I’ve used this for a previous site on magic, and thought that it would be a pity to lose all the work done by other students on this, so I will use it again and update links and reorganize.
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Expanded: Problems of Theocritus Regarding the Perception of the Child Killing Demon
The concept of daemons and daemonology within Greco-Roman antiquity is extremely complex. Not only are the sources on daemons limited, but the descriptions of these figures is brief and short-lived. Portrayals of daemons are inconsistent across time and cultures and may even vary between individuals. With all the difficulties associated with this topic, I conclude that it is much too challenging to write a broad overarching research paper about daemons and have decided it is much more useful to discuss a single kind of daemon or demon. Doing so, my paper may remain less frustrating and allow it to possibly fall into the domains of how demons and daemons were actually perceived in antiquity.
After countless hours of research on daemons, I have chosen to write about the origins and perceptions of the child-killing demons in Greco-Roman antiquity. My scope of focus remains in the Mediterranean world, including Ancient Rome and Greece, but may also extend to places in the Near East depending on where the origin of the demon takes me. Additionally, now that my essay has a specific subject, I may be able to track the child-killing demon across time. In addition to tracing the origins of the child-killing demons, I aim to find different types of these demons and how they may relate to one another. Lastly, my final objective is to find an explanation as to what the purpose of having the concept of this demon within society. What may be the benefits of possessing knowledge of such a demon and why it exists in the first place?
Expanded: The Annals of Tacitus & the Depiction of the Witch
In building the image of the Roman witch, the extant sources provide an abundance of literary motifs and evidence. Authors such as Lucan, Seneca and Horace have all contributed to the crafting of the classical witch. Yet, while these narratives are great sources for my research, they are literary in nature, and thus problematic in some areas – as many motifs associated to the witch may be used solely for dramatic purposes. The Annals of Tacitus offer an opposing, and unique, perspective into the depiction of the Roman witch. Written as a historical narrative, his coverage from the reign of Tiberius to the reign of Nero gives modern scholars insight into a politically tumultuous period during the Roman Empire. Tacitus’ recount of the use of magic as a means for political attack is absolutely fascinating. However, it is his reconstruction of women and magic that provides a potential construction of a real-life ‘witch’. Through an analysis of the accusations of artes magicae laid against these women, Tacitus also indirectly speaks to a socio-cultural theme of associating women with dark magic. However, in as much as his narrative provides, it also presents a few areas of difficulty; namely, he serves as a reminder that obtaining a unified image of the Roman witch from both the fictional and non-fictional evidence is nearly impossibly and furthermore, his inherent bias towards women and the hackneyed use of magical accusations in our ancient sources do not lend favour to the credibility of his work.
To begin, my area of research focuses on the association of women and dark magic – and what social and cultural phenomena are taking place that are giving rise to this association. My focus is both in the earlier Roman Imperial period (1st century BCE – 1st century CE) and the early European period. By comparing and contrasting these two periods, I hope to be able to shed light on some common social themes – or differences – that took place in both periods that gave rise to women as witches. One of my objectives is to build a culturally specific image of witch in both the early Roman imperial and the early European period by combining the literary evidence with legal and historical documentation. In this objective, Tacitus proves to be an invaluable source for my research
In Tacitus’ Annals, there are many accounts relating charges of magic with women. Two such women I wish to focus on are Munatia Plancina and Aemilia Lepida. In the former, Plancina is accused – alongside her husband Gnaeus Piso – of the poisoning of Germanicus. Tacitus recounts the poisoning and subsequent death of Germanicus in Book 2.69-88 and lists many of the items linked to witchcraft; leaden tablets with Germanicus’ name, remains of human bodies, blood-smeared ashes, spells and curses were all discovered under the floorboards of Germanicus’ house (2.69). In Book 3, he recounts the charges of magic laid against Piso and Plancina. Among such charges are the accusation of assisting in “black arts”, and performing “blasphemous rites and sacrifices” after the death of Germanicus (3.13). Early in his narrative, Tacitus mentions Plancina’s ‘beloved’ friendship with Martina – a famous provincial poisoner (2.74). Later on, he explains that the only witness to prove Plancina’s involvement in Germanicus’ death – Martina – is herself killed when poison is wrapped up in her hair, giving the implicit suggestion that it was Plancina who committed this (3.7).
