!

the islanders and Ionians hold fimilar affemblies,
introducing the fame two names in their hymns.
This Olen was a native of Lycia, who composed
other ancient hymns in ufe at Delos. When the
thighs of the victims are confumed on the altar,
the afhes are collected and scattered over the tomb
of Opis and Argis. This tomb is behind the temple
of Diana, facing the eaft, and near the place where
the Ceians celebrate their festivals.

XXXVI. On this fubject of the Hyperboreans
we have spoken fufficiently at large, for the ftory of
Abaris 45, who was faid to be an Hyperborean,
and to have made a circuit of the earth with-

out

who declared the oracles of Apollo. The inhabitants of Delphi
chaunted the hymns which he compofed for them. In one of his
hymns he called Ilithya the mother of Love; in another he
affirmed that Juno was educated by the Hours, and was the
mother of Mars and Hebe.-Larcher.

The word Olen was properly an Ægyptian facred term, and
expreffed Olen, Olenus, Ailinus, and Linus, but is of un-
known meaning. We read of Olenium fidus, Olenia capella,
and the like.

Nafcitur Oleniæ fidus pluviale capella. Ovid.

A facred ftone in Elis was called Petra Olenia. If then
this Olen, ftyled an Hyperborean, came from Lycia and Ægypt,
it makes me perfuaded of what I have often fufpected, that
the term Hyperborean is not of that purport which the Grecians
have affigned to it. There were people of this family from the
north, and the name has been distorted, and adapted folely to
people of thofe parts. But there were Hyperboreans from the
eaft, as we find in the hiftory of Olen.-See Bryant farther on
this fubject, vol. iii. 492-3.

45 Abaris.]-Jamblicus fays of this Abaris, that he was the
difciple

192

208

221

41

56

149

out food, and carried on an arrow 46, merits no
attention. As there are Hyperboreans, or in 2
habitants of the extreme parts of the north, one
would fuppofe there ought, alfo to be Hyper-
notians, or inhabitants of the correfponding parts
of the fouth. For my own part I cannot but
think it exceedingly ridiculous to hear fome
men talk of the circumference of the earth, pre-
tending, without the fmalleft reafon or proba-
bility, that the ocean encompaffes the earth; that
the earth is round, as if mechanically formed fo; and
that Afia is equal to Europe. I will, therefore,
concisely describe the figure and the fize of each of
thefe portions of the earth.

XXXVII. The region occupied by the Perfians
extends fouthward to the Red Sea; beyond thefe
to the north are the Medes, next to them are the
Sapirians. Contiguous to the Sapirians, and where
the Phafis empties itself into the Northern Sea, are
the Colchians. These four nations occupy the space
between the two feas.

disciple of Pythagoras; fome fay he was older than Solon; he
foretold earthquakes, plagues, &c. Authors differ much as to
the time of his coming into Greece: Harpocration fays it was
in the time of Crofus.-T.

45 On an arrow.] —There is a fragment preserved in the Anecdota Graca, a tranflation of which Larcher gives in his notes, which throws much light upon this fingular paffage; it is this: a famine having made its appearance amongst the Hyperboreans, Abaris went to Greece, and entered into the service of Apollo. The deity taught him to declare oracles. In confequence of this, he travelled through Greece, declaring oracles, having in his hand an arrow, the fymbol of Apollo-T.

XXXVIII. From hence to the weft two tracts of land ftretch themselves towards the fea, which I fhall describe: The one on the north fide commences at the Phasis, and extends to the sea along the Euxine and the Hellefpont, as far as the Sigeum of Troy. On the fouth fide it begins at the Marandynian bay, contiguous to Phoenicia, and is tinued to the fea as far the Triopian promontory; this fpace of country is inhabited by thirty different

nations.

XXXIX. The other district commences in Perfia, and is continued to the Red Sea 47. Befides Perfia, it comprehends Affyria and Arabia, naturally terminating in the Arabian Gulph, into which Darius introduced 48 a channel of the Nile. The interval from Perfia to Phoenicia is very extensive. From Phoenica it again continues beyond Syria of Paleftine, as far as Egypt, where it terminates.

