Sappho Sings of Artemis: fragment 44a

Sappho Sings of Artemis

Name: Sappho Date:   d. 570 BCE Region:   Lesbos [modern Greece] Citation:    Fragment 44a.4 – 11

But Artemis swore a serious oath [to her father Zeus]:

“Upon your head, I vow

That I will always remain a maiden,

Hunting on the desolate mountains

I will roam. Grant this to me.”

This is what she said. Zeus granted her wish.

Now men and gods alike call her Maiden, Hunter of Deer, Goddess.

Eros, stay far from her!

Ἄρτεμις δὲ θεῶν μέγαν ὄρκον ἀπώμοσε· κεφάλαν, ἄϊ πάρθενος ἔσσομαι ...[1] ων ὀρέων κορύφα̣ι̣σ’ ἔπι ...δ̣ε νεῦσον ἔμαν χάριν.” ...σ̣ε θέων μακάρων πάτηρ. ...ολον ἀγροτέραν θέο̣ι ...ι̣σιν ἐπωνύμιον μέγα. ...Ἔρος οὐδάμα πίλναται.

Diana autem deum sacramentum maximum fecit; “Per tibi numen, [Pater hominum et deum], Virgo in aeternum permaneam, Venatrix per montes desolatos errem. Des hoc, pater, mihi optem!” Hoc dicto, annuit deum pater. Mortales immortalesque hanc vocant Virginem, cervos-venatrix, deam. Amor, ne hanc aggrediaris! Translated into Latin by Kris Masters

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[1] There is significant damage to this fragment, and the left portion of many of the lines is missing.

Sappho [d. 570 BCE, modern Greece] was universally applauded by the ancient world as the “Tenth Muse.” Because she was one of the earliest Greek lyric poets, there is very little definitive information on Sappho’s life.  It is generally agreed that Sappho was a wealthy noblewoman from the island of Lesbos who had three brothers and a daughter named Kleis. She used her prominent social position to support a cohort of other women artists, and composed many poems about them, expressing her love for them, praising their beauty, and celebrating their marriages. Whereas earlier Greek poetry was epic poetry with serious themes of gods, warfare, and the state, Sappho’s lyric poetry was emotional, intimate and personal. Her poetry centered around womanhood and womanly love, providing rare insight into the time period. The modern terms “sapphic” and “lesbian” reveal the longevity of her impact upon modern culture. Unfortunately, although her poetry was universally revered by the Greeks and Romans alike, Sappho’s works only exist as fragments, adding mysterious allure to her larger-than-life status but unfortunately hindering our understanding of her life and thoughts.

Not a Lord, But a Lady: Elegabalus / Bassiana, Cassius Dio, Roman History 80.16.3-5

Name:  Cassius Dio Date:     155 – 235 CE  Region:   Nicaea [modern Turkey] Citation:      Roman History 80.16.3-5

When Elagabalus / Bassiana saw Zoticus, she leapt up gracefully, and when he greeted her, saying “Greetings, Emperor,” she shook her head and flashed him a smile, replying, “Don’t call me ‘lord,’ for I am a lady.”

καὶ ὃς ἰδὼν αὐτὸν ἀνέθορέ τε ἐρρυθμισμένως, καὶ προσειπόντα, οἷα εἰκὸς ἦν, ‘κύριε αὐτοκράτορ χαῖρε,’ θαυμαστῶς τόν τε αὐχένα γυναικίσας καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἐπεγκλάσας ἠμείψατο, καὶ ἔφη οὐδὲν διστάσας  ‘μή με λέγε κύριον: ἐγὼ γὰρ κυρία εἰμί.’

Quem ut ille conspexit, exiliit gestu modulato: quumque ab eo salutaretur, ut par erat, "Domine Imperator salve," ipse mirum & mulibrem in modum cervice inflexa, oculisque intortis, nil cunctatus respondit: "Ne me Dominum voces, Domina enim ego sum."

Translated into Latin by Hermann Samuel Reimarus, 1753

Cassius Dio [Lucius Cassius Dio; 165 – 235 CE, modern Turkey] was a Roman statesman born in Nicaea, Bithynia [modern Turkey] who wrote an 80 volume work on Roman history that spanned from Aeneas’ flight from Troy to the rise of the emperor Severus Alexander. Although much of his history is lost, the fragments that we do have show rare insight into the Roman world.

