Aristotle · a new plain-English translation from the original language
1| [section 1] They say that in Paeonia, on the mountain called Hesaenus, which marks the boundary between Paeonia and Maedica, there is a beast called the bolinthos, but by the Paeonians called the monaipos. [section 2] They say its whole nature resembles that of an ox, but that it differs in size and in strength, and further in its mane; for it has, running from the neck, like a horse, a mane hanging very deep, and running from the crown of the head down to the eyes. [section 3] Its horns are not like those of oxen, but bent back, with the point turned down beside the ears. Each of them holds more than half a choos, and they are very black, though they gleam as if polished. When the hide is stripped off, it covers a space for eight couches to recline on. When the beast is struck, it flees, but if it can no longer do so it stands its ground. [section 4] Its flesh is sweet to eat. It defends itself by kicking and by discharging its dung, to a distance of about four fathoms; it does this readily and often uses this device, and the dung burns so severely that it singes the hair off dogs. [section 5] They say it does this when it is disturbed, but does not burn when undisturbed. When they give birth, the largest of them gather together in a group and all give birth at the same time, and they discharge their dung in a circle around them; for the beast emits a great quantity of this excrement.
2| [section 1] They say that camels in Arabia will not mount their mothers, and even if one is forced to it, they refuse. Indeed it is said that once, since there was no other male for breeding, the keeper covered the mother up (disguised her) and put the young male to her. When he mounted her as if breeding, he did at that time, it seems, complete the act, but a little later he bit the camel-driver and killed him. [section 1] They say that the cuckoos at Helice, when they are about to lay, do not build a nest of their own, but lay their eggs in the nests of wood-pigeons or turtle-doves, and neither brood over them, nor hatch them, nor rear them themselves; but when the chick is born and reared, it drives out of the nest whichever birds it has been living among. It grows, it seems, large and handsome, so that it easily overpowers the rest. And they say the wood-pigeons take such pleasure in it that they themselves join in driving out their own chicks along with it. [section 1] The goats in Crete, when they are struck by an arrow, seek out, it seems, the dittany that grows there. For when they eat it, they immediately expel the arrowheads. [section 1] They say that some of the deer in Achaea, when they shed their antlers, go off to such places that they are not easily found. They do this because they have nothing with which to defend themselves, and because the places from which they shed their antlers are sore. In many of them ivy is seen growing on the place where the antlers were.
3| [section 1] They say that in Armenia a certain drug grows called leopard-bane. Whenever a leopard is sighted, they smear this on a sacrificial animal and let it loose. When the leopard touches it, it seeks out, it seems, human dung. This is why hunters put such dung in a vessel and hang it from a tree, so that the leopard, leaping up at it again and again and becoming exhausted, is overcome by it and falls into their hands. [section 1] In Egypt they say that plovers fly into the mouths of crocodiles and clean their teeth, pulling out the bits of flesh caught in their jaws; and the crocodiles enjoy this and do the birds no harm. [section 1] They say that the hedgehogs at Byzantium sense when north winds and south winds are blowing, and immediately change their burrows: when the wind is southerly they make their burrows in the ground, and when it is northerly, in the walls. [section 1] The goats on Cephallenia do not drink, it seems, as the other quadrupeds do, but each day they turn their faces toward the open sea and stand gaping, taking in the breezes. [section 1] They say that in Syria one of the wild asses leads the herd, and whenever a younger male among the colts mounts one of the females, the leader grows angry and pursues him until he catches the colt, and stooping down over its hindquarters, tears off its genitals with his teeth.
4| [section 1] They say that tortoises, whenever they eat a viper, eat marjoram afterward, and if they do not find it quickly, they die. Many countrymen, testing whether this is true, when they see a tortoise doing this, pull up the marjoram; and whenever they do this, a little later the tortoise is seen dying. [section 1] The genital of the weasel is said to be, in nature, unlike that of other animals, but solid throughout, like a bone, whatever state the animal happens to be in. They say it is among the best remedies for strangury, and is administered ground up. [section 1] They say that the woodpecker, the bird, walks on trees the way lizards do, both on its back and on its belly. It is said to feed also on the grubs found in trees, and to dig into the trees so deeply in search of the grubs that it brings the trees down. [section 1] They say that pelicans dig up the river mussels and swallow them, then, when they have taken in a great quantity, vomit them up, and then eat the flesh of the mussels but do not touch the shells. [section 1] They say that at Cyllene in Arcadia the blackbirds are white, and nowhere else, and that they utter varied sounds and, it is said, that they set out and travel toward the moon. And if anyone attempts to hunt them by day, they are very hard to catch.
5| [section 1] Some say that the honey called flower-honey occurs around Melos and Cnidus, fragrant in its scent but short-lived, and that bee-bread also forms in it. [section 1] Around Cappadocia, in certain places, they say honey is produced without honeycombs, and that it has a thickness like olive oil. [section 1] At Trapezus on the Black Sea, honey from the box tree is produced with a heavy smell; and they say that in the healthy it causes derangement, but in epileptics it cures them completely. [section 1] They also say that in Lydia a great quantity of honey is gathered from the trees, and that the inhabitants make little cakes from it without wax, and cut off pieces and use it worked in by vigorous rubbing. It also occurs in Thrace, but there it is not so solid, being more like sand. They say that all honey, when it congeals, keeps the same bulk, unlike water and the other liquids. [section 1] Chalcidian grass and almonds are most useful for making honey; for they say the greatest yield of offspring comes from them. [section 1] They say that bees are stupefied by perfume and cannot bear the smell; but some say that it is above all those who have been anointed with perfume that they attack.
6| [section 1] They say that among the Illyrians, the people called the Taulantians make wine out of honey. When they have pressed out the combs, they pour on water and boil it in a cauldron until it is reduced by half, then pour it out into earthenware jars, and having filled them halfway, set them on boards; and they say it ferments there for a long time, and becomes wine-like, and otherwise pleasant and strong. They say this has already happened to some people in Greece as well, so that it is no different from old wine; and when they later sought out the mixture used, they could not discover it. [section 1] They record that around Thessaly so many snakes were once bred that, had they not been destroyed by the storks, the people would have had to abandon the land. This is why they honor the storks, and it is not lawful to kill them; and if anyone kills one, he is liable to the same penalties as a murderer. [section 1] Likewise it is recorded that in Lacedaemon, at a certain period, so great a multitude of snakes came about that, because of a shortage of grain, the Laconians used them for food; hence, they say, the Pythia addressed them as "snake-necked." [section 1] On the island of Cyprus it is said that the mice eat iron. [section 1] (text breaks off)
7| They say that the Chalybes also collect gold from many people on a certain little island lying above them. This is why, it seems, they also cut open those who work in the mines. [section 1] It is said that, going from Susa to Media, at the second stopping-place there occurs an immense quantity of scorpions. This is why, whenever the Persian king passed through, he would stay three days, ordering all his men to hunt them; and to whoever caught the most he gave a prize. [section 1] In Cyrene, they say, there is not one kind of mouse but several, differing both in shape and in color; for some are broad-faced, like weasels, while others are spiny, which they call hedgehogs. [section 1] Around Cilicia, they say, there is a little pool of water into which, whenever choked birds and other animals have been dipped, they come back to life. [section 1] Among the Scythians called the Geloni, they say, a certain animal occurs, extremely rare, which is named the tarandos; it is said that this changes the color of its hair according to whatever place it is in. [section 2] For this reason it is hard to hunt [and also because of the change]; for among trees and in places, and generally wherever it may be, it becomes such in color. But the most marvelous thing is that it changes its hair; for the rest of the animals that do this, such as the chameleon and the octopus, change their skin. Its size is about that of an ox, and the shape of its face is like a deer's.