-47 The Red Sea.]-It is neceffary to be obferved, that not only the Arabian Gulph was known by this name, but also the Perfian Gulph and the Southern Ocean, that is to fay, that vast tract of fea which lies between the two gulphs.-Larcher.

What Herodotus calls the Erythrean Sea, he carefully distinguishes from the Arabian Gulph.

Both Herodotus and Agathemenus induftriously distinguish the Erythrean Sea from the Arabian Gulph, though the latter was certainly fo called, and had the name of Erythrean. The Parthic empire, which included Perfis, is by Pliny faid to be bounded to the fouth by the Mare Rubrum, which was the Boundary alfo of the Perfians: by Mare Rubrum he here means the great fouthern fea.-Bryant.

48 Darius introduced.]-See book the second, chap. 158.

The

110

The whole of this region is occupied by three nations only. Such is the divifion of Afia from Perfia weftward.

213

XL. To the east beyond Perfia, Media, the Sapinians and Colchians, the country is bounded by the Red Sea; to the north by the Cafpian and the river Araxes, which directs its courfe towards the east. As far as India, Afia is well inhabited; but from India eastward the whole country is one vaft defert, unknown and unexplored.

XLI. The fecond tract comprehends Libya, which begins where Ægypt ends. About Ægypt the country is very narrow. One hundred thousand orgyiæ, or one thousand stadia, comprehend the fpace between this and the Red Sea 49. Here the country expands, and takes the name of Libya.

XLII. I am much furprized at those who have divided and defined the limits of Libya, Afia, and Europe, betwixt which the difference is far from fmall. Europe, for inftance, in length much exceeds the other two, but is of far inferior breadth:

49 This and the Red Sea.]-Here we muft neceffarily under, ftand the ifthmus between the Mediterranean and the Arabian Gulph or Red Sea. Heredotus fays, book ii. chap. 158, that the shortest way betwixt one fea and the other was one thousand ftadia. Agrippa fays, on the authority of Pliny, that from Pe lufium to Arfinöe on the Red Sea was one hundred and twentyfive miles, which comes to the fame thing, that author always reckoning eight ftadia to a mile.-Larcher,

1

411

412

except in that particular part which is contiguous to Afia, the whole of Africa is furrounded by the fea. The first person who has proved this, was, as far as we are able to judge, Necho king of Egypt. When he had defifted from his attempt to join by a canal the Nile with the Arabian Gulph, he dif patched fome veffels 50, under the conduct of Phonicians, with directions to pafs by the columns of Hercules, and after penetrating the Northern Ocean to return to Ægypt. Thefe Phoenicians, taking their courfe from the Red Sea, entered into the Southern Ocean: on the approach of autumn they landed in Libya, and planted fome corn in the place where they happened to find themselves; when this was ripe, and they had cut it down, they again

50 Difpatched fome vefels.This Necho is the fame who in fcripture is called Pharaoh Necho. He made an attempt to join the Nile and the Red Sea, by drawing a canal from the one to the other; but after he had confumed an hundred and twenty thontand men in the work, he was forced to defift from it. But he had better fuccefs in another undertaking; for having got ten fome of the experteft Phoenician, failors into his fervice, he fent them out by the Red Sea, through the ftraits of Babelmandel, to discover the coafts of Africa, who having failed round it came home the third year through the ftraits of Gibraltar and the Mediterranean Sea, which was a very extraordinary voyage to be made in those days, when the ufe of the loadstone was not known. This voyage was performed about two thousand one hundred years before Vafquez de Gama, a Portugueze, by dif covering the Cape of Good Hope in 1497, found out the fame way from hence to the Indies by which these Phoenicians came from thence. Since that it hath been made the common paffage thither from all these western parts of the world.—Prideaux.

departed.