In the case of Lepida, amongst other charges, Tacitus tells us that she is accused of venena against her ex-hubsand, Quirinius, of feigning to be a mother, of poisonings, of adultery and of seeking out the advice of Chaldean astrologers (3.22).
In case those of you working on demons haven’t seen it, here is an older article that has some interesting sources on the medical side: Smith, Wesley D.. “So-called Possession in Pre-christian Greece”. Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 96 (1965): 403–426.
Table Talk on the Evil Eye
The topic of my research paper is on the phenomenon of the Evil Eye. The most useful source that I have come across in my research is from Plutarch’s Moralia, written in the late first century CE. More specifically, the passage that I am using comes from book eight, Table Talk. Table Talk is an account portraying several dinner conversations among a group of wise men. The seventh question that is presented to the group is devoted to the topic “concerning those who are said to cast an Evil Eye”. This passage is the fullest discussion from antiquity on the Evil Eye that I have found so far. It covers a broad range of the Evil Eye’s features, how it works and measures that are taken to avert it.
Plutarch’s discussion brings up several key aspects that are associated with the Evil Eye. This includes that children are the most vulnerable to its power, casters can be either intentional or unintentional; that envy is the source of its power, and amulets can be used to avert its gaze. These are fairly standard features that I have come across in other sources I have found. Aspects that were new to my research is that people could cast Evil Eye on themselves, fathers were at a huge risk of casting it upon their babies, and that someone in an envious state can cast the Evil Eye upon anyone. These are just some of the Evil Eye features that come from Plutarch.
Magic & the Law: Apuleius’ Apology
In my paper I am researching legal cases containing accusations of magic in the Roman Imperial period. One of the sources I am looking at is Apuleius’ Apology. When looking at this source I am focusing on the question: how is it that this situation could come about and what does that imply about magic and the law during the Imperial period?
As we discussed in class, Apuleius finds himself put on trial with accusations of magic. He is accused of using love magic to seduce his wife Pudentilla into marrying him. Her father-in-law and rest of her family had wanted to keep her fortune within their family and thus are upset by the turnout of events and have taken him to court with these accusations. We don’t actually know the outcome of the trial, but his speech is so convincing, by highlighting the absurdity of the charges, that most scholars agree that he must have been acquitted.
This source is important because it is the only surviving example of a speech from a magic trial in the ancient world. Thus it is valuable in providing us with an example of both accusations of magic and the way in which someone could possibly go about defending themselves against these charges. It contains important aspects of social history and the way in which magic was viewed and could be used as accusations in a legal trial.
Nestor’s Cup: Curse or Joke?
It has been suggested that the mass amount of curse tablets found throughout the Greek and Roman worlds stem from a far earlier oral tradition of magic (Eidinow 141; Faraone 82-83). Literary evidence, such as Aeschylus’ Eumenides and the Greek Magical Papyri, point to this oral tradition. Our earliest curse tablets for binding spells appear in Selinous, Sicily in either the late sixth or early fifth century BCE. However, earlier than this we have a few extant examples of written magic in the form of what are called ‘conditional curses’ (Eidinow 141).
‘Conditional curses’ “are intended to discourage those who are planning to do a crime” (Eidinow 140) often by stating that something (bad) will happen to the reader if they do something that the curser does not want them to do (e.g. “if you do X, then X”).
Possibly the earliest example of these conditional curses, as well as of Greek writing in general, is the so-called ‘Nestor’s Cup’ (Faraone 77). In 1954 during excavations of the late eighth century BCE necropolis in the Euboean colony of Pithekoussai, fragments of an unassuming proto-Corinthian cup with a three-line inscription were found in the grave of a cremated youth (Faraone 77).
This short verse is usually reconstructed as:
Νέστορός : ε[ίμ]ι : εὔποτ[ον] : ποτέριον :
hός δ’ άν τοδε πίεσι : ποτερί[ο] : αυτίκα κενον
hίμερος hαιρέσει : καλλιστε[φά]νου Ἀφροδίτες.