8| [section 1] It is said that a certain man in Abydus, deranged in his mind, would come to the theater for many days and watch as though people were performing, and would applaud; and when he was restored from his derangement, he said that he had lived that time most pleasantly. [section 1] And in Tarentum, they say, a certain wine-seller was mad by night but sold wine by day; for he kept the little key of his shop fastened to his belt, and though many tried to steal it and take it away, he never lost it. [section 1] On the island of Tenos, they say, there is a little bowl containing a mixed substance from which they kindle fire quite easily. And in Bithynia of Thrace, in the mines, there occurs what is called spinos, from which they say fire is kindled. [section 1] In Lipara, they say, there is a certain vent, into which, if they hide a pot, putting into it whatever they wish, they cook it by boiling. [section 1] There are also, in Media and in Psittacene of Persia, burning fires — the one in Media small, but the one in Psittacene great and pure in its flame; and for this reason the Persian king had kitchens built next to it. Both are in level places and not on heights. These are visible both by night and by day, but the ones around Pamphylia only by night.
9| [section 1] They say that also around Atitania, near the borders of the Apolloniatis, there is a certain rock from which the fire rising up is not visible, but when oil is poured onto it, it bursts into flame. [section 1] It is said that the regions beyond the Pillars of Heracles also burn, some continuously, some only by night, as the circumnavigation of Hanno records. And the fire in Lipara too is visible and flame-like, not indeed by day, but only by night. And they say that in Pithecusae there is something fiery and extraordinarily hot, though it does not actually burn. [section 1] Xenophanes says that the fire in Lipara once even died out for sixteen years, and returned in the seventeenth. They say that the stream of lava on Etna is neither flame-like nor continuous, but occurs only after many years. [section 1] It is said that around Lydia a very great fire once boiled up, and burned for seven days. [section 1] What happens in Sicily around the lava-stream is marvelous; for the breadth of the boiling-up of the fire is forty stades, and the height through which it is carried, three.
10| [section 1] They say that the stone in Thrace called spinos, when cut apart, burns, and when put back together with itself — just as with charcoal-dust — so too that stone, when set against itself and sprinkled with water, burns. And they say the mariea does the same thing. [section 1] Around Philippi in Macedonia, they say, there are mines from which the tailings that are thrown out grow and produce gold, and this is evident. [section 1] They say that in Cyprus too, around what is called Tyrrian copper, something similar happens. For, it seems, they cut it into small pieces and sow it; then, when water comes upon it, it grows and sends up shoots, and in this way is gathered in. [section 1] They say that also on the island of Melos, in the places that have been dug out of the earth, refillings occur again. [section 1] Around Paeonia they say that, whenever continuous rains occur, as the earth is washed away there is found the gold called unfired gold. And they say that in Paeonia the earth is so golden that many have found even lumps of gold weighing more than a mina. They say that a certain man, having found some, brought up to the king two lumps, one weighing three minas, the other five; these, they say, lie beside him on his table, and he makes a first offering from them before eating anything.
11| [section 1] They say that in Bactria the river Oxus carries down great quantities of gold nuggets, and that in Iberia the river called Theodorus casts up much gold around its banks, and likewise carries it down. [section 1] They say that in Pieria of Macedonia there is some unstamped gold buried by the ancient kings, and that of four chasms, from one of them gold grew up to the size of a span. [section 1] It is said that the origin of Chalybian and Amisenian iron is quite peculiar. For it forms, so they say, from the sand carried down by the rivers. Some say that they simply wash this and smelt it in a furnace; others say that the sediment produced from the washing, after being washed many times, is burned together, and that the stone called fire-resistant is mixed in with it — this stone being plentiful in the region. This iron becomes far finer than the rest. If it were not fired in a single furnace, it would, it seems, differ in no way from silver. They say it alone is not subject to rust, but that not much of it is produced. [section 1] They say that among the Indians bronze is so bright, pure, and rust-free that it cannot be distinguished by color from gold, but that among Darius's drinking-cups there are certain bowls, and several of them, which could not be told apart, except by smell, as to whether they were bronze or gold.
12| [section 1] They say that Celtic tin melts much faster than lead. A sign of its easy melting is that it seems to melt even in water; at any rate it discolors it quickly, as it seems. It also melts in cold weather, whenever ice forms, the heat within it being shut in and, they say, compressed together because of its weakness. [section 1] In the Pantheum there is an olive tree, called the fair-crowned. All its leaves grow the opposite way from those of the rest of the olive trees; for they have their green side outward rather than inward. It also puts out its young shoots, like the myrtle, in a size fitting for garlands. Heracles took a cutting from this tree and planted it at Olympia, and from it the crowns are given to the athletes. This tree stands beside the river Lissos, sixty stades distant from the river. It is walled around, and there is a great penalty for anyone who touches it. From this tree the Eleans took a cutting and planted it at Olympia, and from it they give the crowns. [section 1] In the mines around Pergamon in Lydia, which Croesus in fact worked, when a certain war broke out, the workers took refuge in them, and when the mouth was walled up they were suffocated; and much later, when the mines were cleared out, the vessels they had been using for their everyday needs were found turned to stone, such as jars and things of that sort. These, having been filled with whatever liquid they happened to hold, had been turned to stone, and so too had the bones of the men.
13| [section 1] In Lake Ascania the water is so full of natron that clothes need no other cleansing agent; and if one leaves them in the water too long, they fall apart. [section 1] Near Lake Ascania there is a village called Pythopolis, about one hundred and twenty stades from Cius, in which during winter all the wells dry up so completely that it is not possible to dip a vessel, but in summer they fill up to the brim. [section 1] The strait between Sicily and Italy rises and falls together with the moon. [section 1] And also that on the road to Syracuse there is a spring in a meadow, neither large nor having much water; but when a great crowd once gathered at the place, it supplied abundant water. [section 1] There is also a spring among the Palici in Sicily, about the size of ten couches; this shoots water up to a height of six cubits, so that those who see it think the plain will be flooded; and then it settles back to the same level again. There is also an oath there which is held to be sacred: for whatever someone swears, he writes it on a little tablet and throws it into the water.
