Coloneus, which he had then lately composed; whereupon he was acquitted. CHAP. XVI. Of their Times of Eating. THE following account of the Grecian entertainments may not unfitly be divided into five parts, wherein shall be described, First, The times of eating. Secondly, The several sorts and occasions of entertainments. Thirdly, The materials whereof those entertainments consisted. Fourthly, The ceremonies before entertainments. Fifthly, The ceremonies at entertainments. As for the times of eating, they, according to Athenæus, were four every day. 1. Angátioμa, the morning meal, so termed because it was customary at this time to eat pieces of bread dipped in wine unmixed with water, which in Greek is called xgator. This meal is by Homer called agisor, which name was either derived ò T Tig, from its being first taken away; or rather gs, because the heroes immediately went to the war from this meal, and there valiantly behaved themselves, as we are informed by the scholiast on that author; who likewise tells us that the time of this meal was about the rising of the sun. Sometimes it was termed divsioμòs, jentaculum, breakfast. 2. Avoy, so named, as the same scholiast was of opinion, because after this meal da vy, it was usual to return to the war, or other labours, whence τῷ ἀρισῳ συνωνυμεῖ. It sometimes is synonymous to ἄριτον, being taken for the morning meal, as Athenæus hath observed from the following verse of Homer, in which the heroes are said to have put on their armour after the diπvor Οἱ δ ̓ ἄρα δειπνον ἵλοντ', ἀπὸ δ' αὐτῷ θωρήσσοντο. 3. Δειλινόν, sometimes also termed εσπέρισμα, the afternoon meal. 4. Δόρπος, the supper, τὸ καθ ̓ ἡμᾶς λεγόμενον δεῖπνον, which afterwards, among the later Grecians, was termed dvov, according to the fore-mentioned scholiast, who will have dignos to be so named from ἰαύερπος, that neal being eaten ὅταν εἰς τὸ ἰαύειν πορευώμεθα, Cicero de Senectute, Auctor vitæ Sophoclis, Aristophanis Scholiastes ad Ranas. $ Lib. i. cap. 9. the last before we go to sleep. Philemon, as he is cited by Athenæus, thus enumerates the times of eating: 1. 'Axgatioμa. 2. "Agisor" 3. Eoxigioμa. 4. ATTY. But the fore-mentioned scholiast, with whom most other authors agree as to this particular, reports, gir τροφαῖς τοὺς παλαιές χρῆσθαι, that the ancient Greeks had only three meals a-day, and leaves out the third meal, called do. And they who have made δειλινόν, or ἑσπέρισμα, to be a distinct meal from the digos, seem to have had no better foundation for that distinction than that verse of Homer, · σὺ δ ̓ ἔρχει δειςλιήσα;. where the word dusλcas, by a mistaken interpretation, was understood of taking meat; whereas it was only meant of abiding or remaining in a certain place in the afternoon. And this sense of that passage was, in the opinion of Athenæus, so certain, that in another place u he pronounces those men to be γελοίες, οἱ φάσκοντες ὅτι τίσσαρας ἐλάμβανον τροφάς ridiculous, who say that the ancient Greeks used to eat four meals a-day. Others are of opinion, that the primitive Greeks had only two meals a-day, viz. άgisor and dogos, and that the rest are only different names of these. Athenæus himself affirms, that no man can be produced παρὰ τῷ ποιητῇ τρὶς λαμβάνων τροφάς eating thrice a-day in Homer. Neither is it to be doubted but that in those early ages the way of living was very frugal and temperate; and it was thought sufficient if they had a moderate breakfast, and, after the business and labour of the day was over, refreshed themselves with a plentiful meal; whence Plato wondered that the Sicilians and Italians should eat two plentiful meals every day; and amongst the Grecians it was accounted extravagance to breakfast or dine to the full; neither was it thought convenient by Cicero the Roman ", bis in die saturum fieri, twice a-day to eat to the full; and so temperate were the ancient Romans, that viles et rusticos cibos ante ipsos focos sumserunt, cosque ipsos capere nisi ad vesperam non licuit, they lived upon very mean food, and used not to allow themselves that till the evening; whence Isidorus, explaining the words cana and vesperna, whereby the supper or evening meal is signified, adds, that in usu non erant prandia, dinners were not used. u Lib. v. cap. 4. ▾ Loco citato. w Tusculan. Quæst. v. y Originibus. CHAP. XVII. Of the several Sorts of Entertainments. IN the primitive ages, if we may believe Athenæus, ãra ovμxeoly συναγωγὴ τὴν αἰτίαν εἰς Θεὸν ἀνέφερε, all meetings at entertainments were occasioned by their devotion to the gods; neither was it usual either to indulge themselves with the free use of wines or dainties, εἰ μὴ θεῶν ἕνεκα τ8το δρῶνται, unless they did it on a religious account, as the same author affirms; for on festival days they used to rest from their labours, and to live more plentifully than at other times, believing, in the words of Ovid, that the gods were present at their tables on such occasions : -mense credere adesse Deos b. And out of this opinion, τάς ἑορτὰς σωφρόνως καὶ κοσμίως διήγον, they behaved themselves with sobriety and decency at their festival entertainments; neither did they drink to excess; but having moderately refreshed themselves, offered a libation to the gods, and then returned home, as we are again informed by Athenæus c. Afterwards, when a more free way of living was in use, we find mention of three sorts of entertainments, viz. siλaniv', gáμcos, and gavos, which are all together