I am the cup of Nestor, good for drinking / Whoever drinks from this cup, desire for beautifully / crowned Aphrodite will seize him instantly (Faraone 78)
The Problems with Theocritus
The topic that I decided to write about for my term paper was daemons and daemonology. Although my thesis is only in its infancy, I have explored a number of sources that portray how demons are perceived across Greco-Roman antiquity. A problematic but also useful source I have come across is the fifteenth Idyll by Theocritus.
Idyll 15 accounts a mime scene in Alexandria describing Theocritus’s companions in a Festival of Adonis. In this scene, Gorgo pays a visit to Praxinoa with her two-year old child and asks her to attend the Festival of Adonis with her in the palace of Ptolemy II. Hesitant at first, Praxinoa gives in to an insisting Gorgo and they set out to the Festival. After some sundry encounters in the crowded streets, they arrive at the palace and the scene ends with a dirge that describes the setting of the festival.
A significant problem with this primary text is that little is known about the life of Theocritus apart from what can be implied in his writings. He was likely born during the 3rd century BC on the island of Sicily. Interestingly, we know this because he called the cyclops Polyphemus as his countryman. He also may have lived in Alexandria during the reign of Ptolemy II or Syracuse or Cos where he flourished and wrote many of his poems. Additionally, since so little is known about him, we are unsure if we Theocritus even wrote all of the Idylls’. This poses a problem because the very author is disputed, along with the background and setting that may be important to my paper topic.
Horace Epode 5: Making a love potion, fact and fiction.
One of the main problems with studying love potions from the ancient world is that clearly we lack a physical love potion to study. Further complicating matters is the fact that we also don’t have a serious written account describing how to make a love potion. Instead, we have stories of the disastrous effects of love potions on their targets, or hyperbolic tails of their creation by evil witches. This post will discuss one of the later, an exaggerated story from Horace’s fifth Epode describing the creation of a love potion by four witches.
If we are to read the poem as an actual account of how one might go about making a love potion, it is a horrific process indeed, with the dried liver and marrow of a young boy from a wealthy family being the main ingredient. The boy’s body parts would have to be imbued with a sense of longing or fierce hunger by burying him naked up to his neck in the earth, and placing an enticing meal just out of his reach, with the food being changed a few times per day. We would also conclude that an extravagant ceremony would go along with the preparation of the main ingredients, including burning a variety of magical objects, purifying the house with water and an elaborate but surprisingly colloquial prayer to Night and Diana.
Of course, it is a mistake to read this poem as accurately recounting how to go about creating a love potion. Although some elements of the magic involved could have been a part of this process, the literary genre casts doubt on forming solid conclusions from the poem.
Tacitus’ Annals and the death of Germanicus – Uses and abuses of magical plot devices
The account of Germanicus’ death offers a number of valuable insights into the nature of Tacitus’ approach to writing history. It is a key example of how he chooses to draw attention to the political climate in Rome during the time of the early Principate (or at least his interpretation of it), the manner in which he constructs his characters as movers and shakers within his greater narrative, and, most importantly (to me), he identifies the manner in which certain players chose to press their advantage. His (admittedly brief) account of the use of magic and poison in the political realm as tools to dispose of rivals (Tac. Ann.2.69) is of particular interest. Yet, as with everything written by Tacitus, this account may very likely be part of a larger agenda, intended to elucidate his own insinuations of what the greater picture might have been.
Consequently, the use of magic in the death of Germanicus as well as the accusations of such deeds directed against Piso and his associates might be nothing more than mere plot devices. The moral history of Tacitus harks back to Republican values amidst the predominance of Imperial rule, creating a complex construction of the qualities Tacitus associated with Rome’s political systems of Republic and Empire. Christopher Pelling proposes that Tacitus presents Germanicus as an embodiment of the tension that existed in the early Principate – he is a man who does not “fit naturally into the seething jealousies” that emerge under the one-man rule of the emperor, and who remains “distinctively connected to the past” (Pelling, 2012, p. 299). As Germanicus falls victim to the political machinations of his enemies, who did not hesitate to use magic and poison, and subject him to “the worst of deaths” (Tac. Ann. 2.71), Tacitus emphasizes the ruthlessness that had emerged under the new political system. This interpretation of Tacitus’ work as a characterization of the people and the times makes it difficult to assess the extent to which magic was considered to be a real political threat.