14| [section 2] Now if he has sworn truly, the tablet floats on the surface; but if he has sworn falsely, they say the tablet becomes heavy and disappears, and the man is burned up. For this reason the priest takes pledges from him for the purifying of the sanctuary. [section 1] Demonesos, the island of the Carthaginians, has taken its name from Demonesos, the first man who worked it; the place has a mine of blue pigment and of chrysocolla. The finest of this finds a price equal to gold; for it is also a remedy for the eyes. [section 2] There is also there copper got by diving, at two fathoms' depth in the sea; from it comes the statue at Sicyon in the old temple of Apollo, and at Pheneus the statues called orichalc. They are inscribed: "Heracles son of Amphitryon, having taken Elis, dedicated this." [section 3] He took Elis under the leadership, in accordance with an oracle, of a woman whose father Augeas he had killed. Those who mine the bronze there become extremely sharp-sighted, and those who lack eyelashes grow them; for this reason physicians use the flower of copper and Phrygian ash for the eyes. [section 1] There is also there a cave called the Hollow; in it columns have formed, congealed from certain drippings. This is shown where it joins the floor; for at that point it is extremely narrow.
15| [section 1] Of the pair of eagles, one of the offspring becomes, in alternation, an osprey, until a pair is again formed. From ospreys comes the phene, and from these the percnoi and the vultures; but these last no longer keep the vultures distinct, but produce the great vultures, and these are barren. The proof of this is that no one has ever seen the nest of a great vulture. [section 1] They say something marvelous happens among the Indians concerning the lead there: when it is melted and poured into cold water, it leaps out of the water. [section 1] They say that Mossynoecian bronze is the brightest and whitest, not because tin is mixed into it, but because a certain earth peculiar to it arises and is smelted together with it. They say that the man who discovered the mixture taught it to no one; hence the bronze vessels made in those places in former times are of outstanding quality, but those made afterward no longer are. [section 1] In Pontus they say that in winter some of the birds are found hibernating, neither excreting, nor perceiving anything when their feathers are plucked, nor when they are set on the spit, but only when they are thoroughly burned by the fire. And they say that many of the fish too, when cut around and trimmed, do not perceive it, but only when they are thoroughly heated by the fire.
16| [section 1] The bee seems to signal the solstices by going out to work, a sign which beekeepers make use of; for they become still around that time. Cicadas too seem to sing after the solstices. [section 1] They say also that the hedgehog goes without food for as long as a year. [section 1] And that the gecko, when it sheds its skin, as snakes do, turns around and swallows it; for physicians keep watch for this, because it is useful for epileptics. [section 1] They say too that the fat of the bear, when it has congealed on account of the winter, during whatever time the bear lies hibernating, increases and overflows the vessels it is kept in. [section 1] In Cyrene they say the frogs there are entirely voiceless. And in Macedonia, in the territory of the Emathiotae, the pigs are single-hoofed. [section 1] In Cappadocia they say mules are fertile, and in Crete that black poplars bear fruit. [section 1] They say too that in Seriphos the frogs do not sing; but if they are carried to another place, they do sing. [section 1] Among the Indians, in the place called the Horn, they say small fish are found which wander about on dry land and then run back again into the river.
17| [section 1] Some also say that around Babylon certain fish remain in the burrows that keep moisture when the river dries up; that these come out onto the threshing floors to graze, and walk on their fins, and wag their tail; and that when pursued, they flee, and once they have gone in, they stand facing their pursuers; for often people approach and provoke them. They have a head like a sea-frog, but the rest of the body like a goby, and gills like other fish do. [section 1] They say that at Heraclea on the Pontus and at Rhegium fish are found by digging, and these especially in riverside and watery places. What happens is that sometimes, when the places dry up, at certain times the fish withdraw down into the ground, then, as it dries further, pursuing the moisture they pass on into the mud, and then, once it dries out, they remain in the moisture that is left, like creatures that survive in their burrows. But when the ground is dug up before the waters come again, then they move. [section 1] They also say that around Paphlagonia fish are found by digging at some depth, and that these are of good quality, even though there is neither visible water nearby nor rivers flowing in, but the earth itself generates life.
18| [section 1] They say that the deer in Epirus bury their right antler when they shed it, and that it is useful for many purposes. [section 1] They say too that the lynx covers up its urine, because it is useful for other purposes and, in particular, for engraving seals. [section 1] They say also that the seal vomits up its rennet when it is caught, and that it is medicinal and useful for epileptics. [section 1] It is said that on Mount Circaeum in Italy a certain deadly poison grows, which has such power that, if it is sprinkled on someone, it makes him fall down at once, and causes the hairs on his body to fall out, and makes the limbs of the whole body dissolve away, so that the surface of the body of those who perish from it is pitiful to see. They say that Aulus Peucestius and Gaius, who were about to give this to Cleonymus the Spartan, were caught in the act, and, on being examined by the Tarentines, were put to death. [section 1] On the island of Diomedeia, which lies in the Adriatic, they say there is a shrine of Diomedes, both marvelous and holy, and that around the shrine, in a circle, sit birds of great size, having large, hard beaks.
19| [section 2] They say that if Greeks put in at the place, these birds keep quiet, but if any of the barbarians who live nearby do, they fly up, and hovering over them, crash down onto their heads, and wound them with their beaks and kill them. [section 3] The story told is that these birds came from the companions of Diomedes, who were shipwrecked around the island, after Diomedes himself had been treacherously murdered by Aeneus, who was at that time king of those parts. [section 1] Among the Umbrians they say the flocks give birth three times a year, and that the earth yields them crops many times over what was sown; and that the women too are prolific, and rarely bear one child, but most bear two and three. [section 1] On the Electrid Islands, which lie in the innermost gulf of the Adriatic, they say there stand two statues dedicated there, one of tin and one of bronze, worked in the ancient manner. These are said to be the works of Daedalus, a memorial from long ago, from when he put in at these parts while fleeing Minos from Sicily and Crete. [section 2] They say these islands were built up in front of the mouth of the river Eridanus. There is also, it seems, a lake near the river, containing hot water; a heavy and noxious smell breathes off it, and no animal drinks from it nor does any bird fly over it, but instead falls and dies. Its circuit is about two hundred stades, and its width about ten.
20| [section 3] The local people tell the story that Phaethon, struck by the thunderbolt, fell into this lake. And that in it there are many poplar trees, from which what is called amber drips out. They say this substance is like gum, and hardens into something like stone, and that it is gathered by the local people and carried across to the Greeks. [section 4] They say Daedalus came to these islands, and having taken possession of them, set up his own image on one of them, and that of his son Icarus on the other. Later, when the Pelasgians who had been expelled from Argos sailed against them, Daedalus fled, they say, and made his way to the island of Icarus. [section 1] In Sicily, around the place called Enna, there is said to be a certain cave, around which, they say, a great quantity of other flowers as well grows in a circle at every season, but above all a boundless expanse is filled full with violets, which fill the neighboring country with fragrance, so that hunters, when their dogs are overpowered by the scent, are unable to track the hares. [section 2] Through this chasm there is an unseen underground passage, along which they say Pluto carried out his seizure of Kore. They say that in this place wheat is found that resembles neither the local wheat that they use, nor any other imported kind, but has some great peculiarity of its own. And by this they take it as a sign that grain first appeared among them there. That is also why they lay claim to Demeter, saying that the goddess was born among them.
