Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 4 (MELPOMENE) Complete

Translated by G. Macaulay.

Herodotus Bilingual Anthology  Studies  Herodotus in Print

76 pages - You are on Page 71

188. The following is the manner of sacrifice which the nomads have:—they cut off a part of the animal's ear as a first offering and throw it over the house, [169] and having done this they twist its neck. They sacrifice only to the Sun and the Moon; that is to say, to these all the Libyans sacrifice, but those who dwell round the lake Tritonis sacrifice most of all to Athene, and next to Triton and Poseidon. 189. It would appear also that the Hellenes made the dress and the aigis of the images of Athene after the model of the Libyan women; for except that the dress of the Libyan women is of leather, and the tassels which hang from their aigis are not formed of serpents but of leather thongs, in all other respects Athene is dressed like them. Moreover the name too declares that the dress of the figures of Pallas has come from Libya, for the Libyan women wear over their other garments bare goat-skins (aigeas) with tasselled fringes and coloured over with red madder, and from the name of these goat-skins the Hellenes formed the name aigis. I think also that in these regions first arose the practice of crying aloud during the performance of sacred rites, for the Libyan women do this very well. [170] The Hellenes learnt from the Libyans also the yoking together of four horses. 190. The nomads bury those who die just in the same manner as the Hellenes, except only the Nasamonians: these bury bodies in a sitting posture, taking care at the moment when the man expires to place him sitting and not to let him die lying down on his back. They have dwellings composed of the stems of asphodel entwined with rushes, and so made that they can be carried about. Such are the customs followed by these tribes.

[169] {domon}: Reiske reads {omon} by conjecture, "over his shoulder."

[170] Or (according to some MSS.), "practise this much and do it well."

Previous / First / Herodotus History: Next Page of this Book (Melpomene)

Herodotus History - Table of Contents

Herodotus Home Page ||| Elpenor's Free Greek Lessons

Thucydides

Reference address : https://ellopos.net/elpenor/greek-texts/ancient-Greece/herodotus/history-4.asp?pg=71