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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)TRANSACTIONS
AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY
HELD AT PHILADELPHIA
FOR PROMOTING USEFUL KNOWLEDGE
NEW SERIES—VOLUME 59, PART 5
1969
PHYSIOGNOMICS IN THE ANCIENT WORLD
ELIZABETH C. EVANS
abe
THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY
INDEPENDENCE
SQUARE
PHILADELPHIA
August, 1969
zb a
Soar PX
EVANS,
Professor of Classics, Connecticut College
Seite 2
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Evans, Elizabeth C.
Transactions of the American Philosophical
Society, 59 part 5 - 1969 - pe
EVANS Co
Seite 3
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Author(s): Elizabeth C. Evans
Reviewed work(s):
Source: Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, New Series, Vol. 59, No. 5 (1969),
pp. 1-101
Published by: American Philosophical Society
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1006011 .
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)TRANSAC TIONS
OF THE
AMERICANPHILOSOPHICAL
SOCIETY
HELD AT PHILADELPHIA
FOR PROMOTING
USEFUL KNOWLEDGE
NEW SERIES-VOLUME 59, PART 5
1969
PHYSIOGNOMICSIN THE ANCIENT WORLD
ELIZABETH C. EVANS
Professor of Classics, Connecticut College
THE AMERICAN
PHILOSOPHICAL
INDEPENDENCE
PHILADELPHIA
August, 1969
SQUARE
SOCIETY
Seite 5
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)To the memory of
Dean Clifford Herschel Moore
Professor George Lincoln Hendrickson
Copyright 0 1969 by The AmericanPhilosophicalSociety
Libraryof CongressCatalog
Card Number 73-85468
Seite 6
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)PREFACE
The dedication tells the history of this book. It
was the late Dean Clifford Herschel Moore of Harvard
who suggested to me a study of physiognomics in the
ancient world, and who, with friendly counsel, guided
my first work in the field. The late Professor G. L.
Hendrickson of Yale, in the years subsequent to Professor Moore's death, with equally warmhearted
interest, encouraged me to pursue the subject further,
and to put the material I had gathered into some sort
of book form. To those former and present members
of the Harvard Classical Department, some of whom
were my teachers, and to other members of the University, who, as friends, have followed the work in
more recent years, I take this opportunity to express
my appreciation for many helpful suggestions and
kind aid. Among them I may mention the late Professor Werner Jaeger, the late Professor Arthur Darby
Nock, Professor Herbert Bloch, and Professor G. M.
A. Hanfmann. To Professor J. P. Elder I am especially grateful for reading the manuscript in its early
stages with a sharp and highly critical eye. It gives
me pleasure also to record here my debt to Dean
Wilma Kerby-Miller of Radcliffe for a thoughtful
appraisal of the manuscript. My brother, John Draper
Evans, has done much to remove awkwardness and
ambiguity of expression in the English text. But
they are not, of course, in any way responsible for the
errors which remain.
To the Trustees of Connecticut College and its
former President, Miss Rosemary Park, I wish to
acknowledge with particular gratitude a year's leave
from teaching duties in 1960-1961. To the American
Association of University Women I render very sincere
thanks for the award of a Shirley Farr Fellowship in
1960-1961, and to the American Philosophical Society
for a grant from the Penrose Fund in support of the
preparation of this volume. The generosity of Radcliffe
College made possible the privilege of living in the
Graduate Center as a Research Fellow during that
happy year of work in Widener Library.
Seite 7
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)PHYSIOGNOMICS
IN THE ANCIENT WORLD
ELIZABETH C. EVANS
ance as an aspect of characterization in classical
writers. These descriptions are, therefore, illuminating
and significant in the interpretation of the classics,
and of help in the study of personality in antiquity.
The important technical handbooks extant are:
CONTENTS
PAGE
Introduction ..................
.
I. The Treatises ..................
.
II. Philosophy and medicine ..........
..............
III. Drama ........................................
IV. Papyri; rhetorical theory and practice ......... .
V. History and biography ..........................
VI. Epic ..........................................
VII. Physiognomics in varied literary forms ............
I. Iambic, elegiac, and lyric poetry ......
........
II. Satire, epigram, and fiction; technical writings .. .
VIII. Physiognomics in the fourth century A.D. .....
.....
Abbreviations ..................
................
Appendices .....................................
Index .........................................
5
6
17
28
39
46
58
67
67
71
74
84
89
98
1. The Pseudo-Aristotelian Physiognomonica, third
century B.C.
2. The work of Polemo Rhetor of Laodicea, de
Physiognomonia, second century A.D.
3. The Physiognomonica of Adamantius the sophist, fourth century A.D.
4. An anonymous Latin handbook de Physiognomonia, probably of the fourth century A.D.
We may recall that Pythagoras, the Greek philosopher, of the sixth century B.C., is credited with
"inventing" the science, but that Galen regards "the
divine Hippocrates" as its originator. Later Greek
philosophers have much to say on the subject, among
them Plato and Aristotle, as well as the Stoics and
Epicureans in both Greece and Rome. The first systematic treatment of such material that has come
down to us is the little book ascribed to Aristotle. The
work is usually divided into two parts, each probably
composed by a writer in the school of Aristotle, or by
an author very strongly under his influence. At the
beginning of the first part of the Pseudo-Aristotle is a
clear statement of the principle on which the study
rests, namely "that dispositions follow bodily characteristics," and that, in turn, "the body suffers with
the affections of the soul." The Pseudo-Aristotelian
manual begins by discussing the methods that may
be employed in treating the subject, what each part
of the body may reveal as to character, and what comparisons may be made between men and animals in
this regard, especially in the case of the lion and the
panther. The interest in the "science" was especially
widespread at certain periods: (1) that period lasting
from the third through the first centuries B.C. (commonly known as the Hellenistic and Graeco-Roman
era); (2) the second century A.D. (when the popularity
of the subject was at its height); (3) the fourth century A.D. (a time of marked revival of interest). But
the "physiognomic consciousness" of classical authors
begins far earlier, i.e., with Homer, and from there on,
both in poetry and prose of classical literature, whenever personal characterization is involved, plays a
definite and significant role, varying in importance
according to the interests and purposes of authors.
The Pseudo-Aristotelian manual analyzes three methods applied to the study of physiognomics. The first
method concentrates upon physiognomical inferences
from a parallelism in physique and nature between
INTRODUCTION
The study of the relation of the features of a man
to his inner character is no modern development; for
in Greece and Rome there existed, at least during
certain periods of their literary history, a definite
interest in the subject, comparable to the vogue
associated with the name of Lavater (the Swiss
physiognomist and friend of Goethe) in the eighteenth
century. This interest had gained considerable impetus
through the influence of the Peripatetic and Stoic
schools of philosophy, and embraced a careful study
of the significance of the various aspects of the body
and a comparison of men and animals in the matter
of physique and nature.
This present study is centered on the place in antiquity of natural physiognomy, or the art of interpreting character from the physique. It is clear that
the technical handbooks on physiognomy enjoyed a
far greater popularity among Greek and Roman
writers, especially those of the later Greek society and
Roman Empire, than has generally been supposed.
As a quasi-science, it always bore a close relationship
to the science of medicine; as an art, to the practice
of rhetoric. It has also an obvious kinship with the
field of ancient portraiture.
It is because of the many ramifications of this general subject and the discernible interest in it of many
writers of antiquity that I have been encouraged to
undertake a wider consideration than has been previously attempted of the awareness, either implied or
expressed, of a connection between a man's appearance and his inner character as it is revealed in Greek
and Latin literature from the time of Homer to the
end of the fourth century after Christ, a century
which marks the end of the classical era, and the
beginning of the barbarian invasions; or, to put it
another way, of the descriptions of personal appearI)
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
men and animals of various kinds. The second, the are likewise silent on the subject. Plato, on the other
ethnological method, divides "men into races, in so hand, is filled with relevant observations, as is, of
far as they differ in appearance and in character" course, Aristotle. On the Latin side Cicero and Seneca,
(e.g., Egyptians, Thracians, and Scythians). The for example, have many comments, but Lucretius and
third method takes account of the varying facial Virgil almost none. Catullus and Horace (save for
expressions and "the dispositions which follow each," the latter's self-portrait) appear little influenced by
such as that of anger or fear. The present volume the physiognomical traditions, while Plautus, Ovid,
includes a study of the theory and practice of the Martial, Juvenal, and Apuleius are clearly familiar
first two methods, i.e., the formal side of physiognomy, with them. The same familiarity with physiognomical
and, to a lesser extent, of the third method, which traditions appears in the biographers, both Greek and
might be described as reflecting the "physiognomic Roman, and, to a considerable extent, among the Roconsciousness" of ancient authors, representing such man historians, especially in Ammianus Marcellinus.
diverse literary forms as epic, elegy and lyric, history
While the writers I have mentioned do not reflect
and biography, drama, philosophy, satire and fiction. the more formal tenets of the physiognomists, yet we
This study was started many years ago as a doctoral might say that "physiognomic consciousness" in the
dissertation, and published in Harvard Studies in descriptions of momentary physical appearance
Classical Philology 46 (1935) under the title "Descrip- abounds in many of these writers, and serves to
tions of Personal Appearance in Roman History and illumine the effect of physiognomic thinking upon the
Biography." Since that time I have carried forward art of characterization. These descriptions, therefore,
various parts of the investigation, and I have collected deserve to be examined along with the more strictly
a much larger body of material. The study is not, of systematic aspects of this quasi-science, and constitute
course, exhaustive. It is designed simply to draw the a part of it.
attention of readers of classical literature to the idea
Further, the study of the "physiognomic consciousof using descriptions of physique as an aid in the ness" in classical writers involves an analysis of the
analysis of character. I propose to trace in main out- ways used to describe physique. First, we may note
lines the significant developments in these techniques the method by which the body is described in general
in the ancient world. I have confined myself to the terms, in expressions like forma eximia, corpus ingens,
literary evidence. I have not attempted more than a which are a commonplace in literature, and in general
cursory examination of astrological physiognomy. As consist of descriptions, laudatory or otherwise, of the
for the interest of the Church Fathers in this field of permanent appearance of a man. Secondly, we find
physiognomics, while I have noted significant observa- the type in which the emotion of the individual
tions made by them on the subject, especially by the registered on the body or countenance is indicated by
writers of the fourth century A.D., I have preferred such phrases as laeto vultu, truci vultu. The second type
for the most part to remain within the limits of pagan occurs especially in panegyrics in which the dignity
literature. If these omissions and inclusions seem of the appearance and the nobility of the eyes are
arbitrary, they are nonetheless dictated by my desire lauded, or in vituperative attacks on enemies or opto provide a concise account of physiognomical theory ponents, and in expressions by which the momentary
and practice. Appendices have been added for various appearance of a man is depicted, i.e., in phrases which
authors when they contain noteworthy examples not suggest the reaction of a person to some event or
taken up in the text.
speech as it is reflected for a brief space upon the
If, from the foregoing discussion of the general body countenance. Thirdly, we meet the type in which the
of material bearing on the subject of physiognomics whole body is photographically described, as in the
in the ancient world, it should at this point be as- Lives of Suetonius. In connection with this third type
sumed by the reader that there is to be found con- (often called iconistic) we may consider physiognomy
sistency of statement on the formal-I emphasize the proper, that is, the formal principles of physiognomy
word formal-aspects of physiognomy in the major which are discussed by the theorists, and we may then
classical authors, that impression should be corrected go on to determine to what extent the ideas contained
in the light of the significant fact that the theorists in in these books were influential on the classical authors.
the field of classical physiognomy come relatively late
in date, beginning in the period of Aristotle and the
I. THE TREATISES
Pseudo-Aristotelian Physiognomonica. It is these theoin
rists who set down
orderly fashion what had long
As early as the Periclean Age a certain Zopyrus1
been informally observed and practiced. Consequently was claiming to be proficient in the field of
physioga survey of Forster's edition of the loci physiog- nomy. But it is not until the time of Aristotle
that we
nomonici will disclose little from Homer, almost hear a great deal of the technical aspects of the subnothing from Aeschylus and Sophocles, and a rela- ject. Aristotle has much to say on the theories of
tively small interest in Euripides and Aristophanes.
1 Cic. Fat. 5; Scholia in Pers. 5, 23-24.
Herodotus and Thucydides as well as the Attic orators
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)VOL. 59, PT. 5, 19691
THE TREATISES
physiognomy, especially in the Analytica Priora, De
Anima, Historia Animalium, and De Partibus Animalium. In the De GenerationeAnimalium2 he mentions without name one physiognomist, who, in his
lectures, reduced all faces to two or three animal
types-unhappily not named. This fact bears witness
to the existence of some formulated study of physiognomy in Aristotle's time, and to the acceptance of its
tenets.
A passage which from the point of view of logical
inference is of great importance for our study in the
Analytica Priora3 supplies a basis for Aristotle's
physiognomical theory.
It is possible to infer character from the physique (tr RI
kvouo'yvw/ovctvgvvaro6varv) if it is granted, [says Aristotle,] that body and soul change together in all natural
affections . . . (I mean such affections as fits of anger or
desires among natural excitements). Supposing,then, this
is granted, and also that there is one sign of one affection,
and that we can recognize the affection (7ra6Oos)
and sign
properto each class of creatures,we shall be able
(ang7Z,uCov)
to judge character from physical appearance. For if a
peculiar affection applies to any individual class, e.g.,
courage to lions, there must be some correspondingsign
for it; for it has been assumed that body and soul are
affected together. Let this be "having large extremities."
This may apply to other classes, but not as wholes; for a
sign is peculiarin the sense that the affection is peculiarto
the class as a whole, and not to it alone, as we are accustomed to use the term. Thus the same affection will be
found in another class also, and man or some other animal
will be brave. Therefore he will have the sign; for ex
hypothesithere is one sign of one affection. If, then, this is
so, and we can collate signs of this kind in the case of animals which have only one peculiar affection, and if each
affection has a sign, since it necessarily has only one sign,
we shall be able to judge character by their appearance.
But if the genus as a whole has two peculiar affections,
e.g., if lions have courage and a readiness to share, how
shall we decide which sign of those which are peculiarly
associated with the genus belongs to which affection?
Probably if both affections are found in some other class
not as a whole, that is, when of the classes in which each of
them is found, certain members possess one but not the
other [affection]. For if a man is brave but not generous,
and exhibits one of the two signs, clearly this will be the
sign of couragein the lion as well.
In analyzing this passage, W. D. Ross suggests
that Aristotle never expressly states that he means4
"the inferring of mental characteristics in men from
the presence in men of physical characteristics." The
implication that men is intended seems clear, however,
at the end of the passage (e.g., "and man or some other
animal will be brave") and is sustained in the Pseudo2Arist. Gen. An. 5, 3, 769 b. Cf. Rh. 1, 1430b.
3 An. Pr. 2, 27, 70b, 6-39. Trans. H. Tredennick, LCL.
4That Aristotle means to imply men is evident in certain passages of Pseud.-Arist. 805a. On methods assayed in the study
of physiognomy: "the first method takes as its basis for physiognomical inferences the various genera of animals, positing for
each genus a peculiar animal form, and consequently upon this a
peculiar mental character, and then assuming that if a man
resembles such and such a genus in form he will resemble it also
in soul" (trans. Tredennick). Cf. also 807a; 810a.
7
Aristotelian Physiognomonica I, to which Ross draws
attention. This discussion of Ovo-to7'pyuOVEZv
(to judge
men's character from their physical appearance) for
Aristotle serves essentially as an illustration of the
"conclusion" from an enthymeme eK 0,uA1xV (from
signs) which infers causes from effects, not effects
from causes.5
The little book, ascribed to Aristotle,6 ?VULoz,CovLK&
(Physiognomics), is the first systematic treatment of
such material that has come down to us. It7 comprises
six major sections which are usually subdivided into
two parts. These two divisions were probably composed by writers either belonging to the Peripatetic
School or at any rate strongly under its influence. The
two parts were apparently united to form a single
book because of the subject matter.8 The work begins
by describing the ways in which the study of physiognomy should be treated. The parts of the body which
reveal character, the physical appearance proper to
each state of mind (such as bravery, cowardice, wrath
or prudence, or their opposites), the physical appearance of the male and female, the minute comparisons
that may be made between the physique and behavior
of the male and female, and the physique and behavior of many kinds of animals, especially the lion
and the panther, and the aspects of character which
can be observed from the form of the face, the separate
parts of the body, the voice, the color, are all systematically treated.
At the beginning of this tract is a clear statement
of the basis on which the "science" of physiognomy
rests9: "Dispositions follow bodily characteristics and
are not in themselves unaffected by bodily impulses.
Conversely, that the body suffers sympathetically
with affections of the soul is evident in love, fear,
grief, and pleasure." "For no animal has ever existed
such that it has the form of one animal and the disposition of another, but the body and soul of the same
creature are always such that a given disposition
must necessarily follow a given form." This premise
serves as a preamble to Chapters I through 111.10At
Chapter IV the writer of the second half of the treatise starts afresh1": "It seems to me." he savs. "that
I W. D. Ross, Aristotle 5th
ed., (London, 1956), p. 41. An
enthymeme is described as a rhetorical syllogism (a syllogism
which orators tend to use) starting from probabilities (& E'LcT6wp)
or from signs (ix ayubwv) Pseud.-Arist. (805a; 807a; 810a).
6Edited by R. Forster, SP 1: pp. 1-91.
7For the unknown authorship of this work see Forster, SP 1:
prolegomena, pp. xviii-xxi.
Also V. Rose, Aristoteles Pseudepigraphus (Leipzig, 1863), p. 697.
8 R. F6rster, De Aristotelis quae feruntur
Physiognomonicorum
Indole ac Condicione in Philologische Abhandlungen . . . Martin
Hertz (Berlin, 1888), p. 284. Forster presents full documentation for this view.
9 805a (trans. W. S. Hett throughout, LCL).
10
Ibid., 808b.
11SP 1, prolegomena, p. xx. This Rose denies, De Aristotelis
Librorum Ordine et Auctoritate Commentatio (Berlin, 1854), p. 222,
but he gives no reasons for his opinions. That the sections were
Seite 10
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)soul and body react on each other; when the character
of the soul changes, it also changes the form of the
body, and, conversely, when the form of the body
changes, it changes the character of the soul." Interaction is, therefore, inevitable.
The methods used in this handbook are purely
empirical, and there is an imprecise mixture of deduction and induction throughout. The author of the
first section, having stated his premise, describes the
methods used in the past: the zoological, the ethnological, and the analysis of characteristic facial expressions
which are observed in varying conditions of mind.
He admits that all these methods are possible, but
insists that the last method is defective in that a man
changes his facial expression from time to time, from
cheerfulness to grief, for example, and that the inferences that can be drawn from such expressions are
relatively few. Inferences drawn from animals are
also subject to serious limitations, because common
mental characteristics provide the physiognomists
with no convincing evidence. Courage is not limited to
the lion, for example. What is necessary is to collect
all brave animals and then ask what sort of affections
belong to all of them and not to other animals. It is
important that the animals selected be very large in
number and that they do not possess any mental
characteristic in common other than the one whose
signs are being investigated.12
Physiognomy, according to the author of this, the
first part of the work, "has for its province, as the name
implies, all such natural affections of mental content,
as modify the external signs the physiognomists
interpret." Having determined the special province
of physiognomy, he then goes on to examine the
sources of its data, and to give a detailed account of
its more significant conclusions. The sources from
which physiognomic signs are drawn are13:movements
and gestures of the body, color, characteristic facial
expressions, growth of hair, smoothness of the skin,
the voice, the condition of the flesh, the parts of the
body, the build of the body as a whole. A more extended discussion14 follows of inferences from complexion, hair, flesh, movement, voice, gesture, and
expression. Then in the remaining paragraphs of the
first section the author reverses his analytical approach, and considers signs of courage, cowardice,
good disposition, dullness of sense, shamelessness,
put together at a later date may be inferred from the fact that
Polemo of Laodicea knew a fuller version of the two tracts united
in a single book and makes use of both parts. Cf. also examples
given by F6rster, De Arist. quaeferuntur Physiog. Ind. ac Condic.,
pp. 294-298.
12 Ibid., 805b-806a.
13 Ibid. After W. S. Hett and T. Loveday and E. S. Forster
throughout.
The observations are for the most part dis14 806b-808b.
connected and haphazard in arrangement. The asyndetic manner
of presentation seems to be characteristic of all the handbooks
we possess. Probably the authors are compiling their work from
several sources and pay little heed to formal organization of
material.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
well-ordered behavior, high spirits, low spirits, the
effeminate nature, harshness, hot temper, the gentle
disposition, dissembling, meanness of spirit, gambling
instincts, abusiveness, compassion, gluttony, lasciviousness, somnolence, and good memory. The inferences
here are for the most part drawn from observation
of human behavior rather than from comparison with
animal action. The treatment of courage gives a fair
example of the way in which the writer handles the
analysis"5: The signs include coarse hair, an upright
carriage of the body, size and strength in the bones,
sides, and extremities, a stomach broad and flat, a
sturdy, not overly fleshy neck, a chest that is broad
and fleshy, calves of the legs that are broad low down,
a gleaming eye, neither too wide nor too closed, a
rather dry skin, a sharp forehead, straight and not
large, neither very smooth nor very wrinkled.
The author of this part of the work concedes that
another approach to physiognomical interpretation is
quite possible. For example, suppose a man quick to
anger, hard to please, and small minded, is, by these
signs, jealous. It might be permissible for the physiognomist to identify the jealous man from other qualities. This is a method proper to those who are
philosophically trained,'6 since they, when they are
given certain premises, know how to recognize the
right conclusion in the face of given data. This would
indeed be the method suggested in the Analytica
Priora. It is best, the author adds, to make no positive assertions where signs are inconsistent and contrary to each other in detail; and above all to base
statements on species instead of entire genera, since
the species more closely resembles the individual and
it is with individuals that physiognomy is primarily
concerned, and not with the whole human race.
While the writer has ranged over the science of
physiognomics, he has not drawn his illustrations from
specific races, save in the case of the inhabitants of
the north, who are brave and stiff-haired, and those in
the south, who are cowardly and soft-haired."7 Nor
does he include specific individuals except for the
otherwise unidentified Dionysius, the sophist."8 The
small-minded have small limbs, small delicate bodies,
small eyes and small faces, like a Corinthian or a
Leucadian,19but the reason for the characterization of
these particular Greeks is not indicated.
At Chapter IV, as we have pointed out, the manual
begins anew. Since soul and body are sympathetically
affected by each other, changes in both can be brought
about simultaneously, as in the case of madness,20
which doctors can cure in some circumstances by
administering drugs and courses of diet, and thus
16 807a-b.
'1 807a.
17 806b.
18
808a.
18 808a.
Cf. F6rster, however, ibid., p. 302.
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THE TREATISES
treating both body and soul. The parallelism which
exists between human behavior and that of animals
is of great importance in deducing the inward nature
from outer appearance. In all such cases the deductive method21 is vital to proper procedure. The whole
animal kingdom may be divided for physiognomical
purposes into two physical types, the male and the
female.22 In all animals the female is tamer and
gentler, less powerful, more easily trained, and more
manageable, perhaps thereby less spirited, but more
mischievous, and, though feebler, more reckless. The
head of the female is smaller, her face narrower, her
neck thinner, her chest weaker, her sides smaller;
while hips and thighs are fuller, she is knock-kneed,
thinlegged and more delicate of foot. The proportion
of her body is pleasing rather than imposing, she is
less strong, and-here is a hint of the theory of the
humors-of a moister tissue. The males are the opposite of all this. They are braver and more upright,
while the female is more cowardly and deceitful.
At the end of the short tract23 the writer remarks
that in every selection of signs some merit more careful
consideration than others. The clearest signs are in
the so-called major parts of the body. The principal
place, however, is the area around the eyes and forehead, head and face. The next most important is the
part around the chest and shoulders. Following in
importance is the part around the legs and feet, least
in importance that around the belly. It is obvious
that those principal parts give the clearest evidence
of the existence of intelligence.
In the light of the foregoing it may be interesting
to observe the way in which the lion is described24as
exhibiting the male type in its most perfect form:
good-sized mouth, square face not too bony, nose
rather thick, gleaming eyes deeply set, of moderate
size, neither too round nor too long, a brow of the
right size, the forehead square, and somewhat hollowed
from the center, and hanging as a kind of cloud over
the eyebrows and nostrils beneath the forehead, a
head of moderate size, a neck of good length and
broad, a tawny mane neither too stiff nor too curly.
Around the collar bone he is loosely rather than
tightly built, his shoulders are strong and his chest
powerful, his trunk broad and well articulated. There
is no superfluous flesh on the haunches or sides, his
legs are strong and sinewy, and his whole frame well
knit and taut, neither too hard nor too moist. He
walks slowly, moving in a majestic way, and rolling
his shoulders. Such is his physical appearance, and in
soul he is generous and liberal, noble, and a lover of
victory, yet gentle and just and affectionate toward
those with whom he is associated.
Of the animals which appear to be brave, the
panther is, except in the matter of the formation of
its legs, the most feminine. With these legs, however,
it accomplishes feats of bravery. It has a small face,
a large mouth, small, rather light eyes, hollow, yet
also flat. Its forehead is long, curved rather than flat
around the ears; it has a very long and thin neck, a
narrow chest, and a long back, loins and hips thick
and fleshy, while the parts around the ribs and the
belly are flat; it has a mottled complexion, and a body
as a whole ill-articulated and ill-proportioned. This
is the form of the body, and in soul it is small and
furtive, and, in general, tricky.
The treatise goes on to discuss those signs which,
though primarily associated with animals, become of
importance for the study of physiognomics. The signs
accepted for human characterization follow: "Now the
selection of signs as far as human beings is concerned,
is made as follows," a statement which suggests the
existence of a well-established position for physiognomical manuals which are concerned with the new
science of physiognomics based on semeiotics, or inference of character from outward signs.
The discussion25 then turns to specific parts of the
body,26 which could be checked by anyone consulting
various sections for reference: feet, ankles, lower leg,
knee, thighs, buttocks, waist, belly, back, sides, chest,
shoulders, collar bone, neck, lips, nose, face, eyes,
forehead, head as a whole, ears. Treatment of color,
hairiness, steps, gesture, mobility of eyes, voice, and
stature follows. Above all the greatest significance is
attributed to right proportions in the human body.27
An ill-proportioned body (a-ocua
aLThperpov) indicates
a rogue, while a well-proportioned frame is characteristic of upright and brave men. Many of the
characteristics listed and analyzed are referred to
the male and female types dealt with at the beginning.
Parallelisms with animals are made far more frequently than in the first part of the tract. The intermediate size, shape, or color is emphasized, as in the
example of the color of skin. Too swarthy a hue marks
a coward, as in the case of the Egyptians and Ethiopians.28 Very woolly hair (again with reference to the
Ethiopians) indicates cowardice. The remarks which
have to do with the proper gesture for the hand,
elbow, and arm suggest the importance of this subject
in the art of rhetoric. Those with stiff and straight
shoulders, who swing from side to side, are blusterers
inviting comparison with horses. Those who stoop
forward and at the same time roll the shoulders are
26 Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," p. 107. Miss Misener points
out that the Characters of Theophrastus, the Peripatetic literary
biography, and the physiognomical handbooks are, in great part,
"the applied ethics and psychology of the master."
26
21809a.
22 Ibid.
23
814a.
24 809b-813b.
9
810a-813b.
These are the only two peoples the author undertakes in connection with an analogy for races rather than individuals.
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)great-minded like lions. To keep turning the body,
and bending it, is a sign of obsequiousness, for it is the
bearing of the flatterer.
The section on stature shows the obvious influence
of the humoral theories of the Hippocratic school and
the ideas expressed by Aristotle in the De Partibus
Animalium. Men of normally small height are quick,
because the flow of blood29 must cover a small area,
and because it moves rapidly to the seat of the intelligence, i.e., the heart. Small men with dry tissues do
not have persistence. This also is true of those of the
color that heat produces in the body, since the effect
of the blood flowing within a limited space and rapidly
is to prevent them from keeping their thoughts on a
single topic, and to force them to go on to something
new. Big men, with moist tissue and a complexion
derived from cold, lack persistence, since their blood
flows slowly and the body is itself cold, so that the
blood does not reach the seat of the intelligence.
Small men, however, with moist tissue, and a color
resulting from cold tend to carry out their purposes.
For movement is within a small area, and the difficulty
of movement serves to accomplish the initial intent.
Large men with dry flesh and a complexion produced
by heat accomplish their purpose and are keen of
sense. For warmth of flesh and of color counterbalance
the excess of size so that these men achieve the proportion necessary to the completion of their purpose.
Again it is the intermediate in stature that is best,
because it assures the capacity of a man to finish
what he has set out to do, and is identified with the
sense of perception, for the reason that the movement
of the blood, since it does not have to travel far to
reach the seat of intelligence, and is not confined to
too small a space and does not pass beyond it. "In a
word," concludes the handbook, "these regions supply
the clearest signs in which there is the greatest evidence of intelligence."30
The "science" of physiognomy becomes established
in this fashion, therefore, in the period of Aristotle
and his immediate successors, and assumes thereafter
a vigorous role in the study of personality and the
art of characterization in ancient literature.
Included among the epigrams ascribed to Theocritus3"is an epitaph of a certain Eusthenes, "skilled
to infer the character of the mind from the eye."
6
i-.t a.
4Ulva'cuVw.
Euvoos ro ,TO
ro zo',qpa,ua0e?v.
KacL
a4r'o64aXptoiv
&b'vo6s
co-urrin
29 813a.
In the first section of the treatise (806b) the writer
suggests that gesture and varieties of expression are considered
according to their relation to a given state of mind.
30 814b.
31See A. S. T. Gow, Theocritus (2v., Cambridge, 1952), 11
ad loc. for text, translation and comment. This epigram he believes is quite possibly by Theocritus, though it also occurs under
the name of Leonidas of Tarentum in the Anthologia Palatina
7, 661. See Forster, SP 2, pp. 316-317.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
Eusthenes was a cOoto-r's in this skill, a professional
physiognomist, and not a philosopher or rhetor concerned theoretically with the tenets of the subject.
He was clearly an expert-ba6vo-and
may well
have plied his art for payment. The important point
about this epitaph is the fact that it undoubtedly
belongs to the third century B.C. and reflects in its
own way the professional status of these studies.
Apart from Zopyrus, who is said to have physiognomized Socrates, he is the first figure recorded by
name as having received formal recognition for proficiency in the field. If it is true, and I believe it is
that the Peripatetic manual ascribed to Aristotle is to
be assigned to the third century B.C., it becomes clear
that the popularity of the science increased markedly
in the course of the Hellenistic Age. It was surely a
period rich and diverse in literary activity, and the
science of physiognomy began to come into its own.
Furthermore, the figure of Loxus, a professional
writer on physiognomics, may be assigned to this
period.
Our knowledge of Loxus is derived chiefly from his
physiognomical writings quoted in the anonymous
Latin tract of the fourth century A.D. The Latin
writer has for the most part followed Polemo (employing, however, a shorter version of Polemo's tract
than the one we now possess) and the Pseudo-Aristotelian treatise.
The date of Loxus has been analyzed by Geneva
Misener32in an article in which she discusses at length
the place of Loxus in the science of physiognomy. In
her view it seems clear that Loxus is committed to
Empedocles' earlier idea that the blood is the seat of
the soul. It is the middle krasis or "mixture" of the
blood that constitutes the best blended soul of intelligence and courage. In this respect she believes that
he is halfway between Empedocles and Aristotle, in
that he considers both physical and mental aspects
of the movement of the blood, but does not advance
beyond the early fifth-century idea that there is no
psychic center in a specific organ, but rather that
consciousness is diffused through the body by blood.
She argues, therefore, that it is impossible to date
him, as Fbrster does, as a physician of the third century B.C. Loxus' approach to the subject involving
the consideration of physiology as well as from the observation of animals, she concludes, precedes Aristotle.
In his theory of the "perfect temperament" and in
the differentiation of sex he comes before the psychological thinking of Aristotle, and anticipates the PseudoAristotelian tract, which borrows from Aristotle and
accepts a theory of temperaments belonging to a
much later period. His influence on later physiognomical writers can be discerned in the study of the
hair in the late Latin handbook, and in the description of certain tyDical characters. The accumulated
32 G. Misener, "Loxus, Physician and Physiognomist,"
(1923): pp. 1-22.
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THE TREATISES
evidence seems to point, according to Miss Misener,
to the late fifth or early fourth century as a date for
this figure. Her arguments should be examined in the
light of the Aristotelian treatment of the subject
(discussed in the next chapter), and related more fully
to the Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook.
The correctness of F6rster's dating the Latin work
in the third century B.C. iS, I believe, strongly supported by certain clues within the work itself. First
of all, there is the strong Stoic interest in the subject
of physiognomy, which accounts for its popularity in
the later Greek world. Cleanthes, successor to Zeno
(330-231 B.C.), is reported by Diogenes Laertius33 to
have detected a cinaedus by his sudden sneezing.
This anecdote is referred to briefly by the Latin
compiler34 without name as "alius sternutamento
subito virum se esse non confessus est," and is assigned
to the Loxus source of the handbook by Forster, since
it occurs immediately before the mention of Loxus'
name. Another point which would link the thinking
of Loxus35 with that of Cleanthes is the statement
that from the appearance of the body the quality of
the soul may be changed, just as a breath infused
into a pipe, or a flute or a trumpet. For while breath
blown into the pipe or the flute or the trumpet is uniform, yet the pipe or the flute or the trumpet gives
forth diverse sounds. In Seneca36 the same idea is
referred to Cleanthes in allusion to the approaches to
philosophy. "As our breath produces a louder sound
when it passes through the long and narrow opening
of the trumpet and escapes by a hole which widens at
the end, even so the fettering rules of poetry clarify
our meaning."
Important, too, for our consideration is the statement that Loxus believes that the blood is the seat
of the soul. While Miss Misener clearly associates
this view with Empedocles, and believes that Loxus,
if dated later, would be out of line with contemporary
thought, she does not take into account the fact that
the Stoic Diogenes the Babylonian (ca. 240-152 B.C.),
pupil of Chrysippus and successor to Zeno of Tarsus
as head of the school, held much the same view. The
soul was regarded by the Stoics either as fire, or as
warm breath, diffused throughout the body, just as
the soul of the world is spread through the cosmos.
The warm breath was connected with the blood, and
Galen is our authority for Diogenes' view that the
soul was fed by the vapors of the blood, as the stars
are fed by vapors from the earth. The seat of the soul
was in the breast, not the brain, according to
Diogenes.37
337,
123.
342, 20, 8.
35 2, 4-5.
36Ep. 108, 10 (trans. R. M. Gummere, LCL).
37 See R. Forster, "De Loxi Physiognomonia,"
Rh M 43,
(1888), N.F.: pp. 505-511. F6rster, De Polemonis Physiognomicis (Kiel, 1886), passim, especially page 6 and note 1 for references.
11
Finally, Loxus substitutes Celts for Scythians in
his ethnological physiognomy. Where Pseudo-Aristotle38 speaks of three groups of Egyptians, Thracians,
and Scythians, Loxus in a corresponding discussion
mentions Egyptians, Celts, and Thracians. Scythians
are regularly cited in the Greek authors39of the fifth
and fourth centuries, and the Celts seem to be substituted at a later date and taken over by the physiognomists. The impact of the invasion of Greece by the
Celts in 280 B.C. may suggest why Loxus made this
substitution. If, then, we accept the third-century
date for Loxus, we must remove him from the discussion of the end of the fifth or the beginning of the
fourth century, and place him properly in the Hellenistic Age when we find an enormous interest in the
formal aspects of physiognomy.
With the second century A.D. we come, so far as the
classical world is concerned, to a climax of demonstrable popularity of the subject of physiognomics.
Because of his great importance in the history of
this field we must first consider Polemo of Laodicea.
This man was probably born in the year 88 A.D. at
Laodicea in Asia Minor and died about 145 A.D.
While still a youth he went to Smyrna to study
rhetoric-the teaching of which he later took up as his
profession-and became the distinguished declamator
of Smyrna. Of the men under whom he studied,
Philostratus40mentions Timocrates, Euphrates, Scopelian, and Dio Chrysostom. He was a contemporary
of Herodes Atticus, a bitter enemy of Favorinus, and
he numbered among his own pupils the Greek orator
Aristides. So esteemed was he by the citizens of
Smyrna that he quickly achieved high honors there.
It was about the year 113 A.D. that he was sent, so
Philostratus tells us,41 in place of Scopelian as ambassador to Rome to the Emperor Trajan, from whom he
obtained the right to travel free of expense by land
and sea.42 During the reign of Hadrian he achieved
his greatest triumphs. Of his friendship with the
emperor we have some information from the Arabic
version of his work on physiognomy, in which he
describes a journey43 which he took with Hadrian in
805a.
39Herod. 4, 1; Hipp. Airs, Waters, and Places 6, 91; 94; 113;
Plato, Rep. 4, 436; Arist. Gen. An. 5, 3; Strabo 1, 33; 11, 507.
40 For a careful study of his life and career see H. Juttner,
"De Polemonis rhetoris vita operibus arte," in Breslauer Philologische Abhandlungen 8, heft 1 (1902): pp. 1-116. Cf. VS 1, 536;
539. The principal ancient source for Polemo's life in this work.
41 Ibid. 1, 521.
42 Ibid. 1, 532.
43 Frster, SP 1: p. 138 (translated from the Arabic by G.
Hoffman): "etenim aliquando regem maximum comitabar. dum
igitur cum eo ex Braqa in Asiam proficiscimur, comitantibus
regem exercitibus et navibus vir iste se iis adiunxit. praeteriimus
autem multa oppida donec ad mare pervenimus. tum ille in Bufn
et Alsrfis et regiones Lydiae et Phrygiae et multa loca vectus est.
deinde in Asiam revertimur per fretum in mari et ad Rfukhs
adpulit. deinde navigiis in Anis profectus est et in hoc itinere
naves maritimae regi obviam venire coeperunt. itaque cum in
Asiam pervenissemus ad illum virum deverti." He describes the
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find that, when Hadrian came to Athens and dedicated the great temple of Olympian Zeus, Polemo44
delivered the oration. Through Polemo's friendship
with the emperor, furthermore, the city of Smyrna
received many gifts and special attentions from
Hadrian.45 Under Antoninus Pius we hear less of his
activities.4" But in A.D. 143 he came to Italy, where,
in the presence of Marcus Aurelius, he delivered a
number of orations.47 Though Jiittner48 states that
he was considered "sophistarum Asianorum quasi
princeps," we do not know a great deal of his own
school of rhetoric. Of his book on physiognomy,
written in Greek, which Juittner regards as his most
important work, we have the Arabic translation mentioned above, the Greek paraphrase of Adamantius of
Alexandria, and a later anonymous Latin version.
To both parts of the little tract attributed to Aristotle
Polemo was much indebted. He especially followed
the lead of Aristotle in showing close parallelisms between men and animals. The significance of each part
of the body he treated with rather greater elaborateness than did the authors of the Pseudo-Aristotelian
manual. At least one-third of his work is devoted to
the subject of the eyes. His importance in the field of
physiognomy is clear from the fact that in treatises
of later periods his name occurs repeatedly.49 From
his rhetorical work, unfortunately, only two speeches
remain and they give no adequate indication of the
high regard in which he was held in his own day as one
of the distinguished leaders of the New Sophistic.
While Polemo in his handbook on physiognomy was
largely indebted to the earlier Pseudo-Aristotelian
tract, he also achieved considerable reputation for his
own contribution to this field of study. One of the
striking features of the work is the use of examples
chosen to illustrate the theories set forth, drawn from
his personal observation of people of his own day.
Mesk's50 careful study of these illustrations reveals
eyes of the Emperor Hadrian (Forster SP 1: p. 148): "sunt certe
oculi Hadriani imperatoris huius generis nisi quod luminis pulchri
pleni sunt atque charopi acres obtutu, cum inter homines visus
non sit quisquam luminosiore praeditus oculo." See note 51,
below.
44 Philostr. ibid. 1, 533.
46
Ibid. 1, 531.
Despite the fact that Philostratus tells us that Polemo once
turned the future emperor, at that time proconsul of all Asia,
out of his house, Antoninus Pius apparently did not bear it against
him. 1, 534.
46
47
Fronto, Ep. 2, 5.
48 Juttner, p. 20.
49 See the article by Josef Mesk, "Die Beispiele in Polemons
Physiognomonik," in Wiener Studien 50 (1932): pp. 51-67.
pp.
60 Mesk, "Die Beispiele in Polemons Physiognomonik,"
51-67. Among unnamed contemporaries the man from Qwrnyn
(Pol. 138) is probably to be identified as Lusius Quietus, one of
the consulars who plotted against Hadrian. See A. Von Premerstein, "Das Attentat der Konsulare auf Hadrian im Jahre 118 n.
Chr.," Klio Beiheft 8 (1908): pp. 46-71; cf. a note by J. Carcopino,
"Lusius Quietus i'homme de Qwrnyn," Istros 1 (1934): pp. 5-9,
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
their considerable value as a source of information
about Polemo's contemporaries. Under the topic of
the eyes he cites examples from the past only twice.
The rest come from the study of unnamed contemporaries such as a man from Cyrene, two from Lydia,
one from Corinth, and indeed from people all over the
eastern Mediterranean basin. In a similar fashion
Polemo provides observations for other parts of the
body. Though Polemo devotes a great deal of attention to the eyes, he by no means ignores other parts
of the body. After full consideration of the importance
of the eyes, he moves in ascending order from signs
of the nails and the feet to the head, then to those of
color and complexion, hair over the whole body, movement of limbs and mode of walking, to a brief discussion of breathing and the use of the voice. Nor does he
neglect that branch of the study by which various
races are distinguished through differences of appearance and character. It is quite clear, likewise, that he
could make use of physiognomy for the purpose of
encomium and invective. His laudatory description
of the Emperor Hadrian appears under the topic of
the eyes. "For eyes," he says,5" "that are clear and
shining are good, unless other signs corrupt them. .
Of this type surely are the eyes of the Emperor
Hadrian, . . . gleaming, moist, keen, large, full of
light."
At the same time one reads his caustic description
of the eyes of Favorinus of Arles, an intimate friend
of Plutarch, and a sophist who likewise enjoyed the
powerful patronage of Hadrian. This man came to
Rome fairly early in his career, but he spent many
years in Asia Minor. There a bitter quarrel arose between him and Polemo in Ionia, because the people
of Ephesus favored Favorinus, and those of Smyrna,
Polemo.52 Polemo, therefore, describes with utter
contempt the physical weaknesses of a man who was
from the land of the Celts.53 He was lustful, says
Polemo, and dissolute beyond all measure. His eyes
belonged to the type found in the basest men, for
when the eye is open, and possesses a brilliance such
as that of marble, and when the vision is sharp, these
signs, he declares, bespeak much shamelessness.54 He
to the effect that Qwrnyn is to be identified with either Cyrene
or Cerne.
61 Pol. 148. The anonymous Latin handbook on physiognomy
found in this statement in F6rster SP 1; pp, 51-52: "unde intellegendum est optimos esse contrarios id est perlucidos oculos,
si nullum extat aliud indicium quod impugnet. tales Palemon
auctor refert fuisse oculos Hadriani imperatoris: xaporovs,
humidos, acres, magnos, luminis plenos." See note 43, above.
52 Philostr. VS 1, 8, 490.
This quarrel continued in Rome.
6 Pol. 160-162.
The name of Favorinus is not mentioned, but
he can be identified from Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 57-58: "oculi.
a Palemone quidem auctore referuntur, qui eunuchum sui
temporis fuisse hunc hominem descripsit. nomen quidem non
posuit, intelligitur autem de Favorino eum dicere."
4 Pol. 160: "ubi oculus apertus est habetque coruscationem
qualem marmor habet, acie acuta, parum pudicitiae indicat."
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THE TREATISES
then proceeds to attribute to Favorinus the pitiful
physical characteristics of a eunuch.55
Maximus of Tyre, one of the popular lecturers of
the second century, reflects the general interest of the
rhetorical and sophistic writers of this period in the
subject of physiognomy, when he discusses the proper
delivery of an oration:
But from the screechingof the eagle, or the roaringof the
lion, though painful to the hearing, one may recognize the
strength of that which produces the sound. If, therefore,
the sound of a man may not prove to be more insignificant
and weakerthan the roaringof a lion and the screechof the
eagle, will it not be worth while to hunt out by the hearing
whether the sound comes from a nightingale,whose tongue
is fragile and whose tone is ephemeral,or from an eagle, or
some other animal, masculineand full of power? Zopyrus
skilled in recognizing the character from what met the
eyes when he surveyed the parts of the body, was able to
prophesy from what was seen the nature of the soul, although by an obscure kind of foretelling,-yet the condition of the soul may be divined, [and] we must track out
by hearing the character of the soul.56
This passage, when considered in conjunction with
the later descriptions of the sophists' appearance
while speaking before the public, throws a good deal
of light on the use of the principles of physiognomy in
this group. Both Cicero and Quintilian saw an important connection between the idea that the countenance is the image of the mind and the proper training
of the orator in actio and pronuntiatio.57 Philostratus,
whose Vitae Sophistarum was written in the early
decades of the third century, devoted himself conscientiously to the great figures immediately preceding
his generation, especially the contemporaries, Herodes
Atticus and Polemo.58 Of the latter he writes:
the scenic effects which he employed in his declamations
we may learn from Herodes,since they are describedin one
of the letters that he wrote to Varus, and I will relate them
from that source. He would come forwardto declaim with
a countenance serene and full of confidence. His utterance was clear and incisive, and there was a fine ringing
sound in the tones of his voice.
Herodes says also that he used to rise to such a pitch
of excitement that he would jump up from his chair
when he came to the most striking part of his argument, and whenever he rounded off a period he would
utter the final clause with a smile (ovv etb8adcart), as
though to show clearly that he could deliver it without effort, and at certain places in the argument he
would stamp the ground just like the horse in Homer.
66 Lucian presents a similar description of this sophist in less
caustic terms. Demon. 12-13; Eun. 7. Cf. Philostr. VS 1, 8, 489.
It is of significance to note that
5625.3 (ed. H. Hobein).
Maximus of Tyre is probably to be identified with Cassius Maximus, the friend of Artemidorus, to whom he dedicated the first
three books of the Oneirocriticus. See C. Blum, Studies in the
Dream-book of Artemidorus (Upsala, 1936), p. 23, and cf. below
pp. 73-74.
57 Cf. Chapter IV, pp. 40-42.
Cf.
68 VS 1, 25, 37 (trans. W. C. Wright, throughout LCL).
Hom. II. 6, 507.
13
Polemo59 contracted "his proud and haughty temper,"60we are told, from Timocrates, the philosopher,
with whom he was associated for four years in Ionia,
and whom he called "the father of my eloquence.'9
That association may well have had an influence on
Polemo's later physiognomical studies, as Timocrates
early "devoted himself to the study of writings on
medicine and was well versed in the theories of Hippocrates."62 Galen,63the great medical writer, is quoted
as the main source of our knowledge that Hippocrates
was regarded as the founder of the science of
physiognomy.
Another reason for Polemo's interest in the field of
physiognomy was surely Dio Chrysostom's avowed
belief in the validity of its principles. Dio, the beloved
teacher of Polemo, likewise enjoyed the devoted
patronage of Hadrian. Of the various passages64 that
19 For other sophists contemporary with Polemo see the description of Favorinus while speaking. Philostr. VS 1, 8, 491.
"When he delivered discourses in Rome, the interest in them was
universally so much so that even those in his audience who did
not understand the Greek language, shared in the pleasure that
he gave; for he fascinated them by the tones of his voice, by his
expressive glance and the rhythm of his speech." Cf. also VS 1,
25, 542. There is a brief description of Herodes Atticus VS 2,
1, 504. Scopelian, another teacher of Polemo, is skillfully
delineated in Philostr. VS 1, 21, 519. This tendency to describe
the appearance in public of sophists of this period is to be observed further: Marcus of Byzantium (Philostr. VS 1, 24, 528);
Aristocles of Pergamum (VS 2, 3, 567); Varus of Perge (VS 2, 6,
576); Philagrus of Cilicia (VS 2, 8, 580 ff.); Adrian the Phoenician
of Tyre (VS 2, 10, 587); Alexander of Seleucia (VS 2, 5, 570).
60 Philostr. VS 1, 25, 535.
61Ibid., VS 1, 25, 536.
62 Ibid.
6 Anim Mor. Corp. Temp. Kuhn 4, 797-798.
But see later
p. 24.
64 Passages in Dio suggesting the influence of physiognomy
are: 7, 33; 8, 30; 30, 4; 31, 162; 32, 29; 32, 54; 32, 74; 33, 17; 49,
12; 62, 6; 63, 4. In the famous debate by Prodicus on Heracles
at the Crossroads the description of Basileia and Tyrannis in
Dio 1, 69-84 and the description of Virtue and Pleasure in Maximus of Tyre 14, 1 bespeak an interest in physical appearance as
related to character. More important for our purpose is the
fairly often quoted passage on certain citizens of Tarsus in Dio's
First Tarsic Oration (33, 53) which obviously shows familiarity
with the doctrines of the physiognomists and which is followed
by the story of a man "who had made it his special business to
recognize instantly the character of each individual ind to be able
to describe his qualities, and had never failed with any person"
(trans. H. Lamar Crosby throughout, LCL). The account of the
recognition of a cinaedus which directly follows this statement is
also told in Diogenes Laertius, 7, 173, of Cleanthes, the Stoic
Dio
philosopher, who was skilled in the art of physiognomy.
Chrysostom undoubtedly took his story from some Stoic source.
Cf. also 33, 49-51. Finally we may mention Dio's portrait of
himself (12, 15). In this great Olympic oration, dealing with
man's first conception of God, Dio refers to himself as follows:
"But notwithstanding I declare to you . . . great as is your
number you have been eager to hear a man who is neither handsome in appearance nor strong, and in age is already past his
prime, one who has no disciple . . . but who simply wears his
hair long" (trans. J. W. Cohoon throughout, LCL). Cf. Orations 35, 2 and 72, 2, where Dio refers in derisive tones to long
hair as the mark of the philosopher. In connection with 35, 3
Dio declares: "However, I fear that fools get no good from their
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)might be cited from Dio's speeches that are pertinent
to the subject, I should like to call attention to one in
particular. In the fourth oration65 on Kingship,
Alexander the Great is represented as conversing with
Diogenes on the subject of the real king and the
cleverness of artists in depicting their subjects. Dio
continues: "Let us then show ourselves to be no whit
worse or less competent in the field of discourse than
they (the artists) in their several arts, as we mould
and depict the characters of the three spirits of the
three lives," namely the three prevailing types of
lives which the majority adopt (the first, luxurious
and self-indulgent; the second, acquisitive and avaricious; the third, conspicuous and disordered, loving
honor and glory)therein displaying an accomplishment the reverse of and
complementaryto the skill and propheticart of the physiognomists, as they call them, these men who can determine
and announce a man's character from his shape and appearance; while we propose to draw from a man's habits
and acts, a type and shape, that will match the physiognomists' work.
Polemo seems to have eclipsed in reputation Loxus
and all other ancient authorities on the subject save
Aristotle, and to have received the highest acclaim
among later writers. Unfortunately none of our
manuals on physiognomy is completely preserved.
A brief summary of the topics treated in Polemo's
seventy chapters follows:
The first chapter deals with physiognomy and the
signs of the eyes (Forster SP 1, 107-170). Chapter II
discusses the likenesses which exist between man and
other animals, four-footed creatures, birds, and those
that creep on the ground, and in what respect there
is distinction between the male and female. It is not
possible to see any human being, for whom there is
not a likeness in nature to a beast. He deals with
some ninety-two animals, including the horse, the
ass, the ox, the deer, the lion, the dog, the monkey,
the goose, the wolf, the tortoise, the snake, the owl,
the peacock, and the cock, and their characteristics
(SP 170-198).
Chapters III-XXX considers the
physiognomical significance of III, the signs of the
nails; IV, the fingers; V, the feet; VI, the signs between the ankles and the shins; VII, the signs of the
shins; VIII, the knees; IX, the signs of the loins and
thighs; X, the signs of the hip-bones; XI, the signs
of the back; XII, the signs of the bending of the
back; XIII, the signs of the sides; XIV, the stomach;
long hair, not even if they get shaggy to the very heart-as in the
case of Aristomenes, the Messenian, who caused a great deal of
trouble for the Spartans, and who, though taken captive many
times, always managed to escape from them-he, we are told,
when at last he met his death, was found to be in that condition"
(trans. H. Lamar Crosby throughout, LCL). The physiognomical interpretation of the hairy heart is to be found in Pliny the
Elder, HN 11, 184-185, where it is stated that such people are
exceptionally brave and resolute, and the same story is told of
Aristomenes.
65 4, 87-88.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
XV, the signs of the space between the navel and the
chest; XVI, the signs of the chest; XVII, the breasts;
XVIII, the space between the shoulder blades and
shoulders; XIX, the signs of the space between the
collar bone, and the chest; XX, the signs of the
shoulder blades; XXI; the signs of the upper arm and
the forearm; XXII, the signs of the hands; XXIII,
the neck; XXIV, the chin; XXV, the mouth and
lips; XXVI, the nose; XXVII, the signs of the space
between the eyes; XXVIII, the signs of the face and
forehead; XXIX, the ears; XXX, the head (SP 198236). At Chapter XXX, the treatment shifts to:
XXXI, the nations of the world; XXXII, the appearance of northern people; XXXIII, the southern
people; XXXIV, the eastern and western people;
XXXV, the "pure" Greek race (SP 236-244).
At Chapter XXXVI Polemo turns to the color of
the whole body and continues with the subject of
color through Chapter XXXIX (SP 244-248), including XXXVII, the color of the chest and its signs;
XXXVIII, the color of the face and its signs; XXXIX,
the color of the pupil and its signs. At Chapter XL,
he takes up hair and its signs; XLI, the color of hair
and its signs; XLII, the amount of hair on the shins;
XLIII, the signs of hair on the hips and the thighs;
XLIV, hair on the chest and the stomach; XLV, hair
on the shoulders and the parts in between; XLVI,
hair on the body; XLVII, the amount of hair from
neck to head; XLVIII, hair on the eyebrows (SP
248-256). At Chapter XLIX he treats briefly the
signs of the movements of individual limbs; L, walking, pace, and gesticulation; LI, breathing; LII, the
voice (SP 248-268). The rest of the treatise (Chapters
LIII-LXX: SP 268-292) is concerned with the signs
of various types of men; LIII, a robust, daring man;
LIV, a timid man; LV, a man devoted to literature
and philosophy; LVI, a man lacking zeal and curiosity; LVII, a shameless man; LVIII, a man delighting
in apparel and head dress; LIX, a judicious and
prudent man; LX, a man very sad and downcast;
LXI, an androgynous and effeminate man; LXII, a
modest man, LXIII, a jeering man; LXIV, a man
loving to collect money; LXV, a spiteful and foolish
man; LXVI, a man of bitter mind; LXVII, a man
close to the end of life without apparent disease;
LXVI II, the sign of a man over whom evil and
calamity unexpectedly hang; LXIX, the mark of
women toward any man who is alien to love; LXX,
the sign of a man pretending great calamities before
any of them have touched him.
Chapter XXXV dealing with the Greeks and their
"pure" race is characteristic of Polemo's discussion of
ethnographical physiognomy. No other "race" is
mixed with them. The "pure" Greek is of moderate
and erect stature, of fair face with light complexion
mixed with red; he is lean with hands and elbows of
moderate size, watchful, quick to learn, with mediumsized head, with thickness and strength in the neck,
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THE TREATISES
soft reddish hair, not only curly, but combed and
straight, with a square countenance, thin lips, a
moderate straight nose, moist, shining eyes, which
move quickly and contain much light. Likewise the
man devoted to literature and philosophy (Chapter
LV) has much in common with the pure, idealized
Greek. He is of moderate and erect stature, of fair
complexion mixed with red, his hair verging on yellow,
neither curly nor shaggy, his build compact, with
neither too much nor too little flesh, strong calves,
thighs, and shins, full arms, strong and long and wellspaced fingers, a large face not, however, thin, with
tightly drawn skin and with moist and shining eyes,
filled with joy. Such then is the range of Polemo's
handbook.
In the fourth century we find a marked renewal of
interest in the field. While the subject may not have
enjoyed the popularity in this century that it attained
in the second century A.D., there are clear indications
that it was received with more widespread attention
then in the third. The growing concern with the subject may be correlated with, and, to a certain extent,
explained by trends and development of the period.
In the first place, there was the appearance of a new
handbook and technical treatises (including medical
treatises to be handled in Chapter VIII) on the subject. In the second place, we find certain historians
such as Ammianus Marcellinus taking a decided interest in the principles of physiognomy and making
use of them in their writings. Curiously enough, the
Emperor Julian, who is the subject of physiognomical
interpretation by Ammianus, used certain descriptive
procedures in his own compositions. And finally,
there was the growing attention given to physiognomics by the Church Fathers.
Among the authors of technical handbooks the
first to concern us is a certain Adamantius whose
treatise, Physiognomonica, purports to be derived in
part from the Peripatetic manual, but is rather more
a paraphrase in popular style of Polemo's tract of the
second century. Who this Adamantius was, and what
were his exact dates we have no way of knowing for
certain. He has been identified as a Jewish physician
and sophist, mentioned by Socrates66 in his Ecclesitastical History, in which he is described as having fled
from Alexandria, during the conflict in that city between Christians and Jews, and then, after professing
Christianity, returning to Alexandria and residing
there. Libanius in his extensive correspondence addresses a number of letters to a certain Adamantius.
There were several individuals bearing this name who
have been identified by Seeck,67 but no one of these
people can be reasonably identified with the physiognomist nor does he seem to be the Adamantius,
addressed by Gregory of Nazianzus, who appears to
have been a teacher in Athens.68 FPrster69 has supplied us with certain essential information about this
man. The first fact is that he is a pagan,70and probably
the author of a work on winds,71 which shows the
influence of Peripatetic meteorology, in addition to
his above-mentioned work on physiognomy. The
second fact brought out by Forster is that, since
Oribasius, Julian's physician, cites him several times
in his medical encyclopaedia (which incidentally is
our second major source for formal physiognomical
material in this period), the person referred to in the
dedication of the Adamantius handbook as "beloved
Constantius" probably lived in the first half of the
fourth century. He has been taken to be Constantius
II, emperor from 337 to 361, but Forster argues72
that it is not the emperor to whom Adamantius addresses his little work, pointing out that so familiar a
dedication would not be appropriate. Forster proposes
instead that it might be a friend, such as the "most
dear of my friends" in the De Ventis. There is general
agreement that the handbook belongs in the fourth
century.
The tract of Adamantius is divided into two books,
the first of which deals exclusively with the eyes, the
second with various parts of the body, and then with
the shapes (dE135)
of different types of men. Adamantius states at the outset that he is following the
method employed by Aristotle and is paraphrasing
the book of Polemo. Actually the work is an epitome of
Polemo's treatment, not a paraphrase, and the characteristic Aristotelian use of comparison between men
and animals in the matter of physique and nature is
mentioned but not developed. Adamantius points out
the importance in physiognomy of regional differences
and the need of considering the changes attributable
to age and the nature of the locality.
He emphasizes also at the outset that the most
effective method of analysis comes from a study of a
mixture of signs. The basic signs, such, for example,
as those marking the angry man, even if they are not
always apparent, nevertheless designate him as "passionate."73 Above all, the eyes are important.74 In
this emphasis he follows Polemo. His introductory
67 0.
Seeck, Die Briefe des Libanius (Leipzig, 1906), esp. p. 48.
Migne PG 37, 377.
69Frster, SP 1: prolegomena, pp. c-cix.
70
Adamantius, F6rster, SP 1: p. 297. The title of the physiognomical tract indicates clearly the author as Adamantius
Sophistes.
71 V. Rose, Anecdota Graeca et Graeco-latina (Berlin, 1864-1870)
pp. 25-48.
72 Forster, 1: prolegomena, p. ciii.
73 F6rster, 1: pp. 301-303.
74 Ibid., p. 305.
68 Ep. 235.
66 For two important recent studies on the fourth century A.D
see E. R. Dodds, Pagan and Christian in an Age of Anxiety
(Cambridge, 1965), Wiles Lectures given at the Queen's University, Belfast, in 1963; essays edited by Arnaldo Momigliano,
entitled The Conflict between Paganism and Christianity in the
Fourth Century (Oxford, 1963), delivered at the Warburg Institute in 1958-1959. Cf. Socrates 7, 13. Migne PG 67, 760-765.
See F6rster, SP 1, prolegomena, p. c. This event presumably
took place in A.D. 415 under the patriarch Cyril.
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)statement on eyes that are moist and shining, as drops
of water, which indicate upright character, stems
directly from Polemo's familiar description of Hadrian's eyes.7" He proceeds from eyes that are moist to
those that are mobile and suggestive of treachery,
to those of varied colors such as gray or shining, and
to eyes that are hollow set or protruding, blinking,
winking, laughing or straining, glistening and sharp.
In one respect Adamantius' treatment of this topic
differs quite noticeably from that of Polemo. Except
for his mention of Alexander the Great,76 or Socrates,
there is complete omission of examples drawn from
the past. In other words, we do not find immediate
practical application for these physiognomical observations. Another fact to be observed is the absence of the
reasons77 why the characteristics, which Adamantius
carefully lists, are indicative of certain types of
character.
The second book of Adamantius treats in detail
the parts of the body and their significance, dwells on
the "Hellenic form," and then turns to the physique
of the brave, the timid, the shameless, the gentle,
the greedy, the devotee of dice, the foolishly malicious,
and various other types. The treatise provides, in
short, a kind of checklist of familiar types, and again
in the second part shows no effort to relate the material
to the contemporary scene. References to animal
parallelisms occur, especially in the proemium to the
book. In the same introduction Adamantius mentions
the forehead, the nose, the mouth, the cheeks, and the
head itself as being near the eyes, and therefore highly
significant physiognomically. Next in importance are
the signs which are found on the neck and chest.
Following these, in declining importance, are the
signs to be found on the shoulders, hand, legs and feet.
Least in importance are those to be found around the
stomach. Under the topic of color and hair he deals
briefly with regional differences in which he follows
Polemo closely. In his chapter on the Greek people
he states that those who preserve most closely the
Hellenic and Ionic features are tall men, broad, upright, well built, of rather light complexion, tinged
with red, moderately fleshy, straight-legged, with
well-formed extremities. The head is of moderate size
and flexible, the neck powerful, hair yellow and soft,
slightly curly, the face square, the lips thin, the nose
straight, eyes moist and gleaming with much light in
them. For among all people the Greeks have the best
eyes. In short, they represent the leonine type of man,
which according to the Aristotelian manual is the best
type of all. If we do not find in the fourth century
the repeated use of the comparison between men and
animals so characteristic of the earlier handbook, at
least we find in this ethnic description of the Greek
76
Ibid.
Ibid., p. 328. Socrates, 327.
77
A fact which Galen deplored, Mixt. 2, 6 (Kuhn 1, 624).
75
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
race the lineal descendant of the Aristotelian leonine
man. 78
The second formal treatise of this period dealing
with the ideas of the physiognomists is an anonymous
Physiognomonia Latina,79 attributed for many years
to Apuleius.80 But the tract belongs probably to a
later period, possibly to the latter part of the third,
or more likely, to the fourth century after Christ,81
and is the compilation of an unknown author. The
writer states at the outset that he has derived his
material from three predecessors Loxus, Aristotle, and
Polemo82: "ex tribus auctoribus quorum libros prae
manu habui, Loxi medici, Aristotelis philosophi,
Polemonis declamatoris, qui de physiognomonia scripserunt, ea elegi quae ad primam institutionem huius
rei pertinent et quae facilius intelligantur." Actually,
as Forster has demonstrated, the work depends principally on Polemo and on Loxus, and draws to a much
less extent on the Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook. The
anonymous author points out that all the material
concerning the many signs drawn from the head, and
including an analysis of complexion, approximately
one-half of the work, together with the treatment of
various types of men, from the vir fortis to the fool,
is derived from the sophist. This version of Polemo,
though briefer, agrees in the main with that of the
Arabic translator and with that of Adamantius.83 His
indebtedness to Polemo is revealed in the particular
attention paid to the eyes, in which, he says, summa
omnis physiognomoniae constituta est. His analysis of
types of men includes the familiar timid creature,
the vir ingeniosus, the fellow without sense, the shameless type, the temperate and moderate vir, the homno
securus, the homo tristis, the androgynous, the bitter
and litigious, the gentle nature, the ironic character,
the greedy, the lustful and the man inclined to pantomimes and gaming. It is obvious that the compilation contains certain repetitions of types along with
details not included in the first analysis, as in the case
of the ingenium mansuetum. The writer, furthermore,
has put his material together in a hasty fashion, and
has not given it a final revision.84 In the types of characters the collator has drawn from Aristotle as well as
Polemo, and appears to have had access to a fuller
version of the two Pseudo-Aristotelian tractates than
78
79
809b.
Forster, SP 2: pp. 1-145, and 1: prolegomena, pp. cxxxixclv.
80 De Anim. 1, 203: "et tales referuntur ab Apuleio fuisse oculi
Socratis quem Apollo prudentissimum pronuntiavit," quoting a
passage from 2, 49, 32: "tales existimantur oculi Socratis philosophi fuisse, quem Apollo Pythius prudentissimum pronuntiavit."
81 Forster, op. cit. 1: pp. cxl-cxlv.
Cf. E. Kelter, Apulei quae
fertur physiognomonia quando composita sit (Kiel, 1880), passim.
82Fdrster, SP 2: pp. 3, 1.
83 Misener, "Loxus," pp. 1-22, esp. 3.
84 See Forster SP 1: pp. cxxxii-cxxxiii for a full discussion of
the matter.
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PHILOSOPHY AND MEDICINE
are now extant.85 The Physiognomonia Latinac86has
three main sections for the study of physiognomy: the
first is concerned with an analysis of the masculine
and feminine types; the second has to do with ethnological physiognomy, and the third takes up the
Aristotelian parallelisms of men and animals. The
author does not include contemporary examples as
illustrations of his points, save to quote Polemo's
17
II. PHILOSOPHY AND MEDICINE
In this second chapter we propose to consider the
extent of the importance attached by the philosophers
and writers on medicine to the general subject of
physiognomics and to demonstrate as far as possible
the reasons for their special interest in the subject.
Closely associated with the general field of physior to mention such important figures as ognomy and explanatory of many of its principles is
exempla,87
Alexander.88 Like Adamantius he follows89 a plan of the theory of the humors.' This theory is concerned,
dealing with the most significant signs physiognomi- of course, with the relation of the physique of a man to
cally located in the head, then those in the rest of the his character and temperament. The humors2 constitute the fluids of body, blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and
body, the stomach being least important.
black bile. The ideal situation exists when a proper
The plan which the author has pursued is this90: krassisor blending of these humors and a
right balance
"Nunc repetenda ut supra proposuimus, quae proprie of the fluids are maintained. If one predominates,
Loxus seu Aristoteles posuerunt vel aliter interpretati then the man is regarded as sanguine (blood dominant)
sunt, quamvis etiam locis suis aliqua adiunximus. or phlegmatic (yellow bile dominant), and specific
Quae enim Palemon (sic) dixit et consentanea sunt physical and mental characteristics become assigned to
reliquis auctoribus, propemodum prosecuti sumus." each mixture, and good health (EiKpaoia) is determined
When this work draws upon the Aristotelian handbook by the right krasis or, as the Romans translated the
it does so in terms of paraphrase rather than direct word mixture, temperamentum.3 The fluids able to
quotation, but its importance "lies in the fact that it produce the desired balance were thought of also as
was the only form in which any portion of Aristotelian composed of four primary qualities, combined in pairs,
such as warm, cold, dry, and moist. Thus blood was
or Pseudo-Aristotelian biology was available to the hot
and moist, phlegm cold and moist, yellow bile
readers of Latin texts before the translation of Gerald warm and dry, black bile cold and dry. To Alcmaeon
of Cremona in the twelfth century.""91 The largest of Croton (ca. 500 B.C.), the distinguished physician
section derived from Loxus comprises a discussion associated with the Pythagorean School, is ascribed
of zoological physiognomy,92 wherein men show like- the beginning of this theory of the humors, in that he
nesses to animals in appearance and behavior. It seems to have been the first man to apply the term to
is not our intention to discuss the Loxian theories of the idea of a blending in the body. Health, he mainphysiognomy here, since they have been treated under tained, was the equality (lo-ovolta) of such combinamaterial belonging to the third century B.C., but it is tions as wet-dry, cold-hot, but the single rule (MuovapXta)
important to observe that, apart from one mention or predominance of one among them caused disease4:
"Health is the harmonious mixture of the qualities."
of his name in Origen,93 the inclusion of substantial
From the period of Alcmaeon and Hippocrates to the
excerpts from Loxus in this late Latin treatise is our
only notable source for his work. It is the Latin com1
the recent article by G. E. Lloyd, "The Hot and the Cold,
piler who makes it clear that Loxus stands apart from the See
Dry and the Wet in Greek Philosophy," JHS 84 (1964):
the other physiognomists in his consideration of the pp. 92-106.
2See J. Van Wageningen, "De Quattuor Temperamentis,"
seat of the soul. The attempt of the "Latin collator
N.S., 46 (1918): pp. 374-382. Cf. H. Diels-Kranz, Die
to fuse three books into one does not lead to a precise Mnemos,
Fragmente der Vorsokratiker (3 v., 6th ed., Berlin, 1951-52),
reconstruction of the work of Loxus,"94but it is helpful passim. The recent distinguished work of Raymond Klibansky,
Erwin Panofsky, and Fritz Saxl on Saturn and Melancholy (New
to some understanding of his views.
Misener, Tbid.,p. 3.
F6rster, ibid. 2: pp. 5-15.
87 Ibid., 2: pp. 43, 50, 52, 57-58, 145.
85
86
88 Ibid. 2: p. 50.
89-Ibid. 2: pp. 61-63.
90 Ibid. 2: p. 108. 2: pp. 111-118, 83-88.
It is a kind of summary of points chosen at random from Pseudo-Aristotle to fill
out the statements drwan from Polemo.
91S. D. Wingate, The Mediaeval Latin Versions of the Aristotelian Scientific Corpus, with special reference to the biological
works (London, 1931), p. 8.
92 2: pp. 137-143, 118-131.
