bottom helps
the catch, and that consequently more are caught at
the second haul than at the first. Fish are fondest
of the taste of oil, but next to that they enjoy and
derive nourishment from moderate falls of rain:
in fact even reeds although growing in a marsh
nevertheless do not grow up without rain; and
besides, fishes everywhere die when kept continually
in the same water, if there is no inflow.
XXIV. All fish feel a very cold winter, but most of Hibernating
all those that are believed to have a stone in their spe s '
head, for instance the bass, the ckromis, the ombre
and the phagrus. When the winter has been severe
a great many are caught blind. Consequently in the
winter months they lie hidden in caves (like cases
that we have recorded in the class of land-animals a ),
particularly the hippuris b and blackfish, which are not
caught in winter except on a few regular days that
are always the same, and also the lamprey and the
orphus, the conger and perch and all rockfish. It is
indeed reported that the electric ray, the plaice and
201
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
vado maris excavate, condi per hiemes torpedinem,
psettam, soleam tradunt.
58 XXV. Quidam rursus aestus inpatientia mediis
fervoribus sexagenis diebus latent, ut glaucus, aselli,
auratae. fluviatilium silurus caniculae exortu sider-
atur, et alias semper fulgure sopitur. hoc et in mari
accidere cyprino putant. et alioqui totum mare
sentit exortum eius sideris, quod maxime in Bosporo
apparet, alga enim et pisces superferuntur, omnia-
que ab imo versa.
59 XXVI. Mugilum natura ridetur in metu capite
abscondito totos se occultari credentium. isdem
tarn incauta salacitas ut in Phoenice et in Narbonensi
provincia coitus tempore e vivariis marem linea
longinqua per os ad branchias religata emissum in
mare eademque linea retractum feminae sequantur
ad litus, rursusque feminam mares partus tempore.
60 XXVII. Apud antiques piscium nobilissimus habi-
tus accipenser, unus omnium squamis ad os versis,
contra quam in nando meat, 1 nullo nunc in honor e
est, quod equidem 2 miror, cum sit rarus inventu-
quidam eum elopem vocant.
61 XXVIII. Postea praecipuam auctoritatem fuisse
lupo et asellis Nepos Cornelius et Laberius poeta mim-
orum tradidere, luporum laudatissimi qui appellantur
1 Rackham : meant. 2 Mayhoff : quidem.
202
BOOK IX. xxiv. 57-xxvm. 61
the sole hide through the winters in the ground, that
is, in a hole scraped out at the bottom of the sea,
XXV. Some fish again being unable to endure heat Species
hide for 8 or 9 weeks during the heats of midsummer, *"""""*
for instance the grayling, the haddock and the gilt- 1
bream. Of river fish the catfish has a stroke at stroke '
the rise of the dogstar, and at other times is always
made drowsy by lightning. This is thought to
happen to the carp even in the sea. And beside
this the whole sea is conscious of the rise of that
star, as is most clearly seen in the Dardanelles,
for sea-weed and fishes float on the surface, and
everything is turned up from the bottom.
XXVI. It is an amusing trait in the mullet that catching
when frightened it hides its head and thinks it is mullet "
entirely concealed. The same fish is so incautious
in its wantonness that in Phoenicia and in the
Province of Narbonne at the breeding season a male
mullet from the fish-ponds is sent out into the sea
with a long line tied to its gills through its mouth
and when it is drawn back by the same line the females
follow it to the shore, and again the males follow a
female at the laying season.
XXVII. In old days the sturgeon was held to be Grades of
the noblest of the fishes, being the only one with its ^ m ^
scales turned towards the mouth, in the opposite sturgeon.
direction to the one in which it swims ; but now it
is held in no esteem, which for my part I think
surprising, as it is a fish seldom to be found. One
name for it is the elops.
XXVIII. Cornelius Nepos and the mime-writer Ganges of
Laberius have recorded that at a later period the ^1 and the
chief rank belonged to the bass and the haddock, haddock.
The kind of bass most praised is the one called the
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
lanati a candor e mollitiaque carnis. asellorum duo
genera, collyri l minor es et bacchi qui non nisi in
alto capiuntur, ideo praelati prioribus. at in lupis in
amne capti praeferuntur.
62 XXIX. Nunc principatus scaro datur, qui solus
piscium dicitur ruminare herbisque vesci atque non
aliis piscibusj Carpathio maxime mari frequens;
promunturium Troadis Lectum numquam sponte
transit, inde advectos Tiberio Claudio principe
Optatus e libertis eius praefectus classis inter
Ostiensem et Campaniae oram sparsos disseminavit,
63 quinquennio fere cura adhibita ut capti redderentur
mari. postea frequentes inveniuntur Italiae litore,
non antea ibi capti; admovitque sibi gula sapores
piscibus satis et novum incolam mari dedit, ne quis
peregrinas aves Romae parere miretur. proxima
est mensa iecori dumtaxat musfcelarum quas, minim
dictu, inter Alpes quoque lacus Raetiae Brigantinus
aemulas marinis generat.
64 XXX. Ex reliqua nobilitate et gratia maximo
est et copia mullis, sicut magnitudo modica, binasque
libras ponderis raro admodum exuperant, nee in
vivariis piscinisque crescunt. septentrionalis tantum
hos et proxima occidentis parte gignit oceanus.
1 callariae Hermolaus ex AtJien. vii. 315.
204
BOOK IX. xxvin. 6i-xxx. 64
woolly bass, from the whiteness and softness of its
flesh. There are two kinds of haddock the collyrus,
which is the smaller, and the bacchus, which is only
caught in deep water, and consequently is preferred
to the former. But among bass those caught in a
river are preferred.
XXIX. Nowadays the first place is given to the The wrasse.
wrasse, which is the only fish that is said to chew the
cud and to feed on grasses and not on other fish. It
is especially common in the Carpathian Sea; it
never of its own accord passes Cape Lectmn in the
Troad. Some wrasse were imported from there in the
principate of Tiberius Claudius by one of his freed-
men, Optatus, Commander of the Fleet, and were
distributed and scattered about between the mouth
of the Tiber and the coast of Campania, care being
taken for about five years that when caught they
should be put back into the sea. Subsequently they
have been frequently found on the coast of Italy,
though not caught there before ; and thus greed has
provided itself with additional dainties by cultivating
fish, and has bestowed on the sea a new denizen
so that nobody must be surprised that foreign birds
breed at Rome. The next place belongs at all
events to the liver of the lamprey that strange to say
the Lake of Constance in Raetia in the Central
Alps also produces to rival the marine variety.
XXX. Of other fish of a good class the red mullet
stands first in popularity and also in plentifulness,
though its size is moderate and it but rarely exceeds
2 Ibs. in weight, nor does it grow larger when kept
in preserves and fishponds. This gize is only pro-
duced by the northern ocean and in its westernmost
Cf, XIV 16 ante eum Raeticis prior mensa erat avis.
205
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
cetero genera eorum plura. nam et alga vescuntur
et ostreis et limo et aliorum piscium carne ; et barba
65 gemina insigniuntur inferiore labro. lutarium ex iis
vilissimi generis appellant, hunc semper comitatur
sargus nomine alius piscis, et caenum fodiente
eo excitatum devorat pabulum, nee litoralibus
gratia, laudatissimi conchylium sapiunt. nomen
his Fenestella a colore mulleorum calciamentorum
datum putat. pariunt ter annis : certe totiens fetura
66 apparet. mullum expirantem versicolori quadam
et numerosa varietate spectari proceres gulae nar-
rant, rubentium squamarum multiplied mutatione
pallescentem. utique si vitro spectetur inclusus. M.
Apicius ad omne luxus ingenium natus * in sociorum
garo nam ea quoque res cognomen invenit
necari 2 eos praecellens putavit, atque e iecore eorum
67 alecem excogitari. 3 XXXI. provocavit id enim
est facilius dixisse quam quis vicerit Asinius Celer
e consularibus hoc pisce prodigos 4 omnes, Gaio
principe unum mercatus HS. vm mullum. quae
reputatio aufert traversum animum ad contempla-
tionem eorum qui in conquestione luxus cocos emi
singulos pluris quam equos queritabant; at mine
coci trium horum 5 pretiis parantur et cocorum
pisces, nullusque prope iam mortalis aestimatur
1 Hardouin : mains. 2 necare ? Mueller.
3 Raclcham : excogztare. 4 Mueller : prodigus.
5 fteinesius (vel trium equorum) : triumphorum.
a Or perhaps ' Fenestella thinks that this fish (the red mullet)
has received its name from the colour of the shoes called
mullei.'
b For this fish-sauce see XXXI 93.
Say 70 gold.
206
BOOK IX. xxx. 64-xxxi. 67
part. For the rest, there are several kinds of mullet.
For it feeds on seaweed, bivalves, mud and the flesh
of other fish; and it is distinguished by a double
beard on the lower lip. The mullet of cheapest kind
is called the mud-mullet. This variety is always
accompanied by another fish named sea-bream, and
it swallows down as fodder mire stirred up by the
sea-bream digging. The coast mullet also is not in
favour. The most approved kind have the flavour of
an oyster. This variety has the name of shoe-mullet ?
which Fenestella thinks was given it from its colour.
It spawns three times a year at all events that is
the number of times that its fry is seen. The
leaders in gastronomy say that a dying mullet
shows a large variety of changing colours, turning
pale with a complicated modification of blushing
scales, at all events if it is looked at when contained
in a glass bowl. Marcus Apicius, who had a natural
gift for every ingenuity of luxury, thought it specially
desirable for mullets to be killed in a sauce made of
their companions, garum b for this thing also has
procured a designation and for fish-paste to be
devised out of their liver. XXXI. With a fish of prices paw,
this kind one of the proconsular body, Asinius Celer,
in the principate of Gaius, issued a challenge it is
not so easy to say who won the match to all the
spendthrifts by giving 8000 sesterces c for a mullet.
The thought of this side-tracks the mind to the con-
sideration of the people who in their complaints
about luxury used to protest that cooks were being
bought at a higher price per man than a horse ; but
now the price of three horses is given for a cook,
and the price of three cooks for a fish, and almost
no human being has come to be more valued than
207
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
pluris quam qui peritissime censum domini mergit.
68 mullum LXXX librarum in mari Rubro captum Licinius
Mucianus prodidit quanti mercatura eum luxuria
suburbanis litoribus inventum ?
XXXII. Est et haec natura ut alii alibi pisces
principatum optineant, coracinus in Aegypto, zaeus,
idem faber appellatus, Gadibus, circa Ebusum salpa,
obscenus alibi et qui nusquam percoqui possit nisi
ferula verberatus; in Aquitania salmo fluviatilis
marinis omnibus praefertur.
69 XXXIII. Piscium alii branchias multiplices ha-
bent, alii simplices, alii duplices. his aquam ernittunt
acceptam ore. senectutis indicium squamarum
duritia, quae non sunt omnibus similes, duo lacus
Italiae in radicibus Alpium Larius et Verbannus
appellantur, in quibus pisces omnibus annis vergiliar-
um ortu existunt squamis conspicui crebris atque
praeacutis, clavorum caligarium emgie, nee amplius
circa eum mensem visuntur.
70 XXXIV. Miratur et Arcadia suum exocoetum
appellatum ab eo quod in siccum somni causa exeat.
circa Clitorium vocalis hie traditur et sine branchiis,
idem ab 1 aliquis Adonis dictus.
71 XXXV. Exeunt in terram et qui marini mures
vocantur et polypi et murenae; quin et in Indiae
fluminibus certum genus piscium, ac deinde resilit
nam in stagna et amnes transeundi plerisque evidens
1 ab add.
a See note on 53. b Andbas Scandens.
208
BOOK IX. xxxi. 6y-xxxv. 71
one that is most skilful in making his master bank-
rupt. Licinius Mucianus has recorded the capture
in the Red Sea of a mullet weighing 80 Ibs. ; what
price would our epicures have paid for it if it had
been found on the coasts near the city?
XXXII. It is also a fact of nature that different ^ tiesof
fishes hold the first rank in different places the LS?t *
blackfish in Egypt, the John Dory (also called the
carpenter-fish) at Cadiz, the stockfish in the neigh-
bourhood of Iviza, though elsewhere it is a disgusting
fish, and everywhere it is unable to be cooked
thoroughly unless it has been beaten with a rod ; in
Aquitaine the river salmon is preferred to all sea-fish.
XXXIII. Some fish have numerous gills, others varieties of
single ones, others double. With the gills they JJ^f 1 *
discharge the water taken in by the mouth.
Hardening of the scales, which are not alike in all
fishes, is a sign of age. There are two lakes in
Italy at the foot of the Alps, named Como and
Maggiore, in which every year at the rising of the
Pleiads a fish are found that are remarkable for
close-set and very sharp scales, shaped like shoe-
nails, but they are not commonly seen for a longer
period than about a month from then.
XXXIV. Arcadia also has a marvel in its climbing
perch, 6 so called because it climbs out on to the
land to sleep. In the district of the river Clitorius
this fish is said to have a voice and no gills; the
same variety is by some people called the Adonis fish.
XXXV. The fish called the sea-mouse also comes out p w h that
on to the land, as do the polypus and the lamprey ; come to land -
so also does a certain kind of fish in the rivers of
India, and then jumps back again for in most
cases there is an obvious purpose in getting across into
209
VOL. in, p
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ratio est ut tutos fetus edant, quia non sint ibi qui
devorent partus fluctusque minus saeviant. has
intellegi ab iis causas servarique temporum vices
magis miretur si quis reputet quoto cuique hominum
nosci uberrimam esse capturam sole transeunte
piscium signum.
72 XXXVL Marinorum alii sunt plani, ut rhombi,
soleae ac passeres, qui ab rhombis situ tantum cor-
porum diiFerunt dexter hie resupinatus est illis,
passeri laevos ; alii longi, ut murena, conger.
73 XXXVII. Ideo pinnarum quoque fiunt discrimina,
quae pedum vice sunt datae piscibus, nullis supra
quattuor, quibusdam ternae, quibusdam binae, aliquis
nullae. in Fucino tantum lacu piscis est qui octonis
pinnis natat. binae omnino longis et lubricis, ut
anguillis et congris, aliis l nullae, ut murenis, quibus
nee branchiae, haec omnia flexuoso corporum
inpulsu ita mari utuntur ut serpentes terra, et in
sicco quoque repunt; ideo etiam vivaciora talia.
et e planis aliqua non habent pinnas, ut pastinacae
ipsa enim latitudine natant et quae mollia appell-
antur, ut polypi, quoniam pedes illis pinnarum
vicem praestant
74 XXXVIII. Anguillae octonis vivunt annis. durant
et sine aqua quinis et 2 senis diebus aquilone spirante,
austro paucioribus, at hiemem eaedem in exigua
1 aliis add. Mueller ex Aristotele.
2 Mueller ex Ar. : sine aquis et.
Or dab ; the identification is doubtful.
210
BOOK IX. xxxv. 7i~xxxvm. 74
marshes and lakes so as to produce their offspring
safe, as in those waters there are no creatures to
devour their young and the waves are less fierce.
Their understanding these reasons and their observ-
ing the changes of the seasons would seem more
surprising to anybody who considers what fraction
of mankind is aware that the biggest catch is made
when the sun is passing through the sign of the
Fishes.
XXXVI. Some sea-fish are flat, for instance the Flatfish.
turbot, the sole and the flounder/ which differs from
the turbot only in the posture of its body the turbot
lies with the right side uppermost and the flounder
with the left ; while other sea-fish are long, as the
lamprey and the conger. XXXVII. Consequently varieties of
differences also occur in the fins, which are bestowed fins '
on fish instead of feet ; none have more than four,
some have three, some two, certain kinds none. In
the Lago di Celano, but nowhere else, there is a fish
that has eight fins to swim with. Long slippery fish
like eels and congers generally have two fins, others
have none, for instance, the lamprey which also has
no gills. All this class use the sea as snakes do the
land, propelling themselves by twisting their bodies,
and they also crawl on dry land; consequently this
class are also longer-lived. Some of the flat-fish too
have not got fins, for example, the sting-ray for
these swim merely by means of their breadth and
the kinds called soft fish, such as polyps, since their
feet serve them instead of fins.
XXXVIII. Eels live eight years. They can even HOMU of
last five or six days at a time out of water if a north * *'
wind is blowing, but not so long with a south wind.
But the same fish cannot endure winter in shallow
p2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
aqua non tolerant, neque in turbida ; ideo circa ver-
gilias maxime capiuntur fluminibus turn praecipue
turbidis. pascuntur noctibus. exanimes piscium solae
75 non fluitant. lacus est Italiae Benacus in Veronensi
agro Mincium amnem tramittens, ad cuius emersum I
annuo tempore, Octobri fere mense, autumnali
sidere, ut palam est, hiemato lacu, fluctibus glomer-
atae volvuntur in tantum mirabili multitudine ut in
excipulis eius fluminis ob hoc ipsum fabricatis
singulorum milium reperiantur globi.
76 XXXIX. Murena quocumque mense parit, cum
ceteri pisces stato pariant. ova eius citissime
crescunt. in sicca litora elapsas vulgus coitu
serpentium impleri putat. Aristoteles zmyrum vocat
marem qui generet; discrimen esse quod murena
varia et infirma sit, zmyrus unicolor et robustus
dentesque et 2 extra os habeat. in Gallia septen-
trionali murenis omnibus dextera in maxilla septenae
maculae ad formam septenfcrionis aureo colore
fulgent dumtaxat viventibus, pariterque cum anima
77 extinguuntur. invenit in hoc animali documenta
saevitiae Vedius Pollio eques Romanus ex amicis
divi Augusti vivariis earum immergens- damnata
mancipia, non tamquam ad hoc feris terrarum non
sufficientibus, sed quia in alio genere totum pariter
1 RackJiam : emersus.
2 et add. ex Aristotele MayTioff.
See on 53. b Unidentifiable.
212
BOOK IX. xxxvin. 74-xxxix. 77
nor in rough water; consequently they are chiefly
caught at the rising of the Pleiads , a as the rivers
are then specially rough. They feed at night.
They are the only fish that do not float on the
surface when dead. There is a lake called Garda
in the territory of Verona through which flows the
river Mincio, at the outflow of which on a yearly
occasion, about the month of October, when the
lake is made rough evidently by the autumn star,
they are massed together by the waves and rolled
in such a marvellous shoal that masses of fish, a
thousand in each, are found in the receptacles
constructed in the river for the purpose.
XXXIX. The lamprey spawns in any month, Habits of tfo
although all other fish have fixed breeding seasons. l
Its eggs grow very quickly. Lampreys are commonly
believed to crawl out on to dry land and to be
impregnated by copulating with snakes. Aristotle
gives the name of zmyrus 6 to the male fish which
generates, and says that the difference is that the
lamprey is spotted and feeble whereas the zmyrus
is self-coloured and hardy, and has teeth projecting
outside the mouth. In Northern Gaul all lampreys
have seven spots on the right jaw arranged like the
constellation of the Great Bear, which are of a
bright golden colour as long as the fish are alive,
and are extinguished when they are deprived of
life. Vedius Pollio, Knight of Borne, a member of
the Privy Council under the late lamented Augustus,
found in this animal a means of displaying his
cruelty when he threw slaves sentenced to death
into ponds of lampreys not that the wild animals
on land were not sufficient for this purpose, but
because with any other kind of creature he was
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
hominem distrahi spectare non poterat. ferunt
aceti gustatu 1 praecipue eas in rabiem agi. ten-
uissimum his tergus, contra anguillis crassius, eoque
verberari solitos tradit Verrius praetextatos, et ob
id multam iis dici non institutum.
78 XL. Planorum piscium alterum est genus quod
pro spina cartilaginem habet, ut raiae, pastinacae,
squatinae, torpedo, et quos bovis, lamiae, aquilae,
ranae nominibus Graeci appellant, quo in numero
sunt squali quoque, quamvis non plani. haec
Graece in universum creXa^^ appellavit Aristoteles
primo hoc nomine eis inposito : nos distinguere non
possumus nisi si cartilaginea appellare libeat. omnia
autem carnivora sunt talia, et supina vescuntur, ut
in delphinis diximus, et cum ceteri pisces ova pariant,
hoc genus solum ut ea quae cete appellant animal
parit excepta quam ranam vocant.
79 XLI. Est parvus admodum piscis adsuetus petris
echeneis appellatus. hoc carinis adhaerente naves
tardius ire creduntur inde nomine inposito, quam
ob causam amatoriis quoque veneficiis infamis est et
iudiciorum ac litium mora, quae crimina una laude
pensat fluxus gravidarum utero sistens partusque
continens ad puerperium. in cibos tamen non ad-
1 Mayhoff ? (cf. x. 185 &c.) : gustu.
The remora*
214
BOOK IX. xxxix. 77-XLi. 79
not able to have the spectacle of a man being torn
entirely to pieces at one moment. It is stated that
tasting vinegar particularly drives them mad.
Their skin is very thin, whereas that of eels is rather
thick, and Verrius records that it used to be used
for flogging boys who were sons of citizens, and
that consequently it was not the practice for them
to be punished with a fine.
XL. There is a second class of flatfish that has Boneless
gristle instead of a backbone, for instance rays,
sting-rays, skates, the electric ray, and those the
Greek names for which mean 'ox,' ' sorceress,'
' eagle ' and ' frog.' This group includes the squalus
also, although that is not a flatfish. These Aristotle
designated in Greek by the common name of selach-
ians, giving them that name for the first time ; but
we cannot distinguish them as a class unless we like
to call them the cartilaginea. But all such fish are
carnivorous, and they feed lying on their backs, as
we said in the case of dolphins; and whereas all
other fish are oviparous, this kind alone with the
exception of the species called the sea-frog is
viviparous, like the creatures termed cetaceans.
XLL There is a quite small fish that frequents
rocks, called the sucking-fish. a This is believed to
make ships go more slowly by sticking to their hulls,
from which it has received its name ; and for this
reason it also has an evil reputation for supplying a
love-charm and for acting as a spell to hinder liti-
gation in the courts, which accusations it counter-
balances only by its laudable property of stopping
fluxes of the womb in pregnant women and holding
back the offspring till the time of birth. It is not
included however among articles of diet. It is
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
80 mittitur. pedes eum habere arbitrantur ; Aristoteles
infitias 1 it apposita pinnarum similitudine.
Mucianus muricem esse latiorem purpura, neque
aspero neque rotundo ore neque in angulos prodeunte
rostro sed sicut 2 concha utroque latere sese colligente ;
quibus inhaerentibus plenam venti 3 stetisse navem
portantem nuntios a Periandro ut castrarentur
nobiles pueri 4 ; conchasque quae id praestiterint
apud Cnidiorum Venerem coli. Trebius Niger
pedalem esse et crassitudine quinque digitorum,
naves morari ; praeterea hanc esse vim eius adservati
in sale ut aurum quod deciderit in altissimos puteos
admotus extrahat.
81 XLII. Mutant colorem candidum maenae et fiunt
aestate nigriores. mutat et phycis, reliquo tempore
Candida, vere varia. eadem piscium sola nidificat
ex alga atque in nido parit.
82 XLIII. Volat sane perquam similis volucri hirundo 5
item milvus. subit in summa maria piscis ex argu-
mento appellatus lucerna, linguaque ignea per os
exerta tranquillis noctibus relucet. attollit e
mari sesquipedanea fere cornua quae ab his nomen
traxit. rursus draco marinus captus atque immissus
in harenam cavernam sibi rostro mira celeritate
excavat.
83 XLIV. Piscium sanguine carent de quibus dice-
in us. sunt autem tria genera : primum quae mollia
1 infitias add. Mayhoff.
