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Victorian Blogging
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A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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Conway Hall Library & Archives
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2018
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
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The ancient history of Shaftesbury, being a paper read at the eighth general meeting of the Wilts Archaeological Society, at Shaftesbury, 1861. With some account of the excavations on the site of the ancient Abbey Church in 1861-2
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Reynolds, J.J. [Rector of Shaftesbury]
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An account of the resource
Place of publication: Shaftesbury
Collation: 22 p. : ill. (folded map, plans, diags.) ; 22 cm.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references. From the library of Dr Moncure Conway.
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John Bennett, bookseller
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1867
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CT70
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Archaeology
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<a href="http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/"><img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /></a><span> </span><br /><span>This work (The ancient history of Shaftesbury, being a paper read at the eighth general meeting of the Wilts Archaeological Society, at Shaftesbury, 1861. With some account of the excavations on the site of the ancient Abbey Church in 1861-2), identified by </span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk"><span>Humanist Library and Archives</span></a><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
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English
Archaeology
Conway Tracts
Shaftesbury
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FRASER’S MAGAZINE
DECEMBER 1877.
MYCENAE.1
■'
T
(From Personal Investigation.)
Then divine, full-eyed Juno answered,
4 Three cities are particularly dear to me—
Argos, and Sparta, and wide-wayed Mycenae.’—iv. 51.
|HE plain of Argos, surrounded
with bold and picturesque
Ji. j! mountain ranges, would, for its
^cfl beauty alone, be worthy of a visit;
j
the remains of its very old cities give
| an additional attraction; and the
| late explorations and discoveries at
M| Mycenae have drawn the attention
!«.JI of all who take an interest in
1<*
n® archaeology or classic literature.
! 1 AU Homer’s phrases descriptive of
nil the region indicate great fertility; he
ir.l calls it1 steed-nourishing,’ ‘ fruitful; ’
mland. the words ‘ udder of the land,’
dwwhich he applies, may not only describe it as a country of ample food
qirfsupplies, but the term may be also
jjolfounded on that particular worship
jof the cow which as we know from
oofbooks, and our knowledge has been
Fn {added to from the recent excavations,
ahiwas a leading trait of the religion
3 of that part of the world. This
< fertility seems to have attracted
1 many races, and invasion and con1 ^uest were the result. New races
j seem to have brought myths with
£ |hem, and left more than one stratum
] If this kind in the literature which
s las come down to us. We have
11rst the Pelasgians, whose early
U 1 Ind little known period is connected
dii >vith the name of Inachus, the first
gn png of Argos. With his daughter
1
, jo, we obtain the first glimpse of
-'■r
the primitive bovine cultus, which is
supposed to have come from Egypt,
and there is the authority of
Diodorus Siculus that the story of
Isis had been transferred to Argos.
The fragments of traditional history
seem to show that there had been in
these far back times a considerable
intercourse between the nations
round the Mediterranean. Hero
dotus begins his History by telling
how the Phoenicians went to Argos
with Egyptian and Assyrian mer
chandise, and how they carried off
the daughter of Inachus—a story
that has very little in it which can be
identified with the drama of Aeschy
lus. As Herodotus gives it, and sup
plemented by his remarks on the
Greek customs, it has much the ap
pearance of being the first germ of
the story of Helen and Troy.
Later still comes the race of Pelops
the Phrygian. How far the history
of this king and his descendants is
literal or mythical, has still to be
settled; but accepting the tra
dition, it is evidence of some con
nection between Greece and Asia
Minoi’ at that particular period.
Invasion is no doubt the most
probable fact upon which to found
the explanation. If an Ionian race
colonised the coast of Asia Minor
at one time, the contrary process
may have taken place at another.
If conquest or invasion brought
a people from the north-west corner
of Asia to the Argolic plain, they,
1 [The writer visited Mycenae in the month of March 1877.]
VOL. XVI,—NO. XCVI.
NEW SERIES.
3 B 2
�676
Mycenai.
no doubt, brought some of their
religion and myths, as well as their
arts, along with them. Such an
event could not have taken place
without an influence having been
produced among the invaded race.
The consideration of this Asiatic
influence is of deep importance, as
bearing on the sources of all Greek
art, but it is of still higher moment
when we have to consider the
remains of that art which are still
found in the locality associated with
the first advent of a Lydian dyn
asty. Thucydides explains the cir
cumstance that Pelops was able,
although a foreigner, to give his
name to the whole peninsula, that
it was owing to his great wealth,
and coming among a poorer popula
tion ; but wealth implies cultivation
of the arts, and if the historian has,
in this case, given us a reliable
statement of the matter, an importa
tion of art influence from Asia
about that early period may be
freely enough accepted. Homer’s
own allusions to Sidonian. art are
too numerous to leave the point
doubtful. This superiority which
seems to have existed on the Asiatic
coast of the Mediterranean was not
confined to one department, for
in addition to the cunning art of
pouring gold around silver, the
women of Sidon and Lesbos are
mentioned as having been skilful
in faultless works of embroidery.
The sculpture on the triangular
slab over the Lion Gate at Mycenae is
described by all as bearing a strong
resemblance to the art of Assyria ;
this resemblance is no doubt owing
to the Asiatic influence of a school
of art which followed a style similar
to that practised at the time on
the banks of the Euphrates.
Even the Cyclopean construction
of walls, of which such splendid spe
cimens still remain at Tiryns and
Mycenae, came also, if we accept
Strabo’s statements, from Asia; he
[December
says that the walls of Tiryns were
built by the Cyclopes, and that
they came from Lycia. Proetus
seems to have sent for these people,
implying that such builders did not
exist about Argos at that time;
they were called ‘ Gastrocheires * for
the reason that they got their living
by the practice of their art. The
term would not sound well in the
ear of modern society if it were
literally translated and applied to
architects or artists in our own day ;
still its real signification is in itself
honourable, and not the less so for
its antiquity. In a former article on
Troy,2 I pointed out from the frag
ments of Cyclopean walls yet to be
seen at Gergis, in the Troad, that
this mode of building had under
gone in that region a similar
process of change to that which we
find it had passed through in the
Argolic plain. One object called
for this identification, and that was
to indicate the significance of the
circumstance that no structure of
this kind had yet been discovered
at Hissarlik. Strabo’s account that
these Gastrocheires came from that
direction gives still further force to
what was then said, and adds much
to the high probability that the
contemporaneous cities of Mycenaa,
Tiryns, and Troy would not differ
much in the masonry of their for
tified walls. Although this Cyclo
pean masonry is found all the way
from Asia to Etruria, as well as in
the islands of the Archipelago, yet
it may be worth noting that no
such building is to be found in
Egypt. Whatever might be the
influence which carried it over the
region just named, that influence
produced no result on the architec
ture of the Nile Valley. Although
the large stones in the walls of
Jerusalem and Balbec are large
enough to justify the use of the
word Cyclopean, yet that term is
never applied to them. The transi
’ 'The Schliemannic Ilium,’ Fraser, July 1877.
�1877]
Mycenae.
tion from, rude unhewn stones to
the cut polygonal and then to the
rectangular which can be traced on
the northern shores of the Mediterra
nean, is missing on the south-east
corner of the same sea. The old walls
of the Temple inclosure at Jerusalem
have been probed to the bottom,
and. there large squared blocks rest
ing on the solid rock are found.
This geographical distribution of
a peculiar kind of masonry cannot
be considered without calling to
mind the affinities of race and
religion which Mr. Fergusson has
SO ably insisted on as bearing upon
the proper understanding of the
history of architecture.
Mycenae fts well as its neigh
bouring city Tiryns are both men
tioned by Homer in the catalogue
of the ships. In both cases there
are descriptive terms given with
their mention, and these terms are
valuable as bearing on their archaeo
logy. Tiryns is called ‘ the well
walled its great rampart of mas
sive but rude Cyclopean masonry
yet standing in defiance of decay
attest the truth of Homer’s words.
The walls are twenty-five feet thick:
some of the blocks may have had
a slight trimming, but most of
them are untouched with a tool.
Mycenae again is called the ‘ wellbuilt city.’ As it was stronger from
its position, it did not require such
walls as we find at Tiryns; being, as
is generally supposed, later than the
last-mentioned city, its walls indi
cate a development in the art of
construction, for at the Lion Gate,
as well as at the smaller gate, the
stones are partly squared, and might
be described as ‘rudely rectangular.’
Here also it is satisfactory to dis
cover the faithfulness of Homer’s
descriptive adjectives. From this
we may be justified in supposing
that there was equal truth in Juno’s
words when she called the city
‘ wide-wayed Mycense.’ It might
be difficult to define what were the
notions in the days of Homer as to
677
what constituted a wide street; all
we can conclude is that the thorough
fares of Mycense were wider than
most other places of that time.
Troy is also described by the poet
under the same words, as well as
having been ‘ well built.’ We have
found that Homer is accurate in his
descriptive terms, and his applica
tions of the same words to Mycenae
and Troy are strong evidence in
themselves of what I insisted on in
my former article, that should the
walls of Ilium be discovered they
ought at least to bear some resem
blance to those of the contempora
neous capital of the Atreidse. The
absence of a single stone of ‘ wellbuilt’ or of Cyclopean masonry at
Hissarlik need not now be dwelt on.
When it is added that Mycenae
was ‘ rich,’ and had ‘ gold in plenty,’
the statements respecting it to be
found in Homer are about ex
hausted. Giving such limited in
formation about this place, it would
be hard to say whether it was pro
bable that he had seen it or not. If
the poet was an Achaian and not an
Ionian Greek, as is strongly urged
by at least one high authority at the
present day, the details of such an
important city could not have been
unknown to him.
On the other
hand, supposing he had been an
Ionian, the city of the great leader
of the Trojan Expedition—‘ the
king of men’—must have been
talked of in Chios and Smyrna,
and its chief features would
have been heard of by the one
author, or the many, whatever view
may be taken of the Homeridse.
The scant allusions to Mycense are
in perfect keeping with the other
epithets to be found in the Iliad
connected with geographical refer
ences ; the probable explanation
being, that whatever knowledge the
author might have of particular
places, all the details were kept sub
dued as a background for the main
story of the piece.
Mycenae is situated on the north
�678
Mycenae.
east of the Argolic plain : its posi
tion is under the shelter of promi
nent mountains, and is partly con
cealed from below by the lower
ridges. The position must have
been good as a defence to the rich
and tempting plain from incursions
going southwards, and it must have
been a very important stronghold
strategically with reference to all
invasions of the Peloponnesus
coming by way of the Isthmus. In
this circumstance we may perhaps
have the explanation of its im
portance and repute at such an
early period in the history of Greece.
The place is usually understood to
have been destroyed in 468 B.c.;
according to some it has been de
serted ever since; others again doubt
this statement. Strabo gives it that
Mycenae was razed by the Argives,
and that not a trace of the city was
left; Pausanias, a century and a
half later, describes the place,
showing that Strabo either had not
looked carefully or had not been
lucky in his sources of information
relating to it. The place yet agrees
so very fairly with the description
of Pausanias, that this continuation
of identity might be given as evi
dence of the enduring character of
the walls, which seem to have
suffered so little during such a long
period of years.
