The Worship of Priapus

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"Ceres, wandering over the earth in search of her daughter Proserpine, and overcome with grief for her loss, arrived at the hut of an Athenian peasant woman named Baubo, who received her hospitably, and offered her to drink the refreshing mixture which the Greeks call Cyceon (κυκεων). The goddess rejected the offered kindness, and refused all consolation. Baubo, in her distress, bethought her of another expedient to allay the grief of her guest. She relieved her sexual organs of that outward sign which is the evidence of puberty, and then presented them to the view of Ceres, who, at the sight, laughed, forgot her sorrows, and drank the cyceon. 29 The prevailing belief in the beneficial influence of this sight, rather than a mere pleasantry, seems to afford the best explanation of this story; and the same superstition is no doubt embodied in an old mediæval story which we give in a note as it is told in that celebrated book of the sixteenth century Le Moyen de Parvenir. This superstition which, as shown by the Shelah-na-Gigs of the Irish churches, prevailed largely in the middle ages, explains another class of antiquities which are not uncommon."--The Worship of Priapus (1786) by Richard Payne Knight

"In 1786, [ Richard Payne Knight ] published a limited edition of a treatise, entitled, "An Account of the Remains of the Worship of Priapus, lately existing at Isernia, in the Kingdom of Naples, etc." ; to which is added a Discourse on the Worship of Priapus, and its Connection with the Mystic Theology of the Ancients." Although the subject was extraordinary and prohibited from common conversation as indelicate, Mr. Knight had discussed it with moderation and remarkable caution, giving little occasion to prudishness or pruriency, or even to " prurient prudes " to resort to his pages for their accustomed aliment. He added engravings, however, from coins, medals, and other remains of ancient art, which he had collected ; all of which were genuine and authenticated, but were made a handle by which to misrepresent and vilify him. Having been elected to Parliament, a member who was opposed to him in politics, took the occasion in debate to assert that he had written an improper book. Mr. Knight, long before, in consequence of the clamor and of the calumny to which he was subjected, had suppressed a portion of the edition, and destroyed whatever copies came in his way. But indecency did not constitute the offense of the book. Facts were disclosed in regard to the arcana of religion, which the initiated had before sedulously kept vailed from popular knowledge. Mr. Knight had only endeavored to present to scholars a comprehensive view of the origin and nature of a worship once general in the Eastern world ; but it was easy to perceive that many of the elements of that worship had been adopted and perpetuated in the modern faith by which it had been superseded. A philosophical reasoner can not perceive why it should be otherwise. Opinions and institutions are not revolutionised on a day, but are slowly modified by reflection and experience."--An Inquiry Into the Symbolical Language of Ancient Art and Mythology (1818) by Alexander Wilder

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Two Essays on the Worship of Priapus (1786) is a book by Richard Payne Knight. The book sought to recover the importance of ancient phallic cults. Knight's apparent preference for ancient sacred eroticism over Judeo-Christian puritanism led to many attacks on him as an infidel and as a scholarly apologist for libertinism. This ensured the persistent distrust of the religious establishment. The central claim of The Worship of Priapus was that an international religious impulse to worship ‘the generative principle’ was articulated through genital imagery, and that this imagery has persisted into the modern age. In some ways the book was the first of many later attempts to argue that Pagan ideas had persisted within Christianity, a view that would eventually crystalise into the neo-Pagan movement over a century later.

The book was republished in 1865 by John Camden Hotten and in 1957 by the Julian Press with an introduction by Ashley Montagu.

The book cites D'Hancarville's Recherches sur les arts de la Grèce and Dulaure.

1 See also
2 Full text
3 PREFACE TO THIS EDITION
4 PREFACE
5 CONTENTS
6 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
7 ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS
8 A LETTER FROM SIR WILLIAM HAMILTON, ETC. Naples, Dec. 30, 1781.
9 LETTERA DA ISERNIA
10 ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS.
11 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE POWERS DURING THE MIDDLE AGES OF WESTERN EUROPE
12 INDEX.
13 [Plates follow]

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Full text

TWO ESSAYS ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS RICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT AND THOMAS WRIGHT

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PREFACE TO THIS EDITION

RICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT, one of the most distinguished patrons of art and learning in Eng- land during his time, a scholar of great attainments, an eminent antiquarian, member of the Radical party in Parliament, and a writer of great ability, was born at Wormesley Grange, in Herefordshire, in 1750. From an early age he devoted himself to the study of ancient literature, antiquities, and mythology. A large portion of his inherited fortune was expended in the collection of antiquities, especially, ancient coins, models, and bronzes. His collection, which was continued until his death in 1820, was bequeathed to the British Museum, and accepted for that institution by a special act of Parliament. Its value was estimated at £50,000. Among his works are an Inquiry into the Principles of Taste; Analytical Essay on the Greek Alphabet; The Symbolical Language of Ancient Art; and three poems, The Landscape, the Progress of Civil Society, and The Romance of Alfred. The Worship of Priapus was printed in 1786, for distribution by the Dilettanti Society, with which body the author was actively identified. This society embraced in its membership some of the most distinguished scholars in England, among others the Duke of Norfolk, Sir Joseph Banks, Sir William Hamilton, Sir George Beaumont, the Marquis of Abercorn, Lord Charlemont, Lord Dundas, Horace Walpole, and men of equal prominence. The bold utterances of Mr. Knight on a subject which until that time had been entirely tabooed, or had been treated in a way to hide rather than to discover the truth, shocked the sensibilities of the higher classes of English society, and the ministers and members of the various denominations of the Christian world. Rather than endure the storm of criticism, aroused by the publication, he suppressed during his lifetime all the copies of the book he could recall, consequently it became very scarce, and continued so for nearly a hundred years. In 1865 the work was reprinted, with an essay added, carrying the investigation further, showing the prevalence during the middle ages of beliefs and practices similar to those described in Knight’s essay, only modified by the changed conditions of society. The supplementary essay is now generally conceded to have been the work of the eminent author and antiquarian, Thomas Wright;1 assisted by John Camden Hotten, the publisher of the 1865 edition. In their work they had the benefit of the real additions made during this century to the literature of the subject, and of

1 Perhaps no Englishmen of modern times, or of any time, has intelligently treated so many different departments of literary research : Archaeology, Art, Bibliography, Christianity, Customs, Heraldry, Literary History, Philology, Topography, and Travels, are among the topics illustrated by the learning, zeal and industry of Mr. Thomas Wright.—S. AUSTEN ALLIBONE.

the discoveries of objects of antiquity at Herculaneum and Pompeii, also in France, Germany, Belguim, England, Ireland, and in fact in nearly every country in Europe, illustrating the subject they were considering. The numerous illustrations are engraved from antique coins, medals, stone carvings, etc., preserved in the Payne Knight collection in the British Museum, and from other objects discovered in England and on the continent, since the first essay was written. These are only to be found in museums and private collections scattered over Europe, and are practically inaccessible to the student; they are here engraved and fully described. The edition of 1865 was of a limited number of copies, and was soon exhausted. When a copy occasionally appears in the auction room, or in the hands of a bookseller, it brings a large advance on the original high published price. The present edition, an exact reproduction of that of 1865, but correcting some manifest misprints, is published in the interests of science and scholarship. At a time when so many learned investigators are endeavoring to trace back religious beliefs and practices to their origin, it would seem that this is a branch of the subject which should not be ignored. The history of religions has been studied with more zeal and success during the nineteenth century, than in all the ages which preceded it, and this book has now an interest fifty fold greater than when originally published. October, 1894.

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PREFACE

THE following pages are offered simply as a contribution to science. The progress of human society has, in different ages, presented abundance of horrors and abundance of vices, which, in treating history popularly, we are obliged to pass over gently, and often to conceal; but, nevertheless, if we neglect or suppress these facts altogether, we injure the truth of history itself, almost in the same manner as we should injure a man’s health by destroying some of the nerves or muscles of his body. The superstitions which are treated in the two essays which form the present volume, formed a very important element in the working of the social frame in former ages,—in fact, during a very great part of the existence of man in this world, they have had much influence inwardly and outwardly on the character and spirit of society itself, and therefore it is necessary for the historian to understand them, and a part of the duties of the archæologist to investigate them. The Dissertation by Richard Payne Knight is tolerably well known— t at least by name—to bibliographers and antiquaries, as a book of very considerable learning, and at the same time, as one which has become extremely rare, and which, therefore, can only be obtained occasionally at a very high price. It happened that, in a time when the violence of political feelings ran very high, the author, who was a member of the House of Commons, belonged to the liberal party, and his book was spitefully misrepresented, with the design of injuring his character. We know the unjust abuse which was lavished upon him by Mathias, in his now littleread satire, the “Pursuits of Literature.” Some of the Continetnal archæologists had written on kindred subjects long before the time of Payne Knight.

It was thought, therefore, that a new edition of this book, produced in a manner to make it more accessible to scholars, would not be unacceptable. Payne Knight’s design was only to investigate the origin and meaning of a once extensively popular worship. The history of it is, indeed, a wide subject, and must include all branches of the human race, in a majority of which it is in full force at the present day, and even in our own more highly civilized branch it has continued to exist to a far more recent period than we might be inclined to suppose. It is the object of the Essay which has been written for the present volume—of which it forms more than one half—to investigate the existence of these superstitions among ourselves, to trace them, in fact, through the middle ages of Western Euroipe, and their influence on the history of mediæval and on the formation of modern society, and to place in the hands of historical scholars such of their monuments as we have been able to collect. It is hoped that, thus composed, the present volume will prove acceptable to the class of readers to whom it specially addresses itself.

It must not be supposed or expected that this Essay on the mediæval part of the subject can be perfect. A large majority of the facts and monuments of mediæval phallic worship have long perished, but many, hitherto unknown, remain still to be collected, and it may be hopes that the present Essay will lead eventually to much more complete researches as to the existence and influence of this Worship in Western Europe during mediæval times. Notes of such superstitions are continually turning up unexpectedly; and we may mention as an example that a copy of Payne Knight’s treatise now before us contains a marginal note in pencil by a former possessor, Richard Turner, a collector of curious books formerly residing at Grantham in Lincolnshire, in the following words:—”In 1850, I met with a Zingari, or Gypsy, who had an amulet beautifully carved in ivory, which she wore round her neck; she said it was worth 30l, and she would not part with it on any amount. She came from Florence. It was the Lingham and the Yoni united.” This is curious as furnishing apparent evidence of the relationship between the gipsies of Western Europe and India. London, September, 1865.

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PREFACE to this Edition . . . . . . . i Preface to the Edition of 1865 . . . . . . v p Contents . . . . . . . . . . . ix List of Plates, with references to explanatory text . . xiii ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS Letter from Sir William Hamilton . . . . . . . . . 3 Lettera da Isernia, 1780 . . . . . . . . . . . 9 On the Worship of Priapus, by R. Payne Knight . . . 13—113 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE POWERS IN THE MIDDLE AGES OF WESTERN EUROPE. Abundant evidence of Phallic worship in the Roman colonies . . 117 Aix, in Provence . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 Nimes, and its Roman Amphitheatre . . . . . . . . 120 Xanten, in Hesse, and Antwerp . . . . . . . . . 121 Britain, and its Priapic remains . . . . . . . . . 122 The Teutonic Venus, Friga . . . . . . . . . . 126 Fascinum, and its magical influences . . . . . . . . 128 Scotland, and its Phallic celebrations . . . . . . . . 130 Phallic figures on public buildings . . . . . . . . . 131 Ireland, and its Shelah-na-Gig . . . . . . . . . . 132 Representation of the female organ exhibited in various countries. 134 Horseshoes nailed to stable-doors, a remain of the the Shelah-na-Gig exhibition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 The ancient god Priapus becomes a saint in the Middle Ages . . . 139 Page. Marriage offerings to Priapus . . . . . . . . . . 141 Antwerp, and its patron saint Ters . . . . . . . . . 144 M. Forgeais’ collection of phallic amulets . . . . . . . 146 The “Fig,” and its meanings . . . . . . . . . . 148 The German Scrat, and the Gaulish Dusii . . . . . . . 152 Robin Goodfellow. . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 Liberalia and Floralia festivities . . . . . . . . . 154 Easter, and hot-cross-buns . . . . . . . . . . . 158 Heaving and lifting customs at Easter . . . . . . . . 160 May-day festivities . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Bonfires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 St. John’s, or Midsummer-eve . . . . . . . . . . 164 Mother Bunch’s instruction to maidens . . . . . . . . 166 Plants and flowers connected with phallic worship. . . . . 167 The mandrake . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169 Lady Godiva, the Shrewsbury show, and the Guild festival at Preston. 170 Pagan rites of the early Christians . . . . . . . . . 171 Gnostics, Manichæans, Nicolaitæ, followers of Florian, &c. . . . 173 The Bulgarians, and their practices . . . . . . . . . 176 Walter Mape’s account of the Patarini, and their secret rites. . . 176 The Waldenses and Cathari . . . . . . . . . . 178 Popular oaths and phallic worship . . . . . . . . . 181 Secret society in Orleans for celebrating obscene rites . . . . . 182 The Stedingers of Germany, and their secret ceremonies . . . . 184 THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR Charges brought against them . . . . . . . . . . 185 Spitting on the Cross, and the denial of Christ . . . . . . . 188 The Kiss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189 Intercourse with women prohibited . . . . . . . . . 190 The Cat and Idol worship . . . . . . . . . . . 194 Baffomet, or Baphomet . . . . . . . . . . . 198 Von Hammer’s description of the Templars’ images or “idol” . . . 199 THE WITCHES’ SABBATH The last form which the Priapeia and Liberalia assumed in Western Europe 206 Trial of witches at Arras, in France. . . . . . . . . 207 Sprenger and others on witchcraft in the fifteenth century . . . 209 Bodin’s description of the Sabbath ceremonies . . . . . . 210 Pierre de Lancre’s full account of the Witches’ Sabbath . . . . 212 Pictorial representation of the ceremonies . . . . . . . 245 Similarity of the proceeding of the Sabbath to those of the Templars . 246 Intermixture of Priapic orgies with Christian rites and ceremonies . 247 Traces of phallic worship still existing on the western shores of Ireland 248 INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

NOTE.—As frequent references are made to some of the engraved figures in different parts of the work, it was found impossible to insert the illustrations always opposite the explanatory text. The plates, therefore, have been placed, independently of the text, but in regular order. The following list, however, will refer the reader to those pages which explain the objects drawn:— Plate Described on Page I. EX VOTI OF WAX, FROM ISERNIA . . . . . . . . 3, 7 II. ANCIENT AND MODERN AMULETS: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 28, 90 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 28, 88 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 III. ANTIQUE GEMS AND GREEK MEDALS.: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 23, 90 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 33, 46 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 46, 85 6, 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 IV. MEDALS POSSESSED BY PAYNE KNIGHT: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 33 2 . . . . . . . . . . 33, 34, 34, 89 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 33, 36 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 V. FIGURES OF PAN, GEMS, &c.: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 37, 42, 54 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 VI. THE TAURIC DIANA . . . . . . . . . . . 77 xiv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Plate Described on Page VII. GOAT AND SATYR, GREEK SCULPTURE . . . . . . . 33 VIII. BROKEN STATUE OF CERES . . . . . . . . 72 IX. COINS AND MEDALS: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . 80, 81 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 81, 83 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . 79, 88 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . 91, 93 11 . . . . . . . . . . . . 35, 79 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 13 . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 X. SISTRUM, WITH VARIOUS MEDALS: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 2 . . . . . . . . . . . 78, 79, 80 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 XI. SCULPTURES FROM ELEPHANTA . . . . . . . . 47, 48 XII. INDIAN TEMPLE, SHOWING THE LINGAM . . . . . 49, 56, 61 XIII. CELTIC TEMPLE, GREEK MEDAL, &c.: Figure 1, 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . . . 55 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 57, 61 6, 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 9, 10 . . . . . . . . . . . 59 11 . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 XIV. PORTABLE TEMPLE DEDICATED TO PRIAPUS OR THE “LINGAM” . 55 XV. TEMPLE DEDICATED TO BACCHUS, AT PUZZUOLI: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 64, 65 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 64, 66 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xv Plate Described on Page XVI. ORNAMENT FROM PUZZUOLI TEMPLE: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 XVII. ORNAMENT FROM PUZZUOLI TEMPLE: . . . . . . 65 XVIII. EGYPTIAN FIGURES AND ORNAMANETS: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 51, 87, 89 2 . . . . . . . . . . . 50, 87, 89 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 XIX. EGYPTIAN FIGURES AND ORNAMANETS: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 87, 88 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 34, 89 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 87, 89 6, 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 XX. THE LOTUS, WITH MEDALS OF MELITA, &c.: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 XXI. BACCHUS, MEDALS OF CAMARINA, SYRACUSE, &c. Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 4, 5, 6 . . . . . . . . . . . 90 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 XXII. STATUE OF A BULL AT TANJORE . . . . . . . 34 XXIII. TIGER AT THE BREAST OF A NYMPH . . . . . . 74 XXIV. SCULPTURE FROM ELEPHANT. (See Plate XI.) . . . . 47, 48 XXV. ROMAN SCULPTURES FROM NŒMES: Figure 1, 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 4 . . . . . . . . . . . 122, 136 XXVI. MONUMENT FOUND AT NŒMES IN 1825. . . . . . 119, 121 XXVII. PHALLIC FIGURES, &c., FOUND IN ENGLAND: Figure 1, 2, 3, 4 . . . . . . . . . . . 123 XXVIII. PHALLIC MONUMENTS FOUND IN SCOTLAND, &c. Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 xvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Plate Described on Page XXIX. SHELAH-NA-GIG MONUMENTS Figure 1, 2, 3, 4 . . . . . . . . . . 133 to 139 XXX. SHELAH-NA-GIG MONUMENTS Figure 1, 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . . 133 to 139 XXXI. VENUS OF THE VANDALS, BRONZE IMAGES, &c.: Figure 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 . . . . . . . . . 136 to 138 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 XXXII. ORNAMENTS FROM THE CHURCH OF SAN FEDELE Figure 1, 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . 137 to 138 XXXIII. PHALLIC LEADEN TOKENS FROM THE SEINE . . . . 147, 170 XXXIV. LEADEN ORNAMENTS FROM THE SEINE: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 2, 3, 4, 5 . . . . . . . . . . . 147 XXXV. AMULETS, &c., OF GOLD AND LEAD: Figure 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 . . . . . . . . . . 147 XXXVI. ROBIN GOODFELLOW, PHALLIC AMULETS, &c.: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 XXXVII. PRIAPIC ILLUSTRATIONS FROM OLD BALLADS: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 XXXVIII. “IDOLS” OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLARS . . . . . . 199 XXXIX. SCUPLTURES OF THE TEMPLARS’ MYSTERIES: Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 199 to 203 2 . . . . . . . . . . . 200 to 203 3 . . . . . . . . . . . 200 to 204 4 . . . . . . . . . . . 199 to 204 XL. THE WITCHES’ SABBATH, FROM DE LANCRE, 1613 . . 241, 246 AN ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS, LATELY EXISTING AT ISERNIA, in the Kingdom of NAPLES: IN TWO LETTERS: One from Sir WILLIAM HAMILTON, K.B., His Majesty’s Minister at the court of Naples, to Sir JOSEPH BANKS, Bart., President of the Royal Socieity. And the other from a Person residing at Isernia: TO WHICH IS ADDED A DISCOURSE ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS And its Connexion with the mystic Theology of the Ancients. By R. P. KNIGHT, Esq. LONDON: Printed by T. SPILSBURY, Snowhill. M.DCC.LXXXVI.

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ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS

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A LETTER FROM SIR WILLIAM HAMILTON, ETC. Naples, Dec. 30, 1781.

SIR, HAVING last year made a curious discovery, that in a Province of this Kingdom, and not fifty miles from its Capital, a sort of devotion is still paid to PRIA- PUS, the obscene Divinity of the Ancients (though under another denomination), I thought it a circumstance worth recording; particularly, as it offers a fresh proof of the similitude of the Popish and Pagan Religion, so well observed by Dr. Middleton, in his celebrated Letter from Rome: and therefore I mean to deposit the authentic1 proofs of this assertion in the British Museum, when a proper opportunity shall offer. In the meantime I send you the following account, which, I flatter myself, will amuse you for the present, and may in future serve to illustrate those proofs. I had long ago discovered, that the women and children of the lower class, at Naples, and in its neighbourhood, frequently wore, 1 A specimen of each of the ex-voti of wax, with the original letter from Isernia. See the Ex-voti, Plate I. h as an ornament of dress, a sort of Amulets, (which they imagine to be a preservative from the mal occhii, evil eyes, or enchantment) exactly similar to those which were worn by the ancient Inhabitants of this Country for the very same purpose, as likewise for their supposed invigorating influence; and all of which have evidently a relation to the Cult of Priapus. Struck with this conformity in ancient and modern superstition, I made a collection of both the ancient and modern Amulets of this sort, and placed them together in the British Museum, where they remain. The modern Amulet most in vogue represents a hand clinched, with the point of the thumb thrust betwixt the index and middle1 finger; the next is a shell; and the third is a half-moon. These Amulets (except the shell, which is usually worn in its natural state) are most commonly made of silver, but sometimes of ivory, coral, amber, crystal, or some curious gem, or pebble. We have a proof of the hand above described having a connection with Priapus, in a most elegant small idol of bronze of that Divinity, now in the Royal Museum of Portici, and which was found in the ruins of Herculaneum: it has an enormous Phallus, and, with an arch look and gesture, stretches out its right hand in the form above mentioned;2 and which probably was an emblem of consummation: and as a further proof of it, the Amulet which occurs most frequently amongst those of the Ancients (next to that which represents the simple Priapus), is such a hand united with the Phallus; of which you may see several specimens in my collection in the British Museum. One in particular, I recollect, has also the halfmoon joined to the hand and Phallus; which half-moon is supposed to have an allusion to the female menses. The shell, or concha veneris, 1 See Plate II., Fig. 1. 2 This elegant little figure is engraved in the first volume of the Bronzes of the Herculaneum. is evidently an emblem of the female part of generation. It is very natural then to suppose, that the Amulets representing the Phallus alone, so visibly indecent, may have been long out of use in this civilized capital; but I have been assured, that it is but very lately that the Priests have put an end to the wearing of such Amulets in Calabria, and other distant Provinces of this Kingdom. A new road having been made last year from this Capital to the Province of Abruzzo, passing through the City of Isernia (anciently belonging to the Samnites, and very populous 1 ), a person of liberal education, employed in that work, chanced to be at Isernia just at the time of the celebration of the Feast of the modern Priapus, St. Cosmo; and having been struck with the singularity of the ceremony, so very similar to that which attended the ancient Cult of the God of the Gardens, and knowing my taste for antiquities, told me of it. From this Gentleman’s report, and from what I learnt on the spot from the Governor of Isernia himself, having gone to that city on purpose in the month of February last, I have drawn up the following account, which I have reason to believe is strictly true. I did intend to have been present at the Feast of St. Cosmo this year; but the indecency of this ceremony having probably transpired, from the country’s having been more frequented since the new road was made, orders have been given, that the Great Toe2 of the Saint should no longer be exposed. The following is the account of the F’te of St. Cosmo and Damiano, as it actually was celebrated at Isernia, on the confines of Abruzzo, in the Kingdom of Naples, so late as in the year of our Lord 1780. On the 27th of September, at Isernia, one of the most ancient 1 The actual population of Isernia, according to the Governer’s account, is 5156. 2 See the Italian letter, printed at the end of this, from which it appears the modern Priapi were so called at Isernia. cities of the Kingdom of Naples, situated in the Province called the Contado di Molise, and adjoining to Abruzzo, an annual Fair is held, which lasts three days. The situation of this Fair is on a rising ground, between two rivers, about half a mile from the town of Isernia; on the most elevated part of which there is an ancient church, with a vestibule. The architecture is of the style of the lower ages; and it is said to have been a church and convent belonging to the Benedictine Monks in the time of their poverty. This church is dedicated to St. Cosmus and Damianus. One of the days of the Fair, the relicks of the Saints are exposed, and afterwards carried in procession from the cathedral of the city to this church, attended by a prodigious concourse of people. In the city, and at the fair, ex-voti of wax, representing the male parts of generation, of various dimensions, some even of the length of the palm, are publickly offered to sale. There are also waxen vows, that represent other parts of the body mixed with them; but of these there are few in comparison of the number of the Priapi. The devout distributers of these vows carry a basket full of them in one hand, and hold a plate in the other to receive the money, crying aloud, “St. Cosmo and Damiano!” If you ask the price of one, the answer is, pi˘ ci metti, pi˘ meriti: “The more you give, the more's the merit.” In the vestibule are two tables, at each of which one of the canons of the church presides, this crying out, Qui si riceveno le Misse, e Litanie: “Here Masses and Litanies are received;" and the other, Qui si riceveno li Voti: “Here the Vows are received.” The price of a Mass is fifteen Neapolitan grains, and of a Litany five grains. On each table is a large bason for the reception of the different offerings. The Vows are chiefly presented by the female sex; and they are seldom such as represent legs, arms, &c., but most commonly the male parts of generation. The person who was at this fete in the year 1780, and who gave me this account (the authenticity of every article of which has since SIR WILLIAM HAMILTON 7 been fully confirmed to me by the Governor of Isernia), told me also, that he heard a woman say, at the time she presented a Vow, like that which is presented in Plate I, Fig. i., Santo Cosimo benedetto, cosi lo voglio: “Blessed St. Cosmo, let it be like this;” another, St. Cosimo, a te mi raccommendo: “St. Cosmo, I recommend myself to you;” and a third, St. Cosimo, ti ringrazio: “St. Cosmo, I thank you.” The Vow is never presented without being accompanied by a piece of money, and is always kissed by the devotee at the moment of presentation. At the great altar in the church, another of its canons attends to give the holy unction, with the oil of St. Cosmo;1 which is prepared by the same receipt as that of the Roman Ritual, with the addition only of the prayer of the Holy Martyrs, St. Cosmus and Damianus. Those who have an infirmity in any of their members, present themselves at the great altar, and uncover the member affected (not even excepting that which is most frequently represented by the ex-voti); and the reverend canon anoints it, saying, Per intercessionem beati Cosmi, liberet te ab omni malo. Amen. The ceremony finishes by the canons of the church dividing the spoils, both money and wax, which must be to a very considerable amount, as the concourse at this fete is said to be prodigiously numerous. The oil of St. Cosmo is in high repute for its invigorating quality, when the loins, and parts adjacent, are anointed with it. No less than 1400 flasks of that oil were either expended at the altar in unctions, or charitably distributed, during this f’te in the year 1780; and as it is usual for every one, who either makes use 1 The cure of diseases by oil is likewise of ancient date; for Tertullian tells us, that a Christian, called Proculus, cured the Emperor Severus of a certain distemper by the use of oil; for which service the Emperor kept Proculus, as long as he lived, in his palace.

of the oil at the altar, or carries off a flask of it, to leave an alms for St. Cosmo, the ceremony of the oil becomes likewise a very lucrative one to the canons of the church. I am, Sir, With great truth and regard, Your most obedient humble Servant, WILLIAM HAMILTON.

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LETTERA DA ISERNIA

NELL’ ANNO, 1780.

N Isernia Citt‡ Sannitica, oggi della Provincia del Contado di Molise, ogni Anno li 27 Settembre vi è una Fiera della classe delle perdonanze (cosi dette negl’Abruzzi li gran mercati, e fiere non di lista): Questa fiera si fa sopra d'una Collinetta, che st‡ in mezzo a due fiumi; distante mezzo miglio da Isernia, dove nella parte piu elevata vi è un antica Chiesa con un vestibulo, architettura de’ bassi tempi, e che si dice esser stata Chiesa, e Monistero de P. P. Benedettini, quando erano poveri? La Chiesa è dedicata ai Santi COSMO e DAMIANO, ed è Grancia del Reverendissimo Capitolo. La Fiera è di 50 baracche a fabrica, ed i Canonici affittano le baracche, alcune 10, altre 15, al piu 20, carlini l'una; affittano ancora per tre giorni l'osteria fatta di fabbrica docati 20 ed i comestibili solo benedetti. Vi è un Eremita della stessa umanit‡ del fu F. Gland guardiano del Monte Vesuvio, cittato con rispetto dall’ Ab. Richard. La fiera dura tre giorni. Il Maestro di fiera è il Capitolo, ma commette al Governatore Regio; e questa alza bandiera con l’impresa della Citta, che è la stessa impresa de P. P. Celestini. Si fa una Processione con le Reliquie dei Santi, ed esce dalla Cattedrale, e v‡ alla Chiesa sudetta; ma è poco devota. Il giorno della festa, sÏ per la Citt‡, come nella collinetta vi è un gran concorso d’Abitatori i LETTERA DA ISERNIA 10 del Motese, Mainarde, ed altri Monti vicini, che la stranezza delli vestimenti delle Donne, sembra, a chi non ha gl’occhi avvezzi avederle, il pui bel ridotto di mascherate. Le Donne della Terra del Gallo sono vere figlie dell'Ordine Serafico Cappuccino, vestendo come li Zoccolanti in materia, e forma. Puelle di Scanno Sembrano Greche di Scio. Puelle di Carovilli Armene. Puelle delle Pesche, e Carpinone tengono sul capo alcuni panni rossi con ricamo di filo bianco, disegno sul gusto Etrusco, che a pochi passi sembra merletto d’Inghilterra. Vi è fra queste Donne vera belezza, e diversit‡ grande nel vestire, anche fra due popolazioni vicinissime, ed un attaccamento particolare di certe popolazioni ad un colore, ed altre ad altro. L’abito è distinto nelle Zitelle, Maritate, Vedove, è Donne di piacere? Nella fiera ed in Citt‡ vi sono molti divoti, che vendono membri virili di cera di diverse forme, e di tutte le grandezze, fino ad un palmo; e mischiate vi sono ancora gambe, braccia, e faccie; ma poche sono queste. Quei li vendono tengono un cesto, ed un piatto; li membri rotti sono nel cesto, ed il piatto serve per raccogliere il danaro d’elemosina. Gridano S. COSMO e DAMIANO. Chi è sprattico domanda, quanto un vale? Rispondono pi˘ ci metti, pi˘ meriti. Avanti la Chiesa nel vestibolo del Tempio vi sono due tavole, ciascuna con sedia, dove presiede un Canonico, e suol’essere uno il Primicerio, e l’altro Arciprete; grida uno qui si ricevono le Messe, e Litanie: l’altro, qui si ricevono li voti; sopra delle tavole in ogn’una vi è un bacile, che serve per raccogliere li membri di cera, che mai si presentano soli, ma con denaro, come si è pratticato sempre in tutte le presentazioni di membri, ad eccezzione di quelli dell’Isola di Ottaiti. Questa divozione è tutta quasi delle Donne, e sono pochissmi quelli, o quelle che presentano gambe, e braccia, mentre tutta la gran festa s’aggira a profitto de membri della generazione. In ho inteso dire ad una donna. Santo Cosimo benedetto, cosi lo voglio. Altre dicevano, Santo Cosimo a te mi raccommando: LETTERA DA ISERNIA 11 altre, Santo Cosimo ringrazio; e questo è quello osservai, e si prattica nel vestibulo, baciando ogn’una il voto che presente. Dentro la chiesa nell'altare maggiore un canonico fa le sante unzioni con l’olio di S. Cosimo. La ricetta di quest'olio è la stessa del Rituale Romano, con l’aggiunta dell’orazione delli SS. Martiri, Cosimo e Damiano. Si presentano all’Altare gl’Infermi d’ogni male, snundano la parte offesa, anche l'originale della copia di cera, ed il Canonico ungendoli dice, Per intercessionem beati Cosmi, liberet te ab omni malo. Amen. Finisce la festa con dividersi li Canonici la cera, ed il denaro, e con ritornar gravide molte Donne sterili maritate, a profitto della popolazione delle Provincie; e spesso la grazia s'entende senza meraviglia, alle Zitelle, e Vedove, che per due notti hanno dormito, alcune nella Chiesa de’ P.P. Zoccolanti, ed altre delli Capuccini, non essendoci in Isernia Case locande per alloggiare tutto il numero di gente, che concorre: onde li Frati, ajutando ai Preti, danno le Chiese alle Donne, ed i Portici agl’Uomini; e cosi Divisi succedendo gravidanze non deve dubitar si, che sia opera tutto miracolosa, e di divozione. NOTA I. L’olio non solo serve per l'unzione che f‡ Canonico, ma anche si dispensa in picciolissime caraffine, e serve per ungersi li lombo a chi ha male a questa parte. In quest'anno 1780. si sono date par divozione 1400 caraffine, e si è consumato mezzo Stajo d’olio. Chi prende una caraffina da l'olemosina. NOTA II. Li Canonici che siedono nel Vestibulo prendono denaro d’Elemosina per Messe, e per Litanie. Le Messea grana 15. e le Litanie a grana 5. LETTERA DA ISERNIA 12 NOTA III. Li forestieria alloggiano non sola fr‡ li Cappuccini e Zoccolanti, ma anche nell’Eramo di S. Cosmo. Le Donne che dormono nelle chiese de’ P. P. Sudetti sono guardate dalli Guardiani, Vicari e Padri piu di merito, e quelli dell’ Eremo sono in cura dell’ Eremita, divise anche dai Propri Mariti, e si sanno spesso miracoli senza incomodo delli santi. Le non le gusta, quando l’avr‡ letta Torner‡ bene farne una baldoria: Che le daranno almen qualche diletto Le Monachine quando vanno a letto.

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ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS.

MEN, considered collectively, are at all times the same animals, employing the same organs, and endowed with the same faculties: their passions, prejudices, and conceptions, will of course be formed upon the same internal principles, although directed to various ends, and modified in various ways, by the variety of external circumstances operating upon them. Education and science may correct, restrain, and extend; but neither can annihilate or create: they may turn and embellish the currents; but can neither stop nor enlarge the springs, which, continuing to flow with a perpetual and equal tide, return to their ancient channels, when the causes that perverted them are withdrawn.

The first principles of the human mind will be more directly brought into action, in proportion to the earnestness and affection with which it contemplates its object; and passion and prejudice will acquire dominion over it, in proportion as its first principles are more directly brought into action. On all common subjects, this dominion of passion and prejudice is restrained by the evidence of sense and perception; but, when the mind is led to the contemplation of things beyond its comprehension, all such restraints vanish: reason has then nothing to oppose to the phantoms of imagination, which acquire terrors from their obscurity, and dictate uncontrolled, because unknown. Such is the case in all religious subjects, which, being beyond the reach of sense or reason, are always embraced or rejected with violence and heat. Men think they know, because they are sure they feel; and are firmly convinced, because strongly agitated. Hence proceed that haste and violence with which devout persons of all religions condemn the rites and doctrines of others, and the furious zeal and bigotry with which they maintain their own; while perhaps, if both were equally well understood, both would be found to have the same meaning, and only to differ in the modes of conveying it. Of all the profane rites which belonged to the ancient polytheism, none were more furiously inveighed against by the zealous propagators of the Christian faith, than the obscene ceremonies performed in the worship of Priapus; which appeared not only contrary to the gravity and sanctity of religion, but subversive of the first principles of decency and good order in society. Even the form itself, under which the god was represented, appeared to them a mockery of all piety and devotion, and more fit to be placed in a brothel than a temple. But the forms and ceremonials of a religion are not always to be understood in their direct and obvious sense; but are to be considered as symbolical representations of some hidden meaning, which may be extremely wise and just, though the symbols themselves, to those who know not their true signification, may appear in the highest degree absurd and extravagant. It has often happened, that avarice and superstition have continued these symbolical representations for ages after their original meaning has been lost and forgotten; when they must of course appear nonsensical and ridiculous, if not impious and extravagant. Such is the case with the rite now under consideration, than which nothing can be more monstrous and indecent, if considered in its plain and obvious meaning, or as a part of the Christian worship; but which will be found to be a very natural symbol of a very natural and philosophical system of religion, if considered according to its original use and intention. What this was, I shall endeavour in the following sheets to explain as concisely and clearly as possible. Those who wish to know how generally the symbol, and the religion which it represented, once prevailed, will consult the great and elaborate work of Mr. D’Hancarville, who, with infinite learning and ingenuity, has traced its progress over the whole earth. My endeavour will be merely to show, from what original principles in the human mind it was first adopted, and how it was connected with the ancient theology: matters of very curious inquiry, which will serve, better perhaps than any others, to illustrate that truth, which ought to be present in every man’s mind when be judges of the actions of others, that in morals, as well as physics, there is no effect without an adequate cause. If in doing this, I frequently find it necessary to differ in opinion with the learned author above-mentioned, it will be always with the utmost deference and respect; as it is to him that we are indebted for the only reasonable method of explaining the emblematical works of the ancient artists. Whatever the Greeks and Egyptians meant by the symbol in question, it was certainly nothing ludicrous or licentious; of which we need no other proof, than its having been carried in solemn procession at the celebration of those mysteries in which the first principles of their religion, the knowledge of the God of Nature, the First, the Supreme, the Intellectual,1 were preserved free from the vulgar superstitions, and communicated, under the strictest oaths of 1 Plut. de Is. et Osir. ON THE WORSHIP 16 secrecy, to the iniated (initiated); who were obliged to purify themselves, prior to their initiation, by abstaining from venery, and all impure food.1 We may therefore be assured, that no impure meaning could be conveyed by this symbol; but that it represented some fundamental principle of their faith. What this was, it is difficult to obtain any direct information, on account of the secrecy under which this part of their religion was guarded. Plutarch tells us, that the Egyptians represented Osiris with the organ of generation erect, to show his generative and prolific power: he also tells us, that Osiris was the same Deity as the Bacchus of the Greek Mythology; who was also the same as the first begotten Love (Erwj prwtogonoj) of Orpheus and Hesiod.2 This deity is celebrated by the ancient poets as the creator of all things, the father of gods and men;3 and it appears, by the passage above referred to, that the organ of generation was the symbol of his great characteristic attribute. This is perfectly consistent with the general practice of the Greek artists, who (as will be made appear hereafter) uniformly represented the attributes of the deity by the corresponding properties observed in the objects of sight. They thus personified the epithets and titles applied to him in the hymns and litanies, and conveyed their ideas of him by forms, only intelligible to the initiated, instead of sounds, which were intelligible to all. The organ of generation represented the generative or creative attribute, and in the language of painting and sculpture, signified the same as the epithet paggentwr, in the Orphic litanies. This interpretation will perhaps surprise those who have not been accustomed to divest their minds of the prejudices of education and fashion; but I doubt not, but it will appear just and reasonable to those who consider manners and customs as relative to the natural 1 Plut. de Is. et Os. 2 Ibid. 3 Orph. Argon. 422. OF PRIAPUS 17 causes which produced them, rather than to the artificial opinions and prejudices of any particular age or country. There is naturally no impurity or licentiousness in the moderate and regular gratification of any natural appetite; the turpitude consisting wholly in the excess or perversion. Neither are organs of one species of enjoyment naturally to be considered as subjects of shame and concealment more than those of another; every refinement of modern manners on this head being derived from acquired habit, not from nature: habit, indeed, long established; for it seems to have been as general in Homer’s days as at present; but which certainly did not exist when the mystic symbols of the ancient worship were first adopted. As these symbols were intended to express abstract ideas by objects of sight, the contrivers of them naturally selected those objects whose characteristic properties seemed to have the greatest analogy with the Divine attributes which they wished to represent. In an age, therefore, when no prejudices of artificial decency existed, what more just and natural image could they find, by which to express their idea of the beneficent power of the great Creator, than that organ which endowed them with the power of procreation, and made them partakers, not only of the felicity of the Deity, but of his great characteristic attribute, that of multiplying his own image, communicating his blessings, and extending them to generations yet unborn? In the ancient theology of Greece, preserved in the Orphic Fragments, this Deity, the Erwj prwtogonoj, or first-begotten Love, is said to have been produced, together with Æther, by Time, or Eternity (Kronoj), and Necessity (Anagkh), operating upon inert matter (Caoj). He is described as eternally begetting (aeignhthj); the Father of Night, called in later times, the lucid or splendid, (fanhj), because he first appeared in splendour; of a double nature, (difuhj), as possessing the general power of creation and ON THE WORSHIP 18 generation, both active and passive, both male and female.1

Light is his necessary and primary attribute, co-eternal with him1 Orph. Argon., ver. 12. This poem of the Argonautic Expedition is not of the ancient Orpheus, but written in his name by some poet posterior to Homer; as appears by the allusion to Orpheus’s descent into hell; a fable invented after the Homeric times. It is, however, of very great antiquity, as both the style and manner sufficiently prove; and, I think, cannot be later than the age of Pisistratus, to which it has been generally attributed. The passage here referred to is cited from another poem, which, at the time this was written, passed for a genuine work of the Thracian bard: whether justly or not, matters little; for its being thought so at that time proves it to be of the remotest antiquity. The other Orphic poems cited in this discourse are the Hymns, or Litanies, which are attributed by the early Christian and later Platonic writers to Onomacritus, a poet of the age of Pisistratus; but which are probably of various authors (See Brucker. Hist. Crit. Philos., vol. I., part 2, lib., c. i.) They contain, however, nothing which proves them to he later than the Trojan times; and if Onomacritus, or any later author, had anything to do with them, it seems to have been only in new-versifying them, and changing the dialect (See Gesner. Proleg. Orphica, p. 26). Had he forged them, and attempted to impose them upon the world, as the genuine compositions of an ancient bard, there can be no doubt but that he would have stuffed them with antiquated words and obsolete phrases; which is by no means the case, the language being pure and worthy the age of Pisistratus. These Poems are not properly hymns, for the hymns of the Greeks contained the nativities and actions of the gods, like those of Homer and Callimachus; but these are compositions of a different kind, and are properly invocations or prayers used in the Orphic mysteries, and seem nearly of the same class as the Psalms of the Hebrews. The reason why they are so seldom mentioned by any of the early writers, and so perpetually referred to by the later, is that they belonged to the mystic worship, where everything was kept concealed under the strictest oaths of secrecy. But after the rise of Christianity, this sacred silence was broken by the Greek converts who revealed everything which they thought would depreciate the old religion or recommend the now; whilst the heathen priests revealed whatever they thought would have contrary tendency; and endeavoured to show, by publishing the real mystic creed of their religion, that the principles of it were not so absurd as its outward structure seemed to infer; but that, when stripped of poetical allegory and vulgar fable, their theology was pure, reasonable, and sublime (Gesner. Proleg. Orphica). The collection of these poems now extant, being pro-bably compiled and versified by several hands, with some forged, and other interpo-lated and altered, must be read with great caution; more especially the Fragments OF PRIAPUS 19 self, and with him brought forth from inert matter by necessity. Hence the purity and sanctity always attributed to light by the

preserved by the Fathers of the Church and Ammonian Platonics; for these writers made no scruple of forging any monuments of antiquity which suited their purposes; particularly the former, who, in addition to their natural zeal, having the interests of a confederate body to support, thought every means by which they could benefit that body, by extending the lights of revelation, and gaining proselytes to the true faith, not only allowable, but meritorious (See Clementina, Hom. vii., see. 10. Recogn. lib. i., sec. 65. Origen, apud Hieronom. Apolog. i., contra Ruf. et Chrysostom. de Sacerdot., lib. i. Chrysostom, in particular, not only justifies, but warmly commends, any frauds that can be practiced for the advantage of the Church of Christ). Pausanias says (lib. ix.), that the Hymns of Orpheus were few and short; but next in poetical merit to those of Homer, and superior to them in sanctity (qeologikwteroi). These are probably the same as the genuine part of the collection now extant; but they are so intermixed, that it is difficult to say which are genuine and which are not. Perhaps there is no surer rule for judging than to compare the epithets and allegories with the symbols and monograms on the Greek medals, and to make their agreement the test of authenticity. The medals were the public acts and records of the State, made under the direction of the magistrates, who were gene-rally initiated into the mysteries. We may therefore be assured, that whatever theological and mythological allusions are found upon them were part of the ancient religion of Greece. It is from these that many of the Orphic Hymns and Fragments are proved to contain the pure theology or mystic faith of the ancients, which is called Orphic by Pausanias (lib. i., c. 39), and which is so unlike the vulgar religion, or poetical mythology, that one can scarcely Imagine at first sight that it belonged to the same people; but which will nevertheless appear, upon accurate investigation, to be the source from whence it flowed, and the cause of all its extravagance. The history of Orpheus himself is so confused and obscured by fable, that it is impossible to obtain any certain information concerning him. According to general tradition, he was a Thracian, and introduced the mysteries, in which a more pure system of religion was taught, into Greece (Brucker, vol. i., part 2, lib. i., c. i.) He is also said to have travelled into Egypt (Diodor. Sic. lib. i., p. 80); but as the Egyptians pretended that all foreigners received their sciences from them, at a time when all foreigners who entered the country were put to death or enslaved (Diodor. Sic. lib. i., pp. 78 et 107), this account may be rejected, with many others of the same kind. The Egyptians certainly could not have taught Orpheus the plurality of worlds, and true solar system, which appear to have been the fundamental principles of his philosophy and religion (Plutarch. de Placit. Philos., lib. ii., c. 13. ON THE WORSHIP 20 Greeks.1 He is called the Father of Night, because by attracting the light to himself, and becoming the fountain which distributed it to the world, he produced night, which is called eternally-begotten, because it had eternally existed, although mixed and lost in the general mass. He is said to pervade the world with the motion of his wings, bringing pure light; and thence to be called the splendid, the ruling Priapus, and Self-illumined (autaughk 2 ). It is to be observed that the word Prihpoj, afterwards the name of a subordinate deity, is here used as a title relating to one of his attributes; the reasons for which I shall endeavour to explain hereafter. Wings are figuratively attributed to him as being the emblems of swiftness and incubation; by the first of which he pervaded matter, and by the second fructified the egg of Chaos. The egg was carried in procession at the celebration of the mysteries, because, as Plutarch says, it was the material of generation (ÿlh thj genesewj3 ) containing the seeds and germs of life and motion, without being actually possessed of either. For this reason, it was a very proper symbol of Chaos, containing the seeds and materials of all things, which, however, were barren and useless, until the Creator fructified them by the incubation of his vital spirit, and released them from the restraints of inert

Brucker in loc. citat.) Nor could he have gained this knowledge from any people which history has preserved any memorials; for we know of none among whom science had made such a progress, that a truth so remote from common observation, and so contradictory to the evidence of unimproved sense, would not have been rejected, as it was by all the sects of Greek philosophy except the Pythagoreans, who rather revered it as an article of faith, than understood it as a discovery of science. Thrace was certainly inhabited by a civilized nation at some remote period; for, when Philip of Macedon opened the gold mines in that country, he found that they had been worked before with great expense and ingenuity, by a people well versed in mechanics, of whom no memorials whatever were then extant. Of these, pro-bably, was Orpheus, as well as Thamyris, both of whose poems, Plato says, could be read with pleasure in his time. 1 See Sophocl. ådip. Tyr., ver. 1436. 2 Orph. Hym. 5. 3 Symph. I. 2. OF PRIAPUS 21 matter, by the efforts of his divine strength. The incubation of the vital spirit is represented on the colonial medals of Tyre, by a serpent wreathed around an egg;1 for the serpent, having the power of casting his skin, and apparently renewing his youth, became the symbol of life and vigour, and as such is always made an attendant on the mythological deities presiding over health.2 It is also observed, that animals of the serpent kind retain life more pertinaciously than any others except the Polypus, which is sometimes represented upon the Greek Medals,3 probably in its stead. I have myself seen the heart of an adder continue its vital motions for many minutes after it has been taken from the body, and even renew them, after it has been cold, upon being moistened with warm water, and touched with a stimulus. The Creator, delivering the fructified seeds of things from the restraints of inert matter by his divine strength, is represented on innumerable Greek medals by the Urus, or wild Bull, in the act of butting against the Egg of Chaos, and breaking it with his horns.4

It is true, that the egg is not represented with the bull on any of those which I have seen; but Mr. D’Hancarville 5 has brought examples from other countries, where the same system prevailed, which, as well as the general analogy of the Greek theology prove that the egg must have been understood, and that the attitude of the bull could have no other meaning. I shall also have occasion hereafter to show by other examples, that it was no uncommon practice, in these mystic monuments, to make a part of a group represent the whole. It was from this horned symbol of the power of the 1 See Plate XXI. Fig. 1. 2 Macrob. Sat. i. c. 20. 3 See Goltz, Tab. ii. Figs. 7 and 8. 4 See Plate IV. Fig. 1, and Recherches sur les Arts, vol. i. Pl. VIII. The Hebrew word Chroub, or Cherub, signified originally strong or robust; but is usually employed metaphorically, signifying a Bull. See Cleric. in Exod. c. XXV. 5 Recherches sur les Arts, lib. 1. ON THE WORSHIP 22 Deity that horns were placed in the portraits of kings to show that their power was derived from Heaven, and acknowledged no earthly superior. The moderns have indeed changed the meaning of this symbol, and given it a sense of which, perhaps, it would be difficult to find the origin, though I have often wondered that it has never exercised the sagacity of those learned gentlemen who make British antiquities the subjects of their laborious inquiries. At present, it certainly does not bear any character of dignity or power; nor does it ever imply that those to whom it is attributed have been particularly favoured by the generative or creative powers. But this is a subject much too important to be discussed in a digression; I shall therefore leave it to those learned antiquarians who have done themselves so much honour, and the public so much service, by their successful inquiries into customs of the same kind. To their indefatigable industry and exquisite ingenuity I earnestly recommend it, only observing that this modern acceptation of the symbol is of considerable antiquity, for it is mentioned as proverbial in the Oneirocritics of Artemidorus;1 and that it is not now confined to Great Britain, but prevails in most parts of Christendom, as the ancient acceptation of it did formerly in most parts of the world, even among that people from whose religion Christianity is derived; for it is a common mode of expression in the Old Testament, to say that the horns of any one shall be exalted, in order to signify that he shall be raised into power or pre-eminence; and when Moses descended from the Mount with the spirit of God still upon him, his head appeared horned.2 To the head of the bull was sometimes joined the organ of generation, which represented not only the strength of the Creator, 1 Lib. i. c. 12. 2 Exod. c. XXXIV. v. 35, ed. Vulgat. Other translators understand the expression metaphorically, and suppose it to mean radiated, or luminous. OF PRIAPUS 23 but the peculiar direction of it to the most beneficial purpose, the propagation of sensitive beings. Of this there is a small bronze in the Museum of Mr. Townley, of which an engraving is given in Plate III. Fig. 2. 1 Sometimes this generative attribute is represented by the symbol of the goat, supposed to be the most salacious of animals, and therefore adopted upon the same principles as the bull and the serpent.2

The choral odes, sung in honour of the generator Bacchus, were hence called tragwdiai, or songs of the goat; a title which is now applied to the dramatic dialogues anciently inserted in these odes, to break their uniformity. On a medal, struck in honour of Augustus, the goat terminates in the tail of a fish, to show the generative power incorporated with water. Under his feet is the globe of the earth, supposed to be fertilised by this union; and upon his back, the cornucopia, representing the result of this fertility.3

Mr. D’Hancarville attributes the origin of all these symbols to the ambiguity of words; the same term being employed in the primitive language to signify God and a Bull, the Universe and a Goat, Life and a Serpent. But words are only the types and symbols of ideas, and therefore must be posterior to them, in the same manner as ideas are to their objects. The words of a primitive language, being imitative of the ideas from which they sprung, and of the objects they meant to express, as far as the imperfections of the organs of speech will admit, there must necessarily be the same kind of analogy between them as between the ideas and objects themselves. It is impossible, therefore, that in such a language any ambiguity of this sort could exist, as it does in secondary 1 See Plate III. 2 Ton de tragon aÓeqewsan (“i AiguÓer) kai Óara toij Ellhsi tetimhsqai legousi ton PriaÓon, dia to gennhtik morion. DIODOR. lib. i. p. 78. 3 Plate X. Fig. 3. ON THE WORSHIP 24 languages; the words of which, being collected from various sources, and blended together without having any natural connection, become arbitrary signs of convention, instead of imitative representations of ideas. In this case it often happens, that words, similar in form, but different in meaning, have been adopted from different sources, which, being blended together, lose their little difference of form, and retain their entire difference of meaning. Hence ambiguities arise, such as those above mentioned, which could not possibly exist in an original tongue. The Greek poets and artists frequently give the personification of a particular attribute for the Deity himself; hence he is called Taurozoaj, Taurwpoj, Tauromorfoj, 1 &c., and hence the initials and monograms of the Orphic epithets applied to the Creator, are found with the bull, and other symbols, on the Greek medals.2 It must not be imagined from hence, that the ancients supposed the Deity to exist under the form of a bull, a goat, or a serpent: on the contrary, he is always described in the Orphic theology as a general pervading Spirit, without form, or distinct locality of any kind; and appears, by a curious fragment preserved by Proclus,3 to have been no other than attraction personified. The self-created mind (nooj autogeneqloj) of the Eternal Father is said to have spread the heavy bond of love through all things (pasin enespeiren desmon peribriqh Erwtoj), in order that they might endure for ever. This Eternal Father is Kronoj, time or eternity, personified; and so taken for the unknown Being that fills eternity and infinity. The ancient theologists knew that we could form no positive idea of infinity, whether of power, space, or time; it being fleeting and fugitive, and eluding the understanding by a continued and boundless pro1 Orph. Hymn v. et xxxix. 2 Numm. Vet. Pop. et Urb. Tab. xxxix. Figs 19 et 20. They are on most of the medals of Marseilles, Naples, Thurium and many other cities. 3 In Tim, III., et Frag. Orphic., ed Gesner. OF PRIAPUS 25 gression. The only notion we have of it is from the addition or division of finite things, which suggest the idea of infinite, only from a power we feel in ourselves of still multiplying and dividing without end. The Schoolmen indeed were bolder, and, by a summary mode of reasoning, in which they were very expert, proved that they had as clear and adequate an idea of infinity, as of any finite substance whatever. Infinity, said they, is that which has no bounds. This negation, being a positive assertion, must be founded on a positive idea. We have therefore a positive idea of infinity. The Eclectic Jews, and their followers, the Ammonian and Christian Platonics, who endeavoured to make their own philosophy and religion conform to the ancient theology, held infinity of space to be only the immensity of the divine presence. `O Qepk òauto topoj esti1 was their dogma, which is now inserted into the Confessional of the Greek Church.2 This infinity was distinguished by them from common space, as time was from eternity. Whatever is eternal or infinite, said they, must be absolutely indivisible; because division is in itself inconsistent with infinite continuity and duration: therefore space and time are distinct from infinity and eternity, which are void of all parts and gradations whatever. Time is measured by years, days, hours, &c., and distinguished by past, present, and future; but these, being divisions, are excluded from eternity, as locality is from infinity, and as both are from the Being who fills both; who can therefore feel no succession of events, nor know any gradation of distance; but must comprehend infinite duration as if it were one moment, and infinite extent as if it were but a single point.3 Hence the Ammonian Platonics speak of him as concentered in his own unity, and extended through all things, but par1 Philo. de Leg. Alleg. lib. i. Jo. Damasc. de Orth. Fid. 2 Mosheim. Note in Sec. xxiv. Cdw. Syst. Intellect. 3 See Boeth. de Consol. Philos. lib. iv. prof. 6. ON THE WORSHIP 26 ticipated of by none. Being of a nature more refined and elevated than intelligence itself, he could not be known by sense, perception, or reason; and being the cause of all, he must be anterior to all, even to eternity itself, if considered as eternity of time, and not as the intellectual unity, which is the Deity himself, by whose emanations all things exist, and to whose proximity or distances they owe their degrees of excellence or baseness. Being itself, in its most abstract sense, is derived from him; for that which is the cause and beginning of all Being, cannot be a part of that All which sprung from himself: therefore he is not Being, nor is Being his Attribute; for that which has an attribute cannot have the abstract simplicity of pure unity. All Being is in its nature finite; for, if it was otherwise, it must be without bounds every way; and therefore could have no gradation of proximity to the first cause, or consequent pre-eminence of one part over another: for, as all distinctions of time are excluded from infinite duration, and all divisions of locality from infinite extent, so are all degrees of priority from infinite progression. The mind is and acts in itself; but the abstract unity of the first cause is neither in itself, nor in another;—not in itself, because that would imply modification, from which abstract simplicity is necessarily exempt; nor in another, because then there would be an hypostatical duality, instead of absolute unity. In both cases there would be a locality of hypostasis, inconsistent with intellectual infinity. As all physical attributes were excluded from this metaphysical abstraction, which they called their first cause, he must of course be destitute of all moral ones, which are only generalized modes of action of the former. Even simple abstract truth was denied him; for truth, as Proclus says, is merely the relative to falsehood; and no relative can exist without a positive or correlative. The Deity therefore who has no falsehood, can have no truth, in our sense of the word.1

1 Proclus in Theolog. Platon. lib. i. et ii. OF PRIAPUS 27 As metaphysical theology is a study very generally, and very deservedly, neglected at present, I thought this little specimen of it might be entertaining, from its novelty, to most readers; especially as it is intimately connected with the ancient system, which I have here undertaken to examine. Those, who wish to know more of it, may consult Proclus on the Theology of Plato, where they will find the most exquisite ingenuity most wantonly wasted. No persons ever showed greater acuteness or strength of reasoning than the Platonics and Scholastics; but having quitted common sense, and attempted to mount into the intellectual world, they expended it all in abortive efforts which may amuse the imagination, but cannot satisfy the understanding. The ancient Theologists showed more discretion; for, finding that they could conceive no idea of infinity, they were content to revere the Infinite Being in the most general and efficient exertion of his power, attraction; whose agency is perceptible through all matter, and to which all motion may, perhaps, be ultimately traced. This power, being personified, became the secondary Deity, to whom all adoration and worship were directed, and who is therefore frequently considered as the sole and supreme cause of all things. His agency being supposed to extend through the whole material world, and to produce all the various revolutions by which its system is sustained, his attributes were of course extremely numerous and varied. These were expressed by various titles and epithets in the mystic hymns and litanies, which the artists endeavoured to represent by various forms and characters of men and animals. The great characteristic attribute was represented by the organ of generation in that state of tension and rigidity which is necessary to the due performance of its functions. Many small images of this kind have been found among the ruins of Herculaneum and Pompeii, attached to the bracelets, which the chaste and pious matrons of antiquity wore round their necks and arms. In these, the organ of generation ON THE WORSHIP 28 appears alone, or only accompanied with the wings of incubation,1 in order to show that the devout wearer devoted herself wholly and solely to procreation, the great end for which she was ordained. So expressive a symbol, being constantly in her view, must keep her attention fixed on its natural object, and continually remind her of the gratitude she owed the Creator, for having taken her into his service, made her a partaker of his most valuable blessings, and employed her as the passive instrument in the exertion of his most beneficial power. The female organs of generation were revered2 as symbols of the generative powers of nature or matter, as the male were of the generative powers of God. They are usually represented emblematically, by the Shell, or Concha Veneris, which was therefore worn by devout persons of antiquity, as it still continues to be by pilgrims, and many of the common women of Italy. The union of both was expressed by the hand mentioned in Sir William Hamilton's letter;3 which being a less explicit symbol, has escaped the attention of the reformers, and is still worn, as well as the shell, by the women of Italy, though without being understood. It represented the act of generation, which was considered as a solemn sacrament, in honour of the Creator, as will be more fully shown hereafter. The male organs of generation are sometimes found represented by signs of the same sort, which might properly be called the symbols of symbols. One of the most remarkable of these is a cross, in the form of the letter T,4 which thus served as the emblem of creation and generation, before the church adopted it as the sign of salvation; a lucky coincidence of ideas, which, without doubt, facilitated the 1 Plate II. Fig. 2, engraved from one in the British Museum. 2 August. de Civ. Dei, Lib. VI. c. 9. 3 See Plate II, Fig. 1, from one in the British Museum, in which both symbols are united. 4 Recherches sur les Arts, lib. i. c. 3. OF PRIAPUS 29 reception of it among the faithful. To the representative of the male organs was sometimes added a human head, which gives it the exact appearance of a crucifix; as it has on a medal of Cyzicus, published by M. Pellerin.1 On an ancient medal, found in Cyprus, which, from the style of workmanship, is certainly anterior to the Macedonian conquest, it appears with the chaplet or rosary, such as is now used in the Romish churches;2 the beads of which were used, anciently, to reckon time.3 Their being placed in a circle, marked its progressive continuity; while their separation from each other marked the divisions, by which it is made to return on itself, and thus produce years, months, and days. The symbol of the creative power is placed upon them, because these divisions were particularly under his influence and protection; the sun being his visible image, and the centre of his power, from which his emanations extended through the universe. Hence the Egyptians, in their sacred hymns, called upon Osiris, as the being who dwelt concealed in the embraces of the sun;4 and hence the great luminary itself is called Kosmokratwr (Ruler of the World) in the Orphic Hymns.5 This general emanation of the pervading Spirit of God, by which all things are generated and maintained, is beautifully described by Virgil, in the following lines: Deum namque ire per omnes Terrasque, tractusque maris, cúlumque profundum. Hinc pecudes, armenta, viros, genus omne ferarum, Quemque sibi tenues nascentum arcessere vitas. Scilicet huc reddi deinde, ac resoluta referri Omnia: nec morti esse locum, sed viva volare Sideris in numerum, atque alto succedere cúlo.6

1 See Plate IX. Fig. 1. 2 Plate IX. Fig. 2, from Pellerin. Similar medals are in the Hunter collection, and are evidently of Phúnician work. 3 Recherches sur les Arts, lib. i. c. 3. 4 Plutarch, de Is. et Osir. 5 See Hymn VII. 6 Georgic. lib. iv. ver 221. ON THE WORSHIP 30 The Ethereal Spirit is here described as expanding itself through the universe, and giving life and motion to the inhabitants of earth, water, and air, by a participation of its own essence, each particle of which returned to its native source, at the dissolution of the body which it animated. Hence, not only men, but all animals, and even vegetables, were supposed to be impregnated with some particles of the Divine Nature infused into them, from which their various qualities and dispositions, as well as their powers of propagation, were supposed to be derived. These appeared to be so many emanations of the Divine attributes, operating in different modes and degrees, according to the nature of the beings to which they belonged. Hence the characteristic properties of animals and plants were not only regarded as representations, but as actual emanations of the Divine Power, consubstantial with his own essence.1 For this reason, the symbols were treated with greater respect and veneration than if they had been merely signs and characters of convention. Plutarch says, that most of the Egyptian priests held the bull Apis, who was worshipped with so much ceremony, to be only an image of the Spirit of Osiris.2 This I take to have been the real meaning of all the animal worship of the Egyptians, about which so much has been written, and so little discovered. Those animals or plants, in which any particular attribute of the Deity seemed to predominate, became the symbols of that attribute, and were accordingly worshipped as the images of Divine Providence, acting in that particular direction. Like many other customs, both of ancient and modern worship, the practice, probably, continued long after the reasons upon which it was founded were either wholly lost, or only partially preserved, in vague traditions. This was the case in Egypt; for, though many of the priests knew or conjectured the origin of the worship of the bull, they could give no rational 1 Proclus in Theol. Plat. lib. i. pp. 56, 57. 2 De Is. et. Osir. OF PRIAPUS 31 account why the crocodile, the ichneumon, and the ibis, received similar honours. The symbolical characters, called hieroglyphics, continued to be esteemed by them as more holy and venerable than the conventional representations of sounds, notwithstanding their manifest inferiority; yet it does not appear, from any accounts extant, that they were able to assign any reason for this preference. On the contrary, Strabo tells us that the Egyptians of his time were wholly ignorant of their ancient learning and religion,1 though impostors continually pretended to explain it. Their ignorance in these points is not to be wondered at, considering that the most ancient Egyptians, of whom we have any authentic accounts, lived after the subversion of their monarchy and destruction of their temples by the Persians, who used every endeavour to annihilate their religion; first, by command of Cambyses,2 and then of Ochus.3 What they were before this calamity, we have no direct information; for Herodotus is the earliest traveller, and he visited this country when in ruins. It is observable in all modern religions, that men are superstitious in proportion as they are ignorant, and that those who know least of the principles of religion are the most earnest and fervent in the practice of its exterior rites and ceremonies. We may suppose from analogy, that this was the case with the Egyptians. The learned and rational merely respected and revered the sacred animals, whilst the vulgar worshipped and adored them. The greatest part of the former being, as is natural to suppose, destroyed by the persecution of the Persians, this worship and adoration became general; different cities adopting different animals as their tutelar deities, in the same manner as the Catholics now put themselves under the protection of different saints and martyrs. Like 1 Lib. xvii. 2 Herodot. lib. iii. Strabo, lib. xvii. 3 Plutarch, de Is. et Osir. ON THE WORSHIP 32 them, too, in the fervency of their devotion for the imaginary agent, they forgot the original cause.

The custom of keeping sacred animals as images of the Divine attributes, seems once to have prevailed in Greece as well as Egypt; for the God of Health was represented by a living serpent at Epidaurus, even in the last stage of their religion.1 In general, however, they preferred wrought images, not from their superiority in art, which they did not acquire until after the time of Homer, 2 when their theology was entirely corrupted; but because they had thus the means of expressing their ideas more fully, by combining several forms together, and showing, not only the Divine attribute, but the mode and purpose of its operation. For instance; the celebrated bronze in the Vatican has the male organs of generation placed upon the head of a cock, the emblem of the sun, supported by the neck and shoulders of a man. In this composition they represented the generative power of the Ερως, the Osiris, Mithras, or Bacchus, whose centre is the sun, incarnate with man. By the inscription on the pedestal, the attribute this personified, is styled The Saviour of the World (Σωτηζ κοσμψ); a title always venerable, under whatever image it be represented. 3

The Egyptians showed this incarnation of the Deity by a less permanent, though equally expressive symbol. At Mendes a living goat was kept as the image of the generative power, to whom the women presented themselves naked, and had the honour of being publicly enjoyed by him. Herodotus saw the act openly performed (ej epideixin anqrwpwn), and calls it a prodigy (teraj). But the Egyptians had no such horror of it; for it was to them a representation of the incarnation of the Deity, and the communication of 1 Liv. Hist. Epsiom. lib. xi. 2 When Homer praises any work of art, he calls it the work of Sidonians. 3 See Plate II. Fig. 3. OF PRIAPUS 33 his creative spirit to man. It was one of the sacraments of that ancient church, and was, without doubt, beheld with that pious awe and reverence with which devout persons always contemplate the mysteries of their faith, whatever they happen to be; for, as the learned and orthodox Bishop Warburton, whose authority it is not for me to dispute, says, from the nature of any action morality cannot arise, nor from its effects;1 therefore, for aught we can tell, this ceremony, however shocking it may appear to modern manners and opinions, might have been intrinsically meritorious at the time of its celebration, and afforded a truly edifying spectacle to the saints of ancient Egypt. Indeed, the Greeks do not seem to have felt much horror or disgust at the imitative representation of it, whatever the historian might have thought proper to express at the real celebration. Several specimens of their sculpture in this way have escaped the fury of the reformers, and remained for the instruction of later times. One of these, found among the ruins of Herculaneum, and kept concealed in the Royal Museum of Portici, is well known. Another exists in the collection of Mr. Townley, which I have thought proper to have engraved for the benefit of the learned.2 It may be remarked, that in these monuments the goat is passive instead of active; and that the human symbol is represented as incarnate with the divine, instead of the divine with the human: but this is in fact no difference; for the Creator, being of both sexes, is represented indifferently of either. In the other symbol of the bull, the sex is equally varied; the Greek medals having sometimes a bull, and sometimes a cow,3 which, Strabo tells us, was employed as the symbol of Venus, the passive generative power, at Momemphis, in Egypt.4 Both the bull and the cow are 1 Div. Leg. book i. c. 4. 2 See Plate VII. 3 See Plate IV, Fig. 1, 2, 3, and Plate III, fig 4, engraved from medals belonging to me. 4 Lib. xvii. ON THE WORSHIP 34 also worshipped at present by the Hindoos, as symbols of the male and female, or generative and nutritive, powers of the Deity. The cow is in almost all their pagodas; but the bull is revered with superior solemnity and devotion. At Tanjour is a monument of their piety to him, which even the inflexible perseverance, and habitual industry of the natives of that country, could scarcely have erected without greater knowledge in practical mechanics than they now possess. It is a statue of a bull lying down, hewn, with great accuracy, out of a single piece of hard granite, which has been conveyed by land from the distance of one hundred miles, although its weight, in its present reduced state, must be at least one hundred tons.1 The Greeks sometimes made their Taurine Bacchus, or bull, with a human face, to express both sexes, which they signified by the initial of the epithet Difuej placed under him.2 Over him they frequently put the radiated asterisk, which represents the sun, to show the Deity, whose attribute he was intended to express.3

Hence we may perceive the reason why the Germans, who, according to Cæsar, 4 worshipped the sun, carried a brazen bull, as the image of their God, when they invaded the Roman dominions in the time of Marius;5 and even the chosen people of Providence, when they made unto themselves an image of the God who was to conduct them through the desert, and cast out the ungodly, from before them, made it in the shape of a young bull, or calf.6

The Greeks, as they advanced in the cultivation of the imitative 1 See Plate XXII. with the measurements, as made by Capt. Patterson on the spot. 2 See Plate IV, Fig. 2, from a medal of Naples in the Hunter collection. 3 See Plate IV, Fig. 2, and Plate XIX. Fig 4, from a medal of Cales, belonging to me. 4 De B. G., lib. vi. 5 Plut. in Mario. 6 Exod. c. xxxii., with Patrick’s Commentary. OF PRIAPUS 35 arts, gradually changed the animal for the human form, preserving still the original character. The human head was at first added to the body of the bull;1 but afterwards the whole figure was made human, with some of the features, and general character of the animal, blended with it.2 Oftentimes, however, these mixed figures had a peculiar and proper meaning, like that of the Vatican Bronze; and were not intended as mere refinements of art. Such are the fawns and satyrs, who represent the emanations of the Creator, incarnate with man, acting as his angels and ministers in the work of universal generation. In copulation with the goat, they represent the reciprocal incarnation of man with the deity, when incorporated with universal matter: for Deity, being both male and female, was both act and passive in procreation; first animat-ing man by an emanation from his own essence, and then employing that emanation to reproduce, in conjunction with the common pro-ductive powers of nature, which are no other than his own prolific spirit transfused through matter. These mixed beings are derived from Pan, the principle of universal order; of whose personified image they partake. Pan is addressed in the Orphic Litanies as the first-begotten love, or creator incorporated in universal matter, and so forming the world.3 The heaven, the earth, water, and fire are said to be members of him; and he is described as the origin and source of all things (pantofuhj genetwr pantwn), as representing matter animated by the Divine Spirit. Lycæan Pan was the most ancient and revered God of the Arcadians,4 the most ancient people of Greece. The epithet Lycæan (Lukaioj), is usually derived from lukoj, a wolf; though it is impossible to 1 See the medals of Naples, Gela, &c . Plate IV. Fig 2 and Plate IX. Fig 11, are specimens; but the coins are in all collections. 2 See Bronzi d’Herculano, tom. v. Plate v. 3 Hymn. x. 4 Dionys. Antiq. Rom. lib. i, c. 32. ON THE WORSHIP 36 find any relation which this etymology can have with the deities to which it is applied; for the epithet Lukaioj, or Lukeioj (which is only the different pronunciation of a different dialect), is occasionally applied to almost all the gods. I have therefore no doubt, but that it ought to be derived from the old word lukoj,or lukh,light; from which came the Latin word lux. 1 In this sense it is a very proper epithet for the Divine Nature, of whose essence light was supposed to be. I am confirmed in this conjecture by a word in the Electra of Sophocles, which seems hitherto to have been misunderstood. At the opening of the play, the old tutor of Orestes, entering Argos with his young pupil, points out to him the most celebrated public buildings, and amongst them the Lycæan Forum, tou lukoktonou Qeou, which the scholiast and translators interpret, of the wolf-killing God, though there is no reason whatever why this epithet should be applied to Apollo. But, if we derive the compound from lukoj, light, and ekteinein, to extend, instead of kteinein, to kill, the meaning will be perfectly just and natural; for light-extending, is of all others the properest epithet for the sun. Sophocles, as well as Virgil, is known to have been an admirer of ancient expressions, and to have imitated Homer more than any other Attic Poet; therefore, his employing an obsolete word is not to be wondered at. Taking this etymology as the true one, the Lycæan Pan of Arcadia is Pan the luminous; that is, the divine essence of light incorporated in universal matter. The Arcadians called him ton thj ÿlhj Kurion, the lord of matter as Macrobius rightly translates it.2 He was hence called Sylvanus by the Latins; Sylvus being, in the ancient Pelasgian and Æolian Greek, from which the Latin is derived, the same as ÿlh for it is well known to all who have compared the two languages attentively, that the Sigma and Vau are letters, the one of which was partially, and the other generally omitted by the Greeks, in the refinement of 1 Macrob. Sat. xvii. 2 Sat. i. c. 22. OF PRIAPUS 37 their pronunciation and orthography which took place after the emigration of the Latian and Etruscan colonies. The Chorus in the Ajax of Sophocles address Pan by the title of ëAliplagktoj, 1 probably because he was worshipped on the shores of the sea; water being reckoned the best and most prolific of the subordinate elements,2 upon which the Spirit of God, according to Moses, or the Plastic Nature, according to the Platonics, operating, produced life and motion on earth. Hence the ocean is said by Homer to be the source of all things;3 and hence the use of water in baptism, which was to regenerate, and, in a manner, new create the person baptised; for the soul, supposed by many of the primitive Christians to be naturally mortal, was then supposed to become immortal.4 Upon the same principle, the figure of Pan,5 is represented pouring water upon the organ of generation; that is, invigorating the active creative power by the prolific element upon which it acted; for water was considered as the essence of the passive principle, as fire was of the active; the one being of terrestrial, and the other of æthereal origin. Hence, St. John the Baptist, who might have acquired some knowledge of the ancient theology, through its revivers, the Eclectic Jews, says: I, indeed, baptise you in water to repentance; but he that cometh after me, who is more powerful than I am, shall baptise you in Holy Spirit, and in fire: 6 that is, I only purify and refresh the soul, by a communion with the terrestrial principle of life; but he that cometh after me, will regenerate and restore it, by a communion with the æthereal principle.7 Pan is 1 Ver. 703. 2 Pindar, Olymp. i. ver. 1. Diodor, Sic. lib. i. p. 11. 3 Il. x, ver 246, and f, ver. 196. 4 Clementina, Hom. xii. Arnob. adv. Gentes, lib. ii. 5 See Plate V. Fig 1. The original is among the antiquities found in Herculaneum, now in the Museum of Portici. 6 Matth. c. iii. 7 It is the avowed intention of the learned and excellent work of Grotius, to prove that there is nothing new in Christianity. What I have here adduced, may serve to ON THE WORSHIP 38 again addressed in Salaminian Chorus of the same tragedy of Sophocles, by the titles of author and director of the dances of the gods (Qewn coropoi' anax), as being the author and disposer of the regular motions of the universe, of which these divine dances were symbols, which are said in the same passage to be (autodah) selftaught to him. Both the Gnossian and Nysian dances are here included,1 the former sacred to Jupiter, and the latter to Bacchus; for Pan, being the principle of universal order, partook of the nature of all the other gods. They were personifications of particular modes of acting of the great all-ruling principle; and he, of his general law and pre-established harmony by which he governs the universe. Hence he is often represented playing on a pipe; music being the natural emblem of this physical harmony. According to Plutarch, the Jupiter Ammon of the Africans was the same as the Pan of the Greeks.2 This explains the reason why the Macedonian kings assumed the horns of that god; for, though Alexander pretended to be his son, his successors never pretended to any such honour; and yet they equally assumed the symbols, as appears from their medals.3 The case is, that Pan, or Ammon, being the universe, and Jupiter a title of the Supreme God (as will be shown hereafter), the horns, the emblems of his power, seemed the properest symbols of that supreme and universal dominion to which they all, as well as Alexander, had the ambition to aspire. The figure of Ammon was compounded of the forms of the ram, as that of Pan was of the goat; the reason of which is difficult to ascertain, unless we suppose

confirm and illustrate the discoveries of that great and good man. See de Veritate Relig. Christ. lib. iv, c. 12. 1 Ver. 708. 2 De Is. et Osir. 3 See Plate IV, Fig 4, engraved from one of Lysimachus, of exquisite beauty, beloning to me. Antigonus put the head of Pan upon his coins, which are not uncommon. OF PRIAPUS 39 that goats were unknown in the country where his worship arose, and that the ram expressed the same attribute.1 In a gem in the Museum of Charles Townley, Esq., the head of the Greek Pan is joined to that of a ram, on the body of a cock, over whose head is the asterisk of the sun, and below it the head of an aquatic fowl, attached to the same body.2 The cock is the symbol of the sun, probably from proclaiming his approach in the morning; and the aquatic fowl is the emblem of water; so that this composition, apparently so whimsical, represents the universe between the two great prolific elements, the one the active, and the other the passive cause of all things. The Creator being both male and female, the emanations of his creative spirit, operating upon universal matter, produced subordinate ministers of both sexes, and gave, as companions to the fauns and satyrs, the nymphs of the waters, the mountains and the woods, signifying the passive productive powers of each, subdivided and diffused. Of the same class are the Genetullidej, mentioned by Pausanias as companions to Venus,3 who, as well as Ceres, Juno, Diana, Isis, &c., was only a personification of nature, or the passive principle of generation, operating in various modes. Apuleius invokes Isis by the names of the Eleusinian Ceres, Celestial Venus, and Proserpine; and, when the Goddess answers him, she describes herself as follows: “I am,” says she, “nature, the parent of things, the sovereign of the elements, the primary progeny of time, the most exalted of the deities, the first of the heavenly Gods and Goddesses, the queen of the shades, the uniform countenance; who dispose, with my nod, the luminous heights of heaven, the salubrious breezes of the sea, and the mournful silence of the dead; whose single Deity the whole 1 Pausanias (lib. ii.) says he knew the meaning of this symbol, but did not choose to reveal it, it being a part of the mystic worship. 2 Plate III, Fig. 1. 3 Lib. i. ON THE WORSHIP 40 world venerates, in many forms, with various rites, and various names. The Egyptians, skilled in ancient learning, worship me with proper ceremonies, and call me by my true name, Queen Isis.”1 According to the Egyptians, Isis copulated with her brother Osiris in the womb of their mother; from whence sprung Arueris, or Orus, the Apollo of the Greeks.2 This allegory means no more than that the active and passive powers of creation united in the womb of night; where they had been implanted by the unknown father, Kronoj, or time, and by their union produced the separation or delivery of the elements from each other; for the name Apollo is only a title derived from apoluw, to deliver from. 3 They made the robes of Isis various in their colours and complicated in their folds, because the passive or material power appeared in various shapes and modes, as accommodating itself to the active; but the dress of Osiris was simple, and of one luminous colour, to show the unity of his essence, and universality of his power; equally the same through all things.4

The luminous, or flame colour, represented the sun, who, in the language of the theologists, was the substance of his sacred power, and the visible image of his intellectual being.5 He is called, in the Orphic Litanies, the chain which connects all things together (– d’ anedrame desmoj °pantwn),5 as being the principle of attraction; and the deliverer (lusioj),7 as giving liberty to the innate powers of nature, and thus fertilising matter. These epithets not only express the theological, but also the physical system of the Orphic school; according to which the sun, being placed in the centre of the 1 Metamorph. lib. xi. 2 Plutarch, de Is. et Osir. 3 Damm. Lex. Etym. 4 Plutarch, de Is. et. Osir. 4 Ibid. 5 Hymn xlvi. 7 Hymn. xlix. the initials of this epithet are with the bull on a medal of Naples belonging to me The bull has a human countenance, and has therefore been called a minotaur by antiquarians; notwithstanding he is to be found on different medals, accompanied with all the symbols both of Bacchus and Apollo, and with the initials of most of the epithets to be found in the Orphic Litanies. OF PRIAPUS 41 universe, with the planets moving round, was, by his attractive force, the cause of all union and harmony in the whole; and, by the emanation of his beams, the cause of all motion and activity in the parts. This system is alluded to by Homer in the allegory of the golden chain, by which Jupiter suspends all things;1 though there is every reason to believe that the poet himself was ignorant of its meaning, and only related it as he had heard it. The Ammonian Platonics adopted the same system of attraction, but changed its centre from the sun to their metaphysical abstraction or incomprehensible unity, whose emanations pervaded all things, and held all things together.2

Besides the Fauns, Satyrs, and Nymphs, the incarnate emanations of the active and passive powers of the Creator, we often find in the ancient sculptures certain androgynous beings possessed of the characteristic organs of both sexes, which I take to represent organized matter in its first stage; that is, immediately after it was released from chaos, and before it was animated by a participation of the ethereal essence of the Creator. In a beautiful gem belonging to R. Wilbraham, Esq.,3 one of these androgynous figures is represented sleeping, with the organs of generation covered, and the egg of chaos broken under it. On the other side is Bacchus, the Creator, bearing a torch, the emblem of ethereal fire, and extending it towards the sleeping figure; whilst one of his agents seems only to wait his permission to begin the execution of that office, which, according to every outward and visible sign, he appears able to discharge with energy and effect. The Creator himself leans upon one of those figures commonly called Sileni; but which, from their heavy unwieldy forms, were probably intended as personifications of brute inert matter, from which all things are formed, but which, 1 Il. Q, ver. xix. 2 Proclus in Theol. Plat. lib. i. c. 21. 3 See Plate V. Fig. 3. ON THE WORSHIP 42 being incapable of producing anything of itself, is properly represented as the support of the creative power, though not actively instrumental in his work. The total baldness of this figure represents the exhausted, unproductive state of matter, when the generative powers were separated from it; for it was an opinion of the ancients, which I remember to have met with in some part of the works of Aristotle, to which I cannot at present refer, that every act of coition produced a transient chill in the brain, by which some of the roots of the hair were loosened; so that baldness was a mark of sterility acquired by excessive exertion. The figures of Pan have nearly the same forms with that which I have here supposed to represent inert matter; only that they are compounded with those of the goat, the symbol of the creative power, by which matter was fructified and regulated. To this is sometimes added the organ of generation, of an enormous magnitude, to signify the application of this power to its noblest end, the procreation of sensitive and rational beings. This composition forms the common Priapus of the Roman poets, who was worshipped among the other personages of the heathen mythology, but understood by few of his ancient votaries any better than by the good women of Isernia. His characteristic organ is sometimes represented by the artists in that state of tension and rigidity, which it assumes when about to discharge its functions,1 and at other times in that state of tumid languor, which immediately succeeds the performance.2 In the latter case he appears loaded with the productions of nature, the result of those prolific efforts, which in the former case he appeared so well qualified to exert. I have in Plate V. given a figure of him in each situation, one taken from a bronze in the Royal Museum of Portici, and the other from one in that of Charles Townley, Esq. It may 1 Plate V. Fig. 1, from a bronze in the Museum at Portici. OF PRIAPUS 43 be observed, that in the former the muscles of the face are all strained and contracted, so that every nerve seems to be in a state of tension; whereas in the latter the features are all dilated and fallen, the chin reposed on the breast, and the whole figure expressive of languor and fatigue. If the explanation which I have given of these androgynous figures be the true one, the fauns and satyrs, which usually accompany them, must represent abstract emanations, and not incarnations of the creative spirit, as when in copulation with the goat. The Creator himself is frequently represented in a human form; and it is natural that his emanations should partake of the same, though without having any thing really human in their composition. It seems, however, to have been the opinion in some parts of Asia, that the Creator was really of a human form. The Jewish legislator says expressly, that God made man in his own image, and, prior to the creation of woman, created him male and female, 1 as he himself consequently was.2 Hence an ingenious author has supposed that these androgynous figures represented the first individuals of the human race, who, possessing the organs of both sexes, produced children of each. This seems to be the sense in which they were represented by some of the ancient artists; but I have never met with any trace of it in any Greek author, except Philo the Jew; nor have I ever seen any monument of ancient art, in which the Bacchus, or Creator in a human form, was represented with the generative organs of both sexes. In the symbolical images, the double nature is frequently expressed by some androgynous insect, such as the snail, which is endowed with the organs of both sexes, and can copulate reciprocally with either: but when the refinement of art adopted the human form, it was represented by mixing the characters of the 1 Genes, c. i. 2 Philo, de Leg. Alleg. lib. ii. ON THE WORSHIP 44 male and female bodies in every part, preserving still the distinctive organs of the male. Hence Euripides calls Bacchus qhlummorfoj, 1 and the Chorus of Bachannals in the same tragedy address him by masculine and feminine epithets.2 Ovid also says to him, ——Tibi, cum sine cornibus adstas, Virgineum caput est. 3 alluding in the first line to his taurine, and in the second to his androgynous figure. The ancient theologists were, like the modern, divided into sects; but, as these never disturbed the peace of society, they have been very little noticed. I have followed what I conceive to be the true Orphic system, in the little analysis which I have here endeavoured to give. This was probably the true catholic faith, though it differs considerably from another ancient system, described by Aristophanes;4 which is more poetical, but less philosophical. According to this, Chaos, Night, Erebus, and Tartarus, were the primitive beings. Night, in the infinite breast of Erebus, brought forth an egg, from which sprung Love, who mixed all things together; and from thence sprung the heaven, the ocean, the earth, and the gods. This system is alluded to by the epithet Wogenoj, applied to the Creator in one of the Orphic Litanies:5 but this could never have been a part of the orthodox faith; for the Creator is usually represented as breaking the egg of chaos, and therefore could not have sprung from it. In the confused medleys of allegories and traditions contained in the Theogony attributed to Hesiod, Love is placed after Chaos and the Earth, but anterior to every thing else. These differences are not to be wondered at; for Aristophanes, supposing that he understood the true system, could not with safety have revealed it, or even mentioned it any otherwise than under the usual garb of fiction and 1 Bach. v. 358. 2 W Bromie, Pedwn cqonoj enosi potnia. Vers. 504. 3 Metam. lib. iv, v. 18. 4 Orniq. Vers. 693. 5 Hymn v. OF PRIAPUS 45 allegory; and as for the author of the Theogony, it is evident, from the strange jumble of incoherent fables which he has put together, that he knew very little of it. The system alluded to in the Orphic verses quoted in the Argonautics, is in all probability the true one; for it is not only consistent in all its parts, but contains a physical truth, which the greatest of the modern discoveries has only con-firmed and explained. The others seem to have been only poetical corruptions of it, which, extending by degrees, produced that un-wieldly system of poetical mythology, which constituted the vulgar religion of Greece. The fauns and satyrs, which accompany the androgynous figures on the ancient sculptures, are usually represented as ministering to the Creator by exerting their characteristic attributes upon them, as well as upon the nymphs, the passive agents of procreation: but what has puzzled the learned in these monuments, and seems a contradiction to the general system of ancient religion, is that many of these groups are in attitudes which are rather adapted to the gratification of disordered and unnatural appetites, than to extend procreation. But a learned author, who has thrown infinite light upon these subjects, has effectually cleared them from this suspicion, by showing that they only took the most convenient way to get at the female organs of generation, in those mixed beings who possessed both.1 This is confirmed by Lucretius, who asserts, that this attitude is better adapted to the purposes of generation than any other.2 We may therefore conclude, that instead of representing them in the act of gratifying any disorderly appetites, the artists meant to show their modesty in not indulging their concupiscence, but in doing their duty in the way best adapted to answer the ends proposed by the Creator. On the Greek medals, where the cow is the symbol of the deity, 1 Recherches sur les Arts, liv. i. c. 3. 2 Lib. iv, v. 1260 ON THE WORSHIP 46 she is frequently represented licking a calf, which is sucking her.1 This is probably meant to show that the creative power cherishes and nourishes, as well as generates; for, as all quadrupeds lick their young, to refresh and invigorate them immediately after birth, it is natural to suppose, according to the general system of symbolical writing, that this action should be taken as an emblem of the effect it was thought to produce. On other medals the bull or cow is represented licking itself;2 which, upon the same principle, must represent the strength of the deity refreshed and invigorated by the exertion of its own nutritive and plastic power upon its own being. On others again is a human head of an androgynous character, like that of the Bacchus difuej, with the tongue extended over the lower lip, as if to lick something.3 This was probably the same symbol, expressed in a less explicit manner; it being the common practice of the Greek artists to make a part of a composition signify the whole, of which I shall soon have occasion to give some incontestable examples. On a Parian medal published by Goltzius, the bull licking himself is represented on one side, accompanied by the asterisk of the sun, and on the other, the head with the tongue extended, having serpents, the emblems of life, for hair.4 The same medal is in my collection, except that the serpents are not attached to the head, but placed by it as distinct symbols, and that the animal licking itself is a female accompanied by the initial of the word qeoj, instead of the asterisk of the sun. Antiquarians have called this head a Medusa; but, had they examined it attentively on any wellpreserved coin, they would have found that the expression of the features means lust, and not rage or horror.5 The case is, that 1 See Plate IV, Fig. 3. from a medal of Dyrrachium, belonging to me. 2 See Plate III. Fig. 5, from one of Gortyna, in the Hunter Collection; and Plate III. Fig. 4, from one of Parium, belonging to me. 3 See Plate III, Fig 4, and Plate III, Fig 6, from Pellerin. 4 Goltz, Insul. Tab. xix, Fig 8. 5 See Plate III, Fig. 4. OF PRIAPUS 47 antiquarians have been continually led into error, by seeking for explanations of the devices on the Greek medals in the wild and capricious stories of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, instead of examining the first principles of ancient religion contained in the Orphic Fragments, the writings of Plutarch, Macrobius, and Apuleius, and the Choral Odes of the Greek tragedies. These principles were the subjects of the ancient mysteries, and it is to these that the symbols on the medals always relate; for they were the public acts of the states, and therefore contain the sense of nations, and not the caprices of individuals. As M. D’Hancarville found a complete representation of the bull breaking the egg of chaos in the sculptures of the Japanese, when only a part of it appears on the Greek monuments; so we may find in a curious Oriental fragment, lately brought from the sacred caverns of Elephanta, near Bombay, a complete representation of the symbol so enigmatically expressed by the head above mentioned. These caverns are ancient places of worship, hewn in the solid rock with immense labour and difficulty. That from which the fragment in question was brought, is 130 feet long by 110 wide, adorned with columns and sculptures finished in a style very different from that of the Indian artists.1 It is now neglected; but others of the same kind are still used as places of worship by the Hindoos, who can give no account of the antiquity of them, which must necessarily be very remote, for the Hindoos are a very ancient people; and yet the sculptures represent a race of men very unlike them, or any of the present inhabitants of India. A specimen of these was brought from the island of Elephanta, in the Cumberland man-of-war, and now belongs to the museum of Mr. Townley. It contains several figures, in very high relief; the principal of which are a man and woman, in an attitude which I shall not venture to describe, but only 1 Archæol. vol. viii. p. 189. ON THE WORSHIP 48 observe, that the action, which I have supposed to be a symbol of refreshment and invigoration, is mutually applied by both to their respective organs of generation,1 the emblems of the active and passive powers of procreation, which mutually cherish and invigorate each other. The Hindoos still represent the creative powers of the deity by these ancient symbols, the male and female organs of generation; and worship them with the same pious reverence as the Greeks and Egyptians did.2 Like them too they have buried the original principles of their theology under a mass of poetical mythology, so that few of them can give any more perfect account of their faith, than that they mean to worship one first cause, to whom the subordinate deities are merely agents, or more properly personified modes of action.3

This is the doctrine inculcated, and very fully explained, in the Bagvat Geeta; a moral and metaphysical work lately translated from the Sanscrit language, and said to have been written upwards of four thousand years ago. Kreshna, or the deity become incarnate in the shape of man, in order to instruct all mankind, is introduced, revealing to his disciples the fundamental principles of true faith, religion, and wisdom; which are the exact counterpart of the system of emanations, so beautifully described in the lines of Virgil before cited. We here find, though in a more mystic garb, the same one principle of life universally emanated and expanded, and ever partially returning to be again absorbed in the infinite abyss of intellectual being. This reabsorption, which is throughout recommended as the ultimate end of human perfection, can only be obtained by a life of inward meditation and abstract thought, too steady to be interrupted by any worldly incidents, or disturbed by any transitory affections, whether of mind or body. But as such a life is not in the 1 See Plate XI. [and XXIV] 2 Sonnerat, Voyage aux Indes, T. 1 p. 180. 3 Niebuhr, Voyages, vol. II. p. 17. OF PRIAPUS 49 power of any but a Brahman, inferior rewards, consisting of gradual advancements during the transmigrations of the soul, are held out to the soldier, the husbandman, and mechanic, accordingly as they fulfill the duties of their several stations. Even those who serve other gods are not excluded from the benefits awarded to every moral virtue; for, as the divine Teacher says, If they do it with a firm belief, in so doing they involuntarily worship even me. I am he who partaketh of all worship, and I am their reward. 1 This universal deity, being the cause of all motion, is alike the cause of creation, preservation, and destruction; which three attributes are all expressed in the mystic syllable om. To repeat this in silence, with firm devotion, and immoveable attention, is the surest means of perfection,2 and consequent reabsorption, since it leads to the contemplation of the Deity, in his three great characteristic attributes. The first and greatest of these, the creative or generative attribute, seems to have been originally represented by the union of the male and female organs of generation, which, under the title of the Lingam, still occupies the central and most interior recesses of their temples or pagodas; and is also worn, attached to bracelets, round their necks and arms.3 In a little portable temple brought from the Rohilla country during the late war, and now in the British Museum, this composition appears mounted on a pedestal, in the midst of a square area, sunk in a block of white alabaster.4 Round the pedestal is a serpent, the emblem of life, with his head rested upon his tail, to denote eternity, or the constant return of time upon itself, whilst it flows through perpetual duration, in regular revolutions and stated periods. From under the body of the serpent springs the lotus or water lily, the Nelumbo of Linnæus, which overspreads the whole of the area not occupied by the figures at the corners. 1 Bagvat Geeta, p. 81. 2 Ibid. p. 74. 3 Sonnerat, Voyage aux Indes, liv. ii. p. 180. 4 See Plate XII. ON THE WORSHIP 50 This plant grows in the water, and, amongst its broad leaves, puts forth a flower, in the center of which is formed the seed-vessel, shaped like a bell or inverted cone, and punctuated on the top with little cavities or cells, in which the seeds grow.1 The orifices of these cells being too small to let the seeds drop out when ripe, they shoot forth into new plants, in the places where they were formed; the bulb of the vessel serving as a matrice to nourish them, until they acquire such a degree of magnitude as to burst it open and release themselves; after which, like other aquatic weeds, they take root wherever the current deposits them. This plant therefore, being thus productive of itself, and vegetating from its own matrice, without being fostered in the earth, was naturally adopted as the symbol of the productive power of the waters, upon which the active spirit of the creator operated in giving life and vegetation to matter. We accordingly find it employed in every part of the northern hemisphere, where the symbolical religion, improperly called idolatry, does or ever did prevail. The sacred images of the Tartars, Japonese, and Indians, are almost all placed upon it; of which numerous instances occur in the publications of Kæmpfer, Chappe D’Auteroche, and Sonnerat. The upper part of the base of the Lingam also consists of this flower, blended and composed with the female organ of generation which it supports: and the ancient author of the Bagvat Geeta speaks of the creator Brahma as sitting upon his lotus throne.2 The figures of Isis, upon the Isiac Table, hold the stem of this plant, surmounted by the seedvessel in one hand, and the cross,3 representing the male organs of generation, in the other; thus signifying the universal power, both active and passive, attributed to that goddess. On the same Isiac Table is also the representation of an Egyptian temple, the columns of which are exactly like the plant which Isis holds in her hand, 1 See Plate XX. Fig 1. 2 Page 91. 3 See Plate XVIII. Fig. 2, from Pignorius. OF PRIAPUS 51 except that the stem is made larger, in order to give it that stability which is necessary to support a roof and entablature.1 Columns and capitals of the same kind are still existing, in great numbers, among the ruins of Thebes, in Egypt; and more particularly upon those very curious ones in the island of Philæ, on the borders of Ethiopia, which are, probably, the most ancient monuments of art now extant; at least, if we except the neighbouring temples of Thebes. Both were certainly built when that city was the seat of wealth and empire, which it was, even to a proverb, during the Trojan war.2 How long it had then been so, we can form no conjecture; but that it soon after declined, there can be little doubt; for, when the Greeks, in the reign of Psammeticus (generally computed to have been about 530 years after the Siege of Troy), first became personally acquainted with the interior parts of that country, Memphis had been for many ages its capital, and Thebes was in a manner deserted. Homer makes Achilles speak of its immense wealth and grandeur, as a matter generally known and acknowledged; so that it must have been of long established fame, even in that remote age. We may therefore fairly conclude, that the greatest part of the superb edifices now remaining, were executed, or at least begun, before that time; many of them being such as could not have been finished, but in a long term of years, even if we suppose the wealth and power of the ancient kings of Egypt to have equalled that of the greatest of the Roman emperors. The finishing of Trajan's column in three years, has been justly thought a very extraordinary effort; for there must have been, at least, three hundred good sculptors employed upon it: and yet, in the neighbourhood of Thebes, we find whole temples of enormous magnitude, covered with igures carved in the hard and brittle granite of the Libyan mountains, instead of the soft marbles of 1 See Plate XVIII, Fig 1, from Pignorius. 2 Hom. Iliad i, ver. 381. ON THE WORSHIP 52 Paros and Carrara. Travellers, who have visited that country have given us imperfect accounts of the manner in which they are finished; but, if one may judge by those upon the obelisc of Rameses, now lying in fragments at Rome, they are infinitely more laboured than those of Trajan's Column. An eminent sculptor, with whom I examined that obelisc, was decidedly of opinion, that they must have been finished in the manner of gems, with a graving tool; it appearing impossible for a chisel to cut red granite with so much neatness and precision. The age of Rameses is uncertain; but the generality of modern chronologers suppose that he was the same person as Sesostris, and reigned at Thebes about 1500 years before the Christian æra, and about 300 before the Siege of Troy. Their dates are however merely conjectural, when applied to events of this remote antiquity. The Egyptian priests of the Augustan age had a tradition, which they pretended to confirm by records, written in hieroglyphics, that their country had once possest the dominion of all Asia and Ethiopia, which their king Ramses, or Rameses, had conquered.1 Though this account may be exaggerated, there can be no doubt, from the buildings still remaining, but that they were once at the head of a great empire; for all historians agree that they abhorred navigation, had no sea-port, and never enjoyed the benefits of foreign commerce, without which, Egypt could have no means of acquiring a sufficient quantity of superfluous wealth to erect such expensive monuments, unless from tributary provinces; especially if all the lower part of it was an uncultivated bog, as Herodotus, with great appearance of probability, tells us it anciently was. Yet Homer, who appears to have known all that could be known in his age, and transmitted to posterity all he knew, seems to have heard nothing of their empire or conquests. These were obliterated and forgotten by the rise of 1 Tacit. Ann. lib. ii, c. 60. OF PRIAPUS 53 new empires; but the renown of their ancient wealth still continued, and afforded a familiar object of comparison, as that of the Mogul does at this day, though he is become one of the poorest sovereigns in the world. But far as these Egyptian remains lead us into unknown ages, the symbols they contain appear not to have been invented in that country, but to have been copied from those of some other people, still anterior, who dwelt on the other side of the Erythræan ocean. One of the most obvious of them is the hooded snake, which is a reptile peculiar to the south-eastern parts of Asia, but which I found represented, with great accuracy, upon the obelisc of Rameses, and have also observed frequently repeated on the Isiac Table, and other symbolical works of the Egyptians. It is also distinguishable among the sculptures in the sacred caverns of the island of Elephanta;1 and appears frequently added, as a characteristic symbol, to many of the idols of the modern Hindoos, whose absurd tales concerning its meaning are related at length by M. Sonnerat; but they are not worth repeating. Probably we should be able to trace the connexion through many more instances, could we obtain accurate drawings of the ruins of Upper Egypt. By comparing the columns which the Egyptians formed in imitation of the Nelumbo plant, with each other, and observing their different modes of decorating them, we may discover the origin of that order of architecture which the Greeks called Corinthian, from the place of its supposed invention. We first find the plain bell, or seed-vessel, used as a capital, without any further alteration than being a little expanded at bottom, to give it stability.2

In the next instance, the same seed-vessel is surrounded by the leaves of some other plant;3 which is varied in different capitals according 1 Nieburhr, Voyage, vol. ii. 2 See Plate XIX, Fig 6, from Norden. 3 See Plate XIX, Fig 7, from Norden. ON THE WORSHIP 54 to the different meanings intended to be expressed by these additional symbols. The Greeks decorated it in the same manner, with the leaves of the acanthus, and other sorts of foliage; whilst various other symbols of their religion were introduced as ornaments on the entablature, instead of being carved upon the walls of the cell, or shafts of the columns. One of these, which occurs most frequently, is that which the architects call the honeysuckle, but which, as Sir Joseph Banks (to whom I am indebted for all that I have said concerning the Lotus) clearly showed me, must be meant for the young shoots of this plant, viewed horizontally, just when they have burst the seed-vessel, and are upon the point of falling out of it. The ornament is variously composed on different buildings; it being the practice of the Greeks to make vegetable, as well as animal monsters, by combining different symbolical plants together, and blending them into one; whence they are often extremely difficult to be discovered. But the specimen I have given, is so strongly characterised, that it cannot easily be mistaken.1 It appears on many Greek medals with the animal symbols and personified attributes of the Deity; which first led me to imagine that it was not a mere ornament, but had some mystic meaning, as almost every decoration employed upon their sacred edifices indisputably had. The square area, over which the Lotus is spread, in the Indian monument before mentioned, was occasionally floated with water; which, by means of a forcing machine, was first thrown in a spout upon the Lingam. The pouring of water upon the sacred symbols, is a mode of worship very much practised by the Hindoos, particularly in their devotions to the Bull and the Lingam. Its meaning has been already explained, in the instance of the Greek figure of Pan, represented in the act of paying the same kind of worship to the symbol of his own procreative power.2 The areas of the 1 Plate XIX, Fig 3, from the Ionian Antiquities, Ch. ii. Pl. XIII. 2 See Plate V, Fig. 1. OF PRIAPUS 55 Greek temples were, in like manner, in some instances, floated with water; of which I shall soon give an example. We also find, not unfrequently, little portable temples, nearly of the same form, and of Greek workmanship: the areas of which were equally floated by means of a fountain in the middle, and which, by the figures in relief that adorn the sides, appear evidently to have been dedicated to the same worship of Priapus, or the Lingam. 1 The square area is likewise impressed upon many ancient Greek medals, sometimes divided into four, and sometimes into a greater number of compartments.2 Antiquarians have supposed this to be merely the impression of something put under the coin, to make it receive the stroke of the die more steadily; but, besides that it is very ill adapted to this purpose, we find many coins which appear, evidently, to have received the stroke of the hammer (for striking with a balance is of late date) on the side marked with this square. But what puts the question out of all doubt, is, that impressions of exactly the same kind are found upon the little Talismans, or mystic pastes, taken out of the Egyptian Mummies, which have no impression whatever on the reverse.3 On a little brass medal of Syracuse, we also find the asterisc of the Sun placed in the centre of the square, in the same manner as the Lingam is on the Indian monument.4 Why this quadrangular form was adopted, in preference to any other, we have no means of discovering, from any known Greek or Egyptian sculptures; but from this little Indian temple, we find that the four corners were adapted to four of the 1 See Plate XIV, from one in the collection of Mr. Townley. 2 See Plate XIII, Fig. 1, from one of Selinus, and Fig. 3, from one of Syracuse, belonging to me. 3 See Plate XIII, Fig. 2, from one in the collection of Mr. Townley. 4 See Plate XIII, Fig. 3. The medal is extremely common, and the quadrangular Impression is observable upon a great number of the more ancient Greek medals, generally with some symbol of the Deity in the centre. See those of Athens, Lyttus, Maronea, &c. ON THE WORSHIP 56 subordinate deities, or personified modes of action of the great universal Generator, represented by the symbol in the middle, to which the others are represented as paying their adorations, with gestures of humility and respect.1

What is the precise meaning of these four symbolical figures, it is scarcely possible for us to discover, from the small fragments of the mystic learning of the ancients which are now extant. That they were however intended as personified attributes, we can have no doubt; for we are taught by the venerable authority of the Bagvat Geeta, that all the subordinate deities were such, or else canonised men, which these figures evidently are not. As for the mythological tales now current in India, they throw the same degree of light upon the subject, as Ovid’s Metamorphoses do on the ancient theology of Greece; that is, just enough to bewilder and perplex those who give up their attention to it. The ancient author before cited is deserving of more credit; but he has said very little upon the symbolical worship. His work, nevertheless, clearly proves that its principles were precisely the same as those of the Greeks and Egyptians, among whose remains of art or literature, we may, perhaps, find some probable analogies to aid conjecture. The elephant is, however, a new symbol in the west; the Greeks never having seen one of those animals before the expedition of Alexander,2 although the use of ivory was familiar among them even in the days of Homer. Upon this Indian monument the head of the elephant is placed upon the body of a man with four hands, two of which are held up as prepared to strike with the instruments they bold, and the other two pointed down as in adoration of the Lingam. This figure is called Gonnis and Pollear by the modern Hindoos; but neither of these names is to be found in the Geeta, where the deity only says, that the learned behold him 1 See Plate XII. 2 Pausan. lib. i. c. 12. OF PRIAPUS 57 alike in the reverend Brahman perfected in knowledge, in the ox, and in the elephant. What peculiar attributes the elephant was meant to express, the ancient writer has not told us; but, as the characteristic properties of this animal are strength and sagacity, we may conclude that his image was intended to represent ideas somewhat similar to those which the Greeks represented by that of Minerva, who was worshipped as the goddess of force and wisdom, of war and counsel. The Indian Gonnis is indeed male, and Minerva female; but this difference of sexes, however important it may be in a physical, is of very little consequence in metaphysical beings, Minerva being, like the other Greek deities, either male or female, or both.1 On the medals of the Ptolemies, under whom the Indian symbols became familiar to the Greeks through the commerce of Alexandria, we find her repeatedly represented with the elephant’s skin upon her head, instead of a helmet; and with a countenance between male and female, such as the artist would naturally give her, when he endeavoured to blend the Greek and Indian symbols, and mould them into one.2 Minerva is said by the Greek mythologists to have been born without a mother from the head of Jupiter, who was delivered of her by the assistance of Vulcan. This, in plain language, means no more than that she was a pure emanation of the divine mind, operating by means of the universal agent fire, and not, like others of the allegorical personages, sprung from any of the particular operations of the deity upon external matter. Hence she is said to be next in dignity to her father, and to be endowed with all his attributes;3 for, as wisdom is the most exalted quality of the mind, and the divine mind the perfection of wisdom, all its attributes are the attributes of wisdom, 1 Arsin kai qeluj efuj. Orph. eij Aqen. 2 See Plate XIII, Fig. 5, engraved from one belonging to me. 3 Hoe. lib. i. Od. 12. Callimach, eij Aqen. ON THE WORSHIP 58 under whose direction its power is always exerted. Strength and wisdom therefore, when considered as attributes of the deity, are in fact one and the same. The Greek Minerva is usually represented with the spear uplifted in her hand, in the same manner as the Indian Gonnis holds the battle-axe.1 Both are given to denote the destroying power equally belonging to divine wisdom, as the creative or preserving. The statue of Jupiter at Labranda in Caria held in his hand the battle-axe, instead of thunder; and on the medals of Tenedos and Thyatira, we find it represented alone as the symbol of the deity, in the same manner as the thunder is upon a great variety of other medals. I am the thunderbolt, says the deity in the Bagvat Geeta; 2 and when we find this supposed engine of divine vengeance upon the medals, we must not imagine that it is meant for the weapon of the supreme god, but for the symbol of his destroying attribute. What instrument the Gonnis holds in his other hand, is not easily ascertained, it being a little injured by the carriage. In one of those pointed downwards he holds the Lotus flower, to denote that he has the direction of the passive powers of production; and in the other, a golden ring or disc, which, I shall soon show, was the symbol by which many nations of the East represented the sun. His head is drawn into a conical, or pyramidal form, and surrounded by an ornament which evidently represents flames; the Indians, as well as the Greeks, looking upon fire as the essence of all active power; whence perpetual lamps are kept burning in the holy of holies of all the great pagodas in India, as they were anciently in the temple of Jupiter Ammon, and many others both Greek and Barbarian;3 and the incarnate god in the Bagvat Geeta says, I am the fire residing in the bodies of all things which have life. 4 Upon the forehead of the Gonnis is a 1 See Plate XIII, Fig. 11, from a medla of Seleucus I. beloning to me. 2 Page 26. 3 See Plut. de Orac. defect. 4 Page 113. OF PRIAPUS 59 crescent representing the moon, whose power over the waters of the ocean caused her to be regarded as the sovereign of the great nutritive element, and whose mild rays, being accompanied by the refreshing dews and cooling breezes of the night, made her naturally appear to the inhabitants of hot countries as the comforter and restorer of the earth. I am the moon (says the deity in the Bagvat Geeta) whose nature it is to give the quality of taste and relish, and to cherish the herbs and plants of the field. 1 The light of the sun, moon, and fire, were however all but one, and equally emanations of the supreme being. Know, says the deity in the same ancient dialogue, that the light which proceedeth from the sun, and illuminateth the world, and the light which is in the moon and in the fire, are mine. I pervade all things in nature, and guard them with my beams.2 In the figure now under consideration a kind of preeminence seems to be given to the moon over the sun; proceeding probably from the Hindoos not possessing the true solar system, which must however have been known to the people from whom they learnt to calculate eclipses, which they still continue to do, though upon principles not understood by themselves. They now place the earth in the centre of the universe, as the later Greeks did, among whom we also find the same preference given to the lunar symbol; Jupiter being represented, on a medal of Antiochus VIII., with the crescent upon his head, and the asterisc of the sun in his hand.3 In a passage of the Bagvat Geeta already cited we find the elephant and bull mentioned together as symbols of the same kind; and on a medal of Seleucus Nicator we find them united by the horns of the one being placed on the head of the other.4 The later Greek also sometimes employed the elephant as the universal symbol of the deity; in which sense he is represented 1 Page 113. 2 Ibid. 3 Plate XIII Fig. 10, from one belonging to me. 4 See Plate XIII. Fig. 9, and Gesner, Num. Reg. Syr. Tab. VIII. Fig. 23. ON THE WORSHIP 60 on a medal of Antiochus VI. bearing the torch, the emblem of the universal agent, fire, in his proboscis, and the cornucopia, the result of its exertion, in his tail.1

On another corner of the little Indian pagoda, is a figure with four heads, all of the same pointed form as that of the Gonnis. This I take to represent Brahma, to whom the Hindoos attribute four mouths, and say that with them he dictated the four Beads, or Veads, the mystic volumes of their religion.2 The four heads are turned different ways, but exactly resemble each other. The beards have been painted black, and are sharp and pointed, like those of goats, which the Greeks gave to Pan, and his subordinate emanations, the Fauns and Satyrs. Hence I am inclined to believe, that the Brahma of the Indians is the same as the Pan of the Greeks; that is, the creative spirit of the deity transfused through matter, and acting in the four elements represented by the four heads. The Indians indeed admit of a fifth element, as the Greeks did likewise; but this is never classed with the rest, being of an ætherial and more exalted nature, and belonging peculiarly to the deity. Some call it heaven, some light, and some æther, says Plutarch.3 The Hindoos now call it Occus, by which they seem to mean pure ætherial light or fire. This mode of representing the allegorical personages of religion with many heads and limbs to express their various attributes, and extensive operation, is now universal in the East,4 and seems anciently not to have been unknown to the Greeks, at least if we may judge by the epithets used by Pindar and other early poets.5

The union of two symbolical heads is common among the specimens of their art now extant, as may be seen upon the medals of 1 See Plate XIII. Fig. 8, and Gesner, Num. Reg. Syr. Tab. VIII. Fig. 1. 2 Bagavat Geeta, Note 41. 3 Ei apud Delph. 4 See Kæmpfer, Chappe d’Auteroche, Sonnerat, &c, 5 Such as òkatogkefaloj, òkatontakoranoj, òkatogxeiroj, &c. OF PRIAPUS 61 Syracuse, Marseilles, and many other cities. Upon a gem of this sort in the collection of Mr. Townley, the same ideas which are expressed on the Indian pagoda by the distinct figures Brahma and Gonnis, are expressed by the united heads of Ammon and Minerva. Ammon, as before observed, was the Pan of the Greeks, and Minerva is here evidently the same as the Gonnis, being represented after the Indian manner, with the elephant's skin on her head, instead of a helmet.1 Both these heads appear separate upon different medals of the Ptolemies,2 under one of whom this gem was probably engraved, Alexandria having been for a long time the great centre of religions, as well as of trade and science. Next to the figure of Brahma on the pagoda is the cow of plenty, or the female emblem of the generative or nutritive power of the earth; and at the other corner, next to the Gonnis, is the figure of a woman, with a head of the same conic or pyramidal form, and upon the front of it a flame of fire, from which hangs a crescent.3 This seems to be the female personification of the divine attributes represented by the Gonnis or Pollear; for the Hindoos, like the Greeks, worship the deity under both sexes, though they do not attempt to unite both in one figure. I am the father and the mother of the world, says the incarnate god in the Bagvat Geeta. 4 Amongst cattle, adds he in a subsequent part, I am the cow Kamadhook. I am the prolific Kandarp, the god of love. 5 These two sentences, by being placed together, seem to imply some relation between this god of love and the cow Kamadhook; and, were we to read the words without punctuation, as they are in all ancient orthography, we should think the author placed the god of love amongst the cattle; which he would naturally do, 1 See Plate XIII, Fig. 7. 2 See Plate XIII, Fig. 5 and 6. 3 See Plate XII. 4 Page 80. 5 Page 86. ON THE WORSHIP 62 if it were the custom of his religion to represent him by an animal symbol. Among the Egyptians, as before observed, the cow was the symbol of Venus, the goddess of love, and passive generative power of nature. On the capitals of one of the temples of Philæ we still find the heads of this goddess represented of a mixed form; the horns and ears of the cow being joined to the beautiful features of a woman in the prime of life;1 such as the Greeks attributed to that Venus, whom they worshipped as the mother of the prolific god of love, Cupid, who was the personification of animal desire or concupiscence, as the Orphic love, the father of gods and men, was of universal attraction. The Greeks, who represented the mother under the form of a beautiful woman, naturally represented the son under the form of a beautiful boy; but a people who represented the mother under the form of a cow, would as naturally represent the son under the form of a calf. This seems to be the case with the Hindoos, as well as with the Egyptians; wherefore Kandarp may be very properly placed among the cattle. By following this analogy, we may come to the true meaning of a much-celebrated object of devotion, recorded by another ancient writer, of a more venerable character. When the Israelites grew clamorous on account of the absence of Moses, and called upon Aaron to make them a god to go before them, he set up a golden calf; to which the people sacrificed and feasted, and then rose up (as the translator says) to play; but in the original the term is more specific, and means, in its plain direct sense, that particular sort of play which requires the concurrence of both sexes,2 and which was therefore a very proper conclusion of a sacrifice to Cupid, though highly displeasing to the god who had brought them out of Egypt. The Egyptian mythologists, who appeared to have in1 See Plate XVIII, Fig. 3. 2 Exod. xxxii. OF PRIAPUS 63 vented this secondary deity of love, were probably the inventors likewise of a secondary Priapus, who was the personification of that particular generative faculty, which springs from animal desire, as the primary Priapus was of the great generative principle of the universe. Hence, in the allegories of the poets, this deity is said to be a son of Bacchus and Venus; that is, the result of the active and passive generative powers of nature. The story of his being the son of a Grecian conqueror, and born at Lampsacus, seems to be a corruption of this allegory. Of all the nations of antiquity the Persians were the most simple and direct in the worship of the creator. They were the puritans of the heathen world, and not only rejected all images of god or his agents, but also temples and altars, according to Herodotus,1 whose authority I prefer to any other, because he had an opportunity of conversing with them before they had adopted any foreign superstitions.2 As they worshipped the ætherial fire without any medium of personification or allegory, they thought it unworthy of the dignity of the god to be represented by any definite form, or circumscribed to any particular place. The universe was his temple, and the all-pervading element of fire his only symbol. The Greeks appear originally to have held similar opinions; for they were long without statues;3 and Pausanias speaks of a temple at Sicyon, built by Adrastus,4 who lived an age before the Trojan war; which consisted of columns only, without wall or roof, like the Celtic temples of our Northern ancestors, or the Pyrætheia of the Persians, which were circles of stones, in the centre of which was kindled the sacred fire,5 the symbol of the god. Homer frequently speaks of places of worship consisting of an area and altar only (tenemoj bwmoj te), 1 Lib. i. 2 Hyde, Anquetil, and other modern writers, have given us the operose superstitions of the present Parsees for the simple theism of the ancient Persians. 3 Pausan. lib. vii. and ix. 4 Lib. ii. 5 Strab. lib. xv. ON THE WORSHIP 64 which were probably inclosures like these of the Persians, with an altar in the centre. The temples dedicated to the creator Bacchus, which the Greek architects called hypæthral, seem to have been anciently of the same kind; whence probably came the title perikionion (surrounded with columns) attributed to that god in the Orphic litanies.1 The remains of one of these are still extant at Puzzuoli near Naples, which the inhabitants call the Temple of Serapis: but the ornaments of grapes, vases, &c. found among the ruins, prove it to have been of Bacchus. Serapis was indeed the same deity worshipped under another form, being equally a personification of the sun. 2 The architecture is of the Roman times; but the ground plan is probably that of a very ancient one, which this was made to replace; for it exactly resembles that of a Celtic temple in Zeeland, published in Stukeley's itinerary. 3 The ranges of square buildings which inclose it are not properly parts of the temple, but apartments of the priests, places for victims and sacred utensils, and chapels dedicated to subordinate deities introduced by a more complicated and corrupt worship, and probably unknown to the founders of the original edifice.4 The portico, which runs parallel with these buildings5 inclosed the temenos, or area of sacred ground, which in the pyræthia of the Persians was circular, but is here quadrangular, as in the Celtic temple in Zeeland, and the Indian pagoda before described. In the centre was the holy of holies, the seat of the god, consisting of a circle of columns raised upon a basement, without roof or walls, in the middle of which was probably the sacred fire, or some other symbol of the deity.6 The square area in which it stood, was sunk below the natural level of the ground,7 and, like that of the little Indian pagoda, appears to have 1 Hymn. 46. 2 Diodor. Sic. lib. 1. Macrob. Sat. lib. i. c. 20. 3 See Plate XV. Fig 1 and 2, and Plate XIII, Fig 4. 4 Plate XV, Fig. 2, a—a,. 5 Plate XV, Fig. 2, b—b,. 6 See Plate XV, Fig. 1, a, and Fig 2, c. 7 See Plate XV, Fig. 1, b—b. OF PRIAPUS 65 been occasionally floated with water, the drains and conduits being still to be seen,1 as also several fragments of sculpture representing waves, serpents, and various aquatic animals, which once adorned the basement.2 The Bacchus perikionioj here worshipped, was, as we learn from the Orphic hymn above cited, the sun in his character of extinguisher of the fires which once pervaded the earth. This he was supposed to have done by exhaling the waters of the ocean, and scattering them over the land, which was thus supposed to have acquired its proper temperature and fertility. For this reason the sacred fire, the essential image of the god, was surrounded by the element which was principally employed in giving effect to the beneficial exertions of his great attribute. These Orphic temples were, without doubt, emblems of that fundamental principle of the mystic faith of the ancients, the solar system; fire, the essence of the deity, occupying the place of the sun, and the columns surrounding it as the subordinate parts of the universe. Remains of the worship of fire continued among the Greeks even to the last, as appears from the sacred fires kept in the interior apartment, or holy of holies, of almost all their temples, and places of worship: and, though the Ammonian Platonics, the last professors of the ancient religion, endeavoured to conceive something beyond the reach of sense and perception, as the essence of their supreme god; yet, when they wanted to illustrate and explain the modes of action of this metaphysical abstraction, who was more subtle than intelligence itself, they do it by images and comparisons of light and fire.3

From a passage of Hecatæus, preserved by Diodorus Siculus, I think it is evident that Stonehenge, and all the other monuments of the same kind found in the North, belonged to the same religion, 1 See Plate XV. Fig 1, c—c. 2 See Plate XVII, Fig. 1. 3 See Proclus in Theol. Platon. lib. i. c. 19. ON THE WORSHIP 66 which appears, at some remote period, to have prevailed over the whole northern hemisphere. According to that ancient historian, the Hyperboreans inhabited an island beyond Gaul, as large as Sicily, in which Apollo was worshipped in a circular temple considerable for its size and riches.1 Apollo, we know, in the language of the Greeks of that age, can mean no other than the sun, which, according to Cæsar, was worshipped by the Germans, when they knew of no other deities except fire and the moon.2 The island I think can be no other than Britain, which at that time was only known to the Greeks by the vague reports of Phúnician mariners, so uncertain and obscure, that Herodotus, the most inquisitive and credulous of historians, doubts of its existence.4 The circular temple of the sun being noticed in such slight and imperfect accounts, proves that it must have been something singular and important; for, if had been an inconsiderable structure, it would not have been mentioned at all; and, if there had been many such in the country, the historian would not have employed the singular number. Stonehenge has certainly been a circular temple, nearly the same as that already described of the Bacchus perikionioj at Puzzuoli, except that in the latter the nice execution, and beautiful symmetry of the parts, are in every respect the reverse of the rude but majestic simplicity of the former; in the original design they differ but in the form of the area.5 It may therefore be reasonably supposed, that we have 1 Naon exiologon, anaqhmasi polloij kekosmhmenon, sfairoeidh tJschmati, Diod. Sic. lib. ii. 2 De B. Gal. lib. vi. 3 Lib. iii. c. 15. 5 See Plate XV. Fig. 2 and 3. I have preferred Webb’s plan of Stonehenge to Stukeley’s and Smith’s, after comparing each with the ruins now existing. They differ materially only in the cell, which Webb supposes to have been a hexagon, and Stukeley a section of an ellipsis. The position of the altar is merely conjectural; wherefore I have omitted it; and I much doubt whether either be right in their plans of the cell, which seems, as in other Druidical temples, to have been meant for a circle, but incorrectly executed. OF PRIAPUS 67 still the ruins of the identical temple described by Hecatæus, who, being an Asiatic Greek, might have received his information from some Phúnician merchant, who had visited the interior parts of Britain when trading there for tin. Macrobius mentions a temple of the same kind and form upon Mount Zilmissus in Thrace, dedicated to the sun under the title of Bacchus Sebazius.1 The large obeliscs of stone found in many parts of the North, such as those at Rudstone,2 and near Boroughbridge in Yorkshire,3 belong to the same religion; obeliscs being, as Pliny observes, sacred to the sun, whose rays they represented both by their form and name.4 An ancient medal of Apollonia in Illyria, belonging to the Museum of the late Dr. Hunter, has the head of Apollo crowned with laurel on one side, and on the other an obelisc terminating in a cross, the least explicit representation of the male organs of generation.5

This has exactly the appearance of one of those crosses, which were erected in church-yards and cross roads for the adoration of devout persons, when devotion was more prevalent than at present. Many of these were undoubtedly erected before the establishment of Christianity, and converted, together with their worshippers, to the true faith. Anciently they represented the generative power of light, the essence of God; for God is light, and never but in unapproached light dwelt from eternity, says Milton, who in this, as well as many other instances, has followed the Ammonian Platonics, who were both the restorers and corrupters of the ancient theology. They restored it from the mass of poetical mythology, under which it was buried, but refined and sublimated it with abstract metaphysics, which soared as far above human reason as the poetical 1 Sat. lib. i. c. 18. 2 Archæologia, vol. v. 3 Now called the Devil’s Arrows. See Stukely’s Itin. vol. i. Table xc. 4 Hist. Nat. lib. xxxvi. sec. 14. 5 Plate X, Fig. 1, and Nummi Pop. & Urb. Table x. Fig. 7. ON THE WORSHIP 68 mythology sunk below it. From the ancient solar obeliscs came the spires and pinnacles with which our churches are still decorated, so many ages after their mystic meaning has been forgotten. Happily for the beauty of these edifices, it was forgotten; otherwise the reformers of the last century would have destroyed them, as they did the crosses and images; for they might with equal propriety have been pronounced heathenish and prophane. As the obelisc was the symbol of light, so was the pyramid of fire, deemed to be essentially the same. The Egyptians, among whom these forms are the most frequent, held that there were two opposite powers in the world, perpetually acting contrary to each other, the one creating, and the other destroying the former they called Osiris, and the latter Typhon.1 By the contention of these two, that mixture of good and evil, which, according to some verses of Euripides quoted by Plutarch,2 constituted the harmony of the world, was supposed to be produced. This opinion of the necessary mixture of good and evil was, according to Plutarch, of immemorial antiquity, derived from the oldest theologists and legislators, not only in traditions and reports, but in mysteries and sacrifices, both Greek and barbarian.3 Fire was the efficient principle of both, and, according to some of the Egyptians, that ætherial fire which concentred in the sun. This opinion Plutarch controverts, saying that Typhon, the evil or destroying power, was a terrestrial or material fire, essentially different from the ætherial. But Plutarch here argues from his own prejudices, rather than from the evidence of the case; for he believed in an original evil principle coeternal with the good, and acting in perpetual opposition to it; an error into which men have been led by forming false notions of good and evil, and considering them as 1 Plutarch, de Is. & Osir. 2 Ibid., p. 455, Ed. Reiskii. 3 Ibid., Ed. Reiskii. OF PRIAPUS 69 self-existing inherent properties, instead of accidental modifications, variable with every circumstance with which causes and events are connected. This error, though adopted by individuals, never formed a part either of the theology or mythology of Greece. Homer, in the beautiful allegory of the two casks, makes Jupiter, the supreme god, the distributor of both good and evil.1 The name of Jupiter, Zeuj, was originally one of the titles or Epithets of the sun, signifying, according to its etymology, aweful or terrible; 2 in which sense it is used in the Orphic litanies.3 Pan, the universal substance, is called the horned Jupiter (Zeuj – kerasthj); and in an Orphic fragment preserved by Macrobius4 the names of Jupiter and Bacchus appear to be only titles of the all-creating power of the sun. Aglae Zeu, Dionse, pater pontou, pater aihj, `Hlie paggentor. In another fragment preserved by the same author,5 the name of Pluto, Aidhj, is used as a title of the same deity; who appears therefore to have presided over the dead as well as over the living, and to have been the lord of destruction as well as creation and preservation. We accordingly find that in one of the Orphic litanies now extant, he is expressly called the giver of life, and the destroyer.6

The Egyptians represented Typhon, the destroying power, under the figure of the hippopotamus or river-horse, the most fierce and destructive animal they knew;7 and the Chorus in the Bacchae of Euripides invoke their inspirer Bacchus to appear under the form of a bull, a many-headed serpent, or flaming lion;8 which shows that the most bloody and destructive, as well as the most 1 Il, w, v. 527. 2 Damm. Lex. Etymol. 3 Hymn. x, v. 13. 4 Sat. lib. i. c. 23. 5 Sat. lib. i. c. 3. 6 Hymn lxxii, Ed. Gesn. 7 Plutarch, de Is. & Os. 8 V. 1015. ON THE WORSHIP 70 useful of animals, was employed by the Greeks to represent some personified attribute of the god. M. D’Hancarville has also observed, that the lion is frequently employed by the ancient artists as a symbol of the sun;1 and I am inclined to believe that it was to express this destroying power, no less requisite to preserve the harmony of the universe than the generating. In most of the monuments of ancient art where the lion is represented, he appears with expressions of rage and violence, and often in the act of killing and devouring some other animal. On an ancient sarcophagus found in Sicily he is represented devouring a horse,2 and on the medals of Velia in Italy, devouring a deer;3 the former, as sacred to Neptune, represented the sea; and the latter, as sacred to Diana, the produce of the earth; for Diana was the fertility of the earth personified, and therefore is said to have received her nymphs or productive ministers from the ocean, the source of fecundity.4 The lion, therefore, in the former instance, appears as a symbol of the sun exhaling the waters; and in the latter, as whithering and putrifying the produce of the earth. On the frieze of the Temple of Apollo Didymæus, near Miletus, are monsters composed of the mixt forms of the goat and lion, resting their fore feet upon the lyre of the god, which stands between them.5 The goat, as I have already shown, represented the creative attribute, and the lyre, harmony and order; therefore, if we admit that the lion represented the destroying attribute, this composition will signify, in the symbolical language of sculpture, the harmony and order of the universe preserved by the regular and periodical operations of the 1 Recherces sur les Arts. See also Macrob, Sat. i, c. 21. 2 Houel, Voyage de la Sicile, Plate XXXVI. 3 Plate IX, Fig. 5, engraved from one belonging to me. 4 Calliamch, Hymn. adDian. v. 13. Geniter Nympharum Oceanus. Catullus in Gell. v. 84 5 Ionian Antiquities, vol. i, c. 3, Plate IX. OF PRIAPUS 71 creative and destructive powers. This is a notion to which men would be naturally led by observing the common order and progression of things. The same heat of the sun, which scorched and withered the grass in summer, ripened the fruits in autumn, and cloathed the earth with verdure in the spring. In one season it dried up the waters from the earth, and in another returned them in rain. It caused fermentation and putrefaction, which destroy one generation of plants and animals, and produce another in constant and regular succession. This contention between the powers of creation and destruction is represented on an ancient medal of Acanthus, in the museum of the late Dr. Hunter, by a combat between the bull and lion.1 The bull alone is represented on other medals in exactly the same attitude and gesture as when fighting with the lion;2 whence I conclude that the lion is there understood. On the medals of Celenderis, the goat appears instead of the bull in exactly the same attitude of struggle and contention, but without the lion;3 and in a curious one of very ancient but excellent workmanship, belonging to me, the ivy of Bacchus is placed over the back of the goat, to denote the power which he represents.4 The mutual operation which was the result of this contention was signified, in the mythological tales of the poets, by the loves of Mars and Venus, the one the active power of destruction, and the other the passive power of generation. From their union is said to have sprung the goddess Harmony, who was the physical order of the universe personified. The fable of Ceres and Proserpine is the same allegory inverted; Ceres being the prolific power 1 Plate IX, Fig. 4, & Nummi Vet. Pop. & Urb. Table I, Fig. 16. 2 Plate IX. Fig. 12, from one of Aspendus in the same Collection. See Nummi Vet. Pop. & Urb. Table VIII. Fig. 20. 3 Nummi Vet. Pop. & Urb. Table XVI, Fig. 13. 4 Plate IX, Fig. 13. ON THE WORSHIP 72 of the earth personified, and hence called by the Greeks Mother Earth (Gh or Dh-mhtur). The Latin name Ceres also signifying Earth, the Roman C being the same originally, both in figure and power as the Greek G, 1 which Homer often uses as a mere guttural aspirate, and adds it arbitrarily to his words, to make them more solemn and sonorous. 2 The guttural aspirates and hissing terminations more particularly belonged to the Æolic dialect, from which the Latin was derived; wherefore we need not wonder that the same word, which by the Dorians and Ionians was written Era and Eri, should by the Æolians be written Gerej or Ceres, the Greeks always accommodating their orthography to their pronunciation. In an ancient bronze at Strawberry Hill this goddess is represented sitting, with a cup in one hand, and various sorts of fruits in the other; and the bull, the emblem of the power of the Creator, in her lap.3 This composition shows the fructification of the earth by the descent of the creative spirit in the same manner as described by Virgil:— Vere tument terræ, et genitalia semina poseunt; Tum pater omnipotens fúcundis imbribus æther Conjugis in gremium lætæ descendit, & omnes Magnus alit, magno commixtus corpore, fútus.4 Æther and water are here introduced by the poet as the two prolific elements which fertilize the earth, according to the ancient system of Orphic philosophy, upon which the mystic theology was founded. Proserpine, or Perstfonieia, the daughter of Ceres, was, as her Greek name indicates, the goddess of destruction, in which character she is invoked by Althaea in the ninth Iliad; but nevertheless we often find her on the Greek medals crowned with 1 See S. C. Marcian, and the medals of Gela and Agrigentum. 2 As in the word epidoutoj, usually written by him epigdoutoj. 3 See Plate VIII. 4 Georgic. lib. ii, v. 324. OF PRIAPUS 73 ears of corn, as being the goddess of fertility as well as destruction.1 She is, in fact, a personification of the heat or fire that pervades the earth, which is at once the cause and effect of fertility and destruction, for it is at once the cause and effect of fermentation, from which both proceed. The Libitina, or goddess of death of the Romans, was the same as the Persiphoneia of the Greeks; and yet, as Plutarch observes, the most learned of that people allowed her to be the same as Venus, the goddess of generation.2

In the Gallery at Florence is a collossal image of the organ of generation, mounted on the back parts of a lion, and hung round with various animals. By this is represented the co-operation of the creating and destroying powers, which are both blended and united in one figure, because both are derived from one cause. The animals hung round show likewise that both act to the same purpose, that of replenishing the earth, and peopling it with still rising generations of sensitive beings. The Chimæra of Homer, of which the commentators have given so many whimsical interpretations, was a symbol of the same kind, which the poet probably, having seen in Asia, and not knowing its meaning (which was only revealed to the initiated) supposed to be a monster that had once infested the country. He describes it as composed of the forms of the goat, the lion, and the serpent, and breathing fire from its mouth. 3 These are the symbols of the creator, the destroyer, and the preserver, united and animated by fire, the divine essence of all three. 4 On a gem, published in the Memoirs of the Academy of Cortona,5 this union of the destroying and preserving attributes is 1 Plate IV, Fig. 5, from a medal of Agathocles, belonging to me. The same head is upon many others, of Syracuse, Metapontum, &c. 2 In Nums. 3 Il. z, v. 223. 4 For the natural properties attributed by the ancients to fire, see Plutarch, in Camiilo, Plin. Hist. Nat. lib. XXXVI, c. 58. 5 Vol. iv. p. 32. See also Plate V. Fig 4, copied from it. ON THE WORSHIP 74 represented by the united forms of the lion and serpent crowned with rays, the emblems of the cause from which both proceed. This composition forms the Chnoubis of the Egyptians. Bacchus is frequently represented by the ancient artists accompanied by tigers, which appear, in some instances, devouring clusters of grapes, the fruit peculiarly consecrated to the god, and in others drinking the liquor pressed from them. The author of the Recherches sur les Arts has in this instance followed the common accounts of the Mythologists, and asserted that tigers are really fond of grapes;1 which is so far from being true, that they are incapable of feeding upon them, or upon any fruit whatever, being both externally and internally formed to feed upon flesh only, and to procure their food by destroying other animals. Hence I am persuaded, that in the ancient symbols, tigers, as well as lions, represent the destroying power of the god. Sometimes his chariot appears drawn by them; and then they represent the powers of destruction preceding the powers of generation, and extending their operation, as putrefaction precedes, and increases vegetation. On a medal of Maronea, published by Gesner,2 a goat is coupled with the tiger in drawing his chariot; by which composition the artist has shown the general active power of the deity, conducted by his two great attributes of creation and destruction. On the Choragic monument of Lysicrates at Athens, Bacchus is represented feeding a tiger; which shows the active power of generation feeding and nourishing the active power of destruction.3 On a beautiful cameo in the collection of the Duke of Marlborough, the tiger is sucking the breast of a nymph; which represents the same power of destruction, nourished by the passive power of generation.4 In the museum of Charles Townley, Esq., is a group, in 1 Liv. i, c. 3. 2 Table xliii, Fig. 26. 3 Stuart’s Athens, vol. i, c. 4, Plate X. 4 See Plate XVIII, engraved merely to show the composition, it not being permitted to make an exact drawing of it. OF PRIAPUS 75 marble, of three figures;1 the middle one of which grows out of a vine in a human form, with leaves and clusters of grapes springing out of its body. On one side is the Bacchus difuhj, or creator of both sexes, known by the effeminate mold of his limbs and countenance; and on the other, a tiger, leaping up, and devouring the grapes which spring from the body of the personified vine, the hands of which are employed in receiving another cluster from the Bacchus. This composition represents the vine between the creating and destroying attributes of god; the one giving it fruit, and the other devouring it when given. The tiger has a garland of ivy round his neck, to show that the destroyer was co-essential with the creator, of whom ivy, as well as all other ever-greens, was an emblem representing his perpetual youth and viridity.2

The mutual and alternate operation of the two great attributes of creation and destruction, was not confined by the ancients to plants and animals, and such transitory productions, but extended to the universe itself. Fire being the essential cause of both, they believed that the conflagration and renovation of the world were periodical and regular, proceeding from each other by the laws of its own constitution, implanted in it by the creator, who was also the destroyer and renovator;3 for, as Plato says, all things arise from one, and into one are all things resolved.4 It must be observed, that, when the ancients speak of creation and destruction, they mean only formation and dissolution; it being universally allowed, through all systems of religion, or sects of philosophy, that nothing could come from nothing, and that no power whatever could annihilate that 1 See Plate XXI, Fig. 7. 2 Strabo, lib. xv, p. 712. 3 Brucker, Hist. Crit. Philos. vol. i, part 2, lib. i. Plutarch, de Placis. Philos. lib. ii, c. 18. Lucretius, lib. v. ver. 91. Cic. de Nat. Deor. lib. ii. 4 Ex ònoj ta panta genesqai, kai eij t' ¢uton analuesai, in Phæd. The same dogma is still more plainly inculcated by the ancient Indian author before cited, se Bagavat Geeta, Lect. ix. ON THE WORSHIP 76 which really existed. The bold and magnificent idea of a creation from nothing was reserved for the more vigorous faith, and more enlightened minds of the moderns,1 who need seek no authority to confirm their belief; for, as that which is self-evident admits of no proof, so that which is in itself impossible admits of no refutation. The fable of the serpent Pytho being destroyed by Apollo, probably arose from an emblematical composition, in which that god was represented as the destroyer of life, of which the serpent was a symbol. Pliny mentions a statue of him by Praxiteles, which was much celebrated in his time, called Sauroktwn (the Lizard-killer).2 The lizard, being supposed to live upon the dews and moisture of the earth, is employed as the symbol of humidity in general; so that the god destroying it, signifies the same as the lion devouring the horse. The title Apollo, I am inclined to believe, meant originally the Destroyer, as well as the Deliverer; for, as the ancients supposed destruction to be merely dissolution, the power which delivered the particles of matter from the bonds of attraction, and broke the desmon peribriqj erowtoj, was in fact the destroyer.3 It is, probably, for this reason, that sudden death, plagues, and epidemic diseases, are said by the poets to be sent by this god; who is, at the same time, described as the author of medicine, and all the arts employed to preserve life. These attributes are not joined merely because the destroyer and preserver were essentially the same; but because disease necessarily precedes 1 The word in Genesis upon which it is founded, conveyed no such sense to the ancients; for the Seventy translated it epoihse, which signifies formed, or fashioned. 2 Hist. Nat. lib. xxxiv. c. 8. Many copies of it are still extant. Winkleman has published one from a bronze of Cardinal Albani's. Monum. Antichi. inediti, Plate XL. 3 The verb luw, from which Apollo is derived, signifies in Homer both to free and to dissolve or destroy, Il a, ver. 20; Il. i, ver. 25. Macrobius derives the title from apollumi, to destroy; but this word is derived from luw Sat. lib. i, c. 17. OF PRIAPUS 77 cure, and is the cause of its being invented. The God of Health is said to be his son, because the health and vigour of one being are supported by the decay and dissolution of others which are appropriated to its nourishment. The bow and arrows are given to him as symbols of his characteristic attributes, as they are to Diana, who was the female personification of the destructive, as well as the productive and preserving powers. Diana is hence called the triple Hecate, and represented by three female bodies joined together. Her attributes were however worshipped separately; and some nations revered her under one character, and others under another. Diana of Ephesus was the productive and nutritive power, as the many breasts and other symbols on her statues imply;1 whilst Brimw, the Tauric or Scythic Diana, appears to have been the destructive, and therefore was appeased with human sacrifices, and other bloody rites.2 She is represented sometimes standing on the back of a bull,3 and sometimes in a chariot drawn by bulls;4 whence she is called by the poets Tauropola5 and Bown elateira. 6 Both compositions show the passive power of nature, whether creative or destructive, sustained and guided by the general active power of the creator, of which the sun was the centre, and the bull the symbol. It was observed by the ancients, that the destructive power of the sun was exerted most by day, and the creative by night: for it was in the former season that he dried up the waters, withered the herbs, and produced disease and putrefaction; and in the latter, 1 Hieron. Comment. in Paul Epist. ad Ephes. 2 Pausan. lib. iii, c. 16. 3 See a medal of Augustus, published by Spanheim. Not. in Callim, Hymn. ad Dian. ver. 113. 4 Plate VI, from a bronze in the museum of C. Townley, Esq. 5 Sophoclis Ajax, ver. 172. 6 Nonni Dionys, lib. i. the title Tauropoloj was sometimes given to Apollo, Eustath. Schol in Dionys.Perihghs.,. ver. 609. ON THE WORSHIP 78 that he returned the exhalations in dews, tempered with the genial heat which he had transfused into the atmosphere, to restore and replenish the waste of the day. Hence, when they personified the attributes, they revered the one as the diurnal, and the other as the nocturnal sun, and in their mystic worship, as Macrobius says, 1 called the former Apollo, and the latter Dionysus or Bacchus. The mythological personages of Castor and Pollux, who lived and died alternately, were allegories of the same dogma; hence the two asteriscs, by which they are distinguished on the medals of Locri, Argos, and other cities. The pæans, or war-songs, which the Greeks chanted at the onset of their battles2 were originally sung to Apollo,3 who was called Pæon; and Macrobius tells us,4 that in Spain, the sun was worshipped as Mars, the god of war and destruction, whose statue they adorned with rays, like that of the Greek Apollo. On a Celtiberian or Runic medal found in Spain, of barbarous workmanship, is a head surrounded by obeliscs or rays, which I take to be of this deity.5 The hairs appear erect, to imitate flames, as they do on many of the Greek medals; and on the reverse is a bearded head, with a sort of pyramidal cap on, exactly resembling that by which the Romans conferred freedom on their slaves, and which was therefore called the cap of liberty.6 On other Celtiberian medals is a figure on horseback, carrying a spear in his hand, and having the same sort of cap on his head, with the word Helman written 1 Sat. lib. i, c. 18. 2 Thucyd. lib. vii. 3 Homer, Il. s, v. 472. 4 Sat. lib. i, c. 19. 5 Plate X Fig. 2, engraven from one belonging to me. I have since been confirmed in this conjecture by observing the characters of Mars and Apollo mixt on Greek coins. On a Mamertine one belonging to me is the head with the youthful features and laurel crown of Apollo; but the hair is short, and the inscription on the exergue denotes it to be Mars. See Plate XVI. Fig 2. 6 It may be seen with th edagger on the medals of Brutus. OF PRIAPUS 79 under him,1 in characters which are something between the old Runic and Pelasgian; but so near to the latter, that they are easily understood.2 This figure seems to be of the same person as is represented by the head with the cap on the preceding medal, who can be no other than the angel or minister of the deity of death, as the name implies; for Hela or Hel, was, among the Northern nations, the goddess of death,3 in the same manner as Persiphoneia or Brimo was among the Greeks. The same figure appears on many ancient British medals, and also on those of several Greek cities, particularly those of Gela, which have the Taurine Bacchus or Creator on the reverse.4 The head which I have supposed to be the Celtiberian Mars, or destructive power of the diurnal sun, is beardless like the Apollo of the Greeks, and, as far as can be discovered in such barbarous sculpture, has the same androgynous features.5 We may therefore reasonably suppose, that, like the Greeks, the Celtiberians personified the destructive attribute under the different genders, accordingly as they applied it to the sun, or subordinate elements; and then united them, to signify that both were essentially the same. The Helman therefore, who was the same as the Moiraghthj or Diaktwr of the Greeks, may with equal propriety be called the minister of both or either. The spear in his hand is not to be considered merely as the implement of destruction, but as the symbol of power and command, which it was in Greece and Italy, as well as all over the North. Hence euqunein dori, was 1 See Plate IX, Fig. 9, from one belonging to me. 2 The first to a mixture of the Runic Hagle and Greek H. The second is the Runic Laugur, which is also the old Greek L, as it appears on the vase of the Calydonian Boar in the British Museum. The other three differ little from the common Greek. 3 Edd. Fab. XVI. D’Hancarville, Recherches sur les Arts, liv. ii, c. 1. 4 See Plate IX, Fig. 11, from one belonging to me. 5 See Plate X, Fig. 2. ON THE WORSHIP 80 to govern, 1 and venire sub hast‚,—to be sold as a slave. The ancient Celtes and Scythians paid divine honors to the sword, the battleaxe, and the spear; the first of which was the symbol by which they represented the supreme god: hence to swear by the edge of the sword was the most sacred and inviolable of oaths.2 Euripides alludes to this ancient religion when he calls a sword –rkion xifoj; and Æschylus shows clearly, that it once prevailed in Greece, when he makes the heroes of the Thebaid swear by the point of the spear (omnusi d'aicmhn3 ). Homer sometimes uses the word arhj to signify the God of War, and sometimes a weapon: and we have sufficient proof of this word’s being of Celtic origin in its affinity with our Northern word War; for, if we write it in the ancient manner, with the Pelasgian Vau, or Æolian Digamma, #arhj (Warés), it scarcely differs at all. Behind the bearded head, on the first-mentioned Celtiberian medal is an instrument like a pair of firetongs, or blacksmith's pincers;4 from which it seems that the personage here represented is the same as the `Hfaistoj or Vulcan of the Greek and Roman mythology. The same ideas are expressed somewhat more plainly on the medals of Æsernia in Italy, which are executed with all the refinement and elegance of Grecian art.5 On one side is Apollo, the diurnal sun, mounting in his chariot; and on the other a beardless head, with the same cap on, and the same instrument behind it, but with the youthful features and elegant character of countenance usually attributed to Mercury, who, as well as Vulcan, was the God of Art and Mechanism; and whose peculiar office it also was to conduct the souls of the deceased to their eternal mansions, from whence came the epithet Diaktwr, applied to him by Homer. He was, therefore, in this respect, the same as the Helman of the 1 Eurip. Hecuba. 2 Malles, Introd. ‡ ;’Hist. de Danemarc, c. 9. 3 `Epta epi Qhbaj, v. 535. 4 Plate X. Fig 2. 5 See Plate X, Fig. 6, from one belonging to me. OF PRIAPUS 81 Celtes and Scythians, who was supposed to conduct the souls of all who died a violent death (which alone was accounted truly happy) to the palace of Valhala.1 It seems that the attributes of the deity which the Greeks represented by the mythological personages of Vulcan and Mercury, were united in the Celtic mythology. Cæsar tells us that the Germans worshipped Vulcan, or fire, with the sun and moon; and I shall soon have occasion to show that the Greeks held fire to be the real conductor of the dead, and emanci-pator of the soul. The Æsernians, bordering upon the Samnites, a Celtic nation, might naturally be supposed to have adopted the notions of their neighbours, or, what is more probable, preserved the religion of their ancestors more pure than the Hellenic Greeks. Hence they represented Vulcan, who, from the inscription on the exergue of their coins, appears to have been their tutelar god, with the characteristic features of Mercury, who was only a different personification of the same deity. At Lycopolis in Egypt the destroying power of the sun was represented by a wolf; which, as Macrobius says, was worshipped there as Apollo.2 The wolf appears devouring grapes in the ornaments of the temple of Bacchus perikionoj at Puzzuoli;3 and on the medals of Cartha he is surrounded with rays, which plainly proves that he is there meant as a symbol of the sun. 4 He is also represented on most of the coins of Argos,5 where I have already shown that the diurnal sun Apollo, the light-extending god, was peculiarly worshipped. We may therefore conclude, that this animal is meant for one of the mystic symbols of the primitive worship, and not, as some antiquarians have supposed, to commemorate the mythological tales of Danaus or Lycaon, which were probably invented, 1 Malles, Hist. de Danemarc, Introd. c. 9. 2 Sat. lib. i, c. 27. 3 Plate XVI, Fig. 1. 4 Plate X, Fig. 8, from one beloning to me. 5 Plate IX, Fig. 7, from one beloning to me. ON THE WORSHIP 82 like many others of the same kind, to satisfy the inquisitive ignorance of the vulgar, from whom the meaning of the mystic symbols, the usual devices on the medals, was strictly concealed. In the Celtic mythology, the same symbol was employed, apparently in the same sense, Lok, the great destroying power of the universe, being represented under the form of a wolf.1

The Apollo Didymæus, or double Apollo, was probably the two personifications, that of the destroying, and that of the creating power, united; whence we may perceive the reason why the ornaments before described should be upon his temple.2 On the medals of Antigonus, king of Asia, is a figure with his hair hanging in artificial ringlets over his shoulders, like that of a woman, and the whole composition, both of his limbs and countenance, remarkable for extreme delicacy, and feminine elegance.3 He is sitting on the prow of a ship, as god of the waters; and we should, without hesitation, pronounce him to be the Bacchus difuhj, were it not for the bow that he carries in his hand, which evidently shows him to be Apollo. This I take to be the figure under which the refinement of art (and more was never shown than in this medal) represented the Apollo Didymæus, or union of the creative and destructive powers of both sexes in one body. As fire was the primary essence of the active or male powers of creation and generation, so was water of the passive or female. Appian says, that the goddess worshipped at Hierapolis in Syria was called by some Venus, by others Juno, and by others held to be the cause which produced the beginning and seeds of things from humidity. 4 Plutarch describes her nearly in the same words;5 and 1 Malles, Introd. ‡ l’Hist. de Danemarc. 2 See Ionian Antiq. vol. i, c. 3, Pl. IX. 3 See Plate X, Fig. 7, from one belonging to me. Similar figures are on the coins of most of the Seleucidæ. 4 De Bello Parthico. 5 In Crasso. OF PRIAPUS 83 the author of the treatise attributed to Lucian1 says, she was Nature, the parent of things, or the creatress. She was therefore the same as Isis, who was the prolific material upon which both the creative and destructive attributes operated.2 As water was her terrestrial essence, so was the moon her celestial image, whose attractive power, heaving the waters of the ocean, naturally led men to associate them. The moon was also supposed to return the dews which the sun exhaled from the earth; and hence her warmth was reckoned to be moistening, as that of the sun was drying.3 The Egyptians called her the Mother of the World, because she sowed and scattered into the air the prolific principles with which she had been impregnated by the sun. 4 These principles, as well as the light by which she was illumined, being supposed to emanate from the great fountain of all life and motion, partook of the nature of the being from which they were derived. Hence the Egyptians attributed to the moon, as well is to the sun, the active and passive powers of generation,5 which were both, to use the language of the scholastics, essentially the same, though formally different. This union is represented on a medal of Demetrius the second, king of Syria,6 where the goddess of Hierapolis appears with the male organs of generation sticking out of her robe, and holding the thyrsus of Bacchus, the emblem of fire, in one hand, and the terrestrial globe, representing the subordinate elements, in the other. Her head is crowned with various plants, and on each side is in asterisc representing (probably) the diurnal and nocturnal sun, in the same manner as when placed over the caps of Castor and Pollux.7 This is not the form under which she was represented in the temple at 1 De Dea Syri‚. 2 Plutarch, de Is. & Osir. 3 Caler felis arefacit, lunaris humectat. Macrob. Sat. VII, c. 10. 4 Plutarch, de Is. & Osir. 5 Ibid. 6 Plate X, Fig 5, from Haym, Tes. Brit. p. 70. 7 Se Plate IX, Fig. 7. ON THE WORSHIP 84 Hierapolis, when the author of the account attributed to Lucian visited it; which is not to be wondered at, for the figures of this universal goddess, being merely emblematical, were composed according to the attributes which the artists meant particularly to express. She is probably represented here in the form under which she was worshipped in the neighbourhood of Cyzicus, where she was called Artemij Priapivh, the Priapic Diana. 1 In the temple at Hierapolis the active powers imparted to her by the Creator were represented by immense images of the male organs of generation placed on each side of the door. The measures of these must necessarily be corrupt in the present text of Lucian; but that they were of an enormous size we may conclude from what is related of a man's going to the top of one of them every year, and residing there seven days, in order to have a more intimate communication with the deity, while praying for the prosperity of Syria.2 Athenæus relates, that Ptolemy Philadelphus had one of 120 cubits long carried in procession at Alexandria,3 of which the poet might justly have said— Horrendum protendit Mentula contum Quanta queat vastos Thetidis spumantis hiatus; Quanta queat priscamque Rheam, magnamque parentem Naturam, solidis naturam implere medullis, Si foret immensos, quot ad astra volantia currunt, Conceptura globos, et tela trisulca tonantis, Et vaga concussum motura tonitrua mundum. This was the real meaning of the enormous figures at Hierapolis: —they were the generative organs of the creator personified, with which he was supposed to have impregnated the heavens, the earth, and the waters. Within the temple were many small statues of men with these organs disproportionably large. These were the angels or attendants of the goddess, who acted as her ministers of 1 Plutarch, in Lucullo. 2 Lucian, de Dea Syri‚. 3 Deipnos. lib. OF PRIAPUS 85 creation in peopling and fructifying the earth. The statue of the goddess herself was in the sanctuary of the temple; and near it was the statue of the creator, whom the author calls Jupiter, as he does the goddess, Juno; by which he only means that they were the supreme deities of the country where worshipped. She was borne by lions, and he by bulls, to show that nature, the passive productive power of matter, was sustained by anterior destruction, whilst the ætherial spirit, or active productive power, was sustained by his own strength only, of which the bulls were symbols.1 Between both was a third figure, with a dove on his head, which some thought to be Bacchus.2 This was the Holy Spirit, the firstbegotten love, or plastic nature, (of which the dove was the image when it really deigned to descend upon man,3 ) proceeding from, and consubstantial with both; for all three were but personifications of one. The dove, or some fowl like it, appears on the medals of Gortyna in Crete, acting the same part with Dictynna, the Cretan Diana, as the swan is usually represented acting with Leda.4 This composition has nearly the same signification as that before described of the bull in the lap of Ceres, Diana being equally a personification of the productive power of the earth. It may seem extraordinary, that after this adventure with the dove, she should still remain a virgin; but mysteries of this kind are to be found in all religions. Juno is said to have renewed her virginity every year by bathing in a certain fountain;5 a miracle which I believe even modern legends cannot parallel. 1 The active and passive powers of creation are called male and female by the Ammonian Platonists. See Proclus in Theol. Platon. lib. i, c. 28. 2 Lucian, de Dea Syri‚. 3 Matth. ch. iii, ver. 17. 4 See Plate III, Fig. 5. Kalousi de thn Artemin Qrakej Bendeian, Krhtej de Diktunnan. Palæph. de Incred. Tab. XXXI. See also Diodor. Sic. lib. v. & Euripid. Hippol. v. 145. 5 Pausan. lib. ii, c. 38. ON THE WORSHIP 86 In the vision of Ezekiel, God is described as descending upon the combined forms of the eagle, the bull, and the lion,1 the emblems of the ætherial spirit, the creative and destructive powers, which were all united in the true God, though hypostatically divided in the Syrian trinity. Man was compounded with them, as representing the real image of God, according to the Jewish theology. The cherubim on the ark of the covenant, between which God dwelt,2 were also compounded of the same form,3 so that the idea of them must have been present to the prophet’s mind, previous to the apparition which furnished him with the description. Even those on the ark of the covenant, though made at the express command of God, do not appear to have been original; for a figure exactly answering to the description of them appears among those curious ruins existing at Chilminar, in Persia, which have been supposed to be those of the palace of Persepolis, burnt by Alexander; but for what reason, it is not easy to conjecture. They do not, certainly, answer to any ancient description extant of that celebrated palace; but, as far as we can judge of them in their present state, appear evidently to have been a temple.4 But the Persians, as before observed, had no inclosed temples or statues, which they held in such abhorrence, that they tried every means possible to destroy those of the Egyptians; thinking it unworthy of the majesty of the deity to have his all-pervading presence limited to the boundary of an edifice, or likened to an image of stone or metal. Yet, among the ruins at Chilminar, we not only find many statues, which are evidently of ideal beings,5 but also that remarkable emblem of the deity, which distinguishes almost all the 1 Ezek. ch. i, ver. 10, with Lowth’s Comm. 2 Exod. ch. xxv. ver. 22. 3 Spencer de Leg. Ritual Vet. Hebræor. lib. iii. dissert. 5. 4 See Le Bruyn, Voyage en Perse, Planche cxxiii. 5 See Le Bruyn and Niebuhr. OF PRIAPUS 87 Egyptian temples now extant.1 The portals are also of the same form as those at Thebes and Philæ; and, except the hieroglyphics which distinguish the latter, are finished and ornamented nearly in the same manner. Unless, therefore, we suppose the Persians to have been so inconsistent as to erect temples in direct contradiction to the first principles of their own religion, and decorate them with symbols and images, which they held to be impious and abominable, we cannot suppose them to be the authors of these buildings. Neither can we suppose the Parthians, or later Persians, to have been the builders of them; for both the style of workmanship in the figures, and the forms of the letters in the inscriptions, denote a much higher antiquity, as will appear evidently to any one who will take the trouble of comparing the drawings published by Le Bruyn and Niebuhr with the coins of the Arsacidæ and Sassanidæ. Almost all the symbolical figures are to be found repeated upon different Phúnician coins; but the letters of the Phúnicians, which are said to have come to them from the Assyrians, are much less simple, and evidently belong to an alphabet much further advanced in improvement. Some of the figures are also observable upon the Greek coins, particularly the bull and lion fighting, and the mystic flower, which is the constant device of the Rhodians. The style of workmanship is also exactly the same as that of the very ancient Greek coins of Acanthus, Celendaris, and Lesbos; the lines being very strongly marked, and the hair expressed by round knobs. The wings likewise of the figure, which resembles the Jewish cherubim, are the same as those upon several Greek sculptures now extant; such as the little images of Priapus attached to the ancient bracelets, the compound figures of the goat and lion 1 See Plate XVIII. Fig. 1 from the Isiac Table, and Plate XIX. Fig 5 from Niebuhr's prints of Chilminar. See also Plate XVIII. Fig. 2 and Plate XIX. Fig. 1 from the Isiac Tables and the Egyptian Portals published by Norden and Pococke, on every one of which this singular emblem occurs. ON THE WORSHIP 88 upon the frieze of the Temple of Apollo Didymæus, &c. &c.1

They are likewise joined to the human figure on the medals of Melita and Camarina,2 as well as upon many ancient sculptures in relief found in Persia.3 The feathers in these wings are turned upwards like those of an ostrich,4 to which however they have no resemblance in form, but seem rather like those of a fowl brooding, though more distorted than any I ever observed in nature. Whether this distortion was meant to express lust or incubation, I cannot determine; but the compositions, to which the wings are added, leave little doubt, that it was meant for the one or the other. I am inclined to believe that it was for the latter, as we find on the medals of Melita a figure with four of these wings, who seems by his attitude to be brooding over something.5 On his head is the cap of liberty, whilst in his right hand he holds the hook or attractor, and in his left the winnow or separator; so that he probably represents the Erwj, or generative spirit brooding over matter, and giving liberty to its productive powers by the exertion of his own attributes, attraction and separation. On a very ancient Phúnician medal brought from Asia by Mr. Pullinger, and published very incorrectly by Mr. Swinton in the Philosophical Transactions of 1760, is a disc or ring surrounded by wings of different forms, of which some of the feathers are distorted in the same manner.6 The same disc, surrounded by the same kind of wings, incloses the asterisc of the sun over the bull Apis, or Mnevis, on the Isiac Table,7 where it also appears with many of the other Egyptian 1 See Le Bruyn, Planche cxxiii. Ionian Antiquities, vol. i. c. 3. Plate IX., and Plate II. Fig. 2. 2 See Plate XX, Fig. 2, from one of Melita, belonging to me. 3 See Le Bruyn, Planche cxxi. 4 As those on the Figures described by Ezekiel were. See c. i, v. 11. 5 See Plate XX, Fig. 2, engraved from one belonging to me. 6 See Plate IX, Fig. 9, engraed from the original medal, now belonging to me. 7 See Plate XIX, Fig. 1, from Pignorius. OF PRIAPUS 89 symbols, particularly over the heads of Isis and Osiris.1 It is also placed over the entrances of most of the Egyptian temples described by Pococke and Norden as well as on that represented on the Isiac Table,2 though with several variations, and without the asterisc. We find it equally without the asterisc, but with little or no variation, on the ruins at Chilmenar, and other supposed Persian antiquities in that neighbourhood:3 but upon some of the Greek medals the asterisc alone is placed over the bull with the human face,4 who is then the same as the Apis or Mnevis of the Egyptians; that is, the image of the generative power of the sun, which is signified by the asterisc on the Greek medals, and by the kneph, or winged disc, on the Oriental monuments. The Greeks however sometimes employed this latter symbol, but contrived, according to their usual practice, to join it to the human figure, as may be seen on a medal of Camarina, published by Prince Torremmuzzi.5 On other medals of this city the same idea is expressed, without the disc or asterisc, by a winged figure, which appears hovering over a swan, the emblem of the waters, to show the generative power of the sun fructifying that element, or adding the active to the passive powers of production.6 On the medals of Naples, a winged figure of the same kind is represented crowning the Taurine Bacchus with a wreath of laurel.7 This antiquarians have called a Victory crowning the Minotaur; but the fabulous monster called the Minotaur was never said to have been victorious, even by the poets 1 See Plate XVIII, Fig. 2, from Pignorius. 2 See Plate XVIII, Fig. 1, from Pignorius. 3 See Niebuhr and Le Bruyn, and Plate XIX, Fig. 2, from the former. 4 See Plate IV. Fig. 2, and Plate XIX. Fig. 4, from a medal of Cales, belonging to me. 5 See Plate XXI, Fig. 2, copied from it. 6 See Plate XXI, Fig. 3, from one belonging to me. 7 See Plate XIX, Fig. 5. The coins are common in all collections. ON THE WORSHIP 90 who invented it; and whenever the sculptors and painters represented it, they joined the head of a bull to a human body, as may be seen in the celebrated picture of Theseus, published among the antiquities of Herculaneum, and on the medals of Athens, struck about the time of Severus, when the style of art was totally changed, and the mystic theology extinct. The winged figure, which has been called a Victory, appears mounting in the chariot of the sun, on the medals of queen Philistis,1 and, on some of those of Syracuse, flying before it in the place where the asterisc appears on others of the same city.2 I am therefore persuaded, that these are only different modes of representing one idea, and that the winged figure means the same, when placed over the Taurine Bacchus of the Greeks, as the winged disc over the Apis or Mnevis of the Egyptians. The Ægis, or snaky breastplate, and the Medusa’s head, are also, as Dr. Stukeley justly observed,3 Greek modes of representing this winged disc joined with the serpents, as it frequently is, both in the Egyptian sculptures, and those of Chilmenar in Persia. The expressions of rage and violence, which usually characterise the countenance of Medusa, signify the destroying attribute joined with the generative, as both were equally under the direction of Minerva, or divine wisdom. I am inclined to believe, that the large rings, to which the little figures of Priapus are attached,4 had also the same meaning as the disc; for, if intended merely to suspend them by, they are of an extravagant magnitude, and would not answer their purpose so well as a common loop. On the Phúnician coin above mentioned, this symbol, the winged disc, is placed over a figure sitting, who holds in his hands an arrow, whilst a bow, ready bent, of the ancient Scythian form, 1 See Plate XXI, Fig. 4, from one belonging to me. 2 See Plate XXI, Fig. 5 and 6, from coins belonging to me. 3 Abury, p. 93. 4 See Plate II. Fig. 1, and Plate III. Fig. 2. OF PRIAPUS 91 lies by him.1 On his head is a large loose cap, tied under his chin, which I take to be the lion's skin, worn in the same manner as on the heads of Hercules, upon the medals of Alexander; but the work is so small, though executed with extreme nicety and precision, and perfectly preserved, that it is difficult to decide with certainty what it represents, in parts of such minuteness. The bow and arrows, we know, were the ancient arms of Hercules;2 and continued so, until the Greek poets thought proper to give him the club.3 He was particularly worshipped at Tyre, the metropolis of Phúnicia;4 and his head appears in the usual form, on many of the coins of that people. We may hence conclude that he is the person here represented, notwithstanding the difference in the style and composition of the figure, which may be accounted for by the difference of art. The Greeks, animated by the spirit of their ancient poets, and the glowing melody of their language, were grand and poetical in all their compositions; whilst the Phúnicians, who spoke a harsh and untuneable dialect, were unacquainted with fine poetry, and consequently with poetical ideas; for words being the types of ideas, and the signs or marks by which men not only communicate them to each other, but arrange and regulate them in their own minds, the genius of a language goes a great way towards forming the character of the people who use it. Poverty of expression will produce poverty of conception; for men will never be able to form sublime ideas, when the language in which they think (for men always think as well as speak in some language) is incapable of expressing them. This may be one reason why the Phúnicians never rivalled the Greeks in the perfection of art, although they attained a degree of excellence long before them; for Homer, whenever he has occasion to speak of any fine piece of art, takes 1 See Plate IX, Fig. 10 b. 2 Homer’s Odyss. L, ver. 606. 3 Strabo, lib. xiv. 4 Macrob. Sat. lib. i, c. 20. ON THE WORSHIP 92 care to inform us that it was the work of Sidonians. He also mentions the Phúnician merchants bringing toys and ornaments of dress to sell to the Greeks, and practicing those frauds which merchants and factors are apt to practice upon ignorant people.1

It is probable that their progress in the fine arts, like that of the Dutch (who are the Phúnicians of modern history), never went beyond a strict imitation of nature; which, compared to the more elevated graces of ideal composition, is like a newspaper narrative compared with one of Homer’s battles. A figure of Hercules, therefore, executed by a Phúnician artist, if compared to one by Phidias or Lysippus, would be like a picture of Moses or David, painted by Teniers, or Gerard Dow, compared to one of the same, painted by Raphael or Annibal Caracci. This is exactly the difference between the figures on the medal now under consideration, and those on the coins of Gelo or Alexander. Of all the personages of the ancient mythology, Hercules is perhaps the most difficult to explain; for physical allegory and fabulous history are so entangled in the accounts we have of him, that it is scarcely possible to separate them. He appears however, like all the other gods, to have been originally a personified attribute of the sun. The eleventh of the Orphic Hymns2 is addressed to him as the strength and power of the sun; and Macrobius says that he was thought to be the strength and virtue of the gods, by which they destroyed the giants; and that, according to Varro, the Mars and Hercules of the Romans were the same deity, and worshipped with the same rites.3 According to Varro then, whose authority is perhaps the greatest that can be cited, Hercules was the destroying attribute represented in a human form, instead of that of a lion, tiger, or hippopotamus. Hence the terrible picture drawn of him by Homer, which always appeared to me to have been taken from 1 Homer, Odyss. o, ver. 414. 2 Ed. Gesner. 3 Sat. lib. i, c. 20. OF PRIAPUS 93 some symbolical statue, which the poet not understanding, supposed to be of the Theban hero, who had assumed the title of the deity, and whose fabulous history he was well acquainted with. The description however applies in every particular to the allegorical personage. His attitude, ever fixed in the act of letting fly his arrow, 1 with the figures of lions and bears, battles and murders, which adorn his belt, all unite in representing him as the destructive attribute personified. But how happens it then that he is so frequently represented strangling the lion, the natural emblem of this power? Is this an historical fable belonging to the Theban hero, or a physical allegory of the destructive power destroying its own force by its own exertions? Or is the single attribute personified taken for the whole power of the deity in this, as in other instances already mentioned? The Orphic Hymn above cited seems to favour this last conjecture; for he is there addressed both as the devourer and generator of all (Pamfage, paggentwr). However this may be, we may safely conclude that the Hercules armed with the bow and arrow, as he appears on the present medal, is like the Apollo, the destroying power of the diurnal sun. On the other side of the medal3 is a figure, somewhat like the Jupiter on the medals of Alexander and Antiochus, sitting with a beaded sceptre in his right hand, which he rests upon the head of a bull, that projects from the side of the chair. Above, on his right shoulder, is a bird, probably a dove, the symbol of the Holy Spirit, descending from the sun, but, as this part of the medal is less perfect than the rest, the species cannot be clearly discovered. In his left hand be holds a short staff, from the upper side of which springs an ear of corn, and from the lower a bunch of grapes, which being the two most esteemed productions of the earth, were the natural emblems of general fertilization. This figure is there1 Aiei Baleonti òoikwj. Odyss. l, ver. 607. 2 See Plate IX, Fig. 10 a. ON THE WORSHIP 94 fore the generator, as that on the other side is the destroyer, whilst the sun, of whose attributes both are personifications, is placed between them. The letters on the side of the generator are quite entire, and, according to the Phúnician alphabet published by Mr. Dutens, are equivalent to the Roman ones which compose the words Baal Thrz, of which Mr. Swinton makes Baal Tarz, and translates Jupiter of Tarsus; whence he concludes that this coin was struck at that city. But the first letter of the last word is not a Teth, but a Thau, or aspirated T; and, as the Phúnicians had a vowel answering to the Roman A, it is probable they would have inserted it, had they intended it to be sounded: but we have no reason to believe that they had any to express the U or Y, which must therefore be comprehended in the preceding consonant whenever the sound is expressed. Hence I conclude that the word here meant is Thyrz or Thurz, the Thor or Thur of the Celtes and Sarmatians, the Thurra of the Assyrians, the Turan of the Tyrrhenians or Etruscans, the Taurine Bacchus of the Greeks, and the deity whom the Germans carried with them in the shape of a bull, when they invaded Italy; from whom the city of Tyre, as well as Tyrrhenia, or Tuscany, probably took its name. His symbol the bull, to which the name alludes, is represented on the chair or throne in which he sits; and his sceptre, the emblem of his authority, rests upon it. The other word, Baal, was merely a title in the Phúnician language, signifying God, or Lord; 1 and used as an epithet of the sun, as we learn from the name Baal-bec (the city of Baal), which the Greeks rendered Heliopolis (the city of the sun). Thus does this singular medal show the fundamental principles of the ancient Phúnician religion to be the same as those which appear to have prevailed through all the other nations of the northern hemisphere. Fragments of the same system every where 1 Cleric. Comm. in. 2 Reg. c. i, ver. 2. OF PRIAPUS 95 occur, variously expressed as they were variously understood, and oftentimes merely preserved without being understood at all; the ancient reverence being continued to the symbols, when their meaning was wholly forgotten. The hypostatical division and essential unity of the deity is one of the most remarkable parts of this system, and the farthest removed from common sense and reason; and yet this is perfectly reasonable and consistent, if considered together with the rest of it: for the emanations and personifications were only figurative abstractions of particular modes of action and existence, of which the primary cause and original essence still continued one and the same. The three hypostases being thus only one being, each hypostasis is occasionally taken for all; as is the case in the passage of Apuleius before cited, where Isis describes herself as the universal deity. In this character she is represented by a small basaltine figure, of Egyptian sculpture, at Strawberry Hill, which is covered over with symbols of various kinds from top to bottom.1 That of the bull is placed lowest, to show that the strength or power of the creator is the foundation and support of every other attribute. On her head are towers, to denote the earth; and round her neck is hung a crab-fish, which, from its power of spontaneously detaching from its body, and naturally reproducing, any limbs that are hurt or mutilated, became the symbol of the productive power of the waters; in which sense it appears on great numbers of ancient medals of various cities.2 The nutritive power is signified 1 A print of one exactly the same Is published by Montfaucon, Antiq. expliq. vol. i. Plate XCIII. Fig. i. 2 See those of Agrigentum, Himera, and Cyrene. On a small one of the firstmentioned city, belonging to me, a cross, the abbreviated symbol of the male powers of generation, approaches the mouth of the crab, while the cornucopia issues from It (see Plate XX. Fig. 3): the one represents the cause, and the other the effect of fertilization. ON THE WORSHIP 96 by her many breasts, and the destructive by the lions which she bears on her arms. Other attributes are expressed by various other animal symbols, the precise meaning of which I have not sagacity sufficient to discover. This universality of the goddess was more concisely represented in other figures of her, by the mystic instrument called a Systrum, which she carried in her hand. Plutarch has given an explanation of it,1 which may serve to show that the mode here adopted of explaining the ancient symbols is not founded merely upon conjecture and analogy, but also upon the authority of one of the most grave and learned of the Greeks. The curved top, he says, represented the lunar orbit, within which the creative attributes of the deity were exerted, in giving motion to the four elements, signified by the four rattles below.2 On the centre of the curve was a cat, the emblem of the moon; who, from her influence on the constitutions of women, was supposed to preside particularly over the passive powers of generation;3 and below, upon the base, a head of Isis or Nepthus; instead of which, upon that which I have had engraved, as well as upon many others now extant, are the male organs of generation, representing the active powers of the creator, attributed to Isis with the passive. The clattering noise, and various motions of the rattles being adopted as the symbols of the movement and mixture of the elements from which all things are produced; the sound of metals in general became an emblem of the same kind. Hence, the ringing of bells, and clattering of plates of metal, were used in all lustrations, sacrifices, &c.4 The title Priapus, applied to the characteristic attribute of the creator, 1 De Is. & Osir. 2 See Plate X, Fig. 4, engraved from one in the collection of R. Wilbbramha, Esq. 3 Cic. de Nat.Deor. lib. ii, c. 46. 4 Clem. Alex. Protr. p. 9. Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll. II, ver. 16. OF PRIAPUS 97 and sometimes to the Creator himself, is probably a corruption of Briapoj (clamorous or loud); for the B and P being both labials, the change of the one for the other is common in the Greek language. We still find many ancient images of this symbol, with bells attached to them,1 as they were to the sacred robe of the high priest of the Jews, in which he administered to the Creator.2

The bells in both were of a pyramidal form,3 to show the ætherial igneous essence of the god. This form is still retained in those used in our churches, as well as in the little ones rung by the Catholic priests at the elevation of the host. The use of them was early adopted by the Christians, in the same sense as they were employed by the later heathens; that is, as a charm against evil dæmons;4 for, being symbols of the active exertions of the creative attributes, they were properly opposed to the emanations of the destructive. The Lacedemonians used to beat a pan or kettle-drum at the death of their king,5 to assist in the emancipation of his soul at the dissolution of the body. We have a similar custom of tolling a bell on such occasions, which is very generally practised, though the meaning of it has been long forgotten. This emancipation of the soul was supposed to be finally performed by fire; which, being the visible image and active essence of both the creative and destructive powers, was very naturally thought to be the medium through which men passed from the present to a future life. The Greeks, and all the Celtic nations, accordingly, burned the bodies of the dead, as the Gentoos do at this day; while the Egyptians, among whom fuel was extremely scarce, 1 Bronzi dell’ Hercol. Tom. vi. Plate XCVIII. 2 Exod. ch. xxviii. 3 Bronzi dell’ Hercol. Tom. vi. Plate XCVIII. Maimonides in Patrick’s Commentary on Exodus, ch. xxviii. 4 Ovid. Fast. lib. v, ver. 441. Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll. ii, ver. 36. 5 Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll. ii. ver. 36. ON THE WORSHIP 98 placed them in pyramidal monuments, which were the symbols of fire; hence come those prodigious structures which still adorn that country. The soul which was to be emancipated was the divine emanation, the vital spark of heavenly flame, the principle of reason and perception, which was personified into the familiar dæmon, or genius, supposed to have the direction of each individual, and to dispose him to good or evil, wisdom or folly, and all their consequences of prosperity and adversity.1 Hence proceeded the doctrines, so uniformly inculcated by Homer and Pindar,2 of all human actions depending immediately upon the gods; which were adopted, with scarcely any variations, by some of the Christian divines of the apostolic age. In the Pastor of Hermas, and Recognitions of Clemens, we find the angels of justice, penitence, and sorrow, instead of the genii, or dæmons, which the ancients supposed to direct men's minds and inspire them with those particular sentiments. St. Paul adopted the still more comfortable doctrine of grace, which served full as well to emancipate the consciences of the faithful from the shackles of practical morality. The familiar dæmons, or divine emanations, were supposed to reside in the blood; which was thought to contain the principles of vital heat, and was therefore forbidden by Moses.3 Homer, who seems to have collected little fragments of the ancient theology, and introduced them here and there, amidst the wild profusion of his poetical fables, represents the shades of the deceased as void of perception, until they had tasted of the blood of the victims offered 1 Pindar. Pyth. v. ver. 164. Sophocl. Trachin. ver. 922. Hor. lib. ii. epist. ii. ver. 187. 2 Ek Qewn machanai pasai broteaij, kai sofoi, kai cersi biatai, pweiflqaaoi t' efun. Pindar, Pyth. i. ver. 79. Pssages to the same purpose occur in almost every page of the Iliad and Odyssey. 3 Levit. ch. xvii. ver. 11 & 14. OF PRIAPUS 99 by Ulysses;1 by which their faculties were renewed by a reunion with the divine emanation, from which they had been separated. The soul of Tiresias is said to be entire in hell, and to possess alone the power of perception, because with him this divine emanation still remained. The shade of Hercules is described among the other ghosts, though he himself, as the poet says, was then in heaven; that is, the active principle of thought and perception returned to its native heaven, whilst the passive, or merely sensitive, remained on earth, from whence it sprung. 2 The final separation of these two did not take place till the body was consumed by fire, as appears from the ghost of Elpenor, whose body being still entire, he retained both, and knew Ulysses before he had tasted of the blood. It was from producing this separation, that the universal Bacchus, or double Apollo, the creator and destroyer, whose essence was fire, was also called Liknithj, the purifier,3 by a metaphor taken from the winnow, which purified the corn from the dust and chaff, as fire purified the soul from its terrestrial pollutions. Hence this instrument is called by Virgil the mystic winnow of Bacchus.4

The Ammonian Platonics and Gnostic Christians thought that this separation, or purification, might be effected in a degree even before death. It was for this purpose that they practised such rigid temperance, and gave themselves up to such intense study; for, by subduing and extenuating the terrestrial principle, they hoped to give liberty and vigour to the celestial, so that it might be enabled to ascend directly to the intellectual world, pure and unincumbered.5 1 Odyss. l, ver. 152. 2 Those who wish to see the difference between sensation and perception clearly and fully explained, may be satisfied by reading the Essai analytique sur l’Ame, by Mr. Bonnet. 3 Orph. Hymn. 45. 4 Mystica vannui Iacchi. Georg. i, ver. 166. 5 Plot. Ennead. vi, lib. iv, ch. 16. Mosheim, Not. y in Cudw. Syst. Intell. ch. v. sect. 20. ON THE WORSHIP 100 The clergy afterwards introduced Purgatory, instead of abstract meditation and study; which was the ancient mode of separation by fire, removed into an unknown country, where it was saleable to all such of the inhabitants of this world as had sufficient wealth and credulity. It was the celestial or ætherial principle of the human mind, which the ancient artists represented under the symbol of the butterfly, which may be considered as one of the most elegant allegories of their elegant religion. This insect, when hatched from the egg, appears in the shape of a grub, crawling upon the earth, and feeding upon the leaves of plants. In this state, it was aptly made the emblem of man, in his earthly form, in which the ætherial vigour and activity of the celestial soul, the divinæ particula mentis, was supposed to be clogged and incumbered with the material body. When the grub was changed to a chrysalis, its stillness, torpor, and insensibility seemed to present a natural image of death, or the intermediate state between the cessation of the vital functions of the body and the final releasement of the soul by the fire, in which the body was consumed. The butterfly breaking from the torpid chrysalis, and mounting in the air, was no less natural an image of the celestial soul bursting from the restraints of matter, and mixing again with its native æther. The Greek artists, always studious of elegance, changed this, as well as other animal symbols, into a human form, retaining the wings as the characteristic members, by which the meaning might be known. The human body, which they added to them, is that of a beautiful girl, sometimes in the age of infancy, and sometimes of approaching maturity. So beautiful an allegory as this would naturally be a favourite subject of art among a people whose taste had attained the utmost pitch of refinement. We accordingly find that it has been more frequently and more variously repeated than any other which the system of emanations, so favourable to art, could afford. OF PRIAPUS 101 Although all men were supposed to partake of the divine emanation in a degree, it was not supposed that they all partook of it in an equal degree. Those who showed superior abilities, and distinguished themselves by their splendid actions, were supposed to have a larger share of the divine essence, and were therefore adored as gods, and honoured with divine titles, expressive of that particular attribute of the deity with which they seemed to be most favoured. New personages were thus enrolled among the allegorical deities; and the personified attributes of the sun were confounded with a Cretan and Thessalian king, an Asiatic conqueror, and a Theban robber. Hence Pindar, who appears to have been a very orthodox heathen, says, that the race of men and gods is one, that both breathe from one mother, and only differ in power.1

This confusion of epithets and titles contributed, as much as any thing, to raise that vast and extravagant fabric of poetical mythology, which, in a manner, overwhelmed the ancient theology, which was too pure and philosophical to continue long a popular religion. The grand and exalted system of a general first cause, universally expanded, did not suit the gross conceptions of the multitude; who had no other way of conceiving the idea of an omnipotent god, but by forming an exaggerated image of their own despot, and supposing his power to consist in an unlimited gratification of his passions and appetites. Hence the universal Jupiter, the aweful and venerable, the general principle of life and motion, was transformed into the god who thundered from Mount Ida, and was lulled to sleep in the embraces of his wife; and hence the god whose spirit moved2 upon the face of the waters, 1 Nem. v, ver. 1. 2 So the translators have rendered the expression of the original, which literally means brooding as a fowl on its eggs, and alludes to the symbols of the ancient theology, which I have before observed upon. See Patrick’s Commentary. ON THE WORSHIP 102 and impregnated them with the powers of generation, became a great king above all gods, who led forth his people to smite the ungodly, and rooted out their enemies from before them. Another great means of corrupting the ancient theology, and establishing the poetical mythology, was the practice of the artists in representing the various attributes of the creator under human forms of various character and expression. These figures, being distinguished by the titles of the deity which they were meant to represent, became in time to be considered as distinct personages, and worshipped as separate subordinate deities. Hence the manyshaped god, the polumorfoj and muriomorfos of the ancient theologists, became divided into many gods and goddesses, often described by the poets as at variance with each other and wrangling about the little intrigues and passions of men. Hence too, as the symbols were multiplied, particular ones lost their dignity; and that venerable one which is the subject of this discourse, became degraded from the representative of the god of nature to a subordinate rural deity, a supposed son of the Asiatic conqueror Bacchus, standing among the nymphs by a fountain,1 and expressing the fertility of a garden, instead of the general creative power of the great active principle of the universe. His degradation did not stop even here; for we find him, in times still more prophane and corrupt, made a subject of raillery and insult, as answering no better purpose than holding up his rubicund snout to frighten the birds and thieves.2

His talents were also perverted from their natural ends, and employed in base and abortive efforts in conformity to the taste of the times; for men naturally attribute their own passions and inclinations to the objects of their adoration; and as God made man in his own image, so man returns the favour, and makes God in his. Hence we find the highest attribute of the all-pervading spirit and first1 Theocrit. Idyll. i, ver. 21. 2 Horat. lib. i, Sat. viii. Virg. Georg. iv. OF PRIAPUS 103 begotten love foully prostituted to promiscuous vice, and calling out, Hæc cunnum, caput hic, præbeat ille nates.1

He continued however still to have his temple, priestess and sacred geese,2 and offerings of the most exquisite kind were made to him: Crissabitque tibi excussis pulcherrima Iumbis Hoc anno primum experta puella virum. Sometimes, however, they were not so scrupulous in the selection of their victims, but suffered frugality to restrain their devotion: Cum sacrum fieret Deo salaci Conducta est pretio puella parvo.3 The bride was usually placed upon him immediately before marriage; not, as Lactantius says, ut ejus pudicitiam prior Deus prælibasse videatur, but that she might be rendered fruitful by her communion with the divine nature, and capable of fulfilling the duties of her station. In an ancient poem4 we find a lady of the name of Lalage presenting the pictures of the “Elephantis” to him, and gravely requesting that she might enjoy the pleasures over which he particularly presided, in all the attitudes described in that celebrated treatise.5 Whether or not she succeeded, the poet has not informed us; but we may safely conclude that she did not trust wholly to faith and prayer, but, contrary to the usual practice of modern devotees, accompanied her devotion with such good works as were likely to contribute to the end proposed by it. When a lady had served as the victim in a sacrifice to this god, she expressed her gratitude for the benefits received, by offering upon his altar certain small images representing his characteristic 1 Priap. Carm. 21. 2 Pertron. Satyric. 3 Priap. Carm. 34. 4 Priap. Carm. 3. 5 The Elephantis was written by one Philænis, and seems to have been of the same kind with the Puttana errante of Aretin. ON THE WORSHIP 104 attribute, the number of which was equal to the number of men who had acted as priests upon the occasion.1 On an antique gem, in the collection of Mr. Townley, is one of these fair victims, who appears just returned from a sacrifice of this kind, and devoutly returning her thanks by offering upon an altar some of these images, from the number of which one may observe that she has not been neglected.2 This offering of thanks had also its mystic and allegorical meaning; for fire being the energetic principle and essential force of the Creator, and the symbol above mentioned the visible image of his characteristic attribute, the uniting them was uniting the material with the essential cause, from whose joint operation all things were supposed to proceed. These sacrifices, as well as all those to the deities presiding over generation, were performed by night: hence Hippolytus, in Euripides, says, to express his love of chastity, that he likes none of the gods revered by night.3 These acts of devotion were indeed attended with such rites as must naturally shock the prejudices of a chaste and temperate mind, not liable to be warmed by that ecstatic enthusiasm which is peculiar to devout persons when their attention is absorbed in the contemplation of the beneficent powers of the Creator, and all their faculties directed to imitate him in the exertion of his great characteristic attribute. To heighten this enthusiasm, the male and female saints of antiquity used to lie promiscuously together in the temples, and honour God by a liberal display and general communication of his bounties.4 Herodotus, indeed, excepts the Greeks and Egyptians, and Dionysius of Halicarnassus, the Romans, from this general custom of other nations; but to the testimony of the former we may oppose the thousand sacred prostitutes kept at each of the temples of Corinth and 1 Priap. Carm. 34. Ed Sciappii. 2 See Plate III, Fig. 3. 3 Ver. 613. 4 Herodot. lib. ii. OF PRIAPUS 105 Eryx;1 and to that of the latter the express words of Juvenal, who, though he lived an age, later, lived when the same religion, and nearly the same manners, prevailed.2 Diodorus Siculus also tells us, that when the Roman prætors visited Eryx, they laid aside their magisterial severity, and honoured the goddess by mixing with her votaries, and indulging themselves in the pleasures over which she presided.3 It appears, too, that the act of generation was a sort of sacrament in the island of Lesbos; for the device on its medals (which in the Greek republics had always some relation to religion) is as explicit as forms can make it.4 The figures appear indeed to be mystic and allegorical, the male having evidently a mixture of the goat in his beard and features, and therefore probably represents Pan, the generative power of the universe incorporated in universal matter. The female has all that breadth and fulness which characterise the personification of the passive power, known by the titles of Rhea, Juno, Ceres, &e. When there were such seminaries for female education as those of Eryx and Corinth, we need not wonder that the ladies of antiquity should be extremely well instructed in all the practical duties of their religion. The stories told of Julia and Messalina show us that the Roman ladies were no ways deficient; and yet they were as remarkable for their gravity and decency as the Corinthians were for their skill and dexterity in adapting themselves to all the modes and attitudes which the luxuriant imaginations of experienced votaries have contrived for performing the rites of their tutelar goddess.5

The reason why these rites were always performed by night was the peculiar sanctity attributed to it by the ancients, because dreams were then supposed to descend from heaven to instruct and 1 Strab. lib. viii. 2 Sat. ix, ver. 24. 4 See Plate IX, Fig. 8, from one belonging to me. 5 Philodemi Epigri. Brunk. Analect. vol. ii, p. 85. ON THE WORSHIP 106 forewarn men. The nights, says Hesiod, belong to the blessed gods;1 and the Orphic poet calls night the source of all things (pantwn genesij) to denote that productive power, which, as I have been told, it really possesses; it being observed that plants and animals grow more by night than by day. The ancients extended this power much further, and supposed that not only the productions of the earth, but the luminaries of heaven, were nourished and sustained by the benign influence of the night. Hence that beautiful apostrophe in the “Electra” of Euripides, W nux melaina, chusewn astrwn trofe, &c. Not only the sacrifices to the generative deities, but in general all the religious rites of the Greeks, were of the festive kind. To imitate the gods, was, in their opinion, to feast and rejoice, and to cultivate the useful and elegant arts, by which we are made partakers of their felicity.2 This was the case with almost all the nations of antiquity, except the3 Egyptians and their reformed imitators the Jews,4 who being governed by a hierarchy, endeavoured to make it awful and venerable to the people by an appearance of rigour and austerity. The people, however, sometimes broke through this restraint, and indulged themselves in the more pleasing worship of their neighbours, as when they danced and feasted before the golden calf which Aaron erected,5 and devoted themselves to the worship of obscene idols, generally supposed to be of Priapus, under the reign of Abijam.6

The Christian religion, being a reformation of the Jewish, rather increased than diminished the austerity of its original. On particular occasions however it equally abated its rigour, and gave way to festivity and mirth, though always with an air of sanctity and 1 Erg. ver. 730. 2 Strabo, lib. x. 3 Herodot. lib. ii. 4 See Spences de Leg. Rit. Vet. Hebræor. 5 Exod. ch. xxxii. 6 Reg. c. xv, ver. 13. Ed. Cleric. OF PRIAPUS 107 solemnity. Such were originally the feasts of the Eucharist, which, as the word expresses, were meetings of joy and gratulation; though, as divines tell us, all of the spiritual kind: but the particular manner in which St. Augustine commands the ladies who attended them to wear clean linen,1 seems to infer, that personal as well as spiritual matters were thought worthy of attention. To those who administer the sacrament in the modern way, it may appear of little consequence whether the women received it in clean linen or not; but to the good bishop, who was to administer the holy kiss, it certainly was of some importance. The holy kiss was not only applied as a part of the ceremonial of the Eucharist, but also of prayer, at the conclusion of which they welcomed each other with this natural sign of love and benevolence.2 It was upon these occasions that they worked themselves up to those fits of rapture and enthusiasm, which made them eagerly rush upon destruction in the fury of their zeal to obtain the crown of martyrdom.3 Enthusiasm on one subject naturally produces enthusiasm on another; for the human passions, like the strings of an instrument, vibrate to the motions of each other: hence paroxysms of love and devotion have oftentimes so exactly accorded, as not to have been distinguished by the very persons whom they agitated.4 This was too often the case in these meetings of the primitive Christians. The feasts of gratulation and love, the agapai and nocturnal vigils, gave too flattering opportunities to the passions and appetites of men, to continue long, what we are told they were at first, pure exercises of devotion. The spiritual raptures and divine ecstasies encouraged on these occasions, were often ecstasies of a very different kind, concealed under the garb of devotion; whence the greatest irregularities ensued; and it became necessary for the reputation of the church, 1 Aug. Serm. clii. 2 Justin Martyr, Apolog. 3 Martini Kempii de Osculis Dissert. viii. 4 See Procèc de la Cadière. ON THE WORSHIP 108 that they should be suppressed, as they afterwards were by the decrees of several councils. Their suppression may be considered as the final subversion of that part of the ancient religion which I have here undertaken to examine; for so long as those nocturnal meetings were preserved, it certainly existed, though under other names, and in a more solemn dress. The small remain of it preserved at Isernia, of which an account has here been given, can scarcely be deemed an exception; for its meaning was unknown to those who celebrated it; and the obscurity of the place, added to the venerable names of S. Cosimo and Damiano, was all that prevented it from being suppressed long ago, as it has been lately, to the great dismay of the chaste matrons and pious monks of Isernia. Traces and memorials of it seem however to have been preserved, in many parts of Christendom, long after the actual celebration of its rites ceased. Hence the obscene figures observable upon many of our Gothic Cathedrals, and particularly upon the ancient brass doors of St. Peter's at Rome, where there are some groups which rival the devices on the Lesbian medals. It is curious, in looking back through the annals of superstition, so degrading to the pride of man, to trace the progress of the human mind in different ages, climates, and circumstances, uniformly acting upon the same principles, and to the same ends. The sketch here given of the corruptions of the religion of Greece, is an exact counterpart of the history of the corruptions of Christianity, which began in the pure theism of the eclectic Jews,1 and by the help of inspirations, emanations, and canonizations, expanded itself, by degrees, to the vast and unwieldly system which now fills the creed of what is commonly called the Catholic Church. In the ancient religion, however, the emanations assumed the appearance of moral 1 Compare the doctrines of Philo with those taught in the Gospel of St. John, and Epistles of St. Paul. OF PRIAPUS 109 virtues and physical attributes, instead of ministering spirits and guardian angels; and the canonizations or deifications were bestowed upon heroes, legislators, and monarchs, instead of priests, monks, and martyrs. There is also this further difference, that among the moderns philosophy has improved, as religion has been corrupted; whereas, among the ancients, religion and philosophy declined together. The true solar system was taught in the Orphic school, and adopted by the Pythagoreans, the next regularly-established sect. The Stoics corrupted it a little, by placing the earth in the centre of the universe, though they still allowed the sun its superior magnitude.1 At length arose the Epicureans, who confounded it entirely, maintaining that the sun was only a small globe of fire, a few inches in diameter, and the stars little transitory lights, whirled about in the atmosphere of the earth.2

How ill soever adapted the ancient system of emanations was to procure eternal happiness, it was certainly extremely well calculated to produce temporal good; for, by the endless multiplication of subordinate deities, it effectually excluded two of the greatest curses that ever afflicted the human race, dogmatical theology, and its consequent religious persecution. Far from supposing that the gods known in their own country were the only ones existing, the Greeks thought that innumerable emanations of the divine mind were diffused through every part of the universe; so that new objects of devotion presented themselves wherever they went. Every mountain, spring, and river, had its tutelary deity, besides the numbers of immortal spirits that were supposed to wander in the air, scattering dreams and visions, and superintending the affairs of men. 1 Brucker, Hist. Crit. Philos. p. ii, lib. ii, c. 9, f. i. 2 Lucret. lib. v, ver. 565, & seq. ON THE WORSHIP 110 Trij gar murioi eisin epi ctoni pouluboteirh Aqanatoi Zenous, fulakej qnhtwn anqrwtwn. 1

An adequate knowledge of these they never presumed to think attainable, but modestly contented themselves with revering and invoking them whenever they felt or wanted their assistance. When a shipwrecked mariner was cast upon an unknown coast, he immediately offered up his prayers to the gods of the country, whoever they were; and joined the inhabitants in whatever rites they thought proper to propitiate them with.2 Impious or prophane rites he never imagined could exist, concluding that all expressions of gratitude and submission must be pleasing to the gods. Atheism was, indeed, punished at Athens, as the obscene ceremonies of the Bacchanalians were at Rome; but both as civil crimes against the state; the one tending to weaken the bands of society by destroying the sanctity of oaths, and the other to subvert that decency and gravity of manners, upon which the Romans so much prided themselves. The introduction of strange gods, without permission from the magistrate, was also prohibited in both cities; but the restriction extended no farther than the walls, there being no other parts of the Roman empire, except Judea, in which any kind of impiety or extravagance might not have been maintained with impunity, provided it was maintained merely as a speculative opinion, and not employed as an engine of faction, ambition, or oppression. The Romans even carried their condescension so far as to enforce the observance of a dogmatical religion, where they found it before established; as appears from the conduct of their magistrates in Judea, relative to Christ and his apostles; and 1 Hesiod. Erga kai 'Hmer, ver. 252. murioi, &c., are always used as indefinites by the ancient Greek poets. 2 See Homer, Odyss. e, ver. 445, & seq. The Greeks seem to have adopted by degrees into their own ritual all the rites practised in the neighbouring countries. OF PRIAPUS 111 from what Josephus has related, of a Roman soldier’s being punished with death by his commander for insulting the Books of Moses. Upon what principle then did they act, when they afterwards persecuted the Christians with so much rancour and cruelty? Perhaps it may surprise persons not used to the study of ecclesiastical antiquities, to be told (what is nevertheless indisputably true) that the Christians were never persecuted on account of the speculative opinions of individuals, but either for civil crimes laid to their charge, or for withdrawing their allegiance from the state, and joining in a federative union dangerous by its constitution, and rendered still more dangerous by the intolerant principles of its members, who often tumultuously interrupted the public worship, and continually railed against the national religion (with which both the civil government and military discipline of the Romans were inseparably connected), as the certain means of eternal damnation. To break this union, was the great object of Roman policy during a long course of years; but the violent means employed only tended to cement it closer. Some of the Christians themselves indeed, who were addicted to Platonism, took a safer method to dissolve it; but they were too few in number to succeed. This was by trying to moderate the furious zeal which gave life and vigour to the confederacy, and to blend and soften the unyielding temper of religion with the mild spirit of philosophy. “We all,” said they, “agree in worshipping one supreme God, the Father and Preserver of all. While we approach him with purity of mind, sincerity of heart, and innocence of manners, forms and ceremonies of worship are indifferent; and not less worthy of his greatness, for being varied and diversified according to the various customs and opinions of men. Had it been his will that all should have worshipped him in the same mode, he would have given to all the same inclinations and conceptions: but he has wisely ordered it otherwise, that piety and virtue might increase by an honest ON THE WORSHIP 112 emulation of religions, as industry in trade, or activity in a race, from the mutual emulation of the candidates for wealth and honour.”1 This was too liberal and extensive a plan, to meet the approbation of a greedy and ambitious clergy, whose object was to establish a hierarchy for themselves, rather than to procure happiness for others. It was accordingly condemned with vehemence and success by Ambrosius, Prudentius, and other orthodox leaders of the age. It was from the ancient system of emanations, that the general hospitality which characterised the manners of the heroic ages, and which is so beautifully represented in the Odyssey of Homer, in a great measure arose. The poor, and the stranger who wandered in the street and begged at the door, were supposed to be animated by a portion of the same divine spirit which sustained the great and powerful. They are all from Jupiter, says Homer, and a small gift is acceptable. 2 This benevolent sentiment has been compared by the English commentators to that of the Jewish moralist, who says, that he who giveth to the poor lendeth to the Lord, who will repay him tenfold. 3 But it is scarcely possible for anything to be more different: Homer promises no other reward for charity than the benevolence of the action itself; but the Israelite holds out that which has always been the great motive for charity among his countrymen—the prospect of being repaid ten-fold. They are always ready to show their bounty upon such incentives, if they can be persuaded that they are founded upon good security. It was the opinion, however, of many of the most learned among the ancients, that the principles of the Jewish religion were originally the same as those of the Greek, and that their God was no other than the creator and generator Bacchus,4 who, being viewed 1 Symmach. Ep. 10 & 61. Themist. Orat. ad Imperat. 2 Odyss. z, ver. 207. 3 See Pope’s Odyssey. 4 Tacit. Histor. lib. v. OF PRIAPUS 113 through the gloomy medium of the hierarchy, appeared to them a jealous and irascible God; and so gave a more austere and unsociable form to their devotion. The golden vine preserved in the temple at Jerusalem,1 and the taurine forms of the cherubs, between which the Deity was supposed to reside, were symbols so exactly similar to their own, that they naturally concluded them meant to express the same ideas; especially as there was nothing in the avowed principles of the Jewish worship to which they could be applied. The ineffable name also, which, according to the Massorethic punctuation, is pronounced Jehovah, was anciently pronounced Jaho, Iaw, or Ieuw, 2 which was a title of Bacchus, the nocturnal sun;3 as was also Sabazius, or Sabadius,4 which is the same word as Sabbaoth, one of the scriptural titles of the true God, only adapted to the pronunciation of a more polished language. The Latin name for the Supreme God belongs also to the same root; Iu-pathr, Jupiter, signifying Father Ieu, though written after the ancient manner, without the dipthong, which was not in use for many ages after the Greek colonies settled in Latium, and introduced the Arcadian alphabet. We find St. Paul likewise acknowledging, that the Jupiter of the poet Aratus was the God whom he adored;5 and Clemens of Alexandria explains St. Peter’s prohibition of worshipping after the manner of the Greeks, not to mean a prohibition of worshipping the same God, but merely of the corrupt mode in which he was then worshipped.6

1 The vine and goblet of Bacchus are also the usual devices upon the Jewish and Samaritan coins, which were struck under the Asmonean kings. 2 Hieron. Comm. in Psalm. viii. Diodor. Sic. lib. i. Philo-Bybl. ap. Euseb. Prep. Evang. lib. 1, c. ix. 3 Macrob. Sat. lib. 1, c. xviii. 4 Ibid. 5 Act. Apost. c. xvii, ver. 28. 6 Stromat. lib. v. FINIS.