21| [section 1] In Crete they say wolves and bears and vipers, and likewise the beasts akin to these, are not found, because Zeus was born on it. [section 1] In the sea outside the Pillars of Heracles, they say an uninhabited island was discovered by the Carthaginians, having every kind of timber and navigable rivers, and marvellous for its other produce as well, and lying a voyage of several days off; and since the Carthaginians, on account of its prosperity, mingled with it frequently, and some indeed even settled there, the leaders of the Carthaginians forbade anyone to sail to it on pain of death, and did away with all the settlers there, so that they would not spread word of it, nor a multitude gather against them, take possession of the island, and rob the Carthaginians of their prosperity. [section 1] They say there is a certain road, called the Heraclean Road, running from Italy all the way to Celtic territory and the Celtoligurians and the Iberians, along which, whether it is a Greek or a native who travels, he is watched over by those who dwell alongside it, so that he suffers no wrong; for whoever the wrong is committed against, those in whose territory it occurred pay the penalty. [section 1] They say that among the Celts there exists a drug called by them toxicon, which they say produces death so quickly that when the Celts who hunt shoot a deer or some other animal with it, they run up in haste and cut out the wounded part of the flesh before the drug spreads through, partly for the sake of eating it, and partly so that the animal will not rot.
22| [section 2] They say an antidote for this has been discovered, the bark of the oak; but others say it is a different leaf, which they call korakion (raven-plant), because it was observed by them that a raven, having tasted the drug and being badly afflicted, rushed at this leaf and, having swallowed it down, ceased from its pain. [section 1] In Iberia they say that when the woodlands were set on fire by some shepherds, and the earth was heated through by the timber, the region visibly flowed with silver, and after a time, when earthquakes followed and the ground was torn open, an immense quantity of silver was gathered together, which indeed brought the people of Massilia no ordinary revenue. [section 1] On the Gymnesian Islands, which lie off Iberia, and which they say rank after the so-called seven greatest islands, they say that olive oil is not produced from olives, but a very great quantity comes from the terebinth, and suits every purpose. And they say that the Iberians who live there are so fond of women that in exchange for a single female body they give the merchants four or five male bodies. [section 2] And when they serve as soldiers among the Carthaginians and receive their pay, it seems they buy nothing else with it but women. For it is not permitted for anyone among them to have gold or silver. And some such reason as this is given for why they are forbidden to bring in money: that Heracles made his campaign against Iberia on account of the wealth of its inhabitants.
23| [section 1] In the territory of the Massaliots, around Liguria, they say there is a certain lake, and that it boils up and overflows, and casts out so great a multitude of fish that it is not to be believed. And whenever the etesian winds blow, the ground is heaped up over it, and such a quantity of dust forms there that the surface of it is made solid, as if it were a floor. And the local people, cutting through it with tridents, readily draw out from it as many fish as they wish. [section 1] It is said that some of the Ligurians sling so well that, whenever they see a number of birds, they provoke one another as to which kind each will undertake to hit, on the assumption that they will all readily hit their mark. [section 1] They say this too is peculiar to them: the women, while working, give birth, and having washed the infant round with water, they immediately go back to digging and hoeing and managing the other tasks which they would have had to do even had they not given birth. [section 1] This too is a marvel among the Ligurians: they say there is among them a river whose current rises up high and flows aloft, so that those on the far side cannot be seen. [section 1] In Tyrrhenia there is said to be a certain island called Aethaleia, on which, from the same mine, bronze was formerly dug, from which they say everything worked in bronze among them was made; then it could no longer be found, and after a long time had passed, iron appeared from the same mine, which the Tyrrhenians who inhabit the place called Populonia still use to this day.
24| [section 1] There is a city in Tyrrhenia called Oenarea, which they say is exceedingly well fortified; for in its middle there is a high hill, rising thirty stades, and below there is woodland of every kind and springs of water. They say that the inhabitants, fearing that someone might become a tyrant, set over themselves as leaders those of their household slaves who had been freed; and these rule them, and each year they appoint others of the same kind in their place. [section 1] In Cumae, in the region of Italy, there is shown, it seems, an underground chamber belonging to the Sibyl, the oracle-singer, who they say remained a virgin though she lived to a very great age; she was by birth an Erythraean, but by some of those who dwell in Italy she is called the Cumaean, and by others she is called Melankraira. This place is said to be under the control of the Lucanians. [section 2] They say that in those regions, around Cumae, there is a river called the Cetus, into which, they say, whatever is first thrown grows a crust around it for most of the time and in the end turns entirely to stone. [section 1] They say that a robe was made for Alcimenes the Sybarite of such costliness that it was put on display at the festival of Hera at Lacinium, to which all the Italiotes come together, and that of all the things shown there it was admired most of all; and they say that Dionysius the Elder, having gained possession of it, sold it to the Carthaginians for a hundred and twenty talents.
25| [section 2] It was purple in color, and fifteen cubits in size, and on each side it was divided by figures woven into it, Susians above and Persians below; and in the middle were Zeus, Hera, Themis, Athena, Apollo, and Aphrodite. And along each edge was Alcimenes, and on each side of him, Sybaris. [section 1] They say that around the headland of Iapygia, from a certain place where, as the myth tells it, the battle of Heracles against the giants took place, much ichor flows, and of such a kind that, because of the weight of its smell, the sea in that region cannot be sailed. And they say that in many places in Italy there are many memorials of Heracles along the roads he traveled. Around Pandosia in Iapygia footprints of the god are shown, on which no one may set foot. [section 1] There is also, around the headland of Iapygia, a wagon-sized stone, which they say was lifted and moved from its place by him, and it happens that it can now be moved by a single finger. [section 1] In the city of the Orchomenians in Boeotia they say a fox appeared, which, being pursued by a dog, went down into a certain underground passage, and the dog went down into it after her, and, barking, made a great echoing sound as though there were some open space around it; and the hunters, struck by a divine notion, broke open the entrance and pushed their way in themselves; and seeing light coming in through certain openings, they were able to see the rest of it clearly, and they came and reported it to the magistrates.
26| [section 1] On the island of Sardinia they say there are structures arranged in the ancient Greek manner — many other fine and beautiful things, and also domed buildings carved with extraordinary designs; and these, they say, were built by Iolaus the son of Iphicles, when he took the sons of Thespius born from Heracles and sailed to those regions to settle them there, on the ground that they belonged to him by kinship with Heracles, because [section 2] Heracles had become master of the whole West. This island, it seems, was formerly called Ichnussa, because in its outline it is shaped very much like a human footprint, and it is said to have been prosperous and to bear produce of every kind in former times; for they tell in myth that Aristaeus, who they say was the most skilled farmer among the ancients, ruled over them, though before that the land had been overrun and held by great numbers of large birds. [section 3] Now, however, it no longer produces anything of that kind, because, after coming under the control of the Carthaginians, all the crops useful as food were cut down, and death was fixed as the penalty for the natives if anyone plants any such thing again. [section 1] On one of the seven islands called the islands of Aeolus, the one called Lipara, they tell in myth that there is a tomb, about which they say many other marvelous things as well, but on this they agree: that it is not safe to approach that place at night; for the sound of drums and cymbals can be heard, and laughter together with uproar, and the sound of castanets, quite distinctly.