93 Contra Celsum 1, 33.
94 Misener, "Loxus," p. 22.
York, 1964) discusses the notion of melancholy and its historical
development in Chapter I (pp. 3-66) in the physiological literature of the ancients, with specific reference to melancholy as an
illness and melancholy in the system of the four temperaments.
The authors take issue with the theory of Van Wageningen as to
the formulation of the "character types" in the work of Honorius
of Autun (i.e. William of Conches), and believe that they were
already "firmly established among the ninth-century Arabic
astrologers" (see pp. 18-19 of this chapter). Cf. also Hellmut
Flashar, Melancholie und Melancholiker (Berlin, 1966) on the
medical theories of the ancients.
3Col. 3, 12: "opus est, inquit, inter has tam diversas inaequalitates magno temperamento, quod in corporibus quoque nostris
desideratur, quorum bona valetudo calidi et frigidi, umidi et
aridi, densi et rari certo et quasi examinato malo continetur."
4Diels, ibid. 1, 4 (trans. K. Freeman).
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)time of Adamantius of Alexandria and Oribasius,
Julian's physician, in the fourth century of our era, the
names of the great doctors of antiquity are repeatedly
associated with the theories of physiognomy, of which
humoral psychology is an important part. Parmenides5
adopted the ideas of Alcmaeon on health and transferred them to the condition of mind by declaring that
the keenness of the mind consisted in a certain mixture
of warm and cold: "For according as the hot or the
cold predominates does the understanding vary, there
being a better and purer understanding derived from
the hot."
Empedocles,6 accepting the proposition of the four
elements or primary substances, earth, air, fire, and
water, set forth his theory of mixture more fully than
his predecessors, believing that the seat of the brain
and of the soul was in the blood. If the elements were
more loosely connected, the nature of man became
slow and inclined to sloth, if more dense, then the motion became more rapid and the action increased.
We are indebted to Theophrastus' De Sensibus for an
analysis of Empedocles' theory as it applies to both
sense perception and thought. Empedocles argues
that in so far as the krasis in a given part lies in even
balance, then the person is skilled in that area. For
this reason some are clever speakers, others fine artisans, according as the proper mixture lies in the tongue
or in the hands. And this obtains for other capacities
as well. Theophrastus, however, is inclined to deny
the truth of this proposition, maintaining that the
tongue is merely the instrument and not the basis of
eloquence and the hands, the instrument, are not the
basis of craftsmanship. It is the person himself, asserts Theophrastus, who controls the tongue or the
hands, and is the source of human genius. People are
not mechanically intelligent merely because the mingled elements of the blood are of the same amount,
neither too widely separated nor too small nor too
large. Yet this view is essential to Empedocles' theory
that we "think chiefly with the blood, since in it the
elements are best mixed together."
The Hippocratic School7 accepted the idea that the
I Diels,
ibid. 1, 226, 3; Theophrastus De Sensibus 3-4.
6 Ibid. 1, 201, 22; Theophr. 10-13; See G. M. Stratton, Theophrastus and the Greek Physiological Psychology before Aristotle
(London, 1917), pp. 66-151, for text and translation and commentary on this work.
7 Nat. Hom. 4. I use the name of Hippocrates in referring to the
corpus of the Hippocratic School. For recent discussions of
Greek medicine see Werner Jaeger, Paideia: the Ideals of Greek
Culture (New York, 1944), translated by G. Highet, 3: pp. 3-35,
esp. p. 32. "Greek Medicine and Paideia"; Charles Singer,
"Medicine" in the Legacy of Greece, ed. by R. W. Livingstone
(Oxford, 1928), pp. 201-248. The most important recent work
on the Hippocratic corpus is that of Ludwig Edelstein, IIEpL
'Akpwv und Die Sammlung der Hippokratischen Schriften, Problemata, Heft 4 (Berlin, 1931); ibid., "The Genuine Works of
Hippocrates"; Bulletin of the History of Medicine 7, 1 (1939):
pp. 236-248. The Nature of Man is of vital importance in the
Hippocratic corpus since it was ascribed to Polybus, son-in-law
and successor of Hippocrates. It is the only systematic work in
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
body contains four humors and that the presence of
good health or disease depends on the way they are
mixed. While the Hippocratics hold that the condition of the mind is connected with the state of the
body, they are not the first to postulate the four-fold
division of the humors with their accompanying names.
Aristotle8 is said to have been the first to advance this
proposition and to have done so in order to explain the
melancholy man. Galen,9 the physician of the second
century A.D., worked out in further detail the scheme
of temperaments determined by the humors, save for
phlegm, "which," he believes, "does not contribute to
the formation of character."
The terms melancholici, phlegmatici, cholerici, and
sanguinei were applied in the ninth century to the
types of men produced by the humors of the body.
This use of the terms appears in the writings of
Johannitius (Honein ibn Ishak), the great Arab physician, who translated the works of Galen into Arabic.
A man generally referred to as Honorius of Autun is
said by Van Wageningen to have transferred the names
introduced by Johannitius to descriptions of human
character. Van Wageningen cites in this connection a
passage from Honorius, De philosophia mundi:
Verbi gratia, homo naturalitercalidus et humidus, et inter
quattuor qualitates temperatus, sed quia corrumpitur
natura, contingit illas in illo intendi et remitti. si vero in
aliquo intendatur calor et remittatur humiditas, dicitur
cholericus,id est calidus et siccus, non est sine humiditate
tamen. sin vero in aliquo intensus sit humor, calor vero
remissus, dicitur phlegmaticus. sin autem intensa sit
siccitas, remissus calor, melancholicus. sin vero aequaliter
insunt, dicitur sanguineus-sed
quia hoc a Johannitio in
Isagogis satis dictum est.,,
the corpus to deal with the theory of the humors. The treatise
may be in part the work of Polybus, though as a whole it lacks
unity. The section dealing with the humors presents the theory
that the blood is not the only constituent element in the body,
but rather four items, blood, phlegm, yellow bile, black bile.
A state of health is a state of salubrious balance among these
items, and any deviation from this balance inevitably causes
pain and disease. The writer-Polybus-believes
that while
proper mixture ("krasis") is essential to health, these elements
are susceptible of change and imbalance according to the seasons.
This view, of course, directly relates to the work on Airs, Waters,
and Places, which is concerned not so much with the temperament or mixture at certain seasons as with the nature of climate
and the seasons to be found within the several climates.
8 Cf. T. C. Allbutt, Greek Medicine in Rome (London, 1921), p.
296. But see especially the Pseudo-Aristotelian Problemata 30,
1, 953a-955a.
I Nat. Fac. 2, 9 (cf. Kuihn 15, 325) and K. Freeman, Companion
to the Pre-Socratic Philosophers (Cambridge [Mass.], 1959),
p. 372 and note 1 (trans. Freeman). See Klibansky, Panofsky,
and Saxl, Saturn and Melancholy. pp. 57-66, especially 58 on this
point, and the text of Galen in Forster SP 2: pp. 283-299.
104, 20 (Migne, PL 172, 93). The passage continues: "Cholerici namque longi et graciles, longi ex calore et graciles ex
siccitate. sanguinei vero propter calorem longi, pingues propter
humiditatem. phlegmatici vero propter frigiditatem parvi,
propter humiditatem grossi. melancholici autem propter siccitatem graciles, propter frigiditatem breves. istae naturales proprietates saepe variantur ex accidente. nam cholerici et melan-
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PHILOSOPHY AND MEDICINE
The De philosophia mundi, however, is generally ac- Hippocrates' work deals not only with the effect upon
cepted as the work of William of Conches," of the a community of the kinds of winds that blow upon it
School of Chartres, teacher of John of Salisbury and but also with the way different peoples, living in differone of the "most accomplished scholars of the twelfth ent areas, are diversely affected by the changes in
century." This idea of the identification of men seasons or climate; and how the peoples of Europe and
by their specific dominant humors is included by Asia differ from each other, those in Europe producing
Johannitius in his Isagoge ad parvam artem Galeni, and warlike and fierce inhabitants. "Asia differs very
perhaps reached the hands of William of Conches widely from Europe in the nature of its inhabitants
through such a Latin translation as that of Con- and all its vegetation. Whereas everything in Asia
stantinus Africanus,12 the first great translator from grows to far greater beauty and size, and one region is
Arabic into Latin.
less wild than the other, the character of its inhabitants
As we have said, Galen is our principal authority for is milder and more gentle."'6 The cause of this is the
the fact that the divine Hippocrates really established krasis or blending of the seasons. With regard to the
the study of physiognomy as a science. He'3 is pur- lack of spirit and of courage among the inhabitants, the
ported to have quoted Hippocrates, saying that "in chief reason why Asiatics are less warlike and more
those who practice medicine without a knowledge of gentle in character than Europeans is the uniformity
the science of physiognomy, the judgment goes to of the seasons, which show no violent changes either
seed, wallowing in darkness." In his quotation from toward heat or toward cold, but are equable.
Hippocrates, however, it is in ethnological physi"Inhabitants of a region which is mountainous,
ognomy that Galen shows his predominant interest. rugged, high, and (not) well watered, where the
He is, for instance, strongly influenced by what is the changes of seasons exhibit sharp contrasts," maintains
earliest known treatise on the subject, the essay on Hippocrates,'7
Airs, Waters, and Places,'4 a work which appeared
are likely to be of big physique, with a nature well adapted
about 400 B.C., and is concerned with the influence for
endurance and courage, and such possess not a little
of physical environment on health, disease, and wildness and ferocity. The inhabitants of hollow regions
temperament.
that are meadowy, stifling, with more hot than cold winds,
The author of this essay divides his work into two and where the water is hot, will be neither tall nor well
made, but inclined to be broad, fleshy, and dark-haired;
parts. The first eleven chapters deal with the relation they
are dark rather than fair, less subject to phlegm than
of climate to health, the second part with the influence to bile. Similarlybraveryand enduranceare not by nature
of climate upon character. Attention is called, for in- part of their character, but the imposition of law can prostance, to the effect of hot and cold winds upon the duce them artificially. . . You will discover in general
inhabitants of cities lying towards the rising of the sun. assimilated to the nature of the land both the physique
and characteristics of the inhabitants.
This is a highly important circumstance in view of the
fact that such people are likely to be healthier than Thus, where
those facing the north winds.'5 They are of a better
the land is bare,'8 waterless, rough, oppressed by the
complexion and more "blooming" (a'v&Opa)unless ill- winter's
storms and burnt by the sun, there you will see
ness, as is generally the case, prevents this; they are men who are hard, lean, well articulated, well braced and
also "clear-voiced," and endowed with better temper hairy. Such natures will be found energetic, vigilant,
and intelligence than people living in the north. stubborn, and independent in character and temper, wild
rather than tame, of more than average sharpness and
intelligence in the arts, and in war of more than average
cholici vel ex otio, vel comestione sunt pingues; sanguinei et
courage.
phlegmatici ex abstinentia, vel labore graciles."
11 M. Manitius, P. Lehmann, Geschichte der lateinischen Literatur des Mittelalters (Munich, 1911-1931) 3, 2: pp. 216-217.
Nevertheless in Honorius' work, De imagine mundi, a passage
relevant to the present discussion occurs: 2, 59 (De homine
microcosmo).
For this reference I am indebted to the late
Professor Eva M. Sanford of Sweet Briar College.
12 Cf. C. H. Haskins, Studies in the History of Mediaeval Science
(2nd ed., Cambridge [Mass.] 1927), p. 39; Lynn Thorndike,
A History of Magic and Experimental Science, (8 v., New York
1923-1958) 1: pp. 742-759 on Constantinus Africanus (ca. 10151087). In Max Meyerhof's analysis of Honein's translations
from Greek into Syraic and Arabic is listed the translation of De
temperamentis and Quod animi mores corporis temperamenta
sequantur; "New Light on Hunain Ibn Ishaq and his Period,"
Isis 8 (1926): pp. 685-724, esp. p. 701.
13 In a work wrongly attributed to Galen, Prognost. de Decubitu
(Kiihn 19, 530).
14 See H. 0. Taylor, Greek Biology and Medicine (Boston,
1922), pp. 25-26.
15 Aer. 5 (trans. W. R. S. Jones throughout, LCL).
These observations from the Hippocratic corpus coincide in date with the end of the fifth century, and mark
the climax of a magnificent epoch in medicine."9
16 12. Cf. 16.
17
2, 24.
18 Ibid.
19See F. B. Lund, Greek Medicine (New York,
1936), pp. 1-8.
In philosophical works other than the De Legibus (see pp. 4243) Cicero treats the subject of physiognomics in the light of
the "milieu" theory or, in other words, from the strictly ethnological point of view important in the examination of various
societies. His views (Div. 1, 36, 79; 2, 16, 42; 2, 46, 96; Nat.
Deor. 2, 16, 17; Fat. 4, 7; 5, 9. See A. S. Pease, Cicero, De
Divinatione [Urbana, 1920] note ad 1, 36. 79.) embracing the
proposition that some areas are healthful, and some pestilential
for inhabitants are essentially those of the Hippocratic corpus
and Greek philosophy represented in particular by Plato (Div.
2, 42, 98; 2, 45, 89). It is climate, rather than the aspect of the
Seite 22
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)It has been objected that the conclusions presented
in Airs, Waters, and Places are somewhat dogmatic in
nature and are not supported by the evidence on which
they are supposed to be based. While this may be true
in detail, there is the overall value of the principle
that "geographical conditions and climate influence
health"20 and human nature and appearance in the
history of ethnographical physiognomy.
As for Plato, while he believes that good health depends on the humors and their proper mixture, he does
not attempt to attribute the character of a man to
these elements. In the Timaets2"he expresses his conmoon and the stars, that is the vital factor, according to the
Hippocratic and related schools of thought, in explaining why
the Indians and Persians differ in appearance from the Aethiopians and the Syrians.
While the influence of the moon and the stars in this connection
was not uncommonly proclaimed in astrology (to which we shall
return later) the contention of the astrologically minded Chaldaeans that the characteristics and appearance of children are
determined not by heredity but by the phases of the moon seems
to Cicero incredible insanity. Writing in a similar vein only a
few years after Cicero, Vitruvius (De Arch. 6, 1, 3; 6, 1, 6 [after
F. Granger throughout, LCL]) architect of Rome under Augustus, follows closely the familiar theories of the De Divinatione
in the analysis of types of people according to regions and climates, and the consequent rich content of the blood. Thus
those of the north possess large stature, light complexion, straight
red hair, blue eyes, and are full of blood, by reason of the moisture
and the coldness of their country. Those near the equator are
short, dark-complexioned, curly-haired, black-eyed, with weak
legs and a deficiency of blood. The lack of blood makes them
timid in battle, but able to endure excessive heat without fear,
whereas the northerners are fearful of contracting fevers, but
because of their abundance of blood are undaunted in battle.
By reason of the clarity of atmosphere (ibid. 6, 1, 9-12) and
intense heat the southern people are readier and quicker in
expedients, but the opposite holds true for the north men, oppressed by a heavy atmosphere and cold moist air, and they are
of duller intellect. The Roman people, being placed by nature
in the center of Italy, and thus in the middle of the earth, not
subject to sharp variations of climate, excel in strength of body
and mental vigor. And for this reason they have been able to
repress the inroads of the barbarians by astuteness, and the
strategies of the southern nations they have overcome by strength.
(This view is comparable to one expressed by Aristotle with
reference to Greece.) By the divine will of nature, Vitruvius
goes on to say, Rome has been given the right to command the
whole world through the excellence of her location. In conclusion
Vitruvius reverts to the subject of the climate prevailing in different countries and to the effect of the climate on the physical
stature and mental characteristics of the inhabitants. The determinative influence of climates was of natural interest to Vitruvius as an architect as affecting men's dwelling places and the
arrangement of buildings suitable to proper livinz.
20 Hippocrates 1, 66, LCL.
See Edelstein, "Genuine books of
Hippocrates" for the authorship of the Hippocratic corpus.
No Hippocratic works can be regarded as "genuine." Other
passages from the Hippocratic collection deal with specific
physiognomic signs: Epidem, 2, 5, 1; 5, 16; 5, 23; 2, 6, 1; 6.4,
19; 6, 14. See also Forster, SP 2: pp. 246-249. The Nature of
Man is likewise dated around 400 B.c. and mentioned by Aristotle
in the Historia Animalium 3, 3, 512b. See G. Sarton, A History
of Science (Cambridge EMass.], 1952) 1: p. 368. Cf. especially
chapters 4 and 5 of this treatise.
21 86a (trans. B. Jowett throughout).
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
viction that the humors are important for the equilibrium of the body:
Where the acid and briny phlegm and other bitter and
bilious humors wander over the body and find no exit or
escape, but are pent up within and mingle their own
vapours with the motions of the soul and are blended with
them, they produceall sorts of diseases, more or fewer, and
in every degree of intensity, and being carriedto the three
places of the soul, whichever they severally assail, they
create infinite varieties of ill temper and melancholy, of
rashness and cowardice, and also of forgetfulness and
stupidity.
While this humoral theory is, of course, fully accepted
by Aristotle and later writers, Plato here does not go
beyond the earlier notions of Alcmaeon and Parmespeaks of the
nides. Eryximachus in the Symposium22
elements of hot and cold, moist and dry, "if they retain
the temperate love of one another and blend in chastened harmony, they bring to men and animals and
plants health and plenty and do them no harm." Similarly the familiar ideas of the Hippocratic Airs,
Waters, and Places are reflected in the Laws.23
We must not fail to observe that there is a differencein
places, and that some beget better men and others worse;
and we must legislate accordingly. Some places are subject to strong and fatal influences by reason of diverse
winds, or again, from the characterof the food given by the
earth, which not only affects the bodies of men for good or
evil, but producessimilar results in their souls.
Among the Scythians one man becomes a philosopher,
at Athens many are such. Among the Abderites are
many stupid people, but few at Athens.
Ethnographical physiognomy, which emphasizes the
close dependence of human beings on environment and
the seasons, finds expression likewise in the Republic;
the quality of passion or spirit is to be attributed to the
Thracians and Scythians, and in general to the northern nations, whereas a love of knowledge is a peculiar
characteristic of the area of Athens, just as the love of
money is a mark of the Phoenicians and Egyptians.
Critias in the Timaeus24 attributes to Athena the
choice of Athens for her land, because she saw "that
the happy temperament in the land would produce the
wisest of men, and settled the spot most likely to produce men like herself, a lover of war and wisdom."
Individual portraiture plays as significant a part in
Plato as humoral and ethnographical principles. In
Xenophon's Symposium the iconistic delineation was
an inherent part of the characterization of Socrates.
where
So, too, in Plato, especially in the Symposium,25
Alcibiades eloquently praises the satyrlike nature and
appearance of his teacher Socrates, a veritable Silenus.
In Athens. Socrates26 stalks about like a Delican and.
22 188a; cf. Politicus 308a
1, 4, 8.
23
( U,yKpao-S)
5, 747d.
24c (after Jowett); cf. Critias 109c-d.
215b.
26 221 b and d.
24
and Xenophon,
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PHILOSOPHY AND MEDICINE
rolling his eyes, calmly contemplates his enemies as
well as his friends. In the Theaetetus27Socrates, in
characterizing himself, adds the familiar element of the
snub nose and protruding eyes. He speaks of his own
short stature in the Phaedo,28 while Meno29 says directly to Socrates that in appearance and power over
others Socrates is very much like a flat torpedo fish
which torpifies all those who come near him. The
portrait is clearly suggestive of an ethical type, in
which the individual features described through several
dialogues do not, however, lend themselves to direct
physiognomical analysis. On the other hand Plato's
description of the charioteer and the two horses in the
famous myth of the Phaedrus,30marking the noble and
ignoble aspects of the soul, is likewise ethical in its
purpose. But the iconistic description is far more concrete and closely knit in contrasting outline, and is akin
to Xenophon's representations of Virtue and Vice appearing to Heracles at the crossroads (see Chapter V).
The form of the description is that commonly used in
later physiognomical handbooks. "At the beginning
of this tale," he says,
I divided each soul into three parts, two having the form
of horses, and the third being like a charioteer. The division may remain. .. The righthand horse is upright and
cleanly made (op%OsKaL &flpGpw/E'uvos),he has a lofty neck
his coloris white
(vi4'a'x?7v)and an aquilinenose(Ew7rLypv7ros);
(XEVKOs) and his eyes dark (/AEXav6P1caros); he is one who
loves honorwith modesty and temperance,and the follower
of true opinion; he needs no touch of the whip, but is guided
by word and admonition only. The other is a crooked
lumberinganimal, put
(o-KOXLOS, wroXvS, E1Ki_0VY EOP7EVOS),
together anyhow; he has a short, thick neck (KparEpaUXflv,
fpaxvuipa4XXos), he is flat faced (-L,uwrpoo-w7ros) and of dark
color (,uEXa'yxpW3), with gray eyes (-yXavK61cqIaros)and
hot-blooded complexion (D/aL,uos), the mate of insolence
and pride, shag-earedand deaf, hardlyyielding to whip and
spur.
The most important points to note are these: a horse
upright and cleanly made is, according to PseudoAristotle,31 courageous and spirited and strong; a lofty
neck32conversely, indicates a self-willed creature, unmanageable and arrogant. But Xenophon33 sees it as
the mark of a good horse; an aquiline nose34is a kingly
feature and belongs to the great-souled; very black
eyes35 are a sign of cowardice, yet when they verge on
yellow they belong to the brave; on the other hand a
crooked, lumbering animal is shameless36; bloodshot
eyes belong to a hot temperament, shown by 6otEaL
is characteristic of
YDOLaL. HoXv&vrelated to 7roXvoaDKLa
143e; 209b.
103a.
29 Meno 80a.
30 253 c-e.
31 807a; 808a; see Misener for further
references, "Iconistic
Portraits," pp. 106-107.
32 Adamant. 399. 11 and 15; 400.5.
33Ecl. 8; cf. Verg. G. 3, 79; Philostr. Gym. c. 35.
34 Plato, Rep. 5, 474d; see below; cf. Pseud.-Arist. 81 la.
35 Pseud.-Arist. 812b; but cf. Adamant. 390, 4 and 11.
27
28
36
37
Pseud.-Arist. 807b.
Ibid., 807a.
an insensible creature;
21
KparepauXrPv38differs,
but is
found in the brave; flpaXvrpa4XqXos is a sign of the
treacherous and ,uo7rpowop7ros has an ugly connotation
on the stage and belongs to the Xa-yvoL; IeXa-yxpwcs39is a
mark of cowardice and likewise -yXavKaMocaro
40; so,
too, the shaggy-eared.41 No description is accorded
the charioteer.
Like Xenophon, Plato sees the kinship between the
so-called virtues of the soul and bodily qualities, though
he admits that if these virtues are not originally innate
they can be implanted later by habit and exercise.
"Did you not observe," he asks,42 "the narrow intelligence flashing out from the keen eye of a clever
rogue?" In the Republic,43in another passage which
bears on this point and anticipates a comparable statement in Lucretius, Book IV, and in Horace's Satires,
Socrates asks,
Is not this a way you have with the fair; one has a snub
nose, and you praise his charmingface; the hooked nose of
another has the grace of regularity; the dark visage is
manly, the fair are children of the gods; and as to the
"honey pale," as they are called, what is the very name
but the invention of a lover who talks in diminutives, and
is not averse to paleness, if appearing on the cheek of
youth?
The satiric tenets of the physiognomists are there,
though in outline, and it remains for the Peripatetics to
analyze in formal fashion the specific signs attached to
each physical feature.
It is in Plato, too, that we encounter another aspect
of the science of physiognomy which is of paramount
importance in foreshadowing the later views of Aristotle. This is to be found in the Phaedo44and might be
called the zoological approach. Socrates and Cebes in
debating the ultimate destiny of souls after death suggest that the souls of the evil are compelled to wander
uneasily, always craving for their corporeal form until
they are imprisoned in another body. "And," says
Socrates, "they may be supposed to find their prison in
natures of the same character as they had cultivated in
their former lives." Thus men who have followed
after gluttony and wantonness and drunkenness would
pass into asses and animals of that sort; and "those
who have chosen the portion of injustice and tyranny
will pass into wolves, or into hawks and kites. Where
else can we suppose them to go?" This view has attracted wide attention on the part of later writers, and
has been accepted or vigorously denied. At the end
of the fourth century A.D.
Nemesius of Emesa45
(physician and writer on the Nature of Man) interprets
this Platonic passage in a discussion of transmigration
38Ibid., 811a.
Pollux. 4, 151; Pseud.-Arist. 811b; Adamant. 376, 5 and 14.
40Adamant. 386, 9-10.
4' Pseud.-Arist. 812b.
42Rep. 6, 518d-519a.
435, 19, 474d. cf. Lucr. 4, 1160-1169; Hor. Sat. 1, 3, 48-54.
4481 e-f.
45 De Nat. Hom. 18 (50).
Trans. W. Telfer.
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of souls by suggesting the division of the Platonists on
the meaning of the exchange of form. In satire of the
second century A.D., on the other hand, in the Fisherman or The Dead Come to Life, where the dead who
have come to life are the ancient philosophers, Lucian41
complains bitterly to Philosophy in the guise of
Frankness on the representatives of the major schools.
They (the specious creatures) teach these very doctrines
for pay, and worship the rich, and are agog after money;
they are more quick tempered than curs, more cowardly
than hares, more servile than apes, more lustful than
jackasses, more thievish than cats, more quarrelsomethan
gamecocks.
a new life must of necessity become different." Thus
the hero Ajax chooses the life of a lion,53 the boldest
and most perfect physical male type among animals;
Agamemnon that of an eagle,54 a kingly bird and
proud-souled; Thersites, puts on the form of a monkey,55 small-souled and villainous.
In sum, in the not inconsiderable body of material
which we have found in Plato that bears upon the
science of physiognomy, we may observe that he by his
imaginative depiction of the soul through analogous
animal types foreshadows the future asyndetic outline
of the handbooks. In general it can be said that in one
place or another all aspects of the "science" are indeed
Tertullian,47 the Church Father of the same period, touched upon, though not extensively. It remains for
inveighs in the De Anima against Empedocles' de- later thinkers to develop to the full the humoral and
velopment of metensomatosis, the adaptation of some ethnographic, the zoological and iconistic, as well as
other body, or the posthumous change by men into the ethical types of portraiture.
various animals:
With Aristotle we come to the first analytical treatfor although some men are comparedto beasts because of ment of physiognomics preserved in Greek literature.
their character, disposition, and pursuits (since, as God In the Rhetoric,56Aristotle declares that even in his day
says, "man is like the beasts that perish"Ps. 49.20) it does instructions with regard to delivery57 (pronuntiatio or
not on this account follow that rapacious persons become actio) had not been treated. Delivery was essentially a
kites, lewd persons dogs, ill tempered ones panthers, good
men sheep, talkative ones swallows, and chaste men doves, matter of the right management of the voice to express
as if the self-same substance of the soul everywhere re- various emotions, by speaking loudly or softly. No
peated its own nature in the properties of animals into systematic treatise on the rules of delivery58 had yet
which it passed. Besides, a substance is one thing, and the been composed, but an inward frame of mind was
nature of that substance is another thing; inasmuch as the
substance is the special propertv of one given thing, thought to be reflected in outward appearance.
Similarly in the Nicomachean Ethics59 ,peEyaXofvxLa
whereas the nature thereof may possibly belong to many
(greatness of soul) implies great physical stature, as
things.
If such statements reflect the great diversity of opinion beauty implies a good-sized body. Little people may
regarding the validity of Plato's views while at the be neat and well proportioned, but cannot be beautiful.
same time showing the keen general interest in the Just as bodies are judged by their movements, so are
topic the significant fact for us to keep in mind is that characters. The great souled man is slow of step,
Plato conceived this relationship between men and possesses a deep voice, and a deliberate form of speech.
animals in nature and disposition. Here again his re- For a rapid gait and a shrill voice bespeak an intense
marks anticipate the later physiognomical handbooks, and nervous person, who ponders nothing fundawhich obviously draw on a long-standing tradition of mentally great.
In the political realm the same kind of thinking preearlier observation. A treacherous disposition is the
vails. A government60 in which the offices are given
folly as well as
mark of a wolf48 in Pseudo-Aristotle,
insolence and dullness of sense the mark of an ass,49 according to stature (as is said to be the case in
Ethiopia), or according to beauty, would be an oliwhereas rapacity belongs to the hawk.50
for the number of tall or fine-looking men is
garchy,
Of the several passages in Plato5" which deal with
small,
and
QW'yaXoIvxlawould therefore be lacking.
the theory of transmigration the most important
Ethnological
physiognomy applied to citizens in the
physiognomically in relation to that of the Phaedo is
ideal
state,
of
the type found in the Hippocratic treathe myth of Er at the end of the Republic.52The pattise
and Places, appears in the Politics."
Airs,
Waters,
terns of future lives, both of men and of animals, are
laid on the ground for spirits to choose in a new in- Those who live in a cold climate and in Europe are full
carnation. Plato is clear that the "soul when choosing of spirit, but lacking in intelligence and skill. They
retain a measure of freedom, but have no political
46Pisc. 34 (trans. Harmon, LCL).
47De Anima 32, 8. Trans. P. Holmes.
See Forster, SP 2:
pp. 253-256 for other passages. The fullest annotation is to be
found in J. H. Waszink, Tertullianus, De Anima (Amsterdam,
1947) ad 32, 8.
48
81 la.
49811a; 812a; 813a.
50 813a.
51See, for example, Timaeus 91d; also ibid., 41e-42d; Phaedrus
249b for a statement on metempsychosis.
52 618a-620c.
53809a; 812b.
54
811a-b.
55 Ibid.
Arist. Gen. An. 4, 3, 769b. Cf. Rh. 3, 1, 1430b.
3, 1, 1430b.
583, 1, 1404a; Quint. Inst. 3, 3, 4; cf. Arist. Poet. 1456b, 19.
59Eth. Nic. 4, 3, 1123b, 7 sq.; ibid. 4, 8, 1128a, 8-13.
60 Pol. 7, 7, 1327b, 23 sq.; cf. Pol. 3,
14, 1255a, 19 sq. (after H.
Rackham, LCL).
61 Pol. 4, 4,
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PHILOSOPHY AND 1IEDICINE
organization, and are unable to rule over others. Furthermore Aristotle argues that there are differWhereas the natives of Asia are intelligent, but lack ences to be considered in the size of the heart and in its
spirit, and are always ruled over and in slavery. The hardness or softness. These elements, too, tend to
Hellenic race, on the other hand, is situated between influence a creature's temperament and nature. Anithese areas, and shares in their characteristics; for it is mals whose power of perception is small have hard and
high-spirited and likewise intelligent. Therefore it dense hearts, those whose sensations are sharp have
continues free, and is the best governed, and, were it softer hearts, while those with large hearts are cowone state, would be able to rule over all.
ardly, and those with small or medium-sized hearts are
While Aristotle maintains in the Analytica Priora full of courage. Animals with large hearts, like the
that it is logically possible to infer character in men hare, the deer, the ass, or the mouse, are timid and
from their features, it is in his biological works on betray their knavish behavior. This results from the
animals that he deals most fully with the subject. In fact that the size of the heart is out of proportion to the
general he concentrates upon the appearance and be- size of the animal, and this makes the blood colder."4
havior of animals themselves with an occasional atIn the Historia Animalium Aristotle moves from the
tempt at comparison with human beings. Only later area of physiognomy dealing with animals to the study
in the Pseudo-Aristotelian manual is there a developed of human appearance and behavior. In the genuine
treatment of the parallelism between men and animals books, moreover, he puts forward statements which
that has been adumbrated in the Analytica Priora. In closely resemble those found in the later Peripatetic
the De Partibuts Animalium a consideration of the handbook that bears his name (the Pseudo-Aristoblood and its effect on men's behavior and appearance telian Physiognomonica).
That part of the Historia65 which has to do with
is of special interest to the student of physiognomy.
In the Aristotelian view of anatomy62 and physiology, physiognomy concerns itself with specific physiit is not the brain as we know it, but the heart that is ognomical signs, regularly involving a comparison with
the seat of intelligence. The heart is the source of animals. They differ from one another in character,
blood, which contains also the innate heat of life. The for example, as follows66: "Some are good-tempered,
blood flows out of the heart, and back to it with the sluggish, and little given to ferocity, as the ox"; some,
spirit (7rwvEi,a)or organic life. The activities of the like the wild boar, are quick-tempered and ferocious;
soul have their basis in the blood. Consequently it is the stag and the hare are intelligent but timid; the
the nature of the blood that determines the strength snake is mean and treacherous; the lion noble, couraand courage of the individual. Galen, in this respect, geous, and highbred; whereas the wolf is wild and
follows Aristotle in the belief that the faculties of the sneaking, the fox mischievous, the dog spirited, affecsoul depend on the krasis of the mother's blood from tionate, and fawning, the goose cautious and watchful,
which our own arises. The passage in the De Partibus the peacock jealous and conceited. These combinations of characteristics which are quite familiar in
Animalium,63 mentioned above, states that
connection with the interpretation of animal behavior
makes
for
more
it
the
blood
the
and
hotter
the thicker
is,
are
explained by Aristotle on the basis of his psychostrength, if it tends to be thin and cold it is conducive to
sensation and intelligence. . . . Best of all (animals) are logical views of the component parts of the blood and
those whose blood is hot, and at the same time thin and the presence of pneuma in the physique. He then
clear; they stand well both for courage and intelligence.
passes on to the signs of particular parts of the body,
he draws his examples from men but does not
where
Blood is conceived of as hot or cold, thick or thin,
his comments to parallelisms between men and
extend
in
the
moist or dry, swift or slow. These qualities
blood characterize the physiology of the soul and its animals.67 "When men have high foreheads, they are
activities. Such activities in turn affect the behavior slow to move, when they have broad ones they are apt
to be distraught. With rounded or bulging foreheads
of man and his outward appearance.
64Part. Anim. 3, 4, 667a (after Peck); cf. Pliny HN 11, 183.
In creatureswhose heart contains a predominantlywatery
(i.e., thin) blood, the way is preparedfor a timorous dis- Cf. also the example of the hare, Gen. An. 4, 5, 774a, whose hairiposition. In addition there are solid earthy fibres in the ness is compared to that of man, and its implication for lustfulthick blood which produce a passionate temperament and ness. Likewise ibid. 5, 5, 786 on the deep voice, which appears
make it liable to outbursts of passion. For example, pas- to be the mark of a nobler nature, and the reasons for this kind
sion (6pPyr')produces heat, and solids which are heated of voice (not necessarily true); in Gen. An. 4, 3, 769b Aristotle
give off more heat. Fibres are solid and, when inside the discusses monstrosities that arise not from a defect of growth but
blood, cause it to boil up, if fits of passion come on. Thus from people joking on a man ill endowed with looks as a "goat
bulls and boars are liable to fits of passion, because their breathing fire" or a "ram butting."
65 Of the Historia Animalium Bks. 10, and perhaps 7, 8, 21-30,
blood is fibrous.
Cf. article in OCD s. v. Anatomy and Physiology, by C.
Singer, and references in bibliography.
63 Part. Anim. 2, 2, 648a (trans. A. L. Peck, LCL); Galen,
Anim. Mor. Corp. Temp. (Kfihn 4, 796); cf. Part. Anim. 24,
650b (after Peck).
62
and 9 are not genuine, and probably belong to the third century
See OCD s.v. Aristotle.
B.C.
66 HA 1, 1, 488b (trans. D. W. Thompson
throughout).
67 HA 1, 8, 491b. See Galen, Anim. Mor. Corp. Temp. (Kuhn
4, 796). See also De Anima 2, 9, 421a: Men whose flesh is hard
are ill endowed by nature, men with soft flesh, well endowed.
Seite 26
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)they are quick tempered. . . ." Of the eye the white
is pretty much the same in all creatures; what is called
black differs in various animals. For some the eye is
black, for others gray or shining, which is a sign of an
excellent disposition. The eyes are of primary importance. Some are large, some small, some mediumsized. Of these the medium-sized are best. Moreover,
eyes sometimes protrude, sometimes recede, sometimes do neither. Of these the receding eyes are in all
animals the most acute, but the ones that do neither
are a sign of the best disposition. Again eyes are
sometimes inclined to blink under observation, sometimes to remain open and staring, and sometimes are
disposed neither to wink nor stare. The last kind is
the sign of the best nature, and of the other two, the
first indicates indecision, and the second impudence.
On the subject of ears Aristotle applies the principle of
excellence to those of medium size and medium position, as large and outstanding ears indicate a tendency
to irrelevant talk and chattering. This concept of the
middle area of excellence between extremes pervades
all Aristotelian thinking, of course, and is present in
the Pseudo-Aristotelian manual on physiognomy.
We have already observed that, at the end of the
second book of the Analytica Priora, Aristotle, through
a discussion of inference by signs, suggested the possibility of a science of physiognomics, that is, the inferring of character from physical features. It is not,
however, until the time of Galen that we encounter a
sustained effort to study the relationship of a man's
physique to his character, and to define in detail why
certain physical and mental characteristics occur in
animals and human beings.
Galen's study of this aspect of medicine is set forth
in a number of essays in the great corpus of his medical
writings, one of which seems to bring together his
most important ideas on the relation of man's character and his physical appearance. During the first half
of the second century Polemo of Laodicea had composed his handbook on the subject of physiognomics as
a guide for professors of rhetoric. It was in the latter
half of the century that Galen was teaching its doctrines as an important part of the physician's training.
Galen was born at Pergamum, probably in A.D. 129,68
the son of an architect Nicon. Within Nicon's lifetime
Galen had already become acquainted with the ideas
of the main philosophical schools, Platonic, Aristotelian, Stoic, Epicurean; and his training in philosophy
took a fundamental place in his later thinking. He
early started the study of medicine at Pergamum in
the Temple of Aesculapius and continued that training
at Smyrna under the physician Pelops. The rhetorical
school of Smyrna had just lost several of its most
outstanding teachers, Scopelian, Timocrates, and above
all, the leader of the New Sophistic, Polemo, whose
68 Cf. W. Christ, W. Schmid, 0. Stahlin, Geschichte der griechischen Literatur (6th ed. rev., Munich, 1924) 2, 2: p. 912.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
pupil, Aristides, was then at the height of his fame.69
"All Ionia," remarks Philostratus, "is like a college of
learned men, but Smyrna holds the highest place, like
the bridge upon the cithara."70 It was inevitable that
the influence of the teachers of medicine should leave
its mark on Galen's youthful mind, just as there can be
little doubt that he was made aware of the high regard
in which Polemo was held by the city. It is also highly
probable that, though Galen does not specifically refer
to Polemo's little handbook on physiognomy, he became familiar with it during his stay in Smyrna. It is
hard for us to believe that a work so repeatedly quoted
in ancient times could have escaped his notice. Indeed, a direct reference to Polemo occurs in Galen's
account of his own residence in Rome,71 in which he
quotes Polemo as saying that Rome was the epitome of
the inhabited world. Galen's use of the term physiognomountes72 likewise may be interpreted as referring
to the active practitioners of the art, among whom
surely Polemo was the outstanding figure of the day.
The special contribution of Galen to our field of
study is that he applied to it the doctrine of the
humors. We have already noticed earlier that his
physiognomical material comprised in part quotations
from his "master" Hippocrates, as well as quotations
from Plato and Aristotle, and in part his own observations in the medical field.73 It is at the same time to be
regretted that we do not find in Galen's writings, as we
find in the work of Polemo, a substantial number of
case histories of men whom he had studied from a
physiognomical point of view. It must always be
remembered that he was primarily a physician, and
that his case-records deal with medical diagnosis,
which must not be confused with what appears as
closely allied physiognomical material. In the Ars
Medica,74for example, he discusses physical warmth of
heart as marked by certain inseparable and particular
signs, the depth of respiration, pulse, its speed and
frequency, daring and restlessness for action. "For,"
he says,
if very much heat dominates, straightway there is bitter
anger and madness and rashness. In such people the
thorax is shaggy, and especially the chest and the parts
near the praecordia. In general, even the whole body
becomes warm when the heart is warm, unless the liver is
strongly opposed to it.
Here, obviously, there is an amalgamation of medical
diagnostic material and physiognomical ideas. The
difficulty we encounter in attempting to separate the
69 J. Walsh, "Galen's Writings and Influences Inspiring Them,"
Annals of Medical History, N.S., 6 (1934): p. 144.
70 Philostr. VS 1, 21.56 (Scopelian); trans. by J. Walsh.
71Hippoc. de artic. lib. et Gal. in eum comm. 1, 22 (Kiihn 18,
1, 347).
72 Mixt. 2.6 (Kuhn
1, 624); also ed. by G. Helmreich (Leipzig,
73 TAPA 72 (1941): pp. 107-108.
74 10 (KKuhn1, 332-334).
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PHILOSOPHY AND MEDICINE
two elements75 may be attributed to the fact that in
Galen's conception of the nature of the human being
the two are not separable.
Galen judiciously observes that the physiognomists
are always ready to pronounce on the character of a
man from his outward appearance. "When they say
that he has a chest like a lion and is therefore spirited,
but legs like a goat, and is lascivious, they describe
what they have observed, but they have omitted the
reason for these characteristics."76 Thus he strikes at
the weakness of the physiognomical handbooks we
possess. The Pseudo-Aristotelian tract states at the
outset that "dispositions follow bodily characteristics
and are not themselves unaffected by bodily impulses,"77but it probes no deeper. Polemo's handbook
is a practical guide to the recognition of certain types
and characteristics, yet there is no attempt to suggest
the reasons why such traits occur. In Galen,78 therefore, we find a significant effort to study the relation of
the physique of a man to his character, an effort to
relate the humors of the body to the temperament.
Ultimately the relationship rests on the proper krasis
or blending of the humors.
The work of Galen that may be described as a kind
of small handbook on the theories of the physiognomists
is one that was translated into Arabic in the ninth
century: raXtlvov f3LXLov 6Tl raZs TOv YawLcaToSKpaoEcLv at
ri1S 4'vxiS 6MaVcELS e"rovrat,79"that the faculties
of the
mind follow the mixtures or temperaments of the
body." The discussion is based on a selection of a
number of points of view. From experience, he assures
us, he has frequently observed that the powers of the
mind are closely connected with the temperaments of
the body. This opinion was not his own, but was
reached after careful inquiry by teachers and philosophers. Children show this diversity of mind and body,
as some are stupid, some timid, some generous, some
greedy. The faculties of the soul are located in the
liver, the heart, and the brain. Since such philosophers as Plato, Aristotle, and the Stoics appear to have
attached much importance to the presence of heat,
cold, wet, and dry in the human being, he reviews the
ideas of these philosophers on the nature and the
immortality of the soul. Wherefore, asks Galen, is
dryness the cause of wisdom, and moistness of madness? The influence of the krasis of the body in
bringing about mental illnesses is discussed, and it is
75 Lynn Thorndike, History of Magic and Experimental Science
(New York, 1923-1958) 1, p. 176 points out this fact.
76 Mixt. 2, 6 (Kuhn 1, 624).
77 805a. Cf. also 808b.
78 See Christ, Schmid, Stahlin, ibid. 2, 2, p. 915, note 8, for a
discussion of sources of the work, In Hippoc. lib. de humor. comm.,
in Galen's corpus.
79 Ed. by I. Muller in Scripta Minora of Galen (Leipzig, 1891)
2: pp. 32-79. In Kuhn's edition, which has been regularly cited
for other works of Galen in this article, the title is (4, 767-822):
KpAaeata
eir'rat. The
raXrlvov o'T ra& rls VIvxrs rlA0i raTs roi a,,uaros
Latin title is: Quod animi mores corporis temperamenta sequantur.
25
declared that the mind is damaged by such bodily
afflictions as injured humors. Galen draws widely on
earlier writers and so presents a neat compendium of
points to be observed in studying the principles of
physiognomy. Taking Plato's Timaeus80 as his authority for the importance of the humors in the
equilibrium of the body, he follows Aristotle in the
belief that the "faculties of the soul" depend upon the
krasis of the mother's blood, from which our own is
derived. He cites as evidence a passage from the
second book of the De Partibus Animalium.81 With
extensive quotation from Aristotle on the nature of
the blood and its relation to the disposition of the
individual, Galen proceeds to an account of the familiar doctrine of Aristotle that the conformation of the
whole body in each kind of animal becomes peculiar
to the character and faculties of the soul. According
to the physiognomists, moreover, certain things represent the krasis of soul and body, especially what is to
be observed from color, hair, voice, and the action of
certain parts. This remark leads him to a series of
observations which are practically identical with and
certainly derived from statements made by Aristotle
in his Historia Animalium. They deal with specific
physiognomical signs based on parallelisms with animals.82 As in the case of Polemo and the other
physiognomists, the eyes are of primary importance.
So with Aristotle he declares that some are large, some
small, some medium-sized; of these the medium-sized
are best; moreover eyes sometimes protrude, sometimes recede, sometimes neither; of these the receding
eyes are in all animals the most acute; but the last kind
is the sign of the best disposition. He ends his discussion of Aristotle's analysis of physiognomical signs
with the remark that he might add much more of this
nature did he not wish to set down the ideas of the
founder of this "science," his master, "the divine
Hippocrates." The quotations and comments which
follow lie mainly in the field of ethnological physiognomy. He obviously derives much of his material
from the essay on Airs, Waters, and Places. He reminds us once more that Hippocrates is a most reliable
witness of the close dependence of human nature on
environment and the seasons.83 At this point he
comes back to Plato, this time to the Laws, a passage
which we have cited earlier.84
This work of Galen, characterized by his insistence
on the doctrine of the humors, his ready acceptance of
parallelisms in the nature and physique of men and
animals, in his ethnological side of the science, represents his most important contribution. He is strongly
80
86e-87a (trans. by B. Jowett).
812.2, 648a (trans. by W. Ogle). Cf. Galen, ibid., 7 (Kuhn 4,
791), already cited.
82 I, 8, 491b
(trans. by D. W. Thompson). See pp. 64-68 already cited; cf. Galen, 7 (Kuhn 9, 796).
83 Galen, ibid., 8 (Kuihn 4, 805).
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Aristotelian in his belief that the best-tempered (or
blended) person is one who represents the absolute
mean between extremes, thinness and fatness, softness
and hardness, warmth and cold.85 So also in the soul
the middle state between rashness and cowardice,
slowness and recklessness, pity and envy is best. The
man possessing this quality must of necessity be kind,
affectionate, humane, and prudent. He has all physical and spiritual virtues. He is always of a good color,
breathing easily; he exists in an intermediate condition
between sleepiness and wakefulness, between a smooth
and hairy skin, between a dark and light complexion.
Elsewhere, Galen follows Stoic sources. Rightly, he
concludes, does Posidonius connect with this discussion
those things which appear in physiognomy.86
Thus Galen comes to a final unified view of the
relation of man to his environment and of the humors
affected by that environment, which in turn react on
his appearance and nature. So much of what has been
quoted above has a familiar ring that it is essential
always to keep in mind the fact that it is Galen who
first of all skillfully combined the Aristotelian parallelisms of men and animals in the study of physiognomy
with the theory of the humors circulating in the body,
and thus laid the foundations for what have become
commonplaces through the centuries in the interpretation of the character of a man from his physique. It
remains for us to observe in the final chaper of this
volume how Oribasius, Julian's physician, records his
debt to Galen in the fourth century A.D.
Thus far in this chapter we have discussed those
writers who were more or less under the influence of the
Aristotelian School. We now turn to the Stoics and
Epicureans. The Stoics, especially Zeno, not only
showed considerable familiarity with physiognomical
principles but gave them a certain amount of practical
application.87 The Epicurean doctrine of the physical
nature of the atomic soul, moreover, received dramatic
treatment in Lucretius. If Seneca in the De Ira,88
following an earlier Stoic source, explained the varieties of human nature that come from a mixture of the
elements, Lucretius, following the views of his master
Epicurus, brilliantly analyzed the elements of the soul
that appear in the outward nature of man.89 Thus
Mixt. 2, 1 (Kiihn 1, 576).
86See p. 27.
87 Diog. L. 7, 173.
Cf. Dio Chrys. Or. 33 (Or. Tars. Prior), 52.
88 2, 19. As there are four elements of fire, water, air, and earth,
so there are related properties of hot, cold, dry, and moist. Accordingly, the differences of regions animals, characters, and substances are caused by the varieties of mixture of these elements.
Each man's character is determined by the element dominant in
him. A fiery constitution will make angry men (fire is active and
stubborn); a mixture of cold makes men timid (cold is sluggish
and shrunken). The only reason why the angriest men are
flavi rubentesque is that they have by nature a color, which they
assume in anger; their blood is always active and stirred up.
89 3, 288-295: "est etenim calor ille animo, quem sumit, in ira/
cum fervescit et ex oculis micat acrius aura./ est et frigida multa
comes formidinis aura/ quae ciet horrorem membris et concitat
85
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
Lucretius describes the nature of the soul as consisting
of breath, heat, air, and a fourth nameless substance.
Heat flares up in anger, air in repose. The animus
possesses that calor when it boils up in rage (ira) and
fire (ardor) and flashes more sharply from the eyes.
Cold breath (aura frigida) goes along with fear, and
produces a shuddering in the limbs and shakes the
frame. Then, too, there is the air of the peaceful
state, which is uppermost when the heart is tranquil
and the face serene. Those creatures90 have more
calor whose hearts boil readily in fury, and whose
minds seethe with anger, as in the lion. The deer
possesses the cold wind of fear, the oxen the calm air of
repose.
Epicurus, however, speaks of the soul atoms as resembling wind and heat, and to these he adds a third
unnamed substance, which is even finer. This is, as
Bailey9"puts it, in accordance with Epicurean doctrine
in general, but appears to be a "rough statement elsewhere elaborated." Thus Lucretius' view is supported
in other Epicurean sources,92and is very likely the one
originally held by the school. It represents a modification of the theory of the Hippocratic four humors.
The Stoics, on the other hand, obviously were concerned with physiognomics from the time of their
founder Zeno, of whom it was said by Cleanthes that
he made it his particular business to recognize character from physique. Indeed the story is told of
Cleanthes in Diogenes Laertius93that certain ingenious
youths brought before him a rough fellow, a cinaedus
(lecher), from the fields and asked him to divine his
character. Cleanthes appeared at a loss and bade the
man go away. As he did so, the fellow sneezed;
whereupon Cleanthes said: "He is soft." A fuller version of the anecdote is given by Dio Chrysostom,94but
without the name of Cleanthes attached to it. Why
the sneeze is identified as characteristic of the cinaedus
is not explained, but it was clearly understood as a
physiognomical sign. "You see," remarks Dio95 "the
sneeze revealed the character of the man, and in the
face of all his other traits was sufficient to prevent his
eluding detection."
Inasmuch as excellence (appErr),or that which participates in arete, is for the Stoics96 the sole excellence,
physical beauty has value only when it occurs in connection with virtue; thus the excellent man is tall, and
sturdy, and commanding, and strong; but physical
artus./ est etiam quoque pacati status aeris ille,/ pectore tranquillo qui fit vultuque sereno./sed calidi plus est illis quibus acria
corda/ iracundaque mens facile effervescit in ira."
903, 296: "quo genere in primis vis est violenta leonum . . .
299: "at ventosa magis cervorum frigida mens est . . ."; 300:
"at natura boum placido magis aere vivit ...."
91 Cyril Bailey, Epicurus (Oxford, 1926), pp. 225-226.
92 Plutarch, Adv. Coloten 20; Aet. 43.
93 1,
173.
9433, 55.
951 bid.
C. Pearson, The Fragments of Zeno and Cleanthes (London,
1891), p. 148.
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PHILOSOPHY AND MEDICINE
With this theory Posidonius103attempts to resolve the
difficulties with which the earlier Stoics, among them
Chrysippus, had been confronted, and had been unable
to work out satisfactorily in the analogy of the disease
of the soul and the disease of the body. He follows the
Hippocratic essay on Airs, Waters, and Places on the
nature of man as it is influenced by regions and
countries, and brings to the later Graeco-Roman period
the heritage of earlier classical thinking with relation
Let the face be open, the eyebrows neither drooping, nor
man's environment and behavior. In Cicero's De
to
the eyelids wide apart nor turned back. The neck should
not be stretched up stiffly, nor the parts of the body be Natura Deorum'04 he is represented as stressing the
loosely jointed together. Let the limbs be held by a proper effect of "mixture" on cultural development in the
tautness. The mind should be keen and well keyed for area of the Mediterranean.
discussion, and in firm possession of what has been said
Marcus Aurelius likewise reflects the earlier Stoic
Let the gestures and movements give no hope to the intemperate, but rather let modesty rest upon the coun- traditions and the interest in physiognomy current in
his own day. To him also the ideas of Galen in this
tenance, and firmnessbe evident in the face.
realm must have become familiar during their associaIt has been suggested99that this fragment comes from tion, while the Greek physician was resident in
Zeno's tract on the Art of Love, dealing with the be- Rome.105
havior suitable for young men. It is clearly reminiscent of the account of such behavior in the Clouds How rotten and crafty is the man who says: "I have made
up my mind to deal plainly with you! What are you about,
presented to the Athenian audience by the Just Logic my
friend? This preface is not necessary. The intention
in favor of the men of Marathon and the good old days will reveal itself; it ought to be graven on the forehead;the
of rigorous Greek training for strong character.
tone of the voice should give that sound at once; the inLike the Epicureans, the Stoics adhered to the idea tention should shine out in the eyes at once, as the beloved
of an analogy between disease of the soul and the at once reads the whole in the glances of lovers."
illness of the body.'00 Zeno maintained that the "good
Since the subject of physiognomics attracted such
mixture" of the hot, the cold, the moist, and the dry in widespread popularity in the second century, it is not
the body constituted health, and Seneca'l' in the De surprising that there should have been some interest in
Ira, following an earlier Stoic source, probably Posi- this period in the origin of the "science." While we
donius, explained the varieties of human types that know from several accountsfO6of Pythagoras' life that
come from a mixture of the elements. Galen,1b2while he was considered the founder of the study of physidiscussing the middle state of the soul as between
103
L. Edelstein, "The Philosophical System of Posidonius,"
rashness and cowardice, slowness and recklessness, pity AJP See
57 (1936): pp. 286-325, especially 307-308 and note 87.
and envy, turns to Posidonius (135-ca. 50 B.C.) for sup- Edelstein points out that Posidonius does not compare the disease
port in those things which appear in physiognomy.
of the soul with the disease of the body. See also Strabo 2, 3, 7,
excellence must be associated with the wise man, since
no excellence can be granted to the common man.97
Zeno thought it fitting to represent or describe the
image of the ideal youth (vEactas) from a physiognomical standpoint. The account of this portrayal occurs
in a work of Clement of Alexandria,98 in which Zeno
describes the statue of a youth which accords with the
concept of the virtuous man:
For of animals and men, as many as are broad-chestedand
warm-bloodedare by nature in every way more given to
anger; as many as are flat-hipped and cold-blooded are
more cowardly. And, according to the variety of regions,
the character of men differs with reference to cowardice
and courage or love of pleasureand love of toil, as the motions of the soul follow the disposition of the body, which
from atmospheric conditions is affected not a little. This
is evident, since blood differs in animals by reason of heat
and cold, thickness and thinness, and in not a few other
respects, as Aristotle has written fully.
ibid., 155; cf. Cicero, Mur. 61; Fin. 3, 75.
Paedag. 3, 11, 74, restored by C. G. Cobet, Mnemos. 6.
(1878): p. 339. An 6qua AvawrE7rTapkpov would be barefaced and
impudent, if we compare Xen. Mem. 2, 1, 22, for the description
97Pearson,
98
of vice in the allegoryof Prodicus. An 6/Aua 6LaKfKXao-yfJOV belongs
to a soft and shameless man.
99Pearson, ibid., 207.
100F. Von Arnim, Stoicorum Veterum Fragmenta (Leipzig,
1921) 1, 37, 3 (Zeno); 3, 68, 27; 3, 121, 19; 3, 122, 19 (Chrysippus).
1012.19. This mixture of the elements causes differences of
region, animals, physique and character.
102 De Plac. Hippoc. et Plat.
(Kiihn 5, 463-464) also edited by
I. Miuller (Leipzig, 1874); FHG 2, A. 202.
who uses Posidonius as a source.
1042, 42.
105
'ICp eds 'Eavro6 11, 15 (trans. A. S. L. Farquarson throughout) cf. 1, 15, 2; 4, 3; 6, 30, 2; 7, 24; 7, 31; 7, 37; 7, 60. Similarly
Arrian in reporting in the second century A.D. the Discourses of
Epictetus reflects the same point of view: 1, 24, 8-9; 1, 25, 31;
2, 8, 24-28 (steadfastness in behavior and countenance); 2, 13,
13; 3, 1, 8-9, 3, 1, 24; 3, 1, 42; 3, 2, 11; 3, 5, 9; 3, 22, 88; 4,1;
145; 4, 8, 6; 4, 8, 12; 4, 10, 36; 4, 11, 19; 4, 11, 22; 4, 11, 27;
Encheiridion 22, 33, 15.
106 Hippol. Haer. 1, 2; Porph. VP 13; Iamb. VP 17.
Cf.
HSCP 46 (1935): p. 47 and note 3. Other versions of Pythagoras' practice occur in Porphyrio and lamblichus.
According
to E. Rohde, Der Griechische Roman3, p. 273; Kleine Schriften
(Leipzig, 1901) 2, 137, the account in Porphyrio may be referred
to Antonius Diogenes, that in Iamblichus to Apollonius of Tyana.
See F6rster, SP 1: p. xiii, note 3. Forster believes that Nicomachus Gerasenus was probably less accurately used by Porphyrio than by lamblichus and perhaps by Aulus Gellius (SP
1: pp. xiii-xiv).
Cf. also Aulus Gellius 4, 11. See A. DeLatte,
Essai sur la Politique Pythagoricienne (Liege, Paris, 1922) on "La
Societe Pythagoricienne," pp. 8-10, 25, for Timaeus and Aristoxenus as sources for this aspect of the life of the Pythagorean
group under discussion. For a very recent analysis of the sources
(especially Dicaearchus, Aristoxenus, and Timaeus) used for the
history of the Pythagoreans see Kurt von Fritz, Pythagorean
Politics in Southern Italy (New York, 1940).
Seite 30
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)ognomy, there is also the familiar statement of Galen107
that the "divine" Hippocrates was responsible for the
Among those who obvibeginnings of the science.
ously regard Pythagoras as the founder is the writer of
the second century A.D., Aulus Gellius,108 who de(based on an
scribes the admission requirements
earlier source) for the school of Pythagoras:
It is said that the order and method followed by Pythagoras, and afterwards by his school and his successors in
admitting and training their pupils were as follows: At the
very outset he "physiognomized" the young men who
presented themselves for instruction. That word means to
inquire into the character and dispositions of men by an
inference drawn from their facial appearance and expression, and from the form and bearing of their whole body.
Then, when he had thus examined a man and found him
suitable, he at once gave orders that he should be admitted
to the school and should keep silence for a fixed period of
time; this was not the same for all, but differed according
to his estimate of the man's capacity for learning quickly.
But the one who kept silent listened to what was said by
others; he was, however, religiously forbidden to ask questions, if he had not fully understood, or to remark upon
what he had heard. Now no one kept silence for less than
two years. . . . But when they had learned what is of all
things the most difficult, to keep quiet and listen . . .
they were then allowed to speak, to ask questions, and to
write down what they had heard, and to express their own
opinions.
Unfortunately we are not told what was the nature of
their facial expression or bearing at the end of this trial
period.
III. DRAMA
Seneca, the Roman Stoic and tutor of the Emperor
Nero, manifests his interest in descriptions of personal
appearance not only in his philosophical essays, but
His use of portraiture seems to
also in his tragedies.
stem specifically from a strong Stoic interest in the
relation of the features of a man to his inner nature;
an interest which is also common to the Peripatetic
school, and is directly connected with the study of the
In Seneca's essays and
principles of physiognomy.
letters extensive comments on the subject appear,
ranging from the definition of rhetorical terms which
are used for descriptions of personal appearance to an
analysis of different physical types of men. The descriptions of various types of people in the dramas,
both permanent, detailed portraits, and brief delineations of momentary inner feeling, reflected on the
countenance, are, I believe, related in part to the
Stoic interest in the theories of the physiognomists, as
well as of the definite concern in this period with
related rhetorical and stylistic devices, such as characterismos and eikonismos.
Mor. Corp. Temp. (Kuihn 4, 797-798).
9 (trans. J. C. Rolfe, LCL). Cf. R. A. Pack, "Physiognomical Entrance Examinations," CJ 31 (1935): pp. 42-43.
He shows the debt of Robert Burton in his Latin play, the Philosophaster (Act 1, sc. 6), to this passage.
107Anim.
WORLD
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
For this reason, I shall begin the discussion of
portraiture in ancient drama with Seneca, who, in
point of time, is the last writer in this genre we
perhaps should consider. Yet in his adherence to
Stoic philosophy he belongs properly at the beginning
of this chapter since he forms a connecting link with
the treatment of the views of the Stoics on physiognomics which we included at the end of Chapter II.
After an analysis of Seneca's use of descriptions of
physique we must look back briefly to the nature of
such descriptions in Greek classical tragedy and
comedy, and then explore the material available from
the Hellenistic Age, which contributes markedly to
the development of such descriptions in Seneca's
tragedies.
Perhaps the most significant remark we can make
about Seneca at this point is that he did not confine
himself to any one particular type of description. In
his treatment of Medea and Phaedra, for instance, we
have a good example of the description of the second
type: registering reaction as an aspect of characterization in Roman tragedy, used repeatedly to suggest
the nature of an individual in the light of personal
appearance, i.e., "physiognomic consciousness." But
Seneca does not by any means limit himself to this
particular type of description. Instead we find, as
we not infrequently find in epic, a combination of
this with the more general type of description. And
even iconistic portraiture sometimes appears.
First of all, he analyzes in some detail the rhetorical
terms used for iconistic and physiognomical descriptions.' Characterismos is a description of behavior
and sometimes equated with eikonismos, wherein
only the physique of people is delineated. He seems,
however, to consider the two terms interchangeable
and quotes the Stoic Posidonius as his authority in
the matter2: "It will be useful," he says,
to illustrate each particularvirtue; this science Posidonius
calls ethology (ethologia), while others call it characterization (characterismos). It gives the "signs and marks"
of each virtue and vice, so that distinctions may be understood between similar things. These illustrations, or to
use a commercialterm (i.e., of the publicani) eikonismos,
I confess have a certain utility; just put them up for exhibition well recommended,and you will find men to copy
them.
He cites as an example Virgil's iconistic description
of a highbred horse3: "ardua cervix, argutum caput,
brevis alvus, obesa terga, toris animosum pectus
[high neck, graceful head, short belly, plump back,
and a proud chest bristling with muscles]," and makes
this comment that Virgil's description,
though referringto something else, might perfectly well be
the portrayal of a brave man; at any rate I myself should
select no other simile for a hero. If I had to describeCato,
108 1,
I Ep.
95, 65-69 (trans. R. M. Gummere throughout, LCL).
See G. Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," pp. 97-99.
3 Virgil, G. 3, 75-85.
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DRAMA
who was unterrified amid the din of civil war . . . this is
fearful picture of the madman: "audax et minax,
exactly the sort of expression and attitude which I should vultus, tristis frons, torva facies, citatus gradus,
give him ("non alium vultum, non alium habitum").
inquietae manus, color versus, crebra et vehementius
In the second place, if we examine the Epistulae acta suspiria [bold and threatening mien, a gloomy
Morales rather closely, we shall observe that Seneca forehead, a fierce countenance, a hurried step, restless
not only discusses the principles of physiognomy, but hands, changing color, rapid and violently drawn
applies them effectively in his own writings in which breath]." If we look in Seneca for a concrete dehe describes certain types of men. The letter to scription of such a madman, a remarkable example is
Lucilius,4 on the choosing of teachers, indicates, for to be found in the philosopher's bitter diatribe on
instance, how the lecherous man is revealed by his the ugliness of the Emperor Caligula9:
gait, by the touching of his head with a finger, by the He himself was a most fruitful source of ridicule, such was
shifting of his gaze; the scamp is marked by his the ugliness of his pale face bespeaking his madness, such
laugh, the madman5 by his face and general appear- the wildness of his eyes lurking beneath the brow of an old
ance. In another letter to Lucilius Seneca reports a hag; such the hideousness of his bald head with its sprinconversation with Claranus, his former schoolmate, kling of beggarly hairs. And he had, besides, a neck overgrown with bristles, spindle shanks, and enormous feet.
on various aspects of virtue.6 There are, he maintains, three kinds of goods7: those which are primary, Every detail of this picture is in exact accord with the
such as joy or peace; those which are secondary, such photographic description of the hated Emperor in
as endurance of suffering; and a third variety, such the Lives of Suetonius. The physiognomical signifias a modest gait, a calm and honest countenance, and cance of these features10I shall deal with elsewhere.
a bearing that suits the man of wisdom: "tamquam
Seneca's general acceptance of the ideas of the
modestus incessus et conpositus ac probus vultus et physiognomists manifests itself in the tragedies in a
conveniens prudenti viro gestus." "Nature," Seneca different fashion."1 These plays, though based directly
asserts, "produces certain men, who, though ham- on Greek dramas, are by and large more concerned
pered in their bodies, nonetheless break through the with the use of facial and bodily expression, and the
obstruction." Thus the assumption is clearly main- material found here would conform most closely to
tained that a relation exists between the inner and the to the third method of studying physiognomy disoutxvard appearance, and that incessus, vultus, and cussed in the Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook, i.e.,
gestus reflect the true character of the soul, or might characteristic facial expressions that follow different
ideally be said to do so in the man of wisdom.
dispositions of mind.
For another kind of illustration of types we may
In an article which appeared some years ago,
turn to the De Ira, in which the angry man is elabo- Professor Berthe Marti"2suggested that the order of
rately described.8 With the portrait is combined the
9 Constant. 18, 1 (trans. J. W. Basore throughout, LCL). Cf.
4Ep. 52, 12. Cf. 11, 107; 30, 3; 56, 4-5; 62, 31; 83, 21; 95,
65-73; 103, 2; 104, 28; 106, 5-7; 108, 6-7; 114, 3-4; 20-21; 115,
3-4; De Ira 1, 1, 3-4; 1, 18, 2; 1, 19, 2; 2, 3, 2-4; 2, 5, 3; 2, 19;
2, 35-36; 1-3; 3, 4; 3, 13, 1-3; cf. also Constant. 16, 3-18, 1;
Ben. 1, 1, 5; 1, 3, 6; 2, 2; Clem. 1, 13, 4; 1, 19, 2-3; 2, 5, 5; Consol.
ad Polyb. 5, 5-6, 1-2; Tranq. 4, 6-7. See F6rster, SP 2: pp.
326-372, 352.
6See also De Ira 1, 13-15. Signs of the angry man: "flagrant
ac micant oculi, mutus ore toto rubor, exasestuante ab imis praecordiis sanguine, labra quantiuntur, dentes comprimuntur,
horrent ac surriguntur capilli, spiritus coactus ac stridens,
articulorum se ipsos torquentium sonus, gemitus mugitusque et
parum explanatis vocibus sermo praeruptus et conplosae saepius
manus et pulsata humus pedibus et totum concitum corpus
magnasque irae minas agens . . . "; cf. 2, 35, 3-5 and 3, 4,
1-5 for similar discussions of the hideous appearance of anger.
6 Ep. 56, 1-5.
I Actually here, as Gummere points out, he is speaking of
"three sorts of circumstances under which the good can manifest
itself" (Ep. 56, 5-6, note ad loc.). Elsewhere (56, 36) he declares
only the first two classes are real goods: "Certain goods are
indifferent: these are no more according to nature than contrary
to nature, as, for example, a discreet gait and a sedate posture
in a chair" ("tamquam prudentes ambulare, composite sedere").
Trans. Gummere.
8 See note 2 and De Ira 1, 1,3. For a recent study of anger in
Juvenal and Seneca see W. S. Anderson, "Anger in Juvenal and
Seneca," University of California Publications in Classical
Philology 19, 3 (1964): pp. 127-196. Mr. Anderson, however, is
not concerned with the iconistic portrait of the angry man.
De Ira 1, 20, 8-9; 3, 19, 1-2.
0 HSCP 46, (1935): pp. 67-68. Cf. pp. 54-55.
" While the discussion of the angry man is an example of
Seneca's interest in certain physiognomical types, it is important
to notice that the physical appearance of such a man is combined
with a discussion of similar characteristics in animals. In other
words this particular example might be said to illustrate the
first method of studying the principles of physiognomy, analyzed
in the Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook. The doctrine of the humors
finds expression likewise in the De Ira 2, 19, where Seneca,
following an earlier Stoic source, undoubtedly Posidonius, discusses the mixture of the elements which causes differences of
regions, animals, physique, and character. Cf. Galen, who quotes
Posidonius on this subject, De Plac. Hipp. et Plat. 5, 5 (Kuihn 5,
463-464). This would be associated with the second method of
studying physiognomy described in the Pseudo-Aristotelian
handbook. The Greek tragedians, as we have already indicated,
are not concerned with bodily or facial expression to a marked
degree. Euripides, who is more partial to such delineation, uses
it to describe effectively Medea and Phaedra, and likewise devotes himself from time to time to momentary descriptions of
incisive power. See appendix C for examples, which, in proportion, are less frequent than in Seneca.
12 Berthe Marti, "Seneca's Tragedies. A New Interpretation,"
TAPA 76 (1945): pp. 216-245, esp. pp. 230-234. While recognizing the importance of Miss Marti's thesis, Professor Norman
T. Pratt, Jr. ("The Stoic Base of Senecan Drama," TAPA 79
[1948]: pp. 1-11, esp. pp. 1-2) has been inclined to dissent from
her interpretation in some respects. "Beyond the mechanical
difficulty involved in attaching such exact significance to manu-
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[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
the plays of Seneca preserved in manuscript E (Codex of these momentary descriptions is to be found in
Etruscus, Laurentianus 37, 13) was planned by the Seneca's words.15 "Ut scias autem non esse sanos
Roman playwright to illustrate certain Stoic ideas quos ira possedit, ipsum illorum habitum intuere.
closely related to the philosophical concepts found in [So that you may know however that they are not
his essays and letters. She argues, for example, that sane, whom anger possesses, look at their demeanor.]"