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ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE POWERS DURING THE MIDDLE AGES OF WESTERN EUROPE

RICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT, has written with great learning on the origin and history of the worship of Priapus among the ancients. This worship, which was but a part of that of the generative powers, appears to have been the most ancient of the superstitions of the human race,1 has prevailed more or less among all known peoples before the introduction of Christianity, and, singularly enough, so deeply it seems to have been implanted in human nature, that even the promulgation of the Gospel did not abolish it, for it continued to exist, accepted and often encouraged by the mediæval clergy. The occasion of Payne Knight’s work 1 There appears to be a chance of this worship being claimed for a very early period in the history of the human race. It has been recently stated in the “Moniteur,” that, in the province of Venice, in Italy, excavations in a bone-cave have brought to light, beneath ten feet of stalagmite, bones of animals, mostly post-tertiary, of the usual description found in such places, flint implements, with a needle of bone having an eye and point, and a plate of an argillaceous compound, on which was scratched a rude drawing of a phallus.—Moniteur, Jan. 1865. r 118 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE was the discovery that this worship continued to prevail in his time, in a very remarkable form, at Isernia in the kingdom of Naples, a full description of which will be found in his work. The town of Isernia was destroyed, with a great portion of its inhabitants, in the terrible earthquake which so fearfully destroyed the kingdom of Naples on the 26th of July, 1805, nineteen years after the appearance of the book alluded to. Perhaps with it perished the last trace of the worship of Priapus in this particular form; but Payne Knight was not acquainted with the fact that this superstition, in a variety of forms, prevailed throughout Southern and Western Europe largely during the Middle Ages, and that in some parts it is hardly extinct at the present day; and, as its effects were felt to a more considerable extent than people in general suppose in the most intimate and important relations of society, whatever we can do to thrown light upon its mediæval existence, though not an agreeable subject, cannot but form an important and valuable contribution to the better knowledge of mediæval history. Many interesting facts relating to this subject were brought together in a volume published in Paris by Monsieur J. A. Dulaure, under the title, Des Divinities Génératrices chez les Anciens et les Modernes, forming part of an Histoire Abrigée des differns Cultes, by the same author.1

This book, however, is still very imperfect; and it is the design of the following pages to give, with the most interesting of the facts already collected by Dulaure, other facts and a description and explanation of monuments, which tend to throw a greater and more general light on this curious subject. The mediæval worship of the generative powers, represented by the generative organs, was derived from two distinct sources. In the first place, Rome invariably carried into the provinces she had

1The second edition of this work, published in 1825, is by much the best, and is considerably enlarged from the first.

conquered her own institutions and forms of worship, and established them permanently. In exploring the antiquities of these provinces, we are astonished at the abundant monuments of the worship of Priapus in all the shapes and with all the attributes and accompaniments, with which we are already so well acquainted in Rome and Italy. Among the remains of Roman civilization in Gaul, we find statues or statuettes of Priapus, altars dedicated to him, the gardens and fields entrusted to his care, and the phallus, or male member, figured in a variety of shapes as a protecting power against evil influences of various kinds. With this idea the well-known figure was sculptured on the walls of public buildings, placed in conspicuous places in the interior of the house, worn as an ornament by women, and suspended as an amulet to the necks of children. Erotic scenes of the most extravagant description covered vessels of metal, earthenware, and glass, intended, on doubt, for festivals and usages more or less connected with the worship of the principle of fecundity. At Aix in Provence there was found, on or near the site of the ancient baths, to which it had no doubt some relation, an enormous phallus, encircled with garlands, sculptured in white marble. At Le Chatelet, in Champagne, on the site of a Roman town, a colossal phallus was also found. Similar objects in bronze, and of smaller dimensions, are so common, that explorations are seldom carried on upon a Roman site in which they are not found, and examples of such objects abound in the museums, public or private, of Roman antiquities. The phallic worship appears to have flourished especially at Nemausus, now represented by the city of NÓmes in the south of France, where the symbol of this worship appeared in sculpture on the walls of its amphitheatre and on other buildings, in forms some of which we can hardly help regarding as fanciful, or even playful. Some of the more remarkable of these are figured in our plates, XXV and XXVI. 120 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE The first of these,1 is the figure of a double phallus. It is sculptured on the lintel of one of the vomitories, or issues, of the second range of seats of the Roman amphitheatre, near the entrance-gate which looks to the south. The double and the triple phallus are very common among the small Roman bronzes, which appear to have served as amulets and for other similar purposes. In the latter, one phallus usually serves as the body, and is furnished with legs, generally those of the goat; a second occupies the usual place of this organ; and a third appears in that of a tail. On a pilaster of the amphitheatre of NÓmes we see a triple phallus of this description,2 with goat’s legs and feet. A small bell is suspended to the smaller phallus in front; and the larger organ which forms the body is furnished with wings. The picture is completed by the introduction of three birds, two of which are pecking the unveiled head of the principal phallus, while the third is holding down the tail with its foot. Several examples of these triple phalli occur in the Musée Secret of the antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii. In the examples figured in that work,the hind part of the main phallus assumes clearly the form of a dog;3 and to most of them are attached small bells, the explanation of which appears as yet to be very unsatisfactory. The wings also are common attributes of the phallus in these monuments. Plutarch is quoted as an authority for the explanation of the triple phallus as intended to signify multiplication of its productive faculty.4

On the top of another pilaster of the amphitheatre at NÓmes, to the right of the principal western entrance, was a bas-relief, also 1 Plate XXV, Fig. 1. 2 See our Plate XXV, Fig. 2. 3 The writer of the text to the Musée Secret supposes that this circumstance has some reference to the double meaning given to the Greek word k⁄wn, which was used for the generative organ. 4 See Auguste Pelet, Catalogue de Musée de Nimes. GENERATIVE POWERS 121 representing a triple phallus, with legs of dog, and winged, but with a further accompaniment.1 A female, dressed in the Roman stola, stands upon the phallus forming the tail, and holds both it and the one forming the body with a bridle.2 This bas-relief was taken down in 1829, and is now preserved in the museum of NÓmes. A still more remarkable monument of this class was found in the course of excavations made at NÓmes in 1825. It is engraved in our plate XXVI, and represents a bird, apparently intended for a vulture, with spread wings and phallic tail, sitting on four eggs, each of which is designed, no doubt, to represent the female organ. The local antiquarians give to this, as to the other similar objects, an emblematical signification; but it may perhaps be more rightly regarded as a playful conception of the imagination. A similar design, with some modifications, occurs not unfrequently among Gallo-Roman antiquities. We have engraved a figure of the triple phallus governed, or guided, by the female,3

from a small bronze plate, on which it appears in bas-relief; it is now preserved in a private collection in London, with a duplicate, which appears to have been cast from the same mould, though the plate is cut through, and they were evidently intended for suspension from the neck. Both came from the collection of M. Baudot of Dijon. The lady here bridles only the principal phallus; the legs are, as in the monument last described, those of a bird, and it is standing upon three eggs, apple-formed, and representing the organ of the other sex. 1 Plate XXV, Fig. 3. 2 A French antiquary has given an emblematical interpretation of this figure. “Perhaps,” he says, “it signifies the empire of woman extending over the three ages of man; on youth, characterized by the bell; on the age of vigour, the ardour of which she restrains; and on old age, which she sustains.” This is perhaps more ingenious than convincing. 3 See our Plate XXXVI, Fig 3. 122 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE In regard to this last-mentioned object, another very remarkable monument of what appears at NÓmes to have been by no means a secret worship, was found there during some excavations on the site of the Roman baths. It is a squared mass of stone, the four sides of which, like the one represented in our engraving, are covered with similar figures of the sexual characteristics of the female, arranged in rows.1 It has evidently served as a base, probably to a statue, or possibly to an altar. This curious monument is now preserved in the museum at NÓmes. As NÓmes was evidently a centre of this Priapic worship in the south of Gaul, so there appear to have been, perhaps lesser, centres in other parts, and we may trace it to the northern extremities of the Roman province, even to the other side of the Rhine. On the site of Roman settlements near Xanten, in lower Hesse, a large quantity of pottery and other objects have been found, of a character to leave no doubt as to the prevalence of this worship in that quarter.2 But the Roman settlement which occupied the site of the modern city of Antwerp appears to have been one of the most remarkable seats of the worship of Priapus in the north of Gaul, and it continued to exist there till a comparatively modern period. When we cross over to Britain we find this worship established no less firmly and extensively in that island. Statuettes of Priapus, phallic bronzes, pottery covered with obscene pictures, are found wherever there are any extensive remains of Roman occupation, as our antiquaries know well. The numerous phallic figures in bronze, found in England, are perfectly identical in character with those 1 See Plate XXV, Fig. 4. 2 Two Roman towns, Castra Vetera and Colonia Trajana, stood within no great distance of Xanten, and Ph. Houben, a “notarius” of this town, formed a private museum of antiquities found there, and in 1839, published engravings of them, with a text by Dr. Franz Fiedler. The erotic objects form a separate work under the title, Antike erotische Bildwerke in Houbens Antiquarium zu Xanten. GENERATIVE POWERS 123 which occur in France and Italy. In illustration of this fact, we give two examples of the triple phallus, which appears to have been, perhaps in accordance with the explanation given by Plutarch, an amulet in great favour. The first was found in London in 1842. 1 As in the examples found on the continent, a principal phallus forms the body, having the hinder parts of apparently a dog, with wings of a peculiar form, perhaps intended for those of a dragon. Several small rings are attached, no doubt for the purpose of suspending bells. Our second example2 was found at York in 1844. It displays a peculiarity of action which, in this case at least, leaves no doubt that the hinder parts were intended to be those of a dog. All antiquaries of any experience know the great number of obscene subjects which are met with among the fine red pottery which is termed Samian ware, found so abundantly in all Roman sites in our island. They represent erotic scenes in every sense of the word, promiscuous intercourse between the sexes, even vices contrary to nature, with figures of Priapus, and phallic emblems. We give as an example one of the less exceptional scenes of this description, copied from a Samian bowl found in Cannon Street, London, in 1838. 3 The lamps, chiefly of earthenware, form another class of objects on which such scenes are frequently portrayed, and to which broadly phallic forms are sometimes given. One of these phallic lamps is here represented, on the same plate with the bowl of Samian ware just described.4 It is hardly necessary to explain the subject represented by this lamp, which was found in London a few years ago. All this obscene pottery must be regarded, no doubt, as a proof of a great amount of dissoluteness in the morals of Roman society in Britain, but it is evidence of something more. It is hardly likely 1 See Plate XXVII, Fig. 3. 2 Plate XXVII, Fig. 4. 3 Plate XXVII, Fig. 1. 4 Plate XXVII, Fig. 2. 124 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE that such objects could be in common use at the family table; and we are led to suppose that they were employed on special occasions, festivals, perhaps, connected with the licentious worship of which we are speaking, and such as those described in such strong terms in the satires of Juvenal. But monuments are found in this island which bear still more direct evidence to the existence of the worship of Priapus during the Roman period. In the parish of Adel, in Yorkshire, are considerable traces of a Roman station, which appears to have been a place of some importance, and which certainly possessed temples. On the site of these were found altars, and other stones with inscriptions, which, after being long preserved in an outhouse of the rectory at Adel, are now deposited in the museum of the Philosophical Society at Leeds. One of the most curious of these, which we have here engraved for the first time,1 appears to be a votive offering to Priapus, who seems to be addressed under the name of Mentula. It is a rough, unsquared stone, which has been selected for possessing a tolerably flat and smooth surface; and the figure and letters were made with a rude implement, and by an unskilled workman, who was evidently unable to cut a continuous smooth line. The middle of the stone is occupied by the figure of a phallus, and round it we read very distinctly the words:— PRIMINVS MENTLA. The author of the inscription may have been an ignorant Latinist as well as unskilful sculptor, and perhaps mistook the ligulated letters, overlooking the limb which would make the L stand for VL, and giving A for AE. It would then read Priminus Mentulæ, Priminus to Mentula (the object personified), and it may have 1 Plate XXVIII, Fig 1. GENERATIVE POWERS 125 been a votive offering from some individual named Priminus, who was in want of an heir, or laboured under some sexual infirmity, to Priapus, whose assistance he sought. Another interpretation has been suggested, on the supposition that Mentla, or perhaps (the L being designed for IL ligulated) Mentila or Mentilla, might be the name of a female joined with her husband in this offering for their common good. The former of these interpretations seems, however, to be the most probable. This monument belongs probably to rather a late date in the Roman period. Another ex voto of the same class was found at Westerwood Fort in Scotland, one of the Roman fortresses on the wall of Antoninus. This monument1 consisted of a square slab of stone, in the middle of which was a phallus, and under it the words EX : VOTO. Above were the letters XAN, meaning, perhaps, that the offerer had laboured ten years under the grievance of which he sought redress from Priapus. We may point also to a phallic monument of another kind, which reminds us in some degree of the finer sculptures at NÓmes. At Housesteads, in Northumberland, are seen the extensive and imposing remains of one of the Roman stations on the Wall of Hadrian named Borcovicus. The walls of the entrance gateways are especially well preserved, and on that of the guard-house attached to one of them, is a slab of stone presenting the figure given in our plate XXVIII, fig. 3. It is a rude delineation of a phallus with the legs of a fowl, and reminds us of some of the monuments in France and Italy previously described. These phallic images were no doubt exposed in such situations because they were supposed to exercise a protective influence over the locality, or 1 See Plate XXVIII, Fig. 1. Horseley, who engraved this monument in his Brittania Romana, Scotland, fig. xix. has inserted a fig-leaf in place of the phallus, but with slight indications of the form of the object it was intended to conceal. We are not aware if this monument is still in existence. 126 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE over the building, and the individual who looked upon the figure believed himself safe, during that day at least, from evil influences of various descriptions. They are found, we believe, in some other Roman stations, in a similar position to that of the phallus at Housesteads. Although the worship of which we are treating prevailed so extensively among the Romans and throughout the Roman provinces, it was far from being peculiar to them, for the same superstition formed part of the religion of the Teutonic race, and was carried with that race wherever it settled. The Teutonic god, who answered to the Roman Priapus, was called, in Anglo-Saxon, Fréa, in Old Norse, Freyr, and, in Old German, Fro. Among the Swedes, the principal seat of his worship was at Upsala, and Adam of Bremen, who lived in the eleventh century, when paganism still retained its hold on the north, in describing the forms under which the gods were there represented, tells us that “the third of the gods at Upsala was Fricco [another form of the name], who bestowed on mortals peace and pleasure, and who was represented with an immense priapus,” and he adds that, at the celebration of marriages, they offered sacrifice to Fricco.1 This god, indeed, like the Priapus of the Romans, presided over generation and fertility, either of animal life or of the produce of the earth, and was invoked accordingly. Ihre, in his Glossarium Sueco-Gothicum, mentions objects of antiquity dug up in the north of Europe, which clearly prove the prevalence of phallic rites. To this deity, or to his female representative of the same name, the Teutonic Venus, Friga, the fifth day of the week was dedicated, and on that account received its name, in AngloSaxon, Frige-dæg, and in modern English, Friday. Frigedæg appears 1 “Tertius est Fricco, pacem voluptatemque larigens mortalibus, cuius etiam simulachrum fingunt ingenti priopo; si nuptiæ celebrandæ sunt, Friccioni [sacrificia offerunt.]” —Adam Bremena, De Situ Daniæ, p. 23, ed. 1629. GENERATIVE POWERS 127 to have been a name sometimes given in Anglo-Saxon to Frea himself; in a charter of the date of 959, printed in Kemble's Codex Diplomaticus, one of the marks on a boundary-line of land is FrigedægesTréow, meaning apparently Frea’s tree, which was probably a tree dedicated to that god, and the scene of Priapic rites. There is a place called Fridaythorpe in Yorkshire, and Friston, a name which occurs in several parts of England, means, probably, the stone of Frea or of Friga; and we seem justified in supposing that this and other names commencing with the syllable Fri or Fry, are so many monuments of the existence of the phallic worship among our Anglo-Saxon forefathers. Two customs cherished among our old English popular superstitions are believed to have been derived from this worship, the need-fires, and the procession of the boar’s head at the Christmas festivities. The former were fires kindled at the period of the summer solstice, and were certainly in their origin religious observances. The boar was intimately connected with the worship of Frea.1

From our want of a more intimate knowledge of this part of Teutonic paganism, we are unable to decide whether some of the superstitious practices of the middle ages were derived from the Romans or from the peoples who established themselves in the provinces after the overthrow of the western empire; but in Italy and in Gaul (the southern parts especially), where the Roman institutions and sentiments continued with more persistence to hold their influence, it was the phallic worship of the Romans which, gradually modified in its forms, was thus preserved, and, though the records of such a worship are naturally accidental and imperfect, yet we can distinctly trace its existence to a very late period. Thus, we have clear evidence that the phallus, in its simple form, was worshipped by the mediæval Christians, and that the forms of Christian prayer 1 See Grimm’s Deutsche Mythologie, p. 139, first edition. 128 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE and invocation were actually addressed to it. One name of the male organ among the Romans was fascinum; it was under this name that it was suspended round the necks of women and children, and under this name especially it was supposed to possess magical influences which not only acted upon others, but defended those who were under its protection from magical or other evil influences from without. Hence are derived the words to fascinate and fascination. The word is used by Horace, and especially in the epigrams of the Priapeia, which may be considered in some degree as the exponents of the popular creed in these matters. Thus we have in one of these epigrams the lines,— “ Placet, Priape? qui sub arboris coma Soles, sacrum revincte pampino caput, Ruber sedere cum rebente fascino.” Priap. Carm. lxxxiv. It seems probable that this had become the popular, or vulgar, word for the phallus, at least taken in this point of view, at the close of the Roman power, for the first very distinct traces of its worship which we find afterwards introduce it under this name, which subsequently took in French the form fesne. The mediæval worship of the fascinum is first spoken of in the eighth century. An ecclesiastical tract entitled Judicia Sacerdotalia de Criminibus,1 which is ascribed to the end of that century, directs that “if any one has performed incantation to the fascinum, or any incantation whatever, except any one who chaunts the Creed or the Lord’s Prayer, let him do penance on bread and water during three lents.” An act of the 1 Martène and Durand, Veterum Scriptorum Amplissima Collectio, tom. vii, p. 35. Si quis præcantaverit ad fascinum, vel qualescumque præcantiones except symbolum sunctum aut orationum domincam qui cantat et cui cantatur, tres quadrigesimas in pane et aqua púniteat. GENERATIVE POWERS 129 council of Ch‚lons, held in the ninth century, prohibits the same practice almost in the same words; and Burchardus repeats it again in the twelfth century,1 a proof of the continued existence of this worship. That it was in full force long after this is proved by the statutes of the synod of Mans, held in 1247, which enjoin similarly the punishment for him “who has sinned to the fascinum, or has performed any incantations, except the creed, the pater noster, or other canonical prayer.”2 This same provision was adopted and renewed in the statutes of the synod of Tours, held in 1396, in which, as they were published in French, the Latin fascinum is represented by the French fesne. The fascinum to which such worship was directed must have been something more than a small amulet. This brings us to the close of the fourteenth century, and shows us how long the outward worship of the generative powers, represented by their organs, continued to exist in Western Europe to such a point as to engage the attention of ecclesiastical synods. During the previous century facts occurred in our own island illustrating still more curiously the continuous existence of the worship of Priapus, and that under circumstances which remind us altogether of the details of the phallic worship under the Romans. It will be remembered that one great object of this worship was to obtain fertility either in animals or in the ground, for Priapus was the god of the horticulturist and the agriculturist. St. Augustine, declaiming against the open obscenities of the Roman festival of the Liberalia, informs us that an enormous phallus was carried in a 1 D. Burchardi Decreturum libri, lib. X. c. 49. 2 Martene et Durand, Amplissima Collectio Veterum Scriptorum, tom. vii. col. 1377. Si peccaverit ad fascinum, vel qualescumque præcantiones fecerit, excepto symbolo et oratione dominica, vel alia oratione canonica, et qui cantat, et cui cantatur, tres quadragesimas púniteat. 130 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE magnificent chariot into the middle of the public place of the town with great ceremony, where the most respectable matron advanced and placed a garland of flowers “on this obscene figure;” and this, he says: was done to appease the god, and “to obtain an abundant harvest, and remove enchantments from the land.”1 We learn from the Chronicle of Lanercost that, in the year 1268, a pestilence prevailed in the Scottish district of Lothian, which was very fatal to the cattle, to counteract which some of the clergy —bestiales, habitu claustrales, non animo—taught the peasantry to make a fire by the rubbing together of wood (this was the needfire), and to raise up the image of Priapus, as a means of saving their cattle. “When a lay member of the Cistercian order at Fenton had done this before the door of the hall, and had sprinkled the cattle with a dog’s testicles dipped in holy water, and complaint had been made of this crime of idolatry against the lord of the manor, the latter pleaded in his defence that all this was done without his knowledge and in his absence, but added, ëwhile until the present month of June other people’s cattle fell ill and died, mine were always sound, but now every day two or three of mine die, so that I have few left for the labours of the field.’”2 Fourteen years after this, in 1282, an event of the same kind occurred at Inver1 S. Augustini De Civit. Dei, lib. vii, c. 21. 2 Pro fidei divinæ integritate servanda recolat lector quo, cum hoc anno in Laodonia pestis grassaretur in pecudes armenti, quam vocant usitare lungessouth, quidam bestiales, habitu claustrales non animo, docebant idiotas patriæ ignem constrictione de lignis educere, et simulacrum Priapi statuere, et per hæc bestiis succurrere. Quod cum unus laicus Cisterciensis apus Fontone fecisset ante atrium aulæ. ac intinctic testiculis canis in aquam benedictam super animalia sparsisset; ac pro invento facinore idolatriæ dominus villæ a quodam fideli argueretur, ille pro sua innocentia obtendebat, quo iso nesciente et absente fuerant hæc omnia perpetrata, et adjecit, “et cum ad usque hunc mensum Junius aliorum animalia languerent et deficerent, mea semper sana erant, nunc vero quotidie mihi moriuntar duo vel tria, ita quod agriculmi pauca supersunt.”—Chron. de Lanercost. ed. Stevenson, p. 85. GENERATIVE POWERS 131 keithing, in the present county of Fife in Scotland. The cause of the following proceedings is not stated, but it was probably the same as that for which the cistercian of Lothian had recourse to the worship of Priapus. In the Easter week of the year just stated (March 29-April 5), a parish priest of Inverkeithing, named John, performed the rites of Priapus, by collecting the young girls of the town, and making them dance round the figure of this god; without any regard for the sex of these worshippers, he carried a wooden image of the male members of generation before them in the dance, and himself dancing with them, he accompanied their songs with movements in accordance, and urged them to licentious actions by his no less licentious language. The more modest part of those who were present felt scandalized by these proceedings, and expostulated with the priest, but he treated their words with contempt, and only gave utterance to coarser obscenities. He was cited before his bishop, defended himself upon the common usage of the country, and was allowed to retain his benefice; but he must have been rather a worldly priest, after the style of the middle ages, for a year afterwards he was killed in a vulgar brawl.1 The practice of placing the figure of a phallus on the walls of buildings, derived, as we have seen, from the Romans, prevailed also in the middle ages, and the buildings especially placed under the influence of this symbol were churches. It was believed to be 1 Insuper hoc tempore apud Inverchethin, in hebdomeda paschæ (March 29— April 5)m sacerdos parochialis, nomine Johannes, Priapi prophana parans, congregatis ex villa puellulis, cogebat eas, choreis factis, Libero patri circuire; ut ille feminas in exercitu habuit, sic iste, procacitatis causa, membra humana virtuti feminariæ servientia super afferem artificiata ante talem choream præferebat, et ipse luxuriam incitabat. Hi qui honesto matrimonio honorem deferebant, iam insolenti officio, licet reverentur personam, scandalizabantur propter gradus eminentiam. Si quis ei seorsum ex amore correptionis sermonem inferres, fiabat deterior, et convictis eos impetebat.—Chron. de Lancercost, ed. Stevenson, p. 109. 132 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE a protection against enchantments of all kinds, of which the people of those times lived in constant terror, and this protection extended over the place and over those who frequented it, provided they cast a confiding look upon the image. Such images were seen, usually upon the portals, on the cathedral church of Toulouse, on more than one church in Bourdeaux, and on various other churches in France, but, at the time of the revolution, they were often destroyed as marks only of the depravity of the clergy. Dulaure tells us that an artist, whom he knew, but whose name he has not given, had made drawings of a number of these figures which he had met with in such situations.1 A Christian saint exercised some of the qualities thus deputed to Priapus; the image of St. Nicholas was usually painted in a conspicuous position in the church, for it was believed that whoever had looked upon it was protected against enchantments, and especially against that great object of popular terror, the evil eye, during the rest of the day. It is a singular fact that in Ireland it was the female organ which was shown in this position of protector upon the churches, and the elaborate though rude manner in which these figures were sculptured, show that they were considered as objects of great importance. They represented a female exposing herself to view in the most unequivocal manner, and are carved on a block which appears to have served as the key-stone to the arch of the door-way of the church, where they were presented to the gaze of all who entered. They appear to have been found principally in the very old churches, and have been mostly taken down, so that they are only found among the ruins. People have given them the name of 1 He adds in a note: — “Les dessins de cet artiste, destinés ‡ l’Académie des Belles Lettres, sont passés, on ne fait comment, entre les mains d’un particulier qui en prive le public.”—J A. Dulaure, Histoire de différens Cultes, tom. ii. p. 251, 8vo, 1825. Shelah-na-Gig, which, we are told, means in Irish Julian the Giddy, and is simply a term for an immodest woman; but it is well understood that they were intended as protecting charms against the fascination of the evil eye. We have given copies of all the examples yet known in our plates XXIX and XXX. The first of these 1 was found in an old church at Rochestown, in the county of Tipperary, where it had long been known among the people of the neighbourhood by the name given above. It was placed in the arch over the doorway, but has since been taken away. Our second example of the Shelah-na-Gig2 was taken from an old church lately pulled down in the county Cavan, and is now preserved in the museum of the Society of Antiquaries of Dublin. The third3 was found at Ballinahend Castle, also in the county of Tipperary; and the fourth4 is preserved in the museum at Dublin, but we are not informed from whence it was obtained. The next,5 which is also now preserved in the Dublin Museum, was taken from the old church on the White Island, in Lough Erne, county Fermanagh. This church is supposed by the Irish antiquaries to be a structure of very great antiquity, for some of them would carry its date as far back as the seventh century, but this is probably an exaggeration. The one which follows6 was furnished by an old church pulled down by order of the ecclesiastical commissioners, and it was presented to the museum at Dublin, by the late Dean Dawson. Our last example7 was formerly in the possession of Sir Benjamin Chapman, Bart., of Killoa Castle, Westmeath, and is now in a private collection in London. It was found in 1859 at Chloran, in a field on Sir Benjamin's estate known by the name of the “Old Town,” from whence stones had 1 Plate XXIX, Fig. 1. 2 Plate XXIX, Fig. 2. 3 Plate XXIX, Fig. 3. 4 Plate XXIX, Fig. 4. 5 Plate XXX, Fig. 1. 6 Plate XXX, Fig. 2. 7 Plate XXX, Fig. 3. 134 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE been removed at previous periods, though there are now very small remains of building. This stone was found at a depth of about five feet from the surface, which shows that the building, a church no doubt, must have fallen into ruin a long time ago. Contiguous to this field, and at a distance of about two hundred yards from the spot where the Shelah-na-Gig was found, there is an abandoned churchyard, separated from the Old Town field only by a loose stone wall.

The belief in the salutary power of this image appears to be a superstition of great antiquity, and to exist still among all peoples who have not reached a certain degree of civilization. The universality of this superstition leads us to think that Herodotus may have erred in the explanation he has given of certain rather remarkable monuments of a remote antiquity. He tells us that Sesostris, king of Egypt, raised columns in some of the countries he conquered, on which he caused to be figured the female organ of generation as a mark of contempt for those who had submitted easily. 28 May not these columns have been intended, if we knew the truth, as protections for the people of the district in which they stood, and placed in the position where they could most conveniently been seen? This superstitious sentiment may also offer the true explanation of an incident which is said to have been represented in the mysteries of Eleusis. Ceres, wandering over the earth in search of her daughter Proserpine, and overcome with grief for her loss, arrived at the hut of an Athenian peasant woman named Baubo, who received her hospitably, and offered her to drink the refreshing mixture which the Greeks call Cyceon (κυκεων). The goddess rejected the offered kindness, and refused

1 Herodotus, Euterpe, cap. 102. Diodorus Siculus adds to the account given by Herodotus, that Sesostris also erected columns bearing the male generative organ as a compliment to the peoples who had defended themselves bravely.

all consolation. Baubo, in her distress, bethought her of another expedient to allay the grief of her guest. She relieved her sexual organs of that outward sign which is the evidence of puberty, and then presented them to the view of Ceres, who, at the sight, laughed, forgot her sorrows, and drank the cyceon. 29 The prevailing belief in the beneficial influence of this sight, rather than a mere pleasantry, seems to afford the best explanation of this story; and the same superstition is no doubt embodied in an old mediæval story which we give in a note as it is told in that celebrated book of the sixteenth century Le Moyen de Parvenir.

This superstition which, as shown by the Shelah-na-Gigs of the Irish churches, prevailed largely in the middle ages, explains another class of antiquities which are not uncommon. These are small figures of nude females exposing themselves in exactly the same manner as in the sculptures on the churches in Ireland just alluded to. Such figures are found not only among Roman, Greek, and Egyptian antiquities, but among every people who had any knowledge of art, from the aborigines of America to the far more civilized

This story is told by the two Christian Fathers, Arnobius, Adversus Gentes, lib. v. c. 5, and Clemens Alexandrinus Protrepticus, p. 17, ed. Oxon. 1715. The latter writer merely states that Baubo exposed her parts to the view of the goddess, without the incident of preparation mentioned by Arnobius. 2 Hermès. Attendez. Etant en fiançailles, il vouloit prendre le cas de sa fiancée: elle ne le vouloit pas; il faisoit le malade, & elle lui demandoit: qu'y a-t-il, mon ami? Hélas! ma mie, je suis si malade, que je n'en puis plus; je mourrai, si je ne vois ton cas. Vraiment voire, dit-elle. Hélas! oui, si je l'avois vu, je guérirois. Elle ne le lui voulut point montrer. A la fin, ils furent mariés. Il avint, trois ou quatre mois après, qu'il fut fort malade; & il envoya sa femme au médecin, pour porter de son eau. En allant, elle s'avisa de ce qu'il lui avoit dit en fiançailles. Elle retourna v”tement, & se vint mettre sur le lit; puis levant cote & chemise, lui présenta son cela en belle vue, & lui disoit: Jean, regarde le con, & te guéris..--Le Moyen de Parvenir, c. xxviii.

natives of Japan; and it would be easy to give examples from almost every country we know, but we confine ourselves to our more special part of the subject. In the last century, a number of small statuettes in metal, in a rude but very peculiar style of art, were found in the duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, in a part of Germany formerly occupied by the Vandals, and by the tribe of the Obotrites, considered as a division of the Vendes. They appeared to be intended to represent some of the deities worshipped by the people who made them; and some of them bore inscriptions, one of which was in Runic characters. From this circumstance we should presume that they belonged to a period not much, if any, older than the fall of the Western Empire. Some time afterwards, a few statuettes in metal were found in the island of Sardinia, so exactly similar to those just mentioned, that D'Hancarville, who published an account of them with engravings, considered himself justified in ascribing them to the Vandals, who occupied that island, as well as the tract of Germany alluded to.

1 One of these images, which D’Hancarville considers to be the Venus of the Vandal mythology, represents a female in a reclining position, with the wings and claws of a bird, holding to view a pomegranate, open, which, as D’Hancarville remarks, was considered as a sign representing the female sexual organ. In fact, it was a form and idea more unequivocally represented in the Roman figures which we have already described,2 but which continued through the middle ages, and was preserved in a popular name for that organ, abricot, or expressed more energetically, abricot fendu, used by Rabelais, and we believe still preserved in France. This curious image is represented, after D’Hancarville, in three different points of view in our 1 D’Hancarville, Antiquités Etrusques, Grecques, et Romaines, Paris, 1785, tom. v. p. 61. 2 See our Plates XXV, Fig. 4, XXVI, and Plate XXXVI, Fig. 3. GENERATIVE POWERS 137 plate.1 Several figures of a similar description, but representing the subject in a more matter-of-fact shape, were brought from Egypt by a Frenchman who held an official situation in that country, and three of them are now in a private collection in London. We have engraved one of these small bronzes,2 which, as will be seen, presents in exact counterpart of the Shelah-na-Gig. These Egyptian images belonged no doubt to the Roman period. Another similar figure,3 made of lead, and apparently mediæval, was found at Avignon, and is preserved in the same private collection just alluded to; and a third,4 was dug up, about ten years ago, at Kingston-on-Thames. The form of these statuettes seems to show that they were intended as portable images, for the same purpose as the Shelahs, which people might have ready at hand to look upon for protection whenever they were under fear of the influence of the evil eye, or of any other sort of enchantment. We have not as yet any clear evidence of the existence of the Shelah-na-Gig in churches out of Ireland. We have been informed that an example has been found in one of the little churches on the coast of Devon; and there are curious sculptures, which appear to be of the same character, among the architectural ornamentation of the very early church of San Fedele at Como in Italy. Three of these are engraved in our plate XXXII. On the top of the right hand jamb of the door5 is a naked male figure, and in the same position on the other side a female,6 which are described to us as representing Adam and Eve, and our informant, to whom we owe the drawings describes that at the apex7 merely as “the figure of a woman holding her legs apart.” We understand that the surface of the stone in these sculptures is so much 1 Plate XXXI, Figs. 1, 2, 3. 2 Plate XXXI, Fig. 4. 3 Plate XXVI, Fig. 5. 4 Plate XXXVI, Fig. 4. 5 Plate XXXII, Fig. 1. 6 Plate XXXII, Fig. 2. 7 Plate XXXII, Fig. 3. 138 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE worn that it is quite uncertain whether the sexual parts were ever distinctly marked, but from the postures and positions of the hands, and the situation in which these figures are placed, they seem to resemble closely, except in their superior style of art, the Shelahna-Gigs of Ireland. There can be little doubt that the superstition to which these objects belonged gave rise to much of the indecent sculpture which is so often found upon mediæval ecclesiastical buildings. The late Baron von Hammer-Pürgstall published a very learned paper upon monuments of various kinds which he considered as illustrating the secret history of the order of the Templars, from which we learn that there was in his time a series of most extraordinary obscene sculptures in the church of Schoengraber in Austria, of which he intended to give engravings, but the drawings had not arrived in time for his book;1 but he has engraved the capital of a column in the church of Egra, a town of Bohemia, of which we give a copy,2 in which the two sexes are displaying to view the members, which were believed to be so efficatious against the power of fascination. The figure of the female organ, as well as the male, appears to have been employed during the middle ages of Western Europe far more generally than we might suppose, placed upon buildings as a talisman against evil influences, and especially against witchcraft and the evil eye, and it was used for this purpose in many other parts of the world. It was the universal practice among the Arabs of Northern Africa to stick up over the door of the house or tent, or put up nailed on a board in some other way, the generative organ of a cow, mare, or female camel, as a talisman to avert the influence of the evil eye. It is evident that the figure of this member was far 1 See Von Hammer-Pürgstall, Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 26. 2 Von Hammer-Pürgstall, Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 35, and Plate iv, Fig. 31.—See our Plate XXXI, Fig. 6. GENERATIVE POWERS 139 more liable to degradation in form than that of the male, because it was much less easy, in the hands of rude draughtsmen, to delineate in an intelligible form, and hence it soon assumed shapes which though intended to represent it, we might rather call symbolical of it, though no symbolism was intended. Thus the figure of the female organ easily assumed the rude form of a horseshoe, and as the original meaning was forgotten, would be readily taken for that object, and a real horseshoe nailed up for the same purpose. In this way originated, apparently, from the popular worship of the generative powers, the vulgar practice of nailing a horseshoe upon buildings to protect them and all they contain against the power of witchcraft, a practice which continues to exist among the peasantry in some parts of England at the present day. Other marks are found, sometimes among the architectural ornaments, such as certain triangles and triple loops, which are perhaps typical forms of the same object. We have been informed that there is an old church in Ireland where the male organ is drawn on one side of the door, and the Shelah-na-Gig on the other, and that, though perhaps comparatively modern, their import as protective charms are well understood. We can easily imagine men, under the influence of these superstitions, when they were obliged to halt for a moment by the side of a building, drawing upon it such a figure, with the design that it should be a protection to themselves, and thus probably we derive from superstitious feelings the common propensity to draw phallic figures on the sides of vacant walls and in other places. Antiquity had made Priapus a god, the middle ages raised him into a saint, and that under several names. In the south of France, Provence, Languedoc, and the Lyonnais, he was worshipped under the title of St. Foutin.

This name is said to be a mere corruption

1 Our material for the account of these phallic saints is taken most from the work of M. Dulaure.

of Fotinus or Photinus, the first bishop of Lyons, to whom, perhaps through giving a vulgar interpretation to the name, people had transferred the distinguishing attribute of Priapus. This was a large phallus of wood, which was an object of reverence to the women, especially to those who were barren, who scraped the wooden member, and, having steeped the scrapings in water, they drank the latter as a remedy against their barrenness, or administered it to their husbands in the belief that it would make them vigorous. The worship of this saint, as it was practiced in various places in France at the commencement of the seventeenth century, is described in that singular book, the Confession de Sancy.

We there learn that at Varailles in Provence, waxen images of the members of both sexes were offered to St. Foutin, and suspended to the ceiling of his chapel, and the writer remarks that, as the ceiling was covered with them, when the wind blew them about, it produced an effect which was calculated to disturb very much the devotions of the worshippers.2 We hardly need remark that this is just the same kind of worship which existed at Isernia, in the kingdom of Naples, where it was presented in the same shape. At Embrun, in the department of the Upper Alps, the phallus of St. Foutin was worshipped in a different form; the women poured a libation of wine upon the head of the phallus, which was collected in a vessel, in which it was left till it became sour; it was then called the “sainte vinaigre,” and the women employed it for a purpose which is only obscurely hinted at. When the Protestants took Embrun in 1585, they found this phallus laid up carefully 1 La Confession de Sancy forms the fifth voluime of the Journal d’Henri III, by Pierre de L’Estoile, ed. Duchat. See pp. 383, 391, of that volume. 2 “Témoin Saint Foutin de Varailles en Provence, auquel sont dédiées les parties honteuses de l’un et de l’autre sexe, formées en cire: le plancher de la chapelle en est fort garni, et, quand le vent les fait entrebattre, cela débaicje im [ei ;es dévotions ‡ l’honneur de ce Saint.” GENERATIVE POWERS 141 among the relics in the principal church, its head red with the wine which had been poured upon it. A much larger phallus of wood, covered with leather, was an object of worship in the church of St. Eutropius at Orange, but it was seized by the Protestants and burnt publicly in 1562. St. Foutin was similarly an object of worship at Porigny, at Cives in the diocese of Viviers, at Vendre in the Bourbonnais, at Auxerre, at Puy-en-Velay, in the convent of Girouet near Sampigny, and in other places. At a distance of about four leagues from Clermont in Auvergne, there is (or was) an isolated rock, which presents the form of an immense phallus, and which is popularly called St. Foutin. Similar phallic saints were worshipped under the names of St. Guerlichon, or Greluchon, at Bourg-Dieu in the diocese of Bourges, of St. Gilles in the Cotentin in Britany, of St. Rene in Anjou, of St. Regnaud in Burgundy, of St. Arnaud, and above all of St. Guignolé near Brest and at the village of La Chatelette in Berri. Many of these were still in existence and their worship in full practice in the last century; in some of them, the wooden phallus is described as being much worn down by the continual process of scraping, while in others the loss sustained by scraping was always restored by a miracle. This miracle, however, was a very clumsy one, for the phallus consisted of a long staff of wood passed through a hole in the middle of the body, and as the phallic end in front became shortened, a blow of a mallet from behind thrust it forward, so that it was restored to its original length. It appears that it was also the practice to worship these saints in another manner, which also was derived from the forms of the worship of Priapus among the ancients, with whom it was the custom, in the nuptial ceremonies, for the bride to offer up her virginity to Priapus, and this was done by placing her sexual parts against the end of the phallus, and sometimes introducing the latter, and even completing the sacrifice. This ceremony is represented in 142 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE a bas-relief in marble, an engraving of which is given in the Musée Secret of the antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii; its object was to conciliate the favour of the god, and to avert sterility. It is described by the early Christian writers, such as Lactantius and Arnobius, as a very common practice among the Romans; and it still prevails to a great extent over most part of the East, from India to Japan and the islands of the Pacific. In a public square in Batavia, there is a cannon taken from the natives and placed there as a trophy by the Dutch government. It presents the peculiarity that the touch-hole is made on a phallic hand, the thumb placed in the position which is called the “fig,” and which we shall have to describe a little further on. At night, the fertile Malay women go to this cannon and sit upon the thumb, and rub their parts with it to produce fruitfulness. When leaving, they make an offering of a bouquet of flowers to the “fig.” It is always the same idea of reverence to the fertilizing powers of nature, of which the garland or the bunch of flowers was an appropriate emblem. There are traces of the existence of this practice in the middle ages. In the case of some of the priapic saints mentioned above, women sought a remedy for barrenness by kissing the end of the phallus; sometimes they appear to have placed a part of their body naked against the image of the saint, or to have sat upon it. This latter trait was perhaps too bold an adoption of the indecencies of pagan worship to last long, or to be practiced openly; but it appears to have been more innocently represented by lying upon the body of the saint, or sitting upon a stone, understood to represent him without the presence of the energetic member. In a corner in the church of the village of St. Fiacre, near Mouceaux in France, there is a stone called the chair of St. Fiacre, which confers fecundity upon women who sit upon it; but it is necessary that nothing should intervene between their bare skin and the stone. In the church of Orcival in Auvergne, there was a pillar which GENERATIVE POWERS 143 barren women kissed for the same purpose, and which had perhaps replaced some less equivocal object.1 Traditions, at least, of similar practices were connected with St. Foutin, for it appears to have been the custom for girls on the point of marriage to offer their last maiden robe to that saint. This superstition prevailed to such an extent that it became proverbial. A story is told of a young bride who, on the wedding night, sought to deceive her husband on the question of her previous chastity, although, as the writer expresses it, “she had long ago deposited the robe of her virginity on the altar of St. Foutin.”2 From this form of superstition is said to have arisen a vice which is understood to prevail especially in nunneries—the use by women of artificial phalli, which appears in its origin to have been a religious ceremony. It certainly existed at a very remote period, for it is distinctly alluded to in the Scriptures,3 where it is evidently considered as a part of pagan worship. It is found at an early period of the middle ages, described in the Ecclesiastical Penitentials, with its appropriate amount of penitence. One of these penitential canons of the eighth century speaks of “a woman who, by herself or with the help of another woman, commits uncleanness,” for which she was to do penance for three years, one on bread and water; and if this uncleanness was committed with a nun, the penance was increased to seven years, two only on bread and water.4 1 Dulaure relates that one day a villager's wife entering this church, and finding only a burly canon in it, asked him earnestly, “Where is the pillar which makes women fruitful?” “I,” said the canon, “I am the pillar.” 2 “Sponsa quædam rustica quæ iam in finu Divi Futini virginitatis suæ prætextam eposuerat.” Facetiæ Facetiarum, p. 277. Theses inaugurales de Virginibus. 3 Ezekiel, XVI, 17. Within a few years there has been a considerable manufacture of thiese objects in Paris, and it was understood that they were chiefly exported to Italy, where they were sold in the nunneries. 4 Mulier qualicumque molimine aut per seipsan aut cum altera fornicans tres 144 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE Another Penitential of an early date provides for the case in which both the women who participated in this act should be nuns;1 and Burchardus, bishop of Worms, one of the most celebrated authorities on such subjects, describes the instrument and use of it in greater detail.2 The practice had evidently lost its religious character and degenerated into a mere indulgence of the passions. Antwerp has been described as the Lampsacus of Belgium, and Priapus was, down to a comparatively modern period, its patron saint, under the name of Ters, a word the deriviation of which appears to be unknown, but which was identical in meaning with the Greek phallus and the Latin fascinum. John Goropius Becan, who published a learned treatise on the antiquities of Antwerp in the middle of the sixteenth century, informs us how much this Ters was reverenced in his time by the Antwerpians, especially by the women, who invoked it on every occasion when they were taken by surprise or sudden fear.3 He states that “if they let fall by accident a vessel of earthenware, or stumbled, or if any unexpected accident caused them vexation, even the most respectable women called aloud

annos púnitat, unum ex his pane et aqua. Cum sanctimoniali per machinam fornicans, annos septem púnitat, duos ex his in pane et aqua. Collectio Antiqu. Canon. Púnit. ap. Martene et Durand, Thesaurus Anecdotorum, iv, 52. 1 Mulier qualicumque molimine aut seipsam polluens, aut cum altera fornicans quatuor annos. Sanctimonialis fúmina cum sanctimoniali mer machinamentum polluta, septem annos. MS. Púnitent. quoted in Ducange, sub. .v Machinamentum. 2 Fecisti quod quædam mulieres facere solent, ut faceres quoddam molimen aut machinamentum in modum virilis membri, ad mensuram tuæ voluntaris, et illud loco verendorum tuorum, aut alterius, cum aliquibus ligaturis colligares, et fornicationem faceres cum aliis mulierculis, vel aliæ eodem instrumento sive alio secum? Si fecisti, quinque annos per legitimas ferias púniteas.——Fecisti quod quædam mulieres facere solent, ut iam supradicto molimine, vel alio aliquo machinamento, tu ipsa in te solam faceres fornicationem? Si fecisti, unum annum per legitimas ferias púnitaeas. Burchardi Púnit. lib. XIX, p. 277, 8vo ed. The holy bishop appears to have been very intimately acquainted with the whole proceeding. 3 Johannis Goropii Becani Origines Antwerpianae, 1569, lib. i, pp. 26, 101.

for the protection of Priapus under this obscene name.” Goropius Becanus adds that there was in his time, over the door of a house adjoining the prison, a statue which had been furnished with a large phallus, then worn away or broken off. Among other writers who mention this statue is Abraham Golnitz, who published an account of his travels in France and Belgium, in 1631, 1 and he informs us that it was a carving in stone, about a foot high, with its arms raised up, and its legs spread out, and that the phallus had been entirely worn out by the women, who had been in the habit of scraping it and making a potion of the dust which they drank as a preservative against barrenness. Golnitz further tells us that a figure of Priapus was placed over the entrance gate to the enclosure of the temple of St. Walburgis at Antwerp, which some antiquaries imagined to have been built on the site of a temple dedicated to that deity. It appears from these writers that, at certain times, the women of Antwerp decorated the phalli of these figures with garlands. The use of priapic figures as amulets, to be carried on the person as preservatives against the evil eye and other noxious influences, which we have spoken of as so common among the Romans, was certainly continued through the middle ages, and, as we shall see presently, has not entirely disappeared. It was natural enough to believe that if this figure were salutary when merely looked upon, it must be much more so when carried constantly on the person. The Romans gave the name fascinum, in old French fesne, to the phallic amulet, as well as to the same figure under other circumstances. It is an object of which we could hardly expect to find direct mention in mediæval writers, but we meet with examples of the object itself, usually made of lead (a proof of its popular character), and ranging in date perhaps from the fourteenth to the earlier part of the 1 Golnitzii Itinerarium Belgico-Gallicum, p. 52. 146 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE sixteenth century. As we owe our knowledge of these phallic amulets almost entirely to one collector, M. Forgeais of Paris, who obtained them chiefly from one source—the river Seine, our present acquaintance with them may be considered as very limited, and we have every reason for believing that they had been in use during the earlier period. We can only illustrate this part of the subject by describing a few of these mediæval phallic amulets, which are preserved in some private collections; and we will first call attention to a series of objects, the real purpose of which appears to be very obscure. They are small leaden tokens or medalets, bearing on the obverse the figure of the male or female organ, and on the reverse a cross, a curious intimation of the adoption of the worship of the generative powers among Christians. These leaden tokens, found in the river Seine, were first collected and made known to antiquaries by M. Forgeais, who published examples of them in his work on the leaden figures found in that river.1 We give five examples of the medals of each sex, obverse and reverse.2 It will be seen that the phalli on these tokens are nearly all furnished with wings; one has a bird’s legs and claws; and on another there is an evident intention to represent a bell suspended to the neck. These characteristics show either a very distinct tradition of the forms of the Roman phallic ornament, or an imitation of examples of Roman phalli then existing--possibly the latter. But this is not necessary, for the bells borne by two examples, given in our next plate, and also taken from the collection of M. Forgeais are mediæval, and not Roman bells, though these also represent well-known ancient forms of treating the subject. In the first,3 a female is riding upon the phallus, which has men’s legs, 1 Notice sur des Plombs Historiés trouvés dans la Seine, et recueillis par Arthur Forgeais. 8vo. Paris, 1858. 2 See our Plate XXXVIII. 3 Plate XXXIV., Fig. 1. GENERATIVE POWERS 147 and is held by a bridle. This figure was evidently intended to be attached to the dress as a brooch, for the pin which fixed it still remains on the back. Two other examples1 present figures of winged phalli, one with a bell, and the other with the ring remaining from which the bell has no doubt been broken. One of these has the dog’s legs. A fourth example2 represents an enormous phallus attached to the middle of a small man. In another,3 which was evidently intended for suspension, probably at the neck, the organs of the two sexes are joined together. Three other leaden figures,4 apparently amulets, which were in the Forgeais collection, offer a very peculiar variety of form, representing a figure, which we might suppose to be a male by its attributes, though it has a very feminine look, and wears the robe and hood of a woman. Its peculiarity consists in having a phallus before and behind. We have on the same plate5 a still more remarkable example of the combination of the cross with the emblems of the worship of which we are treating, in an object found at San Agati di Goti, near Naples, which was formerly in the Beresford Fletcher collection, and is now in that of Ambrose Ruschenberger, Esq., of Boston, U. S. It is a crux ansata, formed by four phalli, with a circle of female organs round the centre; and appears by the loop to have been intended for suspension. As this cross is of gold, it had no doubt been made for some personage of rank, possibly an ecclesiastic; and we can hardly help suspecting that it had some connection with priapic ceremonies or festivities. The last figure on the same plate is also taken from the collection of M. Forgeais.6 From the monkish cowl and the cord round the body, we may perhaps take it for a satire upon the friars, some of whom wore no breeches, and they were all charged with being great corruptors of female morals. 1 Plate XXXIV, Figs. 2 and 3. 2 Plate XXXIV, Fig 4. 3 Plate XXXIV, Fig. 5. 4 Plate XXXV, Figs. 1, 2, and 3. 5 Plate XXXV, Fig. 4. 6 Plate XXXV, Fig. 5. 148 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE In Italy we can trace the continuous use of these phallic amulets down to the present time much more distinctly than in our more Western countries. There they are still in very common use, and we give two examples1 of bronze amulets of this description, which are commonly sold in Naples at the present day for a carlo, equivalent to fourpence in English money, each. One of them, it will be seen, is encircled by a serpent. So important are these amulets considered for the personal safety of those who possess them, that there is hardly a peasant who is without one, which he usually carries in his waistcoat pocket. There was another, and less openly apparent, form of the phallus, which has lasted as an amulet during almost innumerable ages. The ancients had two forms of what antiquaries have named the phallic hand, one in which the middle finger was extended at length, and the thumb and other fingers doubled up, while in the other the whole hand was closed, but the thumb was passed between the first and middle fingers. The first of these forms appears to have been the more ancient, and is understood to have been intended to represent, by the extended middle finger, the membrum virile, and by the bent fingers on each side the testicles. Hence the middle finger of the hand was called by the Romans, digitus impudicus, or infamis. It was called by the Greeks katap⁄gwn, which had somewhat the same meaning as the Latin word, except that it had reference especially to degrading practices, which were then less concealed than in modern times. To show the hand in this form was expressed in Greek by the word skimalÖzein, and was considered as a most contemptuous insult, because it was understood to intimate that the person to whom it was addressed was addicted to unnatural vice. This was the meaning also given to it 1 Plate XXXVI, Figs. 1 and 2. GENERATIVE POWERS 149 by the Romans, as we learn from the first lines of an epigram of Martial:— “Rideto, multum, qui te, Sextille, cinædum Dixerit, et digitum porrigito medium.” Martial, Ep. ii, 28. Nevertheless, this gesture of the hand was looked upon at an early period as an amulet against magical influences, and, formed of different materials, it was carried on the person in the same manner as the phallus. It is not an uncommon object among Roman antiquities, and was adopted by the Gnostics as one of their symbolical images. The second of these forms of the phallic hand, the intention of which is easily seen (the thumb forming the phallus), was also well known among the Romans, and is found made of various material, such as bronze, coral, lapis lazuli, and chrystal, of a size which was evidently intended to be suspended to the neck or to some other part of the person. In the Musée Secret at Naples, there are examples of such amulets, in the shape of two arms joined at the elbow, one terminating in the head of a phallus, the other having a hand arranged in the form just described, which seem to have been intended for pendents to ladies’ ears. This gesture of the hand appears to have been called at a later period of Latin, though we have no knowledge of the date at which this use of the word began, ficus, a fig. Ficus being a word in the feminine gender, appears to have fallen in the popular language into the more common form of feminine nouns, fica, out of which arose the Italian fica (now replaced by fico), the Spanish higa, and the French figue. Florio, who gives the word fica, a fig, says that it was also used in the sense of “a woman's quaint,” so that it may perhaps be classed with one or two other fruits, such as the pomegranate and the apricot, to which a similar erotic meaning was given.1 The form, under 1 See before, page 136. Among the Romans, the fig was considered as a fruit consecrated to Priapus, on account, it is said, of its productiveness. 150 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE this name, was preserved through the middle ages, especially in the South of Europe, where Roman traditions were strongest, both as an amulet and as an insulting gesture. The Italian called this gesture fare la fica, to make or do the fig to any one; the Spaniard, dar una higa, to give a fig; and the Frenchman, like the Italian, faire la figue. We can trace this phrase back to the thirteenth century at least. In the judicial proceedings against the Templars in Paris in 1309, one of the brethren of the Order was asked, jokingly, in his examination, because he was rather loose and flippant in his replies, “if he bad been ordered by the said receptor (the officer of the Templars who admitted the new candidate) to make with his fingers the fig at the crucifix.”1 Here the word used is the correct Latin ficus; and it is the same in the plural, in a document of the year 1449, in which an individual is said to have made figs with both hands at another.2 This phrase appears to have been introduced into the English language in the time of Elizabeth and to have been taken from the Spaniards, with whom our relations were then intimate. This we assume from the circumstance that the English phrase was “to give the fig” (dar la higa),3 and that the writers of the Elizabethan age call it "the fig of Spain.” Thus, “ancient” Pistol, in Shakespeare:— ——”A figo for thy friendship! — The fig of Spain.” Henry V, iii. 6. 1 Item, cum prædictus testis videretur esse valde facilis et procax ad loquendum, et in pluribus dictis suis non esset stabilis, sed quasi varians et vacillan, fuit interrogatus si fuit ei præceptum a dicto receptore quod cum digits manus suæ faceret ficum Crucifixo, quando ipsum videret, et si fuit ei dictum quod hoc esset de punctis ordinis, respondit quod numquam audivit loqui de hoc. Michelt, Procès de Templiers, Tome i, p. 255, 4to. Paris, 1841. 2 Ambabus manibus fecit ficus dicto Serme. MS. quoted in Ducange, sub v. Ficha. 3 “Behold next I see contempt, giving me the fico.” Wit’s Misery, quoted in Nares, v. Fico. GENERATIVE POWERS 151 The phrase has been preserved in all these countries down to modern times and we still say in English, “a fig for anybody,” or “for anything,” not meaning that we estimate them at no more than the value of a fig, but that we throw at them that contempt which was intimated by showing them the phallic hand, and which the Greeks, as stated above, called skimalÖzein. The form of showing contempt which was called the fig is still well known among the lower classes of society in England, and it is preserved in most of the countries of Western Europe. In Baretti's Spanish Dictionary, which belongs to the commencement of the present century, we find the word higa interpreted as “A manner of scoffing at people, which consists in showing the thumb between the first and second finger, closing the first, and pointing at the person to whom we want to give this hateful mark of contempt.” Baretti also gives as still in use the original meaning of the word, “Higa, a little hand made of jet, which they hang about children to keep them from evil eyes; a superstitious custom.” The use of this amulet is still common in Italy, and especially in Naples and Sicily; it has an advantage over the mere form of the phallus, that when the artificial fica is not present, an individual, who finds or believes himself in sudden danger, can make the amulet with his own fingers. So profound is the belief of its efficacy in Italy, that it is commonly believed and reported there that, at the battle of Solferino, the king of Italy held his hand in his pocket with this arrangement of the fingers as a protection against the shots of the enemy. There were personages connected with the worship of Priapus who appear to have been common to the Romans under and before the empire, and to the foreign races who settled upon its ruins. The Teutonic race believed in a spiritual being who inhabited the woods, and who was called in old German scrat. His character was more general than that of a mere habitant of the woods, for it answered to the English hobgoblin, or to the Irish 152 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE cluricaune. The scrat was the spirit of the woods, under which character he was sometimes called a waltscrat, and of the fields, and also of the household, the domestic spirit, the ghost haunting the house. His image was probably looked upon as an amulet, a protection to the house, as an old German vocabulary of the year 1482, explains schrætlin, little scrats, by the Latin word penates. The lascivious character of this spirit, if it wanted more direct evidence, is implied by the fact that scritta, in Anglo-Saxon, and scrat, in old English, meant a hermaphrodite. Accordingly, the mediæval vocabularies explain scrat by Latin equivalents, which all indicate companions or emanations of Priapus, and in fact, Priapus himself. Isidore gives the name of Pilosi, or hairy men, and tells us that they were called in Greek, Panitæ (apparently an error for Ephialtæ), and in Latin, Incubi and Inibi, the latter word derived from the verb inire, and applied to them on account of their intercourse with animals.1 They were in fact the fauns and satyrs of antiquity, haunted like them the wild woods, and were characterized by the same petulance towards the other sex.2 Woe to the modesty of maiden or woman who ventured incautiously into their haunts. As Incubi, they visited the house by night, and violated the persons of the females, and some of the most celebrated heroes of early mediæval romances, such as Merlin, were thus the children of incubi. They were known at an early period in Gaul by the name of Dusii,3 from which, as the church taught that all these 1 Pilosi, qui Græce Panitæ, Latine Incubi, appelantur, sive Inivi, ab ineundo passim cum animalibus; unde et Incubi dicuntur ab incumbendo, hoc est, stuprando. Isidori Etymol., lib. viii, c. 9. 2 Sæpe etiam improbi existent, etiam mulieribus, et earum peragunt concubitum. Isidor. ib. 3 Et quosdam dæmones quos Dusios Galli nuncupant, hanc assidue immunditiam et tentare et officere plures talesque asseverant, ut hoc negare impudentiæ videatur. Augustin. De Civitate Dei, lib. xv, c. 23. Cf. Isidor., loc. cit.

mythic personages were devils, we derive our modern word Deuce, used in such phrases as “the Deuce take you!” The term ficarii was also applied to them in mediæval Latin, either from the meaning of the word ficus, mentioned before,1 or because they were fond of figs. Most of these Latin synonyms are given in the Anglo-Saxon vocabulary of Alfric, and are interpreted as meaning “evil men, spirits of the woods, evil beings.”2 One of the old commentators on the Scriptures describes these spirits of the woods as “monsters in the semblance of men, whose form begins with the human shape and ends in the extremity of a beast.”3 They were, in fact, half man, half goat, and were identical with a class of hobgoblins, who at a rather later period were well known in England by the popular name of Robin Goodfellows, whose Priapic character is sufficiently proved by the pictures of them attached to some of our early printed ballads, of which we give facsimiles. The first 4 is a figure of Robin Goodfellow, which forms the illustration to a very popular ballad of the earlier part of the seventeenth century, entitled “The mad merry Pranks of Robin Goodfellow;” he is represented party-coloured, and with the priapic attribute. The next5 is a second illustration of the same ballad, in which Robin Goodfellow is represented as Priapus, goat-shaped, with his attributes still more strongly pronounced, and surrounded by a circle of his worshippers dancing about him. He appears here in the character 1 See before, p. 149. 2 Satiri, vel fauni, vel sehni (for obscúni), vel fauni sicarii, unsæle men, wudewasan, unsæle wihta. Wright’s Volume of Vocubalires, p. 17. See, for further illustrations of this subject, Grimm’s Deutsche Mythologie, p. 272 et seq. 3 Piloso, monstra sunt ad similitudinem hominum, quorum forma ab humana effigies incipit, sed bestiali extremitate terminatur, vel sunt dæmones incubones, vel satyri, vel homines silvestres. Mamotrectus in Isaiam, xiii, 21. 4 See Plate XXXVI, Fig 5. From a copy of the black-letter ballad in the libray of the British Museum, 5 Plate XXXVII, Fig. 2. From the same ballad. 154 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE assumed by the demon at the sabbath of the witches, of which we shall have to speak a little further on. The Romish Church created great confusion in all these popular superstitions by considering the mythic persons with whom they were connected as so many devils; and one of these Priapic demons is figured in a cut which seems to have been a favorite one, and is often repeated as an illustration of the broadside ballads of the age of James I. and Charles I. 1 It is Priapus reduced to his lowest step of degradation. Besides the invocations addressed principally to Priapus, or to the generative powers, the ancients had established great festivals in their honour, which were remarkable for their licentious gaiety, and in which the image of the phallus was carried openly and in triumph. These festivities were especially celebrated among the rural population, and they were held chiefly during the summer months. The preparatory labours of the agriculturist were over, and people had leisure to welcome with joyfulness the activity of nature’s reproductive powers, which was in due time to bring their fruits. Among the most celebrated of these festivals were the Liberalia, which were held on the 17th of March. A monstrous phallus was carried in procession in a car, and its worshippers indulged loudly and openly in obscene songs, conversation, and attitudes, and when it halted, the most respectable of the matrons ceremoniously crowned the head of the phallus with a garland. The Bacchanalia, representing the Dionysia of the Greeks, were celebrated in the latter part of October, when the harvest was completed, and were attended with much the same ceremonies as the Liberalia. The phallus was similarly carried in procession, and crowned, and, as in the Liberalia, the festivities being carried on into the night, as the celebrators became heated with wine, they degenerated into the extreme of licentiousness, in which people 1 Plate XXXVII, Fig. 1. From two black-letter ballads in the British Museum, one entitled “A warning for all Lewd Livers,” the other, “A strange and true News from Westmoreland.” GENERATIVE POWERS 155 indulged without a blush in the most infamous vices. The festival of Venus was celebrated towards the beginning of April, and in it the phallus was again carried in its car, and led in procession by the Roman ladies to the temple of Venus outside the Colline gate, and there presented by them to the sexual parts of the goddess. This part of the scene is represented in a well-known intaglio, which has been published in several works on antiquities. At the close of the month last mentioned came the Floralia, which, if possible, excelled all the others in licence. Ausonius, in whose time (the latter half of the fourth century) the Floralia were still in full force, speaks of their lasciviousness:— Nee non lascivi Floralia læta theatri, Quæ spectare volunt qui voluisse negant. Ausonii Eclog. de Feriis Romanis. The loose women of the town and its neighbourhood, called together by the sounding of horns, mixed with the multitude in perfect nakedness, and excited their passions with obscene motions and language, until the festival ended in a scene of mad revelry, in which all restraint was laid aside. Juvenal describes a Roman dame of very depraved manners as— . . . . Dignissima prorsus Florali matrona tuba. Juvenalis Sat. vi, I. 249. These scenes of unbounded licence and depravity, deeply rooted in people’s minds by long established customs, caused so little public scandal, that it is related of Cato the younger that, when he was present at the celebration of the Floralia, instead of showing any disapproval of them, he retired, that his well-known gravity might be no restraint upon them, because the multitude manifested some hesitation in stripping the women naked in the presence of a man so celebrated for his modesty.1 The festivals more specially dedi1 Catonem, inquam, illum, quo sedente populus negatur permisisse sib postulare Florales jocos nudandarum meretricum. Senecæ Epist. xcvii. 156 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE cated to Priapus, the Priapeia, were attended with similar ceremonies and similarly licentious orgies. Their forms and characteristics are better known, because they are so frequently represented to us as the subjects of works of Roman art. The Romans had other festivals of similar character, but of less importance, some of which were of a more private character, and some were celebrated in strict privacy. Such were the rites of the Bona Dea, established among the Roman matrons in the time of the republic, the disorders of which are described in such glowing language by the satirist Juvenal, in his enumeration of the vices of the Roman women:— Nota Bonæ secreta Deæ, quum tibia lumbos Incitat, et cornu pariter vinoque feruntur Attonitæ, crinemque rotant, ululantque Priapi Mænades. O quantus tunc illis mentibus ardor Concubitus! quæ vox saltante libidine! quantus Ille meri veteris per crura madentia torrens! Lenonum ancillas posita Saufeia corona Provocat, et tollit pendentis præmia coxæ. Ipsa Medullinæ fluctum crissantis adorat. Palmam inter dominas virtus natalibus æquat. Nil ibi per ludum simulabitur: omnia fient Ad verum, quibus incendi jam frigidus ævo Laomedontiades et Nestoris hernia possit. Tunc prurigo moræ impatiens, tunc femina simplex, Et toto pariter repetitus clamor ab antro: Jam fas est: admitte viros! Juvenalis Sat. vi, l. 314. Among the Teutonic, as well as among most other peoples, similar festivals appear to have been celebrated during the summer months; and, as they arose out of the same feelings, they no doubt presented the same general forms. The principal popular festivals of the summer during the middle ages occurred in the months of April, May, and June, and comprised Easter, May-day, and the feast of the summer solstice. All these appear to have been GENERATIVE POWERS 157 originally accompanied with the same phallic worship which formed the principal characteristic of the great Roman festivals; and, in fact, these are exactly those popular institutions and traits of popular manners which were most likely to outlive, also without any material change, the overthrow of the Roman empire by the barbarians. Although, at the time when we become intimately acquainted with these festivals, most of the prominent marks of their phallic character had been abandoned and forgotten, yet we meet during the interval with scattered indications which leave no room to doubt of their former existence. It will be interesting to examine into some of these points, and to show the influence they exerted on mediæval society. The first of the three great festivals just mentioned was purely Anglo-Saxon and Teutonic; but it appears in the first place to have been identified with the Roman Liberalia, and it was further transformed by the Catholic church into one of the great Christian religious feasts. In the primitive Teutonic mythology there was a female deity named, in Old German, Ostara, and, in Anglo-Saxon, Eastre, or Eostre, but all we know of her is the simple statement of our father of history, Bede, that her festival was celebrated by the ancient Saxons in the month of April, from which circumstance, that month was named by the Anglo-Saxons Easter-monath, or Eoster-monath, and that the name of the goddess had been subsequently given to the Paschal time, with which it was identical.1

The name of this goddess was given to the same month by the old Germans and by the Franks, so that she must have been one of the most highly honoured of the Teutonic deities, and her festival must 1 Antiqui autem Anglroum populi . . . Eosturmonath, qui nunc paschalis mensis interpretatur, quondam a dea illorum quæ Eostre vocabatur, et cui in illo fasta celebrabant, nomen habuit; a cujus nomine nunc paschale tempus cognominant, consueto antique observationis vocabulo gaudi novæ solennitatis vocantes. Bedæ De Temporum Rationes, cap. xv. 158 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE have been a very important one, and deeply implanted in the popular feelings, or the church would not have sought to identify it with one of the greatest Christian festivals of the year. It is understood that the Romans considered this month as dedicated to Venus, no doubt because it was that in which the productive power of nature began to be visibly developed. When the Pagan festival was adopted by the church, it became a moveable feast instead of being fixed to the month of April. Among other objects offered to the goddess at this time were cakes, made no doubt of fine flour, but of their form we are ignorant. The Christians, when they seized upon the Easter festival, gave them the form of a bun, which, indeed, was at that time the ordinary form of bread; and to protect themselves, and those who eat them, from any enchantment, or other evil influences which might arise from their former heathen character, they marked them with the Christian symbol— the cross. Hence were derived the cakes we still eat at Easter under the name of hot-cross-buns, and the superstitious feelings attached to them, for multitudes of people still believe that if they failed to eat a hot-cross-bun on Good-Friday they would be unlucky all the rest of the year. But there is some reason for believing that, at least in some parts, the Easter-cakes had originally a different form—that of the phallus. Such at least appears to have been the case in France, where the custom still exists. In Saintonge, in the neighbourhood of La Rochelle, small cakes, baked in the form of a phallus, are made as offerings at Easter, and are carried and presented from house to house; and we have been informed that similar practices exist in some other places. When Dulaure wrote, the festival of Palm Sunday, in the town of Saintes, was called the f’te des pinnes, pinne being a popular and vulgar word for the membrum virile. At this f’te the women and children carried in the procession, at the end of their palm branches, a phallus made of bread, which they called undisguisedly a pinne, and which, having GENERATIVE POWERS 159 been blest by the priest, the women carefully preserved during the following year as an amulet. A similar practice existed at St. Jeand'Angély, where small cakes, made in the form of the phallus, and named fateux, were carried in the procession of the F’te-Dieu, or Corpus Christi.1 Shortly before the time when Dulaure wrote, this practice was suppressed by a new sous-préfet, M. Maillard. The custom of making cakes in the form of the sexual members, male and female, dates from a remote antiquity and was common among the Romans. Martial made a phallus of bread (Priapus siligineus) the subject of an epigram of two lines:— Si vis esse satur, nostrum potes esse priapum Ipse licet rodas inguina, purus eris. Martial, lib. xiv, ep. 69. The same writer speaks of the image of a female organ made of the same material in another of his epigrams, to explain which, it is only necessary to state that these images were composed of the finest wheaten flour (siligo):— Pauper amicitiæ cum sis, Lupe, non es amicæ; Et queritur de te mentula sola nihil. Illa siligineis pinguescit adultera cunnis; Convivam pascit nigra farina tuum. Martial, lib. ix, ep. 3. This custom appears to have been preserved from the Romans through the middle ages, and may be traced distinctly as far back as the fourteenth or fifteenth century. We are informed that in some of the earlier inedited French books on cookery, receipts are given for making cakes in these obscene forms, which are named without any concealment; and the writer on this subject, who wrote in the sixteenth century, Johannes Bruerinus Campegius, describing the different forms in which cakes were then made, enumerates those 1 Delaure, Histoire Abrèges des Diffèrens Cultes, vol. ii, p. 285. Second Edition. It was printed in 1825. 160 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE of the secret members of both sexes, a proof, he says of “the degeneracy of manners, when Christians themselves can delight in obscenities and immodest things even among their articles of food.” He adds that some of these were commonly spoken of by a gross name, des cons sucrés.1 When Dulaure wrote, that is just forty years ago, cakes of these forms continued to be made in various parts of France, and he informs us that those representing the male organ were made in the Lower Limousin, and especially at Brives, while similar images of the female organ were made at Clermont in Auvergne, and in other places. They were popularly called miches.2 There is another custom attached to Easter, which has probably some relation to the worship of which we are treating, and which seems once to have prevailed throughout England, though we believe it is now confined to Shropshire and Cheshire. In the former county it is called heaving, in the latter lifting. On Easter Monday the men go about with chairs, seize the women they meet, and, placing them in the chairs, raise them up, turn them round two or three times, and then claim the right of kissing them. On Easter Tuesday, the same thing is done by the women to the men. This, of course, is only practiced now among the lower classes, except sometimes as a frolic among intimate friends. The chair appears to have been a comparatively modern addition, since such articles have become more abundant. In the last century four or five of the one sex took the victim of the other sex by the arms and legs, and lifted her or him in that manner, and the operation was 1 Alias fingunt oblonga figura, alias sphærica, et orbiculari, alias triangula, quadrangulaque; quædam ventricosæ sunt; quædam pudenda muliebria, aliæ virilia (si diis placet) repræsentant; adeo degeneravere bonos mores, ut etiam Christianis obscúna et pudenda in cibis placeant. Sunt etenim quo cunnos saccharatos epp-litent. Jo. Bruerini Campegii De Re Cibaria, lib. vi, c. 7.—Cf. Le Grande d’Aussi, Histoire de la Vie Privée des Français, vol. II, p. 309. 2 Dulaure, vol. ii, pp. 255-257. GENERATIVE POWERS 161 attended, at all events on the part of the men, with much indecency. The women usually expect a small contribution of money from the men they have lifted. More anciently, in the time of Durandus, that is, in the thirteenth century, a still more singular custom prevailed on these two days. He tells us that in many countries, on the Easter Monday, it was the rule for the wives to beat their husbands, and that on the Tuesday the husbands beat their wives.1 Brand, in his Popular Antiquities, tells us that in the city of Durham, in his time, it was the custom for the men, on the one day, to take off the women's shoes, which the latter were obliged to purchase back, and that on the other day the women did the same to the men. In mediæval poetry and romance, the month of May was celebrated above all others as that consecrated to Love, which seemed to pervade all nature, and to invite mankind to partake in the general enjoyment. Hence, among nearly all peoples, its approach was celebrated with festivities, in which, under various forms, worship was paid to Nature's reproductiveness. The Romans welcomed the approach of May with their Floralia, a festival we have already described as remarkable for licentiousness; and there cannot be a doubt that our Teutonic forefathers had also their festival of the season long before they became acquainted with the Romans. Yet much of the mediæval celebration of May-day, especially in the South, appears to have been derived from the Floralia of the latter people. As in the Floralia, the arrival of the festival was announced by the sounding of horns during the preceding night, and no sooner had midnight arrived than the youth of both sexes proceeded in couples to the woods to gather branches and make garlands, with which they were to return just at sunrise for the purpose of decora1 Is plerisque etiam regionibus mulieres secunda die post Pascham verberant maritos, die vero tertia uxores suas. Durandus, Rationale, lib. vi, c. 86—89, By secunda die post Pascham, he no doubt means Easter Monday. 162 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE ting the doors of their houses. In England the grand feature of the day was the Maypole. This maypole was the stem of a tall young tree cut down for the occasion, painted of various colours, and carried in joyous procession, with minstrels playing before, until it reached the village green, or the open space in the middle of a town, where it was usually set up. It was there decked with garlands and flowers, the lads and girls danced round it, and people indulged in all sorts of riotous enjoyments. All this is well described by a Puritan writer of the reign of Queen Elizabeth—Philip Stubbes—who says that, “against Maie,” “every parishe, towne, and village assemble themselves together, bothe men, women, and children, olde and yong, even all indifferently; and either goyng all together, or devidyng themselves into companies, they goe some to the woodes and groves, some to the hilles and mountaines, some to one place, some to another, where they spend all the night in pleasant pastymes, and in the mornyng thei returne, bryngyng with them birch bowes and braunches of trees to deck their assemblies withall, . . . . But their cheerest jewell thei bryng from thence is their Maie pole, whiche thei bryng home with greate veneration, as thus: Thei have twentie or fourtie yoke of oxen, every oxe havyng a sweete nosegaie of flowers placed on the tippe of his hornes, and these oxen drawe home this Maie poole (this stinckyng idoll rather), whiche is covered all over with flowers and hearbes, bound rounde about with strynges, from the top to the bottome, and sometyme painted with variable colours, with twoo or three hundred men, women, and children following it, with greate devotion. And thus beyng reared up, with handekerchiefes and flagges streamyng on the toppe, thei strawe the grounde aboute, binde greene boughes about it, sett up sommer haules, bowers, and arbours hard by it. And then fall thei to banquet and feast, to leape and daunce aboute it, as the heathen people did, at the dedication of GENERATIVE POWERS 163 their idolles, whereof this is a perfect patterne, or rather the thyng itself.”1

The Puritans were deeply impressed with the belief that the maypole was a substantial relic of Paganism; and they were no doubt right. There appears to be reason sufficient for supposing that, at a period which cannot now be ascertained, the maypole had taken the place of the phallus. The ceremonies attending the elevation of the two objects were identical. The same joyous procession in the Roman festivals, described above, conducted the phallus into the midst of the town or village, where in the same manner it was decked with garlands, and the worship partook of the same character. We may add, too, that both festivals were attended with the same licentiousness. “I have heard it credibly reported,” says the Puritan Stubbes, “and that viva voce by menne of greate gravitie and reputation, that of fourtie, three score, or a hundred maides goyng to the woode over night, there have scarcely the third part returned home again undefiled.” The day generally concluded with bonfires. These represented the need-fire, which was intimately connected with the ancient priapic rites. Fire itself was an object of worship, as the most powerful of the elements; but it was supposed to lose its purity and sacred character in being propagated from one material to another, and the worshippers sought on these solemn occasions to produce it in its primitive and purest form. This was done by the rapid friction of two pieces of wood, attended with superstitious ceremonies; the pure element of fire was believed to exist in the wood, and to be thus forced out of it, and hence it was called need-fire (in Old German not-feur, and in Anglo-Saxon, neod-fyr), meaning literally a forced fire, or fire extracted by force. Before the process of thus 1 Stubbes, Anatomie of Abuses, fol. 94, 8vo. London, 1583. 164 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE extracting the fire from the wood, it was necessary that all the fires previously existing in the village should be extinguished, and they were afterwards revived from the bonfire which had been lit from the need-fire. The whole system of bonfires originated from this superstition; they had been adopted generally on occasions of popular rejoicing, and the bonfires commemorating the celebrated gunpowder plot are only particular applications of the general practice to an accidental case. The superstition of the need-fire belongs to a very remote antiquity in the Teutonic race, and existed equally in ancient Greece. It is proscribed in the early capitularies of the Frankish emperors of the Carlovingian dynasty.1 The universality of this superstition is proved by the circumstance that it still exists in the Highlands of Scotland, especially in Caithness, where it is adopted as a protection for the cattle when attacked by disease which the Highlanders attribute to witchcraft.2 It was from the remotest ages the custom to cause cattle, and even children, to pass across the need-fire, as a protection to them for the rest of their lives. The need-fire was kindled at Easter, on May-day, and especially at the summer solstice, on the eve of the feast of St. John the Baptist, or of Midsummer-day.3 The eve of St. John was in popular superstition one of the most important days of the mediæval year. The need-fire—or the St. John’s fire, as it was called—was kindled just at midnight, the moment when the solstice was supposed to take place, and the young people of both sexes danced round it, and, above all things, 1 Sive illos sacrilegos ignes quos nedfrates (I. nedfyres) vocant, sive omnes quæcumque sunt paganorum observationes diligenter prohibeant. Karlomanni Capitulare Primum, A.D. 742, in Baluzii Capitularia Regum Francorum, col. 148. Repeated in the Captiularum Caroli Magni et Ludovici Pii, compiled A.D. 827. See Baluz., ib., col. 825. 2 Logan, The Scottish Gael, vol. ii, p. 64, and Jamieson’s Scottish Dictionary, Suppl. sub. v. Neidfyre. 3 See Grimm, Deutsche Mythologie, pp. 341—349. GENERATIVE POWERS 165 leaped over it, or rushed through it, which was looked upon not only as a purification, but as a protection against evil influences. It was the night when ghosts and other beings of the spiritual world were abroad, and when witches had most power. It was believed, even, that during this night people's souls left the body in sleep, and wandered over the world, separated from it. It was a night of the great meetings of the witches, and it was that in which they mixed their most deadly poisons, and performed their most effective charms. It was a night especially favourable to divination in every form, and in which maidens sought to know their future sweethearts and husbands. It was during this night, also, that plants possessed their greatest powers either for good or for evil, and that they were dug up with all due ceremonies and cautions. The more hidden virtues of plants, indeed, depended much on the time at which, and the ceremonies with which, they were gathered, and these latter were extremely superstitious, no doubt derived from the remote ages of paganism. As usual, the clergy applied a halfremedy to the evil; they forebade any rites or incantations in the gathering of medicinal herbs except by repeating the creed and the Lord’s prayer.1 As already stated, the night of St. John’s, or Midsummer-eve, was that when ghosts and spirits of all descriptions were abroad, and when witches assembled, and their potions, for good or for evil, and charms were made with most effect. It was the night for popular divination, especially among the young maidens, who sought to know who were destined to be their husbands, what would be their characters, and what their future conduct. The medicinal virtues of many plants gathered on St. John’s eve, and with the due ceremonies, were far more powerful than if gathered 1 Non licet in collectione herbarum medicinalium aliquas observationes vel incantationes attendere, nisi tantum cum symbol divino et oratione dominica, ut Deus et Dominus noster honoretur. Burchardi Decretorum Libri, x, 20. 166 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE at other times. The most secret practices of the old popular superstitions are now mostly forgotten, but when, here and there, we meet with a few traces of them, they are of a character which leads us to believe that they belonged to a great extent to that same worship of the generative powers which prevailed so generally among all peoples. We remember that, we believe in one of the earlier editions of Mother Bunch, maidens who wished to know if their lovers were constant or not were directed to go out exactly at midnight on St. John’s eve, to strip themselves entirely naked, and in that condition to proceed to a plant or shrub, the name of which was given, and round it they were to form a circle and dance, repeating at the same time certain words which they had been taught by their instructress. Having completed this ceremony, they were to gather leaves of the plant round which they had danced, which they were to carry home and place under their pillows, and what they wished to know would be revealed to them in their dreams. We have seen in some of the mediæval treatises on the virtue of plants directions for gathering some plants of especial importance, in which it was required that this should be performed by young girls in a similar state of complete nakedness. Plants and flowers were, indeed, intimately connected with this worship. We have seen how constantly they are introduced in the form of garlands, and they were always among the offerings to Priapus. It was the universal practice, in dancing round the fire on St. John’s eve, to conclude by throwing various kinds of flowers and plants into it, which were considered to be propitiatory, to avert certain evils to which people were liable during the following year. Among the plants they offered are mentioned mother-wort, vervain, and violets. It is perhaps to this connection of plants with the old priapic worship that we owe the popular tendency to give them names which were more or less obscene, most of which are now lost, or are so far modified as to present no longer the same idea. Thus GENERATIVE POWERS 167 the well-known arum of our hedge-bottoms received the names, no doubt suggested by its form, of cuckoo’s pintle, or priest’s pintle, or dog's pintle; and, in French, those of vit de chien and vit de prestre; in English it is now abbreviated into cuckoo-pint, or, sometimes, cuckoo-point. The whole family of the orchides was distinguished by a corresponding word, accompanied with various qualifications. We have in William Coles’s Adam in Eden, (fol. 1659) the different names, for different varieties, of doggs-stones, fool-stones, fox-stones; in the older Herbal of Gerard (fol. 1597) triple ballockes, sweet ballockes, sweet cods, goat’s-stones, hare’s-stones, &c.; in French, couillon de bouc (the goat was especially connected with the priapic mysteries) and couille, or couillon de chien. In French, too, as we learn from Cotgrave and the herbals, “a kind of sallet hearbe” was called couille ‡ l’év’que; the greater stone-crop was named couille au loup; and the spindle-tree was known by the name of couillon de pr’tre. There are several plants which possess somewhat the appearance of a rough bush of hair. One of these, a species of adiantum, was known even in Roman times by the name of Capillus Veneris, and in more modern times it has been called maiden-hair, and our lady's hair. Another plant, the asplenium trichomanes, was and is also called popularly maiden-hair, or maiden's-hair; and we believe that the same name has been given to one or two other plants. There is reason for believing that the hair implied in these names was that of the pubes.1 We might collect a number of other old popular names of plants of a similar character with these just enumerated. In an old calendar of the Romish church, which is often quoted 1 Fumitory was another of these plants, and in a vocabulary of plants in a MS. of the middle of the thirteenth century, we find its names in Latin, French and English given as follows, “Fumus terræ, fumeterre, cuntehoare.” See Wright’s Volume of Vocabularies, p. 17. 168 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE in Brand’s Popular Antiquities, the seeking of plants for their hidden virtues and magical properties is especially noted as part of the practices on the eve of St. John (herbæ diversi generis quærantur); and one plant is especially specified in terms too mysterious to be easily understood.1 Fern-seed, also, was a great object of search on this night; for, if found and properly gathered, it was believed to possess powerful magical proper-ties, and especially that of rendering invisible the individual who carried it upon his person. But the most remarkable of all the plants connected with these ancient priapic superstitions was the mandrake (mandragora), a plant which has been looked upon with a sort of feeling of reverential fear at all periods, and almost in all parts. Its Teutonic name, alrun, or, in its more modern form, alraun, speaks at once of the belief in its magical qualities among that race. People looked upon it as possessing some degree of animal life, and it was generally believed that, when it was drawn out of the earth, it uttered a cry, and that this cry carried certain death or madness to the person who extracted it. To escape this danger, the remedy was to tie a string round it, which was to be attached to a dog, and the latter, being driven away, dragged up the root in its attempt to run off, and experienced the fatal consequences. The root was the important part of the plant; it has somewhat the form of a forked radish, and was believed to represent exactly the human form below the waist, with, in the male and female plants, the human organs of generation distinctly developed. The mandrake, when it could be obtained, was used in the middle ages in the place of the phallic amulet, and was carefully carried on the person, or preserved in the house. It conferred fertility in more senses than one, for it was believed that as long as you kept it locked up with your money, the latter would become 1 Carduus puellarum legitur et ab eisdem centum cruces. GENERATIVE POWERS 169 doubled in quantity every year; and it had at the same time all the protective qualities of the phallus. The Templars were accused of worshipping the mandrake, or mandragora, which became an object of great celebrity in France during the reigns of the weak monarchs Charles VI. and Charles VII. In 1429 one Friar Richard, of the order of the Cordeliers, preached a fierce sermon against the use of this amulet, the temporary effect of which was so great, that a certain number of his congregation delivered up their “mandragoires” to the preacher to be burnt.1

It appears that the people who dealt in these amulets helped nature to a rather considerable extent by the means of art, and that there was a regular process of cooking them up. They were necessarily aware that the roots themselves, in their natural state, presented, to say the least, very imperfectly the form which men’s imagination had given to them, so they obtained the finest roots they could, which, when fresh from the ground, were plump and soft, and readily took any impression which might be given to them. They then stuck grains of millet or barley into the parts where they wished to have hair, and again put it into a hole in the earth, until these grains had germinated and formed their roots. This process, it was said, was perfected within twenty days. They then took up the mandrake again, trimmed the fibrous roots of millet or barley which served for hair, retouched the parts themselves so as to give them their form more perfectly and more permanently, and then sold it.2

Besides these great and general priapic festivals, there were doubtless others of less importance, or more local in their character, which degenerated in aftertimes into mere local ceremonies and 1 Journal d’un Bourgeois de Paris, under the year 1429. 2 See the authorities for these statements in Dulaure, pp. 254—256. 170 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE festivities. This would be the case especially in cities and corporate towns, where the guilds came in, to perpetuate the institution, and to give it gradually a modified form. Most towns in England had once festivals of this character, and at least three representatives of them are still kept up, the procession of Lady Godiva at Coventry, the Shrewsbury show, and the guild festival at Preston in Lancashire. In the first of these, the lady who is supposed to ride naked in the procession probably represents some feature in the ancient priapic celebration; and the story of the manner in which the Lady Godiva averted the anger of her husband from the townsmen, which is certainly a mere fable, was no doubt invented to explain a feature of the celebration, the real meaning of which had in course of time been forgotten. The pageantry of the Shrewsbury show appears to be similarly the unmeaning reflection of forms belonging to older and forgotten practices and principles. On the Continent there were many such local festivals, such as the feast of fools, the feast of asses (the ass was an animal sacred to Priapus), and others, all which were adapted by the mediæval church exactly as the clergy had taken advantage of the profit to be derived from the phallic worship in other forms. The leaden tokens, or medalets, which we have already described,1 seem to point evidently to the existence in the middle ages of secret societies or clubs connected with this obscene worship, besides the public festivals. Of these it can hardly be expected that any description would survive, but, if not the fact, the belief in it is clearly established by the eagerness with which such obscene rites were laid to the charge of most of the mediæval secret societies, whether lay clubs or religious sects, and we know that secret societies abounded in the middle ages. However willing the Romish clergy were to make profit out of the popular phallic wor1 See before, p. 146, and Plate XXXIII. GENERATIVE POWERS 171 ship, they were equally ready to use the belief in it as a means of exciting prejudice against any sects which the church chose to regard as religious or political heretics. It is very evident that, in the earlier ages of the church, the conversion of the Pagans to Christianity was in a vast number of cases less than a half-conversion, and that the preachers of the gospel were satisfied by people assuming the name of Christians, without inquiring too closely into the sincerity of their change, or into their practice. We can trace in the expressions of disapproval in the writings of some of the more zealous of the ecclesiastical writers, and in the canons of the earlier councils, the alarm created by the prevalence among Christians of the old popular festivals of paganism; and the revival of those particular canons and deprecatory remarks in the ecclesiastical councils and writings of a later period of the middle ages, shows that the existence of the evil had continued unabated. There was an African council in the year 381, from which Burchardus, who compiled his condensation of ecclesiastical decrees for the use of his own time, professes to derive his provisions against “the festivals which were held with Pagan ceremonies.” We are there told that, even on the most sacred of the Christian commemoration days, these rites derived from the Pagans were introduced, and that dancing was practiced in the open street of so infamous a character, and accompanied with such lascivious language and gestures, that the modesty of respectable females was shocked to a degree that prevented their attendance at the service in the churches on those days.1 It is added that 1 Illud etiam petendum, ut quoniam contra præcepta divina conviva multis in locis exercentur, quæ ab errore gentili attracta sunt, ita ut nunc a paganis ad hæc celebranda cogantur, ex qua re temporibus Christianorum imperatorum persecutio altera fiera occulta videatur, vetari talia jubeant, et de civitatibus et possessionibus imposita púna prohiberi, maxime cum etiam in natalibus beatissimorum martyrum per nonnullas civitates et in ipsis locis sacris talia committere non reformident, quibus 172 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE these Pagan ceremonies were even carried into the churches, and that many of the clergy took part in them. It is probable, too, that when Paganism itself had become an offence against the state, and those who continued attached to it were exposed to persecution, they embraced the name of Christians as a cover for the grossest superstitions, and formed sects who practised the rites of Paganism in their secret conventicles, but were placed by the church among the Christian heresies. In some of these, especially among those of an early date, the obscene rites and principles of the phallic worship seem to have entered largely, for, though their opponents probably exaggerated the actual vice car-ried on under their name, yet much of it must have had an existence in truth. It was a mixture of the licence of the vulgar Paganism of antiquity with the wild doctrines of the latter eastern philosophers. The older orthodox writers dwell on the details of these libidinous rites. Among the earliest in date were the Adamiani, or Adamites, who proscribed marriage, and held that the most perfect innocence was consistent only with the community of women. They chose latibula, or caverns, for their conventicles, at which both sexes assembled together in perfect nakedness. 1 This sect perhaps continued to exist under different forms, but it was revived among the intellectual vagaries of the fifteenth century, and continued at least to be much talked of till the seventeenth. The doctrine of the community of women, and the practice of promiscuous sexual intercourse in their meetings, were ascribed by the early Christian

diebus etiam, quod pudoris est dicere, saltationes sceleratissimas per vicos atque plateas exerceant, ut matronalia honor, et innumerabilium fúminarum pudor, devote venientium ad facratissimum diem, injuris lascivientium appetatur, ut etiam ipsius sanctæ religionis pæne fugiatur accessus. Burchard, Decret., lib. x, c. 20, De conviviis quæ fiunt ritu paganorum, ex Concil. Africano, cap. 27. See Labbæs, Concil., tom. ii, col. 1085. 1 Epiphanii Episc. Constant. Panarium versus Hæres., vol. i, p. 459, ed. Petav. GENERATIVE POWERS 173 controversialists to several sects, such as the followers of Florian, and of Carpocratian, who were accused of putting out the lamps in their churches at the end of the evening service, and indulging in sexual intercourse indiscriminately;1 the Nicolaitæ, who held their wives in common; the Ebionei; and especially the Gnostics, or followers of Basilides, and the Manichæans. The Nicolaites held that the only way to salvation lay through frequent intercourse between the sexes.2 Epiphanius speaks of a sect who sacrificed a child in their secret rites by pricking it with brazen pins, and then offering its blood. 3 The Gnostics were accused of eating human flesh as well as of lasciviousness, and they also are said to have held their women in common, and taught that it was a duty to prostitute their wives to their guests.4 They knew their fellow sectarians by a secret sign, which consisted in tickling the palm of the hand with the finger in a peculiar manner. The sign having been recognized, mutual confidence was established, and the stranger was invited to supper; after they had eaten their fill, the husband removed from the side of his wife, and said to her, “Go, exhibit charity to our guest,” which was the signal for those further scenes of hospitality.5 This account is given us by St. Epiphanius, bishop of Constantia. We are told further of rites practiced by the Gnostics, which were still more disgusting, for they were said, after these libidinous scenes, to offer and administer the semen virile 1 In ecclesia sua post occasum solis lucernis extinctis msceri cum mulierculis. Philastri de Hæresibus Liber, c. 57. 2 Epiphanii Panarion, vol. I, p. 72. 3 Epihphanius, vol. i, p. 416. 4 On the secret worship and the character of the Gnostics see Epihanii Panarion, vol. i. pp. 84—102. 5 ôk to›to d sumposi£santej, kaà èj úpoj eàpeãn, t¶j flöbaj to‡ k’rou ômplªsantej òautÓn, eÑj osron tröpontai. kaà – mn ¢nær t£j gunaik’j ÿpocwræsaj f£skei legwn tÕ òato‡ gunaikà ”ti ¢n£sta lögwn, poÖhson tªn ¢g£phn met¶ to‡ ¢delfo‡. oÉ d t£lanej migöntej ¢llªloij. Epihan. Panarion, vol. i, p. 86. 174 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE as their sacrament.1 A similar practice is described as existing among women in the middle ages for the purpose of securing the love of their husbands, and was perhaps derived from the Gnostics and Manichæans, whose doctrines, brought from the East, appear to have spread themselves extensively into Western Europe.2 Of these doctrines, however, we have no traces at least until the eleventh century, when a great intellectual agitation began in Western Europe, which brought to the surface of society a multitude of strange creeds and strange theories. The popular worship displayed in the great annual festivals, and the equally popular local f’tes, urban or rural, were hardly interfered with, or any secret societies belonging to the old worship; the mediæval church did not consider them as heresies, and let them alone. Thus, except now and then a provision of some ecclesiastical council expressed in general terms against superstitions, which was hardly heard at the time and not listened to, they are passed over in silence. But the moment anything under the name of heresy raised its head, the alarm was great. Gnosticism and Manichæism, which had indeed been identical, were the heresies most hated in the Eastern empire, and, as may be supposed, most persecuted; and this persecution was destined to drive them westward. In the seventh cen1 See details on this subject in Epiphanii Panarion, ib. Conf. Præestinati Adversus Hæres, lib. i, c. 46, where the same thing is said of the Manichæans. 2 Gustati de semine viri tui, ut, propter tua diabolica facta, plus in amorem tuum exardesceret? Si fecisti, septem annos per legitimas ferias púnitere debes. Burchardi Decretorum lib. xix. The same practices appear to have existed among the Anglo-Saxons. Thus, one of the cases in Theodori Liber Púnitentialis. (in Thorpe’s Ancient Laws and Institutes,) is,—Mulier quæ semen viri sui in cibum miserit, ut inde amoris ejus plus accipiat, vii. annos púnitat. Theod. Lib. Pún. xvi. 30. And again, Mulier quæ semen viri cum cibo suo miscuerit, et id sumperit, ut masculo carior sit, iii. annos jejunet. Ecgberti Confessionale, sec. 29. Sprenger, Malleus Maleficarum, quæst. vii, tells us of witches who made men eat bien autre chose to secure their love. GENERATIVE POWERS 175 tury they became modified into a sect which took the name of Paulicians, it is said, from an Armenian enthusiast named Paulus, and they seem to have still further provoked the hatred of the church by making themselves, in their own interests, the advocates of freedom of thought and of ecclesiastical reform. If history be to be believed, their Christian feelings cannot have been very strong, for, unable to resist persecution within the empire, they retired into the territory held by the Saracens, and united with the enemies of the Cross in making war upon the Christian Greeks. Others sought refuge in the country of the Bulgarians, who had very generally embraced their doctrines, which soon spread thence westward. In their progress through Germany to France they were known best as Bulgarians, from the name of the country whence they came; in their way through Italy they retained their name of Paulicians, corrupted in the Latin of that period of the middle ages into Populicani, Poplicani, Publicani, &c; and, in French, into Popelican, Poblican, Policien, and various other forms which it is unnecessary to enumerate. They began to cause alarm in France at the beginning of the eleventh century, in the reign of king Robert, when, under the name of Popelicans, they had established themselves in the diocese of Orleans, in which city a council was held against them in 1022, and thirteen individuals were condemned to be burnt. The name appears to have lasted into the thirteenth century, but the name of Bulgarians became more permanent, and, in its French form of Bolgres, Bougres, or Bogres, became the popular name for heretics in general. With these heresies, through the more sensual parts of Gnosticism and Manichæism, there appears to be left hardly room for doubt that the ancient phallic worship, probably somewhat modified, and under the shadow of secret rites, was imported into Western Europe; for, if we make allowance for the willing exaggerations of religious hatred, and consequent popular prejudice, the general conviction 176 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE that these sectarians had rites and practices of a licentious character appears too strong to be entirely disregarded, nor does it present anything contrary to what we know of the state of mediæval society, or to the facts which have already been brought forward in the present essay. These early sects appear to have professed doctrines rather closely resembling modern communism, including, like those of their earlier sectarian predecessors, the community of women; and this community naturally implies the abolition of distinctive affinities. One of the writers against the mediæval heretics assures us that there were “many professed Christians, both men and women, who feared no more to go to their sister, or son or daughter, or brother, or nephew or niece, or kin or relation, than to their own wife or husband.”1 They were accused, beyond this, of indulging in unnatural vices, and this charge was so generally believed, that the name of Bulgarus, or heretic, became equivalent with Sodomite, and hence came the modern French word bougre, and its English representatives. In the course of the eleventh century the sectarians appeared in Italy under the name of Patarini, Paterini, or Patrini, which is said to have been taken from an old quarter of the city of Milan named Pataria, in which they first held their assemblies. A contemporary Englishman, Walter Mapes, gives us a singular account of the Paterini and their secret rites. Some apostates from this heresy, he tells us, had related that, at the first watch of night, they met in their synagogues, closed carefully the doors and windows, and waited in silence, until a black cat of extraordinary bigness descended among them by a rope, and that, as soon as they saw 1 Et hæc est causa quare multi credentes, tam viri quam mulieres, non timent magis ad sororem suam, et filium sive filiam, fratrem, neptem, consanguineam, et cognatam accedere, quam ad uxorem et virum prorium. Reinerus, Contra Waldenses, in Gretserus, Scriptores contra Sectam Waldensium, Gretseri Opera, tom. xii, p. 33. GENERATIVE POWERS 177 this strange animal, they put out the lights, and muttering through their teeth instead of singing their hymns, felt their way to this object of their worship, and kissed it, according to their feelings of humility or pride, some on the feet, some under the tail, and others on the genitals, after which each seized upon the nearest person of a different sex, and had carnal intercourse as long as he was able. Their leaders taught them that the most perfect degree of charity was “to do or suffer in this manner whatever a brother or sister might desire and ask,” and hence, says Mapes, they were called Paterini, a patiendo. 1 Other writers have suggested a different derivation, but the one first given appears to be that most generally accepted. The different sects or congregations in Italy and the south, indeed, appear generally to have taken their names from the towns in which they had their seats or head-quarters. Thus, those who were seated at Bagnols, in the department of the Gard, in the south of France, were called by the Latin writers Bagnolenses; the same writers give the name of Concordenses, or Concorezenses, to the heretics of Concordia in Lombardy; and the city of Albi, now the capital of the department of the Tarn, gave its name to the sect of the Albigenses, or Albigeois, the most extensive 1 Resipuerunt autem multi, reversique ad fidem enarrant quod circa primum noctis vigiliam, clausis eorum januis, hostiis, et fenestris, expectantes in singulis sinagogis suis singulæ sedeant in silentio familiæ, descenditque per funem appensum in medio miræ magnitudinis murelegus niger, quem cum vidernet, luminibus extinctis, hymnos non decantant, non distincte dicunt, sed ruminant affertis dentibus, acceduntque ubi dominum suum viderint palpantes, inventumque deosculantur quisque secundum quod ampliore servet insania humilius, quidam pedes, plurimi sub cauda, plerique pudenda, et quasi a loco fútoris accepta licentia pruriginis, quisque sibi proximum aut proximam arripit, commiscenturque quantum quisque lubidrium extendere prævalet. Dicunt etiam magistri docentque novitios caritatem esse perfectam agere vel pati quod desideraverit et petierit frater aut soror, extinguere scilicet inviciem ardentes, et a patiendo Paterini dicuntur. Mapes, De Nugis Curialium, p. 61. 178 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE of them all, which spread over the whole of the south of France. A rich enthusiast of the city of Lyons, named Waldo, who had collected his wealth by mercantile pursuits, and who lived in the twelfth century, sold his property and distributed it among the poor, and he became the head of a sect which professed poverty as one of its tenets, and received from the name of its founder that of Waldenses or Vaudois. From their possession of voluntary poverty they are sometimes spoken of by the name of Pauperes de Lugduno, the paupers of Lyons. Contemporaries speak of the Waldenses as being generally poor ignorant people; yet they spread widely over that part of France and into the valleys of Switzerland, and became so celebrated, that at last nearly all the mediæval heretics were usually classed under the head of Waldenses. Another sect, usually classed with the Waldenses, were called Cathari. The Novatians, a sect which sprang up in the church in the third century, assumed also the name of Cathari, as laying claim to extraordinary purity (kaqaroà), but there is no reason for believing that the ancient sect was revived in the Cathari of the later period, or even that the two words are identical. The name of the latter sect is often spelt Gazari, Gazeri, Gaçari, and Chazari; and, as they were more especially a German sect, it is supposed to have been the origin of the German words Ketzer and Ketzerie, which became the common German terms for a heretic and heresy. It was suggested by Henschenius that this name was derived from the German Katze or Ketze, a cat, in allusion to the common report that they assembled at night like cats, or ghosts;1 or the cat may have been an allusion to the belief that in their secret meetings they worshipped that animal. This sect must have been very ignorant and superstitious if it be true which some old writers 1 Propter nocturnas coitiones, a voce Germanica caters, id est, feles seu lemures. See Ducagne, sub v. Cathari. GENERATIVE POWERS 179 tell us, that they believed that the sun was a demon, and the moon a female called Heva,1 and that these two had sexual intercourse every month. Like the other heretical sects, these Cathari were accused of indulging in unnatural vices, and the German words Ketzerie and Ketzer were eventually used to signify sodomy and a sodomite, as well as heresy and a heretic. The Waldenses generally, taking all the sects which people class under this name, including also the older Bulgari and Publicani, were charged with holding secret meetings, at which the devil appeared to them in the shape, according to some, of a goat, whom they worshipped by offering the kiss in ano, after which they indulged in promiscuous sexual intercourse. Some believed that they were conveyed to these meetings by unearthly means. The English chronicler, Ralph de Coggeshall, tells a strange story of the means of locomotion possessed by these heretics. In the city of Rheims, in France, in the time of St. Louis, a handsome young woman was charged with heresy, and carried before the archbishop, in whose presence she avowed her opinions, and confessed that she had received them from a certain old woman of that city. The old woman was then arrested, convicted of being an obstinate heretic, and condemned to the stake. When they were preparing to carry her out to the fire, she suddenly turned to the judges and said, “Do you think that you are able to burn me in your fire? I care neither for it nor for you!” And taking a ball of thread, she threw it out at a large window by which she was standing, holding the end of the thread in her hands, and exclaiming, “Take it!” (recipe). In an instant, in the sight of all who were there, the old woman was lifted from the ground, and, following the ball of thread, was carried into the air nobody knew where; and the archbishop’s officers 1 Bonacursus, Vita Hæreticorum, in D’Achery, Spicilegium, tom. i, p. 209. This book is considered to have been written about the year 1190. 180 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE burnt the young woman in her place.1 It was the belief of most of the old sects of this class, as well as of the more ancient Pagans from whom they were derived, that those who were fully initiated into their most secret mysteries became endowed with powers and faculties above those possessed by ordinary individuals. A list of the errors of the Waldenses, printed in the Reliquiæ Antiquæ, from an English manuscript, enumerates among them that they met to indulge in promiscuous sexual intercourse, and held perverse doctrines in accordance with it; that, in some parts, the devil appeared to them in the form of a cat, and that each kissed him under the tail; and that in other parts they rode to the place of meeting upon a staff anointed with a certain unguent, and were conveyed thither in a moment of time. The writer adds that, in the parts where he lived, these practices had not been known to exist for a long time.2

Our old chroniclers exult over the small success which attended the efforts of these heretics from France and the South to introduce themselves into our island.3 These sects, with secret and obscene 1 Radulphus Cogeshalenfis, In the Amplissima Collectio of Martene and Durand. On the offences with which the different sects comprised under the name of Waldenses were charged, see Gretser's Scriptores contra Sectam Waldensium, which will be found in the twelfth volume of his works, Bonacursus, Vita Haereticorum, in the first volume of D'Achery's Spicilegium, and the work of a Carthusian monk in Martene and Durand, Amplissima Collectio, vol. vi, col. 57 et seq. 2 Wright and Halliwell, Reliquæ Antiquæ, vol. i, p. 247. Item, habent inter se mixtum abominabile, et perversa dogmata ad hoc apta, sed non reperitur quod abutantur in partibus istis a multis temporibis. Item, in aliquibus aliis partibus apparet eis dæmon sub specie et figura cati, quem sub cauda sigillatim osculantur. Item, in aliis partibus super unum baculum certo unguento perunctum equitant, et ad local assignata ubi voluerint congregatur in momento dum volunt. Sed ista in istis partibus non inveniuntur. 3 See, for example, Guil. Neubrigensis, De Rebus Anglicis, lib. ii, c. 13, and Walter Mapes, de Nugis Curialium, p. 62. GENERATIVE POWERS 181 rites, appear, indeed, to have found most favour among the peoples who spoke a dialect derived from the Latin, and this we might naturally be led to expect, for the fact of the preservation of the Latin tongue is itself a proof of the greater force of the Roman element in the society, that from which these secret rites appear to have been chiefly derived. It is a curious circumstance, in connection with this subject, that the popular oaths and exclamations among the people speaking the languages derived from the Romans are almost all composed of the names of the objects of this phallic worship, an entire contrast to the practice of the Teutonic tribes— the vulgar oaths of the people speaking Neo-Latin dialects are obscene, those of the German race are profane. We have seen how the women of Antwerp, who, though perhaps they did not speak the Roman dialect, appear to have been much influenced by Roman sentiments, made their appeal to their genius Ters. When a Spaniard is irritated or suddenly excited, he exclaims, Carajo! (the virile member) or Cojones! (the testicles). An Italian, under similar circumstances, uses the exclamation Cazzo! (the virile member). The Frenchman apostrophizes the act, Foutre! The female member, cono with the Spaniard, conno with the Italian, and con with the Frenchman, was and is used more generally as an expression of contempt, which is also the case with the testicles, couillons, in French—those who have had experience in the old days of “diligence” travelling will remember how usual it was for the driver, when the horses would not go quick enough, to address the leader in such terms as, “Va, donc, vieux con!” We have no such words used in this manner in the Germanic languages, with the exception, perhaps, of the German Potz! and Potztausend! and the English equivalent, Pox! which last is gone quite out of use. There was an attempt among the fashionables of our Elizabethan age of literature, to introduce the Italian cazzo under the form of catso, and the French foutre under that of foutra, but these were 182 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE mere affectations of a moment, and were so little in accord with our national sentiments that they soon disappeared. The earliest accounts of a sect which held secret meetings for celebrating obscene rites is found in France. It appears that, early in the eleventh century, there was in the city of Orleans a society consisting of members of both sexes, who assembled at certain times in a house there, for the purposes which are described rather fully in a document found in the cartulary of the abbey of St. Père at Chartres. As there stated, they went to the meeting, each carrying in the hand a lighted lamp, and they began by chaunting the names of demons in the manner of a litany, until a demon suddenly descended among them in the form of an animal. This was no sooner seen, than they all extinguished their lamps, and each man took the first female he put his hand upon, and had sexual intercourse with her, without regard if she were his mother, or his sister, or a consecrated nun; and this intercourse, we are told, was looked upon by them as an act of holiness and religion. The child which was the fruit of this intercourse was taken on the eighth day and purified by fire, “in the manner of the ancient Pagans,”—so says the contemporary writer of this document,—it was burnt to ashes in a large fire made for that purpose. The ashes were collected with great reverence, and preserved, to be administered to members of the society who were dying, just as good Christians received the viaticum. It is added that there was such a virtue in these ashes, that an individual who had once tasted them would hardly ever after be able to turn his mind from that heresy and take the path of truth.1 1 Congregabantur siquidem certis noctibus in domo denominata, singuli lucernas tenentes in manibus, et, ad instar letaniæ, dæmonum nomina declamabant, donec subito dæmonum in similitudine cuiuslibet bestiolæ inter eos viderent descendere. Qui, statim ut visibilis illa videbatur visio, omnibus extinctis luminaribus, quamprimum quisque poterat, mulierum quæ ad manum sibi veniebat ad abuntendum arri- GENERATIVE POWERS 183 Whatever degree of truth there may have been in this story, it must have been greatly exaggerated; but the conviction of the existence of secret societies of this character during the middle ages appears to have been so strong and so generally held, that we must hesitate in rejecting it. Perhaps we may take the leaden tokens already described, and represented in one of our plates,1 as evidence of the existence of such societies, for these curious objects appear to admit of no other satisfactory explanation than that of having been in use in secret clubs of a very impure character. It has been already remarked that people soon seized upon accusations of this kind as excuses for persecution, religious and political, and we meet with a curious example in the earlier half of the thirteenth century. The district of Steding, in the north of Germany, now known as Oldenburg, was at the beginning of the thirteenth century inhabited by a people who lived in sturdy independence, but the archbishops of Bremen seem to have claimed some sort of feudal superiority over them, which they resisted by force. The archbishop, in revenge, declared them heretics, and proclaimed a crusade against them. Crusades against heretics were then in fashion, for it was just at the time of the great war against the Albigeois. The Stedingers maintained their independence successfully for some years. In 1232 and 1233, the pope issued two

piebat, sine peccati respectu et utrum mater aut soror aut monacha haberetur, pro sanctitate ac religione ejus concubitus ab illis æstimabatur. Ex quo spurcissimo concubity infans generatus octava die in medio eorum copioso igne accenso piabatur per ignem, more antiquorum paganorum, et sic in igne cremabatur. Cujus cinis tanta veneratione colligebatur atque custodiebatur, ut Christiana religiositas corpus Christi custodiri solet, ægris dandum de hoc seculo exituris ad viaticum. Inerat enim tanta vis diabolicæ fraudis in ipso cinere, ut quicumque de præfata hæresi imbutus fuisset, et de eodem cinere quamvis sumendo parum prælibavisset, vix unquam postea de eadem hæresi gressum mentis ad viam veritatis dirigere valeret. Guérard, Cartulaire de l’Abbate de Saint-Père de Chartres, vol. i, p. 112. 1 See before, p. 146, and Plate XXXIII. 184 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE bulls against the offending Stedingers, in both of which he charges them with various heathen and magical practices, but in the second be enters more fully into details. These Stedingers, the pope (Gregory IX.) tells us, performed the following ceremonies at the initiation of a new convert into their sect. When the novice was introduced, a toad presented itself, which all who were present kissed, some on the posteriors, and others on the mouth, when they drew its tongue and spittle into their own mouths. Sometimes this toad appeared of only the natural size, but sometimes it was as big as a goose or duck, and often its size was that of an oven. As the novice proceeded, he encountered a man who was extraordinarily pale, with large black eyes, and whose body was so wasted that his flesh seemed to be all gone, leaving nothing but the skin hanging on his bones. The novice kissed this personage, and found him as cold as ice; and after this kiss all traces of the Catholic faith vanished from his heart. Then they all sat down to a banquet; and when this was over, there stepped out of a statue, which stood in their place of meeting, a black cat, as large as a moderate sized dog, which advanced backwards to them, with its tail turned up. The novice first, then the master, and then all the others in their turns, kissed the cat under the tail, and then returned to their places, where they remained in silence, with their heads inclined towards the cat. Then the master suddenly pronounced the words “Spare us!” which he addressed to the next in order; and the third answered, “We know it, lord;” and a fourth added, “We ought to obey.” At the close of this ceremony the lights were extinguished, and each man took the first woman who came to hand, and had carnal intercourse with her. When this was over, the candles were again lighted, and the performers resumed their places. Then out of a dark corner of the room came a man, the upper part of whom, above the loins, was bright and radiant as the sun, and illuminated the whole room, while his lower parts were rough and hairy like a GENERATIVE POWERS 185 cat. The master then tore off a bit of the garment of the novice, and said to the shining personage, “Master, this is given to me, and I give it again to thee.” The master replied, “Thou hast served me well, and thou wilt serve me more and better; what thou hast given me I give unto thy keeping.” When he had said this, the shining man vanished, and the meeting broke up. Such were the secret ceremonies of the Stedingers, according to the deliberate statement of Pope Gregory IX, who also charges them with offering direct worship to Lucifer.1 But the most remarkable, and at the same time the most celebrated, affair in which these accusations of secret and obscene ceremonies were brought to bear, was that of the trial and dissolution of the order of the knights templars. The charges against the knights templars were not heard of for the first time at the period of their dissolution, but for many years it had been whispered abroad that they had secret opinions and practices of an objectionable character. At length the wealth of the order, which was very great in France, excited the cupidity of King Philippe IV, and it was resolved to proceed against them, and despoil them of their possessions. The grounds for these proceedings were furnished by two templars, one a Gascon, the other an Italian, who were evidently men of bad character, and who, having been imprisoned for some offence or offences, made a confession of the secret practices of their order, and upon these confessions certain articles of accusation were drawn up. These appear to have been enlarged afterwards. In 1307, Jacques de Molay, the grand master of the order, was treacherously allured to Paris by the king, and there seized and thrown into prison. Others, similarly committed to prison in all parts of the kingdom, were examined individually on 1 Baronius, Annales Ecclesiastici, tom. xxi, p. 89, where the two bulls are printed, and where the details of the history of the Stedingers will be found. 186 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE the charges urged against them, and many confessed, while others obstinately denied the whole. Amongst these charges were the following: 1. That on the admission of a new member of the order, after having taken the oath of obedience, he was obliged to deny Christ, and to spit, and sometimes also to trample, upon the cross; 2. That they then received the kiss of the templar, who officiated as receiver, on the mouth, and afterwards were obliged to kiss him in ano, on the navel, and sometimes on the generative member; 3. That, in despite of the Saviour, they sometimes worshipped a cat, which appeared amongst them in their secret conclave; 4. That they practised unnatural vice together; 5. That they had idols in their different provinces; in the form of a head, having sometimes three faces, sometimes two, or only one, and sometimes a bare skull, which they called their saviour, and believed its influence to be exerted in making them rich, and in making flowers grow and the earth germinate; and 6. That they always wore about their bodies a cord which had been rubbed against the head, and which served for their protection.1

The ceremonies attending the reception into the order were so universally acknowledged, and are described in terms which have so much the appearance of truthfulness, that we can hardly altogether disbelieve in them. The denial was to be repeated thrice, no doubt in imitation of St. Peter. It appears to have been considered as a trial of the strength of the obedience they had just sworn to the order, and they all pleaded that they had obeyed with reluctance, that they had denied with the mouth but not with the heart; and that they had intentionally spit beside the cross and not upon it. In one instance the cross was of silver, but it was more commonly of brass, and still more frequently of wood; on one occasion the cross painted in a missal was used, and the cross on the templar’s mantle often served 1 Procès des Templiers, edited by M. Michelet, vol. i, pp. 90-92. GENERATIVE POWERS 187 the purpose. When one Nicholas de Compiegne protested against these two acts, all the templars who were present told him that he must do them, for it was the custom of the order.1 Baldwin de St. Just at first refused, but the receptor warned him that if he persisted in his refusal, it would be the worse for him (aliter male accideret sibi), and then “he was so much alarmed that his hair stood on end.” 2 Jacques de Trecis said that he did it under fear, because his receptor stood by with a great naked sword in his hand.3 Another, Geoffrey de Thatan, having similarly refused, his receptor told him that they were “points of the order,” and that if he did not comply, “he should be put in such a place that he would never see his own feet.”4

And another who refused to utter the words of denial was thrown into prison and kept there until vespers, and when he saw that he was in peril of death, he yielded, and did whatever the receptor required of him, but he adds that he was so troubled and frightened that he had forgotten whether he spat on the cross or not.5 Gui de la Roche, a presbyter of the diocese of Limoges, said that he uttered the denial with great weeping.6 Another, when he denied Christ, “was all stupified and troubled, and it seemed as if he were enchanted, not knowing what counsel to take, as they threatened him heavily if he did not do it.”7 When Etienne de 1 Procès des Templiers, ii, 418. 2 Et tunc ipse testis fuit magis attonitus, et orripilvait, id est eriguere pili sui. Procès, i, 242. 3 Procès, i, 254. 4 Subjunxit idem receptor quod ista erant de punctis ordinis . . . . subjiciens dictum præceptorem sibi dixisse quod, nisi prædicta faceret, poneretur in tali loco quod nunquam videret pedes suos. Procès, i, pp. 222, 223. See also, i, 321. 5 Et tunc dictus recipiens posuit eum in quodam carcere, in quo stetit usque ad vesperas; et cum vidisset quo esset in periculo mortis, petivit quod exiret, et faceret voluntatem ejus. Procès, ii, 284. 6 Cum magno fletu. Procès, ii, 219. 7 It ipse fuit totus stupefactus et turbatus, et videbatur sibi quasi quod esset in- 188 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE Dijon similarly refused to deny his Saviour, the preceptor told him that he must do it because he had sworn to obey his orders, and then “he denied with his mouth,” he said, “but not with his heart; and he did this with great grief,” and he adds that when it was done, he was so conscience-struck that “he wished he had been outside at his liberty, even though it had been with the loss of one of his arms.”1 When Odo de Dompierre, with great reluctance, at length spat on the cross, he said that he did it with such bitter-ness of heart that he would rather have had his two thighs broken.2

Michelet, in the account of the proceedings against the templars in his “History of France,” offers an ingenious explanation of these ceremonies of initiation which gives them a typical meaning. He imagines that they were borrowed from the figurative mysteries and rites of the early Church, and supposes that, in this spirit, the candidate for admission into the order was first presented as a sinner and renegade, in which character, after the example of Peter, he was made to deny Christ. This denial, he suggests, was a sort of pantomime in which the novice expressed his reprobate state by spitting on the cross; after which he was stripped of his profane clothing, received, through the kiss of the order, into a higher state of faith, and clothed with the garb of its holiness. If this were the case, the true meaning of the performance must have been very soon forgotten. This was especially the case with the kiss. According to the

cantatus, nesciens sibi ipsi consulere, cum comminarentur eidem graviter nisi noc faceret. Procès, i, 291. 1 Preceptor respondit ei quod oportebat eum abnegare, quia juraverat obedire præceptis suis; et testis abnegavit ore, sicut dixit, et non corde; et hoc fecit cum magno dolore, et voluisset, sicut dixit, tunc fuisse extra in libertate sua cum uno solo brachio, quia faciebat contra conscientiam suam. 2 Adjiciens se cum magna cordis amaritudine hoc fecisse, et quod tunc magic voluisset habuisse crura fracta, quam facere prædicta, et fuit per aliquod spatium, sicut dixit, reluctans priusquam hoc faceret. Prèces, i, 307. GENERATIVE POWERS 189 articles of accusation, one of the ceremonies of initiation required the novice to kiss the receiver on the mouth, on the anus, or the end of the spine, on the navel, and on the virga virilis.1 The last is not mentioned in the examinations, but the others are described by so many of the witnesses that we cannot doubt of their truth. From the depositions of many of the templars examined, it would appear that the usual order was to kiss the receptor first in ano, next on the navel, and then on the mouth.2 The first of these was an act which would, of course, be repulsive to most people, and the practice arose gradually of only kissing the end of the spine, or, as it was called in mediæval Latin, in anca. Bertrand de Somorens, of the diocese of Amiens, describing a reception at which more than one new member was admitted, says that the receiver next told them that they must kiss him in ano; but, instead of kissing him there, they lifted up his clothes and kissed him on the spine.3 The receptor, it appears, had the power of remitting this kiss when he judged there was a sufficient reason. Etienne de Dijon, a presbyter of the diocese of Langres, said that, when he was admitted into the order, the preceptor told him that he ought, “according to the observances of the order,” to kiss his receiver in ano, but that in consideration of his being a presbyter, he would spare him and remit this kiss. 4 Pierre de Grumenil, also a presbyter, when called 1 Item, quod in receptione fratrum dicti ordinis, vel circa, interdum recipiens et receptus aliquando se deosculabantur in ore, in umbiloco seu in ventre nudo, et in ano seu spina dorsi . . . . aliquando in virga virili. Procès, i, 91. 2 See the Procès, ii, 286, 362, 364. 3 Deinde præcepit eis quod oscularentur eum in ano; ipsi tamen non fuerunt eum inibi osculati, sed, elevatis pannis, prædictum receptorem fuerunt osculati in spinda dorsi nuda, et hoc fecerunt, quia dixit eis quod erat de punctis ordinis. Procès, ii, 60. Another said, on another occasion, Præcepit etiam dictus receptor eis, quod oscularentur eum in ano et in umbilico, et ipsi osculati fuerunt in anca et umbilico super carnem nudam. Ib. ii, 159. 4 Item dixit quod, prædictis peractis, dictus præceptor dixit ei quod secundam ob- 190 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE upon to perform this act, refused, and was allowed to kiss his receiver on the navel only.1 A presbyter named Ado de Dompierre was excused for the same reason, 2 as well as many others. Another templar, named Pierre de Lanhiac, said that, at his reception into the order, his receptor told him that he must kiss him in ano, because that was one of the points of the order, but that, at the earnest supplication of his uncle, who was present, and must therefore have been a knight of the order, he obtained a remission of this kiss.3 Another charge against the templars was still more disgusting. It was said that they proscribed all intercourse with women, and one of the men examined stated, which was also confessed by others, that his receptor told him that, from that hour, he was never to enter a house in which a woman lay in labour, nor to take part as godfather at the baptism of any child,4 but he added that he had broken his oath, for he had assisted at the baptism of several children while still in the order, which he had left about a year before the seizure of the templars, for the love of a woman of whom he had become enamoured. On the other hand, those who replied to the interrogatory of the king's officers in this process, were all but unanimous in the avowal that on entering the order they received

servantias ordinis eorum recepti debebant oscurali in ano receptores, quia tamen idem testis erat presbyter, parcebat ei et remittebat sibi dictum osculum. Procès, i, 302. 1 Deinde præcepit quod oscularetur eum in ano, et cum ipse testis nollet hoc facere, præcepit quod oscularetur eum saltem in umbilico super carnem, nudam, et fuit eum ibi osculatus. Procès, ii, 24. 2 Procès, i, 307. 3 Post quæ dixit eidem quod secundum dicta puncta debebat eum osculari in ano, et præcepit quod ibi oscularetur eum, sed, avunculo ipsius testis flexis genibus instatne, remisit ei osculum memoratum. Procès, ii, 2. 4 Dixit etiam quod ab illa hora in antea non intraret domum in qua aliqua mulier jaceret in puerperio, nec susciperet aliquem nec teneret in sacro fonte. Procès, i, 255. GENERATIVE POWERS 191 the permission to commit sodomy amongst themselves. Two or three professed not to have understood this injunction in a bad sense, but to have supposed that it only meant that, when the brethren were short of beds, each was to be ready to lend half of his bed to his fellow.1 One of them, named Gillet de Encraye, said that he at first supposed it to be meant innocently, but that his receptor immediately undeceived him, by repeating it in less covert terms, at which he was himself so horrified that he wished himself far away from the chapel in which the ceremony took place.2 A great number of templars stated that, after the kisses of initiation, they were informed that if they felt moved by natural heat, they might call any one of the brethren to their relief, and that they ought to relieve their brethren when appealed to under the same circumstances.3 This appears to have been the most common form of the injunction. In one or two instances the receiver is described as adding that this was an act of contempt towards the other sex, which may perhaps be considered as showing that the ceremony was derived from some of the mysteries of the strange sects which appeared in the earlier ages of Christianity. Jean de St. Loup, who held the office of master of the house of templars at Soisiac, said that, on his reception into the order, he received the injunction 1 Post quæ immediates præcepit idem frater P. ipsi testi quod si aliquis frater dicti ordinis vellet jacere secum, non deberet recusare. Ipse tamen testis, ut dixit, non intellexit quod hoc diceret ut jacentes insimul aliquod peccatum committerentur, sed, si deficeret lectus alteri, quod reciperet eum in lecto suo honesto. Procès, i, 262. See again, i. 568. 2 Sed dictus frater Johannes subjunxit et declaravit quod carnaliter poterant commisceri, de quo ipse testis fuit multum turbatus, ut dixit, et multum desideravit, ut dixit, quod tunc esset extra portam dictæ capellæ. Procès, i, 250. 3 Quo facto, dixit sibi recipiens quod si aliquis calor naturalis moveret eum ad libidinem exercendam, faceret secum jacere unum de fratribus suis et haberet rem cum eo, et permitteret hoc idem similiter sibi fieri ab aliis fratribus. Procès, ii, 284. Cf. pp. 287, 288. 192 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE not to have intercourse with women, but, if he could not persevere in continence, he might have the same intercourse with men;1 and others were told that it would “be better to satisfy their lust among themselves, whereby the order would escape evil report, than if they went to women.”2 But although the almost unanimity of the confessions leave hardly room for a doubt that such injunctions were given, yet on the other hand they are equally unanimous in denying that these injunctions were carried into practice. Almost every templar, as the questions were put to him, after admitting that he was told that he might indulge in such vice with the other brethren, asserted that he had never done this, and that he had never been asked to do so by any of them. Theobald de Taverniac, whose name tells us that he came from the south, denied indignantly the existence of such a vice among their order but in terms which themselves told not very much in favour of the morality of the templars in other respects. He said that, “as to the crime of sodomy,” he believed the charge to be totally untrue, “because they could have very handsome and elegant women when they liked, and that they did have them frequently when they were rich and powerful enough to afford it, and that on this account he and other brothers of the order were removed from their houses, as he said.”3 We have an implied acknowledgment that the templars did not entirely 1 Dixit etiam per juramentum suum quod fuit sibi injunctum per eos quod non heberet rem cum mulieribus, sed, si continere non posset, commisceret se carnaliter cum hominibus. Procès, 287. Cf. ii, 288, 294, etc. 2 Postea unus prædictorum servientium dixit eis quod, si haberent calorem et motus carnales, poterant ad invicem carnaliter commisceri, si volebant, quia melius erat quod hoc facerent inter se, ne ordo vituperaretur, quam si accederent ad mulieres. Procès, i, 386. 3 De crimine sodomitico, respondit se nihil scire, nec credere contenta in ipsis articulis esse vera, quia poterant habere mulieres pulchras et bene comptas, et frequenter eas habebant, cum essent divites et potentes, et ex hoc ipse et alii fratres ipsius ordinis amoti fuerant a suis domibus, ut dixit. Procès, i, 326. GENERATIVE POWERS 193 neglect the other sex in a statement quoted by Du Puy that, if a child were born from the intercourse between a templar and a virgin, they roasted it, and made an unguent of its fat, with which they anointed their idol.1 Those who confessed to the existence of the vice were so few, and their evidence so indefinite or indirect, that they are deserving of no consideration. One had heard that some brethren beyond the sea had committed unnatural vices.2 Another, Hugh de Faure, had heard say that two brothers of the order, dwelling in the Chateau Pelerin, had been charged with sodomy; that, when this reached the ears of the master, he gave orders for their arrest, and that one had been killed in the attempt to escape, while the other was taken and imprisoned for life.3 Peter Brocart, a templar of Paris, declared that one of the order, one night, called him and committed sodomy with him; adding that he had not refused, because he considered himself bound to obedience by the rules of the order.4 The evidence is decidedly strong against the prevalence of such a vice among the templars, and the alleged permission was perhaps a mere form of words, which concealed some occult meaning unknown to the mass of the templars themselves. We are not inclined to reject altogether the theory of the baron von Hammer-Pürgstall, that the templars had adopted some of the mysterious tenets of the eastern Gnostics. 1 Præterea, si ex templarii coitu infans ex puella virgine nascebatur, hunc igni torrebant; exque eliquata inde pinguedine suum simulachrum decoris gratia ungebant. Robert Gaguin, ap. Du Puy, Histoire de l’Ordre Militaire des Templiers, p. 24. 2 Procès, ii, 213. 3 Audivit dici quod duo fratres ordinis, commorantes in Castro Peregrini, erant de crimine sodomitico dissamati; et cum hoc pervenisset ad magistrum, mandavit eos capi, et unus illorum fuit interfectus cum fugeret, et alter fuit perpetuo carcari mancipatus. Procès, ii, 223. 4 Procès, ii, 294. 194 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE In regard to the secret idolatry with which the templars were charged, it is a subject involved in great obscurity. The cat is but little spoken of in the depositions. Some Italian knights confessed that they had been present at a secret chapter of twelve knights held at Brindisi, when a grey cat suddenly appeared amongst them, and they worshipped it. At Nismes, some templars declared that they had been present at a chapter at Montpellier, when the demon appeared to them in the form of a cat, and promised them worldly prosperity, but they appear to have been visionaries not to be trusted, for they stated that at the same time devils appeared in the shape of women. An English templar, examined in London, deposed that in England they did not adore the cat, or the idol, but that he had heard it positively stated that the cat and the idol were worshipped by the templars in parts beyond sea.1 A solitary Frenchhman, examined in Paris, Gillet de Encreyo, spoke of the cat, and said that he had heard, but had forgotten who were his informants, and did not believe them, that beyond sea a certain cat had appeared to the templars in their battles.2 The cat belongs to a lower class of popular superstitions, perhaps, than that of the templars. This, however, was not the case with the idol, which was generally described as the figure of a human head, and appears only to have been shown in the more secret chapter meetings on particular occasions. Many of the templars examined before the commissioners, said that they had heard this idol head spoken of as existing in the order, and others deposed to having seen it. It was generally described as being about the natural size of a man’s head, 1 Respondit quod in Anglia non adorant catum nec idolum, quod ipse sciat; sed audviit bene dici, quod adorant catum et idolum in partibus transmarinis. Wilkins, Concilla, vol. ii, p. 384. 2 Audivit tamen ab aliquibus dici, de quibus non recordatur, quod quidam catus apparebat ultar mare in præliis eorum, quod tamen non credit. Procès, i, 251. GENERATIVE POWERS 195 with a very fierce-looking face and a beard, the latter sometimes white. Different witnesses varied as to the material of which it was made, and, indeed, in various other particulars, which lead us to suppose that each house of the templars, where the idol existed, had its own head, and that they varied in form. They agreed generally that this head was an object of worship. One templar deposed that he was present at a chapter of the order in Paris, when the head was brought in, but he was unable to describe it at all, for, when he saw it, he was so struck with terror that he hardly knew where he was.1 Another, Ralph de Gysi, who held the office of receptor for the province of Champagne, said that he had seen the head in many chapters; that, when it was introduced, all present threw themselves on the ground and adored it: and when asked to describe it, he said, on his oath, that its countenance was so terrible, that it seemed to him to be the figure of a demon—using the French word un maufé, and that as often as he saw it, so great a fear took possession of him, that he could hardly look upon it without fear and trembling.2 Jean Taylafer said that, at his reception into the order, his attention was directed to a head upon the altar in the chapel, which he was told he must worship; he described it as of the natural size of a mans head, but could not describe it more particularly, except that he thought it was of a reddish colour.3 Raynerus de Larchent saw the head twice in a chapter, especially once in Paris, where it had a beard, and they adored and kissed it, 1 Ipse testis, viso dicto capite, fuit adeo perterritus quod quasi nesciret ubi esset. Procès, i, 399. 2 Interrogatus cujus figræ est, dixit per juramentum suum quod ita esti terriblis figuræ et aspectus quod videbatur sibi quod esset figura cujusdam dæmonis, dicens Gallice d’un mausé, et quod quocienscunque videbat eum tantus timor eum invadebat, quod vix poterat illud respicere nisi cum maximo timore et tremore. Procès, ii, 364. 3 Procès, i, 190. 196 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE and called it their saviour.1 Guillermus de Herbaleyo saw the head with its beard, at two chapters. He thought it was of silver gilt, and wood inside. He “saw the brethren adore it, and he went through the form of adoring it himself, but he did it not in his heart.”2 According to one witness, Deodatus Jaffet, a knight from the south of France who had been received at Pedenat, the receptor showed him a head, or idol, which appeared to have three faces, and said to him, “You must adore this as your saviour, and the saviour of the order of the temple,” and he added that he was made to worship the idol, saying, “Blessed be he who shall save my soul!” Another deponent gave a very similar account. Another knight of the order, Hugo de Paraudo, said that, in a chapter at Montpellier, he had both seen, held, and felt, the idol or head, and that he and the other brothers adored it but he, like the others, pleaded that he did not adore it in his heart. He described it as supported on four feet, two before and two behind.3 Guillaume de Arrablay, the king’s almoner (eleemosynarius regius), said that in the chapter at which he was received, a head made of silver was placed on the altar, and adored by those who formed the chapter; he was told that it was the head of one of the eleven thousand virgins, and had always believed this to be the case, until after the arrest of the order, when, hearing all that was said on the matter, he “suspected” that it was the idol; and he adds in his deposition that it seemed to him to have two faces, a terrible look, and a silver beard.4 It does not appear very clear why he should have taken a head with two faces, a fierce look, and a beard, 1 Quod adorant, osculantur, et vocant salvatorem suum. Procès, ii, 279. 2 Et vidit fratres adorare illud; et ipse fingebat illud adorare, sed numquam fecit corde, ut dixit. Procès, ii, 300. 3 Procès, ii, 363. 4 Videtur sibi quod haberet duas facies, et quod esset terribilis aspectu, et quod haberet barbam argenteam. Procès, i, 502. GENERATIVE POWERS 197 for one of the eleven thousand virgins, but this is, perhaps, partly explained by the deposition of another witness, Guillaume Pidoye, who had the charge of the relics, &c., belonging to the Temple in Paris, and who produced a head of silver gilt, having a woman's face, and a small skull, resembling that of a woman, inside, which was said to be that of one of the eleven thousand virgins. At the same time another head was brought forward, having a beard, and supposed to be that of the idol.1 Both these witnesses had no doubt confounded two things. Pierre Garald, of Mursac, another witness, said that after he had denied Christ and spitten on the cross, the receptor drew from his bosom a certain small image of brass or gold, which appeared to represent the figure of a woman, and told him that “he must believe in it, and have faith in it, and that it would be well for him.”2 Here the idol appears in the form of a statuette. There was also another account of the idol, which perhaps refers to some further object of superstition among the templars. According to one deponent, it was an old skin embalmed, with bright carbuncles for eyes, which shone like the light of heaven. Others said that it was the skin of a man, but agreed with the others in regard to the carbuncles.3 In England a minorite friar deposed that an English knight of the Temple had assured him that the templars had four principal idols in this country, one in the sacristy of the Temple in London, another at Bristelham, a third at Brueria (Bruern in Lincolnshire), and the fourth at some place beyond the Humber.4

1 Procès, ii, 218. 2 Item, dixit quod post prædicta dictus receptor, extrahens de fino suo quamdam parvam imaginem de leone (apparently a misreading) vel de auro, quæ vibebatur habere effigiem muliebrem, dixit ei quod crederet in eam, et haberet in ea fiduciam, et bene sibi esset. Procès, ii, 212. 3 Du Puy, Hist. des Templ., pp. 22, 24. 4 Wilkins, Concil., vol. ii, p. 363. 198 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE Another piece of information relating to this “idol,” which has been the subject of considerable discussion among modern writers, was elicited from the examination of some knights from the south. Gauserand de Montpesant, a knight of Provence, said that their superior showed him an idol made in the form of Baffomet;1 another, named Raymond Rubei, described it as a wooden head, on which the figure of Baphomet was painted, and adds, “that he worshipped it by kissing its feet, and exclaiming, ëYalla,’ which was,” he says, “verbum Saracenorum,” a word taken from the Saracens.2 A templar of Florence declared that, in the secret chapters of the order, one brother said to the other, showing the idol, “Adore this head—this head is your god and your Mahomet.” The word Mahomet was used commonly in the middle ages as a general term for an idol or false god; but some writers have suggested that Baphomet is itself a mere corruption of Mahomet, and suppose that the templars had secretly embraced Mahometanism. A much more remarkable explanation of this word has, however, been proposed, which is, at the least, worthy of very great consideration, especially as it comes from so distinguished an orientalist and scholar as the late baron Joseph von Hammer-Pürgstall. It arose partly from the comparison of a number of objects of art, ornamented with figures, and belonging apparently to the thirteenth century. These objects consist chiefly of small images, or statuettes, coffers, and cups.3 1 Que leur supérieur lui monstra une idole barbue faite in figuram Baffometi. Du Puy, Hist. des Templiers, p. 216. 2 Du Puy, Hist. des Templiers, p. 21. 3 Von Hammer published his discoveries and opinions in 1816, in an elaborate essay in the sixth volume of the Fundgruben des Orients, entitled, Mysterium Baphometis revelatum, seu fratres militiæ Templi, quo gnostici et quidam ophiani apostasiæ, idoloduliæ et impuritatis convicti per ipsa eorum monumenta. In 1832, he published a supplmentary essay under the title Mémoire sur deux coffrets gnostiques du Moyen Age, du Cabinet de M. le Duc de Blacas, par M. Joseph de Hammer. GENERATIVE POWERS 199 Von Hammer has described, and given engravings of, twentyfour such images, which it must be acknowledged answer very well to the descriptions of their "idol" given by the templars in their examinations, except only that the templars usually speak of them as of the size of life, and as being merely heads. Most of them have beards, and tolerably fierce countenances. Among those given by Von Hammer are seven which present only a head, and two with two faces, backwards and forwards, as described in some of the depositions. These two appear to be intended for female heads. Altogether Von Hammer has described fifteen cups and goblets, but a much smaller number of coffers. Both cups and coffers are ornamented with extremely curious figures, representing a continuous scene, apparently religious ceremonies of some kind or other, but certainly of an obscene character, all the persons engaged in which are represented naked. It is not a part of our subject to enter into a detailed examination of these mysteries. The most interesting of the coffers described by Von Hammer, which was preserved in the private museum of the duc de Blacas, is of calcarous stone, nine inches long by seven broad, and four and a half deep, with a lid about two inches thick. It was found in Burgundy. On the lid is sculptured a figure, naked, with a head-dress resembling that given to Cybele in ancient monuments, holding up a chain with each hand, and surrounded with various symbols, the sun and moon above, the star and the pentacle below, and under the feet a human skull.1 The chains are explained by Von Hammer as representing the chains of æons of the Gnostics. On the four sides of the coffer we see a series of figures engaged in the performance of various ceremonies, which are not easily explained, but which Von Hammer considers as belonging to the rites of the Gnostics and Ophians. The offering of a calf figures prominently among these 1 See our plate XXXVIII. 200 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE rites, a worship which is said still to exist among the Nossarii, or Nessarenes, the Druses, and other sects in the East. In the middle of the scene on one side, a human skull is seen, raised upon a pole. On another side an androgynous figure is represented as the object of worship of two candidates for initiation, who wear masks apparently of a cat, and whose form of adoration reminds us of the kiss enacted at the initiation of the templars.1 This group reminds us, too, of the pictures of the orgies in the worship of Priapus, as represented on Roman monuments. The second of the coffers in the cabinet of the duc de Blacas was found in Tuscany, and is rather larger than the one just described, but made of the same material, though of a finer grain. The lid of this coffer is lost, but the sides are covered with sculpture of a similar character. A large goblet, or bowl, of marble, in the imperial museum at Vienna, is surrounded by a series of figures of similar character, which are engraved by Von Hammer, who sees in one group of men (who are furnished in the original with prominent phalli) and serpents, a direct allusion to Ophite rites. Next after these comes a group which we have reproduced in our plate,2 representing a strange figure seated upon an eagle, and accompanied with two of the symbols represented on the coffer found in Burgundy, the sun and moon. The two symbols below are considered by Von Hammer to represent, according to the rude mediæval notions of its form, the womb, or matrix; the fecundating organ is penetrating the one, while the infant is emerging from the other. The last figure in this series, which we have also copied,3 is identical with that on the lid of the coffer found in Burgundy, but it is distinctly represented as androgynous. We have exactly the same figure on another coffer, in the Vienna museum,4 with some of the same symbols, the star, pentacle, 1 Plate XXXIX, Fig. 1. 2 Plate XXXIX, Fig. 2. 3 Plate XXXIX, Fig. 3. 4 Plate XXXIX, Fig. 4. GENERATIVE POWERS 201 and human skull. Perhaps, in this last, the beard is intended to show that the figure must be taken as androgynous. On an impartial comparison we can hardly doubt that these curious objects,—images, coffers, cups, and bowls,—have been intended for use in some secret and mysterious rites, and the arguments by which Von Hammer attempts to show that they belonged to the templars seem at least to be very plausible. Several of the objects represented upon them, even the skull, are alluded to in some of the confessions of the templars, and these evidently only confessed a part of what they knew, or otherwise they were very imperfectly acquainted with the secrets of their order. Perhaps the most secret doctrines and rites were only communicated fully to a small number. There is, however, another circumstance connected with these objects which appears to furnish an almost irresistible confirmation of Von Hammer's theory. Most of them bear inscriptions, written in Arabic, Greek, and Roman characters. The inscriptions on the images appear to be merely proper names, probably those of their possessors. But with the coffers and bowls the case is different, for they contain a nearly uniform inscription in Arabic characters, which, according to the interpretation given by Von Hammer, contains a religious formula. The Arabic characters, he says, have been copied by a European, and not very skilful, carver, who did not understand them, from an Eastern original, and the inscriptions contain corruptions and errors which either arose from this circumstance, or, as Von Hammer suggests, may have been introduced designedly, for the purpose of concealing the meaning from the uninitiated. A good example of this inscription surrounds the lid of the coffer found in Burgundy, and is interpreted as follows by Von Hammer, who regards it as a sort of parody on the Cantate laudes Domini. In fact, the word under the feet of the figure, between them and the skull, is nothing more than the Latin cantate expressed in Arabic letters. The words with 202 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE which this Cantate begins are written above the head of the figure, and are read by Von Hammer as Fah la Sidna, which is more correctly Fella Sidna, i. e. O God, our Lord! The formula itself, to which this is an introduction, commences on the right side, and the first part of it reads Houvè Mete Zonar feseba (or sebaa) B. Mounkir teaala tiz. There is no such word in Arabic as mete, and Von Hammer considers it to be simply the Greek word mti£j, wisdom, a personification in what we may perhaps call the Gnostic mythology answering to the Sophia of the Ophianites. He considers that the name Baphomet is derived from the Greek words Bafæ mªteoj, i. e. the baptism of Metis, and that in its application it is equivalent with the name Mete itself. He has further shown, we think conclusively, that Baphomet, instead of being a corruption of Mahomet, was a name known among the Gnostic sects in the East. Zonar is not an Arabic word, and is perhaps only a corruption or error of the sculptor, but Von Hammer thought it meant a girdle, and that it alluded to the mysterious girdle of the templars, of which so much is said in their examinations. The letter B is supposed by Von Hammer to stand here for the name Baphomet, or for that of Barbalo, one of the most important personages in the Gnostic mythology. Mounkir is the Arabic word for a person who denies the orthodox faith. The rest of the formula is given on the other side of the figure, but as the inscription here presents several corruptions, we will give Von Hammer's translation (in Latin) of the more correct copy of the formula inscribed on the bowl or goblet preserved in the museum at Vienna. In the Vienna bowl, the formula of faith is written on a sort of large placard, which is held up to view by a figure apparently intended for another representation of Mete or Baphomet. Von Hammer translates it:-- “Exaltetur Mete germinans, stirps nostra ego et septem fuere, tu renegans reditus èrwkt’j fis.” GENERATIVE POWERS 203 This still is, it must be confessed, rather mysterious, and, in fact, most of these copies of the formula of faith are more or less defective, but, from a comparison of them, the general form and meaning of the whole is made perfectly clear. This may be translated, “Let Mete be exalted, who causes things to bud and blossom! he is our root; it (the root) is one and seven; abjure (the faith), and abandon thyself to all pleasures.” The number seven is said to refer to the seven archons of the Gnostic creed. There are certainly several points in this formula which present at least a singular coincidence with the statements made in the examinations of the templars. In the first place the invocation which precedes the formula, Yalla (Jah la), agrees exactly with the statement of Raymond Rubei, one of the Provencal templars that when the superior exhibited the idol, or figure of Baphomet, he kissed it and exclaimed “Yalla!” which he calls “a word of the Saracens,” i. e. Arabic.1 It is evident that, in this case, the witness not only knew the word, but that he knew to what language it belonged. Again, the epithet germinans, applied to Mete, or Baphomet, is in accord with the statement in the formal list of articles of accusation against the templars, that they worshipped their idol because “it made the trees to flourish and the earth to germinate.”2 The abjuration of the formula on the monuments seems to be identical with the denial in the initiation of novices to the order of the Temple; and it may be added, that the closing words of the formula involve in the original an idea more obscene than is expressed in the translation, an allusion to the unnatural vice in which the templars are stated to have received permission to indulge. There is another curious statement in the examinations which seems to point directly to our 1 Du Puy, Hist. des Templiers, p. 94. 2 Item, quod facit arbores florere. Item, quod terram germinare. Michelet, Procès des Templiers, i, 92. 204 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE images and coffers—one of the English witnesses under examination, named John de Donington, who had left the order and become a friar at Salisbury, said that an old templar had assured him that “some templars carried such idols in their coffers.”1 They seem to have been treasured up for the same reason as the mandrake, for one article in the articles against the templars is that they worshipped their idol because “it could make them rich, and that it had brought all their great wealth to the order.”2 The two other classes of what the Baron Von Hammer supposed to be relics of the secret worship of the templars, appear to us to be much less satisfactorily explained. These are sculptures on old churches, and coins or medals. Such sculptures are found, according to Von Hammer, on the churches of Schˆngraber, Waltendorf, and Bercktoldorf, in Austria; in that of Deutschaltenburg, and in the ruins of that of Postyén, in Hungary; and in those of Murau, Prague, and Egra, in Bohemia. To these examples we are to add the sculptures of the church of Montmorillon, in Poitou, some of which have been engraved by Montfaucon,3 and those of the church of Ste. Croix, in Bordeaux. We have already4 remarked the rather frequent prevalence of subjects more or less obscene in the sculptures which ornament early churches, and suggested that they may be explained in some degree by the tone given to society by the existence of this priapic worship; but we are not inclined to agree with Von Hammer's explanation of them, or to think that they have any connection with the templars. We can easily understand the existence of such direct allusions on coffers or 1 Item dixit idem veteranus eidem fratri jurato, quod aliqui templarii portant talia idola in coffris suis. Wilkins, Concilia, ii, 363. 2 Item, quod divites facere. Item, quod omnes divitias ordinis dabat eis. Michelet, Procès, i. 92, 3 Montfaucon, Antiquité Expliquées, Suppl. tom. ii, plate 59. 4 See before, p. 198. [prob. error for 138 ñ T.S.] GENERATIVE POWERS 205 other objects intended to be concealed, or at least kept in private; but it is hardly probable that men who held opinions and practised rites the very rumour of which was then so full of danger, would proclaim them publicly on the walls of their buildings, for the wall of a church was then, perhaps, the most effectual medium of publication. The question of the supposed templar medals is very obscure. Von Hammer has engraved a certain number of these objects, which present various singular subjects on the obverse, sometimes with a cross on the reverse, and sometimes bracteate. Antiquaries have given the name of abbey tokens to a rather numerous class of such medals, the use of which is still very uncertain, although there appears to be little doubt of its being of a religious character. Some have supposed that they were distributed to those who attended at certain sacraments or rites of the Church, who could thus, when called up, prove by the number of their tokens, the greater or less regularity of their attendance. Whether this were the case or not, it is certain that the burlesque and other societies of the middle ages, such as the feast of fools, parodied these “tokens,” and had burlesque medals, in lead and sometimes in other metals, which were perhaps used for a similar purpose. We have already spoken more than once of obscene medals, and have engraved specimens of them, which were perhaps used in secret societies derived from, or founded upon, the ancient phallic worship. It is not at all improbable that the templars may have employed similar medals, and that those would contain allusions to the rites in which they were employed. The medals published by Von Hammer are said to have been found chiefly on the sites of settlements of the order of the Temple. However, the comparison of facts stated in the confessions of many of the templars, as preserved in the official reports, with the images and sculptured cups and coffers given by Von Hammer-Pürgstall, lead to the conclusion that there is truth in the explanation he gives of the 206 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE latter, and that the templars, or at least some of them, had secretly adopted a form of the rites of Gnosticism, which was itself founded upon the phallic worship of the ancients. An English templar, Stephen de Staplebridge, acknowledged that “there were two ëprofessions’ in the order of the Temple, the first lawful and good, the second contrary to the faith.”1 He had been admitted to the first of these when he first entered the order, eleven years before the time of his examination, but he was only initiated into the second or inner mysteries about a year afterwards; and he gives almost a picturesque description of this second initiation, which occurred in a chapter held at “Dineslee” in Herefordshire. Another English templar, Thomas de Tocci, said that the errors had been brought into England by a French knight of high position in the order.2

We have thus seen in how many various forms the old phallic, or priapic, worship presented itself in the middle ages, and how pertinaciously it held its ground through all the changes and developments of society, until at length we find all the circumstances of the ancient priapic orgies, as well as the mediæval additions, combined in that great and extensive superstition—witchcraft. At all times the initiated were believed to have obtained thereby powers which were not possessed by the uninitiated, and they only were supposed to know the proper forms of invocation of the deities who were the objects of their worship, which deities the Christian teachers invariably transformed into devils. The vows which the people of antiquity addressed to Priapus, those of the middle ages addressed to Satan. The witches’ “Sabbath” was simply the last form which the Priapeia and Liberalia assumed in Western Europe, and 1 Quod duæ sunt professiones in ordine templi, prima licita et bona, et secunda est contra fidem. Wilkins, Concilia, ii, 383. 2 Wilkins, Concil, ii, 387. GENERATIVE POWERS 207 in its various details all the incidents of those great and licentious orgies of the Romans were reproduced. The Sabbath of the witches does not appear to have formed a part of the Teutonic mythology, but we can trace it from the South through the countries in which the Roman element of society predominated. The incidents of the Sabbath are distinctly traced in Italy as early as the beginning of the fifteenth century, and soon afterwards they are found in the south of France. Towards the middle of that century an individual named Robinet de Vaulx, who had lived the life of a hermit in Burgundy, was arrested, brought to a trial at Langres, and burnt. This man was a native of Artois; he stated that to his knowledge there were a great number of witches in that province, and he not only confessed that he had attended these nocturnal assemblies of the witches, but he gave the names of some inhabitants of Arras whom he had met there. At this time—it was in the year 1459—the chapter general of the Jacobins, or friars preachers, was held at Langres, and among those who attended it was a Jacobin friar named Pierre de Broussart, who held the office of inquisitor of the faith in the city of Arras, and who eagerly listened to the circumstances of Robinet’s confession. Among the names mentioned by him as having been present at the witches’ meetings, were those of a prostitute named Demiselle, then living at Douai, and a man named Jehan Levite, but who was better known by the nickname of Abbé de peu de sens (the abbot of little sense). On Broussart's return to Arras, he caused both these persons to be arrested and brought to that city, where they were thrown into prison. The latter, who was a painter, and a composer and singer of popular songs, had left Arras before Robinet de Vaulx had made his confession, but he was traced to Abbeville, in Ponthieu, and captured there. Confessions were extorted from these persons which compromised others, and a number of individuals were committed to prison in consequence. In the sequel a certain number of them were burnt, 208 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE after they had been induced to unite in a statement to the following effect. At this time, in this part of France at least, the term Vauderie, or, as it was then written, Vaulderie, was applied to the practice or profession of witchcraft. They said that the place of meeting was commonly a fountain in the wood of Mofflaines, about a league distant from Arras, and that they sometimes went thither on foot. The more usual way of proceeding, however, according to their own account, was this—they took an ointment given to them by the devil, with which they annointed a wooden rod, at the same time rubbing the palms of their hands with it, and then, placing the rod between their legs, they were suddenly carried through the air to the place of assembly. They found there a multitude of people, of both sexes, and of all estates and ranks, even wealthy burghers and nobles—and one of the persons examined declared that he had seen there not only ordinary ecclesiastics, but bishops and even cardinals. They found tables already spread, covered with all sorts of meats, and abundance of wines. A devil presided, usually in the form of a goat, with the tail of an ape, and a human countenance. Each first did oblation and homage to him by offering him his or her soul, or, at least some part of their body, and then, as a mark of adoration, kissed him on the posteriors. All this time the worshippers held burning torches in their hands. The abbot of little sense, already mentioned, held the office of master of the ceremonies at these meetings, and it was his duty to see that the new-comers duly performed their homage. After this they trampled on the cross, and spit upon it, in despite of Jesus and of the Holy Trinity, and performed other profane acts. They then seated themselves at the tables, and after they had eaten and drunk sufficiently, they rose and joined in a scene of promiscuous intercourse between the sexes, in which the demon took part, assuming alternately the form of either sex, according to that of his temporary partner. Other GENERATIVE POWERS 209 wicked acts followed, and then the devil preached to them, and enjoined them especially not to go to church, or hear mass, or touch holy water, or perform any other of the duties of good Christians. After this sermon was ended, the meeting was dissolved, and they separated and returned to their several homes.1

The violence of these witch persecutions at Arras led to a reaction, which, however, was not lasting, and from this time to the end of the century, the fear of witchcraft spread over Italy, France, and Germany, and went on increasing in intensity. It was during this period that witchcraft, in the hands of the more zealous inquisitors, was gradually worked up into a great system, and books of considerable extent were compiled, containing accounts of the various practices of the witches, and directions for proceeding against them. One of the earliest of these writers was a Swiss friar, named John Nider, who held the office of inquisitor in Switzerland, and has devoted one book of his Formicarium to witchcraft as it existed in that country. He makes no allusion to the witches’ Sabbath, which, therefore, appears then not to have been known among the Swiss. Early in 1489, Ulric Molitor published a treatise on the same subject, under the title of De Pythonicis Mulieribus, and in the same year, 1489, appeared the celebrated book, the Malleus Maleficarum, or Hammer of Witches, the work of the three inquisitors for Germany, the chief of whom was Jacob Sprenger. This work gives us a complete and very interesting account of witchcraft as it then existed as an article of belief in Germany. The authors discuss various questions connected with it, such as that of the mysterious transport of witches from one place to another, and they decide that this transport was real, and that they were carried bodily through the air. It is remarkable, how1 The account of the witch-trials at Arras was published in the supplementary additions to Mostrelet; but the original records of the proceedings have since been found and printed. 210 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE ever, that even the Malleus Maleficarum contains no direct allusion to the Sabbath, and we may conclude that even then this great priapic orgie did not form a part of the Germanic creed; it was no doubt brought in there amid the witchcraft mania of the sixteenth century. From the time of the publication of the Malleus Maleficarum until the beginning of the seventeenth century, through all parts of Western Europe, the number of books upon sorcery which issued from the press was immense; and we must not forget that a monarch of our own, King James I, shone among the writers on witchcraft. Three quarters of a century nearly had passed since the time of the Malleus, when a Frenchman named Bodin, Latinised into Bodinus, published a rather bulky treatise which became from that time the text-book on witchcraft. The Sabbath is described in this book in all its completeness. It was usually held in a lonely place, and when possible on the summits of mountains or in the solitude of forests. When the witch prepared to attend it, she went to her bedroom, stripped herself naked, and anointed her body with an ointment made for that purpose. She next took a staff, which also in many cases she anointed, and placing it between her legs and uttering a charm, she was carried through the air, in an incredibly short space of time, to the place of meeting. Bodin discusses learnedly the question whether the witches were really carried through the air corporeally or not, he decides it in the affirmative. The Sabbath itself was a great assemblage of witches, of both sexes, and of demons. It was a point of emulation with the visitors to bring new converts with them, and on their arrival they presented these to the demon who presided, and to whom they offered their adoration by the unclean kiss upon his posteriors. They next rendered an account of all the mischief they had perpetrated since the previous meeting, and received reward or reproof according to its amount. The devil, who usually took the form GENERATIVE POWERS 211 of a goat, next distributed among them powders, unguents, and other articles to be employed in similar evil doings in future. The worshippers now made offerings to the devil, consisting of sheep, or other articles, or, in some cases, of a little bird only, or of a lock of the witches' hair, or of some other equally trifling object. They were then obliged to seal their denial of the Christian faith by trampling on the cross and blaspheming the saints. The devil then, or in the course of the meeting, had sexual intercourse with the new witch, placed his mark upon some concealed part of her body, very commonly in her sexual parts, and gave her a familiar or imp, who was to be at her bidding and assist in the perpetration of evil. All this was what may be called the business of the meeting, and when it was over, they all went to a great banquet, which was set out on tables, and which sometimes consisted of sumptuous viands, but more frequently of loathsome or unsubstantial food, so that the guests often left the meeting as hungry as though they had tasted nothing. After the feast they all rose from the table to dance, and a scene of wild and uproarious revelry followed. The usual dance on this occasion appears to have been the carole of the middle ages, which was no doubt the common dance of the peasantry; a party, alternately a male and a female, held each other’s hands in a circle, with this peculiarity that, whereas in ordinary life the dancers turned their faces inward into the circle, here they turned them outwards, so that their backs were towards the interior of the circle. It was pretended that this arrangement was designed to prevent them from seeing and recognizing each other; but others supposed that it was a mere caprice of the evil one, who wished to do everything in a form contrary to that in which it was usually done by Christians. Other dances were introduced, of a more violent, and some of them of an obscene, character. The songs, too, which were sung in this orgie were either obscene or vulgarly ridiculous. The music was often drawn from burlesque 212 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE instruments, such as a stick or a bone for a flute, a horse's skull for a lyre, the trunk of a tree for a drum, and a branch for a trumpet. As they became excited, they became more licentious, and at last they abandoned themselves to indiscriminate sexual intercourse, in which the demons played a very active part. The meeting separated in time to allow the witches, by the same expeditious conveyance which brought them, to reach their homes before the cock crowed.1

Such is the account of the Sabbath, as described by Bodin; but we have reviewed it briefly in order to describe this strange scene from the much fuller and more curious narrative of another Frenchman, Pierre de Lancre. This man was a conseiller du roi, or judge in the parliament of Bordeaux, and was joined in 1609 with one of his colleagues in a commission to proceed against persons accused of sorcery in Labourd, a district in the Basque provinces, then celebrated for its witches, and apparently for the low state of morality among its inhabitants. It is a wild, and, in many parts, desolate region, the inhabitants of which held to their ancient superstitions with great tenacity. De Lancre, after arguing learnedly on the nature and character of demons, discusses the question why there were so many of them in the country of Labourd, and why the inhabitants of that district were so much addicted to sorcery. The women of the country, he says, were naturally of a lascivious temperament, which was shown even in their manner of dressing, for he describes their headdress as being singularly indecent, and describes them as commonly exposing their person very immodestly.2

He adds, that the principal produce of this country consisted of 1 The first edition of the work of Bodin, De la Dèmonomaine des Sorciers, was published at Paris, in 4to, in 1580. It went through many editions, and was trans-lated into Latin and other languages. 2 Et pour le commun des femmes, en quelques lieux, voulant faire les martiales, elles portent certains tourions ou morrions indécens, et d’une forme si peu séante, GENERATIVE POWERS 213 apples, and argues thence, it is not very apparent why, that the women partook of the character of Eve, and yielded more easily to temptation than those of other countries. After having spent four months in dealing out rather severely what was then called “justice” to these ignorant people, the two commissioners returned to Bordeaux, and there De Lancre, deeply struck with what he had seen and heard, betook himself to the study of witchcraft, and in due time produced his great work on the subject, to which he gave the title of Tableau de l’Inconstance des Mauvais Anges et Démons.1