27| [section 2] They say something even more marvelous happened concerning the cave: that a man, drunk, fell asleep in it before daybreak, and, being sought by his household for three days, remained missing, and on the fourth day, having been found, was carried away as though dead by his family to his own tomb, and, after receiving all the customary rites, suddenly rose up, and told what had happened to him. [section 3] This, then, seems to us rather too much like a myth; nevertheless it was necessary not to leave it unrecorded, since we are compiling a record of the things concerning that place. [section 1] Around Cumae in Italy there is a lake called Avernus, which itself, it seems, has nothing marvelous about it; for they say hills lie around it in a circle, no less than three stades in height, and that it is circular in shape, with a depth that cannot be surpassed. [section 2] But this does appear marvelous: although dense trees overhang it, and some lean down close over it, no leaf is ever seen resting on the surface of the water, but the water is so extremely clear that those who look at it marvel. [section 3] Around the part of the neighboring mainland not far off, warm water gushes out in many places, and the whole area is called Pyriphlegethon. As for its being said that no bird flies over it, that is false; for those who have been there say that a great number of swans occur on it.
28| [section 1] They say that the Sirenusae islands lie in Italy near the strait, on the headland itself, which lies in front of the place that juts forward and divides, with its two bays, the one that encloses Cumae from the one that encloses the place called Poseidonia; and on it a temple of the Sirens has also been established, and they are honored exceedingly by the people who dwell around, with careful sacrifices; and remembering their names, people call one Parthenope, another Leucosia, and the third Ligeia. [section 1] It is said that between Mentorica and Istriana there is a mountain called Delphium, having a high hilltop. Whenever the Mentores, who live on the Adriatic, climb up onto this hilltop, they can look out, it seems, at the ships sailing into the Pontus. [section 2] And there is also said to be a certain place among the distances in between, where, when a common market is held, the merchants coming up from the Pontus sell Lesbian, Chian, and Thasian wares, while those from the Adriatic sell Corcyraean jars. [section 1] They say too that the Ister, flowing out of the woodlands called the Hercynian forest, splits into two, and flows in one branch into the Pontus,
29| [section 2] and in the other empties into the Adriatic. And we have seen a sign of this not only in present times, but even more so among the ancients — namely, that the waters there are unnavigable; for they say Jason made his entry by way of the Cyanean rocks, and his exit from the Pontus by way of the Ister; and they bring forward not a few other proofs besides: in the region they show altars set up by Jason, and on one of the islands in the Adriatic a temple of Artemis founded by Medea. [section 3] They also say that he would not have sailed past the rocks called the Wandering Rocks, had he not sailed away from there. And on the island of Aethalia, which lies in the Tyrrhenian sea, they show, besides other memorials of the heroes, the thing said about the pebbles: for they say that along the shore there are pebbles of varied colors, and the Greeks who inhabit the island say that these took their coloring from the scrapings the heroes made when they anointed themselves; for from that time on, they tell in myth, such pebbles have neither been seen before nor come into being since. [section 4] And they say there are even clearer signs than these that the voyage out did not pass through the Symplegades, taking the poet himself as a witness for what happened in those places. For, in bringing out the difficulty of the danger, he says that it is not possible to sail past that place, but "together the planks of ships and the bodies of men the waves of the sea carry off, and blasts of ruinous fire."
30| [section 5] Now around the Cyanean rocks no fire is said to be sent up, but around the strait that divides off Sicily, fire-vents lie on both sides, and the island itself burns continuously, and the stream around Etna has often run across the land. [section 1] At Tarentum they say that at certain times sacrifices are made to the Atreidae, the Tydeidae, the Aeacidae, and the Laertiadae, and that a sacrifice is performed for the descendants of Agamemnon separately, on another day of their own, on which it is the custom for the women not to taste of what is sacrificed to those others. There is also a shrine of Achilles among them. [section 2] It is said that after the Tarentines took possession, the place they now inhabit was called Heraclea, but in earlier times, while the Ionians held it, Pleion; and even before those, it was named Sigeum by the Trojans who had occupied it. [section 1] Among the Sybarites, it is said, Philoctetes is honored. For after he was brought back from Troy he settled at the place called Mycalla in the territory of Croton, which they say is a hundred and twenty stades away, and they record that he dedicated the bow of Heracles in the temple of the sun-god Apollo there. [section 2] From there, they say, the people of Croton, when they gained mastery, dedicated it in their own temple of Apollo. It is also said that when he died he was laid to rest there by the river Sybaris, having gone to the aid of the Rhodians who had come with Tlepolemus to that region and joined battle with the barbarians who dwelt in that country.
31| [section 1] Around the part of Italy called Gargaria, near Metapontum, they say there is a temple of Athena Hellenia, where the instruments of Epeius are said to be dedicated, the ones he made for the wooden horse, he himself having given it its name. For Athena appeared to him in his sleep and demanded that he dedicate the instruments, and because of this, meeting with a delay in his departure, he was held wandering in that place, unable to sail out; from which the temple is called that of Athena Hellenia. [section 1] It is said that around the place called Daunia there is a temple called that of Athena Achaea, in which bronze axes and the arms of Diomedes' companions and of Diomedes himself are dedicated. In this place, they say, there are dogs that do no harm to the Greeks who arrive there, but fawn on them as if on their most familiar friends. All the Daunians and their neighbors dress in black, both men and women, for this reason, it seems. [section 2] For the Trojan women who were taken captive and brought to those regions, fearing that they would meet with a bitter slavery at the hands of the women already established there among the Achaeans, are said to have set fire to their ships, so that at the same time they might escape the slavery they expected, and also, since the men would then be forced to remain with them, might by joining with them get those men for husbands. And the poet has described them very well indeed; for one can see, it seems, that they too are trailing-robed and deep-bosomed.
32| [section 1] Among the Peucetians, they say, there is a temple of Artemis, in which is dedicated the bronze armlet renowned in those parts, bearing the inscription, "Diomedes to Artemis." The story told is that he put it around the neck of a deer, and it grew fast to the neck, and that in this way, being found later by Agathocles, king of the Sicilian Greeks, it was dedicated in the temple of Zeus. [section 1] On the headland of Sicily called Pelorias, so much saffron grows that among some of the Greeks who inhabit those regions the flower is not even recognized for what it is, while on Pelorias those who wish bring down large wagons, and in the spring season make their bedding and their tents out of saffron. [section 1] Polycritus, who wrote the history of Sicily in verse, says that in a certain place in the interior there is a small pool with a circumference of about the size of a shield, and it has water that is clear but a little turbid. If, then, someone in need of washing steps into it, it grows wider, and if a second person too, it spreads out still more; and in the end, growing large enough to hold fifty men, it widens out that far.