Seneca's characterizations of AMedeaand Phaedra, Thus Creon immediately recognizes the lurking
when viewed in connection with the De Ira, point to menace inherent in Medea's expressive face, as he
concrete examples of one of the harmful passions de- watches her approach16:
plored by the Stoic philosophers. She maintains,
Fert gradum contra ferox
furthermore, that the physical descriptions of the
minaxque nostros propius affatus petit.
heroines of these two tragedies, presented in some
Two words, ferox and minax, suffice to give us the
detail, are closely related to Seneca's purpose in
complete picture of Medea's state of mind. A similar
writing his dramas, that of presenting a sequence of
awareness comes to the nurse as she observes Medea
themes allied to the ideas discussed in his philosophical
hurrying from the house distraught, bent on brutal
works. While I believe that there is great significance
vengeance because of the desertion of Jason. As
in Miss Marti's interpretation of the relationship of
Medea draws near, the nurse prays that she may
the thought of the essays and the plays, I think that
curb her wild passion. "As a maenad . . . she runs,
she has not taken account of all of the factors involved.
now here, now there, marks of distracted passion in
She contends'3 that "Seneca did not intend to her face" ["furoris ore signa lymphati
gerens"].
write plays after the manner of the Greek dramatists, "Her cheeks aflame, she pants with
deep sobs for
but that he adapted the technique of drama to the breath, shouts aloud, weeps floods of tears, beams
teaching of philosophy." The two figures of Medea with joy; she assumes the proof of every
passion"
and Phaedra,14 she suggests, "illustrate the most (. . . vultum furoris cerno. di
fallant metum).
significant contribution of the Stoics to psychology, Jason, suffering from a kind of amazed and dull
misthe analysis of the effect of emotional impulses upon apprehension, is anxious in his turn to
soften her anger
the struggle between vice and virtue. They provide with prayers, but at her
entrance exclaims "and see,
exempla for a "Treatise of the Passions." I should at the sight of me she starts up,
bursts into passion,
submit that "they had become exempla of the most displays her hate; all her
anguish is in her face" (totus
annihilating effects of anger" through a specific Stoic in vultu est dolor). Still another picture of M'edea's
interest on the part of Seneca in the ideas of the anguish and desperation is
presented by the chorus,
physiognomists. They represent, furthermore, an who observes her as the children bear the fatal gifts
attempt to relate physiognomical theory to rhetorical to the palace of the bride and
Medea moves in the
devices such as characterismos, popular in his day, opposite direction:
and to certain techniques in drama. Thus the Medea,
as a play steeped in the fury and revenge of the Where is this blood-stained maenad borne headlong by
mad passion? What crime with reckless fury is she preheroine, provides an excellent example of the de- paring? Her distraught face is hard set with anger:
tailed physical description of intense anger. This
vultus citatus ira
kind of description, however, is clearly of the second
riget
type, the indication of the momentary expression Her cheeks
blaze red, pallor puts red to flight; no color in
upon the physique or countenance. It does not at- her changing aspect does she
keep long.
tempt the iconistic portrait found in the likeness of
In order to understand the extent to which Seneca
Caligula, or the concentrated description of the angry
man in the De Ira. The cumulative effect, however, concentrates on tra, we may turn to Euripides'
Medea"7for purposes of comparison. Much the same
script sequence," he says, " . . . there seems to be some lack
type of delineation is to be found, but with a different
of clarity in the sequence of the themes which she finds in the
emphasis. Certainly in Euripides our attention is not
plays." He believes that Stoicism, and by this he means neodirected constantly to the expression of anger. The
Stoicism, "shaped the nature of this drama both in superficial
nurse, first of all, tells of Medea's utter despair18:
and in fundamental ways. The influence of philosophy is much
deeper than any simple correspondence between the themes of the
two genres" (10-11). See also the recent article of Norman T.
Pratt, "Major Systems of Figurative Language in Senecan
Melodrama," TAPA 94 (1963): pp. 199-234. Professor Pratt
argues (199) that "we now recognize that Seneca's plays must be
judged not as poor 'Greek' tragedy but as a different type of
ancient drama-with its orientation and points of strength and
weakness coming essentially from the fusion of rhetoric and
Stoicism."
13 Marti, ibid., 219.
14 Ibid., 222, 229. In
this discussion the title Hippolytus is
used instead of Phaedra.
15 De Ira
1, 1,3. See pp. 29-30.
380-396; 445-446; 849-861, passim (trans. F. J.
Miller throughout, LCL). Cf. 675-676.
17 See pp. 30-31.
18 24-33, esp. 27-28 (trans. E. P. Coleridge throughout). Medea
516-519 (trans. E. P. Coleridge throughout). Compare Theognis
119-120 and 128. The whole quotation from Theognis is admired
by Clement of Alexandria (Str. 6, 18, 6) who excerpts the first
six verses. Arist. Eth. Eudem. 7, 2, 1237b makes use of lines
7-8, and Euripides adapts the whole passage in Medea's speech.
See Forster SP 2: pp. 337-338 for the complete collection of
references.
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DRAMA
"never lifting her eye nor raising her face from off the
ground." Then almost immediately the intensity of
her angry brooding is reflected in the nurse's comment
to the children's attendant: "For ere this have I seen
her eyeing them (the children) savagely (et5ov 6o,u,a vtv
,ravpw1v,'tv roZab'), as though she were minded to do
them some hurt" (92-93). At the begging of the
chorus the nurse agrees to bring Medea outside,
"although she glares upon her servants" (airoravpow*raO)
as "with the look of a lioness with cubs" (187-189).
When Creon confronts her, he bids her take her sullen
271). Yet when
face out of the land (r'v uKvGpwnro6v,
Jason faces her, there is no reference to her angry
bearing; we hear only her cruel taunts on his dastardliness: "O Zeus, why hast thou granted unto man clear
signs to know the sham in gold, while on man's brow
no brand is stamped whereby to gauge the villain's
heart?" obbEls xapaK-r7p Ec/irEc/OVKf o-cZ,uart (516-519).
Aegeus sees a downcast eye and wasted cheek, not
anger on the face (689), and Jason,"9 in his second
encounter, perceives only fresh tears and a wan cheek
as she dissembles her true plans. Finally her soliloquy
as she steels herself for the murder of her sons is
poignant with anguish, not anger or revenge, at the
sight of the laughing eyes of her children. Seneca, we
must remind ourselves, emphasizes, too, the turmoil
of soul in this scene:
variamque nunc huc ira, nunc illuc amor
diducit (938-939);
but he directs our attention to Medea's fury, as he
has throughout the play, and in this passage ira is the
keynote word.
In the Hippolytus the concentration of Seneca on
physique is again apparent in the description of the
heroine, Phaedra, but the handling of this description is somewhat different. Through the eyes of the
nurse the total physical effect of her disordered mind
is vividly presented to the chorus. It is a matter
of some significance that this is the only important passage devoted to the description of Phaedra.
The imagery of counterfeit gold and silver which we have
noted in Theognis appears in drama, for example, in Euripides.
Much of the same imagery is used in a modified form in the
Hippolytus (922-928, particularly 922-923) with reference to
men's voices, the one the voice of honesty, the other that of
Hippolytus has come to commiserate with his
expediency.
father at Phaedra's death, only to be met with a savage attack
for his apparent hypocrisy and faithlessness: "Alas," cries
Theseus, "man needs should have some certain test set up to
try his friends, some touchstone of their hearts, to know each
friend whether he is true or false; all men should have two voices,
one the voice of honesty, expediency's the other, so would honesty
confute its knavish opposite, and then we could not be deceived."
This line of thought recalls that used in the Medea, but the
effectiveness of the figure in the Hippolytus lies in man's capacity for speech and the integrity of his nature revealed by the
utterance of honest intent.
19922-923; cf. 1012. See also 1038-1043; 1071-1075.
31
Though she is possessed by a tacito aestu,20 an inner
consuming fire betrays itself in her eyes, and her
weary face turns from the light. Her pain twists her
in constantly shifting ways; she trails through the
palace with faltering steps, like one dying, and barely
holds her head erect upon her bending neck. She
longs for rest, but struggles through the night with
incessant moaning, and has no power for sleep. Her
strength is gone, and all the former brightness of her
face. Her steps are aimless, and the tender grace of
her once lovely form has disappeared. Her eyes, that
once shone like the torches of Phoebus, are dulled,
and tears fall endlessly from them.
This is portraiture of the utmost detail. Every
aspect of her afflicted body and soul, and the lost
beauty of once brilliant eyes are limned in full. Yet
in Seneca's essays we can find no description exactly
parallelling or corresponding to the type of the lovemaddened woman, as we can for the angry man, or
the man possessed by madness. Miss Marti2l maintains that the physical description of Phaedra as well
as of Medea fits the concrete descriptions of the
symptoms of the harmful passion of anger in Seneca's
treatise, De Ira, and that Phaedra shows all these
"conventional symptoms of a mind disordered by
passion" in the passage just cited. That may well
be. But surely Seneca's sources might be found also
in Sappho's description22 (see Chapter VII) of her
feelings in the presence of a beloved girl, also, so far
as the physical description of the heroine is concerned,
in Euripides, in Apollonius Rhodius, and in Virgil.
Actually it is Apollonius who provides the closest
parallel to the love story of Medea and Jason (see
Chapter VI). Yet here, too, there is a difference, for
the epic poet, in the manner of conventional Alex362-383 passim:
"torretur aestu tacito et inclusus quoque,
quamvis tegatur, proditur vultu furor;
erumpit oculis ignis et lassae genae
lucem recusant, nil idem dubiae placet
artusque varie iactat incertus dolor
nunc ut soluto labitur moriens gradu
et vix labante sustinet collor caput,
nunc se quieti reddit et, somni immemor,
noctem querelis ducit;.
: . . . . . . . . . . .vadit incerto pede,
iam viribus defecta. non idem vigor,
non ora tinguens nitida purpureus rubor;
populatur artus cura, iam gressus tremunt
tenerque nitidi corporis cecidit decor.
et qui ferebant signa Phoebeae facis
oculi nihil gentile nec patrium micant,
lacrimae cadunt per ora et assiduo genae
rore irrigantur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . "
Twice later we are reminded by the nurse and by Theseus of her
fainting body, and deathlike pallor, of her disheveled hair, and
lacerae comae, and tears (731-734; 886-887), but, the rest of the
play, so far as physical description is concerned, is directed to
Hippolytus and Theseus.
21 Ibid., 233.
22 For Sappho see C. M. Bowra, Greek Lyric Poetry, p. 213,
and note 5, 128-130.
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)andrian love poetry, is concerned with the development of Medea's passion for Jason, every phase of
which he records in terms of the momentary expression of the face, whereas Seneca concentrates on
the total effect of all phases of this love madness as it
finally possesses the queen. Virgil's description of
Dido is concerned with the catastrophe which follows
on the destruction of her love for Aeneas, and the
agony wrought by his desertion. In the telling of the
growth of her passion there is, as we have pointed out,
almost no attention directed to momentary facial
expression, for Virgil, so far as portraiture is concerned, is primarily centered on her disillusionment
and the lacrimae inanes of anguish.23 At the same
time it is to be expected that Euripides would contribute to Seneca's portrait a direct basis on xvhich
the Roman playwright's far more elaborate description is built. Beyond implied description of facial expression, however, Euripides does not go into detail.
It is clear that the lavishness of Seneca's portrait is
not part of Euripides' technique in the delineation of
Phaedra,24but rather the contribution of an age given
to rhetorical eikonismos.
Another interesting aspect of Seneca's dramatic
technique, a type of description which is not immediately connected with characterismos and eikonismos,
is to be found in his portrait of Hector and Theseus.
The description of Hector is achieved by calling attention to the likeness between Astyanax and Hector.
This device, which might be called "the device of
resemblance," is used with singular effectiveness by
Homer, especially in his portrait of Odysseus in the
Odyssey, where there are repeated instances of a
comparison of Telemachus with his father, and vice
versa (see Chapter VI). In the Troades of Seneca
Astyanax brings to Andromache too poignant a
reminder of Hector. In the child she sees his father,
the same features, the same bearing, the same commanding expression25:
Nimiumque patri similis; hos vultus meus
habebat Hector, talis incessu fuit
habituque talis sic tulit fortes manus,
sic celsus umeris, fronte sic torva minax
cervice fusam dissipans iacta comam.
Exactly this same method is employed in the Hippolytus. The sight of Hippolytus brings back to the
queen the recollection of Theseus as a youth when he
killed the Minotaur.
We must emphasize the fact that whereas in
Seneca's Medea those passages which describe the
bearing and facial expression of the heroine focus our
23 Her servants support her fainting form and lay her on the
couch, exhausted from her aimless wanderings. She is weary of
looking at the sky. At night her pain redoubles, and she finds
no rest from torment. Aen. 4, 391-392; 450-455; 529-532.
24 Cf. also 586-588; 788-789.
26 Tro. 464-468; cf. Homer, II. 22, 401-403 (Hector in the dust)
and Seneca, Tro. 448-450, when Hector bids Andromache wake
from sleep to save Astyanax.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
attention on ira, in his Hippolytus our interest is
directed to other emotions. While the nurse describes minutely the physical manifestations of
Phaedra's torture of love, it is the queen herself who
sees in Hippolytus the features of Theseus as a young
man ("genitor in te totus"), the same modesty, the
same erect head.26
Hippolyte, sic est: Thesei vultus amo
quis tum ille fulsit! presserantvittae comam
et ora flavus tenera tinguebat pudor;
inerant lacertis mollibus fortes tori;
tuaeque Phoebes vultus aut Phoebi mei
tuusque potius . . . sic tulit celsum caput.
in te magis refulget incomptus decor;
est genitor in te totus et torvae tamen
pars aliqua matris miscet ex aequo decus;
in ore Graio Scythicus apparet rigor.
The concentration on Hippolytus is deliberate, for
our concern with the physical suffering of the queen
is thereby enhanced as she sees in her stepson the ideal
likeness of her husband, Theseus, a likeness that has
awakened in her these desperate pangs of love.
As is also true in the plays of Sophocles, the arrival
of a character on the scene calls for a brief account of
his physical appearance. Megara, in the Hercules
Furens, watches the approach of Lycus, bearing the
sceptre of Creon, whose throne he has usurped27:
Sed ecce saevus ac minas vultu gerens
et qualis animo est talis incessu venit.
Andromache in the Troades28catches sight of Odysseus
close at hand, et quidem dubio gradu vultuque, and
knows only too well from his facial expression that
he is weaving some crafty scheme. In the Hercules
Oetaeus the appearance of the distraught Deianira is
reflected in the question of the chorus who, at the
sight of the woman, driven like a maddened Bacchante, ask29: "sed quid pavido territa vultu/.
fertur dubio regina gradu?"
It is often in the speech of the messenger that we
get a strikingly vivid description of the momentary
reaction of an individual to some crisis or situation.
In the case of Oedipus the messenger reports the
reaction of the king to the discovery that he has
been guilty of both murder and incest.30 In the
Hercules Oetaeus facial expression is set forth in detail
far beyond what is to be found in Sophocles, in a
characterization of a king, impetuous and uncontrolled, driven on unceasingly by the consciousness
of his guilt and impeding doom.
26 Ibid., 646-660, esp. 658.
Cf. Theseus' lament over his son's
death, 1269-1270.
27 329-330.
28 522-523.
Cf. Hecuba in the same play, watching the approach of Pyrrhus, 999-1000.
29 700-702.
Cf. Deianira observing her son Hyllus "hurrying
with face of fear," 740-741, and Octavia, 436-437 (arrival of
Nero).
30Oed. 919-926. Oedipus continues, 957-961.
Cf. Atreus at
altar, Thyestes 706.
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VOL. 59, PT. 5, 1969]
As over the fields a Libyan lion rages, with threatening
front and shaking his tawny mane; so he, his face fierce
with passion, with eyes wild staring ("vultus furore torvus
atque oculi truces") with groans and deep mutterings,
limbs with cold sweat streaming,froths and threatens, and
his mighty, deep buried anguish overflows. He, raging in
soul, plans some monstrousdeed to match his destiny.
In the Troades3' the main interest of the play lies in
the scene in which the death of Polyxena and Astyanax
is described. Polyxena, brave and fearless as she
goes to her death, displays, we are told by the messenger, a radiant face and a beauty heightened at
the moment of sacrifice, yet she moves with a countenance cast down in modesty ("deiectos gerit/vultus
pudore"), though "the dying splendour of her beauty
shines beyond its wont" ("fulgent genae/.
. . splendet
extremus decor").
Finally the end of the Hercules Oetaeus presents a
picture of the physical appearance of the tortured
Hercules at the moment of death, which in its quality
of exaltation is comparable in mood to that of Oedipus
at the conclusion of Sophocles' Oedipus Coloneus. His
suffering, so intense that control is beyond endurance,
gives way to cries to the chorus as he is borne to
Oeta32: "My face, before unmoved ('invictus olim
vultus'), and never wont to express its woes in tears,
at last (Oh shame!) has learned to weep." His comment on his own countenance continues:
durior saxo horrido
et chalybe vultus et vaga Symplegade
rictus meos infregit et lacrimamexpulit.
Yet, when Philoctetes returns from Oeta, bearing on
his shoulders the bow and arrows of Hercules, the
chorus bids him tell with what countenance the hero
bore his death. His answer, containing the characteristic elements of a messenger's speech, conveys the
happiness of apotheosis finally gained33: "His gaze
was of one who seeks the stars, not fires of earth"
("vultus petentis astra, non ignes erat"). The climax
of the play, involving death by fire and ultimate
purification, finds expression in absolute calmness of
face and majesty and triumph, an emphasis in description completely absent from Sophocles' Trachiniae34: "But Hercules midst roaring flames upstarting,
.
.
.
gazed dauntless
round" ("intrepidum
tuens"). The crowd is speechless,35 "tam placida
frons est, tanta maiestas viro." The play offers, Miss
Marti believes, dramatic interpretation of the most
profound Stoic convictions, and is, as it were, an
epitome of the Stoics' creed. It is furthermore marked,
I should maintain, at its climax by a remarkable
31 1137-1139.
1266-1267; 1272-1274.
331645-1647. Cf. 1684-1685. See also description of Philoctetes' face (laeto venit ecce vultu, as he returns from Oeta, 16031604). See Marti, ibid., pp. 241-245.
32
1736-1737.
36 1946.
Cf. 1753-1755.
34
33
richness in the use of momentary facial expression
introduced to intensify the glorious triumph of man,
the vir bonus, over the struggles of life and death.
It is not without significance, perhaps, that just as
Seneca presents thus the dauntless courage of the
Stoic hero, Hercules, at the moment of death in terms
of his appearance, he should likewise comment in his
definition of characterismos and eikonismos on the
possession of a very similar courage by the great
Republican Stoic, Cato, interfragores bellorumcivilium
impavidus, who is compared, as we have seen,36 in
physique and nature to Virgil's high-bred horse.
It is quite natural that Seneca's technique of personal description, while, of course, strongly influenced
by the handbooks and theories of the physiognomists,
should be also colored by his own philosophical ideas
and adapted to meet the interests of the day. The
great concern of his contemporaries in the study of
rhetoric is reflected in all his literary work and he is
constantly employing the accepted rhetorical devices.
Extensive delineation of bodily or facial expression,
permanent or momentary, achieved a strong emotional
effect in such rhetorical writing, and was closely
linked to the increasing interest, apparent in Stoic
thought, in the physiognomical analysis of the relation
of temperament to outward appearance, an interest
observable in the first century, which was to increase
decidedly in the second century37 and gradually to
leave a definite imprint on Roman literature as a
whole.
To return now to the Greek tragic drama of the
fifth century, the masks worn conveyed to the
Athenian audience only the typical appearance of the
leading characters, as, for example, those suggested
in Quintilian's atrox Medea, attonitus Ajax, truculentus
Hercules.38 In Old Comedy the masks were caricatures of contemporary figures, easily to be recognized
by the audience. In the Knights Aristophanes39 explains that no mask has been made for Cleon for fear
that he might resent such ridicule and take vengeful
action. With New Comedy, masks are used for stock
characters, and Pollux40in the second century A.D. describes forty-four for that period. Even in the time
of Euripides the use of the realistic mask had become
36See Misener, ibid., p. 98. Surely his comment on Cato in
this passage links the two heroes together: "It will be helpful
not only to state what is the usual quality of good men ('boni
vir') and to outline their figures and lineaments ('formamque
eorum et lineamenta'), but also to relate and set forth what men
there have been of this kind" (Ep. 95, 72). Compare also in Ep.
30, 3 the manner in which Seneca describes how Aufidius Bassus,
the Epicurean Roman historian, faces death with the boon of
philosophy: "Hoc facit, Bassus noster et eo animo vultuque
finem suum spectat, quo alienum spectare nimis securi putares."
37
See Chapter V.
Inst. 1, 3, 65ff; cf. R. Flickinger, The GreekTheater
38Quint.
and its Drama (Chicago, 1918), pp. 212-213, 222-224.
40Poll. Onom. 4, 13.
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increasingly important.4' Earlier the mask types
must have represented heroic figures not individualized.42 Pollux has listed twenty-eight such masks for
tragedy. To the masks we shall return shortly.
If, there is one figure in Greek literature of whom
the reader might desire a full-length portrait, surely
it is Helen of Troy. And yet she, who is the outstanding example of the Greek concept of KaXXOs[beauty],
never is depicted in detail. Rather it is the very
absence of detail in any description of her that
marks her portrait in classical Greek drama. The
Argive chorus in the Agamemnon of Aeschylus voices
play Andromache, speaking to Astyanax, expresses
her fury at the Spartan queen for her very lovely eyes
that have blasted Troy to the
(Ka4XUTTa
o04,uaTa)
ground.47 Helen herself in the play48named after her,
voicing the same despair that was hers in the third
book of the Iliad, cries out in self-defense to the chorus
of Greek women:
the sum of her exquisite charms43: "at first . . . there
The total impression of Helen's overwhelming
beauty is conveyed by Euripides in the simplest
fashion, by allusion to her Etaos,her KaXXos, her KaXa
6AAa,ra, for the dramatist, like Homer, knows no detailed likeness could ever be drawn. The dramatists
are not alone in this opinion of her elusive beauty.
The encomium of Helen by Gorgias (ca. 483-376 B.C.)
again sums up the powers of her loveliness:
came to Ilium the spirit of unruffled calm, a delicate
ornament of wealth, a darter of soft glances from the
eyes" (,uaXOaKov'
6'aTrw'v OEXos)).
To this picture of intangible allure Euripides adds
various allusions which reinforce and increase our
grasp of her wondrous beauty. But his treatment of
Helen in several plays is wholly that of a general
characterization of her beauty. In the Electra44 it is
Electra herself who upbraids Clytemnestra in a bitter
comparison of her mother with Helen in terms of EdoS.
Hecuba, at the sacrifice of Polyxena, utters the wish
to see Helen reduced to the same plight, for it is
Helen's bright eyes45 (KaXa 6`,U,ara) that have caused
the shameful downfall of Troy. A somber and understandable bitterness pervades Hecuba's warning to
iVMenelausin the Trojan Women,46 and in the same
41 Eur. Or. 1317-1320. Electra speaks to the chorus on the
death of Helen and the situation of her brother, and tells them
to keep faces and eyes composed while she will wear a look of
despair which she had displayed in her mask all along.
42 Flickinger, Greek Theater, fig. 66.
4 Ag. 742. The Prometheus of Aeschylus (P V 1001-1005,
trans. H. W. Smyth, LCL) contains an interesting example,
in a famous passage, of a principle of physiognomics treated
later in the Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook. The creator and
benefactor of man, Prometheus, bound on a rock in the Caucasus,
hurls defiance at Hermes, the lackey of Zeus: "Never think that,
through terror at the will of Zeus, I shall become womanish and
with hands upturned, aping woman's ways, shall importune my
greatly hated foe to release me from these bonds. I am far, far
from that." The contempt expressed by Prometheus for such
servility is consistent with the observations made in the PseudoAristotelian manual (808a) that the pathic man carries his hands
upturned and flabbily, and the effeminate man is described in
the Anonymous Latin handbook on physiognomy (Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 98, 123) as one "qui resupinatas plerumque
manus praemovet. " Dio Chrysostom (Or. 33, 52. Trans. J. W.
Cohoon and H. L. Crosby, and note ad loc., in which the editors
seem to have missed the physiognomical implications of the
upturned hand) in his Tarsic oration, referred to above, similarly
inveighs against certain citizens who reveal their true character
and disposition by their voice, their glance, their posture, and
still other presumably insignificant details such as "the elevation of the eye, the inclination of the neck, the trick of conversing
with upturned palms."
44 1061-1064.
Cf. Andromache (426 B.C.), which presents an
impression of her power, 628-631, a passage in which Peleus
berates Menelaus for succumbing to Helen's loveliness at the
sight of her breasts.
41 Hec. 441-443.
46 891-893.
Would God I could rub my beauty out like a picture, and
assume hereafter in its stead a form less comely (a'o'XLov
E5os). . .. I am plunged so deep in misery, for that
beauty (rO KaXXoS)which to other women is a boon, to me
has been a bane.
That in nature and nurturethe lady was the fairest flower
of men and women is not unknown . . . she was endowed
with god-like beauty, expressed not suppressed, which
inspired in many men many mad moods of love, and she,
one lovely person, assembled many personalitiesof proud
ambition.
The praise of beauty is included here as a requisite
part of the person lauded. The composition of
Gorgias49was, however, a "show piece" in the tradition of the rhetorical schools which endeavored to
defend the conduct of this glorious woman, who had
been bitterly condemned by the poets (Aesch. Ag.
689-690) as the source of infinite woes. Isocrates50
undertook a true encomium of her godlike beauty, a
vindication of her good name, not a plea in her defense,
as Gorgias had done. "To her," he says, "he (Zeus)
gave the gift of beauty (KaiXXoS)which by its nature
brings even strength itself into subjection to it."
Whereas to Hercules, his son, Zeus gave a life of
labors,5""to Helen he granted the gift of nature which
drew the admiration of all beholders and which in all
men inspired contention." As for the Trojan War,
not only did the Greeks and barbarians participate in
it, but the gods themselves encouraged their own
children to share in the struggle52: "With good reason
in truth they came to this decision, and J, for my
part, am justified in employing extravagant language
47
772-773.
304. Cf. 160-163. The stark tragedy caused by
Helen's beauty is summed up by Iphigeneia at the moment of
her own sacrifice (IA 1417-1418).
4 Isocrates (Cambridge, 1945) 3, 54-57 (trans. La Rue Van
Hook, LCL). For a recent discussion of the encomium see
George Kennedy, The Art of Persuasion in Greece (Princeton,
1963) "Epidectic Oratory," pp. 152-203, esp. 168-169 and 186188.
48 260-266;
60
Id. 58-59.
61 Helen 10, 16-17.
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DRAMA
in speaking of Helen: for beauty she possessed in the
highest degree, and beauty is of all things the most
venerated, the most precious, the most divine."
"The greatest proof of my statements," continues
Isocrates,53 "is this: wreshall find that more mortals
have been made immortal because of their beauty
(ro KaXXoS) than for all other excellences. All these
personages Helen surpassed in proportion as she excelled them in the beauty of her person." Such then
was the rhetorical tradition of Greece.
Sophocles, like Aeschylus and Euripides,54 rarely
presents the iconistic description of an individual, but
rather the description of the momentary appearance.5
So slight, however, is the use of physical description,
even of this sort, that it never is a prominent feature
of his technique of characterization. He does, however, not infrequently give a brief but significant
sketch of the appearance of a new arrival.56 Moreover, in two plays, the Oedipus Coloneus and the
Philoctetes, blindness and lameness, physical afflictions indissolubly bound up with the plot, are, as we
should expect, the aspects of the physique emphasized
in the heroes to the exclusion of all other physical
qualities or facial expressions, except such as may be
supplementary to the one feature that is dominant.57
One noteworthy description, in which Sophocles uses
the same device which Homer had emphasized in
his delineation of Odysseus, occurs in the Oedipus
Tyrannus (see Chapter VI). Jocasta is ironically
likening in detail the appearance of Laius to Oedipus58:
"Tell me of Laius-how did he look? How old or
young was he?" Jocasta: "He was a tall man and his
hair was grizzled already-nearly white-and in his
form not unlike you.
When we come to Aristophanes we encounter the
use of detailed portraiture as a comic device, though
not employed with great frequency. The iconistic
picture of Plutus59 is an example of the satiric use as a
means of identification of the god of wealth: old and
63 Id. 60-61.
64 An exception in Aeschylus might be Atossa's dream and her
description of the two women appearing to her (Pers. 169-170);
in Euripides the messenger's description of the mad Heracles
(HF 931-935) and the Lydian stranger in the Bacchae (233236; 452-456) verge on the iconistic type. For references passim
to examples of "physiognomic consciousness" in Euripides, see
U. von Wilamowitz-Moellendorf, Euripides' Herakles (2 v.,
Berlin, 1889), especially vol. 2 devoted to the text and commentary on this play.
ii Cf. the innuendo in Ant. 526-530;
690-691; OT 447-448;
528-529; 532-534.
56 Cf. OT 80-81; OC 319-321; Trach. 869-870; see also Aes.
Ag. 638-640.
57E.g. OC 1; 21; 73; 146-148; 552-553; 555-556; 576-578;
1099-1101; 1256-1261; 1378-1379; 1639-1640; (all of the first
type).
68 OT 740-743 (trans. D. Grene).
59Plut. 265-267; Thesm. 189-192 (trans. Anon.). See Misener,
"Iconistic Portraits,": pp. 109-110, and note 1 for the physiognomical interpretation of the Pseud.-Arist. 808a; Anon. Physiog. Lat.
2, 134, 11.
35
squalid, toothless, wrinkled, bent. A more elaborate
likeness occurs in the Thesmorphoriazousae, when
Euripides explains to Agathon why it is better that
the latter attend the festival in his place: "I'm gray
and bearded, but you are fair of face, with light complexion and shaven, and high-pitched voice, and soft
and pretty to look upon." The balance of the two
figures is deliberate, and the physiognomical implications of the cinaedus, Agathon, obvious. In the
Clouds a similar balance is maintained. There Just
Logic lists the physical effects of following its precepts
in education60: an ivory chest, a clear skin, huge
shoulders, and a small tongue . . .; and the physical
hazards of succumbing to the fashions of the day
under the guidance of the Unjust Logic: pale complexion, small shoulders, a narrow chest, and a vast
tongue . . . in which a derogatory physiognomical interpretation of the cinaedus is obviously used for
purposes of satiric characterization.
In addition to the very occasional iconistic picture
in Old Comedy, the description of momentary facial
expression is introduced by Aristophanes in a variety
of occasions,6' the appearance of Hercules in the
underworld,62 the arrival of a new character, a messenger,63 which calls for comment in the Birds by
Peisthetaerus,64 parody of such a type of description,
which is part of the comic poet's technique,65 even
remarks of the chorus on the poet himself.66
When we turn to the field of Hellenistic drama we
find that Menander, as a poet of New Comedy, is
primarily concerned with the life and mores of his
own day. Out of one hundred comedies, of which few
survive, no one reveals any marked interest in descriptions of physique. As in the Characters of Theophrastus this device is almost wholly absent.67 It is in
Roman comedy and its adaptations of earlier Greek
comedy that we can discern the comic effect of such
descriptions.
Emphasis on one physical feature, such as magnificent strength or beauty, for the sake of comic
characterization, is as much a part of Plautus' technique of physical description as is the iconistic
portrait used for the purpose of identification. To the
latter type we shall come back directly. In the meantime it is pertinent to inquire how in Roman drama,
where detailed portraiture is an integral part of the
dramatist's art, but where both types of description
appear, the enlargement of the soldier's ego as is
601009-1023.
61Ach. 253-254; Ran. 561-562.
Ran. 593-595.
Lys. 6-8; cf. 706-707.
64 1168-1169; cf. Plut. 332-334.
62
63
66
66
Ach. 1069-1070.
Equit. 547-550; Vesp. 1032-1035. For discussion of the use
of masks in Greek drama see pp. 37-38.
67 A few
examples include descriptions of momentary expressions: Dys. 150-155; 423; Epit. 18-19; 656-666; Sam.
Seite 38
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)illustrated in the case of a comic figure like the Miles
Gloriosus is handled by emphasis on one physical
feature. The braggart soldier is, of course, a familiar
figure in ancient comedy, Plautus' treatment being
undoubtedly the best known. His pomposity and
stupidity delight the reader, and his grandeur, selfconceived, knows no bounds.
One might expect that every aspect of the soldier's
physique would command Plautus' attention, and a
photographic likeness, similar to that of Thersites in
the Iliad, would leave us with an indelible impression
of his bold appearance. But the striking fact remains
that exactly the opposite treatment of his person is
the means by which Plautus builds our concept of the
figure. The key to this difference in treatment lies
undoubtedly in Plautus' use of detailed description
primarily for identification. Thus in the Captivi68 the
exchange of roles by Philocrates and Tyndarus is
revealed by Aristophontes' description of Philocrates
to Hegio: "macilento ore, naso acuto, corpore albo,
oculis nigris, subrufus aliquantum, crispus, concinnatus." But the Miles needs no identification, and
his physical impressiveness is the one element Plautus
must develop.
Artotrogus, the parasite, sets the tone for the braggart69: "Why should I tell you, sir, what the whole
world knows-that you are the one and only Pyrgopolyneices on earth, virtute et forma et factis
invictissumum. "
When Palaestrio, slave of the young Pleusicles, but
now in the power of Pyrgopolyneices, produces Periplectomenus' ring, presumably as a token of affection
from the lady next door, he presents it to the soldier as
an admirer,70 "quae te amat tuamque expetessit
pulchram pulchritudinem." Milphidippa, the serving
maid of this lady, Acroteleutium the courtesan, continues in the same manner7l to admire the braggart,
and Palaestrio instructs Acroteleutium, the supposed
wife of the man next door, on how to dupe the Miles72:
"I want you to scorn your own beauty beside his, and
praise to the skies at the same time his formam,
amoenitatem. . . . faciem, pulchritudinem." Acroteleutium (while the soldier overhears) pretends73 as
eagerly her fear that the braggart may change his
mind, once he sees her, so magnificent is he. To
68
647-648.
(trans. P. Nixon throughout, LCL). Cf. his hair
(64; 923), his own self appraisal that his "forma" excels that of
Alexander (777) and that he is one "qui formast ferox" (1388-92),
and appears as well as "fortem, fortunatum et forma regia" (10).
Likewise the Miles' complaint "hic astabo tantisper cum hac
forma et factis frustra" (1021), Palaestrio's advice: "conlaudato
formam et faciem et virtutes commemorato" (1027). See J. A.
Hanson, "The Glorious Military," pp. 51-85, esp. pp. 58-59, in
Roman Drama, edited by T. A. Dorey and D. R. Dudley (London,
1965) for a discussion of this material.
70 959. Cf. 967.
71 1041-1042;
cf. 1045; 1086-1087.
72 1170-1172; cf. 1211-1212.
7 1233-1235.
69 55-59
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
Milphidippa she persistently declares a passionate
devotion to him,74 "si amavit umquam aut si parem
sapientiam hic habet ac formam." Finally, in the
scene where Philocomasium leaves the soldier's house,
Palaestrio ostensibly consoles her for the sadness she
feels at the thought of parting from the braggart, and
prepares to weep, too,75 "I don't wonder at all that
you loved to live with him, si forma huius, mores,
virtus, animum attinuere hic tuom." Not a single
minor detail is included, but there is a recurring suggestion of magnificence, implied in the constant repetition of the word forma, coupled with either pulcher or
pulchritudo (once facies), introduced by all the people
involved in deceiving the braggart to the full. This
technique of description and characterization becomes
all the more significant when we remember the extensive use made by Plautus on occasion of detailed
iconistic portraits for the sake of identification. By
inference the reader here imagines every needed detail.
In Roman comedy the iconistic description used
for the purpose of identification as part of the plot
is a more marked feature of portraiture. Examples
can be cited from both Plautus and Terence, and
surely reflect a similar technique found in early Greek
New Comedy.
In the Asinaria,76 where impersonation provides
the basis for a description similar to that in the
Captivi, the old man Libanius describes Saurea to the
ass trader: thin jaws, rather red-haired, pot-bellied,
savage eyes, medium height, a scowling expression.
In the Mercator77Eutychus identifies for Charinus the
74
1251; cf. 1270-1271.
1326-1328. Another kind of description found in Plautus,
and allied to the type just discussed, is that implied in situations
of mistaken identity. In contrast to the lavish detail of the
iconistic portrait intended for identification, the descriptions
never actually occur, but are suggested regularly by reference to
the identity of appearance. Sosia in the Amphitryo, reflecting
on the impersonation of himself by Mercury, says (600; cf.
441-442) "tum formam una abstulit cum nomine." Always a
stated comparison is the basis of portraiture for the likeness
between people. Sosia continued (443-445; cf. Mercury 266267): "He is as like me, as I am myself. Same leg, foot, height,
haircut, eyes, nose, lips, even jaw, chin, beard, neck, everything."
The end of the Menaechmi (1062-1063) provides exactly the same
kind of comparison between the twins, where Messenio in startled
amazement exclaims to Menaechmus of Syracuse: "Your
mirror . . . He's the very image of you! He's as like you as
can be. . . . "
76 1218-1220:
"Macilentis malis, refulus aliquantum, ventriosus, truculentis oculis, commoda statura, tristi fronte."
77 639-640:
"canum varum, ventriosum, bacculentum, breviculum, subnigris oculis, oblongis malis, pansum aliquantum."
Cf. G. Misener "Iconistic Portraits," pp. 112-113 for this and
the other passages included here. Cf. Poll. Onom 14, 143:
OEp6arrc,V fr7yE,c.A has a coil of red hair on the forehead,his eyebrows
are raised, his brow contracted. See A. W. Pickard-Cambridge,
The Dramatic Festivals of Athens (Oxford, 1953), p. 206. Similarly
Pollux, ibid., on the ooXos veavhnKos
who is young, ruddy, with
curly hair, raised eyebrows, and a wrinkle across the forehead.
The description would apply to Tyndarus (above) in the Captivi.
See also the iconistic description of the supposed servant, Syrus,
as the slave dealer, Harpax, in the Pseudolus, 1218-1220; "Rufus
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DRAMA
slave dealer who purchased Pasicompsa: a grayhaired fellow, bandy-legged, with a huge paunch, and
puffy cheeks, rather stocky, darkish eyes, and a
lantern jaw, and splay feet. In the Poenulus78 Milphio
tells Hanno what the girls' nurse looked like: not very
tall, dark and graceful, with piercing black eyes.
Similarly in Terence, Clitopho says to his father,
Chremes, in the Heauton Timoroumenos" with reference to a proposed bride: that girl, red-headed, greeneyed, huge-mouthed, and hooked-nose, never! The
purpose of identification in these descriptions is clear
from Pamphilus' direction to Parmeno with reference
to a foreigner he is being sent to meet in the Hecyra80:
" [He is] a big fellow, ruddy complexioned, curlyhaired, heavy-set, gray-eyed, with the face of a dead
man."
The use of description for the purpose of identification is illustrated in three examples in the Rudens, but
in each example there is included a further detail of
characterization to describe the inner nature of the
man. Trachalio8' talking to the fishermen says:
"Have you seen a young fellow come along, husky,
with a tanned look, and a lively face. . . . or an old
bald Silenus, well set up but pot-bellied, bushy eyebrows, and a tight expression on the face, a real
swindler, and hated by gods and men." Plesidippus82
asks Daemones whether he had laid eyes on a curlyhaired fellow, quite gray, a real rascal and leering, and
very smooth. Sceparnio,83 on catching sight of
Ampelisca, exclaims: "A very image of Venus, what
brightness and gaiety in the eyes, a real vulture-like
appearance, I mean a brunette, but what breasts and
what an invitation in that kissable mouth."
In other words, these examples show a tendency to
characterize the individual by a suggestion of the
inner reaction as expressed on the face or on the
body.84 In this respect these descriptions differ from
those found in the examples in the papyri collected
by Fuirst (see Chapter IV) where marks of identification (oVX7i)
are emphasized, and no attempt is made to
delineate the inner nature of a person. The kinship
with legal forms of identification is obvious, but, in
addition, the association of the details of physical
features with qualities of character becomes apparent
in many instances. In Roman comedy,85 especially
in Plautus, as in tragedy, new arrivals are designated
by their appearance, and the ominous or dangerous
ones are frequently marked by two signs: a slow step,
a gloomy expression. In Terence the turning point of
the Adelphi is marked by the effective use of description of momentary expression on the face of Aeschinus86: "erubuit: salva res est."
As the new comedy of manners reflects the social
outlook of the Hellenistic Age, and includes iconistic
descriptions for the purpose of identification, the
lists of masks in Julius Pollux, which we have mentioned above, may well supplement our knowledge of
that physical portraiture which we associate with
drama in this period.
The sources of our knowledge of these masks are
varied. Actually the main evidence for this Hellenistic practice is archaeological, as T. B. L. Webster
and others87 have pointed out. Upon what Julius
Pollux drew his information it is difficult to say. He
may have been indebted to Aristophanes On Masks
or Eratosthenes, or to some common source, such as
the records of theatrical performances of the third
century B.C. What is listed in Pollux includes "color
of hair, kind of hair, onkos, beard, cheeks, brows,
complexion, sometimes expression," occasionally some
general characteristic. Much of the material contains the suggestion of a physiognomical approach or
awareness of physiognomical principles, particularly in
the list of twenty-eight tragic masks, six of old men,
eight of young men, eight of women, and six of
servants. Of the middle-aged men, the ,U Xas av' ,p
mentions dark complexion and probably dark hair, a
quidam, ventriosus, crassis suris, subniger/magno capite, actis
curly beard, and a harsh expression (rpaXbs). Among
oculis, ore rubicundo, admodum/magnis pedibus."
"statura hau magna, corpore aquilost/specie
78 1111-1113:
the vEavcLoKOL the curly-haired youth has raised eyevenusta, ore atque oculis pernigris."
brows and is stern in expression (lXvuvpo's), whereas
79 1061: "Rufam illam/virginem caesiam, sparso ore, adunco
the delicate youth has a pale complexion and a bright
naso."
look (pawpo6s). The squalid youth (rtvapos) has a
caesius/
crassus
crispus,
rubicundus,
"magnus,
80440-441:
downcast expression (Kanqons). Of the slaves the
cadaverosa facie."
"adulescentem . . . strenua facie rubicundum
81 312-313:
oldest (&uk0eplas) "leather-clad," has a pale face, and
fortem; 316-319: ecquem/recalvom ac Silanum, senem statutum,
a sneer, with forehead drawn up and his eyes gloomy
superciliis, contracta fronte/fraudulentum,
ventriosum/tortis
(cTKvGpwwobs). The slave with a wedge-shaped beard
deorum odium atque hominum. Cf. Pickard-Cambridge, ibid.,
pp. 203-204 and Pollux on the 7ropvojO36oKoswho has a slight grin has a ruddy and stern face, proper to a messenger.
on his lips, whose brows are contracted, and whose head is Among the women, the free-born old woman has gray
usually bald; also Plesidippus as the ira-yxpno-ras veav'UTKOS "the
hair and by her expression "suggests disaster." The
perfect young man of sunburnt complexion, light hair, a few
long-haired pale girl wears a look of pain or "grievance"
raised."
and his
on the
eyebrows
forehead,
wrinkles
82 125-126:
"ecquem . . . hominem crispum, incanum/ .
malum, periurum, palpatorem."
"Veneris effigia haec quidem est ut in ocellis.
3 420-423:
. . . hilaritudo est . . . corpus cuius modi, subvolturium . . .
illud quidem subaquilum volui dicere/vel papillae cuius modi,
tum quae indoles in saviost."
14
See above, pp. 6-7.
85 Merc. 599-600; Epid. 608-609; cf. a madman, Men. 829-830;
see also Ter. Ad. 642; And. 118-120.
86Ad. 643.
87 See A. W. Pickard-Cambridge, The Dramatic Festivals, chap.
IV on masks, pp. 177-212, and the bibliography cited therein;
T. B. L. Webster, "Notes on Pollux' List of Tragic Masks,"
Festschriftfuir Andreas Rumpf (Cologne, 1952), pp. 141-150.
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(AcX4qu,caXv7r7po6v). Assignments of these masks to
stated roles is, of course, conjectural but Webster88
believes that they are to be dated in the late fourth
and early third centuries, that beneath the list of
Pollux' masks lies the practice of the fifth-century
drama, and that many of them could have been used
for the tragedies of Sophocles and Euripides in the
revivals of the fourth century. The forty-four masks
which are identified with comedy in Pollux' list include
the first old man (7rappas irporos) whose eyebrows
signify gentleness, iwEppTraros ras 64p0s, and who has
thin cheeks, and a "downcast expression" (r71v6ibv
KaT?rMs) but a rather "cheerful forehead" (ro'/trowwrov
complexion.9" The latter two have hooked noses97
and a "good physique" (6iraNeZs). The flatterer has
raised malicious-looking eyebrows,98 the parasite is
the more cheerful (Oat6po6repos). Of the seven masks
for slaves, mention has been made of the leading
slave in the Asinaria99 and other slaves have "curly
red hair, a red complexion, sometimes a squint," and
are often bald. The female masks of old women show
the wolfish character in the face, withered, with a long
countenance, many wrinkles, a yellowish complexion
and a squinting, roving eye.100 Other female masks
suggest little of physiognomical importance from
among the young girls, the hetaerae, or the maid
The second old man is thinner with a servants.
b7ro4ap6pos).
more intense and grieved look (&rovT?EpoS Tor 3Xequsa
The work of Robert, Pickard-Cambridge, and the
and the k,s-y' r orp-f3vrnspossesses a more recent work of Webster all suggest that in the
KacL Xvr-po's)
"hooked nose,89 a flat face, and the right eyebrow is Hellenistic age there was a growing awareness, esperaised." The elderly man (irpeoBvr7vs)with the long cially in the field of drama, of the relation of character
wavy beard90does not have the eyebrow raised, but types and physical appearance. The area of applicaappears "lethargic"91; the Hermonian old man92pos- tion is limited, yet it is clear that in this era these
sesses raised eyebrows and "a piercing look" (ro character types, inherited from an earlier period of
drama, both tragedy and comedy, are brought down
bpLqubs). The old man with a wedge-shaped
OXAC'/ua
beard and raised eyebrows is obstinate in expression to the level of everyday life and were familiar and com(Mrobbo-rpowros); the Lycomedian has both curly hair mon in the urban society of the Greek world. For that
and a long beard, one eyebrow raised, and the reason Theophrastus in his Characters presents us
look of a meddler (7roXvurpa&y/.tuv). The slave dealer with ordinary people as well known to the streets of
VrooTEcYo-pe),Athens as Horace's bore. In literary characterology,
(7wopVof6O-KOS) shows "a slight grin"93(ra XELXfl
but "his brows are contracted."
or character writing as it occurs in the Hellenistic age,
Of the younger men we have already noted the Theophrastus develops in an extraordinary way the
"perfect young man" (7rayXp?7oros veavLorKoS)94 in conbrilliant treatments of familiar human types that are
nection with Plesidippus in the Rudens. Other youths designated as characterology proper by Allport.101
show variations on this type. The rustic is dark95
How, then, do Theophrastus and the Hellenistic
with "broad lips" and snub nose. The braggart biographers (to be treated in Chapter V) pursue their
soldier, the flatterer, and the parasite are of dark study of the ethical characterization of the individual?
Misch,102 in discussing Aristotle and the shaping of
88Webster, ibid., has suggested many points in common with
biography, points out that in part the form of the
the physiognomical tract attributed to Aristotle, primarily for
the comic masks. But it is important to note the many hints of
biography was determined by his conception of
characterization by expression on the face that are to be found
"energy," that is, action as opposed to mere potenin the tragic masks. For comedy see Pickard-Cambrige, ibid.,
tiality,
by a man's way of living in action. Thus was
T.
B.
Hellenistic
recent
work
of
L.
Webster,
pp. 177-212. See the
the individual life to be portrayed "not by an enumeraPoetry and Art (New York, 1964). Cf. also his studies published
by the Institute of Classical Studies, University of London:
Bulletin Supplement, no. 9 (1960) "Monuments Illustrating Old
and New Comedy"; no. 11 (1961) "Monuments Illustrating New
Comedy"; no. 14 (1962) "Monuments Illustrating Tragedy and
Satyr Play."
89 A hooked nose is a sign of either shamelessness or greatness
of soul. Pseud.-Arist. 811a.
10A man of fierce temper has a great beard and a heavy
growth of hair. Pseud.-Arist. 808a.
Pseud.91 Lethargy shows a certain softness of character.
Arist. 806b.
92 Hermonian is derived from Hermon, a comic actor, probably
going back to Aristophanes' Peace.
3A sly grin is characteristic of a silly disposition. Pseud.Arist. 808.
94 The 7rzypyXp77aToS
has a reddish complexion, a sign
veavlaKoS
of good disposition as well as haste. Pseud.-Arist. 806b; 808a;
812a. A somewhat wrinkled forehead suggests courage. Pseud.Arist. 807b.
95 The a&ypoZKOs
with a snub nose, flat lips, and dark complexion
and heavy hair is cowardly and sensuous. Pseud.-Arist. 811b;
812a-b.
96All are marked by cowardice. The braggart soldier may
have either dark or yellow hair, thereby being cowardly or
courageous on occasions. Pseud.-Arist. 812a.
97 See above, note 89.
Raised eyebrows are a sign of conceit. Pseud.-Arist. 811b.
99The leading slave with a coil of red hair is hasty and shameless. Pseud.-Arist. 807b; 808a; 812a.
'00 Pseud.-Arist. 808a says signs of sulkiness include withered
skin, and a wrinkled, gaunt face.
101In Gordon Allport's Personality: A Psychological Interpretation (New York, 1937) three aspects of the study of personality are described as having had their sources in the ancient
world. These aspects are: literary characterology, humoral
psychology, and physiognomy proper. Literary characterology
is to be found in Theophrastus, humoral psychology in Empedocles, the Hippocratic corpus, and Galen. Physiognomy proper
is set forth in the Pseudo-Aristotelian Physiognomonica, the
work of Polemo and of Adamantius.
102 Georg
Misch, A History of Autobiography in Antiquity,
translated E. W. Dickes, (2 v., Cambridge [Mass.], 1951) 1,
part 2, chap. 2: pp. 287-338, especially p. 292 and following.
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PAPYRI: RHETORICAL THEORY AND PRACTICE
tion of characteristics, but the man's acts were to be
placed on record so that his character and nature were
revealed by them." Surely the Characters of Theophrastus belong in this category. The thirty sketches
are a lively treatment of typical characters, such as
the ironic man, the flatterer, the garrulous man; in
other words, a book of manners of various kinds of
men, both good and bad, their way of life, their modes
of behavior. If, as the apocryphal preface states, the
purpose of these sketches is highly moral in so far as
the writer says in the dedication to Polycles that he
believed that their sons would be better men if they
were left with such remainders to imitate in choosing
more wisely friendships and associations, then it is of
considerable importance to note that Theophrastus
uses almost no physical descriptions to make his
points. Actually no passages of strict physiognomical
significance occur.
In addition we know that Theophrastus composed
troduces characters in what are essentially philosophical mimes. Within this dramatic portrayal there is
also description of certain types of characters, descriptions which are the forerunners of Theophrastus,
such as the short, bald coppersmith,108who gains his
freedom, makes a little money, and marries the
orphaned daughter, now left without means, of the
former master.
If the Charactersare to be dated around 319 B.C., it
seems clear that these sketches of late Greek life are
not much concerned with the principles of the physiognomists. The kind of physical appearance analyzed
in the handbooks, based in part on close observation
of familiar figures in an urban society, belongs probably to a slightly later period; or else Theophrastus is
purposely refraining from all documentation of the
physique in his stated form of characterization.
IV. PAPYRI: RHETORICAL THEORY
AND PRACTICE
an essay on Flattery (rEpLKoXaKElas), but we have no
hint as to whether the character study, like the second
portrait in his Characters, was devoid of physical description, or whether it contained, perhaps, material
of a physiognomical nature. On the other hand, it is
Theophrastus who preserves for us in his work
De Sensibus'0' the theory of Empedocles that the seat
of the brain and the soul was in the blood, and that
by a particular mixture of the four elements the
nature of man became more inclined to sloth or rapid
action. Throughout the Characters there are, to be
sure, places where the attempted application of physiognomical ideas might be inferred, but the application
of these principles plays no real part in the characterization. The Charactersare somewhat like "Marks of
Quality."'?04 The portraits may be classified under
personal appearance, religion, life at home, life in the
marketplace, visiting and entertaining friends, and
public life."0' Under personal appearance, clothes are
uppermost in importance, haircuts, nails, and voice
also are included,'06but these, with the exception of the
voice, are the outward marks of a man, and not concerned with his inward nature in the strict sense of
physiognomical interpretation. The kind of sketch
that occurs in Theophrastus finds its sources in the
ethical discourses of Aristotle, as we have already
noted, and likewise in several literary areas, such as
Old Comedy, but above all in the dramatic dialogues
of Plato. In character portrayal Plato,107 as a successor to Epicharmus and Sophron, dramatically in103 See Chap.
II, p. 18.
104T. B. L. Webster, Art and Literature in Fourth Century
Athens (London, 1956), p. 128. See the new edition of The
Characters of Theophrastus, ed. by R. G. Ussher (London, 1960).
105 Ussher, ibid.
106 Ibid. See 2 (Flattery) 3; 4 (Boorishness) 1; 8 (Newsmaking)
2; cf. Pseud.-Arist. 806b; 19 (Nastiness); 24 (Arrogance) 8.
107 See John M. S. McDonald,
Character Portraiture in Epicharmus, Sophron and Plato (Sewanee, 1931) "Plato's Psychology
of Character-type," chap. XV, pp. 365-379.
39
In view of Seneca's definitions of rhetorical terms
used for iconistic and physiognomical descriptions
(treated in the previous chapter), we must now ask
what relation the descriptions of physique found in
the papyri (i.e., the use by the publicani mentioned by
Seneca), as well as the exempla occurring in rhetorical
theory and practice, bear to the kinds of portraiture
appearing in the literature of the Graeco-Roman
world and in the Roman Empire through the third
century A.D.The descriptions of physique recovered from papyri
include, first of all, not only the collection made by
Fuirstbut that of other more recently published papyri1
which is considerable and contains iconistic portraits
of the utmost detail. These descriptions occur in
Egyptian-Greek legal forms, where they are used for
the purpose of identification of the recruits in military
enrollment, in proclamations for the capture of
runaway slaves, in such private documents as wills,
sale of land or of a house, resignations of claims to an
estate, or a loan or a mortgage. The phrases e/leye)047s
[or good height] and ,uso-os
yeeyiE [of medium height]
and identification such as an ovXi'or scar are emphasized. A typical description employed in connection
with the sale of land in 107 B.c.2 by Taous, daughter
108
See McDonald, p. 362, and Rep. 6.495e.
1 Cf. L. Mitteis and U. Wilcken, Grundziige und Chrestomathie
der Papyruskunde, (3v., Leipzig, 1912); Johannes Hasebroek,
Das Signalement in den Papyruskunden (Leipzig, 1921); Franciscus Smolka, "De Ratione Personarum Describendarum in
Papyrorum Actis adhibita" in Eos 27 (1924): pp. 75-88; F.
Preisigke, Worterbuch der greichischen Papyrusurkunden, (2v.,
Heidelberg, 1924); Furst, ibid., pp. 597-614 for a collection of
examples drawn from various periods. A more recent collection
occurs in Select Papyri translated by A. D. Hunt and C. C.
Edgar, (2v., London, 1932-1934, LCL). See for example, Sel.
Pap. 1, 28, 29, 32, 37, 54, 58, 63, 76; 2, 234, 253.
Sel. Pap. 1, 27, trans. A. S. Hunt and C. C. Edgar.
Seite 42
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)of Harpos, "is aged about 48 years, of medium height,
fair-skinned, round-faced, straight-nosed, with a scar
on her forehead." Senesis is "about 42 years, of
medium height, fair-skinned, straight-nosed, with a
scar on her forehead," and Siephmous "aged about 20
years, fair-skinned, round-faced, straight-nosed, without distinctive mark. " Peteharsemtheus, the purchaser,
is in turn "about 36 years, of medium height, fairskinned, rather curly-haired, long-faced, straightnosed. "
Secondly, rhetorical theory ("ars rhetorica") and
practice (e.g., Cicero's speeches), is of paramount
significance for a study of physiognomics. The Auctor
ad Herennium,3 (dealing with the ars rhetorica) defines
characterismos ("effictio") "as representing the bodily
form of some person as follows: I mean him, men of
the jury, the ruddy, short bent man, with white rather
than curly hair; blue-gray eyes, and a huge scar on
his chin, if perhaps you can recall him from memory
('hunc, iudices, dico, rubrum, brevem, incurvum,
canum, subscrispum, caesium, cui sane maior est in
mento cicatrix, si quo modo potest vobis in memoriam
redire')," and goes on to remark that "this figure is
not only serviceable, if you wish to designate some
person, but also graceful, if fashioned with brevity
and clarity."
It is appropriate to review here the rhetorical terms
applied to descriptions of physique as classified by
Greek rhetoricians.4 Ekphrasis5 is a description, clear
and concise, of pragmata or prosopa. Eikonismos6 is
closely associated with ekphrasis, with this distinction,
that under the term eikonismos only people properly
may be described. Charakterismos7 is sometimes
equated with eikonismos, and sometimes separated as
a description simply of character or behavior.
Charakterismos8 is defined as a "terse, asyndetic
description of personal appearance, designed either as
a means of legal identification or as an ornament of
style." In Greek rhetorical technique it is recognized
as a schema or tropos closely parallel to charakterismos.
In the rhetorical definitions the descriptions of
Thersites in the Iliad9 are frequently cited, and under
charakterismos usually that of Eurybates in the
Odyssey10 (sometimes Thersites as well). Another
rhetorical term, eikon," is a description of appearance
achieved by comparison of one figure with another,
3 4, 49, 3. Trans. H. Caplan, LCL throughout.
4 See the excellent discussion of these rhetorical terms in G.
Misener, "Iconistic Portraits" CP 19 (1924): pp. 97-123,
especially pp. 97-99.
6 Ekphrasis: L. Spengel, Rhetores Graeci, (3v., Leipzig, 18561885), especially 2, 16 (Hermogenes); 2, 46 (Aphthonius); 2,
118 (Theon); 3, 251 (Georgius Choeroboscus).
6 Eikonismos: Spengel, ibid., 3, 108 (Polybius Sardianus).
7 Characterismos: Spengel, ibid. 3, 108 (Polybius Sardianus);
3, 201 (Trypho); 3, 241 (Concondrius).
8 See p. 40, note 3.
9 2, 216-219.
10 19, 246.
1"Spengel, ibid., 3, 108 (Herodian, Polybius Sardianus).
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
either as a whole or part by part. Thus the wise
Penelope is likened to Artemis, and Agamemnon"2 is
compared in part to Zeus, in part to Ares, and in part
to Poseidon.
The Auctor ad Herennium (first century B.C.) translated the terms ekphrasis and eikonismos by efflctio,
and charakterismosby notatio. Seneca's'3 definition of
eikonismos has been discussed in Chapter III. In the
encomium those who compose panegyrics must treat
"qualities of character and physical attributes" in
three parts14:the matters concerning the soul and the
character, the matters relating to the body, and
thirdly, "external circumstances." The factors relating to the body are health, beauty, and quick sensibility. The Auctor ad Herennium adds'5: "corporis sunt
ea quae natura corpori attribuit commoda aut
incommoda: velocitas, vires, dignitas, valetudo, et
quae contraria sunt."
The development of rhetorical theory on the nature
of pronuntiatio, or the delivery of an oration, and the
importance of the countenance as the image of the
mind are analyzed in the Auctor ad Herennium, Cicero,
and Quintilian. The practical application of these
theories in turn may be observed in Cicero's Brutus,
in his orations, and in the panegyrics composed in
the Roman empire.
Pronuntiatio is concerned with the suitable expression on the face, the proper use of voice and gestures.
It formed one of the five main divisions of rhetorical
training, on which the Auctor remarks'6:
Many have said that the faculty of greatest use to the
speaker and most valuable for persuasionis delivery....
Thereforebecause no one has written carefullyon this subject-all have thought it scarcely possible for voice, mien,
and gesture to be lucidly describedas appertainingto our
sense experience-and because the mastery of delivery is a
very important requisite for speaking, the whole subject,
as I believe, deserves serious consideration.
He outlines gestures suited to each occasion, and
concludes with the statement that'7 "this, nevertheless, one must remember: good delivery ensures that
what the orator is saying seems to come from his
heart."
By the time of Cicero careful training was required
in the ars rhetorica for pronuntiatio or actio [hypocrisis]. But Aristotle in the fourth century declared
that even in his day instructions with regard to
hypocrisis had long been neglected, and that Thrasy12
n. 2, 478-479.
Ep. 95, 65. He quotes from Virgil's G. 3, 75-78, a passage
describing both behavior and appearance. See p. 33 for further
discussion.
14 Spengel, ibid., 2, 109.
Cf. T. C. Burgess, "Epideictic Literature," University of Chicago Studies in Classical Philology 2
(1902): pp. 120-121, where he diagrams the schema of Aphthonius.
16 3, 10. "Physical attributes are merits or defects bestowed on
the body by nature: agility, strength, beauty, health, and their
contraries."
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PAPYRI: RHETORICAL THEORY AND PRACTICE
machus18 had held that a good delivery depended on
nature, not on art. We are told that Theophrastus
in the third century was the first to treat the subject
carefully. The fact may serve to explain in part why
we note an almost complete absence of description of
facial expression or gesture in the Attic orators,
whereas Cicero introduced descriptions frequently into
his speeches.
Such types of portraiture continue throughout the
literature of the classical period. The kinship between
the type of portraiture used in oratory and that
appearing in papyri is evident, just as there is an
obvious connection between the descriptions used by
the Auctor ad Herennium and the descriptions in
Roman comedy.
The Auctor ad Herennium, a treatise addressed to a
certain Gaius Herennius, and the oldest tract on the
ars rhetorica preserved in Latin literature, is to be
dated about 86-82 B.C.,19 and is thoroughly Greek in its
point of view. The line of thought pursued in the
section on pronuntiatio (delivery) suggests that it is
probably subsequent in origin to that of Theophrastus.20 We may observe2l that the author believes
completely that a good delivery proceeds directly
from the state of mind. The "voice quality"22 he
treats first in a considerable detail, pointing out the
need for flexibility required for conversation, debate,
or exhortation, and the pathetic appeal to be achieved
by physical movement. Gestus corporis and vultus
moderatio make more plausible what is delivered.23
The facial expression must show modesty and keenness
but should never suggest the actor or the laborer.
The gestures24 must correspond to the tone of voice,
and the speaker, using a dignified conversational
style, should stand upright, barely moving the right
hand, and adopting an expression of gaiety or sadness
suited to the subject matter. In the conduct of
debate he must employ a rapid movement of the arm,
a readily changeable expression on the face, and a
sharp look. This can be varied by walking back and
forth, stamping the right foot from time to time, and
18Rh. 3, 1, 1403b; 1404a; Quint. Inst. 3, 3, 4.
19See H. Caplan, (Cicero) ad Herennium, LCL. Introduction,
p. vii; also p. 174, note a, on the Platonic and Aristotelian form
of classification to be found in epideictic causes, including praise
or censure: "iam igitur potest esse rerum externarum, corporis,
animi."
20 Ibid., xvi.
21 See Quintilian, p. 42.
22
3, 20-25. (After H. Caplan, LCL throughout.)
23 3, 26-27.
24
See the article on gestures in OCD for a brief summary of
the subject. For oratory and actors the essential material is to
be found in Quint. Inst. 11, 2, 65-68, and is so designated by
Forster SP 2: pp. 328-330, as related to physiognomical theory.
H. J. Rose lists in OCD natural signs of emotions in classical
authors, e.g., jumping (literally) at good news (Q. Cicero Fam.
16, 16, 1); anger marked by biting nails or fingers (Hor. Epod. 5,
48; Persius 5, 162); bad news evident in smiting thighs (Achilles
in II. 16, 125, and others after him); scratching of ear or cheek
to indicate anger or perplexity (Apul. Met. 6, 9).
41
maintaining a fierce, fixed expression. In exhortation
a slower form of gesture is required, but the expression
may remain approximately the same. In the "amplification" of pathos, it is customary to slap the thigh,25
beat one's head, and from time to time assume a sad
and anxious look. All of these suggestions, set down to
ensure that the speaker is saying exactly what is in
his heart, reflect the "physiognomic consciousness"
of the later Greek world, wherein the physical appearance deliberately displays the inner emotions of the
mind. These ideas are consonant with Roman
rhetorical practice, and Cicero himself pursues the
subject at some length. He introduces his discussion
of delivery by a statement26 that orators have left
unconsidered this art, when they are in reality the
veritatis ipsius actores, while actores, who are the
imitatores veritatis, have taken it over. Nature, he
maintains, has given to every motus animi a particular
expression of face, tone of voice and bearing, for the
whole body as well as the countenance and the voice
are like the strings of the lyre, and are struck by each
emotion of the mind. Everything rests with the face,27
and the face in turn is under the power of the eyes.
All delivery belongs to the mind, the countenance is
the image of the mind, and the eyes are the index of
the emotions: "nam haec est ima pars corporis quae
quot animi motus sunt tot significationes et commutationes possit efficere." No one can achieve the
same end with the eyes closed. There should be
constant control of the eyes, since the total expression
of the face should not be altered too much for fear of
25 See H. Caplan, ibid., p. 204, note a. Slapping the thigh was
apparently introduced into Athens by Cleon. It is often a sign
of indignation. See also Quintilian, Inst. 11, 3, 123. Cf. H. M.
Hubbell, "The Rhetorica of Philodemus," Trans. Conn. Acad.
Arts and Sciences 23 (1920): pp. 243-382, esp. 310 (1, 195, col.
14a, 8; 1, 198, col. 15a). Philodemus, an older contemporary of
Cicero, whose friend and patron, Piso, was the bitter enemy of
Cicero, and was attacked by him in the In Pisonem (68-72).
He was a poet and scholar whose Rhetorica, recovered from
Herculaneum, deals briefly with the art of delivery along the
lines of the Auctor ad Herennium. "Much of delivery is the
natural and unconscious bodily expression of the emotions." 1,
196 (ed. Sudhaus). Cf. Caplan, op. cit., note ad 3, 11, 191. See
Robert P. Sonkowsky, "An Aspect of Delivery in Ancient
Rhetorical Theory," TAPA 90 (1959): pp. 256-274, for a study
of the importance of delivery in ancient rhetorical theory from
Aristotle's Rhetoric to the Auctor ad Herennium, including an
analysis of the manner in which "the theory of delivery suffered
from the absence of the way of studying the emotions," to a
revival of interest in the subject in the Auctor ad Herennium.
It was Cicero who restored "the study of the emotions and gave
new life to the theory of delivery," particularly the "genera
vocis," while Quintilian confirmed in his Institutio Oratoria the
Ciceronian conclusions.
26 De Or. 3, 216: "Omnis enim animi suum quendam a natura
habet vultum et sonum et gestum; corpusque totum hominis et
eius omnis vultus omnesque voces ut nervi in fidibus, ita sonant
ut motu animi quoque sunt pulsae . . . sed in ore sunt omnia,
in eo autem ipso dominatus est omnis oculorum . . . animi est
enim omnis actio et imago animi vultus, indices oculi . .
(Dedicated to Quintus, 55 B. C.).
27 Ibid., 221-222.
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unfortunate distortion, but the eyes can be used to fierce, gentle, or cruel. Eye-brows,32 too, show grief
indicate the motus animi, in accordance with the or pleasure by their motion and support the expression
character of the speech, by assuming an intense of the eyes.
The only other factor of greater importance is the
expression, or a mild gaze, or a sharp or cheerful look.
Nature has given man eyes,28 while on the horse and blood,33 which flows in accordance with the habitu
the lion she has bestowed a mane, a tail, and ears, to mentis, when bashfulness transforms the cheek into
mark the feelings of the mind. Thus in delivery the blushing red, or when, by reason of fear, all the blood
face is second only to the voice, and is governed by retreats and leaves the face in cold pallor. When the
the eyes. It is the voice, in turn, that has the powerful circulation of the blood is moderate, a serene exprespart in pronuntiatio. It is to be prayed for as a gift, sion is produced. Here the Aristotelian doctrine of
humoral psychology becomes applicable and once
and it is to be cared for as it is given.
Quintilian writing at the end of the first century more it is the "middle situation" that constitutes the
best-blended personality. Since the shoulders,34as well
A.D. develops this idea even more fully in dealing with
gestus. The most complete treatment of the subject as other parts of the body, are indicative of the inner
in ancient rhetoric is to be found in the Institutio nature, a mean and servile and fraudulent person may
Oratoria.29 The importance of gesture, he submits, is be suggested by the shortening of the neck through the
"clear from the fact that there are many things which contraction of the shoulders, thus producing the effect
it can express with the assistance of words." The of flattery, admiration, or fear.
Because his orations represent the practical applicadisposition of the mind can be inferred from the
countenance and the manner of walking, and even tion of his views on delivery, Cicero puts into effect
animals without the power of speech as such display many of the theories on physiognomy which he sets
anger, joy, or fawning by means of the eyes and certain forth in the art of rhetoric. His personal convictions
other signs. The angle of the head is of paramount with regard to the matter are summed up in a passage
imnportancein delivery.30 A caput rectum is secundum from the Laws, one of his later works, probably
naturam; a caput deiectum indicates humility; a head published after his death. He remarks in the first
held stiffly and rigidly suggests barbaria mentis. The book35that
head can also be used effectively to express modesty, nature has likewise not only equipped man himself with
uncertainty, admiration or indignation, by movements nimblenessof thought, but also has given him the senses,
which are familiar to all. A frequent nodding of the to be, as it were, his attendants and messengers. . . . She
has granted us a bodily form which is convenient and well
head, accompanied by a rolling and tossing of the hair, suited
to the human mind. .