It may perhaps be as well to give
the words of Pausanias. He says:
Among other parts, however, of the in
closure which still remain, a gate is per
ceived with lions standing on it; and they
report that these were the work of the
Cyclopes, who also made for Prcetus the
wall in Tirynthus. But among the ruins
of Mycenae there is a fountain called Persea,
and subterraneous habitations of Atreus
and his sons, in which they deposited their
treasures. There is also a sepulchre of
Atreus, and of all those who, returning
from Troy with Agamemnon, were slain at
a banquet by zEgisthus. For there is a
dispute between the Lacedaemonians who
inhabit Amyclae and the Mycenaeans con
cerning the sepulchre of Cassandra. There
is also a tomb here of Agamemnon and of
his charioteer Eurymedon, and one sepul
chre in common of Teledamus and Pelops,
[December
who, as they report, were twins and the
offspring of Cassandra, and who, white
they were infants, were slain by zEgistlius
at the tomb of their parents. There is
likewise a sepulchre of Electra; for she
was given by Orestes in marriage to Pylades, from whom, according to Hellenicus,
she bore to Pylades two sons, Medon and
Strophius. But Clytemnestra and 2Egisthus are buried at a little distance from the
walls; for they were not thought worthy
of burial within the walls, where Aga
memnon and those that fell with him were
interred. (Taylor's Translation.')
The traveller who now visits
Mycenae will find accommodation
in the village of Charvati, from
which it is nearly a mile up to the
citadel. In walking up to it, the
road ascends by the lower ridge;
part of an old Cyclopean bridge can
be seen below, where the ancient
road is supposed to have crossed
from Argos and Tiryns. Just as the
Acropolis comes in sight, the socalled Treasury of Atreus is found
under your feet. From this there
extends a long rocky ridge, with
fragments of stone, where lines
of wall may be traced, which may
perhaps be the remains of houses as
old as 500 B.c. Below on the left
are the Third and Fourth Trea
suries ; and on the right again,
close under the walls of the
Acropolis, is the Second Treasury,
in which Madame Schliemann has
done such good service by clearing
out and exploring. Now it can be
properly seen and examined, which
is of importance, for although such
structures are not uncommon in
Greece, yet the two larger so-called
treasuries at Mycenae are the most
perfect of this class of remains as
yet known in that country. At
this point the visitor is close to the
Acropolis, and the most prominent
feature which it now presents is the
large mass of earth which Dr.
Schliemann has thrown over the
walls while making his excavations.
The old Cyclopean wall is entirely
covered for some distance by this
process. To the right it emerges
and turns up the rocky glen where
�Mycenae.
the bare cliffs are so high and perpendicular that they must have
been a sufficient defence in themSelves. Still there are remains of
parts of the wall to be seen, which
must have been of more use in time
of peace as a shelter to those
within, than as a defence in time of
war against those without. On the
i left of the explorations is the Gate
*•
$
rj ■
i
p.
sa
R
f j
Q79
of the Lions, and the natural scarp
along the north side not being so
strong originally, a more formid
able wall had been constructed
to supply the deficiency. About
the middle of this side there is a
second gate, but it is much smaller
than the principal one. The size
of the stones and the mode of
construction would imply that they
(®}j
■W
i)n
WL
riad;
jaci L
si®
SKETCH-PLAN OP MYCENJE.
A Gate of the Lions.
b Smaller gateway in north wall.
c Dr. Schliemann’s excavations.
d Treasury No. 1, the so-called Treasury of Atreus.
B Treasury No. 2, explored by Madame Schliemann,
p Treasury No. 3.
G Treasury No. 4.
H H H Aqueduct.
, i Remains of ancient bridge of Cyclopean masonry.
t- J Isolated hill with structural remains.
K k-k Remains of the ancient city.
L Modern village of Charvati.
1
both belonged to the same date.
this surrounding fortifica
tion the rock rises towards the
Centre, and there are still remain
ing portions of retaining walls, which
would indicate that the ground had
been levelled for houses and streets.
. It is at the north-west corner of
j# the Acropolis, and just within the
3^ Gate of the Lions, that Dr. Schlie
J; Within
mann has lately made his very suc
cessful explorations; indeed, one of
his first operations was to clear out
the gate down to the old roadway,
and this most interesting portal,
one of the oldest, and most perfect
for its age, can be seen now in its
full proportions. One curious feature
has been brought to light, and that
is a small cell, very small indeed, on
�680
Mycenoe.
the inside, and which was evidently
intended for the accommodation of
the door-keeper. While clearing
out the gate, the excavations were
also carried on within, and these
resulted in the discovery of a series
of most interesting tombs, full of
valuable relics of a far-past period
in the history of man, and which
are of the highest importance to the
science of archaeology.
One of the structures laid bare
at this place is so pntirely new in
all its details, more particularly to
the student of classical architec
ture, that its original purpose pre
sented a problem of some difficulty,
although there is a certain agree
ment of opinion regarding it. Still,
being so unique, there need be no
surprise if newer light should
demand a revision of the case, and
a change in the verdict. It was
described in Dr. Schliemann’s letters
to the Times when he first brought
it to light as a ‘ circular double
parallel row ’ of large slabs. The
circle formed by these two rows of
slabs is at least ioo feet in diameter;
the space between the rows is about
3 feet 6 inches. ‘ The slabs are
from 4 feet 2 inches to 8 feet 2
inches long, and i foot 8 inches to
4 feet broad.’ They may be a
little over 4 inches in thickness.
The space between these two circles
would seem to have been covered
over with horizontal slabs of stone,
for the upper edges, on the inside,
have been mortised to receive
tenons, and which no doubt kept
the horizontal slabs secure in their
places. A few of these covering
slabs still remain in situ on one part
of the circle, and, as the stones are
all dressed and worked tolerably
smooth, they seem to have fitted
together pretty accurately; the
whole, when complete, must have
presented the appearance of a cir
cular stone bench. There seems to
have been an entrance to this inclo
sure from the north, which is the
side of the circle nearest to the
[December
Gate of the Lions, showing a rela
tionship in the arrangement, for
those entering the Acropolis would
only have to turn to the right, and
the entrance to the circle would be
before them.
The question naturally arises as
to the purpose of this structure. As
it may be called a new antiquity,
its use is not at first apparent. 'On
uncovering the slabs, Dr. Schlie
mann thought that they might be
tombstones; on abandoning this
idea, his next guess was that the
place might have been a garden in
connection with the tombs beneath,
and there are Scriptural and other
historical references which might
be given to countenance this notion*
While I was sketching on the spot,
and thinking over its probable inten
tion, the Pnyx at Athens forced itself
into my mind. I could not say that
there was any resemblance between
the architectural features of the
structures, for the Pnyx is a won
drous specimen of excavation in the
solid rock, as well as of massive
building, while the circle of Myce
nae is constructed of very slight
slabs of stone not much over four
inches thick. The Pnyx, although
thus massive, was still only an in
closure marked off, within which
those privileged might enter and
discuss public affairs, while those
who were without could hear and
see. In these last qualifications the
two places are identical. In the
notes which I sent from Athens
with my sketches of the spot,
and which appeared in the
Illustrated London News on the
24th of March last, I suggested
the identity, and at the same time
in support of this theory referred
to the sixth book of the Odyssey,
where Nausicaa tells Ulysses the
way to follow to her father’s house,
and she describes the forum, ‘ fitted
with large stones dug out of the
earth;’ this would, no doubt, be
Cyclopean masonry, but it is de
scribed as being ‘ round the fair
�1877|
Mycence.
temple of Poseidon,’ being evi
dently a stone circle; also a de
scription in the Shield of Achilles,
where there is an assembly, and a
case of ransom money is being tried.
The litigants had friends in the
681
crowd,for they were applauding both,
and the heralds were keeping back
the people, ‘ but the elders sat upon
polished stones, in a sacred circle.'
To this might be added an al
lusion in the Iliad, at the end of
B
APPROXIMATE.
9______ 25
SCALE: OF
50_______
FEE.T f ~'
100
SKETCH-PLAN OF DR. SCHLIEMANN’S EXPLORATIONS IN THE ACROPOLIS OF MYCENjE.
a The Gate of the Lions.
b b Ancient walls of the approach.to gateway ; large stones, rudely squared.
c c c Ancient walls of the Acropolis, of rude polygonal Cyclopean masonry".
b e Inner retaining wall, old Cyclopean masonry.
f r Circular inclosure of two rows of slabs.
a Supposed entrance to circle.
■
H I J K Pits sunk by Dr. Schliemann in which the tombs were found.
Lil Excavations sunk between the circle and outer walls of the Acropolis.
M m m Walls described as Cyclopean bouses.
N n N Walls described as a * vast Cyclopean house,’ and supposed by Dr. Schliemann to be the
Royal Palace.
o Excavation in which treasure was found.
p Old aqueduct or drain.
q Portion of circle where some of the covering slates are still in situ.
k Temporary shed for the soldiers who guard the place.
s s This line indicates the limit of the excavations as far as they have been yet carried out.
T Door-keeper’s cell within the Gate of the Lions.
the eleventh book, to the ‘ forum this was circular or not, is not
and seat of justice’ which the stated.
Greeks had constructed among
A few days after this was pub
their ships, and where it states it lished, Mr. F. A. Paley, of University
was there that ‘ the altars of their College, Kensington, called atten
gods also were erected.’ Whether tion to it by a letter which appeared
�682
Mycence.
in the Times, and he pointed out a
passage in the Orestes of Euripides
(v. 919), ‘ where we read of a
countryman present at the trial of
the son of Agamemnon, and de
scribed as one “ seldom coming into
close contact with the city and the
circle of the Agora.” ’ He also
pointed out that the author of the
Greek ‘ Argument ’ expressly says
that the trial is supposed to be held
in the Acropolis of Mycense, and
Mr. Paley comes to the conclusion
that the stone circle is the Agora
of that city. The Rev. Sir George
W. Cox also sent me a note, point
ing out a passage in the (Edipus
Tyrannus of Sophocles (v. 161) de
scribing a somewhat similar place :
the words are, ‘Artemis who sits
on circular throne of Agora.’ It
may also be added that Mr. C. T.
Newton, of the British Museum, in
his paper on Mycenae to the Society
of Antiquaries, in May last, adopted
this theory, that the circle was an
Agora or public place.
It was within this circle that Dr.
Schliemann discovered the tombs
which produced such a rich harvest
of archaic treasures. If I understand
right, these tombs were partly ex
cavated in the rock, and a wall sur
rounded them on what was origin
ally the lower side of the sloping hill.
Whether the circle was constructed
as part of the tombs, or not, I have
not information enough as yet to
guide in forming a judgment, but
it will be an important question to
realise whether such was or was
not the case. It is quite possible,
as such circles were considered
to be sacred, as described in the
Shield of Achilles, and contained
temples and shrines, and were places
of justice as well as public assem
blies, that the existence of the ashes
beneath may have been understood
as adding a sanctity to the spot.
When Dr. Schliemann first an
nounced to the King of the Hel
lenes, by telegraph, that he had
discovered the tombs of Agamem
[December
non, Cassandra, Eurymedon, and
their companions, he declared that
‘ these tombs are surrounded by a
double parallel circle of tablets,
which were undoubtedly erected in
honour of these great personages.’
After this high-sounding intelli
gence to the Court at Athens, we
get a much less pretentious expla
nation; but like much that comeg
from the Doctor, it is somewhat
difficult to understand, except that
very likely the space had been converted into a garden, and the glo
rious acts of the king of kings—
Agamemnon—and his companions,
were chanted on the spot. Great
merit is attached to those who will
only listen to the story of the
Ramayana in India, and I have seen
a crowd in a bazaar eagerly listen
ing to one who read the tale aloud.