Hierocles, Husband to an Empress, Cassius Dio, Roman History, 80.15.1-3

Name:  Cassius Dio Date:     155 – 235 CE  Region:   Nicaea [modern Turkey] Citation:      Roman History 80.15.1-3

It is important to note that, like the Hadrian/Antinous, Domitian/Earinus, Caracalla/Festus, Nero/Sporus and other Imperial couples, the disparity in social classes between the two lovers may negate the consent of the relationship and should not be romanticized in modern times. 

[Elegabala’ / Bassiana’s] husband was the Carian slave Hierocles, who had been Gordian’s concubine; he learned how to drive a chariot during this relationship. This skill is how the Emperor Elegabala / Bassiana met him, for while Hierocles was racing, he happened to fall out of his chariot right in front of the Emperor’s seat. He lost his helmet in the fall; the sight of the baby-faced blond youth captivated the ruler, and so Hierocles was snatched up and immediately sent to the Palace. Hierocles’ romantic skills captivated the ruler even more, and his clout rose to such prominence that, even though his mother was a slave, she was brought to Rome under military escort, where she was awarded the rank of Consular Mother.

 * Sardanapalus was a mythical Assyrian king known for his extravagance and gender-bending lifestyle

ὁ δὲ δὴ ἀνὴρ αὐτῆς Ἱεροκλῆς ἦν, Καρικὸν ἀνδράποδον, Γορδίου ποτὲ παιδικὰ γενόμενον, παρ᾽ οὗ καὶ ἁρματηλατεῖν ἔμαθεν. κἀκ τούτου καὶ παραδοξότατα αὐτῷ ἠρέσθη. ἐν γάρ τοι ἱπποδρομίᾳ τινὶ ἐκπεσὼν τοῦ ἅρματος κατ᾽ αὐτὴν τὴν τοῦ Σαρδαναπάλλου* ἕδραν τό τε κράνος ἐν τῇ πτώσει ἀπέρριψε, καὶ ἐκφανεὶς αὐτῷ ῾λειογένειος δ᾽ ἔτι ἦν καὶ κόμῃ ξανθῇ ἐκεκόσμητὀ ἀνηρπάσθη τε εὐθὺς ἐς τὸ παλάτιον, κἀν τοῖς νυκτερινοῖς ἔργοις ἔτι καὶ μᾶλλον ἑλὼν αὐτὸν ὑπερηυξήθη, ὥστε καὶ ὑπὲρ αὐτὸν ἐκεῖνον ἰσχῦσαι, καὶ βραχύ τι νομισθῆναι τὸ τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ ἔτι δούλην οὖσαν ἔς τε τὴν Ῥώμην ὑπὸ στρατιωτῶν ἀχθῆναι κἀν ταῖς τῶν ὑπατευκότων γυναιξὶ συναριθμηθῆναι.

Erat vero vir eius, Hierocles quidam, Caricum mancipium, [qui Gordio quondam in deliciis fuerat,] a quo currus etiam agitare didicerat: qua occasione Imperatior, praeter exspectationem, placere coepit. Quum enim aliquando ludis Circensibus, e curru, ante Sardanapali* sellam, decidisset, inque eo casu galeam proiecisset; aperto capite conspectus ab illo, (imberbis autem adhuc & flava ornatus coma erat), statim raptus est in Palatium; & quum nocturnis flagitiis magis etiam cepisset Imperatorem, ita potentia auctus est, ut illo ipso plus posset; ac parum esse videretur, quod mater eius, servili adhuc conditione a militibus deduta in urbem, Consularium relata sit in numerum matronarum.

Translated into Latin by Hermann Samuel Reimarus, 1753

Cassius Dio [Lucius Cassius Dio; 165 – 235 CE, modern Turkey] was a Roman statesman born in Nicaea, Bithynia [modern Turkey] who wrote an 80 volume work on Roman history that spanned from Aeneas’ flight from Troy to the rise of the emperor Severus Alexander. Although much of his history is lost, the fragments that we do have show rare insight into the Roman world.