In addition, she has so
is the mark of a fanatic. Quintilian agrees with the formed his features as to portray therein the character
earlier remarks of the Auctor ad Herennium and with that lies hidden deep within him; for not only do the eyes
Cicero that the eyes dominate the face,3' and that, by declare with exceeding clarity the innermost feelings of
means of them, we most easily express our entreaties, our hearts, but also the countenance ("vultus") as we
Romans call it, which can be found in no other living being,
our threats, our flattery, or sorrow, our joy, our save man, reveals the character.
expectations or our resignation. It is "for this reason
In Chapter I we dealt briefly with the first profesthat on the stage masks seek to enhance in tragedy the
sional
physiognomist, Zopyrus. The account of his
in
and
of
Hercules,
anger of Medea or the savagery
comedy, for example, the essential role of the father, meeting with Socrates occurs in many later classical
who is 'alternately excited and gentle,' by represent- writers whose versions are the source of the material
ing his countenance with one eyebrow raised and the Fdrster36 includes in his discussion of Zopyrus. Of
other in its usual position." Quintilian explains this special interest to us is Cicero's use of the incident to
oddity of expression by the fact that it was customary which he makes reference in two different works.37
32 Ibid. 11, 3,79.
for actors to turn that side of the face to the audience
33Ibid. 11, 3, 83.
which best agreed with the emotions of the character
34Ibid. 11, 3, 78-79.
at the moment. In other words, we have evidence
Trans. C. W. Keyes, LCL. See note ad loc.
35 Leg. 1, 9, 26.
from the theater to show that there was a calculated "The Greeks are familiar with the meaning which the word
and definite concern with not only the static portrai- 'countenance' conveys, though they have no name for it." It
ture of a stock figure, but also with the depiction of has been pointed out that Cicero is thinking of facial expression
emotion or character through the momentary appear- as "a mirror of momentary appearance," and of the "vultus"
index of character."
ance or expression. Eyes are all important as revealing (countenance) as "an Fat.
36 SP 1: pp. vii-xi.
5, 10. Cf. scholiast on Persius 4, 24.
the nature of the mind at a given instance, through a
3 Tusc. 4, 37, 80; "Ut Socrates dicitur, cum multa in congleam of delight or the shadow of grief. By their ventu conlegisset in eum Zopyrus, qui se naturam cuiusque ex
movement they become intent, languid, haughty, forma perspicere profitebatur, derisus est a ceteris, qui illa in
28 Ibid., 223; cf. Or. 55-56; 59; 60; Brut. 110; Pis. 1.
29
30
Inst. 11, 3, 65-68 (trans. H. E. Butler, LCL throughout).
Ibid., 11, 3, 69.
31Ibid. 11, 3, 72; 3, 75.
Socrate vitia non agnosceret, ab ipso autem Socrate sublevatus,
cum illa sibi insita, sed ratione a se deiecta diceret." Cf. Off. 1,
36 for suitable outward appearance, gait and conversation, in
which Cicero writing to his son on duty, is undoubtedly inI have
debted for the thought of the passage to Panaetius.
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PAPYRI: RHETORICAL THEORY AND PRACTICE
the De Fato and the Tusculan Disputations. In the
Tusculan Disputations Cicero observes that Socrates
admitted that the characteristics which Zopyrus had
recognized were part of his natural endowment but
had been overcome by philosophy (a version which is
followed by Alexander of Aphrodisias in the second
century A.D.).
Whatever may have been Cicero's
interpretation of this remark of Socrates, there is no
doubt that the orator uses the device of physiognomical interpretation in his orations with telling effect.
An excellent example of Cicero's adroitness in this
area is to be found in his oration Pro Quinto Roscio.
The orator, it may be recalled, is inveighing against
Fannius Chaerea, who had declared that the actor
Roscius had defrauded him in the case of a slave who
had been killed. Cicero implores the court to consider
the lives and countenances of both men38:
Do not the head itself, and those clean shaven eyebrows
seem to reek of malice and proclaim craftiness aloud? If
one can make a guess from the silent form of a man's body,
does not Fannius seem to be composed entirely of fraud,
trickery, and lies from the tips of his fingers to the top of
his head? He always has his head and eyebrows shaved,
that he may not be accused of having a single hair of an
honorableman on him. Roscius has constantly portrayed
him brilliantly on the stage and yet he is not adequately
rewardedwith gratitude in return for his kindness.
Or to take an example of similar oratorical vituperation, Cicero scornfully attacks the new fashion prevailing among candidates for office39-that all visit the
homes of all citizens, and let the voters conclude from
the faces of the candidates what courage and capacity
each possesses: "Did you see him, wrapped in gloom,
head hanging down? He's down, he's given up, he's
thrown away his weapons."
It is indeed part of Cicero's technique to depict
with vividness the physique and faces of those whose
characters he wishes to attack. He pays particular attention not merely to description of expressions which
are of a permanent cast, but even more of those which
change frequently, so that he may hold up for ridicule
the men whom he is opposing in court. He begins, for
example, his attack on Calpurnius Piso in the first
oration which he delivered in the Senate on his return
from exile (57 B.C.)40: "He (Piso) succeeded in hoodwinking you and the Roman people, not by these
well-worn instruments of deception, wisdom, and
eloquence, but by a knitted forehead, and a disdainful
air, but me he could not hoodwink." When Caesar
had departed for Gaul in 58 B.C., he had left Clodius
and Piso, consul for 58, and his son-in-law, to ensure
Cicero's banishment. Piso and Gabinius had aided
discussed Cicero's statements more fully, in Chapter VIII in
connection with St. Ambrose, De Ofticiis Ministrorum, and the
pagan and Christian view of man's physique and behavior;
Fat. 6.
38 QRosc. 7, 20 (trans. J. H. Freese, LCL).
39 Mur. 21, 44-45 (trans. L. E. Lord, LCL).
40 Post Red. in Sen. 6, 15-16
(trans. N. H. Watts, LCL).
43
Clodius in securing this exile, and Piso was given the
province of Macedonia as a reward, while Gabinius
received Syria. When Cicero came back to Rome in
57 his speech De Provinciis Consularibus (delivered
56 B.C. and reminiscent of his first speech on his
return) expressed his thanks to the triumvirs, and at
the same time bitterly attacked both Piso and
Gabinius for mismanagement of their provinces.4' "I
make no comment on his pride, his insolence, his
cruelty. Close hidden be all those deeds of lust and
darkness, which he sought to conceal by a stern and
lofty look, not by modesty and self-control ('fronte et
supercilio, non pudore et temperantia')." In the Pro
Sestio, even earlier in that year (56 B.C.) he had
lampooned Piso and Gabinius. At Piso he thunders42:
"quam taeter incedebat; quam truculentus! quam
terribilis aspectu!" "You43 would have thought you
saw one of our bearded ancestors, a perfect specimen
of the old regime, a mirror of antiquity, a pillar of the
State." . . . What am I to say of his eyebrow (supercilium) which then did not seem to men to be a supercilium44
(sternness and authority) but a guarantee
(pignus) for the State? "There was such a solemnity
in his eye, there were such wrinkles in his forehead,
that this eyebrow seemed to be sponsor of the year's
security" ("tanta erat gravitas in oculo, tanta contractio frontis, ut illo supercilio annus ille niti tanquam
vade videretur"). Yet the height of scurrility in personal attack comes in the In Pisonem of 55. In the
opening paragraphs, in answer to Piso's earlier attack
on him in the senate, Cicero refutes in the language of
insult the claim that he had deprived Piso of his rightful office in the province of Macedonia45:
Do you begin to see, monster, do you begin to realize how
men loathe your impudence? . . . We were not deceived
by your slavish complexion, your hairy cheeks, and your
discoloredteeth; it was your eyes, eyebrows, forehead,in a
word your whole countenance, which is a kind of dumb
interpreter of the mind, which pushed your fellow-men
into delusion.
This theme of hate and comtempt continues46: "Nor
was I so craven, after guiding the ship of state through
dread wave and whirlwind and anchoring her safe in
port, as to flinch before the cloudlet of your frown or
your colleague's tainted breath." As a youth Piso
presented such an aspect of severity in his forehead
and eyebrow that he seemed angry not only to men
but to the gods themselves. Cicero remarks that
Philodemus,47 so far from being intimidated
by
Piso's scowling countenance, sought his friendship.
And yet with reference to Piso's pretence and villainy
41Prov. Cons. 4, 8 (trans. R. Gardner, LCL).
Sest. 8, 19-20.
19 (trans. R. Gardner throughout, LCL).
" Ibid.
45 Pis.
1. N. H. Watts throughout, LCL. Cf. edition by R.
G. M. Nisbet, Cicero in Pisonem (Oxford, 1961).
469, 20.
47 5, lt.
Cf. 11, 25, and the end of the speech.
43 Ibid.,
Seite 46
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Cicero48 adds: "And this I hardly dare mention. I
fear there may be some one who as yet fails to discern
the monstrous villainy that yonder solemn brow envelopes in its folds." When two days later Piso was
introduced to a public assembly by Gabinius, with
whom he shared the consulship, and was asked about
Cicero's consulship,49 he replied with one eyebrow
raised in scorn to his forehead, the other lowered to his
chin, that cruelty did not please him. "Never," concludes Cicero,50"have I thirsted for your blood, . . . but
to see you abject, despised, scorned by your fellows, a
thing-that peers into every corner and quakes at
every whisper, that lives mistrustful of itself . . . a
shivering, trembling, fawning wretch-this have I
desired to see you; and my desire has been gratified"
("horrentem, trementem, adulantem omnis videre te
volui: vidi"). This is the Piso "who to public view
seemed all eyebrows and antique gravity.Y"51
The acerbity of Cicero's power of personal invective
so forcefully displayed in the case of Piso is directed
against many other figures as well. Catiline52 was
possessed of a countenance that was so full of madness,
his eyes of crime, his speech of arrogance, "sic ut ei
iam exploratus et domi conditus consulatus videretur."
Of the conspirators with Catiline,53 and finally of the
confession of each man-"still their pallor, their eyes,
their looks, their silence seemed much more certain
proof." Against Clodius, against Antony, against
Verres, comparable invectives are hurled.54 While
descriptions of personal appearance in Cicero's orations are often identified with passages of vituperation
and invective, personal description is sometimes
employed for purposes of praise and eulogy. When
Cicero55 in the Pro Deiotaro speaks of Caesar (45
B.C.),
he says "in tuis oculis, in tuo ore vultuque
acquiesco." Or when he speaks of Marius, to whom
he refers in eulogistic terms:
If the countenanceof Marius,if his voice, if the flash of his
commanding glance ("si ille imperatorius ardor oculorum"),56if his recent triumphs, if the sight of his bodily
presence,had suichpower,let his authority, let his achievements, let our memory of him, let the everlasting name of
that most courageous and most illustrious hero have the
same power now.
Personal descriptions of a favorable or eulogistic
content are to be found also in the Brutus in connection
with Cicero's portrayal of the great orators of Rome.
Here the principles of oratorical appearance set forth
in the Orator and the De Oratore are given specific
application and contribute to the general picture of
48
6, 12.
6, 14 (presumably an ocular defect).
5041, 99. Cf. 41, 98.
51 R. Syme, The Roman Revolution (Oxford, 1939), p. 149.
52 Mur. 24, 49 (trans. L. E. Lord, LCL).
53 Cat. 3, 5, 13 (trans. L. E. Lord, LCL).
49
54 See appendix D.
55Deiot. 2, 5 (trans. N. H. Watts, LCL).
Baib. 21, 49 (trans. R. Gardner, LCL).
56
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
Roman excellence in this field. Gnaeus Pompey,57
the triumvir, possessed "in voce magnum splendorem,"
and in bearing "summam dignitatem." Crassus58
displayed no violent "movements of the body, no
sudden variation of the voice, no walking up and
down, no frequent stamping of the foot." Cicero's
appraisal of the effectiveness of his contemporaries'
delivery brings us back, by way of a full circle, so to
speak, to the type of description occurring in the ninth
book of the Iliad,59 when Odysseus on getting up to
speak appears as a man of no understanding.
Pliny the Younger in the panegyric on Trajan inter
alia commends the strength and stature of the
emperor's body, the distinction of his head, the
dignity of his countenance and his humanity, his hair
arranged for the enlarging of his majesty, the nobility
of his person made even more manifest by the descriptions of those whom he succeeded.60 Yet Domitian,61
in the Agricola of Tacitus, is terrifying in face, in the
haughtiness of his forehead, in the anger of his eyes,
in the effeminate pallor of his body, and in the
shamelessness of his suffused countenance. The rhetorical tradition of panegyric62 continues in the same
manner in the third and fourth centuries, when the
view holds that the nature of the mind can be gathered
from the face and grace of a man's appearance, so far
as a divine spirit has entered into the body as a
dweller.63 The signs of ill-concealed grief go out
through the eyes ("per vultus indices") and the face,
which is the betrayer, reveals the most intimate
condition of the mind, so that the "imago animorum"
stands out "in speculo frontium." The laudations of
Constantinef64 are most frequent: he is praised for his
likeness to his father, and the writer cherishes the same
gravity of the forehead, the same tranquility in the
eyes and face, the same blush of modesty.
What, furthermore, is the connection of physiognomics with the imaginary portraits of heroes, the
practice of rhetorical description and the art of
painting in general? These latter subjects are among
those treated in the various works of the family
known as the Philostrati. It is in the Heroicus, which
is concerned with the cult of Protesilaus, that we find
such fictitious descriptions. In this work Philostratus
Brut. 68, 239 (trans. G. L. Hendrickson, LCL).
48, 148.
593, 217.
17
58 Ibid.,
6048,
4.
Agr. 45: "cum denotandis tot hominum palloribus sufficeret
saevus ille vultus et rubor quo se contra pudorem muniebat."
62 67, 1; cf. 73, 4. When Trajan, in contrast, speaks to a
crowd, there is gravity of thought and expression, earnestness
in his voice, power in his utterance, as there is good faith in
his eyes, his bearing, his gestures, and indeed in his whole body.
63 Incert. Auct. Paneg. Constantino Aug. Dict. 6, 17, 3 (ed.
E. Baehrens, XII Panegyrici Latini Leipzig, 1911). Nazarus,
ibid., Paneg. Constantino Aug. Dict. 4, 13, 1. Pacatus Drepanus,
Paneg. Theodosio Aug. Dict. 2, 37, 3. See appendix D for other
references.
64 Incert. Auct. Paneg. Constantino Aug. Dict. 6, 4, 2.
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PAPYRI: RHETORICAL THEORY AND PRACTICE
includes descriptions of Greek heroes, ghosts of the
Trojan war, in an extraordinary account purportedly
given to an old farmer by the ghost of Protestilaus.65
These "forged" descriptions are not strictly identificatory, but are rhetorically elaborated after the
style of an ekphrasis, a much practiced exercise in
the new sophistic tradition,66 though the "fictitious
portrait" goes back to Dicaearchus' and Hieronymus'
of Rhodes description of Heracles. Of the four
members of the Lemnian family carrying the name of
Philostratus, Verus, the oldest, has left no surviving
works. Flavius, son of Verus, born about 170 A.D.,
and working under the patronage of Julia Domna,
wrote not only the Lives of the Sophists, to which we
have referred, but also the Heroicus. The Philostratus
portraits belong, of course, in the tradition of Dares,
Historia de Excidio Troiae, an imaginary account of the
war from the Trojan point of view. The form used in
the descriptions adds a note of authenticity to the identification of such heroes as Diomedes and Sthenelus.
"And Protesilaus saw the shapes of both Diomedes
and Sthenelus. The latter was tall and erect, with
blue eyes and a hooked nose, thick hair, a tawny
complexion rather ruddy, the former steady and alert
appearing, dark complexioned, with a straight nose
and curly, dry hair." Achilles is compared to the lion
type, possessing such attributes as heavy hair more
shining than gold and well arranged, a nose not yet
hooked, but destined to be, the eyebrows arched, and
such fury evident in the shining eyes as to put off
any attack.
A figure of prime importance in the history of
ancient painting is the Elder Philostratus, son-in-law
of Flavius and grandson of Verus, who wrote the earlier
Imagines, descriptions of paintings located perhaps in
some Neapolitan collection, and brilliantly discussed
by Karl Lehmann-Hartleben.67 This work, perhaps
to be dated in the second quarter of the third century
A.D.,
"aims to create standards for the oratorical
interpretation of painting,"68 and includes many
descriptions of momentary appearance of physique.
The commitment of both the Elder and the Younger
Philostratus to physiognomical principles in their
rhetorical ekphraseis is clear. For our purposes the
comment of the Elder Philostratus on the portrait of
Pantheia69 is perhaps the more significant:
The characterof Pantheia the beautiful has been described
by Xenophon,70how she disdained Araspas and would not
65 Diomedes and Sthenelus (ed. Kayser) 170, 27; 171, 2; Nestor
167, 5; Palamedes 183, 4-19; Aeneas 190, 22; Alexander (Paris)
191, 22; Achilles 200, 4-16; Patroclus 203, 30; 204, 5; cf. Protesilaus himself 141, 24; 142, 9 and Hector 151, 24-29, as well as
Odysseus 185, 19-22.
66 G. Misener, "Iconistic Portraits"; p. 121.
67 "The Imagines of the Elder Philostratus" A Bull 23 (1941):
pp. 16-44.
68
69
Ibid., 42.
2, 9 (trans. A. Fairbanks throughout, LCL).
70 Cyr. 6, 1, 31; 5, 1, 6; 6, 4, 6.
45
yield to Cyrus and wished the same earth to cover her and
Abradates in the grave; but what her hair was like, what
the breadth of her brow, what her glance and expression of
her mouth Xenophon did not describe, though he was particularly clever at telling such things; but a man not good
at writing though very clever at painting, who, though he
had never seen Pantheia herself, was nevertheless well
acquainted with Xenophon, and here paints Pantheia as
from her soul he divined her to be.
He had earlier maintained that poets and painters7'
make equal contributions to our knowledge of the
deeds and the looks (e16-) of heroes. Philostratus the
Younger (grandson of the Elder) expresses the same
ideas in the prooemium of his Imagines72:
For he who is to be a true master of the art (of painting)
must have a good knowledge of human nature, he must be
able to discern the signs of men's character, even when they
are silent, and what is revealed in the state of the cheeks
and the expression of the eyes, and the character of the
eyebrows, and, to put the matter briefly, whatever has to
do with the mind.
Here, we might say, the theoretical principles of
physiognomy and the practice of rhetorical description
("ekphrasis") meet in the realm of art. If we accept
Lehmann-Hartleben's
thesis that these paintings are
real, and the Philostratus "happened to be in Naples
in the villa of a friend whose rooms were decorated
with extensive groups of paintings and that he from
time to time lectured on them," we may see that his
interest was directed to the task of "giving oratorical
expression to the impressions gained from the pictures."73 Flavius Philostratus, author of the life of
of Tyana,
Apollonius
depicts the philosophizing
mystic of the first century A.D. as discussing painting
with Damis in much the same phraseology.74
In the
course of this work the King of India expounds the
philosophical training of Indian youths who wish to
71 1, 1. For momentary descriptions see: 1, 3 (Aesop); 1, 4
(Menoecus, son of Creon); 1, 6 (Cupids); 1, 7 (Memnon); 1, 8
(Poseidon); 1, 9 (Cupids riding swans); 1, 11 (daughters of
Helius); 1, 14 (Bronte and Astrape); 1, 15 (Theseus and Ariadne);
1, 16 (Daedalus and Pasiphae); 1, 17 (Oenomaus); 1, 18 (Dionysus); 1, 20 (satyrs); 1, 21 (Olympus); 1, 22 (Midas and satyrs);
1, 23 (Narcissus); 1, 24 (Apollo); 1, 26 (Apollo); 1, 27 (Amphiaraus); 1, 28 (hunters); 1, 29 (Perseus and Andromeda); 1, 30
(Pelops); 2, 2 (Achilles); 2, 8 (Critheis); 2, 9 (Pantheia); 2, 10
(Clytemnestra and Cassandra); 2, 12 (Pan); 2, 15 (Lynceus at
the sight of Glaucus Pontius); 2, 18 (Cyclops and Galatea); 2, 19
(Apollo); 2, 21 (Heracles and Antaeus). Similarly for Philostratus the Younger, Imagines 1 (Achilles on Scyros) and (Pyrrhus
of Scyros); 2 (Marsyas and Apollo); 4 (Deianira); 5 (Amphitryon); 6 (Orpheus); 7 (Medea and Jason); 8 (Eros and Ganymede); 9 (Pelops and Hippodameia);
10 (Pyrrhus and
Eurypylus); 11 (Argonauts and Medea); 13 (Sophocles); 14
(Apollo and Hyancinthus); 15 (Meleager); 16 (Heracles); 17
(Philoctetes).
For Callistratus the same technique holds: 1.
Satyr; 3. Eros; 4. Indian; 5. Narcissus; 7. Orpheus; 8. Dionysus;
10. Paean; 11. Youth; 12. Centaur; 13. Medea; 14. Athamas.
72 Trans. A. Fairbanks throughout, LCL.
Cf. Callistratus 5
(Narcissus) on the same point.
73 "The Imagines of the Elder Philostratus", p. 41.
74 2, 22; cf. ibid., 6, 4, the description of the statue of Memnon
in iconistic style, and 6, 10 for the appearance of Virtue and Vice
before Hercules.
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process is not unlike that allegedly followed by
Pythagoras and recorded in Aulus Gellius.76
But the particulars of the youths themselves are duly
learnt by inspection of them. For in many cases a man's
eyes reveal the secrets of his character,and in many cases
there is material for forming a judgment, and appraising
his value in his eyebrowsand cheeks, for from these features
the dispositions of people can be detected by wise and
scientific men, as images are seen in a looking glass.77
V. HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
We have already observed that the Greek historians
in general make slight use-Thucydides none at all
of the descriptions of personal appearance as a device
of characterization. Herodotus does, however, introduce random observations on the physical features of
different peoples,' and on the relation of these features
to the physical environment.
In the final chapter of his history Herodotus indicates familiarity with the ideas found in the Hippocratic work Airs, Waters, and Places. When the
Persians are preparing to leave their rugged land after
the downfall of Astyages, the Mledian king, and to
occupy more fertile territory, Cyrus listens to them
and then speaks a word of admonition2: "Do you go,
but if you do, make ready to be no longer rulers, but
subjects. Soft lands breed soft men; wondrous fruits
of the earth and valiant warriors grow not from the
same soil." The historian obviously assumes a relationship between climate, appearance, and character, and this remark of Cyrus is used at the conclusion
of his history to remind his readers that the Persians,
like the Greeks, were once great warriors, and to
warn his victorious countrymen in moralistic terms of
the possibility of future disaster to themselves. This
passage is, of course, an example of humoral physiognomy, intended to show that the faculties of the soul
follow the mixtures of the body, and that they, in
turn, are affected by the climate in which people live.
Xenophon,3 on the other hand, as one under the
influence of Socratic ethics, draws attention to the
relation of character to the physique. He,4 with
Aristophanes and Plato, delineates in considerable
detail the familiar features of Socrates and his satyr76
2, 30.
76 1,
9.
2, 30 (trans. F. C. Conybeare throughout, LCL). Cf. other
descriptions in VA 4, 9; 4, 16; 4, 20; 4, 27; 5, 9; 5, 35; 6, 30;
7, 27-28; 7, 31; 7, 42; 8, 7; 6-7; 8, 26; 8, 29.
l See Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," p. 104.
2 9, 122 (trans. A. D. Godley, LCL).
See Howe and Wells,
Commentary on Herodotus (Oxford, 1912) and note ad loc., in
which the editors point out that Herodotus ascribes to Cyrus the
teaching of Hippocrates, Aer. 24. The place of Hippocrates in
the history of physiognomical theory we discussed in Chapter II.
3 Mem. 3, 10, 4-5; cf. Symp. 1, 10; Symp. 5, 6 (on himself).
4Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," p. 106. Symp. 4, 19, 5. Cf.
Arist. Neph. 223; Plato Theaet. 143e; 209b; Meno 80a; Symp.
215b; Phaed. 103a; Rep. 513a.
77
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
like inner nature-snub-nosed, bulging eyes, widespread nostrils, and thick lips. He, furthermore,
represents Socrates as conversing with Parrhasius,
the painter, on the proper methods of representing a
subject's features so as to reveal his inner nature
through the medium of art.
The choice of Heracles at the crossroads, as described by Xenophon, reflects the same kind of
physiognomical thinking5:
And there appeared two women of great stature making
towards him. The one was fair to see and of high bearing;
and her limbs were adorned with purity, her eyes with
modesty; sober was her figure, and her robe was white.
The other was plump and soft with high feeding. Her
face was made up to heighten its natural white and pink,
her figure to exaggerate her height. Open-eyed was she,
and dressed so as to disclose her charms. Now she eyed
herself; anon looked to see whether any noticed her; and
often she stole a glance at her own shadow.
The first description of Virtue is entirely that of static
appearance, interpreted in ethical terms; the second,
of Vice, is iconistic description, of which two features
have physiognomical significance. HoXvoapK1a[plumpness] is a sign of the senseless and 65/.tcarca
avarewrracgbva
[open eyes] of the shameless.6 The debate between
these two women,7 allegorical in character, has a long
and changing history, starting from Prodicus and
finding expression in the fourth century A.D. in
Gregory of Nazianzus' description of the strife of the
Soul and the Flesh. The presence of iconistic physical
portraiture in this debate varies with the purpose and
period of those who imitate Xenophon's8 version of
Prodicus' story, and it is important to observe how
these descriptions change under the influence of
physiognomical trends in different eras. But the burden of this section comes from a historian writing as a
philosopher.
In the historical writing of the fourth and third
centuries B.C. little or no importance was attached
to descriptions of personal appearance. Similarly it
may be said of the Attic orators of the same period that
there is virtually no concern with the eulogy of the
appearance, permanent or momentary, of an individual, or for attack by the vituperative description
of opponents. That clearly becomes part of the
rhetorical technique of historiography and oratory at a
later period. Only in the prose work of Polybius on
universal history (his life spans the second century
Mem. 2, 1, 22 (trans. E. C. Marchant, LCL).
Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," p. 106. For -roXvTapKLasee
Pseud.-Arist. 807b; Adamant. 362, 8 and 16; Plato, Rep. 556D.
For 0/IMuara&vaa7rE7ra,.EPasee Pseud.-Arist. 807b; Adam. 317, 6;
336, 1.
I For a study of this debate in classical literature see M. C.
Waites, "The Allegorical Debate in Greek Literature," HSCP
23 (1912): esp. pp. 9-19.
Cf., too, Philo Judaeus, De Sacr.
Abelis et Caini, 20; Sil. 15, 18-31, Philostratus VA 6, 10.
8 For other passages in Xenophon
dealing with physical descriptions, permanent or momentary, see Ap. 27; Cyr. 4, 4, 3;
5, 1, 5; 8, 4, 21; Symp. 1, 10; 4, 19; 5, 5; 8, 3. Also An. 2, 6,
8-9; Ages. 11, 2.
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
B.C.) do we find the question raised as to the relationship between "man, his character and his actions on
the one hand, and his material environment on the
other."9 Polybius, writing on the subject of music in
Arcadia,10 accepts the principles of the Hippocratic
essay on Airs, Waters, and Places. He remarks that
the practice followed by the ancient Arcadians of
introducing music training into their way of life was
not for the purpose of luxury. These people devote
themselves to hard labor in a cold and gloomy climate,
and their character is by nature austere. He suggests
that human beings yield easily to the influence of
climate and that this serves as a strong formative
element in the development of distinctive qualities of
character, physical appearance and complexion, as
well as in habits. Consequently music became obligatory with most of the Arcadians. Boys were trained
to sing hymns and paeans, they danced at the Dionysia, they shared in singing at banquets, they marched
in military formation to music. Thus they endeavored
to soften and humanize the harshness of their environment, while the people of Cynaetha, alone in Arcadia,
neglected such things entirely, although they needed
these elements in their lives more than anybody in
Arcadia, since their climate and countryside were the
most unfavorable. Consequently in the struggles of
the Achaean league in 220 B.C. they suffered severely
because they did not take part in these Arcadian festivities, and so had become accustomed to crime. This
view of Polybius" with respect to the effect of climate
on man's appearance and behavior is of course to be
found in Plato and Aristotle, and it is likely that
Polybius shared with Posidonius much the same ideas
as were held by the Stoics.12 The Pseudo-Aristotelian
author of the Problematal3raises the question as to why
the inhabitants of very hot or very cold regions are
like beasts in appearance and nature, and believes
that "moral energy is correlated with animal warmth."
Megasthenes,'4 the Hellenistic writer on the history of
India, remarks that the intelligence of the Indians is
due to their clear climate and pure water, and its
effect on their physique and nature.
Among the earliest descriptions of physique in the
9 F. W. Walbank, "The Geography of Polybius," Cl Med 9
(1948): pp. 155-182, especially p. 179.
104, 21, 9. See note ad loc. in F. W. XValbank, A Historical
Commentary on Polybius (Oxford, 1957), pp. 465-466.
1 Walbank (note 9, above) ibid., 180-181.
12 Ibid., 180, n. 5.
Instances of the use of descriptions of
physique for characterization can also be found in Polybius,
e.g. 8, 19; 10, 19; 11, 39, 9; 16, 34, 6-7; 18, 6, 5; 21, 9, 2; 24, 11;
27, 12; 30, 3, 7-8; 31, 23, 8; 33, 4; 26, 15; 38, 8.
1314, 1, 909a. Cf. Walbank, ibid., 179.
14 FGH 2, 402 (Diodorus
Siculus 2.36). For the "milieu"
theory see K. Trudinger, Studien zur Geschichte der Griechischromischen Ethnographie (Basel, 1918). I am indebted to Walbank
for this reference. Posidonius plays a prominent role in the
development of this idea, and its last notable example in antiquity
is to be found in the physiognomist Adamantius in the fourth
century A.D.
47
historical records and historical literature of Rome are
those appearing in the epitaphs of the Scipios. That,
for example, of Lucius Cornelius Scipio Barbatus, consul 298 B.C. (the inscription is before 200 B.C.) iS of
the first type,15 defined in the introduction;
Cornelius Lucius Scipio Barbatus
Gnaivod patre prognatus fortis vir sapiensque
quoius forma virtutei parisumafuit. ...
Or a similar example is to be found almost a hundred
and fifty years later in the epitaph of Claudia, ca.
133-122 B.C.'6
Hospes quod deico paullum est: asta ac pellege.
heic est sepulcrumhau pulcrum pulcraifeminae.
nomen parentes nominaveruntClaudiam
sermone lepido, tam auitemincessu commodo.
domum servavit, lanam fecit. dixi. abei.
Or, to take another example from early Latin literature, there is the epigram of Quintus Catulus (consul
102 B.C.) on the famous actor Roscius:
Constiteramexorientem Auroramforte salutans
cum subito a laeva Roscius exoritur.
pace mihi liceat, caelestes, dicere vestra,
mortalis visust pulchrioresse deo.
Cicero, who quotes the lines in the De Natura Deorum
(I, 28, 70) remarks, "Ah, yes, Roscius, more beautiful
than a god, but then, as indeed in our own day, he
was endowed with perversissimis oculis ("a villainous
squint," Mayor). Yet to Catulus he seemed salsus
et venustus. Such expressions are part and parcel of
Roman historical writing. The description is of the
simplest sort, yet briefly suggests the unchanging
excellence of body and character in each instance.
In comparison with Tacitus or Ammianus Marcellinus, Livy uses with relative infrequency the description of personal appearance for the purpose of
characterization."7 We have an excellent estimate of
Scipio Africanus. The descriptions are of the second
type, for Livy prefers to show the power exerted over
the minds of his soldiers and over those of his enemies
by the authority and dignity evident in Scipio's
appearance. During the height of a mutinous uprising at Sucro (206 B.C.), when the leaders of the
rebellion were assembled before Scipio, his very face
created terror'8:
16 CIL 12 6, 7 (date of the inscription about one hundred years
later than the elogium).
16CIL 12, 1211.
17 In order to avoid unnecessary repetition
I am including in
appendix D a classified list of the more important descriptions
of the first and second type that have come to my attention
from the Roman historians. I shall discuss here only a few
examples from Livy, Tacitus, and in Chapter VIII, Ammianus
Marcellinus.
1828, 26. Cf. 28, 27 (trans. F. G. Moore, LCL): "Tum omnis
ferocia concidit, et ut postea fatebantur, nihil aeque eos terruit
quam praeter spem robur et color imperatoris, quem adfectum
visuros crediderant, vultusque qualem ne in acie quidem aiebant
meminisse.
sedit tacitus paulisper, donec nuntiatum est
deductos in forum auctores seditionis et parata omnia esse."
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When all their fierceness failed them, and, as they
afterwards admitted, nothing alarmed them so much as
the unexpected strength and healthy color of the general
whom they believed they would see as an invalid, also an
expression on his face such as, they said, they never
remembered even in battle. He sat in silence for a moment, until the report reached him that the promoters of
the mutiny had been brought into the open space and that
everything was ready.
exhaust his body or overcome his spirit. Of heat and
cold he was equally tolerant. The terror he created
in his soldiers, the tragic look of the man conquered
by Scipio Africanus,23as he was observed laughing in
the Curia of Carthage, when he himself was the cause
of tears, brought this sardonic comment: "If the mind
within us could be seen, just as the expression of the
face is seen by our eyes, it would be readily clear to
Then after describing the suppression of the rebellion
you that this laughter which you upbraid is not that of
Livy continues'9:
a happy spirit but of one almost beside itself through
misfortunes. "
paying
all
his
men,
conscientiousness
in
Scipio by his
The appearance of the Gauls24-"procera corpora,
guilty and innocent alike, and more by his countenance
and speech showing no resentment against any one, easily promissae et rutilae comae, vista scuta, praelongi
won the hearts of his soldiers.
gladii"-is described more than once, and their huge
and terrifying size constantly brought the Roman
Again at Zama, when Scipio addressed the Roman
forces to the brink of panic, only to be stopped by the
troops before they went into battle against Hannibal's
of their commanders. The same type of
exhortation
forces,20 we see the remarkable effect of this man's
in the Germania of Tacitus. The
portrait
appears
presence and appearance before his auditors: "celsus
Germans are depicted as having25 "truces et caerulei
haec corpore voltuque ita laeto, ut vicisse iam crederes,
When he received Masinissa for the first oculi, rutilae comae, magna corpora et tantum ad
dicebat."
impetum valida; laboris atque operum non eadem
time, the effect which his appearance produced on the
patientia." And most frequently these hulks of barNumidian was overpowering2l:
barians bring complete consternation to the Roman
The Numidian had already been filled with admiration
soldiers,
who in turn are exhorted by their officers to
for the man in consequence of his reported achievements,
and had conjured up in mind an ideal figure, tall and face them without fear.26
In Tacitus we may observe that the description of
stately. But greater still was the reverence that possessed
him for the man in his presence; and while Scipio had physique has an even more significant place in the
great natural dignity, long hair added charm, as did a narrative. For the most part the descriptions occur in
general appearance not due to studied elegance, but truly
masculine and soldierly; and his age was exactly at the the brief analysis of an individual's vices or virtues,
height of physical strength, amplified and made more as in the case of Domitius Corbulo27:"corpore ingens,
dazzling by the youthful bloom which appeared to have verbis magnificis et super experientiam sapientiamque
been renewed after his illness.
etiam specie inanium validus," or Lateranus28: "animi
The characterization of a man through the effect of validus et corpore ingens," or Sejanus29: "corpus illi
laborum tolerans, animus audax; sui obtegens, in
his presence and personality upon others is nowhere
alios criminator . . . " Descriptions are also inserted
of
in
the
case
illustrated
than
more dramatically
in the narrative, as the occasion demands, to suggest or
Hannibal22: Hannibal was sent to Spain, where he had
emphasize some momentary state of the mind. Tacino sooner arrived than he was the favorite of the
tus declares that his purpose in writing the Annals is
entire army. The old soldiers thought that Hamilcar
to show outstanding examples of political vice or virtue
in
his youth; they
was restored to them as he had been
for posterity to condemn or admire.30 In such a hisbeheld the same lively expression and piercing eyes, the
tory delineation of character, analysis of motives, is
same cast of countenance and features. No toil could
fundamental. How, for example, could the historian
19
noxiis
28, 32: "Scipio cum fide solvendi pariter omnibus
innoxiisque stipendii tum vultu ac sermone in omnes placato
facile reconciliatis militum animis, priusquam castra ab
Carthagine moveret, contione advocata, multis verbis in
perfidiam rebellantium regulorum invectus."
20 30, 32.
21 28, 35: "Ceperat iam ante Numidam ex fama rerum gestarum
admiratio viri, substitueratque animo speciem quoque corporis
amplam ac magnificam; ceterum maior praesentis veneratio
cepit; et, praeterquam quod suapte natura multa maiestas
inerat, adornabat promissa caesaries habitusque corporis non
cultus munditiis, sed virilis vere ac militaris, et aetas erat in
medio virium robore quod plenius nitidiusque ex morbo velut
renovatus flos inventae faciebat."
22 21, 4. cf. 33, 9 (trans. B. 0. Foster, LCL).
"Missus Hannibal
in Hipaniam primo statim adventu omnem exercitum in se
convertit Hamilcarem iuvenem redditum sibi veteres milites
credere; eandem vigorem in vultu vimque in oculis, habitum
oris lineamentaque intueri . . . nullo labore aut corpus fatigari
aut animus vinci poterat. Caloris et frigoris patientia par."
30, 44 (trans. F. G. Moore, LCL).
17; cf. likewise 10, 28; 27, 48; 34, 47; 38, 21. For
Tacitus' technique of character portrayal, apart from the descriptions of personal appearance dealt with in this section, see
Stephen G. Daitz, "Tacitus' Technique of Character Portrayal,"
AJP 81 (1960): pp. 30-52, where the important evidence
gathered is discussed.
23
24 5, 44; 38,
26 Germ.4; cf. 30.
26 Ann. 2, 14 (Germanicus to his army); cf. Also Agr. 2; Ann.
2, 21; Hist. 5, 14; 5, 18.
27
28
Ann. 13, 8.
Ibid. 15, 53.
Cf. ibid. 2, 72 (Tacitus' description
29 Ibid. 4, I (first type).
of Germanicus as he was dying): "tanta illi comitas in socios,
mansuetudo in hostes, visuque et auditu iuxta venerabilis
(second type), cum magnitudinem et gravitatem summae
fortunae retineret, invidiam, et adrogantiam effugerat." Cf. ibid.
Ibid. 3, 65.
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
better impress on his reader's consciousness the way
in which the bitterness and hypocrisy of the Emperor
Tiberius affected those with whom he was associated
and, in turn, the way in which the emperor was
affected by those around him, than by a brief description of their visible reactions to significant events?
The picture of the emperor is far from pleasant;
Tacitus leaves us a vivid account of the tragic ugliness
of his later years, when his appearance was by no
means inconsistent with the reputed faults of his
character at that period31:
This description, almost verging on the third or
Suetonian type, may be compared with Tacitus's
famous analysis of his life at the end of the sixth book.
Tiberius' mores varied with his fortune32:
49
compares that unfortunate man with Tiberius37: "nam
iuveni civile ingenium, mira comitas et diversa ab
Tiberio sermone, vultu, adrogantibus et obscuris."
Against the son of Germanicus, Nero, he was strongly
prejudiced, owing to the influence of Sejanus38:
"enimvero Tiberius torvus aut falsum renidens vultu:
seu loqueretur, seu taceret iuvenis, crimen ex silentio,
ex voce. . . . " Even on the deathbed of the
Emperor, Tacitus concludes39:
By now his constitution and strength were failing
Tiberius, but not yet his powers of dissimulation. The
unbending mind remained; still energetic in word and
look, he strove every now and then to cover the manifest
breaking-upby a forced sociability.
In contrast with the gloomy description of the
Emperor
Tiberius is the picture of Agricola, in whom
There were those who believed that in his old age he
had become sensitive also to his outward appearance. For Tacitus, following the convention of the encomium,
he possessed a tall, round shouldered, and abnormally praises the excellence of the body in a description
slender figure, a head without a trace of hair, and an which is purely of the second type40:
ulcerousface generally variegated with plasters.
37
1, 33.
Rather different is the emphasis in the picture of
Tiberius in Tacitus from that in Suetonius. The
latter tends to balance the good and bad in his life,
both of character and physique. Tacitus is impressed
by the effect that the austere tragedy of his last years
produced in his physical appearance. Briefer, momentary glimpses of the emperor appear throughout
the Annals. "Neque vultu mutato"33 he is described
when the revolt of the Treviri and the Aedui and
sixty-four Gallic states was announced to him. To
such a point was he able to conceal his anger against
Libo Drusus (reported to him as one engaged in a
conspiracy against the state) that34 "atque interim
Libonem ornat praetura, convictibus adhibet, non
vultu alienatus, non verbis commotior," but before
he read the accusation and named the accusers against
Libo, the defendant35 "manus ac supplices voces ad
Tiberium tendens immoto eius voltu excipitur." When
Germanicus dies, Tiberius and Livia remain aloof from
public lamentation36: "inferius maiestate sua rati, si
palam lamentarentur, an ne omnium oculis vultum
eorum scrutantibus falsi intellegerentur." Tacitus
31Ibid. 6, 51. Cf. Pseud-Arist. 807b, and Tacitus, Ann. 4, 57
(trans. J. Jackson, LCL): "Egregiumque vita famaque quoad
privatus vel in imperiis sub Augusto fuit; occultum ac subdolum
fingendis virtutibus, donec Germanicus ac Drusus superfuere;
idem inter bona malaque mixtus incolumni matre, intestabilis
saevitia, sed obtectis libidinibus dum Seianum dilexit timuitve,
postremo in scelera simul ac dedecora prorupit, postquam remoto
pudore et metu suo tantum ingenio utebatur."
32 Ibid. 4, 57.
"Erant qui crederent in senectute corporis
quoque habitum pudori fuisse; quippe illi praegracilis et incurva
proceritas, nudus capillo vertex, ulcerosa facies, ac plerumque
medicaminibus interstincta."
33
3, 44.
343,
28.
35 3,
29. Cf. 2, 34 (L. Piso affair); 3, 67 (trial of Silanus);
4, 34 (trial of Cremutius Cordus).
363,
3.
384, 60.
396, 50.
Cf. 4,15.
(Cf. 4, 34.) Ann. 6, 50, trans. J. Jackson, LCL: "Iam
Tiberium corpus, iam vires, nondum dissimulatio deserebat;
idem animi rigor; sermone ac vultu intentus, quaesita interdum
comitate quamvis manifestam defectionem tegebat."
40 Agr. 44.
(trans. M. Hutton, LCL): "Quod si habitum
quoque eius posteri noscere velint, decentior quam sublimior
fuit: nihil impetus et metus in vultu; gratia oris supererat;
bonum virum facile crederes, magnum libenter." In appendix D
I have included examples of similar descriptions from Pliny's
panegyric on Trajan and from the later writers of panegyrics.
In Cornelius Nepos' lives of illustrious men descriptions of
physique and countenance are commonly appended to the brief
analysis of character as habitually displayed on many occasions,
especially in the encomia of military leaders in battle (Atticus
excepted). These descriptions are for the most part of the first
type, such as occur in the eulogy of Scipio and Claudia. In the
case of Macrochir (21.1): "praecipuam habet laudem amplissimae
pulcherrimaeque corporis formae quam incredibili ornavit virtute
belli"; or of the second type in which the nature of the mind is
imprinted on the body and the face, as in the later laudationes:
Dion (4.1) "autem praeter nobilem propinquitatem generosamque
maiorum famam multa alia ab natura habuit bona, in his ingenium
docile, come, aptum ad artes optimas, magnam corporis dignitatem,
quae non minimum commendat.
In these lines there are
...
surely to be seen the literary beginnings of the encomia of which
the panegyric of Trajan by Pliny the Younger, is a conspicuous
example, embracing such qualities as dignity of physique, tranquility of face, nobility of countenance and the like. The earliest
biographies in Latin literature are, like Plutarch's marked by the
Peripatetic ethical aim and are completely simple in character.
The description of Atticus (1.1) provides us with an interesting
example: "Erat autem in puero praeter docilitatem ingenii,
summa suavitas oris ac vocis." Sallust, too, like Nepos, is concerned with the general appraisal of excellencies and faults of
mind and body. Jugurtha (lug. 6) was one "qui ubi primum
adolevit, pollens viribus decora facie, sed multo maxime ingenio
validus, non se luxui neque inertiae corrumpendum dedit
But the most striking portrait is iconistic, that of
Catiline presented by Sallust in his account of the conspiracy.
This portrait is, like those found in the orations of Cicero (e.g.,
Piso), a bitter appraisal of the man's physique and nature: Cat.
15: (cf. Cat. 31: "sed ubi ille adsedit Catilina, ut erat paratus
ad dissimulanda omnia, demisso vultu, voce supplici postulare a
partibus coepit, nequid de se temere crederent"; and earlier
Cat.5: "nobili genere natus, fuit magna vi et animi et corporis,
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IN THE ANCIENT WORLD
Should posterity desire to learn his mere appearance,
he was well-proportionedrather than imposing. There
was no irritability in his face; its dominant expression
was benign. You could easily credit him with goodness,
and be glad to think him great.
The doctrines of the Peripatetics bearing on physiognomy find a place among Latin writers of the first century after Christ in Pliny's Natural History,41in which
he comments on Aristotle's theories of physical signs
for determining duration of life. He himself has no
confidence in such physical symptoms, considering
them utterly futile; but, because Aristotle did not
treat the subject with contempt, he feels bound to
set down some remarks upon it. The indications of a
short life are few teeth, very long fingers, a muddy
complexion, and numerous lines in the palm of the
hand. He looks upon the following as signs of a long
life: stooping in the shoulders, one or two unbroken
lines in the hand, more than thirty-two teeth, and
Pliny continues, "among ourselves
large ears.
Trogus"-and here he refers, of course, to Pompeius
Trogus, the Augustan historiansed ingenio malo pravoque . . . corporis patiens inediae, algoris,
Animus audax
vigiliae supraquam cuiquam credibile est.
subdolus varius cuius rei lubet simulator ac dissimulator.") "Ita
conscientia mentem excitam vastabat. Igitur color ei exsanguis,
foedi oculi, citus modo, modo tardus incessus; prorsus in facie
vultuque vecordia inerat." Momentary descriptions are likewise
part of Sallust's incisive biographical art, as at the moment of
death, when Catiline (61) lay far apart from his own supporters,
overcome in battle, "paululum etiam spirans ferociamque animi,
quam habuerat vivus, in vultu retinens."
In Quintus Curtius Rufus, Velleius Paterculus, and Valerius
Maximus descriptions of physique play a relatively small part
in the narrative as a whole, and likewise in Florus, Justinus,
Aurelius Victor and Eutropius. (See appendix D for references.)
The Scriptores Historiae Augustae occasionally show a tendency
to general description, but often it is encomiastic, as in the case
of Marcus Aurelius (Julius Capitolinus, Vita Marci Antonini 16.
Cf. the same ideas in Eutropius 8, 11, Epit. de Caes. 16, 7. The
descriptions surely come from the same source. Cf. J. Schwendemann, Der historische Wert der Marci bei Scriptores Historiae
Augustae (Heidelberg, 1923), p. 197. See on this subject The
Conflict Between Paganism and Christianity in the Fourth Century,
essays edited by Arnaldo Momigliano esp. Chapter IV, "Pagan
and Christian Historiography in the Fourth Century," pp. 79-99.
See full bibliography, Chap. VIII): "Erat tantae tranquillitatis
ut vultum numquam mutaverat maerore vel gaudio, philosophiae
deditus Stoicae, quam et per optimos quoque magistratus
acceperat et undique ipse collegerat." But these writers (see
the important article by J. Cousin, "Rhetorique et psychologie
chez Tacite" REL 29 [1951]: pp. 228-247) also follow the
Suetonian tradition of iconistic description such as we have seen
in Nepos' portrait of Catiline. In Pliny's Letters, as in Cicero's,
descriptions occur, but they are few and not conspicuous.
Voconius Romanus (2, 13, 6) displays "mira in sermone, mira
etiam in ore ipso vultuque suavitas, ad hoc ingenium excelsum,
subtile . . . dulce facile eruditum in causis agendo.
Euphrates (1, 10, 6 sq.; cf. Calpurnius Piso, 5.17, 3) the philosopher is marked by "proceritas corporis, decora facies, densissimus
capillus, ingens et cana barba; quae licet fortuita et inania
putentur, illi tamen plurimum venerationis adquirunt . . .
vitae santitas summa, comitas par."
41
HN 11, 274 (trans. H. L. Rackham throughout, LCL).
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
in a similar manner has added some outward signs of
character which I will append in his own words42: "When
the forehead is large, it indicates that the mind beneath it
is sluggish; people with a small forehead have a nimble
mind, those with a round forehead an irascible mind-as
if this were a visible indication of a swollen temper! When
men's eyebrows are level, this signifies that they are
gentle, when they are curved at the side of the nose, that
they are stern, when bent down at the temples, that they
are mockers, when extremely drooping, that they are
malevolent and spiteful. If peoples' eyes are narrow on
both sides, this shows them to be malicious in character;
eyes that have fleshy corners on the side of the nostrils
show a mark of maliciousness, when the white part of the
eye is extensive, it conveys an indication of impudence;
eyes that have a habit of repeatedly closing indicate
unreliability. Large ears are a sign of talkativeness and
silliness."Thus far Trogus.43
Pliny describes the eyes of the Roman emperors with
some care, in terms which are akin to those found in
Suetonius44:
Blue-gray eyes see more clearly in the dark. It is stated
that Tiberius Caesar alone of all mankind was so constituted that if he woke up in the night for a short time,
he could see everything just as in bright daylight, although
darkness gradually closed over him. The late lamented
Augustus had gray eyes like those of horses, the whites
being larger than usual in a human being, on account of
which he used to become angry if people watched his
eyes too closely; Claudius Caesar's eyes were frequently
bloodshot and had a fleshy gleam at the corners; the
Emperor Gaius had staring eves; Nero's eyes were dull
of sight except that he screwed them up to look at objects
brought close to them.
And he concludes this passage with these very significant words45:
No other part of the body supplies greater indications
of the mind-this is so with all animals alike, but espeis, indications of self-restraint,
cially with man-that
mercy, pity, hatred, love, sorrow, joy. The eyes are also
varied in their look-fierce, stern, sparkling, sedate, leering, askance, downcast, kindly; in fact, the eyes are the
abode of the mind ("profecto in oculis animus habitat").
One of the most important literary developments of
the Hellenistic period is to be found in the field of
biography, which in this era falls into two general
The first type is directed toward the
categories.
gathering and conveying of information of a detailed
nature, which finds further expression in the schemata
used by Suetonius in the Lives of the Caesars, by the
writers of the Historia Augusta, and by Ammianus
The description of personal appearance
Marcellinus.
42HN 11, 274 (cf. Arist. HA 1, 9, 491b).
43HN 11, 141-145. Cf. 11, 138; 11, 185; 11, 200 (Arist. Part.
Anim. 3, 14, 675b); 11, 158; 11, 138: "The brow is an indication
. . . With them
of sorrow and gaiety, mercy and severity.
[eyebrows] we indicate assent and dissent, they are our chief
means of displaying contempt; pride has its place of generation
elsewhere, but here it has its abode; it is born in the heart, but
it rises to the eyebrows and hangs suspended there ('superbia
. . . hic sedem habet')."
44HN
Ibid.
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
is an essential feature of such biography. The other
type, following the ethical aim of the Peripatetic
school of biography, culminates in the work of Plutarch in the second century A.D.
Photographic descriptions contained in Peripatetic
biography are rarely preserved. That found in Cyril
of Alexandria, taken from the life of Socrates by
Aristoxenus,46 reports what Spintharos stated, namely
that he himself could not have met with any more
persuasive figure [than Socrates], such was his voice
and lips, and the character evident in them, in addition
to what was said of the particular nature of his appearance. Dicaearchus, pupil of Aristotle and contemporary of Theophrastus, and Hieronymus of
Rhodes in the early second century B.C. give in much
the same fashion an imaginary portrait of Heracles,
preserved in Clement of Alexandria47: "Homer then
knew Heracles as a mortal man; Hieronymus the
philosopher describes the configuration of his body as
small, bristling-haired, powerful, Dicaearchus as
athletic, sinewy, black, hooked-nosed, with a fierce
look, smooth haired." Miss Misener adds "that the
descriptive terms are those in the Peripatetic manuals
on physiognomy and the contemporary Egyptian
papyri."48 Even more significant is the account derived from Dicaearchus49 wherein Pythagoras is described as endowed by nature with physical gifts of a
high order: he was tall and gracious, as well as possessing a pleasant voice and disposition. In like manner
Hermippus,50 following in the tradition of the Peripatetic School in the third century B.C., records the
elegance of the appearance of Theophrastus at his
lectures and his very extensive use of gestures to
enliven his discourses.
Although from the period beginning with Dicaearchus and running up to the first century B.C. few
fragments have reached us, the few citations preserved
from writers of the period would indicate that these
descriptions continued. For instance, Plutarch and
Dionysius of Hlalicarnassus state that Demetrius of
Phalerum (350 B.C.) is the source of our information
about Demosthenes, that he was afflicted with indistinctness and a lisping quality in his speech and
bodily blemishes. Satyrus, one of the founders of
Peripatetic biography, has left a portrait of the handsome Alcibiades, for which the source is Antisthenes
the Cynic.51 From the same period comes the description of Zeno by Apollonius of Tyre, probably based
on writings of the Stoic School, preserved in Diogenes
Laertius59:He was lean, fairly tall, dark-complexioned,
46
See Stuart, Epochs of Greek and Roman Biography, pp. 132,
138.
47
Protrep.2, 30.
48
Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," p. 108.
FHG 2, 244, frg. 29; cf. Stuart, ibid., pp. 174-176, especially
49
175.
60
61
FHG 3, 46, frg. 43.
FHG 3, 160.
627, 1.
Cf. Stuart, ibid., 176 for other examples.
51
with thick legs, not firmly set, and delicate. Furthermore from Timotheus of Athens are derived the descriptions of Zeno53: bending his neck to one side or
the other; of Speusippus54that he was loosely jointed:
Tr6ocWa&taKeXvAI'POS; of Aristotle55 that he spoke with
a lisp (rpavXos), that his calves were thin, his eyes
small, and that he was conspicuous by his attire and
his hair; and of Plato56 that he was thin-voiced
(toxvIovwos). Plutarch's preoccupation with physiognomical theories has been noted above and to this
subject we shall return.
Such then is the setting for a study of the descriptions in the biographies of Suetonius, who as a faithful
follower of Alexandrian tradition records all the known
facts about the lives of the emperors. Suetonius57 as
"magister epistularum" from 119 A.D. until the year
121 was associated with Hadrian and his court in considerable intimacy, in a post requiring discretion
and circumspection. Pliny the Younger, his close
friend, described him in a letter to Trajan as "probissimum, honestissimum, eruditissimum virum." During his tenure of office he must have had ready access
to the imperial archives, from which he gleaned much
of the material presented in the Lives of the Twelve
Caesars, published as early as 122 A.D. We must remember that just before this period Polemo of Laodicea, a contemporary of Suetonius, had been sent
from Smyrna to Rome to the Emperor Trajan, and
that shortly afterwards he was closely associated with
the Emperor Hadrian. Certainly the name of Polemo,
if not the man himself, must have been known to
Suetonius.
A regular feature of the schemata used by Suetonius
in the De Vita Caesarum, by the writers of the Historia Augusta, and by Ammianus Marcellinus is the
description of personal appearance. Leo58 contended
more than sixty years ago that Suetonius, following
Varro, adopted the form of biography used by the
learned Alexandrian writers-with this difference, that
he transferred the form from the field of literary
biography to the historical-political type. From this
contention Professor Stuart59 recently has been in53 Ibid.
544
1.
1.
3, 5.
5 Ep. 10, 94. Suetonius was dismissed from his secretaryship
for a breach of court etiquette.
See J. Cousin, "Suetone
Physiognomiste dans les vies des XII Cesars" REL 31 (1953):
pp. 234-256, who covers much of the same material, and the
comment of R. Syme, Tacitus (Oxford, 1958) 2: p. 502: "Suetonius
estimated correctly the taste and market of the times. Readers
were drawn to the personal items that formal history disdained.
There was room for a rival or supplement to the Annales-and
the chronicle of ancient folly and depravity, compiled by a
government official, carried no political danger."
58F. Leo, Die griechisch-rdmische Biographie (Leipzig, 1901),
pp. 141; 315-323.
69 Stuart, Epochs of Greek and Roman Biography, pp. 186,
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clined to dissent in his Epochs of Greek and Roman advice of a metoposcopus [forehead inspector] to
Biography. A number of scholars, including Fuirst determine the future of the young Britannicus.61
"At that time, so they say, a physiognomist was
and Misener,60have studied the problem of the origin
of the descriptions of physique in the Latin biogra- brought in by Narcissus, the freedman of Claudius, to
phers. It is not necessary to review their work here, examine Britannicus and declared most positively
save to state that Ftirst, in a study of the Ephemeris that he would never become emperor; but that Titus,
of Dictys of Crete, traced the material of the photo- who was standing by at the same time, would surely
graphic description of personal appearance in the rule." Tiberius, the biographer says,62 walked with
Egyptian papyri and in Greek and Roman literature, his neck stiff and upright, generally with a frowning
and came to the conclusion that the iconistic portrait countenance, being for the most part silent. When he
was for the most part alien to classical Greek litera- spoke to those about him it was very slowly, and
ture, but was a native Egyptian official method of usually with a slight gesticulation of his fingers, "quae
identification adopted by the Greek conquerors. A1liss omnia ingrata atque adrogantiae plena et animadMlisener believes that, through want of positive evi- vertit Augustus in eo et excusare temptavit saepe apud
dence to substantiate it, Fuirst's theory is untenable, senatum ac populum professus naturae vitia esse,
though she recognizes the importance of this type of non animi." Similarly of Domitian Suetonius writes63:
description in the Egyptian-Greek legal forms, where "commendari se verecundia oris adeo sentiebat, ut
it was used for the purpose of identification in military apud senatum sic quondam iactaverit: usque adhuc
enrollment, and for a similar purpose in proclamations certe et animum meum probastis et vultum." And
of Otho64: "tanto Othonis animo nequaquam corpus
for the capture of runaway slaves and in such private
aut habitus competit. fuisse enim et modicae staturae
documents as wills.
et male pedatus scambusque traditur." Suetonius'
In the descriptions of the Roman emperors, lost work, De Vitiis Corporalibus,dealing descriptively
Suetonius relates how the imperial family sought the with both the parts of the body and its defects, would
explain why he was so often inclined to record the
60 Fiirst, Lit. Portrdt., pp. 374-440;
physical weaknesses of the imperial family. But much
593-622.
G. Misener,
"Iconistic Portraits," pp. 97-123. Attention is called to the
stronger evidence of his interest in physiognomy comes
articles by H. V. Canter, "Personal Appearance in the Biography
from the fragments of an epitome of his lost HIEpL
of the Roman Emperors," in Studies in Philology (University
OXao-,uCcOP(Concerning Terms of Abuse in Greek),
of North Carolina Press) 25 (1928): pp. 385-399; M. E. Deutsch,
Several terms are
which M\liller has published.65
"Concerning Caesar's Appearance," CJ 12 (1917): pp. 247-253;
E. K. Rand, "On the History of the De Vita Caesarum of defined from a physiognomical point of view. The
Suetonius in the Early Middle Ages," in HSCP 37 (1926): pp.
most significant fragment, apparently derived from
1-48, especially 40-48. Latin Biography ed. by T. A. Dorey
the
Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook, reads as follows66:
(London, 1967), published in the Studies in Latin Literature and
flvo-abxrv
[short-necked: the crafty man], for in the
its Influence, contains a chapter on "Suetonius and his Influence"
by G. B. Townend (IV, pp. 79-111), which, while useful, adds
little that is pertinent to the present study save in his remarks on
Einhard's imitation of Suetonius' methods of the description of
Chapter V (pp.
Charlemagne's appearance (pp. 102-103).
113-138) on "The Augustan History" by A. R. Birley sets forth
the problems of the Augustan History in a succinct fashion, and
indicates that the work of six biographers is some kind of forgery,
but he does not go as far as Sir Ronald Syme, who argues brilliantly that "the Historia Augusta is one of the great hoaxes of
all time," the work of an impostor, to be dated perhaps about
A.D. 395, which reflects the writing of the historian Ammianus
Marcellinus (Ammianus and the Historia Augusta, Oxford, 1968).
Professor Syme includes a complete bibliography on the nature
and composition of these imperial biographies, which he summarizes trenchantly as a "morass." For an earlier summary of
the problem see the Scriptores Historiae Augustae ed. with an
English translation by David Magie (LCL), vols. 1-3, especially
2, pp. vii-xxxvi.
Magie gives also in the introduction of vols.
2 and 3 a full bibliography of the work done on these imperial
biographies through the year 1932.
The article by Alan Cameron, "Descriptions of Personal
Appearance in Plutarch and Suetonius: The Use of Statues as
Evidence," CQ 61 (1967): pp. 414-422, points out the importance
of portrait sculpture in the discussion of personal appearance,
but fails, it seems to me, to take adequate account of the place
of the physiognomical handbooks in descriptions of physique in
Suetonius and Plutarch. See also Latin Biography, chap. III
(pp. 45-77), on "Plutarch" by A. J. Gossage, especially pp. 53-55,
for Plutarch's "general interest in statuary and portraiture."
61 Tit. 2 (trans. J. C. Rolfe throughout, LCL).
"Educatus
in aula cum Britannico simul ac paribus disciplinis et apud
eosdem magistros institutus. quo quidem tempore aiunt metoposcopum a Narcisso Claudi liberto adhibitum, ut Brittanicum
inspiceret, constantissime affimasse illum quidem nullo modo,
ceterum Titum qui tunc prope astabat, utique imperaturum."
62 Tib. 68.
"All of these mannerisms of his, which were disagreeable and signs of arrogance, were remarked by Augustus,
who often tried to excuse them to the senate and people by
declaring that they were natural failings, and not intentional."
63Dom. 18. "He was so conscious that the modesty of his
expression was in his favor, that he once made this boast in the
senate: 'So far, at any rate, you have approved my heart and
my countenance.' "
64 Otho 12.
"Neither Otho's person nor his bearing suggested
such great courage. He is said to have been of moderate height,
splay-footed and bandy legged."
65 M. E. Miller, Melanges de Litterature grecque (Paris, 1868),
pp. 415-452. Cf. F6rster, SP 2: pp. 278-279. In this epitome
occur such expressions as (p. 415) fEvK6Orvyos [white-rumped];
the coward and again /ieXa4t7rvyos
Eblack-rumped]; the courageous
(p. 421); Xe,u6Aos Edrivelling]; the thoughtless and snotty.
66 Miller, ibid., 418.
Philemon Holland, whose translation of
Suetonius appeared in 1606, annotates the description of Tiberius
(68) thus: cervice obstipa, "Such be termed in Greeke Ivaacxeves.
And if we may believe the Physiognomie delivered by Aristotle
they be by nature deceitful and wilie, given to circumvent,
entrap and supplant others."
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
handbook we find67:Those who have too short a neck
are crafty. Pollux, for whom Suetonius is an important source, may well have derived directly from him
the passage which he cites in his Onomasticon under
the name of Aristotle68: A short-necked man is he
who draws up his shoulders, and contracts his neck, a
man whom Aristotle judges by his looks as crafty. It
is a fair conjecture that Suetonius, like Polemo, was
familiar with the fuller version of the Peripatetic
manual on physiognomy. We cannot assume, of
course, that Suetonius had any personal connection
with Polemo, for not only is the date of composition
of the latter's handbook not known, but there is no
direct evidence that Suetonius had actually read the
book. But the striking parallelism of the ideas and
expressions in Suetonius and those in the PseudoAristotelian manual as well as those in Polemo is of
no little importance. With the evidence of Concerning
Terms of Abuse as a point of departure, I have attempted to show how Suetonius' descriptions of
personal appearance correspond to the principles laid
down in the Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook and in the
work of Polemo, by placing the related passages side by
side.
I do not mean to imply that Suetonius in the Lives
of the emperors made unfailing use of physiognomical
tags in his descriptions of personal appearance. In
many instances it is impossible to find exact parallels
in the two handbooks. In the first place, our manuals
have not come down to us entire. Portrait sculpture
undoubtedly contributed to iconography in literature,69 and I should never hesitate to grant that the
testimonia of identification drawn from the papyri
provided-through Alexandrian biographers-another
source for interest in eikonismos. My purpose is
rather to bring the little handbooks on physiognomy to
the attention of the readers of Suetonius and Ammianus Marcellinus. Suetonius takes especial interest
in the use of phrases relating to the good proportions
of the human body, as when he describes Tiberius as70
"latus ab umeris et pectore, ceteris quoque membris
usque ad imos pedes aequalis et congruens," or
Augustus, who had71 "staturam brevem quam tamen
Julius Marathus libertus etiam memoriam eius quinque pedum et dodrantis fuisse tradit . . . sed quae
commoditate et aequitate membrorum occuleretur,"
or Domitian, who was 72"praetereapulcher et decens,
maxime in iuventa et quidem toto corpore exceptis
pedibus, quorum digitos restrictiores habebat." In
67 811a. Cf. A. Mace, Essai sur Suetone (Paris, 1900; BibliothUque des &coles fran?aise d'AthUnes et de Rome, fasc. 82),
pp. 267-269; 417-418.
68 2, 135.
Forster, SP 1, proleg. p. xx, believes this to be the
case. Cf. in this connection Eustath, ad II. 2, 159; Quintil. Inst.
2, 3, 83.
6 See J. J. Bernoulli, Romische Ikonographie, 1-4, especially
2, 1-3.
7 Tib. 68.
71 Aug. 79.
53
the descriptions collected from the papyri by Fuirst
and in the more recently published papyri referred to
above,73 the phrases cu,uE-yes [of good size] and 4uLOs
,/LE'yEEL [of moderate stature] occur over and over again,
but the spirit of the descriptions is far different from
that in Suetonius. Marks of identification are emphasized-a scar-oX'X; interest in good proportions
does not seem to appear there. But the physiognomists attribute the greatest significance to right proportions in the human body. An ill-proportioned
body74 indicates a rogue, says the Pseudo-Aristotelian manual, while a well-proportioned frame is
characteristic of upright men and brave. Thus
Caligula, the description of whose cruel and vicious
nature is a vivid picture on the pages of Suetonius,
was75 "statura eminenti . . . corpore enormi, gracilitate maxima cervicis et crurum"; and Nero was76
"statura prope iusta ... cervice obesa, ventre proiecto, gracillimis cruribus."
When we study the imagines of the emperors in
detail, Augustus, as described by Suetonius, we can
most easily associate with the lion.77
72Dom. 18. Cf. also Vesp. 20: "statura fuit quadrata compactis firmisque membris."
73See Chapter IV, pp. 39-40.
74
75
Pseud-Arist.814a.
GCalig.50.
76 Nero 51.
Cf. the description of Otho, whose physical
appearance in no way compared with his mind (Otho 12).
Domitian as a young man displayed excellent proportions in his
body, but this was marred in later life (Dom. 18). Titus as a
youth displayed outstanding qualities both of appearance and of
character and possessed "forma egregia et cui non minus
auctoritatis inesset quam gratiae" (Tit. 3). This last description
betrays a distinctly encomiastic touch, reminiscent of the descriptions of beauty in the romances, and likewise such phrases
as "forma fuit eximia" (Aug. 79), or "auctoritas dignitasque
formae non defuit ei" (Claud. 30). Similar expressions are found
in the Scriptores Historiae Augustae and Ammianus Marcellinus
(see appendix E). But the phrases referring directly to a
aCr&hcaTVLETpov [well-proportioned body] may in turn be referred
to the physiognomical manuals.
77Aug. 79: "forma fuit eximia et per omnes aetatis gradus
venustissima, quamquam et omnis lenocinii neglegens . . .
vultu erat vel in sermone vel tacitus adeo tranquillo serenoque
. . .oculos habuit claros ac nitidos, quibus etiam existimari
volebat inesse quiddam divini vigoris, gaudebatque, si qui sibi
acrius contuenti quasi ad fulgorem solis vultum summitteret;
sed in senecta sinistro minus vidit; dentes raros et exiguos et
scabros; capillum leviter inflexum et subflavum; supercilia
coniuncta; mediocres aures, nasum et a summo eminentiorem et
abs imo deductiorem; colorem inter aquilum candidumque;
staturam brevem quam tamen Julius Marathus libertus *etiam
memoriam eius, quinque pedum et dodrantis fuisse tradit, sed
quae commoditate et aequitate membrorum occuleretur, ut non
nisi ex comparatione astantis alicuius procerioris intelligi posset."
"He was unusually handsome and exceedingly graceful at all
periods of his life, though he cared nothing for personal adornment. His expression, whether in conversation or when he was
silent, was so calm and mild. He had clear, bright eyes, in which
he liked to have it thought that there was a kind of divine power,
and it greatly pleased him, whenever he looked keenly at anyone,
if he let his face fall as if before the radiance of the sun; but in
his old age he could not see very well with his left eye. His
teeth were wide apart, small, and ill-kept; his hair was slightly
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Augustus, Suetonius says, possessed:
(1) eyes that were bright and piercing in which
Augustus wished it believed there was a certain
divine vigor
(2) hair a little curly
(3) and inclined to a yellow color, and
(4) stature which was low but was concealed by the
good proportion of his limbs.
The lion, according to the Pseudo-Aristotelian
manual,78 possessed:
(1) gleaming eyes
(2) a neck of due length with a tawny mane on it,
which is not
(3) too closely curled and
(4) a body well knit, neither stiff or too soft and
of moderate stature.
In Polemo the picture of the man who is devoted to
the study of the liberal arts is closely akin in appearance to that of a lion79: "sit moderata statura et
erecta, albi coloris rubro mixti, capillo simplice ad
flavum vergente, demisso nec tamen crispo aut
horrido capillo . . . oculis humidis et charopis et
laetitia perfusis"; and Suetonius tells us that Augustus
from his early youth devoted himself eagerly and with
the utmost diligence to eloquence and other liberal
studies.80 In regard to other aspects of the physique
of Augustus capable of physiognomical interpretation,
as listed by Suetonius, we may gather that the biographer was disposed to consider Augustus' character
as excellent, judging from the external signs of his
person. He possessed:
(1) "oculos [noted above] claros ac nitidos quibus
etiam existimari volebat inesse quiddam divini
vigoris, gaudebatque si quis sibi acrius contuenti
quasi ad fulgorem solis vultum summitteret."