33| [section 2] But when it has taken in that number, it swells up again from the depths and casts the bodies of the bathers up and out onto the ground; and once this happens, it settles back again into its original shape and circumference. And this happens not only with human beings, but if any four-footed animal steps in, it suffers the same thing. [section 1] In the territory under Carthaginian control they say there is a mountain called Uranium, full of every kind of timber and richly decked out with many flowers, so that the surrounding regions, sharing in its fragrance over a great distance, offer travelers a most pleasant breath of air. Near this place, they say, there is a spring of oil, whose smell resembles that of cedar shavings. They say that whoever approaches it must be pure, and when this is so, it gushes out more oil, so that it can be drawn safely. [section 1] They say that near this spring also there is a certain naturally formed rock, great in size. This, they say, whenever it is summer, sends up a flame of fire, but when winter comes, from the same spot it sprays out a jet of water so cold that it differs in no way when compared to snow. And they say this is not hidden nor does it appear for only a short time, but the fire rises for the whole summer, and the water for the whole winter.
34| [section 1] It is also said that around the region of Thrace called that of the Sinti and the Maedi, there is a river called Pontus, in which certain stones are carried down that burn, and suffer the opposite of what charcoal made from wood does; for when fanned they are quickly extinguished, but when sprinkled with water they flare up and catch fire more finely. When they burn they give off a smell like that of asphalt, and so foul and pungent that no creeping creature can bear to remain in the place while they are burning. [section 1] They also say there is a certain place among them, not very small, but about twenty stades in extent, which bears barley that human beings use, but horses and cattle are unwilling to eat, nor will they touch it at all. And not even swine or dogs dare to taste the dung of the people who, having eaten a barley-cake or bread made from this barley, relieve themselves, since it kills them. [section 1] At Scotussa in Thessaly they say there is a small spring, from which flows water of such a kind that it quickly heals both ulcers and bruises, both of human beings and of pack animals; and if someone throws in a piece of wood not entirely broken but only split, it grows back together and settles again into the same...
35| [section 1] ...around Thrace beyond Amphipolis they say something monstrous and hard to believe happens, for those who have not seen it. For the children going out from the villages and the nearby places to hunt small birds take the hawks along to hunt together with them, and they do it in this way. [section 2] When they have gone forward to a suitable spot, they call out to the hawks, shouting their names; and these, when they hear the children's voice, come and drive the birds into a panic; and the birds, afraid of the hawks, flee for refuge into the bushes, where the children, striking them with sticks, catch them. And here is the thing one would marvel at most of all: whenever the hawks themselves catch one of the birds, they throw it down to the hunters, and the children, giving the hawks a portion of everything caught, go off. [section 1] Something marvelous is also said to happen among the Veneti. For countless myriads of jackdaws often descend upon their land and, when they have sown their grain, devour it; against these the Veneti, before the birds are about to fly in, set out gifts on the borders of their land, scattering seeds of every kind of fruit, and if the jackdaws taste them, they do not cross over into their territory, and the Veneti know that they will be at peace; but if they do not taste them, they expect an invasion to come upon them just as if from enemies.
36| [section 1] In Chalcidice on the Thracian coast, near Olynthus, they say there is a place called Cantharolethron, a little larger in size than a threshing floor, into which, when any of the other animals comes, it goes away again, but of the beetles that come into it not one does; instead they go round and round the place until they die of hunger. [section 1] Among the Thracian Cyclopes there is a little spring whose water is, to the eye, clear and transparent and like any other, but when any animal drinks from it, it dies on the spot. [section 1] They also say that in Crastonia, in the territory of the Bisaltae, the hares that are caught there have two livers, and that there is a certain place, about a plethron in size, into which whatever animal enters dies. [section 2] There is also another sanctuary there, a great and beautiful one of Dionysus, in which, they say, during the festival and the sacrifice, whenever the god intends to grant a good year, a great blaze of fire appears, and everyone who is occupied about the sanctuary sees it; but whenever he intends a barren year, this light does not appear, but darkness covers the place just as on any other night.
37| [section 1] In Elis they say there is a building about eight stades from the city, into which, at the Dionysia, they place three empty bronze cauldrons. Having done this, they call on any of the Greeks present who wishes to examine the vessels and to seal up the doors of the building himself. [section 2] And when they are about to open it, they show the citizens and the visitors the seals, and only then do they open it. Those who go in find the cauldrons full of wine, while the floor and the walls are undisturbed, so that no one can form any suspicion that they are contrived by some craft. They also say that among them there are kites which snatch meat from those who carry it through the marketplace, but do not touch that of those offering sacrifice. [section 1] In Coronea in Boeotia it is said that moles cannot live there, nor burrow in the ground, although the rest of Boeotia has a great abundance of them. [section 1] In Lusi in Arcadia they say there is a spring in which land-mice are born and swim about, making their home in it. The same thing is also said to occur at Lampsacus.
38| [section 1] In Crannon in Thessaly they say there are only two crows in the whole city. Whenever these rear young, it seems, they themselves move away elsewhere, and leave behind exactly as many of their offspring as there were of themselves. [section 1] In Apollonia, which lies near the territory of the Atlantini, they say that mined asphalt and pitch are produced, welling up out of the earth in the same way as springs of water do, no different from the Macedonian kind, but by nature blacker and thicker than that. Not far from this place there is a fire that burns the whole time, as the inhabitants of that region say. [section 2] The burning area is not large, it seems, but about the size of five couches at most. It smells of sulfur and alum, and around it, remarkably enough, deep grass grows, and large trees, not more than four cubits from the fire. It burns continually also around Lycia and Megalopolis in the Peloponnese. [section 1] It is also said that among the Illyrians the flocks give birth twice a year, and that most bear twins, and many bear three or four kids, some even five or more, and that they readily yield three half-choes of milk. They also say that the hens there, unlike those elsewhere, do not lay once, but two or three times a day.
39| [section 1] It is also said that in Paeonia the wild cattle grow far larger than any among the other peoples, and that their horns hold four choes, and in some cases even more. [section 1] Concerning the strait of Sicily many others besides have written, and this author too says a marvelous thing occurs. Out of the Tyrrhenian sea, he says, the swell comes on with a great rushing noise and strikes against both headlands, the one of Sicily, the other of Italy, called Rhegium, and being driven from the open sea into a narrow channel, when this happens it raises a towering wave with much roaring, over a very great stretch of its upward course, so that to those watching from far off the swell is plainly visible, appearing not like the ordinary rising of the sea but white and foaming, resembling the surf that occurs in the most unbearable storms. [section 2] And sometimes the waves from both headlands collide with one another and produce a confluence incredible to describe and unbearable to behold with the eyes; and sometimes, parting again after their collision with one another, they present so deep and terrifying a sight to those forced to watch that many cannot control themselves but fall down, their sight darkened by fear.