Pierre de Lancre writes honestly and conscientiously, and he evidently believes everything he has written. His book is valuable for the great amount of new information it contains, derived from the confessions of the witches, and given apparently in their own words. The second book is devoted entirely to the details of the Sabbath. It was stated by the witches in their examinations that, in times back, they had appointed Monday to be the day, or rather night, of assembly, but that in their time they had two nights of meeting in the week, those of Wednesday and Friday. Although some stated that they had been carried to the place of meeting in the middle of the day, they mostly agreed in saying that the hour at which they were carried to the Sabbath was midnight. The place of assembly was usually chosen at a spot where roads crossed, but this was not always the case, for De Lancre2 tells us that they were

qu’on diroit que c’est plustost l’armet de Priape que celuy du dieu Mars; leur coeffre semble tesmoigner leur désir, car les veusves porent le morrion san creste pour marquer que le masle leur deffault. Et en Labourt les femmes monstrent leur derrière tellement que tout l’ornement de leur cotillons plissez est derrière, et afin qu’il foit veu elles retroussent leur robbe et la mettent fur la teste et se couvrent jus-qu’aux yeux. De Lancre, Inconstance des Démons, p. 40. 1 4to. Paris, 1612. A new and improved edition appeared in 1613. 2 Il a aussi accoustumé les tenir en quelque lieu désert et sauvage, comme au mileu 214 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE accustomed to hold their Sabbath in some lonely and wild locality, as in the middle of a heath, which was selected especially for being far from the haunts or habitations of man. To this place, he says, they gave the name of Aquelarre, which he interprets as meaning Lane de Bouc, that is, the heath of the goat, meaning that it was the place where the goat, the usual form assumed by Satan, convoked his assemblies. And he goes on to express his opinion that these wild places were the original scenes of the Sabbath, though subsequently other places had been often adopted. “For we have heard more than fifty witnesses who assured us that they had been at the Goat’s Heath to the Sabbath held on the mountain of La Rhune, sometimes on the open mountain, sometimes in the chapel of the St. Esprit, which is on the top of it, and sometimes in the church of Dordach, which is on the borders of Labourd. At times they held it in private houses, as when we held the trial, in the parish of St. Pé, the Sabbath was held one night in our hotel, called Barbare-nena, and in that of Master —— de Segure, assessor-criminal at Bayonne, who, at the same time

d’une land; et encore en lieu du tout hors de passage, de voisingage, d’habitation, et de recontre: et communement ils l’appellent Aquelarre, qui signfie Lane de Bouc, comme qui dirait la lane ou lande o˙ le Boue convoque ses assemblées. Et de saict les sorciers qui confessent, nomment le lieu pour la chose, et la chose ou l’assemblée pour le lieu: tellement qu’encore que proprement Lane de Bouc, soit le Sabbat qui se tient ès landes, si est-ce qu’ils appellent aussi bien Lane de Bouc le Sabbath qui se tient ès eglises et ès places des villes, parroisses, maisons, et autres lieux: parce qu’‡ mon advis les premiers lieux qui furent descouverts, o˙ les dictes assemblées se faisoyent, furent ès lands, pour la commodité du lieu. Et d’autant qu’on y voit le plus de ces boues, chèvres, et autres animaux semblables. Car nous avons ouy plus de cinquante tsmoins qui nous ont asseuré avoir esté ‡ la Lane de Bouc. au Sabbat sur la montagne de la Rhune, parfois a l’entour, parfois dans la chapelle mesme du S. Esprit qui est au dessus, et parfois dans l’église de Dordach, qui est sur les lisières de Labourt: parfois ès maisons particulières, comme quand nous leur saisons le procès en la parroisse de Sainct-Pé, le Sabbat se tint une nuict dans nostre hostel, appellé de Barbare-nena, et en celuy de Maistre —— de Seguare, assesseur GENERATIVE POWERS 215 when we were there, made a more ample inquisition against certain witches, by an authority of an arrest of the parliament of Bordeaux. Then they went the same night to hold it at the residence of the lord of the place, who is Sieur d'Amou, and in his castle of St. Pé. But we have not found in the whole country of Labourd any other parish but that of St. Pé where the devil held the Sabbath in private houses.” The devil is further described as seeking for his places of meeting, besides the heaths, old decayed houses, and ruins of old castles, especially when they were situated on the summits of mountains. An old cemetery was sometimes selected, where, as De Lancre quaintly observes, there were “no houses but the houses of the dead,” especially if it were in a solitary situation, as when attached to solitary churches and chapels, in the middle of the heaths, or on the tops of cliffs on the sea shore, such as the chapel of the Portuguese at St. Jean de Luz, called St. Barbe, situated so high that it serves as a landmark to the ships approaching the coast, or on a high mountain, as La Rhune in Labourd, and the Puy de Dome in Perigord, and other such places. criminel ‡ Bayonne, lequel faisoit en mesme tempes que nous y estions une plus ample inquisition contre certains sorcières, en vertu d’un arrest de la Cour de Parlement de Bourdeaux. Puis s’en allerent en mesme nuict le tenir chez le feigneur du lieu, qui est le Sr. d’Amou, et en fon chasteau de Sainct-Pé. Et n’avons trouvé en tout le pays de Labourt aucune autre parroisse que celle de Sainct-Pém o˙ le Diable tint le Sabbat ès maisons particulières. Il cherche aussi parfois, outres les landes, de vieilles mazures et ruines de vieux chasteaux, assiz sur les coupeaux des montagnes; parfois d’autres lieux solitaires, o˙, pour toutes maisons, il n’y a que des maisons des morts, qui sont les cimetières, et encore les plus escartez, comme près des églises ou chappelles seules, ou plantées au milieu d’une lande ou désert, ou sur une haute coste de la mer, comme le chappelle des Portugais ‡ Sainct Jean de Luz appellée de Sainct Barbe, si haut montée qu’elle fert d’échaugete ou de phare pour les vaisseaux qui s’en approchent, ou sur une haute montagne, comme la Rhune en Labourt et le Puy de Dome en Perigort, et autres lieux semblables. Tableau de l’Inconstance, p. 65. 216 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE At these meetings, sometimes, but rarely, Satan was absent, in which case a little devil took his place. De Lancre1 enumerates the various forms which the devil usually assumed on these occasions, with the remark that these forms were as numerous as “his movements were inconstant, full of uncertainty, illusion, deception, and imposture.” Some of the witches he examined, among whom was a girl of thirteen years of age, named Marie d’Aguerre, said that at these assemblies there appeared a great pitcher or jug in the middle of the Sabbath, and that out of it the devil issued in the form of a goat, which suddenly became so large that it was “frightful,” and that at the end of the Sabbath he returned into the pitcher. Others described him as being like the great trunk of a tree, without arms or feet, seated in a chair, with the face of a great and frightful looking man. Others spoke of him as resembling a great goat, with two horns before and two behind, those before turned up in the semblance of a woman's perruque. According to the most common account, De Lancre says he had three horns, the one in the middle giving out a flame, with which he used at the Sabbath to give both light and fire to the 1 Reste maintenant, puis qu’il a comparu, d’en sçavoir la forme, et en quel estat il a accoustumé de se représenter et faire voire esdictes assemblées. Il n’a point de forme constante, toutes ses actions n’estans que mouvements inconstans plien d’incertitude, d’illusion, de déception, et d’imposture. Marie d’Aguerre aagée de treize ans, et quelques autres, déposoient, qu’esdictes assemblées il y a une grande cruche au milieu du Sabbat d’o˘ fort le Diable en forme de boue: qu’estant sorty il devient si grand qu’il se rend espouvantable: et que le Sabbat finy il rentre dans la cruche. D’autres disent qu’il est comme un grand tronc d’arbre obseur sans bras et sans pieds, assis dans une chaire, ayant quelque forme de visage d’homme, grand et affreux. D’autres qu’il est comme un grand boue, ayant deux cornes devant et deux en derrière: que celle de devant se rebrassent en haut comme la perruque d’une femme. Mais le commun est qu’il a seulment trois cornes, et qu’il a quelque espèce de lumière en celle du milieu, de laquelle il a accoustemé au Sabbat d’esclairer et donner du feu et de la lumière, mesme ‡ ces sorcières, qui tiennent quelques chandelles GENERATIVE POWERS 217 witches, some of whom who had candles lit them at his horn, in order to hold them at a mock service of the mass, which was one of the devil’s ceremonies. He had also, sometimes, a kind of cap or hat over his horns. “He has before him his member hanging out, which he exhibits always a cubit in length; and he has a great tail behind, with a form of a face under it, with which face he does not utter a word, but it serves only to offer to kiss to those he likes, honouring certain witches of either sex more than the others.” The devil, it will be observed, is here represented with the symbol of Priapus. Marie d’Aspilecute, aged nineteen years, who lived at Handaye, deposed that the first time she was presented to the devil she kissed him on this face behind, beneath a great tail, and that she repeated the kiss three times, adding that this face was made like the muzzle of a goat. Others said that he was shaped like a great man, “enveloped in a cloudiness, because he would not be seen clearly,” and that he was all “flamboyant,” and had a face red like an iron coming out of the furnace. Corneille Brolic, a lad of twelve years of age, said that when he was first introduced to him he had the human form, with four horns on his head, and without

alumées aux cérémonies de la messe qu’ils voulent contrefaire. On luy voit aussi quelque espèce de bonet ou chapeau au dessus de ses cornes. Il a au devant son membre tiré et pendant, et le monstre tousjours long d’une coudée, et une grande queuÎ au derrière. et une forme de visage au dessoubs: duquel visage il ne profere aucune parole, ains luy fert pour le donner ‡ baiser ‡ ceux que bon luy semble, honrant certains sorciers ou sorcières plus les uns que les autres. Marie d’Aspilecute, habitante de Handaye, aagée de 19 ans, dépose, Que la première fpos qu’elle luy sut présentée elle le baisa ‡ ce visage de derrière au dessoubs d’une grande queuÎ: qu’elle l’y a baisé par trois fois, et qu’il avoit aussi ce visage faict comme le museau d’un boue. D’autres disent qu’il est en forme d’un grand homme vestu ténébreusement, et qui ne veut estre veu clairement, si bien qu’ils disent qu’il est tout flamboyant, et le visage rouge comme un fer sortant de la fournaise. Corneille Brolic aagé de 12 ans, dict, Que lorsqu’il luy sut présenté il estoit en forme d’homme, ayant quatre cornes en la teste, et sans bras, at assis dans une chaire, avec 218 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE arms. He was seated in a pulpit, with some of the women, who were his favourites, always near him. “And they are all agreed that it is a great pulpit, which seems to be gilt and very pompous.” Janette d’Abadie, of Siboro, sixteen years old, said that Satan had a face before and another behind his head, as they represent the god Janus. De Lancre had also heard him described as a great black dog, as a large ox of brass lying down, and as a natural ox in repose. Although it was stated that in former times the devil had usually appeared in the form of a serpent,—another coincidence with the priapic worship,—it appears certain that in the time of De Lanere his favourite form of showing himself was that of a goat. At the opening of the Sabbath the witches, male or female, presented formally to the devil those who had never been at the Sabbath before, and the women especially brought to him the children whom they allured to him. The new converts, the novices, were made to renounce Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the saints, and they were then re-baptized with mock ceremonies. They next performed their worship to the devil by kissing him on the face under the tail, or otherwise. The young children were taken to the edge of a stream —for the scene was generally chosen on the banks of a stream— and white wands were placed in their hands, and they were entrusted with the care of the toads which were kept there, and which were of importance in the subsequent operations of the witches. The renunciation was frequently renewed, and in some cases it was required

quelques femmes de ses favorites tousjours près de luy. Et tous sont d’accord que c’est une grande chaire qui semble dorée et fort pompeuse. Janette d’Abadie de Siboro, aagée de 16 ans, dit qu’il avoit un visage devant, et un visage derrière la teste, comme on peint le dieu Janus. J’ai veu quelque procédure, estant ‡ la Tournelle, qui le peignoit au Sabbat comme un grand levrier noir: parfois comme un grand boeuf d’airain couché ‡ terre, comme un boeuf naturel qui se repose. Tableau de l’Inconstance, p. 67. GENERATIVE POWERS 219 every time the witch attended the Sabbath. Janette d’Abadie, a girl of sixteen, said that he made her repeatedly go through the ceremony of kissing him on the face, and afterwards on the navel, then on the virile member, and then on the posteriors.1 After rebaptism, he put his mark on the body of his victim, in some covered part where it was not likely to be seen. In women it was often placed on or within the sexual parts. De Lancre’s account of the proceedings at the Sabbath is very full and curious.2 He says that it “resembled a fair of merchants mingled together, furious and in transports, arriving from all parts—a meeting and mingling of a hundred thousand subjects, sudden and transitory, novel, it is true, but of a frightful novelty, which offends the eye and sickens you. Among these same subjects some are real, and others deceitful and illusory. Some are pleasing (but very little), as are the little bells and melodious instruments of all sorts, which only tickle the ear and do not touch the heart at all, consisting more in noise which amazes and stuns than in harmony which pleases and rejoices, the others displeasing, full of deformity and horror, tending only to desolation, privation, ruin, and destruction, where the persons become brutish and transformed to beasts, losing their speech while they are in this condition, and the beasts, on the contrary, talk, 1 Sur qouy elle adjouste une chose notable, que bien souvent il luy faisoit baiser son visage, puis le nombril, puis le membre viril, puis son derrière. De Lancre, De l’Inconstance, p. 72. 2 Le Sabbat est comme une foire de marchands meslez, furieux et transportez, qui arrivent de toutes partes, un rencontre et meslange de cent mille subjects soudains et transitoires, nouveaux ‡ la vérité, mais d#une nouveauté effroyable qui offence l’oeil et soubsleve le coeur. Parmy ces mesmes subjects il s’en voit de réels, et d’autres prestigieux et illusiores: aucuns plaisans (mais fort peu), comme sont les clochettes et instrumens mélodieux qu’on y entend de toutes sortes, qui ne chatouillent que l’oreille, et ne touchent rien au coeur; consistant plus en bruit qui estourdit et estonne, qu’en harmoine qui plaise et qui resjouisse; les autres déplainans, pleins de difformité et d’horreur, ne tendant qu’‡ dissolution, privation, ruine, et destruction, o˘ les per- 220 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE and seem to have more reason than the persons, each being drawn out of his natural character.” The women, according to De Lancre, were the active agents in all this confusion, and had more employment than the men. They rushed about with their hair hanging loose, and their bodies naked; some rubbed with the magical ointment, others not. They arrived at the Sabbath, or went from it, on their errands of mischief, perched on a stick or besom, or carried upon a goat or other animal, with an infant or two behind, and guided or driven on by the devil himself. “And when Satan will transport them into the air (which is an indulgence only to the most superior), he sets them off and launches them up like fired rockets, and they repair to and dart down upon the said place a hundred times more rapidly than an eagle or a kite could dart upon its prey.” These women, on their arrival, reported to Satan all the mischief they had perpetrated. Poison, of all kinds and for all purposes, was there the article most in vogue. Toads were said to form one of its ingredients, and the charge of these animals, while alive, was

sonnes s’y abbrutissent et transforment en bestes, perdant la parole tant qu’elle sont ainsi. Et les bestes au contraite y parlent, et semblent avoir plus de raison que les personnes, chacun estant tiré hors son naturel. Les courriers ordinaires du sabbat sont les femmes, les mystères duquel passent par leurs mains, [plus] que par celle des hommes. Or elles volent et courent eschevelées comme furies ‡ la mode du pays, ayant la teste si legère, qu’elles n’y peuvent souffrir couverture. On les y voit nues, ore graissées, ores non. Elles arrivent ou partent (car chacune a quelque insaute et meschante commission) perchées sur un baston ou balay, ou portées sur un boue ou autre animal, un pauvre enfant ou deux en croupe, ayant le diable ores au devant pour guide, ores en derrière et en queue comme un rude foüteur. Et lorsque Sathan les veut transporter en l’air (ce qui n’est encor donné qu’aux plus suffisantes), il les effore et eslance comme fusées bruiantes, et en la descente elles se rendent audit lieu et fondent bas, cent fois plus voste qu’un aigle ou un milan ne sçauroit fondre sur sa proye. Ces furieuses courrières ne portent jamais qui finistres nouvelles, mais vrayes, car elles ne contiennent que l’histoire vérotable des maux qu’elles ont faict. Le poison, GENERATIVE POWERS 221 given to the children whom the witches brought with them to the Sabbath, and to whom, as a sort of ensign of office, little white rods were given, “just such as they give to persons infected with the plague as a mark of their contagion.” The devil was the sovereign master of the assembly, and appeared at it sometimes in the form of a stinking and bearded goat, as one, De Lancre says, which was especially repulsive to mankind. The goat, we know, was dedicated to Priapus. Sometimes he assumed a form, if we clearly understand De Lancre, which presented a confused idea of something between a tree and a man, which is compared, for he becomes rather poetical, to the old decayed cypresses on the summit of a high mountain, or to aged oaks whose heads already bear the marks of approaching decay. When the devil appeared in human form, that form was horribly ugly and repulsive, with a hoarse voice and an imperious manner. He was seated in a pulpit, which glittered like gold; and at his

de toutes sortes et ‡ toutes usages, est la plus précieuse denrée de ce lieu. Les enfans sont les bergers, qui gardent chacun la bergerie des crapaux, que chaque sorcière qui les mene au sabbat leur baillé ‡ garder, ayant chacun une gaule blance en main; telle qu’on baille aux pestiferez pour marque de leur contagion. Le diable, maistre souverain de l’assemblée, s’y représente parfois en bouc puant et barbu: la plus horrible et orde figure qu’il a peu emprunter parmy tous animaux, et celuy avec lequel l’homme a le moins de commerce. Il s’y trouve et s’y void comme sont ces vieux cyprès surannez ‡ la cime d’une haute montagne, ou ces chesnes chauves que la vieillesse faict commencer ‡ secher par la teste, vrayment trone, car il y paroist escartellé, et comme estropiat, et sans bras, et en figure d’un géant ténébreux et object fort reculé. Que s’il y paroist en homme, c’est en homme gehenné, tourmenté, rouge et flamboyant comme un feu qui sort d’une fournaise ardente. Homme effacé, duquel la forme ne paroist qu’a demy, avec une voice cassé, morsondue, et non articulée, mais impérieuse, bruiante, et effroyable. Si bien qu’on ne sçauroit bonnement dire ‡ le voir s’il est homme, trone, ou beste. Il est assis dans une chaire, dorée en apparence, mais flamboiante: la royne du sabbat ‡ son costé, qui est quelque sorcière qu’il 222 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE side sat the queen of the Sabbath, one of the witches whom he had debauched, to whom he chose to give greater honour than to the others, and whom he decked in gay robes, with a crown on her head, to serve as a bait to the ambition of the rest. Candles of pitch, or torches, yielded a false light, which gave people in appearance monstrous forms and frightful faces. Here you see false fires, through which some of the demons were first passed, and afterwards the witches, without suffering any pain, which, as explained by De Lancre, was intended to teach them not to fear the fire of hell. But we see in these the need-fires, which formed a part of the priapic orgies, and of which we have spoken before (p. 163). There women are presenting to him children, whom they have initiated in sorcery, and he shows them a deep pit, into which he threatens to throw them if they refuse to renounce God and to adore Satan. In other parts are seen great cauldrons, full of toads and vipers, hearts of unbaptized children, flesh of criminals who bad been hanged, and other disgusting ingredients, of which they make pots of ointments, &c. and poisons, the ordinary articles of commerce

a debauchée, laquelle il saict paroistre pompeuse, ornée de plusiers faux affiquets, et couronée en royne, pour amorcer les autres. Donnant aussi une forme affreuse, presque ‡ tous ceux qui sont en cette assemblée maudite, les visages desquels, ‡ la fauce lumière de ces chandeles de poix qui s’y voyant, paroisset ténébreux, farouches, ou voilez: et les personnes de taille et hautur monstrueuse, ou de bassesse extraordinaire et deffectueuse. On y voit de faux feux, au travers desquels il faict passer quelques démons, puis des sorcières. d’o˘ il les tire sans douleur pour les apprivoiser ‡ ne craindre les feux de notre justice en ce monde, n’y les feux éternals de la justice divine en l’autre. On luy offre des enfans innocens ensorcellez par de méchants femmes, ausquels il represente des abysmes dans lesquels il faict semblant de les précipiter, s’ils sont tant soit peu les restifs ‡ renoncer Dieu et ‡ l’adorer. On y voit de grandes chaudières pleines de crapaux et vipères, coeurs d’enfans non baptisez, chair de pendus, et autres horribles charognes, et des eaux puantes, pots de graisse et de poison qui se preste et se debite ‡ cette foire, comme estant la plus pré- GENERATIVE POWERS 223 in this “fair.” Of such objects, also, were composed the dishes served at the Sabbath tables, at which no salt was allowed, because Satan wished everything to be insipid, musty, and bad-tasted. Here see people “dancing, either ëin long,’ in couples, turned back to back, or sometimes ëin round,’ till turning their backs towards the centre of the dance, the girls and women each holding by the hand their demons, who teach them movements and gestures so lascivious and indecent that they would horrify the most shameless woman in the world; with songs of a composition so brutal, and in terms and words of such license and lubricity, that the eyes become troubled, the ears confounded, and the understanding bewitched, at the appearance of so many monstrous things ill crowded together.” “The women and girls with whom the demons choose to have connection are covered with a cloud, to conceal the execrations and ordures attached to these scenes, and to prevent the compassion which others might have on the screams and sufferings of these poor wretches.” In order to “mix impiety with the other abominations,” they pretended to perform religious rites, which were a wild

cieuse et commune marchandise qui s’y trouve. Et néantmoins ce sont les meilleures viandes qu’on recontre en leurs festins, desquels ils ont banni le sel, parceque Sathan veut que tout y soit insipide, relant, et de goust depravé. On y dance en long, deux ‡ deux, et dos ‡ dos, et parfois en rond, tous le dos tourné vers le centre de la dances, le filles et femmes tenant chacune leurs démons par la main, lesquels leur apprennant des traicts et gestes si lascifs et indécens, qu’ils feroyent horreur ‡ la plus effrontée femme du monde; avec des chansons d’une composition si brutale, et en termes et mots si licencieux et lubriques, que les yeux se troublent, les oreilles s’estourdissent, et l’entendement s’enchante, de voir tant de choses monstreuses qui s’y rencontrent ‡ la fois. Les femmes et filles avec lesquelles il se veut accoupler, sont couvertes d’une nuée, pour cacher les exécrations et ordures qui s’y trouvent, et pour oster la compassion qu’on pourroit avoir des cris et douleurs de ces pauvres misérables. Et voulant mesler l’impiété avec l’abomination du sortilège, pour leur faire paroistre qu’il veut qu’elles vivent avec quelque forme de religion, le service ou culte divin, 224 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE and contemptuous parody on the catholic mass. An altar was raised, and a priest consecrated and administered the host, but it was made of some disgusting substance, and the priest stood with his head downwards and his legs in the air, and with his back turned to the altar. Thus all things were performed in monstrous or disgusting forms, so that Satan himself appeared almost ashamed of them. De Lancre acknowledges that there was some diversity in the manner of the proceedings of the Sabbath in different countries, arising from difference in the character of the locality, in the “master” who presided, and in the various humours of those who attended. “But all well considered, there is a general agreement on the principal and most important of the more serious ceremonies. Wherefore, I will relate what we have learnt by our trials, and I will simply repeat what some notable witches deposed before us, as well as to the formalities of the Sabbath, as to all that was usually seen

qu’il s’essaye de contrefaire ou représenter, est si sauvage et déréglé, et hors de tout sens commun, que le faux sacrificateur ayant dressé quelque autel, faict semblant d’y dire quelque forme de messe, pour se moquer des chrestiens: Et y faict paroistre quelque hostie, facte de quelque puante matière noire et enfumée, o˘ il est peint en boue. Ce faux prestre a la teste en bas, et les pieds contremont, et le dos ignominieusement tourné vers l’autel. Enfin on y voit en chaque chose ou action des représentations si formidables, tant d’abominables objects, et tant de forfaicts et crimes exécrable, que l’air s’infecteroit si je les vouloy exprimer plus au long; Et peut on dire sans mentir, que Satan mesme a quelque horreur de les commettre. Car outre la nuée de la quelle il voile ses accouplemens, il tient les enfans esloignez, de peur de les rebutter pour jamais par l’horrible veuÎ de tant de choses. Et plusiers personnes voilées, pour tenir mine de grandeur, asin qu’on ne les voye rougir nin paslir de la grandeur de cent mille maux, qu’on y voit commettre ‡ tous momens. A la vérité la description du sabbat qui se faict en diverses contrées semble estre un peu diverse. La diversité des lieux o˘ il se tient, du maistre qui y préside, tout divers et tout variable, et les diverses humeurs de ceux qui y sont appellez, sont la diversité. Mais tout bien considéré on est d’accord pour le principal et pour le plus important des cérémonies plus sérieuses. C’est pourquoy je raporteray ce que nous avons apprins par nos procédures, et diray simplement ce que quelques notables sorcières en ont déposés devant nous, tant sur la forme du sabbat que sur tout ce qu’on a accous- GENERATIVE POWERS 225 there, without changing or altering anything in what they deposed, in order that every one may select what he likes.” The first witness adduced by De Lancre is not one belonging to his own time, but dating back as far as the 18th of December, 1567, and he had obtained a copy of the confession. Estébene de Cambrue, of the parish of Amou, a woman twenty-five years of age, said that the great Sabbath was held four times a year, in derision of the four annual festivals of the Church. The little assemblies, which were held in the neighbourhood of the towns or parishes, were attended only by those of the locality; they were called “pastimes,” and were held sometimes in one place and sometimes in another, and there they only danced and frolicked, for the devil did not come there in all his state as at the great assemblies. They were, in fact, the greater and lesser Priapeia. She said that the place of the grand convocation was generally called the “Lanne de Bouc” (the goat’s heath), where they danced round a stone, which was planted in the said place, (perhaps one of the so-called Druidical monuments,) upon which was seated a great black man, whom they called “Monsieur.” Each person present kissed this black man on the posteriors.

tumé d’y voir, sans rien changer n’y alterer de leur déposition, asin que chacun en prenne ce qu’il luy plaira. Je commenceray par une fort ancienne déposition que j’ay trouvée puis peu de jours, d’une Estébene de Cambrue, aagée de 25 ans, de la paroisse d’Amou, du 18 Décembre 1567, qui marque que deslors cette pauvre parroisse en estoit déj‡ infectée: qui dict que les sorcières n’alloient en la grand assemblé et au grand Sabbat que quatre fois l’année, en dérision des cérémonies que l’église célèbre les quatres festes annuelles. Car les petites assemblées qui se sont près des villes ou parroisse, o˘ n’y va que ceux du lieu, ils les appellent les esbats, et se sont ores en un lieu de ladite parroisse, ores en un autre, o˘ on ne faict que sauter et solastrer, le diable n’y estant avec tout son grand arroy, comme aux grandes assemblées. Que le lieu de ceste grande convocation s’appelle généralement par tout le pays la Lanne du Bouc. O˘ ils se mettent ‡ dancer ‡ l’entour d’une pierre, qui est plantée audit lieu, sur laquelle est assis un grand hoome noir, qu’elles 226 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE She said that they were carried to that place on an animal which sometimes resembled a horse and at others a man, and they never rode on the animal more than four at a time. When arrived at the Sabbath, they denied God, the Virgin, “and the rest,” and took Satan for their father and protector, and the she-devil for their mother. This witness described the making and sale of poisons. She said that she had seen at the Sabbath a notary, whose name she gave, whose business it was to denounce those who failed in attendance. When on their way to the Sabbath, however hard it might rain, they were never wet, provided they uttered the words, Haut la coude, Quillet, because then the tail of the beast on which they were mounted covered them so well that they were sheltered from the rain. When they had to make a long journey they said these words: Pic suber hoeilhe, en ta la lane de bouc bien m’arrecoueille. A man seventy-three years of age, named Petri Daguerre, was brought before De Lancre and his fellow commissioners at Ustarits; two witnesses asserted that he held the office of master of cere-

appellant Monsieur, et chacun de l’assemblée luy va baiser le deirrière. Et se sont porter jusqu’audit lieu, sur une beste, qui semble parfois un cheval, et parfoys un homme; et ne montent jamais plus haut de quatre sur ces mountures qui portent ainsi au Sabbat. L‡ ils renient Dieu, la Vierge, et le reste, et prennant Satan pour leur père et protecteur, et la diablesse pour leur mère. Qu’aucuns sont l‡ du poison, desquels les autres le vont acheter, lequel est faict de crapaux, avec une langue de boeuf ou vache, et une chèvre et des oeufs couvez et pourris, et de la cervelle d’enfant, et le mettent cuire dans un pot. Dict qu’elle a veu au Sabbat un notaire qu’elle nomme, lequel a accoustamé de lever les defauts de celles qui ont manqué de se trouver au Sabbat, et dict qu’encore qu’il pleust ‡ pleins seaux, lorsqu’on est en chemin pour y aller, on ne se moüile point, pourveu qu’on die ces mots, Haut la coude, Quillet, parce qu’alors la queuÎ de la beste sur laquelle ils vont au Sabbat les courvre si bien, qu’ils ne se moüillent point. Et quand ils sont un long chemin, ils disent tels mots: Pic suber hoeilhe, en ta la lane de bouc bien m’arrecoueille. En la procédure d’Ustarits, qui est le siège de la justice de Labourt, faisent le procez ‡ Petri Daguerre, aagé de septante trois ans, lequel depuis a esté exécuté ‡ mort GENERATIVE POWERS 227 monies and governor of the Sabbath, and that the devil gave him a gilt staff, which he carried in his hand as a mark of authority, and arranged and directed the proceedings. He returned the staff to Satan at the close of the meeting. One Leger Rivasseau confessed that he had been at the Sabbath twice without adoring the devil, or doing any of the things required from the others, because it was part of his bargain, for he had given the half of his left foot for the faculty of curing, and the right of being present at the Sabbath without further obligation. He said “that the Sabbath was held about midnight, at a meeting of cross roads, most frequently on the nights of Wednesday and Friday; that the devil chose in preference the stormiest nights, in order that the winds and troubled elements might carry their powders farther and more impetuously; that two notable devils presided at their Sabbaths, the great negro, whom they called master Leonard, and another little devil, whom master Leonard at times substituted in his place, and whom they called Master Jean Mullin; that they adored the grand master, and that, after having

comme insigne sorcier, deux tesmoins luy maintindrent qu’il estoit le maistre des cérémonies et gouverneur du Sabbat. Que le Diable luy mettoit en main un baston tout doré, avec lequel, comme un mastre de camp, il rengeoit et les personne et toutes choses au Sabbat: et qu’iceluy finy il dendoit ce baston au grand maistre de l’assemblée. Leger Rivasseau confessa en la Cour qu’il avoit esté au Sabbat par deux fois, sans adorer le Diable ny faire comme les autres, parcequ’il avoit ainsi faict son pacte avec luy, et baillé la moitié de son pied gauche pour avoir la faculté de guérir, et la liberté de voir le Sabbat simplement sans estre obligé ‡ autre chose. Et disoit que le Sabbot se faisoit presque tousjours environ la minuit, ‡ un carrefour, le plus souvent la nuict du Mercredy et du Vendredy: que le diable cherchoit la nuict la plus orageuse qu’il pouvoit, asin que les vents et les orages portassent plus loing et plus impètueusement leurs poudres; que deux diables notables présidoient en ces Sabbats, le grand Negre qu’on appelloit maistre Leonard, et un autre petit diable que maistre Leonard subrogeoit quelquefois en sa place, qu’ils appellent Jean Mullin; qu’on adorait le grand maistre, 228 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE kissed his posteriors, there were about sixty of them dancing without dress, back to back, each with a great cat attached to the tail of his or her shirt, and that afterwards they danced naked; that this Master Leonard, taking the form of a black fox, hummed at the beginning a word ill articulated, after which they were all silent.” Some of the witches examined spoke of the delight with which they attended the Sabbath. Jeanne Dibasson, a woman twentynine years old, said that the Sabbath was the true Paradise, where there was far more pleasure than can be expressed; that those who went there found the time so short by reason of the pleasure and enjoyment, that they never left it without marvelous regret, so that they looked forward with infinite impatience to the next meeting. Marie de la Ralde, “a very handsome woman twenty-eight years of age,” who had then abandoned her connection with the devil five or six years, gave a full account of her experience of the Sabbath. She said she had frequented the Sabbaths from the time she was ten years old, having been first taken there by Marissans, the wife of Sarrauch, and after her death the devil took her there himself.

et qu’après qu’on luy avoit baisé le derrière, ils estoient environ soixante qui dançoient sans habits, dos-‡-dos, chacun un grand chat attaché ‡ la queuÎ de la chemise, puis ils dançoient tous nuds: que ce maistre Leonard prenant la forme d’un renard noir bourdonnoitau commencent use parole mal articulée, et qu’après cela tout le monde estoit en silence. . . . . Jeanne Dibasson, aagée de vingt neuf ans, nous dict que le Sabbat estoit le vray Paradis, o˘ il y a beacoup plus de plaisir qu’on n’en peut exprimer: que ceux qui y vont trouvent le temps si court, ‡ force de plaisir et de contentment, qu’ils n’en peuvent sortir sans un merveilleux regret, de manière qu’il leur tarde infiniment qu’ils n’y reviennent. Marie de la Ralde, aagée de vingt huict ans, très-belle femme, laquelle a quitté cette abomination puis cinq ou six ans, dépose qu’elle a esté sorcière et fréquené les Sabbats puis l’aage de dix ans, y ayant esté menée la première fois par Marissans femme de Sarrauch, et après son decez le Diable l’y menoit luy mesme. Que la première fois GENERATIVE POWERS 229 That the first time she was there she saw the devil in the shape of a trunk of a tree, without feet, but apparently sitting in a pulpit, with some form of a human face, very obscure; but since she had often seen him in man's form, sometimes red, sometimes black. That she had often seen him approach a hot iron to the children which were presented to him, but she did not know if he marked them with it. That she had never kissed him since she had arrived at the age of knowledge, and does not know whether she had kissed him before or not; but she had seen how, when one went to adore him, he presented sometimes his face to kiss, sometimes his posteriors, as it pleased him, and at his discretion. That she had a singular pleasure in going to the Sabbath, so that every time she was summoned to go there, she went as though it were to a wedding feast; not so much for the liberty and license they had there to have connection with each other (which out of modesty she said she had never done or seen done), but because the devil had so strong a hold on their hearts and wills that it hardly allowed any other desire to enter. Besides that the witches believe they are going to a place where there are a hundred thousand wonders and novelties to see, and where they hear so great a diversity

qu’elle y fut, elle y vit le Diable en forme de tronc d’arbre, sans pieds, qui sembloit estre dans une chaire, avec quélque forme de face humaine fort ténébreuse, mais depuis elle l’a veu souvent en forme d’homme, tantot rouge, tantot noir: qu’elle la veu souvent approcher un fer chaud près des enfants qu’on luy présentoit, mais qu’elle ne sçait s’il les marquoit avec cela. Qu’elle ne l’a jamais basié puis qu’elle est en aage de cognoissance, et ne sçait si auparavant elle l’avoit baisé: bien a veu que comme on la va adorer, ores il leur présemte le visage ‡ baiser, ores le derrière, comme il luy plaist, et ‡ sa discretion. Qu’elle avoit un singulier plaisir d’aller au Sabbat, si bien que quand on la venoit semondre d’y aller, elle y alloit comme ‡ nopces: non pas tant pour la liberté et licence qu’on a de s’accointer ensemble (ce que par modestie elle dict n’avoir jamais fait ny veu faire), mais parce que le Diable tenoit tellement liés leurs coeurs et leurs volontez qu’‡ peine y laissoit il entrer nul autre désir: Outre que les sorcières croyent aller en quelque lieu o˘ il y a cent mille choses entranges et nouvelles 230 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE of melodious instruments that they are ravished, and believe themselves to be in some terrestrial paradise. Moreover the devil persuades them that the fear of hell, which is so much apprehended, is a piece of folly, and gives them to understand that the eternal punishments will hurt them no more than a certain artificial fire which he causes them craftily to light, and then makes them pass through it and repass without hurt. And more, that they see there so many priests, their pastors, curés, vicars, and confessors, and other people of quality of all sorts, so many heads of families, and so many mistresses of the principal houses in the said country, so many people veiled, whom they considered to be grandees, because they concealed themselves and wished to be unknown, that they believed and took it for a very great honour and good fortune to be received there. Marie d’AspilcouÎtte, a girl nineteen years old, who lived at Handaye, said that she had frequented the Sabbath ever since the age of seven, and that she was taken there the first time by Catherine de Moleres, who had since been executed to death for having caused a man’s death by sorcery. She said that it was now two years since ‡ voir, et y entendant tant de divers et mélodieux instruments qu’elle sont ravies, et croyent estre dans quelque Paradis terrestre. D’ailleurs que le Diable leur persuade que la crainte de l’Enfer, qu’on appréhende si fort, est une niayserie, et leur donne ‡ entrendre que les peines éternelles ne les tourmenteront pas davantage, que certain feu artificiel qu’il leur fact cauteleusement allumer, par lequel il les faict passer et repasser sans souffrir aucun mal. D’avantage qu’elle y voyent tant de prestres, leur pasteurs, curez, vicaires, et confesseurs, et autres gens de qualité de toute sortes, tant de chefs de famille et tant de maistresses des maisons principales dudict paÔs, tant de gens voilez, qu’elle présupposent grans parcequ’ils se cachent et veulent estre incognus, qu’elle croyent et prennent ‡ très grand honneur et ‡ tiltre de bonne fortune d’y estre receuÎs. . . . . Marie d’AspilcouÎtte, habitante de Handaya, aagée de dix neuf ans, dict qu’elle a fréquenté les Sabbats puis l’aage de sept ans, et qu’elle y sut conduitte la première fois par Catherine de Moleres qui a depuis esté exécutée ‡ mort, luy ayant esté maintenu, qu’elle avoit chargé le haut mal par son seul attouchment ‡ un fort GENERATIVE POWERS 231 she had withdrawn from her relations with Satan. That the devil appeared in the form of a goat, having a tail and under it the face of a black man, which she was compelled to kiss, and that this posterior face has not the power of speech, but they were obliged to adore and kiss it. Afterwards the said Moleres gave her seven toads to keep. That the said Moleres transported her through the air to the Sabbath, where she saw people dancing, with violins, trumpets, and tabors, which made a very great harmony. That in the said assemblies there was an extreme pleasure and enjoyment. That they made love in full liberty before all the world. That some were employed in cutting off the heads of toads, while others made poison of them; and that they made the poison at home as well as at the Sabbath. After describing the different sorts of poisons prepared on these occasions, De Lancre proceeds to report the testimony of other witnesses to the details of the Sabbath.1 Jeannette de Belloc, called Atsoua, a damsel of twenty-four years of age, said that she had been made a witch in her childhood by a woman named Oylarchahar, who took her for the first time to the Sabbath, and there presented her to the devil; and after her death, Mary Martin,

honneste homme: que néantmoins il y a deux ans qu’elle s’est retirée des liens de Satan, et qu’elle en a secoüé le joug. Que le Diable estoit en forme de bouc, ayant une queuÎ et au dessoubs un visage d’homme noir, o˘ elle sut contrainte le baiser, et n’a parole par ce visage de derrière, qu’on luy sit adorer et baiser: puis ladicte Moleres luy donna sept crapaux ‡ garder. Que la dicte Moleres la transportoit au Sabbat par l’air, o˘ elle voyoit dancer avec violons, trompettes, ou tabourins, qui rendoyent une trèsgrande harmonie. Qu’esdictes assemblées y a un extr’me plaisir et rejouissance. Qu’on y faict l’amour en toute liberté devant tout le monde. Que plusiers s’emploient ‡ couper la teste ‡ des crapaix. et les autres ‡ en faire du poison; qu’on en faict au logis aussi bien qu’au Sabbat. Tableau l’Inconstance, pp. 119 et seqq. 1 Jeannette de Belloc dicte Atsoua, fille de 24 ans, nous dict que puis son bas aage elle avoit esté faicte sorciére par une femme nommé Oylarchahar, laquelle la mena au Sabbat la première fois, et la présenta au Diable, et après son decez, Marie Martin, 232 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE lady of the house of Adamechorena, took her place. About the month of February, 1609, Jeannette confessed to a priest who was the nephew of Madame Martin, who went to his aunt and merely enjoined her not to take the girl to the Sabbath any more. Jeannette said that at the solemn festivals all kissed the devil’s posteriors except the notable witches, who kissed him in the face. According to her account, the children, at the age of two or three years, or as soon as they could speak, were made to renounce Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, their baptism, &c. and from that moment they were taught to worship the devil. She described the Sabbath as resembling a fair, well supplied with all sorts of objects, in which some walked about in their own form, and others were transformed, she knew not how, into dogs, cats, asses, horses, pigs, and other animals. The little boys and girls kept the herds of the Sabbath, consisting of a world of toads near a stream, with small white rods, and were not allowed to approach the great mass of the witches; while others, of more advanced age, who were not objects of sufficient respect, were kept apart in a sort of apprenticeship, during

dame de la maison d’Adamechorena, print sa place. Et d’autant qu’environ le mois de Febvrier 1609, elle s’alla confesser ‡ maistre Jean de Horrousteguy, prieur de Soubernoue, nepveu de ladicte Martin, il enjoignit ‡ sa tante de la laisser en paix et ne la mener plus au Sabbat. Qu’ès festes solemnelles on baisoit le Diable au derrière, mais les notables sorcières le baisoient au visage. Que les enfans environ l’aage de deux ou trois ans, et puis qu’ls sçavent parler, sont la rénonciation ‡ Jésus-Christ, ‡ la Saincte Vierge, ‡ leur Baptesme, et ‡ toute le reste, et commencent dès lors ‡ prendre habitude ‡ recognoistre et adorer le Diable. Dict que le Sabbat est comme une foire célèbre de toutes sortes de choses, en laquelle aucuns se promenent en leur propre forme, et d’autres sont transformez, ne sçayt pourquoy, en chiens, en chats, asnes, chevaux, pourceaux, et autres animaux: les petits enfans et filles gardent les troupeaux du Sabbat, qui sont un mode de crapaux, près d’un ruisseau avec des petites gaules blanches qu’on leur donne. sans les laisser approcher du gros des autres sorciers: les médiocres et ceux qui sont de bon aage parmy eux, on leur permet simplement de voir, et leur en donne-on le plaisir et l’estonnement, les tenant comme en apprentissage. Pour les autres il y en a de deux sortes; aucuns GENERATIVE POWERS 233 which they were only allowed to look on at the proceedings of the others. Of these there were two sorts; some were veiled, to make the poorer classes believe that they were people of rank and distinction, and that they did not wish themselves to be known in such a place; others were uncovered, and openly danced, had sexual intercourse, made the poisons, and performed their other diabolical functions; and these were not allowed to approach so near “the master” as those who were veiled. The holy water used at the Sabbath was the devil’s urine. She pointed out two of the accused whom she had seen at the Sabbath playing upon the tabor and the violin. She spoke of the numbers who were seen arriving and departing continually, the latter to do evil, the former to report what they had done. They went out at sea, even as far as Newfoundland, where their husbands and sons went to fish, in order to raise storms, and endanger their ships. This deponent spoke also of the fires at the Sabbath, into which the witches were sont voilez pour donner opinion aux pauvres que ce sont des princes et grans seigneurs, et qu’aucun d’eux n’ayt horreur d’y estre et faire ce qu’ils sont en adorant le diable. . . Les autres sont decouverts et tout ouvertement dancent, s’accouplent, font du poison, et autres fonctions diaboliques, et ceux cy ne sont si près du maistre, si favoris, ne si employez. Ils baillent l’asperges de l’urnine du Diable. Ils y vont ‡ l’offrande, et y a veu tenir le bassin ‡ un Esteben Detzail, lors prisonnier: et disoit-on qu’il s’en estoit enrichy. Qu’elle y a veu jouer du tabourin ‡ Ansugarlo de Han-daye, lequel a depuis esté exécuté ‡ mort comme insigne sorcier, et du violon ‡ Gastelloue. Elle nous disoit qu’on eust veu desloger du Sabbat et voler l’une en l’air, l’autre monter plus haut vers le ciel, l’autre descendre vers la terre, et l’autre parfois se précipiter dans les grands feux allumez audit lieu, comme fuzées qui sont jettées par plusieurs, ou comme esclairs: l’une arrive, l’autre part, et tout ‡ un coup plusiers partent, plusiers arrivent, chacune rendant comte de vents et orages qu’elle a excité, des navires et vaisseaux qu’elle a fait perdre: et s’en vont de Labourt, Siboro, et S. Jean de Luz, jusques ‡ Arcachon, qui est une des testes de l’Ocean, aussi l’appellent ils la teste de Buch, assés près de Bourdeaux, et en Terre-neuve, parcequ’elles y voyent leur pères, leurs maris, leurs enfans, et d’autres parens, et que c’est leur voyage ordinaire, mesme en a veu plusiers qui notoirement sont en Terre-neuve 234 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE thrown without sustaining any hurt. She had seen the frequenters of the Sabbath make themselves appear as big as houses, but she had never seen them transform themselves into animals, although there were animals of different kinds running about at the Sabbath. Jeanette d’Abadie, an inhabitant of Siboro, of the age of sixteen, said that she was taken for the first time to the Sabbath by a woman named Gratianne; that for the last nine months she had watched and done all she could to withdraw herself from this evil influence; that during the first three of these months, because she had watched at home by night, the devil carried her away to the Sabbath in open day; and during the other six, until the 16th of September, 1609, she had only gone to them twice, because she had watched, and still watches in the church; and that the last time she was there was the 13th of September, 1609, which she narrated in a “bizarre and very terrible manner.” It appears that, having watched in the church of Siboro during the night between Saturday and Sunday, at daybreak she went to sleep at home, and, during the time of the grand mass, the devil came to her and snatched

qu’elles menoyent au Sabbat. . . . . Quant ‡ la transformations, dict qu’encore que parfois elles si fassent voir hautes comme une maison, pourtant elle n’a jamais veu aucune d’elle se transformer en beste en sa présence, mais seulement certaines bestes courier par le Sabbat, et devenir grandes et petites, mais si soudainement qu’elle n’en a jamais pu decouvrir la façon. En voycy une plus sçavante. Jeannette d’Abadie, habitante de Siboro, aagée de seize ans, dépose qu’elle fut menée la première fois au Sabbat par une nommée Gratianne: qu’il y a environ neuf mois qu’elle veille et faict tout ce qu’elle peut pour se remédier: que puis les trois premiers mois desdicts neuf, parce qu’elle veilloit la nuit chez elle, le Diable la menoit toujours au Sabbat de plain jour: et les six mois restans jusque au 16 Septembre 1609, elle n’y est allée que deux fois, parce qu’elle a veillé et veille encore dans l’église: et la dernière fois qu’elle y a esté, ce fut le 13 de Septembre 1609, ce qu’elle conte d’une bizarre et bien terrible façon. Car elle dict qu’ayant veillé dans l’église de Siboro, la nuict du Samedy venant au Dimanche, le jour venu, elle s’en alla dormir chez elle, et pendant qu’on disoit la grande Mesle, le Diable lui vint arracher un Higo de cuir qu’elle portoit au col, comme sont uue infinité d’autres; qui est une forme de main au point serré, le

from her neck a “fig of leather which she wore there, as an infinity of other people did;” this higo, or fig, she described as “a form of hand, with the fist closed, and the thumb passed between the two fingers, which they believe to be, and wear as, a remedy against all enchantment and witchcraft; and, because the devil cannot bear this fist, she said that he did not dare to carry it away, but left it at the threshold of the door of the room in which she was sleeping.” This Jeanette said, that the first time she went to the Sabbath she saw there the devil in the form of a man, black and hideous, with six horns on his head, and sometimes eight, and a great tail behind, one face in front and another at the back of the head, as they paint the god Janus. Gratianne, on presenting her, received as her reward a handful of gold; and then the childvictim was made to renounce her Creator, the Virgin, the baptism, father, mother, relatives, heaven, earth, and all that was in the world, and then she was required to kiss the fiend on the posteriors. The renunciation she was obliged to repeat every time she went to the Sabbath. She added that the devil often made her kiss his face, his navel, his member, and his posteriors. She had often seen the children of witches baptized at the Sabbath.

poulce passé entre les deux doigts, qu’elle croyent et portent comme remède ‡ toute fascination et sortilège: et parce que le Diable ne peut souffrir ce poignet, elle dict qu’il ne l’osa emporter, ains le laissa près de la porte de la chambre dans laquelle elle dormoit. En revenant au commencement et ‡ la première entrée qu’elle sut au Sabbat, elle dit qu’eel y vid le Diable en forme d’homme noir et hideux, avec six cornes en la teste, parfois huict, et une grande queuÎ derrière, un visage devant et un autre derrière la teste, comme on peint le dieu Janus: que la dicte Gratianne, l’ayant présentée, recuet une poignée d’or en récompense, puis la fit renoncer et renier son Créateur, la Saincte Vierge, les Saincts, le Baptesme, père, mère, parens, le ciel, la terre, et tout ce qui est au monde, laquelle renonciation il luy faisoit renouveller toutes les fois qu’elle alloit au Sabbat, puis elle l’alloit baiser au derrière. Que le Diable luy faisoit baiser souvent son visage, puis son nombril, puis son membre, puis son derrière. Qu’elle a veu souvent baptiser des enfans au Sabbat, qu’elle nous expli- 236 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE Another ceremony was that of baptizing toads. These animals perform a great part in these old popular orgies. At one of the Sabbaths, a lady danced with four toads on her person, one on each shoulder, and one on each wrist, the latter perched like hawks. Jeanette d’Abadie went on further in her revelations in regard to still more objectionable parts of the proceedings. She said that,1 with regard to their libidinous acts, she had seen the assembly intermix incestuously, and contrary to all order of nature, accusing even herself of having been robbed of her maidenhead by Satan, and of having been known an infinite number of times by a relation of hers, and by others, whoever would ask her. She always fought to avoid the embraces of the devil, because it caused her an extreme pain, and she added that what came from him was cold, and never produced pregnancy. Nobody ever became pregnant at the Sabbath. Away from the Sabbath, she never committed a fault, but in the Sabbath she took a marvellous pleasure in these acts of sexual intercourse, which she displayed by dwelling on the description of them with a minuteness of detail, and language of such obscenity, as would have drawn a blush from the most depraved woman in the world. She described also the tables covered in qua estre des enfans des sorcières et non autres, lesquelles ont accoustumé fair plustot baptiser leurs enfans au Sabbat, qu’en l’église, et les présenter au Diable plustot qu’‡ Dieu. De l’Inconstance des Mauvais Anges, p. 128. 1 Pour l’accouplement, qu’elle a veu tout le monde se msler incestueusement et contre tout ordre de nature, comme nous avons dict cy devant, s’accusant elle mesme d’avoir esté dépucellée par Satan et cognue une infinité de fois par un fien parent et autres qui ëen daignoient semondre: qu’elle suyoit l’accouplement du Diable, ‡ cause qu’ayant son membre faict en ascailles, il fait souffrir une extresme douleur; outre que la semence est extr’mement froide, si bien qu’elle n’engrosse jamais, ni celle des autres hommes au Sabbat, bien qu’elle soit naturelle: Que hors du Sabbat elle ne sit jamais faute, mais que dans le Sabbat elle avoit un merveilleux plaisir en ces accouplemens autres que celui de Sathan, qu’elle disoit estre horrible, voire elle nous tesmoignoit un merveilleux plaisir ‡ le dire, et le conter, nommant toutes choses par GENERATIVE POWERS 237 appearance with provisions, which, however, proved either unsubstantial or of a disgusting nature. This witness further declared that she had seen at the Sabbath a number of little demons without arms, who were employed in kindling a great fire, into which they threw the witches, who came out without being burnt; and she had also seen the grand master of the assembly throw himself into a fire, and remain there until he was burnt to powder, which powder was used by the witches to bewitch young children, and cause them to go willingly to the Sabbath. She had seen priests who were well-known, and gave the names of some of them, performing the service of the mass at the Sabbath, while the demons took their places on the altar in the forms of saints. Sometimes the devil pierced the left foot of a sorcerer under the little toe, and drew blood, which he sucked, and

leur nom plus librement et effrontémont que nous ne luy osions faire demander, chose qui confirme merveilleusement la réalité du Sabbat. Car il est plus vraysemblable qu’elle se soit accouplée au Sabbat avec des gens qu’elle nommoit, que non, que Satan les y ait faict voir dans son lict par illusion, ou qu’il les luy ait portez corporellement: n’ayant peu sentir cent fois (comme elle dict) cette femence naturelle que s’accouplant corporellement et réellemenent avec un homme naturel qu’elle nous a nommé qui est encore vivant. Qu’elle y a veu des tables dressées avec sorces vivres, mais quad on en vouloit preadre on ne trouvait rien soubs la main, sauf quand on y avoit porté des enfans baptises ou non baptises, car de ces deux elle en avoit veu fort sauvent servir et manger: mesme un qu’on tenait estre fils de maistre de Laffe. Qu’on les compe ‡ quartiers au Sabbat pour en faire part ‡ plusieurs parroisses. D’avantage dict qu’elle a veu plusieurs petits démons sans bras, allumer un grand feu, jette des sorcières du sabbat l‡ dedans, et, les retirant sans douleur, le Diable leur dire qu’elles n’auroient non plus de mal du feu d’Enfer. Qu’elle a veu le grand maistres de l’assemblée se jetter dans les flammes au Sabbat, se faire brusler jusques ‡ ce qu’il estoit reduit en poudre, et les grandes et insignes sorcières prendre les dites poudres pour ensorceler les petits enfants et les mener au Sabbat, et en prenoient aussi dans la bouche pour ne reveler jamais; et a veu pareillement ce mauvais démon au Sabbat se rédaire tout en menus vers. Qu’elle a ony dire souvent messe ‡ quelques prestres et entre autres ‡ Migualena et Bocal, vestas de rouge et de blanc: que le maistre de l’assemblée et autres petits démons essoint sur l’autel en forme de saincts: que pour 238 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE after this that individual could never be drawn to make a confession; and she named, as an example, a priest named Francois de Bideguaray, of Bordegaina, who, in fact, could not be made to confess. She named many other persons whom she had seen at the Sabbaths, and especially one named Anduitze, whose office it was to summon the witches and sorcerers to the meeting. De Lancre says that many others, in their depositions, spoke of the extreme pleasures and enjoyments experienced in these Sabbaths, which made men and women repair to them with the greatest eagerness. “The woman indulged before the face of her husband without suspicion or jealousy, he even frequently acted the part of procurer; the father deprived his daughter of her virginity without shame; the mother acted the same part towards her son; the brother towards his sister; fathers and mothers carried thither and presented their children.”

aller au Sabbat elle ne laissoit d’aller ‡ l’église, mais elle trembloit quand elle y voiyoit faire l’eslevation, et tremble encoure toutes les fois qu’elle la voit. Et quand elle se veut approcher du crucifix, pour luy baiser les pieds, elle devient tous esperdue et troublée, sans sçavoir quelle prière elle fait, parcequ’elle voit en mesme instant comme un personne noire et hideuse qui est tout au bas et au dessoubs des pieds dudict crucifix, qui faict contenance de l’en empescher. Quant aux sorciers qui ne confessent ny ‡ la torture ny au supplice, elle dict avoir veu que le Diable leur perce le pied gauche avec un poinçon et leur tire un peu de sang au dessoubs du petit doigt dudict pied gauche, lequel sang il succe, et celuy l‡ ne confesse jamais chose qui concerne le sortilège: ce qu’elle a veu pratiquer en la personne de maistre François de Bideguarnay, prestre au lieu appellé ‡ Bordegaina, o˘ le Sabbat a accoustumé se tenir, si bien qu’elle nous a dict qu’il ne confesseroit jamais. Qu’elle a veu au Sabbat entre une infinité qu’elle nomme et cognoist, un nommé Anduitze, qui est celuy qui va donner les assignations aux sorcières pour se trouver au Sabbat. . . . Et plusieurs autres nous ont dict que les plaisirs et la joye y sont si grands et de tant de sortes, qu’il n’y a homme ny femme qui n’y coure très-volontiers. . . . . La femme se joue en présence de son mary sans soupçon ni jalousies, voire il en est souvent le proxenete: le père dépucelle sa fille sans vergogne: la mère arrache le pucelage de fils sans cruinte: le frère de la soeur; on y voit les pères et mères porter et présenter leurs enfans. De l’Inconstance, p. 132. GENERATIVE POWERS 239 The dances at the Sabbath were mostly indecent, including the well-known Sarabande, and the women danced in them sometimes in chemise, but much more frequently quite naked. They consisted especially in violent movements; and the devil often joined in them, taking the handsomest woman or girl for his partner. De Lancre's account of these dances is so minute and curious that it may be given in his own words.1 “If the saying is true that never woman or girl returned from the ball as chaste as she went there, how unclean must she return who has abandoned herself to the unfortunate design of going to the ball of the demons and evil spirits, who has danced in hand with them, who has kissed them obscenely, who has yielded herself to them as a prey, has adored them, and has even copulated with them? It is to be, in good earnest, inconstant and fickle; it is to be not only lewd, or even a shameless whore, but to be stark-mad, unworthy of the favours with which God loads her in bringing her into the world, and causing her to be born a Christian. We caused in several places the boys and girls to dance in the same fashion as they danced at the Sabbath, as much to deter them from such uncleanness, by convincing them to what a degree the most modest of these movements was filthy, vile, and unbecoming in a virtuous girl, as also because, when 1 Et s’il est vray ce qu’on dit que jamais femme ny fille ne revint du bal si chaste comme elle y est allée, combien immonde revient celle qui s’est abandonnée, et a prins ce mal-heureux dessain d’aller au bal des démons et mauvais esprits, qui a dancé ‡ leur main, qui les a si salement baisez, qui s’est donnée ‡ eux en proye, les a adorez, et s’est mesme accouplée avec eux? C’est estre ‡ bon escient inconstante et volage: c’est estre non seulment impudique, voire putain effrontée, mais bien folle enragée, inbigne des graces que Dieu luy avoit faict et versé sur elle, lor qu’il la mit au monde, et la sist naistre chrestienne. Nous sismes en plusieurs lieux dancer les enfans et filles en la mesme façon qu’elle dançoient au Sabbat, tant pour les déterrer d’une telle faleté, leur faisant recognoistre combien le plus modeste mouvement estoit sale, vilain, et malséant ‡ une honneste fille, qu’aissa par-ce qu’au confrontement la plus part des sorcières accusées d’avoir entre autres choses dancée ‡ la main du Diable, et parfois 240 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE accused, the greater part of the witches, charged with having among other things danced in hand with the devil, and sometimes led the dance, denied it all, and said that the girls were deceived, and that they could not have known how to express the forms of dance which they said they had seen at the Sabbath. They were boys and girls of a fair age, who had already been in the way of salvation before our commission. In truth some of them were already quite out of it, and had gone no more to the Sabbath for some time; others were still struggling to escape, and, held still by one foot, slept in the church, confessed and communicated, in order to withdraw themselves entirely from Satan's claws. Now it is said that they dance always with their backs turned to the centre of the dance, which is the cause that the girls are so accustomed to carry their hands behind them in this round dance, that they draw into it the whole body, and give it a bend curved backwards, having their arms half turned; so that most of them have the belly commonly great, pushed forward, and swollen, and a little inclining in front. I know not whether this be caused by the dance or by the ordure and wretched provisions they are made to eat. But the fact is, they dance very seldom one by one, that is one man alone

mené la dance, nioyent tout, et disoient que les filles estoient abusées, et qu’elles n’eussent sceu exprimer les formes de dance qu’elle disoient avoir veu au Sabbat. C’estoient des endans et filles de bon aage, et qui estoient desj‡ en voye de salut avant nostre commission. A la vérité aucunes en estoient dehors tout ‡ faict,. et n’alloy-ent plus au Sabbat il y avoit quelque temps: les autres estoient encore ‡ se débatre sur la perche, et attachez par un pied, dormoient dans les églises, se confessoient et communioient, pour s’oster du tout des pattes de Satan. Or on dict qu’on y dance tousjours le dos tourné au centre de la dance, qui faict que les filles sont si accustumées ‡ porter les mains en arrière en ceste dance ronde, qu’elles y trainent tout le corps, et luy donnent un ply courbé en arrière, ayant les bras ‡ demy tournez: si bien que la plus part ont le ventre communement grand, enflé et avancé, et un peu penchant sur le devant. Je ne sçay si la dance leur cause cela ou l’ordure et meschantes viandes qu’on leur fait manger. Au reste on y dance fort peu souvent un ‡ GENERATIVE POWERS 241 with one woman or girl, as we do in our galliards; so they have told and assured us, that they only danced there three sorts of branles, or brawls, usually turning their shoulders to one another, and the back of each looking towards the round of the dance, and the face turned outwards. The first is the Bohemian dance, for the wandering Bohemians are also half devils; I mean those long-haired people without country, who are neither Egyptians (gipsies), nor of the kingdom of Bohemia, but are born everywhere, as they pursue their route, and pass countries, in the fields, and under the trees, and they go about dancing and playing conjuring tricks, as at the Sabbath. So they are numerous in the country of Labourd, on account of the easy passage from Navarre and Spain. “The second is with jumping, as our working men practise in towns and villages, along the streets and fields; and these two are in round. The third is also with the back turned, but all holding together in length, and, without disengaging hands, they approach so near as to touch, and meet back to back, a man with a woman; and at a certain cadence they push and strike together immodestly their two posteriors. And it was also told us that the devil, in his un, c’est ‡ dire un homme seul avec une femme ou fille, comme nous faisons en nos gaillardes: ains elles nous ont dict et assuré, qu’on n’y dançoit que trois fortes de bransles, communement se tournant les espaules l’un l’autre, et le does d’un chascun visant dans le rond de la dance, et le visage en dehors. La première c’est ‡ la Bohémienne, car aussi les Bohèmes coureurs sont ‡ demy diables: je dy ces long poils sans patrie, qui ne sont ny Ægyptiens, ny du royaume de Bohème, ains ils naissent par tout en chemin faisant et passant paÔs, et dans les champs, et soubs les arbres, et font les dances et bastelages ‡ demy comme au Sabbat. Aussi sont ils fréquens au paÔs de Labourt, pour l’aisance du passage de Navarre et de l’Espange. La seconde c’est ‡ sauts, comme noz artisans font ès villes et villages, par les rues et par les champs: et ces deux sont en rond. Et la troisiesme est aussi le dos tourné, mais se tenant tous en long, et, sans se deprendre des mains, ils s’approchent de si près qu’ils se touchent, et se rencontrent dos ‡ dos, un homme avec une femme: et ‡ certaine cadence ils se choquent et frapent inpudemment cul contre cul. Mais aussi il nous fut dit que le Diable bizarre ne les fasoit pas tous mettre rangément le dos tourné vers la 242 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE strange humours, did not cause them all to be placed in order, with their backs turned towards the crown of the dance, as is commonly said by everybody; but one having the back turned, and the other not, and so on to the end of the dance. . . . They dance to the sound of the tabor and flute, and sometimes with the long instrument they carry at the neck, and thence stretching to near the girdle, which they beat with a little stick; sometimes with a violin (fiddle). But these are not the only instruments of the Sabbath, for we have learnt from many of them that all sorts of instruments are seen there, with such harmony that there is no concert in the world to be compared to it.” Nothing is more remarkable than the sort of prurient curiosity with which these honest commissioners interrogated the witnesses as to the sexual peculiarities and capabilities of the demon, and the sort of satisfaction with which De Lancre reduces all this to writing.1

They all tend to show the identity of these orgies with those of the ancient worship of Priapus, who is undoubtedly figured in the Satan of the Sabbath. The young witch, Jeannette d’Abadie, told how she had seen at the Sabbath men and women in promiscuous intercourse, and how the devil arranged them in couples, in the most unnatural conjunctions—the daughter with the father, the mother with her son, the sister with the brother, the daughter-in-law with

couronne de la dance, comme communement dict tout le monde: ains l’un aytant le dos tourné, et l’autre non: et ainsi tout ‡ suite jusqu’‡ la fin de la dance. . . . . Or elles dancent au son du petit tabourin et de la flute, et parfois avec ce long instrument qu’ils portent sur le col, puis s’aalongeant jusqu’auprès de la ceinture, ils le batent avec un petit baston: parfois avec un violon. Mais ce ne sont les seuls instrumens du Sabbat, car nous avons apprins de plusieurs qu’on y oyt toute sorte d’instrumens, avec une telle harmonie qu’il n’y a concert au monde qui le puisee esgalar. De l’Inconstance, &c., p. 209. 1 Jeannette d’Abadie, aagée de seize ans, dict, qu’elle a veu hommes et femmes se mesler promuscuement au Sabbat: que le Diable leur commandoit de ëaccoupler et se joindre, leur baillant ‡ chacun tout ce que la nature abhorre le plus, sçavoir la fille au GENERATIVE POWERS 243 the father-in-law, the penitent with her confessor, without distinction of age, quality, or relationship, so that she confessed to having been known an infinity of times at the Sabbath by a cousin-german of her mother, and by an infinite number of others. After repeating much that she had said before relating to the impudicity of the Sabbath, this girl said that she had been deflowered by the devil at the age of thirteen—twelve was the common age for this—that they never became pregnant, either by him or by any of the wizards of the Sabbath; that she had never felt anything come from the devil except the first time, when it was very cold, but that with the sorcerers it was as with other men. That the devil chose the handsomest of the women and girls for himself, and one he usually made his queen for the meeting. That they suffered extremely when he had intercourse with them, in consequence of his member being covered with scales like those of a fish. That when extended it was

père, le fils ‡ la mère, la soeur au frère, la filleulle au parrain, la pénitente ‡ son confesseur, sans distinction d’aage, de qualité, ni de parentelle: de forte qu’elle confessoit librement avoir esté connue une infinité de fois au Sabbat, par un cousin germain de sa mère et par une infinité d’autres: que c’est une perpétuelle ordure, en laquelle tout le monde s’esgayoit comme elle: que hors du Sabbat elle ne fit jamais de faute: qu’elle le faisoit tout autant de fois que le Diable le luy commandoit, et indifféremment avec toute sorte de gens: ayant esté dépucellée au Sabbat puis l’aage de treize ans: que le Diable les conviant et forçant de faire ceste faute, soit avec luy, soit avec des gens de rencontre en ces assemblées, la faute n’estoit sienne: que de ces accouplemens on ne s’engrossoit jamais, soit qu’ils fussent avec le maistre, soit avec d’autres sorciers: ce que pourtant plusiers exemples dans nos histoires rendent extr’mement incertain et douteux: qu’on n’y sent que déplaisir: qu’elle n’a jamias sentyy qu’il eust aucune semence, sauf quand il la dépucella qu’elle la sentit froide, mais que celles des autres hommes qui l’ont cognuÎ est naturelle: qu’il se choisit et trie les plus belles; et de vray toutes celles que nous avons veu qualifiées de ce tiltre de roynes estoient doüées de quelque beauté plus singulière que les autres. Si bien que celle Detsail ‡ Urrogne, lorsqu’elle fut exécutée ‡ mort, mourut si desdaigneusement que le bourreau de Bayonne, jeune et de belle forme, voulant extorquer d’elle, comme c’est la coustume, le baiser du pardon, elle ne voulut jamais profaner sa belle bouche qui avoit accoustumée d’estre colée au derrière de Diable. Dict d’avantage que, lors a yard long, but that it was usually twisted. Marie d’Aspilcuette, a girl between nineteen and twenty years of age, who also confessed to having had frequent connection with Satan, described his member as about half a yard long, and moderately large. Marguerite, a girl of Sare, between sixteen and seventeen, described it as resembling that of a mule, and as being as long and thick as one’s arm. More on this subject the reader will find in De Lancre's own text, given in the note below. The devil, we are further told, preferred que le Diable les cognoist charnellement, elles souffrant une extr’me douleur, les ayant ouyes crier, et, au sortir de l’acte, les ayant veües revenir au Sabbat toutes sanglantes se plaignant de douleur, laquelle vient de ce que le membre du Démon estant faict ‡ escaille comme un poisson, elles se referrent en entrant, et se levent et piquent en sortant: c’est pour quoy elles fuyent semblables rencontres. Que le membres du Diable, s’il estoit estendu, est long environ d’ule aulne, mais il le tient entortillé et sinüeux en forme de serpent: que souvent il interpose quelque nuée quand il veut se joindre ‡ quelque femme ou fille. Qu’elle a veu le Diable avec plusieurs personnes au Sabbat qu’elle nous a nommé, et que si veux taire pour certain raison. Et en fin qu’elle avoit aussi esté dépucellée par luy des l’aage de treize ans, et depuis cognue plusieurs fois en forme d’homme, et en mesme façon que les autres hommes ont accoustumé de coignoistre leurs espouses, mais avec une extresme douleur, par les raisons cy dessus deduictes: qu’elle a veu faire tous ces accouplements une infinité de fois, par ce que celle qui le mauvais Démon a cognües voyent fort bien quand le Diable en cognoist d’autres. Mais il a quelque vergogne de faire voir cette vilennie ‡ celles avec lesquelles il n’a encore eu acointance: qui est cause qu’il leur met au devant cette nuée. Marie d’Aspilcuette, fille de dix-neuf ‡ vignt ans, disoit le mesme, pour ce qui est du membre en escailles, mais elle déposoit que lors qu’il les vouloit cognoistre, il quitoit la forme de bouc et prenoit celle d’homme. Que les sorciers au Sabbat prenoient qu’on n’y est jamais refusé, et que les maris souffrent que le Diable, ou qui que ce foit avec sa femme: que le membre du Diable est long environ la moitié d’une aulne, de médiocre grosseur, rouge, obscur, et tortu, fort rude et comme piquant. En voicy d’une autre sorte. Marguerite, fille de Sare, aagée de seize ‡ dixsept ans, dépose que le Diable, soit qu’il ayt la forme d’homme, ou qu’il soit en forme de bouc, a toujours un membre de mulet, ayant choisi en imitation celuy de cet GENERATIVE POWERS 245 married women to girls, because there was more sin in the connection, adultery being a greater crime than simple fornication. In order to give still more truthfulness to his account of the Sabbath, De Lancre caused all the facts gathered from the confessions of his victims to be embodied in a picture which illustrates the second edition of his book, and which places the whole scene before us so vividly that we have had it re-engraved in facsimile as an illustration to the present essay. 1 The different groups are, as will be seen, indicated by capital letters. At A we have Satan in his gilt pulpit, with five horns, the one in the middle lighted, for the purpose of giving light to all the candles and fires at the Sabbath. B is the queen of the Sabbath, seated at his right hand, while another favorite, though in less degree, sits on the other side. C, a witch presenting a child which she has seduced. D, the witches, each with her demon, seated at table. E, a party of four witches and sorcerers, who are only admitted as spectators, and are not allowed

animal comme le mieux pourveu: qu’il l’a long et gros comme le bras: que quand il veut cognoistre quelque fille ou femme au Sabbat, comme il faict presque ‡ chasque assemblée, il faict paroistre quelque forme de lict de soye, sur lequel il faict semblant de les coucher, qu’elles n’y prennent point de déplaisir, comme ont dicts ces premières: et que jamais il ne paroist au Sabbat en quelque action que se soit, qu’il n’ait tousjours son instrument dehors, de cette belle forme et méfure: tout ‡ rebouirs de ce que dit Boguet, que celles de son paÔs ne luy ont veu guière plus long que le doigt et gros simplement ‡ proportion: si bien que les sorcières de Labourt sont mieux servies de Satan que celles de la Franche-Conté. Marie de Marigrane, fille de Biarrix, aagée de quinze ans, dit, Qu’il sembe que ce mauvais Démon ait son membre my parti moitié de fer, moitié de chair, tout de son long, et de mesme les genitoires, et dépose l’avoir veu en cette forme plusiers fois au Sabbat: et outre ce l’avoit ouy dire ‡ des femmes que Satan avoit cognues: qu’il les fait crier comme des femmes qui sont en mal d’enfant: et qu’il tient tousjours son membre dehors. Petry de Linarre dict que le Diable a le membre faict de corne, ou pour le moins il en a l’apparence, c’est pourqouy il faict tant crier les femmes. De l’Inconstance, p. 223. 1 See our Plate XL. 246 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE to approach the great ceremonies. F, “according to the old proverb, Après la pance, vient la dance,” the witches and their demons have risen from table, and are here engaged in one of the descriptions of dances mentioned above. G, the players on instruments, who furnish the music to which the witches dance. H, a troop of women and girls, who dance with their faces turned outwards from the round of the dance. I, the cauldron on the fire, to make all sorts of poisons and noxious compounds. K, during these proceedings, many witches are seen arriving at the Sabbath on staffs and broomsticks, and others on goats, bringing with them children to offer to Satan; others are departing from the Sabbath, carried through the air to the sea and distant parts, where they will raise storms and tempests. L, “the great lords and ladies and other rich and powerful people, who treat on the grand affairs of the Sabbath, where they appear veiled, and the women with masks, that they may remain always concealed and unknown.” Lastly, at M, we see the young children, at some distance from the busy part of the ceremonies, taking charge of the toads. In reviewing the extraordinary scenes which are developed in these witch-depositions, we are struck not only with their general resemblance among themselves, although told in different countries, but also with the striking points of identity between the proceedings of the Sabbath and the secret assemblies with which the Templars were charged. We have in both the initiatory presentation, the denial of Christ, and the homage to the new master, sealed by the obscene kiss. This is just what might be expected. In preserving secretly a religious worship after the open practice of it had been proscribed, it would be natural, if not necessary, to require of the initiated a strong denial of the new and intrusive faith, with acts as well as words which compromised him entirely in what he was doing. The mass and weight of the evidence certainly goes to prove that such secret rites did prevail among the Templars, GENERATIVE POWERS 247 though it is not equally evident that they prevailed throughout the order; and the similarity of the revelations of the witch-confessions, in all countries where they were taken, seems to show that there was in them also a foundation in truth. We look upon it as not admitting of doubt, that the Priapic orgies and the other periodical assemblies for worship of this description, which we have described in an earlier part of this essay, were continued long after the fall of the Roman power and the introduction of the Christian religion. The rustic population, mostly servile, whose morals or private practices were little heeded by the other classes of society, might, in a country so thinly peopled, assemble by night in retired places without any fear of observation. There they perhaps indulged in Priapic rites, followed by the old Priapic orgies, which would become more and more debased in form, but through the effects of exciting potions, as described by Michelet,1 would have become wilder than ever. They became, as Michelet describes them, the Saturnalia of the serf. The state of mind produced by these excitements would lead those who partook in them to believe easily in the actual presence of the beings they worshipped, who, according to the Church doctrines, were only so many devils. Hence arose the diabolical agency in the scene. Thus we easily obtain all the materials and all the incidents of the witches’ Sabbath. Where this older worship was preserved among the middle or more elevated classes of society, who had other means of secrecy at their command, it would take a less vulgar form, and would show itself in the formation of concealed sects and societies, such as those of the different forms of Gnosticism, of the Stadingers, of the Templars, and of other less important secret clubs, of a more or less immoral character, which continued no doubt to exist long after what we 1 See Michelet, La Sorcière, liv. i, c. 9, on the use and the effects of the Solaneæ, to which he attributes much of the delusions of the Sabbath. 248 ON THE GENERATIVE POWERS call the middle ages had passed away. As we have before intimated, these mediæval practices prevailed most in Gaul and the South, where the influence of Roman manners and superstitions was greatest. The worship of the reproductive organs as representing the fertilizing, protecting, and saving powers of nature, apart from these secret rites, prevailed universally, as we have traced it fully in the preceding pages, and we only recur to that part of the subject to state that perhaps the last traces of it now to be found in our islands is met with on the western shores of Ireland. Off the coast of Mayo, there is a small island named Inniskea, the inhabitants of which are a very primitive and uncultivated race, and which, although it takes its name from a female saint (it is the insular sanctæ Geidhe of the Hibernian hagiographers), does not contain a single Catholic priest. Its inhabitants, indeed, as we learn from an interesting communication to Notes and Queries by Sir J. Emerson Tennent,1 are mere idolaters, and their idol, no doubt the representative of Priapus, is a long cylindrical stone, which they call Neevougee. This idol is kept wrapped in flannel, and is entrusted to the care of an old woman, who acts as the priestess. It is brought out and worshipped at certain periods, when storms disturb the fishing, by which chiefly the population of the island obtain a living, or at other times it is exposed for the purpose of raising storms which may cause wrecks to be thrown on the coast of the island. I am informed that the Name Neevougee is merely the plural of a word signifying a canoe, and it may perhaps have some reference to the calling of fishermen. 1 Notes and Queries, for 1852, vol. v., p. 121.

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INDEX.

CANTUS, model of, 71. Adamiana or Adamites, mediæval sect, and their practices, 174. Adel in Yorkshire, objects with Priapic emblems found there, 124. Æschylus, 80. Æsernia, medals of, 80. Agricultural festivals, 154. Aix, phallus found there. 119. Albigenses, early Christian sect, 177. Ammon, Pan of the Greeks, 38, 61. Amulets, Priapic, worn by Italians, 4, 148; worn in the middle ages, 145; leaden, with Priapic symbols, found in the Seine, 146, 170. Androgynous figures in ancient sculptures, 41—43. Animal worship, 30, 32, 33, 34. Antwerp, Priapus, under the name of Ters, its patron saint, 144. Apis, Egyptian sacred bull, 30. Apollo, 76. Apollo, Didymæus, 82. Appian, 82. Apuleius, 39, 95. Aristophanes, ancient system of theology, 44. Aristotle, 42. Arras, persecutions against witchcraft there, 207, et seq. Artemidorus, mention of symbolical horns, 22. Arueris or Orus, Greek Apollo, parentage of, 40. Athenæus, mention of a phallus, 120 cubits long, 84. Ausonius, mention of the Floralia, 155. Bacchanalia, 154. Bacchus, ancient representations of, 74. Bagvat Geeta, exposition of Hindu theology, 48—50, 56, 58, 59, 61. Baphomet, idol of the Knights Templars, 198. Barrenness in women, Priapic symbols for the cure of, 142. Becan, account of antiquities of Antwerp, 144. Bell tolling, origin of, 97. Bodinus, account of the witches’ Sabbath, 210. Bona Dea, Priapic rites, 156. Brahma, Hindoo deity, 60. Brand’s Popular Antiquities, 161, 168. Britain, remains of Priapic worship found in, 122—126. Bulgarians, sect of Gnostics, 175, 176. Bull, Indian worship of, 34. Burchardus, 129, 144, 171. Butterfly, ancient religious allegory, 100. Cæsar, 81. Cakes in form of phallus made at Easter, 158. A Campegius,mention of phallic cakes,159. Cat, alleged worship of by the Templars, 194. Cathari, mediæval sect, 178. Cato the younger, anecdote of, 155. Celenderis, medal of, 71. Celtic temple at Zeeland, 64. Ceres and Baubo, story of, 134. Ceres and Proserpine, 71, 134. Ch‚lons, council of, act of, 129. Chilminar, ancient ruins at, 86. Christian (early) sects, 172, et seq. Christian festivals, excesses at, 107. Chysostom, 19, note. Churches, sculptures of phallic emblems on, 131, et seq., 204. Coggeshall (Ralph de), old English chronicler, account of the Waldenses, 179. Coles’ (W.) Adam in Eden, obscene names of plants, 167. Como, sculptures on the church of San Fedele, 137. Corinth, temple at, 104, 105. Corinthian order of architecture, origin of, 53. Cow, symbol of Venus in Egypt, 33, 62. Cyzicus, ancient medal of, 29; worship of Venus there, 84. D’Harcanville, references to his work, “Récherches sur les Arts,” 15, 21, 23, 28, 45, 47, 70, 74, 136. De Lancre, account of witchcraft in France, A.D. 1612, 212, et seq. Diana, the female destructive power, 77. Diodorus Siculus, 19, note, 65, 105. Dionysus of Halicarnassus, 104. Dulaure, researches on modern Priapic worship, 118. Durandus, mention of singular Easter custom, 161. Dusii, Gallic name for Incubi, 152. Easter, Teutonic festival with Priapic observances, 157. Egyptian religious rites, 16, 30, 31, 32, 83 ; ancient Egyptian monuments, 51, 52. Egypt, phallic images brought thence, 137. Elephant, represented in ancient Indian monuments, 56, 57; Greek, 59. Elephanta, sculptures from the caverns of, 47, 53. Elephantis, ancient erotic work, 103. Embrun, phallus of St. Foutin worshipped there, 140. Eryx, temple at, 105. Euripides, 44, 69, 80, 104, 106. Fascinum, Roman name for male organ, mediæval worship of, 128, 145. Fateux, cakes made in form of phallus, 159. Fauns and satyrs, 35, 43, 45. Festivals of Priapus, 154, et seq. Fig, obscene gesture, called “to make the fig,” a Priapic emblem, 150; referred to in a trial of witches, 235. Fire, worship of, 65. Floralia, Priapic festival, 155, 161. Forgeias (M.), phallic amulets found by him the Seine, 146. Frea, Anglo-Saxon Priapus, 126. Fridaythorpe, Yorkshire, and Friston, probably derivation of the names, 127. Gems, ancient, illustrative of the subject, 39, 41, 61, 104, 155. Generative powers, worship of during the middle ages of Western Europe, 117, et seq. Gerard’s Herbal, obscene names of plants, 167. German witchcraft in the fifteenth century, 209. German worship of the sun, 34, 81. Gesner, medals published by, 74. Gnostics, their practices of hospitality, &c., 99, 173. Goat, symbol of the generative attribute, 23; living goat worship of ancient Egyptians. Godiva’s (Lady) procession, a relic of Priapic celebration, 170. INDEX 251 Golnitz, account of a statue at Antwerp, 145. Goltizus, medals published by, 46. Gonnis, Hindoo deity, 56, 57, 58, 61. Greece, ancient theology of, 17, 32, 34. Grecian representations of attributes of the deity, 16, 45, 60. Greek temples, 55. Gregory IX., account of secret rites of the Stendingers, 183—185. Grotius, 37, note. Hammer (Baron von), description of idols of the Knights Templars, 138, 199, et seq. Harmony, daughter of Mars and Venus, 71. Heaving and lifting, English customs at Easter, 160. Helman, god of destruction, 78, 79, 80. Herculaeum and Pompeii, relics of Priapic worship and attributes found there, 4, 27, 33, 37, 120. Hercules, attributes of, 91, 92. Hermaphrodite, ancient figures of, 41, 43. Herodotus, 31, 32, 53, 63, 66, 104, 134. Hesiod, 16, 44, 106. Hierapolis, goddess of, the Priapic Diana, 83. Hierapolis, temple at, 84. Hindoo animal worship, 34; symbols of generative organs on ancient Indian sculptures, 47, 48; ancient Hindoo theology, 56, et seq. Homer, 17, 32, 41, 51, 63, 69, 72, 73, 80, 91, 98, 112. Horace, 128. Horns, ancient symbol of power, 22. Horseshoe, modern form of ancient drawings of the female organ, used as a talisman, 139. Housesteads in Northumberland, sculpture found there, 125. Idolatry among the Knights Templars, 194, et seq. Incubi, spirits of the woods, 152. Inniskea, an island on the western shores of Ireland, last trace of Priapic worship found there, 248. Ireland, Shelah-na-gig, representations of the female organ found there, 132— 134. Isernia, 5, 118. Isis, ancient deity, 39, 40, 50, 83, 95. Italian Christian sects, names of, 177. James I, on witchcraft, 210. Japanese sculptures, 47. Jewish religion, identity of its symbols with those of the heathen, 112, 113. Josephus, 111. Jupiter, father of Minerva, 57, 58, 69, 85, 93, 101, 113. Jupiter Ammon, identical with Pan, 38. Juvenal, 105, 124, 155, 156. Kandarp, Hindoo god of love, 61, 62. Ketzer, German name of the Cathari, 178. Kreshna, Hindoo deity, 48. Labourd, proceedings against witchcraft there, A.D. 1609, 212, et seq. Lactantius, 103. Lancercost, chronicle of, 129. Leaden tokens with phallic emblems, 146, 170, 183. Le Chatelet, phallus found there, 119. Lesbos, ancient rites in the island of, 105. Liberalia, Priapic festival, 154. Libitina, Roman Goddess of death, 73. Lingam, Indian representation of the generative attribute, 49, 54. Lion, ancient symbol of the sun, 70. Lotus, sacred plant of the Hindoos, 49, 50, 54, 58. Lucian, 83, 84. Lucretius, 45. Lycæan Pan, god of the Arcadians, 35. Lycopolis, sun worship there, 81. Macrobius, mention of a temple in Thrace, 67, 78, 81. Malleus Maleficarum, celebrated work against witchcrft, 209. Mandrake, ancient Priapic superstitions regarding, 168. 252 INDEX Manichæans, early Christian sect, 173, 174. Mapes (Walter), account of the secret rites of the Paterini in the eleventh century, 176. Mars, god of destruction, 78. Mars and Venus, 71. Martial, epigrams, 149, 159. May Day, mediæval celebration of, identical with the Roman Floralia, 161; Elizabethan custom on May Day, 162, 163. Mecklenburg Strelitz, statuettes found there, 136. Medallic representations of the generative organs, 29. Medals with phallic emblems, used by secret societies of the middle ages, 205. Medusa’s head, 90. Miches, cakes made in the form of the male organ in France, 160. Michelet, account of proceedings against the Templars, 188, 247. Middleton (Dr.) Letter from Rome, 3. Minerva, Greek deity, similar to the Hindoo Gonnis, her attributes, birth, &c., 57, 58, 61. Minotaur, fabulous monster, 89, 90. Molay (Jaques de) grand master of the Templars, proceedings against him, 185. Monitor (Ulric), work on witchcraft, A.D. 1489, 209. Moon, ancient attributes of, 59, 83. Musée Secret, representations of phalli, 120, 149. Naples, Sir W. Hamilton’s account of Priapic worship there, 3. Needfire, 127, 163—166; introduced in the witches’ Sabbath, 222. Nicolaitæ, early Christian sect, 178. Nider (John), work on witchcraft, 209. NÓmes, Roman amphitheatre at, sculptures of phalli, 119—122. Novatians, early Christian sect, 178. Nymphs, companions of fauns and satyrs, 39. Occus, Hindoo deity, 60. Onomacritus, early poet, 18, note. Orleans, a secret society with obscene rites there, in the eleventh century, 182. Orpheus, Argonauticon, account of, 18, note. Orpheus, hymns of, 19, note, 20, 24, 29, 40, 44, 65, 69, 92, 93. Orphic system of theology, 17, et seq. Osiris, ancient deity, 16, 29, 40, 68. Ovid, 44. Pæon, Greek name of Apollo, 78. Pagan rites introduced into the worship of the early Christians, 171, et seq. Pan, attributes of, 35—38, 69. Paterini, Italian sectarians, and their secret rites, 176. Paulicians, sect of Gnostics, introducers of phallic worship into Western Europe, 175. Pausanius, 19, note, 39, 63. Pellerin, medal published by him, 29. Persian worship, 63, 86. Philippe IV, proceedings against the Knights Templars, 165. Philo supposed first individuals of the human race to be androgynous, 43. Phúnician medals, 87, 88, 90. Phúnician religion, ancient, 94. Pilosi, spirits of the woods, 152. Pindar, 60, 98, 101. Plants connected with Priapic worship, obscene names of, &c., 166, et seq. Plato, 74. Platonic religion, 25, 37, 65, 67, 89. Pliny, 76. Plutarch, 15, 16, 19, note, 20, 30, 38, 60, 68, 82, 96, 120. Pluto, 69. Pollear, Hindoo deity, 56, 61. Polypus represented on Greek medals, 21. Popular oaths and exclamations derived from phallic worship, 181. Priapeia, festival of Priapus, 156. Priapus, original intention in the worship INDEX 253 of, 15 as represented by Roman artists, 42; degradation of, 102; sacrifices to, 104; sanctified in the middle ages, 139, et seq. Proclus, on truth, 26; on the Platonic theology, 27, 30, 41. Proserpine, 72. Ptolmies, medals of, 57, 61. Ptolemy Philadelphus, 84. Purgatory, modern form of purification by fire, 100. Puzzuoli, temple of Serapis there, 64, 66. Pytho, the serpent destroyed by Apollo, 76. Robin Goodfellow, 153. Roman worship of Priapus, 118. Sabbath of the witches, modern form of Priapic festivals, 206, et seq.; secret practices at, described by Bodinus, 210—212; described by De Lancre, 216, et seq.; identity with rites of the Knights Templars, 246. St. Augustine, commands to ladies attending Chrisitan festivals, 107; on the Liberalia, 129. St. Cosmo, modern Italian Priapus, account of the feast of, at Isernia, 5, 9. St. Epiphanius, account of the Gnostics, 173. St. Fiacre, chair of, 142. St. Foutin, French Priapus of the middle ages, 139, 143. St. John’s eve, customs on, 164—166, 168. St. Nicholas, superstition regarding, 132. Saints, names of several phallic, 141. Scottish worship of Priapus in the 13th century, 130, 131. Scrat, German spirit of the woods, 151. Scriptural emblems, 86. Sects of the middle ages, 172, et seq. Serapis, temple of, 64. Serpent, symbol of life and vigour, 21; worshipped by Egyptians, 32. Shakespeare, use of the phrase “the fig of Spain,” 150. Shela-na-gig, representation of the female organ found in Ireland under that name, 132—134. Shrewsbury show, a relic of Priapic celebration, 170. Sicyon, temple at, mentioned by Pausanias, 63. Sileni, attendants on Bacchus, 41. Snake, hooded, symbol of the Egyptians, 53. Societies, secret, in the middle ages, for Priapic worship, 170. Sodomy practiced by ancient sects, Bulgarians, 176; Cathari, 179; Knights Templar, 190—193. Solar system, 109. Sonnerat, account of Hindoo antiquities, 48, 53. Sophocles, 36, 37, 38. Soul, ancient ideas of the emancipation of, from the body, 97—100. Sprenger (Jacob), work on witchcraft, 109. Stedingers, alleged secret rites of, and crusade against, 183—185. Stonehenge, temple for worship of Apollo, 65. Strabo, 31, 33. Stubbes’ (P.) description of May-day ceremonies, 162. Sun worship, 66, 77—82. Sweden, worship of the god Fricco, 126. Sylvanas, Pan so called by the Latins, 36. Symbols, explanation of the Priapic, 17; ancient symbols, 20, et seq.; 45—47, 55, 67, et seq.; sun worship, 78—82; 87, 88, 89; on statue of Isis, 96; butterfly, ancient symbol of the soul, 100. Syracuse, medal of, 55. Systrum, mystic instrument of the goddess Isis, 96. Temples for heathen worship, 63, et seq. Templars, Knights, secret practices, trial and dissolution of their order, 150, 254 INDEX 169, 185, et seq.; identity of their proceedings with those of the witches’ Sabbath, 245. Ters, i.e. Priapus, the patron saint of Antwerp, 144. Thebes, ancient temples at, 51. Theology, Ancient, attributes of a Divine Being, 24—26. Tiger attendant on Bacchus, 74. Toads attendant at witches’ Sabbath, 232, 236. Trajan’s column, 51, 52. Typhon, the destroying power, 68, 69. Urus, or wild bull, Greek symbol of the Creator, 21. Vauderie, French practice of witchcraft, 208. Venus, 82; festival of, 155. Virgil, description of the emanation of the pervading Spirit of God, 29, 72, 99. Vulcan, 57, 80. Waldenses, origin of the sect, 178; their secret rites, 170. Warbuton (Bishop), 33. Water, worship of, 82, et seq. Witchcraft, the last form of Priapic worship, 206, et seq.; secret rites of the Vauderie, 208. Xanten, pottery with Priapic emblems found there, 122. THE END.

[edit]

[Plates follow]

PLATES F! PLATE I. Ex-voto of wax presented in the Church of Isernia in 1780. PLATE II. PLATE III. PLATE IV. Fig. 1. Fig. 2. Fig. 3. Fig. 4. Fig. 5. Fig. 6. PLATE V. PLATE VI. PLATE VII. PLATE VIII. PLATE IX. PLATE X. PLATE XI. PLATE XII. PLATE XIII. PLATE XIV.

PLATE XV.

PLATE XVI. PLATE XVII. PLATE XVIII. PLATE XIX. PLATE XX. PLATE XXI. PLATE XXII. Statue of a Bull on the Pagoda of Tanjore. PLATE XXIII. PLATE XXIV. Scuplture from the Island of Elephanta, near Bombay—Dimensions 2 feet 6 inches by 1 foot 6 inches. PLATE XXV. PLATE XXVI. L’original de ce bas-relief a ététrouve dans le foille faites a NÓnes dans l’annee 1825. L’alligorie réprésente le Vautour, comme l’embléne de la maternité, couvant quatres oeufs en apparence. La queue de l’oiseau forme un phallus, et les oeufs [illegible] l’organe femelle dans ses quatres epoques de l’enfance, de l’adolescence, de la maturité et de la vellesse.

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The Worship of Priapus

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PREFACE TO THIS EDITION

PREFACE

CONTENTS

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS

A LETTER FROM SIR WILLIAM HAMILTON, ETC. Naples, Dec. 30, 1781.

LETTERA DA ISERNIA

ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS.

ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE POWERS DURING THE MIDDLE AGES OF WESTERN EUROPE

INDEX.