(2) "capillum leviter inflexum et subflavum," which
is a sign of stoutness of heart8l
(3) "supercilia coniuncta," which are generally a
sign of beauty82
(4) "mediocres aures," which show great vigilance
in the performance of duty83
curly and inclined to golden; his eyebrows met. His ears were
of moderate size, and his nose projected a little at the top and
than bent slightly forward. His complexion was between dark
and fair. He was short of stature (although Julius Marathus,
his freedman and keeper of his records, says that he was five
feet and nine inches in height), but this was concealed by the
fine proportion and symmetry of his figure, and was noticeable
only by comparison with some taller person standing beside him."
Cf. 813b; 814a.
78 Pseud.-Arist. 809b.
79 Pol. 272.
80Aug. 84.
809b; 812b; Pol. 248; 250; 272; Adamant.
81 Pseud.-Arist.
386; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 22-23; 2, 24; 2, 92; 2, 120.
82FQrst, op. cit., p. 387; Pseud.-Arist. 812b; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 29.
Cf. Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Adamant. 380; Anon.
83 POl. 234.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 65.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
(5) "nasum a summo eminentiorem et ab imo
deductiorem," which signifies a noble-souled
man84
(6) "colorem inter aquilum candidumque," which
is a sign of strong character.85
Suetonius' description of the emperor's life and
character is in general laudatory.
He exercised the most severe discipline in military
affairs.86 He administered justice with the utmost diligence and leniency.,7 As patron and master his behavior
was mild and conciliating, but, when the occasion required
it, he could be severe.88 Of his clemency there are numerous examples.89 He did not readily make friends but he
clung to them with the utmost constancy.90 He was most
temperate in the other details of his living.9'
If we turn to Caligula, we again find a remarkable
correspondence between Suetonius' estimate of the
Emperor's character and the principles of the physiognomists, for his physical appearance is especially associated with the disagreeable features of the panther
and the goat.
Caligula was endowed with92:
(1) "oculis et temporibus concavis"93
(2) "corpore enormi, gracilitate maxima cervicis et crurum"94
(3) "capillo raro et circa verticem nullo, hirsutus
cetera. quare transeunte eo prospicere ex
superiore parte aut omnino quacumque de
causa capram nominare criminosum et exitiale habebatur"
(4) "colore expallido"
(5) "fronte lata et torva"
84 Pseud.-Arist.
811a; Pol. 228; 244; Adamant. 376; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 71; 2, 140.
85 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2,106; 120.
86Aug. 21.
Ibid., 33.
Ibid., 67.
89 Ibid., 51.
90Ibid.,66.
87
88
72.
Calig. 50: "statura fuit eminenti, colore expallido, corpore
enormi, gracilitate maxima cervicis et crurum, oculis et temporibus concavis, fronte lata et torva, capillo raro et circa
verticem nullo, hirsutus cetera. quare transeunte eo prospicere
ex superiore parte, aut omnino quacumque de causa capram
vultum vero
nominare, criminosum et exitiale habebatur.
natura horridum ac taetrum etiam ex industria efferabat, componens ad speculum in omnem terrorem ac formidinem."
"He was very tall, and extremely pale, with a huge body, but
very thin neck and legs. His eyes and temples were hollow, his
forehead broad and grim, his hair thin and entirely gone on the
top of his head, though his body was hairy. While his face was
naturally forbidding and ugly, he purposely made it even more
savage, practising all kinds of terrible and fearsome expressions
before a mirror."
93 Pseud.-Arist. 811b; Pol. 136: "contra si oculum parvum et
cavum vides, possessori eius dolum et insidias, invidiam et
aemulationem tribuito"; 146; 152; 196; Adamant. 324; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 47-48; 2, 135; 2, 139.
94 Pseud.-Arist. 811a; 814a; Pol. 194; 218; 220; 270; Adamant.
358; 366-367; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 58; 2, 72; 2, 120.
"'Ibid.,
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
we find the most striking example of the applicability
of physiognomical doctrine to the portrayal of the
(1-2) small eyes rather pale, hollow and somewhat character of an emperor, in this case the close correflat, the neck is over long and light, - - . and spondence between his physical merits and defects
the whole body is badly joined and ill pro- and the known virtues and vices of his character.
portioned. The goat was of this appearance96 Tiberius was:
(3) Creatures with hairy legs are sensual; wit(1) "corpore amplo atque robusto," which is a sign
ness goats . . . and the marks of a sensual
of courage'04
man. He has a pale skin and is covered with
(2) "ceteris quoque usque ad imos pedes aequalis
black, straight hair,97
et congruens," and of "statura quae iustam
(4) which is a sign of cowardice,98
excederet," which is indicative of a man excel(5) which indicates stupidity and foolishness.98
lent in the performance of duty, and shows a
Suetonius says that even as a very young man Caligula
just nature,'05
could not control his natural cruelty and viciousness.99
(3) "latus ab umeris et pectore, and sinistra manu
It is not long before we meet such statements in
agiliore ac validiore, articulis ita firmis ut recens
Suetonius as this: "So much for Caligula as emperor;
et integrum malum digito terebraret," which
we must now tell of his career as a monster."'100
shows a robust and courageous man.106
"The following are special instances of his innate
brutality."'1' And finally, "I think I may fairly Suetonius declares that he conducted his military
attribute to mental weakness the existence of two campaigns with efficiency and sucess.'07 He required
exactly opposite faults in the same person, extreme the strictest discipline among the troops,'08 and exassurance, and, on the other hand, excessive ercised his power "ad utilitates publicas proniorem."'09
Augustus, in considering the matter of the succession
timorousness.
"'102
and upon weighing the "faults and merits of Tiberius"
that
It is in the description of Tiberius,'03 however,
with each other, "decided that the latter preponderated;" and he swore before the people that "he
96 Pseud.-Arist. 809b-810a.
96 Pseud.-Arist.
812b; Pol. 182; "capra prudens proterva
was adopting Tiberius for the good of the country.'"'"0
libidinosa fallaci lusui multum dedita malignitatis et palpitaAt first, says Suetonius, "he played an unassuming
tionis multae"; 248; 254; Adamant. 392; Anon. Physiog. Lat.
part, almost humbler than that of a private citizen.""'
2, 60; 2, 92; 2, 93-94; 2, 117.
"He even introduced a semblance of free government
97 Pseud.-Arist. 808b.
98 Pseud.-Arist. 808b; 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; Anon.
by maintaining the ancient dignity and powers of the
Physiog. Lat. 2, 120; Pseud.-Arist. 812a. Cf. Pol. 230; Adamant.
senate and the magistrates.'"112 While he possessed
377-378; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 27; 2, 29.
marked excellence in some aspects of his physical
99 Calig. 11.
appearance, in others he showed weakness.
100 Ibid., 22.
The panther had95:
101Ibid., 27.
102
Cf. 32; 34.
Ibid., 51.
Tib. 68: "corpore fuit amplo atque robusto, statura quae
iustam excederet; latus ab umeris et pectore, ceteris quoque
membris usque ad imos pedes aequalis et congruens; sinistra
manu agiliore ac validiore, articulis ita firmis, ut recens et
integrum malum digito terebraret, caput pueri vel etiam adulescolore erat candido, capillo pone
centis talitro vulneraret.
occipitium summissiore ut cervicem etiam obtegeret, quod
gentile in illo videbatur; facie honesta, in qua tamen crebri
subiti tumores, cum praegrandibus oculis et qui, quod mirum
esset, noctu etiam et in tenebris viderent, sed ad breve et cum
primum e somno patuissent; deinde rursum hebescebant.
incedebat cervice rigida et obstipa, adducto fere vultu, plerumque
tacitus, nullo aut rarissimo etiam cum proximis sermone eoque
tardissimo, nec sine molli quadam digitorum gesticulatione.
quae omnia ingrata atque arrogantiae plena et animadvertit
Augustus in eo et excusare temptavit saepe apud senatum ac
populum, professus naturae vitia esse, non animi."
"He was large and strong of frame, and of a stature above the
average; broad of shoulders and chest; well proportioned and
symmetrical from head to foot. His left hand was the more
nimble and stronger, and its joints were so powerful that he
could bore through a fresh sound apple with his finger, and
break the head of a boy, or even a young man, with a flip. He
was of fair complexion. His hair was rather long at the back,
so much so as even to cover the nape of his neck; which was
apparently a family trait. His face was handsome, but would
break out on a sudden with many pimples. His eyes were un103
(4) "colore erat candido," which shows a tendency
to fear"13
usually large and, strange to say, had the power of seeing even
at night and in the dark, but only for a short time when first
opened after sleep; presently they grew dim-sighted again. He
strode along with his neck stiff and bent forward, usually with
a stern countenance and for the most part in silence, never or
very rarely conversing with his companions, and then speaking
with great deliberation and with a kind of supple movement of
his fingers. All these mannerisms of his, which were disagreeable
and signs of arrogance, were remarked by Augustus, who often
tried to excuse them to the senate and people, by declaring that
they were natural failings and not intentional."
104 Pol. 268; Adamant. 408-409; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 119.
105Pseud.-Arist. 813b; 814a; Adamant. 411; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 131.
106Pseud.-Arist. 807a; 808a; 810b; Pol. 212; 214; 268; 272;
Adamant. 362; 408-409; 411; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 119; 2,
131-132.
107 Tib. 9; 14; 16; 17; 18.
108 Ibid., 19.
109Ibid., 33.
11 Ibid., 21.
"'1Ibid., 26.
112 Ibid., 30.
113 Pseud.-Arist.
812a. Cf. Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 106.
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)(5) "fpraegrandibusoculis," which are regarded by
Pseudo-Aristotle and Polemo as indicative of
sloth114;we are told, however, of the remarkable
keeness of his eyes,115"qui, quod mirum esset,
noctu etiam et in tenebris viderent sed ad breve
et cum primum e somno patuissent; deinde
rursum hebescebant"; to such eyes, says Polemo, "iniustitiam adiudica,''16
(6) "incedebat cervice rigida et obstipa," which
betrays memoriae et scientiae defectum" and
haughtiness"17
(7) "adducto fere vultu," which is indicative of
self-will, as in the lion and the bull, and shows
a morose disposition as well as perfidy,118as does
also
(8) "plerumque tacitus nullo aut rarissimo etiam
cum proximis sermone eoque tardissimo nec
sine molli quadam digitorum gesticulatione."
On the other hand, Pseudo-Aristotle states that
among the signs of good moral character are a
slow gait, and a slow way of talking."19
Suetonius' description of Tiberius' appearance does
not belong to any stated period of his life. But his
account of the end of the Emperor's career borders on
invective. He says "he did so many other cruel and
savage deeds under the guise of strictness and improvement of the public morals."1120 After his arrival
at Capri he "broke out into every form of cruelty, for
which he never lacked occasion."'121 "Many things,
too, show not only how hated and execrable he was all
this time, but also that he lived a life of extreme fear
and was even exposed to insult."'122 "His cruel and
cold-blooded character was not completely hidden
even in his boyhood". . . . "But it grew still more
noticeable after he became emperor, even at the beginning, when he was still courting popularity by a show
of moderation."123 Surely Suetonius' familiarity with
the principles of the physiognomists may be inferred
114 Pseud.-Arist. 811b; Pol. 108; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 138.
11 Tib. 68.
116 Pol. 152.
Cf. 156; 160; Adamant. 331-332; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 52.
117 Pol. 220; 234; Adamant. 368; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 75-76;
2, 99. A stiffness of the neck combined with a slow walk shows
a certain haughtiness; "cervice obstipa" is not a good sign
according to Polemo (222), for it shows that its possessor is not
free from insanity. Pseud.-Arist. (807b) says that among the
signs of the shameless are broad shoulders, hunched up, bearing
not straight, but a little bent over, the chest high.
118 Pseud.-Arist. 811b; 812a; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 28.
Cf.
Pol. 156; Adamant. 378.
119Suetonius remarks (Tib. 21): "I am also aware that some
have written that Augustus so openly and unreservedly disapproved of his austere manner, that he sometimes broke off his
freer and lighter conversation when Tiberius appeared." Pseud.Arist. 807b. But this aspect of the physique has to be considered
in relation to others.
190
121
Tib. 59.
Ibid., 61.
122 Ibid.,
123
63; 66; 69.
Ibid., 57.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
from a number of passages in his works, but it is no
more convincingly demonstrated than in these three
widely differing iconistic portraits of the Roman
emperors.
Plutarch,124the great figure in Peripatetic biography
in the early second century, combines the ethical aim
of this school of biography with an application of the
Aristotelian doctrine of the "mind's construction in
the face" in a number
of striking
passages.125
A
rather exceptional example occurs in the Life of
Alexander:
It is not Histories that I am writing, but Lives; and in
the most illustrious deeds there is not always a manifestation of virtue or vice, nay, a slight thing like a phrase or
a jest often makes a greater revelation of character than
battles where thousands fall, or the greatest armaments,
or sieges of cities. Accordingly, just as painters get the
likenesses in their portraits from the face and the expression of the eyes, wherein the character shows itself,
but make very little account of the other parts of the
body, so I must be permitted to devote myself rather to
the signs of the soul in men, and by means of these to
portray the life of each, leaving to others the descriptions
of their great contests.126
In the Life of Sulla,'27 furthermore, he relates that
on the occasion of the visit of Orobazus, ambassador
from the King of the Parthians to Sulla,
a certain man in the retinue of Orobazuis,a Chaldaean,
after looking Sulla intently in the face, and after studying
carefully the movements of his mind and body, and investigating his nature according to the principles of his
peculiar art, declared that this man must of necessity
become the greatest in the world, and that even now the
wonder was that he consented not to be first of all men.
His actual appearance as described by Plutarch does
not follow the strictly iconistic form of Suetonius, for,
as Miss Misener points out, "Plutarch wishes to present to his readers a fully rounded
personality,"'128
in a "style of portraiture far removed from the impersonal photographs
of the papyri,"''29 which served
only for identification. Plutarch allows his readers to
gather the size and proportions of Sulla from existing
statues130and concentrates his attention on the color
and character of his subject's eves and face.
124 D. R. Stuart, Epochs of Greek and Roman Biography, pp.
167-169.
125HSCP 46 (1935): pp. 5 7-58. To those references may be
added Amat. 21 (see Forster, SP 2, p. 340); Ad principem ineruditum 2; Quomodo quis sent. prof. virt. 15. Attention is called
to an article dealing with a study of the popularity of physiognomy in Elizabethan England by Carroll Camden, "The
Mind's Construction in the Face," Renaissance Studies in Honor
of Hardin Craig (Palo Alto, 1941), pp. 208-220.
16 Alex. 1, 3; (trans. B. Perrin, throughout, LCL). Cf. Alcib.
4, 1; Anton. 4, 1; Pomp. 48, 7; Quaest. cony. 5, 7, 3, 681d; De
Cap. ex Inim. Util. 6, 89e.
127 5, 546.
128 Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," p. 110.
129 Ibid., p. 111.
130 Ibid.
On Plutarch's attitude towards sculpture as reflecting
the appearance and character of a man see De Alex. M. Fortuna
aut Virtute Or. 2, 2.
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
His personal appearance, in general, is given by his
statues; but the gleam of his gray eyes, which were
terribly sharp and powerful, was rendered even more
fearful by the complexion of his face. This was covered
by coarse blotches of red, interspersed with white. For
this reason, they say, his surname was given him because
of his complexion, and it was in allusion to this that a
scurrilous jester at Athens made the verse: "Sullal3' is a
mulberry sprinkled over with meal."
It is well to remember that to the physiognomists
keen and piercing eyes'32 are a good sign of courage,
though the gray eye also'33 means want of humanity,
and an unbending nature; a white countenance'34
mixed with blotches of red indicates daring and fierce
anger. And these characteristics of Sulla are readily
observed in Plutarch's account of the man.'35
Now if we return at this point to the life of Alexander, it is interesting to note that the appearance with
which Plutarch invests his ruler is that of a "heavenward-gazing ruler." L'Orange has demonstrated the
in a masterly
of this description
appropriateness
fashion in a volume on Apotheosis in Ancient Portraiture.'36 "Allusion," he says,
is made to Alexander's heavenward gaze in ancient literature, above all by Plutarch137: Apelles the painter and
Lysippus the sculptor also lived in the time of Alexander.
. . . When Lysippus modeled his first statue of Alexander
which represented him looking up with his face turned
towards the heavens (as indeed Alexander often did look,
with a slight inclination of his head to one side) some one
engraved these verses on the statue, not without some
plausibility:
Eager to speak seems the statue of bronze, up to Zeus
it gazes:
Earth I have set under foot, Zeus, keep Olympus
yourself.'38
Wherefore Alexander gave orders that Lysippus only
should make statues of him. For Lysippus139 was, it
131 2. Among portraits found in Plutarch may be cited: Ages. 2,
2-3; Alcib. 1, 3-4; Alex. 4,1-3; Anton. 4,1-2; Arat. 3,1; Cat. Mai.
1, 3; Cat. Mi. 1, 2; Cic. 3, 5; Dem. 2, 2; Fab. 17, 5; Flam. 1, 1;
Lys. 1, 1; Mar. 2, 1; Phil. 2, 1-3; Phoc. 5, 1; Per. 3, 2-4; Pomp.
2, 1-2; Pyrr. 8, 1; Rom. 6, 1-2 (Rom. and Rem.), 7, 3-4; (Rem.);
for the appearance of the orator while speaking see Dem. and Cic.
1, 6; Per. 5, 1; TG and CG 2.2-5.
132A sign of eIvxla, Pseud.-Arist. 812b.
133 Cf. Pol. 246. "Glaucus color" indicates "defectum humanitatis et indolis rigorem."
134
sign of "audacia" and "vehemens iracundia." Pol. 244.
136 Sull. 6, 8; 30, 4-31.1; Lys. and Sull. passim.
136 19-28.
137 Alex. M. Fortuna aut Virtute Or. 2, 2; Alex. 4; Pyrrh. 8; cf.
Tsetzes, Chil. 11, 100.
138AP 16, 120.
139 Cf. Alex. 4 "Apelles, however, in painting him as wielder of
the thunderbolt, did not reproduce his complexion, but made it
too dark and swarthy, whereas he was of a fair color, as they say,
and his fairness passed into ruddiness on his breast particularly,
and in his face." From the Pseudo-Callisthenes Alexander
Romance (not before 300 A.D.) we learn that he resembles neither
his father nor his mother. His hair "was like the mane of a lion;
and his eyes differed in color, the right being black, the left
light green, his teeth were long and narrow like a stag's and his
face was like the roar of a lion."
57
seemed, the onlv one who revealed in bronze Alexander's
character, and in molding his form portrayed also his
virtues. The others wished to imitate the flexing of the
neck and the melting and liquid softness of his eyes, but
were unable to preserve his virile and leonine expression.
As the allusions to Alexander's appearance do not
go back to Plutarch, the description which the biographer gives of him are based on the portrait tradition
of Lysippus. That is not his real, but rather idealized
delineation in art, with the characteristic heavenward
gaze and the tilted neck, as a new ruler type. This
Hellenistic concept of the ruler, formulated by Lysippus, and recorded in Plutarch, becomes prevalent in
later periods. As heroic achievements of Alexander increase to the point where he becomes convinced
that he is sent by God to save humanity, the heavenward look with which he is regularly identified becomes transformed into an expression of ecstasy. The
moist eye and the shining, radiant glance is characteristic of the most excellent character, as the PseudoAristotelian handbook indicates,140 and as Polemo'4'
maintains. Both Polemo and Adamantius associate
this feature with Alexander, and they are quite
clearly following the Hellenistic tradition.142 Pompey's imitation of Alexander in this matter is also
familiar from a well-known passage from Plutarch.143
The "transfigured Alexander" becomes an imitation
of God144 the "expressive reflection of the god in the
ruler's own face," a concept which slowly from late
Antiquity to the Middle Ages passes from being an
exaltation of the outward perfection of the body to a
reflection of the beauty of the soul. Another aspect
of Alexander's physique is a profusion of long, flowing
hair, found regularly in his portrait heads. This
type dominates royal portraiture throughout the late
Greek world and ultimately "invades" Rome in the
republican period, being represented, for example, in
the figures of heavenward-gazing Pompey and longhaired Scipio Africanus.'45 L'Orange remarks that
the Roman portrait, however, "did not become like
the Greek, a synthetic interpretation and glorification
of personality, but an analytical chronicle, a historical
biography." Yet this savior-type continued in the
tradition, he goes on to say, modified by a striking
dualism1"4 in the imperial portraits embracing, on the
one hand, the national heritage of Rome, "the constitutional representation of the statesman founded on
'IO807b; 812b.
141 Pol. 108; 142; 148; 248.
He applies this characteristic
particularly to the emperor Hadrian, and also to Alexander,
144, specifically to his "magni oculi."
142 SP 1, p. 328.
143 Pomp. 2.
144
L'Orange, ibid., p. 28.
145 Ibid., p. 30; cf. pp. 95-98.
146 Ibid., p. 31.
Cf. also 31-33 for the importance of this feature
in ancient life as a mark of the wise man and philosopher. See
Livy 28, 35, as well as Sil. 8, 559-561. See also L'Orange, ibid.,
"The Hellenistic Saviour-type Invades Rome," pp. 49-53; "The
Imperial Saviour-Type," pp. 54-94.
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republican tradition," and, on the other, the "inVI. EPI C
spired," transfigured world ruler. He cites characOur attention is often called to the fact that Homer
teristic examples from portraits of Nero, Domitian, the
Antonine emperors, Septimius Severus down to Con- refrained from detailed portraiture of his characters.
stantine, who had himself represented as a heaven- To say that he refrained from all portraiture, however,
ward-looking, long-haired ruler in portraits dating would be wholly misleading. Since the scope of the
from A.D. 334-337. Here the upward look is the physi- present investigation is to consider such examples of
cal expression of inner contact between the emperor physical description as are related to the unchanging
and the heavenly powers. Under the influence of character of an individual on the one hand, and to his
philosophy in late Antiquity, the literary portraiture momentary emotional condition on the other, the
begins to emphasize the spiritual goodness of man, question that naturally occurs to the classicist studynot his outward appearance. Thus, in his polemic ing the portraits of Homer is how far the poet suggests
against symmetry, the Stoic definition of beauty, the techniques of the later physiognomists.
In general it may be said that Homer pursues for the
Plotinus'47 (A.D. 204-270) inveighs against the view,
most
part a middle course between that economy of
held by earlier thinkers, that "beauty in bodies consists in the symmetry and just proportions of their detail which Dio Chrysostom,' writing in the second
parts." Beauty rather consists of kinship with the century A.D., so applauded in this epic poet as he
soul, in which the splendor or all virtues may be seen, observed that it would not have been fitting to dethe greatness of character . . . the imposing counte- scribe Hector, save as a brave man only, when he was
nance of valor, dignity, and modesty, and above all setting fire to the ships,2 and the longer iconistic
of
intelligence, resembling the divinity by its brilliant type description in his characterization of Thersites,3
as being bandy legged, with sparse woolly hair, lame
light. In the fourth century A.D. this view, as we shall in one
foot, with his head warped, and his shoulders
see, dominates the Christian attitude toward the bent down upon his chest; a description which fits
classical handbooks on physiognomy.'48
readily into the conventional portraits of the avatbr5s
Thus the physiognomical principles which are con- [shameless] and the KaK,O'S
[malicious]
of the
spicuously embodied in Plutarch's biography of Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook.4
Alexander, as showing the relation between a man's
In the light of the foregoing it is appropriate to
appearance and his inner character, become absorbed consider Homer's treatment of the fair Helen. Lessing,5
into Christian ideology, wherein a new emphasis is who maintained that poets should abstain from
placed upon the appearance of a man in so far as it lavishly describing physical appearance, cited the
depicts his inner character; a gradual transformation Homeric treatment of Helen. Nowhere, in fact, does
which is brought out in later literature and portrait the poet enter upon a detailed description of her in the
Iliad, though the whole poem is based on her lovelisculpture. The literary portraits of Alexander found
ness. Homer, in his wisdom, says Lessing, left unin Plutarch may serve to illumine the obvious kinship
attempted what the Greek scholar Constantinus
which the study of ancient physiognomy enjoyed with
Manasses in the twelfth century chronicled in infinite
ancient portraiture scuplture, and may suggest the detail.
One element follows another in Manasses'
further correlation which should be pursued on the
portrait of Helen, yet he achieved no description of
evidence of both artistic and literary materials.'49
physical beauty as beauty:
Enn. 1, 6, 1 (trans. K. S. Guthrie); 1.6, 5; Cf. L'Orange,
ibid., "The Saviour-portrait in late Antiquity," pp. 95-129. Other
relevant passages include 3, 1, 6; 3, 6, 3; 4, 4 (absurdity of
Ptolemaic astrology); 5, 9, 12; 6, 7.
148 A characteristic statement
is to be found in two lines from
a fifteenth-century Vatican manuscript which contains in part
a Latin translation of the treatise of Adamantius. The translator is identified by Mercati as the librarian of Nicholas the
fifth, Giovanni Tortelli. He pauses at the end of the section
De Colore, with this elegiac distich:
147
"Qui te Christe colit syncero corde redemptor:
Seu niger, aut albus, seu ruber, ille bonus.
Deo gratias."
He died ca. 1466. The distich follows the words of Adamantius
(Forster SP 1, p. 390. See G. Mercati, Opere Minori 4, 166 in
Studie Testi 79, for the account of Vat. L 3122.
149An
admirable analysis of personality in Roman portraiture
is to be found in G. M. A. Hanfmann, "Observations on Roman
Portraiture," Latomus 11, (1953): pp. 39-50.
She was a very beautiful woman, with lovely eyebrows
and complexion,
With beautiful cheeks and face, ox-eyes, snow-white skin;
Dark-(or round) eyes, tender, a grove full of charms,
White-armed,delicate breathing, beauty undisguised;
The complexionfair, the cheek rosy,
The countenance pleasing, the eye beautiful,
In artificial loveliness undyed, natural;
A rose-coloredfruit tinged her whiteness,
As if one should dye ivory with splendid purple.
Long-necked,dazzling white, whence she was often called
Swan-bornlovely Helen.
(In trans. of Lessing's Laokoln, by Sir R. Phillimore)
1 Or. 21, 16-17.
2II. 22, 370-371 (trans. A. T. Murray throughout, LCL).
3 II. 2, 216-219.
4G. Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," CP 19 (1924): pp. 103-104.
6 Laokoon, Lessing, Herder, Goethe, Selections, edited by W. G.
Howard (New York, Holt and Co., 1910), chap. 20 (pp. 124-126).
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EPIC
But if the description of Helen in Homer is generally
of the simplest sort, permitting the reader's imagination to roam at will, there are many other instances
of characterization in which the poet seems unconsciously or intuitively to anticipate the principles
enunciated by the physiognomists at a much later date.
Consider, for example, the account given in the
Iliad6 by Idomeneus to Meriones of the man
courageous in battle, an account very much in accord
with the writings of the physiognomists. I refer to the
passage in which "the Achaeans are told off beside the
ships for an ambush, wherein the valor of men is best
discerned."
There the coward and the brave man most plainly declare
themselves: for the color of the coward changes often, and
his spirit cannot abide from within him, but now he kneels
on one knee, now on the other, and rests on either foot,
and his heart beats noisily in his breast as he thinks of
his doom, and his teeth chatter loudly. But the color of
the brave man does not change, nor is he greatly afraid
from the moment that he enters the ambush of heroes,
but his prayer is to mingle instantly in woeful war.
Similarly, in a passage in the Odyssey, Odysseus
replies to Euryalus, who taunts him with not having
the look of an athlete. He says7:
So true it is that the gods do not give every gracious gift
to all, neither shapeliness, nor wisdom, nor skilled speech.
For one man is feebler than another in presence, yet the
god crowns his words with beauty and men behold him
and rejoice, and his speech runs surely on its way with a
sweet modesty, and he shines forth among the gathering
of his people, and as he passes through the town men
gaze on him as a god. Another again is like the deathless
gods for beauty, but his words have no crown of grace
about them; even as thou art in comeliness preeminent,
nor could a god himself fashion thee for better, but in wit
thou art a weakling.
to identify in realistic fashion the herald Eurybates9
as round-shouldered, black-skinned and curly-haired,
becomes significant in the light of the later developCenturies
ment of the science of physiognomy.
afterward the Greek rhetoricians introduced these
descriptions to illustrate their definitions, and the
descriptions are a commonplace in Greek and Roman
treatment of rhetorical theory and practice.
As we have said, it is not part of epic technique to
describe the whole body from a "photographic point"
of view. On the other hand, it is characteristic of
epic to indicate in varying degree the emotion of the
individual registered on the body or the countenance
in such phrases as KaK o'o-ueOvo [evil-looking] or
laeto vultu, truci vultu and to these phrases we must
give our attention. This "momentary" portraiture in
epic runs the gamut of human emotions in brief descriptions of physical appearance used for emphasis
on heroic physique and heroic qualities of character,
for delineation of love, happy or disillusioned, for
expression of all the deeper moments of human
experience in sorrow, in anger, or in joy. These descriptions are sometimes boldly, more often subtly,
interwoven in the narrative in varying frequency with
other commonly used devices of characterization.
Thus portraiture is introduced for the sake of
intensifying such episodes as the quarrel between
Agamemnon and Achilles, for delineating the fierceness
of the Homeric heroes on the battlefield,'0 for presenting the picture of Odysseus indirectly through the
eyes of others by repeated comparison with Telemachus, and comparison of the son with the father".
Agamemnon, angered at the accusations of Calchas
in Iliad, Book I, is filled with rage in his black heart,
and his eyes are like blazing fire'2: ao-a be ot wvp'
Xa/flTETETOawvTl ElKT?7V.
Many centuries later Galen,8 commenting on this
passage, remarks that it is best that a young man,
looking at himself in a mirror, if he be handsome,
should practice making his soul as fair as possible,
for it is a disgrace for a base soul to dwell in a beautiful
body. But if a man should appear to be ugly of body,
so much the more should he be concerned for his soul,
that he may be able to quote the words of Homer,
when Odysseus says angrily to Antinous: "For one
man is feebler than another in presence . . . lo, now
I see that thou hast not wisdom with thy beauty!"
Here, then, is the stuff out of which the beginnings
of physiognomical "science" evolved. The passages
quoted above reveal an early interest in the relation
of man's appearance to his character. The poet's
capacity to describe either appearance or character
in trenchant and satiric terms (the appearance, for
example, of the rebel Thersites as the "ugliest man"
both in body and mind, ever to come to Ilium), or
6 11. 13, 278-286.
7
8
Od. 8, 167-177.
Protrep. 8. (KKuhn1, 17-18).
59
His look, as he replies to
Calchas' charges, bodes trouble: KaK' 6O0061LEVOS. In
the quarrel which ensues between Agamemnon and
Achilles, the phrase virowpa i3cwv [looking fiercely],
which occurs repeatedly'3 in the Iliad and less frequently in the Odyssey, is used of Achilles as he hurls
the epithet KVVW'7r?lS [dog-faced] at the Commanderin-chief. But the son of Peleus in no wise ceases from
his wrath'4: "Thou wine bibber, with the eyes of a
dog, but the heart of a deer" (KVVO'S O/.L/aT' EXXCOV
KpaWLll
is his final insult to Agamemnon, while he
6'")Xacpoto]
shouts that the Achaeans will someday futilely seek
his aid.
Od. 19, 246 Nor are the fixed epithets such as KvaVoxaL7T1s
(dark-haired) or KaXXLraippos
(fair-cheeked) necessarily the means
which Homer regularly employs for individualizing his characters. With them I do not intend to deal.
10See pp. 59-60.
"See pp. 60-61.
12 1, 104.
13 1, 148. Compare Ii. 2, 245; 4, 349; 5, 411; 5, 251; 5, 888;
10, 446; 12, 230; 14, 82; 17, 141; 17, 169; 18, 284; 20, 428; 22,
260; 22, 344; Od. 8, 165; 17, 459; 18, 14; 18, 337; 18, 388; 19, 70;
22, 34; 22, 60; 22, 320.
(after Murray throughout).
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The field of battle provides similar pictures. Ajax, laughs with her lips, but her forehead above her dark
the bulwark of the Achaeans, stalks through the brows does not relax29('6 yao-o-c-/xXc-o-tPovb5'0sTrcroV
warriors, with a smile on his grim face15 (/.UEL&6WV
bTr O6pbo
Helen identifies AgaKvEavytOLv/Uwn7).
valiant and tall, toweringabove memnon among the Achaean heroes on the battle7rpoTwlr7racL),
3XOCTvploZol
the Argives. When forced to give way to the Trojans, field, at the request of the elders on the walls of Troy.
sullen at heart"6 Ajax is compared to a tawny lion Here the portraiture is indirect and comparative, for
beset by dogs, or a lazy ass cudgeled by boys.17 For the lord of men appears before our eyes in terms of the
Zeus has stirred him to flight, and he stands in a gods. His head and eyes30 (65/iLaTra
KaL KEc/aXIv) are
daze, and then with an anxious glance toward the like those of Zeus, his waist like that of Ares, his
crowd retreats slowly step by step. 18 With the chest equal to Poseidon's. Odysseus, in turn, is
Achaeans pushed hard at the ships he ranges with compared with Agamemnon by Priam as shorter,
long strides over the many decks, confronting Hector but broader of shoulder and of chest, like a ram in
relentlessly. 19 Hector, turning his horses this way the herd. Helen identifies him for the benefit of the
and that, has eyes20even as those of the Gorgon, or of Trojan king, and the sage Antenor supplements the
Ares, bane of mortals, while he ruthlessly drives the account of Laertes' son with the story of the embassy
Achaeans to the ditch. With the tide of battle favor- of Menelaus and Odysseus to Troy to regain Helen.
ing the Trojans, Hector bursts through the gates Menelaus, he says, though commanding in appearof the Greek camp and his eyes blaze with fire21: ance, is of few words in speech; Odysseus, the more
wupi 3'6o-o- &c-b-L. Raging around the Greek ships, he stately while seated, gives, as he rises to speak, the
displays his fierceness in eyes burning beneath his impression of a man of no understanding. He would
dreadful brows.22 Achilles, in turn, determined to stand, looking down with his eyes fixed on the ground,3
reenter battle, likewise shows the intensity of his (17ra' 63 'l'IEKEZ KaTa xOopz 6qaa
holding his
sraS)
'
3XEcapwv staff stiffly, without a trace of gesture so vital in later
wrath in blazing eyes23 (c- 3 ol O v7r/&ulV UwX
-cXas 'E4caav0Ev) while he shouts, striding along rhetorical practice. Yet when he begins to speak, he
Ws othe shore of the sea. When he is arrayed for battle utters words falling like the snowflakes of winter, and
there enters into his heart grief for Patroclus, but his all marvel at his appearance. The device of comeyes shine as a flame of fire24(Xawuornior7vW's>'l TE 7vpoS parison employed to portray Agamemnon anticipates
oXas). As he meets Aeneas standing with threatening to a degree the method used to describe the hero of
face, he rushes at him in his fury with glaring eyes25 the Odyssey. The key to the portrait of Odysseus
bWi
cVSfrpETat /lubE) and in his final encounter lies in its indirection. He is first revealed to our eyes
(yXaVKl0WV
with Hector he is like a snake that has fed on baleful through the appearance of his son. When MXIentes
herbs, and dread wrath has entered into him, and he (Athena) meets Telemachus, he asks directly32: "But,
come, tell me this and declare it truly, whether
glares terribly upon his quarry.26
Or to take an example from the gods on Olympus, indeed, tall as thou art, thou art the son of Odysseus
Hera, determined to pursue her own course of action himself. Wondrously like his are thy head and beautiin the Trojan War, adorns herself in order to beguile ful eyes" (ac'vs yap KE4aXV TE Kal o/J4iaTa KaXa EOlKaS).
Zeus on MViountIda, and, smiling, lays the zone of That his likeness to his father has impressed Nestor
laughter-loving Aphrodite in her bosom.27 When is revealed by the observation the latter makes on his
Zeus, deceived awakes from his sleep, v6ro'5pa 3c'wv speech.33 When Helen, happily settled again in her
[looking sternly], he addresses his spouse, and the own home in Sparta, receives Telemachus searching
ox-eyed Hera shudders.28 But Zeus, at length molli- for the wanderer, she turns to Mlenelaus with the
fied, smiles at her submissive plea that it is Poseidon remark34: "Amazement holds me as I look, as this
who inflicts harm upon the Trojans and upon Hector. man is like the son of great-hearted Odysseus," and
Yet when Zeus refuses to alter his promise to Thetis, 1lenelaus replies35: Yes, that is so. "Such were his
Hera goes to the assembly of the gods in anger. She hands, and the glances of his eyes, and his head and
hair above."
157, 211.
The first direct description of Odysseus comes in
16 11, 556.
17 11, 556-562; 544-549.
the picture of the lonely man far from Ithaca, seated
Tpeoae Si rracrrTrvas.
18 11, 544-547
on the shores of Calypso's island, straining his soul
19 15, 686.
with
tears, and, as he weeps, looking wistfully over the
'&
20 13, 349.
ropyaous
o0,/aT
gXwv
"Apqos.
OpOTOXOLyOV
21 12, 466. Cf. 12, 463. His face was like sudden nightsea. From that portrait of despair he once more
VVKTl GOp aTraXavTos uvrwitcra.
22 15, 607-608.
Tc' b'e ol 6crcooXaAtr&o-07P fXoovp&flV
23 19, 16-17.
24 19, 355.
2520, 161; 172.
22, 95.
14, 223.
28 15, 34.
Cf. 15, 13.
26
27
'Vr' 'o6pV6utw.
29
15, 101-103.
30
2, 478-479.
3, 217.
Od. 1, 206-209 (trans. A. T. Murray throughout, LCL).
333,
124-125.
344,
142-145.
31
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emerges as the magnificent, commanding figure we
have been led to visualize in the early books of the
Odyssey. Shipwrecked on the coast of Phaeacia,
he creeps from the thicket like a mountain-bred lion,
trusting in his strength, his eyes blazing36 (I'Ev b3eol 6OE
6aaETa),
terrifying the gentle and lovely Nausicaa and
her companions by his appearance. The work of
Athena in transforming him into a godlike figure,
taller and mightier to look upon-gleaming
with
beauty and grace-makes him marvelous to see and
in reality the kind of person imagined from the earlier
references to his physique in the comparison made with
Telemachus. Nor is Nausicaa the only person
promptly captivated by his new appearance. On the
Phaeacians, Athena37 has worked a similar spell, that
he may be welcomed and win respect. His build is
remarked upon by Laodamas, the son of Alcinous,
who urges his participation in the games. His great
might, his strength of youth, are even yet apparent,38
says the Phaeacian, through he has been overwhelmed
by many troubles.
Once Odysseus is restored to his own Ithaca the
technique of description is in a way reversed.
Eumaeus, the swineherd, without recognizing his
master, talks to him of the glorious form and strength
of Telemachus39 (61EjaS Kab ebos ay7qT'oV), who is in no
degree inferior in appearance to his father. The
magnificence of Telemachus is again suggested in the
description of Eumaeus' greeting to the youth, the
affection with which the old man kisses his head and
both his beautiful eyes.40 Yet the resemblance of
Telemachus to his father, emphasized strongly in the
early books by those who knew Odysseus well, has
no part in the wanderer's welcome by his wife. By
the irony common to human experience he who, of
all men, was closest to Penelope tells her the tale of
meeting Odysseus on the island of Crete on his way
to the war and is unrecognized by his own wife while
366,
But compare Athena's skill in transforming
131-132.
him to a shriveled old man in Ithaca, Od. 13, 398-403; 429-433.
378, 18-20.
388, 134-137.
He is described directly by Athena as supple,
fair-haired, fair-skinned, with beautiful eyes in Od. 13, 398-401.
39 14, 177.
40 16, 14-16;
61
EPIC
17, 63. In Od. 18, 219-220, Penelope chides
Telemachus for the treatment accorded the stranger in their
halls. See also W. B. Stanford, The Ulysses Theme: A Study in
the Adaptability of a Traditional Hero (Oxford, 1954), chap. V,
"The Untypical Hero," pp. 66-80, esp. pp. 66-67: "In physique
he had the unusually short legs and long torso described by
Antenor and Helen in Il. 3, 191-198," with note.
From Philostratus' Heroicus, Stanford, ibid., chap. 12,
"Ulysses and the Discrediting of Homer," pp. 146-158, esp. pp.
151-152 quotes: "You could tell the man's guilty thoughts by
his downcast and concentrated expression," and "It would be
absurd to suppose, for example, that goddesses like Circe and
Calypso would love a man past the age for amorous delights,
undersized, with a snub nose, and with shifty, wandering eyes
(because of his chronic anxieties and suspicions). That look of
thoughtful concentration, which he habitually wore, was far
from being conducive to love affairs."
she mourns for her absent husband. But his eyes stand
fixed between his lids as though they were of horn or
iron, and with craft he hides his own tears.41 Then
once more the device of the earlier books of the
Odyssey appears as Eurycleia obeys Penelope's
command to bathe the visitor's feet42: "Never have
I seen any man so like another as thou in form, and
in voice, and in feet art like Odysseus." Thus the
device of comparison common to the earlier portraits
of the man is used directly against the man himself
in the later story. When Eurycleia recognizes the
scar upon his leg, joy and grief in one moment come
to her, and her eyes fill with tears, and with her eyes
she turns toward Penelope, anxious to show her that
her husband is at home.43 But Penelope cannot meet
her glances44 nor does she comprehend, for Athena
has turned away her thoughts. With the fearful
slaughter of the suitors accomplished, Odysseus sits
in the hall by a tall pillar, looking down,45 waiting to
see whether his wife will speak to him, and she in
turn sits long in silence, and astonishment comes
upon her, and with her eyes she looks full in his face,
but once and again she fails to know him, for, says
Homer, his clothing is mean. When at last Athena
transforms him and sheds abundant beauty upon
him, making him taller and mightier as she had done
for Nausicaa and the Phaeacians, Penelope still
hesitates to identify him as her lord, beset by the
doubts and uncertainties brought about by many
years of separation. And the final recognition of the
wanderer is achieved not by any means of physical
resemblance to a man known long ago, but by the
familiar story and simple device of the olive bedpost
wonderfully wrought by Odysseus years before the
Trojan war.
Grief and sorrow are implicit in a poem of war like
the Iliad. Andromache smiles through her tears46
yeXa4aaTa) in her farewell to Hector. Briseis
(baKpuoEv
mourns gently and sadly for Patroclus, while Achilles
writhes in paroxysms of grief. Hector's death leaves
his wife, his mother and father prostrated with grief
as the final scenes of the Iliad are marked by a kind
of crescendo of sound and bereavement, involving
both the Trojans and the Greeks. So Achilles wonders
at the sight47of the godlike Priam as he appears at his
tent. Swift to anger, he answers Priam's request for
Hector's body,48 wroapa1&6v. The fierceness of his
feeling is instantly revealed upon his face, but just
41 19,
203-204; 211-212.
He describes Odysseus' attendant,
Eurybates.
42 19,
380-381.
43 19, 476-477.
44 19, 478-479.
4 23, 90-95. See the interpretation of the recognition offered
by Anne Amory, Essays on the Odyssey (Bloomington, 1963),
chap. VII, "The Reunion of Odysseus and Penelope," p. 100-121.
II. 6, 484.
24, 483.
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)as quickly he grants the old man's wishes and bids
him spend the night. They eat and Priam marvels
at Achilles, how tall he is, and how handsome, like the
very gods.
While the poetry of the Iliad and the Odyssey
antedates the systematic approach to physiognomics,
various instances of "physiognomic consciousness"
can thus be observed as an essential part of Homer's
method of characterization. We may move now to
other types of epic, to consider briefly evidence of a
comparable concern for physiognomics as an aspect
of characterization.
With Apollonius Rhodius the technique of physical
description is modified. Examples of its use, in the
first place, are not common through the poem. Whatever instances occur in rapid succession are to be
found concentrated in one episode of the Argonautic
expedition, the story of Medea and Jason. Every
phase of this affair he records with delicate innuendo
in the conventional manner of erotic poetry, and this
skillful type of delineation is his major contribution
to the technique of portraiture in epic. It is obvious
that the poet is working here less in the Homeric
tradition of description than under the influence of
lyric, where momentary emotion and instantaneous
reaction express themselves in line after line, as in the
poetry of Sappho, with direct intensity. There is also
evident the influence of the drama and the obvious
attempt to imitate Euripides in his portrayal of his
dramatic figures and to bring psychological insight to
bear on the fine art of characterization.
This particular kind of portraiture is introduced in
the third book. Here every momentary development
is marked by a corresponding facial expression on the
part of the chief actors. The Medea romance starts,
as does Dido's, in the machinations of two goddesses.
Athena and Hera debate the means of furthering the
exploits of Jason, their eyes fixed on the ground at
their feet, plotting each in her own way49 (Kat bi-' OeONoS
a't yE ro&2'v 7rapoS 6p,AaTr IErr7av). They appeal to
Cypris, who is introduced in a ridiculous scene as the
mediator, and who proposes that they persuade Eros
to charm Medea with love.50 Cypris maintains that
he will readily obey their command. The goddesses
smile, look at each other, but at their urging, nevertheless, Aphrodite promises to coax him, and Hera,
taking her hand, beams her approval.5' Eros is discovered playing dice with Ganymedes. Finishing the
game with a winning hand, he stands upright, a sweet
flush glowing on his cheek. His opponent sits by,
silent and downcast of face. The ruthlessness of the
little rogue is betrayed by the loud laughter52 with
which he proclaims his success in this tour de force.
49 3, 22 (trans.
503, 91-93.
513, 107.
523, 124.
R. C. Seaton throughout, LCL).
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
His mother questions him, amused,5" bribes him with
the promise of a gift, a round ball, and he complies
gladly with her request. He enters the threshold of
the palace, glances sharply around"4 (46'a Ev5LXXwv)
and shoots his arrow at Medea. The damage is done.
The scene shifts and our next descriptions are wholly
concerned with the Colchian princess and Jason's
task. Pierced by the arrow of Eros, Medea keeps
darting sharp glances55(a4uapviyu.aTa)at Aeson's son,
and her soul is consumed in pain. In her distress her
cheeks turn pale, then red. Aeetes, meanwhile,
hearing of the feat proposed by Jason, and, being
consequently infuriated, displays his cruelty in the
fierceness of his eyes beneath his brows.5" He tells
Jason the conditions under which the fleece may be
obtained, and the Argonaut stands, speechless, fixing
his eyes on the ground.57 As he prepares to meet the
challenge, Medea with a stealthy glance58 (6,u aTa
observes Jason, magnificent in his beauty
KOVpn 'oX4)
and grace. Chalciope, well aware of her sister's
distraction, accosts her and inquires as to the reason.
Medea's cheeks flush, she starts to speak and stops.
Chalciope urges her to devise some trick to help
Jason, and Medea's heart leaps with joy, her cheeks
crimson, and a mist swims before her eyes.59 Tortured
with anguish by night, she resolves upon her plan.
Waiting for Jason as he prepares for his task, she
cannot keep her glance steadily on her attendants.
Presently the hero appears before her longing eyes;
they meet secretly in the shrine of Hecate. He
addresses her in gentle courtesy, and she casts her
eyes down with a smile as sweet as nectar60:ot'yKXL306v
oooE f3aXov-oa VEKTapeov Et67cr7E. Raising her eyes she
looks at him full in the face8' (ao4apaKElJ 6,.,aotv a'Tr7v).
Eros flashes a bright flame from the golden head of the
Argonaut, and Jason captivates her radiant eyes.
And now both fix their eyes on the ground in a state of
confusion and then look at each other again, smiling
tenderly beneath their shining brows.62 As they
prepare to separate, she casts her eyes to her feet,63
begging him to remember her name. He pledges his
love, receives from her the fatal charm, and goes his
way to the task imposed. Then, as time passes, Hera
puts into the heart of Medea dread fear. She is
haunted by the knowledge that her attendants are
aware of her guilt, yet her eyes blaze with fire,84her
ears ring in lines reminiscent of Sappho's art. When,
533, 129.
3, 281.
3, 288, 290.
563,
371 (after R. C. Seaton).
573,
422-423.
58 3, 443445.
59 3, 724-725.
603,
1008-1010; cf. 3, 951-953.
613, 1018-1019.
62 3,
1022-1024 (after Seaton).
633,
1063-1064.
644,
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EPIC
described, but with the return, to the tragedy of
Dido all the possibilities inherent in physical portraiture are heightened exactly as in the third book of
Apollonius. The queen herself is simply71 "forma
pulcherrima" at the beginning, as she reassures the
Trojans quietly72 "vultum demissa." Once the story
turns her eyes away66 (EuiraXv0/.u,uar' fVbtKe), and of Aeneas' wanderings is finished, Aeneas' face is
covers them with her veil in horror. The lovers fixed in the heart of Dido,73 she recalling in mind his
escape their pursuers in the Argo and take their bearing and his bravery. The affair progresses
homeward way. All the innuendo tends to disappear rapidly, far more rapidly than in the Argonautica,
from their facial expressions, all the intensity of the and the moment of climax is reached with hardly a
emotion felt in the third book lessens, and in the final suggestion of momentary portraiture. Aeneas is
scenes little of visible emotional expression remains to recalled to duty. He prepares to depart, delaying his
move the reader. Only once again is there significant plea to the queen. She in desperate mood senses the
use in the narrative of the expression in Medea's truth, attacks him, then exhorts him, while he holds
eyes-this time fearful in their power-as she turns his eyes unmoved,74 suppressing anxious care within
her mind to craft and with a hostile look bewitches his heart. Briefly he explains his task. She listens
the eyes of Talos,67 the bronze man of Crete. For in to his words with averted glances75 ("aversa tuetur"),
that moment Medea becomes the sorceress of myth- "huc illuc volvens oculos totumque pererrat,"76 and
ology rather than the Colchian princess tortured by with silent look (luminibus tacitis) surveys him.
Scornfully she rejects his words77: "Has he ever
the anguish of love.
The love story of Medea and Jason leads directly turned his eyes in kindness to her distress?" Not
to the theme of the fourth book of Virgil's Aeneid. even Juno or Jupiter has regarded her with impartial
In terms of portraiture there is obvious kinship, and eyes78 ("oculis aequis"). In an instant she breaks off,
at the same time marked differences. There are three turns away79 ("seque ex oculis avertit"), and leaves
episodes of the Aeneid showing wherein Virgil was Aeneas hesitant, distraught. In the intense scenes
indebted to his predecessors, Homer and Apollonius which ensue little actually is said of facial expression
of Rhodes, and wherein he introduced certain nuances other than in reference to tears80 ("lacrimae inanes"),
of his own. The first episode includes the shipwreck futile and unavailing. The contrast to Apollonius
and the subsequent landing of Aeneas and his com- is striking, for in Apollonius where the growing
panions in Africa; the second episode is that of power of love between two people increases every
Aeneas and Dido; the third has to do with the battle moment in tension, detailed portraiture of the face
scenes in the latter part of the A eneid in which Turnus is part of the poet's technique. But Virgil's art at
plays such a conspicuous part. I propose to deal here this point is "the art of reticence," and all the force
of the overwhelming passion of Dido and Aeneas is
only with the second episode.
In general it may be said that Virgil follows in the barely mentioned in these terms, while the height of
epic tradition in that his descriptions belong to the anguish and disillusionment is limned bitterly and
momentary rather than the iconistic type, but that in fully. As Dido determines on her final plan, she
the fourth book of the Aeneid those descriptions of conceals it on her countenance8' ("consilium vultu
momentary reaction are expanded within the limits tegit"), successfully deceives the unwitting Anna,
of their own, special category to meet the needs of and ultimately "sanguineam volvens aciem,"82 pale,
resolute on death, she rushes to the pyre where she
Virgil's descriptive technique.
As Aeneas is revealed to Dido, the queen is aston- joyously lifting his eyes to heaven for the omen of Jupiter (2,
ished,68 primo aspectu, at the glorious appearance of 687), Andromache telling the story of her captivity, "deiecit
the Trojan on whom his goddess mother has bestowed vultum" (3, 320).
71 1, 496.
Brooks Otis, Virgil: A Study in Civilized Poetry
all the graces of Odysseus, granted by Athena, at
(Oxford, 1963), pp. 66, 80-83, 355 discusses the appearance of
crucial moments, while adding a sprightly luster to Dido, and Aeneas ("pulcherrimus," 4, 141). See also Viktor
his eyes69 ("laetos oculis adflarat honores"). In the Poschl, The Art of Vergil, trans. G. Seligson (Ann Arbor, 1962),
telling of the story of the last night of Troy the familiar pp. 62-91, esp. 61 and 66.
72 1, 561.
figures of the Iliad legend appear,70 momentarily
with her help, the task of Jason is completed, she is
ready to abandon her home and family. But all too
soon Medea's mood is changed. She upbraids Jason
for trying to desert her, when he refuses to fight the
Colchians over her brother Absyrtus.66 Yet the
terrible deed of murder is done, and the girl quickly
66 4, 388-390.
66 4,
466.
1669-1670.
1, 613.
6 1, 591.
70
Hector, whose "serenus vultus" (2, 285-286) is frightfully
disfigured, Cassandra "tendens ardentia lumina" (2, 405) as
she is dragged from the temple, Priam uttering imprecations on
Pyrrhus for defiling the "patrios vultus" (2, 539), Anchises
674,
68
4-5 (after H. R. Fairclough throughout, LCL).
331-332, "immota tenebat/lumina."
76 4, 362.
764,
363-364.
77 4, 369.
"num lumina flexit?"
784,
372.
794, 389.
734,
74 4,
804,
814,
82 4,
449; 413; 439.
477, "ac spem fronte serenat."
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hurls a final imprecation on Aeneas83: "Let that cruel black dust. He leaves Lesbos, taking Cornelia with
Trojan from the sea fill his eyes with these flames, him, only to have her witness her husband's murder
and bear with him the omens of my death" ("hauriat before her very eyes.9' In death he remains majestic
hunc oculis ignem crudelis ab alto"). In the moment in appearance and bearing:
of death she seeks to lift her heavy eyes to the sky,
permansissedecus sacrae venerabile formae
three times she searches for the light, "oculis
iratamque deis faciem, nil ultima mortis
errantibus,"84 and groans, having found it. In the
ex habitu vultuque viri mutasse fatentur.
fourth book of the Aeneid Virgil shifts his emphasis
Caesar, on the other hand, though hated by Lucan,
in portraiture from the growing power of love treated
dominates the scene. He inspires terror in the foe.2
in Apollonius to the catastrophe that follows on the
He commands constant respect from his soldiers by
destruction of that love, and the havoc wrought upon
his power of speech93:
its victims.
convocat armatos extemplo ad signa maniplos
The end of the tragedv is quick, and the epilogue
utque
satis trepidum turba coeunte tumultum
in the underworld reveals the same intense mood of
composuit vultu dextraquesilentia iussit.
scorn that exists at the end of the fourth book. While
Aeneas seeks for the last time tc plead his case to the Completely controlled, vultuque serenus,94 he grants
queen,85 "ardentem et torva tuentem," she, "aversa," peace to Afranius, who pleads in behalf of the Pomholds her eyes fixed on the ground, and does not alter peians. He stands before his soldiers, intrepid in
her looks again.86 As in the enamorment of Medea countenance ("intrepidus vultu"),95 and harangues
it is the beaots [binding] of the story that receives them from a mound of earth commanding their awe,
skillful portraiture, so in Dido's story it is the XfIo-iS and inspiring strength and courage in their hearts.96
Eloosing] that marks the power of the poet's handling "But if I see those tokens that never play your leader
of this aspect of characterization, for Apollonius is false-fierce countenances and threatening eyes-then
victory is yours." He is adept at feigning emotion,
concerned with love,87 and Virgil with tragedy.
In Ovid's Metamorphoses the use of physical de- for while Pompey's murderers suppressed their signs
scription is not essentially different from that appear- and concealed their feelings by joyous features,
ing in the earlier epic tradition. Because of the very Caesar mourned97:
nature of Ovid's scenes of transformation, we are not
abscondunt gemitus et pectora laeta
fronte tegunt, hilaresquenefas spectare
to expect depictions comparable with those in the
cruentum,fourth Aeneid. Instead of descriptions sustained over
0 bona libertas-cum Caesar lugeat, audent.
a long portion of the poem, we encounter the momentary suggestion of appearance, which, once Lucan's contempt is never more clearly revealed than
presented, holds the reader's interest.
in the passage where he describes how Caesar, actually
In the Pharsalia Lucan also makes relatively little overjoyed, received the head of his rival98:
use of physical description. Of the two principal
. . . nec non his fallere vocibus audet
figures88 in the epic, Pompey, Lucan's favorite, is
adquiritquefidem simulati fronte doloris:
sympathetically drawn. On the night before the great
battle the poet apostrophizes the general, as he views Outwardly assured99 ("tum vultu semper celante
the plain of Pharsalia for the last time89: "With pavorem"), though the people of Egypt are hostile
countenance unchanged he beholds Pharsalia." After to him, he comes to Alexandria and visits the temples
the battle the defeated general, arriving at Lesbos, of the gods, and the tomb of Alexander the Great,
is tragically disfigured with paleness,90his countenance and falls wholly under the spell of Cleopatra, who,
overhung with white hairs, his garments squalid with with confidence in her beauty, entreats Caesar to
protect her and her brother against the power of
834, 661-662.
Pothinus. Her pleas would have been in vain but for
844,
691.
the fact that her prayers and her unchaste face plead
85 6, 467.
for her'00:
86
6, 469-470, "illa solo fixos oculos aversa tenebat."
Cf. Catullus, 64, in this regard. Emphasis is placed on the
descriptions of Ariadne's face and eyes as she beholds Theseus,
almost no attention is given to the countenance in her moments
of despair, save to tears and laments. See pp. 68-69.
88 Very little is said of Cato save when Marcia comes to him,
bearing the ashes of Hortensius, and they solemnly renew their
marriage vows in the presence of Brutus. 2, 333-337; 360-361;
no saffron colored veil concealed the downcast features of the
bride ("demissos vultus"), Cato admitted no joyousness to his
rigid features 2, 373 ("nec duroque admisit gaudia vultu").
89 7, 682-683:
"non impare vultu/aspicis Emathiam" (trans.
J. D. Duff, throughout, LCL).
87
908, 54-61.
9l 8, 664-666; cf. 589-592.
1, 244-246.
93 1, 296-298.
94 4, 363.
But he is quick to anger, when the people of Massilia send deputies to him, deprecating civil war (3, 356-357):
"cum turbato iam prodita vultu/ira ducis tandem testata est
voce dolorem."
92
16 5, 316-321.
967, 290-292.
979,
1106-1108.
989, 1032-1041; 1043-1046; 1062-1063.
10010, 82-85; 104-105.
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EPIC
nequiquamduras temptasset Caesarisaures:
vultus adest precibus faciesque incesta perorat.
diginity and authority, like nothing since-a portrait
reminiscent of the same magnificent composure
described in Horace's lines.106
Two other portraits have a prominent place in the
Punica. Hannibal, the Carthaginian general, displays all the characteristics of a man who will brook
no opposition to his determined progress, his frown,
his fierceness of countenance,'07 his threatening face
when he turned toward Rome and prepared to march
back again'08:
The technique used in this historical epic resembles
that used by Tacitus in the Annals, for while momentary descriptions are introduced with less subtle
nuance than in the Annals, the portraits of Pompey
and Caesar are similar in nature to Tacitus' portrayals
of Agricola and Tiberius.
Whenever the Argonaut legend reappears after
Virgil in the epic tradition of the Roman empire, the
influence of Apollonius rather than that of Virgil is
. . . torvos cum versus ad urbem
ductor Agenoreusvultus remeareparabat,
apparent in the portraiture of Medea and Jason, as in
Valerius Flaccus' Argonautica.
his daring which stirred equal courage in his soldiers,109
In the longest epic poem in Latin literature, the and the consternation, inspired at Rome by his march,
Punica of Silius Italicus, the use of descriptions of allayed by the faces of the senate."0 Even his address
physical appearance is again limited, if the number of to his son bespeaks a desire to have the qualities assoexamples found be related directly to the length of the ciated with his own fierceness of expression reproduced
poem. Yet the portraits that Silius includes are in the face and character of his child. "I recognize my
essential to the narrative, and powerfully drawn. In father's countenance and the defiant eyes beneath a
a digression in the sixth book the story of Regulus, frowning brow. I note the depth of your infant cries,
which really belongs to the First Punic War, intro- and the beginnings of a fierceness like my own.'"I"
duces one of the most glorious and honorable figures
A quite different picture is presented by Scipio.
of the Roman Republic. The unique character of the While the latter's forehead was that of a soldier and
man comes out in the apostrophe of the general's his eyes were bright, their expression was kind and
squire, Marus, to Serranus, Regulus' son, who seeks those who looked upon him felt both respect and
refuge in his hut after the tragic defeat of Lake pleasure."2 When he returned to Rome in
triumph,
Trasumenus.10' "I saw you, greatest of generals, after the Battle of Zama, the stalwart bearing
that
when, though you were a prisoner, your countenance marked his appearance at the beginning of the epic
terrified the citadel of Carthage." Old Marus con- was magnificently displayed as he rode through the
tinues'02with his account of Regulus' intrepid courage, city:
calling attention to the calm brow which met the gaze
ipse, adstans curru atque auro decoratus et ostro
of onlookers when he first brought the fleet under his
martia praebebat spectanda Quiritibusora.
command to the Carthaginian shore, and which was
likewide to be observed, when, as a captive, he was sent One scene memorable in the career of Scipio is the
to Rome to seek terms of peace, and passed through debate between Virtue and Pleasure, whom Silius
the crowd before unfriendly eyes.'03 Marus as an describes as appearing before him. This famous
eyewitness watched the face of the commander as his debate, stemming from Prodicus, depicts Scipio
ship glided into the Tiber-the face, remarks Silius, sitting like Hercules in solitude at the crossroads.
and the eyes that reveal the mind'04 ("servabam He viewed the examples set before him, and showed his
His approval in his face."13 The decision in favor of virtue,
vultus ducis ac prodentia sensum/lumina").
expression was unchanged in the midst of a thousand once made, started him on his long career. It was
dangers. Such, too, was his mien in Rome and in the shortly after this that he asked for the command of
city of Carthage, even when he was tortured. The the army in Spain, and received it. Excitement was
son listens to the old man, takes up the story, and fills gteneral. PeoDle believed that they saw his father's
in the picture of his father.'05 His stature was more
106Carm. 3, 5, 41-44:
than human, his unkempt hair fell free from his white
"fertur pudicae coniugis osculum
head. and on his brow with its disordered locks sat
parvosque natos ut capitis minor
101 6, 82-84
(trans. J. D. Duff throughout, LCL). He speaks
of the fire in Regulus' eyes (6, 220): "terribilis gemino de lumine
fulgurat ignis."
1026, 368-370:
". . . fert lumina contra
pacatus frontem, qualis cum litora primum
attigit appulsa, rector Sidonia classe."
103 6, 367.
1046,
106
384-385; 387-388.
6, 426-430; esp. 428-29:
"frontique coma squalente sedebat
terribilis decoratque animi venerabile pondus
ab se removisse et virilem
torvus humi posuisse vultum."
542-543; 2, 208-210.
108 13, 2-3.
10912, 510.
11' 12, 551-552; "stat celsus et asper ab ira/ingentemque
mentum torvo domat ore senatus."
1113, 75-77.
1128, 559-561:
"martia frons facilesque comae nec pone retroque
caesaries brevior: flagrabant lumina miti
aspectus gratusque inerat visentibus horror."
113 15, 122-123; 133-134.
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)features in his face, and indeed recognized in Scipio
the stern countenance of his uncle as a young man.
The debate itself, in which Virtue and Pleasure contended for his allegiance, gave Virtue the opportunity
to present arguments which encouraged him to ask for
the conmmand. Pleasure is described first, a ravishing
creature114: "the pin in her hair gave studied beauty
to her brow, and her roving wanton eyes shot forth
flame after flame." The appearance of Virtue was
far more in accord with Roman taste. "Her hair
that sought no borrowed charm from ordered locks,
grew freely about her forehead; her eyes were steady,
in face and gait she was more like a man; she showed
a cheerful modesty, and her tall stature was set off by
the snow-white robe she wore""'5:
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
to soften yourself in this garb ?"119 ("cur ora reducis?/
quidve parant oculi? pudet hoc mitescere cultu?").
So Achilles complies, after they have taken leave of
the centaur, who watches them depart, concealing
his moist eyes120 ("udaque celat/lumina").
When
Achilles arrives at the court of Scyros, he becomes
immediately fascinated by Deidamia who, with the
rosy bloom of her countenance,"2' outshines her
sisters in his eyes. The love he suddenly feels does
not stay hidden, but the flame penetrates his whole
body and crimsons his cheeks.'22 His mother, unaware,
hands him over to Lycomedes as Achilles' sister with
the remark'23:"Don't you see how fierce her look is,
and like her brother's?" ("nonne vides, ut torva
genas aequandaque fratri"). The Scyrian princesses
look upon him with shrewd glances of appraisal and
frons hirta neque umquam
note how tall he is in head and neck, how broad his
composita mutata coma; stans vultus, et ore
chest and shoulders.'24 Deidamia becomes conscious
incessuqueviro propior,laetique pudoris.
of how closely he is watching her, and she, in turn,
Silius' portrait of Scipio naturally invites comparison marvels at the deep tones of his voice and the way in
with that of the same general in Livy. We recall that which he shuns all the others and follows her with too
in Livy Scipio is distinguished by the authority and attentive look'2' ("nimio quod lumine sese/figat"),
dignity of his appearance, his face creating terror at and at all times hangs constantly on her words. When
the height of a mutinous uprising at Sucro, the over- at last Achilles is emboldened to confess and pursue his
powering effect"6 he produced on Masinissa when he love, and to admit the ignoble disguise he has been
received the Numidian for the first time. The por- forced to endure, the princess is horror struck,
traiture of the earlier historian has clearly influenced although she had secretly suspected his good faith.
Silius' concept of the Roman commander, and the She trembles at his presence, while his countenance is
descriptions in Silius as a whole are closely akin to changed as he makes confession'26 ("horruit et facies
those in Livy.
multum mutata fatentis"). Meanwhile, as the affair
In Statius the device of physical description in the progresses, Ulysses arrives in search of the hero, and
portraiture of the principal characters of the Thebaid, the ruse of the shield and armor leads to the discovery
following the pattern of Homer and Virgil, is some- of the true Achilles after he has escaped detection
what more frequently used.
only by the constant resourcefulness of Deidamia.
Entirely different in spirit from the conventional Once the youth is identified, the story follows its
warlike character of the heroes depicted in the familiar course, Achilles reveals himself to Lycomedes
Thebaid is the romantic and appealing portrait of the as the father of Deidamia's child, and the fragmentary
young Achilles, his mother Thetis, and the lovely second book ends with his departure for Troy. ComDeidamia in the Achilleid. Achilles, now in the care pared with the fairly conventional type of portraiture
of old Chiron, has not yet lost the bloom of youth and of the Thebaid, that of the Achilleid is refreshing.
a quiet light burns in his glance and there is much of
The Alexandrian love poetry of Apollonius has
his mother in his look"7 ("tranquillaeque faces oculis been imposed upon the martial epic of Homer to
et plurima vultu/mater inest"). His mother comes produce in the end of the first century of the empire
to visit him and is received hospitably by the centaur. a poem that tells of Achilles, son of Peleus, who is
Anxious for her son, she soon relaxes her countenance involved by an over-affectionate, almost mortal
with a smile"8 ("his victo risit Thetis anxia vultu") mother in a kind of romantic situation and love affair,
as the entertainment proceeds. She proposes to a treatment often filled with unconscious humor, that
protect her son from the hazards of war by dressing
119 1,271-272.
him up in women's clothes to let him live among the
120 1, 233-234.
daughters of Lycomedes. Achilles at first resists.
12 1, 297.
Thetis directly questions him: "Why do you turn
122 1, 304-306:
"sed fax . . . /in vultus atque ora redit
away? What means that glance? Are you ashamed lucemque
genarum/tingit."
123 1, 351.
11415, 26-27: "fronte decor quaesitus acu, lascivaque crebras/
ancipiti motu iaciebant lumina flammas."
11515, 28-31.
116 28, 26; 32; cf. 28, 35.
117Ach. 1, 163-164 (trans. J. H. Mozley throughout, LCL).
Is 1, 194.
1, 366-368:
". . . nec turba piarum
Scyriadum cessat nimio defigere visu
virginis ora novae."
1"5 1, 568-569; 584.
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VARIED LITERARY FORMS
borders closely on a drawing-room comedy of manners.
But it is important to observe that much of the thread
of the narrative is carried by the suggestion of facial
expression on the characters in the romance.
VII. PHYSIOGNOMICS IN VARIED
LITERARY FORMS
I. IAMBIC, ELEGIAC, AND LYRIC POETRY
As we proceed from Homer to those shorter and
more personal poetic forms which follow the Homeric
epic in the literary history of Greece, and which are
traditionally classified as iambic, elegiac, and lyric,
we find that it is in the area of satire that characterization in terms of physiognomics makes its first appearance. Thus Phocylides' diatribe on the nature of
women' foreshadows the later Aristotelian doctrine
that a particular animal form is to be associated with
a particular mental character: "The tribes of women
come of these four, the bitch, the bee, the savagelooking sow, and the long-haired mare." Only the bee
is the good housewife who knows her work, and for
her in wedlock a man should pray. A more fully
developed example of this parallelism between physique and nature appears a century later in Semonides'
familiar classification of ten classes of women. Again
only the beelike creature is a worthy helpmate,
while the apelike woman embodies qualities suggestive
of Aristotelian physiognomical characterization2:
"Foul of face, short in neck, she hardly moves,
hipless, lean shanked, like an ape. She knows all
arts and wiles, nor takes thought of men's laughter.
Nor will she do a man any kindness." Of this type,
in turn, the Pseudo-Aristotelian manual remarks3
I Elegy and Iambus 1, 3 (trans. J. M. Edmonds throughout,
LCL).