40| [section 3] And whenever the wave, after striking against whichever of the two places, and being raised up to its heights, is again carried down into the sea flowing beneath, then again, with much bellowing and with great and swift whirlpools, the sea seethes and is raised up, churned from its depths, and changes through every kind of color: at one time it appears dark, at another deep blue, and often it shows through as purple. [section 4] Its course and its length, and besides these its backward flow, no creeping thing can bear to hear of, let alone to watch; everything flees to the foothills lying below. And as the swell subsides, the whirlpools are carried up aloft, making their turnings so varied that they seem to produce movements like the coils of waterspouts or of certain other huge serpents. [section 1] They say that when the Athenians were building the sanctuary of Demeter at Eleusis, a bronze pillar was found enclosed within the rocks, on which was inscribed "This is the tomb of Deiope," whom some say was the wife of Musaeus, others that she was the mother of Triptolemus. [section 1] On one of the islands called the Islands of Aeolus they say a great number of palm trees grew, from which it is also called Phoenicodes. So what is said by Callisthenes could not be true, that the plant took its name from the Phoenicians of Syria who inhabit the coast.
41| [section 2] But some also say that the Phoenicians themselves were called [Phoenicians] by the Greeks because, being the first to sail the sea, wherever they landed they killed and slaughtered everyone. And indeed in the language of the Perrhaebians "to redden with blood" is phoinixai. [section 1] In the region called Ainiake, near the place called Hypata, it is said that an ancient pillar was found, which the Ainianes, wishing to know whose it was, since it bore an inscription in ancient letters, sent certain men to carry to Athens. [section 2] As these men were traveling through Boeotia, and were discussing their journey with some of the local people, it is said they were brought in to the place called the Ismenion at Thebes; for it was there, they were told, that the inscription of the letters might best be identified, since there were certain dedications there bearing letter-forms of similar ancient style. Hence it is said that, working out what was sought from what was already known, they wrote down these verses. [section 3] "Heracles dedicated this precinct to Cytherean Persephone, driving the herds of Geryon and leading Erytheia. And Pasiphaë, the goddess, overcame them with desire. And here, for my son by this woman, and for my wife Erythe, born of a nymph, daughter of Erythus, I gave this ground as a memorial of love, beneath the shady oak." [section 4]
42| That place too, called Erythus, took its name from this inscription, and because he brought the cattle from there and not from Erytheia — for they say the name Erytheia is nowhere spoken in the regions of Libya and Iberia. [section 1] In Libya, at the place called Utica, which lies, as they say, in the gulf between the Hermaean promontory and the Cape of Hippo, some two hundred stades beyond Carthage (and which is said to have been founded by the Phoenicians two hundred and eighty-seven years before Carthage itself, as is recorded in the Phoenician histories), they say there is mined salt, at a depth of three fathoms, white to look at and not solid but like the stickiest gum; and when it is brought up into the sun it hardens and becomes like Parian marble. They say little figures and other objects are carved from it. [section 1] It is said that the first Phoenicians who sailed to Tartessus brought back so much silver as return cargo, having imported oil and other seagoing wares, that they could no longer find room for the silver or take it aboard, but were forced, as they sailed away from those regions, to make all the other equipment they used out of silver, and indeed all their anchors as well.
43| [section 1] They say the Phoenicians who inhabit the place called Gadeira, sailing outside the Pillars of Heracles with an east wind for four days, arrive at certain deserted places full of reeds and seaweed, which are not submerged when the tide is out but are flooded when it is in; on these an extraordinary abundance of tunny is found, incredible both in size and in bulk, whenever they run aground; and they salt them and pack them into jars and carry them across to Carthage. Of these alone the Carthaginians do not permit the export, but because of their excellence in eating they consume them themselves. [section 1] In Pedasia in Caria a sacrifice to Zeus is performed, in which they send forth a certain goat, about which they say something marvelous occurs. For walking from Pedasa seventy stades through a great crowd of onlookers, it is not disturbed in its course nor does it turn aside from the road, but goes ahead, tied by a cord, before the man who holds the priesthood. It is also marvelous that there are always two ravens about the temple of Zeus, and no other approaches the place, and one of the two has the front of its neck white. [section 1]
44| Among the Illyrians called the Ardiaei, on the borders shared with the Autariatae, they say there is a great mountain, and near it a ravine, from which water leaps up, not at every season but in spring, in great quantity; and taking this, they keep it under cover during the day and set it out under the open sky at night. And when they have done this for five or six days the water congeals and becomes excellent salt, which they preserve chiefly for the sake of their livestock; for salt is not brought in to them, because they dwell far from the sea and hold no dealings with others. So it is for their livestock that they have the greatest need of it; for they salt them twice a year. And if they fail to do this, it happens that most of their livestock perish. [section 1] At Argos they say there occurs a kind of locust called the scorpion-fighter. For as soon as it sees a scorpion, it takes a stand against it; and the scorpion does likewise against it. And circling around it, the locust shrills; and the scorpion, raising its sting, turns to face it in the same spot, then little by little lets the sting down, and at last stretches it out fully, while the locust runs round in a circle. Finally the locust approaches and devours it. They say it is also good, as a remedy against the stings of the scorpion, to eat the locust.
45| [section 1] They say that the wasps in Naxos, when they have fed on the viper (its flesh is evidently agreeable to them), afterward, when they sting someone, cause such great pain that the sting appears more severe than that of vipers themselves. [section 1] They say the Scythian poison, in which they dip their arrows, is compounded from the viper. The Scythians, it seems, watch for the females that are already about to bear live young, and taking them let them putrefy for some days. And when it seems to them that the whole has decayed sufficiently, they pour human blood into a small pot and bury it in dung, having sealed it. And when this too has putrefied, they mix what settles above the blood, which is watery, with the viper's fluid, and in this way they make it deadly. [section 1] At Curium in Cyprus they say there is a certain kind of serpent whose power is like that of the asp in Egypt, except that if it bites in winter it accomplishes nothing — whether for some other cause, or because the creature becomes hard to move, frozen stiff by the cold, and altogether powerless, unless it is warmed. [section 1] In Ceos they say there is a certain kind of wild pear tree, from whose thorn, if one is struck, one dies.