2 Maylioff : sic aut simplici.
3 Mayhoff: ventis.
4 navem Periandri portantem, ut castrarentur, nobiles
pueros Mayhoff.
5 Mayhoff: hirundini (v.l. volat his unda sane).
a The Romans reckoned 16 digiti to the pes.
216
BOOK IX. XLI. 79-XLiv. 83
thought by some to have feet, but Aristotle denies
this, adding that its limbs resemble wings.
Mucianus states that the murex is broader than Varieties of
the purple, and has a mouth that is not rough nor
round and a beak that does not stick out into
corners but shuts together on either side like a
bivalve shell ; and that owing to murexes clinging
to the sides a ship was brought to a standstill when
in full sail before the wind, carrying despatches
from Periander ordering some noble youths to be
castrated, and that the shell-fish that rendered this
service are worshipped in the shrine of Venus at
Cnidus. Trebius Niger says that it is a foot long
and four inches a wide, and hinders ships, and more-
over that when preserved in salt it has the power of
drawing out gold that has fallen into the deepest
wells when it is brought near them.
XLII. The maena & changes its white colour and
becomes blacker in summer. The lamprey also
changes colour, being white all the rest of the time
but variegated in spring. Also it is the only fish
that lays its eggs in a nest, which it builds of seaweed.
XLIII. The swallow-fish flies just exactly like a other
bird, and so does the kite-fish. The fish on this species '
account called the lamp-fish rises to the surface of
the sea, and on calm nights gives a light with its
fiery tongue which it puts out from its mouth. The
fish that has got its name from its horns raises these
up about 18 inches out of the sea. The sea-snake,
again, when caught and placed on the sand, with
marvellous rapidity digs itself a hole with its beak.
XLIV. We will now speak of the bloodless fishes. skoMes
Of these there are three kinds : first those which are ^&
* This species is unidentifiable, as are those in c. XLIII. '
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
appellantur, dein contecta crustis tenuibus, postremo
testis conclusa duris. mollia sunt lolligo, saepia,
polypus et cetera generis eius. his caput inter pedes
et ventrem, pediculi octoni omnibus, saepiae et
lolligini pedes duo ex his longissimi et asperi quibus
ad ora admovent cibos et in fluctibus se velut anchoris
stabiliunt, ceteri 1 cirri quibus venantur.
84 XLV. Lolligo etiam volitat extra aquam se efferens,
quod et pectunculi faciunt, sagittae modo. saepia-
rum generis mares varii et nigriores constantiaeque
maioris : percussae tridente feminae auxiliantur,
at femina icto mare fugit. ambo autem, ubi sensere
se adprehendi, effuso atramento quod pro sanguine
his est infuscata aqua absconduntur.
85 XLVL Polyporum multa genera, terreni maiores
quam pelagici. omnibus bracchiis ut pedibus ac
manibus utuntur, cauda vero, quae est bisulca et
acuta, in coitu. est polypis fistula in dorso qua
tramittunt mare, eamque modo in dexteram partem,
modo in sinistram transferunt. natant obliqui in
caput, quod praedurum est ut 2 sufflatione viventibus.
cetero per bracchia velut acetabulis dispersis haustu
quodam adhaerescunt : tenent supini ut avelli non
queant. vada non adprehendunt ; et grandibus
1 Rackham : cetera (circa MayJioff cf. Ar. rrepl TO KVTOS).
2 ut add. Hardouin coll. Aristotele.
a Aristotle H.A. 524a 13 vet 8 TrAaytos cVt rfy
K^aA^v e/CTiycov TOVS TTvBas.
218
BOOK IX. XLIV. 83-xLvi. 85
called soft fish, then those covered with thin rinds,
and lastly those enclosed in hard shells. The soft
are the cuttle-fish, the sepia, the polyp and the others
of that kind. They have the head between the feet
and the belly, and all of them have eight little feet.
In the sepia and cuttle-fish two of these feet are
extremely long and rough, and by means of these
they carry food to their mouths, and steady them-
selves as with anchors in a rough sea ; but all the rest
are feelers which they use for catching their prey.
XLV. The cuttle-fish even flies, raising itself out The c
of the water, as also do the small scallops, like an
arrow. The males of the genus sepia are variegated
and darker in colour, and they are more resolute:
when a female is struck with a trident they come to
her assistance, whereas a female flees when a male
is struck. But both sexes on perceiving they are
being caught hold of pour out a dark fluid which these
animals have instead of blood, so darkening the water
and concealing themselves.
XLVI. There are many sorts of polyp. The land ne polyp:
kinds are larger than the marine. They use all their
arms as feet and hands, but employ the tail, which is
forked and pointed, in sexual intercourse. The
polyps have a tube in their back through which they
pass the sea-water, and they shift this now to the
right side and now to the left. They swim with
their head on one side, a this while they are alive
being hard as though blown out. Otherwise they
remain adhering with a land of suction, by means of
a sort of suckers spread over their arms : throwing
themselves backward they hold on so that they
cannot be torn away. They do not cling to the
bottom of the sea, and have less holding-power when
219
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
minor tenacitas. soli mollium in siccum exeunt,
86 dumtaxat asperum: levitatem odere. vescuntur
conchyliorum carne, quorum conchas conplexu
crinium frangunt; itaque praeiacentibus testis
cubile eorum deprehenditur. et cum alioqui brutum
habeatur animal, ut quod ad manum hominis adnatet,
in re quodammodo familiari callet : omnia in domum
comportat, dein putamina erosa carne egerit adna-
87 tantesque pisciculos ad ea venatur. colorem mutat
ad similitudinem loci, et maxime in metu. ipsum
bracchia sua rodere falsa opinio est, id enim a congris
evenit ei ; sed renasci sicut colotis et lacertis caudas
haut falsum.
88 XLVII. Inter praecipua autem miracula est qui
vocatur nautilos, ab aliis pompilos. supinus in
summa aequorum pervenit, ita se paulatim absubri-
gens ut emissa omni per fistulam aqua velut exonera-
tus sentina facile naviget. postea prima duo
bracchia retorquens menabranam inter ilia mirae
tenuitatis extendit, qua velificante in aura ceteris
subremigans bracchiis media se cauda ut gubernaculo
regit. ita vadit alto Liburnicarum ludens 1 imagine, 2
si quid pavoris interveniat, hausta se mergens aqua.
89 XLVIII. Polyporum generis est ozaena dicta a
1 v.L gardens, sed cp. 94.
2 imaginem? ftackham.
220
BOOK IX. XLVI. 85-XLvm. 89
full-grown. They alone of the soft creatures go out
of the water on to dry land, provided it has a rough
surface : they hate smooth surfaces. They feed on
the flesh of shellfish, the shells of which they break
by enfolding them with their tentacles ; and conse-
quently their lair can be detected by the shells lying
in front of it. And though the polyp is in other
respects deemed a stupid animal, inasmuch as it
swims towards a man's hand, it has a certain kind of
sense in its domestic economy : it collects everything
into its home, and then after it has eaten the flesh
puts out the refuse and catches the little fishes that
swim up to it. It changes its colour to match its
environment, and particularly when it is frightened.
The notion that it gnaws its own arms is a mistake,
for this is done to it by the congers ; but the belief
that its tails grow again, as is the case with the gecko
and the lizard, is correct.
XLVI I. But among outstanding marvels is the The
creature called the nautilus, and by others the pilot- mut
fish. Lying on its back it comes to the surface of the
sea, gradually raising itself up in such a way that by
sending out all the water through a tube it so to speak
unloads itself of bilge and sails easily. Afterwards it
twists back its two foremost arms and spreads out
between them a marvellously thin membrane, and
with this serving as a sail in the breeze while it uses
its other arms underneath it as oars, it steers itself
with its tail between them as a rudder. So it pro-
ceeds across the deep mimicking the likeness of a fast
cutter, if any alarm interrupts its voyage submerging
itself by sucking in water.
XLVIII. One variety of the polypus kind is the
stink-polyp, named from the disagreeable smell of its
22T
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
gravi capitis odore, ob hoc maxime murenis earn
consectantibus.
Polypi binis mensibus conduntur. ultra bimatum
non vivunt ; pereunt autem tabe semper, feminae
celerius et fere a partu.
Non sunt praetereunda et L. Lucullo proconsule
90 Baeticae comperta de polypis quae Trebius Niger e
comitibus eius prodidit : avidissimos esse concharum,
illas ad tactum comprimi praecidentes bracchia
eorum ultroque escam ex praedante capere. carent
conchae visu omnique sensu alio quam cibi et periculi.
insidiantur ergo polypi apertis, impositoque lapillo
extra corpus, ne palpitatu eiciantur; ita securi
grassantur extrahuntque carnes; illae se contra
hunt, sed frustra, discuneatae: tanta sollertia
91 animalium hebetissimis quoque est. praeterea negat
ullum atrocius esse animal ad conficiendum hominem
in aqua ; luctatur enim complexu et sorbet acetabulis
ac numeroso suctu distrahit, 1 cum in naufragos
urinantisve impetum cepit. sed si invertatur,
elanguescit vis; exporrigunt enim se resupinati.
cetera quae idem retulit monstro propiora possunt
92 videri. Carteiae in cetariis assuetus exire e mairi in
1 sic (cf. 27) ? Mayhoff: trahit.
* Now Rocadillo, in Spain.
222
BOOK IX. XLVIII. 89-92
head, which causes it to be the special prey of the
lamprey.
Polyps go into hiding for periods of two months. The pol
They do not live more than two years ; but they ll ^ er
always die of consumption, the females more
quickly and usually as a result of bearing off-
spring.
We must also not pass over the facts as to the its diet
polyp ascertained when Lucius Lucullus was governor shett ^ ish '
of Baetica, and published by one of his staff,
Trebius Niger; he says that they are extremely
greedy for shell-fish, and that these close their shells
at a touch and cut off the polyp's tentacles, so re-
taliating by obtaining food from their would-be
robber. Shell-fish do not possess sight or any other
sense except consciousness of food and danger.
Consequently the polyps lie in wait for the shell-fish
to open, and placing a stone between the shells, not
on the fish's body so that it may not be ejected by
its throbbing, thus go to work at their ease, and drag
out the flesh, while the shell-fish try to shut up, but
in vain, as they are wedged open : so clever are even
the most stupid of animals. Moreover Niger asserts The polyp a
that no animal is more savage in causing the death ^Sf
of a man in the water ; for it struggles with him by
coiling round him and swallows him with its sucker-
cups and drags him asunder by its multiple suction,
when it attacks men that have been shipwrecked or
are diving. But should it be turned over, its strength
gets feebler; for when polyps are lying on their
backs they stretch themselves out. The rest of the
facts reported by the same authority may possibly
be thought to approximate to the miraculous. In A giant
the fishponds at Carteia* a polyp was in the habit of s ^ dmen -
223
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
lacus eorum apertos atque ibi salsamenta popular! ,
mire omnibus marinis expetentibus ordorem
quoque eorum, qua de causa et nassis inlinuntur,
convertit in se custodum indignationem assiduitate
furti immodicam. 1 saepes erant obiectae, sed has
transcendebat per arborem, nee deprehendi potuit
nisi canum sagacitate. hi redeuntem circumvasere
noctu, concitique custodes expavere novitatem :
primum omnium magnitude inaudita erat, deinde
colos, muria obliti, odore diri; quis ibi polypum
exspectasset aut ita cognosceret? cum monstro
dimicare sibi videbantur, namque et afflatu terribili
canes angebat, nunc extremis crinibus flagellatos,
nunc robustioribus bracchiis clavarum modo incussos ;
&3 aegreque multis tridentibus confici potuit. ostendere
Lucullo caput eius dolii magnitudine amphorarum
xv capax atque, ut ipsius Trebi verbis utar, ' barbas
quas vix utroque bracchio conplecti esset, clavarum
modo torosas, longas pedum xxx, acetabulis sive
caliculis urnalibus pelvium modo, dentes magnitudini
respondentes. ' reliquiae adservatae miraculo pepen-
dere pondo DCC. saepias , quoque et lolligines
eiusdem magnitudinis expulsas in litus illud idem
auctor est. in nostro mari lolligines quinum cubi-
torum capiuntur, saepiae binum. neque his bimatu
longior vita.
1 Mayhoff : immodicant aut -ca.
224
BOOK IX. XLVIII. 92-93
getting into their uncovered tanks from the open sea
and there foraging for salted fish even the smell of
which attracts all sea creatures in a surprising way,
owing to which even fish-traps are smeared with
them and so it brought on itself the wrath of the
keepers, which owing to the persistence of the theft
was beyond all bounds Fences were erected in its
way, but it used to scale these by making use of a
tree, and it was only possible to catch it by means
of the keen scent of hounds. These surrounded it
when it was going back at night, and aroused the
guards, who were astounded by its strangeness:
in the first place its size was unheard of and so was
its colour as well, and it was smeared with brine and
had a terrible smell ; who would have expected to
find a polyp there, or who would recognize it in such
circumstances ? They felt they were pitted against
something uncanny, for by its awful breath it also
tormented the dogs, which it now scourged with the
ends of its tentacles and now struck with its longer
arms, which it used as clubs ; and with difficulty they
succeeded in despatching it with a number of three-
pronged harpoons. They showed its head to
Lucullus it was as big as a cask and held 90 gallons,
and (to use the words of Trebius himself) ' its
beards which one could hardly clasp round with both
one's arms, knotted like clubs, 30 ft. long, with
suckers or cups like basins holding three gallons, and
teeth corresponding to its size/ Its remains, kept
as a curiosity, were found to weigh 700 Ibs. Trebius jffe cvttu ~
also states that cuttle-fish of both species of the
same size have been driven ashore on that coast.
In our own seas one kind is taken that measures
1\ ft. in length and the other kind 3 ft. These fish
also do not live more than two years. , :.
225
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
94 XLIX. Navigeram similitudinem et aliam in
Propontide visam sibi prodidit Mucianus : concham
esse acati modo carinatam, inflexa puppe, prora
rostrata. in hanc condi nauplium, animal saepiae
simile, ludendi societate sola, duobus hoc fieri
generibus : tranquillo enim vectorem demissis
palmulis ferire lit remis, si vero flatus invitent, easdem
in usum gubernaculi porrigi pandique concharum
sinus aurae. huius voluptatem esse ut ferat, illius
ut regat, simulque earn descendere in duo sensu
carentia, nisi forte tristi id enim constat omini
navigantium humana calamitas in causa est.
95 L. Locustae crusta fragili muniuntur in eo genera
quod caret sanguine, latent mensibus quinis;
similiter cancri qui eodem tempore occultantur ; et
ambo veris principio senectutem anguium more
exuunt renovatione tergorum. cetera in undis
natant, locustae reptantium modo fluitant ; si nullus
ingruat metus, recto meatu cornibus quae sunt pro-
pria rotunditate praepilata ad latera porrectis,
isdem erectis in pavore oblique in latera procedunt.
cornibus inter se dimicant. unum hoc animalium,
nisi vivum ferventi aqua incoquatur, fluida carne non
96 habet callum. vivunt petrosis locis, cancri mollibus.
a J.e. the imitation of a boat ; cf . 88.
226
BOOK IX. XLIX. 94-L. 96
XLIX. Mucianus has stated that he has also seen The
in the Dardanelles another creature resembling
ship under sail : it is a shell with a keel like a boat,
and a curved stern and beaked bow. In this (he
says) the nauplius, a creature like the cuttle-fish,
secretes itself, merely by way of sharing the game. a
The manner in which this takes place is two-fold :
in calm weather the carrier shell strikes the water
by dipping its flappers like oars, but if the breezes
invite, the same flappers are stretched out to serve
as a rudder and the curves of the shells are spread to
the breeze. The former creature delights (he con-
tinues) to carry and the latter to steer, and this
pleasure penetrates two senseless things at once
unless perhaps human calamity forms part of the
motive, for it is an established fact that this is a
disastrous omen for mariners.
L. In the bloodless class, the langouste is protected TI*
by a fragile rind. Langoustes stay in retirement for nffoua e '
five months in each year ; and likewise crabs, which
go into hiding at the same season ; and both species
discard their old age at the beginning of spring in
the same way as snakes do, by renewing their skins.
All other aquatic species swim, but langoustes float
about in the manner of reptiles; if no danger
threatens they go forward in a straight course with
their horns, which are buttoned by their own
rounded ends, stretched out at their sides, but at a
moment of alarm they advance slanting sideways
with their horns held erect. They use their horns
in fighting one another. The langouste is the only
animal whose flesh is of a yielding texture with no
hardness, unless it is boiled alive in hot water.
Langoustes live in rocky places, whereas crabs live on
227
Q2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
hieme aprica litora sectantur, aestate in opaca
gurgitum recedunt. omnia eius generis hieme
laeduntur, autumno et vere pinguescunt, et pleni-
lunio magiSj quia nocte sidus tepido fulgore mitificat.
97 LL Cancrorum genera carabi, astaci, maeae,
paguri, Heracleotici, leones et alia ignobiliora.
carabi cauda a ceteris cancris distant ; in Phoenice
hippoe vocantur, tantae velocitatis ut consequi non
sit. cancris vita longa. pedes octoni, omnes in
obliquom flexi; feminae primus pes duplex, mari
simplex, praeterea bina bracchia denticulatis for-
ficibus ; superior pars in primoribus his movetur
inferiore immobili. dexterum bracchium omnibus
98 maius. universi aliquando congregantur. os Ponti
evincere non valent, quamobrem egressi circumeunt
apparetque tritum iter. pinoteres vocatur minu-
mus ex omni genere, ideo opportunus iniuriae.
huic sollertia est inanium ostrearum testis se
condere et cum adcreverit migrare in capaci-
99 ores, cancri in pavore et retrorsi pain veloeitate
redeunt. dimicant inter se ut arietes, adversis
cornibus incursantes. contra serpentium ictus me-
dentur. sole cancri signum trans eunte et ipsorum,
cum exanimati sint, corpus transfigurari in scorpiones
narratur in sicco. ; ,
'0/.HI09.
1 The comoKon ora^^ the identifications of the varieties
thafe follow are dubious, ;
BOOK IX. L. 9 6-Li. 99
soft mud. In winter they haunt sunny shores, but
in summer they retire into the dim depths of the sea.
All creatures of this class suffer in winter, but get
fat in autumn and spring, and more so at full moon,
"because the moon mellows them with its warm glow
by night. a
LI. The kinds of crab are the carabusf the crayfish, varieties
,the spider-crab, the hermit-crab, the Heraclean crab, f crab -
the lion-crab and other inferior species. The carabus
differs from the other crabs by its tail ; in Phoenicia
it is called the horse-crab, being so swift that it is im-
possible to overtake it. Crabs are long-lived. They
have eight feet, all curved crooked; the front foot
is double in the female and single in the male. They
also have two claws with denticulated nippers ; the
upper half of the forepart of these moves and the
lower half is fixed. The right claw is the larger in
every specimen. Sometimes crabs allcollect together
in a flock. They cannot make the mouth of the
Black ,Sea against the current, and consequently
when they are going out of it they travel round in
a circle and appear to be following a beaten track.
The one called the pea-crab is the smallest of the
whole tribe, and consequently very liable to injury.
It has the cunning to stow itself in empty bivalve
shells and to shift into roomier ones as it grows
bigger. When alarmed crabs can retreat back-
wards with equal speed. They fight duels with one
another like rams, charging with horns opposed.
They afford a remedy against snake-bite. It is
related that when the sun is passing through the
sign of Cancer the bodies of crabs also when they
expire are transformed into scorpions during, the
drought.
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
100 Ex eodem genere sunt echini quibus spinae pro
pedibus. ingredi est his in orbem volvi, itaque
detritis saepe aculeis inveniuntur. ex his echino-
metrae appellantur quorum spinae longissimae, caly-
ces minimi, nee omnibus idem vitreus colos : circa
Toronem candidi nascuntur spina parva. ova om-
nium amara, quina numero. ora in medio corpore
in terram versa, tradunt saevitiam maris praesagire
eos correptisque opperiri lapillis mobilitatem pondere
stabilientes : nolunt volutatione spinas atterere ;
quod ubi videre nautici, statim pluribus anchoris
navigia infrenant.
101 In eodem genere cocleae aquatiles terrestresque
exerentes se domicilio binaque ceu cornua protend-
entes contrahentesque. oculis carent, itaque corni-
culis praetemptant iter.
Pectines in mari ex eodem genere habentur,
reconditi et ipsi magnis frigoribus ac magnis aestibus,
unguesque velut igne lucent es in tenebris, etiam in
ore mandentium.
102 LIL Firmioris iam testae murices et concharum
genera, in quibus magna ludentis naturae varietas :
tot colorum differentiae, tot figurae, planis, concavis,
longis, lunatis, in orbem circumactis, dimidio orbe
caesis, in dorsum elatis, levibus, rugatis, denticulatis,
striatis ; vertice muricatim intorto, margine in mucro-
* In point of fact they have black eyes unfolded with the
horns*
230
BOOK IX. LI. IOO-LII. 102
The sea-urchin, which has spines instead of feet, The echinus.
belongs to the same genus. These creatures can
only go forward by rolling over and over, and
consequently they are often found with their
prickles worn off. Those of them with the longest
spines are called echinus cidaris, and the smallest
are called cups. They have not all the same
transparent colour : in the district of Torone some
are born white, with a small spine. The eggs of all
have a bitter taste ; they are laid in clutches of five.
Their mouths are in the middle of their body, on the
under side. It is said that they can forecast a rough
sea and that they take the precaution of clutching
stones and steadying their mobility by the weight :
they do not want to wear away their spines by rolling
about. When sailors see them doing this they at
once secure their vessels with more anchors.
In the same family are water and land snails, that The snail
protrude out of their abode and shoot out and draw c ass '
in two horns as it were. They have no eyes, a and
consequently explore the way in front of them with
their little horns.
Sea-scallops are held to belong to the same class,
which also retire into hiding at seasons of extreme
cold and extreme heat; and piddocks, which shine
as if with fire in dark places, even in the mouth of
persons eating them.
LII. We now come to the purples and the Purples and
varieties of shell-fish, which have a stronger shell. $. shell ~
The latter display in great variety nature's love of
sport : they show so many differences of colour, and
also of shape being flat, hollow, long, crescent-
shaped, circular, semi-circular, humped, smooth,
wrinkled, serrated, furrowed; with the crest bent
251
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
103 nem ernisso, foris .effuso, intus replicato ; iam dis-
tinctione virgulata, crinita, crispa, canaliculalim,
pectinatim divisa, imbricatim undata, cancellatim
reticulata, in obliquum, in rectum expansa, densata,
porrecta, sinuata; brevi nodo ligatis, toto latere
conexis, ad plausum apertis, ad bucinam 1 recurvis.
navigant ex his Veneriae, praebentesque concavam
sui partem et aurae opponentes per summa aequorum
velificant. saliunt pectines et extra volitant, seque
et ipsi carinant.