I can easily suppose if the circle
were an Agora, where the public
men were in the habit of congre
gating, that the ‘ Tale of Troy di
vine ’ would be most likely told in
such a place, where there would be
generally a crowd ready and eager
with their ears ; but if the place
were thus frequented, I should
doubt the possibility, from its size,
of preserving for it the character of
a garden.
The Forum of the Phseacians,
described by Homer as being of
drawn or dug-out stones, is supposed
to have belonged to that somewhat
indefinite style of building, so often
alluded to, that is ‘ Cyclopean,’
while the thin slabs at Mycense,
only about four inches thick, with
the remains of mortises yet visible on
their upper edges, seem to point to
a conclusion which would be not un
fair, that a wooden model had been
previously in existence. The slight
and fragmentary allusions which
have been quoted on this subject
might be rendered somewhat as fol
lows. At an early period the sacred
circle of the Forum, or Agora, was
made of large stones, understood to
be Cyclopean. In the description of
�1877]
Mycence.
the Shield of Achilles the elders
sat on the stones, and they were
polished. When the Children of
Israel crossed the Jordan (Joshua
iv.) they took up twelve stones,
and placed them as a memorial,
and the place was called Gilgal,
which means a wheel or circle. Now
these stones from the bed of the
river would be rude and ‘ polished,’
so far as water-worn stones gene
rally are. There was one stone for
each tribe, and the twelve very
beautiful marble columns in the
Dome of the Rock at Jerusalem,
existing at this day, have the tra
dition associated with them that
there is one for each of the sons of
Jacob. Not only in this case is
the typical number retained, but
the circular form is also preserved.
It might also be mentioned that
the Dome of the Holy Sepulchre,
with its supporting piers, although
belonging to a different period of
architecture, is also copied in form
and number of parts from the Dome
of the Rock, thus illustrating how
primitive forms are handed down to
US. The references from Homer, 2Esohylus, and Sophocles, make it clear
that this round form was a common
one in Greece for these public, yet
sacred, places of meeting. It is also
evident that while some were formed
with stones of a large size, it may
be safely predicated that such circles
were also constructed with wood,
otherwise it would be difficult to
explain the mortise holes in the
stone slabs of the example now
brought to light at Mycenaa.
The sacred circle as described on
the Shield of Achilles and also the
One in the capital of Alcinous are
of the earliest type, and might be
classed as Druidical; the circle at
Gilgal on the Jordan would be the
same, identical with our own circles
at home of the Rude Stone Monu
ment period. The supposed wooden
form of construction would, of
course, be later in date, and the
imitating of the wooden type in
683
stone—the same transition which
Greek architecture underwent—
would be later still. Thus far we
have relative dates only.
Between the Gate of the Lions and
the Stone Circle some walls were
discovered, but there do not
seem to have been any doors or
windows, so it is rather difficult to
make out what they could have
been. At the south-east corner
more walls were brought to light;
there are no windows ; but doors,
or openings equivalent to them,
exist. These walls Dr. Schliemann
described as ‘ a vast Cyclopean
house.’ As mentioned in a former
article (‘ The Schliemannic Ilium ’),
it was these words which first
opened up to me the Doctor’s en
thusiastic and imaginative manner
of describing his discoveries, of
which his account of Priam’s Palace
at Hissarlik is a wondrous example.
Here, again, I find that the mode by
which the Royal Palace was identi
fied was exactly the same as in the
Troad. He selected the best of a
lot of mud huts, and declared to
the world that it was the very
beautiful Palace of Priam; at My
cenae he says, ‘ This seems to have
been the Royal Palace, because no
building in a better style of architec
ture has been found yet in the
Acropolis.’ (Letter to the Times,
November 13, 1876.) That is,
about a twentieth part only of the
Acropolis has been explored, and
the best out of two structures,
which may or may not have been
houses, is declared to be the dwell
ing of Pelops. As I have had the ad
vantage of some instructions in the
matter of Cyclopean walls from
Dr. Schliemann himself, which he
addressed to me through the
columns of the Times, I thought of
letting him understand that his
teaching had not been thrown away,
by making one or two inquiries as
to the size of the stones in this
Royal Palace of the Atreidse, and
also as to the mode in which they
�684
Mycence,
have been joined together, but I
will waive this exhibition of scholar
ship. Undoubtedly this is a very
much superior palace to that of
Priam at Hissarlik, for this one at
Mycenae has solid stone walls ; still
its vastness is limited to five cham
bers, the largest of which is only
i8t> feet in its longest dimensions,
the others being much smaller ;
indeed, the Doctor himself admits
that his Royal Majesty could not
have been comfortably lodged. The
truth is, if this palace and the one
of Priam at Hissarlik have been
correctly identified, we shall have
the conclusion forced upon us that
the monarchs of that period were
in a condition of civilisation very
similar to if not lower than that of
the King of Ashantee in our own
day. Atreus and his sons may
have been in this condition, or they
may not; but this will show how
important even the identification of
a piece of wall may be, on account
of the questions it will involve, and
that snch identifications should
not be made in the slip-shod way
we have just seen was the case at
Mycenae.
The question as to who had been in
terred in the graves within the Acro
polis would no doubt present itself
to the mind of any ordinary person
as a very difficult one, and regard
ing which only surmises of the
vaguest kind could be ventured
upon. With Dr. Schliemann the
case was different, and he seems to
have had one of the easiest problems
to solve. Where other archaeolo
gists would be fettered by doubts
and uncertainty, he can show himself
to be above such trammels ; where
they would fear to tread, he rushes
in, and utters no uncertain sound.
The tombs and the treasures within
them are no sooner brought to light
than they are declared to be those
‘ of Agamemnon and his com
panions, who were all killed while
feasting at a banquet by Clytemsiestra and her lover 2Egisthus.’
[December
One might have thought that
it would have required time to
study the objects found, and com
pare them with other objects of
a similar period in the museums
of Europe before such an important
judgment was pronounced. Where
potent enthusiasm and imagination
exist, snch studious precautions, we
may suppose, are unnecessary. In the
Athenaeum of August 8, 1874, there
is a letter from Athens signed ‘ S.
Comnos,’ in which the writer ex
plains that Dr. Schliemann having
evaded the Turkish officials and
carried off the share of objects which
belonged to their Government, on
being prosecuted in the Law Courts
of Athens, ‘he invited the Athe
nians to come to his house and see
the Treasure of Priam, and he pro
mised to build for it a museum,
costing 200,000 francs, and solemnly
assured the Athenians that on his
death they should be the sole heirs
of it. As a reward for so many
sacrifices he did not demand statues
from the Athenians, but contented
himself with their friendship and
the permission to make excavations
at Mycense, where he was sure to
discover the Treasure of Agamem
non.’ Dr. Schliemann replied in a
letter, published in the Academy of
November 7, 1874, where he denies
almost everything which Comnos
states, but these pretensions that
lie would discover the Treasure of
Agamemnon, curiously enough, ar®
not contradicted. It will be noticed
that the correspondence took place
two years before the explorations at
Mycenae were begun. The conclu
sion to be deduced from this is too
palpable to require further remarks.
The whole affair might be treated
as a matter to laugh at if it were
not that the topography of Mycenae
is all being arranged to fit into the
theory that the buttons found were
those of Agamemnon. Such names
as those of Mure, Leake, Dodwell,
Prokesch, Curtius, &c., in fact all
the very best students of classic
�1877]
Mycence.
archaeology, have been declared by
Dr. Schliemann, in type, and also
before the Society of Antiquaries,
to have completely misunderstood
the monuments of Mycenae. There
is one very old structure there which
is generally called the ‘ Treasury of
Atreus,’ but it has also been named
the ‘ Tomb of Agamemnon.’ This
last name would of course endanger
the reputation of the buttons. Dr.
Schliemann claims that the tombs
he has discovered are those of
Agamemnon and his companions,
and if this monument were admitted
to be sepulchral in its character,
the probability that it might be
Agamemnon’s resting place would
be dangerous, and hence the reason
that our most standard authori
ties have to be told that they do
not understand the archaeology of
Mycenae. In the passage from
Pausanias it is stated that there are
the 1 subterranean habitations of
Atreus and his sons, in which they
deposited their treasures,’ and it
may be accepted that the large dome
Construction, which being under
ground isin keeping with the descrip
tion, is the place alluded to.
As this old authority ascribes the
character of a treasury to the monu
ment, and as it suits the Doctor’s
conclusions about what he found in
the Acropolis, he supports Pausanias,
and declares to the world that he
alone has properly interpreted that
author. The answer is easy, and it
may be broadly stated that who
ever reads Pausanias right must,
to reach this conclusion, read the
monument wrong. The evidence
in support of this is very clear and
satisfactory. In the first place we
may suppose that Pausanias only
repeated the tradition about the
building as he learned it at the time,
and it will be evident that he did
not give its character as an effort on
his part of study and deduction.
Now, all old and important tombs
had the character attached to them
of being ‘ treasure-houses.’ The
685
pyramids of Egypt were so con
sidered, and it was in hopes of find
ing this wealth that the great
pyramid of Gizeh was penetrated at
some very early date. The great
mounds of the Bin Tepe, near Sardis,
where Alyattes, the King of Lydia,
is supposed to be buried, are be
lieved to contain unheard-of treasure
which has yet to be revealed.
Josephus (Ant. vii. 15. 3) recounts
as something wonderful the im
mense wealth which was buried
with David in his tombat Jerusalem.
That old tombs of important person
ages did contain treasure, no better
illustration could be given than Dr.
Schliemann’s own excavations in
the Acropolis of Mycenae. From
this it will be seen that the circum
stance of a place being called a
treasure-house might in itself be
used in favour of the idea that it was
in reality a tomb. Another strong
piece of evidence that the safe keep
ing of wealth was not the object of
the monument under consideration,
is derived from its position.
If
Atreus, or any other king of rich
Mycenae, had ever constructed a
‘ safe ’ for their valuables, it would
have been placed within the walls
of the Acropolis, being the position
which would have guaranteed the
greatest amount of security. Now,
neither this so-called Treasury of
Atreus nor any of the other so-called
treasuries is so situated. The in
ference is evident.
On the other hand, the monu
ment can be identified with the
ancient tumulus or mound tomb,,
remains of which are to be found
all over the wide geographical
space between Ireland and China..
This particular one has been exca
vated from the side of a rising
ground, and it does not at a first
glance strike a visitor as being a
tumulus ; but the earth has been
heaped up on the top, and although
the accumulation is slight, yet it is
sufficient to indicate that those who
formed it were aware that it was a
�686
Mycence.
mound they were making. But if
any doubt could exist on the matter
it would vanish after an inspection
of the two smaller treasuries, which
before the domes fell, and the cover
ing earth along with them, must,
from their being constructed upon
level ground, have presented the ap
pearance of hemispherical mounds.
From this we see that the socalled Treasury of Atreus was
simply a chambered tumulus, dif
fering in no essential principle,
except in its having been a very
large and fine specimen of dome
construction, from chambered tu
muli in other parts of the world.
Its arrangement is the same as the
tombs at Kertch, which I visited
and made sketches of in 1855.
They may be studied in the work
published by order of the Emperor
of Russia, called Antiquites du
Bospliore Cimmerien, 1854.
In
these will be found domed cham
bers of various kinds, and, like those
at Mycenae, the stone courses of the
domes are all horizontal, and not
on the arch principle. The walled
passage on each side of the en
trance is another marked feature of
identity; the decrease in the height
of the wall, to follow the contour of
the mound, is a point of detail so
marked in these tumuli, that it is
enough in itself to determine the
character of the Mycenae example.