2 Elegy and Iambus 2, 7, lines 71-82.
810b. The description of the stalwart general in Archilochus
insists on courage and puts little emphasis on imposing appearance
(Elegy and Iambus 2, 58): "A general who is tall pleases me not,
who walks with legs apart, delights in curls and shaves the hair
that grows upon his calves . . . but rather a man should be
short and bow-legged to behold, set firm on his feet, full of heart
(Kap6rbs wrkos)." Dio Chrysostom employs a paraphrase of the
last statement for the purpose of censure in his first Tarsic
oration (an address delivered to the people of Tarsus on the
immorality of their city in the first century A.D.): "Nay let me
rather have one who is bandy-legged, stands firmly, and has
hairy shins." (Or. 33, 17, trans. J. W. Cohoon and H. L. Crosby,
LCL.) The portrait of Archilochus' foppish general, which has an
underlying satiric purpose, as does that of Thersites in the Iliad
is the forerunner of the Miles Gloriosus of later literature, the
pompous Lamachus of Aristophanes' Acharnians. See Archiloque,
Fragments ed. by F. Lasserre, trans. and comment. by A. Bonnard
[Paris, 1958], p. 93 ("Quant au fragment 93 rien de moins
homerique que ces quatres verses." The admiration of Homer for
beauty yields here "soudain la place au gofut de la laideur pleine
de character, qui s'incarnera en Esope et Socrate. La bravoure
militaire, pour gagner Archiloque, doit rev6tir le corps de Thersite"). The lines of Archilochus are endowed with a greater
physiognomical significance by Dio: "Therefore you must not
think that if Archilochus had no love for the sort of general he
67
that lean shanks, which look as if they had been
rubbed bare, are indicative of a mischievous disposition, as in the case of apes.
The poetry of Theognis4 reflects a more general
awareness of the principles of physiognomical theory
even without recognizing it as a formal science. He
reminds young Cyrnus that
the deceit of counterfeit gold or silver is easily endured,
nor hard is it for a man of skill to find them out; but it
the mind of a friend be false within him unbeknown,and
the heart in his breast deceitful, this hath god made most
counterfeit for mankind, this is the grief hard of all things
to discover. For neither the mind of man nor yet of
woman shalt thou know till thou hast made trial of it
like a beast of burden, nor shalt thou ever guess it when
thou comest to buv, because outward shapes do so often
cheat the understanding.
While we might naturally expect some detailed
description of physique in iambic poetry, especially
in view of its identification with satiric expression, we
find this type of description generally lacking in the
lyric, as in the case of Alcaeus. What is more characteristic of the lyric in this regard is that type of
generic term such as Etbos[form] or KaiXXOs [beauty],
which is employed by later Greek dramatists, principally with reference to Helen. This is a device of
singular effectiveness in conveying the impression of
extraordinary beauty and is found repeatedly in the
Greek lyric.5 Related to it also is the brief delineation
has described and did not gauge the value of a general by his
height or hair, he would ever have praised a city because he
found in it such things as rings and baths and fountains and
porticoes . . . for such things are simply like hair and ringlets
on a man.
Elegy and Iambus 2, 19. See also Aristophanes, Lys. 802, and
Blaydes' note. The scholiast on Il. 24, 315, speaking of Archilochus, calls the eagle "black-rumped": "Lest thou meet a blackrumped creature." Edmonds suggests this is a line which may
be part of a speech of the fox to its cub. But Hesychius (in
whose lexicon the fragment occurs as a kind of proverb) proposes
that the expression means "lest you meet somebody brave and
strong," i.e., Heracles, whose encounter with the Cercopes would
imply such an interpretation. Again on the Iliad 3, 281, Eustathius commenting on the 'yovKpoTot "knock-kneed" adds "but
Anacreon uses the words of cowards." See H. J. Rose, Handbook
of Greek Mythology (6th ed., London, 1958), p. 217.
4Elegy and Iambus 1, 119-128, cf. also 535-537; cf. Euripides,
Med. 516-519. Clement of Alexandria in his Str. (7, 22) remarks
that the Greeks "gave their gods human passions as well as
human shape; even as each race of men depict their forms so as
to be like their own." "These," he says, are "in the words of
Xenophanes."
The fragment of Xenophanes which Clement
has in mind contends that the Aethiopians believe that their gods
are snub-nosed and black, while the Thracians think that theirs
have gray eyes and red hair: "Even so do they represent their
soul and imagined them possessed by the same emotions." Cf.
Xenophanes, Elegy and Iambus 1, 16, 202 (Xenophanes, trans.
Edmonds, LCL).
6 In Sappho there is either utter simplicity in a general description of beauty itself, in the gentle picture of beauty in Anactoria,
in regard to whom Sappho expresses the longing for "the sweet
sound of her footfall and the sight of the brightness of her beaming
face rather than all the chariots and armoured footmen of Lydia."
(Lyra Graeca 1, 38, second century papyrus, trans. J. M. Edmonds
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of momentary inner emotion reflected on the face. sweet beauty had once bloomed in him, like ivy
A similar form of characterization is to be found in a around a tree, that his forehead was white above his
description of the intensity of the reaction of the black eyebrows, his tears were brighter than those
beholder to beauty, in the registration of instantaneous of gray-eyed Athena, and his mouth was softer than
feeling at the sight of the beloved, as in Sappho.6
curd, and from his lips a voice flowed more sweetly
The pastoral Idylls of Theocritus employ the same than honey from the comb,10before he was bound by
device of momentary description. The poems contain love of Eunica.
many examples of this technique, as would be expected
Among the Roman lyric and elegiac poets, Catullus,
in view of the nature of his poetry, characterized as with a lyric directness reminiscent of Sappho, first
it is by miniature vignettes of pastoral song and mimes. sees his "shining Lesbia"1i in terms of his own reaction
Thus Simaetha sings of her mad love, complaining to her beauty in the words of the earlier poet.12
that by reason of its pangs,7 she has lost her beauty,
As the intensity of his feeling increases, however,
while Delphis, who is soon to leave her for another, the impression he conveys of the beauty of Lesbia,
gazes on her, then with eyes fixed on the ground, is "dulce ridentem" (51,5), is in the simplest phrases.
possessed by her beauty, her color, her loveliness, her Not an extended description occurs. She is "formosa,"
bright eyes. But almost as quickly the transitory she is "candida," she is "pulcherrima" like Dido in
moment of infatuation is past,8 and Simaetha in the Aeneid (1, 496), she surpasses all others in loveliloneliness complains bitterly to the moon of the man ness, she possesses within herself all the graces. His
who is "the heartless one."
capacity for incisive detail in ridicule, like that of
The most detailed description of this type of love Homer in the case of Thersites, leaves no doubt as to
madness occurs in an idyll, the Theocritean origin of his power for iconistic description in the portrait of
which is generally denied, but considered Hellenistic Quintia13or of the "amica Formiani," but his art in
in date,9 in which an unnamed oxherd laments the
1020, 21-26.
unfeeling Eunica, who stares at him in contempt from
2, 5: "desiderio meo nitenti."
head to foot, snorting with her lips, and looking at
51, 3-12:
him askance with her eyes (65,u,aatXota /3XE7o0vi3a),
"qui sedens adversus identidem te
spectat et audit
twisting her body, and laughing him to scorn. He,
dulce ridentem, misero quod omnis
in turn, replies, in a typical lover's complaint that a
throughout, LCL. For clarity and convenience of reference I use
this revised edition through the chapter.) The same simplicity
pervades the praise of the bride of Sappho's epithalamium and
becomes a regular part of the "schemata" of later epithalamia:
"Thy form (etaos) o bride, is all delight, thy eyes are of gentle
hue; thy fair face is overspread with love" (Lyra Graeca 1, 158).
Cf. Catullus 61, 6-10; 56-60; 187-191 for similar praise of the
bride. In later Greek lyric the same tone prevails, but the
beloved is described in detail. Cf. Elegy and Iambus, LCL 2,
Anacreontea 16, 1-25, and the imitation of these lines in the
iconistic description of Bathyllus, a boy favorite ( 17). The figure
of Eros also is prominent in this later Greek poetry. Moschus
delineates him thus I, 8-9, 12: his skin is flame colored, his eyes
"keen and burning," his heart evil, but "his tongue sweet, his
hair lovely, and his brow shameless" (after Lang).
The exaltation of physical prowess in Pindar likewise reflects
scattered observations of the same nature. For Aristecleides
of Aegina he utters words of praise. Nem. 3, 19-20. See Ishm.
7, 22-23 (for Strepsiades of Thebes, trans. J. W. Sandys, LCL):
"wondrous in strength is he and yet comely to look upon, and
he hath also courage no whit inferior to his frame."
6 Lyra Graeca 1, 2. See C. M. Bowra, Greek Lyric Poetry (2nd,
revised ed., Oxford, 1961), pp. 185-189 for a full discussion of
this poem and of the physical symptoms of love to be found
earlier in Archilochus and in Homer. See also Denys Page,
Sappho and Alcaeus (Oxford, 1955), pp. 19-33 for a critical
analysis of the same text. No detail of the appearance of the girl
is given, but every sense is appealed to, every momentary physical
aspect of the beholder is described. Thus Sappho records her
own feelings: "I am tongue-tied, in a moment a delicate fire
has overrun my flesh, my eyes grow dim and my ears sing, sweat
runs down me and a trembling takes me altogether, till I am as
green and pale as the grass."
72, 82-84; 2, 112-114.
82, 140-141.
9 20, 12-16. See Gow ad loc.
eripit sensus mihi; nam simul te,
Lesbia, aspexi, nihil est super mi
vocis in ore
lingua sed torpet, tenuis sub artus
flamma demanat, sonitu suopte
tintinnant aures, gemina teguntur
lumina nocte."
386, 1-4:
"Quintia formosast multis; mihi candida, longa,
rectast. haec ego sic singula confiteor,
totum illud formosa nego: nam nulla venustas
nulla in tam magnost corpore mica salis."
43, 1-5:
"Salve, nec minimo puella naso.
nec bello pede nec nigris ocellis
nec longis digitis nec ore sicco.
nec sane nimis elegante lingua
decoctoris amica Formiani."
For a recent discussion of this same material see K. Quinn,
Latin Explorations, (London, 1963) chap. II, "The Emergence
of a Form: the Latin Short Poem," pp. 59-83, esp. 66-71. Cf.
R. Ellis, A Commentary on Catullus (2nd ed., Oxford, 1889),
s.v. 86 and 43, and the parallels cited. It is not without significance to observe how Dracontius in the fifth century A.D.,
writing "de Raptu Helenae," puts into the mouth of Paris (in a
plea to the "candida Helena" on the island of Cyprus) almost
exactly Catullus' fundamental concept of Lesbia in his description
of Helen, but with the iconistic details added that are gradually
imposed on the earlier classical portrait of her beauty (516-526):
"Si talis erit quam forte merebor
uxorem, sic blanda genis sic ore modesto
sic oculis ornata suis sic pulchra decore
candida sic roseo perfundens membra rubore
sic flavis ornata comis sic longior artus
et procera regens in poplite membra venusta,
tali semper ego dignatus coniuge felix
non desim, famuler supplex et iussus adorem,
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VARIED LITERARY FORMS
the description of Lesbia is as subtle as Homer's and
as elusive and pervasive.
That he might have dwelt upon all the details of
Lesbia's beauty, but does not, is suggested by the
fact that, when he describes women whom he scorns,
he attributes to them conventional marks of beauty,
which do not, nevertheless, redeem their shortcomings. Thus Quintia may be "candida" [faircomplexioned], "longa" [tall], "recta" [well-shaped],
but she is not really "formosa" because in "tam
magno corpore" she possesses "nulla venustas, nulla
mica salis." The "amica Formiani" does not have a
small nose, a small foot, tapering fingers, dry mouth
and a refined tongue, and she, too, is lacking in that
intangible and indefinable "venustas," coupled with
animation ("mica salis"). In fairness it must be
added that Catullus'4 does not concern himself in
the least with "the mind's construction" in his lady's
face, although, as Ellis points out, "formosa" surely
implies not mere beauty of form or person, but a
general charm of gesture and expression.
If Catullus employs an economy of detail when
describing his Lesbia, we find a somewhat different
situation when we come to Propertius. The elegist,
in contrast, devotes himself wholeheartedly to depicting the momentary facial expression of Cynthia (and
of himself) in the manner of Hellenistic love poetry,
and of Ovid's Heroides. He furthermore delights in
praise of all aspects of Cynthia's physique. While
Catullus is almost free of such devices for Lesbia,
Propertius abounds in them.
Cynthia15 first snared him with her eyes, and love
forced him to abandon his proud look ("constantis . .
conubio servus veniam sub lege mariti
nocte dieque pavens quidnam velit illa iubere
quae specie fulgente micat
See C. J. Fordyce, Catullus (Oxford, 1961), note ad 86, especially
on the history of formosus by A. Ernout, Rev. de Phil. 21, (1947):
p. 65.
14 Cf., however, 64, 60-62, for the disillusionment described in
the desertion of Ariadne by Theseus. Catullus depicts the first
glimpse the girl has of the Athenian hero and the intensity of her
immediate love for him, expressed in her face, 64, 91-93: "non
prius exilio flagrantia declinavit lumina." Her terror at his
struggle with the Minotaur, 64, 100-102: "fulgore expalluit
auri"; then her heartbreak, as she gazes tearfully at the ship
receding from Naxos, leaving her utterly desolate; cf. also
Aegeus, 64, 219-220, 241-242. See also poem on Attis, 63, 48-49.
16 1, 1, 1-4.
"Cynthia prima suis miserum me cepit ocellis,
contactum nullis ante cupidinibus .
tum mihi constantis deiecit lumina fastus
et caput impositis pressit Amor pedibus
He is tireless in looking upon her, 1, 3, 19-20; (after H. E.
Butler throughout, LCL) cf. 1, 5, 21-22. Yet her changing color
(1, 6, 5-6) keeps him from sailing the Adriatic. Cf. also 1, 15,
In despair Propertius asks himself, does he give no
39-41.
indication of his love by changing color (1, 18, 17-18), no evidence
of faith on his countenance. His advice to the young lover is in
terms of his experience with Cynthia: should the lady ask for
anything do not refuse it with stern countenance (1, 10, 21-24,
"ingrata fronte").
69
lumina fastus"). Can such a face'6 dwell on this
earth? Her hair is yellow, her hand slender, her
figure full and tall, her walk stately. But it was not
her face, fair though it is that wins his heart'7 ("nec
me tam facies, quamvis sit candida") nor her hair,
nor her eyes, though they are twin torches and live
stars. It is the matchless beauty ("forma") of Helen,
come to earth a second time. As for his power to
describe'8 her, where else will she find anyone to sing
"her face, her hands, her dark eyes, and the softness
of her steps." The portrait is filled with iconistic
detail, and undoubtedly real, but the total picture
of Cynthia's loveliness is built around a comparison
with Helen, whose beauty had defied description in
the art of earlier poets. Ironically it is the very
essence of that "forma" and "facies" which Propertius
never quite conveys in his likeness of Cynthia. Phase
after phase of the affair, imagined or real, is recorded
by the suggested expression on the face, but the immediate effect which these descriptions produce is
one of consuming intensity of emotion in the poet.
Though he dwells on all aspects of the beauty of a
mistress whose every whim he seeks to satisfy, nowhere
does he achieve the incomparable impression which
the appearance of Lesbia has left in the poems of
Catullus by the complete absence of detail.
If we may for the moment depart from a chronological treatment of the lyric and elegiac poets, in
order to bring together certain closely related aspects
of our study, it might be helpful at this point to turn
to Ovid and to consider how he handles examples of
personal description. We have observed above that
Propertius describes his beloved Cynthia through a
comparison with Helen.
In the plays of Euripides, where the figure of Helen
looms so large, the total impression of her renowned
beauty is conveyed by allusions to her grace, her
lovely eyes. Apparently the dramatist, like Homer,
feels that no detailed likeness could ever be drawn.
Ovid's treatment of Helen follows in part the example
of Euripides, so that he often presents her through
the simple medium of description by the use of
"forma" or "facies" with no added detail. But Ovid
gives an impression of Helen and her compelling power
through another interesting device. Using a more
sophisticated approach, he presents her beauty in the
Heroides,"9in an exchange from two points of view,
16 2, 2, 3, 5-16.
"Cur haec in terris facies humana moratur?"
2, 3, 9, 13-14, 32-34. Great is the beauty of Cynthia but
her words are light (2, 5, 28).
18 2, 12, 23-24; cf. 2, 3,14, 31-32; 4, 3, 27-28; 4, 8, 53-56.
19Her. 16 and 17, which I would take to be Ovid's work. For
a recent discussion of this much-debated question see PaulyWissowa RE s.v. Ovidius Naso, 1925-1931, and the references
cited therein, esp. S. B. Clark, "The Authorship and the Date
of the Double Letters in Ovid's Heroides"; HSCP 19, (1908):
pp. 121-155. It may be of some importance to note in this
connection the close parallelisms in technique between the
descriptions of momentary appearance in the double Heroides
and those found in Ovid's other works. See appendix B 2.
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views reflect the interplay of the first type or general
description with the second type which "registers the
reaction" of the face. During the fortuitous absence
of Menelaus in Crete Paris pleads his love at Sparta2l.
He begs her to hear his plea with a face that is not
hard22 ("nec vultu cetera duro"), but rather with
one that suits her beauty ("formae conveniente
tuae"). The emphasis on the word "forma" is
maintained throughout the letter. Helen, the daughter of beautiful Leda, "more beautiful than her
mother" had enthralled him with her gift of love
("pulchrior illa"). Helen's face is indeed like that of
Venus on Mount Ida, and there is not a land that has
not heard of her loveliness ("facies"). Her beauty
("forma") deserves a better place than Sparta, and
his own beauty ("forma") will compare favorably
with that of Menelaus. He can only entreat her
"Ah, Helen," he asks, "do you
("formosa").
think that beauty of yours ("faciem") can be free
from fault? Either you must change your beauty
("faciem"), or you must needs not be hard. Fairness
and modesty are mightily at strife" ("lis est cum
forma magna pudicitiae"). Adept in the practice of
the art of love, Paris plays his cards adroitly and
beauty ("forma, facies, vultus") is the object of his
praise. Helen, in reply, is equally adept.23 At first
she indignantly reproves him for writing so passionately. Her defense of her own good name is direct:
"If I do not feign a gloomy countenance ("tristis
vultus") nor sit with stern brows grimly bent ("duris
torva superciliis") fama tamen clara est." She doubts
his good faith in his praise of her beauty, not, of
course, that her beauty ("facies") is not well known
to her-"aut mea sit facies non bene nota mihi."
She protests "his constant secret signals" from his
"almost speaking brows," and his eyes which her own
can scarcely meet. Every innuendo of momentary
facial reaction is in her answer, her blush at his
impetuosity at dinner, her signals to him that she
could not believe him. Though her "facies" is "rara,"
let it be another lady whom he seeks. Her beauty
("forma") is content to be approved of men, and
20 16, 1-2 (trans. G. Showerman throughout, LCL).
16, 299-300.
16, 11-12; see 16, 85-86,
271-272, 287-290.
23 17, 15-17, 38, 76-78:
21
22
137, 142, 191-192,
noto
cum modo me spectas oculis, lascive, protervis,
quos vix instantes lumina nostra ferunt",
81-84:
"A, quotiens digitis, quotiens ego tecta notavi,
signa supercilio paene loquente dari!
et saepe extimui ne vir meus illa videret
non satis occultis erubuique notis!"
89-90:
"Credere me tamen hoc oculo renuente negavi
ei mihi, iam didici sic ego posse loqui!"
205-206,
WORLD
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
Menelaus is far away24: "de facie metui, vitae confidit,
et illum/securum probitas, forma timere facit." Paris
may boast his courage and his deeds, but his face
("facies ista") belies his words, and Helen knows the
secret of his heart-and hers. This Ovidian view of
Helen, lightly held, is a masterpiece of insight into
the frailties of woman's heart and woman's beauty.
She, who in Homer is wondrously like to the immortal
gods in beauty, has descended to the level of ordinary
beings, and as Professor Rand25 puts it, "Ovid is
thinking out ancient history, the part the historians
do not record." This setting forth in Helen's letter
of every phase of Paris' infatuation for her in terms
of recorded facial expression, and, in turn, her own
reaction, is in the manner of Alexandrian love poetry,
and forms a connecting link between the description
in similar terms of Medea's love for Jason in Apollonius' epic, and the equally romantic description of
momentary appearance in the story of Achilles' love
for Deidamia in Statius' Achilleid.26 It must always
be remembered that no suggestion of detail or iconistic
likeness ever betrays the wit of Ovid's description of
Helen.
If Ovid's treatment of Helen follows the pattern
of Euripides in that he presents her through the simple
medium of description by the use of "forma" or
"facies" with no added detail, it likewise follows the
pattern of Apollonius in so far as he is concerned with
recording the momentary facets of Paris' infatuation
with her by letting Helen describe his constantly
changing and importunate facial expression. These
methods of portraiture are related to those of other
lyric and elegiac poets of his period, and are to be
compared with the techniques used in earlier Greek
lyric.
Ovid, to be sure,27delights in depicting the beauty
of womankind and, above all, Corinna, but he does
not adhere to the method found in Propertius' treatment of Cynthia. As his handling of the portrait
of Helen marks one characteristic way of delineating
physique, e.g., of registering reaction on the face, his
description of Lucretia in the Fasti28 marks another.
In this moving and most famous of his Roman stories,
he paints the beauty of a faithful wife, a beauty that is
not only that of body, but also of soul. Everything
about Lucretia delights Tarquin, her figure, her snowy
complexion, her yellow hair, her artless charm, her
look, her color, her lovely face. At his importunate
words Lucretia buries her face in her lap. The
gesture was becoming, writes Ovid, and likewise her
17, 93, 125-126, 173-174, 252.
Ovid and His Influence (Boston, 1928), p. 32.
26 See pp. 66-67.
Cf. the later portrait of Helen in the Dares
story of Troy, and in Malalas, J. Fuirst, Lit. Portrdt. p. 596, and
Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," pp. 120-121.
27Am. 1, 5, 9-10, 19-22; 1, 10, 13-14, 2, 5, 15-18, 33-34,
42-44, 51; 2, 8, 15-16; 2, 17, 7-10; 3, 11, 41-44.
28 2, 761-764; 773-774 (trans. J. G. Frazer throughout, LCL).
Cf. Fast. 2, 827-828; 845-846 (her death).
25 E. K. Rand,
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VARIED LITERARY FORAMiS
modest tears: for29"her face was worthy of its peer,
her soul": "et facies animo dignaque parque fuit."
This is the essence or summation of Ovid's concept
of "forma" and "facies," and he returns to the concept
over and over again30: "nec solam faciem, mores
quoque confer et artes." One might say that this
attitude is basically that of the physiognomists,3' such
as Eusthenes,32 who was skilled in learning the spirit
from the eyes. But the physiognomists insist on
every kind of photographic detail to attain their goal
of interpretation of character from the physique,
whereas no detail of physical description is needed to
impart the fundamental nature of beauty implied by
the word "facies" in Ovid's description of Lucretia.
By such concentration on a simple generic word or
by use of subtle implication in descriptions of momentary appearance the poets we have examined in widely
diverse areas of ancient poetry convey with the utmost
art an impression in characterization through description of physique, which would never be achieved by
any amount of accumulated iconistic detail.
II. SATIRE, EPIGRAM, AND FICTION; TECHNICAL
WRITINGS ON ASTROLOGYAND DREAM BOOKS
When we come to the general subject of satire,
which covers, of course, a considerable extent of territory embracing the works not only of those authors
whose writings are included in the formal category of
"satura,"33 but also of those representatives of other
literary forms, whose works show a definite satiric
slant or approach, we can readily see that we have
here a fertile field for the conscious or unconscious
application of the principles of physiognomy.
Let us glance for a moment at the Satires of Horace.
Here is a man who brings to the medium of satire that
disposition, that outlook on life,34which has become
29 2, 755-758.
Similarly on Claudia Quintia: "nec facies impar
nobilitate fuit" (Fast. 4, 304-305). Cf. Fast. 4, 309-310, 317-328.
Vindicated by the Mother Goddess she walked in the procession
with joyful face ("laeto vultu") 4, 343-344.
Cf. however,
Ars Am. 2, 201-202, when Ovid's advice to the lover is very
different in nature and didactic in tone: "imponat leges vultibus
illa tuis" (cf. Am. 1. 11, 17-18), "Laugh when she laughs. Weep
if she weeps." With kindly names, too, shortcomings may be
softened (Ars Am. 2, 657-662, after J. H. Mozley, LCL). Even
in the case of the ugliest (Ars Am. 1, 613-614): "nulli non sua
forma placet," and of the chaste (Ars Am. 1, 623): "delectant
etiam castas praeconia formae."
Furthermore never stop
praising her looks, her hair, her fingers, her tiny foot (Ars Am. 1,
621-622).
so Rem Am. 713. Cf. Med. Fac. 43-46; Ars Am. 2, 119-120.
3' Pseud-Arist. 805a.
32 AP 7, 661.
33 Sat. 1, 9, 60-66, esp. 63-66:
. . .vellere coepi
et pressare manu, lentissima bracchia, nutans,
distorquens oculos, ut me eriperet. male salsus
ridens dissimulare."
34 Ibid., 2, 5, 91-98, esp. 91-93:
. . .Davus sis comicus atque
stes capite obstipo, multum similis metuenti."
71
so familiar to the world at large through many
passages of self-revelation.35 It is not surprising
therefore that Horace's satiric expression should take
the form of good-natured fun directed not only at
others but also at himself. There is, for instance, the
highly amusing portrait of himself in his letter to
Albius36:
me pinguem et nitidum bene curata cute vises.
Then there is another, and perhaps more famous selfportrait in an Epistle, addressed to his book:
corporisexigui, praecanum,solibus aptum,
irasci celerem, tamen ut placabilis essem.37
He describes himself at an earlier age as possessing38:
nigros angusta fronte capillos.
On the other hand, as might be expected, the later
satirists, adopting an approach quite in contrast to
the good-natured self-appraisal of Horace, found in
the principles and theories of the physiognomists an
effective weapon for sharp criticism. Naturally we
think of Juvenal in this connection. He puts no
trust in faces, for expressions deceive, and a bold
front often conceals an ugly purpose39:
Frontis nulla fides; quis enim non vicus abundat
tristibus obscenis? . . .
hispida membraquidem et durae per bracchia saetae
promittunt atrocem animum.
Peribonius, however, is more genuine and open. "I
hand over to the fates the man who betrays his nature
in his face, and by his walk."
Juvenal is also a master of the technique of momentary characterization while at the same time borrowing
many of the features of iconistic portraiture. In the
case of the misery of Naevolus he asks:
Why is it, Naevolus,40that when I meet you, you so often
look gloomy ("tristis") and your forehead is knitted like
a beaten Marsyas ("fronte obducta"); you have a somber
face ("vultus gravis") and a bristling forest of unkept
hair; no brightness ("nitor") on your hide.
Ibid., 1, 3, 44-48:
strabonem
appellat paetum pater, et pullum, male parvus
Si CU1 filius est . . .
. . . hunc varum, distortis cruribus, illum
balbutit scaurum pravis fultum male talis."
36 Epist. 1, 4, 15.
"7 Ibid., 1, 20, 24-25.
Cf. Suetonius, Vita Horati. See appendix
E.
38Ibid., 1, 7, 25.
19Juv. 2, 8-16; 9, 1; 9, 130-133 (trans. G. G. Ramsay, throughout, LCL). Cf. also Phaedrus, who, in his fables, subscribes to
the same cynical physiognomical point of view as Juvenal (4,
2, 5-7): things are not always what they seem; the forehead first
of all deceives many. See 3, 4, 3-7; 4, 16, 7-8; and the anecdote
concerning Menander 5, 1, 9-16.
409, 12:
vultus gravis, horrida siccae
silva comae, nullus tota nitor in cute.
Similarly he adheres to the view that wise and prudent men may
be born in heavy, thick air, in the land of muttonheads.
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In epigram Martial also follows the iconistic tradition. Thus Zoilus, the former slave, now hated, is4':
Lucian's attack on the ignorant book collector, a
Syrian,45 and equally ludicrous are his descriptions of
the parasite46and various types of conventional, longCrine ruber, niger ore, brevis pede, lumine laesus
bearded philosophers.47
rem magnam praestas, Zoile, si bonus es.
As for Apuleius, he was for a long time credited with
Red hair, dark complexion, short foot, and bleary the authorship of the anonymous later Latin paraeyes are all details of description used for identification phrase48of Polemo's handbook on physiognomy. The
and for derogatory characterization. Candidus is work, attributed to Apuleius as the result of the
told of the effeminate nature of his wife's lover42:
misinterpretation by Albertus Magnus49 of a brief
passage in the little treatise0 has been shown to
Crine nitens, niger unguento, perlucidusostro
ore tener, latus pectore, crure glaber.
belong to the end of the third or the beginning of the
fourth
century after Christ, the tract of an unknown
Sleek, dark with ointment, shining in purple; softIn the genuine works of Apuleius, among
author.
mouthed, broad in the chest, but smooth in the calf is
passages
which
are pertinent to our subject, occurs
he who often clings shamelessly to your wife as her
one at the opening of his treatise on Plato and his
attendant.
Doctrine,5"in which he tells a dream of Socrates, in
Physiognomical signs, as Miss Misener points out,43
mark the illegitimate nature of certain children: at Nec. 11 (millionaires and money-lenders); Nigr. 11 (actors);
41; cf. 4; Philops. 5, 23, 24 (Socrates); Pr. Im. 1, 4; Salt.
ille simo nare, turgidis labris . . . palaestritae . . . Par.
74-75, 77; Somn. 6 (sculpture vs. education); Timon 16-17 (on
quartus cinaedi fronte, candido vultu . . . ex concu- a man taking a maid for his wife); 54 (Thrasycles); Cat. 16-17
bino Lygdo, hunc acto capite et suribus longis . . . (tyrant, money-lender); VH 2, 34 (dreams); Vit. Auct. 7, 10
(Cynic); 12 (Cyrenaic); 13 (Democritean, Heraclitan). Lucian
morionis filium."
Two writers coming somewhat later in the second does not lose sight of the importance of the orator's appearance
in public speaking. Cf. Salt. 35; and Rh. Pr. 15; 16; 19; 23, and
century, but roughly contemporary with each other, esp. 20.
both of whom provide relevant examples of the
45 Ind. 7: "Have someone take the second book of the Iliad
application of physiognomical principles, are Lucian and read it to you. Do not bother about the rest of the book,
and Apuleius. In Lucian we find an instance of the for none of it applies to you; but he has a description of a man
making a speech, an utterly ridiculous fellow, warped and
skillful use of physiognomical description for purposes deformed
in body (Ii. 2, 212). Now, then, if that man Therof amusing satire in his portrait of the professor of sites . . . Cf. Ind. 21 and esp. 23.
public speaking, possibly to be identified with Julius
46 Par. 41: "Pass on, and now see how the parasite looks.
In
the first place, is he not generous in his proportions, and pleasing
Pollux, the lexicographer:
If you turn to the other road, you will find many people'
and among them a wholly clever and wholly handsome
gentleman with a mincing gait, a thin neck, a languishing
eye, a honeyed voice, who distills perfume, scratches his
head with the tip of his finger, and carefully dresses his
hair, which is scanty now, but curly and raven black-an
utterly delicate Sardanapalus,a Cinyras, a very Agathon
. . . I am thus explicit that you may recognize him by
those tokens, and may not overlook a creature so marvellous, and so dear to Aphrodite and the Graces...
"He would address you . . . tossing back what
hair is still left him, faintly smiling in that sweet and
tender way which is his wont."44 Equallv biting is
4122, 54.
42 12, 38.
436, 39. Cf. Misener, "Iconistic Portraits," p. 115. 8, 53;
cf. 1, 64; 11, 102; 3, 42. He follows here the views of Horace and
Ovid. 4, 6, 2; 4, 14, 11; 4, 35, 1; 7, 12, 1; 10, 64, 2; 6, 10, 6;
7, 87, 9; 5, 37, 1-17; 2, 11, 1-5; Miss Misener remarks (ibid., p.
114 and notes ad loc.) in her survey of iconistic portraits that
we must bear in mind their double-edged character. Epithet
may be piled on epithet, and accumulation, supported by brevity,
produces the trenchant effect of satire and epigram.
" Rh. Pr. 11-12 (trans. A. M. Harmon throughout, LCL).
For examples of various types of portraits see Abd. 28 (sex
differences); Alex, 3; Anach. 25 (young man in the prime of
condition); Bacch. 2 (Dionysus and Silenus); Bis Acc. 28 (oratory
on the Syrian); D. Meretr. 1; 2; 3; D. Mort. 1; 9; 10; 24; 25
(Thersites); Dem. Enc. 1 (Thersagoras); Demon. 18; Deor. Conc.
4 (Dionysus); Ep. Sat. 1, 24 (on the rich); Eun. 7; Gall. 14
(Simon); JTr. 30 (Apollo); Nav. 2 (young Egyptian), 6, 10;
in his complexion, neither dark nor fair of skin; for the one
befits a woman, and the other a slave; and besides has he not a
spirited look, with a fiery glance like mine, high and bloodshot?
It is not becoming, you know, to go into battle with a timorous
and womanish eye. Would not such a man make a fine soldier in
life and a fine corpse, if he should die?"
47 Fug. 4 (philosophy
and sham philosophers): "There are
some, Zeus, who occupy a middle ground between the multitude
anid the philosophers. In deportment, glance, and gait they are
like us, and similarly dressed; as a matter of fact, they want to
be enlisted under my command and they enroll themselves under
nmyname, saying that they are my pupils, disciples and devotees."
Cf. 19: "In irascibility, pettishness, and proneness to anger they
are beyond little children; indeed, they give no little amusement
to onlookers, when their blood boils up in them from some trivial
reason so that they look livid in color, with a reckless, insane
stare and foam (or rather venom) fills their mouths." In Icar.
29 (cf' 5; 10; 21) the philosophers appear thus: "Then cloaking
themselves in the highsounding name of Virtue, elevating their
eyebrows, wrinkling up their foreheads and letting their beards
grow long, they go about hiding loathsome habits very like actors
in tragedy. For philosophers see Cyn. 1; 14; 17; 19; 20; Eun. 8;
Gall. 10, Herm. 18; 19; 86; JTr. 16; 26; Par. 29; Philops. 29;
Pisc. 12; 14; Pro Merc. Cond. 12; 25; 33; Symp. 7; 16; 28.
Additional references include: Cat. 3; 22; Eun. 7 (Favorinus?);
8; 10; Dom. 17; Hist. Conscr. 8; 13; Icar. 22; JTr. 1; 9; 14; 45;
Lapith. 18; Nigr. 21; 26; Par. 48; 50; Pereg. 3; 6; Philops. 18;
34; Rh. Pr. 6; 9; Symp. 2-3; 10; Tim. 13; 16; 26; 27; 46; 47;
VH 1.
48 F6rster, SP 1, pp. cxxxvii-cxlv.
49 De Anim. 1, 2-3.
60 Forster, SP 2, p. 49.
61 One might cite Apol. 4; 15; 16; 43; 59, as examples of descriptions in which qualities of character are connected with physical
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VARIED LITERARY FORMS
which the philosopher thought that he beheld a
cygnet flying from an altar in the Academy, sacred to
Cupid, and settling in his lap. Afterwards a fullfledged swan, it winged its way to heaven, entrancing
the ears of men and gods with the music of its song.
When Socrates mentioned the dream to some of his
friends, Ariston happened to be present for the purpose
of presenting Plato for instruction. As Socrates cast
his eyes on Plato and saw from his external appearance
his inner disposition, he said, "This, my friends, is the
swan from the altar of Cupid."
The description of Lucius in Apuleius' novel, The
Golden Ass,52 is an excellent iconistic portrait, which
lends itself to physiognomical interpretation. When
Byrrena, his mother's kinswoman, meets him in the
market place, she observes that he is tall, but nicely
proportioned, slender without being thin, his complexion is rosy but not too red, his yellow hair is
simply arranged, his gray eyes are watchful and enappearance, though they are not always strictly physiognomical
in nature. Particularlyimportantfor its physiognomicalimplications is Apol. 24. See also Met. 1, 6; 19; 20; 23; 5, 22; 9, 30;
10, 2; 10.
The exaltation of beauty in the hero and heroine of the Greek
romances is familiar, and the idea that the eye is the mirror of
the soul occursfrequently. I do not proposeto discuss this aspect
of portraiture. E. Rohde in Der GriechischeRoman und seine
Vorldufer(3rd ed. revised, Leipzig, 1914), has analyzed it in
detail in Part IV, Die einzelnensophistischenLiebesroman,pp.
388-554; see also K. Jax, Die WeiblicheSchonheitin der griechischen Dichtung (Innsbruck, 1933), chap. VII, "Der Roman,"
pp. 160-178, and J. Fiirst, Lit. Portrat., pp. 431-433. The
iconistic form of descriptionis to be found also, as Miss Misener,
"Iconistic Portraits," p. 122, points out. In Achilles Tatius'
Leucippeand Clitophon(ca. A.D. 300), for example, the portrait
is both detailed and physiognomical in characterization. 1, 4:
When Clitophon beholds Leucippe "she blinds his eyes by the
beauty of her face. She was like that picture of Europa on the
bull which I saw just now: an eye at once piercingand voluptuous;
golden hair in golden curls; black eyebrows-jet black; pale
cheek; the pallor shading in the centre into a ruddy hue, like
that stain wherewith the Lydian women tint ivory; and a mouth
that was a rose-a rosebud just beginning to uncurl its petals.
Directly I saw her, I was lost; for beauty (K&XXoS) wounds
deeper than any arrowand strikes throughthe eyes into the soul:
the eye is the passage for love's wound (b4OaXpAos-yap
Wo5 4pcnrKc
rpaclcarT. I admired her tall form, I was stupified by her beauty,
I showed my fear by the beating of my heart, I stared shamelessly
at her, but I was ashamed to be caught doing so. Try as I
would to drag my eyes away from gazing on her, they would not
obey me, but remained fixed by the force of her beauty, and at
length they won the day against my will" (trans. S. Gaselee
throughout, LCL), cf. 1, 1; 1, 3; 1, 13; Xenophon (2nd-3d cent.
A.D.) 1, 2, 5 (Antheias); cf. 2, 35; 3, 4; Heliodorus (2nd-3d cent.
A.D.) 7, 10 (Theagenes); cf. 2, 35; Longus (2nd-3d cent. A.D.)
1, 13 (Daphnis); 1, 17 (Chloe); cf. 1, 20, 1 on aKupcvrwr&rew[to be
otoroutZp r&s 66pi' [to arch the eyebrows] in Phrynichus, Forster, SP 1, p. 300, frg. 10, and 1, p. cxlii, addendum on
2, p. 300, 14. See also Chariton, Chaereasand Callirrhoe(before
150 A.D.), Bk. 6 on Callirrhoe:"But when night came, the king
(Artarxerxes) was again on fire, and Love kept reminding him
of those glorious eyes, and the beautiful face of Callirrhoe. He
praised her hair, her walk, her voice, the way she entered the
courtroom,the way she stood, the way she spoke, her very silence,
her embarrassment,and her weeping" (trans. W. E. Blake).
angry] =
62 Met. 2, 102.
73
dowed with a flashing glance just like an eagle's, his
face is handsome in all its features, and he has a graceful and unaffected gait. The physiognomists emphasize good proportions53 as one of the first essentials
of upright character, while yellow hair54and a flashing
glance55 constitute the marks of intelligence and
stoutness of heart. A rosy complexion56 is auspicious
and gray eyes57 belong to a bold spirit, as in lions and
eagles.
Up to this point in the present chapter we have
been dealing with authors whose works contain
descriptive passages illustrative of the principles of
physiognomics. We turn now to certain writers on
more or less technical subjects, who, while not themselves embodying the techniques of physical descriptions, attest, by means of their direct or indirect
allusions, to the general contemporary interest in the
"science." Included in this latter group are various
lexicographers, such as Julius Pollux58 and Phrynichus,59 whose interest in the subject is demonstrated
by a goodly number of relevant examples, some
excerpted from known earlier sources and some from
unknown.
Physiognomics in the classical period was mainly
descriptive. In the medieval period the predictive
aspect was more fully developed, and that fact
involved it with the subject of astrology. It is not
within the province of this study to explore in any
detail the place of astrology in the history of ancient
physiognomy. On the other hand, Sextus Empiricus,60
the physician and skeptical philosopher, in his Outlines
of Pyrrhonism attacks the subject of astrology, and at
the same time approves and indicates a ready acceptance of the ideas of the physiognomists: "Seeing then
that men vary so much in body ... men also differ
from one another in respect of the soul itself, for the
body is a kind of expression of the soul, as in fact
is proved by the science of physiognomy."
His stand against astrology is unrelenting. It is
not reasonable, he argues,6' that life is ordained
according to the stars. Likewise the astrologers should
be put to shame when they undertake to associate the
shapes and characters of men with the signs of the
heavens. Astrology as a significant political force has
been admirably treated in recent years by F. H.
Cramer62 in Astrologv in Roman Law and Politics.
63Pseud.-Arist.814a. See HSCP 46, (1935): p. 64.
54 Pseud.-Arist. 809b; Pol. 250.
55 Pseud.-Arist.
812b.
Pseud.-Arist. 806b; 807b. Pol. 244; 246.
67 Pseud.-Arist. 812b.
58 See the passages cited by F6rster, SP 2, pp. 281-282, esp.
Onom.2, 135.
69 See Forster, SP 2, pp. 300-301.
60Pyr. 1, 85; cf. Math. 5, 95, 96, 97, 99, 101.
61 1, 85 (trans. R. G. Bury
throughout, LCL).
62 The best general account is Astrologyand Religion among
the Greeksand Romans by F. Cumont (London and New York,
1912). Much important material has been published by 0.
Neugebauer, The Exact Sciences in Antiquity (2nd ed., Copen68
Seite 76
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)He investigates the rise and growing interest in
the subject in the Latin world, after its beginnings
in the Hellenistic period. He discusses the conversion
of Republican Rome to the study (150-44 B.C.),
even going so far as to consider the "astrologers as
the powers behind the throne" from Augustus to
Domitian, and analyzes the place of astrology in
Rome from Nerva to the death of Severus Alexander
(A.D. 96-235).
If the popularity of the subject of physiognomy is
attested by the many references to it on the part of
those who approve of it and accept its validity, its
popularity can also be surmised from the observations
of its detractors. That the doctrines of the physiognomists could be eyed with suspicion may be
inferred from the writings of Artemidorus, who
flourished toward the end of the second century. To
be sure, Artemidorus' special field of activity lay in
the interpretation of dreams, a subject highly regarded in antiquity, and his Oneirocriticus is the outstanding treatise on that topic. He naturally looked
with ill-disguised concern on any competition that
might be offered to his particular skill.
In discussing those things which are to be believed,
he warns63 us that whatever dreams come from the
gods are reliable, next those dreams which come from
priests, because they are honored among men after
the gods, then after kings, rulers, parents, and
teachers. Parents bring us into existence, and teachers
instruct us how to live. Thirdly the seers are to be
trusted, at least such as are not given to deception.
But whatever the followers of Pythagoras may say, or
the physiognomists, or the diviners from dice or from
cheese, or by a sieve, their words are lies and unsubhagen, 1957). See Cramer's preface for bibliographical material.
We know from Cicero (Div. 2, 99) that Panaetius (2nd cent.
B.C.), alone among the Stoics rejected astrology as a science.
Posidonius, on the other hand, born in Syria, and coming to Rome
in 87 B.C., is called by St. Augustine (C.D. 5, 2) "fatalium
siderum assertor," and enhanced in a powerful fashion for his
own day and for a century more the influence of astrology among
highly educated and thoughtful people. The fatalism of its
tenets fitted well the Stoic thinking on the principate, and was
warmly embraced, as Cumont puts it (ibid., 99-100): "The
power of this sidereal theology, founded on the ancient beliefs of
Chaldaean astrologers, transformed in the Hellenistic Age under
the twofold influence of astronomic discoveries and Stoic thought,
and promoted, after becoming a pantheistic sun-worship, to the
rank of official religion of the Roman Empire, preached on the
one hand by men of letters and by men of science in centres of
culture, diffused on the other hand among the bulk of people by
the servitors of the Semitic, Persian or Egyptian gods, it is
finally patronized by the emperors who find in it at once a form
of worship suitable for all their subjects and a justification of
their autocratic pretensions."
63 2, 69 cf. 1, 1. Passages pertaining to dreams about various
parts of the body, e.g., 1, 17 (large head); 1, 18 (hair); 1, 20
(horse hair); 1, 23 (forehead); 1, 24 (ears); 1, 25 (eyebrows);
1, 26 (eyes); 1, 27 (nose); 1, 28 (cheeks); 1, 30 (philosopher's
beard); 1, 40 (shoulders); 1, 41 (breasts) actually show little in
common with the interpretations found in the physiognomical
handbooks.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
stantial. They bewitch and defraud those whom they
chance to meet.
If the proponents of the science of physiognomy in
the second century A.D., are widely represented in
various types of Greek and Roman literature, we may
now explore to what extent this subject enjoyed a
certain popularity in the last major period under consideration, namely the fourth century of the Christian
Era.
VIII. PHYSIOGNOMICS IN THE
FOURTH CENTURY A.D.
The final chapter of this volume reviews the nature
and place of the study of physiognomics at the end of
the classical era. The discussion of the revival of
interest in physiognomy in the fourth century will
center around the figure of the emperor Julian (who
wrote on the subject), and writers associated with him
whose use of such ideas is directed often toward the
praise or blame of the emperor. Such observations on
physiognomy occur in the writings of the Greek
sophist Adamantius, who made a paraphrase of
Polemo's work (already treated in Chapter I), in
Oribasius, Julian's physician, who discusses physiognomy in his medical tracts, in Gregory of Nazianzus,
the Church Father, who uses it as a basis for a vituperative portrait of Julian. Ammianus Marcellinus,
the historian, follows the pattern of Suetonius in his
imagines of the later emperors, notably in his encomiastic description of Julian.
This study includes, finally and briefly, an analysis
of physiognomical material found in the Church
Father Ambrose (on the proper duties and bearing of
a Christian), and in Nemesius of Emesa (in the
Nature of Man, a discussion of Galen's ideas on the
connection of the soul with the temperament of the
body)-to name but two writers-which reflects the
ideas current in the Christian as well as in the pagan
thinking of the fourth century in regard to the relation
of man's inner nature and outward appearance, and
on the relation of man to his environment and the
effect of that environment on his physique and
personality.
First of all, let us consider the contribution of
medical literature to the subject of physiognomics in
the fourth century. The period was one of significant
medical activity, and the most famous doctor of the
time was Oribasius, friend and physician of the
Emperor Julian. Oribasius was born in Pergamum in
A.D. 325 and his time of literary activity falls in the
second half of the fourth century. He compiled a vast
medical encyclopedia in some seventy books, of which
approximately one-third survives, called the Iatrikai
Synagogai. In addition he wrote a summary of his
work, which is also extant, as well as a volume on home
remedies. These volumes have considerable historical
value in that Oribasius quotes at length from previous
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THE FOURTH CENTURY A.D.
writers, and honors above all the work of Galen in the
second century. Adamantius, whom F6rster identified
with the physiognomist, appears as an authority on
Weightsand Measures' and for medications. Oribasius
also quotes Adamantius five times with reference to
such ailments as scurvy, gangrene, and burns.2 It is to
Galen, however, that Oribasius is much more deeply
indebted. He draws extensively on Galen's work on
the humors in his own essay "Concerning the humors
according to Hippocrates drawn from Galen." From
Galen's views he excerpts observations on the presence
of phlegm, which marks the disposition as3 a&o,u ov
-rE KaL 3X66Lp
He is also greatly indebted to
KcPLOKaK7pOv
Galen for material in connection with his analysis of
that structure of the body which represents the best
"krasis."4 This is essentially the Aristotelian point of
view: namely, that "the best-blended person is between the extremes of thinness and fatness, softness
and hardness, warmth and cold. In soul likewise he
is midway between rashness and cowardice, slowness
and recklessness, pity and envy. He is kind, affectionate, humane, and prudent."
It is evident that Oribasius has drawn on that part
of Galen's essay which has to do with the influence of
location and atmospheric conditions upon the character of a people. In this essay, it may be recalled,
Galen pointed out that such qualities as rashness,
courage, and hasty judgment, possibly exemplified in
the case of the Celts and the Germans, or the Thracians
and the Scythians, were related to the regions in which
these people lived.5 Oribasius' indebtedness to Galen
is again revealed in his citations from Plato's Timaeus6
that have to do with importance of the humors which
circulate through the body by either preserving or
upsetting the proper equilibrium of temperament,
which creates such varied qualities as impatience and
languor, rashness and timidity, forgetfulness and
dullness. By quoting these passages from Galen,
Oribasius transmits to his own day and later periods
the essential views of Galen on the principles of
physiognomy, especially in his emphasis on the
I Orib. Syn. 2,59 ((Euvres d'Oribase, ed. Bussemaker and
Daremberg, Paris, 1851-1876) 5, p. 85. I use this edition for
convenience of reference, though the more recent critical edition
of Oribasius, as yet incomplete, edited by J. Raeder, Corpus
MediocorumnGraecorum (Leipzig, 1922-1933) should be consulted
for much of this material in volume 61, 62, and especially 63.
2Syn, 3, 24; 3, 28; 3, 29; 3, 36; 7, 6 (B. and D. 5, 109; 5, 111,
112; 5, 114; 5, 335; 6, 137.
3 Mixt. 2, 6 (Kuhn 1, 643); Orib. 21, 6 (B. and D. 3, 18) and
Syn. 5.44 (B. and D. 5, 245). See A rs Medica 11, Kuhn 1, 336.
4Mixt. 2, 1 (Kuhn 1, 576); Orib. 21, 5 (B. and D. 2, 11-12);
Syn. 5, 43 (B. and D. 5, 241). Cf. TAPA 76 (1945): p. 298 for
this whole passage.
5 Mixt. 2, 6 (Kuhn 1, 627-628); Orib. 21, 6 (B. and D. 3,
21-22); cf. also Mixt. 2, 6 (Kuhn 1, 625-626); Orib. 21, 6 (B.
and D. 3, 16-17) and Syn. 5, 44 (B. and D. 5, 242-245).
6 86e-87a.
Galen, Anim. Mor. Corp. Temp. 6 (Kuhn 4, 789);
Orib. 54,6 (B. and D. 3, 214) where he is dealing with the injury
to the soul.
75
doctrine of the humors, and the Aristotelian concept
of the well-blended man.
We have called attention to the fact that Ammianus
followed the example of Tacitus in making extensive
use of descriptions of the second type, i.e., where the
immediate mental and emotional reaction suggested
on the countenance is briefly described by the historian. We observed certain features and variations of
this type of description having to do with the momentary appearance of men and women, drawn from all
areas of society.
That Julian, like Scipio, created awe in the minds
of the vanquished is demonstrated by the experience
of Honorius,7 who, "summoned to a conference by the
Emperor, whom he worshipped with trembling eyes,
was overcome by the appearance of the victor."
While, as we have said, Ammianus follows Tacitus'
method in his use of examples of the second type,
referred to above, we may notice, on the one hand,
that the frequency of their use is not quite as great as
in Tacitus, and, on the other hand, that the descriptions do not so easily fall into well-defined categories.
What is rather more interesting, however, is that in a
fair number of instances we find the descriptions of a
man about to speak before a group or assembly. In
other words we have here, ipso facto, the practical
application of the principles of theoretical rhetorical
training. This device of description (e.g., Livy, 45,
10) marks, then, a connecting link between the
theoretical material on the subject of gesture and
facial expression found in Cicero and Quintilian and
the actual delivery as recorded by Cicero in the
Brutus and by the historians. It is a type especially
common in Tacitus.8 The appearance of a commander
before his army, or conversely the appearance of
soldiers before their general or before the enemy, often
calls for this kind of description, especially in Livy,
Quintus Curtius Rufus, Tacitus and Ammianus
Marcellinus.9 But the reason for Ammianus' adoption
of the Suetonian method of iconistic description is
clear, since he was surely influenced by the doctrines
of the physiognomists of his own day, as the portraits
in the earlier biographies of Suetonius appear to have
been. It is important, moreover, to remember that
he was acquainted with the widespread belief in
astrology (in connection with which he took Julian to
task for too much reliance on dreams and omens)10and
that he was familiar with the physiognomical handbooks of the day, a fact which is shown by that passage
wherein he describes the soldiers watching Julian as
he was created Caesar by Constantius in A.D. 355.
7 17, 10, 9; cf. 21, 9, 8.
8 Ann. 4, 15; 12, 18; 16, 29; Hist. 1, 16-17; 2, 48; 4, 40; 4, 43.
9 See M. L. W. Laistner, The Greater Roman Historians (Berkeley, 1947), pp. 141-161 for a recent general discussion of Ammianus; also E. A. Thompson, The Historical Work of Ammianus
Marcellinus (Cambridge, [Eng.], 1947).
10Laistner, ibid., pp. 152, 159 and notes 26 and 48 for the
relevant passages in Ammianus.
Seite 78
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)"Gazing long and earnestly on his eyes, at once
terrible and full of charm, and on his face, attractive
in its unusual animation, they divined what manner
of man he would be, as if they had perused those
ancient books, the reading of which discloses from
bodily signs the inward qualities of the soul.""1 In
Ammianus
Julian was:
(1) "mediocris staturae," which indicates "the
greatest acuity of sense, and the greatest
general effectiveness, for-the movements of
the blood, not having a long distance to travel,
the greatest
easily reach the reason-thus
tenacity of purpose and the greatest acuity of
sense."'12
(2) "ab ipso capite usque unguium summitates
liniamentorum recta compage," which is a sign
of a good and just character.'3
(3) "venustate oculorum micantium flagrans, qui
mentis eius angustias indicabant," which is a
sign of a "cogitator magnarum rerum."14
(4) "ore paulo maiore labro inferiore demisso,"
which is like the mouth of a lion, and one must
attribute to its possessor daring and all the
other qualities of character associated with the
lion (a protruding lower lip indicates a tendency
to vanity).'5
(5) "naso erectissimo," which is a sign of much
vigor and thoughtfulness'6 (Adamantius also
tells us that straightness of nose betrays lack of
control in the tongue'7 and Ammianus makes
this comment on Julian'8: "linguae fusioris et
admodum raro silentis").
15, 8, 16.
25, 4, 22. "Figura tali situque membrorum. mediocris erat
staturae, capillis tamquam pexis et mollibus, hirsuta barba in
acutum desinente vestitus, venustate oculorum micantium
flagrans, qui mentis eius argutias indicabant, superciliis decoris,
et naso rectissimo, ore paulo maiore, labro inferiore demisso,
opima et incurva cervice, umeris vastis et latis, ab ipso capite
usque unguium summitates, liniamentorum recta compage, unde
viribus valebat et cursu."
The figure and proportion of his body were as follows: He was
of medium stature. His hair lay smooth as if it had been combed,
his beard was shaggy and trimmed as to end in a point, his eyes
were fine and full of fire, an indication of the acuteness of his
mind. His eyebrows were handsome, his nose very straight,
his mouth somewhat large with a pendulous lower lip. His neck
was thick and somewhat bent, his shoulders large and broad.
From his head to the ends of his finger-nails he was well proportioned, and as a result was strong and a good runner. (trans.
J. C. Rolfe throughout, LCL). Pseud.-Arist. 813b.
13 Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Pol. 268; Adamant. 408-409; 411; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 119-120.
14 Pol. 148; Adamant. 328; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 50.
Cf.
Pseud.-Arist. 807b; Pol. 144; J. A. Cramer, Anecdota Graeca
(codd. manuscriptis Bibliothecae regiae parisiensis 4 vols.,
Oxford, 1839-41), p. 255; Adamant. 305.
15 Pol. 224; 226; Adamant. 374; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 67.
16 Pol. 228; Adamant. 376; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 70-71.
17 Adamant. 376.
18 25, 4, 17.
12
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
(6) "umeris vastis et latis," which is a sign of
fortitude."9
(7) "opima et incurva cervice." Although this may
be regarded as indicative of affectation,20 and
is generally a very unfavorable sign, a thick
neck also is a sign of fierce temper, as in bulls.'
In the light of his characteristics Julian might well,
like Augustus, be compared with the lion,22thus contradicting the impression given by Gregory23of a man
endowed with unpleasant physical features. This
whole description is linked with the enumeration of his
virtues, "temperantia, prudentia, iustitia, fortitudo,
vir profecto heroicis confelicitas, liberalitas-a
numerandus ingeniis." Indeed Ammianus' portrait is
of such an encomiastic nature-"ad laudativam paene
materiam pertinebit"24-that the treatment of Julian
occupies a unique place in the total plan of the history.
While it is clear that Ammianus followed the annalistic
form of Tacitus' histories, it is equally apparent that
he drew upon the literary "schema" of biography, and,
trained carefully in rhetorical theory, followed also
strict rules of the encomium prescribed for the speech
in honor of a ruler. Praise of personal appearance is an
essential "topos" in the "laudatio," and finds its place
here just as it does in Claudius MXIamertinus'
Gratiarum
Actio Iuliano.25
'9Pseud.-Arist. 807a; 808a; 810b; Pol. 214; 268; Adamant.
364; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 78; 2, 119. Cf. Amm. Marc. 22,
14, 3: "ridebatur . . . ut homo brevis humeros extentans
angustos." See Pseud.-Arist. 813a; Pol. 262; Adamant. 400;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 100.
20 Pol. 258; Adamant. 367.
21 Pseud.-Arist. 811a; Adamant. 366; 370.
Cf. Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 72.
22
Pseud.-Arist. 809b.
23 Or. 5, 23, S. Gregorii Theologi vulgo Nazianzeni Opera omnia,
"Opera omnia quae extant vel eius nomine circumferuntur"
(Paris, Benedictines of Saint-Maur, 1778-1840), p. 161.
24 25, 4.1; 16, 1, 3.
M. J. Kennedy has analyzed carefully in
The Literary Work of Ammianus (Lancaster, Pa., 1912), p. 56
the nature of this laudatio as a "biography in brief, a detached
passage of absolutely personal information concerning Julian,
and could be removed in entirety without affecting in the slightest
degree the record of historical events."
25 A.
Baehrens, XII Panegyrici Latini (Leipzig, 1911) 3,
pp. 131-156, esp. c. 6. The encomiastic literature of this period
lauds the dignity of the appearance, the tranquillity of the countenance, the nobility of the eyes. Julian himself in his panegyric
on Constantius praises the appearance of his cousin with the
statement (F. K. Hertlein, Iuliani Imperatoris Quae Supersunt
Leipzig, 1875-1876), Or. 1, 10c, that he necessarily had to have
the upbringing of a king to train his body to strength and power,
health and beauty, and to prepare his soul for courage, justice,
moderation, and wisdom. Cf. also his heroic deeds of Constantius
(Or. 2, 101b) and his panegyric on Eusebia, first wife of Constantius (Or. 3, 109d). The life of Constantine ascribed to Eusebius
(F. A. Heinichen, Eusebii Pamphili Scripta Historica Leipzig,
1868-1870) 2, 1, 19 praises in similar fashion the person of
Constantine for grace and beauty and height; he so far surpassed
his contemporaries in strength that he was a source of fear to
them; cf. also his appearance at the Council of Nicaea, where his
piety and fear of God was evident in his downcast eyes, the blush
on his face, and his walk. He was outstanding among all those
present in his height and beauty, in the dignity of his bearing,
Seite 79
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THE FOURTH CENTURY A.D.
Another literary device employed by Ammianus is have added this beard, since I am not handsome. . . . And
you wish to learn something of what is usually not
the use of "exempla virtutis et vitiorum" drawn from if
mentioned, my chest is heavy and shaggy with hair, just
earlier Roman history for purposes of comparison and as the breasts of lions who are rulers over the wild beasts,
contrast.26 Thus when Julian was made Caesar by nor have I ever made it smooth, . . . where you are all
Constantius in the palace in A.D. 355, he was the handsomeand tall and beardless.32FurthermoreI entered
object of jibes from envious courtiers who were jealous your city by choice with a long beard, whereas it was
possible for me to come, if not a youth in years, at least
of his successes in Gaul. A "she-goat, not a man," a stripling in manner
of softness of countenance.33But
they called him, "a hairy fellow, a monkey in purple." my nature does not permit me to cast my eyes in all
"But," remarks the historian, "as the greatest glory is directions wantonly, so that I may seem beautiful to you
always subjected to envy, so we read of the faults and at least in face, if not indeed in soul.34
crimes of the illustrious leaders of old, which, even if
If Julian is inclined to be somewhat ruthless in his
they did not exist, the malicious constantly held use of physical description for satiric purpose, no less
against them." He cites as examples Cimon, son of so is Gregory of Nazianzus, who attacks the Apostate
Miltiades, Scipio Aemilianus, and last of all, Pompey, in two bitter invectives. The Cappadocian Church
of whom it was said by his detractors, when nothing Father (A.D. 330-390), bishop of Constantinople,
else of blame could be uncovered against him, that he eloquent preacher, prolific letter writer, and poet of
was guilty of two laughable and ridiculous habits, considerable ability, had been a fellow student of
namely that he used to scratch his head with one Julian at Athens and had had an opportunity of
finger, and that, to cover up an ulcer, he wore a white observing him at first hand. Like Ammianus, who
bandage around his leg. The first habit, they sug- took part in Julian's campaign against the Persians,
gested, showed that he was dissolute and effeminate, Gregory had studied the Emperor, and thus we have
and, the second, that he was eager to start a revolu- two portraits of Julian from entirely opposing points
tion.27 Julian himself observes in his satire on the of view. Moreover, Libanius, the famous sophist of
Caesars28 that it was indeed not strange that Caesar Antioch, was on the closest terms with Julian during
overcame Pompey, who used to scratch his head with the months when he resided in Antioch, preparing for
his finger tip and in other respects resembled more a his attack on the Persians in the winter of A.D. 362-363.
fox than a lion.
For Libanius, Julian was the bright hope of the
This use of descriptions of personal appearance for survival of Greek studies in a Christian world, and the
purposes of blame or praise occurs repeatedly in the death of the young Emperor was a hard blow to the
Emperor Julian's satires29 and resembles similar pagan rhetorician. His funeral oration on Julian and
iconistic portraiture in Lucian.30 Such satire is his picture of Julian as a student must be weighed
especially sharp in the Misopogon, or Beard Hater, in against the disparaging remarks of Gregory. Libanius
which Julian, in attacking the luxury and excesses of describes him as a grandson of an emperor, nephew of
the people of Antioch, ridicules his own appearance :" an emperor, cousin of an emperor, neither strutting
I have [he says] many reasons for finding fault with in a pompous manner, nor giving annoyance, nor
myself, and I shall begin with my face, which nature did expecting to receive attention by reason of the number
not make particularly handsome or shapely or radiant, of his attendants, but going to school in common
and for that reason out of perversity and contrariness I dress, with an eyebrow not scornful of others.35 At
Athens he performed brilliantly as a speaker, but was
and remarkable strength and vigor, all of which revealed the
excellent qualities of his mind (ibid. 2, 3, 10; cf. 2, 4, 53). This
modest about it all, for indeed there was no subject on
life is more in the nature of a panegyric than a piece of strict
which
he held forth without blushing.36
Cf. also Athanasius on the Life of St. Anthony,
historical writing.
PG 26, 940A. Gregory of Nyssa on St. Macrina, PG 46, 964
A-B; id. on St. Gregory Thaumaturgus PG 46, 934 D; also
Pulcheria PG 46, 870 B; St. Ambrose on his brother Satyrus 1,
52; Sulpicius Severus on the Life of St. Martin 27; Jerome on the
Life of St. Hilarion 4.
26 Laistner, p. 147.
27
17, 11, 4. The first trick of Pompey is mentioned by Plutarch
in his life of Pompey (48, 7; cf. also his De Cap. ex Inim. Util.
6, 89e). Lucian refers to it in Rh. Pr. 11 as a mark of effeminacy,
and Seneca Rhetor in Controv. 7, 4, 8. Compare also Juvenal's
allusion to this gesture physiognomically in 9, 130-133.
Here the remark becomes almost a proverb
28 Caes. 323 b.
for effeminacy. See The Works of the Emperor Julian (trans.
W. C. Wright throughout, LCL), ad loc.
" Caes. 308 d-309 b (Julius Caesar and Octavian); 309 c
(Tiberius); 311 a (Nerva); 317 c (Marcus Aurelius). Cf. also
St. Jerome, Against Jovianus 1, 34; 1, 36; 2, 21; 2, 36; the Letters
24; 39, 1; 40; 54, 7 and 13.
30See TAPA 72 (1941): pp. 101-102.
31338 b-c; 339 a-c.
32 342 c-d.
For signs of lasciviousness, cf. Pseud.-Arist. 808b.
33349c.
34351 a; cf. 365 d; 367 b. The Misopogon describes Julian's
stay of nine months at Antioch, where the inhabitants, for the
most part Christian, were strongly opposed to his restoration of
pagan religion.
36 R. Forster, Libanii Opera (Leipzig, 1903-1927) 2, Or. 18,
11, 525.
36 Ibid. 18, 30, 532. Libanius shows no significant use of
physiognomical material save for two passages cited by F6rster
SP 2, p. 250; an excerpt from Plato, Republic 5, 19, 474d on the
oLM6s,-ypviors, pAiXas type, in a letter to Demetrius 362/363 A.D.,
Epist. 795 ed. R. Forster 2, p. 280; an excerpt from Suetonius,
Terms of Abuse in Greek on (the snotty man) ao'6o?rosical puwt3s
in Or. 27 and in Or. 33. R. A. Pack, "'fvatooyYw,uoPtIa in Libanius'
Antiochicus" AJP 56 (1935): pp. 347-350, considers two passages
overlooked by Forster in his reference to Libanius in SP, namely
Or. 11, 154 (on the voice, the gait, and the manner of wearing
one's clothes as of importance in ancient character analysis, and
Or. 11, 38 (on the modulation of the voice).
Seite 80
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)We have called attention to Gregory's devastating
power of invective as illustrated in his attack on
Julian. It may be pertinent at this point to note that
he was also the master of the "laudatio funebris," as
he was "a pioneer in adapting the pagan funeral
oration to Christian use."37 Gregory's use of encomium on physical appearance is, as in the case of
Julian's praise of Constantius,38 part of the usual
"schema" of the funeral speech. Thus Gregory's
brother, St. Caesarius,39was notable for beauty and
size, for grace in all respects, for euphony of voice.
With reference to his father he writes40that as far as
an account of the latter's country, his family, the good
proportions of his body and outward splendor, and all
other things are concerned, these matters he would
hand over to the rules for the composition of encomia,
and begin with what is of primary importance and
especially appropriate. Thus, having alluded to the
"topos" entitled "praise of the body," Gregory goes on
to laud his father's humility, which was not apparent
in his dress but represented a condition of soul. He
did not achieve this, Gregory observes, by any external
action or gesture, such "as a bending of the neck, or a
lowering of the voice, or a downcast look or by length
of beard, or a shaving of his head, or by the nature of
his walk," all of which was pretense. Nor did he ever
display on his person the anger he felt.41 The eulogy
of physique, in short, is maintained by indirection, or
rather it is a denying of the familiar outward aspects
usually considered indicative of the inward state of
humility.
Gregory's oration on the occasion of the funeral of
Basil the Great, which likewise follows the pagan
"schema" of the "laudatio funebris,"42includes mention of physical endowments, such as beauty, strength,
and stature, in which most men take delight.43 But
these matters Gregory proposes to leave to those who
wish to pursue them, pointing out only that Basil,
when he was young and had not yet subdued the flesh
to the pursuits of philosophy, was in no way inferior
to those who were absorbed constantly in the things of
the body. Meanwhile Basil himself, on the other hand,
in a letter to Gregory, had observed44that "the humble
37 See Funeral Orations by St. Gregory Nazianzen and St.
Ambrose, translated by L. P. McCauley, J. J. Sullivan, M. R. P.
McGuire, R. J. Deferrari (New York, 1953), 22; introduction on
the early Christian Funeral Oration by M. R. P. McGuire,
pp. vii-xxi, esp. pp. ix-x, and pp. xvi-xviii.
38 Note 25.
Migne PG 35, 759-760. Likewise his sister St.
39 Or. 7,5.
Gorgonia, Or. 8,10 PG 35, 800-802.
40 Or. 18, 5 PG 35, 990; 18, 23; PG 35, 1012 (after L. P.
McCauley throughout).
41Or. 18, 26 PG 35, 1016.
42F. Boulenger, Gregoire de Nazianze. Discours funebres en
l'honneur de son frere Cesaire et de Basile de Cesare'e(Paris, 1908),
pp. xxix-xxxi.
43 Or. 43, 10. Migne PG 35, 508.
44Trans. R. J. Deferrari throughout, LCL. St. Basil. The
Letters 1.2, 20-21. Written to Gregory about A.D. 358 when Basil
had retired to Pontus (Deferrari).
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
and abject spirit is attended by a gloomy and downcast eye (6oAA,a arivyPov' Kal e's -y7iv VPEPVKOS), neglected
appearance, unkempt hair, and dirty clothes," and
that "the stride45 should be neither sluggish, which
would argue a laxity of mind, nor, on the other hand,
brisk and swaggering, which would indicate that its
impulses were rash." Thus, it is to be noted that
Gregory by his disinclination to dwell on the physique
of Basil, save for the briefest mention of it, emphasizes its extraordinary spiritual quality. In still
another letter,46 of unknown address, Basil had discussed "the perfection of the monastic life," which,
Deferrari points out, Basil here identifies with the
ideal Christian life.
The Christianought not to speak in a light vein....
He
must not talk idly, prattling of things which neither conduce to the benefit of his listeners nor to the activities
that are indispensable and permitted us by God....
There should be no clamor or any scene or commotion
wherein anger is expressed. . . The voice should be
modulated under all circumstances. . . . The Christian
should neither answer anyone nor act boldly or contemptuously, but in all things should exhibit modesty and
reverence toward everyone. He ought not to wink
covertly or use any gesture which grieves a brother or
shows contempt.
In the Longer Rules of Asceticism47 the monk is told
especially to refrain from laughter, an injunction
neglected by most people.
For to be overcome by incontinent and immoderate
laughter is a mark of incontinence and shows that a man
has not his emotions under control, and does not suppress
the frivolity of his soul by a strict rule. It is not unseemly
to reveal merriment to the extent of a cheerful smile,
though only so far as Scripture allows when it says48.
Ibid.
Ibid. 1, 22, 132-135.
47 Regulae Fusius
Tractatae R. 8, 359-360 (trans. Clarke,
throughout).