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+{| class="toccolours" style="float: left; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 2em; font-size: 85%; background:#c6dbf7; color:black; width:30em; max-width: 40%;" cellspacing="5"
+| style="text-align: left;" |
+"[[Ceres]], wandering over the earth in search of her daughter Proserpine, and overcome with grief for her loss, arrived at the hut of an Athenian peasant woman named [[Baubo]], who received her hospitably, and offered her to drink the refreshing mixture which the Greeks call [[Cyceon]] (κυκεων). The goddess rejected the offered kindness, and refused all consolation. Baubo, in her distress, bethought her of another expedient to allay the grief of her guest. She relieved her sexual organs of that outward sign which is the evidence of puberty, and then presented them to the view of Ceres, who, at the sight, laughed, forgot her sorrows, and drank the cyceon. 29 The prevailing belief in the beneficial influence of this sight, rather than a mere pleasantry, seems to afford the best explanation of this story; and the same superstition is no doubt embodied in an old mediæval story which we give in a note as it is told in that celebrated book of the sixteenth century [[Le Moyen de Parvenir]]. This superstition which, as shown by the [[Shelah-na-Gigs]] of the Irish churches, prevailed largely in the middle ages, explains another class of antiquities which are not uncommon."--''[[The Worship of Priapus]]'' (1786) by Richard Payne Knight
+<hr>
+"In 1786, [ [[Richard Payne Knight]] ] published a limited edition of a treatise, entitled, "An Account of the Remains of the Worship of Priapus, lately existing at Isernia, in the Kingdom of Naples, etc." ; to which is added a [[The Worship of Priapus |Discourse on the Worship of Priapus, and its Connection with the Mystic Theology of the Ancients]]." Although the subject was extraordinary and prohibited from common conversation as indelicate, Mr. Knight had discussed it with moderation and remarkable caution, giving little occasion to prudishness or pruriency, or even to " prurient prudes " to resort to his pages for their accustomed aliment. He added engravings, however, from coins, medals, and other remains of ancient art, which he had collected ; all of which were genuine and authenticated, but were made a handle by which to misrepresent and vilify him. Having been elected to Parliament, a member who was opposed to him in politics, took the occasion in debate to assert that he had written an improper book. Mr. Knight, long before, in consequence of the clamor and of the calumny to which he was subjected, had suppressed a portion of the edition, and destroyed whatever copies came in his way. But indecency did not constitute the offense of the book. Facts were disclosed in regard to the arcana of religion, which the initiated had before sedulously kept vailed from popular knowledge. Mr. Knight had only endeavored to present to scholars a comprehensive view of the origin and nature of a worship once general in the Eastern world ; but it was easy to perceive that many of the elements of that worship had been adopted and perpetuated in the modern faith by which it had been superseded. A philosophical reasoner can not perceive why it should be otherwise. Opinions and institutions are not revolutionised on a day, but are slowly modified by reflection and experience."--''[[An Inquiry Into the Symbolical Language of Ancient Art and Mythology]]'' (1818) by Alexander Wilder
+|}
 {{Template}}
-:''[[priapus]]''
+''''' Two Essays on the Worship of Priapus''''' (1786) is a book by [[Richard Payne Knight]]. The book sought to recover the importance of ancient [[phallic cult]]s. Knight's apparent preference for ancient [[sacred eroticism]] over [[Judeo-Christian puritanism]] led to many attacks on him as an infidel and as a scholarly [[apologist]] for libertinism. This ensured the persistent distrust of the religious establishment. The central claim of ''The Worship of Priapus'' was that an international religious impulse to worship ‘[[the generative principle]]’ was articulated through genital imagery, and that this imagery has persisted into the modern age. In some ways the book was the first of many later attempts to argue that [[Paganism|Pagan]] ideas had persisted within [[Christianity]], a view that would eventually crystalise into the [[neo-Pagan]] movement over a century later.
-''[[The Worship of Priapus]]'' is a book by [[Richard Payne Knight]], published in [[1786]]. His first book, ''[[The Worship of Priapus]]'', sought to recover the importance of ancient [[phallic cult]]s. Knight's apparent preference for ancient [[sacred eroticism]] over [[Judeo-Christian puritanism]] led to many attacks on him as an infidel and as a scholarly apologist for libertinism. This ensured the persistent distrust of the religious establishment. The central claim of ''The Worship of Priapus'' was that an international religious impulse to worship ‘the generative principle’ was articulated through genital imagery, and that this imagery has persisted into the modern age. In some ways the book was the first of many later attempts to argue that [[Paganism|Pagan]] ideas had persisted within [[Christian]] culture, a view that would eventually crystalise into the [[neo-Pagan]] movement over a century later.
-==Full text==
-RICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT, oneofthemoft
+The book was republished in 1865 by [[John Camden Hotten]] and in 1957 by the [[Julian Press]] with an introduction by [[Ashley Montagu]].
-diftinguifhed patrons of art and learning in Eng-
-land during his time, a fcholar of great attainments,
-an eminent antiquarian, member of the Radical
-party in Parliament, and a writer of great
-ability, was born at Wormefley Grange, in Herefordfhire,
-in 1750. From an early age he devoted himfelf to the ftudy of
-ancient literature, antiquities, and mythology. A large portion
-of his inherited fortune was expended in the colledion of antiq-
-uities, efpecially, ancient coins, medals, and bronzes. His col-
-leftion, which was continued until his death in 1820, was be-
-queathed to the Britifh Mufeum, and accepted for that inftitution
-by a fpecial ad of Parliament. Its value was eftimated at /'50.000.
-Among his works are an Inquiry into the Principles of Tajie ;
-Analytical EJfay on the Greek Alphabet ; The Symbolical Language of
-Ancient Art ; and three poems; 'The Landfcape, the Progrefs of
-Civil Society, and The Romance of Alfred.
-Tht IVor/hip of Priapus v/a.s printed in 1786, for diftribution
+The book cites [[D'Hancarville]]'s '' [[Recherches sur les arts de la Grèce]]'' and [[Dulaure]].
-by the Dilettanti Society, with which body the author was
+==See also==
+*[[Priapus]]
+*[[Worship]]
+*[[Christianity and Paganism]]
+*[[Phallic saints]]
+*[[Dusii]]
+*[[Sexual symbolism]]
+==Full text==
+TWO ESSAYS ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS
+RICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT
+AND THOMAS WRIGHT
+==PREFACE TO THIS EDITION==
+RICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT, one of the most
+distinguished patrons of art and learning in Eng-
+land during his time, a scholar of great attainments,
+an eminent antiquarian, member of the Radical
+party in Parliament, and a writer of great
+ability, was born at Wormesley Grange, in Herefordshire,
+in 1750. From an early age he devoted himself to the study of
+ancient literature, antiquities, and mythology. A large portion
+of his inherited fortune was expended in the collection of antiquities, especially, ancient coins, models, and bronzes. His collection, which was continued until his death in 1820, was bequeathed to the British Museum, and accepted for that institution
+by a special act of Parliament. Its value was estimated at £50,000.
+Among his works are an [[Inquiry into the Principles of Taste]];
+[[Analytical Essay on the Greek Alphabet]]; [[The Symbolical Language of Ancient Art]]; and three poems, The Landscape, the
+Progress of Civil Society, and The Romance of Alfred.
+The Worship of Priapus was printed in 1786, for distribution
+by the Dilettanti Society, with which body the author was
+actively identified. This society embraced in its membership
+some of the most distinguished scholars in England, among others
+the Duke of Norfolk, Sir Joseph Banks, Sir William Hamilton,
+Sir George Beaumont, the Marquis of Abercorn, Lord Charlemont, Lord Dundas, Horace Walpole, and men of equal prominence.
+The bold utterances of Mr. Knight on a subject which until
+that time had been entirely tabooed, or had been treated in a
+way to hide rather than to discover the truth, shocked the sensibilities of the higher classes of English society, and the ministers
+and members of the various denominations of the Christian
+world. Rather than endure the storm of criticism, aroused by the
+publication, he suppressed during his lifetime all the copies of
+the book he could recall, consequently it became very scarce, and
+continued so for nearly a hundred years.
+In 1865 the work was reprinted, with an essay added, carrying
+the investigation further, showing the prevalence during the middle ages of beliefs and practices similar to those described in
+Knight’s essay, only modified by the changed conditions of society.
+The supplementary essay is now generally conceded to have been
+the work of the eminent author and antiquarian, Thomas Wright;1
+assisted by John Camden Hotten, the publisher of the 1865
+edition. In their work they had the benefit of the real additions
+made during this century to the literature of the subject, and of
-H PREFACE TO THIS EDITION.
-adively identified. This fociety embraced in its memberfhip
-Tome of the moft diftinguifhed fcholars in England, among others
-the Duke of Norfolk, Sir Jofeph Banks, Sir William Hamilton,
-Sir George Beaumont, the Marquis of Abercorn, Lord Charle-
-mont. Lord Dundas, Horace Walpole, and men of equal prom-
-inence.
-The bold utterances of Mr. Knight on a fubject which until
-that time had been entirely tabooed, or had been treated in a
-way to hide rather than to difcover the truth, jfhocked the fenfi-
-bilities of the higher clafTes of Englifh fociety, and the ministers
-and members of the various denominations of the Chriftian
-world. Rather than endure the ftorm of criticifm, aroufed by the
-publication, he fupprefTed during his lifetime all the copies of
-the book he could recall, confequently it became very fcarce, and
-continued fo for nearly a hundred years.
-In 1865 the work was reprinted, with an eflay added, carrying
-the inveftigation further, fhowing the prevalence during the mid-
-dle ages of beliefs and praftices fimilar tothofe defcribed in
-Knight's effay, only modified by the changed condition of fociety.
-The fupplementary eflay is now generally conceded to have been the
-work of the eminent author and antiquarian, Thomas Wright;^
-aflifted by John Camden Hotten, the publifher of the 1865
-edition. In their work they had the benefit of the vaft additions
-made during this century to the literature of the fubjeil, and of
-' Perhaps no Englifhman of modern times, or of any time, has intelligently
-treated fo many different departments of literary refearch : Archaeology, Art,
-Bibliography, Chriftianity, Cuftoms, Heraldry, Literary Hiftory, Philology,
-Topography and Travels, are among the topics illuftrated by the learning, zeal and
-induftryofMr. Thomas Wright. — S. Austin Allibone.
-PREFACE TO THIS EDITION. iii
-the difcoveries of objects of antiquity at Herculaneum and Pom-
-peii, alfo in France, Germany, Belgium, England, Ireland, and
-in fad in nearly every country in Europe, illuftrating the fubjed
-they were inveftigating.
-The numerous illuftrations are engraved from antique coins,
-medals, ftone carvings, etc., preferved in the Payne Knight col-
-ledion in the Britirti Mufeum, and from other objeds difcovered
-in England and on the continent, fince the firft efTay was written.
-Thefe are only to be found in mufeums and private collections
-fcattered over Europe, and are pradically inacceflibleto the ftudent;
-they are here engraved and fully defcribed.
-The edition of 1865 was of a limited number of copies, and
-was foon exhaufted. When a copy occafionally appears in the
-audion room, or in the hands of a bookfeller, it brings a large
-advance on the original high publifhed price. The prefent
-edition, an exad reproduction of that of 1865, but correding fome
-manifeft mifprints, is publifhed in the intereft of fcience and
-fcholarihip. At a time when fo many learned inveftigators are
-endeavoring to trace back religious beliefs and pradices to their
-origin, it would feem that this is a branch of the fubjed which
-{hould not be ignored. The hiftory of religions has been ftudied
-with more zeal and fuccefs during the nineteenth century, than
-in all the ages which preceded it, and this book has now an
-intereft fifty fold greater than when originally publifhed.
-OSiober, 1894.
-PREFACE.
-^^f]HE following pages are offered fimply as a con-
-tribution to fcience. The progrefs of human fociety
-(has, in different ages, prefented abundance of hor-
-_ rors and abundance of vices, which, in treating
-hiftory popularly, we are obliged to pafs over gently, and often
-to conceal ; but, neverthelefs, if we negled or fupprefs thefe fads
-altogether, we injure the truth of hiftory itfelf, almoft in the fame
-manner as we fhould injure a man's health by deflroying fome of
-the nerves or mufcles of his body. The fuperflitions which are
-treated in the two effays which form the prefent volume, formed
-a very important element in the working of the fecial frame in
-former ages, — in fad, during a very great part of the exiflence
-of man in this world, they have had much influence inwardly and
-outwardly on the charader and fpirit of fociety itfelf, and there-
-fore it is neceffary for the hiflorian to underftand them, and a
-part of the duties of the archaeologifl to invefligate them. The
-DifTertation by Richard Payne Knight is tolerably well known —
-vi PREFACE.
-at leaft by name — to bibliographers and to antiquaries, as a book
-of very confiderable learning, and at the fame time, as one which
-has become extremely rare, and which, therefore, can only be
-obtained occafionally at a very high price. It happened that, in
-a time when the violence of political feelings ran very high, the
-author, who was a member of the Houfe of Commons, belonged
-to the liberal party, and his book was fpitefully mifreprefented,
-with the defign of injuring his charader. We know the unjuft
-abufe which was lavifhed upon him by Mathias, in his now little-
-read fatire, the "Purfuits of Literature." Some of the Conti-
-nental archaeologifts had written on kindred fubjeds long before
-the time of Payne Knight.
-It was thought, therefore, that a new edition of this book, pro-
-duced in a manner to make it more acceflible to fcholars, would
-not be unacceptable. Payne Knight's defign was only to
-inveftigate the origin and meaning of a once extenfively popular
-worfhip. The hiftory of it is, indeed, a wide fubjed, and muft
-include all branches of the human race, in a majority of which it
-is in full force at the prefent day, and even in our own more
-highly civilized branch it has continued to exift to a far more
-recent period than we might be inclined to fuppofe. It is the
-objed; of the Efiay which has been written for the prefent
-volume — of which it forms more than one half — to inveftigate
-the exiftence of thefe superftitions among ourfelves, to trace
-them, in fadl, through the middle ages of Weftern Europe, and
-their influence on the hiftory of mediaeval and on the formation
-of modern fociety, and to place in the hands of hiftorical fcholars
-PREFACE.
-vn
-fuch of their monuments as we have been able to colled:. It is
-hoped that, thus compofed, the prefent volume will prove
-acceptable to the clafs of readers to whom it fpecially addreffes
-itfelf
-It muft not be fuppofed or expeded that this EfTay on the
-mediaeval part of the fubjed can be perfed. A large majority of
-the fads and monuments of mediaeval phallic worfhip have long
-perifhed, but many, hitherto unknown, remain ftill to be col-
-leded, and it may be hoped that the prefent EfTay will lead
-eventually to much more complete refearches as to the exiftence
-and influence of this worfhip in Weftern Europe during mediaeval
-times. Notes of fuch fuperjftitions are continually turning up
-unexpededly ; and we may mention as an example, that a copy
-of Payne Knight's treatife now before us contains a marginal
-note in pencil by a former pofleflx)r, Richard Turner, a colledor
-of curious books formerly refiding at Grantham in Lincolnfhire,
-in the following words: — "In 1850, I met with a Zingari, or
-Gypfy, who had an amulet beautifully carved in ivory, which fhe
-wore round her neck; fhe faid it was worth 30/., and fhe would
-not part with it on any account. She came from Florence. It
-was the Lingham and the Yoni united." This is curious as
-furnifhing apparent evidence of the relationfhip between the
-gipfies of Weftern Europe and India.
-London, September, 1865.
-CONTENTS.
-REFACE to this Edition,
-Preface to the Edition of 1865,
-Contents .....
-Lill of Plates, with references to explanatory text
-Account of the Remains of the Worship of Priapus
-Letter from Sir William Hamilton .
-Lettera da Ifernia, 1780 .
-On the Worfhip of Priapus, by R. Payne Knight
-Page
-i
-V
-ix
-xiii
-— J13
-On the Worship of the Generative Powers during the Middle Ages of
-Western Europe :
-Abundant evidences of Phallic worfliip in the Roman colonies
-Aix, in Provence .
-Nimes, and its Roman Amphitheatre
-Xanten, in Hefle, and Antwerp
-Britain, and its Priapic remains
-The Teutonic Venus, Friga
-Fafcinum, and its magical influences
-Scotland, and its Phallic celebrations
-Phallic figures on public buildings
-Ireland, and its Shelah-na-Gig
-Reprefentation of the female organ exhibited in various countries
-Horfeflioes nailed to ilable-doors, a remain of the Shelah-na-Gig exhi
-bition .......
-The ancient god Priapus becomes a faint in the Middle Ages .
-b
-I 20
-I 22
-I 26
-J31
-CONTENTS.
-Marriage offerings to Priapus
-Antwerp, and its patron faint Ters
-M. Forgeais' coUertion of phallic amulets .
-The *' Fig," and its meanings
-The German Scrat, and the Gaulifli Dufii .
-Robin Goodfellow ....
-Liberalia and Floralia feftivities
-Eafter, and hot-crofs-buns
-Heaving and lifting cuftoms at Eafter . ,
-May-day feftivities, and the May-pole
-Bonfires ....••
-St. John's, or Midfummer-eve
-Mother Bunch's inftruftion to maidens
-Plants and flowers connefted with phallic worftiip .
-The mandrake .....
-Lady Godiva, the Shrewfbury fhow, and the Guild feftival at F
-Pagan rites of the early Chriftians
-Gnoftics, Manichaeans, Nicolaits, followers of Florian, &c
-The Bulgarians, and their praftices
-Walter Mapes' account of the Patarini, and their fecret rites
-The Waldenfes and Cathari
-Popular oaths and phallic worfhip .
-Secret fociety in Orleans for celebrating obfcene rites
-The Stedingers of Germany, and their fecret ceremonies
-refton
-The Knights Templars :
-Charges brought againft them
-Spitting on the Crofs, and the denial of Chrift
-The Kifs ....
-Intercourfe with women prohibited
-The Cat and Idol worftiip
-Baflbmet, or Baphomet
-Von Hammer's defcription of the Templars' images or ♦' idol "
-The Witches' Sabbath :
-Thelaft form which the Priapeia and Liberalia aflumed in Weftern Europe 206
-CONTENTS.
-XI
-Trial of witches at Arras, in France
-Sprenger and others on witchcraft in the fifteenth century
-Bodin's defcription of the Sabbath ceremonies
-Pierre de Lancre's full account of the Witches' Sabbath
-Pidorial reprefentation of the ceremonies .
-Similarity of the proceedings of the Sabbath to thofc of the Templars
-Intermixture of Priapic orgies with the Chriftian rites and ceremonies
-Traces of phallic worfhip ftill exifting on the weftern fhores of Ireland
-Page
-z\ 2
-H7
-Index
-LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
-Note. — As frequent references are made to fame of the engraved figures in different
-parts of the work, it was found impofjible to infert the illuftrations always oppo-
-fite the explanatory text. The plates, therefore, have heen placed^ independently
-of the text, but in regular order. The following lijl, however, zvill refer the
-reader to thofe pages which explain the objeSls drawn : —
-Plate
-I. Ex VoTi OF Wax, from Isernia .
-II. Ancient and Modern Amulets :
-Figure i . . .
-.
-• • •
-III. Antique Gems and Greek Medals :
-Figure i
-,7
-IV. Medals possessed by Payne Knight :
-Figure i
-V. Figures of Pan, Gems, &c
-Figure i
-VI. The Tauric Diana
-Defcribed on Page
-• 3. 7
-, 28, 90
-, 88
-, 90
-. 46
-,85
-. 46
-, 33
-. 34. 35, 89
-, 46
-• 38
-• 73
-,42, 54
-XIV
-LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
-Plate
-Defcnbec
-I on Page
-VII.
-Goat and Satyr, Greek Sculpture
-VIII.
-Bronze Statue of Ceres
-IX.
-Coins and Medals :
-Figure i . . . •
-. 29
-, 81
-, 83
-,88
-ID
-I I
-.93
-. 79
-'3
-; 71
-X.
-Systrum, with Various Medals :
-Figure i . . . .
-. 67
-' 78,
-, 80
-• 96
-. 83
-XL
-Sculpture from Elephanta
-,48
-XII.
-Indian Temple, showing the Lingam
-, 61
-XIII.
-Celtic Temple, Greek Medals, &c :
-Figure i, 2, 3,
-• 55
-. 64
-.61
-, 7
-. » 60
-, ID
-• 59
-1
-. 58
-XIV.
-Portable Temple dedicated to Priapus or th
-E "Lingam"
-XV.
-Temple Dedicated to Bacchus, at Puzzuoli :
-Figure i .
-, 65
-. . . .
-, 66
-. 66
-Plate
-XVI.
-XVII.
-XVIII.
-XIX.
-XX.
-XXI.
-XXII.
-XXIII.
-XXIV.
-XXV.
-XXVI.
-XXVII.
-XXVIII.
-LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
-Ornament from Puzzuoli Temple :
-Figure i .
-.
-Ornament from Puzzuoli Temple
-Egyptian Figures and Ornaments :
-Figure i .
-.
-■
-Egyptian Figures and Ornaments :
-Figure i
-, 7
-The Lotus, with Medals of Melita, &c :
-Figure i .
-.
-.
-Bacchus, Medals of Camarina, Syracuse, &c
-Figure i .
-, 3
-, 5, 6
-.
-Statue of a Bull at Tanjore
-Tiger at the Breast of a Nymph
-Sculpture from Elephanta (^See P/ate XI.)
-Roman Sculptures from Nimes :
-Figure i , 2
-•
-.
-Monument found at N^mes in 1825
-Phallic Figures, &c. found in England :
-Figure i, 2, 3, 4 .
-Phallic Monuments found in Scotland, &c
-Figure i .
-, 3
-XV
-Defcribed on F\ige
-', 87, 89
-, 87, 89
-, 88
-, 89
-,89
-, 48
-20
-21
-, 136
-, 121
-'23
-I 24
-S
-XVI
-LISr OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
-Plate.
-XXIX. Shelah-na-Gig Monuments :
-Figure i, 2, 3, 4
-XXX. Shelah-na-Gig Monuments :
-Figure i, 2, 3, .
-XXXI. Venus of the Vandals, Bronze Images, &c :
-Figure i, 2, 3, 4, 5
-.....
-XXXII. Ornaments from the Church of San Fedele
-Figure i, 2, 3 .
-XXXIII. Phallic Leaden Tokens from the Seine :
-XXXIV. Leaden Ornaments from the Seine :
-Figure i ....
-, 3, 4, 5
-XXXV. Amulets, &c. of Gold and Lead :
-Figure i, 2, 3, 4, 5
-XXXVI. Robin Goodfellow, Phallic Amulets, &c
-Figure i
-XXXVII. Priapic Illustrations from Old Ballads
-Figure \ ...
-...
-XXXVIII. "Idol" of the Knights Templars
-XXXIX. Sculptures of the Templars' Mysteries :
-Figure 1 ....
-....
-....
-• • • •.
-XL. The Witches' Sabbath, from De Lancre, 161 3
-Defcribed on
-Page
-. 133 to
-. 133 to
-to
-to
-,
-, ,
-H7
-to 203
-to 203
-to 204
-to 204
-, 246
-AN
-ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS
-OF THE
-WORSHIP
-OF
-PRIJPUS,
-LATELY EXISTING AT
-ISERNIJ, in the Kingdom of NAPLES:
-IN TWO LETTERS;
-One from Sir William Hamilton, K.B., His Majefty's Minifter
-at the Court of Naples, to Sir Joseph Banks, Bart., Prefident
-of the Royal Society.
-And the other from a Perfon refiding at Ifernia :
-TO WHICH IS ADDED,
-A DISCOURSE ON the WORSHIP of PRIAPUS,
-And its Connexion with the myftic Theology of the Ancients.
-By R. P. KNIGHT, Efq.
-LONDON:
-Printed by T. Spilsbury, Snowhill.
-m.dcc.lxxxvi.
-A LETTER FROM SIR WILLIAM
-HAMILTON, Etc.
-Sir,
-Naples, Dec. 30, 1781,
-lAVING laft year made a curious difcovery, that in a
-Province of this Kingdom, and not fifty miles from
-its Capital, a fort of devotion is ftill paid to Pria-
-pus, the obfcene Divinity of the Ancients (though
-under another denomination), I thought it a circum-
-ftance worth recording ; particularly, as it offers a frefh proof of the
-fimilitude of the Popifh and Pagan Religion, fo well obferved by
-Dr. Middleton, in his celebrated Letter from Rome: and there-
-fore I mean to depofit the authentic^ proofs of this aflertion in the
-Britifh Mufeum, when a proper opportunity fhall offer. In the
-mean time I fend you the following account, which, I flatter myfelf,
-will amufe you for the prefent, and may in future ferve to illuflrate
-thofe proofs.
-I had long ago difcovered, that the women and children of the
-lower clafs, at Naples, and in its neighbourhood, frequently wore,
-' A fpecimen of each of the ex-votioi wzx, with the original letter from Ifernia.
-See the Ex-voti, Plate i.
-A LEri'ER FROM
-as an ornament of drefs, a fort of Amulets, (which they imagine to
-be a prefervative from the mal occhii, evil eyes, or enchantment)
-exadly fimilar to thofe which were worn by the ancient Inhabitants
-of this Country for the very fame purpofe, as likewife for their
-fuppofed invigorating influence ; and all of which have evidently a
-relation to the Cult of Priapus. Struck with this conformity in
-ancient and modern fuperfliition, I made a colledion of both the
-ancient and modern Amulets of this fort, and placed them together
-in the Britifh Mufeum, where they remain. The modern
-Amulet mofl: in vogue reprefents a hand clinched, with the point
-of the thumb thruft betwixt the index and middle^ finger; the
-next is a fhell ; and the third is a half-moon. Thefe Amulets
-(except the fhell, which is ufually worn in its natural fl:ate) are mofl:
-commonly made of filver, but fometimes of ivory, coral, amber,
-cryftal, or fome curious gem, or pebble. We have a proof of the
-hand above defcribed having a connexion with Priapus, in a mofl
-elegant fmall idol of bronze of that Divinity, now in the Royal
-Mufeum of Portici, and which was found in the ruins of Her-
-culaneum : it has an enormous Phallus, and, with an arch look
-and gefliure, ftretches out its right hand in the form above men-
-tioned;^ and which probably was an emblem of confummation :
-and as a further proof of it, the Amulet which occurs mofl: fre-
-quently amongft thofe of the Ancients (next to that which reprefents
-the Ample Priapus), is fuch a hand united with the Phallus ; ot
-which you may fee feveral fpecimens in my colle6lion in the
-Britifli Mufeum. One in particular, I recoiled;, has alfo the half-
-moon joined to the hand and Phallus ; which half-moon is fuppofed
-to have an allufion to the female menfes. The fhell, or concha veneris.
-See Plate ii.. Fig. i.
-This elegant little figure is engraved in the firft volume of the Bronzes of the
-Herculaneum.
-SIR fVILLIAM HAMILTON. 5
-is evidently an emblem of the female part of generation. It is very
-natural then to fuppofe, that the Amulets reprefenting the Phallus
-alone, fo vifibly indecent, may have been long out of ufe in this
-civilized capital ; but I have been aflured, that it is but very lately
-that the Priefts have put an end to the wearing of fuch Amulets in
-Calabria, and other diftant Provinces of this Kingdom.
-A new road having been made laft year from this Capital to the
-Province of Abruzzo, paffing through the City of Ifernia (an-
-ciently belonging to the Samnites, and very populous^), a perfon ot
-liberal education, employed in that work, chanced to be at Ifernia
-juft at the time of the celebration of the Feaft of the modern
-Priapus, St. Cofmo ; and having been ftruck with the Angularity
-of the ceremony, fo very fimilar to that which attended the ancient
-Cult of the God of the Gardens, and knowing my tafte for anti-
-quities, told me of it. From this Gentleman's report, and from
-what I learnt on the fpot from the Governor of Ifernia himfelf,
-having gone to that city on purpofe in the month of February laft, I
-have drawn up the following account, which I have reafon to believe
-is ftridly true. I did intend to have been prefent at the Feaft of
-St. Cofmo this year; but the indecency of this ceremony having
-probably tranfpired, from the country's having been more frequented
-fince the new road was made, orders have been given, that the
-Great 'To^ of the Saint fhould no longer be expofed. The fol-
-lowing is the account of the Fete of St. Cofmo and Damiano, as
-it adually was celebrated at Ifernia, on the confines of Abruzzo,
-in the Kingdom of Naples, fo late as in the year of our Lord
-.
-On the 27th of September, at Ifernia, one of the moft ancient
-^ The aftual population of Ifernia, according to the Governor's account, is 5 1 56.
-See the Italian letter, printed at the end of this, from which it appears the
-modern Priapi were fo called at Ifernia.
-A LErrER FROM
-cities of the Kingdom of Naples, fituated in the Province called the
-Contado di Molife, and adjoining to Abruzzo, an annual Fair
-is held, which lafts three days. The fituation of this Fair is on a
-rifing ground, between two rivers, about half a mile from the town
-of Ifernia; on the moft elevated part of which there is an ancient
-church, with a veftibule. The architecture is of the ftyle of the
-lower ages; and it is faid to have been a church and convent be-
-longing to the Benedidine Monks in the time of their poverty.
-This church is dedicated to St. Cofmus and Damianus. One of
-the days of the Fair, the relicks of the Saints are expofed, and
-afterwards carried in proceffion from the cathedral of the city to
-this church, attended by a prodigious concourfe of people. In the
-city, and at the fair, ex-voH of wax, reprefenting the male parts of
-generation, of various dimenlions, fome even of the length of a
-palm, are publickly offered to fale. There are alfo waxen vows,
-that reprefent other parts of the body mixed with them ; but of
-thefe there are few in comparifon of the number of the Priapi.
-The devout diftributers of thefe vows carry a bafket full of them
-in one hand, and hold a plate in the other to receive the money,
-crying aloud, "St. Cofmo and Damiano!" If you afk the price
-of one, the anfwer is, pin ci metti^ piu meriti : " The more you
-give, the more's the merit." In the veftibule are two tables, at
-each of which one of the canons of the church prefides, this crying
-out, ^ijt riceveno le Mijfe^ e Litanie : " Here MafTes and Lita-
-nies are received;" and the other, ^ifi riceveno li Voti : " Here
-the Vows are received." The price of a Mafs is fifteen Neapolitan
-grains, and of a Litany five grains. On each table is a large bafon
-for the reception of the different offerings. The Vows are chiefiy
-prefented by the female fex ; and they are feldom fuch as reprefent
-legs, arms, &;c., but moft commonly the male parts of generation.
-The perfon who was at this fete in the year 1780, and who gave
-me this account (the authenticity of every article of which has fince
-SIR fVILLIAM HAMILTON. 7
-been fully confirmed to me by the Governor of Ifernia), told me
-alfo, that he heard a woman fay, at the time flie prefented a Vow,
-like that which is prefented in Plate 1. Fig. i., Santo Cojmo bene-
-detto, coji lo voglio : " Bleffed St. Cofmo, let it be like this ;" another,
-St. Cojimo, a te mi raccommendo: " St. Cofmo, I recommend myfelf
-to you ;" and a third, St. Cojimo^ ti ringrazio : " St. Cofmo, I thank
-you." The Vow is never prefented without being accompanied by
-a piece of money, and is always kifled by the devotee at the moment
-of prefentation.
-At the great altar in the church, another of its canons attends to
-give the holy undion, with the oil of St. Cofmo ;^ which is pre-
-pared by the fame receipt as that of the Roman Ritual, with the
-addition only of the prayer of the Holy Martyrs, St. Cofmus and
-Damianus. Thofe who have an infirmity in any of their members,
-prefent themfelves at the great altar, and uncover the member
-affeded (not even excepting that which is moft frequently repre-
-fented by the ex-voti) ; and the reverend canon anoints it, faying,
-Per inter cejfionem heati Cqfmi, liberet te ah omni malo. Amen.
-The ceremony finifhes by the canons of the church dividing the
-fpoils, both money and wax, which muft be to a very confiderable
-amount, as the concourfe at this fete is faid to be prodigioufly
-numerous.
-The oil of St. Cofmo is in high repute for its invigorating
-quality, when the loins, and parts adjacent, are anointed with it.
-No lefs than 1400 flafks of that oil were either expended at the
-altar in undions, or charitably diftributed, during this fete in the
-year 1780 ; and as it is ufual for every one, who either makes ufe
-' The cure of difeafes by oil is likewife of ancient date ; for Tertullian tells us,
-that a Chriftian, called Proculus, cured the Emperor Severus of a certain dillemper
-by the ufe of oil ; for which fervice the Emperor kept Proculus, as long as he lived,
-in his palace.
-LErrER FROM SIR W. HAMILTON.
-of the oil at the altar, or carries off a flalk of it, to leave an alms
-for St. Cofmo, the ceremony of the oil becomes likewife a very
-lucrative one to the canons of the church.
-I am. Sir,
-With great truth and regard.
-Your moft obedient humble Servant,
-William Hamilton.
-LETTERA DA ISERNIA,
-Nell* Anno, 1780.
-N Ifernia CittL\ Sannitica, oggi della Provincia del
-Contado di Molife, ogni Anno li 27 Settembre
-vi e una Fiera della clafTe delle perdonanze (cofi
-dette negl' Abruzzi li gran mercati, e fiere non di
-lifta) : Ouefta fiera fi fa fopra d'una Collinetta, che
-fta in mezzo a due fiumi ; diftante mezzo miglio da Ifernia, dove
-nella parte piu elevata vi e un antica Chiefa con un veftibulo, archi-
-tettura de' bafli tempi, e che fi dice efler ftata Chiefa, e Moniftero
-de P. P. Benedettini, quando erano poveri ? La Chiefa e dedicata
-ai Santi Cosmo e Damiano, ed e Grancia del Reverendiffimo Capi-
-tolo. La Fiera e di 50 baracche a fabrica, ed i Canonici affittano le
-baracche, alcune 10, altre 15, al piu 20, carlini Tuna; affittano
-ancora per tre giorni 1' ofteria fatta di fabbrica docati 20 ed i
-comeftibili folo benedetti. Vi e un Eremita della fteffa umanita del
-fii F. Gland guardiano del Monte Vefuvio, cittato con rifpetto dall'
-Ab. Richard. La fiera dura tre giorni. II Maeftro di fiera 6 il
-Capitolo, ma commette al Governatore Regio ; e quefta alza bandiera
-con I'imprefa della Citta, che e la ftefla imprefa de P. P. Celeftini.
-Si fa una Proceffione con le Reliquie dei Santi, ed efce dalla Catte-
-drale,eva alia Chiefa fudetta; mac pocodevota. II giorno della fefta,
-si per la Citt£l,come nellacollinetta vi e un gran concorfo d' Abitatori
-c
-lo LETTERA BA ISERNIA,
-del Motefe, Malnarde, ed altri Monti vicini, che la ftranezza delli
-veftimenti delle Donne, fembra, a chi non ha gl' occhi avvezzi ave-
-derle, il pui bel ridotto di mafcherate. Le Donne della Terra del
-Gallo fono vere figlie dell' Ordine Serafico Cappuccino, veftendo
-come li Zoccolanti in materia, e forma. Puelle di Scanno Sembrano
-Greche di Scio. Puelle di Carovilli Armene. Puelle delle Pefche,
-e Carpinone tengono ful capo alcuni panni roffi con ricamo di filo
-bianco, difegno ful gufto Etrufco, che a pochi pafTi fembra merletto
-d'Inghilterra. Vi e fra quefte Donne vera belezza, e diverfita
-grande nel veftire, anche fra due popolazioni viciniffime, ed un
-attaccamento particolare di certe popolazioni ad un colore, ed altre
-ad altro. L' abito e diftinto nelle Zitelle, Maritate, Vedove, e Donne
-di piacere?
-Nella fiera ed in Citta vi fono molti divoti, che vendono mem-
-bri virili di cera di diverfe forme, e di tutte le grandezze, fino ad
-un palmo ; e mifchiate vi fono ancora gambe, braccia, e faccie ; ma
-poche fono quefte. Quel li vendono tengono un cefto, ed un
-piatto ; li membri rotti fono nel cefto, ed il piatto ferve per racco-
-gliere il danaro d'elemoiina. Gridano S. Cosmo e Damiano. Chi
-€ fprattico domanda, quanto un vale ? Rifpondono^zY/ cimetti^piii
-meriti. Avanti la Chiefa nel veftibolo del Tempio vi fono due
-tavole, ciafcunacon fedia, dove prefiede un Canonico, e fuol' eftere
-uno il Primicerio, e I'altro Arciprete ; grida uno qui Jt ricevono le
-Mejfe^ e Litanie : V^hrOy qui ft ricevono li voti ; fopra delle tavole
-in ogn' una vi e un bacile, che ferve per raccogliere li membri di
-cera, che mai fi prefentano foli, ma con denaro, come ft e pratticato
-fempre in tutte le prefentazioni di membri, ad eccezzione di quelli
-deir Ifola di Ottaiti. Quefta divozione e tutta quafi delle Donne,
-e fono pochiftimi quelli, o quelle che prefentano gambe, e braccia,
-mentre tutta la gran fefta s' aggira a profitto de membri della gene-
-razione. lo ho intefo dire ad una donna. Santo Cojimo henedetto^
-coji lo voglio. Altre dicevano, Santo CoJimo a te mi raccommando :
-LETTERA DA ISERNIA. ii
-altre, Santo Co/mo ringrazio ; e quefto c quello oflerval, e fi prat-
-tica nel veftibulo, baciando ogn 'una il voto che prefente.
-Dentro la chiefa nell' altare magglore un canonico fa le flmte
-unzioni con 1' olio di S. Cofimo. La ricetta di queft' olio u la fteffa
-del Rituale Romano, con 1' aggiuntadell' orazionedelli SS. Martiri,
-Cofimo e Damiano. Si prefentano all' Altare gl' Infermi d' ogni
-male, fnudano la parte offefa, anche 1' originale della copia di cera,
-ed il Canonico ungendoli dice. Per intercejfionem beati Cqfmi, liberet
-te ah omni malo. Amen.
-Finifce la fefta con dividerfi li Canonici la cera, ed il denaro, e
-con ritornar gravide molte Donne fterili maritate, a profitto della
-popolazione delle Provincie ; e fpeffo la grazia s' entende fenza
-meraviglia, alle Zitelle, e Vedove, che per due notti hanno dormito,
-alcune nella Chiefa de' P. P. Zoccolanti,ed altre delli Capuccini, non
-eflendoci in Ifernia Cafe locande per alloggiare tutto il numero di
-gente, che concorre : onde li Frati, ajutando ai Preti, danno le
-Chiefe alle Donne, ed i Portici agl' Uomini ; e cofi Divifi fucce-
-dendo gravidanze non deve dubitar si, che fi a opera tutta miraco-
-lofa, e di divozione.
-NOTA I.
-L' olio non folo ferve per 1' unzione che fa il Canonico, ma anche
-fi difpenfa in piccioliifime caraffine, e ferve per ungerfi li lombo a
-chi ha male a quefta parte. In queft' anno 1780. fi fono date par
-divozione 1400 caraffine, e fi c confumato mezzo Stajo d' olio. Chi
-prende una caraffina da 1' olemofina.
-NoTA II.
-Li Canonici che fiedono nel Veftibulo prendono denaro d' Ele-
-mofina per Mefte, e per Litanie. Le MefTea grana 1 5. e le Litanie a
-grana 5.
-LETTERA DA ISERNIA.
-NOTA III.
-Li foreftieri alloggiano non folo fra li Cappuccini e Zoccolanti,
-ma anche nell' Eramo di S. Cofmo. Le Donne che dormono nelle
-chiefe de' P. P. Sudetti fono guardate dalli Guardiani, Vicarj e
-Padri piu di merito, e quelli dell' Eremo fono in cura dell' Eremita,
-divife anche dai Proprj Mariti, e fi fanno fpeflb miracoli fenza
-incomodo delli fanti.
-Le non le gufta, quando 1' avra letta
-Tornera bene fame una baldoria :
-Che le daranno almen qualche diletto
-Le Monachine quando vanno a letto.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS.
-EN, confidered colledively, are at all times the fame
-animals, employing the fame organs, and endowed
-with the fame faculties : their pafTions, prejudices,
-and conceptions, will of courfe be formed upon the
-fame internal principles, although'direded to various
-ends, and modified in various ways, by the variety of external cir-
-cumftances operating upon them. Education and fcience may cor-
-red, reftrain, and extend ; but neither can annihilate or create : they
-may turn and embellifh thecurrents ; but can neither ftop nor enlarge
-the fprings, which, continuing to flow with a perpetual and equal
-tide, return to their ancient channels, when the caufes that perverted
-them are withdrawn.
-The firft principles of the human mind will be more diredly
-brought into adion, in proportion to the earneftnefs and afleftion
-with which it contemplates its objed ; and paffion and prejudice will
-acquire dominion over it, in proportion as its firfl: principles are more
-direcflly brought into aftion. On all common fubjedls, this dominion
-of paffion and prejudice is reftrained by the evidence of fenfe and
-perception ; but, when the mind is led to the contemplation of things
-beyond its comprehenfion, all fuch refliraints vanifh : reafon has then
-ON THE WORSHIP
-nothing to oppofe to the phantoms of imagination, which acquire
-terrors from their obfcurity, and didate uncontrolled, becaufe un-
-known. Such is the cafe in all religious fubjeds, which, being
-beyond the reach of fenfe or reafon, are always embraced or rejeded
-with violence and heat. Men think they know, becaufe they are
-fure they feel ; and are firmly convinced, becaufe ftrongly agitated.
-Hence proceed that hafte and violence with which devout perfons
-of all religions condemn the rites and dodrines of others, and the
-furious zeal and bigotry with which they maintain their own ; while
-perhaps, if both were equally well underftood, both would be found
-to have the fame meaning, and only to differ in the modes of con-
-veying it.
-Of all the profane rites which belonged to the ancient poly-
-theifm, none were more furiouily inveighed againft by the zealous
-propagators of the Chriftian faith, than the obfcene ceremonies per-
-formed in the worfhip of Priapus ; which appeared not only contrary
-to the gravity and fandity of religion, but fubverfive of the firft
-principles of decency and good order in fociety. Even the form
-itfelf, under which the god was reprefented, appeared to them a
-mockery of all piety and devotion, and more fit to be placed in a
-brothel than a temple. But the forms and ceremonials of a religion
-are not always to be underfliood in their dired and obvious fenfe ;
-but are to beconfideredas fymbolical reprefentations of fome hidden
-meaning, which may be extremely wife and jufi:, though the fymbols
-themfelves, to thofe who know not their true fignification, may
-appear in the highefl: degree abfurd and extravagant. It has often
-happened, that avarice and fuperfi:ition have continued thefe fym-
-bolical reprefentations for ages after their original meaning has
-been lofl: and forgotten ; when they muft of courfe appear non-
-fenfical and ridiculous, if not impious and extravagant.
-Such is the cafe with the rite now under confideration, than which
-OF PRIAPUS. 15
-nothing can be more monftrous and indecent, if confidered in its
-plain and obvious meaning, or as a part of the Chriftian worfliip ;
-but which will be found to be a very natural fymbol of a very
-natural and philofophical fyftem of religion, if confidered according
-to its original ufe and intention.
-What this was, I fhall endeavour in the following fheets to explain
-as concifelv and clearly as poffible. Thofe who wifh to know how
-generally the fymbol, and the religion which it reprefented, once
-prevailed, will confult the great and elaborate work of Mr. D'Han-
-carville, who, with infinite learning and ingenuity, has traced its
-progrefs over the whole earth. My endeavour will be merely to
-fhow, from what original principles in the human mind it was firft
-adopted, and how it was connected with the ancient theology : mat-
-ters of verv curious inquiry, which will ferve, better perhaps than
-any others, to illuftrate that truth, which ought to be prefent in every
-man's mind when he judges of the adions of others, that in morals^
-as well as phyjics^ there is no ejfe£l without an adequate cauje. If in
-doing this, I frequently find it neceflary to differ in opinion with
-the learned author above-mentioned, it will be always with the ut-
-moft deference and refpedl ; as it is to him that we are indebted for
-the onlv reafonable method of explaining the emblematical works of
-the ancient artifts.
-Whatever the Greeks and Egyptians meant by the fymbol in
-queftion, it was certainly nothing ludicrous or licentious; of which
-we need no other proof, than its having been carried in folemn
-proceffion at the celebration of thofe myfteries in which the firft
-principles of their religion, the knowledge of the God of Nature, the
-Firft, the Supreme, the Intelledtual,^ were preferved free from the
-vulgar fuperftitions, and communicated, under the ftridleft oaths of
-Plut. de Is. et Os.
-i6 ON THE WORSHIP
-fecrecy, to the iniated (initiated) ; who were obliged to purify them-
-felves, prior to their initiation, by abftaining from venery, and all
-impure food.^ We may therefore be aflured, that no impure mean-
-ing could be conveyed by this fymbol ; but that it reprefented fome
-fundamental principle of their faith. What this was, it is difficult
-to obtain any dired information, on account of the fecrecy under
-which this part of their religion was guarded. Plutarch tells us,
-that the Egyptians reprefented Ofiris with the organ of generation
-ered, to fhow his generative and prolific power : he alfo tells us,
-that Ofiris was the same Deity as the Bacchus of the Greek Mytho-
-logy ; who was alfo the fame as the firft begotten Love (E/jw?
-r/3a)T07oi^o9) of Orpheus and Hefiod.^ This deity is celebrated by
-the ancient poets as the creator of all things, the father of gods
-and men;" and it appears, by the pafi"age above referred to, that
-the organ of generation was the fymbol of his great charaaerifl;ic
-attribute. This is perfedly confiflient with the general practice of
-the Greek artifl:s, who (as will be made appear hereafter) uniformly
-reprefented the attributes of the deity by the correfponding pro-
-perties obferved in the objedis of fight. They thus perfonified the
-epithets and titles applied to him in the hymns and litanies, and
-conveyed their ideas of him by forms, only intelligible to the ini-
-tiated, inftead of founds, which were intelligible to all. The organ
-of generation reprefented the generative or creative attribute, and in
-the language of painting and fculpture, fignified the fame as the
-epithet Trayyeverco^^ in the Orphic litanies.
-This interpretation will perhaps furprife thofe who have not
-been accufliomed to divefl: their minds of the prejudices of education
-and fafiiion ; but I doubt not, but it will appear jufl: and reafonable
-to thofe who confider manners and cuftoms as relative to the natural
-Plut. tie Is. ei Os. ^ Ibid. ^ Orph. Jrgon. 422.
-OF PRI APUS. 17
-caufes which produced them, rather than to the artificial opinions
-and prejudices of any particular age or country. There is naturally
-no impurity or licentioufnefs in the moderate and regular gratifica-
-tion of any natural appetite ; the turpitude confifting wholly in the
-excefs or perverfion. Neither are organs of one fpecies of enjoy-
-ment naturally to be confidered as fubjefts of fliame and conceal-
-ment more than thofe of another ; every refinement of modern
-manners on this head being derived from acquired habit, not from
-nature: habit, indeed, long eftablifhed ; for it feems to have been
-as general in Homer's days as at prefent ; but which certainly did
-not exift when the* myftic fymbols of the ancient worfhip were firft
-adopted. As thefe fymbols were intended to exprefs abftraft ideas
-by objeds of fight, the contrivers of them naturally felefted thofe
-objeds whofe charaderiftic properties feemed to have the greateft
-analogy with the Divine attributes which they wifhed to reprefent.
-In an age, therefore, when no prejudices of artificial decency exifted,
-what more juft and natural image could they find, by which to
-exprefs their idea of the beneficent power of the great Creator, than
-that organ which endowed them with the power of procreation,
-and made them partakers, not only of the felicity of the Deity, but
-of his great charadleriftic attribute, that of multiplying his own
-image, communicating his bleffmgs, and extending them to genera-
-tions yet unborn ?
-In the ancient theology of Greece, preferved in the Orphic
-Fragments, this Deity, the E/0ft)9 irpcoroyovo'?, or firft-begotten Love,
-is faid to have been produced, together with i^ther, by Time, or
-Eternity {Kpovo<;), and NecefTity {Avayxv)y operating upon inert
-matter {Xao<: ). He is defcribed as eternally begetting {aeiyvrjTrj^ ) ;
-the Father of Night, called in later times, the lucid or fplendid,
-{(f)avr]^)^ becaufe he firft appeared in fplendour; of a double
-nature, (St^u??? ), as pofTefling the general power of creation
-i8 ON "THE WORSHIP
-and generation, both aftive and pafTive, both male and female.^
-Light is his neceffary and primary attribute, co-eternal with him-
-'Orph. Argo7i., ver. i 2. This poem of the Argonautic Expedition is not of the
-ancient Orpheus, but written in his name by fome poet pofterior to Homer ; as
-appears by the allufion to Orpheuf's defcent into hell ; a fable invented after the
-Homeric times. It is, however, of very great antiquity, as both the flyle and manner
-fufficiently prove ; and, I think, cannot be later than the age of Pififtratus, to which
-it has been generally attributed. The paflage here referred to is cited from another
-poem, which, at the time this was written, paffed for a genuine work of the
-Thracian bard : whether jullly or not, matters little ; for its being thought fo at that
-time proves it to be of the remoteft antiquity. The other Orphic poems cited in this
-difcourfe are the Hymns, or Litanies, which are attributed by the early Chriftian and
-later Platonic writers to Onomacritus, a poet of the age of Pififtratus ; but which
-are probably of various authors (See Brucker. Hijl. Crit. Philos., vol. i., part 2,
-lib. i., c. i.) They contain, however, nothing which proves them to be later than
-the Trojan times ; and if Onomacritus, or any later author, had anything to do with
-them, it feems to have been only in new-verfifying them, and changing the dialed
-(See Gefner. Proleg. Orphica, p. 26). Had he forged them, and attempted to
-impofe them upon the world, as the genuine compofitions of an ancient bard, there
-can be no doubt but that he would have fluffed them with antiquated words and
-obfolete phrafes ; which is by no means the cafe, the language being pure and
-worthy the age of Pififtratus. Thefe poems are not properly hymns, for the hymns
-of the Greeks contained the nativities and aftions of the gods, like thofe of Homer
-and Callimachus ; but thefe are compofitions of a different kind, and are properly
-invocations or prayers ufed in the Orphic myfteries, and feem nearly of the fame
-clafs as the Pfalms of the Hebrews. The reafon why they are fo feldom mentioned
-by any of the early writers, and fo perpetually referred to by the later, is that they
-belonged to the myftic worfliip, where everything was kept concealed under the
-ftricteft oaths of fecrefy. But after the rife of Chriftianity, this facred filence was
-broken by the Greek converts, who revealed everything which they thought would
-depreciate the old religion or recommend the new ; whilft the heathen priefts
-revealed whatever they thought would have contrary tendency; and endeavoured to
-fhow, by publifliing the real myftic creed of their religion, that the principles of it
-were not ib abfurd as its outward ftrufture feemed to infer ; but that, when ftripped
-of poetical allegory and vulgar fable, their theology was pure, reafonable, and fublime
-(Gefner. Proleg. Orphica). The colledlion of thefe poems now extant, being pro-
-bably compiled and verfified by feveral hands, with fome forged, and others interpo-
-lated and altered, muft be read with great caution ; more efpecially the Fragments
-OF PRIAPUS. 19
-felf, and with him brought forth from inert matter by neceffity.
-Hence the purity and fandity always attributed to light l)y the
-preferved by the Fathers of the Church and Ammonian Platonics ; for thefe writers
-made no fcruple of forging any monuments of antiquity wliich luitcd their purpofes ;
-particularly the former, who, in addition to their natural zeal, having the interells or
-a confederate body to fupport, thought every means by which they could benefit
-that body, by extending the lights of revelation, and gaining profelytes to the true
-faith, not only allowable, but meritorious (See Clementina, Hom, vii., fee. 10.
-Recogn. lib. i., ^^c. 65. Origen. apud Hieronom. Apolog. i., contra Ruf. et
-Chryfoftom. de Sacerdot., lib. i. Chryfoftom, in particular, not only jurtifies, but
-warmly commends, any frauds that can be praftifed for the advantage of the Church
-of Chriil). Paufanias fays (lib. ix.), that the Hymns of Orpheus were few and
-(hort; but next in poetical merit to thofe of Homer, and iliperior to them in fanftity
-(deoXoyiKMTepoL). Thefe are probably the fame as the genuine part of the colleftion
-now extant; but they are fo intermixed, that it is difficult to fay which are genuine
-and which are not. Perhaps there is no furer rule for judging than to compare the
-epithets and allegories with the fymbols and monograms on the Greek medals, and
-to make their agreement the tell of authenticity. The medals were the public afts
-and records of the State, made under the direftion of the magiftrates, who were gene-
-rally initiated into the mylleries. We may therefore be aflured, that whatever
-theological and mythological allufions are found upon them were part of the ancient
-religion of Greece. It is from thefe that many of the Orphic Hymns and Fragments
-are proved to contain the pure theology or myilic faith of the ancients, which is
-called Orphic by Paufanias (lib. i. , c. 39), and which is fo unlike the vulgar religion,
-or poetical mythology, that one can fcarcely imagine at firil fight that it belonged
-to the fame people; but which will neverthelefs appear, upon accurate invelligation,
-to be the fource from whence it flowed, and the caufe of all its extravagance.
-The hillory of Orpheus himfelf is fo confufed and obfcured by fable, that it is
-impoflible to obtain any certain information concerning him. According to general
-tradition, he was a Thracian, and introduced the mylleries, in which a more pure
-fyilem of religion was taught, into Greece (Brucker, vol. i., part 2, lib. i., c. i.)
-He is alfo laid to have travelled into Egypt (Diodor. Sic. lib. i., p. 80); but as the
-Egyptians pretended that all foreigners received their fciences from them, at a time
-when all foreigners who entered the country were put to death or enflaved (Diodor.
-Sic. lib. i., pp. 78 et 107), this account may be rejefted, with many others ot the
-fame kind. The Egyptians certainly could not have taught Orpheus the plurality
-of worlds, and true folar fyilem, which appear to have been the fundamental
-principles of his philofophy and religion (Plutarch, de Placit. Philos., lib. ii., c. 13.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-Greeks.^ He is called the Father of Night, becaufe by attradiingthe
-light to himfelf, and becoming the fountain which distributed it to
-the world, he produced night, which is called eternally-begotten,
-becaufe it had eternally exifted, although mixed and loft in the
-general mafs. He is faid to pervade the world with the motion of
-his wings, bringing pure light ; and thence to be called the fplendid,
-the ruling Priapus,and self-illumined {avTavyrjs:'^). It is to beobferved,
-that the word IlpLi]7ro<;, afterwards the name of a fubordinate deity,
-is here ufed as a title relating to one of his attributes; the reafons
-for which I fhall endeavour to explain hereafter. Wings are figura-
-tively attributed to him as being the emblems of fwiftnefs and incu-
-bation ; by the firft of which he pervaded matter, and by the fecond
-fructified the egg of Chaos. The egg was carried in procefiion at
-the celebration of the myfteries, becaufe, as Plutarch fays, it was
-the material of generation (yXv tt^'^ r^eveaews;^) containing the feeds
-and germs of life and motion, without being actually poiTefl^ed of
-either. For this reafon, it was a very proper fymbol of Chaos, con-
-taining the feeds and materials of all things, which, however, were
-barren and ufelefs, until the Creator frudified them by the incuba-
-tion of his vital fpirit, and releafed them from the reftraints of inert
-Brucker ifi he. citat. ) Nor could he have gained this knowledge from any people
-which hiftory has preferved any memorials ; for we know of none among whom
-fcience had made fuch a progrefs, that a truth fo remote from common obfervation,
-and fo contradiflory to the evidence of unimproved fenfe, would not have been
-rejefted, as it was by all the fefts of Greek philofophy except the Pythagoreans, who
-rather revered it as an article of faith, than underftood it as a difcovery of fcience.
-Thrace was certainly inhabited by a civilized nation at fome remote period ; for,
-when Philip of Macedon opened the gold mines in that country, he found that they
-had been worked before with great expenfe and ingenuity, by a people well verfed
-in mechanics, of whom no memorials whatever were then extant. Of thefe, pro-
-bably, was Orpheus, as well as Thamyris, both of whofe poems, Plato fays, could
-be read with pleafure in his time.
-* See Sophocl. Qi,Jip. Tyr., ver. 1436. ^ Orph. Hym. 5. 3 Symph. 1. 2.
-OF PRIAPUS. 21
-matter, by the efforts of his divine ftrength. The incubation of the
-vital fpirit is reprefented on the colonial medals of Tyre, by a fer-
-pent wreathed around an egg;^ for the ferpent, having the power
-of carting his fkin, and apparently renewing his youth, became the
-fymbol of life and vigour, and as fuch is always made an attendant
-on the mythological deities prefiding over health.'- It is alfo ob-
-ferved, that animals of the ferpent kind retain life more pertinacioufly
-than any others except the Polypus, which is fometimes reprefented
-upon the Greek Medals,^ probably in its ftead. I have myfelf feen
-the heart of an adder continue its vital motions for many minutes
-after it has been taken from the body, and even renew them, after
-it has been cold, upon being moiftened with warm water, and
-touched with a ftimulus.
-The Creator, delivering the frud;ified feeds of things from the
-reftraints of inert matter by his divine ftrength, is reprefented on
-innumerable Greek medals by the Urus, or wild Bull, in the ad of
-butting againft the Egg of Chaos, and breaking it with his horns.'
-It is true, that the egg is not reprefented with the bull on any of
-thofe which I have feen; but Mr. D'Hancarville"^ has brought
-examples from other countries, where the fame fyftem prevailed,
-which, as well as the general analogy of the Greek theology, prove
-that the egg muft have been underftood, and that the attitude of the
-bull could have no other meaning. I fhall alfo have occafion here-
-after to ftiow by other examples, that it was no uncommon pradice,
-in thefe myftic monuments, to make a part of a group reprefent
-the whole. It was from this horned fymbol of the power of the
-See Plate xxi. Fig. i. ~ Macrob. Sat. i. c. 20.
-See Goltz, Tab. 11. Figs. 7 and 8.
-"* See Plate IV. Fig. i, and Recherches furies Arts, vol. i. PI. viii. The Hebrew
-word Ckroub, or Cherub, fignificd originally y/ro//^ or robuji ; but is ufually employed
-metaphorically, fignifying a Bull. See Cleric, in Exod. c. xxv.
-^ Recherches fur les Arts, lib. i.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-Deity that horns were placed in the portraits of kings to fhow that
-their power was derived from Heaven, and acknowledged no earthly
-fuperior. The moderns have indeed changed the meaning of this
-fymbol, and given it a fenfe of which, perhaps, it would be difficult
-to find the origin, though I have often wondered that it has never
-exercifed the fagacity of thofe learned gentlemen who make Britifh
-antiquities the fubjefts of their laborious inquiries. At prefent, it
-certainly does not bear any character of dignity or power ; nor does
-it ever imply that thofe to whom it is attributed have been parti-
-cularly favoured by the generative or creative powers. But this is
-a fubjed much too important to be difcufTed in a digreffion ; I fhall
-therefore leave it to thofe learned antiquarians who have done
-themfelves fo much honour, and the public fo much fervice, by
-their fuccefsful inquiries into cuftoms of the fame kind. To their
-indefatigable induftry and exquifite ingenuity I earneftly recommend
-it, only obferving that this modern acceptation of the fymbol is of
-confiderable antiquity, for it is mentioned as proverbial in the
-Oneirocritics of Artemidorus ; ^ and that it is not now confined to
-Great Britain, but prevails in moft parts of Christendom, as the
-ancient acceptation of it did formerly in moft parts of the world,
-even among that people from whofe religion Chriftianity is derived ;
-for it is a common mode of expreflion in the Old Teftament, to
-fay that the horns of any one fhall be exalted, in order to fignify
-that he fhall be raifed into power or pre-eminence ; and when Mofes
-defcended from the Mount with the fpirit of God ftill upon him, his
-head appeared horned."
-To the head of the bull was fometimes joined the organ of
-generation, which reprefented not only the ftrength of the Creator,
-Lib. i. c. 12.
-Exod. c. xxxiv.v. 35, ed. Vulgat. Other tranflators underftand the expreffion
-metaphorically, and Tuppofe it to mean radiated, or luminous.
-OF PRIAPUS. 23
-but the peculiar diredlion of it to the moft beneficial purpofe, the
-propagation of fenfitive beings. Of this there is a fmall bronze in
-the Mufeum of Mr. Townley, of which an engraving is given in
-Plate III. Fig. 1}
-Sometimes this generative attribute is reprefented by the fymbol
-of the goat, fuppofed to be the moft falacious of animals, and there-
-fore adopted upon the fame principles as the bull and the ferpent.'^
-The choral odes, fung in honour of the generator Bacchus, were
-hence called TpaycDSiai, or fongs of the goat ; a title which is now
-applied to the dramatic dialogues anciently inferted in thefe odes,
-to break their uniformity. On a medal, ftruck in honour of
-Auguftus, the goat terminates in the tail of a fifh, to fhow the
-generative power incorporated with water. Under his feet is the
-globe of the earth, fuppofed to be fertilifed by this union; and upon
-his back, the cornucopia, reprefenting the refult of this fertility.^
-Mr. D'Hancarville attributes the origin of all thefe fymbols
-to the ambiguity of words; the fame term being employed in the
-primitive language to fignify God and a Bull, the Univerfe and
-a Goat, Life and a Serpent. But words are only the types and
-fymbols of ideas, and therefore muft be pofterior to them, in the
-fame manner as ideas are to their objed:s. The words of a primitive
-language, being imitative of the ideas from which they fprung,
-and of the objefts they meant to exprefs, as far as the imperfedions
-of the organs of fpeech will admit, there muft neceftarily be the fame
-kind of analogy between them as between the ideas and objeds
-themfelves. It is impoftible, therefore, that in fuch a language
-any ambiguity of this fort could exift, as it does in fecondary
-See Plate iii.
-^ Tov 8e rpayov acoeOecocrav (o't Aijvmtlol) Kadawep kcl wapa TOi? EWtjai
-reTLfiija-daL Xerfcai tov YlpiawoVySia to yevmjTiKov p,opLov.'DioDOR.\'ib.\.p."8.
-Plate X. Fig. 3.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-languages ; the words of which, being colleded from various
-fources,and blended togetherwithout having any natural conneftion,
-become arbitrary figns of convention, inftead of imitative reprefen-
-tations of ideas. In this cafe it often happens, that words, fimilar
-in form, but different in meaning, have been adopted from different
-fources, which, being blended together, lofe their little difference
-of form, and retain their entire difference of meaning. Hence
-ambiguities arife, fuch as thofe above mentioned, which could not
-poffibly exift in an original tongue.
-The Greek poets and artifts frequently give the perfonification
-of a particular attribute for the Deity himfelf ; hence he is called
-Taf/3o/3oa9, TaypwTTo?, Tau/ao/Aopc^o?,^ &c., and hence the initials and
-monograms of the Orphic epithets applied to the Creator, are found
-with the bull, and other fymbols, on the Greek medals.^ It muft
-not be imagined from hence, that the ancients fuppofed the Deity
-to exift under the form of a bull, a goat, or a ferpent: on the
-contrary, he is always defcribed in the Orphic theology as a
-general pervading Spirit, without form, or diftind locality of any
-kind; and appears, by a curious fragment preferved by Proclus,^
-to have been no other than attratlion perfonified. The felf-created
-mind {I'oo'i avTo<yeve6\o'i) of the Eternal Father is faid to have fpread
-the heavy bond of love through all things [iracnv eveaireipev heafiov
-TrepL^pidr) E/awro?), in order that they might endure for ever. This
-Eternal Father is Kpovo<i, time or eternity, perfonified; and fo taken
-for the unknown Being that fills eternity and infinity. The ancient
-theologifts knew that we could form no pofitive idea of infinity,
-whether of power, fpace, or time ; it being fleeting and fugitive,
-and eluding the underftanding by a continued and boundlefs pro-
-Orph. Hymn. v. et xxix.
-Numm. Vet. Pop. et Urb. Tab. xxxix. Figs. 19 et 20. They are on moft of the
-medals of Marfeilles, Naples, Thurium and many other cities.
-In Tim. in., et Frag. Orphic, ed. Gefner.
-OF PRIAPUS. 25
-greflion. The only notion we have of it is from the addition or
-divifion of finite things, which fuggefl: the idea of infinite, only
-from a power we feel in ourfelves of ftill multiplying and dividing
-without end. The Schoolmen indeed were bolder, and, by a fum-
-mary mode of reafoning, in which they were very expert, proved
-that they had as clear and adequate an idea of infinity, as of any
-finite fubftance whatever. Infinity, faid they, is that which has no
-bounds. This negation, being a pofitive afiertion, mufl: be founded
-on a pofitive idea. We have therefore a pofitive idea of infinity.
-TheEclefticJ ews,and their foUowerSjtheAmmonian and Chrifl:ian
-PlatonicSjwhoendeavouredtomaketheirownphilofophyandreligion
-conform to the ancient theology, held infinity of fpace to be only
-the immenfitv of the divine prefence. 'O 0eo9 havrV) totto^ eari^ was
-their dogma, which is now inferted into the Confefiional of the
-Greek Church." This infinity was difl:inguifhed by them from
-common fpace, as time was from eternity. Whatever is eternal or
-infinite, faid they, muft be abfolutely indivifible ; becaufe divifion
-is in itfelf inconfifl:ent with infinite continuity and duration: there-
-fore fpace and time are difl:inft from infinity and eternity, which are
-void of all parts and gradations whatever. Time is meafured by
-years, days, hours, &c., and difliinguifhed by paft, prefent, and
-future ; but thefe, being divifions, are excluded from eternity, as
-locality is from infinity, and as both are from the Being who fills
-both ; who can therefore feel no fucceflion of events, nor know any
-gradation of diftance; but muft comprehend infinite duration as if
-it were one moment, and infinite extent as if it were but a fingle
-point.'' Hence the Ammonian Platonics fpeak of him as concen-
-tered in his own unity, and extended through all things, but par-
-• Philo. (Ic Leg. Alleg. lib. i. Jo. Damafc dc Orth. Fid.
-Mofheim. Nota in Sec. xxiv. Cudw. SyJ}. Intelka.
-See Boeth. de Confol. Philof. lib. iv. prof. 6.
-B
-ON THE WORSHIP
-ticipated of by none. Being of a nature more refined and elevated
-than intelligence itfelf, he could not be known by fenfe, perception,
-or reafon ; and being the caufe of all, he muft be anterior to all,
-even to eternity itfelf, if confidered as eternity of time, and not as
-the intelleftual unity, which is the Deity himfelf, by whofe emana-
-tions all things exift, and to whofe proximity or diftances they owe
-their degrees of excellence or bafenefs. Being itfelf, in itsmoft abftrad:
-fenfe, is derived from him ; for that which is the caufe and begin-
-ning of all Beings cannot be a part of that All which fprung from
-himfelf: therefore he is not Being, nor is Being his Attribute ; for
-that which has an attribute cannot have the abftrad: fimplicity of
-pure unity. All Being is in its nature finite; for, if it was other-
-wife, it muft be without bounds every way ; and therefore could
-have no gradation of proximity to the firft caufe, or confequent
-pre-eminence of one part over another : for, as all diftind:ions of
-time are excluded from infinite duration, and all divifions of locality
-from infinite extent, fo are all degrees of priority from infinite pro-
-greifion. The mind is and a5is in itfelf; but the abftradl unity of
-the firft cause is neither in itfelf, nor in another; — not in itfelf, be-
-caufe that would imply modification, from which abftradl fimplicity
-is neceflarily exempt ; nor in another, becaufe then there would be
-an hypoftatical duality, inftead of abfolute unity. In both cafes
-there would be a locality of hypoftafis, inconfiftent with intellectual
-infinity. As all phyfical attributes were excluded from this meta-
-phyfical abftrad:ion, which they called their firft caufe, he muft of
-courfe be deftitute of all moral ones, which are only generalifed
-modes of adiion of the former. Even fimple abftradt truth was
-denied him ; for truth, as Proclus fays, is merely the relative to
-falfehood; and no relative can exift without a pofitive or correlative.
-The Deity therefore who has no falfehood, can have no truth, in
-our fenfe of the word.^
-^ Proclus in Theolog. Platan, lib. i. et ii.
-OF PRIAPUS. 17
-As metaphyfical theology is a ftudy very generally, and very
-defervedly, negleded at prefent, I thought this little fpecimen of it
-might be entertaining, from its novelty, to moft readers ; efpecially
-as it is intimately connedled with the ancient fyftem, which I have
-here undertaken to examine. Thofe, who wifli to know more ot
-it, may consult Proclus on the Theology of Plato, where they will
-find the moft exquifite ingenuity moft wantonly wafted. No
-perfons ever ftiewed greater acutenefs or ftrength of reafoning than
-the Platonics and Scholaftics; but having quitted common fenfe,
-and attempted to mount into the intelleftual world, they expended
-it all in abortive efforts, which may amufe the imagination, but
-cannot fatisfy the underftanding.
-The ancient Theologifts ftiowed more difcretion ; for, finding
-that they could conceive no idea of infinity, they were content to
-revere the Infinite Being in the moft general and efficient exertion
-of his power, attradion ; whofe agency is perceptible through all
-matter, and to which all motion may, perhaps, be ultimately traced.
-This power, being perfonified, became the fecondary Deity, to whom
-all adoration and worftiip were direded, and who is therefore fre-
-quently confidered as the fole and fupreme caufe of all things. His
-agency being fuppofed to extend through the whole material world,
-and to produce all the various revolutions by which its fyftem is
-fuftained, his attributes were of courfe extremely numerous and
-varied. Thefe were exprefl'ed by various titles and epithets in the
-myftic hymns and litanies, which the artifts endeavoured to reprefent
-by various forms and charaders of men and animals. The great
-charaderiftic attribute was reprefented by the organ of generation in
-that ftate of tenfion and rigidity which is neceflary to the due per-
-formance of its fundions. Many fmall images of this kind have
-been found among the ruins of Herculaneum and Pompeii, attached
-to the bracelets, which the chafte and pious matrons of antiquity
-wore round their necks and arms. In thefe, the organ of generation
-ON THE WORSHIP
-appears alone, or only accompanied with the wings of incubation, ^
-in order to fhow that the devout wearer devoted herfelf wholly and
-folely to procreation, the great end for which fhe was ordained. So
-expreffive a fymbol, being conftantly in her view, muft keep her
-attention fixed on its natural objeft, and continually remind her of
-the gratitude fhe owed the Creator, for having taken her into his
-fervice, made her a partaker of his moft valuable bleffings, and
-employed her as the paffive inftrument in the exertion of his moft
-beneficial power.
-The female organs ofgeneration were revered^ as fymbols of the
-generative powers of nature or matter, as the male were of the gene-
-rative powers of God. They are ufually reprefented emblematically,
-by the Shell, or Concha Veneris, which was therefore worn by devout
-perfons of antiquity, as it ftill continues to be by pilgrims, and many
-of the common women of Italy. The union of both was exprefled
-by the hand mentioned in Sir William Hamilton's letter;^ which
-beingalefs explicit fymbol, has efcaped the attention of the reformers,
-and is ftill worn, as well as the ftiell, by the women of Italy, though
-without being underftood. It reprefented the ad: of generation,
-which was confidered as a folemn facrament, in honour of the Crea-
-tor, as will be more fully ftiown hereafter.
-The male organs of generation are fometimes found reprefented
-by figns of the fame fort, which might properly be called the fym-
-bols of fymbols. One of the moft remarkableof thefeisacrofs, in the
-form of- the letter T,'* which thus ferved as the emblem of creation
-and generation, before the church adopted it as the fign of falvation ;
-a lucky coincidence of ideas, which, without doubt, facilitated the
-^ Plate II. Fig, 2. engraved from one in the Britifh Mufeum.
-^ Auguft. de Civ. Dei, Lib. vi. c. 9.
-See Platen. Fig. i. from one in the Britifh Mul'eum, in which both fymbols are
-united.
-^ Recherches lur les Arts, lib. i. c. 3.
-OF PRI APUS. 29
-reception of it among the faithful. To the reprefentativeof themale
-organs was fometimes added a human head, which gives it the exad
-appearance of a crucifix ; as it has on a medal of Cyzicus, publifhcd
-by M. Pellerin.' On an ancient medal, found in Cyprus, which,
-from the ftyle of workmanfhip, is certainly anterior to the Mace-
-donian conqueft, it appears with the chaplet or rofary, fuch as is
-now ufed in the Romifh churches ;'- the beads of which were ufed,
-anciently, to reckon time;' Their being placed in a circle, marked
-its progrefiive continuity; while their feparation from each other
-marked the divifions, by which it is made to return on itfelf, and
-thus produce years, months, and days. The fymbol of the creative
-power is placed upon them, becaufe thefe divifions were particularly
-under his influence and protedion ; the fun being his vifible image,
-and the centre of his power, from which his emanations extended
-through the univerfe. Hence the Egyptians, in their facred hymns,
-called upon Ofiris, as the being who dwelt concealed in the em-
-braces of the fun;* and hence the great luminary itfelf is called
-Koa-fioKpaTO)^ (Ruler of the World) in the Orphic Hymns.''
-This general emanation of the pervading Spirit of God, by
-which all things are generated and maintained, is beautifully de-
-fcribed by Virgil, in the following lines :
-Deum namque ire per omnes
-Terrafque, traftufque maris, coelumque profundum.
-Hinc pecudes, armenta, viros, genus omne terarum,
-Quemque fibi tenues nafcentem arceflere vitas.
-Scilicet hue reddi deinde, ac refoluta referri
-Omnia : ncc morti efle locum, fed viva volare
-Sideris in numerum, atque alto fuccedere coelo.^
-See Plate ix. Fig. i.
-~ Plate IX. Fig. 2, from Pellerin. Similar medals arc in the Hunter Colledion,
-and are evidently of Phoenician work.
-Recherches furies Arts, lib. i. c. 3. ^ Plutarch. Je Is. ft OJtr.
-s See Hymn vii. ^ Georgic. lib. iv. ver. 221.
-JO ON THE WORSHIP
-The Ethereal Spirit is heredefcribedas expanding itfelf through
-the univerfe, and giving life and motion to the inhabitants of earth,
-water, and air, by a participation of its own effence, each particle
-of which returned to its native fource, at the diflblution of the
-body which it animated. Hence, not only men, but all animals,
-and even vegetables, were fuppofed to be impregnated with fome
-particles of the Divine Nature infufed into them, from which their
-various qualities and difpoiitions, as well as their powers of propaga-
-tion, were fuppofed to be derived. Thefe appeared to be fo many
-emanations of the Divine attributes,operating in different modes and
-degrees, according to the nature of the beings to which they be-
-longed. Hence the charafteriftic properties of animals and plants
-were not only regarded as reprefentations, but as adual emanations
-of the Divine Power, confubftantial with his own effence.^ For
-this reafon, the fymbols were treated with greater refped: and
-veneration than if they had been merely figns and characSters of
-convention. Plutarch fays, that mofl of the Egyptian priefts held
-the bull Apis, who was worshipped with fo much ceremony, to be
-only an image of the Spirit of Ofiris." This I take to have been
-the real meaning of all the animal worfliip of the Egyptians, about
-which fo much has been written, and fo little difcovered. Thofe
-animals or plants, in which any particular attribute of the Deity
-feemed to predominate, became the fymbols of that attribute, and
-were accordingly worfhipped as the images of Divine Providence,
-adling in that particular direction. Like many other cuftoms, both
-of ancient and modern worfhip, the practice, probably, continued
-long after the reafons upon which it was founded were either wholly
-loft, or only partially preferved, in vague traditions. This was the
-cafe in Egypt ; for, though many of the priefts knew or conjectured
-the origin of the worftiip of the bull, they could give no rational
-Proclus i?i Theol. Plat. lib. i. pp. 56, 57. ^ De Is. et Os.
-OF PRIAPUS. 31
-account why the crocodile, the ichneumon, and the ibis, received
-fimilar honours. The fymbolical charadlers, called hieroglyphics,
-continued to be efteemed by them as more holy and venerable than
-the conventional reprefentations of founds, notwithftanding their
-manifeft inferiority; yet it does not appear, from any accounts
-extant, that they were able to affign any reafon for this preference.
-On the contrary, Strabo tells us that the Egyptians of his time were
-wholly ignorant of their ancient learning and religion,^ though
-impoftors continually pretended to explain it. Their ignorance in
-thefe points is not to be wondered at, confidering that the moft
-ancient Egyptians, of whom we have any authentic accounts, lived
-after the fubverfion of their monarchy and deftrudion of their
-temples by the Perfians, who ufed every endeavour to annihilate
-their religion; firft, by command of Cambyfes, ^ and then of
-Ochus. ■' What they were before this calamity, we have no direcft
-information ; for Herodotus is the earlieft traveller, and he vifited
-this country when in ruins.
-It is obfervable in all modern religions, that men are fuper-
-ftitious in proportion as they are ignorant, and that thofe who know
-leaft of the principles of religion are the moft earneft and fervent
-in the practice of its exterior rites and ceremonies. We may
-fuppofe from analogy, that this was the cafe with the Egyptians.
-The learned and rational merely refpeded and revered the facred
-animals, whilft the vulgar worfliipped and adored them. The
-greateft part of the former being, as is natural to fuppofe, deftroyed
-by the perfecution of the Perfians, this worfhip and adoration be-
-came general ; different cities adopting different animals as their
-tutelar deities, in the fame manner as the Catholics now put them-
-felves under the protection of different faints and martyrs. Like
-Lib. xvii. 2 Herodot. lib. iii. Strabo, lib. xvii.
-Plutarch, de Is. et Os.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-them, too, in the fervency of their devotion for the imaginary
-agent, they forgot the original caufe.
-The cuftom of keeping facred animals as images of the Divine
-attributes, feems once to have prevailed in Greece as well as Egypt;
-for the God of Health was reprefented by a living ferpent at Epi-
-daurus, even in the laft ftage of their religion.^ In general, how-
-ever, they preferred wrought images, not from their fuperiority in
-art, which they did not acquire till after the time of Homer, ^ when
-their theology was entirely corrupted ; but becaufe they had thus
-the means of exprefTing their ideas more fully, by combining feveral
-forms together, and fhowing, not only the Divine attribute, but the
-mode and purpofe of its operation. For inftance ; the celebrated
-bronze in the Vatican has the male organs of generation placed
-upon the head of a cock, the emblem of the fun, fupported by the
-neck and fhoulders of a man. In this compofition they reprefented
-the generative power of the Epw?, the Ofiris, Mithras, or Bacchus,
-whofe centre is the fun, incarnate with man. By the infcription on
-the pedeftal, the attribute thus perfonified, is ftyled 'The Saviour of
-the World [Icorr]^ Koa-fx^) ; a title always venerable, under whatever
-image it be reprefented. ^
-The Egyptians fhowed this incarnation of the Deity by a lefs
-permanent, though equally expreffive fymbol. At Mendes a living
-goat was kept as the image of the generative power, to whom the
-women prefented themfelves naked, and had the honour of being
-publicly enjoyed by him. Herodotus faw the ad: openly per-
-formed (e9 eTTiSeL^LV av6pa)ir(ov)^ and calls it a prodigy (re/ja?). But
-the Egyptians had no fuch horror of it ; for it was to them a repre-
-fentation of the incarnation of the Deity, and the communication of
-Liv. HiJ}. Epitom. lib. xi.
-When Homer praifes any work of art, he calls it the work of Sidonians.
-See Plate ii. Fig. 3.
-OF PRIAPUS. :^2
-his creative fpirit to man. It was one of the facraments of that
-ancient church, and was, without doubt, beheld with that pious awe
-and reverence with which devout perfons always contemplate the
-myfteries of their faith, whatever they happen to be; for, as the
-learned and orthodox Bifhop Warburton, whofe authority it is not
-for me to difpute, favs, from the nature of any allien morality cannot
-ari/e, nor from its effe^s ;^ therefore, for aught we can tell, this
-ceremony, however fhocking it may appear to modern manners and
-opinions, might have been intrinfically meritorious at the time of
-its celebration, and afforded a truly edifying fpedacle to the faints
-of ancient Egypt. Indeed, the Greeks do not feem to have felt
-much horror or difguft at the imitative reprefentation of it, what-
-ever the hiftorian might have thought proper to exprefs at the real
-celebration. Several fpecimens of their fculpture in this way
-have efcaped the fury of the reformers, and remained for the in-
-ftru(5lion of later times. One of thefe, found among the ruins of
-Herculaneum, and kept concealed in the Royal Mufeum of Portici,
-is well known. Another exifts in the colleftion of Mr. Townley,
-which I have thought proper to have engraved for the benefit of
-the learned.^ It may be remarked, that in thefe monuments the
-goat is pajfive inftead of a^ive ; and that the human fymbol is repre-
-fented as incarnate with the divine^ inftead of the divine with the
-human: but this is in fad; no difference; for the Creator, being of
-both fexes, is reprefented indifferently of either. In the other
-fymbol of the bull, the fex is equally varied ; the Greek medals
-having fometimes a bull, and fometimes a cow,^ which, Strabo tells
-us, was employed as the fymbol of Venus, the paffive generative
-power, at Momemphis, in Egypt.* Both the bull and the cow are
-^ Div. Leg. book i. c. 4. 2 See Plate vii.
-See Plate iv. Fig. i, 2, 3, and Plate iii. Fig. 4, engraved from medals belonging
-to me.
-^ Lib. xvii.
-P
-ON THE WORSHIP
-alfo worfhipped at prefent by the Hindoos, as fymbols of the male
-and female, or generative and nutritive, powers of the Deity. The
-cow is in almoft all their pagodas ; but the bull is revered with
-fuperior folemnity and devotion. At Tanjour is a monument of
-their piety to him, which even the inflexible perfeverance, and
-habitual indufl:ry of the natives of that country, could fcarcely
-have ereded without greater knowledge in practical mechanics than
-they now pofTefs. It is a fl:atue of a bull lying down, hewn, with
-great accuracy, out of a Angle piece of hard granite, which has been
-conveyed by land from the diftance of one hundred miles, although
-its weight, in its prefent reduced fliate, muft be at leafl: one hundred
-tons. ^ The Greeks fometimes made their Taurine Bacchus, or
-bull, with a human face, to exprefs both fexes, which they fignified
-by the initial of the epithet Akj^vt]^ placed under him. ^ Over him
-they frequently put the radiated afterifl<:, which reprefents the fun,
-to fhow the Deity, whofe attribute he was intended to exprefs.^
-Hence we may perceive the reafon why the Germans, who, accord-
-ing to Caefar, * worfhipped the fun, carried a brazen bull, as the
-image of their God, when they invaded the Roman dominions in
-the time of Marius ; ^ and even the chofen people of Providence,
-when they made unto themfelves an image of the God who was
-to condudl them through the defert, and caft out the un-
-godly, from before them, made it in the fhape of a young bull, or
-calf. '
-The Greeks, as they advanced in the cultivation of the imitative
-See Plate xxii. with the meafurements, as made by Capt. Patterfon on the
-fpot.
-See Plate iv. Fig. 2, from a medal of Naples in the Hunter colleftion.
-See Plate iv. Fig. 2, and Plate xix. Fig. 4, from a medal of Cales, belonging
-to me.
-* De B. G. , lib. vi. ^ Plut. i?i Mario.
-Exod. c. xxxii., with Patrick's Commentary.
-OF PRIAPUS. 35
-arts, gradually changed the animal for the human form, preferving
-ftill the original charader. The human head was at firft added to
-the body of the bull ;^ but afterwards the whole figure was made
-human, with fome of the features, and general charader of the ani-
-mal, blended with it. ^ Oftentimes, however, thefe mixed figures
-had a peculiar and proper meaning, like that of the Vatican
-Bronze ; and were not intended as mere refinements of art. Such
-are the fawns and fatyrs, who reprefent the emanations of the
-Creator, incarnate with man, ading as his angels and minifters in
-the work of univerfal generation. In copulation with the goat, they
-reprefent the reciprocal incarnation of man with the deity, when
-incorporated with univerfal matter : for the Deity, being both male
-and female, was both adive and paffive in procreation ; firft animat-
-ing man by an emanation from his own effence, and then employing
-that emanation to reproduce, in conjundion with the common pro-
-ductive powers of nature, which are no other than his own prolific
-fpirit transfufed through matter.
-Thefe mixed beings are derived from Pan, the principle of uni-
-verfal order ; of whofe perfonified image they partake. Pan is
-addrefled in the Orphic Litanies as thefirft-begotten love, or creator
-incorporated in univerfal matter, and fo forming the world. ^ The
-heaven, the earth, water, and fire are faid to be members of him ; and
-he is defcribed as the origin and fource of all things (7rai'T09L'?/«f
-yeverco^TravTcov), as reprefenting matteranimated by the Divine Spirit.
-Lycaean Pan was the moft ancientand revered God of the Arcadians,*
-the moft ancient people of Greece. The epithet Lycaean (Au/caio?),
-is ufually derived from Xi;/co9, a wolf; though it is impoftible to
-See the medals of Naples, Gela, &c. Plate iv. Fig. z. and Plate ix. Fig. i i , are
-fpecimens ; but the coins are in all colleftions.
-See Bronzi cP Herculario, torn. v. Plate v. ^ Hymn. x.
-* Dionys. Antiq. Rom. lib. i. c. 32.
-^6 ON THE WORSHIP
-find any relation which this etymology can have with the deities to
-which it is applied ; for the epithet Aw/caio?, or Au/ceio? (which is only
-the different pronunciation of a different dialedl), is occafionally
-applied to almofl all the gods. I have therefore no doubt, but that it
-ought to be derived from the old word Xy/co?, or \vk7], light; from which
-came the Latin word lux} In this fenfe it is a very proper epithet for
-the Divine Nature, of whofe effence light was fuppofed to be. I am
-confirmed in this conjedure by a word in the EleSlra of Sophocles,
-which feems hitherto to have been mifunderflood. At the opening of
-the play, the old tutor of Orefles, entering Argos with his young
-pupil, points out to him the mofl celebrated public buildings, and
-amongft them the Lycaean Forum, t« Xvkoktov^ @eb, which the
-fcholiafl and tranflators interpret, of the wolf-killing God, though
-there is no reafon whatever why this epithet fhould be applied to
-Apollo. But, if we derive the compound from Xwo?, light, and
-€KTeiveLv, to extend, inftead of Kretvetv, to kill, the meaning will be
-perfedly jufl and natural ; for light-extending, is of all others the
-propereft epithet for the fun. Sophocles, as' well as Virgil, is known
-to have been an admirer of ancient exprefrions,and to have imitated
-Homer more than any other Attic Poet ; therefore, his employing
-an obfolete word is not to be wondered at. Taking this etymology
-as the true one, the Lycaean Pan of Arcadia is Pan the luminous ;
-that is, the divine efTence of light incorporated in univerfal matter.
-The Arcadians called him rov r?;? vXrj^ Kvptov, the lord of matter, as
-Macrobius rightly tranflates it.- He was hence called Sylvanus by
-the Latins ; Syha being, in the ancient Pelafgian and iEolian
-Greek, from which the Latin is derived, the fame as vXtj; for it is
-well known to all who have compared the two languages attentively,
-that the Sigma and Fau are letters, the one of which was partially,
-and the other generally omitted by the Greeks, in the refinement of
-Macrob. Sai. xvii. ^ Sat. i. c. 22.
-OF PRIAPUS. 37
-their pronunciation and orthography which took place after the
-emigration of the Latian and Etrufcan .colonies. The Chorus in the
-yf/^x- of Sophocles addrefs Pan by the title of 'A\t7r\a7/cT09,' probably
-becaufe he was worfliipped on the fhores of the fea ; water being
-reckoned the beft and moft prolific of the fubordinate elements,-
-upon which the Spirit of God, according to Mofes, or the Plaftic
-Nature, according to the Platonics, operating, produced life and
-motion on earth. Hence the ocean is faid by Homer to be the
-fource of all things;^ and hence the ufe of water in baptifm,
-which was to regenerate, and, in a manner, new create the perfon
-baptifed ; for the foul, fuppofed by many of the primitive Chrif-
-tians to be naturally mortal, was then fuppofed to become im-
-mortal."* Upon the fame principle, the figure of Pan,'' is reprefented
-pouring water upon the organ of generation; that is, invigorating
-the adive creative power by the prolific element upon which it
-aded; for water was confidered as the efl'ence of the pafiive prin-
-ciple, as fire was of the adive; the one being of terreftrial, and the
-other of aethereal origin. Hence, St. John the Baptift, who might
-have acquired fome knowledge of the ancient theology, through its
-revivers, the Ecledic Jews, fays : /, indeed^ baptije you in water to
-repentance ; but he that cometh after me^ who is more powerful than
-I am^JJiall baptife you in the Holy Spirit^ and in fire f' that is, I only
-purify and refrefh the foul, by a communion with the terreftrial
-principle of life ; but he that cometh after me, will regenerate and
-reftore it, by a communion with the ethereal principle.'^ Pan is
-Ver, 703. ^ Pindar. Olynp. i. ver. i. Diodor. Sic. lib. i. p. 11.
-II. ^, ver. 246, and <^, ver. 196.
-•* Clementina, Horn. xii. Arnob. adv. Gctitcs, lib. ii.
-^ See Plate v. Fig. i. The original is among the antiquities found in Hercu-
-laneum, nowf in the Mufeum of Portici.
-•^ Matth. c. iii.
-■^ It is the avowed intention of the learned and excellent work of Grotius, to prove
-that there is nothing new in Chriftianity. What I have here adduced, may ferve to
-ON THE WORSHIP
-again addreffed in the Salaminian Chorus of the fame tragedy of
-Sophocles, by the titles of author and diredor of the dances of the
-gods {®e(t)v xopoTTot' ava^), as being the author and difpofer of the
-regular motions of the univerfe, of which thefe divine dances were
-fymbols, which are faid in the fame pafTage to be {avroSar]) Jelf-
-taught to him. Both the Gnoffian and Nyfian dances are here in-
-cluded, ^ the former facred to Jupiter, and the latter to Bacchus ;
-for Pan, being the principle of univerfal order, partook of the
-nature of all the other gods. They were perfonifications of parti-
-cular modes of afting of the great all-ruling principle; and he, of
-his general law and pre-eftablifhed harmony by which he governs
-the univerfe. Hence he is often reprefented playing on a pipe ; mufic
-being the natural emblem of this phyfical harmony. According to
-Plutarch, the Jupiter Ammon of the Africans was the fame as the
-Pan of the Greeks. ^ This explains the reafon why the Macedonian
-kings affumed the horns of that god ; for, though Alexander pre-
-tended to be his fon, his fuccelTors never pretended to any fuch
-honour ; and yet they equally affumed the fymbols, as appears from
-their medals.^ The cafe is, that Pan, or Ammon, being the univerfe,
-and Jupitera title of the Supreme God (as will be fhown hereafter), the
-horns, the emblems of his power, feemed the propereft fymbols of
-that fupreme and univerfal dominion to which they all, as well as
-Alexander, had the ambition to afpire. The figure of Ammon was
-compounded of the forms of the ram, as that of Pan was of the
-goat ; the reafon of which is difficult to afcertain, unlefs we fuppofe
-confirm and illuilrate the difcoveries of that great and good man. See de Veritate
-Relig. Chrift. lib. iv, c. 12.
-Ver. 708. '^ De If. et Of.
-See Plate iv. Fig 4, engraved from one of Lyfimachus, of exquifite beauty,
-belonging to me. Antigonus put the head of Pan upon his coins, which are not
-uncommon.
-OF PRIAPUS. 29
-that c;oats were unknown in the country where his worfhip arofe,
-and that the ram exprefTed the ilimc attribute.^ In a gcni in the
-Mufeum of Charles Townley, Efq., the head of the Greek Pan is
-joined to that of a ram, on the body of a cock, over whofe head is
-the afterifk of the fun, and below it the head of an aquatic fowl,
-attached to the fame body.'' The cock is the fymbol of the fun,
-probably from proclaiming his approach in the morning ; and the
-aquatic fowl is the emblem of water ; fo that this compofition,
-apparently fo whimfical, reprefents the univerfe between the two great
-prolific elements, the one the aftive, and the other the pafiivecaufe
-of all things.
-The Creator being both male and female, the emanations of his
-creative fpirit, operating upon univerfal matter, produced fubordi-
-nate minifters of both fexes, and gave, as companions to thetauns
-and fatyrs, the nymphs of the waters, the mountains and the woods,
-fignifying the paffive productive powers of each, fubdivided and
-diffufed. Of the fame clafs are the T^vervWihe^, mentioned by Pau-
-flmias as companions to Venus,'' who, as well as Ceres, Juno, Diana,
-Ifis, &:c., was only a perfonificationof nature, or thepafTive principle
-of generation, operating in various modes. Apuleius invokes Ifis
-by the names of the Eleufinian Ceres, Celeft:ial Venus, and Profer-
-pine; and, when the Goddefs anfwers him, fiie defcribes herfelf as
-follows : " I am," fays flie, "nature, the parent of things, the fove-
-reign of the elements, the primary progeny of time, the mofi: exalted
-of the deities, the firfi: of the heavenly Gods and Goddefi^es, the queen
-of the fliades, the uniform countenance ; who difpofe, with my nod,
-the luminous heigjhts of heaven, the falubrious breezes of the fea,
-and the mournful filence of the dead ; whofe fingle Deity the whole
-Paufanias (lib. ii. ) fays he knew the meaning of this fymbol, but did not choofe
-to reveal it, it being a part of the myilic worfhip.
-Plate III. Fig. i. ^ Lib. i.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-world venerates, in many forms, with various rites, and various
-names. The Egyptians, fkilled in ancient learning, worfhip me
-with proper ceremonies, and call me by my true name, Queen Ifis."^
-According to the Egyptians, Ifis copulated with her brother
-Ofiris in the womb of their mother ; from whence fprung Arueris,
-or Orus, the Apollo of the Greeks.^ This allegory means no more
-than that the adlive and paffive powers of creation united in the
-womb of night; where they had been implanted by the unknown
-father, K/oofo?, or time, and by their union produced the feparation
-or delivery of the elements from each other; for the name Apollo is
-only a title derived from a7ro\v(o, to deliver from? They made therobes
-of Ifis various in their colours and complicated in their folds, becaufe
-the pafTive or material power appeared in various fhapes and modes,
-as accommodating itfelf to the adive ; but the drefs of Ofiris was
-fimple, and of one luminous colour, to fhowthe unity of his effence,
-and univerfality of his power; equally the fame through all things.*
-The luminous, or flame colour, reprefented the fun, who, in the
-language of the theologifts, was the fubftance of his facred povv'er,
-and the viflble image of his intelledual being.'' He is called, in the
-Orphic Litanies, the chain which connects all things together (o V
-aveSpafxe 86a/jio<; aTravTcov,^ as being the principle of attraction ; and
-the deliverer (Xvcno'i)^'' as giving liberty to the innate powers of
-nature, and thus fertilifing matter. Thefe epithets not only exprefs
-the theological, but alfo the phyfical fyfl:em of the Orphic fchool ;
-according to which the fun, being placed in the centre of the
-Metamorph. lib. xi. ^ Plutarch, de If. et Of. ^ Damm. Lex. Etym.
-Plutarch, de If. et Of. ^ Ibid. ^ Hymn. xlvi.
-"^ Hymn. xlix. the initials of this epithet are with the bull on a medal of Naples
-belonging to me. The bull has a human countenance, and has therefore been called
-a minotaur by antiquarians ; notwithllanding he is to be found on different medals,
-accompanied with all the fymbols both of Bacchus and Apollo, and with the initials
-of moft of the epithets to be found in the Orphic Litanies.
-OF PRIAPUS. 41
-univerfe, with the planets moving round, was, by his attradive
-force, the caufe of all union and harmony in the whole; and, by the
-emanation of his beams, the caufe of all motion and aftivity in the
-parts. This fyftem is alluded to by Homer in the allegory of the
-golden chain, by which Jupiter fufpends all things;^ though there
-is every reafon to believe that the poet himfelf was ignorant of its
-meaning, and only related it as he had heard it. The Ammonian
-Platonics adopted the fame fyftem of attraction, but changed its
-centre from the fun to their metaphyfical abftradion or incompre-
-henfible unity, whofe emanations pervaded all things, and held all
-things together.^
-Befides the Fauns, Satyrs, and Nymphs, the incarnate emana-
-tions of the adive and paftive powers of the Creator, we often find
-in the ancient fculptures certain androgynous beings poffefled of the
-charadleriftic organs of both fexes, which I take to reprefent
-organized matter in its firft ftage ; that is, immediately after it was
-releafed from chaos, and before it was animated by a participation
-of the ethereal eflence of the Creator. In a beautiful gem belonging
-to R. Wilbraham, Efq.,^ one of thefe androgynous figures is repre-
-fented fleeping, with the organs of generation covered, and the egg
-of chaos broken under it. On the other fide is Bacchus the Crea-
-tor, bearing a torch, the emblem of ethereal fire, and extending it
-towards the fieeping figure; whilft one of his agents feems only to
-wait his permifTion to begin the execution of that ofiice, which,
-according to every outward and vifible fign, he appears able to
-difcharge with energy and efFeft. The Creator himfelf leans upon
-oneofthofe figures commonly called Sileni ; but which, from their
-heavy unwieldy forms, were probably intended as perfonifications
-of brute inert matter, from which all things are formed, but which,
-II. €), ver. xix. 2 Proclus in Theol. Plat. lib. i. c. 21.
-' See Plate v. Fig. 3.
-07V rHE WORSHIP
-being incapable of producing any thing of itfelf, is properly repre-
-fented as the fupport of the creative power, though not adively
-inftrumental in his work. The total baldnefs of this figure repre-
-fents the exhaufted, unprodudive ftate of matter, when the genera-
-tive powers were feparated from it ; for it was an opinion of the
-ancients, which I remember to have met with in fome part of the
-works of Ariftotle, to which I cannot at prefent refer, that every
-ad of coition produced a tranfient chill in the brain, by which fome
-of the roots of the hair were loofened ; fo that baldnefs was a mark
-of fterility acquired by exceffive exertion. The figures of Pan have
-nearly the fame forms with that which I have here fuppofed to
-reprefent inert matter ; only that they are compounded with thofe
-of the goat, the fymbol of the creative power, by which matter was
-frudified and regulated. To this is fometimes added the organ of
-generation, of an enormous magnitude, to fignify the application of
-this power to its nobleft end, the procreation of fenfitive and
-rational beings. This compofition forms the common Priapus of
-the Roman poets, who was worfhipped among the other perfonages
-of the heathen mythology, but underftood by few of his ancient
-votaries any better than by the good women of Ifernia. His charac-
-teriftic organ is fometimes reprefented by the artifts in that ftate of
-tenfion and rigidity, which it aftumes when about to difcharge its
-fundions,^ and at other times in that ftate of tumid languor, which
-immediately fucceeds the performance.^ In the latter cafe he
-appears loaded with the produdions of nature, the refult of thofe
-prolific efforts, which in the former cafe he appeared fo well quali-
-fied to exert. I have in Plate v. given a figure of him in each
-fituation, one taken from a bronze in the Royal Mufeum of Portici,
-and the other from one in that of Charles Townley, Efq. It may
-Plate V. Fig. i, from a bronze in the Mufeum at Portici.
-Plate V. Fig. z, from a bronze in the Mufeum of C. Townley, Efq.
-OF PRIAPUS. 43
-be obferved, that in the former the mufcles of the face are all
-ftrained and contraded, fo that every nerve feems to be in a ftate of
-tenfion ; whereas in the latter the features are all dilated and fallen,
-the chin repofed on the breaft, and the whole figure expreflive of
-languor and tatigue.
-If the explanation which I have given of thefe androgynous
-figures be the true one, the fauns and faytrs, which ufually accompany
-them, muft reprefent abfiiradl emanations, and not incarnations of the
-creative fpirit, as when in copulation with the goat. The Creator
-himfelf is frequently reprefented in a human form ; and it is natural
-that his emanations fhould partake of the fame, though without
-having any thing really human in their compofition. It feems
-however to have been the opinion in fome parts of Afia, that the
-Creator was really of a human form. The Jewifh legiflator fays
-exprefsly, that God made man in his own image, and, prior to the
-creation of woman, created him male and female^ as he himfelf con-
-fequently was.''^ Hence an ingenious author has fuppofed that thefe
-androgynous figures reprefented the firft individuals of the human
-race, who, pofTefTing the organs of both fexes, produced children of
-each. This feems to be the fenfe in which they were reprefented
-by fome of the ancient artifts ; but I have never met with any trace
-of it in any Greek author, except Philo the Jew; nor have I ever
-feen any monument of ancient art, in which the Bacchus, or Creator
-in a human form, was reprefented with the generative organs of
-both fexes. In the fymbolical images, the double nature is fre-
-quently expreffed by fome androgynous infedl, fuch as the fnail,
-which is endowed with the organs of both fexes, and can copulate
-reciprocally with either: but when the refinement of art adopted
-the human form, it was reprefented by mixing the charaders of the
-Genes, c. i. ^ Philo. Je. Leg. Alleg. lib. ii.
-ON rHE WORSHIP
-male and female bodies in every part, preferving ftill the diftindive
-organs of the male. Hence Euripides calls Bacchus 6r]\v/j.op(l>o^,^
-and the Chorus of Bacchanals in the fame tragedy addrefs him by
-mafculine and feminine epithets." Ovid alfo fays to him,
-Tibi, cum fine cornibus adflas,
-Virgineum caput eft. ^
-alluding in the firft line to his taurine, and in the fecond to his
-androgynous figure.
-The ancient theologifts were, like the modern, divided into feds;
-but, as thefe never difturbed the peace of fociety, they have been
-very little noticed. I have followed what I conceive to be the true
-Orphic fyftem, in the little analyfis which I have here endeavoured
-to give. This was probably the true catholic faith, though it differs
-confiderably from another ancient fyftem,defcribed by Ariftophanes;*
-which is more poetical, but lefs philofophical. According to this,
-Chaos,Night,Erebus,andTartarus,were the primitivebeings. Night,
-in the infinite breaft of Erebus, brought forth an egg, from which
-fprung Love, who mixed all things together; and from thence fprung
-the heaven, the ocean, the earth, and the gods. This fyftem is
-alluded to by the epithet nojevo'?, applied to the Creator in one of the
-Orphic Litanies:^ but this could never have been a part of the
-orthodox faith ; for the Creator is ufually reprefented as breaking
-the egg of chaos, and therefore could not have fprung from it. In
-the confufed medley of allegories and traditions contained in the
-Theogony attributed to Hefiod, Love is placed after Chaos and the
-Earth, but anterior to every thing elfe. Thefe differences are not
-to be wondered at; for Ariftophanes, fuppofing that he underftood
-the true fyftem, could not with fafety have revealed it, or even
-mentioned it any otherwife than under the ufual garb of fidion and
-Bach. V. 3 5 8. 2 ^ B/30/*ie, Bpofite, UeBcovx^dovof evoat iroTVia. Vers. 504.
-Metam. lib, iv. v. 18. ^ Opvi6. Vers. 693. ^ Hymn v.
-OF PRIAPUS. 45
-allegory ; and as for the author of the Theogony, it is evident, from
-the ftrange jumble of incoherent fables which he has put together,
-that he knew very little of it. The fyftem alluded to in the Orphic
-verfes quoted in the Argonautics^ is in all probability the true one ;
-for it is not only confident in all its parts, but contains a phyfical
-truth, which the greateft of the modern difcoveries has only con-
-firmed and explained. The others feem to have been only poetical
-corruptions of it, which, extending by degrees, produced that un-
-wieldy fyftem of poetical mythology, which conftituted the vulgar
-religion of Greece.
-The fauns and fatyrs, which accompany the androgynous figures
-on the ancient fculptures, are ufually reprefented as miniftering to
-the Creator by exerting their charafteriftic attributes upon them, as
-well as upon the nymphs, the paftive agents of procreation : but
-what has puzzled the learned in thefe monuments, and feems a
-contradidion to the general fyftem of ancient religion, is that many
-of thefe groups are in attitudes which are rather adapted to the grati-
-fication of difordered and unnatural appetites, than to extend pro-
-creation. But a learned author, who has thrown infinite light upon
-thefe fubjeds, has effedually cleared them from this fufpicion, by
-{bowing that they only took the moft convenient way to get at the
-female organs of generation, in thofe mixed beings who poftefl"ed
-both. ^ This is confirmed by Lucretius, who aflerts, that this attitude
-is better adapted to the purpofes of generation than any other." We
-may therefore conclude, that inftead of reprefenting them in the ad:
-of gratifying any disorderly appetites, theartifts meant to ftiow their
-modefty in not indulging their concupifcence, but in doing their
-duty in the way beft adapted to anfwer the ends propofed by the
-Creator.
-On the Greek medals, where the cow is the fymbol of the deity,
-Recberchei fur les Arts, liv. i. c. 3. "^ Lib. iv. v. 1260.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-fhe is frequently reprefented licking a calf, which is fucking her.^
-This is probably meant to fhow that the creative power cheriilies
-and nourillies, as well as generates ; for, as all quadrupeds lick their
-young, to refrefh and invigorate them immediately after birth, it is
-natural to fuppofe, according to the general fyftem of fymbolical
-writing, that this adion fhould be taken as an emblem of the effed
-it was thought to produce. On other medals the bull or cow is
-reprefented licking itfelf;- which, upon the fame principle, muft
-reprefent the ftrength of the deity refrefhed and invigorated by the
-exertion of its own nutritive and plaftic power upon its own being.
-On others again is a human head of an androgynous charafter, like
-that of the Bacchus Sicpv-r)^, with the tongue extended over the lower
-lip, as if to lick fomething.^ This was probably the fame fymbol,
-expreffed in a lefs explicit manner; it being the common praftice
-of the Greek artifts to make a part of a compofition fignify the
-whole, ofwhich I fhall foon have occafion to give fome inconteftable
-examples. On a Parian medal publifhed by Goltzius, the bull lick-
-ing himfelf is reprefented on one fide, accompanied by the afterifk
-of the fun, and on the other, the head with the tongue extended,
-having ferpents, the emblems of life, for hair.^ The fame medal is
-in my coUedion, except that the ferpents are not attached to the
-head, but placed by it as diftind fymbols, and that the animal lick-
-ing itfelf is a female accompanied by the initial of the word @eo9,
-inftead of the afterifk of the fun. Antiquarians have called this head
-a Medufa; but, had they examined it attentively on any well-
-preferved coin, they would have found that the expreffion of the
-features means luft, and not rage or horror.^ The cafe is, that
-See Plate iv. Fig. 3, from a medal of Dyrrachium, belonging to me.
-~ See Plate iii. Fig. 5, from one of Gortyna, in the Hunter Colleftion ; and
-Plate III. Fig. 4, from one of Parium, belonging to me.
-See Plate iii. Fig. 4, and Plate in. Fig. 6, from Pellerin.
-* Goltz. I;i/u/. Tab. xix. Fig. 8. ^ See Plate in. Fig. 4.
-OF PRIAPUS. 47
-antiquarians have been continually led into error, by feeking for
-explanations of the devices on the Greek medals in the wild and
-capricious ftories of Ovid's Metamorphojes, inftead of examining the
-firft principles ofancient religion contained intheOrphic Fragments,
-the writings of Plutarch, Macrobius, and Apuleius, and the Choral
-Odes of the Greek tragedies. Thefe principles were the fubjedls of
-the ancient myfteries, and it is to thefe that the fymbols on the
-medals always relate ; for they were the public ads of the ftates,
-and therefore contain the fenfe of nations, and not the caprices of
-individuals.
-As M.D'Hancarville found a complete reprefentation of the bull
-breaking the egg of chaos in the fculptures of the Japanefe, when
-only a part of it appears on the Greek monuments ; fo we may find
-in a curious Oriental fragment, lately brought from the facred
-caverns of Elephanta, near Bombay, a complete reprefentation of
-the fymbol fo enigmatically exprefTed by the head above mentioned.
-Thefe caverns are ancient places of worfbip, hewn in the folid rock
-with immenfe labour and difficulty. That from which the fragment
-in queftion was brought, is 130 feet long by no wide, adorned
-with columns and fculptures finifhed in a ftyle very different from
-that of the Indian artifts.^ It is now negleded ; but others of the
-fame kind are ftill ufed as places of worfhip by the Hindoos, who
-can give no account of the antiquity of them, which muft neceffarily
-be very remote, for the Hindoos are a very ancient people ; and yet
-the fculptures reprefent a race of men very unlike them, or any of
-the prefent inhabitants of India. A fpecimen of thefe was brought
-from the ifland of Elephanta, in the Cumberland man-of-war, and
-now belongs to the mufeum of Mr. Townley. It contains feveral
-figures, in very high relief; the principal of which are a man and
-woman, in an attitude which I fhall not venture to defcribe, but only
-Archoeol, vol. viii. p. 289.
-ON THE IVORSHIP
-obferve, that the adion, which I have Tuppofed to be a fymbol of
-refrefhment and invigoration, is mutually applied by both to their
-refpedive organs of generation/ the emblems of the aftive and
-paflive powers of procreation, which mutually cherifh and invigorate
-each other.
-The Hindoos ftill reprefent the creative powers of the deity by
-thefe ancient fymbols, the male and female organs of generation;
-and worfhip them with the fame pious reverence as the Greeks and
-Egyptians did.'^ Like them too they have buried the original prin-
-ciples of their theology under a mafs of poetical mythology, fo that
-few of them can give any more perfed account of their faith, than
-that they mean to worfhip one firft caufe, to whom the fubordinate
-deitiesare merely agents, or moreproperlyperfonified modes of a(5lion^
-This is the doftrine inculcated, and very fully explained, in the
-Bagvat Geeta; a moral and metaphyfical work lately tranflated from
-the Sanfcrit language, and faid to have been written upwards of
-four thoufand years ago. Krefhna, or the deity become incarnate
-in the fhape of man, in order to inftrud all mankind, is introduced,
-revealing to his difciples the fundamental principles of true faith,
-religion, and wifdom ; which are the exad: counterpart of the fyftem
-of emanations, fo beautifully defcribed in the lines of Virgil before
-cited. We here find, though in a more myftic garb, the fame one
-principle of life univerfally emanated and expanded, and ever par-
-tially returning to be again abforbed in the infinite abyfs of intelledlual
-being. This reabforption, which is throughout recommended as
-the ultimate end of human perfeftion, can only be obtained by a
-life of inward meditation and abftra(fl thought, too fteady to be
-interrupted by any worldly incidents, or difturbed by any tranfitory
-affed:ions,whether of mind or body. But as fuch a life is not in the
-See Plate xi. ^ Sonnerat, Voyage aux Indes, T. I. p. 1 80.
-Niebuhr, Voyages, vol. 11. p. 17.
-OF PRIJPUS. 49
-power of any but a Brahman, inferior rewards, confifting of gradual
-advancements durintj; the tranfmigrations oi the foul, are held out
-to the foldier, the huOundman, and mechanic, accordingly as they
-fulfill the duties of their feveral ftations. Even thofe who ferve
-other G;ods are not excluded from the benefits awarded to every
-moral virtue; for, as the divine Teacher fays, If they do it with a
-firm belief, in Jo doing they involuntarily worjhip even me. 1 am he
-who partaketh of all worjhip, and I am their reward} This uni-
-verfal deity, being the caufe of all motion, is alike the caufe of
-creation, prefervation, and deftru(5lion ; which three attributes are
-all expreffed in the myftic fy liable om. To repeat this in filence,
-with firm devotion, and immoveable attention, is the fureft means
-of perfedion,^ and confequent reabforption, fince it leads to the
-contemplation oftheDeity, in his three great characfleriftic attributes.
-Thefirftandgreateft of thefe, the creative or generative attribute,
-feefns to have been originally reprefented by the union of the male
-and female organs of generation,which, under the title of the iJngam,
-ftill occupies the central and moft interior recefies of their temples
-or pagodas ; and is alfo worn, attached to bracelets, round their
-necks and arms.' In a little portable temple brought from the
-Rohilla country during the late war,and now in theBritifh Mufeum,
-this compofition appears mounted on a pedeftal, in the midft of a
-fquare area, funk in a block of white alabafter.' Round the pedeftal
-is a ferpent, the emblem of life, with his head refted upon his tail,
-to denote eternity, or the conftant return of time upon itfelt, whilft
-it flows through perpetual duration, in regular revolutions and
-ftated periods. From under the body of the ferpent fprings the
-lotus or water lily, the Nelumbo of Linnaeus, which overfpreads
-the whole of the area not occupied by the figures at the corners.
-Bagvat Geeta, p. 8l. 2 Ihid. p. 74.
-Sonnerat, l^oyage aux Indes, liv. ii. p. 180. Planche liv. •* See Plate xii.
-H
-so ON THE WORSHIP
-This plant grows in the water, and, amongft its broad leaves, puts
-forth a flower, in the centre of which is formed the feed-vefl'el,
-fhaped like a bell or inverted cone, and punctuated on the top with
-little cavities or cells, in which the feeds grow/ The orifices of
-thefe cells being too fmall to let the feeds drop out when ripe, they
-flioot forth into new plants, in the places where they were formed ;
-the bulb of the vefl^el ferving as a matrice to nourilh them, until
-they acquire fuch a degree of magnitude as to burft it open and
-releafe themfelves ; after which, like other aquatic weeds, they take
-root wherever the current depofits them. This plant therefore,
-being thus produCtiveofitfelf, and vegetating from its own matrice,
-without being foftered in the earth, was naturally adopted as the
-fymbol of the productive power of the waters, upon which the
-aftive fpirit of the Creator operated in giving life and vegetation
-to matter. We accordingly find it employed in every part of the
-northern hemifphere, where the fymbolical religion, improperly
-called idolatry, does or ever did prevail. The facred images of
-the Tartars, Japonefe, and Indians, are almoft all placed upon it;
-of which numerous infl:ances occur in the publications of Kaempfer,
-Chappe D'Auteroche, and Sonnerat. The upper part of the bafe
-of the Lingam alfo confifl:s of this flower, blended and compofed
-with the female organ of generation which it fupports : and the
-ancient author of the Bagvat Geeta fpeaks of the creator Brahma
-as fitting upon his lotus throne.^ The figures of Ifis, upon the
-Ifiac Table, hold the fl:em of this plant, furmounted by the feed-
-vefl'el in one hand, and the crofs,^ reprefenting the male organs of
-generation, in the other ; thus fignifying the univerfal power, both
-adive and paflive, attributed to that goddefs. On the fame Ifiac
-Table is alfo the reprefentation of an Egyptian temple, the columns
-of which are exadly like the plant which Ifis holds in her hand,
-See Plate xx. Fig. i. ^ Page 91.
-See Plate xviil. Fig. 2, from Pignorius.
-OF PRI APUS. 51
-except that the ftem is made larger, in order to give it that ftability
-which is neceflary to fupport a roof and entablature.^ Columns
-and capitals of the fame kind are ftill exifting, in great numbers,
-among the ruins of Thebes, in Egypt; and more particularly upon
-thofe very curious ones in the ifland of Philae, on the borders of
-Ethiopia, which are, probably, the moft ancient monuments of art
-now extant; at leaft, if we except the neighbouring temples of
-Thebes. Both were certainly built when that city was the feat of
-wealth and empire, which it was, even to a proverb, during the
-Trojan war.^ How long it had then been fo, we can form no con-
-jedure; but that it foon after declined, there can be little doubt;
-for, when the Greeks, in the reign of Pfammeticus (generally
-computed to have been about 530 years after the Siege of Troy),
-firft became perfonally acquainted with the interior parts of that
-country, Memphis had been for many ages its capital, and Thebes
-was in a manner deferted. Homer makes Achilles fpeak of its
-immenfe wealth and grandeur, as a matter generally known and
-acknowledged; fo that it muft have been of long eftablifhed fame,
-even in that remote age. We may therefore fairly conclude, that
-the greateft part of the fuperb edifices now remaining, were executed,
-or at leaft begun, before that time; many of them being fuch as
-could not have been finiftied, but in a long term of years, even if
-we fuppofe the wealth and power of the ancient kings of Egypt
-to have equalled that of the greateft of the Roman emperors.
-The finiftiing of Trajan's column in three years, has been juftly
-thought a very extraordinary effort ; for there muft have been, at
-leaft, three hundred good fculptors employed upon it: and yet, in
-the neighbourhood of Thebes, we find whole temples of enormous
-magnitude, covered with figures carved in the hard and brittle
-granite of the Libyan mountains, inftead of the foft marbles of
-' See Plate xviii. Fig. i, from Pignorius. ^ Horn. Iliati. i, ver. 381.
-^
-ON THE WORSHIP
-Paros and Carrara. Travellers, who have vifited that country have
-given us imperfeft accounts of the manner in which they are
-finifhed; but, if one may judge by thofe upon the obelifc of Ram-
-efes, now lying in fragments at Rome, they are infinitely more
-laboured than thofe of Trajan's Column. An eminent fculptor,
-with whom I examined that obelifc, was decidedly of opinion, that
-they muft have been finifhed in the manner of gems, with a grav-
-ing tool ; it appearing Impoffible for a chifel to cut red granite with
-fo much neatnefs and precifion. The age of Ramefes is uncertain ;
-but the generality of modern chronologers fuppofe that he was the
-fame perfon as Sefoftris, and reigned at Thebes about 1500 years
-before the Chriftian sera, and about 300 before the Siege of Troy.
-Their dates are however merely conjectural, when applied to events
-of this remote antiquity. The Egyptian priefts of the Auguftan
-age had a tradition, which they pretended to confirm by records,
-written in hieroglyphics, that their country had once poffeft the
-dominion of all Afia and Ethiopia, which their king Ramfes, or
-Ramefes, had conquered.'^ Though this account may be exagge-
-rated, there can be no doubt, from the buildings fl:ill remaining,
-but that they were once at the head of a great empire; for all hif-
-torians agree that they abhorred navigation, had no fea-port, and
-never enjoyed the benefits of foreign commerce, without which,
-Egypt could have no means of acquiring a fufficient quantity of
-fuperfluous wealth to eredfuch expenfive monuments, unlefs from
-tributary provinces ; efpecially if all the lower part of it was an
-uncultivated bog, as Herodotus, with great appearance of prob-
-ability, tells us it anciently was. Yet Homer, who appears to have
-known all that could be known in his age, and tranfmitted to pof-
-terity all he knew, feems to have heard nothing of their empire or
-conquefts. Thefe were obliterated and forgotten by the rife of
-Tacit. An/i. lib. ii. c. 60.
-OF PR UP US. S3
-new empires; but the renown of their ancient wealth ftill con-
-tinued, and afforded a familiar objed of comparifon, as that of the
-Mogul does at this day, though he is become one of the pooreft
-fovereigns in the world.
-But far as thefe Egyptian remains lead us into unknown ages,
-the fymbols they contain appear not to have been invented in that
-country, but to have been copied from thofe of fome other people,
-ftill anterior, who dwelt on the other fide of the Erythraean ocean.
-One of the moft obvious of them is the hooded fnake, which is a
-reptile peculiar to the fouth-eaftern parts of Afia, but which I
-found reprefented, with great accuracy, upon the obelifc of Ramefes,
-and have alfo obferved frequently repeated on the Ifiac Table, and
-other fymbolical works of the Egyptians. It is alfo diftinguifhable
-among the fculptures in the facred caverns of the ifland ot Ele-
-phanta ; ^ and appears frequently added, as a charafteriftic fymbol,
-to many of the idols of the modern Hindoos, whofe abfurd tales
-concerning its meaning are related at length by M. Sonnerat ; but
-they are not worth repeating. Probably we fhould be able to trace
-the connexion through many more inftances, could we obtain accu-
-rate drawings of the ruins of Upper Egypt.
-By comparing the columns which the Egyptians formed in
-imitation of the Nelumbo plant, with each other, and obferving
-their different modes of decorating them, we may difcover the
-origin of that order of architedure which the Greeks called Corin-
-thian, from the place of its fuppofed invention. We firft find the
-plain bell, or feed-vefTel, ufed as a capital, without any further alter-
-ation than being a little expanded at bottom, to give it {lability. '■^
-In the next inftance, the fame feed-veflel is furrounded by the leaves
-of fome other plant ;^ which is varied in different capitals according
-Niehuhr, Voyage, vol. ii. ^ See Plate xix. Fig. 6, from Norden.
-See Plate xix. Fig. 7, Worn Norden.
-ON THE IVORSHIP
-to the different meanings intended to be expreffed by thefe addi-
-tional fymbols. The Greeks decorated it in the fame manner, with
-the leaves of the acanthus, and other forts of foliage ; whilft various
-other fymbols of their religion were introduced as ornaments on the
-entablature, inftead of being carved upon the walls of the cell, or
-fhafts of the columns. One of thefe, which occurs moft frequently,
-is that which the architeds call the honey-fuckle, but which, as Sir
-Jofeph Banks (to whom I am indebted for all that I have faid con-
-cerning the Lotus) clearly fhewed me,muft be meant for the young
-fhoots of this plant, viewed horizontally, juft when they have burft
-the feed-veffel, and are upon the point of falling out of it. The
-ornament is varioufly compofed on different buildings ; it being the
-pradice of the Greeks to make vegetable, as well as animal mon-
-fters, by combining different fymbolical plants together, and blend-
-ing them into one; whence they are often extremely difficult to be
-difcovered. But the fpecimen I have given, is fo ftrongly charader-
-ifed, that it cannot eafily be miftaken.^ It appears on many Greek
-medals with the animal fymbols and perfonified attributes of the
-Deity; which firft led me to imagine that it was not a mere orna-
-ment, but had fome myftic meaning, as almoft every decoration
-employed upon their facred edifices indifputably had.
-The fquare area, over which the Lotus is fpread, in the Indian
-monument before mentioned, was occafionally floated with water;
-which, by means of a forcing machine, was firft thrown in a fpout
-upon the Lingam. The pouring of water upon the facred fymbols,
-is a mode of worfhip very much pradifed by the Hindoos, par-
-ticularly in their devotions to the Bull and the Lingam. Its mean-
-ing has been already explained, in the infl:ance of the Greek figure
-of Pan, reprefented in the ad: of paying the fame kind of worffiip
-to the fymbol of his own procreative power.^ The areas of the
-Plate XIX. Fig. 3, from the Ionian Antiquities, Ch. ii. PI. xiii.
-See Plate v. Fig. 1.
-OF PRIAPUS. 55
-Greek temples were, in like manner, in fome inftances, floated with
-water; of which I fliall foon give an example. We alfo find, not
-unfrequently, little portable temples, nearly of the fame form, and
-of Greek workmanfliip : the areas of which were equally floated
-by means of a fountain in the middle, and which, by the figures in
-relief that adorn the fides, appear evidently to have been dedicated
-to the fame worfhip of Priapus, or the Lingam} The fquare area
-is likewife imprefled upon many ancient Greek medals, fometimes
-divided into four, and fometimes into a greater number of com-
-partments." Antiquarians have fuppofed this to be merely the im-
-preflion of fomething put under the coin, to make it receive the
-fl:roke of the die more fl:eadily ; but, befides that it is very ill
-adapted to this purpofe, we find many coins which appear, evidently,
-to have received the fl:roke of the hammer (for fl:riking with a
-balance is of late date) on the fide marked with this fquare. But
-what puts the quefliion out of all doubt, is, that impreflions of
-exadlly the fame kind are found upon the little Talifmans, or
-myfliic pafi:es, taken out of the Egyptian Mummies, which have
-no imprefiion whatever on the reverfe.'' On a little brafs medal of
-Syracufe, \ye alfo find the afterifc of the Sun placed in the centre
-of the fquare, in the fame manner as the Lingam is on the Indian
-monument.'^ Whv this quadrangular form was adopted, in prefer-
-ence to any other, we have no means of difcovering, from any
-known Greek or Egyptian fculptures; but from this little Indian
-temple, we find that the four corners were adapted to four of the
-See Plate xiv. from one in the colleftion of Mr. Townley.
-See Plate xiii. Fig. i, from one of Sclinus, and Fig. 3, from one of Syracufe,
-belonging to me.
-See Plate xiii. Fig. 2, from one in the colleftion of Mr. Townley,
-^ See Plate XIII. Fig. 3. The medal is extremely common, and the quadrangular
-imprefTion is obfcrvable upon a great number of the more ancient Greek medals, gene-
-rally with fome fymbol of the Deity in the centre. See thofe of Athens, Lyttus,
-Maronea, &c.
-ON 'THE WORSHIP
-fubordinate deities, or perfonified modes of aftion of the great uni-
-verfal Generator, reprefented by the fymbol in the middle, to which
-the others are reprefented as paying their adorations, with geftures
-of humility and refped/
-What is theprecife meaning of thefe four fymbolical figures, it
-is fcarcely pofTible for us to difcover, from the fmall fragments of
-the myftic learning of the ancients which are now extant. That
-they were however intended as perfonified attributes, we can have
-no doubt; for we are taught by the venerable authority of the
-Bagvat Geeta^ that all the fubordinate deities were fuch, or elfe
-canonifed men, which thefe figures evidently are not. As for the
-mythological tales now current in India, they throw the fame degree
-of light upon the fubjed, as Ovid's Metamorphofes do on the
-ancient theology of Greece; that is, juft enough to bewilder and
-perplex thofe who give up their attention to it. The ancient author
-before cited is deferving of more credit ; but he has faid very little
-upon the fymbolical worfhip. His work, neverthelefs, clearly
-proves that its principles were precifely the fame as thofe of the
-Greeks and Egyptians, among whofe remains of art or literature,
-we may, perhaps, find fome probable analogies to aid conjedure.
-The elephant is, however, a new fymbol in the weft ; the Greeks
-never having feen one of thofe animals before the expedition of
-Alexander,- although the ufe of ivory was familiar among them
-even in the days of Homer. Upon this Indian monument the
-head of the elephant is placed upon the body of a man with four
-hands, two of which are held up as prepared to ftrike with the in-
-ftruments they hold, and the other two pointed down as in adora-
-tion of the Lingam. This figure is called Gonnis and Pollear by
-the modern Hindoos ; but neither of thefe names is to be found in
-the Geeta, where the deity only fays, that the learned behold him
-See Plate xii. ^ Paufan. lib. i. c. 12.
-OF PRIAPVS. 57
-alike in the reverend Brahman -perfected in knowledge^ in the ox,
-and in the elephant. What peculiar attributes the elephant was
-meant to exprefs, the ancient writer has not told us ; but, as the
-charaderiftic properties of this animal are ftrength and fagacity, we
-may conclude that his image was intended to reprefent ideas
-fomewhat fimilar to thofe which the Greeks reprefented by that
-of Minerva, who was worfhipped as the goddefs of force
-and wifdom, of war and counfel. The Indian Gonnis is indeed
-male, and Minerva female; but this difference of fexes, however
-important it may be in phyfical, is of very little confequence in
-metaphyseal beings, Minerva being, like the other Greek deities,
-either male or female, or both.^ On the medals of the Ptolemies,
-under whom the Indian fymbols became familiar to the Greeks
-through the commerce of Alexandria, we find her repeatedly repre-
-fented with the elephant's fkin upon her head, inftead of a helmet;
-and with a countenance between male and female, fuch as the artift
-would naturally give her, when he endeavoured to blend the Greek
-and Indian fymbols, and mould them into one.'"^ Minerva is faid
-by the Greek mythologifts to have been born without a mother,
-from the head of Jupiter, who was delivered of her by the afiiftance
-of Vulcan. This, in plain language, means no more than that Hie
-was a pure emanation of the divine mind, operating by means of
-the univerfal agent fire, and not, like others of the allegorical per-
-fonages, fprung from any of the particular operations of the deity
-upon external matter. Hence fhe is faid to be next in dignity to
-her father, and to be endowed with all his attributes -^ for, as wifdom
-is the mofi: exalted quality of the mind, and the divine mind the
-perfedion of wifdom, all its attributes are the attributes of wifdom,
-' Kpaev KUL 6t]\v^ e(f>v<;. Orph. et<? K6t]V.
-See Plate xiii. Fig. 5, engraved from one belonging to me.
-Her. lib. i. Od. 12. Callimach. €t9 \di]V.
-I
-ON THE WORSHIP
-under whofe diredion its power is always exerted. Strength and
-wifdom therefore, when confidered as attributes of the deity, are
-in fadl one and the fame. The Greek Minerva is ufually repre-
-fented with the fpear uplifted in her hand, in the fame manner as
-the Indian Gonnis holds the battle-axe.^ Both are given to denote
-the deftroying power equally belonging to divine wifdom, as the
-creative or preferving. The ftatue of Jupiter at Labranda in Caria
-held in his hand the battle-axe, inftead of thunder ; and on the
-medals of Tenedos and Thyatira, we find it reprefented alone as
-the fymbol of the deity, in the fame manner as the thunder is
-upon a great variety of other medals. / am the thunderbolt^ fays
-the deity in the Bagvat Geeta f and when we find this fuppofed
-engine of divine vengeance upon the medals, we muft not imagine
-that it is meant for the weapon of the fupreme god, but for the
-fymbol of his deftroying attribute. What inftrument the Gonnis
-holds in his other hand, is not eafily afcertained, it being a little
-injured by the carriage. In one of thofe pointed downwards he
-holds the Lotus flower, to denote that he has the diredion of the
-paftive powers of produdion ; and in the other, a golden ring or difc,
-which, I fhall foon fhew, was the fymbol by which many nations
-of the Eaft reprefented the fun. His head is drawn into a conical,
-or pyramidal form, and furrounded by an ornament which evidently
-reprefents flames ; the Indians, as well as the Greeks, looking upon
-fire as the eflence of all adive power ; whence perpetual lamps are
-kept burning in the holy of holies of all the great pagodas in
-India, as they were anciently in the temple of Jupiter Ammon,
-and rnany others both Greek and Barbarian f and the incarnate
-god in the Bagvat Geeta hys^ I am the fire reftding in the bodies of
-all things which have life} Upon the forehead of the Gonnis is a
-See Plate xiii. Fig. ii, from a medal of Seleucus J. belonging to me.
-Page 86. ^ See Plut. de Qrac. defeSi. ^ Page 113.
-OF PRIAPUS.
-crefcent reprefenting the moon, vvhofe power over the waters of the
-ocean caufed her to be regarded as the fovereign of the great
-nutritive element, and whofe mild rays, being accompanied by the
-refrelliing dews and cooling breezes of the night, made her natu-
-rally appear to the inhabitants of hot countries as the comforter and
-reftorer of the earth. / am the moon (fays the deity in the Bag-
-vat Geeta) whofe nature it is to give the quality of tajle and relijh,
-and to cherijh the herbs and plants of the field} The light of the
-fun, moon, and fire, were however all but one, and equally emana-
-tions of the fupreme being. Know^ fays the deity in the fame
-ancient dialogue, that the light which proceedeth from the fun^ and
-illuminateth the worlds and the light which is in the moon and in the
-fire^ are fnine. I pervade all things in nature^ and guard them with
-my beams} In the figure now under confideration a kind of pre-
-eminence feems to be given to the moon over the fun ; proceeding
-probably from the Hindoos not poffefiing the true folar fyftem,
-which muft however have been known to the people from whom
-they learnt to calculate eclipfes, which they ftill continue to do,
-though upon principles not underftood by themfelves. They now
-place the earth in the centre of the univerfe, as the later Greeks
-did, among whom we alfo find the fame preference given to the
-lunar fymbol ; Jupiter being reprefented, on a medal of Antiochus
-VIII., with the crefcent upon his head, and the afterifc of the fun
-in his hand.'^ In a paffage of the Bagvat Geeta already cited we
-find the elephant and bull mentioned together as fymbols of the
-fame kind ; and on a medal of Seleucus Nicator we find them
-united by the horns of the one being placed on the head of the
-other.* The later Greeks alfo fometimes employed the elephant as
-the univerfal fymbol of the deity ; in which fenfe he is reprefented
-^ Page 113. - Ibid. ^ Plate xiil. Fig. 10, from one belonging to me.
-•* See Plate xiil. Fig 9, and Gefner, Num. Reg. Syr. Tab. vill. Fig. 23.
-o ON THE tVORSHIP
-on a medal of Antiochus VI, bearing the torch, the emblem of the
-univerfal agent, fire, in his probofcis, and the cornucopia, the refult
-of its exertion, in his tail/
-On another corner of the little Indian pagoda, is a figure with
-four heads, all of the fame pointed form as that of the Gonnis. This
-I take to reprefent Brahma, to whom the Hindoos attribute four
-mouths, and fay that with them he dilated the four Beads, or
-Veads, the myftic volumes of their religion."^ The four heads are
-turned difl-'erent ways, but exaftly refemble each other. The
-beards have been painted black, and are fharp and pointed, like
-thofe of goats, which the Greeks gave to Pan, and his fubordinate
-emanations, the Fauns and Satyrs. Hence I am inclined to believe,
-that the Brahma of the Indians is the fame as the Pan of the
-Greeks ; that is, the creative fpirit of the deity transfufed through
-matter, and afting in the four elements reprefented by the four
-heads. The Indians indeed admit of a fifth element, as the Greeks
-did likewife ; but this is never clafled with the reft, being of an
-aetherial and more exalted nature, and belonging peculiarly to
-the deity. Some call it heaven^ Jome light, and Jome ather, fays
-Plutarch." The Hindoos now call it Occus, by which they feem
-to mean pure aetherial light or fire.
-This mode of reprefenting the allegorical perfonages of religion
-with many heads and limbs to exprefs their various attributes,
-and extenfive operation, is now univerfal in the Eaft,^ and feems
-anciently not to have been unknown to the Greeks, at leaft if we
-may judge by the epithets ufed by Pindar and other early poets.^
-The union of two fymbolical heads is common among the fpeci-
-mens of their art now extant, as may be feen upon the medals of
-See Plate xill. Fig 8, and Gefner, Num. Reg. Syr. Tab. vili. Fig. i.
-Bagvat Geeta, Note 41. ^ B.i apud Delph.
-^ See Kaempfer, Chappe d'Auteroche, Sonnerat, &c.
-^ Such as €KaTO'yKe(f)a\o<i , eKarovraKapavo^, CKaroy^eLpo^^ &c.
-OF PR UP US. r,i
-Syracufe, Marfeilles, and many other cities. Upon a gem of this
-fort in the colletflion of Mr. Townley, the fame ideas which are
-exprefled on the Indian pagoda by the diftindl figures Brahma and
-Gonnis, are exprefTed by the united heads of Amnion and Minerva.
-Amnion, as before obferved, was the Pan of the Greeks, and
-Minerva is here evidently the fame as the Gonnis, being repre-
-fented after the Indian manner, with the elephant's fkin on her
-head, inftead of a helmet.^ Both thefe heads appear feparate
-upon different medals of the Ptolemies,^ under one of whom
-this gem was probably engraved, Alexandria having been for a
-long time the great centre of religions, as well as of trade and
-fcience.
-Next to the figure of Brahma on the pagoda is the cow of
-plenty, or the female emblem of the generative or nutritive power
-of the earth ; and at the other corner, next to the Gonnis, is the
-figure of a woman, with a head of the fame conic or pyramidal
-form, and upon the front of it a flame of fire, from which hangs
-a crefcent.^ This feems to be the female perfonification of the
-divine attributes reprefented by the Gonnis or Pollear ; for the
-Hindoos, like the Greeks, worfhip the deity under both fexes,
-though they do not attempt to unite both in one figure. / am
-the father ajtd the mother of the world^ fays the incarnate god in
-the Bagvat Geeta.* Amongjl cattle^ adds he in a fubfequent part,
-/ am the cow Kamadhook. I am the prolific Kandarp, the god of
-love:' Thefe two fentences, by being placed together, feem to
-imply fome relation between this god of love and the cow Kamad-
-hook; and, were we to read the words without pundluation, as they
-are in all ancient orthography, we fliould think the author placed
-the god of love amongft the cattle; which he would naturally do.
-See Plate xiii. Fig. 7. 2 See Plate xiii. Fig. 5 and 6.
-•' See Plate x!i. ■* Page 80. ^ Page 86.
-en ON THE WORSHIP
-if it were the cuftom of his religion to reprefent him by an animal
-fymbol. Among the Egyptians, as before obferved, the cow was
-the fymbol of Venus, the goddefs of love, and paffive generative
-power of nature. On the capitals of one of the temples of Philae
-we ftill find the heads of this goddefs reprefented of a mixed form ;
-the horns and the ears of the cow being joined to the beautiful
-features of a woman in the prime of life;^ fuch as the Greeks
-attributed to that Venus, whom they worfhipped as the mother of
-the prolific god of love, Cupid, who was the perfonification of
-animal defire or concupifcence, as the Orphic love, the father of
-gods and men, was of univerfal attraftion. The Greeks, who
-reprefented the mother under the form of a beautiful woman,
-naturally reprefented the fon under the form of a beautiful boy;
-but a people who reprefented the mother under the form of a
-cow, would as naturally reprefent the fon under the form of a
-calf This feems to be the cafe with the Hindoos, as well as with
-the Egyptians ; wherefore Kandarp may be very properly placed
-among the cattle.
-By following this analogy, we may come to the true meaning of
-a much-celebrated objed of devotion, recorded by another ancient
-writer, of a more venerable charader. When the Ifraelites grew
-clamorous on account of the abfence of Mofes, and called upon
-Aaron to make them a god to go before them, he fet up a golden
-calf; to which the people facrificed and feafted, and then rofe up
-(as the tranflator fays) to play ; but in the original the term is more
-fpecific, and means, in its plain diredl fenfe, that particular fort of
-play which requires the concurrence of both fexes," and which was
-therefore a very proper conclufion of a facrifice to Cupid, though
-highly difpleafing to the god who had brought them out of
-Egypt. The Egyptian mythologifts, who appeared to have in-
-See Plate xviii. Fig. 3. ~ Exod. xxxii.
-OF PRI/IPUS. 63
-vented this fecondary deity of love, were probably the inventors
-iikewife of a fecondary Priapus, who was the perfonification of that
-particular generative faculty, which fprings from animal defire, as
-the primary Priapus was of the great generative principle of the
-univerfe. Hence, in the allegories of the poets, this deity is faid
-to be a fon of Bacchus and Venus ; that is, the refult of the adive
-and pafTive generative powers of nature. The ftory of his being
-the fon of a Grecian conqueror, and born at Lampfacus, feems to
-be a corruption of this allegory.
-Of all the nations of antiquity the Perfians were the moft fimple
-and dired: in the worfliip of the creator. They were the puritans
-of the heathen world, and not only rejedled all images of god or
-his agents, but alfo temples and altars, according to Herodotus,^
-whofe authority I prefer to any other, becaufe he had an opportunity
-of converfing with them before they had adopted any foreign fuper-
-ftitions.' As they worfhipped the aetherial fire without any medium
-of perfonification or allegory, they thought it unworthy of the
-dignity of the god to be reprefented by any definite form, or cir-
-cumfcribed to any particular place. The univerfe was his temple,
-and the all-pervading element of fire his only fymbol. The Greeks
-appear originally to have held fimilar opinions ; for they were long
-without ftatues ;^ and Paufanias fpeaks of a temple at Sicyon, built
-by Adraftus,* who lived an age before the Trojan war ; which con-
-fided of columns only, without wall or roof, like the Celtic temples
-of our Northern anceftors, or the Pyrsetheia of the Perfians, which
-were circles of fl:ones, in the centre of which was kindled the facred
-fire,'^ the fymbol of the god. Homer frequently fpeaks of places
-of worfhip confifliing of an area and altar only (reytiei/o? ^oifio<i re),
-Lib. i.
-Hvdc, Anquetil, and other modern writers, have given us the operofe fuper-
-llitions of the prefent Parfees for the fimple theifm of the ancient Perfians.
-Paufan. lib. vii. and ix. * Lib. ii. ^ Strab. lib. xv.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-which were probably inclofures like thefe of the Perfians, with an
-altar in the centre. The temples dedicated to the creator Bacchus,
-which the Greek architects called hypathral^ feem to have been
-anciently of the fame kind; whence probably came the title 7repiKtovio<;
-[Jurrounded with columns) attributed to that god in the Orphic
-litanies.^ The remains of one of thefe are ftill extant at Puzzuoli
-near Naples, which the inhabitants call the Temple of Serapis :
-but the ornaments of grapes, vafes, &c. found among the ruins,
-prove it to have been of Bacchus. Serapis was indeed the fame
-deity worfhipped under another form, being equally a perfonifica-
-tion of the Tun.^ The architedure is of the Roman times ; but the
-ground plan is probably that of a very ancient one, which this was
-made to replace; for it exadly refembles that of a Celtic temple in
-Zeeland, publifhed in Stukeley's Itinerary.^ The ranges of fquare
-buildings which inclofe it are not properly parts of the temple,
-but apartments of the priefts, places for vidiims and facredutenfils,
-and chapels dedicated to fubordinate deities introduced by a more
-complicated and corrupt worfhip, and probably unknown to the
-founders of the original edifice.'^ The portico, which runs parallel
-with thefe buildings,^ inclofed the temenos, or area of facred ground,
-which in the pyr^etheia of the Perfians was circular, but is here
-quadrangular, as in the Celtic temple in Zeeland, and the Indian
-pagoda before defcribed. In the centre was the holy of holies, the
-feat of the god, confifting of a circle of columns raifed upon a bafe-
-ment, without roof or walls, in the middle of which was probably
-the facred fire, or fome other fymbol of the deity. *^ The fquare
-area in which it fl:ood, was funk below the natural level of the
-ground,'' and, like that of the little Indian pagoda, appears to have
-* Hymn. 46. ^ Diodor. Sic. lib. i. Macrob. Sat. lib. i. c. 20.
-See Plate xv. Fig. i and 2, and Plate xiii. Fig. 4.
-Plate XV. Fig. 2, a — a. ^ Plate xv. Fig. 2, b — b.
-See Plate xv. Fig. 1, a, and Fig. 2, c. "> See Plate xv. Fig. i, b — b.
-OF PRIAPUS. 65
-been occafionally floated with water, the drains and conduits being
-ftill to be feen/ as alfo feveral fragments of fculpture reprefenting
-waves, ferpents, and various aquatic animals, which once adorned
-the bafement." The Bacchus 7repLKiovio<; here worfhipped, was, as
-we learn from the Orphic hymn above cited, the fun in his
-charader of extinguifher of the fires which once pervaded the earth.
-This he was fuppofed to have done by exhaling the waters of the
-ocean, and fcattering them over the land, which was thus fuppofed
-to have acquired its proper temperature and fertility. For this
-reafon the facred fire, the effential image of the god, was furrounded
-by the element which was principally employed in giving effed: to
-the beneficial exertions of his great attribute.
-Thefe Orphic temples were, without doubt, emblems of that
-fundamental principle of the myftic faith of the ancients, the folar
-fyftem ; fire, the efience of the deity, occupying the place of the
-fun, and the columns furrounding it as the fubordinate parts of the
-univerfe. Remains of the worfhip of fire continued among the
-Greeks even to the laft, as appears from the facred fires kept in the
-interior apartment, or holy of holies, of almoft all their temples,
-and places of worfhip: and, though the Ammonian Platonics, the
-lafl profefTors of the ancient religion, endeavoured to conceive fome-
-thing beyond the reach of fenfe and perception, as the efTence of
-their fupreme god; yet, when they wanted to illufhrate and explain
-the modes of aftion of this metaphyfical abftradion, who was more
-fubtle than intelligence itfelf, they do it by images and compa-
-rifons of light and fire.'^
-From a paffage of Hecataeus, preferved by Diodorus Siculus, I
-think it is evident that Stonehenge, and all the other monuments of
-the fame kind found in the North, belonged to the fame religion,
-See Plate xv. Fig. i, c — r. 2 See Plate xvn. Fig. i.
-See Proclus in Theol. Platon. lib. i. c. 19.
-K
-ON THE JVORSHIP
-which appears, at fome remote period, to have prevailed over the
-whole northern hemifphere. According to that ancient hiftorian,
-the Hyperboreans inhabited an ijland beyond Gaul, as large as Sicily^
-in which Apollo was worjhipped in a circular temple confider able for
-its fixe and riches} Apollo, we know, in the language of the Greeks
-of that age, can mean no other than the fun, which, according to
-Cfefar, was worshipped by the Germans, when they knew of no
-other deities except fire and the moon.^ The ifland I think can be
-no other than Britain, which at that time was only known to the
-Greeks by the vague reports of Phoenician mariners, fo uncertain
-and obfcure, that Herodotus, the moft inquifitive and credulous of
-hiftorians, doubts of its exiftence.^ The circular temple of the fun
-being noticed in fuch flight and imperfeft accounts, proves that it
-muft have been fomething fingular and important ; for, if it had
-been an inconfiderable ftrudure, it would not have been mentioned
-at all ; and, if there had been many fuch in the country, the hiftorian
-would not have employed the fingular number. Stonehenge has
-certainly been a circular temple, nearly the fame as that already
-defcribed of the Bacchus TreptKiovio^ at Puzzuoli, except that in the
-latter the nice execution, and beautiful fymmetry of the parts, are
-in every refped the reverfe of the rude but majeftic fimplicity of
-the former ; in the original defign they differ but in the form of
-the area.* It may therefore be reafonably fuppofed, that we have
-^'Naov a^ioXoyov^avaOrj/jiaat TroXXot? KeKO(T/xr)/jb€VOV^(r^atpoeiBr) rmaxni^o,'^'"
-Diod. Sic. lib. ii.
-^De B. Gal. lib. vi. ^ Lib. iii. c. 15.
-See Plate xv. Fig. 2 and 3. I have preferred Webb's plan of Stonehenge to
-Stukeley's and Smith's, after comparing each with the ruins now exifling. They
-differ materially only in the cell, which Webb fuppofes to have been a hexagon,
-and Stukeley a feftion of an ellipfis. The pofition of the altar is merely conjeftural;
-wherefore I have omitted it ; and I much doubt whether either be right in their
-plans of the cell, which feems, as in other Druidical temples, to have been meant for
-a circle, but incorreftly executed.
-OF PRIJPUS. 67
-ftill the ruins of the identical temple defcribed by Hecataeus, who,
-being an Afiatic Greek, might have received his information from
-fome Phoenician merchant, who had vifited the interior parts of
-Britain when trading there for tin. Macrobius mentions a temple
-of the fame kind and form upon Mount Zilmilfus in Thrace, de-
-dicated to the fun under the title of Bacchus Sebazius/ The large
-obelifcs of ftone found in many parts of the North, fuch as thofe at
-Rudftone,'^ and near Boroughbridge in Yorkfhire,^ belong to the
-fame religion; obelifcs being, as Pliny obferves, facred to the fun,
-whofe rays they reprefented both by their form and name.* An
-ancient medal of Apollonia in Illyria, belonging to the Mufeum of
-the late Dr. Hunter, has the head of Apollo crowned with laurel
-on one fide, and on the other an obelifc terminating in a crofs, the
-leaft explicit reprefentation of the male organs of generation.^
-This has exadly the appearance of one of thofe crofTes, which
-were ereded in church-yards and crofs roads for the adoration of
-devout perfons, when devotion was more prevalent than at prefent.
-Many of thefe were undoubtedly ereded before the eftablifhment
-of Chriftianity, and converted, together with their worfhippers, to
-the true faith. Anciently they reprefented the generative power of
-light, the effence of God ; for God is lights and never but in iin-
-approached light dwelt from eternity^ fays Milton, who in this, as
-well as many other inftances,has followed the Ammonian Platonics,
-who were both the restorers and corrupters of the ancient theology.
-They reftored it from the mafs of poetical mythology, under which
-it was buried, but refined and fublimated it with abftrad meta-
-phyiics, which foared as far above human reafon as the poetical
-Sat. lib. i. c. 18. ^ Archceologia, vol. v.
-Now called the Devil's Arrows. See Stukeley's Itin. vol. i. Table xc.
-< Hijl. Nat. lib. xxxvi. fee. 14.
-^ Plate X. Fig. i, and Numrni Pop. ^ Urb. Table x. Fig. 7.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-mythology funk below it. From the ancient folar obelifcs came
-the fpires and pinnacles with which our churches are ftill decorated,
-fo many ages after their myftic meaning has been forgotten.
-Happily for the beauty of thefe edifices, it was forgotten ; other-
-wife the reformers of the laft century would have deflroyed them,
-as they did the croffes and images ; for they might with equal
-propriety have been pronounced heathenifh and prophane.
-As the obelifc was the fymbol of light, fo was the pyramid of
-fire, deemed to be eflentially the fame. The Egyptians, among
-whom thefe forms are the moft frequent, held that there were two
-oppofite powers in the world, perpetually ading contrary to each
-other, the one creating, and the other destroying : the former they
-called Ofiris, and the latter Typhon.^ By the contention of thefe
-two, that mixture of good and evil, which, according to fome
-verfes of Euripides quoted by Plutarch," conftituted the harmony
-of the world, was fuppofed to be produced. This opinion of the
-necefTary mixture of good and evil was, according to Plutarch, of
-immemorial antiquity, derived from the oldeft theologifts and
-legillators, not only in traditions and reports, but in myfteries
-and facrifices, both Greek and barbarian.^ Fire was the efficient
-principle of both, and, according to fome of the Egyptians, that
-Eetherial fire which concentred in the fun. This opinion Plutarch
-controverts, faying that Typhon, the evil or defl:roying power,
-was a terrefl:rial or material fire, eflentially different from the
-^therial. But Plutarch here argues from his own prejudices,
-rather than from the evidence of the cafe ; for he believed in an
-original evil principle coeternal with the good, and ading in per-
-petual oppofition to it; an error into which men have been led by
-forming falfe notions of good and evil, and confidering them as
-Plutarch, de Is. iff Os. ~ Ibid., p. 455, Ed. Reiflcii.
-Ibid., Ed. Reilkii.
-OF PRIAPUS. 69
-felf-exifting inherent properties, inftead of accidental modifications,
-variable with every circumftance with which caufes and events are
-conneded. This error, though adopted by individuals, never
-formed a part either of the theology or mythology of Greece.
-Homer, in the beautiful allegory of the two cafks, makes Jupiter,
-the fupreme god, the diftributor of both good and evil.' The
-name of Jupiter, Zeu<?, was originally one of the titles or epithets of
-the fun, fignifying, according to its Qtyn\o\ogy,aweful or terrible;'^
-in which fenfe it is ufed in the Orphic litanies.'^ Pan, the
-univerfal fubftance, is called the horned Jupiter (Zeu? Kepaar-q^) ;
-and in an Orphic fragment preferved by Macrobius^ the names of
-Jupiter and Bacchus appear to be only titles of the all-creating
-power of the lun.
-A7A.a€ Zef, ALOvvcre, Trare^ nrovrov, irare^ air]<;^
-'HXie Trayyevero^.
-In another fragment preferved by the fame author,' the name of
-Pluto, Ai8r]^, is ufed as a title of the fame deity ; who appears
-therefore to have prefided over the dead as well as over the living,
-and to have been the lord of deftrudion as well as creation and
-prefervation. We accordingly find that in one of the Orphic
-litanies now extant, he is expreffly called the giver of life, and
-the deftroyer.''
-The Egyptians reprefented Typhon, the deftroying power,
-under the figure of the hippopotamus or river-horfe, the moft
-fierce and deftrudive animal they knew;' and the Chorus in the
-Bacch^ of Euripides invoke their infpirer Bacchus to appear under
-the form of a bull, a many-headed ferpent, or fiaming lion ; ** which
-fhews that the moft bloody and deftrudlive, as well as the moft
-//. cv, V. 527. 2 Damm. Lex. Etymol. ^ Hymn. x. v. 13.
-■* Sat. lib. i. c. 23. -'* Sat. lib. i. c. 8. ^ Hymn. Ixxii. Ed. Gefri.
-' Plutarch. Je Is. ^ Os. ^ V. 1015.
-yo ON THE WORSHIP
-ufeful of animals, was employed by the Greeks to reprefent fome
-perfonified attribute of the god. M. D'Hancarville has alfo
-obferved, that the lion is frequently employed by the ancient artifts
-as a fymbol of the fun ; ^ and 1 am inclined to believe that it was to
-exprefs this deftroying power, no lefs requifite to preferve the
-harmony of the univerfe than the generating. In moft of the
-monuments of ancient art where the lion is reprefented, he appears
-with expreffions of rage and violence, and often in the ad of
-killing and devouring fome other animal. On an ancient farco-
-phagus found in Sicily he is reprefented devouring a horfe,^ and on
-the medals of Velia in Italy, devouring a deer;^ the former, as
-facred to Neptune, reprefented the fea ; and the latter, as facred to
-Diana, the produce of the earth ; for Diana was the fertility of the
-earth perfonified, and therefore is faid to have received her nymphs
-or produdlive minifters from the ocean, the fource of fecundity.*
-The lion, therefore, in the former inftance, appears as a fymbol of
-the fun exhaling the waters ; and in the latter, as withering and
-putrifying the produce of the earth. On the frieze of the Temple
-of Apollo Didymaeus, near Miletus, are monfters compofed of the
-mixt forms of the goat and lion, refting their fore feet upon the
-lyre of the god, which ftands between them.^ The goat, as I have
-already fhewn, reprefented the creative attribute, and the lyre,
-harmony and order; therefore, if we admit that the lion reprefented
-the deftroying attribute, this compofition will fignify, in the
-fymbolical language of fculpture, the harmony and order of the
-univerfe preferved by the regular and periodical operations of the
-Recherches fur les Arts. See alfo Macrob. Sat. i. c. 21.
-Houel, Voyage de la Sicile. Plate xxxvi.
-Plate IX. Fig. 5, engraved from one belonging to me.
-* Callimach. Hymn. ad. Dian. v. 13. Getiitor Nympharum Oceanus. Catullus
-in Cell. V. 84.
-Ionian Antiquities, vol. i. c. 3. Plate ix.
-OF PRIAPUS. 71
-creative and deftrudive powers. This is a notion to which men
-would be naturally led by obferving the common order and pro-
-grellion of things. The fame heat of the fun, which fcorched and
-withered the grafs in fummer, ripened the fruits in autumn, and
-cloathed the earth with verdure in the fpring. In one feafon it
-dried up the waters from the earth, and in another returned them
-in rain. It caufed fermentation and putrefadion, which deftroy
-one generation of plants and animals, and produce another in
-conftant and regular fucceffion. This contention between the
-powers of creation and deftrud;ion is reprefented on an ancient
-medal of Acanthus, in the mufeum of the late Dr. Hunter, by a
-combat between the bull and lion.^ The bull alone is reprefented
-on other medals in exadly the fame attitude and gefture as when
-fighting with the lion;- whence I conclude that the lion is there
-underftood. On the medals of Celenderis, the goat appears inftead
-of the bull in exadly the fame attitude of ftruggle and contention,
-but without the lion ;•' and in a curious one of very ancient but
-excellent workmanfhip, belonging to me, the ivy of Bacchus is
-placed over the back of the goat, to denote the power which he
-reprefents.'*
-The mutual operation which was the refult of this contention,
-was fignified, in the mythological tales of the poets, by the loves
-of Mars and Venus, the one the adive power of deftrudlion, and
-the other the paffive power of generation. From their union is
-faid to have fprung the goddefs Harmony, who was the phyfical
-order of the univerfe perfonified. The fable of Ceres and Profer-
-pine is the fame allegory inverted ; Ceres being the prolific power
-Plate IX. Fig. 4, ^ Nummi Vet. Pop. y JJrb. Table i. Fig. 16.
-Plate IX. Fig. i z, from one of Afpendus in the fame Colleftion. See Nummi
-Vet. Pop. kff Vrb. Table viii. Fig. 20.
-'Nummi Vet. Pop. ^ Vrb. Table xvi. Fig. 13.
-" Plate IX. Fig. 13.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-of the earth perfonlfied, and hence called by the Greeks Mother
-Earth [T-n or A'n-fir}Tr)^). The Latin name Ceres alfo fignifying
-Earth, the Roman C being the fame originally, both in figure and
-power as the Greek F,^ which Homer often ufes as a mere guttural
-afpirate, and adds it arbitrarily to his words, to make them more
-folemnandfonorous.'^ The guttural afpirates and hiffing termina-
-tions more particularly belonged to the i^olic dialed, from which
-the Latin was derived ; wherefore we need not wonder that the
-fame word, which by the Dorians and lonians was written Epa and
-Epe, fhould by the ^olians be written Te/ae? or Ceres, the Greeks
-always accommodating their orthography to their pronunciation.
-In an ancient bronze at Strawberry Hill this goddefs is reprefented
-fitting, with a cup in one hand, and various forts of fruits in the
-other ; and the bull, the emblem of the power of the Creator, in
-her lap.'^ This compofition fhews the frudification of the earth
-by the defcent of the creative fpirit in the fame manner as defcribed
-by Virgil : —
-Vere tument terras, et genitalia femina polcunt ;
-Turn pater omnipotens foecundis imbribus sether
-Conjugis in gremium laetae defcendit, & omnes
-Magnus alit, magno commixtus corpore, fcetus.^
-^ther and water are here introduced by the poet as the two pro-
-lific elements which fertilize the earth, according to the ancient
-fyftem of the Orphic philofophy, upon which the myftic theology
-was founded. Proferpine, or IlepaL(j)oveLa, the daughter of Ceres,
-was, as her Greek name indicates, the goddefs of deftrudion, in
-which charader fhe is invoked by Althaea in the ninth Iliad ; but
-neverthelefs we often find her on the Greek medals crowned with
-See S. C. Marcian, and the medals of Gela and Agrigentum.
-As in the word eptS^iro^, ufually written by him €pLySii7ro<i.
-See Plate viii. '^ Georgic. lib. ii. v. 324.
-OF PRIA PUS. 73
-ears of corn, as being the goddefs of fertility as well as deftruc-
-tion.^ She is, in fad, a perfonification of the heat or fire that
-pervades the earth, which is at once the caufe and effed of fertility
-and deftrucftion, for it is at once the caufe and effed of fermentation,
-from which both proceed. The Libitina, or goddefs of death of
-the Romans, was the fame as the Perfiphoneia of the Greeks; and
-yet, as Plutarch obferves, the mod learned of that people allowed
-her to be the fame as Venus, the goddefs of generation.^
-In the Gallery at Florence is a coloffal image of the organ of
-generation, mounted on the back parts of a lion, and hung round
-with various animals. By this is reprefented the co-operation of
-the creating and deftroying powers, which are both blended and
-united in one figure, becaufe both are derived from one caufe.
-The animals hung round fhow likewife that both ad to the fame
-purpofe, that of replenifhing the earth, and peopling it with ftill
-rifing generations of fenfitive beings. The Chimaera of Homer, of
-which the commentators have given fo many whimfical interpreta-
-tions, was a fymbol of the fame kind, which the poet probably,
-having feen in Afia, and not knowing its meaning (which was only
-revealed to the initiated) fuppofed to be a monfter that had once
-infefted the country. He defcribes it as compofed of the forms
-of the goat^ the lion, and the Jerpent, and breathing fire from its
-mouth.^ Thefe are the fymbols of the creator, the defiroyer, and
-t\\t preferver^ united and animated hy fire, the divine effence of all
-three.* On a gem, publifhed in the Memoirs of the Academy of
-Cortona/ this union of the deftroying and preferving attributes is
-Plate iv. Fig. 5, from a medal of Agathocles, belonging to me. The lame
-head is upon many others, of Syracufe, Metapontum, &c.
-In Numa. 3 //. ^, v. 223.
-"* For the natural properties attributed by the ancients to fire, fee Plutarch, in
-Camillo, Plin. Hiji. Nut. lib. xxxvi. c. 68.
-^ Vol. iv. p. 32. See alfo Plate v. Fig. 4, copied from it.
-ON THE JVORSHIP
-reprefented by the united forms of the lion and ferpent crowned
-with rays, the emblems of the caufe from which both proceed.
-This compofition forms the Chnoubis of the Egyptians.
-Bacchus is frequently reprefented by the ancient artifts accom-
-panied by tigers, which appear, in fome inftances, devouring cluf-
-ters of grapes, the fruit peculiarly confecrated to the god, and in
-others drinking the liquor prefTed from them. The author of the
-Recherches Jur les Arts has in this inftance followed the common
-accounts of the Mythologifts, and afferted that tigers are really fond
-of grapes;^ which is fo far from being true, that they are incapable
-of feeding upon them, or upon any fruit whatever, being both
-externally and internally formed to feed upon flefh only, and to
-procure their food by deftroying other animals. Hence I am
-perfuaded, that in the ancient fymbols, tigers, as well as lions,
-reprefent the deftroying power of the god. Sometimes his chariot
-appears drawn by them ; and then they reprefent the powers of
-deftruftion preceding the powers of generation, and extending
-their operation, as putrefadion precedes, and increafes vegetation.
-On a medal of Maronea, publiihed by Gefner,^ a goat is coupled
-with the tiger in drawing his chariot; by which compofition the
-artift has fhewn the general aElive power of the deity, conduded
-by his two great attributes of creation and deftrudion. On the
-Choragic monument of Lyficrates at Athens, Bacchus is reprefented
-feeding a tiger ; which ftiows the adive power of generation
-feeding and cheriftiing the adive power of deftrudion.^ On a
-beautiful cameo in the coUedion of the Duke of Marlborough,
-the tiger is fucking the breaft of a nymph; which reprefents the
-fame power of deftrudion, nouriftied by the paffive power of gene-
-ration.* In the mufeum of Charles Townley, Efq., is a group, in
-Liv. i. c. 3. 2 Table xliii. Fig. 26. ^ Stuart's Athens, vol, i. c. 4, Plate x.
-See Plate xxill. engraved merely to (hovvr the compofition, it not being per-
-mitted to make an exadl drawing of it.
-OF PRIAPUS. 75
-marble, of three figures ; ^ the middle one of which grows out of
-a vine in a human form, with leaves and clufters of grapes fpringing
-out of its body. On one fide is the Bacchus 8l(}>vt]^, or creator of
-both fexes, known by the effeminate mold of his limbs and coun-
-tenance; and on the other, a tiger, leaping up, and devouring the
-grapes which fpring from the body of the perfonified vine, the
-hands of which are employed in receiving another clufler from the
-Bacchus. This compofition reprefents the vine between the crea-
-ting and defliroying attributes of god; the one giving it fruit, and
-the other devouring it when given. The tiger has a garland of
-ivy round his neck, to fhow that the defi:royer was co-eflential with
-the creator, of whom ivy, as well as all other ever-greens, was an
-emblem reprefenting his perpetual youth and viridity.^
-The mutual and alternate operation of the two great attributes
-of creation and defl:ru<5tion, was not confined by the ancients to
-plants and animals, and fuch tranfitory productions, but extended
-to the univerfe itfelf. Fire being the eflential caufe of both, they
-believed that the conflagration and renovation of the world were
-periodical and regular, proceeding from each other by the laws of
-its own confliitution, implanted in it by the creator, who was alfo
-the deftroyer and renovator f for, as Plato fays, all things arife from
-one, and into one are all things refolved.* It muft be obferved,
-that, when the ancients fpeak of creation and deftru6lion, they mean
-only formation and difTolution; it being univerfally allowed, through
-all fyftems of religion, or feds of philofophy, that nothing could
-come from nothings and that no power whatever could annihilate that
-See Plate xxi. Fig. 7. 2 Strabo, lib. xv. p. 712.
-Brucker, Hi/i. Crit. Philof. vol. i. part 2, lib. i. Plutarch, de Placit. Philof.
-lib. ii. c. 18. Lucretius, lib. v. ver. 92. Cic. de Nat. Deor. lib. ii.
-^ l£j^ kvo<i rairavra'^iveadaL^KaLeL'; r^ avTov avaXveadai^'iTi Pha;d. The fame
-dogma is IHII more plainly inculcated by the ancient Indian author before cited, fee
-Bagvat Geeta, Left. ix.
-ON "THE JVORSHIP
-which really exijied. The bold and magnificent idea of a creation
-from nothing was referved for the more vigorous faith, and more
-enlightened minds of the moderns,^ who need feek no authority to
-confirm their belief; for, as that which is felf-evident admits of no
-proof, fo that which is in itfelf impoflible admits of no refutation.
-The fable of the ferpent Pytho being deftroyed by Apollo,
-probably arofe from an emblematical compofition, in which that
-god was reprefented as the deftroyer of life, of which the ferpent
-wasafymbol. Pliny mentions a ftatue of him by Praxiteles,
-which was much celebrated in his time, called ^avpoKTwv [the
-Lizard-killer. Y The lizard, being fuppofed to live upon the dews
-and moifture of the earth, is employed as the fymbol of humidity
-in general ; fo that the god deftroying it, fignifies the fame as the
-lion devouring the horfe. The title Apollo, I am inclined to
-believe, meant originally the Deftroyer, as well as the Deliverer ;
-for, as the ancients fuppofed deftrudion to be merely diflblution,
-the power which delivered the particles of matter from the bonds
-of attraction, and broke the Sea/xov Trepi/SptOr} epcoro^, was in faft the
-deftroyer.^ It is, probably, for this reafon, that fudden death,
-plagues, and epidemic difeafes, are faid by the poets to be fent by ■
-this god ; who is, at the fame time, defcribed as the author of
-medicine, and all the arts employed to preferve life. Thefe attri-
-butes are not joined merely becaufe the deftroyer and preferver
-were efientially the fame ; but becaufe difeafe neceflarily precedes
-^ The word in Gejiejis upon which it is founded, conveyed no fuch fenfe to the
-ancients ; for the Seventy tranflated it eiroirjo-e, which figmiies forme J, or fajh toned.
-Hijl. Nat. lib. xxxiv. c. 8. Many copies of it are ftill extant. Winkleman
-has publifhed one from a bronze of Cardinal Albani's. Monum. J?itichi inediti,
-Plate XL.
-The verb Xuo), from which Apollo is derived, fignifies in Homer both to free
-and to diflblve or dellroy, //. a, ver. 20 ; //. /, ver. 25. Macrobius derives the
-title from airoXXvfii, to dejlroy ; but this word is derived from \vo3 Sat. lib. i. c. 17.
-OF PRIAPUS. 77
-cure, and is the caufe of its being invented. The God of Health
-is faid to be his fon, becaufe the health and vigour of one being
-are fupported by the decay and diflblution of others which are ap-
-propriated to its nourifhment. The bow and arrows are given to
-him as fymbols of his charaderiftic attributes, as they are to Diana,
-who was the female perfonification of the deftrudiive, as well as the
-produd:ive and preferving powers. Diana is hence called the triple
-Hecate, and reprefented by three female bodies joined together.
-Her attributes were however worshipped feparately ; and fome
-nations revered her under one character, and others under another.
-Diana of Ephefus was the produ6tive and nutritive power, as the
-many breafts and other fymbols on herftatues imply ;^ whilft Bpt/ico,
-the T'auric or Scythic Diana, appears to have been the deftruftive,
-and therefore was appeafed with human facrifices, and other bloody
-rites.^ She is reprefented fometimes ftanding on the back of a
-bull,'* and fometimes in a chariot drawn by bulls ;* whence fhe is
-called by the poets TavpoiroXa^ and Bocov eXarcipa^' Both compo-
-fitions fhow the pafhve power of nature, whether creative or
-deftrudlive, fuftained and guided by the general adive power of
-the creator, of which the fun was the centre, and the bull the
-fymbol.
-It was obferved by the ancients, that the deftrucflive power of
-the fun was exerted moft by day, and the creative by night : for it
-was in the former feafon that he dried up the waters, withered the
-herbs, and produced difeafe and putrefadion ; and in the latter,
-' Hieron. Comment, in Paul Epiji. ad Ephes. ^ Paufan. lib. iii. c. i6.
-See a medal of Auguftus, publifhed by Spanheim. Not. in Callim. Hymn, ad
-Dian. ver. 113.
-* Plate VI., from a bronze in the mufeum of C. Townley, Efq.
-^ Sophoclis Ajax, vtr. 172.
-Nonni Dionys. lib. i. the title Tau/jOTToXo? was fometimes given to Apollo,
-Euilath. Schol. in Dionys. YiepLTj^rja.^ ver. 609.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-that he returned the exhalations in dews, tempered with the genial
-heat which he had transfufed into the atmofphere, to reftore and
-replenifh the wafte of the day. Hence, when they perfonified the
-attributes, they revered the one as the diurnal, and the other as the
-no5furnal fun, and in their myftic worfhip, as Macrobius fays,^
-called the former Apollo, and the latter Dionyfus or Bacchus.
-The mythological perfonages of Caftor and Pollux, who lived and
-died alternately, were allegories of the fame dogma ; hence the two
-aflerifcs, by which they are diftinguifhed on the medals of Locri,
-Argos, and other cities.
-The p^ans, or war-fongs, which the Greeks chanted at the on-
-fet of their battles,^ were originally fung to Apollo,^ who was called
-Pseon ; and Macrobius tells us,* that in Spain, the fun was wor-
-fhipped as Mars, the god of war and deftrudion, whose ftatue they
-adorned with rays, like that of the Greek Apollo. On a Celtiberian
-or Runic medal found in Spain, of barbarous workmanlhip, is a
-head furrounded by obelifcs or rays, which I take to be of this
-deity .'^ The hairs appear ered, to imitate flames, as they do on
-many of the Greek medals ; and on the reverfe is a bearded head,
-with a fort of pyramidal cap on, exadly refembling that by which
-the Romans conferred freedom on their (laves, and which was
-therefore called the cap of liberty.'' On other Celtiberian medals
-is a figure on horfeback, carrying a fpear in his hand, and having
-the fame fort of cap on his head, with the word Helman written
-Sat. lib. i. c. i8. ^ Thucyd. lib. vii.
-Homer. //. a, v. 472. ^ Sat. lib. i. c. 19.
-Plate X Fig. 2, engraven from one belonging to me. I have fince been con-
-firmed in this conjefture by obferving the charafters of Mars and Apollo mixt on
-Greek coins. On a Mamertine one belonging to me is a head with the youthful
-features and laurel crown of Apollo ; but the hair is Ihort, and the infcription on the
-exergue denotes it to be Mars. See Plate xvi. Fig. 2.
-It may be feen with the dagger on the medals of Brutus.
-OF PRIJPUS. 79
-under him/ in characflers which are fomething between the old
-Runic and Pelafgian ; but fo near to the latter, that they are eafily
-underftood.^ This figure feems to be of the fame perfon as is
-reprefented by the head with the cap on the preceding medal, who
-can be no other than the angel or minifter of the deity of death,
-as the name implies; for Hela, or Hel, was, among the Northern
-nations, the goddefs of death,^ in the fame manner as Perfiphoneia
-or Brimo was among the Greeks. The fame figure appears on
-many ancient Britifh medals, and alfo on thofe of feveral Greek
-cities, particularly thofe of Gela, which have the Taurine Bacchus
-or Creator on the reverfe/ The head which I have fuppofed to be
-the Celtiberian Mars, or deftrudive power of the diurnal fun, is
-beardlefs like the Apollo o^ the Greeks, and, as far as can be dif-
-covered in fuch barbarous fculpture, has the fame androgynous
-features/ We may therefore reafonably fuppofe, that, like the
-Greeks, the Celtiberians perfonified the deftrudlive attribute under
-the different genders, accordingly as they applied it to the fun, or
-fiibordinate elements ; and then united them, to fignify that both
-were effentially the fame. The Helman therefore, who was the
-fame as the MoipajTjrr]'; or AtaKTco^ of the Greeks, may with equal
-propriety be called the minifter o{ both or either. The fpear in his
-hand is not to be confidered merely as the implement of deftrudion,
-but as the fymbol of power and command, which it was in Greece
-and Italy, as well as all over the North. Hence evdwetv Sopi^ was
-^ See Plate ix. Fig. 9, from one belonging to me.
-The iirft is a mixture of the Runic Hagle and Greek H. The fecond is the
-Runic Laugur, which is alfo the old Greek A, as it appears on the vafe of the
-Calydonian Boar in the Britifh Mufeum. The other three differ little from the
-common Greek.
-Edda. Fab. xvi. D'Hancarville, Recherches fur les Arts, liv. ii. c. 1.
-^ See Plate ix. Fig. 11, from one belonging to me.
-^ Sec Plate x. Fig. 2,
-o ON 'THE WORSHIP
-to govern^ and venire Juh hajid^ — to be fold as a Jlave. The ancient
-Celtes and Scythians paid divine honors to the fword, the battle-
-axe, and the fpear ; the firft of which was the fymbol by which
-they reprefented the fupreme god : hence to fwear by the edge
-of the fword was the moft facred and inviolable of oaths.'"^ Euri-
-pides alludes to this ancient religion when he calls a fword opKcov
-^i(j)o<; ; and i^fchylus fhows clearly, that it once prevailed in
-Greece, when he makes the heroes of the Thebaid fwear by the
-point of the fpear [o/xwo-l 8'acxM^^)- Homer fometimes ufes the
-word api]<; to fignify the God of War, and fometimes a weapon :
-and we have fufficient proof of this word's being of Celtic origin in
-its affinity with our Northern word PFar; for, if we write it in the
-ancient manner, with the Pelafgian Fau, or ^Eolian Digamma^ Yapr)<t
-{JVares)^ it fcarcely differs at all.
-Behind the bearded head, on the firft-mentioned Celtiberian
-medal is an inftrument like a pair of fire-tongs, or blackfmith's
-pincers ;^ from which it feems that the perfonage here reprefented
-is the fame as the 'H^ato-To? or Vulcan of the Greek and Roman
-mythology. The fame ideas are expreffed fomewhat more plainly
-on the medals of ^fernia in Italy, which are executed with all the
-refinement and elegance of Grecian art.^ On one fide is Apollo, the
-diurnal fun, mounting in his chariot; and on the other a beardlefs
-head, with the fame cap on, and the fame inftrument behind it,
-but with the youthful features and elegant charader of countenance
-ufually attributed to Mercury, who, as well as Vulcan, was the
-God of Art and Mechanifm ; and whofe peculiar office it alfo was
-to condud the fouls of the deceafed to their eternal manfions, from
-whence came the epithet Ata/crw^, applied to him by Homer. He
-was, therefore, in this refped, the fame as the Helman of the
-' Eurip. Hecuba. ^ Mallet, hitrod. a r HiJI. de Datiemarc, c. 9.
-'ETTTaeTTt S-nfia<;, v. 535. ^ Plate x. Fig. 2.
-^ See Plate x. Fig. 6, from one belonging to me.
-OF PRIAPUS. 8i
-Celtes and Scythians, who was fuppofed to condudl the fouls of all
-who died a violent death (which alone was accounted truly happy)
-to the palace of Valhala.^ It feems that the attributes of the deity
-which the Greeks reprefented by the mythological perfonages of
-Vulcan and Mercury, were united in the Celtic mythology. Caefar
-tells us that the Germans worfhipped Vulcan, or fire, with the
-fun and moon ; and I fhall foon have occafion to fhow that the
-Greeks held fire to be the real conductor of the dead, and emanci-
-pator of the foul. The i^fernians, bordering upon the Samnites,
-a Celtic nation, might naturally be fuppofed to have adopted the
-notions of their neighbours, or, what is more probable, preferved
-the religion of their anceftors more pure than the Hellenic Greeks.
-Hence they reprefented Vulcan, who, from the infcription on the
-exergue of their coins, appears to have been their tutelar god, with
-the charafteriftic features of Mercury, who was only a different
-perfonification of the fame deity.
-At Lycopolis in Egypt the destroying power of the fun was repre-
-fented by a wolf; which, as Macrobius fays, was worfhipped there as
-Apollo.'^ The wolf appears devouring grapes in the ornaments of
-the temple of Bacchus Tre/at/ciowo? atPuzzuoli f and on the medals
-of Cartha he is furrounded with rays, which plainly proves that he
-is there meant as a fymbol of the fun."* He is alfo reprefented on
-moft of the coins of Argos,^ where I have already fhown that the
-diurnal fun Apollo, the light-extending god, was peculiarly wor-
-fhipped. We may therefore conclude, that this animal is meant
-for one of thfe myflic fymbols of the primitive worfhip, and not,
-as fome antiquarians have fuppofed, to commemorate the mvtho-
-logical tales of Danaus or Lycaon, which were probably invented,
-^ Mallet, ////?. de Daneviarc. Introd. c. 9. 2 5^;/ \\\^ \ q 17
-Plate XVI. Fig. i. ^ Plate x. Fig. 8, from one belonging to me.
-^ Plate IX. Fig. 7, from one belonging to me.
-M
-ON "THE WORSHIP
-like many others of the fame kind, to fatisfy the inquifitive igno-
-rance of the vulgar, from whom the meaning of the myftic fymbols,
-the ufual devices on the medals, was ftridly concealed. In the
-Celtic mythology, the fame fymbol was employed, apparently in
-the fame fenfe, Lok, the great deftroying power of the univerfe,
-being reprefented under the form of a wolf.^
-The Apollo Didymaeus, or double Apollo, was probably the two
-perfonifications, that of the deftroying, and that of the creating
-power, united; whence we may perceive the reafon why the orna-
-ments before defcribed fhould be upon his temple.^ On the medals
-of Antigonus, king of Afia, is a figure with his hair hanging in
-artificial ringlets over his fhoulders, like that of a woman, and the
-whole compofition, both of his limbs and countenance, remarkable
-for extreme delicacy, and feminine elegance.^ He is fitting on the
-prow of a fhip, as god of the waters ; and we fhould, without
-hefitation, pronounce him to be the Bacchus St^y?^?, were it not for
-the bow that he carries in his hand, which evidently fiiows him
-to be Apollo. This I take to be the figure under which the
-refinement of art (and more was never fhown than in this medal)
-reprefented the Apollo Didymaeus, or union of the creative and
-deftrudive powers of both fexes in one body.
-As fire was the primary eflence of the adive or male powers of
-creation and generation, fo was water of the pafTive or female.
-Appian fays, that the goddefs worfhipped at Hierapolis in Syria
-was called by Jome Venus, by others Juno, and by others held to be
-the cauje which produced the beginning and feeds of things from
-humidity.'' Plutarch defcribes her nearly in the fame words f and
-' Mallet, hitrod. a V Hijl. de Danemarc.
-■^ See loniaii Antiq. vol. i. c. 3, PI. ix.
-' See Plate x. Fig. 7, from one belonging to me. Similar figures are on the coins
-of moil of the Seleucids. " ' De Bella Parthico. ' In Craffo.
-OF PR] A PUS. 83
-the author of the treatife attributed to Lucian^ {lySyf/ie was Nature,
-the parent of things, or the creatrejs. She was therefore the fame
-as Ifis, who was the prolific material upon which both the creative
-and deftru6live attributes operated." As water was her terreftrial
-eflence, so was the moon her celeftial image, whofe attractive power,
-heaving the waters of the ocean, naturally led men to afTociate
-them. The moon was alfo fuppofed to return the dews which the
-fun exhaled from the earth; and hence her warmth was reckoned
-to be moiftening, as that of the fun was drying.^ The Egyptians
-called her the Mother of the World, becaufe fhe fowed and fcattered
-into the air the prolific principles with which fhe had been impreg-
-nated by the fun.* Thefe principles, as well as the light by which
-fhe was illumined, being fuppofed to emanate from the great foun-
-tain of all life and motion, partook of the nature of the being
-from which they were derived. Hence the Egyptians attributed to
-the moon, as well as to the fun, the adive and pafiive powers of
-generation,^ which were both, to ufe the language of the fcholaftics,
-ejjentially the fame, though /orw^z/Zy different. This union is repre-
-fented on a medal of Demetrius the fecond, king of Syria,'' where
-the goddefs of Hierapolis appears with the male organs of genera-
-tion flicking out of her robe, and holding the thyrfus of Bacchus,
-the emblem of fire, in one hand, and the terreftrial globe, repre-
-fenting the fubordinate elements, in the other. Her head is
-crowned with various plants, and on each fide is an aflerifc repre-
-fenting (probably) the diurnal and nodiurnal iun, in the fame
-manner as when placed over the caps of Caflor and Pollux.^ This
-is not the form under which fhe was reprefented in the temple at
-De Dea Syrid. 2 Plutarch. J e If. iff Of.
-Calor foHs arefacit, lunaris humeSiat. Macrob. Sat. vn. c. 10.
-* Plutarch, de If isf Of •'• Ibid,
-s Plate X. Fig. 5, from Haym, Tcf Brit. p. 70.
-■^ See Plate ix. Fig. 7.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-Hierapolis, when the author of the account attributed to Lucian
-vifited it ; which is not to be wondered at, for the figures of this
-uni verfal goddefsjbeing merely emblematical,were compofed accord-
-ing to the attributes which the artifts meant particularly to exprefs.
-She is probably reprefented here in the form under which fhe was
-worfhipped in the neighbourhood of Cyzicus, where fhe was called
-A/ore/ii? UpLaTTivT], tht Priapic Diana} In the temple at Hierapolis
-the adtive powers imparted to her by the Creator were reprefented
-by immenfe images of the male organs of generation placed on
-each fide of the door. The meafures of thefe muft necefi"arily be
-corrupt in the prefent text of Lucian ; but that they were of an
-enormous fize we may conclude from what is related of a man's
-going to the top of one of them every year, and refiding there
-feven days, in order to have a more intimate communication with
-the deity, while praying for the profperity of Syria.^ Athenaeus
-relates, that Ptolemy Philadelphus had one of 120 cubits long
-carried in procefiion at Alexandria,^ of which the poet might juflily
-have faid —
-Horrendum protendit Mentula contum
-Quanta queat vaftos Thetidis fpumantis hiatus;
-Quanta queat prifcamque Rheam, magnamque parentem
-Naturam, folidis naturam implere medullis.
-Si foret immenfos, quot ad allra volantia currunt,
-Conceptura globos, et tela trifulca tonantis,
-Et vaga concufTum motura tonitrua mundum.
-This was the real meaning of the enormous figures at Hierapolis :
-— they were the generative organs of the creator perfonified, with
-which he was fuppofed to have impregnated the heavens, the earth,
-and the waters. Within the temple were many fmall ftatues of
-men with thefe organs difproportionably large. Thefe were the
-angels or attendants of the goddefs, who ailed as her minifl:ers of
-' Plutarch. /» Lucullo. " Lucian. de Dea Syria. ^ Deipnof. lib.
-OF PRIAPUS. 85
-creation in peopling and frudlifying the earth. The ftatue of the
-goddefs herlt'lf was in the fanduary of the temple; and near it
-was the ftatue of the creator, whom the author calls Jupiter, as he
-does the goddefs, Juno; by which he only means that they were
-the fupreme deities of the country where worfiiipped. She was
-borne by lions, and he by bulls, to fhow that nature, the paftive
-producftive power of matter, was fuftained by anterior deftruftion,
-whilft the ietherial fpirit, or a(5tive productive power, was fuftained
-by his own ftrength only, of which the bulls were fymbols.^ Be-
-tween both was a third figure, with a dove on his head, which fome
-thought to be Bacchus." This was the Holy Spirit, the firft-
-begotten love, or plaftic nature, (of which the dove was the image
-when it really deigned to defcend upon man,'^) proceeding from,
-and confubftantial with both ; for all three v^trt but perfonifications
-o^ one. The dove, or fome fowl like it, appears on the medals of
-Gortyna in Crete, afting the fame part with Didynna, the Cretan
-Diana, as the fwan is ufually reprefented adling with Leda.* This
-compofition has nearly the fame fignification as that before defcribed
-of the bull in the lap of Ceres, Diana being equally a perfonification
-of the produdive power of the earth. It may feem extraordinary,
-that after this adventure with the dove, ftie fhould ftill remain a
-virgin ; but myfteries of this kind are to be found in all religions.
-Juno is faid to have renewed her virginity every year by bathing
-in a certain fountain ; '"' a miracle which I believe even modern
-legends cannot parallel.
-• The adive and pajjive powers of creation are called male and female by the
-Ammonian Platonics. See Proclus in Theol. Platon. lib. i. c. 28.
-Lucian. de Dea Syria. 3 Matth. ch. iii. ver. 17.
-* See Plate in. Fig. 5. KaXbai 8e Ttjv Aprefiiv (^paK€<i BevSeiav, K/3j;Te? Se
-AiKTVVvav. Pala;ph. Je bicreJ. Tab. xxxi. See alio Diodor. Sic. lib. v. & Euripid.
-Hippo I. V. 145.
-^ Paulan. lib. ii. c. 38.
-ON rHE WORSHIP
-In the vifion of Ezekiel, God is defcribed as defcending upon
-the combined forms of the eagle, the bull, and the lion,^ the
-emblems of the fetherial fpirit, the creative and deftru6live powers,
-which were all united in the true God, though hypoftatically
-divided in the Syrian trinity. Man was compounded with them,
-as reprefenting the real image of God, according to the Jewifh
-theology. The cherubim on the ark of the covenant, between
-which God dwelt,^ were alfo compounded of the fame forms,^ fo
-that the idea of them muft have been prefent to the prophet's mind,
-previous to the apparition which furnifhed him with the defcription.
-Even thofe on the ark of the covenant, though made at the exprefs
-command of God, do not appear to have been original ; for a
-figure exadly anfwering to the defcription of them appears among
-thofe curious ruins exifting at Chilminar, in Perfia, which have
-been fuppofed to be thofe of the palace of Perfepolis, burnt by
-Alexander ; but for what reafon, it is not eafy to conjefture. They
-do not, certainly, anfwer to any ancient defcription extant of that
-celebrated palace; but, as far as we can judge of them in their
-prefent ftate, appear evidently to have been a temple.* But the
-Perfians, as before obferved, had no inclofed temples or ftatues,
-which they held in fuch abhorrence, that they tried every means
-poffible to deftroy thofe of the Egyptians; thinking it unworthy
-of the majefty of the deity to have his all-pervading prefence
-limited to the boundary of an edifice, or likened to an image of
-flone or metal. Yet, among the ruins at Chilminar, we not only
-find many flatues, which are evidently of ideal beings,' but alfo that
-remarkable emblem of the deity, which diflinguifhes almofl all the
-Ezek. ch. i. ver. lo, with Lowth's Comm.
-Exod. ch. XXV. ver. 22.
-Spencer de Leg. Ritual Vet. Hebraor. lib. iii. diflert. 5.
-See Le Bruyn, Vo;jage en Perfe, Planche cxxiii.
-See Le Bruyn and Niebuhr,
-OF PRIAPUS. 87
-Egyptian temples now extant.^ The portals are alfo of the fame
-form as thofe at Thebes and Philit ; and, except the hieroglyphics
-which diftinguifh the latter, are finifhed and ornamented nearly in
-the fame manner. Unlefs, therefore, we fuppofe the Perfians to
-have been fo inconfiftent as to ered; temples in dired: contradiction
-to the firft principles of their own religion, and decorate them with
-fymbols and images,which they held to be impious and abominable,
-we cannot fuppofe them to be the authors of thefe buildings.
-Neither can we fuppofe the Parthians, or later Perfians, to have
-been the builders of them ; for both the ftyle of workmanfhip in
-the figures, and the forms of the letters in the infcriptions, denote
-a much higher antiquity, as will appear evidently to any one who
-will take the trouble of comparing the drawings publifhed by
-Le Bruyn and Niebuhr with the coins of the Arfacidae and
-SaiTanidas. Almoft all the fymbolical figures are to be found re-
-peated upon different Phoenician coins ; but theletters of the Phceni-
-cians, which are faid to have come to them from the Affyrians,
-are much lefs fimple, and evidently belong to an alphabet
-much further advanced in improvement. Some of the figures are
-alfo obfervable upon the Greek coins, particularly the bull and lion
-fighting, and the myftic flower, which is the confl:ant device of the
-Rhodians. The ftyle of workmanftiip is alfo exadly the fame as
-that of the very ancient Greek coins of Acanthus, Celendaris, and
-Lefbos; the lines being very ftrongly marked, and the hair exprefled
-by round knobs. The wings likewife of the figure, which refembles
-the Jewifli cherubim, are the fame as thofe upon feveral Greek
-fculptures now extant ; fuch as the little images of Priapus attached
-to the ancient bracelets, the compound figures of the goat and lion
-^ See Plate xviii. Fig. i from the Ifiac Table, and Plate xix. Fig. 5 from Nie-
-buhr's prints of Chilminar. See alio Plate xviil. Fig. 2 and Plate xix. Fig i from
-the Ifiac Tables and the Egyptian Portals publifhed by Norden and Pocockc, on
-every one of which this fingular emblem occurs.
-ON "THE WORSHIP
-upon the frieze of the Temple of Apollo Didymaeus, &c. &c.^
-They are likewife joined to the human figure on the medals of
-Melita and Camarina,^ as well as upon many ancient fculptures in
-relief found in Perfia;^ The feathers in thefe wings are turned up-
-wards like thofe of an oftrich,* to which however they have no
-refemblance in form, but feem rather like thofe of a fowl brooding,
-though more diftorted than any I ever obferved in nature. Whether
-this diftortion was meant to exprefs luft or incubation, I cannot
-determine ; but the compofitions, to which the wings are added,
-leave little doubt, that it was meant for the one or the other. I
-am inclined to believe that it was for the latter, as we find on the
-medals of Melita a figure with four of thefe wings, who feems by his
-attitude to be brooding over fomething.^ On his head is the cap of
-liberty, whilfl: in his right hand he holds the hook or attraftor, and
-in his left the winnow or feparator ; fo that he probably reprefents
-the E/3ft)9, or generative fpirit brooding over matter, and giving
-liberty to its produdive powers by the exertion of his own attri-
-butes, attradion and feparation. On a very ancient Phoenician
-medal brought from Afia by Mr. Pullinger, and publifhed very
-incorredly by Mr. Swinton in the Philofophical Tranfaftions of
-, is a diic or ring furrounded by wings of different forms, of
-which fome of the feathers are diftorted in the fame manner.^ The
-fame difc, furrounded by the fame kind of wings, inclofes the
-afterifc of the fun over the bull Apis, or Mnevis, on the Ifiac
-Table,^ where it alfo appears with many of the other Egyptian
-See Le Bruyn, Planche cxxiii. Ionia7i Antiquities, vol. i. c. 3. Plate ix., and
-Plate n. Fig. 2.
-See Plate xx. Fig. 2, from one of Melita, belonging to me.
-See Le Bruyn, Planche cxxi.
-■* As thofe on Figures defcribed by Ezekiel were. See c. i. v. 11.
-^ See Plate xx. Fig, 2, engraved from one belonging to me.
-c See Plate ix. Fig. 9, engraved from the original medal, wovf belonging to me.
-See Plate xix. Fig. i, from Pignorius.
-OF PRIAPUS. 89
-fymbols, particularly over the heads oflfisand Ofiris.^ It is aifo
-placed over the entrances of moft of the Egyptian temples defcribed
-by Pococke and Norden as well as on that reprefented on the Ifiac
-Table,'^ though with feveral variations, and without the afterifc.
-We find it equally without the afterifc, but with little or no varia-
-tion, on the ruins at Chilmenar, and other fuppofed Perfian anti-
-quities in that neighbourhood:' but upon fome of the Greek
-medals the afterifc alone is placed over the bull with the human
-face,' who is then the fame as the Apis or Mnevis of the Egyptians ;
-that is, the image of the generative power of the fun, which is fig-
-nified by the afterifc on the Greek medals, and by the kneph, or
-winged difc, on the Oriental monuments. The Greeks however
-fometimes employed this latter fymbol, but contrived, according to
-their ufual pradice, to join it to the human figure, as may be feen
-on a medal of Camarina, publiftied by Prince Torremmuzzi.'' On
-other medals of this city the fame idea is exprefied, without the
-difc or afterifc, by a winged figure, which appears hovering over a
-fwan, the emblem of the waters, to ftiow the generative power of
-the fun fruftifying that element, or adding the active to t\\Q.paJfive
-powers of production/' On the medals of Naples, a winged figure
-of the fame kind is reprefented crowning the Taurine Bacchus with
-a wreath of laurelJ This antiquarians have called a Vidory
-crowning the Minotaur; but the fabulous monfter called the Mi-
-notaur was never faid to have been victorious, even by the poets
-^ See Plate xviii. Fig. 2, from Pignorius.
-See Plate xvui. Fig. i, from Pignorius.
-See Niebuhr and Le Bruyn, and Plate xix. Fig. 2, from the former.
-* See Plate iv. Fig. 2, and Plate xix. Fig. 4, from a medal of Cales, belonging
-to me.
-* See Plate xxi. Fig. 2, copied from it.
-See Plate xxi. Fig. 3, from one belonging to me.
-' See Plate xix. Fig. 5. The coins are common in all colledlions.
-N
-ON THE JVORSHIP
-who invented it; and whenever the fculptors and painters repre-
-fented it, they joined the head of a bull to a human body, as may
-be feen in the celebrated pifture of Thefeus, publifhed among the
-antiquities of Herculaneum, and on the medals of Athens, ftruck
-about the time of Severus, when the ftyle of art was totally changed,
-and the myftic theology extind;. The winged figure, which has
-been called a Vidlory, appears mounting in the chariot of the fun,
-on the medals of queen Philiftis,^ and, on fome of thofe of Syra-
-cufe, flying before it in the place where the aflerifc appears on others
-of the fame city.^ I am therefore perfuaded, that thefe are only
-different modes of reprefenting one idea, and that the winged figure
-means the fame, when placed over the Taurine Bacchus of the
-Greeks,as the winged difcdoes over the Apis orMnevis of the Egyp-
-tians. The i^^gis, or fnaky breaftplate, and the Medufa's head,
-are alfo, as Dr. Stukeley juftly obferved,^ Greek modes of repre-
-fenting this winged difc joined with the ferpents, as it frequently is,
-both in the Egyptian fculptures, and thofe of Chilmenar in Perfia.
-The expreffions of rage and violence, which ufually charad:erife the
-countenance of Medufa,fignify the defliroying attribute joined with
-the generative, as both were equally under the direction of Minerva,
-or divine wifdom. I am inclined to believe, that the large rings,
-to which the little figures of Priapus are attached,* had alfo the
-fame meaning as the difc; for, if intended merely to fufpend them
-by, they are of an extravagant magnitude, and would not anfwer
-their purpofe fo well as a common loop.
-On the Phoenician coin above mentioned, this fymbol, the
-winged difc, is placed over a figure fitting, who holds in his hands
-an arrow, whilft a bow, ready bent, of the ancient Scythian form.
-See PlateSxxi. Fig. 4, from one belonging to me.
-See Plate xxi. Fig. 5 and 6, from coins belonging to me.
-Abury, p. 93. z* See Plate 11. Fig. i, and Plate in. Fig. 2.
-OF PRIAPUS. 91
-lies by him.^ On his head is a large loofe cap, tied under his chin,
-which I take to be the lion's fkin, worn in the fame manner as on
-the heads of Hercules, upon the medals of Alexander; but the
-work is fo fmall, though executed with extreme nicety and precifion,
-and perfectly preferved, that it is difficult to decide with certainty
-what it reprefents, in parts of fuch minutenefs. The bow and
-arrows, we know, were the ancient arms of Hercules;'^ and con-
-tinued fo, until the Greek poets thought proper to give him the
-club.^ He was particularly worfhipped at Tyre, the metropolis
-of Phoenicia ;"* and his head appears in the ufual form, on many of
-the coins of that people. We may hence conclude that he is the
-perfon here reprefented, notwithftanding the difference in the ftyle
-and compofition of the figure, which may be accounted for by the
-difference of art. The Greeks, animated by the fpirit of their
-ancient poets, and the glowing melody of their language, were
-grand and poetical in all their compofitions ; whilft the Phoenicians,
-who fpoke a harfh and untuneable dialed, were unacquainted with
-fine poetry, and confequently with poetical ideas ; for words being
-the types of ideas, and the figns or marks by which men not only
-communicate them to each other, but arrange and regulate them in
-their own minds, the genius of a language goes a great way towards
-forming the charader of the people who ufe it. Poverty of ex-
-preffion will produce poverty of conception ; for men will never be
-able to form fublime ideas, when the language in which they think
-(for men always think as well as fpeak in fome language) is inca-
-pable of expreffing them. This may be one reafon why the Phoe-
-nicians never rivalled the Greeks in the perfedion of art, althoucrh
-they attained a degree of excellence long before them ; for Homer,
-whenever he has occafion to fpeak of any fine piece of art, takes
-^ See Plate ix. Fig. \o b. 2 Homer's OJyJf. A, ver. 606.
-Strabo, lib. xiv. ■* Macrob, Sat. lib. i. c. 20.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-care to inform us that it was the work of Sidonians. He alfo
-mentions the Phoenician merchants bringing toys and ornaments
-of drefs to fell to the Greeks, and pradifing thofe frauds which
-merchants and fadors are apt to pradife upon ignorant people.^
-It is probable that their progrefs in the fine arts, like that of the
-Dutch (who are the Phoenicians of modern hiftory), never went
-beyond a ftrid imitation of nature; which, compared to the more
-elevated graces of ideal compofition, is like a newfpaper narrative
-compared with one of Homer's battles. A figure of Hercules,
-therefore, executed by a Phoenician artift, if compared to one by
-Phidias or Lyfippus, would be like a picture of Mofes or David,
-painted by Teniers, or Gerard Dow, compared to one of the fame,
-painted by Raphael or Annibal Caracci. This is exadly the differ-
-ence between the figures on the medal now under confideration,and
-thofe on the coins of Gelo or Alexander. Of all the perfonages
-of the ancient mythology, Hercules is perhaps the mofl difficult to
-explain; for phyfical allegory and fabulous hiflory are fo entangled
-in the accounts we have of him, that it is fcarcely poffible to fepa-
-rate them. He appears however, like all the other gods, to have
-been originally a perfonified attribute of the fun. The eleventh of
-the Orphic Hymns^ is addreffed to him as the flrength and power
-of the fun; and Macrobius fays that he was thought to be the
-flrength and virtue of the gods, by which they deflroyed the
-giants; and that, according to Varro, the Mars and Hercules of
-the Romans were the fame deity, and worfhipped with the fame
-rites.^ According to Varro then, whofe authority is perhaps the
-greateft that can be cited, Hercules was the deflroying attribute
-reprefented in a human form, inftead of that of a lion, tiger, or
-hippopotamus. Hence the terrible pidure drawn of him by
-Homer, which always appeared to me to have been taken from
-Homer. Odyjf. o, ver. 414. ^ Ed. Gefner. ^ ^^t. lib. i. c. 20.
-OF PRIAPUS.
-fome fymbolical ftatue, which the poet not underftanding, fuppofed
-to be of the Theban hero, who had aflumed the title of the deity,
-and whofe fabulous hiftory he was well acquainted with. The
-defcription however applies in every particular to the allegorical
-perfonage. His attitude, for ever fixed in the acft of letting fly his
-arrow,^ with the figures of lions and bears, battles and murders,
-which adorn his belt, all unite in reprefenting him as the deftru6live
-attribute perfonified. But how happens it then that he is fo fre-
-quently reprefented ftrangling the lion, the natural emblem of this
-power ? Is this an hiftorical fable belonging to the Theban hero,
-or a phyfical allegory of the deftrudive power defl:roying its own
-force by its own exertions ? Or is the fingle attribute perfonified
-taken for the whole power of the deity in this, as in other infl:ances
-already mentioned? The Orphic Hymn above cited feems to
-favour this laft conjedure ; for he is there addreffed both as the
-devourer and generator of all (na/A^a7e, 770776^6x0)^). However
-this may be, we may fafely conclude that the Hercules armed with
-the bow and arrow, as he appears on the prefent medal, is like the
-Apollo, the deftroying power of the diurnal fun.
-On the other fide of the medaP is a figure, fomewhat like the
-Jupiter on the medals of Alexander and Antiochus, fitting with a
-beaded fceptre in his right hand, which he refi;s upon the head of
-a bull, that projeds from the fide of the chair. Above, on his
-right fiioulder, is a bird, probably a dove, the fymbol of the Holy
-Spirit, defcending from the fun, but, as this part of the medal is
-lefs perfed than the reft:, the fpecies cannot be clearly difcovered.
-In his left hand he holds a ftiort fl:afF, from the upper fide of which
-fprings an ear of corn, and from the lower a bunch of grapes,
-which being the two moft eflieemed produdions of the earth, were
-the natural emblems of general fertilization. This figure is there-
-' Atct BaXeoi/Tt eoiKa><i. Od^jjf. \, vcr. 607. '' See Plate ix. Fig. 10 a.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-fore the generator, as that on the other fide is the deftroyer, whilft
-the fun, of whofe attributes both are perfonifications, is placed be-
-tween them. The letters on the fide of the generator are quite
-entire, and, according to the Phoenician, alphabet publifhed by Mr.
-Dutens, are equivalent to the Roman ones which compofe the
-words Baal "Thrz^ of which Mr. Swinton makes Baal 'Tarz^ and
-tra.n{[a.tQS Jupifer of Tar/us ; whence he concludes that this coin
-was ftruck at that city. But the firft letter of the laft word is not
-a "Teth, but a l^hau, or afpirated T; and, as the Phoenicians had a
-vowel anfwering to the Roman A, it is probable they would have
-inferted it, had they intended it to be founded : but we have no
-reafon to believe that they had any to exprefs the U or Y, which
-muft therefore be comprehended in the preceding confonant when-
-ever the found is expreffed. Hence I conclude that the word here
-meant is Thyrz or T/iurz, the Thor or T/iur of the Celtes and
-Sarmatians, the Thurra of the AfTyrians, the 'Turan of the Tyr-
-rhenians or Etrufcans, the 'Taurine Bacchus of the Greeks, and the
-deity whom the Germans carried with them in the fhape of a bull,
-when they invaded Italy ; from whom the city of Tyre, as well as
-Tyrrhenia, or Tufcany, probably took its name. His fymbol the
-bull, to which the name alludes, is reprefented on the chair or
-throne in which he fits ; and his fceptre, the emblem of his autho-
-rity, refts upon it. The other word, Baal, was merely a title in
-the Phoenician language, fignifying God, or Lord ;^ and u fed as an
-epithet of the fun, as we learn from the name Baal-bec [the city of
-Baal), which the Greeks rendered Heliopolis ( the city of the fun).
-Thus does this fingular medal fhow the fundamental principles
-of the ancient Phoenician religion to be the fame as thofe which
-appear to have prevailed through all the other nations of the
-northern hemifphere. Fragments of the fame fyftem every where
-* Cleric. Comm. in z Reg. c. i. ver. 2.
-OF PRIAPUS.
-occur, varioufly exprefled as they were varioufly underftood, and
-oftentimes merely preferved without being underftood at all; the
-ancient reverence being continued to the fymbols, when their
-meaning was wholly forgotten. The hypojlatical divifion and
-e[Jential unity of the deity is one of the moft remarkable parts of
-this fyftem, and the fartheft removed from common fenfeand reafon ;
-and yet this is perfectly reafonable and confiftent, if confidered
-together with the reft of it : for the emanations and perfonifications
-were only figurative abftradtions of particular modes of ad:ion and
-exiftence, of which the primary caufe and original eflence ftill con-
-tinued one and the fame.
-The three hypoftafes being thus only one being, each hypoftafis
-is occafionally taken for all ; as is the cafe in the paffage of
-Apuleius before cited, where Ifis defcribes herfelf as the univerfal
-deity. In this character ftie is reprefented by a fmall bafaltine
-figure, of Egyptian fculpture, at Strawberry Hill, which is covered
-over with fymbols of various kinds from top to bottom.^ That of
-the bull is placed loweft, to fhow that the ftrength or power of the
-creator is the foundation and fupport of every other attribute.
-On her head are towers, to denote the earth; and round her neck
-is hung a crab-fifti, which, from its power of fpontaneoufly de-
-taching from its body, and naturally reproducing, any limbs that
-are hurt or mutilated, became the fymbol of the produdive power
-of the waters ; in which fenfe it appears on great numbers of
-ancient medals of various cities.^ The nutritive power is fignified
-' A print of one exaftly the fame is publiftied by Montfaucon, Antiq. exfliq.
-vol. i. Plate xciii. Fig. i.
-- See thofe of Agrigentum, Himera, and Cyrene. On a fmall one of the firft-
-mentioned city, belonging to me, a crofs, the abbreviated fymbol of the male powers
-of generation, approaches the mouth of the crab, while the cornucopia iflues from it
-(lee Plate xx. Fig. 3): the one reprefents the caufe, and the other the effeft, of
-fertilization.
-ON THE WORSHIP
-by her many breafts, and the deftruftive by the lions which fhe
-bears on her arms. Other attributes are expreffed by various other
-animal fymbols, the precife meaning of which I have not fagacity
-fufficient to difcover.
-This univerfality of the goddefs was more concifely reprefented
-in other figures of her, by the myftic inftrument called a Syjlrum,
-which fhe carried in her hand. Plutarch has given an explanation
-of it,^ which may ferve to fhow that the mode here adopted of
-explaining the ancient fymbols is not founded merely upon con-
-jefture and analogy, but alfo upon the authority of one of the moft
-grave and learned of the Greeks. The curved top, he fays, repre-
-fented the lunar orbit, within which the creative attributes of the
-deity were exerted, in giving motion to the four elements, fignified
-by the four rattles below.^ On the centre of the curve was a cat,
-the emblem of the moon; who, from her influence on the con-
-ftitutions of women, was fuppofed to prefide particularly over the
-paffive powers of generation;^ and below, upon the bafe, a head
-of Ifis or Nepthus; inftead of which, upon that which I have had
-engraved, as well as upon many others now extant, are the male
-organs of generation, reprefenting the adive powers of the creator,
-attributed to Ifis with the paffive. The clattering noife, and
-various motions of the rattles being adopted as the fymbols of the
-movement and mixture of the elements from which all things are
-produced; the found of metals in general became an emblem of
-the fame kind. Hence, the ringing of bells, and clattering of
-plates of metal, were ufed in all lufl;rations, facrifices, &c.* The
-title Priapus, applied to the charac^erifliic attribute of the creator.
-De Is. tsf Os.
-See Plate x. Fig. 4, engraved from one in the colledlion of R. Wilbraham, Efq.
-Cic. de Nat. Deor. lib. ii. c. 46.
-Clem. Alex. II/oot^. p. 9. Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll. 11. ver. 36.
-OF PRIAPUS. 97
-and fometimes to the Creator himfelf, is probably a corruption of
-BptaTTuo? (clamorous or loud); for the B and IT being both labials,
-the change of the one for the other is common in the Greek
-language. We ftill find many ancient images of this fymbol, with
-bells attached to them/ as they were to the facred robe of the
-high prieft of the Jews, in which he adminiftered to the Creator.^
-The bells in both were of a pyramidal form,' to fhew the aetherial
-igneous eflence of the god. This form is ftill retained in thofe
-ufed in our churches, as well as in the little ones rung by the
-Catholic priefts at the elevation of the hoft. The ufe of them was
-early adopted by the Chriftians, in the fame fenfe as they were
-employed by the later heathens; that is, as a charm againft evil
-daemons;'* for, being fymbols of the aAive exertions of the creative
-attributes, they were properly oppofed to the emanations of the
-deftrudive. The Lacedemonians ufed to beat a pan or kettle-
-drum at the death of their king,'' to affift in the emancipation of
-his foul at the diftblution of the body. We have a fimilar cuftom
-of tolling a bell on fuch occafions, which is very generally prac-
-tifed, though the meaning of it has been long forgotten. This
-emancipation of the foul was fuppofed to be finally performed by
-fire; which, being the vifible image and adive eflence of both the
-creative and deftrudlive powers, was very naturally thought to be
-the medium through which men paffed from the prefent to a
-future life. The Greeks, and all the Celtic nations, accordingly,
-burned the bodies of the dead, as the Gentoos do at this day;
-while the Egyptians, among whom fuel was extremely fcarce,
-Bronzi delP Hercol. Tom. vi. Plate xcviii.
-' Exod. ch. xxviii.
-Bronzi deir Hercol. Tom. vi. Plate xcvni. Maimonidcs in Patrick's Com-
-mentary on ExoduSy ch. xxviii.
-^ Ovid. Faji. lib. v. ver. 441. Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll, ii. ver. 36.
-Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll, ii. ver. 36.
-o
-ON THE WORSHIP
-placed them in pyramidal monuments, which were the fymbols of
-fire ; hence come thofe prodigious ftrudures which ftill adorn that
-country. The foul which was to be emancipated was the divine
-emanation, the vital fpark of heavenly flame, the principle of reafon
-and perception, which was perfonified into the familiar daemon, or
-genius, fuppofed to have the direction of each individual, and to
-difpofe him to good or evil, wifdom or folly, and all their con-
-fequences of profperity and adverfity/ Hence proceeded the
-doftrines, fo uniformly inculcated by Homer and Pindar,^ of all
-human adions depending immediately upon the gods ; which were
-adopted, with fcarcely any variations, by fome of the Chriftian
-divines of the apoftolic age. In the Pafl:or of Hermas, and
-Recognitions of Clemens, we find the angels of juftice, penitence,
-and forrow, infliead of the genii, or daemons, which the ancients
-fuppofed to direct men's minds and infpire them with thofe parti-
-cular fentiments. St. Paul adopted the flill more comfortable
-do6lrine of grace, which ferved full as well to emancipate the
-confciences of the faithful from the fhackles of practical morality.
-The familiar daemons, or divine emanations, were fuppofed to
-refide in the blood ; which was thought to contain the principles of
-vital heat, and was therefore forbidden by Mofes.^ Homer, who
-feems to have coUefted little fragments of the ancient theology, and
-introduced them here and there, amidft the wild profufion of his
-poetical fables, reprefents the fhades of the deceafed as void of
-perception, until they had tafled of the blood of the vidims offered
-' Pindar. Pyth. v. ver. 164. Sophocl. Trachin, ver. 922. Hor. lib. ii. epift. ii.
-ver. 187.
-^ E/c Seoiv fMa'x,avaL irdcraL ^poreai'i apeTai<;, kul (TO(f>oi. Kai %epcri yStarat,
-TrepiyXcoaaoi r' £cf)VP. Pindar. Pytb. i. ver. 79. Paffages to the fame purpofe occur
-in almoil every page of the Iliad 2.nd OdyJJey.
-'' Levit. ch. xvii. ver. 11 & 14.
-OF PRIAPUS. 99
-by Ulyfles ;' by which their faculties were renewed by a reunion
-with the divine emanation, from which they had been feparatcd.
-The foul of Tirefias is faid to be entire in hell, and to poflefs alone
-the power of perception, becaufe with him this divine emanation
-ftill remained. The fhade of Hercules is defcribed among the
-other ghofts, though he himfelf, as the poet fays, was then in
-heaven ; that is, the adive principle of thought and perception
-returned to its native heaven, whilft the paffive, or merely fenfitive,
-remained on earth, from whence it fprung.'- The final feparation
-of thefe two did not take place till the body was confumed by fire,
-as appears from the ghoft of Elpenor, whofe body being ftill entire,
-he retained both, and knew Ulyfles before he had tafted of the
-blood. It was from producing this feparation, that the univerfal
-Bacchus, or double Apollo, the creator and deftroyer, whofe
-eflence was fire, was alfo called At/cwr?;?, the purifier,-' by a metaphor
-taken from the winnow, which purified the corn from the duft and
-chaff, as fire purified the foul from its terreftrial pollutions. Hence
-this inftrument is called by Virgil the myftic winnow of Bacchus.*
-The Ammonian Platonics and Gnoftic Chriftians thought that
-this feparation, or purification, might be effefted in a degree even
-before death. It was for this purpofe that they pradifed fuch rigid
-temperance, and gave themfelves up to fuch intenfe ftudy ; for, by
-fubduing and extenuating the terreftrial principle, they hoped to
-give liberty and vigour to the celeftial, fo that it might beenabled
-to afcend diredly to the intelleftual world,pure andunincumbered.''
-' OdyJJ'. \, ver. 152.
-' Thofe who wifh to lee the difference between fenfation and perception clearly
-and fully explained, may be fatisfied by reading the EJ/ai aualytique fur P Ame, by
-Mr. Bonnet.
-Orph. Hymn. 45. ■" Myjlica vannus lacchi. Georg. i. ver. 166.
-' Plotin. Ennead. vi. lib. iv. ch. 16. Moflieim, Not. y in Cudw. Syjl. Inteli
-ch. V. fedt. 20.
-loo ON THE WORSHIP
-The clergy afterwards introduced Purgatory, inftead of abftrad
-meditation and ftudy ; which was the ancient mode of feparation
-by fire, removed into an unknown country, where it was faleable
-to all fuch of the inhabitants of this world as had fufficient wealth
-and credulity.
-It was the celeftial or setherial principle of the human mind,