In the only one of the Bin Tepe at
Sardis which I entered this distinc
tive feature belonged to it. The
drawings of the Maeshow, a tumulus
as far north as Orkney, indicate the
same characteristic. The old Etrus
can tombs also present many points
of identity to those at Mycenaa.
[December
If, again, anyone who endorses
the theory that these structures
are treasuries, should be asked
to identify their arrangement
and construction with other monu
ments in Greece whose character as
treasure-houses has been estab
lished, the breakdown of the case
here becomes complete, for no such
treasuries have as yet been found
with which to make the identifica
tion. Treasuries are known to
have been connected with temples,
and are supposed to have been
within the temples themselves. In
the Parthenon at Athens, the Opisthodomus, or inner cella of the
temple, was used as a treasury. The
place where General Cesnola found,
the objects at Curium, in Cyprus, is
supposed to have been the treasury
of a temple. It is the only example
which has yet been found, but it
bears no resemblance to the socalled Treasury of Atreus. Perhaps
the Germans may bring to light the
treasuries said to have existed at
Olympia, and then there may be
something on which to found a
comparison ; at present there is no
case to come into court with.
Should the Treasury of Minyag
at Orchomenos be quoted, the
answer is simple—its construction
is exactly similar to the one at
Mycenae, hence it was a chambered
tumulus.3
I think, from what has been said,
that the assumption, let it come
from Dr. Schliemann or from
Pausanias, that these structures
were solely for the safe keeping of
wealth, and not tombs, must be re
jected. I have the high authority
of Mr. Newton on this matter,
3 The authority of Mr. Fergusson may be quoted here, as he identifies both the monu
ments referred to as tombs. Sir William Gell puts it as a tomb and an ovarium. As
the character of this particular class of monument is of considerable interest, it would be
an important question to inquire whether this traditional character of ‘ treasury ’ has
originated solely from the articles of value which were buried with the body as part of the
ritual, or if in some instances the tomb was not also used as a place for the safe keep
ing of wealth. David’s tomb has already been referred to, and in Josephus it is stated
that in a siege of Jerusalem by Simeon, Hyrcanus, who defended the city, ‘opened the
sepulchre of David, who was the richest of all kings, and took thence about three
�1877]
Mycence.
and he accepts this view of it.
He devoted a considerable por
tion of his first lecture on Mycenae,
at the Royal Institution last sum
mer, to this, as he considered, most
important part of his subject. I
cannot tell what are the ideas of
every writer on this particular
point, but I understand that Mure
Came to the conclusion that the
sepulchral theory was the right one.
A late German writer of the name
of Pyl, who has devoted consider
able attention to these so-called
treasuries all over Greece, in a work
called Vie Rundbauten der Hellenen,
has come to the conclusion that
they served the double purpose of
shrines, or sanctuaries and tombs.
I may refer to a paper read by my
self to the Royal Institute of
British Architects, in December
1873, on the architecture of China,
where a description of the Great
Mound Tombs of the Ming dynasty
will be found. As the temples and
altars attached to these mounds are
there given, and the ceremonies of
the Chinese at the tombs of their
ancestors are related, these sepul
chral rites, performed at the present
day by a race who have clung
tenaciously to ancient ideas, may
he cited as illustrating Pyl’s conclu
sions. When a Chinaman offers food
and burns incense at a mound where
his father’s or any of his ancestors’
remains are interred, he converts
the tomb into a temple. The chorus
in. the Clioephori of AEschylus tell
Electra that she must reverence
the tomb of her sire as if it were an
altar. She poured out a drink
offering and offered a prayer along
with it. We have, according to
687
Plutarch, authority for the state
ment that Alexander the Great, on
his visit to the tomb of Achilles,
repeated the rites which Achilles
had celebrated at the death of
Patroclus. Illustrations without
number could be given from the
poets that tombs were shrines at
which ceremonies were performed ;
and this is important, as it may ex
plain why the so-called Treasury of
Atreus was so very elaborately em
bellished. Had it been a place of
security, strength would have been
the first object, and ornament
would have been unnecessary.
Safety, as has been explained, was
not of primary importance, or it
would not have been placed outside
the walls of the Acropolis ; but as
the tomb of some very great person,
where ceremonies were performed,
its costly decoration becomes under
stood.
The plan and section on p. 688 will
give an idea of this old monument;
the great dome is about 48 feet
in diameter, and 50 feet high. This
large and well-built hall is sup
posed to have been originally co
vered with bronze plates, the holes
for the nails or pins for fastening
the plates still being visible. The
courses of stone are horizontal, and
not on the principle of the arch.
There is, on the north side, an inner
chamber, about 23 feet square,
which may have been originally a
cave; or if excavated, it has been
very rudely done. This, no doubt,
would be the Sepulchral Chamber,
while the larger apartment would
be used for the ceremonies usually
performed in honour of the illus
trious dead. The doorway of this
thousand talents in money’ (Wars 1. 2. 5 ; Ant. vii. 15. 3). This use of a tomb, if not
apocryphal, I should fancy to be all but an exception, and that the reputation for treasure
was a tradition founded on the gold buried with the dead; but if it really occurred in
Jerusalem, it might have been- the case in other parts as well, and the subject is worthy
of consideration by archaeologists. The decision on this will not affect the case as applied
qo Dr. Schliemann’s exclusive claims, that no other tombs have yet been found in Mycenae
but those he has lately brought to light. Tombs as well as other buildings are often
changed from their original purpose, but such secondary uses do not belong to our
subject.
. .
�688
Mycence.
[December
building is covered with two stones restoration I felt inclined to have
in the form of lintels, the inner doubts, but the fact that Professor
one ‘being a very large mass. It Donaldson had made doors a special
is 27 feet long, 18 feet wide, and study, particularly those of the
3 feet 6 inches deep, and has been Greek styles, caused me to read care
calculated to weigh 133 tons. The fully what he had to say, and take
note of the grounds upon which he
wrought out his idea of the place,
and I feel bound to declare that,
although one may hesitate as to
some points of the details, yet a good
case has been made out. I would
advise anyone wishing to realise
what this so-called treasury was like
originally, to inspect these draw
ings.4 Such a gateway was not
made to be covered up ; and thig
confirms the theory that the splen
did bronze-plated hall could be
entered, and was used for the per
formance of sepulchral rites. On
the occasion of my visit last March,
one of the guides said that his father
remembered some steps at the
eastern extremity of the long pas
sage, which led up to it from
what was supposed to have been
the principal street of Mycense,
which passed at the end. These
steps are in themselves strongly
conclusive in favour of the idea
VLAN AND SECTION OF THE SO-CALLED
that the place was intended to be
TREASURY OF ATREUS, MYCENJE. J
approached.
A Domed Chamber.
b Inner Rock-cut Chamber.
The Second Treasury, excavated
c Doorway.
D Approach.
by Madame Schliemann, is only a
b Entrance to inner Rock-cut Chamber.
foot or two smaller than the one
f Accumulation of earth in the approach.
associated with the name of Atreus.
outside of this doorway is supposed It is close to, but still outside, the
to have been faced with marbles, walls of the Acropolis; hence its
which were ornamented with cir purpose did not require the protec
cular discs, spirals, zigzags, and tion of such an inclosure. Slabs
part of a pilaster. Four fragments of coloured marble were found or
of these are in the Elgin Room of namented with the usual spirals
the British Museum, almost the only and circles ; but Dr. Schliemann
relics this country ever received gives it as his opinion that the in
from Mycenae. Professor Donald terior was not covered with metal.
son made a restoration of the en If I understand right, no second
trance, and published it over forty chamber was found. The great
years ago. On first looking at this value of the Third and Fourth Trea
4 Antiquities of Athens and other Places in Greece, Sicily, $c., supplementary to the
Antiquities of Athens by James Stuart, F.R.S. F.S.A., and Nicholas Revett. Delineated
and Illustrated by C. R. Cockerell, A.R.A. F.S.A.; W. Kinnard, T. L. Donaldson, W.
Jenkins, and W. Railton, Architects. 1830.
�689
Mycence.
1877]
suries is on account of their throw
ing light on the two larger ones.
From their rude construction they
are evidently the earlier productions,
and give us the more primary type
of these structures; and as they
are not excavations into a hill side,
they must have been visible tumuli.
This is most important to bear in
mind, for the word ‘ subterranean,’
as applied to the so-called Treasury
of Atreus, is misleading. That
these monuments are all of ODe
intention is evidently conveyed by
the name of ‘ treasury ’ which has
been attached to them all; the vil
lagers also acknowledge the iden
tification by classifying them under
SKETCH AND SKETCH-PLAN OF THIRD TREASURY.
the word ‘ furni,’ or ‘ ovens,’ from
their resemblance to those in use
at the present day, and which may
be seen in every village.
Anyone approaching these two
smaller treasuries for the first time
would most likely suppose that he
had come upon a Druidical con
struction, and that they were dolVOL. XVI.—NO. XCVI.
NEW SERIES.
mens. All that is now visible is
the covered passage, which is com
posed of large flat stones, seemingly
rough enough to be declared of the
Rude Stone Monument class. In
the Third Treasury, of which a rough
sketch is given, as well as a sketch
plan, there are three covering
stones, or lintels, the largest of
3 c
�690
Mycence.
which are 13 feet and 11 feet in
length. In the Fourth Treasury the
largest stone is 12 feet. This last
is a very rude piece of work, and
none of the masonry of the dome
is now to be seen; in the Third a
few stones can yet be inspected by
clearing away the weeds and grass.
In the sketch-plan it will be noticed
that the inner lintel stone has been
shaped into the curve of the circle
forming the dome. Another important point to notice is, that the
walls of the passage slope inwards.
The doors of the old Etruscan
tombs have all more or less of
this character. The door of the
so-called Treasury of Atreus also
presents this slope, whilst th e Second
Treasury is perpendicular, or nearly
so. This peculiarity inclines me to
the belief that it is the most mo
dern of them all. It presents other
details which I think tend to the
same conclusion, but this particular
deviation from what is evidently
the primary form is the most pal
pable to my mind.
There is one most important fact
revealed from the few remains at
Mycenae ; and that is, that there
existed in Greece a style of architec
ture which was entirely different
from what we now know as the
Greek. Classic architecture, as we
understand it, is not only a different
style, but the two must have sprung
from totally distinct origins. Start
ing from different sources, they also
kept separate in their history. No
caste distinction presents us with
such persistent determination not to
intermarry as we find in these two
styles of building. Greek archi
tecture can be clearly traced back
to a mode of construction where
wood was the material; in the mar
ble of the temples which have come
down to us we can yet trace every
detail of the original wooden forms.
In the Pelasgic, as the sup
posed earlier style has been called,
this influence does not appear—-it
commenced and has been continued
with stone as the material. Most
[December
probably it began with rude stones,
and developed into what we now
call Cyclopean. When a space, such
as a door, had to be covei’ed over,
then large blocks had to be used,
such as have been described at
Mycenae; and constructing the por.
tals of tumuli was most probably
the object which developed this
style for the Gate of the Lions is
only a copy, differing but slightly in
detail, from that of the Treasuries.