Migne PG 31, 961. Compare in the Basilian
corpus the Sermo Asceticus 323, Migne PG 31, 880-881, where
the monk is urged to betray no sign of anger or memory of
injuries received, or jealousy or contentiousness. No gesture or
movement, no word or sharp glance of the eyes, or any expression
of the face, or anything else that might stir a fellow monk to
wrath should ever be evident. In the De Ascetica Disciplina 212,
Migne PG 31, 649 on the topic of how a monk must be equipped,
it is stated that he must think much, and speak little, that he
must not be rash or arrogant in his speech, nor talk more than is
right, that he must not be prone to laughter, but adorned with
modesty, that "he must keep his eyes down, and his soul up."
For a discussion of Basil's ascetic works see W. K. Lowther
Clarke, St. Basil the Great (Cambridge, 1913), pp. 63-106, and
id., The Ascetic Works of St. Basil (London, 1925), passim.
48 R. 8, 359-360; cf Prov. xv. 13.
We may glance in passing
at what the early Church fathers of the second century, Tertullian
and Clement of Alexandria, have to say on the subject. Clement,
for example, in discussing the conduct of the converted and the
need of simplicity in the social life of the Christian deprecates
unseemly laughter in the Paedagogus: "For the seemly relaxation of the countenance in a harmonious manner . . . is called a
smile. So also is laughter on the face of well regulated men
termed. But the discordant relaxation in countenance in the
case of women is called a giggle, and is meretricious laughter;
in the case of men, a guffaw, and is savage and insulting laughter"
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VOL. 59, PT. 5,1969]
"When the heart is merry the face rejoices"; but to shout
with loud laughter, and allow the body to shake involuntarily, does not befit one who has his soul under control,
or is of proved virtue, or has command of himself.
In a similar vein St. Ambrose, addressing the
Church Fathers of the west on the duties of the clergy
(De Officiis Ministrorum), discourses at some length on
the functions of modesty,49 how "it should qualify
both speech and silence, accompany chastity, commend our prayers to God, govern our bodily motions."
"Modesty," he submits, "must be guarded in our very
movements and gestures and gait. For the condition
of the mind is often to be seen in the attitude of the
body..
. . Thus the movement
of the body is a sort
of voice of the soul ("Est enim in ipso motu, gestu,
incessu tenenda verecundia. Habitus enim mentis in
corporis statu cernitur.
.
.
Itaque vox quaedam est
animi corporis motus.") Closely akin to Basil's statements on the monk's life is Ambrose's insistence that
the clergy must not walk hurriedly except in case of
real danger or necessity,50 "for a suitable gait is that
wherein there is an appearance of authority and
weight and dignity and which has a calm, collected
bearing." Above all "we ought to be humble, gentle,
mild, serious, patient. We must keep the mean in all
things, so that a calm countenance and quiet speech
may show that there is no vice in our lives."'" He
sternly rebukes two clerics52-both of whom had left
the church-on what their gait betrayed them to be,
faithless in heart. One had forsaken his faith at the
time of the Arian controversy, the other through love
of money. "And in their gait was discernible the
semblance of fickleness, the appearance, as it were, of
wandering buffoons."5 These injunctions are completely consistent with the scheme of behavior suitable
(2, 5, 46. Clement was a student of Herodes Atticus. For
Clement's interest in physiognomical theory see F6rster, SP 2,
303-309. For Tertullian see F6rster, SP 1, p. lxx, and 2, pp. 255,
331-332.
Cf. also a similar point of view to that of Clement
quoted above in De Cult. Fem. 13.) " 'A fool raises his voice in
laughter' says the Scripture (Eccles. 21.23); but a clever man
smiles almost imperceptibly. The clever man in this case he
calls wise, inasmuch as he is differently affected from the fool."
(Paed. 2, 5, trans. W. Wilson. For Clement's interest in physiognomical theory see F6rster, SP 2, pp. 303-309, especially
Paed. 2, 7; 3, 3; 3, 5; 3, 11; Str. 1.21; The Newly Baptized,
passim; for Tertullian see F6rster SP 1, pp. lxx and 2, pp. 55;
331-332. Patientia 15; for a point similar to that of Clement
quoted above see De Cult. Fem. 2.1; 2.8; 2.13; De Anim. 5; 20;
25; 32.)
49 1, 18, 67, 70-71 (trans. P. Schaff and H. Wace throughout),
to be found in A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
of the Christian Church, X. (Reprinted: Grand Rapids, 1955).
60 1, 18, 75.
61 1, 20, 89.
18, 72 (after Schaff and Wace).
521,
63 Cf. also the Exhortatio Virginitatis 10.64; Hexaemeron 6.58
on the: "corporis humani praestantia deque singulorum eius
membrorum conformatione, dispositione atque officiis . . . imago
quaedam animi loquitur in vultu, fidei basis in qua quotidie
Domini nomen inscribitur et tenetur."
79
for the devout Christian, and are to be found again
and again in various Christian tracts. Interestingly
enough, Ambrose's De Officiis is intended as a work on
the "proper conduct of a Christian gentleman," and
as such is derived from Cicero's De Officiis, written for
the instruction of a young Roman, his son, Marcus.
Consequently it is Cicero's concern for appropriate
appearance that constitutes the immediate pagan
source for this Christian counsel. In discussing
modesty Cicero exhorts his son to follow nature and to
avoid what is offensive to eyes and ears54:
So, in standing or walking, in sitting or reclining, in our
expression, our eyes, or the movements of our hands, let
us preserve what we have called propriety ("nos autem
naturamsequamuret ab omni, quod abhorretab oculorum
auriumqueapprobatione,fugiamus;status, incessus,sessio,
accubitio, vultus, oculi manuum motus teneat illud decorum").55 We must be careful, too, not to fall into a
habit of listless sauntering in our gait, so as to look like
carriersin festal processions,or of hurryingtoo fast, when
time presses. If we do this, it puts us out of breath, our
looks are changed, our features are distorted; all this is
clear evidence of lack of poise, "ex quibus magna significatio fit non adesse constantiam."
When, therefore, we examine Gregory's invectives
against Julian it is not strange that we should find
that he emphasized exactly those aspects of the
physique which he in Christian panegyric and Basil in
discussion of monasticism would deplore. If the monk
should not be arrogant in speech or manner, or a
chatterer, or prone to laughter or anger, but rather
adorned with shame and modesty, what does Julian,
according to Gregory, display in his appearance?
Gregory56 remarks that from his early contact with
Julian in Athens, he had become not a bad judge of
his character, though he had not as yet achieved great
skill in that regard. But he had been impressed by
the unevenness of Julian's behavior and his extreme
excitability Signs which boded ill, as being indicative
of an unstable character, were his unsteady neck,
shoulders always jerking and shrugging, an eye rolling
and glancing, with a look of madness, feet unstable
and teetering, a nose breathing forth scorn and contempt, ridiculous twitchings of the face, immoderate
bursts of laughter, a constant nodding of the head in
assent or dissent, speech broken or cut off by breathing, disordered and insistent questions with responses
no better and in no way consistent or orderly.
64 1, 35, 128 (trans. W. Miller throughout, LCL).
This whole
passage surely stems from Panaetius' Ilep' roToKaO?KopTos.
66 1, 36, 131: "Cavendum
saltem est, ne aut tarditatibus
utamur in ingressu mollioribus, ut pomparum ferculis similes
esse videamur, aut in festinationibus suscipiamus nimias celeritates, quae cum fuerint, anhelitus moventur, voltus mutantur,
ora torquentur; ex quibus magna significatio fit non adesse
constantiam.
sed multo etiam magis elaborandum est, ne
animi motus a recedant; quod assequemur, si cavebimus, ne in
perturbationes atque exanimationes incidamus, et si attentos
animus ad decoris conservationem tenebimus."
Contra Iulianum 2, 23. Migne PG 35, 692.
Seite 82
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Asmus57 has analyzed closely the physiognomical
significance of the details of this portrait, demonstrating how each feature was susceptible of unfavorable
interpretation. The appearance of Julian, Asmus
points out, is that of a worthless person: his unsteady
neck bespeaking an evil doer, his jerking shoulders,
insolence and arrogance, his glancing, maddened eyes
suggesting a man possessed of a demon and fraudulent
in nature, his unstable feet, madness and effeminacy,
his unrestrained laughter, a shameless creature. The
portrait is ugly, and like that of Thersites in the Iliad,
suggests in its physiognomical implications, the
"meanest man" of the later Roman Empire.58 That
the description was to be interpreted physiognomically
seems clear also from the scholia under the name of
Basil Minimus, which comment59 that in this passage
the character of the Apostate was to be branded as
wicked, turbulent, and demoniacal, a fact which a
seer or a physiognomist would indeed have divined,
declaring that the man was full of demons, and filled
with all iniquity. Support for this point of view is to
be found in Gregory's first invective against Julian,60
wherein the latter is described as ascending from a
cave, presumably Mithraic, filled with demons both in
mind and in action, and indicating by the wildness of
his eyes whom he had been worshiping, if indeed he
had not been possessed by demons from the very day
on which he had taken such nefarious thoughts into
his mind. In damning Julian, Gregory has directed
his satirical attack on every feature of his personal
57 R. Asmus, "Vergessene Physiognomonika,"
Philologus 65
(1906): pp. 410-415. Gregory was a strong admirer of Polemo
of Laodicea. See H. Juittner "De Polemonis Rhetoris Vita
Jerome, De Viris Illustribus,
Operibus Arte," pp. 112-113.
Migne PL 23, 709 says of Gregory of Nazianzus: secutus est
autem Polemonis dicendi charactere. Cf. Suidas s.v. Ipy6optos
Na~tLajoD.(ascribed to Sophronius) ibid. Gregory's familiarity
with Polemo's works may explain in part his interest in physiognomical material. Cf. Asmus, ibid., pp. 415-421, on the
physiognomical interpretation of love sickness of the prince
Antiochus for his stepmother in a story told by Julian in the
Misopogon 347a-348a, and Asmus, 421-423 for Julian's Epist. 79
to Photinus, written in Antioch 362-363, preserved in the Latin
version of Facundus Hermianensis (ca. A.D. 546). It deals with
an attack on Diodorus of Antioch, whose body had wasted away
with illness, a sign not of philosophical nature, as he had wished
it to seem to those deceived by his appearance. Asmus, 423-424,
also calls attention to the possible physiognomical interpretation
of ethnic types in Julian's treatise against the Galileans.
58 HSCP 58-59 (1948): p. 197; Misener, "Iconistic Portraits":
pp. 103-104.
Contra Iultanum. 2, 23. Migne PG 36,
69 Scholia in Or. 5.
1141B. Basil Minimus (EAaxtoTos) was Metropolitan of Caesarea
in Cappodocia in the tenth century.
60 Or. 4.
Contra Iulianum. 1, 55-56. Migne PG 35, 578-S80.
Gregory elsewhere inveighs fiercely against anger and its manifestation on the person: PG 37, 819-821. Cf. Seneca, De Ira:
1, 1, 3-5; and against indecorous behavior in women: PG 36,
291; 295; 37, 883-908; likewise John Chrysostom: PG 63,
457-460; 689-690; cf. Synesius PG 66, 1257. For similar observations on the countenance: Greg. Naz. PG 36, 18-20; 293-296;
Greg. Nyss. 44, 293-294; 46, 533-534; Joh. Chrysost. 52, 412413; 57, 19-20; 59, 156 (anger); 63, 501; 552 (the baseness of
anger); 657-658; 689 (anger); 878.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
appearance which would disassociate the Emperor
from the Christian view of man and his ideal physique.
In short, the iconistic portraits of Julian in Ammianus and Gregory serve to illustrate the state of
tension that existed in the distracted world of the
middle fourth century, and to reflect in their own
way the significant conflicts of this critical period.
Gregory's opposition to Julian's apostasy is readily
understood, but the maliciousness of his charges
against him surely presents an exaggerated picture of
the Emperor in whom his pagan admirer Ammianus
in an equally lavish fashion could find only virtues
essentially Christian. Yet in this contrast of description and physiognomical interpretation we may perceive something of the struggle between Christianity
and paganism in a remarkable era. "Why, my
friend," asks Julian6' of an unknown painter, "did you
give me a form other than my own? Paint me exactly
as you saw me."
In a century which has so lively an interest in
medical handbooks, we should not fail to note the
influence of Galen in another area of literature, namely
the discussion of the Church Fathers on the nature of
man. Before turning to one of the most important
documents of the fourth century it may be well to
recall the contributions made by Galen not only to
medicine but also to other related fields. It was his
concern as a physician and a physiognomist to relate
the physique of a man to his character both in a
practical fashion by a description of certain physical
types and characteristics, and by an analysis of the
reasons for these characteristics.
The document to which I have reference is the
Christian treatise of Nemesius of Emesa on the Nature
of Man. Nemesius was a writer with vast knowledge
of Greek philosophy; he was also well informed in the
field of medicine and thoroughly read in the writings
of Galen, whom he quotes repeatedly. It could indeed
be assumed that he may have been a practicing
physician before he became bishop of Emesa.62 Telfer
prefers to consider him not a practitioner but a
"gentleman amateur,"63 and cites as a comparable
example in medicine, Caesarius, brother of Gregory of
Nazianzus,64 who had studied at Alexandria both
mathematics and "the marvelous art of medicine
which deals with constitutions and temperaments and
causes of disease."65 The primary concern of Nemesius
61Trans. Wright, LCL 3, 302-303.
Cf. T. R. Glover Life
and Letters in the Fourth Century (New York, 1924), pp. 47-76,
esp. 48, 52-53.
62 Migne PG 40, 503-818.
See the recent English translation
of this work by William Telfer, Cyril of Jerusalem and Nemesius
of Emesa in the Library of the Christian Classics, vol. 4 (Philadelphia, 1955), pp. 201-455.
63 Telfer, ibid., p. 207.
64 Ibid.
See Gregory of Nazianzus, Or. 7, 10. Migne PG 35,
766-768.
6C Migne PG 35, 761-764 (trans. L. P. McCauley).
Telfer
also cites the physicians Zeno of Cyprus, and his pupils Magnus,
Oribasius and Ionicus as iatrosophists (op. cit., p. 208, note 18).
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THE FOURTH CENTURY A.D.
is, as Telfer points out, with ethics and the life of
virtue. But he recognizes that while soul and body
may be separated by nature, in the fact of living they
are united. Consequently, if we wish to discuss the
composition of the soul, we must clearly understand
the constitution of the body.66 For this reason the
philosopher with a concern for ethics must turn to the
physician for a knowledge of the body. The "interaction of soul and body" is continual in man's life.67
In dealing, therefore, with the corporeal nature of man
he treats of the four elements, their combinations and
relationships, which the physicians call the four
humors circulating in the human body. Thus the
views of Galen loomed large in an essay which is a
Christian treatment of the nature of the soul.68 The
work was intended, it would appear, for persons outside the Church who possessed some knowledge of
Christianity and the Scriptures, and who needed to be
informed further on the Christian view of man.69
Nemesius, while discussing several kinds of physical
union as possible analogies for the union of the soul
and body, is at pains to refute Galen's identification of
the soul with "temperament," that is, the mixing of
the constituent elements of the body in which the
preponderance of one of the elements, or four humors,
determined the physical appearance and psychological
characteristics associated with that humor.70 "The
temperament of the body," he maintains, "cannot be
the soul. . . . If the temperament of the body is
soul, and everybody has soul, there is no inanimate
body, not even a stone, a bit of wood, or iron, or anything else inanimate.""7
Telfer, ibid., p. 210.
Ibid., pp. 212-216 for an excellent summary of the argument
of Nemesius.
68 Ibid., pp. 212 and 227.
69 Cf. H. A. Wolfson, The Philosophy of the Church Fathers
(Cambridge, 1956) 1, chap. xvi, "The Mystery of the Incarnation," pp. 364-399, 407. Professor Wolfson has analyzed closely
the philosophical thinking of Nemesius on the Mystery of the
Incarnation, that is of two natures and one person, and has shown
how Aristotle's explanation of the unity in the union of the soul
and body is adapted by the Fathers after examination of the
various kinds of physical union discussed by the philosophers.
A number of analogies of physical union are explored by Nemesius
in his treatment of the union of soul and body which he explains
on the basis of the Aristotelian concept of "predominance,"
namely "that the unity of man consists in the soul which is the
dominant element in him, by reason of its dominating the body."
This idea is ultimately derived from Aristotle's view of the union
of form and matter. "Soul and body are one because soul is the
form of the body." See also W. W. Jaeger, Nemesios von Emesa;
Quellenforschungen zum Neuplatonismus und seinem Anfdngen
bei Poseidonios (Berlin, 1914), passim, for the sources of Nemesius'
material, including discussion of Galen.
Die Psy70 Telfer, p. 271, note 2, which cites B. Domanski,
chologie des Nemesius (Miinster, 1900), p. 9. Domanski has
shown that Nemesius is following closely here the work of Galen
"that the faculties of the mind follow the mixtures or temperaments of the body" (Kiihn 4, 767-822). For the nature of the
soul in relation to the humors in Galen see TAPA 76 (1945):
pp. 291-292.
71 Migne PG 40, 553-556 (trans. Telfer throughout, p. 272).
66
67
81
There are, according to Galen, continues Nemesius,
nine "kraseis" of which eight are bad, and one alone is
good. Man is constituted according to a good temperament or mixture (that is, man who belongs to the
"middle 'krasis"') and in varying degrees, other kinds
of living creatures are constituted according to the bad
temperaments. But Galen, he argues, also believes
that the nine "kraseis" are found in inanimate objects.
Furthermore, if the soul is a "krasis" or "temperamentum," and temperaments vary with age, season of
the year, food, and the like, then the soul also changes.
And if the soul changes, our soul is not always the
same, but it is now the soul of a lion, and now that of
a sheep, according to the state of "krasis." This,
argues Nemesius,72 is absurd. Temperament is known
to change, and it is the physicians who have the art of
bringing about this change. EuKpao-La,the good mixing
of hot and cold, dry and moist, is a state of health.
The body is the instrument (6pyavov) of the soul.
Temperaments or the proper mixing of the humors are
for the sake of the soul. Therefore, concludes
Nemesius, proper care of the temperament or health
is "a prime spiritual duty."73
Two other passages in the Nature of Man reflect a
knowledge of earlier material on physiognomy. These
passages call for refutation by Nemesius. If Galen
appears wrongly to consider the soul a quality of body,
the Stoic view of the corporeal soul must be also
examined and rejected. Cleanthes had stated that
"when the body is sick or hurt, the soul suffers with
it, and conversely, the body with the soul. For when
the soul feels shame, the body blushes, and when the
soul feels fear, the body blanches. Therefore the soul
is corporeal."74 Nemesius' reply to this is in the nature
of a refutation of the proposition that "if the body is
sick or hurt, the soul suffers with it." The question,
he states, "is whether the body is the sole sufferer,
deriving perception from the soul, while the soul
remains itself unaffected, or whether the soul suffers
together with the body. Most learned authors," he
submits, "take the first alternative. But Cleanthes
should base his argument on what is agreed, not what
is in dispute."75
Secondly, he discusses certain arguments from
Plato's Phaedo76on the nature of the soul and idea of
transmigration.
All Greeks [he argues]77 who represent the soul as immortal agree in believing in transmigration. Where they
differ is as to forms of soul. . . . The Platonists are particularly divided on this point. For Plato said that
wrathful, proud, and grasping souls exchange bodies with
wolves and lions, and that those who have run to excesses
Ibid., 556-557 (Telfer, p. 273).
Ibid., 558-560 (Telfer, pp. 273-274 and note 10).
74 Ibid., 545-548
(Telfer, pp. 266-267).
See Forster SP 1,
p. lxx, for this passage.
75 See Telfer's commentary on this passage, p. 268.
76 31.
See Forster SP 2, p. 254 for this passage.
77 Migne PG 40, 581-584 (Telfer, p. 288).
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will receive the bodies of donkeys, and other animals of nations, and because many men rejoice in the good deeds
that sort. Some took his referenceto mean literal wolves, of such a one. It is, moreover, in his case a necessity
lions, and donkeys, and others thought that they dis- that his inner life should pass undisturbed and that a
cerned that he spoke in parables, and by naming animals divine calm should extend even to his countenance. And
alluded to mannersof behaving.
this is a sight to inspire not fear but the deepest piety, to
wit, his remaining in an unruffledstate of dignity, overHe continues his comment on the Phaedo by quoting whelming his friends, that is to say, good men, with
various opinions, but agrees ultimately with lam- admiration, his enemies and wicked men with terror.
blichus that there is no migration of souls from men
He finds this ideal sadly wanting in the actual situation
into irrational beasts, but only from one beast into
and
considers the empire threatened in many direcanother, and from one human being into another.
tions.
It was a memorable speech, destined to stir
"And, it seems to me, lamblichus78 both hit upon
much
praise,
but the remedy proposed for ArcadiusPlato's meaning and lighted on truth itself."
to
his
develop
soul with philosophy, and his body with
Thus Nemesius, writing in a Christian world of the
military
exercise-was
in no way adequate for the
last decade of the fourth century or thereabouts,
perilous
nature
of
the
times.
includes in his analysis of the nature of man certain
In contrast to the sobering exhortations to philosfundamental ideas of early Greek physiognomical
ophy
offered to Arcadius is the Praise of Baldness80
theory, especially of Plato and the Stoics, and gives
("Encomium
Calvitii"). It is trivial and witty, a
particular attention to the view of Galen, derived from
rhetorical
piece
designed to answer Dio Chrysostom's
Hippocrates, on the constituent elements or humors
Praise
of
Hair.
Like Julian's Misopogon it is highly
in man's physique and their effect on the behavior of
personal,
a
and
"show essay." Whereas Dio had
man. But, in rejecting these concepts in the light of
written,
Synesius
declares, so eloquent an encomium
his own Christian beliefs, he interprets for his age
on
long
hair,
baldness
is a sad state indeed. There is,
basic physiognomical principles enunciated centuries
on the other hand, a great antagonism between hair
before.
and wisdom. The hairiest of all animals is the sheep,
While Nemesius at the end of the fourth century
and
everybody acknowledges sheep to be the stupidest
discusses certain principles on the nature of man in
of
animals.
The least hairy of creatures is man, and
terms of medicine and the humors, we may inquire
man
by
common
consent is the wisest of animals.
what other views of the relation of character to
Thus a pagan emperor and a Christian bishop look to
be
in
writers.
found
Christian
are
to
the physique
the absurd in physique and record in vigorous fashion
Synesius, Bishop of Cyrene, writing at almost the same
their
caustic observations. Julian is bitter and sartime as Nemesius, courageously addresses himself to
donic
in addressing the people of Antioch; Synesius
the Emperor Arcadius on the subject of kingship. The
and paradoxical. Since Dio Chrysostom had
lively
speech, De Regno,79was delivered before the Emperor
regarded
hair "as the seat of man's might and mind,"
in 399. "Who is the true king?" he asks.
Synesius takes the opportunity of reversing completely
The true king is he who lives for his people's good, who the proposition, and at the same time deriding, as
realizes his responsibility as the representative of some Lucian had done two centuries before, the ostentation
sort of divine providence. But especially is the king
divine because he it is who shares his virtue with whole of the long-haired, long-bearded philosophers. He
points out that Dio has emphasized how Homer conThe mention of lamblichus at this point in Nemesius is to
sidered hair of first importance, since he makes no
be noted. For the purposes of this study he assumes an importencomium on the eyes of the heroes except in the case
ance in that in his Life of Pythagoras (17) he sets forth, as Aulus
of Agamemnon (while he is praising the rest of his
Gellius had done in the second century, the skill of Pythagoras as
body beside), save to speak of the quick gleaming
His discussion of the tests of Pythagorean
a physiognomist.
eyes, but he does extol all of them for their hair,
initiation is the most extended we possess. He tells us that
Pythagoras, as soon as students had entered his school, considered
Achilles, Menelaus, Hector, Euphorbus, Odysseus,
their laughter, their speech, their silence. He observed their
even Zeus for his ambrosial locks. But, Synesius
stature, their gait, and the motions of their bodies. He considered
observes, Dio had omitted to mention that, when
the whole structure of the person physiognomically, believing
Athena seized the son of Peleus by his fair hair, she
that these signs were visible expression of the invisible nature
stood behind him, and, if Achilles had long hair, then
of the soul. See TAPA 72, (1941): p. 107, note 55, for a discussion of the sources of this passage. Eunapius in the VS uses only
she grasped his hair from behind, if for no other reason
occasionally descriptions of personal appearance (with a physithan that even at this moment of youth he was someognomical slant), and then of men whom he admired inordinately:
what bald. Thus in the greatest of Greek heroes he
Maximus of Ephesus, teacher of Julian, the most famous miraclewould submit the physiognomical argument that baldworking philosopher of the fourth century (473); Prohaeresius
(487); Chrysanthius (487); lamblichus (459).
ness and wisdom presumably coincide.
79 Or. A (ed. N. Terzaghi, Synesii Cyrenensis Hymni et OpusIn the conclusion of this study we could do no better
cula, Rome, 1939-1944), passim. Dio, too, had written on
than
ask what was the general attitude of the late
discusinto
the
kingship, introducing physiognomical concepts
78
sion. Dio, we must remember, as the teacher of the physiognomist Polemo, wrote a speech on hair which is lost, save for
what Synesius quotes from it.
80 Ibid., Or. E', passim,
esp. S. This is an epideictic display
of the ridiculous and the paradoxical.
Cf. T. C. Burgess,
"Epideictic Literature," pp. 89-261, esp. 157-166.
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THE FOURTH CENTURY A.D.
fourth century toward a physiognomical view of man.
A partial, or possible representative answer, might be
found in a passage from Rutilius Namatianus' De
Reditu Suo. Namatianus, "the last of classical Latin
poets," was born in Gaul in the end of the fourth
century. He was a man of literary tastes, and, as a
pagan, a follower of Stoic philosophy. In A.D. 416,
after the devastation of Rome by Alaric, he started
from Rome back to his own country, likewise overrun
by barbarian invasion, and by sea made his way
northward. At Pisa he stopped to visit his friend
Protadius, a native of Treves, a Roman official who
had corresponded with Symmachus. Namatianus'
tribute to him is characteristic of the Roman dignitas
of the end of the Roman world. "[If] anyone,"
he says,
"may wish to recognize him by sure signs, [he] should
think in his heart that he is looking on a model of goodness; no painting will ever give a truer portrait of him in
color than will the image ("figura mixta de meritis") that
His prudence
comes from his blended excellencies.
("prudentia"), marked by a steady look ("certo vultu"),
is evident to a distant eye; the expression of fairmindedness ("forma iustitiae") shines out, commanding respect.
This tribute might perhaps be less were Gaul merely
praising a fellow countryman; but Rome can bear witness
to her prefect.81
With this encomium Rutilius reminds us of the
"dignitas" of that Scipio (consul 298 B.C.) whose tomb
inscription carries these words of praise for a
... fortis vir sapiensque
quoius forma virtutei parisuma fuit,
that constituted the essential character
bonus" of the early Roman Republic.
of the "vir
81Minor Latin Poets (trans. J. W. Duff and J. D. Duff throughout, LCL), 546-550.
Seite 86
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)ABBREVIATIONS
ARIST. Aristophanes
ACH. Acharnenses
Titles frequently cited in the Notes
AV. Aves
EQUIT. Equites
FHG F. Jacoby, Die Fragmente der griechischen
LYS. Lysistrata
Historiker 2 vols. in 5 parts. (Berlin, 1923-1929;
NEPH. Nubes
vol. 3, Leiden, 1943; Reprint: Leiden, 1954-1958,
PLUT. Plutus
2 vols.).
RAN.
Ranae
FURST,J. Die Literarische Portraitmanier im Bereich
THESM. Thesmophoriazusae
des griechisch-rdmischenSchrifttums (Leipzig, 1903).
VESP. Vespae
Kthn, C. K. Claudii Galeni Opera Omnia [Corpus
ARIST.
Aristotle
Medicorum Graecorum] (Leipzig, 1821-1833, 20
AN.
PR.
Analytica Priora
vols. in 22).
ETH.
EUDEM.
Ethica Eudemia
STUART, D. R. Epochs of Greek and Roman BiETH.
NIC.
Ethica
Nicomachea
1928).
ography (Berkeley,
GEN. AN. De Generatione Animalium
FORSTER,R. Scriptores Physiognomonici (2 vols.,
HA Historia Animalium
Leipzig, 1893) will be cited as SP, followed in
PART. ANIM. De Partibus Animalium
Volume 1 by page number; in Volume 2 by 2 and
POET. Poetica
page number. This work contains the texts of the
POL. Politica
writers on physiognomy. The sylloge locorumphysiRH. Rhetorica
ognomonicorum has been indispensable for all parts ARR. Arrian
of this study, and on it I have constantly drawn.
ANAB. Anabasis
EVANS, E. C. "Descriptions of Personal Appearance
EPICT. DISS. Epicteti Dissertationes
in Roman History and Biography," HSCP 46 A BULL. Art Bulletin
(1935): pp. 43-84; also "The Study of Physiognomy AUGUSTINE
in the Second Century A.D.," TAPA 72 (1941):
C. D. De Civitate Dei
pp. 96-108; "Galen the Physician as Physiogno- AUR. VICT. Aurelius Victor
mist," TAPA 76 (1945): pp. 287-298; "Literary
DE VIR. ILL. De Viris Illustribus
Portraiture in Ancient Epic," HSCP 58-59 (1948): AUSON. Ausonius
pp. 189-217; "A Stoic Aspect of Senecan Drama:
CENT. NUPT. Cento Nupialis
Portraiture," TAPA 81 (1950): pp. 169-184.
EPIST. Epistulae
Translations from Pseudo-Aristotle, Physiognomonica,
EPITHAL. Epithalamium
are from H. S. Hett, Artistotle: Minor Works, LCL.
PAREN. Parentalia
PROF. BURD. Commemoratio Professorum
Burdigalensium
B.
ST. BASIL
List of Abbreviations Used in the Notes
R. Regulae
B. AFRIC. Bellum Africum
AESCH. Aeschylus
B. ALEX. Bellum Alexandrinum
AG. Agamemnon
CAES. Caesar
CHO. Choephori
B. CIV. Bellum Civile
PERS. Persae
B. GALL. Bellum Gallicum
PV Prometheus Vinctus
CALP. Calpurnius Siculus
SEPT. Septem Contra Thebas
CATULL. Catullus
SUPP. Supplices
CIC. Cicero
ALBERTUS MAGNUS
BALB. Pro Balbo
DE ANIM. De Anima
BRUT. Brutus
AJP American Journal of Philology
CAECIN. Pro Caecina
AMM. MARC. Ammianus Marcellinus
CAEL. Pro Caelio
AP Anthologia Palatina
CAT. In Catilinam
APP. Appian
CLU. Pro Cluentio
B. CIV. Bella Civilia
DEIOT. Pro rege Deiotaro
AP. RHOD. Apollonius Rhodius
DE OR. De Oratore
APUL. Apuleius
DIV. De Divinatione
APOL. Apologia
DIV. CAEC. Divinatio in Caecilium
MET. Metamorphoses
Seite 87
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DOM. De Domo Sua
FAM. Epistulae ad Familiares
FAT. De Fato
FIN. De Finibus
HAR. RESP. De Haruspicum Responso
LEG. AGR. De Lege Agraria
LEG. De Legibus
MARCELL. Pro Marcello
MIL. Pro Milone
MUR. Pro Murena
NAT. DEOR. De Natura Deorum
OFF. De Officiis
PHIL. Orationes Philippicae
PIS. In Pisonem
PLANC. Pro Plancio
PROV. CONS. De Provinciis Consularibus
QUINCT. Pro Quinctio
Q ROSC. Pro Roscio Comoedo
RAB. PERD. Pro Rabirio Perduellonis Reo
RAB. POST. Pro Rabirio Postumo
ROSC. AM. Pro Roscio Amerino
RED. IN SEN. Post Reditum in Senatu
SEST. Pro Sestio
SULL. Pro Sulla
TUSC. Tusculanae Disputationes
VATIN. In Vatinium
VERR. In Verrem
CJ Classical Journal
CL MED Classica et Mediaevalia
CP Classical Philology
CQ Classical Quarterly
CLAUD. Claudian
BELL. GOTH. Bellum Gothicum
CONS. STIL. De Consulatu Stilichonis
CONTRA EUTROP. Contra Eutropium
CONTRA GILD. Contra Gildonem
CONTRA RUF. Contra Rufinum
EPITHAL. Epithalamium
GRAT. ACT. Gratiarum Actio
PANEG. HONOR. Panegyricus De Consulatu
Honorii
PANEG. CONS. MANL. THEOD. Panegyricus
Dictus Manlio Theodoro Consuli
PANEG. PROB. AND OLYBR. Panegyricus
Dictus Probino et Olybrio Dictus
RAPT. PROSERP. De Raptu Proserpinae
CLEM. AL. Clemens Alexandrinus
PAEDAG. Paedagogus
STR. Stromateis
CIL Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum
DIO CASS. Dio Cassius
EPIT. Epitome
DIO CHRYS. Dio Chrysostom
OR. Orationes
DIOG. L. Diogenes Laertius
DIOD. SIC. Diodorus Siculus
Q. CURT. RUFUS Q. Curtius Rufus
85
ABBREVIATIONS
EUNAP. Eunapius
VS. Vitae Sophistarum
EPIT. DE CAES. Epitome de Caesaribus
EUR. Euripides
ALC. Alcestis
ANDR. Andromache
BACCH. Bacchae
CYC. Cyclops
EL. Electra
HEC. Hecuba
HEL. Helena
HERACL. Heraclidae
HF Hercules Furens
HIPP. Hippolytus
IA Iphigenia Aulidensis
IT Iphigenia Taurica
MED. Medea
OR. Orestes
PHOEN. Phoenissae
SUPP. Supplices.
TRO. Troades
EUTROPIUS
EPIT. DE CAES. Breviarium Ab Urbe Condita
FLOR. Florus
FRONTO
EP. Epistulae
GALEN
ANIM. MOR. CORP. TEMP. TaZs Toiv
3o'aros
Kpa!TETLVat TflS ?1VX1S &VVa/.ELS c"-irovraL (Quod animi
mores corporis temperamenta sequantur)
DE PLAC. HIPPOC. ET PLAT. De Placitis
Hippocratis et Platonis
IN HIPPOC. LIB. DE HUMOR. COMM. Hippocratis De Humoribus Liber et Galeni in eum
Commentarii tres Libri
MIXT. IIEpl Kpa'-ECLV (De Temperamentis)
NAT. FAC.
HIIpL qkVO-KwV &vVaIAWv
(De Naturalibus
Facultatibus)
PROTREP.
HporperrtLKOS (Adhortatio ad Artes
Discendas)
HEp' KaTaKXltEWS
PROGNOST. DE DECUBITU
(ProgHIpOVycof-lKa' eK r-s MaOlarLKiS 'Erwrn.vs
nostica de Decubitu ex mathematica scientia)
GREG. NAZ. Gregory of Nazianzus
OR. Orationes
GREG. NYSS. Gregory of Nyssa
HSCP Harvard Studies in Classical Philology
HEROT. Herodotus
HES. Hesiod
CAT. Catalogus
OP. Opera et dies
SCUT. Scutum
TH. Theogonia
HIPPOC. Hippocrates
AER. Airs, Waters, Places
DE ARTIC. LIB. ET GAL. IN EUM COMM.
De Articulis reponendis Liber et Galeni in eum
Commentarius.
Seite 88
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)EPIDEM. Epidemics
NAT. HOM. De Natura Hominis
HIPPOL. Hippolytus
HAER. Refutatio Omnium Haeresium
HOM. Homer
IL. Iliad
OD. Odyssey
HOR. Horace
ARS P. Ars Poetica
CARM. Carmina
EPIST. Epistulae
EPOD. Epodi
SAT. Sermones
HYMM. HOM. Hymnus Homericus
AP. Hymnus Homericus ad Apollinem
BACCH. Hymnus Homericus ad Bacchum
CER. Hymnus Homericus ad Cererem
MERC. Hymnus Homericus ad Mercurium
PAN. Hymnus Homericus ad Panem
SOL. Hymnus Homericus ad Solem
VEN. Hymnus Homericus ad Venerem
IAMB. Jamblichus
VP De Vita Pythagorica
JOH. CHRYSOST. John Chrysostom
JOSEPH. Josephus
AJ Antiquitates Judaicae
BJ Bellum Judaicum
JHS Journal of Hellenic Studies
JULIAN
CAES. Caesares
EPIST. Epistulae
OR. Orationes
JUST. Justinus
EPIT. Epitome
JUV. Juvenal
LIBANIUS
EPIST. Epistulae
OR. Orationes
LCL Loeb Classical Library
LUC. Lucan
LUC. Lucian
ABD. Abdicatus
ALEX. Alexander
ANACH. Anacharsis
BACCH. Bacchus
BIS. ACC. Bis Accusatus
CAT. Cataplus
CYN. Cynicus
DEMON. Demonax
DEM. ENC. Demosthenis Encomium
DEOR. CONC. Deorum Concilium
D. MERET. Dialogi Meretricii
D. MORT. Dialogi Mortuorum
DOM. De Domo
EP. SAT. Epistulae Saturnales
EUN. Eunuchus
FUG. Fugitivi
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
GALL. Gallus
HERM. Hermotimus
HIST. CONSCR. Quo Modo Historia Conscribenda Sit
ICAR. Icaromenippus
IND. Adversus Indoctum
JTR. Juppiter Tragoedus
LAPITH. Lapithae
NAV. Navigium
NEC. Necyomantia
NIGR. Nigrinus
PAR. De Parasito
PEREG. De Morte Peregrini
PHILOPS. Philopseudes
PISC. Piscator
PR. IM. Pro Imaginibus
PRO M\IERC.COND. Pro Mercede Conductis
RH. PR. Rhetorum Praeceptor
SALT. De Saltatione
SOM M. Somnium sive Vita Luciani
SYMP. Symposium
TIM. Timon
VH Verae Historiae
VIT. AUCT. Vitarum Auctio
LUCR. Lucretius
MART. Martial
MEN. M\Jenander
DYS. A'VKOXOS (Dycolus)
(Epitrepontes)
EPIT. 'ErrTpE1rovrEs
SAM. IaAula(Samia)
MIGNE
PG Patrologiae Cursus, series Graeca
PL Patrologiae Cursus, series Latina
MNEM\IOS. Mnemosyne
NEMES. Nemesianus
CYN. Cynegetica
ELC. Eclogae
NEMESIUS
DE NAT. HOM. De Natura Hominum
NEP. Nepos
OCD. Oxford Classical Dictionary
ORIB. Oribasius
SYN. Synopsis
ORIG. Contra Celsum Origen
OV. Ovid
AM\I. Amores
ARS AM. Ars Amatoria
FAST. Fasti
HER. Heroides
IB. Ibis
MED. FAC. Medicamina Faciei
MET. Metamorphoses
PONT. Epistulae ex Ponto
REM. AM. Remedia Amoris
TR. Tristia
PAN. LAT. Panegyrici Latini
PERS. Persius
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ABBREVIATIONS
PETR. Petronius
SAT. Satura
PHILO JUDAEUS
DE SACR. ABELIS ET CAINI De Sacrificiis
Abelis et Caini
PHILOSTR. Philostratus
GYM. De Gymnastica
VA Vita Apollonii
VS Vitae Sophistarum
PIND. Pindar
ISHM. Ishmian Odes
NEM. Nemean Odes
OL. Olympian Odes
PYTH. Pythian Odes
PLAT. Plato
PHAED. Phaedo
REP. Respublica
SYM P. Symposium
THEAET. Theaetetus
PLAUT. Plautus
AMPH. Amphitruo
ASI N. Asinaria
AUL. Aulularia
BACCH. Bacchides
CAPT. Captivi
CAS. Casina
CURC. Curculio
EPI D. Epidicus
MIEN. MIenaechmi
MERC. Mercator
MIL. GL. Miles Gloriosus
MOSTELL. Mostellaria
PERS. Persa
POEN. Poenulus
STICH. Stichus
TRIN. Trinummus
PLIN. Pliny, The Elder
HN Naturalis Historia
PLIN. Pliny, The Younger
EP. Epistulae
PANEG. Panegyricus
PLOTI NUS
ENN. Enneades
PLUT. Plutarch
ADV. COLOTEN Adversus Coloten
AET. Aetia Romana et Graeca
AGES. Agesilaus
ALCIB. Alcibiades
ALEX. Alexander
ALEX. M. FORTUNA AUT VIRTUTE OR. De
Alexandri Magni Fortuna Aut Virtute, Libri II.
AMAT. Amatorius
ANTON. Antonius
ARAT. Aratus
CG. Gaius Gracchus
CAT. MAI. Cato Maior
CAT. MI. Cato Minor
CIC. Cicero
87
DE CAP. EX INIM. UTIL. De Capienda ex
Inimicis Utilitate
DEM. Demosthenes
FAB. Fabius Maximus
FLAM. Flamininus
LYS. Lysander
MAR. Marius
PER. Pericles
PHIL. Philopoemen
PHOC. Phocion
POMP. Pompeius
PYRR. Pyrrhus
QUAEST. CONV. Quaestiones Convivales
QUOMODO QUIS SENT. PROF. VIRT. Quomodo quis suos in virtute sentiat profectus
ROM. Romulus
SULL. Sulla
TG Tiberius Gracchus
POLL. Pollux
ONOM. Onomasticon
PORPH. Porphyry
VP Vita Pythagorae
PROP. Propertius
PRUDENT.
Prudentius
PSYCHOM. Psychomachia
QUINT. Quintilian
INST. Institutio Oratoria
QUINT. SMYR. Quintus Smyrnaeus
REL Revue Des Etudes Latines
REV. DE PHIL. Revue de Philologie
RhM Rheinisches Museum
SALL. Sallust
CAT. Bellum Catilinae
IUG. Bellum lugurthinum
SHA Scriptores Historiae Augustae
AEL. Aelius
AUREL. Aurelian
ANTON. CARAC. Antoninus Caracalla
ANT. GETA Geta
ANT. PIUS Antoninus Pius
GORD. TRES Gordiani Tres
MARC. ANTON. Marcus Antoninus
MAX. ET BALB. Maximus et Balbinus
MAXIM. DUO Maximini Duo
OPIL. MACRIN. Opilius Macrinus
SEV. ALEX. Severus Alexander
TYR. TRIG. Tyranni Triginta
VAL. DUO Valeriani Duo
SP Scriptores
Pseud.-Arist.
Physiognomonici;
Pseudo-Aristotle; Pol. Polemo; Adamant. Adamantius; Anon. Physiog. Lat. Anonymous de
Physiognomonia
SEN. Seneca, the Elder
CONTROV. Controversiae
SEN. Seneca, the Younger
APOCOL. Apocolocyntosis
AG. Agamemnon
BEN. De Beneficiis
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)CLEM. De Clementia
CONSOL. AD POLYB. Consolatio ad Polybium
CONSTANT. De Constantia Sapientis
EP. Epistulae
HF Hercules Furens
HIPP. Hippolytus
HO Hercules Oetaeus
MED. Medea
OCT. Octavia
OED. Oedipus
PHOEN. Phoenissae
TRANQ. De Tranquilitate Animi
TRO. Troades
SEXTUS EMPIRICUS
MATH. Against the Schoolmasters
PYR. Outlines of Pyrrhonism (UvppcwVEwO
vrorv7rCOTcEtS)
SIL. Silius Italicus
PUN. Punica
SOPH. Sophocles
AJ. Ajax
ANT. Antigone
EL. Electra
OC Oedipus Coloneus
OT Oedipus Tyrannus
PHIL. Philoctetes
TRACH. Trachiniae
STAT. Statius
ACH. Achilleis
SILV. Silvae
THEB. Thebais
SUET. Suetonius
AUG. Divus Augustus
CALIG. Gaius Caligula
CLAUD. Divus Claudius
DOM. Domitianus
TIB. Tiberius
TIT. Divus Titus
SYN. Synesius
OR. Orationes
TAC. Tacitus
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
AGR. Agricola
ANN. Annales
GERM. Germania
HIST. Historiae
TER. Terence
AD. Adelphoe
AND. Andria
EUN. Eunuchus
HAUT. Heautontimorumenos
HEC. Hecyra
PHOR. Phormio
TERT. Tertullian
DE ANIM. De Anima
DE CULT. FEM. De Cultu Feminarum
TAPA Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association
TRANS. CONN. ACAD. ARTS AND SCIENCES
Transactions of the Connecticut Academy of
Arts and Sciences
THEOC. Theocritus
ID. Idyls
TIB. Tibullus
TSETZES
CHI L. Historiarum Variarum Chiliades
VAL. FLACC. Valerius Flaccus
ARGON. Argonautica
VAL. MAX. Valerius Maximus
VELL. PAT. Velleius Paterculus
VERG. Virgil
AEN. Aeneid
ECL. Eclogues
G. Georgics
VITR. Vitruvius
DE ARCH. De Architectura
XEN. Xenophon
AGES. Agesilaus
AN. Anabasis
AP. Apologia Socratis
CYR. Cyropaedia
MEM. Memorabilia
SYMP. Symposium
Seite 91
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)APPENDIX
This appendix contains noteworthy examples of the
descriptions of two types found in the Homeric epics,
and the Hesiodic didactic epic as well as the Homeric
Hymns.
1. Descriptions of the first type, showing the general
characterization of the permanent appearance of an
individual:
Hom. II. 1, 98; 1, 113-115; 3, 44-45; 3, 156-158; 3, 224; 3,
226-227; 7, 211-212; 9, 505-506; 10, 314-316; 11, 10-11; 22; 13,
769; 18, 414-415; 22, 401-403; 23, 65-67; 24, 375-377; 24, 559.
Od. 1, 206-208; 1, 301-302; 4, 12-14; 5, 211-213; 6, 15-17; 6,
150-151; 6, 276-277; 8, 134-137; 8, 308-311; 8,457; 8, 521-527;
9, 256-257; 10, 112-113; 10, 395-396; 11, 336-337; 11, 469-470;
11, 550-551; 14, 175-179; 15, 331-332; 16, 14-16; 16, 174-176;
17, 336-337; 18, 66-70; 18, 192-196; 18, 219-221; 18, 248-249;
19, 124-125; 20, 194; 21, 334; 22, 156-158; 24, 16-17; 24, 252253; 24, 367-368; 24, 373-374.
Hesiod and the Homeric Hymns: first type.
Hes. Op. 60-68; Scut. 71-72.
Hymn. Hom. Ap. 197-199; 201-203; Bacch. 4-6; 14-15; Cer.
275-281;
Pan 37; Ven. 81-85; 155-157.
2. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the momentary appearance of an
individual:
Luc. 1, 402; 1, 441-443; 1, 463; 2, 51; 3, 78; 5, 274-275;
10, 127-132.
Ov. Met. 1, 498-501; 1, 237-239; 2, 237; 5, 39-60; 7, 705; 7,
730-731; 9, 715-717; 10, 515-517; 10, 522-523; 12, 189-190; 14,
322-324.
Prudent. Psychom. 148-149.
Quint. Smyrn. 1, 50-51; 1, 622-623; 1, 660; 1, 673-674; 3,
557-558; 4, 129-130; 4, 218-220; 5, 530; 6, 302-303; 6, 375; 6,
382-383; 6, 385; 7, 368; 7, 690-691; 13, 501-503.
431; 2,453-454;3, 232-253;
Sil. Pun. 2,,208-210;2,414-415;2,
4, 754-755; 5, 434-436; 5, 437-440; 6, 304-306; 6, 405; 6, 407-408;
7, 651-652; 8, 463-465; 12, 242-246; 13, 861; 13, 801; 14, 530531; 15, 133-134.
Stat. Theb. 1, 414-417; 1, 845-846; 2, 94-97; 2, 203-204; 4,
251-253; 4, 274; 4, 731-732.
Val. Flacc. Argon. 4, 240-242; 5, 363-365; 5, 373-375; 8, 30-31.
Verg. Aen. 1, 26-28; 1, 46-49; 1, 496-497; 1, 657; 1, 683-685;
3, 489-491; 3, 590-594; 3, 631; 4, 606; 4, 141-142; 4, 181-183; 4,
328-330; 4, 556; 4, 590-591; 5, 284; 5, 345; 6, 860-862; 7,
473-474; 11, 810; 12, 64-66; 12, 101-102; 12, 154-155; 12,
220-221; 12, 597-601; 12, 665-666; 12, 670-671; (Ciris) 429-432;
496-497.
2. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of permanent appearance of an
individual.
Claud. Rapt. Proserp. 1, 81-83.
Luc. 8, 155-158; 8, 664-667; 10, 104-105.
Ov. Met. 3, 393-394.
Quint. Smyrn. 1, 53-61.
Sil. Pun. 8, 559-561; 8, 609-612; 12, 227-228; 15, 26-31; 15,
98; 15, 357-359.
Stat. Theb. 4, 743-746; 5, 25-27; Achil. 1, 163-164; 1, 351.
Val. Flacc. Argon. 5, 465-466; 5, 479-480.
Verg. Aen. 1, 588-591; 2, 285; 2, 677-678; 5, 646-649; 7,
328-329; 8, 265-267; 8, 393; 9, 335; 9, 477-478; 9, 583; 9,
649-652; 9, 793-795; 10, 115.
Hom. II. 1, 102-104; 1, 148-149; 1, 199-200; 1,206; 1, 223-225;
2, 268-270; 3, 33-37; 3, 216-219; 3, 396-397; 3, 427; 4, 356-357;
6,471; 6,512-514; 9, 13-16; 9,502-504; 10, 374-375; 10, 390; 10,
400; 11, 36-37; 11, 136-137; 11, 248-250; 11, 378-379; 11,
544-547; 12, 462-466; 13, 17-20; 13, 37; 13, 184-185; 13, 404-405;
13, 434-435; 13, 473-475; 13, 503; 14, 99-101; 15, 113-114; 15,
607-608; 16,3; 16, 10-11; 16, 610; 17, 603; 17, 674; 17, 679-680;
18, 22-27; 18, 124; 19, 16-17; 19, 284-285; 19, 365-366; 20,
161-162; 21, 408-409; Z1, 491-492; 22, 94-95; 22, 274; 23, 385;
23, 784-786; 24, 358-360; 24, 483-484.
Od. 4, 114;4, 153;4, 609-610;4, 661-662;6, 131-132;8, 85-86;
8, 326; 8,343; 8,521-522; 9, 371-372; 11,42-43; 11,526-530; 11,
538-540; 11, 606-608; 13, 287-289; 16, 354; 16, 476-477; 17,
541-543; 18, 35; 18, 111; 18, 163; 18, 320; 19, 204; 19, 471-472;
19, 476-479; 20, 268-269; 20, 301-302; 20, 345-347; 20, 358; 21,
376-377; 21, 396; 21, 431; 22, 23-24; 22, 371; 24, 315-317; 24,
450.
Hes. Op. 195-196; 370-371; Th. 820-835; 909-911; Cat. 98.6;
Scut. 71-72; 115; 144-148; 159-160; 168-169; 248-252; 386-391;
426-432; 445.
Hymn. Hom. Bacch. 13-16; 47-48; Cer. 192-194; 200; 204;
213-215; Merc. 29; 42-45; 278-281; 414-415; Sol. 9-13; Ven.
81-83; 181-183.
APPENDIX
A 1
3. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the momentary appearance of an
individual.
Ap. Rhod. 1, 266-267; 1, 485-486; 1, 534-535; 1, 784-785; 1,
790-791; 1, 1170-1171; 1, 1296-1297; 2, 25-30; 2, 44; 2, 49; 2,
546; 2, 664-665; 3, 120-124; 3, 129; 3, 150; 3, 297-298; 3, 371; 3,
681-687; 3, 724-725; 4, 11-12; 4, 16-19; 4, 389; 4, 465-466; 4,
470; 4, 695-697; 4, 727-730; 4, 1039-1040; 4, 1279-1280; 4, 1315;
4, 1344; 4, 1543-1545; 4, 1669-1670.
Claud. Rapt. Proserp. 1, 272-274; 2, 312-316.
Luc. 1, 186-190; 1, 192-194; 1, 244-247; 1, 296-297; 2, 333-337;
2, 371-373; 2, 509-510; 3, 355-357; 4, 162-164; 4, 363-365; 4,
569-570; 5, 211-217; 5, 295-296; 5, 316-321; 5, 364-367; 5,
508-510; 6, 224-225; 6, 228-229; 6, 515-518; 6, 657-659; 7,
13-16; 7, 129-130; 7, 290-292; 7, 320-322; 7, 682-683; 7, 709710; 8, 54-61; 8, 69-70; 8, 589-592; 9, 739-740; 9, 1032-1039; 9,
1043-1046; 9, 1062-1063; 9, 1106-1108; 10, 14-15; 10, 82-85.
Lucr. 1, 32-37; 1, 90-92; 3, 152-158; 3, 476-483; 4, 1137-1140;
4, 1160-1167 (cf. Hor. Sat. 1, 343-54; Ov. Ars Am. 2, 657-662 and
the Greek source in Plato's Rep. 5, 474d.-475a).
Ov. Met. 1, 237-239; 1, 498-499; 2, 178-181; 2, 447-448; 2,
470; 2, 748-751; 2, 752; 2, 857-858; 3, 99-100; 3, 187-188; 3,
273-278; 3, 418-424; 3, 577-578; 4, 346-347; 4, 464-465; 4,
682-683; 5, 92; 5, 234-235; 5, 500-501; 5, 506; 5, 569-570; 6,
34-35; 6, 165-169; 6, 303-305; 6, 620-621; 7, 84-88; 7, 496-497;
7, 862; 8, 322-323; 8, 465-470; 8, 677-678; 8, 791-808; 9, 27; 9,
111; 9, 527; 10, 359-360; 10, 609-610; 10, 661-662; 11, 395-399;
11, 417-418; 11, 464; 13, 3-4; 13, 125-127; 13, 442-444; 13,
455-456; 13, 540-542; 14, 734; 14, 839-840.
A 2
This appendix includes noteworthy examples of the
descriptions of the two types found in other Greek and
Roman epic poetry (fragments of the epic poets are
not included) through the fourth century A.D.
1. Descriptions of the first type, showing the general
characterization of the permanent appearance of an
individual.
Ap. Rhod. 1, 204-205; 1, 668-674; 1, 1229-1230; 1, 1312-1313;
2, 37; 2, 681-682; 3, 724-925; 3,1006-1007; 3, 1262; 4, 682-683.
Claud. Rapt. Proserp. 2, 36-38; 3, 86-92.
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Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Prudent. Psychom. 42-45; 48; 109-114; 116; 163-166; 178-183;
194-200; 276-277; 310-315; 335-338; 452-453; 456-457; 551;
553; 572; 604; 640-641; 699-704; 823.
Quint. Smyrn. 1, 81-82; 1, 161; 1, 563-564; 1, 643; 1, 718-719;
3, 35-36; 3, 67-68; 3, 131-132; 3, 133-134; 3, 145-146; 3, 252; 3,
537-539; 4, 345-346; 4, 460; 4, 495; 5, 237; 5, 328-329; 7, 56-57;
7, 176-177; 7, 313-314; 7, 361-364; 7, 464; 7, 488; 9, 117-118; 9,
371-375; 9, 468-472; 12, 400-412; 13, 385-394; 13, 426-427; 14,
39-47; 14, 55-58; 14, 61-62; 14, 169-172; 14, 181-184; 14,
386-387; 14, 391-398.
Sil. Pun. 2, 154; 3, 75-77; 3, 297-298; 4, 534-540; 4, 821; 5,
275-276; 5, 673; 6, 82-84; 6, 101; 6, 220; 6, 294-295; 6, 368-370;
6, 383-388; 6, 425-430; 6, 457; 6, 698-699; 7, 75-76; 8, 656-657;
9, 65; 9, 168; 9, 412-413; 9, 460-462; 10, 263; 10, 631-633; 11,
73-74; 11, 207-209; 11, 218-219; 11, 229-230; 11, 327-328; 11,
542-543; 12, 510; 12, 551-552; 12, 734-735; 13, 2-3; 13, 696; 13,
733-734; 13, 780; 13, 782; 13, 784; 13, 822; 14, 186-188; 15,
122-123; 16, 138-139; 16, 189; 16, 192-193; 16, 233; 16, 258; 16,
281; 16, 305; 16, 580; 17, 35; 17, 184; 17, 213-214; 17, 309-310;
17, 324-334; 17, 409; 17, 629-630; 17, 645-646.
Stat. Theb. 1, 186-188; 1, 414-417; 1, 477; 1, 536-539; 1,
673-675; 2, 203-204; 2, 230-235; 2, 526-527; 2, 544-546; 2, 655;
3, 77-78; 3, 326-330; 3, 367; 3, 376-377; 3, 680-681; 3, 711; 4,
380-381; 4, 496-497; 4, 581; 4, 740; 4, 743-753; 4, 768; 5, 25-27;
5, 421-426; 5, 502; 5, 613; 6, 622-623; 7, 359-361; 7, 474-475; 8,
242-244; 8, 254; 9, 702-706; 10, 166-167; 10, 606-607; 10,
688-689; 10, 756-757; 10, 840; 10, 892-893; 11, 233; 11, 327; 11,
336-337; 11, 372-373; 11, 526-527; 11, 582-585; 12, 121-123; 12,
222-223; 12, 534-535; 12, 537; 12, 588; 12, 688; Achil. 1, 194; 1,
270-271; 1, 308; 1, 366-368; 1, 584-585; 1, 662-664; 1, 864-866;
1, 906-908.
Val. Flacc. Argon. 1, 79-80; 1, 132-133; 1, 229-230; 1, 291-293;
1, 296-297; 1, 722-723; 1, 802-803; 2, 462-464; 2, 535; 2, 595; 2,
608-609; 3, 178-180; 3, 337-339; 3, 576-577; 4, 1-3; 4, 19-20;
4, 39-40; 4, 189-190; 4, 232-235; 4, 323-324; 4, 359; 4, 639-640;
4, 759; 5, 85; 5, 312; 5, 519-520; 5, 570; 6, 22; 6, 578-580; 6,
584-586; 6, 604-605; 6, 657-658; 6, 661-662; 6, 758-760;
7, 32-33; 7, 78-80; 7, 103-107; 7, 115-116; 7, 121-122; 7, 128129; 7, 153-155; 7, 190-192; 7, 214-215; 7, 244; 7, 292-294; 7,
296; 7, 305-306; 7, 334-335; 7, 368-369; 7, 407-412; 7, 431-433;
7,436; 7, 458; 7,461-462; 7, 511-515; 8,9; 8, 30-31; 8, 54-55; 8,
163-165; 8, 204-205.
Verg. Aem. 1, 91-92; 1, 126-127; 1, 208-209; 1, 227-229; 1,
254-256; 1, 370-371; 1, 403-404; 1, 459-460; 1, 465; 1, 480-482;
1, 494-495; 1, 689-690; 1, 709-710; 1, 719-720; Z, 1; 2, 120; 2,
220-221; 2,270; 2,282; 2,403-406; 2,568-569; 2,681; 2,687; 2,
724; 2, 769-770; 3, 48; 3, 320; 3, 344-345; 4, 4-5; 4, 127-128; 4,
279-280; 4, 331-332; 4, 362-364; 4, 369; 4, 371-372; 4, 388-389;
4, 449; 4, 641; 4, 642-644; 4, 689; 4, 691-692; 5, 181-182; 5, 345;
5, 555; 5, 852-853; 6, 47-51; 6, 156-157; 6, 299-300; 6, 455; 6,
467-471; 6, 685-686; 7, 249-251; 7, 291; 7, 399; 7, 415-418; 7,
446; 7, 488; 8, 152-153; 8, 222-223; 8, 310-312; 8, 520; 8, 697; 8,
709; 9, 209; 9, 521; 9, 734; 9, 740; 9, 793-794; 10, 445-448; 10,
473; 10, 742; 10, 770-772; 11, 120-121; 11, 237-238; 11, 251; 11,
479; 11, 507; 11, 800-801; 12, 70; 12, 101-102; 12, 219-221; 12,
807; 12, 829; 12, 866; 12, 665-666; 12, 915; 12, 920; 12, 930; 12,
939-940; 12, 945.
(Culex): 235-236; 254-255; 268-269; 290-291; 322-327.
(Ciris): 180; 225-226; 401-402.
4. Descriptions of the third type, showing the iconistic
description of an individual.
Verg. G. 3, 76-88; (Moretum) 31-35.
APPENDIX
B 1
This appendix includes noteworthy examples of
descriptions of two types found in the fragments of
early Greek elegiac, iambic, and lyric poetry. Refer-
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
ences are to LCL for Elegy and Iambus (EI), and
Lyra Graeca (LG).
1. Descriptions of the first type, showing general
characterization of an individual.
Anacreontea: (El 2, 1, 6-10; 17, 1-5; 9-33; Crates: (El) 2, 7;
Ion of Chios: (El) 1, 4. Philoxenus: (LG) 3, 8; Pindar, Ishm.
4, 45-51; 7, 22-23; Nem.3, 19-20; 01. 8,19-20; 9, 65-66; 110-111;
141; 10, 103-105; Pyth. 4, 79-85, Plato, epigrams: (El) 2, 9.
Sappho: (LG) 1, 38; 1, 58; 1, 148, 5-9; 1, 158.
Solon: (EI) 1, 13.
Theognis: (EI) 1, 933-934.
Tyrtaeus: (El) 1, 10; 27-29, 30.
2. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the permanent appearance of an
individual.
Alcaeus: (LG) 1, 398; Telestes: (LG) 3, 1, 4-5; Theognis: (EI)
1, 83-86.
Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the momentary appearance of an
individual.
Alcaeus: (LG) 1, 5; Anacreon: (LG) 2, 52; 2, 84; 2, 114; Anon:
(LG) 3, 90.
Bacchylides: (LG) 3, 1-2; 16-20; 3, 13; 54-56; 3, 38; 15-17;
Lbycus: (LG) 2, 2.
Pindar. Nem. 4, 37-41; 7, 65-67; 10, 61-63; Pyth. 9, 38-39.
Sappho: (LG) 1, 1, 13-16; 1, 119; 1, 120; 1, 156; 1, 2, 5-15.
Simonides: (LG) 2, 27; Scolia: (LG) 3, 30.
3. Descriptions of a third type, showing the iconistic
description of an individual.
Alcaeus: (LG) 1, 51; Anacreon: (LG) 2, 59; Anacreontea:
(El) 2, 16, 6-25.
APPENDIX
B 2
This appendix includes noteworthy examples of
the descriptions of the first and second types found in
Greek (other than those listed in Appendix B 1) and
in Roman lyric and elegiac and pastoral poetry,
satire, and epigram, as well as several examples of the
third type.
1. Descriptions of the first type, showing general
characterization of an individual.
Catull. 10, 3-4; 20, 14-15; 39, 1-2; 41, 3-4; 81, 3-4; 89, 1-4;
93, 1-2.
Hor. Carm. 1, 5, 3-5; 1, 9, 21-22; 1, 19, 5-9; 1, 32, 11-12; 1, 36,
17-19; 2, 8, 5-8; 2, 12, 13-16; 2, 12, 21-26; 3, 2, 6-9; 4, 9, 13-16;
4, 10, 4-6; 4, 13, 9-12; Epod. 17, 17-18; 17, 21-24; Sat. 1, 2, 89;
1, 2, 92-93; 1, 2, 123-124; 1, 3, 33-34; 1, 3, 44-48; 1, 6, 30-33; 1,
8, 25-26; Epist. 1, 20, 24-25.
Juv. 1, 32; 10, 45-50; 10, 296-297.
Mart. 2, 33, 1-4; 3, 8; 3, 53; 6, 29, 5-6; 6, 34, 5-6; 11, 102, 1-2.
Ov. Am. 1, 5, 19-22; 1, 8, 24-25; 1, 8, 33; 1, 10, 13-14; 2, 10,
23-24; 3, 2, 1-2; 3, 11, 41-43; Ars Am. 1, 509-510; 1, 613-614; 2,
119-120; 2, 123-124; 2, 569-570; 2, 643-646; 2, 657-662; Fast. 3,
437-438; 4, 223-224; 4, 305-306; 4, 309-310; 4, 541-542; Her. 13,
109-110; 16, 137-138; 16, 141-142; 17, 125-126; 17, 173-174;
Med. Fac. 43-46; Pont. 1, 4, 1-4; 1, 10, 25-26; 4, 13; 15-16; Rem.
Am. 317-320; 327-328; 337-340.
Petr. Sat. 15; 27.
Prop. 2, 2, 3; 2, 2, 5-6; 2, 5, 28; 2, 7, 7-8; 2, 7, 10; 2, 12, 23-24;
Stat. Silv. 1, 2, 271-273; 1, 2, 276-277; 2, 7, 118-119; 3, 3,
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APPENDICES
113-114; 3, 4, 31; 4, 4, 8; 5, 3, 114-115; 5, 5, 86-87.
Tib. 1, 1, 67-68; 1, 4, 3-4; 1, 5, 43-44; 2, 5, 7-8; 3, 5, 25-26.
Occasional poetry, including panegyrics.
Auson. Paren. 5, 3-6; 7, 11-12; Pro . Burd. 17, 1-3; 20, 13-14;
Epist. 22, 24-25.
Claud. Cons. Stil. 2, 178-181.
2. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the permanent appearance of an
individual.
Juv. 11, 154; 14, 51-52.
Mart. 1, 77; 8, 46, 1-2; 9, 76, 1-3; 9, 79, 5-6; 10, 32, 5-6; 12,
64, 1-2.
Occasional poetry, including panegyrics.
Auson. Parent. 8, 5-6; 9, 23-24; 14, 5-8; 16, 3-5; 17, 11-15; 19,
3-4; 23, 1-6.
Claud. Contra Eutrop. 2, 380-381; Epithal. 10, 241-242; 10,
263-271; 25, 41-43; 25, 125-127; Paneg. 90-91; Shorter Poems:
11, 29, 44-46.
3. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the momentary appearance of an
individual.
Catull. 3, 17-18; 42, 7-9; 45, 10-12; 55, 6-8; 61, 6-10; 56-60;
157-161; 213-215; 63, 48-49; 83-85; 64, 34; 60-62; 86-87; 90-92;
110-111; 219-220; 267-268; 65, 22-24; 67, 45-46; 68a, 15-16;
30-32.
Hor. Carm. 1, 2, 38-40; 1, 3, 17-20; 1, 13, 5-9; 1, 19, 5-8; 1, 22,
23-24; 1, 37, 25-26; 2, 2, 23-24: 2, 12, 14-17, 25-26; 2, 16, 25-27;
3, 3, 3: 3, 3, 4, 54; 3, 4, 41-44; 3, 11, 21-22; 3, 27, 25-28; 3, 27,
66-68; 4, 1, 33-36; 4, 5, 6-8.
Epod. 4. 5-6; 5. 3-4; 5. 9-11; 7. 15-16; 10. 15-16; 17; 13. 3-5.
Sat. 1, 9, 63-66; 2, 3, 9-10; 2, 3, 177-180; 2, 4, 91-93; 2, 5,
51-55; 2, 5, 103-104; 2, 8, 58-59.
Epist. 1, 6, 12-14; 1, 14, 37-38; 1, 18, 41-43; 1, 18, 94-95; 1, 19,
12-14; 1, 19, 45-47; 2, 1, 197-198; 2, 2, 92-94; Ars P. 93-94;
101-102; 284-285.
Juv. 3, 104-105; 3, 185; 3, 100-101; 4, 74-75; 4, 104-105; 6, 8;
6, 418; 9, 133; 10, 33-34; 10, 191-192; 11, 204-205; 13, 76-77;
13, 241-242; 14, 56-57; 14, 109-110.
Mart. 1, 24, 1-4, 11-13; 2, 24, 7-8; 2, 41, 13-14; 4, 1, 3-4; 4,
14, 10-12; 5, 2, 7-8; 5, 51, 3-5; 5, 78, 22-24; 6, 10, 5-6; 9-10, 6,
60, 3-4; 7, 5, 5-6; 7, 12, 1-3; 7, 26, 5-6; 7, 58, 7-8; 7, 84, 5-6; 8,
61, 1-2; 9, 23, 3; 9, 24, 1-3; 9, 37, 5-6; 11, 2, 1-4; 11, 39, 13-14.
Ov. Am. 1, 4, 15-18; 1, 8, 35-38; 1, 11, 17-18; 1, 14, 55; 2, 1,
5-6; 2, 2, 33-34; 2, 4, 9-10; 2, 5, 15-17; 2, 5, 33-36; 2, 5, 43-44; 2,
8, 15-16; 2, 17, 7-8; 3, 1, 7; 3, 1,9-12; 3, 1, 31-34; 3, 1, 47-48; 3,
2, 5-10; 3, 2, 67-68; 3, 2, 83; 3, 9, 45-46; 3, 14, 27-28.
Ars Am. 1, 109-110; 1, 463; 1, 573-574; 1, 729-730; 2, 49-50;
2, 201-202; 2, 311-314; 2, 451-454; 2, 691-692; 3, 73-74; 3,
287-288; 3, 507-514; 3, 553-554; 3, 729-730; 3, 801-802.
Fast. 1, 3-4; 1, 17-18; 1, 69-70; 1, 145-146; 1, 373-375; 1,
418-420; 1, 553-554; 2, 355-356; 2, 489-490; 2, 613-614; 2,
755-758; 2, 773-774; 2, 827-828; 2, 845-846; 4, 29-30; 4, 161162; 4, 317; 4, 343-344; 4, 585-586; 5, 23-24; 5, 245; 6, 19; 6,
65-66; 6, 493-494; 6, 615-616; Her. 4, 71-74; 4, 77-78; 6, 25-26;
6, 71-72; 6, 145-146; 7, 69-70; 7, 183; 8, 55-58; 9, 123-126; 9,
127-129; 10, 135-138; 11, 27-28; 11, 35-36; 13, 17-18; 16, 51-52;
16, 83-86; 17, 15-17; 17, 76-78; 17, 81-84; 17, 89-90; 18, 251-252;
20, 5-7; 20, 55-60; 20, 119-120; 20, 205-208; 21, 111-114.
lb. 559-560; Pont. 1, 2, 91; 2, 1, 5-6; 2, 1, 21-28; 2, 63-64; 2,
2, 79-80; 2, 2, 91-92; 2, 5, 51-52; 2, 8, 21-22; 2, 8, 39-41; 2, 8,
53-54; 2, 8, 55-56; 2, 8, 73-74; 3, 1, 1-2; 3, 1, 165-166; 3, 3,
13-14; 3, 4, 27-28; 4, 1, 5-6; 4, 4, 45-46; 4, 9, 91-92; Rem. Am.