104 LIIL Sed quid haec tarn parva commemoro,
cum populatio morum atque luxuria non ajiunde
maior quam e concharum genere proveniat? iam
quidem ex tota rerum natura damnosissimum
ventri mare est tot modis, tot mensis, tot piscium
105 saporibus quis pretia capientium periculo fiunt. sed
quota haec portio est reputantibus purpuras, con-
chylia, margaritas ! parum scilicet fuerat in gulas
condi maria, nisi manibus, auribus, capite totoque
corpore a feminis iuxta virisque gestarentur. quid
mari cum vestibus, quid undis fluctibusque cum
vellere? non recte recipit haec nog' rerum natura
nisi nudos 1 esto ? sit tanta ventri cum eo societag :
1 Edd f :
252
BOOK IX. LII. 102-Liii. 105
into the shape of a purple, the edge projecting
into a sharp point, or spread outwards, or folded
inwards ; and again picked out with stripes or with
flowing locks or with curls, or parted in little channels
or like the teeth of a comb, or corrugated like tiles,
or reticulated into lattice-work, or spread out slant-
wise or straight, close-packed, diffused, curled;
tied up in a short knot, or linked up all down the side,
or opened so as to shut with a snap, or curved so as
to make a trumpet. Of this species the Venus-shell
sails like a ship, and projecting its hollow portion and
setting it to catch the wind goes voyaging over the
surface of the water. The scallop gives a leap and
soars out of the water, and it also uses its own shell as
a boat. ,
LIIL But why do I mention these trifles when their
moral corruption and luxury spring from no other S<
source in greater abundance than from the genus corruption.
shell-fish ? It is true that of the whole of nature
the sea is most detrimental to the stomach in a
multitude of ways, with its multitude of dishes
and of appetizing kinds of fish to which the profits
made by those who catch them spell danger. But
what proportion do these form when we con-
sider purple and scarlet robes and pearls ! It had
been insufficient, forsooth, for the seas to be
stowed into our gullets, were they not carried on
the hands and in the ears and on the head and all
over the body of women and men alike. What
connexion is there between the sea and our clothing,
between the waves and waters' and woollen fabric ?
We only enter that element in a proper manner
when we are naked ! Granted thai; there is so
close an alliance between it and our stomach, but
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
quid tergori ! parum est nisi qui vescimur periculis
etiam vestiamur? adeo per totum corpus anima
hominis quaesita maxime placent?
106 LIV. Principium ergo columenque omnium rerum
preti margaritae tenant. Indicus maxime has mittit
oceanus inter illas beluas tales tantasque quas
diximus per tot maria venientes tarn longo terrarum
tractu e tantis solis ardoribus. atque Indis quoque
in insulas petuntur et admodum paucas : fertilissima
est Taprobane et Stoidis, ut diximus in circuitu
mundi, item Perimula promunturium Indiae ; prae-
cipue autem laudantur circa Arabiam in Persico
sinu maris Rubri.
107 Origo atque genitura conchae sunt 1 haut multum
ostrearum conchis differentes. 2 has ubi genitalis
anni stimulavit hora,pandentes se quadam oscitatione
impleri roscido conceptu tradunt, gravidas postea
eniti, partumque concharum esse margaritas, pro
qualitate roris accepti : si purus influxerit, candorem
conspici, si vero turbid us, et fetum sordescere.
eundem pallere caelo minante: conceptum ex eo
quippe constare, caelique eis maiorem societatem
esse quam maris, inde nubilum trahi colorem aut pro
108 claritate matutina serenum. si tempestive satientur
grandescere et partus. si fulguret, comprimi con-
1 MayTioff: est. 2 Mayhoff: different.
See 4 f. above. * VI 81 and 110.
c The story is of course imaginary.
234
BOOK IX. LIII. 105-Liv. 108
what has it to do with our backs ? Are we not
content to feed on dangers without also being clothed
with them? Is it that the rule that we get most
satisfaction from luxuries costing a human life to
procure holds good for the whole of our anatomy ?
LIV. The first place therefore and the topmost Pearl *-
rank among all things of price is held by pearls.
These are sent chiefly by the Indian Ocean, among
the huge and curious animals that we have described a
as coming across all those seas over that wide
expanse of lands from those burning heats of the
sun. And to procure them for the Indians as well,
men go to the islands and those quite few in
number: the most productive is Ceylon, and also
Stoidis, as we said 6 in our circuit of the world, and also
the Indian promontory of Perimula ; but those round
Arabia on the Persian Gulf of the Red Sea are
specially praised.
The source and breeding-ground of pearls are The pearl-
shells not much differing from oyster-shells. These, ^
we are told, c when stimulated by the generative season
of the year gape open as it were and are filled with
dewy pregnancy, and subsequently when heavy are
delivered, and the offspring of the shells are pearls
that correspond to the quality of the dew received :
if it was a pure inflow, their brilliance is conspicuous
but if it was turbid, the product also becomes dirty in
colour. Also if the sky is lowering (they say) the pearl
is pale in colour : for it is certain that it was conceived
from the sky, and that pearls have more connexion
with the sky than with the sea, and derive from it a
cloudy hue, or a clear one corresponding with a
brilliant morning. If they are well fed in due season,
the offspring also grows in size. If there is lightning,
235
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
chas ac pro ieiunii modo minui ; si vero etiam tonue-
rit, pavidas ac repente compressas quae vocant physe-
mata efficere, specie modo inani inflatas sine corpore ;
hos esse concharum abortus, sard quidern partus
multiplici constant cute, non improprie callum ut
existimari corporis possit; itaque expurgantur a
109 peritis. miror ipso tantum eas caelo gaudere, sole
rubescere candoremque perdere ut corpus humanum ;
quare praecipuum custodiunt pelagiae, altius mersae
quam ut penetrent radii ; flavescunt tamen et illae
senecta rugisque torpescunt, nee nisi in iuventa
constat ille qui quaeritur vigor. 1 crassescunt etiam
in senecta conchisque adhaerescunt, nee his evelli
queunt nisi lima, quibus una tantum est facies et ab
ea rotunditas, aversis planities, ob id tympania
nominantur; cohaerentes vidimus 2 in conchis, hac
dote unguenta circumferentibus. cetero in acjua
mollis unio, exemptus protinus durescit.
110 LV. Concha ipsa cum manum vidit comprimit sese
operitque opes suas gnara propter illas se peti,
manumque, si praeveniat, acie sua abscidat nulla
iustlore poena, et aliis munita suppliciis, quippe inter
scopulos maior pars invenitur, sed in alto quoque
comitantibus 3 marinis canibus; nee tarqen auj-es
HI feminarum arcentur. quidam tradunt sicut'api^us
1 An nitor ? Mayhoff. 2 Hardouin ; videioiiis.
3 Mayhoff:
dayhoff: comitantur.
Le, skarks.
236
BOOK IX. LIV. io8-Lv. in
the shells shut up, and diminish in size in proportion
to their abstinence from food ; but if it also thunders
they are frightened and shut up suddenly, producing
what are called ' wind-pearls,' which are only inflated
with an empty, unsubstantial show: these are the
pearls' miscarriages. Indeed a healthy offspring is
formed with a skin of many thicknesses, so that it
may not improperly be considered as a hardening of
the body ; and consequently experts subject them to
a cleansing process. I am surprised that though
pearls rejoice so much in the actual sky, they redden
and lose their whiteness in the sun, like the human
body; consequently sea-pearls preserve a special
brilliance, being too deeply immersed for the rays to
penetrate ; nevertheless even they get yellow from
age and doze off with wrinkles, and the vigour that
is sought after is only found in youth. Also in old
age they get thick and stick to the shells, and cannot
be torn out of these except by using a file. Pearls with
only one surface, and round on that side but flat at
the back, are consequently termed tambourine pearls ;
we have seen them clustering together in shells that
owing to this enrichment were used for carrying round
perfumes. For the rest, a large pearl is soft when in
the water but gets hard as soon as it is taken out.
LV. When a shell sees a hand it shuts itself up Dmng
and conceals its treasures, as it knows that it is pearlSt
sought for on their account; and if the hand is
inserted first it cuts it off with its sharp edge, the
most just penalty possible for it is armed with
other penalties also, as for the most part it is found
among rocks, while even in deep water it has sea-
dogs a in attendance yet nevertheless these do not
protect it against women's ears! Some accounts
237
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ita concharum examinibus singulas magnitudine et
vetustate praecipuas esse veluti duces mirae ad
cavendum sollertiae ; has urinantium cura peti, illis
captis facile ceteras palantes retibus includi, multo
demde obrutas sale in vasis fictilibus; rosa carne
omni nucleos quosdam corporum, hoc est uniones,
decidere in ima.
112 LVL Usu atteri non dubium est, coloremque
indiligentia mutare. dos omnis in candore, magni-
tudine, orbe, levore, pondere, haut promptis rebus
in tantum ut nulli duo reperiantur indiscreti:
unde nomen unionum Romanae scilicet imposuere
deliciae, nam id apud Graecos non est, nee apud
barbaros quidem, inventores rei 1 eius, aliud quam
113 margaritae. et in candore ipso magna differentia;
clarior in Rubro mari repertis, in 2 Indico specu-
larium lapidum squamas adsimulant, 3 alias magni-
tudine praecellentes. summa laus coloris est exalu-
minatos vocari. et procerioribus sua gratia est.
elenchos appellant fastigata longitudine alabastrorum
114= figura in pleniorem orbem desinentes. hos digitis
suspendere et binos ac ternos auribus feminarum
gloria estj subeuntque luxuriae eius nomina externa, 4
exquisita perdito nepotatu, siquidem, cum id fecere,
crotalia appellant, ceu sono quoque gaudeant et
1 rei add. Mayhoff. 2 in add. Mayhoff.
8 Mayhoff : adsimulat. 4 Mayhoff : nomina et taedia.
The Persian Gulf is meant ; c/. 106.
238
BOOK IX. LV. III-LVI. 114
say that clusters of shells like bees have one of their
number, a specially large and old shell, as their
leader, one marvellously skilful in taking precau-
tions; and that these leader-shells are diligently
sought for by pearl-divers, as when they are caught
all the rest stray about and easily get shut up in the
nets, subsequently a quantity of salt being poured
over them in earthenware jars; this eats away all
the flesh, and a sort of kernels in their bodies, which
are pearls, fall to the bottom.
LVL There is no doubt that pearls are worn away varieties in
by use, and that lack of care makes them change ^^J tjv *
their colour. Their whole value lies in their bril-
liance, size, roundness, smoothness and weight,
qualities of such rarity that no two pearls are found
that are exactly alike : this is doubtless the reason
why Roman luxury has given them the name of
' unique gems,' the word unto not existing in Greece,
and indeed among foreign races, who discovered this
fact, the only name for them is margarita. There is
also a great variety in their actual brilliance ; it is
brighter with those found in the Red Sea, a whereas
those found in the Indian Ocean resemble flakes of
mica, though they excel others in size. The highest
praise given to their colour is for them to be called
alum-coloured. The longer ones also have a charm
of their own. Those that end in a wider circle,
tapering lengthwise in the shape of perfume-caskets,
are termed * probes. ' Women glory in hanging these
on their fingers and using two or three for a single-
earring, and foreign names for this luxury occur,
names invented by abandoned extravagance, inas-
much as when they have done this they call them
* castanets,' as if they enjoyed even the sound and
239
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
collisu ipso margaritarum ; cupiuntque iam et
pauperes, lictorem feminae in publico unionem esse
dictitantes. quin et pedibus, nee crepidarum
tantum obstragulis set totis socculis addunt. neque
enim gestare iam margaritas nisi calcent ac per
uniones etiam ambulent, satis est.
115 In nostro mari reperiri solebant, crebrius cirOa Bos-
porum Thracium, rufi ac parvi in conchis quas myas
appellant, at in Acarnania quae vocatur pina 1
gignit ; quo apparet non in 2 uno conchae genere
nasci, namque et luba tradit Arabicis concham esse
similem pectini insecto, hirsutam echinorum modo,
ipsum unionem in carne grandini similem ; conchae
non tales ad nos afferuntur. nee in Acarnania ante 3
laudati reperiuntur, enormes et fere 4 colons 5
naarmorei. meliores circa Actium, sed et hi parvi^
et in Mauretaniae maritimis. Alexander polyhistor
et Sudines senescere eos putant coloremque expirarel
116 LVII. Firmum 6 corpus esse manifestum est,
quod nullo lapsu franguntur. non autem semper in
media carne reperiuntur sed aliis atque aliis locis,
vidimusque iam in extremis etiam marginibus velut
e concha exeunt es, et in quibusdam quaternos qui-
nosque. pondus ad hoc aevi semunciae pauci
1 Sittig : pinna.
2 in add. Mackhym.
3 aoite edd, : autem.
4 fere edd f : feri.
6 coloris t Brotier : colorisque.
* * MayJioffi eorum.
240
BOOK IX. LVI. H4-LVII. 116
the mere rattling together of the pearls ; and now-a-
days even poor people covet them it is a common
saying that a pearl is as good as a lackey for a lady
when she walks abroad 1 And they even use them
on their feet, and fix them not only to the laces
of their sandals but all over their slippers. In fact,
by this time they are not content with wearing
pearls unless they tread on them, and actually walk
on these unique gems!
There used to be commonly found in our own sea, provenance
and more frequently on the coasts of the Thracian of pearls,
Bosphorus, small red gems contained in the shells
called mussels. But in Acarnania there grows what
is termed the sea-pen; which shows that pearls are
not born in only one kind of shell, for Juba also
records that the Arabs have a shell resembling a
toothed comb, that bristles like a hedgehog, and has
an actual pearl, resembling a hailstone, in the fleshy
part; this kind of shell is not imported to Rome.
And there are not found in Acarnania the formerly
celebrated pearls of an exceptional size and almost
a marble colour. Better ones are found round
Actium, but these too are small, and in sea-board
Mauretania. Alexander the Encyclopaedist and
Sudines think that they grow old and let their colour
evaporate.
LVII. It is clear that they are of a firm substance, Position in,
because no fall can break them. Also they are noi t]tes7teUt
always found in the middle of the flesh, but in a
variety of places, and before now we have seen them
even at the extreme edges, as though in the act of
passing out of the shell ; and in some cases we have
seen four or five pearls in one shell. In weight few
specimens have hitherto exceeded half an, ounce by
241
VOL. III. R
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
singulis scripulis excessere. in Britannia parvos
atque decolores nasci certum est, quoniam divus
luh'us thoracem quern Veneri Genetrici in templo
eius dicavit ex Britannicis margaritisfactumvoluerit
intellegi.
117 LVIII. Lolliam Paulinam, quae fuit Gai principis
matrona, ne serio quidem aut sollemni caerimoniarum
aliquo apparatu sed mediocrium etiam sponsalium
cena vidi smaragdis margaritisque opertam alterno
textu fulgentibus toto capite, crinibus, [spira] 1
auribus, collo, [monilibus] 2 digitis, quae 3 summa
quadringenties sestertium colligebat, ipsa confestim
parata mancupationem tabulis probare ; nee dona
prodigi principis fuerant, sed avitae opes, provinci-
118 arum scilicet spoliis partae. hie est rapinarum
exitus, hoc fuit quare M. Lollius infamatus regum
muneribus in toto oriente interdicta amicitia a C.
Caesare August! filio venenum biberet, ut neptis
eius quadringenties HS operta spectaretur ad lucer-
nas ! computet nunc aliquis ex altera parte quantum
Curius aut Fabricius in triumphis tulerint, imaginetur
illorum fercula, et ex altera parte Lolliam unam
imperatori 4 mulierculam accubantem: non illos
119 curru detractos quam in hoc vicisse malit ? nee haec
summa luxuriae exempla sunt. duo fuere maximi
uniones per omne aevum ; utrumque possedit
Cleopatra Aegypti reginarum novissima per manus
1 Friedlaender. 2 Iriedlaender.
3 Mayhoff : que. 4 Dalecamp : imperil.
a They are found occasionally in the ordinary mussel,
oyster and pinna, but especially in the common fresh- water
mussel.
* Say a third of a million pounds gold.
242
BOOK IX. LVII. ii6-Lvm. 119
more than one scruple. It is established that small
pearls of poor colour grow in Britain, a since the late
lamented Julius desired it to be known that the
breastplate which he dedicated to Venus Genetrix
in her temple was made of British pearls.
LVIII. I have seen Lollia Paulina, who became Pearls of
the consort of Gams, not at some considerable or e S^ Qml
solemn ceremonial celebration but actually at an
ordinary betrothal banquet, covered with emeralds
and pearls interlaced alternately and shining all over
her head, hair, ears, neck and fingers, the sum total
amounting to the value of 40,000,000 sesterces, 6 she
herself being ready at a moment's notice to give
documentary proof of her title to them ; nor had they
been presents from an extravagant emperor, but
ancestral possessions, acquired in fact with the spoil
of the provinces. This is the final outcome of
plunder, it was for this that Marcus Lollius disgraced
himself by taking gifts from kings in the whole of
the East, and was cut out of his list of friends
by Gaius Caesar son of Augustus and drank poison
that his granddaughter should be on show in the
lamplight covered with 40,000,000 sesterces! Now
let some one reckon up on one side of the account
how much Curius or Fabricius carried in their
triumphs, and picture to himself the spoils they
displayed, and on the other side Lollia, a single little
lady recHning at the Emperor's side and would he
not think it better that they should have been dragged
from their chariots than have won their victories with
this result ? Nor are these the topmost instances of
luxury. There have been two pearls that were the Cleopatra?*
largest in the whole of history ; both were owned by peaT '
Cleopatra, the last of the Queens of Egypt they
243
R2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
orientis regum sibi traditos. haec, cum exquisitis
cotidie Antoiiius saginaretur epulis, superbo simul
ac procaci fastu, ut regina meretrix, lautitiam eius
apparatumque omnem 1 obtrectans, quaerente eo
quid adstrui magniiicentiae posset respondit mu se
J20 cena centiens HS 2 absumpturam. cupiebat discere
Antonius, sed fieri posse non arbitrabatur. ergo
sponsionibus factis postero die, quo iudicium age-
batur, magnincam alias cenam, ne dies periret, sed
cotidianam, Antonio apposuit inridenti computa-
tionemque expostulanti. at ilia corollarium id
esse, et consurnmaturam 3 earn cenam 4 taxationem
confirmans solamque se centiens HS cenaturam,
inferri mensam secundam iussit. ex praecepto
ministri unum tantum vas ante earn posuere aceti,
cuius asperitas visque in tabem margaritas resolvit.
121 gerebat auribus cum maxime singulare illud et vere
unicum naturae opus, itaque expectante Antonio
quidnam esset actura detractum alterum mersit ac
liquefactum obsorbuit. iniecit alteri manum L.
Plancus, iudex sponsionis eius, eum quoque parante
simili modo absumere, victumque Antorrium pro-
nuntiavit omine rato. comitatur fama unionis eius
parem, capta ilia tantae quaestionis victrice regina,
1 omnem hie ? Mayhoff: ante apparatumque.
2 centiens HS add. edd.
3 MayJioff(cf. viii. 183) : consumpturam.
4 se in ea cena edd.
Of. XI 14 nuHus pent otio dies.
6 No such vinegar exists ,* Cleopatra no doubt swallowed the
pearl in vinegar knowing that it could be recovered later on.
244
BOOK IX. LVIII. 119-121
had come down to her through the hands of the
Kings of the East. When Antony was gorging daily at
recherche banquets, she with a pride at once lofty and
insolent, queenly wanton as she was, poured contempt
on all his pomp and splendour, and when he asked
what additional magnificence could be contrived,
replied that she would spend 10,000,000 sesterces on
a single banquet. Antony was eager to learn how
it could be done, although he thought it was impos-
sible. Consequently bets were made, and on the
next day, when the matter was to be decided, she set
before Antony a banquet that was indeed splendid,
so that the day might not be wasted, a but of the kind
served every day Antony laughing and expostu-
lating at its niggardliness. But she vowed it was a
mere additional douceur, and that the banquet would
round off the account and her own dinner alone would
cost 10,000,000 sesterces, and she ordered the second
course to be served. In accordance with previous
instructions the servants placed in front of her only a
single vessel containing vinegar, the strong rough
quality of which can melt pearls. 6 She was at the
moment wearing in her ears that remarkable and
truly unique work of nature. Antony was full of
curiosity to see what in the world she was going to
do. She took one earring off and dropped the pearl
in the vinegar, and when it was melted swallowed it.
Lucius Plancus, who was umpiring the wager, placed
his hand on the other pearl when she was preparing
to destroy it also in a similar way, and declared that
Antony had lost the battle an ominous remark that
came true. With this goes the story that, when that
queen who had won on this important issue was
captured, the second of this pair of pearls was
4s
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
dissectum, ut esset in utrisque Veneris auribus Romae
122 in Pantheo dimidia eorum cena. LIX. non ferent hanc
palmam, spoliabunturque etiam luxuriae gloria.
prior id fecerat Romae in unionibus magnae taxationis
Clodius tragoedi Aesopi fills,, relictus ab eo in amplis
opibus hereSj ne triumvir atu suo nimis superbiat
Antonius paene histrioni comparatus, et quidem
nulla sponsione ad hoc product o, quo magis regium
fiat, sed ut experiretur in gloriam l palati quidnam
saperent margaritae; atque ut mire placuere, ne
solus hoc sciret, singulos uniones convivis quoque
absorbendos dedit.
123 Romae in promiscuum ac frequentem usum venisse
Alexandria in dicionem redacta, primum autem
coepisse circa Sullana tempora minutas et viles
Fenestella tradit manifesto errore, cum Aelius Stilo
circa 2 Jugurthinum bellum unionum nomen imponi-
cum maxime grandibus margaritis prodat.
124 LX. Et hoc tamen aeternae prope possessionis est
sequitur heredem, in mancipatum venit ut praedi-
um aliquod : conchylia et purpuras omnis hora atterit,
quibus eadem mater luxuria paria paene ac 3
margaritis pretia fecit.
125 Purpurae vivunt annis plurimum septenis. latent
sicut murices circa canis ortum tricenis diebus.
congregantur verno tempore, mutuoque attritu
1 Maykoff: gloria. * c i rca addf Mayhoff.
et.
a I.e. Ajitony and Cleopatra. 6 47 B.C.
c dictator 81-79 B.C. * 112-106 B.C.
246
BOOK IX. LVIII. 121-tx. 125
cut in two pieces, so that half a helping of the jewel
might be in each of the ears of Venus in the Pantheon
at Rome. LIX. They a will not carry off this trophy. An earli
and will be robbed even of the record for ^-
luxury ! A predecessor had done this at Rome in the
case of pearls of great value, Clodius, the son of the
tragic actor Aesopus, who had left him his heir in a
vast estate; so that Antony cannot take too much
pride in his triumvirate when compared with one
who was virtually an actor, and who had indeed been
led on to this display not by any wager which would
make it more royal but to discover by experiment,
for the honour of his palate, what is the exact flavour
of pearls; and when they proved marvellously
acceptable, in order not to keep the knowledge to
himself he gave his guests also a choice pearl apiece
to swallow.
Fenestella records that they came into common When
use at Rome after the reduction of Alexandria under W<
our sway, 6 but that small and cheap pearls first came
in about the period of Sulla c which is clearly a
mistake, as Aelius Stilo states that the distinctive
name was given to large pearls just at the time of
the wars d of Jugurtha.
LX. And nevertheless this article is an almost
everlasting piece of property it passes to its
owner's heir, it is offered for public sale like some
landed estate; whereas every hour of use wears
away robes of scarlet and purple, which the same
mother, luxury, has made almost as costly as pearls.
Purples live seven years at most. They stay Habits of the
in hiding like the murex for 30 days at the time of
the rising of the dog-star. They collect into shoals
in spring-time, and their rubbing together causes
247
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
lentorem cuiusdam cerae salivant. simili modo et
murices, sed purpurae florem ilium tinguendis
expetitum vestibus in mediis habent faucibus :
126 liquoris hie minimi est * Candida vena unde pretiosus
ille bibitur, nigrantis rosae colore sublucens; re-
liquum corpus sterile, vivas capere contendunt,
quia cum vita sucum eum evomunt; et maioribus
quidem purpuris detracta concha auferunt, minores
cum testa vivas frangunt, ita demum eum exspuentes.