In the Third and Fourth Treasuries
we see an early condition of this
Pelasgic style, and in Professor
Donaldson’s restoration of the socalled Treasury of Atreus we find
what must be something like a fair
representation of its highest develop
ment. It would bring the origin of
Greek classic architecture too late
to suppose that it only began when
the other ceased. There is nothing
against the idea that the two styles
may have been both carried on at
the same time. We have a perfectly
analogous case in the pyramids and
temples of Egypt, two totally dif.
ferent kinds of buildings, so different
that unity of origin is an impossibility, and the sources of which
still remain among the problems to
be solved by Egyptology. In the
ancient Buddhist architecture of
India again a similar duality of style
can be pointed out, but in this case
something can be said by way of
elucidation. In the Buddhist period
we know that the Dagop and the
Chaitya temple were synchronous.
The Chaitya was originally a
wooden building ; and it is agreed
among arch geologists that the
Dagopa is a development of the
Cairn, and that the Cairn grew
out of the Mound, and thus, so
far, we get a principle of progres
sion which may yet be applied in
some way to the Pyramid and the
Domed Tumuli of the Pelasgic race.
The probability is that a religious
and an ethnic influence underlie
the whole of the illustrations which
have just been given.
I can say little about the objects
�187ZJ
Mycenae.
found by Dr. Schliemann at Mycenae.
There were only a few of the more
valuable articles exhibited in the
Bank at Athens when I chanced to
be there. The pottery is declared
by Mr. Newton to belong to the
oldest class which has been yet
identified as Greek. Mr. Newton’s
classification of it with the early
Specimens from Ialysos in Rhodes
is an important link, and an ad
vance so far in positive knowledge.
His identification, with the help of
Professor Owen, of one of the orna
ments, as having been derived from
the octopus, is a most valuable
addition to the history of orna
mental art.
I add a sketch al
though it is rough and only from
cow’s HEAD, SILVER,
WITH GOLDEN HORNS.
memory, of the silver cow or ox
head with golden horns, on which
Dr. Schliemann bases his theory
that the word floanrig should be
read ‘ ox-headed ’ instead of ‘ oxeyed,’ just as he formerly proposed
to read yXavKurn-ic, ‘owl-faced,’
rather than ‘ blue-eyed ’ as Athene
has generally been designated. The
philological question is not one on
which I can give an opinion, but I
should not be inclined to reject the
idea that on the stage the daughter
of Inachus might have worn such a
mask, particularly as she asks
Prometheus if he ‘ hears the voice
of the ox-horned maiden.’ (Prom.
V. 988.) Something might be said
in favour of the golden cups belong
ing to Agamemnon, from the evi
dence in the Iliad that he certainly
691
was not a Good Templar. Achilles
in a very straightforward manner
called him a ‘wine-bibber,’ and the
king of men himself says, in
addressing Idomeneus, who com
manded the Cretans, that the other
Greeks drink by certain measures,
but ‘ thy cup always stands before
thee full, like mine, that you may
drink when in your mind it is de
sirable.’ Here a habit is indicated
not unknown in our own days, and it
might suggest an explanation as to
how such a valiant man was so easily
overcome by his murderers. The
study of all the objects found at
Mycenae will be the labour of years.
Whoever has heard Mr. Newton’s
lectures upon them, or read his long
letter which appeared in the Times of
April 20 last, will see how valuable
and important they are to archaeology.
In one sense it matters not to whom
they belong. They are additions to
our knowledge of the early condi
tion of art, and of art amongst a
people who developed a sense of the
beautiful which stands out unrival
led in the history of the world.
Still the question of whose tomb,
or tombs, has been discovered is no
light one. It is of deep import to the
historian, to the student of classic
literature, and it is also of very
great importance as bearing on
questions of comparative mythology.
Already Dr. Schliemann’s disco
veries have been used as authori
tative on this subject; and when I
ventured on a former occasion in
the pages of this magazine to expose
the baseless foundation on which
the identity of the Homeric Ilium
was founded, I considered that I
was discharging a duty to those
who were interested in that new
and important science. In the
present case, by showing that the
so-called Treasuries at Mycenae are
tombs, and that the larger monu
ments must have been very impor
tant tombs, the distinctive cha
racter which Dr. Schliemann has
attempted to give to those he dis3 c 2
�692
■Mycence
covered in the Acropolis falls to
the ground; and the evidence, even
supposing it were conclusive, that
he has found the bones and funeral
objects of the great leader of the
Argives, loses all its force, and the
buttons, swords, sceptres &c. are
thus left for the present without
any recognised owner. To say that
these objects did, or that they did
not, belong to Agamemnon, requires
the enthusiasm or the ecstasy of a
Schliemann to declare.
As a very curious document, I
propose to give the telegram which
Dr. Schliemann sent to the King of
the Hellenes announcing his dis
covery : it was dated
Mycente: Ahumier 28, 1876.
With unbounded joy I announce to your
Majesty that I have discovered the monu
ments which tradition, as related by
Pausanias, points out as the tombs of
Agamemnon, Cassandra, Eurymedon, and
their companions, who were all killed whilst
feasting at a banquet by Clytemnestra and
her lover, JEgisthus. These tombs are
surrounded by a double circle of tablets,
which were undoubtedly erected in honour
of those great personages. In these tombs
I have found an immense archseological
treasure of various articles of pure gold.
This treasure is alone sufficient to fill a
large museum, which will be the most
splendid in the world, and which in all
succeeding ages will attract to Greece thou
sands of strangers from every land. As I
am labouring from a pure and simple love
for science, I waive all claim to this trea
sure, which I offer with intense enthusiasm
to Greece. Sire, may those treasures,
with God’s blessing, form the corner-stone
of immense national wealth.
[December
Athens, and not to Dr. Schliemann ;
but as he had been applying for
such a right, the Archaeological
Society engaged him to carry on
the explorations under the inspec
tion of M. Stamataki, one of their
body, and who was to receive
the objects as they were disco
vered during the excavations. A
small detachment of soldiers was
sent to keep guard over the whole
operations, and when I went there
in March last, these guards were
still doing duty, and it was lucky
that I had a letter from the
Minister of the Interior, or I might
have had trouble to get on with my
sketching. According to a report
published by the Archeological
Society, they spent 4,000 drachmas,
on their part, while Dr. Schlie,
mann expended 30,000 drachmas.
3,300 objects were found, and
12,000 fragments of pottery.
I will only deal now with one of
this vast collection of objects, and
it is a good illustration of these
mythical finds, namely, Agamemnon’s sceptre. I have since seen
the thing itself, and the theory that
it was a sceptre, I must say, would
be the most probable suggestion
that could be made about it; yet to
find out whose hand swayed it is
not such an easy problem. In th®
second book of the IZmd its his
tory will be found; according to
Homer it was made by Vulcan.
Now, if Dr. Schliemann has really
found a bit of work done by that
divine artist, it would be the most
precious morsel of art in the world.
According to Homer, Hephcesto®
laboriously made the sceptre for
Jove, Jove gave it to the ‘ Slayer of
Argus,’ or Hermes, from whom Pe
lops received it, and from him, it
came down through Atreus and
Thyestes to Agamemnon. We get
the continuation of the history in
Pausanias, book ix. chap. 40 :
Dr. Schliemann’s efforts to give
away his Trojan collection will be a
very remarkable history when once
it is written out in all its details,
and this giving away of the
My ceria; treasure has also got its
remarkable characteristics. No one
would suppose from the above
telegram that the Greek Government
had already got the treasure, andheld
it in virtue of an agreement. The
right to excavate at Mycense was
This sceptre, too, they
given, if I am rightly informed, spear • and, indeed, that it denominate the
contains some
to the Archseological Society of thing of a nature more divine than wualj :
�1877]
Mycence.
is evident from hence, that a certain
splendour is seen proceeding from it. The
Chaeroneans say that this sceptre was found
on the borders of the Panopeans, in Phocis,
and together with it a quantity of gold;
and that they cheerfully took the sceptre
instead of the gold. I am persuaded that
it was brought by Electra, the daughter of
Agamemnon, to Phocis. There is not, how
ever, any temple publicly raised for this
sceptre; but every year the person to
whose care this sacred sceptre is committed
places it in a building destined to this
purpose; and the people sacrifice to it
every day, and place near it a table full of
all kinds of flesh and sweetmeats.
The author, no doubt, here gives the
tradition as it was current when h e
wrote ; as Pausanias has to be called
in evidence in relation to his state
ments about the Treasury of Atreus,
it is rather awkward that he can be
quoted also in favour of the theory
that the sceptre was not buried
along with Agamemnon, and that
the Peloponnesus was not the region
in which it was to be found. Tra
dition is Dr. Schliemann’s strong
evidence that he had found the
tomb of Agamemnon. In my former
article on the Troad I gave some
illustrations of the value of such
means of identification, and here
again we find the same conditions.
If tradition, when given by a
Pausanias, is considered as proof,
693
then let anyone refer to .book iii.
chap. 19 of that author, and he
will find that there was a tradi
tional tomb of Agamemnon at
Amyclse, in Sparta. In adopting
tradition as an authority—and it is
the only evidence Dr. Schliemann
has been able to give as to Aga
memnon’s tomb—it is clear that he
did not consider the difficulties and
even absurdities which such a line
of argument might lead to. It is a
long time now in history since tra
ditional tombs have raised a smile
at their mention. If our great ex
plorer believes in such monuments
of the past, let him go to Jeddah, on
the Red Sea, and excavate the tradi
tional tomb of Eve, which is 60 feet
long; or to Abila, near Damascus,
where he will find the tomb of her
son Abel, which is 90 feet long. We
may return to Greece, where, ac
cording to Herodotus (i. 68, also
Pausan. iii. 3. 11), the coffin of
Orestes was found at Tegea, seven
cubits long, and ‘ the body was
equal to the coffin in length.’
Here is the traditional size of the
son of Agamemnon. Has the Doc
tor found the bones of a father
worthy of such a son ?
William Simpson.
�
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Conway Hall Ethical Society
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Mycenae (from personal investigation)
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Simpson, William
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An account of the resource
Place of publication: [s.l.]
Collation: 675-693 p. : ill. (maps, plans) ; 22 cm.
Notes: From Fraser's Magazine, December 1877. Vol. XVI. No. XCVI. Includes bibliographical references. Printed in double columns. From the library of Dr Moncure Conway.
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[s.n.]
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1877
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Archaeology
Greece
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Conway Tracts
Greece-History
Mycenae
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■j
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��ON A CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC
TALISMAN.
By C. W. KING, M.A.
Few relics of antiquity combine in one so manyand so widely
differing points of interest, with respect to the material, the
strangely dissimilar uses to which the same object has been
applied in two opposite phases of the history of Man, and,
above all, the curious superstitions engendered by its peculiar
form, as does the stone brought under the notice of the
Institute by General Lefroy at the meeting of February
7th of the present year. The kindness of that gentleman
having afforded me full opportunity for the careful examina
tion of this interesting monument, I shall proceed, at the
request of some members of our Society, to embody in as
succinct a form as their multifarious nature will permit, the
observations suggested to me by that examination.
The subject, therefore, of this memoir is a small stone celt
of the common pattern, but of very uncommon material (in
the antique class), being made, not of flint, but of dark-green
jade or nephrite, 2 in. by 1-| in. in length and greatest width ;
and brought, there is reason to believe, from Egypt many
years ago, by Colonel Milner, aide-de-camp to Lord J.
Bathurst, during the English occupation of Sicily in 1812.
Each of its two faces is occupied by a Gnostic formula,
engraved with much neatness, considering the excessive
hardness of the material, in the somewhat debased Greek
character that was current at Alexandria during the third
and fourth centuries of our era.