46| [section 1] In Mysia they say there is a certain white kind of bear, which, when hunted, emits such a breath that it rots the flesh of the dogs, and likewise of the other beasts, and renders it inedible. And if someone forces his way close and approaches, they emit from their mouth a great quantity of phlegm, it seems, which they blow against the faces of the dogs, and likewise of men, so that it even chokes and blinds them. [section 1] In Arabia they say there is a certain kind of hyena which, whenever it catches sight beforehand of some animal, or a man steps upon its shadow, produces speechlessness and such a rigidity that the body cannot be moved. And it does this to dogs as well. [section 1] In Syria they say there is a creature called the lion-killer; for the lion dies, it seems, whenever it eats of it. Now the creature does not do this willingly, but flees the lion; but when hunters catch it and roast it and sprinkle it, like white barley-meal, over another animal, they say that the moment the lion tastes it, it dies at once. This creature also does the lion harm by urinating on it. [section 1]
47| It is also said that vultures die from the smell of perfumes, if one anoints them or gives them something perfumed to eat. And likewise beetles die from the smell of roses. [section 1] And in Sicily and in Italy, they say, the bite of geckos is deadly, and not, as with those among us, weak and mild. And there is also a kind of flying mouse, which, when it bites, causes death. [section 1] In eastern Mesopotamia of Syria and at Istrus, they say, certain little snakes occur which do not bite the natives but do great harm to strangers. [section 1] Around the Euphrates they say this happens in complete form. For many are seen along the banks of the river, swimming across to each side, so that those observed there in the evening appear at daybreak on the other side; and of those who rest there, they do not bite the Syrians, but do not spare the Greeks. [section 1] In Thessaly they say the serpent called the sacred one destroys everyone, not only if it bites but even if it merely touches; wherefore, whenever it appears and they hear its voice (it appears but rarely), both serpents and vipers and all the other wild creatures flee. In size it is not great but middling. And in Tenos they say it was once killed in the city, in Thessaly, by a woman, and that the death came about in this way.
48| [section 2] A woman drew a circle and set down the drugs, and she and her son stepped into the circle; then she began to imitate the voice of the beast, and it sang back and drew near. While it was singing, the woman fell asleep, and as it came nearer still she grew more overcome, so that she could not master her sleep. [section 3] Her son, sitting beside her, kept waking her with blows, at her own bidding, and telling her that if she fell asleep, both she and he would be destroyed, but if she forced herself and drew the beast on, they would be saved. And when the serpent came up to the circle, it withered away at once. [section 1] It is said that near Tyana there is a water sacred to Zeus of Oaths (they call it the Asbamaean), whose spring wells up very cold; it bubbles like a cauldron. To those who keep their oaths this water is sweet and gracious, but for perjurers justice is at their very heels. For it strikes at their eyes, their hands, and their feet, and they are seized with dropsy and wasting disease; nor can they even get away beforehand, but they are held fast right there and lament beside the water, confessing the oaths they broke. [section 1] They say that at Athens the sacred shoot of the olive puts out its growth in a single day and becomes quite large, but then quickly shrinks back again.
49| [section 1] When the craters on Etna burst open and the lava was carried over the earth this way and that like a torrent, the divine power honored the race of the pious. For some young men were overtaken by the stream because they were carrying their aged parents on their shoulders and trying to save them; but when the stream of fire came near them it split apart, turning its blaze aside, one part this way and one that, and kept the young men unharmed together with their parents. [section 1] It is said that the sculptor Phidias, when fashioning the Athena on the Acropolis, worked his own face into the middle of her shield and bound it to the statue by some hidden craftsmanship, so that necessarily, if anyone wished to remove it, he would have to take apart and destroy the whole statue. [section 1] They say that the statue of Bitys at Argos killed [the one responsible] for Bitys's death, falling upon him as he stood watching it. It would seem, then, that such things do not happen at random. [section 1] They say that dogs pursue wild beasts only as far as the peaks of the mountains called the Black Mountains, but turn back whenever they chase them up to that point. [section 1] In the river Phasis, they say, there grows a plant called white-leaf, which jealous husbands pick and scatter around the bridal chamber of a virgin, and so keep the marriage undefiled.
50| [section 1] In the Tigris, they say, there occurs a stone called, in the barbarian tongue, modon, very white in color; whoever keeps it upon him is harmed by no wild beast. [section 1] In the Scamander, they say, there grows a plant called sistron, resembling a chickpea, with seeds that rattle when shaken, from which it took its name; those who possess it fear neither any spirit nor any apparition whatsoever. [section 1] In Libya there is a vine which some call the mad vine, which ripens some of its fruit while other clusters remain sour, and others are still in flower for a certain short time. [section 1] Near Mount Sipylus, they say, there occurs a stone similar to a cylinder, which pious sons, whenever they find it, place in the precinct of the Mother of the Gods, and they never fall into wrongdoing through impiety, but are always devoted to their fathers. [section 1] On Mount Taygetus there grows a plant called charisia, which women, at the start of spring, bind about their necks, and by it are loved more tenderly by men. [section 1] Othrys is a mountain of Thessaly which breeds the snakes called sepai; these do not have one fixed color, but always come to resemble the place where they live. Some of them have a color like the land-snails of that country; in others the scaly skin is green. Those that dwell among sands take on the color of the sand. Their bite produces thirst. The bite itself is neither rough nor burning, but it is malignant.
51| [section 1] When the dusky viper mates with the female viper, the female bites off his head during their union. For this reason the offspring too, as though avenging their father's death, tear open their mother's belly. [section 1] In the river Nile, they say, there occurs a stone resembling a bean, which, if dogs catch sight of it, they do not bark. It also helps those who have become possessed by some spirit; for as soon as it is put to their nostrils, the spirit departs. [section 1] In the river Maeander in Asia, they say, there is a stone called sophron, the sensible one, by antiphrasis; whoever throws it into another person's lap, that person goes mad and murders one of his own kin. [section 1] The rivers Rhine and Danube flow beneath the north, the one passing by the Germans, the other by the Paeonians; in summer their streams can be crossed by ship, but in winter, frozen hard by the cold, they take on the shape of a plain and are ridden over on horseback. [section 1] Near the city of Thurii, they say, there are two rivers, the Sybaris and the Crathis. The Sybaris makes those who drink from it timid, while the Crathis makes people fair-haired when they bathe in it.
52| [section 1] In Euboea there are two rivers: from the one, sheep that drink become white — it is called the Cerbes — while the other, the Neleus, makes them black. [section 1] By the river Lycormas there grows a plant resembling a spear-point, which is excellent for helping dim eyesight. [section 1] They say that the spring Arethusa at Syracuse in Sicily stirs once every five years. [section 1] On Mount Berecynthus, they say, there occurs a stone called the knife, which, if anyone finds it while the mysteries of Hecate are being performed, drives him mad, as Eudoxus says. [section 1] On Mount Tmolus, they say, there occurs a stone resembling pumice, which changes its color four times in a day; it is seen by maidens who have not yet come, with time, to share in good sense. [section 1] At the altar of Artemis Orthosia there stands a golden bull, which lets out a cry whenever hunters come near. [section 1] Among the Aetolians, they say, moles can see, though dimly, and they do not eat earth but locusts. [section 1] They say that elephants are pregnant for two years — others say eighteen months — and that they have a difficult labor when they give birth. [section 1] They say that Demaratus, a pupil of Timaeus of Locri, fell ill and was speechless for ten days; on the eleventh day, slowly recovering his senses from the derangement, he said that he had spent that time more pleasantly than any other.