127 Tyri praecipuus hie Asiae, Meninge Africae et
Gaetulo litore oceani, in Laconica Europae. fasces
huic securesque Romanae viam faciunt, idemque
pro maiestate pueritiae est; distinguit ab equite
curiam, dis advocatur placandis, omnemque vestem
inluminatj in triumphali iniscetur auro. quapropter
excusata et purpurae sit insania ; sed unde conchyliis
pretia, quis virus grave in fuco, color austerus in
glauco et irascenti similis mari?
128 Lingua purpurae longitudine digitali, qua pascitur
perforando reliqua conchylia: tanta duritia aculeo
est. aquae dulcedine necantur et sicubi flumen
inmergitur, alioqui captae et diebus quinquagenis
vivunt saliva sua. conchae omnes celerrime cres-
cunt, praecipue purpurae; anno magnitudinem
implent.
1 Mayhoff : est in.
The references are to the purple stripes on the togas of
consuls, boys of noble family, senators (who had the broad
stripe), equites, and priests performing sacrifices.
248
BOOK IX. LX. 125-128
them to discharge a sort of waxy viscous slime. The
murex also does this in a similar manner, but it has
the famous flower of purple, sought after for dyeing
robes, in the middle of its throat : here there is a
white vein of very scanty fluid from which that
precious dye, suffused with a dark rose colour, is
drained, but the rest of the body produces nothing.
People strive to catch this fish alive, because it
discharges this juice with its life; and from the
larger purples they get the juice by stripping off
the shell, but they crush the smaller ones alive with
the shell, as that is the only way to make them dis-
gorge the juice. The best Asiatic purple is at Tyre,
the best African is at Meninx and on the Gaetulian
coast of the Ocean, the best European in the district
of Sparta. The official rods and axes of Rome clear purple robes
it a path, and it also marks the honourable estate Qff state '
boyhood ; it distinguishes the senate from the knight-
hood, it is called in to secure the favour of the gods a ;
and it adds radiance to every garment, while in a
triumphal robe it is blended with gold. Consequently
even the mad lust for the purple may be excused ;
but what is the cause of the prices paid for purple-
shells, which have an unhealthy odour when used for
dye and a gloomy tinge in their radiance resembling
an angry sea?
The purple's tongue is an inch long; whtn More details
feeding it uses it for piercing a hole in the other
kinds of shell-fish, so hard is its point. These fish
die in fresh water and wherever a river discharges
into the sea, but otherwise when caught they live as
much as seven weeks on their own sHme. All shell-
fish grow with extreme rapidity, especially the
purple-fish; they reach their full size in a year.
249
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
129 LXI. Quod si hactenus transcurrat expositio
fraudatam profecto se luxuria credat nosque indili-
gentiae damnet. quamobrem persequemur etiam
officinas, ut tamquam in victu frugum noscitur ratio
sic omnes qui istis gaudent in 1 praemio 2 vitae suae
130 calleant. concharum ad purpuras et conchylia
eadem enim est materia, sed distat temperamento
duo sunt genera : bucinum minor concha ad simili-
tudinem eius qua bucinae 3 sonus editur, unde et
causa nominis, 4 rotunditate oris in margine incisa;
alterum purpura vocatur canaliculate procurrente
rostro et canaliculi latere introrsus tubulate, qua
proferatur lingua; praeterea clavatum est ad tur-
binem usque aculeis in orb em septenis fere, qui non
sunt bucino, sed utrisque orbes totidem quot habeant
annos. bucinum nonnisi petris adhaeret circaque
scopulos legitur.
131 Purpurae nomine alio pelagiae vocantur. earum
genera plura pabulo et solo discreta : lutense putre
limo et algense nutriturn 5 alga, vilissimum utrumque.
melius taeniense in taeniis maris collectum, hoc
quoque tamen etiamnum levius atque dilutius.
calculense appellatur a calculo in 6 mari mire aptum
conchyliis; et longe optimum purpuris dialutense,
1 in add. MayJioff. 2 v.L praemia.
3 HacJcham : bncini. * MayJioff : nomini.
250
BOOK IX. LXI. 129-131
LXI. But if having come to this point our exposi- Kinds of
tion were to pass over elsewhere, luxury would ^"^
undoubtedly believe itself defrauded and would find pwpte a *
us guilty of remissness. For this reason we will scar e yes '
pursue the subject of manufactures as well, so that
just as the principle of foodstuffs is learnt in food,
so everybody who takes pleasure in the class of things
in question may be well-informed on the subject of
that which is the prize of their mode of life. Shell-
fish supplying purple dyes and scarlets the material
of these is the same but it is differently blended
are of two kinds: the whelk is a smaller shell
resembling the one that gives out the sound of a
trumpet, whence the reason of its name, by means
of the round mouth incised in its edge ; the other
is called the purple, with a channelled beak
jutting out and the side of the channel tube-shaped
inwards, through which the tongue can shoot out;
moreover it is prickly all round, with about seven
spikes forming a ring, which are not found in the
whelk, though both shells have as many rings
as they are years old. The trumpet-shell clings
only to rocks and can be gathered round crags.
Another name used for the purple is ' pelagia. 3 Their
There are several kinds, distinguished by their JSgj* 8 **
food and the ground they live on. The mud-
purple feeds on rotting slime and the seaweed-
purple on seaweed, both being of a very common
quality. A better kind is the reef-purple, collected
on the reefs of the sea, though this also is lighter and
softer as well. The pebble-purple is named after a
pebble in the sea, and is remarkably suitable for
purple dyes; and far the best for these is the
5 MayJioff : emitritum. 6 in add. MayTwff.
251
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
132 id est vario soli genere pastum. capiuntur autem
purpurae parvulis rarisque textu veluti nassis in
alto iactis. inest his esca, clusiles mordacesque
conchae, ceu mitulos videmus. has semineces sed
redditas mari avido hiatu reviviscentes appetunt
purpurae porrectisque linguis infestant. at illae
aculeo extimulatae claudunt sese comprimuntque
mordentia. its pendentes aviditate sua purpurae
tolluntur.
133 LXII. Capi eas post cards ortum aut ante vernum
tempus utilissimum, quoniam, cum cerificavere, fluxos
habent sucos. sed id tinguentium officinae ignorant,
cum summa vertatur in eo. eximitur postea vena
quam diximus, cui addi salem necessarium, sextarios
ferme centenas in libras; macerari triduo iustum,
quippe tanto maior vis quanto recentior, fervere in
plumbOj singulasque amphoras aquae, 1 quingua-
genas 2 medicaminis libras aequali 3 ac modico vapore
torreri adducto 4 longinquae fornacis cnniculo. it a
despumatis subinde carnibus quas adhaesisse venis
necesse est, decimo ferme die liquata cortina vellus
elutriatum mergitur in experimentum et, donee
spei satis fiat, uritur liquor, rubens color nigrante
134 deterior. quinis lana potat horis rursusque mergitur
1 Deilefsen : amphoras centenas atque.
2 edd. noTWulU : quingentenas.
3 Jan : aequari.
4 adducto (an ez aeneo ?) MayTxff : et ideo.
252
BOOK IX. LXI. 131-LXii. 134
melting-purple, that is, one fed on a varying kind sow caught,
of mud. Purples are taken in a sort of little
lobster-pot of fine ply thrown into deep water.
These contain bait, cockles that close with a snap,
as we observe that mussels do. These when half-
killed but put back into the sea gape greedily as they
revive and attract the purples, which go for them
with outstretched tongues. But the cockles when
pricked by their spike shut up and nip the
creatures nibbling them. So the purples hang
suspended because of their greed and are lifted
out of the water.
LXII. It is most profitable for them to be taken Preparation
after the rising of the dog-star or before spring-time, lie^i^of
since when they have waxed themselves over with varieties.
slime, they have their juices fluid. But this fact is
not known to the dyers' factories, although it is
of primary importance. Subsequently the vein
of which we spoke a is removed, and to this salt
has to be added, about a pint for every hundred
pounds; three days is the proper time for it to be
steeped (as the fresher the salt the stronger it is),
and it should be heated in a leaden pot, and with
50 Ibs. of dye to every six gallons of water kept at a
uniform and moderate temperature by a pipe brought
from a furnace some way off. This will cause it
gradually to deposit the portions of flesh which are
bound to have adhered to the veins, and after about
nine days the cauldron is strained and a fleece that
has been washed clean is dipped for a trial, and the
liquid is heated up until fair confidence is achieved.
A ruddy colour is inferior to a blackish one. The
fleece is allowed to soak for five hours and after it has
253
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
carminata, donee omnem ebibat saniem. bucinum
per se damnatur, quoniam fucum remittit : pelagic
ad modum alligatur, nimiaeque eius nigritiae dat
austeritatem illam nitoremque qui quaeritur cocci ;
ita permixtis viribus alterum altero 1 excitatur aut
135 astringitur. summa medicaminuin in M 2 libras
vellerum bucini ducenae et e pelagio cxi; ita fit
amethysti colos eximius ille. at Tyrius pelagio
primum satiatur inmatura viridique cortina, mox
permutatur in bucino. laus ei summa in color e 3
sanguinis concreti, nigricans aspectu idemque
suspectu refulgens; unde et Homero purpureus
dicitur sanguis.
136 LXIII. Purpurae usum Romae semper fuisse video,
sed Romulo in trabea : nam toga praetexta et latiore
clavo Tullum Hostilium e regibus primum usum
137 Etruscis devictis satis const at. Nepos Cornelius, qui
divi Augusti principatu obiit : ' Me/ inquit, c iuvene
violacea purpura vigebat, cuius libra denariis centum
venibat, nee multo post rubra Tarentina. huic
successit dibapha Tyria, quae in libras denariis
mille non poterat emi. hac P. Lentulus Spinther
aedilis curulis primus in praetexta usus improbabatur,
qua purpura quis non iam,' inquit, ' tricliniaria
facit ? ' Spinther aedilis fuit urbis conditae anno
1 <ab> altero ? Rackham. 2 M add. Mayhoff.
3 color est vel ut sit colore ? Mayhoff.
254
BOOK IX. LXII. 134-Lxm. 137
been carded is dipped again, until it soaks up all the
juice. The whelk by itself is not approved of, as
it does not make a fast dye; it is blended in a
moderate degree with sea-purple and it gives to its
excessively dark hue that hard and brilliant scarlet
which is in demand; when their forces are thus
mingled, the one is enlivened, or deadened as the
case may be, by the other. The total amount of
dye-stuffs required for 1,000 Ibs. of fleece is 200 Ibs.
of whelk and 111 Ibs. of sea-purple; so is produced
that remarkable amethyst colour. For Tyrian purple
the wool is first soaked with sea-purple for a prelim-
inary pale dressing, and then completely transformed
with whelk dye. Its highest glory consists in
the colour of congealed blood, blackish at first
glance but gleaming when held up to the light;
this is the origin of Homer's phrase, * blood of purple
hue.'
LXIII. I notice that the use of purple at Rome History
dates from the earliest times, but that Romulus used
it only for a cloak; as it is fairly certain that the
first of the kings to use the bordered robe and broader
purple stripe was Tullus HostiliuSj after the conquest
of the Etruscans. Cornelius Nepos, who died in the
principate of the late lamented Augustus, says : * In
my young days the violet purple dye was the
vogue, a pound of which sold at 100 denarii ; and
not much later the red purple of Taranto. This was
followed by the double-dyed Tyrian purple, which
it was impossible to buy for 1000 denarii per pound.
This was first used in a bordered robe by Publius
Lentulus Spinther, curule aedile, but met with dis-
approval, though who does not use this purple for
covering dining-couches now-a-days ? ' Spinther was
255
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
DCXCI Cicerone cos. dibapha tune dicebatur quae
bis tincta esset, veluti magnifico impendio, qualiter
nunc omnes paene commodiores purpurae tinguuntur.
138 LXIV. In conchyliata veste cetera eadem sine
bucino, praeterque ius temperatur aqua et pro
indiviso humani potus excremento; dimidia et
medicamina adduntur. sic gigrdtur laudatus ille
pallor saturitate fraudata tantoque dilutior l quanto
magis veil era esuriunt.
Pretia medicamento sunt quidem pro fertilitate
litoruna viliora, non tamen usquam pelagii centenas
Libras quinquagenos nummos excedere et bucini
139 centenos sciant qui ista mercantur inmenso. LXV.
set alia e fine initia, iuvatque ludere impendio et
lusus geminare miscendo iterumque et ipsa adult-
erare adulteria naturae, sicut testudines tinguere,
argentum auro confundere ut electra fiant, addere
his aera ut Corinthia. non est satis abstulisse gem-
mae nomen amethystum; rursum absolutus 2 ine-
briatur Tyrio, ut sit ex utroque nomen improbum
simulque luxuria duplex; et cum confecere con-
140 chylia, transire melius in Tyrium putant. paeniten-
tia hoc primum debet invenisse artifice mutante quod
damnabat ; inde ratio nata, votumque 3 factum e
vitio portentosis ingeniis et gemina demonstrata via
1 dilucidior ? edd.
2 Edd. : absolutum (abhitus ? JRacJcham).
3 -quo? Mayhoffi quisq^ue.
a The Greek name amethystos was also used of a herb sup-
posed to ward off intoxication.
b Tyriamethystus.
256
BOOK IX. LXIII. i37-Lxv. 140
aedile in the consulship of Cicero, 63 B.C. Stuff
dipped twice over used at that time to be termed
* double-dyed,' and was regarded as a lavish
extravagance, but now almost all the more
agreeable purple stuffs are dyed in this way.
LXIV. In a purple-dyed dress the rest of the
process is the same except that trumpet-shell dye is
not used, and in addition the juice is diluted with
water and with human urine in equal quantities;
and only half the amount of dye is used. This
produces that much admired paleness, avoiding deep
colouration, and the more diluted the more the
fleeces are stinted.
The prices for dyestuff vary in cheapness with the
productivity of the coasts, but those who buy them
at an enormous price should know that deep-sea
purple nowhere exceeds 50 sesterces and trumpet-
shell 100 sesterces per 100 Ibs. LXV. But every Elaborate
end leads to fresh starts, and men make a sport SJJJf**^
of spending, and like doubling their sports by com-
bining them and re-adulterating nature's adultera-
tions, for instance staining tortoiseshells, alloying gold
with silver to produce amber-metal ware, and adding
copper to these to make Corinthian ware. It is not
enough to have stolen for a dye the name of a gem,
* sober-stone/ a but when finished it is made drunk
again with Tyrian dye, so as to produce from the com-
bination an outlandish name b and a twofold luxury at
one time ; and when they have made shell-dye, they
think it an improvement for it to pass into Tyrian.
Repentance must have discovered this first, the
artificer altering a product that he disapproved of;
but reason sprang up next, and a defect was turned
into a success by marvellous inventions, and a double
257
VOL. ni. s
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
luxuriae, ut color alius operiretur alio, suavior it a
fieri leniorque dictus ; quin et terrena miscere cocco-
que tinctum Tyrio tinguere ut fieret hysginum.
141 coccum Galatiae rubens granum, ut dicemus in ter-
restribus aut circa Emeritam Lusitaniae in maxima
laude est. verum, ut simul peragantur nobilia
pigmenta, anniculo grano languidus sucus, idem
a quadrimo evanidus : ita nee recenti vires neque
senescenti.
Abunde tractata est ratio qua se virorum iuxta
feminarumque forma credit amplissimam fieri.
142 LXVL Concharum generis et pina est. nascitur
in limosis, subrecta semper nee umquam sine comite
quem pinoteren vocant, alii pinophylacem ; id est
squilla parva, aliubi cancer, dapis adsectator. pandit
se pina luminibus orbum corpus intus minutis piscibus
praebens; adsultant illi protinus et, ubi licentia
audacia crevit, implent earn, hoc tempus speculatus
index morsu levi significat. ilia conpressu 1 quicquid
inclusit exanimat partemque socio tribuit,
143 LXVII, Quo magis miror quodam existimasse
aquatilibus nullum inesse sensum. novit torpedo
vim suam ipsa non torpens, mersaque in limo se
1 CJiiffl. : compresso.
The COCCVA is really a scale-insect which lives on the oak j it
resembles a scale pressed against the stem. Pliny and most of
the ancients confused it with seed.
258
BOOK IX. LXV. 140-Lxvn. 143
path pointed out for luxury, so that one colour might
be concealed by another, being pronounced to be
made sweeter and softer by this process ; and also a
method to blend minerals, and dye with Tyrian a
fabric already dyed with scarlet, to produce hysgine
colour. The kermes, a a red kernel of Galatia,
as we shall say when dealing with the products of the
earth, or else in the neighbourhood of Merida in
Lusitania, is most approved. But, to finish off these
famous dyes at once, the kernel when a year old has
a viscous juice, and also after it is four years old the
juice tends to disappear, so that it lacks strength
both when fresh and when getting old.
We have amply dealt with the method whereby
the beauty of men and women alike believes that it is
rendered most abundant.
LXVI. The genus shell-fish also includes the fan- M***"*
i T & T -i i - and its
mussel. It occurs in marshy places, always m an attendant the
upright position, and never without a companion sqmlL
which is called the pea-crab, or by others the sea-
pen-protector : this is a small shrimp, elsewhere called
a crab, its attendant at the feast. The sea-pen
opens, presenting the dark inside of its body to the
tiny fishes; these at once dart forward, and when
their courage has grown by license, they fill up the
sea-pen. Her marker having watched for this
moment gives her a signal with a gentle nip. She
by shutting up kills whatever she has enclosed, and
bestows a share on her partner.
LXVII. This makes me all the more surprised that ^ft****
some people have held the view that aquatic animals state, sling-
possess no senses. The torpedo knows her power, '
and does not herself possess the torpor she inflicts ;
she hides by plunging into the mud, and snaps up
259
s2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
occult at piscimn qui securi sup ernat antes obtorpuere
corrlpiens. hums iecori teneritas nulla praefertur.
nee minor sollertia ranae quae in mari piscatrix
vocatur: eminentia sub oculis cornicula turbato
limo exerit, adsultantibus pisciculis retrahens, 1
144 donee tarn prope accedant ut adsiliat. simili modo
squatina et rhombus abditi pinnas exertas movent
specie vermiculorum, item quae vocantur raiae.
nam pastinaca latrocinatur ex occulto transeuntes
radio, quod telum est ei, %ens ; argument a sollertiae
huius, quod tardissimi piscium hi mugilem velocissi-
mum habentes in ventre reperiuntur.
145 Scolopendrae terrestribus similes quas centipedes
vocant hamo devorato omnia interanea evomunt
donee hamum egerant, deinde resorbent. at vulpes
marinae simili in periculo gluttiunt amplius usque ad
infirma lineae qua facile praerodant. cautius qui
glanis vocatur aversos mordet hamos nee devorat sed
esca spoliat.
Grassatur aries ut latro, et nunc grandiorum
navium in salo stantium occultatus umbra si quern
nandi voluptas invitet expectat, nunc elato extra
aquam capite piscantium cumbas speculatur occul-
tusque adnatans mergit.
146 LXVIII. Equidem et iis inesse sensum arbitror
quae neque animalium neque fruticum sed tertiam
1 retrahens aut praetrahens edd. : pertralieiis.
a Obviously a worm, such as Eunice or Nereis.
6 Probably dog-fish.
c Probably a dolphin.
260
BOOK IX. LXVII. 143-LXVin. 146
any fish that have received a shock while swim-
ming carelessly above her. No tender morsel is
preferred to the liver of this fish. The sea-frog
called the angler-fish is equally cunning : it stirs up
the mud and puts out the little horns that project
under its eyes, drawing them back when little fishes
frisk towards them till they come near enough for it
to spring upon them. In a similar manner the skate
and the turbot while in hiding put out their fins and
wave them about to look like worms, and so also do
the fish called rays. For the sting-ray acts as a
freebooter, from its hiding place transfixing fish
passing by with its sting, which is its weapon ; there
are proofs of this cunning, because these fish, though
the slowest there are, are found with mullet, the
swiftest of all fish, in their belly.
The scokpendra* which resembles the land animal
called the centipede, when it has swallowed a hook
vomits up the whole of its inwards until it succeeds in
disgorging it, and then sucks them back again. Sea-
foxes 6 on the other hand in a similar emergency gulp
down more of the line till they reach its weak part
where they may easily gnaw it off. The fish called the
catfish more cautiously nibbles at hooks from behind
and strips them of the bait without swallowing them.
The sea-ram c goes around like a brigand, and now
hides in the shadow of the larger vessels riding at
anchor and waits in case somebody may be tempted
by the pleasure of a swim, now raises its head out of
the water and watches for fishermen's boats, and
secretly swimming up to them sinks them.
LXVIII. For my own part I hold the view that
even those creatures which have not got the nature
of either animals or plants, but some third nature
261
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
quandam ex utroque naturam habent, urticis dico et
spongeis.
Urticae noctu vagantur locumque 1 mutant,
carnosae frondis his natura, et came vescuntur. vis
pruritu mordax est eademque quae terrestris
urticae. contrahit ergo se quam maxime rigens ac
pracnatante pisciculo frondem suam spargit com-
147 plectensque devorat. alias marcenti similis et
iactari se passa fluctu algae vice, contactos piscium
attrituque petrae scalpentes pruritum invadit. eadem
noctu pectines et echinos perquirit. 2 cum admoveri
sibi manum sentit, color em mutat et contrahitur.
tacta uredinem emittit, 3 paulumque si fuit intervalli,
absconditur. ora ei in radice esse traduntur,
excrementa per summa tenui fistula reddi.
148 LXIX. Spongearum tria genera accepimus:
spissum ac praedurum et asperum tragos 4 vocatur,
minus 5 spissum et molius manos, tenue densumque,
ex quo penicillij Achillium. nascuntur omnes in
petris, aluntur conchis, pisce, limo. intellectum
inesse his apparet, quia, ubi avulsorem 6 sensere,
contractae multo difBcilius abstrahuntur. hoc idem
149 fluctu pulsante faciunt. vivere esca manifesto con-
chae minutae in his repertae ostendunt. circa Toro-
nem vesci illis avulsas etiam aiunt et ex relictis
1 MayJioff ex Aristotele : noctnque.
2 Lacunam per . . . quaerit Mayhoff.
3 MayJioff? i mittit.
4 Mayhoff: tragos id.
5 minus add* Hermokms.
8 avolsurum ? Mayhoff.
262
BOOK IX. LXVIII. i46-Lxix. 149
derived from both, possess sense-perception I mean
jelly-fish and sponges.
Jelly-fish roam about and change their place by
night. These have the nature of a fleshy leaf, and
they feed on flesh. The itch they cause has a biting
power, just like that of the land nettle. Consequently
this creature draws itself in as stiffly as possible and
when a little fish swims in front of it spreads out its
leaf and enfolding it devours it. In other cases it
looks as if it were withering up, and allows itself to
be tossed about by the waves like seaweed, and
attacks any fish that touch it as they try to scrape
away the itch by rubbing against a rock. The same
creature by night hunts for scallops and sea-urchins.
When it feels a hand approach it, it changes colour
and draws itself together. When touched it sends
out a turning sting, and if there is a moment's
interval hides. It is reported to have mouths in its
root and to evacuate its excretions by a narrow tube
through its topmost parts.