The most important of these two formulae has been inge
niously forced to take the outline of a wreath composed of
broad leaves, in number fourteen (or the sacred seven dupli
cated), and doubtless intended for those of the “ Five Trees”
that figure so conspicuously in Gnostic symbolism; the ends
being tied together with four broad ribbons. This is a
design of which no other example has ever come to my
�%
CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
knowledge amongst the innumerable and wondrously varied
devices excogitated by the prolific fancy of this religion of
mysteries. Upon the four ties are engraved in very minute
letters different combinations of the seven Greek vowels,
whilst each of the leaves is emblazoned with some “ Holy
Name,” of which many can be easily recognised as constantly
recurring in charms of this class ; others are disguised by a
novel orthography ; whilst a few, from the uncertain forms
of the lettering, defy all attempts at interpretation.
To the first series belong AB PACA, “ Abraxas,” properly
an epithet of the sun, but designating here the Supreme
Deity; IAWOYIE, “ Iao, Jehovah
ABAANA, “ Thou art
our Father!” TAM BP! HA, a curious mode of spelling
“ Gabriel,” that testifies to the difficulty ever felt by the
Greeks of expressing the sound of our B ; AKTNONBU),
which contains the Coptic form of Anubis; AAMNAMEN EYC, the sun’s name in the famous “ Ephesian Spell; ”
and, most interesting of all, HCANTAPEOC, who can be
no other than the IS'ANTA of the Pistis-Sophia? one of
the great TptSiW/xecs, a Power from whom is enthroned in
the planet Mars. To the uncertain belong COYMA, pro
bably for COYMA PT A, a name occurring elsewhere, and
perhaps cognate to the Hindoo Sumitri, XWNONIXAP
which may be intended for XAP-XNOYMIC, a common
epithet of the Agathodeemon Serpent; AEIWEHAANHC ;
NEIXAPOIIAHC ; the two last, spells unexplained but very
common ; MONAPXOC ; whilst AXAPCJC and the rest
appear here for the first time, if correctly so read.
The other face is covered with an inscription, cut in much
larger letters, and in eight lines. This number was certainly
not the result of chance, but of deep design, for if was
mystic in the highest degree, representing—so taught the
profoundest doctor of the Gnosis, Marcus—the divine Ogdoad,
which was the daughter of the Pythagorean Tetrad, the
mother of all creation.1 The lines 2, 4, 5, consist of Greek
2
1 Cap. 361. A work ascribed to Valen
tinus, and the only one of the numerous
Gnostic Gospels that has been preserved.
It professes to be the esoteric teaching of
Christ delivered during the eleven years
he abode on earth after his resurrection;
and written down by Philip : its system,
however, is pure Majianism veiled under
scriptural names. But, for that very
reason, it throws more light on the actual
Gnostic remains as to their types and
terminology, than do all the notices of
the religion to be found in other authori
ties collectively. The work was dis
covered in a Coptic MS. of the British
Museum, by Schwartze, and published
from his transcript, with a Latin version,
by Petermann, in 1853.
3 St. Hippolytus, Refut. Cm. Heeres.
vi. 50.
�Celt, or Ceraunia, of dark green jade, inscribed with Gnostic formulae,
with an enlarged representation of one of the inscribed faces.
��CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
3
letters used as numerals, intermixed with sigl&, which, from
their constant occurrence upon monuments of a like nature,
are supposed, with good reason, to be symbols of the planets.
The numerals, on their part, probably denote various deities,
for the Alexandrian Gnosis was the true daughter of Magianism ; and in the old theology of Chaldea every god and
astral genius had a number of his own, and which often
stands instead of his proper name in dedicatory inscriptions.34
Thus, the number of Hoa (Neptune) was 40 ; of Ana (Pluto),
60 ; of Bel (Jupiter), 50 ; of the Sun, 20 ; of the Moon,
30 ; of the Air, 10 ; of Nergal (Mars), 12 ; &c.
A fragment of the Pistis-Sophia* supplied the “ spiritual
man” with a key to the right interpretation of similar steno
graphy in his own creed. “ These be the Names which I
will give unto thee, even from the Infinite One down
wards. Write the same with a sign (cypher), so that the
sons of God may manifest (understand V) them out of this
place. This is the name of the Immortal One, AAA (a)00CjO.5
And this is the name of the Voice whereby the Perfect Man
is moved, TH. These likewise be the interpretations of the
names of the Mysteries. The first is AAA, and the interpreta
tion thereof is
The second, which is MMM, or which is
WWW, the interpretation thereof is AAA.
The third is
S'4'S', the interpretation thereof is OOO.
The fourth is
the interpretation thereof is NNN. The fifth is AAA,
the interpretation thereof is AAA, the which is above the
throne of AAA. This is the interpretation of the second
AAAA, namely, AAAAAAAA ; the same is the interpreta
tion of the whole Name.”
Lines 7, 8, are made up of vowels, variously combined,
and shrouding from profane eyes the Ineffable Name I Ail ;
which, as we are informed by many authorities (the most
ancient and trustworthy being Diodorus Siculus),6 was the
name of the God of the Jews; meaning thereby their mode
of writing “ Jehovah” in Greek characters.
Line 3 consists of the seven vowels placed in their natural
order. This was the most potent of all the spells in the
Gnostic repertory; and its importance may justify the ex3 On this curious subject see Rawlinson’s Ancient Monarchies, iii. p. 466.
4 Cap. 125.
5 That is 1000 and 800 tripled. The
next numbers are 10000 tripled, and
so on.
6 Bibliotheca Historica, i 94.
�4
CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN,
tensiveness of the following extract from the grand text
book of this theosophy, which sets forth its hidden sense and
wondrous efficacy. The primary idea, however, was far
from abstruse, if we accept the statement of the writer “ On
Interpretations” that the Egyptians expressed the name of
the Supreme God by the seven vowels thus arranged—
IEHÍ1OYA.7 But this single mystery was soon refined upon,
and made the basis of other and infinitely deeper mysteries.
In an inscription found at Miletus (published by Montfaucon), the Holy lEOYAHHAEIOYil is besought “to pro
tect the city of Miletus and all the inhabitants of the same
a plain proof that this interminable combination only ex
pressed the name of some one divine being. Again, the
Pistis-Sophia perpetually brings in IEOY invariably accom
panied with the epithet of “ the Primal Man,” i. e., He after
whose image or type man was first created. But in the ful
ness of time the semi-Pythagorean, Marcus, had it revealed
unto him that the seven heavens in their revelation sounded
each one vowel, which, all combined together, formed a
single doxology, “ the sound whereof being carried down
to earth becomes the creator and parent of all things that
be on earth.”8
The Greek language has but one word for vowel and
voice; when, therefore, “ the seven thunders uttered their
voices,” the seven vowels, it is meant, echoed through the
vault of heaven, and composed that mystic utterance which
the sainted seer was forbidden to reveal unto mortals.
“Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered,
and write them not.”9 With the best reason, then, is the
formula inscribed on a talisman of the first class, for hear
what Valentinus himself delivers touching its potency.1
“After these things his disciples said again unto him,
Rabbi, reveal unto us the mysteries of the Light of thy
Father, forasmuch as we have heard thee saying that there
is another baptism of smoke, and another baptism of the
Spirit of Holy Light, and moreover an unction of the Spirit,
all which shall bring our souls into the treasurehouse of
Light. Declare therefore unto us the mysteries of these
” This is in fact a very correct repre
sentation, if we give each vowel its true
Greek sound, of the Hebrew pronuncia
tion of the word Jehovah.
8 Hippolytus, vi. 48.
9 Rev. x. 4.
1 Pistis-Sophia, cap. 378.
�CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
5
things, so that we also may inherit the kingdom of thy
Father. Jesus said unto them, Do ye seek after these
mysteries ? No mystery is more excellent than they ; which
shall bring your souls unto the Light of Lights, unto the
place of Truth and Goodness, unto the place of the Holy
of holies, unto the place where is neither male nor female,
neither form in that place but Light, everlasting, not
to be uttered. Nothing therefore is more excellent than
the mysteries which ye seek after, saving only the mys
tery of the Seven Vowels and their forty and nine Powers,
and the numbers thereof. And no name is more excellent
than all these (Vowels),2 a Name wherein be contained all
Names and all Lights and all Powers. Knowing therefore
this Name, if a man shall have departed out of this body of
Matter, no smoke (of the bottomless pit), neither any dark
ness, nor Ruler of the Sphere of Fate,3 nor Angel, nor
Power, shall be able to hold back the soul that knoweth that
Name. But and if, after he shall have departed out of
this world, he shall utter that Name unto the fire, it shall
be quenched, and the darkness shall flee away. And if he
shall utter that Name unto the devils of the Outer Dark
ness, and to the Powers thereof, they shall all faint away,
and their flame shall blaze up, so that they shall cry aloud
‘ Thou art holy, thou art holy, 0 Holy One of all holies ! ’
And if he shall utter that Name unto the Takers-away for
condemnation, and their Authorities, and all their Powers,
nay, even unto Barbelo,4 and the Invisible God, and the
three Triple-powered Gods, so soon as he shall have uttered
that Name in those places, they shall all be shaken and
thrown one upon the other, so that they shall be ready to
melt away and perish, and shall cry aloud, ‘ 0 Light of all
lights that art in the Boundless Light 1 remember us also,
and purify us ! ’ ” After such a revelation as this, we need
seek no further for the reason of the frequent occurrence of
this formula upon talismans intended, when they had done
their duty in this world, to accompany their owner into the
tomb, continuing to exert there a protective influence of a
yet higher order than in life.
2 Evidently alluding to the collocation
of the vowels on our talisman.
3 The twelve JEons of the Zodiac, the
creators of the human soul, which they
eagerly seek to catch when released from
the body in which they have imprisoned
it.
4 The divine mother of the Saviour,
and one of the three “ Invisible Gods.”
Cap. 359.
�6
CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
For the student of the mineralogy of the ancients this
celt has very great interest in point of material, as being the
only specimen of true jade, bearing indisputable marks of
either Greek or Roman workmanship, that, so far as my
knowledge extends, has ever yet been brought to light. This
ancient neglect of the material is truly difficult to explain,
if the statement of a very good authority, Corsi, be indeed
correct, that the sort showing the deepest green is found in
Egypt. The known predilection of the Romans for gems
of that colour, would, one should naturally expect, have led
them in that case to employ the stone largely in ornamen
tation, after the constant fashion of the Chinese, and to value
it as a harder species of the Smargadus. The circumstances
under which this relic was brought to England render it
more than probable that Egypt was the place where it was
found ; a supposition corroborated by the fine quality of the
stone exactly agreeing with what Corsi remarks of the Egyp
tian kind. That Alexandria was the place where the in
scription was added upon its surface can admit of little ques
tion ; the lettering being precisely that seen upon innume
rable other monuments which can with certainty be assigned
to the same grand focus of Gnosticism. In addition to this,
it is very doubtful whether in the third or fourth centuries a
lapidary could have been found elsewhere throughout the
whole Roman Empire capable of engraving with such skill
as the minute characters within the wreath evince, upon a
material of this, almost insuperable, obduracy. From the
times of the Ptolemies down to the Arab conquest, and even
later, Alexandria was the seat of the manufacture of vases
in rock crystal. This trade served to keep alive the expir
ing Glyptic art for the only purpose for which its productions
continued to be demanded—the manufacture of talismans,
consignments of which must have been regularly shipped
together with the crystal-ware,5 to Rome, and equally to the
other important cities of the empire.