-which the ancient artifts reprefented under the fymbol of the
-butterfly, which may be confidered as one of the moft elegant alle-
-gories of their elegant religion. This infedl, when hatched from
-the egg, appears in the fhape of a grub, crawling upon the earth,
-and feeding upon the leaves of plants. In this fliate, it was aptly
-made the emblem of man, in his earthly form, in which the aetherial
-vigour and adivity of the celeflial foul, the divine particula mentis,
-was fuppofed to be clogged and incumbered with the material body.
-When the grub was changed to a chryfalis, its ftillnefs, torpor, and
-infenfibility feemed to prefent a natural image of death, or the inter-
-mediate fliate between the cefl^ation of the vital fundions of the
-body and the final releafement of the foul by the fire, in which the
-body was confumed. The butterfly breaking from the torpid
-chryfalis, and mounting in the air, was no lefs natural an image of
-the celeftial foul burfting from the reftraints of matter, and mixing
-again with its native aether. The Greek artifts, always ftudious of
-elegance, changed this, as well as other animal fymbols, into a
-human form, retaining the wings as the charaderiftic members, by
-which the meaning might be known. The human body, which
-they added to them, is that of a beautiful girl, fometimes in the age
-of infancy, and fometimes of approaching maturity. So beautiful
-an allegory as this would naturally be a favourite fubjed of art
-among a people whofe tafte had attained the utmoft pitch of refine-
-ment. We accordingly find that it has been more frequently and
-more varioufly repeated than any other which the fyftem of emana-
-tions, fo favourable to art, could afford.
-OF PRIAPUS. loi
-Although all men were fuppofed to partake of the divine
-emanation in a degree, it was not fuppofed that they all partook
-of it in an equal degree. Thofe who (howed fuperior abilities, and
-diftinguifhed themfelves by their fplendid actions, were fuppofed to
-have a larger fhare of the divine eflence, and were therefore adored
-as gods, and honoured with divine titles, expreifive of that parti-
-cular attribute of the deity with which they feemed to be moft
-favoured. New perfonages were thus enrolled among the alle-
-gorical deities; and the perfonified attributes of the fun were con-
-founded with a Cretan and TheiTalian king, an Afiatic conqueror,
-and a Theban robber. Hence Pindar, who appears to have been
-a very orthodox heathen, fays, that the race of men and gods is
-one, that both breathe from one mother, and only differ in power.^
-This confufion of epithets and titles contributed, as much as any
-thing, to raife that vaft and extravagant fabric of poetical mytho-
-logy, which, in a manner, overwhelmed the ancient theology,
-which was too pure and philofophical to continue long a popular
-religion. The grand and exalted fyftem of a general firft caufe,
-univerfally expanded, did not fuit the grofs conceptions of the
-multitude; who had no other way of conceiving the idea of an
-omnipotent god, but by forming an exaggerated image of their
-own defpot, and fuppofing his power to confift in an unlimited
-gratification of his paffions and appetites. Hence the univerfal
-Jupiter, the aweful and venerable, the general principle of life
-and motion, was transformed into the god who thundered from
-Mount Ida, and was lulled to fleep in the embraces of his wife;
-and hence the god whofe fpirit moved" upon the face of the waters,
-Nem. V. ver. i .
-^ So the tranflators have rendered the expreflion of the original, which literally
-means brooding as a fowl on its eggs, and alludes to the fymbols of the ancient
-theology, which I have before obferved upon. See Patrick's Commentary..
-I02 ON "THE WORSHIP
-and impregnated them with the powers of generation, became a
-great king above all gods, who led forth his people to fmite the
-ungodly, and rooted out their enemies from before them.
-Another great means of corrupting the ancient theology, and
-eftablifhing the poetical mythology, was the pradtice of the artifts in
-reprefenting the various attributes of the creator under human
-forms of various character and expreffion. Thefe figures, being
-diftinguifhed by the titles of the deity which they were meant
-to reprefent, became in time to be confidered as diftind perfonages,
-and worfhipped as feparate fubordinate deities. Hence the many-
-fhaped god, the ttoXu/ao/j^o? and fivpio/xop(f)0'; of the ancient theo-
-logifts, became divided into many gods and goddeffes, often de-
-fcribed by the poets as at variance with each other, and wrangling
-about the little intrigues and paffions of men. Hence too, as the
-fymbols were multiplied, particular ones loft their dignity ; and that
-venerable one which is the fubjed; of this difcourfe, became degraded
-from the reprefentative of the god of nature to a fubordinate rural
-deity, a fuppofed fon of the Afiatic conqueror Bacchus, ftanding
-among the nymphs by a fountain,^ and exprefting the fertility ot
-a garden, inftead of the general creative power of the great adlive
-principle of the univerfe. His degradation did not ftop even here ;
-for we find him, in times ftill more prophane and corrupt, made a
-fubjed of raillery and infult, as anfwering no better purpofe than
-holding up his rubicund fnout to frighten the birds and thieves.^
-H is talents were alfo perverted from their natural ends, and employed
-in bafeand abortive efforts in conformity to the tafte of the times;
-for men naturally attribute their own paffions and inclinations to
-the objeds of their adoration; and as God made man in his own
-image, fo man returns the favour, and makes God in his. Hence
-we find the higheft attribute of the all-pervading fpirit and firft-
-' Theocrit. Idyll, i. ver. 21. ^ Horat. lib. i. Sat. viii. Virg. Georg. iv.
-OF PRIAPUS. 103
-begotten love foully proftituted to promifcuous vice, and calling
-out, H^c cunnum^ caput hie, pr^beat ille nates?
-He continued however ftill to have his temple, prieftefs and
-facred geefe,'"^ and offerings of the moft exquifite kind were made to
-him :
-Criflabitque tibi excuflis. pulcherrima lumbis
-Hoc anno primum cxperta puella virum.
-Sometimes, however, they were not fo fcrupulous in the feledlion
-of their vidims, but fuffered frugality to reftrain their devotion :
-Cum iacrum fieret Deo falaci
-Condufta ell pretio puella parvo/
-The bride was ufually placed upon him immediately before mar-
-riage ; not, as Lacflantius fays, ut ejus pudicitiam prior Deus pra-
-libajfe videatur^ but that fhe might be rendered fruitful by her
-communion with the divine nature, and capable of fulfilling the
-duties of her ftation. In an ancient poem* we find a lady of the
-name of Lalageprefentingthe pictures of the " Elephantis" to him,
-and gravely requefting that fhe might enjoy the pleafures over
-which he particularly prefided, in all the attitudes defcribed in that
-celebrated treatife.'' Whether or not fhe fucceeded, the poet has
-not informed us ; but we may fafely conclude that fhe did not
-truft wholly to faith and prayer, but, contrary to the ufual practice
-of modern devotees, accompanied her devotion with fuch good
-works as were likely to contribute to the end propofed by it.
-When a lady had ferved as the vi(!l:im in a facrifice to this god,
-fhe expreffed her gratitude for the benefits received, by offering
-upon his altar certain fmall images reprefenting his charaderiflic
-' Priap. Carm. 21. * Petron. Satyric.
-' Priap. Carm. 34. * Priap. Carm. 3.
-' The Elephantis was written by one Philcenis, and feems to have been o^ the
-fame kind with the Puttana errante of Aretin.
-I04 ON THE WORSHIP
-attribute, the number of which was equal to the number of men
-who had aded as priefts upon the occafion/ On an antique gem,
-in the colleftion of Mr. Townley, is one of thefe fair viftims, who
-appears juft returned from a facrifice of this kind, and devoutly-
-returning her thanks by offering upon an altar fome of thefe
-images, from the number of which one may obferve that fhe has
-not been neglefted.'^ This offering of thanks had alfo its myftic
-and allegorical meaning ; for fire being the energetic principle and
-effential force of the Creator, and the fymbol above mentioned the
-vifible image of his charadleriftic attribute, the uniting them was
-uniting the material with the effential caufe, from whofe joint
-operation all things were fuppofed to proceed.
-Thefe facrifices, as well as all thofe to the deities prefiding over
-generation, were performed by night: hence Hippolytus, in Euri-
-pides, fays, to exprefs his love of chaftity, that he likes none of the
-gods revered by night.^ Thefe adis of devotion were indeed
-attended with fuch rites as muft naturally fhock the prejudices of a
-chafte and temperate mind, not liable to be warmed by that ecftatic
-enthufiafm which is peculiar to devout perfons when their attention
-is abforbed in the contemplation of the beneficent powers of the
-Creator, and all their faculties direded to imitate him in the
-exertion of his great charafteriftic attribute. To heighten this
-enthufiafm, the male and female faints of antiquity ufed to lie pro-
-mifcuoufly together in the temples, and honour God by a liberal
-difplay and general communication of his bounties.^ Herodotus,
-indeed, excepts the Greeks and Egyptians, and Dionyfius of Hali-
-carnaffus, the Romans, from this general cuftom of other nations ;
-but to the teftimony of the former we may opp.ofe the thoufand
-facred proftitutes kept at each of the temples of Corinth and
-Priap. Carm. 34. Ed. Scioppii. ^ See Plate iii. Fig. 3.
-Ver. 613. ^ Herodot. lib. ii.
-OF PRIJPUS.
-Eryx;^ and to that of the latter the exprefs words of Juvenal,
-who, though he lived an age later, lived when the fame religion,
-and nearly the fame manners, prevailed.^ Diodorus Siculus alfo
-tells us, that when the Roman praetors vifited Eryx, they laid
-afide their magifterial feverity, and honoured the goddefs by mix-
-ing with her votaries, and indulging themfelves in the pleafures
-over which fhe prefided.^ It appears, too, that the ad of genera-
-tion was a fort of facrament in the ifland of Lefbos; for the device
-on its medals (which in the Greek republics had always fome
-relation to religion) is as explicit as forms can make it/ The
-figures appear indeed to be myftic and allegorical, the male having
-evidently a mixture of the goat in his beard and features, and there-
-fore probably reprefents Pan, the generative power of the univerfe,
-incorporated in univerfal matter. The female has all that breadth
-and fulnefs which charaderife the perfonification of the paflive
-power, known by the titles of Rhea, Juno, Ceres, &c.
-When there were fuch feminaries for female education as thofe
-of Eryx and Corinth, we need not wonder that the ladies of anti-
-quity fhould be extremely well inftru6ted in all the practical duties
-of their religion. The ftories told of Julia and Meflalina fhow us
-that the Roman ladies were no ways deficient; and yet they were
-as remarkable for their gravity and decency as the Corinthians
-were for their fkill and dexterity in adapting themfelves to all the
-modes and attitudes which the luxuriant imaginations of expe-
-rienced votaries have contrived for performing the rites of their
-tutelar goddefs.^
-The reafon why thefe rites were always performed by night,
-was the peculiar fandtity attributed to it by the ancients, becaufe
-dreams were then fuppofed to defcend from heaven to infl:ru(5l and
-Strab. lib. viii. 2 Sat. ix. ver. 24. 3 Lib. iv. Eii. Wejfel.
-See Plate ix. Fig. 8, from one belonging to me.
-Philodemi Epigr. Brunk. Anale8. vol. ii. p. 8$.
-io6 ON THE WORSHIP
-forewarn men. The nights, fays Hefiod, belong to the blefled
-gods;^ and the Orphic poet calls night the fource of all things
-{yravToiv r^eveai<;) to denote that produdive power, which, as I have
-been told, it really pofleffes; it being obferved that plants and
-animals grow more by night than by day. The ancients extended
-this power much further, and fuppofed that not only the pro-
-ductions of the earth, but the luminaries of heaven, were nourifhed
-and fuftained by the benign influence of the night. Hence that
-beautiful apofl:rophe in the "Eledra" of Euripides, O w^ fieXaiva,
-Xpvaecov acrrpcov rpo^e^ &c.
-Not only the facrifices to the generative deities, but in general
-all the religious rites of the Greeks, were of the feftive kind. To
-imitate the gods, was, in their opinion, to feafl: and rejoice, and to
-cultivate the ufeful and elegant arts, by which we are m ade par-
-takers of their felicity.^ This was the cafe with almofl: all the
-nations of antiquity, except the^ Egyptians and their reformed
-imitators the Jews,* who being governed by a hierarchy, endea-
-voured to make it awful and venerable to the people by an appear-
-ance of rigour and aufl:erity. The people however, fometimes
-broke through this refliraint, and indulged themfelves in the more
-pleafing worfliip of their neighbours, as when they danced and
-feafl:ed before the golden calf which Aaron ereded,^ and devoted
-themfelves to the worfhip of obfcene idols, generally fuppofed to be
-of Priapus, under the reign of Abijam.''
-The Chrifliian religion, being a reformation of the Jewifli, rather
-increafed than diminiflied the auflierity of its original. On particular
-occafions however it equally abated its rigour, and gave way to
-feftivity and mirth, though always with an air of fandlity and
-E/37. ver. 730. 2 Strabo, lib. x. ^ Herodot, lib. ii.
-See Spencer de Leg. Rit. Vet. Hebraor. ^ Exod. ch. xxxii.
-^1?^. c. XV. ver. 13. Ed. Cleric.
-OF PRIJPUS. 107
-folemnity. Such were originally the feafts of the Eucharift,
-which, as the word exprefles, were meetings of joy and gratulation ;
-though, as divines tell us, all of the fpiritual kind : but the parti-
-cular manner in which St. Auguftine commands the ladies who
-attended them to wear clean linen,^ feems to infer, that perfonal as
-well as fpiritual matters were thought worthy of attention. To
-thofe who adminifler the facrament in the modern way, it may
-appear of little confequence whether the women received it in clean
-linen or not ; but to the good bifhop, who was to adminifler the
-holy ki/s, it certainly was of fome importance. The holy kifs was
-not only applied as a part of the ceremonial of the Eucharift, but
-alfo of prayer, at the conclufion of which they welcomed each other
-with this natural fign of love and benevolence.'^ It was upon thefe
-occafions that they worked themfelves up to thofe fits of rapture
-and enthufiafm, which made them eagerly rufh upon deftrudtion in
-the fury of their zeal to obtain the crown of martyrdom.^ En-
-thufiafm on one fubjedl naturally produces enthufiafm on another ;
-for the human paffions, like the ftrings of an inftrument, vibrate to
-the motions of each other : hence paroxyfms of love and devotion
-have oftentimes fo exadlyaccorded,asnottohavebeendiftinguifhed
-by the very perfons whom they agitated.* This was too often the
-cafe in thefe meetings of the primitive Chriftians. The feafts of
-gratulation and love, the a^airat and nofturnal vigils, gave too
-flattering opportunities to the paffions and appetites of men, to
-continue long, what we are told they were at firft, pure exercifes of
-devotion. The fpiritual raptures and divine ecftafies encouraged
-on thefe occafions, were often ecftafies of a very different kind, con-
-cealed under the garb of devotion ; whence the greateft irregularities
-enfued; and it became necefTary for the reputation of the church,
-Aug. Serm. clii. 2 Juftin Martyr. Apolog.
-Martini Kempii de Ofculis DiJ/ert. viii. ■* See Proces de la Cadi'cre.
-io8 ON THE WORSHIP
-that they fhould be fupprefled, as they afterwards were by the
-decrees of feveral councils. Their fuppreffion may be confidered
-as the final fubverfion of that part of the ancient religion which I
-have here undertaken to examine ; for fo long as thofe nodurnal
-meetings were preferved, it certainly exifted, though under other
-names, and in a more folemn drefs. The fmall remain of it preferved
-at Ifernia, of which an account has here been given, can fcarcely be
-deemed an exception ; for its meaning was unknown to thofe who
-celebrated it ; and the obfcurity of the place, added to the vener-
-able names of S. Cofimo and Damiano, was all that prevented it
-from being fupprefled long ago, as it has been lately, to the great
-difmay of the chafte matrons and pious monks of Ifernia. Traces
-and memorials of it feem however to have been preferved, in many
-parts of Chrifl:endom, long after the aftual celebration of its
-rites ceafed. Hence the obfcene figures obfervable upon many of
-our Gothic Cathedrals, and particularly upon the ancient brafs
-doors of St. Peter's at Rome, where there are fome groups which
-rival the devices on the Lefbian medals.
-It is curious, in looking back through the annals of fuperftition,
-fo degrading to the pride of man, to trace the progrefs of the
-human mind in different ages, climates, and circumflances, uni-
-formly afting upon the fame principles, and to the fame ends. The
-fketch here given of the corruptions of the religion of Greece, is an
-exaft counterpart of the hiflory of the corruptions of Chriflianity,
-which began in the pure theifm of the ecleftic Jews,^ and by the help
-of infpirations, emanations, and canonizations, expanded itfelf, by
-degrees, to the vafl and unwieldy fyftem which now fills the creed
-of what is commonly called the Catholic Church. In the ancient
-religion, however, the emanations afTumed the appearance of moral
-Compare the doftrines of Philo with thofe taught in the Gofpel of St, John, and
-Epiftles of St. Paul.
-OF PRIAPUS. 109
-virtues and phyfical attributes, inftead of miniftering fpirits and
-guardian angels; and the canonizations or deifications were beftowed
-upon heroes, legiflators, and monarchs, inftead of priefts, monks,
-and martyrs. There is alfo this further difference, that among the
-moderns philofophy has improved, as religion has been corrupted ;
-whereas, among the ancients, religion and philofophy declined to-
-gether. The true folar fyftem was taught in the Orphic fchool, and
-adopted by the Pythagoreans, the next regularly-eftablifhed fed.
-The Stoics corrupted it a little, by placing the earth in the centre
-of the univerfe, though they ftill allowed the fun its fuperior mag-
-nitude.^ At length arofe the Epicureans, who confounded it
-entirely, maintaining that the fun was only a fmall globe of fire, a
-few inches in diameter, and the ftars little tranfitory lights, whirled
-about in the atmofphere of the earth.^
-How ill foever adapted the ancient fyftem of emanations was
-to procure eternal happinefs, it was certainly extremely well calcu-
-lated to produce temporal good ; for, by the endlefs multiplication
-of fubordinate deities, it effedually excluded two of the greateft
-curfes that ever afflidled the human race, dogmatical theology, and
-its confequent religious perfecution. Far from fuppofing that the
-gods known in their own country were the only ones exifting, the
-Greeks thought that innumerable emanations of the divine mind
-were diffufed through every part of the univerfe ; fo that new
-objects of devotion prefented themfelves wherever they went.
-Every mountain, fpring, and river, had its tutelary deity, befides
-the numbers of immortal fpirits that were fuppofed to wander
-in the air, fcattering dreams and vifions, and fuperintending the
-affairs of men.
-Brucker, ////?. Crit. Philof. p. ii. lib. ii. c. 9. f. i.
-Lucret. lib. v. ver. 565, & feq.
-no ON THE WORSHIP
-T/3t9 ya^ fivptoL eLcriv eiri ')(6ovi, Trovku^oreLp-q
-AdavaTOL Z-qvof, (f)v\aK€'i OvrjTWV avd pwirwv .'^
-An adequate knowledge of thefe they never prefumed to think
-attainable, but modeftly contented themfelves with revering and
-invoking them whenever they felt or wanted their affiftance.
-When a ihipwrecked mariner was caft upon an unknown coaft, he
-immediately offered up his prayers to the gods of the country,
-whoever they were; and joined the inhabitants in whatever rites
-they thought proper to propitiate them with.'^ Impious or pro-
-phane rites he never imagined could exift, concluding that all
-expreffions of gratitude and fubmiffion mufl be pleafing to the
-gods. Atheifm was, indeed, punifhed at Athens, as the obfcene
-ceremonies of the Bacchanalians were at Rome ; but both as civil
-crimes againft the ftate ; the one tending to weaken the bands of
-fociety by deftroying the fancftity of oaths, and the other to fubvert
-that decency and gravity of manners, upon which the Romans fo
-much prided themfelves. The introdudion of ftrange gods, with-
-out permiffion from the magiftrate, was alfo prohibited in both
-cities ; but the reftridion extended no farther than the walls, there
-being no other parts of the Roman empire, except Judea, in which
-any kind of impiety or extravagance might not have been main-
-tained with impunity, provided it was maintained merely as a fpecu-
-lative opinion, and not employed as an engine of fadion, ambition,
-or oppreffion. The Romans even carried their condefcenfion fo
-far as to enforce the obfervance of a dogmatical religion, where
-they found it before eftablifhed ; as appears from the condud; of
-their magiftrates in Judea, relative to Chrift and his apoftles ; and
-iHefiod. EpyaKUi ^Hfiep. ver.z52, fxvptoi^SiC, are always ufed as indefinites by
-the ancient Greek poets.
-See Homer. OJyJ/] e, ver. 445, & feq. The Greeks feem to have adopted
-by degrees into their own ritual all the rites praftifed in the neighbouring countries.
-OF PRIAPUS. Ill
-fromwhat Jofephus has related, of a Roman foldier's being punifhed
-with death by his commander for infulting the Books of Mofes.
-Upon what principle then did they ad, when they afterwards per-
-fecuted the Chriftians with fo much rancour and cruelty? Perhaps
-it may furprife perfons not ufed to the ftudy of ecclefiaftical
-antiquities, to be told (what is neverthelefs indifputably true) that
-the Chriftians were never perfecuted on account of the fpeculative
-opinions of individuals, but either for civil crimes laid to their
-charge, or for withdrawing their allegiance from the ftate, and
-joining in a federative union dangerous by its conftitution, and
-rendered ftill more dangerous by the intolerant principles of its
-members, who often tumultuoufly interrupted the public worftiip,
-and continually railed againft the national religion (with which
-both the civil government and military difcipline of the Romans
-were infeparably conneded), as the certain means of eternal damna-
-tion. To break this union, was the great objed of Roman policy
-during a long courfe of years; but the violent means employed
-only tended to cement it clofer. Some of the Chriftians themfelves
-indeed, who were addided to Platonifm, took a fafer method to
-diflblve it ; but they were too few in number to fucceed. This
-was by trying to moderate the furious zeal which gave life and
-vigour to the confederacy, and to blend and foften the unyielding
-temper of religion with the mild fpirit of philofophy. "We all,"
-faid they, "agree in worftiipping one fupreme God, the Father
-and Preferver of all. While we approach him with purity of
-mind, fmcerity of heart, and innocence of manners, forms and
-ceremonies of worftiip are indifferent; and not lefs worthy of his
-greatnefs, for being varied and diverfified according to the various
-cuftoms and opinions of men. Had it been his will that all ftiould
-have worftiipped him in the fame mode, he would have given to
-all the fame inclinations and conceptions: but he has wifely ordered
-it otherwife, that piety and virtue might increafe by an honeft
-ON THE WORSHIP
-emulation of religions, as induftry in trade, or adivity in a race,
-from the mutual emulation of the candidates for wealth and
-honour,"^ This was too liberal and extenfive a plan, to meet the
-approbation of a greedy and ambitious clergy, whofe objeft was
-to eftablifh a hierarchy for themfelves, rather than to procure
-happinefs for others. It was accordingly condemned with vehe-
-mence and fuccefs by Ambrofius, Prudentius, and other orthodox
-leaders of the age.
-It was from the ancient fyftem of emanations, that the general
-hofpitality which charaderifed the manners of the heroic ages, and
-which is fo beautifully reprefented in the Odyjfey of Homer, in a
-great meafure arofe. The poor, and the ftranger who wandered in
-the ftreet and begged at the door, were fuppofed to be animated
-by a portion of the fame divine fpirit which fuftained the great
-and powerful. They are all from Jupiter, fays Homer, and a Jmall
-gift is acceptable? This benevolent fentiment has been compared
-by the Englifh commentators to that of the Jewifh moralift,
-who fays, that he who giveth to the poor lendeth to the Lord, who
-will rep ay him tenfold? But it is fcarcely poffible for anything to
-be more different: Homer promifes no other reward for charity
-than the benevolence of the aftion itfelf; but the Ifraelite holds
-out that which has always been the great motive for charity among
-his countrymen — the profped of being repaid ten-fold. They are
-always ready to fhow their bounty upon fuch incentives, if they
-can be perfuaded that they are founded upon good fecurity. It
-was the opinion, however, of many of the moft learned among the
-ancients, that the principles of the Jewifh religion were originally
-the fame as thofe of the Greek, and that their God was no other
-than the creator and generator Bacchus,* who, being viewed
-Symmach. Ep. i o ^ 6 1 . Themift. Orat ad Imperat.
-Qdyjf. ^, ver. 207. 3 See Pope's Odyjfey. ^ Tacit. Hijior. lib. v.
-OF PRIAPUS.
-through the gloomv medium of the hierarchy, appeared to them
-a jealous and irafcible God; and fo gave a more auftere and
-unfociable form to their devotion. The golden vine preferved in
-the temple at Jerufalem/ and the taurine forms of the cherubs,
-between which the Deity was fuppofed to refide, were fymbols fo
-exadlly fimilar to their own, that they naturally concluded them
-meant to exprefs the fame ideas ; efpecially as there was nothing
-in the avowed principles of the Jewifh worfhip to which they could
-be applied. The ineffable name alfo, which, according to the
-Mafforethic punctuation, is pronounced Jehovah^ was anciently
-pronounced Jaho^ law, or levco^ which was a title of Bacchus, the
-nodurnal fun;^ as was alfo SabaziuSy or Sabadius^ which is the
-fame word as Sabbaoth^ one of the fcriptural titles of the true God,
-only adapted to the pronunciation of a more polifhed language.
-The Latin name for the Supreme God belongs alfo to the fame
-root; Iv-iraTTjp^ Jupiter, fignifying Father leu', though written after
-the ancient manner, without the diphthong, which was not in ufe
-for many ages after the Greek colonies fettled in Latium, and intro-
-duced the Arcadian alphabet. We find St. Paul likewife acknow-
-ledging, that the Jupiter of the poet Aratus was the God whom
-he adored;^ and Clemens of Alexandria explains St. Peter's pro-
-hibition of worfhipping after the manner of the Greeks, not to
-mean a prohibition of worfhipping the fame God, but merely of
-the corrupt mode in which he was then worfhipped.*'
-The vine and goblet of Bacchus arc alfo the ufual devices upon the Jewifh and
-Samaritan coins, which were ftruclc under the Afmonean kings.
-~ Hieron. Comm. in Pfalm. viii. Diodor. Sic. lib. i. Philo-Bybl. ap. Eufeb.
-Prep. Evang. lib. 1. c. ix.
-Macrob. Sat. lib. i. c. xviii. ^ Ibid. ^ ASl. Apojl. c. xvii. ver. 28.
-^ Stromal, lib. v.
-FINIS.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE
-POWERS DURING THE MIDDLE AGES
-OF WESTERN EUROPE.
-^
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE
-POWERS DURING THE MIDDLE AGES
-OF WESTERN EUROPE.
-ICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT has written withgreat
-learning on the origin and hiftory of the worfliip of
-Priapus among the ancients. This worfhip, which
-was but a part of that of the generative powers,
-appears to have been the moft ancient of the fuper-
-ftitions of the human race/ has prevailed more or lefs among
-all known peoples before the introduction of Chriftianity, and,
-fingularly enough, fo deeply it feems to have been implanted in
-human nature, that even the promulgation of the Gofpel did not
-abolifh it, for it continued to exift, accepted and often encouraged
-by the mediaeval clergy. The occasion of Payne Knight's work.
-^ There appears to be a chance of this worfhip being claimed for a very early
-period in the hiftory of the human race. It has been recently ftated in the " Moni-
-teur," that, in the province of Venice, in Italy, excavations in a bone-cave have
-brought to light, beneath ten feet of ftalagmite, bones of animals, moftly poft-
-tertiary, of the ufual defcription found in fuch places, flint implements, with a needle
-of bone having an eye and point, and a plate of an argillaceous compound, on which
-was fcratched a rude drawing of a phallus. — Moniteur, Jan. 1865.
-ii8 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-was the difcovery that this worfhip continued to prevail in his time,
-in a very remarkable form, at Ifernia in the kingdom of Naples, a
-full defcription of which will be found in his work. The town of
-Ifernia was deftroyed, with a great portion of its inhabitants, in the
-terrible earthquake which fo fearfully devaftated the kingdom of
-Naples on the 26th of July, 1805, nineteen years after the appear-
-ance of the book alluded to. Perhaps with it perifhed the laft trace
-of the worfhip of Priapus in this particular form ; but Payne Knight
-was not acquainted with the fad that this fuperftition, in a variety
-of forms, prevailed throughout Southern and Weftern Europe
-largely during the Middle Ages, and that in fome parts it is hardly
-extind at the prefent day ; and, as its effeds were felt to a more
-confiderable extent than people in general fuppofe in the moft inti-
-mate and important relations of fociety, whatever we can do to
-throw light upon its mediaeval exiftence, though not an agreeable
-fubjed, cannot but form an important and valuable contribution to
-the better knowledge of mediaeval hiftory. Many interefting fads
-relating to this fubjed were brought together in a volume publifhed
-in Paris by Monfieur J. A. Dulaure, under the title, Des Divin-
-ites Generatrices chez les Anciens et les Modernes, forming part of
-an Hijloire Ahregee des differens Cukes, by the fame author.^ This
-book, however, is ftill very imperfed ; and it is the defign of the
-following pages to give, with the moft interefting of the fads
-already colleded by Dulaure, other fads and a defcription and
-explanation of monuments, which tend to throw a greater and
-more general light on this curious fubjed.
-The medieval worftiip of the generative powers, reprefented by
-the generative organs, was derived from two diftind fources. In
-the firft place, Rome invariably carried into the provinces ftie had
-The fecond edition of this work, publifhed in 1825, is by much the beft, and
-is confiderably enlarged from the firft.
-GENERATIVE POIVERS. 119
-conquered her own inftitutions and forms of wor{hip,and eftahlifhed
-them permanently. In exploring the antiquities of thefe provinces,
-we are aftonifhed at the abundant monuments of the worfhip of
-Priapus in all the fhapes and with all the attributes and accompani-
-ments, with which we are already fo well acquainted in Rome and
-Italy. Among the remains of Roman civilization in Gaul, we
-find ftatues or ftatuettes of Priapus, altars dedicated to him, the
-gardens and fields entrufted to his care, and the phallus, or male
-member, figured in a variety of fhapes as a proteding power againft
-evil influences of various kinds. With this idea the well-known
-figure was fculptured on the walls of public buildings, placed in
-confpicuous places in the interior of the houfe, worn as an orna-
-ment by women, and fufpended as an amulet to the necks of chil-
-dren. Erotic fcenes of the mofl: extravagant defcription covered
-veflels of metal, earthenware, and glafs, intended, no doubt, for
-feft;ivals and ufages more or lefs connected with the worfhip of the
-principle of fecundity.
-At Aix in Provence there was found, on or near the fite of the
-ancient baths, to which it had no doubt fome relation, an enormous
-phallus, encircled with garlands, fculptured in white marble. At
-Le Chatelet, in Champagne, on the fite of a Roman town, a coloffal
-phallus was alfo found. Similar objeds in bronze, and of fmaller
-dimenfions, are fo common, that explorations are feldom carried on
-upon a Roman fite in which they are not found, and examples of
-fuch objefts abound in the mufeums, public or private, of Roman
-antiquities. The phallic worfhip appears to have flourifhed efpecially
-at Nemaufus, now reprefented by the city of Nimes in the fouth of
-France, where the fymbol of this worfhip appeared in fculpture on
-the walls of its amphitheatre and on other buildings, in forms fome
-of which we can hardly help regarding as fanciful, or even playful.
-Some of the more remarkable of thefe are figured in our plates,
-XXV and xxvi.
-I20 ON "THE WORSHIP OF rHE
-The firft ofthefe/ is the figure of a double phallus. Itisfculp-
-tured on the lintel of one of the vomitories, or ifTues, of the fecond
-range of feats of the Roman amphitheatre, near the entrance-gate
-which looks to the fouth. The double and the triple phallus are
-very common among the fmall Roman bronzes, which appear to
-have ferved as amulets and for other fimilar purpofes. In the latter,
-one phallus ufually ferves as the body, and is furnifhed with legs,
-generally thofe of the goat ; a fecond occupies the ufual place of
-this organ ; and a third appears in that of a tail. On a pilafter of
-the amphitheatre of Nimes we fee a triple phallus of this defcrip-
-tion,^ with goat's legs and feet. A fmall bell is fufpended to the
-fmaller phallus in front ; and the larger organ which forms the
-body is furnifhed with wings. The picture is completed by the
-introdudlion of three birds, two of which are pecking the unveiled
-head of the principal phallus, while the third is holding down the
-tail with its foot.
-Several examples of thefe triple phalli occur in the Mufee Secret
-of the antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii. In the examples
-figured in that work,the hind part of the main phallus aflumes clearly
-the form of a dog ;^ and to mod of them are attached fmall bells,
-the explanation of which appears as yet to be very unfatisfad:ory. The
-wings alfo are common attributes of the phallus in thefe monuments.
-Plutarch is quoted as an authority for the explanation of the triple
-phallus as intended to fignify multiplication of its productive
-faculty.*
-On the top of another pilafter of the amphitheatre at Nimes, to
-the right of the principal weftern entrance, was a bas-relief, alfo
-_±
-Plate XXV, Fig. i. 2 See our Plate xxv. Fig. 2.
-The writer of the text to the Mufce Secret fuppofes that this circumflance has
-fome reference to the double meaning given to the Greek word kvwv, which was
-used for the generative organ.
-See Augufte Pelet, Catalogue du Mufee de Nimes.
-GENERATIVE POWERS.
-reprefenting a triple phallus, with legs of dog, and winged, hut
-with a further accompaniment.^ A female, drefied in the Roman
-ftola, ftands upon the phallus forming the tail, and holds both it
-and the one forming the body with a bridle." This bas-relief was
-taken down in 1829, and is now preferved in the mufeum of Nimes.
-A ftill more remarkable monument of this clafs was found in
-the courfe of excavations made at Nimes in 1825. It is en-
-graved in our plate xxvi, and reprefents a bird, apparently in-
-tended for a vulture, with fpread wings and phallic tail, fitting on
-four eggs, each of which is defigned, no doubt, to reprefent the
-female organ. The local antiquaries give to this, as to the other
-fimilar objeds, an emblematical fignification ; but it may perhaps
-be more rightly regarded as a playful conception of the imagina-
-tion. A fimilar defign, with fome modifications, occurs not unfre-
-quently among Gallo-Roman antiquities. We have engraved a
-figure of the triple phallus governed, or guided, by the female,^
-from a fmall bronze plate, on which it appears in bas-relief;
-it is now preferved in a private colledlion in London, with
-a duplicate, which appears to have been caft: from the fame
-mould, though the plate is cut through, and they were evidently
-intended for fufpenfion from the neck. Both came from the col-
-ledion of M. Baudot of Dijon. The lady here bridles only the
-principal phallus ; the legs are, as in the monument lafl: deicribed,
-thofe of a bird, and it is fl:anding upon three egiTs, apple-formed,
-and reprefenting the organ of the other fex,
-^ Plate XXV, Fig. 3.
-A French antiquary has given an emblematical interpretation of this figure.
-'* Perhaps," he fays, "it fignifies the empire of woman extending over the three
-ages of man ; on youth, charafterized by the bell ; on the age of vigour, the ardour
-of which (lie reilrains ; and on old age, which (he fuftains." This is perhaps more
-ingenious than convincing.
-See our Plate xxxvi. Fig. 3.
-R
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-. In regard to this laft-mentioned objeft, another very remarkable
-monument of what appears at Nimes to have been by no means
-a fecret worfhip, was found there during fome excavations on the
-fite of the Roman baths. It is a fquared mafs of ftone, the four
-fides of which, like the one reprefented in our engraving, are
-covered with fimilar figures of the fexual charaderiftics of the
-female, arranged in rows/ It has evidently ferved as a bafe, pro-
-bably to a ftatue, or poffibly to an altar. This curious monument
-is now preferved in the mufeum at Nimes.
-As Nimes was evidently a centre of this Priapic worfhip in the
-fouth of Gauljfo there appear to have been, perhaps leffer, centres in
-other parts, and we may trace it to the northern extremities of the
-Roman province, even to the other fide of the Rhine. On the fite
-of Roman fettlements near Xanten, in lower Hefre,a large quantity
-of pottery and other objeds have been found, of a character to
-leave no doubt as to the prevalence of this worfiiip in that quarter."
-But the Roman fettlement which occupied the fite of the modern
-city of Antwerp appears to have been one of the mofl: remarkable
-feats of the worfliip of Priapus in the north of Gaul, and it con-
-tinued to exifl: there till a comparatively modern period.
-When we crofs over to Britain we find this worfiiip efl:ablifiied
-no lefs firmly and extenfively in that ifland. Statuettes of Priapus,
-phallic bronzes, pottery covered with obfcene piftures, are found
-wherever there are any extenfive remains of Roman occupation, as
-our antiquaries know well. The numerous phallicfigures in bronze,
-found in England, are perfeftly identical in charader with thofe
-See Plate xxv. Fig. 4.
-Two Roman towns, Caftra Vetera and Colonia Trajana, ftood within no great
-diilance of Xanten, and Ph. Houben, a " notarius " of this town, formed a private
-mufeum of antiquities found there, and in 1839 publifhed engravings of them, with
-a text by Dr. Franz Fiedler. The erotic objefts form a feparate work under the
-title, Antike erotifche Bildwerke in Hoube?is Antiquarium zu Xa?ite?i.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 123
-which occur in I^Vance and in Italy. In illuftration of this fad, we
-give two examples of the triple phallus, which appears to have
-been, perhaps in accordance with the explanation given by Plu-
-tarch, an amulet in great favour. The firfl: was found in London
-in 1842.^ As in the examples found on the continent, a principal
-phallus forms the body, having the hinder parts of apparently a
-dog, with wings of a peculiar form, perhaps intended for thofe of
-a dragon. Several fmall rings are attached, no doubt for the pur-
-pofe of fufpending bells. Our fecond example'" was found at York in
-. It difplays a peculiarity of aftion which, in this cafe at leaft,
-leaves no doubt that the hinder parts were intended to be thofe of
-a dog. All antiquaries of any experience know the great number
-of obfcene fubjefts which are met with among the fine red pottery
-which is termed Samian ware, found fo abundantly in all Roman
-fites in our ifland. They reprefent erotic fcenes in every fenfe of
-the word, promifcuous intercourfe between the fexes, even vices
-contrary to nature, with figures of Priapus, and phallic emblems.
-We give as an example one of the lejs exceptionable fcenes of this
-defcription, copied from a Samian bowl found in Cannon Street,
-London, in 1838.'* The lamps, chiefly of earthenware, form ano-
-ther clafs of objeds on which fuch fcenes are frequently pourtrayed,
-and to which broadly phallic forms are fometimes given. One of
-thefe phallic lamps is here reprefented, on the fame plate with the
-bowl of Samian ware juft defcribed.* It is hardly neceffary to explain
-the fubjed reprefented by this lamp, which was found in London a
-few years ago.
-All this obfcene pottery mufl: be regarded, no doubt, as a proof
-of a great amount of diflolutenefs in the morals of Roman focicty
-in Britain, but it is evidence of fomethingmore. It is hardly likely
-See Plate xxvii, Fig. 3. 2 pjate xxvii. Fig. 4.
-Plate XXVII, Fig. i. < Plate xxvii. Fig. 2.
-ON rUE WORSHIP OF THE
-that fuch objefts could be in common ufe at the family table ; and
-we are led to fuppofe that they were employed on fpecial occafions,
-feftivals, perhaps, connected with the licentious worfhip of which
-we are fpeaking, and fuch as thofe defcribed in fuch ftrong terms in
-the fatires of Juvenal. But monuments are found in this ifland
-which bear ftill more diredt evidence to the existence of the worfhip
-of Priapus during the Roman period.
-In the parifh of Adel, in Yorkfhire, are confiderable traces of a
-Roman ftation, which appears to have been a place of fome import-
-ance, and which certainly poffefled temples. On the fite of thefe
-were found altars, and other ftones with infcriptions, which, after
-being long preferved in an outhoufe of the redlory at Adel, are now
-depofited in the mufeum of the Philofophical Society at Leeds. One
-of the moft curious of thefe, which we have here engraved for the
-firft time,^ appears to be a votive offering to Priapus, who feems to
-be addreffed under the name of Mentula. It is a rough, unfquared
-ftone, which has been feleded for pofTeffing a tolerably flat and
-fmooth furface ; and the figure and letters were made with a
-rude implement, and by an unfkilled workman, who was evidently
-unable to cut a continuous fmooth line. The middle of the flone
-is occupied by the figure of a phallus, and round it we read very
-diftindly the words: —
-PRIMINVS MENTLA.
-The author of the infcription may have been an ignorant Latinifl:
-as well as an unfkilful fculptor, and perhaps miftook the ligulated
-letters, overlooking the limb which would make the L fland for
-VL, and giving A for AE. It would then read Priminus Men-
-tula^ Priminus to Mentula (the obje6l perfonified), and it may have
-Plate XXVIII, Fig. i,
-GENERATIVE POWERS.
-been a votive offering from fome individual named Priminus, who
-was in want of a heir, or laboured under fome fexual infirmity, to
-Priapus, whofe afliftance he fought. Another interpretation has
-been fuggefted, on the fuppoiition that Mentla, or perhaps (the L
-being defigned for ILligulated) Mentilaor Mentilla, might be the
-name of a female joined with her hufband in this offering for their
-common good. The former of thefe interpretations feems, how-
-ever, to be the mofl probable. This monument belongs probably
-to rather a late date in the Roman period. Another exvoto of the
-fame clafs was found at Weflerwood Fort in Scotland, one of the
-Roman fortreffes on the wall of Antoninus. This monument^
-confifted of a fquare flab of flone, in the middle of which was a
-phallus, and under it the words EX • VOTO. Above were the
-letters XAN, meaning, perhaps, that the offerer had laboured
-ten years MwdtY the grievance of which he fought redrefs from Pri-
-apus. We may point alfo to a phallic monument of another kind,
-which reminds us in fome degree of the finer feu Iptu res at Nimes.
-At Houfefteads, in Northumberland, are feen the extenfive and
-impofing remains of one of the Roman flations on the Wall of
-Hadrian named Borcovicus. The walls of the entrance gateways
-are efpecially well preferved, and on that of the guard-houfe
-attached to one of them, is a flab of ftone prefenting the figure
-given in our plate xxviii, fig. 3. It is a rude delineation of a
-phallus with the legs of a fowl, and reminds us of fome of the
-monuments in France and Italy previoufly defcribed. Thefe phal-
-lic images were no doubt expofed in fuch' fituations becaufe they
-were fuppofed to exercife a protedive influence over the locality, or
-' See Plate xxviii, Fig. 2. Horfeley, who engraved this monument in his
-Britannia Romana, Scotland, fig. xix. has inferted a fig-leaf in place of the phallus,
-but with flight indications of the form of the objcft it was intended to conceal.
-We are not aware if this monument is lliil in exiltence.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-over the building, and the individual who looked upon the figure
-believed himfelf fafe, during that day at leaft, from evil influences
-of various defcriptions. They are found, we believe, in fome other
-Roman ftations, in a fimilar pofition to that of the phallus at
-Houfefteads.
-Although the worfhip of which we are treating prevailed fo exten-
-fively among the Romans and throughout the Roman provinces, it
-was far from being peculiar to them, for the fame fuperftition formed
-part of the religion of the Teutonic race, and was carried with that
-race wherever it fettled. The Teutonic god, who anfwered to the
-Roman Priapus, was called, in Anglo-Saxon, Frea, in Old Norfe,
-Freyr, and, in Old German, Fro. Among the Swedes, the princi-
-pal feat of his worfliip was at Upfala, and Adam of Bremen, who
-lived in the eleventh century, when paganifm ftill retained its hold
-on the north, in defcribing the forms under which the gods were
-there reprefented, tells us that " the third of the gods at Upfala
-was Fricco [another form of the name], who beftowed on mortals
-peace and pleafure, and who was reprefented with an immen/e pri-
-apus ; " and he adds that, at the celebration of marriages, they offered
-facrifice to Fricco.^ This god, indeed, like the Priapus of the
-Romans, prefided over generation and fertility, either of animal
-life or of the produce of the earth, and was invoked accordingly.
-Ihre, in his Glojfarium Sueco-Gothicum, mentions objeds of antiquity
-dug up in the north of Europe, which clearly prove the prevalence
-of phallic rites. To this deity, or to his female reprefentative of
-the fame name, the Teutonic Venus, Friga, the fifth day of the
-week was dedicated, and on that account received its name, in Anglo-
-Saxon, Frige-daeg, and in modern Englifh Friday. Frigedaeg appears
-" Tertius eft Fricco, pacem voluptatemque largiens mortalibus, cujus etiam fimu-
-lachrum fingunt ingenti priapo ; fi nuptias celebrandas funt, Fricconi [facrificia offe-
-runt.] " — Adam Bremens, De Situ Daniee, p. 23, ed. 1629.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 127
-to have been a name fometimes given in Anglo-Saxon to Frea him-
-felf; in a charter of the date of 959, printed in Kemble's Co<^^x Z)//)/o-
-maticus^ one of the marks on a boundary-line of land is Frigeda^ges-
-Trc'^ow, meaning apparently Frea's tree, which was probably a tree
-dedicated to that god, and the fcene of Priapic rites. There is a
-place called Fridaythorpe in Yorkfhire, and Frifton, a name which
-occurs in feveral parts of England, means, probably, the ftone of
-Frea or of Friga ; and we feem juftified in fuppofing that this and
-other names commencing with the fyllable Fri or Fry, are fo many
-monuments of the exiftence of the phallic worfhip among our
-Anglo-Saxon forefathers. Two cuftoms cherifhed among our old
-Englifh popular fuperftitions are believed to have been derived
-from this worfhip, the need-fires, and the proceffion of the boar's
-head at the Chriftmas feftivities. The former were fires kindled at
-the period of the fummer folftice, and were certainly in their origin
-religious obfervances. The boar was intimately connected with
-the worfhip of Frea.^
-From our want of a more intimate knowledge of this partof Teu-
-tonic paganifm, we are unable to decide whether fome of the fuperfti-
-tious pradlices of the middle ages were derived from the Romans or
-from the peoples who eftablifhed themfelves in the provinces after the
-overthrow of the weftern empire; but in Italy and in Gaul (the
-fouthern parts efpecially), where the Roman inflitutions and fenti-
-ments continued with more perfiftence to hold their influence, it
-was the phallic worfl-iip of the Romans which, gradually modified
-in its forms, was thus preferved, and, though the records of fuch a
-worfhip are naturally accidental and imperfed, yet we can diflindly
-trace its exiftence to a very late period. Thus, we have clear evi-
-dence that the phallus, in its fimple form, was worfhipped by
-the mediaeval Chriflians, and that the forms of Chriflian prayer
-See Grimm's Deutfche Mythologie, p. 139, firft edition.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-and invocation were aftually addrefled to it. One name of the
-male organ among the Romans was fafcinum; it was under this
-name that it was fufpended round the necks of women and
-children, and under this name efpecially it was fuppofed to poffefs
-magical influences which not only a6ted upon others, but de-
-fended thofe who were under its protection from magical or other
-evil influences from without. Hence are derived the words tofaf-
-cinate 2i\\di fafcination. The word is ufed by Horace, and efpecially
-in the epigrams of the Priapeia^ which may be confidered in fome
-degree as the exponents of the popular creed in thefe matters.
-Thus we have in one of thefe epigrams the lines, —
-" Placet, Priape ? qui fub arboris coma
-Soles, facrum revinfte pampino caput.
-Ruber federe cum rubente fafcino. ' '
-Priap. Carm. Ixxxiv.
-It feems probable that this had become the popular, or vulgar, word
-for the phallus, at leaft taken in this point of view, at the clofe of
-the Roman power, for the firfl: very difliind traces of its worfliip
-which we find afterwards introduce it under this name, which fub-
-fequently took in French the ioxm. fefne. The mediaeval worfliip of
-t\vQ fafcinum is firfl fpoken of in the eighth century. An ecclefiaf-
-tical trad entitled fudicia Sacerdotalia de Criminibus^ which is
-afcribed to the end of that century, direds that "if any one has per-
-formed incantation to the fafcinum, or any incantation whatever,
-except any one who chaunts the Creed or the Lord's Prayer, let him
-do penance on bread and water during three lents." An ad of the
-^ Martene and Darand, Veterum Scriptorum AmpUJJima ColleSiio, torn, vii, p. 35.
-Si quis prsecantaverit ad fafcinum, velqualefcumque praecantationes excepto fymbolum
-fanftum aut orationem dominicam qui cantat et cui cantatur, tres quadrigefimas in
-pane et aqua poeniteat.
-GENERAriVE POWERS. iiy
-council of Chalons, held in the ninth century, prohibits the fame
-practice almoft in the fame words; and Burchardus repeats it again
-in the twelfth century,^ a proof of the continued exiftence of this
-worfhip. That it was in full force long after this is proved by
-the ftatutes of the fynod of Mans, held in 1247, which enjoin
-fimihirly the punifhment for him "who has finned to th.^ fafcinum^
-or has performed any incantations, except the creed, the pater nofter,
-or other canonical prayer."'^ This fame provifion was adopted and
-renewed in the ftatutes of the fynod of Tours, held in 1396, in
-which, as they were publifhed in French, the h.cit'in fafcinum is
-reprefented by the French fefne. The fajcinum to which fuch
-worfhip was direfted muft have been fomething more than a fmall
-amulet.
-This brings us to the clofe of the fourteenth century, and fhows
-us how long the outward worfhip of the generative powers, repre-
-fented by their organs, continued to exift in Weftern Europe to
-fuch a point as to engage the attention of ecclefiaftical fynods.
-During the previous century fads occurred in our own ifland illuf-
-trating ftill more curioufly the continuous exiflence of the worfhip
-of Priapus, and that under circumftances which remind us altoge-
-ther of the details of the phallic worfhip under the Romans. It
-will be remembered that one great objedl of this worfhip was to
-obtain fertility either in animals or in the ground, for Priapus was
-the god of the horticulturift and the agriculturifl:. St. Auguftine,
-declaiming againft the open obfcenities of the Roman feftival of the
-Liberalia, informs us that an enormous phallus was curried in a
-' D. Burchardi Dccrctorum libri, lib. x, c. 49.
-^ Martcne et Durand, AmpliJJima Colledio Veterum Scriptorum, torn, vii, col. i 377.
-Si peccavcrit ad fafcinum, vcl qualcrciimquc prajcantationcs feccrit, excepto iymbolo
-et oratione dominica, vcl alia oratione canonica, et qui cantat, et cui cantatur, trcs
-quadragefimas pceniteat.
-S
-I30 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-magnificent chariot into the middle of the public place of the
-town with great ceremony, where the moft refpeftable matron
-advanced and placed a garland of flowers "on this obfcene figure;"
-and this, he fays, was done to appeafe the god, and "to ob-
-tain an abundant harveft, and remove enchantments from the
-land."^ We learn from the Chronicle of Lanercoil that, in the year
-, a peftilence prevailed in the Scottifh diftrid of Lothian,
-which was very fatal to the cattle, to counteract which fome of the
-clergy — bejiiales, habitu claujtrales, non animo — taught the peafantry
-to make a fire by the rubbing together of wood (this was the need-
-fire), and to raife up the image of Priapus, as a means of faving
-their cattle, " When a lay member of the Cifliercian order at
-Fenton had done this before the door of the hall, and had fprinkled
-the cattle with a dog's tefl:icles dipped in holy water, and complaint
-had been made of this crime of idolatry againfl: the lord of the
-manor, the latter pleaded in his defence that all this was done with-
-out his knowledge and in his abfence, but added, 'while until the
-prefent month of June other people's cattle fell ill and died, mine
-were always found, but now every day two or three of mine die, fo
-that 1 have few left for the labours of the field.' "^ Fourteen years
-after this, in 1282, an event of the fame kind occurred at Inver-
-S. Augullini De Civit. Dei, lib. vii, c. 21.
-Pro fidei divinse integritate fervanda recolat leftor quod, cum hoc anno in
-Laodonia peilis graflaretur in pecudes armenti, quam vocant ufitate lungeffbuth, qui-
-dam bertiales, habitu claullrales non animo, docebant idiotas patris ignem confric-
-tione de lignis educere, et fimulacrum Priapi ilatuere, et per haec belliis fuccurrere.
-Quod cum unus laicus Ciilercienfis apud Fentone feciflet ante atrium aulse, ac in-
-tinftis tefticulis canis in aquam benedidtam fuper animalia fparfifiet ; ac pro invento
-tacinore idolatrise dominus vills a quodam fideli argueretur, ille pro fua innocentia
-obtendebat, quod ipfo nefciente et ablente fuerant ha;c omnia perpetrata, et adjecit,
-** et cum ad ufque hunc menfem Junium aliorum animalia languerent et deficerent,
-mea Temper i'ana erant, nunc vero quotidie mihi moriuntur duo vel tria, ita quod
-agricuitui pauca luperlunt." — Chron. de La7jercoft. ed. Stevenfon, p. 85.
-GENERATl rE POWERS. 131
-keithing, in the prefent county of Fife in Scotland. The caiife of
-the following proceedings is not ftated, but it was probably the
-fame as that for which the ciftercian of Lothian had recourfe to the
-worfhip of Priapus. In the Eafter week of the year juft ftated
-(March 29 — April 5), a parifh prieft of Inverkeithing, named
-John, performed the rites of Priapus, by colleding the young girls
-of the town, and making thern dance round the figure of this god ;
-without any regard for the fex of thefe worfhippers, he carried a
-wooden image of the male members of generation before them in
-the dance, and himfelf dancing with them, he accompanied their fongs
-with movements in accordance, and urged them to licentious adions
-by his no lefs licentious language. The more modeft part of thofe
-who were prefent felt fcandalized by thefe proceedings, and expof-
-tulated with the prieft, but he treated their words with contempt,
-and only gave utterance to coarfer obfcenities. He was cited before
-his biftiop, defended himfelf upon the common ufage of the coun-
-try, and was allov/ed to retain his benefice; but he muft have been
-rather a worldly prieft, after the ftyle of the middle ages, for a
-year afterwards he was killed in a vulgar brawl. ^
-The practice of placing the figure of a phallus on the walls of
-buildings, derived, as we have feen, from the Romans, prevailed
-alfo in the middle ages, and the buildings efpecially placed under
-the influence of this fymbol were churches. It was believed to be
-Infuper hoc tempore apud Invcrcliethin, in hehdomeda pafchaj (March 29 —
-April 5), facerdos parochialis, nomine Johannes, Priapi prophana parans, congre-
-gatis ex villa puellulis, cogebat eas, choreis faftis, Libero patri circuire ; ut ille
-feminas in exercitu habuit, fie ifte, procacitatis caufa, membra humana virtuti iemi-
-narije iervientia lupcr allerem artificiata ante talem chorcam pr.Tferebat, et ipfe
-tripudians cum cantantibus motu mimico omnes inipeftantes et vcrbo impudico ad
-luxuriam incitabat. Hi qui honefto matrimonio honorem deferebant, tam iniolenti
-officio, licet reverentur perfonam, fcandalizabantur propter gradus emincntiam. Si
-quis ei feorlum ex amore correptionis lermonem int'erret, fiebat dcterior, et conviciis
-eos impctcbat. — Chron. dc LancercoJ}. ed. Stcvenfon, p. 109.
-ON "THE WORSHIP OF THE
-a protedion againft enchantments of all kinds, of which the people
-of thofe times lived in conftant terror, and this protedion extended
-over the place and over thofe who frequented it, provided they caft
-a confiding look upon the image. Such images were feen, ufually
-upon the portals, on the cathedral church of Touloufe, on more
-than one church in Bourdeaux, and on various other churches in
-France, but, at the time of the revolution, they were often deftroyed
-as marks only of the depravity of the clergy. Dulaure tells us that
-an artift, whom he knew, but whofe name he has not given, had
-made drawings of a number of thefe^ figures which he had met with
-in fuch fituations.^ A Chriftian faint exercifed fome of the qualities
-thus deputed to Priapus ; the image of St. Nicholas was ufually
-painted in a confpicuous pofition in the church, for it was believed
-that whoever had looked upon it was protected againft enchant-
-ments, and efpecially againft that great objed: of popular terror the
-evil eye, during the reft of the day.
-It is a lingular fad: that in Ireland it was the female organ which
-was ftiown in this pofition of protedor upon the churches, and the
-elaborate though rude manner in which thefe figures were fculp-
-tured, fhow that they were confidered as objeds of great im-
-portance. They reprefented a female expofing herfelf to view in
-the moft unequivocal manner, and are carved on a block which appears
-to have ferved as the key-ftone to the arch of the door-way of the
-church, where they were prefented to the gaze of all who entered.
-They appear to have been found principally in the very old
-churches, and have been moftly taken down, fo that they are only
-found among the ruins. People have given them the name of
-He adds in a note : — '< Les deffins de cet artifte, dellines a I'Academie des
-Belles Lettres, font pafles, on ne fait comment, entre les mains d'un particulier qui en
-prive le public," — ^J. A. Dulaure, Hijloire de differe?is Cultes, tom. ii. p. 251,
-vo. 1825.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 133
-Shelah-na-Gig^^\\\(i\\^ we are told, means in Irifh Julian the Giddy,
-and is (imply a term for an immodeft woman; but it is well under-
-ftood that they were intended as protecting charms againft the faf-
-cination of the evil eye. We have given copies of all the examples
-yet known in our plates xxix and xxx. The firft of thefe^ was
-found in an old church at Rocheftown, in the county of Tipperary,
-where it had long been known among the people of the neighbour-
-hood by the name given above. It was placed in the arch over the
-doorway, but has fince been taken away. Our fecond example of
-the Shelah-na-Gig'"^ was taken from an old church lately pulled
-down in the county Cavan,and is now preferved in the mufeum of
-the Society of Antiquaries of Dublin. The third^ was found
-at Ballinahend Caftle, alfo in the county of Tipperary; and the
-fourth** is preferved in the mufeum at Dublin, but we are not in-
-formed from whence it was obtained. The next;^ which is alfo now
-preferved in the Dublin Mufeum, was taken from the old church on
-the White I{land,in Lough Erne, county Fermanagh. This church
-is fuppofed by the Irifh antiquaries to be a ftrucflure of very great
-antiquity, for fome of them would carry its date as far back as the
-feventh century, but this is probably an exaggeration. The one
-which follows" was furnifhed by an old church pulled down by order
-of the ecclefiaftical commifTioners, and it was prefented to the mufeum
-at Dublin, by the late dean Davvfon. Our laft example'' was for-
-merly in the pofTelfion of Sir Benjamin Chapman, Bart., of Killoa
-Caftle, Weftmeath, and is now in a private colledlion in London.
-It was found in 1859 "^^ Chloran, in afield on Sir Benjamin's eftate
-known by the name of the "Old Town," from whence ftones had
-Plate XXIX, Fig. i. - Plate xxix. Fig. 2.
-Plate XXIX, Fig. 3. ■* Plate xxix. Fig. 4.
-^ Plate xxx, Fig. i. '' Plate xxx, Fig. 2.
-'' Plate xxx, Fig. 3.
-ON THE IVORSHIP OF THE
-been removed at previous periods, though there are now very fmall
-remains of building. This ftone was found at a depth of about
-five feet from the furface, which fhows that the building, a church
-no doubt, muft have fallen into ruin a long time ago. Contiguous
-to this field, and at a diftance of about two hundred yards from the
-fpot where the Shelah-na-Gig was found, there is an abandoned
-churchyard, feparated from the Old Town field only by a loofe
-ftone wall.
-The belief in the falutary power of this image appears to be a
-fuperftition of great antiquity, and to exift ftill among all peoples
-who have not reached a certain degree of civilization. The univer-
-fality of this fuperftition leads us to think that Herodotus may
-have erred in the explanation he has given of certain rather re-
-markable monuments of a remote antiquity. He tells us that
-Sefoftris, king of Egypt, raifed columns in fome of the countries
-he conquered, on which he caufed to be figured the female organ of
-generation as a mark of contempt for thofe who had fubmitted
-eafily.^ May not thefe columns have been intended, if we knew
-the truth, as protedions for the people of the diftrid; in which
-they ftood, and placed in the pofition where they could moft con-
-veniently be feen ? This fuperftitious fentiment may alfo offer the
-true explanation of an incident which is faid to have been repre-
-fented in the myfteries of Eleufis. Ceres, wandering over
-the earth in fearch of her daughter Proferpine, and overcone
-with grief for her lofs, arrived at the hut of an Athenian peafant
-woman named Baubo, who received her hofpitably, and offered her
-to drink the refrefliing mixture which the Greeks call Cyceon
-{jcvKewv). The goddefs rejedled the offered kindnefs, and refufed
-Herodotus, Euterpe, cap. 102. Diodorus Siculus adds to the account given by
-Herodotus, that Sefoftris also erefled columns bearing the male generative organ as
-a compliment to the peoples who had defended themfelves bravely.
-GENERAriFE POWERS.
-J35
-all confolation. Baubo, in her diftrefs, bethought her of another
-expedient to allay the grief of her gueft. She relieved her fexual
-organs of that outward fign which is the evidence of puberty, and
-then prefented them to the view of Ceres, who, at the fight,
-laughed, forgot her forrows, and drank the cyceon.' The prevail-
-ing belief in the beneficial influence of this fight, rather than a
-mere pleafantry, feems to aflxjrd the beft explanation of this fliory ;
-and the fame fuperftition is no doubt embodied in an old mediaeval
-fi:ory which we give in a note as it is told in that celebrated book
-of the fixteenth century Le Moyen de Parvenir?
-This fuperfl:ition which, as fihown by the Shelah-na-Gigs of the
-Irifii churches, prevailed largely in the middle ages, explains ano-
-ther clafs of antiquities which are not uncommon. Thefe are fmall
-figures of nude females expofing themfelves in exa(!l:ly the fame
-manner as in the fculptures on the churches in Ireland juft alluded
-to. Such figures are found not only among Roman, Greek, and
-Egyptian antiquities, but among every people who had any know-
-ledge of art, from the aborigines of America to the far more civi-
-This llory is told by the two Chriilian Fathers, Arnobius, Adverfus Gentes, lib.
-V. c. 5, and Clemens Alexandrinus, Protrepticus, p. 17, ed. Oxon. 171 5. The
-latter writer merely Hates that Baubo expofed her parts to the view of the goddefs,
-without the incident of preparation mentioned by Arnobius.
-<' Hermes. On nomme ainfi ceux qui n'ont point vu le con de leur femme ou
-de leur garce. Le pauvre valet de chez nous n'etoit done pas coquebin ; il eut beau
-le voir. — Varro. Quand? — Hermes. Attendez, etant en fian^ailles, il vouloit prendre
-le cas dc fa fiancee ; elle ne le vouloit pas ; il faifoit le malade, et elle lui demandoit ;
-' Qu'y a-t-il, mon ami ? ' ' Helas, ma mie, je fuis fi malade, que je n'en puis plus ;
-jc mourrai fi je ne vois ton cas.' * Vraiment voire ? ' dit-elle. * Helas! oui, fi je
-I'avois vu, je guerirois.' Elle ne lui voulut point montrer ; a la fin, ils furent
-maries. Iladvint, trois ou quatre mois apres, qu'il fut fort malade ; et il envoya fa
-femme au medecin pour porter de fon eau. En allant, elle s'avifa de ce qu'il lui
-avoit dit en fiangailles. Elle retourna vitement, et fe vint mettrc fur le lit ; puis,
-levant cottc et chcmife, lui prefenta fon cela en belle vue, et lui difoit : ' Jean,
-regarde le con, et te gueris.' " — Le Moyen de Parvenir, c. xxviii.
-07V THE WORSHIP OF rHE
-lized natives of Japan ; and it would be eafy to give examples from
-almoft every country we know, but we confine ourfelves to our
-more fpecial part of the fubjed:. In the laft century, a number of
-fmall ftatuettes in metal, in a rude but very peculiar ftyle of art,
-were found in the duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, in a part of
-Germany formerly occupied by the Vandals, and by the tribe of
-the Obotrites, confidered as a diviiion of the Vendes. They
-appeared to be intended to reprefent fome of the deities worfhipped
-by the people who had made them ; and fome of them bore in-
-fcriptions, one of which was in Runic charaders. From this cir-
-cumftance we lliould prefume that they belonged to a period not
-much, if any, older than the fall of the Weftern Empire. Some time
-afterwards, a fevv' ftatuettes in metal were found in the ifland of Sar-
-dinia, fo exactly fimilar to thofe juft mentioned, that D'Hancarville,
-who publifhed an account of them with engravings, considered himfelf
-juftified in afcribing them to the Vandals, who occupied that ifland,
-as well as the trad: of Germany alluded to.^ One of thefe images,
-which D'Hancarville coniiders to be the Venus of the Vandal my-
-thology, reprefents a female in a reclining pofition, with the wings
-and claws of a bird, holding to view a pomegranate, open, which,
-as D'Hancarville remarks, was confidered as a fign reprefenting the
-female fexual organ. In fad, it was a form and idea more un-
-equivocally reprefented in the Roman figures which we have
-already defcribed,^ but which continued through the middle ages,
-and was preferved in a popular name for that organ, abricot^ or
-expreffed more energetically, abricot fendu^ ufed by Rabelais, and
-we believe ftill preferved in France. This curious image is repre-
-fented, after D'Hancarville, in three different points of view in our
-' D'Hancarville, Antiquites Etrufques, Grecques, et Romaincs, Paris, 1785, torn.
-V. p. 61.
-See our Plates xxv. Fig. 4, xxvi, and Plate xxxvi. Fig. 3.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 137
-plate.^ Several figures of a fimllar defcription, but reprefenting
-the fubjeft in a more matter-of-fa6t fhape, were brought from
-Egypt by a Frenchman who held an official fituation in that
-country, and three of them are now in a private colledion in
-London. We have engraved one of thefe fmall bronzes,^ which,
-as will be feen, prefents an exad: counterpart of the Shelah-na-Gig.
-Thefe Egyptain images belonged no doubt to the Roman period.
-Another fimilar figure,^ made of lead, and apparently mediaeval,
-was found at Avignon, and is preferved in the fame private col-
-ledion juft alluded to; and a third,* was dug up, about ten years
-ago, at Kingfton-on-Thames. The form of thefe ftatuettes feems
-to fhow that they were intended as portable images, for the fame
-purpofe as the Shelahs, which people might have ready at hand to
-look upon for protection whenever they were under fear of the in-
-fluence of the evil eye, or of any other fort of enchantment.
-We have not as yet any clear evidence of the exiflience of the
-Shelah-na-Gig in churches out of Ireland. We have been informed
-that an example has been found in one of the little churches on
-the coaft of Devon ; and there are curious fculptures, which ap-
-pear to be of the fame charader, among the architectural orna-
-mentation of the very early church of San Fedele at Como in
-Italy. Three of thefe are engraved in our plate xxxii. On the
-top of the right hand jamb of the door^ is a naked male figure,
-and in the fame pofition on the other fide a female,''' which are
-defcribed to us as reprefenting Adam and Eve, and our informant,
-to whom we owe the drawings, defcribes that at the apex'' merely
-as "the figure of a woman holding her legs apart." We under-
-ftand that the furface of the fl:one in thefe fculptures is fo much
-Plate XXXI, Figs, i, 2, 3. ^ piate xxxi. Fig. 4.
-Plate XXXI, Fig. 5. '' Plate xxxvi. Fig. 4.
-Plate xxxii. Fig. i. ^ Plate xxxii. Fig. 2.
-"^ Plate XXXII, Fig. 3.
-ON rHE WORSHIP OF THE
-worn that it is quite uncertain whether the fexual parts were ever
-diftindly marked, butfrom the pofturesand pofitions of thehands,
-and the fituation in which thefe figures are placed, they feem to
-refemble clofely, except in their fuperior ftyle of art, the Shelah-
-na-Gigs of Ireland. There can be little doubt that the fuperftition
-to which thefe objecfts belonged gave rife to much of the indecent
-fculpture which is fo often found upon mediaeval ecclefiaftical build-
-ings. The late Baron von Hammer-Piirgftall publifhed a very
-learned paperupon monuments of various kinds which he confidered
-as illuftrating the fecret hiftory of the order of the Templars, from
-which we learn that there was in his time a feries of moft extraordi-
-nary obfcene fculptures in the church of Schoengraber in Auftria, of
-which he intended to give engravings, but the drawings had not
-arrived in time for his book;^ but he has engraved the capital of a
-column in the church of Egra, a town of Bohemia, of which we
-give a copy,^ in which the two fexes are difplaying to view the
-members, which were believed to be fo efficatious againft the power
-of fafcination.
-The figure of the female organ, as well as the male, appears to have
-been employed during the middle agesof Weftern Europe far more
-generally than we might fuppofe, placed upon buildings as a talifman
-againft evil influences, and efpecially againft witchcraft and the evil
-eye, and it was ufed for this purpofe in many other parts of the
-world. It was the univerfal pradlice among the Arabs of Northern
-Africa to ftick up over the door of the houfe or tent, or put up
-nailed on a board in fome other way, the generative organ of a
-cow, mare, or female camel, as a talifman to avert the influence of
-the evil eye. It is evident that the figure of this member was far
-See Von Hammer-Purgftall, Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 26.
-Von Hammer-Purgftall, Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 35, and Plate iv.
-Fig. 31. — See our Plate xxxi. Fig. 6.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 139
-more liable to degradation in form than that of the male, becaufe
-it was much lefs eafy, in the hands of rude draughtfmen, to delineate
-in an intelligible form, and hence it foon afTumed fhapes which,
-though intended to rcprcfent it, we might rather call fymbolical of
-it, though no fymbolifm was intended. Thus the figure of the
-female organ eafily aflumed the rude form of a horfefhoe, and as
-the original meaning was forgotten, would be readily taken for that
-objed:, and a real horfefhoe nailed up for the fame purpofe. In
-this way originated, apparently, from the popular worfhip of the
-generative powers, the vulgar pracftice of nailing a horfefhoe upon
-buildings to proted: them and all they contain againft the power of
-witchcraft, a pracftice which continues to exifl among the peafantry
-in fome parts of England at the prefent day. Other marks are found,
-fometimes among the architedural ornaments, fuch as certain tri-
-angles and triple loops, which are perhaps typical forms of the fame
-objeft. Wehave been informed that there is an old church in Ireland
-where the male organ is drawn on one fide of the door, and the
-Shelah-na-Gig on the other, and that, though perhaps comparatively
-modern, their import as protecftive charms are well underftood. We
-can eafily imagine men, uncier the influence of thefe fuperftitions,
-when they were obliged to halt for a moment by the fide of a
-building, drawing upon it fuch a figure, with the defign that it fhould
-be a protedion to themfelves, and thus probably we derive from
-fuperftitious feelings the common propenfity to draw phallic figures
-on the fides of vacant walls and in other places.
-Antiquity had made Priapus a god, the middle ages raifed him
-into a faint, and that under feveral names. In the fouth of France,
-Provence, Languedoc, and the Lyonnais, he was worfhipped under
-the title of St. Foutin.' This name is faid to be a mere corruption
-Our material for the account of thefe phallic faints is taken moflly from the work
-of M. Dulaure.
-I40 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-of Fotinus or Photinus,the firft bifhop of Lyons, to whom, perhaps
-through giving a vulgar Interpretation to the name, people had
-transferred the diftinguifhing attribute of Priapus. This was a
-large phallus of wood, which was an objedl of reverence to the
-women, efpecially to thofe who were barren, who fcraped the
-wooden member, and, having fteeped the fcrapings in water, they
-drank the latter as a remedy againft their barrennefs, or adminiftered
-it to their hufbands in the belief that it would make them vigorous.
-The worfhip of this faint, as it was pradiced in various places in
-France at the commencement of the feventeenth century, is de-
-fcribed in that fingular book, the Confejfion de Sancy} We there
-learn that at Varailles in Provence, waxen images of the members of
-both fexes were offered to St. Foutin, and fufpended to the ceiling
-of his chapel, and the writer remarks that, as the ceiling was
-covered with them, when the wind blew them about, it produced
-an effed: which was calculated to difturb very much the devotions
-of the worfhippers.^ We hardly need remark that this is juft the
-fame kind of worfhip which exifted at Ifernia, in the kingdom of
-Naples, where it was prefented in the fame fhape. At Embrun, in
-the department of the Upper Alps, the phallus of St. Foutin was
-worfhipped in a different form ; the women poured a libation of
-wine upon the head of the phallus, which was coUeded in a
-vefTel, in which it was left till it became four; it was then called
-the " fainte vinaigre," and the women employed it for a purpofe
-which is only obfcurely hinted at. When the Proteflants took
-Embrun in 1585, they found this phallus laid up carefully
-La Confeffion de Sancy forms the fifth volume of the Journal d^ Henri III, by
-Pierre de L'Elloile, ed. Duchat. See pp. 383, 391, of that volume.
-♦' Temoin Saint Foutin de Varailles en Provence, auquel font dediees les parties
-honteules de I'un et de I'autre fexe, formees en cire : le plancher de la chapelle en ell
-fort garni, et, quand le vent les fait entrebattre, cela debauche un peu les devotions a
-I'honneur de ce Saint."
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 141
-among the relics in the principal church, its head red with the
-wine which had been poured upon it. A much larger phallus
-of wood, covered with leather, was an objed: of worfhip in the
-church of St. F.utropius at Orange, but it was feizcd by the Pro-
-teilants and burnt publicly in 1562. St. Foutin was fimilarly an
-objedl of worfhip at Porigny, at Gives in the diocefe of Viviers,
-at Vendre in the Bourbonnais, at Auxerre, at Puy-en-Velay, in the
-convent of Girouet near Sampigny, and in other places. At a
-diftance of about four leagues from Clermont in Auvergne, there
-is (or was) an ifolated rock, which prefents the form of an immenfe
-phallus, and which is popularly called St. Foutin. Similar phallic
-faints were worfhipped under the names of St. Guerlichon, or Gre-
-luchon, at Bourg-Dieu in the diocefe of Bourges, of St. Gilles in the
-Cotentin in Britany, of St. Rene in Anjou, of St. Regnaud in Bur-
-gundy, of St. Arnaud, and above all of St. Guignolc near Breft
-and at the village of La Chatelette in Berri. Many of thefe were
-ftill in exiftence and their worfhip in full pradice in the laft cen-
-tury ; in fome of them, the wooden phallus is defcribed as being
-much worn down by the continual procefs of fcraping, while in
-others the lofs fuftained by fcraping was always reftored by a
-miracle. This miracle, however, was a very clumfy one, for the
-phallus confifted of a long ftaff of wood pafTed through a hole in
-the middle of the body, and as the phallic end in front became
-fhortened, a blow of a mallet from behind thruft it forward, fo
-that it was reftored to its original length.
-It appears that it was alfo the practice to worfhip thefe faints in
-another manner, which alfo was derived from the forms of the
-worfhip of Priapus among the ancients, with whom it was the
-cuftom, in the nuptial ceremonies, for the bride to ofl'er up her
-virginity to Priapus, and this was done by placing her fexual parts
-againfl; the end of the phallus, and fomctimes introducing the latter,
-and even completing the facrifice. This ceremony is reprefentcd in
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-a bas-relief in marble, an engraving of which is given in the Mufee
-Secret of the antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii ; its objeft
-was to conciliate the favour of the god, and to avert fterility.
-It is defcribed by the early Chriftian writers, fuch as Ladantius and
-Arnobius, as a very common pradice among the Romans; and it
-ftill prevails to a great extent over moft part of the Eaft, from India
-to Japan and the iilands of the Pacific. In a public fquare in
-Batavia, there is a cannon taken from the natives and placed there
-as a trophy by the Dutch government. It prefents the peculiarity
-that the touch-hole is made on a phallic hand, the thumb placed in
-the poiition which is called the "fig," and which we fhall have to
-defcribe a little further on. At night, the fl:erile Malay women go
-to this cannon and fit upon the thumb, and rub their parts with it
-to produce fruitfulnefs. When leaving, they make an offering of
-a bouquet of flowers to the "fig." It is always the fame idea of
-reverence to the fertilizing powers of nature, of which the garland
-or the bunch of flowers was an appropriate emblem. There are
-traces of the exifl:ence of this pradice in the middle ages. In the
-cafe of fome of the priapic faints mentioned above, women fought
-a remedy for barrennefs by kifling the end of the phallus ;
-fometimes they appear to have placed a part of their body naked
-againfl: the image of the faint, or to have fat upon it. This latter
-trait was perhaps too bold an adoption of the indecencies of pagan
-worfliip to laft long, or to be prafticed openly ; but it appears to
-have been more innocently reprefented by lying upon the body of
-the faint, or fitting upon a flione, underfl:ood to reprefent him
-without the prefence of the energetic member. In a corner in
-the church of the village of St. Fiacre, near Mouceaux in France,
-there is a ftone called the chair of St. Fiacre, which confers fe-
-cundity upon women who fit upon it ; but it is necefl^ary that
-nothing fliould intervene between their bare ficin and the ftone.
-In the church of Orcival in Auvergne, there was a pillar which
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 143
-barren women kifled for the fame purpofe, and which had perhaps
-replaced fome lefs equivocal objecft.^ Traditions, at leaf!:, of
-fimilar pradlices were connedled with St. Foutin, for it appears
-to have been the cuftom for girls on the point of marriage to
-orter their lalt maiden robe to that faint. This fuperftition
-prevailed to fuch an extent that it became proverbial. A ftory
-is told of a young bride who, on the wedding night, fought
-to deceive her hulliand on the queftion of her previous chaftity,
-although, as the writer expreffes it, "fhe had long ago de-
-pofited the robe of her virginity on the altar of St. Foutin."^
-From this form of fuperftition is faid to havearifen a vice which is
-underftood to prevail efpecially in nunneries — the ufe by women of
-artificial phalli, which appears in its origin to have been a religious
-ceremony. It certainly exifted at a very remote period, for it is
-diftindlly alluded to in the Scriptures,'^ where it is evidently con-
-fidered as a part of pagan worftiip. It is found at an early period
-of the middle ages, defcribed in the Ecclefiaftical Penitentials, with
-its appropriate amount of penitence. One of thefe penitential
-canons of the eighth century fpeaks of "a woman who, by herfelf
-or with the help of another woman, commits uncleannefs," for
-which fhe was to do penance for three years, one on bread and water;
-and if this uncleannefs were committed with a nun, the penance
-was increafed to feven years, two only on bread and water.*
-Dulaure relates that one day a villager's wife entering this church, and finding
-only a burly canon in it, aflced him earnestly, •' Where is the pillar which makes
-women fruitful ? " " I," faid the canon, " I am the pillar."
-" Sponfa quasdam ruRica quae jam in finu Divi Futini virginitatis fus przetextam
-depofuerat." Faceti^ Facetiarum, p. 277. Thefes inaugurales de Virginihus.
-Ezekiel, xvi, i 7. Within a few years there has been a confiderable manufadure
-of thefe objefts in Paris, and it was underllood that they were chiefly exported to Italy,
-where they were fold in the nunneries.
-^ Mulier qualicumque molimine aut per fcipfan aut cum altera fornicans tres
-ON rHE WORSHIP OF THE
-Another Penitential of an early date provides for the cafe in which
-both the women who participated in this ad fhould be nuns ;^ and
-Burchardus, bifhop of Worms, one of the moft celebrated autho-
-rities on such fubjefts, defcribes the instrument and ufe of it in
-greater detail.^ The pradice had evidently loft its religious cha-
-racter and degenerated into a mere indulgence of the paffions.
-Antwerp has been defcribed as the Lampfacus of Belgium, and
-Priapus was, down to a comparatively modern period, its patron
-faint, under the name of Ters, a word the derivation of which ap-
-pears to be unknown, but which was identical in meaning with the
-Greek ^/z^/A^j and the l.Rtm fafcinum. John Goropius Becan, who
-publiftied a learned treatife on the antiquities of Antwerp in the
-middle of the fixteenth century, informs us how much this Ters was
-reverenced in his time by the Antwerpians,efpecially by the women,
-who invoked it on every occafion when they were taken by fur-
-prife or fudden fear.^ He ftates that "if they let fall by accident a
-veffel of earthenware, or ftumbled, or if any unexpected accident
-caufed them vexation, even the moft refpectable women called aloud
-annos poeniteat, unum ex his pane et aqua. Cum fanftimoniali per machinam
-fornicans, annos feptem poeniteat, duos ex his in pane et aqua. Colkaio Antiqu.
-Canon. Panit. ap. Martene et Durand, Thefaurus Anecdotorum, iv, 52.
-Mulier qualicumque molimine aut feipfam polluens, aut cum altera fornicans
-quatuor annos. Sanftimonialis foemina cum fanftimoniali per machinamentum pol-
-luta, feptem annos. MS. Pcenitent. quoted in Ducange, fub. v. Machinamentum.
-Fecifti quod quaedam mulieres facere folent, ut faceres quoddam molimen aut
-machinamentum in modum virilis membri, ad menfuram tus voluntatis, et illud
-loco verendorum tuorum, aut alterius, cum aliquibus ligaturis colligares, et fornica-
-tionem faceres cum aliis mulierculis, vel alise eodem inftrumento five alio tecum ?
-Si fecifti, quinque annos per legitimas ferias poeniteas. Fecifti quod qusdam
-mulieres facere folent, ut jam fupradidlo molimine, vel alio aliquo machinamento, tu
-ipfa in te folam faceres fornicationem ? Si fecifti, unum annum per legitimas ferias
-poeniteas. Burchardi Pcenit. lib. xix, p. 277, 8vo. ed. The holy bifliop appears
-to have been very intimately acquainted with the whole proceeding.
-Johannis Goropii Becani Origines Antwerpiana, 1569, lib. i, pp. 26, loi.
-GENERATIVE POWERS.
-H5
-for the prote(5lion of Priapus under this ohfcenc name." Goropius
-Becanus adds that there was in his time, over the door of a
-houfe adjoining the prifon, a ftatue which had been furniHied
-with a large phallus, then worn away or broken off. Among
-other writers who mention this ftatueis Abraham Goinitz, whopub-
-lifhed an account of his travels in France and Belgium, in 163 i,'
-and he informs us that it was a carving in ftone, about a foot high,
-with its arms raifed up, and its legs fpread out, and that the phallus
-had been entirely worn out by the women, who had been in the
-habit of fcraping it and making a potion of the duft which they
-drank as a prefervative againft barrennefs. Goinitz further tells
-us that a figure of Priapus was placed over the entrance gate to the
-enclofure of the temple of St. Walburgis at Antwerp, which fome
-antiquaries imagined to have been built on the fite of a temple
-dedicated to that deity. It appears from thefe writers that, at
-certain times, the women of Antwerp decorated the phalli of thefe
-figures with garlands.
-The ufe of priapic figures as amulets, to be carried on the perfon
-as prefervatives againft the evil eye and other noxious influences,
-which we have fpoken of as fo common among the Romans, was
-certainly continued through the middle ages, and, as we fliall fee
-prefently, has not entirely difappeared. It was natural enough to
-believe that if this figure were falutary when merely looked upon, it
-muft be much more fo when carried conftantly on the perfon. The
-Romans gave the VlZTCl^ fafcinum^ in old Frenchy>/«^, to the phallic
-amulet, as well as to the fame figure under other circumftances. It
-is an objed of which we could hardly expedl to find dired: mention
-in mediaeval writers, but we meet with examples of the objedt itfelf,
-ufually made of lead (a proof of its popular charadler), and ranging
-in date perhaps from the fourteenth to the earlier part of the
-^ Golnitzii Itinerarium BeigUo-Gallicum, p. 52.
-u
-. ON THE IVORSHIP OF THE
-fixteenth century. As we owe our knowledge of thefe phallic
-amulets almoft entirely to one collector, M. Forgeais of Paris, who
-obtained them chiefly from one fource — the river Seine, our prefent
-acquaintance with them may be confidered as very limited, and
-we have every reafon for believing that they had been in ufe
-during the earlier period. We can only illufl:rate this part of the
-fubjeft by defcribing a few of thefe mediaeval phallic amulets,
-which are preferved in fome private colle6lions ; and we will firfl:
-call attention to a feries of objefts, the real purpofe of which
-appears to be very obfcure. They are fmall leaden tokens or
-medalets, bearing on the obverfe the figure of the male or female
-organ, and on the reverfe a crofs, a curious intimation of the
-adoption of the worfhip of the generative powers among Chriftians.
-Thefe leaden tokens, found in the river Seine, were firft collected
-and made known to antiquaries by M. Forgeais, who publifhed
-examples of them in his work on the leaden figures found in that
-river.^ We give five examples of the medals of each fex, obverfe
-and reverfe.^ It will be feen that the phalli on thefe tokens are
-nearly all furnifhed with wings ; one has a bird's legs and claws ;
-and on another there is an evident intention to reprefent a bell
-fufpended to the neck. Thefe charaderiftics fhow either a very
-difliind: tradition of the forms of the Roman phallic ornament, or
-an imitation of examples of Roman phalli then exifliing — poffibly
-the latter. But this is not neceflary, for the bells borne by two
-examples, given in our next plate, and alfo taken from the collection
-of M. Forgeais are mediaeval, and not Roman bells, though thefe
-alfo reprefent well-known ancient forms of treating the fubject. In
-the firfl:,^ a female is riding upon the phallus, which has men's legs,
-Notice fur des Plombs Hiftories trouves dans la Seine, et recueillis par Arthur
-Forgeais. 8vo, Paris, 1858.
-See our Plate xxxiii. 3 Plate xxxiv. Fig. i.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 147
-and is held by a bridle. This figure was evidently intended to be
-attached to the drefs as a brooch, for the pin which fixed it ftill
-remains on the back. Two other examples^ prefent figures of winged
-phalli, one with a bell, and the other with the ring remaining from
-which thebellhasnodoubtbeen broken. One of thefe has the dog's
-legs. A fourth example'- reprefents an enormous phallus attached to
-themiddleofa fmall num. In another,'^ which was evidently intended
-for fufpenfion, probably at the neck, the organs of the two fexes
-are joined together. Three other leaden fiures,^apparently amulets,
-which were in the Forgeais colledion, offer a very peculiar variety
-of form, reprefenting a figure, which we might fuppofe to be a male
-by its attributes, though it has a very feminine look, and wears the
-robe and hood of a woman. Its peculiarity confifts in having a
-phallus before and behind. We have on the fame plate' a ftill more
-remarkable example ofthe combination ofthecrofs with the emblems
-of the worfhip of which we are treating, in an objedl found at
-San Agata di Goti, near Naples, which was formerly in the Beref-
-ford Fletcher coUeftion, and is now in that of Ambrofe Rufchen-
-berger, Efq., of Bofton, U. S. It is 2icrux anfata, formed by four
-phalli, with a circle of female organs round the centre; and appears
-by the loop to have been intended for fufpenfion. As this crofs is
-of gold, it had no doubt been made for fome perfonage of rank,
-poftibly an ecclefiaftic; and we can hardly help fufpeding that it
-had fome conneftion with priapic ceremonies or feftivities. The
-laft figure on the fame plate is alfo taken from the colledion of M.
-Forgeais.^ From the monkifh cowl and the cord round the body,
-we may perhaps take it for a fatire upon the friars, fome of whom
-wore no breeches, and they were all charged with being great cor-
-rupters of female morals.
-' Plate XXXIV, Figs. 2 and 3. ^ Plate xxxiv. Fig. 4.
-Plate XXXIV, Fig. 5. '' Plate xxxv. Figs, i, 2, and 3.
-Plate xxxv. Fig. 4. "^ Plate xxxv. Fig. 5.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-In Italy we can trace the continuous ufe of thefe phallic amulets
-down to the prefent time much more diftinftly than in our more
-Weftern countries. There they are ftill in very common ufe, and
-we give two examples^ of bronze amulets of this defcription, which
-are commonly fold in Naples at the prefent day for a carlo, equiva-
-lent to fourpence in Englifh money, each. One of them, it will be
-feen, is encircled by a ferpent. So important are thefe amulets
-confidered for the perfonal fafety of thofe who poffefs them, that
-there is hardly a peafant who is without one, which he ufually
-carries in his waiftcoat pocket.
-There was another, and lefs openly apparent, form of the phallus,
-which has lafted as an amulet during almoft innumerable ages.
-The ancients had two forms of what antiquaries have named the
-phallic hand, one in which the middle finger was extended at
-length, and the thumb and other fingers doubled up, while in the
-other the whole hand was clofed, but the thumb was paffed between
-the firft and middle fingers. The firfl: of thefe forms appears to
-have been the more ancient, and is understood to have been in-
-tended to reprefent, by the extended middle finger, the membrum
-virile^ and by the bent fingers on each fide the tefl:icles. Hence
-the middle finger of the hand was called by the Romans, digitus
-impudicus, or infamis. It was called by the Greeks Karairvr^oiv,
-which had fomewhat the fame meaning as the Latin word, except
-that it had reference efpecially to degrading prad:ices, which were
-then lefs concealed than in modern times. To Ihow the hand in
-this form was exprefled in Greek by the word aKifj,a\t^€Lv, and
-was confidered as a mofl: contemptuous infult, becaufe it was under-
-ftood to intimate that the perfon to whom it was addrefi"ed was
-addicted to unnatural vice. This was the meaning alfo given to it
-Plate XXXVI, Figs, i and 2.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 149
-by the Romans, as we learn from the hrft lines of an epigram of
-Martial: —
-♦* Rideto inultum, qui te, Sextille, ciiu-cdum
-Dixerit, et digiturn porrigito medium.^'
-Martial, Ep. ii, 28.
-Neverthelefs, this gefture of the hand was looked upon at an early
-period as an amulet againft magical influences, and, formed of
-different materials, it was carried on the perfon in the fame manner
-as the phallus. It is not an uncommon objed: among Roman an-
-tiquities, and was adopted by the Gnoftics as one of their fymbolical
-images. The fecond of thefe forms of the phallic hand, the inten-
-tion of which is eafily feen (the thumb forming the phallus), was
-alfo well known among the Romans, and is found made ot various
-material, fuch as bronze, coral, lapis lazuli, and chryftal, of a fize
-which was evidently intended to be fufpended to the neck or to
-fome other part of the perfon. In the Mufee Secret at Naples,
-there are examples of fuch amulets, in the fhape of two arms joined
-at the elbow, one terminating in the head of a phallus, the other
-having a hand arranged in the form juft defcribed, which feem to
-have been intended for pendents to ladies' ears. This gefture of
-the hand appears to have been called at a later period of Latin,
-though we have no knowledge of the date at which this ufe of the
-word began,/f«j-, a fig. Ficus being a word in the feminine gen-
-der, appears to have fallen in the popular language into the more
-common form of feminine nouns,7?crt, out of which arofe the Italian
-Jica (now replaced hy Jico), the Spanifti higa, and the French figue.
-Florio, who gives the word/c^, a fig, fays that it was alfo ufed in the
-fenfe of "a woman's quaint," fo that it may perhaps be clafl'ed with
-one or two other fruits, fuch as the pomegranate and the apricot,
-to which a fimilar erotic meaning was given. ^ The form, under
-See before, p. 1 36. Among the Romans, the fig was confidered as a fruit
-confecrated to Priapus, on account, it is faid, of its produdivenefs.
-I50 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-this name, was preferved through the middle ages, efpecially in the
-South of Europe, where Roman traditions were ftrongeft,both as an
-amulet and as an infulting geftture. The Italian called this gefture
-fare la fie a ^ to make or do the fig to any one; the Spaniard, dar
-una higa^ to give a fig ; and the Frenchman, like the lta.\\a.n, /aire
-lafigue. We can trace this phrafe back to the thirteenth century
-at leaft. In the judicial proceedings againft the Templars in Paris
-in 1309, one of the brethren of the Order was afked, jokingly, in
-his examination, becaufe he was rather loofe and flippant in his
-replies, " if he had been ordered by the faid receptor (the officer of
-the Templars who admitted the new candidate) to make with his
-fingers the fig at the crucifix." ^ Here the word ufed is the corred:
-Y.iiXAnficus ; and it is the fame in the plural, in a document of the
-year 1449, in which an individual is faid to have made figs with both
-hands at another.^ This phrafe appears to have been introduced
-into the Englifii language in the time of Elizabeth, and to have
-been taken from the Spaniards, with whom our relations were then
-intimate. This we affume from the circumfl:ance that the Englifii
-phrafe was " to give the fig " [dar la higa)'^ and that the writers of
-the Elizabethan age call it " the fig of Spain." Thus, " ancient "
-Pifl:ol, in Shakefpeare : —
-** A figo for thy friendfhip ! —
-The fig of Spain." Henry V, iii. 6.
-^ Item, cum prEediftus teftis videretur efl'e valde facilis et procax ad loquendum,
-et in pluribus diftis fuis non eflet ftabilis, fed quafi varians et vacilans, fuit interro-
-gatus fi fuit ei prsceptum a difto receptore quod cum digitis manus {w£ faceret ficuni
-Crucifixo, quando ipfum videret, et fi fuit ei di(^um quod hoc eflet de punftis
-ordinis, refpondit quod nunquam audivit loqui de hoc. Michelet, Proces des
-Templiers, Tome i, p. 255, 410. Paris, 1841.
-Ambabus manibus fecit ficus didlo Sermes. MS. quoted in Ducange, fub v.
-Ficha.
-*< Behold next I fee contempt, giving me the fco.'" Wit's Mifery, quoted in
-Nares, v. Fico.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 151
-The phrale has been preferved in all thefe countries down to modern
-times and we ftill fay in Englifh, "a fig for anybody," or" for any-
-thing," not meaning that we eftimate them at no more than the
-value of a fig, but that we throw at them that contempt which was
-intimated by fhowing them the phallic hand, and which the Greeks,
-as ftated above, called (TKL\ia\it,^Lv. The form of fhowing con-
-tempt which was called the fig is ftill well known among the lower
-clafTes of fociety in England, and it is preferved in moft of the
-countries of Weftern Europe. In Baretti's Spanifh Dicftionary,
-which belongs to the commencement of the prefent century, we
-find the word higa interpreted as "A manner of fcofiing at people,
-which confifts in fhowing the thumb between the firft and fecond
-finger, clofing the fift, and pointing at the perfon to whom we
-want to give this hateful mark of contempt." Baretti alfo gives as
-ftill in ufe the original meaning of the word, " ///g-^, a little hand
-made of jet, which they hang about children to keep them from
-evil eyes ; a fuperftitious cuftom." The ufe of this amulet is ftill
-common in Italy, and efpecially in Naples and Sicily ; it has
-an advantage over the mere form of the phallus, that when the
-artificial /^^ is not prefent, an individual, who finds or believes
-himfelf in fudden danger, can make the amulet with his own fingers.
-So profound is the belief of its efficacy in Italy, that it is com-
-monly believed and reported there that, at the battle of Solferino,
-the king of Italy held his hand in his pocket with this arrange-
-ment of the fingers as a protedion againft the fliots of the enemy.
-There were perfonages conneded with the worfhip of Priapus
-who appear to have been common to the Romans under and
-before the empire, and to the foreign races who fettled upon its
-ruins. The Teutonic race believed in a fpiritual being who in-
-habited the woods, and who was called in old German /rr^/. His
-charader was more general than that of a mere habitant of the
-woods, for it anfwered to the Englifh hobgoblin, or to the Irifti
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-cluricaune. The fcrat was the fpirit of the woods, under which
-charad:er he was fometimes called a waltfcrat, and of the fields, and
-alfo of the houfehold, the domeftic fpirit, the ghoft haunting the
-houfe. His image was probably looked upon as an amulet, a pro-
-tedion to the houfe, as an old German vocabulary of the year
-, explainsy<r-^r^///«, little fcrats, by the Latin word penates.
-The lafcivious character of this fpirit, if it wanted more dired;
-evidence, is implied by the fadl that/m//^, in Anglo-Saxon, and
-Jcrat^ in old Englifh, meant a hermaphrodite. Accordingly, the
-mediaeval vocabularies explainy^rr^/ by Latin equivalents, which all
-indicate companions or emanations of Priapus, and in fadl, Priapus
-himfelf Ifidore gives the name of Piloft^ or hairy men, and tells
-us that they were called in Greek, Panitae (apparently an error for
-Ephialtae), and in Latin, Incubi and Inibi, the latter word derived
-from the verb inire, and applied to them on account of their inter-
-courfe with animals.^ They were in fad; the fauns and fatyrs of
-antiquity, haunted like them the wild woods, and were charaderized
-by the fame petulance towards the other fex.^ Woe to the modefty
-of maiden or woman who ventured incautioufly into their haunts.
-As Incubi,, they vifited the houfe by night, and violated the
-perfons of the females, and fome of the moft celebrated heroes of
-early mediaeval romances, fuch as Merlin, were thus the children
-of incubi. They were known at an early period in Gaul by the
-name of Dufii,^ from which, as the church taught that all thefe
-Pilofi, qui Grasce Panits, Latine Incubi, appellantur, five Inivi, ab ineundo
-paffim cum animalibus ; unde et Incubi dicuntur ab incumbendo, hoc eft, ftuprando.
-Ifidori EtymoL, lib. viii, c. 9.
-Saepe etiam improbi exiftunt, etiam mulieribus, et earum peragunt concubitum.
-Ifidor. ib.
-Et quofdam daemones quos Dufios Galli nuncupant, banc affidue immunditiam et
-tentare et efficere plures talesque afleverant, ut hoc negare impudentias videatur.
-Auguftin. De Civitate Dei, lib. xv, c 23. Conf. Ifidor., loc. cit.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 153
-mythic perfonages were devils, we derive our modern word
-Deuce^ ufed in fuch phrafes as "the Deuce take you!" The term
-ficarii was alfo applied to them in medi.Tval Latin, either from
-the meaning of the word ficus^ mentioned before,^ or becaufe
-they were fond of figs. Moft of thefe Latin fynonyms are given
-in the Anglo-Saxon vocabulary of Alfric, and are interpreted as
-meaning "evil men, fpirits of the woods, evil beings."^ One of the
-old commentators on the Scriptures defcribes thefe fpirits of the
-woods as "monfters in the femblance of men, whofe form begins
-with the human fhape and ends in the extremity of a beaft."'^ They
-were, in faft, half man, half goat, and were identical with a clafs of
-hobgoblins, who at a rather later period were well known in Kngland
-by the popular name of Robin Goodfellows, whofe Priapic cha-
-rader is fufficiently proved by the pidures of them attached to
-feme of our early printed ballads, of which we give facfimiles. The
-firft' is a figure of Robin Goodfellow, which forms the illuftration
-to a very popular ballad of the earlier part of the feventeenth cen-
-tury, entitled "The mad merry Pranks of Robin Goodfellow;" he
-is reprefented party-coloured, and with the priapic attribute. The
-next^ is a fecond illuftration of the fame ballad, in which Robin
-Goodfellow is reprefented as Priapus, goat-ftiaped, with his attributes
-ftill more ftrongly pronounced, and furrounded by a circle of his
-worftiippers dancing about him. Reappears here in the character
-See before, p. 149.
-Satiri, vel fauni, vel fehni (for obfcceni), velfauni ficarii, unfxle men, wude-
-wafan, unfaele wihta. Wright's Volume of Vocabularies, p. 17. Sec, for further
-illuftration of this fubjeft, Grimm's Deutfche M^thologie, p. 272 ct feq.
-Pilofi, monflra iunt ad fimilitudinem hominum, quorum forma ab humana
-effigie incipit, fed beftiali extremitate terminatur, vel funt djemoncs incubones, vel
-fatyri, vel homines filveftres. Mamotreftus in Ifaiam, xiii. 21.
-See Plate xxxvi. Fig. 5. From a copy of the black-letter ballad in the library
-of the Britifh Mufcum.
-s Plate xxxvii. Fig. 2. From the fame ballad.
-X
-V rHE WORSHIP OF THE
-afliimed by the demon at the fabbath of the witches, of which we
-fhall have to fpeak a little further on. The Romifh Church created
-great confufion in all thefe popular fuperftitions by confidering the
-mythic perfons with whom they were conneded as fo many devils;
-and one of thefe Priapic demons is figured in a cut which feems to
-have been a favourite one, and is often repeated as an illuftration
-of the broadfide ballads of the age of James I. and Charles 1/ It is
-Priapus reduced to his loweft ftep of degradation.
-Befides the invocations addrefled individually to Priapus, or to
-the generative powers, the ancients had eftablished great feflivals
-in their honour, which were remarkable for their licentious gaiety,
-and in which the image of the phallus was carried openly and in
-triumph. Thefe feftivities were efpecially celebrated among the
-rural population, and they were held chiefly during the fummer
-months. The preparatory labours of the agriculturifl: were over,
-and people had leifure to welcome with joyfulnefs the adivity of
-nature's reprodu6live powers, which was in due time to bring their
-fruits. Among the mofl: celebrated of thefe fefliivals were the
-Liberalia, which were held on the 17th of March. A monfl:rous
-phallus was carried in proceflion in a car, and its worfliippers
-indulged loudly and openly in obfcene fongs, converfation, and
-attitudes, and when it halted, the mofl: refpeftable of the matrons
-ceremoniously crowned the head of the phallus with a garland.
-The Bacchanalia, reprefenting the Dionyfia of the Greeks, were
-celebrated in the latter part of Oftober, when the harvefl: was
-completed, and were attended with much the fame ceremonies as
-the Liberalia. The phallus was fimilarly carried in proceflion, and
-crowned, and, as in the Liberalia, the feftivities being carried on
-into the night, as the celebrators became heated with wine, they
-degenerated into the extreme of licentioufnefs, in which people
-Plate xxxvn. Fig. i. From two black-letter ballads in the Britifh Mufeum,
-one entitled, " A warning for all Lewd Liters," the other, *'A ftrange and true
-News from Weftmoreland."
-GENERATIFE POWERS. 155
-indulged without a hlufl-i in the moft imfamous vices. The feftival
-of Venus was celebrated towards the beginning of April, and in it
-the phallus was again carried in its car, and led in proceflion by
-the Roman ladies to the temple of Venus outfide the Colline gate,
-and there prefented by them to the fexual parts of the goddefs.
-This part of thefcene is reprefented in a well-known intaglio, which
-has been publifhed in feveral works on antiquities. At the clofe
-of the month laft mentioned came the Floralia, which, if poffible,
-excelled all the others in licence. Aufonius, in whofe time (the
-latter half of the fourth century) the Floralia were ftill in full
-force, fpeaks of their lafcivioufnefs —
-Necnon lafcivi Floralia laeta theatri,
-Quce fpeftare volunt qui voluifle negant.
-Aufonii Eclog. de Feriis Rom ants.
-Theioofe women of the town and its neighbourhood, called together
-by the foundingof horns, mixed with the multitude in perfeft naked-
-nefs, and excited their palTions with obfcene motions and language,
-until the feftival ended in a fcene of mad revelry, in which all
-reftraint was laid afide. Juvenal defcribes a Roman dame of very
-depraved manners as —
-Digniflima prorfus
-Florali matrona tuba.
-Juvenalis Sat. vi, 1. 249.
-Thefe fcenes of unbounded licence and depravity, deeply rooted in
-people's minds by long eftablifhed cuftoms, caufed fo little public
-fcandal, that it is related of Cato the younger that, when he was
-prefent at the celebration of the Floralia, inftead of fliowing any
-difapproval of them, he retired, that his well-known gravity might
-be no reftraint upon them, becaufe the multitude manifefted lome
-hefitation in ftripping the women naked in the prefence of a man
-fo celebrated for his modefty.^ The feftivals more fpecially dedi-
-Catonem, inquam, ilium, quo fedente populus negatur permififle fibi poftulare
-Florales jocos nudandarum meretricura. Senecae Epiji. xcvii.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-cated to Priapus, the Priapeia, were attended with fimilar cere-
-monies and fimilarly licentious orgies. Their forms and charac-
-teriftics are better known, becaufe they are fo frequently repre-
-fented to us as the fubjefts of works of Roman art. The Romans
-had other feftivals of fimilar charadler, but of lefs importance,
-fome of which were of a more private character, and fome were
-celebrated in ftrid: privacy. Such were the rites of the Bona Dea,
-eftablifhed among the Roman matrons in the time of the re-
-public, the diforders of which are defcribed in fuch glowing lan-
-guage by the fatirift Juvenal, in his enumeration of the vices of
-the Roman women : —
-Nota Bons fecreta Dese, quum tibia lumbos
-Incitat, et cornu pariter vinoque feruntur
-Attonitae, crinemque rotant, ululantque Priapi
-Maenades. O quantus tunc illis mentibus ardor
-Concubitus! quae vox faltante libidine! quantus
-Ille meri veteris per crura madentia torrens!
-Lenonum ancillas pofita Saufeia corona
-Provocat, et tollit pendentis prsemia coxae.
-Ipfa Medullinge fluftum criffantis adorat.
-Palmam inter dominas virtus natalibus aequat.
-Nil ibi per ludum fimulabitur : omnia fient
-Ad verum, quibus incendi jam frigidus sevo
-Laomedontiades et Neftoris hernia poffit.
-Tunc prurigo morae impatiens, tunc femina fimplex,
-Et toto pariter repetitus clamor ab antro :
-Jam fas eft : admitte viros !
-Juvenalis Sat. vi, 1. 314.
-Among the Teutonic, as well as among moft other peoples,
-fimilar fefl:ivals appear to have been celebrated during the fummer
-months ; and, as they arofe out of the fame feelings, they no doubt
-prefented the fame general forms. The principal popular fefl:ivals
-of the fummer during the middle ages occurred in the months
-of April, May, and June, and comprifed Eafl:er, May-day, and
-the feaft of the fummer folftice. All thefe appear to have been
-GENERATIVK POWERS. 157
-originally accompanied with the fame phallic worfhip which formed
-the principal charafteriftic of the great Roman feftivals ; and, in
-fadljthefe are exadly thofe popular inftitutions and traits of popular
-manners which were moft likely to outlive, alfo without any material
-change, the overthrow of the Roman empire by the barbarians.
-Although, at the time when we become intimately acquainted with
-thefe feftivals, moft of the prominent marks of their phallic cha-
-racter had been abandoned and forgotten, yet we meet during the
-interval with fcattered indications which leave no room to doubt of
-their former exiftence. It will be interefting to examine into fome
-of thefe points, and to ftiow the influence they exerted on medieval
-fociety.
-The firft of the three great feftivals juft mentioned was purely
-Anglo-Saxon and Teutonic ; but it appears in the firft place to have
-been identified with the Roman Liberalia, and it was further tranf-
-formed by the Catholic church into one of the great Chriftian reli-
-gious feafts. In the primitive Teutonic mythology there was a
-female deity named, in Old German, OJlara, and, in Anglo-Saxon,
-Eajlre, or Eojlre, but all we know of her is the fimple ftatement of
-our father of hiftory, Bede, that her feftival was celebrated by the
-ancient Saxons in the month of April, from which circumftance,
-that month was named by the Anglo-Saxons Eajler-monath, or
-Eojler-monath^ and that the name of the goddefs had been fubfe-
-quently given to the Pafchal time, with which it was identical.'
-The name of this goddefs was given to the fame month by the old
-Germans and by the Franks, fo that ftie muft have been one of the
-moft highly honoured of the Teutonic deities, and her feftval muft
-' Antiqui autem Anglorum populi . . . Eollurmonath, qui nunc pafchalis menfis
-interpretatur, quondam a dca illorum qu;e Eoilre vocabatur, et cui in illo fella cele-
-brabant, nomcn habuit; a cujus nomine nunc paichale tempus cognominant, conlueto
-antiquie oblervationis vocabulo gaudia novie lolennitatis vocantes. Bedie De Tem-
-porum Ratione, cap. xv.
-ON rHE IVORSHIP OF THE
-have been a very important one, and deeply implanted in the
-popular feelings, or the church would not have fought to identify
-it with one of the greateft Chriftian festivals of the year. It is
-underftood that the Romans confidered this month as dedicated
-to Venus, no doubt becaufe it was that in which the productive
-power of nature began to be vifibly developed. When the Pagan
-feftival was adopted by the church, it became a moveable feaft
-inftead of being fixed to the month of April. Among other
-objedts offered to the goddefs at this time were cakes, made no
-doubt of fine flour, but of their form we are ignorant. The Chrif-
-tians, when they feized upon the Eaflier feftival, gave them the form of
-a bun, which, indeed, was at that time the ordinary form of bread ;
-and to proteft themfelves, and thofe who eat them, from any enchant-
-ment, or other evil influences which might arife from their former
-heathen charad:er, they marked them with the Chriftian fymbol —
-the crofs. Hence were derived the cakes we ftill eat at Eafter under
-the name of hot-crofs-buns, and the fuperftitious feelings attached
-to them, for multitudes of people ftill believe that if they failed to
-eat a hot-crofs-bun on Good-Friday they would be unlucky all
-the reft of the year. But there is fome reafon for believing that,
-at leaft in fome parts, the Eafter-cakcs had originally a different
-form — that of the phallus. Such at leaft appears to have been the
-cafe in France, where the cuftom ftill exifts. In Saintonge, in the
-neighbourhood of La Rochelle, fmall cakes, baked in the form of a
-phallus, are made as offerings at Eafter, and are carried and pre-
-fented from houfe to houfe ; and we have been informed thatfimilar
-pra6tices exift in fome other places. When Dulaure wrote, the
-feftival of Palm Sunday, in the town of Saintes, was called th.^. fete
-des pmneSy pinne being a. popular and rather vulgar word for the
-membrum virile. At this fete the women and children carried in
-the procefTion, at the end of their palm branches, a phallus made of
-bread, which they called undifguifedly spinney and which, having
-GENERATIVE POIVERS. 159
-been bleft by the prieft, the women carefully preferved during the
-following year as an amulet. A fimilar practice exifted at St. Jean-
-d'Angcly, where fmall cakes, made in the form of the phallus, and
-nAn\c6.fateux, were carried in the procefTion of the Fete-Dieu, or
-Corpus Chrifti.' Shortly before the time when Dulaure wrote, this
-pradice was fuppreffed by a new fous-prcfet, M. Maillard. The
-cuftom of making cakes in the form of the fexual members, male
-and female, dates from a remote antiquity and was common among
-the Romans. Martial made a phallus of bread (Pr/rt/)«jy/%/«^/^j)
-the fubjecft of an epigram of two lines : —
-Si vis efTe fatur, noftrum potes efle priapum :
-Ipfe licet rodas inguina, purus eris.
-Martial, lib. xiv, cp. 69.
-The fame writer fpeaks of the image of a female organ made of
-the fame material in another of his epigrams, to explain which, it is
-only neceflary to ftate that thefe images were compofed of the finefl:
-wheaten flour [ftligo) : —
-Pauper amicitias cum fis, Lupe, non es amicae ;
-Et queritur de te mentula lola nihil.
-Ilia filigineis pinguefcit adultera cunnis ;
-Convivam pafcit nigra farina tuum.
-Martial, lib. ix, ep. 3.
-This cuftom appears to have been preferved from the Romans
-through the middle ages, and may be traced diftindly as far back
-as the fourteenth or fifteenth century. We are informed that in
-feme of the earlier inedited French books on cookery, receipts are
-given for making cakes in thefe obfcene forms, which are named
-without any concealment ; and the writer on this fubjed, who wrote
-inthefixteenth century, Johannes Bruerinus Campegius, defcribing
-the different forms in which cakes were then made, enumerates thofe
-' Dulaure, Hiftoire Abregce des Different Cultes, vol. ii, p. 285. Second Edition.
-It was priuted in 1825.
-i6o 07V THE WORSHIP OF THE
-of the fecret members of both fexes, a proof, he fays of " the de-
-generacy of manners, when Chriftians themfelves can delight in
-obfcenities and immodeft things even among their articles of food."
-He adds that fome of thefe were commonly fpoken of by a grofs
-name, des cons Jucres} When Dulaure wrote, that is juft forty years
-ago, cakes of thefe forms continued to be made in various parts of
-France, and he informs us that thofe reprefenting the male organ
-were made in the Lower Limoufin, and efpecially at Brives, while
-fimilar images of the female organ were made at Clermont in
-Auvergne, and in other places. They were popularly called miches?
-There is another cuftom attached to Eafter, which has probably
-fome relation to the worfhip of which we are treating, and which
-feems once to have prevailed throughout England, though we
-believe it is now confined to Shropfhire and Chefhire. In the
-former county it is called heaving^ in the latter lifting. On Eafter
-Monday the men go about with chairs, feize the women they meet,
-and, placing them in the chairs, raise them up, turn them round
-two or three times, and then claim the right of kifting them. On
-Eafter Tuefday, the fame thing is done by the women to the men.
-This, of courfe, is only praftifed now among the lower clafl!es,
-except fometimes as a frolic among intimate friends. The chair
-appears to have been a comparatively modern addition, fince fuch
-articles have become more abundant. In the laft century four or
-five of the one fex took the viftim of the other fex by the arms and
-legs, and lifted her or him in that manner, and the operation was
-Alias fingunt oblonga figura, alias fphaerica, et orbiculari, alias triangula, quad-
-rangulaque; quaedam ventricofae funt; quaedam pudenda muliebria, aliae virilia (fi
-diis placet) repraefentant; adeo degeneravere bonos mores, ut etiam Chriftianis
-obfccena et pudenda in cibis placeant. Sunt etenim quos cunnos faccharatos appe-
-litent. Jo. Bruerini Campegii De Re Cibaria, lib. vi, c. 7. — Conf. Le Grande
-d'Auffi, Hijloire de la Vie Privee des Fran^ais, vol. ii, p. 309.
-Dulaure, vol. ii, pp. 255 — 257.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. i6i
-attended, at all events on the part of the men, with much inde-
-cency. The women ufually expe<5t a fmall contribution of money
-from the men they have lifted. More anciently, in the time of
-Durandus, that is, in the thirteenth century, a ftill more fingular
-cuftom prevailed on thefe two days. He tells us that in many
-countries, on the Eafter Monday, it was the rule for the wives to
-beat their hufliands, and that on the Tuefday the hufbands beat their
-wives.^ Brand, in his Popular Antiquities., tells us that in the city
-of Durham, in his time, it was the cuftom for the men, on the one
-day, to take off the women's ftioes, which the latter were obliged
-to purchafe back, and that on the other day the women did the
-fame to the men.
-In mediaeval poetry and romance, the month of May was cele-
-brated above all others as that confecrated to Love, which feemed
-to pervade all nature, and to invite mankind to partake in the
-general enjoyment. Hence, among nearly all peoples, its approach
-was celebrated with feftivities, in which, under various forms, wor-
-fhip was paid to Nature's reprodudlivenefs. The Romans wel-
-comed the approach of May with their Floralia, a feftival we have
-already defcribed as remarkable for licentioufnefs ; and there can-
-not be a doubt that our Teutonic forefathers had also their feftival
-of the feafon long before they became acquainted with the Romans.
-Yet much of the media:val celebration of May-day, efpecially in the
-South, appears to have been derived from the Floralia of the latter
-people. As in the Floralia, the arrival of the feftival was announced
-by the founding of horns during the preceding night, and no fooner
-had midnight arrived than the youth of both fexes proceeded in
-couples to the woods to gather branches and make garlands, with
-which they were to return juft at funrife for the purpofe of decora-
-In plerifque etiam regionibus mulieres fecunda die port Pafcham verberant maritos
-fuos, die vero tertia uxores fuas. Durandus, Rationale, lib. vi, c. 86 — 89. By
-fecunda die pojl Pafcham, he no doubt means Barter Monday.
-Y
-i62 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-ting the doors of their houfes. In England the grand feature of
-the day was the Maypole. This maypole was the ftem of a tall
-young tree cut down for the occafion, painted of various colours,
-and carried in joyous proceffion, with minftrels playing before,
-until it reached the village green, or the open fpace in the middle
-of a town, where it was ufually fet up. It was there decked with
-garlands and flowers, the lads and girls danced round it, and people
-indulged in all forts of riotous enjoyments. All this is well de-
-fcribed by a Puritan writer of the reign of Queen Elizabeth — Philip
-Stubbes — who fays that, " againfl: Maie," " every pariflie, towne,
-and village aflemble themfelves together, bothe men, women, and
-children, olde and yong, even all indifferently ; and either goyng
-all together, or devidyng themfelves into companies, they goe fome
-to the woodes andgroves, fome to thehillesand mountaines,fometo
-one place, fome to another, where they fpende all the night inpleafant
-pafl;ymes, and in the mornyng thei returne, bryngyng with them
-birch bowes and braunches of trees to deck their afl^emblies withall,
-.... But their cheefefl; Jewell thei bryng from thence is their
-Maie pole, whiche thei bryng home with greate veneration, as thus :
-Thei have twentie or fourtie yoke of oxen, every oxe havyng a
-fweete nofegaie of flowers placed on the tippe of his homes, and
-thefe oxen drawe home this Maie poole (this fl:inckyng idoll
-rather), whiche is covered all over with flowers and hearbes, bounde
-rounde aboute with fl:rynges, from the top to the bottome, and
-fometyme painted with variable colours, with twoo or three hun-
-dred men, women, and children followyng it, with greate devotion.
-And thus beyng reared up, with handekerchiefes and flagges fl:ream-
-yng on the toppe, thei fl:rawe the grounde aboute, binde greene
-boughes about it, fett up fommer haules, bowers, and arbours hard
-by it. And then fall thei to banquet and feafl:, to leape and
-daunce aboute it, as the heathen people did, at the dedication of
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 163
-their idolles, whereof this is a perfedl patterne, or rafher the thyng
-itfelfV'^
-The Puritans were deeply imprefled with the belief that the
-maypole was a fubftantial relic of Paganifm; and they were no
-doubt right. There appears to be reafon fufficient for fuppofing
-that, at a period which cannot now be afcertained, the maypole had
-taken the place of the phallus. The ceremonies attending the
-elevation of the two objeds were identical. The fame joyous pro-
-ceffion in the Roman feftivals, defcribed above, conduced the
-phallus into the midft of the town or village, where in the fame
-manner it was decked with garlands, and the worfhip partook of
-the fame charader. We may add, too, that both feftivals were
-attended with the fame licentioufnefs. " I have heard it credibly
-reported," fays the Puritan Stubbes, "and that viva voce by menne
-of greate gravitie and reputation, that of fourtie, three fcore, or a
-hundred maides goyng to the woode over night, there have fcarcely
-the third part returned home again undefiled."
-The day generally concluded with bonfires. Thefe reprefented
-the need-fire, which was intimately connected with the ancient priapic
-rites. Fire itfelf was an objed of worfhip, as the moft power-
-ful of the elements; but it was fuppofed to lofe its purity and facred
-charader in being propagated from one material to another, and
-the worfhippers fought on thefe folemn occafions to produce it in
-its primitive and pureft form. This was done by the rapid tridlion
-of two pieces of wood, attended with fuperftitious ceremonies; the
-pure element of fire was believed to exift in the wood, and to be
-thus forced out of it, and hence it was called need-fire (in Old
-German wo/'/^wdT, and in Anglo-Saxon, neod-fyr), meaning literally
-a forced fire, or fire extracted by force. Before the procefs of thus
-Stubbes, Anatomie of Ahufes, fol. 94, 8vo. London, 1583.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF "THE
-extrafting the fire from the wood, it was neceflary that all the fires
-previoufly exifting in the village fhould be extinguifhed, and they
-were afterwards revived from the bonfire which had been lit from the
-need-fire. The whole fyftem of bonfires originated from this fuper-
-ftition ; they had beenadopted generally on occafionsofpopularre-
-joicing, and the bonfires commemorating the celebrated gunpowder
-plot are only particular applications of the general practice to an
-accidental cafe. The fuperftition of the need-fire belongs to a very
-remote antiquity in the Teutonic race, and exifted equally in
-ancient Greece. It is profcribed in the early capitularies of the
-Frankifh emperors of the Carlovingian dynafty.^ The univerfality
-of this fuperftition is proved by the circumftance that it ftill exifts
-in the Highlands of Scotland, efpecially in Caithnefs, where it is
-adopted as a protedlion for the cattle when attacked by difeafe
-which the Highlanders attribute to witchcraft.^ It was from the
-remoteft ages the cuftom to caufe cattle, and even children, to pafs
-acrofs the need-fire, as a protedion to them for the reft of their
-lives. The need-fire was kindled at Eafter, on May-day, and efpe-
-cially at the fummer folftice, on the eve of the feaft of St. John the
-Baptift, or of Midfummer-day.^
-The eve of St. John was in popular fuperftition one of the moft
-important days of the mediaeval year. The need-fire — or the St.
-John's fire, as it was called — was kindled juft at midnight, the
-moment when the folftice was fupposed to take place, and the
-young people of both fexes danced round it, and, above all things,
-) Sive illos facrilegos ignes quos nedfratres (I. nedfyres) vocant, five omnes quae-
-cumque funt paganorum obfervationes diligenter prohibeant. Karlomanni Capitulare
-Primum, a. d. 742, in Baluzii Capitularia Regum Francorum, col. 148. Repeated in
-the Capitularium Caroli Magni et Ludovici Pit, compiled a. d. 827. See Baluz., ib.,
-col. 825.
-Logan, The Scottijh Gael, vol. ii, p. 64, and Jamiefon's Scottijh Di£lionary,
-Suppl. iub. V. Neidfyre.
-See Grimm, Deutfche Mythologie, pp. 341 — 349.
-GENERA'TIVE POWERS. 165
-leaped over it, or rufhed through it, which was looked upon not
-only as a purification, but as a protection againft evil influences. It
-was the night when ghofts and other beings of the fpiritual world
-were abroad, and when witches had moft power. It was believed,
-even, that during this night people's fouls left the body in fleep,
-and wandered over the world, feparated from it. It was a night
-of the great meetings of the witches, and it was that in which they
-mixed their moft deadly poifons,and performed their moft effedive
-charms. It was a night efpecially favourable to divination in every
-form, and in which maidens fought to know their future fweet-
-hearts and huftiands. It was during this night, alfo, that plants
-poflefted their grcateft powers either for good or for evil, and that
-they were dug up with all due ceremonies and cautions. The more
-hidden virtues of plants, indeed, depended much on the time at
-which, and the ceremonies with which, they were gathered, and
-thefe latter were extremely fuperftitious, no doubt derived from the
-remote ages of paganifm. As ufual, the clergy applied a halt-
-remedy to the evil ; they forebade any rites or incantations in the
-gathering of medicinal herbs except by repeating the creed and the
-Lord's prayer.^
-As already ftated, the night of St. John's, or Midfummer-eve,
-was that when ghofts and fpirits of all defcriptions were abroad,
-and when witches aflembled, and their potions, for good or for
-evil, and charms were made with moft efted. It was the night
-for popular divination, efpecially among the young maidens, who
-fought to know who were deftined to be their hufbands, what
-would be their charaders, and what their future conduct. The
-medicinal virtues of many plants gathered on St. John's eve, and
-with the due ceremonies, were tar more powerful than if gathered
-Non licet in coUeflione herbarum medicinalium aliquas obfervationes vel incan-
-tationes attendere, niii tantum cum iVmbulo divino et oratione dominica, ut Deus ct
-Dominus noller honoretur. Burchardi Decretorum Libri, x, 20.
-i66 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-at other times. The moft fecret pradiices of the old popular fuper-
-ftitions are now moftly forgotten, but when, here and there, we
-meet with a few traces of them, they are of a character which leads
-us to believe that they belonged to a great extent to that fame
-worfhip of the generative powers which prevailed fo generally
-among all peoples. We remember that, we believe in one of the
-earlier editions of Mother Bunch, maidens who wifhed to know if
-their lovers were conftant or not were dired;ed to go out exadlly at
-midnight on St. John's eve, to ftrip themfelves entirely naked, and
-in that condition to proceed to a plant or fhrub, the name of which
-was given, and round it they were to form a circle and dance,
-repeating at the fame time certain words which they had been
-taught by their inftrudrefs. Having completed this ceremony,
-they were to gather leaves of the plant round which they had
-danced, which they were to carry home and place under their
-pillows, and what they wifhed to know would be revealed to them
-in their dreams. We have {&Q.n in fome of the mediaeval treatifes
-on the virtue of plants directions for gathering fome plants of efpe-
-cial importance, in which it was required that this fhould be per-
-formed by young girls in a fimilar ftate of complete nakednefs.
-Plants and flowers were, indeed, intimately conne6ted with this
-worfhip. We have feen how conftantly they are introduced in the
-form of garlands, and they were always among the offerings to
-Priapus. It was the univerfal practice, in dancing round the fire
-on St. John's eve, to conclude by throwing various kinds of flowers
-and plants into it, which were confidered to be propitiatory, to avert
-certain evils to which people were liable during the following year.
-Among the plants they offered are mentioned mother-wort, vervain,
-and violets. It is perhaps to this connection of plants with the old
-priapic worfhip that we owe the popular tendency to give them names
-which were more or lefs obfcene, moft of which are now loft, or
-are fo far modified as to prefent no longer the fame idea. Thus
-GENERAriVE POWERS. 167
-the well-known arum of our hedge-bottoms received the names,
-no doubt fuggefted by its form, of cuckoo's pintle, or prieft's
-pintle, or dog's pintle; and, in French, thofe of vit de chien and
-vit de prejfre ; in Englifh it is now abbreviated into cuckoo-pint,
-or, fometimes, cuckoo-point. The whole family of the orchides
-was diftinguifhed by a correfponding word, accompanied with
-various qualifications. We have in William Coles's Adam in Eden,
-(fol. 1659) the different names, for different varieties, of doggs-
-ftones, fool-ftones, fox-ftones ; in the older Heri^ai of Gerard (fol.
-) triple ballockes, fweet ballockes, fweet cods, goat's-ftones,
-hare's-ftones, &c ; in P'rench, couillon de bouc (the goat was efpe-
-cially conne(fted with the priapic myfteries) and couille, or couillon,
-de chien. In French, too, as we learn from Cotgrave and the
-herbals, "a kind of fallet hearbe" was caWed. couille d Veveque\ the
-greater ftone-crop was named couille au loup\ and the fpindle-tree
-was known by the name of couillon de prHre. There are feveral
-plants which poffefs fomewhat the appearance of a rough bufh
-of hair. One of thefe, a fpecies of adiantum, was known even in
-Roman times by the name of Capillus I'eneris, and in more modern
-times it has been called maiden-hair, and our lady's hair. Another
-plant, the afplenium trichomanes, was and is alfo called popularly
-maiden-hair, or maiden's-hair ; and we believe that the fame name
-has been given to one or two other plants. There is reafon for
-believing that the hair implied in thefe names was that of the pubes.^
-We might collect a number of other old popular names of plants
-of a (imilar charader with thefe juft enumerated.
-In an old calendar of the Romifh church, which is often quoted
-Fumitory was another of thefe plants, and in a vocabulary of plants in a
-MS. of the middle of the thirteenth century, we find its names in Latin, French,
-and Englifh given as follows, " Fumus terra", fumeterre, cuntehoare.'" See Wright's
-Volume of Vocabularies, p. 17.
-i68 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-in Brand's Popular Antiquities^ the feeking of plants for their
-hidden virtues and magical properties is efpecially noted as part
-of the praftices on the eve of St. John [herba diverft generis
-quaruntur) ; and one plant is efpecially fpecified in terms too
-myfterious to be eafily underftood/ Fern-feed, alfo, was a
-great object of fearch on this night ; for, if found and properly
-gathered, it was believed to pofTefs powerful magical proper-
-ties, and efpecially that of rendering invifible the individual who
-carried it upon his perfon. But the moft remarkable of all the
-plants connected with thefe ancient priapic fuperftitions was the
-mandrake [mandragora)^ a plant which has been looked upon with
-a fort of feeling of reverential fear at all periods, and almoft in all
-parts. Its Teutonic name, alrun^ or, in its more modern form,
-alraun, fpeaks at once of the belief in its magical qualities among
-that race. People looked upon it as pofleffing fome degree of
-animal life, and it was generally believed that, when it was drawn
-out of the earth, it uttered a cry, and that this cry carried certain
-death or madnefs to the perfon who extracted it. To efcape this
-danger, the remedy was to tie a ftring round it, which was to be
-attached to a dog, and the latter, being driven away, dragged up
-the root in its attempt to run off, and experienced the fatal confe-
-quences. The root was the important part of the plant ; it has
-fomewhat the form of a forked radifh, and was believed to repre-
-fent exadlly the human form below the waift, with, in the male
-and female plants, the human organs of generation diftindly devel-
-oped. The mandrake, when it could be obtained, was ufed in the
-middle ages in the place of the phallic amulet, and was carefully
-carried on the perfon, or preferved in the houfe. It conferred fer-
-tility in more fenfes than one, for it was believed that as long as
-you kept it locked up with your money, the latter would become
-' Carduus puellarum legitur et ab eifdem centum cruces.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 169
-doubled in quantity every year; and it had at the fame time all the
-protedive qualities of the phallus. The Templars were accufed of
-worfhiping the mandrake, or mandragora, which became an obje6l of
-great celebrity in France during the reigns of the weak monarchs
-Charles VI. and Charles VII. In 1429 one Friar Richard, of the
-order of the Cordeliers, preached a fierce fermon againft the use of
-this amulet, the temporary efFed of which was fo great, that a cer-
-tain number of his congregation delivered up their " mandra-
-goires" to the preacher to be burnt.^
-It appears that the people who dealt in thefe amulets helped
-nature to a rather confiderable extent by the means of art, and
-that there was a regular procefs of cooking them up. They were
-necefTarily aware that the roots themfelves, in their natural ftate,
-prefented, to fay the leaft, very imperfeftly the form which men's
-imagination had given to them, fo they obtained the fineft roots
-they could, which, when frefh from the ground, were plump and
-foft, and readily took any impreffion which might be given to
-them. They then ftuck grains of millet or barley into the parts
-where they wifhed to have hair, and again put it into a hole in the
-earth, until thefe grains had germinated and formed their roots.
-This procefs, it was faid, was perfected within twenty days. They
-then took up the mandrake again, trimmed the fibrous roots of
-millet or barley which ferved for hair, retouched the parts them-
-felves fo as to give them their form more perfe(!^ly and more per-
-manently, and then fold it.^
-Befides thefe great and general priapic feftivals, there were
-doubtlefs others oflefs importance, or more local in their character,
-which degenerated in aftertimes into mere local ceremonies and
-Journal a' un Bourgeois de Paris, under the year 1429.
-See the authorities tor thefe llatements in Dulaure, pp. 254 — 256.
-lyo ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-feftivities. This would be the cafe efpecially in cities and corpo-
-rate towns, where the guilds came in, to perpetuate the inftitution,
-and to give it gradually a modified form. Moft towns in England
-had once feftivals of this charadler, and at leaft three reprefentatives of
-them are ftill kept up, the proceflion of Lady Godiva at Coventry,
-the Shrewfbury ihow, and the guild feftival at Prefton in Lanca-
-fhire. In the firft of thefe, the lady who is fuppofed to ride naked
-in the proceflion probably reprefents fome feature in the ancient
-priapic celebration; and the ftory of the manner in which the Lady
-Godiva averted the anger of her hufband from the townfmen,which
-is certainly a mere fable, was no doubt invented to explain a fea-
-ture of the celebration, the real meaning of which had in courfe of
-time been forgotten. The pageantry of the Shrewfbury fhow
-appears to be fimilarly the unmeaning refledion of forms belong-
-ing to older and forgotten practices and principles. On the Conti-
-nent there were many fuch local feftivals, fuch as the feaft of fools,
-the feaft of afles (the afs was an animal facred to Priapus), and
-others, all which were adapted by the mediasval church exadly as
-the clergy had taken advantage of the profit to be derived from the
-phallic worftiip in other forms.
-Theleaden tokens, or medalets, which we have already defcribed,^
-feem to point evidently to the exiftence in the mi"ddle ages of
-fecret focieties or clubs connected with this obfcene worftiip, be-
-fides the public feftivals. Of thefe it can hardly be expeded
-that any defcription would furvive, but, if not the fad:, the
-belief in it is clearly eftabliftied by the eagernefs with which fuch
-obfcene rites were laid to the charge of moft of the mediaeval fecret
-focieties, whether lay clubs or religious fefts, and we know that
-fecret focieties abounded in the middle ages. However willing the
-Romifti clergy were to make profit out of the popular phallic wor-
-See before, p. 146, and Plate xxxiii.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 171
-fhip, they were equally ready to ufe the belief in it as a means of
-exciting prejudice againft any feds which the church chofe to
-regard as religious or political heretics.
-It is very evident that, in the earlier ages of the church, the
-converfion of the Pagans to Chriftianity was in a vaft number of
-cafes lefs than a half-converfion, and that the preachers of the
-gofpel were fatisfied by people affuming the name of Chriftians,
-without inquiring too clofely into the fincerity of their change, or
-into their pradlice. We can trace in the exprelfions of difapproval
-in the writings of fome of the more zealous of the ecclefiaftical
-writers, and in the canons of the earlier councils, the alarm created
-by the prevalence among Chriftians of the old popular feftivals of
-paganifm ; and the revival of thofe particular canons and depreca-
-tory remarks in the ecclefiaftical councils and writings of a later
-period of the middle ages ftiows that the exiftence of the evil had
-continued unabated. There was an African council in the year
-, from which Burchardus, who compiled his condenfation of
-ecclefiaftical decrees for the ufe of his own time, profeftes to derive
-his provifions againft " the feftivals which were held with Pagan
-ceremonies." We are there told that, even on the moft facred
-of the Chriftian commemoration days, thefe rites derived from the
-Pagans were introduced, and that dancing was pradifed in the open
-ftreets of fo infamous a character, and accompanied with fuch
-lafcivious language and geftures, that the modefty of refpedable
-females was ftiocked to a degree that prevented their attendance
-at the fervice in the churches on thofe days.^ It is added that
-^ Illud etiam petendum, ut quoniam contra praecepta divina convivia multis in
-locis exercentur, quae ab errore gentili attrafta funt, ita ut nunc a paganis ad hsc
-celebranda cogantur, ex qua re temporibus Chrillianorum imperatorum perfecutio
-altera fieri occulta videatur, vetari talia jubeant, et de civitatibus et poUeflionibus
-impofita poena prohiberi, maxime cum etiam in natalibus beatiffimorum martyrum
-per nonnullas civitates et in ipfis locis facris talia committere non retbrmident, quibus
-ON rHE WORSHIP OF THE
-thefe Pagan ceremonies were even carried into the churches, and
-that many of the clergy took part in them.
-It is probable, too, that when Paganifm itfelf had become an
-offence againft the ftate, and thofe who continued attached to it
-were expofed to perfecution, they embraced the name of Chriftians
-as a cover for the groffeft fuperftitions, and formed fefts who prac-
-tifed the rites of Paganifm in their fecret conventicles, but were
-placed by the church among the Chriftian hereiies. In fome of
-thefe, efpecially among thofe of an early date, the obfcene rites and
-principles of the phallic worfhip feem to have entered largely, for,
-though their opponents probably exaggerated the adlual vice car-
-ried on under their name, yet much of it muft have had an exift-
-ence in truth. It was a mixture of the licence of the vulgar
-Paganifm of antiquity with the wild dodrines of the latter eaftern
-philofophers. The older orthodox writers dwell on the details of
-thefe libidinous rites. Among the earlieft in date were the Adam-
-iani, or Adamites, who profcribed marriage, and held that the moft
-perfeft innocence was confiftent only with the community of women.
-They chofe latibula^ or caverns, for their conventicles, at which both
-fexes affembled together in perfect nakednefs.^ This fed; perhaps
-continued to exift under different forms, but it was revived among
-the intellectual vagaries of the fifteenth century, and continued at
-leaft to be much talked of till the feventeenth. The dodrine of
-the community of women, and the pradice of promifcuous fexual
-intercourfe in their meetings, were afcribed by the early Chriftian
-diebus etiam, quod pudoris eft dicere, faltationes fceleratiffimas per vicos atque plateas
-exerceant, ut matronalis honor, et innumerabilium foeminarum pudor, devote veni-
-entium ad facratiflimum diem, injuriis lafcivientium appetatur, ut etiam ipfius fandl^
-religionis paene fugiatur acceffus. Burchard. Decret., lib. x, c. 20, De conviviis
-qua fiunt ritu paganorum, ex Concil. Africano, cap. 27. See Labbsi, CoticiL,
-torn, ii, col. 1085.
-* Epiphanii Epifc. Conftant. Panarium verfus Hceres., vol. i, p. 459, ed Petav,
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 173
-controverfialifts to feveral Teds, fuch as the followers of Florian,and
-of Carpocratian, who were accufed of putting out the lamps in their
-churches at the end of the evening fervice, and indulging in fexual
-intercourfe indifcriminately ;^ the Nicolaitae, who held their wives
-in common ; the Ebionei ; and efpecially the Gnoftics, or followers
-of Bafilides, and the Manichaeans. The Nicolaites held that the
-only way to falvation lay through frequent intercourfe between the
-fexes.^ Epiphanius fpeaks of a fed who facrificed a child in their
-fecret rites by pricking it with brazen pins, and then offering its
-blood.^ The Gnoftics were accufed of eating human flefh as well
-as of lafcivioufnefs, and they alfo are faid to have held their women
-in common, and taught that it was a duty to proftitute their
-wives to their guefts."* They knew their fellow fedarians by a
-fecret fign, which confifted in tickling the palm of the hand with
-the finger in a peculiar manner. The fign having been recog-
-nized, mutual confidence was eftablifhed, and the ftranger was
-invited to fupper ; after they had eaten their fill, the huiLand
-removed from the fide of his wife, and faid to her, " Go, exhibit
-charity to our gueft," which was the fignal for thofe further fcenes
-of hofpitality.^ This account is given us by St. Epiphanius,
-bifhop of Conftantia. We are told further of rites pradiced by
-the Gnoftics, which were ftill more difgufting, for they were faid,
-after thefe libidinous fcenes, to ofter and adminifter \.\i^Jemen virile
-• In ecclefia fua poll occafum Iblis lucernis extinftis mifceri cum mulierculis.
-Philaftri de Harejibus Liber, c. 57.
-'■^ Epiphanii Panariurn, vol. i, p. 72.
-Epiphanius, vol. i, p. 416.
-■» On the fecret worfhip and charafter of the Gnollics, fee Epiphanii Pa/iarium,
-vol, i, pp. 84 — 102.
-^ e/c rovrov Se avfj.7roaidaavT€<;, Kal aJ? eVo? eliretv, Ta<i (pXe^wi rov Kopov
-ifi7r\)}aavT€^ eavTcov, et? olarpov rpiirovTaL. kol o /xev ai>j]p r/'}'? yvifaLKO<;
-inroycoprjcra^ (f)dcrK€i Xeycou rrj kavrov 'yvvaiKt on dvciara keywu, Troiijaov
-rr}V ajaTnjv fiera rov a8e\<f>ov- 01 hk raXave^ fii'y€PTe<; a\Xj]\oi<i. Epiphan.
-Panariurn, vol. i, p. 86.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-as their facrament.^ A fimilar pradice is defcribed as exifting
-among women in the middle ages for the purpofe of fecuring the
-love of their hufbands, and was perhaps derived from the Gnoftics
-and Manichaeans, whofe dodrines, brought from the Eaft, appear
-to have fpread themfelves extenfively into Weftern Europe.^
-Of thefe dodrines, however, we have no traces at leaft until
-the eleventh century, when a great intelledual agitation began in
-Weftern Europe, which brought to the surface of fociety a multi-
-tude of ftrange creeds and ftrange theories. The popular worftiip
-difplayed in the great annual feftivals, and the equally popular
-local fetes, urban or rural, were hardly interfered with, or any
-fecret focieties belonging to the old worfhip ; the mediaeval church
-did not confider them as herefies, and let them alone. Thus,
-except now and then a provifion of fome ecclefiaftical council
-exprefled in general terms againft fuperftitions, which was hardly
-heard at the time and not liftened to, they are paffed over in filence.
-But the moment anything under the name of herefy raifed its head,
-the alarm was great. Gnofticifm and Manichaeifm, which had
-indeed been identical, were the herefies moft hated in the Eaftern
-empire, and, as may be fuppofed, moft perfecuted ; and this perfe-
-cution was deftined to drive them weftward. In the feventh cen-
-See details on this fubjeft in Epiphanii Panarium, ib. Conf. Praedeftinati
-Adverfus Hceres., lib. i, c. 46, where the fame thing is laid of the Manichaeans.
-Guftafti de femine viri tui, ut, propter tua diabolica fafta, plus in amorem
-tuum exardefceret ? Si fecilli, feptem annos per legitimas ferias poenitere debes.
-Burchardi Decretorum lib. xix. The fame praftices appear to have exifted among
-the Anglo-Saxons. Thus, one of the cafes in Theodori Liher Peenitentialis, (in
-Thorpe's Ancie?it Lazvs a?id Inftitutes,') is, — Mulier qure femen viri fui in cibum
-miferit, ut inde amoris ejus plus accipiat, vii. annos poeniteat. Theod. Lih. Pcen.
-xvi. 30. And again, Mulier quae femen viri cum cibo fuo mifcuerit, et id fumpferit,
-ut mafculo carior fit, iii. annos jejunet. Ecgberti Cojifejftonale, fee. 29. Sprenger,
-Malleus Maleficarum, quaell. vii, tells us of witches who made men eat hien autre
-cbofe to fecure their love.
-GENERATIVE POUTERS. 175
-tiiry they became modified into a fed: which took the name of
-Paulicians, it is faid, from an Armenian enthufiaft named Paulus,
-and they feem to have ftill further provoked the hatred of the
-church by making themfelves, in their own interefts, the advocates
-of freedom of thought and of ecclefiaftical reform. If hiftory be to
-be believed, their Chriftian feelings cannot have been very ftrong,
-for, unable to refift perfecution within the empire, they retired
-into the territory held by the Saracens, and united with the enemies
-ot the Crofs in making war upon the Chriftian Greeks. Others
-fought refuge in the country of the Bulgarians, who had very
-generally embraced their do6lrines, which foon fpread thence weft-
-ward. In their progrefs through Germany to France they were
-known beft as Bulgarians, from the name of the country whence
-they came ; in their way through Italy they retained their name of
-Paulicians, corrupted in the Latin of that period of the middle ages
-into Populicani, Poplicani, Publicaniy &c ; and, in French, into
-Popelican^ Poblican^ Policien, and various other forms which it is
-unneceftary to enumerate. They began to caufe alarm in France
-at the beginning of the eleventh century, in the reign of king
-Robert, when, under the name of Popelicans, they had eftab-
-liftied themfelves in the diocefe of Orleans, in which city a council
-was held againft them in 1022, and thirteen individuals were
-condemned to be burnt. The name appears to have lafted into
-the thirteenth century, but the name of Bulgarians became
-more permanent, and, in its French form of Bolgres, Bougres, or
-BogreSy became the popular name for heretics in general. With
-thefe herefies, through the more fenfual parts of Gnofticifm and
-Manichaeifm, there appears to be left hardly room for doubt that
-the ancient phallic worftiip, probably fomewhat modified, and under
-the ftiadow of fecret rites, was imported into Weftern Europe ; for,
-if we make allowance for the willing exaggerations of religious
-hatred, and confequent popular prejudice, the general convidion
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-that thefe fedarians had rites and practices of a licentious charadler
-appears too ftrong to be entirely difregarded, nor does it prefent
-anything contrary to what we know of the ftate of mediasval
-fociety, or to the fafts which have already been brought forward
-in the prefent eflay. Thefe early fed:s appear to have profefled
-do6lrines rather clofely refembling modern communifm, including,
-like thofe of their earlier feftarian predeceffors, the community of
-women ; and this community naturally implies the abolition of
-diftindtive affinities. One of the writers againft the mediaeval
-heretics aflures us that there were "many profeffed Chriftians, both
-men and women, who feared no more to go to their fifter, or fon
-or daughter, or brother, or nephew or niece, or kin or relation,
-than to their own wife or hufband."^ They were accufed, beyond
-this, of indulging in unnatural vices, and this charge was fo
-generally believed, that the name of Bulgarus, or heretic, became
-equivalent with Sodomite, and hence came the modern French
-word bougre, and its Englifh reprefentatives.
-In the courfe of the eleventh century the feftarians appeared in
-Italy under the name of Patarini, Paterini, or Patrini, which is faid
-to have been taken from an old quarter of the city of Milan named
-Pataria, in which they firft held their aflemblies. A contemporary
-Englifhman, Walter Mapes, gives us a fingular account of the
-Paterini and their fecret rites. Some apoftates from this herefy,
-he tells us, had related that, at the firft watch of night, they
-met in their fynagogues, clofed carefully the doors and windows,
-and waited in filence, until a black cat of extraordinary bignefs
-defcended among them by a rope, and that, as foon as they faw
-Et haec eft caufa quare multi credentes, tarn viri quam mulieres, non timent
-magis ad fororem fuam, et filium five filiam, fratrem, neptem, confanguineam, et
-cognatam accedere, quam ad uxorem et virum proprium. Reinerus, Contra
-Waldenfes, in Gretferus, Scriptores contra Se^am Waldenjium, Gretferi Opera,
-torn, xii, p. 33.
-GENERATIVE POWERS, 177
-this ftrange animal, they put out the lights, and muttering through
-their teeth inftead of Tinging their hymns, felt their way to this
-objed of their worfhip, and kiffed it, according to their feelings of
-humility or pride, fome on the feet, fome under the tail, and others
-on the genitals, after which each feized upon the neareft perfon of a
-different fex, and had carnal intercourfe as long as he was able.
-Their leaders taught them that the moft perfed degree of charity was
-"to do or fuffer in this manner whatever a brother or fifter might
-defire and afk," and hence, fays Mapes, they were called Paterini,
-a-patiendo} Other writers have fuggefted a different derivation,
-but the one firft given appears to be that moft generally accepted.
-The different feds or congregations in Italy and the fouth, indeed,
-appear generally to have taken their names from the towns in
-which they had their feats or head-quarters. Thus, thofe who
-were feated at Bagnols, in the department of the Gard, in the
-fouth of France, were called by the Latin writers Bagnolenfes; the
-fame writers give the name of Concordenfes, or Concorezenfes,
-to the heretics of Concordia in Lombardy ; and the city of Albi,
-now the capital of the department of the Tarn, gave its name
-to the fed of the Albigenfes, or Albigeois, the moft extenfive
-Refipuerunt autem multi, reverfique ad fidem enarrant quod circa primam
-nodlis vigiliam, claufis eorum januis, hofliis, et feneftris, expeflantes in fingulis
-finagogis fuis fingulas fedeant in filentio familiae, defcenditque per funem appenfiim
-in medio mirae magnitudinis murelegus niger, quern cum viderint, luminibus extinftis,
-hymnos non decantant, non diftin(5le dicunt, fed ruminant affertis dentibus, acce-
-duntque ubi dominum fuum viderint palpantes, inventumque deofculantur quifque
-fecundum quod ampliore fervet infania humilius, quidam pedes, plurimi Tub cauda,
-plerique pudenda, et quafi a loco foetoris accepts liccntia pruriginis, quifque fibi
-proximum aut proximam arripit, commifcenturque quantum quiique ludibrium
-extendere prsevalet. Dicunt etiam magiftri docentque novitios caritatem efTe per-
-fedlam agere vel pati quod defideraverit et petierit frater aut foror, extinguere fcilicet
-invicem ardcntes, et a patiendo Paterini dicuntur. Mapes, De Nugis Curialium,
-p. 61.
-A A
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-of them all, which fpread over the whole of the fouth of France. A
-rich enthufiaft of the city of Lyons, named Waldo, who had collected
-his wealth by mercantile purfuits, and who lived in the twelfth cen-
-tury, fold his property and diftributed it among the poor, and he
-became the head of a fed: which profefled poverty as one of its
-tenets, and received from the name of its founder that ofWaldenfes
-or Vaudois. From their profeffion of voluntary poverty they are
-fometimes fpoken of by the name of Pauperes de Lugduno, the
-paupers of Lyons. Contemporaries fpeak of the Waldenfes as
-being generally poor ignorant people ; yet they fpread widely
-over that part of France and into the valleys of Switzerland, and
-became fo celebrated, that at laft nearly all the mediaeval heretics
-were ufually clafled under the head of Waldenfes. Ano^^her fed,
-ufually clafTed with the Waldenfes, were called Cathari. 1 he Nova-
-tians, a fedl which fprang up in the church in the third century,
-afTumed alfo the name of Cathari, as laying claim to extraordinary
-purity (/ca^apot), but there is no reafon for believing that the ancient
-{t&. was revived in the Cathari of the later period, or even that
-the two words are identical. The name of the latter fed: is
-often fpelt Gazari, Gazeri, Ga?ari, and Chazari ; and, as they were
-more efpecially a German fed, it is fupposed to have been the
-origin of the German words Ketzer and Ketzerie^ which became
-the common German terms for a heretic and herefy. It was
-fuggefted by Henfchenius that this name was derived from the
-German Katze or Ketze^ a cat, in allufion to the common report
-that they afTembled at night like cats, or ghofts ;^ or the
-cat may have been an allufion to the belief that in their fecret
-meetings they worfhipped that animal. This fed muft have been
-very ignorant and fuperftitious if it be true which fome old writers
-^ Propter nofturnas coitiones, a voce Germanica caters, id eft, feles feu lemures.
-See Ducange, fub v. Cathari.
-GENERAT I V E POWERS. 179
-tell us, that they believed that the fun was a demon, and the moon
-a female called Heva, and that thefe two had fexual intercourfe
-every month. ^ Like the other heretical feds, thefe Cathari were
-accufed of indulging in unnatural vices, and the German words
-Ketzerie and Kelzer were eventually ufed to fignify fodomy and a
-fodomite, as well as herefy and a heretic.
-The Waldenfes generally, taking all the feds which people clafs
-under this name, including alfo the older Bulgari and Publicani,
-were charged with holding fecret meetings, at which the devil
-appeared to them in the fhape, according to fome, of a goat, whom
-they worfhipped by offering the kifs in am, after which they
-indulged in promifcuous fexual intercourfe. Some believed that
-they were conveyed to thefe meetings by unearthly means. The
-Englifh chronicler Ralph de Coggefhall, tells a ftrange ftory of
-the means of locomotion poffeffed by thefe heretics. In the city
-of Rheims, in France, in the time of St. Louis, a handfome young
-woman was charged with herefy, and carried before the archbifhop,
-in whofeprefence fhe avowed her opinions, and confeffed that fhehad
-received them from a certain old woman of that city. The old
-woman was then arrefted, convided of being an obftinate heretic,
-and condemned to the ftake. When they were preparing to carry
-her out to the fire, fhe fuddenly turned to the judges and faid, " Do
-you think that you are able to burn me in your fire ? I care neither
-for it nor for you ! " And taking a ball of thread, fhe threw it out
-at a large window by which fhe was flanding, holding the end of
-the thread in her hands, and exclaiming, " Take it ! " [recipe). In
-an inflant, in the fight of all who were there, the old woman was
-lifted from the ground, and, following the ball of thread, was car-
-ried into the air nobody knew where ; and the archbifhop's officers
-Bonacurfus, ^^ita Ha^reticornm, in D'Achery, Spicikgium, torn, i, p. 209. This
-book is confidered to have been written about the year 1190.
-i8o ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-burnt the young woman in her place.^ It was the belief of moft of
-the old feds of this clafs, as well as of the more ancient Pagans
-from whom they were derived, that thofe who were fully initiated
-into their moft fecret myfteries became endowed with powers and
-faculties above thofe pofTefled by ordinary individuals. A lift of
-the errors of the Waldenfes, printed in the Reliquia Antiqude^ from
-an Englifti manufcript, enumerates among them that they met
-to indulge in promifcuous fexual intercourfe, and held perverfe
-doctrines in accordance with it; that, in fome parts, the devil
-appeared to them in the form of a cat, and that each kifled him
-under the tail ; and that in other parts they rode to the place of
-meeting upon a ftaff" anointed with a certain unguent, and were
-conveyed thither in a moment of time. The writer adds that,
-in the parts where he lived, thefe pradices had not been known
-to exift for a long time.^
-Our old chroniclers exult over the fmall fuccefs which attended
-the eftbrts of thefe heretics from France and the South to introduce
-themfelves into our ifland.^ Thefe fed:s, with fecret and obfcene
-Radulphus Cogefhalenfis, in the AmpliJJima ColleBio of Martene and Durand.
-On the offences with which the different fedls comprifed under the name of Wal-
-denfes were charged, fee Gretfer's Scrip tores contra Se£lam Waldenjium, which will
-be found in the twelfth volume of his works, Bonacurfus, Vita Hareticorum, in the
-firft volume of D'Achery's Spicilegium, and the work of a Carthufian monk in
-Martene and Durand, AmpliJJima Colle£lio, vol. vi, col. 57 et feq.
-Wright and Halliwell, Reliquiae Antique, vol. i, p. 247.
-Item, habent inter fe mixtum abominabile, et perverfa dogmata ad hoc apta, fed
-non reperitur quod abutantur in partibus itlis a multis temporibus.
-Item, in aliquibus aliis partibus apparet eis daemon fub fpecie et figura cati, quem
-fub Cauda figillatim ofculantur.
-Item, in aliis partibus fuper unum baculum certo unguento perunftum equitant,
-et ad loca affignata ubi voluerint congregantur in momento dum volunt. Sed
-ifta in iilis partibus non inveniuntur.
-See, for example, Guil. Neubrigenfis, De Rebus Anglicis, lib. ii, c. 13, and
-Walter Mapes, de Nugis Curialium, p. 62.
-GENERATIVE P GIVERS. i8i
-rites, appear, indeed, to have found moll favour among the peoples
-who fpoke a dialed derived from the Latin, and this we might
-naturally be led to expeft, for the fadl of the prefervation of the
-Latin tongue is itfelf a proof of the greater force of the Roman
-element in the foclety, that from which thefe fecret rites appear to
-have been chiefly derived. It is a curious circumftance, in connec-
-tion with this fubjed, that the popular oaths and exclamations
-among the people fpeaking the languages derived from the Romans
-are almoft all compofed of the names of the objeds of this phallic
-worfliip, an entire contraft to the praftice of the Teutonic tribes —
-the vulgar oaths of the people fpeaking Neo-Latin dialeds are
-obfcene, thofe of the Germanic race are profane. We have feen
-how the women of Antwerp, who, though perhaps they did not
-fpeak the Roman dialed, appear to have been much influenced by
-Roman fentiments, made their appeal to their genius Ters. When
-a Spaniard is irritated or fuddenly excited, he exclaims, Carajo !
-(the virile member) or Cojones! (the tefliicles). An Italian, under
-fimihir circumfl:ances, ufes the exclamation Cazzo ! (the virile
-member). The Frenchman apofl:rophizes the ad, Foutre I The
-female member, cono with the Spaniard, conno with the Italian, and
-con with the Frenchman, was and is ufed more generally as an ex-
-preflion of contempt, which is alfo the cafe with the tefl:icles, couil-
-lons, in French — thofe who have had experience in the old days of
-"diligence" travelling will remember how ufual it was for the
-driver, when the horfes would not go quick enough, to addrefs the
-leader in fuch terms as, " Z^^, donc^ vieux con! " We have no luch
-words ufed in this manner in the Germanic languages, with the
-exception, perhaps, of the German Potz ! and Potztaufend! and
-the Knglifli equivalent. Pox ! which lafl: is gone quite out of ufe.
-There was an attempt among the fafliionables of our Flizabethan
-age of literature, to introduce the Italian cazzo under the form of
-catfo, and the French /^w/rt- under that o^ foutra, but thefe were
-i82 07V rHE WORSHIP OF THE
-mere affedatPons of a moment, and were fo little in accord with
-our national fentiments that they foon difappeared.
-The earl ieft accounts of a fee!!: which held fecret meetings for
-celebrating obfcene rites is found in France. It appears that, early
-in the eleventh century, there was in the city of Orleans a fociety
-confifting of members of both fexes, who afTembled at certain
-times in a houfe there, for the purpofes which are defcribed rather
-fully in a document found in the cartulary of the abbey of St.
-Pere at Chartres. As there ftated, they went to the meeting,
-each carrying in the hand a lighted lamp, and they began by
-chaunting the names of demons in the manner of a litany, until a
-demon fuddenly defcended among them in the form of an animal.
-This was no fooner feen, than they all extinguifhed their lamps,
-and each man took the firft female he put his hand upon, and had
-fexual intercourfe with her, without regard if fhe were his mother,
-or his fifler, or a confecrated nun ; and this intercourfe, we are
-told, was looked upon by them as an aft of holinefs and religion.
-The child which was the fruit of this intercourfe was taken on the
-eighth day and purified by fire, "in the manner of the ancient
-Pagans," — fo fays the contemporary writer of this document, — it
-was burnt to afhes in a large fire made for that purpofe. The
-afhes were collected with great reverence, and preferved, to be
-adminiftered to members of the fociety who were dying, juft as
-good Chriftians received the viaticum. It is added that there was
-fuch a virtue in thefe afhes, that an individual who had once tafted
-them would hardly ever after be able to turn his mind from that
-herefy and take the path of truth.^
-Congregabantur fiquidem certis no6libus in domo denominata, finguli lucernas
-tenentes in manibus, et, ad inftar letaniae, daemonum nomina declamabant, donee
-fubito daemonem in fimilitudine cujuflibet beftiolae inter eos viderent defcendere.
-Qui, ftatim ut vifibilis ilia videbatur vifio, omnibus extinftis luminaribus, quam-
-primum quifque poterat, mulierem quae ad manum libi veniebat ad abutendum arri-
-GENERAriVE POfVERS. 183
-Whatever degree of truth there may have been in this ftory, it
-muft have been greatly exaggerated; but the conviftion of the
-exiftence of fecret focieties of this charader during the middle ages
-appears to have been fo ftrong and so generally held, that we
-muft hefitate in rejecting it. Perhaps we may take the leaden
-tokens already defcribed, and reprefented in one of our plates,' as
-evidence of the exiftence of fuch focieties, for thefe curious objeds
-appear to admit of no other fatisfadlory explanation than that of
-having been in ufe in fecret clubs of a very impure charader.
-It has been already remarked that people foon feized upon accu-
-fations of this kind as excufes for perfecution, religious and poli-
-tical, and we meet with a curious example in the earlier half of the
-thirteenth century. The diftrid of Steding, in the north of Ger-
-many, now known as Oldenburg, was at the beginning of the
-thirteenth century inhabited by a people who lived in fturdy inde-
-pendence, but the archbiftiops of Bremen feem to have claimed
-feme fort of feudal fuperiority over them, which they refifted by
-force. The archbiftiop, in revenge, declared them heretics, and
-proclaimed a crufade againft them. Crufades againft heretics were
-then in faftiion, for it was juft at the time of the great war againft
-the Albigeois. The Stedingers maintained their independence fuc-
-cefsfuUy for fome years. In 1232 and 1233, the pope iffued two
-piebat, fine peccati refpeftu et utrum mater aut foror aut monacha haberetur, pro
-fanftitate ac religione ejus concubitus ab illis sftimabatur. Ex quo fpurciffimo concu-
-bitu infans generatus oftava die in medio eorum copiofo ignc accenfo piabatur per
-ignem, more antiquorum paganorum, et fic in igne cremabatur. Cujus cinis tanta
-veneratione colligebatur atque cuftodiebatur, ut Chriftiana religiofitas corpus Chrilli
-cuftodiri folet, aegris dandum de hoc feculo exituris ad viaticum. Incrat enim tanta
-visdiabolicas fraudis in ipfo cinere, ut quicumquede prajfatahicrefi imbutus fuiflet, ct
-de eodem cinere quamvis sumendo parum praclibavifTet, vixunquam poilea de eadem
-hasrefi grefTum mentis ad viam veritatis dirigere valeret. Guerard, Cartulaire de
-I Abbaye de Saint-Pere de Chartres, vol. i, p. 112.
-See before, p. 146, and Plate xxxiii.
-i84 ON THE JVORSHIP OF THE
-bulls againft the offending Stedingers, in both of which he charges
-them with various heathen and magical practices, but in the fecond
-he enters more fully into details. Thefe Stedingers, the pope
-(Gregory IX.) tells us, performed the following ceremonies at the
-initiation of a new convert into their fed. When the novice was
-introduced, a toad prefented itfelf, which all who were prefent kiffed,
-fome on the pofteriors, and others on the mouth, when they drew its
-tongue and fpittle into their own mouths. Sometimes this toad
-appeared of only the natural fize, but fometimes it was as big as a
-goofe or duck, and often its fize was that of an oven. As the novice
-proceeded, he encountered a man who was extraordinarily pale, with
-large black eyes, and whofe body was fo wafted that his flefli feemed
-to be all gone, leaving nothing but the fkin hanging on his bones.
-The novice kiffed this perfonage, and found him as cold as ice ;
-and after this kifs all traces of the Catholic faith vaniftied from his
-heart. Then they all fat down to a banquet; and when this was
-over, there ftepped out of a ftatue, which ftood in their place of
-meeting, a black cat, as large as a moderate fized dog, which
-advanced backwards to them, with its tail turned up. The novice
-firft, then the mafter, and then all the others in their turns, kiffed
-the cat under the tail, and then returned to their places, where
-they remained in filence, with their heads inclined towards the cat.
-Then the mafter fuddenly pronounced the words "Spare us ! " which
-he addreffed to the next in order ; and the third answered, " We
-know it, lord ; " and a fourth added, " We ought to obey." At
-the clofe of this ceremony the lights were extinguiftied, and each
-man took the firft woman who came to hand, and had carnal inter-
-courfe with her. When this was over, the candles were again
-lighted, and the performers refumed their places. Then out of a
-dark corner of the room came a man, the upper part of whom,
-above the loins, was bright and radiant as the fun, and illuminated
-the whole room, while his lower parts were rough and hairy like a
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 185
-cat. The mafter then tore off a bit of the garment of the novice,
-and faid to the (hining perfonage, " Mafter, this is given to me,
-and I give it again to thee." The mafter replied, " Thou haft
-ferved me well, and thou wilt ferve me more and better; what
-thou haft given me I give unto thy keeping." When he had faid
-this, the ftiining man vaniftied, and the meeting broke up. Such
-were the fecret ceremonies of the Stedingers, according to the deli-
-berate ftatement of pope Gregory IX, who alfo charges them with
-offering dired worftiip to Lucifer.^
-But the moft remarkable, and at the fame time the moft cele-
-brated, affair in which thefe accufations of fecret and obfcene cere-
-monies were brought to bear, was that of the trial and diffolution of
-the order of the knights templars. The charges againft the
-knights templars were not heard of for the firft time at the period
-of their diffolution, but for many years it had been whifpered abroad
-that they had fecret opinions and pradices of an objedionable
-character. At length the wealth of the order, which was very
-great in France, excited the cupidity of king Philippe IV, and it
-was refolved to proceed againft them, and defpoil them of their
-poffeffions. The grounds for thefe proceedings were furniftied by
-two templars, one a Gafcon, the other an Italian, who were evi-
-dently men of bad charafter, and who, having been imprifoned for
-fome offence or offences, made a confeffion of the fecret pradices
-of their order, and upon thefe confeflions certain articles of accu-
-fation were drawn up. Thefe appear to have been enlarged
-afterwards. In 1307, Jacques de Molay, the grand mafter of the
-order, was treacheroufly allured to Paris by the king, and there
-feized and thrown into prifon. Others, fimilarly committed to
-prifon in all parts of the kingdom, were examined individually on
-' Baror.ius, An/tales Ecclefiajlici, torn, xxi, p. 89, where the two bulls are printed,
-and where the details of the hillory of the Stedingers will be found,
-B B
-i86 ON THE TVORSHIP OF THE
-the charges urged againft them, and many confefTed, while others
-obftinately denied the whole. Amongft thefe charges were the
-following: i. That on the admiffion of a new member of the
-order, after having taken the oath of obedience, he was obliged to
-deny Chrift, and to fpit, and fometimes alfo to trample, upon the
-crofs ; 2. That they then received the kifs of the templar, who
-officiated as receiver, on the mouth, and afterwards were obliged to
-kifs him in ano, on the navel, and fometimes on the generative
-member ; 3. That, in defpite of the Saviour, they fometimes wor-
-{hipped a cat, which appeared amongft them in their fecret conclave;
-. That they pradifed unnatural vice together; 5. That they
-had idols in their different provinces ; in the form of a head, having
-fometimes three faces, fometimes two, or only one, and fometimes
-a bare fkull, which they called their faviour, and believed its in-
-fluence to be exerted in making them rich, and in making flowers
-grow and the earth germinate ; and 6. That they always wore about
-their bodies a cord which had been rubbed againft the head, and
-which ferved for their protedlion.^
-The ceremonies attending the reception into the order were fo
-univerfally acknowledged, and are defcribed in terms which have fo
-much the appearance of truthfulnefs, that we can hardly altogether
-diflDelieve in them. The denial was to be repeated thrice,no doubt in
-imitation of St. Peter. 1 1 appears to have been considered as a trial of
-the ftrength of the obedience they had just fworn to the order, and
-they all pleaded that they had obeyed with reludance, that they had
-denied with the mouth but not with the heart ; and that they had
-intentionally fpit befide the crofs and not upon it. In one inftance
-the crofs was of filver, but it was more commonly of brafs, and ftill
-more frequently of wood ; on one occafion the crofs painted in a
-miflal was ufed, and the crofs on the templar's mantle often ferved
-^ Proch des Templiers, edited by M. Michelet, vol. i, pp. 90-92.
-GENERATIVE POPFERS. 187
-the purpofe. When one Nicholas de Compiegne protefted againft
-thefe two ads, all the templars who were prefent told him that he
-muft do them, for it was the ciiftom of the order.^ Baldwin de St.
-Juft at firft refufed, but the receptor warned him that if he perfifted
-in his refufal, it would be the worfe for him {aliler male accideret
-fibi), and then " he was fo much alarmed that his hair flood on end."*
-Jacques de Trecis faid that he did it under fear, becaufe his receptor
-flood by with a great naked fword in his hand.^ Another, Geoffrey
-de Thatan, having fimilarly refufed, his receptor told him that they
-were " points of the order," and that if he did not comply, " he
-fhould be put in fuch a place that he would never fee his own feet."*
-And another who refufed to utter the words of denial was thrown
-into prifon and kept there until vefpers, and when he faw that he
-was in peril of death, he yielded, and did whatever the receptor
-required of him, but he adds that he was fo troubled and frightened
-that he had forgotten whether he fpat on the crofs or not.'' Gui
-de la Roche, a prell^yter of the diocefe of Limoges, faid that he
-uttered the denial with great weeping." Another, when he denied
-Chrirt, "was all ftupified and troubled, and it feemed to him as if
-he were enchanted, not knowing what counfel to take, as they
-threatened him heavily if he did not do it."'' When Etienne de
-^ Proces des Temp Hers, ii, 418.
-Et tunc ipfe tellis fuit magis attonitus, et orripilavit, id eft eriguere pili fui.
-Proces, i, 242.
-Proces, i, 254.
-■* Subjunxit idem receptor quod ifta erant de pundlis ordinis .... fubjiciens
-diftum prsceptorem fibi dixifle quod, nifi prsdifta faceret, poneretur in tali loco quod
-nunquam videret pedes fuos. Proces, \, pp. 222, 223. See alfo, i, 321.
-Et tunc dirtus recipiens pofuit eum in quodam carcere, in quo ftetit ufque ad
-vefperas ; et cum vidiftet quod efTct in periculo mortis, petivit quod exiret, et faceret
-voluntatem ejus. Proces, ii, 284.
-Cum magno fletu. Proces, ii, 219.
-Et ipfe fuit totus ftupefaftus et turbatus, et videbatur fibi quafi quod eflet in-
-i88 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-Dijon fimilarly refufed to deny his Saviour, the preceptor told him
-that he muft do it becaufe he had fworn to obey his orders, and
-then "he denied with his mouth," hefaid, "but not with his heart;
-and he did this with great grief," and he adds that when it was
-done, he was fo confcience-ftruck that " he wifhed he had been
-outfide at his liberty, even though it had been with the lofs of one
-of his arms."^ When Odo de Dompierre, with great relu6lance,
-at length fpat on the crofs, he faid that he did it with fuch bitter-
-nefs of heart that he would rather have had his two thighs broken.^
-Michelet, in the account of the proceedings againft the templars in
-his " Hiftory of France," offers an ingenious explanation of thefe
-ceremonies of initiation which gives them a typical meaning. He
-imagines that they were borrowed from the figurative myfteries and
-rites of the early Church, and fuppofes that, in this fpirit, the can-
-didate for admiffion into the order was firft prefented as a finner
-and renegade, in which character, after the example of Peter, he
-was made to deny Chrift. This denial, he fuggefts, was a fort of
-pantomime in which the novice expreffed his reprobate ftate by
-fpitting on the crofs ; after which he was ftripped of his profane
-clothing, received, through the kifs of the order, into a higher ftate
-of faith, and clothed with the garb of its holinefs. If this were
-the cafe, the true meaning of the performance muft have been very
-foon forgotten.
-This was efpecially the cafe with the kifs. According to the
-cantatus, nefciens fibi ipfi confulere, cum comminarentur eidem graviter nifi hoc
-faceret. Proces, i, 291.
-^ Preceptor refpondit ei quod oportebat eum abnegare, quia juraverat obedire
-przeceptis fuis ; et teftis abnegavit ore, ficut dixit, et non corde ; et hoc fecit cum
-magno dolore, et voluiffet, ficut dixit, tunc fuiffe extra in libertate fua cum uno folo
-brachio, quia faciebat contra confcientiam fuam. Proces, i, 302.
-Adjiciens fe cum magna cordis amaritudine hoc fecifle, et quod tunc magis vo-
-luiffet habuiffe crura fra6la, quam facere praedi6la, et fuit per aliquod fpatium, ficut
-dixit, relu(5lans priufquam hoc faceret. Proces, i, 307.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 189
-articles of accufation, one of the ceremonies of initation required
-the novice to kifs the receiver on the mouth, on the anus^ or the
-end of the fpine, on the navel, and on the virga virilis? The laft
-is not mentioned in the examinations, but the others are defcribed
-by fo many of the witnefles that we cannot doubt of their truth.
-From the depofitions of many of the templars examined, it would
-appear that the ufual order was to kifs the receptor firft in am, next
-on the navel, and then on the mouth.^ The firft of thefe was an
-ad which would, of courfe, be repulfive to moft people, and the
-pradice arofe gradually of only kifting the end of the fpine, or, as
-it was called in mediaeval Latin, in anca. Bertrand de Somorens,
-of the diocefe of Amiens, defcribing a reception at which more than
-one new member was admitted, fays that the receiver next told
-them that they muft kifs him in ano; but, inftead of kifling him
-there, they lifted up his clothes and kifled him on the fpine;^ The
-receptor, it appears, had the power of remitting this kifs when he
-judged there was a fufticient reafon. Etienne de Dijon, a prefbyter
-of the diocefe of Langres, faid that, when he was admitted into
-the order, the preceptor told him that he ought, " according to the
-obfervances of the order," to kifs his receiver in ano, but that in
-confideration of his being a preiliyter, he would fpare him and
-remit this kifs.* Pierre de Grumenil, alfo a prefbyter, when called
-Item, quod in receptione fratrum difti ordinis, vel circa, interdum recipiens et
-receptus aliquando fe deofculabantur in ore, in umbilico feu in ventre nudo, et in ano
-feu fpina dorfi .... aliquando in virga virili. Proces, i, 91.
-See the Proces, ii, 286, 362, 364.
-Deinde prjecepit eis quod ofcularentur eum in ano ; ipfi tamen non fuerunt eum
-inibi ofculati, fed, elevatis pannis, prasdiftum receptorem fuerunt ofculati in fpina
-dorfi nuda, et hoc fecerunt, quia dixit eis quod erat de pundlis ordinis. Proces, ii,
-. Another faid, on another occafion, Pr^ecepit etiam diftus receptor eis, quod
-ofcularentur cum in ano et in umbilico, et ipfi ofculati fuerunt in anca et umbilico
-fuper carnem nudam. lb. ii, i 59.
-^ Item dixit quod, praediftis peradlis, diftus praeceptor dixit ei quod fecundum ob-
-ON "THE WORSHIP OF THE
-upon to perform this adt, refufed, and was allowed to kifs his re-
-ceiver on the navel only/ A prefbyter named Ado de Dompierre
-was excufed for the fame reafon/ as well as many others. Another
-templar, named Pierre de Lanhiac, faid that, at his reception into
-the order, his receptor told him that he muft kifs him in ano^
-becaufe that was one of the points of the order, but that, at the
-earneft fupplication of his uncle, who was prefent, and muft there-
-fore have been a knight of the order, he obtained a remilTion of
-this kifs.^
-Another charge againft the templars was ftill more difgufting.
-It was faid that they profcribed all intercourfe with women, and
-one of the men examined ftated, which was alfo confefTed by others,
-that his receptor told him that, from that hour, he was never to
-enter a houfe in which a woman lay in labour, nor to take part as
-godfather at the baptifm of any child,* but he added that he had
-broken his oath, for he had affifted at the baptifm of feveral chil-
-dren while ftill in the order, which he had left about a year before
-the feizure of the templars, for the love of a woman of whom he
-had become enamoured. On the other hand, thofe who replied to
-the interrogatory of the king's officers in this procefs, were all but
-unanimous in the avowal that on entering the order they received
-fervantias ordinis eorum recepti debebant ofculari in ano receptores, quia tamen idem
-teftis erat prefbyter, parcebat ei et remittebat fibi diftum ofculum. Proces, i, 302.
-Deinde praecepit quod ofcularetur eum in ano, et cum ipfe teftis nollet hoc facere,
-praecepit quod ofcularetur eum faltem in umbilico fuper carnem nudam, et fuit eum
-ibi ofculatus. Proces, ii, 24.
-Proces, i, 307.
-Poft quas dixit eidem quod fecundum difta punfta debebat eum ofculari in ano,
-et praecepit quod ibi ofcularetur eum, fed, avunculo ipfius teftis flexis genibus inftante,
-remifit ei ofculum memoratum. Proces, ii, 2.
-^ Dixit etiam quod ab ilia hora in antea non intraret domum in qua aliqua mulier
-jaceret in puerperio, nee fufciperet aliquem nee teneret in facro fonte. Proces, i,
-.
-GENERATI V E POWERS. 191
-the permiilion to commit fodomy amongft themfelves. Two or
-three profefled not to have underftood this injundion in a bad
-fenfe, hut to have fuppofed that it only meant that, when the
-brethren were fhort of beds, each was to be ready to lend half his
-bed to his fellow/ One of them, named Gillet de Encraye, faid
-that he at firft fuppofed it to be meant innocently, but that his re-
-ceptor immediately undeceived him, by repeating it in lefs covert
-terms, at which he was himfelf fo horrified that he wifhed himfelf
-far away from the chapel in which the ceremony took place.^ A
-great number of templars ftated that, after the kiffes of initiation,
-they were informed that if they felt moved by natural heat, they
-might call any one of the brethren to their relief,and that they ought
-to relieve their brethren when appealed to under the fame circum-
-ftances.^ This appears to have been the moft common form of
-the injunction. In one or two inftances the receiver is defcribed as
-adding that this was an ad of contempt towards the other fex,
-which may perhaps be confidered as fhowing that the ceremony
-was derived from fome of the myfteries of the ftrange feds which
-appeared in the earlier ages of Christianity. Jean de St. Loup,
-who held the office of mafter of the houfe of templars at Soifiac,
-faid that, on his reception into the order, he received the injundion
-Poft quae immediate prascepit idem frater P. ipfi tefti quod fi aliquis frater difti
-ordinis vellet jacere fecum, non deberet recufare. Ipfe tamen teftis, ut dixit, non
-intellexit quod hoc diceret ut jacentes infimul aliquod peccatum committeretur, fed,
-fi deficeret leflus alteri, quod reciperet eum in ledlo fuo honefto. Proces, i, 262.
-See again, i. 568.
-Sed diftus frater Johannes fubjunxit et declaravit quod carnaliter poterant com-
-mifceri, de quo ipfe teftis fuit multum turbatus, ut dixit, et multum dcfideravit, ut
-dixit, quod tunc eflet extra portam diftae capellse. Procl's, i, 250.
-Quo fafto, dixit fibi recipiens quod ^\ aliquis calor naturalis movcret eum ad libi-
-dinem excrccndam, faceret fccum jacere unum de fratribus fuis ct haberet rem cum
-eo, et permitteret hoc idem fimiliter fibi fieri ab aliis fratribus. Proces, ii, 284.
-Conf. pp. 287, 288.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-not to have intercourfe with women, but, if he could not perfevere
-in continence, he might have the fame intercourfe with men ;^ and
-others were told that it would " be better to fatisfy their luft among
-themfelves, whereby the order would efcape evil report,than if they
-went to women. "^ But although the almoft unanimity of the confef-
-fions leave hardly room for a doubt that fuchinjundions were given,
-yet on the other hand they are equally unanimous in denying that
-thefe injunctions were carried into praftice. Almoft every templar,
-as the queftions were put to him, after admitting that he was told
-that he might indulge in fuch vice with the other brethren, afterted
-that he had never done this,and that he had never been afked to do fo
-by any of them. Theobald de Taverniac, whofe name tells us that
-he came from the fouth, denied indignantly the exiftence of fuch a
-vice among their order, but in terms which themfelves told not
-very much in favour of the morality of the templars in other
-refpefts. He faid that, " as to the crime of fodomy," he believed
-the charge to be totally untrue, "becaufe they could have very
-handfome and elegant women when they liked, and that they did
-have them frequently when they were rich and powerful enough to
-afford it, and that on this account he and other brothers of the
-order were removed from their houfes, as he faid."^ We have
-an implied acknowledgment that the templars did not entirely
-Dixit etiam per juramentum fuum quod fuit fibi injunftum per eos quod non
-haberet rem cum mulieribus, fed, fi continere non poflet, commifceret fe carnaliter
-cum hominibus. Proces, 287. Conf. ii, 288, 294, etc.
-Poftea unus praediftorum fervientium dixit eis quod, fi haberent calorem et motus
-carnales, poterant ad invicem carnaliter commifceri, fi volebant, quia melius erat
-quod hoc facerent inter fe, ne ordo vituperaretur, quam ^\ accederent ad mulieres.
-Proces, i, 386.
-De crimine fodomitico, refpondit fe nihil fcire, nee credere contenta in ipfis arti-
-culis efle vera, quia poterant habere mulieres pulchras et bene comptas, et frequenter
-eas habebant, cum effent divites et potentes, et ex hoc ipfe et alii fratres ipiius
-ordinis amoti fuerant a fuis domibus, ut dixit. Proces, \, 326.
-GENERAriVK POWERS. 193
-negled: the other lex in a Itatement quoted by l)u Puy that, if a
-child were born from the intercourfe between a templar and a virgin,
-they roafted it, and made an unguent of its fat, with which they
-anointed their idol.^ Thofe who confefled to the exiftence of the
-vice were fo few, and their evidence fo indefinite or indired,
-that they are deferving of no confideration. One had heard
-that fome brethren beyond the fea had committed unnatural
-vices.^ Another, Hugh de Faure, had heard fay that two
-brothers of the order, dwelling in the Chateau Pelerin, had
-been charged with fodomy ; that, when this reached the ears of
-the mafter, he gave orders for their arreft, and that one had been
-killed in the attempt to efcape, while the other was taken and im-
-prifoned for life.^ Peter Brocart, a templar of Paris, declared that
-one of the order, one night, called him and committed fodomy
-with him ; adding that he had not refufed, becaufe he confidered
-himfelf bound to obedience by the rules of the order.* The evi-
-dence is decidedly ftrong againft the prevalence of fuch a vice
-among the templars, and the alleged permiflion was perhaps a mere
-form of words, which concealed fome occult meaning unknown to
-the mafs of the templars themfelves. We are not inclined to rejed:
-altogether the theory of the baron von Hammer-Ptirgftall, that
-the templars had adopted fome of the myfterious tenets of the
-eaftern Gnoftics.
-' Prseterea, fi ex templarii coitu infans ex puella virgine nafcebatur, hunc igni
-torrebant ; exque eliquata inde pinguedine fuum fimulachrum decoris gratia unge-
-bant. Robert Gaguin, ap. Du Puy, Hijhire de I'OrJre Militaire des Templiers,
-p. 24.
-Proces, ii, 213.
-•* Audivit dici quod duo fratres ordinis, commorantes in Callro Pcrcgrini, crant
-de crimine fodomitico difFamati ; et cum hoc perveniflet ad magiilrum, mandavit cos
-capi, et unus illorum fuit interfeftus cum fugeret, et alter f'uit perpetuo carceri man-
-cipatus. Proces, ii, 223.
-^ Proces, ii, 294.
-CC
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-In regard to the fecret idolatry with which the templars were
-charged, it is a fubjed; involved in great obfcurity. The cat is but
-little fpoken of in the depofitions. Some Italian knights confefled
-that they had been prefent at a fecret chapter of twelve knights
-held at Brindiii, when a grey cat fuddenly appeared amongft them,
-and they worfhipped it. At Nifmes, fome templars declared that
-they had been prefent at a chapter at Montpellier, when the demon
-appeared to them in the form of a cat, and promifed them worldly
-profperity, but they appear to have been vifionaries not to be
-trufted, for they ftated that at the fame time devils appeared in the
-fhape of women. An Englifh templar, examined in London, de-
-pofed that in England they did not adore the cat, or the idol, but
-that he had heard it pofitively ftated that the cat and the idol were
-worftiipped by the templars in parts beyond fea.^ A folitary
-Frenchman, examined in Paris, Gillet de Encreyo, fpoke of the
-cat, and faid that he had heard, but had forgotten who were his
-informants, and did not believe them, that beyond fea a certain cat
-had appeared to the templars in their battles.^ The cat belongs to
-a lower clafs of popular fuperftitions, perhaps, than that of the
-templars.
-This, however, was not the cafe with the idol, which was gene-
-rally defcribed as the figure of a human head, and appears only
-to have been fhown in the more fecret chapter meetings on parti-
-cular occafions. Many of the templars examined before the com-
-miflioners, faid that they had heard this idol head fpoken of as
-exifting in the order, and others depofed to having feen it. It was
-generally defcribed as being about the natural fize of a man's head,
-^ Refpondit quod in Anglia non adorant catum cec idolum, quod ipfe fciat ; fed
-audivit bene di.ci, quod adorant catum et idolum in partibus tranfmarinis. Wilkins,
-Concilia, vol. ii, p. 384.
-- Audivit tamen ab aliquibus dici, de quibus non recordatur, quod quidam catus
-apparebat ultra mare in prasliis eorum, quod tamen non credit. Proces, i, 251.
-GEN ERATI y E P GIVERS. 195
-with a very fierce-looking face and a beard, the latter fometimes
-white. Different witnefles varied as to the material of which it was
-made, and, indeed, in various other particulars, which lead us to
-fuppofe that each houfe of the templars, where the idol exifted, had
-its own head, and that they varied in form. They agreed generally
-that this head was an objed of worfhip. One templar depofcd that
-he was prefent at a chapter of the order in Paris, when the head
-was brought in, but he was unable to defcribe it at all, for, when
-he faw it, he was fo ftruck with terror that he hardly knew where
-he was. ^ Another, Ralph de Gyfi, who held the office of receptor
-for the province of Champagne, faid that he had feen the head in
-many chapters; that, when it was introduced, all prefent threw
-themfelves on the ground and adored it: and when afked to de-
-fcribe it, he faid, on his oath, that its countenance was fo terrible,
-that it feemed to him to be the figure of a demon — ufing the French
-word un maufe, and that as often as he faw it, fo great a fear took
-pofl'effion of him, that he could hardly look upon it without fear
-and trembling.^ Jean Taylafer faid that, at his reception into the
-order, his attention was directed to a head upon the altar in the
-chapel, which he was told he muff worfhip; he defcribed it as of
-the natural fize of a man's head, but could not defcribe it more
-particularly, except that he thought it was ofareddiffi colour.-'^
-Raynerus de Larchent faw the head twice in a chapter, efpecially
-once in Paris, where it had a baard, and they adored and kifl"ed it,
-^ Ipfe teftis, vilb dido capite, fuit adeo perterritus quod quafi nefciret ubi efret.
-Procesy i, 399.
-Interrogatus cujus figurse eft, dixit per juramentum fuum quod ita eft tcrribilis
-figurae et afpeftus quod videbatur fibi quod eflet figura cujufdam dasmonis, dicens
-Gallice d'un maufe, et quod quocienfcunque videbat eum tantus timor eum invade-
-bat, quod vix poterat illud refpicere nifi cum maximo timore et tremore. Proces,
-. ii, 364.
-Proces, i, 190.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-and called it their faviour.^ Guillermus de Herbaleyo faw the
-head with its beard, at two chapters. He thought it was of filver
-gilt, and wood infide. He "faw the brethern adore it, and he
-went through the form of adoring it himfelf, but he did it not in
-his heart." ^ According to one witnefs, Deodatus Jaffet, a knight
-from the fouth of France who had been received at Pedenat,
-the receptor fhowed him a head, or idol, which appeared to
-have three faces, and faid to him, "You muft adore this as your
-faviour, and the faviour of the order of the temple," and he added
-that he was made to worfhip the idol, faying, " BlefTed be he
-who fhall fave my foul ! " Another deponent gave a very fimilar
-account. Another knight of the order, Hugo de Paraudo, faid
-that, in a chapter at Montpellier, he had both feen, held, and felt,
-the idol, or head, and that he and the other brothers adored it, but
-he, like the others, pleaded that he did not adore it in his heart.
-He defcribed it as fupported on four feet, two before and two
-behind.^ Guillaume de Arrablay, the king's almoner [eleemqfynarius
-regius), faid that in the chapter at which he was received, a head
-made of filver was placed on the altar, and adored by thofe who
-formed the chapter ; he was told that it was the head of one of the
-eleven thoufand virgins, and had always believed this to be the
-cafe, until after the arreft of the order, when, hearing all that was
-faid on the matter, he "fufpeded" that it was the idol ; and he adds
-in his depofition that it feemed to him to have two faces, a terrible
-look, and a filver beard.* It does not appear very clear why he
-fhould have taken a head with two faces, a fierce look, and a beard,
-^ Quod adorant, ofculantur, et vocant falvatorem fuum. Proces, ii, 279.
-^ Et vidit fratres adorare illud ; et ipfe fingebat illud adorare, fed nunquam fecit
-corde, ut dixit. Proces, ii, 300.
-Proces, ii, 363.
-'* Videtur fibi quod haberet duas facies, et quod effet terribilis afpeftu, et quod ha-
-beret barbam argenteam. Proces, i, 502.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 197
-for one of the eleven thoufand virgins, but this is, perhaps, partly
-explained by the depofition of another witnefs, Guillaume Pidoye,
-who had the charge of the relics, &c, belonging to the Temple in
-Paris, and who produced a head of filver gilt, having a woman's
-face, and a fmall fkull, refembling that of a woman, infide, which
-was faid to be that of one of the eleven thoufand virgins. At the
-fame time another head was brought forward, having a beard, and
-fuppofed to be that of the idol.^ Both thefe witnefTes had no
-doubt confounded two things. Pierre Garald, of Murfac, another
-witnefs, faid that after he had denied Chrift and fpittenon the crofs,
-the receptor drew from his bofom a certain fmall image of brafs or
-gold, which appeared to reprefent the figure of a woman, and told
-him that " he muft believe in it, and have faith in it, and that
-it would be well for him."^ Here the idol appears in the form of
-a ftatuette. There was alfo another account of the idol, which
-perhaps refers to fome further objed of fuperftition among the
-templars. According to one deponent, it was an old fkin embalmed,
-with bright carbuncles for eyes, which fhone like the light of
-heaven. Others faid that it was the fkin of a man, but agreed with
-the others in regard to the carbuncles.^ In England a minorite
-friar depofed that an Englifh knight of the Temple had aflured
-him that the templars had four principal idols in this country, one
-in the facrifty of the Temple in London, another at Briftelham, a
-third at Brueria (Bruern in Lincolnfhire), and the fourth at fome
-place beyond the Humber.'*
-Proces, ii, 218.
-Item, dixit quod poil prsdidla didlus receptor, extrahens de finu fuo quamdam
-parvam imaginem de leone (^apparently a mi/reading') vel de auro, quas vidcbatur
-habere effigiem muliebrem, dixit ei quod crederet in earn, et haberet in ea fiduciam,
-et bene fibi eflet. Proces, ii, 212.
-Du Puy, HiJ}. des Tenpl., pp. 22, 24.
-^ Wilkins, Concil., vol. ii, p. 363.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-Another piece of information relating to this " idol," which has
-been the fubjed: of confiderable difcuflion among modern writers,
-was elicited from the examination of fome knights from the fouth.
-Gauferand de Montpefant, a knight of Provence, faid that their
-fuperior fhowed him an idol made in the form of Baffomet;^ ano-
-ther, named Raymond Rubei, defcribed it as a wooden head, on
-which the figure of Baphomet was painted, and adds, " that he
-worfhipped it by kiffingits feet, and exclaiming ' Yalla,' which was,"
-he fays, " verbum Saracenorum" a word taken from the Saracens.^
-A templar of Florence declared that, in the fecret chapters of the
-order, one brother faid to the other, fhowing the idol, " Adore this
-head — this head is your god and your Mahomet." The word
-Mahomet was ufed commonly in the middle ages as a general term
-for an idol or falfe god ; but fome writers have fuggefted that Ba-
-phomet is itfelf a mere corruption of Mahomet, and fuppofe that
-the templars had fecretly embraced Mahometanifm. A much more
-remarkable explanation of this word has, however, been propofed,
-which is, at the leaft, worthy of very great confideration, efpecially
-as it comes from fo diftinguifhed an orientalift and fcholar as the
-late baron Jofeph von Hammer-Piirgftall. It arofe partly from
-the comparifon of a number of objeds of art, ornamented with
-figures, and belonging apparently to the thirteenth century. Thefe
-objeds confift chiefly of fmall images, or ftatuettes, coffers, and
-cups.^
-Que leur fuperieur lui montra une idole barbue faite in jiguram Baffometi.
-Du Puy, Hijl. des Temp Hers, p. 216.
-Du Puy, HiJ}. des Templiers, p. 21.
-Von Hammer publiflied his difcoveries and opinions in 1816, in an elaborate
-eflay in the fixth volume of the Fundgruben des Orients, entitled, Myjlerium Bn-
-phometis revelatum, feu fratres militia Templi, qua gnojiici et quidem ophiani apo-
-Jiafi^, idolodulia et impuritatis conviSli per ipfa eorum monument a. In 1832, he
-publiihed a fupplementary eflay under the title Memoire fur deux coffrets gnojliques
-du Moyen Age, du Cabinet de M. le Due de Blacas, par M. Jofeph de Hammer.
-GENERATI V E POWERS. 1^9
-Von Hammer has defcribed, and given engravings of, twenty-
-four such images, which it muft be acknowledged anfwer very well
-to the defcriptions of their "idol " given by the templars in their
-examinations, except only that the templars ufually fpeakof them as
-of the fize of life, and as being merely heads. Mod of them have
-beards, and tolerably fierce countenances. Among thofe given by
-Von Hammer are feven which prefent only a head, and two with
-two faces, backwards and forwards, as defcribed in fome of the de-
-pofitions. Thefe two appear to be intended for female heads.
-Altogether Von Hammer has defcribed fifteen cups and goblets,
-but a much fmaller number of coffers. Both cups and coffers are
-ornamented with extremely curious figures, reprefenting a continu-
-ous fcene, apparently religious ceremonies of fome kind or other,
-but certainly of an obfcene charader, all the perfons engaged in
-which are reprefented naked. It is not a part of our fubjed to
-enter into a detailed examination of thefe myfteries. The moft in-
-terefting of the coffers defcribed by Von Hammer, which was pre-
-ferved in the private mufeum of the due de Blacas, is of calcarous
-flone, nine inches long by feven broad, and four and a half deep,
-with a lid about two inches thick. It was found in Burgundy.
-On the lid is fculptured a figure, naked, with a head-drefs refemb-
-ling that given to Cybele in ancient monuments, holding up achain
-with each hand, and furrounded with various fymbols, the fun and
-moon above, the flar and the pentacle below, and under the feet a
-human fkull.^ The chains are explained by Von Hammer as repre-
-fenting the chains of aeons of the Gnoflics. On the four fides of
-the coffer we fee a feries of figures engaged in the performance of
-various ceremonies, which are not eafily explained, but which Von
-Hammer confiders as belonging to the rites of the Gnoftics and
-Ophians. The offering of a calf figures prominently among thefe
-^ See our plate xxxviii.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-rites, a worfhip which is faid ftill to exift among the Noflarii, or
-NefTarenes, the Drufes, and other feds in the Eaft. In the middle
-of the fcene on one fide, a human fkull is feen, raifed upon a pole.
-On another fide an androgynous figure is reprefentedas theobjeftof
-worfhip of two candidates for initiation, who wear mafks apparently
-of a cat, and whofe form of adoration reminds us of the kifs enafted
-at the initiation of the templars.^ This group reminds us, too, of the
-pictures of the orgies in the worfhip of Priapus, as reprefented on
-Roman monuments. The fecond of the coffers in the cabinet of
-the due de Blacas was found in Tufcany, and is rather larger than
-the one just defcribed, but made of the fame material, though
-of a finer grain. The lid of this coffer is loft, but the fides are
-covered with fculpture of a fimilar charafter. A large goblet, or
-bowl, of marble, in the imperial mufeum at Vienna, is furrounded
-by a feries of figures of fimilar character, which are engraved by
-Von Hammer, who fees in one group of men (who are furnifhed
-in the original withprominent phalli) and ferpents, a dired; allufion
-to Ophite rites. Next after thefe comes a group which we have
-reproduced in our plate,^ reprefenting a flrange figure feated upon
-an eagle, and accompanied with two of the fymbols reprefented on
-the coffer found in Burgundy, the fun and moon. The two
-fymbols below are confidered by Von Hammer to reprefent, ac-
-cording to the rude mediaeval notions of its form, the womb, or
-matrix ; the fecundating organ is penetrating the one, while the
-infant is emerging from the other. The laft figure in this feries,
-which we have alfo copied,^ is identical with that on the lid of the
-coffer found in Burgundy, but it is diflindfly reprefented as andro-
-gynous. We have exadly the fame figure on another coffer, in the
-Vienna mufeum,* with fome of the fame fymbols, the flar, pentacle,
-Plate xxxix, fig. i. ^ Plate xxxix, fig. 2. ^ Plate xxxix, fig. 3.
-■* Plate xxxix, fig. 4.
-GENERAriVE POIVERS. 201
-and huiiKin (kull. Perhaps, in this laft, the beard is intended to
-(how that the figure muft be taken as androgynous.
-On an impartial comparifon we can hardly doubt that thefe
-curious objeds, — images, coffers, cups, and bowls, — have been
-intended for ufe in fome fecret and myfterious rites, and the
-arguments by which Von Hammer attempts to (how that they
-belonged to the templars feem at leaft to be very plaufible.
-Several of the objeds reprefented upon them, even the fkull, are
-alluded to in fome of the confeffions of the templars, and thefe
-evidently only confeffed a part of what they knew, or otherwife
-they were very imperfedly acquainted with the fecrets of their
-order. Perhaps the moft fecret dodrines and rites were only com-
-municated fully to a fmall number. There is, however, another
-circumflance conneded with thefe objeds which appears to furnifh
-an almoft irrefiftible confirmation of Von Hammer's theory. Mofl:
-of them bear infcriptions, written in Arabic, Greek, and Roman
-charaders. The infcriptions on the images appear to be merely
-proper names, probably thofe of their poffeffors. But with the
-coffers and bowls the cafe is different, for they contain a nearly
-uniform infcription in Arabic charaders,which,according to the inter-
-pretation given by Von Hammer, contains a religious formula. The
-Arabic charaders, he fays, have been copied by a European, and not
-very {kilful, carver, who did not understand them, from an Eaftern
-original, and the infcriptions contain corruptions and errors which
-either arofe from this circumftance, or, as Von Hammer fuggefts,
-may have been introduced defignedly, for the purpofe of concealing
-the meaning from the uninitiated. A good example of this infcrip-
-tion furrounds the lid of the coffer found in Burgundy, and is
-interpreted as follows by Von Hammer, who regards it as a fort of
-parody on the Cantate laudes Domini. In fad, the word under the
-feet of the figure, between them and the fkull, is nothing more
-than the Latin cantate expreffed in Arabic letters. The words with
-D D
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-which this Cantate begins are written above the head of the figure,
-and are read by Von Hammer as Jah la Sidna^ which is more cor-
-reftly Jella Sidna, i. e. O God, our Lord! The formula itfelf, to
-which this is an introduction, commences on the right fide, and the
-firfl; part of it reads Houve Mete Zonar fejeba {or Jebad) B. Mounkir
-teaala tix. There is no fuch word in Arabic as mete^ and Von
-Hammer confiders it to be fimply the Greek word iJt-rjTK;^ wifdom,
-a perfonification in what we may perhaps call the Gnoftic mytho-
-logy anfwering to the Sophia of the Ophianites. He confiders
-that the name Baphomet is derived from the Greek words I3a(f)rj
-fX')]T€o<i, i. e. the baptifm of Metis, and that in its application it is
-equivalent with the name Mete itfelf. He has further fliown, we
-think conclufively, that Baphomet, inftead of being a corruption
-of Mahomet, was a name known among the Gnoftic fefts in
-the Eaft. Zonar is not an Arabic word, and is perhaps only a cor-
-ruption or error of the fculptor, but Von Hammer thought it
-meant a girdle, and that it alluded to the myfterious girdle of the
-templars, of which fo much is faid in their examinations. The
-letter B is fuppofed by Von Hammer to ftand here for the name
-Baphomet, or for that of Barbalo, one of the moft important per-
-fonages in the Gnoftic mythology. Mounkir is the Arabic word for
-a perfon who denies the orthodox faith. The reft of the formula
-is given on the other fide of the figure, but as the infcription here
-prefents feveral corruptions, we will give Von Hammer's tranfla-
-tion (in Latin) of the more corre6t copy of the formula infcribed
-on the bowl or goblet preferved ip the mufeum at Vienna. In the
-Vienna bowl, the formula of faith is written on a fort of large
-placard, which is held up to view by a figure apparently intended
-for another reprefentation of Mete or Baphomet. Von Hammer
-tranflates it: —
-** Exaltetur Mete germinans, ftirps noftra ego et feptem fuere, tu renegans reditus
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 203
-This ftill is, it mull be confefled, rather myfterious, and, in fad,
-nioft of thefe copies of the formula of faith are more or lefs de-
-fedive, but, from a comparifon of them, the general form and
-meaning of the whole is made perfectly clear. This may be
-tranflated, " Let Mete be exalted, who caufes things to bud and
-bloflbm ! he is our root; it (the root) is one and feven ; abjure
-(the faith), and abandon thyfelf to all pleafures." The number
-feven is faid to refer to the feven archons of the Gnoftic creed.
-There are certainly feveral points in this formula which prefent
-at leaft a lingular coincidence with the ftatements made in the exa-
-minations of the templars. In the firft place the invocation which
-precedes the formula, Yalla (Jah la), agrees exadly with the state-
-ment of Raymond Rubei, one of the Provencal templars that when
-the fuperior exhibited the idol, or figure of Baphomet, he kifled it
-and exclaimed "Yalla!" which he calls "a word of the Saracens,"
-i. e. Arabic.^ It is evident that, in this cafe, the witnefs not only knew
-the word, but that he knew to what language it belonged. Again,
-the epithet ^^rw/«rt«j, applied to Mete, or Baphomet, is in accord
-with the ftatement in the formal lift of articles of accufation againft
-the templars, that they worfhipped their idol becaufe "it made the
-trees to flourifti and the earth to germinate."^ The abjuration of
-the formula on the monuments feems to be identical with the denial
-in the initiation of novices to the order of the Temple ; and it may
-be added, that the clofing words of the formula involve in the
-original an idea more obfcene than is exprefled in the tranflation,
-an allufion to the unnatural vice in which the templars are ftated to
-have received permifTion to indulge. There is another curious
-ftatement in the examinations which feems to point diredlly to our
-Du Puy, Hill, des Templiers, p. 94.
-Item, quod facit arbores florere. Item, quod terram germinare. Michelet,
-Proces des Templiers, i, 92.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-images and coffers — one of the English witnefles under exami-
-nation, named John de Donington, who had left the order and
-become a friar at Sal if bury, faid that an old templar had affured him
-that " fome templars carried fuch idols in their coffers."^ They
-feem to have been treafured up for the fame reafon as the mandrake,
-for one article in the articles againft the templars is, that they wor-
-ihipped their idol becaufe " it could make them rich, and that it
-had brought all their great wealth to the order."'^
-The two other claffes of what the Baron Von Hammer fuppofed
-to be relics of the fecret worfhip of the templars, appear to us to
-be much lefs fatisfadtorily explained. Thefe are fculptures on old
-churches, and coins or medals. Such fculptures are found, acord-
-ing to Von Hammer, on the churches of Schongraber, Waltendorf,
-and Bercktoldorf, in Auftria; in that of Deutfchaltenburg, and
-in the ruins of that of Poftyen, in Hungary ; and in thofe of
-Murau, Prague, and Egra, in Bohemia. To thefe examples we
-are to add the fculptures of the church of Montmorillon, in
-Poitou, fome of which have been engraved by Montfaucon,^ and
-thofe of the church of Ste. Croix, in Bordeaux. We have already*
-remarked the rather frequent prevalence of fubjects more or lefs
-obfcene in the fculptures which ornament early churches, and fug-
-gefted that they may be explained in fome degree by the tone given
-to fociety by the exiftence of this priapic worfhip ; but we are not
-inclined to agree with Von Hammer's explanation of them, or to
-think that they have any connection with the templars. We can
-eafily underftand the exiftence of fuch dired: allufions on coffers or
-Item dixit idem veteranus eidem fratri jurato, quod aliqui templarii portant
-talia idola in cofFris fuis. Wilkins, Concilia, W, 363.
-Item, quod divites facere. Item, quod omnes divitias ordinis dabat eis.
-Michelet, Proch, i. 92.
-Montfaucon, A7itiquite Expliquee, Suppl. torn, ii, plate 59.
-^ See before, p. 198.
-GENERATIVE POfVERS. 205
-other objeds intended to be concealed, or at leaft kept in private;
-but it is hardly probable that men who held opinions and pradifed
-rites the very rumour of which was then fo full of danger, would
-proclaim them publicly on the walls of their buildings, for the wall
-of a church was then, perhaps, the moft effeftual medium of publi-
-cation. The queftion of the fuppofed templar medals is very
-obfcure. Von Hammer has engraved a certain number of thefe
-objeds, which prefent various fmgular fubjeds on the obverfe,
-fometimes with a crofs on the reverfe, and fometimes bradeate.
-Antiquaries have given the name of abbey tokens to a rather
-numerous clafs of fuch medals, the ufe of which is ftill very uncer-
-tain, although there appears to be little doubt of its being of a
-religious charader. Some have fuppofed that they were diftributed
-to thofe who attended at certain facraments or rites of the Church,
-who could thus, when called up, prove by the number of their
-tokens, the greater or lefs regularity of their attendance. Whether
-this were the cafe or not, it is certain that the burlefque and other
-focieties of the middle ages, fuch as the feaft of fools, parodied
-thefe "tokens," and had burlefque medals, in lead and fometimes
-in other metals, which were perhaps ufed for a fimilar purpofe.
-We have already fpoken more than once of obfcene medals, and
-have engraved fpecimens of them, which were perhaps ufed in
-fecret focieties derived from, or founded upon, the ancient phallic
-worfhip. It is not at all improbable that the templars may have
-employed fimilar medals, and that ihofe would contain allufions to
-the rites in which they were employed. The medals publifhed by
-Von Hammer are faid to have been found chiefly on the fites of
-fettlements of the order of the Temple. However, the com-
-parifon of fads flated in the confeflions of many of the templars,
-as preferved in the official reports, with the images and fculptured
-cups and coffers given by Von Hammer-Piirgftall, lead to the
-conclufion that there is truth in the explanation he gives of the
-o6 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-latter, and that the templars, or at leaft fome of them, had fecretly
-adopted a form of the rites of Gnofticifm, which was itfelf founded
-upon the phallic worfhip of the ancients. An Englifh templar,
-Stephen de Staplebridge, acknowledged that " there were two
-' profeffions ' in the order of the Temple, the firft lawful and
-good, the fecond contrary to the faith."^ He had been admitted
-to the firft of thefe when he firft entered the order, eleven years
-before the time of his examination, but he was only initiated into
-the fecond or inner myfteries about a year afterwards ; and he
-gives almoft a pidurefque defcription of this fecond initiation,
-which occurred in a chapter held at ' Dineflee' in Herefordfhire.
-Another Englifti templar, Thomas de Tocci, faid that the errors
-had been brought into England by a French knight of high
-pofition in the order.^
-We have thus feen in how many various forms the old phallic,
-or priapic, worftiip prefented itfelf in the middle ages, and how
-pertinacioufly it held its ground through all the changes and de-
-velopments of fociety, until at length we find all the circumftances
-of the ancient priapic orgies, as well as the mediaeval additions,
-combined in that great and extenfive fuperftition — witchcraft. At
-all times the initiated were believed to have obtained thereby powers
-which were not poflefTed by the uninitiated, and they only were
-fuppofed to know the proper forms of invocation of the deities
-who were the objedls of their worftiip, which deities the Chriftian
-teachers invariably transformed into devils. The vows which the
-people of antiquity addrefled to Priapus, thofe of the middle ages
-addrefled to Satan. The witches' "Sabbath" was fimply the laft form
-which the Priapeia and Liberalia affumed in Weftern Europe, and
-^ Quod duffi funt profeffiones in ordine templi, prima licita et bona, et fecunda
-eft contra fidem. Wilkins, Concilia, ii, 383.
-Wilkins, ConciL, ii, 387.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 207
-in its various details all the incidents of thofe great and licentious
-orgies of the Romans were reproduced. The Sabbath of the
-witches does not appear to have formed a part of the Teutonic
-mythology, but we can trace it from the South through the coun-
-tries in which the Roman element of fociety predominated. The
-incidents of the Sabbath are diftindlly traced in Italy as early as the
-beginning of the fifteenth century, and foon afterwards they are
-found in the fouth of PVance. Towards the middle of that century
-an individual named Robinet de Vaulx, who had lived the life of a
-hermit in Burgundy, was arrefted, brought to a trial at Langres,
-and burnt. This man was a native of Artois ; he ftated that to
-his knowledge there were a great number of witches in that pro-
-vince, and he not onlylconfefled that he had attended thefe nodturnal
-aflembliesof the witches, but he gave the names of fome inhabitants
-of Arras whom he had met there. At this time — it was in the year
-— the chapter general of the Jacobins, or friars preachers,
-was held at Langres, and among those who attended it was a Jaco-