LXIX. We are informed that there are three The sponge
kinds of sponge : a thick and very hard and rough ^UX?
one is called goat-thorn sponge, a less thick and ***
f. T & i ,1 p ^ habitat.
softer one loose-sponge, and a thin one ot close
texture, used for making paint-brushes, Achilles
sponge. They all grow on rocks, and feed on shells,
fish and mud. These creatures manifestly possess
intelligence, because when they are aware of a sponge-
gatherer they contract and make it much more
difficult to detach them. They do the same when
much beaten by the waves. The tiny shells found
inside them clearly show that they five by eating
food. It is said that in the neighbourhood of Torone
they can be fed on these shell-fish even after they
263
PLINY; NATURAL HISTORY
radicibus recrescere in petris; cruoris quoque in-
haeret colos, Africis praecipue quae generantur in
Syrtibus. maximae fiunt manoe sed mollissimae
circa Lyciam, in profundo autem nee ventoso mol-
liores; in Hellesponto asperae, et densae circa
Maleam. putrescunt in apricis locis, ideo optimae in
gurgitibus. viventibus idem qui madentibus nigri-
150 cans colos. adhaerent nee parte nee totae; in-
tersunt enim fistulae quaedam inanes quaternae fere
aut quinae, per quas pasci existimantur. sunt et
aliae, sed superne concretae ; et subesse membrana
quaedam radicibus earum intellegitur. vivere
constat longo tempore. pessimum omnium genus
est earum quae aplysiae vocantur, quia eiui non
possunt, in quibus magnae sunt fistulae et reliqua
densitas spissa.
151 LXX. Camcularum maxime multitudo circa eas
urinantes gravi periculo infestat. ipsi ferunt et
nubem quandam crassescere super capita (animal
id x planorum piscium simile 2 ) prementem eos
arcentemque a reciprocando, et ob id stilos praea-
cutos lineis adnexos habere sese, quia nisi perfossae
ita non recedant caliginis et pavoris, ut arbitror,
opere: nubem enim et nebulam, cuius nomine id
1 DeUefsen : animali. 2 Rackham : similem.
a la the Gulf of Sidra and the Gulf of Cabes.
6 Literally * unwashable.*
c Probably the large ray.
264
BOOK IX. LXIX. i49~Lxx. 151
have been pulled off the rocks, and that fresh sponges
grow again on the rocks from the roots left there ;
also the colour of blood remains on them, especially
on the African ones that grow on the Sandbanks. a
Very large but very soft thin sponges grow round
Lycia, though those in deep aqd calm water are
softer ; the rough kind grows ir\ the Dardanelles,
and the close-textured round Cape Malea. Sponges
decay in sunny places, and consequently the best
are found in deep pools. Live sponges have the same
blackish colour as sponges in use have when wet.
They do not cling to the rock with a particular part
nor with their entire surface, for they have certain
empty tubes, about four or five in number, running
through them, through which it is believed that they
take their food. They also have other tubes, but
these are closed at the upper end ; and it is under-
stood that there is a sort of thin skin on the under
side of their roots. It is established that they live
a long time. The worst of all the species of sponge
is one called in Greek the dirty 5 sponge, because it
cannot be cleaned; it contains large tubes, and
the rest of it is of a very close texture
LXX. The number of dog-fish specially swarming Diving for
round sponges beset the men that dive for them with s ^^^ th
grave danger. These persons also report that a sort dog-fish.
of * cloud c thickens above their heads this a live
creature resembling flat-fish pressing them down
and preventing them from getting back, and that
because of this they have very sharp spikes attached
to cords, because the * clouds ' will not withdraw
unless stabbed through in this way this story being
the result, as I believe, of darkness and fear; for
nobody has ever heard of any such creature in the
265
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
malum appellant, inter animalia haut ullam comperit
152 quisquam. cum caniculis atrox dimicatio ; inguina
et calces omnemque candorem corporum appetunt.
salus Tina in adversas eundi ultroque terrendi ; pavet
enim hominem aeque ac terret, et ita sors * aequa
in gurgite. lit ad summa aquae ventum est, ibi peri-
culum anceps, adempta ratione contra eundi dum
conetur emergere ; et salus omnis in sociis. funem
illi religatum ab umeris eius trahunt; hunc
dimicans, ut sit periculi signum, laeva quatit, dextera
153 adprehenso stilo in pugna est. modicus alias trac-
tatus : ut prope carinam ventum est, nisi praeceleri
vi repente eripiunt, 2 absumi spectant. ac saepe iam
subducti e manibus auferuntur, si non trahentium
opem conglobato corpore in pilae modum ipsi
adiuvere. protendunt quidem tridentis alii; sed
monstro sollertia est navigium sub eundi atque ita e
tuto proeliandi. omnis ergo cura ad speculandum
hoc malum insumitur ; certissima est securitas vidisse
pianos pisces, quia numquam sunt ubi maleficae
bestiae, qua de causa urinantes sacros appellant eos.
154 LXXI. Silicea testa inclusis fatendum est nullum
esse sensum, ut ostreis. multis eadem natura quae
1 Mayhoff : et in frons. 2 Radcharn, : rapuit.
266
BOOK IX. LXX. 151-Lxxi. 154
list of animals as the * cloud ' or * fog,' which is the
name the divers give to this plague. Divers have
fierce fights with the dog-fish ; these attack their loins
and heels and all the white parts of the body. The
one safety lies in going for them and frightening
them by taking the offensive: for a dog-fish is as
much afraid of a man as a man is of it, and so they
are on equal terms in deep water. When they come
to the surface, then the man is in critical danger, as
the policy of taking the offensive is not available
while he is trying to get out of the water, and his
only safety is in his comrades. These haul on the
rope tied to his shoulders ; this, as he carries on the
duel, he shakes with his left hand to give a signal
of danger, while his right hand grasps his dagger
and is occupied in fighting. Most of the time they
haul gently, but when he gets near the boat, unless
with a quick heave they suddenly snatch him out
of the water, they have to look on while he is made
away with. And often when divers have already
begun to be hauled up they are snatched out of
their comrades' hands, unless they have themselves
supplemented the aid of those hauling by curling up
into a ball. Others of the crew of course thrust
out harpoons, but the vast beast is crafty enough to
go under the vessel and so carry on the battle in
safety. Consequently divers devote their whole atten-
tion to keeping a watch against this disaster ; the most
reliable token of safety is to have seen some flat-fish,
which are never found where these noxious creatures
are on account of which divers call them the holy fish.
LXXI. It must be agreed that creatures enclosed ^^
in a flinty shell, such as oysters, have no senses,
Many have the same nature as a bush, for instance
267
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
frutici, ut holothuriis, pulmonibus, stellis. adeoque
nihil non gignitur in mari ut cauponarum etiam
aestiva animalia, pernici molesta saltu aut quae
capillus maxime celat, exsistant ibi l et circumglobata
escae saepe extrahantur; quae causa somnum pis-
cium in mari noctibus infestare existimatur. quibus-
dam vero ipsis innascuntur, quo in numero chalcis
accipitur.
155 LXXII. Nee venena cessant dira, ut in lepore qui in
Indico mari etiam tactu pestilens vomitum dissolu-
tionemque stomach! protinus creat, in nostro offa
informis color e tantum lepori similis, in Indis et
magnitudine et pilo, duriore tantum; nee vivus ibi
capitur. aeque pestiferum animal araneus spinae in
dorso aculeo noxius. sed nullum usquam execrabilius
quam radius super caudam eminens trygonis quam
nostri pastinacam appellant, quincunciali magni-
tudine ; arbores infixus radici necat, arma ut telum
perforat vi ferri et veneni malo.
156 LXXIII. Morbos universa genera piscium,ut cetera
animalia etiam fera, non accipimus sentire ; verum
aegrotare singulos manifestum facit aliquorum
macies cum in eodem genere praepingues alii capian-
tur.
157 LXXIV. Quonam modo generent, desiderium et
1 ibi add. Raclcham.
This chapter contains a remarkable mixture of truth and
falsehood.
268
BOOK IX. LXXI. 154-Lxxiv. 157
the sea-cucumber, the sea-lung, the starfish. And to The sea-fea.
such an extent is it the case that everything grows
in the sea, that even the creatures found in inns in
summer-time, those that plague us with a quick
jump or those that hide chiefly in the hair, occur
there, and are often drawn out of the water clustering
round the bait; and their irritation is thought to
disturb the sleep of fish in the sea at night. Indeed
on some kinds of fish these vermin actually breed
as parasites; the herring is believed to be one of
these.
LXXII. Nor are there wanting dire poisons, as in Poisonous
the sea-hare which in the Indian Ocean infects even fls7ies -
by its touch, immediately causing vomiting and
laxity of the stomach, and in our own seas the
shapeless lump resembling a hare in colour only,
whereas the Indian variety is also like a hare in size
and in fur, only its fur is harder; and there it is
never taken alive. An equally pestiferous creature
is the weaver, which wounds with the sharp point
of its dorsal fin. But there is nothing in the world
more execrable than the sting projecting above the
tail of the sting-ray which our people call the
parsnip-fish; it is five inches long, and kills trees
when driven into the root, and penetrates armour like
a missile, with the force of steel and with deadly
poison.
LXXIIL We are not told that the various kinds of w** f
fish suffer frorh endemic diseases, as do all other even
wild animals ; but that individuals among them are
liable to illness is proved by the emaciated condition
of some fish contrasted with the extreme fatness of
others of the same kind when caught. ^^
LXXIV. a The curiosity and wonder of mankind does sexual
reproduction.
269
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
admiratio hominum differri non patitur. pisces
attritu ventrium coeunt tanta celeritate ut visum
fallant, delphini et reliqua cete simili modo et paulo
diutius. femina piscis coitus tempore marem sequi-
tur ventrem eius rostro pulsans, sub partum l mares
feminas similiter ova vescentes earum. nee satis est
generation! per se coitus, nisi editis ovis interversando
mares vitale adsperserint virus, non omnibus id
contingit ovis in tanta multitudine ; alioqui repleren-
tur maria et stagna, cum singuli uteri innumerabilia
concipiant.
158 Piscium ova in mari crescunt, quaedam summa cele-
ritate, ut murenarum, quaedam paulo tardius.
plani piscium quibus cauda non est 2 aculeatique et
testudines in coitu superveniunt, polypi crine uno
feminae naribus adnexo, saepiae et lolligines linguis,
componentes inter se bracchia et in contrarium
nantes ; ore et pariunt. sed polypi in terram verso
capite coeunt, reliqua mollium tergis ut canes, item
159 locustae et squillae, cancri ore. ranae superveniunt,
prioribus pedibus alas feminae mare adprehendente,
posterioribus clunes. pariunt minimas carnes nigras,
quas gyrinos vocant, oculis tantum et cauda insignes ;
mox pedes figurantur cauda findente se in posteriores.
1 Gden : parfra.
2 Lacwnam hie MayJioff.
270
BOOK IX. LXXIV. 157-159
not allow us to postpone the consideration of these
animals* method of reproduction. Fish couple by
rubbing their bellies together so quickly as to escape
the sight ; dolphins and the rest of the large marine
species couple in a similar manner, but with rather
longer contact. At the coupling season the female
fish pursues the male, nudging his belly with her nose,
but directly after the eggs are born the males similarly
pursue the females and eat their eggs. Copulation
is not enough in itself to cause the birth of offspring,
unless when the eggs are laid the males swim to and
fro sprinkling them with life-giving milt. This is
not achieved with all the eggs in so great a multitude
otherwise, the seas and marshes would be com-
pletely filled, since the uterus of a single fish holds
a countless number of eggs.
Fishes' eggs in the sea grow in size, some with
extreme rapidity, for instance those of the murena,
some a little more slowly. Flat fish not possessing
a tail, and sting-ray and tortoises, cover the
female in mating, polyps couple by attaching a single
feeler to the female's nostrils, the two varieties of
cuttle-fish with their tongues, linking their arms
together and swimming in opposite directions ; they
also spawn through the mouth. But polyps couple
with their head turned towards the ground, all the
other soft fishes with their backs for instance sea-
dogs, and also langoustes and prawns ; crabs with their
mouth. Frogs cover the female, the male grasping
her shoulder-blades with his fore-feet and her but-
tocks with his hind feet. They spawn very small
lumps of dark flesh that are called tadpoles, possessing
only eyes and a tail ; but soon feet are formed by
the tail dividing into two hind legs. And strange
271
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
minimque, semestri vita resolvuntur in limum nullo
cernente, et rursus vernis aquis renascuntur quae
fuere, naturae perinde occulta ratione, cum omnibus
160 annis id eveniat. et mituli et pectines sponte
naturae in harenosis proveniunt ; quae durioris testae
sunt, ut murices, purpurae, salivario lentore, sicut
acescente umore culices ; apua spuma maris incales-
cente cum admissus est imber; quae vero siliceo
tegmine operiuntur, ut ostrea, putrescente limo aut
spuma circa navigia diutius stantia defixosque palos
et lignum maxime. nuper compertum in ostreariis
umorem his fetificum lactis modo effluere/ anguillae
atterunt se scopulis, ea strigmenta vivescunt, nee alia
161 est earum procreatio. piscium diversa genera
non coeunt praeter squatinam et raiam, ex quibus
nascitur priore parte raiae similis, et nomen ex utro-
que compositum apud Graecos trahit.
162 Quaedam tempore anni gignuntur et in umore ut
in terra : vere pectines, limaces, hirudines ; eadem
tempore evanescunt. piscium lupus et trichias bis
anno parit, et saxatiles omnes ; nonnulli x ter, ut 2
chalcis, cyprini sexiens, scorpaenae bis ac sargi, vere
et autumno, ex planis squatina bis sola, autumno,
occasu vergiliarum ; plurimi piscium tribus mensibus
Aprilij Maio, lunio ; salpae autumno ; sargi, torpedo,
1 Detlefsen : non mulli aut mulli.
2 ut Mayhoff : et.
a Rhinobotos, from pCvij and paras.
272
BOOK IX. LXXIV. 159-162
to say, after six months of life they melt invisibly
back into mud, and again in the waters of spring-
time are reborn what they were before, equally
owing to some hidden principle of nature, as it occurs
every year. Also mussels and scallops are produced wan-sexual
by spontaneous generation in sandy waters ; fish with re P rodllctwn '
harder shells, like the two varieties of purple-fish,
are generated by a sticky juice like saliva, as gnats
are by moisture turning sour; the anchovy by sea-
foam growing warm when rain gets into it ; but fish
protected by a flinty covering, like oysters, are
generated by rotting mud, or by the foam round
ships that stay moored for some time, and especially
round stakes fixed in the ground, and timber. It
has recently been discovered in oyster-beds that a
fertilizing moisture flows out of these fish like milk.
Eels rub against rocks and the scrapings come to life ;
this is their only way of breeding. Different kinds
of fish do not mate together, except the skate and
the ray, the cross between which is like a ray in
front, and bears in Greece a name a derived from the
names of both parents.
Some creatures are born at a fixed season of the Breeding-
year, water species as well as those on land : scallops s
and slugs and leeches in the spring ; these also pass
away at a fixed season. Among fish the wolf-fish
and the sardine breed twice a year, and so do all the
rock-fish ; some breed three times, for instance the
herring; carp six times; sea-scorpions and sargi
twice, in spring and autumn : of the flat fish only the
skate twice, in the autumn and at the setting of the
Pleiads; most fish in the three months of April,
May and June; the stockfish in the autumn, the
sargus, the torpedo and the squalus at the season
273
VOL. m. T
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
squall circa aequinoctium, molles vere, saepia omni-
bus mensibus : ova eius glutino atramenti ad speciem
uvae cohaerentia masculus prosequitur adflatu, alias
163 sterilescunt. polypi hieme coeunt, pariunt vere ova
tortili vibrata pampino, tanta fecunditate ut multitu-
dinem ovorum occisi non recipiant cavo capitis quo
praegnantes tulere. ea excludunt L die, e quibus
164 multa propter numerum intercidunt. locustae et
reliqua tenuioris crustae ponunt ova subter ipsa l
atque ita incubant: polypus femina modo in ovis
sedet, modo cavernam cancellato bracchiorum
inplexu claudit. saepia in terreno parit inter
harundines aut sicubi enata alga, excludit quint o
decimo die. lolligines in alto conserta ova edunt ut
saepiae. purpurae, murices eiusdemque generis
vere pariunt. echini ova pleniluniis habent hieme,
et cocleae hiberno tempore nascuntur.
165 LXXV. Torpedo octogenos fetus habens invenitur,
eaque intra se parit ova praemollia, in alium locum
uteri transferens atque ibi excludens; simili modo
omnia quae cartilaginea appellavimus : ita fit ut sola
piscium et animal pariant et ova concipiant. silurus
mas solus omnium edita custodit ova, saepe et
quinquagenis diebus, ne absumantur ab aliis.
ceterae feminae in triduo excludunt si mas attigit.
1 Mayhoff ex Aristotde : super ova.
a See 78.
274
BOOK IX. LXXIV. i62-LXxv. 165
of the equinox ; soft fish in the spring ; the cuttle-
fish in all the months its eggs stick together with
an inky gum like a bunch of grapes, and the male
directs his breath upon them, otherwise they are
barren. Polyps mate in winter and lay eggs in
spring that cluster in a twisting coil ; and they are
so prolific that when they are killed the cavity of
their head will not hold the multitude of eggs that
they carried in it when pregnant. They lay them
after seven weeks } many of them perishing because
of their number. Langoustes and the rest of the
species with rather thin shells deposit their eggs
underneath them and so hatch them; the female
polyp now sits on the eggs and now forms a closed
cavern with her tentacles intertwined in a lattice.
The sepia lays on land among reeds or wherever
there is seaweed growing, and hatches after a fort-
night. The cuttle-fish produces its eggs in deep
water clustered together like those of the sepia.
The purple-fish, the murex and their kind spawn
in spring. Sea-urchins have eggs at the full moons
in winter, and snails are born in the winter time.
LXXV. The electric ray is found having broods ^^ io
numbering eighty; also it produces exceedingly / p ectes of
small eggs inside it, shifting them to another part of &*
the womb and emitting them there; and similarly
all the species that we have designated a cartilaginous :
thus it comes about that these are the only fish
kinds that are both viviparous and oviparous.
With the catfish alone of all species the male
guards the eggs, often for as long as 50 days at
a time, to prevent their being eaten by other fish.
The females of all the other species spawn in three
days if a male has touched them.
275
T2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
166 LXXVI. Acus sive belone unus piscium dehiscente
propter multitudinem utero parit ; a partu coalescit
vulnus, quod et in caecis serpentibus tradunt. mus
marinns in terra scrobe effosso parit ova et rursus
obruit terra, tricesimo die refossa aperit fetumque in
aquam ducit.
LXXVII. Erythini et channae volvas habere
traduntur, qui trochos appellatur a Graecis ipse se
inire. fetus omnium aquatilium inter initia visu
carent.
167 LXXVIII. Aevi piscium memorandum nuper
exemplum accepimus. Pausilypum villa est Cam-
paniae haut procul Neapoli ; in ea in Caesaris piscinis
a Polione Vedio coniectum piscem sexagensimum
post annum expirasse scribit Annaeus Seneca, duo-
bus aliis aequalibus eius ex eodem genere etiam tune
viventibus. quae mentio piscinarum admonet ut
paulo plura dicamus hac de re priusquam digrediamur
ab aquatilibus.
168 LXXIX. Ostrearum vivaria primus omnium
Sergius Grata invenit in Baiano aetate L, Crassi
oratoris, ante Marsicum bellum, nee gulae causa sed
avaritiae, magna vectigalia tali ex ingenio suo perci-
piens, ut qui primus pensiles invenerit balineas, ita
mangonicatas villas subinde vendendo. is primus
optimum saporem ostreis Lucrinis adiudicavit,
quando eadem aquatilium genera aliubi atque aliubi
169 meliora, sicut lupi pisces in Tiber! amne inter duos
pontes, rhombus Ravennae, murena in Sicilia, elops
a See 56.
6 Unidentifiable.
e I.e. Sans Souci.
d 91-88 B.C.
* Perhaps the Snblician and the Palatine.
276
BOOK IX. LXXVI. i66-LXxix. 169
LXXVL The hornfish or garfish is the only fish
so prolific that its matrix is ruptured when it spawns ;
after spawning the wound grows together, which is
said to happen in the case of blindworms also. The
sea-mouse digs a trench in the ground to lay its eggs
in and covers it again with earth, and a month later
digs the earth up again and opens the trench and
leads its brood into the water.
LXXVII. The red mullet and the sea-perch are
said to have wombs. The species called by the Greeks
hoop-fish & is said to practise self-impregnation. The
offspring of all aquatic animals are blind at birth.
LXXVIII. There has recently been sent to us a Longevity
remarkable case of longevity in fishes. In Campania &*'
not far from Naples, there is a country house named
Posilipo c ; Annaeus Seneca writes that in Caesar's
fishponds on this property a fish thrown in by Polio
Veotius had died after reaching the age of 60, while
two others of the same breed that were of the same
age were even then living. The mention of fishponds
reminds me to say a little more on this topic before
leaving the subject of aquatic animals.
LXXIX. Oyster ponds were first invented by <
Sergius Orata on the Gulf of Baiae, in the time of
the orator Lucius Crassus, before the Marsian war<*;
his motive was not greed but avarice, and he made a
great profit out of his practical ingenuity, as he was
the first inventor of showerbaths he used to fit out
country houses in this way and then sell them. He
was the first to adjudge the best flavour to Lucrine
oystersbecause the same kinds of fish are of better
quality in different places, for example wolf-fish in the
Tiber between the two bridges , turbot at Ravenna,
lamprey in Sicily, sturgeon at Rhodes, and other kinds
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
Rhodi, et alia genera similiter, ne culinarum censura
peragatur. nondum Britannica serviebant litora
cum Grata Lucrina nobilitabat ; postea visum tanti
in extremam Italiam petere Brundisium ostreas, ac ne
lis esset inter duos sapor es, nuper excogitatum
famem longae advectionis a Brundisio conpascere in
Lucrino.
170 LXXX. Eadem aetate prior Licinius Murena
reliquorum piscium vivaria invenit, cuius deinde
exemplum nobilitas secuta est Philippi, Hortensi.
Lucullus exciso etiam monte iuxta Neapolim maiore
impendio quam villam exaedificaverat euripum et
maria admisit, qua de causa Magnus Pompeius
Xerxen togatum eum appellabat. ]XL[ HS e
piscina ea 1 defuncto illo veniere pisces.
171 LXXXL Murenarum vivarium privatim excogi-
tavit ante alios C. Hirrius, qui cenis triumphalibus
Caesaris dictatoris sex milia numero murenarum
mutua appendit; nam permutare quidem pretio
noluit aHave merce. huius villam infra 2 quam
172 modicam [XL| piscinae vendiderunt. invasit dein
singulorum piscium amor, apud Baulos in parte
Baiana piscinam habuit Hortensius orator in qua
murenam adeo dilexit ut exanimatam flesse creda-
tur. in eadem villa Antonia Drusi murenae quam
diligebat inaures addidit a cuius propter famam non-
nulli Baulos videre concupiverunt,
1 Mayhqff : XL Mi se pisimae a aut alia.
2 Mayhoffi intra.
Xerxes made a channel for his fleet through Mount
Athos.
b 46and45B.o.
e The colloquial use of video, 'go to see,' survives in
Italian, e.g. ' Vede Napoli e poi mori.'
278
BOOK IX. LXXIX. i69^Lxxxr. 172
likewise not to carry out this census of the larder
to its conclusion. The coasts of Britain were not yet
in service when Orata used to advertise the fame of
the products of the Lago Lucrino ; but subsequently
it was deemed worth while to send to the end of
Italy, to Brindisi, for oysters, and to prevent a
quarrel between the two delicacies the plan has
lately been devised of feeding away in the Lago
Lucrino the hunger caused by the long porterage
from Brindisi.
LXXX. In the same period the elder Licmius Fishponds.
Murena invented fishponds for all the other sorts of
fish, and his example was subsequently followed by
the celebrated record of Philip and Hortensius.
Lucullus had built a channel that cost more than a
country house, by actually cutting through a moun-
tain near Naples and letting in the sea ; this was why
Pompey the Great used to call him ' Xerxes a in
Eoman dress.' After his decease the fish from this
pond sold for 4,000,000 sesterces, v
LXXXI. The first person to devise a separate
pond for lampreys was Gains Hirrius, who added to
the triumphal banquets 6 of Caesar lampreys to the
number of 6000 as a loan, because he would not
exchange them for money or for any other commodity.