The Emperor's Gender: Cassius Dio on Elegabalus, Roman History 80.14.3-4

Bassiana / Elegabalus Living as a Lady

Name:  Cassius Dio Date:     155 – 235 CE  Region:   Nicaea [modern Turkey] Citation:      Roman History 80.14.3-4

 At court, [Bassiana /Elegabalus] kept their appearance as a man, but everywhere else they kept the appearance and voice of a woman. And they danced all the time in public, not just on stage, but also wherever they walked, when they made sacrifices, and when they were holding court. Finally, to circle back to my original point, they got married as a bride, and were called “wife,” “milady,” and “Queen.” They spun wool, wore a veil, wore eyeliner, makeup, and anklets.

 

ὅτι ἐν τῷ δικάζειν τινὰ ἀνήρ πως εἶναι ἐδόκει, ἐν δὲ δὴ τοῖς ἄλλοις τῷ ἔργῳ καὶ τῷ σχήματι τῆς φωνῆς ὡραΐζετο. τά τε γὰρ ἄλλα καὶ ὠρχεῖτο, οὔτι γε ἐν ὀρχήστρᾳ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐμβαδίζων τρόπον τινὰ καὶ θύων ἀσπαζόμενός τε καὶ δημηγορῶν. καὶ τέλος, ἵν᾽ ἤδη ἐπὶ τὸν ἐξ ἀρχῆς λόγον ἐπανέλθω, καὶ ἐγήματο, γυνή τε καὶ δέσποινα βασιλίς τε ὠνομάζετο, καὶ ἠριούργει, κεκρύφαλόν τε ἔστιν ὅτε ἐφόρει, καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς ἐνηλείφετο, ψιμυθίῳ τε καὶ ἐγχούσῃ ἐχρίετο.

Et in iure quidem reddendo, aliquatenus vir esse videbatur; in aliis tamen rebus, & opere & modulatione vocis, muliebrem affectabat mollitiem. Inter alia enim saltabat, non in orchestra solum, verum etiam quodammodo dum incederet, faceret sacrificia, salutaretur, & contionem haberet. Postremo, ut redeam unde digressus sum, nupsit etiam, et uxor et domina et Augusta appellabatur; tractabat lanam, reticulum aliquando gestabat, oculosque sublinebat, cerussaque vultum et anchusa pingebat.    Translated into Latin by Hermann Samuel Reimarus

 

Cassius Dio [Lucius Cassius Dio; 165 – 235 CE, modern Turkey] was a Roman statesman born in Nicaea, Bithynia [modern Turkey] who wrote an 80 volume work on Roman history that spanned from Aeneas’ flight from Troy to the rise of the emperor Severus Alexander. Although much of his history is lost, the fragments that we do have show rare insight into the Roman world.

I'm Getting Too Old for This: A Gallus in Retirement, Greek Anthology 6.234

Name:  Unknown Date:     Unknown Region:    Unknown Citation:    Greek Anthology 6.234

Galli were worshippers of the goddess Cybele who renounced their masculinity by voluntarily undergoing castration. They lived as women, and held a separate legal status from men in ancient Rome. In this poem, the protagonist gallus is dedicating their religious trappings upon their retirement from the fervor of the bacchic rituals.

At the end of the rave

A long haired gallus, castrated in my youth,

A dancer on the Lydian shore of the Tmolus River,

Who chanted beautifully,

Now grown older,

dedicates to the revered Bithynian Mother

A tambourine

A whip with many tassels

A set of clanging cymbals made of orichalcum

A fragrant lock of hair.

 

Γάλλος ὁ χαιτάεις, ὁ νεήτομος, ὡπὸ Τυμώλου

Λύδιος ὀρχηστὰς μάκρ᾽ ὀλολυζόμενος,

τᾷ παρὰ Σαγγαρίῳ τάδε Ματέρι τύμπαν᾽ ἀγαυᾷ

θήκατο, καὶ μάστιν τὰν πολυαστράγαλον,

ταῦτὰ τ᾽ ὀρειχάλκου λάλα κύμβαλα, καὶ μυρόεντα

βόστρυχον, ἐκ λύσσας ἄρτια παυσάμενος.