-bin friar named Pierre de Brouffart, who held the office of inquifitor
-of the faith in the city of Arras, and who eagerly liftened to the
-circumftances of Robinet's confeflion. Among the names men-
-tioned by him as having been prefent at the witches' meetings, were
-thofe of a proftitute named Demifelle, then living at Douai, and a
-man named Jehan Levite, but who was better known by the nick-
-name of Abbe de pen de Jens (the abbot of little fenfe). On Brouf-
-fart's return to Arras, he caufed both thefe perfons to be arrefted
-and brought to that city, where they were thrown into prifon. The
-latter, who was a painter, and a compofer and finger of popular
-fongs, had left Arras before Robinet de Vaulx had made his con-
-fefiion, but he was traced to Abbeville, in Ponthieu, and captured
-there. Confeffions were extorted from thefe perfons which compro-
-mifed others, and a number of individuals were committed topriion
-in confequence. In the fequel a certain number of them were burnt,
-o8 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-after they had been induced to unite in a ftatement to the following
-effeft. At this time, in this part of France at leaft, the term
-Vauderie, or, as it was then written, Vaulderie, was applied to
-the practice or profeffion of witchcraft. They faid that the place
-of meeting was commonly a fountain in the wood of Mofflaines,
-about a league diftant from Arras, and that they fometimes went
-thither on foot. The more ufual way of proceeding, however,
-according to their own account, was this — they took an ointment
-given to them by the devil, with which they annointed a wooden
-rod, at the fame time rubbing the palms of their hands with it, and
-then, placing the rod between their legs, they were fuddenly
-carried through the air to the place of aftembly. They found
-there a multitude of people, of both fexes, and of all eftates
-and ranks, even wealthy burghers and nobles — and one of the
-perfons examined declared that he had feen there not only ordi-
-nary ecclefiaftics, but bifhops and even cardinals. They found tables
-already fpread, covered with all forts of meats, and abundance of
-wines. A devil prefided, ufually in the form of a goat, with the
-tail of an ape, and a human countenance. Each firft did oblation
-and homage to him by offering him his or her foul, or, at leaft
-fome part of their body, and then, as a mark of adoration, kifled
-him on the pofteriors. All this time the worftiippers held burning
-torches in their hands. The abbot of little (^.n^e^, already men-
-tioned, held the office of mafter of the ceremonies at thefe meetings,
-and it was his duty to fee that the new-comers duly performed
-their homage. After this they trampled on the crofs, and fpit
-upon it, in defpite of Jefus and of the Holy Trinity, and per-
-formed other profane ads. They then feated themfelves at the
-tables, and after they had eaten and drunk fufficiently, they rofe
-and joined in afcene of promifcuous intercourfe between the fexes,
-in which the demon took part, afluming alternately the form of
-either fex, according to that of his temporary partner. Other
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 209
-wicked a(5ts followed, and then the devil preached to them, and en-
-joined them efpecially not to go to church, or hear mafs, or touch
-holy water, or perform any other of the duties of good Chriftians.
-After this fermon was ended, the meeting was diflblved, and they
-feparated and returned to their feveral homes. ^
-The violence of thefe witch perfecutions at Arras led to a reac-
-tion, which, however, was not lafting, and from this time to the end
-of the century, the fear of witchcraft fpread over Italy, France,
-and Germany, and went on increafing in intenfity. It was during
-this period that witchcraft, in the hands of the more zealous inqui-
-fitors, was gradually worked up into a great fyftem, and books of
-confiderable extent were compiled, containing accounts of the
-various pradices of the witches, and directions for proceeding
-againft them. One of the earlieft of thefe writers was a Swifs
-friar, named John Nider, who held the office of inquifitor in Swit-
-zerland, and has devoted one book of his Formicarium to witch-
-craft as it exifted in that country. He makes no allufion to the
-witches' Sabbath, which, therefore, appears then not to have been
-known among the Swifs. Early in 1489, Ulric Molitor publifhed
-a treatife on the fame fubjeft, under the title of T>e Pythonicis
-Mulieribus, and in the fame year, 1489, appeared the celebrated
-book, the Malleus Maleficarum^ or Hammer of Witches, the work
-of the three inquifitors for Germany, the chief of whom was Jacob
-Sprenger. This work gives us a complete and very interefting
-account oi witchcraft as it then exifted as an article of belief in
-Germany. The authors difcufs various queftions connedled with it,
-fuch as that of the myfterious tranfport of witches from one place
-to another, and they decide that this tranfport was real, and that
-they were carried bodily through the air. It is remarkable, how-
-The account of the witch trials at Arras was publifhed in the iiipplcmentary
-additions to Monllrelet ; but the original records of the proceedings have fince been
-found and printed.
-BB
-IO ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-ever, that even the Malleus Maleficarum contains no dired: allufion
-to the Sabbath, and we may conclude that even then this great
-priapic orgie did not form a part of the Germanic creed; it was
-no doubt brought in there amid the witchcraft mania of the fix-
-teenth century. From the time of the publication o{ \k\.^ Malleus
-Maleficarum\int\\ the beginning of the feventeenth century, through
-all parts of Weftern Europe, the number of books upon forcery
-which iffued from the prefs was immenfe; and we muft not forget
-that a monarch of our own, king James I, fhone among the writers
-on witchcraft.
-Three quarters of a century nearly had pafled fince the time of
-the Malleus^ when a Frenchman named Bodin, Latinifed into
-Bodinus, publifhed a rather bulky treatife which became from that
-time the text-book on witchcraft. The Sabbath is defcribed in
-this book in all its completenefs. It was ufually held in a lonely
-place, and when pofTible on the fummits of mountains or in the
-folitude of forefts. When the witch prepared to attend it, fhe went
-to her bedroom, ftripped herfelf naked, and anointed her body with
-an ointment made for that purpofe. She next took a flafF, which
-alfo in many cafes fhe anointed, and, placing it between her legs
-and uttering a charm, fhe was carried through the air, in an in-
-credibly fhort fpace of time, to the place of meeting. Bodin dif-
-cuffes learnedly the queftion whether the witches were really carried
-through the air corporeally or not, he decides it in the affirma-
-tive. The Sabbath itfelf was a great alTemblage of witches, of
-both fexes, and of demons. It was a point of emulation with
-the vifitors to bring new converts with them, and on their arrival
-they prefented thefe to the demon who prefided, and to whom they
-offered their adoration by the unclean kifs upon his pofleriors.
-They next rendered an account of all the mifchief they had perpe-
-trated fince the previous meeting, and received reward or reproof
-according to its amount. The devil, who ufually took the form
-GENERA'TIVE POWERS. 211
-of a goat, next diftributed among them powders, unguents, and
-other articles to be employed in fimilar evil doings in future.
-The worfhippers now made offerings to the devil, confiding of
-fheep, or other articles, or, in fome cafes, of a little bird only, or of
-a lock of the witches' hair, or of fome other equally trifling obje6l.
-They were then obliged to feal their denial of the Chrifcian faith
-by trampling on the crofs and blafpheming the faints. The devil
-then, or in the courfe of the meeting, had fexual intercourfe with
-the new witch, placed his mark upon fome concealed part of her
-body, very commonly in her fexual parts, and gave her a familiar
-or imp, who was to be at her bidding and affifl in the perpetration
-of evil. All this was what may be called the bufinefs of the meet-
-ing, and when it was over, they all went to a great banquet, which
-was fet out on tables, and which fometimes conltlled of fumptuous
-viands, but more frequently of loathfome or unfubftantial food, fo
-that the guefts often left the meeting as hungry as though they
-had tailed nothing. After the feaft they all rofe from the table to
-dance, and a fcene of wild and uproarious revelry followed. The
-ufual dance on this occafion appears to have been the carole o^ \\\^
-middle ages, which was no doubt the common dance of the pea-
-fantry; a party, alternately a male and a female, held each other's
-hands in a circle, with this peculiarity that, whereas in ordinary
-life the dancers turned their faces inward into the circle, here they
-turned them outwards, fo that their backs were towards the interior
-of the circle. It was pretended that this arrangement was defigned
-to prevent them from feeing and recognizing each other; but
-others fuppofed that it was a mere caprice of the evil one, who
-wifhed to do everything in a form contrary to that in which it
-was ufually done by Chriftians, Other dances were introduced,
-of a more violent, and fome of them of an obfcene, charadler.
-The fongs, too, which were fung in this orgie were either obfcene
-or vulgarly ridiculous. The mufic was often drawn from burlefque
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-inftruments, fuch as a ftick or a bone for a flute, a horfe's fkull for
-a lyre, the trunk of a tree for a drum, and a branch for a trumpet.
-As they became excited, they became more licentious, and at
-lafl; they abandoned themfelves to indifcriminate fexual inter-
-courfe, in which the demons played a very adive part. The meet-
-ing feparated in time to allow the witches, by the fame expeditious
-conveyance which brought them, to reach their homes before the
-cock crowed.^
-Such is the account of the Sabbath, as defcribed by Bodin ; but we
-have reviewed it briefly in order to defcribe this ftrange fcene from
-the much fuller and more curious narrative of another Frenchman,
-Pierre de Lancre. This man was a confeiller du roi, or judge, in
-the parliament of Bordeaux, and was joined in 1609 with one of
-his colleagues in a commiflion to proceed againft persons accufed of
-forcery in Labourd, a diftrid: in the Bafque provinces, then cele-
-brated for its witches, and apparently for the low fl:ate of morality
-among its inhabitants. It is a wild, and, in many parts, defolate
-region, the inhabitants of which held to their ancient fuperftitions
-with great tenacity. De Lancre, after arguing learnedly on the
-nature and charadler of demons, difcufl!es the queftion why there
-were fo many of them in the country of Labourd, and why the
-inhabitants of that diftrid were fo much addifted to forcery. The
-women of the country, he fays, were naturally of a lafcivious tem-
-perament, which was fliown even in their manner of drefling, for
-he defcribes their head-drefs as being Angularly indecent, and de-
-fcribes them as commonly expofing their perfon very immodefl:ly.^
-He adds, that the principal produce of this country confifted of
-The firll edition of the work of Bodin, De la Demonomanie des Sorciers, was
-publifhed at Paris, in 4to, in i 580. It. went through many editions, and was tranf-
-lated into Latin and other languages.
-Et pour le commun des femmes, en quelques lieux, voulant faire les martiales,
-elles portent certains tourions ou morrions indecens, et d'une forme fi peu feante.
-GENERATIVE POPFERS. 213
-apples, and argues thence, it is not very apparent why, that the
-women partook of the character of Eve, and yielded more eafily
-to temptation than thofe of other countries. After having fpent
-four months in dealing out rather feverely what was then called
-" juftice " to thefe ignorant people, the two commiflioners returned
-to Bordeaux, and there De Lancre, deeply ftruck with what he
-had (een and heard, betook himfelf to the ftudy of witchcraft, and in
-due time produced his great work on thefubjed, to which he gave
-the title of Tableau de V Inconjlance des Mauvais Anges et Demons}
-Pierre de Lancre writes honeftly and confcientioufly, and he evidently
-believes everything he has written. His book is valuable for the
-great amount of new information it contains, derived from the
-confeffions of the witches, and given apparently in their own
-words. The fecond book is devoted entirely to the details of the
-Sabbath.
-It was ftated by the witches in their examinations that, in times
-back, they had appointed Monday to be the day, or rather night,
-of affembly, but that in their time they had two nights of meeting
-in the week, thofe of Wednefday and Friday. Although fome
-ftated that they had been carried to the place of meeting in the
-middle of the day, they moftly agreed in faying that the hour at
-which they were carried to the Sabbath was midnight. The place
-ofaftenbly was ufually chofen at a fpot where roads crofted, but
-this was not always the cafe, for De Lancre" tells us that they were
-qu'on diroit que c'ell plulloft I'armet de Priape que celuy du dieu Mars ; leur
-coeffure femble tefmoigner leur defir, car les veulves portent le morrion fans creile
-pour marquer que le mafic leur defFault. Et en Labourt les femmes montlrcnt lour
-derriere tellement que tout rornementde leur cotillons pliflez ell derriere, et afin
-qu'il foit veu elles retroulTent leur robbe et la mettcnt fur la tcile et fe couvrent juf-
-qu'aux yeux. De Lancre, Inconjlance des Demons, p. 40.
-^ 4to. Paris, 161 z. A new and improved edition appeared in 161 3.
-II a aufli accoullume les tenir en quelque lieu defert et fauvage, comme au milieu
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-accuftomed to hold their Sabbath in fome lonely and wildlocality,as
-in the middle of a heath, which was feleded efpecially for being far
-from the haunts or habitations of man. To this place, he fays,
-they gave the name of Aquelarre, which he interprets as meaning
-Lane de Bouc, that' is, the heath of the goat, meaning that it was
-the place where the goat, the ufual form affumed by Satan, con-
-voked his aflemblies. And he goes on to exprefs his opinion that
-thefe wild places were the original fcenes of the Sabbath, though
-fubfequently other places had been often adopted. " For we have
-heard more than fifty witnefles who affured us that they had
-been at the Goat's Heath to the Sabbath held on the mountain
-of La Rhune, fometimes on the open mountain, fometimes in the
-chapel of the St. Efprit, which is on the top of it, and fome-
-times in the church of Dordach, which is on the borders of La-
-bourd. At times they held it in private houfes, as when we held
-the trial, in the parifh of St. Pe, the Sabbath was held one night
-in our hotel, called Barbare-nena, and in that of Mafter
-de Segure, afleflbr-criminal at Bayonne, who, at the fame time
-d'une lande ; et encore en lieu du tout hors de paffage, de voifinage, d'habitation, et de
-rencontre : et communement ils I'appellent Aquelarre, qui fignifie Lane de Bouc,
-comme qui dirait la lane ou lande oii le Bouc convoque fes aflemblees. Et de faifl
-les forciers qui confeflent, nomment le lieu pourlachofe, etlachofeoul'afTemblee pour
-le lieu : tellement qu'encore que proprement Lane de Bouc, foit le Sabbat qui fe tient
-es landes, fi eil-ce qu'ils appellent auffi bien Lane de Bouc le Sabbath qui fe tient
-es eglifes et es places des villes, parroiffes, maifons, et autres lieux: parce qu'a mon
-advis les premiers lieux qui furent defcouverts, ou les diftes aflemblees fe faifoyent,
-furent es landes, pour la commodite du lieu. Et d'autant qu'on y voit le plus de ces
-boucs, chevres, et autres animaux femblables. Car nous avons ouy plus de cinquante
-tefmoins qui nous ont affeure avoir efte a la Lane de Bouc, au Sabbat fur la
-montagne de la Rhune, parfois a rentour,parfois dans la chappelle mefme du S. Efprit
-qui ell au deffus, et parfois dans I'eglife de Dordach, qui eft fur les lifieres
-de Labourt : parfois es maifons particulieres, comme quand nous leur faifions
-le proces en la parroifle de Sainft-Pe, le Sabbat fe tint une nuift dans noftre
-hoilel, appelle de Barbare-nena, et en celuy de Maiftre de Segure, aflefleur
-GENERATIVE POIVERS. 215
-when we were there, made a more ample inquifition againft
-certain witches, by authority of an arrcfl: of the parliament of
-Bordeaux. Then they went the fame night to hold it at the
-refidence of the lord of the place, who is the Sieur d'Amou, and in
-his caftle of St. Pc. But we have not found in the whole country
-of Labourd any other parifh but that of St. Pc where the devil
-held the Sabbath in private houfes."
-The devil is further defcribed as feeking for his places of meeting,
-befides the heaths, old decayed houfes, and ruins of old caftles,
-efpecially when they were fituated on the fummits of mountains.
-An old cemetery was fometimes feleded, where, as De Lancre
-quaintly obferves, there were " no houfes but the houfes of the
-dead," efpecially if it were in a folitary fituation, as when attached to
-folitary churches and chapels, in the middle of the heaths, or on
-the tops of cliffs on the fea fhore, fuch as the chapel of the Portu-
-guefe at St. Jean de Luz, called St. Barbe, fituated fo high that it
-ferves as a landmark to the fhips approaching the coaft, or on a
-high mountain, as La Rhune in Labourd, and the Puy de Dome
-in Perigord, and other fuch places.
-criminel a Bayonne, lequel faifoit en mefme temps que nous y eftions une plus ample
-inquifition contre certaines forcieres, en vertu d'un arrell de la Cour de Parlement
-de Bourdeaux. Puis s'en allerent en mefme nuift le tenir chez le feigneur du
-lieu, qui ell le Sr. d'Amou, et en fon challeau de Sainft-Pe. Et n'avons trouve en
-tout le pays de Labourt aucune autre parroifle que cclle de Sainft-Pe, ou le Diablc
-tint le Sabbat es maifons particulieres.
-II cherche auffi parfois, outre les landes, de vieilles mazures et ruines de vieux
-chafteaux, afliz fur les coupeaux des montagnes ; parfois d'autres lieux folitaircs, ou,
-pour toutes maifons, il n'y a que des maifons des morts, qui font les cimetieres, et
-encore les plus efcartez, commes pres des eglifes ou chappelles feules, ou plantees au
-milieu d'une lande ou defert, ou fur une haute colle de la mcr, comme la chappelle
-des Portugais a Sain6l Jean de Luz appellee de Sainfte Barbe, fi haut montee qu'elle
-fert d'echauguete ou de phare pour les vaifleaux qui s'cn approchent, ou fur une haute
-montagne, comme la Rhune en Labourt et le Puy de Dome en Perigort, et autres
-lieux femblables. Tableau de P Inconjlance, p. 65.
-i6 ON rHE WORSHIP OF THE
-At thefe meetings, fometimes, but rarely, Satan was abfent, in
-which cafe a little devil took his place. De Lancre^ enumerates
-the various forms which the devil ufually alTumed on thefe occa-
-fions, with the remark that thefe forms were as numerous as "his
-movements were inconftant, full of uncertainty, illufion, deception,
-and impofture." Some of the witches he examined, among whom
-was a girl thirteen years of age, named Marie d'Aguerre, faid that
-at thefe affemblies there appeared a great pitcher or jug in the
-middle of the Sabbath, and that out of it the devil iflued in the
-form of a goat, which fuddenly became fo large that it was " fright-
-ful," and that at the end of the Sabbath he returned into the
-pitcher. Others defcribed him as being like the great trunk of a
-tree, without arms or feet, feated in a chair, with the face of a
-great and frightful looking man. Others fpoke of him as re-
-fembling a great goat, with two horns before and two behind, thofe
-before turned up in the femblance of a woman's perruque. Ac-
-cording to the moft common account, De Lancre fays he had
-three horns, the one in the middle giving out a flame, with
-which he ufed at the Sabbath to give both light and fire to the
-Refte maintenant, puis qu'il a comparu, d'en fgavoir la forme, et en quel eftat il a
-accoullume de fe reprefenter et faire voir efdiftes aflemblees. II n'a point de forme
-conftante, toutes fes aflions n'eftans que mouvements inconllans pleins d' incertitude,
-d'illufion, de deception, et d'impofture.
-Marie d'Aguerre aagee de treize ans, et quelques autres, depofoient, qu'efdiftes
-aflemblees il y a une grande cruche au milieu du Sabbat d'ou fort le Diable en
-forme de bouc : qu'eiknt forty il devient fi grand qu'il fe rend efpouvantable : et
-que le Sabbat finy il rentre dans la cruche.
-D'autres difent qu'il eil comme un grand tronc d'arbre obfcur fans bras et fans
-picds, affis dans une chaire, ayant quelque forme de vifage d'homme, grand et affreux.
-D'autres qu'il ell comme un grand bouc, ayant deux cornes devant et deux en
-derriere : que celles de devant fe rebraflent en haut comme la perruque d'une femme.
-Mais le commun eil qu'il a feulement trois cornes, et qu'il a quelque efpece de
-lumiere en celle du milieu, de laquelle il a accoullume au Sabbat d'efclairer et donner
-du feu et de la lumiere, mefme a ces forcieres, qui tiennent quelques chandelles
-GENERATIVE POWERS. i\-j
-witches, Tome of whom who had candles lit them at his horn, in
-order to hold them at a mock fervice of the mafs, which was one of
-the devil's ceremonies. He had alfo, fometimes, a kind of cap or
-hat over his horns. "He has before him his member hanging
-out, which he exhibits always a cubit in length ; and he has a
-great tail behind, with a form of a face under it, with which face he
-does not utter a word, but it ferves only to offer to kifs to thofe he
-likes, honouring certain witches of either fex more than the others."
-The devil, it will be obferved, is here reprefented with the fymbol
-ot Priapus. Marie d' Afpilecute, aged nineteen years, who lived at
-Handaye, depofed that the firft time fhe was prefented to the devil
-file kiffed him on this face behind, beneath a great tail, and that
-fhe repeated the kifs three times, adding that this face was made
-like the muzzle of a goat. Others said that he was ihaped like a
-great man, " enveloped in a cloudinefs, becaufe he would not be
-feen clearly," and that he was all "flambovant," and had a face red
-like an iron coming out of the furnace. Corneille Brolic, a lad of
-twelve vears of age, faid that when he was firft introduced to him
-he had the human form, with four horns on his head, and without
-alumees aux ceremonies de la mefle qu'ils voulent contrefaire. On luy voit aulTi
-quelque efpece de bonet ou chapcau au deflus de fes cornes. II a au devant Ton
-membre tire et pendant, et Ic monilre tousjours long d'une coudee, et une grande
-queue au derriere, et une forme de vilage au deflbubs : duquel vifage il ne profere au-
-cune parole, ains luy fert pour le donner a baifer a ceux que bon luv femble, honorant
-certains forciers ou forcieres plus les uns que les autres.
-Marie d' Afpilecute, habitante de Handaye, aagee dc 19 ans, depofc. Que la pre-
-miere fois qu'ellc luy fut prefcntee clle le baifa a ce vifage de derriere au defToubs d'une
-grande queue : qu'elle I'y a baife par trois fois, et qu'il avoit auiTi cc vifage faift commc
-le mufeau d'un bouc.
-D'autres difent qu'il ell en forme d'un grand homme veiUi tcnebreufement, et qui
-ne veut eftre veu claircment, fi bien qu'ils difent qu'il eft tout flamboyant, et le vifage
-rouge commc un fer fortant de la fournaife.
-Corneille Brolic aage de 12 ans, dift. Que lorfqu'il luv fut prelcntc il eftoit en
-forme d' homme, ayant quatre cornes en la tefte, et fans bras, et aflis dans une chairc,
-F F
-i8 ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-arms. He was feated in a pulpit, with fome of the women, who
-were his favourites, always near him. "And they are all agreed
-that it is a great pulpit, which feems to be gilt and very pompous."
-Janette d'Abadie, of Siboro, fixteen years old, faid that Satan had
-a face before and another behind his head, as they reprefent the god
-Janus. De Lancre had alfo heard him defcribed as a great black
-dog, as a large ox of brafs lying down, and as a natural ox in
-repofe.
-Although it was ftated that in former times the devil had ufually
-appeared in the form of a ferpent, — another coincidence with the
-priapic worfhip, — it appears certain that in the time of De Lancre
-his favourite form of fhowing himfelf was that of a goat. At the
-opening of the Sabbath the witches, male or female, prefented for-
-mally to the devil thofe who had never been at the Sabbath before,
-and the women efpecially brought to him the children whom they
-allured to him. The new converts, the novices, were made to re-
-nounce Chrift, the Virgin Mary, and the faints, and they were then
-re-baptized with mock ceremonies. They next performed their
-worfhip to the devil by kiffing him on the face under the tail, or
-otherwife. The young children were taken to the edge of a ftream
-— for the fcene was generally chofen on the banks of a ftream —
-and white wands were placed in their hands, and they were entrufted
-with the care of the toads which were kept there, and which were of
-importance in the fubfequent operations of the witches. The re-
-nunciation was frequently renewed, and in fome cafes it was required
-avec quelques femmes de fes favorites tousjours pres de luy. Et tous font d' accord
-que c'eil une grande chaire qui femble doree et fort pompeufe.
-Janette d'Abadie de Siboro, aagee de 16 ans, dit qu'il avoit un vifage devant, et un
-vifage derriere la tefte, comme on peint le dieu Janus.
-J'ai veu quelque procedure, eftant a la Tournelle, qui le peignoit au Sabbat comme
-un grand Icvrier noir : parfois comme un grand boeuf d'airain couche a terre, comme
-un boeuf naturel qui fe repofe. Tableau de l' Incorijiance, p. 67.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 219
-every time the witch attended the Sabbath. Janette d'Abadie, a
-girl of fixtcen, laid that he made her repeatedly go through the
-ceremony of killing him on the face, and afterwards on the navel,
-then on the virile member, and then on the pofteriors/ After re-
-baptifm, he put his mark on the body of his vidim, in fome covered
-part where it was not likely to be feen. In women it was often
-placed on or within the fexual parts.
-De Lancre's account of the proceedings at the Sabbath is very full
-and curious.'- He fays that it "refembled a fair of merchants mingled
-together, furious and in tranfports, arriving from all parts — a meeting
-and mingling of a hundred thoufand fubjeds, fudden and tranfitory,
-novel, it is true, but of a frightful novelty, which offends the eye
-and fickens you. Among these fame fubjeds fome are real, and
-others deceitful and illulbry. Some are pleafing (but very little),
-as are the little bells and melodious inftruments of all forts, which
-only tickle the ear and do not touch the heart at all, confiding more
-in noife which amazes and ftuns than in harmony which pleafes and
-rejoices, the others difpleafing, full of deformity and horror, tending
-only to defolation, privation, ruin, and deftrudion, where the
-perfons become brutifh and transformed to beafts,Iofing their fpeech
-while they are in this condition, and the beafts,on the contrary, talk,
-' Sur quov elle adjoulle une chofe notable, que bien ibuvent il luy taifoit bailer Ion
-viiage, puis le nombril, puis le membre viril, puis Ton derriere. De Lancre, De
-P InconJJance, p. 72.
-Le Sabbat eft. comme une foire de marchands meflez, furieux et tranlportez, qui
-arrivent de toutes parts, un rencontre et meflange de cent mille fubjefts foudains et
-tranfitoires, nouveaux a la verite, mais d'une nouveaute effroyable qui offence I'ocil
-et foubfleve le coeur. Parmy ces mefmes fubjefts il s'en voit de reels, et d'autres
-prelligieux et illulbires : aucuns plaifans (mais fortpeu), comme font les clochettes et
-inftrumens melodieux qu'on y entend de toutes fortes, qui ne chatouillcnt que I'oreille,
-et ne touchent rien au coeur : confiftant plus en bruit qui eftourdit et eftonne, qu'en
-harmonic qui plaife et qui resjouiile ; les autres deplailans, pleins de difformite et
-d'horreur, ne tendant qu'a diflblution, privation, ruine, et deftrudion, ou les per-
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-and feem to have more reafon than the perfons, each being drawn
-out of his natural characfler."
-The women, according to De Lancre, were the aftive agents in
-all this confufion, and had more employment than the men. They
-rufhed about with their hair hanging loofe, and their bodies naked;
-fome rubbed with the magical ointment, others not. They arrived
-at the Sabbath, or went from it, on their errands of mifchief, perched
-on a ftick or befom, or carried upon a goat or other animal, with
-an infant or two behind, and guided or driven on by the devil him-
-felf. "And when Satan will tranfport them into the air (which
-is an indulgence only to the moft fuperior), he fets them off and
-launches them up like fired rockets, and they repair to and dart
-down upon the faid place a hundred times more rapidly than an
-eagle or a kite could dart upon its prey."
-Thefe women, on their arrival, reported to Satan all the mifchief
-they had perpetrated. Poifon, of all kinds and for all purpofes, was
-there the article moft in vogue. Toads were faid to form one of
-its ingredients, and the charge of thefe animals, while alive, was
-fonnes s'y abbrutiflent et transforment en belles, perdant la parole tant qu'elles font
-ainfi. Et les bettes au contraire y parlent, et femblent avoir plus de raifon que les
-perfonnes, chacun ellant tire hors fon naturel.
-Les courriers ordinaires du fabbat font les femmes, les myfteres duquel paffent par
-leurs mains, [plus] que par celles des homines. Or elles volent et courent efchevelees
-comme furies a la mode du pays, ayant la telle fi legere, qu'elles n'y peuvent foufFrir
-couverture. On les y voit nues, ores graiflees, ores non. Elles arrivent ou partent
-(car chacune a quelque infaufte et mefchante commiffion) perchees fur un bailon ou
-balay, ou portees fur un bouc ou autre animal, un pauvre enfant ou deux en croupe,
-ayant le diable ores au devant pour guide, ores en derriere et en queue comme un
-rude foueteur. Et lorfque Sathan les veut tranfporter en I'air (ce qui n'eil encor
-donne qu'aux plus fuffifantes), il les effore et eflance comme fufees bruiantes, et en la
-defcente elles fe rendent audit lieu et fondent bas, cent fois plus viile quun aigle ou
-un milan ne fgauroit fondre fur fa proye.
-Ces turieufes courrieres ne portent jamais que fmiilres nouvelles, mais vrayes, car
-elles ne contiennent que I'hiiloire veritable des maux qu'elles ont faid. Le poifon, de
-GENERAriVE POWERS. 221
-given to the children whom the witches brought with them to the
-Sabbath, and to whom, as a fort of enfign of office, little white rods
-were given, "juft fuch as they give to perfons infeded with the
-plague as a mark of their contagion."
-The devil was the fovereign mafter of the aflembly, and appeared
-at it fometimes in the form of a ftinking and bearded goat, as one,
-I3e Lancre fays, which was efpecially repulfive to mankind. The
-goat, we know, was dedicated to Priapus. Sometimes he aflumed
-a form, if we clearly underftand De Lancre, which prefented a con-
-fufed idea of fomethiilg between a tree and a man, which is com-
-pared, for he becomes rather poetical, to the old decayed cyprefles
-on the fummit of a high mountain, or to aged oaks whofe heads
-already bear the marks of approaching decay.
-When the devil appeared in human form, that form was horribly
-ugly and repulfive, with a hoarfe voice and an imperious manner.
-He was feated in a pulpit, which glittered like gold; and at his
-toutes fortes et a tous ufages, eft la plus precieufe denree de ce lieu. Les enfans font
-les bergers, qui gardent chacun la bergerie des crapaux, que chaquc forciere qui les
-niene au fabbat leur a bailie a garder, ayant chacun une gaule blanche en main ;
-telle qu'on bailie aux peltiterez pour marque de leur contagion.
-Le diable, maillre fouverain de I'affemblee, s'y reprefente parfois en bouc puant
-et barbu : la plus horrible et orde figure qu'il a peu emprunter parmy tous animaux,
-et celuy avec lequel I'homme a le moins de commerce. II s'y trouve et s'y void
-quelque fois en tronc d'arbre efpouvantable en forme d'homme fombre et monilrueux:
-comme font ces vieux cypres furannez a la cime d'une haute montagne, ou ces
-chefnes chauves que la vieillelfe faid commencer a fecher par la tefte, vrayement tronc,
-car il y paroill efcartelle, et comme ellropiat, et fans brai', et en figure d'un geant
-tenebreux et objeft fort recule.
-Que s'il y paroift en homme, c'eft en homme gehenne, tourmente, rouge et
-flamboyant comme un feu qui fort d'une fournaife ardente. Homme efface, duquel
-la forme ne paroill qu'a demy, avec une voix calfe, morfondue, et non articulee,
-mais imperieufe, bruiante, et efFroyable. Si bien qu'on ne fijauroit bonnement dire
-a le voir s'il ell homme, tronc, ou befte. II ell aftis dans une chaire, doree en appa-
-rence, mais flamboiante : la royne du fabbat a fon colle, qui ell quelque forciere qu'il
-07V THE WORSHIP OF THE
-fide fat the queen of the Sabbath, one of the witches whom
-he had debauched, to whom he chofe to give greater honour
-than to the others, and whom he decked in gay robes, with a crown
-on her head, to ferve as a bait to the ambition of the reft. Candles
-of pitch, or torches, yielded a falfe light, which gave people in ap-
-pearance monftrous forms and frightful faces.
-Here you fee falfe fires, through which fome of the demons were
-firft pafied, and afterwards the witches, without fufferingany pain,
-which, as explained by De Lancre, was intended to teach them not
-to fear the fire of hell. But we fee in thefe the need-fires, which
-formed a part of the priapic orgies, and of which we have fpoken
-before (p. 163). There women are prefenting to him children,
-whom they have initiated in forcery, and he fhows them a deep pit,
-into which he threatens to throw them if they refufe to renounce
-God and to adore Satan.
-In other parts are feen great cauldrons, full of toads and vipers,
-hearts of unbaptized children, flefh of criminals who had been
-hanged, and other difgufting ingredients, of which they make pots
-of ointments, &c. and poifons, the ordinary articles of commerce
-a debauchee, laquelle il faift paroiftre pompeufe, ornee de pluiieurs faux affiquets, et
-couronnee en royne, pour amorcer les autres. Donnant auffi une forme affreufe,
-prefque a tous ceux qui sont en cette alTemblee maudite, les vifages defquels, a la fauce
-lumiere de ces chandeles de poix qui s'y voyent, paroiffent tenebreux, farouches, ou
-voilez : et les perfonnes de taille et hauteur monftrueufe, ou de baffefle extraordinaire
-et deffeftueufe.
-On y voit de faux feux, au travers defquels il faift paffer quelques demons, puis
-des forcieres, d'ou il les tire fans douleur pour les apprivoifer a ne craindre les feux
-de notre juftice en ce monde, n'y les feux eternels de la jullice divine en I'autre.
-Ou luy offre def enfans innocens enforcellez par de mechantes femmes, aufquels il
-reprefente des abyfmes dans lefquels il faift femblant de les precipiter, s'ils font tant
-foit peu les rellifs a renoncer Dieu et a I'adorer.
-On y voit de grandes chaudieres pleines de crapaux et viperes, coeurs d'enfans non
-baptifez, chair de pendus, et autres horribles charognes, et des eaux puantes, pots de
-graifle et de poifon qui fe preile et fe debite a cette foire, comme ellant la plus pre-
-GENERATIVE POfVERS. 223
-ill this " fair." Of fuch obje<5ls, alfo, were compofed the difhes
-fervcd at the Sabbath tables, at which no fait was allowed, becaufc
-Satan wiflied everything to be infipid, mufty, and bad-tafted.
-Here we fee people " dancing, either ' in long,' in couples, turned
-back to back, or fometimes ' in round,' all turning their backs
-towards the centre of the dance, the girls and women each holding
-by the hand their demons, who teach them movements and gcftures
-fo lafcivious and indecent that they would horrify the moft fhame-
-lefs woman in the world ; with fongs of acompofition fo brutal, and
-in terms and words of fuch licence and lubricity, that the eyes be-
-come troubled, the ears confounded, and the underftanding be-
-witched, at the appearance of fo many monftrous things all crowded
-together."
-" The women and girls with whom the demons choofe to have
-connexion are covered with a cloud, to conceal the execrations and
-ordures attached to thefe fcenes, and to prevent the compaflton
-which others might have on the fcreams and fufferings of thefe poor
-wretches." In order to " mix impiety with the other abomina-
-tions," they pretended to perform religious rites, which were a wild
-cieiife et commune marchandife qui s'y trouve. Et neantmoins ce font les meilleures
-viandes qu'on rencontre en leurs feftins, defquels ils ont banni le iel, parceque Sathan
-vcut que tout y foit infipide, relant, et de gouil deprave.
-On y dance en long, deux a deux, et dos a dos, et parfois en rond, tous le dos
-tourne vers le centre de la dance, les fiUes et femmcs tenant chacune leurs demons
-par la main, lesquels leur apprennent des traifts et gelles fi laicifs et indecens, qu'ils
-feroyent horreur a la plus efFrontec femme du monde ; avec des chanfons d'une
-compofition fi brutale, et en termes et mots fi licencieux et lubriques, que les yeux le
-troublent, les oreilles s'eftourdifTent, et I'entendement s'cnchante, dc voir tant de
-chofes monllrueuies qui s'y rencontrent a la fois.
-Les femmcs et filles avec lefquelles i! fe veut accoupler, Ibnt couvcrtcs d'une
-nuee, pour cacher les execrations et ordures qui s'y trouvent, et pour olkr la com-
-paflion qu'on pourroit avoir des cris et douleurs de ccs pauvres milerables. Et
-voulant meder I'impicte avec I'abomination du fortilcge, pour leur faire paroitlre
-qu'il veut qu'elles vivent avec quelque forme de religion, le fervice ou culte divin.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-and contemptuous parody on the catholic mafs. An altar was
-raifed, and a prieft confecrated and adminiftered the hoft, but it was
-made of fome difgufting fubftance, and the prieft ftood with his head
-downwards and his legs in the air, and with his back turned to the
-altar. Thus all things were performed in monftrous or difgufting
-forms, fo that Satan himfelf appeared almoft afhamed of them.
-De Lancre acknowledges that there was fome diverfity in the
-manner of the proceedings of the Sabbath in different countries,
-arifing from difference in the character of the locality, in the
-"mafter" who prefided, and in the various humours of thofe who
-attended. " But all well confidered, there is a general agreement
-on the principal and moft important of the more ferious ceremonies.
-"Wherefore, I will relate what we have learnt by our trials, and I will
-fimply repeat what fome notable witches depofed before us, as well
-as to the formalities of the Sabbath, as to all that was ufually feen
-qu'il s'eflaye de contrefaire ou reprefenter, eft fi fauvage et deregle, et hors de tout
-fens commun, que le faux facrificateur ayant drefle quelque autel, faift femblant d'y
-dire quelque forme de mefle, pour fe moquer des chreftiens : Et y faift paroiftre
-quelque hoftie, faidle de quelque puante matiere noire et enfuinee, ou il eft peint en
-bouc. Ce faux preftre a la tefte en has, et les pieds contremont, et le dos ignomini-
-eufement tourne vers I'autel. Enfin on y voit en chaque chofe ou aftion des repre-
-fentations fi formidables, tant d'abominables objefts, et tant de forfaidls et crimes
-execrables, que I'air s'infefteroit fi je les vouloy exprimer plus au long : Etpeuton
-dire fans mentir, que Satan mefme a quelque horreur de les commettre. Car outre la
-nuee de la quelle il voile fes accouplemens, il tient les enfans efloignez, de peur de
-les rebutter pour jamais par 1' horrible veue de tant de chofes. Et plufieurs per-
-fonnes voilees, pour tenir mine de grandeur, afin qu'on ne les voye rougir ni paflir de
-la grandeur de cent mille maux, qu'on y voit commettre a tous momens.
-A la vcrite la defcription du fabbat qui fe faift en diverfes contrees femble eftre un
-peu diverfe. La diverfite des lieux ou il fe tient, du maiftre qui y prefide, tout divers
-et tout variable, et les diverfes humeurs de ceux qui y font appellez, font la diverfite.
-Mais tout bien confidere on eft d'accord pour le principal et pour le plus important
-des ceremonies plus ferieufes. C'eft pourquoy je raporteray ce que nous avons
-apprins par nos procedures, et diray fimplement ce que quelques notables forcieres en
-ont depofe devant nous, tant fur la forme du fabbat que fur tout ce qu'on a accouf-
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 22s
-there, without changing or altering anything in what they depofed,
-in order that every one may feled: what he likes."
-The firft witnefs adduced by De Lancre is not one belonging to
-his own time, but dating back as far as the i 8th of December, i 567,
-and he had obtained a copy of the confeffion. Eftcbene de Cambrue,
-of the parifh of Amou, a woman twenty-five years of age, faid that
-the great Sabbath was held four times a year, in derifion of the four
-annual feftivals of the Church. The little affemblies, which were
-held in the neighbourhood of the towns or parifhes, were attended
-only by thofe of the locality; they were called "paftimes," and were
-held fometimes in one place and fometimes in another, and there
-they only danced and frolicked, for thedevil didnotcomethere in all
-his ftate as at the great affemblies. They were, in fadl, the greater
-and lefTer Priapeia. She faid that the place of the grand convoca-
-tion was generally called the " Lanne de Bouc" (the goat's heath),
-where they danced round a flone, which was planted in the faid
-place, (perhaps one of the fo-called Druidical monuments,) upon
-which was feated a great black man, whom they called " Mon-
-fieur." Each perfon prefent kiffed this black man on the pofleriors.
-tume d'y voir, fans rien changer n'v alterer de leur depofition, afin que chacun en
-prenne ce qu'il luy plaira.
-Je commenceray par une fort ancienne depofition que j'ay trouvee puis peu de
-jours, d'une Eftebene de Cambrue, aagee de 25 ans, de la paroifTe d'Amou, du 18
-Decembre 1567, qui marque que deflors cette pauvre parroifle en eftoit deja
-infeftee: qui dift que les forcieres n'alloient en la grande aflemblee et au grand
-Sabbat que quatre fois I'annee, en derifion des ceremonies que I'eglife celebre
-les quatre felles annuelles. Car les petites aflemblees qui fe font pres des villes
-ou parroifTes, ou il n'y va que ceux du lieu, ils les appcllent les efbats, et fe font
-ores en un lieu de ladite parroifle, ores en un autre, ou on ne faift que fauter et
-folaftrcr, le diable n'y eflant avec tout fon grand arroy, comme au.v grandes aflem-
-blees. Que le lieu de ceflc grande convocation s'appelle gencralcmcnt par tout
-le pays la Lanne du Bouc. Ou ils i"c mettent a dancer a I'cntour d'une picrre,
-qui eft plantee audit lieu, fur laquelle eft aflis un grand homme noir, qu'elles
-G G
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-She faid that they were carried to that place on an animal which
-fometimes refembled a horfe and at others a man, and they never
-rode on the animal more than four at a time. When arrived at
-the Sabbath, they denied God, the Virgin, "and the reft," and
-took Satan for their father and protedor, and the fhe-devil for
-their mother. This witnefs defcribed the making and fale of
-poifons. She faid that fhe had feen at the Sabbath a notary,
-whofe name fhe gave, whofe bufinefs it was to denounce thofe who
-failed in attendance. When on their way to the Sabbath, however
-hard it might rain, they were never wet, provided they uttered the
-words, //aut la coude^ ^illet^ becaufe then the tail of the beaft on
-which they were mounted covered them fo well that they were
-fheltered from the rain. When they had to make a long journey
-they faid thefe words : Pic fuber hoeilhe^ en ta la lane de bouc bien
-marrecoueille.
-A man feventy-three years of age, named Petri Daguerre, was
-brought before De Lancreand his fellow commiffioners at Uftarits;
-two witnefTes aflerted that he held the office of mafter of the cere-
-appellent Monfieur, et chacun de rafTemblee luy va baifer le derriere. Et fe font
-porter jufqu' audit lieu, fur une belle, qui femble parfois un cheval, et parfoys
-un homme ; et ne montent jamais plus haut de quatre fur ces montures qui
-portent ainfi au Sabbat. La ils renient Dieu, la Vierge, et le refle, et prennent
-Satan pour leur pere et protefteur, et la diablefle pour leur mere. Qu'aucuns font la
-du poifon, defquels les autres le vent acheter, lequel eft fai£l de crapaux, avec une
-langue de boeuf ou vache, et une chevre et des oeufs couvez et pourris, et de la
-cervelle d'enfant, et le mettent cuire dans un pot. Di£l qu'elle a veu au Sabbat un
-notaire qu'elle nomme, lequel a accouftume de lever les defauts de celles qui ont
-manque de fe trouver au Sabbat, et dift qu'encore qu'il pleuft a pleins feaux, lorfqu'on
-eft en chemin pour y aller, on ne fe moiiille point, pourveu qu'on die ces mots,
-Haut la coude, fillet, parce qu'alors la queue de la befte fur laquelle ils vont au
-Sabbat les couvre fi bien, qu'ils ne fe moiiillent point. Et quand ils font un long
-chemin, ils difent tels mots: Pic fuber hoeilhe, en ta la lane de bouc bien ni arrecoueille.
-En la procedure d'Uftarits, qui eft le fiege de la juftice de Labourt, faifant le procez
-a Petri Daguerre, aage de feptante trois ans, lequel depuis a efte execute a mort
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 227
-monies and governor of the Sabbath, and that the devil gave him
-a gilt ftaff, which he carried in his hand as a mark of authority,
-and arranged and direded the proceedings. He returned the ftafF
-to Satan at the clofe of the meeting.
-One Leger RivafTeau confefled that he had been at the Sabbath
-twice without adoring the devil, or doing any of the things required
-from the others, because it was part of his bargain, for he had
-given the half of his left foot for the faculty of curing, and the
-right of being prefent at the Sabbath without further obligation.
-He faid " that the Sabbath was held about midnight, at a meeting
-ofcrofs roads, moft frequently on the nights of Wednefday and
-Friday; that the devil chofe in preference the ftormieft nights, in
-order that the winds and troubled elements might carry their
-powders farther and more impetuoufly ; that two notable devils
-prefided at their Sabbaths, the great negro, whom they called
-mafter Leonard, and another little devil, whom mafler Leonard at
-times fubftituted in his place, and whom they called mafher Jean
-Mullin ; that they adored the grand mafter, and that, after having
-comme infigne forcier, deux tefmoins luy maintindrent qu'il eftoit le maiftredes cere-
-monies et gouverneur du Sabbat. Que le Diable luy mettoit en main un bafton tout
-dore, avec lequel, comme un maillre de camp, il rengeoit et les perfonncs et toutes
-chofes au Sabbat : et qu'iceluy finy il rendoit ce ballon au grand maiilre de I'af-
-femblee.
-Leger Rivafl'eau confefl'a en la Cour qu'il avoit eile au Sabbat par deux fois, fans
-adorer le Diable ny faire comme les autres, parcequ'il avoit ainfi faift Ton pa6le avec
-luy, et bailie la moitie de Ion pied gauche pour avoir la faculte de guerir, et la liberte
-de voir le Sabbat fimplement fans eilre oblige a autre chofe. Et difoit que le Sabbat
-fe faifoit prefque tousjours environ la minuit, a un carrefour, le plus fouvent la nuirt
-du Mercredy et du Vendredy : que le diable cherchoit la nuid la plus orageufe qu'il
-pouvoit, afin quelesventset les orages portaflent plus loingetplus impetueufement leurs
-poudres ; que deux diables notables prefidoient en ces Sabbats, le grand Negre qu'on
-appelloit mairtre Leonard, et un autre petit diable que maiftre Leonard fubrogeoit quel-
-quefois en ia place, qu'ils appellent maiilre Jean Mullin; qu'on adoraitlegrand maiilre.
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-kifled his pofteriors, there were about fixty of them dancing without
-drefs, back to back, each with a great cat attached to the tail of his
-or her fhirt, and that afterwards they danced naked ; that this
-mafter Leonard, taking the form of a black fox, hummed at the
-beginning a word ill articulated, after which they were all filent."
-Some of the witches examined fpoke of the delight with which
-they attended the Sabbath. Jeanne Dibaffbn, a woman twenty-
-nine years old, faid that the Sabbath was the true Paradife, where
-there was far more pleafure than can be exprefTed ; that thofe who
-went there found the time fo fhort by reafon of the pleafure and
-enjoyment, that they never left it without marvelous regret, fo
-that they looked forward with infinite impatience to the next
-meeting.
-Marie de la Ralde, " a very handfome woman twenty-eight years
-of age," who had then abandoned her connexion with the devil five
-or fix years, gave a full account of her experience of the Sabbath.
-She faid fhe had frequented the Sabbaths from the time fhe was ten
-years old, having been firfl; taken there by MarifTans, the wife of
-Sarrauch, and after her death the devil took her there himfelf
-et qu'apres qu'on luy avoit baife le derriere, ils eftoient environ foixantequi dangoient
-fans habits, dos-a-dos, chacun un grand chat attache a la queue de la chemife, puis
-ils dangoient tous nuds : que ce maiftre Leonard prenant la forme d'un renard noir
-bourdonnoitau commencement une parole mal articulee, et qu'apres cela tout le monde
-eftoit en filence
-Jeanne Dibaffon, aagee de vingt neuf ans, nous dift que le Sabbat eiloit le vray
-Paradis, oil il y a beaucoup plus de plaifir qu'on n'en peutexprimer : que ceux qui
-y vent trouvent le temps fi court, a force de plaifir et de contentment, qu'ils n'en
-peuvent sortir fans un merveilleux regret, demaniere qu'illeurtarde infiniment qu'ils
-n'y reviennent.
-Marie de la Ralde, aagee de vingt huidl ans, tres-belle femme, laquelle a qaitte cette
-abomination puis cinq ou fix ans, depofe qu'elle a efte forciere et frequente les Sabbats
-puis I'aage de dix ans, y ayant efte menee la premiere fois par Mariffans femme de
-Sarrauch, et apres fon decez le Diable I'ymenoit luy mefme. Que la premiere fois
-GENERATiyE POWERS. 229
-That the firft time fhe was there fhe faw the devil in the fhape of
-a trunk of a tree, without feet, but apparently fitting in a pulpit,
-with fome form of a human face, very obfcure ; but fince fhe had
-often feen him in man's form, fometimes red, fometimes black.
-That file had often feen him approach a hot iron to the children
-which were prefented to him, but fhe did not know if he marked
-them with it. That fhe had never kifTed him fince fhe had arrived
-at the age of knowledge, and does not know whether fhe had
-kifTed him before or not ; but file had feen how, when one went to
-adore him, he prefented fometimes his face to kifs, fometimes his
-pofleriors, as it pleafed him, and at his difcretion. That fhe had a
-fingular pleafure in going to the Sabbath, fo that every time fhe
-was fummoned to go there, fhe went as though it were to a wed-
-ding feafl ; not fo much for the liberty and licence they had there
-to have connexion with each other (which out of modefty fhe faid
-fhe had never done or feen done), but becaufe the devil had fo
-flrong a hold on their hearts and wills that it hardly allowed any
-other defire to enter. Befides that the witches believe they are
-going to a place where there are a hundred thoufand wonders
-and novelties to fee, and where they hear fo great a diverfity
-qu'elle y tut, elle y vit le Diable en forme de tronc d'arbre, fans pieds, qui fembloit
-ellre dans une chaire, avec qiielque forme de face humaine fort tenebreufe, mais depuis
-elle I'a veu fouvent en forme d'homme, tantot rouge, tantot noir: qu'elle la veu
-fouvent approcher un fer chaud pres des enfants qu'on luy prefentoit, mais qu'elle ne
-fgait s'il les marquoitavec cela. Qu'elle ne I'a jamais baife puis qu'elle ell en aage
-de cognoiflance, et ne f^ait fi auparavant elle I'avoit baife : bien a veu que comme on
-le va adorer, ores il leur prel'ente le vifage a baifer, ores le derriere, comme il luy
-plain, et a fa difcretion. Qu'elle avoit un fingulier plaifir d'aller au Sabbat, fi bien
-que quand on la venoit femondre d'y aller, elle y alloit comme a nopces : non pas
-tant pour la liberte et licence qu'on a de s'accointer enfemble (ce que par niodellie elle
-didt n'avoir jamais faitny veu faire), mais parce que le Diabletenoit tellement lies leurs
-coeurs et leurs volontez qu'a peine y laiflbit il entrer nul autre defir: Outre que les
-forcieres croyent aller en quelque lieu ou il y a cent mille choles ellranges et nouvelles
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-of melodious inftruments that they are ravifhed, and believe them-
-felves to be in fome terreftrial paradife. Moreover the devil per-
-fuades them that the fear of hell, which is fo much apprehended,
-is a piece of folly, and gives them to underftand that the eternal
-punifhments will hurt them no more than a certain artificial fire
-which he caufes them craftily to light, and then makes them pafs
-through it and repafs without hurt. And more, that they fee there
-fo many priefts, their pallors, cures, vicars, and confelTors, and
-other people of quality of all forts, fo many heads of families, and
-fo many miftrefles of the principal houfes in the faid country, fo
-many people veiled, whom they confidered to be grandees, becaufe
-they concealed themfelves and wifhed to be unknown, that they
-believed and took it for a very great honour and good fortune to
-be received there.
-Marie d'Afpilcouette, a girl nineteen years old, who lived at
-Handaye,faid that fhe had frequented the Sabbath ever fince the age
-of feven, and that fhe was taken there the firft time by Catherine de
-Moleres, who had fince been executed to death for having caufed
-a man's death by forcery. She faid that it was now two years fince
-a voir, et y entendent tant de divers et melodieux inftruments qu'ellesfont ravies, et
-croyent eftre dans quelque Paradis terreftre. D'ailleurs que le Diable leur perfuade
-que la crainte de I'Enfer, qu'on apprehende fi fort, eft une niayferie, et leur donne a
-entendre que les peines eternelles ne les tourmenteront pas davantage, que certain feu
-artificiel qu'il leur faid cauteleufement allumer, par lequel il les faid pafter et repafler
-fans fouffrir aucu« mal. D'avantage qu'elles y voyent tant de preftres, leurs pafteurs,
-curez, vicaires, et confeffeurs, et autres gens de qualite de toute fortes, tant de chefs
-de famille et tant de maiftreffes des maifons principales dudi6t pais, tant de gens
-voilez, qu'elles prefuppofent grans parcequ'ils fe cachent et veulent eftre incognus,
-qu'elles croyent et prennent a tres grand honneur et a tiltre de bonne fortune d'y eftre
-receues
-Marie d'Afpilcouette, habitante de Handaye, aagee de dix neuf ans, dift
-qu'elle a frequente les Sabbats puis I'aage de fept ans, et qu'elle y fut conduitte la
-premiere fois par Catherine de Moleres qui a depuis efte executee a mort, luy ayant
-efte maintenu, qu'elle avoit charge le haut mal par fon feul attouchement a un tort
-GENERAriVR POWERS. 231
-fhe had withdrawn from her relations with Satan. That the devil
-appeared in the form of a goat, having a tail and under it the face of
-a black man, which fhewascompclled to kifs, and that this poftcrior
-face has not the power of fpeech, hut they were obliged to adore
-and kifs it. Afterwards the faid Moleres gave her {z\^\\ toads to
-keep. That the faid Moleres tranfported her through the air to
-the Sabbath, where fhe faw people dancing, with violins, trumpets,
-and tabors, which made a very great harmony. That in the faid
-aflemblies there was an extreme pleafure and enjoyment. 'Hiat
-they made love in full liberty before all the world. That fome
-were employed in cutting off the heads of toads, while others made
-poifon of them ; and that they made the poifon at home as well as
-at the Sabbath.
-After defcribing the different forts of poifons prepared on thefe
-occafions, De Lancre proceeds to report the teftimony of other
-witneffes to the details of the Sabbath.' Jeannette de Belloc,
-called Atfoua, a damfel of twenty-four years of age, faid that fhe
-had been made a witch in her childhood by a woman named Oylar-
-chahar, who took her for the firfl: time to the Sabbath, and there
-prefented her to the devil ; and after her death, Mary Martin,
-honnefte homme : que neantmoins il y a deux ans qu'elle s'eft retiree des liens de
-Satan, et qu'elle en a fecoiie le joug. Que le Diable eftoit en forme de bouc, ayant
-une queue et au deflbubs un vifage d'homme noir, ou elle fut contrainte le baifcr, ct
-n'a parole par ce vifage de derriere, qu'on luy fit adorer et baifer : puis ladifle
-Moleres luy donna fept crapuax a garder. Que la di£le Moleres la tranfportoit au
-Sabbat par I'air, ou elle voyoit dancer avec violons, trompettes, ou tabourins, qui
-rendoyent une tresgrande harmonic. Qu'cfdidcs aflemblecs y a un extreme plaifir ct
-resjouiflance. Qu'on y faift I'amour en toute liberie devant tout le monde. Que
-plufieurs s'emploient a couper la tefte a des crapaux, et lesautresaen faire du poifon:
-quon en faicft au logis auffi bien qu'au Sabbat. Tableau r hicon fiance, pp. I 19 ct
-^ Jeannette de Belloc difte Atfoua, fillc de 24 ans, nous di6l que puis fon bas aage
-elle avoit elle fai6le forciere par une fcmmc nommcc Oylarchahar, laqucllc la mcna
-au Sabbat la premiere fois, et la prefenta au Diable, ct aprcs fon decez, Marie Martin,
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-lady of the houfe of Adamechorena, took her place. About the
-month of February, 1609, Jeannette confefTed to a prieft who was
-the nephew of madame Martin, who went to his aunt and merely
-enjoined her not to take the girl to the Sabbath any more. Jean-
-nette faid that at the folemn feftivals all kifTed the devil's pofteriors
-except the notable witches, who kifTed him in the face. According
-to her account, the children, at the age of two or three years, or as
-foon as they could fpeak, were made to renounce Jefus Chrift, the
-Virgin Mary, their baptifm, &c. and from that moment they were
-taught to worfhip the devil. She defcribed the Sabbath as refemb-
-ling a fair, well fupplied with all forts of objeds, in which fome
-walked about in their own form, and others were transformed, fhe
-knew not how, into dogs, cats, affes, horfes, pigs, and other ani-
-mals. The little boys and girls kept the herds of the Sabbath, con-
-fifting of a world of toads near a ftream, with fmall white rods,
-and were not allowed to approach the great mafs of the witches ;
-while others, of more advanced age, who were not objefts of fuffi-
-cient refpect, were kept apart in a fort of apprenticefhip, during
-dame de la maifon d' Adamechorena, print fa place. Et d'autant qu'environ le mois
-de Febvrier 1609, elle s'alla confelTer a maiftre Jean de Horroufteguy, prieur de
-Soubernoue, nepveu de ladidle Martin, il enjoignit a fa tante de la laiffer en paix et
-ne la mener plus au Sabbat. Qu'es feftes folemnelles on baifoit le Diable au
-derriere, mais les notables forcieres le baifoient au vifage. Que les enfans environ
-I'aage de deux ou trois ans, et puis qu'ils f9avent parler, font la renonciation a Jefus-
-Chrifl, a la Sainfte Vierge, a leur Baptefme, et a tout le refle, et commencent des lors
-a prendre habitude a recognoiftre et adorer le Diable. Didl que le Sabbat eft comme
-une foire celebre de toutes fortes de chofes, en laquelle aucuns fe promenent en leur
-propre forme, et d'autres font transformez, ne fijayt pourquoy, en chiens, en chats,
-afnes, chevanx, pourceaux, et autres animaux : les petits enfans et filles gardent
-les troupeaux du Sabbat, qui font un monde de crapaux, pres d'un ruifleau avec
-des petites gaules blanches qu'on leur donne, fans les laiffer approcher du gros
-des autres forciers : les mediocres et ceux qui font de bon aage parmy eux, on
-leur permet fimplement de voir, et leur en donne-on le plaifir et I'eftonnement, les
-tenant comme en apprentiffage. Pour les autres il y en a de deux fortes ; aucuns
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 233
-which they were only allowed to look on at the proceedings of the
-others. Of thefe there were two forts; fome were veiled, to make
-the poorer clafles believe that they were people of rank and dif-
-tindlion, and that they did not wifh themfelves to be known in fuch
-a place; others were uncovered, and openly danced, had fexual
-intercourfe, made the poifons, and performed their other diabolical
-functions; and thefe were not allowed to approach fo near " the
-mafter" as thofe who were veiled. The holy water ufed at the
-Sabbath was the devil's urine. She pointed out two of the accufed
-whom fhe had feen at the Sabbath playing upon the tabor and
-the violin. She fpoke of the numbers who were feen arriving
-and departing continually, the latter to do evil, the former to
-report what they had done. They went out at fea, even as far as
-Newfoundland, where their hufhands and fons went to fifh, in
-order to raife ftorms, and endanger their fhips. This deponent
-fpoke alfo of the fires at the Sabbath, into which the witches were
-font voilez pour donner opinion aux pauvres que ce font des princes et grands
-feigneurs, et qu'aucun d'eux n'ayt horreur d'y eilre et faire ce qu'ils font en adorant
-le diable. . . Lesautres font decoufverts et tout ouvertement dancent, s'accouplent,
-font du poifon, et autres fonftions diaboliques, et ceux cy ne font fi pres du maiilre,
-fi favoris, ne fi employez. lis baillent I'afperges de I'urine du Diable. lis v vont a
-I'ofFrande, et y a veu tenir le baffin a un Efteben Detzail, lors prifonnier: et difoit-on
-qu'il s'en eiloit enrichy. Qu'elle y a veu jouer du tabourin a Anfugarlo de Han-
-daye, lequel a depuis efte execute a mort comme infigne forcier, et du violon a
-Gallelloue. Elle nous difoit qu'on eufl veu defloger du Sabbat et voler Tune en
-Fair, I'autre monter plus haut vers le ciel, I'autre defcendre vers la terre, et I'autre
-parfois fe precipiter dans les grands feux allumez audit lieu, comme fuzees qui font
-jettees par plufieurs, ou comme efclairs : I'une arrive, I'autre part, et tout a un coup
-plufieurspartent, plufieurs arrivent, chacunerendant comptedes vents et orages qu'elle
-a excite, des navires et vaiffeaux qu'elle a fait perdre : et s'en vont de Labourt,
-Siboro, etS. Jean de Luz, jufques k Arcachon, qui ell une des telles de I'Ocean, aufli
-I'appellent ils la telle de Buch, aflcs pres de Bourdeaux, et en Terre-neuve, parce-
-qu'elles y voyent leurs peres, leurs maris, leurs enfans, et d'autres parens, et que c'ell
-leur voyage ordinaire, mefme en a veu plufieurs qui notoiremcnt font en Tcrrc-neuve
-H H
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-thrown without fuftaining any hurt. She had feen the frequenters
-of the Sabbath make themfelves appear as big as houfes, but fhe had
-never feen them transform themfelves into animals, although there
-were animals of different kinds running about at the Sabbath.
-Jeanette d'Abadie, an inhabitant of Siboro, of the age of fix-
-teen, faid that fhe was taken for the firft time to the Sabbath by a
-woman named Gratianne; that for the laft nine months fhe had
-watched and done all fhe could to withdraw herfelf from this evil
-influence ; that during the firfl: three of thefe months, becaufe fhe
-watched at home by night, the devil carried her away to the Sab-
-bath in open day; and during the other fix, until the i6th of
-September, 1609, fiie had only gone to them twice, becaufe fhe
-had watched, and fl:ill watches in the church; and that the lafl: time
-fhe was there was the 13th of September, 1609, which fhe narrated
-in a " bizarre and very terrible manner." It appears that, having
-watched in the church of Siboro during the night between Saturday
-and Sunday, at daybreak fhe went to fleep at home, and, during
-the time of the grand mafs, the devil came to her and fnatched
-qu'elles menoyent au Sabbat Quant a la transformation, dift qu' encore que
-parfois elles fi faflent voir hautes comme une maifon, pourtant elle n'a jamais veu
-aucune d' elles fe transformer en befte en fa prefence, mais feulement certaines belles
-courir par le Sabbat, et devenir grandes et petites, mais fi foudainement qu'elle n'en
-a jamais pu decouvrir la fagon. En voycy une plus fgavante.
-Jeannetted'Abadie, habitantede Siboro, aagee de feize ans, depofe qu'elle futmenee
-la premiere fois au Sabbat par une nommee Gratianne : qu'il y a environ neuf mois
-qu'elle veille et faift tout ce qu'elle peut pour fe remedier : que puis les trois premiers
-mois defdifts neuf,parce qu'elle veilloitla nuit chez elle,le Diable la menoit tousjours au
-Sabbat de plain jour : et les fix mois reftans jufque au 16 Septembre 1609, elle n'y eft
-allee que deux fois, parce qu'elle a veille et veille encore dans I'eglife : et la derniere fois
-qu'elle y a efte, ce fut le i 3 de Septembre 1609, ce qu'elle conte d'une bizarre et bien
-terrible fagon. Car elle dift qu'ayant veille dans I'eglife de Siboro, la nuift du Samedy
-venant au Dimanche, le jour venu, elle s'en alia dormir chez elle, et pendant qu'on
-difoit la grande Mefle, le Diable lui vint arracher un Higo de cuir qu'elle portoit au
-col, comme font uue infinite d'autres ; qui eft une forme de main au point ferre, le
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 235
-from her neck a " fig of leather which (lie wore there, as an
-infinity of other people did ;" this higo^ or fig, fhe defcribed as
-" a form of hand, with the fift clofed, and the thumb pafled between
-the two fingers, which they believe to be, and wear as, a remedy
-againll: all enchantment and witchcraft; and, becaufe the devil
-cannot bear this fift, fhe faid that he did not dare to carrv it away,
-but left it at the threfhold of the door of the room' in which fhe
-was deeping." This Jeanette faid, that the firft time fhe went to
-the Sabbath fhe faw there the devil in the form of a man, black
-and hideous, with fix horns on his head, and fometimes eight, and
-a great tail behind, one face in front and another at the back of the
-head, as they paint the god Jan-us. Gratianne, on prefenting her,
-received as her reward a handful of gold ; and then the child-
-vidim was made to renounce her Creator, the Virgin, the baptifm,
-father, mother, relatives, heaven, earth, and all that was in the
-world, and then fhe was required to kifs the fiend on the pofleriors.
-The renunciation fhe was obliged to repeat every time fhe went to
-the Sabbath. She added that the devil often made her kifs his
-face, his navel, his member, and his pofteriors. She had often {^^w
-the children of witches baptized at the Sabbath.
-poulce palTe entre lesdeux doigts, qu'elles croyent et portent comme remede a toute
-fafcination et Ibrtilege : et parce que le Diable ne peut fouifrir ce poignet, elle dift
-qu'il ne I'ofa emporter, ains le laifla prcs du fueil de la porte de la chambre dans la-
-quelle elle dormoit. En revenant au commencement et a la premiere entree qu'elle
-fut au Sahbat, elle dit qu'elle y vid le Diable en forme d'homme noir ethideux,avec
-fix cornes en la telle, parfois huift, et une grande queue derriere, un vifage devant et
-un autre derriere la telle, comme on peint le dieu Janus: que la difte Gratianne,
-I'ayant prefentee, receut une poignee d'or en recompenfe, puis la fit renoncer et renier
-fon Createur, la Sainfte Vierge, lesSainfts, le Baptefme, pere, mere, parens, Ic ciel,
-la terre, et tout ce qui ell au mondc, laquelle renonciation il luy faifoit renouvcller
-toutes les fois qu'elle alloit au Sabbat, puis elle I'alloit bailer au derriere. Que le
-Diable luv faifoit baifer fouvent fon vifage, puis fon nombril, puis fon mcmbre, puis
-fon erriere. Qu'elle a veu fouvent baptifer des enfans au Sabbat, qu'elle nous expli-
-ON THE WORSHIP OF rUE
-Another ceremony was that of baptizing toads. Thefe animals
-perform a great part in thefe old popular orgies. At one of the
-Sabbaths, a lady danced with four toads on her perfon, one on each
-fhoulder, and one on each wrift, the latter perched like hawks.
-Jeanette d'Abadie went on further in her revelations in regard to
-ftill more objeftionable parts of the proceedings. She faid that/
-with regard to their libidinous ads, fhe had feen the aflembly inter-
-mix inceftuoufly, and contrary to all order of nature, accufing even
-herfelf of having been robbed of her maidenhead by Satan, and of
-having been known an infinite number of times by a relation of
-hers, and by others, whoever would aik her. She always fought to
-avoid the embraces of the devil, becaufe it caufed her an extreme
-pain, and fhe added that what came from him was cold, and never
-produced pregnancy. Nobody ever became pregnant at the Sab-
-bath. Away from the Sabbath, fhe never committed a fault, but
-in the Sabbath fhe took a marvellous pleafure in thefe adis of
-fexual intercourfe, which fhe difplayed by dwelling on the defcrip-
-tion of them with a minutenefs of detail, and language of fuch
-obfcenity, as would have drawn a blufh from the moft depraved
-woman in the world. She defcribed alfo the tables covered in
-qua eftre des enfans des forcieres et non autres, lefquelles ont accouftume faire pluftot
-baptifer leurs enfans au Sabbat, qu'en I'eglise, et les prefenter au Diable pluftoft qu'a
-Dieu. De P Inconjlance des Mauvais Anges, p. 128.
-Pour I'accouplement, qu' elle a veu tout le monde fe mefler inceflueufement et contre
-tout ordre de nature, comme nous avons didl cy devant, s'accufant elle mefme d'avoir
-efte depucellee par Satan et cognue une infinite de fois par un fien parent et autres
-qui Ten daignoient femondre : qu'elle fuyoit I'accouplement du Diable, a caufe
-qu'ayant Ton membre faift en efcailles, il fait foufFrir une extrefme douleur : outre que
-la femence eft extremement froide, fi bien qu'elle n'engroffe jamais, ni celle des
-autres hommes au Sabbat, bien qu'elle foit naturelle : Que hors du Sabbat elle ne fit
-jamais faute, mais que dans le Sabbat elle avoit un merveilleux plaifir en ces accou-
-plemens autres que celui de Sathan, qu'elle difoit eftre horrible, voire elle nous
-tefmoignoit un merveilleux plaifir a le dire, et le conter, nommant toutes chofes par
-GENERATIV E POWERS. 237
-appearance with provifions, which, however, proved either unfub-
-ftantial or of a difgufting nature.
-This witnefs further declared that fhe had feen at the Sabbath a
-number of little demons without arms, who were employed in
-kindling a great fire, into which they threw the witches, who came
-out without being burnt ; and fhe had alfo feen the grand mafter
-of the aflembly throw himfelf into a fire, and remain there until he
-was burnt to powder, which powder was ufed by the witches to
-bewitch young children, and caufe them to go willingly to the
-Sabbath. She had feen priefts who were well-known, and gave the
-names of fome of them, performing the fervice of the mafs at the
-Sabbath, while the demons took their places on the altar in the
-forms of faints. Sometimes the devil pierced the left foot of a
-forcerer under the little toe, and drew blood, which he fucked, and
-leur nom plus librement et efFrontement que nous ne luy ofions faire demander,
-chofe qui conlirme merveillcufement la realite du Sabbat. Car il ell plus vrav-
-femblable qu'elle fe foit accouplee au Sabbat avec des gens qu'elle nommoit, que non,
-que Satan les y ait fai6l voir dans Ton lift par illufion, ou qu'il les luy ait portez cor-
-porellement : n'ayant peu fentir cent fois (comme elle di6l) cette femence naturelle que
-s'accouplant corporellement et reellementavecun homme naturel qu'elle nousa nomme
-qui eft encore vivant. Qu'elle y a veu des tables drefl'ees avec forces vivres, mais
-quand on en vouloit prendre on ne trouvoit rien foubs la main, fauf quand on y avoit
-porte des enfans baptifcz ou non baptifez, car de ces deux elle en avoit veu fort fouvent
-fervir et manger : mefme un qu'on tenait eftre fils de maiftre de Lafle. Qu'on les
-coupe a quartiers au Sabbat pour en faire part a plufieurs parroilfes.
-D'avantage dift qu'elle a veu plufieurs petits demons fans bras, allumer un grand feu,
-jetter des forcieres du fabbat la dedans, et, les retirant fans doaleur, le Diable leur dire
-qu'elles n'auroient non plus de mal du feu d'Enfer. Qu'elle a veu le grand maiilrc de
-I'aflemblee fe jetter dans les flammes au Sabbat, fe faire brufler jufques a ce qu'il eftoit
-reduit en poudre, et les grandes et infignes forcieres prendre les dites poudres pour
-enforceler les petits enfants et les mener au Sabbat, et en prenoient aufll dans la
-bouche pour ne reveler jamais; et a veu pareillement ce mauvais demon au Sabbat
-fe reduire tout en menus vers. Qu'elle a ouy dire fouvent melfe a quelques preftrcs
-et entre autres a Migualena et Bocal, veftus de rouge et de blanc : que le maiftre de
-I'aflemblee et autres petits demons eftoient fur I'autel en forme de fainfts : que pour
-ON THE TFORSHIP OF THE
-after this that individual could never be drawn to make a confef-
-fion ; and fhe named, as an example, a prieft named Frangois de
-Bideguaray, of Bordegaina, who, in faft, could not be made to
-confefs. She named many other perfons whom fhe had feen at the
-Sabbaths, and efpecially one named Anduitze, whofe office it was
-to fummon the witches and forcerers to the meeting.
-De Lancre fays that many others, in their depofitions, fpoke of
-k the extreme pleafures and enjoyments experienced in thefe Sab-
-baths, which made men and women repair to them with the greateft
-eagernefs. " The woman indulged before the face of her hufband
-without fufpicion or jealoufy, he even frequently aded the part of
-procurer ; the father deprived his daughter of her virginity without
-fhame; the mother afted the fame part towards her fon; the brother
-towards his fifter ; fathers and mothers carried thither and pre-
-fented their children."
-aller au Sabbat elle ne laiffoit d'aller a I'eglife, mais elle trembloit quand elle y
-voyoit faire I'eflevation, et tremble encore toutes les fois qu'elle la voit. Et quand
-elle fe veut approcher du crucifix, pour luy baifer les pieds, elle devient tout efperdue
-et troublee, fans fgavoir quelle priere elle fait, parcequ'elle voit en mefme inftant
-comme une perfonne noire et hideufe qui ell tout au bas et au delfoubs des pieds
-dudift crucifix, qui faift contenance de I'en empefcher. Quant aux forciers qui
-ne confelfent ny a la torture ny au fupplice, elle didl avoir veu que le Diable leur perce
-le pied gauche avec un poingon et leur tire un peu de fang au deflbubs du petit doigt
-dudift pied gauche, lequel fang il fucce, et celuy la ne confeffe jamais chofe qui con-
-cerne le fortilege : ce qu'elle a veu pratiquer en la perfonne de maiflre Francois de
-Bideguaray, preftre au lieu appelle a Bordegaina, ou le Sabbat a accouftume fe tenir,
-fi bien qu'elle nous a di6l qu'il ne confefferoit jamais. Qu'elle a veu au Sabbat entre
-une infinite qu'elle nomme et cognoift, un nomme Anduitze, qui ell celuy qui va
-donner les affignations aux forcieres pour fe trouver au Sabbat. . . .
-Et plufieurs autres nous ont di6t que les plaifirs et la joye y font fi grands et de
-tant de fortes, qu'il n'y a homme ny femme qui n'y coure tres-volontiers. ... La
-femme fe joue en prefence de fon mary fans foupgon nijaloufie, voire il en eft fouvent
-le proxenete: le pere depucelle fa fille fans vergogne: la merearrache le pucelagedu
-fils fans crainte: le frere de la foeur ; on y voit les peres et meres porter et prefenter
-leurs enfans. De l' hiconjiance, p. 132.
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 239
-The dances at the Sabbath were moftly indecent, including the
-well-known Sarabande, and the women danced in them fometimes
-in chemife, but much more frequently quite naked. They con-
-fided efpecially in violent movements ; and the devil often joined
-in them, taking the handfomeft woman or girl for his partner. De
-Lancre's account of thefe dances is fo minute and curious that it
-may be given in his own words. ^ " If the faying is true that never
-woman or girl returned from the ball as chafte as fhe went there,
-how unclean muft fhe return who has abandoned herfelf to the un-
-fortunate defign of going to the ball of the demons and evil fpirits,
-who has danced in hand with them, who has kifl*ed them obfcenely,
-who has yielded herfelf to them as a prey, has adored them, and
-has even copulated with them ? It is to be, in good earned, incon-
-ftant and fickle ; it is to be not only lewd, or even a fhamelefs
-whore, but to be fl:ark-mad, unworthy of the favours with which
-God loads her in bringing her into the world, and caufing her to
-be born a Chrifl:ian. We caufed in feveral places the bovs and
-girls to dance in the fame fafhion as they danced at the Sabbath,
-as much to deter them from fuch uncleannefs, by convincing them
-to what a degree the moft modefl: of thefe movements was filthy,
-vile, and unbecoming in a virtuous girl, as alfo becaufe, when
-^ Et s'il ell vray ce qu'on dit que jamais femme ny fille ne revint du bal fi chafte
-comme elle y eft allee,combien immonde revient celle qui s'eft abandonnee, ct a prins
-ce mal-heureux deflain d'aller au bal des demons et mauvais efprits, qui a dance a
-leur main, qui les a fi falement baifez, qui s'eft donnee a eux en proye, les a adorez, et
-s'eft mefme accouplee avec eux ? C'eft eftre a bon efcient inconftante et volage: c'eft
-eftre non feulement impudique, voire putain efFrontee, mais bien folle enragee, inbigne
-des graces que Dieu luy avoit faidl et verfe fur elle, lors qu'il la mit au monde, et la
-fift naiftre chreftienne. Nous fifmes en plufieurs lieux dancer les enfans ct filles en
-la mefme fagon qu'elles dangoient au Sabbat, tant pour les deterrer d'une telle falete,
-leur faifant recognoiftre combien le plus modefte mouvement eftoit fale, vilain, et
-malfeant a une honnefte fille, qu'aufii par-ce qu'au confrontement la plus part des
-ON THE IVORSHIP OF THE
-accufed, the greater part of the witches, charged with having among
-other things danced in hand with the devil, and fometimes led the
-dance, denied it all, and faid that the girls were deceived, and that
-they could not have known how to exprefs the forms of dance
-which they faid they had feen at the Sabbath. They were boys
-and girls of a fair age, who had already been in the way of
-falvation before our commiffion. In truth fome of them were
-already quite out of it, and had gone no more to the Sabbath for
-fome time ; others were ftill ftruggling to efcape, and, held ftill by
-one foot, flept in the churches, confefled and communicated, in order
-to withdraw themfelves entirely from Satan's claws. Now it is
-faid that they dance always with their backs turned to the centre of
-the dance, which is the caufe that the girls are fo accuftomed to
-carry their hands behind them in this round dance, that they draw
-into it the whole body, and give it a bend curved backwards,
-having their arms half turned ; fo that moft of them have the belly
-commonly great, pufhed forward, and fwoUen, and a little inclining
-in front. I know not whether this be caufed by the dance or by
-the ordure and wretched provifions they are made to eat. But the
-fad is, they dance very feldom one by one, that is one man alone
-forcieres accufees d'avoir entre autres chofes dancee a la main du Diable, et parfois
-mene la dance, nioyent tout, et difoient que les iilles eftoient abufees, et qu'elles
-n'euflent fceu exprimer les formes de dance qu'elles difoient avoir veu au Sabbat.
-C'eftoient des enfans et filles de bon aage, et qui eftoient desja en voye de falut avant
-noftre commiffion. A la verite aucunes en eftoient dehors tout a faift, et n'alloy-
-ent plus au Sabbat il y avoit quelque temps : les autres eftoient encore a fe debatre
-fur la perche, et attachez par un pied, dormoient dans les eglifes, fe confeflbient et
-communioient, pour s'ofter du tout des pattes de Satan. Or on dift qu'on y dance
-tousjours le dos tourne au centre de la dance, qui faift que les filles font fi accouf-
-tumees a porter les mains en arriere en cefte dance ronde, qu'elles y trainent tout le
-corps, et luy donnent un ply courbe en arriere, ayant les bras a demy tournez : fi
-bien que la plus part ont le ventre communement grand, enfle et avance, et un peu
-penchant fur le devant. Je ne fgay fi la dance leur caufe cela ou 1' ordure et mef-
-chantes viandes qu'on leur fait manger. Au refte on y dance fort peu fouvent un a
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 241
-with one woman or girl, as we do in our galliards ; fo they have told
-and aflured us, that they only danced there three forts of branles,
-or brawls, ufually turning their fhoulders to one another, and the
-back of each looking towards the round of the dance, and the face
-turned outwards. The firft is the Bohemian dance, for the wan-
-dering Bohemians are alfo half devils; I mean thofe long-haired
-people without country, who are neither Egytians (gipfies), nor
-of the kingdom of Bohemia, but are born everywhere, as they
-purfue their route, and pafs countries, in the fields, and under the
-trees, and they go about dancing and playing conjuring tricks, as at
-the Sabbath. So they are numerous in the country of Labourd,on
-account of the eafy paflage from Navarre and Spain.
-"The fecond is with jumping, as our working men pracflife in
-towns and villages, along the ftreets and fields; and thefe two are
-in round. The third is alfo with the back turned, but all holding
-together in length, and, without difengaging hands, they approach
-fo near as to touch, and meet back to back, a man with a woman ;
-and at a certain cadence they pufh and ftrike together immodeftly
-their two pofteriors. And it was alfo told us that the devil, in his
-un, c'ell a dire un homme feul avec une femme ou fillc, comme nous faifons en nos
-gaillardes : ains elles nous ont difl et afTeure, qu'on n'y dangoit que trois fortes de
-branfles, communement fe tournant les efpaules I'un I'autre, et le dos d'un chafcun
-vifant dans le rond dc la dance, et le vifage en dehors. La premiere c'ell a la Bohe-
-mienne, car aufli les Bohemes coureurs font a demy diables : je dy ces long polls
-fans patrie, qui ne font ny ^gyptiens, ny du royaume de Boheme, ains ils naiffent
-par tout en chemin faifant et paffant pais, et dans les champs, et foubs les arbrcs, et
-font les dances et baftelages a demy comme au Sabbat. Aufli font ils frequens au
-paVs dc Labourt, pour I'aifance du paflagc dc Navarre et de I'Efpagne.
-La feconde c'ell a fauts, comme nozartifans fontes villeset villages, par les rues et par
-les champs : et ces deux font en rond. Et la troifiefme ell aufli le dos tourne, mais fe
-tenant tous en long, et, fans fe deprendre des mains, ils s'approchent de fi pres qu'ils
-fe touchent, et fe rencontrcnt dos a dos, un homme avec une femme : et a certaine
-cadence ils fe choquent et frapent inpudcmmcnt cul centre cul. Mais aufli il nous
-fut dit que le Diable bizarre ne les failoit pas tous mcttrc rangement le dos tourne
-I I
-ON "THE WORSHIP OF THE
-ftrange humours, did not caufe them all to be placed in order, with
-their backs turned towards the crown of the dance, as is commonly
-faid by everybody ; but one having the back turned, and the other
-not, and fo on to the end of the dance. . . . They dance to the
-found of the tabor and flute,and fometimes with the long inftrument
-they carry at the neck, and thence ftretching to near the girdle,
-which they beat with a little ftick; fometimes with a violin (fiddle).
-But thefe are not the only inftruments of the Sabbath, for we have
-learnt from many of them that all forts of inftruments are feen
-there, with fuch harmony that their is no concert in the world to be
-compared to it."
-Nothing is more remarkable than the fort of prurient curiofity
-with which thefe honeft commiffioners interrogated the witneftes as
-to the fexual peculiarities and capabilities of the demon, and the
-fort of fatisfaction with which De Lancre reduces all this to writinof.^
-They all tend to fhow the identity of thefe orgies with thofe of the
-ancient worfhip of Priapus, who is undoubtedly figured in the Satan
-of the Sabbath. The young witch, Jeannette d'Abadie, told how
-Ihe had feen at the Sabbath men and women in promifcuous inter-
-courfe, and how the devil arranged them in couples, .in the moft
-unnatural conjunctions — the daughter with the father, the mother
-with her fon, the fifter with the brother, the daughter-in-law with
-vers la couronne de la dance, comme communement dift tout le monde : ains I'un
-ayant le dos tourne, et I'autre non : et ainfi tout a fuite jufqu'a la fin de la dance.
-.... Or elles dancent au fon du petit tabourin et de la flufte, et parfois avec ce long
-inftrument qui' Is portent fur le col, puis s'allongeant jusqu'aupres de la ceinture, ils
-le batent avec un petit bafton : parfois avec un violon. Mais ce ne font les feuls
-inftrumens du Sabbat, car nous avons apprins de plufieurs qu'on y oyt toute forte
-d'inftrumens, avec une telle harmonic qu'il n'y a concert au monde qui le puiffe
-efgaler. De V hiconjlance, ^c, p. 209.
-Jeannette d'Abadie, aagee de feize ans, dift, qu'elle a veu hommes et femmes fe
-mefler promifcuement au Sabbat : que le Diable leur commandoit de s'accoupler et
-fe joindre, leur baillant a chacun tout ce que la nature abhorre le plus, fgavoir la fille
-GENERATIVE POWERS. 243
-the father-in-law, the penitent with herconfeflorjwithoutdiftindion
-of age, quality, or rehitionfhip, fo that fhe confeffed to having been
-known an infinity of times at the Sabbath by a coufin-german of
-her mother, and by an infinite number of others. After repeating
-much that fhe had faid before rehating to the impudicity of the Sab-
-bath, this girl faid that fhe had been deflowered by the devil at the
-age of thirteen — twelve was the common age for this — that they
-never became pregnant,either by him or by any of the wizards of the
-Sabbath ; that fhe had never felt anything come from the devil
-except the firfi: time, when it was very cold, but that with the for-
-cerers it was as with other men. That the devil chofe the hand-
-fomeft of the women and girls for himfelf, and one he ufually made
-his queen for the meeting. That they fuffered extremely when he
-had intercourfe with them, in confequence of his member being
-covered with fcales like thofe of a fifh. That when extended it was
-au pere, le fils a la mere, la foeur au frere, la filleulle au parrain, la penitente a fon
-confefleur, fans diftinftion d'aage, de qualite, ni de parentelle : de forte qu'elle con-
-teflbit librement avoir efte connue une infinite de fois au Sabbat, par un coufin ger-
-main de fa mere et par une infinite d'autres : que c'ell une perpetuelle ordure, en
-laquelle tout le monde s'efgayoit comme elle : que hors du Sabbat elle ne fit jamais
-de taute : qu'elle le faifoit tout autant de fois que le Diable le luy cpmmandoit, et
-indiiferemment avec toute forte de gens: ayant efte depucellee au Sabbat puis I'aage
-de treize ans : que le Diable les conviant et forgant de faire cefte faute, foit avec luy,
-foit avec des gens de rencontre en ces aflemblees, la faute n'cftoit fienne : que de ces
-accouplemens on ne s'engroffoit jamais, foit qu'ils fuflent avec le maiftre, foit avec
-d'autres forciers : ce que pourtant plufieurs exemples dans nos hiftoires rendcnt ex-
-tremement incertain et douteux : qu'on n'y fent que deplaifir : qu'elle n'a jamais
-fenty qu'il euft aucune femence, fauf quand il la dcpucella qu'elle la fentit froidc,
-mais que cclle des autres hommes qui I'ont cognue ell naturelle : qu'il fechoifit et trie
-les plus belles ; et de vray toutes cellcs que nous avons veu qualificcs de cc tiltrc dc
-roynes eftoient doiiecs de quelque beaute plus finguliere que les autres. Si bicn que
-celle Dctfail a Urrogne, lorfqu'elle fut executee a mort, mourut fi defdaigncui'emcnt
-que le bourrcau de Bayonne, jcunc et dc belle forme, voulant cxtorqucr d'clle, comme
-c'ert la couftume, le baifcr du pardon, elle ne voulut jamais profaner fa belle bouche
-qui avoit accoullumee d'cftrc colee au dcrricrc du Diable. Did d'avantagc que, lors
-ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
-a yard long, but that it was ufually twifted. Marie d'Afpilcuette,
-a girl between nineteen and twenty years of age, who alfo confefled
-to having had frequent connexion with Satan, defcribed his member
-as about half a yard long, and moderately large. Marguerite, a
-girl of Sare, between fixteen and feventeen, defcribed it as refem-
-bling that of a mule, and as being as long and thick as one's arm.
-More on this fubjedl the reader will find in De Lancre's own text,
-given in the note below. The devil, we are further told, preferred
-que le Diable les cognoift charnellement, elles fouffrentune extreme douleur, les ayant
-ouyes crier, et, au fortir de I'afle, les ayant veiies revenir au Sabbat toutes fanglantes
-fe plaignant de douleur, laquelle vient de ce que le membre du Demon ellant faift
-a efcailles comme un poilTon, elles fe referrent en entrant, et fe levent et piquent en
-fortant : c'eft pour quoy elles fuyent femblables rencontres.
-Que le membre du Diable, s'il eiloit eflendu, eft long environ d'une aulne, mais il
-le tient entortille et finiieux en forme de ferpent : que fouvent il interpofe quelque
-nuee quand il veut fe joindre a quelque femme ou fille. Qu'elle a veu le Diable avec
-plufieurs perfonnes au Sabbat qu'elle nous a nomme, et que fi veux taire pour cer-
-tain raifon. Et en fin qu'elle avoit auffi efte depucellee par luy des I'aage de treize ans,
-et depuis cognue plufieurs fois en forme d'homme, et en mefme fagon que les autres
-hommes ont accouftume de coignoiftre leurs efpoufes, mais avec une extrefme douleur,
-par les raifons cy deflus deduiftes : qu'elle a veu faire tous ces accouplemens une in-
-finite de fois, par ce que celles qui le mauvais Demon a cognues voyent fort bien
-quand le Diable en cognoift d'autres. Mais il a quelque vergongne de faire voir
-cette vilennie a celles avec lefquelles il n'a encore eu acointance : qui eft caufe qu'il
-leur met au devant cette nuee.
-Marie d'Afpilcuette, fille de dix-neuf a vingt ans, difoit le mefme, pour ce qui eft du
-membre en efcailles, mais elle depofoit que lors qu'il les vouloit cognoiftre, il quitoit
-la forme de bouc et prenoit celle d'homme. Que les forciers au Sabbat prenoient
-chacun telle femme ou fille que bon luy fembloit, et a la veiie de tout le monde :
-qu'on n'y eft jamais refufe, et que les maris foufFrent que le Diable, ou qui que ce foit
-du Sabbat, jouiffe de fa femme tout devant lui, et que le mari mefme parfois s'exerce
-avec fa femme : que le membre du Diable eft long environ la moitie d'une aulne, de
-mediocre grofleur, rouge, obfcur, et tortu, fort rude et comme piquant.
-En voicy d'une autre forte. Marguerite, fille de Sare, aagee de feize a dixfept
-ans, depofe que le Diable, foit qu'il ayt la forme d'homme, ou qu'il foit en forme
-de bouc, a tousjours un membre de mulct, ayant choifi en imitation celuy de cet
-GENERAriVE POWERS. 245
-married women to girls, becaufe there was more fin in the connec-
-tion, adultery being a greater crime than fimple fornication.
-In order to give ftill more truthfulnefs to his account of the Sab-
-bath, De Lancre caufed all the fads gathered from the confeflions
-of his vidlims to be embodied in apifturewhichilluftrates thefecond
-edition of his book, and which places the whole fcene before us fo
-vividly that we have had it re-engraved in facfimile as an illuftra-
-tion to the prefent effay.^ The different groups are, as will be
-feen, indicated by capital letters. At A we have Satan in his gilt
-pulpit, with five horns, the one in the middle lighted, for the pur-
-pofe of giving light to all the candles and fires at the Sabbath. B
-is the queen of the Sabbath, feated at his right hand, while another
-favorite, though in lefs degree, fits on the other fide. C, a witch
-prefenting a child which fi^e has feduced. D, the witches, each
-with her demon, feated at table. E, a party of four witches and
-forcerers, who are only admitted as fpedators, and are not allowed
-animal comme le mieux pourveu : qu'il I'a long et gros comme le bras : que quand
-il veut cognoiftre quelque fille ou femme au Sabbat, comme il faift prefque a
-chafque affemblee, il faift paroiftre quelque forme de lid de foye, fur lequel il
-faift femblant de les coucher, qu'elles n'y prennent point de deplaifir, comme
-ont did ces premieres : et que jamais il ne paroill au Sabbat en quelque adlion que ce
-foit, qu'il n'ait tousjours fon inftrument dehors, de cette belle forme et mefure : tout
-a rebours de ce que dit Boguet, que celles de fon pais ne luy ont veu guiere plus long
-que le doigt et gros fimplement a proportion : fi bien que les forcieres de Labourt
-font mieux fervies de Satan que celles de la Franche-Conte.
-Marie de Marigrane, fille de Biarrix, aagee de quinze ans, dit, Qu'il fcmble que cc
-mauvais Demon ait fon membre my party, moitie de fer, moitic dc chair, tout de
-fon long, et de mefme les genitoires, et depole I'avoir veu en cette forme pluficurs fois
-au Sabbat : et outre ce I'avoit ouy dire a des femmes que Satan avoit cognues : qu'il
-les fait crier comme des femmes qui Ibnt en mal d'enfant : et qu'il tient tousjours fon
-membre dehors.
-Petry de Linarre did que le Diable a le membre faift de come, ou pour le moins
-il en a I'apparence, c'ell pourquoy il faift tant crier les femmes. De r Inconjlance,
-p. 223.
-See our plate xl.
-ON "THE WORSHIP OF THE
-to approach the great ceremonies. F, " according to the old
-proverb, Apres la pance, vient la dance^' the witches and their
-demons have rifen from table, and are here engaged in one of the
-defcriptions of dances mentioned above. G, the players on inftru-
-ments, who furnifh the mufic to which the witches dance. H, a
-troop of women and girls, who dance with their faces turned out-
-wards from the round of the dance. I, the cauldron on the fire, to
-►make all forts of poifons and noxious compounds. K, during thefe
-proceedings, many witches are {^^r\ arriving at the Sabbath on
-ftaffs and broomfticks, and others on goats, bringing with them
-children to offer to Satan ; others are departing from the Sabbath,
-carried through the air to the fea and diftant parts, where they
-will raife ftorms and tempefts. L, " the great lords and ladies and
-other rich and powerful people, who treat on the grand affairs of
-the Sabbath, where they appear veiled, and the women with mafks,
-that they may remain always concealed and unknown." Laftly,
-at M, we fee the young children, at fome diftance from the bufy
-part of the ceremonies, taking charge of the toads.
-In reviewing the extraordinary fcenes which are developed in
-thefe witch-depofitions, we are ftruck not only with their general
-refemblance among themfelves, although told in different countries,
-but alfo with the ftriking points of identity between the proceed-
-ings of the Sabbath and the fecret affemblies with which the
-Templars were charged. We have in both the initiatory prefenta-
-tion, the denial of Chrift, and the homage to the new mafter, fealed
-by the obfcene kifs. This is juft what might be expefted. In
-preferving fecretly a religious worfhip after the open practice of it
-had been profcribed, it would be natural, if not neceffary, to require
-of the initiated a ftrong denial of the new and intrufive faith, with
-a(5bs as well as words which compromifed him entirely in what he
-was doing. The mafs and weight of the evidence certainly goes
-to prove that fuch fecret rites did prevail among the Templars,
-GENERATIVE POJVERS. 247
-though it is not equally evident that they prevailed throughout
-the order; and the fimilarity of the revelations of the witch-con-
-fefTions, in all countries where they were taken, feems to fhow that
-there was in them alfo a foundation in truth. We look upon it as
-not admitting of doubt, that the Priapic orgies and the other
-periodical afTemblies for worfhip of this defcription, which we have
-defcribed in an earlier part of this eflay, were continued long after
-the fall of the Roman power and the introdudion of the Chriftian
-religion. The ruftic population, moftly fervile, whofe morals or
-private pradices were little heeded by the other clafles of focicty,
-might, in a country fo thinly peopled, afTemble by night in retired
-places without any fear of obfervation. There they perhaps indulged
-in Priapic rites, followed by the old Priapic orgies, which would
-become more and more debafed in form, but through the effeds
-of exciting potions, as defcribed by Michelet,^ would have become
-wilder than ever. T^^^Y t)ecame, as Michelet defcribes them, the
-Saturnalia of the ferf The ftate of mind produced by thefe
-excitements would lead thofe who partook in them to believe eafily
-in the actual prefence of the beings they worfhipped, who, according
-to the Church dodrines, were only fo many devils. Hence arofe
-the diabolical agency in the fcene. Thus we eafily obtain all the
-materials and all the incidents of the witches' Sabbath. Where this
-older worfhip was preferved among the middle or more elevated
-claffes of fociety, who had other means of fecrecy at their command,
-it would take a lefs vulgar form, and would fhow itfelf in the
-formation of concealed fedts and focieties, fuch as thofe of the dif-
-ferent forms of Gnofticifm, of the Stadingers, of the Templars,
-and of other lefs important fecret clubs, of a more or lefs immoral
-character, which continued no doubt to exift long after what we
-See Michelet, La Sorcicre, liv. i, c. 9, on the ufe and the efFefts of the Solanes,
-to which he attributes much of the delufions of the Sabbath.
-ON THE GENERATIVE POWERS.
-call the middle ages had pafled away. As we have before in-
-timated, thefe mediaeval prad:ices prevailed moft in Gaul and the
-South, where the influence of Roman manners and fuperfl:itions
-was greatefl:.
-The worfhip of the reproductive organs as reprefenting the
-fertilizing, protecting, and faving powers of nature, apart from
-thefe fecret rites, prevailed univerfally, as we have traced it fully
-in the preceding pages, and we only recur to that part of the
-fubjecft to ftate that perhaps the lafl: traces of it now to be found
-in our iflands is met with on the weftern fhores of Ireland. Off
-the coafl: of Mayo, there is a fmall ifland named Innifkea, the in-
-habitants of which are a very primitive and uncultivated race, and
-which, although it takes its name from a female faint (it is the
-tnjula Jan5la Geidhe of the Hibernian hagiographers), does not
-contain a Angle Catholic priefl;. Its inhabitants, indeed, as we learn
-from an interefliing communication to Notes and ^eries by Sir
-J. Emerfon Tennent,^ are mere idolaters, and their idol, no doubt
-the reprefentative of Priapus, is a long cylindrical ftone, which they
-call Neevougee. This idol is kept wrapped in flannel, and is
-entrufl:ed to the care of an old woman, who ad:s as the priefl:efs.
-It is brought out and worfliipped at certain periods, when fl:orms
-difliurb the fifliing, by which chiefly the population of the ifland
-obtain a living, or at other times it is expofed for the purpofe of
-raifing fl:orms which may caufe wrecks to be thrown on the coafl:
-of the ifland. I am informed that the name Neevougee is merely
-the plural of a word fignifying a canoe, and it may perhaps have
-fome reference to the calling of fifliermen.
-^ Notes atid ^eries, for 1852, vol. v, p. 121.
-INDEX.
-CANTHUS, medal of, 71.
-Adamiani or Adamites,
-mediaeval fert, and their
-praftices, 172.
-Adel in Yorkfhire, objefts
-with Priapic emblems found there,
-.
-i^fchylus, 80.
-JEl'erma, medals of, 80.
-Agricultural feilivals, 154.
-Aix, phallus found there, 119.
-Albigenfes, early Chriilian feft, 177.
-Ammon, Pan of the Greeks, 38, 61.
-Amulets, Priapic, worn by Italians, 4,
-; worn in the middle ages, 145 ;
-leaden, with Priapic fymbols, found
-in the feine, 146, 170.
-Androgynous figures in ancient fculptures,
-—43-
-Animal worfhip, 30, 32, 2^, 34.
-Antwerp, Priapus, under the name of
-Ters, its patron faint, 144.
-Apis, Egyptian facred bull, 30.
-Apollo, 76.
-Apollo, Didymjeus, 82.
-Appian, 82.
-Apuleius, 39, 95.
-Ariilophanes, ancient fyilcm of theology,
-- .
-Ariftotle, 42.
-Arras, perfecutions againft witchcraft
-there, 207, ef feq.
-Artemidorus, mention of fymbolical
-horns, 22.
-AruerisorOrus, Greek Apollo, parentage
-of, 40.
-Athenasus, mention of a phallus, 120
-cubits long, 84.
-Aufonius, mention of the Floralia, 155.
-Bacchanalia, 154.
-Bacchus, ancient reprefentations of, 74.
-Bagvat Geeta, expofition of Hindu theo-
-logy, 48—50, 56, 58, 59, 61. _:;
-Baphomet, idol of the Knights Templars,
-.
-Barrennefs in women, Priapic fymbols
-for the cure of, 142.
-Becan, account of antiquities of Antwerp,
-.
-Bell tolling, origin of, 97.
-Bodinus, account of the witches' Sab-
-bath, 210.
-Bona Dea, Priapic rites, 156.
-Brahma, Hindoo deity, 60.
-Brand's Popular Antiquities, 161, 168.
-Britain, remains of Priapic worfliip found
-in, 122 — 126.
-Bulgarians, k(\ of Gnoilics, 175, 176.
-Bull, Indian worfhip of, 34.
-Burchardus, 129, 144, 171-
-Butterfly, ancient religious allegory, 100.
-Ccefar, S i .
-Cakes in form of phallus made at Ealler,
-iqS.
-INDEX.
-Campegius, mention ot'phallic cakes, 159.
-Cat, alleged vvorfhip of by the Templars,
--
-Cathari, mediaeval feft, 178.
-Cato the younger, anecdote of, 155.
-Celenderis, medal of, 71.
-Celtic temple at Zeeland, 64.
-Ceres and Baubo, ftory of, 134.
-Ceres and Proferpine, 71, 134.
-Chalons, council of, aft of, 129.
-Chilminar, ancient ruins at, 86.
-Chriftian (early) fefts, 172, et feq.
-Chriilian fellivals, exceffes at, 107.
-Chryfoflom, 19, note.
-Churches, fculptures of phallic emblems
-on, 131, et feq., 204.
-Coggelhall (Ralph de), old Englifh chro-
-nicler, account of the Waldenfes, 179.
-Coles' (W.) Adam in Eden, obfcene
-names of plants, 167.
-Como, fculptures on the church of San
-Fedele, 137.
-Corinth, temple at, 104, 105.
-Corinthian order of architefture, origin
-of» 53-
-Cow, fymbol of Venus in Egypt, 33,62.
-Cyzicus, ancient medal of, 29 ; worfhip
-of Venus there, 84.
-D'Harcanville, references to his work,
-" Recherches fur les Arts," 15,21,23,
-, 45, 47, 70, 74, 136.
-De Lancre, account of witchcraft in
-France, A. D. 1612, 212, et feq.
-Diana, the female deftruftive power, 77.
-Diodorus Siculus, 19, note, 65, 105.
-Dionyfius of Halicarnaffus, 104.
-Dulaure, refearches on modern Priapic
-worfhip, 118.
-Durandus, mention of fingular Eafter
-cullom, 161.
-Dufii, Gallic name for Incubi, 152.
-Eafter, Teutonic feftival with Priapic
-obfervances, 157.
-Egyptian religious rites, 16, 30, 31, 32,
-; ancient Egyptian monuments,
-, 52-
-Egypt, phallic images brought thence,
--
-Elephant, reprefented in ancient Indian
-monuments, 56, 57 ; Greek, 59.
-Elephanta, fculptures from the caverns of,
-, 53;
-Elephantis. ancient erotic work, 103.
-Embrun, phallus of St. Foutin worftiipped
-there, 140.
-Eryx, temple at, 105.
-Euripides, 44, 69, 80, 104, 106.
-Fafcinum, Roman name for male organ,
-mediajval worfhip of, 128, 145.
-Fateux, cakes made in form of phallus,
--
-Fauns and fatyrs, 35, 43, 45.
-Feftivals of Priapus, 154, et feq.
-Fig, obfcene gefture, called "to make the
-fig," a Priapic emblem, 150 ; referred
-to in a trial of witches, 235.
-Fire, worfhip of, 65.
-Floralia, Priapic feftival, 155, 161.
-Forgeais (M.), phallic amulets found by
-him in the Seine, 146.
-Frea, Anglo-Saxon Priapus, 126.
-Fridaythorpe, Yorkfhire, and Frifton,
-probable derivation of the names,
-.
-Gems, ancient, illuftrative of the fubjeft,
-, 41, 61, 104, 155.
-Generative powers, worfhip of during
-the middle ages of Weftern Europe,
-, et feq.
-Gerard's Herbal^ obfcene names of
-plants, 167.
-German witchcraft in the fifteenth cen-
-tury, 209.
-German worfhip of the fun, 34, 81.
-Gefner, medals publifhed by, 74.
-Gnoftics, their praftices of hofpitality,
-&c., 99, 173.
-Goat, fymbol of the generative attribute,
-; living goat worfhip of ancient
-Egyptians, 32.
-Godiva's (Lady) procefTion, a relic of
-Priapic celebration, 170.
-INDEX.
-Golnitz, account of a ilatue at Antwerp,
--
-Goltzius, medals publiflied by, 46.
-Gonnis, Hindoo deity, 56, 57, 58, 61.
-Greece, ancient theology of, 17, 32, 34.
-Grecian reprefentations of attributes of
-the deity, 16, 45, 60.
-Greek temples, 55.
-Gregory IX., account of fecret rites of
-the Stcdingers, 183 — 185.
-Grotius, 37, note.
-Hammer (Baron von), defcription of
-idols of the Knights Templars, 138,
-, et feq.
-Harmony, daughter of Mars and Venus,
--
-Heaving and lifting, Englilh cultoms at
-Eafter, 160.
-Helman, god of deftruftion, 78, ig, 80.
-Herculaneum and Pompeii, relics ot
-Priapic worfhip and attributes found
-there, 4, 27, zZy 37. ^20.
-Hercules, attributes of, 91, 92.
-Hermaphrodite,ancient figures of, 41,43.
-Herodotus, 31,32,52, Gt,, 66, 104, 134.
-Hefiod, 16, 44, 106.
-Hierapolis, goddefs of, the Priapic Diana,
--
-Hierapolis, temple at, 84.
-Hindoo animal worlhip, 34 ; fymbols of
-generative organs on ancient Indian
-fculptures, 47, 48 ; ancient Hindoo
-theology, 56, et feq.
-Homer, 17, 32, 41, 51, 63, 69, 72, 73,
-, 91, 98, 112.
-Horace, 128.
-Horns, ancient fymbol of power, 22.
-Horfefhoe, modern form of ancient
-drawings of the female organ, ufed as
-a talisman, 139.
-Houfefteads in Northumberland, fculp-
-ture found there, 125.
-Idolatry among the Knights Templars,
-, et feq.
-Incuhi, fpirits of the woods, 152.
-Inniflcea. an ifland on the wellern fliores
-of Ireland, lall trace of Priapic worfliip
-found there, 248.
-Ireland, Shclah-na-gig, reprefentations of
-the female organ found there, 132 —
--
-Ifernia, 5, 118.
-Ifis, ancient deity, 39, 40, 50, 83, 95.
-Italian Chriilian lefts, names of, 177.
-James I, on witchcraft, 210.
-Japanefe fculptures, 47.
-Jewifli religion, identity of its fymbols
-with thofe of the heathen, 112, 113.
-Jofephus, III.
-Jupiter, father of Minerva, 57, 58, 69,
-, 93. lOi, II3-.
-Jupiter Ammon, identical with Pan, 38.
-Juvenal, 105, 124, 155, 156.
-Kandarp, Hindoo god of love, 61, 62.
-Ketzer, German name of the Cathari,
-.
-Krcfhna, Hindoo deity, 48.
-Labourd, proceedings againft witchcraft
-there, a. d. 1609, 212, et feq.
-Laftantius, 103.
-Lanercoll, chronicle of, 129.
-Leaden tokens with phallic emblems,
-, 170, 183.
-Le Chatelet, phallus found there, 119.
-Lefbos, ancient rites in the ifland of, 105.
-Liberalia, Priapic fcllival, 154.
-Libitina, Roman Goddefs ot death, 73.
-Lingam, Indian reprefentation of the
-generative attribute, 49, 54.
-Lion, ancient fymbol of the fun, 70.
-Lotus, facred plant of the Hindoos, 49,
-, 54, 58-
-Lucian, 83, 84.
-Lucretius, 45.
-Lycaean Pan, god of the Arcadians, 35.
-Lycopolis, fun worfliip there, 81.
-Macrobius, mention of a temple in
-Thrace, 67, 78, 81.
-Malleus Maleficarum, celebrated work
-againft witchcraft, 209.
-Mandrake, ancient Priapic iuperftitions
-regarding, 16S.
-INDEX.
-Manichsans, early Chrillian left, 173,
-.
-Mapes (Walter), account of the fecret
-rites of the Paterini in the eleventh
-century, 176.
+Perhaps no Englishmen of modern times, or of any time, has intelligently
-Mars, god of deftruftion, 78.,
+treated so many different departments of literary research : Archaeology, Art,
-Mars and Venus, 71.
+Bibliography, Christianity, Customs, Heraldry, Literary History, Philology,
-Martial, epigrams, 149, 159.
+Topography, and Travels, are among the topics illustrated by the learning, zeal and
-May Day, mediaeval celebration of, iden-
+industry of Mr. Thomas Wright.—S. AUSTEN ALLIBONE.
-tical with the Roman Floralia, 161 ;
-, Elizabethan cuflom on May Day, 162,
-.
+the discoveries of objects of antiquity at Herculaneum and Pompeii, also in France, Germany, Belguim, England, Ireland, and
-Mecklenburg Strelitz, ftatuettes found
+in fact in nearly every country in Europe, illustrating the subject
+they were considering.
+The numerous illustrations are engraved from antique coins,
+medals, stone carvings, etc., preserved in the Payne Knight collection in the British Museum, and from other objects discovered
+in England and on the continent, since the first essay was written.
+These are only to be found in museums and private collections
+scattered over Europe, and are practically inaccessible to the student;
+they are here engraved and fully described.
+The edition of 1865 was of a limited number of copies, and
+was soon exhausted. When a copy occasionally appears in the
+auction room, or in the hands of a bookseller, it brings a large
+advance on the original high published price. The present
+edition, an exact reproduction of that of 1865, but correcting some
+manifest misprints, is published in the interests of science and
+scholarship. At a time when so many learned investigators are
+endeavoring to trace back religious beliefs and practices to their
+origin, it would seem that this is a branch of the subject which
+should not be ignored. The history of religions has been studied
+with more zeal and success during the nineteenth century, than
+in all the ages which preceded it, and this book has now an
+interest fifty fold greater than when originally published.
+October, 1894.
-there, 136.
+==PREFACE==
-Medallicreprefentationsof the generative
+THE following pages are offered simply as a contribution to science. The progress of human society
+has, in different ages, presented abundance of horrors and abundance of vices, which, in treating
+history popularly, we are obliged to pass over gently, and often
+to conceal; but, nevertheless, if we neglect or suppress these facts
+altogether, we injure the truth of history itself, almost in the same
+manner as we should injure a man’s health by destroying some of
+the nerves or muscles of his body. The superstitions which are
+treated in the two essays which form the present volume, formed
+a very important element in the working of the social frame in
+former ages,—in fact, during a very great part of the existence
+of man in this world, they have had much influence inwardly and
+outwardly on the character and spirit of society itself, and therefore it is necessary for the historian to understand them, and a
+part of the duties of the archæologist to investigate them. The
+Dissertation by Richard Payne Knight is tolerably well known—
+t
+at least by name—to bibliographers and antiquaries, as a book
+of very considerable learning, and at the same time, as one which
+has become extremely rare, and which, therefore, can only be
+obtained occasionally at a very high price. It happened that, in
+a time when the violence of political feelings ran very high, the
+author, who was a member of the House of Commons, belonged
+to the liberal party, and his book was spitefully misrepresented,
+with the design of injuring his character. We know the unjust
+abuse which was lavished upon him by Mathias, in his now littleread satire, the “Pursuits of Literature.” Some of the Continetnal archæologists had written on kindred subjects long before
+the time of Payne Knight.
-organs, 29.
+It was thought, therefore, that a new edition of this book, produced in a manner to make it more accessible to scholars,
-Medals with phallic emblems, ufed by
+would not be unacceptable. Payne Knight’s design was only to
+investigate the origin and meaning of a once extensively popular
+worship. The history of it is, indeed, a wide subject, and must
+include all branches of the human race, in a majority of which it
+is in full force at the present day, and even in our own more
+highly civilized branch it has continued to exist to a far more
+recent period than we might be inclined to suppose. It is the
+object of the Essay which has been written for the present
+volume—of which it forms more than one half—to investigate
+the existence of these superstitions among ourselves, to trace
+them, in fact, through the middle ages of Western Euroipe, and
+their influence on the history of mediæval and on the formation
+of modern society, and to place in the hands of historical scholars
+such of their monuments as we have been able to collect. It is
+hoped that, thus composed, the present volume will prove
+acceptable to the class of readers to whom it specially addresses
+itself.
-fecret focieties of the middle ages, 205.
+It must not be supposed or expected that this Essay on the
-Medufa's head, 90.
+mediæval part of the subject can be perfect. A large majority of
-Miches, cakes made in the form of the
+the facts and monuments of mediæval [[phallic worship]] have
+long perished, but many, hitherto unknown, remain still to be collected, and it may be hopes that the present Essay will lead
+eventually to much more complete researches as to the existence
+and influence of this Worship in Western Europe during mediæval
+times. Notes of such superstitions are continually turning up
+unexpectedly; and we may mention as an example that a copy
+of Payne Knight’s treatise now before us contains a marginal
+note in pencil by a former possessor, [[Richard Turner]], a collector
+of curious books formerly residing at Grantham in Lincolnshire,
+in the following words:—”In 1850, I met with a [[Zingari]], or
+Gypsy, who had an amulet beautifully carved in ivory, which she
+wore round her neck; she said it was worth 30l, and she would
+not part with it on any amount. She came from Florence. It
+was the Lingham and the Yoni united.” This is curious as
+furnishing apparent evidence of the relationship between the
+gipsies of Western Europe and India.
+London, September, 1865.
-male organ in France, 160.
+==CONTENTS==
-Michelet, account of proceedings againll
+PREFACE to this Edition . . . . . . . i
+Preface to the Edition of 1865 . . . . . . v p Contents . . . . . . . . . . . ix
+List of Plates, with references to explanatory text . . xiii
+ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS
+Letter from Sir William Hamilton . . . . . . . . . 3
+Lettera da Isernia, 1780 . . . . . . . . . . . 9
+On the Worship of Priapus, by R. Payne Knight . . . 13—113
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE POWERS IN THE MIDDLE AGES OF
+WESTERN EUROPE.
+Abundant evidence of Phallic worship in the Roman colonies . . 117
+Aix, in Provence . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
+Nimes, and its Roman Amphitheatre . . . . . . . . 120
+Xanten, in Hesse, and Antwerp . . . . . . . . . 121
+Britain, and its Priapic remains . . . . . . . . . 122
+The Teutonic Venus, Friga . . . . . . . . . . 126
+Fascinum, and its magical influences . . . . . . . . 128
+Scotland, and its Phallic celebrations . . . . . . . . 130
+Phallic figures on public buildings . . . . . . . . . 131
+Ireland, and its Shelah-na-Gig . . . . . . . . . . 132
+Representation of the female organ exhibited in various countries. 134
+Horseshoes nailed to stable-doors, a remain of the the Shelah-na-Gig
+exhibition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
+The ancient god Priapus becomes a saint in the Middle Ages . . . 139
+Page.
+Marriage offerings to Priapus . . . . . . . . . . 141
+Antwerp, and its patron saint Ters . . . . . . . . . 144
+M. Forgeais’ collection of phallic amulets . . . . . . . 146
+The “Fig,” and its meanings . . . . . . . . . . 148
+The German Scrat, and the Gaulish Dusii . . . . . . . 152
+Robin Goodfellow. . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
+Liberalia and Floralia festivities . . . . . . . . . 154
+Easter, and hot-cross-buns . . . . . . . . . . . 158
+Heaving and lifting customs at Easter . . . . . . . . 160
+May-day festivities . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
+Bonfires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
+St. John’s, or Midsummer-eve . . . . . . . . . . 164
+Mother Bunch’s instruction to maidens . . . . . . . . 166
+Plants and flowers connected with phallic worship. . . . . 167
+The mandrake . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
+Lady Godiva, the Shrewsbury show, and the Guild festival at Preston. 170
+Pagan rites of the early Christians . . . . . . . . . 171
+Gnostics, Manichæans, Nicolaitæ, followers of Florian, &c. . . . 173
+The Bulgarians, and their practices . . . . . . . . . 176
+Walter Mape’s account of the Patarini, and their secret rites. . . 176
+The Waldenses and Cathari . . . . . . . . . . 178
+Popular oaths and phallic worship . . . . . . . . . 181
+Secret society in Orleans for celebrating obscene rites . . . . . 182
+The Stedingers of Germany, and their secret ceremonies . . . . 184
+THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR
+Charges brought against them . . . . . . . . . . 185
+Spitting on the Cross, and the denial of Christ . . . . . . . 188
+The Kiss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
+Intercourse with women prohibited . . . . . . . . . 190
+The Cat and Idol worship . . . . . . . . . . . 194
+Baffomet, or Baphomet . . . . . . . . . . . 198
+[[Von Hammer]]’s description of the Templars’ images or “idol” . . . 199
+THE WITCHES’ SABBATH
+The last form which the Priapeia and Liberalia assumed in Western Europe 206
+Trial of witches at Arras, in France. . . . . . . . . 207
+Sprenger and others on witchcraft in the fifteenth century . . . 209
+Bodin’s description of the Sabbath ceremonies . . . . . . 210
+Pierre de Lancre’s full account of the Witches’ Sabbath . . . . 212
+Pictorial representation of the ceremonies . . . . . . . 245
+Similarity of the proceeding of the Sabbath to those of the Templars . 246
+Intermixture of Priapic orgies with Christian rites and ceremonies . 247
+Traces of phallic worship still existing on the western shores of Ireland 248
+INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
-the Templars, 188, 247.
+==LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS==
-Middleton (Dr.) Letter from Rome, 3.
+NOTE.—As frequent references are made to some of the engraved figures in different
-Minerva, Greek deity, fimilar to the
+parts of the work, it was found impossible to insert the illustrations always opposite the explanatory text. The plates, therefore, have been placed, independently
+of the text, but in regular order. The following list, however, will refer the
+reader to those pages which explain the objects drawn:—
+Plate Described on Page
+I. EX VOTI OF WAX, FROM ISERNIA . . . . . . . . 3, 7
+II. ANCIENT AND MODERN AMULETS:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 4, 28, 90
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 28, 88
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 32
+III. ANTIQUE GEMS AND GREEK MEDALS.:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 23, 90
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 104
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 33, 46
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 46, 85
+, 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
+IV. MEDALS POSSESSED BY PAYNE KNIGHT:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 33
+. . . . . . . . . . 33, 34, 34, 89
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 33, 36
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 38
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 73
+V. FIGURES OF PAN, GEMS, &c.:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 37, 42, 54
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 42
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 41
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 73
+VI. THE TAURIC DIANA . . . . . . . . . . . 77
+xiv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
+Plate Described on Page
+VII. GOAT AND SATYR, GREEK SCULPTURE . . . . . . . 33
+VIII. BROKEN STATUE OF CERES . . . . . . . . 72
+IX. COINS AND MEDALS:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 29
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 21
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 71
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 70
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 80, 81
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 81, 83
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 105
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 79, 88
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 91, 93
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 35, 79
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 71
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 71
+X. SISTRUM, WITH VARIOUS MEDALS:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
+. . . . . . . . . . . 78, 79, 80
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 23
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 96
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 83
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 80
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 82
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 81
+XI. SCULPTURES FROM ELEPHANTA . . . . . . . . 47, 48
+XII. INDIAN TEMPLE, SHOWING THE LINGAM . . . . . 49, 56, 61
+XIII. CELTIC TEMPLE, GREEK MEDAL, &c.:
+Figure 1, 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . . . 55
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 64
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 57, 61
+, 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 60
+, 10 . . . . . . . . . . . 59
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 58
+XIV. PORTABLE TEMPLE DEDICATED TO PRIAPUS OR THE “LINGAM” . 55
+XV. TEMPLE DEDICATED TO BACCHUS, AT PUZZUOLI:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 64, 65
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 64, 66
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 66
+LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xv
+Plate Described on Page
+XVI. ORNAMENT FROM PUZZUOLI TEMPLE:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 78
+XVII. ORNAMENT FROM PUZZUOLI TEMPLE: . . . . . . 65
+XVIII. EGYPTIAN FIGURES AND ORNAMANETS:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 51, 87, 89
+. . . . . . . . . . . 50, 87, 89
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 62
+XIX. EGYPTIAN FIGURES AND ORNAMANETS:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 87, 88
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 89
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 54
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 34, 89
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 87, 89
+, 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
+XX. THE LOTUS, WITH MEDALS OF MELITA, &c.:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 88
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 91
+XXI. BACCHUS, MEDALS OF CAMARINA, SYRACUSE, &c.
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
+, 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
+, 5, 6 . . . . . . . . . . . 90
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 75
+XXII. STATUE OF A BULL AT TANJORE . . . . . . . 34
+XXIII. TIGER AT THE BREAST OF A NYMPH . . . . . . 74
+XXIV. SCULPTURE FROM ELEPHANT. (See Plate XI.) . . . . 47, 48
+XXV. ROMAN SCULPTURES FROM NŒMES:
+Figure 1, 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 121
+. . . . . . . . . . . 122, 136
+XXVI. MONUMENT FOUND AT NŒMES IN 1825. . . . . . 119, 121
+XXVII. PHALLIC FIGURES, &c., FOUND IN ENGLAND:
+Figure 1, 2, 3, 4 . . . . . . . . . . . 123
+XXVIII. PHALLIC MONUMENTS FOUND IN SCOTLAND, &c.
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
+, 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
+xvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
+Plate Described on Page
+XXIX. SHELAH-NA-GIG MONUMENTS
+Figure 1, 2, 3, 4 . . . . . . . . . . 133 to 139
+XXX. SHELAH-NA-GIG MONUMENTS
+Figure 1, 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . . 133 to 139
+XXXI. VENUS OF THE VANDALS, BRONZE IMAGES, &c.:
+Figure 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 . . . . . . . . . 136 to 138
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 138
+XXXII. ORNAMENTS FROM THE CHURCH OF SAN FEDELE
+Figure 1, 2, 3 . . . . . . . . . 137 to 138
+XXXIII. PHALLIC LEADEN TOKENS FROM THE SEINE . . . . 147, 170
+XXXIV. LEADEN ORNAMENTS FROM THE SEINE:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
+, 3, 4, 5 . . . . . . . . . . . 147
+XXXV. AMULETS, &c., OF GOLD AND LEAD:
+Figure 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 . . . . . . . . . . 147
+XXXVI. ROBIN GOODFELLOW, PHALLIC AMULETS, &c.:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 148
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 121
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 137
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 153
+XXXVII. PRIAPIC ILLUSTRATIONS FROM OLD BALLADS:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
+. . . . . . . . . . . . 153
+XXXVIII. “IDOLS” OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLARS . . . . . . 199
+XXXIX. SCUPLTURES OF THE TEMPLARS’ MYSTERIES:
+Figure 1 . . . . . . . . . . . 199 to 203
+. . . . . . . . . . . 200 to 203
+. . . . . . . . . . . 200 to 204
+. . . . . . . . . . . 199 to 204
+XL. THE WITCHES’ SABBATH, FROM DE LANCRE, 1613 . . 241, 246
+AN
+ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS
+OF THE
+WORSHIP
+OF
+PRIAPUS,
+LATELY EXISTING AT
+ISERNIA, in the Kingdom of NAPLES:
+IN TWO LETTERS:
+One from Sir WILLIAM HAMILTON, K.B., His Majesty’s Minister
+at the court of Naples, to Sir JOSEPH BANKS, Bart., President
+of the Royal Socieity.
+And the other from a Person residing at Isernia:
+TO WHICH IS ADDED
+A DISCOURSE ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS
+And its Connexion with the mystic Theology of the Ancients.
+By R. P. KNIGHT, Esq.
+LONDON:
+Printed by T. SPILSBURY, Snowhill.
+M.DCC.LXXXVI.
+== ACCOUNT OF THE REMAINS OF THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS==
+==A LETTER FROM SIR WILLIAM HAMILTON, ETC. Naples, Dec. 30, 1781.==
+SIR, HAVING last year made a curious discovery, that in a
+Province of this Kingdom, and not fifty miles from
+its Capital, a sort of devotion is still paid to PRIA-
+PUS, the obscene Divinity of the Ancients (though
+under another denomination), I thought it a circumstance worth recording; particularly, as it offers a fresh proof of the
+similitude of the Popish and Pagan Religion, so well observed by
+Dr. Middleton, in his celebrated Letter from Rome: and therefore I mean to deposit the authentic1
+proofs of this assertion in the
+British Museum, when a proper opportunity shall offer. In the
+meantime I send you the following account, which, I flatter
+myself, will amuse you for the present, and may in future serve to
+illustrate those proofs.
+I had long ago discovered, that the women and children of the
+lower class, at Naples, and in its neighbourhood, frequently wore,
+A specimen of each of the ex-voti of wax, with the original letter from [[Isernia]].
+See the Ex-voti, Plate I.
+h
+as an ornament of dress, a sort of Amulets, (which they imagine to
+be a preservative from the mal occhii, evil eyes, or enchantment)
+exactly similar to those which were worn by the ancient Inhabitants
+of this Country for the very same purpose, as likewise for their
+supposed invigorating influence; and all of which have evidently a
+relation to the Cult of Priapus. Struck with this conformity in
+ancient and modern superstition, I made a collection of both the
+ancient and modern Amulets of this sort, and placed them together
+in the British Museum, where they remain. The modern
+Amulet most in vogue represents a hand clinched, with the point
+of the thumb thrust betwixt the index and middle1
+finger; the
+next is a shell; and the third is a half-moon. These Amulets
+(except the shell, which is usually worn in its natural state) are most
+commonly made of silver, but sometimes of ivory, coral, amber,
+crystal, or some curious gem, or pebble. We have a proof of the
+hand above described having a connection with Priapus, in a most
+elegant small idol of bronze of that Divinity, now in the Royal
+Museum of Portici, and which was found in the ruins of Herculaneum: it has an enormous Phallus, and, with an arch look
+and gesture, stretches out its right hand in the form above mentioned;2
+and which probably was an emblem of consummation:
+and as a further proof of it, the Amulet which occurs most frequently amongst those of the Ancients (next to that which represents
+the simple Priapus), is such a hand united with the Phallus; of
+which you may see several specimens in my collection in the
+British Museum. One in particular, I recollect, has also the halfmoon joined to the hand and Phallus; which half-moon is supposed
+to have an allusion to the female menses. The shell, or [[concha veneris]],
+See Plate II., Fig. 1. 2
+This elegant little figure is engraved in the first volume of the Bronzes of the
+Herculaneum.
+is evidently an emblem of the female part of generation. It is very
+natural then to suppose, that the Amulets representing the Phallus
+alone, so visibly indecent, may have been long out of use in this
+civilized capital; but I have been assured, that it is but very lately
+that the Priests have put an end to the wearing of such Amulets in
+Calabria, and other distant Provinces of this Kingdom.
+A new road having been made last year from this Capital to the
+Province of Abruzzo, passing through the City of Isernia (anciently belonging to the Samnites, and very populous
+), a person of
+liberal education, employed in that work, chanced to be at Isernia
+just at the time of the celebration of the Feast of the modern
+Priapus, St. Cosmo; and having been struck with the singularity
+of the ceremony, so very similar to that which attended the ancient
+Cult of the God of the Gardens, and knowing my taste for antiquities, told me of it. From this Gentleman’s report, and from
+what I learnt on the spot from the Governor of Isernia himself,
+having gone to that city on purpose in the month of February last, I
+have drawn up the following account, which I have reason to believe
+is strictly true. I did intend to have been present at the Feast of
+St. Cosmo this year; but the indecency of this ceremony having
+probably transpired, from the country’s having been more frequented
+since the new road was made, orders have been given, that the
+Great Toe2 of the Saint should no longer be exposed. The following is the account of the F’te of St. Cosmo and Damiano, as
+it actually was celebrated at Isernia, on the confines of Abruzzo,
+in the Kingdom of Naples, so late as in the year of our Lord
+.
+On the 27th of September, at Isernia, one of the most ancient
+The actual population of Isernia, according to the Governer’s account, is 5156. 2
+See the Italian letter, printed at the end of this, from which it appears the
+modern Priapi were so called at Isernia.
+cities of the Kingdom of Naples, situated in the Province called
+the Contado di Molise, and adjoining to Abruzzo, an annual Fair
+is held, which lasts three days. The situation of this Fair is on a
+rising ground, between two rivers, about half a mile from the town
+of Isernia; on the most elevated part of which there is an ancient
+church, with a vestibule. The architecture is of the style of the
+lower ages; and it is said to have been a church and convent belonging to the Benedictine Monks in the time of their poverty.
+This church is dedicated to St. Cosmus and Damianus. One of
+the days of the Fair, the relicks of the Saints are exposed, and
+afterwards carried in procession from the cathedral of the city to
+this church, attended by a prodigious concourse of people. In the
+city, and at the fair, ex-voti of wax, representing the male parts of
+generation, of various dimensions, some even of the length of the
+palm, are publickly offered to sale. There are also waxen vows,
+that represent other parts of the body mixed with them; but of
+these there are few in comparison of the number of the Priapi.
+The devout distributers of these vows carry a basket full of them
+in one hand, and hold a plate in the other to receive the money,
+crying aloud, “St. Cosmo and Damiano!” If you ask the price
+of one, the answer is, pi˘ ci metti, pi˘ meriti: “The more you
+give, the more's the merit.” In the vestibule are two tables, at
+each of which one of the canons of the church presides, this crying
+out, Qui si riceveno le Misse, e Litanie: “Here Masses and Litanies are received;" and the other, Qui si riceveno li Voti: “Here
+the Vows are received.” The price of a Mass is fifteen Neapolitan
+grains, and of a Litany five grains. On each table is a large bason
+for the reception of the different offerings. The Vows are chiefly
+presented by the female sex; and they are seldom such as represent
+legs, arms, &c., but most commonly the male parts of generation.
+The person who was at this fete in the year 1780, and who gave
+me this account (the authenticity of every article of which has since
+SIR WILLIAM HAMILTON 7
+been fully confirmed to me by the Governor of Isernia), told me
+also, that he heard a woman say, at the time she presented a Vow,
+like that which is presented in Plate I, Fig. i., Santo Cosimo benedetto, cosi lo voglio: “Blessed St. Cosmo, let it be like this;” another,
+St. Cosimo, a te mi raccommendo: “St. Cosmo, I recommend myself
+to you;” and a third, St. Cosimo, ti ringrazio: “St. Cosmo, I thank
+you.” The Vow is never presented without being accompanied by
+a piece of money, and is always kissed by the devotee at the moment
+of presentation.
+At the great altar in the church, another of its canons attends to
+give the holy unction, with the oil of St. Cosmo;1
+which is prepared by the same receipt as that of the Roman Ritual, with the
+addition only of the prayer of the Holy Martyrs, St. Cosmus and
+Damianus. Those who have an infirmity in any of their members,
+present themselves at the great altar, and uncover the member
+affected (not even excepting that which is most frequently represented by the ex-voti); and the reverend canon anoints it, saying,
+Per intercessionem beati Cosmi, liberet te ab omni malo. Amen.
+The ceremony finishes by the canons of the church dividing the
+spoils, both money and wax, which must be to a very considerable
+amount, as the concourse at this fete is said to be prodigiously
+numerous.
+The oil of St. Cosmo is in high repute for its invigorating
+quality, when the loins, and parts adjacent, are anointed with it.
+No less than 1400 flasks of that oil were either expended at the
+altar in unctions, or charitably distributed, during this f’te in the
+year 1780; and as it is usual for every one, who either makes use
+The cure of diseases by oil is likewise of ancient date; for Tertullian tells us, that
+a Christian, called Proculus, cured the Emperor Severus of a certain distemper by the
+use of oil; for which service the Emperor kept Proculus, as long as he lived,
+in his palace.
-Hindoo Gonnis, her attributes, birth,
+of the oil at the altar, or carries off a flask of it, to leave an alms
+for St. Cosmo, the ceremony of the oil becomes likewise a very
+lucrative one to the canons of the church.
+I am, Sir,
+With great truth and regard,
+Your most obedient humble Servant,
+WILLIAM HAMILTON.
+==LETTERA DA ISERNIA==
-&c., 57, 58, 61.
+NELL’ ANNO, 1780.
-Minotaur, fabulous monfter, 89, 90.
-Molay (Jaques de) grand mailer of the
-Templars, proceedings againft him, 185.
-Molitor (Ulric), work on witchcraft,
-A. D. 1489, 209.
+N Isernia Citt‡ Sannitica, oggi della Provincia del
-Moon, ancient attributes of, 59, 83.
+Contado di Molise, ogni Anno li 27 Settembre
-Mufee Secret, reprefentations of phalli,
+vi è una Fiera della classe delle perdonanze (cosi
+dette negl’Abruzzi li gran mercati, e fiere non di
+lista): Questa fiera si fa sopra d'una Collinetta, che
+st‡ in mezzo a due fiumi; distante mezzo miglio da Isernia, dove
+nella parte piu elevata vi è un antica Chiesa con un vestibulo, architettura de’ bassi tempi, e che si dice esser stata Chiesa, e Monistero de
+P. P. Benedettini, quando erano poveri? La Chiesa è dedicata ai
+Santi COSMO e DAMIANO, ed è Grancia del Reverendissimo Capitolo. La Fiera è di 50 baracche a fabrica, ed i Canonici affittano le
+baracche, alcune 10, altre 15, al piu 20, carlini l'una; affittano
+ancora per tre giorni l'osteria fatta di fabbrica docati 20 ed i
+comestibili solo benedetti. Vi è un Eremita della stessa umanit‡ del
+fu F. Gland guardiano del Monte Vesuvio, cittato con rispetto dall’
+Ab. Richard. La fiera dura tre giorni. Il Maestro di fiera è il
+Capitolo, ma commette al Governatore Regio; e questa alza bandiera
+con l’impresa della Citta, che è la stessa impresa de P. P. Celestini.
+Si fa una Processione con le Reliquie dei Santi, ed esce dalla Cattedrale, e v‡ alla Chiesa sudetta; ma è poco devota. Il giorno della festa,
+sÏ per la Citt‡, come nella collinetta vi è un gran concorso d’Abitatori
+i
+LETTERA DA ISERNIA 10
+del Motese, Mainarde, ed altri Monti vicini, che la stranezza delli
+vestimenti delle Donne, sembra, a chi non ha gl’occhi avvezzi avederle, il pui bel ridotto di mascherate. Le Donne della Terra del
+Gallo sono vere figlie dell'Ordine Serafico Cappuccino, vestendo
+come li Zoccolanti in materia, e forma. Puelle di Scanno Sembrano
+Greche di Scio. Puelle di Carovilli Armene. Puelle delle Pesche,
+e Carpinone tengono sul capo alcuni panni rossi con ricamo di filo
+bianco, disegno sul gusto Etrusco, che a pochi passi sembra merletto
+d’Inghilterra. Vi è fra queste Donne vera belezza, e diversit‡
+grande nel vestire, anche fra due popolazioni vicinissime, ed un
+attaccamento particolare di certe popolazioni ad un colore, ed altre
+ad altro. L’abito è distinto nelle Zitelle, Maritate, Vedove, è Donne
+di piacere?
+Nella fiera ed in Citt‡ vi sono molti divoti, che vendono membri virili di cera di diverse forme, e di tutte le grandezze, fino ad
+un palmo; e mischiate vi sono ancora gambe, braccia, e faccie; ma
+poche sono queste. Quei li vendono tengono un cesto, ed un
+piatto; li membri rotti sono nel cesto, ed il piatto serve per raccogliere il danaro d’elemosina. Gridano S. COSMO e DAMIANO. Chi
+è sprattico domanda, quanto un vale? Rispondono pi˘ ci metti, pi˘
+meriti. Avanti la Chiesa nel vestibolo del Tempio vi sono due
+tavole, ciascuna con sedia, dove presiede un Canonico, e suol’essere
+uno il Primicerio, e l’altro Arciprete; grida uno qui si ricevono le
+Messe, e Litanie: l’altro, qui si ricevono li voti; sopra delle tavole
+in ogn’una vi è un bacile, che serve per raccogliere li membri di
+cera, che mai si presentano soli, ma con denaro, come si è pratticato
+sempre in tutte le presentazioni di membri, ad eccezzione di quelli
+dell’Isola di Ottaiti. Questa divozione è tutta quasi delle Donne, e
+sono pochissmi quelli, o quelle che presentano gambe, e braccia,
+mentre tutta la gran festa s’aggira a profitto de membri della generazione. In ho inteso dire ad una donna. Santo Cosimo benedetto,
+cosi lo voglio. Altre dicevano, Santo Cosimo a te mi raccommando:
+LETTERA DA ISERNIA 11
+altre, Santo Cosimo ringrazio; e questo è quello osservai, e si prattica nel vestibulo, baciando ogn’una il voto che presente.
+Dentro la chiesa nell'altare maggiore un canonico fa le sante
+unzioni con l’olio di S. Cosimo. La ricetta di quest'olio è la stessa
+del Rituale Romano, con l’aggiunta dell’orazione delli SS. Martiri,
+Cosimo e Damiano. Si presentano all’Altare gl’Infermi d’ogni
+male, snundano la parte offesa, anche l'originale della copia di cera,
+ed il Canonico ungendoli dice, Per intercessionem beati Cosmi,
+liberet te ab omni malo. Amen.
+Finisce la festa con dividersi li Canonici la cera, ed il denaro, e
+con ritornar gravide molte Donne sterili maritate, a profitto della
+popolazione delle Provincie; e spesso la grazia s'entende senza
+meraviglia, alle Zitelle, e Vedove, che per due notti hanno dormito,
+alcune nella Chiesa de’ P.P. Zoccolanti, ed altre delli Capuccini, non
+essendoci in Isernia Case locande per alloggiare tutto il numero di
+gente, che concorre: onde li Frati, ajutando ai Preti, danno le
+Chiese alle Donne, ed i Portici agl’Uomini; e cosi Divisi succedendo gravidanze non deve dubitar si, che sia opera tutto miracolosa, e di divozione.
+NOTA I.
+L’olio non solo serve per l'unzione che f‡ Canonico, ma anche
+si dispensa in picciolissime caraffine, e serve per ungersi li lombo
+a chi ha male a questa parte. In quest'anno 1780. si sono date par
+divozione 1400 caraffine, e si è consumato mezzo Stajo d’olio.
+Chi prende una caraffina da l'olemosina.
+NOTA II.
+Li Canonici che siedono nel Vestibulo prendono denaro d’Elemosina per Messe, e per Litanie. Le Messea grana 15. e le Litanie a
+grana 5.
+LETTERA DA ISERNIA 12
+NOTA III.
+Li forestieria alloggiano non sola fr‡ li Cappuccini e Zoccolanti,
+ma anche nell’Eramo di S. Cosmo. Le Donne che dormono nelle
+chiese de’ P. P. Sudetti sono guardate dalli Guardiani, Vicari e
+Padri piu di merito, e quelli dell’ Eremo sono in cura dell’ Eremita,
+divise anche dai Propri Mariti, e si sanno spesso miracoli senza
+incomodo delli santi.
+Le non le gusta, quando l’avr‡ letta
+Torner‡ bene farne una baldoria:
+Che le daranno almen qualche diletto
+Le Monachine quando vanno a letto.
+==ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS.==
+MEN, considered collectively, are at all times the same animals, employing the same organs, and endowed with the same faculties: their passions, prejudices, and conceptions, will of course be formed upon the same internal principles, although directed to various ends, and modified in various ways, by the variety of external circumstances operating upon them. Education and science may correct, restrain, and extend; but neither can annihilate or create: they may turn and embellish the currents; but can neither stop nor enlarge the springs, which, continuing to flow with a perpetual and equal tide, return to their ancient channels, when the causes that perverted them are withdrawn.
-, 149.
-Naples, Sir W. Hamilton's account of
-Priapic worfhip there, 3.
+The first principles of the human mind will be more directly
-Needfire, 127, 163 — 166 ; introduced
+brought into action, in proportion to the earnestness and affection
+with which it contemplates its object; and passion and prejudice will
+acquire dominion over it, in proportion as its first principles are more
+directly brought into action. On all common subjects, this dominion
+of passion and prejudice is restrained by the evidence of sense and
+perception; but, when the mind is led to the contemplation of things
+beyond its comprehension, all such restraints vanish: reason has then
+nothing to oppose to the phantoms of imagination, which acquire
+terrors from their obscurity, and dictate uncontrolled, because unknown. Such is the case in all religious subjects, which, being
+beyond the reach of sense or reason, are always embraced or rejected
+with violence and heat. Men think they know, because they are
+sure they feel; and are firmly convinced, because strongly agitated.
+Hence proceed that haste and violence with which devout persons
+of all religions condemn the rites and doctrines of others, and the
+furious zeal and bigotry with which they maintain their own; while
+perhaps, if both were equally well understood, both would be found
+to have the same meaning, and only to differ in the modes of conveying it.
+Of all the profane rites which belonged to the ancient polytheism, none were more furiously inveighed against by the zealous
+propagators of the Christian faith, than the obscene ceremonies performed in the worship of Priapus; which appeared not only contrary
+to the gravity and sanctity of religion, but subversive of the first
+principles of decency and good order in society. Even the form
+itself, under which the god was represented, appeared to them a
+mockery of all piety and devotion, and more fit to be placed in a
+brothel than a temple. But the forms and ceremonials of a religion
+are not always to be understood in their direct and obvious sense;
+but are to be considered as symbolical representations of some hidden
+meaning, which may be extremely wise and just, though the symbols
+themselves, to those who know not their true signification, may
+appear in the highest degree absurd and extravagant. It has often
+happened, that avarice and superstition have continued these symbolical representations for ages after their original meaning has
+been lost and forgotten; when they must of course appear nonsensical and ridiculous, if not impious and extravagant.
+Such is the case with the rite now under consideration, than which
+nothing can be more monstrous and indecent, if considered in its
+plain and obvious meaning, or as a part of the Christian worship;
+but which will be found to be a very natural symbol of a very
+natural and philosophical system of religion, if considered
+according to its original use and intention.
+What this was, I shall endeavour in the following sheets to explain
+as concisely and clearly as possible. Those who wish to know how
+generally the symbol, and the religion which it represented, once
+prevailed, will consult the great and elaborate work of Mr. [[D’Hancarville]], who, with infinite learning and ingenuity, has traced its progress over the whole earth. My endeavour will be merely to show, from what original principles in the human mind it was first
+adopted, and how it was connected with the ancient theology: matters of very curious inquiry, which will serve, better perhaps than
+any others, to illustrate that truth, which ought to be present in every
+man’s mind when be judges of the actions of others, that in morals,
+as well as physics, there is no effect without an adequate cause. If in
+doing this, I frequently find it necessary to differ in opinion with
+the learned author above-mentioned, it will be always with the utmost deference and respect; as it is to him that we are indebted for
+the only reasonable method of explaining the emblematical works of
+the ancient artists.
+Whatever the Greeks and Egyptians meant by the symbol in
+question, it was certainly nothing ludicrous or licentious; of which
+we need no other proof, than its having been carried in solemn
+procession at the celebration of those mysteries in which the first
+principles of their religion, the knowledge of the God of Nature, the
+First, the Supreme, the Intellectual,1
+were preserved free from the
+vulgar superstitions, and communicated, under the strictest oaths of
+Plut. de Is. et Osir.
+ON THE WORSHIP 16
+secrecy, to the iniated (initiated); who were obliged to purify themselves, prior to their initiation, by abstaining from venery, and all
+impure food.1
+We may therefore be assured, that no impure meaning could be conveyed by this symbol; but that it represented some
+fundamental principle of their faith. What this was, it is difficult
+to obtain any direct information, on account of the secrecy under
+which this part of their religion was guarded. Plutarch tells us,
+that the Egyptians represented Osiris with the organ of generation
+erect, to show his generative and prolific power: he also tells us,
+that Osiris was the same Deity as the Bacchus of the Greek Mythology; who was also the same as the first begotten Love (Erwj
+prwtogonoj) of Orpheus and Hesiod.2
+This deity is celebrated by
+the ancient poets as the creator of all things, the father of gods
+and men;3
+and it appears, by the passage above referred to, that
+the organ of generation was the symbol of his great characteristic
+attribute. This is perfectly consistent with the general practice of
+the Greek artists, who (as will be made appear hereafter) uniformly
+represented the attributes of the deity by the corresponding properties observed in the objects of sight. They thus personified the
+epithets and titles applied to him in the hymns and litanies, and
+conveyed their ideas of him by forms, only intelligible to the initiated, instead of sounds, which were intelligible to all. The organ
+of generation represented the generative or creative attribute, and in
+the language of painting and sculpture, signified the same as the
+epithet paggentwr, in the Orphic litanies.
+This interpretation will perhaps surprise those who have not
+been accustomed to divest their minds of the prejudices of education
+and fashion; but I doubt not, but it will appear just and reasonable
+to those who consider manners and customs as relative to the natural
+Plut. de Is. et Os. 2 Ibid. 3
+Orph. Argon. 422.
+OF PRIAPUS 17
+causes which produced them, rather than to the artificial opinions
+and prejudices of any particular age or country. There is naturally
+no impurity or licentiousness in the moderate and regular gratification of any natural appetite; the turpitude consisting wholly in the
+excess or perversion. Neither are organs of one species of enjoyment naturally to be considered as subjects of shame and concealment more than those of another; every refinement of modern
+manners on this head being derived from acquired habit, not from
+nature: habit, indeed, long established; for it seems to have been
+as general in Homer’s days as at present; but which certainly did
+not exist when the mystic symbols of the ancient worship were first
+adopted. As these symbols were intended to express abstract ideas
+by objects of sight, the contrivers of them naturally selected those
+objects whose characteristic properties seemed to have the greatest
+analogy with the Divine attributes which they wished to represent.
+In an age, therefore, when no prejudices of artificial decency existed,
+what more just and natural image could they find, by which to
+express their idea of the beneficent power of the great Creator,
+than that organ which endowed them with the power of procreation,
+and made them partakers, not only of the felicity of the Deity, but
+of his great characteristic attribute, that of multiplying his own
+image, communicating his blessings, and extending them to generations yet unborn?
+In the ancient theology of Greece, preserved in the Orphic
+Fragments, this Deity, the Erwj prwtogonoj, or first-begotten Love,
+is said to have been produced, together with Æther, by Time, or
+Eternity (Kronoj), and Necessity (Anagkh), operating upon inert
+matter (Caoj). He is described as eternally begetting (aeignhthj);
+the Father of Night, called in later times, the lucid or splendid,
+(fanhj), because he first appeared in splendour; of a double
+nature, (difuhj), as possessing the general power of creation and
+ON THE WORSHIP 18
+generation, both active and passive, both male and female.1
-in the witches' Sabbath, 222.
+Light is his necessary and primary attribute, co-eternal with him1
-Nicolaitae, early Chriftian feft, 173.
+Orph. Argon., ver. 12. This poem of the Argonautic Expedition is not of the
-Nider (John), work on witchcraft, 209.
+ancient Orpheus, but written in his name by some poet posterior to Homer; as
-Nimes, Roman amphitheatre at, fculp-
+appears by the allusion to Orpheus’s descent into hell; a fable invented after the
+Homeric times. It is, however, of very great antiquity, as both the style and manner
+sufficiently prove; and, I think, cannot be later than the age of Pisistratus, to which
+it has been generally attributed. The passage here referred to is cited from another
+poem, which, at the time this was written, passed for a genuine work of the
+Thracian bard: whether justly or not, matters little; for its being thought so at that
+time proves it to be of the remotest antiquity. The other Orphic poems cited in this
+discourse are the Hymns, or Litanies, which are attributed by the early Christian and
+later Platonic writers to Onomacritus, a poet of the age of Pisistratus; but which
+are probably of various authors (See Brucker. Hist. Crit. Philos., vol. I., part 2,
+lib., c. i.) They contain, however, nothing which proves them to he later than
+the Trojan times; and if Onomacritus, or any later author, had anything to do with
+them, it seems to have been only in new-versifying them, and changing the dialect
+(See Gesner. Proleg. Orphica, p. 26). Had he forged them, and attempted to
+impose them upon the world, as the genuine compositions of an ancient bard, there
+can be no doubt but that he would have stuffed them with antiquated words and
+obsolete phrases; which is by no means the case, the language being pure and worthy
+the age of Pisistratus. These Poems are not properly hymns, for the hymns of the
+Greeks contained the nativities and actions of the gods, like those of Homer and
+Callimachus; but these are compositions of a different kind, and are properly
+invocations or prayers used in the Orphic mysteries, and seem nearly of the same
+class as the Psalms of the Hebrews. The reason why they are so seldom mentioned by
+any of the early writers, and so perpetually referred to by the later, is that they
+belonged to the mystic worship, where everything was kept concealed under the
+strictest oaths of secrecy. But after the rise of Christianity, this sacred silence was
+broken by the Greek converts who revealed everything which they thought would
+depreciate the old religion or recommend the now; whilst the heathen priests revealed
+whatever they thought would have contrary tendency; and endeavoured to show, by
+publishing the real mystic creed of their religion, that the principles of it were not so
+absurd as its outward structure seemed to infer; but that, when stripped of poetical
+allegory and vulgar fable, their theology was pure, reasonable, and sublime (Gesner.
+Proleg. Orphica). The collection of these poems now extant, being pro-bably
+compiled and versified by several hands, with some forged, and other interpo-lated
+and altered, must be read with great caution; more especially the Fragments
+OF PRIAPUS 19
+self, and with him brought forth from inert matter by necessity.
+Hence the purity and sanctity always attributed to light by the
-tures of phalli, 119 — 122.
+preserved by the Fathers of the Church and Ammonian Platonics; for these writers
-Novatians, early Chriftian feft, 178.
+made no scruple of forging any monuments of antiquity which suited their purposes;
-Nymphs, companions of fauns and fatyrs,
+particularly the former, who, in addition to their natural zeal, having the interests of a
+confederate body to support, thought every means by which they could benefit
+that body, by extending the lights of revelation, and gaining proselytes to the true
+faith, not only allowable, but meritorious (See Clementina, Hom. vii., see. 10.
+Recogn. lib. i., sec. 65. Origen, apud Hieronom. Apolog. i., contra Ruf. et
+Chrysostom. de Sacerdot., lib. i. Chrysostom, in particular, not only justifies, but
+warmly commends, any frauds that can be practiced for the advantage of the Church
+of Christ). Pausanias says (lib. ix.), that the Hymns of Orpheus were few and short;
+but next in poetical merit to those of Homer, and superior to them in sanctity
+(qeologikwteroi). These are probably the same as the genuine part of the collection
+now extant; but they are so intermixed, that it is difficult to say which are genuine
+and which are not. Perhaps there is no surer rule for judging than to compare the
+epithets and allegories with the symbols and monograms on the Greek medals, and to
+make their agreement the test of authenticity. The medals were the public acts and
+records of the State, made under the direction of the magistrates, who were gene-rally
+initiated into the mysteries. We may therefore be assured, that whatever theological
+and mythological allusions are found upon them were part of the ancient religion of
+Greece. It is from these that many of the Orphic Hymns and Fragments are proved to
+contain the pure theology or mystic faith of the ancients, which is called Orphic by
+Pausanias (lib. i., c. 39), and which is so unlike the vulgar religion, or poetical
+mythology, that one can scarcely Imagine at first sight that it belonged to the same
+people; but which will nevertheless appear, upon accurate investigation, to be the
+source from whence it flowed, and the cause of all its extravagance.
+The history of Orpheus himself is so confused and obscured by fable, that it is
+impossible to obtain any certain information concerning him. According to general
+tradition, he was a Thracian, and introduced the mysteries, in which a more pure
+system of religion was taught, into Greece (Brucker, vol. i., part 2, lib. i., c. i.)
+He is also said to have travelled into Egypt (Diodor. Sic. lib. i., p. 80); but as the
+Egyptians pretended that all foreigners received their sciences from them, at a time
+when all foreigners who entered the country were put to death or enslaved (Diodor.
+Sic. lib. i., pp. 78 et 107), this account may be rejected, with many others of the
+same kind. The Egyptians certainly could not have taught Orpheus the plurality
+of worlds, and true solar system, which appear to have been the fundamental
+principles of his philosophy and religion (Plutarch. de Placit. Philos., lib. ii., c. 13.
+ON THE WORSHIP 20
+Greeks.1
+He is called the Father of Night, because by attracting the
+light to himself, and becoming the fountain which distributed it to
+the world, he produced night, which is called eternally-begotten,
+because it had eternally existed, although mixed and lost in the
+general mass. He is said to pervade the world with the motion of his
+wings, bringing pure light; and thence to be called the splendid,
+the ruling Priapus, and Self-illumined (autaughk
+). It is to be observed
+that the word Prihpoj, afterwards the name of a subordinate deity,
+is here used as a title relating to one of his attributes; the reasons
+for which I shall endeavour to explain hereafter. Wings are figuratively attributed to him as being the emblems of swiftness and incubation; by the first of which he pervaded matter, and by the second
+fructified the egg of Chaos. The egg was carried in procession at
+the celebration of the mysteries, because, as Plutarch says, it was
+the material of generation (ÿlh thj genesewj3
+) containing the seeds
+and germs of life and motion, without being actually possessed of
+either. For this reason, it was a very proper symbol of Chaos, containing the seeds and materials of all things, which, however, were
+barren and useless, until the Creator fructified them by the incubation of his vital spirit, and released them from the restraints of inert
--
+Brucker in loc. citat.) Nor could he have gained this knowledge from any people
+which history has preserved any memorials; for we know of none among whom
+science had made such a progress, that a truth so remote from common observation,
+and so contradictory to the evidence of unimproved sense, would not have been
+rejected, as it was by all the sects of Greek philosophy except the Pythagoreans, who
+rather revered it as an article of faith, than understood it as a discovery of science.
+Thrace was certainly inhabited by a civilized nation at some remote period; for,
+when Philip of Macedon opened the gold mines in that country, he found that they
+had been worked before with great expense and ingenuity, by a people well versed in
+mechanics, of whom no memorials whatever were then extant. Of these, pro-bably,
+was Orpheus, as well as Thamyris, both of whose poems, Plato says, could
+be read with pleasure in his time. 1
+See Sophocl. ådip. Tyr., ver. 1436. 2 Orph. Hym. 5. 3
+Symph. I. 2.
+OF PRIAPUS 21
+matter, by the efforts of his divine strength. The incubation of the
+vital spirit is represented on the colonial medals of Tyre, by a serpent wreathed around an egg;1
+for the serpent, having the power
+of casting his skin, and apparently renewing his youth, became the
+symbol of life and vigour, and as such is always made an
+attendant on the mythological deities presiding over health.2
+It is
+also observed, that animals of the serpent kind retain life more
+pertinaciously than any others except the Polypus, which is
+sometimes represented upon the Greek Medals,3
+probably in its
+stead. I have myself seen the heart of an adder continue its vital
+motions for many minutes after it has been taken from the body,
+and even renew them, after it has been cold, upon being
+moistened with warm water, and touched with a stimulus.
+The Creator, delivering the fructified seeds of things from the
+restraints of inert matter by his divine strength, is represented on
+innumerable Greek medals by the Urus, or wild Bull, in the act of
+butting against the Egg of Chaos, and breaking it with his horns.4
+It is true, that the egg is not represented with the bull on any of
+those which I have seen; but Mr. D’Hancarville 5
+has brought
+examples from other countries, where the same system prevailed,
+which, as well as the general analogy of the Greek theology prove
+that the egg must have been understood, and that the attitude of the
+bull could have no other meaning. I shall also have occasion hereafter to show by other examples, that it was no uncommon practice,
+in these mystic monuments, to make a part of a group represent
+the whole. It was from this horned symbol of the power of the
+See Plate XXI. Fig. 1. 2
+Macrob. Sat. i. c. 20. 3
+See Goltz, Tab. ii. Figs. 7 and 8. 4
+See Plate IV. Fig. 1, and Recherches sur les Arts, vol. i. Pl. VIII. The Hebrew
+word Chroub, or Cherub, signified originally strong or robust; but is usually employed
+metaphorically, signifying a Bull. See Cleric. in Exod. c. XXV. 5
+Recherches sur les Arts, lib. 1.
+ON THE WORSHIP 22
+Deity that horns were placed in the portraits of kings to show that
+their power was derived from Heaven, and acknowledged no earthly
+superior. The moderns have indeed changed the meaning of this
+symbol, and given it a sense of which, perhaps, it would be difficult
+to find the origin, though I have often wondered that it has never
+exercised the sagacity of those learned gentlemen who make British
+antiquities the subjects of their laborious inquiries. At present, it
+certainly does not bear any character of dignity or power; nor does
+it ever imply that those to whom it is attributed have been particularly favoured by the generative or creative powers. But this is
+a subject much too important to be discussed in a digression; I shall
+therefore leave it to those learned antiquarians who have done
+themselves so much honour, and the public so much service, by
+their successful inquiries into customs of the same kind. To their
+indefatigable industry and exquisite ingenuity I earnestly recommend
+it, only observing that this modern acceptation of the symbol is of
+considerable antiquity, for it is mentioned as proverbial in the
+Oneirocritics of Artemidorus;1
+and that it is not now confined to
+Great Britain, but prevails in most parts of Christendom, as the
+ancient acceptation of it did formerly in most parts of the world,
+even among that people from whose religion Christianity is derived;
+for it is a common mode of expression in the Old Testament, to
+say that the horns of any one shall be exalted, in order to signify
+that he shall be raised into power or pre-eminence; and when Moses
+descended from the Mount with the spirit of God still upon him, his
+head appeared horned.2
+To the head of the bull was sometimes joined the organ of
+generation, which represented not only the strength of the Creator,
+Lib. i. c. 12. 2
+Exod. c. XXXIV. v. 35, ed. Vulgat. Other translators understand the expression
+metaphorically, and suppose it to mean radiated, or luminous.
+OF PRIAPUS 23
+but the peculiar direction of it to the most beneficial purpose, the
+propagation of sensitive beings. Of this there is a small bronze in
+the Museum of Mr. Townley, of which an engraving is given in
+Plate III. Fig. 2.
+Sometimes this generative attribute is represented by the symbol
+of the goat, supposed to be the most salacious of animals, and therefore adopted upon the same principles as the bull and the serpent.2
+The choral odes, sung in honour of the generator Bacchus, were
+hence called tragwdiai, or songs of the goat; a title which is now
+applied to the dramatic dialogues anciently inserted in these odes,
+to break their uniformity. On a medal, struck in honour of
+Augustus, the goat terminates in the tail of a fish, to show the
+generative power incorporated with water. Under his feet is the
+globe of the earth, supposed to be fertilised by this union; and upon
+his back, the cornucopia, representing the result of this fertility.3
-Occus, Hindoo deity, 60.
+Mr. D’Hancarville attributes the origin of all these symbols
-Onomacritus, early poet, 18, note.
+to the ambiguity of words; the same term being employed in the
-Orleans, a fecret fociety with obfcene
+primitive language to signify God and a Bull, the Universe and
+a Goat, Life and a Serpent. But words are only the types and
+symbols of ideas, and therefore must be posterior to them, in the
+same manner as ideas are to their objects. The words of a primitive
+language, being imitative of the ideas from which they sprung,
+and of the objects they meant to express, as far as the imperfections
+of the organs of speech will admit, there must necessarily be the same
+kind of analogy between them as between the ideas and objects
+themselves. It is impossible, therefore, that in such a language any
+ambiguity of this sort could exist, as it does in secondary
+See Plate III. 2 Ton de tragon aÓeqewsan (“i AiguÓer) kai Óara toij Ellhsi tetimhsqai
+legousi ton PriaÓon, dia to gennhtik morion. DIODOR. lib. i. p. 78. 3
+Plate X. Fig. 3.
+ON THE WORSHIP 24
+languages; the words of which, being collected from various
+sources, and blended together without having any natural connection,
+become arbitrary signs of convention, instead of imitative representations of ideas. In this case it often happens, that words, similar
+in form, but different in meaning, have been adopted from different
+sources, which, being blended together, lose their little difference
+of form, and retain their entire difference of meaning. Hence
+ambiguities arise, such as those above mentioned, which could not
+possibly exist in an original tongue.
+The Greek poets and artists frequently give the personification
+of a particular attribute for the Deity himself; hence he is called
+Taurozoaj, Taurwpoj, Tauromorfoj,
+&c., and hence the initials and
+monograms of the Orphic epithets applied to the Creator, are found
+with the bull, and other symbols, on the Greek medals.2
+It must
+not be imagined from hence, that the ancients supposed the Deity
+to exist under the form of a bull, a goat, or a serpent: on the
+contrary, he is always described in the Orphic theology as a
+general pervading Spirit, without form, or distinct locality of any
+kind; and appears, by a curious fragment preserved by Proclus,3
+to have been no other than attraction personified. The self-created
+mind (nooj autogeneqloj) of the Eternal Father is said to have spread
+the heavy bond of love through all things (pasin enespeiren desmon
+peribriqh Erwtoj), in order that they might endure for ever. This
+Eternal Father is Kronoj, time or eternity, personified; and so taken
+for the unknown Being that fills eternity and infinity. The ancient
+theologists knew that we could form no positive idea of infinity,
+whether of power, space, or time; it being fleeting and fugitive,
+and eluding the understanding by a continued and boundless pro1
+Orph. Hymn v. et xxxix.
+Numm. Vet. Pop. et Urb. Tab. xxxix. Figs 19 et 20. They are on most of the
+medals of Marseilles, Naples, Thurium and many other cities. 3
+In Tim, III., et Frag. Orphic., ed Gesner.
+OF PRIAPUS 25
+gression. The only notion we have of it is from the addition or
+division of finite things, which suggest the idea of infinite, only
+from a power we feel in ourselves of still multiplying and dividing
+without end. The Schoolmen indeed were bolder, and, by a summary mode of reasoning, in which they were very expert, proved
+that they had as clear and adequate an idea of infinity, as of any
+finite substance whatever. Infinity, said they, is that which has no
+bounds. This negation, being a positive assertion, must be founded
+on a positive idea. We have therefore a positive idea of infinity.
+The Eclectic Jews, and their followers, the Ammonian and Christian
+Platonics, who endeavoured to make their own philosophy and religion
+conform to the ancient theology, held infinity of space to be only
+the immensity of the divine presence. `O Qepk òauto topoj esti1
+was
+their dogma, which is now inserted into the Confessional of the
+Greek Church.2
+This infinity was distinguished by them from
+common space, as time was from eternity. Whatever is eternal or
+infinite, said they, must be absolutely indivisible; because division
+is in itself inconsistent with infinite continuity and duration: therefore space and time are distinct from infinity and eternity, which are
+void of all parts and gradations whatever. Time is measured by
+years, days, hours, &c., and distinguished by past, present, and
+future; but these, being divisions, are excluded from eternity, as
+locality is from infinity, and as both are from the Being who fills
+both; who can therefore feel no succession of events, nor know any
+gradation of distance; but must comprehend infinite duration as if
+it were one moment, and infinite extent as if it were but a single
+point.3
+Hence the Ammonian Platonics speak of him as concentered in his own unity, and extended through all things, but par1
+Philo. de Leg. Alleg. lib. i. Jo. Damasc. de Orth. Fid. 2
+Mosheim. Note in Sec. xxiv. Cdw. Syst. Intellect. 3
+See Boeth. de Consol. Philos. lib. iv. prof. 6.
+ON THE WORSHIP 26
+ticipated of by none. Being of a nature more refined and elevated
+than intelligence itself, he could not be known by sense, perception,
+or reason; and being the cause of all, he must be anterior to all,
+even to eternity itself, if considered as eternity of time, and not as
+the intellectual unity, which is the Deity himself, by whose emanations all things exist, and to whose proximity or distances they owe
+their degrees of excellence or baseness. Being itself, in its most abstract
+sense, is derived from him; for that which is the cause and beginning of all Being, cannot be a part of that All which sprung from
+himself: therefore he is not Being, nor is Being his Attribute; for
+that which has an attribute cannot have the abstract simplicity of
+pure unity. All Being is in its nature finite; for, if it was otherwise, it must be without bounds every way; and therefore could
+have no gradation of proximity to the first cause, or consequent
+pre-eminence of one part over another: for, as all distinctions of
+time are excluded from infinite duration, and all divisions of locality
+from infinite extent, so are all degrees of priority from infinite
+progression. The mind is and acts in itself; but the abstract unity of
+the first cause is neither in itself, nor in another;—not in itself, because that would imply modification, from which abstract simplicity
+is necessarily exempt; nor in another, because then there would be
+an hypostatical duality, instead of absolute unity. In both cases
+there would be a locality of hypostasis, inconsistent with intellectual
+infinity. As all physical attributes were excluded from this metaphysical abstraction, which they called their first cause, he must of
+course be destitute of all moral ones, which are only generalized
+modes of action of the former. Even simple abstract truth was
+denied him; for truth, as Proclus says, is merely the relative to
+falsehood; and no relative can exist without a positive or correlative.
+The Deity therefore who has no falsehood, can have no truth, in
+our sense of the word.1
-rites there, in the eleventh century,
+Proclus in Theolog. Platon. lib. i. et ii.
+OF PRIAPUS 27
+As metaphysical theology is a study very generally, and very
+deservedly, neglected at present, I thought this little specimen of
+it might be entertaining, from its novelty, to most readers;
+especially as it is intimately connected with the ancient system,
+which I have here undertaken to examine. Those, who wish to
+know more of it, may consult Proclus on the Theology of Plato,
+where they will find the most exquisite ingenuity most wantonly
+wasted. No persons ever showed greater acuteness or strength of
+reasoning than the Platonics and Scholastics; but having quitted
+common sense, and attempted to mount into the intellectual
+world, they expended it all in abortive efforts which may amuse
+the imagination, but cannot satisfy the understanding.
+The ancient Theologists showed more discretion; for, finding
+that they could conceive no idea of infinity, they were content to
+revere the Infinite Being in the most general and efficient exertion
+of his power, attraction; whose agency is perceptible through all
+matter, and to which all motion may, perhaps, be ultimately traced.
+This power, being personified, became the secondary Deity, to whom
+all adoration and worship were directed, and who is therefore frequently considered as the sole and supreme cause of all things. His
+agency being supposed to extend through the whole material world,
+and to produce all the various revolutions by which its system is
+sustained, his attributes were of course extremely numerous and
+varied. These were expressed by various titles and epithets in the
+mystic hymns and litanies, which the artists endeavoured to represent
+by various forms and characters of men and animals. The great
+characteristic attribute was represented by the organ of generation in
+that state of tension and rigidity which is necessary to the due performance of its functions. Many small images of this kind have
+been found among the ruins of Herculaneum and Pompeii, attached
+to the bracelets, which the chaste and pious matrons of antiquity
+wore round their necks and arms. In these, the organ of generation
+ON THE WORSHIP 28
+appears alone, or only accompanied with the wings of incubation,1
+in order to show that the devout wearer devoted herself wholly
+and solely to procreation, the great end for which she was
+ordained. So expressive a symbol, being constantly in her view,
+must keep her attention fixed on its natural object, and
+continually remind her of the gratitude she owed the Creator, for
+having taken her into his service, made her a partaker of his most
+valuable blessings, and employed her as the passive instrument in
+the exertion of his most beneficial power.
+The female organs of generation were revered2
+as symbols of the
+generative powers of nature or matter, as the male were of the generative powers of God. They are usually represented emblematically,
+by the Shell, or Concha Veneris, which was therefore worn by devout
+persons of antiquity, as it still continues to be by pilgrims, and many
+of the common women of Italy. The union of both was expressed
+by the hand mentioned in Sir William Hamilton's letter;3
+which
+being a less explicit symbol, has escaped the attention of the reformers,
+and is still worn, as well as the shell, by the women of Italy, though
+without being understood. It represented the act of generation,
+which was considered as a solemn sacrament, in honour of the Creator, as will be more fully shown hereafter.
+The male organs of generation are sometimes found represented
+by signs of the same sort, which might properly be called the symbols of symbols. One of the most remarkable of these is a cross, in the
+form of the letter T,4
+which thus served as the emblem of creation
+and generation, before the church adopted it as the sign of salvation; a
+lucky coincidence of ideas, which, without doubt, facilitated the
+Plate II. Fig. 2, engraved from one in the British Museum. 2
+August. de Civ. Dei, Lib. VI. c. 9. 3
+See Plate II, Fig. 1, from one in the British Museum, in which both symbols are
+united. 4
+Recherches sur les Arts, lib. i. c. 3.
+OF PRIAPUS 29
+reception of it among the faithful. To the representative of the male
+organs was sometimes added a human head, which gives it the exact
+appearance of a crucifix; as it has on a medal of Cyzicus, published
+by M. Pellerin.1
+On an ancient medal, found in Cyprus, which,
+from the style of workmanship, is certainly anterior to the Macedonian conquest, it appears with the chaplet or rosary, such as is
+now used in the Romish churches;2
+the beads of which were used,
+anciently, to reckon time.3
+Their being placed in a circle, marked
+its progressive continuity; while their separation from each other
+marked the divisions, by which it is made to return on itself, and
+thus produce years, months, and days. The symbol of the creative
+power is placed upon them, because these divisions were particularly
+under his influence and protection; the sun being his visible image,
+and the centre of his power, from which his emanations extended
+through the universe. Hence the Egyptians, in their sacred hymns,
+called upon Osiris, as the being who dwelt concealed in the
+embraces of the sun;4
+and hence the great luminary itself is called
+Kosmokratwr (Ruler of the World) in the Orphic Hymns.5
+This general emanation of the pervading Spirit of God, by
+which all things are generated and maintained, is beautifully
+described by Virgil, in the following lines:
+Deum namque ire per omnes
+Terrasque, tractusque maris, cúlumque profundum.
+Hinc pecudes, armenta, viros, genus omne ferarum,
+Quemque sibi tenues nascentum arcessere vitas.
+Scilicet huc reddi deinde, ac resoluta referri
+Omnia: nec morti esse locum, sed viva volare
+Sideris in numerum, atque alto succedere cúlo.6
-.
-Orpheus, Argonauticon, account of,
+See Plate IX. Fig. 1. 2
+Plate IX. Fig. 2, from Pellerin. Similar medals are in the Hunter collection,
+and are evidently of Phúnician work. 3
+Recherches sur les Arts, lib. i. c. 3. 4
+Plutarch, de Is. et Osir. 5
+See Hymn VII. 6 Georgic. lib. iv. ver 221.
+ON THE WORSHIP 30
+The Ethereal Spirit is here described as expanding itself through
+the universe, and giving life and motion to the inhabitants of earth,
+water, and air, by a participation of its own essence, each particle
+of which returned to its native source, at the dissolution of the
+body which it animated. Hence, not only men, but all animals,
+and even vegetables, were supposed to be impregnated with some
+particles of the Divine Nature infused into them, from which their
+various qualities and dispositions, as well as their powers of propagation, were supposed to be derived. These appeared to be so many
+emanations of the Divine attributes, operating in different modes and
+degrees, according to the nature of the beings to which they
+belonged. Hence the characteristic properties of animals and plants
+were not only regarded as representations, but as actual emanations
+of the Divine Power, consubstantial with his own essence.1
+For
+this reason, the symbols were treated with greater respect and
+veneration than if they had been merely signs and characters of
+convention. Plutarch says, that most of the Egyptian priests held
+the bull Apis, who was worshipped with so much ceremony, to be
+only an image of the Spirit of Osiris.2
+This I take to have been the
+real meaning of all the animal worship of the Egyptians, about
+which so much has been written, and so little discovered. Those
+animals or plants, in which any particular attribute of the Deity
+seemed to predominate, became the symbols of that attribute, and
+were accordingly worshipped as the images of Divine Providence,
+acting in that particular direction. Like many other customs, both
+of ancient and modern worship, the practice, probably, continued
+long after the reasons upon which it was founded were either wholly
+lost, or only partially preserved, in vague traditions. This was the
+case in Egypt; for, though many of the priests knew or conjectured
+the origin of the worship of the bull, they could give no rational
+Proclus in Theol. Plat. lib. i. pp. 56, 57. 2 De Is. et. Osir.
+OF PRIAPUS 31
+account why the crocodile, the ichneumon, and the ibis, received
+similar honours. The symbolical characters, called hieroglyphics,
+continued to be esteemed by them as more holy and venerable than
+the conventional representations of sounds, notwithstanding their
+manifest inferiority; yet it does not appear, from any accounts
+extant, that they were able to assign any reason for this preference.
+On the contrary, Strabo tells us that the Egyptians of his time were
+wholly ignorant of their ancient learning and religion,1
+though
+impostors continually pretended to explain it. Their ignorance in
+these points is not to be wondered at, considering that the most
+ancient Egyptians, of whom we have any authentic accounts, lived
+after the subversion of their monarchy and destruction of their
+temples by the Persians, who used every endeavour to annihilate
+their religion; first, by command of Cambyses,2
+and then of
+Ochus.3
+What they were before this calamity, we have no direct
+information; for Herodotus is the earliest traveller, and he visited
+this country when in ruins.
+It is observable in all modern religions, that men are superstitious in proportion as they are ignorant, and that those who know
+least of the principles of religion are the most earnest and fervent
+in the practice of its exterior rites and ceremonies. We may
+suppose from analogy, that this was the case with the Egyptians.
+The learned and rational merely respected and revered the sacred
+animals, whilst the vulgar worshipped and adored them. The
+greatest part of the former being, as is natural to suppose, destroyed
+by the persecution of the Persians, this worship and adoration became general; different cities adopting different animals as their
+tutelar deities, in the same manner as the Catholics now put themselves under the protection of different saints and martyrs. Like
+Lib. xvii. 2
+Herodot. lib. iii. Strabo, lib. xvii. 3
+Plutarch, de Is. et Osir.
+ON THE WORSHIP 32
+them, too, in the fervency of their devotion for the imaginary
+agent, they forgot the original cause.
-, note.
+The custom of keeping sacred animals as images of the Divine attributes, seems once to have prevailed in Greece as well as Egypt; for the God of Health was represented by a living serpent at Epidaurus, even in the last stage of their religion.1 In general, however, they preferred wrought images, not from their superiority in art, which they did not acquire until after the time of Homer, 2 when their theology was entirely corrupted; but because they had thus the means of expressing their ideas more fully, by combining several forms together, and showing, not only the Divine attribute, but the mode and purpose of its operation. For instance; the celebrated bronze in the Vatican has the male organs of generation placed upon the head of a [[cock]], the emblem of the sun, supported by the neck and shoulders of a man. In this composition they represented the generative power of the [[Ερως]], the [[Osiris]], [[Mithras]], or [[Bacchus]], whose centre is the sun, incarnate with man. By the inscription on the pedestal, the attribute this personified, is styled The Saviour of the World ([[Σωτηζ κοσμψ]]); a title always venerable, under whatever image it be represented. 3
-Orpheus, hymns of, 19, note^ 20, 24,
-, 40, 44, 65, 69, 92, 93.
+The Egyptians showed this incarnation of the Deity by a less permanent, though equally expressive symbol. At Mendes a living
-Orphic fyftem of theology, 17, et feq.
+goat was kept as the image of the generative power, to whom the
-Oliris, ancient deity, 16, 29, 40, 68.
+women presented themselves naked, and had the honour of being
-Ovid, 44.
+publicly enjoyed by him. Herodotus saw the act openly performed (ej epideixin anqrwpwn), and calls it a prodigy (teraj). But
+the Egyptians had no such horror of it; for it was to them a representation of the incarnation of the Deity, and the communication of
+Liv. Hist. Epsiom. lib. xi. 2
+When Homer praises any work of art, he calls it the work of Sidonians. 3
+See Plate II. Fig. 3.
+OF PRIAPUS 33
+his creative spirit to man. It was one of the sacraments of that
+ancient church, and was, without doubt, beheld with that pious awe
+and reverence with which devout persons always contemplate the
+mysteries of their faith, whatever they happen to be; for, as the
+learned and orthodox Bishop Warburton, whose authority it is not
+for me to dispute, says, from the nature of any action morality cannot
+arise, nor from its effects;1
+therefore, for aught we can tell, this
+ceremony, however shocking it may appear to modern manners and
+opinions, might have been intrinsically meritorious at the time of its
+celebration, and afforded a truly edifying spectacle to the saints
+of ancient Egypt. Indeed, the Greeks do not seem to have felt
+much horror or disgust at the imitative representation of it, whatever the historian might have thought proper to express at the real
+celebration. Several specimens of their sculpture in this way
+have escaped the fury of the reformers, and remained for the instruction of later times. One of these, found among the ruins of
+Herculaneum, and kept concealed in the Royal Museum of Portici,
+is well known. Another exists in the collection of Mr. Townley,
+which I have thought proper to have engraved for the benefit of
+the learned.2
+It may be remarked, that in these monuments the
+goat is passive instead of active; and that the human symbol is represented as incarnate with the divine, instead of the divine with the
+human: but this is in fact no difference; for the Creator, being of
+both sexes, is represented indifferently of either. In the other
+symbol of the bull, the sex is equally varied; the Greek medals
+having sometimes a bull, and sometimes a cow,3
+which, Strabo tells
+us, was employed as the symbol of Venus, the passive generative
+power, at Momemphis, in Egypt.4
+Both the bull and the cow are
+Div. Leg. book i. c. 4. 2
+See Plate VII. 3
+See Plate IV, Fig. 1, 2, 3, and Plate III, fig 4, engraved from medals belonging
+to me. 4
+Lib. xvii.
+ON THE WORSHIP 34
+also worshipped at present by the Hindoos, as symbols of the male
+and female, or generative and nutritive, powers of the Deity. The
+cow is in almost all their pagodas; but the bull is revered with
+superior solemnity and devotion. At Tanjour is a monument of
+their piety to him, which even the inflexible perseverance, and
+habitual industry of the natives of that country, could scarcely
+have erected without greater knowledge in practical mechanics than
+they now possess. It is a statue of a bull lying down, hewn, with
+great accuracy, out of a single piece of hard granite, which has been
+conveyed by land from the distance of one hundred miles, although
+its weight, in its present reduced state, must be at least one hundred
+tons.1
+The Greeks sometimes made their Taurine Bacchus, or
+bull, with a human face, to express both sexes, which they signified
+by the initial of the epithet Difuej placed under him.2
+Over him
+they frequently put the radiated asterisk, which represents the sun,
+to show the Deity, whose attribute he was intended to express.3
-Pason, Greek name of Apollo, 75.
+Hence we may perceive the reason why the Germans, who, according to Cæsar,
-Pagan rites introduced into the worfhip
+worshipped the sun, carried a brazen bull, as the
+image of their God, when they invaded the Roman dominions in
+the time of Marius;5
+and even the chosen people of Providence,
+when they made unto themselves an image of the God who was
+to conduct them through the desert, and cast out the ungodly, from before them, made it in the shape of a young bull, or
+calf.6
-of the early Chriftians, 171, et feq.
+The Greeks, as they advanced in the cultivation of the imitative
-Pan, attributes of, 35 — 38, 69.
-Paterini, Italian feftarians, and their
+See Plate XXII. with the measurements, as made by Capt. Patterson on the
+spot. 2
+See Plate IV, Fig. 2, from a medal of Naples in the Hunter collection. 3
+See Plate IV, Fig. 2, and Plate XIX. Fig 4, from a medal of Cales, belonging
+to me. 4 De B. G., lib. vi. 5
+Plut. in Mario. 6 Exod. c. xxxii., with Patrick’s Commentary.
+OF PRIAPUS 35
+arts, gradually changed the animal for the human form, preserving
+still the original character. The human head was at first added to
+the body of the bull;1
+but afterwards the whole figure was made
+human, with some of the features, and general character of the
+animal, blended with it.2
+Oftentimes, however, these mixed figures
+had a peculiar and proper meaning, like that of the Vatican
+Bronze; and were not intended as mere refinements of art. Such
+are the fawns and satyrs, who represent the emanations of the
+Creator, incarnate with man, acting as his angels and ministers in
+the work of universal generation. In copulation with the goat,
+they represent the reciprocal incarnation of man with the deity,
+when incorporated with universal matter: for Deity, being both
+male and female, was both act and passive in procreation; first
+animat-ing man by an emanation from his own essence, and then
+employing that emanation to reproduce, in conjunction with the
+common pro-ductive powers of nature, which are no other than
+his own prolific spirit transfused through matter.
+These mixed beings are derived from Pan, the principle of universal order; of whose personified image they partake. Pan is
+addressed in the Orphic Litanies as the first-begotten love, or creator
+incorporated in universal matter, and so forming the world.3
+The
+heaven, the earth, water, and fire are said to be members of him; and
+he is described as the origin and source of all things (pantofuhj
+genetwr pantwn), as representing matter animated by the Divine Spirit.
+Lycæan Pan was the most ancient and revered God of the Arcadians,4
+the most ancient people of Greece. The epithet Lycæan (Lukaioj),
+is usually derived from lukoj, a wolf; though it is impossible to
+See the medals of Naples, Gela, &c . Plate IV. Fig 2 and Plate IX. Fig 11, are
+specimens; but the coins are in all collections. 2
+See Bronzi d’Herculano, tom. v. Plate v. 3
+Hymn. x. 4
+Dionys. Antiq. Rom. lib. i, c. 32.
+ON THE WORSHIP 36
+find any relation which this etymology can have with the deities to
+which it is applied; for the epithet Lukaioj, or Lukeioj (which is only
+the different pronunciation of a different dialect), is occasionally
+applied to almost all the gods. I have therefore no doubt, but that it
+ought to be derived from the old word lukoj,or lukh,light; from which
+came the Latin word lux.
+In this sense it is a very proper epithet for
+the Divine Nature, of whose essence light was supposed to be. I am
+confirmed in this conjecture by a word in the Electra of Sophocles,
+which seems hitherto to have been misunderstood. At the opening of
+the play, the old tutor of Orestes, entering Argos with his young
+pupil, points out to him the most celebrated public buildings, and
+amongst them the Lycæan Forum, tou lukoktonou Qeou, which the
+scholiast and translators interpret, of the wolf-killing God, though
+there is no reason whatever why this epithet should be applied to
+Apollo. But, if we derive the compound from lukoj, light, and
+ekteinein, to extend, instead of kteinein, to kill, the meaning will be
+perfectly just and natural; for light-extending, is of all others the
+properest epithet for the sun. Sophocles, as well as Virgil, is known
+to have been an admirer of ancient expressions, and to have imitated
+Homer more than any other Attic Poet; therefore, his employing
+an obsolete word is not to be wondered at. Taking this etymology
+as the true one, the Lycæan Pan of Arcadia is Pan the luminous;
+that is, the divine essence of light incorporated in universal matter.
+The Arcadians called him ton thj ÿlhj Kurion, the lord of matter as
+Macrobius rightly translates it.2
+He was hence called Sylvanus by
+the Latins; Sylvus being, in the ancient Pelasgian and Æolian
+Greek, from which the Latin is derived, the same as ÿlh for it is
+well known to all who have compared the two languages attentively,
+that the Sigma and Vau are letters, the one of which was partially,
+and the other generally omitted by the Greeks, in the refinement of
+Macrob. Sat. xvii. 2
+Sat. i. c. 22.
+OF PRIAPUS 37
+their pronunciation and orthography which took place after the
+emigration of the Latian and Etruscan colonies. The Chorus in the
+Ajax of Sophocles address Pan by the title of ëAliplagktoj,
+probably
+because he was worshipped on the shores of the sea; water being
+reckoned the best and most prolific of the subordinate elements,2
+upon which the Spirit of God, according to Moses, or the Plastic
+Nature, according to the Platonics, operating, produced life and
+motion on earth. Hence the ocean is said by Homer to be the
+source of all things;3
+and hence the use of water in baptism, which
+was to regenerate, and, in a manner, new create the person
+baptised; for the soul, supposed by many of the primitive Christians to be naturally mortal, was then supposed to become immortal.4
+Upon the same principle, the figure of Pan,5
+is represented
+pouring water upon the organ of generation; that is, invigorating
+the active creative power by the prolific element upon which it
+acted; for water was considered as the essence of the passive principle, as fire was of the active; the one being of terrestrial, and
+the other of æthereal origin. Hence, St. John the Baptist, who might
+have acquired some knowledge of the ancient theology, through its
+revivers, the Eclectic Jews, says: I, indeed, baptise you in water to
+repentance; but he that cometh after me, who is more powerful
+than I am, shall baptise you in Holy Spirit, and in fire:
+that is, I only
+purify and refresh the soul, by a communion with the terrestrial
+principle of life; but he that cometh after me, will regenerate and
+restore it, by a communion with the æthereal principle.7
+Pan is
+Ver. 703. 2
+Pindar, Olymp. i. ver. 1. Diodor, Sic. lib. i. p. 11. 3
+Il. x, ver 246, and f, ver. 196. 4
+Clementina, Hom. xii. Arnob. adv. Gentes, lib. ii. 5
+See Plate V. Fig 1. The original is among the antiquities found in Herculaneum, now in the Museum of Portici. 6 Matth. c. iii. 7
+It is the avowed intention of the learned and excellent work of Grotius, to prove
+that there is nothing new in Christianity. What I have here adduced, may serve to
+ON THE WORSHIP 38
+again addressed in Salaminian Chorus of the same tragedy of
+Sophocles, by the titles of author and director of the dances of the
+gods (Qewn coropoi' anax), as being the author and disposer of the
+regular motions of the universe, of which these divine dances were
+symbols, which are said in the same passage to be (autodah) selftaught to him. Both the Gnossian and Nysian dances are here
+included,1
+the former sacred to Jupiter, and the latter to Bacchus;
+for Pan, being the principle of universal order, partook of the
+nature of all the other gods. They were personifications of particular modes of acting of the great all-ruling principle; and he, of
+his general law and pre-established harmony by which he governs
+the universe. Hence he is often represented playing on a pipe; music
+being the natural emblem of this physical harmony. According to
+Plutarch, the Jupiter Ammon of the Africans was the same as the
+Pan of the Greeks.2
+This explains the reason why the Macedonian
+kings assumed the horns of that god; for, though Alexander pretended to be his son, his successors never pretended to any such
+honour; and yet they equally assumed the symbols, as appears from
+their medals.3
+The case is, that Pan, or Ammon, being the universe,
+and Jupiter a title of the Supreme God (as will be shown hereafter), the
+horns, the emblems of his power, seemed the properest symbols of
+that supreme and universal dominion to which they all, as well as
+Alexander, had the ambition to aspire. The figure of Ammon
+was compounded of the forms of the ram, as that of Pan was of the
+goat; the reason of which is difficult to ascertain, unless we suppose
-fecret rites, 176.
+confirm and illustrate the discoveries of that great and good man. See de Veritate
-Paulicians, fedt of Gnoftics, introducers
+Relig. Christ. lib. iv, c. 12. 1
+Ver. 708. 2 De Is. et Osir. 3
+See Plate IV, Fig 4, engraved from one of Lysimachus, of exquisite beauty,
+beloning to me. Antigonus put the head of Pan upon his coins, which are not
+uncommon.
+OF PRIAPUS 39
+that goats were unknown in the country where his worship arose,
+and that the ram expressed the same attribute.1
+In a gem in the
+Museum of Charles Townley, Esq., the head of the Greek Pan is
+joined to that of a ram, on the body of a cock, over whose head is
+the asterisk of the sun, and below it the head of an aquatic fowl,
+attached to the same body.2
+The cock is the symbol of the sun,
+probably from proclaiming his approach in the morning; and the
+aquatic fowl is the emblem of water; so that this composition,
+apparently so whimsical, represents the universe between the two great
+prolific elements, the one the active, and the other the passive cause
+of all things.
+The Creator being both male and female, the emanations of his
+creative spirit, operating upon universal matter, produced subordinate ministers of both sexes, and gave, as companions to the fauns
+and satyrs, the nymphs of the waters, the mountains and the woods,
+signifying the passive productive powers of each, subdivided and
+diffused. Of the same class are the Genetullidej, mentioned by Pausanias as companions to Venus,3
+who, as well as Ceres, Juno, Diana,
+Isis, &c., was only a personification of nature, or the passive principle
+of generation, operating in various modes. Apuleius invokes Isis
+by the names of the Eleusinian Ceres, Celestial Venus, and Proserpine; and, when the Goddess answers him, she describes herself as
+follows: “I am,” says she, “nature, the parent of things, the sovereign of the elements, the primary progeny of time, the most exalted
+of the deities, the first of the heavenly Gods and Goddesses, the queen
+of the shades, the uniform countenance; who dispose, with my nod,
+the luminous heights of heaven, the salubrious breezes of the sea,
+and the mournful silence of the dead; whose single Deity the whole
+Pausanias (lib. ii.) says he knew the meaning of this symbol, but did not choose
+to reveal it, it being a part of the mystic worship. 2
+Plate III, Fig. 1. 3 Lib. i.
+ON THE WORSHIP 40
+world venerates, in many forms, with various rites, and various
+names. The Egyptians, skilled in ancient learning, worship me
+with proper ceremonies, and call me by my true name, Queen Isis.”1
+According to the Egyptians, Isis copulated with her brother
+Osiris in the womb of their mother; from whence sprung Arueris,
+or Orus, the Apollo of the Greeks.2
+This allegory means no more
+than that the active and passive powers of creation united in the
+womb of night; where they had been implanted by the unknown
+father, Kronoj, or time, and by their union produced the separation
+or delivery of the elements from each other; for the name Apollo is
+only a title derived from apoluw, to deliver from.
+They made the robes
+of Isis various in their colours and complicated in their folds, because
+the passive or material power appeared in various shapes and modes,
+as accommodating itself to the active; but the dress of Osiris was
+simple, and of one luminous colour, to show the unity of his essence,
+and universality of his power; equally the same through all things.4
-of phailic worfhip into Weflern Eu-
+The luminous, or flame colour, represented the sun, who, in the
-rope, 175.
+language of the theologists, was the substance of his sacred power,
-Paufanias, 19, note^ 39, 63.
+and the visible image of his intellectual being.5
-Pellerin, medal publifhed by him, 29.
+He is called, in the
-Perfian worfhip, d^^, 86.
+Orphic Litanies, the chain which connects all things together (– d’
-Philippe IV. proceedings againft the
+anedrame desmoj °pantwn),5
+as being the principle of attraction; and
+the deliverer (lusioj),7
+as giving liberty to the innate powers of
+nature, and thus fertilising matter. These epithets not only express
+the theological, but also the physical system of the Orphic school;
+according to which the sun, being placed in the centre of the
+Metamorph. lib. xi. 2
+Plutarch, de Is. et Osir. 3
+Damm. Lex. Etym. 4
+Plutarch, de Is. et. Osir. 4
+Ibid. 5
+Hymn xlvi. 7
+Hymn. xlix. the initials of this epithet are with the bull on a medal of Naples
+belonging to me The bull has a human countenance, and has therefore been called
+a minotaur by antiquarians; notwithstanding he is to be found on different medals,
+accompanied with all the symbols both of Bacchus and Apollo, and with the initials
+of most of the epithets to be found in the Orphic Litanies.
+OF PRIAPUS 41
+universe, with the planets moving round, was, by his attractive
+force, the cause of all union and harmony in the whole; and, by the
+emanation of his beams, the cause of all motion and activity in the
+parts. This system is alluded to by Homer in the allegory of the
+golden chain, by which Jupiter suspends all things;1
+though there
+is every reason to believe that the poet himself was ignorant of its
+meaning, and only related it as he had heard it. The Ammonian
+Platonics adopted the same system of attraction, but changed its
+centre from the sun to their metaphysical abstraction or incomprehensible unity, whose emanations pervaded all things, and held all
+things together.2
-Knights Templars, 185.
+Besides the Fauns, Satyrs, and Nymphs, the incarnate emanations of the active and passive powers of the Creator, we often find
-Philo fuppofed firft individuals of the
+in the ancient sculptures certain androgynous beings possessed of the
+characteristic organs of both sexes, which I take to represent
+organized matter in its first stage; that is, immediately after it was
+released from chaos, and before it was animated by a participation
+of the ethereal essence of the Creator. In a beautiful gem belonging
+to R. Wilbraham, Esq.,3
+one of these androgynous figures is represented sleeping, with the organs of generation covered, and the egg
+of chaos broken under it. On the other side is Bacchus, the Creator, bearing a torch, the emblem of ethereal fire, and extending it
+towards the sleeping figure; whilst one of his agents seems only to
+wait his permission to begin the execution of that office, which,
+according to every outward and visible sign, he appears able to
+discharge with energy and effect. The Creator himself leans upon
+one of those figures commonly called Sileni; but which, from their
+heavy unwieldy forms, were probably intended as personifications
+of brute inert matter, from which all things are formed, but which,
+Il. Q, ver. xix. 2
+Proclus in Theol. Plat. lib. i. c. 21. 3
+See Plate V. Fig. 3.
+ON THE WORSHIP 42
+being incapable of producing anything of itself, is properly represented as the support of the creative power, though not actively
+instrumental in his work. The total baldness of this figure represents the exhausted, unproductive state of matter, when the generative powers were separated from it; for it was an opinion of the
+ancients, which I remember to have met with in some part of the
+works of Aristotle, to which I cannot at present refer, that every
+act of coition produced a transient chill in the brain, by which some
+of the roots of the hair were loosened; so that baldness was a mark
+of sterility acquired by excessive exertion. The figures of Pan have
+nearly the same forms with that which I have here supposed to
+represent inert matter; only that they are compounded with those
+of the goat, the symbol of the creative power, by which matter was
+fructified and regulated. To this is sometimes added the organ of
+generation, of an enormous magnitude, to signify the application of
+this power to its noblest end, the procreation of sensitive and
+rational beings. This composition forms the common Priapus of
+the Roman poets, who was worshipped among the other personages
+of the heathen mythology, but understood by few of his ancient
+votaries any better than by the good women of Isernia. His characteristic organ is sometimes represented by the artists in that state of
+tension and rigidity, which it assumes when about to discharge its
+functions,1
+and at other times in that state of tumid languor,
+which immediately succeeds the performance.2
+In the latter case he
+appears loaded with the productions of nature, the result of those
+prolific efforts, which in the former case he appeared so well
+qualified to exert. I have in Plate V. given a figure of him in each
+situation, one taken from a bronze in the Royal Museum of Portici,
+and the other from one in that of Charles Townley, Esq. It may
+Plate V. Fig. 1, from a bronze in the Museum at Portici.
+OF PRIAPUS 43
+be observed, that in the former the muscles of the face are all
+strained and contracted, so that every nerve seems to be in a state
+of tension; whereas in the latter the features are all dilated and
+fallen, the chin reposed on the breast, and the whole figure
+expressive of languor and fatigue.
+If the explanation which I have given of these androgynous
+figures be the true one, the fauns and satyrs, which usually accompany
+them, must represent abstract emanations, and not incarnations of the
+creative spirit, as when in copulation with the goat. The Creator
+himself is frequently represented in a human form; and it is natural
+that his emanations should partake of the same, though without
+having any thing really human in their composition. It seems,
+however, to have been the opinion in some parts of Asia, that the
+Creator was really of a human form. The Jewish legislator says
+expressly, that God made man in his own image, and, prior to the
+creation of woman, created him male and female,
+as he himself consequently was.2
+Hence an ingenious author has supposed that these
+androgynous figures represented the first individuals of the human
+race, who, possessing the organs of both sexes, produced children of
+each. This seems to be the sense in which they were represented
+by some of the ancient artists; but I have never met with any trace
+of it in any Greek author, except Philo the Jew; nor have I ever
+seen any monument of ancient art, in which the Bacchus, or Creator
+in a human form, was represented with the generative organs of
+both sexes. In the symbolical images, the double nature is frequently expressed by some androgynous insect, such as the snail,
+which is endowed with the organs of both sexes, and can copulate
+reciprocally with either: but when the refinement of art adopted
+the human form, it was represented by mixing the characters of the
+Genes, c. i. 2
+Philo, de Leg. Alleg. lib. ii.
+ON THE WORSHIP 44
+male and female bodies in every part, preserving still the distinctive
+organs of the male. Hence Euripides calls Bacchus qhlummorfoj,
+and the Chorus of Bachannals in the same tragedy address him by
+masculine and feminine epithets.2
+Ovid also says to him,
+——Tibi, cum sine cornibus adstas,
+Virgineum caput est. 3
+alluding in the first line to his taurine, and in the second to his
+androgynous figure.
+The ancient theologists were, like the modern, divided into sects;
+but, as these never disturbed the peace of society, they have been
+very little noticed. I have followed what I conceive to be the true
+Orphic system, in the little analysis which I have here endeavoured
+to give. This was probably the true catholic faith, though it differs
+considerably from another ancient system, described by Aristophanes;4
+which is more poetical, but less philosophical. According to this,
+Chaos, Night, Erebus, and Tartarus, were the primitive beings. Night,
+in the infinite breast of Erebus, brought forth an egg, from which
+sprung Love, who mixed all things together; and from thence sprung
+the heaven, the ocean, the earth, and the gods. This system is
+alluded to by the epithet Wogenoj, applied to the Creator in one of the
+Orphic Litanies:5
+but this could never have been a part of the
+orthodox faith; for the Creator is usually represented as breaking
+the egg of chaos, and therefore could not have sprung from it. In
+the confused medleys of allegories and traditions contained in the
+Theogony attributed to Hesiod, Love is placed after Chaos and the
+Earth, but anterior to every thing else. These differences are not
+to be wondered at; for Aristophanes, supposing that he understood
+the true system, could not with safety have revealed it, or even
+mentioned it any otherwise than under the usual garb of fiction and
+Bach. v. 358. 2 W Bromie, Pedwn cqonoj enosi potnia. Vers. 504. 3 Metam. lib. iv, v. 18. 4 Orniq. Vers. 693. 5
+Hymn v.
+OF PRIAPUS 45
+allegory; and as for the author of the Theogony, it is evident,
+from the strange jumble of incoherent fables which he has put
+together, that he knew very little of it. The system alluded to in
+the Orphic verses quoted in the Argonautics, is in all probability
+the true one; for it is not only consistent in all its parts, but
+contains a physical truth, which the greatest of the modern
+discoveries has only con-firmed and explained. The others seem
+to have been only poetical corruptions of it, which, extending by
+degrees, produced that un-wieldly system of poetical mythology,
+which constituted the vulgar religion of Greece.
+The fauns and satyrs, which accompany the androgynous figures
+on the ancient sculptures, are usually represented as ministering to
+the Creator by exerting their characteristic attributes upon them, as
+well as upon the nymphs, the passive agents of procreation: but
+what has puzzled the learned in these monuments, and seems a
+contradiction to the general system of ancient religion, is that many
+of these groups are in attitudes which are rather adapted to the gratification of disordered and unnatural appetites, than to extend procreation. But a learned author, who has thrown infinite light upon
+these subjects, has effectually cleared them from this suspicion, by
+showing that they only took the most convenient way to get at the
+female organs of generation, in those mixed beings who possessed
+both.1
+This is confirmed by Lucretius, who asserts, that this attitude
+is better adapted to the purposes of generation than any other.2
+We
+may therefore conclude, that instead of representing them in the
+act of gratifying any disorderly appetites, the artists meant to
+show their modesty in not indulging their concupiscence, but in
+doing their duty in the way best adapted to answer the ends
+proposed by the Creator.
+On the Greek medals, where the cow is the symbol of the deity,
+Recherches sur les Arts, liv. i. c. 3. 2
+Lib. iv, v. 1260
+ON THE WORSHIP 46
+she is frequently represented licking a calf, which is sucking her.1
+This is probably meant to show that the creative power cherishes
+and nourishes, as well as generates; for, as all quadrupeds lick their
+young, to refresh and invigorate them immediately after birth, it is
+natural to suppose, according to the general system of symbolical
+writing, that this action should be taken as an emblem of the effect
+it was thought to produce. On other medals the bull or cow is
+represented licking itself;2
+which, upon the same principle, must
+represent the strength of the deity refreshed and invigorated by the
+exertion of its own nutritive and plastic power upon its own being.
+On others again is a human head of an androgynous character, like
+that of the Bacchus difuej, with the tongue extended over the lower
+lip, as if to lick something.3
+This was probably the same symbol,
+expressed in a less explicit manner; it being the common practice
+of the Greek artists to make a part of a composition signify the
+whole, of which I shall soon have occasion to give some incontestable
+examples. On a Parian medal published by Goltzius, the bull licking himself is represented on one side, accompanied by the asterisk
+of the sun, and on the other, the head with the tongue extended,
+having serpents, the emblems of life, for hair.4
+The same medal is
+in my collection, except that the serpents are not attached to the
+head, but placed by it as distinct symbols, and that the animal licking itself is a female accompanied by the initial of the word qeoj,
+instead of the asterisk of the sun. Antiquarians have called this head a
+Medusa; but, had they examined it attentively on any wellpreserved coin, they would have found that the expression of the
+features means lust, and not rage or horror.5
+The case is, that
+See Plate IV, Fig. 3. from a medal of Dyrrachium, belonging to me. 2
+See Plate III. Fig. 5, from one of Gortyna, in the Hunter Collection; and
+Plate III. Fig. 4, from one of Parium, belonging to me. 3
+See Plate III, Fig 4, and Plate III, Fig 6, from Pellerin. 4
+Goltz, Insul. Tab. xix, Fig 8. 5 See Plate III, Fig. 4.
+OF PRIAPUS 47
+antiquarians have been continually led into error, by seeking for
+explanations of the devices on the Greek medals in the wild and
+capricious stories of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, instead of
+examining the first principles of ancient religion contained in the
+Orphic Fragments, the writings of Plutarch, Macrobius, and
+Apuleius, and the Choral Odes of the Greek tragedies. These
+principles were the subjects of the ancient mysteries, and it is to
+these that the symbols on the medals always relate; for they were
+the public acts of the states, and therefore contain the sense of
+nations, and not the caprices of individuals.
+As M. D’Hancarville found a complete representation of the bull
+breaking the egg of chaos in the sculptures of the Japanese, when
+only a part of it appears on the Greek monuments; so we may find
+in a curious Oriental fragment, lately brought from the sacred
+caverns of Elephanta, near Bombay, a complete representation of
+the symbol so enigmatically expressed by the head above mentioned.
+These caverns are ancient places of worship, hewn in the solid rock
+with immense labour and difficulty. That from which the fragment
+in question was brought, is 130 feet long by 110 wide, adorned
+with columns and sculptures finished in a style very different from
+that of the Indian artists.1
+It is now neglected; but others of the
+same kind are still used as places of worship by the Hindoos, who
+can give no account of the antiquity of them, which must necessarily
+be very remote, for the Hindoos are a very ancient people; and yet
+the sculptures represent a race of men very unlike them, or any of
+the present inhabitants of India. A specimen of these was brought
+from the island of Elephanta, in the Cumberland man-of-war, and
+now belongs to the museum of Mr. Townley. It contains several
+figures, in very high relief; the principal of which are a man and
+woman, in an attitude which I shall not venture to describe, but only
+Archæol. vol. viii. p. 189.
+ON THE WORSHIP 48
+observe, that the action, which I have supposed to be a symbol of
+refreshment and invigoration, is mutually applied by both to their
+respective organs of generation,1
+the emblems of the active and
+passive powers of procreation, which mutually cherish and invigorate
+each other.
+The Hindoos still represent the creative powers of the deity by
+these ancient symbols, the male and female organs of generation;
+and worship them with the same pious reverence as the Greeks and
+Egyptians did.2
+Like them too they have buried the original principles of their theology under a mass of poetical mythology, so that
+few of them can give any more perfect account of their faith, than
+that they mean to worship one first cause, to whom the subordinate
+deities are merely agents, or more properly personified modes of action.3
-human race to be androgynous, 43.
+This is the doctrine inculcated, and very fully explained, in the
-Phoenician medals. 87, 88, 90.
+Bagvat Geeta; a moral and metaphysical work lately translated from
-Phoenician religion, ancient, 94.
+the Sanscrit language, and said to have been written upwards of
-Pilofi, fpirits of the woods, 152.
+four thousand years ago. Kreshna, or the deity become incarnate
-Pindar, 60, 98, loi.
+in the shape of man, in order to instruct all mankind, is introduced,
-Plants connefted with Priapic worfhip,
+revealing to his disciples the fundamental principles of true faith,
+religion, and wisdom; which are the exact counterpart of the system
+of emanations, so beautifully described in the lines of Virgil before
+cited. We here find, though in a more mystic garb, the same one
+principle of life universally emanated and expanded, and ever partially returning to be again absorbed in the infinite abyss of intellectual
+being. This reabsorption, which is throughout recommended as
+the ultimate end of human perfection, can only be obtained by a
+life of inward meditation and abstract thought, too steady to be
+interrupted by any worldly incidents, or disturbed by any transitory
+affections, whether of mind or body. But as such a life is not in the
+See Plate XI. [and XXIV] 2
+Sonnerat, Voyage aux Indes, T. 1 p. 180. 3
+Niebuhr, Voyages, vol. II. p. 17.
+OF PRIAPUS 49
+power of any but a Brahman, inferior rewards, consisting of gradual
+advancements during the transmigrations of the soul, are held out
+to the soldier, the husbandman, and mechanic, accordingly as they
+fulfill the duties of their several stations. Even those who serve
+other gods are not excluded from the benefits awarded to every
+moral virtue; for, as the divine Teacher says, If they do it with a
+firm belief, in so doing they involuntarily worship even me. I am he
+who partaketh of all worship, and I am their reward.
+This universal deity, being the cause of all motion, is alike the cause of
+creation, preservation, and destruction; which three attributes are
+all expressed in the mystic syllable om. To repeat this in silence,
+with firm devotion, and immoveable attention, is the surest means
+of perfection,2
+and consequent reabsorption, since it leads to the
+contemplation of the Deity, in his three great characteristic attributes.
+The first and greatest of these, the creative or generative attribute,
+seems to have been originally represented by the union of the male
+and female organs of generation, which, under the title of the Lingam,
+still occupies the central and most interior recesses of their temples
+or pagodas; and is also worn, attached to bracelets, round their
+necks and arms.3
+In a little portable temple brought from the
+Rohilla country during the late war, and now in the British Museum,