His less than moderate country estate was sold by
its fishponds for 4,000,000 sesterces. Subsequently
affection for individual fishes came into .fashion. At
Baculo in the Baiae district the pleader Hortensius
had a fishpond containing a lamprey which he feH
so deeply in love with that he is believed to have
wept when it expired. At the same country house
Drusus's wife Antonia adorned her favourite lamprey
with earrings, and its reputation made some people
extremely eager to visit Baculo. c
279
PLINY: NATURAL HISTOEY
173 LXXXIL Coclearum vivaria instituit Fulvius
Lippinus In Tarquiniensi paulo ante civile bellum
quod cum Pompeio Magno gestum est, distinctis
quidem generibus earum, separatim ut essent albae
quae in Reatino agro nascuntur, separatim Illyricae
quibus magnitude praecipua, Africanae quibus
174 fecunditas, Solitanae quibus nobilitas. quin et
saginam earum commentus est sapa et farre aliisque
generibus, ut cocleae quoque altiles ganeam im-
plerent : cuius artis gloriam in earn magnitudinem
perductam esse ut 1 LXXX quadrantes caperent
singularum calyces auctor est M. Varro.
175 LXXXIII, Piscium genera etiamnum a Theo-
phrasto mira produntur, circa Babylonis rigua dece-
dentibus fluviis in cavernis aquas habentibus
remanere quosdam, inde exire ad pabula pinnulis
gradient es crebro caudae motu, contraque venantes
refugere in suas cavernas et in his obverses stare,
capita eorum esse ranae marinae similia, reliquas
partes gobionum, branchias ut ceteris piscibus.
176 circa Heracleam et Cromnam et multifariam in Ponto
unum genus esse quod extremas fluminum aquas
sectetur cavernasque sibi faciat in terra atque in his
vivat, etiam reciprocis amnibus siccato litore, effodi
ergo motu demum corporum vivere eos adprobante.
177 circa eandem Heracleam [eodemque] 2 Lyco amne
1 Rackham : perducta ait. 2 seclusit MayTioff.
Begun in 49 B,C. * The genus periophtfidlmus.
280
BOOK IX. LXXXII. 173-Lxxxm. 177
LXXXII. Ponds for keeping snails were first made
by Fulvius Lippinus in the Trachina district a little
before the civil war a fought with Pompey the Great ;
indeed he kept the different kinds of snails separate,
with different compartments for the white snails
that grow in the Eieti territory and for the Illyrian
variety distinguished for size, the African for
fecundity and the Solitane for breed. Moreover he
devised a method of fattening them with new wine
boiled down and spelt and other kinds of fodder,
so that gastronomy was enriched even by fattened
oysters ; and according to Marcus Varro this osten-
tatious science was carried to such lengths that
a single snail-shell was large enough to hold 80
quarts.
LXXXIII. Moreover some wonderful kinds of fish Rema.T'kabie
are reported by Theophrastus. He says that (
where the rivers debouch around the water-meadows
of Babylon a certain fish & stays in caverns that contain
springs and goes out from them to feed, walking with
its fins by means of a repeated movement of the tail,
and guards against being caught by taking refuge in
its caves and remaining in them facing towards the
opening, and that these fishes' heads resemble a sea-
frog's and the rest of its parts a goby's, though the
gills are the same as in other fish. (2) In the neigh-
bourhood of Heraclea and Cromna and in many
parts of the Black Sea there is one kind that fre-
quents the water at the edge of rivers and makes
itself caverns in the ground and lives in these, and
also in the shore of tidal rivers when left dry by the
tide ; and consequently they are only dug up when
the movement of their bodies shows that they are
alive. (5) In the same neighbourhood of Heraclea
281
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
decedente ovis relictis in limo generari pisces qui ad
pabula petenda palpitent exiguis branchiis, quo fieri
non indigos unions, propter quod et anguillas diutius
vivere exemptas aquis, ova autem in sicco maturari
ut testudinum. eadem in Ponti regione adprehendi
glacie piscium maxime gobiones non nisi patinarum
178 calore vitalem motum fatentis. est in his quidem,
tametsi mirabilibus, 1 tamen aliqua ratio, idem
tradit in Paphlagonia effodi pisces gratissimos cibis
terrenos altis scrobibus in iis locis in quibus nullae
restagnent aquae ; miratusque 2 ipse gigni sine
coitu umoris quidem vim aliquam inesse quam puteis
arbitratur ceu vero in ullis 3 reperiantur pisces !
quicquid est hoc, certe minus admirabilem talparum
facit vitam, subterranei animalis, nisi forte vermium
terrenorum et his piscibus natura inest.
179 LXXXIV. Verum omnibus his fidem Nili inundatio
adfert omnia excedente miraculo : quippe detegente
eo musculi reperiuntur inchoato opere genitalis aquae
terraeque, iam parte corporis viventes novissima
effigie etiamnum terrena.
180 LXXXV. Nee de anthia pisce silere convenit ea
quae plerosque adverto credidisse. Chelidonias
1 Rackham : mirabilis. a v.l. miraturque,
3 Jan : vero nullis.
282
BOOK IX, LXXXIII. i77~LXxxv. 180
at the outflow of the river Lycus fishes are born from
eggs left in the mud that seek their fodder by
flapping with their little gills, and this makes them not
need moisture, which is the reason why eels also live
comparatively long when taken out of the water }
while eggs mature in a dry place, for instance
tortoise's eggs. (4) In the same region of the Black
Sea the fish most frequently caught in the ice is the
goby, which is only made to reveal the movement
of life by the heat of the saucepan. These accounts
indeed, however marvellous, do nevertheless embody
a certain principle. The same authority reports that
in Paphlagonia earth-fish extremely acceptable for
food are dug out of deep trenches in places where
there is no overflow from streams ; and after himself
expressing surprise at their being propagated with-
out coupling, he gives the view that at all events
they have a supply of moisture in them similar to
that in wells but as if fish were found in any wells 1
Whatever the fact is as to this, it certainly makes
the life of moles, an underground animal, less re-
markable, unless perhaps these fishes also possess
the nature of earth-worms.
LXXXIV. But credibility is given to all these siiewater-
statements by the flooding of the Nile, with a marvel mce '
that surpasses them all : this is that, when the river
withdraws its covering, water-mice are found with the
work of generative water and earth uncompleted
they are already alive in a part of their body, but
the most recently formed part of their structure is
still of earth.
LXXXV. Nor is it proper to omit the stories about
the antUas fish that I notice to have won general
acceptance. We have mentioned the Swallow
2 8 3 -
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
insulas diximus Asiae scopulosi maris ante promun-
turium Tauri 1 sitas; ibi frequens hie piscis et
celeriter capitur uno genere. parvo navigio et con-
colori veste eademque hora per aliquot dies con-
tinues piscator enavigat certo spatio escamque
proicit ; quicquid vero 2 mutetur suspecta fraus
praedae est, cavetque quod timuit. cum id saepe
factum est, unus aliquando consuetudine invitatus
181 anthias escam appetit. notatur Me intentione
diligenti ut auctor spei conciliatorque capturae;
neque est difficile, cum per aliquot dies solus accedere
audeat. tandem et alios 3 invenit, paulatimque
comitatior postremo greges adducit innumeros, iam
vetustissimis quibusque adsuetis piscatorem agnos-
cere et e manu cibum rapere. turn ille paulum
ultra digitos in esca iaculatiis hamum singulos
involat verius quam capit, ab umbra navis brevi
conatu rapiens 4 it a ne ceteri sentiant, alio intus
excipiente centonibus raptum ne palpitatio ulla aut
182 sonus ceteros abigat. conciliatorem nosse ad hoc
prodest, ne capiatur, fugituro in reliquum grege.
ferunt discordem socium duci insidiatum pulchre noto
cepisse malefica voluntate ; agnitum in macello a socio
cuius injuria erat et damni formulam editam con-
1 Tauri add. post ante Hermolaus, hie MayJioff.
2 Mayhoff : quicquid ex eo.
3 alios ? Mayhoff : aliquos.
4 Gelen: conatur absens.
a Now Allah. Dagh, in south-east Asia Minor.
284
BOOK IX. LXXXV. 180-182
Islands, situated off a promontory of Mt. Taurus a
in the rocky sea of Asia ; this fish is frequent there,
and is quickly caught, in one variety. A fisherman
sails out a certain distance in a small "boat, wearing
clothes that match the boat in colour., and at the
same time for several days running, and throws out
bait; but if any alteration whatever be made, the
prey suspects a trick and avoids the thing that has
frightened it. When this has been done a number
of times* at last one anthias is tempted by familiarity
to try to get the bait. This one is marked down
with careful attention as a foundation for hope and
as a decoy for a catch; and it is not difficult to
mark it, as for several days only this one ventures
to come close. At last it finds others as well, and
gradually enlarging its company finally brings shoals
too big to count, as by this time all the oldest fish
have got used to recognizing the fisherman and
snatching the bait out of his hand. Then he throws
a hook fixed in the bait a little beyond his fingers,
and catches or rather rushes them one by one,
snatching them, with a short jerk away from the
shadow of the boat so that the others may not
notice it, while another man in the boat receives
the catch in some rags so that no flapping or noise
may drive away the others. It pays to know the
decoy fish for this purpose, so that he may not
be caught, as thenceforward the shoal will swim
away. There is a story that a disaffected partner in
a fishery lay in wait for the leader fish, which was
very well known, and caught it, with malicious
intent ; Mucianus adds that it was recognized in the
market by the partner who was being victimized,
and that proceedings for damage were instituted and
285
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
demnatumque addit Mucianus aestimata lite, idem
anthi&e, cum unum hamo teneri viderint, spinis quas
in dorso serratas habent lineam secare traduntur eo
qui teneatur extendente ut praecidi possit. at inter
sargos ipse qui tenetur ad scopulos lineam terit.
183 LXXXVI. Praeter haec claros sapientia auctores
video mirari stellam in mari: ea figura est, parva
admodum caro intus, extra duriore callo. huic tam
igneum fervorem esse tradunt ut omnia in mari
contacta adurat, omnem cibum statim peragat.
quibus sit hoc cognitum experimentis baud facile
dixerim, multoque memorabilius duxerim * id cuius
experiendi cotidie occasio est.
184 LXXXVII. Concharum e genere sunt dactyli, ab
humanorum unguium similitudine appellati. his
natura in tenebris remoto lumine alio fulgere claro, 2
et quanto magis umorem habeant lucere in ore
mandentium, lucere in manibus atque etiam in solo
ac veste decidentibus guttis, ut procul dubio pateat
suci illam naturam esse quam miraremur etiam in
corpore.
185 LXXXVIIL Sunt et inimicitiarum atque
concordiae miracula. mugil et lupus mutuo odio
flagrant, conger et murena, caudam inter se praero-
1 Gden : dicerim. 2 v.L clare.
I.e. the star-fish.
286
BOOK IX. LXXXV. i82-LXxxviii. 185
a verdict given for the prosecution with damages as
assessed. Moreover it is said that when these fishes
see one of their number hooked they cut the line
with the saw-like prickles that they have on their
back, while the one held by the line draws it taut so
as to enable it to be severed. With the sargus kind
however the captive itself rubs the line against the
rocks.
LXXXVI. Besides these cases I observe that The starfish.
authors renowned for their wisdom express surprise
at there being a star in the sea : that is the shape
of the fish/ 1 which has rather little flesh inside it but
a rather hard rind outside. They say that this fish
contains such fiery heat that it scorches all the things
it touches in the sea, and digests all food immedi-
ately. I cannot readily say by what experiments
this has been ascertained, and I should consider a
fact that there is daily opportunity of experiencing
to be much more worth recording.
LXXXVII. The class shellfish includes the piddock, The pm>dc.
named finger-mussel from its resemblance to a
human finger-nail. It is the nature of these fish to
shine in darkness with a bright light when other
light is removed, and in proportion to their amount
of moisture to glitter both in the mouth of persons
masticating them and in their hands, and even on the
floor and on their clothes when drops fall from them,
making it clear beyond all doubt that their juice
possesses a property that we should marvel at even in
a solid object.
LXXXVIII. There are also remarkable facts as
their quarrels and their friendship. Violent ani- p
mosity rages between the mullet and the wolf-fish,
and between the conger and the lamprey, which fish.
287
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
dentes. polypum in tantum locust a pavet ut si
iuxta viderit omnino moriatur, locustam conger;
rursus polypum congri lacerant. Nigidius auctor est
praerodere caudam mugili lupum. eosdemque
statis 1 mensibus Concordes esse, omnes autem
186 vivere quibus caudae sic amputentur. at e contrario
aroicitiae exempla sunt, praeter ilia quorum diximus
soeietatem, ballaena et musculus, quando praegravi
superciliorum pondere obrutis eius ocuhs infestantia
magnitudinem vada praenatans demonstrat oculo-
rumque vice fungitur.
Hinc volucrum naturae dicentur.
1 v.L aestatis.
288
BOOK IX. LXXXVIII. 185-186
gnaw each other's tails. The langouste is so terrified
of the polyp that it dies if it merely sees one near
to it, and so does the conger if it sees a langouste ;
while on the other hand congers tear a polyp to
pieces. Nigidius states that the wolf-fish gnaws
at the tail of the mullet, although they are friendly
together in certain months, but that all the mullets
with their tails amputated in this way continue to
live. But on the other hand instances of friendship,
in addition to the creatures whose alliance we have
mentioned,* are the whale and the sea-mouse :
because the whale's eyes are over-burdened with
the excessively heavy weight of its brows the sea-
mouse swims in front of it and points out the
shallows dangerous to its bulky size, so acting as
a substitute for eyes.
There will follow an account of the natures of birds.
See 142.
VOL. III.
BOOK X
LIBER X
I. Sequitur natura avium, quarum grandissimi et
paene bestlarum generis struthocameli Africi vel
Aethlopici altitudinem equitis insidentis equo exce-
dunt, celeritatem vincunt, ad hoc demum datis
pinnis ut currentem adiuvent: cetero non sunt
volucres nee a terra attolluntur. 1 ungulae iis cer-
vinis similes quibus dimicant, bisulcae et conpre-
hendendis lapidibus utiles quos in fuga contra
2 sequentes ingerunt pedibus. concoquendi sine
dilectu devorata mira natura, sed non minus stoli-
ditas in tanta reliqui corporis altitudine cum colla
frutice occultaverint latere sese existimantium.
praemira 2 ex iis ova propter amplitudinem quibus-
dam habita pro vasis, conosque bellicos et galeas
adornantes pinnae.
3 II. Aethiopiae atque Indis discolores maxime et
inenarrabiles esse 3 ferunt aves et ante omnes nobilem
Arabiae phoenicem, haut scio an fabulose, unum in
toto orbe nee visum magno opere. aquilae narratur
magnitudine, auri fulgore circa colla, cetero pur-
pureus, caeruleam roseis caudam pinnis distingu-
1 MayJwffi tolluntur.
2 Dettefsen : praemia.
3 sic ? Mayhoff : Aethiopes atque Indi . . . iuenarrabiles.
a This description tallies fairly closely with, the golden
pheasant of the Par East.
292
BOOK X
I. THE next subject is the Nature of Birds. Of Birds. The
these the largest species, which almost belongs to the ostnch *
class of animals, the ostrich of Africa or Ethiopia,
exceeds the height and surpasses the speed of a
mounted horseman, its wings being bestowed upon
it merely as an assistance in running, but otherwise
it is not a flying creature and does not rise from
the earth. It has talons resembling a stag's hooves,
which it uses as weapons ; they are cloven in two,
and are useful for grasping stones which when in
flight it flings with its feet against its pursuers. Its
capacity for digesting the objects that it swallows
down indiscriminately is remarkable, but not less so
is its stupidity in thinking that it is concealed when
it has hidden its neck among bushes, in spite of the
great height of the rest of its body. The eggs of the
ostrich are extremely remarkable for their size;
some people use them as vessels, and the feathers for
adorning the crests and helmets of warriors.
II. They say that Ethiopia and the Indies possess The phoenix.
birds extremely variegated in colour and indescrib-
able, and that Arabia has one that is famous before
all others (though perhaps it is fabulous), the phoenix,
the only one in the whole world and hardly ever
seen. The story is a that it is as large as an eagle, and
has a gleam of gold round its neck and all the rest of
it is purple, but the tail blue picked out with rose-
293
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
entibus, cristis fauces, caputque plumeo apice
4 honestante. primus atque diligentissime togatorum
de eo prodidit Manilius senator ille maximis nobilis
doctrinis doctore miller, neminem exstitisse qui
viderit vescentem, sacrum in Arabia Soli esse,
vivere annis DXL, senescentem cassiae turisque
surculis cons truer e nidum, replere odoribus et
superemori ; ex ossibus deinde et medullis eius nasci
primo ceu vermiculum, inde fieri pullum, principioque
iusta funera priori reddere et totum deferre nidum
prope Panchaiam inSolis urbem et in ara ibi deponere.
5 cum huius alitis vita magni conversionem anni fieri
prodit idem Manilius, iterumque significationes
tempestatum et siderum easdem reverti, hoc autem
circa meridiem incipere quo die signum arietis
sol intraverit, et fuisse eius conversions annum
prodente se P. Licinio Cn. Cornelio coss. ccxv.
Cornelius Valerianus phoenicem devolavisse in
Aegyptum tradit Q. Plautio Sexto Papinio coss. ;
allatus est et in urbem Claudii principis censura
anno urbis r>ccc et in comitio propositus, quod
actis testatum est, sed quern falsum esse nemo
dubitaret.
6 III. Ex his quas novimus aquilae maximus honos,
maxima et vis. sex earum genera, melanaetos a
a 97 B.C. & A.D. 36. e A.D. 47.
d Of these melanaetos is either the Golden or the Imperial
Eagle, yygargus is the White-tailed Sea-Eagle or erne,
Twliaetos the Osprey, morphnos or percnos the Bald Buzzard ;
but percnopterus and gnesius are unidentifiable as species
separate from the others.
294
BOOK X. ii. 3-ra. 6
coloured feathers and the throat picked out with
tufts , and a feathered crest adorning its head. The
first and the most detailed Roman account of it was
given by Manilius, the eminent senator famed for
his extreme and varied learning acquired without a
teacher: he stated that nobody has ever existed
that has seen one feeding, that in Arabia it is
sacred to the Sun-god, that it lives 540 years, that
when it is growing old it constructs a nest with
sprigs of wild cinnamon and frankincense, fills it
with scents and lies on it till it dies ; that subse-
quently from its bones and marrow is born first a
sort of maggot, and this grows into a chicken, and that
this begins by paying due funeral rites to the former
bird and carrying the whole nest down to the City
of the Sun near Panchaia and depositing it upon an
altar there. Manilius also states that the period of
the Great Year coincides with the life of this bird,
and that the same indications of the seasons and stars
return again, and that this begins about noon on the
day on which the sun enters the sign of the Ram,
and that the year of this period had been 215, as
reported by him, in the consulship 01 of Publius
Licinius and Gnaeus Cornelius. Cornelius Valerianus
reports that a phoenix flew down into Egypt in the
consulship 6 of Quintus Plautius and Sextus Papinius ;
it was even brought to Rome in the Censorship of
the Emperor Claudius, A.U.C. 800 c and displayed in
the Comitium, a fact attested by the Records,
although nobody would doubt that this phoenix was
a fabrication.
III. Of the birds known to us the eagle is the most
honourable and also the strongest. Of eagles there ea ^ e '
are six kinds.- 2 The one called by the Greeks the black
295
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
Graecis dicta, eadem leporaria, 1 minima magnitudine,
viribus praecipua, colore nigrlcans. sola aquilarum
fetus suos alit, ceterae, ut dicemus, fugant ; sola sine
clangore, sine murmuratione. conversatur autem in
7 montibus. secundi generis pygargus in oppidis et in
campis, albicante cauda. tertii morphnos, quam
Horn ems et percnum vocat, aliqui et plangum et
anatariam, secunda magnitudine et vi; huic vita
circa lacus. Phemonoe Apollinis dicta filia dentes
esse ei prodidit mutae alias carentique lingua,
eandem aquilarum nigerrimam, prominentiore cauda.
consentit et Boethus. 2 ingenium est ei 3 testudines
raptas frangere e sublfmi iaciendo, quae fors interemit
poetam Aeschylum praedictam fatis, ut ferunt, eius-
8 modi 4 ruinam secura caeli fide caventem. item quarti
generis est percnopterus, eadem oripelargus, vul-
turina specie alis minimis, reliqua magnitudine
antecellens, sed inbellis et degener, ut quam verberet
corvus. eadem ieiunae semper aviditatis et querulae
murmurationis. sola aquilarum exanimata 5 aufert 6
corpora, ceterae cum occidere considunt. haec facit
ut quintum genus yvrjcnov vocetur velut verum
solumque incorruptae originis, media magnitudine,
colore subrutilo, rarum conspectu. superest
1 Mueller (cf. Xay<acf>6vos Ar.} : in Valeria.
lUdd* (Boeus. hid-as Detlefeen) : Boethtdus.
v.l. et.
RackTiam (eius diei edd.); eidei aut diei,
Dcdecamp : exanima.
JtackTiam : fert.
Aristotle calls it the hare-killing eagle.
6 Probably the marsh-harrier.
c Priestess at Delphi.
d I.e. by keeping in the open and avoiding trees and buildings
from which objects might fall on him.
296
BOOK X. in. 6-8
eagle, and also the hare-eagle, is smallest in size and
of outstanding strength ; it is of a blackish colour.
It is the only eagle that rears its own young, whereas
all the others, as we shall describe, drive them away ;
and it is the only one that has no scream or cry. Its
haunt is in the mountains. To the second kind be-
longs the white-rump eagle found in towns and in
level country ; it has a whitish tail. To the third the
morphnosf wjiich Homer also calls the dusky eagle,
and some the plangos and also the duck-eagle ; it is
second in size and strength, and it lives in the neigh-
bourhood of lakes. Phemonoe, c who was styled
Daughter of Apollo, has stated that it possesses teeth,
but that it is mute and voiceless ; also that it is the
darkest of the eagles in colour, and has an exception-
ally prominent tail. Boethus also agrees. It has a
clever device for breaking tortoise-shells that it has
carried off, by dropping them from a height; this
accident caused the death of the poet Aeschylus,
who was trying to avoid a disaster of this nature that
had been foretold by the fates, as the story goes,
by trustfully relying on the open sky. d Next, the
fourth class comprises the hawk-eagle, also called
the mountain stork, which resembles a vulture in
having very small wings but exceeds it in the size
of its other parts, and yet is unwarlike and degener-
ate, as it allows a crow to flog it. It is always
ravenously greedy, and keeps up a plaintive scream-
ing. It is the only eagle that carries away the dead
bodies of its prey ; all the others after killing alight
on the spot. This species causes the fifth kind to be
called the ' true eagle/ as being the genuine kind and
the only pure-bred one ; it is of medium, size and dull
reddish colour, and it is rarely seen. There remains
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
haliaetus, clarrissima oculorum acie, librans ex alto
sese visoque in mari pisce praeceps in eum ruens et
9 discussis pectore aquis rapiens. ilia quam tertiam
fecimus aquaticas aves circa stagna adpetit mergentes
se subinde, donee sopitas lassatasque rapiat. spec-
tanda dimicatio, ave ad perfugia litorum tendente,
maxime si condensa harundo sit, aquila inde ictu
abigente alae et, cum adpetat in lacu, scandente x
umbramque suam nanti sub aqua a litore ostendente,
rursus ave in diversa 2 et ubi minime se credat expec-
tari emergent e. haec causa gregatim avibus natandi ,
quia plures simul non infestantur respersu pinna-
rum hostem occaecantes. saepe et aquilae ipsae non
tolerantes pondus adprehensum una merguntur.