Gallus capillatus, in iuventute exsectus, de Tmolo

Lydius saltator longum ululas,

accolenti Sangarium haec Matri tympana venerandae

posuit, et flagellum multiiugis-talis-tessellatum,

et haec ex-orichalco garrula cymbala, et fragrantem

cincinnum, furore recens deposito.

--Erycius, Greek Anthology, 6.234; Translated into Latin by Hugo Grotius

Camilla, Nobody's Daughter-in-Law, Vergil, Aeneid 11.539-584

Camilla, Nobody’s Daughter-in-Law 

Name:  Vergil Date:  70 – 19 BCE Region:  Mantua [modern northern Italy] Citation:  Aeneid 11.581-584

Throughout the Tyrrhenian towns,

Numerous mothers hoped in vain

That Camilla would become her daughter-in-law.

But instead, content with Diana alone,

She chastely devoted herself

To her eternal love of weaponry and her own chastity.

Camilla, Nobody’s Daughter-in-Law

Multae illam frustra Tyrrhena per oppida matres

optavere nurum; sola contenta Diana

aeternum telorum et virginitatis amorem

intemerata colit.

Vergil, also known as Virgil, [Publius Vergilius Maro; 70 – 19 BCE, modern Italy] was born in Mantua, Cisalpine Gaul, and lived during the tumultuous transition of Roman government from republic to monarchy. His writing talent earned him a place of honor among Maecenas’ fellow authors under Augustan rule. He was friends with numerous famous authors of the time period, including Horace and Asinius Pollio. His former slave Alexander was the most influential romantic partner in his life, and the poet memorialized his love for him under the pseudonym “Alexis” in Eclogue 2. His masterpiece, the Aeneid, tells the story of Aeneas’ migration from Troy to Italy; it was used for centuries as the pinnacle of Roman literature.

I'm Getting To Old For This: A Gallus' Dedication, Greek Anthology 6.51

A Gallus in Retirement

Name:  Unknown Date:     Unknown Region:    Unknown Citation:    Greek Anthology 6.51

Galli were worshippers of the goddess Cybele who renounced their masculinity by voluntarily undergoing castration. They lived as women and held a separate legal status from men in ancient Rome. In this poem, the protagonist gallus is dedicating their religious trappings upon their retirement from the fervor of the bacchic rituals.

O Mother Rhea, she who cherishes lions,

Whose sacred mountain no one has befouled with their feet,

The woman [1]Alexis dedicates to you

Her fury-rousing instruments

Taking a pause from her bronze symbols

The low resounding flutes,

Which turned the heads of calves,

The resounding drum,

The sword dripping with blood,

Accept this offering, o Lady, which I reveled in during my youth

And free me now from the same wild abandon in my old age.

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[1] This poem uses the masculine form of the Greek word for woman (θῆλυς).

μῆτερ ἐμή γαίη, Φρυγίων θρέπτειρα λεόντων, Δίνδυμον ἧς μύσταις οὐκ ἀπάτητον ὄρος, σοὶ τάδε θῆλυς Ἄλεξις ἑῆς οἰστρήματα λύσσης ἄνθετο, χαλκοτύπου παυσάμενος μανίης, κύμβαλά τ᾽ ὀξύφθογγα, βαρυφθόγγων τ᾽ ἀλαλητὸν αὐλῶν, οὓς μόσχου λοξὸν ἔκαμψε κέρας, τυμπανά τ᾽ ἠχήεντα, καὶ αἵματι φοινιχθέντα φάσγανα, καὶ ξανθάς, τὰς πρὶν ἔσεισε, κόμας. ἵλαος, ὦ δέσποινα, τὸν ἐν νεότητι μανέντα γηραλέον προτέρης παῦσον ἀγριοσύνης.

O mater mea Tellus, Phrygiorum nutrix leonum, cuius mystis Dindymus mons non incalcatus, tibi hos [feminaeus] Alexis sui insaniae-instrumenta furoris dedicavit, aere-pulso-excitata cessans a-rabie, cymbala acuti-soni, gravisque vocis iubilum tibiarum, quas vituli obliquum flexit cornu, et tympana sonora, et sanguine rubro-infectos gladios, et fulvas, quas pridem iactavit, comas. Propitia, o domina, hunc-qui in iuventute insanivit, senem a priore libera feritate. Translated into Latin by  Hugo Grotius