+this composition appears mounted on a pedestal, in the midst of a
+square area, sunk in a block of white alabaster.4
+Round the pedestal
+is a serpent, the emblem of life, with his head rested upon his tail,
+to denote eternity, or the constant return of time upon itself, whilst
+it flows through perpetual duration, in regular revolutions and
+stated periods. From under the body of the serpent springs the
+lotus or water lily, the Nelumbo of Linnæus, which overspreads
+the whole of the area not occupied by the figures at the corners.
+Bagvat Geeta, p. 81. 2 Ibid. p. 74. 3
+Sonnerat, Voyage aux Indes, liv. ii. p. 180. 4
+See Plate XII.
+ON THE WORSHIP 50
+This plant grows in the water, and, amongst its broad leaves, puts
+forth a flower, in the center of which is formed the seed-vessel,
+shaped like a bell or inverted cone, and punctuated on the top with
+little cavities or cells, in which the seeds grow.1
+The orifices of
+these cells being too small to let the seeds drop out when ripe, they
+shoot forth into new plants, in the places where they were formed;
+the bulb of the vessel serving as a matrice to nourish them, until
+they acquire such a degree of magnitude as to burst it open and
+release themselves; after which, like other aquatic weeds, they take
+root wherever the current deposits them. This plant therefore,
+being thus productive of itself, and vegetating from its own matrice,
+without being fostered in the earth, was naturally adopted as the
+symbol of the productive power of the waters, upon which the
+active spirit of the creator operated in giving life and vegetation
+to matter. We accordingly find it employed in every part of the
+northern hemisphere, where the symbolical religion, improperly
+called idolatry, does or ever did prevail. The sacred images of
+the Tartars, Japonese, and Indians, are almost all placed upon it;
+of which numerous instances occur in the publications of Kæmpfer,
+Chappe D’Auteroche, and Sonnerat. The upper part of the base
+of the Lingam also consists of this flower, blended and composed
+with the female organ of generation which it supports: and the
+ancient author of the Bagvat Geeta speaks of the creator Brahma
+as sitting upon his lotus throne.2
+The figures of Isis, upon the
+Isiac Table, hold the stem of this plant, surmounted by the seedvessel in one hand, and the cross,3
+representing the male organs of
+generation, in the other; thus signifying the universal power, both
+active and passive, attributed to that goddess. On the same Isiac
+Table is also the representation of an Egyptian temple, the columns
+of which are exactly like the plant which Isis holds in her hand,
+See Plate XX. Fig 1. 2
+Page 91. 3
+See Plate XVIII. Fig. 2, from Pignorius.
+OF PRIAPUS 51
+except that the stem is made larger, in order to give it that stability
+which is necessary to support a roof and entablature.1
+Columns
+and capitals of the same kind are still existing, in great numbers,
+among the ruins of Thebes, in Egypt; and more particularly upon
+those very curious ones in the island of Philæ, on the borders of
+Ethiopia, which are, probably, the most ancient monuments of art
+now extant; at least, if we except the neighbouring temples of
+Thebes. Both were certainly built when that city was the seat of
+wealth and empire, which it was, even to a proverb, during the
+Trojan war.2
+How long it had then been so, we can form no conjecture; but that it soon after declined, there can be little doubt;
+for, when the Greeks, in the reign of Psammeticus (generally
+computed to have been about 530 years after the Siege of Troy),
+first became personally acquainted with the interior parts of that
+country, Memphis had been for many ages its capital, and Thebes
+was in a manner deserted. Homer makes Achilles speak of its
+immense wealth and grandeur, as a matter generally known and
+acknowledged; so that it must have been of long established fame,
+even in that remote age. We may therefore fairly conclude, that
+the greatest part of the superb edifices now remaining, were executed,
+or at least begun, before that time; many of them being such as
+could not have been finished, but in a long term of years, even if
+we suppose the wealth and power of the ancient kings of Egypt to
+have equalled that of the greatest of the Roman emperors.
+The finishing of Trajan's column in three years, has been justly
+thought a very extraordinary effort; for there must have been, at
+least, three hundred good sculptors employed upon it: and yet, in
+the neighbourhood of Thebes, we find whole temples of enormous
+magnitude, covered with igures carved in the hard and brittle
+granite of the Libyan mountains, instead of the soft marbles of
+See Plate XVIII, Fig 1, from Pignorius. 2
+Hom. Iliad i, ver. 381.
+ON THE WORSHIP 52
+Paros and Carrara. Travellers, who have visited that country have
+given us imperfect accounts of the manner in which they are
+finished; but, if one may judge by those upon the obelisc of Rameses, now lying in fragments at Rome, they are infinitely more
+laboured than those of Trajan's Column. An eminent sculptor,
+with whom I examined that obelisc, was decidedly of opinion, that
+they must have been finished in the manner of gems, with a graving tool; it appearing impossible for a chisel to cut red granite with
+so much neatness and precision. The age of Rameses is uncertain;
+but the generality of modern chronologers suppose that he was the
+same person as Sesostris, and reigned at Thebes about 1500 years
+before the Christian æra, and about 300 before the Siege of Troy.
+Their dates are however merely conjectural, when applied to events
+of this remote antiquity. The Egyptian priests of the Augustan
+age had a tradition, which they pretended to confirm by records,
+written in hieroglyphics, that their country had once possest the
+dominion of all Asia and Ethiopia, which their king Ramses, or
+Rameses, had conquered.1
+Though this account may be exaggerated, there can be no doubt, from the buildings still remaining,
+but that they were once at the head of a great empire; for all historians agree that they abhorred navigation, had no sea-port, and
+never enjoyed the benefits of foreign commerce, without which,
+Egypt could have no means of acquiring a sufficient quantity of
+superfluous wealth to erect such expensive monuments, unless from
+tributary provinces; especially if all the lower part of it was an
+uncultivated bog, as Herodotus, with great appearance of probability, tells us it anciently was. Yet Homer, who appears to have
+known all that could be known in his age, and transmitted to posterity all he knew, seems to have heard nothing of their empire or
+conquests. These were obliterated and forgotten by the rise of
+Tacit. Ann. lib. ii, c. 60.
+OF PRIAPUS 53
+new empires; but the renown of their ancient wealth still continued, and afforded a familiar object of comparison, as that of the
+Mogul does at this day, though he is become one of the poorest
+sovereigns in the world.
+But far as these Egyptian remains lead us into unknown ages,
+the symbols they contain appear not to have been invented in that
+country, but to have been copied from those of some other people,
+still anterior, who dwelt on the other side of the Erythræan ocean.
+One of the most obvious of them is the hooded snake, which is a
+reptile peculiar to the south-eastern parts of Asia, but which I
+found represented, with great accuracy, upon the obelisc of Rameses,
+and have also observed frequently repeated on the Isiac Table, and
+other symbolical works of the Egyptians. It is also distinguishable
+among the sculptures in the sacred caverns of the island of Elephanta;1
+and appears frequently added, as a characteristic symbol,
+to many of the idols of the modern Hindoos, whose absurd tales
+concerning its meaning are related at length by M. Sonnerat; but
+they are not worth repeating. Probably we should be able to trace
+the connexion through many more instances, could we obtain accurate drawings of the ruins of Upper Egypt.
+By comparing the columns which the Egyptians formed in
+imitation of the Nelumbo plant, with each other, and observing
+their different modes of decorating them, we may discover the
+origin of that order of architecture which the Greeks called Corinthian, from the place of its supposed invention. We first find the
+plain bell, or seed-vessel, used as a capital, without any further alteration than being a little expanded at bottom, to give it stability.2
-obfcene names of, &c., 166, et feq.
+In the next instance, the same seed-vessel is surrounded by the leaves
-Plato, 74.
+of some other plant;3
+which is varied in different capitals according
+Nieburhr, Voyage, vol. ii. 2
+See Plate XIX, Fig 6, from Norden. 3
+See Plate XIX, Fig 7, from Norden.
+ON THE WORSHIP 54
+to the different meanings intended to be expressed by these additional symbols. The Greeks decorated it in the same manner, with
+the leaves of the acanthus, and other sorts of foliage; whilst various
+other symbols of their religion were introduced as ornaments on the
+entablature, instead of being carved upon the walls of the cell, or
+shafts of the columns. One of these, which occurs most frequently,
+is that which the architects call the honeysuckle, but which, as Sir
+Joseph Banks (to whom I am indebted for all that I have said concerning the Lotus) clearly showed me, must be meant for the young
+shoots of this plant, viewed horizontally, just when they have burst
+the seed-vessel, and are upon the point of falling out of it. The
+ornament is variously composed on different buildings; it being the
+practice of the Greeks to make vegetable, as well as animal monsters, by combining different symbolical plants together, and blending them into one; whence they are often extremely difficult to be
+discovered. But the specimen I have given, is so strongly characterised, that it cannot easily be mistaken.1
+It appears on many Greek
+medals with the animal symbols and personified attributes of the
+Deity; which first led me to imagine that it was not a mere ornament, but had some mystic meaning, as almost every decoration
+employed upon their sacred edifices indisputably had.
+The square area, over which the Lotus is spread, in the Indian
+monument before mentioned, was occasionally floated with water;
+which, by means of a forcing machine, was first thrown in a spout
+upon the Lingam. The pouring of water upon the sacred symbols,
+is a mode of worship very much practised by the Hindoos, particularly in their devotions to the Bull and the Lingam. Its meaning has been already explained, in the instance of the Greek figure
+of Pan, represented in the act of paying the same kind of worship
+to the symbol of his own procreative power.2
+The areas of the
+Plate XIX, Fig 3, from the Ionian Antiquities, Ch. ii. Pl. XIII. 2
+See Plate V, Fig. 1.
+OF PRIAPUS 55
+Greek temples were, in like manner, in some instances, floated with
+water; of which I shall soon give an example. We also find, not
+unfrequently, little portable temples, nearly of the same form, and
+of Greek workmanship: the areas of which were equally floated
+by means of a fountain in the middle, and which, by the figures in
+relief that adorn the sides, appear evidently to have been dedicated
+to the same worship of Priapus, or the Lingam.
+The square area
+is likewise impressed upon many ancient Greek medals, sometimes
+divided into four, and sometimes into a greater number of compartments.2
+Antiquarians have supposed this to be merely the impression of something put under the coin, to make it receive the
+stroke of the die more steadily; but, besides that it is very ill
+adapted to this purpose, we find many coins which appear, evidently,
+to have received the stroke of the hammer (for striking with a
+balance is of late date) on the side marked with this square. But
+what puts the question out of all doubt, is, that impressions of
+exactly the same kind are found upon the little Talismans, or
+mystic pastes, taken out of the Egyptian Mummies, which have
+no impression whatever on the reverse.3
+On a little brass medal of
+Syracuse, we also find the asterisc of the Sun placed in the centre
+of the square, in the same manner as the Lingam is on the Indian
+monument.4
+Why this quadrangular form was adopted, in preference to any other, we have no means of discovering, from any
+known Greek or Egyptian sculptures; but from this little Indian
+temple, we find that the four corners were adapted to four of the
+See Plate XIV, from one in the collection of Mr. Townley. 2
+See Plate XIII, Fig. 1, from one of Selinus, and Fig. 3, from one of Syracuse,
+belonging to me. 3
+See Plate XIII, Fig. 2, from one in the collection of Mr. Townley. 4
+See Plate XIII, Fig. 3. The medal is extremely common, and the quadrangular
+Impression is observable upon a great number of the more ancient Greek medals,
+generally with some symbol of the Deity in the centre. See those of Athens, Lyttus,
+Maronea, &c.
+ON THE WORSHIP 56
+subordinate deities, or personified modes of action of the great
+universal Generator, represented by the symbol in the middle, to
+which the others are represented as paying their adorations, with
+gestures of humility and respect.1
-Platonic religion, 25, 37, 65, 67, 89.
+What is the precise meaning of these four symbolical figures, it
-Pliny, 76.
+is scarcely possible for us to discover, from the small fragments of
-Plutarch, 15, 16, 19, note^ 20, 30, 38,
+the mystic learning of the ancients which are now extant. That
+they were however intended as personified attributes, we can have
+no doubt; for we are taught by the venerable authority of the
+Bagvat Geeta, that all the subordinate deities were such, or else
+canonised men, which these figures evidently are not. As for the
+mythological tales now current in India, they throw the same degree
+of light upon the subject, as Ovid’s Metamorphoses do on the
+ancient theology of Greece; that is, just enough to bewilder and
+perplex those who give up their attention to it. The ancient author
+before cited is deserving of more credit; but he has said very little
+upon the symbolical worship. His work, nevertheless, clearly
+proves that its principles were precisely the same as those of the
+Greeks and Egyptians, among whose remains of art or literature,
+we may, perhaps, find some probable analogies to aid conjecture.
+The elephant is, however, a new symbol in the west; the Greeks
+never having seen one of those animals before the expedition of
+Alexander,2
+although the use of ivory was familiar among them
+even in the days of Homer. Upon this Indian monument the head
+of the elephant is placed upon the body of a man with four
+hands, two of which are held up as prepared to strike with the instruments they bold, and the other two pointed down as in adoration of the Lingam. This figure is called Gonnis and Pollear by
+the modern Hindoos; but neither of these names is to be found in
+the Geeta, where the deity only says, that the learned behold him
+See Plate XII. 2 Pausan. lib. i. c. 12.
+OF PRIAPUS 57
+alike in the reverend Brahman perfected in knowledge, in the ox,
+and in the elephant. What peculiar attributes the elephant was
+meant to express, the ancient writer has not told us; but, as the
+characteristic properties of this animal are strength and sagacity, we
+may conclude that his image was intended to represent ideas
+somewhat similar to those which the Greeks represented by that
+of Minerva, who was worshipped as the goddess of force
+and wisdom, of war and counsel. The Indian Gonnis is indeed
+male, and Minerva female; but this difference of sexes, however
+important it may be in a physical, is of very little consequence in
+metaphysical beings, Minerva being, like the other Greek deities,
+either male or female, or both.1
+On the medals of the Ptolemies,
+under whom the Indian symbols became familiar to the Greeks
+through the commerce of Alexandria, we find her repeatedly represented with the elephant’s skin upon her head, instead of a helmet;
+and with a countenance between male and female, such as the artist
+would naturally give her, when he endeavoured to blend the Greek
+and Indian symbols, and mould them into one.2
+Minerva is said
+by the Greek mythologists to have been born without a mother
+from the head of Jupiter, who was delivered of her by the assistance
+of Vulcan. This, in plain language, means no more than that she
+was a pure emanation of the divine mind, operating by means of
+the universal agent fire, and not, like others of the allegorical personages, sprung from any of the particular operations of the deity
+upon external matter. Hence she is said to be next in dignity to
+her father, and to be endowed with all his attributes;3
+for, as wisdom
+is the most exalted quality of the mind, and the divine mind the
+perfection of wisdom, all its attributes are the attributes of wisdom,
+Arsin kai qeluj efuj. Orph. eij Aqen. 2
+See Plate XIII, Fig. 5, engraved from one belonging to me. 3
+Hoe. lib. i. Od. 12. Callimach, eij Aqen.
+ON THE WORSHIP 58
+under whose direction its power is always exerted. Strength and
+wisdom therefore, when considered as attributes of the deity, are
+in fact one and the same. The Greek Minerva is usually represented with the spear uplifted in her hand, in the same manner as
+the Indian Gonnis holds the battle-axe.1
+Both are given to denote
+the destroying power equally belonging to divine wisdom, as the
+creative or preserving. The statue of Jupiter at Labranda in Caria
+held in his hand the battle-axe, instead of thunder; and on the
+medals of Tenedos and Thyatira, we find it represented alone as
+the symbol of the deity, in the same manner as the thunder is
+upon a great variety of other medals. I am the thunderbolt, says
+the deity in the Bagvat Geeta;
+and when we find this supposed
+engine of divine vengeance upon the medals, we must not imagine
+that it is meant for the weapon of the supreme god, but for the
+symbol of his destroying attribute. What instrument the Gonnis
+holds in his other hand, is not easily ascertained, it being a little
+injured by the carriage. In one of those pointed downwards he
+holds the Lotus flower, to denote that he has the direction of the
+passive powers of production; and in the other, a golden ring or disc,
+which, I shall soon show, was the symbol by which many nations
+of the East represented the sun. His head is drawn into a conical,
+or pyramidal form, and surrounded by an ornament which evidently
+represents flames; the Indians, as well as the Greeks, looking
+upon fire as the essence of all active power; whence perpetual lamps
+are kept burning in the holy of holies of all the great pagodas in
+India, as they were anciently in the temple of Jupiter Ammon,
+and many others both Greek and Barbarian;3
+and the incarnate
+god in the Bagvat Geeta says, I am the fire residing in the bodies of
+all things which have life.
+Upon the forehead of the Gonnis is a
+See Plate XIII, Fig. 11, from a medla of Seleucus I. beloning to me. 2
+Page 26. 3
+See Plut. de Orac. defect. 4
+Page 113.
+OF PRIAPUS 59
+crescent representing the moon, whose power over the waters of the
+ocean caused her to be regarded as the sovereign of the great
+nutritive element, and whose mild rays, being accompanied by the
+refreshing dews and cooling breezes of the night, made her naturally appear to the inhabitants of hot countries as the comforter and
+restorer of the earth. I am the moon (says the deity in the Bagvat
+Geeta) whose nature it is to give the quality of taste and relish,
+and to cherish the herbs and plants of the field.
+The light of the
+sun, moon, and fire, were however all but one, and equally emanations of the supreme being. Know, says the deity in the same
+ancient dialogue, that the light which proceedeth from the sun, and
+illuminateth the world, and the light which is in the moon and in the
+fire, are mine. I pervade all things in nature, and guard them with
+my beams.2
+In the figure now under consideration a kind of preeminence seems to be given to the moon over the sun; proceeding
+probably from the Hindoos not possessing the true solar system,
+which must however have been known to the people from whom
+they learnt to calculate eclipses, which they still continue to do,
+though upon principles not understood by themselves. They now
+place the earth in the centre of the universe, as the later Greeks
+did, among whom we also find the same preference given to the
+lunar symbol; Jupiter being represented, on a medal of Antiochus
+VIII., with the crescent upon his head, and the asterisc of the sun
+in his hand.3
+In a passage of the Bagvat Geeta already cited we
+find the elephant and bull mentioned together as symbols of the
+same kind; and on a medal of Seleucus Nicator we find them
+united by the horns of the one being placed on the head of the
+other.4
+The later Greek also sometimes employed the elephant as
+the universal symbol of the deity; in which sense he is represented
+Page 113. 2 Ibid. 3 Plate XIII Fig. 10, from one belonging to me. 4
+See Plate XIII. Fig. 9, and Gesner, Num. Reg. Syr. Tab. VIII. Fig. 23.
+ON THE WORSHIP 60
+on a medal of Antiochus VI. bearing the torch, the emblem of the
+universal agent, fire, in his proboscis, and the cornucopia, the
+result of its exertion, in his tail.1
-, 68, 82, 96, 120.
+On another corner of the little Indian pagoda, is a figure with
-Pluto, 69.
+four heads, all of the same pointed form as that of the Gonnis. This
+I take to represent Brahma, to whom the Hindoos attribute four
+mouths, and say that with them he dictated the four Beads, or
+Veads, the mystic volumes of their religion.2
+The four heads are
+turned different ways, but exactly resemble each other. The
+beards have been painted black, and are sharp and pointed, like
+those of goats, which the Greeks gave to Pan, and his subordinate
+emanations, the Fauns and Satyrs. Hence I am inclined to believe,
+that the Brahma of the Indians is the same as the Pan of the
+Greeks; that is, the creative spirit of the deity transfused through
+matter, and acting in the four elements represented by the four
+heads. The Indians indeed admit of a fifth element, as the Greeks
+did likewise; but this is never classed with the rest, being of an
+ætherial and more exalted nature, and belonging peculiarly to the
+deity. Some call it heaven, some light, and some æther, says
+Plutarch.3
+The Hindoos now call it Occus, by which they seem
+to mean pure ætherial light or fire.
+This mode of representing the allegorical personages of religion
+with many heads and limbs to express their various attributes,
+and extensive operation, is now universal in the East,4
+and seems
+anciently not to have been unknown to the Greeks, at least if we
+may judge by the epithets used by Pindar and other early poets.5
-Pollear, Hindoo deity, 56, 61.
+The union of two symbolical heads is common among the specimens of their art now extant, as may be seen upon the medals of
-Polypus reprefentedon Greek medals, 2 1 .
-Popular oaths and exclamations derived
+See Plate XIII. Fig. 8, and Gesner, Num. Reg. Syr. Tab. VIII. Fig. 1. 2 Bagavat Geeta, Note 41. 3 Ei apud Delph. 4
+See Kæmpfer, Chappe d’Auteroche, Sonnerat, &c,
+Such as òkatogkefaloj, òkatontakoranoj, òkatogxeiroj, &c.
+OF PRIAPUS 61
+Syracuse, Marseilles, and many other cities. Upon a gem of this
+sort in the collection of Mr. Townley, the same ideas which are
+expressed on the Indian pagoda by the distinct figures Brahma and
+Gonnis, are expressed by the united heads of Ammon and Minerva.
+Ammon, as before observed, was the Pan of the Greeks, and
+Minerva is here evidently the same as the Gonnis, being represented after the Indian manner, with the elephant's skin on her
+head, instead of a helmet.1
+Both these heads appear separate upon
+different medals of the Ptolemies,2
+under one of whom
+this gem was probably engraved, Alexandria having been for a
+long time the great centre of religions, as well as of trade and
+science.
+Next to the figure of Brahma on the pagoda is the cow of
+plenty, or the female emblem of the generative or nutritive power
+of the earth; and at the other corner, next to the Gonnis, is the
+figure of a woman, with a head of the same conic or pyramidal
+form, and upon the front of it a flame of fire, from which hangs
+a crescent.3
+This seems to be the female personification of the
+divine attributes represented by the Gonnis or Pollear; for the
+Hindoos, like the Greeks, worship the deity under both sexes,
+though they do not attempt to unite both in one figure. I am
+the father and the mother of the world, says the incarnate god in
+the Bagvat Geeta.
+Amongst cattle, adds he in a subsequent part,
+I am the cow Kamadhook. I am the prolific Kandarp, the god of
+love.
+These two sentences, by being placed together, seem to
+imply some relation between this god of love and the cow Kamadhook; and, were we to read the words without punctuation, as they
+are in all ancient orthography, we should think the author placed
+the god of love amongst the cattle; which he would naturally do,
+See Plate XIII, Fig. 7. 2
+See Plate XIII, Fig. 5 and 6. 3
+See Plate XII. 4
+Page 80. 5
+Page 86.
+ON THE WORSHIP 62
+if it were the custom of his religion to represent him by an animal
+symbol. Among the Egyptians, as before observed, the cow was
+the symbol of Venus, the goddess of love, and passive generative
+power of nature. On the capitals of one of the temples of Philæ
+we still find the heads of this goddess represented of a mixed
+form; the horns and ears of the cow being joined to the beautiful
+features of a woman in the prime of life;1 such as the Greeks
+attributed to that Venus, whom they worshipped as the mother of
+the prolific god of love, Cupid, who was the personification of
+animal desire or concupiscence, as the Orphic love, the father of
+gods and men, was of universal attraction. The Greeks, who
+represented the mother under the form of a beautiful woman,
+naturally represented the son under the form of a beautiful boy;
+but a people who represented the mother under the form of a
+cow, would as naturally represent the son under the form of a
+calf. This seems to be the case with the Hindoos, as well as with
+the Egyptians; wherefore Kandarp may be very properly placed
+among the cattle.
+By following this analogy, we may come to the true meaning of
+a much-celebrated object of devotion, recorded by another ancient
+writer, of a more venerable character. When the Israelites grew
+clamorous on account of the absence of Moses, and called upon
+Aaron to make them a god to go before them, he set up a golden
+calf; to which the people sacrificed and feasted, and then rose up
+(as the translator says) to play; but in the original the term is more
+specific, and means, in its plain direct sense, that particular sort of
+play which requires the concurrence of both sexes,2
+and which was
+therefore a very proper conclusion of a sacrifice to Cupid, though
+highly displeasing to the god who had brought them out of
+Egypt. The Egyptian mythologists, who appeared to have in1
+See Plate XVIII, Fig. 3. 2 Exod. xxxii.
+OF PRIAPUS 63
+vented this secondary deity of love, were probably the inventors
+likewise of a secondary Priapus, who was the personification of that
+particular generative faculty, which springs from animal desire, as
+the primary Priapus was of the great generative principle of the
+universe. Hence, in the allegories of the poets, this deity is said
+to be a son of Bacchus and Venus; that is, the result of the active
+and passive generative powers of nature. The story of his being
+the son of a Grecian conqueror, and born at Lampsacus, seems to
+be a corruption of this allegory.
+Of all the nations of antiquity the Persians were the most simple
+and direct in the worship of the creator. They were the puritans of
+the heathen world, and not only rejected all images of god or his
+agents, but also temples and altars, according to Herodotus,1
+whose authority I prefer to any other, because he had an opportunity of
+conversing with them before they had adopted any foreign superstitions.2
+As they worshipped the ætherial fire without any medium
+of personification or allegory, they thought it unworthy of the
+dignity of the god to be represented by any definite form, or circumscribed to any particular place. The universe was his temple,
+and the all-pervading element of fire his only symbol. The Greeks
+appear originally to have held similar opinions; for they were long
+without statues;3
+and Pausanias speaks of a temple at Sicyon, built
+by Adrastus,4
+who lived an age before the Trojan war; which consisted of columns only, without wall or roof, like the Celtic temples
+of our Northern ancestors, or the Pyrætheia of the Persians, which
+were circles of stones, in the centre of which was kindled the sacred
+fire,5
+the symbol of the god. Homer frequently speaks of places
+of worship consisting of an area and altar only (tenemoj bwmoj te),
+Lib. i.
+Hyde, Anquetil, and other modern writers, have given us the operose superstitions of the present Parsees for the simple theism of the ancient Persians. 3
+Pausan. lib. vii. and ix. 4
+Lib. ii. 5
+Strab. lib. xv.
+ON THE WORSHIP 64
+which were probably inclosures like these of the Persians, with an
+altar in the centre. The temples dedicated to the creator Bacchus,
+which the Greek architects called hypæthral, seem to have been
+anciently of the same kind; whence probably came the title perikionion
+(surrounded with columns) attributed to that god in the Orphic
+litanies.1
+The remains of one of these are still extant at Puzzuoli
+near Naples, which the inhabitants call the Temple of Serapis:
+but the ornaments of grapes, vases, &c. found among the ruins,
+prove it to have been of Bacchus. Serapis was indeed the same
+deity worshipped under another form, being equally a personification of the sun.
+The architecture is of the Roman times; but the
+ground plan is probably that of a very ancient one, which this was
+made to replace; for it exactly resembles that of a Celtic temple in
+Zeeland, published in Stukeley's itinerary.
+The ranges of square
+buildings which inclose it are not properly parts of the temple,
+but apartments of the priests, places for victims and sacred utensils,
+and chapels dedicated to subordinate deities introduced by a more
+complicated and corrupt worship, and probably unknown to the
+founders of the original edifice.4
+The portico, which runs parallel
+with these buildings5
+inclosed the temenos, or area of sacred ground,
+which in the pyræthia of the Persians was circular, but is here
+quadrangular, as in the Celtic temple in Zeeland, and the Indian
+pagoda before described. In the centre was the holy of holies, the
+seat of the god, consisting of a circle of columns raised upon a basement, without roof or walls, in the middle of which was probably
+the sacred fire, or some other symbol of the deity.6
+The square
+area in which it stood, was sunk below the natural level of the
+ground,7
+and, like that of the little Indian pagoda, appears to have
+Hymn. 46. 2
+Diodor. Sic. lib. 1. Macrob. Sat. lib. i. c. 20. 3
+See Plate XV. Fig 1 and 2, and Plate XIII, Fig 4. 4
+Plate XV, Fig. 2, a—a,. 5
+Plate XV, Fig. 2, b—b,. 6
+See Plate XV, Fig. 1, a, and Fig 2, c. 7 See Plate XV, Fig. 1, b—b.
+OF PRIAPUS 65
+been occasionally floated with water, the drains and conduits being
+still to be seen,1
+as also several fragments of sculpture representing
+waves, serpents, and various aquatic animals, which once adorned
+the basement.2
+The Bacchus perikionioj here worshipped, was, as
+we learn from the Orphic hymn above cited, the sun in his
+character of extinguisher of the fires which once pervaded the earth.
+This he was supposed to have done by exhaling the waters of the
+ocean, and scattering them over the land, which was thus supposed
+to have acquired its proper temperature and fertility. For this
+reason the sacred fire, the essential image of the god, was surrounded
+by the element which was principally employed in giving effect to
+the beneficial exertions of his great attribute.
+These Orphic temples were, without doubt, emblems of that
+fundamental principle of the mystic faith of the ancients, the solar
+system; fire, the essence of the deity, occupying the place of the
+sun, and the columns surrounding it as the subordinate parts of the
+universe. Remains of the worship of fire continued among the
+Greeks even to the last, as appears from the sacred fires kept in the
+interior apartment, or holy of holies, of almost all their temples,
+and places of worship: and, though the Ammonian Platonics, the
+last professors of the ancient religion, endeavoured to conceive something beyond the reach of sense and perception, as the essence of
+their supreme god; yet, when they wanted to illustrate and explain
+the modes of action of this metaphysical abstraction, who was more
+subtle than intelligence itself, they do it by images and comparisons of light and fire.3
-from phallic worfhip, 181.
+From a passage of Hecatæus, preserved by Diodorus Siculus, I
-Priapeia, feftival of Priapus, 156.
+think it is evident that Stonehenge, and all the other monuments of
-Priapus, original intention in the worfhip
+the same kind found in the North, belonged to the same religion,
+See Plate XV. Fig 1, c—c. 2
+See Plate XVII, Fig. 1. 3
+See Proclus in Theol. Platon. lib. i. c. 19.
+ON THE WORSHIP 66
+which appears, at some remote period, to have prevailed over the
+whole northern hemisphere. According to that ancient historian,
+the Hyperboreans inhabited an island beyond Gaul, as large as Sicily,
+in which Apollo was worshipped in a circular temple considerable for
+its size and riches.1
+Apollo, we know, in the language of the Greeks
+of that age, can mean no other than the sun, which, according to
+Cæsar, was worshipped by the Germans, when they knew of no
+other deities except fire and the moon.2
+The island I think can be
+no other than Britain, which at that time was only known to the
+Greeks by the vague reports of Phúnician mariners, so uncertain
+and obscure, that Herodotus, the most inquisitive and credulous of
+historians, doubts of its existence.4
+The circular temple of the sun
+being noticed in such slight and imperfect accounts, proves that it
+must have been something singular and important; for, if had been
+an inconsiderable structure, it would not have been mentioned at all;
+and, if there had been many such in the country, the historian would
+not have employed the singular number. Stonehenge has
+certainly been a circular temple, nearly the same as that already
+described of the Bacchus perikionioj at Puzzuoli, except that in the
+latter the nice execution, and beautiful symmetry of the parts, are
+in every respect the reverse of the rude but majestic simplicity of
+the former; in the original design they differ but in the form of
+the area.5
+It may therefore be reasonably supposed, that we have
+Naon exiologon, anaqhmasi polloij kekosmhmenon, sfairoeidh tJschmati,
+Diod. Sic. lib. ii. 2 De B. Gal. lib. vi. 3
+Lib. iii. c. 15. 5
+See Plate XV. Fig. 2 and 3. I have preferred Webb’s plan of Stonehenge to
+Stukeley’s and Smith’s, after comparing each with the ruins now existing. They
+differ materially only in the cell, which Webb supposes to have been a hexagon, and
+Stukeley a section of an ellipsis. The position of the altar is merely conjectural;
+wherefore I have omitted it; and I much doubt whether either be right in their
+plans of the cell, which seems, as in other Druidical temples, to have been meant for
+a circle, but incorrectly executed.
+OF PRIAPUS 67
+still the ruins of the identical temple described by Hecatæus, who,
+being an Asiatic Greek, might have received his information from
+some Phúnician merchant, who had visited the interior parts of
+Britain when trading there for tin. Macrobius mentions a temple
+of the same kind and form upon Mount Zilmissus in Thrace, dedicated to the sun under the title of Bacchus Sebazius.1
+The large
+obeliscs of stone found in many parts of the North, such as those
+at Rudstone,2
+and near Boroughbridge in Yorkshire,3
+belong to the
+same religion; obeliscs being, as Pliny observes, sacred to the sun,
+whose rays they represented both by their form and name.4
+An
+ancient medal of Apollonia in Illyria, belonging to the Museum of
+the late Dr. Hunter, has the head of Apollo crowned with laurel
+on one side, and on the other an obelisc terminating in a cross, the
+least explicit representation of the male organs of generation.5
+This has exactly the appearance of one of those crosses, which
+were erected in church-yards and cross roads for the adoration of
+devout persons, when devotion was more prevalent than at present.
+Many of these were undoubtedly erected before the establishment
+of Christianity, and converted, together with their worshippers, to
+the true faith. Anciently they represented the generative power of
+light, the essence of God; for God is light, and never but in unapproached light dwelt from eternity, says Milton, who in this, as
+well as many other instances, has followed the Ammonian Platonics,
+who were both the restorers and corrupters of the ancient theology.
+They restored it from the mass of poetical mythology, under which
+it was buried, but refined and sublimated it with abstract metaphysics, which soared as far above human reason as the poetical
+Sat. lib. i. c. 18. 2 Archæologia, vol. v. 3
+Now called the Devil’s Arrows. See Stukely’s Itin. vol. i. Table xc. 4 Hist. Nat. lib. xxxvi. sec. 14. 5
+Plate X, Fig. 1, and Nummi Pop. & Urb. Table x. Fig. 7.
+ON THE WORSHIP 68
+mythology sunk below it. From the ancient solar obeliscs came
+the spires and pinnacles with which our churches are still decorated,
+so many ages after their mystic meaning has been forgotten.
+Happily for the beauty of these edifices, it was forgotten; otherwise the reformers of the last century would have destroyed them,
+as they did the crosses and images; for they might with equal
+propriety have been pronounced heathenish and prophane.
+As the obelisc was the symbol of light, so was the pyramid of
+fire, deemed to be essentially the same. The Egyptians, among
+whom these forms are the most frequent, held that there were two
+opposite powers in the world, perpetually acting contrary to each
+other, the one creating, and the other destroying the former they
+called Osiris, and the latter Typhon.1
+By the contention of these
+two, that mixture of good and evil, which, according to some
+verses of Euripides quoted by Plutarch,2
+constituted the harmony
+of the world, was supposed to be produced. This opinion of the
+necessary mixture of good and evil was, according to Plutarch, of
+immemorial antiquity, derived from the oldest theologists and
+legislators, not only in traditions and reports, but in mysteries and
+sacrifices, both Greek and barbarian.3
+Fire was the efficient
+principle of both, and, according to some of the Egyptians, that
+ætherial fire which concentred in the sun. This opinion Plutarch
+controverts, saying that Typhon, the evil or destroying power,
+was a terrestrial or material fire, essentially different from the
+ætherial. But Plutarch here argues from his own prejudices,
+rather than from the evidence of the case; for he believed in an
+original evil principle coeternal with the good, and acting in perpetual opposition to it; an error into which men have been led by
+forming false notions of good and evil, and considering them as
+Plutarch, de Is. & Osir. 2
+Ibid., p. 455, Ed. Reiskii. 3
+Ibid., Ed. Reiskii.
+OF PRIAPUS 69
+self-existing inherent properties, instead of accidental modifications,
+variable with every circumstance with which causes and events are
+connected. This error, though adopted by individuals, never
+formed a part either of the theology or mythology of Greece.
+Homer, in the beautiful allegory of the two casks, makes Jupiter,
+the supreme god, the distributor of both good and evil.1
+The
+name of Jupiter, Zeuj, was originally one of the titles or Epithets of
+the sun, signifying, according to its etymology, aweful or terrible;
+in which sense it is used in the Orphic litanies.3
+Pan, the universal
+substance, is called the horned Jupiter (Zeuj – kerasthj); and in an
+Orphic fragment preserved by Macrobius4
+the names of Jupiter
+and Bacchus appear to be only titles of the all-creating power of
+the sun.
+Aglae Zeu, Dionse, pater pontou, pater aihj,
+`Hlie paggentor.
+In another fragment preserved by the same author,5
+the name of
+Pluto, Aidhj, is used as a title of the same deity; who appears
+therefore to have presided over the dead as well as over the living,
+and to have been the lord of destruction as well as creation and
+preservation. We accordingly find that in one of the Orphic
+litanies now extant, he is expressly called the giver of life, and
+the destroyer.6
+The Egyptians represented Typhon, the destroying power,
+under the figure of the hippopotamus or river-horse, the most
+fierce and destructive animal they knew;7
+and the Chorus in the
+Bacchae of Euripides invoke their inspirer Bacchus to appear under
+the form of a bull, a many-headed serpent, or flaming lion;8
+which
+shows that the most bloody and destructive, as well as the most
+Il, w, v. 527. 2
+Damm. Lex. Etymol. 3
+Hymn. x, v. 13. 4 Sat. lib. i. c. 23. 5 Sat. lib. i. c. 3. 6
+Hymn lxxii, Ed. Gesn. 7
+Plutarch, de Is. & Os. 8
+V. 1015.
+ON THE WORSHIP 70
+useful of animals, was employed by the Greeks to represent some
+personified attribute of the god. M. D’Hancarville has also
+observed, that the lion is frequently employed by the ancient artists
+as a symbol of the sun;1
+and I am inclined to believe that it was to
+express this destroying power, no less requisite to preserve the
+harmony of the universe than the generating. In most of the
+monuments of ancient art where the lion is represented, he appears
+with expressions of rage and violence, and often in the act of
+killing and devouring some other animal. On an ancient sarcophagus found in Sicily he is represented devouring a horse,2
+and on
+the medals of Velia in Italy, devouring a deer;3
+the former, as
+sacred to Neptune, represented the sea; and the latter, as sacred to
+Diana, the produce of the earth; for Diana was the fertility of the
+earth personified, and therefore is said to have received her nymphs
+or productive ministers from the ocean, the source of fecundity.4
+The lion, therefore, in the former instance, appears as a symbol of
+the sun exhaling the waters; and in the latter, as whithering and
+putrifying the produce of the earth. On the frieze of the Temple
+of Apollo Didymæus, near Miletus, are monsters composed of the
+mixt forms of the goat and lion, resting their fore feet upon the
+lyre of the god, which stands between them.5
+The goat, as I have
+already shown, represented the creative attribute, and the lyre,
+harmony and order; therefore, if we admit that the lion represented
+the destroying attribute, this composition will signify, in the
+symbolical language of sculpture, the harmony and order of the
+universe preserved by the regular and periodical operations of the
+Recherces sur les Arts. See also Macrob, Sat. i, c. 21. 2
+Houel, Voyage de la Sicile, Plate XXXVI. 3
+Plate IX, Fig. 5, engraved from one belonging to me. 4
+Calliamch, Hymn. adDian. v. 13. Geniter Nympharum Oceanus. Catullus in
+Gell. v. 84 5 Ionian Antiquities, vol. i, c. 3, Plate IX.
+OF PRIAPUS 71
+creative and destructive powers. This is a notion to which men
+would be naturally led by observing the common order and progression of things. The same heat of the sun, which scorched and
+withered the grass in summer, ripened the fruits in autumn, and
+cloathed the earth with verdure in the spring. In one season it
+dried up the waters from the earth, and in another returned them
+in rain. It caused fermentation and putrefaction, which destroy
+one generation of plants and animals, and produce another in
+constant and regular succession. This contention between the
+powers of creation and destruction is represented on an ancient
+medal of Acanthus, in the museum of the late Dr. Hunter, by a
+combat between the bull and lion.1
+The bull alone is represented
+on other medals in exactly the same attitude and gesture as when
+fighting with the lion;2
+whence I conclude that the lion is there
+understood. On the medals of Celenderis, the goat appears instead
+of the bull in exactly the same attitude of struggle and contention,
+but without the lion;3
+and in a curious one of very ancient but
+excellent workmanship, belonging to me, the ivy of Bacchus is
+placed over the back of the goat, to denote the power which he
+represents.4
+The mutual operation which was the result of this contention
+was signified, in the mythological tales of the poets, by the loves
+of Mars and Venus, the one the active power of destruction, and
+the other the passive power of generation. From their union is
+said to have sprung the goddess Harmony, who was the physical
+order of the universe personified. The fable of Ceres and Proserpine is the same allegory inverted; Ceres being the prolific power
+Plate IX, Fig. 4, & Nummi Vet. Pop. & Urb. Table I, Fig. 16. 2
+Plate IX. Fig. 12, from one of Aspendus in the same Collection. See Nummi Vet.
+Pop. & Urb. Table VIII. Fig. 20. 3 Nummi Vet. Pop. & Urb. Table XVI, Fig. 13. 4
+Plate IX, Fig. 13.
+ON THE WORSHIP 72
+of the earth personified, and hence called by the Greeks Mother
+Earth (Gh or Dh-mhtur). The Latin name Ceres also signifying
+Earth, the Roman C being the same originally, both in figure and
+power as the Greek G,
+which Homer often uses as a mere guttural
+aspirate, and adds it arbitrarily to his words, to make them more
+solemn and sonorous.
+The guttural aspirates and hissing terminations more particularly belonged to the Æolic dialect, from which
+the Latin was derived; wherefore we need not wonder that the
+same word, which by the Dorians and Ionians was written Era and
+Eri, should by the Æolians be written Gerej or Ceres, the Greeks
+always accommodating their orthography to their pronunciation.
+In an ancient bronze at Strawberry Hill this goddess is represented
+sitting, with a cup in one hand, and various sorts of fruits in the
+other; and the bull, the emblem of the power of the Creator, in
+her lap.3
+This composition shows the fructification of the earth
+by the descent of the creative spirit in the same manner as described
+by Virgil:—
+Vere tument terræ, et genitalia semina poseunt;
+Tum pater omnipotens fúcundis imbribus æther
+Conjugis in gremium lætæ descendit, & omnes
+Magnus alit, magno commixtus corpore, fútus.4
+Æther and water are here introduced by the poet as the two prolific elements which fertilize the earth, according to the ancient
+system of Orphic philosophy, upon which the mystic theology
+was founded. Proserpine, or Perstfonieia, the daughter of Ceres,
+was, as her Greek name indicates, the goddess of destruction, in
+which character she is invoked by Althaea in the ninth Iliad; but
+nevertheless we often find her on the Greek medals crowned with
+See S. C. Marcian, and the medals of Gela and Agrigentum.
+As in the word epidoutoj, usually written by him epigdoutoj. 3
+See Plate VIII. 4 Georgic. lib. ii, v. 324.
+OF PRIAPUS 73
+ears of corn, as being the goddess of fertility as well as destruction.1
+She is, in fact, a personification of the heat or fire that
+pervades the earth, which is at once the cause and effect of fertility
+and destruction, for it is at once the cause and effect of fermentation,
+from which both proceed. The Libitina, or goddess of death of
+the Romans, was the same as the Persiphoneia of the Greeks; and
+yet, as Plutarch observes, the most learned of that people allowed
+her to be the same as Venus, the goddess of generation.2
-INDEX.
+In the Gallery at Florence is a collossal image of the organ of
+generation, mounted on the back parts of a lion, and hung round
+with various animals. By this is represented the co-operation of
+the creating and destroying powers, which are both blended and
+united in one figure, because both are derived from one cause.
+The animals hung round show likewise that both act to the same
+purpose, that of replenishing the earth, and peopling it with still
+rising generations of sensitive beings. The Chimæra of Homer, of
+which the commentators have given so many whimsical interpretations, was a symbol of the same kind, which the poet probably,
+having seen in Asia, and not knowing its meaning (which was only
+revealed to the initiated) supposed to be a monster that had once
+infested the country. He describes it as composed of the forms of
+the goat, the lion, and the serpent, and breathing fire from its
+mouth.
+These are the symbols of the creator, the destroyer, and
+the preserver, united and animated by fire, the divine essence of all
+three.
+On a gem, published in the Memoirs of the Academy of
+Cortona,5
+this union of the destroying and preserving attributes is
+Plate IV, Fig. 5, from a medal of Agathocles, belonging to me. The same head
+is upon many others, of Syracuse, Metapontum, &c. 2
+In Nums. 3 Il. z, v. 223. 4
+For the natural properties attributed by the ancients to fire, see Plutarch, in
+Camiilo, Plin. Hist. Nat. lib. XXXVI, c. 58. 5
+Vol. iv. p. 32. See also Plate V. Fig 4, copied from it.
+ON THE WORSHIP 74
+represented by the united forms of the lion and serpent crowned
+with rays, the emblems of the cause from which both proceed.
+This composition forms the Chnoubis of the Egyptians.
+Bacchus is frequently represented by the ancient artists accompanied by tigers, which appear, in some instances, devouring clusters of grapes, the fruit peculiarly consecrated to the god, and in
+others drinking the liquor pressed from them. The author of the
+Recherches sur les Arts has in this instance followed the common
+accounts of the Mythologists, and asserted that tigers are really fond
+of grapes;1
+which is so far from being true, that they are incapable
+of feeding upon them, or upon any fruit whatever, being both
+externally and internally formed to feed upon flesh only, and to
+procure their food by destroying other animals. Hence I am
+persuaded, that in the ancient symbols, tigers, as well as lions,
+represent the destroying power of the god. Sometimes his chariot
+appears drawn by them; and then they represent the powers of
+destruction preceding the powers of generation, and extending
+their operation, as putrefaction precedes, and increases vegetation.
+On a medal of Maronea, published by Gesner,2
+a goat is coupled
+with the tiger in drawing his chariot; by which composition the
+artist has shown the general active power of the deity, conducted
+by his two great attributes of creation and destruction. On the
+Choragic monument of Lysicrates at Athens, Bacchus is represented
+feeding a tiger; which shows the active power of generation
+feeding and nourishing the active power of destruction.3
+On a
+beautiful cameo in the collection of the Duke of Marlborough,
+the tiger is sucking the breast of a nymph; which represents the
+same power of destruction, nourished by the passive power of generation.4
+In the museum of Charles Townley, Esq., is a group, in
+Liv. i, c. 3. 2
+Table xliii, Fig. 26. 3
+Stuart’s Athens, vol. i, c. 4, Plate X. 4
+See Plate XVIII, engraved merely to show the composition, it not being permitted to make an exact drawing of it.
+OF PRIAPUS 75
+marble, of three figures;1
+the middle one of which grows out of a
+vine in a human form, with leaves and clusters of grapes springing
+out of its body. On one side is the Bacchus difuhj, or creator of
+both sexes, known by the effeminate mold of his limbs and countenance; and on the other, a tiger, leaping up, and devouring the
+grapes which spring from the body of the personified vine, the
+hands of which are employed in receiving another cluster from the
+Bacchus. This composition represents the vine between the creating and destroying attributes of god; the one giving it fruit, and
+the other devouring it when given. The tiger has a garland of ivy
+round his neck, to show that the destroyer was co-essential with
+the creator, of whom ivy, as well as all other ever-greens, was an
+emblem representing his perpetual youth and viridity.2
+The mutual and alternate operation of the two great attributes
+of creation and destruction, was not confined by the ancients to
+plants and animals, and such transitory productions, but extended
+to the universe itself. Fire being the essential cause of both, they
+believed that the conflagration and renovation of the world were
+periodical and regular, proceeding from each other by the laws of
+its own constitution, implanted in it by the creator, who was also
+the destroyer and renovator;3
+for, as Plato says, all things arise from
+one, and into one are all things resolved.4
+It must be observed,
+that, when the ancients speak of creation and destruction, they mean
+only formation and dissolution; it being universally allowed, through
+all systems of religion, or sects of philosophy, that nothing could
+come from nothing, and that no power whatever could annihilate that
+See Plate XXI, Fig. 7. 2
+Strabo, lib. xv, p. 712. 3
+Brucker, Hist. Crit. Philos. vol. i, part 2, lib. i. Plutarch, de Placis. Philos.
+lib. ii, c. 18. Lucretius, lib. v. ver. 91. Cic. de Nat. Deor. lib. ii. 4 Ex ònoj ta panta genesqai, kai eij t' ¢uton analuesai, in Phæd. The same
+dogma is still more plainly inculcated by the ancient Indian author before cited, se
+Bagavat Geeta, Lect. ix.
+ON THE WORSHIP 76
+which really existed. The bold and magnificent idea of a creation
+from nothing was reserved for the more vigorous faith, and more
+enlightened minds of the moderns,1
+who need seek no authority to
+confirm their belief; for, as that which is self-evident admits of no
+proof, so that which is in itself impossible admits of no refutation.
+The fable of the serpent Pytho being destroyed by Apollo,
+probably arose from an emblematical composition, in which that
+god was represented as the destroyer of life, of which the serpent
+was a symbol. Pliny mentions a statue of him by Praxiteles,
+which was much celebrated in his time, called Sauroktwn (the
+Lizard-killer).2
+The lizard, being supposed to live upon the dews
+and moisture of the earth, is employed as the symbol of humidity
+in general; so that the god destroying it, signifies the same as the
+lion devouring the horse. The title Apollo, I am inclined to
+believe, meant originally the Destroyer, as well as the Deliverer;
+for, as the ancients supposed destruction to be merely dissolution,
+the power which delivered the particles of matter from the bonds
+of attraction, and broke the desmon peribriqj erowtoj, was in fact the
+destroyer.3
+It is, probably, for this reason, that sudden death,
+plagues, and epidemic diseases, are said by the poets to be sent by
+this god; who is, at the same time, described as the author of
+medicine, and all the arts employed to preserve life. These attributes are not joined merely because the destroyer and preserver
+were essentially the same; but because disease necessarily precedes
+The word in Genesis upon which it is founded, conveyed no such sense to the
+ancients; for the Seventy translated it epoihse, which signifies formed, or fashioned. 2
+Hist. Nat. lib. xxxiv. c. 8. Many copies of it are still extant. Winkleman
+has published one from a bronze of Cardinal Albani's. Monum. Antichi. inediti,
+Plate XL. 3
+The verb luw, from which Apollo is derived, signifies in Homer both to free
+and to dissolve or destroy, Il a, ver. 20; Il. i, ver. 25. Macrobius derives the
+title from apollumi, to destroy; but this word is derived from luw Sat. lib. i, c. 17.
+OF PRIAPUS 77
+cure, and is the cause of its being invented. The God of Health
+is said to be his son, because the health and vigour of one being
+are supported by the decay and dissolution of others which are appropriated to its nourishment. The bow and arrows are given to
+him as symbols of his characteristic attributes, as they are to Diana,
+who was the female personification of the destructive, as well as the
+productive and preserving powers. Diana is hence called the triple
+Hecate, and represented by three female bodies joined together.
+Her attributes were however worshipped separately; and some
+nations revered her under one character, and others under another.
+Diana of Ephesus was the productive and nutritive power, as the
+many breasts and other symbols on her statues imply;1
+whilst Brimw,
+the Tauric or Scythic Diana, appears to have been the destructive,
+and therefore was appeased with human sacrifices, and other bloody
+rites.2
+She is represented sometimes standing on the back of a
+bull,3
+and sometimes in a chariot drawn by bulls;4
+whence she is
+called by the poets Tauropola5
+and Bown elateira.
+Both
+compositions show the passive power of nature, whether creative
+or destructive, sustained and guided by the general active power
+of the creator, of which the sun was the centre, and the bull the
+symbol.
+It was observed by the ancients, that the destructive power of
+the sun was exerted most by day, and the creative by night: for it
+was in the former season that he dried up the waters, withered the
+herbs, and produced disease and putrefaction; and in the latter,
+Hieron. Comment. in Paul Epist. ad Ephes. 2
+Pausan. lib. iii, c. 16. 3
+See a medal of Augustus, published by Spanheim. Not. in Callim, Hymn. ad
+Dian. ver. 113. 4
+Plate VI, from a bronze in the museum of C. Townley, Esq. 5
+Sophoclis Ajax, ver. 172. 6 Nonni Dionys, lib. i. the title Tauropoloj was sometimes given to Apollo,
+Eustath. Schol in Dionys.Perihghs.,. ver. 609.
+ON THE WORSHIP 78
+that he returned the exhalations in dews, tempered with the genial
+heat which he had transfused into the atmosphere, to restore and
+replenish the waste of the day. Hence, when they personified the
+attributes, they revered the one as the diurnal, and the other as
+the nocturnal sun, and in their mystic worship, as Macrobius
+says,
+called the former Apollo, and the latter Dionysus or Bacchus.
+The mythological personages of Castor and Pollux, who lived and
+died alternately, were allegories of the same dogma; hence the two
+asteriscs, by which they are distinguished on the medals of Locri,
+Argos, and other cities.
+The pæans, or war-songs, which the Greeks chanted at the onset of their battles2
+were originally sung to Apollo,3
+who was called
+Pæon; and Macrobius tells us,4
+that in Spain, the sun was worshipped as Mars, the god of war and destruction, whose statue they
+adorned with rays, like that of the Greek Apollo. On a Celtiberian
+or Runic medal found in Spain, of barbarous workmanship, is a
+head surrounded by obeliscs or rays, which I take to be of this
+deity.5
+The hairs appear erect, to imitate flames, as they do on
+many of the Greek medals; and on the reverse is a bearded head,
+with a sort of pyramidal cap on, exactly resembling that by which
+the Romans conferred freedom on their slaves, and which was
+therefore called the cap of liberty.6
+On other Celtiberian medals
+is a figure on horseback, carrying a spear in his hand, and having
+the same sort of cap on his head, with the word Helman written
+Sat. lib. i, c. 18. 2
+Thucyd. lib. vii. 3
+Homer, Il. s, v. 472. 4
+Sat. lib. i, c. 19. 5
+Plate X Fig. 2, engraven from one belonging to me. I have since been confirmed
+in this conjecture by observing the characters of Mars and Apollo mixt on Greek
+coins. On a Mamertine one belonging to me is the head with the youthful features
+and laurel crown of Apollo; but the hair is short, and the inscription on the exergue
+denotes it to be Mars. See Plate XVI. Fig 2. 6
+It may be seen with th edagger on the medals of Brutus.
+OF PRIAPUS 79
+under him,1
+in characters which are something between the old
+Runic and Pelasgian; but so near to the latter, that they are easily
+understood.2
+This figure seems to be of the same person as is
+represented by the head with the cap on the preceding medal, who
+can be no other than the angel or minister of the deity of death, as
+the name implies; for Hela or Hel, was, among the Northern
+nations, the goddess of death,3
+in the same manner as Persiphoneia
+or Brimo was among the Greeks. The same figure appears on
+many ancient British medals, and also on those of several Greek
+cities, particularly those of Gela, which have the Taurine Bacchus
+or Creator on the reverse.4
+The head which I have supposed to be
+the Celtiberian Mars, or destructive power of the diurnal sun, is
+beardless like the Apollo of the Greeks, and, as far as can be discovered in such barbarous sculpture, has the same androgynous
+features.5
+We may therefore reasonably suppose, that, like the
+Greeks, the Celtiberians personified the destructive attribute under
+the different genders, accordingly as they applied it to the sun, or
+subordinate elements; and then united them, to signify that both
+were essentially the same. The Helman therefore, who was the
+same as the Moiraghthj or Diaktwr of the Greeks, may with equal
+propriety be called the minister of both or either. The spear in his
+hand is not to be considered merely as the implement of destruction,
+but as the symbol of power and command, which it was in Greece
+and Italy, as well as all over the North. Hence euqunein dori, was
+See Plate IX, Fig. 9, from one belonging to me. 2
+The first to a mixture of the Runic Hagle and Greek H. The second is the
+Runic Laugur, which is also the old Greek L, as it appears on the vase of the
+Calydonian Boar in the British Museum. The other three differ little from the
+common Greek. 3
+Edd. Fab. XVI. D’Hancarville, [[Recherches sur les Arts]], liv. ii, c. 1. 4
+See Plate IX, Fig. 11, from one belonging to me. 5
+See Plate X, Fig. 2.
+ON THE WORSHIP 80
+to govern,
+and venire sub hast‚,—to be sold as a slave. The ancient
+Celtes and Scythians paid divine honors to the sword, the battleaxe, and the spear; the first of which was the symbol by which
+they represented the supreme god: hence to swear by the edge
+of the sword was the most sacred and inviolable of oaths.2
+Euripides alludes to this ancient religion when he calls a sword –rkion
+xifoj; and Æschylus shows clearly, that it once prevailed in
+Greece, when he makes the heroes of the Thebaid swear by the
+point of the spear (omnusi d'aicmhn3
+). Homer sometimes uses the
+word arhj to signify the God of War, and sometimes a weapon:
+and we have sufficient proof of this word’s being of Celtic origin in
+its affinity with our Northern word War; for, if we write it in the
+ancient manner, with the Pelasgian Vau, or Æolian Digamma, #arhj
+(Warés), it scarcely differs at all.
+Behind the bearded head, on the first-mentioned Celtiberian
+medal is an instrument like a pair of firetongs, or blacksmith's
+pincers;4
+from which it seems that the personage here represented
+is the same as the `Hfaistoj or Vulcan of the Greek and Roman
+mythology. The same ideas are expressed somewhat more plainly
+on the medals of Æsernia in Italy, which are executed with all the
+refinement and elegance of Grecian art.5
+On one side is Apollo, the
+diurnal sun, mounting in his chariot; and on the other a beardless
+head, with the same cap on, and the same instrument behind it,
+but with the youthful features and elegant character of countenance
+usually attributed to Mercury, who, as well as Vulcan, was the
+God of Art and Mechanism; and whose peculiar office it also was
+to conduct the souls of the deceased to their eternal mansions, from
+whence came the epithet Diaktwr, applied to him by Homer. He
+was, therefore, in this respect, the same as the Helman of the
+Eurip. Hecuba. 2
+Malles, Introd. ‡ ;’Hist. de Danemarc, c. 9. 3 `Epta epi Qhbaj, v. 535. 4
+Plate X. Fig 2. 5
+See Plate X, Fig. 6, from one belonging to me.
+OF PRIAPUS 81
+Celtes and Scythians, who was supposed to conduct the souls of all
+who died a violent death (which alone was accounted truly happy)
+to the palace of Valhala.1
+It seems that the attributes of the deity
+which the Greeks represented by the mythological personages of
+Vulcan and Mercury, were united in the Celtic mythology. Cæsar
+tells us that the Germans worshipped Vulcan, or fire, with the sun
+and moon; and I shall soon have occasion to show that the Greeks
+held fire to be the real conductor of the dead, and emanci-pator of
+the soul. The Æsernians, bordering upon the Samnites, a Celtic
+nation, might naturally be supposed to have adopted the notions
+of their neighbours, or, what is more probable, preserved the
+religion of their ancestors more pure than the Hellenic Greeks.
+Hence they represented Vulcan, who, from the inscription on the
+exergue of their coins, appears to have been their tutelar god,
+with the characteristic features of Mercury, who was only a
+different personification of the same deity.
+At Lycopolis in Egypt the destroying power of the sun was represented by a wolf; which, as Macrobius says, was worshipped there as
+Apollo.2
+The wolf appears devouring grapes in the ornaments of
+the temple of Bacchus perikionoj at Puzzuoli;3
+and on the medals
+of Cartha he is surrounded with rays, which plainly proves that he
+is there meant as a symbol of the sun.
+He is also represented on
+most of the coins of Argos,5
+where I have already shown that the
+diurnal sun Apollo, the light-extending god, was peculiarly worshipped. We may therefore conclude, that this animal is meant
+for one of the mystic symbols of the primitive worship, and not,
+as some antiquarians have supposed, to commemorate the mythological tales of Danaus or Lycaon, which were probably invented,
+Malles, Hist. de Danemarc, Introd. c. 9. 2 Sat. lib. i, c. 27. 3
+Plate XVI, Fig. 1. 4
+Plate X, Fig. 8, from one beloning to me. 5
+Plate IX, Fig. 7, from one beloning to me.
+ON THE WORSHIP 82
+like many others of the same kind, to satisfy the inquisitive ignorance of the vulgar, from whom the meaning of the mystic symbols,
+the usual devices on the medals, was strictly concealed. In the
+Celtic mythology, the same symbol was employed, apparently in
+the same sense, Lok, the great destroying power of the universe,
+being represented under the form of a wolf.1
+The Apollo Didymæus, or double Apollo, was probably the two
+personifications, that of the destroying, and that of the creating
+power, united; whence we may perceive the reason why the ornaments before described should be upon his temple.2
+On the medals
+of Antigonus, king of Asia, is a figure with his hair hanging in
+artificial ringlets over his shoulders, like that of a woman, and the
+whole composition, both of his limbs and countenance, remarkable
+for extreme delicacy, and feminine elegance.3
+He is sitting on
+the prow of a ship, as god of the waters; and we should, without
+hesitation, pronounce him to be the Bacchus difuhj, were it not for
+the bow that he carries in his hand, which evidently shows him
+to be Apollo. This I take to be the figure under which the
+refinement of art (and more was never shown than in this medal)
+represented the Apollo Didymæus, or union of the creative and
+destructive powers of both sexes in one body.
+As fire was the primary essence of the active or male powers
+of creation and generation, so was water of the passive or female.
+Appian says, that the goddess worshipped at Hierapolis in Syria
+was called by some Venus, by others Juno, and by others held to be
+the cause which produced the beginning and seeds of things from
+humidity.
+Plutarch describes her nearly in the same words;5
+and
+Malles, Introd. ‡ l’Hist. de Danemarc. 2
+See Ionian Antiq. vol. i, c. 3, Pl. IX. 3
+See Plate X, Fig. 7, from one belonging to me. Similar figures are on the coins
+of most of the Seleucidæ. 4 De Bello Parthico. 5 In Crasso.
+OF PRIAPUS 83
+the author of the treatise attributed to Lucian1 says, she was Nature,
+the parent of things, or the creatress. She was therefore the same
+as Isis, who was the prolific material upon which both the creative
+and destructive attributes operated.2
+As water was her terrestrial
+essence, so was the moon her celestial image, whose attractive power,
+heaving the waters of the ocean, naturally led men to associate
+them. The moon was also supposed to return the dews which the
+sun exhaled from the earth; and hence her warmth was reckoned
+to be moistening, as that of the sun was drying.3
+The Egyptians
+called her the Mother of the World, because she sowed and scattered
+into the air the prolific principles with which she had been impregnated by the sun.
+These principles, as well as the light by which
+she was illumined, being supposed to emanate from the great fountain of all life and motion, partook of the nature of the being
+from which they were derived. Hence the Egyptians attributed to
+the moon, as well is to the sun, the active and passive powers of
+generation,5
+which were both, to use the language of the scholastics,
+essentially the same, though formally different. This union is represented on a medal of Demetrius the second, king of Syria,6
+where
+the goddess of Hierapolis appears with the male organs of generation sticking out of her robe, and holding the thyrsus of Bacchus,
+the emblem of fire, in one hand, and the terrestrial globe, representing the subordinate elements, in the other. Her head is
+crowned with various plants, and on each side is in asterisc representing (probably) the diurnal and nocturnal sun, in the same
+manner as when placed over the caps of Castor and Pollux.7
+This
+is not the form under which she was represented in the temple at
+De Dea Syri‚. 2
+Plutarch, de Is. & Osir. 3 Caler felis arefacit, lunaris humectat. Macrob. Sat. VII, c. 10. 4
+Plutarch, de Is. & Osir. 5 Ibid. 6
+Plate X, Fig 5, from Haym, Tes. Brit. p. 70. 7
+Se Plate IX, Fig. 7.
+ON THE WORSHIP 84
+Hierapolis, when the author of the account attributed to Lucian
+visited it; which is not to be wondered at, for the figures of this
+universal goddess, being merely emblematical, were composed according to the attributes which the artists meant particularly to express.
+She is probably represented here in the form under which she was
+worshipped in the neighbourhood of Cyzicus, where she was called
+Artemij Priapivh, the Priapic Diana.
+In the temple at Hierapolis
+the active powers imparted to her by the Creator were represented
+by immense images of the male organs of generation placed on
+each side of the door. The measures of these must necessarily be
+corrupt in the present text of Lucian; but that they were of an
+enormous size we may conclude from what is related of a man's
+going to the top of one of them every year, and residing there
+seven days, in order to have a more intimate communication with
+the deity, while praying for the prosperity of Syria.2
+Athenæus
+relates, that Ptolemy Philadelphus had one of 120 cubits long
+carried in procession at Alexandria,3
+of which the poet might justly
+have said—
+Horrendum protendit Mentula contum
+Quanta queat vastos Thetidis spumantis hiatus;
+Quanta queat priscamque Rheam, magnamque parentem
+Naturam, solidis naturam implere medullis,
+Si foret immensos, quot ad astra volantia currunt,
+Conceptura globos, et tela trisulca tonantis,
+Et vaga concussum motura tonitrua mundum.
+This was the real meaning of the enormous figures at Hierapolis:
+—they were the generative organs of the creator personified, with
+which he was supposed to have impregnated the heavens, the earth,
+and the waters. Within the temple were many small statues of
+men with these organs disproportionably large. These were the
+angels or attendants of the goddess, who acted as her ministers of
+Plutarch, in Lucullo. 2
+Lucian, de Dea Syri‚. 3 Deipnos. lib.
+OF PRIAPUS 85
+creation in peopling and fructifying the earth. The statue of the
+goddess herself was in the sanctuary of the temple; and near it
+was the statue of the creator, whom the author calls Jupiter, as he
+does the goddess, Juno; by which he only means that they were
+the supreme deities of the country where worshipped. She was
+borne by lions, and he by bulls, to show that nature, the passive
+productive power of matter, was sustained by anterior destruction,
+whilst the ætherial spirit, or active productive power, was sustained
+by his own strength only, of which the bulls were symbols.1
+Between both was a third figure, with a dove on his head, which some
+thought to be Bacchus.2
+This was the Holy Spirit, the firstbegotten love, or plastic nature, (of which the dove was the image
+when it really deigned to descend upon man,3
+) proceeding from,
+and consubstantial with both; for all three were but personifications
+of one. The dove, or some fowl like it, appears on the medals of
+Gortyna in Crete, acting the same part with Dictynna, the Cretan
+Diana, as the swan is usually represented acting with Leda.4
+This
+composition has nearly the same signification as that before described
+of the bull in the lap of Ceres, Diana being equally a personification
+of the productive power of the earth. It may seem extraordinary,
+that after this adventure with the dove, she should still remain a
+virgin; but mysteries of this kind are to be found in all religions.
+Juno is said to have renewed her virginity every year by bathing
+in a certain fountain;5
+a miracle which I believe even modern
+legends cannot parallel.
+The active and passive powers of creation are called male and female by the
+Ammonian Platonists. See Proclus in Theol. Platon. lib. i, c. 28. 2
+Lucian, de Dea Syri‚. 3
+Matth. ch. iii, ver. 17. 4
+See Plate III, Fig. 5. Kalousi de thn Artemin Qrakej Bendeian, Krhtej de
+Diktunnan. Palæph. de Incred. Tab. XXXI. See also Diodor. Sic. lib. v. & Euripid.
+Hippol. v. 145. 5
+Pausan. lib. ii, c. 38.
+ON THE WORSHIP 86
+In the vision of Ezekiel, God is described as descending upon
+the combined forms of the eagle, the bull, and the lion,1
+the
+emblems of the ætherial spirit, the creative and destructive powers,
+which were all united in the true God, though hypostatically
+divided in the Syrian trinity. Man was compounded with them,
+as representing the real image of God, according to the Jewish
+theology. The cherubim on the ark of the covenant, between
+which God dwelt,2
+were also compounded of the same form,3 so
+that the idea of them must have been present to the prophet’s mind,
+previous to the apparition which furnished him with the description.
+Even those on the ark of the covenant, though made at the express
+command of God, do not appear to have been original; for a
+figure exactly answering to the description of them appears among
+those curious ruins existing at Chilminar, in Persia, which have
+been supposed to be those of the palace of Persepolis, burnt by
+Alexander; but for what reason, it is not easy to conjecture. They
+do not, certainly, answer to any ancient description extant of that
+celebrated palace; but, as far as we can judge of them in their
+present state, appear evidently to have been a temple.4
+But the
+Persians, as before observed, had no inclosed temples or statues,
+which they held in such abhorrence, that they tried every means
+possible to destroy those of the Egyptians; thinking it unworthy
+of the majesty of the deity to have his all-pervading presence
+limited to the boundary of an edifice, or likened to an image of
+stone or metal. Yet, among the ruins at Chilminar, we not only
+find many statues, which are evidently of ideal beings,5
+but also that
+remarkable emblem of the deity, which distinguishes almost all the
+Ezek. ch. i, ver. 10, with Lowth’s Comm. 2 Exod. ch. xxv. ver. 22. 3
+Spencer de Leg. Ritual Vet. Hebræor. lib. iii. dissert. 5. 4
+See Le Bruyn, Voyage en Perse, Planche cxxiii. 5
+See Le Bruyn and Niebuhr.
+OF PRIAPUS 87
+Egyptian temples now extant.1
+The portals are also of the same
+form as those at Thebes and Philæ; and, except the hieroglyphics
+which distinguish the latter, are finished and ornamented nearly in
+the same manner. Unless, therefore, we suppose the Persians to
+have been so inconsistent as to erect temples in direct contradiction
+to the first principles of their own religion, and decorate them with
+symbols and images, which they held to be impious and abominable,
+we cannot suppose them to be the authors of these buildings.
+Neither can we suppose the Parthians, or later Persians, to have
+been the builders of them; for both the style of workmanship in
+the figures, and the forms of the letters in the inscriptions, denote
+a much higher antiquity, as will appear evidently to any one who
+will take the trouble of comparing the drawings published by
+Le Bruyn and Niebuhr with the coins of the Arsacidæ and
+Sassanidæ. Almost all the symbolical figures are to be found repeated upon different Phúnician coins; but the letters of the Phúnicians, which are said to have come to them from the Assyrians,
+are much less simple, and evidently belong to an alphabet
+much further advanced in improvement. Some of the figures are
+also observable upon the Greek coins, particularly the bull and lion
+fighting, and the mystic flower, which is the constant device of
+the Rhodians. The style of workmanship is also exactly the same as
+that of the very ancient Greek coins of Acanthus, Celendaris, and
+Lesbos; the lines being very strongly marked, and the hair expressed
+by round knobs. The wings likewise of the figure, which resembles
+the Jewish cherubim, are the same as those upon several Greek
+sculptures now extant; such as the little images of Priapus attached
+to the ancient bracelets, the compound figures of the goat and lion
+See Plate XVIII. Fig. 1 from the Isiac Table, and Plate XIX. Fig 5 from Niebuhr's
+prints of Chilminar. See also Plate XVIII. Fig. 2 and Plate XIX. Fig. 1 from the Isiac
+Tables and the Egyptian Portals published by Norden and Pococke, on every one of
+which this singular emblem occurs.
+ON THE WORSHIP 88
+upon the frieze of the Temple of Apollo Didymæus, &c. &c.1
+They are likewise joined to the human figure on the medals of
+Melita and Camarina,2
+as well as upon many ancient sculptures in
+relief found in Persia.3
+The feathers in these wings are turned upwards like those of an ostrich,4
+to which however they have no
+resemblance in form, but seem rather like those of a fowl brooding,
+though more distorted than any I ever observed in nature. Whether
+this distortion was meant to express lust or incubation, I cannot
+determine; but the compositions, to which the wings are added,
+leave little doubt, that it was meant for the one or the other. I
+am inclined to believe that it was for the latter, as we find on the
+medals of Melita a figure with four of these wings, who seems by his
+attitude to be brooding over something.5
+On his head is the cap of
+liberty, whilst in his right hand he holds the hook or attractor, and
+in his left the winnow or separator; so that he probably represents
+the Erwj, or generative spirit brooding over matter, and giving
+liberty to its productive powers by the exertion of his own attributes, attraction and separation. On a very ancient Phúnician
+medal brought from Asia by Mr. Pullinger, and published very
+incorrectly by Mr. Swinton in the Philosophical Transactions of
+, is a disc or ring surrounded by wings of different forms, of
+which some of the feathers are distorted in the same manner.6
+The
+same disc, surrounded by the same kind of wings, incloses the
+asterisc of the sun over the bull Apis, or Mnevis, on the Isiac
+Table,7
+where it also appears with many of the other Egyptian
+See Le Bruyn, Planche cxxiii. Ionian Antiquities, vol. i. c. 3. Plate IX., and Plate
+II. Fig. 2. 2
+See Plate XX, Fig. 2, from one of Melita, belonging to me. 3
+See Le Bruyn, Planche cxxi.
+As those on the Figures described by Ezekiel were. See c. i, v. 11. 5
+See Plate XX, Fig. 2, engraved from one belonging to me. 6
+See Plate IX, Fig. 9, engraed from the original medal, now belonging to me. 7
+See Plate XIX, Fig. 1, from Pignorius.
+OF PRIAPUS 89
+symbols, particularly over the heads of Isis and Osiris.1
+It is also
+placed over the entrances of most of the Egyptian temples described
+by [[Pococke]] and [[Frederic Louis Norden|Norden]] as well as on that represented on the Isiac
+Table,2
+though with several variations, and without the asterisc.
+We find it equally without the asterisc, but with little or no variation, on the ruins at Chilmenar, and other supposed Persian
+antiquities in that neighbourhood:3
+but upon some of the Greek
+medals the asterisc alone is placed over the bull with the human
+face,4
+who is then the same as the Apis or Mnevis of the Egyptians;
+that is, the image of the generative power of the sun, which is signified by the asterisc on the Greek medals, and by the kneph, or
+winged disc, on the Oriental monuments. The Greeks however
+sometimes employed this latter symbol, but contrived, according to
+their usual practice, to join it to the human figure, as may be seen
+on a medal of Camarina, published by Prince Torremmuzzi.5
+On
+other medals of this city the same idea is expressed, without the
+disc or asterisc, by a winged figure, which appears hovering over a
+swan, the emblem of the waters, to show the generative power of
+the sun fructifying that element, or adding the active to the passive
+powers of production.6
+On the medals of Naples, a winged figure
+of the same kind is represented crowning the Taurine Bacchus
+with a wreath of laurel.7
+This antiquarians have called a Victory
+crowning the Minotaur; but the fabulous monster called the Minotaur was never said to have been victorious, even by the poets
+See Plate XVIII, Fig. 2, from Pignorius. 2
+See Plate XVIII, Fig. 1, from Pignorius. 3
+See Niebuhr and Le Bruyn, and Plate XIX, Fig. 2, from the former. 4
+See Plate IV. Fig. 2, and Plate XIX. Fig. 4, from a medal of Cales, belonging
+to me. 5
+See Plate XXI, Fig. 2, copied from it. 6
+See Plate XXI, Fig. 3, from one belonging to me. 7
+See Plate XIX, Fig. 5. The coins are common in all collections.
+ON THE WORSHIP 90
+who invented it; and whenever the sculptors and painters represented it, they joined the head of a bull to a human body, as may
+be seen in the celebrated picture of Theseus, published among the
+antiquities of Herculaneum, and on the medals of Athens, struck
+about the time of Severus, when the style of art was totally changed,
+and the mystic theology extinct. The winged figure, which has
+been called a Victory, appears mounting in the chariot of the sun,
+on the medals of queen Philistis,1
+and, on some of those of Syracuse, flying before it in the place where the asterisc appears on others
+of the same city.2
+I am therefore persuaded, that these are only
+different modes of representing one idea, and that the winged figure
+means the same, when placed over the Taurine Bacchus of the
+Greeks, as the winged disc over the Apis or Mnevis of the Egyptians. The Ægis, or snaky breastplate, and the Medusa’s head, are
+also, as Dr. Stukeley justly observed,3
+Greek modes of representing this winged disc joined with the serpents, as it frequently is,
+both in the Egyptian sculptures, and those of Chilmenar in Persia.
+The expressions of rage and violence, which usually characterise the
+countenance of Medusa, signify the destroying attribute joined with
+the generative, as both were equally under the direction of Minerva,
+or divine wisdom. I am inclined to believe, that the large rings,
+to which the little figures of Priapus are attached,4
+had also the
+same meaning as the disc; for, if intended merely to suspend them
+by, they are of an extravagant magnitude, and would not answer
+their purpose so well as a common loop.
+On the Phúnician coin above mentioned, this symbol, the
+winged disc, is placed over a figure sitting, who holds in his hands
+an arrow, whilst a bow, ready bent, of the ancient Scythian form,
+See Plate XXI, Fig. 4, from one belonging to me. 2
+See Plate XXI, Fig. 5 and 6, from coins belonging to me. 3
+Abury, p. 93. 4
+See Plate II. Fig. 1, and Plate III. Fig. 2.
+OF PRIAPUS 91
+lies by him.1
+On his head is a large loose cap, tied under his chin,
+which I take to be the lion's skin, worn in the same manner as on
+the heads of Hercules, upon the medals of Alexander; but the
+work is so small, though executed with extreme nicety and precision,
+and perfectly preserved, that it is difficult to decide with certainty
+what it represents, in parts of such minuteness. The bow and
+arrows, we know, were the ancient arms of Hercules;2
+and continued so, until the Greek poets thought proper to give him the
+club.3
+He was particularly worshipped at Tyre, the metropolis
+of Phúnicia;4
+and his head appears in the usual form, on many of
+the coins of that people. We may hence conclude that he is the
+person here represented, notwithstanding the difference in the style
+and composition of the figure, which may be accounted for by the
+difference of art. The Greeks, animated by the spirit of their
+ancient poets, and the glowing melody of their language, were
+grand and poetical in all their compositions; whilst the Phúnicians,
+who spoke a harsh and untuneable dialect, were unacquainted with
+fine poetry, and consequently with poetical ideas; for words being
+the types of ideas, and the signs or marks by which men not only
+communicate them to each other, but arrange and regulate them in
+their own minds, the genius of a language goes a great way towards
+forming the character of the people who use it. Poverty of expression will produce poverty of conception; for men will never be
+able to form sublime ideas, when the language in which they think
+(for men always think as well as speak in some language) is incapable of expressing them. This may be one reason why the Phúnicians never rivalled the Greeks in the perfection of art, although
+they attained a degree of excellence long before them; for Homer,
+whenever he has occasion to speak of any fine piece of art, takes
+See Plate IX, Fig. 10 b. 2
+Homer’s Odyss. L, ver. 606. 3
+Strabo, lib. xiv. 4
+Macrob. Sat. lib. i, c. 20.
+ON THE WORSHIP 92
+care to inform us that it was the work of Sidonians. He also
+mentions the Phúnician merchants bringing toys and ornaments
+of dress to sell to the Greeks, and practicing those frauds which
+merchants and factors are apt to practice upon ignorant people.1
+It is probable that their progress in the fine arts, like that of the
+Dutch (who are the Phúnicians of modern history), never went
+beyond a strict imitation of nature; which, compared to the more
+elevated graces of ideal composition, is like a newspaper narrative
+compared with one of Homer’s battles. A figure of Hercules,
+therefore, executed by a Phúnician artist, if compared to one by
+Phidias or Lysippus, would be like a picture of Moses or David,
+painted by Teniers, or Gerard Dow, compared to one of the same,
+painted by Raphael or Annibal Caracci. This is exactly the difference between the figures on the medal now under consideration, and
+those on the coins of Gelo or Alexander. Of all the personages of
+the ancient mythology, Hercules is perhaps the most difficult to
+explain; for physical allegory and fabulous history are so entangled
+in the accounts we have of him, that it is scarcely possible to separate them. He appears however, like all the other gods, to have
+been originally a personified attribute of the sun. The eleventh of
+the Orphic Hymns2
+is addressed to him as the strength and power
+of the sun; and Macrobius says that he was thought to be the
+strength and virtue of the gods, by which they destroyed the
+giants; and that, according to Varro, the Mars and Hercules of
+the Romans were the same deity, and worshipped with the same
+rites.3
+According to Varro then, whose authority is perhaps the
+greatest that can be cited, Hercules was the destroying attribute
+represented in a human form, instead of that of a lion, tiger, or
+hippopotamus. Hence the terrible picture drawn of him by
+Homer, which always appeared to me to have been taken from
+Homer, Odyss. o, ver. 414. 2 Ed. Gesner. 3 Sat. lib. i, c. 20.
+OF PRIAPUS 93
+some symbolical statue, which the poet not understanding, supposed to
+be of the Theban hero, who had assumed the title of the deity, and
+whose fabulous history he was well acquainted with. The
+description however applies in every particular to the allegorical
+personage. His attitude, ever fixed in the act of letting fly his
+arrow,
+with the figures of lions and bears, battles and murders,
+which adorn his belt, all unite in representing him as the destructive
+attribute personified. But how happens it then that he is so frequently represented strangling the lion, the natural emblem of this
+power? Is this an historical fable belonging to the Theban hero,
+or a physical allegory of the destructive power destroying its own
+force by its own exertions? Or is the single attribute personified
+taken for the whole power of the deity in this, as in other instances
+already mentioned? The Orphic Hymn above cited seems to
+favour this last conjecture; for he is there addressed both as the
+devourer and generator of all (Pamfage, paggentwr). However
+this may be, we may safely conclude that the Hercules armed with
+the bow and arrow, as he appears on the present medal, is like the
+Apollo, the destroying power of the diurnal sun.
+On the other side of the medal3
+is a figure, somewhat like the
+Jupiter on the medals of Alexander and Antiochus, sitting with a
+beaded sceptre in his right hand, which he rests upon the head of
+a bull, that projects from the side of the chair. Above, on his
+right shoulder, is a bird, probably a dove, the symbol of the Holy
+Spirit, descending from the sun, but, as this part of the medal is
+less perfect than the rest, the species cannot be clearly discovered.
+In his left hand be holds a short staff, from the upper side of which
+springs an ear of corn, and from the lower a bunch of grapes,
+which being the two most esteemed productions of the earth, were
+the natural emblems of general fertilization. This figure is there1 Aiei Baleonti òoikwj. Odyss. l, ver. 607. 2
+See Plate IX, Fig. 10 a.
+ON THE WORSHIP 94
+fore the generator, as that on the other side is the destroyer, whilst
+the sun, of whose attributes both are personifications, is placed between them. The letters on the side of the generator are quite
+entire, and, according to the Phúnician alphabet published by Mr.
+Dutens, are equivalent to the Roman ones which compose the
+words Baal Thrz, of which Mr. Swinton makes Baal Tarz, and
+translates Jupiter of Tarsus; whence he concludes that this coin
+was struck at that city. But the first letter of the last word is not
+a Teth, but a Thau, or aspirated T; and, as the Phúnicians had a
+vowel answering to the Roman A, it is probable they would have
+inserted it, had they intended it to be sounded: but we have no
+reason to believe that they had any to express the U or Y, which
+must therefore be comprehended in the preceding consonant whenever the sound is expressed. Hence I conclude that the word here
+meant is Thyrz or Thurz, the Thor or Thur of the Celtes and
+Sarmatians, the Thurra of the Assyrians, the Turan of the Tyrrhenians or Etruscans, the Taurine Bacchus of the Greeks, and the
+deity whom the Germans carried with them in the shape of a bull,
+when they invaded Italy; from whom the city of Tyre, as well as
+Tyrrhenia, or Tuscany, probably took its name. His symbol the
+bull, to which the name alludes, is represented on the chair or
+throne in which he sits; and his sceptre, the emblem of his authority, rests upon it. The other word, Baal, was merely a title in the
+Phúnician language, signifying God, or Lord;
+and used as an
+epithet of the sun, as we learn from the name Baal-bec (the city of
+Baal), which the Greeks rendered Heliopolis (the city of the sun).
+Thus does this singular medal show the fundamental principles
+of the ancient Phúnician religion to be the same as those which
+appear to have prevailed through all the other nations of the
+northern hemisphere. Fragments of the same system every where
+Cleric. Comm. in. 2 Reg. c. i, ver. 2.
+OF PRIAPUS 95
+occur, variously expressed as they were variously understood, and
+oftentimes merely preserved without being understood at all; the
+ancient reverence being continued to the symbols, when their
+meaning was wholly forgotten. The hypostatical division and
+essential unity of the deity is one of the most remarkable parts of
+this system, and the farthest removed from common sense and reason;
+and yet this is perfectly reasonable and consistent, if considered
+together with the rest of it: for the emanations and personifications
+were only figurative abstractions of particular modes of action and
+existence, of which the primary cause and original essence still continued one and the same.
+The three hypostases being thus only one being, each hypostasis
+is occasionally taken for all; as is the case in the passage of
+Apuleius before cited, where Isis describes herself as the universal
+deity. In this character she is represented by a small basaltine
+figure, of Egyptian sculpture, at Strawberry Hill, which is covered
+over with symbols of various kinds from top to bottom.1
+That of
+the bull is placed lowest, to show that the strength or power of the
+creator is the foundation and support of every other attribute. On
+her head are towers, to denote the earth; and round her neck is
+hung a crab-fish, which, from its power of spontaneously detaching from its body, and naturally reproducing, any limbs that
+are hurt or mutilated, became the symbol of the productive power
+of the waters; in which sense it appears on great numbers of
+ancient medals of various cities.2
+The nutritive power is signified
+A print of one exactly the same Is published by Montfaucon, Antiq. expliq. vol.
+i. Plate XCIII. Fig. i. 2
+See those of Agrigentum, Himera, and Cyrene. On a small one of the firstmentioned city, belonging to me, a cross, the abbreviated symbol of the male powers
+of generation, approaches the mouth of the crab, while the cornucopia issues from It
+(see Plate XX. Fig. 3): the one represents the cause, and the other the effect of
+fertilization.
+ON THE WORSHIP 96
+by her many breasts, and the destructive by the lions which she
+bears on her arms. Other attributes are expressed by various other
+animal symbols, the precise meaning of which I have not sagacity
+sufficient to discover.
+This universality of the goddess was more concisely represented
+in other figures of her, by the mystic instrument called a Systrum,
+which she carried in her hand. Plutarch has given an explanation
+of it,1
+which may serve to show that the mode here adopted of
+explaining the ancient symbols is not founded merely upon conjecture and analogy, but also upon the authority of one of the most
+grave and learned of the Greeks. The curved top, he says, represented the lunar orbit, within which the creative attributes of the
+deity were exerted, in giving motion to the four elements, signified
+by the four rattles below.2
+On the centre of the curve was a cat,
+the emblem of the moon; who, from her influence on the constitutions of women, was supposed to preside particularly over the
+passive powers of generation;3
+and below, upon the base, a head
+of Isis or Nepthus; instead of which, upon that which I have had
+engraved, as well as upon many others now extant, are the male
+organs of generation, representing the active powers of the creator,
+attributed to Isis with the passive. The clattering noise, and
+various motions of the rattles being adopted as the symbols of the
+movement and mixture of the elements from which all things are
+produced; the sound of metals in general became an emblem of
+the same kind. Hence, the ringing of bells, and clattering of
+plates of metal, were used in all lustrations, sacrifices, &c.4
+The
+title Priapus, applied to the characteristic attribute of the creator,
+De Is. & Osir. 2
+See Plate X, Fig. 4, engraved from one in the collection of R. Wilbbramha, Esq. 3
+Cic. de Nat.Deor. lib. ii, c. 46. 4
+Clem. Alex. Protr. p. 9. Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll. II, ver. 16.
+OF PRIAPUS 97
+and sometimes to the Creator himself, is probably a corruption of
+Briapoj (clamorous or loud); for the B and P being both labials,
+the change of the one for the other is common in the Greek
+language. We still find many ancient images of this symbol, with
+bells attached to them,1
+as they were to the sacred robe of the
+high priest of the Jews, in which he administered to the Creator.2
+The bells in both were of a pyramidal form,3
+to show the ætherial
+igneous essence of the god. This form is still retained in those
+used in our churches, as well as in the little ones rung by the
+Catholic priests at the elevation of the host. The use of them was
+early adopted by the Christians, in the same sense as they were
+employed by the later heathens; that is, as a charm against evil
+dæmons;4
+for, being symbols of the active exertions of the creative
+attributes, they were properly opposed to the emanations of the
+destructive. The Lacedemonians used to beat a pan or kettle-drum
+at the death of their king,5
+to assist in the emancipation of his soul
+at the dissolution of the body. We have a similar custom of
+tolling a bell on such occasions, which is very generally practised, though the meaning of it has been long forgotten. This
+emancipation of the soul was supposed to be finally performed by
+fire; which, being the visible image and active essence of both the
+creative and destructive powers, was very naturally thought to be
+the medium through which men passed from the present to a
+future life. The Greeks, and all the Celtic nations, accordingly,
+burned the bodies of the dead, as the Gentoos do at this day;
+while the Egyptians, among whom fuel was extremely scarce,
+Bronzi dell’ Hercol. Tom. vi. Plate XCVIII. 2 Exod. ch. xxviii. 3 Bronzi dell’ Hercol. Tom. vi. Plate XCVIII. Maimonides in Patrick’s Commentary on Exodus, ch. xxviii. 4
+Ovid. Fast. lib. v, ver. 441. Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll. ii, ver. 36. 5 Schol. in Theocrit. Idyll. ii. ver. 36.
+ON THE WORSHIP 98
+placed them in pyramidal monuments, which were the symbols of
+fire; hence come those prodigious structures which still adorn that
+country. The soul which was to be emancipated was the divine
+emanation, the vital spark of heavenly flame, the principle of reason
+and perception, which was personified into the familiar dæmon, or
+genius, supposed to have the direction of each individual, and to
+dispose him to good or evil, wisdom or folly, and all their consequences of prosperity and adversity.1
+Hence proceeded the
+doctrines, so uniformly inculcated by Homer and Pindar,2
+of all
+human actions depending immediately upon the gods; which were
+adopted, with scarcely any variations, by some of the Christian
+divines of the apostolic age. In the Pastor of Hermas, and
+Recognitions of Clemens, we find the angels of justice, penitence,
+and sorrow, instead of the genii, or dæmons, which the ancients
+supposed to direct men's minds and inspire them with those particular sentiments. St. Paul adopted the still more comfortable
+doctrine of grace, which served full as well to emancipate the
+consciences of the faithful from the shackles of practical morality.
+The familiar dæmons, or divine emanations, were supposed to
+reside in the blood; which was thought to contain the principles of
+vital heat, and was therefore forbidden by Moses.3
+Homer, who
+seems to have collected little fragments of the ancient theology, and
+introduced them here and there, amidst the wild profusion of his
+poetical fables, represents the shades of the deceased as void of
+perception, until they had tasted of the blood of the victims offered
+Pindar. Pyth. v. ver. 164. Sophocl. Trachin. ver. 922. Hor. lib. ii. epist. ii.
+ver. 187. 2 Ek Qewn machanai pasai broteaij, kai sofoi, kai cersi biatai,
+pweiflqaaoi t' efun. Pindar, Pyth. i. ver. 79. Pssages to the same purpose occur
+in almost every page of the Iliad and Odyssey. 3 Levit. ch. xvii. ver. 11 & 14.
+OF PRIAPUS 99
+by Ulysses;1
+by which their faculties were renewed by a reunion
+with the divine emanation, from which they had been separated.
+The soul of Tiresias is said to be entire in hell, and to possess alone
+the power of perception, because with him this divine emanation
+still remained. The shade of Hercules is described among the
+other ghosts, though he himself, as the poet says, was then in
+heaven; that is, the active principle of thought and perception
+returned to its native heaven, whilst the passive, or merely sensitive,
+remained on earth, from whence it sprung.
+The final separation
+of these two did not take place till the body was consumed by fire,
+as appears from the ghost of Elpenor, whose body being still
+entire, he retained both, and knew Ulysses before he had tasted of
+the blood. It was from producing this separation, that the universal
+Bacchus, or double Apollo, the creator and destroyer, whose
+essence was fire, was also called Liknithj, the purifier,3
+by a metaphor
+taken from the winnow, which purified the corn from the dust and
+chaff, as fire purified the soul from its terrestrial pollutions. Hence
+this instrument is called by Virgil the mystic winnow of Bacchus.4
-of, 15 ; as reprefented by Roman
+The Ammonian Platonics and Gnostic Christians thought that this
-artiils, 42 ; degradation of, 102 ; facri-
+separation, or purification, might be effected in a degree even
-fices to, 104 ; fanftified in the middle
+before death. It was for this purpose that they practised such rigid
+temperance, and gave themselves up to such intense study; for, by
+subduing and extenuating the terrestrial principle, they hoped to
+give liberty and vigour to the celestial, so that it might be enabled
+to ascend directly to the intellectual world, pure and unincumbered.5
+Odyss. l, ver. 152. 2
+Those who wish to see the difference between sensation and perception clearly
+and fully explained, may be satisfied by reading the Essai analytique sur l’Ame, by
+Mr. Bonnet. 3 Orph. Hymn. 45. 4 Mystica vannui Iacchi. Georg. i, ver. 166. 5
+Plot. Ennead. vi, lib. iv, ch. 16. Mosheim, Not. y in Cudw. Syst. Intell.
+ch. v. sect. 20.
+ON THE WORSHIP 100
+The clergy afterwards introduced Purgatory, instead of abstract
+meditation and study; which was the ancient mode of separation
+by fire, removed into an unknown country, where it was saleable
+to all such of the inhabitants of this world as had sufficient wealth
+and credulity.
+It was the celestial or ætherial principle of the human mind,
+which the ancient artists represented under the symbol of the
+butterfly, which may be considered as one of the most elegant allegories of their elegant religion. This insect, when hatched from
+the egg, appears in the shape of a grub, crawling upon the earth,
+and feeding upon the leaves of plants. In this state, it was aptly
+made the emblem of man, in his earthly form, in which the ætherial
+vigour and activity of the celestial soul, the divinæ particula mentis,
+was supposed to be clogged and incumbered with the material body.
+When the grub was changed to a chrysalis, its stillness, torpor, and
+insensibility seemed to present a natural image of death, or the intermediate state between the cessation of the vital functions of the
+body and the final releasement of the soul by the fire, in which the
+body was consumed. The butterfly breaking from the torpid
+chrysalis, and mounting in the air, was no less natural an image of
+the celestial soul bursting from the restraints of matter, and mixing
+again with its native æther. The Greek artists, always studious of
+elegance, changed this, as well as other animal symbols, into a
+human form, retaining the wings as the characteristic members, by
+which the meaning might be known. The human body, which
+they added to them, is that of a beautiful girl, sometimes in the age
+of infancy, and sometimes of approaching maturity. So beautiful
+an allegory as this would naturally be a favourite subject of art
+among a people whose taste had attained the utmost pitch of refinement. We accordingly find that it has been more frequently and
+more variously repeated than any other which the system of emanations, so favourable to art, could afford.
+OF PRIAPUS 101
+Although all men were supposed to partake of the divine
+emanation in a degree, it was not supposed that they all partook
+of it in an equal degree. Those who showed superior abilities, and
+distinguished themselves by their splendid actions, were supposed to
+have a larger share of the divine essence, and were therefore adored
+as gods, and honoured with divine titles, expressive of that particular attribute of the deity with which they seemed to be most
+favoured. New personages were thus enrolled among the allegorical deities; and the personified attributes of the sun were confounded with a Cretan and Thessalian king, an Asiatic conqueror,
+and a Theban robber. Hence Pindar, who appears to have been
+a very orthodox heathen, says, that the race of men and gods is
+one, that both breathe from one mother, and only differ in power.1
-ages, 139, ^^f^l-
+This confusion of epithets and titles contributed, as much as any
-Proclus, on truth, 26 ; on the Platonic
+thing, to raise that vast and extravagant fabric of poetical mythology, which, in a manner, overwhelmed the ancient theology,
+which was too pure and philosophical to continue long a popular
+religion. The grand and exalted system of a general first cause,
+universally expanded, did not suit the gross conceptions of the
+multitude; who had no other way of conceiving the idea of an
+omnipotent god, but by forming an exaggerated image of their
+own despot, and supposing his power to consist in an unlimited
+gratification of his passions and appetites. Hence the universal
+Jupiter, the aweful and venerable, the general principle of life
+and motion, was transformed into the god who thundered from
+Mount Ida, and was lulled to sleep in the embraces of his wife;
+and hence the god whose spirit moved2
+upon the face of the waters,
+Nem. v, ver. 1. 2
+So the translators have rendered the expression of the original, which literally
+means brooding as a fowl on its eggs, and alludes to the symbols of the ancient
+theology, which I have before observed upon. See Patrick’s Commentary.
+ON THE WORSHIP 102
+and impregnated them with the powers of generation, became a
+great king above all gods, who led forth his people to smite the
+ungodly, and rooted out their enemies from before them.
+Another great means of corrupting the ancient theology, and
+establishing the poetical mythology, was the practice of the artists in
+representing the various attributes of the creator under human
+forms of various character and expression. These figures, being
+distinguished by the titles of the deity which they were meant to
+represent, became in time to be considered as distinct personages,
+and worshipped as separate subordinate deities. Hence the manyshaped god, the polumorfoj and muriomorfos of the ancient theologists, became divided into many gods and goddesses, often described by the poets as at variance with each other and wrangling
+about the little intrigues and passions of men. Hence too, as the
+symbols were multiplied, particular ones lost their dignity; and that
+venerable one which is the subject of this discourse, became degraded
+from the representative of the god of nature to a subordinate rural
+deity, a supposed son of the Asiatic conqueror Bacchus, standing
+among the nymphs by a fountain,1
+and expressing the fertility of
+a garden, instead of the general creative power of the great active
+principle of the universe. His degradation did not stop even here;
+for we find him, in times still more prophane and corrupt, made a
+subject of raillery and insult, as answering no better purpose than
+holding up his rubicund snout to frighten the birds and thieves.2
-theology, 27, 30, 41.
+His talents were also perverted from their natural ends, and employed
+in base and abortive efforts in conformity to the taste of the times;
+for men naturally attribute their own passions and inclinations to
+the objects of their adoration; and as God made man in his own
+image, so man returns the favour, and makes God in his. Hence
+we find the highest attribute of the all-pervading spirit and first1
+Theocrit. Idyll. i, ver. 21. 2
+Horat. lib. i, Sat. viii. Virg. Georg. iv.
+OF PRIAPUS 103
+begotten love foully prostituted to promiscuous vice, and calling
+out, Hæc cunnum, caput hic, præbeat ille nates.1
-Proferpine, 72.
+He continued however still to have his temple, priestess and
+sacred geese,2
+and offerings of the most exquisite kind were made to
+him:
+Crissabitque tibi excussis pulcherrima Iumbis
+Hoc anno primum experta puella virum.
+Sometimes, however, they were not so scrupulous in the selection
+of their victims, but suffered frugality to restrain their devotion:
+Cum sacrum fieret Deo salaci
+Conducta est pretio puella parvo.3
+The bride was usually placed upon him immediately before marriage; not, as Lactantius says, ut ejus pudicitiam prior Deus prælibasse videatur, but that she might be rendered fruitful by her
+communion with the divine nature, and capable of fulfilling the
+duties of her station. In an ancient poem4
+we find a lady of the
+name of Lalage presenting the pictures of the “Elephantis” to him,
+and gravely requesting that she might enjoy the pleasures over
+which he particularly presided, in all the attitudes described in that
+celebrated treatise.5
+Whether or not she succeeded, the poet has
+not informed us; but we may safely conclude that she did not trust
+wholly to faith and prayer, but, contrary to the usual practice of
+modern devotees, accompanied her devotion with such good
+works as were likely to contribute to the end proposed by it.
+When a lady had served as the victim in a sacrifice to this god,
+she expressed her gratitude for the benefits received, by offering
+upon his altar certain small images representing his characteristic
+Priap. Carm. 21. 2
+Pertron. Satyric. 3
+Priap. Carm. 34. 4
+Priap. Carm. 3. 5
+The Elephantis was written by one Philænis, and seems to have been of the
+same kind with the Puttana errante of Aretin.
+ON THE WORSHIP 104
+attribute, the number of which was equal to the number of men
+who had acted as priests upon the occasion.1
+On an antique gem,
+in the collection of Mr. Townley, is one of these fair victims, who
+appears just returned from a sacrifice of this kind, and devoutly
+returning her thanks by offering upon an altar some of these
+images, from the number of which one may observe that she has
+not been neglected.2
+This offering of thanks had also its mystic
+and allegorical meaning; for fire being the energetic principle
+and essential force of the Creator, and the symbol above mentioned the
+visible image of his characteristic attribute, the uniting them was
+uniting the material with the essential cause, from whose joint
+operation all things were supposed to proceed.
+These sacrifices, as well as all those to the deities presiding over
+generation, were performed by night: hence Hippolytus, in Euripides, says, to express his love of chastity, that he likes none of the
+gods revered by night.3
+These acts of devotion were indeed
+attended with such rites as must naturally shock the prejudices of a
+chaste and temperate mind, not liable to be warmed by that ecstatic
+enthusiasm which is peculiar to devout persons when their attention
+is absorbed in the contemplation of the beneficent powers of the
+Creator, and all their faculties directed to imitate him in the
+exertion of his great characteristic attribute. To heighten this
+enthusiasm, the male and female saints of antiquity used to lie promiscuously together in the temples, and honour God by a liberal
+display and general communication of his bounties.4
+Herodotus,
+indeed, excepts the Greeks and Egyptians, and Dionysius of Halicarnassus, the Romans, from this general custom of other nations;
+but to the testimony of the former we may oppose the thousand
+sacred prostitutes kept at each of the temples of Corinth and
+Priap. Carm. 34. Ed Sciappii. 2
+See Plate III, Fig. 3. 3
+Ver. 613. 4
+Herodot. lib. ii.
+OF PRIAPUS 105
+Eryx;1
+and to that of the latter the express words of Juvenal,
+who, though he lived an age, later, lived when the same religion,
+and nearly the same manners, prevailed.2
+Diodorus Siculus also
+tells us, that when the Roman prætors visited Eryx, they laid
+aside their magisterial severity, and honoured the goddess by mixing with her votaries, and indulging themselves in the pleasures
+over which she presided.3
+It appears, too, that the act of generation was a sort of sacrament in the island of Lesbos; for the device
+on its medals (which in the Greek republics had always some
+relation to religion) is as explicit as forms can make it.4
+The
+figures appear indeed to be mystic and allegorical, the male having
+evidently a mixture of the goat in his beard and features, and therefore probably represents Pan, the generative power of the universe
+incorporated in universal matter. The female has all that breadth
+and fulness which characterise the personification of the passive
+power, known by the titles of Rhea, Juno, Ceres, &e.
+When there were such seminaries for female education as those
+of Eryx and Corinth, we need not wonder that the ladies of antiquity should be extremely well instructed in all the practical duties
+of their religion. The stories told of Julia and Messalina show us
+that the Roman ladies were no ways deficient; and yet they were
+as remarkable for their gravity and decency as the Corinthians
+were for their skill and dexterity in adapting themselves to all the
+modes and attitudes which the luxuriant imaginations of experienced votaries have contrived for performing the rites of their
+tutelar goddess.5
-Ptolemies, medals of, 57, 61.
+The reason why these rites were always performed by night
+was the peculiar sanctity attributed to it by the ancients, because
+dreams were then supposed to descend from heaven to instruct and
+Strab. lib. viii. 2 Sat. ix, ver. 24. 4
+See Plate IX, Fig. 8, from one belonging to me. 5
+Philodemi Epigri. Brunk. Analect. vol. ii, p. 85.
+ON THE WORSHIP 106
+forewarn men. The nights, says Hesiod, belong to the blessed
+gods;1
+and the Orphic poet calls night the source of all things
+(pantwn genesij) to denote that productive power, which, as I have
+been told, it really possesses; it being observed that plants and
+animals grow more by night than by day. The ancients extended
+this power much further, and supposed that not only the productions of the earth, but the luminaries of heaven, were nourished
+and sustained by the benign influence of the night. Hence that
+beautiful apostrophe in the “Electra” of Euripides, W nux melaina,
+chusewn astrwn trofe, &c.
+Not only the sacrifices to the generative deities, but in general
+all the religious rites of the Greeks, were of the festive kind. To
+imitate the gods, was, in their opinion, to feast and rejoice, and to
+cultivate the useful and elegant arts, by which we are made
+partakers of their felicity.2
+This was the case with almost all the
+nations of antiquity, except the3
+Egyptians and their reformed
+imitators the Jews,4
+who being governed by a hierarchy, endeavoured to make it awful and venerable to the people by an appearance of rigour and austerity. The people, however, sometimes
+broke through this restraint, and indulged themselves in the more
+pleasing worship of their neighbours, as when they danced and
+feasted before the golden calf which Aaron erected,5
+and devoted
+themselves to the worship of obscene idols, generally supposed to be
+of Priapus, under the reign of Abijam.6
-Ptolemy Philadclphus, 84.
+The Christian religion, being a reformation of the Jewish, rather
+increased than diminished the austerity of its original. On particular
+occasions however it equally abated its rigour, and gave way to
+festivity and mirth, though always with an air of sanctity and
+Erg. ver. 730. 2
+Strabo, lib. x. 3
+Herodot. lib. ii. 4
+See Spences de Leg. Rit. Vet. Hebræor. 5 Exod. ch. xxxii. 6 Reg. c. xv, ver. 13. Ed. Cleric.
+OF PRIAPUS 107
+solemnity. Such were originally the feasts of the Eucharist,
+which, as the word expresses, were meetings of joy and gratulation;
+though, as divines tell us, all of the spiritual kind: but the particular manner in which St. Augustine commands the ladies who
+attended them to wear clean linen,1 seems to infer, that personal as
+well as spiritual matters were thought worthy of attention. To
+those who administer the sacrament in the modern way, it may
+appear of little consequence whether the women received it in clean
+linen or not; but to the good bishop, who was to administer the
+holy kiss, it certainly was of some importance. The holy kiss was
+not only applied as a part of the ceremonial of the Eucharist, but
+also of prayer, at the conclusion of which they welcomed each other
+with this natural sign of love and benevolence.2
+It was upon these
+occasions that they worked themselves up to those fits of rapture
+and enthusiasm, which made them eagerly rush upon destruction in
+the fury of their zeal to obtain the crown of martyrdom.3
+Enthusiasm on one subject naturally produces enthusiasm on another;
+for the human passions, like the strings of an instrument, vibrate to
+the motions of each other: hence paroxysms of love and devotion
+have oftentimes so exactly accorded, as not to have been distinguished
+by the very persons whom they agitated.4
+This was too often the
+case in these meetings of the primitive Christians. The feasts of
+gratulation and love, the agapai and nocturnal vigils, gave too
+flattering opportunities to the passions and appetites of men, to
+continue long, what we are told they were at first, pure exercises of
+devotion. The spiritual raptures and divine ecstasies encouraged
+on these occasions, were often ecstasies of a very different kind, concealed under the garb of devotion; whence the greatest irregularities
+ensued; and it became necessary for the reputation of the church,
+Aug. Serm. clii. 2
+Justin Martyr, Apolog. 3
+Martini Kempii de Osculis Dissert. viii. 4
+See Procèc de la Cadière.
+ON THE WORSHIP 108
+that they should be suppressed, as they afterwards were by the
+decrees of several councils. Their suppression may be considered
+as the final subversion of that part of the ancient religion which I
+have here undertaken to examine; for so long as those nocturnal
+meetings were preserved, it certainly existed, though under other
+names, and in a more solemn dress. The small remain of it preserved
+at Isernia, of which an account has here been given, can scarcely be
+deemed an exception; for its meaning was unknown to those who
+celebrated it; and the obscurity of the place, added to the venerable names of S. Cosimo and Damiano, was all that prevented it
+from being suppressed long ago, as it has been lately, to the great
+dismay of the chaste matrons and pious monks of Isernia. Traces
+and memorials of it seem however to have been preserved, in
+many parts of Christendom, long after the actual celebration of its
+rites ceased. Hence the obscene figures observable upon many of
+our Gothic Cathedrals, and particularly upon the ancient brass
+doors of St. Peter's at Rome, where there are some groups which
+rival the devices on the Lesbian medals.
+It is curious, in looking back through the annals of superstition,
+so degrading to the pride of man, to trace the progress of the
+human mind in different ages, climates, and circumstances, uniformly acting upon the same principles, and to the same ends. The
+sketch here given of the corruptions of the religion of Greece, is an
+exact counterpart of the history of the corruptions of Christianity,
+which began in the pure theism of the eclectic Jews,1
+and by the help
+of inspirations, emanations, and canonizations, expanded itself, by
+degrees, to the vast and unwieldly system which now fills the creed
+of what is commonly called the Catholic Church. In the ancient
+religion, however, the emanations assumed the appearance of moral
+Compare the doctrines of Philo with those taught in the Gospel of St. John, and
+Epistles of St. Paul.
+OF PRIAPUS 109
+virtues and physical attributes, instead of ministering spirits and
+guardian angels; and the canonizations or deifications were bestowed
+upon heroes, legislators, and monarchs, instead of priests, monks,
+and martyrs. There is also this further difference, that among the
+moderns philosophy has improved, as religion has been corrupted;
+whereas, among the ancients, religion and philosophy declined together. The true solar system was taught in the Orphic school, and
+adopted by the Pythagoreans, the next regularly-established sect.
+The Stoics corrupted it a little, by placing the earth in the centre
+of the universe, though they still allowed the sun its superior
+magnitude.1
+At length arose the Epicureans, who confounded it
+entirely, maintaining that the sun was only a small globe of fire, a
+few inches in diameter, and the stars little transitory lights,
+whirled about in the atmosphere of the earth.2
-Purgatory, modern form of purification
+How ill soever adapted the ancient system of emanations was
-by fire, 100.
+to procure eternal happiness, it was certainly extremely well calculated to produce temporal good; for, by the endless multiplication
+of subordinate deities, it effectually excluded two of the greatest
+curses that ever afflicted the human race, dogmatical theology, and
+its consequent religious persecution. Far from supposing that the
+gods known in their own country were the only ones existing, the
+Greeks thought that innumerable emanations of the divine mind
+were diffused through every part of the universe; so that new
+objects of devotion presented themselves wherever they went.
+Every mountain, spring, and river, had its tutelary deity, besides
+the numbers of immortal spirits that were supposed to wander in
+the air, scattering dreams and visions, and superintending the
+affairs of men.
+Brucker, Hist. Crit. Philos. p. ii, lib. ii, c. 9, f. i. 2
+Lucret. lib. v, ver. 565, & seq.
+ON THE WORSHIP 110
+Trij gar murioi eisin epi ctoni pouluboteirh
+Aqanatoi Zenous, fulakej qnhtwn anqrwtwn.
-Puzzuoli, temple of Serapis there, 64,66.
+An adequate knowledge of these they never presumed to think
+attainable, but modestly contented themselves with revering and
+invoking them whenever they felt or wanted their assistance.
+When a shipwrecked mariner was cast upon an unknown coast, he
+immediately offered up his prayers to the gods of the country,
+whoever they were; and joined the inhabitants in whatever rites
+they thought proper to propitiate them with.2
+Impious or prophane rites he never imagined could exist, concluding that all
+expressions of gratitude and submission must be pleasing to the
+gods. Atheism was, indeed, punished at Athens, as the obscene
+ceremonies of the Bacchanalians were at Rome; but both as civil
+crimes against the state; the one tending to weaken the bands of
+society by destroying the sanctity of oaths, and the other to subvert
+that decency and gravity of manners, upon which the Romans so
+much prided themselves. The introduction of strange gods, without permission from the magistrate, was also prohibited in both
+cities; but the restriction extended no farther than the walls, there
+being no other parts of the Roman empire, except Judea, in which
+any kind of impiety or extravagance might not have been maintained with impunity, provided it was maintained merely as a speculative opinion, and not employed as an engine of faction, ambition,
+or oppression. The Romans even carried their condescension so
+far as to enforce the observance of a dogmatical religion, where
+they found it before established; as appears from the conduct of
+their magistrates in Judea, relative to Christ and his apostles; and
+Hesiod. Erga kai 'Hmer, ver. 252. murioi, &c., are always used as indefinites
+by the ancient Greek poets. 2
+See Homer, Odyss. e, ver. 445, & seq. The Greeks seem to have adopted by
+degrees into their own ritual all the rites practised in the neighbouring countries.
+OF PRIAPUS 111
+from what Josephus has related, of a Roman soldier’s being punished
+with death by his commander for insulting the Books of Moses.
+Upon what principle then did they act, when they afterwards persecuted the Christians with so much rancour and cruelty? Perhaps
+it may surprise persons not used to the study of ecclesiastical
+antiquities, to be told (what is nevertheless indisputably true) that
+the Christians were never persecuted on account of the speculative
+opinions of individuals, but either for civil crimes laid to their
+charge, or for withdrawing their allegiance from the state, and
+joining in a federative union dangerous by its constitution, and
+rendered still more dangerous by the intolerant principles of its
+members, who often tumultuously interrupted the public worship,
+and continually railed against the national religion (with which
+both the civil government and military discipline of the Romans
+were inseparably connected), as the certain means of eternal damnation. To break this union, was the great object of Roman policy
+during a long course of years; but the violent means employed
+only tended to cement it closer. Some of the Christians themselves
+indeed, who were addicted to Platonism, took a safer method to
+dissolve it; but they were too few in number to succeed. This was
+by trying to moderate the furious zeal which gave life and vigour
+to the confederacy, and to blend and soften the unyielding temper
+of religion with the mild spirit of philosophy. “We all,”
+said they, “agree in worshipping one supreme God, the Father
+and Preserver of all. While we approach him with purity of
+mind, sincerity of heart, and innocence of manners, forms and
+ceremonies of worship are indifferent; and not less worthy of his
+greatness, for being varied and diversified according to the various
+customs and opinions of men. Had it been his will that all should
+have worshipped him in the same mode, he would have given to
+all the same inclinations and conceptions: but he has wisely ordered
+it otherwise, that piety and virtue might increase by an honest
+ON THE WORSHIP 112
+emulation of religions, as industry in trade, or activity in a race,
+from the mutual emulation of the candidates for wealth and
+honour.”1
+This was too liberal and extensive a plan, to meet the
+approbation of a greedy and ambitious clergy, whose object was
+to establish a hierarchy for themselves, rather than to procure
+happiness for others. It was accordingly condemned with vehemence and success by Ambrosius, Prudentius, and other orthodox
+leaders of the age.
+It was from the ancient system of emanations, that the general
+hospitality which characterised the manners of the heroic ages, and
+which is so beautifully represented in the Odyssey of Homer, in a
+great measure arose. The poor, and the stranger who wandered in
+the street and begged at the door, were supposed to be animated
+by a portion of the same divine spirit which sustained the great
+and powerful. They are all from Jupiter, says Homer, and a small
+gift is acceptable.
+This benevolent sentiment has been compared
+by the English commentators to that of the Jewish moralist,
+who says, that he who giveth to the poor lendeth to the Lord, who
+will repay him tenfold.
+But it is scarcely possible for anything to be
+more different: Homer promises no other reward for charity than
+the benevolence of the action itself; but the Israelite holds out that
+which has always been the great motive for charity among his
+countrymen—the prospect of being repaid ten-fold. They are
+always ready to show their bounty upon such incentives, if they
+can be persuaded that they are founded upon good security. It
+was the opinion, however, of many of the most learned among the
+ancients, that the principles of the Jewish religion were originally
+the same as those of the Greek, and that their God was no other
+than the creator and generator Bacchus,4
+who, being viewed
+Symmach. Ep. 10 & 61. Themist. Orat. ad Imperat. 2 Odyss. z, ver. 207. 3
+See Pope’s Odyssey. 4
+Tacit. Histor. lib. v.
+OF PRIAPUS 113
+through the gloomy medium of the hierarchy, appeared to them a
+jealous and irascible God; and so gave a more austere and
+unsociable form to their devotion. The golden vine preserved in
+the temple at Jerusalem,1
+and the taurine forms of the cherubs,
+between which the Deity was supposed to reside, were symbols so
+exactly similar to their own, that they naturally concluded them
+meant to express the same ideas; especially as there was nothing
+in the avowed principles of the Jewish worship to which they could
+be applied. The ineffable name also, which, according to the
+Massorethic punctuation, is pronounced Jehovah, was anciently
+pronounced Jaho, Iaw, or Ieuw,
+which was a title of Bacchus, the
+nocturnal sun;3
+as was also Sabazius, or Sabadius,4
+which is the
+same word as Sabbaoth, one of the scriptural titles of the true God,
+only adapted to the pronunciation of a more polished language.
+The Latin name for the Supreme God belongs also to the same
+root; Iu-pathr, Jupiter, signifying Father Ieu, though written after
+the ancient manner, without the dipthong, which was not in use
+for many ages after the Greek colonies settled in Latium, and introduced the Arcadian alphabet. We find St. Paul likewise acknowledging, that the Jupiter of the poet Aratus was the God whom he
+adored;5
+and Clemens of Alexandria explains St. Peter’s prohibition of worshipping after the manner of the Greeks, not to
+mean a prohibition of worshipping the same God, but merely of
+the corrupt mode in which he was then worshipped.6
-Pytho, the ferpent dellroyed bv Apollo,
-.
+The vine and goblet of Bacchus are also the usual devices upon the Jewish and
+Samaritan coins, which were struck under the Asmonean kings. 2
+Hieron. Comm. in Psalm. viii. Diodor. Sic. lib. i. Philo-Bybl. ap. Euseb. Prep.
+Evang. lib. 1, c. ix. 3
+Macrob. Sat. lib. 1, c. xviii. 4
+Ibid. 5 Act. Apost. c. xvii, ver. 28. 6
+Stromat. lib. v.
+FINIS.
-Robin Goodfellow, 153.
+==ON THE WORSHIP OF THE GENERATIVE POWERS DURING THE MIDDLE AGES OF WESTERN EUROPE==
-Roman worfliip of Priapus, 118.
+RICHARD PAYNE KNIGHT, has written with great
+learning on the origin and history of the worship of
+Priapus among the ancients. This worship, which
+was but a part of that of the generative powers,
+appears to have been the most ancient of the superstitions of the human race,1
+has prevailed more or less among
+all known peoples before the introduction of Christianity, and,
+singularly enough, so deeply it seems to have been implanted in
+human nature, that even the promulgation of the Gospel did not
+abolish it, for it continued to exist, accepted and often encouraged
+by the mediæval clergy. The occasion of Payne Knight’s work
+There appears to be a chance of this worship being claimed for a very early
+period in the history of the human race. It has been recently stated in the “Moniteur,” that, in the province of Venice, in Italy, excavations in a bone-cave have
+brought to light, beneath ten feet of stalagmite, bones of animals, mostly post-tertiary,
+of the usual description found in such places, flint implements, with a needle of bone
+having an eye and point, and a plate of an argillaceous compound, on which was
+scratched a rude drawing of a phallus.—Moniteur, Jan. 1865.
+r
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+was the discovery that this worship continued to prevail in his time,
+in a very remarkable form, at Isernia in the kingdom of Naples, a
+full description of which will be found in his work. The town of
+Isernia was destroyed, with a great portion of its inhabitants, in the
+terrible earthquake which so fearfully destroyed the kingdom of
+Naples on the 26th of July, 1805, nineteen years after the appearance of the book alluded to. Perhaps with it perished the last trace
+of the worship of Priapus in this particular form; but Payne Knight
+was not acquainted with the fact that this superstition, in a variety
+of forms, prevailed throughout Southern and Western Europe
+largely during the Middle Ages, and that in some parts it is hardly
+extinct at the present day; and, as its effects were felt to a more
+considerable extent than people in general suppose in the most
+intimate and important relations of society, whatever we can do to
+thrown light upon its mediæval existence, though not an agreeable
+subject, cannot but form an important and valuable contribution to
+the better knowledge of mediæval history. Many interesting facts
+relating to this subject were brought together in a volume published
+in Paris by Monsieur [[J. A. Dulaure]], under the title, [[Des Divinities Génératrices chez les Anciens et les Modernes]], forming part of an [[Histoire Abrigée des differns Cultes]], by the same author.1
-Sabbath of the witches, modern form of
+This book, however, is still very imperfect; and it is the design of the
-Priapic fertivals, 206, et feq.; fecret
+following pages to give, with the most interesting of the facts
-praftices at, defcribed by Bodinus,
+already collected by Dulaure, other facts and a description and
-IO — 212 ; defcribed by De Lancre,
+explanation of monuments, which tend to throw a greater and
-, et feq.; identity with rites of the
+more general light on this curious subject.
-Knights Templars, 246.
+The mediæval worship of the generative powers, represented by
+the generative organs, was derived from two distinct sources. In
+the first place, Rome invariably carried into the provinces she had
-St. Auguiline, commands to ladies attend-
+The second edition of this work, published in 1825, is by much the best, and is
-ing Chrillian feilivals, 107 ; on the
+considerably enlarged from the first.
-Liberalia, 129.
-St. Cofmo, modern Italian Priapus, ac-
+conquered her own institutions and forms of worship, and established
-count of the feall of, at Ifernia, 5, 9.
+them permanently. In exploring the antiquities of these provinces,
+we are astonished at the abundant monuments of the worship of
+Priapus in all the shapes and with all the attributes and accompaniments, with which we are already so well acquainted in Rome and
+Italy. Among the remains of Roman civilization in Gaul, we
+find statues or statuettes of Priapus, altars dedicated to him, the
+gardens and fields entrusted to his care, and the phallus, or male
+member, figured in a variety of shapes as a protecting power against
+evil influences of various kinds. With this idea the well-known
+figure was sculptured on the walls of public buildings, placed in
+conspicuous places in the interior of the house, worn as an ornament by women, and suspended as an amulet to the necks of children. Erotic scenes of the most extravagant description covered
+vessels of metal, earthenware, and glass, intended, on doubt, for
+festivals and usages more or less connected with the worship of the
+principle of fecundity.
+At Aix in Provence there was found, on or near the site of the
+ancient baths, to which it had no doubt some relation, an enormous
+phallus, encircled with garlands, sculptured in white marble. At
+Le Chatelet, in Champagne, on the site of a Roman town, a colossal
+phallus was also found. Similar objects in bronze, and of smaller
+dimensions, are so common, that explorations are seldom carried on
+upon a Roman site in which they are not found, and examples of
+such objects abound in the museums, public or private, of Roman
+antiquities. The phallic worship appears to have flourished especially
+at Nemausus, now represented by the city of NÓmes in the south of
+France, where the symbol of this worship appeared in sculpture on
+the walls of its amphitheatre and on other buildings, in forms some
+of which we can hardly help regarding as fanciful, or even playful.
+Some of the more remarkable of these are figured in our plates,
+XXV and XXVI.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+The first of these,1
+is the figure of a double phallus. It is sculptured on the lintel of one of the vomitories, or issues, of the second
+range of seats of the Roman amphitheatre, near the entrance-gate
+which looks to the south. The double and the triple phallus are
+very common among the small Roman bronzes, which appear to
+have served as amulets and for other similar purposes. In the latter,
+one phallus usually serves as the body, and is furnished with legs,
+generally those of the goat; a second occupies the usual place of
+this organ; and a third appears in that of a tail. On a pilaster of
+the amphitheatre of NÓmes we see a triple phallus of this description,2
+with goat’s legs and feet. A small bell is suspended to the
+smaller phallus in front; and the larger organ which forms the
+body is furnished with wings. The picture is completed by the
+introduction of three birds, two of which are pecking the
+unveiled head of the principal phallus, while the third is holding
+down the tail with its foot.
+Several examples of these triple phalli occur in the Musée Secret
+of the antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii. In the examples
+figured in that work,the hind part of the main phallus assumes clearly
+the form of a dog;3
+and to most of them are attached small bells, the
+explanation of which appears as yet to be very unsatisfactory. The
+wings also are common attributes of the phallus in these monuments.
+Plutarch is quoted as an authority for the explanation of the triple
+phallus as intended to signify multiplication of its productive
+faculty.4
-St. Epiphanius, account of the Gnoftics,
+On the top of another pilaster of the amphitheatre at NÓmes, to
+the right of the principal western entrance, was a bas-relief, also
+Plate XXV, Fig. 1. 2
+See our Plate XXV, Fig. 2. 3
+The writer of the text to the Musée Secret supposes that this circumstance has
+some reference to the double meaning given to the Greek word k⁄wn, which was used
+for the generative organ. 4
+See Auguste Pelet, Catalogue de Musée de Nimes.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 121
+representing a triple phallus, with legs of dog, and winged, but
+with a further accompaniment.1
+A female, dressed in the Roman
+stola, stands upon the phallus forming the tail, and holds both it
+and the one forming the body with a bridle.2
+This bas-relief was
+taken down in 1829, and is now preserved in the museum of NÓmes.
+A still more remarkable monument of this class was found in
+the course of excavations made at NÓmes in 1825. It is engraved in our plate XXVI, and represents a bird, apparently intended for a vulture, with spread wings and phallic tail, sitting on
+four eggs, each of which is designed, no doubt, to represent the
+female organ. The local antiquarians give to this, as to the other
+similar objects, an emblematical signification; but it may perhaps
+be more rightly regarded as a playful conception of the imagination. A similar design, with some modifications, occurs not
+unfrequently among Gallo-Roman antiquities. We have engraved
+a figure of the triple phallus governed, or guided, by the female,3
--
+from a small bronze plate, on which it appears in bas-relief;
-St. Fiacre, chair of, 142.
+it is now preserved in a private collection in London, with a
-St. Foutin, French Priapus of the middle
+duplicate, which appears to have been cast from the same
+mould, though the plate is cut through, and they were evidently
+intended for suspension from the neck. Both came from the collection of M. Baudot of Dijon. The lady here bridles only the
+principal phallus; the legs are, as in the monument last described,
+those of a bird, and it is standing upon three eggs, apple-formed,
+and representing the organ of the other sex.
+Plate XXV, Fig. 3. 2
+A French antiquary has given an emblematical interpretation of this figure.
+“Perhaps,” he says, “it signifies the empire of woman extending over the three ages
+of man; on youth, characterized by the bell; on the age of vigour, the ardour of
+which she restrains; and on old age, which she sustains.” This is perhaps more
+ingenious than convincing. 3
+See our Plate XXXVI, Fig 3.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+In regard to this last-mentioned object, another very remarkable
+monument of what appears at NÓmes to have been by no means a
+secret worship, was found there during some excavations on the
+site of the Roman baths. It is a squared mass of stone, the four
+sides of which, like the one represented in our engraving, are
+covered with similar figures of the sexual characteristics of the
+female, arranged in rows.1
+It has evidently served as a base, probably to a statue, or possibly to an altar. This curious monument
+is now preserved in the museum at NÓmes.
+As NÓmes was evidently a centre of this Priapic worship in the
+south of Gaul, so there appear to have been, perhaps lesser, centres in
+other parts, and we may trace it to the northern extremities of the
+Roman province, even to the other side of the Rhine. On the site
+of Roman settlements near Xanten, in lower Hesse, a large quantity
+of pottery and other objects have been found, of a character to
+leave no doubt as to the prevalence of this worship in that quarter.2
+But the Roman settlement which occupied the site of the modern
+city of Antwerp appears to have been one of the most remarkable
+seats of the worship of Priapus in the north of Gaul, and it
+continued to exist there till a comparatively modern period.
+When we cross over to Britain we find this worship established
+no less firmly and extensively in that island. Statuettes of Priapus,
+phallic bronzes, pottery covered with obscene pictures, are found
+wherever there are any extensive remains of Roman occupation, as
+our antiquaries know well. The numerous phallic figures in bronze,
+found in England, are perfectly identical in character with those
+See Plate XXV, Fig. 4. 2
+Two Roman towns, Castra Vetera and Colonia Trajana, stood within no great
+distance of Xanten, and Ph. Houben, a “notarius” of this town, formed a private
+museum of antiquities found there, and in 1839, published engravings of them, with a
+text by Dr. Franz Fiedler. The erotic objects form a separate work under the title,
+Antike erotische Bildwerke in Houbens Antiquarium zu Xanten.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 123
+which occur in France and Italy. In illustration of this fact, we
+give two examples of the triple phallus, which appears to have
+been, perhaps in accordance with the explanation given by Plutarch, an amulet in great favour. The first was found in London in
+.
+As in the examples found on the continent, a principal
+phallus forms the body, having the hinder parts of apparently a
+dog, with wings of a peculiar form, perhaps intended for those of
+a dragon. Several small rings are attached, no doubt for the purpose of suspending bells. Our second example2
+was found at York in
+. It displays a peculiarity of action which, in this case at least,
+leaves no doubt that the hinder parts were intended to be those of
+a dog. All antiquaries of any experience know the great number
+of obscene subjects which are met with among the fine red pottery
+which is termed Samian ware, found so abundantly in all Roman
+sites in our island. They represent erotic scenes in every sense of
+the word, promiscuous intercourse between the sexes, even vices
+contrary to nature, with figures of Priapus, and phallic emblems.
+We give as an example one of the less exceptional scenes of this
+description, copied from a Samian bowl found in Cannon Street,
+London, in 1838.
+The lamps, chiefly of earthenware, form another class of objects on which such scenes are frequently
+portrayed, and to which broadly phallic forms are sometimes
+given. One of these phallic lamps is here represented, on the
+same plate with the bowl of Samian ware just described.4
+It is
+hardly necessary to explain the subject represented by this lamp,
+which was found in London a few years ago.
+All this obscene pottery must be regarded, no doubt, as a proof
+of a great amount of dissoluteness in the morals of Roman society
+in Britain, but it is evidence of something more. It is hardly likely
+See Plate XXVII, Fig. 3. 2
+Plate XXVII, Fig. 4. 3
+Plate XXVII, Fig. 1. 4
+Plate XXVII, Fig. 2.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+that such objects could be in common use at the family table; and
+we are led to suppose that they were employed on special
+occasions, festivals, perhaps, connected with the licentious
+worship of which we are speaking, and such as those described in
+such strong terms in the satires of Juvenal. But monuments are
+found in this island which bear still more direct evidence to the
+existence of the worship of Priapus during the Roman period.
+In the parish of Adel, in Yorkshire, are considerable traces of a
+Roman station, which appears to have been a place of some importance, and which certainly possessed temples. On the site of these
+were found altars, and other stones with inscriptions, which, after
+being long preserved in an outhouse of the rectory at Adel, are now
+deposited in the museum of the Philosophical Society at Leeds. One
+of the most curious of these, which we have here engraved for the
+first time,1
+appears to be a votive offering to Priapus, who seems to
+be addressed under the name of Mentula. It is a rough, unsquared
+stone, which has been selected for possessing a tolerably flat and
+smooth surface; and the figure and letters were made with a rude
+implement, and by an unskilled workman, who was evidently
+unable to cut a continuous smooth line. The middle of the stone
+is occupied by the figure of a phallus, and round it we read very
+distinctly the words:—
+PRIMINVS MENTLA.
+The author of the inscription may have been an ignorant Latinist
+as well as unskilful sculptor, and perhaps mistook the ligulated
+letters, overlooking the limb which would make the L stand for
+VL, and giving A for AE. It would then read Priminus Mentulæ,
+Priminus to Mentula (the object personified), and it may have
+Plate XXVIII, Fig 1.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 125
+been a votive offering from some individual named Priminus, who
+was in want of an heir, or laboured under some sexual infirmity, to
+Priapus, whose assistance he sought. Another interpretation has
+been suggested, on the supposition that Mentla, or perhaps (the L
+being designed for IL ligulated) Mentila or Mentilla, might be the
+name of a female joined with her husband in this offering for their
+common good. The former of these interpretations seems, however, to be the most probable. This monument belongs probably
+to rather a late date in the Roman period. Another ex voto of the
+same class was found at Westerwood Fort in Scotland, one of the
+Roman fortresses on the wall of Antoninus. This monument1
+consisted of a square slab of stone, in the middle of which was a
+phallus, and under it the words EX : VOTO. Above were the
+letters XAN, meaning, perhaps, that the offerer had laboured ten
+years under the grievance of which he sought redress from Priapus. We may point also to a phallic monument of another kind,
+which reminds us in some degree of the finer sculptures at NÓmes.
+At Housesteads, in Northumberland, are seen the extensive and
+imposing remains of one of the Roman stations on the Wall of
+Hadrian named Borcovicus. The walls of the entrance gateways
+are especially well preserved, and on that of the guard-house
+attached to one of them, is a slab of stone presenting the figure
+given in our plate XXVIII, fig. 3. It is a rude delineation of a
+phallus with the legs of a fowl, and reminds us of some of the
+monuments in France and Italy previously described. These phallic images were no doubt exposed in such situations because they
+were supposed to exercise a protective influence over the locality, or
+See Plate XXVIII, Fig. 1. Horseley, who engraved this monument in his
+Brittania Romana, Scotland, fig. xix. has inserted a fig-leaf in place of the phallus,
+but with slight indications of the form of the object it was intended to conceal. We
+are not aware if this monument is still in existence.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+over the building, and the individual who looked upon the figure
+believed himself safe, during that day at least, from evil
+influences of various descriptions. They are found, we believe, in
+some other Roman stations, in a similar position to that of the
+phallus at Housesteads.
+Although the worship of which we are treating prevailed so extensively among the Romans and throughout the Roman provinces, it
+was far from being peculiar to them, for the same superstition formed
+part of the religion of the Teutonic race, and was carried with that
+race wherever it settled. The Teutonic god, who answered to the
+Roman Priapus, was called, in Anglo-Saxon, Fréa, in Old Norse,
+Freyr, and, in Old German, Fro. Among the Swedes, the principal seat of his worship was at Upsala, and Adam of Bremen, who
+lived in the eleventh century, when paganism still retained its hold
+on the north, in describing the forms under which the gods were
+there represented, tells us that “the third of the gods at Upsala
+was Fricco [another form of the name], who bestowed on mortals
+peace and pleasure, and who was represented with an immense priapus,” and he adds that, at the celebration of marriages, they offered
+sacrifice to Fricco.1
+This god, indeed, like the Priapus of the
+Romans, presided over generation and fertility, either of animal
+life or of the produce of the earth, and was invoked accordingly.
+Ihre, in his Glossarium Sueco-Gothicum, mentions objects of antiquity
+dug up in the north of Europe, which clearly prove the prevalence
+of phallic rites. To this deity, or to his female representative of
+the same name, the Teutonic Venus, Friga, the fifth day of the week
+was dedicated, and on that account received its name, in AngloSaxon, Frige-dæg, and in modern English, Friday. Frigedæg appears
+“Tertius est Fricco, pacem voluptatemque larigens mortalibus, cuius etiam simulachrum fingunt ingenti priopo; si nuptiæ celebrandæ sunt, Friccioni [sacrificia offerunt.]” —Adam Bremena, De Situ Daniæ, p. 23, ed. 1629.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 127
+to have been a name sometimes given in Anglo-Saxon to Frea himself; in a charter of the date of 959, printed in Kemble's Codex Diplomaticus, one of the marks on a boundary-line of land is FrigedægesTréow, meaning apparently Frea’s tree, which was probably a tree
+dedicated to that god, and the scene of Priapic rites. There is a
+place called Fridaythorpe in Yorkshire, and Friston, a name which
+occurs in several parts of England, means, probably, the stone of
+Frea or of Friga; and we seem justified in supposing that this and
+other names commencing with the syllable Fri or Fry, are so many
+monuments of the existence of the phallic worship among our
+Anglo-Saxon forefathers. Two customs cherished among our old
+English popular superstitions are believed to have been derived
+from this worship, the need-fires, and the procession of the boar’s
+head at the Christmas festivities. The former were fires kindled
+at the period of the summer solstice, and were certainly in their
+origin religious observances. The boar was intimately connected
+with the worship of Frea.1
-ages, 139, 143-
+From our want of a more intimate knowledge of this part of Teutonic paganism, we are unable to decide whether some of the superstitious practices of the middle ages were derived from the Romans or
-St. John's eve, culloms on, 164 — 166,
+from the peoples who established themselves in the provinces after the
+overthrow of the western empire; but in Italy and in Gaul (the
+southern parts especially), where the Roman institutions and sentiments continued with more persistence to hold their influence, it
+was the phallic worship of the Romans which, gradually modified
+in its forms, was thus preserved, and, though the records of such a
+worship are naturally accidental and imperfect, yet we can distinctly
+trace its existence to a very late period. Thus, we have clear evidence that the phallus, in its simple form, was worshipped by
+the mediæval Christians, and that the forms of Christian prayer
+See Grimm’s Deutsche Mythologie, p. 139, first edition.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+and invocation were actually addressed to it. One name of the
+male organ among the Romans was fascinum; it was under this
+name that it was suspended round the necks of women and
+children, and under this name especially it was supposed to possess
+magical influences which not only acted upon others, but defended those who were under its protection from magical or other
+evil influences from without. Hence are derived the words to fascinate and fascination. The word is used by Horace, and especially
+in the epigrams of the Priapeia, which may be considered in some
+degree as the exponents of the popular creed in these matters.
+Thus we have in one of these epigrams the lines,—
+“ Placet, Priape? qui sub arboris coma
+Soles, sacrum revincte pampino caput,
+Ruber sedere cum rebente fascino.”
+Priap. Carm. lxxxiv.
+It seems probable that this had become the popular, or vulgar, word
+for the phallus, at least taken in this point of view, at the close of
+the Roman power, for the first very distinct traces of its worship
+which we find afterwards introduce it under this name, which subsequently took in French the form fesne. The mediæval worship of
+the fascinum is first spoken of in the eighth century. An ecclesiastical tract entitled Judicia Sacerdotalia de Criminibus,1
+which is
+ascribed to the end of that century, directs that “if any one has performed incantation to the fascinum, or any incantation whatever,
+except any one who chaunts the Creed or the Lord’s Prayer, let him
+do penance on bread and water during three lents.” An act of the
+Martène and Durand, Veterum Scriptorum Amplissima Collectio, tom. vii, p. 35.
+Si quis præcantaverit ad fascinum, vel qualescumque præcantiones except symbolum
+sunctum aut orationum domincam qui cantat et cui cantatur, tres quadrigesimas in
+pane et aqua púniteat.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 129
+council of Ch‚lons, held in the ninth century, prohibits the same
+practice almost in the same words; and Burchardus repeats it
+again in the twelfth century,1
+a proof of the continued existence
+of this worship. That it was in full force long after this is proved
+by the statutes of the synod of Mans, held in 1247, which enjoin
+similarly the punishment for him “who has sinned to the fascinum,
+or has performed any incantations, except the creed, the pater
+noster, or other canonical prayer.”2
+This same provision was
+adopted and renewed in the statutes of the synod of Tours, held in
+, in which, as they were published in French, the Latin
+fascinum is represented by the French fesne. The fascinum to
+which such worship was directed must have been something more
+than a small amulet.
+This brings us to the close of the fourteenth century, and shows
+us how long the outward worship of the generative powers, represented by their organs, continued to exist in Western Europe to
+such a point as to engage the attention of ecclesiastical synods.
+During the previous century facts occurred in our own island illustrating still more curiously the continuous existence of the worship
+of Priapus, and that under circumstances which remind us altogether of the details of the phallic worship under the Romans. It
+will be remembered that one great object of this worship was to
+obtain fertility either in animals or in the ground, for Priapus was
+the god of the horticulturist and the agriculturist. St. Augustine,
+declaiming against the open obscenities of the Roman festival of the
+Liberalia, informs us that an enormous phallus was carried in a
+D. Burchardi Decreturum libri, lib. X. c. 49. 2
+Martene et Durand, Amplissima Collectio Veterum Scriptorum, tom. vii. col. 1377.
+Si peccaverit ad fascinum, vel qualescumque præcantiones fecerit, excepto symbolo
+et oratione dominica, vel alia oratione canonica, et qui cantat, et cui cantatur, tres
+quadragesimas púniteat.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+magnificent chariot into the middle of the public place of the
+town with great ceremony, where the most respectable matron advanced and placed a garland of flowers “on this obscene figure;”
+and this, he says: was done to appease the god, and “to obtain an
+abundant harvest, and remove enchantments from the land.”1
+We
+learn from the Chronicle of Lanercost that, in the year 1268, a
+pestilence prevailed in the Scottish district of Lothian, which was
+very fatal to the cattle, to counteract which some of the clergy
+—bestiales, habitu claustrales, non animo—taught the peasantry
+to make a fire by the rubbing together of wood (this was the needfire), and to raise up the image of Priapus, as a means of saving
+their cattle. “When a lay member of the Cistercian order at
+Fenton had done this before the door of the hall, and had sprinkled
+the cattle with a dog’s testicles dipped in holy water, and complaint
+had been made of this crime of idolatry against the lord of the
+manor, the latter pleaded in his defence that all this was done without his knowledge and in his absence, but added, ëwhile until the
+present month of June other people’s cattle fell ill and died, mine
+were always sound, but now every day two or three of mine die,
+so that I have few left for the labours of the field.’”2
+Fourteen
+years after this, in 1282, an event of the same kind occurred at Inver1
+S. Augustini De Civit. Dei, lib. vii, c. 21. 2
+Pro fidei divinæ integritate servanda recolat lector quo, cum hoc anno in
+Laodonia pestis grassaretur in pecudes armenti, quam vocant usitare lungessouth, quidam bestiales, habitu claustrales non animo, docebant idiotas patriæ ignem constrictione de lignis educere, et simulacrum Priapi statuere, et per hæc bestiis succurrere.
+Quod cum unus laicus Cisterciensis apus Fontone fecisset ante atrium aulæ. ac intinctic testiculis canis in aquam benedictam super animalia sparsisset; ac pro invento
+facinore idolatriæ dominus villæ a quodam fideli argueretur, ille pro sua innocentia
+obtendebat, quo iso nesciente et absente fuerant hæc omnia perpetrata, et adjecit, “et
+cum ad usque hunc mensum Junius aliorum animalia languerent et deficerent, mea
+semper sana erant, nunc vero quotidie mihi moriuntar duo vel tria, ita quod agriculmi
+pauca supersunt.”—Chron. de Lanercost. ed. Stevenson, p. 85.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 131
+keithing, in the present county of Fife in Scotland. The cause of
+the following proceedings is not stated, but it was probably the
+same as that for which the cistercian of Lothian had recourse to the
+worship of Priapus. In the Easter week of the year just stated
+(March 29-April 5), a parish priest of Inverkeithing, named John,
+performed the rites of Priapus, by collecting the young girls of
+the town, and making them dance round the figure of this god;
+without any regard for the sex of these worshippers, he carried a
+wooden image of the male members of generation before them in
+the dance, and himself dancing with them, he accompanied their songs
+with movements in accordance, and urged them to licentious actions
+by his no less licentious language. The more modest part of those
+who were present felt scandalized by these proceedings, and expostulated with the priest, but he treated their words with contempt,
+and only gave utterance to coarser obscenities. He was cited before
+his bishop, defended himself upon the common usage of the country, and was allowed to retain his benefice; but he must have
+been rather a worldly priest, after the style of the middle ages, for
+a year afterwards he was killed in a vulgar brawl.1
+The practice of placing the figure of a phallus on the walls of
+buildings, derived, as we have seen, from the Romans, prevailed
+also in the middle ages, and the buildings especially placed under
+the influence of this symbol were churches. It was believed to be
+Insuper hoc tempore apud Inverchethin, in hebdomeda paschæ (March 29—
+April 5)m sacerdos parochialis, nomine Johannes, Priapi prophana parans, congregatis ex villa puellulis, cogebat eas, choreis factis, Libero patri circuire; ut ille
+feminas in exercitu habuit, sic iste, procacitatis causa, membra humana virtuti feminariæ servientia super afferem artificiata ante talem choream præferebat, et ipse
+luxuriam incitabat. Hi qui honesto matrimonio honorem deferebant, iam insolenti
+officio, licet reverentur personam, scandalizabantur propter gradus eminentiam. Si
+quis ei seorsum ex amore correptionis sermonem inferres, fiabat deterior, et convictis
+eos impetebat.—Chron. de Lancercost, ed. Stevenson, p. 109.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+a protection against enchantments of all kinds, of which the people
+of those times lived in constant terror, and this protection extended
+over the place and over those who frequented it, provided they cast
+a confiding look upon the image. Such images were seen, usually
+upon the portals, on the cathedral church of Toulouse, on more
+than one church in Bourdeaux, and on various other churches in
+France, but, at the time of the revolution, they were often destroyed
+as marks only of the depravity of the clergy. Dulaure tells us that
+an artist, whom he knew, but whose name he has not given, had
+made drawings of a number of these figures which he had met
+with in such situations.1
+A Christian saint exercised some of the
+qualities thus deputed to Priapus; the image of St. Nicholas was
+usually painted in a conspicuous position in the church, for it was
+believed that whoever had looked upon it was protected against
+enchantments, and especially against that great object of popular
+terror, the evil eye, during the rest of the day.
+It is a singular fact that in Ireland it was the female organ which
+was shown in this position of protector upon the churches, and the
+elaborate though rude manner in which these figures were sculptured, show that they were considered as objects of great importance. They represented a female exposing herself to view in
+the most unequivocal manner, and are carved on a block which appears
+to have served as the key-stone to the arch of the door-way of the
+church, where they were presented to the gaze of all who entered.
+They appear to have been found principally in the very old
+churches, and have been mostly taken down, so that they are only
+found among the ruins. People have given them the name of
+He adds in a note: — “Les dessins de cet artiste, destinés ‡ l’Académie des
+Belles Lettres, sont passés, on ne fait comment, entre les mains d’un particulier qui
+en prive le public.”—J A. [[Dulaure]], Histoire de différens Cultes, tom. ii. p. 251,
+vo, 1825.
+[[Shelah-na-Gig]], which, we are told, means in Irish Julian the Giddy,
+and is simply a term for an immodest woman; but it is well understood that they were intended as protecting charms against the fascination of the evil eye. We have given copies of all the examples
+yet known in our plates XXIX and XXX. The first of these
+was
+found in an old church at Rochestown, in the county of Tipperary,
+where it had long been known among the people of the neighbourhood by the name given above. It was placed in the arch over the
+doorway, but has since been taken away. Our second example of
+the Shelah-na-Gig2
+was taken from an old church lately pulled
+down in the county Cavan, and is now preserved in the museum
+of the Society of Antiquaries of Dublin. The third3
+was found
+at Ballinahend Castle, also in the county of Tipperary; and the
+fourth4
+is preserved in the museum at Dublin, but we are not informed from whence it was obtained. The next,5
+which is also now
+preserved in the Dublin Museum, was taken from the old church on
+the White Island, in Lough Erne, county Fermanagh. This church
+is supposed by the Irish antiquaries to be a structure of very great
+antiquity, for some of them would carry its date as far back as the
+seventh century, but this is probably an exaggeration. The one
+which follows6
+was furnished by an old church pulled down by order
+of the ecclesiastical commissioners, and it was presented to the museum
+at Dublin, by the late Dean Dawson. Our last example7
+was formerly in the possession of Sir Benjamin Chapman, Bart., of Killoa
+Castle, Westmeath, and is now in a private collection in London.
+It was found in 1859 at Chloran, in a field on Sir Benjamin's estate
+known by the name of the “Old Town,” from whence stones had
+Plate XXIX, Fig. 1. 2
+Plate XXIX, Fig. 2. 3
+Plate XXIX, Fig. 3. 4
+Plate XXIX, Fig. 4. 5
+Plate XXX, Fig. 1. 6
+Plate XXX, Fig. 2. 7
+Plate XXX, Fig. 3.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+been removed at previous periods, though there are now very small
+remains of building. This stone was found at a depth of about
+five feet from the surface, which shows that the building, a church
+no doubt, must have fallen into ruin a long time ago. Contiguous
+to this field, and at a distance of about two hundred yards from the
+spot where the Shelah-na-Gig was found, there is an abandoned
+churchyard, separated from the Old Town field only by a loose
+stone wall.
-.
+The belief in the salutary power of this image appears to be a superstition of great antiquity, and to exist still among all peoples who have not reached a certain degree of civilization. The universality of this superstition leads us to think that Herodotus may have erred in the explanation he has given of certain rather remarkable monuments of a remote antiquity. He tells us that Sesostris, king of Egypt, raised columns in some of the countries he conquered, on which he caused to be figured the female organ of generation as a mark of contempt for those who had submitted easily. 28 May not these columns have been intended, if we knew the truth, as protections for the people of the district in which they stood, and placed in the position where they could most conveniently been seen? This superstitious sentiment may also offer the true explanation of an incident which is said to have been represented in the mysteries of Eleusis. [[Ceres]], wandering over the earth in search of her daughter Proserpine, and overcome with grief for her loss, arrived at the hut of an Athenian peasant woman named [[Baubo]], who received her hospitably, and offered her to drink the refreshing mixture which the Greeks call [[Cyceon]] (κυκεων). The goddess rejected the offered kindness, and refused
-St. Nicholas, fuperilition regarding, 132.
-Saints, names of fcveral phallic, 141.
-Scottifh worfhip of Priapus in the 13th
-century, 130, 13 ••
+Herodotus, Euterpe, cap. 102. Diodorus Siculus adds to the account given by Herodotus, that Sesostris also erected columns bearing the male generative organ as a compliment to the peoples who had defended themselves bravely.
-Scrat, German fpirit of the woods, 151.
-Scriptural emblems, 86.
-Sefts of the middle ages, 172, et feq.
-Serapis, temple of, 64.
-Serpent, fymbol of life and vigour, 21 ;
-worfhipped by Egyptians, 32.
+all consolation. Baubo, in her distress, bethought her of another expedient to allay the grief of her guest. She relieved her sexual organs of that outward sign which is the evidence of puberty, and then presented them to the view of Ceres, who, at the sight, laughed, forgot her sorrows, and drank the cyceon. 29 The prevailing belief in the beneficial influence of this sight, rather than a mere pleasantry, seems to afford the best explanation of this story; and the same superstition is no doubt embodied in an old mediæval story which we give in a note as it is told in that celebrated book of the sixteenth century [[Le Moyen de Parvenir]].
-Shakefpeare, ufe of the phrafe "the fig
-of Spain," 150.
+This superstition which, as shown by the [[Shelah-na-Gigs]] of the Irish churches, prevailed largely in the middle ages, explains another class of antiquities which are not uncommon. These are small figures of nude females exposing themselves in exactly the same manner as in the sculptures on the churches in Ireland just alluded to. Such figures are found not only among Roman, Greek, and Egyptian antiquities, but among every people who had any knowledge of art, from the aborigines of America to the far more civilized
+This story is told by the two Christian Fathers, Arnobius, Adversus Gentes, lib.
+v. c. 5, and Clemens Alexandrinus Protrepticus, p. 17, ed. Oxon. 1715. The latter
+writer merely states that Baubo exposed her parts to the view of the goddess, without
+the incident of preparation mentioned by Arnobius.
+Hermès. Attendez. Etant en fiançailles, il vouloit prendre le cas de sa fiancée: elle ne le vouloit pas; il faisoit le malade, & elle lui demandoit: qu'y a-t-il, mon ami? Hélas! ma mie, je suis si malade, que je n'en puis plus; je mourrai, si je ne vois ton cas. Vraiment voire, dit-elle. Hélas! oui, si je l'avois vu, je guérirois. Elle ne le lui voulut point montrer. A la fin, ils furent mariés. Il avint, trois ou quatre mois après, qu'il fut fort malade; & il envoya sa femme au médecin, pour porter de son eau. En allant, elle s'avisa de ce qu'il lui avoit dit en fiançailles. Elle retourna v”tement, & se vint mettre sur le lit; puis levant cote & chemise, lui présenta son cela en belle vue, & lui disoit: Jean, regarde le con, & te guéris..--Le Moyen de Parvenir, c. xxviii.
+natives of Japan; and it would be easy to give examples from almost every country we know, but we confine ourselves to our more special part of the subject. In the last century, a number of small statuettes in metal, in a rude but very peculiar style of art, were found in the duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, in a part of Germany formerly occupied by the Vandals, and by the tribe of the Obotrites, considered as a division of the Vendes. They appeared to be intended to represent some of the deities worshipped by the people who made them; and some of them bore inscriptions, one of which was in Runic characters. From this circumstance we should presume that they belonged to a period not much, if any, older than the fall of the Western Empire. Some time afterwards, a few statuettes in metal were found in the island of Sardinia, so exactly similar to those just mentioned, that D'Hancarville, who published an account of them with engravings, considered himself justified in ascribing them to the Vandals, who occupied that island, as well as the tract of Germany alluded to.
-Shelah-na-gig, rcprcfcntations of the fe-
-male organ found in Ireland under
+One of these images,
-that name, 132 — 134.
+which D’Hancarville considers to be the Venus of the Vandal mythology, represents a female in a reclining position, with the wings
+and claws of a bird, holding to view a pomegranate, open, which,
+as D’Hancarville remarks, was considered as a sign representing
+the female sexual organ. In fact, it was a form and idea more
+unequivocally represented in the Roman figures which we have
+already described,2
+but which continued through the middle ages,
+and was preserved in a popular name for that organ, abricot, or
+expressed more energetically, abricot fendu, used by [[Rabelais]], and
+we believe still preserved in France. This curious image is represented, after D’Hancarville, in three different points of view in our
+D’Hancarville, [[Antiquités Etrusques, Grecques, et Romaines]], Paris, 1785, tom.
+v. p. 61. 2
+See our Plates XXV, Fig. 4, XXVI, and Plate XXXVI, Fig. 3.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 137
+plate.1
+Several figures of a similar description, but representing
+the subject in a more matter-of-fact shape, were brought from
+Egypt by a Frenchman who held an official situation in that
+country, and three of them are now in a private collection in
+London. We have engraved one of these small bronzes,2
+which,
+as will be seen, presents in exact counterpart of the Shelah-na-Gig.
+These Egyptian images belonged no doubt to the Roman period.
+Another similar figure,3
+made of lead, and apparently mediæval,
+was found at Avignon, and is preserved in the same private collection just alluded to; and a third,4
+was dug up, about ten years
+ago, at Kingston-on-Thames. The form of these statuettes seems
+to show that they were intended as portable images, for the same
+purpose as the Shelahs, which people might have ready at hand to
+look upon for protection whenever they were under fear of the
+influence of the evil eye, or of any other sort of enchantment.
+We have not as yet any clear evidence of the existence of the
+Shelah-na-Gig in churches out of Ireland. We have been informed
+that an example has been found in one of the little churches on
+the coast of Devon; and there are curious sculptures, which
+appear to be of the same character, among the architectural
+ornamentation of the very early church of San Fedele at Como in
+Italy. Three of these are engraved in our plate XXXII. On the
+top of the right hand jamb of the door5
+is a naked male figure,
+and in the same position on the other side a female,6
+which are
+described to us as representing Adam and Eve, and our informant,
+to whom we owe the drawings describes that at the apex7
+merely
+as “the figure of a woman holding her legs apart.” We understand that the surface of the stone in these sculptures is so much
+Plate XXXI, Figs. 1, 2, 3. 2
+Plate XXXI, Fig. 4. 3
+Plate XXVI, Fig. 5. 4
+Plate XXXVI, Fig. 4. 5
+Plate XXXII, Fig. 1. 6
+Plate XXXII, Fig. 2. 7
+Plate XXXII, Fig. 3.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+worn that it is quite uncertain whether the sexual parts were ever
+distinctly marked, but from the postures and positions of the hands,
+and the situation in which these figures are placed, they seem to
+resemble closely, except in their superior style of art, the Shelahna-Gigs of Ireland. There can be little doubt that the superstition
+to which these objects belonged gave rise to much of the indecent
+sculpture which is so often found upon mediæval ecclesiastical
+buildings. The late Baron von Hammer-Pürgstall published a very
+learned paper upon monuments of various kinds which he considered
+as illustrating the secret history of the order of the Templars, from
+which we learn that there was in his time a series of most extraordinary obscene sculptures in the church of Schoengraber in Austria, of
+which he intended to give engravings, but the drawings had not
+arrived in time for his book;1
+but he has engraved the capital of a
+column in the church of Egra, a town of Bohemia, of which we
+give a copy,2
+in which the two sexes are displaying to view the
+members, which were believed to be so efficatious against the
+power of fascination.
+The figure of the female organ, as well as the male, appears to have
+been employed during the middle ages of Western Europe far more
+generally than we might suppose, placed upon buildings as a talisman
+against evil influences, and especially against witchcraft and the
+evil eye, and it was used for this purpose in many other parts of the
+world. It was the universal practice among the Arabs of Northern
+Africa to stick up over the door of the house or tent, or put up
+nailed on a board in some other way, the generative organ of a
+cow, mare, or female camel, as a talisman to avert the influence of
+the evil eye. It is evident that the figure of this member was far
+See Von Hammer-Pürgstall, Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 26. 2
+Von Hammer-Pürgstall, Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 35, and Plate iv,
+Fig. 31.—See our Plate XXXI, Fig. 6.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 139
+more liable to degradation in form than that of the male, because
+it was much less easy, in the hands of rude draughtsmen, to delineate
+in an intelligible form, and hence it soon assumed shapes which
+though intended to represent it, we might rather call symbolical
+of it, though no symbolism was intended. Thus the figure of the
+female organ easily assumed the rude form of a horseshoe, and as
+the original meaning was forgotten, would be readily taken for that
+object, and a real horseshoe nailed up for the same purpose. In this
+way originated, apparently, from the popular worship of the
+generative powers, the vulgar practice of nailing a horseshoe upon
+buildings to protect them and all they contain against the power of
+witchcraft, a practice which continues to exist among the peasantry
+in some parts of England at the present day. Other marks are found,
+sometimes among the architectural ornaments, such as certain triangles and triple loops, which are perhaps typical forms of the same
+object. We have been informed that there is an old church in Ireland
+where the male organ is drawn on one side of the door, and the
+Shelah-na-Gig on the other, and that, though perhaps comparatively
+modern, their import as protective charms are well understood. We
+can easily imagine men, under the influence of these superstitions,
+when they were obliged to halt for a moment by the side of a
+building, drawing upon it such a figure, with the design that it should
+be a protection to themselves, and thus probably we derive from
+superstitious feelings the common propensity to draw phallic figures
+on the sides of vacant walls and in other places.
+Antiquity had made Priapus a god, the middle ages raised him
+into a saint, and that under several names. In the south of France,
+Provence, Languedoc, and the Lyonnais, he was worshipped under
+the title of St. Foutin.
-Shrewfbury fhow, a relic of Priapic cele-
+This name is said to be a mere corruption
-bration, 170.
-Sicyon, temple at, mentioned by Paula-
+Our material for the account of these phallic saints is taken most from the work
-nias, 63.
+of M. Dulaure.
-Sileni, attendants on Bacchus, 41.
+of [[Fotinus]] or [[Photinus]], the first bishop of Lyons, to whom, perhaps
+through giving a vulgar interpretation to the name, people had
+transferred the distinguishing attribute of Priapus. This was a
+large phallus of wood, which was an object of reverence to the
+women, especially to those who were barren, who scraped the
+wooden member, and, having steeped the scrapings in water, they
+drank the latter as a remedy against their barrenness, or administered
+it to their husbands in the belief that it would make them vigorous.
+The worship of this saint, as it was practiced in various places in
+France at the commencement of the seventeenth century, is described in that singular book, the [[Confession catholique du sieur de Sancy|Confession de Sancy]].
-Snake, hooded, fymbol of the Egyptians,
+We there learn that at Varailles in Provence, waxen images of the members of
+both sexes were offered to St. Foutin, and suspended to the ceiling
+of his chapel, and the writer remarks that, as the ceiling was
+covered with them, when the wind blew them about, it produced
+an effect which was calculated to disturb very much the devotions
+of the worshippers.2 We hardly need remark that this is just the
+same kind of worship which existed at Isernia, in the kingdom of
+Naples, where it was presented in the same shape. At [[Embrun]], in the department of the Upper Alps, the phallus of St. Foutin was worshipped in a different form; the women poured a libation of
+wine upon the head of the phallus, which was collected in a
+vessel, in which it was left till it became sour; it was then called
+the “sainte vinaigre,” and the women employed it for a purpose
+which is only obscurely hinted at. When the Protestants took
+Embrun in 1585, they found this phallus laid up carefully
+La Confession de Sancy forms the fifth voluime of the Journal d’Henri III, by
+Pierre de L’Estoile, ed. Duchat. See pp. 383, 391, of that volume. 2
+“Témoin Saint Foutin de Varailles en Provence, auquel sont dédiées les parties
+honteuses de l’un et de l’autre sexe, formées en cire: le plancher de la chapelle en est
+fort garni, et, quand le vent les fait entrebattre, cela débaicje im [ei ;es dévotions ‡
+l’honneur de ce Saint.”
+GENERATIVE POWERS 141
+among the relics in the principal church, its head red with the
+wine which had been poured upon it. A much larger phallus of
+wood, covered with leather, was an object of worship in the
+church of St. Eutropius at Orange, but it was seized by the Protestants and burnt publicly in 1562. St. Foutin was similarly an
+object of worship at Porigny, at Cives in the diocese of Viviers, at
+Vendre in the Bourbonnais, at Auxerre, at Puy-en-Velay, in the
+convent of Girouet near Sampigny, and in other places. At a
+distance of about four leagues from Clermont in Auvergne, there
+is (or was) an isolated rock, which presents the form of an immense
+phallus, and which is popularly called St. Foutin. Similar phallic
+saints were worshipped under the names of St. Guerlichon, or Greluchon, at Bourg-Dieu in the diocese of Bourges, of St. Gilles in the
+Cotentin in Britany, of St. Rene in Anjou, of St. Regnaud in Burgundy, of St. Arnaud, and above all of St. Guignolé near Brest
+and at the village of La Chatelette in Berri. Many of these were
+still in existence and their worship in full practice in the last century; in some of them, the wooden phallus is described as being
+much worn down by the continual process of scraping, while in
+others the loss sustained by scraping was always restored by a
+miracle. This miracle, however, was a very clumsy one, for the
+phallus consisted of a long staff of wood passed through a hole in
+the middle of the body, and as the phallic end in front became
+shortened, a blow of a mallet from behind thrust it forward, so
+that it was restored to its original length.
+It appears that it was also the practice to worship these saints in
+another manner, which also was derived from the forms of the
+worship of Priapus among the ancients, with whom it was the
+custom, in the nuptial ceremonies, for the bride to offer up her
+virginity to Priapus, and this was done by placing her sexual parts
+against the end of the phallus, and sometimes introducing the latter,
+and even completing the sacrifice. This ceremony is represented in
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+a bas-relief in marble, an engraving of which is given in the Musée
+Secret of the antiquities of Herculaneum and Pompeii; its object
+was to conciliate the favour of the god, and to avert sterility.
+It is described by the early Christian writers, such as Lactantius and
+Arnobius, as a very common practice among the Romans; and it
+still prevails to a great extent over most part of the East, from India
+to Japan and the islands of the Pacific. In a public square in
+Batavia, there is a cannon taken from the natives and placed there
+as a trophy by the Dutch government. It presents the peculiarity
+that the touch-hole is made on a phallic hand, the thumb placed in
+the position which is called the “fig,” and which we shall have to
+describe a little further on. At night, the fertile Malay women go
+to this cannon and sit upon the thumb, and rub their parts with it
+to produce fruitfulness. When leaving, they make an offering of
+a bouquet of flowers to the “fig.” It is always the same idea of
+reverence to the fertilizing powers of nature, of which the garland
+or the bunch of flowers was an appropriate emblem. There are
+traces of the existence of this practice in the middle ages. In the
+case of some of the priapic saints mentioned above, women
+sought a remedy for barrenness by kissing the end of the phallus;
+sometimes they appear to have placed a part of their body naked
+against the image of the saint, or to have sat upon it. This latter
+trait was perhaps too bold an adoption of the indecencies of pagan
+worship to last long, or to be practiced openly; but it appears to
+have been more innocently represented by lying upon the body of
+the saint, or sitting upon a stone, understood to represent him
+without the presence of the energetic member. In a corner in
+the church of the village of St. Fiacre, near Mouceaux in France,
+there is a stone called the chair of St. Fiacre, which confers fecundity upon women who sit upon it; but it is necessary that
+nothing should intervene between their bare skin and the stone. In
+the church of Orcival in Auvergne, there was a pillar which
+GENERATIVE POWERS 143
+barren women kissed for the same purpose, and which had perhaps
+replaced some less equivocal object.1
+Traditions, at least, of
+similar practices were connected with St. Foutin, for it appears to
+have been the custom for girls on the point of marriage to
+offer their last maiden robe to that saint. This superstition
+prevailed to such an extent that it became proverbial. A story
+is told of a young bride who, on the wedding night, sought
+to deceive her husband on the question of her previous chastity,
+although, as the writer expresses it, “she had long ago deposited
+the robe of her virginity on the altar of St. Foutin.”2
+From this
+form of superstition is said to have arisen a vice which is understood to prevail especially in nunneries—the use by women of
+artificial phalli, which appears in its origin to have been a religious
+ceremony. It certainly existed at a very remote period, for it is
+distinctly alluded to in the Scriptures,3
+where it is evidently considered as a part of pagan worship. It is found at an early period
+of the middle ages, described in the Ecclesiastical Penitentials, with
+its appropriate amount of penitence. One of these penitential
+canons of the eighth century speaks of “a woman who, by herself
+or with the help of another woman, commits uncleanness,” for
+which she was to do penance for three years, one on bread and water;
+and if this uncleanness was committed with a nun, the penance
+was increased to seven years, two only on bread and water.4
+Dulaure relates that one day a villager's wife entering this church, and finding
+only a burly canon in it, asked him earnestly, “Where is the pillar which makes
+women fruitful?” “I,” said the canon, “I am the pillar.” 2
+“Sponsa quædam rustica quæ iam in finu Divi Futini virginitatis suæ prætextam
+eposuerat.” [[Facetiæ Facetiarum]], p. 277. Theses inaugurales de Virginibus. 3
+Ezekiel, XVI, 17. Within a few years there has been a considerable manufacture
+of thiese objects in Paris, and it was understood that they were chiefly exported to
+Italy, where they were sold in the nunneries. 4
+Mulier qualicumque molimine aut per seipsan aut cum altera fornicans tres
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+Another Penitential of an early date provides for the case in which
+both the women who participated in this act should be nuns;1
+and
+Burchardus, bishop of Worms, one of the most celebrated authorities on such subjects, describes the instrument and use of it in
+greater detail.2
+The practice had evidently lost its religious character and degenerated into a mere indulgence of the passions.
+Antwerp has been described as the Lampsacus of Belgium, and
+Priapus was, down to a comparatively modern period, its patron
+saint, under the name of Ters, a word the deriviation of which appears to be unknown, but which was identical in meaning with the
+Greek phallus and the Latin fascinum. [[Johannes Goropius Becanus|John Goropius Becan]], who
+published a learned treatise on the antiquities of Antwerp in the
+middle of the sixteenth century, informs us how much this Ters was
+reverenced in his time by the Antwerpians, especially by the women,
+who invoked it on every occasion when they were taken by surprise or sudden fear.3
+He states that “if they let fall by accident a
+vessel of earthenware, or stumbled, or if any unexpected accident
+caused them vexation, even the most respectable women called aloud
-.3-.
+annos púnitat, unum ex his pane et aqua. Cum sanctimoniali per machinam
-Societies, fecret, in the middle ages, for
+fornicans, annos septem púnitat, duos ex his in pane et aqua. Collectio Antiqu.
+Canon. Púnit. ap. Martene et Durand, Thesaurus Anecdotorum, iv, 52. 1
+Mulier qualicumque molimine aut seipsam polluens, aut cum altera fornicans
+quatuor annos. Sanctimonialis fúmina cum sanctimoniali mer machinamentum polluta, septem annos. MS. Púnitent. quoted in [[Ducange]], sub. .v Machinamentum. 2 Fecisti quod quædam mulieres facere solent, ut faceres quoddam molimen aut machinamentum in modum virilis membri, ad mensuram tuæ voluntaris, et illud
+loco verendorum tuorum, aut alterius, cum aliquibus ligaturis colligares, et fornicationem faceres cum aliis mulierculis, vel aliæ eodem instrumento sive alio secum? Si
+fecisti, quinque annos per legitimas ferias púniteas.——Fecisti quod quædam
+mulieres facere solent, ut iam supradicto molimine, vel alio aliquo machinamento, tu
+ipsa in te solam faceres fornicationem? Si fecisti, unum annum per legitimas ferias
+púnitaeas. Burchardi Púnit. lib. XIX, p. 277, 8vo ed. The holy bishop appears
+to have been very intimately acquainted with the whole proceeding. 3
+Johannis Goropii Becani [[Origines Antwerpianae]], 1569, lib. i, pp. 26, 101.
-Priapic worfhip, 170.
+for the protection of Priapus under this obscene name.” Goropius
+Becanus adds that there was in his time, over the door of a
+house adjoining the prison, a statue which had been furnished
+with a large phallus, then worn away or broken off. Among
+other writers who mention this statue is [[Abraham Göllnitz|Abraham Golnitz]], who published an account of his travels in France and Belgium, in 1631,
+and he informs us that it was a carving in stone, about a foot high,
+with its arms raised up, and its legs spread out, and that the phallus
+had been entirely worn out by the women, who had been in the
+habit of scraping it and making a potion of the dust which they
+drank as a preservative against barrenness. Golnitz further tells
+us that a figure of Priapus was placed over the entrance gate to the
+enclosure of the temple of St. [[Walburgis]] at [[Antwerp]], which some
+antiquaries imagined to have been built on the site of a temple
+dedicated to that deity. It appears from these writers that, at
+certain times, the women of Antwerp decorated the phalli of these
+figures with garlands.
+The use of priapic figures as amulets, to be carried on the person
+as preservatives against the evil eye and other noxious influences,
+which we have spoken of as so common among the Romans, was
+certainly continued through the middle ages, and, as we shall see
+presently, has not entirely disappeared. It was natural enough to
+believe that if this figure were salutary when merely looked upon, it
+must be much more so when carried constantly on the person. The
+Romans gave the name fascinum, in old French fesne, to the phallic
+amulet, as well as to the same figure under other circumstances. It
+is an object of which we could hardly expect to find direct mention
+in mediæval writers, but we meet with examples of the object itself,
+usually made of lead (a proof of its popular character), and ranging
+in date perhaps from the fourteenth to the earlier part of the
+Golnitzii Itinerarium Belgico-Gallicum, p. 52.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+sixteenth century. As we owe our knowledge of these phallic
+amulets almost entirely to one collector, M. [[Forgeais]] of Paris, who
+obtained them chiefly from one source—the river Seine, our present
+acquaintance with them may be considered as very limited, and
+we have every reason for believing that they had been in use
+during the earlier period. We can only illustrate this part of the
+subject by describing a few of these mediæval phallic amulets,
+which are preserved in some private collections; and we will first
+call attention to a series of objects, the real purpose of which
+appears to be very obscure. They are small leaden tokens or
+medalets, bearing on the obverse the figure of the male or female
+organ, and on the reverse a cross, a curious intimation of the
+adoption of the worship of the generative powers among Christians.
+These leaden tokens, found in the river Seine, were first collected
+and made known to antiquaries by M. Forgeais, who published
+examples of them in his work on the leaden figures found in that
+river.1
+We give five examples of the medals of each sex, obverse
+and reverse.2
+It will be seen that the phalli on these tokens are
+nearly all furnished with wings; one has a bird’s legs and claws;
+and on another there is an evident intention to represent a bell
+suspended to the neck. These characteristics show either a very
+distinct tradition of the forms of the Roman phallic ornament, or
+an imitation of examples of Roman phalli then existing--possibly
+the latter. But this is not necessary, for the bells borne by two
+examples, given in our next plate, and also taken from the collection
+of M. Forgeais are mediæval, and not Roman bells, though these
+also represent well-known ancient forms of treating the subject. In
+the first,3
+a female is riding upon the phallus, which has men’s legs,
+Notice sur des Plombs Historiés trouvés dans la Seine, et recueillis par Arthur
+Forgeais. 8vo. Paris, 1858. 2
+See our Plate XXXVIII. 3 Plate XXXIV., Fig. 1.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 147
+and is held by a bridle. This figure was evidently intended to be
+attached to the dress as a brooch, for the pin which fixed it still
+remains on the back. Two other examples1
+present figures of winged
+phalli, one with a bell, and the other with the ring remaining from
+which the bell has no doubt been broken. One of these has the dog’s
+legs. A fourth example2
+represents an enormous phallus attached to
+the middle of a small man. In another,3
+which was evidently intended
+for suspension, probably at the neck, the organs of the two sexes
+are joined together. Three other leaden figures,4
+apparently amulets,
+which were in the Forgeais collection, offer a very peculiar variety
+of form, representing a figure, which we might suppose to be a male
+by its attributes, though it has a very feminine look, and wears
+the robe and hood of a woman. Its peculiarity consists in having a
+phallus before and behind. We have on the same plate5
+a still more
+remarkable example of the combination of the cross with the emblems
+of the worship of which we are treating, in an object found at San
+Agati di Goti, near Naples, which was formerly in the Beresford Fletcher collection, and is now in that of Ambrose Ruschenberger, Esq., of Boston, U. S. It is a crux ansata, formed by four
+phalli, with a circle of female organs round the centre; and appears
+by the loop to have been intended for suspension. As this cross is
+of gold, it had no doubt been made for some personage of rank,
+possibly an ecclesiastic; and we can hardly help suspecting that it
+had some connection with priapic ceremonies or festivities. The
+last figure on the same plate is also taken from the collection of M.
+Forgeais.6
+From the monkish cowl and the cord round the body,
+we may perhaps take it for a satire upon the friars, some of whom
+wore no breeches, and they were all charged with being great corruptors of female morals.
+Plate XXXIV, Figs. 2 and 3. 2
+Plate XXXIV, Fig 4. 3
+Plate XXXIV, Fig. 5. 4
+Plate XXXV, Figs. 1, 2, and 3. 5
+Plate XXXV, Fig. 4. 6
+Plate XXXV, Fig. 5.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+In Italy we can trace the continuous use of these phallic amulets
+down to the present time much more distinctly than in our more
+Western countries. There they are still in very common use, and
+we give two examples1
+of bronze amulets of this description, which
+are commonly sold in Naples at the present day for a carlo, equivalent to fourpence in English money, each. One of them, it will be
+seen, is encircled by a serpent. So important are these amulets
+considered for the personal safety of those who possess them, that
+there is hardly a peasant who is without one, which he usually
+carries in his waistcoat pocket.
+There was another, and less openly apparent, form of the phallus,
+which has lasted as an amulet during almost innumerable ages.
+The ancients had two forms of what antiquaries have named the
+phallic hand, one in which the middle finger was extended at
+length, and the thumb and other fingers doubled up, while in the
+other the whole hand was closed, but the thumb was passed between
+the first and middle fingers. The first of these forms appears to
+have been the more ancient, and is understood to have been intended to represent, by the extended middle finger, the membrum
+virile, and by the bent fingers on each side the testicles. Hence
+the middle finger of the hand was called by the Romans, digitus
+impudicus, or infamis. It was called by the Greeks katap⁄gwn,
+which had somewhat the same meaning as the Latin word, except
+that it had reference especially to degrading practices, which were
+then less concealed than in modern times. To show the hand in
+this form was expressed in Greek by the word skimalÖzein, and
+was considered as a most contemptuous insult, because it was understood to intimate that the person to whom it was addressed was
+addicted to unnatural vice. This was the meaning also given to it
+Plate XXXVI, Figs. 1 and 2.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 149
+by the Romans, as we learn from the first lines of an epigram of
+Martial:—
+“Rideto, multum, qui te, Sextille, cinædum
+Dixerit, et digitum porrigito medium.”
+Martial, Ep. ii, 28.
+Nevertheless, this gesture of the hand was looked upon at an early
+period as an amulet against magical influences, and, formed of
+different materials, it was carried on the person in the same manner
+as the phallus. It is not an uncommon object among Roman antiquities, and was adopted by the Gnostics as one of their symbolical
+images. The second of these forms of the phallic hand, the intention of which is easily seen (the thumb forming the phallus), was
+also well known among the Romans, and is found made of various
+material, such as bronze, coral, lapis lazuli, and chrystal, of a size
+which was evidently intended to be suspended to the neck or to
+some other part of the person. In the Musée Secret at Naples, there
+are examples of such amulets, in the shape of two arms joined at the
+elbow, one terminating in the head of a phallus, the other having
+a hand arranged in the form just described, which seem to have
+been intended for pendents to ladies’ ears. This gesture of the
+hand appears to have been called at a later period of Latin,
+though we have no knowledge of the date at which this use of the
+word began, ficus, a fig. Ficus being a word in the feminine gender, appears to have fallen in the popular language into the more
+common form of feminine nouns, fica, out of which arose the Italian
+fica (now replaced by fico), the Spanish higa, and the French figue.
+Florio, who gives the word fica, a fig, says that it was also used in the
+sense of “a woman's quaint,” so that it may perhaps be classed with
+one or two other fruits, such as the pomegranate and the apricot,
+to which a similar erotic meaning was given.1
+The form, under
+See before, page 136. Among the Romans, the fig was considered as a fruit
+consecrated to Priapus, on account, it is said, of its productiveness.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+this name, was preserved through the middle ages, especially in the
+South of Europe, where Roman traditions were strongest, both as an
+amulet and as an insulting gesture. The Italian called this gesture
+fare la fica, to make or do the fig to any one; the Spaniard, dar
+una higa, to give a fig; and the Frenchman, like the Italian, faire
+la figue. We can trace this phrase back to the thirteenth century
+at least. In the judicial proceedings against the Templars in Paris
+in 1309, one of the brethren of the Order was asked, jokingly, in
+his examination, because he was rather loose and flippant in his
+replies, “if he bad been ordered by the said receptor (the officer of
+the Templars who admitted the new candidate) to make with his
+fingers the fig at the crucifix.”1
+Here the word used is the correct
+Latin ficus; and it is the same in the plural, in a document of the
+year 1449, in which an individual is said to have made figs with both
+hands at another.2
+This phrase appears to have been introduced
+into the English language in the time of Elizabeth and to have
+been taken from the Spaniards, with whom our relations were then
+intimate. This we assume from the circumstance that the English
+phrase was “to give the fig” (dar la higa),3
+and that the writers of
+the Elizabethan age call it "the fig of Spain.” Thus, “ancient”
+Pistol, in Shakespeare:—
+——”A figo for thy friendship! —
+The fig of Spain.” Henry V, iii. 6.
+Item, cum prædictus testis videretur esse valde facilis et procax ad loquendum,
+et in pluribus dictis suis non esset stabilis, sed quasi varians et vacillan, fuit interrogatus si fuit ei præceptum a dicto receptore quod cum digits manus suæ faceret ficum
+Crucifixo, quando ipsum videret, et si fuit ei dictum quod hoc esset de punctis
+ordinis, respondit quod numquam audivit loqui de hoc. Michelt, Procès de
+Templiers, Tome i, p. 255, 4to. Paris, 1841. 2
+Ambabus manibus fecit ficus dicto Serme. MS. quoted in Ducange, sub v.
+Ficha. 3
+“Behold next I see contempt, giving me the fico.” Wit’s Misery, quoted in
+Nares, v. Fico.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 151
+The phrase has been preserved in all these countries down to modern
+times and we still say in English, “a fig for anybody,” or “for anything,” not meaning that we estimate them at no more than the
+value of a fig, but that we throw at them that contempt which was
+intimated by showing them the phallic hand, and which the Greeks,
+as stated above, called skimalÖzein. The form of showing contempt which was called the fig is still well known among the lower
+classes of society in England, and it is preserved in most of the
+countries of Western Europe. In Baretti's Spanish Dictionary,
+which belongs to the commencement of the present century, we
+find the word higa interpreted as “A manner of scoffing at people,
+which consists in showing the thumb between the first and second
+finger, closing the first, and pointing at the person to whom we
+want to give this hateful mark of contempt.” Baretti also gives as
+still in use the original meaning of the word, “Higa, a little hand
+made of jet, which they hang about children to keep them from
+evil eyes; a superstitious custom.” The use of this amulet is still
+common in Italy, and especially in Naples and Sicily; it has
+an advantage over the mere form of the phallus, that when the
+artificial fica is not present, an individual, who finds or believes
+himself in sudden danger, can make the amulet with his own fingers.
+So profound is the belief of its efficacy in Italy, that it is commonly believed and reported there that, at the battle of Solferino,
+the king of Italy held his hand in his pocket with this arrangement of the fingers as a protection against the shots of the enemy.
+There were personages connected with the worship of Priapus
+who appear to have been common to the Romans under and
+before the empire, and to the foreign races who settled upon its
+ruins. The Teutonic race believed in a spiritual being who inhabited the woods, and who was called in old German scrat. His
+character was more general than that of a mere habitant of the
+woods, for it answered to the English hobgoblin, or to the Irish
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+cluricaune. The scrat was the spirit of the woods, under which
+character he was sometimes called a waltscrat, and of the fields,
+and also of the household, the domestic spirit, the ghost haunting
+the house. His image was probably looked upon as an amulet, a
+protection to the house, as an old German vocabulary of the year
+, explains schrætlin, little scrats, by the Latin word penates.
+The lascivious character of this spirit, if it wanted more direct
+evidence, is implied by the fact that scritta, in Anglo-Saxon, and
+scrat, in old English, meant a hermaphrodite. Accordingly, the
+mediæval vocabularies explain scrat by Latin equivalents, which all
+indicate companions or emanations of Priapus, and in fact, Priapus
+himself. Isidore gives the name of Pilosi, or hairy men, and tells
+us that they were called in Greek, Panitæ (apparently an error for
+Ephialtæ), and in Latin, Incubi and Inibi, the latter word derived
+from the verb inire, and applied to them on account of their intercourse with animals.1
+They were in fact the fauns and satyrs of
+antiquity, haunted like them the wild woods, and were characterized
+by the same petulance towards the other sex.2
+Woe to the modesty
+of maiden or woman who ventured incautiously into their haunts.
+As Incubi, they visited the house by night, and violated the
+persons of the females, and some of the most celebrated heroes of
+early mediæval romances, such as [[Merlin]], were thus the children
+of incubi. They were known at an early period in Gaul by the
+name of [[Dusii]],3
+from which, as the church taught that all these
+Pilosi, qui Græce Panitæ, Latine Incubi, appelantur, sive Inivi, ab ineundo
+passim cum animalibus; unde et Incubi dicuntur ab incumbendo, hoc est, stuprando.
+Isidori Etymol., lib. viii, c. 9. 2
+Sæpe etiam improbi existent, etiam mulieribus, et earum peragunt concubitum.
+Isidor. ib. 3
+Et quosdam dæmones quos Dusios Galli nuncupant, hanc assidue immunditiam
+et tentare et officere plures talesque asseverant, ut hoc negare impudentiæ videatur.
+Augustin. De Civitate Dei, lib. xv, c. 23. Cf. Isidor., loc. cit.
-Sodomy praftifed by ancient fefts, Bul-
+mythic personages were devils, we derive our modern word
-garians, 176; Cathari, 179; Knights
+Deuce, used in such phrases as “the Deuce take you!” The term
-Templars, 190 — 193.
+ficarii was also applied to them in mediæval Latin, either from
+the meaning of the word ficus, mentioned before,1
+or because
+they were fond of figs. Most of these Latin synonyms are given
+in the Anglo-Saxon vocabulary of Alfric, and are interpreted as
+meaning “evil men, spirits of the woods, evil beings.”2
+One of the
+old commentators on the Scriptures describes these spirits of the
+woods as “monsters in the semblance of men, whose form begins
+with the human shape and ends in the extremity of a beast.”3
+They
+were, in fact, half man, half goat, and were identical with a class of
+hobgoblins, who at a rather later period were well known in England
+by the popular name of [[Puck (folklore)|Robin Goodfellows]], whose Priapic character is sufficiently proved by the pictures of them attached to
+some of our early printed ballads, of which we give facsimiles. The
+first
+is a figure of Robin Goodfellow, which forms the illustration
+to a very popular ballad of the earlier part of the seventeenth century, entitled “The mad merry Pranks of Robin Goodfellow;” he
+is represented party-coloured, and with the priapic attribute. The
+next5
+is a second illustration of the same ballad, in which Robin
+Goodfellow is represented as Priapus, goat-shaped, with his attributes
+still more strongly pronounced, and surrounded by a circle of his
+worshippers dancing about him. He appears here in the character
+See before, p. 149. 2 Satiri, vel fauni, vel sehni (for obscúni), vel fauni sicarii, unsæle men, wudewasan, unsæle wihta. Wright’s Volume of Vocubalires, p. 17. See, for further
+illustrations of this subject, Grimm’s Deutsche Mythologie, p. 272 et seq. 3
+Piloso, monstra sunt ad similitudinem hominum, quorum forma ab humana
+effigies incipit, sed bestiali extremitate terminatur, vel sunt dæmones incubones, vel
+satyri, vel homines silvestres. Mamotrectus in Isaiam, xiii, 21. 4
+See Plate XXXVI, Fig 5. From a copy of the black-letter ballad in the libray of
+the British Museum, 5
+Plate XXXVII, Fig. 2. From the same ballad.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+assumed by the demon at the sabbath of the witches, of which we
+shall have to speak a little further on. The Romish Church created
+great confusion in all these popular superstitions by considering the
+mythic persons with whom they were connected as so many devils;
+and one of these Priapic demons is figured in a cut which seems to
+have been a favorite one, and is often repeated as an illustration
+of the broadside ballads of the age of James I. and Charles I. 1
+It is
+Priapus reduced to his lowest step of degradation.
+Besides the invocations addressed principally to Priapus, or to
+the generative powers, the ancients had established great festivals
+in their honour, which were remarkable for their licentious gaiety,
+and in which the image of the phallus was carried openly and in
+triumph. These festivities were especially celebrated among the
+rural population, and they were held chiefly during the summer
+months. The preparatory labours of the agriculturist were over,
+and people had leisure to welcome with joyfulness the activity of
+nature’s reproductive powers, which was in due time to bring their
+fruits. Among the most celebrated of these festivals were the
+Liberalia, which were held on the 17th of March. A monstrous
+phallus was carried in procession in a car, and its worshippers
+indulged loudly and openly in obscene songs, conversation, and
+attitudes, and when it halted, the most respectable of the matrons
+ceremoniously crowned the head of the phallus with a garland.
+The Bacchanalia, representing the Dionysia of the Greeks, were
+celebrated in the latter part of October, when the harvest was
+completed, and were attended with much the same ceremonies as
+the Liberalia. The phallus was similarly carried in procession, and
+crowned, and, as in the Liberalia, the festivities being carried on
+into the night, as the celebrators became heated with wine, they
+degenerated into the extreme of licentiousness, in which people
+Plate XXXVII, Fig. 1. From two black-letter ballads in the British Museum,
+one entitled “A warning for all Lewd Livers,” the other, “A strange and true
+News from Westmoreland.”
+GENERATIVE POWERS 155
+indulged without a blush in the most infamous vices. The festival
+of Venus was celebrated towards the beginning of April, and in it
+the phallus was again carried in its car, and led in procession by
+the Roman ladies to the temple of Venus outside the Colline gate,
+and there presented by them to the sexual parts of the goddess.
+This part of the scene is represented in a well-known intaglio, which
+has been published in several works on antiquities. At the close
+of the month last mentioned came the Floralia, which, if possible,
+excelled all the others in licence. Ausonius, in whose time (the
+latter half of the fourth century) the Floralia were still in full
+force, speaks of their lasciviousness:—
+Nee non lascivi Floralia læta theatri,
+Quæ spectare volunt qui voluisse negant.
+Ausonii Eclog. de Feriis Romanis.
+The loose women of the town and its neighbourhood, called together
+by the sounding of horns, mixed with the multitude in perfect nakedness, and excited their passions with obscene motions and language,
+until the festival ended in a scene of mad revelry, in which all
+restraint was laid aside. [[Juvenal]] describes a Roman dame of very
+depraved manners as—
+. . . . Dignissima prorsus
+Florali matrona tuba.
+Juvenalis Sat. vi, I. 249.
+These scenes of unbounded licence and depravity, deeply rooted in
+people’s minds by long established customs, caused so little public
+scandal, that it is related of Cato the younger that, when he was
+present at the celebration of the Floralia, instead of showing any
+disapproval of them, he retired, that his well-known gravity might
+be no restraint upon them, because the multitude manifested some
+hesitation in stripping the women naked in the presence of a man
+so celebrated for his modesty.1
+The festivals more specially dedi1
+Catonem, inquam, illum, quo sedente populus negatur permisisse sib postulare
+Florales jocos nudandarum meretricum. Senecæ Epist. xcvii.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+cated to Priapus, the Priapeia, were attended with similar ceremonies and similarly licentious orgies. Their forms and characteristics are better known, because they are so frequently represented to us as the subjects of works of Roman art. The Romans
+had other festivals of similar character, but of less importance,
+some of which were of a more private character, and some were
+celebrated in strict privacy. Such were the rites of the Bona Dea,
+established among the Roman matrons in the time of the republic, the disorders of which are described in such glowing language by the satirist Juvenal, in his enumeration of the vices of
+the Roman women:—
+Nota Bonæ secreta Deæ, quum tibia lumbos
+Incitat, et cornu pariter vinoque feruntur
+Attonitæ, crinemque rotant, ululantque Priapi
+Mænades. O quantus tunc illis mentibus ardor
+Concubitus! quæ vox saltante libidine! quantus
+Ille meri veteris per crura madentia torrens!
+Lenonum ancillas posita Saufeia corona
+Provocat, et tollit pendentis præmia coxæ.
+Ipsa Medullinæ fluctum crissantis adorat.
+Palmam inter dominas virtus natalibus æquat.
+Nil ibi per ludum simulabitur: omnia fient
+Ad verum, quibus incendi jam frigidus ævo
+Laomedontiades et Nestoris hernia possit.
+Tunc prurigo moræ impatiens, tunc femina simplex,
+Et toto pariter repetitus clamor ab antro:
+Jam fas est: admitte viros!
+Juvenalis Sat. vi, l. 314.
+Among the Teutonic, as well as among most other peoples,
+similar festivals appear to have been celebrated during the summer
+months; and, as they arose out of the same feelings, they no doubt
+presented the same general forms. The principal popular festivals
+of the summer during the middle ages occurred in the months of
+April, May, and June, and comprised Easter, May-day, and the
+feast of the summer solstice. All these appear to have been
+GENERATIVE POWERS 157
+originally accompanied with the same phallic worship which
+formed the principal characteristic of the great Roman festivals;
+and, in fact, these are exactly those popular institutions and traits
+of popular manners which were most likely to outlive, also
+without any material change, the overthrow of the Roman empire
+by the barbarians. Although, at the time when we become
+intimately acquainted with these festivals, most of the prominent
+marks of their phallic character had been abandoned and
+forgotten, yet we meet during the interval with scattered
+indications which leave no room to doubt of their former
+existence. It will be interesting to examine into some of these
+points, and to show the influence they exerted on mediæval
+society.
+The first of the three great festivals just mentioned was purely
+Anglo-Saxon and Teutonic; but it appears in the first place to have
+been identified with the Roman Liberalia, and it was further transformed by the Catholic church into one of the great Christian religious feasts. In the primitive Teutonic mythology there was a
+female deity named, in Old German, Ostara, and, in Anglo-Saxon,
+Eastre, or Eostre, but all we know of her is the simple statement of
+our father of history, Bede, that her festival was celebrated by the
+ancient Saxons in the month of April, from which circumstance,
+that month was named by the Anglo-Saxons Easter-monath, or
+Eoster-monath, and that the name of the goddess had been subsequently given to the Paschal time, with which it was identical.1
-Solar fyrtem, 109.
+The name of this goddess was given to the same month by the old
+Germans and by the Franks, so that she must have been one of the
+most highly honoured of the Teutonic deities, and her festival must
+Antiqui autem Anglroum populi . . . Eosturmonath, qui nunc paschalis mensis
+interpretatur, quondam a dea illorum quæ Eostre vocabatur, et cui in illo fasta celebrabant, nomen habuit; a cujus nomine nunc paschale tempus cognominant, consueto
+antique observationis vocabulo gaudi novæ solennitatis vocantes. Bedæ De Temporum Rationes, cap. xv.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+have been a very important one, and deeply implanted in the
+popular feelings, or the church would not have sought to identify
+it with one of the greatest Christian festivals of the year. It is
+understood that the Romans considered this month as dedicated
+to Venus, no doubt because it was that in which the productive
+power of nature began to be visibly developed. When the Pagan
+festival was adopted by the church, it became a moveable feast
+instead of being fixed to the month of April. Among other
+objects offered to the goddess at this time were cakes, made no
+doubt of fine flour, but of their form we are ignorant. The Christians, when they seized upon the Easter festival, gave them the form of
+a bun, which, indeed, was at that time the ordinary form of bread;
+and to protect themselves, and those who eat them, from any enchantment, or other evil influences which might arise from their former
+heathen character, they marked them with the Christian symbol—
+the cross. Hence were derived the cakes we still eat at Easter under
+the name of hot-cross-buns, and the superstitious feelings attached
+to them, for multitudes of people still believe that if they failed to
+eat a hot-cross-bun on Good-Friday they would be unlucky all
+the rest of the year. But there is some reason for believing that, at
+least in some parts, the Easter-cakes had originally a different
+form—that of the phallus. Such at least appears to have been the
+case in France, where the custom still exists. In Saintonge, in the
+neighbourhood of La Rochelle, small cakes, baked in the form of a
+phallus, are made as offerings at Easter, and are carried and presented from house to house; and we have been informed that similar
+practices exist in some other places. When Dulaure wrote, the
+festival of Palm Sunday, in the town of Saintes, was called the f’te
+des pinnes, pinne being a popular and vulgar word for the
+membrum virile. At this f’te the women and children carried in
+the procession, at the end of their palm branches, a phallus made of