The primitive Egyptians, like the early Chaldeans, used
stone in the place of metal for their cutting instruments,
and continued its use for making particular articles down
into historic times. Herodotus mentions the regular em
ployment of the “ Ethiopian stone ” sharpened, for a dissect0 Bum tibi Niliacus portat crystalla cataplus.”
Mart. xii. 72.
�CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
7
ing-knife6 in the process of embalming, and similarly for
pointing the arrows7 carried by the contingent of the same
nation in the army of Xerxes. The Alexandrian citizen,
half-Jew half-Greek, who had the good fortune, to pick up
this primseval implement, doubtless rejoiced in the belief
that he had gotten a “ stone of virtue,” most potent alike
from substance, figure, and nature, and therefore proceeded
to do his prize due honour by making it the medium of his
most accredited spells—nay, more, by inventing a new for
mula of unusual complication and profundity whereby to
animate its inherent powers. As regards its substance, the
stone probably passed then for a smaragdus of exceptional
magnitude, and that gem, as Pliny records,8 was recom
mended by the magi as the proper material for a talisman
of prodigious efficacy, which, duly engraved, should baffle
witchcraft, give success at court, avert hailstorms, and much
more of like nature. The smaragdus of the ancients was
little more than a generic designation for all stones of a
green colour, and the entire Gnostic series strikingly demon
strates that this hue was deemed a primary requisite in a
talismanic gem—the almost exclusive material of the class
being the green jasper and the plasma.
Again, as regards figure, this celt offered in its triangular
outline, that most sacred of all emblems, the mystic Delta,
the form that signified maternity, and was the hieroglyph of
the moon. This belief is mentioned by Plutarch,9 and ex
plains why the triangle so often accompanies the figure of
the sacred baboon, Luna’s special attribute, on monuments,
where also it is sometimes displayed elevated upon a column
with that animal standing before it in the attitude of adora
tion.
Lastly, the supposed nature of this gift of Fortune was
not of Earth, inasmuch as it then passed for a holy thing
that “had fallen down from Jupiter,” being, in fact, nothing
less than one of that god’s own thunderbolts. A notion this
which will doubtless strike the modern mind as so strange,
or rather as so preposterous, that it necessitates my giving
at full length my reasons for making such an assertion.
6 ii. 86.
7 vii. 69.
8 xxxvii. 40.
9 “ De Iside et Osiride,” cap. 75. He
adds that the Pythagoreans called the
equilateral triangle “Athene”—a curious
confirmation of the tradition quoted by
Aristotle, that the Attic goddess was one
and the same with the Moon.
�8
CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
And in truth the subject is well worth the trouble of investi
gation, seeing that the same superstition will be found to
extend from an early period of antiquity down into the popu
lar belief of our own times throughout a large extent of
Europe.
It is in accordance with this notion that I have designated
this celt a “ceraunia” (thunderbolt-stone), and it therefore
remains for me to adduce my reasons for giving it what must
appear to most people so unaccountable and highly inap
propriate an appellation, Sotacus, who is quoted elsewhere
by Pliny “ as one of the most ancient writers on minera
logy/’ is cited by him1 “ as making two other kinds of the
ceraunia, the black and the red, resembling axe-heads in
shape. Of these, such as be black and round are sacred
things ; towns and fleets can be captured by their instru
mentality. The latter are called Bcetyli, whilst the oblong
sort are the Ceraunice. Some make out another kind, in
mighty request in the practices of the magi, inasmuch as it
is only to be found in places that have been struck by light
ning.” One would have been utterly at a loss to understand
what the old Greek had been speaking about in the chapter
thus confusedly condensed by the later Roman naturalist,
or to discover any resemblance in form between the light
ning-flash and an axe-head, had it not been for the popular
superstition that has prevailed in Germany from time imme
morial to the present day, and of which full particulars are
given by Anselmus Boetius in his invaluable repertory of
mediaeval lore upon all such matters, written at the begin
ning of the 17th century.2
Under the popular names of “ Strahl-hammer,” “ Donnerpfeil,” “ Donner-keil,” “ Strahl-pfeil,” “ Strahl-keil” (lightning
hammer, thunder-arrow or club, lightning-arrow, &c.), and
the Italian “Sagitta,”3 he figures stone celts and hammers
of five different, but all common, types ; remarking that so
firm was the belief in these things being the “ actual arrow
of the lightning” (ipsa fulminis sagitta), that should any
1 xxxvii. 51.
2 Gem. et Lapid. Hist. ii. cap. 261.
. 3 “ Saetta ” (a vulgar Italian execra
tion), is now restricted to the lightning
missile, the archer’s shaft being expressed
by the Teutonic “freceia,” in accordance
with the genius of the language which
reserves the old Latin terms for the
things not of this world,—using those
of the lingua militaris for every day pur
poses. The flint arrow-heads found in
the terra mama of the primaeval Umbrian
towns, are believed by the peasantry to
have this celestial origin, and are highly
valued as portable “lightning-conduc
tors.”
�CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
9
one attempt to controvert it, he would be taken for a mad
man. He however confesses with amusing simplicity that
the substance of these thunderbolts is exceedingly like the
common flint used for striking fire with ; nay, more, he
boldly declares he should agree with those few rationalists
who, on the strength of their resemblance in shape to the
tools in common use, pronounced these objects to be merely
ordinary iron implements that had got petrified by long con
tinuance in the earth, had it not been for the testimony
of the most respectable witnesses as to the fact of their
being discovered in places just seen to be struck with
lightning. Besides quoting some fully detailed instances
from Gesner, he adds that several persons had assured him
of having themselves seen these stones dug up in places
where the lightning had fallen. The natural philosophers of
the day accounted for the creation of such substances in the
atmosphere by supposing the existence of a vapour charged
with sulphureous and metallic particles, which rising above
a certain height became condensed through the extreme heat
of the sun, and assumed a wedgelike form in consequence of
the escape of their moisture, and the gravitation of the
heavier particles towards their lower end ! Notwithstanding
this celestial origin, the virtue of the production was not
then esteemed of a proportionally sublime order, extending
no further than to the prevention or the cure of ruptures
in children, if placed upon their cradles ; and also to the
procuring of sleep in the case of adults. In our own times
Justinus Kerner mentions4 the same names for stone celts as
universally popular amongst the German boors ; but they
are now chiefly valued for their efficacy in preserving cattle
from the murrain, and consequently the finders can seldom
be induced to part with them.
It must not, however, be supposed that Sotacus picked
up this strange notion from the Teutones of his own age,
whose very existence was probably unknown to him ; his
informants were unquestionably those magi cited at the con
clusion of Pliny’s extract. The Greek mineralogist had
lived “apud Begem,” that is, at the court of the King of
Persia, very probably in the capacity of royal physician, like
his countrymen Democedes and Ctesias. In that region
4 In his little treatise on Amulets.
�10
CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
he had ample opportunities of seeing stone celts, for Raw
linson observes5 that flint axes and other implements, ex
actly identical with the European in workmanship, are com
mon in all the most ancient mounds of Chaldæa, those
sites of primæval cities. Such elevations above the dead
level of those interminable plains were necessarily the
most liable to be lightning-struck ; and hence probably
arose the idea that these weird-looking stones (all tradition
of whose proper destination had long since died out amongst
the iron-using Persians) were the actual fiery bolts which
had been seen to bury themselves in the clay. And again,
to revert to the German belief, it must be remembered that
Thor, the Northern Jupiter, is pictured as armed with a huge
hammer in the place of the classical thunderbolt. The type
of the god had been conceived in the far-remote ages when
the stone-hammer was as yet the most effective and formid
able of weapons, and was preserved unchanged out of
deference to antiquity, after the true meaning of the
attribute was entirely forgotten. Nevertheless, his worship
pers, accustomed to behold the hammer in the hand of the
god of thunder,—vx¡Hl3pcp.¿Tr]s Zev$,—-very naturally con
cluded that these strange objects, of unknown use, found
from time to time deep buried in the earth, were the actual
missiles that deity had discharged. It is a remarkable proof
of the wide diffusion of the same belief, that the late owner
of the relic under consideration, habitually spoke of it as a
“ thunderstone,”—a name he could only have learnt from
the Arabs from whom it was procured, seeing that no such
notion with respect to celts has ever been current in this
country. But every one whose memory reaches back forty
years or more, may recollect, that wheresoever in England
the fossil Belemnite is to be found, it was implicitly received
by all, except the few pioneers of Geology (a word then
almost synonymous with Atheism), as the veritable thunder
bolt shot from the clouds, and by that appellation was it
universally known. I, for one, can recollect stories, quite as
respectably attested as those Boetius quotes concerning the
Cerauniœ, told respecting the discovery of new fallen belemnites under precisely the same circumstances ; and, in truth,
the same author does in the preceding chapter treat at
length of the Belemnites, and his cuts show that the name
6 Ancient Monarchies, i. p. 120.
�CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
11
meant then what it does at present; but he assigns to the
missile an infernal instead of a celestial source, giving the
vulgar title for it as “ Alp-schoss,” (elfin-shot,) which he
classically renders into “ dart of the Incubus,” stating fur
ther that it was esteemed (on the good old principle, “ similia
similibus curantur ”) of mighty efficacy to guard the sleeper
from the visits of that much dreaded nocturnal demon. The
Prussian, Saxon, and Spanish physicians employed it,
powdered, as equally efficacious with the lapis Judaicus,
in the treatment of the calculus. It was also believed a
specific for the pleurisy in virtue of its pointed figure,
which was analogous to the sharp pains of that disease,
for so taught the universally accepted “ Doctrine of Signa
tures.”
The CeraunicB of Sotacus, however, comprised, besides
these primitive manufactures of man, other substances, it is
hard to say whether meteorites or fossils ; the nature of
which remains to be discussed. Photius,6 after quoting the
paragraph, “ I beheld the B (stylus moving through the air,
and sometimes wrapped up in vestments, sometimes carried
in the hands of the ministers,” proceeds to give a summary
of the wondrous tale told by the discoverer of the prodigy—
one Eusebius of Emesa. He related how that being seized
one night with a sudden and unaccountable desire to visit a
very ancient temple of Minerva, situated upon a mountain at
some distance from the city, he started off, and arriving at
the foot, sat down to rest himself. Suddenly he beheld a
globe of fire fall down from heaven, and a monstrous lion
standing by the same, but who immediately vanished. Run
ning to pick it up as soon as the fire was extinguished, he
found this self-same Badyins. Inquiring of it to what god it
belonged, the thing made answer that it came from the
Noble One (so was called a figure of a lion standing in the
temple at Heliopolis). Eusebius thereupon ran home with
his prize, a distance of 210 stadia (26 miles), without once
stopping, being quite unable to control the impetus of the
stone ! He described it as “ of whitish colour, a perfect
sphere, a span in diameter, but sometimes assuming a purple 7
shade, and also expanding and contracting its dimensions,
and having letters painted on it in cinnabar, of which he
6 Bibliotheca, 1063, R.
7 The Greek purple included every shade from crimson to violet.
�12
CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN,
gave the interpretation.
The stone, likewise, if struck
against the wall, returned answers to consultors in a low
whistling voice.” The grain of truth in this huge heap of
lies is obviously enough the fact that Eusebius having had
the good fortune to witness the descent of a meteorite, and
to get possession of the same, told all these fables about it in
order to increase the credit of the oracular stone (which
doubtless brought him in many fees) amongst his credulous
townsfolk. Damascius8 (whose Life of Isidorus Photius
is here epitomising) adds, that this philosopher was of
opinion that the stone was the abode of a spirit, though not
one of the mischievous or unclean sort, nor yet one of a
perfectly immaterial nature. He furthermore states that
other bcetyli were known, dedicated to Saturn, Jupiter, and
the Sun ; and moreover that Isidorus and himself saw many
of such bcetyli or bcetylia upon Mount Libanus, near Helio
polis in Syria.