587-588; 713; Tr. 1, 3, 59-60; 1, 4, 11-12; 27-28; 1, 8, 23-24; 2,
87-88; 512-514; 526-527; 3, 5, 11-12; 3, 7, 33-35; 3, 9, 18-19; 4,
2, 29-30; 4, 3, 9-10; 4, 3, 49-50; 4, 3, 69-70; 5, 1, 39-40; 5, 7,
17-18; 5, 8, 15-18.
91
Pers. 3, 80-82; 5, 91-92.
Prop. 1, 1, 1-4; 1, 3, 17; 1, 3, 19-20; 1, 5, 21-22; 1, 6, 5-6; 1,
10, 31-34; 1, 15, 39-41; 1, 18, 17-18; 2, 1, 5-8; 2, 3, 9; 2, 3, 13-14;
2, 3, 32; 2, 10, 9-10; 2, 20, 1-2; 2, 22, 11-12; 2, 23, 8-9; 2, 23, 24;
2, 34, 23-24; 3, 8, 23-26; 3, 14, 31-32; 4, 3, 27-28; 4, 8, 53-55.
Stat. Silv. 1, 1, 15-18; 1, 1, 69-70; 1, 2, 7-8; 1, 2, 11-12; 1, 2,
167-168; 1, 2, 211-212; 2, 1, 41-44; 2, 1, 108-109; 2, 1, 168-173;
2, 2, 145-146; 2, 6, 22-23; 2, 6, 38-39; 2, 6, 40-41; 2, 6, 50-53; 3,
4,51-52; 3,5, 11; 4,2, 16-17; 4,3,40-43; 4,2,52; 5, 1,64; 5, 1,
140; 5, 1, 170-171; 5, 2, 73-74.
Tib. 1, 2, 21-22; 1, 2, 33-34; 1, 6, 1-2; 1, 6, 18-19; 1, 8, 9-12;
1, 8, 43-44; 1, 8, 67-69; 2, 1, 29-30; 2, 3, 33-34; 2, 6, 43; 3, 4,
29-32; 3, 6, 33-34. Sulpicia's Garland 3, 9. Pastoral poetry.
Nemes. Cyn. 80-81; 243-247; Ecl. 2, 78-81; 3, 21-23; 3, 33-34;
4, 17.
Calp. 4, 84-86; 5, 46-48; 5, 91-94; 6, 9-11; 6, 52-53; 7, 76-78.
Theoc. Id. 1, 32-38; 1, 89-91; 1, 95-96; 3, 18-20; 5, 35-37; 6,
8-9; 6, 25-26; 7, 128-129; 8, 72-73; 15, 11-12; 15, 127-129; 16,
8; 20, 6; 20, 9; 20, 12-16; 20, 21-24; 23, 7-8; 23, 11-14; 24,
117-118; 25, 214-215; 25, 233-234; 27, 69-70; Bion 1, 7-11, 29;
2, 17-20; Moschus 1, 7-9; 1, 12; 2, 85-88; 4, 2-3, 108-109.
Verg. Ecl. 1, 27-29; 4, 60; 5, 56-57; 6, 21-23. Occasional
poetry, including panegyrics.
Auson. Cent. Nupt. 3; 4; Epist. 30, 11-16; Grat. Act. 12; 13.
Claud. Bell, Goth. 356-358; 376-377; Cons. Hon. 154-155;
354-360; 560-564; Cons. Manl. Theod. 217-220; Cons. Stil. 1,
26-27; 1, 45-47; 2, 34-36; 2, 135-137; 2, 327-328; 2, 347-348; 2,
358-359; 3, 69-70; 3, 195-197; 3, 218-219; Contra Eutrop. 1,
110-111; 120-123; 252-254; 257-262; 2, 25-28; 31-32; 527-529;
Contra Gild. 1, 21-23; 174-176; Contra Ruf. 1, 164-165; 1,
325-326; 2, 86; 130-132; 255-256; 400-402; 410-411; Epithal. 10,
7-9; 11-12; 316; 319-325; Paneg. Honor. (396 A. D.) 30; (398)
518-519; Paneg. Prob. and Olybr. 117-118; Shorter poems. 30;
121-122.
4. Descriptions of the third type, showing iconistic
description of the individual.
Auson. Epist. 26, 7-12
Mart. 4, 42, 5-10; 10, 65, 5-15.
Petr. Sat 23; 97; 126,
Sen. Apocol. 5 Claudius; 4 Nero; 12.
APPENDIX
C
This appendix contains noteworthy examples of
the descriptions of the first and second type found in
the Greek and Roman dramatists. For the sake of
convenience the Octavia is included under Seneca's
dramas.
1. Descriptions of the first type, showing general
characterization of an individual:
Aesch. Pers. 323-324; Sept. 488.
Soph. El. 1177; OC 1256-1261; OT 740-743.
Eur. Andr. 196-198; Hel. 160-161; 263-264; 304-305; 577;
Med. 1071-1072; Or. 918; Supp. 887-889.
Sen. HF 626-627; Med. 75-76; 82-83; OT 775-776; Oct.
554-555.
Arist. Av. 1712-1714; Lys. 78-80; Pax 524-526; Ran. 411-413;
Thesm. 31; Vesp. 1071-1072.
2. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the permanent appearance of an
individual:
Aesch. Ag. 737-742.
Soph. El. 663-664; 684-685; OC 285-286; 555-556.
Seite 94
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Eur. Andr. 330-332; El. 1062-1064; Hec. 379-381; Tro.
835-837.
Sen. HF 472-475; 720-727; 764-767; HO 391-395; Hipp.
646-660; 795-808.
Arist. Ach. 566-567; Lys. 809-811; Neph. 102-104; 1112;
Pax 395.
3. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the momentary appearance of an
individual:
Aesch. Ag. 239-241; 270-271; 418-419; 636-640; 788-798;
1427-1428. Cho. 96-99; 668-671; 736-740; Pers. 81-82; PV358;
Sept. 536-537; 622-623; Supp. 197-199; 1004-1005.
Soph. Aj. 462-465; 1008-1011; Ant. 441-442; 526-530;
690-691; 795-796; 801-805; 829-831; 1231-1232; El. 804-807;
1184; 1230-1231; 1285-1287; 1296-1297; 1309-1310; OC 244245; 319-321; 1249-1251; 1709-1710; OT 80-81; 447-448;
528-529; 532-535; 1303-1304; 1371-1372; 1384-1385; Phil.
215-216; 225-226; 257-259; 278; 367-368; 701-702; 815;
821-822; 865-866; 934-935; Trach. 58;795-797; 869-870.
Eur. Alc. 173-174; 183-184; 205-207; 399-400; 597-600;
763-764; 773-778; 800-801; Andr. 130-132; 532-534; 545-546;
629-631; 744-746; 764-767; 826-827; 880-881; 1077-1078;
Bacch. 233-236; 453-456; 606-607; 692-693; 1122-1123; 11651167; Cyc. 73-74; 210-211; 499-502; El. 241; 503; 558-559;
830; 947-949; 1074-1079; 1399; Hec. 62-66; 342-344; 441-443;
499-500; 568-579; 807-808; 968-972; 1049-1050; Hel. 456;
544-545; 1419; 1537-1540; 1570-1572; HF 98-99; 130-132;
449-450; 867-870; 931-935; 990-992; 1199-1201; 1287-1288;
Heracl. 381-382; 633; 684; Hipp. 170-175; 203-204; 245-246;
274; 279-280; 852-855; 946-947; 1151-1152; IA 187-188;
454-455; 581-585; 635-637; 643-644; 648; 681-684; 821-822;
851-852; 993-994; 1122-1123; 1127-1128; 1238-1239; 14171418; 1549-1550; 1557; 1581; IT 76; 264-266; 268-269; 832-833;
Ion 237-240; 582-584; 621-623; 731-732; 925-926; 1261-1263;
1437-1438; Med. 24-32; 92-93; 131-136; 187-189; 271-273;
689; 860-862; 903-907; 1006-1007; 1012; 1038-1042; 1118-1120;
1146-1149; 1160-1170; 1197-1199; Or. 225-226; 253-254;
387;389; 456-458; 632-633; 725-726; 893-894; 957-958; 12041206; 1261-1266; 1317-1320; 1456-1459; 1504-1505; Phoen.
127-128; 145-147; 301-306; 363-364; 452-454; 960-961; 13071309; 1332-1334; 1364; 1440-1441; 1486-1489; Rhes. 710-714;
814-815; Supp. 21-22; 95-96; 1056; Tro. 36-38; 315-316;
351-352; 654-655; 772-773; 891-893; 987-988; 1022-1024.
Sen. Ag. 49-50; 128; 237-238; 408-409; 586-588; 710-719;
772-774; 788-789; 922-923; 949-950; HF 202-205; 216-219;
329-331; 640-642; 953-955; 1022-1023: 1042-1044; 1174-1175;
1178-1179; 1228-1229; HO 165-170; 228-230; 240-241; 250-253;
482-483; 700-702; 740-741; 796-798; 808; 833-835; 985-986;
1265-1268; 1272-1274; 1338-1340; 1347-1348; 1603-1604; 16071608; 1645-1647; 1684-1685; 1693-1694; 1722-1724; 1736-1737;
1745-1746; 1753-1755; Hipp. 360-382; 431-433; 586-587;
731-734; 829-830; 886-887; 915-919; 989-990; 1064-1065;
1168-1169; 1262-1263; 1269-1270; Med. 93-94; 97-98; 186-187;
380-381; 385-389; 445-446; 675-676; 738-739; 853-865; 937939; 1020-1021; OT 180-190; 202; 288-290; 480-481; 509-510;
554-555; 567-568; 647-648; 654-657; 819-821; 840-842; 839;
919-924; 952-970; 1003-1007; Phoen. 29-30; 473-474; Thyestes
330-331; 416; 421-427; 505-507; 705-706; 719; 898-900;
903-906; 935-936; Tro. 448-450; 457-459; 464-468; 522-523;
615-617; 631; 647-648; 897; 999-1000; 1024-1025; 1088-1090;
1112-1113; 1137-1138; 1152; Octavia 21-22; 73-75; 108-112;
172-173; 436-437; 690-692; 698-700; 703-706; 722-723; 778779; 820-842.
Arist. Ach. 1069-1070; Av. 1168-1169; Equit. 74-75; 548-550;
631; 646-647; 1272-1273; Lys. 5-7; 426-427; 512-514; 706-707;
886-887; 1138-1141; 1283-1284; Neph. 186-187; 225; 361-363;
581-583; Pax 481-482; 1208-1209; Plut. 332-334; 368-369;
422-424; 633-636; 701-702; 735-736; 756-759; 1022; Ran.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
307-308; 561-562; 593-595; 602-604; 804; 1090-1093; Thesm.
852-854; 956-958; Vesp. 446-447; 454-455; 655; 900-901;
1031-1035; 1170-1171.
Plaut. Amph. 52-53; 960; Asin. 784; Aul. 592; Bacch. 595-596;
Capt. 105-106; 541-542; 557; 594-596; Cas. 281-282; Curc. 190191; 230-233; 293-294; Epid. 61-62; 435; 608-609; Men. 178180; 753-754; 829-830; 888; Merc. 182; 368; 371; 404-406; 599600; 671; Mil. GI. 201-202; 870-873; Mostell. 810-811; 890; Pers.
27; 130; 546; Poen. 513-514; Pseud. 106-107; 458; 658-659; 911;
964; Stich. 270-271; Trin. 623-624; 1168.
Ter. Ad. 642; 863-865; And. 118-120; 135-136; 856-857;
878; Eun. 68-69; 242; 249-250; 313-317; 472-473; 558-559;
579-580; 681; 1017-1018; Haut. 306-307; 372-373; 700; Hec.
352; Phor. 104-105; 211; 341-342; 890.
APPENDIX
D
This appendix includes noteworthy examples of the
descriptions of the first and second type found in the
Greek and Roman historians and biographers. I have
included in these lists citations from Cicero's orations,
from Pliny's panegyric on Trajan, from the later
writers of panegyrics, and from Valerius Maximus.
No attempt is made to include here general descriptions of personal appearance of the first type, which
are not definitely linked by the authors with qualities
of character (arranged in approximate chronological
order).
1. Descriptions of the first type, showing general
characterization of an individual.
B. Alex. 44.
Nep. 15, 3; 17, 8; 18, 11; 21, 1; 22, 3.
Sall. Cat. 5; 15; lug. 6; 28.
Cic. Caecin. 27; Cat. 2, 22; Rab. Perd. 21; Rosc. Am. 135;
Vatin. 4.
Diod. Sic. 1, 65; 3, 8, 2; 5, 32, 2; 8, 91, 5; 15, 39, 2; 19, 81, 4;
29, 27.
Livy. 3, 11;4, 19; 7, 9; 7, 10; 9, 16; 28, 17; 30, 1;42, 11.
Joseph. AJ2, 9; 6, 158; 164; 18,3,4.
Q. Curt. Rufus 3, 11; 4, 13; 7, 4; 7, 9; 7, 11; 8, 13; 9, 10; 10,3.
Vell. Pat. 2, 29; 2, 41; 2, 75; 2, 94; 2, 97; 2, 107; 2, 108; 2,
117.
Val. Max. 1, 7, Ext. 4; 5, 1, 3; 5, 4, Ext. 7; 5, 8, 5; 5, 10, 2; 6, 1,
1; 6, 9, 14; 6, 9, Ext. 4; 7, 1, 1; 7, 3, 6; 8, 3, 1; 9, 2, 2; 9, 2, Ext. 5.
Tac. Ann. 1, 10; 2, 4; 2, 21; 2, 41; 2, 73; 6, 21; 11, 16; 12, 4;
12, 44; 12, 49; 12, 64; 13, 45; 15, 48; 15, 59; 15, 72; 16, 6;
16, 15; Hist. 1, 7; 1,9; 1,53; 2, 5; 2, 30; 4, 13.
Flor. 1, 13, 4; 2, 14, 3.
Just. 1, 10, 13; 12, 8, 1-2; 12, 12, 11-12; 13, 1, 10-11; 23, 4,
14-15; 36, 2, 11; 38, 8, 9.
Aur. Vict. 17, 5; 39, 1.
Epit. de Caes. 1, 20; 10,2; 15,4; 40, 15; 42,6; 44,4.
Eutrop. 10, 7.
Arr. Anab. 5, 19, 1; 7, 28, 1-2; 8, 1, 2.
Dio Cass. 7, 30, 2; 57, 18; 62, 9, 1; 10, 1; 15, 2; 77; Epit. 14;
16.1; 62.2; 68.31, 3; 80.
SHA. Ael. 5; Aurel. 6; Max. et Balb. (Balbinus), 7; Tyr. Trig.
(Celsus), 29; Ant. Geta, 4; Gord. tres (Gordian 2), 18; (Gordian 3),
31; Maxim. duo (Maximinus 1), 2, 6; Ant. Pius 2, 13; Val. duo
(Valerian 2), 8.
Amm. Marc. 17, 13, 24; 18, 6, 7; 21, 6, 4; 27, 10, 3.
2. Descriptions of the second type, showing characterization of the permanent appearance of an
individual.
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APPENDICES
Caes. B. Gall. 5, 14.
Nep. 7, 1; 10, 1; 11, 3; 25, 1; 25, 22.
Sall. Cat. 15 (see reference under first type).
Cic. Balb. 58; Div. in Caecil. 46; Cael. 6; Cat. 1, 32; Dom. 3;
101; Marcell. 10; Mil. 92; Planc. 34; Vatin. 8; Verr. Act. prim. 21.
Diod. Sic. 5, 28, 1.
Livy 24, 5; 39, 40.
Vell. Pat. 2, 110; 2, 127.
Val. Max. 2, 10, 8.
Tac. Ann. 2, 13; 2, 14; 2, 72; 11, 28; 13, 19; 16, 32; Hist. 1,
14; 1, 22; 1, 39; 2, 1; 4, 62; 5, 14; 5, 10; Agr. 11; Germ. 4; 30.
Plin. Paneg. 4, 7; 22, 2; 24, 48, 4; 55, 11; 61, 2.
Flor. 3, 10, 20.
Just. 5, 2, 6.
Epit. de Caes. 3, 5; 16, 7; 18, 6; 21, 4; 45, 5; 48, 8.
Eutrop. 8, 11; 9, 27; 10, 5.
Arr. Epict. Diss. 1, 24, 8, 9; 2, 8, 24-28; 3, 1, 42.
SHA Serv. Alex. 4, 14; Marc. Anton. 16; Anton. Carac. 2;
Max. et Balb. (Maximus), 6; Opil. Macrin. 2.
Amm. Marc. 14, 6, 10; 21, 6, 9; 26, 6, 7; 27, 6, 15; 28, 1, 45;
21, 3, 2; 30, 4, 11.
Pan. Lat. 2, 6, 2; 3, 5, 3; 4, 5, 4; 4, 34, 4; 5, 9, 3; 6, 4, 2-4;
6, 17, 1; 7, 6, 4; 7, 9, 5; 8, 19, 3; 12, 7, 5; 12, 17, 1; 12, 19, 6.
3. Descriptions of the second type showing characterization of the momentary appearance of an
individual.
Caes. B. Gall. 1, 39; B. Civ. 1, 19.
B. Afric. 10.
Nep. 14, 4.
Sall. Cat. 31; 61; lug. 113.
Cic. Brut. 141; 158; 203; 227; 235; 238; 239; 240; 261; 265;
272; 278; 303; Phil. 2, 63; 11, 7; 13, 4; Balb. 49; Cael. 14; 49;
Cat. 1, 13; 1, 17; 2, 18; 3, 13; Clu. 29; 54; 72; Deiot. 5; Dom.
26; 133; Har Resp. 2; Leg. Agr. 2, 13; Mil. 33; 61; Mur. 44; 49;
Pis. 1; 11; 12; 14; 20; 24-25; 68; 99; Prov. Cons. 8; 12; Quinct.
97; Rab. Post 35; Post Red. in Sen. 12; 13; 15; Rosc. Com. 20;
Sest. 19-20; 22; 28; 106; Sull. 15; Verr. Act. sec. 1, 141; 2, 108;
3, 5; 3, 23; 4, 148; 5, 161.
Diod. Sic. 3, 18, 5.
Livy 2, 10; 2, 23; 2, 58; 2, 61; 5, 44; 5, 46; 6, 13; 7, 5; 7, 10;
7, 33; 8, 9; 9, 2; 9, 5; 9, 6 (bis); 9, 7; 9, 8; 10, 28; 21, 2; 21, 4;
22, 7; 22, 46; 23, 9; 27, 34; 27, 48; 29, 17; 30, 14-15; 30, 44; 33,
48; 34, 47; 38, 21; 39, 12; 39, 34; 40, 5; 40, 8; 44, 36; 44, 45; 45,
10; 45, 40.
Joseph. BJ 4, 563; 6, 7, 2; 7, 338; 340; AJ 2, 55; 11, 167; 12,
24; 12, 91; 16, 44.
Q. Curt. Rufus 3, 6; 4, 6; 10; 4, 13; 5, 4; 9; 5, 11; 6, 1; 6, 5;
6, 7; 6,8; 6,9; 6, 11; 7,2; 7,5; 7, 7; 7,8; 7,9; 7, 10; 7, 11; 8, 4;
8, 6; 8, 12; 9, 3; 9, 5; 9, 7; 10, 3; 10, 5; 10, 8; 10, 9; 10. 10.
Vell. Pat. 2, 27; 2, 100.
Val. Max. 1, 5, 3; 1, 6, 9; 1, 8, 8; 2, 6, 14; 2, 7, 6; 3, 1, Ext. 1;
3, 1, 2; 3, 2, 7; 3, 2, 24; 3, 3, Ext. 7; 3, 8, 6; 3, 8, Ext. 1; 4, 1, 12; 4,
1, 13; 4, 1, Ext. 2; 4, 3, 5; 4, 6, 3; 5, 1, 1; 5, 1, Ext. 6; 5, 7, Ext.
1; 5, 7, Ext. 2; 5, 10, 1; 5, 10, Ext. 1; 5, 10, Ext. 2; 6, 1, 7; 6, 2, 4;
6, 2, 7; 6, 3, 10; 6, 4, 3; 6, 8, 6; 6, 9, 11; 6, 9, Ext. 1; 6, 9, Ext. 2;
6, 9, Ext. 5; 7, 2, Ext. 1; 7, 2, Ext. 2; 7, 3, Ext. 9; 7, 8, 2; 7, 8, 9;
8, 1, 3; 8, 2, 2; 8, 7, 1; 8, 7, Ext. 2; 8, 7, Ext. 7; 8, 8, Ext. 1;
8, 10, Ext. 1.
Tac. Ann. 1, 3; 1, 7; 1, 24; 1, 42; 2, 33; 2, 53; 3, 1; 3, 9; 3,
16; 3, 53; 4, 28; 5, 7; 6, 24; 6, 46; 12, 18; 12, 36; 13, 16; 13, 20;
13, 40; 14, 16; 15, 36; 15, 55; 15, 61; 15, 72; 16, 4; 16, 5; 16, 24;
16, 29; 16, 34; Hist. 1, 17; 1, 45; 1, 81; 1, 82; 2, 48; 2, 52; 2, 65;
2, 70; 2, 99; 3, 3; 3, 10; 3, 56; 3, 58; 3, 65; 3, 74; 4, 11; 4, 31; 4,
40; 4, 43; 4, 72; 4, 81, 4, 85; Agr. 39, 45.
Plin. Paneg. 22, 6; 41, 3; 54, 1; 67, 1; 73, 1; 73, 3-4; 75, 6.
Flor. 4, 2, 81; 4, 12, 7.
Just. 1, 3, 1-2; 1, 5, 3; 11, 8, 8-9; 18, 4, 9; 24, 2, 10; 44, 2, 1.
Aur. Vic. 3, 10.
De Viris III. 67; 76.
Epit. de Caes. 8, 4; 12, 2; 28, 3.
App. B. Civ. 2, 11, 77; 6, 5, 26; 6, 15, 97; 8, 12, 82; 8, 13, 91.
Arr. Anab. 5, 2, 3; Epict. Diss. 3, 2, 11; 3, 5, 9; 4, 1, 145; 4,
11, 22; frg. 9, 180. Ench. 22; 33, 15; 38, 8.
Dio Cass. 3, 13, 2; 8, 6-7; 5, 1, 12; 55, 11; 62, 20, 2; 74, 13,
1; 76, Epit. 8, 5; 78, 11, 1.
SHA Sev. Alex. 17, 29; Max. et Balb. 1.
Amm. Marc. 14, 5, 6; 14, 7, 13; 14, 11, 22; 15, 7, 4;16, 10, 10;
16, 12, 36; 17, 10, 3; 17, 13,3; 19,9,9; 21, 13,9; 26,6, 15; 26,9,
5; 26, 9, 9; 28, 4, 23; 29, 2, 23; 29, 5, 15; 29, 5, 46; 30, 1, 20; 30,
4, 13; 30, 4, 19; 30, 5, 19; 30, 8, 11; 31, 13, 4; 31, 13, 10.
Pan. Lat. 2, 44, 2; 3, 6, 4; 3, 29, 2; 4, 14, 2; 4, 18, 4; 4, 22, 4;
11, 12, 4.
APPENDIX
E
This appendix includes the third or iconistic descriptions from Suetonius, the Scriptores Historiae
Augustae, and Ammianus Marcellinus, together with
citations in the notes from the handbooks on physiognomy significant at each point, and references in
Arabic numerals to important chapters from the respective authors inserted for the purpose of comparison
(marked by cf.). No attempt is made here to include
references to relevant descriptions in authors other
than those under consideration. For such references
see H. V. Canter, "Personal Appearance in the Biography of the Roman Emperors," Studies in Philology
25 (1928): pp. 385-399. In the case of the Scriptores
Historiae Augustae references to the physiognomical
handbooks are included, though the parallelisms are
not striking, as they are in the case of Suetonius and
Ammianus Marcellinus, because of the literary nature
of the Historia Augusta (see note 60, p. 52 for Sir
Ronald Syme's views on the nature and composition
of these imperial biographies). Perhaps the lack of
significant parallelisms in the Historia Augusta with
the material found in the physiognomical handbooks
is an argument in itself in support of the views that
these biographies are pure forgeries.
SUETONIUS
JULIUS CAESAR. 45: fuisse traditur excelsa
statura,1 colore candido,2 teretibus membris,3 ore
paulo pleniore,4 nigris vegetisque oculis,5 valitudine
prospera, nisi quod tempore extremo repente animo
linqui atque etiam per somnum exterreri solebat . . .
I Pseud.-Arist.
75.
813b; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b. Cf. Suet. 43;
2 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 10; 2, 106.
3 Pol. 216; Adamant. 361; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 86.
4Pseud.-Arist.
81 lb; Pol. 232; Adamant. 379; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 69. Cf. Suet. 20; 76. See on this point M. E. Deutsch,
"Concerning Caesar's Appearance," in CJ 12 (1917): p. 248,
and Pseud.-Arist. 809b; Pol. 224; Adamant. 373; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 66.
6 Pseud.-Arist. 807b; 812b; 813a; Pol. 116; 124; 142; 146; 148;
246; 248; Adamant. 310-311; 331; 390-391; Anon. Physiog. Lat.
2, 41; 2, 50. Cf. Suet. 43; 54; 56; 58; 63; 71; 72.
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AUGUSTUS. See text, p. 54.
TIBERIUS. See text, pp. 54-55.
CALIGULA. See text, p. 55-56.
CLAUDIUS. 30: auctoritas dignitasque formae
non defuit ei, verum stanti vel sedenti ac praecipue
quiescenti, nam et prolixo nec exili corpore6 erat, et
specie canitieque pulchra, opimis cervicibus7; ceterum
et ingredientem destituebant poplites minus firmi,8
et remisse quid vel serio agnetem multa dehonestabant: risus indecens,9 ira turpior spumante rictu,
umentibus naribus,10 praeterea linguae titubantia,
caputque cum semper tum in quantulocumque actu
vel maxime tremulum.
NERO. 51: statura fuit prope iusta," corpore
maculoso et fetido,'2 subflavo capillo,'3 vultu pulchro
magis quam venusto, oculis caesiis et hebetioribus,'4
cervice obesa,15ventre proiecto,'6 gracillimis cruribus,17
valitudine prospera.
GALBA. 21: statura fuit iusta,'8 capite praecalvo,
oculis caeruleis,'9 adunco naso,20 manibus pedibusque
articulari morbo distortissimis, ut neque calceum
perpeti neque libellos evolvere aut tenere omnino
valeret.
OTHO. 12: tanto Othonis animo nequaquam corpus aut habitus competit. fuisse enim et modicae
staturae21 et male pedatus scambusque22 traditur,
munditiarum vero paene muliebrium, vulso corpore,
galericulo capiti propter raritatem capillorum adaptato
et adnexo, ut nemo dinosceret.
17: erat enim in eo enormis proVITELLIUS.
ceritas,23 facies rubida plerumque ex vinulentia,24
venter obesus,25alterum femur subdebile impulsu olim
6 Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b. Cf. Suet. 15.
7Pseud.-Arist. 807b; 811a; Pol. 220; Adamant. 366-367;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 72; 2, 121. Cf. Suet. 3; 4; 35; 36; 38; 39.
8 Pseud.-Arist. 813a; Pol. 204; Adamant. 358; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 89. Cf. Suet. 33; 34.
9 Pol. 148; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 52; 2, 54. Cf.Suet. 34 (above).
10 Miller, Me'langes,p. 421.
11Pseud.-Arist. 813b. Cf. Suet. 10; 16; 19.
12 Pseud.-Arist. 809b-810a. Cf. Suet. 26.
18 Pseud.-Arist. 809b; Pol. 250; Adamant. 393; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 24; 2, 120. Cf. Suet. 22.
14Pseud.-Arist. 807b; 808a; 812b; Pol. 122; 142; 246; 270;
Adamant. 313; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 39; 2, 12 Cf. Suet. 37; 42.
16 Pseud.-Arist. 807b; 811a; Pol. 218; 220; Adamant. 366-367;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 72; 2, 121. Cf. 42.
16 Pol. 210; Adamant. 361; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 85.
17 Pseud.-Arist.
807b; 810a; Pol. 194; 270; Adamant. 358;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 120; 2, 133. Cf. Suet. 27.
18 Pseud.-Arist. 813b.
19Pol. 112; 116; 118; Adamant. 312-313; Anon. Physiog. Lat.
2, 39. Cf. Suet. 9; 12.
20Pseud.-Arist. 81 la; Pol. 228; Adamant. 376; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 71; 2, 140. Cf. Suet. 14.
21Pseud.-Arist. 813b; but cf. Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b.
Cf. Suet. 8; 9.
22 Pseud.-Arist. 810a; Pol. 204; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 115.
23 Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Arist. Eth. Aic. 4, 7, 1123b.
24Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 108. Cf. Suet. 4.
26 Pol. 210; Adamant. 361; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 85.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
quadrigae, cum auriganti Gaio ministratorem
exhiberet.
VESPASIAN. 20: statura fuit quadrata, compactis
firmisque membris,26veluti nitentis.
TITUS.
3: in puero statim corporis animique
dotes exsplenduerunt, magisque ac magis deinceps per
aetatis gradus: forma egregia et cui non minus auctoritatis inesset quam gratiae, praecipuum robur,
quamquam neque procera statura et ventre paulo
proiectiore27; memoria singularis, docilitas ad omnis
fere tum belli tum pacis artes.
DOMITIAN.
18: statura fuit procera,28 vultu
modesto ruborisque pleno,29grandibus oculis,30verum
acie hebetiore31; praeterea pulcher ac decens, maxime
in iuventa, et quidem toto corpore, (28) exceptis
pedibus, quorum digitos restrictiores (28) habebat;
postea calvitio quoque deformis et obesitate ventris
et crurum gracilitate,32 quae tamen ei valitudine longa
remacruerant.
TERENCE.
5: fuisse dicitur mediocri statura,33
gracili corpore,3 colore fusco.35
HORACE.
habitu corporis fuit brevis atque
obesus,36qualis et a semet ipso in saturis describitur et
ab Augusto hac epistula. . . . vereri autem mihi
videris ne maiores libelli tui sint, quam ipse es; sed
tibi statura deest, corpusculum non deest.
SCRIPTORES HISTORIAE AUGUSTAE
Aelius Spartianus. HADRIAN.
26: statura fuit
procerus,37forma comptus, flexo ad pectinem capillo,
promissa barba, ut vulnera, quae in facie naturalia
erant, tegeret, habitudine robusta.
Julius Capitolinus. VERUS. 10: fuit decorus corpore, vultu geniatus, barba prope barbarice demissa,
procerus38 et fronte in supercilia adductiore39 venerabilis. dicitur sane tantam habuisse curam flaventium
capillorum,40 et capiti auri ramenta respergeret, quo
magis coma inluminata flavesceret.
16Pseud.-Arist. 814a; Adamant. 408-409; 411; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 131; Cels. 2, 1. Cf. Suet. 12; 14; 15; 16.
27 Pseud.-Arist. 81Ob; 813b; Adamant. 361 ; 41 1; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 85. Cf. Suet. 7; 8.
28 Pseud.-Arist. 810a; 813b; 814a; Pol. 200; Adamant. 354-355;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 82; 2, 115. Cf. Suet. 8; 9; 10; 11; 14.
29 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 246; Adamant. 386-387; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 108.
30Pseud.-Arist. 811b; Pol. 114; 144; Adamant. 311; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 138. Cf. Suet. 19; 22.
31 Pol. 136; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 121.
32 Pol. 210; Adamant. 358; 361; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 85;
2, 120; 2, 133.
33Pseud.-Arist. 813b.
34Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 142.
35 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386-387; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 106.
36 Pseud.-Arist. 813b.
37 Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b.
38 Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b.
39Pol. 230; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 28; 2, 53.
40 Pol. 250; Adamant. 393; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 24; 2, 120.
Cf. SHA 2.
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APPENDICES
Aelius Lampridius. COMMODUS ANTONINUS.
17: fuit forma quidem corporis iusta, vultu insubido,
ut ebriosi solent, et sermone inconditio, capillo semper
fucato et auri ramentis inluminato, adurens comam
et barbam timore tonsoris.
12: fuit autem
Julius Capitolinus. PERTINAX.
senex venerabilis, inmissa barba, reflexo capillo,
habitudine corporis pinguiore, ventre prominulo,41
statura imperatoria.
Aelius Spartianus. SEVERUS. 19: ipse decorus,
ingens,42 promissa barba, cano capite et crispo,43
vultu reverendus, canorus voce, sed Afrum quiddam
usque ad senectutem sonans.
Aelius Spartianus. PESCENNIUS NIGER. 6:
fuit statura prolixa, forma decorus44capillo in verticem
ad gratiam reflexo, vocis canorae45 ita ut in campo
loquens per mille passus audiretur, nisi ventus adversaretur oris verecundi et semper rubidi," cervice adeo
nigra, ut, quemadmodum multi dicunt, ab ea Nigri
nomen acceperit, cetera corporis parte candidus et
magis pinguis. . . . 47
Julius Capitolinus. CLODIUS ALBINUS. 13: fuit
statura procerus,48 capillo renodi et crispo.49 fronte
lata,50 candore mirabili,51 ita ut plerique putent, quod
ex eo nomen acceperit, voce muliebri et prope ad
eunuchorum sonum, motu facili.52
DIADUMAelius Lampridius. ANTONINUS
ENUS. 3: puer fuit omnium speciosissimus, statura
longiuscula,53 crine flavo,54 nigris oculis,55 naso deducto,56 ad omnem decorem mento conposito, ore ad
oscula parato, fortis naturaliter, exercitio delicatior.
Julius Capitolinus. GORDIAN I. 6: et erat
quidem longitudine Romana.57 canitie decora et
41Pol. 210; Adamant. 361; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 85. Cf. SHA
12; 13.
2 Pseud.-Arist. 813b; 814a; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b.
43Pseud.-Arist.812b; Pol. 248; Adamant. 392; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 22-23; 2, 92; 2, 120.
44Pseud.-Arist.813b; 814a; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b.
45Pol. 266; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 120. Cf. SHA 6.
46 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 246; Adamant. 389; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 106. Cf. SHA 1; 5.
47Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386-387; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 106. Cf. SHA. 1; 5.
48Pseud.-Arist. 813b. Cf. SHA 5; 11.
49 Pseud.-Arist. 812b; Pol. 248; Adamant. 392; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 22-23; 2, 92; 2, 120. Cf. SHA 13.
60Pseud.-Arist. 81lb; Pol. 230; Adamant. 377; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 27.
61 Pseud-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 106.
62Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Pol. 266; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 58.
' Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b. Cf. Fiirst, Lit. Portrdt., p. 432.
on height as a sign of beauty.
54Pol. 250; Adamant. 393; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 24; 2, 120.
66 Pseud.-Arist. 812b; Pol. 146; 148; 246; Adamant. 390;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 41.
66Pseud.-Arist.811a; Adamant. 376; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2,
71. Cf. SHA 8.
67 Pseud.-Arist. 813b; 814a; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b.
Cf. SHA 3.
95
pompali vultu, ruber magis quam candidus,58 facie
bene lata,59 oculis, ore fronte verendus, corporis
qualitate subcrassulus.
Trebellius Pollio. TYRANNI TRIGINTA.
ZENOBIA. 30: fuit vultu subaquilo, fusci coloris,60
oculis supra modum vigentibus nigris,6"spiritus divini,
venustatis incredibilis. tantus candor in dentibus ut
margaritas eam plerique putarent habere non dentes,
vox clara et virilis.
Trebellius Pollio. CLAUDIUS. 13: statura procerus,62 oculis ardentibus,63 lato et pleno vultu,64
digitis usque adeo fortibus,65 ut saepe equis et mulis
ictu pugni dentes excusserit.
Flavius Vopiscus. FIRMUS. 4: fuit tamen Firmus
statura ingenti,66 oculis foris eminentibus,67 capillo
crispo,68 fronte vulnerata, vultu nigriore,69 reliqua
parte corporis candidus sed pilosus atque hispidus,70
ita ut eum plerique Cyclopem vocarent.
AMMIANUS
MARCELLINUS
GALLUS. 14, 11, 28: fuit autem forma conspicuus bona, decente filo corporis membrorumque
recta conpage,71 flavo capillo et molli,71 barba licet
recens emergente lanugine tenera, ita tamen ut
maturius auctoritas emineret, tantum a temperatis
moribus luliani differens fratris, quantum inter
Vespasiani filios fuit Domitainum et Titum.
CONSTANTIUS.
21, 16, 19: figura tali situque
membrorum: subniger,73 luce oculorum edita,74 cern68 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386-387; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 107.
69Pseud.-Arist. 811b; Pol. 232; 278; Adamant. 379; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 69. Cf. SHA 6.
60 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386-387; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 106. Cf SHA 30.
61 Pseud.-Arist. 812b; 813a; Pol. 108; 124; 142; 148; 246;
Adamant. 331; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 102.
02 Pseud.-Arist.813b; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b. Cf. SHA 13.
63 Pseud.-Arist.807b; 812b; Pol. 108;
142; 148. Adamant. 331;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 52. Cf. SHA 2.
64Pseud.-Arist. 811b; Pol. 232; 278; Adamant. 379; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 69.
66 Pseud.-Arist. 807a; 808a. Cf. Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 119.
66 Pseud.-Arist. 813b.
67 Pseud.-Arist. 81lb; Pol.
142; Adamant. 325; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 49.
68 Pseud.-Arist.812b; Pol. 248; Adamant. 392. Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 22-23; 2, 92.
69 Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 106.
70 Pseud.-Arist. 812b; Pol. 254; Adamant. 392; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 93-94. C. SHA 2; 4.
71 Pseud.-Arist. 809b; 814a; Pol. 268; Adamant. 408-409; 411;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 131. Cf. Amm. Marc. 14, 11, 3; 14, 11, 28.
72 Pseud.-Arist. 806b; Pol. 248; 250; Adamant. 393; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 23; 2, 24; 2, 120.
73Pseud.-Arist.812b; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 106. Cf. Amm. Marc. 21, 16, 8.
74Adamant.325. Cf. Amm. Marc. 21, 16, 4.
Seite 98
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)ensque acutum75 molli capillo,76 rasis adsidue genis
lucentibus ad decorem ad usque pubem ab ipsis colli
confiniis longior, brevissimis cruribus et incurvis,77
unde saltu valebat et cursu.
JULIAN. See text, pp. 75-76.
JOVIAN. 25, 10, 14: incedebat autem motu corporis gravi,78 vultu laetissimo, oculis caesiis,7, vasta
procertiate et ardua,80adeo ut diu nullum indumentum
regium ad mensuram eius aptum inveniretur.
PROCOPIUS. 26, 9, 11: corpore non indecoro nec
mediocris staturae,8" subcurvus humumque intuendo
semper incedens.82
30, 9, 6: corpus eius lacertosum
VALENTINIAN.
et validum, capilli fulgor colorisque nitor,83cum oculis
caesiis semper obliquum intuentis et torvum84 atque
pulchritudo staturae liniamentorumque recta conpage
maiestatis regiae decus implebat.85
31, 14, 7: cessator et piger: ignei
VALENS.
coloris,86 pupula oculi unius obstructa, sed ita ut
non eminus appareat, figura bene conpacta membrorum, staturae nec procerae nec humilis,87 incurvis
cruribus88extanteque mediocriter ventre.89
GAULS. 15, 12, 1: celsioris staturae et candidi
paene Galli sunt omnes et rutili90luminumque torvitate terribiles,91 avidi iurgiorum et sublatius insolentes. nec enim eorum quemquam adhibita uxore
rixantem, multo fortiore et glauca, peregrinorum ferre
poterit globus, tum maxime cum illa inflata cervice
sufFrendens.
EGYPTIANS. 22, 16, 23: homines autem Aegyptii
plerique subfusculi92 sunt et atrati magisque maesti75 Pol.
160; Adamant. 409; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 52. Cf.
Amm. Marc. 21, 16, 5.
76 Pseud.-Arist. 806b; Pol. 248; Adamant. 393; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 22; 2, 92. Cf. Amm. Marc. 14, 5, 2.
77 Pol. 204; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2,115; 2,140. Cf. Amm. Marc.
14, 11, 4.
78 Pol. 22; Adamant. 399; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 99.
79 Pseud.-Arist. 812b; Pol. 142; 246; Adamant. 312-313; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 39.
80 Pseud.-Arist. 813a-813b.
81 Pseud.-Arist. 813b.
Cf. Amm. Marc. 26, 9, 11.
82Pseud.-Arist. 807b; 810b.
83 Pol. 244; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 106.
Cf. Amm. Marc. 30,
9, 2-4.
84Pseud.-Arist. 807b; 813a; Pol. 142; 246; Adamant. 312-313;
Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 39.
86 Pseud.-Arist. 814a; Pol. 268; Adamant. 408-409; 411; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 131. Cf. Amm. Marc. 30, 9, 1.
86 Pseud.-Arist.
812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386-387; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 106-107.
87
Pseud.-Arist.809b; 813b; 814a; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 3, 1123b;
Adamant. 408-409; 411; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 131. Cf.
Amm. Marc. 30, 4, 2.
88Pseud.-Arist. 810a; Pol. 204; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 115.
Cf. Amm. Marc. 31, 14, 5.
89 Pol. 210; Adamant. 361; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 85.
90Pol. 238; 244; 250; Adamant. 386-387; Anon. Physiog. Lat.
2, 106.
91 Pol. 142; 148; 248; Adamant. 409; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2,
52-53. Cf. Amm. Marc. 15, 12, 2-3.
92Psetid.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 236; 244; Adamant. 386; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 107; 2, 120.
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
ores, gracilenti et aridi,93ad singulos motus excandescentes, controversi et reposcones acerrimi.
PERSIANS. 23, 6, 75: sed ne generaliter corpora
describamus et mores, graciles paene sunt omnes,94
subnigri vel livido colore pallentes95 caprinis oculis
torvi96 et superciliis in semiorbium speciem curvatis
iunctisque97 non indecoribus barbis capillisque promissis hirsuit, omnes tamen promisce vel inter epulas
festosque dies gladiis cincti cernuntur.
HUNS. 31, 2, 2: ubi quoniam ab ipsis nascendi
primitiis infantum ferro sulcantur altius genae, ut
pilorum vigor tempestivus emergens conrugatis cicatricibus hebetetur, senescunt imberbes absque alla
venustate, spadonibus similes, conpactis omnes firmisque membris et opimis cervicibus, prodigiosae formae
set parvi,98 ut bipedes existimes bestias vel quales in
conmarginandis pontibus effigiati stipites dolantur
incompte.
ALANI. 31, 2, 21: proceri autem Halani paene
sunt omnes99 et pulchri, crinibus mediocriter fulvis,100
oculorum temperata torvitate terribles,'01et armorum
levitate veloces, Hunnisque per omnia suppares verum
victu mitiores et cultu, latrocinando et venando ad
usque Maeotica stagna et Cimmerium Bosporon,
itidemque Armenios discurrentes et Mediam.
APPENDIX
F
In the late nineteenth century Professor Richard
Forster published a survey of the tradition of physiognomics in the ancient world in an essay entitled
Die Physiognomik der Griechen (Kiel, 1884). This
short account of natural physiognomy remains the
best general treatment of the subject. Forster's
edition of the Scriptores Physiognomonici followed a
decade later (2 vols., Leipzig, 1893), and contains
the texts of the major ancient physiognomical writers
together with a "sylloge locorum physiognomonicorum. "
For other aspects of the subject Bernouilli's
Romische Ikonographie (Stuttgart, 1882-1884) gives
the pertinent material dealing with portrait heads,
Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 142.
Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 142.
96Pseud.-Arist. 812a; Pol. 244; Adamant. 386; 387; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 106; 2, 107; 2, 120. Cf. Amm. Marc. 23, 6, 80.
96 Pseud.-Arist.
812b; Pol. 182; 248; Adamant. 409; Anon.
Physiog. Lat. 2, 102. Cf. Amm. Marc. 23, 6, 76.
97Pseud.-Arist. 812b; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 29. Cf. Amm.
Marc. 23, 6, 80: adeo autem dissoluti sunt et artium laxitate
vagoque incessu se iactitantes ut effeminatos existimes. See
Pseud.-Arist. 808a; Pol. 276; Adamant. 400-401.
98 Pseud.-Arist. 807a; 813b; Pol. 220; 268; Adamant. 366-367;
408-409; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 72-73; 2, 131. Cf. 31, 2, 9;
31, 2, 11; 31, 2, 12.
99Pseud.-Arist. 813b; Arist. Eth. Nic. 4, 7, 1123b. Cf. Amm.
Marc. 31, 2, 22.
100Pol. 250; Adamant. 393; Anon. Physiog. Lat. 2, 24.
101Pseud.-Arist. 807b, Adamant. 409; 414; Anon. Physiog.
Lat. 2, 52-53.
Seite 99
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)APPENDICES
H. P. L'Orange's
coins, medals, and painting.
Apotheosis in Ancient Portraiture (Cambridge, Mass.,
1947) has demonstrated in portrait sculpture the significant relationship between art and physiognomical
theory. C. Sittl, Die Gebdrden der Griechen und
Rdmer (Leipzig, 1890) has dealt in detail with gestures as such, for example, in the field of oratorical
delivery. The very recent publication of Richard
Brilliant's Gesture and Rank in Roman Art (New
Haven: Memoirs of the Connecticut Academy of Arts
and Sciences, 14, 1963) is an important addition to
our knowledge of the use of gestures to denote status.
George Hanfmann's "Observations on Roman Portraiture" in Latomus 11 (1953) contains a masterly
analysis of Roman portrait heads in relation to a
study of the concepts of personality, and points the
way to further work on this subject in art. Bouche-
97
Leclercq's L'Astrologie Grecque (Paris, 1899) and
F. H. Cramer's Astrology in Roman Law and Politics
(Philadelphia, Memoirs, 37, 1954) have provided
rich sources for the predictive side of physiognomy
(astrological physiognomy), a significant phase of the
subject more fully developed in the Middle Ages.
Permission to use in modified form articles which I
had published earlier in the Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association and in
Harvard Studies in Classical Philology (cited under
Abbreviations A, p. 84) has been granted by the
American Philological Association and by the Harvard
University Press. The Harvard University Press has
also kindly granted permission to quote specific
passages from certain volumes in the Loeb Classical
Library.
Seite 100
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)INDEX1
Abderites,20
Achilles, 59, 60, 61, 62, 66, 70, 82
Achilles Tatius, 73
Actio, 13, 22, 40
Actores, 41
Adamantius,the sophist,Physiognomonica,
5, 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 38, 46, 47, 54, 55,
57, 58, 74, 75, 76, 93, 94, 95, 96
Aeneas, 32, 63, 64
Aeschylus, 6, 34, 35, 91, 92
Aethiopians,20
Agamemnon,22, 40, 59, 60, 82
Agricola, 49, 65
Ajax, 22, 60
Albertus Magnus, 72
Alcaeus, 90
Aristotle, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17,
18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 30, 38, 39, 40,
41, 47, 50, 51, 53, 91, 92, 93, 94
Arnim, F. von, 27
Arrian, 27, 92, 93
Artemidorus,13, 74
Asiatics, 19
Asmus, R., 80
Athanasius,77
Athena, 61, 62, 63, 82
Athens, 20
Attic orators, 6, 41, 46
Atticus, 49
Auctor ad Herennium,40, 41, 42
Augustine, Saint, 74
Augustus, Emperor, 20, 50, 52, 53, 54, 55,
56, 74
Aulus Gellius,27, 28, 46, 82
Aurelius Victor, 50, 92, 93
Ausonius, 91
Alcibiades,20, 51
Alcmaeonof Croton, 17, 18, 20
Alexander of Aphrodisias,43
Alexander the Great, 14, 16, 17, 56, 57, 58,
64
Bacchylides,90
AlexandrianBiographers,53
Baehrens,A., 44, 76
Alexandrianlove poetry, 70
Bailey, C., 26
Allbutt, T. C., 18
Basil the Great,78, 79
Allport, G., 38
Basil Minimus,80
Ambrose, Saint, 74, 77, 78, 79
Basore, J. W., 29
American Philological Association,
Transactionsand Proceedings, 97
Beauty (K&XXOS), 34, 35, 67, 73
Ammianus Marcellinus, 6, 15, 47, 50, 51, Bellum Africum, 93
Bellum Alexandrinum,92
52, 53, 74, 75, 76, 77, 80, 92, 93, 95, 96
Benedictinesof Saint-Maur,76
Amory, A., 61
Bernoulli,J. J., 53, 96
Anacreon,90
Anacreontea,68, 90
Birley, A. R., 52
Analytica Priora, 7, 8, 23, 24
Bonnard,A., 67
Bouche-Leclercq,97
Anchises, 63
Bowra, C. M., 31, 68
Anderson,W. S., 29
Braggart Soldier, 38
Andromache,32, 34, 61, 63
Anonymous Latin handbook,de Physiog- Brilliant, R., 97
nomonia,5, 16, 17, 34, 35, 54, 55, 56, 72, Briseis, 61
Britannicus,52
76, 93, 94, 95
Burgess, T. C., 40, 82
Antioch, 77, 82
Bury, R. G., 73
Antonine Emperors,58
Bussemaker,U. C., 75
AntoninusPius, 12
Butler, H. E., 42, 69
Antony, 44
Byrenna,73
Apelles, 57
ApolloniusRhodius,31, 62, 63, 66, 70, 89
Caesar,44, 64, 65, 93
Apolloniusof Tyana, 45, 51
Caesarius,Saint, 78, 80
Appian,93
Caligula,Emperor,29, 30, 50, 53, 54, 55
Apuleius,6, 16, 72, 73
CalpurniusSiculus, 91
Arcadians,47
Camden,C., 56
Arcadius,Emperor,82
Cameron,A., 52
Archilochus,67
Candidus,72
Ares, 60
Canter,H. V., 52, 93
Ariadne,64, 69
Caplan,H., 40, 41
24
11,
Aristides,
Carcopino,J., 12
Aristophanes,6, 33, 35, 46, 67
Cassandra,63
Aristotelian PhysiognomicalCharacteriza- Catiline,44, 49, 50
tion, 67
Cato, 28, 33, 64
Catullus,6, 47, 64, 68, 69, 90, 91
Aristotelian School, 17, 24, 26, 66, 75, 81
Cave, Mithraic,80
Celsus, 94
Celts, 11, 12, 75
ChaldaeanAstrologers, 20, 74
Charakterismos,28, 30, 32, 33, 40
Chariton,73
Charlemagne,52
Chiron,66
Cholerici,18
Chrysanthius,82
Chrysippus,11, 27
ChurchFathers, 6, 15, 22, 78, 80
Cicero, 6, 13, 19, 20, 27, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44,
47, 50, 74, 75 79, 92, 93
Cinaedus (lecher), 11, 26, 35
Claranus,29
Clark, S. B., 69, 78
Clarke,W. K. L., 78
Claudia,47
Claudian,89, 91
Claudius,Emperor,50, 52, 53
ClaudiusMamertinus,76
Cleanthes,11, 13, 26, 81
Clementof Alexandria,27, 30, 51, 67, 79
Cleopatra,64
Clodius,43, 44
Cohoon,J. W., 13, 34, 67
Coleridge,E. P., 30
Columella,17
Constantine,44, 58, 76
ConstantinusAfricanus, 19
ConstantinusManasses,58
Constantius,15, 75, 76, 77, 78
Conybeare,F. C., 46
Corinna,70
Corpusingens, 6
Cousin,J., 50, 51
Cramer,F. H., 73, 74, 76
Crassus,44
Crates, 90
CremutiusCordus,49
Crosby,H. L., 14, 34, 67
Cumont,F., 73, 74
Cynthia,69
Cyril of Alexandria, 51
Cyrus,46
Daitz, S. G., 48
Daremberg,C., 75
Dares, 45
Deidamia,66, 70
DeLatte, A., 27
Demetriusof Phalerum,51
Demosthenes,51
Deutsch, M. E., 52, 93
Dicaearchus,45, 51
Dictys of Crete, 52
Dido, 32, 62, 63, 64, 68
Diels, H.-Kranz, W., 17,18
Dio Cassius,92, 93
1 This index has been preparedwith the constructiveand perceptive cooperation of Mrs. Helen B. Cole, of the staff of the
Palmer Library,ConnecticutCollege.
Seite 101
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)VOL. 59. PT. 5. 19691
Dio Chrysostom,11, 13, 26, 34, 58, 67, 82
Diodorus Siculus, 92, 93
Diogenes the Babylonian,11
Dionysius of Halicarnassus,51
Dodds, E. R., 15
Domanski,B., 81
Domitian, Emperor,44, 52, 53, 58, 74
Domitius Corbulo,48
Dorey, T. A., 36, 52
Dracontius,68
Dudley, D. R., 36
Duff, J. D., 64, 65, 83
Duff, J. W., 83
Edelstein, L., 18, 20, 27
Edgar, C. C., 39
Edmonds,J. M., 67
Efiictio, 40
Egyptian, 6, 9, 11, 20, 52, 64
Egyptian-Greeklegal forms, 39, 52
Eikon, 40
Eikonismos,28, 32, 33, 40, 53
Einhard, 52
Ekphrasis, 40, 45
Elegiac poetry, 67
Ellis, R., 68, 69
Empedocles,10, 11, 18, 22, 38, 39
EncomiumCalvitii, 82
EpicureanSchool, 5, 24, 26, 27
Epicurus,26
Epitome de Caesaribus,92, 93
Equality (LraovoMula),
17
Ernout, A., 69
Ethiopia(ns), 9, 22
Eumaeus,61
Eunapius,82
Eunica, 68
Euphrates, 11
Euripides, 6, 30, 31, 32, 34, 35, 38, 62, 67,
69, 70, 91, 92
Europeans,19
Eurybates, 59, 61
Eurycleia, 61
Eustathius, 53, 67
Eusthenes, 10, 71
Eutropius,50, 92, 93
Evil-looking (KaK' 6Coo6,MPOS), 59
Excellence (&perij), 26
Eyes, beautiful (KaX&6,uuara), 34
Facies, 36, 69, 70, 71
Fairbanks,A., 45
Fairclough,H. R., 63
Fannius Chaerea,43
Farquarson,A. S. L., 27
Favorinus, 11, 12, 13
Flashar, H., 17
Flavius, son of Verus (Philostratus), 45
Flickinger, R., 33, 34
Florus, 50, 92, 93
F6rster, R., 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16,
18, 27, 29, 30, 41, 52, 53, 58, 72, 73, 75,
77, 79, 81, 96
Fordyce, C. J., 69
Form, (e5os ), 15, 34, 45, 67
Foster, B. O., 48
Frazer, J. G., 70
Freeman,K., 18
Freese, J. H., 43
Fritz, K. von, 27
99
INDEX
Forma eximia, 6, 36, 70, 71
Fiirst, J., 37, 39, 52, 54, 70, 73, 95
Gabinius,43, 44
Galen, 11, 13, 16, 18, 19, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27,
28, 29, 38, 59, 74, 75, 80, 81
Gardner,R., 43, 44
Gaselee, S., 73
Gauls,48
Geraldof Cremona,17
Germanicus,48, 49
Germans,48, 75
Gestus,29, 41
Glover, T. R., 80
Gnaeus Pompey, 44
Godley, A. D., 46
Good health (EbKpala), 17, 81
Good height (cbgeye-Os),39, 53
Gorgias, 34
Gossage, A. J., 52
Gow, A. S. T., 68
Graeco-Romanperiod,27, 39
Granger,F., 20
Greatnessof soul (,we7aXokxvLa), 22
Greeks, 14, 15, 16, 46, 52
Greekclassical tragedy, 28, 33
Greekcomedy, 35
Greekdrama,29, 30, 33
Greeknew comedy,36
Greek tragedians,29
Gregory of Nazianzus, 15, 46, 74, 76, 77,
78, 79, 80
Gregory of Nyssa, 77, 80
Grene,D., 35
Gummere,R. M., 11, 28, 29
Guthrie,K. S., 58
Hadrian, Emperor, 11, 12, 13, 16, 51, 57
Hamilcar, 48
Hanfmann,G. M. A., 58, 97
Hannibal,48, 65
Hanson, J. A., 36
Harmon, A. M., 22, 72
Harvard Studies in Classical Philology, 6,
97
Hasebroek,J., 39
Haskins, C. H., 19
Hector, 32, 58, 60, 61, 63, 82
Heinichen, F. A., 76
Helen of Troy, 34, 58, 59, 60, 67, 69, 70
Hellenic race, 16, 23
Hellenistic age, 10, 28, 37, 38, 50
Hellenistic drama,35
Hellenistic saviour-type,57
Helmreich, G., 24
Hendrickson,G. L., 44
Hera, 60, 62
Heracles at the Crossroads,13, 21, 46
Hercules, 33, 35, 42, 45, 51, 57, 65
Hermippus,51
Herodes Atticus, 11, 13, 79
Herodotus, 6, 11, 46
Hertlein, F. K., 76
Hesiod, 89
Hett, W. S., 7, 8
Hieronymusof Rhodes, 51
Hippocrates, 5, 11, 13, 18, 19, 20, 24, 25,
28, 46, 75
Hippocraticcorpus, 19, 22, 27
Hippocraticschool, 10, 17, 18, 20
Hippolytus,27, 31, 32
Historia Augusta, 50, 51, 52, 93
Historical-politicaltype (biography), 51
Holland, P., 52
Holmes, P., 22
Homer, 5, 6, 13, 32, 34, 35, 51, 58, 59, 61,
62, 63, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 82, 89
Honorius, 75
Honorius of Autun, 17, 18, 19
Horace, 6, 21, 38, 41, 65, 71, 90, 91, 94
How, W. W., 46
Hubbell, H. M., 41
Humoral Psychology, 42
Humors, 17, 18, 20, 25, 26, 29, 75, 81, 82
Hunt, A. D., 39
Hutton, M., 49
Hymni Homerici, 89
Hypocrisis, 40
Iambic poetry, 67
lamblichus,27, 81
Ibycus, 90
III-proportioned body (of,ua &?tb6ueTpov), 9
Imagines (Philostratus the Elder and
the Younger), 45
Imperial saviour-type,57
Incessus, 29
Indians,20, 47
Instrument(Sp-yacov) of the soul, 81
Isocrates, 34
Jackson,J., 49
Jaeger, WV.
W., 18, 81
Jason, 62, 63, 65, 70
Jax, K., 73
Jerome, Saint, 77
Johannitius(Honein ibn Ishak), 18
John Chrysostom,80
John of Salisbury, 19
Jones, W. R. S., 19
Josephus,92, 93
Jowett, B., 20, 25
Jugurtha,49
Julian, Emperor, 15, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79,
80, 82
Justinus, 50, 92, 93
Jiittner, H., 11, 12, 80
Juvenal,6, 29, 71, 77, 90, 91
Kelter, E., 16
Kennedy,G., 34
Kennedy, M. J., 76
Keyes, C. W., 42
Klibansky,R., 17, 18
Krasis (mixture), 10, 17, 18, 19, 23, 25,
75, 81
Laertius,Diogenes, 11, 26, 51
Laeto viltu, 6, 59
Laistner, M. L. W., 75, 77
Lateranus,48
Laudatiofunebris,78
Lavater,J. K., 5
Lehmann,P., 19
Lehmann-Hartleben,K., 45
Leo, F., 51
Leonine man, 16
Lesbia, 68, 69
Lessing, G. E., 58
Seite 102
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)Libanius,15, 77
Libo Drusus, 49
Lion, 7, 9, 22, 25, 26, 45, 53, 54, 60, 76, 77
Literary Biography,51
Livia, 49
Livingstone,R. W., 18
Livy, 47, 48, 57, 66, 75, 92, 93
Lloyd, G. E., 17
Longer rules of asceticism,78
Looking fiercely (birSpa Low), 59
L'Orange,H. P., 57, 58, 97
Lord, L. E., 43, 44
Loxus, 10, 14, 16, 17
Lucan,64
Lucian, 13, 22, 72, 77, 82, 89
Lucilius,29
Lucius, 73
Lucius CorneliusScipio Barbatus,47
Lucretia,70, 71
Lucretius,21, 26, 89
Lund, F. B., 19
Lusius Quietus, 12
Lyric poetry, 67
Lysippus, 57
McCauley,L. P., 80
McDonald,J. M. S., 39
Mace, A., 53
Macrochir,49
Magie, D., 52
Manitius,M., 19
Marcia,64
MarcusAurelius, Emperor, 12, 27, 50
Marcus Cicero, 79
Marius,44
Marti, B., 29, 30, 31, 33
Martial, 6, 72, 90, 91
Masinissa,48, 66
Mask Types, 34, 37, 38, 42
Maximus of Ephesus, 82
Maximus of Tyre, 13
Medea, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 42, 62, 63, 64,
65, 70
Medium height (,uiros yiOe),
39, 53
Megasthenes,47
Melancholici,18
Menander,35, 71
Menelaus,60, 70, 82
Mesk, J., 12
Metensomatosis,22
Meyerhof,M., 19
Migne, PG, 15, 78, 80, 81
Migne, PL, 18
Miles Gloriosus,36, 67
Miller, F. J., 30, 94
Miller, M. E., 52
Misch, G., 38
Misener, G., 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 21, 28, 33,
35, 36, 40, 45, 46, 51, 52, 56, 58, 72, 80
Mitteis, L., 39
Momigliano,A., 15, 50
Moore, F. G., 47, 48
Motus animi,41, 42
Mozley, J. H., 66, 71
Muller, I., 25, 27
Murray,A. T., 58, 59, 60
Myth of Er, 22
Naevolus, 71
Narcissus, 52
Nemesianus,91
Nemesius of Emesa, 21, 74, 80, 81, 82
Nepos, Cornelius,49, 50, 92, 93
Nero, Emperor,28, 49, 50, 53, 58
Neugebauer,O., 73
New comedy,33, 35
New Sophistic, 12, 24
Nisbet, R. G. M.J43
Nixon, P., 36
Nottatio,40
Odysseus,32, 35, 44, 59, 60, 61, 63, 82
Oedipus,35
Ogle, W., 25
Old comedy,33, 35, 39
Oribasius,15, 18, 26, 74, 75
Origen, 17
Otho, 52, 53
Otis, B., 63
Ovid, 6, 64, 69, 70, 71, 89, 90, 91
Pack, R. A., 28, 77
Page, D., 68
Panaetius,74
Panegyrici Latini, 93
Panofsky, E., 17, 18
Pantheia,45
Panther, 7, 9, 54, 55
Papyri, 37, 39, 41, 53
Paris, 70
Parmenides,18, 20
Parrhasius,46
Passion (6pyt'), 23
Pearson, A. C., 26, 27
Pease, A. S., 19
Peck, A. L., 23
Penelope,61
Peribonius,71
Periclean Age, 6
Peripatetic School, 5, 7, 9, 15, 21, 28, 49,
50, 51
Perrin, B., 56
Persians, 20, 46, 77
Persius, 41, 42, 91
Petronius,90, 91
Phaedra,28, 29, 30, 31, 32
Phaedrus,71
Phillimore,R., 58
Philodemus,41, 43
Philo Judaeus,46
Philostrati, 12, 13, 21, 24, 44, 45, 46, 61
Philoxenus, 90
Phlegmatici, 18
Phocylides, 67
Phoenicians,20
Phrynichus,73
Physiognomic consciousness, 5, 6, 28, 41,
62
Physiognomics (6vovato-ymov e), 5, 7, 8, 9,
10, 24, 26, 27, 28, 29, 46, 62, 67, 73, 74
PhysiognomoniaLatina, 16, 17
Physiognomountes,24
Pickard-Cambridge,A. W., 36, 37, 38
Pindar, 68, 90
Piso, C., 41, 43, 44, 49
Plato, 5, 6, 11, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 39, 46,
47, 51, 73, 75, 77, 81, 82, 90
Plautus, 6, 35, 36, 37, 92
Pliny the Elder, 14, 23, 50
Pliny the Younger,44, 49, 50, 51, 93
[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.
Plotinus, 58
Plutarch, 12, 26, 49, 51, 52, 56, 57, 58, 77
Polemo of Laodicea, Rhetor, de Physiognomonia, 5, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16,
17, 24, 25, 38, 51, 54, 55, 56, 57, 74, 76,
80, 82, 93, 94, 95, 96
Pollux, Julius, 21, 33, 34, 36, 37, 38, 53,
72, 73
Polybius, 46, 47
Polybus, 18
PompeiusTrogus, 50
Pompey, 44, 57, 65, 77
Porphyrio,27
Poschl, V., 63
Posidonius,27, 28, 47, 60, 74
Pratt, N. T. Jr., 29, 30
Preisigke, F., 39
Priam, 60, 62, 63
Prodicus, 13, 46, 65
Prohaeresius,82
Prometheus,34
Pronuntiatio,13, 22, 40, 41, 42
Propertius,69, 70, 90, 91
Protadius,83
Protesilaus, 45
Prudentius,89, 90
Pseudo-Aristotelian handbook, Physiognomonica, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 21,
22, 23, 24, 25, 29, 34, 35, 38, 46, 52, 53,
54, 56, 57, 58, 66, 73, 76, 93, 94, 95, 96
Pseudo-AristotelianProblemata,18, 47
Pseudo-Callisthenes,57
Publicani,28
Pulchritudo,36
Pythagoras, 5, 27, 28, 46, 51, 74, 82
PythagoreanSchool, 17, 27, 28
Quinn,K., 68
Quintia,68, 69
Quintilian,13, 22, 33, 40, 41, 42, 53, 75
Quintus Catulus,47
Quintus CurtiusRufus, 50, 75, 92, 93
Quintus Smyrnaeus,89, 90
Rackham,H. L., 22, 50
Raeder,J., 75
Ramsay,G. G., 71
Rand,E. K., 52, 70
Rhetorical theory and practice (ars rhetorica), 39, 40, 41, 60
Rohde, E., 27, 73
Rolfe, J. C., 28, 52, 76
Romancomedy, 35, 36, 37, 41
RomanDignitas, 83
Romanpeople,20
Roman republic,83
Romantragedy,28
Rose, H. J., 41
Rose, V., 7, 15
Ross, W. D., 7
Rutilius Namatianus,83
Sallust, 49, 50, 92, 93
Sandys,J. W., 68
Sanguinei, 18
Sappho,31, 62, 67, 68, 90
Sarton, G., 20
Satire, 71
Satyrus, 51
Seite 103
Im PDF ansehen(öffnet in einem neuen Fenster)VOL. 59, PT. 5, 19691
Saxl, F., 17, 18
Scar (oiaj),
39, 53, 61
Schaff, P., 79
Schema, 40, 78
Schwendemann,J., 50
Scipio Africanus,47, 48, 57, 65, 66, 75, 83
Scopelian, 11, 13, 24
Scriptores Historiae Augustae, 50, 53, 92,
93, 94, 95
Scythians, 6, 11, 20, 75
Seaton, R. C., 62
Sejanus, 48, 49
Semeiotics, 9
Semonides,67
Seneca, the Younger, 6, 11, 26, 27, 28, 29,
30, 31, 32, 33, 40, 80, 91, 92
Seneca, Rhetor, 77
Septimius Severus, 58
Severus Alexander, 74
Sextus Empiricus,73
Showerman,G., 70
Silanus, 49
Silius Italicus, 57, 65, 66, 89, 90
Simaetha,68
Simonides,90
Singer, C., 18, 23
17
Single rule (,uoPapXLa),
Sittl, C., 97
Smolka, F., 39
Smyrna, 11, 12, 24, 51
Socrates, 10, 15, 16, 20, 21, 42, 43, 46, 51,
73
Solon, 90
Sonkowsky,R. P., 41
Sophocles, 6, 32, 33, 35, 38, 91, 92
Spengel, L., 40
Speusippus,51
Spirit (rpe6ga), 23
Stanford,W. B., 61
Statius, 66, 89, 90, 91
Stoic School, 5, 10, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30,
33, 58, 81, 82, 83
Strabo, 11, 27
101
INDEX
Stratton, G. M., 18
Stuart, D. R., 51, 56
Suetonius, 6, 29, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55,
56, 71, 74, 75, 77, 93, 94
Suidas, 80
Sulla, 56, 57
Sulpicius Severus, 77
Syme, R., 44, 51, 52, 93
Synesius, Bishop of Cyrene,80, 82
Syrians, 20
Tacitus, 44, 47, 48, 49, 65, 75, 76, 92, 93
Taylor, H. O., 19
Telemachus,32, 59, 60, 61
Telestes, 90
Telfer, W., 21, 80, 81
Temperamentum,17
Terence, 36, 37, 92, 94
Tertullian,22, 79
Terzaghi, N., 82
Theocritus, 10, 68, 91
Theognis, 30, 67, 90
Theophrastus,9, 18, 35, 38, 39, 41, 51
Thersites, 22, 36, 40, 58, 59, 67, 68, 80
Theseus, 32, 64, 69
Thetis, 66
Thompson,D. W., 23, 25
Thompson,E. A., 75
Thracians,6, 11, 20, 75
Thrasymachus,40
Thucydides,6, 46
Tiberius, Emperor, 49, 50, 52, 53, 55, 56,
65
Tibullus, 91
Timocrates, 11, 13, 24
Timotheus of Athens, 51
Titus, Emperor,52, 53
Tortelli, G., 58
Townend, G. B., 52
Trajan, Emperor, 11, 44, 49, 51
Tredennick,H., 7
Tropos, 40
Truci ziultu,6, 59
Tyrtaeus, 90
Ussher, R. G., 39
Valerius Flaccus, 89, 90
Valerius Maximus, 50, 92, 93
Van Hook, L. R., 34
Van Wageningen,J., 17, 18
Varro, 51
Velleius Paterculus,92, 93
Verres, 44
Vir bonus,83
Virgil, 6, 28, 31, 32, 33, 63, 64, 65, 66, 89,
90, 91
De Viris Illutstribus,93
Vitruvius, 20
Von Premerstein,A., 12
Vultus, 29, 41
Wace, H., 79
Walbank, F. W., 47
Walsh, J., 24
Waszink, J. H., 22
Watts, N. H., 43, 44
Webster, T. B. L., 37, 38, 39
Well proportionedbody (MfOma
Trb)uIeTpov),
53
Wells, J., 46
Wilamowitz-M6ellendorf,U. von, 35
Wilcken, U., 39
William of Conches,19
Wingate, S. D., 17
Wolfson, H. A., 81
Wright, W. C., 77, 80
Xenophanes,67
Xenophon,20, 21, 27, 45, 46
Zeno, 11, 26, 27, 51
Zeus, 60, 82
Zoilus, 72
Zopyrus,6, 10, 13, 42, 43