10 haliaetus tantum inplumes etiamnum pullos suos
percutiens subinde cogit adversos intueri solis radios
et, si coniventem humectantemque animadvertit,
praecipitat e nido velut adulterinum atque degene-
rem; ilium cuius acies firma contra stetit educat.
11 haliaeti suum genus non habent, sed ex diverso
aquilarum coitu nascuntur; id quidem quod ex his
natum est in ossifragis genus habet e quibus vultures
minores progenerantur, et ex his magni qui omnino
non generant. quidam adiciunt genus aquilae
quam barbatam vocant, Tusci vero ossifragam.
12 IV. Tribus primis et quinto aquilarum generi
1 Mayhoff: cadente. 2 v.l. diverso.
a Perhaps the lammeigeier, gypaetus larbatus.
298
BOOK X. m. 8-iv. 12
the osprey, which has very keen eye-sight, and
which hovers at a great height and when it sees a fish
in the sea drops on it with a swoop and cleaving the
water with its breast catches it. The species that
we made the third hunts round marshes for water-
birds, which at once dive, till they become drowsy
and exhausted, when it catches them. The duel is
worth watching, the bird making for refuge on the
shore, especially if there is a dense reed-bed, and the
eagle driving it away from the shore with a blow of
its wing ; and when it is hunting its quarry in a lake,
soaring and showing its shadow to the bird swimming
under water away from the shore, so that the bird
turns back again and comes to the surface at a place
where it thinks it is least expected. This is the
reason why birds swim in flocks, because several are
not attacked at the same tune, since they blind the
enemy by splashing him with their wings. Often
even the eagles themselves cannot carry tl^e weight of
their catch and are drowned with it. The sea-eagle
only compels its still unfledged chicks by beating
them to gaze full at the rays of the sun, and if it
notices one blinking and with its eyes watering flings
it out of the nest as a bastard and not true to stock,
whereas one whose gaze stands firm against the light
it rears. Sea-eagles have no breed of their own but
are born from cross-breeding with other eagles ; but
the offspring of a pair of sea-eagles belongs to the
osprey genus, from which spring the smaller vultures,
and from these the great vultures which do not breed
at all. Some people add a species of eagle which
they call the bearded eagle,* but which the Tuscans
call an ossifrage.
IV. The three first and the fifth kinds of eagle have
299
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
inaedificatur nido lapis aetites (quern aliqui dixere
gagiten 1 ) ad multa remedia utilis, nihil igne deper-
dens. est autem lapis iste praegnans intus alio,
cum quatias velut in urceo 2 sonante. sed vis ilia
13 medica non nisi nido dereptis. nidificant in petris
et arboribus, pariunt et ova terna, excludunt pullos
binos, visi sunt et tres aliquando. alterum expellunt
taedio nutriendi: quippe eo tempore ipsis cibum
negavit natura prospiciens ne omnium ferarum fetus
raperentur; ungues quoque earum invertuntur
diebus iis, albescunt inedia pinnae, ut merito partus
suos oderint, sed eiectos ab his cognatum genus
14 ossifragi excipiunt et educant cum suis. verum
adultos quoque persequitur parens et longe fugat,
aemulos scilicet rapinae. et alioquin unum par
aquilarum magno ad populandum tractu, ut satietur,
indiget; determinant ergo spatia, nee in proximo
praedantur. rapta non protinus ferunt, sed primo
deponunt, expertaeque pondus tune demumavehunt. 3
15 oppetunt non senio nee aegritudine sed fame, in
tantum superiore adcrescente rostro ut aduncitas
aperiri non queat. a meridiano autem tempore
operantur et volant, prioribus horis diei, donee
1 V.ll. gagyten, ga^gaten. a Mueller i utero.
3 Pintianus : abeunt.
tf See 11 n.
300
BOOK X. iv. 12-15
the stone called eagle-stone (named by some gagites)
built into their nests, which is useful for many cures,
and loses none of its virtue by fire. The stone in
question is big with another inside it, which rattles
as if in a jar when you shake it. But only those
taken from a nest possess the medicinal power
referred to. They build their nests in rocks and
trees, and lay as many as three eggs at a time, but
they shut out two chicks of the brood, and have been
seen on occasion to eject even three. They drive
out the other chick when they are tired of feeding it :
indeed at this period nature has denied food to the
parent birds themselves as a precaution, so that the
young of all the wild animals should not be plundered ;
also during those days the birds' talons turn inward,
and their feathers grow white from want of food, so
that with good reason they hate their own offspring.
But the chicks thrown out by these birds are received
by the kindred breed, the bearded eagles/ 1 who
rear them with their own. However the parent bird
pursues them even when grown up, and drives them
far away, doubtless because they are competitors in
the chase. And apart from this a single pair of eagles
in order to get enough food requires a large tract of
country to hunt over; consequently they mark out
districts, and do not poach on their neighbours' pre-
serves. When they have made a catch they do not
carry it off at once, but first lay it on the ground, and
only fly away with it after first testing its weight.
They meet their end not from old age nor sickness but
from hunger, as their upper mandible grows to such a
size that it is too hooked for them to be able to open it.
They get busy and fly in the afternoon, but in the
earlier hours of the day they perch quite idle till the
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
impleantur hominum conventu fora, ignavae sedent.
aquilarum pinnae mixtas reliquarum alitum pinnas
devorant. negant umquam solam hanc alitem
fulmine exanimatam ; ideo armigeram lovis consue-
tude iudicavit.
16 V. Romanis cam legionibus Gaius Marius in
secundo consulatu suo proprie dicavit. erat et antea
prima cum quattuor aliis: lupi, minotauri, equi
aprique singulos ordines anteibant ; paucis ante annis
sola in aciem portari coepta erat, reliqua in castris
relinquebantur; Marius in totum ea abdicavit. ex
eo notatum non fere legionis umquam hiberna esse
castra ubi aquilarum non sit iugum.
17 Primo et secundo generi non minorum tantum
quadripedum rapina sed etiam cum cervis proelia.
multum pulverem volutatu collectum insidens corni-
bus excutit in oculos, pinnis ora verberans, donee
praecipitet in rupes, nee unus hostis illi satis : est
acrior 1 cum dracone pugna multoque magis anceps,
etiamsi in aere. ova hie consectatur aquilae aviditate
malefica ; aquila 2 hoc rapit ubicumque visum. ille
multiplici nexu alas ligat ita se inplicans ut simul
decidat ipse. a
18 VL Celebris apud Seston urbem aquilae gloria
est: educatam a virgine retulisse gratiam aves primo,
1 v.l. satis est ; acrior est.
2 Mayhoff : ab ilia aut at ilia.
3 ipse Mayhoff: saepe (aut est percelebris).
Pliny is translating Trepl dyopav v
b 104 B.o.
302
BOOK X. iv. 15-vi. 18
market-places fill with a gathering of people. 05 If
eagles' feathers have the feathers of any other birds
mixed with them, they swallow them up. It is
stated that this is the only bird that is never killed by
a thunderbolt ; this is why custom has deemed the
eagle to be Jupiter's armour-bearer.
V. The eagle was assigned to the Roman legions
as their special badge by Gaius Marius in his second fHHge.
consulship. 6 Even previously it had been their first
badge, with four others, wolves, minotaurs, horses
and boars going in front of the respective ranks;
but a few years before the custom had come in of
carrying the eagles alone into action, the rest being
left behind in camp. Marius discarded them alto-
gether. Thenceforward it was noticed that there
was scarcely ever a legion's winter camp without a
pair of eagles being in the neighbourhood.
The first and second kinds not only carry off the
smaller four-footed animals but actually do battle mates.
with stags. The eagle collects a quantity of dust
by rolling in it, and perching on the stag's horns
shakes it off into its eyes, striking its head with its
wings, until it brings it down on to the rocks. Nor is
it content with one foe : it has a fiercer battle with a
great serpent, and one that is of much more doubtful
issue, even though it is in the air. The serpent with
mischievous greed tries to get the eagle's eggs ; con-
sequently the eagle carries it off wherever seen. The
serpent fetters its wings by twining itself round them
in manifold coils so closely that it falls to the ground
itself with the snake.
VI. At the city of Sestos the fame of an eagle is
celebrated, the story being that it was reared by a
maiden and that it repaid its gratitude by bringing
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
mox delude venatus adgerentem, defuncta postremo
in rogum accensum eius iniecisse sese et simul
conflagrasse. quam ob causam incolae quod vocant
heroum in eo loco fecere appellatum lovis et virgmis,
quoniam illi deo ales adscribitur.
19 VII. Vulturum praevalent nigri. nidos nemo
attigit; ideo et fuere qui putarent illos ex ad verso
orbe advolare, falso: nidificant in excelsissimis
rupibus. fetus quidem saepe cernuntur, fere bini.
Umbricius haruspicum in nostro aevo peritissimus
parere tradit ova tredecim, uno ex his reliqua ova
nidumque lustrare, mox abicere ; triduo autem ante
advolare cos ubi cadavera futura sunt.
20 VIII. Sanqualem avem atque inmusulum augur es
Romani magna in quaestione habent. inmusulum
aliqui vulturis pullum arbitrantur esse et sanqualem
ossifragae. Masurius sanqualem ossifragam esse
dicit, inmusulum autem pullum aquilae priusquam
albicet cauda. quidam post Mucium augurem visos
non esse Romae confirmavere, ego, quod veri similius,
in desidia rerum omnium arbitror non agnitos.
21 IX. Accipitrum genera sedecim invenimus : ex his
aegithurn claudum altero pede prosperrimi augurii
nuptialibus negotiis et pecuariae rei: triorchem a
numero testium, cui principatum in auguriis Phemo-
fl Died about 87 B.C.
BOOK X. vi. i8-ix. 21
to her first birds and soon afterwards big game, and
when finally she died it threw itself upon her lighted
pyre and was burnt with her. On account of this
the inhabitants made what is called a heroon in that
place, which is named the Shrine of Jupiter and the
Maiden, because the bird is assigned to that deity.
VII. Of vultures the black are the strongest. No The vulture.
one has ever reached their nests, and consequently
there have actually been persons who have thought
that they fly here from the opposite side of the globe.
This is a mistake : they make their nests on extremely
lofty crags. Their chicks indeed are often seen,
usually in pairs. The most learned augur of our age,
Umbricius, states that they lay thirteen eggs, but
use one of them for cleaning the remaining eggs and
the nest and then throw it away; but that three
days before they lay the eggs they fly to some place
where there will be dead bodies.
VIII. There is great question among the Roman ^esan-
, . ,i 6 H -,. -, ,, s . 1 gualts and
augurs about the sanqualis and the immusulus. the im~
Some think that the immusulus is the chick of the musulus -
vulture and the sanqualis of the bearded vulture.
Masurius says that the sanqualis is a bearded vulture
and the immusulus an eagle's chick before its tail
turns white. Some persons have asserted that they
have not been seen at Rome since the time of the
augur Mucius, but for my own part I think it more
probable that in the general slackness that prevails
they have not been recognized.
IX. Of hawks we find sixteen kinds, and among ^j?' 1 ^
these the aegithus, which when lame in one foot is of aegithm ;
very fortunate omen for marriage contracts and for
property in cattle, and the triorchis, named from the
number of its testicles, the bird to which Phemonoe
35
VOL. III. X #
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
noe dedit. buteonem hunc appellant Roman! ,
familia etiam ex eo cognominata, cum prospero
auspicio in duels navi sedisset. epileum Graeci
vocant qui solus omni tempore apparet, ceteri hieme
22 abeunt. distinctio generum ex aviditate: alii non
nisi e terra rapiunt avem, alii non nisi circa arbores
volitantem, alii sedentem in sublimi, aliqui volantem
in aperto. itaque et columbae novere ex his pericula,
visoque considunt, vel subvolant, contra naturam eius
auxiliantes sibi. in insula Africae Cerne in ocean o
accipitres totius Massaesyliae humi fetincant, nee
alibi nascuntur, illis adsueti gentibus.
23 X. In Thraciae parte super Amphipolim homines
et accipitres societate quadam aucupantur: hi ex
silvis et harundinetis excitant aves, illi supervolantes
deprimunt rursus ; captas aucupes dividunt cum his.
traditum est missas in sublime ibi 1 excipere eos, et
cum sit tempus capturae, clangore ac volatus genere
invitare ad occasionem. simile quiddam lupi ad
Maeotim paludem faciunt; nam nisi partem a
piscantibus suam accepere, expansa corum retia
lacerant.
24 Accipitres avium non edunt corda. nocturnus
accipiter cybindis vocatur, rarus etiam in silvis, inter-
diu minus cernens. bellum internecivum gerit cum
aquila, cohaerentesque saepe prenduntur.
1 v.l. sibi.
a I.e. bnzzard.
b Some way down the N.W. African coast outside the Straits
of Gibraltar.
306
BOOK X. ix. 2i-x, 24
gave primacy among auguries. The Roman name
for it is buteof which is also the surname of a family,
assumed because one perched on an admiral's ship
with good omen. The Greeks give the name of
merlin to the only species that appears at every the merlin.
season, whereas all the others go away in winter.
The varieties of hawks are distinguished by their
appetite for food : some only snatch a bird off the
ground, others only one fluttering round a tree,
others one that perches high in the branches, others
one flying in the open. Consequently even the doves
know the risks that they run from hawks, and when
they see one they alight, or else fly upward, safe-
guarding themselves by going counter to the hawk's
nature. The hawks of the whole of Massaesylia
lay their eggs on the ground in Cerne, 6 an island of
Africa in the Ocean, and they do not breed elsewhere,
as they are accustomed to the natives of that island.
X, In the district of Thrace inland from Amphipolis Rawing.
men and hawks have a sort of partnership for fowling :
the men put up the birds from woods and reed-beds
and the hawks flying overhead drive them down
again; the fowlers share the bag with the hawks.
It is reported that when the birds have been put up
the hawks intercept them in the air, and when it is
time for a catch invite the sportsmen to take the
opportunity by their screaming and their way of
flying. Wolf-fish at the Maeotic Marsh act somewhat
in the same way, for unless they get their share from
fishermen they tear their nets when spread.
Hawks do not eat the hearts of birds. The night- The night-
hawk is called cybindis ; it is rare even in forests, and hawt '
cannot see very well in the daytime. It wages war
to the death with the eagle, and they are often taken
clinging together in each other's clutches.
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
25 XL Coccyx videtur ex accipitre fieri tempore anni
figuram mutans, quoniam tune non apparent reliqui
nisi perquam paucis diebus, ipse quoque modico
tempore aestatis visus non cernitur postea. est
autem neque aduncis unguibus, solus accipitrum,
nee capite similis illis neque alio quam colore, habitu 1
columbi potius. quin et absumitur ab accipitre, si
quando una apparuere, sola omnium avis a suo genere
26 interempta. mutat autem et vocem, procedit vere,
occultatur caniculae ortu, inter quae 2 parit in alienis
nidis, maxime palumbium, maiore ex parte singula
ova, quod nulla alia avis, raro bina. causa pullos
subiciendi putatur quod sciat se invisam cunctis
avibus, nam minutae quoque infestant ; ita non fore
tutam generi suo stirpem opinatur ni fefellerit, quare
nullum facit nidum, alioqui 3 trepidum animal.
27 educat ergo subditum adulterate feta nido. ille
avidus ex natura praeripit cibos reliquis pullis, itaque
et nitidus in se nutricem convertit. ilia gaudet eius
specie nairaturque sese ipsam quod talem pepererit ;
suos comparatione eius damnat ut alienos. absu-
mique etiam se inspectante patitur, donee corripiat
1 Deilefsen : ao visu aut ac victu.
2 Mayhoff : inter que (semper c|ue edd.).
8 <et> alioqui ? Maytoff*
a This belief is held at the present time in some parts of
Britain. Of course the cuckoo is not of the hawk species.
b It is really a migrant.
* As a matter of fact this is never the case.
4 All of what follows is untrue.
308
BOOK X. xi. 25-27
XL The cuckoo seems to be made by changing its The cucko
shape out of a hawk a at a certain season of the year,
as the rest of the hawks do not appear then, except Its ?*w
on a very few days, and the cuckoo itself also after hablt *'
being seen for a moderate period of the summer is
not observed afterwards. But the cuckoo is alone
among the hawks in not having crooked talons, and
also it is not like the other hawks in the head or in
anything else but colour : it rather has the general
appearance of the pigeon. Moreover a hawk will
eat a cuckoo, if ever both have appeared at the same
time : the cuckoo is the only one of all the birds that
is killed by its own kind. And it also changes its
voice. It comes out in the spring and goes into
hiding * at the rising of the dog-star, between which
dates it lays its eggs in the nests of other birds,
usually c wood-pigeons, for the most part one egg at a
time, as does no other bird ; it seldom lays two. Its
reason for foisting its chicks on other birds is supposed
to be that it knows itself to be hated by the whole of
the birds, for even the very small birds attack it;
consequently it thinks that a progeny will not be
secured for its race unless it has escaped notice, for
which reason it makes no nest ; it is a timid creature
in general. Therefore the brooding hen in the nest
thus cuckolded rears the changeling. The young
cuckoo d being by nature greedy snatches the bits of
food away from the rest of the chicks, and so gets fat
and attracts the mother bird to itself by its sleek
appearance. She delights in its beauty and admires
herself for having borne such a child, while in
comparison with it she convicts her own chicks of
not belonging to her, and lets them be eaten up
even under her own eyes, until finally the cuckoo,
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
ipsam quoque iam volandi potens. nulla tune avium
suavitate camis comparatur illi.
28 XIL Milvi ex eodem accipitrum genere magnitu-
dine differunt. notatum in his rapacissimam et
famelicam semper alitem nihil esculenti rap ere
umquam ex funerum ferculis nee Olympiae ex ara,
ac ne ferentium quidem manibus nisi lugubri manci-
piorum 1 tmmolantium ostento. idem videntur artem
gubernandi docuisse caudae flexibus, in caelo
monstrante natura quod opus esset in profundo.
milvi et ipsi hibernis mensibus latent, non tamen ante
hirundinem abeuntes ; traduntur autem et a solstitiis
adfici podagra.
29 XIII. Volucrum prima distinctio pedibus maxime
constat ; aut enim aduncos ungues habent aut digit os,
aut palmipedum in genere sunt ut anseres et aqua-
ticae fere aves. aduncos ungues habentia carne
30 tantum vescuntur ex parte magna ; (XIV) cornices et
alio pabulo, ut quae duritiam nueis rostro repugnan-
tem volantes in altum in saxa tegulasve iaeiant
iterum ac saepius, donee quassatam perfringere
queant. ipsa ales est inauspicatae garrulitatis, a
quibusdam tamen laudata. ab arcturi sidere ad
hirundinum adventum notatur earn in Minervae lucis
templisque raro, alicubi omnino non aspici, sicut
Athenis : inauspicatissima fetus tempore, hoc est
post solstitium. 2 praeterea sola haec etiam volantes
1 Detlefsen : mtmicipiorum.
2 inauspicatissima . . . solstitium hie Mueller : post pascit
codd.
a Crows as a matter of fact have no talons.
310
BOOK X. XT. 27-xiv. 30
now able to fly, seizes the mother bird herself as
well. At this stage no sort of bird will compare with
a young cuckoo for savoury flavour.
XII. Kites belong to the same genus as hawks The ute,
but differ in size. It has been noticed in regard to
this species that though a most rapacious bird and
always hungry it never steals any edible from the
oblations at funerals nor from the altar at Olympia
and not even out of the hands of the people bringing
the offsprings except with a gloomy portent for
the slaves performing the sacrifice. Also it seems
that this bird by its manipulation of its tail taught
the art of steersmanship, nature demonstrating in
the sky what was required in the deep. Kites them-
selves also are not seen in the winter months, though
not departing before the swallow; it is reported
however that they suffer from gout even from
midsummer onward.
XIII. The primary distinction between birds is Taioned
established especially by the feet; for either they c^/ l
have hooked talons or claws or they are in the web-
footed class like geese and water-fowl generally.
If they have hooked talons they live for the most part
only on flesh ; (XIV) though crows a eat other food as
well, as if a nut is so hard that it resists their beak they
fly up aloft and drop it two or more times onto rocks or
roof-tiles, till it is cracked and they can break it open.
The bird itself has a persistent croak that is unlucky,
although some people speak well of it. It is noticed
that from the rising of Arcturus to the arrival of the
swallows it is rarely seen in groves and temples of
Minerva and never at all elsewhere, as is the case at
Athens ; it is most unlucky at its breeding season,
that is, after midsummer. Moreover this bird alone
311
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
31 pullos aliquamdiu pascit; (XV) ceterae omnes ex
eodem gen ere pellunt nidis pullos ac volare cogunt,
sicut et corvi ; qui et ipsi non carne tantum aluntur
sed robustos quoque fetus suos fugant longius.
itaque parvis in vicis non plus bina coniugia sunt,
circa Crannonem quidem Thes- saliae singula
perpetuo ; genitores suboli loco cedunt.
32 Diversa in hac et supradicta alite quaedam,
corvi ante solstitium generant, idem aegrescunt
sexagenis diebus, siti maxime, antequam fici co-
quantur autumno; cornix ab eo tempore corripitur
morbo.
Corvi pariunt cum plurimum quinos. ore eos
parere aut coire vulgus arbitratur (ideoque gravidas,
si ederint corvinum ovum, per os partum reddere,
atque in totum difficult er parere si tecto infer antur) ;
Aristoteles negat, non Hercule magis quam in
Aegypto ibinij sed illam exosculationem (quae saepe
33 cernitur) qualem in columbis esse. corvi in auspiciis
soli videntur intellectum habere significationum
suarum; nam cum 1 Medi hospites occisi sunt,
omnes e Peloponneso et Attica regione volaverunt.
pessima eorum significatio cum gluttiunt vocem velut
strangulati.
1 cum <ad Pharsalam) ? Mayhoff ex Ar. Post. An. IX
619b 14.
This is from Aristotle Hist. An. IZ 618& 14. Medus or
Medeios, son of Medea, was supposed to have given. the
Medes their name.
312
BOOK X. xiv. 3o-xv. 33
continues feeding its chicks for some time even when
they can fly ; (XV) whereas all the other birds of the
same class drive their chicks out of the nests and
compel them to fly, as also do ravens. These not
only feed on flesh themselves too, but also drive away
their chicks when strong to a considerable distance.
Consequently in small villages there are not more
than two pairs of ravens, and in fact in the neigh-
bourhood of Crannon in Thessaly there is one pair
permanently in each place; the parents retire to
make room for their offspring.
There are certain points of difference between this the raven;
bird and the one mentioned above. Ravens breed
before midsummer, also they have 60 days of ill-
health, principally owing to thirst, before the figs
ripen in the autumn; whereas the crow is seized
with sickness from that day onward.
Ravens produce broods of five at most. There is a
popular belief that they lay eggs, or else mate, with
the beak (and that consequently if women with child
eat a raven's egg they bear the infant through the
mouth, and that altogether they have a difficult
delivery if raven's eggs are brought into the house) ;
but Aristotle says that this is not true of the raven, any
more indeed than it is of the ibis in Egypt, but that
the billing in question (which is often noticed) is a
form of kissing, like that which takes place between
pigeons. Ravens seem to be the only birds that
have an understanding of the meanings that they
convey in auspices ; for when the guests of Medus
were murdered, all the ravens in the Peloponnese
and Attica flew away. a It is a specially bad amen
when they gulp down their croak as if they were
choking.