As for the derivation of bcetylus, the one proposed by the
Byzantine Hesychius, who makes it come from bcete, the
goatskin mantle, wherein Rhea wrapped up the stone she
gave old Saturn to swallow, instead of the new-born Jove,
cannot be considered much more satisfactory that Bochart’s,
who, like a sound divine, discovers in it a reminiscence of
the stone pillar which Jacob set up at Bethel, and piously
endeavours to force Sanconiathon, who speaks of the “ living”
stones, the baethylia,9 to confirm his interpretation by cor
recting his text into “ anointed.”
But this last bcetylus is beyond all question the same thing
with that described by the Pseudo-Orpheus,1 under the names
of Siderites, and the animated Orites, “ round, black, ponde
rous, and surrounded with deeply-graven furrows.” In the
first of these epithets may easily be recognised the ferruginous
character common to all meteorites [siderites being also
applied to the loadstone), whilst the second seems to indi
cate the locality where they most abounded viz., Mount
Lebanon.
Sotacus’ notice, indeed, of the efficacy of the bcetylus
in procuring success in seafights and sieges, is copiously
illustrated by the succeeding verses of the same mystic poet,
8 A stoic philosopher under Justinian.
9 “ Moreover the god Uranus devised
contriving stones that moved
as having life.”
1 AlSmo,, 355.
�CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
13
who, it must be remembered, can claim a very high antiquity,
there being sufficient grounds for identifying him with Onomacritus, a contemporary of Pisistratus, in the 6*th century
before our era. The diviner Helenus, according to him, had
received this oracular stone from Apollo, and he describes
the rites, with great minuteness, for the guidance of all sub
sequent possessors of such a treasure, by means of which
the Trojan woke up the spirit within the “ vocal sphere.”
This was effected by dint of thrice seven days’ fasting and
continence, by incantations and sacrifices offered to the stone,
and by bathing, clothing, and nursing it like an infant.
Through its aid, when at length rendered instinct with
life, the traitorous seer declared to the Atridae the coming’
downfall of Troy ; the stone uttering its responses in a
voice resembling the feeble wail of an infant desiring the
breast. It is more than probable that Orpheus in describing
the Orites, had in view the Salagrama, or sacred stone of
Vishnu, still employed by the Brahmins in all propitiatory
rites, especially in those performed at the death-bed. Sonnerat describes it as “ a kind of ammonite, round or oval
in shape, black, and very ponderous.” The furrows cover
ing its surface were traced by Vishnu’s own finger; but when
found of a violet colour, it is looked upon with horror, as
representing a vindictive avatar of the god. The pos
sessor keeps it wrapped up in a linen garment like a
child, and often bathes and perfumes it—precisely the rites
prescribed by our poet for the due consultation of the
oracle of the Siderites.
From all this it may safely be deduced that the “ stone
of power,” whether bcetylus or orites, was in most cases
nothing more than a fossil; either a ferruginous nodule,
or an echinus filled with iron pyrites. Their being found
in abundance in one particular locality, precludes the idea
of these at least being meteorites, which latter, besides,
never assume any regular form, but look like mere fragments
of iron-slag. This explanation is strongly supported by the
drawings Boetius gives 2 of what was then called the “ Donner-stein,” or “ Wetter-stein,” (thunder, or storm-stone,) and
which he very plausibly identifies with Pliny’s Brontias
li that got into the head of the tortoise during thunder
storms,” and which is described in another place as the “ eye
2 ii. cap. 264.
�14
CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN,
of the Indian tortoise ” that conferred the gift of prophecy.
His carefully drawn figure of this Donner-stein (which also
passed for the “ gros Kroten-stein,” bigger toadstone),
shows it to be only a fossil echinus of a more oblate form
than the common sort. The regular toadstone, plentifully
to be seen in mediaeval rings, was, on the other hand, the
small hollow hemisphere, the fossil tooth of an extinct
fish, found in the greensand formation. In that age the
Donner-stein was held to possess all the many virtues of
the Toadstone, Belemnite, and Ovum Anguinum, in counter
acting poison, giving success in all enterprises, procuring
sleep, and protection against danger of lightning.
But
the old physician, so much in advance of his times, can
not help winding up the list of its virtues with the hint,
“ Fides saepe veritate major.”
SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES ON CELTS AND OTHER IMPLEMENTS USED
AS TALISMANS OR VICTORY-STONES.
The axe-heads and hammer-heads of stone, known to us
by the general designation of celts, have, until recent ex
plorations, been regarded as comparatively of rare occur
rence amongst ancient relics obtained from Eastern lands
and from some other continental countries. Our information,
however, in regard to objects of this class has become greatly
extended. Mr. James Yates brought before us, in a former
volume of this Journal, examples of stone celts from Java ;
an interesting specimen obtained at Sardis is figured, vol. xv.
p. 178, and some others were found by Mr. Layard at
Nineveh. The occurrence of any ornament or inscription
upon such objects is very rare, but, amongst numerous stone
implements lately obtained in Greece, one is noticed by M.
de Mortillet (Matériaux pour l’Histoire primitive de l’Homme,
Jan. 1868, p. 9), of which he had received from Athens
a drawing and an estampage ; it is described as “ une hache
en pierre serpentineuse, sur une des faces de laquelle on a
gravé trois personnages et une inscription en caractères
Grecs. L’ancien outil a évidemment été, beaucoup plus tard,
quand on a eu complètement oublié son usage primitif, trans
formé en talisman ou pierre cabalistique.”
At the annual meeting of the Antiquaries of the North,
�CERAUNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
15
21 March, 1853, under the presidency of the late King of
Denmark, several recent acquisitions were exhibited, ^ob
tained for his private collection at Frederiksborg. Amongst
these there was an axe-head of stone (length about 9| inches),
perforated with a hole for the handle, and remarkable as
bearing on one of its sides four Runic characters, that appear
to have been cut upon the stone at some period more recent
than the original use of the implement. It has been figured
in the Memoirs of the Society, 1850-1860, p. 28 ; see also
Antiquarisk Tidsskrift, 1852-1854, pp. 258-266. I am in
debted to a friend well skilled in Runes and Scandinavian
archaeology, Dr. Charlton, secretary of the Society of Anti
quaries of Newcastle, for the following observations on this
interesting relic.
“ The first letter is L, and, if we accept the idea that these
were Runes of Victory, it may stand for the initial of Loki;
the second is Th, and may stand for Thor; the third 0, for
Odin ; the fourth, Belgthor, with a T above it, may refer to
Belgthor’s friendship and alliance with Thor, and the T
stands for Tyr. We may imagine the names of the Northern
gods to have been cut on this stone axe to give it victory in
battle, just as the old Germans and Saxons cut mystic Runes
on their swords, a practice noticed by Haigh in his Conquest
of Britain by the Saxons, p. 28, pl. 1, where he has figured
amongst various examples of the Futhorc, or alphabet of
Runic characters, one inlaid on a sword or knife found in the
Thames, and now in the British Museum. At p. 51, ibid,
pl. iii. fig. 20, he has cited also the Runic inscription on the
silver pommel of a sword found at Gilton, Kent, formerly
in the collection of the late Mr. Rolfe of Sandwich, and
subsequently in the possession of Mr. Joseph Mayer. This
lelic is now in the precious museum bestowed by his generous
encouragement of arch geological science on the town of
Liverpool. The interpretation given in the latter instance
is as follows,—I eke victory to great deeds.3
“ There was another explanation given of the characters
on the Danish stone axe. It was read—luthr. o.—Ludr
owns, namely, the weapon thus inscribed?’
Archieologia vol. xxxii., p. 321. A
spear-headmscnbed with Runes is noticed,
Journ. Brit. Arch. Ass., vol. xxm., p. 387.
1 here exist certain massive rings of metal
inscribed with Runes, that may have
been, as some antiquaries suggest, appended to sword-hilts as charms One o£
these rings, lately found at Carlisle, is in
possession of Mr. Robert Ferguson of
Morton, near that city.
�16
CERAITNIA OF JADE CONVERTED INTO A GNOSTIC TALISMAN.
In the ancient Sagas, as remarked in Nilsson’s
Inhabitants of Scandinavia (translation by_ Sir
L
t
Bart n 214), mention occurs of amulets designated uie
stones'^victory-stones, &c„ which warriors carried about ^th
them in battle to secure victory. A curious relation is
from one of the Sagas, that King Nidung, when about; to ei
X irl conflict, perceived that he had neglected to bring a
precious heir-loom, a stone that possessed the virtue of en
suring victory. He offered the hand of his daughter, with a
thirdSpart of his kingdom, to him
Reived
talisman before the fight commenced ; and having receive
it he won the battle. In another narrative, the daughter: or
a Scanian warrior steals during his slumbers the) stone that
was hung on his neck, and gave it to her lover, who thus became the victor. Nilsson observes that stones are found in
museums, for instance, a hammer-stone with a loop, that
‘innear to have been worn thus as talismans m war.
P?tTs perhaps scarcely necessary to advert to certain axehniflq of stone in their general form similar to those with
w^iich we ^re familiar aslundin Europe ; uponi thesesdements are engraved rude designs, such as the human
visaje &c These objects, of which an example preserve
in a ’museum at Douai has been much cited, may be
“ victory-stones ” of an ancient ancl primitive people, but
L--.
¡nised as of Carib origin, and
thcy are now generally recog:
not European.
ALBERT WAY.
�1
�
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A collection of digitised nineteenth-century pamphlets from Conway Hall Library & Archives. This includes the Conway Tracts, Moncure Conway's personal pamphlet library; the Morris Tracts, donated to the library by Miss Morris in 1904; the National Secular Society's pamphlet library and others. The Conway Tracts were bound with additional ephemera, such as lecture programmes and handwritten notes.<br /><br />Please note that these digitised pamphlets have been edited to maximise the accuracy of the OCR, ensuring they are text searchable. If you would like to view un-edited, full-colour versions of any of our pamphlets, please email librarian@conwayhall.org.uk.<br /><br /><span><img src="http://www.heritagefund.org.uk/sites/default/files/media/attachments/TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" width="238" height="91" alt="TNLHLF_Colour_Logo_English_RGB_0_0.jpg" /></span>
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Pamphlet
Dublin Core
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Title
A name given to the resource
On a ceraunia of jade converted into a gnostic talisman
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
King, Charles William
Description
An account of the resource
Place of publication: [s.l.]
Collation: 16 p. : ill. ; 23 cm.
Notes: From the library of Dr Moncure Conway. Includes bibliographical references. 'Supplementary notes on Celts and other Implements used as Talismans or Victory-Stones' by Albert Way. Date of publication from KVK. Published in Archaeological Journal, vol. 25, no. 1 : 103-118.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
[s.n.]
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
[1868]
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
G5556
Subject
The topic of the resource
Archaeology
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<img src="http://i.creativecommons.org/p/mark/1.0/88x31.png" alt="Public Domain Mark" /><br /><span>This work (On a ceraunia of jade converted into a gnostic talisman), identified by </span><span><a href="https://conwayhallcollections.omeka.net/items/show/www.conwayhall.org.uk">Humanist Library and Archives</a></span><span>, is free of known copyright restrictions.</span>
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Language
A language of the resource
English
Conway Tracts
Jade
Talismen