enumerated in that verse of Ho mer: Eiλaxiv, nì yápos, ixè ¿x ¡gavos rà di y' isív. Whence there are commonly said to have been three distinct sorts of entertainments among the ancient Grecians; but these may be reduced to two, εἰλαπίνη and ἔρανος, under one of which, γάμος, the marriage entertainment, may be comprehended. The first of these (εἰλαπίνη) is sometimes termed εὐωχία, and ἀσύμβολον δεῖπνον, and was an entertainment provided at the expence of one man: on the contrary, gavos was an entertainment made at the common charge of all present, being so named ἀπὸ τῇ συνερῶν καὶ συμφέρειν ἕκα soy, because every man contributed his proportion, as we learn from Athenæus, who likewise reports that this entertainment was sometimes terned θίασος hence the guests were called συνθιασῶται, who are more commonly named igavisai. What each of the guests contributed was termed συμφορὰ, εἰσφορὰ, καταβολή, συμβολή, δίc. whence the entertainment was named δεῖπνον συμφορητόν, συμβολιμαῖον, c Lib. viii. cap. 16. sub finem. ἀπὸ συμβολῆς, καταβόλιον. Sometimes it was called τὸ ἐκ κοινᾶ, &c. At Argos they called the contribution by a particular name, x~v. The persons who collected the contributions were called by the same name with the guests, igavisaı. Hither may be referred δεῖπνον συναγώγιμον, mentioned in the Fragments of Alexis, which is by Menander termed vayo. Both names are derived from cuvάye, which, by a particular use, signified μ λ ív, to drink together. But whether this entertainment was the same with gavos, Athenæus has professed himself uncertain. Here must also be mentioned δεῖπνα ἐπιδόσιμα, or ἐξ ἐπιδομάτων, entertainments wherein some of the guests contributed more than their exact proportion; to do which is termed indidova. To this place also must be reduced rò áñò añugídos, in Latin called e sportula cana: ὅταν τις αὐτὸς αὑτῷ σκευάσας δεῖπνον, καὶ συνθεὶς εἰς σπυρίδα, παρά τινα δειπνήσων ἴη, when any man having provided his own supper, puts it into a basket, and goes to eat it at another's house, as we learn from Athenæus f. Different from this was the Roman sportula, which was an alms received by clients from their rich patrons, in a basket of that name, whereof we have frequent mention in Juvenal, Martial, and the histories of the Roman emperors. This custom is also mentioned by Hesychius, who tells us, that ἀπὸ σπυρίδος δειπνεῖν signifies τὸ ἀντὶ τῇ δείπνε ἀργύριον καὶ μέρη ἐν σπυριδι λαβεῖν, to receive in a basket a piece of silver, or fragments of meat instead of a supper. Which explication of that expression, though rather taken from the writers of the Roman than Grecian affairs, gave occasion to the mistake of Meursius, who, in his learned Commentary upon Lycophron, confounds the Grecian augis with the sportula of Rome. The gavo being provided at less expence than other entertainments, wherein one person sustained the whole charge, were generally most frequented, and are recommended by the wise men of those times, as most apt to promote friendship and good neighbourhood; whence Hesiod has left this advice: Μηδὲ πολυξείνα δαιτὸς δυσπέμφελος εἶναι Εκ κοινό πλάση τε χάρις δαπάνη τ' ὀλιγίση. They were also for the most part managed with more order and decency, φειδωλῶς ἤσθιον ὡς τὰ πολλὰ οἱ ἐρανισαὶ, ὡς ἂν ἴδιον ἐσθίοντες ἕκατος, because the guests, who only eat of their own collation, were & Oper. et Dier. lib. ii. v. 340, Sub finem. lib. viii. f Loco citato. usually more sparing than when they were feasted at another man's expence, as we are informed by Eustathius; who has also in the same place mentioned several other customs at the Grecian entertainments, which do not much differ from those already described from other authors. And so different was the behaviour at their public feasts from that at private entertainments, that Minerva in Homer, having seen the intemperance and unseemly actions of Penelope's courtiers, concludes their entertainment was not eaves, provided at the common charge, but siλaziv', or yάpos, and furnished at the expences of a single person i: Εἰλαπὶν, ἢ γάμος, ἐπεὶ ἐκ ἔρανος τὰ δέ γ' ἐσὶν, Ωσί μοι ὑβρίζοντες ὑπερφιάλως δοκέωσι Δαίνυσθαι κατὰ δῶμα· νεμεσσήσαιτό κεν ἀνὴρ γε μετέλθοι. Pains the sage ear, and hurts the sober eye. POPE. They who were present without contributing towards the entertainment were termed arbono, in which condition were poets and singers, and others who made diversion for the company: whence that saying of Antiphanes in Athenæus i : Ακαπνα γὰρ ἀεὶ ἀοιδοὶ θύομεν. We singers always feast without smoke. For änava Jú, to feast or kill without smoke, is a proverbial phrase for such as partake of entertainments without the charge and trouble of providing them: whence in Leonides's epigram to Cæsar, there was this expression : Καλλιόπης γὰρ ἄκαπνον ἀὲ θύος. Calliope always kills without smoke. Whereby it is meant, that the muses and their favourites, are always entertained at other men's expence: hence μλos is sometimes taken for an useless person, who is maintained by other men, and contributes nothing towards the charge: an example whereof we find in Plutarch, where he relates the celebrated fable of Menenius Agrippa, in which the rest of the members are said to accuse the belly, ὡς μόνης ἀργέ εὶ ἀσυμβόλε καθεζομένω, that when they all had some use or employment, she alone remained idle, and contributed nothing to the common service. h Commentario in Odyss, á. p. 50. edit. Basil. i Odyss. ú. v. 226. k Coriolano. |