+bread, which they called undisguisedly a pinne, and which, having
+GENERATIVE POWERS 159
+been blest by the priest, the women carefully preserved during the
+following year as an amulet. A similar practice existed at St. Jeand'Angély, where small cakes, made in the form of the phallus, and
+named fateux, were carried in the procession of the F’te-Dieu, or
+Corpus Christi.1
+Shortly before the time when Dulaure wrote, this
+practice was suppressed by a new sous-préfet, M. Maillard. The
+custom of making cakes in the form of the sexual members, male
+and female, dates from a remote antiquity and was common among
+the Romans. Martial made a phallus of bread (Priapus siligineus)
+the subject of an epigram of two lines:—
+Si vis esse satur, nostrum potes esse priapum
+Ipse licet rodas inguina, purus eris.
+Martial, lib. xiv, ep. 69.
+The same writer speaks of the image of a female organ made of
+the same material in another of his epigrams, to explain which, it is
+only necessary to state that these images were composed of the finest
+wheaten flour (siligo):—
+Pauper amicitiæ cum sis, Lupe, non es amicæ;
+Et queritur de te mentula sola nihil.
+Illa siligineis pinguescit adultera cunnis;
+Convivam pascit nigra farina tuum.
+[[Martial]], lib. ix, ep. 3.
+This custom appears to have been preserved from the Romans
+through the middle ages, and may be traced distinctly as far back
+as the fourteenth or fifteenth century. We are informed that in
+some of the earlier inedited French books on cookery, receipts are
+given for making cakes in these obscene forms, which are named
+without any concealment; and the writer on this subject, who wrote
+in the sixteenth century, Johannes Bruerinus Campegius, describing
+the different forms in which cakes were then made, enumerates those
+Delaure, Histoire Abrèges des Diffèrens Cultes, vol. ii, p. 285. Second Edition.
+It was printed in 1825.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+of the secret members of both sexes, a proof, he says of “the degeneracy of manners, when Christians themselves can delight in
+obscenities and immodest things even among their articles of food.”
+He adds that some of these were commonly spoken of by a gross
+name, des cons sucrés.1
+When Dulaure wrote, that is just forty
+years ago, cakes of these forms continued to be made in various
+parts of France, and he informs us that those representing the male
+organ were made in the Lower Limousin, and especially at Brives,
+while similar images of the female organ were made at Clermont in
+Auvergne, and in other places. They were popularly called miches.2
+There is another custom attached to Easter, which has probably
+some relation to the worship of which we are treating, and which
+seems once to have prevailed throughout England, though we
+believe it is now confined to Shropshire and Cheshire. In the
+former county it is called heaving, in the latter lifting. On Easter
+Monday the men go about with chairs, seize the women they meet,
+and, placing them in the chairs, raise them up, turn them round
+two or three times, and then claim the right of kissing them. On
+Easter Tuesday, the same thing is done by the women to the men.
+This, of course, is only practiced now among the lower classes,
+except sometimes as a frolic among intimate friends. The chair
+appears to have been a comparatively modern addition, since such
+articles have become more abundant. In the last century four or
+five of the one sex took the victim of the other sex by the arms and
+legs, and lifted her or him in that manner, and the operation was
+Alias fingunt oblonga figura, alias sphærica, et orbiculari, alias triangula, quadrangulaque; quædam ventricosæ sunt; quædam pudenda muliebria, aliæ virilia (si diis
+placet) repræsentant; adeo degeneravere bonos mores, ut etiam Christianis obscúna
+et pudenda in cibis placeant. Sunt etenim quo cunnos saccharatos epp-litent. Jo.
+Bruerini Campegii De Re Cibaria, lib. vi, c. 7.—Cf. Le Grande d’Aussi, Histoire de
+la Vie Privée des Français, vol. II, p. 309. 2
+Dulaure, vol. ii, pp. 255-257.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 161
+attended, at all events on the part of the men, with much indecency. The women usually expect a small contribution of money
+from the men they have lifted. More anciently, in the time of
+Durandus, that is, in the thirteenth century, a still more singular
+custom prevailed on these two days. He tells us that in many
+countries, on the Easter Monday, it was the rule for the wives to
+beat their husbands, and that on the Tuesday the husbands beat
+their wives.1
+Brand, in his Popular Antiquities, tells us that in
+the city of Durham, in his time, it was the custom for the men, on
+the one day, to take off the women's shoes, which the latter were
+obliged to purchase back, and that on the other day the women
+did the same to the men.
+In mediæval poetry and romance, the month of May was celebrated above all others as that consecrated to Love, which seemed
+to pervade all nature, and to invite mankind to partake in the
+general enjoyment. Hence, among nearly all peoples, its approach
+was celebrated with festivities, in which, under various forms, worship was paid to Nature's reproductiveness. The Romans welcomed the approach of May with their Floralia, a festival we have
+already described as remarkable for licentiousness; and there cannot be a doubt that our Teutonic forefathers had also their festival
+of the season long before they became acquainted with the Romans.
+Yet much of the mediæval celebration of May-day, especially in the
+South, appears to have been derived from the Floralia of the latter
+people. As in the Floralia, the arrival of the festival was announced
+by the sounding of horns during the preceding night, and no sooner
+had midnight arrived than the youth of both sexes proceeded in
+couples to the woods to gather branches and make garlands, with
+which they were to return just at sunrise for the purpose of decora1
+Is plerisque etiam regionibus mulieres secunda die post Pascham verberant
+maritos, die vero tertia uxores suas. Durandus, Rationale, lib. vi, c. 86—89, By
+secunda die post Pascham, he no doubt means Easter Monday.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+ting the doors of their houses. In England the grand feature of
+the day was the Maypole. This maypole was the stem of a tall
+young tree cut down for the occasion, painted of various colours,
+and carried in joyous procession, with minstrels playing before,
+until it reached the village green, or the open space in the middle
+of a town, where it was usually set up. It was there decked with
+garlands and flowers, the lads and girls danced round it, and people
+indulged in all sorts of riotous enjoyments. All this is well described by a Puritan writer of the reign of Queen Elizabeth—Philip
+Stubbes—who says that, “against Maie,” “every parishe, towne,
+and village assemble themselves together, bothe men, women, and
+children, olde and yong, even all indifferently; and either goyng
+all together, or devidyng themselves into companies, they goe some
+to the woodes and groves, some to the hilles and mountaines, some to
+one place, some to another, where they spend all the night in pleasant
+pastymes, and in the mornyng thei returne, bryngyng with them
+birch bowes and braunches of trees to deck their assemblies withall,
+. . . . But their cheerest jewell thei bryng from thence is their
+Maie pole, whiche thei bryng home with greate veneration, as thus:
+Thei have twentie or fourtie yoke of oxen, every oxe havyng a
+sweete nosegaie of flowers placed on the tippe of his hornes, and
+these oxen drawe home this Maie poole (this stinckyng idoll
+rather), whiche is covered all over with flowers and hearbes, bound
+rounde about with strynges, from the top to the bottome, and
+sometyme painted with variable colours, with twoo or three hundred
+men, women, and children following it, with greate devotion.
+And thus beyng reared up, with handekerchiefes and flagges streamyng on the toppe, thei strawe the grounde aboute, binde greene
+boughes about it, sett up sommer haules, bowers, and arbours hard
+by it. And then fall thei to banquet and feast, to leape and
+daunce aboute it, as the heathen people did, at the dedication of
+GENERATIVE POWERS 163
+their idolles, whereof this is a perfect patterne, or rather the thyng
+itself.”1
-Sonnerat, account of Hindoo antiquities,
+The Puritans were deeply impressed with the belief that the
+maypole was a substantial relic of Paganism; and they were no
+doubt right. There appears to be reason sufficient for supposing
+that, at a period which cannot now be ascertained, the maypole
+had taken the place of the phallus. The ceremonies attending the
+elevation of the two objects were identical. The same joyous procession in the Roman festivals, described above, conducted the
+phallus into the midst of the town or village, where in the same
+manner it was decked with garlands, and the worship partook of
+the same character. We may add, too, that both festivals were
+attended with the same licentiousness. “I have heard it credibly
+reported,” says the Puritan Stubbes, “and that viva voce by menne
+of greate gravitie and reputation, that of fourtie, three score, or a
+hundred maides goyng to the woode over night, there have scarcely
+the third part returned home again undefiled.”
+The day generally concluded with bonfires. These represented
+the need-fire, which was intimately connected with the ancient priapic
+rites. Fire itself was an object of worship, as the most powerful of
+the elements; but it was supposed to lose its purity and sacred
+character in being propagated from one material to another, and
+the worshippers sought on these solemn occasions to produce it in
+its primitive and purest form. This was done by the rapid friction of
+two pieces of wood, attended with superstitious ceremonies; the
+pure element of fire was believed to exist in the wood, and to be
+thus forced out of it, and hence it was called need-fire (in Old
+German not-feur, and in Anglo-Saxon, neod-fyr), meaning literally
+a forced fire, or fire extracted by force. Before the process of thus
+Stubbes, Anatomie of Abuses, fol. 94, 8vo. London, 1583.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+extracting the fire from the wood, it was necessary that all the fires
+previously existing in the village should be extinguished, and they
+were afterwards revived from the bonfire which had been lit from the
+need-fire. The whole system of bonfires originated from this superstition; they had been adopted generally on occasions of popular rejoicing, and the bonfires commemorating the celebrated gunpowder
+plot are only particular applications of the general practice to an
+accidental case. The superstition of the need-fire belongs to a
+very remote antiquity in the Teutonic race, and existed equally in
+ancient Greece. It is proscribed in the early capitularies of the
+Frankish emperors of the Carlovingian dynasty.1
+The universality
+of this superstition is proved by the circumstance that it still exists
+in the Highlands of Scotland, especially in Caithness, where it is
+adopted as a protection for the cattle when attacked by disease
+which the Highlanders attribute to witchcraft.2
+It was from the
+remotest ages the custom to cause cattle, and even children, to pass
+across the need-fire, as a protection to them for the rest of their
+lives. The need-fire was kindled at Easter, on May-day, and especially at the summer solstice, on the eve of the feast of St. John the
+Baptist, or of Midsummer-day.3
+The eve of St. John was in popular superstition one of the most
+important days of the mediæval year. The need-fire—or the St.
+John’s fire, as it was called—was kindled just at midnight, the
+moment when the solstice was supposed to take place, and the
+young people of both sexes danced round it, and, above all things,
+Sive illos sacrilegos ignes quos nedfrates (I. nedfyres) vocant, sive omnes quæcumque sunt paganorum observationes diligenter prohibeant. Karlomanni Capitulare
+Primum, A.D. 742, in Baluzii Capitularia Regum Francorum, col. 148. Repeated in
+the Captiularum Caroli Magni et Ludovici Pii, compiled A.D. 827. See Baluz., ib.,
+col. 825. 2
+Logan, The Scottish Gael, vol. ii, p. 64, and Jamieson’s Scottish Dictionary,
+Suppl. sub. v. Neidfyre. 3
+See Grimm, Deutsche Mythologie, pp. 341—349.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 165
+leaped over it, or rushed through it, which was looked upon not
+only as a purification, but as a protection against evil influences.
+It was the night when ghosts and other beings of the spiritual world
+were abroad, and when witches had most power. It was believed,
+even, that during this night people's souls left the body in sleep,
+and wandered over the world, separated from it. It was a night
+of the great meetings of the witches, and it was that in which they
+mixed their most deadly poisons, and performed their most effective
+charms. It was a night especially favourable to divination in every
+form, and in which maidens sought to know their future sweethearts and husbands. It was during this night, also, that plants
+possessed their greatest powers either for good or for evil, and that
+they were dug up with all due ceremonies and cautions. The more
+hidden virtues of plants, indeed, depended much on the time at
+which, and the ceremonies with which, they were gathered, and
+these latter were extremely superstitious, no doubt derived from the
+remote ages of paganism. As usual, the clergy applied a halfremedy to the evil; they forebade any rites or incantations in the
+gathering of medicinal herbs except by repeating the creed and the
+Lord’s prayer.1
+As already stated, the night of St. John’s, or Midsummer-eve,
+was that when ghosts and spirits of all descriptions were abroad,
+and when witches assembled, and their potions, for good or for
+evil, and charms were made with most effect. It was the night for
+popular divination, especially among the young maidens, who
+sought to know who were destined to be their husbands, what
+would be their characters, and what their future conduct. The
+medicinal virtues of many plants gathered on St. John’s eve, and
+with the due ceremonies, were far more powerful than if gathered
+Non licet in collectione herbarum medicinalium aliquas observationes vel incantationes attendere, nisi tantum cum symbol divino et oratione dominica, ut Deus et
+Dominus noster honoretur. Burchardi Decretorum Libri, x, 20.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+at other times. The most secret practices of the old popular superstitions are now mostly forgotten, but when, here and there, we
+meet with a few traces of them, they are of a character which leads
+us to believe that they belonged to a great extent to that same
+worship of the generative powers which prevailed so generally
+among all peoples. We remember that, we believe in one of the
+earlier editions of Mother Bunch, maidens who wished to know if
+their lovers were constant or not were directed to go out exactly at
+midnight on St. John’s eve, to strip themselves entirely naked, and
+in that condition to proceed to a plant or shrub, the name of which
+was given, and round it they were to form a circle and dance,
+repeating at the same time certain words which they had been
+taught by their instructress. Having completed this ceremony,
+they were to gather leaves of the plant round which they had
+danced, which they were to carry home and place under their
+pillows, and what they wished to know would be revealed to them
+in their dreams. We have seen in some of the mediæval treatises
+on the virtue of plants directions for gathering some plants of especial importance, in which it was required that this should be performed by young girls in a similar state of complete nakedness.
+Plants and flowers were, indeed, intimately connected with this
+worship. We have seen how constantly they are introduced in the
+form of garlands, and they were always among the offerings to
+Priapus. It was the universal practice, in dancing round the fire
+on St. John’s eve, to conclude by throwing various kinds of flowers
+and plants into it, which were considered to be propitiatory, to avert
+certain evils to which people were liable during the following year.
+Among the plants they offered are mentioned mother-wort, vervain,
+and violets. It is perhaps to this connection of plants with the old
+priapic worship that we owe the popular tendency to give them names
+which were more or less obscene, most of which are now lost, or
+are so far modified as to present no longer the same idea. Thus
+GENERATIVE POWERS 167
+the well-known arum of our hedge-bottoms received the names,
+no doubt suggested by its form, of cuckoo’s pintle, or priest’s
+pintle, or dog's pintle; and, in French, those of vit de chien and vit
+de prestre; in English it is now abbreviated into cuckoo-pint, or,
+sometimes, cuckoo-point. The whole family of the orchides was
+distinguished by a corresponding word, accompanied with various
+qualifications. We have in William Coles’s Adam in Eden, (fol.
+) the different names, for different varieties, of doggs-stones,
+fool-stones, fox-stones; in the older Herbal of Gerard (fol. 1597)
+triple ballockes, sweet ballockes, sweet cods, goat’s-stones,
+hare’s-stones, &c.; in French, couillon de bouc (the goat was especially connected with the priapic mysteries) and couille, or couillon
+de chien. In French, too, as we learn from Cotgrave and the
+herbals, “a kind of sallet hearbe” was called couille ‡ l’év’que; the
+greater stone-crop was named couille au loup; and the spindle-tree
+was known by the name of couillon de pr’tre. There are several
+plants which possess somewhat the appearance of a rough bush of
+hair. One of these, a species of adiantum, was known even in
+Roman times by the name of Capillus Veneris, and in more modern
+times it has been called maiden-hair, and our lady's hair. Another
+plant, the asplenium trichomanes, was and is also called popularly
+maiden-hair, or maiden's-hair; and we believe that the same name
+has been given to one or two other plants. There is reason for
+believing that the hair implied in these names was that of the
+pubes.1
+We might collect a number of other old popular names of
+plants of a similar character with these just enumerated.
+In an old calendar of the Romish church, which is often quoted
+Fumitory was another of these plants, and in a vocabulary of plants in a
+MS. of the middle of the thirteenth century, we find its names in Latin, French and
+English given as follows, “Fumus terræ, fumeterre, cuntehoare.” See Wright’s
+Volume of Vocabularies, p. 17.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+in Brand’s Popular Antiquities, the seeking of plants for their
+hidden virtues and magical properties is especially noted as part
+of the practices on the eve of St. John (herbæ diversi generis
+quærantur); and one plant is especially specified in terms too
+mysterious to be easily understood.1
+Fern-seed, also, was a
+great object of search on this night; for, if found and properly
+gathered, it was believed to possess powerful magical proper-ties,
+and especially that of rendering invisible the individual who
+carried it upon his person. But the most remarkable of all the
+plants connected with these ancient priapic superstitions was the
+mandrake (mandragora), a plant which has been looked upon with
+a sort of feeling of reverential fear at all periods, and almost in all
+parts. Its Teutonic name, alrun, or, in its more modern form,
+alraun, speaks at once of the belief in its magical qualities among
+that race. People looked upon it as possessing some degree of
+animal life, and it was generally believed that, when it was drawn
+out of the earth, it uttered a cry, and that this cry carried certain
+death or madness to the person who extracted it. To escape this
+danger, the remedy was to tie a string round it, which was to be
+attached to a dog, and the latter, being driven away, dragged up
+the root in its attempt to run off, and experienced the fatal consequences. The root was the important part of the plant; it has
+somewhat the form of a forked radish, and was believed to represent exactly the human form below the waist, with, in the male
+and female plants, the human organs of generation distinctly developed. The mandrake, when it could be obtained, was used in the
+middle ages in the place of the phallic amulet, and was carefully
+carried on the person, or preserved in the house. It conferred fertility in more senses than one, for it was believed that as long as
+you kept it locked up with your money, the latter would become
+Carduus puellarum legitur et ab eisdem centum cruces.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 169
+doubled in quantity every year; and it had at the same time all the
+protective qualities of the phallus. The Templars were accused of
+worshipping the mandrake, or mandragora, which became an
+object of great celebrity in France during the reigns of the weak
+monarchs Charles VI. and Charles VII. In 1429 one Friar
+Richard, of the order of the Cordeliers, preached a fierce sermon
+against the use of this amulet, the temporary effect of which was
+so great, that a certain number of his congregation delivered up
+their “mandragoires” to the preacher to be burnt.1
-, 53-
+It appears that the people who dealt in these amulets helped
-Sophocles, 36, 37, 38.
+nature to a rather considerable extent by the means of art, and
-Soul, ancient ideas of the emancipation
+that there was a regular process of cooking them up. They were
+necessarily aware that the roots themselves, in their natural state,
+presented, to say the least, very imperfectly the form which men’s
+imagination had given to them, so they obtained the finest roots
+they could, which, when fresh from the ground, were plump and
+soft, and readily took any impression which might be given to
+them. They then stuck grains of millet or barley into the parts
+where they wished to have hair, and again put it into a hole in the
+earth, until these grains had germinated and formed their roots.
+This process, it was said, was perfected within twenty days. They
+then took up the mandrake again, trimmed the fibrous roots of
+millet or barley which served for hair, retouched the parts themselves so as to give them their form more perfectly and more permanently, and then sold it.2
-of, from the body, 97 — 100.
+Besides these great and general priapic festivals, there were
-Sprenger (Jacob), work on witchcraft,
+doubtless others of less importance, or more local in their character,
+which degenerated in aftertimes into mere local ceremonies and
+Journal d’un Bourgeois de Paris, under the year 1429. 2
+See the authorities for these statements in Dulaure, pp. 254—256.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+festivities. This would be the case especially in cities and corporate
+towns, where the guilds came in, to perpetuate the institution, and
+to give it gradually a modified form. Most towns in England had
+once festivals of this character, and at least three representatives of
+them are still kept up, the procession of Lady Godiva at Coventry,
+the Shrewsbury show, and the guild festival at Preston in Lancashire. In the first of these, the lady who is supposed to ride naked
+in the procession probably represents some feature in the ancient
+priapic celebration; and the story of the manner in which the Lady
+Godiva averted the anger of her husband from the townsmen, which
+is certainly a mere fable, was no doubt invented to explain a feature of the celebration, the real meaning of which had in course
+of time been forgotten. The pageantry of the Shrewsbury show
+appears to be similarly the unmeaning reflection of forms
+belonging to older and forgotten practices and principles. On the
+Continent there were many such local festivals, such as the feast
+of fools, the feast of asses (the ass was an animal sacred to
+Priapus), and others, all which were adapted by the mediæval
+church exactly as the clergy had taken advantage of the profit to
+be derived from the phallic worship in other forms.
+The leaden tokens, or medalets, which we have already described,1
+seem to point evidently to the existence in the middle ages of
+secret societies or clubs connected with this obscene worship, besides the public festivals. Of these it can hardly be expected
+that any description would survive, but, if not the fact, the belief
+in it is clearly established by the eagerness with which such
+obscene rites were laid to the charge of most of the mediæval secret
+societies, whether lay clubs or religious sects, and we know that
+secret societies abounded in the middle ages. However willing the
+Romish clergy were to make profit out of the popular phallic wor1
+See before, p. 146, and Plate XXXIII.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 171
+ship, they were equally ready to use the belief in it as a means of
+exciting prejudice against any sects which the church chose to
+regard as religious or political heretics.
+It is very evident that, in the earlier ages of the church, the
+conversion of the Pagans to Christianity was in a vast number of
+cases less than a half-conversion, and that the preachers of the
+gospel were satisfied by people assuming the name of Christians,
+without inquiring too closely into the sincerity of their change, or
+into their practice. We can trace in the expressions of disapproval
+in the writings of some of the more zealous of the ecclesiastical
+writers, and in the canons of the earlier councils, the alarm created
+by the prevalence among Christians of the old popular festivals of
+paganism; and the revival of those particular canons and deprecatory remarks in the ecclesiastical councils and writings of a later
+period of the middle ages, shows that the existence of the evil had
+continued unabated. There was an African council in the year
+, from which Burchardus, who compiled his condensation of
+ecclesiastical decrees for the use of his own time, professes to derive
+his provisions against “the festivals which were held with Pagan
+ceremonies.” We are there told that, even on the most sacred of
+the Christian commemoration days, these rites derived from the
+Pagans were introduced, and that dancing was practiced in the open
+street of so infamous a character, and accompanied with such
+lascivious language and gestures, that the modesty of respectable
+females was shocked to a degree that prevented their attendance
+at the service in the churches on those days.1
+It is added that
+Illud etiam petendum, ut quoniam contra præcepta divina conviva multis in
+locis exercentur, quæ ab errore gentili attracta sunt, ita ut nunc a paganis ad hæc
+celebranda cogantur, ex qua re temporibus Christianorum imperatorum persecutio
+altera fiera occulta videatur, vetari talia jubeant, et de civitatibus et possessionibus
+imposita púna prohiberi, maxime cum etiam in natalibus beatissimorum martyrum
+per nonnullas civitates et in ipsis locis sacris talia committere non reformident, quibus
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+these Pagan ceremonies were even carried into the churches, and
+that many of the clergy took part in them.
+It is probable, too, that when Paganism itself had become an
+offence against the state, and those who continued attached to it
+were exposed to persecution, they embraced the name of Christians
+as a cover for the grossest superstitions, and formed sects who practised the rites of Paganism in their secret conventicles, but were
+placed by the church among the Christian heresies. In some of
+these, especially among those of an early date, the obscene rites and
+principles of the phallic worship seem to have entered largely,
+for, though their opponents probably exaggerated the actual vice
+car-ried on under their name, yet much of it must have had an existence in truth. It was a mixture of the licence of the vulgar
+Paganism of antiquity with the wild doctrines of the latter eastern
+philosophers. The older orthodox writers dwell on the details of
+these libidinous rites. Among the earliest in date were the Adamiani, or Adamites, who proscribed marriage, and held that the most
+perfect innocence was consistent only with the community of women.
+They chose latibula, or caverns, for their conventicles, at which both
+sexes assembled together in perfect nakedness.
+This sect perhaps
+continued to exist under different forms, but it was revived among
+the intellectual vagaries of the fifteenth century, and continued at
+least to be much talked of till the seventeenth. The doctrine of the
+community of women, and the practice of promiscuous sexual
+intercourse in their meetings, were ascribed by the early Christian
-.
+diebus etiam, quod pudoris est dicere, saltationes sceleratissimas per vicos atque plateas
-Stedingers, alleged fecret rites of, and
+exerceant, ut matronalia honor, et innumerabilium fúminarum pudor, devote venientium ad facratissimum diem, injuris lascivientium appetatur, ut etiam ipsius sanctæ
+religionis pæne fugiatur accessus. Burchard, Decret., lib. x, c. 20, De conviviis
+quæ fiunt ritu paganorum, ex Concil. Africano, cap. 27. See Labbæs, Concil.,
+tom. ii, col. 1085. 1
+Epiphanii Episc. Constant. Panarium versus Hæres., vol. i, p. 459, ed. Petav.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 173
+controversialists to several sects, such as the followers of Florian, and of
+Carpocratian, who were accused of putting out the lamps in their
+churches at the end of the evening service, and indulging in sexual
+intercourse indiscriminately;1
+the Nicolaitæ, who held their wives
+in common; the Ebionei; and especially the Gnostics, or followers
+of Basilides, and the Manichæans. The Nicolaites held that the
+only way to salvation lay through frequent intercourse between the
+sexes.2
+Epiphanius speaks of a sect who sacrificed a child in their
+secret rites by pricking it with brazen pins, and then offering its
+blood. 3 The Gnostics were accused of eating human flesh as well
+as of lasciviousness, and they also are said to have held their women
+in common, and taught that it was a duty to prostitute their wives
+to their guests.4
+They knew their fellow sectarians by a
+secret sign, which consisted in tickling the palm of the hand with
+the finger in a peculiar manner. The sign having been recognized, mutual confidence was established, and the stranger was
+invited to supper; after they had eaten their fill, the husband
+removed from the side of his wife, and said to her, “Go, exhibit
+charity to our guest,” which was the signal for those further scenes
+of hospitality.5
+This account is given us by St. Epiphanius,
+bishop of Constantia. We are told further of rites practiced by
+the Gnostics, which were still more disgusting, for they were said,
+after these libidinous scenes, to offer and administer the semen virile
+In ecclesia sua post occasum solis lucernis extinctis msceri cum mulierculis.
+Philastri de Hæresibus Liber, c. 57. 2
+Epiphanii Panarion, vol. I, p. 72. 3
+Epihphanius, vol. i, p. 416. 4
+On the secret worship and the character of the Gnostics see Epihanii Panarion,
+vol. i. pp. 84—102. 5 ôk to›to d sumposi£santej, kaà èj úpoj eàpeãn, t¶j flöbaj to‡ k’rou
+ômplªsantej òautÓn, eÑj osron tröpontai. kaà – mn ¢nær t£j gunaik’j
+ÿpocwræsaj f£skei legwn tÕ òato‡ gunaikà ”ti ¢n£sta lögwn, poÖhson
+tªn ¢g£phn met¶ to‡ ¢delfo‡. oÉ d t£lanej migöntej ¢llªloij. Epihan.
+Panarion, vol. i, p. 86.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+as their sacrament.1
+A similar practice is described as existing
+among women in the middle ages for the purpose of securing the
+love of their husbands, and was perhaps derived from the Gnostics
+and Manichæans, whose doctrines, brought from the East, appear
+to have spread themselves extensively into Western Europe.2
+Of these doctrines, however, we have no traces at least until
+the eleventh century, when a great intellectual agitation began in
+Western Europe, which brought to the surface of society a multitude of strange creeds and strange theories. The popular worship
+displayed in the great annual festivals, and the equally popular
+local f’tes, urban or rural, were hardly interfered with, or any
+secret societies belonging to the old worship; the mediæval church
+did not consider them as heresies, and let them alone. Thus,
+except now and then a provision of some ecclesiastical council
+expressed in general terms against superstitions, which was hardly
+heard at the time and not listened to, they are passed over in silence.
+But the moment anything under the name of heresy raised its head,
+the alarm was great. Gnosticism and Manichæism, which had
+indeed been identical, were the heresies most hated in the Eastern
+empire, and, as may be supposed, most persecuted; and this persecution was destined to drive them westward. In the seventh cen1
+See details on this subject in Epiphanii Panarion, ib. Conf. Præestinati
+Adversus Hæres, lib. i, c. 46, where the same thing is said of the Manichæans. 2
+Gustati de semine viri tui, ut, propter tua diabolica facta, plus in amorem
+tuum exardesceret? Si fecisti, septem annos per legitimas ferias púnitere debes.
+Burchardi Decretorum lib. xix. The same practices appear to have existed among the
+Anglo-Saxons. Thus, one of the cases in Theodori Liber Púnitentialis. (in Thorpe’s
+Ancient Laws and Institutes,) is,—Mulier quæ semen viri sui in cibum miserit, ut inde
+amoris ejus plus accipiat, vii. annos púnitat. Theod. Lib. Pún.
+xvi. 30. And again, Mulier quæ semen viri cum cibo suo miscuerit, et id sumperit, ut
+masculo carior sit, iii. annos jejunet. Ecgberti Confessionale, sec. 29. Sprenger,
+Malleus Maleficarum, quæst. vii, tells us of witches who made men eat bien autre
+chose to secure their love.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 175
+tury they became modified into a sect which took the name of
+Paulicians, it is said, from an Armenian enthusiast named Paulus,
+and they seem to have still further provoked the hatred of the
+church by making themselves, in their own interests, the advocates
+of freedom of thought and of ecclesiastical reform. If history be to
+be believed, their Christian feelings cannot have been very strong,
+for, unable to resist persecution within the empire, they retired into
+the territory held by the Saracens, and united with the enemies of
+the Cross in making war upon the Christian Greeks. Others
+sought refuge in the country of the Bulgarians, who had very
+generally embraced their doctrines, which soon spread thence westward. In their progress through Germany to France they were
+known best as Bulgarians, from the name of the country whence
+they came; in their way through Italy they retained their name of
+Paulicians, corrupted in the Latin of that period of the middle ages
+into Populicani, Poplicani, Publicani, &c; and, in French, into
+Popelican, Poblican, Policien, and various other forms which it is
+unnecessary to enumerate. They began to cause alarm in France
+at the beginning of the eleventh century, in the reign of king
+Robert, when, under the name of Popelicans, they had established themselves in the diocese of Orleans, in which city a council
+was held against them in 1022, and thirteen individuals were
+condemned to be burnt. The name appears to have lasted into
+the thirteenth century, but the name of Bulgarians became more
+permanent, and, in its French form of Bolgres, Bougres, or
+Bogres, became the popular name for heretics in general. With
+these heresies, through the more sensual parts of Gnosticism and
+Manichæism, there appears to be left hardly room for doubt that
+the ancient phallic worship, probably somewhat modified, and under
+the shadow of secret rites, was imported into Western Europe; for,
+if we make allowance for the willing exaggerations of religious
+hatred, and consequent popular prejudice, the general conviction
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+that these sectarians had rites and practices of a licentious character
+appears too strong to be entirely disregarded, nor does it present
+anything contrary to what we know of the state of mediæval
+society, or to the facts which have already been brought forward
+in the present essay. These early sects appear to have professed
+doctrines rather closely resembling modern communism, including,
+like those of their earlier sectarian predecessors, the community of
+women; and this community naturally implies the abolition of
+distinctive affinities. One of the writers against the mediæval
+heretics assures us that there were “many professed Christians, both
+men and women, who feared no more to go to their sister, or son
+or daughter, or brother, or nephew or niece, or kin or relation,
+than to their own wife or husband.”1
+They were accused, beyond
+this, of indulging in unnatural vices, and this charge was so
+generally believed, that the name of Bulgarus, or heretic, became
+equivalent with Sodomite, and hence came the modern French
+word bougre, and its English representatives.
+In the course of the eleventh century the sectarians appeared in
+Italy under the name of Patarini, Paterini, or Patrini, which is said
+to have been taken from an old quarter of the city of Milan named
+Pataria, in which they first held their assemblies. A contemporary
+Englishman, Walter Mapes, gives us a singular account of the
+Paterini and their secret rites. Some apostates from this heresy,
+he tells us, had related that, at the first watch of night, they
+met in their synagogues, closed carefully the doors and windows,
+and waited in silence, until a black cat of extraordinary bigness
+descended among them by a rope, and that, as soon as they saw
+Et hæc est causa quare multi credentes, tam viri quam mulieres, non timent
+magis ad sororem suam, et filium sive filiam, fratrem, neptem, consanguineam, et
+cognatam accedere, quam ad uxorem et virum prorium. Reinerus, Contra
+Waldenses, in Gretserus, Scriptores contra Sectam Waldensium, Gretseri Opera, tom.
+xii, p. 33.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 177
+this strange animal, they put out the lights, and muttering through
+their teeth instead of singing their hymns, felt their way to this
+object of their worship, and kissed it, according to their feelings of
+humility or pride, some on the feet, some under the tail, and others
+on the genitals, after which each seized upon the nearest person of a
+different sex, and had carnal intercourse as long as he was able.
+Their leaders taught them that the most perfect degree of charity was
+“to do or suffer in this manner whatever a brother or sister might
+desire and ask,” and hence, says Mapes, they were called Paterini,
+a patiendo.
+Other writers have suggested a different derivation,
+but the one first given appears to be that most generally accepted.
+The different sects or congregations in Italy and the south, indeed,
+appear generally to have taken their names from the towns in
+which they had their seats or head-quarters. Thus, those who
+were seated at Bagnols, in the department of the Gard, in the
+south of France, were called by the Latin writers Bagnolenses; the
+same writers give the name of Concordenses, or Concorezenses,
+to the heretics of Concordia in Lombardy; and the city of Albi,
+now the capital of the department of the Tarn, gave its name
+to the sect of the Albigenses, or Albigeois, the most extensive
+Resipuerunt autem multi, reversique ad fidem enarrant quod circa primum
+noctis vigiliam, clausis eorum januis, hostiis, et fenestris, expectantes in singulis
+sinagogis suis singulæ sedeant in silentio familiæ, descenditque per funem appensum in
+medio miræ magnitudinis murelegus niger, quem cum vidernet, luminibus extinctis,
+hymnos non decantant, non distincte dicunt, sed ruminant affertis dentibus, acceduntque ubi dominum suum viderint palpantes, inventumque deosculantur quisque
+secundum quod ampliore servet insania humilius, quidam pedes, plurimi sub cauda,
+plerique pudenda, et quasi a loco fútoris accepta licentia pruriginis, quisque sibi
+proximum aut proximam arripit, commiscenturque quantum quisque lubidrium
+extendere prævalet. Dicunt etiam magistri docentque novitios caritatem esse perfectam agere vel pati quod desideraverit et petierit frater aut soror, extinguere scilicet
+inviciem ardentes, et a patiendo Paterini dicuntur. Mapes, De Nugis Curialium,
+p. 61.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+of them all, which spread over the whole of the south of France. A
+rich enthusiast of the city of Lyons, named Waldo, who had collected
+his wealth by mercantile pursuits, and who lived in the twelfth century, sold his property and distributed it among the poor, and he
+became the head of a sect which professed poverty as one of its
+tenets, and received from the name of its founder that of Waldenses
+or Vaudois. From their possession of voluntary poverty they are
+sometimes spoken of by the name of Pauperes de Lugduno, the
+paupers of Lyons. Contemporaries speak of the Waldenses as
+being generally poor ignorant people; yet they spread widely
+over that part of France and into the valleys of Switzerland, and
+became so celebrated, that at last nearly all the mediæval heretics
+were usually classed under the head of Waldenses. Another sect,
+usually classed with the Waldenses, were called Cathari. The Novatians, a sect which sprang up in the church in the third century,
+assumed also the name of Cathari, as laying claim to extraordinary
+purity (kaqaroà), but there is no reason for believing that the ancient
+sect was revived in the Cathari of the later period, or even that
+the two words are identical. The name of the latter sect is
+often spelt Gazari, Gazeri, Gaçari, and Chazari; and, as they were
+more especially a German sect, it is supposed to have been the
+origin of the German words Ketzer and Ketzerie, which became
+the common German terms for a heretic and heresy. It was
+suggested by Henschenius that this name was derived from the
+German Katze or Ketze, a cat, in allusion to the common report
+that they assembled at night like cats, or ghosts;1
+or the
+cat may have been an allusion to the belief that in their secret
+meetings they worshipped that animal. This sect must have been
+very ignorant and superstitious if it be true which some old writers
+Propter nocturnas coitiones, a voce Germanica caters, id est, feles seu lemures.
+See Ducagne, sub v. Cathari.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 179
+tell us, that they believed that the sun was a demon, and the moon
+a female called Heva,1
+and that these two had sexual intercourse
+every month. Like the other heretical sects, these Cathari were
+accused of indulging in unnatural vices, and the German words
+Ketzerie and Ketzer were eventually used to signify sodomy and
+a sodomite, as well as heresy and a heretic.
+The Waldenses generally, taking all the sects which people class
+under this name, including also the older Bulgari and Publicani,
+were charged with holding secret meetings, at which the devil
+appeared to them in the shape, according to some, of a goat, whom
+they worshipped by offering the kiss in ano, after which they
+indulged in promiscuous sexual intercourse. Some believed that
+they were conveyed to these meetings by unearthly means. The
+English chronicler, Ralph de Coggeshall, tells a strange story of
+the means of locomotion possessed by these heretics. In the city
+of Rheims, in France, in the time of St. Louis, a handsome young
+woman was charged with heresy, and carried before the archbishop,
+in whose presence she avowed her opinions, and confessed that she
+had received them from a certain old woman of that city. The old
+woman was then arrested, convicted of being an obstinate heretic,
+and condemned to the stake. When they were preparing to carry
+her out to the fire, she suddenly turned to the judges and said, “Do
+you think that you are able to burn me in your fire? I care neither
+for it nor for you!” And taking a ball of thread, she threw it out at
+a large window by which she was standing, holding the end of the
+thread in her hands, and exclaiming, “Take it!” (recipe). In an
+instant, in the sight of all who were there, the old woman was
+lifted from the ground, and, following the ball of thread, was carried into the air nobody knew where; and the archbishop’s officers
+Bonacursus, Vita Hæreticorum, in D’Achery, Spicilegium, tom. i, p. 209. This
+book is considered to have been written about the year 1190.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+burnt the young woman in her place.1
+It was the belief of most of
+the old sects of this class, as well as of the more ancient Pagans
+from whom they were derived, that those who were fully initiated
+into their most secret mysteries became endowed with powers and
+faculties above those possessed by ordinary individuals. A list of
+the errors of the Waldenses, printed in the Reliquiæ Antiquæ, from
+an English manuscript, enumerates among them that they met to
+indulge in promiscuous sexual intercourse, and held perverse
+doctrines in accordance with it; that, in some parts, the devil
+appeared to them in the form of a cat, and that each kissed him
+under the tail; and that in other parts they rode to the place of
+meeting upon a staff anointed with a certain unguent, and were
+conveyed thither in a moment of time. The writer adds that,
+in the parts where he lived, these practices had not been known to
+exist for a long time.2
-crufade againil, 183 — 185.
+Our old chroniclers exult over the small success which attended
-Stonehenge, temple for worfliip of
+the efforts of these heretics from France and the South to introduce
+themselves into our island.3
+These sects, with secret and obscene
+Radulphus Cogeshalenfis, In the Amplissima Collectio of Martene and Durand.
+On the offences with which the different sects comprised under the name of
+Waldenses were charged, see Gretser's Scriptores contra Sectam Waldensium, which
+will be found in the twelfth volume of his works, Bonacursus, Vita Haereticorum, in
+the first volume of D'Achery's Spicilegium, and the work of a Carthusian monk in
+Martene and Durand, Amplissima Collectio, vol. vi, col. 57 et seq. 2
+Wright and Halliwell, Reliquæ Antiquæ, vol. i, p. 247.
+Item, habent inter se mixtum abominabile, et perversa dogmata ad hoc apta, sed
+non reperitur quod abutantur in partibus istis a multis temporibis.
+Item, in aliquibus aliis partibus apparet eis dæmon sub specie et figura cati, quem
+sub cauda sigillatim osculantur.
+Item, in aliis partibus super unum baculum certo unguento perunctum equitant, et
+ad local assignata ubi voluerint congregatur in momento dum volunt. Sed
+ista in istis partibus non inveniuntur. 3
+See, for example, Guil. Neubrigensis, De Rebus Anglicis, lib. ii, c. 13, and
+Walter Mapes, de Nugis Curialium, p. 62.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 181
+rites, appear, indeed, to have found most favour among the peoples
+who spoke a dialect derived from the Latin, and this we might
+naturally be led to expect, for the fact of the preservation of the
+Latin tongue is itself a proof of the greater force of the Roman
+element in the society, that from which these secret rites appear to
+have been chiefly derived. It is a curious circumstance, in connection with this subject, that the popular oaths and exclamations
+among the people speaking the languages derived from the Romans
+are almost all composed of the names of the objects of this phallic
+worship, an entire contrast to the practice of the Teutonic tribes—
+the vulgar oaths of the people speaking Neo-Latin dialects are
+obscene, those of the German race are profane. We have seen
+how the women of Antwerp, who, though perhaps they did not
+speak the Roman dialect, appear to have been much influenced by
+Roman sentiments, made their appeal to their genius Ters. When
+a Spaniard is irritated or suddenly excited, he exclaims, Carajo!
+(the virile member) or Cojones! (the testicles). An Italian, under
+similar circumstances, uses the exclamation Cazzo! (the virile
+member). The Frenchman apostrophizes the act, Foutre! The
+female member, cono with the Spaniard, conno with the Italian, and
+con with the Frenchman, was and is used more generally as an expression of contempt, which is also the case with the testicles, couillons, in French—those who have had experience in the old days of
+“diligence” travelling will remember how usual it was for the
+driver, when the horses would not go quick enough, to address the
+leader in such terms as, “Va, donc, vieux con!” We have no such
+words used in this manner in the Germanic languages, with the
+exception, perhaps, of the German Potz! and Potztausend! and
+the English equivalent, Pox! which last is gone quite out of use.
+There was an attempt among the fashionables of our Elizabethan
+age of literature, to introduce the Italian cazzo under the form of
+catso, and the French foutre under that of foutra, but these were
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+mere affectations of a moment, and were so little in accord with
+our national sentiments that they soon disappeared.
+The earliest accounts of a sect which held secret meetings for
+celebrating obscene rites is found in France. It appears that, early
+in the eleventh century, there was in the city of Orleans a society
+consisting of members of both sexes, who assembled at certain
+times in a house there, for the purposes which are described rather
+fully in a document found in the cartulary of the abbey of St.
+Père at Chartres. As there stated, they went to the meeting,
+each carrying in the hand a lighted lamp, and they began by
+chaunting the names of demons in the manner of a litany, until a
+demon suddenly descended among them in the form of an animal.
+This was no sooner seen, than they all extinguished their lamps,
+and each man took the first female he put his hand upon, and had
+sexual intercourse with her, without regard if she were his mother,
+or his sister, or a consecrated nun; and this intercourse, we are
+told, was looked upon by them as an act of holiness and religion.
+The child which was the fruit of this intercourse was taken on the
+eighth day and purified by fire, “in the manner of the ancient
+Pagans,”—so says the contemporary writer of this document,—it
+was burnt to ashes in a large fire made for that purpose. The
+ashes were collected with great reverence, and preserved, to be
+administered to members of the society who were dying, just as
+good Christians received the viaticum. It is added that there was
+such a virtue in these ashes, that an individual who had once tasted
+them would hardly ever after be able to turn his mind from that
+heresy and take the path of truth.1
+Congregabantur siquidem certis noctibus in domo denominata, singuli lucernas
+tenentes in manibus, et, ad instar letaniæ, dæmonum nomina declamabant, donec
+subito dæmonum in similitudine cuiuslibet bestiolæ inter eos viderent descendere.
+Qui, statim ut visibilis illa videbatur visio, omnibus extinctis luminaribus, quamprimum quisque poterat, mulierum quæ ad manum sibi veniebat ad abuntendum arri-
+GENERATIVE POWERS 183
+Whatever degree of truth there may have been in this story, it
+must have been greatly exaggerated; but the conviction of the
+existence of secret societies of this character during the middle
+ages appears to have been so strong and so generally held, that we
+must hesitate in rejecting it. Perhaps we may take the leaden
+tokens already described, and represented in one of our plates,1
+as
+evidence of the existence of such societies, for these curious objects
+appear to admit of no other satisfactory explanation than that of
+having been in use in secret clubs of a very impure character.
+It has been already remarked that people soon seized upon accusations of this kind as excuses for persecution, religious and political, and we meet with a curious example in the earlier half of the
+thirteenth century. The district of Steding, in the north of
+Germany, now known as Oldenburg, was at the beginning of the
+thirteenth century inhabited by a people who lived in sturdy independence, but the archbishops of Bremen seem to have claimed
+some sort of feudal superiority over them, which they resisted by
+force. The archbishop, in revenge, declared them heretics, and
+proclaimed a crusade against them. Crusades against heretics were
+then in fashion, for it was just at the time of the great war against the
+Albigeois. The Stedingers maintained their independence successfully for some years. In 1232 and 1233, the pope issued two
-Apollo, 65.
+piebat, sine peccati respectu et utrum mater aut soror aut monacha haberetur, pro
-Strabo, 31, 33.
+sanctitate ac religione ejus concubitus ab illis æstimabatur. Ex quo spurcissimo concubity infans generatus octava die in medio eorum copioso igne accenso piabatur per
-Stubbes' (P.) defcription of May-day
+ignem, more antiquorum paganorum, et sic in igne cremabatur. Cujus cinis tanta
+veneratione colligebatur atque custodiebatur, ut Christiana religiositas corpus Christi
+custodiri solet, ægris dandum de hoc seculo exituris ad viaticum. Inerat enim tanta
+vis diabolicæ fraudis in ipso cinere, ut quicumque de præfata hæresi imbutus fuisset, et
+de eodem cinere quamvis sumendo parum prælibavisset, vix unquam postea de eadem
+hæresi gressum mentis ad viam veritatis dirigere valeret. Guérard, Cartulaire de
+l’Abbate de Saint-Père de Chartres, vol. i, p. 112. 1
+See before, p. 146, and Plate XXXIII.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+bulls against the offending Stedingers, in both of which he charges
+them with various heathen and magical practices, but in the second
+be enters more fully into details. These Stedingers, the pope
+(Gregory IX.) tells us, performed the following ceremonies at the
+initiation of a new convert into their sect. When the novice was
+introduced, a toad presented itself, which all who were present kissed,
+some on the posteriors, and others on the mouth, when they drew
+its tongue and spittle into their own mouths. Sometimes this toad
+appeared of only the natural size, but sometimes it was as big as a
+goose or duck, and often its size was that of an oven. As the novice
+proceeded, he encountered a man who was extraordinarily pale, with
+large black eyes, and whose body was so wasted that his flesh seemed
+to be all gone, leaving nothing but the skin hanging on his bones.
+The novice kissed this personage, and found him as cold as ice;
+and after this kiss all traces of the Catholic faith vanished from his
+heart. Then they all sat down to a banquet; and when this was
+over, there stepped out of a statue, which stood in their place of
+meeting, a black cat, as large as a moderate sized dog, which
+advanced backwards to them, with its tail turned up. The novice
+first, then the master, and then all the others in their turns, kissed
+the cat under the tail, and then returned to their places, where
+they remained in silence, with their heads inclined towards the cat.
+Then the master suddenly pronounced the words “Spare us!”
+which he addressed to the next in order; and the third answered,
+“We know it, lord;” and a fourth added, “We ought to obey.” At
+the close of this ceremony the lights were extinguished, and each
+man took the first woman who came to hand, and had carnal
+intercourse with her. When this was over, the candles were again
+lighted, and the performers resumed their places. Then out of a
+dark corner of the room came a man, the upper part of whom,
+above the loins, was bright and radiant as the sun, and illuminated
+the whole room, while his lower parts were rough and hairy like a
+GENERATIVE POWERS 185
+cat. The master then tore off a bit of the garment of the novice,
+and said to the shining personage, “Master, this is given to me,
+and I give it again to thee.” The master replied, “Thou hast
+served me well, and thou wilt serve me more and better; what
+thou hast given me I give unto thy keeping.” When he had said
+this, the shining man vanished, and the meeting broke up. Such
+were the secret ceremonies of the Stedingers, according to the deliberate statement of Pope Gregory IX, who also charges them with
+offering direct worship to Lucifer.1
+But the most remarkable, and at the same time the most celebrated, affair in which these accusations of secret and obscene ceremonies were brought to bear, was that of the trial and dissolution
+of the order of the knights templars. The charges against the
+knights templars were not heard of for the first time at the period
+of their dissolution, but for many years it had been whispered abroad
+that they had secret opinions and practices of an objectionable
+character. At length the wealth of the order, which was very
+great in France, excited the cupidity of King Philippe IV, and it
+was resolved to proceed against them, and despoil them of their
+possessions. The grounds for these proceedings were furnished by
+two templars, one a Gascon, the other an Italian, who were evidently men of bad character, and who, having been imprisoned for
+some offence or offences, made a confession of the secret practices
+of their order, and upon these confessions certain articles of accusation were drawn up. These appear to have been enlarged
+afterwards. In 1307, Jacques de Molay, the grand master of the
+order, was treacherously allured to Paris by the king, and there
+seized and thrown into prison. Others, similarly committed to
+prison in all parts of the kingdom, were examined individually on
+Baronius, Annales Ecclesiastici, tom. xxi, p. 89, where the two bulls are printed,
+and where the details of the history of the Stedingers will be found.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+the charges urged against them, and many confessed, while others
+obstinately denied the whole. Amongst these charges were the
+following: 1. That on the admission of a new member of the
+order, after having taken the oath of obedience, he was obliged to
+deny Christ, and to spit, and sometimes also to trample, upon the
+cross; 2. That they then received the kiss of the templar, who
+officiated as receiver, on the mouth, and afterwards were obliged to
+kiss him in ano, on the navel, and sometimes on the generative
+member; 3. That, in despite of the Saviour, they sometimes worshipped a cat, which appeared amongst them in their secret conclave;
+. That they practised unnatural vice together; 5. That they
+had idols in their different provinces; in the form of a head, having
+sometimes three faces, sometimes two, or only one, and sometimes
+a bare skull, which they called their saviour, and believed its influence to be exerted in making them rich, and in making flowers
+grow and the earth germinate; and 6. That they always wore about
+their bodies a cord which had been rubbed against the head, and
+which served for their protection.1
-ceremonies, 162.
+The ceremonies attending the reception into the order were so
-Sun worfliip, 66, 77 — 82.
+universally acknowledged, and are described in terms which have so
-Sweden, worfliip of the god Fricco, 126.
+much the appearance of truthfulness, that we can hardly altogether
-Sylvanus, Pan fo called by the Latins,
+disbelieve in them. The denial was to be repeated thrice, no doubt in
+imitation of St. Peter. It appears to have been considered as a trial of
+the strength of the obedience they had just sworn to the order, and
+they all pleaded that they had obeyed with reluctance, that they had
+denied with the mouth but not with the heart; and that they had
+intentionally spit beside the cross and not upon it. In one instance
+the cross was of silver, but it was more commonly of brass, and still
+more frequently of wood; on one occasion the cross painted in a
+missal was used, and the cross on the templar’s mantle often served
+Procès des Templiers, edited by M. Michelet, vol. i, pp. 90-92.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 187
+the purpose. When one Nicholas de Compiegne protested against
+these two acts, all the templars who were present told him that he
+must do them, for it was the custom of the order.1
+Baldwin de St.
+Just at first refused, but the receptor warned him that if he persisted
+in his refusal, it would be the worse for him (aliter male accideret
+sibi), and then “he was so much alarmed that his hair stood on end.” 2
+Jacques de Trecis said that he did it under fear, because his receptor
+stood by with a great naked sword in his hand.3
+Another, Geoffrey
+de Thatan, having similarly refused, his receptor told him that they
+were “points of the order,” and that if he did not comply, “he
+should be put in such a place that he would never see his own feet.”4
-Symbols, explanation of the Priapic, 17;
+And another who refused to utter the words of denial was thrown
-ancient fymbols, 20, et feq.\ 45 — 47,
+into prison and kept there until vespers, and when he saw that he
-, 67, etfeq.; fun worfliip, 78 — 82;
+was in peril of death, he yielded, and did whatever the receptor
-, 88, 89 ; on ftatue of Ifis, 96 ;
+required of him, but he adds that he was so troubled and frightened
-butterfly, ancient fymbol of the foul,
+that he had forgotten whether he spat on the cross or not.5
-.
+Gui de
+la Roche, a presbyter of the diocese of Limoges, said that he
+uttered the denial with great weeping.6
+Another, when he denied
+Christ, “was all stupified and troubled, and it seemed as if he
+were enchanted, not knowing what counsel to take, as they
+threatened him heavily if he did not do it.”7
+When Etienne de
+Procès des Templiers, ii, 418. 2
+Et tunc ipse testis fuit magis attonitus, et orripilvait, id est eriguere pili sui.
+Procès, i, 242. 3 Procès, i, 254. 4
+Subjunxit idem receptor quod ista erant de punctis ordinis . . . . subjiciens
+dictum præceptorem sibi dixisse quod, nisi prædicta faceret, poneretur in tali loco
+quod nunquam videret pedes suos. Procès, i, pp. 222, 223. See also, i, 321. 5
+Et tunc dictus recipiens posuit eum in quodam carcere, in quo stetit usque ad
+vesperas; et cum vidisset quo esset in periculo mortis, petivit quod exiret, et faceret
+voluntatem ejus. Procès, ii, 284. 6
+Cum magno fletu. Procès, ii, 219. 7
+It ipse fuit totus stupefactus et turbatus, et videbatur sibi quasi quod esset in-
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+Dijon similarly refused to deny his Saviour, the preceptor told him
+that he must do it because he had sworn to obey his orders, and
+then “he denied with his mouth,” he said, “but not with his heart;
+and he did this with great grief,” and he adds that when it was
+done, he was so conscience-struck that “he wished he had been
+outside at his liberty, even though it had been with the loss of one
+of his arms.”1
+When Odo de Dompierre, with great reluctance, at
+length spat on the cross, he said that he did it with such bitter-ness of
+heart that he would rather have had his two thighs broken.2
-Syracufe, medal of, 55.
+Michelet, in the account of the proceedings against the templars in
+his “History of France,” offers an ingenious explanation of these
+ceremonies of initiation which gives them a typical meaning. He
+imagines that they were borrowed from the figurative mysteries and
+rites of the early Church, and supposes that, in this spirit, the candidate for admission into the order was first presented as a sinner
+and renegade, in which character, after the example of Peter, he
+was made to deny Christ. This denial, he suggests, was a sort of
+pantomime in which the novice expressed his reprobate state by
+spitting on the cross; after which he was stripped of his profane
+clothing, received, through the kiss of the order, into a higher state
+of faith, and clothed with the garb of its holiness. If this were the
+case, the true meaning of the performance must have been very
+soon forgotten.
+This was especially the case with the kiss. According to the
-Syftrum, myilic inllrument of the god-
+cantatus, nesciens sibi ipsi consulere, cum comminarentur eidem graviter nisi noc
-dels Ifis, 96.
+faceret. Procès, i, 291. 1
+Preceptor respondit ei quod oportebat eum abnegare, quia juraverat obedire
+præceptis suis; et testis abnegavit ore, sicut dixit, et non corde; et hoc fecit cum
+magno dolore, et voluisset, sicut dixit, tunc fuisse extra in libertate sua cum uno solo
+brachio, quia faciebat contra conscientiam suam. 2
+Adjiciens se cum magna cordis amaritudine hoc fecisse, et quod tunc magic voluisset habuisse crura fracta, quam facere prædicta, et fuit per aliquod spatium, sicut
+dixit, reluctans priusquam hoc faceret. Prèces, i, 307.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 189
+articles of accusation, one of the ceremonies of initiation required
+the novice to kiss the receiver on the mouth, on the anus, or the
+end of the spine, on the navel, and on the virga virilis.1
+The last
+is not mentioned in the examinations, but the others are described
+by so many of the witnesses that we cannot doubt of their truth.
+From the depositions of many of the templars examined, it would
+appear that the usual order was to kiss the receptor first in ano,
+next on the navel, and then on the mouth.2
+The first of these was an
+act which would, of course, be repulsive to most people, and the
+practice arose gradually of only kissing the end of the spine, or, as
+it was called in mediæval Latin, in anca. Bertrand de Somorens,
+of the diocese of Amiens, describing a reception at which more than
+one new member was admitted, says that the receiver next told
+them that they must kiss him in ano; but, instead of kissing him
+there, they lifted up his clothes and kissed him on the spine.3
+The
+receptor, it appears, had the power of remitting this kiss when he
+judged there was a sufficient reason. Etienne de Dijon, a presbyter
+of the diocese of Langres, said that, when he was admitted into
+the order, the preceptor told him that he ought, “according to the
+observances of the order,” to kiss his receiver in ano, but that in
+consideration of his being a presbyter, he would spare him and
+remit this kiss.
+Pierre de Grumenil, also a presbyter, when called
+Item, quod in receptione fratrum dicti ordinis, vel circa, interdum recipiens et
+receptus aliquando se deosculabantur in ore, in umbiloco seu in ventre nudo, et in ano
+seu spina dorsi . . . . aliquando in virga virili. Procès, i, 91. 2
+See the Procès, ii, 286, 362, 364. 3
+Deinde præcepit eis quod oscularentur eum in ano; ipsi tamen non fuerunt eum
+inibi osculati, sed, elevatis pannis, prædictum receptorem fuerunt osculati in spinda
+dorsi nuda, et hoc fecerunt, quia dixit eis quod erat de punctis ordinis. Procès, ii,
+. Another said, on another occasion, Præcepit etiam dictus receptor eis, quod
+oscularentur eum in ano et in umbilico, et ipsi osculati fuerunt in anca et umbilico
+super carnem nudam. Ib. ii, 159. 4
+Item dixit quod, prædictis peractis, dictus præceptor dixit ei quod secundam ob-
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+upon to perform this act, refused, and was allowed to kiss his receiver on the navel only.1
+A presbyter named Ado de Dompierre
+was excused for the same reason,
+as well as many others. Another
+templar, named Pierre de Lanhiac, said that, at his reception into
+the order, his receptor told him that he must kiss him in ano,
+because that was one of the points of the order, but that, at the
+earnest supplication of his uncle, who was present, and must therefore have been a knight of the order, he obtained a remission of
+this kiss.3
+Another charge against the templars was still more disgusting.
+It was said that they proscribed all intercourse with women, and
+one of the men examined stated, which was also confessed by others,
+that his receptor told him that, from that hour, he was never to
+enter a house in which a woman lay in labour, nor to take part as
+godfather at the baptism of any child,4
+but he added that he had
+broken his oath, for he had assisted at the baptism of several children while still in the order, which he had left about a year before
+the seizure of the templars, for the love of a woman of whom he
+had become enamoured. On the other hand, those who replied to
+the interrogatory of the king's officers in this process, were all but
+unanimous in the avowal that on entering the order they received
-Temples for heathen worfliip, 63, etfeq.
+servantias ordinis eorum recepti debebant oscurali in ano receptores, quia tamen idem
+testis erat presbyter, parcebat ei et remittebat sibi dictum osculum. Procès, i, 302. 1
+Deinde præcepit quod oscularetur eum in ano, et cum ipse testis nollet hoc facere,
+præcepit quod oscularetur eum saltem in umbilico super carnem, nudam, et fuit eum
+ibi osculatus. Procès, ii, 24. 2 Procès, i, 307. 3
+Post quæ dixit eidem quod secundum dicta puncta debebat eum osculari in ano,
+et præcepit quod ibi oscularetur eum, sed, avunculo ipsius testis flexis genibus instatne,
+remisit ei osculum memoratum. Procès, ii, 2. 4
+Dixit etiam quod ab illa hora in antea non intraret domum in qua aliqua mulier
+jaceret in puerperio, nec susciperet aliquem nec teneret in sacro fonte. Procès, i,
+.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 191
+the permission to commit sodomy amongst themselves. Two or
+three professed not to have understood this injunction in a bad
+sense, but to have supposed that it only meant that, when the
+brethren were short of beds, each was to be ready to lend half of his
+bed to his fellow.1
+One of them, named Gillet de Encraye, said
+that he at first supposed it to be meant innocently, but that his receptor immediately undeceived him, by repeating it in less covert
+terms, at which he was himself so horrified that he wished himself
+far away from the chapel in which the ceremony took place.2
+A
+great number of templars stated that, after the kisses of initiation,
+they were informed that if they felt moved by natural heat, they
+might call any one of the brethren to their relief, and that they ought
+to relieve their brethren when appealed to under the same circumstances.3
+This appears to have been the most common form of
+the injunction. In one or two instances the receiver is described as
+adding that this was an act of contempt towards the other sex,
+which may perhaps be considered as showing that the ceremony
+was derived from some of the mysteries of the strange sects which
+appeared in the earlier ages of Christianity. Jean de St. Loup,
+who held the office of master of the house of templars at Soisiac,
+said that, on his reception into the order, he received the injunction
+Post quæ immediates præcepit idem frater P. ipsi testi quod si aliquis frater dicti
+ordinis vellet jacere secum, non deberet recusare. Ipse tamen testis, ut dixit, non
+intellexit quod hoc diceret ut jacentes insimul aliquod peccatum committerentur, sed,
+si deficeret lectus alteri, quod reciperet eum in lecto suo honesto. Procès, i, 262. See
+again, i. 568. 2
+Sed dictus frater Johannes subjunxit et declaravit quod carnaliter poterant commisceri, de quo ipse testis fuit multum turbatus, ut dixit, et multum desideravit, ut
+dixit, quod tunc esset extra portam dictæ capellæ. Procès, i, 250. 3
+Quo facto, dixit sibi recipiens quod si aliquis calor naturalis moveret eum ad libidinem exercendam, faceret secum jacere unum de fratribus suis et haberet rem cum
+eo, et permitteret hoc idem similiter sibi fieri ab aliis fratribus. Procès, ii, 284. Cf.
+pp. 287, 288.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+not to have intercourse with women, but, if he could not persevere
+in continence, he might have the same intercourse with men;1
+and
+others were told that it would “be better to satisfy their lust among
+themselves, whereby the order would escape evil report, than if they
+went to women.”2
+But although the almost unanimity of the confessions leave hardly room for a doubt that such injunctions were given,
+yet on the other hand they are equally unanimous in denying that
+these injunctions were carried into practice. Almost every templar,
+as the questions were put to him, after admitting that he was told
+that he might indulge in such vice with the other brethren, asserted
+that he had never done this, and that he had never been asked to do so
+by any of them. Theobald de Taverniac, whose name tells us that
+he came from the south, denied indignantly the existence of such a
+vice among their order but in terms which themselves told not
+very much in favour of the morality of the templars in other
+respects. He said that, “as to the crime of sodomy,” he believed
+the charge to be totally untrue, “because they could have very
+handsome and elegant women when they liked, and that they did
+have them frequently when they were rich and powerful enough
+to afford it, and that on this account he and other brothers of the
+order were removed from their houses, as he said.”3
+We have an
+implied acknowledgment that the templars did not entirely
+Dixit etiam per juramentum suum quod fuit sibi injunctum per eos quod non
+heberet rem cum mulieribus, sed, si continere non posset, commisceret se carnaliter
+cum hominibus. Procès, 287. Cf. ii, 288, 294, etc. 2
+Postea unus prædictorum servientium dixit eis quod, si haberent calorem et motus
+carnales, poterant ad invicem carnaliter commisceri, si volebant, quia melius erat
+quod hoc facerent inter se, ne ordo vituperaretur, quam si accederent ad mulieres.
+Procès, i, 386. 3
+De crimine sodomitico, respondit se nihil scire, nec credere contenta in ipsis articulis esse vera, quia poterant habere mulieres pulchras et bene comptas, et frequenter
+eas habebant, cum essent divites et potentes, et ex hoc ipse et alii fratres ipsius ordinis
+amoti fuerant a suis domibus, ut dixit. Procès, i, 326.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 193
+neglect the other sex in a statement quoted by Du Puy that, if a
+child were born from the intercourse between a templar and a virgin,
+they roasted it, and made an unguent of its fat, with which they
+anointed their idol.1
+Those who confessed to the existence of the
+vice were so few, and their evidence so indefinite or indirect,
+that they are deserving of no consideration. One had heard
+that some brethren beyond the sea had committed unnatural
+vices.2
+Another, Hugh de Faure, had heard say that two
+brothers of the order, dwelling in the Chateau Pelerin, had
+been charged with sodomy; that, when this reached the ears of
+the master, he gave orders for their arrest, and that one had been
+killed in the attempt to escape, while the other was taken and imprisoned for life.3
+Peter Brocart, a templar of Paris, declared that
+one of the order, one night, called him and committed sodomy
+with him; adding that he had not refused, because he considered
+himself bound to obedience by the rules of the order.4
+The evidence is decidedly strong against the prevalence of such a vice
+among the templars, and the alleged permission was perhaps a mere
+form of words, which concealed some occult meaning unknown to
+the mass of the templars themselves. We are not inclined to reject
+altogether the theory of the baron von Hammer-Pürgstall, that
+the templars had adopted some of the mysterious tenets of the
+eastern Gnostics.
+Præterea, si ex templarii coitu infans ex puella virgine nascebatur, hunc igni
+torrebant; exque eliquata inde pinguedine suum simulachrum decoris gratia ungebant. Robert Gaguin, ap. Du Puy, Histoire de l’Ordre Militaire des Templiers,
+p. 24.
+Procès, ii, 213. 3
+Audivit dici quod duo fratres ordinis, commorantes in Castro Peregrini, erant
+de crimine sodomitico dissamati; et cum hoc pervenisset ad magistrum, mandavit eos
+capi, et unus illorum fuit interfectus cum fugeret, et alter fuit perpetuo carcari mancipatus. Procès, ii, 223. 4 Procès, ii, 294.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+In regard to the secret idolatry with which the templars were
+charged, it is a subject involved in great obscurity. The cat is but
+little spoken of in the depositions. Some Italian knights confessed
+that they had been present at a secret chapter of twelve knights
+held at Brindisi, when a grey cat suddenly appeared amongst them,
+and they worshipped it. At Nismes, some templars declared that
+they had been present at a chapter at Montpellier, when the demon
+appeared to them in the form of a cat, and promised them worldly
+prosperity, but they appear to have been visionaries not to be
+trusted, for they stated that at the same time devils appeared in the
+shape of women. An English templar, examined in London, deposed that in England they did not adore the cat, or the idol, but
+that he had heard it positively stated that the cat and the idol were
+worshipped by the templars in parts beyond sea.1
+A solitary
+Frenchhman, examined in Paris, Gillet de Encreyo, spoke of the
+cat, and said that he had heard, but had forgotten who were his
+informants, and did not believe them, that beyond sea a certain cat
+had appeared to the templars in their battles.2
+The cat belongs to
+a lower class of popular superstitions, perhaps, than that of the
+templars.
+This, however, was not the case with the idol, which was generally described as the figure of a human head, and appears only to
+have been shown in the more secret chapter meetings on particular occasions. Many of the templars examined before the commissioners, said that they had heard this idol head spoken of as
+existing in the order, and others deposed to having seen it. It was
+generally described as being about the natural size of a man’s head,
+Respondit quod in Anglia non adorant catum nec idolum, quod ipse sciat; sed
+audviit bene dici, quod adorant catum et idolum in partibus transmarinis. Wilkins,
+Concilla, vol. ii, p. 384. 2
+Audivit tamen ab aliquibus dici, de quibus non recordatur, quod quidam catus
+apparebat ultar mare in præliis eorum, quod tamen non credit. Procès, i, 251.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 195
+with a very fierce-looking face and a beard, the latter sometimes
+white. Different witnesses varied as to the material of which it was
+made, and, indeed, in various other particulars, which lead us to
+suppose that each house of the templars, where the idol existed, had
+its own head, and that they varied in form. They agreed generally
+that this head was an object of worship. One templar deposed that
+he was present at a chapter of the order in Paris, when the head
+was brought in, but he was unable to describe it at all, for, when
+he saw it, he was so struck with terror that he hardly knew where
+he was.1
+Another, Ralph de Gysi, who held the office of receptor
+for the province of Champagne, said that he had seen the head in
+many chapters; that, when it was introduced, all present threw
+themselves on the ground and adored it: and when asked to describe it, he said, on his oath, that its countenance was so terrible,
+that it seemed to him to be the figure of a demon—using the French
+word un maufé, and that as often as he saw it, so great a fear took
+possession of him, that he could hardly look upon it without fear
+and trembling.2
+Jean Taylafer said that, at his reception into the
+order, his attention was directed to a head upon the altar in the
+chapel, which he was told he must worship; he described it as of
+the natural size of a mans head, but could not describe it more
+particularly, except that he thought it was of a reddish colour.3
+Raynerus de Larchent saw the head twice in a chapter, especially
+once in Paris, where it had a beard, and they adored and kissed it,
+Ipse testis, viso dicto capite, fuit adeo perterritus quod quasi nesciret ubi esset.
+Procès, i, 399. 2
+Interrogatus cujus figræ est, dixit per juramentum suum quod ita esti terriblis
+figuræ et aspectus quod videbatur sibi quod esset figura cujusdam dæmonis, dicens
+Gallice d’un mausé, et quod quocienscunque videbat eum tantus timor eum invadebat, quod vix poterat illud respicere nisi cum maximo timore et tremore. Procès,
+ii, 364. 3 Procès, i, 190.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+and called it their saviour.1
+Guillermus de Herbaleyo saw the
+head with its beard, at two chapters. He thought it was of silver
+gilt, and wood inside. He “saw the brethren adore it, and he went
+through the form of adoring it himself, but he did it not in his
+heart.”2
+According to one witness, Deodatus Jaffet, a knight
+from the south of France who had been received at Pedenat,
+the receptor showed him a head, or idol, which appeared to
+have three faces, and said to him, “You must adore this as your
+saviour, and the saviour of the order of the temple,” and he added
+that he was made to worship the idol, saying, “Blessed be he
+who shall save my soul!” Another deponent gave a very similar
+account. Another knight of the order, Hugo de Paraudo, said
+that, in a chapter at Montpellier, he had both seen, held, and felt,
+the idol or head, and that he and the other brothers adored it but
+he, like the others, pleaded that he did not adore it in his heart.
+He described it as supported on four feet, two before and two
+behind.3
+Guillaume de Arrablay, the king’s almoner (eleemosynarius
+regius), said that in the chapter at which he was received, a head
+made of silver was placed on the altar, and adored by those who
+formed the chapter; he was told that it was the head of one of the
+eleven thousand virgins, and had always believed this to be the
+case, until after the arrest of the order, when, hearing all that was
+said on the matter, he “suspected” that it was the idol; and he adds
+in his deposition that it seemed to him to have two faces, a terrible
+look, and a silver beard.4
+It does not appear very clear why he
+should have taken a head with two faces, a fierce look, and a beard,
+Quod adorant, osculantur, et vocant salvatorem suum. Procès, ii, 279. 2
+Et vidit fratres adorare illud; et ipse fingebat illud adorare, sed numquam fecit
+corde, ut dixit. Procès, ii, 300. 3 Procès, ii, 363. 4
+Videtur sibi quod haberet duas facies, et quod esset terribilis aspectu, et quod haberet barbam argenteam. Procès, i, 502.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 197
+for one of the eleven thousand virgins, but this is, perhaps, partly
+explained by the deposition of another witness, Guillaume Pidoye,
+who had the charge of the relics, &c., belonging to the Temple in
+Paris, and who produced a head of silver gilt, having a woman's
+face, and a small skull, resembling that of a woman, inside, which
+was said to be that of one of the eleven thousand virgins. At the
+same time another head was brought forward, having a beard, and
+supposed to be that of the idol.1
+Both these witnesses had no
+doubt confounded two things. Pierre Garald, of Mursac, another
+witness, said that after he had denied Christ and spitten on the cross,
+the receptor drew from his bosom a certain small image of brass
+or gold, which appeared to represent the figure of a woman, and told
+him that “he must believe in it, and have faith in it, and that it
+would be well for him.”2
+Here the idol appears in the form of
+a statuette. There was also another account of the idol, which
+perhaps refers to some further object of superstition among the
+templars. According to one deponent, it was an old skin embalmed,
+with bright carbuncles for eyes, which shone like the light of
+heaven. Others said that it was the skin of a man, but agreed with
+the others in regard to the carbuncles.3
+In England a minorite
+friar deposed that an English knight of the Temple had assured
+him that the templars had four principal idols in this country, one
+in the sacristy of the Temple in London, another at Bristelham, a
+third at Brueria (Bruern in Lincolnshire), and the fourth at some
+place beyond the Humber.4
-Templars, Knights, fecret pradices, trial
+Procès, ii, 218. 2
-and diflblution of their order, 150,
+Item, dixit quod post prædicta dictus receptor, extrahens de fino suo quamdam
+parvam imaginem de leone (apparently a misreading) vel de auro, quæ vibebatur
+habere effigiem muliebrem, dixit ei quod crederet in eam, et haberet in ea fiduciam,
+et bene sibi esset. Procès, ii, 212. 3
+Du Puy, Hist. des Templ., pp. 22, 24. 4
+Wilkins, Concil., vol. ii, p. 363.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+Another piece of information relating to this “idol,” which has
+been the subject of considerable discussion among modern writers,
+was elicited from the examination of some knights from the south.
+Gauserand de Montpesant, a knight of Provence, said that their
+superior showed him an idol made in the form of Baffomet;1
+another, named Raymond Rubei, described it as a wooden head, on
+which the figure of Baphomet was painted, and adds, “that he
+worshipped it by kissing its feet, and exclaiming, ëYalla,’ which was,”
+he says, “verbum Saracenorum,” a word taken from the Saracens.2
+A templar of Florence declared that, in the secret chapters of the
+order, one brother said to the other, showing the idol, “Adore this
+head—this head is your god and your Mahomet.” The word
+Mahomet was used commonly in the middle ages as a general term
+for an idol or false god; but some writers have suggested that Baphomet is itself a mere corruption of Mahomet, and suppose that
+the templars had secretly embraced Mahometanism. A much more
+remarkable explanation of this word has, however, been proposed,
+which is, at the least, worthy of very great consideration, especially
+as it comes from so distinguished an orientalist and scholar as the
+late baron Joseph von Hammer-Pürgstall. It arose partly from the
+comparison of a number of objects of art, ornamented with
+figures, and belonging apparently to the thirteenth century. These
+objects consist chiefly of small images, or statuettes, coffers, and
+cups.3
+Que leur supérieur lui monstra une idole barbue faite in figuram Baffometi.
+Du Puy, Hist. des Templiers, p. 216. 2
+Du Puy, Hist. des Templiers, p. 21. 3
+Von Hammer published his discoveries and opinions in 1816, in an elaborate
+essay in the sixth volume of the Fundgruben des Orients, entitled, Mysterium Baphometis revelatum, seu fratres militiæ Templi, quo gnostici et quidam ophiani apostasiæ, idoloduliæ et impuritatis convicti per ipsa eorum monumenta. In 1832, he
+published a supplmentary essay under the title Mémoire sur deux coffrets gnostiques
+du Moyen Age, du Cabinet de M. le Duc de Blacas, par M. Joseph de Hammer.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 199
+Von Hammer has described, and given engravings of, twentyfour such images, which it must be acknowledged answer very well
+to the descriptions of their "idol" given by the templars in their
+examinations, except only that the templars usually speak of them as
+of the size of life, and as being merely heads. Most of them have
+beards, and tolerably fierce countenances. Among those given by
+Von Hammer are seven which present only a head, and two with
+two faces, backwards and forwards, as described in some of the depositions. These two appear to be intended for female heads.
+Altogether Von Hammer has described fifteen cups and goblets,
+but a much smaller number of coffers. Both cups and coffers are
+ornamented with extremely curious figures, representing a continuous scene, apparently religious ceremonies of some kind or other,
+but certainly of an obscene character, all the persons engaged in
+which are represented naked. It is not a part of our subject to
+enter into a detailed examination of these mysteries. The most interesting of the coffers described by Von Hammer, which was preserved in the private museum of the duc de Blacas, is of calcarous
+stone, nine inches long by seven broad, and four and a half deep,
+with a lid about two inches thick. It was found in Burgundy.
+On the lid is sculptured a figure, naked, with a head-dress resembling that given to Cybele in ancient monuments, holding up a chain
+with each hand, and surrounded with various symbols, the sun and
+moon above, the star and the pentacle below, and under the feet a
+human skull.1
+The chains are explained by Von Hammer as representing the chains of æons of the Gnostics. On the four sides of
+the coffer we see a series of figures engaged in the performance of
+various ceremonies, which are not easily explained, but which Von
+Hammer considers as belonging to the rites of the Gnostics and
+Ophians. The offering of a calf figures prominently among these
+See our plate XXXVIII.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+rites, a worship which is said still to exist among the Nossarii, or
+Nessarenes, the Druses, and other sects in the East. In the middle
+of the scene on one side, a human skull is seen, raised upon a pole.
+On another side an androgynous figure is represented as the object of
+worship of two candidates for initiation, who wear masks apparently
+of a cat, and whose form of adoration reminds us of the kiss enacted
+at the initiation of the templars.1
+This group reminds us, too, of the
+pictures of the orgies in the worship of Priapus, as represented on
+Roman monuments. The second of the coffers in the cabinet of
+the duc de Blacas was found in Tuscany, and is rather larger than
+the one just described, but made of the same material, though of a
+finer grain. The lid of this coffer is lost, but the sides are covered
+with sculpture of a similar character. A large goblet, or bowl, of
+marble, in the imperial museum at Vienna, is surrounded by a
+series of figures of similar character, which are engraved by Von
+Hammer, who sees in one group of men (who are furnished in the
+original with prominent phalli) and serpents, a direct allusion to
+Ophite rites. Next after these comes a group which we have
+reproduced in our plate,2
+representing a strange figure seated upon
+an eagle, and accompanied with two of the symbols represented on
+the coffer found in Burgundy, the sun and moon. The two
+symbols below are considered by Von Hammer to represent, according to the rude mediæval notions of its form, the womb, or
+matrix; the fecundating organ is penetrating the one, while the
+infant is emerging from the other. The last figure in this series,
+which we have also copied,3
+is identical with that on the lid of the
+coffer found in Burgundy, but it is distinctly represented as androgynous. We have exactly the same figure on another coffer, in the
+Vienna museum,4
+with some of the same symbols, the star, pentacle,
+Plate XXXIX, Fig. 1. 2
+Plate XXXIX, Fig. 2. 3
+Plate XXXIX, Fig. 3. 4
+Plate XXXIX, Fig. 4.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 201
+and human skull. Perhaps, in this last, the beard is intended to
+show that the figure must be taken as androgynous.
+On an impartial comparison we can hardly doubt that these
+curious objects,—images, coffers, cups, and bowls,—have been
+intended for use in some secret and mysterious rites, and the
+arguments by which Von Hammer attempts to show that they
+belonged to the templars seem at least to be very plausible.
+Several of the objects represented upon them, even the skull, are
+alluded to in some of the confessions of the templars, and these
+evidently only confessed a part of what they knew, or otherwise
+they were very imperfectly acquainted with the secrets of their
+order. Perhaps the most secret doctrines and rites were only communicated fully to a small number. There is, however, another
+circumstance connected with these objects which appears to furnish
+an almost irresistible confirmation of Von Hammer's theory. Most
+of them bear inscriptions, written in Arabic, Greek, and Roman
+characters. The inscriptions on the images appear to be merely
+proper names, probably those of their possessors. But with the
+coffers and bowls the case is different, for they contain a nearly
+uniform inscription in Arabic characters, which, according to the interpretation given by Von Hammer, contains a religious formula. The
+Arabic characters, he says, have been copied by a European, and
+not very skilful, carver, who did not understand them, from an Eastern
+original, and the inscriptions contain corruptions and errors which
+either arose from this circumstance, or, as Von Hammer suggests,
+may have been introduced designedly, for the purpose of concealing
+the meaning from the uninitiated. A good example of this inscription surrounds the lid of the coffer found in Burgundy, and is
+interpreted as follows by Von Hammer, who regards it as a sort of
+parody on the Cantate laudes Domini. In fact, the word under the
+feet of the figure, between them and the skull, is nothing more
+than the Latin cantate expressed in Arabic letters. The words with
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+which this Cantate begins are written above the head of the figure,
+and are read by Von Hammer as Fah la Sidna, which is more correctly Fella Sidna, i. e. O God, our Lord! The formula itself, to
+which this is an introduction, commences on the right side, and the
+first part of it reads Houvè Mete Zonar feseba (or sebaa) B. Mounkir
+teaala tiz. There is no such word in Arabic as mete, and Von
+Hammer considers it to be simply the Greek word mti£j, wisdom, a
+personification in what we may perhaps call the Gnostic mythology answering to the Sophia of the Ophianites. He considers
+that the name Baphomet is derived from the Greek words Bafæ
+mªteoj, i. e. the baptism of Metis, and that in its application it is
+equivalent with the name Mete itself. He has further shown, we
+think conclusively, that Baphomet, instead of being a corruption
+of Mahomet, was a name known among the Gnostic sects in the
+East. Zonar is not an Arabic word, and is perhaps only a
+corruption or error of the sculptor, but Von Hammer thought it
+meant a girdle, and that it alluded to the mysterious girdle of the
+templars, of which so much is said in their examinations. The
+letter B is supposed by Von Hammer to stand here for the name
+Baphomet, or for that of Barbalo, one of the most important personages in the Gnostic mythology. Mounkir is the Arabic word for
+a person who denies the orthodox faith. The rest of the formula
+is given on the other side of the figure, but as the inscription here
+presents several corruptions, we will give Von Hammer's translation (in Latin) of the more correct copy of the formula inscribed
+on the bowl or goblet preserved in the museum at Vienna. In the
+Vienna bowl, the formula of faith is written on a sort of large
+placard, which is held up to view by a figure apparently intended
+for another representation of Mete or Baphomet. Von Hammer
+translates it:--
+“Exaltetur Mete germinans, stirps nostra ego et septem fuere, tu renegans reditus
+èrwkt’j fis.”
+GENERATIVE POWERS 203
+This still is, it must be confessed, rather mysterious, and, in fact,
+most of these copies of the formula of faith are more or less defective, but, from a comparison of them, the general form and
+meaning of the whole is made perfectly clear. This may be
+translated, “Let Mete be exalted, who causes things to bud and
+blossom! he is our root; it (the root) is one and seven; abjure
+(the faith), and abandon thyself to all pleasures.” The number
+seven is said to refer to the seven archons of the Gnostic creed.
+There are certainly several points in this formula which present
+at least a singular coincidence with the statements made in the examinations of the templars. In the first place the invocation which
+precedes the formula, Yalla (Jah la), agrees exactly with the statement of Raymond Rubei, one of the Provencal templars that when
+the superior exhibited the idol, or figure of Baphomet, he kissed it
+and exclaimed “Yalla!” which he calls “a word of the Saracens,”
+i. e. Arabic.1
+It is evident that, in this case, the witness not only knew
+the word, but that he knew to what language it belonged. Again,
+the epithet germinans, applied to Mete, or Baphomet, is in accord
+with the statement in the formal list of articles of accusation against
+the templars, that they worshipped their idol because “it made the
+trees to flourish and the earth to germinate.”2
+The abjuration of
+the formula on the monuments seems to be identical with the denial
+in the initiation of novices to the order of the Temple; and it may
+be added, that the closing words of the formula involve in the
+original an idea more obscene than is expressed in the translation,
+an allusion to the unnatural vice in which the templars are stated
+to have received permission to indulge. There is another curious
+statement in the examinations which seems to point directly to our
+Du Puy, Hist. des Templiers, p. 94. 2
+Item, quod facit arbores florere. Item, quod terram germinare. Michelet,
+Procès des Templiers, i, 92.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+images and coffers—one of the English witnesses under examination, named John de Donington, who had left the order and
+become a friar at Salisbury, said that an old templar had assured him
+that “some templars carried such idols in their coffers.”1
+They
+seem to have been treasured up for the same reason as the mandrake,
+for one article in the articles against the templars is that they worshipped their idol because “it could make them rich, and that it
+had brought all their great wealth to the order.”2
+The two other classes of what the Baron Von Hammer supposed
+to be relics of the secret worship of the templars, appear to us to
+be much less satisfactorily explained. These are sculptures on old
+churches, and coins or medals. Such sculptures are found, according to Von Hammer, on the churches of Schˆngraber, Waltendorf,
+and Bercktoldorf, in Austria; in that of Deutschaltenburg, and
+in the ruins of that of Postyén, in Hungary; and in those of
+Murau, Prague, and Egra, in Bohemia. To these examples we are
+to add the sculptures of the church of Montmorillon, in Poitou,
+some of which have been engraved by Montfaucon,3
+and those of
+the church of Ste. Croix, in Bordeaux. We have already4
+remarked the rather frequent prevalence of subjects more or less
+obscene in the sculptures which ornament early churches, and suggested that they may be explained in some degree by the tone given
+to society by the existence of this priapic worship; but we are not
+inclined to agree with Von Hammer's explanation of them, or to
+think that they have any connection with the templars. We can
+easily understand the existence of such direct allusions on coffers or
+Item dixit idem veteranus eidem fratri jurato, quod aliqui templarii portant
+talia idola in coffris suis. Wilkins, Concilia, ii, 363. 2
+Item, quod divites facere. Item, quod omnes divitias ordinis dabat eis.
+Michelet, Procès, i. 92, 3
+Montfaucon, Antiquité Expliquées, Suppl. tom. ii, plate 59. 4
+See before, p. 198. [prob. error for 138 ñ T.S.]
+GENERATIVE POWERS 205
+other objects intended to be concealed, or at least kept in private;
+but it is hardly probable that men who held opinions and practised
+rites the very rumour of which was then so full of danger, would
+proclaim them publicly on the walls of their buildings, for the wall
+of a church was then, perhaps, the most effectual medium of publication. The question of the supposed templar medals is very
+obscure. Von Hammer has engraved a certain number of these
+objects, which present various singular subjects on the obverse,
+sometimes with a cross on the reverse, and sometimes bracteate.
+Antiquaries have given the name of abbey tokens to a rather
+numerous class of such medals, the use of which is still very uncertain, although there appears to be little doubt of its being of a
+religious character. Some have supposed that they were distributed
+to those who attended at certain sacraments or rites of the Church,
+who could thus, when called up, prove by the number of their
+tokens, the greater or less regularity of their attendance. Whether
+this were the case or not, it is certain that the burlesque and other
+societies of the middle ages, such as the feast of fools, parodied
+these “tokens,” and had burlesque medals, in lead and sometimes
+in other metals, which were perhaps used for a similar purpose.
+We have already spoken more than once of obscene medals, and
+have engraved specimens of them, which were perhaps used in
+secret societies derived from, or founded upon, the ancient phallic
+worship. It is not at all improbable that the templars may have
+employed similar medals, and that those would contain allusions
+to the rites in which they were employed. The medals published
+by Von Hammer are said to have been found chiefly on the sites
+of settlements of the order of the Temple. However, the comparison of facts stated in the confessions of many of the templars,
+as preserved in the official reports, with the images and sculptured
+cups and coffers given by Von Hammer-Pürgstall, lead to the
+conclusion that there is truth in the explanation he gives of the
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+latter, and that the templars, or at least some of them, had secretly
+adopted a form of the rites of Gnosticism, which was itself
+founded upon the phallic worship of the ancients. An English
+templar, Stephen de Staplebridge, acknowledged that “there were
+two ëprofessions’ in the order of the Temple, the first lawful and
+good, the second contrary to the faith.”1
+He had been admitted to
+the first of these when he first entered the order, eleven years
+before the time of his examination, but he was only initiated into
+the second or inner mysteries about a year afterwards; and he
+gives almost a picturesque description of this second initiation,
+which occurred in a chapter held at “Dineslee” in Herefordshire.
+Another English templar, Thomas de Tocci, said that the errors
+had been brought into England by a French knight of high
+position in the order.2
+We have thus seen in how many various forms the old phallic,
+or priapic, worship presented itself in the middle ages, and how
+pertinaciously it held its ground through all the changes and developments of society, until at length we find all the circumstances
+of the ancient priapic orgies, as well as the mediæval additions,
+combined in that great and extensive superstition—witchcraft. At
+all times the initiated were believed to have obtained thereby powers
+which were not possessed by the uninitiated, and they only were
+supposed to know the proper forms of invocation of the deities
+who were the objects of their worship, which deities the Christian
+teachers invariably transformed into devils. The vows which the
+people of antiquity addressed to Priapus, those of the middle ages
+addressed to Satan. The witches’ “Sabbath” was simply the last form
+which the Priapeia and Liberalia assumed in Western Europe, and
+Quod duæ sunt professiones in ordine templi, prima licita et bona, et secunda est
+contra fidem. Wilkins, Concilia, ii, 383. 2
+Wilkins, Concil, ii, 387.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 207
+in its various details all the incidents of those great and licentious
+orgies of the Romans were reproduced. The Sabbath of the
+witches does not appear to have formed a part of the Teutonic
+mythology, but we can trace it from the South through the countries in which the Roman element of society predominated. The
+incidents of the Sabbath are distinctly traced in Italy as early as the
+beginning of the fifteenth century, and soon afterwards they are
+found in the south of France. Towards the middle of that century
+an individual named Robinet de Vaulx, who had lived the life of a
+hermit in Burgundy, was arrested, brought to a trial at Langres,
+and burnt. This man was a native of Artois; he stated that to his
+knowledge there were a great number of witches in that province, and he not only confessed that he had attended these nocturnal
+assemblies of the witches, but he gave the names of some inhabitants
+of Arras whom he had met there. At this time—it was in the year
+—the chapter general of the Jacobins, or friars preachers,
+was held at Langres, and among those who attended it was a Jacobin friar named Pierre de Broussart, who held the office of inquisitor
+of the faith in the city of Arras, and who eagerly listened to the
+circumstances of Robinet’s confession. Among the names mentioned by him as having been present at the witches’ meetings, were
+those of a prostitute named Demiselle, then living at Douai, and a
+man named Jehan Levite, but who was better known by the nickname of Abbé de peu de sens (the abbot of little sense). On Broussart's return to Arras, he caused both these persons to be arrested
+and brought to that city, where they were thrown into prison. The
+latter, who was a painter, and a composer and singer of popular
+songs, had left Arras before Robinet de Vaulx had made his confession, but he was traced to Abbeville, in Ponthieu, and captured
+there. Confessions were extorted from these persons which compromised others, and a number of individuals were committed to prison
+in consequence. In the sequel a certain number of them were burnt,
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+after they had been induced to unite in a statement to the following
+effect. At this time, in this part of France at least, the term
+Vauderie, or, as it was then written, Vaulderie, was applied to
+the practice or profession of witchcraft. They said that the place
+of meeting was commonly a fountain in the wood of Mofflaines,
+about a league distant from Arras, and that they sometimes went
+thither on foot. The more usual way of proceeding, however,
+according to their own account, was this—they took an ointment
+given to them by the devil, with which they annointed a wooden
+rod, at the same time rubbing the palms of their hands with it,
+and then, placing the rod between their legs, they were suddenly
+carried through the air to the place of assembly. They found
+there a multitude of people, of both sexes, and of all estates
+and ranks, even wealthy burghers and nobles—and one of the
+persons examined declared that he had seen there not only ordinary ecclesiastics, but bishops and even cardinals. They found tables
+already spread, covered with all sorts of meats, and abundance of
+wines. A devil presided, usually in the form of a goat, with the
+tail of an ape, and a human countenance. Each first did oblation
+and homage to him by offering him his or her soul, or, at least
+some part of their body, and then, as a mark of adoration, kissed
+him on the posteriors. All this time the worshippers held burning
+torches in their hands. The abbot of little sense, already mentioned, held the office of master of the ceremonies at these meetings,
+and it was his duty to see that the new-comers duly performed
+their homage. After this they trampled on the cross, and spit
+upon it, in despite of Jesus and of the Holy Trinity, and performed other profane acts. They then seated themselves at the
+tables, and after they had eaten and drunk sufficiently, they rose
+and joined in a scene of promiscuous intercourse between the sexes,
+in which the demon took part, assuming alternately the form of
+either sex, according to that of his temporary partner. Other
+GENERATIVE POWERS 209
+wicked acts followed, and then the devil preached to them, and enjoined them especially not to go to church, or hear mass, or touch
+holy water, or perform any other of the duties of good Christians.
+After this sermon was ended, the meeting was dissolved, and they
+separated and returned to their several homes.1
+The violence of these witch persecutions at Arras led to a reaction, which, however, was not lasting, and from this time to the end
+of the century, the fear of witchcraft spread over Italy, France,
+and Germany, and went on increasing in intensity. It was during
+this period that witchcraft, in the hands of the more zealous inquisitors, was gradually worked up into a great system, and books of
+considerable extent were compiled, containing accounts of the
+various practices of the witches, and directions for proceeding
+against them. One of the earliest of these writers was a Swiss
+friar, named John Nider, who held the office of inquisitor in Switzerland, and has devoted one book of his Formicarium to witchcraft as it existed in that country. He makes no allusion to the
+witches’ Sabbath, which, therefore, appears then not to have been
+known among the Swiss. Early in 1489, Ulric Molitor published a
+treatise on the same subject, under the title of De Pythonicis
+Mulieribus, and in the same year, 1489, appeared the celebrated
+book, the Malleus Maleficarum, or Hammer of Witches, the work
+of the three inquisitors for Germany, the chief of whom was Jacob
+Sprenger. This work gives us a complete and very interesting
+account of witchcraft as it then existed as an article of belief in
+Germany. The authors discuss various questions connected with it,
+such as that of the mysterious transport of witches from one place
+to another, and they decide that this transport was real, and that
+they were carried bodily through the air. It is remarkable, how1
+The account of the witch-trials at Arras was published in the supplementary
+additions to Mostrelet; but the original records of the proceedings have since been
+found and printed.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+ever, that even the Malleus Maleficarum contains no direct allusion
+to the Sabbath, and we may conclude that even then this great
+priapic orgie did not form a part of the Germanic creed; it was
+no doubt brought in there amid the witchcraft mania of the sixteenth century. From the time of the publication of the Malleus
+Maleficarum until the beginning of the seventeenth century, through
+all parts of Western Europe, the number of books upon sorcery
+which issued from the press was immense; and we must not forget
+that a monarch of our own, King James I, shone among the writers
+on witchcraft.
+Three quarters of a century nearly had passed since the time of
+the Malleus, when a Frenchman named Bodin, Latinised into
+Bodinus, published a rather bulky treatise which became from that
+time the text-book on witchcraft. The Sabbath is described in
+this book in all its completeness. It was usually held in a lonely
+place, and when possible on the summits of mountains or in the
+solitude of forests. When the witch prepared to attend it, she went
+to her bedroom, stripped herself naked, and anointed her body with
+an ointment made for that purpose. She next took a staff, which
+also in many cases she anointed, and placing it between her legs
+and uttering a charm, she was carried through the air, in an incredibly short space of time, to the place of meeting. Bodin discusses learnedly the question whether the witches were really carried
+through the air corporeally or not, he decides it in the affirmative. The Sabbath itself was a great assemblage of witches, of
+both sexes, and of demons. It was a point of emulation with
+the visitors to bring new converts with them, and on their arrival
+they presented these to the demon who presided, and to whom they
+offered their adoration by the unclean kiss upon his posteriors.
+They next rendered an account of all the mischief they had perpetrated since the previous meeting, and received reward or reproof
+according to its amount. The devil, who usually took the form
+GENERATIVE POWERS 211
+of a goat, next distributed among them powders, unguents, and
+other articles to be employed in similar evil doings in future. The
+worshippers now made offerings to the devil, consisting of sheep,
+or other articles, or, in some cases, of a little bird only, or of a lock
+of the witches' hair, or of some other equally trifling object. They
+were then obliged to seal their denial of the Christian faith by
+trampling on the cross and blaspheming the saints. The devil
+then, or in the course of the meeting, had sexual intercourse with
+the new witch, placed his mark upon some concealed part of her
+body, very commonly in her sexual parts, and gave her a familiar
+or imp, who was to be at her bidding and assist in the perpetration
+of evil. All this was what may be called the business of the meeting, and when it was over, they all went to a great banquet, which
+was set out on tables, and which sometimes consisted of sumptuous
+viands, but more frequently of loathsome or unsubstantial food, so
+that the guests often left the meeting as hungry as though they
+had tasted nothing. After the feast they all rose from the table to
+dance, and a scene of wild and uproarious revelry followed. The
+usual dance on this occasion appears to have been the carole of the
+middle ages, which was no doubt the common dance of the peasantry; a party, alternately a male and a female, held each other’s
+hands in a circle, with this peculiarity that, whereas in ordinary
+life the dancers turned their faces inward into the circle, here they
+turned them outwards, so that their backs were towards the interior
+of the circle. It was pretended that this arrangement was designed
+to prevent them from seeing and recognizing each other; but
+others supposed that it was a mere caprice of the evil one, who
+wished to do everything in a form contrary to that in which it was
+usually done by Christians. Other dances were introduced, of a
+more violent, and some of them of an obscene, character. The
+songs, too, which were sung in this orgie were either obscene or
+vulgarly ridiculous. The music was often drawn from burlesque
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+instruments, such as a stick or a bone for a flute, a horse's skull for a
+lyre, the trunk of a tree for a drum, and a branch for a trumpet. As
+they became excited, they became more licentious, and at
+last they abandoned themselves to indiscriminate sexual intercourse, in which the demons played a very active part. The meeting separated in time to allow the witches, by the same expeditious
+conveyance which brought them, to reach their homes before the
+cock crowed.1
+Such is the account of the Sabbath, as described by Bodin; but we
+have reviewed it briefly in order to describe this strange scene from
+the much fuller and more curious narrative of another Frenchman,
+Pierre de Lancre. This man was a conseiller du roi, or judge in
+the parliament of Bordeaux, and was joined in 1609 with one of
+his colleagues in a commission to proceed against persons accused of
+sorcery in Labourd, a district in the Basque provinces, then celebrated for its witches, and apparently for the low state of morality
+among its inhabitants. It is a wild, and, in many parts, desolate
+region, the inhabitants of which held to their ancient superstitions
+with great tenacity. De Lancre, after arguing learnedly on the
+nature and character of demons, discusses the question why there
+were so many of them in the country of Labourd, and why the
+inhabitants of that district were so much addicted to sorcery. The
+women of the country, he says, were naturally of a lascivious temperament, which was shown even in their manner of dressing, for
+he describes their headdress as being singularly indecent, and describes them as commonly exposing their person very immodestly.2
+He adds, that the principal produce of this country consisted of
+The first edition of the work of Bodin, De la Dèmonomaine des Sorciers, was
+published at Paris, in 4to, in 1580. It went through many editions, and was trans-lated
+into Latin and other languages. 2
+Et pour le commun des femmes, en quelques lieux, voulant faire les martiales,
+elles portent certains tourions ou morrions indécens, et d’une forme si peu séante,
+GENERATIVE POWERS 213
+apples, and argues thence, it is not very apparent why, that the
+women partook of the character of Eve, and yielded more easily
+to temptation than those of other countries. After having spent
+four months in dealing out rather severely what was then called
+“justice” to these ignorant people, the two commissioners returned
+to Bordeaux, and there De Lancre, deeply struck with what he
+had seen and heard, betook himself to the study of witchcraft, and in
+due time produced his great work on the subject, to which he gave
+the title of Tableau de l’Inconstance des Mauvais Anges et Démons.1
+Pierre de Lancre writes honestly and conscientiously, and he evidently
+believes everything he has written. His book is valuable for the
+great amount of new information it contains, derived from the
+confessions of the witches, and given apparently in their own
+words. The second book is devoted entirely to the details of the
+Sabbath.
+It was stated by the witches in their examinations that, in times
+back, they had appointed Monday to be the day, or rather night,
+of assembly, but that in their time they had two nights of meeting
+in the week, those of Wednesday and Friday. Although some
+stated that they had been carried to the place of meeting in the
+middle of the day, they mostly agreed in saying that the hour at
+which they were carried to the Sabbath was midnight. The place
+of assembly was usually chosen at a spot where roads crossed, but
+this was not always the case, for De Lancre2
+tells us that they were
-INDEX.
+qu’on diroit que c’est plustost l’armet de Priape que celuy du dieu Mars; leur
+coeffre semble tesmoigner leur désir, car les veusves porent le morrion san creste pour
+marquer que le masle leur deffault. Et en Labourt les femmes monstrent leur derrière
+tellement que tout l’ornement de leur cotillons plissez est derrière, et afin qu’il foit
+veu elles retroussent leur robbe et la mettent fur la teste et se couvrent jus-qu’aux
+yeux. De Lancre, Inconstance des Démons, p. 40. 1 4to. Paris, 1612. A new and improved edition appeared in 1613. 2
+Il a aussi accoustumé les tenir en quelque lieu désert et sauvage, comme au mileu
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+accustomed to hold their Sabbath in some lonely and wild locality, as
+in the middle of a heath, which was selected especially for being far
+from the haunts or habitations of man. To this place, he says,
+they gave the name of Aquelarre, which he interprets as meaning
+Lane de Bouc, that is, the heath of the goat, meaning that it was
+the place where the goat, the usual form assumed by Satan, convoked his assemblies. And he goes on to express his opinion that
+these wild places were the original scenes of the Sabbath, though
+subsequently other places had been often adopted. “For we have
+heard more than fifty witnesses who assured us that they had been
+at the Goat’s Heath to the Sabbath held on the mountain
+of La Rhune, sometimes on the open mountain, sometimes in the
+chapel of the St. Esprit, which is on the top of it, and sometimes in the church of Dordach, which is on the borders of Labourd. At times they held it in private houses, as when we held
+the trial, in the parish of St. Pé, the Sabbath was held one night
+in our hotel, called Barbare-nena, and in that of Master ——
+de Segure, assessor-criminal at Bayonne, who, at the same time
+d’une land; et encore en lieu du tout hors de passage, de voisingage, d’habitation, et de
+recontre: et communement ils l’appellent Aquelarre, qui signfie Lane de Bouc,
+comme qui dirait la lane ou lande o˙ le Boue convoque ses assemblées. Et de saict
+les sorciers qui confessent, nomment le lieu pour la chose, et la chose ou l’assemblée pour le
+lieu: tellement qu’encore que proprement Lane de Bouc, soit le Sabbat qui se tient ès
+landes, si est-ce qu’ils appellent aussi bien Lane de Bouc le Sabbath qui se tient
+ès eglises et ès places des villes, parroisses, maisons, et autres lieux: parce qu’‡ mon
+advis les premiers lieux qui furent descouverts, o˙ les dictes assemblées se faisoyent,
+furent ès lands, pour la commodité du lieu. Et d’autant qu’on y voit le plus de ces
+boues, chèvres, et autres animaux semblables. Car nous avons ouy plus de cinquante
+tsmoins qui nous ont asseuré avoir esté ‡ la Lane de Bouc. au Sabbat sur la montagne
+de la Rhune, parfois a l’entour, parfois dans la chapelle mesme du S. Esprit qui est au
+dessus, et parfois dans l’église de Dordach, qui est sur les lisières
+de Labourt: parfois ès maisons particulières, comme quand nous leur saisons
+le procès en la parroisse de Sainct-Pé, le Sabbat se tint une nuict dans nostre
+hostel, appellé de Barbare-nena, et en celuy de Maistre —— de Seguare, assesseur
+GENERATIVE POWERS 215
+when we were there, made a more ample inquisition against
+certain witches, by an authority of an arrest of the parliament of
+Bordeaux. Then they went the same night to hold it at the
+residence of the lord of the place, who is Sieur d'Amou, and in
+his castle of St. Pé. But we have not found in the whole country
+of Labourd any other parish but that of St. Pé where the devil
+held the Sabbath in private houses.”
+The devil is further described as seeking for his places of meeting,
+besides the heaths, old decayed houses, and ruins of old castles,
+especially when they were situated on the summits of mountains.
+An old cemetery was sometimes selected, where, as De Lancre
+quaintly observes, there were “no houses but the houses of the
+dead,” especially if it were in a solitary situation, as when attached to
+solitary churches and chapels, in the middle of the heaths, or on
+the tops of cliffs on the sea shore, such as the chapel of the Portuguese at St. Jean de Luz, called St. Barbe, situated so high that it
+serves as a landmark to the ships approaching the coast, or on a
+high mountain, as La Rhune in Labourd, and the Puy de Dome
+in Perigord, and other such places.
+criminel ‡ Bayonne, lequel faisoit en mesme tempes que nous y estions une plus ample
+inquisition contre certains sorcières, en vertu d’un arrest de la Cour de Parlement
+de Bourdeaux. Puis s’en allerent en mesme nuict le tenir chez le feigneur du
+lieu, qui est le Sr. d’Amou, et en fon chasteau de Sainct-Pé. Et n’avons trouvé en tout
+le pays de Labourt aucune autre parroisse que celle de Sainct-Pém o˙ le Diable
+tint le Sabbat ès maisons particulières.
+Il cherche aussi parfois, outres les landes, de vieilles mazures et ruines de vieux
+chasteaux, assiz sur les coupeaux des montagnes; parfois d’autres lieux solitaires, o˙,
+pour toutes maisons, il n’y a que des maisons des morts, qui sont les cimetières, et
+encore les plus escartez, comme près des églises ou chappelles seules, ou plantées au
+milieu d’une lande ou désert, ou sur une haute coste de la mer, comme le chappelle
+des Portugais ‡ Sainct Jean de Luz appellée de Sainct Barbe, si haut montée qu’elle fert
+d’échaugete ou de phare pour les vaisseaux qui s’en approchent, ou sur une haute
+montagne, comme la Rhune en Labourt et le Puy de Dome en Perigort, et autres
+lieux semblables. Tableau de l’Inconstance, p. 65.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+At these meetings, sometimes, but rarely, Satan was absent, in
+which case a little devil took his place. De Lancre1
+enumerates
+the various forms which the devil usually assumed on these occasions, with the remark that these forms were as numerous as “his
+movements were inconstant, full of uncertainty, illusion, deception,
+and imposture.” Some of the witches he examined, among whom
+was a girl of thirteen years of age, named Marie d’Aguerre, said
+that at these assemblies there appeared a great pitcher or jug in
+the middle of the Sabbath, and that out of it the devil issued in the
+form of a goat, which suddenly became so large that it was
+“frightful,” and that at the end of the Sabbath he returned into the
+pitcher. Others described him as being like the great trunk of a
+tree, without arms or feet, seated in a chair, with the face of a
+great and frightful looking man. Others spoke of him as resembling a great goat, with two horns before and two behind, those
+before turned up in the semblance of a woman's perruque. According to the most common account, De Lancre says he had
+three horns, the one in the middle giving out a flame, with
+which he used at the Sabbath to give both light and fire to the
+Reste maintenant, puis qu’il a comparu, d’en sçavoir la forme, et en quel estat il a
+accoustumé de se représenter et faire voire esdictes assemblées. Il n’a point de forme
+constante, toutes ses actions n’estans que mouvements inconstans plien d’incertitude,
+d’illusion, de déception, et d’imposture.
+Marie d’Aguerre aagée de treize ans, et quelques autres, déposoient, qu’esdictes
+assemblées il y a une grande cruche au milieu du Sabbat d’o˘ fort le Diable en
+forme de boue: qu’estant sorty il devient si grand qu’il se rend espouvantable: et
+que le Sabbat finy il rentre dans la cruche.
+D’autres disent qu’il est comme un grand tronc d’arbre obseur sans bras et sans
+pieds, assis dans une chaire, ayant quelque forme de visage d’homme, grand et affreux.
+D’autres qu’il est comme un grand boue, ayant deux cornes devant et deux en
+derrière: que celle de devant se rebrassent en haut comme la perruque d’une femme.
+Mais le commun est qu’il a seulment trois cornes, et qu’il a quelque espèce de
+lumière en celle du milieu, de laquelle il a accoustemé au Sabbat d’esclairer et donner
+du feu et de la lumière, mesme ‡ ces sorcières, qui tiennent quelques chandelles
+GENERATIVE POWERS 217
+witches, some of whom who had candles lit them at his horn, in
+order to hold them at a mock service of the mass, which was one of
+the devil’s ceremonies. He had also, sometimes, a kind of cap or
+hat over his horns. “He has before him his member hanging
+out, which he exhibits always a cubit in length; and he has a
+great tail behind, with a form of a face under it, with which face he
+does not utter a word, but it serves only to offer to kiss to those he
+likes, honouring certain witches of either sex more than the others.”
+The devil, it will be observed, is here represented with the symbol
+of Priapus. Marie d’Aspilecute, aged nineteen years, who lived at
+Handaye, deposed that the first time she was presented to the devil
+she kissed him on this face behind, beneath a great tail, and that
+she repeated the kiss three times, adding that this face was made
+like the muzzle of a goat. Others said that he was shaped like a
+great man, “enveloped in a cloudiness, because he would not be
+seen clearly,” and that he was all “flamboyant,” and had a face red
+like an iron coming out of the furnace. Corneille Brolic, a lad of
+twelve years of age, said that when he was first introduced to him
+he had the human form, with four horns on his head, and without
+alumées aux cérémonies de la messe qu’ils voulent contrefaire. On luy voit aussi
+quelque espèce de bonet ou chapeau au dessus de ses cornes. Il a au devant son
+membre tiré et pendant, et le monstre tousjours long d’une coudée, et une grande
+queuÎ au derrière. et une forme de visage au dessoubs: duquel visage il ne profere aucune parole, ains luy fert pour le donner ‡ baiser ‡ ceux que bon luy semble, honrant
+certains sorciers ou sorcières plus les uns que les autres.
+Marie d’Aspilecute, habitante de Handaye, aagée de 19 ans, dépose, Que la première fpos qu’elle luy sut présentée elle le baisa ‡ ce visage de derrière au dessoubs
+d’une grande queuÎ: qu’elle l’y a baisé par trois fois, et qu’il avoit aussi ce visage
+faict comme le museau d’un boue.
+D’autres disent qu’il est en forme d’un grand homme vestu ténébreusement, et qui
+ne veut estre veu clairement, si bien qu’ils disent qu’il est tout flamboyant, et le visage
+rouge comme un fer sortant de la fournaise.
+Corneille Brolic aagé de 12 ans, dict, Que lorsqu’il luy sut présenté il estoit en forme
+d’homme, ayant quatre cornes en la teste, et sans bras, at assis dans une chaire, avec
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+arms. He was seated in a pulpit, with some of the women, who
+were his favourites, always near him. “And they are all agreed
+that it is a great pulpit, which seems to be gilt and very pompous.”
+Janette d’Abadie, of Siboro, sixteen years old, said that Satan had a
+face before and another behind his head, as they represent the god
+Janus. De Lancre had also heard him described as a great black
+dog, as a large ox of brass lying down, and as a natural ox in
+repose.
+Although it was stated that in former times the devil had usually
+appeared in the form of a serpent,—another coincidence with the
+priapic worship,—it appears certain that in the time of De Lanere
+his favourite form of showing himself was that of a goat. At the
+opening of the Sabbath the witches, male or female, presented formally to the devil those who had never been at the Sabbath before,
+and the women especially brought to him the children whom they
+allured to him. The new converts, the novices, were made to renounce Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the saints, and they were then
+re-baptized with mock ceremonies. They next performed their
+worship to the devil by kissing him on the face under the tail, or
+otherwise. The young children were taken to the edge of a stream
+—for the scene was generally chosen on the banks of a stream—
+and white wands were placed in their hands, and they were entrusted
+with the care of the toads which were kept there, and which were
+of importance in the subsequent operations of the witches. The renunciation was frequently renewed, and in some cases it was required
-, 185, et feq.; identity of their
+quelques femmes de ses favorites tousjours près de luy. Et tous sont d’accord que c’est
-proceedings with thofe of the witches'
+une grande chaire qui semble dorée et fort pompeuse.
-Sabbath, 246.
+Janette d’Abadie de Siboro, aagée de 16 ans, dit qu’il avoit un visage devant, et un
+visage derrière la teste, comme on peint le dieu Janus.
+J’ai veu quelque procédure, estant ‡ la Tournelle, qui le peignoit au Sabbat comme
+un grand levrier noir: parfois comme un grand boeuf d’airain couché ‡ terre, comme
+un boeuf naturel qui se repose. Tableau de l’Inconstance, p. 67.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 219
+every time the witch attended the Sabbath. Janette d’Abadie, a
+girl of sixteen, said that he made her repeatedly go through the
+ceremony of kissing him on the face, and afterwards on the navel,
+then on the virile member, and then on the posteriors.1
+After rebaptism, he put his mark on the body of his victim, in some covered
+part where it was not likely to be seen. In women it was often
+placed on or within the sexual parts.
+De Lancre’s account of the proceedings at the Sabbath is very full
+and curious.2
+He says that it “resembled a fair of merchants mingled
+together, furious and in transports, arriving from all parts—a meeting
+and mingling of a hundred thousand subjects, sudden and transitory,
+novel, it is true, but of a frightful novelty, which offends the eye
+and sickens you. Among these same subjects some are real, and
+others deceitful and illusory. Some are pleasing (but very little),
+as are the little bells and melodious instruments of all sorts, which
+only tickle the ear and do not touch the heart at all, consisting more
+in noise which amazes and stuns than in harmony which pleases and
+rejoices, the others displeasing, full of deformity and horror, tending
+only to desolation, privation, ruin, and destruction, where the
+persons become brutish and transformed to beasts, losing their speech
+while they are in this condition, and the beasts, on the contrary, talk,
+Sur qouy elle adjouste une chose notable, que bien souvent il luy faisoit baiser
+son visage, puis le nombril, puis le membre viril, puis son derrière. De Lancre, De
+l’Inconstance, p. 72. 2
+Le Sabbat est comme une foire de marchands meslez, furieux et transportez, qui
+arrivent de toutes partes, un rencontre et meslange de cent mille subjects soudains et
+transitoires, nouveaux ‡ la vérité, mais d#une nouveauté effroyable qui offence l’oeil
+et soubsleve le coeur. Parmy ces mesmes subjects il s’en voit de réels, et d’autres
+prestigieux et illusiores: aucuns plaisans (mais fort peu), comme sont les clochettes et
+instrumens mélodieux qu’on y entend de toutes sortes, qui ne chatouillent que l’oreille,
+et ne touchent rien au coeur; consistant plus en bruit qui estourdit et estonne, qu’en
+harmoine qui plaise et qui resjouisse; les autres déplainans, pleins de difformité et
+d’horreur, ne tendant qu’‡ dissolution, privation, ruine, et destruction, o˘ les per-
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+and seem to have more reason than the persons, each being drawn
+out of his natural character.”
+The women, according to De Lancre, were the active agents in
+all this confusion, and had more employment than the men. They
+rushed about with their hair hanging loose, and their bodies naked;
+some rubbed with the magical ointment, others not. They arrived
+at the Sabbath, or went from it, on their errands of mischief, perched
+on a stick or besom, or carried upon a goat or other animal, with
+an infant or two behind, and guided or driven on by the devil himself. “And when Satan will transport them into the air (which is
+an indulgence only to the most superior), he sets them off and
+launches them up like fired rockets, and they repair to and dart
+down upon the said place a hundred times more rapidly than an
+eagle or a kite could dart upon its prey.”
+These women, on their arrival, reported to Satan all the mischief
+they had perpetrated. Poison, of all kinds and for all purposes, was
+there the article most in vogue. Toads were said to form one of its
+ingredients, and the charge of these animals, while alive, was
-Ters, i.e. Priapus, the patron faint of
+sonnes s’y abbrutissent et transforment en bestes, perdant la parole tant qu’elle sont
-Antwerp, 144.
+ainsi. Et les bestes au contraite y parlent, et semblent avoir plus de raison que les
+personnes, chacun estant tiré hors son naturel.
+Les courriers ordinaires du sabbat sont les femmes, les mystères duquel passent par
+leurs mains, [plus] que par celle des hommes. Or elles volent et courent eschevelées
+comme furies ‡ la mode du pays, ayant la teste si legère, qu’elles n’y peuvent souffrir
+couverture. On les y voit nues, ore graissées, ores non. Elles arrivent ou partent
+(car chacune a quelque insaute et meschante commission) perchées sur un baston ou
+balay, ou portées sur un boue ou autre animal, un pauvre enfant ou deux en croupe,
+ayant le diable ores au devant pour guide, ores en derrière et en queue comme un
+rude foüteur. Et lorsque Sathan les veut transporter en l’air (ce qui n’est encor
+donné qu’aux plus suffisantes), il les effore et eslance comme fusées bruiantes, et en la
+descente elles se rendent audit lieu et fondent bas, cent fois plus voste qu’un aigle ou
+un milan ne sçauroit fondre sur sa proye.
+Ces furieuses courrières ne portent jamais qui finistres nouvelles, mais vrayes, car
+elles ne contiennent que l’histoire vérotable des maux qu’elles ont faict. Le poison,
+GENERATIVE POWERS 221
+given to the children whom the witches brought with them to the
+Sabbath, and to whom, as a sort of ensign of office, little white rods
+were given, “just such as they give to persons infected with the
+plague as a mark of their contagion.”
+The devil was the sovereign master of the assembly, and appeared
+at it sometimes in the form of a stinking and bearded goat, as one,
+De Lancre says, which was especially repulsive to mankind. The
+goat, we know, was dedicated to Priapus. Sometimes he assumed
+a form, if we clearly understand De Lancre, which presented a confused idea of something between a tree and a man, which is compared, for he becomes rather poetical, to the old decayed cypresses
+on the summit of a high mountain, or to aged oaks whose heads
+already bear the marks of approaching decay.
+When the devil appeared in human form, that form was horribly
+ugly and repulsive, with a hoarse voice and an imperious manner.
+He was seated in a pulpit, which glittered like gold; and at his
-Thebes, ancient temples at, 51.
+de toutes sortes et ‡ toutes usages, est la plus précieuse denrée de ce lieu. Les enfans
+sont les bergers, qui gardent chacun la bergerie des crapaux, que chaque sorcière qui
+les mene au sabbat leur baillé ‡ garder, ayant chacun une gaule blance en main;
+telle qu’on baille aux pestiferez pour marque de leur contagion.
+Le diable, maistre souverain de l’assemblée, s’y représente parfois en bouc puant
+et barbu: la plus horrible et orde figure qu’il a peu emprunter parmy tous animaux,
+et celuy avec lequel l’homme a le moins de commerce. Il s’y trouve et s’y void
+comme sont ces vieux cyprès surannez ‡ la cime d’une haute montagne, ou ces
+chesnes chauves que la vieillesse faict commencer ‡ secher par la teste, vrayment trone,
+car il y paroist escartellé, et comme estropiat, et sans bras, et en figure d’un géant
+ténébreux et object fort reculé.
+Que s’il y paroist en homme, c’est en homme gehenné, tourmenté, rouge et
+flamboyant comme un feu qui sort d’une fournaise ardente. Homme effacé, duquel
+la forme ne paroist qu’a demy, avec une voice cassé, morsondue, et non articulée,
+mais impérieuse, bruiante, et effroyable. Si bien qu’on ne sçauroit bonnement dire
+‡ le voir s’il est homme, trone, ou beste. Il est assis dans une chaire, dorée en apparence, mais flamboiante: la royne du sabbat ‡ son costé, qui est quelque sorcière qu’il
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+side sat the queen of the Sabbath, one of the witches whom
+he had debauched, to whom he chose to give greater honour
+than to the others, and whom he decked in gay robes, with a crown
+on her head, to serve as a bait to the ambition of the rest. Candles
+of pitch, or torches, yielded a false light, which gave people in appearance monstrous forms and frightful faces.
+Here you see false fires, through which some of the demons were
+first passed, and afterwards the witches, without suffering any pain,
+which, as explained by De Lancre, was intended to teach them not
+to fear the fire of hell. But we see in these the need-fires, which
+formed a part of the priapic orgies, and of which we have spoken
+before (p. 163). There women are presenting to him children,
+whom they have initiated in sorcery, and he shows them a deep
+pit, into which he threatens to throw them if they refuse to renounce
+God and to adore Satan.
+In other parts are seen great cauldrons, full of toads and vipers,
+hearts of unbaptized children, flesh of criminals who bad been
+hanged, and other disgusting ingredients, of which they make pots
+of ointments, &c. and poisons, the ordinary articles of commerce
-Theology, Ancient, attributes of a Di-
+a debauchée, laquelle il saict paroistre pompeuse, ornée de plusiers faux affiquets, et
-vine Being, 24 — 26.
+couronée en royne, pour amorcer les autres. Donnant aussi une forme affreuse,
+presque ‡ tous ceux qui sont en cette assemblée maudite, les visages desquels, ‡ la fauce
+lumière de ces chandeles de poix qui s’y voyant, paroisset ténébreux, farouches, ou
+voilez: et les personnes de taille et hautur monstrueuse, ou de bassesse extraordinaire
+et deffectueuse.
+On y voit de faux feux, au travers desquels il faict passer quelques démons, puis
+des sorcières. d’o˘ il les tire sans douleur pour les apprivoiser ‡ ne craindre les feux
+de notre justice en ce monde, n’y les feux éternals de la justice divine en l’autre.
+On luy offre des enfans innocens ensorcellez par de méchants femmes, ausquels il
+represente des abysmes dans lesquels il faict semblant de les précipiter, s’ils sont tant
+soit peu les restifs ‡ renoncer Dieu et ‡ l’adorer.
+On y voit de grandes chaudières pleines de crapaux et vipères, coeurs d’enfans non
+baptisez, chair de pendus, et autres horribles charognes, et des eaux puantes, pots de
+graisse et de poison qui se preste et se debite ‡ cette foire, comme estant la plus pré-
+GENERATIVE POWERS 223
+in this “fair.” Of such objects, also, were composed the dishes
+served at the Sabbath tables, at which no salt was allowed, because
+Satan wished everything to be insipid, musty, and bad-tasted.
+Here see people “dancing, either ëin long,’ in couples, turned
+back to back, or sometimes ëin round,’ till turning their backs
+towards the centre of the dance, the girls and women each holding
+by the hand their demons, who teach them movements and gestures
+so lascivious and indecent that they would horrify the most shameless woman in the world; with songs of a composition so brutal, and
+in terms and words of such license and lubricity, that the eyes become troubled, the ears confounded, and the understanding bewitched, at the appearance of so many monstrous things ill crowded
+together.”
+“The women and girls with whom the demons choose to have
+connection are covered with a cloud, to conceal the execrations and
+ordures attached to these scenes, and to prevent the compassion
+which others might have on the screams and sufferings of these poor
+wretches.” In order to “mix impiety with the other abominations,” they pretended to perform religious rites, which were a wild
-Tiger attendant on Bacchus, 74.
+cieuse et commune marchandise qui s’y trouve. Et néantmoins ce sont les meilleures
+viandes qu’on recontre en leurs festins, desquels ils ont banni le sel, parceque Sathan
+veut que tout y soit insipide, relant, et de goust depravé.
+On y dance en long, deux ‡ deux, et dos ‡ dos, et parfois en rond, tous le dos
+tourné vers le centre de la dances, le filles et femmes tenant chacune leurs démons
+par la main, lesquels leur apprennant des traicts et gestes si lascifs et indécens, qu’ils
+feroyent horreur ‡ la plus effrontée femme du monde; avec des chansons d’une
+composition si brutale, et en termes et mots si licencieux et lubriques, que les yeux se
+troublent, les oreilles s’estourdissent, et l’entendement s’enchante, de voir tant de
+choses monstreuses qui s’y rencontrent ‡ la fois.
+Les femmes et filles avec lesquelles il se veut accoupler, sont couvertes d’une
+nuée, pour cacher les exécrations et ordures qui s’y trouvent, et pour oster la compassion qu’on pourroit avoir des cris et douleurs de ces pauvres misérables. Et
+voulant mesler l’impiété avec l’abomination du sortilège, pour leur faire paroistre
+qu’il veut qu’elles vivent avec quelque forme de religion, le service ou culte divin,
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+and contemptuous parody on the catholic mass. An altar was
+raised, and a priest consecrated and administered the host, but it was
+made of some disgusting substance, and the priest stood with his head
+downwards and his legs in the air, and with his back turned to the
+altar. Thus all things were performed in monstrous or disgusting
+forms, so that Satan himself appeared almost ashamed of them.
+De Lancre acknowledges that there was some diversity in the
+manner of the proceedings of the Sabbath in different countries,
+arising from difference in the character of the locality, in the
+“master” who presided, and in the various humours of those who
+attended. “But all well considered, there is a general agreement
+on the principal and most important of the more serious ceremonies.
+Wherefore, I will relate what we have learnt by our trials, and I will
+simply repeat what some notable witches deposed before us, as well
+as to the formalities of the Sabbath, as to all that was usually seen
-Toads attendant at witches' Sabbath,
+qu’il s’essaye de contrefaire ou représenter, est si sauvage et déréglé, et hors de tout
-, 236.
+sens commun, que le faux sacrificateur ayant dressé quelque autel, faict semblant d’y
+dire quelque forme de messe, pour se moquer des chrestiens: Et y faict paroistre
+quelque hostie, facte de quelque puante matière noire et enfumée, o˘ il est peint en
+boue. Ce faux prestre a la teste en bas, et les pieds contremont, et le dos ignominieusement tourné vers l’autel. Enfin on y voit en chaque chose ou action des représentations si formidables, tant d’abominables objects, et tant de forfaicts et crimes
+exécrable, que l’air s’infecteroit si je les vouloy exprimer plus au long; Et peut on
+dire sans mentir, que Satan mesme a quelque horreur de les commettre. Car outre la
+nuée de la quelle il voile ses accouplemens, il tient les enfans esloignez, de peur de
+les rebutter pour jamais par l’horrible veuÎ de tant de choses. Et plusiers personnes voilées, pour tenir mine de grandeur, asin qu’on ne les voye rougir nin paslir de
+la grandeur de cent mille maux, qu’on y voit commettre ‡ tous momens.
+A la vérité la description du sabbat qui se faict en diverses contrées semble estre un
+peu diverse. La diversité des lieux o˘ il se tient, du maistre qui y préside, tout divers
+et tout variable, et les diverses humeurs de ceux qui y sont appellez, sont la diversité.
+Mais tout bien considéré on est d’accord pour le principal et pour le plus important
+des cérémonies plus sérieuses. C’est pourquoy je raporteray ce que nous avons
+apprins par nos procédures, et diray simplement ce que quelques notables sorcières en
+ont déposés devant nous, tant sur la forme du sabbat que sur tout ce qu’on a accous-
+GENERATIVE POWERS 225
+there, without changing or altering anything in what they deposed,
+in order that every one may select what he likes.”
+The first witness adduced by De Lancre is not one belonging to
+his own time, but dating back as far as the 18th of December, 1567,
+and he had obtained a copy of the confession. Estébene de Cambrue,
+of the parish of Amou, a woman twenty-five years of age, said that
+the great Sabbath was held four times a year, in derision of the four
+annual festivals of the Church. The little assemblies, which were
+held in the neighbourhood of the towns or parishes, were attended
+only by those of the locality; they were called “pastimes,” and were
+held sometimes in one place and sometimes in another, and there
+they only danced and frolicked, for the devil did not come there in all
+his state as at the great assemblies. They were, in fact, the greater
+and lesser Priapeia. She said that the place of the grand convocation was generally called the “Lanne de Bouc” (the goat’s heath),
+where they danced round a stone, which was planted in the said
+place, (perhaps one of the so-called Druidical monuments,) upon
+which was seated a great black man, whom they called “Monsieur.” Each person present kissed this black man on the posteriors.
-Trajan's column, 51, 52.
+tumé d’y voir, sans rien changer n’y alterer de leur déposition, asin que chacun en
+prenne ce qu’il luy plaira.
+Je commenceray par une fort ancienne déposition que j’ay trouvée puis peu de
+jours, d’une Estébene de Cambrue, aagée de 25 ans, de la paroisse d’Amou, du 18
+Décembre 1567, qui marque que deslors cette pauvre parroisse en estoit déj‡
+infectée: qui dict que les sorcières n’alloient en la grand assemblé et au grand
+Sabbat que quatre fois l’année, en dérision des cérémonies que l’église célèbre les
+quatres festes annuelles. Car les petites assemblées qui se sont près des villes
+ou parroisse, o˘ n’y va que ceux du lieu, ils les appellent les esbats, et se sont
+ores en un lieu de ladite parroisse, ores en un autre, o˘ on ne faict que sauter et
+solastrer, le diable n’y estant avec tout son grand arroy, comme aux grandes assemblées. Que le lieu de ceste grande convocation s’appelle généralement par tout
+le pays la Lanne du Bouc. O˘ ils se mettent ‡ dancer ‡ l’entour d’une pierre,
+qui est plantée audit lieu, sur laquelle est assis un grand hoome noir, qu’elles
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+She said that they were carried to that place on an animal which
+sometimes resembled a horse and at others a man, and they never
+rode on the animal more than four at a time. When arrived at
+the Sabbath, they denied God, the Virgin, “and the rest,” and
+took Satan for their father and protector, and the she-devil for
+their mother. This witness described the making and sale of
+poisons. She said that she had seen at the Sabbath a notary, whose
+name she gave, whose business it was to denounce those who failed
+in attendance. When on their way to the Sabbath, however hard
+it might rain, they were never wet, provided they uttered the words,
+Haut la coude, Quillet, because then the tail of the beast on which
+they were mounted covered them so well that they were sheltered
+from the rain. When they had to make a long journey they said
+these words: Pic suber hoeilhe, en ta la lane de bouc bien
+m’arrecoueille.
+A man seventy-three years of age, named Petri Daguerre, was
+brought before De Lancre and his fellow commissioners at Ustarits;
+two witnesses asserted that he held the office of master of cere-
-Typhon, the deftroying power, 68, 69.
+appellant Monsieur, et chacun de l’assemblée luy va baiser le deirrière. Et se sont
+porter jusqu’audit lieu, sur une beste, qui semble parfois un cheval, et parfoys
+un homme; et ne montent jamais plus haut de quatre sur ces mountures qui
+portent ainsi au Sabbat. L‡ ils renient Dieu, la Vierge, et le reste, et prennant
+Satan pour leur père et protecteur, et la diablesse pour leur mère. Qu’aucuns sont l‡
+du poison, desquels les autres le vont acheter, lequel est faict de crapaux, avec une
+langue de boeuf ou vache, et une chèvre et des oeufs couvez et pourris, et de la
+cervelle d’enfant, et le mettent cuire dans un pot. Dict qu’elle a veu au Sabbat un
+notaire qu’elle nomme, lequel a accoustamé de lever les defauts de celles qui ont
+manqué de se trouver au Sabbat, et dict qu’encore qu’il pleust ‡ pleins seaux, lorsqu’on
+est en chemin pour y aller, on ne se moüile point, pourveu qu’on die ces mots,
+Haut la coude, Quillet, parce qu’alors la queuÎ de la beste sur laquelle ils vont au
+Sabbat les courvre si bien, qu’ils ne se moüillent point. Et quand ils sont un long
+chemin, ils disent tels mots: Pic suber hoeilhe, en ta la lane de bouc bien m’arrecoueille.
+En la procédure d’Ustarits, qui est le siège de la justice de Labourt, faisent le procez ‡
+Petri Daguerre, aagé de septante trois ans, lequel depuis a esté exécuté ‡ mort
+GENERATIVE POWERS 227
+monies and governor of the Sabbath, and that the devil gave him
+a gilt staff, which he carried in his hand as a mark of authority,
+and arranged and directed the proceedings. He returned the staff
+to Satan at the close of the meeting.
+One Leger Rivasseau confessed that he had been at the Sabbath
+twice without adoring the devil, or doing any of the things
+required from the others, because it was part of his bargain, for he
+had given the half of his left foot for the faculty of curing, and the
+right of being present at the Sabbath without further obligation. He
+said “that the Sabbath was held about midnight, at a meeting of
+cross roads, most frequently on the nights of Wednesday and
+Friday; that the devil chose in preference the stormiest nights, in
+order that the winds and troubled elements might carry their
+powders farther and more impetuously; that two notable devils
+presided at their Sabbaths, the great negro, whom they called
+master Leonard, and another little devil, whom master Leonard at
+times substituted in his place, and whom they called Master Jean
+Mullin; that they adored the grand master, and that, after having
-Urus, or wild bull, Greek fymbol of the
+comme insigne sorcier, deux tesmoins luy maintindrent qu’il estoit le maistre des cérémonies et gouverneur du Sabbat. Que le Diable luy mettoit en main un baston tout
-Creator. 21.
+doré, avec lequel, comme un mastre de camp, il rengeoit et les personne et toutes
+choses au Sabbat: et qu’iceluy finy il dendoit ce baston au grand maistre de l’assemblée.
+Leger Rivasseau confessa en la Cour qu’il avoit esté au Sabbat par deux fois, sans
+adorer le Diable ny faire comme les autres, parcequ’il avoit ainsi faict son pacte avec
+luy, et baillé la moitié de son pied gauche pour avoir la faculté de guérir, et la liberté
+de voir le Sabbat simplement sans estre obligé ‡ autre chose. Et disoit que le Sabbot
+se faisoit presque tousjours environ la minuit, ‡ un carrefour, le plus souvent la nuict
+du Mercredy et du Vendredy: que le diable cherchoit la nuict la plus orageuse qu’il
+pouvoit, asin que les vents et les orages portassent plus loing et plus impètueusement leurs
+poudres; que deux diables notables présidoient en ces Sabbats, le grand Negre qu’on
+appelloit maistre Leonard, et un autre petit diable que maistre Leonard subrogeoit quelquefois en sa place, qu’ils appellent Jean Mullin; qu’on adorait le grand maistre,
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+kissed his posteriors, there were about sixty of them dancing without
+dress, back to back, each with a great cat attached to the tail of
+his or her shirt, and that afterwards they danced naked; that this
+Master Leonard, taking the form of a black fox, hummed at the
+beginning a word ill articulated, after which they were all silent.”
+Some of the witches examined spoke of the delight with which
+they attended the Sabbath. Jeanne Dibasson, a woman twentynine years old, said that the Sabbath was the true Paradise, where
+there was far more pleasure than can be expressed; that those who
+went there found the time so short by reason of the pleasure and
+enjoyment, that they never left it without marvelous regret, so
+that they looked forward with infinite impatience to the next
+meeting.
+Marie de la Ralde, “a very handsome woman twenty-eight years
+of age,” who had then abandoned her connection with the devil five
+or six years, gave a full account of her experience of the Sabbath.
+She said she had frequented the Sabbaths from the time she was ten
+years old, having been first taken there by Marissans, the wife of
+Sarrauch, and after her death the devil took her there himself.
+et qu’après qu’on luy avoit baisé le derrière, ils estoient environ soixante qui dançoient
+sans habits, dos-‡-dos, chacun un grand chat attaché ‡ la queuÎ de la chemise, puis ils
+dançoient tous nuds: que ce maistre Leonard prenant la forme d’un renard noir
+bourdonnoitau commencent use parole mal articulée, et qu’après cela tout le monde
+estoit en silence. . . . .
+Jeanne Dibasson, aagée de vingt neuf ans, nous dict que le Sabbat estoit le vray
+Paradis, o˘ il y a beacoup plus de plaisir qu’on n’en peut exprimer: que ceux qui
+y vont trouvent le temps si court, ‡ force de plaisir et de contentment, qu’ils n’en
+peuvent sortir sans un merveilleux regret, de manière qu’il leur tarde infiniment qu’ils
+n’y reviennent.
+Marie de la Ralde, aagée de vingt huict ans, très-belle femme, laquelle a quitté cette
+abomination puis cinq ou six ans, dépose qu’elle a esté sorcière et fréquené les Sabbats
+puis l’aage de dix ans, y ayant esté menée la première fois par Marissans femme de
+Sarrauch, et après son decez le Diable l’y menoit luy mesme. Que la première fois
+GENERATIVE POWERS 229
+That the first time she was there she saw the devil in the shape of a
+trunk of a tree, without feet, but apparently sitting in a pulpit,
+with some form of a human face, very obscure; but since she had
+often seen him in man's form, sometimes red, sometimes black.
+That she had often seen him approach a hot iron to the children
+which were presented to him, but she did not know if he marked
+them with it. That she had never kissed him since she had arrived
+at the age of knowledge, and does not know whether she had
+kissed him before or not; but she had seen how, when one went to
+adore him, he presented sometimes his face to kiss, sometimes his
+posteriors, as it pleased him, and at his discretion. That she had a
+singular pleasure in going to the Sabbath, so that every time she
+was summoned to go there, she went as though it were to a wedding feast; not so much for the liberty and license they had there
+to have connection with each other (which out of modesty she said
+she had never done or seen done), but because the devil had so
+strong a hold on their hearts and wills that it hardly allowed any
+other desire to enter. Besides that the witches believe they are
+going to a place where there are a hundred thousand wonders
+and novelties to see, and where they hear so great a diversity
+qu’elle y fut, elle y vit le Diable en forme de tronc d’arbre, sans pieds, qui sembloit
+estre dans une chaire, avec quélque forme de face humaine fort ténébreuse, mais depuis
+elle l’a veu souvent en forme d’homme, tantot rouge, tantot noir: qu’elle la veu
+souvent approcher un fer chaud près des enfants qu’on luy présentoit, mais qu’elle ne
+sçait s’il les marquoit avec cela. Qu’elle ne l’a jamais basié puis qu’elle est en aage
+de cognoissance, et ne sçait si auparavant elle l’avoit baisé: bien a veu que comme on
+la va adorer, ores il leur présemte le visage ‡ baiser, ores le derrière, comme il luy
+plaist, et ‡ sa discretion. Qu’elle avoit un singulier plaisir d’aller au Sabbat, si bien
+que quand on la venoit semondre d’y aller, elle y alloit comme ‡ nopces: non pas
+tant pour la liberté et licence qu’on a de s’accointer ensemble (ce que par modestie elle
+dict n’avoir jamais fait ny veu faire), mais parce que le Diable tenoit tellement liés leurs
+coeurs et leurs volontez qu’‡ peine y laissoit il entrer nul autre désir: Outre que les
+sorcières croyent aller en quelque lieu o˘ il y a cent mille choses entranges et nouvelles
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+of melodious instruments that they are ravished, and believe themselves to be in some terrestrial paradise. Moreover the devil persuades them that the fear of hell, which is so much apprehended,
+is a piece of folly, and gives them to understand that the eternal
+punishments will hurt them no more than a certain artificial fire
+which he causes them craftily to light, and then makes them pass
+through it and repass without hurt. And more, that they see there
+so many priests, their pastors, curés, vicars, and confessors, and
+other people of quality of all sorts, so many heads of families, and
+so many mistresses of the principal houses in the said country, so
+many people veiled, whom they considered to be grandees, because
+they concealed themselves and wished to be unknown, that they
+believed and took it for a very great honour and good fortune to
+be received there.
+Marie d’AspilcouÎtte, a girl nineteen years old, who lived at
+Handaye, said that she had frequented the Sabbath ever since the age
+of seven, and that she was taken there the first time by Catherine de
+Moleres, who had since been executed to death for having caused
+a man’s death by sorcery. She said that it was now two years since
+‡ voir, et y entendant tant de divers et mélodieux instruments qu’elle sont ravies, et
+croyent estre dans quelque Paradis terrestre. D’ailleurs que le Diable leur persuade
+que la crainte de l’Enfer, qu’on appréhende si fort, est une niayserie, et leur donne ‡
+entrendre que les peines éternelles ne les tourmenteront pas davantage, que certain feu
+artificiel qu’il leur fact cauteleusement allumer, par lequel il les faict passer et repasser
+sans souffrir aucun mal. D’avantage qu’elle y voyent tant de prestres, leur pasteurs,
+curez, vicaires, et confesseurs, et autres gens de qualité de toute sortes, tant de chefs
+de famille et tant de maistresses des maisons principales dudict paÔs, tant de gens
+voilez, qu’elle présupposent grans parcequ’ils se cachent et veulent estre incognus,
+qu’elle croyent et prennent ‡ très grand honneur et ‡ tiltre de bonne fortune d’y estre
+receuÎs. . . . .
+Marie d’AspilcouÎtte, habitante de Handaya, aagée de dix neuf ans, dict
+qu’elle a fréquenté les Sabbats puis l’aage de sept ans, et qu’elle y sut conduitte la
+première fois par Catherine de Moleres qui a depuis esté exécutée ‡ mort, luy ayant
+esté maintenu, qu’elle avoit chargé le haut mal par son seul attouchment ‡ un fort
+GENERATIVE POWERS 231
+she had withdrawn from her relations with Satan. That the devil
+appeared in the form of a goat, having a tail and under it the face of
+a black man, which she was compelled to kiss, and that this posterior
+face has not the power of speech, but they were obliged to adore
+and kiss it. Afterwards the said Moleres gave her seven toads to
+keep. That the said Moleres transported her through the air to the
+Sabbath, where she saw people dancing, with violins, trumpets, and
+tabors, which made a very great harmony. That in the said
+assemblies there was an extreme pleasure and enjoyment. That
+they made love in full liberty before all the world. That some
+were employed in cutting off the heads of toads, while others made
+poison of them; and that they made the poison at home as well as
+at the Sabbath.
+After describing the different sorts of poisons prepared on these
+occasions, De Lancre proceeds to report the testimony of other
+witnesses to the details of the Sabbath.1
+Jeannette de Belloc,
+called Atsoua, a damsel of twenty-four years of age, said that she
+had been made a witch in her childhood by a woman named Oylarchahar, who took her for the first time to the Sabbath, and there
+presented her to the devil; and after her death, Mary Martin,
-Vauderie, French praftice of witchcraft,
+honneste homme: que néantmoins il y a deux ans qu’elle s’est retirée des liens de
-S.
+Satan, et qu’elle en a secoüé le joug. Que le Diable estoit en forme de bouc, ayant
+une queuÎ et au dessoubs un visage d’homme noir, o˘ elle sut contrainte le baiser, et
+n’a parole par ce visage de derrière, qu’on luy sit adorer et baiser: puis ladicte
+Moleres luy donna sept crapaux ‡ garder. Que la dicte Moleres la transportoit au
+Sabbat par l’air, o˘ elle voyoit dancer avec violons, trompettes, ou tabourins, qui
+rendoyent une trèsgrande harmonie. Qu’esdictes assemblées y a un extr’me plaisir et
+rejouissance. Qu’on y faict l’amour en toute liberté devant tout le monde. Que
+plusiers s’emploient ‡ couper la teste ‡ des crapaix. et les autres ‡ en faire du poison;
+qu’on en faict au logis aussi bien qu’au Sabbat. Tableau l’Inconstance, pp. 119 et
+seqq. 1
+Jeannette de Belloc dicte Atsoua, fille de 24 ans, nous dict que puis son bas aage
+elle avoit esté faicte sorciére par une femme nommé Oylarchahar, laquelle la mena
+au Sabbat la première fois, et la présenta au Diable, et après son decez, Marie Martin,
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+lady of the house of Adamechorena, took her place. About the
+month of February, 1609, Jeannette confessed to a priest who was
+the nephew of Madame Martin, who went to his aunt and merely
+enjoined her not to take the girl to the Sabbath any more. Jeannette said that at the solemn festivals all kissed the devil’s posteriors
+except the notable witches, who kissed him in the face. According
+to her account, the children, at the age of two or three years, or as
+soon as they could speak, were made to renounce Jesus Christ, the
+Virgin Mary, their baptism, &c. and from that moment they were
+taught to worship the devil. She described the Sabbath as resembling a fair, well supplied with all sorts of objects, in which some
+walked about in their own form, and others were transformed, she
+knew not how, into dogs, cats, asses, horses, pigs, and other animals. The little boys and girls kept the herds of the Sabbath, consisting of a world of toads near a stream, with small white rods,
+and were not allowed to approach the great mass of the witches;
+while others, of more advanced age, who were not objects of sufficient respect, were kept apart in a sort of apprenticeship, during
-Venus, 82 ; feilval of, 155.
+dame de la maison d’Adamechorena, print sa place. Et d’autant qu’environ le mois
+de Febvrier 1609, elle s’alla confesser ‡ maistre Jean de Horrousteguy, prieur de
+Soubernoue, nepveu de ladicte Martin, il enjoignit ‡ sa tante de la laisser en paix et ne
+la mener plus au Sabbat. Qu’ès festes solemnelles on baisoit le Diable au derrière,
+mais les notables sorcières le baisoient au visage. Que les enfans environ l’aage de
+deux ou trois ans, et puis qu’ls sçavent parler, sont la rénonciation ‡ Jésus-Christ, ‡ la
+Saincte Vierge, ‡ leur Baptesme, et ‡ toute le reste, et commencent dès lors ‡ prendre
+habitude ‡ recognoistre et adorer le Diable. Dict que le Sabbat est comme une foire
+célèbre de toutes sortes de choses, en laquelle aucuns se promenent en leur propre
+forme, et d’autres sont transformez, ne sçayt pourquoy, en chiens, en chats, asnes,
+chevaux, pourceaux, et autres animaux: les petits enfans et filles gardent
+les troupeaux du Sabbat, qui sont un mode de crapaux, près d’un ruisseau avec
+des petites gaules blanches qu’on leur donne. sans les laisser approcher du gros
+des autres sorciers: les médiocres et ceux qui sont de bon aage parmy eux, on
+leur permet simplement de voir, et leur en donne-on le plaisir et l’estonnement, les
+tenant comme en apprentissage. Pour les autres il y en a de deux sortes; aucuns
+GENERATIVE POWERS 233
+which they were only allowed to look on at the proceedings of the
+others. Of these there were two sorts; some were veiled, to make
+the poorer classes believe that they were people of rank and distinction, and that they did not wish themselves to be known in such
+a place; others were uncovered, and openly danced, had sexual
+intercourse, made the poisons, and performed their other diabolical
+functions; and these were not allowed to approach so near “the
+master” as those who were veiled. The holy water used at the
+Sabbath was the devil’s urine. She pointed out two of the accused
+whom she had seen at the Sabbath playing upon the tabor and
+the violin. She spoke of the numbers who were seen arriving
+and departing continually, the latter to do evil, the former to
+report what they had done. They went out at sea, even as far as
+Newfoundland, where their husbands and sons went to fish, in
+order to raise storms, and endanger their ships. This deponent
+spoke also of the fires at the Sabbath, into which the witches were
+sont voilez pour donner opinion aux pauvres que ce sont des princes et grans
+seigneurs, et qu’aucun d’eux n’ayt horreur d’y estre et faire ce qu’ils sont en adorant
+le diable. . . Les autres sont decouverts et tout ouvertement dancent, s’accouplent,
+font du poison, et autres fonctions diaboliques, et ceux cy ne sont si près du maistre, si
+favoris, ne si employez. Ils baillent l’asperges de l’urnine du Diable. Ils y vont ‡
+l’offrande, et y a veu tenir le bassin ‡ un Esteben Detzail, lors prisonnier: et disoit-on
+qu’il s’en estoit enrichy. Qu’elle y a veu jouer du tabourin ‡ Ansugarlo de Han-daye,
+lequel a depuis esté exécuté ‡ mort comme insigne sorcier, et du violon ‡ Gastelloue.
+Elle nous disoit qu’on eust veu desloger du Sabbat et voler l’une en l’air, l’autre
+monter plus haut vers le ciel, l’autre descendre vers la terre, et l’autre parfois se
+précipiter dans les grands feux allumez audit lieu, comme fuzées qui sont jettées par
+plusieurs, ou comme esclairs: l’une arrive, l’autre part, et tout ‡ un coup plusiers
+partent, plusiers arrivent, chacune rendant comte de vents et orages qu’elle
+a excité, des navires et vaisseaux qu’elle a fait perdre: et s’en vont de Labourt,
+Siboro, et S. Jean de Luz, jusques ‡ Arcachon, qui est une des testes de l’Ocean, aussi
+l’appellent ils la teste de Buch, assés près de Bourdeaux, et en Terre-neuve, parcequ’elles y voyent leur pères, leurs maris, leurs enfans, et d’autres parens, et que c’est
+leur voyage ordinaire, mesme en a veu plusiers qui notoirement sont en Terre-neuve
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+thrown without sustaining any hurt. She had seen the frequenters
+of the Sabbath make themselves appear as big as houses, but she had
+never seen them transform themselves into animals, although there
+were animals of different kinds running about at the Sabbath.
+Jeanette d’Abadie, an inhabitant of Siboro, of the age of sixteen, said that she was taken for the first time to the Sabbath by a
+woman named Gratianne; that for the last nine months she had
+watched and done all she could to withdraw herself from this evil
+influence; that during the first three of these months, because she
+had watched at home by night, the devil carried her away to the
+Sabbath in open day; and during the other six, until the 16th of
+September, 1609, she had only gone to them twice, because she
+had watched, and still watches in the church; and that the last time
+she was there was the 13th of September, 1609, which she narrated
+in a “bizarre and very terrible manner.” It appears that, having
+watched in the church of Siboro during the night between Saturday
+and Sunday, at daybreak she went to sleep at home, and, during
+the time of the grand mass, the devil came to her and snatched
-Virgil, defcription of the emanation of the
+qu’elles menoyent au Sabbat. . . . . Quant ‡ la transformations, dict qu’encore que
-pervading Spirit of God, 29, 72, 99.
+parfois elles si fassent voir hautes comme une maison, pourtant elle n’a jamais veu
+aucune d’elle se transformer en beste en sa présence, mais seulement certaines bestes
+courier par le Sabbat, et devenir grandes et petites, mais si soudainement qu’elle n’en
+a jamais pu decouvrir la façon. En voycy une plus sçavante.
+Jeannette d’Abadie, habitante de Siboro, aagée de seize ans, dépose qu’elle fut menée
+la première fois au Sabbat par une nommée Gratianne: qu’il y a environ neuf mois
+qu’elle veille et faict tout ce qu’elle peut pour se remédier: que puis les trois premiers
+mois desdicts neuf, parce qu’elle veilloit la nuit chez elle, le Diable la menoit toujours au
+Sabbat de plain jour: et les six mois restans jusque au 16 Septembre 1609, elle n’y est allée
+que deux fois, parce qu’elle a veillé et veille encore dans l’église: et la dernière fois
+qu’elle y a esté, ce fut le 13 de Septembre 1609, ce qu’elle conte d’une bizarre et bien
+terrible façon. Car elle dict qu’ayant veillé dans l’église de Siboro, la nuict du Samedy
+venant au Dimanche, le jour venu, elle s’en alla dormir chez elle, et pendant qu’on
+disoit la grande Mesle, le Diable lui vint arracher un Higo de cuir qu’elle portoit au
+col, comme sont uue infinité d’autres; qui est une forme de main au point serré, le
-Vulcan, 57, 80.
+from her neck a “[[fig]] of leather which she wore there, as an
+infinity of other people did;” this higo, or fig, she described as
+“a form of hand, with the fist closed, and the thumb passed
+between the two fingers, which they believe to be, and wear as, a
+remedy against all enchantment and witchcraft; and, because the
+devil cannot bear this fist, she said that he did not dare to carry it
+away, but left it at the threshold of the door of the room in which
+she was sleeping.” This Jeanette said, that the first time she went
+to the Sabbath she saw there the devil in the form of a man, black
+and hideous, with six horns on his head, and sometimes eight,
+and a great tail behind, one face in front and another at the back
+of the head, as they paint the god Janus. Gratianne, on presenting
+her, received as her reward a handful of gold; and then the childvictim was made to renounce her Creator, the Virgin, the
+baptism, father, mother, relatives, heaven, earth, and all that was
+in the world, and then she was required to kiss the fiend on the
+posteriors. The renunciation she was obliged to repeat every time
+she went to the Sabbath. She added that the devil often made her
+kiss his face, his navel, his member, and his posteriors. She had
+often seen the children of witches baptized at the Sabbath.
-Waldenfes, origin of the feft, 178; their
+poulce passé entre les deux doigts, qu’elle croyent et portent comme remède ‡ toute
-fecret rites, 179.
+fascination et sortilège: et parce que le Diable ne peut souffrir ce poignet, elle dict
+qu’il ne l’osa emporter, ains le laissa près de la porte de la chambre dans laquelle elle dormoit. En revenant au commencement et ‡ la première entrée qu’elle
+sut au Sabbat, elle dit qu’eel y vid le Diable en forme d’homme noir et hideux, avec
+six cornes en la teste, parfois huict, et une grande queuÎ derrière, un visage devant et
+un autre derrière la teste, comme on peint le dieu Janus: que la dicte Gratianne,
+l’ayant présentée, recuet une poignée d’or en récompense, puis la fit renoncer et renier
+son Créateur, la Saincte Vierge, les Saincts, le Baptesme, père, mère, parens, le ciel,
+la terre, et tout ce qui est au monde, laquelle renonciation il luy faisoit renouveller
+toutes les fois qu’elle alloit au Sabbat, puis elle l’alloit baiser au derrière. Que le
+Diable luy faisoit baiser souvent son visage, puis son nombril, puis son membre, puis son
+derrière. Qu’elle a veu souvent baptiser des enfans au Sabbat, qu’elle nous expli-
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+Another ceremony was that of baptizing toads. These animals
+perform a great part in these old popular orgies. At one of the
+Sabbaths, a lady danced with four toads on her person, one on each
+shoulder, and one on each wrist, the latter perched like hawks.
+Jeanette d’Abadie went on further in her revelations in regard to
+still more objectionable parts of the proceedings. She said that,1
+with regard to their libidinous acts, she had seen the assembly intermix incestuously, and contrary to all order of nature, accusing even
+herself of having been robbed of her maidenhead by Satan, and of
+having been known an infinite number of times by a relation of
+hers, and by others, whoever would ask her. She always fought to
+avoid the embraces of the devil, because it caused her an extreme
+pain, and she added that what came from him was cold, and never
+produced pregnancy. Nobody ever became pregnant at the Sabbath. Away from the Sabbath, she never committed a fault, but
+in the Sabbath she took a marvellous pleasure in these acts of
+sexual intercourse, which she displayed by dwelling on the description of them with a minuteness of detail, and language of such
+obscenity, as would have drawn a blush from the most depraved
+woman in the world. She described also the tables covered in
+qua estre des enfans des sorcières et non autres, lesquelles ont accoustumé fair plustot
+baptiser leurs enfans au Sabbat, qu’en l’église, et les présenter au Diable plustot qu’‡
+Dieu. De l’Inconstance des Mauvais Anges, p. 128. 1
+Pour l’accouplement, qu’elle a veu tout le monde se msler incestueusement et contre
+tout ordre de nature, comme nous avons dict cy devant, s’accusant elle mesme d’avoir
+esté dépucellée par Satan et cognue une infinité de fois par un fien parent et autres
+qui ëen daignoient semondre: qu’elle suyoit l’accouplement du Diable, ‡ cause
+qu’ayant son membre faict en ascailles, il fait souffrir une extresme douleur; outre que
+la semence est extr’mement froide, si bien qu’elle n’engrosse jamais, ni celle des
+autres hommes au Sabbat, bien qu’elle soit naturelle: Que hors du Sabbat elle ne sit
+jamais faute, mais que dans le Sabbat elle avoit un merveilleux plaisir en ces accouplemens autres que celui de Sathan, qu’elle disoit estre horrible, voire elle nous
+tesmoignoit un merveilleux plaisir ‡ le dire, et le conter, nommant toutes choses par
+GENERATIVE POWERS 237
+appearance with provisions, which, however, proved either unsubstantial or of a disgusting nature.
+This witness further declared that she had seen at the Sabbath a
+number of little demons without arms, who were employed in
+kindling a great fire, into which they threw the witches, who came
+out without being burnt; and she had also seen the grand master of
+the assembly throw himself into a fire, and remain there until he was
+burnt to powder, which powder was used by the witches to
+bewitch young children, and cause them to go willingly to the
+Sabbath. She had seen priests who were well-known, and gave the
+names of some of them, performing the service of the mass at the
+Sabbath, while the demons took their places on the altar in the
+forms of saints. Sometimes the devil pierced the left foot of a
+sorcerer under the little toe, and drew blood, which he sucked, and
-Warburton (Bifhop), 2)Z-
+leur nom plus librement et effrontémont que nous ne luy osions faire demander,
+chose qui confirme merveilleusement la réalité du Sabbat. Car il est plus vraysemblable qu’elle se soit accouplée au Sabbat avec des gens qu’elle nommoit, que non,
+que Satan les y ait faict voir dans son lict par illusion, ou qu’il les luy ait portez corporellement: n’ayant peu sentir cent fois (comme elle dict) cette femence naturelle que
+s’accouplant corporellement et réellemenent avec un homme naturel qu’elle nous a nommé
+qui est encore vivant. Qu’elle y a veu des tables dressées avec sorces vivres, mais
+quad on en vouloit preadre on ne trouvait rien soubs la main, sauf quand on y avoit
+porté des enfans baptises ou non baptises, car de ces deux elle en avoit veu fort sauvent
+servir et manger: mesme un qu’on tenait estre fils de maistre de Laffe. Qu’on les
+compe ‡ quartiers au Sabbat pour en faire part ‡ plusieurs parroisses.
+D’avantage dict qu’elle a veu plusieurs petits démons sans bras, allumer un grand feu,
+jette des sorcières du sabbat l‡ dedans, et, les retirant sans douleur, le Diable leur dire
+qu’elles n’auroient non plus de mal du feu d’Enfer. Qu’elle a veu le grand maistres de
+l’assemblée se jetter dans les flammes au Sabbat, se faire brusler jusques ‡ ce qu’il estoit
+reduit en poudre, et les grandes et insignes sorcières prendre les dites poudres pour
+ensorceler les petits enfants et les mener au Sabbat, et en prenoient aussi dans la
+bouche pour ne reveler jamais; et a veu pareillement ce mauvais démon au Sabbat
+se rédaire tout en menus vers. Qu’elle a ony dire souvent messe ‡ quelques prestres et
+entre autres ‡ Migualena et Bocal, vestas de rouge et de blanc: que le maistre de
+l’assemblée et autres petits démons essoint sur l’autel en forme de saincts: que pour
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+after this that individual could never be drawn to make a confession; and she named, as an example, a priest named Francois de
+Bideguaray, of Bordegaina, who, in fact, could not be made to
+confess. She named many other persons whom she had seen at the
+Sabbaths, and especially one named Anduitze, whose office it was
+to summon the witches and sorcerers to the meeting.
+De Lancre says that many others, in their depositions, spoke of
+the extreme pleasures and enjoyments experienced in these Sabbaths, which made men and women repair to them with the greatest
+eagerness. “The woman indulged before the face of her husband
+without suspicion or jealousy, he even frequently acted the part of
+procurer; the father deprived his daughter of her virginity without
+shame; the mother acted the same part towards her son; the brother
+towards his sister; fathers and mothers carried thither and presented their children.”
-Water, worfhip of, 82, et feq.
+aller au Sabbat elle ne laissoit d’aller ‡ l’église, mais elle trembloit quand elle y
+voiyoit faire l’eslevation, et tremble encoure toutes les fois qu’elle la voit. Et quand
+elle se veut approcher du crucifix, pour luy baiser les pieds, elle devient tous esperdue
+et troublée, sans sçavoir quelle prière elle fait, parcequ’elle voit en mesme instant
+comme un personne noire et hideuse qui est tout au bas et au dessoubs des pieds
+dudict crucifix, qui faict contenance de l’en empescher. Quant aux sorciers qui
+ne confessent ny ‡ la torture ny au supplice, elle dict avoir veu que le Diable leur perce
+le pied gauche avec un poinçon et leur tire un peu de sang au dessoubs du petit doigt
+dudict pied gauche, lequel sang il succe, et celuy l‡ ne confesse jamais chose qui concerne le sortilège: ce qu’elle a veu pratiquer en la personne de maistre François de
+Bideguarnay, prestre au lieu appellé ‡ Bordegaina, o˘ le Sabbat a accoustumé se tenir,
+si bien qu’elle nous a dict qu’il ne confesseroit jamais. Qu’elle a veu au Sabbat entre
+une infinité qu’elle nomme et cognoist, un nommé Anduitze, qui est celuy qui va
+donner les assignations aux sorcières pour se trouver au Sabbat. . . .
+Et plusieurs autres nous ont dict que les plaisirs et la joye y sont si grands et de
+tant de sortes, qu’il n’y a homme ny femme qui n’y coure très-volontiers. . . . . La
+femme se joue en présence de son mary sans soupçon ni jalousies, voire il en est souvent le
+proxenete: le père dépucelle sa fille sans vergogne: la mère arrache le pucelage de
+fils sans cruinte: le frère de la soeur; on y voit les pères et mères porter et présenter
+leurs enfans. De l’Inconstance, p. 132.
+GENERATIVE POWERS 239
+The dances at the Sabbath were mostly indecent, including the
+well-known Sarabande, and the women danced in them sometimes
+in chemise, but much more frequently quite naked. They consisted especially in violent movements; and the devil often joined
+in them, taking the handsomest woman or girl for his partner. De
+Lancre's account of these dances is so minute and curious that it
+may be given in his own words.1
+“If the saying is true that never
+woman or girl returned from the ball as chaste as she went there,
+how unclean must she return who has abandoned herself to the unfortunate design of going to the ball of the demons and evil spirits,
+who has danced in hand with them, who has kissed them obscenely,
+who has yielded herself to them as a prey, has adored them, and
+has even copulated with them? It is to be, in good earnest, inconstant and fickle; it is to be not only lewd, or even a shameless
+whore, but to be stark-mad, unworthy of the favours with which
+God loads her in bringing her into the world, and causing her to
+be born a Christian. We caused in several places the boys and
+girls to dance in the same fashion as they danced at the Sabbath,
+as much to deter them from such uncleanness, by convincing them
+to what a degree the most modest of these movements was filthy,
+vile, and unbecoming in a virtuous girl, as also because, when
+Et s’il est vray ce qu’on dit que jamais femme ny fille ne revint du bal si chaste
+comme elle y est allée, combien immonde revient celle qui s’est abandonnée, et a prins
+ce mal-heureux dessain d’aller au bal des démons et mauvais esprits, qui a dancé ‡
+leur main, qui les a si salement baisez, qui s’est donnée ‡ eux en proye, les a adorez, et
+s’est mesme accouplée avec eux? C’est estre ‡ bon escient inconstante et volage: c’est
+estre non seulment impudique, voire putain effrontée, mais bien folle enragée, inbigne
+des graces que Dieu luy avoit faict et versé sur elle, lor qu’il la mit au monde, et la
+sist naistre chrestienne. Nous sismes en plusieurs lieux dancer les enfans et filles en la
+mesme façon qu’elle dançoient au Sabbat, tant pour les déterrer d’une telle faleté,
+leur faisant recognoistre combien le plus modeste mouvement estoit sale, vilain, et
+malséant ‡ une honneste fille, qu’aissa par-ce qu’au confrontement la plus part des
+sorcières accusées d’avoir entre autres choses dancée ‡ la main du Diable, et parfois
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+accused, the greater part of the witches, charged with having among
+other things danced in hand with the devil, and sometimes led the
+dance, denied it all, and said that the girls were deceived, and that
+they could not have known how to express the forms of dance
+which they said they had seen at the Sabbath. They were boys
+and girls of a fair age, who had already been in the way of
+salvation before our commission. In truth some of them were
+already quite out of it, and had gone no more to the Sabbath for
+some time; others were still struggling to escape, and, held still by
+one foot, slept in the church, confessed and communicated, in order
+to withdraw themselves entirely from Satan's claws. Now it is
+said that they dance always with their backs turned to the centre of
+the dance, which is the cause that the girls are so accustomed to
+carry their hands behind them in this round dance, that they draw
+into it the whole body, and give it a bend curved backwards,
+having their arms half turned; so that most of them have the belly
+commonly great, pushed forward, and swollen, and a little inclining
+in front. I know not whether this be caused by the dance or by the
+ordure and wretched provisions they are made to eat. But the
+fact is, they dance very seldom one by one, that is one man alone
-Witchcraft, the lall form of Priapic wor-
+mené la dance, nioyent tout, et disoient que les filles estoient abusées, et qu’elles
-fhip, 206, et feq.; fecret rites of the
+n’eussent sceu exprimer les formes de dance qu’elle disoient avoir veu au Sabbat.
-Vauderie, 208.
+C’estoient des endans et filles de bon aage, et qui estoient desj‡ en voye de salut avant
+nostre commission. A la vérité aucunes en estoient dehors tout ‡ faict,. et n’alloy-ent
+plus au Sabbat il y avoit quelque temps: les autres estoient encore ‡ se débatre sur la
+perche, et attachez par un pied, dormoient dans les églises, se confessoient et
+communioient, pour s’oster du tout des pattes de Satan. Or on dict qu’on y dance
+tousjours le dos tourné au centre de la dance, qui faict que les filles sont si accustumées ‡ porter les mains en arrière en ceste dance ronde, qu’elles y trainent tout le
+corps, et luy donnent un ply courbé en arrière, ayant les bras ‡ demy tournez: si
+bien que la plus part ont le ventre communement grand, enflé et avancé, et un peu
+penchant sur le devant. Je ne sçay si la dance leur cause cela ou l’ordure et meschantes viandes qu’on leur fait manger. Au reste on y dance fort peu souvent un ‡
+GENERATIVE POWERS 241
+with one woman or girl, as we do in our galliards; so they have told
+and assured us, that they only danced there three sorts of branles,
+or brawls, usually turning their shoulders to one another, and the
+back of each looking towards the round of the dance, and the face
+turned outwards. The first is the Bohemian dance, for the wandering Bohemians are also half devils; I mean those long-haired
+people without country, who are neither Egyptians (gipsies), nor
+of the kingdom of Bohemia, but are born everywhere, as they
+pursue their route, and pass countries, in the fields, and under the
+trees, and they go about dancing and playing conjuring tricks, as
+at the Sabbath. So they are numerous in the country of Labourd, on
+account of the easy passage from Navarre and Spain.
+“The second is with jumping, as our working men practise in
+towns and villages, along the streets and fields; and these two are
+in round. The third is also with the back turned, but all holding
+together in length, and, without disengaging hands, they approach
+so near as to touch, and meet back to back, a man with a woman;
+and at a certain cadence they push and strike together immodestly
+their two posteriors. And it was also told us that the devil, in his
+un, c’est ‡ dire un homme seul avec une femme ou fille, comme nous faisons en nos
+gaillardes: ains elles nous ont dict et assuré, qu’on n’y dançoit que trois fortes de
+bransles, communement se tournant les espaules l’un l’autre, et le does d’un chascun
+visant dans le rond de la dance, et le visage en dehors. La première c’est ‡ la Bohémienne, car aussi les Bohèmes coureurs sont ‡ demy diables: je dy ces long poils sans
+patrie, qui ne sont ny Ægyptiens, ny du royaume de Bohème, ains ils naissent par tout
+en chemin faisant et passant paÔs, et dans les champs, et soubs les arbres, et font les
+dances et bastelages ‡ demy comme au Sabbat. Aussi sont ils fréquens au paÔs de
+Labourt, pour l’aisance du passage de Navarre et de l’Espange.
+La seconde c’est ‡ sauts, comme noz artisans font ès villes et villages, par les rues et
+par les champs: et ces deux sont en rond. Et la troisiesme est aussi le dos tourné, mais se
+tenant tous en long, et, sans se deprendre des mains, ils s’approchent de si près qu’ils
+se touchent, et se rencontrent dos ‡ dos, un homme avec une femme: et ‡ certaine
+cadence ils se choquent et frapent inpudemment cul contre cul. Mais aussi il nous fut
+dit que le Diable bizarre ne les fasoit pas tous mettre rangément le dos tourné vers la
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+strange humours, did not cause them all to be placed in order, with
+their backs turned towards the crown of the dance, as is commonly
+said by everybody; but one having the back turned, and the other
+not, and so on to the end of the dance. . . . They dance to the
+sound of the tabor and flute, and sometimes with the long instrument
+they carry at the neck, and thence stretching to near the girdle,
+which they beat with a little stick; sometimes with a violin (fiddle).
+But these are not the only instruments of the Sabbath, for we have
+learnt from many of them that all sorts of instruments are seen
+there, with such harmony that there is no concert in the world to be
+compared to it.”
+Nothing is more remarkable than the sort of prurient curiosity
+with which these honest commissioners interrogated the witnesses as
+to the sexual peculiarities and capabilities of the demon, and the
+sort of satisfaction with which De Lancre reduces all this to writing.1
-Xanten, pottery with Priapic emblems
+They all tend to show the identity of these orgies with those of the
-found there. 122.
+ancient worship of Priapus, who is undoubtedly figured in the Satan
+of the Sabbath. The young witch, Jeannette d’Abadie, told how
+she had seen at the Sabbath men and women in promiscuous intercourse, and how the devil arranged them in couples, in the most
+unnatural conjunctions—the daughter with the father, the mother
+with her son, the sister with the brother, the daughter-in-law with
+couronne de la dance, comme communement dict tout le monde: ains l’un aytant le
+dos tourné, et l’autre non: et ainsi tout ‡ suite jusqu’‡ la fin de la dance.
+. . . . Or elles dancent au son du petit tabourin et de la flute, et parfois avec ce long
+instrument qu’ils portent sur le col, puis s’aalongeant jusqu’auprès de la ceinture, ils
+le batent avec un petit baston: parfois avec un violon. Mais ce ne sont les seuls
+instrumens du Sabbat, car nous avons apprins de plusieurs qu’on y oyt toute sorte
+d’instrumens, avec une telle harmonie qu’il n’y a concert au monde qui le puisee
+esgalar. De l’Inconstance, &c., p. 209. 1
+Jeannette d’Abadie, aagée de seize ans, dict, qu’elle a veu hommes et femmes se
+mesler promuscuement au Sabbat: que le Diable leur commandoit de ëaccoupler et se
+joindre, leur baillant ‡ chacun tout ce que la nature abhorre le plus, sçavoir la fille au
+GENERATIVE POWERS 243
+the father-in-law, the penitent with her confessor, without distinction
+of age, quality, or relationship, so that she confessed to having been
+known an infinity of times at the Sabbath by a cousin-german of
+her mother, and by an infinite number of others. After repeating
+much that she had said before relating to the impudicity of the Sabbath, this girl said that she had been deflowered by the devil at
+the age of thirteen—twelve was the common age for this—that they
+never became pregnant, either by him or by any of the wizards of the
+Sabbath; that she had never felt anything come from the devil
+except the first time, when it was very cold, but that with the sorcerers it was as with other men. That the devil chose the handsomest of the women and girls for himself, and one he usually made
+his queen for the meeting. That they suffered extremely when he
+had intercourse with them, in consequence of his member being
+covered with scales like those of a fish. That when extended it was
+père, le fils ‡ la mère, la soeur au frère, la filleulle au parrain, la pénitente ‡ son
+confesseur, sans distinction d’aage, de qualité, ni de parentelle: de forte qu’elle confessoit librement avoir esté connue une infinité de fois au Sabbat, par un cousin germain de sa mère et par une infinité d’autres: que c’est une perpétuelle ordure, en
+laquelle tout le monde s’esgayoit comme elle: que hors du Sabbat elle ne fit jamais
+de faute: qu’elle le faisoit tout autant de fois que le Diable le luy commandoit, et
+indifféremment avec toute sorte de gens: ayant esté dépucellée au Sabbat puis l’aage
+de treize ans: que le Diable les conviant et forçant de faire ceste faute, soit avec luy,
+soit avec des gens de rencontre en ces assemblées, la faute n’estoit sienne: que de ces
+accouplemens on ne s’engrossoit jamais, soit qu’ils fussent avec le maistre, soit avec
+d’autres sorciers: ce que pourtant plusiers exemples dans nos histoires rendent extr’mement incertain et douteux: qu’on n’y sent que déplaisir: qu’elle n’a jamias
+sentyy qu’il eust aucune semence, sauf quand il la dépucella qu’elle la sentit froide,
+mais que celles des autres hommes qui l’ont cognuÎ est naturelle: qu’il se choisit et trie
+les plus belles; et de vray toutes celles que nous avons veu qualifiées de ce tiltre de
+roynes estoient doüées de quelque beauté plus singulière que les autres. Si bien que
+celle Detsail ‡ Urrogne, lorsqu’elle fut exécutée ‡ mort, mourut si desdaigneusement
+que le bourreau de Bayonne, jeune et de belle forme, voulant extorquer d’elle, comme
+c’est la coustume, le baiser du pardon, elle ne voulut jamais profaner sa belle bouche
+qui avoit accoustumée d’estre colée au derrière de Diable. Dict d’avantage que, lors
+a yard long, but that it was usually twisted. Marie d’Aspilcuette,
+a girl between nineteen and twenty years of age, who also confessed
+to having had frequent connection with Satan, described his member
+as about half a yard long, and moderately large. Marguerite, a
+girl of Sare, between sixteen and seventeen, described it as resembling that of a mule, and as being as long and thick as one’s arm.
+More on this subject the reader will find in De Lancre's own text,
+given in the note below. The devil, we are further told, preferred
+que le Diable les cognoist charnellement, elles souffrant une extr’me douleur, les ayant
+ouyes crier, et, au sortir de l’acte, les ayant veües revenir au Sabbat toutes sanglantes se
+plaignant de douleur, laquelle vient de ce que le membre du Démon estant faict
+‡ escaille comme un poisson, elles se referrent en entrant, et se levent et piquent en
+sortant: c’est pour quoy elles fuyent semblables rencontres.
+Que le membres du Diable, s’il estoit estendu, est long environ d’ule aulne, mais il
+le tient entortillé et sinüeux en forme de serpent: que souvent il interpose quelque
+nuée quand il veut se joindre ‡ quelque femme ou fille. Qu’elle a veu le Diable avec
+plusieurs personnes au Sabbat qu’elle nous a nommé, et que si veux taire pour certain raison. Et en fin qu’elle avoit aussi esté dépucellée par luy des l’aage de treize ans, et
+depuis cognue plusieurs fois en forme d’homme, et en mesme façon que les autres
+hommes ont accoustumé de coignoistre leurs espouses, mais avec une extresme douleur,
+par les raisons cy dessus deduictes: qu’elle a veu faire tous ces accouplements une infinité de fois, par ce que celle qui le mauvais Démon a cognües voyent fort bien
+quand le Diable en cognoist d’autres. Mais il a quelque vergogne de faire voir
+cette vilennie ‡ celles avec lesquelles il n’a encore eu acointance: qui est cause qu’il
+leur met au devant cette nuée.
+Marie d’Aspilcuette, fille de dix-neuf ‡ vignt ans, disoit le mesme, pour ce qui est du
+membre en escailles, mais elle déposoit que lors qu’il les vouloit cognoistre, il quitoit la
+forme de bouc et prenoit celle d’homme. Que les sorciers au Sabbat prenoient qu’on
+n’y est jamais refusé, et que les maris souffrent que le Diable, ou qui que ce foit avec sa
+femme: que le membre du Diable est long environ la moitié d’une aulne, de
+médiocre grosseur, rouge, obscur, et tortu, fort rude et comme piquant.
+En voicy d’une autre sorte. Marguerite, fille de Sare, aagée de seize ‡ dixsept
+ans, dépose que le Diable, soit qu’il ayt la forme d’homme, ou qu’il soit en forme
+de bouc, a toujours un membre de mulet, ayant choisi en imitation celuy de cet
+GENERATIVE POWERS 245
+married women to girls, because there was more sin in the connection, adultery being a greater crime than simple fornication.
+In order to give still more truthfulness to his account of the Sabbath, De Lancre caused all the facts gathered from the confessions
+of his victims to be embodied in a picture which illustrates the second
+edition of his book, and which places the whole scene before us so
+vividly that we have had it re-engraved in facsimile as an illustration to the present essay.
+The different groups are, as will be
+seen, indicated by capital letters. At A we have Satan in his gilt
+pulpit, with five horns, the one in the middle lighted, for the purpose of giving light to all the candles and fires at the Sabbath. B
+is the queen of the Sabbath, seated at his right hand, while another
+favorite, though in less degree, sits on the other side. C, a witch
+presenting a child which she has seduced. D, the witches, each
+with her demon, seated at table. E, a party of four witches and
+sorcerers, who are only admitted as spectators, and are not allowed
-THE END.
+animal comme le mieux pourveu: qu’il l’a long et gros comme le bras: que quand
+il veut cognoistre quelque fille ou femme au Sabbat, comme il faict presque ‡
+chasque assemblée, il faict paroistre quelque forme de lict de soye, sur lequel il
+faict semblant de les coucher, qu’elles n’y prennent point de déplaisir, comme
+ont dicts ces premières: et que jamais il ne paroist au Sabbat en quelque action que se
+soit, qu’il n’ait tousjours son instrument dehors, de cette belle forme et méfure: tout ‡
+rebouirs de ce que dit Boguet, que celles de son paÔs ne luy ont veu guière plus long
+que le doigt et gros simplement ‡ proportion: si bien que les sorcières de Labourt sont
+mieux servies de Satan que celles de la Franche-Conté.
+Marie de Marigrane, fille de Biarrix, aagée de quinze ans, dit, Qu’il sembe que ce
+mauvais Démon ait son membre my parti moitié de fer, moitié de chair, tout de
+son long, et de mesme les genitoires, et dépose l’avoir veu en cette forme plusiers fois
+au Sabbat: et outre ce l’avoit ouy dire ‡ des femmes que Satan avoit cognues: qu’il
+les fait crier comme des femmes qui sont en mal d’enfant: et qu’il tient tousjours son
+membre dehors.
+Petry de Linarre dict que le Diable a le membre faict de corne, ou pour le moins
+il en a l’apparence, c’est pourqouy il faict tant crier les femmes. De l’Inconstance,
+p. 223. 1
+See our Plate XL.
+ON THE WORSHIP OF THE
+to approach the great ceremonies. F, “according to the old
+proverb, Après la pance, vient la dance,” the witches and their
+demons have risen from table, and are here engaged in one of the
+descriptions of dances mentioned above. G, the players on instruments, who furnish the music to which the witches dance. H, a
+troop of women and girls, who dance with their faces turned outwards from the round of the dance. I, the cauldron on the fire, to
+make all sorts of poisons and noxious compounds. K, during these
+proceedings, many witches are seen arriving at the Sabbath on
+staffs and broomsticks, and others on goats, bringing with them
+children to offer to Satan; others are departing from the Sabbath,
+carried through the air to the sea and distant parts, where they
+will raise storms and tempests. L, “the great lords and ladies and
+other rich and powerful people, who treat on the grand affairs of
+the Sabbath, where they appear veiled, and the women with masks,
+that they may remain always concealed and unknown.” Lastly,
+at M, we see the young children, at some distance from the busy
+part of the ceremonies, taking charge of the toads.
+In reviewing the extraordinary scenes which are developed in
+these witch-depositions, we are struck not only with their general
+resemblance among themselves, although told in different countries,
+but also with the striking points of identity between the proceedings of the Sabbath and the secret assemblies with which the
+Templars were charged. We have in both the initiatory presentation, the denial of Christ, and the homage to the new master, sealed
+by the obscene kiss. This is just what might be expected. In
+preserving secretly a religious worship after the open practice of it
+had been proscribed, it would be natural, if not necessary, to require
+of the initiated a strong denial of the new and intrusive faith, with
+acts as well as words which compromised him entirely in what he
+was doing. The mass and weight of the evidence certainly goes
+to prove that such secret rites did prevail among the Templars,
+GENERATIVE POWERS 247
+though it is not equally evident that they prevailed throughout
+the order; and the similarity of the revelations of the witch-confessions, in all countries where they were taken, seems to show that
+there was in them also a foundation in truth. We look upon it as
+not admitting of doubt, that the Priapic orgies and the other
+periodical assemblies for worship of this description, which we have
+described in an earlier part of this essay, were continued long after
+the fall of the Roman power and the introduction of the Christian
+religion. The rustic population, mostly servile, whose morals or
+private practices were little heeded by the other classes of society,
+might, in a country so thinly peopled, assemble by night in retired
+places without any fear of observation. There they perhaps indulged
+in Priapic rites, followed by the old Priapic orgies, which would
+become more and more debased in form, but through the effects
+of exciting potions, as described by Michelet,1
+would have become
+wilder than ever. They became, as Michelet describes them, the
+Saturnalia of the serf. The state of mind produced by these
+excitements would lead those who partook in them to believe easily
+in the actual presence of the beings they worshipped, who, according
+to the Church doctrines, were only so many devils. Hence arose
+the diabolical agency in the scene. Thus we easily obtain all the
+materials and all the incidents of the witches’ Sabbath. Where this
+older worship was preserved among the middle or more elevated
+classes of society, who had other means of secrecy at their command, it
+would take a less vulgar form, and would show itself in the
+formation of concealed sects and societies, such as those of the different forms of Gnosticism, of the Stadingers, of the Templars,
+and of other less important secret clubs, of a more or less immoral
+character, which continued no doubt to exist long after what we
+See Michelet, La Sorcière, liv. i, c. 9, on the use and the effects of the Solaneæ,
+to which he attributes much of the delusions of the Sabbath.
+ON THE GENERATIVE POWERS
+call the middle ages had passed away. As we have before intimated, these mediæval practices prevailed most in Gaul and the
+South, where the influence of Roman manners and superstitions
+was greatest.
+The worship of the reproductive organs as representing the
+fertilizing, protecting, and saving powers of nature, apart from
+these secret rites, prevailed universally, as we have traced it fully
+in the preceding pages, and we only recur to that part of the
+subject to state that perhaps the last traces of it now to be found in
+our islands is met with on the western shores of Ireland. Off the
+coast of Mayo, there is a small island named Inniskea, the inhabitants of which are a very primitive and uncultivated race, and
+which, although it takes its name from a female saint (it is the
+insular sanctæ Geidhe of the Hibernian hagiographers), does not
+contain a single Catholic priest. Its inhabitants, indeed, as we learn
+from an interesting communication to Notes and Queries by Sir
+J. Emerson Tennent,1
+are mere idolaters, and their idol, no doubt
+the representative of Priapus, is a long cylindrical stone, which they
+call Neevougee. This idol is kept wrapped in flannel, and is
+entrusted to the care of an old woman, who acts as the priestess. It
+is brought out and worshipped at certain periods, when storms
+disturb the fishing, by which chiefly the population of the island
+obtain a living, or at other times it is exposed for the purpose of
+raising storms which may cause wrecks to be thrown on the coast
+of the island. I am informed that the Name Neevougee is merely
+the plural of a word signifying a canoe, and it may perhaps have
+some reference to the calling of fishermen.
+Notes and Queries, for 1852, vol. v., p. 121.
+==INDEX.==
+CANTUS, model of, 71.
+Adamiana or Adamites,
+mediæval sect, and their
+practices, 174.
+Adel in Yorkshire, objects
+with Priapic emblems found there,
+.
+Æschylus, 80.
+Æsernia, medals of, 80.
+Agricultural festivals, 154.
+Aix, phallus found there. 119.
+Albigenses, early Christian sect, 177.
+Ammon, Pan of the Greeks, 38, 61.
+Amulets, Priapic, worn by Italians, 4,
+; worn in the middle ages, 145;
+leaden, with Priapic symbols, found
+in the Seine, 146, 170.
+Androgynous figures in ancient sculptures, 41—43.
+Animal worship, 30, 32, 33, 34.
+Antwerp, Priapus, under the name of
+Ters, its patron saint, 144.
+Apis, Egyptian sacred bull, 30.
+Apollo, 76.
+Apollo, Didymæus, 82.
+Appian, 82.
+Apuleius, 39, 95.
+Aristophanes, ancient system of theology, 44.
+Aristotle, 42.
+Arras, persecutions against witchcraft
+there, 207, et seq.
+Artemidorus, mention of symbolical
+horns, 22.
+Arueris or Orus, Greek Apollo, parentage of, 40.
+Athenæus, mention of a phallus, 120
+cubits long, 84.
+Ausonius, mention of the Floralia, 155.
+Bacchanalia, 154.
+Bacchus, ancient representations of, 74.
+Bagvat Geeta, exposition of Hindu theology, 48—50, 56, 58, 59, 61.
+Baphomet, idol of the Knights Templars, 198.
+Barrenness in women, Priapic symbols
+for the cure of, 142.
+Becan, account of antiquities of Antwerp, 144.
+Bell tolling, origin of, 97.
+Bodinus, account of the witches’ Sabbath, 210.
+Bona Dea, Priapic rites, 156.
+Brahma, Hindoo deity, 60.
+Brand’s Popular Antiquities, 161, 168.
+Britain, remains of Priapic worship
+found in, 122—126.
+Bulgarians, sect of Gnostics, 175, 176.
+Bull, Indian worship of, 34.
+Burchardus, 129, 144, 171.
+Butterfly, ancient religious allegory, 100.
+Cæsar, 81.
+Cakes in form of phallus made at
+Easter, 158.
+A
+Campegius,mention of phallic cakes,159. Cat, alleged worship of by the Templars,
+. Cathari, mediæval sect, 178. Cato the younger, anecdote of, 155. Celenderis, medal of, 71. Celtic temple at Zeeland, 64. Ceres and Baubo, story of, 134. Ceres and Proserpine, 71, 134. Ch‚lons, council of, act of, 129. Chilminar, ancient ruins at, 86. Christian (early) sects, 172, et seq.
+Christian festivals, excesses at, 107. Chysostom, 19, note. Churches, sculptures of phallic
+emblems on, 131, et seq., 204. Coggeshall (Ralph de), old English chronicler, account of the Waldenses, 179. Coles’ (W.) Adam in Eden, obscene
+names of plants, 167. Como, sculptures on the church of San
+Fedele, 137. Corinth, temple at, 104, 105. Corinthian order of architecture, origin
+of, 53. Cow, symbol of Venus in Egypt, 33, 62. Cyzicus, ancient medal of, 29; worship
+of Venus there, 84. D’Harcanville, references to his work,
+“Récherches sur les Arts,” 15, 21, 23, 28, 45, 47, 70, 74, 136. De Lancre, account of witchcraft in
+France, A.D. 1612, 212, et seq.
+Diana, the female destructive power, 77. Diodorus Siculus, 19, note, 65, 105. Dionysus of Halicarnassus, 104. Dulaure, researches on modern Priapic
+worship, 118. Durandus, mention of singular Easter
+custom, 161. Dusii, Gallic name for Incubi, 152. Easter, Teutonic festival with Priapic
+observances, 157. Egyptian religious rites, 16, 30, 31, 32, 83 ; ancient Egyptian monuments,
+, 52.
+Egypt, phallic images brought thence,
+. Elephant, represented in ancient Indian
+monuments, 56, 57; Greek, 59. Elephanta, sculptures from the caverns
+of, 47, 53. Elephantis, ancient erotic work, 103. Embrun, phallus of St. Foutin worshipped there, 140. Eryx, temple at, 105. Euripides, 44, 69, 80, 104, 106. Fascinum, Roman name for male organ,
+mediæval worship of, 128, 145. Fateux, cakes made in form of phallus,
+. Fauns and satyrs, 35, 43, 45. Festivals of Priapus, 154, et seq.
+Fig, obscene gesture, called “to make the
+fig,” a Priapic emblem, 150; referred
+to in a trial of witches, 235. Fire, worship of, 65. Floralia, Priapic festival, 155, 161. Forgeias (M.), phallic amulets found
+by him the Seine, 146. Frea, Anglo-Saxon Priapus, 126. Fridaythorpe, Yorkshire, and Friston,
+probably derivation of the names,
+. Gems, ancient, illustrative of the subject, 39, 41, 61, 104, 155. Generative powers, worship of during
+the middle ages of Western Europe,
+, et seq.
+Gerard’s Herbal, obscene names of
+plants, 167. German witchcraft in the fifteenth century, 209. German worship of the sun, 34, 81. Gesner, medals published by, 74. Gnostics, their practices of hospitality,
+&c., 99, 173. Goat, symbol of the generative attribute,
+; living goat worship of ancient
+Egyptians.
+Godiva’s (Lady) procession, a relic of
+Priapic celebration, 170.
+INDEX 251
+Golnitz, account of a statue at Antwerp,
+. Goltizus, medals published by, 46. Gonnis, Hindoo deity, 56, 57, 58, 61. Greece, ancient theology of, 17, 32, 34. Grecian representations of attributes
+of the deity, 16, 45, 60. Greek temples, 55. Gregory IX., account of secret rites of
+the Stendingers, 183—185. Grotius, 37, note. Hammer (Baron von), description of
+idols of the Knights Templars, 138, 199, et seq. Harmony, daughter of Mars and Venus,
+. Heaving and lifting, English customs at
+Easter, 160. Helman, god of destruction, 78, 79, 80. Herculaeum and Pompeii, relics of
+Priapic worship and attributes found
+there, 4, 27, 33, 37, 120. Hercules, attributes of, 91, 92. Hermaphrodite, ancient figures of, 41, 43. Herodotus, 31, 32, 53, 63, 66, 104, 134. Hesiod, 16, 44, 106. Hierapolis, goddess of, the Priapic
+Diana, 83. Hierapolis, temple at, 84. Hindoo animal worship, 34; symbols of
+generative organs on ancient Indian
+sculptures, 47, 48; ancient Hindoo
+theology, 56, et seq.
+Homer, 17, 32, 41, 51, 63, 69, 72, 73, 80, 91, 98, 112. Horace, 128. Horns, ancient symbol of power, 22. Horseshoe, modern form of ancient
+drawings of the female organ, used
+as a talisman, 139. Housesteads in Northumberland,
+sculpture found there, 125. Idolatry among the Knights Templars,
+, et seq. Incubi, spirits of the woods, 152. Inniskea, an island on the western shores
+of Ireland, last trace of Priapic worship
+found there, 248. Ireland, Shelah-na-gig, representations of
+the female organ found there, 132— 134. Isernia, 5, 118. Isis, ancient deity, 39, 40, 50, 83, 95. Italian Christian sects, names of, 177.
+James I, on witchcraft, 210. Japanese sculptures, 47. Jewish religion, identity of its symbols
+with those of the heathen, 112, 113. Josephus, 111. Jupiter, father of Minerva, 57, 58, 69, 85, 93, 101, 113. Jupiter Ammon, identical with Pan, 38. Juvenal, 105, 124, 155, 156. Kandarp, Hindoo god of love, 61, 62. Ketzer, German name of the Cathari,
+. Kreshna, Hindoo deity, 48. Labourd, proceedings against witchcraft
+there, A.D. 1609, 212, et seq.
+Lactantius, 103. Lancercost, chronicle of, 129. Leaden tokens with phallic emblems,
+, 170, 183. Le Chatelet, phallus found there, 119. Lesbos, ancient rites in the island of, 105. Liberalia, Priapic festival, 154. Libitina, Roman Goddess of death, 73. Lingam, Indian representation of the
+generative attribute, 49, 54. Lion, ancient symbol of the sun, 70. Lotus, sacred plant of the Hindoos, 49, 50, 54, 58. Lucian, 83, 84. Lucretius, 45. Lycæan Pan, god of the Arcadians, 35. Lycopolis, sun worship there, 81. Macrobius, mention of a temple in
+Thrace, 67, 78, 81. Malleus Maleficarum, celebrated work
+against witchcrft, 209. Mandrake, ancient Priapic superstitions
+regarding, 168.
+INDEX
+Manichæans, early Christian sect, 173, 174. Mapes (Walter), account of the secret
+rites of the Paterini in the eleventh
+century, 176. Mars, god of destruction, 78. Mars and Venus, 71. Martial, epigrams, 149, 159. May Day, mediæval celebration of,
+identical with the Roman Floralia,
+; Elizabethan custom on May
+Day, 162, 163. Mecklenburg Strelitz, statuettes found
+there, 136. Medallic representations of the generative organs, 29. Medals with phallic emblems, used by
+secret societies of the middle ages, 205. Medusa’s head, 90.
+Miches, cakes made in the form of the
+male organ in France, 160. Michelet, account of proceedings against
+the Templars, 188, 247. Middleton (Dr.) Letter from Rome, 3. Minerva, Greek deity, similar to the
+Hindoo Gonnis, her attributes, birth,
+&c., 57, 58, 61. Minotaur, fabulous monster, 89, 90. Molay (Jaques de) grand master of the
+Templars, proceedings against him, 185. Monitor (Ulric), work on witchcraft,
+A.D. 1489, 209. Moon, ancient attributes of, 59, 83. Musée Secret, representations of phalli,
+, 149. Naples, Sir W. Hamilton’s account of
+Priapic worship there, 3. Needfire, 127, 163—166; introduced in
+the witches’ Sabbath, 222. Nicolaitæ, early Christian sect, 178. Nider (John), work on witchcraft, 209. NÓmes, Roman amphitheatre at, sculptures of phalli, 119—122. Novatians, early Christian sect, 178. Nymphs, companions of fauns and
+satyrs, 39.
+Occus, Hindoo deity, 60. Onomacritus, early poet, 18, note. Orleans, a secret society with obscene
+rites there, in the eleventh century,
+. Orpheus, Argonauticon, account of,
+, note. Orpheus, hymns of, 19, note, 20, 24, 29, 40, 44, 65, 69, 92, 93. Orphic system of theology, 17, et seq. Osiris, ancient deity, 16, 29, 40, 68. Ovid, 44. Pæon, Greek name of Apollo, 78. Pagan rites introduced into the worship
+of the early Christians, 171, et seq.
+Pan, attributes of, 35—38, 69. Paterini, Italian sectarians, and their
+secret rites, 176. Paulicians, sect of Gnostics, introducers
+of phallic worship into Western Europe, 175. Pausanius, 19, note, 39, 63. Pellerin, medal published by him, 29. Persian worship, 63, 86. Philippe IV, proceedings against the
+Knights Templars, 165. Philo supposed first individuals of the
+human race to be androgynous, 43. Phúnician medals, 87, 88, 90. Phúnician religion, ancient, 94. Pilosi, spirits of the woods, 152. Pindar, 60, 98, 101. Plants connected with Priapic worship,
+obscene names of, &c., 166, et seq. Plato, 74. Platonic religion, 25, 37, 65, 67, 89. Pliny, 76. Plutarch, 15, 16, 19, note, 20, 30, 38, 60, 68, 82, 96, 120. Pluto, 69. Pollear, Hindoo deity, 56, 61. Polypus represented on Greek medals, 21. Popular oaths and exclamations derived
+from phallic worship, 181. Priapeia, festival of Priapus, 156. Priapus, original intention in the worship
+INDEX 253
+of, 15 as represented by Roman
+artists, 42; degradation of, 102; sacrifices to, 104; sanctified in the middle
+ages, 139, et seq. Proclus, on truth, 26; on the Platonic
+theology, 27, 30, 41. Proserpine, 72. Ptolmies, medals of, 57, 61. Ptolemy Philadelphus, 84. Purgatory, modern form of purification
+by fire, 100. Puzzuoli, temple of Serapis there, 64, 66. Pytho, the serpent destroyed by Apollo,
+. Robin Goodfellow, 153. Roman worship of Priapus, 118. Sabbath of the witches, modern form of
+Priapic festivals, 206, et seq.; secret
+practices at, described by Bodinus,
+—212; described by De Lancre,
+, et seq.; identity with rites of the
+Knights Templars, 246. St. Augustine, commands to ladies attending Chrisitan festivals, 107; on the
+Liberalia, 129. St. Cosmo, modern Italian Priapus, account of the feast of, at Isernia, 5, 9. St. Epiphanius, account of the Gnostics,
+. St. Fiacre, chair of, 142. St. Foutin, French Priapus of the middle
+ages, 139, 143. St. John’s eve, customs on, 164—166, 168. St. Nicholas, superstition regarding, 132. Saints, names of several phallic, 141. Scottish worship of Priapus in the 13th
+century, 130, 131. Scrat, German spirit of the woods, 151. Scriptural emblems, 86. Sects of the middle ages, 172, et seq. Serapis, temple of, 64. Serpent, symbol of life and vigour, 21;
+worshipped by Egyptians, 32. Shakespeare, use of the phrase “the fig
+of Spain,” 150.
+Shela-na-gig, representation of the female organ found in Ireland under
+that name, 132—134. Shrewsbury show, a relic of Priapic
+celebration, 170. Sicyon, temple at, mentioned by Pausanias, 63. Sileni, attendants on Bacchus, 41. Snake, hooded, symbol of the Egyptians,
+. Societies, secret, in the middle ages,
+for Priapic worship, 170. Sodomy practiced by ancient sects, Bulgarians, 176; Cathari, 179; Knights
+Templar, 190—193. Solar system, 109. Sonnerat, account of Hindoo antiquities,
+, 53. Sophocles, 36, 37, 38. Soul, ancient ideas of the emancipation
+of, from the body, 97—100. Sprenger (Jacob), work on witchcraft,
+. Stedingers, alleged secret rites of, and
+crusade against, 183—185. Stonehenge, temple for worship of
+Apollo, 65. Strabo, 31, 33. Stubbes’ (P.) description of May-day
+ceremonies, 162. Sun worship, 66, 77—82. Sweden, worship of the god Fricco, 126. Sylvanas, Pan so called by the Latins,
+. Symbols, explanation of the Priapic, 17;
+ancient symbols, 20, et seq.; 45—47, 55, 67, et seq.; sun worship, 78—82;
+, 88, 89; on statue of Isis, 96;
+butterfly, ancient symbol of the soul,
+. Syracuse, medal of, 55. Systrum, mystic instrument of the goddess Isis, 96. Temples for heathen worship, 63, et seq. Templars, Knights, secret practices, trial
+and dissolution of their order, 150,
+INDEX
+, 185, et seq.; identity of their
+proceedings with those of the witches’
+Sabbath, 245. Ters, i.e. Priapus, the patron saint of
+Antwerp, 144. Thebes, ancient temples at, 51. Theology, Ancient, attributes of a Divine Being, 24—26. Tiger attendant on Bacchus, 74. Toads attendant at witches’ Sabbath,
+, 236. Trajan’s column, 51, 52. Typhon, the destroying power, 68, 69. Urus, or wild bull, Greek symbol of the
+Creator, 21.
+Vauderie, French practice of witchcraft,
+. Venus, 82; festival of, 155. Virgil, description of the emanation of the
+pervading Spirit of God, 29, 72, 99. Vulcan, 57, 80. Waldenses, origin of the sect, 178; their
+secret rites, 170. Warbuton (Bishop), 33. Water, worship of, 82, et seq.
+Witchcraft, the last form of Priapic worship, 206, et seq.; secret rites of the
+Vauderie, 208. Xanten, pottery with Priapic emblems
+found there, 122.
+THE END.
+==[Plates follow]==
+PLATES
+F!
+PLATE I.
+Ex-voto of wax presented in the Church of Isernia in 1780.
+PLATE II.
+PLATE III.
+PLATE IV.
+Fig. 1. Fig. 2.
+Fig. 3. Fig. 4.
+Fig. 5. Fig. 6.
+PLATE V.
+PLATE VI.
+PLATE VII.
+PLATE VIII.
+PLATE IX.
+PLATE X.
+PLATE XI.
+PLATE XII.
+PLATE XIII.
+PLATE XIV.
+PLATE XV.
+PLATE XVI.
+PLATE XVII.
+PLATE XVIII.
+PLATE XIX.
+PLATE XX.
+PLATE XXI.
+PLATE XXII.
+Statue of a Bull on the Pagoda of Tanjore.
+PLATE XXIII.
+PLATE XXIV.
+Scuplture from the Island of Elephanta, near Bombay—Dimensions
+feet 6 inches by 1 foot 6 inches.
+PLATE XXV.
+PLATE XXVI.
+L’original de ce bas-relief a ététrouve dans le foille faites a NÓnes dans l’annee 1825.
+L’alligorie réprésente le Vautour, comme l’embléne de la maternité, couvant quatres oeufs
+en apparence. La queue de l’oiseau forme un phallus, et les oeufs [illegible] l’organe
+femelle dans ses quatres epoques de l’enfance, de l’adolescence, de la maturité et de la
+vellesse.
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