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
34 XVI. Uncos ungues et nocturnae aves habent, ut
noctuae, bubo, ululae. omnium horum hebetes
interdiu oculi. bubo funebris et maxime abominatus
publicis praecipue auspiciis deserta incolit nee
tantum desolata sed dira etiam et inaccessa, noctis
monstrum, nee cantu aliquo vocalis sed gemitu,
35 itaque in urbibus aut omnino in luce visus dirum
ostentum est; privatorum domibus insidentem
plurium scio non fuisse feralem. volat numquam
quo libuit, sed traversus aufertur. Capitolii cellam
ipsam intravit Sexto Palpellio Histro L. Pedanio
coss.j propter quod nonis Martiis urbs lustrata est
eo anno.
36 XVIL Inauspicata est et incendiaria avis, quam
propter saepenumero lustratam urbem in annalibus
invenimus, sicut L. Cassjo C. Mario coss., quo anno
et bubone viso lustratam esse. quae sit avis ea
non reperitur nee traditur. quidam ita interpre-
tantur, incendiariam esse quaecumque apparuerit
carbonem ferens ex aris vel altaribus : alii spmturni-
cem earn vocant, sed haec ipsa quae esset inter aves
37 qui se scire diceret non inveni. cliviam quoque avem
ab antiquis nominatamanimadvertoignorari quidam
ckmatoriam dieunt, Labeo prohibitoriam ; et apud
a A.I>. 43. 10 7 B.O.
BOOK X. xvi. 34-xvn. 37
XVL Night birds also have hooked talons, for owls.
instance the little owl, the eagle-owl and the
screech-owl. All of these are dim-sighted in the
daytime. The eagle-owl is a funereal bird, and is
regarded as an extremely bad omen, especially at
public auspices ; it inhabits deserts and places that
are not merely unfrequented but terrifying and
inaccessible ; a wierd creature of the night, its cry
is not a musical note but a scream. Consequenlty
when seen in cities or by daylight in any circum-
stances it is a direful portent; but I know several
cases of its having perched on the houses of private
persons without fatal consequences. It never flies
in the direction where it wants to go, but travels
slantwise out of its course. In the consulship a of
Sextus Palpellius Hister and Lucius Pedanius an
eagle-owl entered the very shrine of the Capitol, on
account of which a purification of the city was held
on March 7th in that year.
XVII. There is also a bird of ill-omen called the Unknown
fire-bird, on account of which we find in the annals \u^men.
that the city has often had a ritual purification, for
instance in the consulship 6 of Lucius Cassius and
Gaius Marius, in which year the appearance of an
eagle-owl also occasioned a purification. What this
bird was I cannot discover, and it is not recorded.
Some persons give this interpretation, that the
fire-bird was any bird that was seen carrying a coal
from an altar or altar-table; others call it a
* spinturnix,' c but I have not found anybody who
professes to know what particular species of bird
that is. I also notice that the bird named by the
ancients * clivia * is unidentified some call it
screech-owl/ Labeo ' warning owl * ; and moreover
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
Nigidium insuper 1 appellatur avis quae aquilarum
ova frangat. sunt praeterea conplura genera depicta
in Etrusca disciplina saeculis non visa, quae mine
defecisse minim est cum abundent etiam quae gula
humana populatur.
38 XVIII. Externorum de auguriis peritissime scrip-
sisse Hylas nomine putatur. is tradit noctuam,
bubonem, picum arbores cavantem, trygonam,
cornicem a cauda ovo 2 exire, quoniam pondere
capitum perversa ova posteriorem partem corporum
fovendam matri adplicent.
39 XIX. Noctuarum contra aves sellers dimicatio.
maiore circumdatae multitudine resupinae pedibus
repugnant collectaeque in artum rostro et unguibus
totae teguntur. auxiliatur accipiter collegio quo-
dam naturae bellumque partitur. noctuas sexagenis
diebus hiemis cubare et novem voces habere tradit
Nigidius.
40 XX. Sunt et parvae aves uncorum unguium, ut
pici Martio cognomine insignes et in auspicatu 3
magni. quo in genere arborum cavatores scandentes
in subrectum felium modo, illi vero et supini, percussi
corticis sono pabulum subesse intellegunt. pullos in
cavis educant avium soli, adactos cavernis eorum
a pastore cuneos admota quadam ab iis herba elabi
1 insuper ? Mayhoff : super.
2 ovo ? Mayhoff : de ovo.
3 Hardouin : auspicatis aut auspiciis.
a An unknown "bird.
* The red-headed Black Woodpecker.
6 Repeated XXV 14 and there rejected.
316
BOOK X. xvn. 37-xx. 40
a bird is cited in Nigidius that breaks eagles' eggs.
There are besides a number of kinds described in
Tuscan lore that have not been seen for generations,
though it is surprising that they should have now
become extinct when even kinds that are ravaged
by man's greed continue plentiful.
XVIII. On the subject of the auguries of foreign Foreign
races the writings of an author named Hylas are
deemed to be the most learned. He states that the
night-owl, eagle-owl, woodpecker, trygona a and
raven come out of the egg tail first, because the eggs
are turned the wrong way up by the weight of the
heads and present the hinder part of the chicks'
bodies to the mother to cherish.
XIX. Night-owls wage a crafty battle against W* night-
other birds. When surrounded by a crowd that out-
numbers them they lie on their backs and defend
themselves with their feet, and bunching themselves
up close are entirely protected by their beak and
claws. Through a kind of natural alliance the hawk
comes to their aid and takes part in the war. Nigidius
relates that night-owls hibernate for 60 days every
winter, and that they have nine cries.
XX. There are also small birds with hooked claws. The wood-
for instance the variety of woodpeckers called Birds pecker *
of Mars & that are important in taking auguries. In
this class are the tree-hollowing woodpeckers that
climb nearly straight upright in the manner of cats,
but also the others that cling upside down, which know
by the sound of the bark when they strike it that
there is fodder underneath it. They are the only
birds that rear their chicks in holes. There is a
common belief that when wedges are driven into
their holes by a shepherd the birds by applying a
3*7
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
creditor vulgo. Trebius auctor est clavum cuneumve
adactum quanta libeat vi arbori in qua nidum
habeat statim exilire cum crepitu arboris cum
41 insederit. 1 ipsi principales Latio sunt in 8 au-
guriis a rege qui nomen huic avi dedit. unum
eontm praescitum transire non queo, in capite
praetoris urbani Aelii Tuber onis in foro iura pro
tribunal! reddentis sedit ita placide ut manu pre-
henderetur. respondere vates exitium imperio por-
tendi si dirnitteretur, at si exanimaretur praetori.
ille autem 2 protinus concerpsit, nee multo post im-
plevit prodigium.
42 XXI. Vescuntur et glande in hoc genere pomisque
multae, sed quae carne tantum, non bibunt, 3 excepto
milvOy quod ipsum in auguriis dirum est. uncos
ungues habentes omnino non congregantur, et sibi
quaeque praedantur. sunt autem omnes fere alti-
volae praeter nocturnas, et magis maiores. omnibus
alae grandes, corpus exiguum. ambulant difficulter.
in petris raro consistunt curvatura unguium pro-
hibente.
43 XXIL Nunc de secundo genere dicamus, quod in
duas dividitur species, oscines et alites. illarum
generi cantus oris 3 his magnitudo difFerentiam dedit ;
itaque praecedent et ordine, omnesque reliquas in iis
1 Pintianus : insederit clavo aut cuneo.
2 v.L et ille avem. 8 Mayhoff : vivunt.
a Pious, father of Latinus, was changed into a woodpecker
by Circe, whose love he had slighted.
& Viz. digitatae, 29.
c Oicero N J). EC 160, Div. 1 120 gives the same classification.
The inclusion of the peacock in the latter class shows that the
flighl
318
JLHD JLU.VJLUOAUU LU uuts jjeauuuK in DUO latter ciass snows onat tne
term ales refers rather to display of the wings than to actual
flight; and the inclusion of the cock is justified by pointing
BOOK X. xx. 40-xxn. 43
kind of grass make them slip out again. Trebius
states that if you drive a nail or wedge with as much
force as you like into a tree in which a woodpecker
has a nest, when the bird perches on it it at once
springs out again with a creak of the tree. Wood-
peckers themselves have been of the first importance
among auguries in Latium from the time of the king a
who gave his name to this bird. One presage of
theirs I cannot pass over. When Aelius Tubero,
City Praetor, was giving judgements from the bench
in the forum, a woodpecker perched on his head so
fearlessly that he was able to catch it in his hand.
In reply to enquiry the seers declared that disaster
was portended to the empire if the bird were released,
but to the praetor if it were killed. Tubero however
at once tore the bird in pieces ; and not long after-
wards he fulfilled the portent.
XXI. Many birds in this class feed also on acorns #&** f
and fruit, but those that eat only flesh do not drink, species.
excepting the kite, and for a kite to drink counts in
itself as a direful augury. The birds having talons
never live in flocks, and each hunts for itself. But
they almost all except the night-birds among them
fly high, and the bigger ones higher. All have large
wings and a small body. They walk with difficulty.
They rarely perch on rocks, as the curve of their
talons prohibits this.
XXII. Now let us speak a boutthe second class J , clawed birds
which is divided into two kinds, song-birds and ^ l ^ or
plumage-birds. c The former kind are distinguished plumage.
by their song and the latter by their size ; so the
latter shall come first in order also, and among them
out that its cantus is proceeded by plaiwtf lcd&mm> and by
reference to its tripudia, 46, 49.
319
PLINY: NATUKAL HISTORY
pavonum genus cum forma turn intellectu eius et
gloria, gemmantes laudatus expandit colores ad-
verso maxime sole, quia sic fulgentius radiant;
simul umbrae quosdam repercussus ceteris, qui et
in opaco clarius micant, conchata quaerit cauda,
omnesque in acervum contrahit pinnarum quos
44 spectari gaudet oculos. idem cauda annuls vicibus
amissa cum foliis arborum, donee rena^catur alia cum
flore, pudibundus ac maerens quaerit latebram.
vivit annis xxv, colores fundere incipit in trimatu.
ab auctoribus non gloriosum tantum animal hoc
traditur, sed et malivolum, sicut anserem verecun-
dum quoniam has quoque quidam addiderunt notas
in iis, haud probatas mini.
45 XXIII. Pavonem cibi gratia Romae primus occidit
orator Hortensius aditiali cena sacerdotii. saginare
primus instituit circa novissimum piraticum bellum
M. Aufidius Lurco, eoque ex quaestu reditus HS.
sexagena milia habuit.
46 XXIV. Proxime gloriam sentiunt et hi nostri vigiles
nocturni quos excitandis in opera mortalibus rum-
pendoque somno natura genuit. norunt sidera et
ternas distinguunt horas interdiu cantu, cum sole eunt
cubitum, quartaque castrensi vigilia ad curas labor-
emque revocant nee solis ortum incautis patiuntur
a Piracy was put down by Pompey in 67 B.C.
b I.e. the fourth quarter of the night.
320
BOOK X. xxii. 43-xxiv. 46
before all the rest will come the peacock class, both
because of its beauty and because of its consciousness
of and pride in it. When praised it spreads out its
jewelled colours directly facing the sun, because in
that way they gleam more brilliantly; and at the
same time by curving its tail like a shell it contrives
as it were reflexions of shadow for the rest of its
colours, which actually shine more brightly in jthe
dark, and it draws together into a cluster all the eyes
of its feathers, as it delights in having them looked at.
Moreover when it moults its tail feathers every year
with the fall of the leaves, it seeks in shame and
sorrow for a place of concealment until others are
born again with the spring flowers. It lives for 25
years, but it begins to shed its colours at the age of
three. The authorities relate that this creature is
not only ostentatious but also spiteful, just as the
goose is said to be modest since some writers have
added these characteristics also in that species,
though I do not accept them.
XXIII. The first person at Rome to kill a peacock ^*
for the table was the orator Hortensius, at theffi
inaugural banquet of his priesthood. Fattening
peacocks was first instituted about the time of the
last pirate war by Marcus Aufidius Lurco, and he
made 60,000 sesterces profit from this trade.
XXIV. Nearly equally proud and self-conscious are The f am-
also our Roman night-watchmen, a breed designed y
by nature for the purpose of awakening mortals
for their labours and interrupting sleep. They are
skilled astronomers, and they mark every three-
hour period in the daytime with song, go to bed with
the sun, and at the fourth camp-watch b recall us
to our business and our labour and do not allow
321
VOL. III. v
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
obrepere, diemque venientem nuntiant cantu, ipsum
47 vero cantum plausu laterum. imperitant suo generi,
et regnum in quacumque sunt domo exercent. dirni-
catione paritnr hoc inter ipsos, velut ideo tela agnata
cruribus suis intellegentium, nee finis saepe nisi 1
commorientibus. quod si palma contigit, 2 statim in
victoria canunt seque ipsi principes testantur;
victus occult atur silens aegreque servitium patitur.
et plebs tamen aeque superba graditur ardua cervice,
cristis celsa, caelumque sola volucrum aspicit crebra,
in sublime caudam quoque falcatam erigens. ita-
que terrori sunt etiam leonibus ferarum generosissi-
48 mis. iam ex ins quidam ad bella tantum et proelia
adsidua nascuntur quibus etiam patrias nobilitarunt,
Rhodum aut Tanagram ; secundus est honos habitus
Melicis et Chalcidicis, ut plane dignae aliti tantum
49 honoris perhibeat Romana purpura. horum sunt
tripudia sollistima, M magistratus nostros cotidie
regunt domusque ipsis suas claudunt aut reserant,
hi fasces Romanes inpellunt aut retinent, iubent acies
aut prohibent, victoriarum omnium toto orbe
partarum auspices ; hi maxime terraruna imperio im-
perantj extis etiam fibrisque haut aliter quam opimae
victimae diis gratae. habent ostenta et 3 praeposteri
eorum vespertinique cantus : namque totis noctibus
1 nisi add. edd.
2 Mayhoff: contingit.
3 v.l. ex se et (ex re cognita ? Mayhoff).
Omens were taken from the way in which chickens kept
for the purpose ate grain given to them ; it was a good sign
if they ate greedily, letting grain drop on the ground in a
' perfectly regular three-step,' tripudium sottistimum, like the
triple beat of the foot in a ritual dance.
322
BOOK X. xxiv. 46-49
the sunrise to creep upon us unawares, but herald
the coming day with song, while they herald that
song itself with a flapping of their wings against their
sides. They lord it over their own race, and exercise
royal sway in whatever household they live. This
sovereignty they win by duelling with one another,
seeming to understand that weapons grow upon
their legs for this purpose, and often the fight only
ends when they die together. If they win the palm,
they at once sing a song of victory and proclaim
themselves the champions, while the one defeated
hides in silence and with difficulty endures servitude.
Yet even the common herd struts no less proudly,
with uplifted neck and combs held high, and alone of
birds casts frequent glances at the sky, also rearing
its curved tail aloft. Consequently even the lion,
the noblest of wild animals, is afraid of the cock.
Moreover some cocks are born solely for constant
wars and battles by which they have even con-
ferred fame on their native places, Rhodes or Tana-
gra; the fighting cocks of Melos and Chalcidice
have been awarded second honours so that the
Roman purple confers its high honour on a bird full
worthy of it. These are the birds that give the
Most-Favourable Omens a ; these birds daily control
our officers of state, and shut or open to them their
own homes; these send forward or hold back the
Roman rods of office, and order or forbid battle
formation, being the auspices of all our victories
won all over the world; these hold supreme empire
over the empire of the world, being as acceptable
to the gods with, even their inward parts and vitals
as are the costliest victims. Even their later
and their evening songs contain portents; for by
323
Y2
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
canendo Boeotiis nobilem illam adversus Lacedae-
monios praesagivere victoriam, ita coniecta inter-
pretatione quoniam victa ales ilia non caneret.
50 XXV. Desinunt canere castrati, quod duobus fit
modis, lumbis adustis candente ferro ant imis
cruribus, mox ulcere oblito figlina creta. facilius ita
pinguescunt. Pergami omnibus annis spectaculurn
gallorum publice editur ceu gladiatorum. in-
venitur in annalibus in agro Ariminensi M. Lepido Q.
Catulo coss. in villa Galerii locutum gallinaceum,
semel, quod equidem sciam.
51 XXVI. Est et anseri vigil cura Capitolio testata
defenso, per id tempus canum silentio proditis
rebus, quam ob causam cibaria anserum censores in
primis locant. quin et fama amoris Aegii dilecta
forma pueri nomine Olenii Amphilochi, 1 et Glauces
Ptolomaeo regi cithara canentis quam eodem tern-
pore et aries amasse proditur. potest et sapientiae
videri intellectus his esse : ita comes perpetuo adhae-
sisse Lacydi philosopho dicitur, nusquam ab eo,
non in publico non in balineis, non noctu non inter-
din digressus.
52 XXVII. Nostri sapientiores qui eos iecoris bonitate
novere. fartilibus in magnam amplitudinem crescit,
1 Amphilochi add. (ex AeL Hist. An. V 29) Hardouin.
a Leuctra, 371 B.C. : Cicero Div. I 74, H 56 (from Callis-
thenes).
6 78 B.C.
e In 390 B.C., when Home had been taken by the Gauls,
Manlhis the ex-consul was awakened by the cackling of the
geese in the temple of Juno just in time to save the Capitol
from the enemy who were storming it.
324
BOOK X. xxrv. 49-xxvn. 52
crowing all the nights long they presaged to the
Boeotians that famous victory a against the Spartans,
conjecture thus interpreting the sign because this
bird when conquered does not crow.
XXV. Cocks when gelt stop crowing; the opera- ca-
tion is performed in two ways by searing with ^,
glowing iron either the loins or the bottom parts
of the legs, and then smearing the wound with
potter's clay. This operation makes them easier to
fatten. At Pergamum every year a public show is
given of cocks fighting like gladiators. It is found
in the Annals that in the consulship 6 of Marcus
Lepidus and Quintus Catulus, at the country house
of Galerius in the Rimini district, a farmyard cock
spoke the only occasion, so far as I know, on which
this has occurred.
XXVI. The goose also keeps a careful watch, as is
evidenced by its defence of the Capitol c during the
time when our fortunes were being betrayed by the
silence of the dogs; for which reason food for
the geese is one of the first contracts arranged by the
censors. Moreover there is the story of the goose
at Aegium that fell in love with the supremely
beautiful boy Amphilochus of Olenus, and also
the goose that loved Glauce, the girl that played
the harp for King Ptolemy, whom at the same time
also a ram is said to have fallen in love with. These
birds may possibly be thought also to possess the
power of understanding wisdom : thus there is a story
that a goose attached itself continually as a companion
to the philosopher Lacydes, never leaving his side
by night or day, either in public or at the baths.
XXVIL Our countrymen are wiser, who know the Foiegr&&
goose by the excellence of its liver. Stuffing the
3*5
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
exemptum quoque lacte mulso augetur. nee sine
causa in quaestione est quis tantum bonum invenerit,
Scipione 1 Metellus vir consularis an Marcus Seius
eadem aetate eques Romanus, sed, quod constat,
Messalinus Cotta, Messalae oratoris filius, palmas
pedum ex iis torrere atque patinis cum gallinaceorum
cristis condire reperit; tribuetur enim a me culinis
53 cuiusque palma cum fide, minim in hac alite a
Morinis usque Romam pedibus venire: fessi
proferuntur ad primes, ita ceteri stipatione naturali
propellunt eos.
Candidorum alterum vectigal in pluma. velluntur
quibusdam locis bis anno, rursus plumigeri vestiun-
tur. mollior quae corpora proxima, et e Germania
laudatissima. candidi ibi, verum minores; gantae
54 vocantur; pretium plumae eorum in libras denarii
quini. et inde crimina plerumque auxilionun prae-
fectis a vigili statione ad haec aucupia dimissis
cohortibus totis; eoque deliciae processere ut sine
hoc stramento 2 durare iam ne virorum quidem
cervices possint.
55 XXVIIL Aliud repperit Syriae pars quae Com-
magene vocatur, adipem eorum in vase aereo cum
1 v.L Scipio. 2 Dalec. : instrumento.
326
BOOK X. xxvii. 52-xxviii. 55
bird with food makes the liver grow to a great
size, and also when it has been removed it is made
larger by being soaked in milk sweetened with
honey. Not without reason is it a matter of enquiry
who was the discoverer of so great a boon was it
Scipio Metellus the consular, or his contemporary
Marcus Seius, Knight of Rome ? But it is an accepted
fact that Messalinus Cotta, son of the prator Messala,
invented the recipe for taking from geese the soles
of the feet and grilling them and pickling them
in dishes with the combs of domestic cocks; for I
will award the palm scrupulously to each man's
culinary achievement. A remarkable feat in the
case of this bird is its coming on foot all the way to
Rome from the Morini in Gaul : the geese that get
tired are advanced to the front rank, and so all the
rest drive them on by instinctively pressing forward
in their rear.
White geese yield a second profit in their feathers.
In some places they are plucked twice a year, and
clothe themselves again with a feather coat. The
plumage closest to the body is softer, and that
from Germany is most esteemed. The geese there
are a bright white, but smaller ; the German word
for this bird is Gans ; the price of their feathers is five-
pence per pound. And owing to this officers in
command of auxiliary troops frequently get into
trouble for having sent whole cohorts away from
outpost sentry duty to capture these fowls; and
luxury has advanced to such a pitch that now not
even the male neck can endure to be without goose-
feather bedding.
XXVIIL The part of Syria called Commagene
. - i r -r. / , T -J.-L
has made another discovery, goose-fat mixed witn
PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY
cinnamo nive multa obrutum ac rigore gelido macera-
tum ad usum praeclari medicaminis quod ab gente
dicitur Commagenum.
56 XXIX. Anserini 1 generis sunt chenalopeces et>
quibus lautiores epulas non novit Britannia, chene-
rotes, fere ansere minores. decet et tetraonas suns
nitor absolutaque nigritia, in superciliis cocci rubor.
alterum eoram genus vulturum magnitudinem
excedit quorum et colorem reddit, nee ulla ales
excepto struthocamelo maius corpore implens pondus,
in tantum aucta ut in terra quoque immobilis pre-
hendatur. gignunt eos Alpes et septentrionalis
regio. in vivariis saporem perdunt, moriuntur
57 contumacia spiritu revocato. proximae iis sunt
quas Hispania aves tardas appellat, Graecia on-iSas?
damnatas in cibis; emissa enim ossibus medulla
odoris taedium extemplo sequitur.
58 XXX. Indutias habet gens Pygmaea abscessu
gruum, ut diximus, cum iis dimicantiurn. inmensus
est tractus quo veniunt, si quis reputet, a mari Eoo.
quando proficiscantur consentiunt, volant ad pro-
spiciendum alte, ducem quem sequantur eligunt, in
extremo agmine per vices qui adclament dispositos
59 habent et qui gregem voce contineant. excubias
habent nocturnis temporibus lapillum pede sustin-
entes, qui laxatus somno et decidens indiligentiam
1 Gelen : anseris.
a ' Birds with ears,' the bustard.
* VI 70, VII 26 ff.
328
BOOK X. xxvin. 55-xxx. 59
cinnamon in a bronze bowl, covered with a quantity
of snow and steeped in the icy mixture, to supply
the famous medicine that is called after the tribe
Cormnagemim.
XXIX. To the goose kind belong the sheldrake and varieties of
the barnacle-goose, the latter the most sumptuous H^T^
feast that Britain knows; both are rather smaller
than the goose. The black grouse also makes a
fine show with its gloss and its absolute blackness,
with a touch of bright scarlet above the eyes. 
